South Africa: EPWP participants challenged to advance themselves

The Executive Mayor of Thaba Chweu Local Municipality, Friddah Nkadimeng, has challenged Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) participants to use the skills they receive from the programme to set up businesses and create job opportunities for others.

Nkadimeng made the remarks during a graduation ceremony of EPWP participants, who completed training in landscaping.

The 20 learners are responsible for the upkeep, beautification and maintenance of parks and cemeteries around Thaba Chweu in Mpumalanga.

"Now that you have the skills from this training, we want you to look beyond employment... We want you to see yourselves as business owners, who can contribute to the creation of work for other people," Nkadimeng said.

She said once they have set up businesses, participants can look for projects with various State and private entities.

Nkadimeng also commended the participants for their assistance in keeping the municipality clean, adding that their work contributes to local tourism.

Your work is instrumental in the cleaning, beautification, and upkeep of municipal facilities, such as parks and cemeteries. You have all made us proud and I wish you well for the future," Nkadimeng said.

The graduation ceremony was attended by senior government officials from various entities, including the Nelspruit Regional Office of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).

DPWI Manager for Training, Fela Mashaba, thanked the municipality for partnering with the department to implement the project.

Mashaba said the training is accredited by the Agriculture Sector Education and Training Authority at National Qualification Framework (NQF) Level 3, and offered by JNV Landscaping and Training.

"What is great about this training is that the learners' records will be registered on the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) national learner database. This will enable them to progress with their studies, should they wish to.

The training was funded by the Department of Higher Education and Training, through the National Skills Fund (NSF).

"While on training, the learners received a daily allowance of R102 to cover food and transportation - this is in addition to the monthly stipend they are receiving from the municipality," Mashaba highlighted.

During the training, learners received theoretical, practical, and on-the-job training.

The Certificate in Landscaping training covered a range of modules, including:

How to mow and dethatch grass;

The safe way to cut grass using different equipment;

How to prune shrubs and trees;

How to apply biological and chemical control of alien invader plants. This training also focused on how to identify and control alien invader plants, as well as how to identify indigent plants to replace invasive plants; and

Health and safety in horticulture.

The municipalitys Acting Director for Corporate Affairs, Ms Magagula, encouraged participants to further their studies to become experts in their field.

"We wish for you to use this training as a foundation for your academic journey. It might not be easy. You need to push your way to the top. As a municipality, we congratulate you for your achievement today," Magagula said.

JNV Landscaping and Training Managing Director, Vhutshilo Madzunye, commended the learners for performing well.

"Through this training, we have given you a skill that you can use to provide for yourselves. As the Mayor pointed out - go out there and make something of yourselves. Use this training to enter the business sector and create opportunities for fellow citizens," Madzunye said.

Madzunye said they remain committed to working with the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) and the municipality to train more EPWP learners in future.

One of the participants, Lerato Mnisi, commended all role players who assisted them with both training and work opportunities.

The training has given us skills that we can use both in the workplace and at home. The skills we have acquired from the training will help us to make money for ourselves.

"We wish to thank the municipality for providing us with an opportunity to be part of the EPWP. To both DPWI and JNV Landscaping and Training, we are thankful for the skills you have given us through this training," Mnisi said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-05-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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A 21-year-old Lincoln man who is a junior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln was charged Friday with the alleged first-degree sexual assault of a 20-year-old woman earlier this month in an apartment south of campus, according to court filings.

Evan Mielak, a software engineering student, is accused of sexually assaulting the woman as she lay on the bathroom floor of the apartment following a night of drinking April 7, Lincoln Police Investigator Tyler Nitz said in the probable cause statement for Mielak's arrest.

The 20-year-old immediately reported the assault to a relative and, a week later, to police, according to the court filings.

She also confronted Mielak about the alleged assault in a phone call Monday as investigators recorded the conversation, Nitz said.

Police on Wednesday arrested Mielak at his address in Lincoln and took him to the Lancaster County jail.

He made his initial court appearance Friday afternoon.

The Lancaster County Attorney's Office charged him Friday with first-degree sexual assault of an incompetent person  the charge prosecutors generally pursue when accusers are under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the alleged assault.

If convicted of the class 2 felony, Mielak could face up to 50 years in prison.

At the 21-year-old's initial court appearance, Deputy Lancaster County Attorney Jason Cooper asked Judge Laurie Yardley to set his percentage bond at $500,000.

But Mielak's attorney, Mona Burton, argued for a lower bond, pointing to the fact that Mielak has no prior criminal history and noting his status as a Regents Scholar at UNL.

Yardley set his percentage bond at $100,000, meaning he must pay $10,000 to be released, and ordered him to stay away from the apartment complex and his accuser.

"He shouldn't go anywhere near that apartment or the victim in this case," she said.

UNL maintains a comprehensive list of campus and local resources for sexual assault survivors on its website, including information on how to report sexual assaults to both law enforcement and the school's Title IX office.
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Over a year after a scandal rocked the Nebraska Legislature, lawmakers adopted a handful of changes to its workplace harassment policy, although some say there's still more work to be done.

The Legislature's Executive Board voted unanimously Wednesday to adopt six changes to the harassment policy and one change to its leave of absence policy. One change makes clear that officials don't have a "reasonable expectation of privacy" regarding improper use of the Legislature's technology or network.

The changes were developed after the revelation that former Sen. Mike Groene took photos of a former female staff member without her knowledge. Soon after, Groene resigned from the Legislature, and a later investigation found that Groenes conduct was boorish, brainless and bizarre, although not unlawful.

The scandal spurred the creation of an interim ethics committee, which was tasked with considering ways to prevent such misconduct in the future.

The committee was comprised of six lawmakers, chaired by then-Speaker of the Legislature Mike Hilgers, who is now Nebraskas attorney general. Hilgers said the committee met half a dozen times during 2022, along with two meetings with an ad hoc committee of legislative staffers.

The ethics committee approved 11 official recommendations to the Executive Board, including a list of proposed policy changes, additional harassment training for all staff, a formal code of conduct, a social media policy and establishing an independent general counsel to work with the Legislature in the event of conduct or ethics complaints.

Of the 11 recommendations, the board on Wednesday approved two dealing with workplace harassment policy. Executive Chair Tom Briese of Albion said the board would likely meet in the future to consider more of the committee's recommendations.

The approved recommendations call for notifying employees who file complaints about the options available to them outside the Legislature's policy, including reporting to law enforcement, and clarify that they have the right to go public with their complaints at any time.

The other approved changes were recommended by attorney Tara Paulson, who led the investigation into Groene's conduct. Her changes were mostly related to inappropriate use of technology, including allowing forensic searches of personal or legislative technology when relevant to an investigation. She also recommended that complainants be able to request a paid leave of absence.

Board members largely praised the proposed changes. Speaker of the Legislature John Arch said he specifically appreciated the clarification about the use of electronics, saying the previous lack of clarity made things difficult while investigating the Groene allegations.

"There was a lot of unknowns because nothing was clear," Arch said.

Sen. Julie Slama of Dunbar backed the change that provides paid leave for complainants. However, she also argued lawmakers could go further.

Under the current policy, she noted, there are only three ways to punish a lawmaker for misconduct: a formal condemnation, censure or expulsion. She said other options should exist.

"I just don't feel like as if there's a good bucket for the Nebraska we see," Slama said.

Briese agreed that there was more work to be done in this area. One recommendation, he said, was to create a code of conduct  and while he said Wednesday that that step could turn problematic, it also could be beneficial if done properly.

"Maybe we need to be looking at something like that to try to ensure that our behavior is behavior that Nebraska can be proud of," Briese said.

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Several ships and aircraft searched yesterday for 39 people reported missing after a Chinese fishing boat capsized in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the accident happened around 3 a.m. Tuesday. The report said the crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang have ordered Chinese diplomats abroad, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

All-out efforts must be made in the rescue operation, Xi was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua News Agency. Li ordered unspecified measures to reduce casualties and strengthen safety management of fishing vessels at sea to ensure safe maritime transport and production, Xinhua said.

No word was given on the cause of the capsizing.

Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines have also expressed their willingness to join in the search. Indonesias National Search and Rescue Agency said the capsizing occurred about 4,600 kilometers (2,900 miles) northwest of Australia.

Several ships and an Australian Defense Force P-8A Poseidon aircraft have been searching the area. The Indian Ocean stretches from South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula to east Africa and western Australia. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The Philippine Coast Guard Command Center said yesterday it was monitoring the situation and coordinating with the Chinese Embassy in Manila, as well as search and rescue teams operating near the vessels last known location.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said it was coordinating the search in what it called a remote location in the Indian Ocean, about 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the coastal city of Perth. It said the agency received a distress beacon signal from the fishing vessel at about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, Australian time, and that weather conditions in the area Tuesday were extreme, but had improved by yesterday.

Along the Bay of Bengal at the Indian Oceans northern end, Myanmar and Bangladesh were undergoing recovery from a powerful cyclone that smashed into their coastlines, causing widespread destruction and at least 21 deaths, with hundreds of others believed missing.

Merchant and fishing vessels in the area were also searching for survivors yesterday.

A Perth-based Challenger rescue aircraft will drop a buoy to help with drift modelling to further assist in the search, the agency said.

The search covered an area virtually in the center of the Indian Ocean. The capsized hull was spotted and the transmitter detected more than 1,000 kilometers south of Sri Lanka, with nearest port appearing to be the island chain of the Maldives, about 500 kilometers to the north of the search area.

The Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong, operated by the Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd., according to the reports. Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, is operating near to the upturned hull and has been asked to conduct a grid search for survivors, according to the Indonesian agency.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said additional rescue assets were on their way to the scene.

We will continue to take all measures possible with all parties to search and rescue the missing persons. The Chinese side thanks the Australian maritime search and rescue department for promptly dispatching aircraft and coordinating passing foreign ships to participate in the search and rescue, Wang told reporters at a daily briefing.

China is believed to operate the worlds largest fishing fleet. Many of them stay at sea for months or even years at a time, supported by Chinese state maritime security agencies and a sprawling network of support vessels.

Chinese squid fishing ships have been documented using wide nets to illegally catch already overfished tuna as part of a surge in unregulated activity in the Indian Ocean, according to a report released in 2021 by a Norway-based watchdog group that highlighted growing concerns about the lack of international cooperation to protect marine species on the high seas.

The group, called Trygg Mat Tracking, found that the number of squid vessels in the high seas of the Indian Ocean  where fishing of the species is not regulated  has increased six-fold since 2016.

The U.S. Coast Guard was also involved in a dangerous confrontation with Chinese vessels not far from Ecuadors Galapagos Islands in 2022 during a mission to inspect the vessels for any signs of illegal, unreported or unregulated fishing.

Chinese fishing vessels operating illegally are known to sail dark, with their mandatory tracking device that gives a ships position either switched off, transmitting intermittently, or providing false identifiers.

In 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 was believed to have gone down somewhere in the Indian Ocean with 239 people aboard. That Boeing 777, which remains missing, became invisible to civilian radar when its transponder locating device stopped transmitting during a flight from Kuala Lumpur. MDT/AP
Although the government has implemented projects that managed to contain flooding in Inner Harbour, more should be done to completely eradicate the problem.

Flooding is still a phenomenon in the Inner Harbour district as storm surges caused by typhoons and heavy rains still occur every year. Countless residents and merchants in the district still regularly live in fear, Siu Chong Meng, president of District Development Promotion Association, told local media Macao Daily News.

He recalled that in 2021, his association invited several professionals and academics who were concerned with the Inner Harbour to a forum in Macau. Their conclusion was that building higher dams on the sea not far away from the shore would be a better solution to the storm surges caused by typhoons.

To implement the conclusion, it was suggested that land be reclaimed from the sea 15 to 20 meters off the shore to make a green leisure area. The dock should be retained and rejuvenated for value-adding purposes.

Multi-level embankments with water storage underneath should be built on the periphery of the leisure area. The ground level would be reserved for road traffic and the underground level for railway traffic. Any constructions built atop the area would be for leisure purposes.

The coast of the leisure area could be used as new docks for ships and ferries. It could also be refined as marine tourism facilities.

He considers this a key plan to improve flood management in the Inner Harbour.

He considers criticism about the elevated leisure areas potential risks to scenes and views at the Inner Harbour invalid. He does not appreciate the scene at the Inner Harbour and finds the air in the district revolting.

He describes the Inner Harbour scene as worthless in terms of appreciation and seldom sees people enjoying the views there.
President Joe Biden said yesterday [Macau time] hes curtailing his upcoming trip to the Indo-Pacific, scrapping what was to be a historic stop in Papua New Guinea as well as a visit to Australia for a gathering with fellow leaders of the so-called Quad partnership so he can focus on debt limit talks in Washington.

The scuttling of two of the three legs of the overseas trip is a foreign policy setback for an administration that has made putting a greater focus on the Pacific region central to its global outreach.

Biden said he still plans to depart today for Hiroshima, Japan, for a Group of Seven summit with leaders from some of the worlds major economies. He will return to the U.S. on Sunday.

Im postponing the Australia portion of the trip and my stop in Papua New Guinea in order to be back for the final negotiations with congressional leaders, Biden said at the start of a Jewish American Heritage Month event at the White House. He added, The nature of the presidency is addressing many of the critical matters all at once. So Im confident were going to continue to make progress toward avoiding the default and fulfilling Americas responsibility as a leader on the world stage.

Biden said he spoke to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earlier yesterday to inform him he was postponing a visit to Australia and invited him to Washington for an official state visit at a yet-to-be determined date. White House staff broke the news to Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape.

White House officials did not offer an immediate response to questions about when Biden might reschedule visits to the two countries.

Revitalizing and reinvigorating our alliances and advancing partnerships like the Quad remains a key priority for the President, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. This is vital to our ability to advance our foreign policy goals and better promote global stability and prosperity. We look forward to finding other ways to engage with Australia, the Quad, Papua New Guinea and the leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in the coming year.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has invited Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as Pacific Island leaders to come to Hiroshima during the G-7. Albanese in an Australian Broadcasting Corp. interview said that the Quad leaders are now hoping to hold a meeting in Hiroshima.

Well also hopefully be able to find a time when the four of us can sit down, Albanese said. We will have to organize the logistics of the Quad meeting now in Sydney and well be discussing with our partners in the U.S., but also Japan and India over the next day or so.

Biden had been scheduled to travel on to Papua New Guinea to meet with Pacific Island leaders and then to Australia for a meeting of the leaders of the Quad partnership, made up of the U.S., Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea stop would have been the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to the island country of more than 9 million people.

The Quad partnership first formed during the response to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people. Since coming into office, Biden has tried to reinvigorate the Quad as part of his broader effort to put greater U.S. focus on the Pacific and counter increasing economic and military assertiveness by China in the region.

Biden announced his decision soon after he wrapped up a meeting in the afternoon with Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies, D-N.Y., for talks on the debt limit standoff.

Earlier, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby expressed administration officials frustration that the debt talks are having an impact on the presidents dealings on the international stage.

We wouldnt have to have this conversation. I wouldnt have to answer these questions if Congress just did the right thing, Kirby said.

Some Republican lawmakers questioned Bidens decision to travel overseas considering the consequences of the debt limit talks.

I think he should not leave and he should focus on the debt limit here at home, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.

With the brief stop in Papua New Guinea to meet with Pacific Island leaders, Biden had hoped to demonstrate that the United States is committed to remaining engaged for the long term in the Pacific Islands.

The area has received diminished attention from the U.S. in the aftermath of the Cold War and China has increasingly filled the vacuum  through increased aid, development and security cooperation. Biden has said that hes committed to changing that dynamic.

Last September, Biden hosted leaders from more than a dozen Pacific Island countries at the White House, announcing a new strategy to help to assist the region on climate change and maritime security. His administration also recently opened embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, and has plans to open one in Kiribati.

As vice president, Biden saw up close how domestic politics can complicate foreign policy during the 2013 government shutdown. President Barack Obama was forced to bail on attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and the East Asia Summit in Brunei as well as a visit to Malaysia and the Philippines in the midst of a government shutdown as he negotiated with GOP leaders.

President Bill Clinton opted to skip his scheduled participation in the APEC summit in Japan in the midst of the 1995 government shutdown. He opted to send Vice President Al Gore in his place. AAMER MADHANI, WASHINGTON, MDT/AP
Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss warned of the economic and political threats to the West posed by China during a visit yesterday to rival Taiwan.

Truss is the first former British prime minister since Margaret Thatcher in the 1990s to visit the self-governing island republic that China claims as its own territory, to be conquered by force if necessary.

Still a sitting member of the House of Commons, Truss follows a growing list of elected representatives and former officials from the U.S., EU nations and elsewhere who have visited Taiwan to show their defiance of Chinas threats and attempts to cut off the island and its high-tech economy from the international community.

There are those who say they dont want another Cold War. But this is not a choice we are in a position to make. Because China has already embarked on a self-reliance drive, whether we want to decouple from their economy or not, Truss said in an address to the Prospect Foundation at a hotel in Taipei.

China is growing its navy at an alarming rate and is undertaking the biggest military build-up in peacetime history, she said.

They have already formed alliances with other nations that want to see the free world in decline. They have already made a choice about their strategy. The only choice we have is whether we appease and accommodate  or we take action to prevent conflict, Truss said.

Elsewhere, Truss praised her successor, Rishi Sunak, for describing China as the biggest long-term threat to Britain in comments last summer and for urging the closure of Chinese government-run cultural centers known as Confucius Institutes, which have been criticized as outlets for Communist Party propaganda. Such services, she then said, could instead be provided by people from Taiwan and Hong Kong who come to the United Kingdom of their own volition.

In Beijing, spokesperson for the Cabinets Taiwan Affairs Office Mao Xiaoguang accused Taiwans ruling Democratic Progressive Party of spending the tax money of the Taiwanese people to bribe some anti-China politicians who have stepped down from office to stage a farce of seeking external support for independence in Taiwan.

Ma also renewed Chinas military threats against Taiwan, a day after the Chinese Defense Ministry condemned U.S. military assistance to the island.

If they continue to challenge and force us, we will have to take decisive measures to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Ma told reporters at a biweekly news conference. No one should underestimate our strong determination, unwavering will and strong ability.

Next year is seen by some as a crucial period for tense relations between the sides, with U.S. and Taiwanese voters going to the polls. Taiwans leader Tsai Ing-wen has served the maximum two terms and her No. 2 Lai Ching-te, a strong independence supporter, will be running for the DPP.

Meanwhile, the main opposition Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, yesterday nominated local politician Hou Yu-ih as its candidate in the January election. Hou rose to prominence as a top police official but has relatively little experience dealing with China and Taiwans international partners.

Taiwan will also elect a new legislature, which is currently controlled by the ruling party.

Chinas relations with Britain and most other Western democracies have been in steep decline in recent years, largely as a result of disputes over human rights, trade technology, Hong Kong, and Chinas aggressive moves toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea.

China has said a key previous bilateral agreement on Hong Kong no longer applies and has rejected British expressions of concern as interference in Chinas domestic political affairs. China has also been angered by a joint Australian-U.S.-British agreement known as AUKUS that would provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines in part to counter the perceived rising threat from China.

Truss, who served an ill-fated seven weeks as prime minister last year, also said China could not be trusted to follow through on its commitments in areas from trade to protection of the environment.

And she praised Taiwan as an enduring rebuke to totalitarianism whose fate was a core interest to Europe.

A blockade or invasion of Taiwan would undermine freedom and democracy in Europe. Just as a Russian victory in Ukraine would undermine freedom and democracy in the Pacific, Truss said.

We in the United Kingdom and the free world must do all we can to back you, she said.

Truss remarks also stood in stark contrast to published comments from French President Emmanuel Macron last month that elicited doubts about whether Macrons views were in line with other European countries on Taiwans status.

The question we need to answer, as Europeans, is the following: Is it in our interest to accelerate (a crisis) on Taiwan? No, Macron was quoted as saying in the interview.

The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the U.S. agenda and a Chinese overreaction.

Shortly afterward, Macron denied any change on Frances views toward Taiwan, saying, We are for the status quo, and this policy is constant. MDT/AP
Details of future currency issuance, such as denominations and characteristics, will be determined in Executive Regulations, a parliamentary committee has disclosed.

The Second Standing Committee of the parliament has recently concluded its study on the bill for the Currency Issuance Legal System. President Chan Chak Mo of the committee disclosed to a related press conference that the bill will cover both physical and digital currencies.

Regarding the details of issuance, the type, denominations and characteristics of currencies will be determined by Executive Regulations. However, the Chief Executive will be authorized to determine the initial amount and subsequent addition of currency issued by the issuance of an Executive Dispatch.

The bill has room for the issuance of currency in digital form, which will be clarified with special laws or regulations.

Chan disclosed that the committee had questioned the government if the determination of the amount by Executive Dispatches would in fact endanger the rigor of the practice. The government explained that the current proposal would allow for a quicker response to meet needs for more or less currency. It also assured the committee that systematic studies would be conducted prior to any issuance.

In contrast to the initial version of the bill, an additional clause exists in the current version, which requires all issuing entities to submit 100% back-up funds for the currency issued. Such entities includes both private banks and the government.

Individual people and non-financial businesses will not be required to reject transactions made using currency that could be counterfeit, Chan cited the government as saying.
The government in general has been lacking a long-term vision for major plans and projects, which could be seen in existing transport arrangements, lawmaker Che Sai Wang said in his written inquiry.

Che said that in creating plans for major projects for the city, the government has usually been unable to foresee problems. An example is the regular traffic congestion at New Urban Zone A and the Pearl of the Orient Roundabout.

He said that even without the 96,000 residents expected to live on the Zone, the road network has reached its limit with vehicles going to mainland China and Hong Kong.

Zone A is the connecting point for traffic between the main Peninsula and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Based on this, he expressed his concern that without well-rounded plans, future traffic at the Border Gate would also be congested as tourism activities resume.

Meanwhile, the Light Rapid Transit (LRT) East Line that will connect Taipa with the Border Gate through Zone A is being built. As per this plan, tourists and traffic will inevitably be driven to the Border Gate when the East Line becomes operational.

In 2011, the government commissioned a company to research planning for the Border Gate and its neighborhood. Seven years later, the government commissioned another research on the same area and topic, but no result has been available.

Besides criticizing the lack of planning for the Border Gate and its neighborhood, Che asked the government about progress on the research. He also asked when the government would explain the delay of the research to the public.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, encouraged women to find inspiration to fight for equity as she accepted the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Award yesterday [Macau time], with Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown.

Its never too late to start, Meghan said at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan. You can be the visionary of your own life There is still so much work to be done.

Her acceptance speech closed out the Ms. Foundation for Womens annual gala, part of the nations oldest womens foundation celebration of its 50th anniversary. The gala also kicked off the foundations largest fundraising campaign ever  $100 million over the next 12 months  that will be used to further the organizations equity-centered initiatives and its mission of advancing womens collective power.

The foundation is already more than halfway to its goal. It announced that the late photographer and philanthropist Lucia Woods Lindley donated $50 million, the largest bequest in the foundations history. Proceeds from the gala itself raised another $1 million, and nearly $500,000 was donated by attendees during dinner.

With her mother, Doria Ragland, in the audience, Meghan recounted how Ms. Magazine was always in their house and how it affected her world view.

I am a woman who remains inspired and driven by this organization, she said, looking over at Ms. Foundation co-founder Gloria Steinem, who introduced her alongside current foundation CEO Teresa C. Younger. It allowed me to recognize that part of my greater value and purpose in life was to advocate for those who felt unheard, to stand up to injustice, and to not be afraid of saying what is true and what is just and what is right.

Though the event was her first public appearance since she skipped the coronation of her father-in-law King Charles III earlier this month in order to stay at home in California for her son Prince Archies fourth birthday, she made no mention of the ceremony. Her husband Prince Harry attended the coronation in London and then rushed back to California.

Meghan and Prince Harry direct their philanthropy through their Archewell Foundation, which provided nearly 13 million COVID-19 vaccines with partner Global Citizen and helped resettle nearly 175,000 refugees from Ukraine and Afghanistan in the United States with partner Welcome.US, according to its 2022 annual report.

Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans said the Archewell Foundation leaders helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars for the COVID-19 vaccines through Global Citizen VAX Live, while also helping convince the worlds wealthiest nations to provide some of the doses to those living in other nations. Evans said he was impressed with Meghans work ethic as they teamed up at roundtables promoting the event in 2021.

I would say shes willing to roll up her sleeves and be practical, Evans told The Associated Press. When you see someone willing to spend their time, not doing the glamorous stuff, but willing to do the behind- the-scenes stuff, thats always a good sign.

Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown received her Woman of Vision award from her longtime friend #MeToo movement founder Tarana Burke, who led the attendees in song to welcome Brown to the stage. Brown then delivered an uplifting song of her own, before delivering a poignant speech about working for change.

Even pain has a purpose, she said. Whats happening in this country right now, this isnt just a matter about what the Republicans or the Democrats are going to do. It really is a question about what is it that were going to do collectively to lean into this moment of discomfort and recognize it as an opportunity to get it right because we havent gotten it right.

Broadway star Audra McDonald took a break from her current tour to attend the gala to show her support for the Duchess of Sussex and Brown. I love her so much, McDonald said of Brown. Its an honor getting to know her a little bit and picking her brain and getting to see that passion and that drive and that wisdom. Shes a hero.

Browns organization Black Voters Matter works with communities in 25 states and the District of Columbia to make their voting more effective, while her Black Voters Matter Capacity Building Institute funds voter education, registrations and other programs to expand access to voting.

I dont know how she does it all, McDonald said. She put the boots on the ground.

The Ms. foundation also honored Wanda Irving, co-founder of Dr. Shalons Maternal Action Project, and Kimberly Inez McGuire, executive director of URGE, as well as Texas abortion rights activist Olivia Julianna and LGBTQ+ advocate Rebekah Bruesehoff.

I no longer say I am fighting for equality, said Julianna, accepting her award as an emerging leader. In modern day America I am not fighting for equality. I am fighting for liberation from a white supremacist patriarchal system. As an openly queer Latin woman, make no mistake, I do not want to be equal to men in this country. I do not want the power to oppress with intention.

GLENN GAMBOA, NEW YORK, MDT/AP
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Thursday, May 18, 2023  edition no. 4248
The Justice Department announced a series of criminal cases yesterday [Macau time] tracing the illegal flow of sensitive technology, including Apples software code for self-driving cars and materials used for missiles, to foreign adversaries like Russia, China and Iran.

Some of the alleged trade secret theft highlighted by the department dates back several years, but U.S. officials are drawing attention to the collection of cases now to highlight a task force created in February to disrupt the transfer of goods to foreign countries.

We are committed to doing all we can to prevent these advanced tools from falling into the hands of adversaries who wield them in a way that threatens not only our nations security but democratic values everywhere, said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen, who heads the Justice Departments national security division.

One of the newly unsealed cases, in federal court in San Francisco, accuses a former Apple software engineer of taking proprietary data related to self-driving cars before his last day at the company in 2018 and then boarding a one-way flight to China on the night that FBI agents were conducting a search at his house. Prosecutors say the defendant, identified as Weibao Wang, is believed to be now working at a China-based autonomous vehicle competitor.

Other cases disclosed have resulted in arrests.

One defendant, Liming Li, 64, was arrested earlier this month on charges that he stole thousands of sensitive files from his California employer, including technology that can be used in the manufacturing of nuclear submarines and military aircraft, and used them to help competing Chinese businesses.

Li has been in custody since his arrest. A lawyer who has been representing him declined to comment.

Additionally, two Russian nationals, Oleg Sergeyevich Patsulya and Vasilii Sergeyevich Besedin, were arrested in Arizona this month on charges of conspiring to send aircraft parts to Russian airline companies. Lawyers for both men did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment.

The Justice Department also unsealed a separate criminal case accusing a Chinese national of conspiring to transmit isostatic graphite, a material that can be used in the nose of intercontinental ballistics, to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. And it charged a Greek national with participating in the smuggling of dual-use technology with a military application, including quantum cryptography, to Russia.

The departments of Justice and Commerce and other agencies earlier this year launched the Disruptive Technology Strike Force as a way to prevent U.S. adversaries from acquiring sensitive technology and address what officials said is a growing problem.

Our greatest national security concerns stem from the actions of nation-states like China, Russia, Iran and North Korea  nation-states that want to acquire sensitive U.S. technology to advance their military capabilities with their ultimate goal being to shift the worlds balance of power, said Matthew Axelrod, an assistant secretary at the Commerce Department. MDT/AP
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The latest attack by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, on the University of Wisconsin System cannot be a coincidence.

Vos wants to cut $14 million from the System's budget for campus staffing related to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

"I frankly think we have gotten to the point where instead of having an institute of higher learning, we have an institute of indoctrination." Vos said.

"Indoctrination" has become the GOP's latest buzzword and scare attempt.

One only has to look at the April Wisconsin Supreme Court election to understand what is really the reason for Vos' threat.

The turnout in student wards on UW campuses was unusually high for a spring election. And the winning candidate, Janet Protasiewicz, received the vast majority of the student vote.

Rather than giving students credit for impressive election involvement and grassroots organizing, Vos just doesn't like who they supported by overwhelming margins.

Instead, it's all about "indoctrination." Or, more precisely, intimidation.
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US GOVERNMENT

Most Democrats and Republicans agree that the federal government should better regulate the biggest technology companies, particularly social media platforms. But there is very little consensus on how it should be done.

Should TikTok be banned? Should younger children be kept off social media? Can the government make sure private information is secure? What about brand new artificial intelligence interfaces? Or should users be regulating themselves, leaving the government out of it?

Tech regulation is gathering momentum on Capitol Hill as concerns skyrocket about China's ownership of TikTok and as parents navigating a post-pandemic mental health crisis have grown increasingly worried about what their children are seeing online. Lawmakers have introduced a slew of bipartisan bills, boosting hopes of compromise. But any eff ort to regulate the mammoth industry would face major obstacles as technology companies have fought interference.

Noting that many young people are struggling, President Joe Biden said in his February State of the Union speech that "it's time" to pass bipartisan legislation to impose stricter limits on the collection of personal data and ban targeted advertising to children.

"We must finally hold social media companies accountable for the experiment they are running on our children for profit," Biden said.

Tech companies have aggressively fought federal interference, and they have operated for decades now without strict federal oversight, making new rules or guidelines that much more complicated.

A look at some of the areas of potential regulation:

Children's safety

Several House and Senate bills would try to make social media, and the internet in general, safer for children who will inevitably be online. Lawmakers cite numerous examples of teenagers who have died by suicide after cyberbullying or died engaging in dangerous behavior encouraged on social media.

In the Senate, at least two competing bills are focused on children's online safety. Legislation by Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., approved by the Senate Commerce Committee last year would require social media companies to be more transparent about their operations and enable child safety settings by default. Minors would have the option to disable addictive product features and algorithms that push certain content.

The idea, the senators say, is that platforms should be "safe by design." The legislation, which Blumenthal and Blackburn recently reintroduced, would also obligate social media companies to prevent certain dangers to minors  including promotion of suicide, disordered eating, substance abuse, sexual exploitation and other illegal behaviors.

A second bill introduced in April by four senators  Democrats Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Republicans Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Katie Britt of Alabama  would take a more aggressive approach, prohibiting children under the age of 13 from using social media platforms and requiring parental consent for teenagers. It would also prohibit the companies from recommending content through algorithms for users under the age of 18.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has not weighed in on specific legislation but told reporters, "I believe we need some kind of child protections" on the internet.

Critics of the bills, including some civil rights groups and advocacy groups aligned with tech companies, say the proposals could threaten teens' online privacy and prevent them from accessing content that could help them, such as resources for those considering suicide or grappling with their sexual and gender identity.

"Lawmakers should focus on educating and empowering families to control their online experience," said Carl Szabo of Net Choice, a group aligned with Meta, TikTok, Google and Amazon, among other companies.

Data privacy

Biden's State of the Union remarks appeared to be a nod toward legislation by Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., that would expand child privacy protections online, prohibiting companies from collecting personal data from younger teenagers and banning targeted advertising to children and teens. The bill would create a so-called "eraser button" allowing parents and kids to eliminate personal data, when possible.

A broader House eff ort would attempt to give adults as well as children more control over their data with what lawmakers call a "national privacy standard." Legislation that passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee with wide bipartisan support last year would try to minimize data collected and make it illegal to target ads to children, usurping state laws that have tried to put privacy restrictions in place. But the bill, which would have also given consumers more rights to fi le lawsuits over privacy violations, never reached the House floor.

Prospects for the House legislation are unclear now that Republicans have the majority. House Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., has made the issue a priority, holding several hearings on data privacy. But the committee has not yet moved forward with a new bill.

TikTok ban

Lawmakers introduced a raft of bills to either ban TikTok or make it easier to ban it after a combative March House hearing in which lawmakers from both parties grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew over his company's ties to China's communist government, data security and harmful content on the app.

Chew attempted to assure lawmakers that the hugely popular video-sharing app prioritizes user safety and should not be banned due to its Chinese connections. But the testimony gave new momentum to the efforts.

Soon after the hearing, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican, tried to force a Senate vote on legislation that would ban TikTok from operating in the United States. But he was blocked by a fellow Republican, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who said that a ban would violate the Constitution and anger the millions of voters who use the app.

Another bill sponsored by Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida would, like Hawley's bill, ban U.S. economic transactions with TikTok, but it would also create a framework for the executive branch to block foreign apps deemed hostile. His bill is co-sponsored by Reps. Raja Krishna moorthi, D-Ill., and Mike Gallagher, R-Wis.

There is broad Senate support for bipartisan legislation sponsored by Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., and South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the No. 2 Senate Republican, that does not specifically call out TikTok but would give the Commerce Department power to review and potentially restrict foreign threats to technology platforms.

The White House has signaled it would back that bill, but it is unclear if it will be brought up in the Senate or if it could garner support among House Republicans.

TikTok has launched an extensive lobbying campaign for its survival, including by harnessing influencers and young voters to argue that the app isn't harmful.

Artificial intelligence

A newer question for Congress is whether lawmakers should move to regulate artificial intelligence as rapidly developing and potentially revolutionary products like AI chatbot Chat GPT begin to enter the marketplace and can in many ways mimic human behavior.

Senate leader Schumer has made the emerging technology a priority, arguing that the United States needs to stay ahead of China and other countries that are eying regulations on AI products. He has been working with AI experts and has released a general framework of what regulation could look like, including increased disclosure of the people and data involved in developing the technology, more transparency and an explanation for how the bots arrive at responses. Schumer has said that any eventual regulation should "prevent potentially catastrophic damage to our country while simultaneously making sure the U.S. advances and leads in this transformative technology."

The White House has been focused on the issue as well, with a recent announcement of a $140 million investment to establish seven new AI research institutes.
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ANOTHER VIEW | KENOSHA NEWS

Republican state lawmakers have put forth a proposal to make health care providers give consumers access to out-of-pocket cost estimates for common procedures.

They're shopping the proposal around and looking for co-signers and  perhaps surprisingly given the partisan divide in Madison  they may get some Democrat legislators to add their names to the proposed legislation.

State Sen. Mary Felzkowski, R-Irma, is the chief author of the bill, and said, "Health care is the only thing Wisconsinites purchase that we don't know the price of beforehand. That has to change."

Under a draft of her proposal, each hospital in the state would be required to make publicly available a digital file containing a list of standard charges for certain items and services provided by that hospital. They would also be required to provide a "consumer-friendly list of standard charges" for services that can be scheduled by a health care provider in advance.

That would allow consumers to shop around when scheduling non-urgent care that patients commonly receive and can schedule in advance  things like blood tests, CT scans and mammograms.

And it would have teeth. Felzkowski's proposal would give the state Department of Health Services the power to check for hospitals violating the bill and request a correction plan. It would also give DHS the ability to impose escalating penalties for non-compliance  from $600 a day for smaller hospitals to as much as $10,000 a day for hospitals with more than 550 beds are out of compliance.

A leading Wisconsin hospital association contends the proposed bill in many ways duplicates federal rules passed two years ago and will only result in confusion for health care providers.

Eric Borgerding, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Hospital Association, said the bill is unnecessary and that the vast majority of Wisconsin hospitals are already mostly or fully compliant with the federal transparency rules.

"Bottom line, our hospitals are ahead of the curve and new, publicly available price and quality transparency tools are emerging every day making this legislation unneeded in a leader state like Wisconsin."

Borgerding cites rankings that showed nearly two-thirds of 130 Wisconsin hospitals had completed all the requirements of the federal rule.

That's disputed by supporters of the legislation, who point to a January article in the Journal of General Internal Medicine that said nationwide most hospitals, as many as six in 10, do not comply with every requirement of the federal rules.

Health care costs are a concern to us all  from individual consumers to employers faced with rising costs for its employee health plans. We don't favor punitive measures for our hospitals and health care providers, nor do we favor redundant state and federal enforcement. But we do favor transparency in health care pricing so consumers can make the best decisions on their care and weigh it against the costs.

There are differing opinions in this debate, but it's one that the state Legislature should hear out and then make a decision.
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Dr. Hans Sollinger, the former chair of transplantation at UW-Madison who pioneered a pancreas transplant technique and developed an anti-rejection drug taken by many transplant patients, died Monday at his home in Madison.

Sollinger, 76, died from a recurrence of cancer, said his daughter, Dr. Christina (Muffy) Sollinger. An avid bicyclist, Sollinger had recently returned from Tucson, Arizona, where he bought property essentially to have more bike-riding months of the year, his daughter said.

A native of Germany who was a member of the German National Ski Team before attending medical school in Munich, Sollinger came to UW-Madison in 1975 for an immunobiology research fellowship and joined the faculty in 1980. He worked under Dr. Folkert Belzer, helping Belzer develop the UW Solution, a fluid that kept donated organs viable longer than before and enabled better matching of organs and recipients.

At UW-Madison, Sollinger devised a method of draining enzymes from the pancreas into the bladder, which improved pancreas transplant outcomes, said Dr. Anthony DAlessandro, a longtime colleague and friend, who recently retired as a UW transplant surgeon.

Sollinger also developed CellCept, an immunosuppression drug that allowed transplant recipients to take lower levels of other, potentially more harmful, anti-rejection drugs, DAlessandro said. CellCept, which improved transplant survival, is used widely around the world today, he said.

Sollinger, UW transplantation chair from 1995 to 2009, performed more than 3,500 kidney and/or pancreas transplants in his long career, roughly half on patients with diabetes. In 2019, he received the Pioneer Award by the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

He really is one of the pioneers and fathers of pancreas transplantation, DAlessandro said. He really built the (UW transplant) program into the powerhouse it is today.

He was a man of action, compassion and strength, Dr. Dixon Kaufman, medical director of the UW Health Transplant Center, said in a statement.

In recent years, Sollinger worked on a test and treatment for loin pain hematuria syndrome, a rare condition marked by unexplained pain between the ribs and hip.

In 2016, Sollinger founded Endsulin, a Madison company working to develop a gene therapy for type 1 diabetes, with the goal of regulating glucose metabolism without the need for daily insulin shots.

Sollinger helped train surgeons from the Canary Islands to do kidney transplants, said Mary Lang Sollinger, his wife of 46 years until the couple divorced last year. He had exceptional dreams, and he worked very, very hard to realize those dreams that helped literally thousands of people, she said.

The couple held fundraisers at their home for the Goodman Community Center, Madison Symphony Orchestra and politicians, including Barack Obama, who visited their home as a presidential candidate in 2007.

Sollinger was a perfectionist who expected hard work from others, said Christina Sollinger, a neonatologist at the University of California, Davis.

One time he said to me, If Im not going to be hard on you and expect the best, then who is? she said. That was how he approached his life. He demanded excellence from himself every day.

But he also told jokes and kept a magic trick kit in his office, especially for younger patients who often came to see him when other surgeons refused to operate on them, said his other daughter, Niki Sollinger, of Arlington, Virginia. Trained as a lawyer, she works in cybersecurity for the consulting firm Deloitte.

It wasnt all work, she said. He was fun too.

DAlessandro said he cross-country skied with Sollinger, who regularly participated in the American Birkebeiner in Hayward. They also bicycled together, including Horribly Hilly rides in western Dane County.

As recently as about a decade ago, in Colorado, they rode up Mount Evans, which reaches more than 14,000 feet, and finished the Triple Bypass, a long ride up three mountain passes in a day.

I could barely hang on to him going up the hill, DAlessandro said. Going downhill, he was fearless. He would just go down these mountains without pretty much braking. He kind of had that fearlessness in everything he did.
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Four of Wisconsins five investor-owned utilities are asking state regulators for permission to hike electricity rates in 2024, the state watchdog Citizens Utility Board said Thursday.

Increases range from 2.5% at We Energies to as much as 18% for Alliant Energy customers, CUB said  although Alliant disputed that interpretation. The increases, if approved, represent hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue and come on top of utility increases that took effect in January for all five of the states major utilities: Alliant, Madison Gas and Electric, We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service and Xcel.

CUBs analysts and economists will be evaluating these proposals and look for opportunities for savings, supporting the (state Public Service Commission) staff in its audits, said Tom Content, CUB executive director. We remain concerned that our electricity rates are higher than nearly all other Midwest states and that our utilities are earning profits well above what they need.

In the Madison area, MGE is proposing to increase electricity rates by 3.75% and gas rates by 2.56% in 2024. MGE spokesperson Dana Brueck said increased electricity revenues would go toward solar and grid-modernization projects, while increased gas revenues would go toward modernizing the distribution system and covering the cost of uncollected bills, such as those seen during the pandemic.

We are sensitive to any rate impacts on customers, Brueck said in a statement, which is why we continue to work hard to contain costs throughout the organization while advancing cleaner energy for the benefit of all customers.

Under the utilitys plan, the monthly electric bill for the typical user would rise from $98 this year to $103 in 2024. From 2016 through 2025, the typical customer would see an average 1.5% increase in their gas bills, she said.

Alliant Energy subsidiary Wisconsin Power and Light  which provides service to much of the area outside of Madison, stretching from Plainville south to Monroe  is asking for a 14.25% increase in electric rates, but a requested surcharge related to higher-than-anticipated fuel costs would bump that up to 18.4%, CUB said.

Its also seeking a 6.3% increase in its natural gas rates, CUB said.

Alliant spokesperson Tony Palese said he couldnt speak for how CUB is arriving at some of the numbers theyve compiled but that overall, our electric customers will experience a single-digit increase of 8.3% in 2024.

The changes would add about $13 a month to the average residential electric customers bill and about $5.30 a month to the average residential natural gas customers bill in 2024.

Alliant Energy is following the plans outlined in our Clean Energy Blueprint to accelerate the transition to a cleaner, more cost-effective and diverse energy portfolio, Palese said in a statement. This includes retiring older coal-fired units while adding over 1,000 (megawatts) of solar energy and nearly 275 MW of battery energy storage.

Auditors with the state Public Service Commission, which controls utility rates, are expected to be done with their reviews of the utilities requests by this summer, when CUB and other parties to the cases will be allowed to provide their feedback, CUB said.

There will be a public hearing and comment period in the fall, CUB said, and the decisions in the cases are expected by the end of the year.

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A longtime ethnic grocery store on Madisons evolving South Side will close in August after serving customers for 40 years.

Yue-Wah Oriental Foods opened in 1983, said owner Kien Ma, who operates the store with a few employees, including his son and sister-in-law.

Having worked 15-hour days, seven days a week for the past four decades, Ma said he is ready to retire.

His days are spent making sure Yue-Wahs many wares are in stock and fresh, building lasting relationships with customers as he rings them up at lightning speed, and educating visitors about how to cook certain foods. Ma's nights are spent managing the shops finances.

He enjoys making friends with shoppers the most. But Ma said he doesnt go to sleep until after midnight most evenings.

I dont have any days off, said Ma, who went to UW-Madison for engineering. The only day we close is on Christmas. I still come in even on that day.

Madisonians and visitors from other parts of the Midwest who come to the area to buy from Yue-Wah, at the Village on Park Street, will have to buy their groceries at similar stores in the area.

One is Midway Asian Foods, 301 S. Park St., which itself faces a shifting identity as the city seeks to fully redevelop housing for low-income residents and add more housing units on a major piece of the Triangle Downtown. All current buildings, including Midway Asian Foods, would be removed for newer spaces, though the store and other involved organizations have expressed interest in keeping the store part of the new development.

Ma estimates there are at least 20 other ethnic grocery stores in Dane County.

But they may not be the same one-stop shop Yue-Wah has grown to become, Ma said. He said the store has expanded over the years to sell products from throughout eastern and western Asia, parts of Africa and even Latin countries, as a majority of Mas customers are Latinx.

Ma said hes also seen a gradual increase in white customers. The store does not sell any European-centric foods, Ma said.

The store started with 1,000 square feet, Ma said, and now has roughly 7,000 square feet for its goods from all over the world: Asian noodles, specialty meats, Latin spices and sauces, Japanese teas and incense, among other ethnic wares. The shop's cheapest items are candies for 25 cents, and its most expensive are meats and rice cookers that cost upwards of $100.

Such inventory comes from international importers all over the U.S., Ma said, especially from Chicago. Sourcing that inventory has been one of the main challenges of Ma's career, especially amid supply chain issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Its unclear what will happen to Yue-Wah's space when the stores lease is up.

Ma, who was born in Vietnam and has a Chinese heritage, said he has plans to visit family. Hes unsure of what he will do with the rest of his newfound free time.

I will miss them, Ma said of his customers.He has seen them grow up shopping in his store. Customers who shopped at Yue-Wah now have children who shop there, he said.

I appreciate their loyalty," Ma said.

Sad to see it go

It's apparent Yue-Wah patrons will miss the store and its owner.

Shopper Medelia Gastelum, of Madison, she said she is sad to see it go and shes nervous about finding a new spot to buy her groceries.

Its a good store, she said.

Another customer said his day was ruined" when he learned of Yue-Wahs closure on Tuesday.

That customer said he has been a regular for roughly a decade, and the store is a hop and a skip from where he lives on Madisons South Side. It was Yue-Wah who helped him discover the true variety of soy sauces that exist.

Polly McCloskey said she travels to Yue-Wah every few months from Milwaukee.

Its hard to find stores with the variety of stuff he has here, McCloskey said.
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A Dane County sheriffs deputy was injured Thursday morning when a suspected intoxicated driver T-boned his squad car in the town of Pleasant Springs, authorities said.

The crash happened shortly after 4:45 a.m. when Kenneth B. Perry, 55, of Poplar Grove, Illinois, was exiting Interstate 90 and failed to yield to the deputy in the roundabout at Highway N, Dane County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Elise Schaffer said in a statement.

Perry drove from the scene of the crash but was found by another deputy a short time later, arrested and booked into the Dane County Jail on tentative charges of operating while intoxicated, hit-and-run, and resisting and obstructing.

The State Patrol is handling the crash investigation.

The 29-year-old deputy, a five-year veteran of the Sheriffs Office who was not named, was taken to a local hospital with injuries that werent considered life-threatening, Schaffer said.

Prior to the crash, Dane County deputies arrested three other intoxicated drivers overnight, Schaffer said.

Photos: Madison's most dangerous intersections, as seen from space No. 10: Packers Avenue and International Lane No. 9: Zeier Road and East Washington Avenue No. 8: South Park Street and West Badger Road No. 7: Thierer Road and East Washington Avenue No. 6: North First Street and East Washington Avenue No. 5: Buckeye Road and South Stoughton Road No. 4: South Baldwin Street and East Washington Avenue No. 3: North Stoughton Road and East Washington Avenue No. 2: Watts Road and South Gammon Road No. 1: Pleasant View Road and Mineral Point
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Assembly Republicans on Wednesday passed an updated local aid bill that boosts state funding to communities but keeps many local restrictions opposed by Democrats, after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said his caucus was done negotiating on the measure that has yet to receive backing from Senate Republicans or Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

Republicans unveiled the amended bill, which now boosts state funding by at least 15% for all cities and counties besides Milwaukee, hours before the Assembly was to vote on the measure Wednesday. Vos, R-Rochester, said the updates are the result of good faith negotiations with state lawmakers, local stakeholders and Evers, who expressed optimism earlier in the day that both sides could find bipartisan compromise to provide much-needed funding to local governments.

Everybody has to take their own position, but we are done negotiating, Vos told reporters outside the Capitol. What we have before us is the deal that we are going to send to our colleagues in the state Senate and hopefully Gov. Evers agrees that this historic investment is worth signing.

The bill passed 56-36, with three Republicans  Reps. Scott Allen, of Waukesha, Janel Brandtjen, of Menomonee Falls, and Chuck Wichgers, of Muskego  joining Democrats in opposing the measure.

Earlier in the day, Evers said he was optimistic that conversations with Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, would lead to bipartisan compromise. He also indicated negotiations could last for weeks.

Nothing has changed since the governors statement this morning, Evers spokesperson Britt Cudaback said Wednesday afternoon. The governor hasnt signed off on any amendment, but he looks forward to continuing negotiations with Republican leaders in the weeks ahead.

The Democratic governor earlier this month promised to veto the bill as written, arguing the proposal didnt spend enough and imposed unnecessary restrictions on counties and cities.

LeMahieus spokesperson, Michael Pyritz, said Tuesday discussions on the bill were ongoing.

Assembly Bill 245 would would divert a penny of every nickel collected under the states 5-cent sales tax to counties, towns, villages and cities to pay for services such as law enforcement, fire protection, responding to emergencies, public works and transportation.

While the original bill would have increased local aid by $227 million, the updated version boosts the increase to $260 million, according to an analysis from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

Republicans say the increase means cities and counties will see a minimum 15% increase in state funding, as opposed to the 10% increase in the original bill.

In Milwaukee

Milwaukee, however, will be kept at a 10% increase. Vos said that is because the bill maintains provisions allowing Milwaukee County to increase its 0.5% sales tax by 0.375 percentage points and allow Milwaukee to impose a 2% sales tax to fund pension debt.

In a public hearing earlier this month, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley largely praised the bill as a major step forward to help stave off impending cuts to city and county staffing, including for police and fire services. However, they also raised concern over language in the bill requiring those tax increases to be approved by voters, as opposed to a decision made by local elected officials.

LeMahieu told WTMJ Tuesday he doesnt think a referendum vote is the best way to accomplish this, because the fear is that its going to fail. LeMahieus office did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

While lawmakers on both sides of the aisle largely support increased state funding for local governments, Democrats and some local officials have derided the GOP-authored bill for including several local restrictions, despite changes offered by Republicans.

Our work is not complete, Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer, D-Racine, said. It is not ready for prime time.

After an hours long closed door Republican caucus, Speaker Robin Vos announced at a press conference that he was done negotiating and would bring to a vote a half baked plan rife with politically motivated policy measures that have nothing to do with ensuring our local communities have the resources they need, Rep. Lisa Subeck, D-Madison, said in a statement.

Bill details

Under the bill, local health officials would be barred from closing a business for more than 30 days to help control an outbreak or epidemic. Local elected officials could vote to extend the closure for an additional 30 days.

Another component in the bill would provide local governments in the northern portion of the state the ability to essentially kill any proposed land acquisitions by passing a resolution opposing the measure. State Republicans have pushed back against several proposed land conservation projects, particularly in northern Wisconsin, over concerns they take too much private land off the tax rolls.

While the original bill prohibited local cities and counties from placing any advisory referendums on local ballots, the amended version would allow ballot items only if they propose using property taxes to fund projects.

Critics of the bill called for removing a section of the original proposal mandating law enforcement officers in Milwaukee schools. The amended version maintains that requirement but clarifies those officers must complete a 40-hour training course.

The measure also would allow for $300 million in spending on a three-year pilot program to encourage local governments to share more services.

Created in 1911 alongside the state income tax, Wisconsins shared revenue program initially provided local municipalities 70% of state income tax collections, while counties and the state received the remaining 20% and 10%, respectively, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.

But the percentage of income tax revenue allocated to local entities has plummeted over the years and has remained essentially unchanged for nearly three decades despite overall growth in tax revenues, according to a February report by the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum.

State Journal reporter Alexander Shur contributed to this report.
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Republican leaders in the state Assembly and Senate are at odds over a key aspect of an extensive bill to expand state funding to Wisconsin communities  setting the stage for possible gridlock on funding that local governments have sought for years.

The disagreement revolves around a provision that would allow the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County to increase sales taxes to fund pension debt only if residents approve the proposals in a public vote. The Assembly passed a version of the bill including the public vote requirement Wednesday after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, declared his chamber was done negotiating on the matter.

However, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, told reporters Thursday morning the public vote measure is unlikely to be included in the Senate version of the bill. LeMahieu has instead supported having the measure passed by the Milwaukee Common Council and Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors.

There are two houses in the state Legislature and its unfortunate that hes drawing a line in the sand now, with his version of the bill and stopping negotiations on a bill that not everybodys in agreement on, LeMahieu said of Vos.

LeMahieu said the Senate plans to take up the original version of the bill, which would boost local aid by diverting 20% of the states 5-cent sales tax to local communities, and bring it through the committee process.

Our goal is to continue to work with the governor and maybe the speaker if hes willing to work with us down the road, LeMahieu added.

Before Assembly Republicans on Wednesday passed an amended version of the bill that includes the Milwaukee vote requirement, Vos said he was finished negotiating over the proposal.

Everybody has to take their own position, but we are done negotiating, Vos told reporters outside the Capitol. What we have before us is the deal that we are going to send to our colleagues in the state Senate and hopefully Gov. Evers agrees that this historic investment is worth signing.

And he made clear on Thursday that he wasnt willing to undo the Milwaukee vote requirement for the sales tax increase.

That could unfortunately kill the bill and all of our good work, Vos told The Associated Press. Requiring voter approval for enacting a new tax, which was included in the original Evers proposal, should not be all that controversial.

To all of a sudden just stop negotiations when everybody is not on board, thats unfortunate, LeMahieu said Thursday.

Were going to do our due diligence, make sure we have a bill that at least all the stakeholders can get behind and if the Assembly at some point refuses to take up that bill  a bill that is going to make generational changes to townships, counties, municipalities all around the state  hes going to have to answer to his caucus, LeMahieu said of Vos.

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers expressed optimism early Wednesday that bipartisan compromise could be reached on the bill. That was before Vos said he was done negotiating.

On Thursday, Evers spokesperson Britt Cudaback stated the governor thought the vote requirement was likely untenable, given Milwaukees urgent financial needs.

The governor is willing to support allowing the City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County to increase the sales tax with a supportive vote by local elected officials who are accountable to local taxpayers, she continued.

The provisions LeMahieu and Vos disagree about would allow Milwaukee County to increase its 0.5% sales tax by 0.375 percentage points and allow Milwaukee to impose a 2% sales tax to fund pension debt only if voters approve those increases.

In a public hearing earlier this month, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley largely praised the bill as a major step forward to help stave off impending cuts to city and county staffing, including for police and fire services. However, they also raised concern over language in the bill requiring a public vote, as opposed to a decision made by local elected officials.

Johnson declined to comment for this story.

After Evers said he would veto the original measure to increase local aid by 10%, Assembly Republicans on Wednesday passed an amended version of the bill, proposing a minimum 15% increase in state funding for every Wisconsin municipality except Milwaukee, which would get a 10% increase.

While the original bill would have increased local aid by $227 million, the updated version boosts the increase to $260 million, according to an analysis from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
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Republican state lawmakers have put forth a proposal to make health care providers give consumers access to out-of-pocket cost estimates for common procedures.

Theyre shopping the proposal around and looking for co-signers and  perhaps surprisingly given the partisan divide in Madison  they may get some Democrat legislators to add their names to the proposed legislation.

State Sen. Mary Felzkowski, R-Irma, is the chief author of the bill, and said, Health care is the only thing Wisconsinites purchase that we dont know the price of beforehand. That has to change.

Under a draft of her proposal, each hospital in the state would be required to make publicly available a digital file containing a list of standard charges for certain items and services provided by that hospital. They would also be required to provide a consumer-friendly list of standard charges for services that can be scheduled by a health care provider in advance.

That would allow consumers to shop around when scheduling non-urgent care that patients commonly receive and can schedule in advance  things like blood tests, CT scans and mammograms.

And it would have teeth. Felzkowskis proposal would give the state Department of Health Services the power to check for hospitals violating the bill and request a correction plan. It would also give DHS the ability to impose escalating penalties for non-compliance  from $600 a day for smaller hospitals to as much as $10,000 a day for hospitals with more than 550 beds are out of compliance.

A leading Wisconsin hospital association contends the proposed bill in many ways duplicates federal rules passed two years ago and will only result in confusion for health care providers.

Eric Borgerding, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Hospital Association, said the bill is unnecessary and that the vast majority of Wisconsin hospitals are already mostly or fully compliant with the federal transparency rules.

Bottom line, our hospitals are ahead of the curve and new, publicly available price and quality transparency tools are emerging every day making this legislation unneeded in a leader state like Wisconsin.

Borgerding cites rankings by Turquoise Health, a price-transparency platform, that showed nearly two-thirds of 130 Wisconsin hospitals had completed all the requirements of the federal rule.

Thats disputed by supporters of the legislation, who point to a January article in the Journal of General Internal Medicine that said nationwide most hospitals, as many as six in 10, do not comply with every requirement of the federal rules. They say federal agencies have been slow to enforce compliance.

And, in the background, were aware of reports by the RAND Corporation that found employers and private insurers paid Wisconsin hospitals more than three times what Medicare would have paid for the same services, the fourth highest rate of any state in the country, according to a recent Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel report.

Health care costs are a concern to us all  from individual consumers to employers faced with rising costs for its employee health plans. We dont favor punitive measures for our hospitals and health care providers, nor do we favor redundant state and federal enforcement. But we do favor transparency in health care pricing so consumers can make the best decisions on their care and weigh it against the costs.

There are differing opinions in this debate, but its one that the state Legislature should hear out and then make a decision.
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Magic Valley voters approved a school levy, a library levy, a revenue bond for water, and more, during Tuesdays consolidated election.

In Hagerman, two issues were decided by razor-thin margins and, in Burley, a supermajority voted to support the library.

Hagerman Joint School District passes plant facilities levy

The Hagerman Joint School Districts request for a five-year plant facilities levy needed 55% to pass, and came out with 55% voting in favor.

I thought it was going to be close, and it was, Hagerman Superintendent Jim Brown told the Times-News by phone. I was hoping it wasnt going to be this close.

The levy authorizes $400,000 per year for five years, and will be used to renovate the Prince Memorial Gym.

With the levy in hand, they will be able to renovate the space, replace heating and cooling, as well as making for additional classrooms, better utilization of space, and modernization to meet the school and communitys needs.

We barely got it passed, but we got it passed, Brown told the Times-News. Instead of putting Band-aids on certain areas, we can move forward and provide a really quality facility for years to come.

A plan will be presented in early spring 2025, with an expected groundbreaking in summer 2025. The project will take about a year to complete, and should be in use in 2026.

Hagerman Water

Voters in the city of Hagerman also voted for a special revenue bonds to the tune of $4.8 million. The decision was made by a one-vote difference, with 88 in favor, and 87 opposed.

It is the second time Hagerman has voted on the bond this year, after it failed in the March election by a single vote.

Hagerman Mayor Jared Hillier said he was glad it passed, but the issue is still contentious.

Were very fortunate, but at the same time, its kind of a little bit of a controversy in the city of Hagerman, Hillier told the Times-News in a phone call. Half the town likes it, half the town doesnt. I hope we can manage that well.

The money will be used for new infrastructure for storage tanks and infrastructure to resolve existing water pressure issues in the city, where some houses have very high water pressure, and others have very low water pressure.

Hillier said he thinks the time the city and supporters spent informing the voters about the bond made the difference this time.

I think ultimately we just tried really to get the correct information out there, Hillier said. I think (last election), the people didnt have all the information and all the facts. And I think we did a good job of getting that out there.

Planning for the improvements will begin right away, and construction is anticipated to be underway by 2024 or 2025.

Burley Public Library

Burleys library override levy passed with a wide margin, with voters in Cassia and Minidoka counties casting 305 votes in favor of the levy renewal, to 121 opposed, giving it more than a 70% approval rate.

Burley Administrator Mark Mitton told the Times-News that the two-year override levy renewal has been approved by voters every two years, and provides additional funds for library services and hours of operation, because the base property tax levy will not fund all that.

Theres a lot of library users and a lot of library users from outside the city, Mitton told the Times-News by phone. It services probably the majority of the population of Cassia County.

Burley Library Director Tayce Robinson told the Times-News that the levy, which supports 61% of operating costs, allows the library to, among other things, have a programs librarian who focuses on programming for children from kindergarten through high school.

The library is here to support our community, Robinson told the Times-News in a phone call. Were here to strengthen our community, and make it a better place for everybody.

Robinson said the library users are a wide range of people, from children attending story time with a parent or caregiver, homeschoolers, and teens.

We have a good size group of teens that come in every other week and they play a game called Dungeons and Dragons, Robinson told the Times-News. This game helps them develop communication skills, math skills, and storytelling skills.

Blaine County voters support workforce housing

Residents in Hailey, Ketchum and Sun Valley voted to reallocate tax money toward workforce housing. The Idaho Mountain Express reported that each city passed measures to redirect money from marketing and air service into housing initiatives.

Around 85% of voters in Sun Valley and Hailey backed the move, along with 75% of voters in Ketchum. Each of the measures required 60% support.

Highway district elections

Burley and Shoshone highway districts also held elections. Anthony Owens was elected to the Shoshone Highway District with 56.12% of the vote, edging out Mark R. Kime.

Michael Glen Searle was elected to the Burley Highway District, with 596 votes or 52.46% approval. Searle beat out Gaylen Smyer, who had 540 votes or 47.54%.
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First cohort of Chobani Scholars graduate from Idaho

The first cohort from the Chobani Scholars program graduated from the University of Idaho last weekend.

The program was launched in 2018 to support students with experience or interest in the dairy industry seeking careers in dairy, agriculture and food science. Chobani grants are helping more than two dozen students attending Idahos College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, as well as Cornell Universitys College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, according to a news release.

The Idaho graduates include the following:

Alejandro Jimenez, the founding president of the Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences program

Avelardo Vargas, the colleges 2023 Student Leader of the Year who has landed a job at Alta Genetics

Daniel Salas, who will intern this summer with Standard Dairy Consultants in Twin Falls

Kaitlin Mirkin, the 2023 Outstanding Senior in the college who will attend veterinary school in the fall at Washington State University

Raquel Dimond, who will join Mirkin at Washington States veterinary school

Idaho PUC to hold Intermountain Gas rate hearings

The Idaho Public Utilities Commission will hold two hearings next month on a proposed settlement to set new rates for Intermountain Gas service.

If approved, Intermountain residential bills would increase by 70 cents monthly or 1.21% and commercial bills would increase by 96 cents or .35% each month.

A customer hearing is scheduled for Monday, June 5, at 6 p.m., with all testimony becoming part of the official case record, according to an Idaho PUC news release. The in-person hearing will be at 11331 W. Chinden Blvd., Bldg. 8, Ste. 201-A, in Boise. The hearing will also be available by calling 1-415-655-0001, entering meeting number 2630 884 3847 and using the numeric password of 249 74 983.

A technical hearing will follow on Thursday, June 8, starting at 9 a.m. To listen, call 1-415-655-0001, enter meeting number 2633 028 3230 and use the numeric password 832 46 422.

The Idaho PUC is accepting written comments on the proposed settlement until June 8 on the commissions website at www.puc.idaho.gov.

Hailey library to launch monthly Loteria Night

The Hailey Public Library and Neighbors Helping Neighbors have partnered to create a Loteria Night on the fourth Thursday of each month beginning in May.

An especially popular game in Mexico, loteria is a traditional game of chance, sometimes referred to as Mexican bingo, played with a deck of 54 colorful cards. The free, family-friendly event will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at Town Center West, located across from the library at 116 S. River St.

For more information, call the library at 208-788-2036 or go online to www.haileypubliclibrary.org.

Also:

A community survey to gather feedback regarding growth, agriculture, economic development and other local issues for Minidoka County and the cities of Rupert and Paul will close Monday. The survey is available in English and Spanish at https://bit.ly/MinidokaCountyCompPlan. For more information, call 208-436-7183, or email BStephens@minidokacounty.id.gov

.

Ketchums

Clara Harding

, a graduate of Wood River High School, won The Senior Prize in Government at Hamilton Colleges Class & Charter Day on May 9. The award is given annually at the New York liberal arts institution to the outstanding senior concentrator in government.

 Times-News
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NEW YORK  For decades, a giant, inflatable rat with beady eyes, sharp teeth and a pustule-covered belly has loomed over union protests, drawing attention to various labor disputes.

As New York City deals with an influx of actual rats, Scabby the Rat has become that rare thing, like Pizza Rat or Buddy the Rat  a rodent New Yorkers can rally behind.

In the era of TikTok and influencer culture, middle-aged Scabby faces a new challenge: staying relevant.

"It's kind of unfortunate, changing times, older members of the public know exactly what the rat is for," said James Smith, union activity administrator for the NYC District Council of Carpenters. "The newer generation sometimes doesn't  one person thought that we were protesting a building that needed an exterminator."

The rodent is not collecting hard-won retirement benefits just yet.

Scabby has been making the rounds at various picket lines in New York for the Hollywood writers strike organized by the Writers Guild of America East and other unions.

At the picket line near HBO and Amazon's New York offices last week, screenwriter Lisa Kron, 61, said she was "thrilled to see that we were being chaperoned by Scabby the Rat."

She's seen Scabby out and about during her four decades living in New York, but this was her first time picketing with the rat.

"It's one of those great enduring symbols, it's a great piece of visual protest," she said. "It's got humor and it's got a shaming kind of message. And it's very New York."

"It's an attention grabber," said Benjamin Serby, a professor at Adelphi University who has written about Scabby's history. "It's something that just is very effective, for whatever reason, at making people walking by or driving by, stop and ask: 'What's going on here?'"

Scabby the Rat was invented by a union in Chicago in the late 1980s, though several claim credit. Other unions around the country quickly adopted inflatables  pigs, roaches and cats are popular, though they lack a catchy nickname  to draw attention to actions.

Most unions have several Scabbys, or borrow from unions that do.

At a union action in March at a Petco, Marty Flash sat in the cab of his truck used to ferry one of the NYC District Council of Carpenters' eight rats around. Most of the rats, along with a generator and gas can, stay in a locker at union headquarters or in organizers' trucks so they can be quickly deployed.

Flash, a carpenter for 35 years, has seen many reactions to the 10-foot-tall rat in the truck's bed.

"In midtown Manhattan, it's a tourist attraction. Little children get a real kick out of it. They come over, they want to touch it. Dogs are petrified of it," he said. Scabby can inflate in about a minute and a half with a generator, he said, and deflate in about 30 seconds. Bigger rats  they range from 8 to more than 20 feet tall  can take 15 minutes to fill up.

Scabby's name is a play on "scabs," a derogatory term from the 1800s for strikebreakers who cross picket lines to work. The sores on his belly are a visual reference to the term. Flash said workers shouldn't take offense, since Scabby is protesting against contractors and companies, not workers themselves.

"Some workers think that we are against them. We're actually fighting to get them more money, better pay and better benefits," he said. "But it's perceived as the rat is calling them a rat or implying that they're 'less than.' Which is not our intention.  It's to imply that a rat contractor is not paying their workers the fair pay."

The rats are made of PVC vinyl and cost between $8,000 to $20,000, Flash said. Blue Sky Balloons outside of Chicago is responsible for most of the rats found in NYC. That company seems to be distancing itself from the inflatables, The Guardian reported earlier this year. Blue Sky Balloons told The Associated Press its new owners weren't associated with the rat and didn't respond to follow-up queries.

Flash says his union still sends its rats to Big Sky for repairs, which can cost up to $2,000. Repairs are needed often as most rats are years or decades old, so the unions try to take good care of them.

Sometimes the inflatable rat gets slashed or attacked by anyone from random passersby to disgruntled workers. If it blocks the sidewalk or street, police can boot it.

Scabby also has faced legal challenges by the companies it targets, though the National Labor Relations Board ruled in 2021 that it was a protected form of expression.

These days, Scabby has to contend with new technology and social media. Its Facebook page, run by a retired union organizer, lets various unions post photos of Scabby at protests around the country, and some rats feature QR codes that give people information about campaigns.

However, Mike Piccirillo, president of Local 20 Carpenters Union, said a more recent addition to the union's arsenal might overshadow Scabby.

"Our LED sign truck is a lot more effective than the rat," he said. "I've been in construction for 25 years, and most New Yorkers are numb to the rat. They just walk by it. Now the LED sign with its flashing lights actually gets their attention."

These industries provide the most jobs in every state These industries provide the most jobs in every state The trade, transportation, and utilities industry leads in US employment Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington DC West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming
SYDNEY, AustraliaChina has lifted an import ban on Australian timber, Beijings ambassador said Thursday, hailing warming ties between the two countries.

Timber was among a slew of Australian commodities hit with import bans and restrictions as diplomatic relations between Beijing and Canberra soured during the height of the pandemic.

Xiao Qian told reporters in Canberra that China would immediately resume imports of Australian timber, which were stopped in 2020.

Yesterday, the Chinese Customs have formally notified the Australian Minister of Agriculture that starting from today, China will resume import of Australian timber, Xiao said at a press conference.

The resumption of the timber trade, worth about Aus$600 million (US$400 million) a year according to government data, came as relations improved, he added.

There are also other issues on the table that allow me to say that the momentum is positive.

Last week, the two countries trade ministers met face-to-face for the first time since 2019, as the center-left Australian government aimed to repair a relationship that had grown tense under the previous administration.

China, Australias largest trading partner, blocked the import of its timber in 2020, citing the discovery of pests on shipments of wood.

But there were import curbs on other items too, including coal, barley and wine.

The restrictions came at a time when China was angered by Australias legislation against overseas influence operations, its barring of Huawei from 5G contracts and its call for an independent investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Relations appear to have warmed since Australias center-left government adopted a less confrontational approach to China since coming to power a year ago.

But Beijing and Canberra remain at odds on several issues besides trade, including the case of detained Australian journalist Cheng Lei.

When questioned over the continuing detention of Cheng  who has been held for more than 1,000 days in China  Xiao said the legal process was ongoing but he had personal sympathy for her and her family.

I will continue to try my utmost to facilitate more access, that she could have some kind of access directly to her partners and their friends and families to let them know that shes okay.

Cheng, a former anchor at Chinese state broadcaster CGTN, disappeared on August 13, 2020, and was later charged with supplying state secrets overseas.

Canberra has previously expressed concern about delays in Chengs case, which many believe to be politically motivated. Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers welcomed the resumption of the timber trade and said his government had long called for the removal of Chinese restrictions.

Its a crucially important market for us. We want to stabilize the relationship, and any progress in lifting these trade restrictions is welcome, Chalmers said.

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SEOULSouth Korea and Canada agreed to boost cooperation on crucial supply chains and work more closely to counter North Koreas growing nuclear threats after their leaders met in Seoul on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau  on his first official visit to South Korea, and the first by a Canadian leader in nearly a decade  met President Yoon Suk Yeol for a summit on Wednesday afternoon.

After the talks, Yoon said the pair had agreed to deepen cooperation on supply chains, especially for critical minerals used in electric vehicle batteries, which Canada has reserves of and which are needed by South Koreas car manufacturers.

Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (left) shakes hands with South Koreas President Yoon Suk Yeol during their meeting at the Presidential Office in Seoul on May 17, 2023. AFP

The two leaders also discussed regional security and condemned North Koreas banned nuclear program, Yoon told a joint press briefing, following another record-breaking year of missile launches by Pyongyangs Kim Jong Un.

Trudeau offered Seoul support in its plans to achieve a denuclearized, peaceful, unified and prosperous Korean Peninsula, as well as more cooperation on security, according to a statement released by both governments.

This support includes the augmentation of Canadas naval presence and participation in multinational operations in the region, it said.

The two countries, which already have deeply rooted people-to-people ties, also announced a new program designed to give Korean and Canadian young people increased work and travel opportunities in the other country.

Earlier, Trudeau had told South Korean lawmakers that the two countries needed stronger ties as the world was facing a moment of unprecedented uncertainty, with lingering consequences from the Covid-19 pandemic, rising living costs and the real and terrifying effects of climate change and war.

Im here to tell you that its no longer enough to be friends. We need to be the best of friends, Trudeau said during a speech to Seouls National Assembly.

Canadas minerals

South Korea is Canadas seventh largest trading partner, Seoul says, with the Asian country mostly selling cars and smartphones and buying raw materials including coal and copper ore.

The two countries signed a slew of memorandums of understanding, including one they said would contribute to strengthening and securing supply chains for clean energy and critical minerals.

This will support the development of clean technologies that will power green and sustainable economic growth, and help both countries battery and electric vehicle industries, they said.

Canadian media outlets also reported on possible meetings between Trudeau and top executives from South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution.

The company and its partner, auto manufacturer Stellantis, halted construction work this week on a massive EV battery plant in Canada, saying Trudeaus government has not delivered on what was agreed to.

Trudeaus visit follows a trip by Yoon to Ottawa last year.

Since then, the two countries have released Indo-Pacific strategies providing a road map for boosting military and economic relationships in the region to counter the growing influence of China.

Canada intends to take more interest in the Indo-Pacific region and to actively intervene with the United States and is moving in that direction, said Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

South Korea is the same in that respect, so there are shared interests between them, he added.

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In recent weeks, pandemic monitoring group OCTA Research has reported an uptick in the COVID-19 positivity rate across NCR. Last May 13, the seven-day positivity rate in the National Capital Region rose to 25.4%, with one in every four individuals testing positive. Although the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency, the threat of COVID-19 persists and Filipinos are urged to remain vigilant.

As part of its efforts to protect the health and safety of Filipinos, Shopee partnered with Lysol to donate 3 Million worth of disinfectant products to 10 local government units (LGUs) across Metro Manila. Of the 10 LGUs, Shopee and Lysol representatives have successfully turned over the products to the cities of Mandaluyong, Manila, Pasig, and Quezon City.

Through the donation, public hospitals, health centers, and communities in each city will be able to benefit with greater access to cleaning products that help protect Filipinos from germs and viruses that cause illness, such as COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus, and cough.

Hon. Benjamin S. Abalos, Sr., Mayor of Mandaluyong, one of the beneficiaries of the donations, expressed We would like to extend our gratitude towards Shopee and Lysol for supporting our efforts in keeping our communities healthy and safe. Through these donations, we can be assured that our public hospitals and health centers will be cleaner and safer for our constituents.

Over the next few weeks, Shopee and Lysol will continue to turn over even more products to the LGUs of Antipolo, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Paranaque, Taguig, and Valenzuela. Among the products included in the donation are liquid hand soaps, disinfectant sprays, and hospital-grade disinfectant concentrates to promote proper health and safety practices within the local communities.

Steve Ladan, Head of E-Commerce at Reckitt Philippines, shared As we look to create healthy homes, schools, and habits across the country, we are thrilled to be partnering with Shopee in donating disinfectant products that will help protect the well-being and safety of Filipinos. The health and safety of Filipinos will continue to be one of our top priorities, and we look forward to rolling out more initiatives similar to this.

Vincent Lee, Executive Director at Shopee Philippines, shared Shopee is committed to supporting the local community, including protecting their health and safety. We are glad that we were able to work with like-minded partner organizations like Lysol to support this cause. We urge Filipinos to remain vigilant and look after themselves and their loved ones during this period.

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A cross-cultural tour of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with Filipino artists

Art Show Philippines, a community committed to showcasing and empowering Philippine art and artists with a social media following of nearly 32,000, organized a cultural tour and art exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, running from today until May 21.

The 1st ASP Art without Borders Program includes 24 contemporary Filipino artists selected through a rigorous curatorial review, providing a unique opportunity for artists to exchange ideas, form a collaborative network and gain access to resources, workshops, seminars, lectures, and cultural sites.

Embarking on a cultural study tour can unlock a whole new dimension of appreciation for art and culture. Through immersion in a particular culture, one can gain a holistic understanding of its customs and traditions and truly experience its way of life. This immersion is a key factor in developing cultural awareness and artistic development.  Frederick Epistola, Art Show Philippines founder.

The ASP Art Without Borders Program  Kuala Lumpur is in collaboration with MoMos Hotel and supported by The Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Museum of Islamic Art, Malaysia, Museum of Asian Art, University of Malay, Miniuture Museum Kuala Lumpur, Provincial Government of Camarines Sur, City Government of Pasay, Municipality of Alfonso, Cavite, Municipality of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, Municipality of Silang, Cavite, Municipality of Lubang, Occidental Mindoro and Municipality of Sta. Maria, Bulacan.

For more information, visit, https://www.facebook.com/artshowphilippines.

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WELLINGTONAn arsonist may have ignited the hostel blaze that killed at least six people in New Zealands capital, police said on Wednesday, as they opened a homicide investigation.

Smoke and flames engulfed the 92-room, four-storey Loafers Lodge in Wellington in the early hours of Tuesday, sending residents fleeing for their lives.

Some survivors crawled through smoke to safety, while others were rescued from the rooftop by firefighters using ladder trucks.

Those who died still lie in the charred building.

I can confirm that we are treating the fire as arson, police inspector and acting district commander Dion Bennett told reporters, declining to give the full reasons.

It is being treated as a homicide investigation.

Police have a list of people they want to speak to, he added, but no one has been arrested so far.

Firefighters found six bodies inside the hostel, but said they were unable to search everywhere because the roof had partially collapsed on the top floor.

Police have said the death toll may rise.

Two hours before the blaze broke out, a couch had caught fire inside the building without being reported to emergency services, police said earlier.

Investigators were looking into possible links between the two incidents, they said.



A police reconnaissance team entered the building on Wednesday for the first time since it was declared safe, to look for evidence and locate the dead.

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At least nine suspected human trafficking victims were repatriated after they were rescued from their abusive employers in Malaysia and Thailand, according to the Bureau of Immigration (BI).

The BI said the repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) arrived in two batches from Malaysia and Thailand at the Ninoy Aquino International. The group from Bangkok allegedly left the country as tourists sometime in the last quarter of 2022 and were promised customer service jobs with a pay ranging from P40,000 to P60,000.

Like other cases of human trafficking in the Southeast Asian region, the victims were transported to Mae Sot City, Myanmar and forced to work in online love scams and crypto rackets while the others served as therapists in Malaysia said BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco.

The victims recounted how they had to endure physical torture for not meeting their quota. They were detained until they could pay ransom for their release.

We always hear the stories of our repatriated kababayans  each story worse after the other. It is gut-wrenching hearing how they suffered. One of them shared how their parents had to sell their farm land to produce a large-sum of money just to be given to those criminals. the BI chief said.

Imagine the mental and emotional torture the victims and their families went through. That is not something one easily recovers from. he added.

The victims were recruited by strangers through the Facebook. According to the victims, they all left the country in the last quarter of 2022 supposedly to work as massage therapists in Miri, Malaysia.

The victims were later forced to engage in sex work in spa parlors offering extra service.

The victims recounted how they were forced to work every day and were only given rest days during their monthly period.

Sex trafficking is a direct attack to ones rights and dignity. It is dangerous, degrading, and is exploitative of women and children. the BI Chief said.

The BI reiterated the warning to the public not to fall prey to human trafficking schemes, saying securing documents to work abroad might be tedious, but it also protects aspiring overseas Filipino workers against illegal recruitment and other hazards abroad, he said.

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Canada has called on the Philippines to support its free trade negotiations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Regarding trade, we are negotiating for a free trade agreement with ASEAN. So, we hope that we could have the support of the Philippines. And we are negotiating also to become a strategic partner of ASEAN, recognizing the importance of ASEAN Centrality, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said during a courtesy call on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Malacanang on Thursday.

So if we could work together to achieve that, that would be very much appreciated because we are bringing a lot of diplomatic knowledge and strength, the Foreign Minister added.

President Marcos said there are many opportunities the two countries can identify as potential areas for us to be able to move further.

He also expressed his desire for the Philippines to pursue strategic partnership with Canada to further strengthen their bilateral ties.

On the issue of strategic partnership, I think it is something that certainly we can pursue. I cannot at the outset see anything that should get in the way of achieving this goal, the President said.

Canada and the Philippines are set to mark their 75th year of bilateral relations in 2024.

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Philippine officials defended measures to protect Filipino migrant workers in Kuwait that triggered a retaliatory response from the Kuwaiti government, which banned the entry of new OFWs.

In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said its senior officials and those from the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) met with their Kuwait counterparts in talks held Tuesday and Wednesday.

The delegation explained that all actions taken by the Philippine embassy and the Philippine government are solely to ensure the safety and welfare of our own nationals, the DFA statement read.

Providing protection to a countrys citizens abroad is a well-established duty of consular offices under international law and conventions, it added.

During the talks, Philippine officials said they expressed full respect for Kuwaiti laws and thanked their Kuwaiti counterparts for the hospitality of its government and people to more than 200,000 Filipino workers who consider Kuwait as their second home.

The Philippines remains open to constructive dialogue on how to address current concerns, the government said, without disclosing details if the entry ban was indeed tackled during the talks.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo Jose de Vega said the suspension of visa issuance and the entry ban on Filipinos will stay as the Philippines tries to hash out a long-term solution to issues between the two nations involving overseas Filipinos working there.

De Vega said the Kuwaiti government wants to remove the shelters for runaway household workers because these are not allowed under its laws.

He added that the Kuwaiti government also does not want the Philippine government to contact the employers of OFWs who reported abuse and other concerns.

They insist we are violating their law. So its still status quo. We will need more talks, De Vega said Thursday.

De Vega underscored the need to implement the existing Philippine-Kuwait labor agreement.

This kind of long-term solution will not be achieved in one round of discussions. The alternative would be for us to immediately agree to everything they insist on, or for them to agree to everything we insist on, he said.

That is not realistic in diplomatic negotiations, even with a friend and partner like Kuwait.

Kuwait imposed an entry ban and suspended the visa issuance to all Filipinos coming to the Gulf state in May, 10 months after the Philippine government halted the deployment of first-time household service workers there, after a Filipino domestic helper was murdered by the son of her employer.

Kuwait did not formally disclose the reason behind its decision but the local media reported that it stemmed from the countrys alleged non-compliance with the 2018 labor agreement concerning the operation of a temporary shelter for distressed Filipinos inside the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait.

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Canada called for foreign help Wednesday to combat wildfires burning out of control and spreading across vast swathes of the western half of the country.

The fires that have devastated the oil-producing Alberta province have in recent days spread to neighboring British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well as the Northwest Territories.

Some 2,500 firefighters from across Canada backed by 400 military personnel have been deployed across Alberta to try to tame the wildfires, which have already burned more than half a million hectares of forests and grasslands and destroyed many homes and businesses.

But they arent enough, officials said.

Its still a very significant and dangerous situation in Alberta, federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Blair said the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center is reaching out to foreign countries  the United States, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand Were asking them to come and help us.

Smoke from the wildfires has blanketed western Canada, leading to warnings about poor air quality posing risks to health.

In Calgary, the sky had an orange hue to it as the smoke grew thicker throughout the day.

Hundreds of kilometers (miles) to the east, residents of Regina and Saskatoon in neighboring Saskatchewan province said they woke up to a thick haze and a strong smell of smoke in the air.

Across the region, almost 180 wildfires were burning  including 48 out of control  forcing tens of thousands to flee over the past two weeks.

Evacuation orders and alerts were lifted in some parts on Tuesday and Wednesday, including hard-hit Drayton Valley west of Edmonton in Alberta and Fort St. John in British Columbia, as those fires were subdued.

Air quality indexes in several cities, however, indicated wildfire smoke that spread from the Pacific Coast to Manitoba province still poses a very high risk to health.

In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.

This has brought floods and mudslides, forest fires that destroyed an entire town, and record-high summer temperatures that killed more than 500 people in 2021.

This springs mostly hot, dry weather has resulted in what Alberta leader Danielle Smith described as an unprecedented crisis.

As evacuees trickled back to Drayton Valley, local fire Chief Tom Thomson urged caution.

There are still extremely hazardous areas There are concerns about falling trees. There are concerns about ash pits, he told a news conference.

We do still have fire crews actively working on the fire, he added, warning people to remain vigilant.

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Get ready to experience an event that combines pageantry and high fashion. The Supermodel International Philippines National Finals is not just a competition, its a celebration of fashion, beauty, and diversity.

Produced by Spotlight Couronne Internationale Inc., the pageant promotes social responsibility and advocacy as it encourages its candidates to use their influences through their platforms to create a positive change in their communities, and to highlight the diverse and inclusive beauty of the country.

Supermodel International 2022 Bui Quynh Hoa, Miss Universe Philippines 2021 2nd runner-up Steffi Rose Aberasturi, and Miss Universe Philippines 2022 2nd runner-up Katrina Llegado will be part of the selection committee for the grand finale.

The Supermodel International Philippines 2023, presented by SCI Philippines, Pasayahan Sa Lucena, 2205 Suites by East Orient and Ascent Employment, is about to take the fashion world by storm on May 20, at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena City, Quezon.

PHs Mister and Miss Fitness SuperModel World bets in Vietnam

Misters of Filipinas Mayko Toledo and Kristel Galang are in Binh Thuan, Vietnam competing in the Mister and Miss Fitness Super Model World pageants. The twin pageants aim to create a platform for young people who are passionate about fashion and sports, and to help promote Vietnamese culture and tourism to the international community.

Toledo is a Cebuano and marketing student from the University of San Carlos, while Galang is a model and aspiring actor with a Marketing Communications degree from the University of Asia and the Pacific.

Supermodel International Philippines National Finals promises to be a showstopper

Winners will receive a crown worth P3.8 million and will become the brand fitness ambassadors and pageant spokespersons in Vietnam. Finals will be on May 20 while Mister Fitness Super Model World is set the next day.

Meanwhile, Misters of Filipinas Organization and PEPPs Foundation are gearing up for the 5th Annual Man of the World to be held next month. The advocacy-driven men will be arriving in Manila on June 7. Misters of Filipinas winner James Reggie Vidal admitted he is excited to play host-delegate of the pageants 5th edition.

After winning the Misters of Filipinas title last year, James is now more than ready to conquer the world stage.

James is very grateful that his experience with Misters of Filipinas is helping him with his journey.

Ive been doing a lot of training since last year, it was tough but with my family, my manager and PEPPs on my side, its worth it, said James.

All Misters of Filipinas kings were present to support James. Among them were Man Hot Star Jovy Bequillo, Misters of Filipinas Model Worldwide Zach Pracale, Misters of Filipinas Super Globe Marc Raeved Ovado, and Misters of Filipinas Fitness Super Model World Mayko Toledo.

A Binibini gives back

A stunning Batanguena beauty, Paola Allison Arano is one face to be reckoned with among the candidates of Binibining Pilipinas 2023.

Smart, driven, and confidently beautiful, this 22-year-old Pharmacy student of De La Salle Dasmarinas is feeling divine which she believed is a manifestation that the stars will align come the Grand Coronation Night.

When she speaks, Arano gives this self-assurance that is incredibly attractive and commands attention from everyone. And she speaks passionately about her desire to make a positive impact in the community thru her chosen platform that focuses on saving lives through blood donation. She has actively helped in promoting every bloodletting drive organized by the Philippine Red Cross-Batangas Chapter.

The 59th Binibining Pilipinas Grand Coronation Night is happening on May 28 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

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On Tuesday, North Carolinas Republican-led state legislature overrode a veto by its Democratic governor of a bill to ban abortions after 12 weeks of gestation, which will make Virginia the least restrictive state in the South for abortion access.

This is a crisis moment for North Carolinians and everyone trying to access abortion care in the South, said Jamie Lockhart, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia.

The North Carolina law is set to take effect July 1. In South Carolina lawmakers are debating a measure that would bar most abortions after about six weeks.

With surrounding states banning or further restricting access to the procedure, abortion providers note that Virginia can be a destination for out-of-state patients seeking the procedure.

Abortion will be a key issue this fall as Republicans and Democrats fight for control of Virginias General Assembly. Republicans currently control the House of Delegates while Democrats control the state Senate.

The Associated Press reports that abortion is banned or severely restricted in much of the South, including bans throughout pregnancy in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. In Georgia, abortion is permitted only in the first six weeks.

Following the overturn of federal protections last summer, a number of states across the country have sought further restrictions or bans, while others, like Virginia, have maintained their level of access.

Abortion is currently legal in Virginia for any reason up to about 26 weeks of pregnancy. Abortions that occur later in pregnancy require three physicians to conclude that carrying the fetus to term threatens the health or life of the pregnant person.

In Virginias most recent legislative session, several GOP lawmakers introduced bills aimed at restricting or prohibiting most abortions, but they were defeated. Measures included a bill Gov. Glenn Youngkin backed to bar most abortions after 15 weeks with exceptions for rape, incest and when the womans life is in danger. Other unsuccessful measures that GOP lawmakers sponsored included bills to define life at conception and legislation to walk back the 26-week threshold to between 22 and 24 weeks.

Sen. Siobahn Dunnavant, R-Henrico, carried the 22 to 24-week bill. The senator, an OBGYN, called the bill a compromise at the time and expressed disappointment that it was defeated in a committee meeting.

I think it was a reasonable attempt to find consensus, she said. You shouldnt have an abortion when a baby can live outside the mom.

In a high-profile June 20 Democratic primary in Senate District 13, which stretches from eastern Henrico and Charles City counties through the Tri-Cities into rural Southside, former Del. Lashrecse Aird has vowed to protect abortion access in Virginia and attacked her opponent, Sen. Joe Morrissey, D-Petersburg, accusing him of flip-flopping on the issue.

Morrissey, a Catholic, says he is personally opposed to abortion, but believes the decision should be made by a woman and her doctor.

I have never, ever voted to ban abortion, he said in a recent interview with The Richmond Times-Dispatch.

A recent Aird ad included clips of Morrissey talking on his radio show about being the only Democrat in the General Assembly who is pro-life  despite his statements to the media over the last year that he does support abortion access (up to about 20 weeks). She has also critiqued him for not being present this latest session for a vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that would enshrine abortion protections into the states constitution.

Aird has garnered endorsements from organizations that support abortion rights, like Planned Parenthood, ReproRising and Emilys List.

The 13th District leans Democratic, which means the victor of the primary would be the favorite to win election in November.

Following redistricting, all 140 House and Senate seats have shifted in some of their demographics  and their political leanings have shifted along with them. For example, Dunnavants former district was once reliably Republican, but now she faces Del. Schuyler VanValkenburg, D-Henrico, in the Democratic-leaning Senate District 16.

VanValkenburg, a teacher who has served in the House of Delegates since 2018, plans to support abortion access.

North Carolinas ban is a stark reminder of whats on the line here in Virginia this November, VanValkenburg said.

Some localities in Virginia have considered or have passed local zoning ordinances or declarations to prohibit abortion providers from establishing themselves in their cities or counties.

The Family Foundation, an anti-abortion organization that has lobbied the state legislature, has consulted on the drafting of some of the local policies.

Family Foundation president Victoria Cobb said she thinks it is important for state and local levels of government to take action to prevent Virginia from becoming an abortion tourism destination and keep the Commonwealth of Virginia one that values and protects life.
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The Republican-led Virginia Department of Elections elected to withdraw from a multi-state election data-sharing partnership over concerns about privacy, costs and the alleged risk of data sharing with outside organizations being leveraged for political purposes.

Democratic lawmakers asserted Monday that the move is an effort to undermine voting access and trust in the electoral process.

The Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) was created in 2012 with Virginia as one of the seven founding members. Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican, promoted it at the time. The partnership allows for states to compare voting data to identify people who have died or moved between states and adjust rolls accordingly  measures that can prevent or catch instances of voter fraud.

ERIC primarily combated the things Republicans claim to care about, said House Minority Leader Don Scott Jr., D-Portsmouth, at a news conference Monday. Why would Republicans want to do away with it? The answer is and has always been clear since Governor (Glenn) Youngkin was elected  because they want to undermine our democracy.

Virginias ERIC pullout follows several other GOP-led states that have withdrawn  Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Ohio and West Virginia. Texas has considered a withdrawal that is supported by the Republican Party of Texas, but has not yet left ERIC.

Scott remarked on how the Youngkin administration quietly changed the process for formerly incarcerated people to have their voting rights restored, and also noted the GOP-led push in recent years to walk back the expanded voting access that was implemented when Democrats held the governorship and majorities in the General Assembly.

From quietly changing the restoration of rights progress to this surprising departure from ERIC, everything they do is trying to disrupt our election process, he said Monday. These destructive changes harm voters and undermine faith in our system.

Last week, Department of Elections Commissioner Susan Beals wrote a letter to ERIC, citing reasons for Virginias planned withdrawal. She cited concerns over rising costs to participate following the departure of other states and confidentiality of the data sharing.

The letter noted momentum around the creation of viable alternatives to inter-state data sharing compacts and Virginias ability to replicate favorable ERIC functionality internally and develop true autonomy for all list maintenance and data sharing practices.

To accomplish this, Andrea Gaines, a spokesperson for Beals, said the department will obtain a subscription to the Limited Master Death file from the Social Security Administration and will continue to process records it receives from the Department of Motor Vehicles.

She added that Virginia has been in talks with other states for several months about creating new state-to-state data-sharing relationships for the purpose of identifying double voters.

On the concern over rising costs, Gaines said the fiscal year costs rose from $37,000 to $54,000 from 2022 to 2023. Participating states contribute to the funding for ERIC.

A spokesperson for Youngkin said rising costs were a reason to withdraw, along with concerns over privacy.

Virginia withdrew from ERIC because Virginians data was shared with an ERIC affiliated research organization and, despite its efforts, Virginia was unable to reform ERIC, said Macaulay Porter, a spokesperson for Youngkin.

ERIC has previously shared anonymized data for research purposes with an election organization led by David Becker, ERICs founder. States that participated did so voluntarily, VPM reported.

Democratic lawmakers have accused the Youngkin administration of buying into conspiracy theories. In Mondays news conference, several senators and delegates reflected on the growing national tensions around distrust in elections  spearheaded by former President Donald Trumps false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

This is wild conspiracy theory stuff, right? said Del. Marcus Simon, D-Fairfax. Its really disturbing that the governor and Susan (Beals) do seem to buy into these debunked conspiracy theories. Theyre willing to believe that kind of information and actually use that kind of conspiracy theory to guide decision making over at the Department of Elections.

Asked if the Youngkin administration had a response to the allegation, Porter did not directly respond, but answered other questions.

During his 2021 campaign, Youngkin initially ducked questions about whether he believed the 2020 election was stolen. After winning the GOP nomination, he said he would have voted to certify the results. Last year, he campaigned for some GOP gubernatorial candidates around the country  like Arizonas Kari Lake  who continued to deny the results of the 2020 election.

As for ERIC, after roughly a decade of operating under the radar as a bipartisan coalition of more than 30 states, it has generated concern from leaders or constituents in the states that have pulled out of it.

In early 2022, it became the subject of far-right blogs framing the partnership as a liberal conspiracy to steal elections. Louisiana became the first state to withdraw from ERIC shortly afterward.

Shane Hamlin, ERICs current executive director, provided a statement to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, stating that the organization will follow its bylaws and membership agreement regarding any members request to resign membership.

That means that, following Beals resignation notice, it will be 91 days before the resignation is effective, according to the bylaws.

We will continue our work on behalf of our remaining member states in improving the accuracy of Americas voter rolls and increasing access to voter registration for all eligible citizens, Hamlin said in the statement.

Top five weekend events: Dominion Energy Riverrock, Lebanese Food Fest & Pauly D Dominion Energy Riverrock Lebanese Food Festival Pauly D Jo Dee Messina at After Hours Flowers After 5
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At Tuesdays regular meeting, the Marion City Council recognized the Rotary Club of Marion for its contribution of new audio-video equipment and a new podium to the Community Building.

During her year as Rotary Club president, Brandi Behlke led the club in a signature project: upgrades to the interior of the Marion Community Buildings main level meeting room. The club meets there every Thursday at noon and local Rotarians felt it was past time for new audio-video equipment as well as a new and nicer looking speakers podium where they meet regularly. Other local organizations and clubs make use of this space on a regular basis.

The old equipment and podium had been there for many years and it was time for an update, Rotarians and city officials alike said.

The Rotary Club of Marion provided $24,000 toward this project. It resulted in two new large flat-screen TVs for showing videos and better microphones and audio system for those who speak at meetings and gatherings. A new and larger podium was installed and two tables bearing Marions symbol in metal artwork underneath.

During Tuesdays meeting, the Marion City Council thanked the Rotary Club members for their generous contribution. Mayor Steve Little presented the clubs current president, Richard Berlick, with a symbolic key to the Marion Community Building. This presentation was made to express the citys appreciation to the club.
No highway noise here! The beauty of nature abounds as you travel to this lovely one acre lot above the the quiet, Cattail Creek community. Take in the long-range winter views (year-round views possible with selective trimming) while listening to the sounds of the natural waterfall at the property's edge. Enjoy the quiet life in the mountains, yet live only 20 minutes to downtown BurnsvilleLandUndisturbed and wooded, one acre lot in quiet mountainside community. Small waterfall above the property boundary adds to the serene mountain getaway feel. Region & ClimateBurnsville, NC is a gem of a mountain town in western North Carolina featuring fresh air, outdoor activities, and a quaint downtown experience. Burnsville is also home to Mt. Mitchell-the highest peak east of the Mississippi River. Fishing opportunities abound amongst the South Toe, North Toe, and Cane rivers that run through Yancey county. LocationThis peaceful one acre lot is located 20 minutes from downtown Burnsville, one hour to Asheville, and 50 minutes to ski resorts.

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Guinea-Bissau and Italian oil company Eni will start a collaboration in the areas of exploration, natural climate solutions, agriculture, sustainability and health, the transalpine company announced in a statement Wednesday.

The collaboration is contained in the Memorandum of Intent to explore potential areas of collaboration in the fields of exploration, climate solutions based on nature and technology, agriculture, sustainability and health, Eni details.

This memorandum aims to evaluate solutions to promote environmentally sustainable growth and support the development of local communities, the note adds.

Eni reveals that the agreement also includes the assessment of the exploration potential of the countrys offshore area.

In return, the Italian company pledges to strengthen emergency and intensive care services, for which it says it has delivered a first batch of essential medical equipment to the Guinean Health Ministry, while its Eni Foundation is conducting a study to improve maternal and child health in the country.

Eni, which in the past has developed a strategy focused on obtaining Russian gas, has been promoting new alliances on the African continent since the start of the war in Ukraine.

The first point of its latest Industrial Plan advocates strengthening national energy security through geographic and technological diversification, for which it plans a series of facilities in Libya, in the Arab city of Hail and on the island of Ghasha in the United Arab Emirates.

The Italian company also plans to expand its activity in the Persian Gulf, Ivory Coast, Kazakhstan, Angola, and the Eastern Mediterranean area.

In January, the chairman of Enis board of directors, Claudio Descalzi, and the chairman of the National Oil Corporation of Libya (NOC), Farhat Bengdara, signed in Tripoli an agreement worth 8 billion euros for oil and gas exploration and production in the Maghreb country.
The peace mission of six African leaders to Ukraine and Russia, mentioned on Tuesday by South African President Cyril Ramphosa, should materialize in early June, a foreign affairs official announced Wednesday.

Cyril Ramaphosa had announced the day before that Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky had agreed to receive the mission and the African heads of state of six countries (South Africa, Senegal, Zambia, Congo, Uganda and Egypt) in their respective capitals.

The dates are yet to be confirmed, but in early June the six heads of state will shuttle back and forth between the two capitals to facilitate the peace talks, Zane Dangor, director general of the foreign ministry, told a group of parliamentarians.

We have also approached other actors, including the United States, he added, stressing that there is general support for this initiative, including from the UN.

Close to the Kremlin since the time of the fight against apartheid, South Africa has always refused to condemn the invasion of Ukraine, claiming to remain neutral and wanting to give priority to dialogue.

This African mission would allow Pretoria to reaffirm its neutrality, while many voices, both internationally and at home, criticize its position as too close to Moscow.
A perfect storm of overlapping conflicts in African countries and Ukraine, coupled with climate change-triggered disasters around the world forced a record 71.1 million people to flee within their own country in 2022, monitors said on Thursday (11 May).

An unprecedented 71.1 million internally displaced people (IDPs) were registered last year  up 20% from a year earlier  amid mass displacement due to several conflicts in African countries, Russias war in Ukraine, as well as by the monsoon floods that drenched Pakistan. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there were around 16.5 million displacements  more than half of them due to conflict, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in Ethiopia. 60.9 million new IDPs were meanwhile reported in 2022, with some people forced to flee multiple times during the year, according to a joint report by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) and the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).

That marks an all-time high for new internal displacements, and an increase of 60% compared to the some 38 million fresh IDPs recorded in 2021. That number is extremely high, IDMC chief Alexandra Bilak told the media. Ten countries  Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ukraine, Colombia, Ethiopia, Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan  are home to nearly three-quarters of those who live in displacement. Several of them remained displaced because of unresolved conflicts. There were 17 million displacements inside Ukraine, 8 million in Pakistan and 16.5 million in sub-Saharan Africa, with the DRC and Ethiopia seeing the most displacement on the African continent. The number of people living in displacement is only expected to increase as fresh conflicts like the power struggle in Sudan force people to flee from their homes.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

FBXW7 isoforms and SCF-FBXW7 complex. (A) Three FBXW7 isoforms (, , and ), which are structurally different only at their N-terminal region, while sharing conserved domains in the C-terminal region. Each of these isoforms consists of three domains: dimerization domain (DD), F-box domain, and tandem WD40 repeats. (B) The SCF-FBXW7 complex in FBXW7 dimerization format for substrate ubiquitylation. Credit: Cells (2023). DOI: 10.3390/cells12101415

A gene regulating the F-Box and WD Repeat Domain Containing 7 (FBXW7) protein is frequently mutated or deleted in various types of human cancer, including gynecological cancers. Such FBXW7 mutations have been associated with poor prognosis due to increased resistance to treatment. Hence, detection of the FBXW7 mutation status may possibly serve as a suitable diagnostic and prognostic biomarker that plays a central role in determining suitable individualized management.

Antonio Giordano, M.D., Ph.D., Founder and Director of the Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO), has co-authored the review paper in collaboration with 9 co-authors hailing from different countries, as part of the GYNOCARE COST Action (CA18117).

GYNOCARE is a European Network for Gynecological Rare Cancer research: From Concept to Cure, which is chaired by Prof Jean Calleja-Agius, M.D., Ph.D., from the Department of Anatomy at the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Malta, Malta. The paper by Di Fiore, R et al. is entitled "The Role of FBXW7 in Gynaecologic Malignancies" and has been published in the latest issue of Cells.

The FBXW7 protein has been shown to regulate cellular growth and is a well-characterized tumor suppressor. This protein is a crucial component of the Skp1-Cullin1-F-box (SCF) complex, which is a ubiquitin ligase. This complex aids in the degradation of many oncoproteins, such as cyclin E, c-JUN, c-MYC, NOTCH, and MCL1, via the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS).

Gynecological cancers include ovarian, uterine/endometrial, cervical, vaginal, and vulvar cancers. These malignancies pose a huge worldwide health-socio-economic burden due to their high incidence and mortality among women, irrespective of age.

Lack of screening, limited awareness of specific symptoms, late diagnosis, or even misdiagnosis, combined with limited treatment options for advanced gynecological cancers, are the main contributing factors leading to the high morbidity and mortality, thus stressing the need for further advances in the area of gynecological cancers.

There is mounting evidence indicating that the aberrant expression of FBXW7 is involved in the development of gynecological cancers. This review provides an update on the role of FBXW7, not only as a potential biomarker, but also as a therapeutic target for novel oncologic treatments, particularly in the management of gynecological cancers.

More information: Riccardo Di Fiore et al, The Role of FBXW7 in Gynecologic Malignancies, Cells (2023). DOI: 10.3390/cells12101415

Provided by Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO)
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Uncinate fasciculus (UF) tract DTI tractography. (A) Virtual dissection of UF. Green lines at the coronal slice represents the AND gates for the virtual dissection. Virtually dissected left and right UF shown in sagittal view. (B) Fractional anisotropy (FA) of UF. The factorial ANOVA analysis showed a significant main effect of group (F = 7.433, p = .007) and hemisphere (F = 7.288, p = .008). (C) Mean diffusivity (MD) of UF. The factorial ANOVA analysis showed a significant hemispheric effect (F = 4.988, p = .027) and time*group interaction (F = 6.303, p = .013). Credit: Journal of Affective Disorders (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.12.142

As scientists, we're accustomed to reading about our medical research topics in academic publications, such as the British Medical Journal, and not so much via scrolling through sites like Buzzfeed. However, if there is one trendy medical term for 2023, it's the microbiome. And mainstream stories about probiotics are everywhere. As a culture of wellness continues to gain momentum, we wanted to share our latest research findings and also issue a very important health warning.

At Basel University Hospital of Psychiatry in Switzerland, a multidisciplinary team of psychiatrists and neuroscientists recently published ground-breaking research for the use of probiotics during the clinical management of major depressive disorder (MDD) in the Journal of Affective Disorders. Dr. Andre Schmidt (Ph.D., PD), one of the authors of this article, led the study from a psychiatric point of view. Professor Claudio De Simone (MD, AGAF), the other author of this article, is a gastroenterologist who developed the formulation (the De Simone Formulation) that Dr. Schmidt's team used in the study.

The trial added a probiotic formulation into the treatment plan for people experiencing clinical depression to enhance their gut microbiota with the aim to help reduce depressive symptoms.

The results are published in the journal article "Effects of a probiotic add-on treatment on fronto-limbic brain structure, function, and perfusion in depression: Secondary neuroimaging and findings of a randomized controlled trial."

All participants in the study were prescribed an antidepressant. Half of them received a probiotic add-on. The other half got a placebo. Neither the study participants nor the study staff knew whether the patients were taking probiotics or the placebo. Depressive symptoms were measured with the 17-items Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). Clinical and MRI assessments were conducted before and after the four-weeks intervention.

Clinical data was also assessed at a four-week follow-up after the end of the intervention. Depressive symptoms were measured with the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) along with an additional MRI scan.

Dr. Schmidt's researchers found that the people who took the probiotic had signs of preserved structural integrity and fewer signs of neurodegeneration. Furthermore, probiotic supplementation altered the function of fronto-limbic brain regions, a neural circuitry implicated in depression.

Some of the imaging radiology findings were accompanied by improvement in depressive symptoms, prompting the study team to presume that the beneficial clinical effects of probiotic supplementation in depression may be due to a protective effect against neuronal degeneration and alterations in fronto-limbic functioning.

As the inventor of the probiotic formulation used in the study, Professor De Simone explains the science behind why it helped the study participants reduce symptoms and improve overall health. In this study, the microbiome's enhancement is linked not just to the specific bacteria strains used, but the unique biochemical and immunological enzymatic profile that results from the formulation's method of production and blending.

Professor De Simone explains that the clinical results obtained with any individual formulation are specific and "not exportable" to other products due to different and proprietary production methods, even if the strains might be genetically equivalent. In simple terms, using any probiotic product without matching it to the condition first might not achieve the desired results, and could even cause harm in vulnerable patient groups.

As a guideline for using probiotics during the clinical management of conditions, the U.S. headquartered International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) recently published their recommendations to support the scientific and medical community on judging probiotic safety. In the article titled "Emerging issues in probiotic safety: 2023 perspectives," published in the journal of Gut Microbes, the authors make it clear that probiotics are generally safe in healthy people, but adverse events can and do occasionally occur in vulnerable groups.

Research shows that quality probiotics are generally safe in healthy people, but adverse events can and do occasionally occur in vulnerable groups.

As for limitations to the study, Dr. Schmidt says an additional follow-up MRI session would be interesting for seeing clearer changes in the relevant brain regions as clinical effects were strongest in follow-up. The Basel team believes this is an important area of research that requires more attention with additional studies that can offer pathways to healing. As clinicians we believe in the importance of recognizing mental health is an essential part of a person's overall health and well-being, and that mental conditions are common and treatable.

This story is part of Science X Dialog, where researchers can report findings from their published research articles. Visit this page for information about ScienceX Dialog and how to participate.

More information: Gulnara Yamanbaeva et al, Effects of a probiotic add-on treatment on fronto-limbic brain structure, function, and perfusion in depression: Secondary neuroimaging findings of a randomized controlled trial, Journal of Affective Disorders (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.12.142. Daniel Merenstein et al, Emerging issues in probiotic safety: 2023 perspectives, Gut Microbes (2023). DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2023.2185034 Dr. Schmidt Bio:

Dr. Andre Schmidt (PhD, PD) is psychiatric neuroscientist with a particular interest in clinical neuroimaging, cognitive neuroscience and psychopharmacology. The main focus of his work is designing and conducting basic and clinical research with a specific focus on neuropsychopharmacology, neuroimaging and clinical neuroscience. His research aims to establish reliable biomarkers for clinical services to predict individual disease stages of brain disorders, monitor treatment responses and develop novel interventions. Dr. Schmidt has been the Group leader, Translational Neurosciences, Department of Psychiatry (UPK), University of Basel, Switzerland since 2016. Professor De Simone Bio:

Professor Claudio De Simone (MD, AGAF) is an internationally recognized European academic in the field of probiotics and the human microbiota. Professor De Simone is a Fellow of the American College of Gastroenterology. He is also a retired professor of infectious diseases at the University of L'Aquila (Italy), where he specialized in gastroenterology, allergology and clinical immunology. Since commercializing his signature De Simone Formulation in the 1990s, the Professor has actively campaigned for better regulation and quality control of probiotics based on potential risks to health and well-being. He has authored more than 200 published case studies, scientific articles and book chapters. Journal information: Journal of Affective Disorders , British Medical Journal (BMJ)
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When Destiny heard screams, she raced to a hospital room where she saw a patient assaulting a care technician. As a charge nurse at Northeast Georgia Health System, she was trained to de-escalate violent situations.

But that day in spring 2021, as Destiny intervened, for several minutes the patient punched, kicked, and bit her. And by the time a team of security guards and other nurses could free her, the patient had ripped out chunks of Destiny's hair.

"We are not protected on our floors," she said as she recapped the story during testimony later that year to the Georgia Senate Study Committee on Violence Against Healthcare Workers. Destiny used only her first name at the hearing, for fear of retaliation for speaking out against the patient who assaulted her.

In May, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed a law that boosts criminal penalties for assaults against hospital workers and allows health care facilities in the state to create independent police forces. The law is a response to that testimony as well as hospital lobbying and data documenting a rise in violence against health care workers. In enacting the law, Georgia joined other states attempting to reverse a rise in violence over the last several years through stiffer criminal penalties and enhanced law enforcement.

Nearly 40 states have laws that establish or increase penalties for assaults on health care workers, according to the American Nurses Association. And lawmakers in 29 states have approved or are working on similar laws, as well as ones that allow the creation of hospital police forces. Members of those forces can carry firearms and make arrests. In addition, they have higher training requirements than noncertified officers such as security guards, according to the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety.

Groups representing nurses and hospitals argue that such laws address the daily reality of aggressive or agitated patients who sometimes become violent. Still, such interventions are relatively new. Critics worry that establishing hospital police forces will escalate violence in health care settings and could have downstream effects.

"I worry about all the reasons patients have to not trust me and trust the health care system," said Elinore Kaufman, a trauma surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania.

Health care workers are five times as likely to experience violence as employees in other industries, according to federal data. The day after Kemp signed the Safer Hospitals Act into law, a person opened fire in a midtown Atlanta medical office, killing one woman and injuring four others, including workers at the medical practice.

Verbal and physical threats, which increased during the pandemic, are exacerbating a dire nursing shortage, said Matt Caseman, CEO of the Georgia Nurses Association. Destiny testified that one of her co-workers left nursing after the 2021 assault, in which the patient smashed the care technician's face into a wall and the floor. Destiny also suffered from post-concussion headaches for months, she said.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services noted the alarming rise of violence in health care settings last November. The federal agency recommended hospitals implement a patient risk assessment strategy, increase staffing levels, and improve training and education for staffers. There was no mention of boosting law enforcement presence.

Health centers say they are better able to retain workers and improve patient care when they can reduce the number of violent incidents, said Mike Hodges, secretary of the Georgia chapter of the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety. State laws governing how hospitals can respond to violence vary.

In Georgia, the new law boosts criminal penalties for aggravated assaults against all health care workers on a hospital campus, not just those in emergency rooms, which were already regulated. And hospitals can now establish law enforcement offices like those on university campuses. The officers must be certified by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council and maintain law enforcement records that can be made public.

Having a dedicated police force helps hospitals better train officers to work in a health care setting, said Republican State Rep. Matt Reeves, who co-sponsored the Georgia bill. Officers can get to know staff members and regular patients, as well as the layout and protocols of hospital campuses. "If you have a specialized police department, they are more in tune with the needs of the facility," he said.

That's the case at Atrium Health Navicent, which operates hospitals across central Georgia, said Delvecchio Finley, its president. The health system was one of a handful to staff certified law enforcement before the new law.

Atrium Health recruits officers who reflect the diversity of the community, conducts training to counteract implicit biases, and holds debriefings after any incidents, Finley said. Officers are trained to react when someone becomes violent at one of the facilities.

"The biggest thing for us to convey to officers is that they are in the setting where we provide a safe environment where we care for anyone," he said.

Unlike other businesses, hospitals can't merely throw out patients who misbehave, said Terri Sullivan, an emergency nurse in Atlanta. A patient once punched her in the chest, fracturing two ribs, before running out of the room and trying to punch his physician. Sullivan said that, in her experience, the presence of hospital security can prevent patients from acting out.

Still, little data exists on whether such forces are effective at preventing hospital violence. Ji Seon Song, a University of California-Irvine law professor who studies policing in health care settings, worries about the "unintended consequences" of legislation that boosts the presence of law enforcement in places people receive medical care.

"You can see where there might be a lot of problems," she said, "especially if the patient is African American, undocumented, Latinosomething that makes them prone to being criminalized."

A ProPublica investigation found Cleveland Clinic's private police force disproportionately charges and cites Black people. And in March, a video emerged showing police and hospital staff members in Virginia holding down a patient who was experiencing a mental health crisis, leading to his death. In 23% of emergency department shootings from 2000 to 2011, the perpetrator took a gun from a security officer, according to a Johns Hopkins University study. The CMS memo noted several hospital incidents involving police, in which the agency cited the facility for failing to provide a safe environment.

The Georgia law doesn't require hospital police officers to arrest patients with outstanding warrants for offenses that occurred off a hospital campus, such as violating probation. But it doesn't limit those powers either, said Mazie Lynn Guertin, executive director of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

"Unless discretion is limited, it will be exercised at some point, by someone," she said.

Law enforcement should always be the last resort, argued Kaufman, the trauma surgeon. While the threat of violence is concerning, hospitals can spend more on health care staffing, boost overall training, and teach de-escalation skills.

"Our primary lens shouldn't be that our patients are a danger to us," she said. "It's a harmful lens and a racist one. We should develop safe and healthy workplaces through other ways."

2023 KFF Health News.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Does humor appreciation have a brain signature? In a new study published in Neuropsychologia, Vadim Axelrod at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv, in collaboration with Lionel Naccache (Sorbonne University, AP-HP) at Paris Brain Institute, decrypts the cerebral underpinnings of the emotions we experience in a movie theater. Taking advantage of the emotional synchronization that unites viewers of the same film, the researchers discovered that the funniest sequences in a Charlie Chaplin movie were associated with a specific cerebral electrical orchestration. This promising first step will have to be followed by studies aimed at reproducing this discovery.

Humor is essential for easing interpersonal tensions, reducing stress, relieving physical and moral suffering, and even improving the body's immune response. Given this central role in our lives, it is desirable to understand the cognitive and neuronal mechanisms on which it is based. At the same time, what makes us laugh appears to be highly dependent on a given culture, era, or context. It is quite improbable to chuckle at the facetious graffiti of ancient Rome or the comic dialogs of Noh theater... In that case, how can we generalize how humor works?

"A large part of humanity certainly shares some aspects of humor," says Lionel Naccache, a specialist in the exploration of human consciousness and co-leader of the PICNIC team at Paris Brain Institute. "Humans are particularly susceptible to the comedic powers of non-verbal humorsuch as gesticulations, falls, unwarranted blows, or imitations. Physical comedy is the basis of slapstick, burlesque, clowning, and mime. It notably permeates the silent films of Charlie Chaplin, known for generating hilarity across cultures."

Researchers at Paris Brain Institute and Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv wanted to take advantage of the astonishing power of Chaplin's antics to study the neural substrate of humor using a new tool. Until now, fMRI has been the preferred technique for this type of research, and several studies have shown the involvement of the temporal lobe in the processing of droll stimuli. However, the signal obtained via fMRI does not allow the detection of the entire spectrum of electromagnetic waves generated by the brain: part of the information is lost.

In-depth comedy

To fill this gap in understanding, the researchers analyzed intracerebral electrophysiological recordings, which make it possible to look at neuronal activity directly with a high spatial and temporal precision (at the millisecond scale) in several cortical areas. Using Paris Brain Institute's CENIR neuroimaging platform, they studied thirteen epileptic patients who had been implanted with deep brain electrodes as part of a pre-surgical assessment of refractory epilepsy.

The researchers asked the patients to watch a three-minute excerpt from Charlie Chaplin's Circus (1928) while their brain activity was measured live. Beforehand, the amusing nature (or not) of each sequence had been evaluated, frame by frame, by a group of healthy volunteers.

The team then compared the patients' neural activity recorded during the funniest scenes in the film with that recorded during the least funny scenes. "We observed that the funniest sequences were associated with an increase in high-frequency gamma waves and a decrease in low-frequency waves. For the most amusing scenes, it was the other way around," explains Vadim Axelrod, who led the experiment. "These results indicate that high-frequency neural activity, which is seen in tasks that require a lot of cognitive engagement, such as work, is also a mark of humor appreciation. Conversely, scenes that are not funnysuch as transition sequences where the character moves from one place to another without doing anythingpromote inattention and introspection... and a preponderance of low frequencies."

More importantly, this inverse relationship between high and low frequencies was observed in temporal lobe regions but not in others. It seems that humorous content is not processed in the same way throughout the cortex and depends on brain areas and functions.

Incongruity detection machines

According to a dominant theory, the treatment of humor is based on two complementary mechanisms. First, the detection of an incongruous element of reality (for example, in Charlie Chaplin's The Gold Rush [1925], the hero eats shoelaces like spaghetti). Then, the emergence of a positive emotion related to this incongruity. What is funny would therefore be both unexpected and pleasant and involve two neural circuits: cognitive and emotional.

"Our results support this theory, as we confirm the prominent role of the temporal lobe in the appreciation of humor. As the anterior parts of this area are involved in semantic memory, we can imagine that their activity is linked to the analysis of the scene and the detection of its incongruous content," adds Vadim Axelrod. "Conversely, the activation of its posterior parts could correspond to understanding the unusualand therefore amusingaspect of certain social interactions."

Future studies will have to show the simultaneous activation of cognitive and emotional neural circuits to formally validate the theory of incongruity. Researchers will also need to look at other areas involved in cognition (such as the inferior frontal gyrus and anterior cingulate cortex) and emotions.

Finally, there can only be a generalization about the mechanisms of humor by studying other forms of it. "Here, we only looked at reactions to the slapstick genre. Using longer videos, with more complex social interactions where jokes, irony, sarcasm, or references jokes are present, we can expand our understanding of this magnificent, uniquely human phenomenon that is derision," the researchers conclude.

More information: Vadim Axelrod et al, Intracranial study in humans: Neural spectral changes during watching comedy movie of Charlie Chaplin, Neuropsychologia (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108558 Journal information: Neuropsychologia
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New research explores personal experiences of mental illness through the portrayal offered by bloggers.

Published in Issues in Mental Health Nursing, the research by Dr. Leanne Staniford from Lancaster University and Luciana White from York St John University offers a window into the lived experiences of people who suffer with mental health issues and their related identity struggles.

The study, titled "Personal Narratives of Mental Illness: From Hostage to Survivor," set out to understand how people with mental illness perceive and portray their conditions, and how they build their social identities. The research analyzed first-hand accounts taken from online blogs, giving access to representations of mental health issues portrayed by the bloggers.

Dr. Leanne Staniford, Lecturer in Clinical Psychology at Lancaster University, said, "Understanding lived experiences of mental illness is important to inform the development of effective psychological support services. Exploring personal narratives allows a longitudinal focus on the experiences of individuals living with a mental illness, gaining an insight into the reality and the impact this can have on an individual's life."

Luciana White, academic associate in the School of Education, Language and Psychology at York St John University, describes her motivation for the research:

"I have always been passionate about the stories people tell. They are always so rich and so great for creating empathy, human connection and reflection. Being in touch with personal narratives allows us to get closer to individual experiences and to connect with other realities. By looking into personal narratives, we are not only exploring the individuals' self-portrait, but also an understanding of the world and the social dynamics we are immersed in."

Two main themes were identified to describe how the bloggers approached their conditions; the hostage and the survivor. Those grouped as the hostage have not yet found a path to managing their condition, appearing vulnerable and fueled by darkness and a lack of hope.

In addition, the bloggers perceive stigma as a standard social reaction to their condition. Their experiences include negative descriptions such as "...If you are an outsider, it's a vile time to be alive. You never feel more disliked, left out"; "It did never get any better. They tell you to have faith, hope. It's bound to get better, but it didn't"; and "I wanted to curl up into a ball, fall into an everlasting sleep. They would be better off without me."

In contrast, the survivor blogs were fueled by positivity, with the sufferer's recovery usually underway. This group of bloggers appeared knowledgeable, confident in their recovery and were not defined by their mental illness. The language and descriptions of their experiences in turn was much more positive; "I'm fine. I will be fine. I'm so happy. Anxiety and mental health [have] a funny way of making life a rollercoaster"; "I can do it. I will do it. But the anxiety around a 'double relapse' is very real"; and "It's not my fault I'm ill. It feels unfair. I am sad and angry about it. I will not let myself feel ashamed."

The two narratives led to the design of a model for mental illness trajectory (MMIT), where in order to find recovery, individuals go through a process of recreating their social self, adopting more positive coping strategies, to move from hostage to survivor. The MMIT demonstrates the transformation within six steps; awareness, rejection, self-help, acceptance, treatment and recovery.

The investigation of personal accounts of mental illness and their subjective experiences, provides insight into what recovery and successful management of mental illness might look like, and has been recognized by researchers as an important step towards improving the lives of patients.

Data collection began with keywords such as "personal blogs," "anxiety," "anxious," "depression," "depressed" and "mental health" combined in different ways on internet searches. An initial search resulted in a list of 133 blogs, refined to a final list of 12 blogs following a sampling strategy: publicly accessible blogs, bloggers being based in UK, blogs written in English and blogger aged 18 or over, blogs edited in last two years, and posts being relevant to mental health topics.

Of the 12 blogs in the study, eight were written by women, one co-written by a man and woman, and three were written by men.

More information: Luciana White et al, Personal Narratives of Mental Illness: From Hostage to Survivor, Issues in Mental Health Nursing (2023). DOI: 10.1080/01612840.2023.2186142
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There is debate about whether a health-care worker can ethically participate in both palliative care and the MAID program. Credit: Shutterstock

Medical assistance in dying (MAID) has received lots of media attention over the past few years. This is especially true as the Canadian government considers expanding eligibility for people whose sole underlying condition is a mental illness. This has led to increased concerns about the ethics of MAID.

Even in its present form, MAID is fraught with ethical tensions. As scholars engaged in research on MAID, we have heard about these tensions firsthand through interviews with physicians and nurses who provide MAID-related care, clinical ethicists who perform MAID-related consults, family members of patients who have received MAID and patients who have requested MAID.

From these conversations, we highlight three emerging tensions:

Palliative care versus MAID provision; Transparency versus privacy; and Providing a dignified death versus a dignified life.

These tensions can contribute to unpredictability in health service provision, strained relationships, moral distress, harm for prospective patients and the erosion of public trust.

Palliative care vs. MAID provision

There is debate about whether a health-care worker can participate in both palliative care and the MAID program.

Palliative care involves efforts to improve the quality of life of patients facing serious or life-threatening illness by preventing or relieving suffering through early identification, assessment and treatment of pain, including physical, psychosocial and spiritual pain. MAID, on the other hand, provides patients experiencing intolerable suffering the option to end their lives with the assistance of a doctor or nurse practitioner.

Some people see the two services as co-existing within end-of-life care. Others view them as having incompatible intentions and goals, and may see the two services as being in conflict.

For instance, as one medical professional informed us, pharmaceuticals that might be provided to relieve pain during palliative care could undermine cognitive capacity and limit a patient's ability to provide consent to MAID:

"It was brutal. I knew at that time we wouldn't be able to do the provision because we would have to medicate her so much then we'd have to reverse it to get consent, and that was really hard."

Examples like this reveal the tensions that medical professionals might face if they seek to provide both palliative care and MAID. We also heard that some palliative care professionals perceive MAID requests as a failure of their efforts to provide quality palliative care.

This can potentially place strain on professional relationships between MAID providers and palliative care teams, or cause moral distress for palliative care providers.

Transparency vs. privacy

The federal government notes the importance of transparency for the improvement of MAID and maintenance of public trust. However, patients and care providers sometimes have strict privacy concerns, wanting their participation in MAID kept confidential because of disapproving family, colleagues or community members.

This is particularly true in smaller communities where privacy may be more limited, health-care professionals are highly visible and people may be concerned about MAID-related stigma.

One patient in our study had family members insist on keeping their cause of death a secret. Another participant spoke about a patient's request for the MAID team to do the provision at a long-term care home without letting the staff, family or other residents know.

When medical providers are asked to assist patients in such secrecy, transparency may become compromised.

"Staff had to really balance transparency with confidentiality One of those transparency pieces, very clearly from the government, was accurate recording, so that there was nothing secret (But) we've had patients who have said, 'I don't want my family to know.' But they're going to find out what the cause of death was; the death certificate is very clear."

In cases like this, medical professionals are placed in the difficult position of not being able to accommodate privacy requests of patients or family members, as doing so could undermine ethical obligations of transparency and professional accountability.

A dignified death vs. a dignified life

MAID is often celebrated for supporting suffering patients to exercise control and die with dignity.

With the passage of Bill C-7, which removed the requirement of a reasonably foreseeable death, Canadians are now applying for MAID when suffering is impacted by socioeconomic factors such as inadequate housing, medical care, food security or income supports.

As a result, there has been growing concern about offering this service in a limited social welfare state that does not provide the conditions for people with an illness or disability to live with dignity.

There have been news reports of people being offered MAID when they just needed assistance to live. This has included a veteran who merely required a wheelchair ramp, individuals who did not have access to food or adequate housing and patients who needed home care.

We have also recently seen reports of prisoners who may be requesting MAID to escape the harsh conditions of prison life.

In our research, a participant told us about an individual who had received MAID and might have otherwise benefited from existing programs:

"There was a (patient) in our community who went through MAID and his diagnosis was heart failure (But) he never came to our program and I felt there were a lot of things that we can actually do with these heart failure patients to give them good quality of life."

Canadian legal scholar Trudo Lemmens has similarly noted that MAID may be quicker to access than certain medical and financial supports, including, for instance, access to specialized long-term care, specialized pain clinics and the Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits.

"It is crucial that individuals are not placed in a position where MAID will be seen as the only alternative to suffering.

Unfortunately, we heard from study participants that this issue may be further exacerbated in rural areas with limited access to palliative care.

"I think some of those patients don't get the same palliative care that somebody in town would and so maybe they're opting to do MAID sooner than somebody else would maybe they didn't really want to do it but they kind of felt that it was their only option."

Another study has already corroborated this concern, noting there is an inadequate provision of palliative care for those requesting MAID. This is alarming as it signals the reality that MAID requests are sometimes made not out of necessity, but rather due to unmet needs.

Moving forward

These tensions surrounding MAID place staff in complex ethical predicaments and are deserving of greater attention. Current policy and legislation do not adequately address how they ought to navigate potential conflicts between palliative care and MAID, between transparency and privacy, or how to best handle MAID requests being made due to unmet socioeconomic or medical needs.

This situation is made worse by the fact that some of our participants felt ill-prepared to step into a MAID-related role due to limited training or support.

We encourage the federal government to reconsider its role in improving the quality of life of its citizens. In many situations, Bill C-7 has made "dying with dignity" easier than "living with dignity." It is ethically problematic if a state is more willing to facilitate death than to provide the necessities of life.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Illustration of population-level versus individual-level PGS accuracy. a, Discrete labeling of GIA with PCA-based clustering. Each dot represents an individual. The circles represent arbitrary boundaries imposed on the genetic ancestry continuum to divide individuals into different GIA clusters. The color represents the GIA cluster label. The gray dots are individuals who are left unclassified. b, Schematic illustrating the variation of population-level PGS accuracy across clusters. The box plot represents the PGS accuracy (for example, R2) measured at the population level. The question mark emphasizes that the PGS accuracy for unclassified individuals is unknown owing to the lack of a reference group. Gray dashed lines emphasize the categorical nature of GIA clustering. c, Continuous labeling of everyones unique position on the genetic ancestry continuum with a PCA-based GD. The GD is defined as the Euclidean distance of an individuals genotype from the center of the training data when projected on the PC space of training genotype data. Everyone has their own unique GD, d i , and individual PGS accuracy, r2 i . d, Individual-level PGS accuracy decays along the genetic ancestry continuum. Each dot represents an individual and its color represents the assigned GIA label. Individuals labeled with the same ancestry spread out on the genetic ancestry continuum, and there are no clear boundaries between GIA clusters. This figure is illustrative and does not involve any real or simulated data. Credit: Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06079-4

A team of bioinformatics researchers affiliated with multiple institutions in the U.S. and Aarhus University in Denmark is proposing a new metric to quantify genetic dissimilarities between an individual and a training population. Their study is reported in the journal Nature. The editors at Nature have also published a Research Briefing in the same journal issue outlining the work done by the team on this effort.

Polygenic scores (PGSs) are tools to estimate the probability that a certain trait or disease is based on a genetic background. PGSs are generally calculated by adding up the effects of many common genetic variants associated with traits of interest. But the accuracy of derived scores is dependent on the degree to which the genetic variants used to construct them actually capture the genetic diversity of the population from which they are taken.

This usually means that if a given population used to train the PGSs is genetically different from the population to which the test is applied, the PGSs may not perform well. To make such scores more useful, the researchers are proposing a new metric called genetic distance (GD)its purpose is to quantify genetic dissimilarities between individuals and training populations based on genome-wide allele frequencies.

The new metric would range from 0 (representing identical traits) to 1 (representing traits that are completely different)and it would also take into account both ancient and recent evolutionary events that have impacted a given human population. To support the use of the new metric, the research team showed that GD can be inversely correlated with PGS for some diseases and traits across populations, even those usually considered to be homogeneous. The team also demonstrated that GD could be used to identify people who could possibly benefit from PGSs that have been trained on specific populations, or conversely, those that are more diverseor PGSs that rely on different sets of variants.

The team concludes that their metric could provide a continuous measure for gauging the accuracy of PGSs and notes that it also highlights the importance of taking into account genetic diversity when developing PGSs.

More information: Yi Ding et al, Polygenic scoring accuracy varies across the genetic ancestry continuum, Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06079-4 A continuous measure for understanding the accuracy of genetically based predictions, Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-01492-1 Journal information: Nature

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Depression and anxiety symptoms among Singaporean youths have resulted in them missing on average 190 hoursor 24 daysof school, according to a survey of parents in Singapore by Duke-NUS Medical School and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). The survey also found that these youths' school performance dropped by an estimated 63%. The research is published in the journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health.

While youths missed an average of 24 days because of their symptoms, 13% of them missed three months or more. The parents reported a similar reduction in their child's ability to engage in other daily activities, revealing that these conditions permeate all facets of the child's life.

"The real effects of untreated mental health conditions among youth will extend well into adulthood when they are less able to obtain rewarding and high-paying jobs due to poor school performance and other challenges resulting from their illness," said Professor Eric Finkelstein, a health economist from Duke-NUS' Health Services & Systems Research (HSSR) and senior author of the study. This study follows on from a similar survey among Singaporean adults published recently, which showed that depression and anxiety among adults are responsible for as much as a 2.9% reduction in GDP due to roughly 1 in 5 adults having such symptoms.

This latest survey, conducted between April and June 2022, asked 991 parents about their children, totaling 1,515 youths, in order to gauge the state of youth mental health. The initial screening survey identified 104 parents whose children, aged 4 to 21, had depression or anxiety symptoms. These parents then filled out a more comprehensive survey with questions on school absences, school performance and health care utilization.

The parents' responses indicated that nearly 12% of the youths had symptoms consistent with depression while approximately 13% had symptoms consistent with anxiety; in total, 16.2% of the youths were reported to have symptoms consistent with at least one of these conditions. Despite this, only 15% had a formal diagnosis from a health professional, suggesting that many remain untreated.

This may explain why nearly two-thirds of the affected youths had an unplanned visit to an emergency department and just over half required inpatient hospitalization over the past year. The parents reported spending an average of S$10,250 on medical care as a result of their children's mental health condition. At the population level, direct health care costs for these conditions among youths are estimated to be S$1.2 billion.

Assistant Professor Irene Teo from Duke-NUS' HSSR program and co-author of the study added, "The results from our study show that greater outreach efforts are needed to encourage both children and adults to take advantage of the many avenues to obtain mental health treatments in Singapore."

"These findings point to the importance of early intervention to help reduce the risk of long-term complications and improve outcomes. For this to happen, mental health awareness and literacy is necessary. For instance, if the parent recognizes the symptoms (awareness) and knows what to do (literacy), they could encourage the child to talk about it or suggest getting some help," said Associate Professor Daniel Fung, Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Mental Health, and a co-author of the study.

Prof. Finkelstein added, "Along with greater access to evidence-based treatments, we should be implementing screening programs for both children and adults to identify mental health conditions early, make better use of peer support programs and increase efforts to destigmatize mental health. With the high prevalence and costs of mental illness among both children and adults, a successful mental health strategy should take on the same level of urgency as Singapore's War on Diabetes."

More information: Parth Chodavadia et al, Healthcare utilization and costs of Singaporean youth with symptoms of depression and anxiety: results from a 2022 web panel, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health (2023). DOI: 10.1186/s13034-023-00604-z
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Over the past two years, rural Greene County in northeastern Tennessee has collected more than $2.7 million from regional and national settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors. But instead of helping people harmed by addiction, county officials are finding other ways to spend it.

They have put $2.4 million toward paying off the county's debt and have directed another $1 million arriving over more than a decade into a capital projects fund. In March, they appropriated $50,000 from that fund to buy a "litter crew vehicle"a pickup truck to drive inmates to collect trash along county roads.

"It's astounding," said Nancy Schneck, a retired nurse who has seen addiction infiltrate the community, where employers avoid drug testing for fear of losing too many employees and mental health crises and homelessness are rampant. She wants to see the money go toward mental health and addiction treatment. Why can't county leaders "see treating some people and maybe getting them out of this cycle might be advantageous?" she said.

In 2021, the latest year for which comparable data is available, Greene County's rate of drug overdose deaths topped state and national figures.

But Mayor Kevin Morrison said the county has borne the costs of the opioid epidemic for years: It has funded a beleaguered sheriff's office, improved the jailwhich is packed with people who've committed addiction-related crimesand supported a drug court to divert some people to treatment.

It has also suffered indirect costs of the crisis: people dropping out of the workforce due to addiction, schools and welfare services caring for more children who've experienced trauma, and some taxpayers leaving the county altogether. Addiction is not the sole reason for Greene County's economic woes, but it has contributed to more than $30 million of debt.

"We've been dealing with this crisis for quite some time, but nobody wants to pay the bill as it comes," Morrison said. "So when these funds are made available, then we are paying bills that have been due for quite some time."

The debate in this Appalachian county is reverberating nationwide as state and local governments receive billions of dollars from companies that made, distributed, or sold opioid painkillers, like Johnson & Johnson, Cardinal Health, and CVS. The companies were accused of fueling the overdose epidemic, and the money is meant to remediate that harm. About $3 billion has already landed in state, county, and city coffers, and about $50 billion more is expected in the coming decade and beyond.

States are required to spend at least 85% of the money on opioid-related programs, but KFF Health News' ongoing investigation into how the cash is usedand misusedshows there is wide interpretation of that standard and little oversight.

That restriction didn't apply to the money Greene County moved to its capital projects fund.

In many rural communities, which have been struggling to pay addiction-related costs for decades, local officials justify using the settlement funds to reimburse past expenses. Most of Tennessee's 95 counties are in significant debt, which can present difficult choices about how to use this money, said Robert Pack, co-director of East Tennessee State University's Addiction Science Center.

Still, he and many advocates hope the settlement funds are spent on tackling the current crisis. After all, more than 200 people nationwide are dying of overdoses each day. Investing in treatment and prevention can save lives and protect future generations, they say.

"There is no good excuse to sit on the funds or put them into a general fund," said Tricia Christensen, policy director for the nonprofit Community Education Group. The organization is tracking settlement spending across Appalachia, which Christensen called the epidemic's ground zero. "These dollars should be used to support people who have been most impacted by the overdose crisis."

Nationally, there has been little oversight of the settlement dollars. President Joe Biden's administration pledged to ensure the funds went toward tackling the addiction crisis, but has taken little action. Accountability at the state level varies.

In Tennessee, 15% of the state's opioid settlement funds are controlled by the legislature and another 15% by local governments. Those two buckets have few restrictions.

The other 70% is controlled by an Opioid Abatement Council, which has more rigorous standards. When the council, which must give 35% of its funds to local governments, recently distributed more than $31 million to counties, it required the funds be spent on a list of approved interventions, such as building recovery housing and increasing addiction treatment for uninsured people.

"I can guarantee we're going to bird-dog" those funds, said Stephen Loyd, chair of the council and a physician in recovery from opioid addiction. If counties use them for unapproved purposes, the counties will not receive future payouts, he said.

Greene County's reimbursement of its capital projects fund comes from its own potthe 15% that is controlled entirely by local governments.

In such cases, the public can hold officials accountable, Loyd said. "If you don't like the way the money is being spent, you have the ability to vote."

Local leaders are generally not being "nefarious" with these decisions, he said. They make hundreds of budgetary choices a month and simply don't have experience with addiction or health policy to guide them in using the money.

Loyd and other local experts are trying to fill that gap. He meets with county officials and recommends they speak with their local anti-drug coalitions or hold listening sessions to hear from community members. Pack, from East Tennessee State, urges them to increase access to medications that have proven effective in treating opioid addiction.

Both men point counties to an online recovery ecosystem index, where leaders can see how their area's resources for recovery compare with those of others.

In Greene County, for example, the index indicates there are no recovery residences and the number of treatment facilities and mental health providers per 100,000 residents is below state and national averages.

"That's a great place to get started," Loyd said.

Some Greene County residents want to see opioid settlement funds go to local initiatives that are already operating on the ground. The Greene County Anti-Drug Coalition, for instance, hosts presentations to educate young people and their parents on the risks of drug use. They meet with convenience store owners to reinforce the importance of not selling alcohol, cigarettes, or vaping devices to minors. In the future, the coalition hopes to offer classes on life skills, such as how to budget and make decisions under pressure.

"If we can do prevention work with kids, we can change the trajectory of their lives as adults," said Wendy Peay, secretary of the anti-drug coalition and executive director of United Way of Greene County.

The coalition has asked the county for settlement funds but has not received any yet.

Nearby in Carter County, a new residential treatment facility is taking shape at the site of a former prison. At least seven counties, cities, and towns in the region have committed a combined $10 million in opioid settlement funds to support it, said Stacy Street, a criminal court judge who came up with the idea. Greene County is among the few local governments that did not contribute.

It will be part of the region's drug recovery court system, in which people with addiction who have committed crimes are diverted to intensive treatment instead of prison.

Currently there are no long-term residential facilities in the area for such patients, Street said. Too often, people in his court receive treatment during the day but return home at night to "the same sandbox, playing with the same sand-mates," increasing their risk of relapse.

Street said the new facility will not offer medications to treat opioid addictionthe gold standard of medical carebecause of security concerns. But some patients may be taken to receive them off campus.

Morrison, the Greene County mayor, said he worried about contributing to the facility because it is a recurring cost and the settlement funds will stop flowing in 2038.

"There's been great pressure put on local entities like Greene County to try to solve this problem with this limited amount of funding," he said, when "the federal government, which has the ability to print money to solve these problems, is not in this business."

The county is still deciding how to spend nearly $334,000 of settlement funds it recently received from the state's Opioid Abatement Council. Morrison said they're considering using it for the anti-drug coalition's education efforts and the county drug court. Given the guidelines from the abatement council, these funds can't be used to pay old debts.

2023 KFF Health News.

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This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

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Dr. Robert Haley still has questions.

"You're always just trying to relieve this frustration that you don't know the answer," Haley said.

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center researcher is among those who have studied an illness afflicting thousands of Gulf War veterans since the mid 1990s.

"First we proved that it was a disease and that it was an injury," Haley said. "Then we proved that Sarin gas did it and then we've got this gene-environment interaction and the guys that are sickit's not their fault; they were born with a susceptibility."

From the beginning, it was considered a mystery disease due to a lack of records of what every person was exposed to every day, according to Haley.

"This is no longer a mystery disease," he said.

Using genetics, a study released by Haley and others last year linked the malady noted to cause respiratory complaints, sleep disturbances, forgetfulness, and muscle and joint pain, to the deadly chemical weapon Sarin. This study was another step in theory about the illness that afflicts roughly one-third of the 700,000 veterans deployed to the Persian Gulf is brain inflammation.

Before the first Gulf War, Saddam Hussein "had the second largest arsenal of nerve gas in the world," said Haley.

Earlier this month, the VA and National Institutes of Health began a five-year pair of studies to better diagnose and potentially discover a treatment for the illness.

After 10 years researching epidemiology, Haley met in 1994 with Ross Perot, the Texas business magnate who had just failed in an independent candidate bid for the presidency.

Perot was looking for advice about a troubling trend he was hearing from veterans of the Gulf War. Perot, also a veteran, went on to describe "Gulf War Syndrome" and wasn't sure the soldiers were getting the care they needed.

Haley said he remembers Perot showing him photos of soldiers who he described as looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger before the war and then like the prisoners of a concentration camp in years following the conflict.

Perot, who died in 2019, had resources and was looking to help the veterans and wanted an independent study into what he was meeting with veterans of the conflict, according to Haley.

"He had really piqued my interestbasically what he was describing was an epidemic," Haley said.

Haley then agreed to do one study. Previous complaints about what would become known as Gulf War Illness were considered post-traumatic stress disorder at first and other psychological disorders, according to Haley.

Haley's first investigation was on a reserve unit of construction troops who were civilians after the conflict. With 250 of the reservists signed up thanks to Perot's help, Haley found two-thirds of them had this mystery illness through a questionnaire and neurophyschological battery. From there, the study expanded to more cities.

At first, Haley was skeptical, "but boy, talking to them and talking to their wives particularly this was something really serious and was impairing their function," he said.

He brought the data back and analyzed it.

"Clearly, there was a disease and the symptoms were pretty uniform," Haley said.

The data pointed to risk factors primarily as being in areas with exposure to levels of nerve gas in the air, according to Haley.

"We had all these high-tech weapons and nuclear capability and all this stuff, but we had a really primitive defense against nerve gas," Haley saidrubber suits, gas masks alarms and a common drug to make nerve gas less lethal.

A Sarin gas storage facility was blown up in the air campaign and though much of the gas had dissipated, alarms went off and soldiers donned protection gear. But the levels were so low, the alarms were figured to be false, according to Haley.

"Now we know, 30 years later, there's been tons of research showing that even low-level exposure can produce permanent brain effects," Haley said.

Jim Tuite, former lead investigator for the Senate committee looking into the syndrome, produced a report about such a situation to the committee.

Haley asked Perot to fund another study with about 40 soldiers. These sorts of efforts in the 90s proved the illness was its own disease.

Next, evidence pointed to a gene that different soldiers had which provides to the effects of Sarin gas, Haley said.

"Our theory was then that if Sarin was the cause, then we would expect people who have the illness to be born with the weak form of that gene," Haley said.

As research was compiled, more people contributed such as Congress and the Department of Defense, he said.

In 2007, they designed a huge study telephone questionnaire for which the military helped researchers to contact soldiers, according to Haley.

He said 8,000 soldiers from the Gulf War era responded to questionnaire with more of an emphasis on contacting those who deployed in the conflict. The questionnaire included if a nerve gas alarm went off.

From there, they were able to get 2,000 for DNA to again examine the soldier's gene's strength against Sarin.

Those soldiers who said they had heard a nerve gas alarm and had a weak form of the gene: "whoosh," Haley said, as it explained many cases. However, he added that even those with stronger forms of the gene who heard multiple chemical weapon alarms over and over could still develop symptoms.

That paper was released in May 2022 in toxicology journal Environmental Health Perspectives, supported by one NIH institute after over a year of review to ensure correlation was in fact causation in this case, Haley said.

Like the VA and NIH, Haley continues to work to find a cure. He said when breakthroughs have occurred, like any good scientist, his first question is always to question his own findings and ensure they are solid.

"You go over and over them, reproduce them in another, test it another way to see if it stands up and by the time you get to where we are now and right now I don't even think about what we've done I'm just totally into trying to figure out how do we now nail this finding down about inflammation," he said.

"I'll have great satisfaction then when hearing a bunch of veterans say they feel better," he said.

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University of Pennsylvania faculty member Howard C. Stevenson, PhD, far right, gave the keynote presentation at the "Racism, Racial Literacy and Mental Health" conversation held on May 11.

Racism, Mental Health Talk Stresses the Need to Heal

The uniquely American reality is we teach racism in all our institutions in multiple ways. And we divest people of their humanity when we do that.  The Rev. Kinzer M. Pointer Pastor of Agape Fellowship Baptist Church and panelist for Racism, Racial Literacy and Mental Health Related Video Racism, Racial Literacy and Mental Health

The questions concerned the elephant in the room, suggested one of the participants. How did we get here? How did Buffalos East Side become a target for racialized violence?



Then there was a long pause.

Wow, said the Rev. Kinzer M. Pointer, pastor of Agape Fellowship Baptist Church and a member of the Erie County Medical Center board of directors, who was the first member of a panel to speak at the May 11 UB-sponsored event on racism, racial literacy and mental health held at the Jacobs School of Medical and Biomedical Sciences. We got here through a series of circumstances that are uniquely American, Pointer said after several breaths. We have created a circumstance in which we ask people to live [under] policies that really do not allow people to live. Because those policies are in place, people suffer in a number of ways that really look invisible, but they are there every day. They have divested Black families of wealth. They have put that wealth in the hands of families that are not Black. As a nation, we have repeatedly suggested that we have made racial strides. But I would offer that you cannot make racial strides until you dismantle all those policies that lead to those negative outcomes. And has UB historically contributed to any of these inequities?

Pointer was just the first to address numerous difficult questions during the panel discussion that followed remarks by the events keynote speaker. The uniquely American reality is we teach racism in all our institutions in multiple ways, Pointer told those attending the two-hour presentation. And we divest people of their humanity when we do that. Has the university contributed to that? Of course, the university has contributed to it. It is an institution. But I think where we are today is that we are more enlightened than we were previously. And there is a lot of work to be done. And I think we can be succinct about that work if we begin simply by making a decision to do justly.

Purposeful Timing for Date of Event

Allison Brashear, MD, MBA, UBs vice president for health sciences and dean of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and President Satish K. Tripathi listen to the conversation.

Presented almost a year to the day of the mass shooting at the Tops market in the heart of Buffalos Jefferson Avenue community, Racism, Racial Literacy and Mental Health unofficially inaugurated Western New Yorks commemoration of the anniversary of the event. With great humility and a sense of urgency, Henry-Louis Taylor, PhD, director of UBs Center for Urban Studies, said in welcoming the more than 200 attendees. Taylor said the event was purposely scheduled on the eve of last years murder of 10 black people who were killed in (the) racially motivated shooting about a mile and a half from the site of the UB conference. We hold this conversation to remember them, the hideous event that took their lives and to forge a path toward healing, social justice and the building of an anti-racist society, Taylor said. His remarks preceded a keynote address by Howard C. Stevenson, PhD, the Constance Clayton Professor of Urban Education and professor of Africana studies in the Human Development & Quantitative Methods Division of the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also executive director of the Racial Empowerment Collaborative, which is designed to promote racial literacy in education, health and community institutions. In a largely personal presentation, Stevenson talked about how his parents taught him the difference between belonging and fitting in. Before you can fight to change racism, you need to heal, Stevenson said. And Black Americans need to take control of their own story and not leave it to others to provide their narrative. The lions story will never be known as long as the hunter is the one to tell it, Stevenson said, quoting an African proverb.

Talks Needed Before Healing Can Begin
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Seasons and years blow through the high Alpine peaks of the decades-spanning "The Eight Mountains." But a warm, abiding glow persists throughout this tender, even restorative epic of male friendship.

The film, by Belgian filmmakers Charlotte Vandermeersch and Felix van Groeningen, is a stunning, often profound and frequently jaw-droppingly gorgeous tale of two friends from childhood through adulthood set against the Italian Alps. Vast and intimate at once, their luminously languid adaptation of Paolo Cognetti's bestseller reaches sublime heights.

'The Eight Mountains' ***  Not rated In Italian. Run time: 147 min. Playing at the Roxy Theater.

"The Eight Mountains," which last year won the jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival, isn't hurried. The ebbs of its two-and-a-half hours are sometimes a little too placid. But the passage of time  what changes, what endures  is much the subject of the movie. Just as the film's near-sole setting  a remote mountain cabin beneath the peaks of northwestern Italy  beckons Pietro (Luca Marinelli) and Bruno (Alessandro Borghi) throughout their lives, the intoxicating atmosphere of "The Eight Mountains" is a cherished retreat I'm already eager to revisit.

When we first encounter Pietro and Bruno, they're 11-year-olds. They come from different backgrounds. Pietro's family is middle-class, lives in Turin and only vacations in the Alps. Bruno's family is hardscrabble and working class, and live year-round in the mountains. They become fast friends immediately, though, and it would hard to imagine a more idyllic rendering of childhood than Pietro and Bruno's mountain playground. (One honorable mention: Pixar's "Luca," just a little further south from here.)

As wide-screen as the surroundings are, the Belgian filmmakers Vandermeersch and van Groeningen, with cinematographer Ruben Impens, shot "The Eight Mountains" in boxy Academy ratio. Somehow, this only enhances the high-mountain splendor of the film, while at the same time drawing its characters closer together. The hills, you might say, are alive.

And the music is a big part of that. "The Eight Mountains" is scored by the Swedish songwriter Daniel Norgren, whose dreamy, organ-inflected folk songs radiate throughout the film. It might seem too much to compare the effect to Leonard Cohen soundtracking "McCabe and Mrs. Miller." But in a similarly rural film where much goes unspoken, Norgren's serene music voices something ethereal, compassionate and timeless. The songs combined with such magnificent images produced a soulful, magical alchemy.

Most of the film takes place when Pietro and Bruno are in their 30s. By young adulthood, they've grown apart. They live in different economic realities. The mountains mean different things to them. It's not a vacation or a refuge for Bruno; it's his life. Pietro's father (Filippo Timi), a pivotal figure in the early childhood scenes, dies having spent his life a workaholic. We get the impression his fleeting few weeks at the mountain cabin were the only ones that mattered to him.

But Pietro's strained relationship with his father  and Bruno's closeness to him  continues to shadow the movie. "The Eight Mountains" is richest in its first half, when it's foremost a father-son tale. After years away, Pietro, a writer, returns to help Bruno (now a bearded mountain man) rebuild the cabin. It's a project of rehabilitation, inside and out, and of reconciliation with his father's unrealized Alpine dreams.

But in tracking the book, Vandermeersch and van Groeningen go for something more novelistic. Some pains melt away. New ones emerge. Pietro travels the world. Bruno stays, stubbornly. He falls in love, starts a family, but struggles to make ends meet. Pietro resolves to return every summer. Different as they are, the bond they share is immense.

Their lives remain irrevocably intertwined  Marinelli, the talented "Martin Eden" actor, and Borghi, have a stirring rapport  even if their inherent differences are never resolved, and never could be. I'm tempted not to say too much about how "The Eight Mountains" evolves, though, at the same time, the few plot points matter little. Life moves along, with fluctuations of fortune, shifting definitions of home and cyclical drifts from summer to winter, and back. The Alpine idyll that Pietro's father pined for and that Bruno devotes himself to, ultimatley, remains tragically out of reach. Only the mountains endure.
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The Host

Julie Rovner KFF Health News

Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News weekly health policy news podcast, What the Health? A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z, now in its third edition.

The fate of the abortion pill mifepristone remains in jeopardy, as an appellate court panel during a hearing this week sounded sympathetic to a lower courts ruling that the FDA should not have approved the drug more than two decades ago. No matter how the appeals court rules, the case seems headed for the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, in the partisan standoff over raising the nations debt ceiling, a key sticking point has emerged: whether to add a work requirement to the state-federal Medicaid program. Republicans are adamant about adding one; Democrats point out that, in the few states that have tried them, red tape has resulted in eligible people wrongly losing their health coverage.

This weeks panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, and Victoria Knight of Axios.

Panelists

Sandhya Raman CQ Roll Call

Rachel Roubein The Washington Post

Victoria Knight Axios

Among the takeaways from this weeks episode:

Hopes among abortion rights advocates for continued access to mifepristone dimmed as the three judges on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals signaled they are skeptical of the FDAs decades-old approval of the drug and of the Biden administrations arguments defending it. Lawyers debated whether the Texas doctors challenging the drug had been harmed by it and thus had standing to sue. If the original ruling effectively revoking the drugs approval is allowed to stand, the case could open the door to future legal challenges to the approval of controversial drugs.

Two more states in the South are moving to restrict abortion, further cutting access to the procedure in the region. In North Carolina, a new Republican supermajority in the state legislature enabled the passage this week of a new, 12-week ban, as lawmakers in South Carolina consider a six-week ban.

In Congress, the top Senate Republican said he will not back one senators months-long effort to hold up Pentagon nominations over a policy that supports troops and their dependents who must travel to other states to obtain an abortion.

Envision Healthcare  which spent big in 2019 to fight legislation prohibiting some surprise medical bills  has filed for bankruptcy protection more than a year after the law took effect and cut into its bottom line. But a federal lawsuit from a group of emergency room physicians against Envision may move forward. The lawsuit claims the private equity-backed company is in violation of a California law banning corporate control of medical practices, and it could carry major consequences for the growing number of practices backed by private equity firms across the country.

Monica Bertagnolli has been nominated to lead the National Institutes of Health. Currently the director of the National Cancer Institute, she will need to be confirmed by the Senate, which hasnt confirmed an NIH chief since before the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders stewardship of a key health committee is causing delays on even bipartisan efforts.

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: The Washington Posts A 150-Year-Old Law Could Help Determine the Fate of U.S. Abortion Access, by Dan Diamond and Ann E. Marimow.

Victoria Knight: The New York Times World Health Organization Warns Against Using Artificial Sweeteners, by April Rubin.

Rachel Roubein: CBS News Thousands Face Medicaid Whiplash in South Dakota and North Carolina, by Arielle Zionts of KFF Health News.

Sandhya Raman: CQ Roll Calls A Year After Dobbs Leak, Democrats Still See Abortion Driving 2024 Voters, by Mary Ellen McIntire and Daniela Altimari.

Also mentioned in this weeks episode:

KFF Health News ER Doctors Vow to Pursue Case Against Envision Despite Bankruptcy, by Bernard J. Wolfson.

Credits

Francis Ying Audio producer Emmarie Huetteman Editor

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And subscribe to KFF Health News What the Health? on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFFan independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.

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A three-judge panel comprising Judges James Ho and Cory Wilson, appointed by then-President Donald Trump, and Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod, appointed by then-President George W. Bush, on Wednesday appeared to support claims that the conscience and religious rights of anti-abortion physicians are harmed by the FDAs nearly 23-year-old approval of mifepristone.

Ho rebuffed attorneys for the Department of Justice and Danco Laboratories, a maker of mifepristone, urging a focus on the facts of this case rather than this sort of FDA can do no wrong theme. He questioned whether the FDA erred in approving the medication through an expedited process typically reserved for treatments for serious illnesses. Pregnancy is not a serious illness he said. When we celebrated Mothers Day, were we celebrating illness?

KFF Health News senior correspondent Sarah Varney joined PBS NewsHours Geoff Bennett and Stephen Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law, to discuss the legal arguments that piqued the judges interest and how the case could affect the availability of mifepristone around the country.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFFan independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.

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Smoke from a slew of wildfires raging across the Canadian province of Alberta is degrading air quality across Montana.

Air quality continued to deteriorate on Thursday but was forecast to improve into the weekend. Air quality at various locations around Missoula registered as moderate or unhealthy for sensitive groups around 2 p.m. Thursday. Smoke increased throughout the day, and air quality in Missoula was trending toward unhealthy.

Air quality was worse to the north of Missoula and east of the Continental Divide. Air quality was unhealthy for sensitive groups in Seeley and Potomac. Air in the Mission Valley registered mostly as unhealthy for sensitive groups. Libby's air was in the same category. The Flathead Valley and Glacier National Park had unhealthy air Thursday. Helena, Butte and Bozeman registered unhealthy air as well.

Air quality in the Bitterroot Valley was mostly moderate, with some monitoring stations registering good air. Northern and central Idaho had a mix of good and moderate air quality Thursday.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's six levels of air quality are good, moderate, unhealthy for sensitive groups, unhealthy, very unhealthy and hazardous. When air is unhealthy for sensitive groups, children, elderly people and people with heart or lung disease should avoid outdoor activity, according to the EPA and local health officials. When air is unhealthy or worse, everyone should limit or outright avoid outdoor activity.

"Theres no shame in reducing your activity levels and taking breaks when its smoky outside," Sarah Coefield, an air quality specialist at the Missoula City-County Health Department, wrote in a smoke update Thursday. "Pay attention to how you are feeling and treat yourself with kindness. The fine particulate matter in smoke is bad for you, and you can reduce exposure by slowing down. (Yes, its because that way youll be breathing less. Do not hold your breath! You can reduce outdoor exposure even more by wearing a well-fitting N95 respirator.)"

On Wednesday afternoon, Coefield issued an unusually early wildfire smoke update, the first of 2023. She wrote that on Tuesday night "a cold front dipped into Montana and brought Canadian smoke with it. The worst of the smoke stayed generally east of the Continental Divide, but continued northerly winds delivered smoke into Missoula County this morning."

But a shift in winds should begin to move smoke out of the area on Friday, she wrote: "Fortunately, impacts look to be short-lived, as our overhead winds will return to our prevailing southwesterly direction on Friday, keeping us out of Canadian smoke."

In Thursday's update, Coefield still predicted an improvement on Friday but said that air would still remain degraded.

"With this much smoke covering the country, we wont see clear skies today," she wrote. "Upper-level winds will be primarily from the north again, which is unfortunately where the smoke is coming from. Starting tomorrow, well see more favorable wind directions, which is great; it will start the process of moving smoke away from our area. Note that we wont immediately have clean air."

The smoke is coming primarily from wildfires burning in Alberta, north of western Montana. The province has been devastated by a remarkably active and early wildfire season. On Thursday, at least 98 fires were burning in Alberta, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Of those, 26 fires were considered out of control. The province has seen 487 fires so far this year. Already, more than 1.8 million acres have burned in Alberta in 2023  the third greatest area burned in one year since 2005, according to the CBC and Alberta's provincial government.

Thousands of people have been evacuated in recent weeks because of the Alberta fires. As many as 12,000 remained displaced Thursday, the CBC reported. Hundreds of U.S. wildland firefighters were deployed to Canada in recent days to help contain the fires. Numerous wildfires are burning in British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well.

Before Montana's wildfire season begins in earnest around mid-July, Coefield recommended, people should purchase extra filters for their home ventilation systems, consider portable air cleaners and look into inexpensive do-it-yourself air purifying systems. More information is available at montanawildfiresmoke.org.

"Hang in there," Coefield concluded in Thursday's update. "I know none of us wanted wildfire smoke in May (or ever, I suppose). This is a good reminder that we live in a region that is more and more prone to catching on fire. We dont know yet what to expect when we reach our fire season, but I recommend stocking up on filters now and making a plan to create cleaner indoor air. This May smoke may have caught us by surprise, but when July and August roll around, you can look outside, turn on your air cleaning solution, and say, 'Not today, smoke.'"
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Two men accused in the shooting death of a homeowner during a botched bounty hunt in Butte will be tried together on charges of deliberate homicide and aggravated burglary.

After several, separate trial dates for Nicholas John Jaeger and bondsman Jay Steven Hubber were postponed, prosecutors asked District Judge Robert Whelan last month to consolidate the cases before one jury.

Palmer Hoovestal, an attorney for Hubber, agreed to the request but wanted a May 1 trial date for his client postponed until the fall. Jaegers attorney, David Maldonado, agreed to combined trials at first, then objected, then recently agreed again.

Defendant apologizes for the confusion in his position on the consolidation, Maldonado wrote in a recent motion, saying Jaeger now stipulates and agrees to the consolidation of the cases.

After a status hearing Tuesday with prosecutors and attorneys, Whelan consolidated the cases and set the jury trial for Monday, Oct. 2. It is expected to last at least eight days.

Jaeger was set for trial on April 10 but it was postponed indefinitely when Maldonado broke his leg and sustained other serious leg injuries the previous Friday.

Prosecutors said consolidating the cases would save time and resources and prevent the victims family from having to endure two nearly identical trials. They also cited another reason:

If these matters proceed separately, it could be extremely difficult to pick a jury for the second defendants trial due to the media attention, prosecutor Kelli Fivey said in a motion. Consolidating these matters ensures that both defendants obtain a fair  and impartial jury prior to media publication at trial.

Prosecutors say on Dec. 21, 2021, Hubber and Jaeger barged into William Harris house in the 800 block of Main Street in Butte looking for bail-jumper David Sandoval. Several other people were also in the house.

Hubber ussed a stun gun on the bail jumper and during a struggle, Jaeger took a gun from Hubber and shot Harris, prosecutors allege. Harris, 42, was dead when police arrived. Jaeger, a convicted felon, was assisting Hubber in the bounty hunt.

Jaeger and Hubber, both 33 at the time, were each charged with deliberate homicide and aggravated burglary and have pleaded not guilty.

Hubber already tried to get the aggravated burglary charge dismissed, saying he was legally authorized as a bondsman to enter the house looking for a fugitive. Judge Whelan rejected that claim.

Jaeger has said in court motions that he acted with justifiable force to protect himself and others in a trap house operated by William Harris where known fugitives, renegades and outlaws routinely gather.

Prosecutors say as many as 30 witnesses could be called and up to 70 pieces of evidence utilized during the trial.
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Four Montana moose hunters and 60 bighorn sheep tag applicants are in for some very bad news.

Fish, Wildlife & Parks over-allocated these highly prized tags in seven different hunting districts in its recent drawing. Realizing the mistake, the agency is issuing a recall.

Operator error inputting incorrect quotas was to blame, said Greg Lemon, FWP spokesman. Although the data is double-checked, the errors werent caught. The bureaus staff realized the error on May 16 and put a block on the ability for successful applicants in the affected districts to purchase their license.

The way the drawings are held, the Licensing Division can see the order in which hunters drew their tag and make the necessary correction to match the quotas.

Its a travesty, said Doug Krings, board member for the Central Montana Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. I cant imagine finally drawing a permit like that just to have it pulled back.

Krings was one of almost 2,500 applicants kicked out of last years drawings for elk tags due to a Licensing Division error. In that case, FWP Director Hank Worsech decided to hold a second drawing, noting that he had the discretion to issue 10% more tags above the original quota. The error also resulted in awarding more licenses than usual to nonresident elk hunters.

What?

Heres an example of the latest error. In bighorn sheep Hunting District 482-30 north of Lewistown, the wildlife biologist set a quota of five bighorn sheep ewes. Instead, a quota of 40 was mistakenly entered, meaning an additional 35 people drew one of the coveted permits.

Before the drawings are ever held, quota ranges are approved by the Fish and Wildlife Commission. FWP biologists then set annual quotas for species within the ranges approved by the commission. For instance, the commission might approve a quota range for a moose license of one to 10. FWP biologists look at numbers on the landscape, as well as other factors, and set a quota of two for that license, FWP explained.

We know this is disappointing for the people affected by this mistake, and were very sorry, said FWP Deputy Director Dustin Temple in a statement. We are putting the resource first, and here that means following the science for population management and ensuring that we meet hunters expectations for a quality hunt. In this circumstance, that means pulling back some of the licenses drawn to ensure the health of the sheep and moose populations in these areas.

The other affected hunting districts for sheep included: 482-20: 20 applicants were awarded tags, but the quota was 15; 622-30: 20 applicants drew, but the quota was 10; 680-31: drew 40 applicants, but the quota was 30.

For the moose drawings, the numbers were less out of line. In HD 270-5, three applicants were drawn, but the quota was two; 332-00: drew eight applicants, but the quota was six; 341-50: drew three applicants, but the quota was two.

FWP released the results of the moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat and bison drawings on May 11.

Adding up

The news comes only days after the Legislative Audit Division released its report praising Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks bonus point system used in drawing special hunting licenses. The report came out after the Billings Gazette published a story that the agency had changed how it used bonus points during drawings this year without notifying the public. The audit noted FWP had to do a better job of communicating with the public regarding the bonus point system.

Other recent FWP licensing errors have included incorrectly listing the opening day of the turkey season a week earlier than the actual date in the 2022 state regulations. Some archery-only permits were issued with incorrect dates making them appear to be valid only during the rifle season. Then the agency accidentally mailed out 1,200 additional nonresident elk and deer combination tags. The hunters were asked to voluntarily return them.

FWP said it would resolve the most-recent error as soon as possible. Once the system completes the corrections, the affected hunters will be notified by phone and email and their online MyFWP accounts will be updated. After that, successful applicants will be able to purchase their licenses.

Due to the difficulty of drawing some hard-to-get licenses, hunters may put in for decades before drawing a bighorn sheep or moose tag. On FWPs Facebook page, one hunter complained he had unsuccessfully applied for 41 years, another said he had been applying unsuccessfully for 48 years. A hunter called the recent errors a "complete and unmitigated disaster. You just can't make this stuff up. Wow."
Another Kentucky womens basketball transfer portal entrant has found her new home.

Redshirt freshman Tionna Herron announced via Twitter on Wednesday that she will be transferring to the University of Texas. This commitment comes a week after Herrons announcement that she would be entering the transfer portal just one day prior to its closure to entrants this spring.

Im coming home #hookem, Herron said on Twitter.

Tionna Herron did not play during her freshman season following successful open-heart surgery on Aug. 24, 2022.

Herron hails from DeSoto, Texas, where she won a Class 6A state title as a junior with DeSoto High School. DeSoto is less than 200 miles from the UT campus. Herron is the Longhorns first portal commitment of the 2023-24 cycle. She will join a program that finished 26-10 overall and 14-4 in the Big 12 during the 2022-23 season. The Longhorns earned a share of the Big 12 title prior to falling in the round of 32 to Louisville.

Herron was Kentuckys third transfer portal entrant following a 12-19 season. Second-leading scorer Jada Walker is also headed to the Lone Star State and will suit up for fellow-Big 12 school Baylor next season. Guard Kennedy Cambridge, who led all UK freshmen in minutes (273) this season, announced her intention to transfer days after the end of the Wildcats 2022-23 campaign. She has not yet announced her destination but recently posted on social media that she took a visit to Oregon.

Herron was expected to play a factor in the post next season for the Wildcats following the graduation of fifth-year senior Adebola Adeyeye, as well as starter Nyah Leveretters early exit due to a torn ACL in UKs 79-57 loss at Vanderbilt on Feb. 19. Leveretter underwent successful surgery to repair her torn ACL in early March. There is no timetable on her return.

Senior Ajae Petty, who joined the Wildcats following a transfer from LSU ahead of this past season, will most likely carry much of the load in the frontcourt. UK has also billed recent signee, 6-4 Janae Walker of Sandy Creek (Ga.) as a post.

The Wildcats have 11 scholarship spots accounted for, two of which belong to incoming four-star freshmen Walker and 6-2 Jordy Griggs of Montverde Academy (Fla.) Academy.

Despite the transfer portals recent closure to new entrants, there are still many student-athletes searching for a destination. The Wildcats played last season with a full 15-player roster but suffered from a lack of depth due to injury and inexperience.
The moment the doors to the boarding area opened, the panicked crowd surged forward.

But 32-year-old Javid's heart soared  U.S. soldiers opened those doors at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan on Aug. 15, 2021, so he and his family could escape a country in chaos.

The troops even cleared a narrow pathway for Javid's 10 relatives after his older brother, Abdullah, showed U.S. military officers papers saying that Abdullah had worked security for U.S.-owned companies in Kabul.

But that pathway closed quickly as thousands of frantic Afghans rushed toward the open doors.

Afghan people climb up on a plane and sit by the door as they wait at the Kabul airport in Kabul on Aug. 16, 2021 as thousands of people mobbed the city's airport trying to flee the group's feared hardline brand of Islamist rule.

"When people saw we were running to the gates, they started running from this way and that way and from the backside," Abdullah said.

U.S. soldiers grabbed for Abdullah and his relatives, pulling them through the crowd, but Javid, at the back of the line, never made it through the door.

He got knocked to the ground, his knees and hands repeatedly trampled. Javid panicked, not aware the rest of his family made it through the door and onto the plane.

Unable to stand at first, Javid scrambled on the ground, desperately looking for his wife, his kids, his mom, any relatives.

After hours of searching, Javid, scared and heartbroken, limped out of the airport. "For two days I can't sleep," he told The Tennessean. "I just sat at home and prayed."

Javid, a practicing Muslim, couldn't have known then that Nashville's Jewish community 7,300 miles away would be the answer to those prayers.

His brother Abdullah marveled at how the Jewish community came to his family's aid.

"Why are they helping me and standing with me for everything?" Abdullah asked. "In Afghanistan, we dont have a lot of Jewish people. The first time I saw [any] was here."

Afghan brothers Abdullah and Javid tell their story of how they were reunited after being separated for more than a year after fleeing Afghanistan at their home Tuesday, March 21, 2023 in Tenn.

Abdullah and his family flew from Afghanistan to Qatar to New York to a U.S. Army base in Indiana before the 10 of them were shoehorned into an apartment in Nashville. There, volunteers from The Temple and the Jewish Federation in Nashville reached out to the new immigrants.

While Abdullah and his relatives were kind to and grateful for their new benefactors, the Afghans kept telling the volunteers about their loved one left behind.

How much they missed Javid. How they stayed up at night wondering if the Taliban would arrest him, torture him or kill him because he was part of a family that worked for Americans.

Their Nashville Jewish benefactors felt they had no choice but to transition their efforts from resettlement to rescue.

"I thought, well, I signed up to show them how to shop at Kroger," said Michal Becker, Nashville Jewish Federation engagement director.

"But bringing [Javid] here? Thats so not my area," she said. "It was so much work just understanding what to do."

And yet, the volunteers pulled it off. About five of them joined Abdullah and his family on March 11 for a powerful-yet-low-key reunion at Nashville International Airport.

"Im very happy, I cannot tell you how much Im happy," the brothers' mom, Fazila, said in Persian as Abdullah translated. "Our family is together."

It's a journey that started 20 years ago when Abdullah's police officer father died in a terrorist attack when Abdullah was a teen.

The Tennessean has chosen to honor the family's request to use first names only and to avoid using any pictures of their faces because of their fears the Taliban might retaliate against close relatives who remain in Afghanistan.

With U.S. troops in Afghanistan, 'people had hope'

After the attack, Abdullah found himself suddenly the patriarch of the family. At 17, he left a school in Pakistan where he was learning English and started working for a U.S. security company in his hometown of Kabul.

The company paid well and it paid with U.S. dollars, allowing Abdullah to send his brother and three sisters to school. "All graduated with diplomas," Abdullah said with a big smile.

Abdullah himself wouldn't finish high school until he was 23, but his English improved as he continued to work security for American and European companies in Kabul.

A redacted ID card for Abdullah from when he started working for a U.S.-owned company in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2003. It's one of the documents Abdullah presented to U.S. soldiers in 2021 at the airport in Kabul that let him and his family escape Afghanistan when the U.S. troops pulled out

Javid got a bachelor's degree in business from a university in Kabul and started working for a South African-based multinational cell phone company.

U.S. troops in Afghanistan created an environment of possibilities and relative peace, Abdullah and Javid said.

"When the U.S. troops were in Afghanistan, people had hope," Javid said.

When President Biden announced troop withdrawals, many Afghans panicked, the brothers said, especially those who worked for foreign-based companies. Especially those who worked for U.S. companies.

Most Afghans were convinced the new Taliban rulers would seek retribution against those who'd worked for "the enemy." The fear sparked the chaos and desperation that drove Abdullah and Javid and their relatives to go to the airport two years ago. When the crowd knocked him to the ground that day, Javid lost his breath  and his hope.

A U.S. soldier holds a sign indicating a gate is closed as hundreds of people gather some holding documents, near an evacuation control checkpoint on the perimeter of the Hamid Karzai International Airport, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. Western nations warned Thursday of a possible attack on Kabuls airport, where thousands have flocked as they try to flee Taliban-controlled Afghanistan in the waning days of a massive airlift. Britain said an attack could come within hours.

On the other side of the door, Abdullah begged U.S. soldiers to let him go back and look for his brother.

"Finally, they said, 'You have to leave. Im sorry, we cant get your brother.' We are hurting; it very difficult for me," Abdullah said. "As the plane is leaving, my heart is broken; everything is broken."

'I'm not gonna eat until my dad gets here'

A few weeks later, in Nashville, Javid's kids were heartbroken.

"Javid's little girl wouldn't eat, and the little boy cried every day," said Ruth Thomas, partner with fellow volunteer Renee Kasman in helping the Afghan family.

"The girl said, 'Im not gonna eat until my dad gets here; hell feed me.'

Afghan refugee Abdullah tells his story of how he and his family were reunited with his brother Javid after being separated for more than a year after fleeing Afghanistan at their home Tuesday, March 21, 2023 in Tenn.

"The Taliban knows my family is in the U.S.; there is a danger for me. I'm always hiding myself, back and forth to a married sister or a friend's house or somewhere else," he said. "How to feed yourself and have a normal life? It was very difficult for me.

"At night, after an hour, Id wake up, I was afraid: Is the Taliban coming? Is someone knocking?"

The Temple's rabbis connected the volunteers to Memphis immigration law firm Siskind Susser, which worked for free on the case. The volunteers also reached out to U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tennessee, whose staff helped get Javid to the U.S.

Step one: Get Javid to neighboring Pakistan where there is a U.S. embassy, in capital city Islamabad. There, Javid said he felt less in danger, and he and his wife and children used WhatsApp Messenger mobile app to talk daily.

After several months of submitting and resubmitting documents and filing petitions and sending and receiving hundreds of emails, lawyers and volunteers started to see hope of reunification.

"It took a village of people," volunteer Kasman said.

"A law firm that donated services for us. We needed testimony from doctors and social workers as to the impact it was having on the family being separated. Javids son needed eye surgery," she said. "A surgeon wrote a letter saying how important it was for the boy to have his father there for the surgery. An Afghan association in Nashville, they were very helpful translating documents for us, Dari into English."

'My family is complete again'

And suddenly, after nearly two years, Javid had boarding passes for flights from Pakistan to Qatar to New York to Nashville.

But neither Javid nor his family in Nashville would let themselves get excited; they wouldn't believe they'd be reunited until they were hugging each other at the airport.

Yet that's exactly what happened March 11 at Nashville International Airport.

Javid, carrying one bag, smiled big and hugged his children and his wife simultaneously.

"Then I saw the wife break down. She really let herself feel stuff," said Nashville Jewish Federation executive Barbara Dab. "She stepped off to the side wiping away tears."

Afghan brothers Abdullah and Javid tell their story of how they were reunited after being separated for more than a year after fleeing Afghanistan at their home Tuesday, March 21, 2023 in Tenn.

Then, hugs for his mom, his brother, his nephews  and each of the five U.S. volunteers who showed that day.

"I cried because it was so amazing, something wed waited for for so long. I still tear up when I think about it," volunteer Thomas said. "As Abdullah says, it was magic."

Most of the Afghans now are working in La Vergne, where 11 of them are sharing a rented, newly built home. The children are in school and speaking fluent English.

And Javid's and Abdullah's mother, Fazila, seemingly can't stop smiling.

"Im very happy, I cannot tell you how much Im happy," she said in Persian, her sons translating. "Im very happy in my life, and my son is here and my family is complete again. Our family is together."

Reach Brad Schmitt at brad@tennessean.com or 615-259-8384 or on Twitter @bradschmitt.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: An Afghan family torn apart is reunited by Nashville Jewish volunteers
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RUTHERFORD COLLEGE  Flowers, trees and manicured green grass are signs that spring has well taken hold. But another sign of spring in the south is all of the kudzu, weeds and briars that sprout up.

And now the town of Rutherford College is getting help from some four-legged furry friends to control the unwanted signs of spring.

Goats from Gnawin Nannies have been working on the undergrowth at the center of the towns greenway park for several weeks. Town Manager Jessica Bargsley said when the council looked at the options for clearing the growth, using the goats was the most cost-efficient.

According to minutes from the Nov. 7 meeting, the town council considered three options to remove the undergrowth: Using gas (or diesel)-powered motorized equipment, chemical management, which involves sprays, and the natural management, which involves goats.

The town council voted unanimously to use the goats to control the vegetation at the center of the greenway, according to minutes from the meeting.

Gnawin Nannies started in 2022 and has around 30 goats, said Brittany Leger, an owner of the business. She and her husband, Zeke (John Jr.), who is the utility director for Rutherford College, operate the business, along with help from their children, Ellah, 14, Amelia, 9, and John Wyatt, 8. The business has a Connelly Springs address but is located in Rutherford College, she said.

We had a lot of families that wanted to borrow them to clear off properties and (through) friends and word of mouth, we were just encouraged to branch out and offer it as a business, Leger said.

People who use goats to control unwanted growth a lot of times cant get into the area with equipment due to topography but goats can, and sometimes the work that would be involved is more than a person can handle themselves, Leger said. She said goats dont pass seeds like a cows, so if a goat goes into an area multiple times in consecutive years, eventually what theyre eating wont come back.

A solar-powered electric fence secures them within the specified area and the goats are trained to respect the fence. They check on them and take the goats water daily, Leger said.

The area the goats are cleaning up for the town is the undergrowth in the wooded area at the center of the greenway park, according to the town. Information from the town said removing the undergrowth will help with the aesthetics of the park as well as give pedestrians a safer walking experience.

Leger and Bargsley both said people using the greenway have been enjoying watching the goats at work.

Theyve made a difference, the people at the park seem to love them and theyre growing, theyre getting what they need through it, Leger said. I enjoy meeting the people that do come by to see them at the park.

Leger said there are nine Nannies and 12 baby goats. She said to clear a half-acre area, it has taken the group about four or five days to clear it.

The group was moved to the last area to clear at the greenway park on Tuesday, Leger said.

Leger said they will do jobs around 35 to 45 minutes away, mainly in Burke, Caldwell and Catawba counties.

She said the Gnawin Nannies are booked through this month and next and are starting to book jobs for July. She said they also are adding retention ponds at businesses as part of their jobs.

As for cost, Leger said they come up with the amount of acreage, an estimation of how long it will take as well as a set-up fee.

Zeke Leger offered the town of Rutherford College the use of the goats and electric fencing at no cost but requested the town pay for a solar-powered battery, which costs $285, according to minutes from the Nov. 7 town meeting.

To get a quote or book the Gnawin Nannies, call Zeke Leger at 828-391-4757 or Brittany Leger at 828-391-7628. Check them out on their Facebook page at https://bit.ly/454vQkY.
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LINCOLNTON  A husband and wife face child abuse charges after it was discovered one of their children had been beaten with a paddle.

On May 12, Lincoln County Sheriffs detectives received a report from the Cleveland County DSS concerning the abuse of a child that occurred at a residence in Vale, N.C., according to a news release from the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office.

The young child was in speech therapy in Cleveland County when the therapist observed bruising on the childs bottom. The Cleveland County social worker went to the Vale residence and met with the parents where photos were taken of a wooden paddle with holes drilled in it, the release said. The worker also viewed home security camera footage showing the child being spanked with the wooden paddle.

Lincoln County Sheriffs Detective F. Runyon went to the residence to follow up on the investigation and also viewed the home security footage. The investigation revealed the child had been abused on a number of different occasions, the release said.

On May 17, Detective Runyon charged Jonathan Niles Orren, 38, and Silvia Orren, 39, of Vale, N.C.with one felony count each of child abuse involving any serious injury, the release said. Silvia Orren was released on an unsecured bond while Jonathan Orren was released on a $7,500 secured bond.

The 6-year-old victim and her 5-year-old brother have been removed from the home and placed with relatives out of state.
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Broken window

On Monday, Joseph H. LaTray, 37, of Butte allegedly threw a rock through a window at Copper City CrossFit, 675 S Montana St.

When officers arrived, a witness told police that LaTray, who was still in the area, was the person who did it. He was already on probation and was arrested for criminal mischief and pecuniary loss of more than $1,500.

Monday assault

Lawrence W. Salminen, 69, of Butte was arrested Monday in the 1000 block of Dakota Street.

Salminen was on two counts of partner or family member assault. He allegedly assaulted two family members.

More arrests

Sierra J. Berg, 35, of Alberton was arrested Monday for violation of release conditions.

Angela J. Davis, 25, of Butte was booked into the jail early Wednesday morning for aggravated driving under the influence (first offense) and driving with a suspended or revoked drivers license.

Colton T. Leavitt, 25, of Butte was booked into the jail Tuesday for driving with a suspended or revoked drivers license (second offense), seatbelt violation and a Montana Highway Patrol warrant.

Three people were arrested together Tuesday  Gerald T. Holm, 41, of Butte, Angela Jester, 37, of Boulder, and Dustin J. Lenhardt, 37, of Bozeman. Holm was jailed on a parole violation warrant, Jester had a warrant out of Beaverhead County, and Lenhardt was taken into custody on a probation violation.
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NEW ORLEANS  Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. went up slightly last year after two big leaps during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the numbers plateaued for most of last year. Experts aren't sure whether that means the deadliest drug overdose crisis in U.S. history is finally reaching a peak, or whether it'll look like previous plateaus that were followed by new surges in deaths.

"The fact that it does seem to be flattening out, at least at a national level, is encouraging," said Katherine Keyes, a Columbia University epidemiology professor whose research focuses on drug use. "But these numbers are still extraordinarily high. We shouldn't suggest the crisis is in any way over."

An estimated 109,680 overdose deaths occurred last year, according to numbers the CDC posted Wednesday. That's about 2% more than the 107,622 U.S. overdose deaths in 2021, but nothing like the 30% increase seen in 2020, and 15% increase in 2021.

While the overall national number was relatively static between 2021 and 2022, there were dramatic changes in a number of states: 23 reported fewer overdose deaths, one  Iowa  saw no change, and the rest continued to increase.

Eight states  Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia  reported sizable overdose death decreases of about 100 or more compared with the previous calendar year.

Some of these states had some of the highest overdose death rates during the crisis, which Keyes said might be a sign that years of concentrated work to address the problem is paying off.

State officials cited various factors for the decline, like social media and health education campaigns to warn the public about the dangers of drug use; expanded addiction treatment  including telehealth  and wider distribution of the overdose-reversing medication naloxone.

Plus, the stigma that kept drug users from seeking help  and some doctors and police officers from helping them  is waning, said Dr. Joseph Kanter, the state health officer for Louisiana, where overdose deaths fell 4% last year.

"We're catching up and the tide's turning  slowly," said Kanter, whose state has one of the nation's highest overdose death rates.

Beginning in the mid-1990s, abuse of prescription opioid painkillers was to blame for deaths before a gradual turn to heroin, which in 2015 caused more deaths than prescription painkillers or other drugs. A year later, the more lethal fentanyl and its close cousins became the biggest drug killer.

Last year, most overdose deaths continued to be linked to fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. About 75,000, up 4% from the year before. There also was a 11% increase in deaths involving cocaine and a 3% increase in deaths involving meth and other stimulants.

Overdose deaths are often attributed to more than one drug; some people take multiple drugs and officials say inexpensive fentanyl is increasingly cut into other drugs, often without the buyers' knowledge.

Research from Dr. Daniel Ciccarone, a drug policy expert at the University of California, San Francisco, suggests "there appears to be some substitution going on," with a number of people who use illicit drugs turning to methamphetamines or other options to try to stay away from fentanyl and fentanyl-tainted drugs.

Ciccarone said he believes overdose deaths finally will trend down. He cited improvements in innovations in counseling and addiction treatment, better availability of naloxone and legal actions that led to more than $50 billion in proposed and finalized settlements  money that should be available to bolster overdose prevention.

"We've thrown a lot at this 20-year opioid overdose problem," he said. "We should be bending the curve downward."

But he also voiced some caution, saying "we have been here before."

Consider 2018, when overdose deaths dropped 4% from the previous year, to about 67,000. After those numbers came out, then-President Donald Trump declared "we are curbing the opioid epidemic."

But overdose deaths then rose to a record 71,000 in 2019, then soared during the COVID-19 pandemic to 92,000 in 2020 and 107,000 in 2021.

Lockdowns and other pandemic-era restrictions isolated people with drug addictions and made treatment harder to get, experts said.

Keyes believes that 2022's numbers didn't get any worse partly because isolation eased as the pandemic ebbed. But there may be issues ahead, others say, like increased detection of veterinary tranquilizer xylazine in the illicit drug supply and proposals to scale back things like prescribing addiction medications through telehealth.

"What the past 20 years of this overdose crisis has taught us is that this really is a moving target," Keyes said. "And when you think you've got a handle on it, sometimes the problem can shift in new and different ways."

How overdose deaths changed in every state during COVID-19 How overdose deaths changed in every state during the coronavirus #51. South Dakota #50. New Hampshire #49. New Jersey #48. Delaware #47. Massachusetts #46. Connecticut #45. Idaho #44. Iowa #43. Wyoming #42. North Dakota #41. Montana #40. Pennsylvania #39. Illinois #38. Michigan #37. Utah #36. Maryland #35. Hawaii #34. Wisconsin #33. Missouri #32. Oklahoma #31. Maine #30. Rhode Island #29. District of Columbia #28. Ohio #27. New Mexico #26. Florida #25. Arizona #24. New York #23. Kansas #22. Alabama #21. Indiana #20. Texas #19. Alaska #18. Oregon #17. Virginia #16. Colorado #15. Arkansas #14. Georgia #13. Washington #12. Nevada #11. North Carolina #10. Minnesota #9. Nebraska #8. California #7. South Carolina #6. Tennessee #5. Mississippi #4. Louisiana #3. Kentucky #2. West Virginia #1. Vermont
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Iowas unemployment rate dipped slightly in April, down to 2.7% from 2.8% in March.

The drop continues a downward trend for the unemployment rate from 3.1% in the fall of last year. The national unemployment rate for March was 3.4%.

"Iowa continues to have a strong labor market, and fantastic opportunities remain for those seeking jobs, said Beth Townsend, director of Iowa Workforce Development in a news release.

The labor force added 4,300 new workers in April, and the number of Iowans with jobs increased by 5,800 to 1.68 million.

There are nearly 47,000 people unemployed in the state, while the Iowa Workforce Development website lists 71,600 job openings.

$680,000 in legal assistance to low-income, vulnerable Iowans approved

The Iowa Supreme Court approved $681,345 in grants to non-profit programs that provide legal assistance to low-income Iowans.

The court awarded grants to 11 different organizations throughout the state that assist low-income Iowans with civil legal problems such as divorce, domestic abuse, unsafe housing and illegal evictions. Organizations awarded grant funding include Iowa Legal Aid, Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Kids First Law Center in Cedar Rapids, among others.

Grant dollars are generated from interest earned on pooled trust accounts held by Iowa lawyers. Lawyers practicing law in the state are required to deposit clients' funds the lawyers hold in interest-bearing accounts.

Grant applications are reviewed by a seven-member commission that makes recommendations to the supreme court.

Reynolds signs butchery grant bill

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed House File 185 into law on Thursday, expanding eligibility for a state fund that provides grants to small butcheries and meat processors.

The law will allow a butchery with up to 75 employees to take advantage of the the Butchery Innovation and Revitalization Fund, increasing the threshold from 50 employees.

State lawmakers devoted $1 million to the fund for the upcoming fiscal year. According to the Iowa Economic Development Authority, the fund can be used to expand, refurbish or establish a new small-scale meat processing business, custom locker or mobile slaughter unit. Businesses can also use the money to purchase equipment.

These are the top challenges employers face when hiring These are the top challenges employers face when hiring #1. Too few applicants #2. Applicants lack job-specific skills, education, or experience #3. Competition from other employers #4. Difficulty retaining newly hired workers #5. Applicants unable to pass a background check, credit check, or drug test #6. Hiring issues are not the only challenges companies may face #7. Other processes
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WASHINGTON  The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Google, Twitter and Facebook in lawsuits seeking to hold them liable for terrorist attacks. However, the justices sidestepped the big issue hovering over the cases: the federal law that shields social media companies from being sued over content posted by others.

The justices unanimously rejected a lawsuit alleging that the companies allowed their platforms to be used to aid and abet an attack at a Turkish nightclub that killed 39 people in 2017.

In the case of an American college student who was killed in an Islamic State terrorist attack in Paris in 2015, a unanimous court returned the case to a lower court, but said there appeared to be little, if anything, left of it.

The high court initially took up the Google case to decide whether the companies' legal shield for the social media posts of others, contained in a 1996 law known as Section 230, is too broad.

Instead, the court said it was not necessary to reach that issue because there is little tying Google to responsibility for the Paris attack. "We therefore decline to address the application of Section 230 to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief," the court wrote in an unsigned opinion.

The outcome is, at least for now, a victory for the tech industry, which predicted havoc on the internet if Google lost. The high court remains free to take up the issue in a later case.

"The Court will eventually have to answer some important questions that it avoided in today's opinions. Questions about the scope of platforms' immunity under Section 230 are consequential and will certainly come up soon in other cases," Anna Diakun, staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said in an emailed statement.

Google general counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado said in an email that the company will "continue our work to safeguard free expression online, combat harmful content, and support businesses and creators who benefit from the internet."

A lawyer for the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, who was killed in Paris, expressed disappointment at the outcome but pledged to fight on. "We lawyers see this decision as just another hurdle we need to navigate. It took decades to topple Big Tobacco, we'll eventually rein in reckless and greed driven Big Tech as well," Nitsana Darshan-Leitner wrote in an email.

The families of victims in both attacks asserted that the internet giants did not do enough to prevent their platforms from being used by extremist groups to radicalize and recruit people.

They sued under a federal law that allows Americans injured by a terrorist attack abroad to seek money damages in federal court.

The family of a victim in the bombing of the Reina nightclub in Istanbul argued that the companies assisted in the growth of the Islamic State group, which claimed responsibility for the attack.

Writing for the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said the family's "claims fall far short of plausibly alleging that defendants aided and abetted the Reina attack."

In the Paris attack, Gonzalez' family raised similar claims against Google over her killing at a Paris bistro in an assault also claimed by the Islamic State. That was one of several attacks on a June night in the French capital that left 130 people dead.

The family wants to sue Google for YouTube videos they said helped attract IS recruits and radicalize them. Google owns YouTube.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that most of the claims were barred by the internet immunity law.

The Supreme Court's decision in October to review that ruling set off alarm at Google and other technology companies. "If we undo Section 230, that would break a lot of the internet tools," said Kent Walker, Google's top lawyer.

Yelp, Reddit, Microsoft, Craigslist, Twitter and Facebook were among the companies warning that searches for jobs, restaurants and merchandise could be restricted if social media platforms had to worry about being sued over the recommendations they provide and their users want.

How to take a break from social media Be easy on yourself and ask for help about social media use Helpful exercise to remind you what you're missing by scrolling Use your phone's screen-time tracking feature and limit social media use Physically distance yourself from your phone and apps Benefits of taking a social media break Reevaluate what you want out of social media Two and a half hours.
President Joe Biden is in Japan for global diplomacy in a nation that has already tightened its economic and national security alliance with the U.S. He met privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida before joining the Group of Seven gathering of major industrialized nations. The two leaders discussed ways to strengthen security and economic cooperation. The summit setting of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, takes on new resonance as the U.S., Japan and their allies strategize on dealing with Russias war in Ukraine.
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HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met Thursday aiming to showcase the strength of their alliance ahead of a Group of Seven summit where leading democracies will tackle the challenges of Russias war in Ukraine, North Koreas ballistic nuclear threats and an increasingly forceful China.

Biden recalled that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history.

I couldnt agree with you more, Biden told the Japanese prime minister as they sat with their aides at a conference table. When our countries stand together, we stand stronger and I believe the whole world is safer when we do.

Kishida noted that the global tensions had brought the U.S. and Japan closer together, that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds.

The Kishida family's home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialized nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance. Members of the G-7, which also includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union, are grappling with the territorial ambitions of Russia and China, two nuclear powers.

Biden is also appearing on the world stage while trying to manage a divide back in the U.S. on how to raise the government's debt limit. He opted to cut short what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to Asia, so he can return to Washington to try to avoid a potentially catastrophic default in June that could ripple across the global economy. It's a drama that reveals how internal U.S. politics can spill over into global forums.

While aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters that Russia's invasion of Ukraine looms large as a G-7 topic. He added leaders would discuss the state of play on the battlefield and sealing loopholes to strengthen sanctions that have been levied against Moscow.

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the U.S. president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner. The president's first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet U.S. troops at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before he headed to Hiroshima for talks with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of Russian aggression in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the U.S. and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also discussed economic matters. They addressed efforts to bolster supply chains for critical minerals, new partnerships between U.S. and Japanese companies and universities and efforts to promote renewable energy, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

Kishida had planned to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has said that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule.

The U.S. and Japanese leaders also talked about ways to reinforce their three-way partnership with South Korea, which signed an agreement in April with the U.S. to strengthen their tools for deterring a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Koreas Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta citys buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line," said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. "He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japans dependence on U.S. extended deterrence  that thats more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment."

There are outstanding issues between the U.S. and Japan. During his January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a U.S. Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official. Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims $1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

The early return to Washington to deal with the debt limit means Biden will skip planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he was to take part in a meeting of the so-called Quad partnership with leaders of Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea visit would have been the first to the Pacific Island country by a sitting U.S. president.
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RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  South Carolina became the latest state to move toward a near total abortion ban Wednesday with legislation that if enacted would leave Virginia an outlier in the South as a place that allows relatively permissive access to abortions amid a rapid rise in restrictions in the year since Roe v. Wade was overturned.

South Carolina is among the last bastions in the region for those seeking legal abortions, but that status could end soon. Access would be almost entirely banned after about six weeks of pregnancy  often before women know theyre pregnant  under the bill that now must pass the state Senate, which previously rejected a proposal to nearly outlaw abortions but could give final passage to the new legislation next week.

And most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy will be banned in North Carolina beginning July 1 after the states Republican-controlled Legislature successfully overrode the Democratic governors veto late Tuesday.

Abortion is banned or severely restricted in much of the South, including bans throughout pregnancy in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. In Georgia, its allowed only in the first six weeks.

Such restrictions are possible because the U.S. Supreme Court last year struck down the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, which established a nationwide right to abortion.

It would be just devastating for abortion access in the South, Jamie Lockhart, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, said of the proposed six-week ban in South Carolina, the 12-week ban in North Carolina, and a six-week ban in Florida that will take effect only if the state's current 15-week ban is upheld by the state Supreme Court.

But North Carolina Rep. Sarah Stevens, a Republican, said she sees the 12-week ban and other restrictions in North Carolina's new law as safeguards, not obstacles to abortion.

We seek to balance protecting unborn babies while ensuring the safety of mothers, she said Tuesday.

Stricter bans across the South would heighten Virginias role as an access point and create a ripple effect as people travel from out of state to seek care, Lockhart said.

Despite abortion providers' efforts to increase available appointments and expand access for patients through telemedicine, the dramatic influx in out-of-state patients will lead to longer wait times for people in those access states, Lockhart said.

Virginia currently allows abortions in the first and second trimesters. An abortion is allowed in the third trimester only if three doctors certify the mothers mental or physical health is at serious risk.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, pushed for a 15-week ban during this years legislative session, but that was defeated by the narrow Democratic majority in the state Senate.

Victoria Cobb, president of the conservative Family Foundation of Virginia, said Wednesday that the state's laws became out of step with its neighbors during years of liberal influence.

Virginians are going to have to work to protect our Commonwealth from being exploited by the abortion industry, Cobb said.

The costs of travel for women who need to go outside their home states for abortions can quickly pile up, said Ashlyn Preaux, who helps run an abortion fund in South Carolina. Her organization helps patients pay for abortion care as well as gas cards and sometimes plane tickets.

If South Carolina enacts new restrictions, she expects to help send more patients to Virginia and Washington, D.C.

"All of these things add up and its just not anything that people are prepared for, Preaux said. Its not really treated at all like its a health care issue.

The South Carolina House vote capped nearly 24 hours of grueling debate split across two days as the Republican supermajority tossed or defeated over 900 Democratic amendments. Lawmakers paused for roughly eight hours early Wednesday only after a computer glitch.

Democrats repeatedly spoke for all three minutes allotted per amendment. One would have required that residents read The Handmaids Tale. Another sought to make the state cover funeral costs for anyone who dies upon being denied an abortion.

Republican Rep. John McCravy urged colleagues to support the only path forward to prevent our state from becoming an abortion destination state in the Southeast.

Attention now turns to the Senate. Lawmakers could accept the House changes and send the measure to the governor who has indicated he would sign it. Or they could put the bill to a conference committee, where members from each chamber would have to work out their differences.

Until then, abortion remains legal through 22 weeks in South Carolina, and the state had already seen an increasing number of out-of-state patients before Florida and North Carolina enacted new restrictions. Farther west, women often travel to Illinois, Kansas, New Mexico or Colorado.

Provisional state health department data show South Carolina reported nearly 1,000 abortions in each of the first three months this year, after totaling just over 200 in the one full month that a previous six-week ban took effect last year. Nearly half of the patients reportedly came from other states.

Until Tuesday, North Carolina had been considered a safe space, said Dr. Erica Pettigrew, a family medicine doctor in Hillsborough. But now, North Carolinians will be health care refugees to other states, she said, also criticizing provisions of the law for potentially creating more paperwork, along with additional medical and licensing requirements.

Another challenge to abortion access was considered Wednesday when a federal appeals court heard arguments on whether the Food and Drug Administrations approval of the widely used abortion drug mifepristone should be overturned. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is reviewing a ruling by a federal judge in Texas who ordered a hold on approval of mifepristone, a decision that overruled two decades of scientific approval of the drug. That ruling was stayed while the appeal is pending.

Lawyers seeking to preserve access to the drug used in the most common method of abortion got pushback Wednesday from the appellate judges, who each have a history of supporting restrictions on abortion. A ruling is not expected immediately.

In Michigan, one of the leading states in protecting abortion rights since Roe v. Wade was overturned, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation Wednesday that will prohibit companies from firing or otherwise retaliating against workers for having an abortion.

The legislation amends the states civil rights law, which had previously only outlawed employment discrimination if an abortion was to save the life of the mother. It will ensure that workers cannot be treated differently for receiving an abortion regardless of reasoning.

This story was first published May 17, 2023. It was updated May 24, 2023 to remove an incorrect reference to Virginia law allowing unrestricted access to abortion. The state allows greater access than many Southern states but has restrictions on abortion.

Kruesi reported from Nashville, Tennessee. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti in Lansing, Michigan; James Pollard and Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, and Gary Robertson and Hannah Schoenbaum in Raleigh, North Carolina. Schoenbaum and Pollard are corps members for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has promised government support for key projects to boost the countrys blue economy.

He said the Kenya Kwanza administration will work with the European Union and coastal counties to unlock the potential of the sector.

Speaking on Wednesday at Muthu Nyali Beach Hotel in Mombasa when he presided over the launch of fishing boats acquired in partnership with the European Union under the Go Blue Project, Mr Gachagua said they were ready to provide resources and requisite support to ensure the success of the blue economy.

We are determined to ensure that the Blue Economy contributes to the realisation of the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda, he said.

The Go Blue project is a partnership between the government and the European Union and aims at enhancing the countrys blue economy through empowerment of local fishermen.

The DP welcomed the partnership with the EU and the coastal counties on the Go Blue project saying it was bound to improve the nations fortunes in the fishing sector.

We dont take for granted the support the European Union and partners have accorded us in turning around the fortunes of our Blue Economy which is critical in our national development, he added.

Last month, the DP launched similar projects in Mvita in Mombasa and Shimoni in Kwale, all aimed at rejuvenating the sector which is a key area of focus for Kenya Kwanza administration.

He said he will continue to make development visits to the coastal region to make sure the projects are successful.

This is the time to work and serve the people who elected us. The President and I have made a conscious decision to embrace devolution and work with the counties to ensure development in the region because we serve the same people, he stated.

He praised the consultative engagements with the five governors under the Jumuiya ya Kaunti Za Pwani, for expressing readiness to work with the government.

We have a good working relationship with all the governors in the coastal region which is responsible for the economic growth happening in the region, added the DP.

Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs Salim Mvurya said the Ministry is providing a conducive environment for the growth of the blue economy sector.

As a Ministry we have committed to provide support and create an enabling environment so this sector can succeed. We will work with the European Union to fine tune our national strategy on the blue economy, said Mvurya.

EU ambassador to Kenya Henriette Geiger said the potential of the countrys blue economy is huge, promising to continue supporting projects to boost it.

Kenyas blue economy has a great potential and its worth could grow four times if adequately supported and sustainable policies enacted, Geiger said.
The Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji has recommended an inquest to establish the cause of Jeff Mwathis death, a lawyer representing Lawrence Njuguna alias DJ Fatxo has said.

In a media briefing on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, lawyer Duncan Okatch said the DPP agreed with the findings of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI ) that there was no evidence to indicate criminal culpability against DJ Fatxo.

Our client is happy that the truthful position he has always espoused and maintained with regard to his innocence has come out at last, Okatch said.

He added that DJ Fatxo was grateful to the DCI and the DPP for demonstrating high standards of professionalism, independence and focus in the face of clearly orchestrated public and social media machinations to obfuscate the truth.

We are pleased to say that we now know that the Director of Public Prosecutions has indeed looked into the matter and has agreed with the findings and recommendations of the Directorate of Criminal Investigation, namely that there is not a single shred or iota of evidence to suggest any remote criminal culpability or suspicion on the part of our client.In fact, it is very clear that our client was not even in his house at the material time when his friend Jeff Mwathi met his death, he added.

Okatch mentioned that DJ Fatxo will not be seeking legal redress against all those who propagated lies that he was culpable of the death.

Our client being a practising Christian has consciously decided to forgive all those who propagated such narratives and he only hopes that through his tribulations, those who had been led into believing such or in one way or another became part of the social mob justice, cyberbullying and Kenyans in General, have learnt a thing or two, the lawyer said.

Okatch added that DJ Fatxo will now go back to his normal life and do what he does best.

DJ Fatxo will now resume his normal life and do what he does best which is ensuring people shake their legs and he hopes that this challenge that has been surmounted will impact positively on any person who may find himself already judged even before his side of the story is heard, he said.
Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu has reiterated that students joining private universities are not eligible for government scholarships.

The CS spoke on Wednesday during the launch of the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) portal for 2022 KCSE candidates.

The minister said all the 869,782 candidates will be eligible to enroll in any institution of their choice.

Machogu said 173,127 candidates who attained the minimum entry grade of C+ will enroll for degree courses.

Those who attained a C grade and below will be enrolled in all Technical and Vocational Education Training Institutions (TVET) institutions.

The CS announced that all institutions have met all conditions required to enroll students and have already published course fees for different study programmes on their websites.

This will guide students to make choices based on their income levels of their households, he said.

Machogu said selected students will have the option to apply for government scholarships from the University fund as guided by the new funding model announced by President William Ruto.

They will also have opportunities to apply for HELB (Government loan) which will be allocated upon using a full-proof tool used to assess students to be awarded scholarships.

I wish to reiterate that students who will select courses in Public Universities will be eligible to access both the Government scholarships and loans, while those who will select Private Universities will be eligible for Government loans only, he stated.

CS Machogu explained; The whole idea is premised on the fact each student should be treated on the level of their need and that no deserving student should be denied an opportunity to acquire higher education and training in the institution of their choice.

CS Machogu announced that he has directed KUCCPS to partner with the Huduma secretariat to allow students to apply from all Huduma Centres across the country to help students be guided in applications.
By PCS

Africa must position itself as a solution to climate change.

President William Ruto challenged African leaders to use the continents abundant green energy to position itself as a green industrial hub.

He called on nations in the Global North to relocate industries to Africa and bring to an end the use of fossil fuels.

We have all that it takes to grow our industries and make Africa the clean, green factory of the world, he said.

President Ruto made the remarks on Wednesday during the Pan-African Parliament Summit on Climate Policy and Equity in South Africa.

The President said relocating industries to Africa will strengthen the continents balance of trade, ease pressure on African currencies and mitigate the vulnerability arising out of dependency on capricious supply chains.

The President said Kenya is leading in renewable energy usage.

At the same time, President Ruto called for the reconfiguration of the United Nations to meet the needs of the Global South which is currently disadvantaged.

Africa demands and deserves two permanent seats at the Security Council, he said.

Present were President of the Pan African Parliament Chief Fortune Charumbira, Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Dr. Amina Mohamed, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi among other leaders.
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ST. HELENA  Talk about overdue  last week a man returned a book to the St. Helena Public Library that was due Feb. 21, 1927.

Download the Napa Valley Register's free news app Easily access the very latest local news that matters in an app built for you. Read, see, and hear exclusive commentary, stunning photography,

Benson Lossings A History of the United States is a weighty tome with the crumbling binding one would expect from a book published in 1881. It's stamped Property of the St. Helena Library Association, and library staff suspect it was one of the original 540 volumes available when the Free Public Library opened in the Kettlewell building in 1892.

The man returned the library to the front desk but didnt leave his name. Library staff hope he comes forward. Library Director Chris Kreiden said the library went fine-free in 2019, so the man wont owe a cent for keeping the book longer than two weeks.

"Nobody on the staff recognized the gentleman who brought it in," Kreiden said. "The library (staff) would definitely love to know" the story of how he came across the book.

In case youre wondering, the librarys old nickel-a-day fine would have added up to roughly $1,756 from the 1927 due date through last week.

The book offers a glimpse into the librarys history. Before the Free Public Library opened in 1892, it cost 25 cents a month to borrow books  including possibly this one  from the St. Helena Library Association in the Odd Fellows building.

Local readers looking to establish a permanent home for the library contacted philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, who in 1906 donated $7,500 to build the Carnegie Building at the corner of Oak and Adams.

Whoever borrowed the Lossing book must have checked it out from the Carnegie Building, 52 years before the current library was built with support from George and Elsie Wood. Kreiden said there's no indication the library ever removed it from its collection and sold it.

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Lossing (1813-1891) was a prolific and respected American historian. He was known for traveling widely to seek out primary sources and visit historic buildings and battlefields, a practice that was unusual at the time but is considered standard for todays historians. His massive Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution was the result of 9,000 miles of travel over two years.

The 754-page volume returned to the library contains 400 engravings and a full account of the then-recent national centennial celebration of 1876.

Kreiden said the library staff haven't decided what to do with the book, but their top priority is to protect it from further deterioration.

"It would be cool to put it on display someday but we haven't figured out how to do that," she said.

These were the top 10 books people wanted removed from schools and libraries in 2021 1. 'Gender Queer' by Maia Kobabe 2. 'Lawn Boy' by Jonathan Evison 3. 'All Boys Arent Blue' by George M. Johnson 4. 'Out of Darkness' by Ashley Hope Perez 5. 'The Hate U Give' by Angie Thomas 6. 'The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian' by Sherman Alexie 7. 'Me and Earl and the Dying Girl' by Jesse Andrews 8. 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison 9. 'This Book is Gay' by Juno Dawson 10. 'Beyond Magenta' by Susan Kuklin
A blog about the Iraqi cuisine from ancient Mesopotamian times to the present, by Nawal Nasrallah, author of Delights from the Garden of Eden, 2003. A new fully revised edition is released (UK: Equinox Publishing, 2013). TLS (Nov 1, 2013) said about it: "A splendid achievementobviously a labor of love  an impressive book. Each page shows erudition, every recipe a passion for food." Get it on iBooks ITUNES.APPLE.COM. The abridged edition (440 pp.) is out!
Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute comments on scandalous video

Serbia sends military units to Kosovo border

Russian MFA: Russia expects Yerevan, Baku will be able to sign peace treaty

Armenia MFA: Illegal abduction of 2 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan is attempt to deviate from its own obligations

Iraq unveils Europe-Middle East road and rail project

Germany: Russia to expel German diplomats in June

Nairi MC: Nikol Pashinyan only came to see a patient

Vucic nominates Milos Vucevic as ruling Serbian Progressive Party head

Syunik governor: border settlements have enough weapons for self-defense

Nepal PM to hold talks with India's Narendra Modi

Nubarashen landfill fire extinguished

Iran, Russia, Syria, Turkey Deputy FMs to discuss Ankara-Damascus relations

Kishida willing to meet Kim Jong Un over kidnappings of Japan citizens

Iran calls Zelenskyy's statement 'worthless political show'

Armenia MoD publishes names of soldiers disappeared on the border

Bordachev: Turkey is very poorly represented in Central Asia

Erdogan accuses Germany of violating press freedom

Explosion in Russias Pskov damages oil pipeline building

Nikkei Asia: Japan and NATO increase cooperation to counter China, Russia

RA MOD: Car operated by 2 servicemen delivering provisions found on inter-positional roa

Car overturned in Shirak Province

The President of The Artsakh Republic convened a session of the Security Council

Cavusoglu: Turkey's EU membership still a goal, though process unlikely to revive

Turkish interior minister sued for use of facial recognition app

Belgium releases Iranian diplomat Asadollah Asadi

Ukraine asks Germany for Taurus cruise missiles

Clashes between Iran border guards and Taliban forces

Communication with 2 servicemen of the RA Armed Forces supplying food to combat positions was interrupted

Pashinyan received American Co-Chair of OSCE Minsk Group

Dollar, euro gain value

New presidential decrees prohibit assemblies, curtail freedom of expression in Karabakh

Cavusoglu: Turkey ready to take positive steps with Armenia if it signs peace agreement with Azerbaijan

MFA of Armenia: Signing of the peace treaty is not included in the agenda of the Chisinau meeting

Ararat Mirzoyan, Louis Bono confer about Armenia-Azerbaijan relations normalization process (PHOTOS)

Azerbaijan pursues policy of energy suffocation of Karabakh but says it provides electricity

Karabakh medical patients transfer to Armenia by Red Cross resumes

Azerbaijan deputy PM speaks about Zangezur corridor at Kazan forum

Armenia opposition MP: Russia response to Azerbaijan should have been more decisive

Ruling power lawmaker:Armenian side hears for first time that Russia supports Azerbaijan position on Zangezur corridor

Armenia ruling force MP: There is clear position on unblocking of regional communications

Azerbaijan ambassador to France sees chance for signing peace treaty with Armenia at European summit

Armenia deputy FM briefs UN Secretary General special adviser on the growing humanitarian crisis in Karabakh

Karabakh's bilaterally surrounded Lisagor village head: Youth want to leave the community, go to university

Russia presidential spox: Azerbaijan-Armenia peace agreement signing possible in foreseeable future

Armen Grigoryan, Louis Bono discuss Armenia-US relations agenda

NATO special representative holds meetings in Azerbaijan

Armenia President: War of 2020 was predictable back in 1990-1991 but we didn't want to face the truth

Azerbaijan defense minister visits Georgia

Armenia ombudswoman briefs Netherlands envoy on problems due to Lachin corridor blockade by Azerbaijan

Armenia PM: Deepening of neighborly relations with Georgia is among priorities of our foreign policy

Parliament speaker to Armenia graduating schoolchildren: Try to become your best version, not to be lazy

US State Department: We believe that an agreement is in reach between Armenia, Azerbaijan

Philip Reeker: Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement must include various concepts

Newspaper: Armenia authorities prominent figures involved in illegal drugs import

Russia deputy PM: Azerbaijan, Armenia equally understand how transport corridors must be unblocked

Full speech of Pashinyan and Putin at bilateral meeting

Overchuk: We will discuss many important details with Armenia, Azerbaijan deputy PMs in one week

Trilateral meeting of the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia ended

Trilateral meeting of Aliyev, Putin and Pashinyan begins

Putin: Azerbaijan recognizes full sovereignty of Armenia

Putin: Russia trade with Armenia reached $5 billion in 2022

Putin: Russia has never changed its position on Lachin corridor

Putin: Trilateral meeting will discuss unblocking of transport links

Pashinyan and Putin meet in Moscow

Pashinyan, Aliyev have war of words over Zangezur corridor term interpretation

Russias Putin thanks Armenias Pashinyan for not opposing Azerbaijans Aliyev visit to EAEU meeting

Putin: There are principled agreements between Armenia, Azerbaijan regarding territorial integrity

Peskov: No predictions regarding Putin, Aliyev, Pashinyan meeting yet

Russia defense minister signs documents on deployment of nuclear weapons on Belarus territory

Georgian Airways to launch transit flights to Europe for Russians

Aliyev announces possibility of signing peace agreement with Armenia

Overchuk: 89% of goods transactions within EAEU are carried out in our national currencies

Czech Republic embassy in Armenia temporarily suspends Schengen visa applicants registration

Armenia premier: EAEU-Iran free trade agreement entry into force is paramount to us

Karabakh FM sends official letters to heads of foreign diplomatic missions accredited to Armenia

Armenia Investigative Committee: Detention chosen as preventive measure against Vardan Ghukasyan

Putin: It will be difficult for other Eurasian Economic Union countries to reach Armenia

Pashinyan: Armenia ready for dialogue to create single natural gas market within EAEU

Armenia to hold several tourism festivals this year

Armenia economic activity index up 12.2% in January-April

Tourism Committee head: 630,000 tourists visited Armenia in 1st four months of 2023

Baku plans to relocate 1,500 Azerbaijanis to occupied Armenian Shushi city of Karabakh in 1st phase

CSTO countries approve 2024 plan for collective security forces joint training

Putin: Armenia is main beneficiary at EAEU because its economy growth rate is the highest

Georgia arrests Iran citizen transporting 80kg of heroin via Armenia

Eurasian Economic Union summit kicks off in Kremlin

Sergei Shoigu: West attempts to intervene in situation around Karabakh

Russia deputy FM: Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty should be based on long-term, stable decision

Arizona State Legislature affirms Karabakh right to self-determination

Armenia government gives compensation for construction equipment that came under Azerbaijan control last September

Russia defense minister underscores importance of Armenia participation in CSTO joint military exercises

Economy minister: Armenia pharmaceutical sector production is expected to increase to AMD 40 billion by 2027

Armenia deputy FM, Red Cross president confer about humanitarian crisis in Karabakh

Russias Putin to meet with Armenias Pashinyan, Azerbaijans Aliyev in Moscow

Deputy FM: Azerbaijan will not allow Israel to attack Iran from its territory

Armenia premier sends congratulatory messages to King, PM of Jordan

Armenia minister of defense to not attend CSTO defense ministers council meeting

Eurasian Economic Commission: Number of labor migrants from Russia to Armenia increased by 272% in 2022

Armenia ombudswoman briefs Sweden ambassador on situation due to Lachin corridor blockade by Azerbaijan

CSTO countries defense ministers to meet in Minsk, to discuss coalition security
By making reference to the Alma-Ata declaration, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan pursued two goals. One goal European Council President Charles Michel said clearly, and the second one is the matter of enclaves. Constitution expert Vardan Poghosyan stated about this in an interview with Armenian News-NEWS.am.

"If Armenia says that the territory of Armenia should be 29,800 square kilometers, it accepts that those enclaves are Azerbaijani territories and, ultimately, should be returned to Azerbaijan. And we know that at least two enclaves are of strategic importance [for Armenia]. And if we will not have control over Tigranashen and Voskepar [villages], we will essentially be deprived of the strategic roads to Georgia and Iran. If there will be Azerbaijani control there, the circle around us will tighten even more," said the constitution expert.

He emphasized that these territories are those of Armenia, and the latter should not have taken as a basis what happened during the USSR.

"Pashinyan did this because there are no national interests for him; his task is to protect his own seat [of power]. The Constitution [of Armenia] envisages quite complex mechanisms related to the change of territory. In case of any change of one millimeter of the territory of Armenia, the Constitution provides that there should be a referendum. But I am convinced that the [Armenian] authorities will avoid such an opportunity and will attempt to solve these overwhelming problems," said Poghosyan.
The Land Rover company has inspected the range of engines of its SUV, although the acceptance of orders for the new generation of the model began in January of last year, auto.ru wrote.

Hybrid modifications have become more powerful, economical, go a longer distance on one charge, and the V8 flagship is now offered with a version increased to up to 615. Its price in the UK starts at 103,575 poundsa little less than $130,000.

The six-cylinder Ingenium gasoline engine underlying the hybrid device has not changed. However, it is now accompanied by a more powerful electric motor of 217 horsepower. As a result, hybrid Land Rover devices have 460 and 550 horsepower instead of the previous 440 and 510. Accordingly, the indicators of the models have also changed.

The dynamics of SUVs have improved, but Land Rover presents the features of only the most powerful P550e: acceleration to 100 km/h takes 5 seconds; that is, half a second less than before. The mileage of both versions in the electric tractor has increased from 113 to 121 kilometers.

The eight-cylinder engine with a capacity of 4.4 liters is now automatically accompanied by a starter-generator. In addition to the 530 horsepower version, it has a version with up to 615 horsepower. They will install an expensive SV program on the Land Rover.

Land Rover has other new technologies, too. The interface of the Pivi Pro media system has been improved, and the capabilities of the complex of driving assistants have been expanded. There is a four-position adaptive cruise for bad roads. Within the framework of the SV Bespoke program, 391 interior design options and 230 standard body colors are available.
The authorities of the State of Montana became the first in the United States to completely ban the TikTok; the respective law was signed by Governor Greg Gianforte on Wednesday.

Gianforte tweeted that he has banned TikTok in Montana to protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party.

According to the new law passed by the local legislature in April, the download of the TikTok mobile app will be prohibited in Montana.

Thus, Apple and Google must close the access to download TikTok in their app stores. Otherwise, they will face fines.

The ban will be effective from January 1, 2024.
The injury of the paramedic, who was wounded Wednesday as a result of another Azerbaijani provocation, is not life-threatening. Aram Torosyan, spokesman of the Ministry of Defense of Armenia, told about this to Armenian News-NEWS.am.

"The paramedic was discharged from the hospital, is receiving outpatient treatment," Torosyan added.

Earlier, Armenian News-NEWS.am reported that at around 4:15pm on Wednesday, the units of the Azerbaijani armed forces opened fire on the Armenian combat positions located in the vicinity of Sotk village of Armenias Gegharkunik Province, and an Armenian serviceman was wounded as a result.

Subsequently, the units of the Azerbaijani army fired at the ambulance carrying the aforesaid wounded soldier, and a paramedic was also wounded as a result.

The soldier, however, later died.
The construction of the Kaps Reservoir in Armenias Shirak Province has commenced after a 30-year halt, Armenpress reported.

The 120mn project envisages two stages. First, the construction of a reservoir with a capacity of 25 million cubic meters, and the second stage will increase the capacity to 60 million cubic meters.

The Kaps Reservoir will be located 22 kilometers north of Gyumri, on the Akhuryan floodplains.

Armenian authorities had planned its construction back in 1985 to provide irrigation water for over 30,000 hectares of land, but the project was halted in 1993 due to the worsening economic situation following the 1988 Spitak earthquake and the collapse of the USSR.

Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Gnel Sanosyan, foreign ambassadors, and representatives of the contractors and funding organizations were also present at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The first stage will enable saving 1.3mn kW/h of power annually by way of switching from manual to automatic irrigation. The projected power saving will reach 11mn kW/h under the second stage. Thousands of hectares of lands in Armenia will be ensured with irrigation water as a result, leading to increased agricultural output.

The project is implemented with the loan provided by the KfW Development Bank and co-funding by the Armenian government. The contractor is the Chinese Shanxi Construction Investment Group Co.

The construction is planned to last three years.

Moreover, a new village is being built nearby because the reservoir area will encompass parts of Jradzor village. This new village will be fully-built in the spring of 2026.
It is very important to say that we are all ready to go until the end because there is no other way. It is important to state that we are ready to take responsibility and unite around the idea, and we are ready to invest our capabilities for the sake of the idea. Ruben Vardanyan, coordinator of the Artsakh Security and Development Front movement and former Minister of State of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), said this at a press conference on Thursday.

"The future of Artsakh is in our hands, not someone else's; we are the ones who decide our future. Different people from different camps have united around this idea. This is a very important example that people can unite around an idea, not a person. People have united and realized the acute situation we are facing," said Vardanyan.

"We are responsible for our future. Looking into each other's eyes, we were able to talk about the past and the idea. Actions without an idea are dangerous. We were able to put aside personal and party interests and try to listen to each other. We will do everything to make Artsakh safe, happy, Armenian, free," said the former state minister of Artsakh.

Vardanyan expressed confidence that thousands of people will join the aforesaid movement in Armenia, Artsakh, and all over the world.

"The future of Artsakh, the task of its being independent and Armenian, is the task of all Armenians," emphasized the former minister of state of Artsakh.
The people of Artsakh are 100 percent ready to defend their homeland to the end; this is encouraging. Ruben Vardanyan, coordinator of the Artsakh Security and Development Front movement and former Minister of State of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), said this at a press conference on Thursday.

"I feel accountable for the faith that people have in me; I feel it every day. It is not a matter of a savior or an office, but a matter of deciding the future of the homeland," he said.

Vardanyan believes that his leaving Artsakh will lead to major disappointment.

According to him, the task is to get the Armenian people out of lethargic sleep.

"We have to go through a difficult road, but we have to go through that road together. A serious lack of trust is observed in Artsakh. It is necessary to restore the will, the spirit, the belief in the dream. There was no specific plan in 1998 either, but there was an idea and enthusiasm that were uniting people. At the same time, despite the [ongoing Azerbaijani] blockade [of Artsakh], I see the will to fight among ordinary Artsakh residents," said the former state minister of Artsakh.
Azerbaijani servicemen on Wednesday shot at Armenian servicemen from rifles in the direction of the combat position of the security area of an Armenian military unit located in the eastern direction of Armenias border with Azerbaijan. As a result, a conscript soldier of this military unit was wounded and later died from the wound, the Investigative Committee of Armenia informs Armenian News-NEWS.am.

Also, the Azerbaijani armed forces fired at an Armenian military medical vehicle that went to the aforesaid combat position to provide medical aid to the aforementioned wounded serviceman. As a result, a paramedic of the same military unit was wounded. He is in satisfactory condition.

The Investigative Committee of Armenia has launched criminal proceedings into this incident.

Actions are being taken to find out the circumstances behind this incident and to give full legal assessments to these criminal actions by the Azerbaijani servicemen.
The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan is signed soon, CSTO Secretary General Imangali Tasmagambetov told reporters, according to BelTA.

Tasmagambetov noted that constant negotiations are being held regarding the situation in the South Caucasus. Recently, another round took place in Europe.

"It was noted with satisfaction that both Azerbaijan and Armenia practically recognize the borders between the two countries according to the 1991 Almaty Declaration," said the CSTO chief.

In that agreement on the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), it was noted that the borders between the new countries will be based on the administrative borders of the former USSR union republics.

"We hope that these negotiations will lead to the signing of a peace treaty [between Armenia and Azerbaijan]. And the countries will then move on to border delimitation," added Tasmagambetov.
The press conference of the representatives of the initiative group of the Artsakh Security and Development Front public movement was held in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) capital Stepanakert on Thursday, during which the declaration of this movement was also presented. It reads as follows, in particular:

The Artsakh Security and Development Front public movement (hereinafter: Movement), in the format of a popular movement, is a voluntary union around the idea-goal of FREE, SAFE, HAPPY and ARMENIAN ARTSAKH, in which political forces, non-governmental organizations and individual citizens are engaged.

In order to achieve the main goal of keeping Artsakh Armenian, ensuring its integrity and subjectivity, the Movement has set itself the goal of uniting all cross-sections of Armenians and, first of all, the public, political, intellectual, professional and other circles of Artsakh.

() we, the representatives of organizations and individuals concerned about the future of Artsakh, have agreed on having a new strategy for the security and development of Artsakh and developing its main provisions. Thanks to the continuation of the work, we have succeeded in clarifying the vision for the future of Artsakh, which has been presented to the country's authorities.

() it will be impossible to solve the ontological problems faced by the people of Artsakh without great public consolidation. The position of the current authorities of the Republic of Armenia on the issue of Artsakh greatly hinders this work.

() we () declare the Artsakh Security and Development Front public movement as a manifestation of the will and determination to unite and fight together.

All those who accept the idea-goal announced by us, who realize their responsibility towards the Homeland, who value Armenian roots and the future of our children, can join us by becoming a member in the public movement and strengthening the Artsakh Security and Development Front.
Yerevan did not receive a statement of protest from Ankara through any diplomatic channel in connection with the unveiling of the monument dedicated to the Knights of National Dignity, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Armenia stated in response to an inquiry by RFE/RL Armenian Service.

A few days after the installationin Yerevanof the monument to Operation Nemesis, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu had stated that Ankara had told Yerevan, "If you don't remove the statue, it's not a normalization [of relations], we will even take retaliatory measures." And earlier, Ankara had closed its airspace for Armenian aircraft flying to third countries, justifying the decision by the installation of the aforesaid monument.

RFE/RL Armenian Service inquired as well from the MFA of Armenia about the phase of the implementation of the agreement reached between Yerevan and Ankara last year to open the Armenian-Turkish border for citizens of third countries and persons with diplomatic passports.

According to the MFA, "the Republic of Armenia continues to work with Turkey in this direction."

However, the ministry did not answer the question as to when the Armenian-Turkish border will be reopened.

Ruben Rubinyan, the special representative of Armenia in the talks for the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations, had announced that there was an agreement to open the border for citizens of third countries and persons with diplomatic passports at the beginning of this summer.

Also, the MFA of Armenia informs that "the Armenian side continues to carry out work to enable the normal service of the Margara-Alican border checkpoint."
On May 14, my meeting with the leader of Azerbaijan took place in Brussels through the mediation of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel. As you recall, during the meeting held in Prague on October 6, 2022 at the mediation of the President of France and the President of the European Council, the President of Azerbaijan and I had reaffirmed our countries' commitment to the UN Charter and the Alma Ata Declaration of 1991, emphasizing that based on them we recognize each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this at Thursdays Cabinet meeting of the Armenian government.

"Also, we had confirmed that this will be the basis for the work of border delimitation commissions. On May 14, we took another step, and as stated in the European Council Presidents statement following the May 14 meeting, we recorded that Azerbaijan recognizes the 29,800-square-kilometer territorial integrity of Armenia, and Armeniathe 86,600-square-kilometer [territorial integrity] of Azerbaijan. I have to record that I consider this an important step for the establishment of stability and peace in the region in terms of the finalization of the text of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the delimitation of the borders as well. Of course, the next step should be the identification of and agreement on the legally valid and significant grounds for [border] delimitation," added Pashinyan.

He drew attention to the fact that in the European Council Presidents statement following the May 14 meeting, the importance of a dialogue between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh regarding the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, and in cooperation with the international community, was emphasized.

"This is a process that is essential for the real and comprehensive normalization of relations with Azerbaijan and the establishment of long-term peace in the region. Therefore, it will greatly speed up the signing of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan," the Armenian PM said.
A meeting at the level of foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan is expected in Moscow on Friday, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia has already left for Moscow. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced this at Thursdays Cabinet meeting of the Armenian government.

"We have received a proposal from the Russian side to hold a tripartite meeting at the highest level in Moscow on May 25, through the mediation of the Russian President, and we have accepted that proposal," he added.

Pashinyan recalled that a 5-way meeting, with the participation of the French President and the German Chancellor, is planned for June 1 in Chisinau, within the framework of the second summit of the European Political Community.

"Such a 5-way meeting is also scheduled for October in Granada. The next tripartite meeting in Brussels is scheduled for July," added the Armenian premier.
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday staged hearty welcome ceremonies for Central Asian leaders attending a milestone summit that is expected to draw up new blueprints for China-Central Asia cooperation.

All is ready in the northwestern city of Xi'an, the historical starting point of the ancient Silk Road, for the China-Central Asia Summit, which is scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The summit, the first in-person gathering among heads of state of China and five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, will be chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi is expected to expound on China's position on how to build a China-Central Asia community with a shared future in the new era and put forward a series of proposals for the long-term development of cooperation among the six countries.

Xi will also announce a string of pragmatic measures and comprehensively chart the course for China-Central Asia cooperation.

The first Central Asian leader to arrive in Xi'an was Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also arrived on Wednesday.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov will arrive on Thursday. A welcome banquet will be held for the five leaders.

The leaders who have arrived were greeted with performances of traditional Shaanxi folk dances at the airport.

The 190-member performing team included 50 performers of waist drum dance and 48 of Yangge folk dance. Both are popular forms of folk art in Shaanxi.

"We feel honored and excited to have the opportunity to show our hometown's folk art to the distinguished guests from Central Asia," said Hou Shikai, a 53-year-old Yangge performer. "May the friendship between China and the five Central Asian countries last forever."

In his talks with Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

"Your state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to your unique bond with China," Xi told the Kazakh president.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was one of the key topics during their talks.

Speaking to Tokayev, Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the BRI 10 years ago.

For his part, Tokayev lauded the BRI as a great initiative and said his country will continue taking an active part in it.

Tokayev also said that Kazakhstan will actively support the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

He vowed to work with China to jointly promote regional security, stability and development by leveraging the China-Central Asia mechanism.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

In their talks, Xi hailed the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit as a summit of "milestone significance," which will usher in a new era of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Xi said China will work with Central Asian countries to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform for promoting in-depth cooperation.

The summit is seen as the latest landmark in the vibrant high-level interactions, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between China and Central Asian countries.

Leaders of the six countries are expected to sign an important political document and witness the signing of multiple cooperation documents covering areas including economy, trade, investment and connectivity, according to a press conference held before the summit. 
In the conditions of the 158-day blockade of the Republic of Artsakh, since January 9, for 129 days Azerbaijan has been disrupting the electricity supply from Armenia to Artsakh through the only high-voltage power transmission line passing through the territory under its control. By that way, Azerbaijan is carrying out energy, economic, humanitarian and environmental terrorism, causing suffering to the Artsakh people, as well as leading to a sharp change in the local microclimate, a decline in underground water resources, and the risk of losing numerous plant and animal species.

In these circumstances, the Republic of Artsakh is forced to rely solely on internal electricity production to meet the minimal energy needs of its people. Approximately 70 percent of this capacity is allocated to the Sarsang Reservoir hydroelectric plant.

Consequently, the Republic of Artsakh's only major reservoir is currently facing severe environmental problems, impacting its biodiversity and overall environment. The reservoir's surface area, evaporation rate, and infiltration have significantly decreased. These factors are the primary causes of the local microclimate change, which has numerous adverse consequences for the environment and agriculture.

The reservoir also plays a vital role in supplying groundwater and feeding natural springs in the Tartar River valley. The settlements and agricultural plots located below the reservoir's water level are rapidly losing access to water resources. Springs below that level have experienced decreased outputs, some have dried up entirely, and the groundwater level has dropped.

Over-depletion of the water level in the Sarsang Reservoir has also led to maximum risks of loss of aquatic fauna and flora. A number of species, living on the banks of the reservoir and included in the lists of the Red Book of plants and animals of the Republic of Artsakh, are also endangered.

Such lowering of the reservoir level has led to serious risks of loss of edible and spicy (about 125 species), medicinal plants (about 35 species), honey-bearing (about 156 species) plants of the coastal area, and the mentioned plant species are an integral part of the environment and livelihood of the population of that area.

12 or 70.8% of the 17 species of fish found in the waters of Artsakh are located in the Sarsang reservoir, which is used by the residents of the coastal areas. Such reduction in water volume has sharply increased fish density and, as a consequence, both reduced foraging opportunities and increased risks of self-poisoning, which will lead to large-scale declines in the short term.

It is also home to the Southern banded newt, the Syrian spadefoot living in the coastal area, the Mediterranean turtle, and the Transcaucasian snake which are in "Critical Status" according to the criteria of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Among the main inhabitants of the Sarang Reservoir are the otter, among the mammals registered in the Red Lists of the IUCN, and among the birds, the little bittern and the great bittern, which lay their eggs in the dense coastal vegetation, and the drying of the reservoir has led to the extinction of the nesting colonies of these species. The Sarsang Reservoir area is a migration crossing point for a number of migratory birds, and such a sudden and unprecedented drop in water volume has also led to some loss of these bird species and changes in migration routes.

General information

The change in the level of the Sarsang reservoir is determined by the magnitudes of the components of the water balance, which in turn depends on the hydrological and weather-climatic conditions of the year, as well as the volumes of water released from the reservoir.

In addition to the prolonged failure of the Armenia-Artsakh electricity supply since January 9, both before and during the blockade of Artsakh, Azerbaijan periodically, and since March 22, had finally disrupted gas supply through the only Armenia-Artsakh pipeline. This has also led to the most serious humanitarian and economic problems, as well as to the inevitable increase in domestic consumption and production of electricity and overloading of power supply systems.

The HPP built on the Sarsang reservoir is working on an overloaded schedule, as a result of which, in the last few months, compared to the same period last year, almost three times more water was released from the reservoir, and the water inflow was almost twice less, because of the dryness of the current year's climate, due to which the level has dropped by about 33 meters. As of the beginning of May, the water resources of Sarsang have reached the critical limit - about 88 million

cubic meters (about 15% of the total water capacity), approaching the dead (unusable) volume of about 70 million cubic meters. Although, as a result of the large-scale rainfall recorded in recent days, the reservoir reserves have been restored by several million cubic meters, but this is of a very temporary nature, and in a short period of time, due to the decrease in rainfall, the water level will start to decrease again.

If the electricity supply through the only high-voltage power line between Armenia and Artsakh is not restored in a short period of time, the water resources of the Sarsang reservoir will quickly run out, leading to the aggravation of the above-mentioned and other problems and a complete humanitarian and environmental disaster.

To get more information on the current situation of the reservoir it is recommended to watch the latest footage produced by the Artsakh Public TV.

The Environmental Committee of the Republic of Artsakh is monitoring the environmental situation of the Sarsang Reservoir, thanks to which it will be possible to more comprehensively assess the consequences of the ongoing environmental disaster.
The CSTO reaffirms its readiness to provide possible assistance to Armenia by sending a CSTO monitoring mission. This was announced by the secretary general of this organization, Imangali Tasmagambetov, at the meeting of the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly in Belarusian capital Minsk on Thursday, TASS reports.

"Again, as was announced at the session of the Collective Security Council held in November of last year, we reaffirm our readiness to provide possible assistance to Yerevan by sending a CSTO monitoring mission, as well as military and technical support, training border guards, and equipping them with modern technical means," said Tasmagambetov.

He noted that the tension caused by the long-term conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan persists in the South Caucasus, and outbreaks of armed clashes are recorded.

"Of course, we welcome the conflicting parties efforts aimed at signing a comprehensive peace agreement," added CSTO Secretary General.
he leaders discussed in detail all topics on the Brussels agenda at their trilateral meeting in Brussels on May 14, an EU official source told NEWS.am, asked to comment on the reason why some aspects of Armenia-Azerbaijan negotiations were missing in the statement of European Council President Charles Michel.

It should be noted, that there was no mention of NKRs ongoing blockade by Azerbaijan or of the status of possible transport routes via Armenia to Nakhijevan in Charles Michels statement. It was also unclear from the statement, if any possible format or mechanism of security guarantees for the people of Karabakh has been agreed on.

As mentioned by PEC Michel, the leaders discussed in detail all topics on the Brussels agenda, including the rights and security of the Armenian population of Karabakh, demining efforts, the release of detainees and the fate of missing persons. The fact that some issues are not mentioned in this or that press statement does not mean that they have not been discussed by the leaders," the EU official source said.

The EU source refused to disclose other details of the negotiations, in particular, if the so-called enclaves in Armenia are included in the proposed 86.600km2 of Azerbaijans territory, or if President Michel meant the two Azerbaijani soldiers who crossed the Armenian border earlier this year when he was stressing that soldiers who have simply got lost and crossed to the other side would continue to be released through a speedy procedure. One of those soldiers is accused of killing a peaceful citizen of Armenia in the Syunik region.

"Most of them are addressing sensitive issues that are still being negotiated as there is no final agreement on them. As an impartial mediator, the EU is not in a position to comment on the positions adopted by the parties in the course of the negotiations. This is an ongoing process and we would refrain from giving details about its content to avoid impacting on its outcomes,the source said.

The trilateral meeting between Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, President of the European Council Charles Michel and President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev took place in Brussels on May 14.

Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, made a statement summarizing the results of the talks.
As part of Emory Universitys 2023 Commencement festivities, Campus Life hosted ceremonies for seven Belonging and Community Justice (BCJ) affinity groups, celebrating community and honoring the graduates accomplishments.

From day one at Emory, we want all students to know they have community. It is vital for our students to feel supported and see mirrors in our staff, faculty and among their peers, said Kristina K. Bethea Odejimi, incoming dean of students and associate vice president for belonging, engagement and community.

To know you are not alone is incredibly impactful and provides reassurance as you move forward. Celebrating graduation milestones is another way we are building a continuum between students and an alumni experience, Odejimi said. A whole network of support and connection is available to students beyond graduation.

Graduates in each ceremony were encouraged to walk across the stage with someone who has been a support for them, such as a parent, partner, friend or faculty member. That person carried the stole, which students would wear again at graduation, and placed it across the graduates shoulders.

Each ceremony included a keynote address from a faculty or staff member as well as messages of encouragement from Emory alumni with shared identities and was followed by a reception. Families and friends were encouraged to help cheer and commend this achievement, which centers identity-based communities celebrating one another.

Belonging and Community Justice helps students find the place they belong and supports them in making change in their communities. The groups comprising BCJ  the Center for Women, the Office of LGBT Life and Office for Racial and Cultural Engagement (RACE)  work together to create opportunities for students to learn, engage and find community as it relates to race, gender, sexuality and more. These three areas share one goal: to support students in their exploration of all of their identities.

As Jane Yang, licensed psychologist, associate director of outreach, adjunct clinical associate professor of psychology and keynote speaker at the APIDA Graduation Ceremony, said, As I look out at all of you today, I see a room full of possibility. Some of you know exactly whats next. Some of you dont and thats okay As you move forward, be sure to surround yourself with people who are committed to your success. As you go to new places, figure out who those people are and cultivate those relationships.

But for today, for this moment, Yang continued, I hope you will all take a moment to celebrate and enjoy your accomplishment, which is not only individual but also the accomplishment of all those who have loved and supported you. Happy graduation.

Graduating Women of Promise

Held on March 29, this ceremony honored graduating women who have demonstrated leadership, inclusivity and a commitment to making Emory a better place for all. Fifty recipients participated in the 2023 recognition ceremony in celebration of their achievements and successes as women graduates of Emory.

Lavender Graduation

The Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Life seeks to engage the university community in the creation of an affirming and just campus environment while supporting the development of students of all gender and sexual identities. Held March 30 in conjunction with the Pride Awards, the annual Lavender Graduation ceremony honored LGBTQIA+ students and acknowledged their achievements and contributions to the university.

Celebration of Native American and Indigenous Graduates

This ceremony, held on May 3 by the Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative (NAISI) committee, honored graduating group members who seek to make Indigeneity part of the way Emory does things, in every respect.

The NAISI committee was honored to host the Celebration of Native and Indigenous Graduates, said Beth Michel, senior associate dean of admission. While our Native American community on campus is still growing, we are proud of Iliyah and Sierra and they are deserving of this event. Im inspired by their peers from the Native American Student Association as their advocacy and vision sparked the planning.

Modupe Dayo

An African-themed graduation ceremony celebrating the achievements of Black graduates, the Modupe Dayo ceremony pays tribute to African ancestors and heritage.

Myles Dunn reflected on his time at Emory during the May 6 ceremony. Coming to Emory was very daunting for me as someone who attended all African American elementary, middle and high schools. It was the first time I was surrounded by such a diverse student body with varying experiences from mine, and as a Black man, I often questioned if Emory was the right place for me, he said. However, being a part of the Black Mens Initiative and finding similar spaces where I could connect with other Black students made my experience much more meaningful and impactful as we navigated our Emory journeys together.

Throughout my four years at Emory, I grew and made fond memories with my fellow Black peers, and to walk across the stage with them during Modupe Dayo was a full circle moment for me, Dunn added. The friends I walked into Emory with were the same friends I was leaving with.

Celebrating Accomplishments and Recognizing Academic Success (CARAS)

The CARAS ceremony, held on May 6, honored graduating members of the Latinx community at Emory. The event was hosted in both English and Spanish.

I really enjoyed the graduation ceremony because it was an intimate way to celebrate graduation with the same community that supported me and uplifted me during my college journey, said attendee Alvaro Alvarez. It also made me feel more connected to my roots and allowed a space to honor them as I end this chapter and move on to the next.

First-Generation, Low-Income Ceremony (FLI)

The FLI ceremony on May 6 celebrated the resilience, integrity, scholarship and empowerment of students who are among the first generation of college graduates in their families. Through on-campus events and programs, these students formed a community and experienced many firsts together.

Asian, Pacific Islander and Desi American (APIDA) graduation ceremony

Held on May 7, this ceremony honored Emorys Asian, Pacific Islander and Desi American community as well as the achievements of graduating students. The third-annual celebration, this ceremony also acknowledged the support system of the students, including family, friends, advisors, faculty and staff.

Photos by Emory Photo/Video, American Technologies and Parker Smith Photo.
Jennifer Strafford Stevens, assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and co-director of the Grady Trauma Project, and Guido Silvestri, a renowned immunologist working on the cure for HIV, are the 2023 winners of the Albert E. Levy Award for Excellence in Scientific Research.

The award recognizes the contributions of Emory faculty members to the advancement of scientific knowledge. It was created by civic and academic activist Edith Levy Elsas while she was a member of the Emory University Board of Visitors in memory of her father, Albert E. Levy.

Originally overseen by Emory University's Sigma Xi, a scientific research honor society that encourages research communication across multiple scientific disciplines, the Levy Award program stopped for a period when the Emory chapter of Sigma Xi became inactive. In 2000, at the request of the benefactor, the Albert E. Levy Award was reinstated to be administered by the University Research Committee (URC).

The URC accepts annual nominations from the faculty at large in recognition of one junior and one senior faculty member considered to be outstanding in their respective fields.

Each awardee receives a trophy and an honorarium in research funds of $2,000.

Meet the 2023 award winners

Junior Faculty Award: Jennifer Strafford Stevens

Jennifer Strafford Stevens, PhD, has been an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences since 2018. She is also codirector of the Grady Trauma Project, one of the largest research studies on civilian trauma and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) in the United States, and director of the neuroimaging core for the Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation at the Atlanta Veterans' Affairs (VA) Health Care Center.

Stevens groundbreaking work focuses on identifying risk biomarkers for PTSD following acute traumatic events, specifically focusing on civilian trauma and womens risk for PTSD. Using structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and a longitudinal design post-trauma, Stevens has identified several fMRI-based neural phenotypes (biotypes) that strongly predict future vulnerability or resilience to a transdiagnostic profile of PTSD-related symptoms.

Stevens work has been hailed as a landmark study and she routinely publishes her findings in high-impact journals. Shes quickly become a leader both at Emory and internationally in advancing brain-based understanding of trauma-related psychopathology.

Senior Faculty Award: Guido Silvestri

Guido Silvestri, MD, is a renowned immunologist who has worked on the cure for HIV using primate models. He is a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Comparative Pathology and professor and vice chair of pathology and laboratory medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine.

Silvestri is an accomplished leader in HIV research with a long track record of highly cited, high-impact work. His research focuses on studies of AIDS pathogenesis, prevention and therapy, primarily using non-human primate models of SIV and SHIV infection. Silvestri's laboratory has set the stage via immunotherapeutic methods to eliminate and, thus, cure HIV.

Silvestri's accomplishments as a world-class scientist are reflected in his funding accomplishments. One of Silvestris proposals recently received the Martin Delaney Collaboratories Award, the flagship NIH program for multidisciplinary approaches to HIV cure research. The score on this grant was so impressive that Silvestri received the 1% Award from the School of Medicine. In his responsibilities as vice chair of pathology and laboratory medicine, Silvestri maintains substantial administrative responsibilities and hosts a weekly Conversations on Racism Discussion Group.

His work and leadership promise to provide a foundation for the success of others in the medical community and beyond.
Two Emory Healthcare nurses received top honors from the 2023 Atlanta Journal-Constitutions (AJC) Celebrating Nurses program for going above and beyond their duties as exceptional nurses in their respective roles. The AJC honored 10 extraordinary nurses and one nurse leader, chosen from nearly 1,000 nominations, during an awards luncheon on May 12 at Crown Plaza Ravinia in Atlanta.

Mark Lee, BSN, RN-BC, a nurse scholar who works on the 7E Complex Medicine Unit at Emory University Hospital, was recognized as one of 10 statewide Celebrating Nurses awardees this year from the AJC, while Millie Sattler, DNP, RN, CCRN, Emory Healthcare Corporate Director of Retention and Career Development Strategy, was honored as the sole nursing leadership awardee this year.

Congratulations to Mark Lee and Millie Sattler for being recognized as two of AJCs Celebrating Nurses honorees this year, says Sharon Pappas, PhD, RN, FAAN, chief nurse executive for Emory Healthcare. We are so appreciative of the care and compassion they put into their nursing roles at Emory, knowing their efforts promote healthy environments for both patients and nurses alike.

Mark Lee, BSN, RN-BC

Lee began his career as a nurse just three years ago in March 2020 at Emory University Hospital as the COVID-19 pandemic began, embracing patient care on a different level. Working at the bedside every week during the early part of the pandemic made it clear to me this is what I need to be doing, says Lee. My goal every day was to provide top-notch nursing care during a difficult time for patients, families and team members. One does not realize how many hats a nurse wears until you become one.

Lee comes to work each day ready to plan how he will make a difference for his patients, their families and his fellow nurses, yet is flexible in adapting those plans as needed.

Marks true compassion is best demonstrated by how he tailors his nursing care to the needs of each of his patients to provide the best patient-and-family-centered care, says Lees supervisor, Betsy Augusthy, MSN, RN-BC, unit director of 7E Complex Medicine at Emory University Hospital. Mark is also a servant leader, filling in as charge nurse on weekends, picking-up shifts when the unit is short-staffed and switching shifts when a colleague needs a day off. He also precepts new nursing graduates and experienced nurses when they join the unit.

Besides his diverse leadership roles on the unit, Lee is committed to improving the experience for patients and nurses alike through his work on hospital and system-wide professional governance councils. He chairs both the Emory University Hospital Exemplary Professional Practice Council and the Emory Healthcare Professional Nurse Practice Council, bringing out the nurses voice on policy and practice changes that influence the systems more than 8,000 nurses. He also serves as an inaugural member of the RN Clinical Advisory Council on Wellness to promote wellness across the organization through Emorys Office of Well-Being (EmWELL)

On these practice councils, Lees position at the bedside allows him to speak genuinely about what nurses need, says Augusthy.

Lee received a bachelors degree in international development from University of California at Los Angeles and a masters degree in global health from Georgetown University. He first began his career in global health focusing on maternal and child health and the impact of malnutrition in these populations. While he enjoyed his work in public health, Lee recognized a calling to go into nursing and work directly with patients, receiving his BSN from Emorys Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing in 2019.

While his time in the nursing profession is just beginning, Lee is already thinking about his next steps in nursing. As he remains an Emory nurse at the bedside, he is concurrently a doctoral student at the Yale University School of Nursing in the Healthcare Leadership, Systems and Policy Program.

Lee says the day patients go home is what he likes most about nursing practice. Working with a patient who comes to the unit on a stretcher and is leaving on their own two feet is what it is all about.

Millie Sattler, DNP, RN, CCRN

Sattlers nursing career spans nearly 40 years. Before coming to Emory, she worked as a nurse in an emergency department, critical care cardiovascular intensive care unit and as a flight nurse in several states in the northeastern U.S. In 2016, she wished to move to Atlanta for a position at an academic medical center that was also designated as a Magnet facility for nursing excellence. Sattler was then hired as the director of interventional radiology at Emory Saint Josephs Hospital. One year later, she moved into her current role as Emory Healthcare Corporate Director of Retention and Career Development Strategy for the systems 11 hospitals and Emory Clinic (of which five are designated as Magnet facilities).

My position involves retaining nurses at Emory Healthcare, making sure they are celebrated for their accomplishments and helping nurses grow professionally and be recognized for that growth in their specialty area, says Sattler. She does this by enhancing nursing recognition and reward and by overseeing nurse advancement programs.

Upon moving into this position, Millie interviewed nurses asking them what differentiated Emory nursing and discovered what made them proud about their work, says Polly Willis, MSN, RN-BC, director of nursing clinical excellence and the Magnet program at Emory University Hospital and Emory University Hospital at Wesley Woods, and colleague of Sattlers. Millie focused on the image of nursing by ensuring robust participation in the DAISY Award program in each of Emory Healthcares entities, more than tripling the number of nurses and teams receiving DAISY Awards.

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses is both a national and international on-going recognition of the clinical skills and compassion nurses provide to patients and families all year long. Sattler also introduced the DAISY Leader Award, which was given to system nursing leaders who led nursing through the initial states of the pandemic.

Focusing on professional development for nurses, Sattler led a clinical lattice program called the PLAN ( P rofessional L attice Advancement of N urses) Council that assists nurses with advancing their education, certification or taking on additional accountability to improve safety and quality. Under Sattlers leadership, PLAN Council participation increased by 30% across Emory Healthcare and monthly PLAN Council virtual meetings grew by 187% for Emory Clinic nurses during the pandemic, according to Willis.

Sattler also developed advancement programs for LPNs (licensed practical nurses) and nurse technicians to advance their knowledge, and subsequently their salaries, increasing retention within these groups. Her work was recognized by The American Nurses Association, when the PLAN Council received a prestigious 2021 Third Place All Professional Team Award.

Known as the Emory Healthcare nurse retentionist, Sattler has battled through the pandemic, even as many nurses considered leaving the profession. She has innovated retention efforts that align with each generations needs and values to retain more nurses at Emory.

I have worked with tenured nurses to shift them into telehealth or patient navigation positions to keep them at Emory instead of retiring, as well as younger nurses who are just beginning their careers, says Sattler. My goal is to learn what a nurses dream job may be and help them on their journey to find their best fit within our organization.

Figures from the last four years show at least 200 nurses a year have been retained, thanks to the work of Sattler. Those 800 nurses otherwise would have left Emory for retirement or positions elsewhere.

Sattler obtained a diploma from St. Elizabeths School of Nursing, her BSN from Youngstown State University in Ohio, a masters degree in executive leadership from Chamberlain University, and a doctor of nursing practice degree from Chamberlain University.

In all, 28 Emory nurses were nominated for the 2023 AJCs Celebration Nurses program.
15:59





Ever since the Karnataka Assembly results were declared on May 13, both the leaders started garnering support of MLAs close to them while mustering support for themselves.





The supporters of both, meanwhile, started building up the momentum in support of their respective leader and a poster war erupted.





As the race for the top post heated up, Kharge appointed three observers -- Sushilkumar Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria -- and the first meeting of the Congress Legislature Party was convened on May 14. Supporters of both the leaders continued to raise the pitch by raising slogans in support of their leaders outside the CLP meeting venue.





All Congress MLAs authorised the party chief to appoint a leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP), who would also be the new chief minister. Keeping the consultation process alive, the newly-elected MLAs had authorised Kharge to appoint the new CLP leader, after which the scene shifted from Bengaluru to Delhi.





The observers also held one-on-one consultations with all MLAs and sought a secret ballot from all of them, the results of which were tabulated and shared with party chief the next day.





In the national capital, the three observers along with party general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal and AICC general secretary in-charge Randeep Surjewala arrived and held a meeting with Kharge.





With Siddaramaiah emerging as the frontrunner in the race and after the report of observers, the party leadership asked him and Shivakumar to arrive in Delhi for further consultations. While Siddaramaih arrived on Monday evening, Shivakumar cancelled the meeting citing health issues.





This complicated the situation for the party as it hardened its stand against Shivakumar, who arrived the next day. Tuesday saw the entry of Rahul Gandhi in the consultation process, who drove down to Kharge's residence and held a meeting on the Karnataka government formation for over an hour-and-a-half.





A series of fresh consultations started once again with Kharge meeting both of them separately, as also with the two general secretaries on Tuesday.





The final round of talks started on Wednesday when both the leaders met Rahul Gandhi at his residence. In the meantime, Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah also spoke to Sonia Gandhi, who was away in Shimla on a vacation. Sonia also asked Shivakumar to speak to Kharge and Rahul to sort out the matter, sources said.





The hectic parleys continued from Monday and went on till the wee hours of Thursday to break the deadlock in deciding on the Congress' chief ministerial pick in Karnataka as both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar presenting their cases before the top brass.





The leadership issue in Karnataka lingered as Shivakumar had dug his heels in and asserted that he be made the chief minister as the party staged a stunning victory in the southern state under his presidency.





Sources said after Rahul Gandhi told both the leaders to sit together and work out a solution with Kharge, it was the party chief who told Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to hold talks with Venugopal and Surjewala, and sort out the differences and agree to Siddaramaiah as chief minister, whose leadership abilities and mass support helped him clinch the top post.





The decision, sources said, was chalked out in the wee hours of Thursday when all parties agreed to accommodate confidantes of both the leaders and asked Shivakumar to continue on the post of state Congress chief till the next year's Parliamentary elections.





To maintain his number 2 position in the Karnataka government, Shivakumar was made the only deputy chief minister. The chief minister and his deputy along with over 20 ministers in the cabinet would take oath on May 20 in Bengaluru, where leaders of several political parties would also be invited.

Several top Congress leaders from party chief Mallikarjun Kharge to former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were involved in hectic parleys with Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar which finally helped to break the logjam over the top post in Karnataka.
Central Asian leaders converge in Xian

Central Asian leaders converge in Xian

Banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit in Xian, with some in both Chinese and Russian. Photo: AFP

Central Asian heads of state converged in the historic city of Xian on Thursday for one-on-ones with President Xi Jinping to seal pledges of "enduring" friendship, and paving the way for the first in-person gathering of the six leaders.



The Foreign Ministry has said Xi will deliver an "important" speech and an "important" political document will be signed at the group meeting on Friday.



Across the Silk Road city of Xian, banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit, with some in both Chinese and Russian.



The president of energy-rich Turkmenistan, the most distant of the Central Asian states from China, was the last of the five leaders to arrive, landing in Xian in the early hours of the morning on Thursday.



The first to land was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan  the nation's largest trading partner in Central Asia - with his face-to-face meeting with Xi on Wednesday ending with a deal to build "enduring friendship" and share "weal and woe".



"We have a common goal  to intensify bilateral relations," Tokayev told Xi. "We are also united by the desire to strengthen regional and international security and cooperation."



The two sides agreed to take measures to ensure the safe and stable operation of the Kazakh section of the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline. They also agreed to deepen cooperation in oil and uranium.



Tokayev's deal with Xi will set the tone for the other bilateral meetings, where China will seek deeper cooperation with other Central Asia states.



Two-way trade between China and Central Asia hit a record US$70 billion last year, with Kazakhstan leading with US$31 billion. Kyrgyzstan followed with US$15.5 billion, Turkmenistan with US$11.2 billion, Uzbekistan with US$9.8 billion and Tajikistan with US$2 billion. (Reuters)
Xi hails 'new era' of ties with Central Asia

The summit began with a lavish welcoming ceremony. Photo: AFP

President Xi Jinping hailed a "new era" of ties with Central Asia on Thursday, kicking off a summit Beijing hopes will deepen relations with the strategically vital region.



Held in the ancient city of Xi'an, the historic eastern end of the Silk Road that linked China to Europe through Central Asia, Beijing has said this week's meeting is of "milestone significance".



And in a speech to the region's leaders at a welcoming banquet on Thursday evening, Xi said strengthening ties was a "strategic choice".



"I am confident that with our joint efforts, tomorrow's summit will be a full success and will herald a new era of China-Central Asia relations," Xi was quoted as saying in a readout of the speech.



"Join us in opening up a bright future of China-Central Asia cooperation," he said.



This week's meeting is the first of its kind since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago.



Beijing says trade with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan reached US$70 billion in 2022 and expanded 22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023.



Central Asia has also become key to China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative.



China, the world's second-largest energy consumer, has invested billions of dollars to tap natural gas reserves in Central Asia, while rail links connecting China to Europe criss-cross the region.



Analysts say this week's summit is likely to see efforts to reach agreements to further expand that vast network, including a long-stalled US$6 billion China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and an expansion of the Central Asia-to-China gas pipeline.



Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hailed the "unique scope" of that project at a meeting with Xi ahead of the summit.



Xi also told Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in talks on Thursday that China was "willing to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a community of good neighbourliness, friendship, shared prosperity, and a shared future".



He then met with the leaders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, lauding the close ties between them and pledging to expand economic and cultural exchanges.



"Your policies will ensure the development and further prosperity of a modern socialist state, the strengthening of the authority and the global economic leadership of the country in the nearest future," Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev told Xi.



Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan greeted the heads of state at a grand welcoming ceremony in the evening, posing for a group photo in front of an old-style Chinese building lit by red lanterns.



Dozens of dancers then performed a musical show inspired by the Tang Dynasty, when relations between China and Central Asia were considered very strong. (AFP)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI/PRNewswire): Pearl Academy Delhi and Mumbai campuses were abuzz with excitement as months of hard work, dedication and planning culminated into this year's 'Portfolio'. Portfolio by Pearl Academy is an annual, big-scale platform provided to the students that showcases and celebrates their ideas, innovation, and creativity. Portfolio 2023 in Delhi and Mumbai was a kaleidoscope of individual imagination and interpretation of the theme 'Future Flashbacks'. From modern fashion accessories inspired from the ancient art and craft of Kutch to Gen-Z's take on social & cultural issues, every idea and every voice made its own impact. The students were thrilled to receive support and encouragement from important guests, including Dia Mirza (renowned UN Goodwill ambassador, activist, actor, and filmmaker), Dr. Harsh Vardhan (Member of Parliament and former Minister for Health, Family Welfare, Science, Technology, and Earth Sciences), Sunil Sethi (Chairman of FDCI), and A Subramaniam (President: National Executive Council, ADI). It was a unique opportunity for students to showcase their work to influential fashion designers who inspire them, such as David Abraham, Nitin Bal Chauhan, Gaurav Jaigupta. They were joined by the academic team of Pearl Academy, including Aditi Srivastava (President), Alka Madhan (Regional Director - West, Pearl Academy Mumbai), Abhishek Singh (Regional Director - North, Pearl Academy), and Antonio Maurizio Grioli (Dean, Pearl Academy). There was also a series of captivating fashion shows that gave students a platform to showcase their collections. From personal styling, and makeup techniques to the fusion of fashion and technology, Pearl Academy's Portfolio 2023 also kept its attendees engaged with an impressive line-up of workshops around diverse themes. Thought-provoking concepts fostered dialogues on important issues like body positivity, cancel culture and sustainable fashion, which created momentum and empowered audiences, including many school students from Delhi and Mumbai who gained valuable insights and experiences. Based on such diverse and multifaceted concepts that encompassed various forms of human expression, creativity, and communication, the projects were truly an extension of each student's individuality and experience. Encapsulating the vibe of Portfolio 2023, Aditi Srivastava, President, Pearl Academy, shares, "This event stands as a testament to the students' unwavering dedication and Pearl Academy's steadfast commitment to fostering and encouraging unique creative expression. With a strong foundation in creativity and innovation, the academy's learning models have consistently nurtured these qualities, and witnessing them shine through the students' designs is a truly gratifying moment. The exhibition unequivocally demonstrated that our students possess the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive in the competitive industry of tomorrow." Pearl Academy, run under the Creative Arts Education Society (CAES), is India's leading creative education institution as per industry surveys by ASSOCHAM, India Today- MDRA, Outlook-Drshti & I-CARE, The Week- Hansa, Business of Fashion, and The Economic Times. The institute provides Design and Fashion programs at campuses in Delhi-South, Delhi-West, Jaipur, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Pearl Academy has been helping students succeed for 30 years with its Total Learning System, industry partnerships, and international connections. Their placement record of over 99 per cent year-on-year showcases their commitment of creating complete design professionals. For more information, please visit their website: www.pearlacademy.com. This story has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PRNewswire)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 18 (ANI/NewsVoir): Globus Infocom Limited, a leading Make-in-India EdTech brand has won the "Most Trusted Ed-Tech Company in North India" award at the Global Excellence Awards 2023 presented by Brand Empower. Brand Empower hosted the 2023 Global Excellence Awards in Mumbai, India's most prestigious corporate award event was graced by popular actress and the Padma Shree Awardee Madhuri Dixit Nene as a chief guest who felicitated Kirandeep Dham (CEO) and Ashish Dham (Managing Director), Co-founders of Globus Infocom Limited. Globus Infocom Limited provides a wide range of Smart learning and teaching solutions for schools, teachers, and learners to supplement in-classroom. The company's robust school, college & higher-education based solutions offer a seamless, integrated learning environment with comprehensive & state-of-art Digital Learning Solutions, ready-to-use curriculum-mapped repository, a language-learning platform to develop language/s as skill, unlimited practice tests, and automated classroom-related activities to increase teaching efficiency. "At Globus, we strive to create impactful learning solutions creating a more holistic approach and this recognition demonstrates our team's commitment to leveraging technology to drive excellence in education. We are honored to be recognized for our contributions which encourages us to continue improving and reinforcing our conviction that we are moving in the right direction. We will remain dedicated to delivering exceptional & enriched learning experiences for students & educators making education accessible to all," said Kirandeep Dham, CEO of Globus Infocom Limited. Globus is a new-age educational technology company dedicated to making education easy, effective, and accessible to all. Founded in 2001, the company became a pioneer in the EdTech industry by taking digital education ahead. The company established itself as a leading comprehensive solution provider offering cost-efficient & affordable solutions in Education Technology. Globus has provided a complete offering for students, to help students learn, assess and study from anywhere, ensuring a flexible and accessible learning environment. Providing digital learning solutions like Digital Board, Interactive Display, Digital Language Lab, Virtual Classroom and Learning Management System & many more integrated with curriculum-mapped rich animated content and an extensive library of practice questions allows learners to learn effectively. With a formidable core team of 270+ employees comprising academicians, researchers, faculty experts, tech specialists, animators, and other young professionals, the company has established itself as one of India's leading EdTech brands effectively bridging the digital divide between rural and urban areas. Globus has empowered numerous schools, colleges & institutes wherein 15,000+ educational institutes have been transformed, 450000 teachers are empowered, 15000000 students are benefited, 10000+ businesses are digitized and 300+ partners creating 35,000+ satisfied customers in Pan India. This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI/PNN): Dr Shelby Kutty, the Director of the Helen B Taussig Heart Centre at Johns Hopkins University, visited Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Dr KM Cherian Heart Foundation today. Dr Shelby Kutty gave a talk on the role of AI in cardiology and highlighted the potential of predictive outcomes of diverse cardiovascular data. Under the guidance of Dr KM Cherian, the talk was attended by eminent faculties from cardiology, including structural heart specialist Dr Anantharaman from Kauvery, as well as Dr Ragahavan Subramaniam and Dr Karthik Suryan. During the discussion, Dr Shelby Kutty, along with the eminent paediatric cardiologist, shed light on the role of AI in echocardiographic assessments and imaging. They discussed the potential of AI to aid in accurate diagnoses and treatment plans for heart conditions in children and adults. The discussion further focused on the power of AI and data analytics to provide a deeper understanding of heart conditions. Dr Shelby Kutty emphasized the importance of awareness and education on AI in cardiology and the need for more smart hospitals that incorporate technology in healthcare. The visit from Dr Shelby Kutty to Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Dr KM Cherian Heart Foundation was an excellent opportunity for the medical community to discuss the latest advancements in cardiology and the potential of AI in healthcare. This story is provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PNN)
Leading telecommunications services provider Bharti Airtel on Thursday, announced that it surpassed the 2 million 5G user mark on its network in Tamil Nadu. Airtel in a statement claimed it was the first to roll out fifth-generation mobile system (5G) in the country and Chennai was one of the first eight cities to get ultrafast Airtel 5G Plus. Now Airtel's 5G service is available in over 500 cities or towns in Tamil Nadu. According to the statement, Coimbatore, Madurai, Trichy, Tiruppur, Hosur, Vellore and Salem are among the 460 towns along with 173 villages to have benefited in the State. It said its 5G service already connects all railway stations, bus terminals, highways and important business hubs across the State. Tarun Virmani, Chief Executive Officer for Tamil Nadu, Bharti Airtel, said "We are witnessing a rapid adoption of Airtel 5G Plus in Tamil Nadu. I am thrilled to share that we have surpassed two million customers on our ultrafast Airtel 5G network." Virmani added the company will continue to advance its network, bridging every town and key rural areas across the state, allowing many more customers to enjoy superfast access to high-definition video streaming, gaming, multiple chatting, instant uploading of photos and more. According to the statement, Airtel 5G Plus is available in over 3,500 towns and villages across the country and has surpassed the 10-million unique customer mark on its 5G network nationally. Airtel said it was well poised to cover every town and key rural area with Airtel 5G services by September 2023. The company said it had also launched unlimited 5G data for its customers with the view to encouraging them to experience the power of the Airtel 5G Plus network. It said customers will be able to experience ultrafast, reliable and secure 5G Plus services without having to worry about data exhaustion as Airtel has removed the capping on data usage across all existing plans. (ANI)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI/PNN): As the trajectory of rising economies shifts more towards Asia, the recent G20 meetings have come into the spotlight since December 2022 when India took on the presidency role of the same. India's G20 presidency holds immense importance in advancing the notable accomplishments of the past 17 presidencies, given its status as the largest democracy globally and the rapidly expanding economy. The G20 is held annually with a rotating presidency. The motto of this G20 meeting is "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakkam", which translates to "The World is One (my) family" Formed in 1999, the G20 comprises 19 nations and the European Union, serving as a platform for Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors to engage in discussions regarding global economic and financial matters. The G20 nations collectively represent nearly two-thirds of the world's population, 75% of global trade, and 85% of the global GDP. In the aftermath of the worldwide financial and economic crisis in 2007, the G20 was granted the status of the premier forum for international economic cooperation by elevating it to the level of Heads of State and Government. The G20 operates through two primary channels of involvement: the Finance Track, involving finance ministers and central bank governors, and the Sherpa Track. Leading the G20's activities are the Sherpas, designated as personal representatives of the leaders from member countries. These Sherpas are entrusted with the task of managing year-round negotiations, shaping the summit's agenda, and coordinating the substantive efforts of the G20. India's top priorities during this G20 meeting will be topics such as Green Development, Climate Finance. Accelerated & inclusive growth, Progressive measures on sustainable development, Technological advancement & Transformation, Digital Infrastructure, Multilateral institutions for the 21st century, and women-led development. "Accelerated economic growth is key, given the fear of recession," said Kishore Subramanian, the founder of Shree Consultants. In December, World Bank stated that at the end of 2021, the external debt of heavily indebted poor countries totaled $9 trillion. "Another ingredient for accelerated growth is the increased integration of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in world trade," he added. According to data from the World Bank, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a vital and significant role, particularly in developing nations. These enterprises constitute approximately 90% of all businesses and contribute to 50% of global employment. India recognizes the crucial significance of trade routes and resources accessibility, advocating for international financial institutions to demonstrate greater responsiveness towards the funding needs of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Undoubtedly, prioritizing the reform of multilateral financial institutions to align with the requirements of the Global South will be a prominent agenda item during India's presidency. India's G20 presidency comes at a crucial stage when it is projected to be one of the top four global economies by the end of the decade so the expectations from it are quite high. The most paramount goal India is trying to achieve is to contribute solutions to the global challenges faced today, and also act as the bridge between developed and developing nations around the world. This story is provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PNN)
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], May 18 (ANI/NewsVoir): ACES India Pvt. Ltd. and Muffakham Jah College of Engineering and Technology (MJCET) have entered in a MoU based in Hyderabad, India. The MoU is targeted toward providing the industry Academia connect in the field of advanced technologies like 5G communications, Drones and its application, Robotic and Data Analytics with AI & ML. The MoU was signed by Mohammed N. Mazher Chief Business Officer ACES Saudi Arabia and Managing Director of ACES India Pvt. Ltd. and Dr. Basheer Ahmed Advisor Cum Director MJCET along with Dr Mahipal Singh Rawat, Principal, MJCET on at MJCET premises on 10th May 2023. The event was also attended by Dr. Basheer Ahmed, Dean, Prof. Ishrat, R&D coordinator, Prof. Haseeb Khan. Head EEED and Prof. Ayesha Naaz, Head, ECED from MJCET and ACES team. Dr. Basheer Ahmed highlighted that; this MoU will provide the opportunity for MJCET students in exploring the industrial requirements. Thus, starting a strong relationship between industry-academic collaborations, promoting Knowledge transfer which will benefit both parties mutually. Mohammed M. Mazher, emphasized ACES's vision to diversify its portfolio and continue evolving as a leading International Digital Infrastructure company while enhancing its technical capabilities by partnering with academies and investing in R&D. ACES India Private Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Advanced Communications and Electronics Systems (ACES). ACES is one of the leading International Digital Infrastructure company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Middle East, South East Asia and Europe in implementing the infrastructure of mega projects. Several important projects have already been implemented, most notably the expansion of the Holy Mosque in Makkah, the Riyadh Metro Public Transport Project and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, MASAR and international projects like Bangalore Airport, Surat Diamond Bourse and several others. Muffakham Jah College of Engineering and Technology (MJCET) was established in 1980, by Sultan Ul Uloom Education Society(SUES) and is a premier institute of its kind and is ranked among the top 50 private Engineering Colleges of India offering four year B.E. degree courses in 8 Engineering branches, namely, Civil, Computer Science, Electrical and Electronics, Electronics and Communication Engineering, Information Technology, Mechanical, Artificial Intelligence & Data Science, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning and five post graduate courses in M.E. (CAD/CAM), M.E. (Structural Engineering), M.E. (Digital Systems), M. Tech. (Computer Science), M.E. (Power Electronic Systems) of two years duration. The College is affiliated to the Osmania University and is approved by the AICTE. The Drone Center of Excellence, MJCET is a state-of-art Facility and Sultan-Ul-Uloom knowledge hub (SU Knowledge Hub) has been established to encourage the entrepreneurial mindset among the students. For more information, please visit www.aces-co.com. This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 18 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Beckman Coulter, a clinical diagnostics leader, today unveiled the DxI 9000 Access Immunoassay Analyzer, the most productive immunoassay analyzer per footprint. The DxI 9000 Analyzer can run up to 215 tests per hour per square meter (tests/hr/m2). The DxI 9000 Analyzer innovations address today's speed, reliability, reproducibility, quality, and menu expansion demands. The platform has been independently verified to perform at the European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (EFLM) optimal level, the highest level of EFLM performance evaluation. At the same time, the novel Lumi-Phos PRO Substrate has shown the capability to develop increasingly sensitive and clinically relevant assays, ensuring the system is able to meet the healthcare needs of tomorrow. According to Julie Sawyer Montgomery, President, Beckman Coulter Diagnostics, "The DxI 9000 Access Immunoassay Analyzer sets new expectations for immunoassay testing operational performance and ability to develop and sustain improved assay sensitivity to meet tomorrow's analytical needs. Those in the laboratory will treasure Zero Daily Maintenance to save them time, PrecisionVision Technology to safeguard against flawed data reports, and IntelliServe to maximize system uptime. At the same time, clinical researchers are excited about the DxI 9000 Analyzer's capability to keep pace with increasingly sensitive testing requirements as healthcare providers and pharmaceutical companies take aim at ever more challenging diseases. An inspiring feat of technology, the DxI 9000 Analyzer is a comprehensive healthcare innovation." An early evaluator of the DxI 9000 Analyzer, Dr Pamela Christudoss, Professor & Head, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Christian Medical College Vellore, India noted, "Like clinical laboratories worldwide, we are running more tests than any time in our history. The innovations packed into the DxI 9000 Analyzer will enable labs across the globe to improve their throughput rates and turnaround times with worldclass precision. In particular, the team loved the un- paralleled Zero Daily Maintenance especially for a platform that runs 450 tests per hour." An additional evaluator, Ray Divilley, Chief Medical Officer, Mayo University Hospital, Ireland, added, "With the DxI 9000, Beckman Coulter has successfully produced a platform that addresses today's laboratories needs for speed accuracy, and reliability. Based on our use and evaluation of the system in our lab, we were able to get actionable results back quicker to doctors and ultimately patients as they consider treatment options." ZeroDaily Maintenance highlights the embedded innovations that drive the DxI 9000 Analyzer's uptime performance. Beta users attest to ZeroDaily Maintenance redefining their workday with no daily maintenance requirements, thereby reducing annual maintenance routines by up to 96%. Building on Beckman Coulter's workflow and automation leadership, PrecisionVision Technology is unmatched in its ability to inspect, identify and prevent erroneous reporting in real time. PrecisionVision automated safeguards include tube identification, cap detection, tip check, sample aspiration, and delivery, residual wash volume, and substrate volume. Each check reduces the risk of reporting flawed data and increases system reliability and reproducibility. Beckman Coulter's newly designed remote service and diagnostics solution, DxS IntelliServe, connects with DxI 9000 Analyzers to monitor data and error trends, enabling timely, proactive system service when needed. In addition, the DxS IntelliServe solution identifies service experts to resolve issues with real-time monitoring, remote operation, and troubleshooting to maximize laboratory uptime and performance. Equally impactful, IntelliServe's remote update capabilities and proactive scheduling ensures systems are always running on the most up-to-date software, reducing unplanned workflow interruptions or downtime. Beckman Coulter's Access NT-proBNP assay measures concentrations of N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide that originate in a person's heart. High levels of natriuretic peptides can indicate heart failure. Access NT-proBNP provides rapid results in less than 11 minutes and increases accuracy in diagnosing heart failure with age-based cutoffs and disease-specific comorbidity data for improved test result interpretation. The DxI 9000 Access Immunoassay Analyzer is currently available in most countries worldwide. Additional Resources - Link to DxI 9000 Access Immunoassay Analyzer media kit- Follow and connect with Beckman Coulter Diagnostics via LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 18 (ANI/PRNewswire): Audiences should brace themselves for a cinematic extravaganza as Bloom Age Ventures is thrilled to announce the commencement of shooting for two highly anticipated Gujarati films, "Om Sweet Home" and "Mom Tane Nai Samjay." With a talented team and captivating storylines, these movies are set to mesmerize audiences and create waves in the world of Gujarati cinema. Directed by renowned filmmaker Dharmessh Mehta and featuring a talented cast, "Om Sweet Home" promises to be a heartwarming family drama. Starring Tiku Talsania, Bhavya Gandhi, Manil Mehta, Tejal Vyas, Virti Vaghani, Krutika Desai, Nimesh Desai, Jiten Mukhi, Hardik Sangani, Naveen Bawa, Hemang Dave, and others in pivotal roles, this film explores the joys and challenges of finding a sense of belonging. Filmed across enchanting locations in the United Kingdom and India, "Om Sweet Home" will captivate audiences with its engaging storyline and relatable characters. On the other hand, "Mom Tane Nai Samjay," also directed by the remarkable Dharmessh Mehta, offers an intriguing drama that delves into the complexities of relationships. Starring Shivani Desai (Rashmi Desai), Amar Upadhay, Virti Vaghani, Yadit Acharya, Hemang Dave, Tejal Vyas, Aayan Shah, Darsh Prajapati, and Namit Shah, this film promises to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. Through its compelling narrative, "Mom Tane Nai Samjay" explores the challenges and sacrifices made for love and family. Shot across captivating landscapes in the United Kingdom, this movie is set to be a memorable cinematic experience. Both "Om Sweet Home" and "Mom Tane Nai Samjay" are being lensed by talented DOP Rahul Soni, known for his exceptional cinematography skills. With a runtime of 150 minutes each, these movies are set to take viewers on an emotional roller coaster, leaving a lasting impression. Speaking about the shooting progress, the Producer for both these films, Chee Teng Joo stated, "We are extremely excited about 'Om Sweet Home' and 'Mom Tane Nai Samjay.' The cast and crew have been working diligently to bring these stories to life, and we are confident that these films will resonate with the audience. The shooting has begun, and we can't wait for the viewers to experience the magic on the big screen." With compelling stories, outstanding performances, and breathtaking visuals, Bloom Age Ventures aim to push the boundaries of Gujarati cinema not just in India but across the globe by delivering movies that strike a chord with audiences. Stay tuned for further updates on these much-awaited Gujarati movies. Bloom Age Ventures is a place where ideas meet execution, we push the boundaries of storytelling to create world class standard of visual arts which is moving, inspiring & commercial. Contact Harit DesaiEmail: contact@bloomageventures.com This story has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PRNewswire)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Indian Dispute Resolution Centre's (IDRC) 2nd Arbitrate in India Conclave 2023' was organized in collaboration with the Bar Council of India's India International University of Legal Research and Education, Goa (IIULER) recently at Dr Ambedkar International Centre, Janpath, New Delhi. The event marked the 3rd Anniversary of IDRC. Justice M R Shah, Judge, Supreme Court of India, who was the Chief Guest at the event, delivered the Presidential Address. Justice M R Shah, Judge, Supreme Court of India stated that, "We have to repose the confidence in the mind of the foreign investors that in India there shall be speedy and timely resolution of the disputes. Minimal interference by the Courts against the Arbitral Awards would strengthen the speedy and timely disposal. I am sure that the credible and technology driven establishments like IDRC shall cater the need in achieving the goal of 'Arbitrate in India'." The Presidential Address was followed by the panel discussion on "Making India a hub of International Commercial Arbitration: Current Trends & Challenges in Arbitration in Lieu of allowing Foreign Law Firms in India". The panelists for the discussion were: 1. Justice Indu Malhotra, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India [Chair]2. Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India3. Manan Kumar Mishra, Senior Advocate and Chairman, Bar Council of India4. Tejas Karia, Head Arbitration, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas5. Ratan K. Singh, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India6. Shashank Garg, Advocate, High Court of Delhi [Moderator] Justice Shah, in his presidential address, stated that, "Growth of global trade increases the importance of Alternative Dispute Resolution ("ADR") as a mechanism of resolving disputes. A stable dispute resolution is necessary to attract foreign investment in India. Unless there is timely and cost-effective resolution of disputes, India cannot become the hub for international Arbitration. There is a need to understand the reasons due to which India is not being able to perform well in this domain and then work on these areas. Justice Shah concluded by saying that minimum court interference is imperative to achieve the goal of making India the hub of international arbitration." Justice M.R Shah further added that, "Timely resolution of the disputes more particularly the commercial disputes in a cost-effective manner is the need of the day. Various arbitration centers like the IDRC are catering the need of cost effective and speedy resolution of the disputes." "Within short time, the IDRC has earned the name and reputation in the field of dispute resolution. I am happy to note that IDRC has accomplished more than one thousand one hundred plus arbitration proceedings and thus have contributed in achieving the goal "Let's make Resolution in India" a reality. Shri Divyansh H. Rathi, Founder Director, IDRC is a very enthusiastic and young. I wish all the success to the IDRC in helping the people to resolve the disputes, more particularly in the field of commercial disputes," Justice Shah added. Justice M.R Shah addressed, "When we talk about the arbitration in India, first of all we have to prepare ourselves to provide a platform in India. A time has how come to seriously think why in the case of international arbitration/disputes, the people go out of the country. What are the negative points and why India is not able to compete in the field of arbitration is a serious thing which is required to be considered. It is true that now so many arbitration centers have been established but still much is to be done." Justice Indu Malhotra, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India while chairing the panel discussion listed the key criteria that a party in an international arbitration looks into to decide the seat of Arbitration, which included - neutral place of arbitration, good arbitration regime of the place of arbitration, the pool of arbitrators available, and the infrastructure available to meet the requirements of international arbitration. Justice Malhotra also stated that the issue of Section 34 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 needs to be addressed in India, which can be tackled by creating specialized benches dealing expeditiously with Section 34 and Section 37 applications. Justice Malhotra also mentioned that enforcement of the awards is the place where India is lacking and that requires serious consideration. Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India stated that, "Though it is true that the process of enforcement of the arbitral awards is slow, the first delay is in completing the arbitration process itself. He added that India needs specialized benches. However, he suggested that we shall have separate arbitration courts with specialized judges dealing specifically with S.34 and S.37. Even enforcement of the awards should be assigned to specialized arbitration courts rather than specialized benches in the regular Civil Courts. Mehta further added that when we talk of India being the hub of arbitration, we should focus on having an arbitration city in India that shall be the hub for international arbitration. This would help in speedy redressal of the disputes and go a long way in making India as the hub of International Commercial Arbitration." Manan Kumar Mishra, Senior Advocate and Chairman, Bar Council of India talked about, "the context in which BCI passed the decision of allowing the foreign firms to start their practices in India. This was done to help our Country in attracting foreign clients. He mentioned that one of the reasons why India has not become the hub of arbitration is that we are not allowing it to become the hub. There was no entry of foreign firms in this domain which prevented India from being the hub of arbitration. Mishra concluded by saying that unless the young lawyers are involved with foreign lawyers and law firms, we cannot become a hub of International Arbitration." Manan Kumar Mishra further added that, "Under continuous Legal education like in foreign countries, Rules are being framed by Bar Council of India wherein in course of 5 years, every lawyer will have to undergo 40 days compulsory training, only then their Bar Licenses will be renewed. These rules will be enforced by the end of 2023. I Know the Bar Council of India and other State Bar Councils will have to face protests, but it is for the betterment of the lawyers, so under the able guidance of the Solicitor General of India, these rules will be implemented by the end of 2023." Tejas Karia, Partner and Head Arbitrations, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas mentioned that, "Arbitration has always been ad-hoc and slowly we are moving towards institutional arbitration. But the problem is that we do not have one prominent institution which can be termed as the premier institute of international arbitration of India. There is difficulty in creating and maintaining consistency across all the centers of international arbitration. Karia firmly put forth the point that taking all the institutions together and making a diverse panel of arbitrators, increasing transparency, and relying on institutions such as the IDRC would help us in achieving the dream. He concluded by saying that the 2019 Amendment which included Section 11(6A) was a positive step as the enforcement of the same would lead to promoting institutional arbitration in India." Lastly, to address the issue of delays in the enforcement of arbitral awards, Ratan K Singh, Senior Advocate and International Member, Keating Chambers, London suggested that only training of the judges can solve this problem. Training of judges is required at all levels. This also includes a mandatory continuing learning program for lawyers which will enhance the ability of practicing lawyers thereby leading to better judges which would eventually lead to better arbitrators. While talking about the factors that are important to choose the seat of arbitration, Ratan Singh stated that, "Thinking from the perspective of a foreign party, we do not have any credible international arbitration center. Though we have good quality of arbitrators, the problem lies in the selection of the arbitrators by the institutes. Singh argued that due consideration shall be given to the expertise of the arbitrators chosen and presently we are far away from reaching that stage where the local institutions of arbitration are credible enough for the foreign parties." Sumedha Sindhu Rathi, Member-Secretary, Advisory Board, IDRC delivered the Vote of thanks. The event was organized by Divyansh H Rathi, Hony. Secretary of IDRC along with Members of Advisory Board Sumedha Sindhu Rathi, Riya Rathi, Satish Dahiya, Chitragupt Dagar, Priyanshi Aggarwal and other Team Members of IDRC. Apart from Former judges of Supreme Court, High Courts and Senior Advocates, the IDRC panel arbitrators, leading law firms, the PSUs, members of the Bar association and Law Students attended the conclave. IDRC is an institutional dispute resolution Center established by not-for-profit organization "International Dispute Resolution Council". IDRC is registered with Niti Aayog and empaneled with the Ministry of Law and Justice. IDRC which is headquartered in Delhi provides state-of-the-art institutional environment for the online and offline resolution of dispute through arbitration, mediation and conciliation as well as expert determination and early neutral evaluation from its cloud-based in-house digital platform and through its affiliates in all major cities in India. In a short span of time, IDRC has accomplished more than 1000 arbitration proceedings and assisted in numerous International and National Arbitrations presided by retired judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts despite pandemic conditions. Media Partner - Latestlaws.com Supported by: - Indian Institute of Arbitration, IIArb- Indian Institute of Mediation, IIMed- Lexidem & Rathi, A Global Law Firm This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 18 (ANI/SRV): Metropolis Healthcare Limited, India's leading diagnostic service provider, announces the launch of a novel testing platform based on Component Resolved Diagnostics (CRD) to support India's population in diagnosing various forms of allergies. This 4th generation allergy testing technology uses Artificial Intelligence to assist clinicians in making sound clinical decisions and provides great insights into selecting and optimizing the course of treatment regarding an individual's allergic disease. The test, powered by a Nanotechnology based Multiplex system utilizing molecular components can easily detect specific IgE antibodies against 295 different allergens, using a simple blood test and provides results for 158 food allergens, 127 respiratory allergens and 10 contact allergens. For instance, if a patient is allergic to milk, it can predict whether a patient can likely consume boiled or baked milk without danger of clinical reactions, or if he/she needs to completely avoid milk in all forms. It can also predict if Immunotherapy, commonly known as Allergy vaccines will be effective or not. Allergy is an abnormal reaction of the body's immune system to foreign substances called allergens. The last few decades have seen a sharp increase in the prevalence of allergic diseases in all countries, affecting both children and adults. The World Health Organization considers allergy a non-transmittable disease and nearly 20 -30 % Indians suffer from at least one allergic disease. Through this molecular component based allergy diagnostic test, allergen sensitization of a patient can be mapped at the protein level, allowing for a better identification and characterization of the specific molecules that trigger the allergic reactions. Knowledge of the allergenic molecules to which the patient is sensitized to can aid in distinguishing between likelihood of local versus systemic reactions and persistence of clinical symptoms. Commenting on the launch of the test, Surendran Chemmenkotil, Chief Executive Officer, Metropolis Healthcare Ltd. said, "Metropolis Healthcare through this new and innovative test has established a centre of excellence for all allergy-related diagnostic services. With the most comprehensive array of diagnostic tools, artificial intelligence driven automated reports with more accurate interpretation, expert laboratory professionals, and subject matter specialists, Metropolis Healthcare Ltd, is now a one-stop solution for all the allergy-related diagnostic needs. The arrival of CRD represents a milestone in the field of allergy diagnosis and it will help doctors to chart out a precise course of treatment for their patients. The launch of this test also aligns with the company's goal of offering unique and novel tests to patients and customers in the chronic and wellness segments." Sharing his insights on the necessity of such tests, Dr Nilesh Shah, President & Chief of Science & Innovation, Metropolis Healthcare Ltd said, "The most important clinical use of Metropolis' Allergy component testing is its ability to identify the offending allergenic molecule and to distinguish specific molecules from markers of cross-reactivity. This knowledge will greatly benefit doctors, patients, and nutritionists, as it ensures improved correlation with clinical symptoms, thus helping in right selection of patient for immunotherapy. This will enhance the immunotherapeutic success by minimizing adverse reactions in patients undergoing immunotherapy. We are excited to witness the impact this would have on the Indian healthcare system and look forward to launching many more such novel solutions for a healthier India." This AI-powered Allergy Component Testing is now available at all Metropolis laboratories, patient collection facilities, and through home collection services across the country. Patients can book this test at their convenience via the company's website (www.metropolisindia.com), the Metropolis Patient App, or the WhatsApp bot. If you are concerned that you may have allergies, book the Allergy Profile now. Call: 084228 01801 Established in 1981, Metropolis Healthcare Limited is a leading diagnostics company in India with a widespread presence in 20 states & 220 cities. Internationally, the company has presence in South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Metropolis touches millions of lives each year by providing actionable health insights to patients and doctors. Metropolis offers a comprehensive range of 4,000 plus tests and profiles that include advanced tests in diagnosis of cancer, neurological disorders, infectious diseases, and an array of genetic abnormalities. The company is empowered with a robust network of over 177 labs, 3702 collection centres and 10000+ touch points. Metropolis' commitment to quality and accuracy in each test is reinforced by its consistent CAP proficiency score of more than 98% over the past decade, which places it amongst the top 1% laboratories worldwide for quality assurance. Metropolis philosophy rests on the pillars of technological superiority, a warm patient centric approach and reliable diagnostic reports. For more information, please visit www.metropolisindia.com or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. This story has been provided by SRV. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/SRV)
Tax Collected at Source (TCS) under Liberalised Remittance Scheme for the sale of overseas tour packages and any other remittance (such as for bonds, shares, and real estate gifts) through the usage of international credit cards is set to rise from this July. TCS for these cases will be now at 20 per cent against the earlier 5 per cent. However, TCS for education and medical treatment remains unchanged at their respective slab. For TCS on remittance for travel and incidental expenses related to education and medical treatment, the rates of TCS as applicable to remittances for education and medical treatment, respectively, shall apply, said the Finance Ministry in a series of FAQ on Thursday, adding that a detailed clarification will be issued separately. The Finance Ministry said the changes were necessitated as some instances have come to notice where the LRS payments were "disproportionately high" when compared to the disclosed incomes. In the FAQ, the ministry said the primary impact will only be on investment in assets such as real estate, bonds, and stocks outside India by High Net Individuals and tour travel packages or gifts to non-residents. Under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, all resident individuals, including minors, are allowed to freely remit up to USD 2,50,000 per financial year (April - March) for any permissible current or capital account transaction or a combination of both. The Scheme was introduced on February 4, 2004, with a limit of USD 25,000. The LRS limit has been revised in stages consistent with prevailing macro and micro economic conditions. There are no restrictions on the frequency of remittances under LRS. The government has reportedly amended rules under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), which has brought credit card spending outside India under the LRS. (ANI)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 18 (ANI/PNN): In an exciting development, Chic Beauty has introduced its innovative website, revolutionizing the realm of skincare and haircare. This renowned brand is dedicated to enhancing overall well-being and celebrating individual beauty by providing top-notch, natural products tailored to diverse needs. The newly unveiled website, chicbeauty.in, offers customers a seamless and immersive shopping experience. Visitors can effortlessly explore an extensive range of skincare and haircare products, each meticulously crafted using carefully selected natural ingredients and cutting-edge research, guaranteeing exceptional results without compromising safety. Chic Beauty recognizes that genuine beauty transcends physical appearances and embraces self-care, wellness, and individuality. Consequently, their product line offers numerous benefits that augment overall beauty and well-being. Their skincare range, enriched with potent antioxidants and nourishing plant extracts, revitalizes the skin, unveiling a radiant and youthful complexion. From moisturizers to serums, their skincare collection delivers optimal solutions for a healthy and glowing appearance. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcsYT-VW9yo In line with their commitment to providing transformative experiences, Chic Beauty's haircare products are specially formulated to breathe life into dull, lackluster hair, transforming it into vibrant, lustrous locks. Infused with nourishing oils, vitamins, and proteins, their haircare range promotes growth, shine, and manageability. Whether seeking volume, hydration, or repair, Chic Beauty offers the perfect solution for all hair concerns. Taking environmental sustainability seriously, Chic Beauty prides itself on being an eco-conscious brand. Their products are cruelty-free, and they strive to minimize their environmental footprint by employing recyclable packaging materials whenever possible. To celebrate the launch of their new website, Chic Beauty is delighted to extend an exclusive promotion of 10% off on all orders for a limited time. Visit chicbeauty.in to explore their exceptional range of products and take advantage of this special offer. Chic Beauty extends a warm invitation to embark on this transformative journey. Experience the power of natural, high-quality products that empower individuals to look and feel their best. We are available on FLIPKART, AMAZON and ONDC (mystore.in). For further inquiries, please contact: Email: support@chicbeauty.in Connect with Chic Beauty on social media platforms: Instagram: chic_beautyin Facebook: chicbeauty.in Twitter: @chicbeautyin YouTube: @chicbeautyin As a leading provider of beauty, skincare, and haircare products, Chic Beauty offers an extensive range of items made with organic ingredients. Committed to customer satisfaction and creating products that are beneficial, Chic Beauty continues to elevate industry standards in the pursuit of overall well-being. This story is provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PNN)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI/SRV): Safecon India, a leading provider of comprehensive safety solutions, has been conferred with the title for the "Best Safety Consultancy Organisation in West Bengal" at the prestigious Global Excellence Awards (GEA2023). Madhuri Dixit Nene, the Chief Guest of the event, presented the award to Sourav Sarkar, the owner of Safecon India. The award recognizes Safecon India's outstanding commitment to managing occupational health and safety (OHS) risks effectively and providing top-notch safety consultancy services. Safecon India offers a wide range of services aimed at ensuring the safety and well-being of workers and organizations. Their comprehensive offerings include: managing OHS risks effectively; inspection, testing, and certification of various equipment under the purview of Factories Act and Rules; repairing, maintenance, and servicing of EOT cranes, hoists, and other equipment; supply of qualified and experienced safety manpower; onsite and online training for industrial workers, etc. Sourav Sarkar, the visionary owner of Safecon India, expressed his gratitude by stating, "We are truly honored to receive this prestigious Global Excellence Award 2023. This recognition is a testament to our team's hard work, expertise, and commitment to ensuring workplace safety. We are grateful to our clients for their trust and support, which motivates us to continually raise the bar and deliver exceptional safety consultancy services". With his profound expertise and dedication to safety, Sarkar has been instrumental in shaping Safecon India's success and establishing it as a trusted name in the industry. The GEA2023 awards were hosted by Brand Empower, a leading market research, PR, and branding agency that has helped business leaders bring their businesses into the limelight through innovative strategies and out-of-the-box solutions. Brand Empower stepped towards the direction of presenting the Global Excellence Awards to acknowledge various business entities and classified them on the basis of their innovative idea, strategies, leadership, product deliverables, etc. The most proficient and veteran personality who came up to build the empire of Webpulse Solution Pvt. Ltd. and Brand Empower is Rahul Ranjan Singh. His incredible experience and unstoppable attitude established his company as a brand that supports his contemporary business leaders. Safecon India's unwavering commitment to providing high-quality safety solutions, their dedication to excellence, and their deep understanding of industry regulations have set them apart in the safety consultancy landscape. Their innovative and tailored approach ensures that businesses can operate in a safe environment while complying with all relevant safety standards. The company continues to drive advancements in the safety consultancy domain and is dedicated to helping organizations maintain the highest safety standards while fostering a culture of safety. This story has been provided by SRV. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/SRV)
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal said that the India-EU FTA negotiation is progressing well. He made this remark while addressing the media after the 1st India-EU Trade & Technology Council (TTC) meeting in Brussels, Belgium, according to a statement from his ministry. Goyal said that the Trade and Technology Council is helpful as it is supplementing the free trade agreement negotiations and the trade deal will make the India-EU relationship the defining partnership of the century. In the India and EU Leaders' Meeting held in Porto on May 8, 2021, an agreement was reached for resuming negotiations for a balanced, ambitious, comprehensive and mutually beneficial free trade agreement. Piyush Goyal said that India is engaging with the EU on Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) as it is not the EU's intention to create a barrier to trade but to find a way forward towards sustainability as part of collective efforts. He stressed that India and the EU are working together to find the right solution to the CBAM issue. According to reports, the European Union (EU) has announced the implementation of its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) from October 2023, which will impose a carbon tax on non-environmentally sustainable products imported into the EU. Further, Goyal said that India's tariffs are very often misconstrued to be very high on most items, raw materials, and intermediates but in reality, the duties are very low. The Minister said that the duties on technological items which are helping the Indian economy grow are very low. He said that the actual applied rates of tariffs are lower than the agreed bound rates at WTO. The bound rate is the maximum rate of duty (tariff) that can be imposed by the importing country on an imported commodity. Goyal mentioned that the political guidance received from the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has been truly encouraging in setting the path for outstanding engagement. Goyal added that both India and the EU are open market economies, vibrant democracies and pluralistic societies driven by the common interest of security, prosperity and sustainable development. (ANI)
Under the MoU which was signed on Wednesday, NRL and T Hub will jointly collaborate on business innovation and growth hack for NRL's flagship startup programme, 'iDEATION'.

T-Hub is India's pioneering innovation ecosystem and strives to create impact for startups, corporations and other ecosystem stakeholders.

This MoU will mark a significant step in the direction of 'Atmanirbhar Northeast and Atmanirbhar Bharat'.

The MoU was signed by NRL Senior Chief General Manager for Corporate Affairs Nikunja Borthakur and T-Hub Chief Innovation Officer Sujit Jagirdar, among other officials, at NRL Centre in Guwahati.

T-Hub (Technology Hub) has received the 'Best Incubator in India' for the year 2022 and the Best National Technology Business Incubator 2023 by Startup India.

On May 3, the Centre allocated Rs 611 crore to 165 incubators under Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, a flagship initiative of the government of India, intended to catalyse startup culture and build a strong and inclusive ecosystem for innovation and entrepreneurship in the country.

During a conference in New Delhi, Manmeet Nanda, Joint Secretary, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), said that the government started Startup India Seed Fund in April 2021, with a corpus of Rs 945 crore over four years of 2021-2025. (ANI)
Arjun took to Instagram story and shared the poster from the film to mark this occasion.

The poster captioned, "2 years of Sardar Ka Grandson"

In the film, Arjun plays a devoted grandson who embarks on a difficult journey to fulfil his grandmother's last wish.

The house belongs to Sardar (Neena) and is located at her ancestral home in Lahore. Sardar challenges her grandson (Arjun) to take her to Lahore to visit the place where she spent the early days of her life. And, if he does so, she will make him the owner of her business. But when her grandson doesn't get permission to take Sardar to Lahore, he decides to move the ancestral home to Amritsar.

He leaves no stone unturned to relocate Sardar's ancestral home in Lahore where their joint family are living now. Grandson does everything possible to fulfil the last wish of her grandmother.

Directed by debutante filmmaker Kaashvie Nair. Besides Arjun and Rakul the movie boasts an ensemble star cast featuring Soni Razdan, Aditi Rao Hydari, John Abraham, and Divya Seth in pivotal roles.

Meanwhile, Arjun will be seen in the noir thriller 'The Ladykiller' alongside Bhumi Pednekar and an untitled out-and-out romantic comedy film opposite Bhumi Pednekar and Rakul Preet Singh. (ANI)
The film also stars Krithi Shetty and Aishwarya Rajesh in lead roles.

The teaser will be out on May 19 at 7 pm.

Speaking of Hrithik's work projects, he will be seen in an action-packed avatar in 'Fighter'.

'Fighter' will be India's first aerial action film. It will also be the first time that Hrithik will share screen space with Deepika Padukone. The film is tipped to cater to a global audience with a story deeply that is rooted in India. Anil Kapoor would also feature in a pivotal role in the action flick.

Presented by Viacom18 studios in association with Siddharth Anand's Marflix Pictures, 'Fighter' is set to release on January 25, 2024.

Karan Singh Grover and Akshay Oberoi are also a part of the project.

Sharing details about his character, Akshay said, "It's an honour to be playing the part of someone who has served the nation. My character is a tribute to all those real-life heroes who have fought for their country. As actors, we might imitate their actions, but the grit and courage that they would have shown in real-life situations are unfathomable. All thanks to the director Siddharth and Mamta Anand for picking me for the part."(ANI)
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin held a review meeting at the Chennai secretariat regarding the alleged illicit liquor deaths that occurred in Villupuram and Chengalpattu districts earlier in the month. Over 16 people have been killed in the twin spurious liquor tragedy in the state. The Wednesday meeting was attended by senior officers of the Police Department and Prohibition Enforcement Department. "The meeting also discussed taking anti-smuggling measures in the state," an official statement informed. During this inspection meeting, CM popularized the use of toll-free number 10581 to provide information regarding liquor prohibition at the state level and announced the numbers of the Assistant Superintendent of Police and Deputy Superintendent of Police Prohibition Enforcement in each district and the Additional Director of Police (Prohibition Enforcement) received complaints through it. He directed that follow-up action should be ensured and a report in this regard should be sent to the Chief Minister's office through the Home Secretary on Monday every week, the statement said. Further, regarding the prevention of counterfeiting and narcotic drugs, a district coordination meeting should be held every Monday at the district level under the leadership of the district administration chief with the police department, revenue department officers and the district manager of the Tamil Nadu State Commerce Corporation (Tasmac) and the chief secretary should give appropriate instructions to the district administration heads in this regard, Chief Minister has ordered. "It is also done to create awareness among the public and the schools about the dangers of drugs. Colleges, NGOs and self-help groups should be run by women: monitor the use of ethanol and methanol in factories and ensure that it is not used to brew poisonous liquor, police and help Commissioner (Excise) monitor the border areas of the state, coastal and hill districts, district level," the CM said in the statement. The Chief Minister has also instructed to appoint high-ranking officials who will work well in the Prohibition Enforcement Division. "In addition, Counterfeit alcohol and drugs, those who continue to sell should be dealt with impartially under the Gangster Act. A monthly meeting of police inspectors be held under the leadership of the Department Secretary and Director General of Police to monitor the activities of the police department and submit a report to the Chief Minister's Office regarding law and order issues including crime prevention activities and drug eradication," the statement informed. The Chief Minister has instructed the police officers to use their full skill and long experience to perform well in order to gain the respect of the people of Tamil Nadu. Chief Secretary Irai Anbu, the Principal Secretary, Home, Prohibition and Customs Enforcement Department, P Amuda, Director General of Police, Sylendra Babu, Additional Director of Police (Law and Order) K Shankar, Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, Additional Director of Prohibition Enforcement and Higher government officials were present in the meeting. (ANI)
Many farmers, and entrepreneurs of Assam, Meghalaya and other North Eastern states are getting benefits and witnessing a rise in their income from government initiatives. B Sangma, a woman farmer of Meghalaya's West Garo Hills district who participated in the Vibrant North East 2023 summit held in Guwahati said that she gets benefits from the government's welfare schemes. "I personally have made many local products including various types of chips. The government has taken up many development schemes for the welfare of farmers and I also get benefits from it. I have received money from the government schemes. The agriculture, and horticulture departments are also helping us. My income has also grown up," said B Sangma. S Lyngdoh, a young entrepreneur from Meghalaya said that the government has given us a platform to showcase our produced products and sell them. "In our Ri-Bhoi district, most of the people have produced pineapple. But we faced difficulties in selling our products. But now the government has given us a market. Farmers also get benefits from the government schemes," P Lyngdoh said. Margaret, another woman entrepreneur from Meghalaya's Shillong said that "I would like to thank the Meghalaya government for giving us an opportunity to showcase our products and go ahead of selling our products." "Farmers of Meghalaya are getting good benefits from the government's initiatives," Margaret said. Not only the farmers, and entrepreneurs from Meghalaya, but many women Self Help Groups (SHGs) of Assam and other parts of the North Eastern region have also gotten benefits from the both Center and state governments' initiatives under its welfare schemes. Sangita Das, a member of an SHG of Assam's Kamrup (Metro) district said that all members of her SHG get benefits from the government schemes. "Our income has also increased," Sangita Das said. Suditri, an employee of North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC) said that many farmers and young entrepreneurs of the entire North Eastern region are getting benefits and NERAMAC has given them a platform and market to sell their products. The farmers and entrepreneurs have expressed their happiness to participate in the Vibrant North East Summit which is a programme which indicates the visionary model of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (ANI)
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has sanctioned Rs 20 crores for the installation of CCTVs at strategic locations in border villages to keep a strict vigil on the movement of drones and cross-border smugglers, said Special Director General of Police (DGP) Arpit Shukla here on Wednesday. DGP Punjab Gaurav Yadav has also declared a reward of Rs 1 lakh for providing information on drone movement leading to the recovery of weapons/narcotics, he added. According to a statement, the Special DGP accompanied by IG Frontier Headquarters, BSF Jalandhar Atul Fulzele was in Khasa in Amritsar to hold a Joint coordination cum review meeting with senior officials of BSF and Punjab Police to further strengthen the security at the border to prevent the cross-border smuggling. DIG Border Range Narinder Bhargav and DIG Ferozepur Range Ranjit Singh Dhillon along with four DIGs and four Commandants of BSF were among the senior officials who attended the meeting. Giving a call for greater synergy and teamwork between BSF and Punjab Police, Special DGP Arpit Shukla said that it was high time that both the elite forces should work in tandem and better coordination to counter the Drone operations at Punjab borders, which have emerged as the new threat, the statement said. "He also stressed the need to carry out evidence-based and proactive policing to prevent the smuggling of narcotics and weapons into Punjab from across the border," it said. The Special DGP asked the Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) of Border districts to intensify the police force as a second line of defence which will help in preventing the collection of contraband dropped through drones by the criminals on the Indian side. "He also discussed the strategic locations and hotspots in border villages to install CCTV cameras to keep vigil over Indian Nationals involved in cross-border smuggling. He asked the BSF officials to share inputs of movements of suspected persons with the Punjab Police so that they can keep a sharp vigil on their activities and ensure penal action against those found involved in any criminal activity," the statement added. Special DGP Shukla also directed the CPs/SSPs to increase the Police Checkpoints, especially at night, in their respective jurisdictions and ensure the checking of a maximum number of vehicles at every Naka, which will help in curtailing the terrorist and criminal activities. He advised that all the Nakas should be synchronised in a manner that they must get activated promptly on a single call, the statement informed. He also proposed to activate Village Defence Committees (VDCs) in the Border areas to counter the nexus between smugglers and criminals in the border areas. "These committees will work as eyes and ears of the Police and supplement the efforts of Punjab Police to wipe out drugs, terrorists and gangsters from the border state," said special DGP Shukla. SSP Amritsar Rural Satinder Singh, SSP Batala Ashwini Gotyal, SSP Gurdaspur Harish Dayama, SSP Pathankot Harkamalpreet Singh Khakh, SSP Fazilka Avneet Kaur Sidhu, SSP Ferozepur Bhupinder Singh and SSP Tarn Taran Gurmeet Singh Chauhan also attended the meeting. (ANI)
Former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday hit out at the chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and claimed that Visakhapatnam, known for peace and progress, is in "disturbed situation" now as the ruling party leaders are "resorting to all kinds of atrocities". "Visakhapatnam was earlier known for peace and progress but today the city is now totally in disturbed situation as the ruling party leaders are resorting to all kinds of atrocities," said AP Opposition leader Chandrababu. Addressing a huge gathering at Pendurthy as part of his 'Idemi Kharma Mana Rashtraniki' programme, Naidu said that people are unhappy with the YSRCP rule. Pointing out that the voters favoured the TDP in the recent elections held for the Graduates constituency in the State Legislative Council, Chandrababu Naidu said, "The money and muscle power of the YSRCP did not work in the polls. CM Jagan should now see to it that he wins Pulivendula,'' the TDP supremo remarked. Pulivendula is a constituency of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is the present MLA of the constituency. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday said that Telugu Desam Party will not get even second place in the next assembly elections to be held in the state. "TDP and Jana Sena have no guts to contest on all 175 seats independently but are trying to forge alliances for political survival. TDP will not get even second place in the next elections," Reddy said on Tuesday.(ANI)
The meeting was attended by Secretary APD, Directors of Animal Husbandry Jammu/ Kashmir, Director of Sheep Husbandry Jammu, Director Horticulture (P&M), Directors of Horticulture Jammu/ Kashmir, Technical Officers, representatives from MANAGE Hyderabad and other stakeholders, both in person and through online mode.

The statement informed that the primary focus of the meeting was to deliberate on a training program for resource persons, which would be conducted by MANAGE Hyderabad.

During the meeting, Atal Dulloo emphasized the importance of policy support and comprehensive training for key resource persons. "He also highlighted the significance of supervising and supporting the training for Krishi Mitras," it added.

Dulloo mentioned the recent launch of a learning management system for farmers in Jammu and Kashmir. The system offers courses in four languages and includes written text materials, multiple-choice questions and modularized content, he added.

ACS reaffirmed the commitment to implementing national policies in Jammu and Kashmir. "He stressed on the importance of bridging the gaps between the central policies and their effective implementation on the ground," the statement added.

MANAGE Hyderabad shared valuable feedback and suggestions during the meeting, which were duly acknowledged by the ACS for active consideration, it added. (ANI)
"During the search, troops recovered two packets of narcotic substances (Gross wt - 2.1 Kgs) and one pistol (without magazine and ammunition) kept inside a waterproof bag, from a farming field," read an official release.

A search operation was launched on May 17, by BSF and Punjab Police teams during the morning hours on the outskirts of the bordering village - of Bamba Battu Hittar, Distt - Fazilka.

"BSF and Punjab Police are acting in tandem to curb the drug menace and attempts of smugglers/ anti-national elements along the Punjab border," read an official release.

Further investigation is underway and details are awaited.

Earlier this month, on May 7, BSF seized over one kg of contraband in Amritsar's Daoke village. (ANI)
The police have seized 51 Kg of Cannabis, concealed inside a covert chamber of a car, from the accused.

"Drug trafficker tried to outsmart cops by ingeniously concealing drug inside the covert chamber of his vehicle but alert @ejhpolice held him and seized 51kg Cannabis. It is a grim testimony to the reality that youth are growingly tempted towards drugs," Meghalaya Director General of Police (DGP), LR Bishnoi tweeted.

Further information is awaited. (ANI)
Both Karnataka leaders earlier in the day met at party General Secretary-Organisation KC Venugopal's residence.

Kharge taking to Twitter said that Congress is committed to ushering progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka.

"Team Congress is committed to usher progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka. We will implement the 5 guarantees promised to 6.5 Cr Kannadigas," he tweeted.

https://twitter.com/kharge/status/1659074365835689984?s=20

Meanwhile, Congress leader Siddaramaiah's supporters celebrated with sweets and firecrackers outside his residence in Bengaluru as he is set to return as Karnataka chief minister.

The Congress is all set to name Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka, and a formal announcement on the same will be is made at a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting this evening here in Bengaluru. According to sources while Siddharamaiah will get the CM position, the Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is expected to invite opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka chief minister and deputy chief minister, according to sources.

They said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Rai Bareli MP Sonia Gandhi, party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other senior party leaders will attend the event.

The oath-taking ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

According to sources, Congress President Kharge worked till late night Wednesday to break the political deadlock over the next chief minister and arrived at a consensus for government formation.

Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP Meeting.

Meanwhile, security was stepped up and banners were also put up outside Congress leader Siddaramaiah's residence.

Congress bagged 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly ousting the ruling BJP, which got 66 seats while the Janata Dal (Secular) secured 19 seats. (ANI)
"CID to investigate and decide whether a case can be initiated on the Explosives Act. The next hearing is on June 12," Court said.

Following the loss of lives in an explosion in an illegal firecracker factory in East Medinipur, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari's filed the PIL seeking NIA (National Investigation Agency) probe.

A massive blast took place at the factory in Khadikul village under the Egra police station at around 11 am on Tuesday in which nine people lost their lives and several others were injured.

Earlier, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) detained three people in connection with an explosion at an illegal firecracker factory on Tuesday.

The detained person has been identified as Krishnapada Bagh alias Bhanu Bagh, his son and nephew.

"Bhanu Bagh is in a hospital in injured condition and taking treatment there in Cuttack. He cannot be moved now. We are requesting Odisha police to keep a watch. 2 other persons nephews and son of Bhanu Bagh are also detained," officials of CID said on Thursday.

According to the police, the factory was operating illegally and the owner had been arrested last year and a chargesheet was filed.

The West Bengal Police CID has initiated a probe into the incident and investigation with the help of forensic experts after the State government handed over the case to it.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2.5 lakh for the kin of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for those injured.

West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah demanding a "comprehensive probe" into the incident. He also said that the probe should be handed over to the NIA. (ANI)
Congress leader DK Shivakumar, who was announced to be sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, on Thursday said that there was nothing to be upset about and there is a "long way to go". "When people have given such a big mandate, we should definitely be happy and deliver and fulfil the promises. That is our main motto and agenda. "Why should I be upset? There is a long way to go," he said. Earlier in the day he said, everything is well in the party and everyone will work together after the Congress decided on the posts after hectic deliberations following the party's emphatic win in the recent assembly elections in the State. "Everything is well and will be well. Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge said that we all have to work together and we accepted it," Shivakumar said. Earlier Indian Youth Congress National President, Srinivas BV felicitated Shivakumar. In a press conference in the national capital, Congress General Secretary announced that party leader Siddaramaiah will be the next Karnataka Chief Minister and DK Shivakumar will be his sole deputy. Shivakumar will also remain as the Congress' Karnataka Pradesh chief till the Lok Sabha polls said at the party's headquarters here. "DK Shivakumar will continue as the PCC president till the end of parliamentary elections. CM, Deputy CM and a group of ministers will be sworn in on May 20," Venugopal said. Crediting the party's emphatic victory in Karnataka to the people of the State, Venugopal said that both Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar "deserve" to become the chief ministers. "I would like to sincerely thank the people of Karnataka for the victory of the Congress and for standing by the party. Our president Khargeji, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and all the CMs campaigned extensively," Venugopal said. "We have a very good chunk of leaders there in our party in Karnataka. Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar are dynamic leaders and are assets for the party. Definitely, everyone has a wish and desire of becoming Chief Minister and they deserve it also, both of them deserve it also," he added. AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala, who is incharge of Karnataka, said Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra laid the foundation of the party's campaign in the State. A meeting of the Congress legislature party in Karnataka would be held this evening to elect Siddaramaiah as the legislature party leader formally. Meanwhile, preparations are underway at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium where the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka government is expected to be held on May 20. Leaders of opposition parties are expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony. "We will invite people from like-minded parties to take part in the swearing-in ceremony in Karnataka," Venugopal said. Randeep Singh Surjewala, AICC in-charge of Karnataka said, "Our only formula is the service of people. Whoever wants to serve the people can do so, as much as they want. All our allies will be invited (to the oath-taking ceremony). This is not a celebration but Congress's dedication to democracy...those who want to fight for democracy and save the Constitution, can attend the event." The party leadership held a series of meetings over the past four days and several formulas were mooted before a decision was arrived. Congress bagged 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly ousting the ruling BJP, which got 66 seats while the Janata Dal (Secular) secured 19 seats (ANI)
Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Thursday took a jibe at the former chief minister and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh and said that he should get some guidance from his younger brother Lakshman Singh. Mishra made the remark while reacting to a recent tweet of Singh's younger brother and Congress MLA Lakshman Singh about Hindus. On May 17, MLA Singh tweeted in Hindi, "Hindus are repeatedly called 'violent'. Had it been so, India would not have been a slave for 450 years. Ants and bees also bite for protection. So are they violent?" Reacting to this tweet, Narottam Mishra told reporters, "Lakshman Singh should explain to his elder brother Digvijaya Singh, who sometimes talks about Sanatan Dharma, sometimes Hindu and Hindutva. Digvijaya Singh should visit his younger brother's place for some time, give him some blessing, and take some guidance from him." "Lakshman Singh wrote that if Hindus were violent, then India would not have remained a slave for 450 years. I believe Digvijaya Singh should learn from Lakshman Singh," Mishra added. The home minister further said, "You (Digvijaya Singh) call Bhagwa a terrorism, you turn Hindus towards terrorism but never speak on Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT). You don't speak anything about Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen-Bangladesh (JMB) but definitely speak against the Army." Meanwhile, the State home minister said that he has ordered the suspension of an official who is alleged to have links with the contractual engineer Hema Meena against whom Lokayukta has initiated action in connection with disproportionate assets. "Lokayukta Police have taken action against Hema Meena. In this case, the name of project engineer Janardan has also come to light and serious complaints have been received against him. Therefore, I am ordering officials for his suspension," he added. Also in connection with the religious conversion angle that emerged during interrogation of the radical arrested members of the Islamist outfit Hizb-Ut-Tahrir (HuT), Mishra said the name of one professor Kamal has came to light in the matter. "A Special Investigation Team (SIT) is investigating the whole matter. They are probing what the relations with Islamic preacher Zakir Naik were, how they work, where were their network, what were the sources of income, all these topics were being investigated," the minister said. (ANI)
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday lauded the launch of the state's first Vande Bharat Express train by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that it is one step closer towards the aspiration of Bullet trains in the country. "The introduction of the Vande Bharat train is one step closer towards our aspiration of Bullet trains in India. I am sure, with your leadership, we should soon have our own Bullet trains," Patnaik said on the occasion of the launch of the Vande Bharat train from Puri to Howrah. Notably, India is working on its Bullet train project between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Patnaik, on the occasion also suggested several new projects for the state including two new Vande Bharat Trains and sought the support of the Prime Minister for early implementation of the same. Patnaik thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for launching several railway projects in Odisha, during the launch of Vande Bharat Express from Puri to Kolkata today, and said that the implementation of the new projects which he asked for will benefit the people of the state. "I would take this opportunity to request Prime Minister for the introduction of a Vande Bharat Express train between Puri and Rourkela connecting Sambalpur and another connecting Bhubaneswar and Hyderabad which will facilitate faster movement of passengers between these important cities, for the benefit of our aspiring people," Patnaik said. Saying that the state government is developing Puri as an international heritage centre, he said that it is the first city in India to have a 100 per cent drink-from-tap facility. "Recently, I met the Prime Minister and had a detailed discussion on the proposed Shree Jagannath Puri International Airport at Puri. We will incorporate all the suggestions given by the Prime Minister for making it a world-class seaside Airport," he said. The Chief Minister expressed hope that with the cooperation and support of the Prime Minister, the airport will be ready within 3 to 4 years, and PM Modi will come to Shreekhetra to dedicate the Shree Jagannath Puri International Airport. Further, he also requested sanctioning of Puri-Konark's new railway line which will connect two iconic marvels of our state. He informed that state of Odisha offers 50 per cent of the construction cost and the entire land cost for the project, making it extremely profitable for Railways. He further said that Odisha has always been very proactive in supporting railway projects in the state. The Chief Minister also requested for early introduction of passenger services in both the Angul-Sukinda line and the Haridaspur-Paradip line to meet the aspirations of the people of these districts. The Chief Minister expressed gratitude to the PM for the new projects. (ANI)
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the order of the West Bengal government banning the screening of the film 'The Kerala Story' across the state. A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala took into the record the assurance of the Tamil Nadu government that there is no direct or indirect ban on the film. It directed the Tamil Nadu government that adequate security shall be provided to every cinema hall and requisite arrangements shall be made to ensure the safety of moviegoers. West Bengal on May 8 had imposed a ban on screening of the film in the State to avoid "any incident of hatred and violence and to maintain peace in the State". "Prima facie we are of the view that the prohibition by West Bengal is not tenable on the basis of material before. Thus the order banning the film is stayed," the bench said in its order. With regard to Tamil Nadu, the bench in its order stated, "We direct that adequate security shall be provided to every cinema hall and requisite arrangement shall be made to ensure the safety of moviegoers. No express steps whether tacit etc. shall be taken to prevent the screening of the film." It further asked the filmmakers to ensure that the movie carries a proper disclaimer. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for film producers, assured the bench that disclaimer will contain that film is a fictionalised version of events and there is no authentic data to back up the figure of conversion (of women to Islam) is 32,000. To set the controversy aside, the disclaimer shall be added by 5 pm on May 20, said the senior counsel. Salve added that filmmakers have videos and interviews of girls on the basis of which movie is made. Regarding the challenge to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) certification of the film, the bench posted the matter for hearing on July 18 saying it would first have to see the movie for that. Chief Justice said that the court will define the doctrine and lay down what is permissible and what is not. "We will see the film and decide," the bench added. Earlier, the West Bengal government told the Supreme Court that the film 'The Kerala Story' is based on manipulated facts and contains hate speech that may hurt communal sentiments and cause disharmony between the communities which can lead to order issues in the State. Filing its affidavit before the top court, the Mamata Banerjee government said that film can cause communal disharmony and a law and order situation, as has been gauged from various Intelligence inputs. Filmmakers of the movie challenged the ban on the film by West Bengal and the de-facto ban in Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu government in its affidavit has told the apex court that the filmmakers of 'The Kerala Story' have made deliberately misleading statements that the government has imposed a shadow ban on the movie, however, theatres stopped screening the film due to poor audience response. Filing the affidavit, the State had said that the theatre owners had voluntarily stopped screening the film on May 7 onwards due to poor performance of actors/ poor response to the movie or lack of well-known actors in the movie. Earlier, the apex court questioned the West Bengal government over banning the film saying the movie is running in different parts of the country with similar demographic profiles. It had said the movie is being released all over the country and why the West Bengal government should not allow it to run. The makers contended that the State government has no power to ban a movie which has been certified for public viewing by the Central Board of Film Certification. State government cannot cite law and order issues to stop the screening of the movie, which will result in the violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed to them, the plea of filmmakers said. The film depicts how thousands of young women were allegedly brainwashed into joining the Islamic State (IS) and heading off to countries like Syria and Afghanistan. 'The Kerala Story', starring Adah Sharma, was released in cinemas on May 5. (ANI)
A Memorandum of Understanding for 'Riverine based tourism Circuit' being developed over river Brahmaputra will be signed between Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Sagarmala Development Company Limited (SDCL), Assam Tourism Development Corporation Limited (ATDC) and Directorate of Inland Water Transport (DIWT) Assam in Guwahati on May 19, 2023, an official statement said. The signing ceremony will take place in the presence of Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. In this regard, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) said that the 'Riverine-based tourism Circuit' will connect seven historic temples in the region and the project is being developed at the initial cost of Rs 40-45 crores. "The project is being developed under the Sagarmala Programme at an initial cost of Rs 40-45 crores. SDCL and IWAI will jointly contribute 55 percent of the project cost while the remaining will be provided by ATDC. DIWT has consented to provide the usage of Ghats near the temples free of cost for the project," the ministry said. This Sagarmala project will connect the seven historic temples namely Kamakhya, Pandunath, Ashwaklanta, Doul Govinda, Umananda, Chakreshwar and Auniati Satra situated in Guwahati. The circuit will sail from Hanuman Ghat, Uzan Bazar and will complete its journey by covering all the above-mentioned temples through waterways. The ferry service is expected to reduce the overall travel time to less than 2 hours for completing one complete circuit, the ministry added. (ANI)
The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Central government on the two pleas moved by the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust. These two organisations have challenged the cancellation of their Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licence by the Central Government. Justice Jyoti Singh issued the notice to the Central Government and sought its response to the pleas. The matter has been listed on August 23 for a final hearing. Their licence has been cancelled over the alleged violation. These organisations are associated with the Gandhi family. Congress leader Sonia Gandhi heads these and Rahul Gandhi is a member. Former PM Manmohan Singh and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram are members of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation. The licences were cancelled after an investigation was carried out by an inter-ministerial committee. The investigation was started to probe the allegations made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation received funds from the embassy of China. After the allegation, the Central government constituted a committee to investigate the alleged violations under different laws like PMLA, FCRA and IT Act. The pleas were filed in January 2023. The matter kept adjourning due to one or another reason. The bench also expressed its displeasure on the fact that it took eight hearings for the issuance of notice on the plea. The matter was taken up today. The counsel for the central government sought a pass over but the bench said it will issue a notice in the matter. "This is a regular first appeal (RFA). It can't be dismissed in limine. Eight dates have gone by, let's be a little practical, Eight dates to do this," the bench said while expressing its displeasure. Earlier also, adjournments were sought on four dates on the ground that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta was busy in other courts. (ANI)
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the opportunity to host G20 meetings in the state. CM Dhami said, "India has got the chairmanship of G20 under the leadership of PM Modi and Uttarakhand has got 3 big meetings in it, this is a big opportunity for us. The first meeting was held in Ramnagar while the second meeting will be starting on May 25 in Rishikesh." The Chief Minister further said that the preparations for the second meeting are underway. "Preparations for the meeting in Rishikesh are going on smoothly. Our Ramnagar meeting was concluded historically. People came from all over the country and across the world to attend the meeting. They returned with good experiences here", the CM said. He said that a similar meeting is going to be held in Rishikesh on May 25. "People will come from all over the country and the world to witness the event. We are engaged in the preparation of showcasing Uttarakhand's beauty, culture and specialities to the whole world", he added. Earlier this month, CM Dhami lauded the Central government for hosting G20 meetings in small towns of the country. He also said that India is fast moving towards becoming a world guru. India has got the presidency of G-20 this year, and its meetings are being organized at different places in the country. This is a good opportunity for us to take our cultural heritage to the global level. The country has entered the nectar of independence. The coming 25 years are very important for the country, Dhami said. Uttarakhand's Ramnagar hosted a G20 conference from March 28-30. The three-day G20 meeting in Ramnagar saw the participation of 70 foreign guests and 30 Indian officials. During the meeting, Ramnagar showcased the rich cultural and civilizational heritage of the state with streets and venue being decorated with traditional paintings and conducting traditional art forms. (ANI)
Pfizer India has currently placed a voluntary stop on further sale and use of antibiotics in India due to technical issues. "Pfizer places the utmost emphasis on patient safety and product quality at every step in the manufacturing and supply chain process. Out of an abundance of caution, and following a request by our local contract manufacturer, Pfizer has currently placed a voluntary stop on further sale and use of its products Magnex, Magnamycin and Zosyn in India as a result of certain technical issues brought to our attention by the contract manufacturing site in India. The matter is being investigated by the manufacturer and Pfizer will take any further actions if so required," Pfizer said. Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, Past President IMA, Cochin said, "When it comes to treating potentially life-threatening infections, especially in the ICU, the margin of error is very small. In such situations, doctors use selected antibiotics - that they now have the right antibacterial coverage as well as the right quality. The products mentioned in Pfizer's letter of 16 May 2023 have, over the years, earned that reputation, and hence are widely used in critical care settings." "In any manufacturing process, pharma or otherwise, ongoing quality control is the norm - and it is not unusual for minor irregularities to be found and products being recalled. Products of multinational pharma companies are often manufactured in regional pharmaceutical firms that are expected to conform to the original standards. The locally manufactured product is legitimately sold under the name and label of the original company," he added. Dr Rajeev said that in the present case, it is not specified exactly what "deviation" has occurred in the Indian facility manufacturing these products. "However it is reassuring that such diligence is ongoing, and this will eventually generate greater trust in the manufacturer," he said. Pfizer India has written a letter to the stockiest, distributors and hospitals, "Temporary suspension of sale and distribution of the (i) Magnex; (ii) Zosyn; (iii) Magnamycin injections & (iv)Magnex Forte supplied by Pfizer Limited ("Pfizer") with immediate effect." "We are addressing the present letter to you in respect of our products (i) Magnex; (fi) Zosyn; and (in) Magnamycin injections ("said Products") manufactured by Astral Steritech Private Limited ("manufacturer") and supplied by Pfizer to you," it added. The letter further said that the manufacturer of the said products brought to its attention on certain deviations observed at their manufacturing facility, where the said products were manufactured. "Whilst the manufacturer is currently investigating the matter, they have requested Pfizer, as an abundant precautionary measure and as per best practices, to temporarily suspend the sale/distribution/supply and use of the aforementioned Products, pending the investigation by the manufacturer. We will keep you informed on the investigation and further steps to be taken in this regard," the letter said. "In the meantime, you are requested not to undertake any further sale, distribution or use of the said Products for all the SKUs in your possession, with immediate effect, till further notice from Pfizer," it said. Pfizer has assured taking all reasonable efforts to resolve the matter at the earliest. (ANI)
Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to the Managing Director cum Promoter of a Delhi-based private company in an ongoing investigation of a case related to bank fraud of Rs 512.67 crore. Considering the bail plea, the court said that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had not completed the investigation with respect to offences under Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act, for which the applicant was arrested. The bench of Justice Amit Sharma on Thursday while granting bail to Avinash Jain, the MD of Arise India Limited, stated that CBI on December 16, 2022, sought approval from the competent authority under Section 17A of the PC Act, but proceeded to file the chargesheet, before the expiry of the stipulated term of 60 days, while keeping the investigation for offences under Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act open. Therefore, it is clear that the CBI had not completed the investigation with respect to offences under Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act, for which the applicant was arrested, the court observed. Permitting the CBI to pick up one aspect of the investigation and file a piece-meal chargesheet with respect to the same and consequently, defeating the right of the applicant to default bail, goes against the mandate of Article 21 of the Constitution, as held by the Supreme Court, said the Delhi High Court. Senior Advocate Vikas Pahwa appeared on behalf of the applicant who submittedthat the aforesaid chargesheet is incomplete and was filed only to defeat the applicant's right under Section 167(2) of the CrPC. CBI on November 14, 2023, arrested Ankush Jain, Managing Director and Promoter of Arise India Limited which deals in the manufacturing of electrical goods, in an ongoing investigation of a case related to bank fraud of Rs 512.67 crore. The CBI has examined several persons including witnesses, private company officials, Bank Officials, etc. However, the said MD/Promoter of the company was found to be evasive in his replies, said the officials. A case was registered in November 2020 against a private company based at Mangala Puri in the Palam area of New Delhi and others including its Director and Promoter, other Directors; Unknown Public Servants/others on the allegations of causing loss to Banks to the tune of Rs. 512.67 crore (approx). The complainant bank i.e. State Bank of India in its complaint had alleged that the accused cheated the consortium of six banks, led by State Bank of India, causing Rs. 512.67 Crore fraud. It was further alleged that the accused had diverted bank loans to its related parties and deliberately cheated the banks by inflating the company's debtors. The said private company was in the business of manufacturing and trading monoblock pumps, submersible pumps, batteries, inverters and electrical goods and its Units were at Sonipat (Haryana) and Kala Amb (Himachal Pradesh). The accounts of said Company were declared NPA on February 27, 2017. CBI had earlier conducted searches in December 2020 at the premises of the accused which led to the recovery of several incriminating documents including books of accounts of the said borrower company, purchase/sales details etc. (ANI)
The Delhi government on Thursday barred the Chief Secretary and Services' Secretary from passing orders in relation to all categories of state government employees. An order in this regard was issued by Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj today in which Delhi Services' Minister approval was made mandatory for the same. The Minister, in his order, directed that "no orders for any category of employees shall be passed by the Chief Secretary or Services Secretary or services department, without the minister's order". Earlier today, the Arvind Kejriwal-led government sent the name of PK Gupta to the Center to appoint him as the new Chief Secretary of Delhi. Meanwhile, the Kejriwal government has sent a proposal to the Center through Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena to appoint Gupta as the new Chief Secretary of Delhi. Gupta, a 1989 batch IAS officer, is currently serving as additional chief secretary at the General Administration Department (GAD) of the Delhi government. Presently, Naresh Kumar is the Chief Secretary of Delhi. The move comes days after the Delhi government was given executive power in services matters, including transfer and posting of officers, in a crucial verdict by the Supreme Court. On May, 11, the Supreme Court said that the division of administrative powers between the Union and Delhi governments "must be respected" and held that the Delhi government has "legislative and executive power over services" in the national capital, including the bureaucrats, except those relating to public order, police and land. A five-judge Constitution bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices MR Shah, Justice Krishna Murari, Hima Kohli and PS Narasimha said, "The division of administrative powers between the Union and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCTD) as explained... must be respected." The apex court in its 105-page-judgement said that the government of Delhi is not similar to other Union Territories. The verdict of the apex court came on the tussle between Delhi and the central government on the contentious issue of who should control administrative services in Delhi over the transfers and postings of officers in the national capital. (ANI)
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday issued notice to the Jharkhand Government over the torture and parading of a tribal girl on the diktat of a village Panchayat in Palamu district. The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, India has taken suo motu cognizance of media reports that on the diktat of Jogidih village Panchayat in Palamu district of Jharkhand, a tribal girl was physically assaulted, and paraded with shoes around her neck after shaving her head when she refused to marry a man of the choice of her kin. The Commission has observed that the contents of the media report, if true, amount to a violation of the human rights of the victim at the behest of a village Panchayat. The perpetrators of such an immoral and unlawful act cannot be allowed to go scot-free in a civilized society governed by the rule of law. Accordingly, it has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Jharkhand calling for a detailed report on the matter within four weeks including the status of the FIR registered by the police, medical treatment of the victim girl and compensation if any, granted to her. The authorities are expected to explain in the report the status of the installment of the compensation given to the victim, who is eligible for the same as per the provisions of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. They are also expected to intimate the status of any counselling provided to the victim girl, who suffered the trauma of physical pain, humiliation, and social stigma. The Commission would also like to know about the action taken against the delinquent officers, responsible for the tragedy, the statement said. According to the media reports, carried on May 16, 2023, the victim had run away on the day of her marriage on April 20, 2023. When she returned after 20 days to the village, a meeting of the Panchayat was organized to punish her. After torturing and parading her in the village, she was left in the jungle in the night from where the police recovered her the next day and admitted her to the hospital. Reportedly, her parents died eight years ago and she is living with her brother and two sisters. (ANI)
Mandaviya will be holding many bilateral meetings with his counterparts from different countries including Singapore, France, and the Netherlands, sources said.

He will also meet ministers from countries including the USA, Bangladesh, Argentina, Brazil, Qatar, and BMGF (The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) and hold multilateral meetings with the ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS).

He will also participate in events including 'Heal in India' and 'Heal by India, 'climate change and Health', and meet with Indian-origin health innovators based in Switzerland, and 'Together we fight against TB.'

Recently, Union Health Minister Mandaviya attended a G7 Health Minister meeting hosted by Japan on May 13-14

In Japan, Mandaviya said, "Use of technology and Digital Health Tools are an enabler and equalizer which can facilitate strengthened health service delivery and aid in the achievement of Universal Health Coverage. The COVID-19 pandemic has catalysed the use of technology in health service delivery and also highlighted the need to focus on an enabling framework to bridge the digital divide across the countries specifically amongst low-and-middle-income countries." (ANI)
According to the police, the railway main line between Ludhiana to Jalandhar and Amritsar-Jalandhar-Jammu was blocked due to the farmer's protest.

Reportedly, the farmers are protesting over the incident wherein a policeman was seen slapping an elderly woman protester in Punjab's Gurdaspur during a protest over land acquisition for Delhi-Katra national highway.

The farmers in Gurdaspur have been protesting against land acquisition for the Delhi-Katra national highway and a poor compensation offer.

The incident took place on Wednesday evening in Cheema Khudi village near Batala in the Gurdaspur district during the ongoing demonstration of the farmers. (ANI)
Beijing's increasing reliance on imports, making it dependent on a number of foods is likely to result in China becoming vulnerable in various ways that could be used against it in a crisis, Toronto-based Geopolitical Monitor, an international intelligence publication reported. The subject of food security in China has received widespread media attention suddenly after Xi Jinping's recent article on agricultural self-reliance in Qiushi Journal, a publication of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), compared it to national security. Xi argued in his article that the Russia-Ukraine crisis has shown that agriculture has turned into a "foundation of national security" and urged making food self-sufficiency a major priority in the upcoming years. China's per capita grain production increased just a little under Xi, from 462.5 kg in 2013 to 483.5 kg in 2021. This has led to an increase in import dependency during the same period, which, in Xi's opinion, is a national security worry, Geopolitical Monitor reported. In comparison to other nations, China currently imports the most soybean, corn, wheat, rice, and dairy goods, and this dependence has mostly grown over the past ten years. The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation has defined three levels of food self-sufficiency. Below 80 per cent is considered a food deficit, between 80 pc-120 pc as food self-sufficiency and above 120 per cent as a food surplus country. China's food self-sufficiency rate decreased from 101.8 pc in 2000 to 76.8 pc in 2020 and is further expected to fall to 65 pc by 2035 if timely measures are not implemented. Rising import dependency on crucial food items has largely worsened China's food security, according to Geopolitical Monitor. Several consumers across China are increasingly choosing imported goods due to factors such as shrinking cultivable land, fewer productive seeds, increased expenses of home production, and worries about the safety of local brands. As a result, despite having a high level of domestic production, China has turned into a net importer of food since 2004. In addition to being overly reliant on imported food grains, China is also overly reliant on imported seeds, particularly for non-staple food. The seeds sector in China, known as the "chips of agriculture," is similarly plagued by poor quality, ineffectiveness, and a lack of innovation, the Toronto-based publication said in its report. China only had around 9 per cent of global arable land (around 2.3 billion mu) by 2019 to feed over 20 per cent of the global population. Thus, new Premier Li Qiang has emphasised China's goal to boost agriculture production by concentrating on expanding arable land. The realization of economic benefit to common citizens has been the bedrock of the CPC's legitimacy in China. However, failure in ensuring food security can rapidly erode this legitimacy. As per Geopolitical Monitor, this was made clear by the demonstrators' demand for food during the Sitong Bridge demonstration a few days prior to the 20th Party Congress rather than COVID tests. Furthermore, the problem has repercussions for China's foreign policy considerations, as shown by the trade war's use of China's dependence on US soybeans. (ANI)
The KNA rebels reportedly exploded an improvised explosive device (IED) and started firing on the military men who were patrolling the area.

On Tuesday, the military men departed the Sung Sung Para army base for their patrol under the direction of Major Monowar, Dhaka Tribune reported.

The information was confirmed by the public relations division of the Bangladesh Armed Forces, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a release on Wednesday. The deadly attack took place on Tuesday.

The ambush happened close to a local body of water, near Jarulchhari Para. The KNA insurgents set off an IED, which was followed by a barrage of gunfire.

Two officers and two soldiers suffered significant wounds as a result of the abrupt explosion and ensuing firing. They received prompt medical assistance at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Chittagong after being evacuated there.

During the treatment, the two soldiers passed away due to severe wounds, whereas the two officers are receiving medical care.

The KNA has been engaging in criminal activity in the remote forests of the Ruma, Roangchhari, and Thanchi upazilas in Bandarban in an effort to spread anarchy, reported Dhaka Tribune.

Earlier in April, eight people were killed during a "shootout" between two armed groups at Rowangchhari upazila in Bandarban.

According to the officials as per Dhaka Tribune, the United People's Democratic Front (Democratic) and Kuki-Chin National Army, the military wing of Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), were engaged in the gunbattle. (ANI)
The US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said that as the war in Kyiv continues to get intense, Russia's invasion of Ukraine will be a significant topic of conversation during the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. Responding to the media queries aboard Air Force One on Wednesday, Sullivan said, "Russia's invasion of Ukraine looms large and will be a significant topic of conversation. There will be discussions about the state of play on the battlefield." "There will be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular, making sure that we are shutting down evasion networks, closing loopholes in the sanctions so that the impact is amplified and magnified in the -- in the months ahead," he said during the press briefing. Regarding the US President's meeting with the QUAD leaders, who will also be present in Hiroshima for the G7 Summit, Sullivan stated, "President felt it was critical that he be at the G7 because this particular format is so central to getting alignment and convergence with key countries -- including, by the way, the countries in the Quad, because both Australia and India will be in Hiroshima, and he will have the opportunity to engage with them there -- that that was a vital part of the trip." US President Joe Biden recently cancelled his planned trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea. "President Biden will return to the United States on Sunday, following the completion of the G7 summit, in order to be back for meetings with Congressional leaders to ensure that Congress takes action by the deadline to avert default. The President spoke to Prime Minister Albanese earlier today to inform him that he will be postponing his trip to Australia. He also invited the Prime Minister for an official state visit at a time to be agreed by the teams. The President's team engaged with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea's team to inform them as well," a statement by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, read. Meanwhile, continuing with the press briefing, the US NSA on Biden's visit to Hiroshima said that the US President would kickstart his Japan visit with a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. "The President will start his engagements in Hiroshima with a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Kishida, where they will review the really quite extraordinary progress in the alliance over the course of the past two years, building on the trip that President Kishida made to Washington in January," Sullivan said. The President will also co-host an event on the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, where "we will review the progress from the previous year, including some announcements of new investments and new deals," Sullivan added. He will also review a wider buildout of work with the private sector, including very senior private-sector representatives coming so that public investment is facilitating private investment to propel infrastructure development in the developing world, Sullivan added. Earlier, John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, said that Biden would depart for Japan on Wednesday as scheduled, but a subsequent stop in Australia is being re-evaluated. "We're working through, thinking through, the rest of the trip right now," Kirby had said, as he noted Biden would meet India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australia's Anthony Albanese at the G7 anyway in Hiroshima, Japan. "We're re-evaluating the rest of the trip right now. We will make proper notifications if there are changes made to the rest of the trip. Given where we are right now, it's also incredibly prudent and responsible for the President to take a look at the rest of the trip and evaluate whether it makes sense going forward," said Kirby. "We'll see where it goes...We are going to reevaluate the rest of the week after the G7, and we'll see where it goes. If the trip gets truncated or changed or modified in any way, it should be nothing more than a statement of the President putting his priorities where he believes they need to be," said Kirby. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on Friday on a six-day visit to three countries - Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia, to attend multilateral summits, including that of the Group of Seven (G7). According to the external affairs ministry, the prime minister will first visit Hiroshima in Japan from May 19 to 21 to participate in the annual summit of the G7 advanced economies under the Japanese Presidency. He is visiting Japan at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Firstly, PM Modi is scheduled to take part in the G7 summit in Japan, from where he will head to Papua New Guinea. It will be the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Papua New Guinea. He will co-chair the third Summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) in Papua New Guinea. On the third leg of his visit prime minister Modi will visit Sydney in Australia where he will hold a bilateral meeting with Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese. Previously he was scheduled to participate in the Quad Leaders' Summit in Sydney but on Wednesday Australian Prime Minister Albanese announced the cancellation of Quad after US President postponed his trip to Australia to focus on the debt ceiling negotiations in Washington. At the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Prime Minister Modi will speak at G7 sessions with partner countries on subjects such as peace, stability and prosperity of a sustainable planet; food, fertiliser and energy security; health; gender equality; climate change and environment; resilient infrastructure; and development cooperation. The Prime Minister will also hold bilateral meetings with some of the participating leaders on the sidelines of the Summit. In recent years, the economic relationship between Japan and India has steadily expanded and deepened. The volume of trade between the two countries has increased. Japanese PM Fumio Kishida visited India this March. He arrived in India on March 20 and during his meeting with PM Modi, the two leaders confirmed that India and Japan share the responsibility to maintain and strengthen the international order based on the rule of law. They concurred on the importance of clearly outlining this idea at the G7 and G20 meetings. The two leaders during a working lunch in Delhi confirmed that the two countries will coordinate closely bilaterally as well as in G4 to achieve concrete results on the Security Council reform, according to an official release. From Japan, the Prime Minister will travel to Port Moresby in, Papua New Guinea, where he will host the third Summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC III Summit) jointly with Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea James Marape on May 22. Launched in 2014, the FIPIC involves India and 14 Pacific Island Countries (PICs) - Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, Vanuatu, Niue, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Palau, Nauru and the Solomon Islands. A Ministry of External Affairs release said that Prime Minister Modi will have bilateral engagements in Papua New Guinea, including meetings with Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae and Prime Minister James Marape. After concluding his visit to Papua New Guinea, PM Modi will travel to Sydney despite the cancellation of the Quad Leaders' meeting. He will arrive in Australia on May 23. Australian PM Albanese said the leaders of Australia, the US, India and Japan -the Quad grouping- would now likely meet on the sidelines of the G7 in Japan this weekend Australian media network ABC News reported. "We are in discussions with the Quad leaders over today. We'll make further announcements about that, but Prime Minister Modi would certainly be a very welcome guest here next week," he said on Wednesday. PM Modi will have a bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Albanese on May 24. He will also interact with Australian CEOs and business leaders, and address the Indian diaspora at a community event in Sydney on May 23. Australian PM Albanese during his recent visit to India in March, earlier this year, said that India and Australia have forged a deeper connection in education, culture, defence and trade. The Australian PM was on an official visit to India from March 8-11. The Australian PM also shared a video showing highlights of his India visit. During the visit, the Australian PM met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi to hold bilateral talks. (ANI)
The Chinese government's crackdown on foreign businesses continued with the country's chief foreign intelligence agency raiding the offices of Capvision, a business consulting firm operating in Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou, and Shenzhen. This move is part of China's broader efforts to tighten control over businesses and clamp down on those that provide sensitive economic data. The action comes at a time when China is trying to attract foreign investors, but its national security considerations are in conflict with these efforts. The Ministry of State Security, police, and market regulatory bodies questioned Capvision staff during the raids, although it is unclear whether there were any arrests or detentions. State media reports did not provide specific details about the legal issues involved, nor did they disclose the dates of the raids. The state media, as always, has kept the news ambiguous, giving the state the flexibility to present the story as they want as it develops further. While Western countries are accused of stealing intelligence and information related to China's military, economy, and finance, the Chinese government's actions against foreign companies have been criticized for being excessive and politically motivated. Critics argue that such crackdowns on foreign businesses are detrimental to China's efforts to integrate into the global economy and could discourage foreign investment in the country. China's crackdown on foreign businesses has been accompanied by allegations that domestic consulting companies are tools for stealing national secrets, as some have been accused of lacking awareness of national security and using illegal means to make financial gains. In response to recent actions against Capvision and other companies, China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin defended the move, stating that it was a "normal law enforcement action" to promote regulated and sound development and to safeguard national security and development interests. However, critics argue that China needs to be more transparent about its law enforcement actions against companies like Capvision, which provide crucial due diligence information for investment decisions. Eric Zheng, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, has called for greater transparency and criticized China's actions against foreign businesses, saying that they could harm China's efforts to integrate into the global economy and attract foreign investment. Eric Zheng has criticized the raids on Capvision and other companies. He has called for greater clarity from Chinese authorities on what types of due diligence are permissible under Chinese regulations to give foreign companies more confidence and enable them to comply with the rules. Despite claims of commitment to national security, Capvision is the latest foreign company to face investigation over attempts to obtain information that would not be considered state secrets in other countries. In recent weeks, consulting firm Bain & Co. was also questioned by police in Shanghai, while the Beijing office of corporate due diligence firm Mintz Group was raided by police, resulting in the detention of five employees. Furthermore, an employee of a Japanese drug maker has been detained on spying charges, and the Chinese government has launched a security review of memory chip maker Micron Inc. The ongoing crackdown on foreign businesses has raised concerns among the international business community that China's national security considerations are being used as a pretext to target foreign companies and could potentially harm China's integration into the global economy. The recent expansion of China's anti-espionage law, coupled with the ongoing crackdown on foreign businesses, is causing deep concern among American companies operating in China, according to US Ambassador Nicholas Burns. The situation is prompting many to hold off on major investments until there is more clarity, although they are unlikely to pull out of China, which is still dominated by major state-run companies and financial institutions. The investigations against companies such as Capvision also come as China's relations with the United States, Europe, and Japan are strained by disputes about human rights, Taiwan, security, and technology. The country's leader, Xi Jinping, is focused on tightening the Communist Party's control over entrepreneurs, reducing reliance on foreign technology, and rooting out official corruption. These crackdowns are occurring against a backdrop of official efforts to reverse a decline in foreign business interest in China. However, the mixed signals and political risks have caused some global companies to shift their investment plans to Southeast Asia, India, and other economies where political risks are considered lower. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Hiroshima in Japan from May 19 to 21 for the Group of Seven (G7) summit. He will be the second Indian head of state to visit Hiroshima, since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957. US President Joe Biden would also meet Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit. The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. In 1997 Russia joined the group which was then renamed G8 until the country was suspended in 2014 following the crisis in Crimea, and the group reverted to the 'G7'. Japan, which is hosting the G7 this year, has invited India as the guest country. India has been a regular guest of the G7, invited by France in 2019, by the UK in 2021, and when Germany was the host in 2022. In 2020 India was invited by the US to the G7, though it was cancelled on account of Covid-19. 2023 sees India hold the presidency of both the G20 and the SCO after the disruptions of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, there is no better moment for India to restate its geopolitical significance than through an enabling role as a guest of the G7. Being on the high table of the G7 is an indication that India is on the right path in the international power circuit, an endorsement by the rich and powerful that India mattered. Among the issues that are likely to set the G7 agenda in 2023 international trade plays a key role. The interdependence of economic globalisation has also raised awareness of transnational issues and yet member states of important bodies like the G7 fall short of providing adequate answers to international conflicts and policy crises. As a regular guest member of the G7 India is uniquely placed because it is both an emerging and developing country but has a claim and a stake in global decision-making. In many ways, India, a regular guest of the G7 is representative of the countries left out of the steering group. Two overlapping challenges will dominate the discussions among the G7 - the first is Russia's campaign in Ukraine and the second concerns the grim state of the global economy rocked not just by war but also by Covid-19. Spiralling food and fuel costs threaten the humanitarian plight of people. The suspension of Russia from the G8 has left the G7 as a grouping of members who are generally ideologically aligned. And now with the war in Ukraine, the G7 is likely to regain importance as its limited membership is more ideologically aligned. In this India stands out as it has traditionally and presently remained neutral and has resisted efforts by the West to criticise Russia. Under the circumstances, India could express its concern that the United States and its allies are exacerbating the economic crisis by using sanctions against Moscow. India, one of the largest buyers of Russian oil, must highlight that Western sanctions collectively by the G7 have contributed to the cascade of global shocks. Although a guest nation, India could voice to the G7 leaders that while Ukraine is consuming their attention other global conflicts need to be addressed notably through the G7's financial muscle. As a guest nation, India could stress that G7 must explicitly recognise that its members will phase out coal power generation by 2030 and encourage all other countries to do likewise by providing financial and diplomatic support to dedicated initiatives and instruments in order to meet climate goals. Challenging coal transition circumstances reflected in countries like India and South Africa can be reflected in other countries as well and progress made by the G7 Nations towards supporting guest members like India could set positive precedents for transition in some of the world's big coal users like Indonesia and Vietnam. India can contribute to the discussion by stressing on the greater provision of global public goods such as quality infrastructure, global health, multilateral concerted solutions to global challenges such as climate change, and also highlight the need to formulate policies for maximising and sharing benefits from artificial intelligence. As India becomes the world's most populous country the inclusion of population issues such as jobs for vast youth and health and care of the ageing population can be highlighted in the G7 agenda. India must reaffirm the G7 trade acquis which traditionally rests on supporting the multilateral trading system. Thus, in order for India to realise its own ideas in the world it is essential to actively speak on global issues and win the confidence of the world. (ANI)
Senior advocate Ujjwal Nikam, the special public prosecutor in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks case, has said that the US court's approval for the extradition of case accused Tahawwur Rana to India is a "great victory" for the country. According to Nikam, this is the first time that the US government has relied upon evidence by the Indian investigating agencies. "The order of the American court extraditing Tahawwur Hussain Rana is a great victory for India. It is for the first time, according to my knowledge, that the American government has heavily relied upon Indian investigating agencies' evidence," Ujjwal Nikam told ANI. "I'm glad that when I was conducting the trial against one of the Indian accused, Abu Jindal, who was also in the control room which was constituted in Pakistan during the terror attack of 26 November on Mumbai, David Hadley before the attack had visited Mumbai. After the attack had visited Mumbai, he had taken the photographs and he handed over the photographs of the targeted places to the Lashkar-e-Taiba," he added. Nikam's statement comes after the US court approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Ujjwal Nikam said that David Headley was convicted by an American court for 35 years. He said that there was a plea bargain agreement between the American government and David Headley that he will not be taken to India. He said that Headly had named Tahawwur Rana. Speaking to ANI, Nikam said, "David Headley was convicted by an American court for 35 years. It was a plea bargain agreement whereby it was agreed between the American government and David Headley that he will not be transferred either to India, Pakistan, but he can give the evidence by using this plea bargain. We (Indian government) have decided to tender pardon to David Headley and accordingly, we have made him an approver giving a more detailed scope of the entire criminal conspiracy. "David Hadley had named Tahawwur Rana because David Hadley was guided by Tahawwur Rana for opening an immigration office in Mumbai and in person. So, in following that office, David Headley had taken the various photographs of the targeted places. David Headley had given the sensitive revelation disclosing the closed links between the Lashkar-e-Taiba that is Jamaat-ud-Dawa and that is the Pakistan army official," he added. Ujjwal Nikam said that David Headley gave certain email correspondence exchanged between Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives as well as the Pakistanis people. He further stated, "I think the order of the extradition of Tahawwur Rana would be very clinching evidence so far as the further opening the scope of the entire criminal conspiracy." The lawyer termed the Tahawwur Rana extradition order a "major breakthrough." He said that the order will help India in many ways for opening the gate of the criminal conspiracy. "It's a major breakthrough because myself and the government of India's three high officials had visited Islamabad and we were very keen to see whether Pakistan is prosecuting the conspirators who had hatched the criminal conspiracy for the terror attack of Mumbai on 26 November. But Pakistani authorities were asking us to furnish evidence," Ujjwal Nikam said. "After examining David Hadley, we have given the entire evidence but Pakistan did not act. But I think this extradition order of Tahawwur Rana would help us in many ways for opening the entire gate of the criminal conspiracy because Tahawwur Rana was working as a doctor earlier in Pakistan and he was working in the Pakistan army also for some time. That is what David Headley said. I think this is a very important catch for us," he added. A US court had approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana to India. Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists in an over 60-hour siege, attacked and killed over 160 people including 6 Americans. The US court consented to the Indian request, through the US Government for his extradition. Tahawwur Rana has been accused by the Indian government of participating in the planning and execution of the Lashkar terrorist attacks in Mumbai by collaborating with his childhood buddy David Coleman Headley, also known as "Daood Gilani," and others. "The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing," US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court of California, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday. "Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request," the Judge wrote in the order. Rana was convicted in Chicago in 2011 of providing material support to the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which planned the Mumbai terror attack and for supporting a never-carried-out plot to attack a Danish newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed in 2005. He was accused of allowing David Headley to open a branch of his Chicago-based immigration law business in Mumbai as a cover story and travel as a representative of the company in Denmark. (ANI)
The Balochistan government has expressed anger over the financial crisis, Dawn reported. The Balochistan government has claimed that the financial crisis has been caused by Pakistan federal government's action to not pay the province's constitutional share in the NFC award. The cabinet meeting, chaired by Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo on Tuesday criticised the "negative attitude of the federal finance and planning ministries," as per the Dawn report. During the meeting, it was informed that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had announced a grant of Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 10 billion for the rehabilitation of flood-affected people. However, the money was yet to be released after 10 months, as per the Dawn report. Pakistan's PM had ordered the finance and planning ministries to address the issue, however, nothing has been done so far. Balochistan ministers said that the negative attitude of the federal government was causing resentment and frustration among the people in the province, as per the news report. The provincial government has decided to lodge a strong protest with Islamabad over the issue, Dawn reported. A delegation headed by the Balochistan CM and comprising the provincial ministers, senators, MNAs and leaders of the parliamentary parties will raise the issue with Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif. Meanwhile, the Joint Action Committee, Balochistan University, Teachers, Officers and Employees Association in May called on the authorities to release PKR 1.11 billion by June 2023 in order to pull the University of Balochistan out of the financial crisis, Business Recorder reported. Professor Fareed Khan Achakzai and Shah Ali Bughti, leaders of the Joint Action Committee, Balochistan University, Teachers, Officers and Employees Association raised the demands while addressing a press conference at Quetta Press Club, as per the Business Recorder report. They said that academicians, officers and employees of the university had not received their monthly salaries for the past three months. They said that they have been on strike for the past one and a half month, calling on the authorities to get their monthly salaries released. They, however, said that the authorities were not paying attention to their demand. Earlier in April, it was reported that Balochistan University was facing lots of financial crises and all the departments have been closed due to the non-availability of funds, Pakistan vernacular media Jang reported. The university's teaching and non-teaching staff were also on strike due to non-payment of salaries. The oldest university of Balochistan was in extreme trouble while Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Quddus Bizenjo has been claiming about revolutionary steps in the education sector, as per the news report. The university's annual expenditure is more than Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 3 billion whereas the current deficit is more than PKR 1 billion and there is a need to find out a permanent solution as soon as possible, according to Jang. (ANI)
Pakistan's friends are getting concerned over the increasing political instability in the country, Pakistan based The Express Tribune reported. Diplomatic sources familiar with the development told The Express Tribune that China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in particular are worried about the deteriorating political stability in Pakistan. Chinese foreign minister during his recent maiden trip to Pakistan, publicly expressed concerns over the current political situation and stressed the need for reaching a consensus to deal with the crisis. The Chinese foreign minister was in Pakistan on May 5 and 6 on his first visit to Islamabad. The top Chinese diplomat during a meeting with Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, expressed his worries about Pakistan's increasing instability, telling the country to overcome political differences to pave the way for economic progress. "We sincerely hope the political forces in Pakistan will build consensus, uphold stability and more effectively address domestic [as well as] external challenges so it can focus on growing the economy," Qin said, according to The Express Tribune. This was unusual on the part of China, which usually works behind the scenes to convey its concerns on any issue. According to reports, the UAE president in a telephonic conversation with the Pakistani army chief called for unity in the country, a subtle message to resolve issues through talks. It is believed that Saudi Arabia is also keen to seek some semblance of political stability returning to Pakistan. Meanwhile, The News International recently reported that Pakistan's so-called 'geostrategic location' now stands as a relic of a bygone era despite once being considered a gateway between the West and the East. Pakistan has been struggling to keep pace with the shifting tides of global power and influence and Islamabad finds itself isolated from the global arena. Children in Pakistan are taught about Pakistan's geostrategic position as Islamabad used to get an extraordinary amount of benefits by being located in this specific zone, as per the news report. (ANI)
Photo: pixabay

The former chief financial officer of a Seattle-based startup took $35 million of his employer's money without permission and lost it by investing in cryptocurrency before the crypto market crashed last year, according to a federal indictment returned by a grand jury Wednesday.

Nevin Shetty, 39, was hired in March 2021 as CFO of Fabric, which makes software platforms for retail commerce.

About a year later, after the company informed him it was letting him go over job performance concerns, he secretly took the money and transferred it to HighTower Treasury, a crypto platform he controlled as a side business, the indictment said.

His idea was to pay the company 6% interest while retaining profits above that, but soon the $35 million investment was practically worthless, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle said in a news release.

The indictment in U.S. District Court charged Shetty with four counts of wire fraud. He is scheduled to be arraigned May 25.

Shetty's attorney, Cooper Offenbecher, said in an emailed statement that he and his client had been in regular contact with prosecutors and disagreed with the decision to bring an indictment.

As the CFO of his former employer, tasked with making investment decisions for its benefit, Mr. Shetty was personally devastated by these losses, which occurred as a result of a catastrophic crash in the cryptocurrency market in May 2022, Offenbecher wrote. "We look forward to responding to these allegations in Court.

Prosecutors, however, said that as the company raised hundreds of millions of dollars in startup funding, it adopted a conservative approach to managing that money  a policy that Shetty had helped draft.

According to the Seattle tech news website GeekWire, Fabric had raised more than $293 million by February 2022 and was valued at $1.5 billion.

The company did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Wednesday.
Over 65 Members of the United States Congress expressed concerns about the current situation in Pakistan and urged State Secretary Anthony Blinken to pressurize the Pakistani government to improve the human rights situation in the country. The US Congressmen sent a letter to the State Secretary where it stated, "As proponents of a strong US-Pakistan relationship, we write to express our concerns about the current situation in Pakistan and urge you to use all diplomatic tools at your disposal to pressure the Government of Pakistan towards a greater commitment to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law." "This should include a commitment to investigate any infringement upon freedom of speech and freedom of assembly in Pakistan," the letter further read. Imran Khan, who was deposed as prime minister through a no-confidence move in April last year, was arrested on May 9, the day when the country witnessed deadly protests. He was detained in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, but a court later declared his arrest against the law and granted him bail, The News International reported. The deadly protests took the lives of at least 10 people and injured several others, with the authorities not only arresting the party leaders but thousands of PTI workers as well, according to The News International. The letter, coauthored by Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, was signed by 65 other lawmakers. It stated that over the past few months, the situation in Pakistan has become increasingly concerning with the blanket bans on demonstrations and deaths of several prominent critics of the government. "We ask for your help pressuring the Government of Pakistan to ensure protestors can assert their demands in a peaceful and non-violent way, free from harassment, intimidation, and arbitrary detention. As both Democrats and Republicans who care about the bilateral relationship, we are concerned that violence and increased political tension could spiral into a deteriorating security situation in Pakistan," the letter read. The letter further stated that as the supporters of a strong bilateral relationship between the two countries, the US Congressmen wished to commend the sustained focus on Pakistan and your efforts to provide humanitarian assistance following historic, devastating floods. The US Congressmen urged to use all the diplomatic tools--including visits, and public statements--to demonstrate countries' interest and prevent the erosion of democratic institutions in Pakistan. "Supporting democracy in Pakistan is in the national interest of the United States. In this critical moment, U.S. diplomatic leadership is necessary to prevent further erosion of democratic protections. We thank you for your work and again urge you to do all you can to address this situation. We look forward to supporting you in this effort," the letter read. (ANI)
India is in regular touch with the United States authorities to ensure the 'speedy and early extradition' of Tahawwur Rana,26/11 Mumbai attacker, whose extradition to New Delhi has received a green signal from the US, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday. Responding to a media query on the bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden, Kwatra said, "Look, as I've already mentioned to you, the bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit in Hiroshima are still being formed up. So I am not going to make any assumptions about which meetings would happen, and which meetings would not happen. But whatever bilateral meetings that the Prime Minister holds on the sidelines of the G7 Summit with whichever leader, the entire gamut of the bilateral relationship with that particular country would fall under the scope of discussions between the Prime Minister and that leader. But very specifically not connected to the question of which bilateral meeting will take place or not." On the issue of extradition of Tahawwur Rana, he said, " In so far as the question of Tahawwur Rana is concerned, we are in very regular touch with the US authorities to ensure that there is a speedy and early extradition of Tahvarana. We have all seen the judgment which was given by the local US court there. That conversation of ours with the US side is continuing." Earlier, US Court said that the 26/11 Mumbai attacker Tahawwur Rana should be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between India and the US. The order read that the Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. And on the basis of that, the court makes the decision and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extractability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the request. US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court of California, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday. This statement came a month before the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US. Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in Mumbai attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing over 160 people, including six Americans, at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai. Indian authorities allege that Rana conspired with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley to assist the Pakistani terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba " in the orchestration of the terror attacks.Headley and Rana attended military high school in Pakistan together. Rana's immigration law center in Chicago, as well as a satellite office in Mumbai, was allegedly used as a front for their terrorism activities between 2006 and 2008, prosecutors say. Headley, the master plotter of the 26/11 Mumbai attack, had pleaded guilty and testified against Rana. Rana is fighting extradition by claiming double jeopardy because he was acquitted of Mumbai massacre charges in a Chicago federal courtroom. Rana is arguing that he has already been acquitted of the charges he would face overseas. (ANI)
Milan [Italy], May 18 (ANI/WAM): The UAE and Italy discussed the means to strengthen the bilateral economic partnership and boost investment exchanges in various new economy sectors, especially renewable energy, tourism, and FinTech, during a meeting held in Milan today. These efforts will help create new investment opportunities to support sustainable economic growth through collaboration and partnerships between the two private sectors. Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, who is leading the UAE delegation to Italy, held a number of bilateral meetings with Italian ministers and government officials, in addition to roundtable meetings with businessmen and investors from both countries to highlight the current and future investment opportunities in various sectors. Furthermore, Al Marri invited the Italian private sector to take advantage of the features and incentives offered by the UAE economy to achieve growth and expansion in the UAE and the wider MEA markets. These include Investopia, the global investment platform, which aims to create opportunities and enable the investments of the future, in addition to the comprehensive economic partnership agreements, of which the UAE has signed four, with India, Israel, Indonesia, and Turkey so far. Al-Marri discussed the progress in economic relations between the two countries in various fields and sectors with a number of Italian ministers and government officials, including Antonio Tajani, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; Giancarlo Giorgetti, Italian Minister of Economy and Finance; Daniela Santanche, Italian Minister of Tourism; and Ignazio La Russa, President of the Senate of Italy. The Minister of Economy stated that the close cooperation between the UAE and Italy is built on historical and strategic ties, with the economy as one of its main drivers. Moreover, he clarified that the visit by the UAE delegation, which includes 50 members from the government and private sectors including investors and businessmen, aims to bolster the economic and trade relations and stimulate the mutual investment flow between the two countries. He added that this is in line with the directives of the wise leadership to develop the bilateral cooperation into a comprehensive economic partnership that contributes to the achievement of the two countries' sustainable development goals. He stated, "The UAE and Italy share strong, continuously evolving relations, with the unlimited support of both leaderships. Our ties will continue to grow in all aspects, supporting common interests and prosperity." Al-Marri also emphasised that the UAE and Italy share views on several regional and global issues and that both nations rely on constructive dialogue and diplomacy to address them. During the meetings, Abdullah bin Touq highlighted the importance of the session to be launched by the global investment platform Investopia tomorrow in Milan, in stimulating investments and encouraging business communities to explore more promising opportunities in new economy sectors. He also invited the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs to attend the platform's next conference in 2024. He reiterated that both sides are keen on expanding the trade and investment partnership between Abu Dhabi and Rome and creating new opportunities for economic collaboration to build a new, knowledge-based economic model that is more resilient and competitive, thus creating sustainable job opportunities. In addition, Al Marri pointed out that the tourism sector's development is among the top priorities on the UAE government's agenda, due to the sector's significance as a key pillar of the national economy. "We look forward to exchanging expertise with the Italian side to foster the tourism industry's sustainable growth and governance in accordance with international best practices," he said. "The UAE is keen to promote parliamentary work in line with the directives of its wise leadership. The parliamentary work in the UAE has seen effective participation of women. The UAE is the only country in the MENA region to achieve equality at the parliamentary level. As a result, the country was ranked 30th globally in fostering political empowerment of women by the World Economic Forum," he further added. Al Marri's meeting with the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs explored the means to enhance cooperation between the UAE and Italy in all areas of common interest. In addition, the minister's meeting with the Italian Minister of Economy and Finance explored mechanisms for enhancing collaboration in priority fields. The two sides highlighted the need to explore more investment opportunities in the UAE and Italian markets and new economy sectors, particularly finance, technology, advanced sciences, industries, renewable energy, e-commerce, logistics and supply chains. This is while also moving forward with promoting cooperation in the fields of climate change, sustainable agriculture and agricultural innovation, food security, and circular economy among other areas of common interest. The visit of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to the UAE last March, and her meeting with President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, kickstarted a new era of cooperation at all levels, opening up new avenues to develop bilateral relations. Giancarlo Giorgetti said, "We will work alongside our partners in the UAE to enhance bilateral relations and increase trade and investment exchanges in the fields of technology and circular economy, and other areas of common interest." Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri and the Italian Minister of Tourism discussed the mechanisms to stimulate mutual investments in innovative tourism projects as well as the steps taken to increase air connectivity. Starting from January 2023 to date, there are approximately 45 flights per week between the two countries. This facilitates tourism flows between the two countries, as the UAE received more than 170,000 Italian tourists who spent 954,000 hotel nights in 2021. The Italian Minister of Tourism affirmed her country's desire to strengthen cooperation with the UAE in various fields, especially tourism, and jointly promote tourism projects and initiatives that will attract more investment in both countries. Meanwhile, the Minister of Economy's meeting with Ignazio La Russa, President of the Italian Senate, discussed ways to strengthen the cooperation between the UAE and Italy in the parliamentary sphere. La Russa affirmed that Italy and the UAE share a historic friendship that has undergone a strong shift after the Italian Prime Minister's visit to Abu Dhabi in March 2023, highlighting the UAE economy's successful diversification and richness, which foster startups and family businesses. During the meetings, the Minister of Economy reviewed the most notable developments in the UAE's economic environment that created an economic climate that supports the growth and prosperity of businesses and attracts investments in line with the Projects of the 50 and the UAE Centennial 2071 goals. Apart from the granting of 100 per cent foreign ownership and enacting legislation to protect intellectual property, an ambitious strategy to attract talent in all sectors was also launched to enhance the country's position as a permanent hub for creativity and innovation. Investopia Europe, the first event launched by Investopia in 2023, will open tomorrow in the Italian city of Milan, following its annual conference in March. The event aims to promote dialogue and stimulate global investment in fast-growing sectors, particularly the new economy, circular economy, family businesses and creative industries, and introduce global future trends of investment. More than 250 leaders, businessmen, investors, entrepreneurs, and economists from around the world will participate in the event. The country's delegation to Italy includes 50 people from the public-private sector, including Adeeb Ahamed, Managing Director of Lulu Financial Holdings; Salah Sharaf, Director-General at Sharaf Group; Sanjeev Gupta, CEO of Liberty Steel; as well as Ahmed Kassir, Executive Director at Sharjah Investment and Development Authority "Shurooq"; Hamad Obaid Al Shamsi, Regional Investment Promotion Manager (Invest in Sharjah); Shadi Hassan, Managing Partner of Lifco Group; Hani Barhoush, CEO of Disruptive Investments at Mubadala; Agate Johnson, Head of Strategic Business and Marketing at Lulu Financial Holdings; Youssef Ahmed Al Yousef, Chief Operating Officer Al Yousef; Hassan Karimi, Co-Founder and Managing Director of KHK & Partners; and Jamal bin Saif AlJarwan, Secretary-General of the UAE International Investors Council. (ANI/WAM)
China has been actively managing Afghanistan's foreign relations to help the country escape its current state of isolation on the world stage, according to Afghanistan-based Khaama Press. Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang met with Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Taliban's acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Islamabad last week to hold talks as part of a China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Minister's Dialogue. According to Khaama Press, Afghanistan's stability is much more critical as the country's insecurity will spill over to the regional countries. Meanwhile, there have been differences between the Taliban authorities and Pakistani officials over the presence of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and their hideouts in the country. Pakistani officials accused the Taliban of supporting the TTP and their hideouts in the country, while the Taliban denied any terror groups or their support, The New Arab reported. As per statistics, there have been more than 150 attacks in 2022 in the neighbouring countries by the outlawed TTP, which can spill over to the broader region. Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, China, with its strategic coordination in the framework of a trilateral mechanism, hopes to bring peace to the region. As the Chinese Foreign Minister, Qin, says, "There should be no 'double standards' in fighting terrorism," The New Arab reported, according to Khaama Press. Meanwhile, The Express Tribune recently reported that China is trying to broker a 'workable solution' between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban to address the issue of banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Official sources familiar with the plan revealed that the Foreign Ministers of China and the Taliban were in Islamabad recently for a trilateral meeting to discuss the current situation in Afghanistan. Among the issues on the agenda included the terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan. While Pakistan is concerned over the presence of TTP and its affiliates, China wants the Afghan Taliban to neutralise the threat posed by East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), reported The Express Tribune. Moreover, China has a vested economic interest in the region. China's trade with Afghanistan has been growing fast and it may become the second-largest trading nation with Afghanistan in 2023 after Pakistan, a situation that bodes well for the continuation of the CPEC part of the Belt & Road Initiative into Afghanistan, as per Silk Road Briefing (SRB). (ANI)
Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Thursday said India's position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict has been spoken n-number of times and that is the fundamental anchor of India's political positioning and the pursuit of its economic interests. "India's position on Russia-Ukraine has been spoken, reiterated n-number of times both in our press briefings here and outside the forum. The prime minister has spoken about what he himself believes should be the path forward for the resolution of this conflict," Kwatra said during a special briefing on PM Modi's visit to Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia. The Foreign Secretary said PM Modi during his meeting with the Russian President in Samarkand said this is not the era of war and the resolution of this conflict has to be through dialogue and diplomacy. "That is the fundamental anchor on which our political positioning and the pursuit of our economic interests is based on so far as this conflict is concerned," Kwatra said. Meanwhile, responding to Josep Borrell, the EU Foreign policy chief's remarks calling for action against Indian refined products from Russian crude, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday (local time) advised him to look at EU Council regulations. "Look at EU Council regulations, Russian crude is substantially transformed in the third country and not treated as Russian anymore. I would urge you to look at Council's Regulation 833/2014," said Jaishankar. This comes after the bloc's chief diplomat earlier said that the EU should crack down on India reselling Russian oil as refined fuels including diesel into Europe as Western nations move to tighten sanctions on Moscow's energy sector. "India buys Russian oil, it's normal... " said EU's Foreign policy chief Borrell but wants the bloc to act on refined products coming from India-made Russian crude in an interview with Financial Times. While Borrell met with Jaishankar at the trade technology talks in Brussels, he was not present at the press conference that followed. In his place, EU Executive Vice President on Competition, Margrethe Vestager said that there was "no doubt about the legal basis of the sanctions", and that the EU and India would have the discussion as "friends... with an extended hand and of course, not a pointed finger." Along with Jaishankar, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and Union Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, Skill Development, Electronics and Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar was also in the meeting. (ANI)
Taking to Twitter, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, "India extends a hand of friendship to the people of Myanmar affected by #CycloneMocha. #OperationKaruna underway. Three Indian Navy ships carrying relief material reached Yangon today."

"A fourth ship will be reaching tomorrow. The ships are carrying emergency food items, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators, clothes, sanitary and hygiene items, etc. India continues to be the first responder in the region," Jaishankar added.

Meanwhile, Indian Naval Ships Shivalik, Kamorta and Savitri were the first Naval ships to arrive at Yangon with relief material.

Indian Navy remains committed to ensuring Security and Growth for All in the Region and being the first responders in providing support to our neighbours during such calamities.

Meanwhile, the Dhaka Tribune reported that the death toll in cyclone-hit Myanmar rose to 81.

At least 46 people died in the Rakhine state villages of Bu Ma and nearby Khaung Doke Kar, inhabited by the persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.

Thirteen people were killed when a monastery collapsed in a village in Rathedaung township north of Rakhine's capital Sittwe, and a woman died when a building collapsed in a neighbouring village, according to Myanmar state broadcaster MRTV.

"There will be more deaths, as more than a hundred people are missing," said Karlo, the head of Bu Ma village near Sittwe.

Nearby, Aa Bul Hu Son, 66, said prayers at the grave of his daughter, whose body was recovered on Tuesday morning.

Mocha made landfall on Sunday with winds of up to 195 kilometres (120 miles) per hour, downing power pylons and smashing wooden fishing boats to splinters, reported Dhaka Tribune.Nine people died in Dapaing camp for displaced Rohingya near Sittwe, said its leader adding the camp was cut off and lacked supplies.

"People cannot come to our camp because bridges are broken... we need help," he said. (ANI)
The Balochistan government has once again expressed annoyance over the financial crisis and blamed Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government for the same, saying that the province is yet to receive the share of the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, according to Dawn. The NFC award is meant to distribute financial resources between the federal government (vertical distribution), and the provinces (horizontal distribution). Notably, Pakistan is a federation and has four federating units: Sindh, Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Balochistan. According to Express Tribune, the NFC award includes the distribution of taxes collected by the federal government which form a divisible pool. This pool includes taxes on income including corporate tax, sales tax and export duties, etc. In the past, Pakistan was a highly centralised federation, with the federal government having enormous power to levy taxes and then divide the proceeds to the provinces. Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo decried the "negative attitude of the federal finance and planning ministries" during the cabinet meeting he presided over on Tuesday this week. The meeting was informed that although Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had promised to donate (PKR) 10 billion for the rehabilitation of flood victims, the funds had still not been made available after 10 months to the people in the province. The finance and planning ministries were told by the prime minister to find a solution, but nothing has been done as of yet, he said, according to Dawn. The provincial ministers noted that Balochis were becoming angry and frustrated due to the federal government's unfavourable stance. It was determined that the provincial government will strongly oppose the matter to Islamabad. According to Dawn, a group comprised of the parliamentary party leaders, ministers from the provinces, senators, and MNAs will soon discuss the matter with the prime minister. The delegation will be led by the chief minister. Meanwhile, the Joint Action Committee, Balochistan University, Teachers, Officers and Employees Association in May called on the authorities to release PKR 1.11 billion by June 2023 in order to pull the University of Balochistan out of the financial crisis, Business Recorder reported. Professor Fareed Khan Achakzai and Shah Ali Bughti, leaders of the Joint Action Committee, Balochistan University, Teachers, Officers and Employees Association raised the demands while addressing a press conference at Quetta Press Club, as per the Business Recorder report. They said that academicians, officers and employees of the university had not received their monthly salaries for the past three months. They said that they have been on strike for the past one and a half month, calling on the authorities to get their monthly salaries released. They, however, said that the authorities were not paying attention to their demand. (ANI)
Social media platforms Twitter and Google registered a big win in US Supreme Court on Thursday as the court sidestepped claims that internet companies can be held accountable for the content posted on their sites, The Hill reported. The judges debated two cases in which the families of terrorist attack victims claimed that Google and Twitter should be held accountable for aiding and abetting ISIS, which resulted in the death of their loved ones. After the legal accusations, Google claimed that it was shielded from all of it by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, passed in 1996 to stop internet service providers from being held accountable for third-party information uploaded on their websites. However, the court decided on Thursday that neither company had any underlying obligation to require the protections, avoiding becoming involved in the contentious Section 230 argument, according to The Hill. In the Twitter case, conservative Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for a unanimous jury that the plaintiffs' claims came "far short of plausibly alleging that defendants aided and abetted the Reina attack." The incident dates back to the time when an ISIS-linked attacker opened fire at the Reina nightclub in the Ortakoy neighbourhood of Istanbul, Turkey, on January 1, 2017, killing at least 38 people, along with Nawras Alassaf. Hundreds of people had been enjoying New Year's Day there when the incident took place. The family of Alassaf filed a lawsuit against Twitter and other tech companies, claiming they did not do enough to combat the terrorist organisation. According to The Hill, similar facts were given in the Google case. The family of US citizen Nohemi Gonzalez, who perished in an ISIS attack in 2015 in Paris, filed a lawsuit against Google over its alleged YouTube recommendations of pro-ISIS films. Halimah DeLaine Prado, general counsel of Google, stated that the decision "will reassure the countless companies, scholars, content creators, and civil society organisations who joined us in this case.' "We'll continue our work to safeguard free expression online, combat harmful content, and support businesses and creators who benefit from the internet," Prado said, according to The Hill. Evidently, the two rulings do not settle the legal dispute over Section 230's application. Internet businesses of all sizes are shielded from liability under Section 230 for third-party content uploaded on their platforms. (ANI)
1 of 2 men arrested in Topeka homicide has been charged; the other is no longer a suspect

One man arrested by Topeka police in connection with a gunshot homicide committed last month was charged Wednesday while another is no longer considered a suspect.

One of two men Topeka police arrested in connection with an April 18 homicide was charged Wednesday in that case. The other is no longer considered a suspect.

Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay's office on Wednesday charged Daniel R. Gallow Jr., 24, with one count each of intentional and premeditated first-degree murder and the criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon linked to the April 18 homicide death in central Topeka of Troy Shepard, 55.

Topeka police on April 19 had arrested Christopher F. Ray, 32, in connection with crimes that included intentional and premeditated first-degree murder linked to Shepard's death.

"We never filed charges on Ray," Kagay said Wednesday. "We do not consider him a suspect in this homicide."

Gallow was arrested in case on Monday

Topeka police were called just after 3:15 p.m. April 18 to the shooting scene in the 900 block of S.W. 17th, where they found Shepard suffering from a life-threatening gunshot wound, said police Lt. Donna Eubanks.

Shepard was taken by ambulance to a Topeka hospital, where he later died, she said.

Gallow was arrested Monday in connection with first-degree murder and the criminal possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, both linked to Shepard's death, Eubanks said.

Gallow spent time on community corrections supervision linked to felony convictions for aggravated battery committed in 2018 in Shawnee County and theft committed in 2018 in Douglas County, according to Kansas Department of Corrections records.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: 1 arrested man charged, the other no longer a suspect in Topeka murder
10 of the best and boldest looks Anne Hathaway has worn this year so far

Anne Hathaway in 2023. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/Getty Images

Anne Hathaway is having a standout style year.

Since January, she's been photographed in glamorous gowns, chic streetwear, and daring minidresses.

The actor has also seemingly become fond of platform heels, chunky boots, and colorful tights.

Anne Hathaway is having a moment.

Sure, the "Devil Wears Prada" actor has at least two films slated for release in 2023. But so far this year, she's also become a fashion it-girl with the help of her stylist Erin Walsh.

From her corset coat at Sundance to her pinned-together gown at the Met Gala, these are the best and boldest looks Hathaway has worn so far this year.

Anne Hathaway kicked off 2023 at the Sundance Film Festival in a statement coat.

Anne Hathaway attends the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Versace designed her black, corseted puffer coat, which she wore as a statement piece with sheer tights and $2,625 lace-up boots.

Underneath, she sported a tweed, sparkle-covered minidress with gold Versace hardware on its straps.

Her street style was just as sharp when she attended Paris Fashion Week in January.

Anne Hathaway attends Paris Fashion Week 2023. Jacopo Raule/Getty Images

Hathaway was photographed on the streets of Paris, France, wearing a white sweater tucked into bell-bottom jeans, a navy-blue trench coat, and silver boots.

She also accessorized with a Valentino tote bag, square sunglasses, and a blue Breton cap.

Her boldest look of the week was a full leopard-print ensemble.

Anne Hathaway attends a Valentino show during Paris Fashion Week 2023. Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

She wore a crystal-covered, leopard-print minidress from Valentino with sparkling tights and satin pumps both in the same print.

Hathaway also carried a leopard-print clutch and wore diamond jewelry.

The "Eileen" star later attended the Berlin Film Festival where she experimented with the "naked" fashion trend.

Anne Hathaway attends the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival. Dominique Charriau/Getty Images

Valentino designed her sleeveless gown, which was made from tan mesh and embellished with a chainmail-style layer of leather bows.

The bold look also included long leather gloves, "no-makeup" makeup, and black pumps.

Hathaway continued to show the edgy side of her style that week with a hooded black gown.

Anne Hathaway attends the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival. Dominique Charriau/Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Getty Images

Wearing head-to-toe Alaia, Hathaway donned a black, long-sleeved gown with a deep neckline, long sleeves, and a statement hood.

There was also a ruched leather band around her waist and a long slit in the middle of its skirt, which revealed her sheer tights and statement sandals.

The shoes, which feature gold heels in the shape of legs, retail for $1,750.

Hathaway could have been mistaken for a Versace model when she attended the designer brand's show in March.

Anne Hathaway attends a Versace fashion show in Hollywood, California. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/Getty Images

She wore a snake-print minidress with thin straps and a bubble skirt, sheer tights, and a $2,225 pair of pointed Versace boots with gold buckles.

Hathaway completed the look with diamond bracelets and a choker, chunky sunglasses, and a small purse.

Her next look was a bit more feminine  but still bold.

Anne Hathaway attends the Bvlgari Hotel Tokyo opening. Tomohiro Ohsumi/Stringer/Getty Images

She wore a strapless little black dress that was covered top to bottom in fabric flowers and tied with a bow at the waist. It was designed by Givenchy.

And that's not to mention the diamond necklace and bracelets from Bvlgari that she added to the look.

But it was also at the Bvlgari event in April that Hathaway started bringing vibrant color back to her wardrobe.

Anne Hathaway attends a press conference during the Bvlgari Hotel Tokyo opening. Tomohiro Ohsumi/Stringer/Getty Images

She attended a press conference during the Bvlgari Hotel Tokyo opening in a purple minidress, matching tights, and purple platform heels.

The tweed gown Hathaway wore to the 2023 Met Gala was undoubtedly one of her best of the year.

Anne Hathaway attends the 2023 Met Gala. John Shearer/Getty Images

Her floor-length white gown was held together with gold safety pins  Versace's signature hardware  and embellished with two flower appliques at the chest.

She wore it with matching tweed gloves, platform heels, and a jacket that she carried over her shoulder.

But she outdid herself again at a Bvlgari event in Venice, Italy, this week.

Anne Hathaway attends the 2023 Bulgari Mediterranean High Jewelry event. Claudio Lavenia/Stringer/Getty Images

She wore a slinky, sleeveless Versace gown encrusted with beads and crystals in a variety of jewel tones.

There were also mesh panels across the dress that added a "naked" effect, and its long skirt was shredded with a bold, thigh-high slit.

Hathaway completed the outfit with a statement Bvlgari necklace crafted with massive pink gemstones.

Read the original article on Insider
Photo: The Canadian Press Members of the Air Line Pilots Association demonstrate outside WestJet headquarters in Calgary.

WestJet has started to cancel flights as talks with the pilots union remained at a critical impasse, the company said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of the May long weekend.

Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job as of 3 a.m. ET after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice Monday.

WestJet issued a statement early Thursday saying negotiations with the union remained in a stalemate.

"We remain at a critical impasse with the union and have been left with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage," CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in a statement.

WestJet Group is parking the majority of its 737 and 787 fleet in a "measured, phased and safe approach," the statement read. The airline said WestJet Encore, WestJet Link as well as limited 737 flights will continue to operate during this time.

With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28 per cent of Canada's domestic market, while Air Canada runs 47 per cent, according to flight data firm Cirium.

The federal labour minister and the government's head mediator as well as WestJet's CEO and the pilots' union leaders have all descended on a hotel near the Toronto airport to work toward a deal.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the union's WestJet contingent, says the workers' issues revolve around pay, job security and scheduling, with pilots earning roughly half of what some of their U.S. counterparts make. The company said Thursday the union's wage expectations were "unreasonable" and would "permanently damage the financial viability of the group's future."

The airline is advising travellers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, and to visit WestJet's guest updates web page or Swoop's online information hub for more information regarding flight status and travel changes.

As of early Thursday, WestJet's online daily flight status tracker showed 32 of its 162 listed departures out of its Calgary hub had been cancelled, while 20 of the airline's 50 flights out of Toronto's Pearson airport had also been cancelled.
These 10 public middle schools were named the best in Kentucky, and 2 are in Lexington

Two Lexington middle schools recently made a list of the top 10 best public middle schools in Kentucky, according to Niche, a site offering data on schools and colleges.

Niche creates ratings based on reviews and data. Sources include the U.S. Department of Education, Common Core Data, Civil Rights Data Collection and others.

The Best Public Middle Schools ranking uses the following methodology:

The academics grade is based on state assessments and student/parent surveys (worth 50% of overall grade)

The teachers grade is based on educator salary, teacher absenteeism, state test results and survey responses (20% of overall grade)

The district overall Niche grade is based on rigorous analysis of academic and student life data along with millions of reviews from students and parents, Niche says. (15% of overall grade)

The culture and diversity grade is based on racial and economic diversity and survey responses (10% of overall grade)

Parent/teacher surveys on overall experience make up 5% of the overall grade.

Heres how the top 10 public middle schools in Kentucky compared, via Niche:

10. Woodford County Middle School

Location: Versailles, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, A- diversity

More than 980 students in sixth to eighth grade attend Woodford County Middle School, which has a student-teacher ratio of 17 to 1, according to Niche.

State test scores show 67% of students are at least proficient in math and 72% are proficient in reading.

9. Highlands Middle School

Location: Fort Thomas, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A teachers, C+ diversity

Highlands Middle School is home to 767 students, with a student-teacher ratio of 18 to 1, Niche reports.

Math proficiency is at 68%, while 78% of Highlands Middle School students are at least proficient in reading.

8. Beaumont Middle School

Location: Lexington, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, A diversity

Beaumont Middle School has 854 students, with a student-teacher ratio of 14 to 1, according to Niche.

Reading proficiency is at 73% and math proficiency is at 65%.

The Kentucky Department of Education School Report Card gave Beaumont Middle School a green designation for the 2021-22 school year, putting it in the second-highest performance category.

7. East Oldham Middle School

Location: Crestwood, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, C+ diversity

East Oldham Middle School has 635 students, with a student-teacher ratio of 16 to 1, Niche reports.

Math proficiency is at 71%, and 74% of East Oldham Middle School students are proficient in reading.

6. Boyle County Middle School

Location: Danville, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, B- diversity

More than 645 students attend Boyle County Middle School, which has a student-teacher ratio of 15 to 1.

State test scores show 71% of students are proficient in math, and 75% are proficient in reading.

5. North Oldham Middle School

Location: Goshen, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, B- diversity

North Oldham Middle School has 763 students, with a student-teacher ratio of 18 to 1, according to Niche.

Math proficiency is at 75%, and reading proficiency is at 81%.

4. J. Graham Brown School

Location: Louisville, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, B+ teachers, A- diversity

J. Graham Brown is a magnet school teaching 753 students K-12 with a student-teacher ratio of 16 to 1.

Math proficiency is at 82%, and 88% of J. Graham Brown students are proficient in reading.

3. School for the Creative & Performing Arts at Bluegrass

Location: Lexington, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, B+ diversity

More than 270 students attend this magnet school in Lexington, which has a student-teacher ratio of 10 to 1, according to Niche.

Math proficiency is at 86%, and reading proficiency is at 95%.

The School for the Creative & Performing Arts at Bluegrass received the highest performance designation in the 2021-22 Kentucky School Report Card.

2. Murray Middle School

Location: Murray, Ky.

Grades: A overall, A academics, A+ teachers, B+ diversity

Murray Middle School has 696 students in grades four through eight, and its student-teacher ratio is 17 to 1, according to Niche.

Math proficiency is at 72%, while reading proficiency is at 79%.

1. Anchorage Independent Public School

Location: Anchorage, Ky.

Grades: A+ overall, A+ academics, A+ teachers, C+ diversity

More than 380 students attend Anchorage Independent Public School, which has a student-teacher ratio of 10 to 1, according to Niche.

State test scores show 84% of students are proficient in math and 88% are proficient in reading.

Do you have a question about education in Kentucky for our service journalism team? Wed like to hear from you. Fill out our Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.
It is a case that has long haunted the city of Fitchburg. In late 2013, five-year-old Jeremiah Oliver disappeared. Months later, in April 2014, his body was found in a suitcase tossed along Interstate 190 in Sterling. His killer has never been found -- until perhaps now.

Thursday, Alberto Sierra, Jr. was arraigned in Worcester Superior Court on a charge of First Degree Murder and Disinterment of a Body in connection with Olivers murder. He pleaded not guilty to both charges. The judge ordered Sierra held without bail. His next court appearance is later this month.

Sierras court appearance was brief -- but his involvement with the Oliver family is long and troubled. At the time Jeremiah disappeared, Sierra was the boyfriend of the childs mother. In late 2013, Jeremiahs seven-year-old sister alerted school authorities that she hadnt seen her brother for weeks -- and that Sierra abused her and her two siblings.

No bail for Fitchburg man charged in murder of 5-year-old boy whose remains were found in suitcase

In 2017, Sierra was convicted of assault on Olivers family members -- with the exception of Jeremiah. The DA left the murdered child out of that case to continue pursuing a homicide investigation without the possible risk of legal double jeopardy. Sierra was sentenced to 6 to 7 years in prison on those assault charges.

The Massachusetts Department of Corrections did not respond to Boston 25s request regarding how long Sierra actually served -- but the DAs office said he was not imprisoned at the time of this latest arrest.

Among those attending Sierras arraignment... Fitchburg Police Chief Ernest Martineau. He got the call Wednesday informing him of the arrest.

That phone call I received meant the world to me because I knew what this case meant to our investigators, Martineau said. Some of those investigators, he added, are now retired.

The case rocked the conscience of the city of Fitchburg, Martineau said. We made a commitment 10 years ago that we would never give up. That wed never forget. And that came to fruition yesterday.

One reason the Jeremiah Oliver case was so troubling is that it might not have happened -- if a Department of Child and Family Services worker assigned to the Olivers visited them on a regular basis. But for months that worker failed to show up. DCFs failures in the Oliver case led Gov. Deval Patrick to order an independent investigation of the agency.

Martineau is relieved a suspect is in custody. But there is nothing happy about this case.

It haunts any parent when you see a case like this, said Martineau. Anything that happens to a child just eats at your soul.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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via GoFundMe

A 15-year-old high school student in Indiana drowned in the middle of gym class this week despite both a lifeguard and instructor being present.

Family members identified the student as Alaina Dildine in a GoFundMe set up to cover funeral expenses, which lamented that the community will never know the enormity of this loss of this special angel.

Dildine had been swimming laps with her PE class at Whiteland Community High School on Tuesday when she suddenly went under the water, the school district said.

It was not clear how long she remained underwater before being pulled out, but Patrick Spray, superintendent at Clark-Pleasant Community School Corporation, said at a Wednesday press conference that a lifeguard and instructor were on the pool deck at the time.

The school district initially said she had suffered a medical emergency, but the official cause of death has not yet been determined and will not be revealed until toxicology results come in, the Johnson County Coroners Office said.

Despite the efforts of our staff and emergency responders, the student has passed away, the school district said in a statement. The specific cause and circumstances surrounding this tragedy are not yet known, and a thorough investigation will take place.

This young lady was such a beautiful human, who loved her family, friends, her community, art, animals, and band, Spray said.

Her death has left classmates at the high school reeling and the community grappling with how such a tragedy could occur while she was under supervision.

A friend of Dildines tearfully told local outlet WRTV that she had been in the pool right before the incident.

Sometimes I would look left, just to look at the water or whatever. Yesterday I didnt. I didnt look and sometimes I think maybe something couldve changed if I had saw her or something. If I just looked to the left. I didnt this time, she said.

I dont know the full story, but its just, you know, disappointing in some ways, another student told Fox 59.

The Johnson County sheriff is leading an investigation into Dildines death.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Two people have been arrested and charged with murder in the May 3 shooting death of a 6-year-old in Kansas City, Kansas, according to police.

Lakevis Sloan, 20, and a 17-year-old juvenile have been charged with second-degree murder in the killing of SirAntonio Brown, who was fatally shot while playing in front of his home.

Sloan and the juvenile, who has not been named publicly, were arrested Tuesday evening with the help of the FBI after they were spotted leaving a Greyhound bus in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, according to a news release Thursday from the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department. Sioux Falls is more than 360 miles north of Kansas City.

The Wyandotte County District Attorneys Office has also charged Sloan with aggravated assault and aggravated endangerment of a child, according to charging documents.

Sloan will be held on a $500,000 bond, said Johnathan Carter, a spokesman for the office.

Both suspects await extradition back to Kansas City, Kansas, where they are residents.

Shyneisha Hill, the godmother of 6-year-old SirAntonio Brown, wipes a tear from her face during a vigil on May 10 in Kansas City, Kansas.

The two are the latest to be charged in connection with the shooting. An 18-year-old, Cassandra Sledge, was accused of lying to law enforcement about the suspects involved. The Wyandotte County District Attorney charged her with obstructing prosecution on May 10.

In a written statement, Kansas City, Kansas, police detective Mark Bundy said investigators are searching for an unidentified third suspect.

We want SirAntonios family and our community to know that we are not slowing down the pace of this investigation, he said.

Somebody out there knows who this third suspect is, and where he is. Now is the time to make the call.

The investigation by the police departments Major Case Unit is ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.
Two juveniles have been arrested in the shooting death of Tucker, a 6-pound chihuahua who belonged to an Alexandria family.

Two juveniles have been arrested after an investigation into the shooting death of a pet dog.

No information about the juveniles was released by the Alexandria Police Department, other than that both were arrested on charges of aggravated cruelty to an animal.

The arrests come less than a week after the death of Tucker, a six-pound chihuahua that belonged to the family of Alexandria resident Latoya Easley Hamilton.

She told The Town Talk that she filed a police report on Monday after hearing rumors that an Alexandria Senior High School student shot Tucker during a senior prank.

The shooting happened on May 13, she said. The dog was found by a neighbor between their yard and hers, and she said it looked like the dog had been trying to get back home.

Hamilton said Tucker sometimes would wiggle out of their back yard, but she said he never strayed far or for long. She said they sometimes would find him in neighbors' yards.

She was set to take her 15-year-old daughter, also an ASH student, to try out for the volleyball team on the day of the shooting. When she arrived to pick up her daughter, she found her hysterical, she said.

'So sad': Alexandria family looking for answers after beloved dog shot, killed on Saturday

Wednesday incident: Louisiana Congressman Clay Higgins has physical altercation with protestor at U.S. Capitol

Hamilton said she saw a little blood on the dog, but nothing that would indicate a serious issue. She said she thought he might be dehydrated. But when she picked him up and found him to be mostly unresponsive, Tucker was taken to Crossroads Animal Emergency Clinic.

An X-ray revealed a projectile lodged in his chest. He died as he was being prepped for emergency surgery.

The family later posted about Tucker's death on a neighborhood chat and Facebook.

Word got the family on Monday from another student who overheard a group talking at the school about how someone had shot a small dog while doing senior pranks in the Bocage subdivision. After that, Hamilton decided to file the report.

While the investigation was underway, social media commenters were appalled by Tucker's death. Some began posting screenshots of comments purportedly from ASH students who were talking about the incident.

One included a photo of four young men standing in the McDonald's parking lot on Jackson Street, three of them holding pellet-type guns.

Because the two arrested are juveniles, no information will be available about the outcome of those cases. The department has stated an investigation is continuing, however.

Anyone who has information on Tucker's shooting can call detectives at 318-441-6416 or 318-441-6559.

Tips can be left with Crime Stoppers of Cenla for possible cash rewards. Call 318-443-7867 or use their app at www.p3tips.com/community/mobile.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Alexandria Police arrest 2 juveniles on cruelty charges in dog's death
Two components of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system were damaged during a Russian missile attack.

Source: CNN citing sources

Quote: "The Russian barrage  which consisted of hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, Kalibr cruise missiles and other munitions  damaged the Patriot batterys generator and part of the systems electronics."

Details: The damage was minimal, according to three other US officials, with one describing it as "minor." The system remained functional throughout the attack and remains online, an official said.

The US sent inspectors to examine the system on Tuesday, after being told by the Ukrainians that the system appeared to have been damaged, one of the officials said.

US officials are still assessing how exactly the Patriot components were damaged since it does not appear that any of the components sustained a direct hit from a Russian Kinzhal missile or other munition.

One possibility is that debris from a falling missile damaged the Patriot components, but officials are examining other options as well.

Background:

The Ministry of Defence of Russia previously stated that on 16 May, the Patriot was hit in Kyiv with an allegedly "high-precision strike" by a Kinzhal missile.

The Ukrainian Air Force answered that the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system cannot be destroyed with a single strike, even if it is a Kinzhal missile.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine added that, on the contrary, it was the Patriots that shot down six Kinzhal missiles near Kyiv on 16 May.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
A 20-year-old died from a fentanyl overdose. Now his NC dealer is headed to prison.

A 32-year-old Smithfield man is facing more than two decades in prison for his role in a 20-year-old mans fatal overdose.

Shamel Nesbitt was sentenced Thursday afternoon to 292 months in prison for dealing fentanyl that caused two men to overdose, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Michael Easleys office.

In 2017, Lucas Urbina and his unnamed friend purchased narcotics from Nesbitt. The friends both overdosed on the drugs and spent time in a local hospital. Although the friend was resuscitated and released from the hospital, Urbina never regained consciousness, the statement said.

Urbina died on Nov. 22, 2017.

Soon after, Johnston County Sheriffs Offices began investigating the case and law enforcement determined Nesbitt had sold Urbina the fentanyl that killed him.

In August, Nesbitt was convicted of distributing cyclopropyl fentanyl.

Our overdose crisis wont be solved by prosecution alone, but sentences like this are a warning, Easley said in a statement.

Death by distribution

As the country grapples with an ongoing increase in synthetic opioid deaths, jurisdictions have turned to a new way to prosecute those who deal drugs that cause buyers to fatally overdose.

Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper in 2019 in response to growing opioid-related deaths, death by distribution is a criminal charge that punishes people who sell drugs to buyers who fatally overdose on those drugs. In such cases, prosecutors must prove:

 The persons death was caused by ingesting opium, cocaine or methamphetamine.

 The defendant intentionally distributed the drugs.

 The distribution was the cause of the death.

 The defendant acted with a standard of malice.
Twenty-nine Iowans linked to two prominent Mexican drug cartels have been arrested as a result of a yearlong U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration investigation.

Operation Last Mile targeted operatives, associates and distributors affiliated with the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels responsible for the distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine on local streets and social media. According to a release, officials across the country confiscated more than 43 million fentanyl pills and more than 91,000 pounds of methamphetamine.

These arrests are part of a yearlong investigation in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota where they linked 26 cases to the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels. More cases and arrests are expected.

More: Gov. Kim Reynolds signs law to crack down on Iowa's fentanyl epidemic. Here's what it will do:

What is the Sinaloa cartel?

The Sinaloa cartel is an international crime organization based in the Sinaloa state in Mexico. The group was formed in the early 1980s trafficking marijuana and was famously led by Ismael Zambada-Garcia Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as El Chapo, according to Britannica.

"The Sinaloa Cartel is a ruthless organization who uses violence and torture to maintain their control of their empire," Steven Bell, assistant special agent in charge at the DEA Omaha division, which oversaw the investigation, said in an email.

In the early 2000s, the Sinaloa cartel was operating in more than 50 countries and was especially dominate in the U.S., selling cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana. By 2015, U.S. officials said the cartel controlled the drug market in almost every state, with an annual revenue that ranged from $3 billion to $39 billion, according to Britannica.

The Associated Press reported last week a son of El Chapo and three members of the cartel were sanctioned by the U.S. for allegedly trafficking fentanyl and other drugs in the country.

What is the Jalisco cartel?

The Jalisco New Generation cartel, also known as its Spanish initials CJNG, was described by NPR in 2020 as Mexico's most powerful drug trafficking organization. It's known for its murder of public officials, police and citizens. Its main commodities are cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl, according to Bell, and use "brutal tactics" against anyone who distributes drugs in their area without permission.

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Jalisco cartel dominates in fentanyl and methamphetamine trafficking. Their power grew after El Chapo was arrested in 2017 and three years later they surpassed the Sinaloa cartel in its reach throughout Mexico.

"The CJNG and Sinaloa Cartel do not get along and often kill each other in effort to expand control of drug trafficking areas," Bell said.

More: A Des Moines woman died from fentanyl bought on Snapchat. Her parents are suing the app.

What did the local investigation reveal?

Fentanyl seizures both in pill and powder form continue to increase, the released said, while methamphetamine seizures shot up 55% between 2018 and 2022. Omaha investigators made 87 arrests and seized 60 firearms tied to one of the two cartels.

Officials learned in the investigation the cartels use"violent local street gangs," criminal gangs and individuals across the country to bring in fentanyl and methamphetamine into American communities. They also found that social media applications like Facebook and Snapchat, as well as encrypted platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram are used to coordinated logistics and get in touch with victims, the release said.

The news is full of stories detailing the number of lives lost to drug poisonings and violent acts that came as a direct result of drug trafficking," Justin King, DEA Omaha Division special agent in charge, said in the release. "These crimes, perpetuated by the Sinaloa and Jalisco Cartels, are not victimless as evident by the tragic loss of life to toxic substances being pushed into our neighborhoods.

How many drugs did the DEA find?

Nationally, the DEA's investigation over the past 12 months has resulted in 3,337 arrests and the seizure of:

$104,786,555

43,616,361 fentanyl pills

6,547 pounds of fentanyl powder

91,250 pounds of methamphetamines

8,497 firearms

More: Addiction treatment proponents urge rural clinicians to pitch in by prescribing medication

Who are the Iowans arrested?

The investigation in Iowa as part of Operation Last Mile remains under seal and still is ongoing, officials say. The names of those arrested were not released.

Noelle Alviz-Gransee is a breaking news reporter at the Des Moines Register. Follow her on Twitter @NoelleHannika or email her at NAlvizGransee@registermedia.com.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: DEA arrests 29 Iowans linked to Mexican drug cartels Sinaloa, Jalisco
Three people are facing homicide charges after the Tuesday shooting of a 19-year-old Glenmora man.

Three people are facing homicide charges after the Tuesday shooting of a 19-year-old Glenmora man.

Derrick Harris died after the shooting Tuesday night near the 13th and Division streets area in Glenmora, according to the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office. Investigators were told there had been an altercation between Harris and the three suspects that ended with guns being fired, reads a news release.

The sheriff's office and Glenmora Police Department investigated the shooting. Soon, detectives identified three people from the Oakdale area as suspects.

The next day, the first person was arrested. Jaiden Holmes, 19, of Elizabeth, was booked into the Rapides Parish Detention Center #1 on charges of second-degree murder, assault by drive-by shooting and criminal conspiracy. He remains in jail on a bail set at $1.52 million.

Nicholas Earl Holmes, a 20-year-old resident of Oakdale, was arrested Wednesday on eight counts of cyberstalking. He was arrested again on Thursday on charges of second-degree murder, assault by drive-by shooting and criminal conspiracy.

Tucker's death: 2 juveniles arrested on aggravated animal cruelty charges in shooting death of pet dog

Louisiana State Police: Impairment suspected in Wednesday crash that killed Boyce man

The cyberstalking charges are related to the homicide case, according to the sheriff's office. It's not known if the Holmes are related, however.

The last suspect arrested Thursday was Jason D. Walker, 18, of Oakdale. He was arrested in Oakdale on warrants for second-degree murder, assault by drive-by shooting and criminal conspiracy and was booked into the Oakdale City Jail.

The release states he'll be brought to Alexandria later.

The investigation remains active, "and more arrests are likely," it reads.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call detectives Jason Hagan or Matt Cross at 318-473-6727, the sheriff's office at 318-473-6700 or Crime Stoppers at 318-443-7867.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: 3 arrested after fatal shooting of Derrick Harris, 19, in Glenmora
FILE - In this image made from Camden County, Ga., Detention Center surveillance video provided by attorney Harry Daniels, jailers beat detainee Jarrett Hobbs at the facility in Georgia, Sept. 3, 2022. On Wednesday, May 17, 2023, a grand jury in Georgia indicted three former sheriffs officers in the beating of Hobbs, a Black jail detainee, that was recorded by security cameras. (Camden County Detention Center/Courtesy of Attorney Harry Daniels via AP, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

WOODBINE, Ga. (AP)  A grand jury in Georgia has indicted three former sheriffs officers in the beating of a Black jail detainee that was recorded by security cameras.

The indictment handed down Wednesday in coastal Camden County charges ex-deputy Ryan Biegel and former jail officers Braxton Massey and Mason Garrick with misdemeanor counts of battery and simple battery as well as a felony count of violating their oath of office.

The charges stem from the September beating of Jarrett Hobbs, who was jailed after a traffic stop. Security camera video showed the white officers rush into Hobbs' cell and begin punching him in the head and neck. Another camera recorded Hobbs being hurled against a wall and pinned to the floor.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation began looking into the beating after Hobbs' attorneys obtained the video footage. In November, all three men were fired after being arrested on the same charges contained in the indictment.

The indictment means a grand jury found sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.

Defense attorneys listed in court records for Garrett and Massey did not immediately respond to email messages seeking comment Thursday. The records did not identify an attorney for Biegel.

Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney Keith Higgins in February dropped charges of assault and obstruction filed against Hobbs after the beating. The prosecutor also dismissed the traffic violation and drug possession charges that led to Hobbs being jailed.

At the time of his arrest in Georgia, Hobbs, of Greensboro, North Carolina, was on probation following a 2014 guilty plea to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. Hobbs was returned to federal prison after authorities determined he violated terms of his probation by leaving North Carolina.
Photo: The Canadian Press Collins Bay Institution in Kingston, Ont.

Police say a man who escaped from a minimum-security unit at a federal prison in Kingston, Ont., has been found.

Ontario Provincial Police spokesperson Bill Dickson said the 42-year-old inmate was taken into custody without incident on Wednesday.

Police had said earlier that prison staff discovered the inmate was missing during a formal count at the Collins Bay Institution on Tuesday.

The man was serving an indeterminate sentence for second-degree murder.

Dickson said the man has been charged with being unlawfully at large.

Correctional Service Canada said it will conduct an investigation into what happened.
3 former officers involved in beating of inmate in Camden County Jail indicted by Grand Jury

WARNING: Some viewers may find the video above difficult to watch

Three officers who were involved in the beating of an inmate at the Camden County Jail in Woodbine in September have been indicted by the Grand Jury, District Attorney Keith Higgins announced Thursday.

Action News Jax told you in November when the officers were fired, arrested by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and released on bond.

Mason Garrick, Braxton Massey, and Ryan Biegel were indicted on the following charges:

Battery

Simple Battery

Two counts each of Violation of Oath by Public Officer

Mason Garrick, Braxton Massey, and Ryan Biegel are charged with battery of an inmate and violating the oath of office, the Camden County Sheriff's Office said.

After the video of the beating was released on social media, the Camden County Sheriffs Office said Monday, Nov. 14 it was conducting an internal investigation.

CCSO said at that time that their investigation would include all recorded video from the time the inmate entered the facility on September 3rd, 2022 until his release on September 30th, 2022.

READ: Civil rights leaders call for arrest of officers accused of beating Camden County inmate

On Tuesday, Nov. 15, Higgins, who represents the Brunswick Judicial Circuit, requested that the GBI conducted an investigation into the beating of 41-year-old Jarrett Hobbs from Greensboro, North Carolina, which originally happened on Sept. 3.

GBI Director Michael Register said as part of its investigation, GBI agents went to North Carolina to interview Hobbs about the incident.

The results of the investigation were turned over to Higgins office and the case was presented to the Camden County Grand Jury on Wednesday, May 17.

READ: Man beaten by Camden County deputies speaks out in interview

Higgins released the following statement Thursday on the indictments:

Peace officers have great power over those who are in their custody and control. We trust our officers to responsibly exercise their power and properly treat the people who are being detained. When our trust is broken by the excessive use of force, the officers must be held accountable. No one is above the law. Those who enforce the law cannot be allowed to break it.

READ: GBI to investigate after video shows inmate being beaten in Camden County Jail

Massey was employed with CCSO for 6 months, Garrick for 18 months, and Biegel was employed by CCSO for 3 years. Their employment with CCSO was terminated before their arrests.

The other two employees involved in the incident face disciplinary actions resulting from findings of the Internal Investigation conducted by the Sheriffs Office, CCSO said in November.

READ: Camden County Sheriffs Office investigating after video surfaces of inmate being beaten in jail

While speaking about the investigation in November, Register said he was shocked when he saw the video.

As a citizen, my reaction was like anyone else ... you know it shocked the conscience. But Ive also been in law enforcement long enough to understand that we have to stop, take a knee, and look at the facts, and put everything into context, Register said.

According to Camden County Jail records, Hobbs had been arrested for speeding, driving with a suspended/revoked license and possession of a controlled substance on Sept. 3. The office of Harry Daniels, the Atlanta-based attorney representing Hobbs, said Hobbs was charged with assault after he was beaten by the officers.

READ: Assault, battery charges against man beaten in Camden County Jail dropped

Daniels office initially released two surveillance videos, which do not have sound, from inside the jail. The first video shows Hobbs in a small cell, picking up a small object and what appears to be a sandwich off a bench when several officers come rushing in. The first guard puts a hand on Hobbs neck. Other guards come in to help restrain him, and another guard comes in and starts punching Hobbs on the top of his head.

Another video from another angle shows a corrections officer unlock the door, then several guards enter the cell. After about 35 seconds, the guards can be seen pulling Hobbs into the hallway and at least two guards can be seen striking Hobbs body with their knees. Daniels office claims that one of Hobbs dreadlocks was ripped from his head during the incident.

On Monday, Nov. 21, Daniels sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) requesting that it also investigate the beating and the officers involved for violating Hobbs civil rights and potentially committing a hate crime. Click HERE to view that letter.

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Hobbs is being represented by Daniels and Bakari Sellers. They released the following statement about the indictments:

This indictment further demonstrates that the people will not tolerate this kind of abuse just because the abusers wear a badge.

That being said, lets be clear. The culture of violence and corruption at this detention center and the Camden County Sheriffs Office do not begin or end with these officers or the beating that occurred on September 3, 2022.

Sheriff Jim Proctor did his best to ignore this incident and his deputies crimes and sweep them under the rug. In fact, it wasnt until we released this video of the beating that anything happened at all and then, it wasnt Sheriff Proctor who took action. It was the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Combine that with multiple other incidents like the May 4, 2021 killing of 37-year-old Latoya James and the pattern of violence at the Camden County Sheriffs Office becomes clear and we wont rest until its stopped. Lives are at stake.

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In February, Higgins office dropped all charges against Hobbs.

Higgins office said the battery and simple battery charges the officers face are misdemeanors with a possible punishment of up to 12 months in jail. Violation of oath by public officer is a felony with a possible punishment of 1 to 5 years in prison.

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Thanks to this weeks special legislative session, we now have a uniform drug possession law in Washington state.

If lawmakers hadnt succeeded, the state law currently on the books would have ended July 1 and then it would have been up to cities and counties to establish their own ordinances.

Such a crazy quilt of drug laws would have been a mess. In Tri-Cities alone, Richland and Kennewick passed their own laws on the issue and Pasco hadnt yet..

So while it is a relief lawmakers were finally able to reach a consensus, there were three legislators representing rural Eastern Washington who just couldnt go along with the compromise.

Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, and Reps. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy and Joe Schmick, R-Colfax, all represent the geographically vast 9th District.

Considering the bipartisan measure was approved with a 43-6 vote in the Senate and an 83-13 vote in the House, the combined No votes from the 9th District stood out.

Senate Bill 5536 was not decided on party lines. There were Democrats and Republicans both in favor and against it.

So the nay votes from the 9th District were less about partisan posturing and more about the difference between managing drug addiction in urban and rural communities.

The 9th District is comprised mostly of farmland and small towns. It runs from southern Spokane County down to the Oregon border, and then from the Idaho border in the east all the way to Connell in Franklin County to the west.

While the need to tackle drug problems and crime in city centers is obvious, Dye said drugs are everywhere and her rural district is no different.

She told the Herald that the drug line in her region gets started in Spokane and works its way south to Washington State University in Pullman, and then on through Asotin County in the southeastern corner of the state.

She has been told by constituents that they cant take their kids to certain parks because thats where addicts tend to congregate.

The new law, which was approved in a quick one-day special session on Tuesday, makes drug possession a gross misdemeanor, which means theres a penalty of up to 180 days in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000 for the first and second offense. The penalties increase with a second conviction.

There is also an effort to get addicts into treatment by allowing them to enter a pretrial diversion program. If they complete it, they can seek to have their drug charges removed from their records.

But those treatment programs wont work if they dont exist.

That was among the issues for the 9th District lawmakers.

Rep. Schmick said there are small, rural counties that dont have a way of providing those services. He also is concerned that not enough attention is being paid to workforce issues.

Even if the state funds the building of new mental health facilities, they wont be able to operate without enough staff  and rural counties have an even tougher time attracting qualified employees.

Consider that the 9th District includes Columbia County, which has about 4,000 people and just closed its county jail. The district also includes Garfield County, which has around 2,300 people and is the least populated county in the state.

While the recently approved bill allocates $63 million to help with treatment and other programs, how that money ends up affecting rural communities remains to be seen.

Senator Schoesler said the latest compromise bill is better than no bill at all, and its better than the bill the Legislature left on the table when it ended its regular session in April.

But he believes it still needs work and he is hopeful that lawmakers will be willing to revisit the issue in 2024. Hes concerned that those convicted of drug charges will be able to plea bargain their case down and circumvent the system thats been put in place.

The concerns by Schoesler, Dye and Schmick are all valid and point to the fact that even though the Legislature made a good save this week, theres still work to be done.
The race for Alberta is halfway through and too close to call, so theres a lot riding on Thursdays debate.

The spotlight in this short campaign has been squarely on United Conservative Party Leader Danielle Smith  thanks to the NDP war room.

A party needs 44 seats to win a majority in Albertas legislature. Polls ahead of the campaign pointed to a close race and a short majority for the UCP  50 seats, give or take.

The script has been told and written many times: the NDP should sweep Edmonton; the UCP should win a vast majority of seats outside of urban centers; and the UCP and NDP could more or less evenly split Calgary.

 The campaign so far: In the two weeks that have come and gone, the campaign has featured a drip of unearthed videos in which Smith explains why Alberta should privatize its hospitals, or that police officers who enforced Covid restrictions should face criminal charges.

You probably heard she once compared the 75 percent of Albertans who got vaccinated to followers of Hitler.

Before running for the UCP, Smith spent most of the past decade in front of a camera or behind a microphone, so expect more to surface before election day on May 29.

The horserace is now tighter according to a myriad of polls, but with some discrepancies:

 Abacus Data: The pollster has measured the NDP ahead by an 8-point margin (43 to 35 percent, with 14 percent undecided). Among decided voters, the NDP lead jumps to 10 points. Abacus had the parties deadlocked at 36 percent in late April, so this is a statistically significant movement in favor of the NDP.

The pollsters regional numbers have Rachel Notleys NDP winning most support in both urban centers (NDP +8 in Calgary, NDP +39 in Edmonton) while trailing the UCP in the regions by a surprisingly narrow 10-point margin (51 to 41 percent). Such a scenario would most likely mean a return to power for the Alberta NDP.



 Mainstreet Research: The pollster began its rolling poll of Alberta last weekend. The numbers available as of this writing showed the UCP leading by 5 points province-wide.

Mainstreet has the NDP leading in the cities (the regional numbers and demographic breakdown are behind a paywall), but trailing badly in the regions. The numbers depict a toss-up with the winner barely above the 44-seat threshold.

Mainstreet President Quito Maggi says that since a 2021 video of Smith talking about selling off hospitals emerged, the UCP has lost significant support among Calgary seniors. While its good to be cautious of subsamples (because smaller samples have higher uncertainty), Maggi mentions the UCP had a 10+ lead among seniors in Calgary at the start of the campaign. That lead has flipped in favor of the NDP.

The UCP is toast if that doesnt change, he said.

Smith has since promised to not privatize hospitals, pledging that no Albertan will have to pay for doctor visits or necessary care. She told reporters last week that her past comments do not dictate her actions as premier, a phrase that raised quite a few eyebrows.

 One more poll: Earlier this week, a leaked poll from Janet Brown Opinion Research showed a radically different picture.

The numbers fielded earlier in the month suggested an 11-point lead for the UCP province-wide, including a double-digit lead in Calgary. The poll was a stark contrast to other firms and wildly different from the Brown poll commissioned in April by the CBC, which had the NDP leading in Calgary.

In response to this poll, Abacus Data went back into the field. The NDP and UCP are statistically tied province-wide, pollster David Coletto said Wednesday.

 The state of play: The latest 338Canada Alberta seat projection has the NDP and UCP deadlocked, even though the UCP enjoys a slight edge because of its sheer number of safe, unshakable seats. The rollercoaster continues.

The models uncertainty is far greater than the gap between the parties. The almost daily fluctuations are a feature of a race this close, not a bug.

The UCP still has the highest floor and the highest ceiling, but momentum has not been on its side so far in the campaign.

In theory, incumbency and party brand should give the Conservatives a modest edge, though many observers argue the enthusiasm gap could wipe out that edge in favor of the NDP  and then some.

In theory works generally well when there is precedent to lean on. There is no recent precedent for what were witnessing in this race with 11 days to go.
3rd Assault Brigade

The breakthrough strip measures 2 km in width and has a depth of 700 m. The brigade estimates that least 50 Russian invaders have been killed in the advance, with around 100 wounded and four captured. Several equipment and munitions dumps were also eliminated during the action.

The successful assault was conducted by the fighters of the 1st Assault and 1st Mechanized Battalions, according to the 3rd Assault Brigade.

Read also: Top Ukrainian commander shows aerial reconnaissance in action in Bakhmut  video

Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Malyar reported on May 16 that Ukrainian forces had liberated approximately 20 square kilometers in the northern and southern suburbs of Bakhmut over the course of several days. However, there has been some progress made by Russian occupiers within the city.

On May 18, Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesperson for the Eastern Operational Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, stated that the Armed Forces had made another significant advance of 1,700 meters in the direction of Bakhmut within the past 24 hours.

Read also: Ukraine claims limited success at Bakhmut

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
3rd Separate Assault Brigade breaks through on Bakhmut's outskirts  this is springboard for further counteroffensive

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade, as part of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has reported a breakthrough on the western outskirts of Bakhmut; the defenders advanced 2,000 metres in width and 700 metres in depth.

Source: The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade

Quote: "The third assault brigade carried out offensive actions on the western outskirts of Bakhmut, creating a springboard for a further counteroffensive.

The width of the breakthrough strip was 2,000 metres, and the depth was 700 metres.".

Details: According to the defenders, the Russians have at least 50 200s [killed soldiers] and up to a hundred 300s [wounded soldiers].

Another four Russians were captured.

The reserves of the occupiers in this direction were liquidated, in particular several Russian ammunition depots.

It is reported that successful assault operations were carried out by fighters of the 1st Assault and 1st Mechanised Battalions.

Previously: The 3rd Assault Brigade is performing combat tasks at the contact line as part of Tactical Group Alpha.

This is a group whose base consists of fighters of the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. Also, Tactical Group Alpha includes other special units of the Armed Forces. The commander of the group is Andrii Biletskyi.

For several months in a row, the units personnel have been destroying Russians on the contact line in Bakhmut.

Background:

Ukraine's defenders advanced by 150 to 1,700 metres on the Bakhmut front over the past 24 hours, killing 130 Russian soldiers and capturing four.

As of 15 May, Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesman for the Skhid (East) Group of Forces, said that over the course of the past two days, Ukraines Defence Forces had advanced 350 metres to 2 kilometres on the flanks around Bakhmut.

Earlier, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said that Ukrainian forces had liberated nearly 20 square kilometres on the Bakhmut front and repeated that fierce fighting for the city of Bakhmut itself is still underway, with Russian forces making minor gains.

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4 children whose plane crashed in the Colombian jungle 2 weeks ago have been declared alive  but authorities have yet to confirm they're safe

A soldier and a dog take part in a search operation for child survivors from a Cessna 206 plane that had crashed in the jungle more than two weeks ago, in Caqueta, Colombia May 17, 2023. Colombian Air Force/Handout via Reuters

Four children reportedly survived crash landing in the Colombian jungle, and a massive search ensued.

Colombia's president announced they were found, but other authorities did not confirm this.

If found, the children  aged 11 months to 13 years  will have survived 16 days in the jungle.

A massive search for four young children in Colombia continues with multiple questions unanswered, after their plane crashed in the jungle, killing all adults on board two weeks ago.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro tweeted on Wednesday that the children had been found alive, causing national jubilation.

However, since then, the tweet has disappeared, and the country's military cautioned that they have not made contact with the children, according to local newspaper El Espectador. Further reports suggest they have been sighted but not yet rescued.

The Cessna 206, carrying seven people, crashed on May 1 after signaling an engine failure, landing in dense jungle in the Caqueta region, according to local reports.

The plane, along with the bodies of three adults  including the children's mother  was found on Tuesday, the BBC reported. But there were also signs of potential survivors.

Colonel Juan Jose Lopez said: "We think that the children who were aboard the plane are alive," the BBC reported. "We have found traces at a different location, away from the crash site, and a place where they may have sheltered."

If alive, the children  whose ages range from 11 months to 13 years  will have survived 16 days in the jungle.

A massive search involving multiple agencies and armed forces has been under way. More than 100 soldiers plus sniffer dogs and aircraft have been deployed, the Colombian Air Force announced.

It said that on Wednesday it also transmitted audio messages in Huitoto, the children's native language, from speakers attached to the aircraft, recorded by their grandmother and telling them not to wander further off.

After Petro's tweet, the Colombian armed forces issued a notice cautioning that they had not made contact with the children. Nor has OPIAC, the country's national organization for indigenous groups  which was closely involved in finding the aircraft  confirmed the find.

Colombia's child protection agency ICBF sent out a clarifying statement saying that it had been the source of the president's information about the children being found.

It had received reports from local indigenous communities saying the children had been found alive and healthy, it said, while acknowledging the armed forces had not made contact with the children yet.

A statement from Avianline Charter, the company that rented out the aircraft, also offered a tentative version of events.

According to El Pais' translation of the statement, the pilot of a light aircraft that landed at a nearby airstrip had also heard from locals that the youngsters were alive and traveling downriver. He radioed this information onwards.

The company's statement also noted that electrical storms and heavy rain could have impeded progress and radio communications in the search.

Read the original article on Insider
5 key updates in whats going on with Russia and Ukraine

Derailed train cars carrying grain are seen next to the railroad track, in Crimea on Thursday, May 18, 2023. Quoting a source within the emergency services, state news agency RIA Novosti said that the incident occurred not far from the city of Simferopol. The Crimean Railway reported that the derailment was caused by the interference of unauthorized persons and that there were no casualties. | Associated Press

Russian attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities have increased in recent weeks, despite Ukraine shooting down a large majority of the strikes.

Ukraines air defenses managed to intercept 29 of the 30 missiles fired into the country Thursday. But there were explosions heard in Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions in the early hours of Thursday, CNN reported.

Information on the number of people killed or injured has not been made available yet, except that officials said one person was killed and two were wounded from a missile strike on the Black Sea port of Odesa, per BBC.

Here are five of the key updates on what is going on in Ukraine.

1. Attacks in Kyiv

Thursdays attacks mark the ninth attack on the capital this month, The New York Times reported.

A series of air attacks on Kyiv, unprecedented in its power, intensity and variety, continues, Serhiy Popko, Kyivs military administrator, said in a post on Telegram, per the Times.

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Police Press Office, fragments of a Russian rocket which was shot down by Ukraines air defence system are seen after the night rocket attack in the Kyiv region, Ukraine, Thursday, May 18, 2023. | Ukrainian Police Press Office via Associated Press

2. Fighting continues in Ukraines eastern city of Bakhmut

The eastern city of Bakhmut continues to face heavy and intense fighting, but according to CNN, Ukraines forces are holding on to substantial areas around Bakhmut that it claims to have taken back from Russian troops.

3. Russia says train derailment in Crimea caused by explosion

Rail traffic has been suspended between the cities of Simferopol and Sevastopol following a freight train carrying grain that got derailed.

According to BBC, Simferopol is the regional capital of Ukraines Crimea peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, and Russias head of regional parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov, claims the derailment was caused by an explosion.

Eight cars total derailed, and no injuries were reported.

4. China calls on Russia, Ukraine to negotiate peace talks

On Thursday, China sent special representatives to both China and Russia seeking to bring the two countries to negotiate peace talks, saying there is no panacea to resolve the crisis, CNBC reported.

There will definitely be an important face-saving component to any Chinese peace-brokering efforts, Etienne Soula, a research analyst with GMFs Alliance for Securing Democracy focusing on China, told CNBC. Beijing will likely try to help Russia concede as little as possible while convincing the Ukrainians and their Western supporters to bury the hatchet.

5. Ukraine makes plans to advance on Russian-controlled parts of Ukraine

The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and others have talked extensively about a looming campaign to push Russian troops from the 18% of the country they control.

Some of the largest gains for Ukraine have come in Bakhmut  capturing several square miles of land on the outskirts, per the Journal.
5 Years After A Mass Shooting At Santa Fe High In Texas, Critics Say Lawmakers Have Done Little

Students are welcomed back to Santa Fe High School after a 17-year-old boy fatally shot 10 people on the campus in Santa Fe, Texas, on May 29, 2018. Family members of those killed and injured expressed concern Thursday that the case against the accused gunman  delayed for years over questions of his mental competence  faces further delays.

Students are welcomed back to Santa Fe High School after a 17-year-old boy fatally shot 10 people on the campus in Santa Fe, Texas, on May 29, 2018. Family members of those killed and injured expressed concern Thursday that the case against the accused gunman  delayed for years over questions of his mental competence  faces further delays.

Its been five years since a boy fatally shot 10 people and wounded 13 others at Santa Fe High School in Texas, and despite an ongoing outcry from the victims and local residents, along with calls for stricter gun measures, lawmakers have done nothing to improve the states mass shooting crisis, critics say.

On Thursday morning  the fifth grim anniversary of the shooting  President Joe Biden remembered the victims and called out Congress for failing to pass any significant gun control legislation.

One of the lasting tragedies of the shooting at Santa Fe High School  and too many other devastating school shootings  is the refusal by Congressional Republicans to enact meaningful legislation to stop gun violence, part of Bidens statement says. Guns are the number one killer of kids in America, and its within our power to stop this epidemic. Yet, from Columbine to Newtown to Parkland to Uvalde to Nashville and so many other shootings in between, our schools are routinely scenes of gun violence instead of the safe spaces they should be.

Biden went on to say that he is trying to maximize the impact of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which expands background checks and establishes new criminal offenses.

Little has been done to enact gun control since the mass shooting, especially in Texas. Since the Santa Fe mass shooting, Texas has been the site of some of the countrys highest-profile massacres, including the one in Uvalde that killed 21 people a year ago and, most recently, the one at an outlet mall in Allen, north of Dallas, that left nine people dead. Still, lawmakers tweeted their condolences for the Santa Fe families but didnt offer any plans for gun control.

GOP Rep. Randy Weber, who represents Santa Fe in Congress, tweeted Thursday that the Santa Fe mass shooting forever changed the city.

Today marks the 5-year anniversary of the shooting at Santa Fe High School, where 10 innocent lives were lost at the hands of evil, Weber tweeted. We will never forget that tragic day that forever changed Santa Fe, Texas.

Today marks the 5-year anniversary of the shooting at Santa Fe High School, where 10 innocent lives were lost at the hands of evil. We will never forget that tragic day that forever changed Santa Fe, Texas.  Randy Weber (@TXRandy14) May 18, 2023

Weber spoke on the House floor Thursday, saying there are steps to secure Texas schools without infringing on our citizens Second Amendment rights, such as enhancing school security systems and hiring retired police officers to serve as school resource officers.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) tweeted he would double the number of police officers at schools to keep students safe.

Five years ago today, Santa Fe was shaken to its core and forever changed, Cruz tweeted. Eight beautiful, young lives and two dedicated educators were taken from us and many others were injured in a tragic act of evil.

I will continue fighting to enhance school security and to double the number of police officers on campus to keep our children safe.

Five years ago today, Santa Fe was shaken to its core and forever changed. Eight beautiful, young lives and two dedicated educators were taken from us and many others were injured in a tragic act of evil.



I will continue fighting to enhance school security and to double the  Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) May 18, 2023

Rhonda Hart, whose daughter, Kimberly, was killed in the Santa Fe shooting, tweeted on Wednesday that Texas politicians dont care about gun control.

As tomorrow is the five year mark I feel need to say this: Cruz, Abbott, Patrick, and [Weber] have done nothing for families of Santa Fe, she tweeted.

As tomorrow is the five year mark I feel need to say this: Cruz, Abbott, Patrick, and Webber have done nothing for families of Santa Fe.  Rhonda Hart  (@KimsMom3) May 17, 2023

Dan Patrick, Texas lieutenant governor, and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott did not put out statements. Abbotts Twitter feed was full of tweets about reckless open border policies.

Allison Anderman, senior counsel of Giffords, an organization fighting for gun safety, told HuffPost that Texas has a lot of mass shootings because of its population, guns per capita and its extremely weak laws that create more gun violence, including a Stand Your Ground law that emboldens people to shoot first and ask questions later.

In Texas, gun laws have expanded the areas where people can openly carry firearms, including at airport baggage claims, in parking areas and at houses of worship.

The state legislature is still dominated by people who are very extreme on the issue of guns, so until the state elects different people to represent them, people who want to make a change on this issue and are unwilling to accept the status quo of doing nothing, then its going to be an uphill battle, Anderman said.

Related...
$500m price tag and bronze statue similar to his girlfriend: What we know about Jeff Bezoss wild superyacht

Jeff Bezos and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez were recently spotted relaxing on the Amazon founders new superyacht, which is reportedly worth nearly $500m.

The 59-year-old billionaire was photographed aboard the 417-foot-long vessel as it set sail along the coast of Spain on Monday, 15 May. In photos obtained by the Daily Mail, Bezos was seen shirtless on the megayachts sundeck, while Sanchez was dressed in a pink bikini and white cover-up.

The 250-foot tall boat even came equipped with a figurehead that bore a striking resemblance to Bezos 53-year-old girlfriend. The polished wooden sculpture, which sits at the prow of the yacht, depicts a woman carved in the style of a Roman goddess, complete with long hair and a flowing gown.

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchezs maiden voyage comes nearly five years after the vessel was first commissioned in 2018 for half a billion dollars. The yacht  named the Koru after the Maori word for new beginnings  comes complete with three decks and a pool.

Koru, previously known as Y721, is the tallest sailing yacht in the world with three masts measuring more than 230 feet, according to Boat International. It reportedly cost Bezos $485m.

The boats exterior has a classic design of a black hull with a white superstructure. Although the brand-new vessel doesnt come with a helipad, the Amazon founder reportedly purchased a support yacht, worth $75m specifically to land his helicopter.

The Koru was constructed by Dutch yacht maker Oceano near Rotterdam in the Netherlands. It caused quite a scandal in February 2022 when the vessel nearly required the historic Koningshaven Bridge to be dismantled because its masts were too tall to pass under the bridge.

When Oceanco requested the city of Rotterdam dismantle the 100-year-old bridge  known to locals as De Hef  outraged citizens planned to throw rotten eggs at the superyacht. The yacht maker rescinded its request and ultimately hauled the 417-foot vessel to a separate shipyard to install the masts.

The yacht reportedly costs $25m a year to maintain, according to Page Six, but it seems that wont be a problem for Bezos  whose net worth is an estimated $141bn.
Six Beaufort County food businesses were cited with grades below an A in routine health inspections in April by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control:

Albergotti Grill, 2225 Boundary St. in Beaufort, scored an 82% (B) in a routine inspection on April 10. Among the issues noted: All hand-washing stations without paper towels; moldy produce in coolers; organic buildup on the ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures, lack of dates on prepared foods and food held past the date mark; leak under ice machine and door to the freezer unable to properly close; soda syrup and sticky grime on the floors near the ice machine and grime on the floors in the walk in cooler.

The restaurant was reinspected on April 17 and scored a 100% (A).

Beaufort Wet Willies, 2127 Boundary St. in Beaufort, scored an 82% (B) in a routine inspection on April 12. Among the issues noted: Food employee sneezed into gloved hand and continued to work; food employee touched raw product and then utensils and ready-to-eat hamburger buns without a hand wash and glove change; one hand-washing sink blocked with cleaning tools and supplies; one hand-washing sink without paper towels; food employee placed a package of raw hamburger meat on the sandwich prep board while preparing cheese sauce and plating hamburger buns; lack of chlorine sanitizer in the dish machine; build-up of pink organic matter inside of the ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures; containers of dry ingredients without identifying labels; and build up of soap scum, limescale, food crumbs and organic matter on the dish machine.

The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).

Blue Laguna Mexican Grill and Cantina, 841 William Hilton Parkway Suite L on Hilton Head, scored a 78% (B) in a routine inspection on April 27. Among the issues noted: Oysters stored in the walk-in cooler without identifying tags attached, and shelled oysters stored in standing water; lack of chlorine sanitizer in the dish machine and a build up of soap scum and limescale; organic build up inside the ice machine bin and on the soda nozzles; food without date marks; lack of consumer advisories about raw foods on menu; toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash stored with clean dishes; cooler unit near cookline in poor condition; and holes in walls by the ice machine.

The restaurant was reinspected on May 3 and scored a 100% (A).

La Mexicana, 21 Simmonsville Road Suite A in Bluffton, scored a 72% (C) in a routine inspection on April 13. Among the issues noted: Hand sink in meat market area blocked with hose connected to faucet; unpackaged frozen raw animal proteins stored together in a manner that promotes cross contamination in chest freezers; unclean cutting knives at sandwich prep counter; unclean meat saw, meat slicer, butcher cutting board, meat trays and tortilla processing machine; heavy accumulation of organic matter inside ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures; lack of food date marking system and repackaged bulk and house-made food offered for retail sale without labels; tilapia thawing in standing water; garage doors in back food storage room open; live roaches in kitchen near the hand-washing station; large quantity of freshly made masa dough stored improperly, uncovered in back room and exposed to the elements; pork bellies hung to dry in front of a dusty fan on an untreated greasy wooden frame; knives stored improperly and scoops without handles in dry food containers; an untreated 2x4 used as a food contact surface; chest freezer lid in poor condition; unclean spice containers and food storage containers; holes in walls and sagging ceiling tiles in the meat prep room; missing ceiling tiles in kitchen and food prep storage rooms; unclean floors and an excessive amount of tools and unrelated items stored in tortilla processing room.

The restaurant was reinspected on April 18 and scored a 96% (A).

New Sake Grill and Sushi, 1017 Fording Island Road Suite F104 in Bluffton, scored a 79% (B) in a routine inspection on April 12. Among the issues noted: Multiple food handlers went outside and returned to preparing food without hand-washing; escolar offered on menu labeled as white tuna; prep table not sanitized after use; spatula washed but not sanitized before re-use with different animal protein; several cutting boards with heavy accumulation of black organic buildup and deep scoring; utensils and food strainer stored with food residue; problems with both hot and cold food temperatures; lack of consumer advisory about raw sushi on menu; multiple unlabled chemical spray bottles; bleach and dish soap stored on top of onions; open Vaseline stored above hot line; large crack in sliding glass door cooler and other issues with the cooler; cutting board in use with large crack in center.

The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).

Tios Latin American Kitchen, 7 Venture Drive #106 in Bluffton, scored a 96% (B) in a follow-up inspection on April 20. Even though that normally would merit an A grade, the business was given a B because of food temperature issues in the walk-in cooler that had been noted in a routine inspection the day before.

The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).

What the grades mean

Inspectors hand out a grade of A, B or C, depending on the conditions found at the time. Points are docked for a variety of infractions, and restaurants have a chance to correct the problems and improve their score.

A: 88% to 100%

B: 78% to 87%

C: 77% or less

During April, DHEC recorded 147 inspections of restaurants, schools, stores and other food establishments in Beaufort County. The agency publishes the results of health inspections on its website.

Newer food grade decals will include a QR code that customers can scan with their phones to see the food establishments latest report.

Below are the SC DHEC restaurant grades in Beaufort County from April 1-30, 2023.

At the top left of the chart, there is a space to search for the name of a restaurant. Please note that this months inspections take up two pages. Switch to page 2 at the top right.
Photo: The Canadian Press American Principles Project members give a thumbs-up to bill that would ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender children.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has highlighted efforts by Republican governors and statehouses across the country to embrace proposals limiting the rights of transgender people, signing new restrictions as he moves closer to a presidential bid.

The restrictions are spreading quickly despite criticism from medical groups and advocates who say they're further marginalizing transgender youth and threatening their health.

Here's what's happening:

FLORIDA'S RESTRICTIONS

DeSantis on Wednesday signed bills that ban gender affirming care for minors, restrict pronoun use in schools and force people to use the bathroom corresponding with their sex assigned at birth in some cases.

DeSantis also signed new restrictions on drag shows that would allow the state to revoke the food and beverage licenses of businesses that admit children to adult performances. The DeSantis administration has moved to pull the liquor licenses of businesses that held drag shows, alleging children were present during lewd displays.

The rules on gender affirming care also ban the use of state money for the care and place new restrictions on adults seeking treatment. They take effect immediately, along with the drag show restrictions. The bathroom and pronoun restrictions take effect July 1.

DeSantis has been an outspoken advocate for such restrictions, and championed a Florida law that restricts the teaching of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. Florida has expanded that prohibition, which critics have dubbed the Don't Say Gay law, to all grades.

WHERE BANS STAND NATIONALLY

Hundreds of bills have been proposed this year restricting the rights of transgender people, and LGBTQ+ advocates say they've seen a record number of such measures in statehouses.

At least 17 states have now enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming care for minors: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, South Dakota and West Virginia. Federal judges have blocked enforcement of laws in Alabama and Arkansas, and several other states are considering bills this year to restrict or ban care. Proposed bans are also pending before Texas and Missouri's governors.

These bans have spread quickly, with only three states enacting such laws before this year.

Before DeSantis signed the latest ban, Florida was one of two states that had restricted the care via regulations or administrative action. Texas's governor has ordered child welfare officials to investigate reports of children receiving such care as child abuse, though a judge has blocked those investigations.

Three transgender youth and their parents who are suing to block Florida's earlier ban on the care for minors expanded their challenge on Wednesday to include the prohibition DeSantis signed into law.

Every major medical organization, including the American Medical Association, has opposed the bans and supported the medical care for youth when administered appropriately. Lawsuits have been filed in several of the states where the bans have been enacted this year.

STATES POISED TO ACT

A proposed ban on gender affirming care for minors is awaiting action before Republican Gov. Mike Parson in Missouri. The states Republican attorney general, Andrew Bailey, this week withdrew a rule he had proposed that would have gone further by also restricting access to the care for adults.

Bailey cited the bill pending before Parson as a reason for eliminating the rule, which had been blocked by a state judge.

Nebraska Republicans on Tuesday folded a 12-week abortion ban into a bill that would ban gender affirming care for minors, potentially clearing the way for a final vote on the combined measure as early as this week.

Not all states are adopting restrictions, and some Democrat-led states are enacting measures aimed at protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ youth.

Michigan Democrats plan to introduce legislation Thursday that would ban conversion therapy for minors, a discredited practice of trying to convert people to heterosexuality.

The legislation is expected to move quickly with Democrats in control of all levels of state government. Democratic state Rep. Jason Hoskins, a sponsor of the bill, told The Associated Press that he hopes the legislation passes by the end of June, which is Pride Month.
Nick Daws

As a long-time professional freelance writer, there was never any risk I would retire wealthy.

Now at the age of 67 I find myself living off the state pension, a small self-invested personal pension and bits and pieces I still earn from writing.

Thankfully I do also have some modest investments. They provide a bit of reassurance that if  or more likely when  I need money for some essential purchase in future, I will have assets I can draw upon.

I have an eclectic (some might say eccentric) range of investments. I make no claim to being an investment expert and am certainly not suggesting anyone should copy me. But maybe it will give you a few ideas to think about.

Other than my Sipp, my single largest investment is my stocks and shares Isa with robo-adviser platform Nutmeg.

I opened this account in 2016 and my portfolio is currently valued at 23,736. My total contributions to date are 17,314 so I have made a net return of 6,422 or just over 37pc.

Of course, that figure doesnt allow for the fact that Ive topped up my investment at various times over the last seven years; so my time-weighted rate of return (as calculated by Nutmeg which strips out contributions and withdrawals) is a somewhat more impressive 62.79pc.

Needless to say, the last few years have been turbulent ones for investors, as reflected in the chart of my Nutmeg investments below.

The scariest point came at the start of lockdown in March 2020, when the value of my Nutmeg portfolio fell by almost a third in just a few weeks. I did nonetheless take a chance and invest another 500 when prices were (as it turns out) near their lowest.

Thankfully the markets recovered through later 2020 and 2021, though they fell again last year with the war in Ukraine, post-pandemic austerity and the cost-of-living crisis.

So far 2023 has been another up-and-down year, but at least right now my portfolio is still 1,000 up on where it was at the start of the year.

Nutmeg offers various investment options. Most of my money is in a fully managed account (the only type available when I started).

I do though have a small amount in what they call Smart Alpha, with investments powered by JP Morgan Asset Management. Heres a chart showing how this has done in 2023 so far.

I created my Smart Alpha pot at the end of 2020 and my current net return is 6pc or 12pc time-weighted. That isnt as impressive as my main portfolio, but of course reflects stock market performance generally over the last three years.

In this period my Smart Alpha pot has actually done slightly better than my fully managed one and I am considering moving more of my money into it.

I should also add that I chose high risk levels for both my Nutmeg pots (9/10 fully managed and 5/5 Smart Alpha). This means they are more volatile but have also performed significantly better overall than Nutmegs lower risk options.

Im still a fan of Nutmeg, but do understand why some people who only started investing with them in the last year or two may be a tad underwhelmed by how their investments have done.

I also have money in property crowdfunding. Like many novice investors I got over-excited when property crowdfunding first hit the scene and put too much money into it.

While I did make some profits to start with, later several platforms I invested with collapsed (notably The House Crowd). I still dont know if or when I will get any money back from them.

I still have around 5,000 in two property platforms, Assetz Exchange and Kuflink. Assetz Exchange is an old-school property crowdfunding platform where investors club together to buy properties and share in the rental income generated and any profits when the property is sold.

One thing I like about Assetz Exchange is that most properties on the platform are socially beneficial (such as sheltered housing) and publicly funded. Rates of return arent spectacular at around 7pc, but they are probably at the less risky end of the property crowdfunding spectrum. I have 24 different investments with Assetz Exchange from as little as 10.

I currently have 18 investments with Kuflink. They arrange secured loans to property developers, so investors have the reassurance of knowing that if the loans default, the platform could foreclose and force the sale of the property concerned. Of course, that process can be time-consuming, but on the plus side Kuflink continues to pay interest until the loan is repaid. Again annual rates with Kuflink are around 7pc.

Finally, in the last year I have experimented in investing with eToro (see below).

Initially I was intrigued by their copy trading feature, which lets you automatically copy the trades of a successful investor. I chose a Dutch trader called Aukie2008 (real name Mike Moest) and so far he has delivered a respectable return of around 15pc for me.

I also put $500 into one of eToros smart portfolios. These are basically thematic investments. I took a punt on Oil Worldwide.

I know thats a contrarian approach in these eco-aware times, but it seems to me oil will still have a vital role to play in the world economy for many years to come.

Plus the big oil companies are making huge profits at the moment, so I figured I might as well grab a share of that.

In addition, with oil companies out of favour with many investors, I thought there might be value to be found in this sector. These large, successful companies are increasingly diversifying from black gold to renewables as well. My investment has been up and down but is currently showing a very small profit. Its early days, though.

As you can see, I also put a bit of loose change into Tesla shares. More by luck than judgement I picked the right time and at one point they had almost doubled in price. If only I had invested more.

I have a few other small investments too, though Nutmeg is the main one.

If anyone would like to know more about me and my investments please comment below and Ill endeavour to answer your questions.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.
A Border Patrol agent gives instructions to a group of migrants waiting to cross into the United States from Tijuana last week. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

An 8-year-old girl died in Border Patrol custody in Texas on Wednesday, officials said.

The death occurred at a local hospital.

"The child and her family were in custody at the Harlingen Station where she experienced a medical emergency," U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement. "Emergency Medical Services were called to the station and transported her to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead."

Customs and Border Protection's Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating, and the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general has been notified.

In 2019, the death of a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy in Border Patrol custody led several politicians to decry the Trump administration's immigration policies and vow to investigate. Earlier in May, a 17-year-old boy, who was an unaccompanied minor, died in the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services, according to a notification sent to Congress.

The Biden administration had struggled to manage an increase in migrants arriving at the border ahead of last week's end of the controversial Title 42 policy, which allowed agents to expel migrants quickly without providing them access to the asylum system. Although border crossings have fallen since the policy expired Thursday, the number of people in Border Patrol custody ballooned to more than 28,000 last week, above normal capacity.

Administration officials had been relying on a policy that allowed them to quickly release migrants without court notices to prevent what they said would be dangerous overcrowding. A federal court in Florida later blocked that effort.

In recent days, the number of migrants crossing has dropped dramatically.

Homeland Security officials said this week that since the expiration of Title 42, border agents have encountered about 4,400 migrants a day, down from more than 10,000 per day early last week.

As of Sunday, according to court records, the number of migrants in custody had dropped to just over 22,000.

It is too early, but the numbers that we have experienced over the past two days are markedly down over what they were prior to the end of Title 42, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas said on CNN on Sunday.

U.S. officials warned in court records last week that without the ability to quickly release people they would face difficulties.

At the current operational pace, and without any additional measures such as Parole with Conditions, [Border Patrol] would have over 45,000 individuals in custody by the end of the month. Further, the [Homeland Security Department] Chief Medical Officer has concluded that current conditions pose an increased risk of adverse health outcomes, a filing from the Department of Justice said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
An 8-year-old girl died in the custody of U.S. Border Patrol on Wednesday, according to officials, as the agency deals with overcrowding in facilities near the southern border.

The girl and her family were in custody at Harlingen Station in Harlingen, Texas, when she experienced a medical emergency Wednesday, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a statement. First responders were called to the scene and transported the girl to a local hospital, where she later died.

The agency did not provide any more information about the girl or the medical issue that led to her death.

CBP said it was conducting an investigation, with the Department of Homeland Security and Harlingen Police Department also notified.

Border agents this year have dealt with a high number of border crossings and overcrowding in processing and detention facilities, though the suspected surge following the May 11 expiration of Title 42  which allowed the government to expel migrants claiming asylum  has not materialized.

Border encounters were down by more than 50 percent in recent days, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Ahead of the lifting of Title 42, border encounters were around 10,000 individuals per day, and they have dropped to around 4,400 people each day since May 11.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
An eight-year-old girl died in US Customs and Border Protection (CPB) custody at a hospital in Texas, becoming the second migrant child to die in government custody in the US this spring.

The child and her family were in custody at an agency facility in Harlingen, Texas when the girl suffered a medical emergency and was transported to a local hospital, according to a CPB statement.

Information about her name and place of birth has not yet been not released following her death on Wednesday.

The death in Harlingen, a small city in the Rio Grande Valley just north of the US-Mexico border, comes just a week after a 17-year-old boy from Honduras died while detained at a facility for unaccompanied minors run by the US Department of Health and Human Services in Florida.

That child was reportedly the first minor to die in US custody since President Joe Biden took office after six children died in US custody during the tenure of his predecessor Donald Trump.

Mr Bidens immigration politics have been in the spotlight in recent weeks with the lifting of Title 42, a pandemic-era order that allowed the US to quickly expel migrants and asylum-seekers who arrived from Mexico for purported public health reasons.

The overall number of border crossings has dropped significantly since Title 42 ended last week, but the number of people in CPB custody increased last week to more than 28,000.

It may remain high in part because of an order from a federal judge in Florida that the agency cannot release migrants into the US without a court date.

Immigration activists decried the judges decision, arguing that it would lead to longer detention periods for migrants and unsafe conditions at detention centres like the one in Harlingen, while a medical expert cited by the Justice Department has concurred in a court filing that the current pace of detentions could lead to pose an increased risk of adverse health outcomes.

Activists have also grown angry with Mr Biden, making the case that his immigration policies have not differed meaningfully from Mr Trumps.

A major point of contention is a policy proposed in February that would make migrants ineligible for asylum in the US if they did not attempt to gain asylum in every country they passed through on their way to US soil.

CPB has said that the Office of Professional Responsibility, the agencys internal affairs unit, is investigating the childs death in Harlingen.
An investigation into child sexual abuse ended with the arrest of a Georgia county commissioner, state authorities say.

Reginald Reggie Loper, District 4 commissioner for Effingham County, was arrested May 17 and charged with child molestation, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

The 84-year-old is also charged with sexual battery, a misdemeanor, investigators said.

The GBI launched an investigation into the allegations on Jan. 9 at the request of the Effingham County Sheriffs Office. Authorities didnt release additional information.

McClatchy News reached out to the Effingham County Board of Commissioners for comment on May 18 and was awaiting a response.

Records show Loper was booked into jail and later released on a $20,000 bond.

Investigators said the case will be prosecuted by the Ogeechee Judicial Circuit District Attorneys Office once the GBIs completes its investigation.

Effingham County is about 30 miles northwest of Savannah.

If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom.

Pediatrician fondled teens during exams, Mississippi officials say. Now hes charged

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Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley's behavior on Jan. 6, 2021, was explored during the hearings of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)

Lets dispense with the obvious.

When most people think of Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)  if they think of him at all  they probably conjure images of two moments, both of which occurred on one of the worst days in American history.

That was, of course, Jan. 6, 2021, when the U.S. Capitol was stormed by a mob of election deniers seeking to halt the certification of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States. Many of those insurrectionists are now facing prison terms for sedition and other crimes.

In the first memorable image, a fist-pumping Hawley walks past the insurrectionists on his way to vote against certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election. You guys are awesome, his body language says. I am with you all the way.

The second image is a clip of Hawley fleeing that very same mob after it breached the Capitol. In that one, he is also pumping his arms, but thats because hes running away at a fast clip. When it was shown during one of the House Jan. 6 Committee's hearings, spectators burst out laughing.

Now, Im not suggesting Hawley was wrong to run, but in doing so, he revealed himself as a coward, a hypocrite and a phony. Not to mention shameless.

On Tuesday, Hawleys book Manhood: The Masculine Virtues America Needs was released by the conservative publishing house Regnery, coinciding with his 2024 reelection campaign. On Wednesday, Hawley tweeted that his book had triggered the left, so get your copy now.

Hawley posing as an expert on courage is as credible as Donald Trump posing as an expert on marital fidelity.

Among the many regrettable things in Hawleys book is his un-ironic use of the metaphor of running when describing how to behave like a man:

Running towards the monsters of your life requires courage.

Run toward the darkness that threatens your family.

If your life is relentlessly about you, you will never run towards danger.

"Manhood," which reads like a Sunday sermon, is an extended rant about how American men need to rediscover their manliness by modeling themselves on biblical figures such as Adam and Abraham. Since we are, in Hawley's view, witnessing the collapse of American manhood, blame must be assigned. A culprit must be found.

Aaaaand, no surprise here, its the woke left! thats turning men to mush. Not to mention the liberal elite, the educated elite, the cultural elite and all of the other godless folks who control American business, academia, the media and Hollywood.

To a remarkable, historically unusual extent, Hawley writes, Americas cultural institutions are now dominated by a small, homogenous class of individuals who graduated from the same coterie of elite schools and share the same Epicurean, mostly atheistic world view they learned there.

I guess intellectual dishonesty is to be expected from a man who poses as a blue-collar hero but doesnt bother to mention in biographical passages that his father was a banker, or that he attended a private prep school, Stanford University and Yale Law; clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.; taught constitutional law; worked as a state attorney general; and has basically been cushioned in privilege his entire life. (In college, he writes, I took up rowing. Quelle surprise!)

I cant really account for Hawleys bizarre and frequent use of the word Epicurean as a synonym for liberals or progressives, except that he may think it makes him sound like an intellectual. (Epicurus, by the way, was a Greek philosopher who taught that the point of life was to attain pleasure. He is associated with hedonism, the opposite of stoicism, which emphasizes virtue as its own reward.)

In any case, writes Hawley, who was raised Methodist and now attends an evangelical Presbyterian church, America is a Christian nation, founded on biblical principles that have somehow gotten lost as American men, told their masculinity is toxic, have turned into simpering mamas boys who exercise no agency and have no ambition.

Well, he doesnt use those exact words, but thats pretty much what he means when he writes, Much of todays left seems to welcome men who are passive and tame, who will do as they are told and sit in their cubicles, eyes affixed to their screen. (Where, he presumes, they are watching pornography instead of getting married, working and raising their children.)

This is a shockingly weak analysis of Americas long-standing social problems.

In Hawleys America, there is no systemic racism or sexism, no mass incarceration, no educational inequity and no income inequality that might account for some of the seemingly intractable problems that beset us.

In Hawley's America, every social problem is due to the dearth of manly men. Having been brainwashed by liberals  excuse me, Epicureans  men instead seek pleasure and avoid responsibility.

I'm sorry, but there is not a man in America who needs a lecture from Josh Hawley.

Especially not about courage.

@robinkabcarian





This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut, an eastern city where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Monday, May 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Libkos)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Pentagon has overestimated the value of the weapons it has sent to Ukraine by at least $3 billion  an accounting error that could be a boon for the war effort because it will allow the Defense Department to send more weapons now without asking Congress for more money.

The acknowledgment Thursday comes at a time when Pentagon is under increased pressure by Congress to show accountability for the billions of dollars it has sent in weapons, ammunition and equipment to Ukraine and as some lawmakers question whether that level of support should continue.

It also could free up more money for critical weapons as Ukraine is on the verge of a much anticipated counteroffensive  which will require as much military aid as they can get. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has previously said the offensive was delayed because they did not yet have everything they needed.

The error was caused when officials overvalued some of the systems sent to Ukraine, using the value of money it would cost to replace an item completely rather than the current value of the weapon. In many of the military aid packages, the Pentagon has opted to draw from its stockpiles of older, existing gear because it can get those items to Ukraine faster.

During our regular oversight process of presidential drawdown packages, the Department discovered inconsistencies in equipment valuation for Ukraine. In some cases, replacement cost rather than net book value was used, therefore overestimating the value of the equipment drawn down from U.S. stocks, said Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh.

She added that the mistake hasn't constrained U.S. support to Ukraine or hampered the ability to send aid to the battlefield.

A defense official said the Pentagon is still trying to determine exactly how much the total surplus will be. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the comptroller has asked the military services to review all previous Ukraine aid packages using the proper cost figures. The result, said the official, will be that the department will have more available funding authority to use as the Ukraine offensive nears.

The aid surplus was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

To date the U.S. has provided Ukraine nearly $37 billion in military aid since Russia invaded in February 2022. The bulk of that has been in weapons systems, millions of munitions and ammunition rounds, and an array of trucks, sensors, radars and other equipment pulled from Pentagon stockpiles and sent quickly to Ukraine.

Members of Congress have repeatedly pressed Defense Department leaders on how closely the U.S. is tracking its aid to Ukraine to ensure that it is not subject to fraud or ending up in the wrong hands. The Pentagon has said it has a robust program to track the aid as it crosses the border into Ukraine and to keep tabs on it once it is there, depending on the sensitivity of each weapons system.

There also is a small team of Americans in Ukraine working with Ukrainians to do physical inspections when possible, but also virtual inspections when needed, since those teams are not going to the front lines.

In late February, the Pentagons inspector general said his office has found no evidence yet that any of the billions of dollars in weapons and aid to Ukraine has been lost to corruption or diverted into the wrong hands. He cautioned that those investigations are only in their early stages.
As millions celebrate observances like Haitian Flag Day, Haitians struggle to reconcile their national pride and the devastation that has plagued the Caribbean nation.

Thousands of Haitians are seeking refuge in the United States as they continue to flee violence and hunger in their native country amid political and economic instability.

The United States government has supported migrants amid the crisis in Haiti, including extending to them Temporary Protection Status through August 2024 and including them in a parole program  along with Cubans, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans  that allows up to 30,000 individuals into the U.S. each month.

Immigrants from Haiti, who crossed through a gap in the U.S.-Mexico border barrier, wait in line to be processed by the U.S. Border Patrol on May 20, 2022, in Yuma, Arizona. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

But advocates for Haiti and other Black migrants say the U.S. and the international community can do more to support Haiti beyond welcoming Haitians into its borders, including addressing centuries of neglect and oppression.

Theres got to be a clear commitment from the United States government to educate the American people about the history, the relevance and the importance of Haiti, Joseph Tolton, founder and president of the Pan-African advocacy group Interconnected Justice, told theGrio.

Weve responded to Ukraine because our leaders have brought us along by educating us about why this is so important to Americas personal national security and keeping it a global order. We have not done that with Haiti.

In 1804, Haiti became the first nation to successfully gain independence through a slave revolt after defeating France, which had a dominant military force. Haitis independence is celebrated today by Haitians and Black people around the globe as a success story of Black liberation. Despite that history, which is a source of pride for Haitians, many today are horrified by the current state of the country.

A man holds a Haitian flag during a faith vigil for victims of an earthquake in Haiti at the steps of St. Jeromes Roman Catholic Church on Aug. 16, 2021, in the Little Caribbean neighborhood of Brooklyn borough in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Though Haiti has endured political and economic instability since it gained its independence more than two centuries ago, in recent years, it experienced a series of crises, including the assassination of its president in July 2021, a deadly earthquake a month later, and a rise of gang violence and other crimes. To date, the country remains without a functioning government and a rising malnutrition crisis due to food scarcity.

Violence in Haiti recently intensified as vigilante groups are now killing gang members as retaliation.

This is a dangerous course for the nation, said Tolton, who said inaction from the United States and its allies sets a terrible precedent and can spill over internationally. He said America must also stop the flow of guns from the U.S. to Haiti.

At this point, he said, there has to be a physical intervention on the ground in Haiti. Tolton warned the country is very close to being a failed state.

Guerline Jozef, a Haiti-born advocate, said that even as millions celebrate observances like Haitian Flag Day, she and others struggle to reconcile their national pride and the devastation that has plagued the Caribbean nation.

Guerline Jozef from Haitian Bridge Alliance speaks after immigrants installed hundreds of green card placards symbolizing their demand for U.S. citizenship at a rally in front of the U.S. Capitol Building on Oct. 13, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Communities United for Status and Protection)

My heart is in pain, the executive director of Haitian Bridge Alliance told theGrio.

Due to the economic turmoil Haiti endured as a result of owing a debt to its colonizer, France, and the United States refusal to recognize Haitis independence for nearly six decades, advocates say the U.S. and nations around the world have an obligation to work together to rebuild Haiti. Not doing so, they say, comes with a great consequence to the world order.

Haitis at the very center of the Caribbean, at the very center of the Americas, noted Jozef. Where Haitis located is critical to not only the hemisphere but the entire world.

The United States and other world powers, she said, should view Haiti as a real partner, particularly an economic partner, and not as a charity case.

While Jozef and other advocates welcome policies that allow more Haitians to seek refuge in the United States, they want to see other actions like addressing the root causes of Haitis migration and helping rebuild its infrastructure.

Haiti is unable to feed herself because the agriculture has been destroyed mainly by the United States, starting with rice and other crops, explained Jozef.

She said Haiti also needs support in building a strong health care system, including hospitals, and improving its education system so that Haitis children dont have to get into gangs and can instead embark on a path of obtaining good jobs.

Jimmy Cherizier, the leader of the G9 et Famille gang, walks with children as he visits La Saline district of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. Internationally, Cherizier is known as Haitis most powerful and feared gang leader, sanctioned by the United Nations for serious human rights abuses, and the man behind a fuel blockade that brought the Caribbean nation to its knees late 2022. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Tolton said continuing to educate the world about the history of Haiti and how its current crisis came to be is crucial to its survival and potential to someday thrive. He said a resolution introduced by U.S. Reps. Yvette Clarke and Ritchie Torres sought to uplift that history is a good starting point. Eventually, he said, there needs to be a reparations model established for Haiti.

Jozef said in a perfect world there would not be a need for Haitians to flood the U.S.-Mexico border for refuge.

My dream is that my people will be able to be safe at home and thrive at home, so they wont have to make this dangerous journey to come and beg for protection and beg for asylum from any other country, she said. That is not what my ancestors fought and died for.



Reflecting on the colors and intentionality of the design of Haitis flag, Tolton said, Red [was] the price that they had paid with their blood to be free, and blue was created because that was the mixture of both Blacks and mulattos, who fought together against the colonizer.

Jozef, also reflecting on the Haitian flag, said, [It] represents freedom, resilience for Haitians and Black people around the globe, adding, With that win and with that flag, we have declared that we, as Black people, will no longer be enslaved.

Gerren Keith Gaynor

Gerren Keith Gaynor is a White House Correspondent and the Managing Editor of Politics at theGrio. He is based in Washington, D.C.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku and Android TV. Also, please download theGrio mobile apps today!

The post Advocates demand U.S. and allies stand up for Haiti amid crisis appeared first on TheGrio.
Texas Department of Public Safety

A preschool teacher in Austin has been charged with possession or promotion of child pornography, according to an arrest affidavit.

Irving Perez, 33, was charged on May 1 while he was still a teacher for 4-year-olds at Wayside REAL Learning Academy at 6405 Interstate 35 in South Austin, the affidavit said. The third-degree felony charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Irving no longer teaches at the facility, a school official said. He taught there for four years, said Halle Cade, a school spokeswoman.

"We were informed by DPS that the investigation did not involve any Wayside scholars or anyone else associated with the school, and that there was not a threat toward any of our scholars," according to a news release from Wayside Schools.

More: University of Texas professor charged with five counts of possession of child pornography

Wayside operates several schools in Austin that provide a college-prep education to disadvantaged students in Southeast Austin, according to its website.

Perez did not reply to a request for comment.

A special agent with the Texas Department of Public Safety's criminal investigations unit received a tip about a video with child pornography shared on Instagram on July 23, 2022, by a user later identified as Perez, according to the affidavit.

It said the video showed a nude girl, between the ages of 6-10, engaged in a sexual act with a man. Instagram, as required by federal law, had reported Perez's Instagram account to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on July 24, 2022, the document said. The investigator had to get a search warrant for the Instagram account to verify that it belonged to Perez, according to the affidavit. It said he received the results from the warrant on April 28.

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Perez opened the Instagram account on Jan. 15, 2022, and closed it on Oct. 16, 2022, the affidavit said.

It said the investigator was also able to verify through other messages on Instagram that Perez had paid to receive the pornographic video. The charge against Perez is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

DPS informed Wayside that Perez was under investigation on May 15 but didn't provide any details about it, the school news release said. As more details could not be provided, it said, Wayside leadership made the decision to immediately escort the staff member off campus and to place him on administrative leave. It said DPS told the school on Tuesday that Perez had been arrested.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin preschool teacher charged with possession of child porn
Air defence repel several waves of Russian attacks: 29 out of 30 cruise missiles destroyed

Ukrainian air defence has repelled several Russian attacks and destroyed 29 Russian cruise missiles.

Source: Ukrainian Air Force press service on Telegram

Details: From 21:00 on 17 May to 05:30 on 18 May 2023, Kyiv time, the Russian occupiers carried out several waves of missile attacks from different directions. In total, the Russians launched 30 sea-, air- and land-based cruise missiles.

A total of 22 Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles were fired from strategic aircraft, from two Tu-160s and eight Tu-95s. Six Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from ships in the Black Sea, as well as two Iskander-K cruise missiles from ground-based operational-tactical missile systems.

The air defence system of the Air Forces of Ukraine, in cooperation with other branches of the Defence Forces of Ukraine, destroyed 29 cruise missiles.

Two Shahed-136/131 attack UAVs and two operational-tactical reconnaissance UAVs were also shot down.

Quote: "We remind you once again that even with the successful operation of air defence, fragments from missiles destroyed in the sky will fall down and pose a serious threat to people's lives. During an air-raid warning, follow the safety rules. Take care of yourself and your family.

Beat the enemy together! Together to victory!"

Previously: A large-scale air-raid warning was issued on the night of 17 May.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Photo: Glacier Media

The MP for CoquitlamPort Coquitlam is calling the removal of Terry Fox's image from the Canadian passport "regrettable and somewhat tone-deaf."

Ron McKinnon added his name to the growing voices criticizing Sean Fraser, the federal minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Refugees, about the move to take out the PoCo hometown hero from the new passport.

In his letter dated Monday (May 15), the backbencher wrote to Fraser about Fox's stature in the community and across the country, reminding him of the millions of dollars raised for cancer research every year through the annual runs in the icon's name.

"Your announcement last week regarding the removal of Terry Fox from Canada's new passport is deeply disappointing to me personally, to my community at large and to all Canadians from coast to coast who cherish his memory," reads the letter that was obtained by the Tri-City News this week.

"Canadians do understand the need to enhance passport security. But to make a change as significant as this without broad public consultation is regrettable and somewhat tone-deaf. Canadians expect more. Canadians need more."

According to the Canadian government, the Canadian passport makeover has state-of-the-art security features as well as generic artwork that highlights the countrys landscapes and people in the four seasons.

Fraser said the update comes after 10 years of consultation.

"The new Canadian passport is more than a travel document; it is a representation of our national identity and values. It is a reminder of the beauty and diversity of Canada, and it reflects the country's commitment to welcoming people from all around the world," Fraser stated in a news release.

Gone are images of the last spike being driven into the cross-country railway, as well as photos of author and activist Nelly McClung and of Vimy Ridge, the First World War battlefield thats considered a defining event in Canadas history.

The decision to erase the war memorial from the passport drew ire from the Royal Canadian Legion and the topic was raised this week in the House of Commons by the Opposition Conservatives.

As for Fox's image being replaced by a squirrel eating a nut, PoCo Mayor Brad West had this to say via social media on May 10: "Whoever made the decision to remove Terry Fox from Canadian passports needs to give their head a shake. Our country needs more Terry Fox, not less."

Meanwhile, this fall, Canadians will be able to renew their passport, pay their fees and upload their photograph securely and conveniently online.

This comes after the new online Passport Application Status Checker was launched in March, allowing Canadians to check the status of their passport application online.
Explosions, but no reported casualties after air raid alerts throughout Ukraine

(Reuters) -Air raid alerts sounded throughout Ukraine early on Friday, with some areas later reporting explosions and officials saying anti-aircraft units were in action in several regions.

The alerts extended to all regions of the country for about an hour from 2 a.m. (2300 GMT).

But there were no reports of strikes on infrastructure or civilian targets and no indications of casualties as the alerts were withdrawn in Kyiv and in central and southern regions.

Air raid alerts remained in force into the early morning throughout western Ukraine, but only in two regions in the east and Russian-annexed Crimea in the south.

The head of Kyiv's military administration said Russian forces had sent successive waves of drones towards the capital, the 10th attack this month and the second in less than 24 hours.

"This Kremlin tactic is an attempt to overwhelm our anti-aircraft forces and put psychological pressure on civilians. It won't happen!" Serhiy Popko wrote on Telegram.

"All air targets sent toward Kyiv were destroyed by our anti-aircraft defences."

Several regions reported anti-aircraft units in operation.

Explosions were reported in widely separated regions, including Kriviy Rih in central Ukraine and Rivne and Lutsk in the west.

Ukraine's military had said on Telegram that Russian aircraft were in the air and there was a threat of strikes from hypersonic Kinzhal missiles. An earlier military statement said some airborne targets had been downed, but gave no details.

The military had warned that central regions and Kyiv were at risk from drones.

Russia's Tass news agency, quoting Russian-installed officials in the Moscow-controlled area of Donetsk region, said Ukrainian forces had fired eight grad missiles into the Russian-held city of Donetsk after midnight.

There were no details of damage or casualties.

Reuters was unable to verify details of any of the reported military activity.

(Reporting by Ronald Popeski; Editing by Leslie Adler, Jacqueline Wong and Michael Perry)
The raging wildfires in Alberta in the run-up to the Canadian province's election have fueled claims across social media that the blazes were set intentionally to disrupt the voting process or for other political purposes. This is unproven; officials say ongoing investigations have not found evidence suggesting widespread arson, that weather conditions are a major factor and that accommodations are being made for voters displaced by the fires.

"It makes perfect sense -- start fires in all the conservative ridings, let those fires go out of control and then don't have a way for them to vote," says the speaker in a May 9, 2023 TikTok.

A similar claim spread on Facebook, expressing concern that displaced conservative voters would not be able to cast ballots in the May 29 provincial election. While other posts theorized arson was committed to create a political benefit for the New Democratic Party.

Other posts circulated on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok, claiming the unprecedented number of wildfires in Alberta at the beginning of May were "suspicious," while a May 15 tweet claimed: "Looks like arson in Alberta."

Screenshots taken May 18, 2023 of a TikTok video (L) and a Facebook post claiming wildfires were intentionally set to disrupt the Alberta election

Melissa Story, a spokeswoman for Alberta Wildfire attributed the rapid spread and high number of fires to the current weather conditions.

"We've seen some hot, dry conditions here in the province, mixed with windy conditions," Story said. "So, fires can ignite very easily and spread quickly."

At least 25,000 people were evacuated after a state of emergency was declared on May 6.

Story said the origins of most of the recent wildfires are yet to be determined but are being investigated by Alberta Wildfire, sometimes with the help of the Forestry Crimes Unit of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

Patrick Lambert, a spokesman for the Alberta division of the RCMP, said there are continuing investigations into the causes of ongoing wildfires in the province, but there was no indication of a concerted arson campaign.

"We have no evidence to support any kind of effort in that regard," Lambert said.

Human-caused

An article and some posters jumped on data from the Alberta Wildfire open data portal (archived here) which shows close to 90 percent of the wildfires listed as either "human-caused" or "under investigation."

Screenshot taken May 18, 2023 of a Facebook post

Story said that unless it can be determined that a wildfire was caused by lightning, those are the only categories available for classification prior to investigation. She also explained "human-caused" can mean many things other than arson.

"It could be related to general causes, including agriculture, forest industry, powerlines, or oil and gas industry, railroad or residential wildfires."

Other posts supported their claims of arson by sharing screenshots and links to articles about arsonists who had been charged and sentenced, but these were either published before 2023 or about crimes committed in previous years.

Story said the procedure for wildfire investigation begins within a month of a wildfire starting, but the official cause is not determined for at least 30 days.

According to Alberta Wildfire reports from previous years, 96 out of 1,246 wildfires in 2022 were found to be "incendiary" or intentionally started. In 2021, 151 out of 1,308 wildfires were reported in this category. So far this year, 487 fires have been recorded, a higher number than at this time in previous years.

Parkland County tweet

Users on Twitter and Facebook also spread their suspicions of arson in the ongoing wildfires by citing a May 3 post from the Parkland County Twitter account. It said the fire department had responded to four suspicious fires in the preceding five days on Highway 16, less than a 40-minute drive from the provincial capital of Edmonton.

Nancy Domijan, the Parkland County emergency incident commander for wildfire response, said in a May 16 email to AFP that these four fires which appeared to be set intentionally were separate from a larger wildfire which eventually caused an evacuation.

She said the tweet was meant to alert residents close to the site on Highway 16 while fire services were occupied fighting the wildfire.

Screenshot taken May 18, 2023 of a Tweet misrepresenting the suspicious fires in Parkland County as part of an arson campaign causing wildfires across Alberta

Domijan said the four suspicious fires and the larger wildfire in Parkland County were still under investigation and their origins had not yet been determined.

"Regarding the many wildfires that have been burning across Alberta this past month, though their origins may prove to stem from a variety of factors (pending investigation by fire investigators), it appears that their rapid growth is related to the hot, dry and windy conditions weve faced province-wide leading to extreme and dangerous fire conditions," she said.

Special ballots

Many posts cited fears the wildfires and evacuations would interfere with voting in the Alberta election. Users on Facebook encouraged people to not seek an advanced or special ballot until it became clear what the "fire scam" in Alberta would mean for the election.

Elections Alberta said electors displaced by emergency or disaster, including fires and floods, can vote by special ballot -- mail-in ballots that must be received by the close of election day on May 29.

Robyn Bell, a spokeswoman for Elections Alberta, said in a May 16 email to AFP that there would also be early in-person voting from May 23 to May 27, which will include a "Vote Anywhere Service" that allows voters to cast their ballot from any voting place in the province.

"Voting by special ballot or during advance voting are options that are available to all electors, regardless of whether they have been impacted or displaced by wildfires," she said.

Bell said the agency continues to monitor the wildfire situation in Alberta.

"As more information becomes available, we will determine if we need to deploy additional resources to any area of the province to accommodate voters who have been evacuated," she said.

Links to conspiracy

Additional posts invoked the 15-minute city conspiracy, saying the wildfire evacuees would be forced into towns with codified zones purportedly limiting their freedom of movement and restricting property ownership.

Screenshot of one of the posts on Facebook spreading unsupported arson theories about the Alberta wildfires, taken May 18, 2023

AFP has previously fact-checked claims about 15-minute cities and the concept does not impose movement or property restrictions. It is a city-planning framework meant to organize urban areas so all essential needs are within a short walk or bike ride from any resident's dwelling.

Others said the fires were started as a means to artificially generate panic around climate change.

Climate scientists have told AFP in the past that wildfires are getting more intense in areas where climate change is causing hotter, drier weather.

More of AFP's reporting on misinformation in Canada can be found here.
Alcohol ban for nurses at union conference after report revealed culture of sex and drinking

Demonstrators supporting the Royal College of Nursing on Westminster Bridge, near to St Thomas' Hospital in London - DANIEL LEAL/AFP

Nurses have been banned from drinking alcohol at their unions conference after a report revealed a boozy, sexualised culture at the annual event.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has barred the provision of free alcohol at all its events in the wake of an independent review by Bruce Carr KC.

It meant the 2,700 delegates at the congress in Brighton this week were greeted with fruit juice cocktails in lieu of a traditional drinks reception.

The unions usually lively congress social was replaced with a two-course meal and a soft drink at Brightons DoubleTree by Hilton Metropole hotel on Wednesday night.

The RCN quietly brought in the alcohol-free event policy last month, following an independent review of the culture within the union and its management.

Extra-marital affairs were common

Mr Carrs damning report, published in October 2022, found the annual congress was seen as a place at which there is, for at least some attendees, an expectation of, or an opportunity for, sex to take place There is also the opportunity for alcohol and power-related exploitation of the vulnerable.

The report also revealed extra-marital affairs were common, with the term Congress wife (or husband) in common usage as a way of referring to flings during the annual meeting.

The Carr review was commissioned in 2021 after the RCN received allegations of sexual harassment. That year, it moved its annual congress online to ensure the safety of delegates.

At this weeks event  the first annual congress since the Carr report was published  the programme for delegates featured a two-page guide detailing how the RCN was keeping you safe.

It stated: There is a zero-tolerance approach and verbal or physical abuse, coercion, sexual harassment, discrimination or any other form of inappropriate behaviour will not be tolerated.

The guide warned attendees they must uphold the best image of nursing and that Congress 2023 will be memorable for all the right reasons Keeping us all safe in Brighton is everybodys business.

Nurses were given access to a wellbeing hub, featuring a safe space where they were encouraged to speak to staff about any challenging situations.

They were also provided with a counselling room, staffed by a qualified counsellor, and access to mental health first aiders, as well as being directed to an online library of wellbeing video tutorials, on topics like mindfulness and guided journaling.

Other wellbeing events included a Singing for Health  Singing in Solidarity session, where nurses were encouraged to join a pop-up choir to discover the benefits of singing.

No alcohol ban outside the event

The new alcohol guideline is part of the unions Safety and Conduct at RCN Events policy, which was published less than a month before this years congress commenced.

It states: As part of our responsibilities to provide a safe environment the RCN policy is that the RCN will not purchase alcohol for participants. For example, there will be no provision by the RCN of alcoholic drinks at receptions or dinners.

There was no ban on nurses buying their own alcoholic drinks outside the event, but no alcohol was on sale within the venue.

An RCN spokesperson said: The RCN is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all its members and has learnt from and acted on the findings of the review by Bruce Carr KC.

As a result of the review, new safeguarding measures and protocols have been introduced and we are modernising our governance and rethinking our approach to equality and inclusivity.

Congress in Brighton this year has shown the power of the voice of our members and our collective voice is louder and our professional image much improved.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.
Rudy Giuliani speaking at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, Nov. 19, 2020. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

The explosive new allegations against former New York City mayor and Donald Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani could expose him to criminal liability, experts say.

In a lawsuit filed on Monday in New York, Noelle Dunphy alleged that Giuliani only paid her $12,000 out of a promised $2 million for her work as his business development director and public relations consultant from 2019 to 2021, and he made performing sex acts an absolute requirement of her employment.

The case might well prompt law enforcement to open an investigation, Duncan Levin, a New York City-based criminal defense attorney, told Yahoo News.

Giulianis legal team has unequivocally denied the allegations, which have not yet been substantiated with evidence.

Reached for comment for this story, Giuliani adviser Ted Goodman said, News outlets covering this story must include the fact that an ex-partner of Ms. Dunphy filed suit accusing Ms. Dunphy of taking part in, prior schemes to defraud high net-worth men, and the same ex-partner says Ms. Dunphy bragged about extorting $5 million from the son of a prominent Wall Street businessman.

The allegations

Dunphy alleges that Giuliani  who was then working as former President Trumps personal lawyer  said her payment had to be deferred because he did not want his ex-wife Judith, with whom he was going through a divorce, to find out about Dunphys employment.

Dunphys complaint claims that Giuliani groped her on her first day of work and that he forced her to perform oral sex after entering her guest suite at his Manhattan apartment uninvited, after which he exposed himself and grabbed her hair. She also alleges that he claimed not to have money to pay her while living a lavish lifestyle, and that he made frequent sexist, racist and homophobic remarks.

Notably, she claims he offered to sell presidential pardons, about which allegations have previously surfaced.

Noelle Dunphy at a New York City event on Oct. 21, 2022. (Michael Ostuni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

He also asked Ms. Dunphy if she knew anyone in need of a pardon, telling her that he was selling pardons for $2 million, which he and President Trump would split, the complaint alleges. He told Ms. Dunphy that she could refer individuals seeking pardons to him, so long as they did not go through the normal channels of the Office of the Pardon Attorney, because correspondence going to that office would be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. (Dunphys complaint says she has recordings of Giuliani making some of the alleged remarks, but she has not released them.)

Could any of that constitute a crime?

There are three potential areas of criminal investigation, according to Manhattan-based criminal law experts.

Sexual assault. The allegations of forcing her to perform sexual acts against her will could absolutely be considered sexual assault under New York law, Levin said. Sexual assault refers to engaging in non-consensual sexual conduct.

Coercing someone into a sex act is not a crime in New York, even though it may constitute sexual harassment and create civil liability, unless it involves physical force.

Sexual assault requires forcible compulsion, Cheryl Bader, who teaches criminal law at Fordham University School of Law, told Yahoo News in an email. Manipulation and emotional coercion are not enough, but the complaint alleges an encounter that involved holding onto her hair to force oral sexwhich could constitute forcible compulsion.

Selling pardons. Although such cases can be hard to build, if Giuliani participated in a scheme to sell presidential pardons, it could be a crime.

The allegation of offering to sell pardons for a monetary sum would likely raise serious legal concerns and potentially be investigated for various offenses, Levin said. This could include potential federal crimes such as bribery or corruption, as well as state-level offenses.

In recent years, the Supreme Court has narrowed the definition of bribery or corruption, making securing decisions more difficult.

Selling pardons would constitute public corruption, but a prosecutor would need more evidence than Dunphys allegation that Giuliani said he was selling pardons, Bader said.

Nonpayment of wages. This is the least likely to pose a serious legal risk to Giuliani, even if Dunphy produces significant evidence. Although Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg recently created a Workers Protection Unit to combat wage theft, stealing wages isnt considered larceny in New York. It is sometimes prosecuted as scheme to defraud, which is the lowest-level felony in the state. (A recently introduced bill in the state Legislature would amend New Yorks grand larceny statutes to include wage theft.)

Bader noted that prosecutors tend to shy away from prosecuting civil contract disputes, even when the dispute might involve an aspect of fraud.
A man accused of being a Bosnian war criminal who faked his way into the US was arrested in Boston, according to court records.

Kemal Mrndzic, who authorities took into custody on Wednesday, allegedly oversaw a prison camp in Bosnia & Herzegovina where prisoners were murdered, raped, and tortured in the 1990s.

Federal prosecutors allege that Mr Mrndzic, 50, lied about being a refugee and claimed he had US citizenship, according to Boston.com.

They claim he worked as a supervisor at the AelebiAi prison camp in the country during the Bosnian War. Survivors accused him of being involved in the war crimes committed against prisoners at the camp.

He has been charged with falsifying, concealing, and covering up a material fact from the US government by trick, scheme, or device, for using a fraudulently obtained US passport, and for possessing and using a fraudulently obtained naturalisation certificate and fraudulently obtained Social Security card.

Three former guards who allegedly worked with Mr Mrndzic have already been convicted by the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

Prosecutors said he was interviewed by the UN's tribunal after the Bosnian War and was then accused of participating in the war crimes carried out in the camp.

Mr Mrndzic allegedly fled the region to Croatia, where prosecutors say he took on a fake identity and presented himself as a refugee to gain entry to the US. He gained access in 1999 and was later granted citizenship, according to Radio Free Europe.

Prosecutors said Mr Mrndzic claimed he had been taken prisoner by Serb fighters and was afraid they would seek revenge on him if he was not granted refugee status.

It is alleged that in his refugee application and interview, he falsely claimed that he fled his home after he was captured, interrogated and abused by Serb forces, and could not return home for fear of future persecution, the Department of Justice said in a statement. He was admitted to the U.S. as a refugee in 1999, and ultimately became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2009.

Mr Mrndzic made his first court appearance on Wednesday morning and was released on a $30,000 bond.

He faces up to 20 years in prison for the fraudulent passport and naturalisation charges  10 years each  and up to five years in prison for the remaining charges, with three years of supervised release afterwards as well as a $250,000 fine.

Approximately 240 ethnic Serbs were imprisoned at AelebiAi as part of the systemic ethnic cleansing of Serbian civilians by Bosnian Muslim and Croat forces.
Spanish film director Pedro Almodovar attended the premiere of his short film "Strange Way of Life" at the Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2023

Spain's flamboyant director Pedro Almodovar is readying his first English-language feature film in the United States, also the first time he has shot abroad, his production company told AFP on Thursday.

"Yes, we want to do something in the United States, we are excited, it is not defined yet," said Esther Garcia, producer of Almodovar's company El Deseo, speaking on a panel at the Cannes Film Market.

Garcia produced Almodovar's queer Western short film "Strange Way of Life" starring Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal, which premiered at Cannes on Wednesday.

His second-ever English-language project -- following another short film starring Tilda Swinton, "The Human Voice" -- received rave reviews, with The Telegraph celebrating some "raunchy arthouse fun".

The film was co-produced by French fashion company Saint Laurent, which recently announced the creation of a division for film projects.

The 72-year-old director has been linked to Hollywood projects in the past, including an adaptation of Lucia Berlin's short story collection "A Manual for Cleaning Women" starring Cate Blanchett, but he pulled out in 2022.

Almodovar's many awards include best director at Cannes and an Oscar for 1999's "All About My Mother".

jz-eab/er/yad
A jumpsuit tends to read as a bold choice for formal-occasion dressing, but Amal Clooney has just demonstrated two different pitch-perfect ways to style the garment in the space of a single week. The lawyer and human rights activist makes a compelling case for the formal jumpsuit as a wardrobe staple.

The Prince's Trust And TKMaxx & Homesense Awards 2023 Karwai Tang

On May 16, Clooney attended The Princes Trust and TKMaxx & Homesense Awards in London, wearing a custom Atelier Versace jumpsuit in light pink cashmere. The simple one-piece featured a square neckline and ultra-wide-leg pleated trousers, with a black belt for a touch of contrast. She paired her effortlessly elegant fit with a simple box clutch and statement chandelier earrings.

4Gamechangers Festival 2023 Heinz-Peter Bader/Getty Images

Clooney offered a very slightly dressed-down jumpsuit look a day later at the international digital festival 4Gamechangers in Vienna. The 45-year-old took the stage in a sleeveless dark gray one-piece. The buttons, wide lapels, and subtle pinstripes gave the impression of a womenswear version of the classic men's suit.

She may be married to Mr. Hollywood himself, George Clooney, but Amal Clooney rarely takes to the red carpet for anything other than a worthwhile humanitarian cause. In September of 2022, while hosting the Albie Awards at the New York Public Library, George was full of praise for his impressive wife. Amal has gotten journalists out of Egypt, out of Azerbaijan, in prisons all over the world, Myanmar, he said, per Today. This is something she happens to be really, specially gifted at.

Originally Appeared on Glamour
The actress moved to Spain with her 2-year-old daughter and put the trial "behind her," a source previously told PEOPLE

GTres / SplashNews.com Amber Heard

Amber Heard is living her life in Madrid.

The Aquaman actress, 37, was photographed in the capital of Spain, where she lives now, on Thursday after ex-husband Johnny Depp, with whom she was involved in a controversial Virginia defamation trial a year ago, debuted his new French-language movie at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

A source close to Heard previously told PEOPLE she "couldn't wait to leave the U.S. with her daughter" after the trial. Heard, who is mom to 2-year-old daughter Oonagh Paige, "has been living in Spain, where she gets more privacy," said the source.

"The trial was beyond stressful for her and she just wanted to start fresh out of the country," the source added. "She is excited about working and filming again. She was exhausted and disappointed about the trial. She felt she was mistreated. This is all behind her now, though. She has new energy and is focused on things that she loves."

GTres / SplashNews.com

Depp, 59, was applauded as Jeanne Du Barry opened the prestigious event on Tuesday, signing autographs before walking the red carpet. He later got emotional as the film received a standing ovation after its screening.

During a press conference Wednesday, Depp was asked about returning to movies after the highly publicized trial and whether he feels "boycotted by Hollywood."

"Do I feel boycotted now? No, not at all. But I don't feel boycotted by Hollywood because I don't think about it. I don't think about Hollywood. I don't have much further need for Hollywood myself," he said.

Related:Amber Heard Supporters Protest Cannes Film Festival for Inclusion of Johnny Depp Movie

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Added Depp, "I keep wondering about the word comeback because I didn't go anywhere. As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away. So yeah, maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time. But no, I didn't go nowhere. I've been sitting around."

GTres / SplashNews.com

In December, Heard revealed that she and Depp reached a settlement and dropped their appeals to the June 1 verdict.

Related:Amber Heard Smiles While Stepping Out in Madrid After Moving Overseas Post-Trial: Photos

She wrote in a statement that month, "It's important for me to say that I never chose this. I defended my truth in doing so my life as I knew it was destroyed. The vilification I have faced on social media is an amplified version of the ways women are re-victimised when they come forward."

"Now I finally have an opportunity to emancipate myself from something I attempted to leave over six years ago and on terms I can agree to," Heard continued. "I have made no admission. This is not an act of concession. There are no restrictions or gags with respect to my voice moving forward."

Lionel Hahn/Getty Images Johnny Depp at Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday

Heard explained that she was "exposed to a type of humiliation that I simply cannot re-live" in the Virginia trial, which was televised live, adding that after the trial and Depp's 2020 U.K. libel case, she "simply cannot go through that for a third time" in an appeal.

"I cannot afford to risk an impossible bill  one that is not just financial, but also psychological, physical and emotional," the actress added. "Women shouldn't have to face abuse or bankruptcy for speaking her truth, but unfortunately it is not uncommon."

Heard next appears in the Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom sequel scheduled to hit theaters Dec. 20.

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Read the original article on People.
The children of a man killed when an ambulance crashed in Kansas City last month filed a wrongful death lawsuit Wednesday against the Johnson County, Missouri, operators of the emergency vehicle.

Raymond Miller, 61, died in the back of the ambulance when the driver lost control while traveling north on U.S. 71 Highway near Bannister Road on April 30, according to the Kansas City Police Department. The ambulance was operated by the Johnson County, Missouri, Ambulance District, based about 65 miles east of Kansas City.

The ambulance was on its way to Research Medical Center in Kansas City when it veered off the roadway to the left, overturned twice and stopped in the grassy median, according to the lawsuit.

Miller, the patient being transported, was pronounced dead at the scene. A captain paramedic, who was tending to Miller in the back of the vehicle, and an EMT who was driving the ambulance were injured.

Millers children are suing Johnson County, the ambulance district and Emma Gill, the driver of the ambulance, claiming Gill failed to maintain control of the ambulance and keep a careful lookout, leading to its overturning, the familys attorneys wrote in a statement.

They also allege the ambulance district was negligent in trusting someone who they say had limited experience, training and knowledge to operate the vehicle. The ambulance district, the plaintiffs allege, failed to adequately train, instruct and supervise Gill to operate the ambulance safely.

The family is hopeful that this lawsuit will provide answers about the details of the crash, the attorneys said, so that changes can be made to prevent this type of accident from happening to other families in the future.

When reached Thursday, Chief Shane Lockard of the Johnson County, Missouri, ambulance service said he couldnt comment on the specific allegations in the lawsuit, as he had not yet seen it.

The nature and details of the accident are under ongoing investigation, he said in a written statement. As of the time of this press release our agency has not been served or received notification of any lawsuit.

Lockard previously told The Star that Gill was a 21-year-old who completed the Johnson County ambulance services EMT training before she was hired.

Because EMT and paramedic school doesnt offer driving training, the service has a field training orientation program that new hires must complete, which includes classroom hours and time behind the wheel with a field training officer, Lockard said.

The EMT was no longer driving with a field training officer, meaning she completed 10 shifts of 24 hours before getting the districts final approval to operate the ambulance.

After that, Lockard said, EMTs are usually assigned an experienced paramedic to work with. The captain paramedic on the EMTs shift had worked with the ambulance district for eight years.

He also added that many EMTs are often in their 20s and 30s, and some are as young as 18 and 19.

Our agency is well above industry standard in our field training and orientation process, Lockard said.

Were not alone in the way we do ours, but we definitely I think provide more onboarding and direct training under a field training officer than the average EMS agency.
American Airlines aircraft in the air - Airline expects busy summer travel season

American Airlines is getting ready for the summer travel season when they expect more people to travel by air. According to the airline, it will have a total of 469,461 departures between May 25 and August 14, and the company expects to carry 52 million people during that time, as reported by NBC Dallas.

We are expecting a very busy summer, Julie Rath, Senior Vice President of Airport Operations at American Airlines, told NBC Dallas. Rath also said, We have been planning for this since last year.

Rath shared that American Airlines has been looking for all positions in preparation for the summer travel season. She claims that 1,000 new people have been hired at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, which is a major hub for American Airlines. Preparations have been going on for a few months, and hiring people has been a top concern since January.

Using Technology To Navigate Summer Travel

Rath stressed that she leads a team that is responsible for planning, carrying out, and getting back on track after any problems, whether bad weather or other factors are the cause. According to the executive, they think about things like air traffic control, the number of crew members who are available, and estimates of bad weather.

It helps us run the airline and keeps customers from having to deal with too many flight cancellations, Rath said, The system has been working very well.

American Airlines uses both technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to make its operations more efficient. Theyve put in place a system called smart gating, which lets computers decide which gate new flights should go to. The most important goal is to save time.

Rath stressed that every minute and second we save in running an airline is important. Cutting down on taxiway time is good for the environment and gives travelers more time to get to their next places.

RELATED: New Report Reveals Most Expensive Destinations This Summer
I am not a fan of Liberal MPs, their party, their platform and especially their leader.

The party's incessant narrative to remove history, cancel all and any who they and their supporters find offensive, racist, bigoted, misogynistic and inconsistent with their new world thinking, is damaging what little is left of Canadians values.

The removal of Terry Fox's image from Canadian passports goes to prove how far to the left (the Liberal) party has slid.

No one has to ask how important Terry Fox is to Canadians, no one except (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister) Sean Fraser.

RH Thompson
An American tourist fell into an uncovered manhole in the 'sin city' of Thailand. He was rescued 4 hours later, but he said it felt like days.

An American tourist fell into an uncovered manhole in the 'sin city' of Thailand. He was rescued 4 hours later, but he said it felt like days.

The American tourist was pulled out of the sewers. Newsflare

Johnathan Vaimaona, 36, fell into an uncovered manhole in Pattaya, Thailand, on May 12.

He was unable to climb back up and was trapped in the sewers for 4 hours.

He was rescued after a security officer who was walking past heard his cries for help.

An American tourist was rescued from the sewers in what's often referred to as Thailand's "Sin City," after being trapped for four hours.

Johnathan Vaimaona, 36, fell into an uncovered manhole in Pattaya, around 90 miles south of Bangkok, on Friday, per Newsflare.

As he was unable to climb back out, Vaimaona shouted out for help from the underground sewage system for what felt like days, Vaimaona told Newsflare.

The stranded tourist was rescued after security officer Chalee Boonsri, 26, heard his pleas. "I was on my way to a convenience store for a drink when I suddenly heard a foreigner shouting. I looked around but didn't see anyone there," said Boonsri per Newsflare.

"But when I looked at the pavement, I saw a man peeking at me from the drain," Boonsri said.

Rescuers and residents helped lift the drain covers and pulled Vaimaona out of the hole said to be 10-feet deep. He was shirtless and covered in sludge, and said he could not recall much of anything besides falling into the uncovered manhole, per Newsflare.

"I come from Hawaii. I fell. I was in front of the hotel and then I just came up and I don't know where I'm at," said Vaimaona, after he was hosed down and given a drink, per Newsflare.

The American tourist was also unable to recall the name of the hotel where he had checked in with his girlfriend and could only describe it as the one "with the boats," per Newsflare.

The police, however, discovered inconsistencies with Vaimaona's statements through further investigation and verifying his entry documents. The man was said to be speaking in a confusing manner, per Newsflare.

Local authorities said that more thorough investigations into the incident will be conducted, per Newsflare.

Pattaya has been dubbed Thailand's "Sin City" as it's home to a vibrant nightlife and sex industry, though officials have been making efforts to eliminate prostitution from the city, per Bangkok Post.

Pattaya Walking Street is often referred to as the city's red-light district, a place filled with bright neon lights from the many bars and clubs that line the street.

Insider has reached out to both Vaimaona and the Pattaya Tourist Police for comment.

Read the original article on Insider
An anger was having a slow day at a Missouri lake when an unexpected farm animal made an appearance.

All the sudden, a yearling cow heifer came down to drink, John Goad told the Missouri Department of Conservation. I moved down to give her space, and she crawls into the lake about belly deep.

Goad was using a throwline  a fishing line with five or less hooks and with one end attached to a permanent fixture  at Frieda Lake in Crawford County on May 8. And he credits the heifer with what happened next.

Every cast, I caught a fish, he said. The Jefferson City man believes the heifer must have stirred up the lakes bottom and pushed fish toward another area.

One of the fish he caught was a 5-ounce longear sunfish, according to a May 18 news release from the Missouri Department of Conservation.

That sunfish tied Missouris previous longear sunfish alternative record  a 5-ounce fish caught July 3, 2021, at a private pond in Franklin County.

Ive been fishing this lake for around 10 years and Ive caught crappie, bass, bluegill  all pretty good sizes, Goad told state officials. But Ive known there are good sized sunfish for about 7 or 8 years and Ive been trying to catch a record ever since.

He caught his first longear sunfish when he was 5 years old, according to the release.

So Ive been after this for 70 years, Goad said. Catching a record is a really tough deal. For an old guy and a veteran, Ive seen a lot of things, so I was excited about this record.

He plans to mount his sunfish, officials said.

Crawford County is in east-central Missouri.

Man fishing after work at Missouri ditch shoots fish. Its size breaks a world record

Man reels in two fish of identical weight and length  breaking Missouri state record

Anglers big fish with odd name may be a world-record catch, Missouri officials say
Peter Kramer - Getty Images

Netflixs latest documentary, Anna Nicole Smith: You Dont Know Me, explores the turbulent rise and fall of the late Hollywood star. The film uses exclusive footage and interviews to unpack the events that led to Smiths untimely death in 2007.



In her heyday, Smith was known for her modeling campaigns and highly publicized relationships. In 1994, she married J. Howard Marshall, a wealthy oil tycoon. Their union sparked a media frenzy, as people judged their age differenceSmith was 26, while Marshall was 89and the legitimacy of their union.

But to the surprise of many, this was not Smith's first marriage. Before becoming a household name? The model, born Vickie Lynn Marshall, married Billy Wayne Smith at 17 years old. Here's everything we know about her elusive first husband.

Who is Billy Wayne Smith?

Billy Wayne Smith is Anna Nicole Smiths first husband, and the father of their son, Daniel Wayne Smith. The pair met in Mexia, Texas, years before she became a household name. Smith's mother, Virgie Mae Hogan, told the The Daily Mail, that Billy was a sweet young man, very timid and shy. As the story goes, Billy wasnt initially charmed by Smith. According to Hogan, that upset Smith because he didnt pay attention to her. Looking back on their relationship, Smith once said, He drove me crazy. I chased him the way young girls do until I finally got him and married him. By then, of course, I wasnt interested.



How Did Billy and Anna Meet, and When Did They Marry?

Billy and Smith met while working at a fried chicken shack. Anna was a waitress, while Billy was a fry-cook. He was a year younger than Anna, and they both got jobs at the restaurant after dropping out of high school. From there, the young couple eventually dated for a few months. According to People, they married on April 4th, 1985, when Anna was 17 and Billy was 16. After their wedding, they moved into a house behind the chicken shop.



When Did Billy and Anna Have a child?



Anna gave birth to their son, Daniel Wayne Smith, on January 22nd, 1986. Daniel tragically passed away from a drug overdose on September 10, 2006. At the time, he was visiting his mother in Nassau, Bahamas, following the birth of her daughter, Dannielynn Birkhead.

Why Did Billy and Anna Get Divorced?

Smith and Billys union was short-lived. They separated in 1987, but didnt officially divorce until 1983. Per The Daily Mail, Anna claimed Billy was too controlling. I wasnt allowed to go out of the house or go to the store, she said. He was so jealous.

In 2017, Annas mother told The Daily Mail that after Daniel was born, Anna began working at Red Lobster. She then quit and became a stripper at Houstons Executive Suite Club. It was there that she met her next husband, the wealthy oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall.



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The anniversary of Mount St. Helens eruption  did they know it would happen beforehand?

A large crater can be seen at left as Mount St. Helens erupts on April 2, 1980, spewing black smoke and ash skyward. Mount St. Helens is located 45 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon, in Washington. | Jack Smith, Associated Press

Forty-three years ago, a Plinian eruptive column rose into the sky and volcanic debris rapidly spewed from the volcano. This cataclysmic eruption, which occurred on May 18, 1980, is the most significant volcanic eruption in the contiguous U.S. in recent history.

The 16-mile high column expelled ashes that scattered across several states  stretching from Washington to central Montana, according to Britannica. Fifty-seven people died, thousands of animals were killed and 200 square miles of trees were blown down.

The eruption altered the surrounding landscape. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said, After the eruption, the summit of Mount St. Helens was gone, forests were obliterated and rivers followed new courses. More than 150 new lakes and ponds were formed, and existing lakes filled with sediment, flooding their banks.

Volcanoes have erupted several times throughout history, causing various changes. Heres an overview of how volcanic eruptions happen, a look back at Mount Vesuvius and an update on Yellowstone Caldera.

Plumes of steam, gas, and ash often occurred at Mount St. Helens in the early 1980s. On clear days they could be seen from Portland, Oregon, 50 miles to the south. The plume photographed here rose nearly 3,000 feet above the volcanos rim. | Lyn Topinka, Wikimedia Commons

How do volcanoes erupt?

Volcanic eruptions have to do with magma. According to the American Museum of Natural History, when rocks melt (magma), they rise up because they weigh less than other rocks. Then, this magma continues to collect in magma chambers. Eruptions occur when magma builds up in these chambers and reaches the top.

There are different kinds of volcanic eruptions. The U.S. Department of the Interior said, The explosivity of an eruption depends on the composition of the magma. Some volcanic eruptions are not explosive, but others are.

Explosive volcanic eruptions can cause gases to escape and tephra  pieces of magma which range from tiny particles to house-size boulders  to move through the air, per the U.S. Department of the Interior. Explosive volcanic eruptions can be dangerous and deadly. They can blast out clouds of hot tephra from the side or top of a volcano. These fiery clouds race down mountainsides destroying almost everything in their path.

Are volcanic eruptions predictable?

Scientists can forecast volcanic eruptions, but volcanoes are unpredictable as their behavior can change. The Smithsonian Institute said scientists monitor volcanic behavior and historic patterns to forecast volcanic eruptions, but few volcanoes maintain the same behavior for long (more often than not, as soon as a repetitive pattern becomes apparent, the volcano changes behavior).

Theres also some difficulty in obtaining information about volcanoes. Divya Agarwala said in an article published on the Columbia Climate School website, Getting instruments on volcanoes can sometimes be difficult because they can be remote, dangerous, or just complicated to work at (e.g., at national parks or private lands).

Generally speaking, as a volcanic eruption approaches, scientists have a better chance of being able to predict when itll occur. According to BBC, If a volcano was going to erupt in one hour theyd have a good idea it was going to happen. If it was going to blow in a week theyd be less sure, and in six months even less so.

Scientists are still developing ways to better predict volcanic eruptions.

How many volcanoes still erupt?

The numbers change from year to year. The Smithsonian Institutes Global Volcanism Project said in 2023, there are 56 active volcanoes with 56 total eruptions. In 2022, there were 80 active volcanoes with 85 total eruptions. In 2021, there were 76 active volcanoes and 81 total eruptions.

Not all volcanoes which have the potential to be active are currently active.

The U.S. Department of the Interior said, There are about 1,350 potentially active volcanoes worldwide, aside from the continuous belts of volcanoes on the ocean floor at spreading centers like the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. About 500 of those 1,350 volcanoes have erupted in historical time. Of the 1,350 or so volcanoes, 161 of them are in the U.S.

Where are the 3 largest volcanoes?

The three largest volcanoes (by height) are Mauan Loana in Hawaii, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Popocatepetl Volcano in Mexico, according to Statista.

The next largest are Mount Fuji in Japan, Mount Semeru in Indonesia, Etna in Italy, Mount St. Helens in Washington, Mayon Volcano in the Philippines, Mount Bromo in Indonesia, Arenal in Costa Rice and the Maelifell Volcano in Iceland.

Did they know Mount St. Helens was going to erupt?

There were some warning signs Mount St. Helens would erupt. According to Fox Weather, even though scientists were able to detect seismicity which would indicate an eruption, the danger zone around it that Gov. Dixy Lee Ray had ordered turned out to be too small.

From March to May, scientists detected magma building up and a series of earthquakes. According to the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, the volcano had remained dormant for over 123 years before the eruption.

By late March 1980, scientists began to see signs of a potential eruption. Fox Weather reported, The first visible signs of a possible eruption came on March 27, when the first steam and ash explosion opened up a crater 200-250 feet wide and 80-100 feet deep, according to the USGS, That prompted evacuations within a 15-mile radius of the volcano and roadblocks to keep out the curious.

By April, officials began locking down access to the mountain. According to Fox Weather, on May 17, cabin owners whose cabins were in the red zone were able to pack up their belongings and then leave by the end of the day. The next morning, the volcano erupted.

What happened with Mount Vesuvius?

Due to the historian Pliny the Younger, theres an existing account of what happened in 79 C.E. when the volcano erupted. While writing to another historian named Cornelius Tacitus, Pliny said, On August 24, in the early afternoon my mother drew his attention to a cloud of unusual size and appearance ... Sometimes it looked white, sometimes blotched and dirty, according to the amount of soil and ashes it carried with. He was describing his uncles experience  Pliny the Elder.

Pliny described how ashes fell hotter and thicker as the ships drew near. He continued, Meanwhile on Mount Vesuvius broad sheets of fire and leaping flames blazed at several points, their bright glare emphasized by the darkness of night.

Earthquakes precipitated the eruption. According to the American Museum of Natural History, a major earthquake in 62 C.E. shook the mountain and the magma chamber kept building as earthquakes continued in the area.

The remains of 2,000 people were discovered  their bodies preserved by the ash from the eruption, per History.com. The cities were devastated. According to Pliny the Youngers account, the eruption lasted 18 hours. Pompeii was buried under 14 to 17 feet of ash and pumice, and the nearby seacoast was drastically changed. Herculaneum was buried under more than 60 feet of mud and volcanic material.

What is a Plinian eruption?

Eruptions like the 1980 Mount Saint Helens and Vesuvius are called Plinian eruptions after Pliny the Elders description of the Mount Vesuvius eruption, preserved by Pliny the Younger. According to the National Park Service, Plinian eruptions are characterized by ash columns miles high which spread out into an umbrella or mushroom shape.

What happens if Yellowstone erupts?

Underneath Yellowstone National Park, theres a supervolcano. A supervolcano is a volcanic center whose measured or predicted deposits would be greater than 240 cubic miles, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Supervolcanoes are rare  there are about 20 on the earth, per BBC. They dont erupt enough, only about once every 100,000 years, but their eruptions can be catastrophic.

Scientists currently dont think another eruption from Yellowstone will happen, according to U.S. Department of the Interior. Its erupted three times and currently, there may not be enough magma beneath the caldera for an eruption.

If Yellowstone were to erupt, some of the effects may persist for years after the eruption. The U.S. Department of the Interior said, Those parts of the surrounding states of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming that are closest to Yellowstone would be affected by pyroclastic flows, while other places in the United States would be impacted by falling ash (the amount of ash would decrease with distance from the eruption site). However, an eruption from Yellowstone seems unlikely now.
Specialized anti-corruption prosecutor's office

SAPO alleges that certain individuals had unlawfully disclosed legally protected materials related to the competition to the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine (VKKS).

These documents were seized during a search of Knyazev's office.

Disclosure of such information is illegal and may cause "irreparable harm" to the interests of the state, SAPO says, citing Part 3 of Article 387 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The pre-trial investigation was entrusted to the Internal Control Department of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU).

Read also: Moscow court arrest in absentia leading Bellingcat investigator Christo Grozev

The Knyazev case

On the evening of May 15, reports emerged that Vsevolod Knyazev, the head of the Supreme Court, is suspected of receiving a $2.7 million bribe, which was documented by NABU and SAPO.

Later, the SAPO confirmed that Knyazev had been detained in relation to that case. NABU Director Semen Kryvonos called it the largest exposure of a high-ranking judicial official since the establishment of NABU and SAPO.

Kryvonos revealed that his bureau has documented a series of contacts between the owner of financial firm Finances and Credit Group, Kostiantyn Zhevaho, and one of the owners of a law firm used to conceal criminal activities. These contacts involved an agreement regarding unlawful benefits in favor of high-ranking court officials for rendering the necessary decision in favor of Zhevaho.

Read also: Anti-graft court greenlights investigation of prominent bankers bribery case in absentia

On May 16, the Supreme Court expressed no confidence in Knyazev, who lost his position as Chief Justice, but remains a judge until the High Council of Justice decides otherwise. He and his lawyer, listed as an accomplice in the case, were charged with receiving undue advantages.

Zhevaho denies his involvement in the multimillion-dollar bribe, as stated in a press release issued by his spokesperson to Forbes, though in a recent case on April 19, the Supreme Court upheld Zhevaho's 40% stake in the Poltava Mining and Processing Plant in a lawsuit that had been ongoing since 2005.

Knyazev was elected as the Head of the Supreme Court in late October 2021. Prior to that, he had served as a judge and secretary of the Supreme Chamber of the Supreme Court since 2017.

Law enforcement authorities are also probing other episodes of bribery of Supreme Court judges.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
In Belarus, a line of anti-tank fortifications, the so-called dragon's teeth, appeared near the border with Ukraine.

Source: Belaruski Hajun Monitoring Project

Details: It is reported that the line of dragons teeth is located 10 kilometres from Homiel, near the M8 highway towards the border with Ukraine.

Anti-tank fortifications on Belarusian border near Homiel

Photo from Belaruski Hajun's telegrAM

In addition, construction of what are presumably fortifications is ongoing very close to the border as well.

On Thursday morning, Alexander Lukashenko, self-proclaimed President of Belarus and an ally of the Russian dictator, said that all the statements about the Ukrainian counter-offensive are "disinformation". Lukashenko has traditionally stated that Ukraine and Russia should sit down at the negotiating table without any preliminary demands from Kyiv.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
AOC dunks on McCarthy over debt ceiling negotiations as Democrats consider forcing a vote on increasing the debt limit

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called out House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Twitter over debt ceiling talks on Wednesday. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Republicans and the White House are in talks to raise the US debt limit as the clock runs out.

House Democrats moved to force a vote to increase the debt limit, which requires 218 signatures.

AOC said Rep. Kevin McCarthy is in no position to try to negotiate the debt ceiling.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is in no position to try to negotiate the debt ceiling, as House Democrats moved forward with a backup plan on Wednesday that would force a vote in order to increase the debt limit before the US defaults on its bills.

A day after congressional leaders and President Joe Biden expressed optimism about addressing the nation's debt limit before the June 1 deadline, Rep. Brendan Boyle, the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, initiated a petition to force a vote to increase the debt limit.

The congressional maneuver, known as a discharge petition, requires 218 signatures, regardless of party affiliation. More than 200 lawmakers signed the petition on Wednesday, with Democrats expecting to get signatures from all 213 of their members.

No Republicans have signaled that they will cross over and sign the petition, but Ocasio-Cortez expressed that Democrats are in a position to pressure Republicans with the special maneuver.

"Here's the deal: McCarthy has nowhere near the votes for a deal and therefore cannot negotiate debt ceiling," Ocasio-Cortez said in a tweet. "You need 218 votes. GOP has maybe ~150. They will need anywhere from 50-100 House Dems to pass anything. Dems have 213 votes for a clean bill & just need to pick up 5."

She also likened the situation to McCarthy's Speaker vote debacle in January, when Congress members went through 15 rounds of voting before they finally settled on the Republican leader for the Speaker title.

"We got a preview of this during McCarthy's disaster of Speaker vote in January. He doesn't know how many votes he has on what. That's what makes this "negotiating" rudderless," she wrote. "How do you deal with someone who cannot deliver passage? Clean bill needs 5. He can't pass without Dems."

Representatives for McCarthy did not respond to a request for comment.

McCarthy said Wednesday that the move was a "political game" and that Republicans in the Senate would attempt to block it, according to The New York Times.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Rep Jamaal Bowman accused Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene of using a racial bullhorn when she characterised him as threatening during a confrontation on the steps of the US Capitol.

The two had a heated exchange on Wednesday after the House voted to refer the expulsion of Representative George Santos to the House Ethics Committee.

At a press conference on Thursday, Ms Greene criticised the New York Democrat, an outspoken progressive, for calling her a white supremacist.

That is like calling a person of colour the n-word, she said. Jamaal Bowman was down there cursing at me, telling me to get the eff out of there, right outside the vehicle I was sitting in.

Mr Bowman had confronted Ms Greene following the vote to refer the expulsion of the embattled New York Republican representative to the House Ethics Committee rather than subject his expulsion to a full vote on the House floor.

What is on video is Jamaal Bowman shouting at the top of his lungs, cursing, she said. Calling me a white supremacist, which I take great offence to. That is like calling a person of colour the N-word.

Ms Greene accused Mr Bowman of leading the mob right outside a vehicle as she was prepared to leave the Capitol. She then noted that he confronted her after the vote.

His physical mannerisms are aggressive, she said, criticising his recent interaction with Rep Thomas Massie (R - Kentucky) and accusing him of shoving Mr Massie when discussing gun violence. I am concerned. I feel threatened by him.

But Mr Bowman called Ms Greenes words incredibly dangerous and incredibly reckless.

Unfortunately, this country has a history of characterising Black men who are outspoken, who stand their ground and who push back as being threatening or intimidating, he told reporters on Capitol Hill. So shes not even using a dog whistle. Shes using a bullhorn to put a target on my back to the people she refers to as MAGA people out there who might want to cause harm.

Black men continue to be characterized as aggressive and threatening when we are passionate and outspoken.



They're not just using dogwhistles, they're using bullhorns. It's dangerous, but we must ALL continue to speak truth to power. https://t.co/6eLZf2F3Cm pic.twitter.com/O29uCdAehC  Congressman Jamaal Bowman (@RepBowman) May 18, 2023

The Daily Beasts Ursula Perano filmed the interaction as Mr Bowman admonished Ms Greene, who has promoted conspiracies such as QAnon, to fix the Republican Party.

Eventually, Mr Bowmans friend Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D - New York) stepped in to tell him of Ms Greene: She aint worth it, bro.

During their back and forth, Mr Bowman told Ms Greene of Mr Santos: Expel him. Save the party. The party is hanging by a thread.

But Ms Greene deflected, saying: We got to get rid of Biden to save the country, before she tried to start a chant of impeach Biden.

Mr Bowman then said Ms Greene needed to stop promoting conspiracy theories.

No more QAnon, he said, to which Ms Greene replied: No more CNN.

No more debt ceiling nonsense, he said. Come on, now. Save the party.

Mr Bowman also called on Ms Greene to do something about guns.

So close the border, Ms Greene, which led Mr Bowman to scoff.

The border is where Trump left it, he said.

Mr Bowman ultimately moved on following the advice of Ms Ocasio-Cortez.

The confrontation came after Mr Bowman and Ms Ocasio-Cortez heckled Mr Santos outside of the Capitol building, imploring him to resign as he spoke to reporters.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who heckled George Santos mid Santos-gaggle moments ago, in a tiff with MTG outside the Capitol steps.



AOC comes up at the end: She aint worth it bro pic.twitter.com/R5L20WvhFK  Ursula Perano (@UrsulaPerano) May 17, 2023

Last week, Mr Santos was indicted on 13 counts of criminal charges related to wire fraud, money laundering, making false statements to the House of Representatives and theft of public funds.

The charges come months after it was revealed that Mr Santos lied on his resume before being elected to represent New Yorks 3rd district.

Democrats have been pushing for Mr Santos to resign, citing ethical concerns- including Mr Bowman and Ms Ocasio-Cortez.
Ariana Madix took a page out of Princess Diana's playbook with the ultimate revenge dress

"Vanderpump Rules" star Ariana Madix has been following Princess Diana's revenge-dressing playbook in the midst of "Scandoval." Ralph Bavaro/Bravo/Jayne Fincher/Getty Images

"Vanderpump Rules" star Ariana Madix has been following Princess Diana's revenge-dressing playbook.

Madix appeared on "Watch What Happens Live" in a dress similar to Diana's iconic 1994 revenge dress.

Madix has been wearing iconic revenge outfits following the news that Tom Sandoval cheated on her.

On June 29, 1994  the night her husband admitted that he'd been cheating on her to the entire world  Princess Diana arrived at a party in a black, off-the-shoulder gown that would change fashion history.

Almost 29 years later  on the night we watched her boyfriend of nine years admit to her that he'd been having an affair with her best friend  "Vanderpump Rules" star Ariana Madix showed up to "Watch What Happens Live" in a black, off-the-shoulder dress that she described to host Andy Cohen as her "slutty funeral" look.

You may be thinking, "What does a Bravo reality TV star have in common with the most famous princess in the world?" Clearly, the answer is that they both perfected the art of revenge dressing.

The "revenge dress" was born on that night back in the '90s, when Princess Diana threw royal protocol out the window and dared to bare her shoulders in the Christina Stambolian dress while attending an event at London's Serpentine Gallery.

Princess Diana famously wore this black dress by designer Christina Stambolian in 1994. Jayne Fincher/Getty Images

The Princess of Wales knew all eyes would be on her. That same night, Prince Charles (now King Charles III) gave an exclusive interview to British documentary filmmaker Jonathan Dimbleby, during which he revealed he'd been having an affair with Camilla Parker Bowles (now known as Queen Camilla).

It was a suave PR mood by Diana, who dominated front pages and headlines the next day with her "revenge dress." She stole the spotlight by looking incredible  and unbothered.

It's a playbook that Madix has followed to a T as she's dealt with her own public cheating scandal. On March 3, news broke that Madix's longtime boyfriend, Tom Sandoval, had been cheating on her with their costar Raquel (real name Rachel) Leviss.

The scandal shocked loyal fans who've been watching Sandoval and Madix's romance onscreen for nearly a decade, not to mention Madix taking Leviss under her wing throughout the most recent season. "Scandoval" has now become a national talking point  it was even mentioned at the White House Correspondents' dinner.

Madix with her costars at the "Vanderpump Rules" finale. Nicole Weingart/Bravo

No one would have blamed Madix for lying low as details of Sandoval and Leviss' seven-month affair dominated headlines. But Madix, much like Diana, knew that all eyes would be on her. And she's made sure to make a statement with her fashion.

For the "Vanderpump Rules" reunion  which was filmed on March 23 and will air next week  she wore a red, cropped jacket and skirt. Pictures of her quickly went viral on social media, with many hailing Madix as the new queen of revenge dressing.

And when Madix appeared on Cohen's "Watch What Happens Live," which aired after the "Vanderpump Rules" finale on Wednesday, she chose a similarly bold and sexy ensemble. The black Alessandra Rich dress featured off-the-shoulder lace sleeves, a black bodice, and an asymmetrical train that showed plenty of leg. She paired the look with strappy black Steve Madden stilettos.

Ariana Madix and Andy Cohen on "Watch What Happens Live." Ralph Bavaro/Bravo

While Madix may have joked that she was wearing a "slutty funeral" dress, it's clear she's realized the same thing that Princess Diana did: You can still mourn the end of something while celebrating new beginnings.

And you can look damn good while doing it.

Read the original article on Insider
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev (L), President of the European Council Charles Michel (C) and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (R) in Brussels on May 14, 2023

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Thursday said he had agreed to meet with the president of arch-enemy Azerbaijan in Moscow next week.

The Russian-mediated talks will take place amid tensions between the two Caucasus neighbours, which have fought two wars over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh and often see deadly clashes along their volatile border.

Baku and Yerevan have been seeking to negotiate a peace agreement with the help of the European Union and United States, whose diplomatic engagement in the Caucasus has irked traditional regional power broker Russia.

"We received a proposal from Russia to hold a trilateral meeting at the highest level under the mediation of the president of Russia on May 25," he told his cabinet meeting in Yerevan.

"We have accepted that proposal," he added.

On Friday, the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan were set to hold talks in Moscow.

Baku and Yerevan fought two wars -- in 2020 and in the 1990s -- for control of Azerbaijan's mostly Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Pashinyan said both sides must "demilitarise" their shared border, blaming Baku for "continuing the policy of escalation."

Six weeks of hostilities in autumn 2020 ended with a Russian-brokered ceasefire that saw Armenia cede swathes of territory it had controlled for decades.

Yerevan has grown increasingly frustrated over what it calls Moscow's failure to protect Armenia in the face of military threat from Azerbaijan.

With Russia bogged down in Ukraine and unwilling to strain ties with Azerbaijan's key ally Turkey, the United States and European Union have sought to repair ties between the Caucasus rivals.

On Sunday, Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met in Brussels for a fresh round of talks hosted by European Council President Charles Michel.

In his speech on Thursday, the Armenian prime minister said both sides agreed in Brussels to recognise the other's territorial integrity, hailing "the important step towards peace and stability in the region."

He said that "progress" had been made towards preparing "the final text of a peace agreement."

Another meeting between Pashinyan and Aliyev set for June 1 in Moldova was expected to involve French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken mediated between the Armenian and Azberbaijani foreign ministers earlier this month in the Washington suburb of Arlington.

Despite US pressure on Russia, State Department spokesman Vedant Patel welcomed the new talks between the leaders.

"Our view is that direct talks between the parties are of utmost importance and we're glad to see them happen," he told reporters in Washington.

"Whether they are taking place in Arlington, Brussels or in Moscow, our support (for) this effort will continue," he said.

mkh-im/as-sct/md
Photo: The Canadian Press Farmington Mayor Nate Duckett addresses reporters during a news conference in Farmington, N.M., on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. The gunman who killed several people and wounded others while roaming through his northwestern New Mexico neighborhood and apparently firing at random targets was a local 18-year-old high school student, authorities said Tuesday, noting they were still trying to determine a motive for the attack. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Videos released Thursday of this weeks deadly rampage in northwest New Mexico recorded a voice said to be the shooter urging police to kill me and officers rushing toward the 18-year-old gunman before fatally shooting him outside a church.

He is yelling on the Ring footage, Come kill me,'" Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said of Beau Wilson, the high school senior who authorities say killed three older women during the attack.

Hes making a stand, he has opportunities to run off, he does not use those opportunities, Hebbe said. "So yes its my belief that ultimately in his head, he has made the decision that he is going to stand and fight it out until he is killed.

Three older woman were killed Monday by the shooter, including a mother and daughter who happened to be driving through the neighborhood. The victims were identified as longtime Farmington residents Gwendolyn Schofield, 97, her 73-year-old daughter, Melody Ivie, and 79-year-old Shirley Voita.

At least six other people were wounded in the shootings, which sent waves of grief rippling through the community of 50,000 people. They included two police officers, who have been released from medical care as they recover.

Hebbe's comments mirrored an account from witness Candi Brammell, who lives next to the church and told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday that the gunman seemed to be egging police on, saying: Come on!

Brammell said she couldnt believe what she was seeing as Wilson opened fire. Within an instant, he was exchanging shots with the police and then was down in the grass.

Wilson lived with his father in a home that contained an arsenal of weapons and ammunition, apparently legally owned, according to law enforcement authorities. He bought an assault-style rifle last year after he turned 18.

On Monday, police say, he began shooting indiscriminately with the rifle from the front porch area of the home.

The first person hit was Voita, a retired nurse who was driving by. Video released by police showed her car rolling down the street with the door open after she managed to get out. Video also showed the path of a vehicle carrying Schofield and Ivie, who stopped to help.

They see something in the road, which turns out to be (Voita), and theyre in the process of pulling over when another hail of gunfire erupts, Hebbe said, narrating the images. At that time we believe all those rounds are fired from (the rifle).

Police say Wilson soon dropped the weapon into some bushes even though it still held more live ammunition.

Wilson then walked down the street for about a quarter mile, spraying bullets indiscriminately using two pistols. He discharged a .22-caliber gun and then depleted rounds from a 9-mm weapon in the final shootout with police, during which he let off at least 18 rounds.

He wore what appeared to be a modified protective vest with steel plates, but authorities say he discarded the vest before the shootout with police.

A note was found in his pocket that said, If your reading this im the end of the chapter.

Police said earlier this week that they couldn't say how many gunshot wounds the victims had suffered and were waiting on the medical investigator's report, which had not been made public as of Thursday.

Neighbor Bryan Brown, who was among those who ran to render first aid, told AP that Voita had gunshot wounds to the leg and the head.

The gunman's body was left in the grass for a time as investigators worked the scene, and it was unclear then how many times he was shot.

Efforts were underway by authorities to access medical and school records that might shed light on Wilsons mental history.

New Mexico enacted a so-called red flag law in 2020 that can be used to seize guns from people who pose a danger to themselves or others. Judicial records show the Farmington Police Department has petitioned successfully for the removal of guns in other instances, most recently in February.

Police have been probing for motivations behind Monday's rampage, which took place the day before Wilson was due to graduate from high school, amid some indications from relatives of prior mental health issues.

Located near Four Corners where New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Colorado meet, Farmington is a supply line and bedroom community to the regions oil and natural gas industry.
York County Councilwoman Christi Cox gave a preemptive statement Monday evening before the council meeting. She told more than a dozen people that the council has no say in where books are placed in the York County public libraries.

Still, 15 people ambled up to the podium to voice their opinions about whether books about gender identity and LGBTQ topics should stay in the childrens section of the libraries or be moved to the adult section.

Those who favor moving the books say that would put power in the hands of parents to decide what their young children read. Those who want the books unmoved say the relocation is a form of censorship.

York County councilman takes aim at childrens library books with LGBTQ+ content

The controversy came up earlier this month when Councilman Tom Audette asked for a review of childrens books. He said constituents had reached out to him regarding books in the childrens section of the library that they consider sexually inappropriate. Audette pointed to a petition he received from concerned parents and said he found hundreds of books about gender identity or sexuality for readers ages 2-17.

York County Councilman Tom Audette shows a childrens book to a crowd at Mondays meeting in York.

Despite Coxs statement earlier in the meeting, Audette doubled down on the issue near the end of the open session. This time, he read passages from a childrens book called You Be You: the Guide to Gender, Sexuality and Family, while holding up the book to show drawings of nude men and women he said were fully exposed.

Im putting this out on display, Audette told the crowd.

Beyond comments made during the meeting, Audette would not answer other questions asked by a Herald reporter.

What action can the council take?

While the council has no say in where books are placed on library shelves, the council can cut funding to the library, according to York County spokesman Greg Suskin.

Audette has not said he plans to propose to cut funding, but Councilman Bump Roddey said at the meeting, he would oppose that.

You know, people say you should hold back their funding. Thats not what this body is going to do, I wouldnt support that, Roddey said. Were going down a slippery slope if were starting to try to decide things that replace parenting. Thats not what I ran for.

Cox told those present that they could address the topic at the York County Library Board meeting, which is 6 p.m. Thursday at the Rock Hill branch. The meeting agenda lists controversial materials as an item the library board will discuss.

There is no motion or other action item pending tonight on the library issue, with the exception of hearing from an individual who signed up at the Concerned Citizens stage, Cox said.

The American Civil Liberties Union

That individual mentioned by Cox was a representative of the American Civil Liberties Union, Josh Malkin, senior advocacy strategist for South Carolina. He told the council that banning or restricting access to certain books is a violation of the U.S. Constitution and the S.C. Code of Laws.

The government cannot limit access to library materials solely on the basis of the content of those materials, unless the government can demonstrate that the restriction is necessary to achieve a compelling government interest, Malkin said. I will tell you right now, wanting to protect children from queer characters is not a compelling government interest.

Many of the two dozen citizens who spoke to the council used the words sexually inappropriate and sexually explicit to describe the books.

I think there were folks saying that they think any depiction of gay or trans characters is sexually explicit. There is nothing more sexual about a book featuring a gay or a trans child than there is about a book featuring a straight or a cisgender kid. I think that language is harmful, he said. Just as parents are the experts when it comes to what their children can read, we need to trust and believe that our librarians are the experts when it comes to curating our libraries.

York County Library Director Julie Ward said the library has received an onslaught of calls about relocating the books.

Weve been telling people we dont have sexually explicit books, she said.

Parents speak out

One resident of Fort Mill, Diana Simone, said she works with a project that aims to stop child trafficking, and said the books are sexually inappropriate. She said the presence of the books in the library is a crime.

If I stood outside a library and showed a child a picture of a nude man, someone would call Sheriff (Kevin) Tolson, and I would be arrested because its inappropriate behavior when children are around, Simone said. Its not a First Amendment issueIf its a crime outside the walls of a library, its a crime inside the walls.

Another Fort Mill resident, Dave Phelps, said he has empathy for transgender people, but is opposed to transgender material or sexually deviant material in the children and young adult sections of the libraries.

Its clear that transgenderism has become much more prominent in our society today. It has been actively promoted, rather than being sensitively recognized, it has become a movement, he said. My big concern is when this movement seeks to influence children and young adults, as citizens who are most susceptible to trendy ideas or ideas that present themselves as being able to release them into something better or free them from their current difficulties.

Denise Bach, also of Fort Mill, said children should be able to browse for books without having inappropriate materials put in their path.

York County councilman shouldnt pick where kids books go in libraries, says new petition

If parents want to read those books to children, they can pick the books out themselves, she said.

Theres got to be a place for public decency in protecting our children in the libraries, Bach said. Were not asking for book burning, but just putting inappropriate books in the adult section.

Half of the residents who spoke at the meeting were against moving the books to the adult section. One of those opposed is a librarian.

Librarians strive to have spaces and collections that are inclusive of everyone, Tenley Middleton said.

Our collections reflect and celebrate the diversity of the human experience, she said. Choosing to remove, segregate or restrict access to books that accurately reflect that experience does library patrons a disservice.

Library patrons deserve access to reading materials that are high quality, age relevant and engaging, Middleton said.

Additionally, reading helps people develop empathy, she said.

Not inherently sexual

One person who attended the meeting was 22-year-old Beth Tyler, who said she identifies as non-binary. She said she believes the speakers are sexualizing gender.

I would like to add that being trans or being any part of the LGBTQ community is not inherently sexual, she said. I feel like a lot of conversations are predicated on the misconception that LGBTQ community is this purely sexual movement.

Tyler said she did not have access to childrens books about LGBTQ and transgender people as a child, but wishes she had. She said many of the books at the library just address the fact that people are LGBTQ. Some of the books acknowledge gender exists and it might not be the same for everyone, she added.

She said restricting the books is unnecessary.

And all it is is a continued effort to further marginalize trans people and wipe them out of public life, Tyler said. They dont want us to exist in public life, they dont want us to exist period.
Arrest made almost 4 years after newborn found alive in plastic bag in Forsyth County woods

Nearly four years after a newborn was found abandoned in the woods in Forsyth County, authorities have made an arrest.

The child survived and is said to be in good health.

The Forsyth County Sheriffs Office has not released the name or charges of the person arrested. Deputies will be holding a news conference on Friday to announce the details of the arrest.

Neighbors heard a baby crying and discovered Baby India tied up in the bag in June 2019.

In the days after the incident, Channel 2 Action News showed you body camera video of the moments deputies tore open the bag to find the newborn with her umbilical cord still attached. The video shows officers frantically wrap the crying baby in a jacket.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Shes a sweetheart, Deputy Sheriff Terry Roper says on the video. Oh, look at how precious you are!

Alan Ragatz told Channel 2s Tom Regan it was an act of God that he and his daughters found the newborn.

We went down, pulled it up. There was a poor little baby wrapped in a plastic bag, and we called 911, Ragatz said. She was alive. She was crying, so we figured that was a good sign. Could have been worse. The credit goes to my girls. They were the ones sticking with it.

The three sisters believe a higher power put them in the right place at the right time.

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France - EMMANUEL DUNAND/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

The French government has unveiled a "security package" to protect officials after a former mayors house was set on fire by anti-immigration protesters.

Yannick Morez said he no longer felt safe following an arson attack on his home, which was set on fire at night while he and his family slept in March. The familys two cars were also torched.

France has seen a surge in the number of registered threats and attacks against officials, which rose by 32 cent last year compared to 2021 to reach 2,265. The rise continued in the first quarter of this year.

Dominique Faure, minister in charge of local authorities, promised a "security pack" that would nominate 3,400 civil servants to liaise with gendarmeries around the country to handle any complaints from elected officials.

Maximum prison terms for attacks on such representatives would also be increased from three to seven years, and fines from 75,000 to 100,000.

Yannick Morez

Mr Morez, the former mayor of Saint-Brevin-les-Pins in western France, had backed a plan to receive a group of migrants, sparking protests and threats notably from far-Right groups.

He said he had to face opposition alone due to a "lack of state support".

After meeting Elisabeth Borne, the French prime minister, on Wednesday, he told senators that his repeated pleas to local police and the regional state representative fell on deaf ears.

"We were very, very surprised" at the lack of reaction, he told them.

"The sub-prefect simply said: 'I receive threats every day.' The police commander said: 'Its not much. Its intimidation, theres no point filing a legal complaint. At any rate, we wont do anything, its freedom of expression'."

The same officers subsequently criticised him for not filing a complaint after the attack and he tendered his resignation, he claimed.

Ms Borne tried and failed to get him to go back on his resignation, which she said she "respected".

The great-nephew of Brigitte Macron, the French First Lady, was also beaten up by anti-pension protesters earlier this week outside his confectionary-chocolate shop. Four people, including a minor, face trial next month.

Jean-Baptiste Trogneux - geneanet

On Wednesday, Gerald Darmanin, Frances interior minister, blamed the political extremes, notably the hard-Left France Unbowed party, for whipping up fury against Emmanuel Macron and then turning a blind eye to violence.

In Mr Morezs case, the culprits - who are at large - are thought to be far-Right sympathisers.

The ex-mayor said he intended to move out of the town and leave the country on a long boat trip to French Polynesia.

"My children tell me to stop everything, my wife no longer wants to stay in Saint-Brevin since the person has still not been arrested and she does not want to meet him when she is shopping," he said.

David Lisnard, president of the association of French mayors said: "What will our society become if we no longer differentiate between political violence and personal attacks?"

Since 2020, some 1,300 mayors have resigned, many due to fears for their safety.

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Artesia mother Alexee Trevizo accused of killing newborn released by court ahead of trial

A 19-year-old Artesia woman charged with first-degree murder after allegedly placing her newborn baby in a hospital trashcan was released from custody ahead of trial.

Alexee Trevizo was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond following a Tuesday hearing in front of Eddy County District Judge David Finger.

She will be allowed to attend school and graduation, follow a curfew from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and will not have to wear an ankle monitor or serve under house arrest during her release.

More: Newborn baby found dead in trashcan at Artesia hospital. Mother charged with murder

She was required to attend counseling and was permitted to travel to Texas without permission to visit family. Any other out-of-state travel will require permission from the court.

If any terms are violated, Trevizo will be sent back to jail ahead of the trial.

She was awaiting an arraignment scheduled in district court after the case was bound over from Artesia Magistrate Court.

More: Carlsbad police struggled to solve Donna Hyatt's murder for decades. DNA brought answers

Trevizo was arrested May 10 after an investigation into a January incident at Artesia General Hospital where police said a newborn baby she gave birth to in a bathroom at the hospital was later found dead in a trashcan.

She was charged with one count of first-degree murder and a charge of tampering with evidence.

Trevizo initially sought treatment for backpains at the hospital, later denying she was pregnant despite a positive test administered by medical staff.

More: Fatal shooting of 15-year-old boy in Carlsbad followed fight at apartment, police say

She locked herself in a bathroom, read a criminal complaint, exiting after an extended amount of time.

Cleaning staff found the bathroom covered in blood, the complaint read, and found the infant at about 2:26 a.m.

Trevizo told police the baby was dead upon birth, but an autopsy filed by the Office of the Medical Investigator showed air in the babys lungs and no defects or injuries consistent with a still birth, read the complaint.

The autopsy did show injuries indicating the baby likely suffocated after birth.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Artesia woman accused of killing baby released by court ahead of trial
MADISON  Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said Wednesday his caucus was done negotiating on sweeping legislation Republican lawmakers passed Wednesday night aimed at boosting funding for local governments that the Democratic governor said he wanted to continue discussing.

Assembly Republicans on Wednesday released revisions to a bill that boosts state funding known as shared revenue and implements policy changes in communities across the state on policing, public health, quarries and more. The revisions were made just before lawmakers were set to meet on the Assembly floor to vote on the legislation.

Update: Republican rift over referendum requirement puts municipal funding bill in jeopardy

Gov. Tony Evers said Wednesday morning he was optimistic about finding a compromise supported by both houses of the Legislature, stakeholders and his office. But by the end of the day, Vos said discussions were over even as Evers spokeswoman said the governor was looking forward to continuing them.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and other members of the assembly seen during the Assembly Republican presser discussing the shared bipartisan revenue proposal giving more state aid to local communities Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at 2 E. State Capitol in Madison, Wis.

"We have negotiated in good faith literally for months. ... Now it's time to act," Vos told reporters before the floor session.

Nothing has changed since the governors statement this morning  the governor hasnt signed off on any amendment, but he looks forward to continuing negotiations with Republican leaders in the weeks ahead, Evers spokeswoman Britt Cudaback said in a statement minutes later.

The bill was passed, 56-36, with all Democrats opposing and three Republicans opposing the proposal. GOP Reps. Scott Allen of Waukesha, Janel Brandtjen of Menomonee Falls and Chuck Wichgers of Muskego joined Democrats to vote against the bill.

Democrats echoed the governor's desire to keep negotiating its provisions and citing the speed at which the legislation was taken up after being amended.

Bill author Rep. Tony Kurtz, R-Wonewoc, said the bill was a result of months of negotiations including a rare meeting of Evers, Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu.

"To let this opportunity go truly hurts the entire state of Wisconsin," Kurtz said. "It's something that has taken decades to get to."

The legislation could change further once the state Senate takes it up. LeMahieu has questioned the wisdom of the Assembly proposal's requirement that new Milwaukee and Milwaukee County sales taxes be implemented only if approved by voters. He did not say Wednesday whether he supports the Assembly's approach.

The bill would allow the city to levy a sales tax and the county to add to its current sales tax to address pension challenges and public safety services  if approved by voters  and would move their new employees to the state pension system.

The proposal would also boost supplemental aid for counties, towns, villages and cities to use for specific public safety, public works and transportation purposes.

Hours before the Assembly met Wednesday, Evers, a Democrat, said he was "optimistic and hopeful" about the ability to find compromise with the Republican-controlled state Legislature. The message stood in contrast to his previous threat to veto the legislation over what he said was a need for more local government funding and his concerns about the bill's restrictions on decision-making by local governments.

"Today, we are in a much better place than we were just two weeks ago. All parties have been willing to set differences aside, all parties have worked to operate in good faith, and all parties have come to the table committed to finding common ground  and for that, I am very grateful," he said in a statement.

More: Buildings continue to rise in Milwaukee while its finances dry up. What explains a tale of 2 cities?

More: Republican bill to aid local governments comes with strings attached. Here's what you need to know

The funding proposal comes in response to a push for increased revenue from municipalities and counties across the state that argue the state's current funding structure is making it increasingly difficult to provide services to residents.

The bill includes a litany of proposed policy changes, in addition to increased funding through shared revenue  money the state returns to local governments.

Sales tax referendum

The referendum requirement has been among the most hotly debated elements of the bill because both Milwaukee and Milwaukee County are depending on the revenue that would be generated by the new taxes to avert significant budget cuts.

The city in particular is facing a steep "fiscal cliff" in 2025 without additional revenue options from the state. At that point, city officials expect huge cuts to services such as police officers, firefighters, libraries and more.

Milwaukee and Milwaukee County residents would feel the pain of those cuts but so, too, would southeast Wisconsin and the state more broadly, locals argue.

LeMahieu told 620WTMJ that he did not think the requirement that voters approve the new sales taxes for Milwaukee and Milwaukee County is the best way forward because the referendums could fail  a concern that Milwaukee leaders have also voiced.

A spokesman for LeMahieu did not respond to questions from the Journal Sentinel about whether Senate Republicans approve of the revised bill. A spokesman for Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson declined to comment.

A spokesman for Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said the county appreciated Vos' "willingness to continue engaging on providing a solution" but that a unanimous vote on issues of this magnitude "has not occurred in recent memory."

As written, the legislation would allow the City of Milwaukee to levy a 2% sales tax while Milwaukee County could add a 0.375% sales tax on top of its current 0.5% tax, if voters approve.

At those rates, Milwaukee County's sales tax collections could be expected to increase by about $72.6 million annually, assuming 5% growth for 2023, 2% growth for 2024 and a Jan. 1, 2024, effective date, according to a fiscal estimate prepared by the state Department of Revenue.

With a 2% sales tax in the City of Milwaukee  and assuming the city's share of the county sales tax base is 50%  sales tax collections would be about $193.6 million starting in 2024, the report states.

If both the city and county sales taxes were implemented, taxable goods purchased in the city would be subject to both sales taxes.

Police in Milwaukee schools retained, training added

The legislation would make a series of changes to law enforcement in Wisconsin, particularly in Milwaukee and in Milwaukee Public Schools.

Assembly Republicans retained language requiring Milwaukee Public Schools officials to hire 25 new law enforcement officers to be stationed on school grounds, which is opposed by school board officials.

The revised bill also includes language that requires the new school officers to complete 40 hours of training sponsored by the National Association of School Resource Officers. Vos told reporters Wednesday the training requirement was a request from Evers, a former state superintendent and public school educator.

Wisconsin communities spent $2.81 billion in 2021 and $2.73 billion in 2020 on law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services, the state Department of Revenue estimate states.

Alison Dirr and Molly Beck can be reached at adirr@jrn.com and molly.beck@jrn.com.

Need more help with voting questions? The Milwaukee Resource Guide is here to help. Have something you want answered? Submit a question.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Vos: GOP caucus is 'done negotiating' on local government funding bill
Atlanta man accused of kidnapping 2 children arrested by GSP troopers on GA-SC state line

A man accused of kidnapping two children was arrested Tuesday after being arrested near the Georgia-South Carolina state line.

Atlanta police said on Tuesday at 11:06 a.m., officers received reports of a kidnapping at a home on Kimberly Road SW.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

When officers arrived, they were told that a two-year-old and a four-year-old were taken from the home.

The childrens mother told investigators with the Special Victims Unit that 25-year-old Dontrell Johnson took them. She added that he is believed to be the childrens father.

At 1:40 p.m., Georgia State Patrol troopers from Post 52 in Franklin County conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that matched the description of Johnsons vehicle on Interstate 85 Northbound near mile marker 172.

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After confirming his identity, GSP troopers detained Johnson and recovered the two children from the backseat of the car.

The children were taken to the Franklin County Sheriffs Office and reunited with their mother.

Atlanta police charged Johnson with two counts of kidnapping.

The investigation remains ongoing.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
(Bloomberg) -- Australia will provide drone equipment and training to boost the Philippines sea capabilities, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said, amid elevated tensions in disputed waters.

Most Read from Bloomberg

During a visit to Manila, Wong said Australia will provide technologies to the Philippine Coast Guard, which recently had tense encounters with Chinese vessels in the South China Sea.

The Philippines is a vital, longstanding security partner for Australia and as our region navigates shifting strategic circumstances, we are working closely with each other, Wong said Thursday at a joint briefing with Philippine counterpart Enrique Manalo.

Australia and the Philippines are strengthening ties amid intensifying rivalry between the US and China. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been bolstering his nations longstanding defense alliance with Washington.

His government recently expanded American troops access to military sites in the Philippines as tensions in Taiwan and the South China Sea linger.

Australia is meanwhile balancing its ties with both US and China. Wong said last month that Indo-Pacific nations oppose having their future dictated by a single major power, warning that the strategic competition between the Washington and Beijing needs to be managed responsibly.

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Clare Nowland suffered a fractured skull and brain bleed from falling during the incident

Australian police allegedly used a Taser to subdue a 95-year-old woman with dementia after being called to a care home on Thursday.

The woman, identified as Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother, was reportedly carrying a knife when officers were called to a care home at Cooma in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales.

She "sustained injuries during an interaction with police at an aged care facility", New South Wales police said in a statement, which made no mention of a Taser being fired.

She is understood to have suffered a fractured skull and brain bleed from falling during the incident, with local media reporting that police struggled to disarm her before using the Taser.

Ms Nowland had been a resident of the Yallambee Lodge in Cooma for the past five years.

Shocked community

Andrew Thaler, a spokesman for the Nowland family, said the whole community was shocked.

He claimed that Ms Nowland was shot in the chest with the Taser in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

She had dementia that waxes and wanes, shes good and bad at times, he added.

The question will be how it was appropriate to use this level of force on a 95 year-old woman, he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

A critical incident team will investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident, police said.

Snowy Monaro regional council said it "can confirm an incident occurred" at the nursing home, which it runs, adding that staff, residents and family were being supported during this difficult time.

Ms Nowland is in a critical condition at Cooma District Hospital.

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Is AZ Alkmaar vs West Ham on TV? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch Europa Conference League semi-final

West Ham are 90 minutes away from a European final (AP)

West Ham know an away draw will be enough for them to progress to the Europa Conference League final as they visit AZ Alkmaar.

The London club take a 2-1 advantage through to the second half of the tie, fighting back from behind to emerge on top in a relatively even first leg.

With Premier League safety almost certain, David Moyes elected to rest some of his first-choice side in the weekend defeat to Brentford to afford them fuller focus on this encounter.

But the veteran Scottish manager will be wary of a good AZ team who showed their scoring prowess with a 5-1 victory in the Eredivise between the two legs.

Heres everything you need to know.

When is AZ Alkmaar vs West Ham?

The second leg of the Europa Conference League semi-final is due to kick-off at 8pm BST on Thursday 18 May at the AFAS Stadion in Alkmaar.

How can I watch it?

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on BT Sport 1, with coverage on the channel from 7.15pm BST. Subscribers can also stream the action via the BT Sport app or online player.

Team news

Pascal Jansen has Jesper Karlsson and Dani de Wit back at his disposal, boosting his forward options as the AZ manager tries to engineer a second leg turnaround. Defender Bruno Martins Indi remains out.

West Ham manager David Moyes was concerned about the fitness of Michail Antonio at the weekend after the striker missed the defeat to Brentford with a calf issue. If Antonio is unable to feature from the start, Danny Ings would lead the line with Gianluca Scamacca still sidelined. This game may come too soon for right back Vladimir Coufal, who is nearing a return from a hamstring injury.

Predicted line-ups

AZ XI: Ryan; Sugawara, Beukema, Hatzidiakos, Kerkez; Reijnders, Mijnans, Clasie; Odgaard, Pavlidis, Van Brederode.

West Ham XI: Areola; Kehrer, Zouma, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Soucek, Rice; Bowen, Paqueta, Benrahma; Ings.

Odds

AZ win 32/19

Draw 28/11

West Ham win 17/10

Prediction

This one could go all the way to penalties - and end in another European semi-final exit for West Ham. AZ 2-1 West Ham (3-3 agg. - AZ advance on penalties)
Baby boomers are aging. We must ensure they get economic security, care they deserve.

May is Older Americans Month and an important opportunity to prioritize older adults because guess what? Were all getting older. In fact, so many Baby Boomers are aging  10,000 turn 65 every day through 2029 - that older adults are the fastest growing demographic in our country and the state of Tennessee.

By 2034, there will be more older adults than children under 18 for the first time in U.S. history.

Currently, 1.6 million Tennesseans are 60 and older, with more than 615,000 living in Middle Tennessee. Metro Social Services recently reported that there are more than 92,000 Nashville residents 65 and older.

As the fastest growing demographic, older adults will soon constitute one-fifth of our states population.

Yet, according to the 2022 Americans Health Ranking by the United Health Foundation, Tennessee ranks as the 12th worst state for older adults and the 3rd worst state for family caregivers. The rapid population shift and our low state rankings make it imperative that we do more to prioritize older adults and their families.

Value older workers and economic security

Recently, I interviewed an older woman for a part-time position at our agency. She has a strong work ethic, valuable experience, a sharp mind and a clear desire to continue working. It was disheartening to hear her say, ageism is real as she talked about how challenging its been looking for a job.

Studies have shown that views on retirement have changed dramatically, with many people continuing to work well past their 60s, preferring to phase into retirement and viewing it as a new chapter in life. We must value older workers as an important part of the workforce, actively recruit them and create more opportunities for phased retirement and part-time work.

We also know that many older adults need to continue working or find ways to generate passive income to improve their financial security. Metro Social Services presented their 2022 Community Needs Evaluation recently, noting that more than half of Nashvilles population over age 65 are experiencing livable income poverty, struggling to pay the rising costs of living while living on a low, fixed income.

As Ramsey Alwin, CEO of the National Council on Aging said, theres a myth that Social Security and Medicare miraculously take care of all of peoples needs in older age. The reality is they dont, and far too many people are one crisis away from economic insecurity. We must do more to ensure financial security.

Stressed and unhappy about work? Micro-breaks can help you regain focus and energy.

'But you turned out fine!' How parenting changes over generations  and how to handle it.

Support family caregivers and address the direct care worker shortage

Tennessee ranks third worst state for support of family caregivers of the elderly. We must do more to recognize and prioritize the 48 million unpaid family caregivers in the U.S. and more than 1 million in Tennessee caring for an aging loved one.

The fact is that family caregivers provide more than 80% of long-term care, and the majority (61%) of caregivers are also employed, most working full-time. Employers who want to attract and retain employees need to create caregiver friendly workplaces, recognize eldercare is equally as important as child care and offer benefits that help employees navigate and balance family caregiving.

State and business leaders can expand sick leave to allow care for a loved one and family leave to encompass care across the lifespan. The truth is that family caregivers are the backbone of our long-term care system, and we need policies and programs that enable them to remain in the workforce while caring for children and aging loved ones.

We also need to prioritize paid caregivers (direct care workers) who provide in-home care and work in residential long-term care communities. Nationwide, there is a serious shortage of direct care workers, and were certainly seeing the shortage in Tennessee. This is an urgent need that ultimately affects employers, because if a family caregiver cannot find quality care for their aging loved one, they are much more likely to leave their job because of their caregiving responsibilities.

Who's helping kids who lost parents? COVID nightmare still haunts children who've lost a parent or caregiver to pandemic

Millions will lose Medicaid 'lifeline': For my father, Medicaid means regaining agency and autonomy. For my mother  our survival.

Invest more in senior housing and transportation

The majority of older Tennesseans are homeowners and want to stay in their homes. Yet, with rising housing costs, limited fixed incomes and the expense of repairs and modifications for aging in place, 24% of older homeowners are cost burdened, spending more than 30 % of their income on housing.

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Nonprofits across the state including Habitat Memphis, Rebuilding Together Nashville and Westminster Home Connection provide assistance with home repairs and safety modifications, and we need to better align and increase funding so they and other nonprofits and government agencies across the state can expand capacity, serving many more older homeowners.

Nashvilles affordable housing team deserves kudos for plans to invest in a tech-enabled home sharing pilot where older homeowners can generate passive income by listing extra space in their home to live together with a housemate in exchange for rent.

Home sharing assists people who want to retain their homeownership and need additional income to do so, while also providing more affordable rental options for single professionals, graduate students and other adults. Home sharing can help address the lack of affordable housing by utilizing existing housing stock, fostering positive, intergenerational connections and boosting economic security for participants.

On the rental side, a majority of older renters  53%  are housing cost burdened, and we need state and local leaders to invest in affordable, age-friendly, supportive housing, including multi-generational communities.

Grace Sutherland Smith

Last year, the Tennessee Comptrollers office noted the need to expand community-based residential alternatives to address the unlicensed group home problem. We need leaders and developers to prioritize and expedite investments in affordable, supportive senior housing.

Its also vital that we focus on transportation and mobility options for older adults, investing more in volunteer assisted ride programs and public transit to serve a growing number of older adults who no longer drive. Safe and affordable transportation options to get to the grocery store, work, community center and/or medical appointments are essential for living and aging well.

My hope is that Older Americans Month reminds us that we must do more to prioritize older Tennesseans. Together, across all sectors, we can improve economic security, family caregiver support, the direct care workforce and housing and transportation infrastructure to ensure we can all age well.

Grace Sutherland Smith, LMSW, is Executive Director of AgeWell Middle Tennessee. She is also a working family caregiver and co-chair of the TN Coalition for Better Aging.

You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to letters@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Ageism is real. Here's how US can support, value its aging population
Photo: The Canadian Press A fly fisherman casts on the Kootenai River, downstream of the Koocanusa Reservoir at the centre of the dispute, near the Montana-Idaho border and Leonia, Idaho, on Sept. 19, 2014. A Canadian coal miner is facing legal action in an American court over levels of a contaminant from its mines in U.S. waters. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP - The Spokesman Review, Rich Landers

A Canadian coal miner is facing legal action in an American court over levels of a contaminant from its mines in U.S. waters.

Teck Coal Ltd. is one of three defendants in a request for judicial review brought by environmental groups from Montana and Idaho.

The groups charge that Montana state authorities illegally struck down a regulation that set limits for selenium in Lake Koocanusa, a reservoir that crosses the international border.

The selenium, which is toxic to fish, originates in Teck's coal mines in British Columbia's Elk Valley.

Court documents filed in Montana say Montana's Board of Environmental Review and Lincoln County Commissioners exceeded their authority when they rolled back selenium limits set by state and federal agencies.

They did so after being petitioned by Teck.

A similar request for judicial review has also been filed by a Montana state environmental agency.

The long-running dispute has involved the Canadian federal government as well as the U.S. Senate and White House, which wants Canada to join an investigation into the contamination.

Teck has paid millions of dollars in fines over the issue, although it says it is now capturing almost all the selenium from its mines.
A state is banning TikTok.

The Supreme Court is protecting Twitter from being held responsible for terrorist tweets.

Meanwhile, nobodys really sure if thats a person or a machine speaking.

Americans commitment to freedom of speech is colliding with their dislike of the Chinese government and their addiction to social media.

Those digital-age angles are all separate from the ongoing and increasingly rancorous disputes over views on morality.

A wave of protectionist laws are meant to shield children but are chilling what can be said about sexuality in school  at a time when more people feel they have a reason to discuss it. Even drag shows, celebrations of free expression, are being targeted in Florida.

Conversely, complaints of an uncompromising attitude toward opposing views, particularly on college campuses, is leading to calls for conservatives to be protected for their views.

What people have the freedom to say and where they have the freedom to say it has been up for debate for the entire history of the country, but it feels like we are entering a period of growing pains on multiple fronts.

How could a TikTok ban even work?

Nationalist fears of China led the state government of Montana to impose  or start trying to figure out how to impose  a ban on TikTok, the app thats sensationally popular with young people, for everyone in the state.

If that seems legally dubious and impossible to enforce, it may well be both of those things. Just ask people in Russia how to get around government internet censorship.

The bill signed into law by Montanas governor on Wednesday wont go into effect until January, assuming it survives widely expected court challenges. And there are real questions about how it could be enforced.

In addition to prohibiting TikTok from operating inside Montana state lines, the law could also impose fines of up to $10,000 per violation per day on companies like Apple or Google that host TikTok in their app stores.

Whats wrong with TikTok? From CNNs main report: TikTok is owned by China-based ByteDance. Many US officials have expressed fears that the Chinese government could potentially access US data via TikTok for spying purposes, though there is so far no evidence that the Chinese government has ever accessed personal information of US-based TikTok users.

The FBI has also warned that China, through TikTok, could use information about Americans to mold public opinion if it invades Taiwan.

While it might make obvious sense for the US and state governments to ban the use of TikTok on devices they own, banning it for everyone in a state seems like something else entirely, particularly when the platform is being used as a unique forum for content creation and expression.

Just one example of how expression on TikTok can be important: We learned about the teacher being investigated by the Florida Department of Education for showing a Disney movie featuring a biracial and gay character because of her viral TikTok video.

RELATED: Despite TikTok ban threat, influencers are flocking to a new app from its parent company

Larger concerns about social media

Opposing TikToks right to exist because of a possible national security threat is a separate thing from concerns over how its algorithm, like those of other social media platforms, influences what people see.

CNNs Clare Duffy saw some uncomfortable and eye-opening things when she took over a 14-year-olds TikTok account. Watch her report.

But the Montana law is not targeting other platforms where there is misinformation, hate speech or content that is inappropriate for children. The Montana TikTok ban is focused squarely on China.

Supreme Court sides with Twitter

In fact, where it comes to questionable content on social media platforms, the Supreme Court is sticking up for free speech, in a way, by shielding Twitter from liability for terror-related content.

In two important decisions, the court declined to review a portion of US law known as Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which separates the platform  Twitter, TikTok, Instagram of Facebook  from accountability for what is published, meaning the tweet, video or message a user posts.

From CNNs report: In one of the two cases, Twitter v. Taamneh, the Supreme Court ruled Twitter will not have to face accusations it aided and abetted terrorism when it hosted tweets created by the terror group ISIS.  The Twitter decision was unanimous and written by Justice Clarence Thomas, who said that social media platforms are little different from other digital technologies.

It might be that bad actors like ISIS are able to use platforms like defendants for illegal  and sometimes terrible  ends, Thomas wrote. But the same could be said of cell phones, email, or the internet generally.

Read more about the courts decisions.

Promised free speech absolutism, this is what we got

Elon Musk bought Twitter with a promise to make it more friendly to all kinds of legal speech. Whats happened is the entire tenor of the platform, at least from what Ive seen, has changed to be even more aggressively hateful and less factual.

Musk gutted Twitters content moderation since buying the company and turned a verification originally meant to help sift authentic tweets into a pay-for-play model.

Hes also increasingly used his own account to push conspiracy theories. This week, he attacked George Soros. (Full disclosure: I lost my own check mark in the purge. But where I once viewed Twitter as an essential part of modern journalism, I use it less and less today.)

RELATED: Graphic images of Texas mall shooting spread on Twitter, rekindling debate on how much to share

Twitter founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey wants to answer both the nationalist frustration of the Chinese government potentially having access to all of the information on TikTok and the problem of a company monetizing the public square.

Hes introduced a new platform called Bluesky that looks a lot like Twitter but is very different  a decentralized network independent of states or companies and more accountable to users in terms of privacy and content moderation. Read more about the new app.

Who knows if Bluesky, which is not yet widely available, or any of the other similar networks like Mastodon will survive or flourish. Who predicted that TikTok would become so popular?

Is that speech from a person or AI?

Lawmakers in Congress were encouraged to regulate artificial intelligence, which has gotten so sophisticated you cant really be sure that whats being said is coming from a human.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tied the rise of AI platforms like ChatGPT to freedom of expression when he referred to the growing ability of these platforms to mimic human expression as a potential printing press moment that needs new regulation to protect against the manipulation of people and voters. Read CNNs full report on his testimony to Congress.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The ex-commander of an engineer battalion stationed at Fort Polk, Louisiana, faces a June general court-martial for abusive sexual contact, according to online court records and an installation spokesperson.

Lt. Col. Jon-Paul Depreo, the former commander of the 46th Engineer Battalion, is charged with one count of abusive sexual contact, one count of maltreating a subordinate and two counts of conduct unbecoming an officer, said Fort Polk spokesperson Shelby Waryas. Depreo was fired as commander in January for a loss of trust and confidence in his judgment and ability to command.

Online court records indicate that Depreo may enter a guilty plea, but the officers defense attorney did not respond to questions from Army Times seeking to confirm his plans or the details of a plea bargain. Such agreements, especially those for sex crimes, often result in reduced charges.

Devils bargain: How sex crime plea deals let these soldiers retire and avoid registries

Although its unclear whether the criminal charges stem from the same incident, Army Times previously reported Depreos relief was related to an incident that occurred at the battalions Dec. 14, 2022 holiday ball at a casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Additionally, the units former top enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. Jeremy Compton, also faces a June court-martial. Compton is accused of adultery, distributing child pornography and sharing explicit photographs of himself while in uniform, according to Stars and Stripes. Compton, who was arraigned in November, spent nearly two years as the units top NCO.

Depreo took command of the Steel Spike battalion, a separate element of the Fort Bragg, North Carolina-based 20th Engineer Brigade, in June 2021. The engineer officer previously served in various staff roles across the Army, as well as overseas in Iraq and Germany.

His trial is tentatively scheduled for June 26.
The male student previously accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting another student while at a Bellingham high school has pleaded guilty to amended charges.

The 16-year-old student pleaded guilty Wednesday, May 17, to two counts of fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation in Whatcom County Juvenile Court, which is a division of Whatcom County Superior Court. He also resolved two unrelated criminal cases.

The then 14-year-old student was previously facing a charge of one count of indecent liberties by forcible compulsion, which is a felony, for assaulting a then 15-year-old female student in November and December 2021 while they both attended Squalicum High School, The Bellingham Herald previously reported.

The students charges were amended down as part of an agreed plea deal that resolves all three of his criminal court cases.

My client is pleased that we have reached agreed resolutions in his cases. I have believed from the beginning of working with him that he was treated unfairly in this matter by a system that has treated him unfairly for almost the entirety of his young life., Shoshana Paige, his public defense attorney, said in a statement sent to The Herald.

The offenses he pled guilty to are the offenses that should have been laid from the beginning. Instead, he was grossly overcharged based on a flawed investigation that included relying almost entirely on the recollections of an accuser and her best friend even when facts demonstrated obvious flaws in those recollections, and allowing those individuals to collaborate on their statements to law enforcement. I am grateful to the prosecuting attorneys involved who ultimately resolved these matters in a fair and equitable manner and consistent with the principles of the juvenile legal system, Paige added.

In the sex crime case, he will undergo an evaluation for a special sex offender disposition alternative, which if granted, would allow him to participate in treatment.

The prosecution and defense attorneys are expected to present an agreed resolution at the boys disposition hearing recommending the special sex offender alternative. The alternative sentence would include two years of community supervision, an anti-harassment no-contact order with the female student and restitution to be determined.

If the sex offender alternative is granted and then later revoked, a manifest injustice sentence of 15 to 20 weeks at a juvenile detention institution will be recommended.

The boys disposition hearing is tentatively scheduled for July 19.

The Herald has reached out to the prosecutor and the girls attorney for comment.

Background

Three Bellingham Public Schools administrators were charged in early December for failing to report the female students sexual assaults, which were brought to their attention nearly a year prior, The Herald previously reported.

Meghan V. Dunham, Jeremy Gilbert Louzao and Maude Chimere Hackney were each criminally cited Dec. 7 in Whatcom County District Court with one count of failure to report, which is a gross misdemeanor.

All three of the administrators have entered not guilty pleas. Gross misdemeanors are punishable by up to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine.

The school district is providing legal defense for the three administrators, which state law mandates for public employers required to report abuse.

All three administrators are mandatory reporters and are required by state law to report any suspected abuse or neglect of a child to law enforcement or the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families.

None of the three reported the female students sexual assaults, The Herald previously reported.

At the time the criminal citations were issued, Louzao and Dunham were serving as assistant principals at Squalicum High School, while Hackney was an assistant principal at Bellingham High School.

All three were reassigned in early January to the school districts Department of Teaching and Learning.

The former Squalicum High School student who has accused the district of mishandling her sexual assault reports filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Dec. 7 against Bellingham Public Schools. The student, who has since withdrawn from the high school and is now attending another school, accused the district in her lawsuit of violating her federal Title IX rights, failing its duty to protect and care for her and neglecting its duties to report the sexual assaults to law enforcement.

She previously sought $1 million in damages from the district before filing the federal lawsuit.

In its January response to the lawsuit, Bellingham Public Schools denied it mishandled the students sexual assault reports. The district said it took reasonable steps to stop the reported harassment, that the assault allegations contained in the students lawsuit were not reported to the administrators and that the conduct that was reported to them was not considered abuse or neglect under state law.

The federal lawsuit and all three of the administrators criminal cases are currently pending, county and federal court records show.

Other cases

The student also resolved his two other unrelated criminal court cases at his Wednesday morning hearing in Juvenile Court.

The court dismissed the case in which he was accused of assaulting a worker with the state department of children and family services.

The boy also pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree possession of stolen property for stealing and crashing a vehicle he found at a Bellingham park. His charges were amended down from one count of possession of a stolen motor vehicle as part of the resolution to all three of his cases.

His punishment for the stolen property case will be folded into the punishment for his sex crime case. He will be required to pay restitution in the stolen property case after it has been determined at an Aug. 23 hearing, the court ordered.

The boys probation officer said he has been diligently checking in and following his pretrial release conditions. She said the resolution reached for all three of his criminal cases was negotiated for a long time.

Im hopeful for (the boy) to be able to move forward positively. He has a lot of potential to do so and Im confident hell go through the evaluation process and will be here ready for disposition and ready to go, his probation officer said in court Wednesday.

The boys social worker added that he is a really bright young man and said she hopes to see him go far and move beyond this because he is a really, really smart guy.

Paige, his defense attorney, echoed the comments from his probation officer and social worker. Paige said Wednesday that since he was placed in a foster home several months ago, he has done an outstanding job.

Paige said all of the services that will be offered to him will come as part of the July disposition for his sex crime case.

Resources

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or sexual assault, you can contact the following local resources for free, confidential support:

Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Services: 24-hour Help Line: 360-715-1563, Email: info@dvsas.org.

Lummi Victims of Crime: 360-312-2015.

Tlils Taaaltha Victims of Crime: 360-325-3310 or nooksacktribe.org/departments/youth-family-services/tlils-taaaltha-victims-of-crime-program/

Bellingham Police: You can call anonymously at 360-778-8611, or go online at cob.org/tips.

WWU Survivor Advocacy Services at the Counseling & Wellness Center: 360-650-7982 or https://cwc.wwu.edu/survivorservices.

Brigid Collins Family Support Center: 360-734-4616, brigidcollins.org.
This article originally appeared on Climbing

The best climbing invention ever is not the dynamic rope. It's not the cam. It's not the seat harness or the stick-clip or the Grigri. It's not the hangboard or the campus board or the crash pad or the modern gym. Hell, it's not even sticky rubber or the downturned rock shoe or the strap-on kneepad or the pink TriCam.

No, it's a monosyllabic word: "Take!" Let me explain.

When I began climbing in the late 1980s, so many of the tools we have today were either in an incipient form or hadn't yet been invented. My first harness didn't even have a belay loop. Instead, I clipped a giant locker up through my leg loops and waist belt, fed a bight of rope through the small hole on a figure 8, and belayed. Rock shoes were flat as a board, and most came way up your ankles, which was great for cracks but not so great for overhanging rock. We only had one rock gym in town and it was 18 feet high, with weird 90-degree roofs, slabs, and bizarre, awkward angles; the only way to make the routes difficult was to make them tweaky, and more than once I risked serious injury tugging on a mono on an Entre-Prises hexagonal plate. And we bouldered--and highballed--without crashpads, which is about as heinous as it sounds.

This might all sound like the Dark Ages, but it was also a special time, because you could feel that we were on the precipice of something--the sea change fueled by sport climbing, bouldering, competitions, and gyms that has brought us to where we are today. You know, 5.15d, Instagram influencers, "deloading weeks," "day flashes," "personal grades," "ground tries," 9c fitness challenges, drones, battery-powered fans, hammocks, overrun crags, etcAll the best stuff!

***

We have also gotten much better--read: more specific--at talking to each other, not only in how we share beta but in communicating logistics at the cliff. Our language has become a refined tool.

In 1987, when I started climbing, if someone had told me, "Rodeo up through bolt one--there's a gnarly drop-knee drive-by to a dual-tex slimper that will feel way highball without the pre-clip, unless you've been working max power on the MoonBoard," I would have stared at them with blank incomprehension. But, in fact, a sentence like this relays a ton of information. So, too, does the word take. In one quick, easy-to-shout syllable it lets your belayer know either to reel in extra slack, if you're close to the bolt or on a toprope, so that you don't lose ground; or it lets them know to catch a fall. It is an incredibly efficient belay command.

Before take, we in a way had to use three commands for the one: 1) "Up rope," asking your belayer to reel in extra slack, 2) "Tension," asking them to keep the rope tight or hold you in place, and 3) "Falling!" for, well, falling. Picture bumbler me, age 16, pimply faced, bike helmet on slightly askew, blown-out pair of Fire Cats with holes in the toes worn over wool socks, giant neon-green chalk bag, on a day out toproping with friends, say on the vertical basalt bluffs you find all over New Mexico, where I grew up. Slopping my way up some slippery, silt-covered 5.10 obscurity, I'd have first gotten gripped ("Up rope!), then gripped + fatigued ("Tension!"), then fallen ("Falling!"). I had to say three things just to end up hanging on the rope, and for someone like me who says about 10 words a day, that's a lot of talking.

***

The first time I heard take was in July 1989 at the City of Rocks, Idaho. I'd driven up from New Mexico to pick up my friend Mark in Boulder, Colorado, where he was staying with friends. After a few days of climbing sweaty Colorado sandstone in the heat, we headed west to Idaho.

Mark and I were both motivated climbers, but pretty lousy at everything else, probably because we spent so much time climbing. We ate the cheapest, most low-hassle food possible while traveling (cold beans and hot sauce on French bread, with a side order of Twizzlers), slept in a half-collapsed REI tent both of us were too lazy and maladroit to try to repair, and spent our rest days either lying around in the shade reading crap sci-fi novels or watching syndicated sit-coms on a tiny TV you could plug into the car's cigarette lighter. We did, however, have some success on the rock, particularly Mark, who had strong fingers and a martial-arts background that made him very flexible. But we were no strangers to the word tension.

One day at the City, we saw two "cool guy" climbers wearing Lycra tights and tank tops across the way on another formation, trying a grievous 5.11c slab that involved pawing at sloping muffins. The lead climber oozed his way upward, but eventually reached an impasse.

"Take!" he hollered down to the other climber, who promptly reeled in the rope.

Take?! Mark and I both looked at each other, laughed, and silently mimed the word. We'd never heard it used that way before, and it seemed preposterous. Was this a lazy shorthand for "Take in the rope"? "Take me home tonight"? "Take a long walk off a short pier"? Who on Earth had come up with such a thing?

"Take!" we barked at each other the rest of the day whenever we needed to hang, cracking up each time we said it. "Take, take, take, take, TAKE!" A day or two of that, however, and the word became ingrained, and I honestly can't think of the last time I've said "Tension" since.

***

If you think my stance on the importance of take is hyperbolic, consider that anyone who climbs anything on a rope anywhere can use it, to the same effect. It's the great universalizer. Pumped on toprope in the gym? Take! Take! Gripped stupid on an ice pitch, just got a screw in, and need a breather? Take! Running Micro Traxion laps on a fixed line and feel tentative about the next move? Take--well, the Traxions technically can't hear you, so perhaps you're just saying it for your own benefit. But, you know, say "Take!" anyway. It's a great word; use it lots!

As final proof, I'll leave you with this anecdote. Some months before I first heard take, a friend from high school, Jeff, was working on his first 5.12a, La Espina at Cochiti Mesa, an area of welded tuff much like Smith Rock. Jeff had been solo-toproping the route and dialing the moves. He had a fluid, balletic climbing style, and liked to get everything locked in just so. Eventually, Jeff was ready to give redpoint efforts, and I came out to belay him on the climb, which moved up two-finger pockets on a rounded prow.

About halfway up, Jeff began to get pumped and his technique faltered, his toes sloshing around in the little pockets. He probably had the physical strength to keep going, but his willpower was dwindling.

"Tension!" Jeff said still hanging onto the rock, his fingers plugged into tight two-finger pockets, the bolt at his waist. Then, "No wait, slack, no, wait... tension! No... Slack, no .... Up rope! No... "

Down on the ground, my device locked off, I stepped forward and back below the climb, alternately feeding and taking in slack as Jeff vacillated--"Ten- ... Sla- .... Ten- ... Sla- ...Ten-... Sla-" Finally, after like 30 seconds of death-gripping the rock, Jeff had had enough and simply called "Tension!" I took in the rope.

"Man, I didn't know what to do up there," said Jeff. "Whether to keep going or not. Sorry about that."

"That's OK," I said. "I wasn't sure what to do either. I was just trying not to pull you off while you figured it out." But all I could think was, There must be a more efficient way to communicate that you're gripped and/or need to hang. Maybe someday we'll invent that....

Matt Samet is a freelance writer/editor and longtime climber based in Boulder, Colorado.

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'We have to do better': Common Council pushes for answers after fatal domestic abuse case

An in-depth review of the domestic violence case of Bobbie Lou Schoeffling and the contacts she had with law enforcement prior to her death could produce recommendations for change as soon as 30 days.

The update came from Constance Kostelac, director of the Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission, and Heather Hough, chief of staff at the Milwaukee Police Department, who answered questions from Common Councils Public Safety and Health Committee Thursday morning.

I dont want to get ahead of the investigation but it looks like many, many, many mistakes were made all over the place, Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic said. And just as a society and a community, we have to do better. We have to do better, we have to come together.

A Journal Sentinel investigation into Schoefflings death, published last month, found police, probation agents and prosecutors missed the full scope of an escalating series of domestic violence allegations in the final 10 months of her life. The man she had accused of abuse had two open warrants unrelated to domestic violence during that time, but was not arrested until after her death. He is now charged with homicide.

The story sparked public outcry, including from the entire Common Council which signed a letter demanding answers and change from the Milwaukee Police Department and citys Fire and Police Commission, the civilian oversight board.

After the storys publication, the Milwaukee Police Department announced its Internal Affairs Division was undertaking an administrative review and requested a sentinel review from the Homicide Review Commission, led by Kostelac. The sentinel review includes all agencies, not just MPD, and will focus on what policies and practices should be changed to prevent a similar crime from occurring in the future.

Wheres the accountability and what are the consequences? Ald. Mark Borkowski asked Thursday.

The administrative review of the six contacts MPD had with Schoeffling could lead to discipline, Hough said.

She did not have a timeline for when the administrative review would be complete but said it is underway and ongoing. Hough said the department will be transparent in reporting out findings and any discipline once it is complete.

More: What to do if you or someone you care about is in an abusive relationship

Alderman 'horrified at the lack of compassion' officer showed victim

Ald. Scott Spiker, who requested the update on the Schoeffling reviews, pointed out the need for the department to reassure victims.

Bobbie Lou Schoeffling is seen in an undated family photo.

He specifically referenced a video published by the Journal Sentinel showing Schoeffling's interactions with an officer at District 3. The officer appeared to blame Schoeffling for the abuse she suffered and called her derogatory names after she left the lobby.

Obviously the public and anybody who saw the video was horrified at the lack of compassion that was evinced and quite frankly the dripping misogyny that was present, Spiker said.

Hough said the transaction that occurred is not representative of the Milwaukee Police Department and reiterated Chief Jeffrey Norman had placed a high priority on addressing domestic violence and dedicating resources to it before the Schoeffling case became public. The department already had scheduled in-service training on domestic violence for all sworn members this fall.

She said the department is continuing to push forward on changes even before the reviews are complete. Officials already have drafted language to broaden its internal definition of domestic violence and are updating how officers make referrals to the county's Domestic Violence High Risk Team.

Having intentions isnt enough, Spiker said. What were seeking here is  a plan for achieving as near to uniformity as possible and that involves rooting out some perhaps deeply baked cultural things within the department.

Where to find help

The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 800-799-7233.

The Sojourner Family Peace Center in Milwaukee operates a 24-hour confidential hotline at 414-933-2722.

We Are Here Milwaukee provides information on culturally specific organizations at weareheremke.org.

The Womens Center in Waukesha has a 24-hour hotline at 262-542-3828.

The Asha Project, which provides culturally specific services for African American women and others in Milwaukee, provides a crisis line from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 414-252-0075.

The UMOS Latina Resource Center in Milwaukee offers bilingual, bicultural, domestic violence, sexual assault and anti-human trafficking supportive services and operates a 24-hour hotline at 414-389-6510.

The Gerald L. Ignace Indian Health Center offers culturally sensitive, trauma-informed services for those who have experienced domestic or sexual violence and can be reached at 414-383-9526.

Our Peaceful Home, which serves Muslim families and is a program of the Milwaukee Muslim Womens Coalition, operates a crisis line at 414-727-1090.

The Hmong American Womens Association, which serves the Hmong and Southeast Asian community, has advocates available at 414-930-9352 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin has a statewide directory of resources at endabusewi.org/get-help.

Need more help with crime and safety questions? The Milwaukee Resource Guide is here to help. Have something you want answered? Submit a question.

Contact Ashley Luthern at ashley.luthern@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @aluthern.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Common Council seeks answers in Bobbie Lou Schoeffling case
How Biden administration plans to crackdown on colleges that overload graduates with student debt

The U.S. Education Department issued a much-anticipated proposed rule Wednesday that would significantly restrict operations at certain for-profit colleges and job certificate programs.

The gainful employment rule, once adopted after a public comment period that begins Friday, would cut federal funding for programs and institutions that repeatedly fail to produce graduates whose incomes can adequately cover their yearly debt payments. It would also require all institutions to disclose information related to attendance costs, graduates' earnings, typical borrowing amounts and other data.

The proposed rule, which was scheduled for release last year but delayed, comes after months of deliberations and hearings.

The Department of Education is proposing the strongest protections against unaffordable college debt in history, said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a press call Wednesday evening. Investing in a college degree or career certificate is supposed to pay off. Instead, too many students are getting ripped off. Every single year 700,000 students enroll in postsecondary programs that leave them with unaffordable debt or earnings no better than (that of) a typical high school graduate in their state.

Peeling back 'gainful employment' rule The Trump administration is repealing an Obama-era policy of policing for-profit colleges

The new rule would crack down on those programs while also requiring all colleges to cough up information on how much attendance really costs and graduates really earn.

Its part of a larger series of efforts the Biden administration has made to address spiraling college costs and debt. Its eased the process for securing public-service loan forgiveness, for example, and is attempting to provide mass relief for American individuals making less than $125,000, though that plan is currently held up in the Supreme Court.

This administration has taken unprecedented actions to help students struggling with loans that they can't afford, Under Secretary James Kvaal said in Wednesdays press call. Now we're addressing the source of those unaffordable debts.

More: The college-going gap between Black and white Americans was always bad. Its getting worse.

What the rules would do and who is affected

Federal law already requires that certificate programs at all institutions as well as for-profit college degree programs provide training that leads to so-called gainful employment.

The newly proposed rules would essentially define outline what gainful employment entails  what it means and what happens when institutions dont comply. Under the rules, certificate programs and for-profit colleges would have to show:

The average students debt-to-earnings ratio  the share of their annual income that goes toward yearly debt payments  is no more than 8% (or no more than 20% of their discretionary income).

At least half of graduates have higher earnings than a typical high-school graduate in their state's workforce who never pursued a college education.

The department estimates it would protect more than 700,000 students annually who would otherwise likely enroll in the roughly 1,800 low-performing programs.

Despite sanctions, Online college accused of recruiting unprepared students, pocketing money

The rule would also require all colleges  public and private, nonprofit and for-profit  to report and publish an array of new information related to typical costs and debt. The goal is to give prospective students and their families more insight into the true expenses that come with attendance and into graduates earnings and borrowing amounts.

Delays in rulemaking

The administration of former President Barack Obama was the first to enact a gainful employment rule over concerns that certain career programs were leaving graduates saddled with debt they couldnt pay off with their low-paying jobs.

Student loan debt forgiveness in doubt, so lawmakers are considering colleges' role.

But the policy drew criticism from the for-profit college community and free-market advocates who said it was unfair overreach. The department under former President Donald Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos did away with the restrictions.

The Biden administration made it a priority to reenact the gainful employment rule but last year was met with skepticism, including from nonprofit and community colleges, during negotiations. Last summer, it announced it was pushing back the rule's release for another few months.

Already, the new proposal has its critics. Career Education Colleges and Universities, which represents for-profit institutions, said the department ignored feedback during the negotiation period.

The rule unfairly targets programs at proprietary institutions and fails to account for the unique challenges facing students and communities that career-oriented programs serve, CECUs President and CEO Jason Altmire said in a statement. "During the public comment phase, we urge the Department to consider sensible changes that improve the rule to protect all students and hold public, private nonprofit, and for-profit institutions equally accountable for their outcomes."

The Education Department has until November to enact the rule. It would go into effect next summer.

More: Women account for two-thirds of US student loan debt. Here's how it affects them.

Contact Alia Wong at (202) 507-2256 or awong@usatoday.com. Follow her on Twitter at @aliaemily.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New 'gainful employment' rule would punish colleges that overload debt
President Biden's fledgling reelection team anticipates picking up more support from independent and Republican voters in the 2024 elections in part by seeking out White, rural and suburban voters, targeting two Southern states where Republicans currently dominate and shoring up support among Latino voters who have shown a growing preference for GOP candidates.

The strategy, laid out in a memo released by the reelection campaign Thursday, comes as Mr. Biden's overall approval rating remains mired in the 40s amid tepid enthusiasm for his bid among fellow Democrats, declining support among independents and little backing among registered Republican voters, based on recent CBS News polling and surveys by other national outlets.

But Biden-Harris campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez argues the president enters the 2024 fray "in a markedly strong position," given the Democratic Party's strong showing in midterm elections that staved off fears of a bigger House Republican majority at the president's two-year mark.

"In 2022, Democrats won elections in spite of a turnout environment that was more Republican than in 2020. This shows that, under the Biden administration, we have gained support from Republican and independent swing voters who had not previously voted for Democrats," Chavez Rodriguez writes.

She notes Democrats have won at least one competitive statewide race the seven battleground states that determined the 2020 presidential election  Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin  highlighting especially the recent state Supreme Court win in Wisconsin by a Democratic-supported candidate who turned out voters in critical Milwaukee suburban counties, and Democratic wins in mayoral races in Jacksonville and Colorado Springs as signs of "real strength we have going into 2024."

So, how does the campaign anticipate winning back the 306 Electoral College votes it earned in 2020?

By shoring up the industrial state "blue wall" of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin; investing again in Nevada and New Hampshire, two states Republicans continue to believe they can snatch away from Democrats; by prevailing again in Arizona and Georgia; and by investing more resources "in states like North Carolina and Florida," according to the memo. The campaign is already spending millions of dollars to run television ads in all of those states except New Hampshire.

Mr. Biden lost North Carolina by 1.3%, and Democrats haven't won the Tar Heel State in a presidential contest since Barack Obama did in 2008. Former President Donald Trump won Florida by 3.3% in 2020, and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis was reelected last year by a 19.4% margin. Florida Democrats argue soft enthusiasm for their gubernatorial candidate, Charlie Crist, and moves by the GOP-controlled state legislature to tweak election laws helped depress the party's turnout, which can easily be buoyed in a presidential election year if the Biden-Harris campaign invests in the state.

But in the closing weeks of the 2020 election cycle, billionaire Mike Bloomberg personally invested $100 million to help Mr. Biden win Florida  to no avail. In 2024, several hundreds of millions of dollars in advertising and get-out-the-vote costs are likely needed to be spent by the reelection campaign and aligned super PACs, according to party strategists.

Winning the nine states the Biden-Harris campaign is initially targeting will require building on the "small, but critical gains among rural and white working class voters in battleground states" in 2020, according to the memo. And while the president won suburban voters, "we know there is room to grow this suburban coalition in the face of extreme Republican policies"  especially abortion rights, the memo says.

The campaign is also heartened by support among minority voters that "remained relatively consistent between 2020 and 2022, particularly in critical 2024 battleground states." But a growing segment of Latino voters, especially younger men in Florida, Nevada and Texas, are eschewing traditional Democratic Party support.

And yet, the campaign correctly notes Latino support "showed real stability across the country in 2022  from Arizona and Nevada to Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and the Rio Grande Valley in Texas." Singling out support along the U.S.-Mexico border is a nod to widely publicized Republican predictions that the GOP would sweep three competitive House districts representing the RGV. Ultimately, just enough traditionally Democratic voters in the predominantly Latino districts turned out to secure narrow victories in two of the three races. And Arizona Democrats eked out close statewide victories thanks to a growing bloc of younger, liberal Latino voters.

How the Biden-Harris campaign plans to reach voters  and how much money it will spend to do so  remains one of the big unanswered questions in the early weeks of the reelection bid. Chavez Rodriguez provides few new hints, other than to acknowledge, "Today's media environment has never been more fragmented." Instead, she signals the campaign hopes to micro-target supportive voters through digital means, using unexplained "innovative strategies to break through and connect with voters where they are."

That's likely to include an aggressive use of TikTok, a platform owned by the Chinese firm ByteDance, which faces an ongoing push by the White House and a bipartisan coalition on Capitol Hill to heavily regulate, if not outright ban the social media tool on government devices and potentially to children. And the campaign is regularly releasing short digital videos touting the president's accomplishments or seeking to highlight new policy priorities.

Nodding to the long-held belief among Biden political aides that he is a historically underestimated, underappreciated political talent, the reelection team is urging supporters to anticipate, if not relish and exploit, intense scrutiny of their strategy.

"Driving our campaign are the lived experiences of the American people, not the political echo chamber," Chavez Rodriguez writes. "Polls and pundits have underestimated Joe Biden his entire life, and he's proved them wrong time and time again."

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(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden hopes to win reelection in 2024 by defending his victories in 2020 battleground states  but also expanding the map into states like North Carolina and Florida that Democrats havent won since Barack Obama.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez argued in a state-of-the-race memo Thursday that Democrats have strengthened their hand going into the presidential election after a strong performance in last years midterm races and in special elections this year.

Just as the results in special elections in 2022 provided a prescient window into the midterm results, these recent performances by Democrats  more than any polling or prognostication  point to the real strength we have going into 2024, she said.

The memo, obtained by Bloomberg News, is Rodriquezs first public assessment of the race since Biden announced his reelection campaign last month. A former senior adviser in the White House, she started in her new role on Tuesday.

Rodriguez portrays a Biden campaign buoyed by recent Democratic election victories and convinced that hard-line Republican stances on issues like abortion and election denial will continue to work in Bidens favor.

Democrats have won statewide races in every one of the battleground states that Biden won in 2020  in part by expanding their margins among suburban and rural voters, Rodriguez said.

County-by-county vote totals in key Senate races last year showed Democratic gains in rural counties compared to 2020. They include successful campaigns by Senator Mark Kelly in Arizona, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, John Fetterman in the Pennsylvania Senate race and Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto.

Electoral strategies this early in a presidential campaign are often optimistic, but the Biden campaign is backing up its battleground map with early spending in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin  all of which he won in 2020 over former President Donald Trump, who is again seeking the Republican nomination.

The Biden campaign is also spending in Florida and North Carolina, though roughly half as much as in top-tier swing states.

Rodriguez also suggested that the persuasion campaign wont be won by television ads alone, promising a strategy to reach key Democratic constituencies  like women voters, young voters, Black voters, and Latino voters and organized labor  both online and offline.

The memo makes no mention of Bidens Republican challengers or of the headwinds faced by an incumbent president seeking reelection in a time of economic turmoil. Bloomberg Economics projects a 97% chance of recession occurring as soon as this July.

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President Biden is expected to withdraw his nomination of Michael Delaney to serve on the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, two sources familiar with the decision told The Hill on Thursday.

Delaneys nomination has been in limbo in the Senate Judiciary Committee, with Democrats unsure of his controversial handling of a sexual assault case at a boarding school in New Hampshire.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, had urged the Biden administration earlier Thursday to withdraw the nomination.

His answers to questions from committee members, regarding a lawsuit where he represented a private school accused of allowing sexual harassment and assault of a minor student, were beyond the pale bad, the senator said in a statement.

The New Hampshire attorney has come under fire for representing St. Pauls School, an elite private high school in New Hampshire, against a lawsuit brought by female student who was sexually assaulted on campus when she was 15.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told The Hill last week he was undecided about Delaneys nomination. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) returned last week to her post on the committee and greenlit three judicial nominees who were stalled with her absence, but the panel has not brought up Delaney for a vote.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Michael Delaney's nomination to a U.S. circuit court seat is toast.

Michael Delaney's nomination to a U.S. circuit court seat is toast.

The White House on Thursday withdrew the nomination of Michael Delaney to a U.S. circuit court seat because he doesnt have the votes to be confirmed.

Its the first time President Joe Biden has yanked one of his judicial picks.

The White House didnt ask Delaney to pull out. Delaney himself asked Biden to withdraw his name after months of controversy around his nomination.

At this time, I believe it is appropriate for me to withdraw my name from consideration for this position to advance the important work of the federal judiciary, Delaney said in a Thursday letter to the president.

HuffPost obtained a copy of his letter:

Delaneys nomination has been in trouble for months because of his past legal work on a controversial school sexual assault case and because of his views on abortion rights. Hes been repeatedly passed over for a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee. He was listed on the agenda for a committee hearing on Thursday, but Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) didnt even mention him.

He was not called today in committee because he lacks the votes, a source familiar with Delaneys nomination told HuffPost earlier Thursday. And it is expected that his nomination will soon be withdrawn.

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, two Democrats from New Hampshire, had recommended Delaney to the White House in the first place and have stood by his nomination amid the criticisms. In a Thursday joint statement, they continued to rave about Delaneys credentials to be a judge.

We know personally his strong character and commitment to justice, and he earned the support of New Hampshire and national leaders, from the former Director of the Office on Violence Against Women under President [Barack] Obama to New Hampshire Supreme Court justices appointed by members of both parties, said the senators.

We disagree with the criticism that has been leveled against him, and we are disappointed that it got in the way of confirming a highly qualified individual.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates also praised Delaneys qualifications for a federal judgeship, but said the president is prepared to work with the New Hampshire senators to pick someone else for the court seat.

President Biden put forward a deeply qualified nominee, with a long and distinguished career in public service, said Bates. The White House will consult with New Hampshires Senators to identify a new nominee.

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (left) and Maggie Hassan had stood by Michael Delaney's nomination for months.

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (left) and Maggie Hassan had stood by Michael Delaney's nomination for months.

The whole situation has been incredibly awkward, considering Delaney was recommended to the White House by two Democratic senators and put forward by a Democratic president at a time when Democrats run the Senate. Its put Democrats on the Judiciary Committee in the uncomfortable position of having to choose between rejecting a nominee with strong opposition from left-leaning groups or respecting their Democratic colleagues strong support of him.

In the end, the groups prevailed.

Womens rights and sexual assault prevention groups have criticizes Delaneys nomination for months, in large part because of his 2015 defense of a New Hampshire private school in a lawsuit filed by the family of a student whom another student had sexually assaulted. Delaney argued that the plaintiff, who was 15, could only remain anonymous if she agreed not to speak about the case publicly during litigation. Saying she felt Delaneys motion was meant to intimidate her, that student, Chessy Prout, went on to reveal her identity and story. Prout and her parents have been actively lobbying senators to reject his nomination.

In a joint letter to committee members, the National Womens Law Center, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and People for the American Way said they have grave concerns about him. The National Alliance to End Sexual Violence told committee members that his behavior toward victims of sexual assault was problematic.

Democrats were also uneasy about supporting Delaney after he put his name on legal briefs in 2005, something he didnt have to do, that defended a state law requiring minors to tell their parents before they had an abortion. Delaney was deputy attorney general at the time, and he signed onto briefs sent to the Supreme Court defending the law on the grounds that it does not present a substantial obstacle to any womans right to choose an abortion. That law was ultimately repealed in 2007.

Mr. Delaney was not ready for prime time.Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

On Wednesday, eight more organizations announced their opposition to Delaneys nomination. Groups including American Economic Liberties Project and the National Employment Law Project dinged Delaney for his allegiance to corporate power.

Mr. Delaneys record in private practice, as Deputy Attorney General for the State of New Hampshire, and as a volunteer member of the New England Legal Foundations (NELF) Board of Directors demonstrates a hostility to victims rights, reproductive rights, employee rights, and government regulation that is unsuitable for the lifetime appointment for which he is being considered, said the groups.

Members of the Judiciary Committee must have gotten a heads-up about Delaneys nomination going down. Earlier Thursday, two Republicans on the committee weirdly made a point to criticize him, even though they were never expected to vote for him anyway.

As we talk about people who are unfit for public service, Michael Delaney is one of those individuals, said Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.). I appreciate he was removed from consideration today.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who sometimes votes with Democrats to advance Bidens court picks, said he was initially willing to support Delaneys nomination until he learned of all the opposition to him from outside groups.

I was very much inclined to support and through the process of the hearing ... you proved, I think, that Mr. Delaney was not ready for prime time, Graham said, holding up a copy of the letter from the American Economic Liberties Project. These groups dont mean that much to me, but theres eight national groups that dont like Mr. Delaney.

Im no on Delaney.
The Biden-Harris 2024 reelection campaign outlined its road to victory Thursday, a plan that includes expanding the map, building on its 2020 and 2022 coalition and breaking through the media environment.

The road to victory also includes focusing on issues Americans care about and running as a united front, according to a memo obtained by The Hill. The memo, entitled The Road to Victory in 2024 was sent by campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez to interested parties Thursday.

In its effort to expand the map, the campaign will invest early in ad buys in states including Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada, New Hampshire, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina and Florida. To try to build on the 2020 and 2022 coalition, the campaign plans to focus on suburban voters particularly motivated by Republican attacks on reproductive rights, Rodriguez said. Additionally, they will focus on Black, Latino, Asian American, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander voters.

To try to break through the media environment, which Rodriguez describes is fragmented, they will use innovative strategies to break through and connect with voters where they are by leveraging peoples personal networks, through amplifying core messages online, and having personal conversations offline, she said.

And in order ensure it focuses on the American people, Rodriguez said the campaign will work to highlight lived experiences. To attempt to display a united front, the campaign will leverage already-established Democratic party infrastructure.

Democrats are most successful when we run together. Working collaboratively with candidates and state parties, well build a diverse campaign thats focused on a unified message, tailored to the communities we need to register, persuade and turn out to vote, she said.

Rodriguez also argued that the Biden-Harris campaign entered the 2024 reelection campaign in a markedly strong position, pointing to the better-than-expected 2022 midterm results for Democrats.

In 2022, Democrats won elections in spite of a turnout environment that was more Republican than in 2020. This shows that, under the Biden administration, we have gained support from Republican and independent swing voters who had not previously voted for Democrats, she said.

Additionally, she noted that Democrats have been successful in Wisconsin Supreme Court elections, special elections in Pennsylvania and the mayoral race in Jacksonville, Fla.

President Biden launched his 2024 reelection campaign April 25 through a video message. Rodriguez started her role as campaign manager this week. She previously was senior adviser to Biden and the director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden on Thursday invited Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape to Washington later this year for a summit with Pacific island nations after he canceled a scheduled visit to the country because of the debt limit stalemate in Congress, according to the White House.

As he traveled to Japan for a meeting of leading industrial nations, Biden called Marape from Air Force One and invited him to the second U.S. summit with the Pacific Islands Forum, during which leaders will discuss U.S.-Pacific issues such as the climate crisis, trade and economic ties, the White House said.

During the call, Biden also told Marape that Secretary of State Antony Blinken will instead represent him in Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, and reiterated the United States' commitment to its partnership with nations in the region.

NBC News reported earlier this week that Biden will not visit Papua New Guinea  cutting his foreign trip short to return to D.C. to negotiate the debt ceiling and canceling what would have been the first visit to the Pacific island nation by a sitting U.S. president.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Wednesday that Biden will still meet with Pacific island leaders later this year.

Within this calendar year, you will see the president convening the leaders of the Pacific islands for a major summit, which will be the second time in 12 months he has done that, he said aboard Air Force One.

National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that Biden had a "terrific" call with Marape and suggested that the president may plan a trip to Papua New Guinea after the debt ceiling is resolved.

"Well get the Pacific island leaders back to the White House, and well talk about maybe getting him back to Papua New Guinea, but you cant reschedule the debt ceiling looming deadline. That is a hard date," he told NBC News.

Biden hosted his first Pacific island country summit last September.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
HIROSHIMA, Japan  President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met Thursday aiming to showcase the strength of their alliance ahead of a Group of Seven summit where leading democracies will tackle the challenges of Russias war in Ukraine, North Koreas ballistic nuclear threats and an increasingly forceful China.

Biden recalled that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history.

I couldnt agree with you more, Biden told the Japanese prime minister as they sat with their aides at a conference table. When our countries stand together, we stand stronger and I believe the whole world is safer when we do.

Kishida noted that the global tensions had brought the U.S. and Japan closer together, that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds.

The Kishida familys home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialized nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance. Members of the G-7, which also includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union, are grappling with the territorial ambitions of Russia and China, two nuclear powers.

Biden is also appearing on the world stage while trying to manage a divide back in the U.S. on how to raise the governments debt limit. He opted to cut short what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to Asia, so he can return to Washington to try to avoid a potentially catastrophic default in June that could ripple across the global economy. Its a drama that reveals how internal U.S. politics can spill over into global forums.

U.S. President Joe Biden, center, walks with Kenji Yamada, Japanese deputy minister of foreign affairs, left, and U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, right, after his arrival at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, western Japan, Thursday, May 18, 2023, en route to Hiroshima for the Group of Seven nations' summit that starts Friday. (Hiro Komae/ap)

While aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters that Russias invasion of Ukraine looms large as a G-7 topic. He added leaders would discuss the state of play on the battlefield and sealing loopholes to strengthen sanctions that have been levied against Moscow.

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the U.S. president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner. The presidents first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet U.S. troops at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before he headed to Hiroshima for talks with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of Russian aggression in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the U.S. and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also discussed economic matters. They addressed efforts to bolster supply chains for critical minerals, new partnerships between U.S. and Japanese companies and universities and efforts to promote renewable energy, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

Kishida had planned to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has said that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule.

The U.S. and Japanese leaders also talked about ways to reinforce their three-way partnership with South Korea, which signed an agreement in April with the U.S. to strengthen their tools for deterring a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Koreas Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japans history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta citys buildings. But current conditions are testing Japans pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line, said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japans dependence on U.S. extended deterrence  that thats more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment.

There are outstanding issues between the U.S. and Japan. During his January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a U.S. Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official. Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims $1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

The early return to Washington to deal with the debt limit means Biden will skip planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he was to take part in a meeting of the so-called Quad partnership with leaders of Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea visit would have been the first to the Pacific Island country by a sitting U.S. president.

The White House said that Biden phoned the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, while traveling on Air Force One to personally convey the need to return to Washington. Biden invited Marape and other Pacific leaders to Washington later this year.
For the first time in months, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy appear to be on the same page: The country cannot default on its debt and a compromise has to be reached to avert that outcome.

We are going to come together because there is no alternative, Biden said in remarks Wednesday morning from the White House, one day after his latest sit-down with McCarthy.

The two men remain far apart on how to actually reach that deal, but sources familiar with the negotiations pointed to the common recognition of the need for compromise and the more cordial tone of the meeting as a glimmer of progress.

That very notion  that basic agreement and a less confrontational meeting signaled progress this week  underscored a key liability hanging over the two weeks remaining to avert economic catastrophe: the largely untested nature of Biden and McCarthys relationship and some of the public sniping that has befallen the early stages of these talks.

Well, it would help if McCarthy and Biden were golf buddies, but they arent and they were never going to be, Mississippi Republican Sen. Roger Wicker put it bluntly to CNN.

In the days ahead of their first meeting, Biden and McCarthy shared a short and courteous call that one source told CNN left the speaker hopeful there could be room for a deal. But days later, in their first in-person meeting since February, sources close to both men described interactions between Biden and McCarthy as sharp. McCarthy directed his questions at Biden only for Senate Majority Chuck Schumer to jump in, leading McCarthy to point out he wanted to hear from the president. At one point, McCarthy pointedly told Biden his claim that Republicans were taking away veterans funding was simply a lie.

Biden described some of McCarthys comments in the meeting afterward as a little over the top.

Unlike Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, with whom Biden has shared decades of Senate negotiations, Biden and McCarthy are generationally unmatched, ideologically opposed and personally not close.

They really are starting out at an extremely nascent point in these negotiations, Ben Howard, former floor director for McCarthy, told CNN of the two mens relationship.

The announcement Tuesday evening that Biden and McCarthy would dispatch a smaller circle of widely trusted advisers to hash out the details of increasing the countrys borrowing limit was seen as a welcome shift to talks that were stuck in neutral. Biden appointed longtime aide and counselor to the President Steve Ricchetti and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young, a former staff director of the House Appropriations Committee, to lead the charge alongside Legislative Affairs Director Louisa Terrell. Young has a long and productive relationship with House Republicans, having served as the staff director for the House Appropriations Committee. McCarthy appointed his close ally and trusted policy adviser Rep. Garret Graves, a Republican from Louisiana, to lead talks for him.

Were not there  but I see the path, McCarthy said Thursday. Where we were a week ago and where we are today is a much better place because weve got the right people in the room discussing it in a very professional manner with all the knowledge and all the background from all the different leaders and what they want.

President Joe Biden shakes hands as he presents a copy of his speech to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy before he delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, on February 7 in the House Chamber of the Capitol in Washington, DC. - Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/Getty Images

In an acknowledgment that a deal will ultimately come down to Biden and McCarthy shaking hands, Biden canceled the second half of his foreign trip, noting he will need to be on hand to finalize and sign the deal with McCarthy.

But the obstacles for two men with little shared personal history remain  a surprising place for two leaders who each prioritize fostering personal relationships as the key to achieving their political ends.

Biden frequently reminds his staff of his view that politics is personal and leans on that approach in his pursuit of deals with members of Congress and foreign leaders alike.

McCarthy has spent years personally recruiting members to run for office, slowly endearing himself to political foes in his right flank from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia to Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and convincing his conference over 15 rounds of voting to make him speaker. Still, when it comes to the president, the relationship has been harder to build. Before these talks, McCarthy and Biden have rarely met one on one, not to mention negotiated on issues of such high importance.

When he was vice president, Biden and McCarthy occasionally lunched at the Naval Observatory, meetings that aides say were cordial but not foundational in building up a strong reserve of goodwill or trust needed for the kind of high-wire act that the two men are engaged in now.

They gotta learn to work with each other, Republican Rep. Frank Lucas of Oklahoma said. Everybody involved has to grow into the role to match the responsibilities. They dont have any other choice, so theyll step up.

A senior administration official acknowledged that Biden and McCarthys relationship is largely untested, but characterized it as being in a growing phase  albeit one defined by the critical positions both men now hold more than any particularly strong personal chemistry.

The White House has made some efforts at relationship-building, including inviting McCarthy and his mother to the French state dinner in December and spending some time with McCarthy and House Republicans in September after the signing of a bill commemorating the late Republican Rep. Jackie Walorski of Indiana. And a senior administration official told CNN Biden sought frequent updates on McCarthys work in the House and his policy priorities. The official said those briefings were Bidens way of getting a more well-rounded view of McCarthys policy priorities, which Biden views as a key building block to building a relationship and forging agreement.

They are both gregarious lets make a deal politicians. Id feel better had they gotten to know one another over the first two years of the Biden administration. Thats the presidents choice, Rep. Tom Cole, a Republican from Oklahoma, told CNN. We are behind where we should be because the president called a meeting and then waited 97 days to call the next one.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris host Congressional leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for a meeting about raising the debt limit in the Oval Office at the White House on May 16 in Washington, DC. - Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Ninety-seven days, a challenge and a GOP debt ceiling bill

Making the negotiations even more tenuous, GOP aides say, is the fact that the White House did not engage on the debt ceiling for more than three months even as McCarthy and top aides made repeated entreaties to Biden and his staff to get together to talk, even after Biden himself at the National Prayer Breakfast and Friends of Ireland lunch told McCarthy hed be open to meeting. Instead, Biden and his team insisted on McCarthy laying out his own budget blueprint.

Show us your plan, became the Democratic refrain.

The White House dismisses Republicans criticism of the three-month gap as flimsy, pointing out that Biden unveiled his budget proposal a month after meeting with McCarthy and was waiting for McCarthy to come to the table with his own plan.

The president has always been very clear to the speaker in a respectful way, Im ready to have a conversation with you when you have a plan, White House legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell said in an interview ahead of Bidens latest meeting with McCarthy. And as I understand it on those instances, the plan was not there yet  there was nothing on the table. And as soon as one passed, there was an invitation to talk about the budget.

McCarthy didnt just lay out his plan  he passed it through a narrowly divided GOP conference. But sources close to the speaker tell CNN that McCarthy viewed the repeated pushes to unveil his own plan as a challenge and in part a sign that Democrats were underestimating his abilities, questioning whether he could hold his narrow majority together. When he did it, the speaker  and his conference  felt even more emboldened to get more out of the White House in their negotiations.

If there was good intentions, I think you could settle this in two days, said Graves. I think the president  by telling the speaker of the House on February 1 that they were going to continue meeting yet refused to meet again, refused to come back for three months, refused to respond to inquiries about getting back together again  I think that there is a trust and integrity issue.

McCarthy hasnt forgotten the snub and brings it up almost every time he is asked publicly about the debt ceiling.

President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy. - Getty Images

I dont think it is a personal thing, one person close to McCarthy put it. Its a little bit more of a whiplash. Biden seems more agreeable, and then you get in a room with Schumer or with aides, and its back to square one.

McCarthy, for his part, has also rubbed Democrats the wrong way in his handling of debt ceiling negotiations.

While Biden described McCarthys behavior as a little over the top during last weeks meeting, other sources familiar with the meeting described McCarthy as obnoxious and a little much. One source familiar with the meeting said McCarthy spoke as though he were posturing for his caucus rather than in a room with the President and his fellow congressional leaders.

Sources close to the White House also point out that McCarthy has taken personal shots at the president, making insinuations about his age, including when he once quipped that he would bring soft food to the White House if thats what it would take to get a meeting. By contrast, administration officials said Biden has remained respectful of McCarthy, both in public and behind closed doors.

Administration officials say the president ignores those comments and hasnt let it impact his relationship with McCarthy nor the White Houses strategic and tactical outlook on the debt ceiling.

Can a deal be reached?

Members on the sidelines have worried that the largely untested nature of the Biden-McCarthy relationship could be problematic to reaching a deal, but there is growing optimism that the negotiators now do have that relationship with the speaker.

Young spent years on Capitol Hill entrenched in messy appropriations showdowns with Republicans and emerged with a keen understanding of GOP dynamics and what McCarthy needs, members say.

Another hopeful sign, colleagues point out, is that both Biden and McCarthy are cognizant of the calamity that could befall the country if there was a default.

The interest of the country can also be motivating, and I hope they would be sufficiently motivating to all the parties involved to get a deal done, Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah told CNN.

Administration officials also emphasize that Biden understands that McCarthy is walking a political tightrope  wrangling a slim majority and an increasingly extreme group of conservatives.

Asked last week if he trusts McCarthy, Biden said I trust Kevin will try and do what he says.

I dont know how much leeway Kevin McCarthy thinks he has, Biden added, before noting that McCarthy made some serious concessions to the right wing of his party in order to become speaker.

That lack of political leeway factors heavily into the White Houses thinking about how Biden and McCarthy will ultimately forge an agreement.

The White House views it as unlikely that McCarthy will be able to pass whatever deal emerges with Republican votes alone. A senior administration official said the White House is focused on how to reach a deal that enough of McCarthys caucus can support without losing the number of House Democrats who will also be needed to get a bill across the finish line.

But asked whether McCarthy is more interested in passing a deal to avert default or holding onto his speakership, a senior administration official demurred before noting that the White House is focused on threading the needle to ensure both outcomes.

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As Biden meets with world leaders at G-7 Summit, US puts new sanctions on Russia

WASHINGTON  The U.S. announced a new sanctions package to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine on Thursday, as President Joe Biden attended a summit of the leaders of the world's most powerful advanced economies.

A senior U.S. official said the U.S. and its partners would seek to make it harder for Russia to evade sanctions, access the international financial system and continue waging its war. Group of Seven nations will also take steps to further reduce their reliance on Russia energy sources, the official said.

Biden's administration said it would blacklist 70 entities from receiving U.S. exports and introduce more than 300 new sanctions on individuals, entities, vessels and aircraft that the official said would target financial facilitators and other actors in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Additional details of the sanctions package were not immediately available. However, the senior Biden administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the package would be "substantial" and demonstrates the U.S. remains committed to "tightening the screws" on Russia for its continued aggression against Ukraine.

President Joe Biden greets troops upon his arrival at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Iwakuni, Japan, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Biden made the stop on his way to attend the G-7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

The latest:

Where's Biden: President Joe Biden arrived in Hiroshima, Japan early Thursday morning on a shortened trip abroad to meet with U.S. allies, including the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Canada and the U.K.

Why the G-7 is meeting: The economic alliance that booted Russia nearly a decade ago over its annexation of Crimea holds an annual leaders' summit in a participating nation.

What's on the schedule: Biden and other leaders will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which honors individuals who lost their lives as a result of the U.S. bombing of the Japanese city during World War II.

Why it matters: Although former President Barack Obama delivered a speech at the memorial in 2016 during a bilateral visit, it is the first time that world leaders are gathering together at the memorial since the war's conclusion. The joint appearance is meant to show the resolve of the G-7 alliance to preventing nuclear proliferation and another global war.

No apology: Biden will not make a statement at the memorial, his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters traveling with the president on Air Force One. He will lay a wreath and pay his respects for history and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represented Hiroshima in his country's House of Representatives.

People stand along a road to see the motorcade transporting US President Joe Biden in Hiroshima on May 18, 2023, ahead of the G7 Leaders' Summit.

Biden shortens overseas trip as debt ceiling talks in limbo

Biden will split his attention during the trip between global politics and a fight with Republicans over raising the debt ceiling that is simmering in the U.S. with just days to go before a possible default on America's debt.

He canceled stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he had planned to showcase his strategy to counter China, in order to return to the negotiating table sooner. The White House insisted Thursday that Biden was postponing, and not canceling, his visit to the nations, although new dates have not been announced. He will meet with the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit.

"He looked at what needed to be done, and the president wanted to come back...a little bit early, postpone those two other stops that he was going to make to make sure that Congress actually did its job," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Air Force One.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US sanctions Russia over Ukraine war as Biden attends G-7 Summit
A bill that would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender was defeated Thursday in the New Hampshire House.

The bill, similar to those already enacted by Republican-led legislatures in multiple states, had passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines. But Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the 400-member House, and more Democrats were present for Thursdays vote.

Democrats passed several poison pill amendments to weaken the bill before it was defeated 195-190 on a vote to indefinitely postpone it. That means the topic cant be taken up for the rest of the session.

Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. House, such a bill was the first legislation that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally announced  fulfilling a major part of the GOP campaign platform.

The New Hampshire version sought to establish a consistent mechanism for parents to be notified of information relating to the health, well-being, and educational progress of their minor children while those children are in the custody and control of the public schools.

Opponents argue that while it may appear benign in detailing many rights already covered by existing state and federal law, the bill exposes LGBQT+ students to the risk of abuse at home  a bad idea for young people who are already prone to stress, depression and suicidal thoughts.

This rush to inform will deny adolescents the time needed for thoughtfulness and care that is sometimes needed for a teen and their family to approach this sensitive issue, Rep. Mel Myler, a Democrat from Hopkinton, wrote in the House calendar ahead of the vote.

Supporters of the bill have argued it would strengthen family relationships.

Parents who ask such questions likely already suspect that their children are having problematic issues in this area, so this bill is not an effort to out such students, Republican Rep. Arlene Quartatiello wrote in the calendar. It is, rather, an effort to empower a partnership between parents and teachers to most effectively help vulnerable children navigate complicated situations that may involve life-altering decisions.

Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed a similar bill last year that would have required schools to automatically notify parents about students sexual or gender identity. Sununu said Wednesday he generally supported the new bill.cA bill that would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender was defeated Thursday in the New Hampshire House.

The bill, similar to those already enacted by Republican-led legislatures in multiple states, had passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines. But Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the 400-member House, and more Democrats were present for Thursdays vote.

Democrats passed several poison pill amendments to weaken the bill before it was defeated 195-190 on a vote to indefinitely postpone it. That means the topic cant be taken up for the rest of the session.

Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. House, such a bill was the first legislation that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally announced  fulfilling a major part of the GOP campaign platform.

The New Hampshire version sought to establish a consistent mechanism for parents to be notified of information relating to the health, well-being, and educational progress of their minor children while those children are in the custody and control of the public schools.

Opponents argue that while it may appear benign in detailing many rights already covered by existing state and federal law, the bill exposes LGBQT+ students to the risk of abuse at home  a bad idea for young people who are already prone to stress, depression and suicidal thoughts.

This rush to inform will deny adolescents the time needed for thoughtfulness and care that is sometimes needed for a teen and their family to approach this sensitive issue, Rep. Mel Myler, a Democrat from Hopkinton, wrote in the House calendar ahead of the vote.

Supporters of the bill have argued it would strengthen family relationships.

Parents who ask such questions likely already suspect that their children are having problematic issues in this area, so this bill is not an effort to out such students, Republican Rep. Arlene Quartatiello wrote in the calendar. It is, rather, an effort to empower a partnership between parents and teachers to most effectively help vulnerable children navigate complicated situations that may involve life-altering decisions.

Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed a similar bill last year that would have required schools to automatically notify parents about students sexual or gender identity. Sununu said Wednesday he generally supported the new bill.





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News of Billy Grahams death was first made public by his fellow pro-wrestling protege Ric Flair (Billy Graham/Facebook)

Former WWE champion Billy Graham has died at the age of 79.

The professional wrestler, famously known as the Superstar, died of undisclosed health issues on Wednesday (17 May).

Graham had reportedly been battling a number of health issues.

The news of his death was first made public by his fellow pro-wrestling protege Ric Flair and later confirmed by Dave Meltzer, a reporter for the Wrestling Observer.

The Superstar Billy Graham Just Left Us, Flair wrote. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR INFLUENCE On My Career!

I am so sad. My entire life, and tons of others from Flair to Hogan to Jesse to tons you wouldnt know and tons you would changed because of him. Valerie, I just wish you the best, youre a saint and more people than you know are aware of it, Meltzer said.

Earlier this week, Grahams wife Valerie revealed he had been in the ICU for three weeks.

Please urgent prayers are needed for my husband, she wrote on Facebook. The doctors wanted to remove him from life support tonight, I refused. Hes a fighter and his will is strong even if his body isnt. God is our hope.

The Superstar Billy Graham Just Left Us  THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR INFLUENCE On My Career! pic.twitter.com/YH0eT2NM4p  Ric Flair (@RicFlairNatrBoy) May 18, 2023

Many fans and people from the wrestling industry paid tribute to Graham on social media.

Superstar Billy Graham had such a charisma and love for professional wrestling. He will be greatly missed, wrote wrestling fan account Pro Wrestling Central, and shared a clip of the wrestler.

Superstar Billy Graham had such a charisma and love for professional wrestling. He will be greatly missed 



RIP TO A LEGEND pic.twitter.com/DjXKvtWrxT  ProWrestlingCentral (@WresCentral) May 18, 2023

American promoter Paul Heyman wrote: Before Billy Graham, performers in WWWF / WWF/ WWE were known as professional wrestlers. After Billy Graham left his mark, Vincent Kennedy McMahon decided everyone would be a WWE Superstar. A most heartfelt RIP to the man of the hour, the man with the power, too sweet to be sour!

Radio host David LaGreca said: RIP Superstar Billy Graham. One of the most influential wrestlers of all time.

Graham gained recognition for his tenure as the WWWF Heavyweight Champion in 1977. He was a three-time world champion in major professional wrestling promotions.

He is most remembered for revolutionising the interview and physique aspects of the professional wrestling industry, and for his charismatic performance style.

Some of his wrestling proteges include Hulk Hogan, Jesse Ventura, Scott Steiner and Flair.
Billy Graham Signs His Book

Billy Graham Signs His Book "Tangled Ropes" at Borders in Princeton, New Jersey, on Feb. 21, 2006.

WWE Hall of Famer Billy Graham, who took the name of the famous evangelist in a wrestling career powered by bodybuilding brawn and oratory passion, has died at age 79.

Grahams death on Wednesday, first reported by TMZ, was followed by tributes to the former athlete, whose real name was Eldridge Wayne Coleman, from fellow wrestlers like Ric Flair and The Iron Sheik. The decorated wrestler, whose name in the ring was Superstar, was surrounded by wife Valerie Graham and daughter Capella when he was ultimately taken off life support.

Please urgent prayers needed for my husband, Valerie Graham wrote in a Facebook statement Monday. The doctors wanted to remove him from life support tonight, I refused. Hes a fighter and his will is strong even if his body isnt. God is our hope.

A GoFundMe campaign attached to the post said Graham experienced very serious health issues, including diabetes, congestive heart failure and a major infection in his ears and skull that took six months to heal and caused hearing loss.

The fundraising campaign, which reached less than half of its goal of $50,000, previously told donors that Graham had lost 80 pounds and continues to struggle with extreme weakness.

Graham was open about his health problems and his history of steroid abuse in his 2006 autobiography, per USA Today. He had a liver transplant in 2002, but continued to have serious liver issues.

Graham published a tell-all autobiography,

Graham published a tell-all autobiography, "Tangled Ropes," in 2006.

The muscle-bound high school dropout took his name as a tribute to the famed preacher Billy Graham and rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, per The Washington Post.

The Phoenix, Arizona, native was subjected to vicious physical abuse by his parents as a youngster and began lifting weights. Early bodybuilding competiton success led to a speaking invitation at a Christian revival tent meeting, where Graham realized he could fuse his brawn and passion for oration. The formula would later inspire the likes of Hulk Hogan and Jesse Ventura.

WWE told People in a statement Wednesday that Graham emulated Muhammad Ali when boasting about his talents to the press and used that gift of gab to sell out arenas.

I took some old stuff and made it new, Graham told the New York Daily News in an interview cited by The Washington Post. I wasnt some big old wrestler. I was the first guy to look and pose like a bodybuilder, dropping to one knee and do a bicep shot, showing off those 22-inch pythons.

Graham made his WWE debut in 1975, when the group was known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation. He won three world titles during his 15-year career and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. He became a manager and commentator after he retired from the ring.

Grahams death inspired solemn tributes on social media.

SUPERSTAR BILLY GRAHAM. ONE OF MY FIRST TEACHERS OF THE HEAT. THE REAL LEGEND BUBBA. HE LOVE ME I LOVE HIM. TOGETHER WE HIT THE GYM AND SHOCK THE EARTH. I LOVE YOU FOREVER BROTHER. RIP pic.twitter.com/0UEIy2HNgt  The Iron Sheik (@the_ironsheik) May 18, 2023

The Superstar Billy Graham Just Left Us  THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR INFLUENCE On My Career! pic.twitter.com/YH0eT2NM4p  Ric Flair (@RicFlairNatrBoy) May 18, 2023

Before Billy Graham, performers in WWWF / WWF/ WWE were known as professional wrestlers. After Billy Graham left his mark, Vincent Kennedy McMahon decided everyone would be a WWE Superstar. A most heartfelt RIP to the man of the hour, the man with the power, too sweet to be sour! pic.twitter.com/bwL6UQ3c3h  Paul Heyman (@HeymanHustle) May 18, 2023

This is the version of Superstar Billy Graham I got to see in FL. He would come out to Kung Fu Fighting & I loved it! RIP to the most copied man ever in Pro Wrestling. pic.twitter.com/hLzoWaXDiD  Sean Waltman (@TheRealXPac) May 18, 2023

There wouldn't be a Jesse "The Body" Ventura without the in-ring success and trailblazing showmanship of Superstar Billy Graham. One of my proudest wrestling memories was having the honor of being inducted into the same WWE Hall of Fame class as Graham. Rest In Power Superstar.  Jesse Ventura (@GovJVentura) May 18, 2023

WWE is saddened to learn that WWE Hall of Famer Superstar Billy Graham has passed away. We extend our condolences to Grahams family, friends, and fans.https://t.co/Qpykpjv616  WWE (@WWE) May 18, 2023

Related...
Nardo Vanterpool of Inglewood and his son, Prince Walker, pose for a portrait at WalkGood LA's Vinyasa yoga flow session in Kenneth Hahn Park on April 2 in Los Angeles. (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)

At the outset of Father Time, an early cut from Kendrick Lamars most recent album, Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, the Compton rappers partner tells him he really needs some therapy: Real n need no therapy, he responds dismissively. By the end of the song's first verse, however, it's clear his partner is right, as Lamar vents about the generational trauma that has afflicted his own life over heart-swelling piano chords.

We grow up where our parents dont know about [therapy], our grandparents dont know about that, Lamar told Spotifys Carl Chery last year. You live and experience the things you go through, and you deal with it right then and there, or you never deal with it. We learn to hold all our s in.

I had to challenge myself to go to therapy, he continued. Thats a whole new step. Thats growth.

Etienne Maurice of Los Angeles, Founder of WalkGood LA poses for a portrait at WalkGood LA's Vinyasa yoga flow session in Kenneth Hahn Park on April 2 in Los Angeles. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Lamars long-held views arent uncommon in the Black community. The idea of suck it up and tough it out has persisted, often resurfacing in abusive relationships or addiction battles rather than healthy release. But slowly, that mindset is beginning to change.

Some are finding release through therapy; others find it easier to shed burdens in communal spaces, such as the yoga and meditation activities held by WalkGood LA. Founded in June 2020 by Etienne Maurice, the organization provides spaces for bonding, primarily in L.A.'s Black community, through yoga classes, guided meditations and breath work, hikes, run clubs and other activities around L.A. and beyond.

In preparation for The Times' next installment of Behold for Juneteenth, which will spotlight the path toward mental health and psychological freedom in Black L.A., we spoke to attendees of a recent WalkGood yoga session on how they've sought healing.

Kennedy Long, Inglewood



I want the Black community to rid themselves of the idea that going to therapy or seeking help is a sign of weakness. I personally had to learn this lesson the last few years and it took serious work and dedication. We cant show up as our full selves if were struggling mentally. We cant fight the fight if were bogged down by mental illness. I feel as though no one fights as hard for Black people than Black people. We cant sustain our fight if we arent right within.

I believe Black womens wellness spaces [like WalkGood LA] are sites of resistance because they reject cultural scripts that expect Black women to sacrifice their own physical and psychological health for the benefit of others such as their family and community. Yoga, for me, balances my mind-body connection and Im able to merge as my full self."

Kennedy Long of Inglewood, left, and Krystal Sojourner of Mid-City. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Krystal Sojourner, Mid-City



These activities give me the opportunity to ground myself in the communities I feel safe in. Id love to see these events continue to flourish and grow.

Jasmyn Hamilton, downtown L.A.

Jasmyn Hamilton, right, of downtown Los Angeles and Amber Johnson of Wilshire Park. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

"I prioritize mental health because without it I feel lost. Every day people go through their own hardships, but we would never know. In the Black community we are taught to 'act hard and to be hard,' which causes us to be out of tune and to lose touch with ourselves. Being a nurse I have seen it all. Ive seen what anxiety and lows look like on my patients and tell them as a gentle reminder, 'if you have nothing at all, at least keep God and your peace close by.' I would love to see more of the Black community become active and stay active and to simply be surrounded by peace in this harsh world. Having a community like WalkGoodLA allows us as a Black community to be vulnerable, open, active, and to become a family."

Jasmine Okafor, Koreatown

Jasmine Okafor of Koreatown (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

"When I look in the mirror I love the reflection I see. I learned how to be present and love myself by being intentional with my mental health and wellness. For the first time in my life, I feel free. Freedom mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally. ... Important information is passed down from generation to generation. For most of us, mental health and wellness were not among the important information that was passed down to us. Its advertised as a luxury and not a necessity. We have the ability to become the change we dont see and help pass down healthier habits and life changing information. ... As a wellness practitioner specifically in the alternative healing field my aspirations are to see more wellness and mental health awareness in schools and workspaces.

Kamryn Gaskin, Los Angeles

"I prioritize mental health because its my birth right to be at peace. I remember a time when I didnt recognize who I was and that scared me and my family. Since taking a leap of faith to move from New Jersey to Los Angeles, Ive been blessed to be embraced by the community. Whether its practicing yoga, learning defense, taking dance class or even just being still, Ive learned that existing as a Black woman while being at peace is a revolutionary act."

Kailin Carter of Ladera Heights and Kamryn Gaskin of Los Angeles. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Akita Barrett of Fairfax District (left), Aliyah Murray of Koreatown, Alisha Henson of DTLA and Dash Anderson of Hollywood

Akita Barrett of Fairfax District, from left, Aliyah Murray of Koreatown, Alisha Henson of DTLA and Dash Anderson of Hollywood. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Akita Barrett: "A long time ago, I made the conscious decision that my life is my responsibility and everything that happens in it that I can control starts from a choice that I make.

I prioritize mental health and wellness because if I dont take charge and make it a choice every day the world will swallow me whole. Daily maintenance of meditating/praying, self-care, getting good night's rest, eating well and being mindful of what I put in my body, the music I listen to, journaling, and just making sure I stay in front of my emotions and learning them well enough to know how to navigate through them.

I want my Black community to know that taking the initiative and making our mental health first priority is not a sign of being weak or crazy."

Alisha Henson (third from left), downtown L.A.



"During the pandemic, I started working from home, and continued to work from home for the past four years. At first what I thought sounded like a fun flexible opportunity ended up being a bit of a detriment to my health. I had a very busy schedule, jumping from meeting to meeting, and sometimes I felt like I wouldnt even leave my desk, in my living room, all day. I was away from family, most of my friends on the weekends, I would rest, but on Monday it would all start all over again and I really felt like my life was passing me by and it sent me into a depression. If I didnt do something, or make a change in my habits, I thought I would always continue to feel this way.

A friend recommended that I start seeking therapy. It was something that I was open to but never thought I actually needed. I started going to WOC (Women of Color) Therapy last year, and it helped me so much. Ive seen such a positive change in my mood, how I handle challenges and people, and its all been for the better. I love the fact that I get to talk with someone who understands me, looks like me, and gets it without even having to explain.

I think its worth going to therapy whether you think you need it or not. Ive unearthed things about myself, traumas, and broke down walls that I didnt even realize I had. Being in therapy and taking care of my mental health has changed my life, and I can even see a difference in how it even affects the people around me and how they react and respond. Its pushed me out of my comfort zone and into places of refuge and community like WalkGood."

Kwame Jordan, Inglewood

Kwame Jordan of Inglewood. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

"We carry so much on us mentally and spiritually. We carry so much that we dont even know it and it starts to take a toll on the mind and body. I prioritize mental health and wellness because its the most important thing we can do as human beings. Its important that I show up for myself. Its important to prioritize ourselves daily, decompress and release. A wise man said that two things cannot exist in the same place because there are three: mind, body and spirit."

Nique Gante, Baldwin Hills

Nique Gante of Baldwin Hills (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

"The quality of Black life depends on Black people catering to our mental health and wellness, prioritizing our peace and healing our mind, body and soul especially in a society which doesn't serve our sanity and safety we must serve our own to grow, heal and eventually bloom within our circle. When our mind and body's thrive, so shall our lives. The uprise in Black mental health and wellness is spectacular. We as a whole are creating generational health in the Black community in which we so desperately need. I'm glad to be part of such a powerful life changing movement."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Black couple accused of smelling 'like weed' kicked out of Memphis eatery, racial discrimination suit says

A Black couple who were kicked out of a restaurant in Memphis, Tennessee, last year for allegedly smelling like marijuana filed a federal racial discrimination lawsuit against the eatery last week.

Dechandria Bass and her boyfriend, Dwan Brown, of Coahoma County in Mississippi, were in Tennessee on Aug. 7 to visit Browns mother and cousin, according to the suit, filed Thursday in federal court.

Houston's Restaurant in Memphis. (Google Maps)

The couple met up with the family members at Houston's Restaurant on Poplar Avenue in Memphis.

Shortly after they arrived, restaurant manager Kayla Hollins, who is white, went to the groups table and told the couple to leave because they smelled like weed, according to the lawsuit.

Bass and Brown didnt initially react and thought Hollins was talking to someone else, because they knew they didnt smell like marijuana, the suit says.

Moments later, according to the lawsuit, Hollins returned to the table with a police officer and told the couple, I asked you to leave and come back tomorrow because you smell like weed.

Carlos Moore, an attorney representing the couple, said Wednesday his clients dont smoke marijuana and hadnt smoked the day they were booted from the restaurant.

What was supposed to be a great family outing was ruined, Moore said. His clients were discriminated against because they are Black, said Moore, who added the marijuana accusation was Jim Crow era 2.0  a new way to discriminate" in the restaurant industry.

The lawsuit names as defendants the restaurant; its parent company, Hillstone Restaurant Group Inc.; General Manager Ralph Price; and Hollins.

The Hillstone Restaurant Group said in a statement Wednesday it doesnt comment on pending litigation. The statement added: Our Company does not discriminate as anyone who has ever dined at our restaurant can attest. We are proud [that] guests of all races choose to dine regularly at Houstons and appreciate our hospitality.

Price didn't immediately reply to a request for comment left for him at Houstons on Wednesday.

Hollins couldn't be reached Wednesday. A woman who picked up the phone at the restaurant said she no longer works for the company.

A representative for Hillstone Restaurant Group didn't immediately respond to a question about whether Hollins was still an employee.

WHBQ-TV of Memphis reported in August that another Black couple, a police officer and a high school principal, were asked to leave the restaurant by a female manager who also accused them of smelling like pot.

Marijuana use, both recreationally and for medicinal purposes, is mostly illegal in Tennessee, with minor exceptions like small amounts of CBD oil.

Medical marijuana use is legal in Mississippi, where Bass and Brown are from, Moore said. He said that line of questioning was never sought by the restaurant manager who forced the couple to leave.

If this was not blanket racial discrimination, I think Houstons managers would have had to ask them where they were from and did they have any prescription for marijuana before accusing them of smelling like weed, Moore said.

Bass and Brown seek at least $500,000 each in damages for humiliation, embarrassment and emotional distress, the lawsuit says.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Black Woman And White Woman Who Came Together After Witnessing Racism At Starbucks Have Fallen Out After Starting Nonprofit

George Floyd protests

Michelle Saahene, a Ghanaian American woman, and Melissa DePino, a white woman, who joined forces after a viral incident brought them together, have fallen out due to their differences.

On April 12, 2018, a video recorded at a Philadelphia Starbucks captured the arrest of two innocent Black business people who asked to use the stores restroom because a white employee called the police. The footage quickly spread across social media after its posting. Both Saahene and DePino witnessed their unjust arrests. In the 46-second clip, Saahene can be heard saying, They didnt do anything. I saw the entire thing.

The viral moment changed the future of Starbucks, as the business received a ton of backlash. People protested at different locations nationwide, causing the company to close down all of its stores for a day to conduct diversity, equity and inclusion training with its employees to help prevent situations like this from happening again.

Shocked and upset to have witnessed a blatant case of racial discrimination, DePino tracked down Saahene to educate herself by having an honest dialogue about racism before she posted her video clip online.

I really just did a simple thing, DePino explained to The Los Angeles Times in a 2018 interview. I witnessed something wrong and spoke up about it and shared it in my social network, which happens to be mostly white. That brought attention to this issue that really happens all the time.

The conversation began a new friendship between Saahene and DePino, who launched Privilege to Progress. Their goal was to provide people with more information surrounding racism within the workplace. It led to them becoming one of the go-to resources for companies, including Google, Spectrum, Ikea, Yale and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, especially in light of George Floyds murder in 2020. They even appeared on Jada Pinkett Smiths Red Table Talk and MSNBC.

White people are tired of hearing this story, Saahene told attendees at paid engagements, per the LA Times. Were tired of living it, too. If you want to see racism dismantled, you have to show up to the conversation.

Unfortunately, P2P would be short-lived after extended trips to Saahenes homeland of Ghana expanded her perspective on what she and DePino were doing. Through this, she started to feel like she was the power player.

I started to realize that I was the draw: my skin, my story, Saahene recently told the Los Angeles Times. I was growing faster and thinking about this all at a deeper, more complex level.  I told her the pain I was feeling about how we were making money off of this. Her responses were cold.

She expressed to DePino that she deserved 50% of their business profit.

DePino, who managed the nonprofit filings, finances and social media content, disagreed.

I thought we were working things out. I thought we were best friends, DePino said in the interview. Instead, I learned that we were not friends anymore.  The organization had a mission and she no longer supported it.

Despite the friendship they once had, things took a turn for the worse following Saahenes social media post calling DePino manipulative and discussed the challenges of working with white women in racial justice, sparking conflict between the two before they took down P2Ps website and social media platforms.

Both women are now focused on separate missions.
A boat from Cuba arrived in the Florida Keys, breaking a lull. What to know about it

Migrant landings, a daily occurrence in the Florida Keys only a few months ago, have dwindled recently because of an increase in federal and state law enforcement patrolling the waters surrounding the island chain.

But some boats are still getting through.

A group of 23 people from Cuba arrived Thursday morning in a wooden boat on the shore of the Upper Keys Village of Islamorada, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Details of the landing  children aboard the vessel, health of the migrants, genders of the boaters  were not immediately available.

A migrant boat is moored to shore in the Florida Keys Thursday, May 18, 2023.

The agency said in a statement on Twitter that the people were taken into federal custody and will be processed for removal.

Photos posted by the Border Patrol show the boat with messages written in Spanish on either side of the hull that translate to: God provides, and, Although the road is difficult, God keeps walking with me.
Bob Saget remembered by Full House stars, widow Kelly Rizzo on what would have been his 67th birthday

Bob Saget remembered by Full House stars, widow Kelly Rizzo on what would have been his 67th birthday

"Full House" stars and Bob Sagets widow Kelly Rizzo paid tribute to the late comedian on what wouldve been his 67th birthday.

John Stamos, who portrayed Uncle Jesse on the 90s sitcom, honored his co-star on Wednesday by sharing a video of a comedy skit performance they both participated in. Stamos was dressed as John Wilkes Booth and Saget was Abraham Lincoln.

"Happy birthday @bobsaget It still doesnt seem real. I was thinking about you all day and thinking about all the wonderful birthdays that we celebrated together," Stamos, 59, shared on Instagram.

"Usually me throwing you a gigantic expensive party and you taking me to The Smokehouse in the Valley. Ill be John Wilkes Booth to your Abe Lincoln anytime. I miss you so much."

BOB SAGET'S WIDOW KELLY RIZZO ON 1 YEAR SINCE HIS SURREAL DEATH: GRIEF MORPHED INTO 'TREMENDOUS GRATITUDE'

APP USERS CLICK HERE TO SEE INSTAGRAM VIDEO

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Dave Coulier, who played Uncle Joey on "Full House," took to Instagram to share a black-and-white photo of him and Saget smoking cigars.

"Full House" stars and Bob Sagets widow Kelly Rizzo paid tribute to the late comedian on what wouldve been his 67th birthday.

"Happy Birthday, Bob. I love you," he wrote.

APP USERS CLICK HERE TO SEE INSTAGRAM PHOTO

In a series of sentimental photos shared on social media, Rizzo, 43, expressed her gratitude for the time she spent with Saget before his death.

"Happy birthday. This truly never gets less weird or surreal," she wrote on Instagram.

KELLY RIZZO REMEMBERS LATE HUSBAND BOB SAGET NINE MONTHS AFTER HIS DEATH: 'FEELS LIKE FOREVER'

"But the gratitude grows every single day. I'll never stop feeling like the luckiest person on Earth to have had the privilege of spending 6 years with this amazing man. Life is short and we never know how long we are going to be here. And I still take comfort in the fact that Bob used every minute on this planet to enjoy life to the fullest and make the world a better place."

APP USERS CLICK HERE TO SEE INSTAGRAM PHOTOS

The blogger encouraged fans to "do as" Saget would do to celebrate his birthday.

"Tell all the people you love that you love them, preferably in a very long & verbose voice text dictated by Siri," Rizzo suggested.

The "Eat, Travel, Rock Production" creator noted that she will be celebrating her late husbands birthday in style.

"Ill celebrate him today by having a very-cold, extra dry dirty martini with blue-cheese olivesAnd I hope hes celebrating up there with a massive cigar (his favorite thing), a martini, and a few dozen oysters while sitting on a beach. He would love that. Thank you all for still loving Bob so much."

Rizzos sweet post was complimented by photos of Saget enjoying cigars and a seafood tower with oysters.

Bob Saget and Kelly Rizzo's family home sold in February.

Saget and Rizzo tied the knot in 2018.

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The late comedian tragically passed away from head trauma after an accident in his Ritz-Carlton hotel room in Orlando, Florida.

In a statement from the family provided to E! News, citing authorities, it was revealed that Saget "accidentally hit the back of his head on something, thought nothing of it and went to sleep."

Saget was only 65. In addition to Rizzo, he leaves behind three daughters: Aubrey, Jennifer and Lara.
Kelly Rizzo, the widow of late Full House star Bob Saget, looked back at feeling like the luckiest person on Earth with her late husband Wednesday on what would have been his 67th birthday.

Rizzo, who has shared a numberof heartfeltmessages since her husbands death in January 2022, wished her late husband a happy birthday in an Instagram post featuring several personal snaps.

Happy birthday  This truly never gets less weird or surreal. But the gratitude grows every single day, Rizzo wrote.

Ill never stop feeling like the luckiest person on Earth to have had the privilege of spending 6 years with this amazing man, she continued. Life is short and we never know how long we are going to be here. And I still take comfort in the fact that Bob used every minute on this planet to enjoy life to the fullest and make the world a better place.

Rizzo, the host and creator of Eat Travel Rock TV, called on fans to do as Saget would do to celebrate the late comedian on his birthday.

Tell all the people you love that you love them, preferably in a very long & verbose voice text dictated by Siri, she wrote. Ill celebrate him today by having a very-cold, extra dry dirty martini with blue-cheese olives (IYKYK). And I hope hes celebrating up there with a massive cigar (his favorite thing), a martini, and a few dozen oysters while sitting on a beach. He would love that. Thank you all for still loving Bob so much. 

Rizzo also shared touching birthday tributes to Saget on her Instagram story, including one from Caitlin McHugh Stamos  actor and wife of Full House star John Stamos  and another from producer and photographer Mathieu Bitton.

A number of stars commented on Rizzos post, including Taylor Lautner, John Mayer and Katie Couric.

Sending you so much love and saluting Bob for everything he meant and will continue to mean to so many. Youre great and I know he would be so proud of you. , Couric wrote.

Mayer, a friend of Saget who took part in a Netflix tribute for him last year, also shared a sweet post in honor of his late pal on Wednesday.

I guess what Im saying is thank God for our ability to remember those who have left us. Its one of the rare divine traits of being human; we can reflect and revisit and keep the flame of someones impact on our lives burning bright, Mayer wrote.

Thank God we dont ever have to let go. Thank God for our memories. Happy Birthday Bob, I love you. 

Related...
Following the announcement of the decision not to pursue criminal charges against police, the Johnson County District Attorneys Office on Wednesday shared footage from the body camera worn by the officer who fatally shot Brandon Lynch in his Olathe home on New Years Eve.

His family says he was in the throes of a mental health crisis when he was killed.

The video, roughly two minutes in length, provides a glimpse of what transpired in the minutes leading up to the deadly shooting. Officers were called to the house by Lynchs sister, who said he had attacked her and she was bleeding in her mouth.

The clip shared Wednesday begins in the hallway of the home while the officer is speaking with Lynch through the 27-year-olds open bedroom door.

Lynch, visibly agitated, yells at the officer to leave. He closes the bedroom door and walks farther into his room.

The officer opens the door, telling Lynch to come speak with him. Shortly after that, the officer sees a stun gun in Lynchs hand, and draws his own Taser.

Put the stun gun down and come here. Youre under arrest, the officer says.

Arguing continues as the officer tells Lynch to drop a second weapon  a knife. The officer re-holsters his nonlethal weapon and draws his pistol.

Lynch begins to advance through the bedroom as the officer backpedals down the hallway, repeatedly telling Lynch to drop the weapon. Lynch continues forward as the officer goes up a small staircase leading to the familys living room.

Once there, other officers join in telling Lynch to drop the weapons. A Taser is fired at him that has no apparent effect.

Standing beside the TV and the front room furniture, facing the officers, Lynch continues to argue about why he would be arrested. Lynch is warned that if he advances without dropping the weapons, he will be shot.

At one point, Lynch tells the officers to shoot him. Then, as he takes two steps forward, Lynch told them a final time: Get out of my house.

Three rounds are fired before the video cuts off.

The fatal shooting was reviewed by the Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigative Team, a group of detectives and investigators from area law enforcement agencies specifically tasked with conducting investigations of deadly police use of force.

During a Wednesday news conference, District Attorney Steve Howe said his office arrived at the conclusion that the shooting of Lynch was justified under Kansas law. Howe said the officer properly used deadly force, noting a butterfly knife and stun gun were found near Lynchs body.

Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe speaks during a press conference at the Johnson County Courthouse on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Olathe, Kan. Howe announced an Olathe police officer will not face criminal charges for shooting and killing Brandon Lynch during a call he responded to on Dec. 31, 2022.

The family has been critical of police after calling to get help for Lynch on Dec. 31, saying the 27-year-old needed mental health treatment and police were aware that Lynch suffered from paranoid schizophrenia.

Maria Varnas, Lynchs mother, previously told The Star her mentally ill son was well-known to Olathe police as officers had been called to their suburban home on multiple occasions over the years. She said at the time that police had previously been able to talk him down calmly and get him the help he needed.

Through their attorneys, the family issued a statement Wednesday saying they were immensely disappointed with Howes decision not to pursue criminal charges.

We disagree with the determination that the officers use of deadly force was reasonable and will continue to pursue justice on his behalf, they said in the statement.
Fellow night owls who are thinking about taking one of the Federal Way ramps along Broadway Avenue in Boise should think again.

The Idaho Transportation Department said the two ramps, which drop drivers off on South Federal Way or North Capitol Boulevard, will be closed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. starting on Sunday, May 21. The overnight closures are planned for six days and are expected to wrap up on May 26.

The department said they are replacing deteriorated pavement along the ramps and other highways that will be closed later this summer.

We are asking the community to bear with us during periods of nighttime noise and traffic delays, ITD Design and Construction Engineer Daris Bruce said in a news release. ITD is scheduling this work at night to keep all lanes open during the busy daytime hours. Our goal is to work quickly and move to the next location.

Detour routes will be marked for each route, and speed limits are expected to be reduced at night, the release said.

The Transportation Department also said in the news release more work along Broadway Avenue, that the majority of paving, will take place in late June. The crews also need to address damage that occurred last year at the intersection of Broadway and Boise avenues because of a water main failure. In December, roads near the intersection were closed for about a day and some residents water was affected.

Aside from the work on Broadway Avenue, ITD is also expected to replace pavement along three other highways this summer:

Glenwood Street between Chinden Boulevard and State Street;

Chinden Boulevard between Cloverdale and Eagle roads; and

The exit from River Street on the I-184 Connector.

Information about work locations and schedule updates will be posted on the Transportation Departments website. Individuals can also request updates by texting REPAVING to 1-866-483-8422.
Last week, I traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border to witness the end of Title 42, the public health law that then-President Donald Trump used as a pretense to fulfill his goal of keeping people seeking asylum from pursuing their legal right to apply for protection in the United States.

Because of Title 42, people fleeing persecution due to their race, religion, political opinion or affiliation with a particular social group, were sent back to Mexico or to the home country they left even if their lives were in danger. Some were killed upon return. Title 42 also forced many seeking protection to wait in Mexico, the country where I was born, in precarious and unsafe conditions. There, many of them were targeted due to their vulnerability, suffering violence, kidnapping and extortion, as have some of my family members living in Mexico.

When he ran for president, Joe Biden vowed to restore the right to seek asylum. He has done the opposite. True, his administrations initial attempt to end Title 42 was stopped by a lawsuit. But since then, it seems the administration has capitulated to anti-immigrant forces by announcing the implementation of policies that copy from the Trump playbook and that have the same effect as Title 42, policies that bar most people seeking asylum at the southern border from availing themselves of the process.

Biden isn't prepared for Title 42's end: Biden wants us to believe the border is prepared for end of Title 42. Anyone buying that?

Was Trump right on immigration? What if Trump and Republicans were right on Title 42 and immigration?

Biden had a promise to keep. Instead, he followed Trump's lead.

When the COVID-19 public health emergency ended last week, Biden had the opportunity to fulfill his promise, abide by international and U.S. law, and allow all those seeking asylum a fair chance to apply for it. Instead, the Biden administration implemented its own asylum ban, which dusted off policies that the Trump administration had sought to put in place, but that the courts had blocked.

Bidens asylum ban bars most people from seeking asylum if they traveled through other countries along their way to the U.S.-Mexico border, unless they applied for and waited for a final determination in another country. But how is a Honduran citizen, like my husband, supposed to safely apply for asylum in Guatemala or Mexico, countries with barely functioning asylum systems and that are themselves seeing their own citizens travel north in search of protection?

Bidens ban makes an exception for those who arrive through a port of entry after having received a scarce appointment through a smart phone application, CBPOne. On my visit to the border, where I traveled at the invitation of the Haitian Bridge Alliance as a representative of the American Civil Liberties Union, I witnessed firsthand how this phone app increases the inequities built into the immigration system, which leave the most vulnerable without protection.

Amador Diaz, right, from Guerreo, Mexico waits with his family to be processed at the El Chapparel Port of Entry in Tijuana, Mexico, May 12, 2023.

To access CBPOne, you need a smart phone and cellular data. Is it reasonable to expect everyone who flees their country in fear of their life to have money to be in possession of a smartphone and cellular data? It certainly wasnt a fair assumption to make of one mother I met at an encampment in Matamoros, next to the bridge along the Rio Grande.

When I asked if she had attempted to get a CBPOne appointment, she explained that her phone had been stolen on the way north, a common occurrence on the more than 1,500-mile journey, and that she had not had money to buy another one.

Those who are lucky enough to get their hands on a cell phone and get cellular data or free wifi, must then be literate, technologically savvy and be able to understand how to address the error messages that they receive in English on the app.

In a shelter in Reynosa with a clear Wifi signal that guests can use, I saw many people trying to secure CBPOne appointments and getting errors requiring them to update the app, saying that there had been a system error, or saying that the request timed out because [t]he server took too long to respond, which could be due to a poor network connection.

Those who had submitted the application in Haitian Creole or Spanish received the errors in English and did not know what to do. People were confused and frustrated. One of them asked me, Why does the richest country on Earth make things so difficult for us?

She had 24 hours to secure appointment. But government's phone app didn't work

Many people have been trying to secure an appointment on CBPOne every day since January. I was able to find one lucky applicant who was notified via email that she had received an appointment. She was instructed to go back to the application to verify and get the details for her appointment. But when she went to the app, there was no information on how to do so. If she didnt figure it out in the next 23 hours, her appointment would be lost, and she would have to go through the lottery-like system all over again.

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It is past time that we move away from creating systems whose purpose it is to discourage those running for their lives from availing themselves of the asylum process.

The Biden administration now touts deterrence as one of its key strategies, but how can it be a good thing to deter people from exercising a human right protected under international and U.S. law?

Plus, deterrence does not work. Imagine being a mother in Honduras receiving threats from the gangs against you and your family. You know that calling the police is useless, as some elements of law enforcement collaborate with the gangs and the institution has shown that it cannot offer the necessary protection. You know that staying home is a death sentence. You have seen it with your own eyes. You have heard the gunshots in your neighborhood. You have had family members disappear only to be found dead. A mother running for her life and her childrens lives will not be deterred. She will do anything to protect them. As one mother at the border told me, We decided that we would rather risk our lives and go north than stay in our country and be killed.

Instead of creating systems that bar people fleeing for their lives from presenting their case at the U.S.-Mexico border, we should welcome people seeking asylum with a just and orderly process. Instead of sending troops to the border, we should create welcoming centers, where those seeking protection can express their fear, be processed, be released into community networks, and be given adequate time and the opportunity to present their case with a lawyer in court, regardless of how they traveled to or entered the United States.

Should US send troops to Mexico? Here's why it's not a good idea.

Florida immigration bill not 'immoral': Mexico's president should spare us his anger over DeSantis' 'immoral' anti-immigration law

The administration claims that its asylum ban, which contains a few narrow categories of exemptions, has been created to avoid chaos at the border and to ensure that people follow legal pathways. However, the administrations policies themselves have created the conditions that it now seeks to solve.

Relying on a faulty phone application to decide who gets a chance to present their case and who has to stay in Mexico in precarious and dangerous conditions for extended periods of time, hoping for a chance to win an appointment that never comes, increases peoples desperation and weakens trust in the system. Not having enough appointments to meet the demand creates backlogs and bottlenecks at the border. Having legal pathways that require somebody running for their life to stay put and wait in the country where their life is at risk makes a mockery of the asylum system and devalues human life.

Maribel Hernandez Rivera is deputy national political director and Equality Division director for the American Civil Liberties Union.

The right to apply for asylum should not be reserved for the selected few. Instead of becoming more Trumpian with each new immigration policy, President Biden should take the opportunity to show the world that migration, which can save lives and allow people to start new ones, can be managed fairly and humanely.

Maribel Hernandez Rivera is deputy national political director for the American Civil Liberties Union. She is also a PD Soros fellow and a Public Voices fellow of The OpEd Project.

You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to letters@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden is making migrants' suffering worse at border as Title 42 ends
Lila Synder is CEO of Bose Corporation, the consumer audio company which is soon to mark its 60th anniversary. Founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Amar Bose, its home has always been within close proximity to Boston and its abundance of student talent. Snyder was one of those grads, earning a masters degree and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from MIT, following her bachelors in mechanical engineering from the University of Miami.

She arrived at Bose at the top of 2020, just as the Covid-19 pandemic threw the world  and supply chains  into a tailspin. But Snyder is an expert problem solver, and like any engineering challenge, she approached her new job  overseeing all aspects of the companys consumer electronics, automotive, and related businesses  methodically. She leads a global staff of 6,000 with a guiding principle: that sound is not an accessory. It is everything we do; It is the most important thing and its in the center.

More from Variety

The rise of Bose to become a top name in sound, particularly when it comes to the car, saw an inflection point in the 1980s when the company teamed with Cadillac to offer a premium car audio system. Snyders own origin story also has an 80s connection  it was then that she first discovered a love of music, which shes carried through to her chief executive position.

Like in other tech industries where female engineers are far outnumbered by their male counterparts, Snyder is hoping to better the statistic when it comes to music makers through an initiative called Turn the Dial, which aims to address why fewer than 3% of hit song producers are female or nonbinary. Theyve partnered with the nonprofit She Is the Music and are working with such artists as H.E.R. and Pink Pantheress, and behind-the-scenes stars like Wondagirl and Blondish to tell their stories.

And then theres the part of the business that has to do with silence  or noise cancelation. Bose has been hard at work coming up with the perfect software algorithm to evaluate the sounds around you and cancel out what you dont want to hear. As Snyder describes it: Its almost tuning the dial on the volume of your life  which things you wanna turn up, which things you wanna turn down. This constant push of new innovation has become Boses calling card, and Lila Snyder is leading the choir.

She talked to Varietys Strictly Business podcast, which you can hear below or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Side hustles may actually make employees better at their full time jobs, a 2021 study found.

Researcher Hudson Sessions spoke to The Wall Street Journal's As We Work podcast this week.

"They can have these positive, enriching experiences that carry forward into their full-time work," he said.

Bosses who are concerned about employees cheating on their day jobs with lucrative side hustles need not worry  having an extra gig might actually make workers more effective at their full-time positions, research shows.

Amid an uneasy economy, Americans are increasingly turning to side hustles. A December survey from LendingTree of nearly 2,100 US consumers found 44% of Americans have a side gig in addition to full-time work, a jump of 13% since 2020. And that number is even higher among Gen Z employees, 62% of whom said they have a side hustle.

Whether a side gig helps pay the bills, contributes to a big purchase, or offers an outlet for creative exploration, people are picking up extra work for a variety of reasons, especially as the market for doing so has become much more accessible with the internet.

But in addition to the practical perks, side hustles may also make employees better at their day jobs, Hudson Sessions, an assistant professor of management and organizations at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University told The Wall Street Journal's As We Work podcast this week.

"They can have these positive, enriching experiences that carry forward into their full-time work," Sessions told podcast producer Charlotte Gartenberg of side hustlers.

Sessions, who studies side hustles and how they affect worker satisfaction and performance, cited his own 2021 study, Do the Hustle! Empowerment from Side-Hustles and Its Effects on Full-Time Work Performance, which found that side gigs can actually make employees more productive at their day jobs simply because the extra outlet can offer empowerment and fulfillment.

Having a side hustle, he told The Journal, often makes people feel better about themselves, the impact of which can't be underestimated.

"People can experience that daily empowerment and then ultimately that carries through in these positive emotions in a way that can enrich the full-time work and actually make people perform just a little bit better on a day-to-day basis," Sessions said.

The perception of side gigs and those who have them has shifted in recent decades, Sessions told As We Work. But despite the growing acceptance of and participation in side hustle culture, some bosses may still be skeptical about their employees engaging in extra work on the side, concerned it might leave them less than fully dedicated to their full time gig while on the clock.

An overachiever who balances a full-time advertising job and two side gigs told Insider last year that entrepreneurs have to learn how allocate their free time so they can juggle full time work, side work, and a social life. Another side hustler said she sets aside certain days of the week to focus on each role.

"There's also research that points to an alternative perspective, which is that there is enrichment here, that people can pick up skills and perspectives, maybe have a variety of experiences and learn new things that are going to help them to be maybe a better full-time employee," Sessions said.

In the 2021 study, researchers asked employees to track each day the varying degrees of empowerment they felt as a result of their side gigs and then tracked the changes over the course of a few weeks, looking at how those feelings impacted their emotions tied to their full-time positions as well.

The study did find that it was possible for workers to become so empowered by their side work that it left them feeling distracted while at their full-time job the following day. But the research also associated a common pathway in which people's positive emotions about their side hustle then positively impacted their lives at work.

"So when I say it can help your job, it will help your job to the extent that you can feel empowered by it," Sessions told the Journal. "So we're looking specifically at these day-to-day empowering experiences, assuming that you have some baseline level of empowerment that you can get from that side hustle."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Snake River in Hells Canyon, USA

A troop of Boy Scouts have saved the life of a hiker badly injured in a fall in Hells Canyon, on the border of Idaho and Oregon.

As The Seattle Times reports, Eric Valentine, a former Scoutmaster himself, was taking photos in the canyon earlier this month when he lost his footing trying to get a milkweed plant off his boots. He fell 60ft down a slope, and suffered a fractured back, cracked tibia, broken ankle, and three broken vertebrae in his neck.

Thankfully for Valentine, over 20 members of Eagles Boy Scout Troop 77 happened to be on a canoeing expedition on Snake River at the bottom of the canyon, and sprang into action when they spotted Valentine attempting to crawl to the trail.

Former firefighter Steve Rasulo also happened to be in the area, and worked with the boys to tend to Valentine's injuries and make him comfortable until help arrived. Meanwhile, Assistant Scoutmaster Nate Bondelid contacted emergency services using a satellite communicator.

Valentine was taken to a trailhead by boat, then to Saint Alphonsus Regional Rehabilitation Hospital in Boise by helicopter. He underwent surgery, and hopes to return home to La Grande, Oregon, soon.

"I asked God to send angels," Valentine told members of the Troop from his hospital bed on Monday. "He sent me the Boy Scouts.
Britain to send an aircraft carrier to the Indo-Pacific in 2025

LONDON  The Royal Navy is to deploy a carrier strike group to the Indo-Pacific region as part of strengthening of its defense ties with Japan and other nations there, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced Thursday on the eve of the G7 summit meeting in Hiroshima.

Confirmation of the planned deployment of one of the Royal Navys two 65,000-tonne behemoths came as Sunak and his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, agreed May 18 what is called the Hiroshima Accord, a wide-ranging pact covering economic, defense, security and technology collaboration.

The accord is the latest in a string of moves by the British to tilt their economic and defense strategy more towards the Indo-Pacific against a background of increasing Chinese belligerence in the region.

In the last six months, the British have completed negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership trade bloc, launched the UK-Japan-Italy sixth-generation combat jet program and in January signed the defense Reciprocal Access Agreement with Japan, which among other benefits will simplify procedures for joint training exercises.

The two sides also plan to increase cyber cooperation as part of the Hiroshima Accord, said a British statement.

Sunaks visit saw the British confirm they will increase the number of troops taking part in the Vigilant Isles military exercise planned for Japan later this year.

Around 170 UK personnel will be involved, including soldiers from the 1 Royal Gurkha Rifles and 16 Air Assault Brigade.

Sunak, who visited Japanese aircraft carrier JS Izumo ahead of the G7 Summit, said the new agreement was the latest step in a flourishing partnership with Tokyo.

The Hiroshima Accord will see us step up cooperation between our armed forces, grow our economies together and develop our world-leading science and technology expertise, Sunak said.

Details of the new carrier deployment are not yet available other than the British saying in their statement the strike group will include naval escorts and F-35 combat jets working alongside the Japanese Self Defence Force and other navies in the region.

The deployment will be the second time a Queen Elizabeth-class carrier has deployed to the region.

In its inaugural deployment in 2021 HMS Queen Elizabeth toured the Indo-Pacific region leading a force of Royal Navy, U.S. and Dutch surface combatants and support ships.

A squadron of U.S. Marine Corp F-35Bs also deployed alongside British jets onboard the Royal Navy carrier.
BT to cut up to 55,000 jobs by 2030 as fibre and AI arrive

FILE PHOTO: Logo of British Telecom (BT) is displayed outside a store in London

By Paul Sandle

LONDON (Reuters) -BT Group, Britain's biggest broadband and mobile provider, will cut up to 55,000 jobs including contractors by 2030 - potentially over 40% of its workforce - as it completes its fibre roll-out and adapts to new technologies such as AI.

The company has been working through a transformation plan to build a national fibre network under boss Philip Jansen, as well as rolling out high-speed 5G mobile services.

The former state monopoly reported on Thursday pro forma revenue and core earnings growth for the first time in six years in the year to the end of March, but the cost of transforming the business, and the hit to its free cash flow took a toll, sending its shares down 7% in morning trade.

Jansen said after completing the fibre roll-out, digitising the way it worked, adopting artificial intelligence (AI) and simplifying its structure, BT would rely on a much smaller workforce and significantly reduced cost base by the end of the 2020s.

"New BT Group will be a leaner business with a brighter future," he said.

The group's total number of workers would reduce from 130,000 to between 75,000 and 90,000 by its 2030 financial year at the latest, it said. Some 30,000 of its current employees are contractors.

Jansen said BT's ongoing job cuts would accelerate as it completes its fibre build and switches off 3G.

"It's a rolling programme (of cuts), but it's a five-to-seven-year landing zone," he told reporters.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said the job cuts were "no surprise" given the coming changes in infrastructure and technology. Talks between BT and the CWU were necessary to ensure a smooth transition on that front said the union, adding that BT should aim to keep direct jobs and cut contractors.

BT's rival Vodafone said on Tuesday it would cut 11,000 jobs worldwide to try to restore its competitive edge.

Jansen said around 10,000 fewer network engineers would be needed to run digital networks, while technologies like automation and AI would replace another 10,000.

There were "huge opportunities" to use AI, he said, adding that generative AI large language models would be a leap forward that rivalled the arrival of the smartphone.

BT would use AI to deliver better customer service, driven by customer needs, he said, as well as capturing other business opportunities.

"We're not going to be in a situation where people feel like they're dealing with a robot," he said. ""We've got multichannel, we're online, we have got 450 stores, that's not planning on changing."

CASHFLOW INVESTED

On the full-year results, Jansen said BT had made good progress while navigating an "extraordinary macro-economic backdrop".

It met market expectations with a 5% rise in adjusted core earnings of 7.9 billion pounds ($10 billion) after growth in networks and consumer businesses offset a decline in enterprise.

But free cash flow (FCF) fell 5% to 1.3 billion pounds, at the lower end of its guidance, due to increased cash capital expenditure. Forecasts for free cash flow for 2024 were also lighter than analysts had expected.

Chief Financial Officer Simon Lowth said BT would invest the proceeds of the British government's new tax expensing in its network build and on connecting customers to fibre.

That would result in free cash flow of 1.0-1.2 billion pounds this year, he said, below market expectations of 1.22 billion pounds.

The group's networks arm, Openreach, reaffirmed its target to reach 25 million premises with ultra-fast full-fibre connections by the end of 2026.

It has been investing heavily to build out its fibre network faster than rival Virgin Media O2 and smaller "alt nets".

BT said it expected to grow both revenue and core earnings on a pro forma basis this year.

($1 = 0.7923 pounds)

(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by James Davey, Mark Potter and Sharon Singleton)
New building could replace one of Chapel Hills last affordable apartment complexes

An affordable apartment complex built in the 1960s could be razed for a new five-story apartment building in eastern Chapel Hill near the Rams Plaza and Eastgate Crossing shopping centers.

The existing Kings Arms Apartments, at 1320 Ephesus Church Road, lies just outside the towns Blue Hill District, where projects that meet design guidelines need only town manager and Community Design Commission approval.

That means the Town Council would have to approve any redevelopment of the Kings Arms property.

Kings Arms has 65 apartments in four, two-story buildings. The developer wants to replace those apartments with The Reserve at Blue Hill, a concept plan for 212 apartments in a single, five-story building. Parking could be under the new building and in surface lots.

The 7.6-acre project site is on a bus line and within walking distance of several shopping centers, two schools and a future park. It is about two miles from the Durham County line.

A proposed site plan shows the Reserve at Chapel Hill with an existing entrance off Ephesus Church Road. The entrance would lead to parking behind the building, which could be up to five stories and include 212 apartments.

The Reserve could lease 15% of the apartments  over 30 units  at a rate affordable for those earning 65% to 80% of the area median income, the plan notes. Thats between $43,485 and $53,520 a year for a single person, or up to $76,400 for a family of four.

A concept plan is a rough outline of how a property might be developed. The council and the towns Community Design Commission review concept plans and provide feedback that developers can use to finalize their application.

The Community Design Commission could review the project June 1 in a virtual meeting that starts at 6:30 p.m.

The council could review the concept plan June 21. The council meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Town Hall council chamber.

The developer is asking the council to approve a conditional rezoning that would allow a taller building and twice the current density. According to the application, more than 30% of the tree cover would be preserved, including along Ephesus Church Road.

Kings Arms Apartments was built in the 1960s on Ephesus Church Road in Chapel Hill and remains one of the last affordable apartment communities in town.

Relocation help, higher rent

Greensboro-based Phillips Management Group paid $1.67 million to buy the Kings Arms apartment complex in 2012 through a separate holding company, G Partnership LLC, county records showed. Phillips Management transferred the property to a new holding company, Kings Arms LLC, in 2015, records showed.

Phillips Management has offered to help its tenants at Kings Arms look for new housing and pay moving expenses.

It is the intent of Phillips Management to make the change in location for these long-time residents as easy as possible and with the minimum amount of disruption, documents state.

An architectural rendering of the proposed Reserve at Blue Hill apartments on Ephesus Church Road. The concept plan is a roughly drawing of what could be built and is subject to change through the towns development process.

The project site has a driveway off the Ephesus Church Road roundabout and is across the street from The Hartley apartment complex, which replaced the formerly affordable Park Apartments.

A two-bedroom apartment at Kings Arms rents for $1,125 a month, compared to between $1,800 to $2,300 at The Hartley, according to online leasing information.

Jeremy Rydberg, founder of real estate investment consulting firm Evergreen Asset Management, responded to The News & Observers questions about the project, relocation assistance and whether Phillips Management might sell the property to an investor.

Phillips Management Group President Maria Barker was copied in the email, but neither she nor another Phillips Management Group official reached for comment responded.

Right now, we are exploring what is possible from both a renovation of the existing buildings and redevelopment standpoint, said Rydberg, who is also an executive with Texas-based real estate investor Green Point Property Co.

The concept submittal is part of that fact gathering process, he said. We have not yet determined if or when we will move forward with any renovation/redevelopment at this point.
Bullets fly in 20-person fight outside nightclub, killing 1 and wounding 3, TX cops say

Four people were shot, one fatally, after a suspect opened fire during a large fight outside a Texas nightclub, San Antonio police say.

Officers responded to a call about a shooting on the citys northwest side at about 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 18, according to a San Antonio police news release.

The shooting happened outside the Privat Social Club, which police have been called to more than 50 times since November, the San Antonio News-Express reported.

A fight broke out between two groups inside the club, police told KSAT. A total of 20 people were involved, and though security forced them to leave the club, they continued fighting in the parking lot.

At some point during the brawl, a member of one of the groups pulled out a gun and started shooting, hitting four people, according to police.

A 20-year-old man was killed, police said. Three other men, ages 22, 22, and 41, were hospitalized.

Police have not identified a suspect, but an investigation is underway, the release said.

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Chicago White Sox's Jake Burger celebrates his two-run home run off Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Peyton Battenfield during the fourth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

CHICAGO (AP)  Jake Burger and Gavin Sheets both homered for the second straight game, leading the Chicago White Sox past the Cleveland Guardians 7-2 on Wednesday night.

Burger added a triple and single for Chicago, which has posted consecutive victories against Cleveland and won for the third time in four games. Andrew Vaughn also went deep for the White Sox.

Burger has homered in three straight games, going 7 for 12 with six RBIs after missing 10 contests with a strained left oblique. The 27-year-old outfielder has 10 home runs this season and recently has been doing it from the No. 8 spot in the batting order.

"It kind of gave me a little reset to get back to myself," Burger said of his stint on the injured list. The lineup's deep, you know, and so 1 through 9, there could be damage done."

Sheets, the No. 6 hitter Wednesday, is rolling, too.

We're swinging the bats really well, Sheets said. When you've got Burger hitting eighth and hitting the ball the way he's doing, it shows how deep we are.

Tim Anderson, Andrew Benintendi and Yasmani Grandal each had two hits in Chicagos 12-hit attack as the White Sox followed up on 16-hit, 8-3 win on Tuesday.

Mike Clevinger tossed six-plus effective innings to beat Cleveland, his original team, for the first time.

Clevinger (3-3) allowed two runs and six hits with four walks and five strikeouts. He exited in the seventh  with Chicago ahead 7-1  after the Guardians loaded the bases on a single and two walks.

Reynaldo Lopez entered and escaped the jam with only one run scoring, on the walk to Bell with two outs. Lopez struck out two and got big help when Yoan Moncada raced back from third and made and over-the-shoulder catch on Andres Gimenezs pop down the line for the second out.

That wasn't the only jam Clevinger faced.

Clevinger was in crisis probably five times out of seven, pitched out of four," White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. "He made pitches when he really had to make pitches.

Joe Kelly and Kendall Graveman followed Lopez with a scoreless inning each.

Josh Bell drove in Clevelands runs with a double in the first and bases-loaded walk in the seventh.

Clevinger spent his first four full seasons with Cleveland, then was traded to San Diego during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. The 32-year-old right-hander signed as a free agent with the White Sox in December 2022.

The Guardians played again without All-Star third baseman Jose Ramirez, whos on the bereavement list until this weekend. First-baseman Josh Naylor is day to day with a left leg injury suffered Tuesday.

Rookie Peyton Battenfield (0-5) allowed all three of Chicago's homers in his sixth career start and seventh appearance. The right-hander, called up when Aaron Civale went on the injured list in April, yielded five runs and nine hits.

Too many balls caught too much of the plate, especially the three fastballs on the home runs, Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. They were almost in the identical spot.

Sheets tied it at 1 the second with his sixth homer, a solo shot to right center off a full-count fastball.

Vaughns solo shot and Burgers 10th homer, a deep two-run blast to left, put Chicago ahead 4-1 in the fourth.

Chicago upped the lead to 5-1 in the fifth on Moncadas RBI single, then added two more in the sixth.

YOU'RE OUT

Sheets was ejected for the first time in his career for arguing with plate umpire Dan Iassogna in the seventh after being called out on strikes.

HENDRIKS' PROGRESS

White Sox closer Liam Hendriks, recovering from stage-4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma, is expected to come to Chicago on Thursday or Friday for meetings.

Were going to sit down and talk about how were going to proceed, Grifol said.

The 34-year-old Australian right-hander originally had been scheduled to make another rehab appearance for Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday.

TRAINERS ROOM

Indians: Naylor could be available off the bench on Thursday, Francona said. The teams medical staff wants to see how well Naylor can run before clearing a return. ... RHP Triston McKenzie, (teres major strain) tossed a 25-pitch bullpen session on Wednesday and is scheduled to pitch Saturday at Triple-A Columbus. ... RHP Civale (oblique strain) is expected to throw 50 pitches at Columbus on Thursday.

White Sox: OF/DH Eloy Jimemez said hes progressing well after an appendectomy in Cincinnati on May 6. The slugger is running and playing catch, and hopes to be able to return as early as next weekend.

UP NEXT

Cleveland LHP Logan Allen (1-1, 3.43) faces Chicago RHP Dylan Cease (2-2, 4.86) in the series finale Thursday.



AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Celebrities, authors and illustrators have drawn, painted and doodled hundreds of bookmarks to boost a Brownie group's fundraising auction.

Sir David Attenborough, Joanna Lumley, Dawn French and Sir David Jason are among the stars who sent items to the Burley in Wharfedale Brownies project.

Renowned illustrators Axel Scheffler, Jane Hissey and Lauren Child have also contributed original works.

Their creations will be auctioned to raise money for a school in Zimbabwe.

More than 500 bookmarks have been sent in total and the Burley Brownies group hopes to match the 14,000 it raised at last year's event.

The fundraising project, which began in 2017, supports projects at Katiyo Sacred Heart Primary School in the Honde Valley in Zimbabwe, near the border with Mozambique.

Brownie leader Sharon Hattersley, said: "We are currently raising money to build and equip nursery classrooms for the two youngest classes who don't currently have their own learning space.

"They have lessons outside or in the local church. We are hoping to start building work this year."

She said that since its inception the Bookmark Project had raised just over 40,000.

Asked which were her favourite designs this year, she said: "My favourite celebrity one is Jo Brand's What I Learned At School. My favourite overall I think might be The Giraffe by Guy Parker Rees or The Quokkas by Alison Mutton."

She said the Brownies were always amazed by how many bookmarks they were sent and how much money they were able to raise.

"I think the project helps connect them with the school in Zimbabwe and shows them that they can make a difference," she said.

The auction runs until 19:00 BST on Monday 22 May.

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Business robbed in Fort Pierce; police need help

FORT PIERCE  Police are asking for help in identifying two men accused of robbing a business Wednesday, making off with an undisclosed amount of money, Fort Pierce police stated.

Police about 4:35 p.m. Wednesday went to the Rainbow Smoke Shop in the 800 block of South 21st Street.

According to police, two masked men went inside, with one brandishing a firearm and demanding money from a worker.

After taking an undisclosed amount of cash, the suspect ran toward the exit, where the second suspect was waiting at the door, police stated. Both suspects then fled the area on foot heading south.

'She was my whole world': Friends, family remember Kaitlyn Kohler, dead after being struck by sheriff's vehicle

One assailant was described as about 5-feet-10-inches to 6-feet tall and 140 to 150 pounds. He wore a blue beanie, black mask and light blue shirt with a white design in front. The man, who is Black, also had on gray jogging pants and gray Adidas shoes.

The other assailant was about 5-feet-11-inches to 6-feet-1-inch tall and 130 to 140 pounds. The man, who is Black, wore a dark-colored hoodie and dark mask and pants.

Vietnam vet's homicide a year later: Son of Fort Pierce homicide victim wants legacy of his dad to move forward

Those with information are asked to contact Detective Jesse Love at 772-467-6943 or 772-302-4790 or jlove@fppd.org

Information also can be supplied via Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 800-273-TIPS.

Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on Twitter @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Rainbow Smoke Shop robbed in Fort Pierce
NERDS candy are among food items that may be affected by a California bill that would ban the use of certain ingredients and dyes linked to cancer and other health issues. (Casey Rodgers / Invision / Associated Press)

A first-of-its-kind law that would ban the use of certain ingredients and dyes linked to cancer and other health issues in processed foods and drinks is now closer than ever to becoming reality in California.

Assembly Bill 418 , introduced by Assemblymembers Jesse Gabriel (D-Woodland Hills) and Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland), would ban the manufacture, sale and distribution of foods containing red dye No. 3, titanium dioxide, potassium bromate, brominated vegetable oil, or propylparaben  starting in 2025.

Popular food items that contain any of those five substances include Crush Orange Soda, Mountain Dew, some Betty Crocker icings and sprinkles, and an array of Hostess snacks, according to a list maintained by the nonprofit Environmental Working Group, a supporter of the legislation.

States across the U.S., including California, Washington and New York, have passed bills banning some chemicals from being purposely added to food packaging. This latest bill, which cleared the California State Assembly this week, would be the first in the nation to ban chemicals intentionally added to foods as preservatives or to enhance colors and flavors.

"This legislation will protect kids, families and consumers in California from some really toxic chemicals with well-documented risks of harm," Gabriel said during an interview Tuesday.

Companies found to be in violation could be fined up to $5,000 for the first offense and $10,000 for each subsequent infraction, according to the bill text.

The bill passed the Assembly by a largely party-line margin, with most Democrats in support and Republicans either opposed or not voting. The measure now heads to the state Senate, with committee hearings expected over the next few weeks.

Under the proposed law, companies with food and beverages containing these specified chemicals, such as the candies Starburst and Peeps, will be required to modify their recipes for products sold in California. These chemicals tend to be found in baked goods, and in candies and foods marketed to kids and communities of color, such as Skittles and Nerds, Gabriel said.

The legislation is modeled after existing laws in Europe that already ban and require alternatives to the five chemicals, which are linked to increased risk of cancer, reproductive and immune system issues, as well as behavioral and developmental issues in children, according to Scott Faber, senior vice president of government affairs at the Environmental Working Group.

They stepped in to ban the worst of the worst chemicals  the chemicals that not only have clear evidence of health harm, but those that have obvious safer and less expensive alternatives, Faber said.

A 2021 report by the California Environmental Protection Agency evaluated the potential impacts of seven synthetic food dyes approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration  including red dye No. 3  and found they were associated with adverse neurobehavioral outcomes in some children, such as memory and learning difficulties. Kids had varying degrees of sensitivity.

According to the report, dyes are added to foods, over-the-counter medications, and vitamins targeted at children, with the highest exposures usually from juice and soft drinks.

"There are major weaknesses in the FDA approval process," Gabriel said.

Faber said chemical and food manufacturing companies have bypassed regulatory reviews of additives in foods through the FDA's Generally Recognized as Safe standards, which state that a substance does not need additional review if it has been "adequately shown to be safe under the conditions of its intended use. According to an analysis by EWG, 99% of the chemicals that have entered commerce since 2000 were reviewed by the food and chemical industry.

Everyone assumes that the food we bring to our families is safe, and everyone assumes that the FDA is reviewing all of the chemicals that are added to our food for safety, Faber said. Unfortunately, that's not the case.

In an email, the FDA said it monitors and authorizes the use of food ingredients to ensure they are safe.

"All the substances in California Bill 418 have been evaluated by the FDA," the agency's statement continued. "When we identify new data and information that indicates the use of an ingredient is unsafe, we take steps to protect public health  which can include revoking authorizations or approvals for certain uses, working with industry on voluntary market phase-out agreements and recalls, issuing alerts and informing consumers."

Assembly Bill 418 has a number of opponents, including the Consumer Brands Assn., the International Assn. of Color Manufacturers, the National Confectioners Assn., and the American Bakers Assn.

The California Assembly is well-intentioned, but this is not the right way to do it, Christopher Gindlesperger, senior vice president of public affairs and communications for the National Confectioners Assn., wrote in an email to The Times. We should be relying on the science-based rigor of the federal regulatory process and avoiding a state-by-state patchwork approach related to food additives and ingredients.

In a statement posted online, the International Assn. of Color Manufacturers said no regulatory authority "has found credible safety concerns with these additives, and that banning red dye No. 3 and titanium dioxide would unnecessarily override established safety standards.

Gabriel said the legislation isn't intended to ban products.

I would vote against a bill that would ban Skittles or any candy. That's a personal decision," Gabriel said. What we want these companies to do is make minor modifications to their recipes with safer, readily available alternatives.

Companies like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Panera Bread, and Dunkin' have already stopped using some of these chemicals, Gabriel said.

This would basically require those who haven't made that responsible decision to switch to those safer alternatives, he added.

Gabriel said if California passes this legislation, it could prompt a nationwide transition.

"They're not going to have one recipe for California and a different recipe for Oklahoma," Gabriel said. "Companies are going to make changes to their recipes and kids across the U.S. are going to be safer. We don't love our kids here any less than they do in Europe. It's time that our laws reflect that."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
WestJet Airlines pilots stand on a picket line at Toronto's Pearson Airport on Monday May 8, 2023. The picket is one of three at Canada's largest airports to show WestJet management they remain committed to negotiating a North American industry-standard contract. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

CALGARY, Alberta (AP)  Canadas second largest airline, WestJet, has started to cancel flights because its talks with a pilots union are at an impasse, the carrier said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada.

Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Next Monday is Canada's Victoria Day federal holiday.

The Calgary, Alberta-based airline flies to more than 110 destinations including in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. It has a fleet of more than 180 aircraft. With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28% of Canadas domestic market, while Air Canada carries 47%, according to aviation data firm Cirium.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in the statement early Thursday that negotiations with the union were in a stalemate, leaving the company "with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage.

WestJet has begun to park the bulk of its fleet  105 narrow-body 737s and seven wide-body 787 Dreamliners  using a measured, phased and safe approach, the statement read.

As of Thursday morning, the carrier had cancelled 92 flights or 17% for that day, the aviation data firms figures show. Few flight cancellations had registered for Friday and afterward. But passengers are now unable to make online bookings for flights on major routes such as Calgary-Vancouver and Toronto-Calgary until Tuesday.

The federal labor minister and the governments head mediator as well as WestJets CEO and the pilots union leaders have all descended on a hotel near the Toronto airport to work toward a deal.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the unions WestJet contingent, says the workers issues revolve around pay, job security and scheduling, with pilots earning roughly half of what some of their U.S. counterparts make.

The company said Thursday the unions wage expectations were unreasonable and would permanently damage the financial viability of the groups future.

The airline has advised travelers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, and to visit WestJets guest updates webpage or Swoops website for more information on flight status and travel changes.
Phil Demers, a former senior animal trainer at Canada's Marineland, developed a unique bond with Smooshi the walrus

After a decade-long battle, a former animal trainer has succeeded in his mission of getting a beloved walrus out of Canada's most popular aquatic zoo, which has faced allegations that it mistreats its animals. Now, Smooshi is embarking on a new life more than 11,000 km (6,800 miles) away.

Late night television host Jimmy Kimmel called it "a heart-warming tale". Newsmagazine Inside Edition called it "love at first sight".

They were describing the unique bond between a Canadian man and a walrus named Smooshi.

Phil Demers met Smooshi in 2004, when she first arrived in Canada from Russia as an 18-month-old calf.

She was one of a few newly acquired walruses at Marineland, one of the most recognisable aquatic zoos in Canada - thanks in part to catchy "everyone loves Marineland" commercials that once dominated domestic airwaves.

Marineland, founded in 1961, was famously where Keiko, the orca star of the film Free Willy, began his public performance career in the early 1980s.

The zoo has courted controversy over the years, dating back to 1977, when the US Department of Fisheries seized six bottlenose dolphins illegally caught by its founder in the Gulf of Mexico, the Toronto Star reported.

It became the site of frequent protests by animal rights activists and has been the subject of several investigations by local police, the US government and Ontario's Animal Welfare Services, with the latter two ongoing.

One recent probe found that animals at Marineland were distressed due to poor water quality. Marineland refuted the findings, and has denied any wrongdoing to its animals over the years.

But Mr Demers was not concerned when he first took the job as an animal trainer at the park, just shy of 22 years old.

"When I started off, I was like everyone else," Mr Demers told the BBC. "I was looking to impress the humans that are my supervisors that seemingly knew what they were doing."

Soon, however, he said he saw flaws in how Marineland treated its animals. He also began to develop an unusually strong bond with Smooshi.

While she was undergoing a medical procedure, Mr Demers said Smooshi "imprinted" on him as he tried to calm her down. The walrus began to think he was its mother, he says, and started following him around the park wherever he went.

The two became inseparable, and the young trainer said he got to know the walrus on a personal level.

"She has a great sense of humour," he said, and would sometimes playfully misbehave to get a reaction out of him.

"She was hyper aware of everyone and of her surroundings. You always had to be aware of her jokes and pranks, as she always kept us on our toes."

At the same time, Mr Demers said he could not bear what he saw as the neglect of animals at Marineland and he worried about Smooshi's welfare.

He quit in 2012 and began his quest to rescue Smooshi.

Smooshi and Kayuk pictured here together in their brand new home in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

The BBC has reached out multiple times to Marineland for comment on this story but has not received a response.

Marineland has consistently denied any misconduct when it comes to its housing and treatment of animals and has called out "radical animal activist" groups for making false allegations against the zoo.

They have also argued that their display of marine animals is for educational purposes.

Marineland sued Mr Demers soon after he left, banning him from the park and claiming he had trespassed and plotted to steal the 363kg (800lbs) walrus - an allegation he categorically denied. He sued the aquatic zoo for defamation.

But after 10 years and C$250,000 ($185,500; 158,150) in legal fees, Mr Demers' dream of freeing Smooshi became a reality.

Last year, Marineland agreed to drop the lawsuit and to re-house Smooshi and her calf Kayuk, saying in a statement that it was "in the best interest of the walruses".

Mr Demers remains banned from Marineland but the zoo allowed him an emotional reunion with Smooshi as part of the settlement, although the pair were separated by rope and a guard rail.

"She started to climb (the rail) to get to me, and I was trying to reach her, and they immediately took her back," Mr Demers said.

Both Smooshi and Kayuk have since been shipped to a Sea World park in the Arabian gulf - a brand new facility in Abu Dhabi, set to open its doors on 23 May.

Now a letter carrier and animal rights campaigner, Mr Demers said he remains against the captivity of animals.

But he said he is happy the walruses are finally out of Marineland, even if it means Smooshi is now more than 11,000 km away.

Marine mammal biologist Dr Noami Rose also opposes keeping walruses in captivity but said that she, too, believes the new SeaWorld facility in Abu Dhabi will be a better home for Smooshi and her calf.

"The problem with Marineland is that it is so old-fashioned, and so they are limited in what they could provide the animals in terms of enrichment and so on," Dr Rose, who works at the Animal Welfare Institute in Washington DC, said.

Walruses, classified as a threatened species, are typically found around the North Pole and near the Arctic Ocean.

With temperatures in Abu Dhabi averaging 35.5C (96F) during its hottest months, Smooshi will likely be housed indoors in a climate-controlled environment year-round, she said.

Dr Shawn Noren, a marine mammal researcher, said optimal conditions for walruses in captivity include ensuring they are provided adequate nutrition and veterinary care, as well as training and enrichment sessions.

"They'll give novel things to the animal like toys, or novel tasks to learn, so their brains are engaged, which is really important for social animals" like walruses, she said.

In a statement to the BBC, SeaWorld said walruses from several zoos and aquariums around the world have "arrived safely" to Abu Dhabi and are "comfortably settling into their new home".

They added that Smooshi will live with other walruses in a new habitat "designed specifically for the species".

As Smooshi adjusts to her new life, Mr Demers he is mulling on when a good time would be to pay her a visit. A recent video of her from SeaWorld brought him to tears, he said.

"I don't want to interrupt anything, I only just want to go there and see her breathing that fresher air," he said, though he added he would not mind squeezing in a quick hug before flying back to Canada.
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Juan Medina rides a horse in an empty field in preparation for the Pilsen Mexican Independence Day Parade on West 18th Street on Sept. 10, 2022, in Chicago. The field sits between 18th and 16th streets where developers will build hundreds of affordable homes in rapidly gentrifying Pilsen. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

The Chicago Plan Commission approved Thursday the framework for a plan to create hundreds of affordable homes in rapidly gentrifying Pilsen.

Increasing rents and property values over the past two decades forced thousands of residents to leave the predominantly Mexican immigrant neighborhood, but the city purchased last year for $12 million roughly 6 acres at West 18th and South Peoria streets, and envisions hundreds of mid-rise and high-rise units, many affordable, as well as for-sale homes, rising on the now-vacant land.

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This site is the largest undeveloped site in the Pilsen neighborhood, said James Harris, supervising planner with the citys Department of Planning and Development.

City officials hired consultant AECOM and Chicago-based design firms UrbanWorks and Koo Architecture to lead the planning effort, which included a series of public meetings starting last September.

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The message from the Pilsen community was clear, Harris told commission members.

Hundreds attended the meetings, and most wanted more affordable units on the plot between 18th Street and 16th Street, once an industrial smelting facility, as well as larger units for big families. The city boosted the units called for, from about 250 to a maximum of 432, and will push potential developers to maximize the number of affordable units, including some with three or four bedrooms.

The plan also calls for a park, including a dog park, performance spaces, a playlot and plazas, all joined to the eastern end of El Paseo Trail, the proposed 4.2-mile path connecting Pilsen to the Southwest Side neighborhood of Little Village.

25th Ward Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, a progressive elected in 2019, supports the framework, according to a staff member who attended the Plan Commission meeting.

The exact mix of units and building designs wont be known until officials choose a developer and approve its final plan, but Commissioner of the Department of Housing and Plan Commission member Marisa Novara said she supports the communitys push to maximize the amount of affordable housing.

It was quite refreshing, she said. We have the appetite to do that and have already done it in other gentrifying neighborhoods. We dont go around spending $12 million lightly.
Cannes - Kristy Sparow/Getty Images

Cannes has been accused of refusing entry to a critic of a controversial film included at the festival.

Stars and activists have raised concerns about the film Le Retour, which is in contention for the Palme dOr despite being dogged by accusations of on-set misconduct and the shooting of a sex scene with an underage actor.

An influential French producer has now alleged that he said he was cancelled when he arrived at Cannes, and was denied a pass to enter the festival because he had spoken out about the film.

Marc Missonnier said: I learn that it had been cancelled a few days earlier, without anyone telling me because, and I quote, I called for a boycott in a virulent personal campaign.

I have therefore been punished and sent to the corner like a naughty schoolboy.

Mr Missonnier had earlier raised concerns about Le Retour, a production which was fined 680,000 (590,000) because it did not disclose that it included filming a sex scene with an actor under 16.

Catherine Corsini - Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Film industry union members have also raised concerns with director Catherine Corsini, amid allegations that crew members had been mistreated during filming, with several technicians said to have quit.

Corsini has denied any wrongdoing, but controversy continues to follow her film. At its Cannes premiere, a female protestor leapt past security on the red carpet.

Material decrying sexual violence have been handed out by campaigners at Cannes.

Film industry union members with the CGT trade union federation are distributing stickers within the festival headquarters itself, which stated that they do not want sexual violence, and that the inclusion of Le Retour marked a regression.

Reporting abusive behaviour

Union members have also created a weighty guide on how figures within the film industry can both avoid and properly report abusive behaviour.

Ahead of a press conference for Le Retour, Cannes staff told assembled journalists that questions were not to stray from talking about the film, so Corsini did not face any interrogation over the claims that crew were mistreated on the set.

The veteran French director did, however, say that in future she might consider using an intimacy coordinator in future to ensure performers were confortable shooting sex scenes.

The pressure on Cannes for including her film comes amid a broader debate about the festival providing a platform for those accused of wrongdoing, including Johnny Depp, whose comeback film Jeanne du Barry opened the Riviera event despite him being accused of domestic abuse by his ex wife Amber Heard. Depp has denied the allegations.

The films co-star and director Maiwenn also recently admitted spitting at a French journalist, leading feminist groups to call for a boycott of the festival over its decision to put a glamorous red carpet over setting a good example.

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Harrison Ford poses for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' at the 76th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, Thursday, May 18, 2023. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

Indiana Jones fever  and fervent love for its star, Harrison Ford  have swept through the Cannes Film Festival.

Ford and his last film as the whip-cracking explorer held the spotlight Wednesday with a premiere that provided equal parts glamour and emotion. Ford walked the red carpet before the world premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny with wife Calista Flockhart before entering a packed theater with adoring fans.

An honorary Palme d'Or awaited Ford, who was clearly emotional after a clip reel of his career highlights was played.

I just saw my life flash before my eyes, he told the crowd.

It was a noticeable shift from the festival's early days, which were dominated by attention on Johnny Depp and his comeback.

Actor Tom Mercier did a handstand at a photo event for the film Le Regne animal, surprising co-star Billie Blain and losing his phone from his back pocket while upside down.

Hinata Hiiragi and Soya Kurokawa, child actors in the Hirokazu Kore-eda film Monster, beamed as they attended a similar photo call for their film.

The festival runs through May 27.

___

For more coverage of this years Cannes Film Festival, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/cannes-film-festival
Editors Note: Copyright, Project Syndicate. The following article was published by Project Syndicate on May 17, 2023, and has been republished by the Kyiv Independent with permission. The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent.

STOCKHOLM  With NATOs mid-July summit in Vilnius fast approaching, the question on everyones mind is how to avoid another debacle concerning Ukraines prospective membership in the alliance. When NATO leaders addressed the same issue in Bucharest 15 years ago, they failed to reach a credible agreement about how to address Ukraine and Georgias aspirations for membership. We have all been living with the consequences.

In the run-up to the 2008 summit, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili persuaded U.S. President George W. Bush that NATO membership was the best option for their countries. Bush, in turn, promised that he would deliver a NATO decision in Bucharest. It didnt end well. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were hostile to the idea, arguing that Ukraine and Georgia were not ready for membership, and that one should not risk alienating Russia.

The first point was undoubtedly valid with respect to Ukraine, not least because large segments of Ukrainian society firmly opposed NATO membership. It had been only a decade since NATO bombs fell on Belgrade, so the question of joining the alliance was still highly divisive. Had membership been put to a referendum, it is unclear what Ukrainian voters would have decided.

Roland Freudenstein: Old Europe, New Europe, and the question of strategic autonomy Editors Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent. Youre thinking of Europe as Germany and France. I dont. I think thats old Europe. If you look at the Kyiv IndependentRoland Freudenstein

Obviously, Russia, too, opposed the idea. Russian President Vladimir Putin made that clear when he joined the summit (these were different times) and delivered a speech essentially denying Ukrainian statehood. The audience was stunned, but he has stuck unwaveringly to that position for years.

In the event, NATO leaders forged a compromise that represented the worst of all possible worlds. While the alliance made clear that Georgia and Ukraine ought to become members, it hastened to add that accession would not happen then and there. The door to future membership appeared to have been opened, both fanning the flames in Russia and inflating the hopes of those who supported the idea.

Yet neither side had any real foundation for believing what it did. NATOs fuzzy compromise did not really pose a threat to Russia because it did not really bring Ukraine and Georgia materially closer to membership. Until Putins illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, Ukraine maintained a policy of neutrality vis-a-vis Russia and NATO.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the end of a joint press conference in Kyiv, on April 20, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Stoltenberg said on April 20 that Ukraine's potential membership will be "high on the agenda" at the Vilnius meeting scheduled for mid-July. (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)

Nonetheless, the legacy of NATOs Bucharest debacle has remained a burden to the alliance ever since. Now that there is a renewed push for Ukrainian membership, the issue will take center stage in Vilnius. The situation has changed profoundly since 2014. Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year has rendered fears of provoking the Kremlin moot, and the question of NATO membership is no longer highly divisive in Ukraine. Putins war of aggression has fully united the country in support of it.

Still, the politics of the issue are no less complicated than they were 15 years ago. Plenty of policymakers in Washington and other Western capitals are wary of bringing Ukraine into the alliance too quickly. It remains unlikely that two-thirds of U.S. senators are prepared to ratify NATO membership for Ukraine in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election. The problem is not only that some Republicans oppose a blank check for Ukraine; it is that Joe Bidens administration and congressional Democrats will not want to hand Donald Trump a useful issue with which to support his America First re-election bid.

Batu Kutelia: Lessons from Georgia of geopolitical procrastination Editors Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent. Feb. 24, 2022, was the date that Russia launched a decisive offensive against the free world. This war has caused a far-reaching domino effect Kyiv IndependentBatu Kutelia

Moreover, NATO membership for Ukraine arguably is not the most pressing issue at the moment. While the prospect of the U.S. deploying troops to the frontline battlefield of Bakhmut is a long way off, maintaining a strong, consistent flow of military and financial support to Ukraine is urgent and fully achievable as long as there is political will for it. In the months ahead, concrete support will be far more useful to Ukraine than formal commitments on paper.

Nonetheless, the trauma of Bucharest will hang over this years summit. Many of NATOs Eastern European members feel strongly that now is the time to correct past mistakes and flesh out the vague, unspecified promise that was offered 15 years ago. Another Bucharest-style debacle, they warn, would haunt the alliance for years to come.

In the end, the wordsmiths will have to produce a solution that provides a clear path to Ukrainian membership even as it falls short of immediate accession. Unlike in 2008, there can no longer be any doubt that membership will come one day. Ukraines security is key to European stability, and that will remain the case for decades. Resisting aggression and safeguarding Europe are the reasons why NATO was created in the first place. At stake in Vilnius is not just Ukraines future but also that of the alliance.
By Andrew Hayley

XIAN, China (Reuters) - Central Asian heads of state converged in China's historic city of Xian on Thursday for one-on-ones with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seal pledges of "enduring" friendship, paving the way for a summit expected to result in a regional pact with Beijing.

The bilaterals set the stage for a group huddle on Friday, the first in-person gathering of the six leaders, where Xi will deliver an "important" speech, according to China's foreign ministry. An "important" political document will also be signed.

Across the city of Xian, from where the ancient Silk Road linked imperial China with civilisations to its west over a millennium ago, banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit.

China is intensifying its economic and political engagement with the former Soviet states as Russia channels what remaining resources it has into the war in Ukraine. Some Central Asian states are increasingly stand up to Moscow, with Kazakhstan not recognising Russian-controlled regions in eastern Ukraine to Tajikistan demanding more "respect" from the Kremlin.

The first head of state to arrive in Xian was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan - China's largest trading partner in Central Asia. When Tokayev met Xi on Wednesday, the Chinese leader greeted him warmly and wished him a happy 70th birthday.

"We have a common goal - to intensify bilateral relations," Tokayev told Xi.

"We are also united by the desire to strengthen regional and international security and cooperation."

After their meeting, Xi and Tokayev jointly declared that the two countries shall build an "enduring friendship" and share "weal and woe".

They also agreed to ensure the safe and stable operation of the Kazakh section of the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline, and also deepen oil and uranium cooperation.

On the summit's sidelines, state-owned Chinese energy giant Sinopec and Kazakhstan's KayMunayGaz agreed key terms for a potential investment in a polyethylene project in Western Kazakhstan's Atryau region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called the Kazakh president on Wednesday and affirmed the ties of their countries, according to Tass news agency.

Putin was not in China, with Russia not part of the China-plus-Central Asia format.

CLOSER TO CHINA

With Kazakhstan setting the collaborative tone for other bilateral meetings, Kyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Japarov told Xi that he was keen to deepen trade, economic and investment links.

"There are no political disagreements or unresolved issues between our countries," Japarov said.

Two-way trade between China and Central Asia hit a record $70 billion last year, with Kazakhstan leading with $31 billion, as China seeks deeper economic links in its quest for greater food and energy security.

Kyrgyzstan came next with $15.5 billion, then Turkmenistan with $11.2 billion, Uzbekistan with $9.8 billion and Tajikistan with $2 billion.

"We've been supporting exactly this type of integration between China and Central Asia," said Albert Park, chief economist at the Asian Development Bank.

"Under that framework, we're trying to reduce trade barriers among the countries, harmonise trading standards to promote better integration, and just more forums where government officials can talk and try to develop standards to promote more trade," Park told Reuters in Beijing.

Xi's show of solidarity with Central Asia at the summit conspicuously coincides with a meeting of the Group of Seven leaders in Japan, where Beijing's use of "economic coercion" in its dealings abroad is expected to be on the agenda.

(This story has been refiled to remove an extraneous word in paragraph 11)

(Reporting by Andrew Hayley; Additional reporting by Joe Cash in Beijing; writing by Ryan Woo; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
A CEO deactivated her Instagram after facing immense backlash for announcing she 'restructured' her social media team, forcing other employees to contribute to those roles

SET is an activewear company. Screenshot/TikTok - setactive

The CEO of a clothing startup drew ire after saying she "restructured" her social media team.

Many people assumed she laid off the team, but a spokesperson said no one was fired  the roles are being redistributed.

CEO Lindsay Carter temporarily deactivated her personal Instagram account amid the backlash.

The CEO of an activewear clothing startup deactivated her social media account after facing immense backlash for announcing she "restructured" her social media team, essentially eliminating it. Instead, every employee in a "creative role" would be tasked to contribute to the company's social media marketing, a spokesperson told Insider.

The announcement from Lindsay Carter, the founder and CEO of activewear company SET, drew immediate outcry this week, as people assumed she had laid off her entire social media team. SET told Insider that no one was fired. But the backlash forced Carter to deactivate her own social media "to protect her mental health," the company said.

In the original, now-deleted TikTok that sparked the scandal, Carter told viewers she was restructuring the social media team by getting rid of it.

"We did something internally called Super SET. It is with 12 creatives at SET that make up all the creative stuff that we do," Carter said. "We cover all silos of creative: social, marketing, TikTok."

On Monday, the TikTok was re-shared to Twitter, where it received a flood of criticism because either people assumed she laid off those workers or are forcing people to do more work for equal pay.

"Not the marketing spin of we 'restructured' our team aka we laid people off who were trained and are consolidating to save money and making other marketing folk with specialties now have a bigger work load without more pay or training which won't pan out well or with real profit," one person tweeted.

User @milkkarten shared a screenshot from Carter's Instagram Story explaining her decision further. Carter said "the landscape for the social media role has changed drastically" over the last few years while "the roles for a social team aren't really evolving," and that the new program was working smoothly through its first few weeks.

When reached, Gina Sheldon, the Brand Strategist for SET, told Insider that "no members of [its] social media team were laid off." The company is making social media a "collaborative" effort among 10 of its employees, they said.

"As a team, we decided that the best way for our company to handle our socials would be to work collaboratively among the 10 employees in creative roles, including Lindsey, to bring our brand to life holistically across all marketing channels," Sheldon said in an email statement.

Beyond perhaps misunderstanding the news, many people online were angry that Carter was off-loading extra work on her employees.

"Literally making a reality of the nightmare that everyone in social deals with regularly. Everyone in marketing or brand think they know how to do social's job better than SMMs [Social Media Marketers]," one Twitter user wrote. "Her brand and creative teams get to do a whole ass other job one day a week. And are forced to do a week content in a single day that can't possibly be timely!"

Amid the backlash, Carter temporarily deactivated her personal Instagram account, which has over 31,000 followers. Her account has been reactivated as of Thursday, with comments limited.

Sheldon told Insider that Carter took her account down for a few hours to protect her mental health. "She is openly on medication for her diagnosed Generalized Anxiety and Depression disorder," she said of her CEO.

On the brand's Instagram account, some comments on its most recent posts have also been limited or deleted.

Insider has reached out to Carter for comment.

Read the original article on Insider
Map of Ceuta and Melilla

The tiny Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla sit on the northern shores of Morocco's Mediterranean coast. Together they form the European Union's only land borders with Africa.

Ceuta and its larger sister city Melilla, situated some 400km further south along the coast, trace their Spanish past to the 15th Century.

Coveted by Morocco, they have long been a flashpoint in diplomatic relations with Spain. Madrid asserts that both territories are integral parts of Spain and have the same status as the semi-autonomous regions on its mainland.

Historically, both port cities developed as military and trade centres linking Africa to Europe. Since 1995, they have enjoyed a limited degree of self-government as Autonomous Communities.

Unemployment among the native workforce is more than 30%, among the highest rates in Spain. The cities are a magnet for thousands of traders and menial workers who cross the border from Morocco each day to earn a living.

Increasingly Ceuta and Melilla's heavily fortified borders have come under pressure from African migrants seeking a better life in Europe. Human rights groups and the European Union have raised concerns with Madrid about the deportation of illegal immigrants.

CEUTA, MELILLA: FACTS

Combined area: 30.8 sq km

Population: 85,100 (Ceuta) 86,400 (Melilla)

Languages: Spanish, also Arabic

Life expectancy, Ceuta : 75 years (men) 81 years (women)

Life expectancy, Melilla: 76 years (men) 82 years (women)

LEADER

Head of State: King Felipe VI

Spain's King Juan Carlos angered Morocco by visiting Ceuta in 2007

Ceuta and Melilla enjoy local autonomy and have their own governments, led by city presidents. They return deputies and senators to the Spanish parliament. Until 1995 they were administered by provincial governments - Cadiz for Ceuta, and Malaga for Melilla.

MEDIA

Dawn over the old quarter of the city of Melilla

The national networks of Spain's public broadcaster, RadioTelevision Espanola (RTVE), are available in Ceuta and Melilla. They are served by commercial stations.

Press

Radio

TIMELINE

Some key dates in the history of Ceuta and Melilla:

Map

5th Century - Ceuta and Melilla are successively colonised by the Carthaginians, Greeks and Romans.

8th Century - Ceuta is ruled by various Berber and Arab dynasties.

1415 - Portugal seizes control of Ceuta.

1497 - Spain conquers Melilla, a long history of attacks and siege by Muslim forces follows.

1556 - Melilla comes under Spanish rule.

1688 - Ceuta remains under Spanish control after the union between Portugal and Spain ends.

1936 - Melilla is the first Spanish town where the military garrison revolts against the Popular Front Government at the start of the Spanish Civil War.

1956 - Spain retains Ceuta and Melilla after Morocco becomes independent.

1995 - Spain approves Statute of Autonomy for Ceuta and Melilla.

2002 - Moroccan and Spanish forces clash over the islet of Perejil off Ceuta.

2007 - Visit by Spain's King Juan Carlos reignites Moroccan claims of sovereignty.

2018 - Following Europe's 2015 migration crisis, as the EU restricted the movement of people from Turkey and Libya - arrivals from Morocco to Spain rise significantly.

2022 June - At least 23 people are killed when about 2,000 migrants attempt to scale the border fence between Morocco and Melilla.
Charles Milliken

Bonnie and I have just returned from five weeks of driving around Spain, Portugal and the tiny country of Andorra, all of which constitute the Iberian Peninsula. This week I'll share what we saw, and next week, lessons learned.

We love to travel, and one of our favorite means of doing so is flying to Europe, renting a car for a month or so, then going wherever the wind takes us. This time  the sixth time  the destination was Madrid. We rented a pretty yellow (but badly underpowered) five-speed, stick-shift Kia, and off we went to our first destination, Toledo. (Although Toledo, Ohio, was named after it, all similarities end there.) As a preview of coming events, we sat behind a garbage truck making pickups for about 20 minutes before we could get out of the airport.

On our way at last, we set out on our one-hour drive. More preview of coming events, as we discovered getting from Point A to Point B in Spain usually involves many turns and changing of roads, plus dozens of roundabouts. Our GPS was indispensable, but left some ambiguities. What exactly do you do when it says turn right, when there are three possible right turns? Add operator error from unfamiliar roads and exits, and the hour turned into two before we found our motel.

Toledo, like practically all of Iberia, was beautiful. It was built on a hill, mostly surrounded by medieval walls, and inside those walls were all sorts of historic buildings, churches, little squares full of restaurants and shops (and pickpockets), and quaint, narrow, winding streets not updated since Columbus discovered America. Bonnie quickly started taking the first of her 4,795 pictures, thanks to the efficiencies of a digital camera. At the bottom of the hill, hundreds of feet below, the scenic Tagus River formed a moat three-quarters of the way around the town. Awesome!

Iberia is mountainous, ranging from high hills and Appalachian-scale mountains, to snow-covered peaks over 11,000 feet. We were never out of sight of some elevation, even in the middle of a flat plain. Beautiful to look at, but not so much fun to drive in. Blind curves, narrow roads and bicycle riders only added to the excitement. Only about 100 riders are killed each year. I am surprised the toll is so low.

Iberia oozes history  everything from the Romans to the Visigoths to the Muslims to medieval Christians. Roman ruins are common, and not all the ruins are very ruined. In Segovia, a Roman aqueduct soars over the center of town and looks like it was built last year.

Not many people are aware that what is now Spain was first occupied by the Romans over 2,200 years ago. In fact, it was the first significant Roman possession outside Italy, and the entire peninsula was Roman well before Christ was born. I specifically mention this, since the Roman influence, lasting more than six centuries as it did, has left a significant impact. Roman roads were usually engineered to be 16 feet wide. Guess how wide many Spanish roads are? Not to mention two long bridges, one of which I drove over, which are still the original Roman bridges. Ancient chariots were about 4 feet wide. Modern cars about 6 feet. You can do the math, and realize that driving in Spain requires acute alertness  and not a little anxiety. I didnt want to scratch my little yellow rental car  or worse. The Romans also didnt make much provision for parking, as we quickly discovered.

In these few words I cannot begin to list all the beautiful things we saw, both natural and made by man. Breathtaking cathedrals, monasteries and palaces seemed to be around every bend. In short, if youve never been to Iberia, try to do so.

All was not perfect, and lessons were learned. Next week Ill deal with those. But, as a sneak preview, lesson No. 1: Dont drive in Iberia!

Charles Milliken is a professor emeritus after 22 years of teaching economics and related subjects at Siena Heights University. He can be reached at milliken.charles@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Charles Milliken: So much to see, learn during Iberian odyssey
A suspended FBI employee from Charlotte who gave whistleblower testimony Thursday to a Republican-led congressional subcommittee had his security clearance revoked over his handling of a Jan. 6-related investigation, and amid questions from his superiors concerning his allegiance to the United States.

Meanwhile, an interim subcommittee report released earlier in the day accuses Bank of America, headquartered in Charlotte, of targeting conservatives by turning over confidential consumer data from customers who used their credit cards in Washington, D.C., around the time of the Capitol attack.

Marcus Allen, a staff operations specialist with the FBI Charlotte Field Offices Joint Terrorism Task Force, was among three former or current FBI employees who appeared before the House Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government over how the bureau is allegedly purging agents and other employees with conservative political views.

However, in a letter to the subcommittees chairman, Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan, FBI Assistant Director Christopher Dunham said Allens top-secret security clearance had been revoked by his Charlotte superiors this month after he had expressed sympathy for persons or organizations that advocate, threaten or use force or violence, the New York Times and other outlets reported.

Allens actions, according to Dunham, raised security concerns in the Charlotte Field Office about his allegiance to the United States. Allen has been suspended without pay since February 2022.

The subcommittees report claims that Allen and two other FBI employees who testified were punished for either doing their jobs or speaking out against the politicization of the bureau.

In an email to The Charlotte Observer on Thursday, the FBI said the retaliation claims are not true.

The FBIs mission is to uphold the Constitution and protect the American people, the bureau said. The FBI has not and will not retaliate against individuals who make protected whistleblower disclosures.

The subcommittees report also alleges that Bank of America voluntarily and without any legal process, gave the Washington office of the FBI a list of individuals who made transactions in the Washington, D.C., area using a BoA product between Jan. 5-7, 2021.

Customers in the D.C. area at the time who had used a BoA credit card to buy a gun in the past were reportedly elevated to the top of the list, according to a now retired FBI analyst who testified to the subcommittee in March, the report states.

Under questioning by the subcommittee, however, the retired analyst, George Hill, acknowledged that he merely had seen a record about the banks activities in the FBIs case-management system but did not open it, CNN reported at the time.

The FBI Office in Charlotte says it suspended an analyst last year after his actions concerning the investigation of the Capitol riot raised questions about his allegiance to the United States.

Based on court files tied to its Jan. 6 investigation, the FBI frequently received court approval to acquire banking and communications records to pinpoint the locations of suspects or to search for evidence of crimes.

The subcommittees report, however, described Bank of Americas actions in more critical terms  as an invasion of the privacy of American citizens (that is) decidedly concerning.

In response to the subcommittees allegations, a spokeswoman for Bank of America told the Observer on Thursday that the bank follows all applicable laws and regulatory requirements to receive, evaluate, process, safeguard, and narrowly respond to law enforcement requests.

The weaponization subcommittee was formed by the House Republican majority to investigate purported corruption and bias in the federal government  from the so-called Deep State probes of former President Donald Trump to alleged improper business activity by Hunter Biden as well as the FBIs supposed anti-parent investigations into angry school protests over books, curriculum and pandemic response.

Its FBI whistleblower report involving Jan. 6 comes the same week as the release of the findings of a Trump administration-appointed special prosecutor that criticizes the FBIs probe of possible links between Russia and Trumps 2016 campaign.

The four-year investigation by John Durham cost taxpayers $6.5 million but led to only one criminal conviction  not to the purported widespread FBI conspiracy, which Republicans contend, improperly targeted Trump.

Nonetheless, Russell Dye, a spokesman for Jordan, dismissed Dunhams letter as a last-minute Hail Mary by the FBI to salvage their reputation after John Durham illuminated their election interference and before brave whistleblowers testify about the agencys politicized behavior and retaliation against anyone who dares speak out.

The report and subcommittee hearing spotlights the roles of Charlotte and other FBI field offices in the massive federal investigation of Jan. 6., when thousands of Trump supporters violently stormed the Capitol to block congressional certification of President Joe Bidens election win.

More than 1,000 arrests have been made to date. At least 28 have come from North Carolina. Ten N.C. residents have already been sentenced to prison.

Excercise extreme caution

Allen, according to Dunhams letter, sent an email from his bureau account to co-workers several months after the Capitol attack, urging them to exercise extreme caution and discretion in pursuit of any investigative inquiries or leads pertaining to the events of Jan. 6.

He also sent an email linking to a website stating that federal law enforcement had some degree of infiltration among the crowds gathered at the Capitol, which Allen said raised serious concerns about the U.S. governments participation in the riot, according to The Times.

In addition, when Allen was asked to conduct open source searches on a Jan. 6 subject from North Carolina, he reported that he found nothing to show that the suspect engaged in criminal activity nor did he find a nexus to terrorism.

As a result of Allens summary, the case was closed. It was reopened when another FBI employee provided readily available information that the subject in question had assaulted a Capitol police officer on Jan. 6  information ... that should have been obtained by Mr. Allen when he conducted his search, according to Dunham.

At least seven N.C. defendants have been convicted or accused of assaulting police on Jan. 6. Overall, 140 officers were injured defending the Capitol from the mob.

When asked by the Observer for the identity of the target of Allens investigation and whether that person has been charged, the FBI did not respond.

In a federal lawsuit filed in South Carolina, Allen said his suspension letter on Jan. 10, 2022  which he says he received in the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel restaurant off Carowinds Boulevard  accused him of espousing conspiratorial views and promoting unreliable information which indicates support for the events of January 6th.

Allen, who lives in Lancaster, S.C., denies the allegations.

He joined the FBI in 2015 after previous serving as a Marine intelligence specialist in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He received the Employee of the Year Award from the Charlotte Field Office in 2019.

In his complaint against Christopher Wray, he accuses the FBI director of multiple First Amendment violations, including content- and viewpoint-based discrimination, as well as retaliation.

Allen also wants his security clearance restored and to be returned to his job.
Charlotte fire: 2 unaccounted for, 15 rescued as crews battle five-alarm blaze in SouthPark

Firefighters in North Carolina rescued at least 15 people including a crane operator Thursday after a five-alarm fire involving injuries broke out at a construction site near downtown Charlotte.

Crews with the Charlotte Fire Department responded to a structure fire call sometime before 10 a.m. ET in the city's SouthPark neighborhood. About 10:30 a.m., the department tweeted it was on scene of a four-alarm fire on Liberty Row Drive and was asking people to avoid the area. The fire was later upgraded to five alarms as it required more assistance from outside agencies due to its size.

The crane operator, among the 15 people rescued by firefighters, was treated by local EMS for non life-threatening injuries and taken to a hospital, fire officials reported.

As of mid Thursday afternoon, the department said, two construction workers were unaccounted for.

STRUCTURE FIRE UPDATE: 7700 block Liberty Row Dr. If you have a family member who was working at the construction site and you are unable to locate them, call @CMPD 9-1-1 pic.twitter.com/8NeeO7JyAa  Charlotte Fire Dept (@CharlotteFD) May 18, 2023

As of about 3:45 p.m. ET, crews remained on scene and it was not immediately known if anyone else was injured.

Photos tweeted by the department show flames and heavy black smoke shooting out of what appears to be a residential building under construction as crews attempt to battle the blaze.

The area is about six miles south of downtown Charlotte.

STRUCTURE FIRE: 7700 block Liberty Row Dr. Charlotte Fire fighters currently on scene battling blaze at construction site. pic.twitter.com/ZWIBK1WuNq  Charlotte Fire Dept (@CharlotteFD) May 18, 2023

Fire kills at least 6 people: New Zealand hostel fire kills at least 6 people; blaze 'worst nightmare,' official says

The blaze also involved a building in a construction zone which partially collapsed, the Charlotte Observer reported.

For more than an hour, firefighters were attempting to help the crane operator trapped on a construction crane surrounded by the blazing structure, the outlet reported, citing emergency radio. The man was reported safe shortly before 11 a.m.

What is Charlotte's SouthPark neighborhood?

SouthPark, home to a large shopping mall, is an "upscale neighborhood" with "high-end" restaurants and boutiques, according to travel website Charlotte's Got a Lot.

Six hurt in Colorado pool incident: 6 injured after HVAC system collapses into busy Colorado resort pool

STRUCTURE FIRE: 7700 block Liberty Row Dr. Charlotte Fire fighters currently on scene battling blaze at construction site. pic.twitter.com/ZWIBK1WuNq  Charlotte Fire Dept (@CharlotteFD) May 18, 2023

Natalie Neysa Alund covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fire in Charlotte: 15 rescued in massive blaze in SouthPark area
This photo, in New York, Thursday, May 18, 2023, shows the ChatGPT app on an iPhone. The free app started to become available on iPhones in the U.S. on Thursday and will later be coming to Android phones. Unlike the web version, you can also ask it questions using your voice. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

ChatGPT is now a smartphone app, which could be good news for people who like to use the artificial intelligence chatbot and bad news for all the clone apps that have tried to profit off the technology.

The free app became available on iPhones and iPads in the U.S. on Thursday and will later be coming to Android devices. Unlike the desktop web version, the mobile version on Apple's iOS operating system also enables users to speak to it using their voice.

The company that makes it, OpenAI, said it will remain ad-free but syncs your history across devices.

Were starting our rollout in the U.S. and will expand to additional countries in the coming weeks, said a blog post announcing the new app, which is described in the App Store as the official app by OpenAI.

It's been more than five months since OpenAI released ChatGPT to the public, sparking excitement and alarm at its ability to generate convincingly human-like essays, poems, form letters and conversational answers to almost any question. But the San Francisco startup never seemed to be in a hurry to get it onto phones  where most people access the internet.

Were not trying to get people to use it more and more, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told U.S. senators this week in a hearing over how to regulate AI systems such as those built by his company.

The delay in getting the product on phones helped fuel a rise of clones built on similar technology, some of which the security firm Sophos described as fleeceware in a report this week because they push unsuspecting users toward enrolling in a free trial that converts into a recurring subscription, or use intrusive advertising techniques.

Another privacy researcher, Simon Migliano, said the official ChatGPT app might eventually starve similar-sounding apps of new users, but that could take a while because many of those apps were given names deliberately intended to confuse people into thinking they already have the official app. They were also hyper-optimized to rank highly in Apple's App Store search results, said Migliano, head of research at Top10VPN.com.

"For many of those who have already downloaded a clone, its likely they will simply stick with the ChatGPT apps they already have and continue to have their personal data harvested and sold, Migliano said.

Altman told Congress this week that his company doesnt try to maximize engagement because it doesnt have an advertising-based business, and because it's costly to train and run its AI models on computer chips known as graphics processing units.

"In fact, were so short on GPUs, the less people use our products, the better, Altman said.

The new app does include an option to pay for a premium version of ChatGPT with additional features. Along with those subscriptions, the company makes money from developers and corporations that pay to integrate its AI models into their own apps and products.

Its chief partner, Microsoft, has invested billions of dollars into the startup and has integrated ChatGPT-like technology into its own products, including a chatbot for its search engine Bing.

The ChatGPT app will now compete for attention with the Bing chatbot already available on iPhones, and could eventually compete with a mobile version of rival Google's chatbot, called Bard. Versions of OpenAI's chatbot technology can also be found in other apps, such as the My AI feature on Snapchat.
Thank you for supporting our journalism. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at the Chicago Tribune.

The sushi bar at Miru inside the new St. Regis Chicago hotel in Lakeshore East. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Miru, the first restaurant by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises in the new St. Regis Chicago hotel, where rooms start around $1,000 per night, just opened May 15.

The dining room can be found on the 11th floor of the St. Regis tower in the Lakeshore East neighborhood. Award-winning architect Jeanne Gang designed the undulating blue building, the worlds tallest woman-designed structure.

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Chef and partner Hisanobu Osaka, previously at Japonais by Morimoto, has created a modern Japanese-inspired menu. His signature dishes include an early staff and diner favorite: a crispy whole snapper carefully deboned by the kitchen.

Thats served with a beautiful herb salad and a ginger miso sauce poured tableside, said Kiran Pinto, managing partner.

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The crispy whole snapper at Miru. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

A king crab crispy rice dish and rock shrimp tempura have also emerged as early favorites.

Chef and partner Naoki Nakashima, last at his namesake sushi restaurant Naoki with Lettuce Entertain You, oversees the intimate 10-seat sushi bar.

Pastry chef Juan Gutierrez, winner of the Netflix reality competition series School of Chocolate, leads the teams behind Mirus morning pastries and desserts.

His monochromatic black sesame mochi, made with charcoal vanilla ice cream with black sesame praline and tuile plays on textures, temperatures and color, Pinto said.

The black sesame mochi dessert at Miru. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Beverage director Diane Corcoran (Three Dots and a Dash, RPM Italian) has created a menu with Japanese-inspired cocktails, as well as classic and nonalcoholic drinks.

Were trying to make a comeback in the Midori category, said Pinto of the green melon liqueur once all the rage in the 70s disco era. So we have a cocktail called Lady Luck, which has matcha-infused gin and Midori.

Meanwhile, the bloody mary has been the signature cocktail of the St. Regis hotel brand. Corcoran, however, has devised a variation exclusive to the Chicago location. She calls her homage The 1871. Served in a smoking glass, rimmed with smoked salt, its meant to pay tribute to the Great Chicago Fire.

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Chef Hisanobu Osaka at Miru, the Japanese restaurant inside the new St. Regis Chicago hotel in Lakeshore East. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Miru offers breakfast, lunch and dinner daily in a long linear space with floor-to-ceiling windows and two expansive terraces overlooking the Chicago River and Navy Pier.

In the mornings, well have a beautiful coffee bar, where you can get the St. Regis blend thats been created specifically for us, said Pinto about the beans from Metropolis Coffee roasted in the Avondale neighborhood. You can grab some fresh pastries, or come in for full-service dining.

In addition to a full American breakfast with bacon and eggs, or a Midwestern omelet, the restaurant makes its take on a traditional Japanese morning meal. The Tokyo Breakfast includes grilled king salmon, a dashi infused onsen egg, ginger rice, miso soup and Japanese pickles.

At lunch theres a St. Regis double cheeseburger, plus a midday meal set similar to breakfast. The Tokyo Lunch offers additional options of roasted chicken, flat iron steak or Japanese eggplant skewers, alongside a chopped salad.

Weekend brunch, afternoon tea, takeout and delivery will follow soon.

Overall, service hours run from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on weekdays, until 10:30 p.m. on weekends, plus room service 24 hours in the hotel, where the John Jacob Astor suite goes for over $16,000 per night.

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Miru is the first of two Lettuce Entertain You restaurants planned for the hotel. Tre Dita, an Italian-inspired establishment, is expected to open later this year.

Miru; 401 E. Wacker Drive, 11th floor; 312-725-7811; mirurestaurant.com

More new and notable restaurant openings, in alphabetical order:

Heavens Barbecue on Earth

Pitmaster Christopher Jordan celebrated the grand opening of his terrestrial restaurant May 16. The Black-owned Heavens Barbecue on Earth can be found in the northwest suburbs but was inspired by the South Side. Look for traditional smoked rib tips and hot links, plus brisket and scratch-made jalapeno cheese cornbread too. 1 Huntington Lane, Wheeling; 847-777-1018; heavensbarbecueonearth.com

Soul Vibez

Cant Believe Its Not Meat founder Laricia Chandler Baker, best known as Chef Fab, cut the ribbon at her transformed hybrid soul food location May 13. Soul Vibez serves traditional dishes alongside CBINM vegan specialties, with a full bar in the southwest suburbs. So while youll find real fish in the Hot Honey Crispy Salmon and Waffles, you can still get vegan Hot Not Honey Chickn and Waffles as well. 24 Orland Square Drive, Orland Park; 708-645-4031; soulvibezinc.com

The Bellevue

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The former Tavern on Rush space, gutted and renovated by building owners and restaurant partners Jim Banks and Fred Barbara, reopened May 15. The Bellevue now overlooks the historic corner in the Gold Coast. A classic bar-inspired menu features wood-fired steak and lobster tail, but a curiously high-priced Shrimp De Jonghe at $65. 1031 N. Rush St., 312-888-8900, thebellevuechicago.com

In more restaurant and chef news:

Birrieria Zaragoza, the beloved family-owned Mexican birrieria specialists in Archer Heights, opened a second location May 13, but do note you can only get your goat on weekends. 4800 N. Broadway, birrieriazaragoza.com

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Bronzeville Winery, one of our 25 best new restaurants with a menu by opening chef Whitney McMorris, has snagged Lamar Moore as executive chef. Moore, previously at Eleven Eleven and a James Beard Foundation TasteTwenty chef, said his new menu will debut June 1. 4420 S. Cottage Grove Ave., 872-244-7065, bronzevillewinery.com

Le Select, the nouvelle French brasserie by the Boka Restaurant Group, said au revoir to opening chef and partner Daniel Rose, and bienvenue to new chef and partner Chris Pandel (Swift & Sons, Cira) whos collaborating with consulting chef Lee Wolen (Boka, Alla Vita, GGs Chicken Shop) and chef de cuisine Patrick Sheerin (previously at Trenchermen, The Signature Room at the 95th). 504 N. Wells St., 312-896-4504, leselectchicago.com

Nisos Prime, the restaurant formerly known as Nisos Mediterranean, will rebrand as a Mediterranean steakhouse in July, owner Brad Parker said last week. Chef Rick Tramonto, who was hired by the restaurant group, will help oversee the new food and beverage program, fellow Tribune food critic Nick Kindelsperger writes. The development comes just a few short weeks after the original Nisos shut down after less than a year in the West Loop. 802 W. Randolph St., instagram.com/nisosprime

Know of a Chicago-area restaurant or bar thats new and notable? Email food critic Louisa Chu at lchu@chicagotribune.com.

Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.
Need child care in NC? How to find safe, affordable help for your family in Charlotte

Kids in the three and four-year-old classroom watch a video to learn how the alphabet in sign language at Lollipops daycare. (Melissa Melvin-Rodriguez/mrodriguez@charlotteobserver.com)

Leaving your child in the care of someone else can be daunting, with numerous places to comb through in order to find somewhere your family can afford that leaves you feeling safe and comfortable.

In the Charlotte area and across N.C., there are tools available for finding and evaluating licensed child care facilities, including day cares and kindergartens. And financial assistance is also available for families struggling to afford child care.

Heres what to know about finding quality, affordable child care in North Carolina:

What to look for in a child care facility

The North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education recommends taking a number of steps when looking for a child care facility, including:

Getting recommendations from trusted friends, family, coworkers and neighbors

Looking into potential facilities child care records

Checking out facilities in person, and visiting multiple facilities

Thinking through questions you want to ask before touring facilities, using the states checklist as a guide

Once your child is enrolled in a program, the department suggests visiting frequently and routinely asking your child about their experiences at the facility.

How to search for child care providers in NC

You can search for child care providers in the Charlotte area and throughout North Carolina using the states facility search at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/childcaresearch.

You can also search for kindergarten options at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/Kindergarten-Search.

And the nonprofit Child Care Resources Inc. also has a child care search, available online at childcareresourcesinc.org/find-child-care or by calling 704-348-2181. Their service offers parents free, personalized referrals to licensed child care providers in Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Union, Rowan, and Stanly counties.

How to check reports on child care facilities in NC

Parents and caregivers can search North Carolina child care facilities records online at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/childcaresearch. Once you find the facility, look under a section titled DCDEE visits to see reports about inspections and whether there were violations.

Records available include star rated license information, sanitation scores, complaint investigations, visits made by Division staff and any administrative actions taken.

You can also get records in person from the Division of Child Development and Early Educations office, located at 333 East Six Forks Road, Raleigh, NC 27609.

And you may also request information by calling 800-859-0829 or 919-814-6300 or emailing webmasterdcd@dhhs.nc.gov.

Child Care Resources Inc. also offers information on facilities and assistance helping families in Mecklenburg and surrounding counties navigate their choices. You can visit their website at childcareresourcesinc.org, call 704-376-6697 or email mailbox@childcareresourcesinc.org for more details and help.

How to apply for financial assistance for child care in NC

North Carolina distributes funds for subsidized child care through a locally administered state-supervised voucher system.

In Mecklenburg County, Social Services Child Care Services program contracts with Child Care Resources Inc. to provide subsidized childcare to eligible working families in Mecklenburg County.

If a family meets the eligibility criteria, the state of North Carolina pays a portion of the cost of childcare, the county explains. Parents are free to choose a childcare arrangement that best fits their needs as long as the provider chosen participates in the Subsidized Child Care Program.

Child Care Resources Inc. administers child care subsidy programs in Mecklenburg County. For more information, visit childcareresourcesinc.org.

The Smart Start program also offers multiple programs, including Dolly Partons Imagination Library and MECK Pre-K, to all Mecklenburg County families, regardless of income or other factors. And military families can get information on additional financial assistance at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/Parent/Military-Families-Child-Care-Assistance.
Trade between Australia and China took a hit as diplomatic relations soured at the height of the Covid pandemic

China has lifted an import ban on Australian timber, Beijing's ambassador said Thursday, hailing warming ties between the two countries.

Timber was among a slew of Australian commodities hit with import bans and restrictions as diplomatic relations between Beijing and Canberra soured during the height of the pandemic.

Xiao Qian told reporters in Canberra that China would immediately resume imports of Australian timber, which were stopped in 2020.

"Yesterday, the Chinese Customs have formally notified the Australian Minister of Agriculture that starting from today, China will resume import of Australian timber," Xiao said at a press conference.

The resumption of the timber trade, worth about Aus$600 million (US$400 million) a year according to government data, came as relations improved, he added.

"There are also other issues on the table that allow me to say that the momentum is positive."

Last week, the two countries' trade ministers met face-to-face for the first time since 2019, as the centre-left Australian government aimed to repair a relationship that had grown tense under the previous administration.

China, Australia's largest trading partner, blocked the import of its timber in 2020, citing the discovery of pests on shipments of wood.

But there were import curbs on other items too, including coal, barley and wine.

The restrictions came at a time when China was angered by Australia's legislation against overseas influence operations, its barring of Huawei from 5G contracts and its call for an independent investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Relations appear to have warmed since Australia's centre-left government adopted a less confrontational approach to China since coming to power a year ago.

But Beijing and Canberra remain at odds on several issues besides trade, including the case of detained Australian journalist Cheng Lei.

When questioned over the continuing detention of Cheng -- who has been held for more than 1,000 days in China -- Xiao said the legal process was ongoing but he had "personal sympathy" for her and her family.

"I will continue to try my utmost to facilitate more access, that she could have some kind of access directly to her partners and their friends and families to let them know that she's okay."

Cheng, a former anchor at Chinese state broadcaster CGTN, disappeared on August 13, 2020, and was later charged with "supplying state secrets overseas".

Canberra has previously expressed concern about delays in Cheng's case, which many believe to be politically motivated.

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers welcomed the resumption of the timber trade and said his government had long called for the removal of Chinese restrictions.

"It's a crucially important market for us. We want to stabilise the relationship, and any progress in lifting these trade restrictions is welcome," Chalmers said.

al/djw/qan
(Bloomberg) -- Chinese ambassador Li Hui met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy this week, as Beijing kicked off a European tour aimed at brokering peace.

Most Read from Bloomberg

There is no panacea for the crisis, Li told the Ukrainian leader, according to a readout published Thursday by Chinas Foreign Ministry. Ending the war would require all parties to build up trust and create conditions for ceasefire and peace talks, he added.

Li said China would help Ukraine within its own ability. The readout did not say how Zelenskiy replied and the Ukrainian side has not acknowledged their meeting.

Earlier, Ukraine confirmed Li had met with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Kyiv on Tuesday and Wednesday, discussing bilateral cooperation and ways to end Russias aggression in Ukraine.

Kuleba said Ukraine wouldnt accept proposals that included the loss of territory or a frozen conflict, according to the Ukrainian ministrys website. That comment appeared to be a direct rebuff of Chinas position paper on ending the war, published earlier this year, which proposed a cease-fire that would freeze Russian troops in place on Ukrainian territory.

President Xi Jinping met with Vladimir Putin the month after unveiling that vague blueprint for peace, as Beijing tries to cast itself as a potential mediator in the conflict  a position that has been met with skepticism in the West.

Xi announced that China would send an envoy to Ukraine last month during a call with Zelenskiy. It was the first time the two leaders had spoken since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

Li, who is heading the delegation, is a former ambassador to Moscow. A photo of the Kuleba meeting also featured Ukraines newly appointed ambassador to China, Pavlo Riabikin. He will also visit Poland, France and Germany, Chinas Foreign Ministry earlier announced.

The special representative of the Chinese government for Eurasian Affairs has also added a visit to Brussels to his trip, according to a Western diplomat in Beijing familiar with Lis itinerary.

Its a busy week for Xi on the diplomacy front. The Chinese leader is hosting a major summit in Xian from Thursday, when he will seek to deepen Beijings influence in Central Asia. The kickoff coincides with the start of the Group of Sevens meeting in Hiroshima, Japan.

--With assistance from Jenni Marsh.

(Updates with details of Zelenskiy meeting throughout.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
U.S. textile imports are down by 20.13 percent, or $26.44 billion of a total import market of $132.201 billion, comparing the first three months of 2023 over the same period of 2022. Double-digit losses were spread over most major nations that trade with the U.S., according to figures released May 4 by the Commerce Departments Office of Textiles & Apparel (OTEXA).

The largest U.S. partner, China, took the biggest hit, with losses clocking in at 34.34 percent or about $16 billion less for the first three months of 2023, compared with the same period last year.

More from Sourcing Journal

Imports from Vietnam were down 23.74 percent and Cambodia 28.78 percent, while Turkey fell 16.59 percent, for the same three months in 2023 over 2022. Malaysia was down 33.51 percent comparing the same three-month period of both years.

Results from countries that might be favorably affected by efforts at nearshoring were mixed. Mexico finished almost flat, with gains of just 1.23 percent, while the Dominican Republic clocked in with gains of 2.01 percent. Seeing double-digit losses were Honduras, down 15.38 percent, Guatemala 21.10 percent, El Salvador 15.19 percent. The six nations in the Dominican Republic-Central America-FTA (CAFTA-DR) were collectively down by 12.60 percent.

The pressure on China was increased recently at a Congressional hearing March 23 where the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), heard expert testimony about the perpetration of genocide in Xinjiang, which produces the majority of cotton coming out of the Asian superpower.

Click here to read the full article.
China's Xi hails 'new era' of ties with Central Asia at summit

Map showing Central Asia countries. China's President Xi Jinping will host a two-day summit with the leaders of five Central Asian leaders in Xi'an starting May 18.

Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed a "new era" of ties with Central Asia on Thursday, kicking off a summit Beijing hopes will deepen relations with the strategically vital region.

Held in the ancient Chinese city of Xi'an, the historic eastern end of the Silk Road that linked China to Europe through Central Asia, Beijing has said this week's meeting is of "milestone significance".

And in a speech to the region's leaders at a welcoming banquet Thursday evening, Xi said strengthening ties was a "strategic choice".

"I am confident that with our joint efforts, tomorrow's summit will be a full success and will herald a new era of China-Central Asia relations," Xi was quoted as saying in a readout of the speech seen by AFP.

"Join us in opening up a bright future of China-Central Asia cooperation," he said.

This week's meeting is the first of its kind since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago.

Beijing says trade with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan reached $70 billion in 2022 and expanded 22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023.

Central Asia has also become key to China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, a defining geopolitical project for Xi, with Beijing keen to restart cooperation and fill the vacuum left in former Soviet states by Russia's war in Ukraine.

China, the world's second-largest energy consumer, has invested billions of dollars to tap natural gas reserves in Central Asia, while rail links connecting China to Europe criss-cross the region.

Analysts told AFP this week's summit is likely to see efforts to reach agreements to further expand that vast network, including a long-stalled $6 billion China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and an expansion of the Central Asia-to-China gas pipeline.

- 'Global economic leadership' -

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hailed the "unique scope" of that project at a meeting with Xi ahead of the summit.

Xi also told Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in talks on Thursday that China was "willing to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a community of good neighborliness, friendship, shared prosperity, and a shared future".

He then met with the leaders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, lauding the close ties between them and pledging to expand economic and cultural exchanges.

"Your policies will ensure the development and further prosperity of a modern socialist state, the strengthening of the authority and the global economic leadership of the country in the nearest future," Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev told Xi.

Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan greeted the heads of state at a grand welcoming ceremony in the evening, posing for a group photo in front of an old-style Chinese building lit by red lanterns.

Dozens of dancers then performed a musical show inspired by the Tang Dynasty, when relations between China and Central Asia were considered very strong.

A media event will be held on Friday morning, expected to be attended by all six presidents, at which a joint statement is likely to be released.

- Growing influence -

This week's summit also comes as Beijing works to replace Russia as Central Asian nations' preferred partner -- and as Xi positions himself as a global statesman keen to expand China's reach far beyond its borders.

"Xi will position himself as a leader that can promote global development and peace," Zhiqun Zhu, a Professor of International Relations and Political Science at Bucknell University, told AFP.

The summit also coincides with a meeting of the G7 in Hiroshima that will likely focus on efforts to "push back China's growing influence around the world", Zhu said.

"The diplomatic and strategic significance cannot be underestimated," he said.

ehl-oho/pbt
Authorities said China's military had been "severely humiliated" by a stand-up comedian's joke

A Chinese comedian who told a joke comparing the behaviour of his dogs to a military slogan has been arrested.

The company that hired Li Haoshi was also fined 14.7m yuan (1.7m), and Mr Li could face time in prison.

Police in Beijing said they had opened an official investigation into his performance, which they said "caused a severe social impact".

Mr Li has apologised for his comment, saying he felt "deeply shamed and regretful".

The offending remark was made during a stand-up performance in Beijing on Saturday, when Mr Li alluded to two dogs he had adopted which were chasing a squirrel.

"Other dogs you see would make you think they are adorable. These two dogs only reminded me of... 'Fight to win, forge exemplary conduct'," said Mr Li, whose stage name is House.

The punchline is part of the slogan that President Xi unveiled in 2013 as a goal for the Chinese military.

In audio shared to China's Twitter-like platform Weibo, audience members can be heard laughing at the joke. It has since gone viral, with some nationalists saying they were offended by the joke.

Mr Li's Weibo account has been suspended, and the company that hired him, Shanghai Xiaguo, also had its activities suspended in Beijing.

"We will never allow any company or individual use the Chinese capital as a stage to wantonly slander the glorious image of the PLA [People's Liberation Army]," said the Beijing arm of China's culture ministry.

The size of the fine to the company which booked him was so large that there is speculation that stand-up comedy could be virtually wiped out in China following fears of similar punishment in the future.
China's Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian speaks to media at the Embassy of China in Canberra, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Xiao asked Australian authorities Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in an Indian Ocean search for 39 missing from a capsized Chinese fishing boat. (Lukas CochAAP Image via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  A Chinese envoy asked Australian authorities on Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in the search for 39 crew members who were aboard a Chinese fishing boat that capsized in the Indian Ocean, as Chinese media reported two bodies had been recovered.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian told reporters. We wish that our Australian colleagues would coordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible.

Xiao said China wanted to coordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, in the search and rescue effort.

The search coordinator, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, said three aircraft and seven ships including three Chinese navy ships were involved in the search in the center of the Indian Ocean on Thursday. A Sri Lankan navy ship was also heading for the scene, the authority said in a statement.

Two days after the capsize of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, the authority remains hopeful for a successful outcome, however the time elapsed combined with the weather conditions experienced make survival more challenging, it said.

Two bodies were pulled from the ocean on Thursday afternoon by the Chinese navy, Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The upturned hull was spotted Tuesday from a cargo ship 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth, the Australian search coordinator said.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

India, whose ties with China have been strained by a deadly border dispute, said it sent reconnaissance planes to help in the search.

The aircraft "have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, navy spokesman Commander Vivek Mehul said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

The search authority said the multinational search effort continued Thursday over an area of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles) south of where the upturned hull was found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Chinese and international agencies remained positive about the search and rescue operation.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing. Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

The capsized boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd.

Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, had been operating near the upturned hull and continued to search on Thursday, the Australian authority said.

___

Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma in New Delhi contributed to this report.
Chinese envoy met with Zelenskyy: "There is no panacea for the crisis"

Li Hui, a Chinese Special Representative, met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Ukraine and told him that there is no panacea for the "crisis", and ending the war will require all parties to "create conditions for ceasefire and peace talks".

Source: Bloomberg

Details: According to a report by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Thursday, Li told Zelenskyy that "there is no panacea for the crisis".

The Chinese envoy added that ending the war will require all parties to "build up trust and create conditions for ceasefire and peace talks".

Also, according to him, China will help Ukraine "within its own ability".

The readout does not say how Zelenskyy responded, Bloomberg says, and the Ukrainian side has not acknowledged their meeting.

Previously: Li met with Dmytro Kuleba, Ukrainian Foreign Minister.

Kuleba said that Ukraine would not accept proposals that would entail loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

Li Hui is a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow. He will also visit Poland, France and Germany as part of his tour.

According to a Western diplomat in Beijing familiar with Li's route, the Chinese government's special representative also added a visit to Brussels to his trip.

Note:

On 16-17 May, Chinese government Special Representative Li Hui, China's ambassador to Russia for 10 years, visited Ukraine.

On 26 April, Zelenskyy spoke by phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping. This was the first conversation between the two countries' leaders since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

During the conversation, the leaders agreed that China would send Li Hui as a special representative to Ukraine, as well as to Russia, Poland, France and Germany, to communicate on the settlement of the "Ukrainian crisis".

On the eve of 24 February 2023, the Chinese Foreign Ministry published its proposals for resolving Russia's war against Ukraine. The document proposed a cease-fire that would freeze Russian troops on Ukrainian territory.

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin a month after this vague peace plan was released. Beijing is trying to position itself as a potential mediator in the conflict. China's position was met with scepticism in the West.

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Chrisann Pereira was seen in Bollywood films Sadak2 and Batla House

What happened to aspiring actress Chrisann Pereira last month resembles the plot of a Bollywood thriller.

When the 27-year-old, who has done small roles in Bollywood films Sadak2 and Batla House, flew from the western Indian city of Mumbai to Sharjah in United Arab Emirates on 1 April, she had stars in her eyes.

Chrisann had been told that she would be auditioning for a meaty role in a web series that would be shown on an international platform, her brother Kevin told the BBC.

But the visit to Sharjah landed her and her family in a nightmare - she was arrested and jailed after a memento she was carrying was found stuffed with drugs.

Three weeks later, she was finally released after police in Mumbai arrested two men and charged them with framing Chrisann. She's waiting to get her passport before she can return to India, Kevin said.

A police official in Mumbai's crime branch, who was part of the team which investigated the case, told the BBC that a third man - suspected of supplying the drugs - has also been arrested and jailed.

"It was revenge, plotted by the main accused - bakery-owner Anthony Paul - and executed with help from his banker friend Rajesh Damodar Bobhate who also goes by aliases such as Ravi Jain and Prasad Rao," the official said.

He said their investigation showed that the duo had framed four other people earlier in a similar manner and that one of them - Clayton Rodrigues - was still in prison in Sharjah.

Mr Paul and Mr Bobhate have not commented on the allegations since they are in jail. But Mr Paul's lawyer Ajay Dubey denied the allegations against him, calling them "totally false and malafide". He blamed Mr Bobhate for "duping" his client and said he had nothing to do with the memento.

But Mr Bobhate's wife Sonal told the BBC that it was Mr Paul who had "framed" her husband.

Kevin Pereira says his sister was prepping for the audition and was "really excited about this brilliant opportunity"

The story of how Chrisann became the drug mule, narrated by Kevin, is full of unbelievable twists and turns.

On 23 March, he says their mother Premila Pereira received a message from a man who said he had met her at an event and that he was financing a web series and wanted to cast her daughter in it.

"When Chrisann met him, he told her she would have to travel to Dubai for the audition but when he sent her a ticket, it was for Sharjah."

Kevin says he told his sister to "be careful since one hears of so many scams" but "doubts didn't even cross her mind".

"She was prepping for the audition and was really excited about this brilliant opportunity," he says.

A few hours before her flight, Kevin says Chrisann received a call from the same man, asking her to meet him on the way to the airport. There, he handed her a memento and asked her to give it to his friend in Sharjah.

"She landed at 1:17am and called our dad around 2am to say that she had been scammed. She said there was no-one to meet her at the airport and there was no hotel booking in her name. Then she also told us about this memento."

Kevin, who'd worked in an airline earlier, says that's when he realised that his sister was in big trouble.

"I told her to immediately go to the airport police and tell them everything. For the next 17 days, we were unable to reach Chrisann."

The family lodged a police complaint and over the next few days, the Pereiras wrote 15 emails, including to the prime minister, the ministry of external affairs and the Indian consulate in Sharjah asking for help.

"We finally got confirmation from the Indian consulate that Chrisann was in Sharjah Central Prison for possession of drugs. When we googled, we found reports that said people could be punished with 25 years in jail or even a death sentence. This led to a state of panic in our home."

The memento Chrisann Pereira was given to carry to Sharjah

A week after Chrisann's arrest, as the family's desperation grew, Kevin decided to post appeals for help on Twitter and Instagram - and finally, a breakthrough came.

Four people responded to his Instagram post saying they had been through a similar ordeal. They all wrote that a man with the same name who had given the memento to Chrisann had also given them suspicious items to carry to the Middle East.

So, Kevin and families of some of the other victims went to the police and the Crime Branch took over the case.

Police say in all the five cases, there was "a personal angle" and that Mr Paul knew all his victims and that these were all done to settle personal scores.

They claim that Mr Paul told them that he began plotting the revenge a year ago after he and Chrisann's mother had an argument over stray dogs.

The Pereiras said they thought they had moved past the incident and all was well and that they had no idea why Chrisann was framed until 24 April when police announced the arrests and ascribed motive to the accused.

For the Pereira family though, the nightmare is yet to end.

"I always knew my sister was innocent and that the truth will come out, but you cannot imagine the mental and emotional torture we are going through. My sister is out of prison, she is safe, but we still don't know when the case will be closed and she will return home," says Kevin.

The incident, he adds, has completely shaken Chrisann.

"She's in a state of shock, she can't digest that someone can do something like this to her. We are trying to keep her motivated, but until she's back home I don't think she - or any of us - can breathe easy."

BBC News India is now on YouTube. Click here to subscribe and watch our documentaries, explainers and features.

Read more India stories from the BBC:
The Scoop

An emerging Christian television rival to conservative networks like Newsmax, One America News Network, and Fox News is poaching one of Newsmaxs well-known hosts.

Trinity Broadcasting Network is hiring anchor Lyndsay Keith as an on-air personality on the networks flagship show Centerpoint, according to a person familiar with the move. Keith, a former Republican staffer who previously hosted a show on Newsmax alongside former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, will make her first appearance on the network on Monday with a sit-down interview with former Vice President and likely GOP presidential candidate Mike Pence.

Max's view

TBN is not a particularly well-known television network at the moment. But it wants to be, at least among conservatives.

Last year, the self-described world's largest Christian television broadcaster launched Centerpoint, a slickly-produced evening news show that focused on covering the news of the day. It was part of a larger pivot the Dallas-based broadcaster has made to news programming that still leans into its Christian values.

It has modernized its image, telling Axios last year that it was looking to build a "Christian lifestyle brand" rather than just "preaching and teaching. Founded in 1973 as a small part-time station, the network now says it reaches over 100 million households worldwide over broadcast, cable, and satellite providers, in addition to a subscription streaming service it offers.

Over the last year, the network has been not-so-quietly staffing up with former Fox News and Newsmax alums, who now represent many of the networks prominent on-air personalities, as well as those behind-the-scenes. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee hosts a show, as does former Fox correspondent Doug McElway, and Dirty Jobs host Mike Rowe.

The network is hoping to elevate its profile heading into the 2024 Republican presidential primary election. Pences decision to appear on the network next week is a reminder that in a fragmented media ecosystem, GOP presidential candidates can give more niche conservative media properties a much-needed jolt, or at least imbue them with legitimacy or gravitas among viewers.

TBN has also been mentioned as a potential longshot landing spot for former Fox News star Tucker Carlson. Conservative broadcasters continue to pursue Carlson despite the hosts announcement this month that he was launching a streaming show on Twitter. Many in conservative media believe he is still likely to ink a lucrative deal with another right-wing news outlet.
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Executive chef Lamar Moore stands near the kitchen as dinner service begins at Bronzeville Winery on May 17, 2023. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Bronzeville Winerys owners gave Chicago chef Lamar Moore an offer he couldnt refuse.

Knowing their shared vision for the community-centered space, Moore said he couldnt say no to Cecilia Cuff and Eric Williams when they asked him to be the restaurants next executive chef. He joined Bronzeville Winery in early April.

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Their mission is also my mission, as a chef and as a person, Moore said. It was the right fit for the right time and the right situation.

After the restaurant opened in April 2022, Tribune food critics named Bronzeville Winery the Best Restaurant Making Waves in the 2023 Food Awards, noting its unique capacity to bring people together and its wildly popular Sunday brunches.

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[ Critics Choice Food Awards: From pizza to pho, our picks for the best in Chicago dining for 2023 ]

Whitney McMorris, the winerys first executive chef, impressed South Side residents before leaving four months into the winerys operations. Sous chef Dondee Robinson served as executive chef in the interim.

Moore was previously the executive chef at Eleven Eleven in the West Loop, but he spent the past 18 months away from cooking. During this time, he consulted restaurants and traveled to events across the country while contemplating his next move.

Executive chef Lamar Moore, center right, talks with co-workers as dinner service begins at Bronzeville Winery on May 17, 2023. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Lead server Iraa Ellis tends to diners at Bronzeville Winery. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

He said he felt drawn to Bronzeville Winery because of the work Williams had been doing in the surrounding South Side neighborhoods as the owner of The Silver Room. He said Williams understands the needs of the areas residents and visitors.

I have a sense of pride knowing that Bronzeville Winery has something to offer not just to the people of Bronzeville, but others that come and visit, Moore said.

Moore, a South Side native and a current resident of Bronzeville, also said that in his 23 years of culinary experience, this is just the second restaurant hes worked in which the majority of the staff members are of African American descent.

While training at Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago, he said, there werent any other Black chefs.

That was a challenge, Moore said. I didnt see that there was even an opportunity for me to succeed.

[ Chicago chef Lamar Moore inspires thousands with his uplifting Instagram: Why not have some positivity? ]

After moving to San Jose, California, to work at McCormick & Schmicks early in his career, Moore said a chef took him under his wing. Moore recalled the chef saying, Whatever you want learn how to do, write that down for me, and well go from there.

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Now, motivating and training the younger cooks and chefs at the winery is a high priority for Moore.

Moore said Cuff and Williams didnt ask to taste his food before offering him the position. He said they knew he could cook, and they were much more interested in learning how Moore could help mentor their team to the next level and get the staff excited about great food.

Lead bartender Emmentt Jackson finishes pouring a wine flight during happy hour at Bronzeville Winery on May 17, 2023. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Theres an even greater need for that mentorship in the Chicago food industry, Moore said. The city doesnt have much of a culinary school base anymore, he said, so as executive chef, hes stepping into a teaching position, too.

Moore said hes currently going back to the basics with the restaurants cooks and chefs. Last week, he gave the staff pointers on searing a piece of salmon to showcase its natural flavors. Describing his style as simplistic but eclectic, Moore said he was trained to cook from the bottom up  to season his food before adding salt to better enhance the flavors.

Theres a greater demand for vegan and vegetarian food these days than ever before, Moore said. At the winery, he said he is exploring the nuances of plant-based dining, and hes also excited to accentuate paired food and wine in the restaurant.

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Moore said guests can expect a new menu in upcoming weeks, but not one that has changed dramatically. With his steak and seafood background, Moore said hell pay close attention to the preparation of both. He plans for produce to be largely grown in Chicago and partially grown by the restaurant itself.

Executive chef Lamar Moore checks on food tickets during dinner service at Bronzeville Winery. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

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Moore said hes already moved the restaurant from king salmon to sustainably fished Skuna Bay salmon. Guests can also expect to see his signature burger on the menu.

Moore said customers have been very welcoming to him, and he viewed Mothers Day as an opportunity to set a fixed menu and learn what dishes the guests enjoyed most.

Moore said he absolutely sees the winery being a longtime home for him. Although hes excited to bring sustainable, fresh food to Bronzeville Winery, his main priority is to cultivate the growth of the cooks, chefs and staff members around him.

The goal for myself is to be here as long as possible, and were definitely on the right track to do that, Moore said. I enjoy seeing the fruits of labor.

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oalexander@chicagotribune.com

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CNNs Christiane Amanpour proclaimed that maybe less is more as she called out her network and CEO Chris Licht over last weeks town hall with former President Donald Trump.

Amanpour, the networks chief international anchor, told a commencement audience at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism on Wednesday that she spoke directly to Licht for a really robust exchange of views after CNN put Trump on live TV. She said she respectfully disagrees with the networks view that it did the right thing and provided a service to the American people.

For me, of course, the fact that the American people voted three times against Trump and Trumpism  2018, 2020, 2022  also speaks volumes, said Amanpour as she accepted the Columbia Journalism Award.

She also pointed out how she would have handled Trumps nasty person swipe at moderator Kaitlan Collins.

We know Trump and his tendencies  everyone does, she said. He just seizes the stage and dominates. No matter how much flack the moderator tries to aim at the incoming, it doesnt often work.

For me, I would have dropped the mic at nasty person, but then thats me.

Amanpour suggested media outlets cover Trump the way journalism refused to publish the wild claims of McCarthyism in the 1950s  unless his foul lies, his witch hunts and his rants reached the basic evidence level required in a court of law.

His influence gradually decreased with all but his fervent colleagues and cults, she said of Sen. Joseph McCarthy, who led the red-scare movement.

So, maybe less is more, Amanpour said. Maybe live is not always right.

Watch below, starting around the 40:05 mark:

Amanpour isnt the only CNN figure questioning the networks hosting of the Trump forum. Senior media correspondent Oliver Darcy questioned how the American people were served by the town hall. Other CNN employees also had gripes about the show.

Elsewhere, CNN has been condemned by the likes of Jon Stewart and MSNBChosts.

Related...
Citi Bike Karen claims viral video of confrontation with Black man was taken out of context

A woman dubbed Citi Bike Karen for calling for help as she fought with a young Black man over a rental bike outside of a New York hospital alleges a viral video of the encounter  and discussion about it on social media  doesnt capture the full story.

Justin Marino, a lawyer for Sarah Comrie, a physicians assistant at Bellevue Hospital who is six months pregnant, said the bike in question belonged to his client originally.

Receipts from the 12 May encounter sent to The Independent appear to show a serial number matching the bike pictured in the video. The receipts capture Ms Comrie checking out the bike, then docking it a minute later, without paying a charge.

Mr Marino said this occurred as his client was being heckled by a group of young men to leave the bike.

Can you tell me one pregnant woman that would ever try to commandeer and steal a bike from young men? he told The Independent. Do you think that would ever happen?

He argued that public figures and the media have created a false narrative that Ms Comrie is a racist.

This matter is shocking in that you literally have someone who, with her colleagues, saves lives on a daily basis, including throughout the pandemic, and within a matter of roughly a minute of a video, she is suddenly a racist villain, he said. Thats shameful.

The video, posted 13 May, shows Ms Comrie yelling for help and appearing to start to cry, as she tells a group of young people theyre hurting her fetus.

Im not touching you. Youre putting your stomach on my hand, one of the men in the video replies.

Others can be heard accusing Ms Comrie of crying fake tears and telling her its not her bike.

Ms Comrie can also be seen appearing to take one of the young mens phones before handing it back.

Many online came to accuse Ms Comrie of being a Karen, a derogatory term for a white woman with an outsized sense of entitlement, often weaponised to harass people of colour.

The incident was quickly compared to a 2020 incident in which Central Park Karen Amy Cooper falsely told the police a Black birdwatcher tried to assault her when he confronted her about breaking park rules.

Some argued Ms Comrie was putting the young Black men in danger in the tussle over the bike by playing on racist tropes of Black men threatening white women, which have led in the past to retaliatory violence.

This is unacceptable! A white woman was caught on camera attempting to STEAL a Citi Bike from a young Black man in NYC, prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump wrote on Instagram. She grossly tried to weaponize her tears to paint this man as a threat. This is EXACTLY the type of behavior that has endangered so many Black men in the past!

Mr Marino said Ms Comrie has no ill will towards the young men in the video. Her focus, he said, is not a vendetta against them, but rather to make sure she keeps her job and is able to challenge those publicly accusing her of being a racist.

The physicians assistant was put on leave from Bellevue earlier this week, pending an investigation.

We are aware of the video involving a healthcare provider off duty and away from the hospital campus. The incident in the video is disturbing, a spokesperson for NYC Health + Hospitals said in a statement on Tuesday.

The provider is currently out on leave and will remain on leave pending a review, the statement added.
Clarence Thomas's first public scandal came in 1980, when he was a no-name aide to a GOP senator and complained to a journalist that his sister just waited by the mailbox for her welfare check

Clarence Thomas in 1992. Larry Downing/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Images

In 1980, 32-year-old Clarence Thomas was a no-name aide to a Republican senator.

At a conference for Black conservatives, he complained to a journalist about his sister being on welfare.

The journalist, Juan Williams, wrote a column about it that caught the attention of Reagan's team.

Long before Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas made headlines for his financial dealings, he made the news for an entirely different reason  complaining to a journalist about his sister being on welfare.

The story is recounted in a new episode of the WNYC podcast "More Perfect," which focuses on the Supreme Court and its influential rulings. The latest episode, released Thursday, is all about Thomas, telling the story of how he went from a Malcolm X-admiring revolutionary to arguably the most conservative justice on the high court.

In 1980, 32-year-old Thomas was working as an aide to Republican Sen. John Danforth of Missouri, primarily working on issues like energy and the environment, according to a 1987 profile published in The Atlantic and written by Juan Williams, now a Fox News analyst.

In December of that year, about a month before Ronald Reagan was to be sworn in as president, Thomas paid his own way to attend a conference of Black conservatives in San Francisco. After Reagan sailed to victory in the election with little support from Black voters, Black conservatives were increasingly being discussed in the media, Williams wrote in The Atlantic.

Thomas, a Reagan supporter, was not well known. But at the conference, he stuck out to Williams, who at the time was an editorial writer for The Washington Post.

"Thomas was the most interesting of a very self-important crowd because he was so brutally candid," Williams wrote in The Atlantic, adding that Thomas explained his stance on welfare  and his opposition to public assistance  was in part due to his sister in Georgia.

"She gets mad when the mailman is late with her welfare check," Thomas said, according to Williams. "That is how dependent she is. What's worse is that now her kids feel entitled to the check too. They have no motivation for doing better or getting out of that situation."

Such sentiments are not uncommon today in arguments about welfare programs, but Thomas's remarks and the mention of his sister caused quite a stir, Williams recounted on the "More Perfect" podcast. His comments were also in line with Reagan's own campaign tirades against the welfare system and "welfare queens"  in which he used individual examples of welfare fraud to paint it as a rampant issue. In reality, there's little evidence indicating there's widespread fraud in entitlement programs.

Williams ended up writing a column about the conference that largely focused on Thomas and his remarks.

"He had never been subject to that kind of media spotlight," Williams said of Thomas. "The response from most readers of The Washington Post was, 'Wow, this guy's out of his mind. Why is he bringing up his sister? Why is he putting her in that ugly public position?'"

While Thomas's comments outraged liberals, they also caught the attention of President-elect Reagan's team. In May of 1981, Thomas joined the Reagan White House as the assistant secretary for civil rights in the Department of Education. He went on to chair the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from 1982 to 1990. And in 1991, President George H. W. Bush appointed him to the lifetime position of Supreme Court justice.

Reagan ended up making massive cuts to welfare programs and allowing states to institute work requirements for welfare recipients.

Despite the chain of events that followed, Thomas was unhappy with the column, and especially with the public response, Williams said, adding that it took six months before Thomas would talk to him again. When the pair finally met up for lunch, Thomas acted like Williams had hurt him.

"I'm like, 'But I just quoted you. Dude, this is what you told me.' And he keeps repeating the same stuff anyway," Williams said, adding their relationship got back on track after that.

Williams, who has said he considers Thomas a friend, recently called for an investigation into the justice's financial dealings in the wake of numerous media reports.

ProPublica first reported that Thomas had taken undisclosed, lavish vacations for years at the expense of GOP megadonor Harlan Crow. Subsequent reports revealed Thomas failed to disclose the sale of his childhood home to Crow, and that Crow paid for Thomas's grandnephew to attend a residential program for teens that cost $6,000 per month.

Thomas has denied any wrongdoing and said he believed the gifts fell under a "personal hospitality" exemption.

Read the original article on Business Insider
One pretty obvious aspect of the climate emergency which may have flown under your radar is that human-driven global heating is disrupting traditional approaches to risk modelling around natural disasters since probabilistic models based on stuff that happened in the past start to come unstuck atop so much unprecedented change.

Step forward Mitiga Solutions, a climate tech startup out of Barcelona, Spain that's just raised a 13.25 million (~$14.4 million) Series A funding round to grow usage of its risk modelling tools. The round was led by Kibo Ventures, with Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, Nationwide Ventures, Faber Ventures, and CREAS Impacto also participating.

The startup is taking a data-heavy, physics-based approach to predicting climate-driven risks, such as wildfires, extreme weather and even volcanos, so it's also modelling climate variability that's being driven by climate change -- applying high performance compute-driven risk modelling augmented with AI, including techniques like transfer learning so it can offer predictions in regions of the world where there's a lack of high quality data to inform its models.

Mitiga's customers, which number around 20 (recurring clients) at this stage a few years in, are businesses with asset management needs, such as energy manufacturers; or entities that need to collateralize risk, such as financial services companies, hedge funds, real estate companies and insurance firms. In the latter camp it names Axa Climate and Willis Towers Watson as among its customer roster. It also has customers in the humanitarian sector (such as the Red Cross).

Its pitch is that it's able to more accurately model climate risks vs traditional risk modelling approaches that have relied upon "more stochastic and probabilistic approaches" -- doing so in a way that's price competitive vs traditional risk modelling despite the use of lots of high performance compute (thanks to optimized code and strategic use of cloud computing, as it tells it).

High performance computing is necessary to power such high resolution mathematical simulations of complex systems, with Mitiga's algorithms crunching massive data-sets on physical and other conditions in order to get as close to predicting what's going to happen as possible down to a scale of 30 meters (or even 10 meters in some locations).

CEO and co-founder, Dr Alejandro Marti, tells TechCrunch it's loading more than 5 million data-points into its models every day. "Models are as good as the data you drive them with," he emphasizes. "So you need to have massive amounts of data set."

"Traditionally, risk modelling companies, whether they come from the insurance or the financial sector, they've been using more stochastic and probabilistic approaches to determine what the risk is. So that will be you look at stochastic analysis from the last 100 years. Then try to predict some trends. And then you apply those trends towards the future," he goes on, explaining the drawbacks with traditional risk models in our rapidly warming (and dangerously changing) world.

"One of the things that we have seen in the past few years is that climate change is changing, especially, the tails of the distribution, the extreme events -- so these massive wildfires that we're seeing, the floods, the tsunamis, etc -- we're not seeing these kinds of events and the magnitude of these events represented in those long term distributions. So, obviously, this is the impact of climate change [which means there are] more events and the events and the magnitude of the events are harsher or bigger. So the traditional probabilistic models they are a little bit obsolete."

Physics-based risk modelling means building mathematical simulations of complex systems by applying physical laws and principles to masses of data (on local conditions and dynamic variables) to perform predictive analytics of risks at a given location. This of course demands lots of high quality data. And, clearly, such data is not available everywhere in the world. Hence why Mitiga is using transfer learning to plug gaps so it's able to sell risk modelling with a "global footprint".

Marti says it's using AI techniques to create data-sets for locations where there is a lack of high quality data to feed its models. He describes this as a process of transferring data "from data rich countries to data poor countries" -- explaining it's relying on "proxies", such as from similar topography and environmental and/or metrological conditions, to create underlying data sets to build models for less "data rich" locations.

He caveats this by noting that the accuracy of the risk modelling does vary, depending on how much high quality (vs proxy) data is available for a particular location and risk context. "I always say when you speak about a global model it's a lot of regional models that are customised to have a global footprint and that's the best accuracy that you can have," he tells us. "But there will be places where the uncertainty is high and then you just need to be honest. That the uncertainty is high -- or, like, how you can mitigate that uncertainty."

He also concedes that physics-based modelling is gaining ground with traditional players in the risk modelling business. So it's not the only game in town. But while risk modelling startups have been growing in number in recent years, as entrepreneurs lock onto the risk-opportunity driven by climate change, on the competitive front Mitiga can claim a pioneering edge since it was spun out of Spain's National Supercomputing Center (also Barcelona-based and home to Europe's MareNostrum supercomputer).

That happened back in early 2018 -- so still relatively recently -- but the team is well-versed in this kind of specialized, high performance computing-driven hard-math climate-risk modelling, with founding staff having been at it for some 10 years when they were working as researchers at the NSC.

Add to that almost half (40%) of Mitiga's 30-strong team holds a PhD. (And Marti notes that the Series A funding is being earmarked for further expanding its talent pool to scale and accelerate the risk modelling capabilities.)

Marti himself, who holds one of the PhDs, cut his teeth in climate science working for the US government on then-emergent geospatial technology for around a decade, back in the noughties, including looking at the link between geospatial tech and modelling risk for climate. After that he came back to Europe to return to academia as a Marie Curie Fellow at Exeter University in the UK, on a program managed by Cambridge University -- where he worked with the Met Office developing earth systems and climate models -- before going on obtain his doctorate at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. So this is a climate tech startup built on a very solid foundation of deep science.

The team's focus for the product at this stage is on modelling risks around so-called "secondary" perils -- or what it describes as events which are "heavily impacted by climate change".

This means -- not earthquakes or flooding (which the insurance industry classes as primary perils) -- but aforementioned climate-linked risks such as wildfires, extreme weather and drought. The risk of volcanic eruptions is another on its focus list which stands out as a bit different. Albeit volcanic eruptions can certainly contribute to climate change (and therefore to climate risk) by spewing out emissions and aerosols which can increase heating. Plus, per Marti, there is some live scientific debate about a possible feedback effect where global warming might be increasing volcanic activity. (So, er, yikes!)

Despite secondary perils having a merely modestly scary-sounding label, Marti notes that the associated insurance industry loss ratio has already flipped, meaning secondary perils now (collectively) account for more than 50% of the insurance industry's losses (which used to be the case for primary perils). Which suggests the risks they pose to human life are also on the rise. So they are probably in need of a rebranding.

Add to that, given these hazards are the ones really impacted by climate change, the dangers that they pose (and their ability to drive massive commercial losses) are only likely to grow in the coming years (unless or until humans actually manage to stop heating the climate). Hence why Mitiga reckoned it had spotted a risk-modelling opportunity-gap to lock onto.

Its marketing also talks up the opportunity for customers to act on the risk data it provides them with to mitigate even worse climate harms by making proactive interventions aimed at stopping a potential hazard from turning into a full-blown natural disaster.

Of course this doesn't mean that data and fancy modelling can stop tornados or prevent the heavens from opening. Rather the idea is the tool can arm businesses with intel to proactively adapt and improve their resilience to likely risky events. Such as, for example, installing certain types of windows that can reduce the impact of extreme heat inside buildings, or adapting buildings and other physical installations to make them more resilient to water ingress.

In the coming years, many (if not all) businesses will need to consider how to adapt their assets and operations to the havoc being rained down by climate change. And, clearly, risk modelling schemes that can help enterprises prioritize what to tackle first is an elementary tool for them to reach for.

Add to that, incoming regulations in Europe (and elsewhere) requiring businesses to score climate-related risks to their assets will drive uptake of this sort of climate tech -- likely pushing it far beyond the usual suspects (such as insurance firms) whose businesses give them a particular interest in risk modelling. And on this front Marti notes that Mitiga will shortly be launching what he refers to as a "global climate score" which is aimed at helping customers comply with climate risk regulations.

"The climate score is targeted not only to the insurance sector but any asset manager... so financial institutions, real estate, you know, hedge funds, etc," he says, adding: "We're having a lot of traction on that because, for example, these [EU Taxonomy-related] regulations went live in Europe in January 1 2023, and even though they have about a year or two to adapt obviously this is the next thing that everyone is going to have to comply with."

Transparency around the risk predictions it provides to its customers is another element of differentiation he highlights vs traditional players.

"If you're going to have to assume your risk, based on our models, it's only fair that we tell you what is the uncertainty associated to the model. So that's something that our clients appreciate," he says. "In this sector there are a lot of black boxes, and a lot of decisions are made with those black boxes -- which has a financial impact but it also has a social impact. So I would say that the combination of technology, transparency and know-how is what makes Mitiga a contender to challenge the traditional model providers."

The startup is not expecting the (risk-averse) insurance industry to switch away from traditional risk modelling providers en masse and overnight. Rather it anticipates being able to build traction on the side -- by offering more customers modular terms (vs traditional risk modelling players' per-market-based licensing) -- enabling clients to try the tech and "start de-riskifying their portfolios". From this supplemental position it hopes to keep scaling the business (and "growing up" as a company), setting its sights on becoming "a true contender for them to consider as one of the main providers" down the line, as Marti puts it.

Commenting on its Series A funding round in a statement, Javier Torremocha, co-founder and managing partner at Kibo Ventures, said: There is a lot of potential and resilience in climate technology. We have been impressed by what Alex and the team have built; a proprietary state-of-the-art technology with multiple applications. We are delighted to support Mitiga with its vision to become a category leader while helping to reduce climate change disasters.

In another supporting statement, Brandon Middaugh, senior director at Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, added: The ability to predict and manage the effects of climate-related hazards is a critical need to adapt to a changing ecosystem. Mitiga's use of AI and high performance computing is a valuable tool to assess climate-related risk across a variety of hazards to mitigate threats and build a more resilient future.

Given the current precipitously high levels of hype being attached to AI -- which, just earlier this week, featured a turn in the global spotlight by OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman (of ChatGPT fame) who suggested to a US senate committee the tech might one day help humanity fix climate change, even as he simultaneously talked up the vast potential for generative AI to power all sorts of societal harms -- TechCrunch took the opportunity to ask for Marti's long view on what AI might (realistically) be able to do vis-a-vis the climate crisis.

"There are things that AI can help and things that AI is not going to resolve," he predicted. "You cannot have artificial intelligence resolve something that hasn't happened and be right about it. Artificial intelligence builds, again, on the past, understanding the trends of the future. But it's nothing about the problem itself. It's about the trends.

"When you go into climatic scale, the noise of the climate models themselves, between years, is so high that you cannot resolve that [variability]. So AI again, continues to be a tool... that complements other things. At least in our space."

That said, he wasn't willing to look too far ahead in capability forecasting here -- cautioning: "If we fast forward 10 years from now, it's super exciting and scary at the same time what AI can do."

NB: Mitiga Solutions is no relation to the eponymous cloud security vendor which we've covered previously

This report was updated with a correction: We original stated that Marti obtained his doctorate at Exeter University; while he did study there he actually obtained his doctorate afterwards, at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. We regret the error.
CNET staffers are unionizing, and they're naming their employer's use of AI as a key reason why  a timely reminder that even as generative AI tech raises billions in funding and threatens to upend entire industries, it's already causing a very real human impact among workers.

And now, they're fighting back.

"In terms of AI initiatives and media workers, we're not alone in this issue," a CNET union representative told us. "We're joining a lot of others in the media who are looking into how to address AI in relation to plagiarism, liability and the impact to the workforce."

Back in January, it emerged that the Red Ventures-owned CNET had been quietly publishing AI-generated stories under the vague byline "CNET Money." In response, CNET issued assurances that all its CNET Money-bylined stories, though produced with AI, had been fact-checked by human editors; examined closely, however, it turned out that many of the articles contained fairly egregious errors and even apparent plagiarism.

The media fallout to the AI news was swift, and according to data from SimilarWeb, CNET's traffic has subsequently plummeted. It also started to look like a move of desperation by Red Ventures, which hit CNET's staff with brutal layoffs in the wake of the scandal.

But cut to a few months later, and in the midst of the fallout, CNET journalists are working with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) East to form a CNET Media Workers Union (CMWU.)

"In this time of instability," reads the CMWU's mission statement, "our diverse content teams need industry-standard job protections, fair compensation, editorial independence, and a voice in the decision-making process, especially as automated technology threatens our jobs and reputations."

While the nascent CMWU has made it clear that AI and the threats that it poses  job loss due to automation, reputational damage to a publication and its writers, and more  is a motivating factor, they also say unionization efforts were underway before CNET was using AI.

Still, they say, they might have been better able to deal with the company's use of AI if they'd been unionized at the time.

"Our organizing campaign started before [Red Ventures] began its rollout of AI late last year," a representative of the CMWU's organizing committee told Futurism. "If we were under a collective bargaining agreement then, the terms and conditions of using this new [AI] technology would have been transparent and negotiable. We also would have been able to more directly support the few CNET Money colleagues assigned to this work."

On that note, the CMWU was also careful to point out that AI isn't just a CNET or Red Ventures issue. It's a media issue, and publications ranging from BuzzFeed to Insider have already started to implement similar AI efforts.

"Forming a union was a very human decision that allowed us to come together to bring the highest standards to our work and to maintain the integrity of CNET as a trusted source," the spokesperson told us. "There's an urgent need to build industry-wide ethical standards around the use of AI tools, and the best way to do so is through collective bargaining agreements that uphold high journalistic standards. AI-produced content should never replace writers."

The bottom line? Though CNET has certainly taken a reputational hit over the last few months, its journalists are bearing the consequences. And the disruptive new tech is being implemented during an already tumultuous time for the broader media environment.

As it stands, no one really knows what's going to come next  or, for that matter, how AI will ultimately impact the human writers, editors, artists, and others who have long powered the media industry.

"The AI issue was one of several incidents during our time at Red Ventures that showed that these protections are not just a nice to have," Mike Sorrentino, a CNET senior editor and a union organizer, t0ld Bloomberg, "but an essential thing."

More on CNET: CNET Secretly Used AI on Articles That Didn't Disclose That Fact, Staff Say
Veteran CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour said she doesnt agree with the networks decision to host former President Donald Trump for a town hall last week.

Amanpour flew to the networks New York headquarters to meet with CNN CEO Chris Licht following the event, she told the crowd during her Columbia Journalism School commencement speech Wednesday night. Face to face, the journalist told her boss her honest thoughts about Trump's appearance and wanted to hear from him firsthand what hed been thinking.

We had a very robust exchange of views, said Amanpour, CNNs chief international correspondent, during her speech. My management believes they did the right thing as service to the American people. I still respectfully disagree with allowing Donald Trump to appear in that particular format.

Several CNN employees have voiced their dissatisfaction with the town hall, during which Trump continued to push false claims about the 2020 election and defended his actions on Jan. 6.



Ahead of the Columbia speech, Licht sent a note to CNN employees praising Amanpour and encouraging employees to tune in, CNNs Oliver Darcy wrote in his daily newsletter. The CEO was aware that Amanpour planned to address the town hall, a company spokesperson told him.

During an internal call with employees last week  of which POLITICO Playbook obtained a recording  Licht defended the town hall and congratulated moderator Kaitlan Collins for a masterful performance.

Amanpour said in her speech that Licht did say that the execution of the town hall was lacking a little and that he said we will not witness that same appalling behavior in future town halls.



Darcy wrote in his newsletter Reliable Sources that Inside CNN, Amanpour is far from alone in her views.

In private, the town hall has been widely criticized by employees at all levels across the organization, Darcy wrote. Some of these employees believe that Trump wasn't worthy of a town hall platform. ... Others believe that it was a worthy endeavor to confront him, but that the event was poorly executed.

While Collins attempted to fact check Trump in real time, he mostly dominated the interview. If Amanpour had been in Collins seat, she said, I would have dropped the mic at nasty person, but then that's me. Ive been in the ring for a long time with many of these people.

We know Trump and his tendencies, everyone does, Amanpour added. He just seizes the stage and dominates, no matter how much flak the moderator tries to aim at the incoming. It doesn't often work.
Crime Stoppers are looking for information on a cold case murder out of Washington County.

State police in Washington launched a homicide investigation in May 1977 in South Strabane Township.

Brenda Ritter, 17, left her boyfriends home on May 18, 1977, in a bad storm. Her vehicle was found abandoned a few miles away the following day.

Searchers in a state police helicopter spotted her remains on a hillside off rural Roupe Road, less than a mile from her car. Her clothes were found within about 50 feet of her body.

Ritter had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

Anyone with information is asked to call state police at 724-223-5200 and speak to Trooper Harding or contact the Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers at 1-800-4PA-TIPS or online.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

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As Russian President Vladimir Putins special military operation continues its downward spiral in Ukraine, the future of Russian-occupied or dominated territories is becoming a subject of interest, beginning with Kaliningrad.

Slowly but surely, Russian influence is being whittled away in the Baltic region, and this trend has the potential to snowball under the right circumstances. Poland, via the Polish Commission on the Standardization of Geographical Names, announced on May 10 that it would no longer refer to Kaliningrad by its Russian name, opting instead to use Krolewiec, the Polish translation for Konigsberg, which the former East Prussia region was called prior to the end of World War II.

Their timing, the day after Putins underwhelming Victory Day parade in Moscow, was obviously deliberate. The now-defunct Soviet Union changed the name after assuming administrative control under the terms of the 1945 Potsdam Agreement. The Baltic port and surrounding area was renamed after Mikhail Kalinin, one of the leaders of the Bolshevik revolution.

Little remains of Kaliningrads original German heritage, save for some surviving architecture. The entire German population was forcibly evicted in 1947 by then-Soviet leader Joseph Stalin and replaced with hundreds of thousands of new settlers, brought in primarily from Russia and Belarus. Warsaws reversion to calling it Krolewiec was not only a purposeful repudiation of Putin, but also of Stalin and decades of Soviet domination.

And it is not just Poland. On May 12, Lithuanian members of parliament Vilius Semeska and Paule Kuzmickiene followed suit and appealed to the State Commission for the Lithuanian Language to rename the Kaliningrad Oblast and the city of Kaliningrad to Karaliauciaus. We stand in solidarity with our Polish neighbors and urge you not to use the artificial names imposed on us in Lithuanian, they argued.

On May 16, Latvia announced it would officially refer to the Kaliningrad exclave as Konigsberg after the Latvian State Language Center recommended the name change.

This is only a change of name for now, but it could foreshadow the near future for several Russian-occupied territories, should the war in Ukraine end in a resounding defeat. As the weight of Russian oppression diminishes, Crimea, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria may press for reunification with their motherlands, allowing Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova to become whole again.

Moldova took what could be the first step on May 15, when Igor Grosu, President of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, announced Moldova was formally withdrawing from the Commonwealth of Independent States interparliamentary assembly  the Russian equivalent of the British Commonwealth.

After 30 years, Grosu stated, it became clear that the presence of the Republic of Moldova in the structures of the CIS did not help us to remove the Russian army from the territory of the Republic of Moldova, to resolve the Transnistrian conflict. Being in the CIS did not protect us from blackmail in the middle of winter. Withdrawal from the CIS Assembly is a first step. Ukraine left this organization. The Republic of Moldova is a free country to make sovereign decisions. We demonstrated that we want democracy, freedom at home.

In a worst-case scenario, if you were to overlay the domino theory of U.S. Cold War policy, substituting getting out from underneath Russian oppression for the spread of communism, Russia could experience another event akin to the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989. That original event led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. If Russia cannot keep its occupied territories in line, what would it mean for the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization, which currently includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, and Tajikistan? Sensing weakness as a result of Russias failures in Ukraine, will these other peripheral countries continue to stand by the Kremlin?

Russia can ill-afford to let Polands seemingly minor announcement build any momentum. But based on the actions of Lithuania, Latvia, and Moldova, it already has. The announcement clearly got under the skin of Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who angrily declared the decision was bordering on madness and a hostile act. He went on state, peevishly, that the official place name is Kaliningrad.

If Russia were to lose control of Kaliningrad, it would be akin to losing Crimea in terms of strategic importance. Sandwiched between the NATO countries of Lithuania and Poland, Kaliningrad is the headquarters for the Russian Baltic Fleet. The seaport enables Russia to influence commercial and military traffic in the Baltic Sea from its Baltiysk Naval Base. It is also home to the 152nd Guard Missile Brigade, which has a dozen forward-positioned Iskander-M ballistic missile systems and nuclear weapons in storage sites.

Furthermore, Kaliningrad also allows Russia to threaten the Suwalki Gap, a 40-mile-wide stretch of border between Poland and Lithuania. The two highways running through this gap are the only viable land and military supply routes between the Baltic States and Finland to the northeast, and the rest of NATO to the southwest. If Russian and Belarusian forces were to act in concert to seize the gap, it would essentially cut off those NATO allies from the rest of the alliance.

The Kremlin cannot risk losing Kaliningrad. While this might seem like just a simple Polish name change, it is likely intended as a strategic check by Warsaw as Russia continues to struggle in Ukraine. The admission of Finland into NATO, coupled with Swedens eventual admission, tightens the noose around Kaliningrad and Russias influence in the Baltic Sea region. Acknowledging and endorsing this name change, along with Moldovas withdrawal from the CIS, produces a non-kinetic distraction that Putin and Peskov are compelled to address to mask Russias fading ability to project influence beyond its borders.

Jonathan Sweet, a retired Army colonel and 30-year military intelligence officer, led the U.S. European Command Intelligence Engagement Division from 2012-14, working with NATO partners in the Black Sea and Baltic regions. Follow him on Twitter @JESweet2022.

Mark Toth, a retired economist and entrepreneur, is a former board member of the World Trade Center, St. Louis. Follow him on Twitter @MCTothSTL.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
New College of Florida graduates hold alternative commencement ceremony in protest against Gov. DeSantis conservative takeover of the college

Graduates at the New College of Florida held an alternative commencement ceremony Thursday evening in protest of Gov. Ron DeSantis conservative takeover of the college earlier this year.

The alternative ceremony was a private event held at an undisclosed location in Sarasota, where the school is based, students said. The small liberal arts college has been known to offer a welcoming environment to LGBTQ students.

New College graduates told CNN they wanted a ceremony where they could have freedom of expression and feel celebrated without the influence of the colleges conservative leadership. Some also rejected the colleges decision to tap Dr. Scott Atlas, a former Covid-19 adviser to President Donald Trump, to deliver the keynote speech at the official graduation set for Friday.

Youre speaking up to the dozens of states that are now copy-catting the Dont Say Gay law, guest speaker Maya Wiley, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said at the ceremony.

Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights CEO Maya Wiley speaks at rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court as justices heard oral arguments on two cases on whether colleges and universities can continue to consider race as a factor in admissions decisions Oct. 31, 2022. - Francis Chung/E&E News/POLITICO via AP/FILE

During her speech, Wiley referenced legislation signed by DeSantis last year that banned certain instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom. The Parental Rights in Education bill, which opponents have dubbed the Dont Say Gay law, took effect as conservatives around the country push a host of bills that would further marginalize members of the LGBTQ community, CNN previously reported.

Wiley also referenced a 138-page order in November written by US District Judge Mark Walker, who called the law positively dystopian.

Why are we so inspired? It is because you have had to be strong for the right to have a free education; for the right to be able to develop your own sense of self, Wiley said.

Youre not just standing for yourselves. Youre standing for all of us, she continued.

DeSantis replaced six of the 13 members on the colleges board of trustees with conservative allies who forced out the colleges former president and appointed DeSantis ally, Richard Corcoran, as interim president. The reshaped board voted in February to abolish diversity, equity and inclusion programs, which included eliminating the colleges Office of Outreach and Inclusive Excellence.

The governor also signed a bill this week to defund diversity, equity and inclusion programs at all state universities, which he called a distraction from the core mission.

New College of Florida graduating students attend the college's "alternative commencement" on Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Sarasota. - Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times

Alternative ceremony meant to be a safe space

Madison Markham, who helped organize the alternative ceremony with classmate KC Casey, said she was concerned that speakers at the official graduation may make remarks that could be disrespectful or condescending to students and their identities. The alternative ceremony, she said, was meant to make students feel safe.

I was excited because I know whether or not I go to the real graduation, I get a night where I feel celebrated and respected, Markham said. I get to be around the faculty, and other students and family and friends that really make New College what it is and understand and respect the culture.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs three bills into legislation, including one that bans tax dollars from being used in state colleges for diversity, equity and inclusion programs, at New College of Florida on May 15, 2023. - Thomas Bender/USA Today Network via Reuters

Markham said she also objects to having Atlas speak after he pushed controversial narratives about the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Atlas advocated for herd immunity and discouraged testing, masks and lockdowns.

Markham said both of her grandparents died from Covid-19.

It felt like an insult seeing that that was our commencement speaker because that (her grandparents death) really devastated me, Markham said.

Markham said before the event took place that the majority of graduates confirmed attendance at the alternative ceremony.

CNNs Emma Tucker, Devan Cole and Tina Burnside contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
(Bloomberg) -- An imminent Colombian government tally of the nations oil reserves is expected to show a decline, putting pressure on President Gustavo Petro to reconsider his ban on new fossil-fuel contracts.

Most Read from Bloomberg

A National Hydrocarbons Agency report scheduled for release later this month is expected to show the reserves shrank last year from the previous assessment of 7.6 years and 8 years, respectively, of crude and natural gas output, analysts said.

Lea la nota en espanol.

Despite higher international oil prices last year, the best-case scenario is that crude reserves remained flat, according to Daniel Guardiola, an analyst at Banco BTG Pactual.

While the Petro administration has refused to issue new oil-exploration licenses, the ministries of energy, finance and industry in March said the reserves report would be key in determining policy going forth.

Read More: Ecopetrol Seeks to Boost Oil Output Amid Petro Restrictions

Were already seeing the impact of the uncertainty created by this administration and theres no reason to think things will change, said Sergio Cabrales, a professor at Bogotas Los Andes University. New contracts would need to come with attractive conditions and everything weve seen so far is completely the opposite.

Lawmakers last year barred oil and coal companies from deducting royalty payments from corporate taxes and imposed a windfall tax. Congress currently is considering a ban on fracking.

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Thank you for supporting our journalism. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at the Chicago Tribune.

Heidi Schrecks deeply personal Broadway show, What the Constitution Means to Me, explored how the U.S. Constitution, seemingly abstract as it may be, had profoundly influenced the life of an American woman in her mid-40s, and not just because the teenaged Schreck had been obsessed with attending legions of debate contests probing its interpretation, helping her snag scholarships for college.

This show, which I first saw in 2019, made the point that everything about that document has ramifications for the lives of individual Americans. Through direct address and a theatricalized version of informality, we learn how the Constitution actually had intersected for decades with Schrecks own experience in a rural West Coast family that had survived all manner of abuse at the hands of men. The piece is personal to the point of being confessional, but its brilliance  and this is a fantastic work of activist and feminist theater  is that it also universalizes the issues therein, and does so with an uncommon level of warmth and accessibility.

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Schreck understandably then wanted to convert her show, which must have been exhausting to perform, to something others could perform, rendering Heidi (and her sidekick, Mike Isaacson) as a character. The result was not ideal but workable, it turned out.

Thus the piece went out on tour and landed in Chicago with Marie Dizzia in March 2020, which turned to be the worst month to start a tour since days of the Black Plague. Dizzia was terrific and Isaacson stuck with the show, but it was closed in a matter of days. It returned in 2021 with Cassie Beck, but the momentum was sadly lost.

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Fast forward to TimeLine Theatre on Wednesday night for the first local production of the work. That means not just a different actress and actor (Beth Lacke and Raymond Fox), but a new and more intimate production, as directed by Helen Young on a fresh-eyed setting from Jessica Kuehnau Wardell.

Beth Lacke, Raymond Fox and Makalah Simpson in What the Constitution Means to Me at TimeLine Theatre. (Brett Beiner)

You have to take this review as the work of someone seeing this piece for the fourth time. If youve never seen Constitution and you are interested in the Supreme Court and the impact of its decisions, its absolutely worth experiencing this production on Wellington Avenue in Lakeview. This is a really adroit piece of writing and unique in how it addresses its audience and explores the intersection of constitutional law and everyday life. On Broadway, it attracted big numbers of mothers and their teenaged daughters, something that delighted Schreck and was a fine thing for democracy. Nothing Im saying below should discourage that, especially given this shows educational power and also what has happened with the Supreme Court since 2019.

Nonetheless, I think this new production still has a ways to go: the main issue is that it is insufficiently confident and thus a tad chilly, muted, uncertain and pre-packaged. The trick here is to base things on the script (which could use an update now), but make it feel like the work has been ignited and that anything can happen, at this moment in this theater. At the performance I saw, the show had some cool new ideas but hadnt fully self-animated; the productions hesitancies are especially notable toward the end of the main part, which does not rise in stakes, vulnerability and tension as it could and should, so that the conclusion feels both tragic and hopeful.

By the coda, where the piece showcases a young debater (the terrific Makalah Simpson at the performance I saw), Lacke had found her way toward the right personal relationship with the audience. Id give this piece a few more days to settle, interact with audiences and find its heart.

Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.

cjones5@chicagotribune.com

Review: What the Constitution Means to Me (3 stars)

When: Through July 2

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Where: TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave.

Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Tickets: $52-$67 at 773-281-8463 and timelinetheatre.com
Colombia plane crash: Four child survivors found in Amazon rainforest two weeks later

Four children missing after a plane crash in Colombia have been found alive two weeks later, the country's president said Wednesday.

Authorities and the military have searched the Colombia Amazon for the children, ages 13, nine, four and an 11-month-old baby and two other passengers.

WOMAN FOUND DEAD AT YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, RANGERS ARREST MAN

"After arduous search efforts by our Military Forces, we have found alive the 4 children who had disappeared due to the plane crash in Guaviare. A joy for the country," President Gustavo Petro tweeted.

One person was found dead by Colombian authorities after a plane crashed in the Amazon. Four children out of six passengers have been found.

The plane disappeared from radar on May 1 during a flight over the Amazon rainforest, authorities said, One person was found dead inside the aircraft and six passengers had been unaccounted for.

Avianline Charter, the company that operated the commercial flight, confirmed the dead body was of the pilot, AFP reported. The plane was headed toward San Jose del Guaviare, one of the main cities in Colombia's Amazon rainforest.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

The cause of the crash has not been determined.
A photograph released by Colombia's armed forces shows soldiers and sniffer dogs searching for the missing children

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Thursday retracted his claim that four Indigenous children missing for more than two weeks after an airplane crash in the Amazon had been found alive.

Writing on Twitter, Petro said he had deleted his tweet from Wednesday night in which he had announced the rescue of the four children, including an 11-month-old baby.

"I am sorry for what happened. The military forces and Indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for," he said in his retraction.

More than 100 soldiers have been deployed with sniffer dogs to search for the minors who were traveling in an airplane that crashed on May 1, leaving three adults including the pilot and the children's mother dead.

Rescuers believe the children -- who in addition to the 11-month-old include a 13, nine and four-year-old -- have been wandering through the jungle in the southern Caqueta department since the crash.

"At this time there is no other priority other than progressing with the search until finding them," added Petro. "The children's lives are the most important thing."

Petro's stunning announcement on Wednesday had been met with uncertainty as he gave no details about where or how the children had been rescued, nor how they had survived alone in the jungle.

Amid widespread confusion, the military has not confirmed any rescue.

Avianline Charters, owner of the crashed aircraft, had previously said that one of its pilots in the search area was told the children had been found and that they "were being transported by boat downriver and that they were all alive."

But the company also said that "there has been no official confirmation" that the children were out of danger, and thunderstorms posed a risk to them reaching safety.

Petro said on Thursday that the news of the supposed rescue had been provided by the government's Institute of Family Welfare.

lv/gm/bc/bgs
A photograph released by Colombia's armed forces shows soldiers and sniffer dogs searching for the missing children

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Thursday retracted his claim that four Indigenous children missing for more than two weeks after an airplane crash in the Amazon had been found alive.

Writing on Twitter, Petro said he had deleted his tweet from Wednesday night in which he had announced the rescue of the four children, including an 11-month-old baby.

"I am sorry for what happened. The military forces and Indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for," he said.

More than 100 soldiers have been deployed with sniffer dogs to search for the minors who were traveling in an airplane that crashed on May 1, leaving three adults including the pilot and the children's mother dead.

Rescuers believe the children -- who in addition to the 11-month-old are aged 13, nine and four -- have been wandering through the jungle in the southern Caqueta department since the crash.

"At this time there is no other priority other than progressing with the search until finding them," added Petro. "The children's lives are the most important thing."

Petro's stunning announcement on Wednesday had been met with uncertainty as he gave no details about where or how the children had been rescued, nor how they had survived alone in the jungle.

"Joy for the country," he had declared.

Amid widespread confusion, the military has not commented since Petro's announcement on Wednesday.

The children's grandfather, Fidencio Valencia said there was hope that they would be found alive since "they are used to being in the jungle."

He said they might be hiding out of fear but he told a local television newscast that "Indigenous energy" would help the rescuers locate them.

- Signs of survival -

The government's Institute of Family Welfare said that it had on Wednesday received "information from the territory confirming contact with the four children."

It said the report indicated that "they had been found alive and are also in good health."

However, the agency acknowledged that the military had not been able to "establish official contact" due to bad weather and difficult terrain, and were continuing search and rescue operations.

Avianline Charters, owner of the crashed aircraft, had previously said that one of its pilots in the search area was told the children had been found and that they were being taken by boat downriver.

But the company also said that there was no confirmation that the children were out of danger, and thunderstorms posed a risk to them reaching safety.

On Wednesday, the armed forces had said their search efforts intensified after rescuers came across a "shelter built in an improvised way with sticks and branches," leading them to believe there were survivors.

In photographs released by the military, scissors, shoes, and hair ties could be seen among branches on the jungle floor.

A baby's drinking bottle and half-eaten pieces of fruit had been spotted before the shelter's discovery.

On Monday and Tuesday, soldiers found the bodies of the pilot and two adults who had been flying from a jungle location to San Jose del Guaviare, one of the main cities in Colombia's east where grasslands give way to Amazon rainforest.

- Difficult access -

Giant trees that can grow up to 40 meters tall and heavy rainfall made the "Operation Hope" search difficult.

Three helicopters were used to help, one of which blasted out a recorded message from the children's grandmother in their native Huitoto language telling them to stop moving through the jungle.

Authorities have not indicated what caused the plane crash.

The pilot had reported problems with the engine just minutes before the airplane disappeared from radars, Colombia's disaster response body said.

It is a region with few roads and is also difficult to access by river, so airplane transport is common.

The children are from the Indigenous Huitoto community, also spelled Witoto, who are known for living in harmony with the jungle.

The community develops skills in hunting, fishing and gathering, which may have helped the children to survive.

Exploitation, disease and assimilation have reduced the Huitoto population sharply over many decades.

lv/gm/bc/bgs/tjj/st/jh
Sniffer dogs found a pair of scissors which search teams think suggests the children survived

Colombian President Gustavo Petro says that there is no confirmation that four children who went missing after their plane crashed in the jungle more than two weeks ago have been rescued.

Search teams have found items they think belong to the children in the jungle as well as a makeshift shelter.

This has led them to believe the children have been wandering alone through the rainforest since the crash.

But Mr Petro said information about their rescue could not be verified.

The children - who range in age from between 13 years to 11 months - were on board a small plane along with their mother, a pilot and a co-pilot when it crashed on 1 May.

The adults all died in the crash.

News about the alleged rescue of the children was broken by the president himself on Wednesday afternoon local time, when he tweeted that they had been found "after arduous search efforts".

But less than 24 hours later, he deleted the tweet and shortly after wrote: "I have decided to delete the tweet because the information provided by the ICBF (Colombia's child welfare agency) could not be confirmed. I am sorry about what happened. The armed forced and the indigenous communities will carry on with their tireless search in order to give the country the news it is hoping for."

Colombia's child welfare agency had earlier said that the president's now-deleted tweet had been based on information it had provided.

It said in a statement that it had received information "from the field" that the children had been found in good health.

Its director, Astrid Caceres, told Colombian radio on Thursday morning that the information came from "reliable sources" and that the people who had contacted them had described the children's appearance, which matched those of the missing children.

However, Ms Caceres said that her agency had not yet been able to see the children and until such moment, the search effort would not be called off.

The child welfare agency was not alone in saying that it had received information that the four children had been rescued.

A pilot said he had also been told the children had been found by indigenous people deep in the rainforest.

Soldiers taking part in the search, however, said that they themselves had not yet been able to make contact with the children "due to the difficult meteorological conditions and the difficult terrain".

The Cessna 206 light aircraft the children and their mother had been in was flying from Araracuara, deep in the Amazon jungle in southern Colombia, to San Jose del Guaviare, when it disappeared in the morning of 1 May.

Its pilot had earlier reported engine problems.

After a huge search effort involving more than 100 soldiers, the plane was finally located on Monday, two weeks after it had disappeared.

The bodies of the pilot, the co-pilot and 33-year-old Magdalena Mucutuy, the mother of the four children, were found at the crash site in Caqueta province.

But the children were nowhere to be found.

The search teams have, however, found clues indicating that the children, who are from the Huitoto indigenous group, survived the crash.

Sniffer dogs came across a child's drinking bottle, a pair of scissors, a hair tie and some half-eaten fruit.

The search teams also found an improvised shelter made from sticks and branches.

"We think that the children who were aboard the plane are alive. We have found traces at a different location, away from the crash site, and a place where they may have sheltered," Colonel Juan Jose Lopez said on Wednesday.

Fearing that the children were wandering ever deeper into the jungle, the military deployed helicopters which played a recorded message from their grandmother in the Huitoto language urging them to stay put.

Reports of sightings of the children spread on Wednesday.

Avianline, a local plane operator which owned the crashed plane, released a statement saying that it had received reports that the children had been found.

One of its pilots who landed in Cachiporro, a community near the crash site, was told that locals there had been contacted by radio from a remote location called Dumar and been told that the children had been found. They would be taken by boat to Cachiporro, he said.

The company added that it had no way of confirming if the information was correct, but it did point out that the arrival of the children by boat may have been delayed by heavy rains, which have made the river too dangerous to navigate.

Indigenous radio stations also reported on Wednesday that the children had been found by a local, and were being transported by river to Cachiporro.

The children's father has said that he is not giving up hope. He told Caracol Radio that his sister had once been lost in the forest for a month and managed to return.

It is thought that the Huitoto people's knowledge of fruits and jungle survival skills will have given the young children a better chance of surviving the ordeal.
Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther speaks during a press conference in the Short North to address the recent gun violence there.

Two consecutive weekends of gun violence in one of Columbus' most popular and bustling entertainment districts has prompted city leaders to enact a number of new strategies to crack down on crime in the Short North.

Read the series: Under Fire: An examination of gun violence across Columbus

Chief among the new safety measures that Mayor Andrew J. Ginther announced during a news conference on Thursday is the request that businesses voluntarily close at midnight for the upcoming weekend and beyond. Ginther said the request  which is for Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays  will likely remain in place for "as long as it takes" until the violence begins to abate in the neighborhood located just north of Downtown.

Short North: Will Short North businesses close early? Many still wrestling with choice

During a Thursday press conference, Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther requested that businesses in the Short North voluntarily close at midnight for the upcoming weekend and beyond as part of a series of strategies to crack down on crime in the area.

Additionally, Ginther said he is signing an executive order mandating that food carts in the Short North close at midnight as well, which he said City Council is expected to codify into law at its Monday meeting.

"It is time for us to take a clear, strong and united stand against gun violence in the streets of Columbus," Ginther said before assembled media in Poplar Park on the southern edge of the Short North. "Back-to-back weekends of deadly violence in this area have served as an alarming wake-up call to the entire community."

More on Short North violence: Columbus police release bodycam videos showing police responding to Short North gunfire

Police response changes after gun violence in Short North

The measures come four days after a 21-year-old man was shot and killed in the neighborhood  known for its art galleries and night life  after a fight escalated to gun violence, and nearly two weeks after a May 6 shootout on North High Street that left at least 10 people wounded and resulted in police firing their own weapons and seizing 11 guns.

Aftermath of Short North shootings: In Short North, many remain undeterred despite two weekends of gun violence

That chaotic shooting spree, which left the Short North cordoned off for hours by crime scene tape, sent bullets through glass windows on store fronts, careening off buildings and ricocheting elsewhere. Even more than a week later, the resulting damage remained evident, with shattered glass and bullet holes still visible in many Short North shop fronts.

Bullet holes in Jolie Occasions' windows were evident after the May 6 shootings in the Short North.

In the wake of the gun violence, Columbus police Chief Elaine Bryant said that beginning this weekend, between the hours of 8 p.m. and 4 a.m., officers will have an increased presence in cruisers, on bicycles and on foot in the Short North. Extra lighting will be placed in certain areas, she added.

The Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9 confirmed that all personal time-off requests for officers working second, third or evening midwatch shifts have been canceled for the weekend to help provide staffing in the Short North and ensure the rest of the city continues to have a police presence.

Recruiting more police: Can Columbus meet Mayor Ginther's goal of record police on city's streets in 2024?

In the wake of recent gun violence, Columbus police Chief Elaine Bryant said during a Thursday press conference that beginning this weekend, between the hours of 8 p.m. and 4 a.m., officers will have an increased presence in cruisers, on bicycles and on foot in the Short North.

Street parking between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. also will be prohibited on Friday and Saturday on North High Street between East Goodale Street and West Fifth Avenue, Bryant said. That means ride share drivers will only be able to use the curb lanes and Central Ohio Transit Authority bus lanes to pickup and drop off passengers.

Safety funding approved: Columbus City Council approves $500,000 for safety efforts for Short North, Downtown

Officers with the Columbus Division of Police are expected to increase enforcement of the city's curfew law this weekend as well, prohibiting those between the ages of 13 and 17 from being out between midnight and 4:30 a.m., Bryant said.

The Short North neighborhood, which has experienced two consecutive weekends of gun violence.

"Violence in the Short North or anywhere, it will stop  we will track you through data, targeted enforcement and we will put resources where violence is most likely to occur," Bryant said during the news conference. "Our officers are prepared to strictly enforce illegal, unruly behaviors."

'Operation Burnout' moves to Short North

"Operation Burnout," a Columbus police effort to shut down the illegal street takeover events that have cropped up in various parts of the city, also will be implemented in the Short North, Bryant said. During the past two weekends, Bryant said the operation has led to 54 misdemeanor traffic citations, five misdemeanor court summons, four felony arrests, three arrests on warrants, five firearms seized and 13 vehicles impounded.

'You race, you lose': Columbus officials warn illegal street racers as city cracks down

Street takeover events: Columbus police looking to identify 16 people involved in East Side street takeover

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said Thursday that anyone engaged in illegal street takeovers or street racing, whether in the Short North or elsewhere, will receive no plea bargain if they are arrested and charged with a crime. Suspects will also be required to pay court costs and fines, and their vehicles will be impounded and held as evidence while the cases are pending.

"We are not messing around because this threatens every single person across the city of Columbus," Klein said.

More: Full police impound lot means abandoned vehicles increasing on Columbus streets

Klein said his office has heard from residents in the Short North who are increasingly concerned about safety issues in parking lots, where young people often gather to drink, do drugs and cause other problems. Klein said his office has reached out to the neighborhood's parking lot owners and said he remains willing to file nuisance abatement lawsuits against those who don't take steps to address the problems.

'Someone needs to put a stop to it:' Columbus leaders take action amid nightclub shootings

Other actions have been taken as well to improve safety in the area. Following the second recent shooting, Columbus City Council on Monday approved $500,000 for additional safety measures for Downtown and the Short North.

Marc Conte, executive director of the Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District, which covers part of Downtown, previously said the money will go toward more special duty officers, including some during the day, plus additional training for the group's security operations and private security with an eye toward de-escalation.

Interest in the Short North continues, despite recent violence

Despite the rash of gun violence, many have told The Dispatch that they remain undeterred from visiting the Short North. Much of their reasoning has to do with the hours at which the worst of the violence takes place.

Summer programming: Columbus investing $20.1 million on summer youth programming, in part to deter violence

Of the 712 criminal incidents recorded in 2022 by the Short North Crime Interdiction Program, a partnership with Columbus police, 36 were considered extreme or violent, including fights, robberies, and reported shots fired. According to the Short North Alliance, a nonprofit organization serving the district's business and property owners, all incidents involving gun violence took place after 1 a.m.

The recent death of Arthur Pickens took place after he was shot around 2:45 a.m. Sunday in the 900 block of North High Street outside SeeSaw Kitchen + Bar. A week prior, when gunfire erupted during two separate incidents in the Short North on May 6, events happened around 2:30 a.m.

"The vast majority of the time, the Short North is incredibly safe, so there's no surprise to me that most people feel safe," Betsy Pandora, executive director of the Short North Alliance, told The Dispatch. "The Short North is an incredibly resilient community."

Will businesses in the Short North willingly close early?

Pandora expressed confidence that in an entertainment district comprised of 300 businesses, a third of which are eating and drinking establishments, many owners will willingly comply with the request to close early on weekends.

Ginther also said he believed businesses would agree to closing early, despite the potential financial loss. If they don't, Ginther said they would have the "full and undivided attention of city, county and state law enforcement."

However, not all business owners in the Short North may be happy.

Ed Hastie, an attorney who represents at least four owners and numerous establishments along the Short North, said bars and restaurants in the area have been doing everything asked of them and are being unnecessarily targeted by the city. He argued that the city needs to enforce open container laws and underage drinking laws, while cracking down on those smoking marijuana in public.

"By my conservative estimate, the bars and restaurants spend at least $1 million a year hiring special duty officers, probably twice that on private security," Hastie said.

He called the city's statement about cracking down on establishments that don't comply with closing at midnight "an unnecessary and unproductive threat." Estimates by the Short North Alliance and others show revenue losses of more than 20% by closing two hours earlier, he said.

"The city has not held up its end of the bargain," Hastie said, indicating that there are no serious problems inside the bars that aren't being addressed by Ohio liquor control officials. "They (problems) happen out by the food trucks and out in the streets. It's the Wild West outside of the bars. Inside, there are no fights."

"We want to fix these problems. Let's see the commitment by the city to enforce the laws."

Gun legislation: Columbus City Attorney files new lawsuit against state in battle over local gun laws

But Ginther insisted the measures are necessary if the violence is to ease. And he called on the community to report tips of any criminal activity to law enforcement and, when safe, to intervene.

"We will not allow a few hours of lawless and reckless behavior committed by an extremely small number of people to continue or to take another life," Ginther said. "We will not allow these dangerous criminals to dismantle a revered community treasure like the Short North."

Dispatch reporters Bethany Bruner and Dean Narciso contributed to this article.

Eric Lagatta is a reporter at The Columbus Dispatch covering public safety, with a focus on in-depth coverage of social justice issues and crime trends.

elagatta@dispatch.com

@EricLagatta

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus leaders asking Short North businesses to close at midnight
Ricardo Acosta prepares food at a Taco John's restaurant in Denver on Tuesday. Taco Bell is asking U.S. regulators to force Wyoming-based Taco John's to abandon its long-standing claim to the "Taco Tuesday" trademark. (Thomas Peipert / Associated Press)

It was Tuesday. I was hungry. So I went out to enjoy a dinner that millions of Americans have gobbled up on that day for decades.

Tacos.

I stopped by Chapter One: The Modern Bistro, a restaurant in downtown Santa Ana I have haunted almost from the moment it opened 12 years ago. My wife and I love the place for its hearty food, its stiff drinks and especially owner Jeff Jensen, a native santanero who always greets us with a smile and the latest gossip.

More often than not, we stop by on Taco Tuesday.

Chapter One has held the promotion for at least a decade, and we love all the specials: ground shrimp taquitos we dunk in a thick cilantro lime salsa. Potato and chorizo tacos topped with slaw and served on a slightly crisped handmade corn tortilla. On the Tuesday I visited, I ordered the rib-eye tacos, which Jensen had just added and which were spectacular.

He has known that Tuesdays are for tacos throughout his 20-some years in the restaurant industry  even at the Irish pub in Newport Beach he managed before opening Chapter One.

We would do corned beef tacos over there, he said. They were good.

I wasnt surprised by his incredulous look when I asked if he knew that Taco Tuesday is trademarked and that any restaurant using the term as a promotion is technically breaking the law.

Uh, doesnt everyone use it? he asked as a happy hour rush filled tables and booths and bar. He tried to gather his thoughts  it was as if I had said the sun is actually the moon.

"Whats next  Wine Wednesday? Sunday Funday? Margarita Monday? he said.

(The first one isn't trademarked; the latter two are.)

Since 1989, the Wyoming-based fast-food chain Taco Johns has held the Taco Tuesday trademark in every U.S. state except New Jersey, where Gregorys Restaurant and Bar in Somers Point won exclusive use in 1982. Taco Johns has vigorously defended its rights, to the point of sending cease-and-desist letters to restaurants that use "Taco Tuesday" to promote, well, tacos on Tuesday.

The company, with nearly 400 restaurants mostly located in Mexican culinary hellscapes like Montana and North Dakota, has long ignored calls by taco scholars like myself to let the trademark enter the public domain. It argues that it was the first restaurant to use Taco Tuesday, that the name is an integral part of its identity, and that other restaurants will confuse consumers into thinking that Taco Johns is associated with them.

When I asked Jensen if a customer had ever complained that Chapter Ones Taco Tuesday promotion messed with Taco Johns business, he laughed.

The first time I ever heard of Taco Johns, Jensen deadpanned, is sitting here talking to you.

Taco John's has swatted away six previous attempts to cancel its trademark. That doesn't include a 2019 effort by Lakers star LeBron James to also trademark "Taco Tuesday," which the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office rejected, asserting that the phrase is "a commonplace term ... that merely conveys an ordinary, familiar, well-recognized concept or sentiment.

Now comes a new run at Taco John's by none other than Taco Bell, filed on  when else?  Taco Tuesday.

A Taco Bell cantina restaurant in Hollywood. Since 1989, the Wyoming-based fast-food chain Taco John's has held the "Taco Tuesday" trademark in every U.S. state except New Jersey. (Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)

The Irvine-based giant vowed in a press release not to claim the phrase as its own if it succeeds in having the trademark canceled, proclaiming, The very essence of Taco Tuesday is to celebrate the commonality amongst people of all walks of life who come together every week to celebrate something as simple, yet culturally phenomenal, as the taco.

Taco Johns didnt blink.

When a big, bad bully threatens to take away the mark our forefathers originated so many decades ago, Taco Johns Chief Executive Jim Creel thundered in his press release, well, that just rings hollow to us.

Im no fan of Taco Bell  the food is too salty, and Del Taco is way better  but Im rooting for it. Sometimes, the big man on campus has to smack down the snot-nosed upstart. (Just ask the Dodgers and the Padres.)

Not only has Taco Johns needlessly harassed too many mom-and-pop restaurants with silly cease-and-desist letters, but the chain  whose only real innovation with Mexican food is putting tater tots inside breakfast burritos  has continuously changed the very "Taco Tuesday" origin story Creel brags about. As I documented in a 2018 article for Thrillist, executives have alternately claimed that Taco Johns Taco Tuesday started in 1982, 1983 or 1979, that the first location to use it was in Minnesota, and that the promotion first went by "Taco Twosday."

But by the mid-1970s, dozens of restaurants across the United States had already adopted Taco Tuesday  for instance, the underrated Inland Empire chain Bakers Drive-Thru began its campaign in 1976. Before that, restaurants have advertised Tuesday taco specials as far back as the 1930s.

The truth has never mattered to Taco Johns. Its leaders know the history of Mexican food in the United States is littered with creation myths  the margarita, Doritos, Korean tacos  that people retell because they want to believe them. My colleague Sam Dean wrote about former Frito-Lay executive Richard Montanez telling anyone who would listen that he thought up Flamin Hot Cheetos, even though theres ample evidence he didnt. That didnt stop Eva Longoria from directing a film about Montanezs life, scheduled for a June release, that passes off his story as the truth.

A Wyoming-based company creating Taco Tuesday would be a great yarn, if it were true. It would speak to how Mexican cuisine appeals to all Americans, inspiring even Midwesterners to coin memorable couplets hailing its powers. The danger when people like Montanez and companies like Taco Johns double-down on their fast-food fables, however, is that truth is degraded in an era where it's more precarious than ever.

To act like Taco John's and tell a self-serving tale, double-down when someone proves it false, then blast naysayers as haters is downright Trumpian  and who needs Donald Trump with their tacos? Especially on a Tuesday?

It was pretty smart that [Taco Johns] got their hands on the trademark, Jensen admitted. But what have they done with it? If theyre just using it to send cease-and-desist letters, what a waste. If Taco Bell is challenging to stop this from happening, Im going to side with Taco Bell.

His family had joined us. He told his wife about the trademark. Thats ridiculous, she said. "Everyone uses it!"

Jensen then looked at his 2-year-old daughter. Guess what day it is today? Taco Tuuuuuues-day!

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Come July, it will be easier to catch a train between Raleigh and Charlotte

With record numbers of people riding state-sponsored Amtrak trains, the N.C. Department of Transportation is adding another daily round trip of the Piedmont between Raleigh and Charlotte.

NCDOT has overhauled its passenger train schedule to add a 1 p.m. departure of the Piedmont from Raleigh headed south and an additional afternoon northbound train leaving Charlotte.

When the new schedule goes into effect July 10, the Piedmont will make four round trips a day between Raleigh and Charlotte, with stops in Cary, Durham, Burlington, Greensboro, High Point, Salisbury and Kannapolis.

Including the Carolinian, a state-subsidized Amtrak train that runs between Charlotte and New York City, people will be able to choose from five daily round trips between the states two largest metro areas.

The Piedmont and Carolinian carried 522,550 people last year, the most since NC By Train, the states intercity rail program, began in 1990. The trend has continued this year; April was the second busiest month in the systems history, with more than 53,300 passengers.

The service is doing as well as its ever done in its entire history, said Jason Orthner, director of NCDOTs Rail Division. This is an opportunity for us to give riders more options during the day.

By adding more trains and making them more convenient, Orthner said, NCDOT expects ridership to grow even more.

We find that as you provide more frequencies for folks, more opportunities for them to travel back and forth, that becomes part of their decision making, he said.

Riders heading southbound will find the new schedule very similar to the existing one, except for the 1 p.m. departure from Raleigh. But the northbound schedule will be significantly different, with Piedmont trains leaving Charlotte at 2:20, 5:30 and 7:45 p.m., all new times.

The Carolinian schedule will remain unchanged.

Two trips of the Piedmont  the 6:30 a.m. from Raleigh and the 5:30 p.m. from Charlotte  will take just under three hours, if all goes well. Most of the other Piedmont trips are a bit longer, up to three hours and 16 minutes.

The state has received $157 million in federal grants to buy new locomotives and 26 new passenger cars, but doesnt expect to receive them for another few years. In the meantime, NCDOT will be able to increase service on the Piedmont with the equipment it has, Orthner said.

The Piedmont made its inaugural run from Raleigh to Charlotte in May 1995. By then, the Carolinian had been making daily round trips between Charlotte and New York for five years. NCDOT added a second daily round trip of the Piedmont in 2010 and a third in 2018.

Travelers can get more information and reserve tickets on the new trains at www.ncbytrain.org.
The commander of the Armys Pueblo Chemical Depot, Colorado, received a suspension from his leadership role amid an ongoing investigation, Army officials confirmed.

Col. Jason Lacroix, who led the depot for nearly two years, was suspended earlier this month pending an internal investigation, Justine Barati, a spokesperson for the Armys Joint Munitions Command, confirmed to Military Times. Details as to why the investigation is taking place were not immediately available.

The installations deputy commander, Sheila Johnson, is now in charge, Barati said, adding there has been no impact to the depots operations.

Pueblo Chemical Depot is one of two remaining Army installations in the United States that stores chemical weapons, the other being Blue Grass Army Depot, Kentucky.

The Colorado site originally stored more than 2,600 tons of mustard agent in projectiles and mortar rounds and expects to completely destroy its remaining stockpile this year, according to the program office that oversees the process.

Lacroix became the 39th commander of the installation in June 2021, according to a bio shared by the depot. Prior to serving at Pueblo, he was a senior military advisor for the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction in Washington, D.C. Before that, he served as a plans officer with Army Futures Command.

Lacroix did not immediately respond to a request for comment via social media.
A commission studying sites for Washingtons next potential major airport still could recommend which location it prefers despite passage of a bill this week handing off examination of the states aviation future to a new group.

The Commercial Aviation Coordination Commission is planning to meet next month, and any vote is possible, according to commission Chairman Warren Hendrickson.

They could still pick one of the three greenfield sites, Hendrickson, a non-voting member, said in an interview Tuesday. That jury is still out until we have that next meeting.

Any recommendation would seemingly fall flat. Engrossed Subsitute House Bill 1791, signed by Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday, protects the three finalist greenfield sites under CACC consideration from airport development. There were also clear signals from Inslee this week that a new airport is no longer a top priority to addressing Washingtons projected shortage in flight capacity.

But the CACC is moving forward with fulfilling its statutory mission, according to Hendrickson, after it was created in 2019 by the Legislature and tasked with identifying a preferred site for a new airport. It homed in on three options in or near Graham, Roy and East Olympia in September, setting off a months-long campaign from residents, lawmakers and others to prevent it from singling a choice.

Jake Pool, a lead organizer with the Coalition Against Graham and Eatonville-Roy Airports, said in an interview Tuesday that he worried a recommendation could be used by lawmakers in the future to legitimize a site as a prospective location for a new airport.

All the signs are saying, You need to stop, Pool said, speaking about the commission.

CACC plans to move forward

ESHB 1791, the bill signed Monday, effectively reset the states approach to addressing its future aviation needs, creating a new work group to investigate capacity demand in Washington with all state transportation in mind.

The bill shields any greenfield site conflicting with nearby military operations from further exploration  Joint Base Lewis-McChord officials have said each finalist site would do so  and Inslee signaled Monday that contemplation of a new airport should occur only after first launching a full and deeper study of the potential for expanding existing airports.

Most notably, the bill was expected to immediately disband the CACC.

Anti-airport activists wanted the group shelved before a June 15 deadline for the commission to make a site recommendation and file its final report to the state. In one of four sections he vetoed in the bill, Inslee opted not to cut the cord but to essentially allow the commission to naturally expire on June 30.

The groups final report, Inslee wrote in a veto message, should reflect the findings of the Commission that they do not have a single site recommendation at this time.

On Tuesday, Inslee spokesperson Mike Faulk said in an email to The News Tribune that the governor asked the commission to avoid recommending a single site given the outcry from nearby communities.

In an interview Wendesday, Hendrickson said that he had not heard of that request. When asked to address Inslees veto message referring to the groups findings, Hendrickson also said it was premature to suggest that the commission had reached any conclusion.

Two voting CACC members reached by The News Tribune on Tuesday said they did not have any insight into Inslees request of the group or whether the group had indicated to the governor that it wouldnt make a final site recommendation. A third referred questions to Hendrickson.

Worst thing that could happen

Hendrickson said the commission was now racing to make up lost time after canceling its meeting earlier this month following the Senates passage of ESHB 1791. He said the group nixed that planned session out of respect for lawmakers intentions to disband the group.

As it scrambles to put a meeting together  potentially offering an in-person option after exclusively convening virtually  its possible that the group makes a recommendation by June 15 but doesnt file its report until after the deadline, he said.

The group will need to have a quorum in order to take any action, which recent history suggested was not a certainty.

In late March, the commission lacked a quorum necessary to vote on any site and also did not appear to be close to a decision. Hendrickson said that all members, including non-voting ones, had recently been surveyed about their opinions on which site, if any, to recommend. He said results provided some indications of their thinking, but he declined to provide information about what the responses showed prior to learning the final outcome.

The CACC had previously been comprised of 12 voting members. Hendrickson said Wednesday he heard that Inslee recently approved the CACCs request from February to add two more members. Nine members are needed to constitute a quorum, and nine is also the number of votes needed to pass any recommendation.

As the CACC went from a standstill to full speed ahead this week, Hendrickson acknowledged the difficulty of pulling together a meeting with enough members by June 15.

For me, personally, it was almost the worst thing that could happen, he said.

Other vetoes

For Pool and others, ESHB 1791 accomplished what they had been seeking: an assurance that their backyards wouldnt be targeted for an airport, disrupting quality of life, wildlife and the environment. But Inslees vetoes and subsequent statements also caused scrambling to decipher what they meant.

It was like a roller-coaster, Pool said.

A section of the bill was vetoed because it said a new work group that would succeed the CACC would review greenfield sites. Inslee indicated that he wanted to renew focus on potentially expanding existing airports, excluding Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, before considering possibly building new airport facilities.

In its own investigation, the commission concluded that expanding existing facilities alone would not fill a projected capacity gap of 27 million annual passengers by 2050.

In an email, Faulk said that Inslee had factored the CACCs findings into his veto decision-making and into his call for more closely examining the role of existing airports in helping to meet the projected shortfall.

The governor, like the Legislature, wants the group to continue exploring options at existing airports and do so this time within the broader context of state transportation needs, he said.

The same bill section also described in detail the function of the new work group. The veto left language in the bill only outlining its membership makeup and the broad task of investigating airport capacity and how best to address aviation demand in Washington.

Beyond that, the rest of the bill was set aside, Hendrickson said, adding that funding for the new work group had also been cut.

Pool noted that the bill section also included language that mandated certain impacts that the new work group must consider  including quality of life and environmental  and public outreach it must conduct. Bill proponents had fought for those terms, he said, adding that he hoped they would later be restored.

In an email, Faulk said there were no limitations on what the new work group could take into account.

There is nothing that prohibits the work group from considering impacts of expanding additional airports on communities, the environment and other impacts the work group deems necessary to include, he said.
Concord Police Sergeant Matthew Willet has been suspended from the department after being caught on video passing a stopped school bus just before 3 p.m. last Thursday on Odell Road, police say.

The department became aware of the incident after a parent shared the video on social media. Willet was cited by the North Carolina State Highway Patrol for passing a stopped school bus, the department released Monday.

According to a release from the department, the internal investigation into the May 11 incident has finished, and Concord Police Chief Gary Gacek shared this statement:

This week, a concerned parent posted to social media a video of a Concord Police cruiser illegally passing a stopped school bus. Parents of the child on that bus, as well as many in our community, were angry about what they saw. As a parent whose children rode the school bus for many years, I completely understand that anger. This officer, Matthew Willet, did the wrong thing.

The State Highway Patrol is the agency with jurisdiction where this occurred. We immediately gave them all the information they requested so they could investigate the officers actions. They ticketed and charged Matt for passing a stopped school bus, a class 1 misdemeanor in North Carolina. Hell have to appear in court, just like anyone else whos cited for the same violation.

But Concord police officers are held to higher standards. After completing an internal personnel investigation, Ive decided to suspend Matt without pay for five days.

ALSO READ: Concord police sergeant cited for passing stopped school bus, department confirms

Chief Gacek went on to explain that Willet accepted full responsibility and regretted his mistake. Investigators found that Willet was behind another car, then pulled into a turn lane and turned right into a neighborhood. According to the department, Willet didnt see the flashing lights and didnt know a child was about to be dropped off.

Many on social media were outraged at the incident and were calling on Gacek to fire Willet. In his statement, the chief acknowledged the error as a serious mistake but not enough to fire him.

(WATCH BELOW:Warrants: Officer arrested for child sex crimes was a church youth leader)












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Migrants wait in line adjacent to the border fence under the watch of the Texas National Guard to enter into El Paso, Texas, May 10, 2023. (Andres Leighton/AP)

HARLINGEN, Texas  An 8-year-old girl died Wednesday in Border Patrol custody, authorities said, a rare occurrence that comes as the agency struggles with overcrowding.

The child and her family were being held at a station in Harlingen, Texas, in Rio Grande Valley, one of the busiest corridors for illegal crossings, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Border Patrols parent agency, said in a statement.

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The girl experienced a medical emergency and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died, according to the statement, which did not disclose her nationality or provide additional information about the incident.

Customs and Border Protections internal affairs office will investigate, and the Homeland Security Departments inspector general and Harlingen police have been notified, Miller said. Sgt. Larry Moore, a spokesman for the Harlingen Police Department, said he had no information about the death.

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The Border Patrol had 28,717 people in custody on May 10, the day before pandemic-related asylum restrictions expired, which was double from two weeks earlier, according to a court filing. By Sunday, the number had dropped 23% to 22,259, still unusually high.

The average time in custody on Sunday was 77 hours, five hours more than the maximum allowed under agency policy.

Last week, the Border Patrol began releasing migrants in the U.S. without notices to appear in immigration court, instead directing them to report to an immigration office within 60 days. The move spares Border Patrol agents time-consuming processing duties, allowing them to open space in holding facilities. A federal judge in Florida ordered an end to the quick releases.

Also last week, a 17-year-old Honduran boy traveling alone died in U.S. Health and Human Services Department custody.
A group of lawmakers is stepping in to bolster reparation efforts that would benefit descendants of enslaved Africans.

On Wednesday, Reps. Cori Bush, D-Mo., Barbara Lee, D-Calif., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., stood in front of the Capitol as they unveiled Reparations Now, a resolution that urges the federal government to take action to compensate the descendants of slaves.. The measure is meant to bring attention back to H.R. 40, the slow-moving federal bill that has been introduced to Congress each term since 1989 and would create a commission to examine the issue.

Bush said at the press conference the nation has a moral and legal obligation to provide reparations to Black people for slavery and its resulting racist systems.

Black people in our country cannot wait any longer for our government to begin addressing each and every one of the extraordinary bits of harm, all of the harm it has caused since the founding, that it continues to perpetuate each and every day all across our communities, all across this country, Bush said.

The matter of reparations has been persistently in and out of headlines in recent years, and the 2020 protests following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor thrust the topic back into the spotlight, prompting states and cities to consider ways to compensate Black people. Supporters of the initiative have pointed to the discrimination and systemic racism that followed slavery as reason to think deeply about compensating Black people. Everything from redlining and segregation to poverty rates have come into play in the national conversation.

We know that we continue to live under slaverys vestiges, Bush continued on Wednesday.

We know how slavery has perpetuated Jim Crow. We know how slaverys impacts live on today, from the Black-white wealth gap to voter suppression to segregation and redlining to disparities in infant mortality rates and other health outcomes.

The resolution comes as California leaders are grappling with reparations at the state level. A first-in-the-nation statewide reparations task force has worked for nearly two years to go through a swatch of proposals and deliver a report on how Black Californians should be compensated. The nine-member task forces final report, due to lawmakers by July 1, will include a list of recommendations. Lawmakers in the panel have recommended that any reparations program include the payment of cash or its equivalent to eligible residents.

In 2021, Evanston, Illinois, became the first city in the country to fund reparations for Black residents, establishing a housing program as the first step in a $10 million reparation plan. Other cities and even religious education institutions have vowed to follow suit by funding various programs and setting up scholarships for Black people.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer speaking during the British Chambers Commerce Annual Global conference, at the QEII Centre, London

It is hard to believe that, a year ago, Sir Keir Starmer would have blithely announced that he would seek a new deal with the EU. The Labour leader was tarnished by his association with the campaign to block Brexit in the last parliament. He advocated a second referendum and came to be linked with the de haut en bas style of elite Remainers, many of whom treated Leave voters as a rabble whose opinions could be safely ignored.

Sir Keir has spent the past three years recanting, seeking to neutralise Brexit as a political issue for his party. Yesterday, however, he felt emboldened to commit a future Labour government to pursuing a closer trading relationship between the UK and the EU. His comments followed the owner of Vauxhall stating that it may have to close factories in Britain without changes to the terms of trade with Brussels. It said that the costs of electrical vehicle manufacturing in the UK may become unsustainable.

But this is not an inevitable consequence of Brexit, or of the deal that Boris Johnson negotiated with the bloc. Remainers might like to imagine that the only meaningful policy change that could boost UK prosperity is rejoining the Single Market or customs union (or admitting yet more migrants), but that is economic defeatism which could have been counteracted by a government committed to exploiting the practical benefits of our new freedoms.

Recent administrations have signally failed to do so. If manufacturers fear their operations will be rendered uneconomic by EU tariffs, surely the onus is on ministers to help to cut their costs in other ways  whether through lowering energy prices or reducing the burden of red tape. If Britain is gaining an unfortunate reputation as a difficult place in which to invest or do business, surely the Government should be acting immediately to correct this.

Instead, we have gone in the opposite direction, sharply increasing corporate taxes, persisting with the insanity of net zero within an unachievable time frame, and arguably out-regulating even the EU. Senior Conservatives appear embarrassed of even talking about Brexit, let alone defending it. Is it any wonder, then, that Nigel Farage now says the project has failed, blaming useless Tory politicians for mismanaging the UKs exit from the EU? Or that Sir Keir is preparing the ground for Brexits at least partial reversal?

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The Indiana Supreme Court has upheld the sentence of a man convicted of "horrific and brutal" crimes of killing, dismembering and eating parts of his ex-girlfriend, according to court records.

Joseph Oberhansley was convicted for the 2014 murder of Tammy Jo Blanton and sentenced to life in prison without parole. He appealed his life sentence in May 2022 through the Indiana Court of Appeals based on the argument that it was inappropriate due to a mental health disorder.

A 'tragic situation': What we know about the Shively Animal Clinic shooting

Oberhansley was initially arrested by police who came to do a welfare check at Blanton's home, where they found her body dismembered in her bathtub. Police said that parts of her organs were missing and later found in a frying pan and on a plate.

The man admitted to killing and dismembering Blanton but not before he told police that two men broke in and killed her instead. He said in court that police coerced the statement.

During the trial, prosecutors initially wanted to seek the death penalty but agreed not to pursue it if his attorneys didn't mention his mental health. There were several instances in which he was found to be incompetent for trial and was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

The appeal also alleged Oberhansley's sentence was inappropriate due to permanent brain damage he sustained from a shooting in which a 17-year-old Oberhansley killed the mother of his child along with nearly killing himself and his mother in a murder-suicide attempt.

He was on parole for shooting 17-year-old Sabrina Elder in 1998 in Utah, the same time that he shot and injured his mother and himself. He served 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

He was also on bond for other cases in Clark County, including a felony for choking a man.

More: What's the best place to live in Kentucky? Three cities make U.S. News and World Report list

Contact reporter Rae Johnson at RNJohnson@gannett.com. Follow them on Twitter at @RaeJ_33

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Joseph Oberhansley life sentence for killing Tammy Joe Blanton
John David Washington is starring in the upcoming sci-fi action thriller The Creator, and 20th Century Studios just released the first official trailer.

The film, which opens in theaters September 29, also stars Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Madeleine Yuna Voyles and Allison Janney.

Here's an official description:

Amidst a future war between the human race and the forces of artificial intelligence, Joshua (Washington), a hardened ex-special forces agent grieving the disappearance of his wife (Chan), is recruited to hunt down and kill the Creator, the elusive architect of advanced AI who has developed a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war and mankind itself. Joshua and his team of elite operatives journey across enemy lines, into the dark heart of AI-occupied territory only to discover the world-ending weapon hes been instructed to destroy is an AI in the form of a young child.

The film is directed by 'Gozillia's helmer Gareth Edwards.

The Creator is produced by Edwards, Kiri Hart, Jim Spencer, and Arnon Milchan. Yariv Milchan, Michael Schaefer, Natalie Lehmann, Nick Meyer and Zev Foreman serve as executive producers.

Check out the trailer below:
Crimean Tatar flag

Recalling the events which took place between 18 and 20 May 1944 means facing up to a story of horror and untold human tragedy. In one merciless swoop, the Soviet authorities dragged some 200,000 Crimean Tatar civilians from their homes and their loved ones. This barbaric forced migration policy, decreed by Joseph Stalin, inflicted unimaginable pain. Women, children, and the elderly were forcibly deported to Central Asia. The men, meanwhile, were thrust into the inferno of World War II. Around 8,000 people lost their lives thanks to the inhuman nature of their transit, while countless others perished in the brutal conditions of the lands to which they were transplanted, which were often unsuitable for a human existence.

But even as the mass deportation approaches its 80th anniversary, oppression of the Crimean Tatars has returned with a vengeance. While Crimean Tatars were granted the right to return to Crimea in 1989, since 2014 and Russias illegal occupation of the peninsula, its indigenous peoples have again been facing the state-sanctioned eradication of their religion, language, and identity  their very right to exist.

Read also: Crimea may lose its autonomy after liberation, Podolyak says

The Crimean Tatars have suffered enough

In a damning report published in April this year, the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights identified repeated patterns of human rights violations committed against the Crimean Tatar people. "The Crimean Tatars have suffered enough," she concluded. These violations have intensified and throughout Russias occupation and even more so since Russias full-scale invasion of the Ukrainian mainland, which has seen many Crimean Tatar men forcibly conscripted into the Russian army to fight their Ukrainian compatriots  a war crime in itself. This spring, Russia began its 17th illegal conscription campaign in Crimea since the occupation began, with a new law making it practically impossible for those conscripters to avoid service. With an estimated 80 per cent of summons being issued to Crimean Tatars, a group making up only 15 per cent of the Crimean population, it is clear they are being specifically targeted.

Read also: Russias last red line: Will the West help Ukraine liberate Crimea?  opinion

Conscription is not the only area in which Crimean Tatars face persecution. Journalists, religious leaders, and human rights defenders are frequently targeted for politically motivated prosecution. Innocent civilians find themselves accused of "terrorism" on ludicrously flimsy grounds. Citizen journalist Amet Suleimanov, for example, was one such victim of this campaign. Suleimanov has a serious heart condition which requires surgery. Nevertheless, he fearlessly reported on the persecution of Crimean Tatars by Russian security forces, for which a Russian court sentenced him to 12 years in prison. Considering the absence of proper medical care in Russian prisons and the gravity of his condition, his lawyers reckon that this sentence amounts to a slow death.

Suleimanovs case is not unique. Last February, it came to light that two Crimeans, one of them a Crimean Tatar, had died in detention after they were denied medical assistance. Both Kostiantyn Shyring and Dzhemil Hafarov had known medical conditions and were left to die by the Russian authorities regardless.

Read also: There can be no lasting peace with Russia until Ukraine liberates Crimea - opinion

The oppression and ongoing elimination of Crimean Tatars by the peninsulas occupiers is part of Russias plan to turn Crimea  a region known for its scenic beauty and rich history and culture  into a military barracks of enormous scale. The Port of Sevastopol has housed Russias Black Sea Fleet since 1783, but Russias military activity has now engulfed the entire peninsula. Its territory and surrounding waters have become springboards for missile attacks on Ukrainian civilians, its hospitals have been commandeered by the Russian military, and its schools have been reduced to tools for the indoctrination of Crimean children into the Kremlins militaristic and ethnonationalist worldview.

Suleimanov, Dzhepparov, and many other brave Crimeans have courageously risked their lives in the name of the rights of all Crimeans. But, today and every day, it becomes clearer and clearer that the liberation and de-militarisation of Crimea is imperative not just for the survival of the Crimean Tatar people, but is also a precondition for returning stability to the wider region. Russias illegal occupation of the peninsula cannot be allowed to continue.

Iris Molenaar is a consultant at International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Crimea may undergo "friendly militarization" after liberation from Russians, Zelenskyy administration says

A stand with the image of the Ukrposhta stamp

"Definitely, Crimea should be connected to mainland Ukraine to the greatest extent and, of course, should be integrated into European infrastructure as much as possible," Tasheva said.

She added that "friendly militarization" should take place on the peninsula. According to her, Ukrainian Crimea should completely rid itself of Russias Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol and instead be dedicated to the Ukrainian military.

Read also: Russia has removed all military equipment from northern Crimea base  Radio Liberty

Tasheva also noted that Crimea should be a touristically developed region, a year-round resort  but at the same time, it should not be limited to the stereotype of "sea, mountains, sun" but become a territory where its three indigenous peoples can be free to develop: Crimean Tatars, Karaites, and Krymchaks.

Earlier, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said that Ukraine would take Crimea without a fight. According to the Defense Minister, Ukraine is not considering a purely military counteroffensive.

Read also: Russia sets up radar station outside Kerch in occupied Crimea  satellite imagery

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Critics say 1bn for UK chip industry not enough

a semiconductor being held - stock photo

Critics have branded the UK government's delayed 1bn package of support for the semiconductor industry as "insignificant".

Semiconductors, or chips, are inside everything from phones to cars and the government has just unveiled a new 10-year strategy.

But it is facing allegations it is not enough - the US and EU have announced support closer to $50bn (40bn).

The PM said the plan would help turn the UK into a technology superpower.

Details were released shortly after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak agreed a partnership on semiconductors with Japan.

By boosting Britain's semiconductor industry "we will grow our economy, create new jobs and stay at the forefront of new technological breakthroughs", Mr Sunak said.

However, that ambition took a knock when Cambridge-based firm Arm, whose chip designs power many smartphones, chose to list its shares in New York rather than London.

Arm, arguably once Britain's biggest tech asset, was sold to Japanese firm Softbank despite calls for government intervention.

The UK's biggest chip plant in Newport was also very nearly taken over by a Chinese company.

But Rene Haas, Arm's current chief executive, did welcome the new regime which would help the UK play a part in global chip supply chains for the next generation of technology.

And trade body TechUK said it was a "starting gun" on a bright future for the UK semiconductor industry.

Tim Pullen, from British chip maker IQE, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that the government strategy is "definitely stepping" the industry in the "right direction.""It recognises the importance of semiconductors to the economy, to national security, and to supply chain security that's so vital to our lives and what we now need to do is work very closely with the government as we move to the execution phase," he said.

Small fry

But critics argue the sums on offer in the strategy, which had been expected to appear last autumn, are limited compared to other nations' efforts.

US support to its industry under the CHIPS Act totals $52bn, while the EU equivalent will amount to 43bn of aid.

The money is also small compared with private sector investment. This week Ireland saw semiconductor firm ADI invest 630m in a research and manufacturing facility in Limerick.

The chair of the House of Commons Business Select Committee, Labour MP Darren Jones, welcomed the strategy and the recognition of the need to invest but added, "the initial 250m is a very small amount of subsidy compared to other countries".

Under the strategy 200m will be invested between 2023-25 to provide infrastructure for industry, fund more research, and promote international co-operation.

'Frankly flaccid'

Labour shadow culture minister Lucy Powell said that after years of delays, the strategy would be met with disappointment and showed "significantly less ambition than our competitors".

Gaurav Gupta of consultants Gartner said the funding was fine for research, but if the ambition was to be competitive with the big players in the field - Nvidia, Qualcomm, Broadcom and AMD then the 1bn was "insignificant".

Dr Simon Thomas, chief executive of UK based graphene semiconductor start-up Paragraf, told the BBC the announcement was "quite frankly flaccid".

"It is a long way from addressing the needs of UK chipmakers," he said.

Zoe Kleinman, the BBC's technology editor said: "Many businesses making hardware say when there's a shortage, it's difficult to get a look-in with the enormous chip manufacturers because their output is hoovered up by giants like Apple with far deeper pockets than anybody else.

"Will the UK government have sharp enough elbows to muscle in? It is a noble ambition to attempt to "mitigate" supply chain issues but ultimately, if we aren't making chips at scale ourselves, we are always going to be at the mercy of someone else."

Design focus

The BBC, and other media, were not shown the full report ahead of publication, but a summary was provided by officials.

The strategy will focus on areas the UK is particularly good at: semiconductor design, cutting-edge "compound" semiconductors, and research - areas that also require less funding than large scale chip manufacturing where essential machines cost hundreds of millions of pounds.

The strategy will also try to increase the security of chip supply through international partnerships.

Recent pandemic-fuelled chip shortages disrupted supplies of products from games to cars and critical manufacturing is concentrated in a few countries, such as Taiwan.

Peter Claydon, the president of Picocom a chip design company based in Bristol, told the BBC it was good to have the strategy but said: "It's not a lot of money."

And he would have liked to have seen tax breaks used to support the industry and more emphasis on education to help supply the skilled professionals the industry needs.

However, he valued the strategy's emphasis on international cooperation, although he said it would have been better to have remained in the EU with its multi-billion euro programme, which was enough to "make some difference", he said.
The TikTok app is displayed on an Apple iPhone on August 7, 2020 in Washington, DC. Credit - Drew Angerer/Getty Images

On Wednesday, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed a first-of-its kind law to ban the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok in the state. The law, which is set to go into effect in January 2024, quickly came under fire for violation of free speech laws.

In a statement, Gianfortes office called the law an attempt to protect Montanans personal and private data from being harvested by the Chinese Communist party. Tech and legal experts say that how the ban is handled in the coming months could set a precedent for how TikTok, which has over 150 million users in the U.S., is regulated across the nation, especially as states and federal legislatures look towards restricting the platforms reach.

Right now were seeing a patchwork of efforts to limit the [app]- whether its limiting access for minors or prohibiting it from being downloaded on government devices, says Courtney Radsch, research fellow at the UCLA Institute for Technology, Law and Policy Institute.

Radsch notes that an outright ban in the state will lead to far more complications. This is going to be a tipping point because its likely to be challenged on a constitutional level.

How would the ban work?

The new law seems to places responsibility on the app stores and TikToks parent company, ByteDance, to regulate use rather than individual users. Platforms like Google and Apple would be required to remove the app from their app stores in the state and could face a $10,000 fine for each day they failed to comply. (Google and Apple did not return TIMEs request for comment.)

Its currently unclear how the ban would be enforced beyond that, or how it would impact users who downloaded the app before Jan. 1, but experts say that putting it into action will not be a simple task. Companies might try to use a tactic called geofencing to block the app based on a users geographical boundary, but users could easily utilize VPNs to change their location to another state.

It will be difficult to implement it in a way that cannot be circumvented, says Ramya Krishnan, a staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute.

Would the law hold up in court? ?

A lawsuit against the ban seems likely to come. Keegan Medrano, policy director at the ACLU of Montana, said in a May 17th statement that the Montana legislature has trampled on free speech. We will never trade our First Amendment rights for cheap political points.

In a statement published on Twitter Wednesday evening, TikTok said, We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana. TikTok did not return TIMEs request for comment.

[TikTok] is a place where lots of people are saying diverse things. To make that information inaccessible to Montanans, and to also prevent Montanans from contributing to that discourse, the government will have to show very compelling justifications, says Anupam Chander, a professor of law and technology at Georgetown University.

Any legal challenge might closely resemble the last time a TikTok ban was attempted. In 2020, courts blocked Trumps executive order to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat, ruling that the Trump administration hadnt demonstrated enough of a security risk to limit users speech.

Montanas ban hinges on the idea that the app is a security risk, but experts say the state doesnt have evidence to prove that. To justify the ban, Montana would have to show that its privacy and security concerns are real and that they cant be addressed in narrower ways, says Krishnan. It hasnt done this.

Krishnan adds that banning TikTok would set a dangerous precedent for how we regulate free speech online. Restricting access to foreign media is something we usually associate with authoritarian regimes, she says, And we should be very careful before giving that kind of power to our government.

How does this fit into the larger trend of banning TikTok?

Government officials in Montana have justified the law as a way to combat data collection and disinformation on the platform, a stance that is becoming increasingly common. Congress recently introduced the RESTRICT Act, which would allow the Secretary of Commerce to ban foreign technologies and companies from operating in the U.S. if they present a threat to national security.

The real issue here is the need for a national data protection law, says Radsch, who says that unregulated data collection is likely being done by tech companies both in the U.S. and abroad.

The most effective solution would be to pass a legislation that governs how data is collected and used. A lot of things are national security risks of some level. We use the internet all the time, where our daily activities are prone to hijacking by foreign actors, Chander says, The question of a national security threat is there, but its just important to keep in mind these risks are everywhere. Its not just one app or one domain.
A colorful array of terracotta, porcelain and other ceramics is currently on display at the Crocker Art Museum, part of a recently-opened exhibition celebrating Black artists.

But that was only the latest stage in an exhibition several years in the making.

A Gathering: Works from Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists opened May 7 at the Crocker, following a debut show last year at Minneapoliss Northern Clay Center. That show, in turn, grew from a 256-page book co-authored by exhibition curators Chotsani Elaine Dean and donald a clark that has been in the works since 2019.

clark, who stylizes his name in lower case, said the reason to do the book  which is for sale for $60 in Crockers gift shop, with discounts for museum members  was to get its artists work in front of as many people as possible. Getting shows in Minneapolis and now Sacramento, he added, meant even more people would see it.

It is a collection, gathering of rather wonderful work by a group of people and its work that doesnt necessarily get seen, clark said. And its unlikely that that body of work would typically end up in a museum setting.

What the exhibition consists of

Geographically, this show is diverse, representing ceramic artists from across the United States. It also represents a wide range of professional experience levels.

The exhibition includes sour, hot, bitter, and sweet, a ceremonial piece consisting of four porcelain plates atop a block of cedar. The pieces creator, 47-year-old Tacoma-based artist Kristina Batiste said the piece is based on a common ritual, a tasting of the elements that happens at Black weddings in both the United States and Africa.

I just wanted to do something that had some Black joy in it, said Batiste who began making work seven years ago after taking a community college course.

Others in the exhibition have been at their craft longer, such as Adero Willard, an academic who counts more than 25 years of artistic experience. Willard, who is currently based in New York but will begin teaching a ceramics course this fall at California State University, Sacramento, contributed a 2019 piece for the exhibition, Entangle #2.

I love being a part of the community of Black ceramics artists and to be recognized for what I feel is a long time in the field, Willard said.

In all, the show features 35 works. The show will run through Aug. 20 at the Crocker, whereupon it will head to Springfield, Massachusetts, where clark lives, for a six-month run at local venues.

Some works from the shows run in Minneapolis arent at the Crocker, with clark saying some artists had works theyve sold. Dean and clarks book also features artists not in the Crocker exhibition, such as Sacramento native Akinsanya Kambon who had a show at the Crocker from 2020-21 and still has work elsewhere in the museum.

A changing climate

The initial run of Dean and clarks show at the Northern Clay Center came just over two years after the murder of George Floyd by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Floyds murder touched off national protests and spurred a societal reckoning, including in the artistic world.

Northern Clay Center Deputy Director Tippy Maurant said one of her staff lives just three blocks from where Chauvin murdered Floyd. Maurant also noted that her center is in the citys third police precinct, where protesters burned down a police station in the tumultuous days that followed Floyds death.

But the public response to Floyds murder also helped elevate work the center had been doing around diverse representation, inclusivity and removing barriers to access. All of a sudden, we had buy-in from the whole world, Maurant said. And that made it so much easier to talk about it out loud.

Dean, who moved to Minneapolis about three months after Floyds murder to teach at University of Minnesota, has mixed feelings on what his death has catalyzed in the artistic world. You dont want every single idea or artistic expression to only be related to that, Dean said.

Still, the shift in the artistic world and broadening of opportunities for Black makers has been undeniable. Batiste said the new climate is reminiscent of the Black arts movement of the 1960s and 70s. It feels like that, again, that there is this space where were being seen in a way that we werent seen before, Batiste said.

The aftermath of Floyds death also helped generate some controversy around clark and Deans book and exhibition. clark, a 79-year-old white man, was originally going to write the book on his own. Dean, a 47-year-old Black woman, joined the project after 12 people signed a petition in 2020.

In a booklet for the shows run at the Northern Clay Center, clark wrote that the main concern presented in the petition was that as a white man, I couldnt record the powerful truth narratives of the Black community. clark told the Sacramento Bee he appreciated the criticism because it led to Deans involvement in the book, which improved it.

Maurants glad the book came about.

This book is a watershed moment in terms of discussing Black ceramic artists who are contemporary makers, Maurant said. It just didnt exist before.

Why this exhibition is happening in Sacramento

Just as it took multiple years for clark and Dean to recruit artists to contribute to their book and show, its had a long road to the Crocker.

clark initially reached out to a curator who no longer works at the museum hoping to get in contact with Kambon. The project was initially just going to be the book, though the curator told clark that if there was an exhibit, the Crocker might want it.

After the curator had moved on, Scott Shields  the Crockers Ted and Melza Barr chief curator and associate director  found the email, continued the conversation and echoed the previous interest to clark. I basically said, If it turns into a show, could we consider taking it in Sacramento? Shields said.

Through the course of their conversations, clark, a former gallerist, agreed to donate a sculpture of a horse from his personal collection by South Carolina artist Russell Biles to the Crocker.

Discussions to exhibit A Gathering locally also progressed, being far along by the time Rachel Gotlieb arrived in July 2021 to serve as the Crockers Ruth Rippon curator of ceramics. Because were so committed to contemporary ceramics, this was a no-brainer, Gotlieb said.

Katherine Bardis-Miry, a Crocker board member said she had gone to see the exhibition and thought it was phenomenal. The Crocker always does a really great job of bringing in new artists and thought-provoking exhibitions, Bardis-Miry said.

Shields is pleased as well at what discussions with clark led to.

It was just sort of a conception when we first started to talk about it, Shields said. So to see it as reality is great.

Dean said shes hopeful the exhibition can help show the public what artists do, that there are people who are thinking deeply about life, philosophical, the sociological, historical, all of it. And that they have an equal and valuable place in our world.

If you go

What: An artist workshop and conversation with Chotsani Elaine Dean

When: Workshop is 1-4 p.m. June 10; conversation at 11 a.m. June 11.

Where: Crocker Art Museum

Cost: $125 member/$155 nonmember for workshop; $12 member/$20 nonmember for conversation

Tickets: crockerart.org
A crucial deal aimed at averting a global food crisis has been extended. Heres everything you need to know

A crucial deal aimed at averting a global food crisis following Russias invasion of Ukraine has been extended for two months.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday an agreement has been reached with Russia and Ukraine to extend the Black Sea grain deal.

Ukraine is one of the worlds leading grain exporters but after the war began, Russia blockaded Ukrainian ports, sparking fears of a global famine.

Since last summer, an agreement between the two sides has enabled the safe passage of ships from Ukraine. It is the first and only major pact to be made between the warring sides since the outbreak of the war.

The deal has now been resuscitated for a third time after a question mark hung over its survival. Heres what you need to know.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a meeting in Ankara, on May 17, 2023. - Murat Kula/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

What is the Black Sea grain deal and why is it important?

The Black Sea grain deal was first reached in July 2022.

Russia had been blockading vital grain exports from key Ukrainian Black Sea ports, including Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Pivdennyi. US intelligence also indicated that Russian forces were deploying mines in the Black Sea.

The blockages meant that millions of tons of Ukrainian grain were not being exported to the many countries that rely on it.

The impact of the war on global food markets was immediate and extremely painful, especially because Ukraine is a major supplier of grain to the World Food Programme (WFP). According to the European Commission, Ukraine accounts for 10% of the world wheat market, 15% of the corn market, and 13% of the barley market. It is also a key global player in the market of sunflower oil.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an UN body, warned at the time that as many as 47 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity because of the war. Western officials accused Russia of using food as a weapon.

The deal  brokered by the United Nations and Turkey with Russia and Ukraine  created procedures to ensure the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports.

As part of the deal, grain ships were able to navigate through a safe corridor in the Black Sea under the direction of Ukrainian pilots, and then pass through the Bosphorus Strait  an important shipping corridor in north-west Turkey  in order to reach global markets.

The agreement has proven vital for stabilizing global food prices and bringing relief to the developing countries who rely on Ukrainian exports.

Since being struck the deal has enabled an estimated 900 ships to safely leave Black Sea ports, delivering 24 million tons of grain to countries as far afield as Africa and the Middle East.

Who are the main players?

The Black Sea grain deal was an agreement made between Russia and Ukraine  however, it was not a direct agreement. During its signing in Istanbul, representatives from Russia and Ukraine did not sit together during the ceremony, the Washington Post reported at the time.

NATO-member Turkey, who has positioned itself as an intermediary between Kyiv and Moscow since the beginning of the conflict, brokered the rare deal with the United Nations.

As part of its role in the pact, Turkey carries out inspections on all the merchant vessels that pass through the Black Sea in specially established safe corridors.

Another key creation of the deal is the Joint Coordination Center (JCC), which was set up in Istanbul under the auspices of the UN.

The JCC comprises 20 officials  five representatives each from Russia, Ukraine, the UN and Turkey  and is tasked with monitoring the movement of the vessels and ensuring that all sides are complying with the Initiative.

Why was its renewal for a third time in question?

The deals survival rests in Russias hands. Prior to its third renewal, the Kremlin had remained elusive as to whether it would remain in the pact.

The deal was initially brokered for a period of 120 days and was set to expire in November last year.

Russia suspended its participation for a few days in late October and early November last year, citing drone attacks on the city of Sevastopol in occupied Crimea. Moscow later announced that it would reverse course and rejoin the agreement for a further 120 days, following mediation.

The deal was renewed in March for another 60 days and had been due to expire again on Thursday, May 18.

Prior to Wednesdays announcement, it remained unclear whether the agreement would be renewed for a third time after two days of urgent talks in Istanbul earlier this month failed to reach a decisive outcome.

Bulk carrier ARGO I is docked at the grain terminal of the port of Odessa, Ukraine, on April 10, 2023. - Bo Amstrup/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP/Getty Images

Russia had once again threatened to quit the deal and cited a list of demands, largely over exports of its own food stuffs and fertilizers.

Moscow repeatedly complained that a separate agreement with the UN to facilitate shipments of Russian fertilizers and grain, which was brokered as part of the package last July, had not yielded results.

The Kremlin has also warned it would scrap the deal if the Group of Seven (G7) nations imposed further bans on exports to Russia as part of sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine. Bloomberg reported last month that G7 officials are considering whether to impose an outright ban on almost all exports to Russia, placing further economic pressure on the country.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin warned after the talks in Istanbul that if there was no consensus by May 18, the deal would cease to exist.

On Wednesday, on the brink of its expiry, Erdogan confirmed the deal would be extended for a further two months. This was followed by confirmation from Ukrainian and Russian officials.

Oleksandr Kubrakov, the Ukrainian minister of communities, territories and infrastructure development, said on Facebook: The grain deal has been unblocked and will continue to be in effect until July 18. The world will continue to receive Ukrainian products thanks to the efforts of our partners in the agreement - Turkey and the UN.

We are grateful to our partners for their unwavering and focused position that the agreement should continue to work and on the terms signed by all parties.

However, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned: Distortions in the implementation of the grain deal should be corrected as quickly as possible.

Does everyone gain from the grain deal?

Not quite. Following Russias blockade, the European Union lifted all duties on grain from Ukraine via land, to facilitate exports.

This, though, caused a glut of cheap Ukrainian grain to flow into central and eastern Europe, hitting the sales of local producers.

Demonstrators last month blocked traffic and border checkpoints with tractors along the border between Romania and Bulgaria, in an effort to prevent Ukrainian trucks from entering their country.

These visible signs of discontent were significant in a region of the world that has been consistently supportive of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. As BulgarianAgriculture Minister Yavor Gechev said: Bulgaria is in solidarity with Ukraine, but a local glut is being created on the agricultural market, because instead of export corridors our countries are becoming warehouses.

To quell the unrest, the EU subsequently adopted a temporary measure that bans wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seed originating in Ukraine from being exported to Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

This move, however, was criticized by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who slammed the protectionist measures as completely unacceptable.

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Officers investigate the scene where a 12-year-old boy and 16-year-old boy were shot in the 100 block of South Pulaski near the Legler Regional Library on May 16, 2023, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Two days after a pair of boys were shot outside a Chicago Public Library branch in West Garfield Park, local leaders and anti-violence activists gathered on the librarys front steps to call for more investment in underserved neighborhoods as a way to reduce the citys entrenched gun violence.

The boys, ages 12 and 16, were shot about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday outside the Legler Regional Branch library, 115 S. Pulaski Road, according to Chicago police. The circumstances of the shooting are unclear, but police said two suspects were taken into custody shortly after shots were fired.

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The boys were taken to area hospitals, with the younger boy in fair condition and the older boy in good condition.

Michelle Smiley, a victim advocate with the Institute For Nonviolence Chicago, said shes been in contact with the family of the younger boy, who remained hospitalized as of Thursday.

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The family is upset but theyre just praying for their loved one to safely heal quickly, Smiley said. It was disturbing, but God is in control and Im praying for our people and our community and our city.

Officers investigate the scene where a 12-year-old boy and 16-year-old boy were shot in the 100 block of South Pulaski on May 16, 2023, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Afternoon Briefing Daily Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >

The CPDs Harrison District, which covers most of the East and West Garfield Park neighborhoods, typically experiences the most gun violence of any of the departments 22 districts. Shootings are often the byproduct of gang disputes over drug turf. The West Side also sees the highest concentration of opioid-related deaths, according to the Cook County medical examiners office.

The event, the shooting, that we experienced here a couple days ago is nothing new to Chicago. It is a continued expression of the disease that we continue to be afflicted with within our communities, said Theodore Joseph Crawford, executive director of the Garfield Park Rite To Wellness Collaborative.

The ills of our community are well-documented: drug use, poverty, institutional racism, Crawford continued. They are the things that create the environments in which young people have guns in their hands  who naturally are emotional because they are immature emotionally  are gonna respond in ways that oftentimes cause harm to themselves and to others.

Alees Edwards was elected earlier this year as one of three members on the Harrison District Council, a three-person body that serves as a liaison between the districts residents and police officers. The district councils, which are in each of the 22 districts, were created by city ordinance in 2021.

[ For the 1st time ever, Chicago voters will elect police councils. Heres what it means for communities. ]

The Harrison District Councils first meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at the Legler Regional Branch, and Edwards said Tuesdays shooting will be among the issues to discuss.

This will not be our normal. We dont want to get used to these sorts of scenarios, Edwards said. This is not just their problem. This is all of our problem.

scharles@chicagotribune.com
James and Jennifer Crumbley, the first parents in America charged in a mass school shooting, are appealing to the Michigan Supreme Court, arguing the decision to charge them for a massacre carried out by their son was "clearly erroneous," sets a dangerous precedent and will "cause injustices."

"Of course, the desire to hold someone accountable for the tragedy that occurred at Oxford High School on November 30, 2021 is certainly understandable, but 'the temptation to stretch the law to fit the evil is an ancient one, and it must be resisted,' " defense attorney Shannon Smith argues in her latest filing, citing case law.

At issue for the Crumbleys is a series of lower-court decisions that essentially concluded there was enough evidence to bind them over for trial on involuntary manslaughter charges for the deadly 2021 Oxford High School shooting that was carried out by their son. Ethan Crumbley, who was 15 at the time, used a gun his parents bought him to shoot up his school, killing four students and leaving seven others injured.

Jennifer Crumbley, sits to the left of attorney Mariell Lehman, as her husband, James Crumbley sits to the right in the Oakland County courtroom of Judge Cheryl Matthews on March 22, 2022, regarding pretrial matters.

'One cannot predict the unimaginable,' Crumbley lawyers argue

The Crumbleys, who were charged days after the shooting and have been jailed ever since, have repeatedly argued that a district judge abused her discretion in binding them over for trial. But on March 23, the Michigan Court of Appeals concluded that the judge did not abuse her discretion, which sends the case to trial.

The Crumbleys, though, are still fighting to avoid that, maintaining that the prosecution cannot prove that they caused the students' deaths and that the only one responsible for the deaths was their son, who has pleaded guilty to the murders and is awaiting sentencing. Moreover, their lawyers argue that the son's decision to carry out a mass school shooting was not "reasonably foreseeable."

"Certainly, after every school shooting, the media and those affected are quick to point to so-called 'red flags' that were missed by those in the shooters life. But the truth of the matter is, one cannot predict the unimaginable," attorney Mariell Lehman, who is representing James Crumbley, wrote in her filing to the Supreme Court.

More: Appeals court orders Crumbleys to stand trial in Oxford school shooting

More: Crumbley parents banned from son's hearing: They just want to silence him, prosecutor says

Smith, who is representing Jennifer Crumbley, echoed that in her filing, arguing the rationale for charging the Crumbleys should be particularly troubling and begs the question of when a parent will cross the subjective line of 'good parenting' and render (themselves) criminally liable for the independent acts of a teenager.

In this case, Smith argued, it was the teenage son who terrorized a school with deadly violence, not the parents.

Ethan Crumbleys "acts, without a doubt, constitute intentional misconduct, Smith writes in her filing with the Supreme Court. As made clear by his 21-page journal, (Ethan) did not, in the spur of the moment, embark on the homicidal rampage; to the contrary, (he) planned the attack well in advance.

And, Smith argues, his parents had no way of knowing this.

Prosecutors: Parents were in the best position to know son's plans

They had no knowledge that their son intended to commit multiple homicides on November 30, 2021, Smith writes, arguing if the prosecution could directly link Mr. or Mrs. Crumbley to the mass shooting, they would be prosecuted for first-degree murder.

However, Smith added, because the prosecution cannot support such a claim, they are left attempting to fit a square peg into a round hole.

The Oakland County Prosecutor's Office disagrees, arguing that the Crumbleys, more than anyone else, could have prevented the shooting had they paid attention to their son's mental health, alleging the boy was spiraling out of control but got no help from his parents.

Instead of getting their son medical help, prosecutors said, they bought him a gun. Moreover, they argue, the Crumbleys never let the school know that their son had access to a gun on the day they were summoned to the counselor's office over their son's troubling behavior: He had drawn a picture of a gun and blood on a math worksheet, along with the words: "The thoughts won't stop, help me."

Oxford High School shooting suspect Ethan Crumbley pleads guilty for his role in the school shooting that occurred on Nov. 30, 2021, during his appearance at the Oakland County Circuit Court in Pontiac on Monday, Oct. 24, 2022.

The Crumbleys went back to their jobs that morning. Ethan Crumbley returned to class. Two hours later, he emerged from a bathroom and opened fire.

As Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said two days after the shooting: "While the shooter was the one who entered the high school and pulled the trigger, there (were) other individuals who contributed to the events on Nov. 30, and its my intention to hold them accountable as well.

'My parents wont listen to me about help'

She was referring to the Crumbley parents, adding: its imperative we prevent this from happening again.

After the shooting, police discovered a journal in Ethan Crumbleys backpack. In it, he detailed his plans to shoot up his school, writing, among other things:

The first victim has to be a pretty girl with a future so she can suffer like me, and, I will kill everyone I f------ see

I have fully mentally lost it after years of fighting with my dark side. My parents wont listen to me about help or a therapist.

More: Ethan Crumbley's former neighbor opens up: He didnt have a prayer as a child

More: He stuck up for a woman, got fired  then hit O'Reilly Auto Parts with $3M verdict

In the journal, he also apologized to his parents for what he was about to do:

Im sorry for this, Mom and Dad. Im not trying to hurt you by doing this. I have to do this  I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad. Im sorry for never saying it back.

In his final entry, he wrote in large, bold letters: Forgive me.

The Crumbleys say they never knew of the journal's entries until after the shooting. A police officer read their son's words in court. The parents hung their heads and cried.Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: James, Jennifer Crumbley appeal to Michigan Supreme Court
The Daily Briefing is The Tennessean's morning round-up of today's news that matters most to you. Best enjoyed with a cup of coffee, it's also available directly in your inbox, bright and early, seven days a week. Sign up here.

Life may soon be a little easier for moms with infants on TennCare, as Tennessee is poised to become the first state ever to cover part of the cost of diapers for babies covered by the state Medicaid program.

Good morning, folks, this is Vivian Jones, one of your statehouse reporters at The Tennessean. I'm also a mom of two littles, so it was a pleasure this week to get to know another mom like those this benefit is designed to help.

Danielle Casto recently moved to Nashville from the Bronx with her 3-year-old son, Stephen. Stephen loves to play with bubbles, watch Scooby Doo, and ride his little bicycle. Danielle works two jobs to make ends meet. Sometimes she has to cut down on other expenses to afford diapers for Stephen. On Friday, she lost her full-time job. Casto says the new TennCare benefit will be "a lifesaver" for parents.

Mike McAlister, left, and Diana Hiatt package bundles of diapers before being given to families at the Nashville Diaper Connection warehouse Monday, May 15, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. Tennessee will soon become the first state in the nation to offer two years of free diapers to low-income mothers on TennCare, the states Medicaid program. Funding for the program was included in Gov. Bill Lees budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. The Nashville Diaper Connection is a nonprofit that has been working to provide free diapers to help families before the state funding was available.

Its going to be an extraordinary help, Casto says, of the new benefit. Lots of parents struggle with bills or their groceries  being able to have half your diapers already, it takes off half the burden, and itll allow you to buy groceries that you might need, or gas that day, or medication for your children.

Lawmakers approved $30 million in the state budget to fund the new benefit last month, out of savings the state realized by restructuring its method for receiving Medicaid funding from the federal government. While the state still declines to expand Medicaid, this new benefit is one of several lawmakers have approved to increase benefits for those who qualify under the existing system.

Pending federal approval, the first-of-its-kind diaper benefit is expected to be available to parents and caretakers by January 2024.

You'll find more of Danielle's story, and details on how the state is working to implement the new TennCare diaper benefit in this story.

Nashville mayoral forum tonight

And whether you're a politics nerd like me, or a Nashville voter curious about who's looking to lead our city for the next four years, there are still (free!) tickets available to attend tonight's mayoral forum at Belmont University, hosted by The Tennessean in partnership with NewsChannel 5, the League of Women Voters of Nashville, and American Baptist College. Doors will close at 5:20 p.m. for those attending in person, or you can stream it live here at 5:30 p.m.

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Got a story idea or a question about how a new law could impact you? Drop me a line at vjones@tennessean.com.

And if you aren't already a subscriber, please consider becoming one here, so you can get access to The Week in Politics column  a weekly glimpse inside Tennessee's political world, that I write with my fellow statehouse reporter Melissa Brown.

And don't miss these other great stories from our team. Thanks for reading!

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Daily Briefing: First-in-the-nation TennCare benefit 'lifesaver' for parents
Damage to Patriot battery in Kyiv fully repaired, Pentagon says

Patriot air defense system

Singh stated that one of the two Patriot systems in Ukraine sustained damage, but it has been fully restored. The White House initially didnt confirm the battery was damaged in the first place.

Read also: Vulnerability of Kinzhal missiles likely surprise for Russia, says UK intelligence

Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force similarly reiterated that the Patriot system is still functioning.

On May 16, Russia attacked Kyiv with several dozen missiles, including six Kinzhal hypersonic ballistic missiles, as well as sea- and air-launched cruise ones. Ukrainian officials subsequently said that all enemy targets over Kyiv were successfully intercepted.

Read also: All Kinzhal hypersonic missiles targeted Kyiv, Air Forces reveals details of Russian overnight attack

Several media reports later said that at least one component of a Patriot battery in the city has sustained damage in the attack, possibly from the debris downed Russian missiles, as they seemingly were targeting the air defense module itself.

Read also: Ukrainian Air Force responds to CNN report on damaged Patriot system after Russian strike

Russias Defense Ministry eventually claimed the attack managed to destroy five Patriot AA missile launchers and a radar station.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
On Thursday, the US Department of Defence confirmed that the Patriot air defence system in Ukraine was indeed damaged and has already been repaired.

Source: Sabrina Singh, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary, as European Pravda reports

Quote: "I can confirm that one Patriot system was damaged, but now it is repaired and is in full operating order," she said.

Details: The representative of the US Ministry of Defence refused to provide other details, redirecting the journalists to the Ukrainian side. At the same time, in response to another question, Singh noted that it was "minor damage".

Previously: Earlier, the media reported the damage to the Patriot air defence system during the Russian attack on the night of Tuesday. Ukraine and the United States began discussing how best to fix the system.

Against this background, on Wednesday evening, the Ministry of Defence of Russia decided to announce that they had "completely destroyed" five launchers of the American Patriot air defence system.

Patriot is considered one of the most advanced US air defence systems, including against aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles. It usually includes launchers, radars and other auxiliary means.

Background: The Russian Federation has already attacked the US air defence system with hypersonic missiles, in particular on 4 May, but unsuccessfully. Instead, the Ukrainian military, as confirmed by the Pentagon, intercepted the missile using the Patriot system.

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During Ronald Reagans campaign for Governor of California in 1966, he coined what has been known as the Eleventh Commandment, Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. As an old Reagan Republican and looking through the fog of the thousands of campaign commercials these past months, the only thing one can conclude is that neither Daniel Cameron nor his campaign team have ever studied political history or heard of President Ronald Reagan.

As the curtain came down on the primary election, one was left to ask that one rhetorical question which Daniel never answered during the months of campaigning and that is exactly what will Daniel do if elected governor? One thing is certain, he will no longer be able to run on a platform where he filed dozens of lawsuits against Andy Beshear. Instead, Daniel will have to turn his attention on supporting or rejecting legislation passed by Kentuckys Republican legislature. Without Andy as governor, there will no longer be any checks or balances on the legislative process, a process which is controlled by a handful of leaders who believe that they know what is right for all Kentuckians.

As a Reagan Republican, I waited throughout the months of the campaign to hear exactly what, if anything, Daniel would do if elected governor. Instead of hearing his vision for Kentucky, what we heard from Daniel over and over and over and over again was that Donald Trump endorsed him. While that might be enough for some voters, it falls far short of what most Kentuckians want and deserve for the future of Kentucky.

Reading between the lines, one can only conclude that Daniel does not have any idea what his vision is for the future of the Commonwealth. Unlike Ronald Reagan, who served throughout his presidency with a vision that Americas best days are yet to come, Daniels vision for Kentuckians appears to be on which office he will run for next.

In the waning days of the primary campaign, Daniels campaign began running political commercials attacking Andy Beshear while at the same time continuing the attacks against other Republican candidates. If Daniels campaign team believes that merely portraying Andy as a radical politician will be enough to win this election, then his campaign team needs to return to the drawing board.

At the risk of offending Daniel and his campaign team, a good starting point might be for them to set aside a few minutes from campaigning to read Ronald Reagans, Farewell Address to the Nation. Even after eight years as president, Ronald Reagan still espoused his vision that America is, and always will be, a shining city on a hill. Imagine for a minute if Daniel would focus his vision for Kentucky with the same theme, that is, Kentucky is, and always will be, a shining city on a hill.

As for many Kentucky voters, even if Daniel redirected his campaign from negative commercials to positive upbeat ones, it might still be difficult for many to vote for Daniel in light of his unwillingness to condemn Donald Trumps statements about women, especially Trumps vulgar comments about women. One is left to wonder why Daniel refuses to condemn Trump, other than Daniels only claim to fame is that Trump endorsed his campaign. With 2,250,000 women in Kentucky, Daniels decision could be fatal to his campaign.

Next, the rhetorical question which necessarily needs to be asked is whether Andy should get a pass on his time as governor? The simple answer is NO! Andy is not perfect and there is room for improvement in his administration. This is especially true when it comes to issues which concern education, life issues, and people of faith. If Andy is unwilling to open up a dialogue with Kentuckians regarding these issues, it could be at his peril.

In the end, every Kentucky voter, regardless of political affiliation will have to decide which candidate has the best vision for the future of Kentucky. Will it be Daniel Cameron who has yet to define what his vision for Kentucky is, or will it be Andy Beshear who has been tested throughout these past years during some of Kentuckys most challenging times? Regardless of who is elected, Kentuckians have a right to expect a governor who has a vision that, Kentucky is, and always will be, a shining city on a hill.

Mark Wohlander is a former FBI agent, federal prosecutor, a federal defense attorney after his retirement from the U.S. Attorneys office, and volunteer at the David School in David, Kentucky.
Greg Ross, superintendent of Danville Independent Schools, is resigning to lead a private school for inner-city boys in Louisville.

At this time in my life, it is imperative that I do what I feel my heavenly Father is directing me to do, Ross, a former Fayette County principal, said in a Thursday announcement.

The resignation is effective June 10. Ross started the Danville position on July 1, 2022.

He said he will be assuming the role of Head of School for the West End School. Officials there confirmed the post.

It is a school focused on changing the trajectory of inner-city males in a community with many challenges, but lots of love! Ross said.

Ross said the Danville school board has stuck by him and supported him every step of the way.

Board of Education Chair Esther Rugerio said On behalf of the board, we are forever grateful for the impact Dr. Ross has made at Danville Schools. He has cared for and prioritized our students success. This was a hard decision for him to make, and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.

In his time as superintendent, Dr. Ross has made positive changes and has been heavily involved in the community and our school buildings, said Rugerio.

He attended many arts, athletic and community events, congratulated and spotlighted teachers and students weekly, and restructured the Central Office to better streamline leadership and operations, among his accomplishments, she said.

My decision to resign is by no means a reflection of any negativity with the school board, Ross said. I could not have asked for a more supportive and collaborative group of community leaders to work with.

Whoever becomes the next superintendent will be blessed with an amazing team of leaders to work with, he said.

I have had so much to be proud of and be thankful for, Ross said. ... I am so grateful for each experience shared.

The move means one less Black school superintendent in Kentucky. Prior to that decision, Ross was one of only six in the state.
Color management solutions firm Datacolor is expanding its digital and data offerings through the acquisition of Matchmycolor, a company that develops software for color formulation and communication.

Matchmycolor is being consolidated into Datacolor from Jan. 1, 2023. Both Datacolor and Matchmycolor are focused on helping customers collaborate internally and externally to execute colors. Through this acquisition, Datacolor is growing its positioning in color management, while Matchmycolor will be able to work with a wider market.

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The acquisition of Matchmycolor aligns with Datacolors vision to continuously invest in strengthening its comprehensive product portfolio of high-precision hardware and software solutions as well as its market-leading global service and sales organization, helping even more customers get color right, Albert Busch, president and CEO of Datacolor, told Sourcing Journal. With Matchmycolor, we are significantly expanding our customer reach and software development capabilities, including reaching new industries.

Both Datacolor and Matchmycolor supply solutions that support color management in the fashion and textile industries. Datacolors offerings include hardware such as spectrophotometers, formulation and communication software, a lab dyeing and dispensing solution and a certification service.

Meanwhile, Matchmycolors Colibri software platform includes tools for color specification and standardization, color matching, color quality and color recipe dispensing. Colibri can be integrated with enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, connecting color management with other areas of the business, such as material procurement.

Matchmycolors color formulation and color communication software for the plastics, ink, print and packaging, and automotive industries compliments Datacolors market-leading solutions in the textile, paint and coatings industries, Busch said. Additionally, Matchmycolor has a broad experience with color software integration and data management projects, allowing for a deep integration of color information with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and data analytics.

Based in Basel, Switzerland, Matchmycolor was formed in 2009 after Ciba Specialty Chemicals spun off its Colibri business to its software development partner Nexirius in a management buyout. In the 2022 fiscal year, Matchmycolors sales totaled 3 million Swiss francs ($3.31 million). Post acquisition, the companys approximately 20 employeesincluding owners Michael Jakobi and Judy van de Langkruiswill continue to operate out of the firms Basel office. We are looking forward to be joining forces with Datacolor, said Jakobi and van de Langkruis in a joint statement about the acquisition. As one company, we will be able to offer an even wider range of solutions that will help customers achieve their color management goals.

Matchmycolor is currently distributed and supported in over 30 countries, while Datacolor has a presence in more than 100 countries. Datacolors thousands of customers include textile clients such as apparel brand Hugo Boss and department store chain JC Penney.

Across the textile and apparel industry, we continue to see a strong demand for the digitalization of color management process, as well as more sustainable textile production, said Busch. Digital color management solutions such as from Datacolor are now often required by the major brands throughout their supply chain. The benefits are undeniable; digital color management minimizes waste, boosts workflow efficiency and ensures color quality.

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A crash on I-75 in Madison County caused one death Thursday morning, according to the Richmond Police Department.

According to a Facebook post from the Richmond Police Department, the crash occurred near mile marker 90. Officials temporarily closed the southbound lanes of the interstate Thursday morning. By 2:20 p.m., the road was cleared and all lanes were opened, the department said.

Billy Jolly, 46, died in the crash from blunt force trauma, said Madison County Coroner Jimmy Cornelison. Jolly, of Fleming County, was driving a tractor-trailer truck involved in the accident. The crash appeared to involve two tractor-trailers.

The crash happened around 7 a.m., Richmond Police Chief Rodney Richardson told the Herald-Leader. Collision reconstruction investigators were on scene Thursday.

In the morning, traffic was at a standstill in the southbound lanes near the crash. By the afternoon, one of the southbound lanes was opened but traffic was still backed up into Fayette County. Northbound traffic was also impacted as police and emergency medical services used that side of the highway.

Traffic was being diverted off the interstate at exit 95 for a detour that went around Richmond and rejoined the highway south of the city, Richardson said.

Please avoid this area and be patient while first responders work to administer aid and clear the roadway, the Richmond Police Department said in a Facebook post.

This is a developing story and may be updated.
WASHINGTON  A breach of the debt ceiling could do long-lasting and profound damage to the defense industrial base, the Air Forces top acquisition official said Thursday.

The exact effects of a breach are hard to predict because it is such uncharted territory, Andrew Hunter said at a discussion in Arlington, Virginia, hosted by George Mason Universitys Greg and Camille Baroni Center for Government Contracting.

But Hunter said it would have profound implications for the [defense] industrial base.

President Joe Biden and House Republicans are now engaged in a standoff over the nations debt ceiling, which limits how much the United States can borrow to cover its debts and has been nearly reached. Biden and Democrats are pushing Republicans to raise the debt ceiling without preconditions by passing a clean bill, which happened under President Donald Trumps administration.

In April, Republican lawmakers, who hold the majority in the House of Representatives, passed a bill to raise the debt ceiling while cutting non-defense discretionary spending by $130 billion, along with other concessions.

If the debt limit is breached, the Treasury Departments ability to pay the governments bills would be severely limited, if not curtailed entirely. This would mean the Pentagon might not be able to pay its contractors on schedule.

With the United States ability to pay its debts suddenly thrown into question, he said, credit markets could seize up.

And with credit frozen, Hunter said, the Defense Departments suppliers might not be able to get financing they need to stay afloat while waiting for the governments payments  perhaps forcing them to suspend operations and not pay their own workforce.

They cant get the short-term financing needed to make payroll, while theyre waiting for the reimbursements from the government  which also, by the way, may be delayed, Hunter said. So theyre going to need that short-term financing even more to cover their expenses.

Under a debt ceiling breach, Hunter said, appropriations would still be in place, meaning the department would not have to shut down and employees would not be furloughed. But because the Treasury Department would not have the money to fund the governments payments, Hunter said, service members and civilian employees might not be paid on time.

This could ripple through the militarys entire force structure, Hunter said. Since many service members dont earn high salaries and may be living paycheck to paycheck, a missed payday  or several  could deal a severe blow to their personal finances.

For a lot of service members, thats a huge issue, because that can then reflect on your eligibility for [a] security clearance  really everything it takes to do your job, Hunter said. Such a breach would have huge impacts on families, huge impacts on the workforce, and a lot of consequences that could ripple for quite a long time.

Hunter also warned of the national security consequences of a theoretical deal to raise the debt ceiling that rolls back all federal spending to fiscal 2022 levels  particularly for the still-young Space Force.

Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord said in a March 17 letter to Capitol Hill that lowering defense spending to 2022 levels would amount to a $100 billion, or nearly 12%, budget cut from the Biden administrations $842 billion request for fiscal 2024.

Republicans want to exempt the Defense Department from spending caps, and even further raise military spending.

Hunter said Thursday a budget rollback to 2022 levels would come upon us with absolutely no warning, no notice, and compared such a deal to the painful sequestration caps that occurred during the Obama administration.

Sequestration led to furloughs and a sudden scale back of defense spending, Hunter said  particularly in vital research and development efforts.

You would see a huge hit to our research and development, which is right now one of [the Department of the Air Forces] priority areas of pursuit, Hunter said.

Congress approved $18 billion for the Space Force in 2022 and $26.3 billion in 2023. The Biden administration requested $30 billion in 2024 funding for the Space Force, which was formally stood up as its own service in December 2019.

Because the Space Force is relatively new  much of its budget is growing to reflect the fact that theyre doing things that have just never been done before, because they hadnt previously been budgeted, Hunter said. The Space Force would be absolutely devastated by a rollback to FY22 [funding], but for the Air Force, it would be devastating as well.
Decades after a Macon woman was strangled, investigators identify her and her killer

Almost half a century after a womans remains were found in Macon, local and state investigators have confirmed her identity and linked her to the most prolific serial killer in U.S. history.

Yvonne Pless was approximately 20 years old when she was strangled in 1977, her body discovered off Riverside Drive in Macon. For decades, Pless remains were known as Macon Jane Doe.

Bibb County investigators joined forces with the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council in 2018 when Samuel Little confessed to killing a Macon woman in 1977 and Fredonia Smith in 1982.

Smith, then, 18, was last seen July 10, 1982. Her skeletal remains were discovered in a backyard on Magnolia Street near Washington Park in Macon almost a month later. Clothing, jewelry and a wallet also were found with the bones.

In 2019, Bibb Capt. Shermaine Jones and the CJCCs Amy Hutsell traveled to Wise County, Texas, where Little was being held, to confirm his confessions matched local cold cases, the sheriffs office said.

After interviewing Little, Jones closed both cases and informed Fredonia Smiths family members. But authorities still didnt know the identity of Littles first Macon victim. Last year, Jones and Hutsell used forensic genealogy to identify the remains, discovering one of Pless relatives and connecting with her remaining family members.

Thanks to the dedication of Captain Shermaine Jones and Director Amy Hutsell, the family members of Yvonne Pless and Fredonia Smith now have closure concerning their missing or victimized loved one, Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said. I believe with continued dedication, teamwork, and advancement in technology, we can bring that same closure to other awaiting families.

Little, who confessed to killing 93 women between 1970 and 2005, died in 2020. Eight of his victims were Georgia residents and he left the remains of a woman from Chattanooga in Dade County.

CJCC is dedicated to providing innovative resources to our criminal justice partners, CJCC Executive Director Jay Neal saidl We were pleased to collaborate with the Bibb County Sheriffs Office to provide long-awaited answers in these cases. We hope that these answers have brought healing to the families of these victims.
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Workers from Midway Moving & Storage finish loading up belongings from a house on Race Avenue in Chicago on May 17, 2023. The client is moving from Chicago to Ogle County, Illinois. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Matthew Carlin moved from Albany Park with his pregnant wife and twin daughters to the Indianapolis area this month. Born and raised in Chicago, Carlin said the decision came down to education, cost of living and crime.

Its all over the place, and, unfortunately, theres no consequences in Chicago, Carlin said, citing the recent bat attack in his former neighborhood. I just felt like it was time to get out of Chicago and start the next chapter of our lives for our family.

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People constantly come and go, but new estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show that Chicago lost about 81,000 people, or just under 3% of its population, from 2020 to 2022. Despite the decline, the city retained its position as the nations third most populous city, after New York City and Los Angeles, in 2022. Houston was ranked fourth.

Chicagos population as of July 1, 2022, was estimated at 2,665,039, with changes calculated from the estimated base of April 1, 2020.

[ Census 2022 results: Did the place where you live gain or lose residents? Search Chicago-area counties. ]

The census also estimates that Illinois lost more than 230,000 people, or about 1.8%, in that time. Much of the reported decline  about 176,000  came in the Chicago metropolitan area, which covers 14 counties including Cook and the collar counties, and extends into Indiana and Wisconsin.

Census figures have come into question recently, particularly since the agency estimated in 2020 that Illinois lost population  but a follow-up survey released last year concluded the state instead gained 250,000 people, a significant flip-flop.

The 10-year census from 2020 resulted in the state losing one congressional seat, and population reports continue to affect the amount of state and federal funding cities get.

Whatever the accuracy of the estimates, recent societal forces due to the COVID pandemic, George Floyd protests, increased crime and taxes, and working from home likely are having some effect, urban planning experts say.

People walk in Chicagos Loop along Lake Street on May 16, 2023. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

More broadly, Chicago is part of a regional trend driven by nationwide forces  a general migration, led by retiring Baby Boomers and young job seekers, from the Midwest to warmer, cheaper and economically growing areas in the South.

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Many relatively wealthy and low-crime suburbs, for instance, from Country Club Hills to Arlington Heights to Evanston and Winnetka, lost comparable percentages of population, if not more. Among other large municipalities, Elgin dropped 1.2%, Aurora and Waukegan fell 1.3%, and Joliet fell .1%, while Naperville added .3% and Gary gained .4%, the Census Bureau reported.

This is not a Chicago story, its an Illinois story and a Midwest story, said Rob Paral, senior research specialist at the Great Cities Institute of the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Another factor he cited was reduced immigration during COVID and before. The recent surge in migrants at the Mexican border and the 8,000 migrants whove overwhelmed Chicagos resources since the fall were not counted in the census estimates, which were made as of July 1, 2022.

A previous study also found that while some Blacks were moving out of Chicago, they were not being replaced at similar rates as in the past.

A lower birth rate in the area is another contributing factor, said Christine Percheski, a Northwestern University associate professor of sociology. Most of what Ive seen is due to changes in fertility and immigration, she said.

Eamon Kerrigan-Krodel, 22, graduated from Ohio State University in December and is moving to Chicago in July, where he got an accounting job. He likes Chicagos nightlife, affordable rent and public transportation.

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Being able to take the train into work or pretty much anywhere you want to go in the city is awesome, he said.

Kerrigan-Krodell is relocating at a time when Chicagos rental market is booming, with the city seeing some of the fastest price increases in the country, indicating high demand.

Looking ahead, Chicago has to continue to reduce crime and improve its image and necessities like public transit, said Dan Cooper, senior director of research at the Metropolitan Planning Council.

The next couple of years will tell the story, Cooper said. Downtown is missing the vibrancy it had in the past. Chicago has more headwinds than most cities, but we have one of the best downtowns in the country. Were at a pivotal moment where we need to attract people into the city.

U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who has criticized the Census Bureaus methods, said in a prepared statement that he was extremely disappointed to see another update without improvements to correct undercounts.

While the Census Bureau has begun efforts to address these undercounts through expanding outreach to hard-to-count communities and working to cover frequently undercounted populations such as children under the age of four, Krishnamurthy said, we need the Census Bureau to immediately implement these and the other necessary changes it has had a year to evaluate to improve the accuracy of its data.

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Chuck Layton, who recently had all of his toes amputated due to frostbite he endured while homeless this winter, hugs his brother Kevin Layton during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a deeply affordable housing project in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

It has been over five years since Chuck Layton and Kevin Layton, whom some call "The Brothers," have slept entirely alone.

Chuck Layton, 74, and Kevin Layton, 70, have slept in numerous vehicles, countless tents, on rare occasions in a homeless resource center and often on the streets of Salt Lake City. For the first time, the two brothers now have their own studio apartments located at The Point Fairpark at 130 N. 2100 West.

The 100-unit deeply affordable housing project operated by Switchpoint was unveiled in a ribbon cutting Tuesday and will provide housing to seniors and veterans. Among new residents are the Layton brothers, who went from living in a camp on the street into housing with a 20-minute phone call.

Last week, their cousin contacted former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson who phoned Carol Hollowell, the Switchpoint Community Resource Center executive director. When Hollowell arrived at the brothers' camp on 1300 South and 500 West in a pickup truck, she had three questions: Are you a senior? Do you have income? Do you want to be housed?

"I couldn't even finish my sentence when they said, 'Yeah," said Hollowell who promptly began to help the brothers load their belongings into the truck.

"If you would've asked us five years ago, 'Where do you see yourself in five years?' It sure as hell wasn't here and it sure as hell wasn't in his condition," said Kevin Layton, tearfully. "We had good parents and that's what keeps us going, is our upbringing."

The brothers had purchased a motorhome for shelter but it was impounded twice and several other vehicles had previously been impounded. Before the impounds, the brothers often would welcome other people experiencing homelessness inside during freezing temperatures. They would sometimes throw their visitors' belongings onto the roof and below the vehicle to create room inside, Kevin Layton recalled.

After the vehicles were taken, the brothers began to sleep in tents in homeless encampments. Chuck Layton had been sleeping in a tent this winter when his toes became frostbitten and were later amputated. He would also later face sepsis and nearly die.

Despite the challenges, Chuck Layton and Kevin Layton still make each other laugh. Ahead of his surgery, Chuck Layton recalled that he had drawn across his toes in marker, writing "cut here," joking that despite the instructions, the amputation still wasn't straight.

The close bond between the two is apparent, but Kevin Layton jokes that for $450 a month they'd like their own studio apartments. Every studio apartment at The Point Fairpark will be rented at $450, including utilities. The building was placed in a 50-year deed of trust to ensure it would be utilized as deeply affordable housing for that length of time.

"Deeply affordable housing means that we are reaching out to people on fixed incomes ... and they cannot find anywhere in our city, in our counties somewhere that they can afford to live," said Hollowell. "That's why we chose to have this be the $450 for seniors and veterans because in my mind, they don't deserve to be on the street when they have money."

The number of veterans and seniors on fixed incomes experiencing homelessness has been on the rise. Deeply affordable housing has been championed as a solution for a portion of the population experiencing homelessness. Despite the need for deeply affordable housing, it can often be hard to accomplish, lamented State Homelessness Director Wayne Niederhauser on Tuesday.

"I have to ask why is it so difficult for us to put these things together?" Niederhauser asked. "You've got to make it easier."

The first phase of the project is almost complete, with construction still ongoing as of the ribbon-cutting on Tuesday. Residents continue to work to help bring the project to completion, caulking windows and building pavilions. The next phase of the project  referred to as the "magic sauce" by Hollowell  will include a community center and wraparound services for residents.

But David Dangerfield, Switchpoint Community Resource Center president, encouraged everyone to look beyond the construction.

"Think about those who are going to be the residents here. They come with some difficulties and some challenges, and they're not quite maybe what they want to be, what they hope to be," Dangerfield said. "Just envision what this project will look like, but more importantly, we want you to help our residents envision what they will be able to become."
In a near-unanimous vote, the DeKalb County Board of Education approved the contract for new superintendent Dr. Devon Horton on Wednesday.

Horton, who was selected as the new superintendent for DeKalb County Schools, will begin in the new role on July 1, according to a release from the school district.

He was voted in on a 6-1 margin, solidifying his April selection.

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Horton enters DCSD in July as the fourth superintendent for the district in as many years.

Today represents an exciting new chapter for DeKalb County Schools as we enthusiastically welcome Dr. Horton into the District. His vision, energy, innovative approaches, and deep understanding of the needs of our diverse scholars made him an exceptional choice, Diijon DaCosta, Sr., the board chair, said.

I am confident that this Board is fundamentally committed to working collaboratively with Dr. Horton to realize our shared vision. This includes providing more robust opportunities for our scholars and families as we continue working to restore the DeKalb County School District to its premier status as a great place for our staff to work, our scholars to learn, and everyone to grow.

DCSD thanked those who provided input during the selection process, which they said included various stakeholders, including staff, families, students, elected officials, and community members.

Channel 2s Tyisha Fernandes was at the April 19 meeting when Dr. Joyce Morley raised concerns about his hiring.

To have the record thats coming with this guy, do you hate yourselves and hate the district and the person in there doing the job that badly that youre willing to sacrifice? Would you have this person running your household, Morely told Channel 2 Action News previously.

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Morley was the sole dissenting vote against the contracts ratification during Wednesdays board meeting.

Horton comes to DeKalb County from a position in Chicago, where he was the superintendent of Evanston/Skokie School District 65, a district with about 7,000 students.

While he prepares to move to Georgia before the new school year, Channel 2 Action News learned he remains a named defendant in a Civil Rights-focused lawsuit from 2021, alleging he violated federal law by treating Asian and White students different from Black and brown students.

Horton will be employed from 2023 to 2025, with a base annual salary of $325,000 approved by board vote, as well as $1,500 per month for routine travel expenses along with a county vehicle, according to a copy of the contract obtained by Channel 2 Action News.

The incoming superintendent will be eligible to receive $20,000 for relocation according to the contract, and an option for a $2,000 per month housing stipend for two months while he seeks permanent housing in DeKalb.

Beginning in January 2024, the district will also pay $15,000 into a supplemental retirement fund for Horton.

In addition to the various benefits of his contract, if the DeKalb County Board of Education chooses to terminate his employment, they would have to pay Horton up to 18 months of his salary as severance, according to the contract, depending on when the termination occurs.

Dr. Vasanne S. Tinsley currently serves as the interim superintendent for DCSD. She previously retired from a position as Deputy Superintendent of Student Support and Intervention, Tinsley was brought back to serve as interim superintendent in April 2022.

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OTHER NEWS:
delta plane

Delta Air Lines, the hometown airline of Atlanta, has announced plans to increase its workforce by hiring more flight attendants. The airline has welcomed nearly 2,000 new employees since February and intends to expand its team by 2,000 more members this year. This hiring surge marks a significant milestone in the companys history and reflects its commitment to providing exceptional customer service.

Jennifer Martin, the managing director of IFS CX, learning and hiring at Delta Air Lines, expressed enthusiasm about the ambitious recruitment plans to CW69 Atlanta, stating, This is a historic year for flight attendant hiring, as we plan to grow our team by more than 4,000. Were excited to keep the momentum going and welcome more trainees for classes through the end of the year. The airlines proactive approach to expanding its workforce demonstrates its dedication to meeting the evolving needs of travelers and maintaining a high standard of service.

Photo Credit: Delta Air Lines

Aspiring candidates interested in joining Delta as flight attendants are encouraged to apply promptly. Previous applicants who were not selected to advance must wait at least three months from receiving a disqualification email before reapplying. Delta aims to ensure a fair and inclusive hiring process while offering equal opportunities to all qualified individuals.

To be considered for a flight attendant position, applicants must possess a high school diploma, GED, or equivalent, be legally eligible to work in the United States, demonstrate fluency in spoken and written English, and be at least 21 years old at the time of submitting their application. These requirements ensure that candidates have the necessary qualifications to excel in their roles and provide exceptional service to passengers.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to consult Deltas comprehensive 2023 Hiring Process Guide, which provides an overview of the flight attendant role, outlines the application steps, and addresses frequently asked questions. This guide serves as a valuable resource for individuals interested in pursuing a rewarding career as a flight attendant with one of the worlds leading airlines.

Delta Air Lines commitment to growth and excellence is underscored by its ongoing efforts to recruit and train a diverse and talented workforce. By expanding its team of flight attendants, Delta aims to enhance the customer experience and uphold its reputation as a premier airline. Aspiring flight attendants who possess the necessary qualifications and share the companys commitment to exceptional service are encouraged to seize this opportunity and apply for a position with Delta Air Lines.
NASHUA, N.H.  Top Democrats are scrambling for ways to avoid a catastrophe in New Hampshire in which Joe Biden may not appear on the primary ballot, ceding the first unofficial contest of 2024 to a fringe candidate.

The bizarre predicament is one of the presidents own making, after he pushed for changes to the partys presidential nominating calendar that stripped the Granite State of its first-in-the-nation primary. The move was designed to reward South Carolina, which catapulted Biden to the nomination in 2020.

But theres a state law requiring New Hampshires contest be held a week before any others, and Republicans in charge of the governors office and state legislature are refusing to touch it. If they dont, a primary may well be held without the sitting president putting his name on the ballot.

Now, national Democrats are searching for an off-ramp. With a June deadline looming for New Hampshire to make progress on changing its law or get kicked out of the official early voting lineup, Democratic National Committee members are privately considering giving the state more time.

If there's any opportunity for this to get resolved by New Hampshire having more time, all of us will say, Give New Hampshire more time, said labor leader Randi Weingarten, who sits on the DNC committee that approved the changes to the nominating calendar.

Some have also floated the possibility of putting together a party-run primary to get around its state law.

In states where state legislatures have refused to comply with the party rules, the state parties have run primaries that are conducted by the party, said James Roosevelt, Jr., co-chair of the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee, adding that New Hampshire Democrats are aware that that is an alternative.

But New Hampshire Democrats, furious that national party leaders upended their prized primary, dont seem to care what the DNC has to offer. They insist theyre going first  whether Bidens on the ballot or not.



We cant change our laws and thats that. Were hosting the first primary, said Ray Buckley, chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party. The president can decide if he wants to put his name on the ballot.

The relationship between New Hampshire Democrats and national party officials began to deteriorate after Biden moved last year to slide South Carolina to the front of the line and bump New Hampshire back to second on a shared date with Nevada.

But it has hit rock bottom as the DNCs June 3 deadline approaches and as Bidens reelection launch renews questions about whether hell campaign in a rogue state or risk losing the first unofficial contest to the other declared Democratic candidates, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Marianne Williamson. Neither pose an actual threat to Bidens renomination, but they could present an embarrassing distraction at the start of the nominating process.

That intraparty iciness was on stark display at New Hampshire Democrats iconic McIntyre-Shaheen dinner this past Friday. In the past, the major fundraiser has drawn dignitaries including former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. This year, state party officials pointedly picked Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), one of the only Democrats outside of New Hampshire who has staunchly defended the states primary, as the headliner.

Khanna, who serves on Bidens national advisory board for 2024, called on the president to campaign in New Hampshire, where Williamson and Kennedy have signaled they will compete regardless of potential party sanctions. If he doesnt, Khanna warned, it could harm his general election chances in a small but key swing state.

Let me be very clear: It would be political malpractice to strip New Hampshire of delegates, disenfranchising Granite State Democrats for a decision out of their control, Khanna said to rousing applause. We all know these four electoral votes are going to matter for the presidency.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), another Biden ally, also took sharp aim at the DNC at the event.

We are not going to leave New Hampshire and the primary to the Republicans, she said. I dont care what the Democratic National Committee says.

National Democrats argue theyre not abandoning New Hampshire. For instance, the DNC has launched an embed program in the state to track Republican candidates and deployed its national distributed voter contact program for key New Hampshire elections.

Beyond creating a distraction at the beginning of the 2024 primaries, the potential of a fiasco in New Hampshire risks inflaming party tensions just as the general election kicks off. Its still not clear the severity of the sanctions the DNC might impose against New Hampshire if it goes out of order. But under penalties the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee passed last year, the state could lose half its delegates if it breaks with the partys calendar.

In order to stave off such a situation, national Democrats are looking for a fix.

A real possibility that Democrats are considering is extending the deadline so that New Hampshire has more time to meet the partys requirements, according to a person familiar with the process of the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee, which revamped the primary calendar.

New Hampshire hasnt requested additional time to come into compliance because, Democrats there said, trying to change their state law is a losing battle. But that didnt stop the DNC from approving the initial extension until June.



Meanwhile, Democrats in the state are shutting down the idea of a party-run primary before theyve even formally been approached about it. Buckley said a party-run primary would be a logistical nightmare and extremely expensive, costing upwards of $7 million.

Absolutely impossible, he said. Where would I rent 2,000 voting machines? Hire 1,500 people to run the polls? Rent 300 accessible voting locations? Hire security? Print 500,000 ballots. Process 30,000 absentee ballots.

The power to set New Hampshires primary date rests with Secretary of State David Scanlan, who said that hes open to holding the primary as early as this year, if necessary, to circumvent both the DNCs preferred calendar and Iowas proposal to let caucus participants select their preferred presidential candidate by mail before other states contests (a move that would make it functionally more like a primary).

New Hampshire will hold the first-in-the-nation primary, Scanlan said. We believe all candidates that want to run for president should put their names on the ballot in New Hampshire, and we expect that there will be plenty of candidates that do in both parties.

Whether Biden would file his name in a rogue New Hampshire primary is unclear. A campaign aide previously said the Biden team hopes the state doesnt jump the line, but is prepared to abide by any sanctions imposed by the DNC if it does.

Still, Biden is facing pressure to compete in a state that hasnt voted for a Republican for president since 2000 but that Democrats cant afford to lose in a close election.

Rep.Annie Kuster(D-N.H.) has publicly and privately urged Biden to be on the primary ballot. And other top New Hampshire Democrats, including Shaheen and Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.), said theyve warned the president his absence could jeopardize not only his general election prospects, but also those of down-ballot Democrats such as Kuster and Pappas. And there could be a competitive gubernatorial race if Republican Gov. Chris Sununu runs for president or doesnt seek reelection.

The recommendation that the delegation has made all along is for the president to come here and campaign, Pappas said. Were hopeful that he will still entertain that as things move forward.

The defiance of New Hampshires Democrats is fueled in part by a belief that the DNC wont have teeth when it comes to sanctioning states that jump the line. They point to how the party eased penalties on Florida and Michigan after they broke party rules and held their primaries too early in 2008.

It would be pretty strange to see the first and second female governors and United States senators [elected in New Hampshire] not seated, said Donna Soucy, New Hampshires DNC committeeperson and state Senate Democratic leader, referring to Shaheen and Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.).

New Hampshire Democrats also argue theyve made a good-faith effort to meet the second part of the partys requirements to stay in the official early-state window  expanding voting access by pushing Soucys legislation to create no-excuse absentee voting in the state, albeit to no avail.

But outside of New Hampshire, Democrats have literally laughed off the prospect of Biden flouting his own calendar and campaigning in a rogue state.

That would be awfully weird, rules committee member Elaine Kamarck said, chuckling. While we followed Bidens lead on this, the committee itself was torn about whether [we should let] New Hampshire go first. It was really his decision that tipped the hat on this.

Sure, that means Kennedy or Williamson could carry the state. But national Democrats say that wont matter.

When you then move on to other states, the embarrassment will be to Marianne Williamson and Robert Kennedy, said DNC member Carol Fowler. Biden will just beat them so badly.
A drug company is seeking U.S. approval for the first-ever oral contraceptive that women could buy without a prescription.

A drug company is seeking U.S. approval for the first-ever oral contraceptive that women could buy without a prescription.

The Food and Drug Administration got one step closer to making birth control pills available over the counter when a panel of experts voted unanimously to recommend the move last week. At a time of increasingly fraught access to reproductive health care, being able to get birth control without a prescription would make it easier for people to plan and prevent pregnancies nationwide.

But Democratic lawmakers want to make it even more accessible, ensuring that health insurers provide no-cost coverage of oral contraceptives by passing the Affordability Is Access Act.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) are expected to reintroduce the legislation Thursday, after first putting it forward last year.

The FDA is set to announce its decision on whether to reclassify the drug this summer.

We want to make it very clear that, if the FDA approves this  which I hope that they do  that women will not only have access to it, but that they can afford it, Murray told HuffPost on Wednesday. We have to do everything we can to make sure women can make their own health care choices.

Pressley pointed to some of the factors that can keep people from obtaining contraception: transportation, affordable child care, a regular doctor who takes their insurance, and having health insurance to begin with.

Expanding access as much as possible would be life-changing for millions, she said.

Co-leading the measure are Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Ami Bera (D-Calif.), as well as Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.).

HRA Pharma, a Paris-based division of drugmaker Perrigo, began the process of asking the FDA to approve over-the-counter sales of the birth control Opill in the summer of 2022.

Opill is a progestin-only birth control first approved by the FDA in 1973. (Other kinds of birth control pills contain an additional hormone, estrogen.) A progestin-only pill can be a good option for people who experience side effects with certain types of oral contraceptives. It is highly effective  more so than condoms  yet less effective than implanted birth control devices, according to the FDA.

The company has not yet said how much the drug would cost when obtained over the counter without insurance coverage.

Major medical groups including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association support making oral contraceptives available over the counter.

But some FDA experts have expressed concerns over reclassifying them.

Over two days last week, an FDA panel held hearings to discuss the move, including data provided by the manufacturer that was deemed flawed. (Certain study participants returned improbable tracking diaries, saying they took more pills than they were given.)

Some also questioned whether teens and adult women could be relied upon to correctly administer the drug to themselves, remembering to take it at the same time every day and avoiding it if they had certain preexisting health conditions.

I was kind of stunned that they said things like that, frankly, Murray told HuffPost.

We cant trust women to take a pill at the same time? Oh, my God, talk to any woman. You know how we all manage our lives in many ways  we certainly know how to take medication, she said.

We certainly should be trusted with our own bodies, Pressley added.

Proponents argue that five decades worth of use also clearly points to Opills safety.

One member of the panel, Dr. Katalin Roth, a medical professor at George Washington University, told The Washington Post that any reservations she had were outweighed by concern over the barriers that some women face in obtaining contraception.

We know theres a need, Roth told the Post.

Polling indicates that likely Democratic and Republican voters support making oral contraceptives available over the counter by a wide margin: 71% said they were for it in a survey conducted last year by the Contraceptive Access Initiative, a nonprofit advocacy group.

Yet with the House in Republican hands, led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the Democrats proposal to expand access by eliminating cost barriers faces a difficult path to becoming law.

Its an uphill battle, of course, but you dont win a battle by going, Oh, thats too hard, said Murray, who led the effort to make Plan B emergency contraceptives available over the counter alongside then-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) in the 2000s.

She sees clear parallels between that fight and the current push for over-the-counter birth control.

Its the same game, she said, noting how the FDA feared conservative backlash to its Plan B decision nearly two decades ago.

Nowadays, conservatives appear to be using every last tool at their disposal to attack reproductive health care.

Theyre unrelenting. Theyre exhaustive, Pressley said. And so we have to be the same, using every lever at our own disposal to protect and expand access to affordable over-the-counter contraception.

When it became law in 2010, the Affordable Care Act said insurance companies had to provide no-cost access to birth control, although it carved out exemptions for certain religious groups. That rule still stands, but Mara Gandal-Powers, senior counselor for the National Womens Law Center nonprofit, told HuffPost that there are other complicating factors.

Currently, insurers may still require a prescription to provide coverage for birth control pills, even though its not medically necessary; the Affordability is Access Act would change that.

The Supreme Court also threw a wrench into birth control access with its 2014 decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, which said that closely held for-profit corporations could also claim religious exemptions. Donald Trumps presidential administration then drove a Mack truck through the situation by allowing virtually any entity to claim a religious or moral exemption, Gandal-Powers said.

President Joe Bidens administration is now in the process of rolling back some of Trumps changes while reminding insurers of their legal obligations.
A new documentary about the fraught legal battles between Hollywood actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard will air on Channel 4 this weekend.

Depp vs Heard is a three-part series from Bafta-nominated director Emma Cooper, and investigates the defamation trial brought by Depp against his ex-wife last year, which gripped viewers for three months. The documentary is being billed as the first in-depth look at the case, which Depp won on 2 June 2022.

Dubbed the worlds first Tik Tok trial, the legal battle  which was broadcast live  raised a number of questions about justice in the post-truth era, as well as the way society treats accusations of domestic violence. Depp vs Heard will blend courtroom footage with news sources, interview footage, and user-generated content to explore some of the trials biggest moments.

Depp and Heard were once considered one of Hollywoods most glamorous couples. They are believed to have begun dating in 2012, after Depp split from his longtime partner, the French actor and singer Vanessa Paradis. She and Depp share two children, son Jack and daughter Lily-Rose.

Depp, a film star known for his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, as well as his many collaborations with director Tim Burton, met Heard on the set of 2011 film The Rum Diary, in which they both starred.

He confirmed their engagement in 2014, joking during promotion for his film Trancendence that the chicks ring he was wearing was probably a dead giveaway. He and Heard married the following year, reportedly with one ceremony at Depps LA home and another on his private island in the Bahamas.

A year later, in 2016, Heard filed for divorce and was granted a restraining order by a judge due to allegations of domestic violence on his part. Depp denied the allegations, and his lawyers accused Heard of attempting to secure a premature financial resolution by alleging abuse.

A settlement was reached by the former couple in January 2017, with representatives for each stating that they were pleased to be able to move on with their lives. Heard withdrew the restraining order, and she and Depp released a joint statement stating that their relationship was intensely passionate and periodically volatile, but always bound by love. Neither party has made false accusations for financial gain. There was never any intent of physical or emotional harm.

Just over a year later, however, Depp sued The Suns publisher News Group Newspapers for alleged libel, over an article published in April 2018 that featured the headline: Gone Potty: How can JK Rowling be genuinely happy casting wife beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?

Depp lost the case in 2020, with Justice Andrew Nicol saying the defendants proved their allegations were substantially true. The actor was denied permission to appeal the case.

Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard (Jonathan Brady/PA) (PA Wire)

Around the same time as Depps lawsuit against The Suns publishers, in 2018, an op-ed by Heard was published by The Washington Post, titled: I spoke up against sexual violence  and faced our cultures wrath. That has to change.

Heard did not name Depp in the article, but spoke of how, in 2016, she became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our cultures wrath for women who speak out. Depps $50m lawsuit against Heard accused her of defaming him, with the complaint calling any claim of domestic abuse categorically and demonstrably false. Heard then filed a $100m countersuit, accusing Depp of orchestrating a smear campaign against her.

Depp v Heard went to trial in Fairfax, Virginia, on 11 April 2022. Over six weeks, viewers were glued to the livestream, with Law&Crime Network reporting audience figures of 9 million each day, and CourtTV saying its viewership had practically quadrupled.

Depp and Heard during the defamation trial (AP)

Meanwhile, social media was flooded with clips of Depp and Heard, along with their respective attorneys and witnesses, taking the stand. Viral moments included Depp being amused by the description of him drinking a supposed mega pint of wine, and his lawyer Camilla Vasquez achieved internet fame of her own. Heard, meanwhile, gave emotional testimony where she made allegations of physical and sexual abuse against Depp, which he denied.

Depp won the case against Heard on 1 June 2022, after two days of deliberating by the jury, and was awarded compensatory damages of $10m dollars (8m) and a further $5m dollars (4m) in punitive damages.

Following the verdict, Depp said in a statement that he was humbled that the jury had given me my life back.

From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome, he said. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.

He continued: I am, and have been, overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and the colossal support and kindness from around the world.

I hope that my quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up.

I also hope that the position will now return to innocent until proven guilty, both within the courts and in the media.

Amber Heard outside court following the jurys verdict in favour of her ex-husband, Johnny Depp (Getty Images)

Depp was not present for the verdict, having joined musician Jeff Beck onstage for three nights in the UK.

Heard, who was present, was awarded $2m (1.6m) in damages after her counterclaim against Depp over comments made by his lawyer Adam Waldman, who allegedly referred to her abuse claims as a hoax, was also found to be defamatory.

Following the verdict, the actor said she was heartbroken, but even even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women.

The disappointment I feel today is beyond words, she said in a statement delivered outside the courthouse. Im heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband.

Im even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women.

Since the trial, Depp has been embarking on a career comeback, and appeared at Cannes Film Festival this week to promote Jeanne du Barry, his first feature film in three years.

Amber Heard was recently pictured in Madrid with her two-year-old daughter, Oonagh, amid unverified reports that she is planning on stepping away from the film industry. She is next set to appear in DCs Aquaman sequel opposite Jason Momoa in the title role. The film is scheduled for release later this year.

The first episode of Depp vs Heard will air on Channel 4 on Sunday 21 May at 9pm. The following episodes will air on Monday 22 May at 10pm, and Tuesday 23 May at 10pm.
Deputy says man dug tunnel from one cell to another to stab inmate inside Fulton County Jail

Channel 2 Action News has learned deputies have discovered a man-made tunnel inside the Fulton County Jail.

Deputies told Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne that an inmate dug his way through metal and concrete so he could stab another inmate.

Only Channel 2 Action News got inside the facility Thursday to see the damage firsthand.

The interim Fulton County Jail commander said several contraband items were discovered in a shakedown of two side-by-side cellblocks after a stabbing Thursday.

But the big discovery was the hole in the wall that made the stabbing possible.

The homemade hole in the wall was huge enough for at least one inmate to climb through it into the zone or cellblock next door to his and stab a fellow inmate there, Fulton County Jail Commander Curtis Clark.

In the arena that we are operating now, things of this nature happen far too often, Clark said.

Clark told Winne that the stabbing victim received non-life-threatening wounds and has been moved to the jail medical unit while the suspected attacker faces the likelihood of criminal charges over the incident.

Clark said the hole through masonry clearly took time and effort.

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After the stabbing, a shakedown of both zones turned up seven items of contraband including at least five weapons.

We found shanks that were made from parts of the building, Clark said.

All of this stuff that could be used to make weapons? Winne asked Clark, who showed him some of the confiscated items.

Absolutely, and it presents a constant challenge for us to eliminate things like this from access to the inmates.

That tunnel, symptoms of an aging, dangerous jail? Winne asked Clark.

Absolutely Mark. This jail has clearly outlived its useful life. And our job is to make it as safe as we possibly can, not only for staff but for the inmates as well, Clark said.

With these kinds of issues, you lose sleep about the safety of your people and your inmates? Winne asked Clark.

Mark, I have lost so much sleep since being assigned to run this location or this facility, its really  its difficult to talk about, Clark said.

Clark said manpower is important. Like most police departments, jails and sheriffs offices in Georgia, the Fulton County Jail has staffing challenges which the sheriffs office is addressing with hiring bonuses, relocation stipends, and pay raises.

But with optimal staffing, Clark thinks officers could have discovered the hole in the wall before it was finished and perhaps prevented the fashioning of the weapons discovered Thursday.

IN OTHER NEWS:
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP)  Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin appealed his murder conviction in the killing of George Floyd to the Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday, saying the district judges decision not to move the proceedings out of the city deprived him of a fair trial.

His attorney, William Mohrman, filed a petition for review with the states highest court a month after the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld Chauvins conviction for second-degree murder and let his 22 1/2-year sentence remain in place.

Morhman had unsuccessfully asked the appeals court to throw out the ex-officers conviction for a long list of reasons, including the massive pretrial publicity. But the three-judge panel last month sided with prosecutors who said Chauvin got a fair trial and just sentence. Chauvin raises several of those arguments again in his latest appeal.

Were very hopeful that the Minnesota Supreme Court will accept review of the case, Mohrman said.

Floyd died on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, kneeled on the Black mans neck for 9 1/2 minutes. A bystander video captured Floyds fading cries of I cant breathe. Floyds death touched off protests around the world, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police brutality and racism.

The Minnesota Supreme Court could agree to hear Chauvins appeal, in which case it would ask each side for detailed briefs and later set a date for oral arguments. Or it could let the Court of Appeals ruling stand.

Morhman wrote in the petition that the case presents the state Supreme Court with important questions on developing and clarifying due process requirements to transfer venue when there is unprecedented pervasive pretrial publicity coupled with community violence.

He also wrote that it raises issues about rules regarding juror misconduct. One juror participated in a civil rights event commemorating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.s March on Washington, D.C., a few months after Floyds death. Only after the trial did the juror reveal that he had been there. The Court of Appeals declined to send the case back to the trial judge for a hearing on whether the jurors nondisclosure constituted misconduct.

Chauvin pleaded guilty to a separate federal civil rights charge and was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison, which he is now serving in Arizona concurrent with his state sentence.

Police officers undoubtedly have a challenging, difficult, and sometimes dangerous job. However, no one is above the law, Judge Peter Reyes wrote for the Court of Appeals last month. When they commit a crime, they must be held accountable just as those individuals that they lawfully apprehend. The law only permits police officers to use reasonable force when effecting a lawful arrest. Chauvin crossed that line here when he used unreasonable force on Floyd.
Derek Chauvin asks Minnesota Supreme Court to review his murder conviction, weeks after appeals court denied his request for a new trial

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has asked the state Supreme Court to review his murder conviction for the 2020 killing of George Floyd, a month after an appeals court denied his previous request for a new trial, court documents show.

In the documents, filed Wednesday, Chauvins attorneys cited many of the same reasons from their previous filings to the Minnesota Court of Appeals  arguing again, among other things, that the district court deprived the former officer his right to a fair trial when they denied his request for a change of venue, despite pervasive adverse publicity.

Chauvins attorneys said these reasons were grounds for a new trial and asked the states highest court to grant a review of the appeals court decision. The Minnesota Supreme Court has not yet said if it will review the decision.

Chauvin was found guilty in April 2021 of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced to 22 and a half years in prison, which exceeded Minnesotas sentencing guideline range of 10 years and eight months to 15 years.

Chauvin later pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating Floyds civil rights and was sentenced to 21 years in prison to run concurrent with his state sentence.

Body camera and bystander video that captured the final moments of Floyds life on May 25, 2020, shows Chauvin kneeling on the 46-year-old Black mans neck and back for more than nine minutes as Floyd gasped for air and told officers, I cant breathe.

Floyds death ignited prolonged protests across the country over police brutality and racial injustice. An investigation by the state Department of Human Rights launched a week later found Minneapolis and its police department engaged in a pattern or practice of race discrimination, according to its 2022 report.

Chauvin is currently incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, Arizona, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website. The prison is a medium security federal correctional institution with a detention center, according to the website.

Attorney cites publicity, protests, and prosecutorial misconduct in appeal

In his April 2022 filing to the state Court of Appeals, Chauvins attorney William Mohrman listed more than a dozen aspects of the case and trial that he argued tainted the proceedings and rendered them structurally defective, CNN previously reported.

The list included extensive pretrial publicity and protests outside the courthouse, as well as the citys announcement during jury selection that it would pay a $27 million settlement to Floyds family.

Chauvin and his attorney also asked the appeals court to review whether the venue should have been changed, the jury fully sequestered, or the trial delayed because of pretrial protests and media coverage.

The appeal to the lower appeals court also accused prosecutors of misconduct, alleging the states attorneys failed to properly disclose discovery information and adequately prepare prosecution witnesses.

In the 50-page decision affirming Chauvins conviction last month, a three-judge panel of the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld the conviction, holding in part that Chauvin failed to show actual prejudice.

At the time of Chauvins sentencing in June 2021, Judge Peter Cahill wrote in a memorandum that the case warranted a harsher sentence because Chauvin abused his position of trust and authority and treated Floyd without respect and denied him the dignity owed to all human beings.

CNNs Elizabeth Wolfe and Andy Rose contributed to this report.

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A new law in Florida mandates the teaching of Asian American and Pacific Islander history in public schools. But many Asian Americans are not celebrating, pointing to how other marginalized communities are being affected by the state heavily limiting the instruction of systemic racism and gender identity in the classroom.

Asian American academics and civil rights organizations are speaking out after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill last week, requiring that Asian American and Pacific Islander history to be included in the K-12 curriculum. The measure coincides with another bill signed into law on Monday to no longer permit public colleges to spend money on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. It also limits the way race and gender will be taught in the states higher education institutions.

Gregg Orton, national director of National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, a coalition of dozens of AAPI organizations, said the history law is far from a win for the Asian American community, adding that racial justice cant be a zero-sum game for communities of color.

When you advance a bill that uplifts AAPI communities, but dont want to acknowledge the fact that in the same state, there are real intentional efforts to invisiblize or erase Black history, or [critical race theory], you are on the wrong side of history, Orton said. With Florida, its hard to draw any other conclusion than they are actively trying to use the Asian American Pacific Islander community as a wedge here.

DeSantis did not respond to NBC News' request for comment.

Make Us Visible, the group that spearheaded the push, has been working on the legislation for more than two years, according to Mimi Chan, president of the Florida chapter. All students in the state, from grades K-12, will "benefit from this legislation because moving forward all histories will be taught together," she said in a statement provided to NBC News.

"Make Us Visible Floridas goal is to continue to work together across our communities to ensure all FL K-12 schools and districts have access to robust and comprehensive curriculum reflective of all our communities and contributions," Chan wrote.

I think its so positive for so many people, not just here in Florida, but across the nation, to see and be inspired that AAPI history will be taught and other states should definitely and hopefully will follow, Chan said.

The history mandate would require the teaching of Japanese American incarceration in World War II, immigration, citizenship and the contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to American society. Conversely, the anti-Diversity, Equity and Inclusion bill, effective July 1, will ban the teaching of courses that legislators say distort significant historical events or include a curriculum that teaches identity politics. It also bans theories that systemic racism, sexism, oppression, and privilege are inherent in the institutions of the United States and were created to maintain social, political, and economic inequities. The bills come after state officials rejected an Advanced Placement African American studies course in January, leading the College Board to water down its framework for the curriculum.

Pawan Dhingra, president of the Association for Asian American Studies, said that the effort from activists to implement Asian American studies in schools is admirable. However, the greater context around race education in the state cant be ignored, he said. The language in the higher education bill, particularly its use of identity politics, Dhingra said, in part dismisses many groups real experiences and meaningful critiques.

What theyre saying is basically denying that theres just real injustice going on, he said.

Moreover, Asian American history is intertwined and inextricably tied to others experiences, challenges and struggles, Russell Jeung, professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University, said. Omitting those aspects of education would create an untruthful representation, he said.

Asian American history has been shaped and structured by how other groups have been treated, Jeung said.

Manjusha P. Kulkarni, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, similarly noted that Asian American experiences cannot be separated from that of Black, Indigenous and other groups, calling into question what version of history will be taught in schools.

Kulkarni said: We cannot address racism and hate in a silo. We know that our communities are interconnected.

She added that the history mandate also coincides with DeSantis signing of SB264, a law that in part prohibits Chinese nationals who do not have U.S. citizenship from buying property or land in the state.

DeSantis and the Florida officials are not truly interested in seeing our full humanity. And that raises further questions about what the bill signing of AAPI history means, she said.

Theres far more work to be done before Asian Americans and other groups see a meaningful advancement in the race-related curriculum.

A real win would be if they introduced Asian American curriculum alongside a critical understanding or deepened understanding about the role of race and racism in our society, and help students explore that issue and develop racial empathy, Jeung said. They could rescind these anti-CRT bills. They would recognize the role of race. They would recognize that we need to address disparities and inequities in our society.

For now, the experts say, progress is still distant.

I dont want to discount the eagerness and the desire and hunger for our community to see advancements like this, Orton said of the history mandate. But it cant be done at the expense of others.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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Sam Zell talks during an interview at the Chicago Tribune on April 3, 2007. (Jose More/Chicago Tribune)

Sam Zell ran a Chicago-based real estate empire that he began building when he was still a college student, along the way gaining a reputation as a brash and scrappy operator unafraid to make gutsy investment calls.

Those investments included taking the Tribune Co. private in 2007 in a leveraged buyout. Despite selling a number of assets, the company filed for bankruptcy in late 2008 as the newspaper industry crashed.

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Zell, 81, died of an unknown cause on Thursday, according a statement released by the company he founded, Equity Residential.

Perhaps known most for his real estate investments in areas like offices, apartments and manufactured housing, Zell perpetually gazed at other industries, leading to investments in radio stations, cruise ships, seafood restaurants and the fertilizer business.

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[ Timeline: How Tribune Publishing  the parent company of the Chicago Tribune  has changed since 2006 ]

The iconoclastic executives personal style ran to motorcycle clothing and a liberal use of four-letter words. But to Zell, thinking differently was what enabled him to make his mark.

Even as a child, I looked at things differently, he told the Tribune in 2004. I had so much innate self-confidence. Why is someone doing it the way theyre doing it? I can do it better.

Sam Zell holds his first press conference in December 2007 after leading the effort to take Tribune Co. private in a buyout. (Jose More/Chicago Tribune )

Zell was the son of Bernard and Rochelle Zielonka, who fled Poland in August 1939, just before the Nazis started bombing. His parents made their way through Russia to Japan and finally to the U.S., and settled in Chicago, where his father had grain-trading contacts.

Around 1953, Zells parents changed their name to Zell and began raising their family in Albany Park, and Bernard Zell found a career in the wholesale jewelry business. The family eventually settled in north suburban Highland Park.

Portending his future entrepreneurial moxie, Sam Zell started taking photos at school dances and hawking copies of Playboy magazine at a markup to suburban classmates who werent able to get to the downtown newsstands where Playboy was sold.

Zell did not get along well with his father, telling the Tribune in 1993 that his father was a very, very strong person, and I think the sons of strong, successful men tend to go one way or another. Either they view their fathers as a challenge, which is what I did,  or they go in the other direction and become lazy and unmotivated.

At the University of Michigan, Zell worked on a sophomore musical with his fraternity brother and future colleague Robert Lurie. Zell took on a role that he would return to repeatedly in his real estate career: overseeing publicity and promotion.

Theres never been a successful businessman that I know of that wasnt very adept at selling himself and selling his ideas, Zell told the Tribune in 1993.

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During law school at Michigan, Zell started managing an apartment building with a partner in exchange for free rent. From there, they were offered another property to manage, and Lurie, a doctoral student, joined them.

After law school, Zell took a job in Chicago, but found he had little interest in life as an attorney  nor in what he viewed as low pay.

Ill never forget what it was like to have a wife and a kid and earn $58 a week, he told the Tribune in 2004. I thought that was terribly unfair.

Zell and Lurie began buying distressed properties from developers reeling from rising interest rates. In 1968, Zell opened his first solo office on LaSalle Street. He began attracting investments both from his father and from other Chicago businessmen.

Like baseball Hall of Famer Wee Willie Keeler, who famously advised hitters to hit em where they aint, Zell worked hard to find overlooked properties in cities that could produce better profits than Chicago. He bought apartment buildings in smaller cities like Toledo, Ohio; Tampa, Florida; and Reno, Nevada.

Sam Zell is interviewed by business reporters from the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times on a television stage in the Chicago Tribune newsroom the day after Zell successfully closed a deal to take the Tribune Company private. (Charles Osgood/Chicago Tribune)

Though Zell embraced Reno, the so-called Biggest Little City in the World proved to be the location of Zells biggest stumble. He wanted to buy the most conspicuous building in Reno, the Arlington Towers high-rise, and offered to kick back part of the purchase price to a trust that the family selling the high-rise had established in the Bahamas. That would lower the publicly reported profit for the buildings sale and thus lessen the tax bill.

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Alerted to the illegal maneuver, the IRS questioned the family selling the high-rise and decided to indict Zell, his brother-in-law Roger Baskes, Chicago lawyer Alan Hammerman and another tax lawyer, Burton Kanter  who was the primary target of the case  on charges of conspiring to defraud and impede the IRS.

Zell and Hammerman cut deals in 1977 to testify against the other two men, and Baskes ultimately was convicted and sentenced to two years in jail.

The Reno imbroglio barely dented Zells career, and he and Lurie continued buying up distressed properties. In an article written for a trade magazine, Zell gave himself the nickname The Grave Dancer to describe his preference for finding property owners in distress and taking advantage.

As real estate deals became harder to find, Zell and Lurie started targeting companies in other industries. Zell and Lurie pursued broken-down companies with a little-understood accounting item called tax-loss carry forwards on their books, and then they would go after more profitable firms and employ the tax losses to shield the income from them.

The duo took over bankrupt computer- and rail-car-leasing company Itel Corp. in 1985 and then borrowed huge amounts of debt to acquire well-known Chicago-area firms like Skokie electrical-equipment distributor Anixter Bros. and Great Lakes International.

Soon Zell was known as a freewheeling takeover mogul, and he acquired various other businesses through a billion-dollar vulture fund. Those businesses included drugstore chain Revco D.S., mattress maker Sealy, radio station chain Jacor, and the assets and trade name of Schwinn.

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After Luries death at age 48 from cancer in 1990, Zell shifted his tactics. The late-1980s real estate market softened, and Zell came to realize that he would be better served sharing risk on deals with public investors. From there, Zell began tapping into pools of funding in the stock market known as real estate investment trusts, or REITs.

By 1993, Zell had overseen initial public offerings of manufactured-home and apartment REITs, and four years later, he brought public his large portfolio of office buildings in a REIT. These IPOs significantly elevated Zells wealth.

Amid his success, Zell remained as outspoken as ever.

People who deal with me know exactly where I come from, and frankly, I think thats the most efficient way to do anything, and I think thats why I can get as much done as I get done, he told the Tribune in 1993.

Zell in late 2006 announced what at the time was the largest deal ever to take a public company private, selling his Equity Office Properties Trust to The Blackstone Group for $36 billion. The deal meant that numerous trophy buildings in Chicago, including the 44-story Civic Opera Building and the dual towers at 10 and 30 S. Wacker Drive, would shift from Zells control to a private buyout firm flush with cash.

Immediately after the deal was announced, some Wall Street analysts wondered whether Zell got as much as he could have in that transaction, the Tribune reported. Two years later, with the onset of the global financial crisis, few questioned Zells savviness in that deal.

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Perhaps Zells highest-profile takeover, however, occurred in 2007 after the Tribune Co. announced it would consider restructuring, selling assets or going private in a leveraged buyout. Zell led an $8.2 billion leveraged buyout of Tribune Co., which the companys board of directors approved.

Zell contributed $315 million of his own capital in equity to the deal, which saddled Tribune Co. with about $13 billion of debt and technically made a tax-efficient employee stock ownership plan the media companys owner. However, the deal also gave Zell operating control of Tribune Co.

Upon the deals closing in December 2007, Zell insisted that he could find ways to make Tribune Co. grow.

I became the CEO today because I felt that I needed to be a direct agent of change and I promise you wont be disappointed in me fulfilling that objective, Zell said.

Zell quickly started selling some assets, including the New York newspaper Newsday and the Chicago Cubs. However, with the economy declining and the newspaper business in particular struggling amid an industrywide falloff in advertising spending, Tribune Co. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2008.

This filing is all about relieving the pressure on the company from too much debt, Zell said, adding that he hoped that the company could emerge from Chapter 11 stronger and more competitive.

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Zell relinquished the role of CEO but remained Tribune Co.s chairman until the end of 2012, when the company emerged from bankruptcy and a bankruptcy judge approved a plan to transfer ownership of the company to a group of banks and hedge funds.

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Zell likely will be remembered by many largely as a caricature, the plain-spoken, pugnacious, gravel-voiced maverick with an affinity for jeans, open-collared shirts and salty language, wrote Tribune business columnist Phil Rosenthal in 2012, upon Zells departure as chairman. But in reality, its possible hes just a wild-eyed optimist. Plenty of people saw eroding beachfront and storm clouds on the economic horizon well before Zell completed the Tribune Co. deal.

Tribune Co. eventually was separated into broadcasting and publishing units. The Chicago Tribune is now owned by hedge fund Alden Global.

Zell was known for going on two-week motorcycle trips each year with associates. A resident of Chicagos Streeterville neighborhood, he also spent time at his oceanfront home in Malibu, California.

Two previous marriages ended in divorce. Zell is survived by his third wife, Helen; a son, Matt; and two daughters, JoAnn and Kellie.

Information on services was not immediately available

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Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.

To purchase a death notice, visit https://placeanad.chicagotribune.com/death-notices/. To suggest a staff-written obituary on a person of local interest, e-mail chicagoland@chicagotribune.com
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to run for president

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed bills banning children from undergoing transgender medical treatments or going to drag shows, and restricting pronoun use in classrooms.

Public bathrooms and changing rooms must also be separate "based on biological sex" under the legislation.

He said the laws would make the state a "refuge of sanity". Critics called the measures "mean spirited".

The Republican governor is expected to enter the 2024 White House race soon.

Hundreds of similar regulations on LGBT issues have been proposed in conservative-run states across the US.

But Mr DeSantis' prospects as a presidential contender have turned all eyes on the Sunshine State.

He is widely expected to declare his candidacy as soon as next week.

"We need to let our kids just be kids," Mr DeSantis said as he signed the five bills on Wednesday at the evangelical Cambridge Christian School in Tampa.

"What we've said in Florida is we are going to remain a refuge of sanity and a citadel of normalcy."

The legislation bans transgender-identifying children from accessing such treatments as puberty blockers or hormone therapy.

While the laws are dubbed the Let Kids Be Kids package, one measure also places new restrictions on adults seeking transgender medical treatment.

Such patients must now obtain written consent on a form adopted by two oversight boards whose members are appointed by the governor.

Another of the laws bans school employees from telling students their preferred pronouns, or asking students about their preferred pronouns.

Mr DeSantis said: "We never did this through all of human history until like two weeks ago. They're having third graders declare pronouns? We're not doing the pronoun Olympics in Florida."

The governor's signed bills bans children from undergoing transgender medical treatments and entering drag shows

The governor also signed into law a bill requiring all bathrooms or locker rooms at public facilities - from schools to prisons - to be used exclusively for men and women "based on their biological sex".

Another of the laws, titled Protecting Children's Innocence, grants the state the power to strip businesses of their licences if they allow children into "adult live performances", such as drag shows.

Transgender medical treatments are endorsed by major medical associations as appropriate and even life-saving care for people diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) said the Florida bills would have "a chilling effect on the medical community by inserting politics into healthcare".

But many conservatives and some detransitioners - those who stop or seek to reverse a gender transition - have spoken out against the prevailing medical consensus, labelling such procedures as child abuse or chemical castration.

Democrats lashed out at the legislation in Florida.

"Every other parent has the right to raise their child the way that they want to as long as your child is not gay, trans, bisexual," Democratic state Senator Shevrin Jones, who is gay, told the Associated Press news agency.

"That's freedom for some parents but not for all parents."

Another Democratic state Senator, Victor Torres, said the bills were "mean spirited, unnecessary".

As governor, Mr DeSantis has waded into America's culture wars, signing bills banning teaching on gender identity in public schools, restricting abortion access, protecting gun rights and railing against "woke indoctrination" in the classroom.

Former President Donald Trump is currently leading in the race for next year's Republican presidential nomination, with Mr DeSantis in second spot more than 36 points behind, according to the Real Clear Politics opinion polling average.

The winner will challenge President Joe Biden, a Democrat, in the election of November 2024.
RonDesantis RonDesantis.jpg - Credit: SOPA Images/LightRocket/Gett

If theres one rule that all Floridians live by, one credo that everyone in the Sunshine State must follow, it is this: Dont fuck with the Mouse. (Also, something about alligators. But mostly, dont fuck with the Mouse.)

When Gov. Ron DeSantis started his aggressive campaign against the Disney company following its criticism of an education law nicknamed Dont Say Gay, pretty much everyone except Ron DeSantis knew it would end badly. Disney, which is Floridas largest taxpayer, has enormous sway in the state, employing millions of residents and driving the majority of the states tourism with its Orlando-based theme park Disney World.

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Now, DeSantis is about to find out exactly what a bad idea it was to antagonize Disney. Following a protracted, DeSantis-led battle over the company being stripped of its self-governing status in the area surrounding its 25,000-acre resort, Disney has officially canceled a $1 billion planned construction project in Orlando, which would have reportedly brought more than 2,000 jobs to the area, according to numbers reported by The New York Times.

In a memo to Disney employees, theme parks and consumer products head Josh DAmaro announced the company would be putting the kibosh on the project, which would have been located next to the Lake Nona Town Center. The planned 1.8 million square foot complex outside of Orlando, which was internally controversial for a number of reasons when it was announced in 2021, would have involved the relocation of many employees from California to Florida, with DAmaro citing Floridas business-friendly climate as the reason for the change.

Apparently, however, the Disney company no longer deems Florida sufficiently business-friendly. In the memo sent Thursday, DAmaro said he would be canceling the project due to changing business conditions in the state, though he remain[ed] optimistic about the evolution of Walt Disney World in general.

Disneys abrupt cancellation of the project marks the latest in a series of antagonistic gestures between the company and the state government since DeSantis initially championed the Dont Say Gay bill last spring, which effectively bans discussion of LGBTQ issues between kindergarten and third grade. Following internal pressure within the company, then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek came out against the bill, pledging $5 million toward LGBTQ rights organizations and stating the company was committed to supporting the [LGBTQ] community going forward.

DeSantis retaliated against Chapeks statement by targeting the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the self-governing district established by Disney to control Disney World and the surrounding area, installing his own appointees onto its board. Disney responded by filing suit against DeSantis last April, alleging he was waging a politically motivated war against the company.

Correction Thurs., May 18, 2023, 5:42 pm: An earlier version of this story said Disneys planned business complex would have been the Lake Nona Town Center. The Lake Nona community is unaffiliated with Disney and the planned complex would have been located right next to the Town Center.

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DeSantis vs. Disney has a $1B price tag for Florida. National voters, be warned | Opinion

The Magic Kingdom made about $1 billion disappear in Florida on Thursday.

Amid an escalating feud with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Disney pulled a serious power move. The company canceled a massive office complex set for Orlando, development that was supposed to bring with it more than 2,000 high-paying jobs.

Boom. A billion dollars, evaporating into thin air. Thats the price tag now attached to DeSantis over-the-top, politically opportunistic war on woke.

Disneys decision is a stunning economic  and psychological  blow to the state, and its aimed right at the governor. Coming right before next weeks expected announcement that DeSantis is running for president, the companys public about-face stands to damage him in the eyes of voters who shrink from the idea of a governor openly attacking a business that bucked him.

Disney may not be done, either. Josh DAmaro, Disneys theme park and consumer products chairman, noted in an email that, despite this dramatic pullback in the state, the company still plans $17 billion in construction at Disney World in the next decade, with a potential 13,000 jobs.

Sounds like thats in jeopardy, though. I hope were able to, he said.

Disney had planned to build Lake Nona Town Center  including moving protesting employees from California  because the company liked Floridas business climate and tax breaks.

No more. DAmaro cited changing business conditions for the reversal.

There was plenty of warning this might happen. Last week, in a conference call, Disneys chief executive Robert A. Iger made clear that the targeting by the DeSantis administration was risky: Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people and pay more taxes, or not?

All of this started when the company had the nerve to criticize Floridas Dont say gay law that bans classroom instruction of gender identity and sexual orientation. An infuriated DeSantis retaliated. He convened a special session of the Legislature and told lawmakers to dissolve the resorts self-governing status so the state could run it.

Disney then outmaneuvered the governor by approving a deal that severely limited what the DeSantis-appointed board could do to control the 39-square-mile property. Predictably, everyones in court now.

But Floridians are the losers here. Weve lost jobs and investment, and we could lose even more, all because DeSantis picked a petty fight with Disney.

Disneys not perfect. Its special taxing district should have been revisited a long time ago. But there are ways to do that through the legislative process, and DeSantis chose not to.

No, this is about suppressing free speech. Its about punishing political enemies using the power of the state. Its about a nakedly ambitious, vindictive governor who cant tolerate dissent.

We hope the rest of the country is watching.
These Destinations In The Americas Have An Obviously European Flair

Looking for a taste of Europe without actually going there? There are a number of sites across the Americas that look so much like Europe, you could swear youre across the ocean. From Gothic churches to cuisine, the similarities are numerous.

However, the reason for this isnt pleasant in most cases. European influence can be linked to centuries of colonialism across the Caribbean, South and Central America.

For example, long before Spain invaded Puerto Rico, Mexico and Cuba, indigenous populations thrived. The conquistadors wiped them out through violence and disease, or forced them to do brutal labor on behalf of the crown. Having subjugated the original inhabitants, Spain imposed their customs and religion. They also erected their cathedrals, castles and other colonial structures- many of which still stand today.

Check out these destinations in the Americas with a European flair.

Quebec, Canada

Photo Credit: Posnov

Quebec City is very proud of its French roots, so its no surprise that French is the dominant language. Even if you arent fluent, knowing a few phrases can be useful,

Where Ya At writes, the French lifestyle is celebrated in Quebec City. It is all about the art of living life to the fullest: this includes eating fine foods, drinking alcohol liberally, and overall enjoying the finer things in life.

The winding, cobblestone streets, churches and shops of Quebec, recall the small towns and villages of Provence. As noted by National Geographic, Old Quebec is so rich with unexpected treasures, and you can enjoy them best on foot.

Puebla City, Mexico

Photo Credit: Carlos Silva

Puebla City is Mexicos fourth largest city, and its right by the Popocatepetl volcano.

In 1519, under conquistador Hernan Cortes, Spain occupied Puebla. You can see remnants of Spanish influence in the churches. Catedral Basilica de Puebla, and the Iglesia de Santo Domingo-Capilla del Rosario, have an unmistakably European appearance.

Puebla is also home to the Biblioteca Palafoxiana (Palafoxiana library), the only structure of its kind from Spains colonial era.

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Photo Credit: Tony Arruza

Old San Juan is full of history, and it was conquered by Juan Ponce de Leon in 1519.

The Convento de los Dominicos was the islands first convent, while San Jose Church took its cue from 16th century Spanish architecture.

The church fell into disrepair, closed in 2000, and re-opened in 2021 after an extensive renovation. But the Old World aesthetic is unchanged. Whether you go for mass or just for a visit, youll be interested to know that this is the second oldest church in the Americas.

If you go on a walking tour of Old San Juan, start at the Paseo de La Princesa, a beautiful old promenade. Tourists and locals enjoy visiting on a beautiful day.

Check out the fortress of San Cristobal, an UNESCO World Heritage Site, and Castillo San Felipe de Morro (called El Morro for short). Both are popular landmarks.

Photo Credit: Adventure Photo

According to Insider, Vail was partially modeled after the Swiss ski resort of Zermatt.

Vail, Colorado

You can get a taste of Europe- quite literally- at some of Vails restaurants. Alpenrose offers an array of German, Austrian, and Swiss dishes. Inside the Sonnenalp Hotel is the Swiss Chalet Restaurant, and you can imagine what that looks like.

Travel blog, Pisco and Bier, writes that Vail has Bavarian farmhouse-style architecture, cute Alpine hotels run by Bavarians, and restaurants serving authentic pretzels, Schnitzel, Gluhwein (mulled wine), and many more German, Austrian and Swiss treats. A true European food heaven.

New Orleans, Louisiana

Photo Credit: Peter Unger

The French influence in New Orleans is especially noticeable in the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carre. Here, classic shops and markets co-exist with bars, live music venues and other modern attractions.

But theres a Spanish twist as well, which may not be so obvious. Much of the architecture there is, in fact, Spanish. The reason? A series of fires which destroyed what the French originally built.

The New Orleans site explains, to pay a war debt, France gave up control of Louisiana to Spain from 1763 until 1803. Several fires destroyed the Vieux Carres original French architecture during Spains 40-year rule, so much of the citys trademark charm can be credited to the Spanish rebuilding effort.
Several waves of Russian missile attacks on 17 and 18 May resulted in only one hit  a Kh-101/Kh-555 missile in Khmelnytskyi Oblast, while other reports of destruction were related to damage from shot down targets [missiles] that fell to the ground.

Source: Colonel Yurii Ihnat, Spokesperson for the Air Forces Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in a comment to Ukrainska Pravda

Details: 29 out of 30 cruise missiles targeting different oblasts of Ukraine were shot down.

At the same time, as Ihnat explains, downed missiles cannot evaporate in the air; they or their fragments inevitably fall to the ground.

This is the case with the alleged hit in Odesa Oblast. The officer stated that a missile downed by Ukrainian air defence fell on a certain facility, causing destruction, killing one person and injuring several others.

Therefore, the Air Force spokesperson once again emphasised that when an air-raid warning is issued, it is necessary to follow safety measures and stay in the shelter.

Because the warheads of Ukrainian air defence missiles and destroyed Russian air targets [drones and missiles] inevitably fall to the ground.

Quote: "An anti-aircraft missile hits a cruise missile (it doesn't have to be head-on), it explodes nearby, and the hit cruise missile may or may not explode in the air.

The situation is the same with the Shahed drone, which can be hit and no longer fly to its target; it is not a strike, so when it is hit, it flies down and explodes...

We are emphasising that even the successful work of our air defence forces is also dangerous for citizens, so you need to stay in a shelter and take care of your families."

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Detectives, victim's former boyfriend testify on second day of Joseph Zieler trial

Joseph Zieler stared in jurors' direction as the court played a recording of the time Cape Coral Police confronted him with two 1990 homicides as he claimed memory loss.

Zieler, 60, of North Fort Myers, was charged in November 2016 with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with May 9, 1990, slayings of Robin Cornell, 11, and Lisa Story, 32.

After years of repeated delays, attorneys seated a jury last week and started the trial Tuesday, presenting DNA-related evidence Wednesday.

Life sentence: Bonita Springs man, 60, sentenced to life in 2020 child sex crime

Joseph Zieler: Trial begins for Joseph Zieler in 1990 Cape Coral rape, murder of 11-year-old, babysitter

Assistant State Attorneys Daniel Feinberg, Stephanie Russell and Abe Thornburg are prosecuting the case. Zieler is represented by Lee Hollander and Kevin Shirley.

Played recording shows Joseph Zieler's first interview with authorities

The court played a recording of when Cape Coral Police first confronted Zieler about the killings.

They connected him to the slayings after the Florida Department of Law Enforcement notified of a DNA match. Zieler had been arrested Aug. 27, 2016 on unrelated battery charges.

The recorded interview showed Zieler was nervous and evasive as his voice cracked.

He told detectives his girlfriend made all decisions for him and that he didn't remember his parents' names or how he got to Cape Coral.

Later throughout questioning, he indicated he remembered his girlfriend's cellphone number.

As the recording continued, Zieler never turned toward the screen and kept staring in the jury's direction.

Evidence shows DNA of Zieler, victims

Evidence displayed Wednesday explained how authorities found Zieler's along with the victims' DNAs.

Prosecutors presented into victims' assault kits collected in 1990 that helped connect Zieler with the murders. They contained their blood, as well as swabs of their cheeks and contact areas.

Changes in the jury

Around 11:30 a.m., Lee Circuit Judge Robert Branning received a note from the court bailiff. One of the jurors expressed concern she wouldn't stay awake, indicating it was persistent, and added she was afraid it could result in mistrial.

After about a 20-minute recess, Branning dismissed her. He requested the next alternate juror be called to hear the case.

For most of Wednesday, eight jurors and the remaining three alternates sat in the jury box.

How much longer is the trial expected to last?

During a recess, prosecutors flagged Branning and alerted they expect to rest their case Thursday afternoon.

Branning warned about the sensitivity of the case.

If the jury convicts Zieler, who could face the death penalty, Branning said they'd have to be sequestered throughout the weekend, meaning they'd have to remain in a bubble, without outside contact to avoid influence.

About a month ago, the jury hearing the case of Wisner Desmaret, convicted in the fatal shooting of Fort Myers Police officer Adam Jobbers-Miller, was sequestered for one night until they reached a verdict in the penalty phase the following day.

Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral cold case: Zieler claims memory loss during interrogation
Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $75 million to victims of sex predator Jeffrey Epstein to settle a federal lawsuit accusing the bank of enabling and benefitting from its customers sex trafficking of young women, sources told CNBC on Wednesday night.

The bombshell deal still leaves JPMorgan Chase to defend its own would-be class action lawsuit by Epstein accusers in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, which involves similar allegations.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who has said the bank is not liable for sex trafficking by its former long-time customer Epstein, is due to be deposed in that suit, and a related one by the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands on May 26.

The settlement agreement by Deutsche Bank, which will set aside $75 million for Epstein accusers, was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Under the deal, victims of Epstein who were affected by his sex trafficking during the time when he was a customer of Deutsche Bank, from 2013 through 2018, would receive at least $75,000 and up to $5 million depending on an evaluation of their claims.

Deutsche Bank spokesman Dylan Riddle would not comment on the deal, but noted that his bank has spent more than 4 billion euros [$4.34 billion] to strengthen internal financial controls.

In recent years Deutsche Bank has made considerable progress in remedying a number of past issues, Riddle said.

Jeffrey Epstein (Rick Friedman / Corbis via Getty Images)

He noted that in 2020, when the bank agreed to pay a $150 million fine to New Yorks financial regulator for its dealings with Epstein and other issues, Deutsche Bank had said, We acknowledge our error onboarding Epstein in 2013, and the weaknesses in our processes, and have learnt from our mistakes and our shortcomings.

The two law firms representing the accusers, Edwards Pottinger and Boies Schiller Flexner, in a joint statement obtained by CNBC said: This groundbreaking settlement is the culmination of two law firms conducting more than a decade-long investigation to hold one of Epsteins financial banking partners responsible for the role it played in facilitating his trafficking organization.

The suit, which was seeking class-action status, was filed in November by a woman using the pseudonym Jane Doe. She alleged Deutsche Bank knowingly participated in and financially benefited from participating in Epsteins sex trafficking by providing the requisite financial support for the continued operation of that scheme.

Deutsche Bank also knew that Epstein would use means of force, threats of force, fraud, abuse of legal process, exploitation of power disparity, and a variety of other forms of coercion to cause young women and girls to engage in commercial sex acts, the suit says.

Knowing that they would earn millions of dollars from facilitating Epsteins sex trafficking, and from its relationship with Epstein, Deutsche Bank chose profit over following the law, the suit said. Specifically, Deutsche Bank chose facilitating a sex trafficking operation in order to churn profits.

Epstein, who had been a customer of JPMorgan from 1998 through 2013, became a customer of Deutsche Bank after JPMorgan ended its banking relationship with him.

Deutsche Bank picked up exactly where JPMorgan left off and became the bank that Epstein needed to fund his sexual abuse and sex-trafficking operation, the suit says.

Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan federal jail in August 2019, a month after being arrested on federal child sex trafficking charges.

His arrest in that case came 10 years after he served a jail sentence or more than a year for pleading guilty in Florida state court to soliciting sex for money from an underage girl. That 2008 guilty plea was widely publicized.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Deutsche Bank will pay $75 million to settle litigation alleging the German lender financially benefited from supporting Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking scheme, according to a new report

Deutsche Bank will pay $75 million to settle litigation alleging the German lender financially benefited from supporting Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking scheme, according to a report Wednesday.

The settlement concerns an unnamed defendant who launched a proposed class-action suit in November 2022, alleging Deutsche Bank did business with Epstein while knowing he used funds in the account to support sex-trafficking activity, the Wall Street Journal said Wednesday.

The Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, said Deutsche Bank did not admit wrongdoing.

A Deutsche Bank spokesperson declined comment.

Deutsche Bank benefited financially by supporting Epstein's "sex trafficking organization to successfully rape, sexually assault and coercively sex traffic Plaintiff Jane Doe 1 and the numerous other members of the Class," said the original complaint, which was filed in US court in New York.

Epstein, an American financier who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex crimes, began banking with Deutsche Bank in 2013 after JPMorgan Chase closed his accounts, the Journal reported.

An unidentified woman -- apparently the same as in the Deutsche case -- and the US Virgin Islands brought separate suits against JPMorgan late last year, accusing the bank of facilitating Epstein's crimes by ignoring warnings and continuing to keep him as a client until 2013.

According to court documents, subpoenas in those cases have targeted multiple well-known people whom Epstein possibly referred to JPMorgan as clients, including Elon Musk and Google co-founder Larry Page.

The bank has denied the allegations, and has filed its own suit against a former executive for his ties to Epstein.

Deutsche Bank in July 2020 agreed to pay $150 million to settle allegations brought by the New York Department of Financial Services for compliance failures connected to the bank's work for Epstein.

"We acknowledge our error of onboarding Epstein in 2013 and the weaknesses in our processes, and have learnt from our mistakes and shortcomings," Deutsche Bank said in July 2020.

Epstein was convicted in Florida in 2008 of paying young girls for massages, but served just 13 months in jail under a secret plea deal.

Later facing charges of trafficking underage girls for sex, he killed himself in a New York jail in August 2019.

jmb/des
Dianne Feinstein can't be recalled and she almost certainly won't be expelled from the Senate

Sen. Dianne Feinstein arrives at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on May 10, 2023. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

A new report raises even more concerns about Sen. Dianne Feinstein's health.

History shows that little is likely to change since her colleagues are extremely unlikely to remove her from office.

The grim reality, as people close to her reportedly joke about, is she will likely die in office.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein isn't going anywhere unless she makes the call herself.

After three months away from Washington, California's senior senator has returned to the same questions and concerns about her age and well-being that surrounded her before she left. And a startling New York Times report on Thursday makes clear the complications she's dealt with as a result of her shingles diagnosis might be far worse than were publicly known.

The reality is that while her colleagues have the power to force her from office, there is little chance they would pull that lever. The only thing that could change is that Feinstein suddenly bows to the pressure campaign, but thus far she has remained steadfast in doing the job even if it appears she might not even know that she's been away.

Expelling a senator for being too infirm to perform their duties would set a precedent that could easily befall one of her colleagues in the future. As Insider documented in its "Red, White, and Gray" project, Congress is older now than it has ever been before.

True, Feinstein's health is the topic du jour in Washington. But before her, Thad Cochran, Robert Byrd, Ted Kennedy, Frank Lautenberg, John McCain, Daniel Inouye, and Strom Thurmond all faced health complications late in their careers. Byrd, Thurmond, and Cochran all faced unflattering stories that virtually mirror what's been written about Feinstein. Out of that list, only Thurmond and Cochran did not die in office.

As The Washington Post pointed out, the grim history of senators' declining health can go as far back as 1942. Some of Sen. Carter Glass Virginia constituents went so far as to petition courts to remove him from office. No judge stepped in though and Glass later died in office.

The only true difference now is that Feinstein is a woman, a fact her allies and defenders have repeatedly pointed out. They think far much more pressure is being brought to bear on the 89-year-old than any previous man.

The last time the Senate actually expelled a member was in 1862 when it booted out 14 senators for supporting the Confederacy. The chamber has considered expulsion as recently as 1995, but so far in the modern era, lawmakers have either retired or resigned before they were formally kicked out.

None of the recent episodes bear any semblance to what Feinstein is experiencing. As for Californians, federal officeholders cannot be recalled or removed from office. Their power over Feinstein ended with her reelection in 2018.

The biggest power Feinstein's colleagues and critics can wield is shame. They can hope op-eds, anonymous anecdotes, and even public calls for resignation will suddenly change her mind.

But to some politicians, it's better to persevere and hold power than to relinquish it entirely, particularly when many came of age in a system that prized seniority.

It's not surprising then that some unnamed people close to Feinstein, "joke privately that perhaps when Ms. Feinstein is dead, she will start to consider resigning," according to the New York Times.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Dianne Feinstein didn't reveal she had complications from shingles like brain swelling and facial paralysis: New York Times

Dianne Feinstein didn't reveal she had complications from shingles like brain swelling and facial paralysis: New York Times

Sen. Dianne Feinstein arrives at the Senate on May 10, 2023. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Sen. Dianne Feinstein was absent from the Senate for nearly three months due to shingles, her office has said.

A report from the New York Times, however, noted she was diagnosed with several complications stemming from shingles.

The complications left her face partially paralyzed and affected her balance and vision.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein was absent from the Senate for nearly three months as she battled a shingles diagnosis, her office previously explained. A new report, however, reveals that she was also diagnosed with encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, among other complications.

According to a New York Times report, which relies on anonymous sourcing, said that Feinstein's shingles moved to her face and neck, leading to balance and vision problems along with partial facial paralysis.

As the New York Times noted, post-shingles encephalitis can lead to "lasting memory or language problems, sleep disorders, bouts of confusion, mood disorders, headaches and difficulties walking." Even prior to her shingles diagnosis, reports indicated Feinstein appeared to have mental acuity issues.

In February, just prior to temporarily stepping away from office with shingles, Insider reported that Feinstein couldn't remember voting on the Senate floor.

"Did I vote for that?" Feinstein said.

And according to Rolling Stone, the 89-year-old senator from California for years has had a member of her staff accompany her while she strolls the halls of Congress to avoid missteps with journalists. Rep. Nancy Pelosi's eldest daughter has also been seen assisting Feinstein since she returned, but the former speaker denied using the relationship to help Rep. Adam Schiff, the candidate Pelosi endorsed to replace the aging senator.

In her absence from Congress as she dealt with shingles and complications arising from it, several Democratic representatives called for Feinstein to resign, as her absence meant Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee couldn't confirm some of President Joe Biden's nominations.

A representative for Feinstein referred to the statement the senator provided the Times, "I'm back in Washington, voting and attending committee meetings while I recover from complications related to a shingles diagnosis. I continue to work and get results for California."

The possibility that Feinstein's condition may be even worse than previously known fits within a long history in Washington of elected officials not being entirely forthright or in some cases taking steps to cover up health complications. Insider explored this history and questions in detail for "Red, White, and Gray," a series of reports about how the nation has become a gerontocracy. An Insider analysis found at the time that Congress is as old as the legislative branch has ever been.

Read the original article on Business Insider
At my first health checkup in February 2022, after serving nearly 13 years in prison, the doctor told me I had lead poisoning. And not a mild case.

I had lead running through my veins at levels that required urgent treatment (83 micrograms per deciliter.) Lead levels higher than 10 micrograms per deciliter can cause constipation, nausea, headaches, nosebleeds and vomiting; I was experiencing all of these symptoms and more.

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There is only one way my body could have that much toxic metal in it: the water at Stateville Correctional Center, Illinoiss maximum security mens prison.

Anyone who has spent time at Stateville, incarcerated or otherwise, knows that the water there is not safe. The Illinois Department of Corrections administration is aware that lead, Legionella and copper have been found during mandated water testing. But the actions taken to ensure that people like me can access enough safe drinking water have failed and continue to fall short.

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My body is a testament to this.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Department of Corrections need to ensure that enough safe water is reliably available to incarcerated people. Blood lead tests need to be accessible to anyone who has spent any amount of time at Stateville, either incarcerated or as staff.

[ Toxic traces: Read the investigation on lead in water at Illinois schools and day cares ]

This will make it possible to identify and treat others with elevated lead levels, thereby sparing them suffering.

I had suspected there were issues with the water since I arrived at Stateville in 2018, where I was transferred to enroll in Northwestern Universitys Prison Education Program.

The water often tasted like onions, smelled like sewage and looked like it came from a mud puddle. It was so dirty that our white T-shirts would be stained brown when we washed them with the tap water in our cells.

Another clue that the water was dangerous is that correctional officers would not use it. I regularly heard them warn new staff about it. Furthermore, I never saw any staff member drink tap water, only bottled water. They even avoided the tap water  the same water that we drank daily  for washing their hands. I saw them use bottled water for that.

These suspicions about the water were confirmed on a fall afternoon in 2020. Stateville prison officials and a group of 15 or so staff members walked into the five-story cell house and announced through a bullhorn: The water is contaminated. They told me and the 220 other inmates, The water will not kill you, but that we should avoid drinking and using the water because it could damage our well-being.

Still, it was nearly impossible to avoid drinking the water. Sure, bottled water was for sale at the commissary. But even those who could afford to pay 70 cents for a small bottle couldnt buy enough of it to last until the next time they were allowed to visit the commissary.

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I had already spent years drinking the water.

By 2020, I was experiencing symptoms that I now know can be caused by lead poisoning. My throat was sore, I had strange abdominal pain, my vision was blurry and I had discolored patches of sensitive skin all over my body. The health care unit told me that these were caused by sleeping under a fan and from eating the food we were served, although they didnt offer me other food. No one ever mentioned the water.

I had questions for the staff. Whats going to happen to our health, exactly? How much water is too much water? Whats going to happen to me? One of the officers said, Just avoid the water, man, as they filed out to make the same announcement in the next cell block.

But I needed them to elaborate on this news. Desperate to keep them from leaving, I used two live wires to set a pillowcase on fire and threw it into the gallery where the group had been standing.

This succeeded in bringing back the correctional officers, who sprayed my neighbors and me with Mace. As they pulled us out of our cells, punching, shoving and dragging our now blinded selves to solitary confinement, I kept asking about the water.

I need yall to tell me something about this water.

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Since my release in January 2022, my lead levels have gone down, thanks to a series of painful stomach injections to chelate the lead. Although Im still suffering side effects  migraines so bad that my nose bleeds  I still count myself lucky.

My fellow friends and classmates are still in Stateville, continuing to drink the water. Sure, the Department of Corrections has been providing some clean water, but it isnt enough; everyone I know on the inside still has to use tap water.

The guys tell me about symptoms that sound a lot like mine. They tell me that the staff wont test them for lead, even when they beg. They need our help; they need lead tests.

Lead poisoning should not be a part of anyones prison sentence.

Broderick Hollins is a Northwestern University student and father of four.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
A jury convicted a Macon man of murder and kidnapping among other charges in Bibb Superior Court Thursday after he killed three relatives of his childs mother in 2020.

Caesar Zamien Crockett, now 32, was found guilty of shooting and killing the grandparents and aunt of his child as well as kidnapping his 2-year-old son and engaging Florida police in a six-hour standoff in April of 2020, according to court testimony.

The trial lasted roughly three days and hinged on key testimony from the childs mother, Jamila French, who witnessed part of the shooting, and several police officers. Crockett himself testified on the final day of the trial in a failed effort to convince at least one member of the jury.

Crockett claimed when he testified that he was threatened by a Mexican cartel in 2019 and that the shooting in 2020 was a cartel attack.

I got a text around Thanksgiving (of 2019) from a Mexican cartel member, Crockett said when he took the stand in front of a packed courtroom. They had my address they said they were going to kill me and my family.

Crockett opened his testimony by saying his name was King Lucifer Cane, refusing to go by his legal name. He also took long silences between answering questions from attorneys, tilting his head upwards and closing his eyes. He often shook as he spoke, moving erratically as he answered questions.

After the jury gave the verdict, family members of the three people slain gave impact statements before sentencing.

Caesar, its between you and God now, the daughter of a victim said. Im thankful that youll never get to see your son. I hope that you spend your nights sleepless.

Judge Howard Simms sentenced Crockett to three consecutive life sentences without parole for the three counts of murder after the jury of seven men and five women delivered the verdict in less than an hour Thursday afternoon. Family members of the victims wiped away tears as Simms told Crockett how he would spend the rest of his days.

You asked (Jamila French) about your legacy, Mr. Crockett but you almost killed your legacy in the back seat of that car, Simms said during sentencing. You need to die in a penitentiary. Ive tried a lot of bad cases this is one of the worst.

The case

Caesar Zamien Crockett walks into a Bibb County Superior courtroom during his murder trial Thursday morning. Crockett is accused of shooting the grandparents and aunt of his child in 2020.

The prosecution built a timeline of events for the jury to follow by way of witnesses and boxes upon boxes of evidence. French testified as the key witness, describing how the shooting began.

Crockett was living with French along with her mother Janet Samuel, 67; her step-father James Samuel, 69; and her sister, Deshasta Childs, 47. French and Crockett took care of their son King, 2, while French worked full-time, according to Frenchs testimony in court.

At about 9 p.m. April 1, 2020, Crockett sat next to French as she cleaned the bathroom, French said. He asked her repeatedly about why she wanted to harm his legacy by not having another child. French said she could not have another child between raising King and working full-time.

Crockett asked French if her God would condemn him on her behalf, French said.

That was when Crockett attacked her, according to French, punching her in the face and knocking her glasses to the floor before getting on top of her. French yelled for her mom, who came into the bathroom and pulled Crockett off of her daughter, French said.

Crockett then went to their bedroom, where he had stashed a gun he took out of Frenchs car earlier that day, and returned to the room shooting at French and her mother. French saw her mother grab her upper body and say Oh God, then ran out of the house down the street.

Both of Frenchs parents and her sister were dead when police arrived at their Moreland Avenue home. Autopsies admitted into evidence in court showed that all three died of gunshot wounds, Childs specifically from a close range shot.

Crockett fled to Florida with King as a hostage, eventually leading Tampa police on a high-speed chase before crashing. He released King but held police in a six-hour standoff before he peacefully surrendered, attorneys said.

With testimony from crime scene investigators and detectives, prosecuting attorneys said Crockett was the killer. Tampa police Lt. Whitney McCormick testified in court that Crockett admitted to the killings to officers while he engaged in the Tampa standoff, saying he had made the biggest mistake of his life.

Crockett also said during the standoff that French only survived because she got out of the house after I shot, according to McCormicks testimony.

Other evidence included the gun and bullets Crockett had in his car, both of which were 9 mm, matching the 9 mm bullets found at the scene of the shooting. There was also a 911 call of French reporting Crockett shooting her mom and body cam footage of police investigating.
Disney canceled plans for a billion-dollar project in Florida following feud with governor Ron DeSantis

CEO Bob Iger escalated the feud last week, publicly asking DeSantis if he wanted Disney to keep investing money into Florida.

Disney announced it was abandoning plans to to build a $1 billion office complex near Disney World in Florida on Thursday (May 18), after months of building tension between the company and the states governor Ron DeSantis.

Josh DAmaro, the chairman of Disney theme parks cited changing business conditions in an email sent to employees according to a CNBC report, explaining why the company was scrapping its proposed campus in Lake Nona, Florida.

Read more

The office complex was slated to become the new headquarters of the Imagineering team, a department that works on developing theme park attractions out of popular Disney movies. The construction would have been eligible for a Florida tax credit worth as much as $570 million over 20 years.

DAmaro also announced that the company was cancelling related plans to relocate 2,000 California-based employees to Florida, a decision that comes just a few weeks after Disney announced it was suing DeSantis for embarking on targeted campaign of government retaliation for Disneys protected speech.

Still, DAmaro said he remained optimistic about Disneys future plans for Disney World in Florida in the memo, confirming the company still planned to invest $17 billion for construction costs in the state.





Quotable: Bob Igers rhetorical question for Disney

Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?

 Disney CEO Bob Iger in a call with investors earlier this week.

A timeline of tensions between Disney and Floridas governor

March 28, 2022: DeSantis signs the Dont Say Gay bill, prohibiting discussions of gender identity and sexual orientation in classrooms from kindergarten through third grade. Former Disney CEO Bob Chapek criticizes the law, and says the company tried to prevent it from passing.

April 28, 2022: The Florida legislature votes to remove Disneys special tax district by July 1 2023.

February 10, 2023: The Florida legislature votes to put DeSantis in charge of Disneys special tax district.

February 27, 2023: DeSantis signs legislation removing Disneys control over its special tax district.

March 30, 2023: Local reporting by the Orlando Sentential reveals that, before Florida took over the special tax district, Disneys board signed a development agreement that limited state control over the district.

April 3, 2023: DeSantis directs state officials to conduct an investigation into the agreement, apparently signed without the state governments knowledge.

April 26, 2023: Disney files a lawsuit against DeSantis, accusing the governor of waging a relentless campaign to weaponize government power over the company.

May 17, 2023: DeSantis signs a series of extensions to the Dont Say Gay bill, including expanding the policy for students though the eighth grade, escalating the conflict.

Related stories:

Disney sues Ron DeSantis on First Amendment grounds



The other battle brewing in Florida over Disney and the Dont Say Gay bill

DeSantis is threatening to build a state prison next to Walt Disney World

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(Bloomberg) -- Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is fighting a losing battle against Walt Disney Co., and a backlash against the Republicans culture crusade is galvanizing Democrats across the state, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Dyer was in New York City, where he was promoting Orlando as a burgeoning tech sector and for its new rail and airport projects. He spoke in an interview hours before Disney dropped plans to move 2,000 more employees to Florida. The mayor said his citys biggest employer would outlast DeSantis.

DeSantis is going to be gone one way or the other from Florida in four years. Disneys gonna be here forever, Dyer, a Democrat running for his sixth term, said. The pendulum has swung on some of these cultural issues.

DeSantis, widely expected to announce next week that he will run for the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, has feuded with Disney over the companys opposition to a Florida law that limited discussion of sexual identity in schools.

Read more: DeSantis Donors Called to Miami Speculate Hell Launch 2024 Run

The 44-year-old governor and the Republican-led state legislature cut Disneys self-governing authority by seizing control of a municipal district originally run by the company that builds and maintains infrastructure at the Disney World theme park complex near Orlando. Disney sued DeSantis last month, saying he engaged in a targeted campaign of government retaliation.

DeSantiss office didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.

Chilling Effect

Dyer said he worries about the chilling effect the governors public campaign against the company may have on Orlandos ability to attract business.

Disney employs about 70,000 people in the Orlando area. The company in a note to employees on Thursday said its canceling the relocation of 2,000 employees from California to a corporate campus that it no longer plans to build near Orlando. Disney didnt mention the DeSantis dispute, saying only that conditions had changed since the move was announced almost two years ago.

Still, Dyer emphasized that the citys pipeline of interest from businesses is strong, and factors that go into relocating are longer dated than a governors term.

I dont think what hes done is going to be irreparable when hes gone, unless hes able to do it to the entire country, Dyer said. Orlando is different. We continue to embrace diversity, equity and inclusion, even though that cant be in the vocabulary of the state government anymore.

Florida has also banned abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, prohibited school diversity programs and allocated funds to transport undocumented immigrants to so-called sanctuary cities, all policies pushed by conservative Republicans.

On Tuesday, Jacksonville, Floridas largest city, elected a Democrat mayor for only the second time in 30 years. Donna Deegan, a former television news anchor, defeated a Republican endorsed by DeSantis.

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2023 Bloomberg L.P.
Disney pulls the plug on its $1B Lake Nona campus in Orlando

The Walt Disney Company said Thursday that it will no longer be moving forward with its plans to open a $1 billion campus in Orlandos Lake Nona development.

The campus was supposed to open in 2026.

Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward with construction of the campus, said Josh DAmaro, the chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, in a letter to employees Thursday.

DAmaro said that the decision was not easy to make but the right one.

As a result, we will no longer be asking our employees to relocate, he said of employees who were asked to relocate to Florida from California. For those who have already moved, we will talk to you individually about your situation, including the possibility of moving you back.

DAmaro said that Disney is committed to handling the change with care and compassion.

He said the company still plans to invest $17 billion in Florida and create 13,000 during the next 10 years.

I hope were able to do so, DAmaro said in the letter.

Tavistock Group, Lake Nonas owner, declined to comment on the decision.

Read: Sources: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis expected to announce 2024 presidential campaign next week

The city of Orlando told Channel 9 that it learned of Disneys decision Thursday.

As a city, were disappointed whenever a business chooses not to expand or locate in Orlando, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. Thats no different here with todays news related to Disney.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis office provided Channel 9 with the following statement on the companys decision:

Read: Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser to permanently close this fall, Disney says

Disney announced the possibility of a Lake Nona campus nearly two years ago. Nothing ever came of the project, and the state was unsure whether it would come to fruition. Given the companys financial straits, falling market cap and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures.

Check back for live updates to this developing story and watch a live report on Channel 9 Eyewitness News.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Disney scraps $1 billion campus in Florida  and more than 2,000 jobs that were set to move. It's escalating the fight with Ron DeSantis.

In an apparent escalation in the feud between Gov. Ron DeSantis and Disney CEO Bob Iger, The Wall Street Journal reported that Disney has scrapped its plan to build a $1 billion corporate campus in Florida. Chris duMond/Getty Images; Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

Disney has abandoned its plan for a $1 billion campus in Florida, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The plan would have moved about 2,000 Disney employees to a town just outside Orlando.

The decision appears to be another development in Disney's feud with Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida.

Walt Disney made U-turn on its decision to build a nearly $1 billion corporate campus in Florida, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The decision to forego the new campus was the result of Disney's attempts to cut costs amid 7,000 planned layoffs, as well as its ongoing battle with Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.

The company would have moved more than 2,000 Disney employees from its headquarters in California to the campus, a town near Orlando.

They're no longer set to move  and "hundreds of employees" who had already moved to Florida will be able to decide between staying there or going back to California, according to the report.

A spokesperson for Disney did not respond to a request for comment.

DeSantis' office said financial challenges were responsible for Disney's scuttled plans for the Florida campus.

"Disney announced the possibility of a Lake Nona campus nearly two years ago," DeSantis' press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, told Insider. "Nothing ever came of the project, and the state was unsure whether it would come to fruition. Given the company's financial straits, falling market cap, and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures."

Disney's stock is up about 5.4% this year; the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up around 1.2% over the same timeframe.

Josh D'Amaro, Disney's head of parks, announced that the plan had been abandoned in an internal email to staff on Thursday, according to the Journal.

"While some were excited about the new campus, I know that this decision and the circumstances surrounding it have been difficult for others," the Journal said D'Amaro wrote. "Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward."

Disney's decision to scrap the campus is just one of many developments in its feud with DeSantis. Last month, Disney sued the Florida governor, accusing DeSantis of trying to "weaponize government power" against the company when he tried to alter Disney's special-tax district.

The lawsuit said that DeSantis was taking action against Disney because the company had spoken out against Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act, which severely curtails curriculum involving LGBTQ+ topics in public schools and has been nicknamed the "Don't Say Gay Bill" by critics.

DeSantis this week signed a slew of anti-transgender rights bills into law that will affect bathroom usage, pronouns in schools, and medical care. The governor is expected to announce a 2024 presidential bid next week, according to numerous reports.

Disney CEO Bob Iger appeared to threaten Florida lawmakers during a company earnings call in May. He said that Disney World brought millions of tourists to Florida each year and was its largest taxpayer  the company's corporate offices are in Burbank, California, and Walt Disney World is in Florida.

"Does the state want us to invest more, employ more, and pay more taxes  or not?" Iger asked during the company's earnings call in May.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Amorphous Turned A Viral Moment Into A Career Thats Led Him To Collaborate With Beyonce For Her World Tour

The power of social media is unmatched.

At the top of 2020, Jimir Reece Davis was homeless living in Los Angeles, CA, before having to return home because his mother was hospitalized following a bad seizure from epilepsy.

Little did he know, a global pandemic was looming and would change the course of many lives.

Whirlwind Success

Fast-forward to today, and Davis is now known to the world as Amorphous  his stage name. He also just celebrated collaborating on the musical arrangements of Beyonces Renaissance World Tour, which kicked off overseas on May 10, 2023, at the Friends Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.

The million-dollar question one may ask given Amorphous whirlwind success is how did he get here?

Its quite simple: He leveraged the energy working in his favor via social media.

nah this is one of the best come ups Ive been able to witness via social media. makes my heart smile! https://t.co/wq3TOh3TAo  UNIQUE.  (@_heyyTAY) May 18, 2023

His Rise To Fame

Initially, the method to Amorphous madness is something he wasnt quite ready to get behind. However, thanks to encouragement from his father, his whole world changed on Thanksgiving Day 2020 when he decided to share a video of himself mixing songs by Rihanna and Luther Vandross. The latter just so happens to be his dads favorite artist.

Youre gonna blow up when you do a remix with an old song, Amorphous recalled his father told him in an interview with Billboard.

His response: Nobody wants to hear that.

Thank heavens he was wrong!

The mashup that changed it all for Amorphous was Vandross 1981 hit Never Too Much coupled with Rihannas 2016 smash Kiss It Better.

It was shared from the comforts of his bedroom, a place that has always served as a safe haven for the man who preferred not to be in the public eye. Now, the clip  which has garnered around 3 million views to date  changed the trajectory of his life forever.

It wasnt long before everyone from Brandy to James Fauntleroy to Kelly Rowland and beyond began reaching out to collab with him.

The first person to connect with Amorphous for work was fellow musician DJ Khaled who turned his viral sensation into Sunshine (The Light), the 2021 track featuring Fat Joe.

Fulfilling His Destiny

During the 2022 interview with Billboard, Amorphous foretold opening up for Beyonce. However, he had no idea that the opportunity on its way was bigger.

Thank you @beyonce for allowing me to be part of your legacy with this tour, wrote Amorphous in a previous tweet. Thank you for inviting me into your creative space. Thank you for trusting me. This was always my biggest dream. Thank yall for believing in me. Played a part in my first tour ever with THE GREATEST.

thank you @beyonce for allowing me to be part of your legacy with this tour. thank you for inviting me into your creative space. thank you for trusting me. this was always my biggest dream. thank yall for believing in me. played a part in my first tour ever with THE GREATEST.  pic.twitter.com/QGnPmqWnrl  amorphous (@loneamorphous) May 11, 2023

Next up, Amorphous is set to kick off his debut headlining tour, The Amplification Tour, starting May 27, 2023.

Let this serve as a reminder that sometimes the only thing between you and your dream is the courage to put yourself out there.

Congratulations, Amorphous, on your continued success!
Editors note: This story has been updated to reflect that model legislation for an Energy Discrimination Elimination Act was submitted by an ALEC member but rejected by ALECs board and not adopted as an official model policy.

The recent Republican push against sustainable investing likely originated in a backroom campaign by the fossil fuel industry in states like West Virginia and Texas.

Its tactic: to tar moves by the financial sector to weigh the climate risks posed to the oil, gas and coal businesses as discrimination, according to internal documents obtained by InfluenceMap.

InfluenceMap is a nonprofit think tank that reports on corporate lobbying around climate policy  an issue that has become almost entirely subsumed over the past year in the broader Republican campaign against what Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) calls woke investing.

That campaign began as a failed 2021 attempt to get West Virginia to ban banks that figured into loans then-obscure metrics around environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.

But over the past two years, the approach has gained rapid ground, as the ESG issue has bloomed into a major focus of state Republican politics and a key battleground in the national culture wars.

The documents obtained by InfluenceMap  which date back to the first attempts to craft anti-ESG legislation  reveal fossil fuel companies role as the major driver in the fight against sustainable finance.

Fight against ESG

While it has largely failed to resonate with voters, the anti-ESG push has been successful in weakening climate commitments from major banks, which could now face a tide of anti-ESG lawsuits enabled by a rising wave of state laws.

Eighteen GOP-controlled state legislatures have passed bans of ESG, as has Congress  a piece of legislation that caused President Joe Biden to issue the first veto of his term.

Recent rhetoric around such ESG bans in Indiana, Kansas and Florida has focused on factors other than climate  in particular, Republican narratives around gender equity in the workplace and protections against discrimination. That push centered on the backlash by some finance companies against investment in firearms and private prison companies, as The Hill reported.

WOKE-Wall Street wants to cozy up to the [Chinese Communist Party] and Dylan Mulvaney! Florida State Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said in a statement following DeSantis signing of anti-ESG legislation earlier this month.

Our stance against ESG is another signal to the rest of the world that Florida believes in prosperity, we believe in freedom, and were a place where WOKE GOES TO DIE! Patronis added.

Anti-ESG origins

ESGs path to its current culture war status began with an attempt by West Virginia coal companies to push back against the financial industrys rising unease around investing in coal  which as the dirtiest-burning fuel has the most powerful and disrupting impacts on the climate.

Documents obtained by InfluenceMap via a Freedom of Information Act request show that in February 2021, the West Virginia Coal Association sent a draft anti-ESG bill to state delegate Zack Maynard, who introduced it to the legislature that session.

That bill targeted commercial discrimination of producers of coal, gas, oil, carbon-based energy, and anti-discrimination rhetoric would become common in state anti-ESG bills across the nation.

The West Virginia bill was part of a multi-state initiative to counter back against corporate cancel culture specifically ESG, a lobbyist from Alliance Resource Partners  a major coal producer  wrote the head of the state pension committee.

This campaign began early on to cast ESG as a threat, said Cleo Rank, the InfluenceMap researcher who obtained and analyzed the documents.

In the case of coal, that threat was real: over 200 global financial institutions have committed to no longer finance coal mining or coal plants, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

But the anti-ESG push soon expanded to focus on perceived finance industry threats to oil and gas, even though that industry had received nearly $500 billion in 2022 alone to explore for new supplies  its largest amount since Obamas second term, according to S&P Global.

By 2021, conservative arguments against ESG consistently described it as a form of unethical  and potentially illegal  discrimination.

In a white paper commissioned by the highly conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and circulated alongside the West Virginia legislation, oil industry Bud Brigham described ESG as a threat to American values, not just economic gains.

Economic freedom  our right to spend, invest and donate our hard-earned money as we choose  is one of our most cherished rights, Brigham, who has self-funded adaptations of movies by arch-libertarian Ayn Rand, wrote in the paper.

But the energy discrimination movement, having penetrated the boardrooms and pension funds, seeks to undermine these fundamental principles, Brigham added.

The West Virginia legislation failed in 2021  but groups that backed it went on to push successfully for anti-ESG legislation in other states.

Copycat ESG legislation

One key player was the conservative State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF), InfluenceMaps Rank told The Hill.

In one email to the group, West Virginias state financial officer asked for help getting signatures for a letter complaining to the U.S. banking industry about discrimination against fossil fuels.

The following year, the SFOF began to coordinate the opposition that ultimately helped scuttle the nomination of climate hawk and Biden appointee Sarah Bloom Raskin as the Federal Reserves top cop.

SFOF has close ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a corporate-backed group  with heavy fossil fuel industry representation  that writes conservative draft bills for state legislators.

Draft language nearly identical to that submitted by a member of ALEC for an Energy Discrimination Elimination Act  model legislation that was rejected by ALECs board  later found its way into anti-ESG bills passed in states like Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Kentucky.

The arguments made for these laws now often focus on the idea that conservative beliefs are under attack.

The climate has always changed

Last December, Brigham  the oilman who coined the idea of energy discrimination  told a Texas Senate committee that his beliefs about climate change had cost him loans with Credit Suisse.

The loan officer, Brigham testified, said, Bud, we may not be the right bank for you. And I said, Really? Why? And he said, We kind of have to hear you say Climate change is real. And its not debatable.

Brigham said he agreed with that  the climate has always changed, and it always will  but didnt believe that carbon emissions had caused a crisis, and believed that the international treaties used to slow carbon emissions would be a net human destruction.

I was personally very offended by that, Brigham said. And for them to use their power, their access to capital, to try to suppress my freedom of speech to try to coerce us into their political viewpoint  I found to be offensive.

That frame is now mainstream on the right. Federal climate disclosures would violate the First Amendment because they would force companies to say that they regard alleged climate risks as material, the State Financial Officers Association wrote the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2022.

And the sweeping Florida anti-ESG bill passed earlier this month cast Republican banned discriminating against customers for their religious, political, or social beliefs.

These beliefs included their support for securing the border, owning a firearm, and increasing our energy independence.

The price of freedom

The other side of the anti-ESG argument advanced in the documents is that its illogical  because ESG investors are losing money by putting political concerns over financial returns.

But recent studies suggest that anti-ESG policies are beginning to cost states  and cities within them  as large financiers elect to leave the public market, leaving municipalities and state pension funds with fewer, smaller options.

One independent financial analysis found that Indianas anti-ESG bill could cost the state pension system nearly $7 billion, Reuters reported.

After Texas passed its anti-ESG law, five of the largest banks  Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Fidelity and Bank of America  stopped doing business with the states urban governments, according to a study from Wharton Business School.

This is new in its scale, study author Daniel Garrett said in a statement. Those banks used to underwrite about 35% of the debt in the market, so theyve left a really big gap.

Updated at 3:19 p.m. May 19

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
The Los Angeles Dodgers announced that it has rescinded its invitation to The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence from the team's upcoming Pride Night following conservative pushback. The move comes as multiple states attempt to pass anti-drag legislation, prompting outcry from LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations.

The Dodgers' 10th Pride Night, which is scheduled to take place on June 16, will feature a night of LGBTQ+ programming attended by a number of different groups, and is meant to highlight "diversity and resilience" within the Dodgers fan base  as well as "the impactful work of extraordinary community groups," according to the team.

The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a nonprofit organization that was founded in 1979 at the start of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S., were originally among the organizations set to attend the game and receive a Community Hero Award.

"We are an Order of 30th Century Nuns dedicated to the promulgation of universal joy and the expiation of stigmatic guilt. Our ministry is one of public manifestation and habitual perpetration," reads the site for the Los Angeles chapter of the group  which is known for both its activist work and drag depictions of Catholic nuns.

In a statement posted on Wednesday to Twitter, the Dodgers wrote that the inclusion of The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence had been "the source of some controversy."

"Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters' inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year's group of honorees," continued the Dodgers' Twitter statement.

Several conservative groups, and even Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, had criticized the Sisters' inclusion.

Sent a letter to @MLB Commissioner Manfred regarding the @Dodgers decision to promote a woke far-left anti-Catholic agenda.



Drag queen performers should NOT be celebrated for their disgraceful imitation of Roman Catholic nuns.https://t.co/GV6NHlW6yw pic.twitter.com/8rHot8n7pD  Senator Marco Rubio (@SenMarcoRubio) May 15, 2023

On Monday, Rubio sent a letter to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, accusing the Dodgers of promoting a "woke far-left anti-Catholic agenda."

"Major League Baseball, as a private organization in a free country, can give awards to whatever groups it chooses, no matter how loathsome," Rubio wrote. "But baseball has always been tied to our nation's values, at the heart of which is faith in God. It would be an outrage and a tragedy if the MLB, in pursuit of modern, secular, and indeed anti-religious 'values,' rebuked that faith and the millions of believing fans who cherish the sport."

The inclusion of the Sisters on Pride Night also drew the ire of The Catholic League, a Christian organization that has in the past railed against "The Golden Compass" movie, Nicki Minaj's 2012 Grammy performance and the use of the word "Holidays" on one of George W. Bush's White House Christmas cards as being anti-Catholic.

"The Catholic League has been the leading critic of this bigoted organization for many decades," said Catholic League President Bill Donohue on the organization's website.

When the Dodgers announced it would no longer host the Sisters, the league wrote, "Justice was done in the end. There is no room for anti-Catholic bigotry in any gay or trans celebratory event."

Sister Ida of the San Diego Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence attends Women's March San Diego on January 19, 2019 in San Diego, California. / Credit: Daniel Knighton / Getty Images

The Dodgers' Wednesday announcement was met again with backlash, as people criticized the team's decision to cave to pressure from outside groups, who they felt were misrepresenting the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence's work.

The Sisters wrote on Facebook, "We are sad to learn the Los Angeles Dodgers have chosen to rescind their award, succumbing to pressure from persons outside of the State of California and outside of our community. We are disappointed they have chose to un-ally themselves with us in their ongoing service to the public."

"Our work speaks for us. We do not serve to receive awards or accolades," the statement concluded.

Sister Roma, a longtime member of the group, tweeted, "So disappointing to see the [Dodgers] cave to the conservative pseudo-Christian homophobes. This weaponizing of religion is exactly what the [LA Drag Nuns] and [SF Sisters] have been protesting for decades."

In response to the Dodgers announcement, one Twitter user replied, "I've been a fan since [1981], and I've sat through a whole lot of stuff you guys have promoted that was offensive to ME, but I knew was important to others. I'm very disappointed in this organization today."

Drag superstar Aquaria wrote, "This is such a disappointment."

"At a moment in time when drag performers are under attack across the country  including in state legislatures and in some cases needing armed escorts to protect them from far-right extremists  the Dodgers' actions are disappointing and let down thousands of LGBTQ+ fans that have supported them throughout the years," said Executive Director of LGBTQ+ advocacy group Equality California, Tony Hoang.

Local politicians also condemned the choice, with Los Angeles County Supervisor, Lindsey P. Horvath writing on Twitter, "If they're not invited, I'm not going. Celebrating Pride is about inclusion. Do better."

Additionally, the Los Angeles LGBT Center has removed itself from the event. In a statement posted on Twitter, the Center also called on the Dodgers to cancel its Pride Night entirely "unless they rectify this error."

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Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, talks with his sister Ashley Biden as they attend his daughter Maisy Bidens commencement ceremony at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Monday, May 15, 2023. | Patrick Semansky, Associated Press

The attorneys for an Internal Revenue Service whistleblower wrote a letter to Congress claiming that their client has been removed from an investigation on Hunter Biden.

The investigation surrounding President Joe Bidens son focuses on crimes related to taxes and his false statement in connection to a gun purchase.

Today the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Supervisory Special Agent we represent was informed that he and his entire investigative team are being removed from the ongoing and sensitive investigation of the high-profile, controversial subject about which our client sought to make whistleblower disclosures to Congress, the attorneys wrote in a letter to Congress, obtained by Fox News.

The Department of Justice informed the whistleblower of the change on Monday, the attorneys  Tristan Leavitt, president of Empower Oversight, and Mark Lytle of Nixon Peabody  wrote.

Whistleblowers attorneys: DOJs move is clearly retaliatory

According to CBS News, Lytle met with the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees earlier this month to discuss what the whistleblower can tell members of Congress.

Lytle previously said in a letter that his client claimed the investigation has been slowed down by preferential treatment and politics.

The attorneys claimed that this move was clearly retaliatory and may also constitute obstruction of a congressional inquiry in the latest letter.

The letter cited IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfels testimony from April 27, where he pledged to uphold the whistleblowers protections.

I can say without hesitation there will be no retaliation for anyone making an allegation or a call to a whistleblower hotline, he said.

Lawmakers, White House personnel react to whistleblowers removal

Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., also pointed to the inconsistency, saying that the concerning allegations of retaliatory actions against a whistleblower, appears to contradict the sworn testimony by Commissioner Werfel, in a statement.

Congresss duty to hold government agencies accountable relies on the availability and willingness of individuals to speak out about wrongdoing, said Smith. Not only does retaliation like this discourage whistleblowers, it can also rise to the level of an illegal violation of statutory protections for whistleblowers.

He called on Werfel to respond to the allegations made by the whistleblowers attorneys.

The DOJ told The Hill the federal agency could not comment on the matter and referred questions to U.S. attorney David Weiss, who is leading the investigation. Weiss has not commented on the letter.

Rep. Richard Neal, a Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, also joined Smiths calls for Werfel to provide more context.

Meanwhile, the White House spokesperson for oversight and investigation, Ian Sams, tweeted out a response.

For going on 5 years now, Republicans in Congress have been lobbing unfounded politically-motivated attacks against @POTUS without offering evidence for their claims. Or evidence of decisions influenced by anything other than U.S. interests.

For going on 5 years now, Republicans in Congress have been lobbing unfounded politically-motivated attacks against @POTUS without offering evidence for their claims. Or evidence of decisions influenced by anything other than U.S. interests.



They prefer trafficking in innuendo. https://t.co/ZjV46xvjit  Ian Sams (@IanSams46) May 3, 2023

Hunter Biden announced he was under investigation in December 2020, according to USA Today.

I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors, he said at the time.

Bidens attorney, Chris Clark, criticized the FBI for leaking information from the grand jury proceedings, according to a statement published by CBS News.

As is proper and legally required, we believe the prosecutors in this case are diligently and thoroughly weighing not just evidence provided by agents, but also all the other witnesses in this case, including witnesses for the defense, Clark said.

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The whistleblowers attorneys argued that their client has a right to make statements to Congress.

Any attempt by any government official to prevent a federal employee from furnishing information to Congress is also a direct violation of longstanding appropriations restriction, the letter stated.

CNN reported that the investigation is nearly finished and a decision about charges is pending.
Accused Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira sent classified documents to an international community on the chat forum site Discord, according to a Wednesday filing from federal prosecutors.

In supporting a motion to detain Teixeira ahead of his trial, the Department of Justice (DOJ) accused the 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guard member of sharing documents across multiple servers over the course of many months, including a server with more than 150 members who lived across the world.

DOJ prosecutors said the deliberate sharing of classified information to more than 150 users worldwide grossly undermines the notion of a limited transmission to a small private community.

And [it] refutes the defendants self-serving narrative that he failed to appreciate the harms that his activities could cause, they wrote. The defendant cannot now be trusted to refrain from causing further harm.

Judge David Hennessy at the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts paused an immediate ruling late last month on whether to hold Teixeira until he faces trial on charges of willfully retaining and sharing classified national secrets in violation of the Espionage Act.

Hennessy is expected to hear more arguments on the pretrial detention Friday.

Teixeiras lawyers have argued for his pretrial release on the grounds that he never intended for the documents to leak out for the world to see.

In a Wednesday filing, they wrote other defendants who have leaked or held classified secrets have been released ahead of trial before and that Teixeira would not pose a threat to the public or the government based upon a set of stringent conditions for his release.

The DOJ, however, has also submitted evidence Teixeira allegedly expressed a desire to kill people, talked of an assassination van and voiced racist slurs.

Prosecutors also argue Teixeira boasted about his connections to classified information and knew what he was doing was wrong, sharing messages he allegedly wrote on Discord, including one where he said he didnt care what they say I can or cant share.

That the defendant continued posting classified information despite keen awareness that

he was violating the law and even after being admonished multiple times by superiors is a clear

indication that he will be undeterred by any restrictions this court places upon him and will not

hesitate to circumvent those restrictions if he deems it in his interest to do so, prosecutors argued in the filings.

Teixeira, who served as an IT professional at Otis Air National Guard Base, was arrested last month after the documents, some of them labeled top secret, leaked out of Discord and onto the broader online sphere.

The Pentagon documents detailed everything from the Russia-Ukraine war to the affairs of U.S. allies, including South Korea and Israel and the leak spilled embarrassing secrets about American intelligence and insights.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Volunteer Ricky Flores, left, uses a rope to control the pinata as Sobrino Luciano, 8, attempts to hit it during a group birthday celebration in a temporary migrant shelter in the Pilsen neighborhood on May 21, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

It was widely expected that massive numbers of migrants would stream into the U.S. following the expiration Thursday of Title 42, the COVID-19-era policy that allowed border authorities to rapidly return most migrants who had crossed into the U.S. illegally. Instead, the border has been relatively quiet, with roughly 4,200 migrants detained Saturday and 6,300 on Sunday. Thats a drop from peaks as high as 11,000 detentions earlier last week, just before the pandemic policys expiration.

But thats hardly solace for Chicago, where migrants have been sleeping shoulder-to-shoulder on police station floors and jammed into shuttered schools, Park District field houses and even an abandoned Streeterville hotel.

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Many of the migrants are mothers traveling with toddlers and young children, all coping with the queasy angst of not knowing what happens next.

The crisis is both national and intensely local, and blame can be affixed to many players. It starts with Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Texas, who resorted to the cynical ploy of using migrants as political pawns and shipping them with one-way tickets to Chicago, New York and other Democratic strongholds.

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Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said of Abbott in an interview with WTTW that, If theres a hell, hell go to it. Preckwinkles charged remark wasnt just understandable, it succinctly summed up what much of the rest of the city has been thinking.

[ Editorial: Trafficked to Union Station? Migrants are not interstate political pawns ]

Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who justifiably has been also harshly critical of Abbott, isnt altogether blameless. The first wave of migrants that Abbott dispatched came last fall. Then the flow of migrants coming into Chicago slowed, which should have given Lightfoots team ample time and opportunity to map out contingency plans for the next wave. One constant in this crisis has been Abbotts predictability, and Lightfoot could have done a better job bracing the city for this latest influx.

And then, of course, theres the inexplicable gridlock that has characterized Congress inaction on immigration reform  for two decades.

One of the latest attempts at bipartisan immigration reform emerged late last year. Former Democrat and now independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema from Arizona teamed up with GOP Sen. Thom Tillis from North Carolina to craft a measure that would have tackled critical immigration issues such as improved processing of asylum claims, the creation of a pathway to citizenship for roughly 2 million so-called Dreamers (undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children), and the allocation of billions of dollars to better secure the southern border. It was a smart, comprehensive approach, and yet an ineffectual, divided Congress shelved it.

And if Vice President Kamala Harris has some effective new ideas on this emergency, we have yet to hear them.

In Chicago, the crisis is now in the hands of Mayor Brandon Johnson. The new mayor quickly made clear Chicagos compassion for the plight of migrants, saying during his inauguration speech Monday that the city will never close our doors to those who come here in search of a better life. One of his first official acts included an executive order creating a Deputy Mayor for Immigrant, Migrant and Refugee Rights, a post that will liaise with city departments to ensure support for asylum seekers.

On Tuesday, his first full day in office, he met with migrants at a police station in Pilsen and a Little Village park center, telling reporters Im here today because I needed to see it firsthand.

Thats laudable, but more than photo ops are needed for Chicago to cope with an ongoing migrant crisis that requires tangible support for asylum-seekers and a smart approach to finding ways to finance that support. Johnson can begin by fashioning a game plan for the crisis, and so far he hasnt shared that plan with the city.

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Does he have one? He should.

Though hes in his first week in office, Johnson has had weeks to prepare for what clearly is an urgent problem. This crisis isnt going away any time soon, and the mere fact that there are still migrant families  including young children  crammed into police stations should be ample incentive to move fast. Despite the lull in migrant activity at the border, more asylum-seekers are bound to get shipped to Chicago, and the city is already at capacity.

[ Opinion series: What Brandon Johnson must do as the new mayor of Chicago ]

One idea Johnson should consider: Smart thinkers in the city and surrounding suburbs have been talking up the merit of a regional approach toward solving metro area problems and crises. The current migrant plight can become the ideal litmus test for the city and suburbs commitment to regional problem-solving. Though Chicago has been struggling to find more adequate, humane shelter for incoming migrants, suburbia clearly has ample space and infrastructure.

New York Mayor Eric Adams has already tried sharing the burden of sheltering migrants by enlisting nearby suburbs. His attempt drew fierce blowback from those towns  largely because he sprung the idea on them with little notice. Johnson could glean lessons from Adams experience and negotiate with Chicago suburban leaders so that the suburbs dont feel as if theyre simply being volunteered to help involuntarily. And Gov. J.B. Pritzker should lend his bully pulpit to the promotion of this cooperative approach.

The best solution, of course, is a permanent one  and that will only happen when Congress, together with the administration of President Joe Biden, do what they were elected to do and hammer out genuine, lasting immigration reform. The Sinema-Tillis bill would be an ideal place to start.

Until then, cities like New York, Chicago and others must not shirk their duty to shelter and care for migrant families exploited in the worst way by a Texas governor who reprehensibly chooses self-serving politics over human decency. Its not an easy ask.

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Johnson will have to balance support for migrants with an equally urgent task  resourcing Black and brown communities that have endured neglect for far too long. He can begin by framing the migrant crisis not just as a Chicago problem, but as a regional one.

Join the discussion on Twitter @chitribopinions and on Facebook.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
Dont swim in Northern California rivers, officials warn. How cold and fast is the water?

It is still too cold to swim in Northern California rivers, officials warned Thursday.

Temperatures are in the 90s in Sacramento  but dont give into the temptation to take a dip in local waterways. The record Sierra snowpack is melting, causing fast and cold currents longer than even regulars are used to.

The American River is flowing very fast this weekend, and we want residents to be aware of just how dangerous it can be, said Liz Bellas, director of regional parks, in a Sacramento County news release Thursday.

The flows are so swift that the rafting companies along the river arent renting out equipment this weekend  its just too dangerous.

Water flowing out of the Nimbus Dam into the American River is anticipated to be flowing six times higher than normal for the summer months at 12,000 cubic feet per second, the news release stated.

Not only are rivers flowing fast, the water is cold, too.

Very WARM weather will continue today and tomorrow with a Moderate Heat Risk for portions of the Sacramento Valley.

Be sure to:

Check in on heat sensitive groups

Keep hydrated

Stay somewhere cool during the hottest parts of the day #CAwx pic.twitter.com/OsoaOh3082  NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) May 18, 2023

How cold is the river water?

Even though the air temperature feels really warm, the water is still running really cold and really fast from the snowmelt, said Katrina Hand, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

Even for an experienced swimmer, cold water temperatures can create difficult conditions, Hand warned. Taking a plunge into cold water can be a shock to the body, and in some cases can become deadly.

The North Fork American River near Auburn warmed up only to 53 degrees Wednesday, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey. It dipped as low as 47 degrees on May 3, 5, 6 and 7.

The American River near Fair Oaks in Sacramento County was measured at between 55 degrees and 56 degrees most of the past week. County officials in Thursdays news release said the river is usually warmer than 60 degrees this time of year.

It looks like cold river temperatures will be similar during the Memorial Day holiday, but its still too soon to tell, Hand said.

County parks officials have closed the Howe Avenue river access point due to a high river level and fast flow. Popular Rancho Cordova-based American River Raft Rentals has temporarily stopped its rental operations due to high water level and flow, according to its website.

A guide trainee crew with American Whitewater Expeditions rafts down the south fork of the American River on Thursday, May 4, 2023, near Coloma.

Two swimmers missing in foothills

Particularly dangerous is the American River, where Placer County officials say at least two people are missing and presumed drowned, in separate incidents during two of the past three weekends.

Deputies, fire personnel and other emergency responders launched two water search operations on the American River, one the evening of April 29 and the other this past Sunday afternoon, the Placer County Sheriffs Office said in social media posts this month.

In the first incident, a group of friends from Sacramento and Placer counties called 911 to report that one person in their group had been swept away in the river around 7:45 p.m.

In the more recent incident, a Bay Area man recreating by Yankee Jims Bridge near Foresthill jumped into the North Fork American River and was also swept away by the water, Sheriffs Office spokeswoman Angela Musallam confirmed.

Both people are still missing, the Sheriffs Office said Thursday morning.

Please dont become the next victim, sheriffs officials wrote in a Facebook post.

Searches for each missing person have been scaled down, ongoing on a limited but continuous basis, according to the social media posts and Musallam.

South Yuba River also dangerous, officials say

Another popular weekend river destination within reasonable driving distance of Sacramento, the South Yuba River, is raging this spring.

A 17-year-old kayaker died April 19 on the South Yuba River, near the Bridgeport Crossing, according to a news release from the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District.

As with the American River, rugged terrain near the South Yuba makes it difficult for first responders to access those in need of immediate medical attention. After delays due to that terrain, arriving crews found the unresponsive teen on a river bank; he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the news release.

Nevada County safety officials  who have started their own public awareness campaign titled Stay Out, Stay Alive  said this week that the South Yuba River has recently flowed up to 5,000 cubic feet per second.

That is astonishingly high: during August and September, the river often flows below 50 cfs, the Nevada County Office of Emergency Services said in a Facebook post.

Nevada County fire officials in last months news release said the teen who died was one of four experienced kayakers running the river together.

This unfortunate event is an early reminder that our rivers are powerful, cold and relentless, the department wrote.

Itll grab a hold of you, and youll be gone

In Placer County, dangerous conditions on the American River and rough terrain along its access points make water rescue operations difficult, sheriffs officials wrote.

This means we may not be able to enter the river immediately and will not be able to catch up to the individual, as they could have been swept too far downstream, Thursdays Facebook post continued.

Officials with the Placer County Sheriffs Office, county Office of Emergency Services and Cal Fires Nevada-Yuba-Placer unit are collaborating on a public safety campaign this year called Be River Wise.

Where you were playing last year in this river is not the same place youll be playing this year, Sgt. Kevin Griffiths said in a video released by the agencies. Its moving very fast. Itll grab a hold of you, and youll be gone.

Below are risks associated you can take with plunging into a cold water river, according to the weather service:

Body heat can be lost four times faster

Cold shock can be just as severe for water temperatures ranging from 50 to 60 degrees to water temperatures at 35 degrees.

Gasping for air and rapid breathing from the body immersing into the water can be triggered with water temperatures at 77 degrees.

Wearing a life jacket can significantly increase survival rates

What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com.
Don't miss it: 'SHIFT: The RAGBRAI Documentary' playing through Memorial Day at Varsity

You haven't seen "SHIFT: The RAGBRAI Documentary" yet? Or it's been sold out when you've tried to get tickets?

Don't give up: The Varsity Cinema has added yet another week of showings  with multiple screenings over Memorial Day weekend.

So grab a bike and head to the movies!

Times and dates

The hourlong film has been extended through Thursday, June 1. Showings are as follows:

Friday, May 26: 6:30 and 8 p.m.

Saturday, May 27: 1:15, 5:15 and 9:45 p.m.

Sunday, May 28: 1:15 and 3 p.m.

Monday, May 29: 4 and 5:45 p.m.

Tuesday, May 30: 4 p.m.

Wednesday, May 31: 4 and 5:45 p.m.

Thursday, June 1: 4:15 p.m.

Click here for tickets.

Where

Co-director Kelsey Kremer talks with cast members Ian Zahren and Andrew Boddicker before the premiere of '"SHIFT The RAGBRAI Documentary" to a sold-out crowd at Varsity Cinema May 4.

The Varsity is at 1207 25th St. in Des Moines, adjacent to the Drake University campus. Street parking is available.

Make a night of it and enjoy one of the nearby restaurants, including eateries specializing in Indian, Ethiopian, Asian-fusion and thick juicy burgers.

Tickets

For tickets, go to varsitydesmoines.com/movies/shift-the-ragbrai-documentary. Tickets are $12, plus a $1 booking fee. You can also buy tickets in the lobby, but from the May 4 premiere onward, showings often have been sold out, so it's wise to purchase in advance.

What it's about

Des Moines' Varsity Cinema hosts the premiere of "SHIFT: The RAGBRAI Documentary" to a sold-out crowd May 4.

"SHIFT," produced by Des Moines Register journalists Courtney Crowder and Kelsey Kremer, is the result of a more than yearlong project undertaken in recognition of this summer's 50th anniversary of the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. It follows three riders making the seven-day cross-state journey in 2022, enjoying the camaraderie of the ride and the hospitality of Iowans as they tell their stories along the way. It also shares the anticipation of a couple preparing their small Mississippi River town to host the terminal tire dip.

Above all, it's a glimpse of how an improbable event dreamed up in 1973 by another pair of Register journalists, John Karras and Donald Kaul, has become a cherished institution drawing thousands of participants from around the world to rural Iowa annually.

More showings to come

Screenings also will be hosted along the RAGBRAI route in July and in select Iowa towns. Details will be added to DesMoinesRegister.com/RAGBRAIdocumentary as they become available.

Support the film

Shift: The RAGBRAI Documentary was created with the belief that the films message of personal achievement through the magic of bicycling would be strong enough to support its production. We are still seeking funds to cover the costs of making this movie.

Please support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to Des Moines Film. Online donations may be made by visiting desmoinesfilm.org/shift-the-ragbrai-documentary. Checks made out to Des Moines Film with "Shift Documentary" in the memo line may be mailed to: Des Moines Film, 1207 25th St., Des Moines, IA 50311.

Want to host a screening?

Email ragbraidoc@gannett.com with a link to your local theater and we'll reach out!

Have questions?

Visit desmoinesregister.com/RAGBRAIdocumentary for more information.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: More chances to see 'SHIFT: The RAGBRAI Documentary' at the Varsity
Dr Pepper and Blue Bell are joining forces for a new ice cream flavor that's sure to float your boat if you're a fan of one popular frozen treat.

The new flavor, Dr Pepper Float, is made of creamy vanilla ice cream that's mixed with a Dr Pepper-flavored sherbet.

If you've been DIY'ing your ice cream floats at home using Dr Pepper and vanilla ice cream for ages, this will come as welcome news. And luckily, you won't have to wait long to give the new flavor a try.

According to a press release put out by both brands, pint- and half-gallon containers of Dr Pepper Float started rolling out in stores May 18, and they'll be available in the 23 states where Blue Bell ice cream is sold, through 2024.

(In case you're wondering, here are those 23 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wyoming.)

Blue Bell Dr Pepper ice cream (Courtesy Blue Bell Creameries)

Blue Bell Vice President, Sales and Marketing Jimmy Lawhorn described the inspiration behind the new flavor in a statement.

The best ice cream floats are made with Dr Pepper poured over a few scoops of Blue Bell, Lawhorn said. Why not put a spin on this popular treat and create our own version? The flavor of Dr Pepper and texture of the sherbet combine perfectly with the smooth vanilla ice cream. You may find yourself reaching for a soda glass instead of a bowl.

Senior Vice President of Dr Pepper Brand Marketing John Alvarado also explained why the collaboration was a natural fit for the two Texas companies.

Our Texas heritage is so important to us at Dr Pepper, and we are excited to team up with fellow Texas-born brand, Blue Bell, to create this new delicious treat, Alvarado said in a statement. We cant wait to provide our fans with another refreshing way to enjoy Dr Pepper.

Two iconic brands, Blue Bell and Dr Pepper, have teamed up to create one delicious ice cream flavor, Dr Pepper Float - our creamy vanilla ice cream swirled together w/Dr Pepper flavored sherbet. Find it in the half gallon and pint sizes beginning today! pic.twitter.com/Os9vUwkKw1  Blue Bell Ice Cream (@ILoveBlueBell) May 18, 2023

When Blue Bell shared the news on Twitter, many social media users were quick to share their excitement.

"Its my dream," one replied, while another commented, "TOTALLY gotta try this!"

One Twitter user noted how they love the idea of the nostalgic flavor. "I remember when we used to make these as a kid. Brings back so many memories!" they wrote.

Most people were generally thrilled to hear about the new flavor, but some said they're still partial to other soda brands.

"Ill try it out, but its going to be hard to beat a Coke float," one wrote. Another commented, "Should have been root beer but, ok. Dr Pepper is a close second for shakes."

Several Twitter users commented that they couldn't find the ice cream at their local store, and Blue Bell reassured them, saying that the shipments are on their way.

"All stores that sell Blue Bell will have our new Dr Pepper Float available. It can take several days to reach all locations, but we are stocking stores as quickly as possible!" the brand wrote.

This isn't the first time Dr Pepper has experimented with its signature flavor. In 2019, the brand released a soda that tasted like birthday cake and vanilla frosting. The one big catch? The brand only sent the flavor to members of their ambassador program, Dr Pepper's Pepper Pack.

The prior year, a bean brand called Serious Brand Co took inspiration from the popular soda and released Dr Pepper-flavored baked beans. The unique pairing sparked a social media debate, with many people unsure about the unusual pairing.

Of course, a Dr Pepper ice cream flavor makes a lot more sense since the soda is already a go-to for ice cream float fans. Does it measure up to the DIY floats you're accustomed to making at home? That's for you to decide.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
Driver yelled racial slur at another driver before stabbing him, Michigan officials say

A Michigan driver harassed and attacked another driver in a racially charged road rage incident, officials said.

The incident took place on May 14 on a road in Southfield, a suburb of Detroit, according to a news release from the Oakland County Prosecuting Attorneys Office.

A 25-year-old white man is accused of shouting a racial slur at a fellow driver, a 62-year-old Black man, before the situation escalated, Michigan officials said.

The younger driver then stabbed the man and slashed holes in his tires, officials said. Its not clear what injuries the man suffered.

An attorney for the accused man could not immediately be reached for comment by McClatchy News.

The man was charged with felonious assault and ethnic intimidation  both felonies  and malicious destruction of property, officials said. Together the charges carry a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.

Maliciously attacking another driver while yelling racial slurs is unacceptable and my office intends to hold this defendant, and anyone else who commits hate crimes, accountable, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said.

Couple said child died in dog attack, Arizona cops say. Now theyre accused of murder

39-year-old slips in Arkansas river and vanishes after being swept away, officials say

Nurse used $1.1 million of embezzled funds for cruise and personal expenses, feds say
In this Jan. 8, 2018, photo, certified pharmacy technician Peggy Gillespie fills antibiotics into a syringe for use as an IV push at ProMedica Toledo Hospital in Toledo, Ohio. Drug shortages are at an all-time high in the U.S. and people have started rationing medications in response. | Tony Dejak, Associated Press

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists released data that shows the drug shortage situation in the U.S. is hitting a 10-year high in the first quarter of 2023.

Medscape reported, Among the top five drug classes affected by shortages are chemotherapy drugs used in the treatment of cancer, many of which do not have alternatives.

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Why is this important? The New York Times reported that the American Cancer Societys chief medical officer, Dr. William Dahut, said, If these drugs are not available, people are going to get inferior care, while further emphasizing, These arent third- or fourth-line drugs where there are multiple other agents around. These are used up front for people you are trying to cure.

The report also found that even though drug shortages last typically about 1.5 years, 15 critical drug products have been in shortage for over a decade, according to CNN.

In December 2022, the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies in the U.K. reported that the shortage of antibiotics have reached unacceptable levels.

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What is causing the drug shortage? The Food and Drug Administration reported that some of the reasons contributing to the drug shortage situation are:

Manufacturing quality issues.

Delays in production of the drugs.

Suppliers mishandling materials.

Discontinuation of drugs, materials and equipment.

Frontiers in Pharmacology reported that another reason for drug shortages are stockpiling and panic buying of medications during the pandemic.

Alongside households, hospitals began stockpiling these medications, which made it difficult for pharmacies to get what they needed to meet community demands, according to Fox News.

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Quotes to note: This is, in my opinion, a public health emergency, Dr. Amanda Fader, a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and a president-elect of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology, said. Because of the breadth of the individuals it affects and the number of chemotherapy agents that are in shortage right now.

Medical Economics reported that the chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society and the American Cancer Society Action Network, Dr. Karen E. Knudsen, said, The shortage of certain cancer drugs has become a serious and life-threatening issue for cancer patients across the country.
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty/Ken Koeberlein

There is no other way that Nick Maimer, a former U.S. Special Forces soldier who was recently killed in Ukraine, would have preferred to die, according to one of his best friends.

Going into this he knew there was a high chance he was going to get killed, Ken Koeberlein, Maimers friend of 20 years, told The Daily Beast in an interview on Wednesday. He said that if he was going to face that, he wanted to die a heros death.

Maimer died in an artillery attack in the eastern city of Bakhmut earlier this week, his family confirmed on Tuesday. Video footage appearing to show the 45-year-olds body was shared by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the notorious head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, who said his body would be transported back to the U.S.

For many, the retired Green Beret was a hero long before he made the decision to volunteer in the Ukrainian work effort.

Anytime he saw anybody was having difficulties he would always step up, throughout the entire time that Ive known him for, Koeberlein said.

Former U.S. Special Forces Soldier Is Killed in Ukraine

The two friends had met up in Spain shortly before Maimer, who was working in Barcelona as an English teacher at the time, decided to travel to Ukraine in the spring of 2022. Koeberlein said he had just gone through a tough break-up and his friend, as always, was there to help.

He said, You should meet me in Barcelona!and we did that for almost a month, Koeberlein said, adding that he could always count on Maimer to lift his spirits, no matter what he was going through. He always had a smile on his face and he would always hit me up to see how I was doing, which a lot of people just dont do.

Thats not to say Maimer hasnt had to fight his own demons.

In a podcast interview in December 2020, he said he had a troubled home life growing up. I was raised by a single mother and in hindsight I can say her childhood trauma got passed on to me, he said. Eventually, he said, he learned to cope with all that internalized pain and anger and use it as inspiration to help others.

He had a very difficult childhood, Koeberlein said. I have a lot of respect for him. He did some serious hard work to get past what he went through. not a lot of people have the strength to do that.

Courtesy Ken Koeberlein

Whatever the cost

Tributes to Maimer have been flooding social media since news of his death first broke.

A friend said in one tribute that when he was having suicidal thoughts, Maimer called him in the middle of the night and insisted we switch to Zoom so he could look me in the eye. He said Maimer helped him move when he was going through a divorce, and would take him on motorcycle rides to get away from it all when was going through tough times.

Maimer single handedly brought me out of retirement, another friend said in a post dedicated to the veteran.

In other tributes, Maimer, who launched a career as producer at one point, was thanked for letting several friends use his recording studio for free. He wouldnt let us pay him and would always say... You are doing something to make the world a better place. I believe in what youre doing, one friend recalled in a Facebook post.

The veteran always stood up to protect and put service before himself, another friend said in a social media tribute. If its anything we can commemorate, it was his character. To always do whatever is right, at whatever the costI can guarantee everyone would agree, he had the biggest heart and all he wanted to do was share it with everyone on earth.

Maimers dedication appears to extend to his military career. The former Green Beret earned an Army Commendation Medal and several Army Achievement Medals, according to NBC. He was reportedly deployed to the Philippines in 2006, after serving in the U.S. Army and the Idaho Army National Guard.

Leading up to his death, Maimer was reportedly working with the nonprofit group AFGFree, where he helped train other volunteers in Ukraine.

Ukrainians fighting Russian aggression only want to raise a family, enjoy life, have a good quality of life and have the chance for prosperity, a better future for their kids, he told NBC in a February interview. They want exactly the same thing. Its not somebody else, somewhere else. It could just as easily be America.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Macon woman identified as 1 of 93 women Ga. serial killer claims he killed

Macon woman identified as 1 of 93 women Ga. serial killer claims he killed

Investigators have identified a Macon woman killed 46 years ago as the earliest confirmed victim of Georgias most notorious serial killer.

Samuel Little, from Reynoldstown, Georgia, died at age 80 in a California prison. Before his death, he confessed to murdering 93 women between 1970 and 2014.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

The FBI has confirmed his involvement in at least 60 of the murders, making him the most prolific serial killer in the U.S. Little confessed to killing eight Georgia women, including two in Macon.

On Thursday, investigators with the Bibb County Sheriffs office identified a woman previously known as Macon Jane Doe as Yvonne Pless, who was killed in 1977. Pless is Littles earliest confirmed victim to date.

Plesss body was found off Arkwright Road. She remained unidentified for years. Pless was linked to Little through a previously unsubmitted sexual assault kit.

Pless family issued a statement to Channel 2 Action News, reading:

We appreciate the interest in our family members story. When Captain Jones and Ms. Hutsell notified us that Yvonne had been identified, we were unaware she was deceased. We are mourning the loss of our loved one and have no comments at this time. We ask that our privacy be respected.

Littles second Macon victim was Fredonia Smith, who was murdered in a park in 1982.

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Little was born in Georgia but raised in Ohio. By the time he was 35, he had been arrested 26 times in eleven states for crimes including theft, assault, attempted rape and fraud.

He was arrested twice for murder in 1982, one in Florida and one in Mississippi, but acquitted. Little then spent two-and-a-half years in prison for attempted murder in California before his final arrest in 2012, which linked him to the murders of three more women in California. He was found guilty in 2014 and sentenced to life in the California State Prison.

While he was in prison, Little began to confess to dozens more murders and sketched and described his victims.

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The majority of his victims were prostitutes, drug abusers or were homeless, which made it difficult to identify them.

Little was only charged and convicted in eight of the murders.

Unmatched Confession: Black female between 35-40 years old killed in 1981.



Unmatched Confession: Black female between 23-25 years old killed in 1984. Victim possibly a college student.



Unmatched Confession: Black female between 22-23 years old killed in 1974. Photo:FBI

Unmatched Confession: Black female age 23 killed in 1984. Photo: FBI

White female between 23-25 years old killed in 1996.

Unmatched Confession: Black female between 23-25 years old killed in 1996. Victim possibly called

"Sheila."

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Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1992 or 1993.



Unmatched Confession: Black female between 26-27 years old killed in 1987.



Confession Matched to a Jane Doe: Black female between 28-29 years old killed in 1984. Victim picked up in Memphis, Tennessee.



Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1992 or 1993.



Unmatched Confession: Hispanic female in her

40s. Killed in 1988 or 1996. Victim possibly from Phoenix. Photo: FBI" height="721" width="1280"/>

Unmatched Confession: White female killed in 1970 or 1971.



Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 22, killed in 1971. Victim possibly called

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Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 28, killed in 1971 or 1972. Victim possibly worked on Homestead Air Force Base.



Unmatched Confession: Black male, age 18, killed in 1971 or 1972. Victim possibly called

"Mary Ann" or "Marianne."

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Confession Matched to a Jane Doe: White female, possibly of Cuban descent, between 25-35 years old. Killed in 1971. Victim possibly called

"Sarah or Donna. Photo: FBI" height="721" width="1280"/>

Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1984.



Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1984.



Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1977 or 1978. Met victim in Clearwater, Florida. Photo: FBI



Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 26, killed between 1976 and 1979. Met victim in St. Louis, Missouri. Victim possibly called

"Jo." Photo: FBI" height="721" width="1280"/>

Unmatched Confession: White female killed in 1984. Met victim in Columbus, Ohio. Body disposed of somewhere in Northern Kentucky (city unspecified). Photo: FBI

Confession Matched to a Jane Doe: White female between 33-44 years old. Killed in 1982. Photo: FBI

Unmatched Confession: Black female between 30-40 years old killed in 1982. Photo: FBI

Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 24, killed between 1987 and the early

1990s. Photo: FBI

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Confession Matched to a Jane Doe: White female between 20-25 years old killed in 1972. Victim possibly from Massachusetts. Photo: FBI

Confession Matched to a Jane Doe: Black female between 35-45 years old killed in 1977. Met the victim in Gulfport, Mississippi. Victim possibly from

Pascagoula. Victim possibly worked at Ingalls Shipyard. Photo: FBI" height="721" width="1280"/>

Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 40, killed in 1993. Photo: FBI

Unmatched Confession: Black female killed in 1974. Photo: FBI

Unmatched Confession: Black female, age 28, killed between 1977 and 1982. Photo: FBI


Soldiers stand guard outside the National Assembly the day after the body was disolved by President Guillermo Lasso in Quito, Ecuador, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Lawmakers were moving forward with impeachment proceedings against the president on embezzlement charges when he disolved it, and now residents are expected to elect a new president and a new lawmakers in no more than 90 days. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

QUITO, Ecuador (AP)  Ecuador's Constitutional Court voted unanimously Thursday to reject multiple challenges that sought to invalidate President Guillermo Lasso's decree dissolving the opposition-led National Assembly as it tried to oust him in an impeachment trial.

With the ruling, there are no impediments for the country's electoral body to call elections for president and the legislature, which are tentatively set for August.

In challenging Lasso's dissolution of the legislature Wednesday, his adversaries tried to persuade the Constitutional Court to rule that the move was illegal on the grounds Ecuador is not facing any urgent crisis. But the court said it does not have jurisdiction to rule on the verification and motivation of the cause of serious political crisis and internal upheaval invoked" by Lasso to dissolve the assembly.

The conservative president, who sparred with the left-leaning assembly over his pro-business agenda since taking office in 2021, disbanded the chamber under a constitutional provision. Challenges to his decision were filed in the court by three opposition parties, the former president of the assembly, and two private citizens.

Lasso made the first use of a 2008 constitutional provision that allows the president to dissolve the National Assembly during times of political crisis, with the requirement that new elections be held for both lawmakers and the president.

A lawsuit filed by the assemblys former head, Virgilio Saquicela, argued that Lassos move violated the constitution because the country was not experiencing any social upheaval. Lassos detractors argued that the president chose to disband the chamber merely to avoid his own ouster.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Saquicela slammed Lassos move as a last-minute ploy to avoid his removal once it became clear that was under way.

When he saw that he didnt have the votes, he got scared, Saquicela said.

Minister of Government Henry Cucalon defended Lassos decision during a news conference Thursday, arguing that the constitution makes it clear that the legislatures dismissal is up to the presidents judgment, criteria, discretion and reason, and that it does not require approval of any other entity.

The Constitutional Court is known for acting slowly, but lawmakers had urged the panel to move quickly this time.

Medardo Oleas, a lawyer and electoral analyst, said lawmakers wanted the court to decide quickly because once an election date is set no authority may interfere in the carrying out of the process." He said that if the Constitutional Court interfered in those circumstances, its members could be dismissed.

The National Electoral Council has tentatively chosen Aug. 20 as election day. If needed, a runoff would take place Oct. 15.

The president appears to have the support of the armed forces, but faces pushback from critics including a powerful confederation of Indigenous groups that has nearly paralyzed Ecuador with protests in the past.

Lasso can now govern for up to six months by means of decrees on economic and administrative issues under the oversight of the Constitutional Court. The National Electoral Council is required to set a date for presidential and legislative elections within seven days from Lassos decision.

Those elected would finish the terms of Lasso and the lawmakers he ousted, which had been set to end in May 2025. Lasso, a former banker, can choose to run in the election.

Lawmakers seeking Lasso's removal by impeachment accused him of not having intervened to end a contract between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company. They argued Lasso knew the contract was full of irregularities and would cost the state millions in losses.

During impeachment proceedings Tuesday, Lasso noted the contract predated his administration. He also said that the state-owned company experienced losses of $6 million a year before he took office and that it has seen $180 million in profits under his watch.

Lasso had clashed from the start of his four-year term with the assembly. He accused them Wednesday of focusing on destabilizing the government. On Tuesday, he dismissively referred to their impeachment allegations against him as stretching the limits of human imagination.

Saquicela accused Lassos government of being incapable of solving the real problems of Ecuadorians, including health, transportation and security issues.

He rejected any shared responsibility for the turmoil, arguing that the assembly complied with its constitutional obligation to legislate.

I do not want to justify whether the assembly has been good or bad, what I defend is the constitutional framework, he said. However, we believe that as a political class, we fell short in our legislating and oversight duties.
(Bloomberg) -- Ecuador President Guillermo Lasso, a wealthy former banker whos popular among investors, found a way to fend off almost certain impeachment by the opposition-controlled congress: He dissolved the body. That set off Article 148 of the countrys constitution, a provision known as mutual death, which means new elections for president and the congress. In the meantime, Lasso rules by decree. Fears of a return to socialist rule and nationwide protests sent Ecuadors bonds into a tailspin, leaving them deep in distressed territory.

Most Read from Bloomberg

What is a mutual death provision?

Its the colloquial name of a clause introduced in Ecuadors 2008 Constitution that allows Lasso to dissolve congress at the cost of his own job, since it triggers both presidential and legislative elections. The clause, never before used, was designed to avoid period of protracted political paralysis in the country.

Are there limits on Lassos power?

Yes. He may govern by executive decree, but there are checks on his authority. For example, his orders are subject to approval by the Constitutional Court, which acts as an interim legislature, and he has authority only over economic issues, like the tax overhaul he signed as his first decree after closing the congress. Lasso has pledged to obey the constitution and has already asked the electoral authority to set a date for new presidential and parliamentary elections. A final schedule hasnt been published yet, but authorities have penciled the vote in for Aug. 20.

What was his impeachment all about?

The impeachment case accused Lasso of failing to stop an alleged graft scheme at the state-run oil shipping business. His accusers say that the the losses incurred by the oil business amounted to embezzlement and misappropriation of assets. Lasso, 67, rejected the charges and said organized crime gangs were trying to unseat him. He also said the contract in question was signed in 2018, three years before he took office. Lassos hand was forced because he was set to lose his job anyway after 88 lawmakers voted to continue his impeachment trial on May 10 and the opposition kept control of the National Assembly with 96 votes on May 14. The opposition needed 92 votes to oust him.

What comes next?

The electoral authority has a week to confirm the date for the elections to choose a president and congress to serve until the end of Lassos term in May 2025. In the meantime, Lasso will continue to issue economic decrees, concentrating on wrapping up his administration rather than running again. Other early candidates are Yaku Perez, whom Lasso edged out in the first round of the 2021 election, and independent former lawmaker and investigative journalist Fernando Villavicencio. After a strong comeback in local elections in February, allies of former left-wing President Rafael Correa, who was convicted of graft and is living in self-exile in Belgium, have political momentum.

Could Ecuador erupt in violence?

Ecuador has so far remained calm. Social organizations have rejected Lassos dissolution of congress as dictatorial. An indigenous group known as CONAIE  which led major demonstrations in June 2022 that turned violent, paralyzing large swaths of the countrys Andean region and disrupting oil production in the countrys Amazon territory  called on the Constitutional Court to review the legality of Lassos decision. But it stopped short of announcing a new round of street protests.

Why are investors so sensitive to political instability in Ecuador?

Money managers are quick to abandon countries in times of political upheaval. But more than that, Ecuador has a checkered financial history. Since its independence in 1830, it has defaulted on its external debt 11 times, most recently at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Now, under Lassos government, Ecuadors international reserves are near record highs, debt service payments in the coming years are minimal, and the fiscal deficit has narrowed. If the business-friendly Lasso were to be replaced by the left-wing opposition, Ecuador might continue to be a hard sell for investors who still have fresh memories of the countrys default under Correa in 2008.

A previous QuickTake on Lassos second impeachment.

A US Congressional Research Service report on Ecuador.

The Wilson Centers analysis of Ecuadors 2020 default.

The World Banks Ecuador overview.

(Updates with Lassos decision to bow out of the race)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
Ed Sheeran triumphs in copyright lawsuit over Marvin Gaye's 'Let's Get It On.' Again.

Ed Sheeran beat a second lawsuit alleging his song "Thinking Out Loud" copied Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On." (John Minchillo / Associated Press)

Thinking out loud, it seems Ed Sheeran is enjoying a legal victory lap.

Weeks after a New York jury found he did not plagiarize Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On," Sheeran was cleared of a similar lawsuit filed by Structured Asset Sales.

In 2018, SAS alleged Sheeran's 2014 song "Thinking Out Loud" lifted parts from Gaye's 1973 hit. SAS "purchased one-third of the copyright" to Gaye's song and sought $100 million in damages, according to Pitchfork.

In legal documents filed Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton dismissed the lawsuit finding Sheeran and "Thinking Out Loud" co-writer Amy Wadge did not plagiarize parts of Gaye's song.

"It is an unassailable reality that the chord progression and harmonic rhythm in 'Let's Get It On' are so commonplace, in isolation and in combination, that to protect their combination would give 'Let's Get It On' an impermissible monopoly over a basic musical building block," the legal document said.

In a statement shared with The Times Thursday, Sheeran's legal representative Ilene Farkas celebrated the ruling.

"Judge Stantons conclusion that Ed Sheeran and Amy Wadge did not infringe is consistent with the jury determination that Ed and Amy independently created 'Thinking Out Loud,'" the statement continued. "This is an important victory not only for Ed and Amy and all songwriters but also for the music loving public."

SAS founder, chairman and CEO David Pullman told The Times in a phone call Thursday that his company plans to appeal Tuesday's decision on multiple grounds.

"In a case we have going forward before a different judge in New York federal court ... we have both the deposit copy from 1973 [of Gaye's song]  the sheet music, as well as the sound recordings," Pullman said. "All through this trial and this case that we've had, the defendants have been terrified and are afraid of going against the original sound recording of 'Let's Get It On.'"

If there's a sense of deja vu around Tuesday's decision, it's most likely because the Grammy winner's legal victory came just weeks after he won a similar lawsuit earlier this month.

Following a weeklong trial, a New York jury sided with the hitmaker in the lawsuit brought by Gaye collaborator Ed Townsends family in 2016.

In a statement outside of the New York courthouse, Sheeran said he was obviously very happy with the result.

It looks like Im not having to retire from my day job after all, he joked, recalling a dramatic statement he made during the trial. But at the same time, Im unbelievably frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all.

A day after winning the lawsuit, Sheeran treated New York fans to an impromptu concert in Soho. Outside his American Express pop-up store, Sheeran climbed to the top of a car with a guitar in tow and performed his new song "Boat" for a swarm of fans.

Sheeran's recent legal wins have coincided with the promotion of his new album "Subtract" ("-"), which dropped May 5.

"Sheerans singing, with its intricately bent notes and its sense of a sob held just in check, is so vivid that the truth of his experience always comes through," Times critic Mikael Wood wrote of the new release.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Law Weapons & Supply gun store on May 11, 2023, in Naperville. The owner wants the U.S. Supreme Court to block a city ordinance and Illinois law banning the sale of certain high-powered firearms and high-capacity ammunition magazines. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Regarding US Supreme Court action solicited on Illinois gun ban (May 9): A Naperville gun shop owner and the National Association for Gun Rights challenged Naperville and the states bans on assault-style guns because, they claim, it infringes on their Second Amendment right. They apparently have not read the full text of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias majority opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), which extended the original right of colonists belonging to a well-regulated militia to keep and bear arms as being necessary for the security of a free state. What originally was the collective right of the citizen-soldiers of Colonial times was extended by the 2008 opinion to an individual right for self-defense at home.

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However, that right does not extend across the board to any type of gun whatsoever. The disclaimer written by Scalia says: Like most rights, the right secured by the Second Amendment was not unlimited and that it was not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose.

The meaning is crystal clear. The state of Illinois and the cities of Naperville and Highland Park have the right to prohibit certain semi-automatic assault-type guns and a certain type of ammunition magazine. This does not deprive citizens from exercising their Second Amendment right to own a non-semi-automatic handgun or rifle for self-protection.

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 Ronald Kallen, Highland Park

Country lacks religious values

The Tribune had an all-out anti-gun letters section in the May 12 edition.

I hate the fact that I am getting older, but one thing I really like about it is the perspective. I remember how things used to be. We used to have gun clubs in our high schools. You used to buy guns like you were buying tools in the hardware store. No background checks, no firearm owners identification cards, no waiting periods.

Not only did everybody feel safe from gun violence, but also, we were safe. But people changed. We used to have religious values in our country. Love your neighbor as yourself. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. You shall not kill. All from the Bible.

Now our highest virtue is tolerance, which means no more than to ignore other people. We are short on values, and we need the power of government to try to control people, whereas before, we relied on personal responsibility and integrity

 Larry Craig, Wilmette

Why such apathy from voters?

Thank you for the comprehensive summary of Brandon Johnsons political rise (The mayor-elect, May 15). Violent crime, poor school performance, budget deficits, unfunded pension liability and the business environment are daunting immediate issues.

However, an equally important story for the Tribune would be how only 17.5% of registered voters supported Johnson. With issues as critical to the future of the city and 35% voter turnout, why is there so much apathy?

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 Frank Schell, Chicago

No accountability for Vallas

In his op-ed (Assault on standardized tests allows schools to shun accountability, May 15), Paul Vallas accuses the teachers of going back to the future by downplaying standardized tests and grading and making related rule changes that aid and abet social promotion. While he may well be at least partially right, he seems to be suffering from selective memory.

Under his leadership, along with that of then-Chicago Board of Education President Gery Chico, Chicago Public Schools decided the standardized tests in use at the time  the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) in elementary schools and the Tests of Achievement and Proficiency (TAP) in high schools  were not measuring the current curricula. The district brought in consultants from the University of Chicagos Consortium on Chicago School Research. That led to experimentation with alternative tests in the elementary schools. For some high schoolers, the Chicago Academic Standards Exam (CASE) was developed. The test was supposedly geared closely to match the current high school curriculum.

Teachers and education experts condemned CASE, which lasted four years. It was unceremoniously dumped by Vallas successor, Arne Duncan.

So much for Vallas and accountability.

 Thomas Sharp, Chicago

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Words of a defeated candidate

It would have been gracious for Paul Vallas to submit an op-ed for Mayor Brandon Johnsonss inauguration day that praised the mayor and discussed the need for all Chicagoans to work together to improve the city.

It was very tacky, however, for Vallas to submit  and the Tribune to run  an op-ed that reads like a campaign piece from the defeated candidate.

 Barry Miller, Evanston

Shame on CNN for event

Regarding Pay attention to GOP reaction to Trump ruling, not brouhaha over CNN (May 12): I respectfully disagree with this editorial. I believe we should be paying more attention to what CNN did by hosting a Donald Trump rally billed as a town hall event. The GOPs reaction to Trumps loss in E. Jean Carrolls lawsuit was predictably a silent shrug. Should it have been? Of course not, but this is the same party that refused to hold him accountable for fomenting an insurrection against our government. Why would we expect that Republicans would be rightly outraged by Trumps loss in a civil trial, no matter how consequential it was for Carroll and women in general?

On the other hand, our expectations were shattered by CNN, which responsibly reports the news. CNN allowed Trump to double down on his many lies and further defame Carroll. The event was a boon for the Trump campaign and turned out exactly as the campaign knew it would and exactly as CNN should have known it would. It shed no new light on Trumps beliefs, positions, temperament or personality.

We expected better from CNN, and the brouhaha over this is necessary and warranted.

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 Ronda Schiess, Oak Park

Join the conversation in our Letters to the Editor Facebook group.

Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
(Bloomberg) -- Egypt named Barclays Plc to serve as advisers in the sale of state-held United Bank, signaling new signs of progress in a broad plan to sell state assets in a bid to ease a crippling dollar crunch and revive the economy.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Barclays will serve as international sell-side adviser, the central bank, which owns United Bank, said in a statement. It will work alongside local investment bank CI Capital.

The appointment of the foreign adviser comes as the government has been stepping up efforts to either sell or partially list at least 32 state-held firms, including several banks and two military-affiliated companies. The push is aimed at bringing in fresh hard currency and boosting private sector participation in an economy reeling from the aftershocks of Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Read also: Talks on Saudi Purchase of Egypts United Bank Stall Over Pound

Egyptian authorities have devalued the currency three times since early 2022, an effort that helped secure a $3 billion International Monetary Fund program. However, billions of dollars more pledged by Gulf Arab states have yet to materialize amid concerns of another devaluation.

Officials are working to push aside worries that they wont move quickly enough with the pledged reforms. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly earlier Wednesday outlined a series of 22 investment incentives aimed at addressing private sector concerns. He also pledged greater transparency about what the government will do going forward, including with state asset-sale program and efforts to clear the import backlog and draw in more dollars.

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An eighth victim of the May 1 dust storm that triggered a rash of fiery crashes on Interstate-55 near Farmersville has been identified.

Illinois State Police said Ruth M. Rau, 81, of Sorento, Illinois, died in a hospital Wednesday due to injuries she sustained in the crash.

At least 72 vehicles were involved in crashes when wind gusts up to 45 mph and dust from surrounding agricultural fields combined to reduce visibility on the highway between mile markets 72 and 78. Thirty-seven people were transported to area hospitals with injuries ranging from minor to life-threatening, state police said.

Eight people have not died. In addition to Rau, they include:

Shirley Harper, 88-year-old from Franklin, Wisconsin

Joseph Bates, 73-year-old from Crystal Lake, Illinois

Donna Bates, 71-year-old from Crystal Lake, Illinois

Earl LeGrand, 64-year-old from Florissant, Missouri

Michael Zinchuk, 55-year-old from Champaign, Illinois

Amy Zinchuk, 54-year-old from Champaign, Illinois

Otto Medina-Salazar, 58-year-old from Carthage, Missouri

The investigation into the crash is ongoing, according to state police.
El Paso police detectives arrested a man accused of shooting another man in the abdomen following an altercation at a strip club earlier this month.

Letre Lee Bell was booked on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon May 12 in connection with a roadway shooting six days earlier, according to police and jail records.

During an online teleconference bond hearing Sunday, Assistant District Attorney Danica Carman said that the May 6 shooting occurred after a confrontation inside Jaguars strip club on Gateway West Boulevard near Lee Trevino Drive.

Crime: 3rd arrest made in El Paso police shooting outside Jaguars strip club

Carman, citing a police criminal complaint affidavit, said that the victim through a friend had met Bell, whom he only knew by a nickname and who allegedly stole something when Bell came over to his house.

Letre Lee Bell was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after being accused of shooting a man May 6 in East El Paso.

Later, the man saw Bell drinking at Jaguars and confronted him about the theft, Carman said. During the confrontation, the victim was hit in the back of the head with a liquor bottle and dragged out by security staff. The man then saw Bell leave the club and drive off in a blue Chevrolet Malibu.

Soon, a blue Chevy Malibu pulled up next to the mans car on a nearby street. The man stopped his car and as he was getting out, he immediately was shot. The Chevy took off and collided with a Budweiser truck, the prosecutor said.

The man was hospitalized with a gunshot wound where a bullet entered his abdomen and exited his lower back, Carman explained. The case was investigated by detectives with the Crimes Against Persons Unit.

Gun violence: El Paso man accused in Jaguars strip club gunfight indicted on federal gun charge

The prosecutor mentioned that Bell allegedly was identified as the shooter in a photo lineup, along with security camera video from a nearby business.

Days later, police arrested Bell at the Star Plaza retail strip at 3136 Trawood Drive near Montwood Drive on the East Side, a police spokesman said.

Bell, of Horizon City, originally was booked under a $250,000 bond, which Magistrate Judge Ruben Nunez reduced to $150,000 at Sunday's bond hearing.

Bell has several convictions on drug-related cases and the judge reminded him that as a convicted felon, he is not allowed to have firearms.

Among restrictions if released from jail, Bell cannot have weapons, firearms and ammunition; must follow an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew; and cannot go to bars, Nunez ordered.

On Wednesday, Bell remained incarcerated at the El Paso County Jail Downtown.

More local news: El Paso city representative completes sexual harassment training following dance incident

El Paso police lights flash at a crime scene. File art.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso-area man arrested in shooting after strip club altercation
An elderly Athens woman lost $10,000 to a man who recently called her phone and then lured her into a scam he was perpetrating.

The 92-year-old woman, who lives off Timothy Road, told an Athens-Clarke police officer that the man, who identified himself as Steve, claimed he worked for a company that had fixed a virus on her computer. However, he had accidentally deposited $19,000 of the company's money into her checking account.

Steve began urging her to send him the money in the form of cash or he was going to be fired.

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During their conversation, the woman told police she believed him so she went to her bank and withdrew $10,000 cash. Then she sent the money overnight by UPS to an address in San Diego, California, according to the report.

A google of the address shows the drop off is located in a shopping center with such businesses as a barbershop and dental office.

The woman later went to her bank and learned the $19,000 transferal to her account had actually been a transfer from her money market account and not the suspects account.

The woman, who is unable to collect her money, told the officer that Steve has called again asking for the remaining $9,000.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Elderly Athens woman falls for scam, loses $10,000 cash
Elon Musk told a Twitter advisor at 4 a.m. that the company would only pay rent over his 'dead body,' lawsuit says

Elon Musk and Twitter's San Francisco headquarters. LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images; Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Six former Twitter employees filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk and the company on Tuesday.

The lawsuit said Musk told an advisor at 4 a.m. that "he would only pay rent over his dead body."

The suit said Musk's attorney justified not paying rent and described San Francisco as a "shithole."

A new lawsuit alleges that Elon Musk told an investor during a 4 a.m. conversation that Twitter would only pay rent for its offices "over his dead body."

Six former Twitter employees filed the lawsuit against Musk and X. Corp, Twitter's holding company, in the District Court of Delaware on Tuesday.

The lawsuit said that Twitter failed to pay severance to its staff and accused the defendants of violating 14 counts, including fraud, labor-rights laws, and breach of contract.

Over the last few months, Twitter's landlords in London, New York City, and San Francisco have sued the company over claims that it was failing to pay rent  Tuesday's lawsuit includes new detail about internal conversations about the situation.

The lawsuit said that Joseph Killian, a plaintiff who worked at Twitter for 12 years and oversaw office design, was aware that Musk decided last December that Twitter would stop paying rent.

That message, the lawsuit alleged, was relayed to him by Pablo Mendoza, a venture capitalist who had invested with Musk and was brought in to bring the billionaire's Twitter 2.0 vision to life.

"Killian attempted to convince Musk, via Mendoza, of the danger of Musk's new position that no rent would be paid whatsoever, pointing out that any attempt to renegotiate the terms of Twitter's many leases would be doomed to failure," the lawsuit said.

"Elon told me he would only pay rent over his dead body," the lawsuit said Mendoza responded, alleging that the conversation took place at 4 a.m. on the same day.

Musk told CNBC on Tuesday that he slept around six hours a night. He also previously told the BBC that he had "shot myself in the foot" by tweeting after 3 a.m.

The lawsuit said that Musk's attorney, Alex Spiro, "loudly opined" it was unreasonable for Twitter's landlords to expect it to pay rent because San Francisco was a "shithole."

Twitter's headquarters is just a few minutes from the city's Tenderloin district.

On Tuesday, Musk tweeted that downtown San Francisco was "a derelict zombie apocalypse," but told CNBC that his employees could not work from home.

Insider contacted Twitter for comment. The company responded with an automated message that didn't address the inquiry.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Elon Musk wanted to build a bathroom next to his office at Twitter so he didn't have to wake up his bodyguards when he needed to pee in the night, lawsuit says

Elon Musk left a California court with two of his bodyguards. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A lawsuit claims Elon Musk requested a bathroom be built next to his office at Twitter headquarters.

The lawsuit said Musk didn't want to have to wake up his security team in the middle of the night.

Musk's right-hand man suggested they hire an unlicensed plumber so they didn't have to get a permit, the suit says.

Elon Musk wanted a bathroom built next to his office in Twitter's headquarters so he didn't have to wake up his bodyguards in the middle of the night to go pee, a new lawsuit claims.

Six former Twitter employees filed the suit against Musk and X. Corp, Twitter's holding company, in the District Court of Delaware on Tuesday.

It accuses the defendants of violating 14 counts, including fraud, breach of contract, and labor-rights laws. But it's also full of details about what's been going on inside the social-media company under the billionaire's leadership.

A Twitter engineer told the BBC in March that at least two bodyguards followed Musk around its San Francisco headquarters, including to the restroom.

The lawsuit says that Steve Davis, the Boring Company CEO, told Joseph Killian  a plaintiff who worked at Twitter for 12 years and oversaw office design  to start work on a new restroom closer to Musk's office.

Musk wanted the facilities next to his office so he "didn't have to wake his security team and cross half the floor to use the bathroom in the middle of the night," the suit says.

Last month, the billionaire told the BBC that he sometimes slept on a couch in the library at Twitter's headquarters. Musk also told CNBC on Tuesday that he slept for about six hours a night.

The suit says Killian told Davis that he would start getting the permits for Musk's restroom, but the suit paraphrases him responding: "We don't do that; we don't have to follow those rules."

According to the suit, he instead suggested Killian hire an unlicensed plumber to build the toilet since others wouldn't want to jeopardize their license by working on a project without a permit.

Insider reached out to Twitter for comment. It responded with its standard poop-emoji auto-reply.

Elon Musk did not directly reply to Insider, but tweeted about this story after its publication, calling the claim about his bathroom an "absurd scenario."

"Even were this absurd scenario true, my 'bodyguards' being asleep instead of thwarting assassins would be of far greater concern to me than shortening my trip to the [toilet]," he said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A missing Virginia college students car has been found abandoned in Shenandoah National Park, igniting a large-scale search of trails in the mountainous park.

Mateo Luis Cobo Zevallos, 21, was last seen May 5 when he left his home in Oakton, headed to the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, officials say.

The distance is just under 4 miles. However, his 2020 Honda Civic was found 11 days later on Skyline Drive inside the 197,438-acre Shenandoah National Park, according to the National Park Service. The park is about 70 miles from Oakton.

The park has closed six trails as it searches for signs of Zevallos, according to a news release.

Zevallos was reported missing to Fairfax County Police May 9 ... His vehicle was discovered in the park Tuesday, May 16, the National Park Service reported May 19.

Following a hasty search Tuesday evening, Shenandoah activated a full-scale search operation early Wednesday.

That search includes representatives of about a dozen organizations, including the Virginia Rescue Dog Association and Blue and Grey Rescue Dogs, officials said.

Shenandoah National Park has 516 miles of hiking trails and search closures include some of the best known among them, including Overall Run, Traces, Mathews Arm, Tuscarora, Beecher Ridge, and Thompson Hollow. Several parking areas are now being reserved for search and rescue personnel, officials said.

Fairfax County Police report he may be endangered due to mental and/or physical health concerns. He is believed to have left his home carrying a North Face backpack, officials said.

The Facebook page Looking for Mateo notes hes an honor student at George Mason University. He was expected to graduate from the university on Thursday, May 18, station WUSA9 reports.

George Mason University is Virginias largest public research university with an undergraduate enrollment of nearly 27,000 students and a campus of 817 acres, USnews.com reports.

Search underway for Florida visitor missing in Great Smoky Mountains, park reports

Human bones at historic site may not be old, Florida cops say. Investigation underway

Damaged vehicle found abandoned on Blue Ridge Parkway sets off search for Georgia man
While the perks of outdoor grilling are legion, it can leave behind some less-than-appealing effects on the environment. Studies show that charcoal grills in particular release substantial carbon dioxide into the air with each use, and the cumulative effect of these greenhouse gasses contributes to global warming and climate change.

Also, demand for charcoal (which is made from burnt wood) can promote deforestation and release further greenhouse emissions from the charcoal-making process (the burning of large quantities of wood produces carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and methane).

All of this together can diminish the goal that chef Sarah Gloverrecommends for all outdoor grillers: Leave the space better than you found it and never take for granted what you get from being outdoors.

To find out how to have an enjoyable summer barbecue while causing the least-possible damage to your natural surroundings, we asked professional grill chefs and eco-conscious cookware experts to give us their top tips on eco-friendly grilling.

Seek out high-quality pure lump charcoal.

Charcoal briquettes are popular among home grillers, since theyre easy to light without the aid of lighter fluid and provide even heat to the grill. However, these composite chunks, which contain wood chips and sawdust, are often held together with chemical additives that extend their burn time and help them maintain their shape. Those additives also can release additional emissions into the air.

Chef Luis Mata doesnt recommend briquettes for eco-conscious cooking. Instead, he said that the key to making your charcoal grilling experience more eco-friendly is to use the highest quality lump charcoal you can get your hands on.

Lump charcoal is exactly what it sounds like: lump-shaped pieces of charcoal that havent been chemically processed or shaped. It tends to be the preferred charcoal of barbecue pros, who cite the fact that it lights quickly, burns hot and leaves behind less residual ash than briquettes.

For an especially solid lump charcoal thats better for the environment, Mata recommends Binchotan, a Japanese crafted hardwood lump charcoal thats known as the purest in the world. It burns longer, hotter and cleaner than any other charcoal or briquette. Its also smokeless and odorless, and can be reused.

Steer clear of lighter fluid.

Charcoal (particularly lump charcoal) generally requires a fire starter to light. While petroleum lighter fluid is popular for this purpose, the experts we spoke to generally advise against it.

Lighter fluid is made of hydrocarbons, which can be toxic if ingested and could cause symptoms such as stomach or throat pain, vomiting, difficulty breathing and skin or eye irritation, said Ben Jablonski, CEO and co-founder of The Good Charcoal. Furthermore, the smoke given off by lighter fluid-soaked coals contributes to air pollution.

The University of Illinois Sustainable Technology Center backs up these claims, stating that lighter fluid causes air pollution, such as polycystic aromatic hydrocarbon, when burned.

Pima County, Arizona, issued a warning about the use of lighter fluid on grills in 2016, noting that, when mixed with intense solar radiation and other pollutants, the chemicals in lighter fluid create a pollutant called ground-level ozone. Elevated levels of ground-level ozone can affect children, people who work or exercise outside, the elderly and people with lung or heart disease, including asthma and congestive heart failure.

Health issues that can come from ground-level ozone exposure include coughing, difficulty breathing and heightened vulnerability of the lungs, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Glover recommends using natural fire lighter fluids  or, even better, get an ax and split your own wood into small kindling so you dont have to use fire-lighting fluid at all.

If youre using kindling, invest in a charcoal chimney starter to speed along the charcoal-lighting process.

Charcoal briquettes contain wood chips and sawdust, and are often held together with chemical additives that extend their burn time and help them maintain their shape.

Charcoal briquettes contain wood chips and sawdust, and are often held together with chemical additives that extend their burn time and help them maintain their shape.

If possible, switch to a natural gas grill.

Charcoal grills have a serious cult following among grilling enthusiasts, but theyre not the only game in town. If you want to really optimize your eco-friendly grilling practices, consider ditching the charcoal in favor of a natural gas grill. Because of their very low emissions, wide availability and moderate price point, the Sierra Club calls natural gas grills the most realistically eco-friendly option for most home grillers.

Prevent flare-ups with catch pans or aluminum foil.

Fire breakouts on a grill can be alarming for many reasons, but an underrated one involves the fact that they release more smoke  and, therefore, more toxins  than necessary into the environment, according to chef Ron Stewart.

To lessen the risk of flare-ups, take Stewarts advice and put aluminum foil below your meat so that any dripping fat does not land directly on the coals/embers. You should also consider either investing in an inexpensive catch pan designed for catching grease drippings or using a heavy-duty aluminum foil tray underneath your food during cooking to safely collect excess fats before they fall onto coals/burner elements.

Instead of letting your charcoal grill burn down after you're done cooking, close the lid and shut the vents.

Instead of letting your charcoal grill burn down after you're done cooking, close the lid and shut the vents.

Shut down the grill as soon as youre done cooking.

For an easy way to cut back on emissions, turn off the grill as soon as your food is ready.

When using charcoal, most people will let their coals burn down and out when done cooking, which can take hours, Jablonski said. The result is hours of charcoal emissions emitted with no further purpose. The solution is quite simple: When you are done cooking, simply close the lid to the grill and shut any vents or baffles. This will very quickly stifle the lit coals and leave a basket of slightly used charcoal ready for your next grilling encounter.

Briquettes should be thrown in the garbage, but lump charcoal can be repurposed as fertilizer.

While briquettes with synthetic materials should be thrown in landfill garbage after use, Jablonski told us that lump charcoal can often be reused if it hasnt burned down completely. But after the second grill cycle, its time to figure out where to dispose of those residual bits and ash.

Jablonski has a simple and eco-friendly solution: As long as you use an additive-free wood charcoal, you can use it as fertilizer. The ash contains potash (potassium carbonate), which is nutritious for many plants. Potash can also increase the pH levels in your soil, but depending on what youre growing, you want to use it sparingly. Dont use charcoal ash with acid-loving plants (like blueberries, azaleas and hydrangeas), nor newly planted seedlings and seeds.

As an alternative, Jablonski said that tossing a few pieces of used lump charcoal into your compost pile can help the entire composting process.

Charcoal increases the carbon content of the compost pile, he said. Carbon is important to provide energy to microorganisms while they break down the organic matter in compost.

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Financier Jeffrey Epstein was awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges in 2019 when he was found dead in his cell

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75m (60m) to settle a lawsuit that claimed the lender had enabled Jeffrey Epstein's alleged sex trafficking ring.

The case was filed by an unnamed woman who alleged that the banking giant continued to do business with Epstein, despite knowing that his accounts were used to facilitate the abuses.

She also claimed that she was abused by Epstein and trafficked to his friends.

Deutsche Bank declined to comment on the case when approached by the BBC.

The woman, who is listed anonymously as "Jane Doe" in court papers, filed the class-action lawsuit in New York last November on behalf of herself and other women who had allegedly been abused by the late American financier.

She said Deutsche Bank "chose profit over following the law" as it knew it would "earn millions of dollars from facilitating Epstein's sex trafficking".

The woman also alleged that she was sexually abused by Epstein and trafficked to his friends for around 15 years, while receiving cash payments for her sexual acts.

The settlement is expected to be used to pay compensation to dozens of women.

Edwards Pottinger, one of the law firms representing the unnamed woman, told the BBC that the outcome was "likely the largest sex-trafficking settlement involving a banking institution in US history."

"The settlement will allow dozens of survivors of Jeffrey Epstein to finally attempt to restore their faith in our system knowing that all individuals and entities who facilitated Epstein's sex-trafficking operation will finally be held accountable," the firm added.

Deutsche Bank previously sought to have the lawsuit dismissed.

Dylan Riddle, a spokesman for the bank, declined to comment on the settlement on Thursday, but said it had "made considerable progress in remedying a number of past issues".

Mr Riddle added that the bank had invested more than 4bn ($4.3bn; 3.5bn) to improve its controls, training and operational processes, and grown its team dedicated to fighting financial crime.

Epstein died in a New York prison cell on 10 August 2019 as he awaited, without the chance of bail, his trial on sex trafficking charges.

It came more than a decade after his conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor, for which he was registered as a sex offender.
Its a dangerous trend weve been reporting on the entire school year.

A 7-year-old brings a loaded gun to a Dorchester elementary school, students jump a classmate and teacher outside of a pilot school in Mattapan, and just last week a teacher is involved in a fight with students and staff watching at an elementary school.

Now, Boston City Councilors are calling for action. Four are pushing for stiffer security measures including metal detectors and school safety officers.

Incidents of school violence have increased by more than 185% nationwide. Roughly 800 police-involved incidents have been reported as of the end of February. Students, like Jerome Wells, tells Crystal Haynes guns are a common sight in Boston schools.

Where I see the most, its in the bathroom, says Wells. a lot of the kids is flashing they guns or they knives or pockets. you know, its just how you go to school to learn, you know, and its nice to be in a safe environment. I shouldnt have to worry about if I go into this bathroom whos in here.

Dandre Vars says he carried pepper spray for protection walking to school and used evasive measures to protect him inside the building.

So there have been times where I and another gay friend have gone to the bathroom and weve been called slurs while exiting or entering the bathroom, says Vars. so it got to the point where I just have a key to the staff bathroom.

In January, four Boston City Councilors published a letter calling on BPS to add police officers inside schools and for non-invasive technology such as metal detectors to be reinstated across the district. Councilor Erin Murphy says staff are discouraged from calling police and bps has failed to release regular information on incidents of school violence.

I would say 98, if not more percent of the time, the school resource officers, the guidance counselors, the principal, the classroom teacher themselves can handle, you know, the behaviors and the culture at the school, says Murphy. but when something does happen, when we know nationally, I feel like we need to be safe than sorry.

An April MasIinc poll shows three out of four parents agree.

Lets not go with this sizzle of what sounds good. lets go with the steak of what actually will get our young people better and will actually make our school safer, opponents like Leon Smith, call metal detectors theater and police presence in school harmful.

Smith says, Its perplexing that metal detectors are being pushed so hard as a solution to issues around school safety because there is a substantial body of research which establishes that they dont make schools less violent and they dont make schools safer.

Citizens for Juvenile Justice recently released a report compiling state and federal data showing there is little to no evidence that metal detectors work but significant evidence that their presence made students feel less safe.

Federal data shows schools with most students of color are 18 times more likely to have increased security measures like police officers and metal detectors. Black and Latino/students are three to five times more likely to pass through a metal detector than their white counterparts.

What youre making these students internalize is that this space isnt the sacred space of learning. its a space that prepares you for court and prison. thats what a black student told me and has testified actually in multiple different hearings, says Iman Hassan, an education attorney with the Massachusetts Communities Action Network. She says other factors are more important when it comes to student safety.

The rate of the teacher to student, the rate of paraprofessional properly servicing IEPs, having mental health practitioners that actually can give appropriate counseling and meaningful interactions with students is key.

At a public hearing last Friday, Superintendent Mary Skipper and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox said they are close to finishing an agreement - years in the making - formalizing a relationship between schools and the police department.

They say the agreement wont put officers back in schools but it will clarify when staff should call police.

I think what has been missing is a consistent framework in our schools and consistent training, said Skipper. One of these things doesnt solve all of the issues. it might solve a slice.

Police were taken out of the Boston schools in the summer of 2021 and replaced with safety specialists who lack the authority to arrest or handcuff students. A memorandum of understanding between bps and the BPD has been in the works for more than two years.

All sides in this debate say it needs to be a priority.

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Pedestrians pass by winterized tents for people experiencing homelessness under a viaduct near Fulton Street and Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago on Dec. 20, 2022. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

The White House on Thursday announced a two-year, multiagency federal partnership with Chicago aimed at curbing unsheltered homelessness, placing a federal official within city government to organize response plans and help coordinate sources for additional federal funding.

Chicago was one of six locations selected for the ALL INside program, an offshoot of President Joe Bidens December federal strategic plan aimed at reducing homelessness nationally by 25% by 2025.

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The new program is focused on finding housing for those who are unsheltered  people who live on the street and in cars, transit and other places not meant for habitation. Also selected to be part of the federal program were Dallas, Los Angeles, the Phoenix metro area, Seattle and the state of California.

Susan Rice, Bidens domestic policy adviser, said the program will attempt to coordinate federal efforts through the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, which includes 19 different agencies, with existing municipal agencies and homeless prevention advocacy groups.

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In Chicago, the program will involve the existing interagency task force to reduce homelessness, the Department of Family & Support Services and All Chicago Making Homelessness History, an organization that offers emergency financial assistance, community partnerships, data analytics and training, city officials said.

[ Chicago to receive $60 million in federal funding to fight homelessness ]

The new program comes on the heels of a February announcement that Chicago received a $60 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to fight homelessness.

A 2020 report from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless said there were more than 60,000 people who experienced homelessness in the city, though it was not immediately clear how many would be classified as unsheltered. Nationally, as of last year, 580,000 people were considered homeless, with 40% of them classified as unsheltered.

No additional federal funding was detailed for the program announced Thursday.

Jennifer Johnson, deputy mayor of education, youth and human services, said the city wanted to work with the federal government to advocate and explore for additional federal funding.

Federal officials also stressed that helping municipalities negotiate the maze of potential federal funding streams was part of the programs goal.

Johnson told Rice and other federal and local officials at a virtual White House conference that while the numbers of unsheltered people in Chicago have not increased, even during the pandemic, they have become much more visible on Chicago Transit Authority rail lines.

The CTA has earmarked $2 million to expand outreach efforts on the Red Line and Blue Line with trained workers who provide food, referrals to mental health services, detoxification support and assessments to connect people to housing services, Johnson said.

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A person sleeps on a CTA Blue Line train on April 22, 2020. Social service agencies have reported an uptick in the number of homeless people sheltering on CTA trains. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Johnson also said the city Department of Aviation has increased funding for outreach and support at the Blue Line terminal at OHare International Airport while the citys Department of Public Health has launched a two-day-a-week program at CTA terminal stations for outreach and medical care.

The plight of these residents on trains is very, very real. Based on our outreach data, the most common unhoused passengers are unsheltered Black men, ages 30 to 51, Johnson said. Homelessness, especially unsheltered homelessness, disproportionately affects Black residents in Chicago, so this is a racial justice issue.

City officials also said the program will focus on pathways for people leaving jail or prison and those with arrest or conviction records, and people facing safety issues near highways and under viaducts  to divert them to safer places for shelter, while efficiently providing documentation and identification for people to get access and benefits.

Tribune reporter Lizzie Kane contributed.

rap30@aol.com

ayin@chicagotribune.com
Opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu is starting to court Turkey's nationalist vote

Turkey's opposition leader vowed Thursday to send back millions of migrants in a strident message aimed at winning the backing of an ultra-nationalist who helped push last weekend's presidential vote to a runoff.

Secular opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu delivered his first public address since a landmark election Sunday in which he came in almost five points behind President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Kilicdaroglu's performance was the opposition's best of the Turkish leader's two-decade rule.

But it fell short of expectations set by pre-election polling and left the opposition visibly depressed.

The 74-year-old has since revamped his campaign team and toughened his message to win over Turkey's right-wing voters in the May 28 runoff.

He also plans to meet Sinan Ogan -- a far-right figure who picked up 5.2 percent of the vote and is still weighing his endorsement.

Kilicdaroglu tried Thursday to toughen his message considerably from the more inclusive tone he set in the first stage of the campaign.

"Erdogan, you did not protect the borders and honour of the country," the former civil servant said.

"You have deliberately brought more than 10 million refugees to this country... As soon as I come to power, I will send all the refugees home."

Ogan has said he will only back a candidate who cracks down on migrants and fights "terrorism" -- a code word in Turkey for Kurdish militants.

- 'Syrians are our brothers' -

Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted party were lionised across swathes of the Muslim world for their more embracing stance towards those fleeing conflicts in countries such as Syria.

Turkey's five-million-strong refugee and migrant population became the world's largest in the past decade.

A separate 2016 deal between Ankara and the European Union helped stem the continent's migrant crisis by allowing those trying to reach Western Europe to settle in Turkey.

Turkey won billions of euros in funding from Brussels for the programme.

But an economic crisis that gathered pace as the election neared sent anti-migrant sentiment soaring.

Erdogan's government has tried to find a middle ground.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said on Thursday that Turkey had already sent more than half a million Syrians back.

"We are not going to make Turkey into a refugee warehouse, and we have not done so to date. But the Syrians are our brothers," Soylu said.

"We cannot send them to their deaths. And we have not. Tayyip Erdogan doesn't want to be remembered as a leader who sent Syrians to their deaths."

bg/zak/imm/ach
Opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu is starting to court Turkey's nationalist vote

Turkey's opposition leader vowed Thursday to send back millions of migrants in a strident message aimed at winning the backing of an ultra-nationalist who helped push last weekend's presidential vote to a runoff.

Secular opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu delivered his first public address since a landmark election Sunday in which he came almost five points behind President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Kilicdaroglu gave the opposition's best performance in Erdogan's two-decade rule.

But it fell short of expectations set by pre-election polling and left the opposition visibly depressed.

The 74-year-old has since revamped his campaign team and toughened his message to win over Turkey's right-wing voters in the May 28 runoff.

He also plans to meet Sinan Ogan -- a far-right figure who picked up 5.2 percent of the vote and is still weighing his endorsement.

Kilicdaroglu tried Thursday to toughen his message considerably from the more inclusive tone he set in the first stage of the campaign.

"Erdogan, you did not protect the borders and honour of the country," the former civil servant said.

"You have deliberately brought more than 10 million refugees to this country... As soon as I come to power, I will send all the refugees home."

Ogan has said he will only back a candidate who cracks down on migrants and fights "terrorism" -- a code word in Turkey for Kurdish militants.

Veteran Turkey watcher Howard Eissenstat of the Middle East Institute said Kilicdaroglu was wooing nationalists by attacking Syrians because Kurds made up an important part of his base.

"The Kurds are a big part of his coalition," Eissenstat said. "But the Syrians are a relatively safe target because, for the large part, they cannot vote."

- 'Syrians are our brothers' -

Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted party were lionised across swathes of the Muslim world for their more embracing stance towards those fleeing conflicts in countries such as Syria.

Turkey's five-million-strong refugee and migrant population became the world's largest in the past decade.

A separate 2016 deal between Ankara and the European Union helped stem the continent's migrant crisis by allowing those trying to reach Western Europe to settle in Turkey.

Turkey won billions of euros in funding from Brussels for the programme.

But an economic crisis that gathered pace as the election neared sent anti-migrant sentiment soaring.

Erdogan's government has tried to find a middle ground.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said on Thursday that Turkey had already sent more than half a million Syrians back.

"We are not going to make Turkey into a refugee warehouse, and we have not done so to date. But the Syrians are our brothers," Soylu said.

"We cannot send them to their deaths. And we have not. Tayyip Erdogan doesn't want to be remembered as a leader who sent Syrians to their deaths."

Eissenstat said Erdogan looked comfortable heading into the runoff and did not need to radically change his tone.

"He felt like he was in danger before Sunday," the analyst said. "I don't feel like he feels that way anymore."

gg/zak/imm/lcm
EVANSVILLE  An Evansville man was arrested Thursday and accused of starting the fire that destroyed a historic Downtown building.

Charles James Perrin, 25, was booked into the Vanderburgh County jail on charges of arson and criminal mischief causing at least $50,000 in damages.

Perrin is accused of setting the blaze that gutted the former Pearl Cleaners building at 428 N.W. 3rd St. Once known as Pearl Steam Laundry, the structure had stood at the northern edge of Downtown Evansville for more than 100 years and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Evansville Fire Department spokesman and District Chief Mike Larson announced the arrest during a Thursday afternoon news conference alongside EPD Officer Mario Reid.

Reid claimed that after officers made contact with Perrin, he voluntarily came to EPD headquarters and reportedly admitted to setting the blaze. Police believe he was homeless at the time of his arrest.

At least one other media organization had obtained a probable cause affidavit in Perrin's arrest, but neither Evansville police nor the fire department made that affidavit available at the news conference.

According to Reid, the Indiana State Fire Marshal, which was investigating the cause of the blaze, "presented" the affidavit to the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor's office and the jail.

In addition, the Courier & Press requested detailed logs showing law enforcement and fire crews response to the blaze from Evansville-Vanderburgh Central Dispatch. The agency refused to release the records citing an ongoing investigation.

Evansville Fire Department has not given us clearance to release anything pertaining to the incident as of yet, operations supervisor Chase Collins wrote at 3:30 p.m.

More: Fire destroys former Pearl Cleaners site in Downtown Evansville

Who owns the building?

Like many large properties in Evansville, the Pearl Cleaners site is officially owned by a limited liability company.

According to the Indiana Secretary of States office, the building is owned through The Pearl Development LLC. Its registered agent is listed as Ryan Schulz: an attorney with Kahn, Dees, Donovan & Kahn.

After the Courier & Press reached out to Schulz on Thursday, Pearl Development LLC sent a news release. It was unsigned.

Almost exactly one year ago we bought this historical landmark with the hopes of restoring it to usable commercial space, the release states. Our dream of revitalizing this iconic building and returning it to her former glory, (sic) is now ash.

According to the Vanderburgh Assessors site, the LLC bought the property from the Korb family last June.

Reid confirmed during Thursday's news conference that police have talked to the current owner.

State documents and assessors records tie the property to Dr. Bachar Malek. When the Courier & Press reached out to him via an email address in state records, Malek said he was no longer associated with the property and that the current owners have been trying to sell it for a while with no potential buyer.

The Pearl building last time I was there was completely empty only outside bricks and window left so you need to ask yourself, what got caught on fire? he said.

More: Evansville's Lloyd Pool will be knocked down soon, two years after it closed

Were the property taxes paid?

No  at least according to assessors records.

That departments website says property taxes were last paid in spring of 2022. As of Thursday, the owners owed more than $22,000.

There was no official word as of Thursday whether the building was insured.

Smoke fills the air following an early-morning fire at the former Pearl Cleaners building May 17, 2023, in Downtown Evansville, Indiana.

The property was the target of a lawsuit

Pearl, which closed the site in 2018, was the subject of a lawsuit the year before. It was filed by WNIN  its former neighbor at the historic Carpenter House  stemming from contamination of groundwater and vapor stemming from cleaning solvents used at the business for decades.

Pearl applied to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management's Voluntary Remediation Program in 2015 to cleanup soil, groundwater and vapor contamination.

A plan filed in that lawsuit documented a 250-foot wide plume of groundwater contaminated with the solvent PCE on the Pearl Cleaners site.

'Pearl Steam Laundry' was on the National Register of Historic Places

According to a sign posted on the charred building, Pearl Steam Laundry was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 6, 1984 alongside several other Downtown buildings. It went on the state registry two years before that.

Now its gone.

What happens next?

Reid said the next step will be for code enforcement from the Evansville Building Commission to complete a inspection.

That report will then be turned over to the fire department to determine what needs to happen next.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville man accused of setting fire to historic building
Donetsk Oblast  At an unusually nice house on a street with rows of modest cottages, Ukraines front-line sappers spend their days indoors waiting for their daunting nightly missions venturing out into gray zones laying mines sometimes as close as 100 meters from the nearest Russian trench.

The scariest moment is when you are going there, 43-year-old sapper Oleksiy from Dnipropetrovsk Oblast said. And then your muscle memory starts kicking in, but until then, its long and painful. Its impossible to get used to this.

Every time you go there it feels like its your last, he added.

The sappers are from the 25th Airborne Brigade and are deployed near Kreminna, a Russian-occupied town in Ukraines eastern Luhansk Oblast. Fierce fighting continues to rage in the pine forests around the town, where visibility is compromised due to the forested terrain.

The Russian eyes are nevertheless always watching, the sappers say. Russias aerial reconnaissance drones are constantly flying above, and its troops have thermal vision devices to track Ukrainian movements at night. Its difficult to hide from the drones because they cant be heard at a certain height or distance, they added.

While stepping on Ukrainian or Russian mines is always a risk, incessant Russian artillery fire is still the biggest threat to the sappers. The intensity of Russian attacks determines how long they work in any given field and how much they can get done on one mission.

And as soon as Russian forces begin barraging them with artillery, the sappers  working in small groups  need to dive down and stay low until it gets quiet.

Lying still can get very difficult when your comrades who have been hit by artillery or have stepped on a mine are screaming in pain, according to Oleksiy.

In whatever condition they are, you need to keep lying because otherwise, you will end up the same, Oleksiy said. Although several of his fellow sappers have been seriously wounded, he never gets used to how difficult it is, he said.

You always want to return, but Oleksiy continued, but without finishing his sentence. We pray each time to return and for everyone to come back.

When dying stops being scary: Worn out Ukrainian soldiers in Donbas hold off Russian assaults Editors Note: This story is based on interviews with Ukrainian soldiers, conducted in Donetsk Oblast, near the eastern front line, in late March. Some of the soldiers declined to give their last names for security reasons, and are identified by first names and callsigns instead. DONETSK OBLAST  U Kyiv IndependentAsami Terajima

Daunting missions

When out in the field, infantry commanders usually show the general area where mines should be laid, and the sappers get to work, 46-year-old Andriy, a soldier from Dnipro whose call sign is Sapper, said.

Carrying a 10-kilogram anti-tank mine on his front and another on his back, and with a batch of antipersonnel mines in hand, the sappers move as quickly as possible through the field in small groups. Its difficult to run because they are wearing 40 kilograms on their body, with their bulletproof vest weighing 16 kilograms.

Sometimes the shelling starts almost immediately as the sappers begin working; other times, a little bit later. Its a joy to work in a quiet field, but it rarely happens, Andriy said.

But however intensely Russian forces are shelling a field, Andriy estimates that the sappers are able to complete their job 90% of the time.

We try because we understand that its much harder for all the guys who are sitting in the trenches, Andriy said, referring to the Ukrainian infantry deployed for days to weeks in the trenches.

The sappers say they lay mines about 100 to 200 meters in front of the Ukrainian infantry positions to make it harder for Russian forces to advance. The mines could help stall a potential Russian advance, serving as a reliable defense tactic.

But it doesnt make the job any less scary each time, even if they are working 20 nights in a row, the sappers said. Its really based on luck, not experience, Andriy said about working under shelling.

A Ukrainian sapper from the 25th Airborne Brigade shows how anti-tank mines are carried at a base in Donetsk Oblast on March 26, 2023. (Asami Terajima/The Kyiv Independent)

Growing fear

The Ukrainian sappers say they have one growing fear as the weather gets warmer and the plants grow taller: it will become harder to find Russian mines lying on the ground.

Russia has contaminated swathes of Ukrainian lands with mines, including banned ones, that could remain in the ground for decades. Ukraine is now likely one of the most mined countries in the world, with authorities saying that roughly 40 percent of the country's total land is mined.

The sappers say its particularly dangerous to work in the once Russian-occupied territories as banned Soviet-produced mines, such as the POM-2, are all over.

POM-2s are prohibited by the 1997 Ottawa Treaty, which bans the production and use of anti-personnel mines since they indiscriminately threaten civilians. The POM-2 is scatterable and contains a tripwire set to detonate when touched. Russia, however, never signed the international mine ban treaty.

Russian forces have also been relying on the use of sophisticated POM-3 anti-personnel mines, which the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said: "indiscriminately kill and maim.

Both POM-2 and POM-3 are typically launched by mine-laying rocket launchers. The POM-3, with a seismic sensor triggered by footsteps, is being deployed for the first time in combat in Ukraine, according to the HRW. It expels metal fragments lethal to anyone standing within the roughly 15-meter radius.

While the Ukrainian sappers have been trained to detect and avoid Russian mines, they say that its still hard if they are abundant in an overgrown field.

This is the most terrifying thing, even the worst, when it (the plant) grows and it is more difficult to see the mines, Andriy said.

Fighting for the future

Pushing through life-threatening missions, the sappers from the 25th say they know exactly what they are fighting for.

All of this (the war) must not be frozen, only until the end, Makarov said. I think our kids should live better, Oleksiy, a father of two, added.

Oleksiy explained that there are young men who were ten-year-old when Russia invaded Crimea and Donbas in 2014, now fighting alongside him on the battlefield, and he doesnt want the same for future generations.

My son is ten years old, and he must not need to go (to war) in nine years, you never wish such things for children, he said.

Oleksiy, whose civilian life ended abruptly when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, is eager to return home. But his hometown of Marhanets near Nikopol is under constant threat, located just across the Dnipro River from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Oleksiy is more concerned about his son and 18-year-old daughter than about himself because the area is constantly shelled, and they have to spend their days in the basement.

For Andriy, 46, who spent his adult life in the military, he feels that physical work is becoming harder. Dragging (heavy anti-tank mines) is hard, Im not 20 years old anymore, he said.

There is a motivation to go further and further, Andriy said, but war is war, and everyone has some kind of fear  some have more, some have less.

But this is our job. We are scared, but we keep crawling, he added.

Brigade that spent 2 months in Bakhmut: It was becoming harder each week Editors note: The Kyiv Independent is not revealing the soldiers full names or the exact location of their deployment due to security concerns amid the ongoing war. DONETSK OBLAST  At a cottage-turned-base some two kilometers from the front lines in Donetsk Oblast, soldiers from Ukraines 24th M Kyiv IndependentAsami Terajima

______________________________________________________

Note from the author:

Hi, this is Asami Terajima, the author of this article.

Thank you for reading my story till the end. I had the opportunity to get to know many sappers from various brigades deployed in Donbas, and their job is extremely dangerous  but crucial to Ukraine's defense. They are putting their lives at enormous risk each time to prevent a further Russian advance in the east. To help the Kyiv Independent tell more stories of Ukrainian soldiers and continue reporting on the ground, please consider supporting us by becoming our patron.
Ex-Wagner commander who sought asylum in Norway wants to return to Russia

Ex-Wagner commander who sought asylum in Norway wants to return to Russia FILE PHOTO: Andrei Medvedev appears in court

By Nerijus Adomaitis

OSLO (Reuters) - A former commander of Russia's Wagner group who sought asylum in Norway after crossing the Russian-Norwegian border in January said on Wednesday he wanted to return to Russia even though he believed this could pose a risk to his life.

Andrei Medvedev, who has previously spoken about his time fighting in Ukraine, said in one of several videos posted on YouTube that he had decided by himself that he wanted to return to his home country.

The 26-year-old said he felt like "some kind of a boy in a big game" that he no longer wanted to be part of.

"Recently I've decided that I'm ready to go back to the Russian Federation. I've contacted the Russian embassy in Oslo for help, to facilitate my return," Medvedev said in one of five short videos, adding that he made this decision on his own.

He escaped Russia via its Arctic border with Norway in January. He said he crossed through barbed-wire fences and evaded a border patrol with dogs, hearing Russian guards firing shots as he ran through a forest and over a frozen river.

His story made headlines around the world as a rare example of someone defecting to a Western country while claiming to have fought for the Wagner mercenary group in Ukraine.

At the time, Medvedev said he was seeking asylum in Norway because he feared for his life after witnessing the killing and mistreatment of Russian prisoners recruited by the mercenary group to fight in Ukraine.

In a video published on Wednesday he said that he would hand in documents "tomorrow" that he believed would help facilitate his return.

"I hoped that I could find peace and calm here, that I could leave all the politics, the war, the army behind, but somehow I couldn't manage," Medvedev said in Russian.

"We shall see what would happen in Russia. If they kill me, OK. If they don't, thanks a lot. If I live, even more thanks."

He was convicted in April of being involved in a bar fight in Oslo and of carrying an air gun.

He told Reuters at the time he was looking to the future, studying Norwegian and hoping to get asylum.

Reuters was unable to reach Medvedev via telephone on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis; Editing by Terje Solsvik and Stephen Coates)
By Mike Stone

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon overestimated the value of the ammunition, missiles and other equipment it sent to Ukraine by around $3 billion, a Senate aide and a defense official said on Thursday, an error that may lead the way for more weapons being sent to Kyiv for its defense against Russian forces.

The error was the result of assigning a higher than warranted value on weaponry that was taken from U.S. stocks and then shipped to Ukraine, two senior defense officials said on Thursday.

"We've discovered inconsistencies in how we value the equipment that we've given" to Ukraine one of the senior defense officials told Reuters. The officials and the Senate aide spoke on the condition of anonymity. Congress is being notified of the accounting adjustment on Thursday, the sources said.

The defense official said it is possible the amount of overvalued weaponry could grow beyond $3 billion as the Pentagon examines the situation more thoroughly.

In its accounting, the Pentagon used replacement cost to value the weapons aid, instead of the weaponry's value when it was purchased and depreciated, the senior defense officials said.

Since August 2021, the United States has sent weapons valued at about $21.1 billion to Ukraine from its stockpiles.

Changing the valuation of the equipment could delay the Biden administrations' need to ask Congress to authorize more funds for Ukraine as the debt ceiling fight intensifies.

"The Department of Defense's change in evaluating the costs of arms sent to Ukraine is a major mistake," U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said. "Its effect would be to underestimate future needs for our European allies. Our priority should be a Ukrainian victory over Putin. Unilaterally altering military aid calculations is an attempt at deception and undermines this goal."

The U.S. has sent a wide variety of equipment to Ukraine in 37 Presidential Drawdown Authority packages including High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers, Javelin anti-tank weapons and a Patriot surface-to-air missile system.

"The services - the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines - were using, the current replacement cost of the item," one of the senior defense officials said.

A March 31 memo, seen by Reuters, clarified to the top accountants in each branch of service which method should be used, citing existing regulation.

It will take time to work through the accounting for billions of dollars worth of equipment sent to Ukraine, the senior defense officials said.

In the case of 155 millimeter ammunition for Howitzer cannons, of which more than 1.5 million have been sent to Ukraine, each cost about $800 today. But the actual cost of each shell, which have been delivered to the U.S. military each year for several decades, can be averaged out for a much lower price, one of the senior defense officials said.

(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Chris Sanders, Anna Driver and Grant McCool)
Yahoo News has obtained a U.S. Air Force assessment of two Ukrainian pilots who outperformed stated Pentagon expectations over two weeks in a flight simulator at a U.S. air base.

U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jets fly in formation during U.S.-Philippines joint air force exercises on May 9 in the Pampanga province, Philippines. (Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)

Yahoo News has exclusively obtained an internal U.S. Air Force assessment that concludes it would take only four months to train Ukrainian pilots to operate American-made F-16 fighter jets, a far shorter time frame than what has been repeatedly cited by Pentagon officials.

Ukrainian pilots used simulators in Arizona

The document, which was shared with a number of NATO allies who fly F-16s, contains a detailed assessment undertaken in late February and early March at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Ariz., home to the 162nd Wing of the U.S. Air Force. Two Ukrainian airmen, one qualified on the MiG-29, the other on the Su-27, were given no formal training on the F-16, according to the assessment, other than a brief familiarization. They were then tested on a flight simulator, conducting 9 simulator events covering 11.5 total hours.

The Su-27 and the MiG-29 are both Soviet-era fighter jets, which constitute the bulk of what remains of Ukraines air force. Both Ukrainian pilots were assessed by four experienced U.S. Air Force instructors, each of whom had clocked thousands of hours flying F-16s.

The assessment, written by Lt. Col. Jared P. White of the 162nd, concludes that the Ukrainian pilots were able to carry out a number of relatively technical maneuvers in their simulated environments such as landing the aircraft after losing an engine in a scenario called a flameout. After a single demonstration ... both pilots were able to successfully land the aircraft from an overhead simulated flameout (SFO) pattern. This is a relatively technical skill that must be continually practiced throughout an F-16 pilots career, the document states. Both pilots were also able to execute mock attacks based on parameters communicated while they were flying the sim.

Reasons for concern

Ukrainian air force pilots pose for a photo on an Su-25 ground attack jet on their base in eastern Ukraine on May 4. (Libkos/AP)

The main training issue identified in the evaluation was the Ukrainian pilots not being comfortable with the complex avionics of the F-16, which displays information in English. Language ability is elsewhere listed as a concern, although the assessors state there was a noted improvement in English aptitude over the course of two weeks for both Ukrainian pilots. Unsurprisingly, both the Su-27 and MiG-29 pilots were unfamiliar with flying U.S. standard multi-aircraft formations, having been trained on Soviet-era tactics.

Despite these drawbacks, the report concludes that given the current skill set demonstrated by the Ukrainian Air Force pilot ... four months is a realistic training timeline.

Pressure on allies mounts

The document will increase pressure on Ukraines major foreign allies, such as the U.S., some of whom had claimed that Western aircraft are too sophisticated and would therefore take too long to train pilots in order to have an impact in the war between Ukraine and Russia. For instance, Colin Kahl, outgoing U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, speaking at a House Armed Services Committee hearing in February, claimed that training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s would take about 18 months, the same time Kahl said it would take to deliver these aircraft to Ukraine.

A billboard requests help from President Biden during his visit to Warsaw, Poland, on Feb. 22. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

This revelation that Ukrainians could be combat-ready on F-16s much faster than expected comes amid an international push to supply Kyiv with modern Western fighter jets. In a Downing Street statement released Monday during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskys recent visit to the United Kingdom, the British government reiterated its commitment to help train Ukrainian pilots as part of a program to build a new Ukrainian air force with NATO-standard, F16 jets. The U.K. has been characteristically bullish about the supply of Western aircraft to Ukraine, despite not operating F-16s in the Royal Air Force. British Member of Parliament Alicia Kearns, chair of the influential Foreign Affairs Select Committee, told Yahoo News that the USAF assessment challenged some of the arguments against providing jets to our Ukrainian friends.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks spokesperson said Tuesday that the U.K. was cooperating with the Netherlands to form an international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting everything from training to procuring F-16 jets. The statement came after a meeting between Sunak and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, another outspoken supporter of Ukraines security assistance, at a Council of Europe summit in Iceland. Rutte had previously said that nothing is beyond the realm of possibility to the extent that it helps to deter Russian aggression when asked about the prospect of supplying Dutch F-16s to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the Chequers in Aylesbury, England, on Monday. (Ukrainian Presidency/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The Ukrainians have repeatedly asked for the supply of Western fighter jets to replace its dwindling stock of ex-Soviet MiG-29s and Su-27s, which have seen extensive use since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022 and have suffered significant combat attrition. Ukraine has lost over 60 aircraft, top U.S. Air Force Gen. James B. Hecker said at a conference in Colorado on March 6. Reacting to the British and Dutch announcements, Andriy Yermak, a key Zelensky aide, said, We need F-16s, and I am grateful to our allies for their decision to work in this direction, including training our pilots.
China's recovery, and surging energy demand, continue to surpass expectations, says the IEA

Energy Aspects sees global oil demand growing by 1.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2023, led by Chinas reopening. (GETTY)

Oil could climb above $US100 per barrel by late summer before rallying to more than $US115 in 2024, according to Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects.

Sen outlined an extremely bullish view for oil in a virtual presentation hosted by Wells Fargo last week, according to Michael Blum, managing director of Wells Fargo Securities.

Sen sees global oil demand growing by 1.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2023, led by Chinas reopening. On the supply side, she notes the recent OPEC+ production cuts aimed at supporting the market have yet to take effect.

On Tuesday, the International Energy Agency flagged all-time record demand from China in March, as the countrys recovery continues to surpass expectations. In its closely watched monthly oil market report, the agency predicted global demand will climb by 2.2 million barrels of oil equivalent per day this year, with supply conditions tightening in the back half of 2023.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate Crude (CL=F) prices were virtually flat at $US$72.48 per barrel at 8:39 a.m. ET on Thursday as traders monitor the ongoing U.S. debt ceiling negotiations. International Brent oil futures (BZ=F) fell less than one per cent to US$76.56 per barrel.

Energy Aspects expects WTI oil prices to average US$107 per barrel in the second half of this year, US$117/Bbl in 2024, and US$141/Bbl in 2025. The projections account for a mild recession in OECD nations.

In China, Energy Aspects sees a full economic recovery adding a further 500,000 to 600,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to global demand. Right now, Sen says international travel from China remains 40 per cent below pre-COVID levels, while property market weakness limits fuel demand from construction.

Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist.

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Factbox-The paparazzi who pursue Harry and Meghan - what are the rules?

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan were pursued by photographers in New York on Tuesday in what the prince's spokesperson described as a "near catastrophic car chase," highlighting the often tense relationship between celebrities and photographers.

Police in New York, however, described the encounter as relatively brief and said there had been no injuries, collisions or arrests.

While the details remain murky, the incident made international headlines and immediately evoked memories of how Harry's mother, Princess Diana, died in a car crash in 1997 after being pursued by so-called paparazzi photographers, who typically specialise in taking pictures of celebrities.

Harry, the younger son of King Charles, and Meghan cited media intrusion as one of the reasons for stepping back from royal duties and moving to California in 2020.

They filed a U.S. lawsuit in July 2020, alleging that unnamed paparazzi used drones and helicopters to take "illegal" photos of their son, Archie, at their private residence in California when he was 14-months-old. They reached a settlement with celebrity photo agency X17 in October 2020.

Rules on how the "paps" can operate vary from country to country and from state to state in the U.S.

Below is a summary of the different restrictions.

BRITAIN

Photographers may take pictures in all public places, including photos of people, as long as they do not harass members of the public. The Protection from Harassment Act 1997 allows for prosecution if a photographer threatens, stalks, intimidates or causes distress.

Shortly after Diana's death, a voluntary body for British publishers - now called the Independent Press Standards Organization - agreed that journalists should not engage in intimidation, harassment, or persistent pursuit and should desist if asked to do so by their target.

There has also been an unwritten understanding between Buckingham Palace and the press not to publish unsolicited pictures of royal children since Diana's death.

U.S.

Photographers may take pictures in all public places. New York does not have specific laws addressing paparazzi, and the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution explicitly protects the free press from government intrusion.

California, where paparazzi are a constant presence thanks to Hollywood, has enacted several laws intended to protect celebrities from harm since Diana's death.

A 2013 law made it a crime to attempt to photograph a child in a harassing manner if it is done so because the child's parent is famous. Another law created a misdemeanour for anyone who engages in reckless driving specifically in pursuit of images.

The state has also passed a civil statute barring the use of unmanned drones to take photos of people on private property, which led Harry and Meghan to file their 2020 lawsuit.

News photographers typically operate under ethical standards apart from legal considerations. The New York Press Photographers Association issued a statement on Wednesday condemning the reported behaviour as a violation of the basic principle that news photographers should act as "documentarians and observers."

Bruce Cotler, the group's president, noted in an interview that there were multiple and conflicting accounts about the incident. But, he said, photographers are expected to behave in a manner that is not dangerous to others.

"The major rule in journalism is: cover the news, don't be the news," he said.

(Reporting by William Schomberg in London and Joseph Ax in New York; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
Factbox-Why does the US want to ban TikTok? The allegations against it

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Montana Governor Greg Gianforte on Wednesday signed legislation to ban Chinese-owned TikTok from operating in the state to "protect Montanans" from alleged Chinese surveillance, making it the first U.S. state to ban the popular short video app.

Here is a detailed list of U.S. allegations against the company and its parent, Bytedance.

-TikTok management is beholden to the Chinese government

FBI Director Chris Wray said in November that TikTok poses a national security risk, adding that Chinese companies are required to essentially "do whatever the Chinese government wants them to in terms of sharing information or serving as a tool of the Chinese government."

Members of Congress in March complained that the Chinese government has a "golden share" in ByteDance, giving it power over TikTok. TikTok has said "an entity affiliated with the Chinese government owns 1% of a ByteDance subsidiary, Douyin Information Service," and says the holding "has no bearing on ByteDance's global operations outside of China, including TikTok."

-TikTok could be used to influence Americans

The FBI's Wray has also said U.S. operations of TikTok raise national security concerns because the Chinese government could harness the video-sharing app to influence users or control their devices.

Risks include "the possibility that the Chinese government could use [TikTok] to control data collection on millions of users or control the recommendation algorithm, which could be used for influence operations," Wray told U.S. lawmakers.

National Security Agency Director Paul Nakasone said in March he was worried about the data TikTok collects, the algorithm used to disperse information to users, and "the control of who has the algorithm."

He asserted the TikTok platform could enable sweeping influence operations because TikTok could proactively influence users and could also "turn off the message."

TikTok says it "does not permit any government to influence or change its recommendation model."

-TikTok will hand American's data over to Chinese government officials

Lawmakers have alleged that the Chinese government, under a 2017 National Intelligence law, can force ByteDance to share TikTok user data. TikTok argues that because it is incorporated in California and Delaware, it is subject to U.S. laws and regulations.

TikTok's chief executive has said the company has never, and would never, share U.S. user data with the Chinese government

-TikTok use harms children's mental health

In March 2022 eight states, including California and Massachusetts, launched a probe into whether TikTok causes physical or mental health harm to young people and what the company knew about its role in those harms.

The investigation focuses on how TikTok boosts young user engagement, including allegedly increasing the duration of time spent on the platform and how often it is used.

TikTok says it has taken numerous steps "to help ensure that teens under 18 have a safe and enjoyable experience on the app, and many of these measures impose restrictions that don't exist on comparable platforms."

-TikTok spies on journalists

In December, ByteDance said some employees improperly accessed TikTok user data of two journalists. ByteDance employees accessed the data as part of an unsuccessful effort to investigate leaks of company information earlier this year, and were aiming to identify potential connections between two journalists, a former BuzzFeed reporter and a Financial Times reporter, and company employees.

A person briefed on the matter told Reuters that four ByteDance employees who were involved in the incident were fired, including two in China and two in the United States. Company officials said they were taking additional steps to protect user data.

(Reporting by Chris Sanders; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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Native American and First Nations members enter the arena for the grand entry ceremony of the 69th annual Chicago Powwow at Schiller Woods on Oct. 8, 2022. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

SPRINGFIELD  Illinois public schools would be required to teach lessons on Midwestern Native American history beginning in the 2024-25 school year under a measure passed by state legislators that is expected to be signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

The Native American history is in our DNA, Democratic state Rep. Maurice West of Rockford, the bills sponsor, said in an interview. Its our obligation to truly know our history as a state.

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Under the bill, all public elementary and high school social studies courses that cover American history or government must include instruction on events of the Native American experience and Native American history within the Midwest and this state.

The state House passed the bill Wednesday by an 81-31 vote after it was approved by the Senate, 44-8.

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This bill is the latest in a series of history requirements passed by the Illinois legislature. In 2021, the lawmakers passed a bill requiring that Asian American history be taught, making Illinois the first state in the nation to do so. Before that, lawmakers passed requirements for teaching Black history, which followed laws requiring lessons about the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

Pritzkers office said the governor expects to sign the latest bill into law in the coming months.

Gov. Pritzker believes that history should be taught in a way that conveys the story of our country and state as it actually happened, a spokesperson for Pritzker said in an email. Including Native American history in the classroom  ensures students are given the tools to understand and empathize with one another.

The curriculum will be developed with consultation from members of the Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative. The bill also requires the State Education Equity Committee to include a member from an organization that works for the betterment of Native Americans, as well as an individual with a disability or with a statewide advocacy group on behalf of individuals with disabilities.

Sen. Seth Lewis, a Bloomingdale Republican, was among those opposing the bill, arguing there are already too many curriculum requirements for schools and teachers.

There are 134 standards that a kindergarten teacher must teach throughout the year. ... Our teachers are coming out of COVID, we are struggling to teach basic math, writing, reading. When is this institution going to give our educators a break? Lewis said.

On the Senate floor, Republican Sen. Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods, speaking in support, reminded colleagues that the bill allows local school boards to decide the minimum amount of time in their curriculum to dedicate to Native American history.

That means that a school board can decide to take two hours to do this, they can take two days, they can take two weeks, McConchie said.

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Some supporters saw allowing school districts to determine the time that will be spent as a curriculum as a problem that could keep such history from getting its due, but West said the language was necessary because the state has a local mandate on what the schools curriculum looks like.

The way I make myself feel better about it is saying that at least the negotiating floor is a lot higher than it was, West said.

Rep. Maurice West speaks at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield on May 18, 2023. (Shanna Madison/Chicago Tribune)

Democratic Rep. Anthony DeLuca of Chicago Heights supported the bill but said he wished Italian American history was getting the same recognition as other groups.

Last year, the same committee did not approve Italian American history that was the exact same language because it was a mandate and there was a cost, he said during the House floor debate, while also referencing the statues of Columbus that have been removed in Illinois.

The bill mandates students in elementary school begin learning about Native American history including Native American contributions to art and politics, while older students must also learn about darker parts of that history, including the genocide of and discrimination against Native Americans.

I think if you look nationally across many states, it seems like a lot of folks are trying to whitewash history, which is kind of sad because if we dont fully understand what had happened, everything that had taken place, were probably destined to repeat it again, said Chairperson Joseph Zeke Rupnick of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation in Kansas.

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Illinois is one of 14 states that does not have a single federally recognized American Indian reservation, according to the National Congress of American Indians.

Prairie Band Potawatomi have a treaty with a reservation here in Illinois, but it was illegally auctioned off, professor Megan Bang of Ojibwe descent who teaches and serves as the director of the center for Native American and Indigenous research at Northwestern University said. There is a history here that is actually a problematic history. That is why I think that people should have to know the history of their state.

Rupnick explained that the state of Illinois made a deal with his ancestors in the mid-19th century, promising them land in Illinois. But then Illinois illegally sold his land, claiming that (the chief) had abandoned it.

While many teachers in Illinois have worked Native American history into their classrooms, one teacher the Tribune spoke to said it has never been a focus.

Once in a while  we might find a text that was through the lens of an Indigenous person, but that would be very intentional on my part, not something that was already presented in the curriculum, said Heather McCoy, who teaches seventh- and eighth-grade social science and civics at the Nettelhorst School in Lakeview.

What the future curriculum looks like and how much time each school spends on Native American history is yet to be decided. But its a step in the right direction, according to advocates like McCoy.

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This is about the only opportunity that I see in my own experience, in my years of teaching, that Indigenous stories are being told.

Chicago Tribunes Dan Petrella contributed.

hsanders@chicagotribune.com
Fans defend Anne Hathaway after she appears to ignore Priyanka Chopra at fashion event

Anne Hathaway fans have defended the Devil Wears Prada star after a viral video purported to show her skipping over Priyanka Chopra Jonas to greet Zendaya at Bulgaris fashion event in Italy.

Hathway, Zendaya, and Chopra Jonas all arrived at the Palazzo Ducale in Venice, Italy, on 16 May to celebrate the launch of Bulgaris new jewellery collection. The three stars  who are also Bulgari ambassadors  posed for photos together, each wearing dazzling Bulgari necklaces.

In a TikTok video shared by Harpers Bazaar France, the Princess Diaries star is seen walking in front of photographers to greet the Euphoria actor. Chopra Jonas, who is standing beside Zendaya, watches and smiles as the two exchange cheek kisses. The three brand ambassadors appear to compliment each others stunning gowns before snapping pictures with Bulgari CEO, Jean-Christophe Babin.

Despite the pleasantries, many viewers assumed Hathaway had snubbed Chopra Jonas in favour of Zendaya at the fashion event. As some people claimed Hathaway ignored the Citadel star, others chimed in to defend the Oceans 8 actor.

Why didnt she greet Priyanka lol, commented one TikTok user.

She totally ignored her, another said.

Priyanka waited for her hug, a third person wrote.

However, many users in the comments explained that Zendaya arrived late to the fashion event and Hathaway had already said hello to Chopra Jonas.

She didnt ignore her. Zendaya arrived later than they did, said one person.

Theres another post of the three of them. They all look fine, wrote someone else.

Guys. Priyanka Chopra and Anne Hathaway already greeted each other earlier, another TikToker said. Please dont throw hate towards Anne Hathaway.

Hathaway attended the launch of Bulgaris Mediterranea High Jewellery collection wearing a gold and silver ombre high-slit gown from Atelier Versace. The sparkling gown, which she paired with a pink bejeweled joker from Bulgaris collection, featured an attached hood.

Zendaya arrived wearing a black custom Richard Quinn gown with off-the-shoulder sleeves. She styled her hair in a slicked-back bun and accessorised the look with a silver snake necklace from Bulgari.

Meanwhile, Chopra Jonas opted for a pink cropped long-sleeve bodice and floor-length skirt, along with a matching pink necklace.

This isnt the first time fans have defended Anne Hathaway after she was accused of being rude on the red carpet. Earlier this month, a resurfaced interview showed the Ella Enchanted star declining a journalists inquiry about a conversation she had with Vogues editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

The interview, which took place at ELLE magazines Women in Hollywood event last October, came after Hathaway sat next to Wintour at the Michael Kors New York Fashion Week show.

When asked whether she and Wintour had ever spoken about the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada  in which Meryl Streep plays Miranda Priestly, a character modelled after Wintour  Hathaway confirmed they had.

However, when the reporter pushed for information about what the legendary Vogue editor has shared, Hathaway replied: Why would I tell you? before laughing loudly.

The interviewer said: Because Im a fan and I need to know.

No, but you werent there, Hathaway said, shaking her head slightly. The interviewer said they respected Hathaways decision not to divulge her and Wintours interaction, and the actor thanked her.
Father of girl featured on Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries' is 'still processing' being reunited after 6 years

The Illinois man who was reunited with his daughter six years after she was allegedly abducted by her mother, a case featured on the Netflix series "Unsolved Mysteries," is still trying to process that his yearslong nightmare came to an end Saturday.

I think its been a really fantastic couple of days. I also think its been a very overwhelming couple of days, said Rebecca Steinbach, a spokesperson for Ryan Iskerka, whose daughter, Kayla Unbehaun, vanished in July 2017.

The girl is back home in Illinois with her father.

"Every time I talk to Ryan, the only thing he wants is to make sure that Kayla is OK, so thats their priority," Steinbach, who is also a spokesperson for the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, said in a phone call Wednesday.

Kayla Unbehaun. (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children)

"You pray for this day. You hope and wish for this day," she said. "And to get the news out of the blue that hey, we found her  I think theyre still processing the last four or five days."

Kayla, who turned 15 in January, was 9 years old when she disappeared in Illinois in 2017 while in the care of her mother, Heather Unbehaun.

Authorities told NBC's "Nightly News" that an employee at Plato's Closet in Asheville, North Carolina, recognized Kayla and told her manager. The manager contacted police.

The employee had a "personal connection" with Kayla in childhood, Lt. Jonathan Brown said, adding that the Netflix episode "heightened her awareness and made the connection more plausible."

The disappearance was one of several cases involving alleged family abductions featured on an episode of Netflix's "Unsolved Mysteries" in November.

Brown said that the mother and daughter gave officers fake names and birthdays but that once the officers "started cross-referencing with the information that the original tipster provided, they were able to land on their true identity."

Heather Unbehaun, 40, was arrested on a fugitive charge Saturday, an Asheville police arrest report says. She was released on bond Tuesday from a North Carolina jail, a court clerk said.

She turned herself in Wednesday at a Kane County, Illinois, jail on a child abduction charge, online records show. Bail was set at $10,000.

Iskerka said in a 2020 video about the case that he and Unbehaun, his ex-girlfriend, had informally worked out a custody arrangement but that as things got more "complicated," they took the matter to court.

"We had gone to court and made agreements for how we'd follow an order, and she couldn't follow that. She couldn't follow the order that we agreed upon in court," he said in the video, which was shared by Steinbach. "So she repeatedly had not followed what it said."

In early 2017, Iskerka was granted full custody of Kayla, and she began living at his house. Unbehaun would visit weekly.

Around July 4 of that year, Iskerka said in the video, he went to Unbehaun's house to pick up Kayla, but they weren't there. Other family members at the house said that Unbehaun hadn't returned from a camping trip and that they didn't know where she was, Iskerka said. He filed a missing person's report for Kayla.

Unbehaun couldn't be reached at a phone number listed for her. Her family and Unbehaun's attorney declined to comment.

It's not clear how long Unbehaun and Kayla have been in North Carolina, and authorities haven't released details about what they have been doing the past six years.

Steinbach said the family is working on rebuilding its relationship with Kayla.

"I think theyre doing really well, but theyre taking it day by day," she said. "She was gone for six years, and those are the formative years. Shes going into her teens, and so their priority is to get to know each other again."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
What are your favorite memories of off-roading at the Oceano Dunes? We want your stories

In just a few months, off-road riding at the Oceano Dunes will be no more.

As that deadline approaches, we want to recognize the memories experienced by thousands of people who have flocked to the Dunes sandy slopes over the years.

The Tribune wants to hear your favorite stories of visiting the popular off-highway vehicle park near Pismo Beach as part of our new nostalgia series.

Remember That? looks back at some of the highlights of San Luis Obispo Countys recent past. Were focusing primarily on the last 30 to 50 years, searching for favorite experiences that forever hold a place in residents memories.

In coming months, well share throwback pictures from our archives, reader memories and in-depth features on a slew of Central Coast topics.

Most recently, we took a look at San Luis Obispos long-defunct indoor mall, Central Coast Plaza.

Now, were pivoting to Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area.

Though the park as we know it was in operation by roughly the 1970s, people have been driving on the Dunes practically as long as there have been vehicles.

Now that practice is coming to an end.

The California Coastal Commission voted in 2021 to prohibit off-highway vehicle use at Oceano Dunes SVRA by 2024  capping off a nearly 40-year battle.

Through the years, thousands of people have visited the OHV park for camping and ATV riding, forming memories along the way.

Fill out the form below, or send your stories of enjoying the Oceano Dunes to Tribune reporter Kaytlyn Leslie at kleslie@thetribunenews.com to have them featured in an upcoming story. We know youve got lots of great photos as well, and we want to see those too.

Have a suggestion for other nostalgic memories from SLO Countys history you want us to dive into? Send those recommendations along as well. We cant wait to see what you all dig up.
WASHINGTON  Two FBI agents Republicans have championed as whistleblowers interfered with or refused to participate in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, the FBI told lawmakers this week.

At a hearing on Thursday, Republicans led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) alleged the agents were victims of a broader weaponization of the U.S. Justice Department against Catholics, concerned parents, conservatives and former President Donald Trump.

If youre one of the good employees of our government to talk about the targeting, you become a target, you face retaliation, Jordan said at the hearing.

Christopher Dunham, FBI assistant director, told Jordan in a letter that one of the former agents  Marcus Allen, a staff operations specialist suspended from his job at the FBIs field office in Charlotte, North Carolina  tried to convince his FBI colleagues that the Capitol riot had been orchestrated by the government.

Allen also allegedly conducted a shoddy investigation into a Jan. 6 suspect, prompting the FBI to close the case  only for another agent to turn up publicly available evidence incriminating the suspect.

Investigative activity established that this subject physically assaulted U.S. Capitol Police officers on January 6, 2021, Dunham wrote.

I was retaliated against because I forwarded information to my superiors and others that questioned the official narrative of the events of January 6, Allen said during the hearing.

Another witness  former Jacksonville, Florida, FBI special agent Stephen Friend  has admitted that he refused to participate in any cases related to Jan. 6, partly because he thought some suspects were innocent and that they would face unfair jury pools in Washington, D.C.

Not long after telling his supervisors he wouldnt help with Capitol riot cases, Dunham wrote, Friend entered FBI space and downloaded documents from FBI computer systems to an unauthorized removable flash drive and also publicly released sensitive FBI information on his personal social media accounts without authorization.

My whistleblowing was apolitical and in the spirit of upholding my oath, Friend said at the hearing.

In both cases, the FBI revoked the agents security clearances, which Republicans described as unlawful retaliation against protected whistleblower activity.

I commend you for standing up for American values, and I commend you for standing up for what you believe are huge grievances that are going on in the FBI, Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) said. Based on your testimony, the FBI has turned to the enforcement arm of the Democratic Party.

Under questioning from Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-N.Y.), Friend and another former FBI special agent who testified on Thursday, Garrett OBoyle, both acknowledged receiving payments from Kash Patel, a former Trump administration official. Committee Democrats had previously highlighted their connection to Trump associates, saying it undermined their claims of being apolitical whistleblowers. Friend now works for the Center for Renewing America, a think tank headed by former Trump budget director Russell Vought.

Jordan dismissed a question about the propriety of the witnesses receiving payments from Trump associates before the hearing on Thursday: How are they supposed to feed their family?

Trump has made false claims about voter fraud in the 2020 election a centerpiece of his campaign to retake the White House, and Republicans on Capitol Hill have continuously attacked the Justice Department for investigating his efforts to prevent Joe Biden from taking office, including by inciting a riot at the Capitol.

After the hearing, the witnesses shook hands with Micki Witthoeft, mother of slain Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt, whom Trump has described as a martyr. Witthoeft has been a constant presence at House hearings and even met with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif).

Near the start of the hearing, Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) summed it up as a vehicle to legitimize the events of Jan. 6.

Related...
The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights is investigating a pending Title IX case of sexual harassment in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools district.

The investigation was opened on Nov. 7, 2022, at elementary-secondary and post-secondary schools, according to the DOE website.

In the past, CMS has been criticized over how the district has handled cases, in which students have reported sexual assaults.

A former Myers Park High School student sued CMS and the city for how officials handled her report of a sexual assault that happened near the campus on Nov. 3, 2015.

RELATED: Jury rules CMS will not have to pay damages in students sex assault lawsuit

A judge dropped the city from the lawsuit. In January, a jury agreed the womans Title IX rights were not violated after she reported the incident to school officials.

The former student, labeled Jane Doe in the complaint, wanted $1 million in damages because she suffered and continues to suffer injuries, including, without limitations, emotional distress, psychological trauma, and mortification, according to the complaint.

The court complaint also stated, The actions and inactions of defendants to discount Ms. Does abduction and subsequent rape by a fellow student were driven by endemic and discriminatory sex-based stereotypes and gender biases held by officials at MPHS.

The jury found that CMS didnt have to pay the damages to Doe.

Channel 9 reported in November 2021 that CMS announced new steps officials would take when handling allegations of sexual misconduct, which included increasing support of its Title IX office.

MORE RELATED STORIES:

Channel 9 has reached out to CMS for a comment but we have not heard back.

VIDEO: CMS superintendent search, Title IX improvements mark first half of school year
Dianne Feinstein has taken on a noticeably lighter schedule since she came back from California. She appears in the Senate only at committee hearings or on the floor when her vote is essential.

Her party is holding its collective breath as the 89-year-old returns.

As relieved as Democrats are to have her back to break the logjam on party-line judicial nominees that her absence created, theyre loath to openly discuss her condition beyond generic well wishes. Fellow senators say they arent hearing much from her at all.

We need her in committee and on the floor, Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said, alluding to the need for Feinstein to vote on judicial nominees who lack any GOP support. Were doing our best to be sensitive to her medical condition.

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) spoke for many of his colleagues when he said: She's been ill and she's elderly. And I really shouldn't be talking, actually, because it's just a difficult situation.



The situation grew grimmer on Thursday, after the New York Times reported, and a spokesperson later confirmed, that Feinsteins shingles had caused a number of complications that contributed to her evident visible decline in faculties. Those complications have also necessitated the use of a wheelchair while she's at work.

But the diminished capacity of the senior senator for the nations most populated state was already apparent: Once a leading voice against gun violence, she skipped a recent Democratic Caucus meeting on guns. She has not attended regular caucus lunches or any committee activity where her votes are not required.

The fellow Democrats who asked her to resign during her prolonged absence havent recanted, but her committee votes and floor presence ahead of a high-stakes legislative summer have quieted some of their arguments and helped bottle up further such calls. Some, like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), had cited the effect of Feinsteins absence on judicial confirmations in calling for her to leave before her term expires next year.

If she couldn't have come back, that's a different discussion, said Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.), who himself had a health scare recently after a running accident. Shes making the votes now. So we're not holding up appointments that are really important.  Shes here for what's going to happen in the next couple of weeks.

Feinsteins office declined to comment for this story and pointed to statements provided earlier Thursday.

Im back in Washington, voting and attending committee meetings while I recover from complications related to a shingles diagnosis, one of those statements said. I continue to work and get results for California.

When Feinstein appears in the Senate, shes accompanied by a phalanx of staff running interference with reporters and whispering in her ear on a near-constant basis during committee meetings. Her aides, with assistance from Capitol Hill's security apparatus and by request of the senators office, have kept her away from the congressional press corps as much as possible.

Feinstein is shuttled through a lower-profile entrance to the Capitol and up a back elevator on her way to the Senate chamber to vote. While one aide pushes her wheelchair, another clears the path ahead. Often Nancy Corinne Prowda, daughter of Nancy Pelosi, flanks her closely on the left with a security official also in the posse.

Many lawmakers have not seen the 30-year veteran senator since her return, and more said this week that they have not spoken to her, suggesting that she may be more isolated from her colleagues than ever.



Lawmakers are generally giving Feinstein plenty of space to make her own decisions about the future, but the senators longtime allies are bristling at the continued calls for her to resign.

She is the same serious-minded, determined Dianne, said Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), whos known Feinstein since the senator was mayor of San Francisco. Eshoo added of Feinstein's critics: Thou doth protest too much. I think Shakespeare was right.

The calls to resign were absurd, said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), who said she has not spoken to the senator since her return.

A spokesperson for Feinstein's former junior senator, now-Vice President Kamala Harris, did not respond to a request for comment on any recent contact they have had.

In a statement, a Feinstein spokesperson acknowledged her continued complications related to her shingles diagnosis, including Ramsay Hunt syndrome and encephalitis, which resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital.

Entering and exiting the Senate through that entrance on Thursday afternoon, Feinstein declined to answer any shouted questions from reporters about her health other than to say hi to the assembled press corps.

But earlier in the day, she spoke briefly at a Judiciary panel meeting in favor of a slate of policing bills, referencing her nine years as San Francisco mayor during the late 1970s and 1980s and her support for cops on the beat. Despite her restricted mobility and colleagues' impressions that shes in pain, her voice was strong and clear.

Exiting the meeting, surrounded by staff, Feinstein wouldnt respond to questions from reporters.

Colleagues are reluctant to openly discuss the health of the Golden State's senior senator, but theyre not hearing much from her, either. Senate colleagues describe two reactions that might sound at odds: They are glad she has returned to work, but they see that she remains unwell and they are concerned.

Im glad to have her back. Clearly she's physically in discomfort, and I consider [her] a friend. And I hope physically she gets stronger and can participate more regularly, said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), ranking member of the Judiciary panel.

But the Judiciary Committee is clearly working around Feinstein, placing nominations on meeting agendas that only get taken up if she is able to appear. And Durbin has been explicit about the constraints of her limited return to work.

If Sen. Feinstein arrives, we may be able to take up those additional nominees, he said at the top of Feinstein's first meeting back, which she did eventually attend and helped Democrats clear nominees along party lines.

Durbin said this week that hes being careful to invite her when she is ready and that her staff gives us indications of when she will be able to participate. He said he and his staff talk day to day" with her aides about scheduling.



Feinstein is also an appropriator, a coveted committee post that usually means significant control over federal dollars. But her colleagues are candid about the reality: she isnt needed at hearings or in closed-door spending negotiations.

Tester described her lighter schedule as less of an issue" on the appropriations panel, because seldom do we need to take meaningful votes until we get the markup."

Compared with the relentless Judiciary schedule, Senate spending bill markups arent set to start until at least June.

Feinstein also serves on the Intelligence Committee, which she formerly chaired, but hasnt been back to its meetings or briefings, per her colleagues.

I havent seen her, ranking member Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said. But her designee is there at every one of our meetings.

If anything, Feinsteins condition has prompted awkward public ruminations among lawmakers about their own mortality.

It's a very hard situation because, let's face it, when Im 89 years old Ill be long dead. Trust me, Tester said.
Washington  Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California faced more health issues than were previously known when she was sidelined from the Senate for nearly three months.

The 89-year-old Democrat faced complications during her recovery from shingles, including encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, and a condition known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome, her spokesperson said Thursday.

"The senator previously disclosed that she had several complications related to her shingles diagnosis," the spokesperson said. "While the encephalitis resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital in March, she continues to have complications from Ramsay Hunt syndrome."

The New York Times first reported the additional health issues on Thursday.

Encephalitis can cause memory loss, changes in personality, seizures or problems with movement, according to the Mayo Clinic. It can also cause changes in vision or hearing. Ramsay Hunt occurs when shingles affects the facial nerve near the ears. It can cause facial paralysis and hearing loss, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Feinstein returned to the Senate last week, appearing in public for the first time since February. She was wheeled into the Capitol, looking frail and with one eye nearly closed. In a written statement at the time, Feinstein said she had made "significant progress" but was "still experiencing some side effects from the shingles virus."

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer escorts Sen. Dianne Feinstein as she arrives at the U.S. Capitol following a long absence due to health issues on May 10, 2023. / Credit: Getty Images

In an exchange with reporters earlier this week, Feinstein denied she had been absent when asked about any response she has received from colleagues since her return.

"I haven't been gone," she said, according to the Los Angeles Times and Slate. When asked whether she had been working from home, Feinstein said, "No, I've been here. I've been voting."

During her absence, Feinstein faced calls to resign from some Democrats who said she was hindering their ability to move legislation and judicial nominees. But Feinstein dismissed those concerns.

Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee of which Feinstein is a member, said Wednesday that her colleagues are "monitoring her medical condition almost on a daily basis."

When asked whether he was confident Feinstein can continue to serve, Durbin said, "I can't be the judge of that," adding, "she has to make that decision for herself."

Feinstein decided earlier this year that she would not run for reelection in 2024.

Nikole Killion and Alan He contributed reporting.

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Female bicyclist dies from injuries after hit by car in Boise, police say

A woman who was struck by a car while riding her bicycle in West Boise earlier this week died Wednesday night in a local hospital, according to the Boise Police Department.

The bicyclist was traveling eastbound on McMillan Road on Monday afternoon when a driver traveling northbound on Eagle Road struck the bicyclist, Boise police said. The bicyclist was transferred to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries, while no other injuries were reported.

The Ada County coroner will identify the victim after notifying her family. Boise police continue to investigate the incident, according to a news release, and no charges have been filed as of Thursday afternoon.

The crash occurred near Lowell Scott Middle School at the McMillan and Eagle roads intersection. Boise police urged the public to stay away from the area following the incident. The collision caused no student delays or affected school bus routes, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting.
The developer behind the fertility and ovulation-tracking app Premom shared sensitive user health data with third parties, the Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday, announcing a $200,000 settlement.

Premom broke its promises and compromised consumers privacy, said Samuel Levine, director of the FTCs Bureau of Consumer Protection, in a statement. Companies collecting this information should be aware that the FTC will not tolerate health privacy abuses.

The FTC accused Premoms developer, Easy Healthcare, of deceiving users by sharing their personal information with two China-based firms and other third parties  and sharing sensitive health data with AppsFlyer and Google. The FTC also says Easy Healthcare didnt notify consumers of the unauthorized disclosures as required under the Health Breach Notification Rule.

The data Easy Healthcare shared with third parties revealed highly sensitive and private details about Premoms users and led to the unauthorized disclosure of facts about an individual users sexual and reproductive health, parental and pregnancy status, as well as other information about physical health conditions and status, the FTC said.

According to the complaint, Premom didnt adequately encrypt user data and didnt limit how third parties used the data.

FTC on Wednesday announced a proposed order that would have Easy Healthcare pay a $100,000 civil penalty for violating the Health Breach Notification Rule and another $100,000 to Connecticut, the District of Columbia and Oregon, for violating those areas laws. The settlement still needs a judges signoff as of the FTCs latest release on the topic.

The developer also would be permanently prohibited from sharing user personal health data with third parties for advertising and required to seek deletion of data it shared with third parties among several other restrictions and requirements.

We recently reached a settlement with the FTC. Our agreement with the FTC is not an admission of any wrongdoing. Rather, it is a settlement to avoid the time and expense of litigation and enables us to put this matter behind us and focus on you, our users, reads a statement on the Premom website.

Rest assured that we do not, and will not, ever sell any information about users health to third parties, nor do we share it for advertising purposes.

The Supreme Courts decision last year to overturn Roe v. Wade sparked new concern about user data privacy on period-tracking apps and how the information could be used to identify women seeking abortions.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Fight between co-workers leads to deadly shooting at warehouse, Georgia deputies say

A dispute between two co-workers ended in a shootout that left one dead, Georgia deputies said.

JaMychael Quintrez Peavy, 20, is charged with felony murder after he was accused of shooting and killing his colleague at an office furniture store in Cumming, according to the Forsyth County Sheriffs Office.

Deputies were called around 7:40 a.m. Wednesday, May 17, about a shooting at the warehouse type business, authorities said in a news release. Google maps shows the address belongs to Ernie Morris Enterprises, which sells business furniture and supplies.

Investigators said Peavy and a fellow temporary worker, identified as 23-year-old Hamilton Samuel Darwin, got into a physical fight. Things escalated and both men drew their guns, opening fire on each other, according to deputies.

Darwin was shot and died at the scene, deputies said.

Peavy was taken to a hospital in critical condition and is recovering. Additional charges are expected, the sheriffs office said.

Ernie Morris Enterprises didnt return McClatchy News request for comment on May 18.

Cumming is about 40 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta.

Gun violence in U.S.

Thousands of people die from gun-related injuries in the U.S. each year, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Firearm injuries are a serious public health problem, the CDC said. In 2020, there were 45,222 firearm-related deaths in the United States  thats about 124 people dying from a firearm-related injury each day.

That same year, the CDC reported that firearm-related injuries were among the leading causes of death for people ages 1 to 44.

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Thank you for supporting our journalism. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at the Chicago Tribune.

Thomas Hartwell, former Kane County circuit clerk, was found dead in his Palatine office Wednesday as a result of an apparent suicide, officials said. Hartwell had been facing several felony charges related to misusing county founds and receiving kickbacks. (Thomas M. Tom Hartwell campaign)

Former Kane County Circuit Clerk Thomas Hartwell, indicted last month on charges of misusing public money and receiving kickbacks, was found dead Wednesday morning in an apparent suicide, officials said.

Hartwell, 63, was discovered at his Palatine law firm office, according to the Kane County States Attorneys Office.

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Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain said deputies were called to Hartwells home in unincorporated Elgin about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday by a family member who said Hartwell had been missing for about 24 hours.

At the deputies request, Palatine police checked the Collins, Radja & Hartwell law office, 330 W. Colfax St., where they discovered Hartwell had taken his own life, Hain said.

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An autopsy has not been conducted yet and the cause of death has not been released. Palatine police said the investigation is ongoing.

In late April, Hartwell was indicted on felony theft and official misconduct charges in connection with the alleged misuse of nearly $120,000 in public funds while in he was in office, court records show.

He also was charged with several counts of committing wire fraud, money laundering, misapplying funds as a government employee and income tax fraud, according to court records.

The charges came after a two-year investigation by Illinois State Police and the Illinois Department of Revenue, officials said.

Hartwell was released from jail on a signature bond, and was next due in court May 26.

Hartwells brother, Todd, posted on note on Facebook about his brothers death, encouraging people to send prayers to his fiance Liz and his two boys, David and Dan.

Tom was a man who followed Jesus Christ, Todd Hartwell wrote. A man of towering intellect and logic. Passionate about the things that matter and a mentor to many.

The criminal investigation into possible wrongdoing started in January 2021, when Kane County States Attorney Jamie Mosser said she notified state police about what appeared to be Hartwells misappropriation of county funds.

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Its alleged that between December 2018 and November 2020, Hartwell may have steered $119,575 in public money to two companies run by Robert Gutierrez, of St. Charles, prosecutors said. Gutierrez, who served as president of the companies, allegedly gave Hartwell $15,000 in kickbacks.

Hartwell was also accused of failing to report income on his 2018, 2019 and 2020 tax returns, officials said.

It is unclear how the criminal case will proceed with Hartwells death. Gutierrez was indicted in April for theft by deception of greater than $100,000 and providing kickbacks, officials said.

Hartwell served as the circuit court clerk from 2012 to 2020, when he lost a reelection bid to current Circuit Clerk Theresa Barreiro. He ran unsuccessfully to be a circuit court judge in 2017.

Hartwell, a Republican, served as a Kane County Board member from 1996 to 2000 and was a former chairman of the Kane County Republican Party.

He was also a volunteer for numerous youth sports leagues and served as the former chairman of the board of the Elgin Recreation Center and Aurora Recreation Center. The youth programs were aimed at helping keep children from joining gangs.

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Fire starts at second building near 5-alarm fire in SouthPark

While firefighters with the Charlotte Fire Department were battling a massive fire at an apartment complex in SouthPark, Chopper 9 Skyzoom spotted flames coming from the roof of another building nearby.

Just after 11 a.m. Thursday, first responders called for crews at a building on Park South Drive just south of Royal Crest Drive.

The building is just a few blocks away from the scene of another fire that broke out Thursday morning.

The Charlotte Fire Department confirmed later Thursday that embers from the five-alarm fire in SouthPark created new hotspots in the area. Channel 9 crews also saw large flames shooting embers into the air.

This new video just sent to me shows the fire up close. You can see debris and ash falling as the flames rip thru the construction site. @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/q0NpGcGaWb  Hunter Saenz (@Hunt_Saenz) May 18, 2023

RELATED: Massive fire breaks out at SouthPark apartment complex

Family said 30-year-old construction worker Demonte Sherrill, 30, died in the blaze.

Another worker was unaccounted for Thursday night.

No injuries have been reported from the secondary fire.

(WATCH: Massive fire breaks out in SouthPark area of Charlotte)
Alberto Sierra Jr. is arraigned in Worcester Superior Court Thursday. He is charged with murder and disinterring of a body in the death of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver a decade ago.

WORCESTER - Ten years ago, Ernest F. Martineau was a Fitchburg Police Department sergeant in charge of the initial investigation into the disappearance and murder of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver.

Today, Martineau is the chief of police and a decade later is still haunted by the Oliver case. But Wednesday, Martineau received a call he has been hoping for since the case started - Alberto L. Sierra Jr., 32, who at the time was the boyfriend of the boys mother, was indicted by a Worcester grand jury for Jeremiahs murder.

More: Man charged in decade-old case of Jeremiah Oliver, boy found in suitcase off I-190

Yesterday (Wednesday), I received a phone call that Ive been waiting for 10 years, Martineau said, addressing a pool of reporters outside the Worcester Central Courthouse. I was elated to get that phone call yesterday.

Over those 10 years, Martineau said the Fitchburg Police Department vowed to never give up on the case until justice was served.

We made a commitment 10 years ago that we would never give up and we would never forget and that came to fruition yesterday, Martineau said. That phone call I received meant the world to me because I know what this case meant to our investigation. And here we are today seeing the beginning of justice to happen.

Fitchburg police Chief Ernest Martineau reflects on the arrest of Alberto Sierra in the murder of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver a decade ago. Martineau spoke outside Worcester Superior Court, where Sierra was arraigned Thursday.

Jeremiah, who lived with his mother in Fitchburg, was discovered missing in late 2013. His body was found on April 18, 2014, stuffed in a suitcase off Interstate 190 in Sterling.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined Jeremiahs death to be a homicide and listed the cause of death as homicidal violence of undetermined etiology.

Martineau said the specifics of the Oliver case is enough to haunt any parent.

Anything that happens to a child just eats at your soul. And, in a case like this where the body was on 190, something you drive by every day, it continues to reflect on your memory, Martineau said. Coming in today to the courthouse, I drove by that. Its always present.

Mother charged, sentenced

Sierra and the boy's mother, Elsa Oliver, faced multiple charges in the days and years after the boy's death. Some of the charges involved assaults of Jeremiah and his siblings. Both were charged with kidnapping and endangerment of a child. Both were sentenced to jail.

But until Wednesday, no one had been charged with the killing. It wasn't until February 2016, about two years after the body was found, that authorities deemed the case a homicide.

Jeremiah, who lived with his mother in an apartment at 276 Kimball St., Fitchburg, was last seen alive by relatives on Sept. 14, 2013. But it wasn't until December that authorities became involved. The boys sister told school officials that he was missing.

The Fitchburg community responded quickly upon learning the boy had not been seen for months. A search of the neighborhood by friends was organized, and flyers with the boy's image were distributed.

Fitchburg and state police, aided by tracking dogs, scoured the area.

A state Department of Child & Family Services worker assigned to the case and their supervisor were fired for failing to conduct home checks on the boy. A third DCF employee was disciplined.

Sierra and Else Oliver were charged with child abuse within days.

Two weeks later, about 350 people filled Rollstone Congregational Church in Fitchburg for the boy's funeral. Jeremiah's father, Jose Oliver, who lived in Connecticut at the time, joined the mourners in remembering the boy who loved Spider-Man.

The case rocked the conscience of the city of Fitchburg, Martineau said. At one point, we were Jeremiahs family, 45,000 residents in the city, and we are here today, beginning the process of healing.

Sierra was arraigned Thursday in Worcester Superior Court on a charge of murder in connection with the killing of Oliver. He was also indicted on a charge of disinterring of a body. Sierra pleaded not guilty to both counts in front of Superior Court Judge Karin M. Bell.

Sierra was ordered held without bail pending a bail hearing on May 25.

Assistant District Attorney Courtney Sans and Marissa Elkins, the attorney of the defense, were also present for the arraignment.

When asked if this day finally gives a voice to Jeremiah, Martineau said, We gave him a voice from the day this came to our attention.

On behalf of the city of Fitchburg and its residents, Martineau thanked the state police, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.s office, and current and retired investigators of the Fitchburg Police Department for never giving up and continuing to push forward on this case.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Fitchburg man arraigned for murder of Jeremiah Oliver in decade-old case
Five things to know about the City's new $519 million budget

Johanna Bencomo and Becki Graham listened to a presentation during the budget retreat on Feb. 23, 2023.

LAS CRUCES  With little fan fair or debate, the Council of the City of Las Cruces approved a $519 million budget on Monday, the largest in the City's history.

The budget dictates how the City of Las Cruces spends millions of dollars collected as property and gross receipts taxes as well as other revenue sources. Police salaries, road projects, park maintenance, and more are all paid for by the budget. Las Cruces utilizes a year-long budget cycle spanning July 1, 2023, to June 31, 2024. This budget also reduces several funds but increases the general fund, which supplies cash to efforts like public safety, public works, and cultural services.

Building the budget takes months.

City staff began the process in February, presented an unfinished version in April, and presented the final version to the council on Monday. All six councilors voted to approve the budget, with Mayor Ken Miyagishima absent.

Here are five things to know about the City's budget.

Budget increase by less than 1%  sort of

The budget approved last May by the Council totaled about $514 million. That means this budget has an increase of 0.9%.

But that year-to-date comparison misses a few realities. While the City may have budgeted to spend and receive about $514 million, end-of-year data shows the City spent and received closer to $557 million in the last budget cycle.

The year-to-year comparison also does not reflect decreases in most of the City's funds or the sizable increase in general fund revenue and spending. But it does reflect the overarching approach to the City's budgeting process.

City Manager Ifo Pili, budget staff take a 'conservative' approach

Under this regime, the City of Las Cruces practices what officials call a conservative approach to budgeting.

City Manager Ifo Pili and City Grants and Budget Administrator Jacqueline Rubalcava described this approach in a recent interview with the Sun-News. When possible, Pili and Rubalcava said the City assumes revenues will be low and costs will be high.

"When we're conservative in our projections, that helps us to be more conservative in our expenses," Pili said.

But even with this approach, next year's budget will feature a general fund with more revenue and expenses.

Supported by increased tax revenue, the general fund grows 9.4%

When the citizens of Las Cruces interact with a city employee or utilize a city service, chances are the general fund funded it.

This money funds police, fire, public works, economic development, libraries, etc. While these institutions also receive money from other places, such as grants, the money received from the general fund is typically the largest and covers the basic operating costs. For example, the City expects to spend $148.1 million this year from the general fund.

But before that money can be apportioned, it must first be collected. Like Albuquerque and Santa Fe, most of Las Cruces' general fund revenue comes from gross receipts taxes or GRT. Whenever a good or service is exchanged in Las Cruces, the City levies a tax. This means the City's primary funding source is tied closely to the local economy. During the last budget cycle, the City a GRT growth of 9.7%. Most of the money in the general fund is spent on personnel costs like salaries and benefits. This is typical for city governments.

General fund increases led to 18 more LCPD officers

The most notable general fund change is the funding of 18 officers positions at the Las Cruces Police Department.

Currently, the LCPD is budgeted for 202 officers, although the department has struggled to maintain that staff level in recent years. But with the approval of this budget, LCPD can employ up to 220 officers starting in June. The new officers will be hitting the streets slowly, however. Whether new to the policing profession or lateral transfers from other departments, all new LCPD officers must attend an LCPD police academy.

LCPD draws the most significant chunk of general fund spending every year, according to a review of budget documents over the last 15 years.

Carino

Over the five-month budget-building process, Pili regularly referred back to a single word when describing the budget theme.

Carino is a Spanish term of endearment like "honey" or "dear." But it can also carry a meaning deeper than that, something Pili spoke about at the start of the process at the February budget retreat.

Pili said he learned the word during his time in Las Cruces while chatting about hamburgers with Assistant City Manager Sonya Delgado. Pili said that Delgado was explaining to him that if you want the best burgers from Sparky's in Hatch, you have to get there early, Pili recalled. Delgado told Pili that the restaurant staff were tired by the end of the day and no longer had carino.

"When I interpreted it, I couldn't really find a real English meaning," Pili said. "But that's been stuck in my mind ever since."

But the meaning became clear since, Pili said when one of his children returned home from school. Pili said his daughter returned with a cup of hot chocolate given to her by her bus driver, who Pili called Ms. Monica. Pili said Ms. Monica knows all the names of the students she shepherds, dresses up for Halloween every day in October, and decorates her bus during Christmas. That, Pili said, is carino.

"That's how I want our organizations to be. That's how I want us to implement and to carry out the vision of our City," he said.

Justin Garcia covers public safety and local government in Las Cruces. He can be reached via email at JEGarcia@lcsun-news.com, via text at 575-541-5449, or on Twitter @Just516Garc.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Five things to know about the City's new $519 million budget
An Ocala man blocked a bulldozer that was restoring dunes on Varn Park, refused to move and tried to bite a deputy who was attempting to handcuff him, according to the Flagler County Sheriffs Office.

Deputies were called on Friday afternoon when 31-year-old Lonnye Black II blocked the bulldozer which was part of a federal dune restoration project, the sheriff's office stated.

As law enforcement went to arrest him for refusing a lawful command, Black tried to bite a deputy, according to the sheriffs office.

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Black struggled with deputies as they worked to handcuff him, the sheriff's office stated. A deputy also used a Taser to shock Black three times, once on each thigh and on a shoulder blade, but he continued to resist.

Black was charged with breach of the peace/disorderly conduct and resisting arrest with violence  aggravated assault.

Black was taken to the Flagler County jail and was later released after posting $4,000 bond.

Black told one deputy that he had consumed PCP, told another that he had taken LSD and told a third that he had taken mushrooms. Black was presumed to be under the influence of some psychedelic narcotic and was checked at AdventHealth Palm Coast before he was booked into the jail, the report stated.

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly, who refers to the jail as the "Green Roof Inn," said Black made the encounter worse on himself.

It is necessary to allow the contractors working on the beach to safely do their jobs in preparation for the upcoming hurricane season, Staly said in a release. Unfortunately, this mans unwillingness to move out of their way and then violently resist arrest earned him a trip to the Green Roof Inn.

I promise you that if you fight a deputy sheriff you will go to jail every time. Nothing like turning a misdemeanor into a felony by acting stupid.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Ocala man accused of trying to bite deputy in Palm Coast arrest
MIAMI  After spending years working in an orchid nursery in Homestead, a city and major agricultural area south of Miami, a Salvadoran worker said she and her family of four are considering leaving.

Since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a sweeping immigration bill into law last week, many like her are weighing their options.

The worker, whose name is being withheld because she's worried about repercussions for her or her family, works outdoors in the South Florida heat planting orchids in pots from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. She said that she loves living in the state and that her friends and neighbors have become family.

But though she has work authorization as an asylum-seeker from El Salvador, she worries about her husband, who lacks legal documentation to work.

I would like to stay in Florida, but the work situation is going to become very demanding, she said.

A migrant worker on a farm in Homestead, Fla., on May 11, 2023. (Chandan Khanna / AFP - Getty Images file)

In meetings with immigrant advocates and religious leaders and in conversations with employers, agricultural workers throughout Florida have been expressing their fears and worries about the state's new immigration law, which takes effect in July.

Among the requirements is that businesses with over 25 employees use a federal system known as E-Verify to determine whether the employees are legally allowed to work in the U.S.

The new law will also invalidate driver's licenses issued in other states to drivers who lack legal status and prohibits local governments from providing money to organizations that issue identification cards to immigrants without legal status.

It will also require that hospitals in the state that accept Medicaid include a citizenship question on forms, thus discouraging many immigrants from getting medical care.

The law also provides $12 million for DeSantis migrant relocation program. The governor made headlines last year when he flew a group of Venezuelan migrants from Texas to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, to protest federal immigration policy.

DeSantis, whos expected to soon announce his presidential candidacy, has taken a hard-right position on immigration, something that appeals to many Republican primary voters. The immigration bill was signed the day before Title 42 was lifted, a policy that allowed the U.S. to quickly expel migrants at the southern border for the past three years during the pandemic but also led to increases in people repeatedly trying to cross the border illegally. DeSantis has been a harsh critic of Biden and federal border policy.

Aftermath of Hurricanes Ian and Nicole in Florida (Paul Hennessy / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images file)

'Uncertainty breeds fear'

For a large swath of Florida's population, the law affects their livelihoods. In Homestead, known for its plant nurseries, most workers live year-round here working in plant production and landscaping; only a minority are seasonal workers. Many of the mostly Latino workers don't have legal immigration status.

Some immigrant workers have already left the state and many are asking questions and wondering if they should leave, too.

What weve heard and seen since the signing of the law is that many of the workers are scared, are fearful, and are asking themselves whats the path forward, said Oscar Londono, co-executive director at We Count!, a local organization advocating for immigrant workers. At the same time, we know that a growing number of employers are also concerned about this law because it wont just affect immigrant workers. It will also affect the employers who depend on their labor.

The Salvadoran orchid nursery worker in Homestead, who's also a member of We Count!, said she and her fellow employees were already warned that rules will be changing in July. She's concerned that the renewal of her work permit may not arrive in time.

Last time, it took one year and three months to receive my work authorization, and my employers kept asking me when it would arrive, she said.

In Immokalee, a farming town known for its tomatoes and about an hour's drive from Naples, many of the workers are seasonal.

The biggest fear they have is to lose their jobs, said Lupe Gonzalo, an organizer with a worker-based group, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.

DeSantis' signing of the bill coincided with the end of the tomato season in Immokalee. This is the time of year many workers leave for Georgia and South Carolina, where they harvest tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables. Some workers usually come back to Florida in August to prepare the soil to plant tomatoes, and by November most of them have returned to harvest the crop. Gonzalo said they may not return this year.

Its cold in many states during the winters, so people will have to find work in other areas, said Gonzalo. They will have to adapt.

The fear of what will happen in July is not just spreading among farmworkers. Some farm owners are concerned over how their businesses will operate with fewer workers available.

Elvira Cepeda, a grower in Homestead, said she was having difficulty finding farmworkers to harvest crops after the new law was signed. She said fearful workers havent stopped calling her about it and have told her they're contemplating leaving the state.

South Floridas economy here in Homestead is agriculture. Most of them we know are undocumented. Whos going to harvest? Cepeda told Noticias Telemundo in Spanish.

One grower was optimistic that the law wouldn't result in major changes.

Pedro Sifuentes, who came from Mexico over 30 years ago, owns okra fields in Homestead and says none of his 120 workers have left.

I have told them that every cloud has a silver lining, he said about conversations he's had with farmworkers. The government knows that everything here moves thanks to hard-working people and Latinos. They make the state strong, and the government is not going to do anything to harm the state.

Several Latino Republican legislators voted for the law. One of them, Sen. Ileana Garcia from Miami, was not immediately available for an interview but she defended the legislation in a statement in March, saying that it is "designed to prevent the use of illegal identification cards in Florida to prevent human trafficking and put a stop to the abuses by unscrupulous individuals who take advantage of the most vulnerable. Its amazing to what lengths the extreme left and open border activists will go to lie, hoping to instill fear to advance their partisan agenda.

Gabriel Salguero, president of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition and pastor of The Gathering Place in Orlando, said he and others recently held a meeting at the Mexican consulate to reassure immigrants and those assisting them and to provide legal advice, pastoral care and support.

We are having sessions in community centers and churches. There were over 100 immigrants there and we were there several hours responding to questions about whats in the law, whats not in the law, Salguero said.

The uncertainty breeds fear, Salguero said. We asked the state Legislature to reconsider  it is our job to serve the community the best we can.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
WASHINGTON  Students at New College of Florida have raised over $129,000 on GoFundMe to host an alternative commencement celebration in protest of what they've called a "hostile takeover" of the school.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, appointed a conservative majority to the liberal-leaning college's board of trustees in January. Not long after the appointments, the trustees voted to terminate the president of the college, Patricia Okker, replacing her with interim President Richard Corcoran, a former Republican speaker in the state House.

"The new administration that has spent the past four months attacking our students and community cannot, in good faith, celebrate our graduating students and their accomplishments," an event organizer wrote in the GoFundMe description.

"These people are afraid of change, and theyre afraid of real education, about real history, about real subjects that can actually lead to powerful impacts on the world," said K.C. Casey, a student organizer and New College graduating senior, in reference to the school's administration. "So we know that we are the kind of students that can make those changes in the world, and were going to do that."

Their alternative graduation, separate from one that the school has organized, is scheduled to take place Thursday. It will feature Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, as keynote speaker, and Okker will deliver a brief address at the ceremony, the event's organizers told NBC News.

"I am so excited to be coming to Sarasota to celebrate you," Wiley said in a video shared to Twitter. "You made it work through the dark days of the pandemic, and at the same time, you have been pushing back for academic freedom, for the right to learn and to be who you are."

The official ceremony hosted by the school will be held Friday, with Dr. Scott Atlas, who served as a White House Covid adviser under then-President Donald Trump, set to deliver the commencement address.

Atlas was a controversial adviser. During his time in the Trump administration, he had promoted a herd immunity Covid strategy and tweeted a false claim that masks do not work in preventing the virus's spread, which Twitter later removed.

New College of Florida touted its Friday event when asked for comment about the students alternative ceremony.

"We have an exceptional speaker lined up and look forward to celebrating our graduates, alongside their families and friends, at commencement," a representative for the school said in a statement. "From discussions with several students, a majority plan to attend graduation and are looking forward to it."

Leftover funds raised for the alternative commencement go toward future student programming, according to student organizers. "Sort of like mutual aid support and activities like Pride that the administration wouldnt want to happen, and activism," Madison Markham said. "So thatll be exciting to have students, like, kind of be given this legacy gift from our class."

On Monday, DeSantis signed a bill into law at New College to restrict how race and gender can be taught in Florida's public colleges and universities. The legislation also bans higher education institutions from using state or federal funding for diversity programs.

DeSantis, who as governor has leaned into culture war issues, is widely expected to declare a 2024 presidential run next week.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  Florida Democrats, long under the thumb of Ron DeSantis, are giddy the mayoral victory in Jacksonville could be the end to a long, long losing streak.

Former TV anchor Donna Deegans win Tuesday night in the states biggest city is giving the party  which doesnt hold a single statewide office  a glimmer of hope heading into 2024, when theres a good chance that the GOP challenger to President Joe Biden will come from Florida. Democrats say Deegans win is both a repudiation of DeSantis and a sign that all is not lost for them in the Sunshine state.

Even before Tuesday, Biden signaled that in his eyes, Florida, which hasnt gone for a Democrat in a presidential election since 2012, remains a competitive battleground state despite the Republicans huge voter registration and cash advantage. The presidents campaign recently aired television ads in Tampa and Orlando. And in February, Biden visited Florida during a post-State of the Union swing and sent surrogates to Florida this month.

This solidifies we are not off the map, said Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried. Everybody is really excited. They feel that this is a great signal and that there is something to invest in Florida.

State Sen. Shevrin Jones, who is on Bidens National Advisory Board, said that Deegans win not only puts Florida in play but lets donors know Florida has never really been red.

The big question, however, is whether Deegans win in Jacksonville is an outlier or a sign of things to come in a state that just six months ago saw Republicans crush Democrats up and down the ballot. DeSantis himself recently boasted that last years defeats had left Democrats a dead carcass on the side of the road.



Despite the psychological boost from Jacksonville, some Democrats privately cautioned about extracting too much from the win, noting that Republicans still have significant tactical advantages in the state, including having 472,000 more Republicans registered to vote, holding every statewide Cabinet position and supermajorities in the Legislature.

A person close to Bidens campaign, who was granted anonymity to speak openly about the campaign dynamics, said Deegans win sends a strong message to those who counted out the president, and Democrats in general. The person contended the victory was a rejection of DeSantis, who just six months ago won the city by 12 points during the midterms. Since DeSantis won reelection, he has pushed a red meat conservative agenda ahead of his expected presidential bid, including signing a six-week abortion ban, that even some Republicans have privately fretted could cost them support among moderate Republicans.

A key part of Democrats' optimism is due to Deegans defeat of Daniel Davis, a former legislator and CEO of Jacksonvilles chamber of commerce, 52 percent to 48 percent, even though Republicans edged Democrats in overall turnout by three percent. The numbers suggest that Deegan  who had gotten some GOP endorsements locally  was able to pick up independents and some crossover Republicans.

Davis had veered to the right in the lead up to the election, and Republicans targeted Deegan with ads about her participation in Black Lives Matter protests and claims she wanted to install radical policies if she won. The race primarily focused on local issues, such as crime and whether Davis at one point wanted to sell off the city-owned electric utility.

Deegan continually offered herself up as a change agent in a city where Democrats had only held the post of mayor once in the past three decades. But Democrats had won Jacksonville in statewide races over the past decade. Andrew Gillum, the Democratic nominee for governor, won the county in 2018, as did Biden two years later. But DeSantis soundly defeated Charlie Crist in Duval County, where Jacksonville is located, last November.

Candidates and campaigns matter and what they say matters, said Ashley Walker, who was the state director of President Barack Obamas 2012 campaign and worked as a consultant for Deegan. Donna was a very genuine candidate with a very compelling message with a localized campaign that focused on very Jacksonville-based issues.

Democrats, nationally and at the state level, did help out. The Democratic National Committee tapped volunteers to reach out to tens of thousands of voters casting mail-in ballots while state organizations helped out with phone banking.

And while DeSantis endorsed Davis, the governor didnt hold any events with the candidate in the closing days of the campaign. DeSantis spent Friday and Saturday of last week in Iowa and Illinois attending Republican fundraisers.



Former President Donald Trump, another Florida resident, took shots at DeSantis for the Jacksonville loss, saying in a social media post on Truth Social: Wow! In a big upset, the DeSanctimonious backed Republican candidate for Mayor of Jacksonville, Florida, LOST. This is a shocker. If they would have asked me to Endorse, he would have won, easily. Too proud to do so. Fools! This is a BIG LOSS for the Republican Party. Remember, Rob only won because of me!!!

But one of Trumps own campaign advisers  Susie Wiles  is a longtime friend and ally of Davis who informally gave him advice in his run for mayor.

Christian Ziegler, the chair of the Republican Party of Florida, contended that Deegans win was unique and noted that one of Davis' GOP opponents in the March primary helped damage him ahead of the general election.



We had a huge bloody primary where millions of dollars were spent to rip apart the eventual Republican nominee, Ziegler said. The clock ran out and we didnt have enough time to recover.

He said Democrats would be wrong to view the victory as a signal they can rebound statewide.

Florida is a much different monster than a municipal off year, Ziegler said.

Walker, the Deegan consultant and former Obama state director, said the lesson from Deegans victory  which came after a year and a half of work  is that Democrats must build up their bench by finding local races where they can notch wins.

Democrats need to approach Florida in a very localized, piece by piece approach where we are going into purple areas, Walker said.
By James Oliphant

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis will officially enter the 2024 U.S. presidential race next week, according to two sources familiar with the decision, immediately becoming Donald Trump's biggest rival for the Republican nomination and shaking up a contest that largely has been one-sided.

DeSantis will likely file paperwork declaring his candidacy on May 25 to coincide with a donor meeting in Miami, with a more formal launch the week of May 29, according to a source.

The invitation for the May 25 event stated that donors would be put to work, an apparent allusion to raising money for DeSantis, according to a source familiar with the event.Representatives for DeSantis did not immediately return a request for comment.Former U.S. President Trump has in recent weeks stepped up his political attacks on the Florida governor and maintains a commanding lead in the 2024 Republican primary, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.DeSantis insistence on staying out of the race until the Florida legislature completed its spring session earlier this month rattled some high-profile Republican donors who had wanted him to jump in sooner rather than later to rebut Trump.

Those attacks have taken a toll on DeSantis standing in national polls. But DeSantis and his advisers hoped to use the legislatures session as a springboard to a campaign announcement and have stayed true to their timetable.

Republican lawmakers gave DeSantis a bevy of conservative victories in recent months: They expanded the states school voucher program, prohibited the use of public money in sustainable investing efforts, scrapped diversity programs at public universities, allowed for the permitless carry of concealed weapons and perhaps most notably, banned almost all abortions in the state.

DeSantis has had help in readying the ground for his candidacy. A new political action committee supporting him, Never Back Down, which can raise unlimited funds, has been hiring staff in early voting states and running TV ads championing DeSantis and knocking Trump.

DeSantis, 44, was re-elected as governor just last year, trouncing his Democratic opponent by nearly 20 percentage points.

(Additional reporting by Graham Slattery and Jasper Ward; Editing by Alistair Bell, Caitlin Webber and Michael Perry)
When the food runs out, whats next? : Florida families worry about delayed summer P-EBT benefits

Local families who rely on extra help like the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfers, or P-EBT, should prepare to see delays in receiving those funds.

The program is supposed to give an extra boost to children that receive free or reduced lunch in the state, making up for the lunches theyll miss when not going to school in the summer.

In Orange County, 67% of students qualify for P-EBT.

Last year, this program helped over 2 million people in Florida.

But, it arrived late; what was meant to help families through the summer months ended up being there in September.

Read: I would not want us to be there 2nd: NASA administrator aims to beat China in the race to the Moon

Tacara Thomas, a local mother, now has to get creative to put food on the table for her kids.

All we can afford to get is chicken, so all we really eat is chicken, she said.

Thomas relied on the past couple of years in the Pandemic Summer EBT program. Now feeding six children between her and her partner is a challenging job.

(The program) helps push through times when the stamps are running out, she said. We do have times when the food runs out at the end of the month, and were looking like, okay, whats next?

Read: DeSantis signs 5 new bills into law targeting the LGBTQ community

In the past, P-EBT cards have given a maximum amount of $390 for each child.

This year, parents like Thomas will only get a third of that, $120 for each child.

That will let us get a case of eggs, maybe some chicken for the whole month, she said.

But why is the amount considerably lower this year?

Florida was one of the last states to submit a plan for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which means now it is at the back of the line to receive the money.

Read: Rep. Frost announces $120,000 grant to Orlando Executive Airport for renovations

Vanessa Brito is an activist who has helped people navigate through the states programs since the beginning of the pandemic.

People used the summer P-EBT really for Thanksgiving, she said.

Brito is concerned that the system is overburdened, and now it will only get worse for struggling families, forcing people like Thomas to seek help from every avenue possible.

Read: AdventHealth opens ER near Walt Disney World

I go to food banks -- that helps, Thomas said. I have a neighbor that works with a church, and shell say, hey, here is some extra food and some vegetables.

The program will be permanent from here on out, but parents need to have their children signed up and approved for free or reduced lunch through the National School Lunch Program.

Click here to sign up. The deadline is June 1st.

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Foreign Minister Kuleba meets with envoy of Xi Jinping in Kyiv, rules out freezing conflict

Dmytro Kuleba met with the special representative of China in Kyiv

During Huis visit to Ukraine on May 16-17, the diplomats discussed cooperation between Kyiv and Beijing at the bilateral level and within international organizations, as well as ways to stop Russian aggression.

Read also: Li Huis visit to Zelenskyy: Beijing aims to show de-escalation dependence on China, says Klimkin

"Dmytro Kuleba briefed the special representative of the Chinese government in detail on the principles of restoring a sustainable and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine," the Foreign Ministry said.

The two sides also discussed the long-term prospects for the development of bilateral relations between Ukraine and China, and agreed to step up dialogue on key issues. Kuleba stressed the importance of Beijing's participation in the implementation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's peace formula.

Read also: US emphasizes importance of Chinese envoys visit to Ukraine

In addition to Ukraine, the Chinese envoy will visit Russia, Germany, Poland, and France.

On April 26, Zelenskyy held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. Afterward, Beijing announced that it would send a special representative for Eurasian affairs to Ukraine and several other countries to "engage in in-depth communication with all parties on a political settlement" of the full-scale war, which Beijing calls the "Ukrainian crisis.

This envoy is Li Hui, who served as China's ambassador to Russia from 2009 to 2019 and received the Order of Friendship from Vladimir Putin.

On Feb. 24, Beijing released a 12-point position paper on the "settlement" of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. In particular, China called for a ceasefire and negotiations, but not for the withdrawal of Russian troops. It also did not condemn Russia's invasion.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Former DOE official arrested for third time for allegedly stealing luggage at airport

Sam Brinton, the former Department of Energy official who was accused of stealing a Tanzanian fashion designers dresses from her airport luggage, has been arrested as a fugitive from justice by Maryland police.

Brinton was reportedly taken into custody in Rockville, Maryland by police on Wednesday, according to police records.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) Police, said the arrest was related to the theft of airport luggage, reported Fox News. It is the third such allegation made against Brinton.

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police executed a search warrant May 17 in Montgomery County, Maryland, in connection with allegations of stolen property in luggage from Reagan National Airport that was brought to the departments attention in February 2023, James Johnson, a spokesperson for the MWAA, said in a statement.

They previously oversaw nuclear waste policy at the DOEs Office of Nuclear Energy, but more recently has been battling charges related to luggage theft in both Nevada and Minnesota.

Brinton was charged in October for allegedly stealing a travellers bags worth a total of $2,325 from the Minneapolis-St Paul Airport on 16 September.

They were charged again in early December by Las Vegas prosecutors with grand larceny of an item with a value between $1,200 and $5,000.

Those charges accuse Brinton of stealing a suitcase from the Harry Reid International Airport with an estimated worth of $3,670 on 6 July, 2022. That bag also contained jewellery valued at $1,700, clothing valued at $850, and makeup valued at $500.

Brinton faced a combined 15 years in prison for the alleged thefts, but judges in both cases determined jail time was not necessary.

Brinton made headlines after Tanzanian fashion designer Asya Khamsin spotted them wearing one of her custom-made dresses packed in her luggage that she reported missing in 2018.

I saw the images. Those were my custom designs, which were lost in that bag in 2018, she told Fox News at the time, adding that Brinton wore my clothes, which [were] stolen.

She reported the theft to the Houston police, who then forwarded the complaint to the FBI for investigation.

The DOE announced Brinton had left the agency shortly after the second set of luggage theft charges were brought against them. The agency did not provide further detail on why Brinton was no longer working at the DOE.
Former Manatee superintendent under fire for not disclosing teacher misconduct  again

Manatee Countys previous superintendent, Diana Greene, will step down from her job leading Duval County Public Schools after her office failed to disclose 50 instances of teacher misconduct, according to state officials.

Greene, who led the School District of Manatee County from 2015-18, has made a similar mistake before, according to then-Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran. He previously accused Greene of delayed reporting in a scandal involving a teacher who had been accused three times of having inappropriate contact with students.

Quentin Peterson, who worked as a music teacher, was first removed from the Lincoln Middle School campus in May 2017, according to court documents. In July 2021, a jury said Peterson was not guilty on the first count of child porn possession, but a mistrial was declared on the second count.

The criminal case is still pending in court.

The superintendent at that time, Diana Greene, did not report the allegations to the Florida Department of Educations Office of Professional Practices Services until September 2017, Corcoran wrote in a June 30, 2020 letter to Manatee Superintendent Cynthia Saunders.

At the time, Corcoran said the Florida Department of Education would not issue punishment against the School District of Manatee or Greene, but he said he was worried about Greenes judgment in the case.

State says Greene delayed reporting Lincoln scandal

...I have grave concerns that delays in reporting similar allegations can result in our students being unnecessarily put in danger of victimization at the hands of predators such as Peterson, wrote Corcoran, who now serves as the interim president of New College in Sarasota. Future delays in reporting educator misconduct will not be tolerated by this office.

According to a timeline included in a federal lawsuit that was dismissed in December, Peterson resigned in April 2017 while under investigation for a second allegation of inappropriate contact with a minor. Eddie Hundley, Lincolns principal, then reached out to Greene asking permission to allow Peterson to retract his resignation, court records show.

Duval Superintendent Diana Greene, who led the Manatee School District from 2015 to 2018, is set to lose her job over a teacher misconduct scandal. Greene is pictured during a 2018 school board meeting in this Bradenton Herald file photo.

In return, Greene ordered Hundley to issue a letter of reprimand against Peterson on May 4, 2017, because he had exercised poor judgment, according to investigators. In her letter, Greene wrote she felt that something was still not right, regarding Petersons contact with students.

Following a third accusation, Peterson was removed from the school three weeks later on May 24, 2017.

Its unclear why Petersons situation was not reported to state officials until September 2017, which is when he officially resigned from the School District of Manatee County.

Greene set to resign over similar Duval scandal

Greene recently agreed to leave her job as Duval superintendent after the Florida Department of Education accused Duval Schools of not reporting 50 cases in a timely manner.

Corcorans letter noted that legally sufficient complaints must be reported to the state within 30 days. The cases date back to 2020, News4JAX reported.

According to First Coast News, the revelation followed the arrest of a Jacksonville-area teacher who is accused of kissing a student.

In a statement provided to Action News Jax, Greene said she was surprised and angered to learn about Duvals delays in reporting misconduct, noting that a January 2023 audit did not mention the topic.

...Until receiving the commissioners letter, I had no indication that we were out of compliance with any file, Greene said. I agree completely with the commissioner that delays in reporting cannot be tolerated.

In 2021, the Florida Association of District School Superintendents named Greene Superintendent of the Year.

Future of Manatee district

Saunders will retire from her five-year post as superintendent soon. Last year, she announced plans to step down at the end of her contract on June 30.

On Tuesday, the Manatee School Board selected Jason Wysong from Seminole County Public Schools to become their next superintendent.

The ongoing scandal in Duval County soured the boards interest in hiring Scott Schneider, one of three finalists under consideration. Schneider is a deputy superintendent under Greene in Duval Schools.

The concern with Mr. Schneider is whats going on in Duval County. Theres no ifs, and or buts about it, said Chad Choate, chairman of the Manatee School Board. The cloud is, of course, Duval.

Another school board member said she spoke with state officials at the Department of Education and has been told that there could still be fallout from the scandal in Duval.

Let whatevers playing out in Duval play out. Is it over? I have indication that it might not be, said School Board Member Cindy Spray.

Greene is set to step down June 2 and officially retire July 24, WJCT reports.
October 28 2018 - A portion of Shelby County Jail at 201 Poplar is seen.

A former lieutenant from the Memphis Police Department charged with the rape of a 15-year-old girl has entered a guilty plea.

Jeffrey Jones, 55, was indicted in November 2019 and charged with rape and sexual battery by an authority figure. Those charges were dropped May 4 of this year after he pleaded guilty to statutory rape.

Jones was given a $75,000 bail when he was booked in 2019, and posted that the same day. He has been on pretrial release for the last four years.

The victim was reported to be a daughter of one of Jones' acquaintances, and the Shelby County District Attorney's Office said in 2019 the rape occurred at an Arlington residence sometime between December of 2018 and May 2019.

Read this: What events led a Memphis teen posting bail, getting rearrested & getting out on bail again?

Jones was placed on leave after the indictment was handed down, and an internal investigation opened, according to then-MPD director Michael Rallings, who called the charges "appalling." Jones had been with the department since 1997.

"These accusations are also the subject of an active internal investigation with the Memphis Police Departments Inspectional Services. The allegations against Jones are, in no part, a reflection of the dedicated and hardworking women and men of the Memphis Police Department, Rallings said at the time.

Jones was fired from the department about a year after being indicted, in November 2020.

A trial for Jones was set for May 15, but that was reset. He is next due in court June 5 to hear a petition to suspend his sentence.

Lucas Finton is a criminal justice reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com and followed on Twitter @LucasFinton.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Jeffrey Jones, ex-Memphis Police lieutenant, pleads guilty to 2019 rape
Former NATO commander warns the alliance must fully back Ukraine now or risk a direct war with Russia

Former NATO commander warns the alliance must fully back Ukraine now or risk a direct war with Russia

A BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher fires towards Russian positions on the frontline near Bakhmut, Donetsk region, on April 23, 2023, amid the Russian invasion on Ukraine. SERGEY SHESTAK/AFP via Getty Images)

An ex-NATO commander warned of the consequences of not increasing support for Ukraine.

Sir Richard Shirreff said NATO could get pulled into the war if it didn't provide full support.

He said that NATO was ill-prepared for the possibility of a direct war with Russia.

Former NATO commander Sir Richard Shirreff has warned that unless the West increases its support for Ukraine, it could get pulled into a direct conflict with Russia.

Speaking to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Sir Richard said that the war was at an inflection point, and the West needed to step up and increase its support for Ukraine in defeating the Russian invasion.

"Either the West doubles down now to give Ukraine the tools it really needs to do the job in a series of sustained counteroffensives, or the West faces  I think NATO faces  the very real possibility in two to three years' time of potentially having to intervene to support the Ukrainians [to] achieve final victory," he said.

"Because there's only one outcome of this; it's got to be victory. This is a war not just against Ukraine; it's a war against the West," he said.

Sir Richard Shirreff attends the Edinburgh International Book Festival on August 22, 2016 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Awakening/Getty Images

Sir Richard compared the situation to that which took place before the start of World War II, when Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany set out to conquer swathes of Europe.

"We have to recognize that once again in Europe there is a bloodstained autocrat prepared to inflict unspeakable suffering on peaceful democratic neighbors to further his own imperious ambitions. We've been here before in 1939 to 1945. And we're here again," said Sir Richard.

His comments come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited European capitals last week, where leaders pledged billions of dollars more in military support for Ukraine ahead of its anticipated spring offensive.

Leaders in the US and Europe have been wary of providing Ukraine with some of the military aid it has requested, reportedly believing that it could antagonize Russia and lead to a direct conflict with NATO. Russian hardliners have menaced NATO allies with threats of nuclear attacks over their support for Ukraine.

So far, the US and its allies have pledged $150 million in aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of the country in February 2022, German think tank the Kiel Institute said in January.

But as Ukraine gears up its anticipated Spring campaign to push the Russian military back from the territory it occupies in east and southern Ukraine, Sir Richard warned that the West needed to further increase its support.

He said the West should agree to Ukrainian requests for F-16 fighter jets to offset Russian superiority in the air, increase defense spending, and boost the the amount of ammunition it supplies to Ukraine.

As things stand, he said, the West is ill-prepared for the worst case scenario  direct conflict with Russia.

"We are a long way short of that, [but] that [new mindset] is simply not happening," he said.

Sir Richard served as NATO's deputy supreme allied commander in Europe, and in 2016 penned a book, '2017: War with Russia: An Urgent Warning from Senior Military Command,' in which he imagines the likely results of a war between Russia and NATO allies.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A former Orlando police officer has pleaded guilty of battery and has agreed to give up his law enforcement certification.

Channel 9 has reported extensively on Jonathan Mills.

Hes a former officer of the year for the Orlando Police Department.

Read: Former Orlando police officer charged with sexual battery stemming from traffic stop

Investigators said in August 2014, Mills sexually battered a man during a traffic stop. A YouTube video of that surfaced in July 2020 and sparked the state attorney to review the case.

An internal affairs investigation previously determined there wasnt enough evidence to prove Mills had done anything wrong. But in September 2021, Channel 9 broke the story that Mills was charged with sexual battery and battery.

The state attorneys office said Mills ultimately pleaded guilty to battery last week.

Watch: Multiple cases by former Orlando Police Officer of the Year under review

He was sentenced to 30 days in the Orange County Jail and will have to give up his law enforcement certification.

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Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin appealed his murder conviction in the killing of George Floyd to the Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday, saying the district judges decision not to move the proceedings out of the city deprived him of a fair trial.

His attorney, William Mohrman, filed a petition for review with the states highest court a month after the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld Chauvins conviction for second-degree murder and let his 22 1/2-year sentence remain in place.

>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<

Morhman had unsuccessfully asked the appeals court to throw out the ex-officers conviction for a long list of reasons, including the massive pretrial publicity. But the three-judge panel last month sided with prosecutors who said Chauvin got a fair trial and just sentence. Chauvin raises several of those arguments again in his latest appeal.

Were very hopeful that the Minnesota Supreme Court will accept review of the case, Mohrman said.

Read: DeSantis signs 5 new bills into law targeting the LGBTQ community

Floyd died on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, kneeled on the Black mans neck for 9 1/2 minutes. A bystander video captured Floyds fading cries of I cant breathe. Floyds death touched off protests around the world, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police brutality and racism.

The Minnesota Supreme Court could agree to hear Chauvins appeal, in which case it would ask each side for detailed briefs and later set a date for oral arguments. Or it could let the Court of Appeals ruling stand.

Morhman wrote in the petition that the case presents the state Supreme Court with important questions on developing and clarifying due process requirements to transfer venue when there is unprecedented pervasive pretrial publicity coupled with community violence.

Read: Postmaster general faces questions about ongoing attacks against mail carriers

He also wrote that it raises issues about rules regarding juror misconduct. One juror participated in a civil rights event commemorating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.s March on Washington, D.C., a few months after Floyds death. Only after the trial did the juror reveal that he had been there. The Court of Appeals declined to send the case back to the trial judge for a hearing on whether the jurors nondisclosure constituted misconduct.

Chauvin pleaded guilty to a separate federal civil rights charge and was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison, which he is now serving in Arizona concurrent with his state sentence.

Police officers undoubtedly have a challenging, difficult, and sometimes dangerous job. However, no one is above the law, Judge Peter Reyes wrote for the Court of Appeals last month. When they commit a crime, they must be held accountable just as those individuals that they lawfully apprehend. The law only permits police officers to use reasonable force when effecting a lawful arrest. Chauvin crossed that line here when he used unreasonable force on Floyd.

Read: Embodiment of the boogeyman: Man says cellmate admitted to murder of Winter Park woman in 1986

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Former student arrested and charged after bringing drugs, gun to Marietta High School

A former Marietta High School student is facing charges for returning to his alma mater with drugs and a gun.

In a letter sent to parents, Interim Principal at Marietta High School Marco Holland said a former student was spotted on the schools campus on Thursday afternoon.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

A school administrator and the Marietta police school resource officer detained and searched the suspect. They found marijuana and a handgun.

The former student was arrested and charged.

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Student safety is our highest priority, and out of an abundance of caution, MPD increased its presence on campus for dismissal this afternoon. As we do every year during the final days of the school year, we will have additional officers on campus next week, Holland wrote.

School leaders did not identify the former student or comment on the exact charges.

The last day of school for Marietta City Schools is scheduled for May 26.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
A Kentucky woman is suing Circle of Hope, the Cedar County boarding school that closed in 2020, accusing former owner Boyd Householder of raping and impregnating her.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in federal court, alleges that Householder physically and sexually abused the plaintiff when she lived at Circle of Hope Girls Ranch near Humansville in southwest Missouri. The woman, now 29, arrived at the school when she was 12, the lawsuit says.

The plaintiff was forced to have sexual intercourse with Boyd Householder, against her will resulting in a pregnancy, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. The pregnancy terminated in a miscarriage  and the plaintiff received no medical treatment for that, and was made to feel ashamed/embarrassed about it in front of other girls.

It isnt clear how old she was when the alleged assault and pregnancy occurred.

The lawsuit is one of more than a dozen cases filed against Circle of Hope since 2020, including one brought by Boyd and Stephanie Householders estranged daughter. Seven of the eight cases filed in state court have been settled for undisclosed amounts, and nine cases filed in federal court since last August are pending.

Former students alleged in those suits they were subjected to extreme physical and psychological abuse. They said they were routinely assaulted, manhandled by being thrown against walls and to the ground and hit and slapped. Others described painful restraints and some said if they didnt finish their meals they were forced to eat until they vomited.

Boyd, now 74, and his wife, Stephanie, 57, were charged in 2021 with nearly 100 felony child abuse counts. They have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to go to trial in Cedar County from Nov. 27 to Dec. 15.

The Householders opened Circle of Hope in 2006. They closed it in August 2020 shortly after about two dozen girls were removed amid an investigation into abuse allegations. In a Sept. 12, 2020, interview with The Star, the Householders denied the allegations against them and accused their daughter of wanting to do anything to shut them down.

The Householders havent spoken to the media since.

The woman at the center of the lawsuit filed Wednesday is demanding a jury trial and seeking $3 million in damages.

Her suit says that she was restrained by school staff members  or other residents at the direction of Circle of Hope  to the point of passing out. She allegedly was force-fed and staff weighed her regularly in an effort to fatten her up.

Other allegations in the lawsuit include being forced to stand against a wall for countless days at a time without food, water, or restroom breaks.

The plaintiff was spanked with a leather-wrapped paddle, often being bent-over the knee of Boyd Householder, the suit alleges.

The plaintiff was also forced to watch the punishment, abuse, restraint, and sexual mistreatment of countless other girls during her stay, the suit says.

Aside from the expected emotional damage suffered by the plaintiff, she was also permanently physically damaged in multiple areas of her body because of restraints and other forms of abuse.

The Householders were arrested in March 2021 on felony child abuse charges. Boyd Householder faces 78 felony charges, including six counts of second-degree statutory rape, nine counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, six counts of sexual contact with a student and 55 counts of abuse or neglect of a child. He also is charged with one count of second-degree child molestation, a misdemeanor.

The charges allege that Boyd Householder slammed girls heads or bodies against walls, slapped or struck them with his hands, a belt or other objects, shoved one girls face into horse manure and poured hot sauce down a girls throat.

Stephanie Householder is charged with 21 felonies, including 11 counts of abuse or neglect of a child and 10 counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

The two were held without bond until July 2021, when David R. Munton, presiding judge of the 28th Judicial Circuit, unexpectedly set a $10,000 bond after Boyd Householder said he had COVID-19. At that time, Stephanie Householder said she had a serious blood clot in her foot that if not properly treated could result in amputation.

Munton placed restrictions on them that included wearing ankle monitors.
Former Wagner mercenary in Norway now wants to go back to Russia

Andrey Medvedev

Medvedev commanded one of Wagner units fighting in Ukraine and later crossed the Russian-Norwegian border in January 2023, requesting political asylum in Norway.

Read also: Videos show Russian regular troops seeking to join Wagner, whats Prigozhin up to?

Recently I've decided that I'm ready to go back to the Russian Federation; I've contacted the Russian embassy in Oslo for help, to facilitate my return, he said in a short video.

The Wagner Group is recognized as a terrorist organization in Ukraine, and Medvedev claims to have fought against the country for four months. There is no official information on any steps Kyiv may take to extradite him.

Read also: Media reveals secret transformation of COVID hospital in Moscow into ward for Wagner mercenaries

Medvedev spoke about how Wagnerites kill "defectors" and execute Ukrainian prisoners, as reported by Russian independent outlet Mediazona.

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Laura Ingraham

Fox News is reportedly looking to finish cleaning house and stabilizing its primetime lineup in the wake of devastating revelations tied to its expensively settled Dominion Voting Systems legal battle.

Citing unnamed inside sources, the Drudge Report has advanced an earlier story from the Penske Showbiz Trades suggesting major changes to Fox News' primetime lineup are being considered.

According to Drudge, longtime Fox News primetime presence Sean Hannity will move up one hour from 9 p.m. to 8 p.m., the fired Tucker Carlson's old time slot; Jesse Waters will move from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; and Greg Gutfeld will shift from 11 p.m. to 10 p.m., the slot currently occupied by Laura Ingraham.

Meanwhile, reports circulated on Twitter Wednesday afternoon that Ingraham, whose text messages, along with Carlson's, factored into the $787.5 million Dominion settlement, has not just been bumped from primetime, but fired from the network.

UPDATED: After this article was initially published Wednesday, Fox News gave Next TV this statement: Reports based on various tweets by left wing activists are wildly inaccurate -- Laura Ingraham, the top-rated woman in cable news, is now and will continue to be a prominent host and integral part of the Fox News lineup."

Quoting an unnamed Fox source, Drudge said Fox News is planning to very soon announce its "ambitious new schedule," one in which "every hour of primetime will change."

Also read: Tucker Carlson Announces New Twitter Show, May Have Breached His Still-Active Fox News Contract in the Process

So far, Fox has issued one statement on the matter, saying, No decision has been made on a new primetime line-up and there are multiple scenarios under consideration.

Fox fired Carlson, its most watched on-air presence, last month following a steady string of controversies and dwindling participation in his primetime show by premium advertisers.

Fox News' ratings performance declined around 50% in the key adults 25-54 audience demo in the immediate aftermath of Carlson's final April 21 show.

Speaking Wednesday morning at MoffettNathansons Inaugural Technology, Media and Telecom Conference in New York, Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch expressed confidence that his channel will successfully transition away from Carlson. (That event was covered by another Penske showbiz trade brand.)

Weve done it before, right? You know, Bill OReilly was a superstar. Megyn Kelly was a superstar. Glenn Beck was a superstar, and were able to move forward with programming decisions that ultimately result in long term growth and profitability of the business, Murdoch said.

With the Dominion matter behind it, Fox is preparing to defend itself from another libel suit filed against it be a separate voting machine maker, Smartmatic, which claims Fox News' coverage of the 2020 election and subsequent January 6 Insurrection led to its brand being inaccurately impugned on the channel.

Meanwhile, down the street at Madison Avenue, Fox advertising executives have worked this week's Upfront meetings to assure brand marketers that the network's new primetime lineup will be safe from things like white nationalism and other corrosive elements that the far right Carlson was widely alleged to have courted during is nightly 8 p.m. talk hour.

Activist groups, however, have also infiltrated the Upfront scene, trying to counter-message that narrative. This includes grassroots Republican org The Lincoln Project.

Jesse Waters, Brian Kilmeade, Sean Hannity, are not serious people. They are nothing more than mouthpieces in Murdochs right-wing propaganda machine," said Reed Galen, Lincoln Project co-founder, in a statement. "The real truth is that [Fox Chairman Rupert Murdoch] hasnt changed his mind about the direction of the company. Brands need to ask themselves if they want to be associated with an even more extremist version of Fox News.
A frail Sen. Dianne Feinstein continues to vote as new details emerge about her health

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) sits with an aide at a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on Thursday in Washington. (Kent Nishimura /Los Angeles Times)

It's police week here at the nation's Capitol, and, with law enforcement officers flowing through the halls, the Senate Judiciary Committee took up several bills meant to support law enforcement.

Amid debate about legislation Thursday to recruit officers who agree to serve in their home communities, California's senior senator spoke up.

"I just wanted to say one thing, and thats about cops on the beat," Sen. Dianne Feinstein said  in her first extended public remarks since she returned to Washington, D.C., after several months at home in San Francisco with shingles.

"I was mayor of San Francisco for nine years," she said. "There was no program more favorable with people than police on the streets. They got to know them. There was a positive relationship. The crime rate went down.

"Anything we can do to help I think we should," Feinstein added.

Feinstein, 89, used a wheelchair to move around the Capitol and appeared sprier than in recent days. She walked into the hearing chamber and spoke for longer and more cogently than she did last week. During the May 11 hearing, she read her yes vote from a note and asked to be recorded as voting in person on three other judges whose nominations were raised before her arrival.

In the ensuing days she was scarcely seen except to vote on the Senate floor. Moving through the halls with Nancy Pelosi's eldest daughter, Nancy Corinne Prowda, at her side, Feinstein looked frailer than before her absence and struggled to walk very far without the supportive arm of an aide. Prowda is a longtime family friend who is not on Feinsteins staff.

"Nancy Corrine is a dear friend of Senator Feinsteins going back more than 40 years. She has been spending time with the senator as she continues to recover from shingles, Feinstein spokesman Adam Russell said.

Feinstein's eyelid and face appear to droop, which is a side effect of shingles known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome. It's a partial paralysis and relatively common for people who have shingles rashes on their face.

She has also had a case of encephalitis, a swelling of the brain, according to Russell. This complication from shingles, which was first reported by the New York Times on Thursday, can be debilitating, causing memory loss and other effects.

While the encephalitis resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital in March, she continues to have complications from Ramsay Hunt syndrome, Russell said.

A number of viruses and bacteria can cause infections leading to encephalitis, said Dr. Felicia Chow, a specialist in neuro-infectious diseases at University of California San Francisco Health. One of them is the varicella-zoster virus, which can cause shingles.

Not all cases lead to encephalitis, she said; but if the virus causes inflammation of the brain, it can lead to serious impacts on the mental status of patients, including reduced cognition, changes in personality, impaired memory and confusion.

Any function that the brain is responsible for  it can affect, Chow said.

Several factors can contribute to the impact encephalitis has on a patient, including what part of the brain is affected by the infection, and if the patient had previous cognitive issues.

If at baseline they have some impairment of the brain, some injury, dementia or something else, if a patient like that has preexisting issues, then they may be at risk of not recovering, Chow said.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) uses a wheelchair to get around the Capitol with her staff and Nancy Corinne Prowda, a daughter of Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco). (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)

On Tuesday, Feinstein spoke with two reporters  including one from The Times  alongside Prowda and appeared to not recall she'd been absent from Congress for months due to her illness.

I havent been gone, she said. Ive been working.

Youve been working from home is what youre saying? the reporter asked.

No, Ive been here. Ive been voting. Please, either know or dont know, Feinstein said.

The interaction came on the heels of several reports, including one last year in the San Francisco Chronicle, that described the deterioration of her memory. Feinstein at the time dismissed the stories, saying she was fit to serve. The powerful senator is famous for being a very hands-on boss, and the case of shingles appears to have taken a toll.

It has raised questions about whether she can finish her term, which ends in 2025. Three members of the House of Representatives are competing for her seat on next year's ballot: Democratic Reps. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, Katie Porter of Irvine and Barbara Lee of Oakland.

Still, her presence in the Senate is essential for Democrats to pursue their agenda  including confirming judges  while maintaining maximum leverage.

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer has asked his colleagues, who are out on recess, to be available on 24 hours' notice to return to Washington next week to vote on raising the countrys borrowing limit, which is the biggest controversy in halls of government at the moment. The New York Democrat, who was in contact with Feinstein during her absence and was by her side when she returned, lauded the chambers ability to confirm 10 federal judges during this recent monthlong work period.

Feinstein was integral in this work, including helping confirm Nancy Abudu to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday on a 49-47 vote. Abudu, a civil rights attorney, is the first Black woman to be confirmed to the 11th Circuit.

"We have a duty to ensure that federal judges are individuals of the highest caliber, and that includes appointing judges from a wide variety of personal and professional backgrounds," Schumer said, adding that the Senate has confirmed 129 judges this term.

Schumer declined to comment about Feinstein as he walked off the Senate floor after speaking and sending the chamber out on break.

After the Judiciary vote Thursday, Prowda, Pelosi's daughter , shielded Feinstein from reporters hoping to ask questions.

Two photographers backpedaled to capture her exit, and Feinstein asked, "What are they doing?"

"Theyre just gathering news clips," Prowda said.

Times staff photographer Kent Nishimura contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
A frame from the film Jeanne du Barry

Yesterday, the Festival de Cannes opened with Jeanne du Barry by Maiwenn, with her and Johnny Depp co-starring, she said.

The reviews are, lets say, mixed. But the most interesting part lies, as always, in the funding question. One of the co-producers of the film is Konstantin Elkin, a Russian producer who continues to work in Russia, making films, and playing them in cinemas  meaning paying taxes and funding the war against Ukraine.

Read also: Ukrainian Institute reacts to the scandalous statements of a Russian movie director in Cannes

Badior added that Jeanne du Barry would also be released in Russia, as many French films were, after Feb. 24, 2022, i.e. the beginning of Russias invasion of Ukraine.

It will also fund rockets and weapons that are used against Ukrainians, she said.

The journalist also pointed out that the opening film for Cinema de la plage this year in Cannes is Underground by Emir Kusturica, a direct endorser of Russian war against Ukraine and a friend of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

Underground was released in 1995, received the Palme dOr, while Kusturica was pro-Serbian and, as far as I understand, took money from the state TV to fund the film, she said.

Badior noted that Cannes Film Festival banned all protests during the festival, which is also interesting regarding the [Writers Guild of America] protests in the United States and mass protests in France against pension reform.

Read also: Ukrainian filmmakers call for the release of a captured medic during the Cannes Film Festival

In addition, according to the film critic, there is also one Russian film on the program  Quinzaine des Cineastes: Grace by Ilya Povolotsky.

On the latest press conference before the festival started, according to Variety, (Cannes Film Festival director) Thierry Fremaux said that the festival will have a political edge, in line with its DNA, Badior said.

I think this is the edge they are taking after all, ha?

The program of this years Cannes Film Festival does not include any Ukrainian films. However, two joint Ukrainian-Polish films will be screened at the festival.

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Fulton man beaten with belt as punishment for trying to stop crime in his neighborhood

Alpharetta police are searching for two people after they say a man was beaten so badly he was sent to the hospital.

Police say a man and woman were doing something illegal in an alleyway at the Avalon apartment complex just after 9:30 p.m. on May 12. A man saw them and confronted them.

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When he confronted them, police say the male suspect assaulted the man with a belt and belt buckle. His injuries were so severe that he had to be hospitalized.

Investigators say the pair then walked away back to the Avalon business area after the attack.

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Police say the woman seen in surveillance photos was not involved in the attack, but they still want to identify her as a witness.

Anyone who recognizes the people in the photos should call police at 678-297-6364.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
What the funk is John Carroll Kirby using to drop a beat in this live performance of new single Oropendola?

john carroll kirby

In the music of John Carroll Kirby, the beat isn't usually the star of the show. His indefatigably funky instrumentals are typically a showcase for the sound of the pianist, producer and composer's dazzling keyboard chops, a talent that's seen him become one of the most sought-after collaborators in modern music: he's worked with Harry Styles, Steve Lacy, Frank Ocean and Miley Cyrus, to name a few.

Stumbling upon this live recording of Kirby's new single Oropendola, though, it's the drum machine that initially caught our eye. What exactly is that strange, bulky contraption? The sound was a little baffling, too: fuzzy and distorted but seemingly unprocessed, it didn't sound much like the raw tones of any modern drum machine.

As it happens, that's precisely because the instrument isn't a modern drum machine. In fact, it's the first commercially available drum machine ever released, the Wurlitzer Sideman. This electro-mechanical marvel was released in 1959, originally designed as an accessory for Wurlitzer organ owners. That's about as vintage as it gets when it comes to beat-boxes.

Housed in an all-wood case with an amp and speaker, the Sideman produces sound using a series of ten vacuum tubes. Patterns are sequenced through the use of a rotating disc covered with metal contacts spaced in such a way to generate preset rhythms, though players can use buttons on the top to play individual sounds, as Kirby does in the video.

After getting his groove going, Kirby sits down at the Rhodes (its sound augmented by a classic phaser, the Maestro PS-1B) to jam out the first single from his upcoming album Blowout, due for release June 30 via Stones Throw.

According to Kirby, the project was conceived during a stay in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica, written "between 5am wake-up calls from oropendola birds and psychedelic sunsets" and leans towards a Calypso-influenced sound. Kirby's time in Costa Rica was documented in an episode of Kirby's Gold, his travelogue web series, embedded below.

"The oropendola is a very cool bird that lives in a sac-like hanging nest," Kirby said in a statement announcing the album's release. "There was a tree full of them outside where I stayed that woke me up every morning at 5am, so I had to write a song about them."

Pre-order John Carroll Kirby's Blowout via Stones Throw.

Revisit our feature on the history of the drum machine.
Framery

Its not easy to make video conferencing technologies seem sexy and futuristic. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck the planet, offices around the world were already beginning to normalize the use of applications like Zoom to make meetings between colleagues in different locations retain a sense of face-to-face camaraderie, even if it was just a digital imitation.

But the debate over remote work continues to rage on at companies big and small, and it is oftentimes punctuated by the limitations to video communication. Zoom fatigue is real. Video and audio glitches can easily interrupt the flow of conversation and force people to waste minutes repeating themselves. Many people spend more time looking at their own screen versus the speakers face, creating opportunities to simply zone out. Its too easy to get distracted and pull up Slack or Gmail or other apps. And ultimately video conferencing simply cant emulate the intimacy and charm of having a conversation face-to-face. As a result, critical information that can only be read in body language and other non-verbal cues can get lost in the digital translation.

When Finnish tech company Framery invited me to join them for a tech demo to test what they heralded as a solution to our remote work woes hosted by the Finnish consulate in New York City a few weeks ago, I didnt really know what to expect. I knew the company specialized in acoustics, and was famous for its very sleek and impressive office phone booth pods that afforded privacy and pristine work environments while looking incredibly modern.

Framery

But now Framery told me it had developed something that would change videoconferencing, knocking down many of the aforementioned sources of friction people had while more closely simulating a real, face-to-face conversation better than any technology before it.

Introducing: the Framery Contact. Adorned in a black casing, the new pod is an experience that feels more futuristic than modern, and its video conferencing technology really makes it feel as if youre sitting down in a real, physical conversation with someone else. The experience was so lifelike that it looked as though the person I was speaking to was in the room with me.

Though the Contact pod looks quite big from the outside, the inside feels pretty cozy and snug, replete with a black interior interrupted only by a soft LED lighting. A swivel chair sits on one end of the pod, across from a very large screen situated in a vertical orientation, not unlike a body mirror for the bedroom. To your side sits a small table where you can place a notebook or laptop, but the experience of Contact is meant to discourage the use of other materials and instead have you focus on the screen in front of you.

Framery

Thats not at all hard to do. When theres no one on the other end of the call, the onscreen presentation is just a reflection of yourself as seen by the camera, and its simply stunning. The visual quality practically makes you forget youre not looking at a mirror. Once a call is placed and the other participant shows up, you might very easily forget they are not sitting on the other end. The experience lines things up so eye contact between the users is leveled out. Sound quality feels crisp.

My first session in the Contact pod was a 10-minute call with Arto Vahvanen, the head of digital offerings at Framery who was speaking with me from Finland. The full-body screen meant speaking with Vahvanen avoided the laptop talking head experience of Zoom, and instead it felt like I was speaking with a human being. You cant see your screen during calls either, so youre not baited into simply staring at yourself. And the combination of the dark background and precise lighting keeps the focus on just the other person youre communicating with.

But the Contact pod isnt perfectone look at the price tag will have most companies appreciating their Zoom plan (planned price for Contact is around expected to be over $26,000.) Also, my call with Vahvanen suffered from a bit of lag in our last minute as we said our goodbyes, so things are still subject to connectivity issues.

Handout

Plus, there are basic tools found on almost every video conferencing platform worth its salt that cant be found with the Connect. For example, the inability to pull up other applications on screen means working on, say, a presentation together or trying to pull up a document to read in tandem has to still be done on a laptop. The current version of the pods are also solely for one person to call from at the moment. There are many kinds of work meetings where the pods simply wont work.

According to Inka Saxholm, the marketing manager at Framery, thats kind of the whole pointthe new pods arent supposed to outright replace video conferencing applications like Zoom. It is, instead, supposed to emulate the face-to-face experience in instances where long distances make it difficult or impossiblelike a final interview with a job candidate. Instead of having to fly someone out on an expensive last-minute flight, a meeting through Contact pods could suffice.

Thats such a tiny use case, though, that its hard to see most businesseseven if they do have $26,000 burning a hole in their pocketwanting to pull the trigger on the Contact. Still, its a pretty remarkable experience, and its easy to see why some companies would be excited to jump on it. Making a video call often fills people with a deep sense of aversion. Saxholm explained at the Contact pod demo that the company does a lot of internal behavioral science work to learn how to optimize its products and figure out the ideal kind of features that create the least amount of friction for users.

Framery

A lot of our team is devoted to learning exactly how to make these experiences exciting, she told The Daily Beast. Theres research that goes into this. Rather than glomming onto buzzy new technologies that have yet to prove themselves in the workplace (read: the metaverse), Contact instead fits well with Framerys larger vision of making tried-and-true innovations better.

Framery hopes to crystalize his idea by making more demos available for people to try Contact out. It plans to showcase Contact in Chicago and elsewhere later in the year, and it has already made Contact available to its first pilot customers. If it lives up to the hype, its likely that one of Finlands biggest new firms might find itself in the spotlight for innovating the future of work.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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(Bloomberg) -- US President Joe Biden and other Group of Seven leaders began arriving in the Japanese city of Hiroshima on Thursday for an annual summit, with concerns around China and Russia  both uninvited  set to dominate discussions.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The meeting, which runs through Sunday, comes as Russia launched fresh aerial assaults on Ukraine and Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a separate summit seeking to deepen Beijings influence in Central Asia. Biden held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida where they pledged to protect the rule of law and said the world was safer when the two allies stood together.

The seven countries  Japan, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and US  are set to target what they see as economic coercion by Xis government while also introducing measures to reach out to developing nations in the Global South. Leaders from the European Union, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Vietnam, Brazil, Australia, Comoros and Cook Islands were also invited to the gathering.

Latest coverage

Xi Summit to Deepen Central Asian Ties in Split-Screen With G-7

Renewed Threats to Use Nuclear Bombs Loom Over Hiroshima G-7

China, Russia Are Top Problems for G-7 Leaders Meeting in Japan

The G-7 Still Matters. Heres Why: Big Take Podcast

Yellen Warns Time Is Running Out Ahead of Biden-McCarthy Meet

(All times JST)

Zelenskiy to Address G-7 Virtually on Sunday (11:17 p.m.)

Volodymyr Zelenskiy will take part remotely in a special May 21 session on Ukraine at the Group of Seven summit, Japans Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The announcement after earlier speculation that the Ukrainian president might appear in person at the event in Hiroshima. Japan added an extra session to accommodate Zelenskiys schedule. G-7 leaders will discuss Ukraine among themselves at a separate session on Friday.

Kishida and Biden Vow to Work Closely on  and With  China (9:34 p.m.)

Prime Minister Kishida and President Biden agreed to work closely together on China, but also underscored the importance of cooperating with China on shared challenges, Japans Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The two also commended their countries robust consultations on US extended deterrence, referring to the nuclear umbrella on which Japan relies heavily for its defense.

Squabbling Macron and Meloni Expected to Meet (8:01 p.m.)

French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who have traded barbs over migration and other topics, are expected to meet on the sidelines of the summit, an Elysee official said. The encounter may end up being informal, the official said, stressing that international summits often include meetings that resemble speed dating.

The leaders of France and Italy, the second and third largest economies in the European Union respectively, have repeatedly bickered in public in recent months.

Italy and France, Old Frenemies, Are Squabbling Ahead of G-7

Kirby Says Leaders to Focus on China (7:45 p.m.)

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Biden and his G-7 counterparts will spend a considerable amount of time discussing China. Youre going to see the G-7 leaders all speak with one voice about the challenges that China poses here in the Indo-Pacific and around the world, he told Bloomberg Television.

China Blasts US on Coercive Diplomacy (7:21 p.m)

China fired back at G-7 members by issuing a report on the USs coercive diplomacy and its harm to the world.

The official Xinhua News Agency cited the report as saying China never bullied others nor started trade wars, echoing language that the Foreign Ministry in Beijing says regularly. Earlier this month, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin blasted the G-7 as a small clique that puts the US first.

Scholz Says Russia Threatens Global Peace (6:45 p.m.)

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz issued a warning about Russia being a threat to the world shortly after he arrived in Hiroshima, calling the Japanese city a symbol of the need to achieve peace.

Decoupling from one single country is not a goal which anyone here pursues, the German leader said. At the same moment however we want to organize the global trade relations in a way that the risks are not becoming big as a result of a dependency from one country.

Scholz said earlier this month European nations should not aim for an immediate decoupling from China, but implement a smart de-risking.

Biden, Kishida Hail Cooperation on Chips, Technology (6:05 p.m.)

President Biden and Japanese leader Kishida hailed greater cooperation between the two nations on emerging technology at the outset of a bilateral meeting ahead of the G-7 summit.

Kishida noted that cooperation has evolved through leaps and bounds, citing Micron Technology Inc.s plan to make next-generation memory chips in Hiroshima. Biden, in return, said the nations were working on expanding cooperation in advanced technology like quantum computers and semiconductors.

When our countries stand together, we stand stronger, Biden said. And I believe the whole world is safer when we do.

Micron to Get $1.5 Billion From Japan for Next-Gen Chips

Japan Ruling Party Submits LGBTQ Bill (5:53 pm.)

Japans main ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner submitted to parliament a watered-down bill on promoting understanding of the LGBTQ community. Japan is the only one of the G-7 democracies not to recognize same-sex unions or have legal protections for sexual minorities, and Kishida has come under pressure to make some progress on the issue in conjunction with the summit.

Japan Looks to Pass Watered-Down LGBTQ Bill as G-7 Looms

Scholz, Trudeau Arrive in Hiroshima (5:20 p.m.)

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived in Hiroshima after finishing a trip to Seoul the previous day. During his visit, South Koreas SK Ecoplant Co. said it will invest in and help develop a $4.5 billion green hydrogen project in Canada thats set to be one of the largest such plants in the world.

Scholz arrived shortly after Trudeau and hes expected to go to South Korea when the G-7 summit ends.

Biden Arrives in Japan (4:10 p.m.)

Biden touched down in Japan. The US president had scrapped plans to continue on for stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia to return to debt-ceiling negotiations in the US.

UK Announces Japan Chips Partnership (2:30 p.m.)

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced 18 billion ($22.4 billion) of new investment by Japanese businesses in the UK, mostly in clean energy, as well as a bilateral semiconductor partnership aimed at boosting supply chain resilience amid fears over Chinese interference in Taiwan.

A Hiroshima Accord seeks to deepen economic, security and tech cooperation between the two countries, the British premier said as he landed in Japan ahead of the summit.

UK Announces Japan Chips Partnership as Fears Grow Over Taiwan

Corn Trades Near 18-Month Low (2:12 p.m.)

Corn traded near the lowest level since November 2021 after a two-month extension of the deal allowing Ukraine to ship crops through the Black Sea. Wheat hovered near the weakest in more than two years, while soybeans fell to the lowest since July last year.

Corn Trades Near 18-Month Low as Ukraine Export Deal Extended

China Envoy Meets Zelenskiy in Ukraine (1:40 p.m.)

Chinese Ambassador Li Hui met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as Beijing kicked off a European tour aimed at brokering peace.

Xi announced that China would send an envoy to Ukraine last month during a call with Zelenskiy. It was the first time the two leaders had spoken since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

China Envoy Meets Zelenskiy in Ukraine as Europe Tour Kicks Off

Kishida Meets Chipmakers to Boost Production (12:52 p.m.)

Kishida met the heads of the worlds largest chipmakers in Japans latest move to boost its domestic semiconductor sector amid a global rethink of economic security.

The country is pushing to bring more advanced chipmaking home as growing US-China tensions spur concerns about reliance on Taiwan, which China claims as its own. But while Japanese companies continue to control key steps in the chip supply chain, the countrys efforts have fallen far short of subsidies offered by the US.

Kishida Meets Chipmakers in Move to Bolster Japans Tech Sector

Russia Launches New Attacks on Kyiv (12:19 p.m.)

Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine came under another aerial attack early Thursday morning, with explosions heard in the capital as well as other regions further west.

Xi Summit to Deepen Central Asian Ties (10:24 a.m.)

Chinas president will seek to deepen Beijings influence in Central Asia at a major summit, reminding the parallel G-7 conclave of Beijings sway outside the US-led world order.

The two-day China-Central Asia Summit assembles the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan from Thursday in the Chinese city of Xian. Trade ties and regional security concerns will likely dominate talks at the inaugural in-person meeting, along with Russias war in Ukraine.

Xi Summit to Deepen Central Asian Ties in Split-Screen With G-7

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G7 leaders to discuss idea of international peace summit over Ukraine - EU official

G7 leaders to discuss idea of international peace summit over Ukraine - EU official G7 leaders' summit in Hiroshima

HIROSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) - Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy countries will discuss the idea of an international peace summit over Ukraine when they meet in Japan this week, a European Union official said on Thursday.

G7 leaders will meet on May 19-21 in Japan's city of Hiroshima.

(Reporting by John Irish, writing by Katya Golubkova; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
By Katya Golubkova and John Irish

HIROSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) -Leaders of the world's richest democracies acted on Friday to stiffen sanctions against Russia, while a draft communique to be issued after their talks in the Japanese city of Hiroshima stressed the need to reduce reliance on trade with China.

The Group of Seven (G7) leaders, to be joined this weekend by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, pledged to restrict any exports to Russia that could help President Vladimir Putin's invasion of his neighbour and to stop sanctions-busting.

"Todays actions will further tighten the vice on Putins ability to wage his barbaric invasion and will advance our global efforts to cut off Russian attempts to evade sanctions," U.S. Treasury Department Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement accompanying a raft of new U.S. measures.

A statement issued by G7 leaders said restrictions would cover exports of industrial machinery, tools and technology useful to Russia's war effort, while efforts would be pursued to limit Russian revenues from trade in metals and diamonds.

On China, which G7 powers increasingly see as a threat to economic security, they were to agree that its status as the world's second largest economy necessitated efforts to foster cooperation, an early draft of the final communique seen by Reuters said.

"Our policy approaches are not designed to harm China, we do not seek to thwart China's economic progress and development," noted the draft, which is still subject to change, calling for "stable and constructive" ties with Beijing.

The draft nonetheless urged measures to "reduce excessive dependencies" in critical supply chains and counter "malign practices" in technology transfer and data disclosure.

It reaffirmed the need for peace in the Taiwan Strait and urged China to press Russia to end aggression in Ukraine.

NUCLEAR SYMBOLISM

The G7 - the United States, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Canada - will use the three-day meeting to debate strategy on a Ukraine conflict that shows no sign of easing.

The summit venue, Hiroshima, was destroyed by U.S. nuclear bombings 78 years ago that ended World War Two. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in Japan's lower house of parliament, said he chose it for the global gathering to focus attention on arms control.

Russia's threats of possible recourse to nuclear weapons, together with the nuclear programmes of North Korea and Iran, have all added to concerns about proliferation.

In the draft, G7 countries - among them nuclear-armed France, Britain and the United States - expressed their "commitment to achieving a world without nuclear weapons" through a "realistic, pragmatic, and responsible approach".

Having emerged as the world's wealthiest nations after World War Two, the G7 democracies have become increasingly challenged by an ascendant China and unpredictable Russia.

Amid evidence that existing Russian sanctions are being weakened by circumvention, they said the group was "engaging" with countries through which any restricted G7 goods, services or technology could transit through to Russia.

"Essentially, the aim is to provide for clarification in order to make circumvention more difficult," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told reporters. While no countries were named in the G7 statement, a separate European Union statement said it had asked central Asian states to guard against circumvention.

Breakdowns of German trade data show its exports to countries bordering Russia have risen sharply, fuelling concerns about the re-exportation of goods from those neighbours.

It was not immediately clear how much the new sanctions effort would affect Russia, whose finances have already been squeezed by moves to cut revenues from its vast energy reserves.

"The wordings are quite open," a senior EU diplomat said of G7 language designed to allow different national approaches.

Ukraine has urged its Western allies to go further in isolating Russia, for example by tightening loopholes in the financial sector.

"Certainly, sanctions can be toughened on the (Russian) banking sector," said John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine now with the Atlantic Council think tank. "Theyve gone after several of them, but others are able to operate."

DIAMONDS LEFT FOR LATER

Separately, the U.S. administration added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist and Britain published plans to ban imports of Russian diamonds, copper, aluminium and nickel, although data show Russia's UK imports of those commodities were small.

Reflecting the EU view that wider diamond sanctions would only shift Russia's trade elsewhere from the established gem capital of Antwerp in Belgium, the G7 draft merely referred to possible moves towards future restrictive measures.

Zelenskiy is due to arrive late on Saturday on a French jet after attending the Arab League summit in Saudi Arabia.

G7 countries promised him further military and financial help. U.S. President Joe Biden told fellow leaders he backed a joint effort with allies to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, a senior administration official said.

(Reporting by Katya Golubkova, John Irish, Jeff Mason, Trevor Hunnicutt, Sakura Murakami, Kentaro Sugiyama, David Dolan and Andreas Rinke in Hiroshima; additional reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, Kantaro Komiya, Satoshi Sugiyama and Yoshifumi Takemoto in Tokyo, Jan Strupczewski in Brussels; writing by Mark John; editing by Robert Birsel and Mark Heinrich)
G7 summit: Why there are eight more seats at the table this year

Japan PM Fumio Kishida greets US President Biden in Hiroshima

If the G7 were a dinner party, the host would be rummaging in the garage for the extendable table, hunting through boxes for extra placemats and cutlery.

This year's host, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, has invited eight more guests to the summit, which starts on Friday in Hiroshima.

It is certainly a sign of the thorny agenda that ranges from the war in Ukraine to how much food reaches our own dinner plates. And it is also evidence of a rapidly changing international order, with much of the conversation focusing on two countries that are not on the guest list: Russia and China.

The annual gathering includes the world's seven wealthiest democracies - Japan, the United States, the UK, France, Germany, Canada and Italy. The European Union, although not an official G7 member, also dispatches representatives. More recently, hosts have invited additional countries at their discretion.

But the economic might of the G7 is waning - in 1990, the group accounted for just over half of the world's GDP, according to the International Monetary Fund. Now it's just under 30%. It needs influential new friends.

So Mr Kishida, who is seeking a more global rather than Western coalition, has extended the table to accommodate Australia, India, Brazil, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Comoros (representing the African Union) and the Cook Islands (representing the Pacific Islands Forum).

The Japanese PM has made 16 overseas trips in the last 18 months, including India, Africa and South-East Asia, to prove to these regions that there is an alternative to Chinese and Russian money and power.

And his guest list for Hiroshima reflects these attempts to woo what many call the "Global South" - a term used for developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, all of whom have complex political and economic ties to both Russia and China.

A not-so-united front

One of Mr Kishida's clearest aims - to show a "united front" on Russia's invasion of Ukraine - will also be one his biggest hurdles.

The G7 is reportedly trying to enforce more sanctions aimed at the energy and exports aiding Moscow's war effort.

Mr Xi and Mr Putin are not on the guest list - although their countries dominate the agenda

But many of the additional guests will not like this move. India, for instance, has refused to adhere to Western sanctions on Russian imports.

New Delhi has also not explicitly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Their long-standing relationship aside, India is also reliant on energy imports and has defended its oil purchases, saying it cannot afford higher prices.

And it is far from alone. Emerging economies have been hit the hardest by rising costs, partly driven up by the war in Ukraine.

Now they fear that more sanctions could compel Moscow to terminate a Black Sea grain deal that enables vital exports from Ukraine. This could exacerbate food shortages and further drive up prices.

For others, this is not just about the personal cost of sanctions.

"Vietnam has a historically close relationship with Russia, which supplies at least 60% of their arms and 11% of their fertiliser," says Nguyen Khac Giang, a visiting fellow at the Institute of South East Asian Studies in Singapore.

"Indonesia, although not heavily dependent on Russia, is a significant importer of Russian weapons and maintains good relations with Moscow.

"For these reasons, I don't believe that Hanoi and Jakarta will explicitly object to, or support, further sanctions on Russia. Doing so would pose significant economic and political risks, while offering little benefit to them."

What Mr Kishida must hope is that his hometown of Hiroshima, where the atomic bomb killed more than 100,000 people, will concentrate minds on the nuclear threat that Russia poses.

Visits around the city will be a constant reminder of the devastation the weapons can inflict, as well as supporting the message that invitees have a responsibility to ensure that such a weapon is never used again.

Pressure will also come from Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky who will be there virtually to make an impassioned plea for his people who have already paid a hefty price.

Unmarked graves in Ukraine, where the war continues to exact a devastating toll

That, however, might not be enough to resolve divisions on how far sanctions should go. And there is also the growing frustration among countries outside the G7 that their voices have all too often been ignored by the West. But analysts believe listening and treating these countries as partners is at least a start.

"It provides an opportunity to communicate their concerns with G7 leaders on a vast array of issues, from the war in Ukraine and the slowdown of the global economy, to security risks in East Asia, particularly regarding the South China Sea dispute and Taiwan," says Nguyen Khac Giang of Vietnam and Indonesia's involvement.

Countering China

Taiwan - and the tensions in the seas around it - has certainly become one of the biggest crises in the last year.

And as the leader of the only Asian G7 member, Mr Kishida sees the summit as a chance to respond to China's increasing show of military force around the self-ruled island, which it claims. Tokyo's message to the West is straightforward - your fight in Ukraine is also our fight, but that must work both ways.

But China, which is effectively sewn into global supply chains, is perhaps a trickier challenge than even Russia.

China has stepped up its show of force in the waters around Taiwan

On a recent trip to Beijing, France's President Emmanuel Macron warned that Europe should not get "caught up in crises that are not ours". His words set off a minor row in the West, but they also renewed a lingering fear of abandonment across East Asia.

Many will remember the words of Republican Senator Lindsay Graham who, at the height of tensions with North Korea, warned: "If thousands die, they're going to die over there." Then came President Donald Trump's threat to reduce US troops in South Korea.

China's voice, analysts say, is heard clearly because, unlike Western democracies, its position does not change after every election.

Of course, the US, in the past year, has not wavered in its support for Ukraine, or in its commitment to Taiwan. And it has put on its show in the Pacific, alongside allies Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and Australia.

Read more of our coverage on US-China tensions

But the G7 isn't just taking aim at China's military ambitions. They are also concerned about what they call "economic coercion" by Beijing - retaliation for any actions that are seen as critical of China, such as cutting Australian imports in 2019, or targeting a South Korean business in 2017.

It's unclear what form G7 counter-measures will take, or if it can even agree with its EU partners on how to act together. After all, Japan and the EU both count China as a top trading partner.

But the harder part will be persuading other countries to do the same, because much of the Global South is even more economically tied to Beijing.

China's trade with Latin America is thriving, for instance. Beijing now accounts for 8.5% of the region's GDP, while Brazil is among the countries that has a trade surplus with China. But in Africa, several nations, including Ghana and Zambia, are heavily indebted to China and struggling to repay loans.

Beijing has made its opinion of any G7-led measures clear: "China itself is a victim of US economic coercion and we have always been firmly opposed to economic coercion by other countries," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said last week.

A new battleground

There is one region where the battle for influence is still unfolding - the Pacific Islands. It explains why the tiny nation of the Cook Islands, which represents Pacific Island countries, is on the guest list.

Hugely vulnerable to climate change, these island nations are leveraging their strategic importance with both the US and China.

Coastal villages in Pacific Island countries like Fiji are already battling erosion, an effect of climate change

Last year, Beijing signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands fuelling concerns that it was going to build a military base in the region. The US reacted swiftly, announcing a deal, including $810m in financial support, with 14 nations.

Now Mr Kishida's coalition-building efforts will also depend on how the G7 agrees to address climate change and energy security, not least because that could cut countries' reliance on Russian oil and gas, or Chinese aid.

But there might be a chink in the armour already. After the summit, President Joe Biden was headed to Papa New Guinea, becoming the first sitting US president to visit the Pacific Islands.

He is now cutting his trip short because of a crisis brewing back home over the US debt ceiling. That is a setback, according to Richard Maud, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute and former Australian intelligence chief.

"The mantra in the region is all about turning up," he said at a recent panel discussion. "Turning up is half the battle. China turns up all the time, and so the optics aren't great."
An Effingham County Commissioner accused of child molestation was arrested this week.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation officials announced the arrest of 84-year-old Reginald Reggie Loper of Springfield. Loper is the commissioner for District 4 in Effingham County.

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The investigation began on Jan. 9 when the Effingham County Sheriffs Office asked the GBI to investigate allegations of child sexual abuse.

Loper was charged with child molestation and sexual battery. He was booked into the Effingham County Jail.

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Authorities did not provide specifics surrounding Lopers arrested.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Effingham County Sheriffs Office at 912-754-3449.

Channel 2 Action News reached out to the Effingham County Board of Commissioners for a statement but has not received a response.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) is demanding that Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) provide the public with a timeline of the Ethics Committee investigation into Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), one day after the House voted to refer a resolution to expel Santos to the notoriously slow-moving panel.

In a letter to McCarthy on Thursday, Garcia quoted the Speaker, who told reporters earlier this week that he wants the Ethics Committee to move rapidly in its investigation of Santos.

Given your promises of swift action by the Ethics Committee, I hope that you will clarify the timeline by which we can expect the Ethics Committee to move rapidly so that the House can take a transparent vote on whether Mr. Santos deserves to continue to serve as a member of this body, Garcia, who introduced the expulsion resolution, wrote in the letter.

The California Democrat told reporters Thursday that he plans to demand a public timeline on the investigation every single day.

And if he does not take action and give us a public timeline or not take action soon on this Ethics investigation, hes gonna continue to hear from those of us on the floor and through and through legislation and removing Santos, Garcia said.

The move to refer the expulsion resolution to the Ethics Committee is largely redundant because the panel has been looking into Santos since March, when it launched an investigation into whether he engaged in unlawful activity during his 2022 campaign and failed to properly disclose information to the House, among other questions.

Santos has been under mounting scrutiny since before he was sworn into office amid questions about his background and finances. Last week, prosecutors indicted him on 13 federal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making materially false statements to the House of Representatives. He is accused of misleading campaign donors, fraudulently receiving COVID-19 unemployment benefits and disclosing false information on financial forms.

The congressman pleaded not guilty.

Garcia introduced the expulsion resolution in February but called it to the floor as a privileged resolution Tuesday, which forced McCarthy to move on the measure. Rather than bringing it to the floor, which would require two-thirds support to pass, or moving to table the measure, which would need majority support, the Speaker held a vote to refer the resolution to the Ethics Committee, which required at least half of the chamber to be on board.

The House voted to refer the resolution in a 221-204-7 vote. All five Democrats on the House Ethics Committee voted present, in addition to Reps. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.). All other Democrats voted against referring the measure to the Ethics panel, and Republicans supported the move.

Garcia called the vote cowardly and warned that Republicans could face the vote again in the future if they dont take action with the Ethics Committee.

The Hill reached out to McCarthy for comment.

Asked about the letter on Thursday, Santos said transparency is great.

In a statement Wednesday, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.), who called for Santos to resign and be expelled but voted to refer the resolution to the Ethics panel, said he expects the committee to complete its investigation in 60 days.

While I would have preferred there to be enough votes to expel the sociopath scam artist, Congressman [Anthony] DEsposito [R-N.Y.] has spearheaded the next best option: To refer this matter to the Ethics Committee where we expect a result within 60 days and for the terrible liar to be gone, by resignation or expulsion, before August recess, he said.

Punchbowl News reported Thursday that the Justice Department privately requested that the Ethics Committee hold off on its probe of Santos, but the panel rebuffed the ask, according to several sources close to the issues. The committee is moving along with its own probe of Santos.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Mohammed Sarsour looks out from one of the windows of his damaged apartment in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, days after it was hit by an Israeli air strike

Lying in a Gaza hospital, Najwa Abu Aisha says she stood on the roof of her home when shrapnel sliced through her spinal cord in the latest cross-border violence.

"I was on the roof checking the water barrels, (when) suddenly I heard the sound of an explosion which caused the water barrel to fall on me. I fell on the neighbour's house and, after that, I didn't feel anything," she said.

The 48-year-old is one of 190 people health authorities in the coastal enclave said were wounded in five days of fighting last week between Palestinian militants and Israel, which killed 35 people.

Abu Aisha has no memory of what caused the explosion -- whether it was outgoing or incoming fire -- and her son who was with her remains unable to talk about what happened to his mother.

The family told AFP their home in northern Gaza City is beside a site used by Islamic Jihad militants.

The group fired volleys of rockets from Gaza towards Israel, after top figures within the group were killed in Israeli strikes.

"I'm half paralysed, I have pain that's not normal and I can't bear any movement of my body," said Abu Aisha.

"I'm tired," she said, surrounded by family in a private room within Shifa hospital.

In targeting Islamic Jihad, the Israeli military said it carried out assessments which "showed that the expected collateral damage to civilians and civilian property will not be excessive in relation to the military advantage anticipated in the attack".

- 'Destroyed our dreams' -

Doctor Moatasem al-Nono, who was supervising Abu Aisha's case, said the wound to her spinal cord was so severe there is no hope of her regaining movement in her lower limbs.

Her condition has also cut off a vital income for the family in the blockaded Gaza Strip, where unemployment is rife, as she is no longer able to work in the local kindergarten.

Antique collector Hazem Muhanna, 62, said the destruction of his home in an Israeli strike on Gaza City "destroyed our dreams and our future".

"If they destroyed my house and five other houses, it would be easier on me than destroying the antiques and artefacts that I cherish," said Muhanna, holding up old bank notes and an engraved jug recovered from the ruins.

A retired security guard, Muhanna had for decades used part of his salary to collect antiques and display them in his home "like a museum".

His elderly mother sat on a plastic chair in the narrow alley, while his young relatives endeavoured to find more of Muhanna's collectables.

Muhanna said his brother received a call one night from Israeli forces warning him to evacuate the home before they bombed it.

"I don't know why (the house was targeted). My daughters and sons were here -- 50 people were in the house," he said.

Multiple children and civilians were among 33 people killed in Gaza, while one Israeli and a Gazan labourer were killed in Israel.

- 'We're not living' -

Israel's military said it had endeavoured to warn Gazans of their impending bombardment.

"Buildings were not attacked until they were fully evacuated of civilian population," it said in a statement.

Mohammed Sarsour, 29, was weeks away from his wedding and had just finished preparing his apartment for married life when his neighbour told him they were about to be bombed.

"Then I went home and I couldn't find anything. No window, no bedroom or door," he said, in the central Deir al-Balah district.

Broken glass and debris now fill the apartment, while there are deep cracks and gaping holes in the wall.

Sarsour works in a bakery and said he had saved up for years but, with his meagre earnings, he had still taken on debts to renovate the apartment and buy appliances.

"I'm devastated. I have nothing left to do in my life," said Sarsour, whose damaged home looks out onto the rubble of buildings hit by an Israeli strike.

Although a ceasefire has largely held since Saturday, he expected only renewed violence after multiple wars fought across Gaza's borders in recent years.

"Every two months or a year there's a war," he said. "We're not living."

bur-rsc/ami/dv
Democrats avoided an electoral wipeout in the 2022 midterms. One way they did so was by reassembling a history-defying coalition of young voters who turned out at rates more commonly seen in presidential elections, according to a new study of voter-file data according to a new study of voter file data.

The Democratic data firm Catalist found that these voters bested 2018 turnout levels in states with the most competitive races for governor or Senate  and they overwhelmingly favored Democratic candidates, even if the overall political environment swung to the right.

Like other studies of the 2022 electorate  which mostly rely on surveys of voters on or around Election Day  the Catalist report finds that Democrats increased their support among women voters over 2020. Abortion is cited as a key factor in that shift: Polls and registration data show that Democratic women were more motivated to vote after the Supreme Courts Dobbs decision.

The Catalist report does offer some warning signs for the party, particularly a drop in turnout among Black voters. But it mostly suggests that close, high-turnout elections continue to be the norm since Donald Trumps election in 2016. Both sides are highly activated to participate in both presidential elections and years in between. That means we could be headed to another year of record or near-record voter turnout in 2024, even if both candidates wind up being unpopular.

High turnout was especially evident in the most competitive races, Catalist found. Democrats defiance of a so-called red wave came because Democrats managed to win the lions share of competitive races for Senate, governor and House.

How did they do it, and what does it mean for 2024  and beyond? Here are five takeaways from the Catalist report:



Democrats won the most competitive races thanks to turnout

We already know that Democrats overperformed in 2022: They won five of the six Senate races POLITICO rated as toss ups going into Election Day, along with four of five governors races and 20 of 26 House races.

Strategists and analysts have settled on a number of explanations for the results, particularly an examination of candidate quality issues dogging Republican Senate candidates like Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and Herschel Walker in Georgia.

But the Catalist report offers a new reason from the voter files: higher turnout. Turnout was between 5 and 8 percent above 2018 levels in four of the six Senate races POLITICO classified as toss ups  Arizona, Nevada, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania  and around 2018 levels in the other two: Georgia and Wisconsin.

Turnout in states without competitive races was 8 percent lower than in highly contested states.

The Catalist report stresses that high turnout doesnt always benefit Democratic candidates, though high turnout seems to have helped them in elections last year.

We may remain in a high turnout era, but voters perceptions of how competitive and salient an election is can change dramatically, the report says.

Despite history, young voters showed up

Americans under 30 made up one-in-10 voters, down slightly from 12 percent in 2018. But branching out to the Millennial and Gen-Z generations, they made up 26 percent of the electorate, up from 23 percent four years earlier.

Whats also notable about young voters is that  despite the historical penalty typically paid by the party in power  Democrats actually increased their vote share among those under 30, winning 65 percent of them, up from 62 percent in 2020, according to Catalist modeling of voter-file data.

Combined with 2018, its the first time Democrats have exceeded 60 percent among young voters in two consecutive midterms. The Catalist report suggests that young voters may be uniquely turned off by Trumps version of the Republican Party, in an inverse of how voters who came of age during Franklin Roosevelt and Ronald Reagans administrations tended to remain Democrats and Republicans, respectively, throughout their lives.

Women voters propelled Democrats in contested races

Nationally, women voters in 2022 shifted slightly to Republicans by about 2 points, about half the margin of the shift among men, 4 points.

But in the most competitive races, Democrats increased their vote share among women by 2 points  and 4 points among women without a college degree  the Catalist report shows.

It is plausible that Democrats were successful in convincing this segment of voters that choice was on the ballot, leading to marginal gains that secured important wins, the report says.

Democrats actually made limited inroads with non-college voters

For much of the past two decades, the phenomenon that has best explained our politics has been the realignment of white voters along educational lines. Trump accelerated the movement of less-educated voters to the GOP, but it was already well under way when George W. Bush and Barack Obama were on the ballot.

But Catalists findings are a bit counterintuitive. They found that Democratic candidates in competitive races won 40 percent of white voters without a college degree, up from 36 percent in 2020. By contrast, Democrats share of white college graduates in those contests dipped from 53 percent in 2020 to 51 percent in 2022.

This was a somewhat surprising result given both the prominent role education polarization has had in recent elections and the lack of such a trend in other data sources, such as the exit poll, the report says, citing precinct election result data showing Democratic candidates in 2022 outperforming Bidens 2020 vote in places with higher numbers of non-college white voters.

A warning sign with Black voters

Black voters remain the most loyal members of Democrats coalition, but there are signs of fraying. Democratic candidates won 88 percent of Black voters in 2022, down from 91 percent in 2020. Some of the biggest slides came among younger Black voters, a group thats less likely to approve of Bidens job performance than other Democratic-friendly cohorts.

And Black voters made up 10 percent of the midterm electorate, down from 12 percent in the 2020 presidential election.

There were some bright spots for Democrats: Democrats ran stronger among Black voters in Georgia and North Carolina, states where top-of-the-ticket Democratic candidates were African Americans.

The report also finds consistent support for Democrats among Latino voters, who represent a smaller share of the electorate, about 8 percent. Catalist estimates that Democrats won 62 percent of Latino voters in 2022, unchanged from 2020.
Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Getty

Before Rep. George Santos allegedly bilked a deep-pocketed donor out of $25,000, the now-congressman was pulling a similar scam on fellow Republican candidates, GOP sources tell The Daily Beast.

The 13-count federal indictment unsealed last week charged the New York lawmaker withamong other thingshaving an associate lie to a contributor in fall 2022 that a firm Santos co-owned was really a nonprofit that could bankroll advertisements for his congressional candidacy.

The prosecutors describe this incident as part of an ongoing scheme through which Santos deceived multiple backers into donating money to this entity by presenting it as an independent committee supporting his bid for the House. In truth, the feds say, much of the money wound up in Santos personal accounts.

But, according to multiple GOP sources who spoke with The Daily Beast, the first victims of the ploy were not donors but his fellow Republican candidates.

The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Associated Press, as well as The Daily Beasts own research, have all identified Company #1 in the indictment with Redstone Strategiesa limited liability company formed in Florida in November 2021, and which listed Santos Devolder Organization and his old co-worker Jayson Benoit as its managers. In an interview with The Daily Beast, Santos both denied that Redstone Strategies was the company in the case, and that he ever served as its manager, insisting that Benoit had included his company in the original business filings in error.

But there does not appear to be another company formed in Florida that matches the indictments description, and Santos also insisted he had no idea what Company #1 could be. Further, a source supplied The Daily Beast with communications that Benoit sent out on behalf of Redstone Strategies. Benoit did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

Campaign finance records show that Redstone raked in cash from multiple sources during the 2022 cycle, including from Rise NY PAC, a political action committee run by the now-congressmans sister. It also served as a vendor to failed House candidate Robert Cornicelli, and to several other GOP insurgents in New York, most of whom did not respond to requests for comment on the record.

Those who did, however, reported a pattern of deceptive behavior on the part of Santos and poor or negligible services from Redstone.

George didnt only lie to his voters, but also to fellow candidates around him for his own alleged financial gain, Stefano Forte, a Republican who unsuccessfully sought a state Senate seat in Queens last fall, wrote in a statement to The Daily Beast.

Forte said that Santos approached him and urged him to hire Redstone, claiming the company had fundraised huge sums of money for him and for Tina Forte, who was challenging Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (the two Fortes are not related). He said Benoit repeated the second claim when the two made contact.

Records show that Stefano Forte cut off Redstone in June 2022after paying the company more than $14,000.

They did do some fundraising for me, but ultimately I was unhappy with their work and decided to part ways with them, Forte continued, adding that he later learned of Santos stake in the company. I immediately had words with George because I was very upset that he kept that information from me.

Republicans Tina Forte, left, and Stefano Forte, right. (The two are not related). The Daily Beast/Reuters/Handout

In a phone conversation with The Daily Beast, Santos admitted he had referred other candidates to Redstone, but denied he benefited financially from any of the transactions. He also dismissed Fortes complaints, accusing his fellow GOPer of plotting to run against him.

Obviously hes trying to build chips against me, Santos said.

Forte fired back in a text message sent to The Daily Beast, alluding to the congressmans record of scandals, alter egos, and numerous mistruths.

Who do you believe? Me or Anthony Devolder (a.k.a. George Santos a.k.a. world-famous Brazilian drag queen Kitara Ravache)proud Jew and former Baruch volleyball star, Goldman Sachs executive, producer of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Hannah Montana guest star, and eccentric millionaire? Forte wrote, calling for the congressman to resign his seat. Im sure hes nervous that Ill run against him. But Id be surprised if he even has the opportunity to run again once the justice system takes its course.

In fact Redstone Strategies worked for neither Santos election effort nor for Tina Forte. But Tina Fortes campaign did pay another company Santos and Benoit co-founded: Red Strategies USA, which took in upwards of $110,000 from the failed House bid.

Tina Forte declined to answer questions for this story, directing The Daily Beast to her former campaign manager, who also declined a request for comment. But one of her former staffers told a very similar story to Stefano Forte.

Marketing consultant and activist Jen Remauro told The Daily Beast that Santos had urged the fellow congressional contender to hire Red Strategies USA, while concealing his financial interest in it. In fact, she said Santos engineered Tina Fortes entire challenge to the famous democratic socialist lawmaker for the apparent purpose of profiting from it.

Remauro recalled a conversation she had with Tina Forte shortly before the candidate filed to run in June 2021, in which Forte described a phone call she said she had received from Santos.

He told me he was in Mar-a-Lago with a bunch of other politicians and my name was running around, and they all were talking about how I ought to run for Congress against AOC, Remauro said Forte told her. He said They all use this company Red Strategies and I dont really know them, but I have their card.

Remauro said Santos then arranged a Google Meet call between Forte, herself, Benoit, and Red Strategies other co-foundersmost of them, like Benoit, veterans of the alleged Ponzi scheme where Santos previously worked, but also including Santos campaign treasurer Nancy Marks. Remauro asserted that Santos pretended to be merely a facilitator of the meeting, and even introduced himself to his business partners as if meeting them for the first time.

Marks, who did not respond to requests for comment, ultimately would work for both Fortes, and for every other Redstone client. Tina Fortes campaign ultimately signed a contract with Red Strategies that allowed the company to take 80 percent of all fundraising proceeds for the first four months, according to a copy The Daily Beast viewed. But Remauro alleged the firm turned out low-quality materials and did little to actually build campaign infrastructure, while raking in huge sums off credit card contributions made through Tina Fortes donations page.

Remauro said Santos was in constant contact with Tina Fortes campaign team, usually by text, often commiserating about Red Strategies poor service and volunteering himself as an interlocutor between the campaign and the firm.

He was playing the role of not knowing these people and being on our side. Because they werent doing their jobs, Remauro said. He was like the middle man between Red Strategies and us.

Santos called Remauros version of events absurd and questioned her motives and credibility. But Remauro shared screen grabs of multiple documentsincluding the invite to the original Red Strategies Google Meetas well as of text exchanges between herself and Santos, in which she confronted him with the discovery that he was one of Red Strategies co-founders. In the text threads, Santos lied to Remauro and denied it, insisting he had only bought into the firm in August 2021.

Moreover, Remauros story is consistent with intel The Daily Beast previously received from Santos-linked sources, who alleged the now-congressman had gotten Tina Forte to run for the House to make money off her donors.

Other evidence The Daily Beast obtained from a GOP source who asked to remain anonymous indicates Redstone Strategies was simply a continuation of the Red Strategies scheme. The insider, a consultant who wished to protect their relationships in the party, shared with The Daily Beast a proposed contract that Benoit sent in January 2022 to Pura de Jesus Coniglio, who sought to run against Tina Forte in the GOP primary. The contract, which bears the Redstone logo, resembles the deal Red Strategies had signed with Tina Forte. Forte made her last payment to Red Strategies on December 31 of the prior year.

Coniglios team, which also employed Marks as its treasurer, rejected the arrangement and ultimately failed to get their candidate on the ballot. Coniglio did not respond to a request for comment.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Is he a man of God or a crook?

Police allege a Georgia pastor has a long string of identity theft victims across multiple counties.

Pastor Reveckeyo R. A. Hill agreed to sit down on camera with Channel 2 consumer investigator Justin Gray to talk about the allegations being lodged against him.

On top of being a pastor, Hill also runs an Athens car dealership -- H and P Auto Brokers, formerly located in Jackson County.

But a long list of alleged victims claim hes also something else -- a career criminal.

Hes a menace to society, said Patricia Hill.

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I wish nothing bad on him, but I just fear how people just hurt other people, customer Stephanie Dowdy said.

Theres a lot that is confusing about the alleged financial schemes. Whats not confusing is that Hill was convicted of identity fraud, forgery, and theft by deception charges in Elbert County in late September.

Hes out pending his appeal.

But just weeks later, according to police incident reports, new criminal activity was already underway leading to a 10-count Athens-Clarke County criminal indictment with more charges of forgery theft by deception and identity theft.

Im fairly certain its just the tip of the iceberg, said Athens-Clarke County Police Detective Nathaniel Franco, who has been leading the investigation against Hill for his department. He will use peoples real identity, who bought a car with him in the past. Hell use their identity to register vehicles in their name without their knowledge.

People like Evette Stricklands late husband who she told Gray that he owed $70,000 on a truck he never received.

(If) Someones a pastor, you would think they were  they would lead you in the right direction and not take money from you, Strickland said.

Attorney Michael Sterling said his client was also a victim who originally went into business with Hill to purchase a dump truck.

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He ended up using her name, credit or Social Security number, forging her name on several documents, buying multiple other trucks, dump trucks, which she had no idea about, Sterling said.

Stephanie Dowdy thought somebody stole her car.

I woke up one morning and the car was gone, Dowdy said.

It was actually repossessed.

She won a civil judgment against Hill.

I was paying him the money, but he wasnt paying the loan company, Dowdy said.

Gray worked for weeks to get Hill to agree to an interview.

We just want a fair investigation, be fair, Hill said.

Hills attorney said they would not talk about that Athens criminal investigation and charges.

I think you guys are used to dealing with people that run from you guys. Im not intimidated by you guys, Hill said.

But something else happened on the day Gray finally sat down with Hill, who was several hours late.

Have you told someone youre trying to purchase Park Chevrolet in Spartanburg, South Carolina? Itd be great if they went into business with you, Gray asked.

Im confused on why youre asking me about what business were trying to do, Hill said.

Because in the three hours since weve been waiting on you to show up here, there have been new charges filed against you in relation to that deal, Gray told Hill.

Police had charged Hill with more crimes in another fraud scheme, alleging he forged documents and signatures about purchasing the car dealership.

Police say it was all fake and was allegedly an effort to get $200,000 upfront and more than $1 million total from another car dealer.

Hes forging paperwork. Hes making stuff up, Franco said.

Hill told Gray that he has proof that all his deals are legit -- paperwork and audio recordings.

But he and his attorney declined to provide show Gray with that proof.

Weve sold over 547 cars to different people in Georgia. You dont have 500-some odd people calling the news channel saying, Oh, I need my car, has two loans on it, Hill said.

Had they reached out, he would have opened up the books and let them see what was going on, Lewis said.

But getting a direct answer from Hill to a direct question -- that can be tough.

You didnt forge any documents? Gray asked Hill. You wont say yes or no. You didnt forge any documents?

Im not going to we dont know about Hill said.

I can say I have never forged any documents, Gray said.

And Im going to say I dont even know what documents youre talking about, so I wouldnt be able to forge documents, Hill said.

Well, I mean, I can just say Ive never forged a document, period, Gray said.

I dont know any documents that will have me that are forged. OK? Hill said.

Hill is appealing the charges hes already been convicted of in Elbert County. That could mean several years behind bars.

As for the Athens charges, according to the incident reports, Hill had only been out on bond a matter of days for the first batch of 10 Athens charges when he was allegedly beginning to commit the crimes that lead to the new indictments filed last month.

Hill maintains he is innocent of all the charges.

IN OTHER NEWS:
Georgia unemployment flat for ninth straight month thanks to education and health services

Georgias unemployment rate held steady at 3.1% last month for the ninth consecutive month, three-tenths of a point below the national jobless rate of 3.4%, state Commissioner of Labor Bruce Thompson reported Thursday.

Georgias labor force increased for the seventh straight month to nearly 5.3 million, an all-time high. The number of employed grew to just more than 5.1 million, also a record.

Jobs were up a slight 0.2% in April from March but have risen 2.3% compared to April of last year to almost 4.9 million, another all-time high.

The states economy continues to soar with low unemployment and job growth in virtually every sector, Thompson said.

Job numbers in the private education and health services sector grew to 655,900, followed by an increase of 518,400 in the leisure and hospitality sector.

Initial unemployment claims last month were up by 15% over March to 25,407. Over the year, initial jobless claims rose by 46%.

More than 154,000 job listings were posted online last month for Georgians to access. The top industries for openings included health care with 32,300 openings, retail trade with 18,400, and accommodation and food services with 13,300 openings.
The child's death appears to be the first in US Border Patrol custody for several years

An eight-year-old girl has died in US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody after a medical emergency, the agency says.

The girl and her family were detained at a border patrol site in Harlingen, Texas when she fell ill, the CBP said.

The agency said she was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead on Wednesday.

It said it would investigate the incident and that the Department of Homeland Security had been notified.

The Honduran consul in the border town of McAllen, Texas, Jose Leonardo Navas, identified the girl as Panama-born Anadith Tanay Reyes Alvarez.

Mr Navas told the Associated Press that she was travelling to the US with her Honduran parents and her two older siblings, and had been born with heart problems. Her father reportedly told the consul that she had been operated on in Panama three years ago.

Her death appears to be the first in US Border Patrol custody for several years.

But it is the second death of a child from Latin America in US government custody in as many weeks.

Last week a 17-year-old Honduran boy who arrived unaccompanied in the US died at a government shelter facility in Florida.

The government did not provide any information on the medical emergency the girl experienced or other circumstances surrounding her death. It said it would share more details as they became available.

In a statement, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus said it has asked Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to brief lawmakers on the incident.

"We have a fundamental duty to protect migrants in our case and custody, any death is unacceptable," the statement said. "We cannot go back to 2019."

It comes shortly after the expiration of Title 42, a Covid-19-era border policy that allowed the US to quickly expel migrants who crossed into the country illegally.

Border officials had been bracing for a sharp rise in migrant crossings in the wake of its expiration, though initial data shows US officials saw a much smaller surge than expected.
CAMDEN  A Glassboro man has admitted to killing a Collingswood man in an early-morning shooting in January 2021.

Angel Torres, 33, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter in connection with the death of Michael Giancola, according to the Camden County Prosecutors Office.

The 6 a.m. shooting occurred after the men had a verbal exchange on the 1800 block of South 6th Street in Camden, the prosecutors office said.

More: Witness details night of violence Is this how a dispute at a South Jersey water-ice shop turned into a double killing?

Torres opened fire as Giancola tried to drive away, striking the 24-year-old victim twice.

Giancolas vehicle crashed at the intersection of South 6th Street and Ferry Avenue. He was pronounced dead at an area hospital.

Torres was arrested nine days later in a hotel near Baltimore.

Under his plea, Torres would be required to serve 85 percent of a 20-year prison term, or 17 years, before parole eligibility.

He entered his plea at a May 16 hearing before Superior Court Judge Kurt Kramer in Camden.

The judge scheduled sentencing for June 15.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email him at jwalsh@cpsj.com.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Angel Torres, accused of killing Michael Giancola, enters plea
Latest revelations from the special counsels probe into ex-President Donald Trumps handling of classified documents deepen a sense that a grave political moment is approaching.

An exclusive CNN report that appears to point to a core weakness in Trumps case is reinforcing the possibility that the 2024 presidential contender is in a heap of legal trouble.

Possible evidence that Trump knew that his claims that he could simply declassify material on a whim were false highlight his characteristic belief that laws and codes of presidential behavior do not apply to him. This is a factor that made his White House term a daily test of Americas democracy and legal system and may become even more acute if he wins the 2024 election.

The latest glimpse into special counsel Jack Smiths investigation also shows that while any charges against Trump for potential violations of the Espionage Act and obstruction of justice might be justified in a purely legal context, they would come with a high level of responsibility to explain to the public why such a step in a potentially complex case was merited in the charged atmosphere of a presidential election.

On the one hand, there is nothing more sacred than protecting the countrys secrets, especially those that could harm allies, help US enemies and endanger covert operatives. But the proposition that inside Washington arguments about classified material represent a priority for millions of voters is yet to be tested.

And fierce controversies still raging around Trump over the 2016 election show how toxic campaign season probes can be to American unity and US political and judicial institutions  all of which sharpens the need for a strong national interest justification for any prosecution.

National Archives and Trump again at odds

The exclusive report by CNNs Jamie Gangel, Zachary Cohen, Evan Perez and Paula Reid is another serious sign of Trumps potential legal exposure in the documents case  one of a flurry of investigations that include Smiths examination of the ex-presidents role ahead of his supporters attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and a separate probe by a local district attorney into his effort to overturn Joe Bidens election win in Georgia. Trump has already been indicted in Manhattan over alleged business irregularities related to a hush money payment in 2016.

This image contained in a court filing by the Department of Justice on August 30, 2022, and partially redacted by the source, shows a photo of documents seized during the FBI search of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. - Department of Justice

CNN reported that the National Archives plans to hand 16 documents over to the special counsel that show Trump knew the correct procedure for declassifying such material. This could be significant because it gets to the question of whether Trump had criminal intent, a building block of any case against him. If there is evidence that the ex-president knew he couldnt just declassify documents by taking them away from the White House  or even with a private thought as he once suggested  his defense on the issue of records stored at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida becomes more difficult.

In a May 16 letter obtained by CNN, acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall wrote to Trump  The 16 records in question all reflect communications involving close presidential advisers, some of them directed to you personally, concerning whether, why, and how you should declassify certain classified records.

In a CNN town hall event last week, Trump falsely claimed of top-secret documents: By the way, they become automatically declassified when I took them.

But former Trump White House lawyer Ty Cobb told CNNs Erin Burnett on Wednesday that the latest CNN reporting surrounding the National Archives was a sign that Smith was taking steps that could signal he may soon move against Trump.

I think this is i dotting and t crossing. I think that this case is ready to go, Cobb said.

The simple fact is there is a process  and (Trump) totally ignored that and believes that the mere fact he took them declassifies (the documents). That is not the law.

Still, Trumps attorney, Jim Trusty, said on CNN on Wednesday that Trump had done nothing wrong and argued that as president he previously enjoyed substantial powers to declassify documents, in a possible preview of any future courtroom defense.

At the end of his presidency, he relied on the constitutional authority as commander-in-chief which is to take documents and take them to Mar-a-Lago while still President as he was at the time and to effectively declassify and personalize them. He talked about declassifying them but he didnt need to, Trusty said. He also argued that there was a wide grey area in the interpretation of the Presidential Records Act  which says that the government reserves and retains complete ownership, possession and control of presidential documents.

If Cobb is right and Smith could be moving toward an indictment, Americans could soon be wrestling with an increasingly familiar question: What is the appropriate way to hold to account a president and presidential candidate whose core political model is rooted in breaking all the rules but whose indictment could further inflame an already deeply polarized nation?

Where does the national interest lie in pursuing Trump?

The fresh insight into Trumps allegedly cavalier handling of classified documents as president and afterward is the latest twist in a saga that shot to public attention with the stunning search of his resort last year by the FBI  the first time that such a search occurred at the home of a former president. Agents took away classified and top secret documents but Trumps allies claimed he had a standing order to declassify documents he took from the Oval Office to the White House residence. Some of those files may have been moved to Mar-a-Lago.

But 18 former top Trump administration officials said they never heard of any such order being issued during their time working for Trump, telling CNN that the claim was ludicrous and ridiculous. And there is no power for ex-presidents to declassify of possess highly sensitive national security documents, so the exact treatment given to each piece of secret information found at Mar-a-Lago could get to Trumps potential culpability.

More broadly however, the documents case reinforces the underlying question swirling around Trump that is becoming more acute as the next election approaches.

There is a clear national interest in protecting classified information and enforcing laws surrounding presidential conduct in order to prevent an erosion of the political institutions that underpin the democracy that Trump has tried so often to weaken. And there is also a national interest in proving that no one  whether they are a president or ex-president is above the law.

At the same time however, there is also a profound national interest in the peaceful conduct of a presidential election that all Americans see as fair. And Trump has already successfully cast deep suspicion on the motives of the Justice Department and the Biden administration  arguing, that he is the target of a coordinated campaign of political persecution.

Smith has an obligation to follow the law and the evidence where it leads, and to make decisions on potential indictments and prosecutions on the same basis. But this case cannot unspool in isolation given Trumps previous role and current presidential campaign. It comes with an obligation  presumably for Attorney General Merrick Garland  to look at the wider potential consequences of putting a former president and current presidential candidate on trial.

This also begs the question of whether a case over the mishandling of classified documents  which could turn on complex legal arguments and questions of motivation  will be an easy sell to a wider public audience and could play into Trumps claims that he is being victimized. These may be false, but they help brew the secret political sauce which his supporters love.

The case is especially sensitive because Biden also had his own classified documents problem over material found in an office he used after leaving the vice presidency and his garage. The cases are distinct because there is no sign that the president deliberately took the documents and, unlike Trump, made no attempt to prevent their return to the Archives when they were found. But it will be easy for the ex-president and his allies to fog the details of these cases and make a political case that legal double standards are at play and there is a political motivation.

How would multiple indictments weigh on Trumps 2024 campaign?

The question of the political impact of prosecuting Trump already came up since his indictment in a case being prosecuted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg appeared to spike his popularity in the GOP nominating race. It also caused his potential rivals for the top of the ticket to condemn the move as politicized, complicating their own attempts to defeat the ex-president. The case, focusing on alleged violations of book-keeping, is also a complex one to boil down into an argument that might convince millions of Americans Trump is being fairly dealt with.

One big unknown of the current presidential campaign is whether future and multiple indictments would further embolden Trump and cause persuadable voters that hes being unfairly targeted? Or could it cause his campaign to sink into an abyss of legal and criminal liability?

The release this week of a report by another special counsel  the Trump administration-appointed John Durham  gave Trump fresh political ammunition to argue hes being victimized. Durham argued that the investigation into the Trump campaigns links to Russia in 2016 should never have started  even though officials who were serving at the time and many legal analysts disputed his findings. Trump immediately seized on the report to embroider his claims that he is the victim of politicized investigations, casting his argument forward to seek to taint the Smith probe, the Georgia case and the Manhattan indictment.

Wednesdays new details about his apparently deeper-than-previously-known jeopardy in the documents probe only add to a profound issue clouding the 2024 election.

It may be contrary to the national interest to ignore huge affronts to the rule of law by a previously sitting president  including alleged mishandling of classified information  since questions fundamental to American democracy are in play. But a prosecution could again create a political inferno that could further damage confidence among millions of Americans about the countrys legal and election systems.

This is the treacherous brink to which Trump has again brought the nation.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Along with Alice Diops Saint Omer, which won Venices Silver Lion last year, and Justine Triets Anatomy of a Fall, premiering in Cannes main competition next week, Cedric Kahns The Goldman Case marks a recent trend of arthouse courtroom dramas that, beyond a few exceptions (such as Henri-George Clouzots seldom seen masterpiece, The Truth), have never been a major facet of French cinema.

This is because French trials, unlike American ones, tend to be less dramatic, with fewer rulings by jury (outside of murder cases) and with the judge playing a larger role in the proceedings, reviewing facts and statements in a dry manner. However, there have been a number of highly headline-grabbing trials in France these past years, including that of former President Nicolas Sarkozy for election fraud charges, and another concerning the November 13 terrorist attacks, which have brought the courtroom back into the public sphere.

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Like Diops excellent film, Kahns is based on a trial that actually happened. In fact, beyond an opening scene taking place in the office of the titular defendants lawyer, Maitre Kiejman (Arthur Harari, director of Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle), the entirety of The Goldman Case is set inside a courtroom. This sounds like the backdrop for a play, and it makes for a verbose feature from a director whose previous films, such as Red Lights and The Prayer, were more visual and lyrical.

And yet The Goldman Case is not a regular stage drama, either. There is of course a certain level of suspense surrounding whether the defendant, Pierre Goldman (Arieh Worthalter), a leftist radical who committed several robberies and is accused of murdering two pharmacists, will be acquitted. And yet as the trial proceeds, it becomes fairly evident, at least to us, that the man is not guilty. The question is therefore whether the French state will actually let him off.

Set in 1975, at a time when crime was occasionally tied to left-wing radicalism in Europe (the Baader-Meinhof group, the Red Brigades) and the U.S. (the Weather Underground), the film presents Goldmans ordeal less as a murder trial than a political trial of character. Kahn, who wrote the script with Nathalie Hertzberg, was inspired to make the movie after reading the defendants autobiography, Obscure Memories of a Polish Jew Born in France, which Goldman penned in prison and which turned him into a hero among the intelligentsia. His trial was attended by a swath of reporters, as well as by philosopher Regis Debray and actress Simone Signoret (played by lookalikes in the film), becoming a cause celebre in the wake of May 1968 that pitted the government, especially the criminal justice system, against the left.

Throughout the movie, Kahn keeps returning to the prejudice of the French police, who fingered Goldman as the culprit in the pharmacy killings without any substantial proof. Their only major eyewitness is, in fact, an off-duty cop (Paul Jeanson), who was shot while the assailant was fleeing the scene of the crime, and who never manages to get his story straight. Another witness, a friend of Goldmans hailing from the Antilles (Maxime Tshibangu), claims he was coerced by the police into testifying against him.

From the get-go, the vocal and volatile Goldman admits to committing various robberies but not to the murders, and hes so self-assured that we believe him. Interrupting his lawyers, as well as the bigoted government prosecutor, Maitre Garaud (Nicolas Briancon), he uses his trial as a platform to lash out against the police and state whenever he can. With a courtroom filled with leftist supporters, he turns the witness box into his own soapbox, decrying a country that remains racist, antisemitic and unjust.

Franco-Belgian actor Worthalter, whos perhaps best known for his role in Lukas Dhonts Girl, is riveting every time his character takes the stand. He convinces us of Goldmans innocence, not to mention his commitment to political causes, far before the trial is over, and were only hoping that the jury will wind up agreeing with us. To back up the defendants testimony, we also hear from Goldmans father (Jerzy Radziwilowicz), a Jewish war hero who gave his son an early education in resisting oppressors, prompting him to take up leftist activism later on, including a stint as a guerilla in Venezuela.

This isnt to say Goldman has always been an upstanding citizen  he admits to being both a criminal and an alcoholic  but his honesty, including about the errors hes made in the past, make up for his blatant shortcomings. It also helps that the defendant has such a passionate and poetic way of expressing himself aloud: Im innocent because Im innocent, he claims at one point, refusing to give further proof because doing so would be to comply with the injustice being committed against him.

Indeed, what links The Goldman Case to Saint Omer is its use of the courtroom drama to point the camera directly at French injustice itself. For Diop, it was about exploring her countrys latent racism, whereas for Kahn its about the anti-leftist and antisemitic leanings of the state in the 1970s  leanings that have found a new voice in todays rise of the French radical right. Jews and Blacks are the same, explains Goldman in one of his many outbursts, and while that may seem like an overstatement, it brings up an unpleasant truth about discrimination in France that this powerful film bears witness to.

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What Google and Twitter's big wins at the Supreme Court mean for the internet

The News

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Twitter and Google in two cases that questioned whether social media networks should be held liable for harmful content posted on their platforms.

In doing so, the justices sidestepped ruling on Section 230, the legal protection that generally shields internet companies from being sued over what users post.

"Internet companies today are breathing a big sigh of relief," Anupam Chander, an expert on tech regulation and professor at Georgetown Law, told Semafor.

Here are three takeaways from the rulings and the implications they could have for the future of the internet.

Know More

1. Section 230 survives

In the Google case, the family of U.S. college student Nohemi Gonzalez, who was killed in a 2015 ISIS attack, accused YouTube (which is owned by Google) of promoting terrorist videos through its algorithm.

The lawsuit could have given the court an opening to roll back some Section 230 protections, potentially exposing tech platforms to more liability and having wide-reaching implications for the web. Instead, the justices dismissed the case and left a lower court ruling in place.

The ruling was cheered by internet freedom advocates like the tech industry group NetChoice, which called the decision "a huge win for free speech on the internet."

The ruling was also notable, Chander said, because it focused on the platforms' own recommendation algorithms, rather than just user-generated content.

The plaintiffs' reasoning "would have made search engines liable for surfacing material that later turned out to be harmful, which would make search engines essentially illegal," Chander said.

2. Social platforms likened to cell phones

In the Twitter case, the Supreme Court justices unanimously ruled the platform wouldn't have to face accusations of aiding terrorism because it hosted tweets posted by ISIS.

The case was brought by the family members of Jordanian citizen Nawras Alassaf, who was killed in an ISIS attack in 2017. They claimed Twitter had helped ISIS by allowing some of the group's posts to remain on the site.

Given that real-world harm can often be traced back to the internet in some way, this case was a "three-alarm fire" for platforms, Chander said.

But the ruling suggests that the court equates the liability standard for social media platforms to that of other pieces of technology, even if they are sometimes used for harmful purposes.

"It might be that bad actors like ISIS are able to use platforms like defendants for illegal  and sometimes terrible  ends," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in the decision. "But the same could be said of cell phones, email, or the internet generally."

3. Leaving it to Congress

With the Supreme Court leaving Section 230 in place, its future could now be in the hands of Congress.

Members of both parties have called for the statute to be overhauled  or abolished altogether.

While Democrats want to reform Section 230 to help prevent the spread of misinformation, many Republicans don't like the law because they believe it allows big tech companies to get away with censorship.

Jeff Kosseff, a cybersecurity law professor who wrote a book on the history of Section 230, said Thursday that the court's ruling "maybe slightly" increases the chances of Congress amending the law.

"The proposals -- and visions for platform moderation -- are wildly different," he tweeted. "I don't see much consensus."
Twitter

A news conference hosted by conservative legislators outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday was interrupted by a blue-shirted protester, who buzzed around the podium with his phone out, peppering lawmakers like Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) with questions.

As the protester filmed Gosar, a bald man in a dark suit approached him and calmly introduced himself. Clay Higgins, I represent south Louisiana, the man says in the activists footage. All Im asking you to do is just peacefully stand by with your camera and I promise youlook at meIll come talk to you straight up and answer all your questions. Fair enough?

But when the protester swooped back in as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) was speaking, he barely had time to get out his questionabout whether her recent divorce was linked to her restaurants tainted pork slidersbefore Higgins was back.

In video captured both by the protester, Jake Burdett, and other people at the scene, Higgins can be heard saying, Uh-uh. Uh-uh. No. Youre out. Youre out. He then puts his hands on Burdett and starts physically propelling him backwards, bundling him away from the event.

Arent you a congressperson, touching me? Burdett asks. Get off me! Youre hurting me!

@RepClayHiggins pushing an activist for asking tough questions is supposed to be normal? pic.twitter.com/CQx6s3PCQ3  Kristy Fogle PA-C (@kristyfoglePAC) May 17, 2023

Burdett wasnt injured in the incident, he told The Daily Beast. But he felt scared, intimidated, powerless, defenseless. He couldnt exactly push back, he added later in an interview. Like, who do I think the cops are going to crack down on: me, or the congressperson?

Higgins didnt let go until the U.S. Capitol Police stepped in, according to Burdett. Officers took him across the street and questioned him, and the 25-year-old spent what he estimated to be about half an hour unsure if he was being detained. Someone eventually confirmed he was free to leave.

Its one thing for anybody to do that, he said of Higgins behavior. But for a sitting U.S. congressperson to think that thats OKit just shows an extra level of entitlement, that they feel theyre untouchable and the law doesnt apply to them.

A spokesperson for Higgins did not immediately respond to an after-hours request for comment from The Daily Beast.

In a statement to KATC earlier on Wednesday, Higgins said, Activist was a 103M, an apparent reference to the police code for disturbance by mental person.

Threatening, the statement continued. He was escorted out and turned over to Capitol Police. Textbook.

I am currently being detained by DC Police for asking tough questions to far right extremist Congressmen @RepGosar and @laurenboebert at a press conference. Rep Clay Higgins proceeded to assault/physically remove me from the press conference.For this, the cops detained me,not him pic.twitter.com/iX4yjCGKsZ  Jake Burdett (@jake_burdett) May 17, 2023

A 25-year-old grassroots organizer with some time on his hands between the end of his first year of law school and the start of his summer job, Burdett had gone to Washington, D.C., on Wednesday to attend a Medicare For All rally with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

After the rally, Burdett was surprised to see another press conference being set up in the same spot immediately after. Spotting Gosar and Boebert, he decided to stick around. I figured Id ask them some tough questions, he said. Bird-dog them, whatever you want to call it.

When Higgins pushed him back, he didnt know how to react. Ive never been in any situation like that, you know, Ive had some interesting run-ins with my activism, but nothing like this, Burdett said. (In 2019, he was charged with wiretapping after allegedly live-streaming a meeting at a Maryland congressmans offices on Facebook. He agreed to a plea deal, and received probation before judgment and community service.)

Sitting on the sidewalk while speaking to the police on Wednesday, Burdett said, he wondered if he would end up in jail. Instead, hours later, he was back home in Maryland, and is currently weighing his next move.

Im absolutely evaluating my options here, and if it looks like there is a strong case for assault and [there is] an attorney willing to take on the case, I am absolutely prepared to press charges, he said.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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The presumptive 2024 Republican presidential field is set to be one of the most diverse in the partys history, a development that comes as the GOP tries to expand its appeal beyond its largely white base.

While former President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) are seen as the clear front-runners, the primary has attracted one of the GOPs most diverse fields ever. Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, both of whom are Indian American, as well as conservative radio show host Larry Elder, whos Black, are all running for the Republican nomination. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), one of the highest-profile Black Republicans in Washington, is widely expected to join them later this month.

The growing field comes as the GOP has made some strides in broadening its appeal to minority voters and as some members of the party say presidential candidates should embrace their identities in the primary rather than gloss over them.

Republicans love the idea of  being able to push back on Democrats, and to frankly make Democrats look hypocritical for saying theyre the only ones who kind of represent diversity, said Mindy Finn, who was a presidential running mate to independent Evan McMullin in 2016.

I think Republicans take a lot of pride in being able to do that, and having a diverse field allows them to do that, Finn added.

Their candidacies come amid discussions within the Republican Party, which has typically been characterized by critics as a party dominated by older white men, about how diverse GOP candidates should address their identities.

In terms of when people talk about who are you, Tim Scott, and he talks about his upbringing and his parents and what they taught him and the community that he was raised in, which was a Black community, is that shameful? Should he not share those experiences? said Camilla Moore, chairwoman of the Georgia Black Republican Council.

I mean, the same thing for Nikki Haley. The same thing for [Elder], the same thing for anyone that has a historical ethnic background  they should be proud to talk about that. Thats not what theyre running on, but that is a part of who they are, she added.

The discussions also come as minority voters see their political capital grow in elections. Asian Americans, for example, one of the fastest-growing groups of eligible voters in the United States, saw their turnout rates jump from 49.3 percent in 2014 to 59.5 percent in 2020, according to AAPIData, indicating a key voting bloc that both parties will increasingly need to pay attention to.

A study conducted in 2020 found about 60 percent of Indian Americans said they would be open to voting for an Indian American candidate regardless of their party affiliation.

Now, some Republican lawmakers are calling for the 2024 ticket to reflect this new political reality.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) told The Hill on NewsNation she wants to see some diversity on the ticket. Id love to see a woman on the ticket. For example, Im a girl mom and raising a daughter and a son. And I want to see more younger leadership, either way, on this ticket headed into 2024.

This isnt the first time the Republican presidential field has seen women or candidates of color vying to be the nations top executive. The late Sen. Margaret Chase Smith (R-Maine) ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 1964  the first major female candidate to run for the presidency on either the Republican or Democratic side.

Former Rep. Michele Bachmann (D-Minn.) ran for president during the 2012 cycle, while former HP CEO Carly Fiorina ran in 2016. Former diplomat Alan Keyes ran for the GOP nomination several times in addition to former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson in 2016. Meanwhile, Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas), both of whom are Latino, ran in 2016.

One aspect of the 2024 Republican presidential primary field that makes it so notable is the extent to which it offers a contrast to the Democratic side, where President Biden runs for a second term. If the president is elected again, hell leave office at 86 years old.

It also comes after House Republicans added more diverse voices to its mix last year. Black, Latino and female elected officials joined the ranks in January, part of an effort to make the caucus the most racially and ethnically diverse in the GOPs history.

At the same time, the makeup of the Senate Republican caucus is largely male and white. And while the House GOP has seen growing diversity in its ranks, its leadership, too, is mostly all white and male except for House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).

One challenge the GOP has had to grapple with is its discomfort over identity politics. Many Republicans have largely bristled at the idea of focusing on cultural backgrounds, instead saying the emphasis should be on candidate qualifications and solutions, not identity.

Were not, on this campaign, very big on identity politics, said Tricia McLaughlin, senior adviser to Ramaswamy. The important piece of it is the content of someones ideas, and Viveks kind of big question is, do we want a national divorce or do we want a national revival?

One source advising a presidential campaign who requested anonymity to speak candidly suggested shared values and personal stories are more important for voters than the gender or cultural makeup of a candidate.

That is, I think, where the different folks who are throwing their hat in the ring here will find success is if those stories, if those backgrounds, if their diversity is something that is ultimately used and talked about in a way that relates with Americans across backgrounds, the source added.

Pointing to Indian Americans in particular, Hajar Yazdiha, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Southern California, said the group often distances itself from its race because of its precarious position in American society.

The model minority myth is often rolled out to draw comparisons between Asian Americans and other racialized groups, particularly Black Americans, to argue that by playing the rules and putting in the hard work, anyone can overcome discrimination and pull themselves up by their bootstraps, Yazdiha adds.

Some Republicans argue that talking about identity can be unhelpful for candidates. While GOP strategist Rina Shah suggested candidates shouldnt shy away from discussing their backgrounds, she said conversations around identity can also make it harder for individuals to focus on policy positions and other issues.

I think these identity conversations actually are a disservice to the American electorate because they force a candidate to have to continually rely on their identity to make themselves sound electable to the electorate, Shah said.

Whereas, you know, somebody that doesnt have to wear their identity so openly and talk about it all the time, about being a new American or being the kid of new Americans  theyre almost given this advantage, they can go straight to the issues.

But others argue it can help candidates win support by drawing parallels between their upbringing and the growing diversity of their voting base.

I think its who you are  you embrace it, Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) told The Hill in an interview last week.

Shortly before Ciscomani launched his campaign to run for Arizonas 6th Congressional District, he said his father pulled him aside, reflecting on his familys journey emigrating from Mexico and becoming U.S. citizens.

I can tell you that my perspective and the lens from which I was looking at everything came, a lot of it, from what was shaped by that conversation with my dad, and that could only come from someone that had to fight for their immigration and their citizenship, he added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Republican Congressman Clay Higgins yanked and shoved an activist who he claimed was mentally disturbed during a press conference outside the US Capitol.

Jake Burdett, an activist with leftist political views, was filming and asking questions of the GOP lawmakers present when a man in a suit approached him. The moment, which is captured in Mr Burdett's footage, shows the man in the suit  Mr Higgins  walking up, introducing himself, and telling the activist to back off and that he will answer his questions after the conference.

All Im asking you to do is just peacefully stand by with your camera and I promise youlook at meIll come talk to you straight up and answer all your questions. Fair enough? Mr Higgins asks.

Mr Burdett stood back, but zeroed in on the lawmakers again when Congresswoman Laura Boebert began to speak. The activist began to ask questions about her recently announced divorce but was intercepted by Mr Higgins.

Footage capturing the moment shows Mr Higgins grabbing the activist and shoving him several feet away from the press conference.

Uh-uh. Uh-uh. No. Youre out. Youre out," Mr Higgins can be heard saying in the footage.

Mr Burdett can be heard protesting Mr Higginss interference, asking: Aren't you a congressperson, touching me? He then demanded that he get off and said that the lawmaker was hurting him.

Mr Higgins continued to grapple Mr Burdett until DC Metropolitan police intervened and split the men up.

I am currently being detained by DC Police for asking tough questions to far right extremist Congressmen @RepGosar and @laurenboebert at a press conference. Rep Clay Higgins proceeded to assault/physically remove me from the press conference.For this, the cops detained me,not him pic.twitter.com/iX4yjCGKsZ  Jake Burdett (@jake_burdett) May 17, 2023

Mr Burdett was questioned by DC police and was later allowed to leave.

He spoke about the experience with The Daily Beast, saying he felt scared, intimidated, powerless, [and] defenceless.

Mr Burdett said he felt as though he could do nothing to defend himself since Mr Higgins is a member of Congress.

Like, who do I think the cops are going to crack down on, me, or the congressperson? he said.

He believes the incident was an example of a lawmaker thinking of themselves as untouchable because of their position.

Its one thing for anybody to do that, he said of Higgins behaviour. But for a sitting US congressperson to think that thats OKit just shows an extra level of entitlement, that they feel theyre untouchable and the law doesnt apply to them.

CHARGE U.S. REP. CLAY HIGGINS WITH ASSAULT AND BATTERY - Sign the Petition! https://t.co/k8TeQdbT5v via @Change  Reese Erick Forbes (@WiseLionMan) May 18, 2023

The footage was shared widely on social media, sparking a Change.org petition for the arrest of Mr Higgins.

The Independent has reached out to Mr Higgins and Mr Burdett for comment.

Mr Higgins responded to the incident in a video response posted to Twitter.

Activist was a 103M. Threatening. He was escorted out and turned over to Capitol Police. Textbook. pic.twitter.com/n2GXaJTspJ  Rep. Clay Higgins (@RepClayHiggins) May 18, 2023

Mr Higgins offered a comment to KATC, and said Mr Burdett "was a 103M," which is a police code referring to mentally disturbed individuals. The statement goes on to accuse Mr Burdett of being threatening.

Mr Burdett told The Daily Beast he was in Washington to attend a Medicare for All rally featuring Senator Bernie Sanders. After that rally, he spotted the Republican press conference setting up in the same spot. He decided to stay and "ask them some tough questions."

He said that after the incident he is weighing his options and strongly considering making assault charges against the congressman.

Im absolutely evaluating my options here, and if it looks like there is a strong case for assault and [there is] an attorney willing to take on the case, I am absolutely prepared to press charges, he said.
Republican Rep. Clay Higgins (La.) sparked criticism Wednesday after he aggressively removed a protester from a press conference in Washington, D.C.

Jake Burdett, 25, posted footage to Twitter on Wednesday afternoon confronting Reps. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) at a media event in the Capitol. In one clip, the activist yells questions toward Gosar before Higgins quickly walks up to him, introduces himself as a representative from Louisiana, and asks Burdett to peacefully stand by with your camera and I promise you  Ill come talk to you straight up and answer all your questions. Fair enough?

But in a second video, Burdett again shouts questions at Boebert about her recent divorce filing before Higgins rushes up and manhandles him away.

I am currently being detained by DC Police for asking tough questions to far right extremist Congressmen @RepGosar and @laurenboebert at a press conference. Rep Clay Higgins proceeded to assault/physically remove me from the press conference.For this, the cops detained me,not him pic.twitter.com/iX4yjCGKsZ  Jake Burdett (@jake_burdett) May 17, 2023

@RepClayHiggins pushing an activist for asking tough questions is supposed to be normal? pic.twitter.com/CQx6s3PCQ3  Kristy Fogle PA-C (@kristyfoglePAC) May 17, 2023

Arent you a congressperson, touching me? the protester says in the video. Get off me! Youre hurting me!

Burdett said he was merely asking tough questions to Gosar, known for his close relationships to far-right extremists including Nick Fuentes, and Boebert.

Higgins, however, told HuffPost that Burdett was threatening, appearing to reference a police code for a disturbance by a person with mental health issues.

He was escorted out and turned over to Capitol Police, he said. Textbook.

Rep. Paul Gosar (left, at the podium) reacts as a protester calls out to him Wednesday during a news conference about the World Health Organization. Gosar continued speaking. Rep. Clay Higgins is second from right.

Rep. Paul Gosar (left, at the podium) reacts as a protester calls out to him Wednesday during a news conference about the World Health Organization. Gosar continued speaking. Rep. Clay Higgins is second from right.

Burdett told The Daily Beast he wasnt injured during the incident and was eventually released by Capitol Police. He was in Washington to attend a Medicare for All rally for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), but noticed Gosar and Boebert setting up a press conference after that event.

I figured Id ask them some tough questions, he told the Beast. Bird-dog them, whatever you want to call it.

He told the news site he was evaluating his legal options, but absolutely prepared to press charges.

Related...
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said Wednesday the Republican Party will stumble in the 2024 elections if it pushes bans on abortion. (Watch the video below.)

Appearing on CNNs The Lead, Jake Tapper asked Mace whether her party would face electoral consequences or would suffer in the polls for the restrictive laws.

We suffered in 2022 and I do believe well suffer in 2024 if we dont have a message that shows compassion to women, both for womens rights and the right to life, Mace replied. You can balance the two.

Mace said that even in her conservative state, the majority of voters would not be supportive of a six-week ban that allowed very few exceptions for a very short period of time and required women to have their rapes reported to police.

Thats really not going to fly with most people, whether theyre men or women, she added.

Mace made her remarks as Tapper showed the South Carolina House on the verge of passing a bill to ban abortion at six weeks. The exceptions include rape or incest, but those claims must be backed by a police report or restraining order, she said.

I have grave concerns as a rape victim about the reporting requirements for rape victims within this legislation, said Mace, adding that coming forward to law enforcement was distressing for many who dont want to relive the experience.

The congresswoman said she wants to extend exceptions up to 20 weeks to make sure victims have time to process their trauma.

I can tell you I was horrified to tell my mother. It took me seven days to tell her what happened to me and I was a wreck, Mace said. And when I dropped out of school, I was suicidal for months afterward. It was a horrific experience.

Mace has previously sounded the alarm for the GOP as the party ramps up its attacks on womens reproductive rights.

Most abortions are now prohibited in 14 states, following the Supreme Courts repeal of Roe v. Wade, The New York Times reported. Some ban abortions by six weeks, when most women dont even know theyre pregnant. South Carolina passed a similar six-week ban in 2021 but it was struck down by the state Supreme Court.

H/T Mediaite

Related...
Gov. Phil Murphy Warns 'Everything Is On Table' If Supreme Court Blocks Abortion Pill Access

Democratic New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Wednesday said everything is on the table if the Supreme Court decides to outlaw the abortion drug mifepristone, which has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and warned Republicans who are moving toward restricting reproductive rights that they are playing with fire.

Murphy said he and other Democratic governors across the country are exploring different options to respond to the crackdown on abortion, including placing bulk orders of mifepristone.

Asked by MSNBCs Katy Tur if they would be willing to prescribe the pill in defiance of the Supreme Court if the 6-3 conservative supermajority blocks access to mifepristone, Murphy replied: To be determined.

When I say everything is on the table, Katy, I mean that, Murphy added.

Murphy said GOP decisions around abortion, whether its seeking to restrict mifepristone or Republican-led states limiting access to the procedure, are set to cost lives.

So if thats at stake, well do whatever we can to save lives, he said.

This comes as a three-judge panel in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals appears prepared to curb access to mifepristone, following arguments on Wednesday, in a case that could return to the Supreme Court.

Last month, Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Texas revoked the FDAs approval of mifepristone and said it should be taken off the market.

But the Supreme Court blocked Kacsmaryks decision from going into effect, allowing mifepristone to remain available, at least for now.

Democratic governors in states including California and Massachusetts have already begun stockpiling the drug.

Meanwhile, North Carolina Republicans this week overrode Democratic Gov. Roy Coopers veto of a 12-week abortion ban, setting it up to go into effect July 1. The state became a safe haven for abortion in the South after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last summer. The bill also includes a ban on medication abortion after 10 weeks of pregnancy.

As a political matter, these folks are playing with fire, Murphy said, adding that if North Carolina wasnt considered a battleground state two weeks ago, it is now.

Related...
'I grabbed her and shook her': The fall of an Austin surgeon accused of repeatedly abusing women

Jennifer Thompson says she is disappointed in how slowly the Texas Medical Board acted in her case of domestic abuse by Dr. Aravind Sankar and that the board has only suspended the doctor's license, not revoked it.

Jennifer Thompson crouched in the upstairs of her boyfriends Crestview home on a cloudy Monday afternoon in May 2014. She frantically called 911 to report that shed been beaten and strangled after she said he falsely accused her of cheating.

I thought I was going to die, she recalls telling the operator.

Austin police coaxed the 25-year-old woman from the bedroom  still so terrified that she raised her hands as if surrendering.

Officers reported that the medical school student told them that her boyfriend, an accomplished 44-year-old Austin surgeon, repeatedly strangled her so hard with both hands that she felt dizzy. She said he had repeatedly thrown her into the wall and punched her in the face.

The officers documented Thompsons swollen right eye and the red marks on her chest, forehead and neck  like finger marks.

Dr. Aravind Sankar, who had asked Thompson on a date while she said he was her attending physician supervisor at St. Davids North Austin Medical Center, eventually admitted to biting Thompson, documents say. Officers arrested him on an assault charge.

Thompsons report marked the first of five times police arrested Sankar from 2014 to 2019 on six domestic violence-related charges against three different women he worked with. In two of the cases, he pleaded guilty and received a form of probation. Four cases are awaiting trial in Travis County.

For nearly a decade, the state agency tasked with overseeing physicians allowed Sankar to continue practicing even as he faced multiple criminal charges for domestic violence. The state finally suspended his license indefinitely in December 2022 only after a felony conviction for assault family violence. If the board decided to end his suspension, Sankar could in theory begin practicing again.

An American-Statesman review of state agency records, court documents dating back almost a decade and multiple interviews found potentially dangerous flaws in a process that is supposed to keep patients and other medical staff safe from doctors with criminal backgrounds.

The Texas Medical Board receives an average of 5,554 complaints against physicians every year.

On average, the board opens 1,578 investigations a year into physicians based on those complaints. Of the total complaints, only about 1% result in license revocations or suspensions.

The Texas Medical Board has broad legal authority to suspend or restrict a physicians license when the doctor is deemed a continuing threat to the public.

Jennifer Thompson waits to tell her domestic abuse story at a March 20 legislative committee hearing on public health as it reviewed the regulation of physicians and the disciplinary authority of the Texas Medical Board.

But a Statesman examination of Sankar's case found he likely benefited from the boards conservative approach to disciplining physicians. The slow accountability process allowed Sankar to remain in a position that put other colleagues in harms way.

The board says it prioritizes allegations against doctors that involve direct-patient care and not off-duty conduct. It generally waits for a criminal case to be resolved before acting, even if it takes years, concerned that its involvement might jeopardize the case.

The agency says it also must weigh the need to preserve a doctor's right to practice with allegations that could later not be proven. And it must consider the legal risks or embarrassment should a doctor appeal to the State Office of Administrative Hearings or a district judge.

The board did not know about his first arrest until years afterward because Sankar did not self-report it, as required, board records show. The board requires such disclosures when physicians renew their licenses every other year. Sankar also is among 75,000 Texas physicians licensed before the state in 2007 required all doctors to be fingerprinted so that arrest reports can be automatically matched with licensing records.

In a statement to the Statesman, the board said cases like Sankars pose a unique challenge, but it declined to elaborate, saying the matter is ongoing.

Kelsey McKay, an attorney and victims advocate working with the women, said the Texas Medical Board failed her clients by allowing Sankar to remain in a position of power.

By not utilizing the power they possess, many victims feel that TMB did not take their reports seriously and disregarded the risk that Dr. Sankar posed for their welfare and the safety of the community, McKay said.

Although allegations against Sankar do not involve patients, experts say his behavior should alarm those in his care. In statements, both hospitals in Austin that employed Sankar said they took appropriate action when they learned of the allegations against him.

Giving someone like that a pass and allowing them to continue practicing after pleading guilty to those charges  irrespective of whatever the particular legal loopholes are  is downright terrifying to me, said Dr. J. Wesley Boyd, who teaches medical ethics at the Baylor College of Medicine and Harvard Medical School.

Sankar declined to comment for this story, as did three of his attorneys whom the Statesman approached over the course of several months through phone calls, text messages, emails and in person.

In a sentencing hearing last year, Sankar told state District Judge Jennifer Pena, Im just sorry that this happened  to all the women that have had issues with me.

Thompson, who separated from Sankar in 2016, said she remains disappointed in how slowly the Texas Medical Board acted and that it has only suspended his license, not revoked it.

I would hope that they could do better, she said.

Sankars and his relationships

Sankar, 53, was born and raised in California after his parents emigrated from India.

He obtained his bachelor's degree from Reed College in Portland, Ore., and moved to Texas to study medicine. Sankar received his medical degree in 1995 from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

Dr. Aravind Sankar received his medical degree in 1995 from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and moved to Austin in 1999.

He moved to Austin in 1999 and began building his career in Central Texas. He worked for Austin Diagnostic Clinic, and later Surgical Associates of Austin, burnishing his resume as a prominent surgeon performing high-risk surgeries such as kidney transplants.

As his career grew, Sankars tumultuous love life and work became intertwined. Three women, all of whom he met at work, turned to law enforcement when they said his controlling behavior turned violent.

In 2014, Sankar became involved with Thompson, a medical student two decades his junior who worked under him.

At first, she said, he was kind and exciting, taking her on romantic weekend getaways to the Hill Country. Several weeks into their relationship, she saw red flags. He scrolled through her text messages and accused her of cheating.

After he was released from jail following the first violent incident, she said, he came to her door with tearful apologies.

He told me he had never been violent with anyone before and was very believable, so I thought it was a one-time incident, Thompson said. I decided to give him another chance.

The relationship resumed while Sankars felony assault charge was pending.

The abuse continued, she said.

"He always blamed me for his violent behavior, she said. That something I said or did made him angry and act out. This was his way of explaining to me why he was being violent. I started to believe it was my fault.

In 2015, while he continued to see Thompson, Sankar began a relationship with Dr. Jessica Wilson. The two met while she was a medical student at St. David's North Austin Medical Center and while she said he was her supervisor.

He opened up to me about his struggles with his relationship with Jennifer (Thompson), Wilson said. Wilson was 30, and Sankar was 46.

Wilson broke up with Sankar when she learned Thompson was pregnant with their second child. Thompson left Sankar in the summer of 2016 after their second child was born.

I decided to remove myself from the situation because I didnt want the kids exposed to violence, Thompson said.

Two years after Thompson first called police, the case remained pending and the Texas Medical Board was unaware of the allegations against him, despite requirements that he self-report such information, records show.

Wilson began dating him again.

The first time Wilson said Sankar became violent with her was on New Year's Eve 2017. An argument suddenly became physical, she said.

He started yelling and grabbed the back of my neck really hard and pushed me forward a little bit, said Wilson.

"He had never done that to me before," she said. Sankar grabbed her by the jacket and threw her to the floor, she said.

She tried to leave and bent down to pick up her keys. Sankar knocked her to the floor on her back and held her down by the collar, she said.

"He had me by the neck and was standing over me," she said. "I was really afraid he was going to start slamming my head into the ground."

Wilson grabbed her phone and began to dial 911.

He saw my phone in my hand and dropped me to the ground, she said. I got up and ran out and got in my car. I remember shaking so badly I couldnt even drive at first.

She drove four blocks away, called her parents and told them what happened. She decided not to call the police.

A week later, Wilson met Sankar for coffee.

"He told me how sorry he was," she said. He promised to stop drinking and start going to Alcoholics Anonymous.

We slowly started seeing each other again, she said.

Arrest documents show that while he was dating Wilson, Sankar began a relationship with a nurse at St. Davids. Their relationship ended in June 2018, when she called 911 to report that he had injured her.

The two of them had an argument while they were lying in bed, she told police.

Sankar got upset and grabbed her by the hair, an arrest affidavit shows. She ran into a bathroom, and he grabbed her by her ankles and pulled her to the ground, she told police.

Jennifer Thompson testifies about her experiences to a legislative committee.

As she tried to call 911, Sankar threw her phone into the toilet, the affidavit said.

That criminal case against Sankar is still pending in a Travis County court, records show. The woman declined for the Statesman to identify her while the case is active.

A few months later, in September 2018, Sankar pleaded guilty to the 2014 assault against Thompson.

Former state District Judge David Crain, as part of a negotiated plea deal between prosecutors and Sankars defense, put the doctor on probation and placed his conviction on hold  a punishment referred to as deferred adjudication.

Crain gave Sankar six years of probation. During that time, he could not commit any other crimes, he had to avoid drugs and alcohol, and had to report to a supervision officer. Crain also ordered Sankar to perform 75 hours of community service, attend counseling classes concerning family violence and banned Sankar from having any threatening or harassing contact with Thompson.

While on probation, Sankar continued seeing Wilson.

In November 2018, Wilson said Sankar assaulted her again. This time, she decided to press charges.

The two argued about Sankar having a relationship with another woman. Wilson told Sankar to leave, and he refused.

During the argument, Sankar grabbed her by both her arms and pinned them to her sides, restraining her, an arrest affidavit says. They continued to argue, and Sankar grabbed her by the sides of her face and roughly pressed his forehead against hers.

Sankar eventually agreed to leave. But he came back.

He forced his way into her home in San Antonio, the affidavit says.

Wilson repeatedly told Sankar to leave, and he refused. She eventually said he could stay as long as he left her alone.

She went to bed, and Sankar followed her and continued to argue. Wilson elbowed Sankar to make him stop, and he sexually assaulted her, she told police.

Two days later, she went to SAFE Place in Austin and reported what happened.

He has the capability to manipulate people to this extreme level, Wilson said.

San Antonio police arrested Sankar the next day and charged him with sexual assault. He was released on bond.

Nine months later, in August 2019, Travis County prosecutors filed charges related to the alleged attack on Wilson on New Years Eve 2017, and he was arrested again.

In 2022, Sankar pleaded guilty in Bexar County to an assault family violence charge stemming from the alleged sexual assault on Wilson. In court, Sankar offered an apology.

"(Wilson) was angry with me and asked me to leave. I didn't leave," Sankar told the judge. "I just was very scared and fearful at the time, for a variety of different reasons. I grabbed her and shook her. Grabbed her by her arms and shook her. I think I grabbed her nose as well. The main thing was I just stayed when I should have left."

Dr. Keith Kesler, a psychiatrist based in Austin who treated Sankar, testified during the 2022 hearing that Sankar wanted to feel in control  "a feature and a bug" of his medical training.

Attorney Kelsey McKay, right speaks with her client Jennifer Thompson, after she testified before a legislative hearing involving the Texas Medical and greater oversight of doctors. McKay said, By not utilizing the power they possess, many victims feel that TMB did not take their reports seriously."

Texas Medical Board process

Until the 2022 conviction, more than eight years after Thompsons first encounter, Sankar kept practicing. His case illustrates how a doctor's criminal actions can escape scrutiny.

If a physician doesnt disclose an arrest, or if the crimes are unresolved for years, state regulators can be slow to take action. The medical board is only required to take immediate action if it becomes aware of an offense against a child.

Jon Porter, an Austin attorney who represents health care professionals in licensing matters, said the medical board is often correct to act slowly and deliberately. Many accusations, he said, are frivolous beefs from patients not satisfied with plastic surgery or relatives who disagree with the medications a doctor prescribed to a loved one. Baseless accusations can tarnish a doctors reputation and livelihood, he said.

Anybody can file a complaint, he said. All you have to do is make a telephone call or send an email and its there.

The first action the board took in Sankar's case was in April 2019, five years after Thompson filed charges against him and about six months after his conviction in that case. It remains unclear how the board learned about the case since Sankar did not report it.

The board publicly reprimanded Sankar, but it allowed him to continue practicing by taking four hours of ethics and four hours of risk management.

In that reprimand, the board also noted that Sankar had failed to disclose his arrests as required in his license renewal paperwork in 2014 and 2016. The document noted, as mitigating information, that he had undergone inpatient care in Houston for six weeks for major depression and PTSD.

(Sankar) is currently engaged in aftercare, intensive outpatient therapy, and stated that it has helped him better understand himself, the document said.

Sankar should not have been allowed to practice medicine after he pleaded guilty in 2018 to assault family violence involving Thompson, said Boyd, the medical ethics expert.

This person, to my eye, just from the 2014 charges, even before you have a laundry list of other ones, is a danger to society, Boyd said.

The medical board currently fingerprints doctors when theyre licensed. If a physician is arrested, the board is immediately alerted. But the board has only fingerprinted doctors for the last 15 years.

Sankar, who received his license in 1995, was not fingerprinted, so his arrests did not trigger an alert for the Texas Medical Board.

Advocates contend the board or lawmakers should enact a policy requiring all physicians be fingerprinted for a faster alert system.

The board said in a statement to the Statesman that it often waits until the outcome of a criminal case due to the circumstances surrounding the alleged offense, availability of witnesses and evidence, or a need to not jeopardize the criminal proceedings.

Even after the 2019 reprimand, when the board became aware of accusations against Sankar, McKay said no one tried to interview her clients, who were willing to provide statements.

Wilson tried to persuade the board to do more after Sankars 2019 reprimand. In an email to litigation manager Christopher Palazola in May 2020, Wilson wrote that the action was not enough to deter future violence from him or others in his position. As a practicing physician myself, I am disgusted this type of behavior is allowed within our licensing practices.

"I think that everybody in health care realizes how rampant intimate partner violence is," she told the Statesman. "If we're not able to stand up against it within our own licensing practices, how do we ever expect to address it as a public health issue?"

Its about accountability, Jennifer Thompson said. I want the Texas Medical Board to hold abusive doctors accountable for their behavior.

Palazola responded in an email to Wilson: Often we get complaints at the time the incident occurs or is reported to law enforcement. For conduct directly harmful to patients or that show a clear impairment, we MAY be able to take emergency, immediate action.

He added: I understand the criminal justice system is excruciatingly slow. But, this is the process we must follow in most cases.

However, while the board often chooses to act slowly, there is no legal requirement for it to do so.

More consequences

In July 2018, St. David's North Austin Medical Center revoked Sankars privileges within days of his arrest and charges involving the nurse. Hospitals and other facilities are not required to notify the board when it learns of a doctors arrest, and it is not clear whether St. Davids did so in Sankars case.

We take matters of this nature very seriously, St. Davids HealthCare said in a statement. The medical staff leadership took appropriate actions based on the circumstances and the medical staff policies in place at the time of the respective incidents.

Months later, Sankar accepted a job in 2019 as an attending physician at the Hospital at Westlake Medical Center, where he was asked to be the chief medical officer during the pandemic. In 2021, he was appointed chief of staff.

Sankar lost that job at Westlake Medical Center in the summer of 2022 after the Statesman in June reported on his jailing following his guilty plea in Wilsons Bexar County case.

Westlake Medical Center declined to comment, instead releasing a statement: "It should be noted that while he was here, Dr. Sankar provided patients with above-standard care."

When Sankar faced Pena for his sentencing in Bexar County last June for the case involving Wilson, she noted how Sankar had gone this far, this long, without any real consequences.

Pena sentenced Sankar to 180 days in jail, as part of the 10 years of probation she gave him.

Car crash, DWI

Sankars conviction in San Antonio landed him in front of the medical board again, and Wilson reached out to the board to make sure it was aware.

I would like them to please take action now, Wilson told the board.

Then, on Dec. 13, 2022, behind the closed doors of a sterile state office, the board suspended Sankars license.

Aravind Sankar

Hours later, Sankar landed in the Travis County Jail again.

At 8:30 p.m., Sankar drove his blue 2019 Audi south on Burnet Road when he lost control.

"I was just sitting at a red light, and I heard screeching tires," said Bethany Trimarco, 29, then 22 weeks pregnant. Sankar made a sharp turn, then T-boned Trimarcos vehicle, she said.

Sankar was one of several people who rushed up to her vehicle and overheard her husband over the phone informing bystanders that she was pregnant, she said.

Sankar put both his hands on his head and cursed while he walked around in a circle, Trimarco recalled in an interview with the Statesman.

When first responders arrived at the scene, "he just kept talking over the firefighters, trying really hard to get me to think that I was OK," she said.

Sankar also tried to talk the firefighters into letting him leave the scene, she said.

"He's like, 'Well, I only live however many miles down the road if they need me. I can always just come back.' They said, 'No, you need to stay,'" she said.

An Austin police officer noted a strong odor of alcohol on Sankar, according to court documents. His eyes were glassy and bloodshot, his words slurred and difficult to understand, the officer wrote in a report.

"I was told he received bad news today," the officer noted.

Sankar told the officer he was coming from Ginnys Little Longhorn Saloon, a bar just north of the crash scene. He refused a breath test, but he was booked on a DWI charge.

After the crash, Trimarco had to undergo physical therapy to deal with the pain, she said. Her family of six was without a vehicle for weeks because their Ford Explorer was totaled.

It's unclear whether the Texas Medical Board will open a new case file on Sankar to possibly revoke his license once his DWI charge is finalized in court.

The drunken driving arrest prompted Travis County prosecutors to seek to revoke Sankars probation from his conviction in the 2014 case, which stipulated that he should avoid alcohol and could not be arrested again.

State District Judge Chantal Eldridge could sentence him to jail time.

In recent months, the women who accused Sankar said they have increasingly discovered their own voices for advocacy, including talking publicly about their experiences and making calls for more aggressive accountability measures. Thompson and Wilson plan to attend a court hearing Friday in Austin to see what happens next.

Its about accountability, Thompson said. I want the Texas Medical Board to hold abusive doctors accountable for their behavior.

Wilson added: I just want TMB to change their process so that patients and female health care workers are safe and can be aware. We want them to do their job, and they are not.

Former Statesman staff writer Katie Hall contributed to this report.

Editor's note: A caption on a photo for this story has been corrected to identify Jennifer Thompson as a domestic violence victim.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: The fall of an Austin surgeon accused of repeatedly abusing women
(Bloomberg) -- Greek stocks are posting some of the worlds biggest gains in this years run-up to Sundays election as investors bet the nation can regain its investment-grade status on fiscal discipline and economic resilience.

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The Athens Stock Exchange General Index is up 22% in 2023, the sixth-best out of 92 benchmarks tracked by Bloomberg and ahead of most European markets. The biggest boost has come from banks including Piraeus Financial Holdings SA and National Bank of Greece SA, and consumer-facing companies such as Jumbo SA and OPAP SA.

The election is likely to provide the latest catalyst for markets after ratings agencies said a potential upgrade to investment-grade status will depend on the next government maintaining the pace of structural reforms and fiscal discipline. The vote may lead to a second ballot, fueling volatility, but the stock rally so far has been supported by a robust economic recovery and greater financial sector stability than during previous crises.

Heres what has changed: Greece is slowly clawing back the investment-grade status, George Lagarias, chief economist at Mazars, said by phone. You have something that was devalued for 10 years, subsequently crushed for another 12, and now its flowing back to investment grade, which means it might be back on investors monitors.

The vote on May 21 will use a fully proportional representation system that makes it almost impossible for a one-party government to emerge, though some polls suggest that it would be possible for Prime Minister Kyriako Mitsotakis to form a coalition with socialist Pasok party, which is seen finishing third.

Lagarias said the risk of a runoff vote is well priced in, and investors are focusing on Greeces improving economy and an exit from junk status for its credit.

Barclays Plc strategists dont expect the new government to undo the reforms seen since 2015 and say the rating upgrade is likely within the next year. Greece is also a key beneficiary of fiscal transfers within the euro area, which should continue to boost domestic and foreign investment if the government sticks to reforms, according to them.

Greek Election Is Last Barrier in 13-Year Investment-Grade Quest

A new megacycle would likely provide a further boost to Greek equities, which have had a strong run in light of positive EPS revisions, Barclays strategists including Emmanuel Cau wrote in a note this week. A continuation of structural reforms, post-election, could bode well for the market, given its bias to financials and domestic cyclicals.

Bank Boost

The FTSE/Athex Banks Index has nearly doubled since July lows, compared with about 45% for the broader gauge, as the countrys four leading banks made progress in reducing bad loans and benefited from central-bank rate hikes. Some financial institutions are even in talks with the European Central Bank over the possibility of resuming dividends.

In a further stamp of investor approval, Greek stocks have clawed back declines spurred amid the banking turmoil in March, a far cry from the sharp tumble they took in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

Despite recent gains, however, the countrys equities remain significantly below longer-term peaks, and valuations dont look demanding. The ASE trades at eight times its 12-month forward earnings, compared with a multiple of about 13 for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.

The ASE has been trading at modest relative multiples and is riding the global wave of value-style outperformance while at the same time the sovereign upgrade to investment grade is in sight, said Thanassis Drogossis, head of investment banking at Pantelakis Securities SA. Better economic and earnings growth are boosting the attraction of Greek stocks, he adds.

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A Greenville Technical College employee has been charged with embezzling public money while she was employed with the school last year.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division conducted an investigation at the request of the Greenville Technical College Police Department. SLED determined that 53-year-old Jennifer Leigh Price of Seneca, had allegedly stolen money from the college, according to a news release.

Price, while employed as the bursar for Greenville Technical College, embezzled more than $10,000 of the colleges funds between April 2022 and September 2022, according to the arrest warrant. The exact amount was not reported.

According to the warrant, Price admitted to using the money for everyday living expenses.

Price was booked at the Greenville County Detention Center, officials said. The case will be prosecuted by the 13th Circuit Solicitors Office.

Embezzling public funds is a felony under South Carolina law. If she is found guilty, Price could face a fine to be determined by the court and a maximum of 10 years in prison.

A spokesperson for Greenville Technical College could not be reached for comment.
A big party was held in Springfield Thursday for Haitian Flag Day.

Thousands of Haitian immigrants have moved into Clark County in the last few months. News Center 7 spoke with organizers about the significance of having events honoring Haitian heritage.

May 18th is Flag Day in Haiti. One of the organizers of the festival at the Veterans Park Amphitheater is Haitian and said its a major holiday in Haiti. They wanted to bring the party to Springfield because so many Haitian immigrants now call this part of the Miami Valley home.

The festival had live music, crafts, and Haitian fare.

>> Busy Springfield intersection to be closed Friday afternoon through Saturday night

The Flag Day festivities started Thursday morning at city hall with a proclamation from the city, raising the Haitian flag, and playing the Haitian national anthem.

The Clark County combined health district says the Haitian population is one of the fastest growing, but still underserved, minority populations in the area and that a growing number of their clients are of Haitian descent.

One of the festival organizers is part of a large group of Haitian immigrants that have settled in Clark County.

We choose Springfield most likely because the host, because the environment, and because how we fill our life in here living with our family, raising children, I work too, said Claude Coq. And opportunity especially in Springfield, for us its a lot of opportunity.

The Haitian Flag Day festival runs until 9 p.m. Thursday night.




Halle Bailey Broke Down Filming 'Part of Your World' During Pandemic: 'I Was Very Emotional' (Exclusive)

Halle Bailey Broke Down Filming 'Part of Your World' During Pandemic: 'I Was Very Emotional' (Exclusive)

"It did feel like I was underwater in a way," the Little Mermaid actress recalls of that difficult time

Disney Halle Bailey as Ariel in The Little Mermaid (2023)

If Halle Bailey's "Part of Your World" performance is moving to fans who see it when The Little Mermaid hits theaters May 26, there's good reason.

Bringing Princess Ariel's signature scene and ballad to life was a labor of love for Bailey, and it wasn't easy. The actress, 23, tells PEOPLE in this week's issue that she was experiencing some real-life growing pains while working overseas in London and Italy.

"We were filming in the height of the pandemic, and I was suddenly living alone away from everything I knew," says Bailey, who lives in Los Angeles. Her feelings of isolation provided a deeper connection with her character.

Related:Halle Bailey on Her Fairy-Tale Romance with Rapper DDG: Young Love Is 'Transformative' (Exclusive)

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Halle Bailey

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"Part of Your World," she says "took three days to film. There was a lot of physicality and stunt work involved where I would be spinning, going in the air on the wires and there was a lot to think about."

On the deeper side of things, "I was very emotional. I remember I was crying If you listen to the lyrics, it's such a desperate plea and cry for help. I was able to convey those emotions of feeling alone and underwater in a way."

"I was grateful that I had that experience of feeling that isolation because I was able to play it through Ariel," she says. "I think ultimately it helped my performance."

Now, after years of hard work and preparation, the film is almost out and Bailey is looking forward to some much-needed vacation.

"I'm going to take a few weeks to just woosah because this has been five years of buildup," she says. "It's nice to finally have it be released into the world."

For more on Halle Bailey's life and Little Mermaid transformation, pick up this week's issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.

The Little Mermaid is in theaters May 26.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.
The lead actress said she got emotional while filming Ariels signature song, Part of Your World.

Halle Bailey broke down while filming a pivotal scene in The Little Mermaid. The films star was driven to tears while doing her characters signature song, Part of Your World, People reports.

Earlier this month, Disney released a clip of Bailey singing Part of Your World from its forthcoming live-action-CGI version of The Little Mermaid. Bailey, who plays Ariel, told People she got emotional while filming that scene, which took three days to shoot.

While Bailey says that the stunt work involving spinning on wires took a physical toll on her, singing the song led her to break down. I was very emotional. I remember I was crying, Bailey told People. If you listen to the lyrics, its such a desperate plea and cry for help. I was able to convey those emotions of feeling alone and underwater in a way.

Halle Bailey attends the world premiere of Disneys live-action feature The Little Mermaid on May 8, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)

Bailey shot much of The Little Mermaid overseas in Italy and England. Being away from her Los Angeles home and alone helped her connect to the isolation Ariel felt in the film. We were filming in the height of the pandemic, and I was suddenly living alone away from everything I knew, Bailey said.

In hindsight, Bailey said that the emotions she was feeling ultimately aided in her performance and she was grateful for the experience.

As previously reported in theGrio, The Little Mermaid is a highly anticipated film, in part due to some controversy. When Disney announced that Bailey would be playing the lead role in the movie, some critics voiced objections to the films casting of a Black actress as Ariel, as the character was originally depicted as white in Disneys 1989 animated film.

Bailey commented on the backlash during an interview with The Face.

People dont understand that when youre Black, theres this whole other community, she said. Its so important for us to see ourselves.

The Little Mermaid hits theaters on May 26.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku, and Android TV. Please download theGrio mobile apps today!

The post Halle Bailey cried while filming Little Mermaid appeared first on TheGrio.
A celebration of women's empowerment turned into a harrowing moment after Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry left a charity event in New York City and faced a paparazzi "car chase." Also in the news: President Joe Biden is in Japan Thursday but won't stay abroad long before returning to debt ceiling negotiations in Washington. Montana is the first state in the United States to ban the Chinese-owned app TikTok.

 I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Maybe check that Gmail account you've been ignoring the last two years.

Now, here we go with Thursday's news.

Questions surround Prince Harry and Meghan's 'car chase'

In a statement to USA TODAY Wednesday, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's team described a "near catastrophic" chase that ensued after the royal couple left a charity event in New York City. The pair and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, were followed for more than two hours by half a dozen vehicles, according to their spokespeople. The pursuit "resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers." The couple and Ragland eventually switched to a taxi cab and whisked away, photos show. The cab driver, Sukhcharn Singh, told The Associated Press he wouldn't call the incident a "chase." Read more

Before the ''car chase,'' Duchess Meghan delivered an empowering speech about fighting for equity at a Women of Vision gala.

Biden in Japan amid debt ceiling talks

President Joe Biden will meet privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Thursday before joining the Group of Seven gathering of major industrialized nations. The two leaders are expected to discuss ways to strengthen security and economic cooperation.

The summit in Hiroshima takes place as a dispute in Washington over the debt ceiling is inching toward a resolution.

Biden shortened his international trip this week, a move which underscores the urgency of a looming June 1 deadline for potential economic calamity.

But a deal in the coming days to raise the nations debt limit wont necessarily sound an all-clear signal for the U.S. economy. An 11th-hour agreement that narrowly averts default but frays nerves, sinks stocks and pushes up interest rates could still do some damage.

How should we prepare financially? By taking money away from those who rely on government services, consumption could fall, resulting in an economic downturn that could impact stocks and 401(k)s, experts say.

President Joe Biden, third left, greets troops upon his arrival at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Iwakuni, Japan, Thursday, May 18, 2023.

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What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

Note found on body of teenage New Mexico shooter

The New Mexico teenager who killed three people earlier this week in a neighborhood shooting spree before police fatally shot him was carrying a note in which he warned people to leave his little sister alone, authorities said Wednesday. The note was just one of several additional details authorities brought up about their investigation into the Monday shooting in Farmington. Policy say the gunman was armed with a "AR-style rifle" legally purchased, and investigators said they believe the two other weapons were taken from family members. Read more

Supreme Court leaves Illinois ban on ''assault rifles'' in place for now.

Shootings, lockdowns, anxiety: Here's what kids say about mental health, helping each other.

Montana becomes first US state to ban TikTok

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a measure Wednesday banning TikTok in Montana, making it the first state in the United States to completely ban the Chinese-owned social media app amid skepticism from lawmakers. Lawmakers from both political parties have raised concerns over TikTok's potential threat to national security, including if the app could be used by the Chinese government to spy on U.S. citizens. There has also been a growing number of red states that have issued TikTok bans on government-issued devices. Read more

A New Orleans-based appeals court heard the latest arguments in a case that could force a major abortion pill off the market.

TikTok's latest drama, #Tattoogate, and the reason we love complaining on the internet.

Just for subscribers:

These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here.

Grand jury indicts man in stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students

A Ph.D. criminology student accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students in November has been indicted by a grand jury and will appear for arraignment on Monday to enter a plea. Bryan Kohberger, 28, has already been charged by prosecutors, but a grand jury indictment allows the case to be transferred directly to a higher-level court in Moscow, Idaho. It also allows prosecutors to keep more of their evidence secret until a trial. Read more

A Texas man pleaded guilty to smuggling gun in connection to deadly Mexico kidnapping.

Quick hits

Photo of the day: Marble artifacts from 1,800 years ago unearthed after recent storms

Recent storms in Israel have led to the discovery of rare marble artifacts that sank with a ship more than 1,800 years ago. The Israel Antiquities Authority said in an online post this week that an experienced sea swimmer spotted ancient columns in waters off the Beit Yanai beach near the Mediterranean resort city of Netanya. Read more

A diver touches an 1,800-year-old beam that sank with a ship in waters off Israel.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this  subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Daily Briefing: What happened in Prince Harry and Meghan's 'car chase'?
It became known about the delivery of the M2 Bradley to Ukraine in January 2023

Read also: Russias offensive potential is exhausted, Ukrainian intelligence chief says

Geopolitically, nothing has changed around Ukraine. The weapons promised to us in the framework of the geopolitical situation that existed a few months ago are suitable. But the geopolitical situation may change if successes are achieved at the strategic level within the offensive operation. How it might change is hard to say. That is why the Chinese special representative is coming here to assess the situation somehow. To evaluate the possible consequences and determine whose side they should go? To continue pulling Putin's hair out of the swamp and saying, "You're drowning, fool, and I'll take your swamp for myself."

But in the meantime, we are seeing a lot of tactical actions that prepare the field for an offensive. I have yet to see that the offensive has begun. The fact is that the offensive will be a reserve competition. There are successes in the Bakhmut direction - great. And now the intelligence is watching - have the (Russian) strategic reserves moved in that direction?

I would not treat Russia - our enemy - contemptuously. Many are overwhelmed by euphoria. The fact is that the mobilization in the Russian Federation is ongoing, volunteers are being recruited, and the armed forces, whether good or bad, are working. I don't know how well. Now, no one can give such estimates. Data on the productivity of tank repair plants and ammunition are irrelevant now. There is an entirely different regime there now. It is difficult to estimate the rate at which weapons are released there.

Read also: Ukrainian military prepares several options for upcoming counter-offensive, says Danilov

In any case, the fact that these weapons do not shine very brightly at the front suggests that it all goes somewhere in reserve. And Russia keeps these reserves to disrupt our offensive then launch its counter-offensive. I am telling this for our readers to keep in mind. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and intelligence know all this better than I do and evaluate all this. So, if, in response to our offensive or successes in the Bakhmut direction, intelligence estimates that the reserves of the Russian Federation are not yet on the way, it means that the Russian Federation is up to something. Therefore, we should not throw all our reserves in this direction. It's just a tricky game for now.

Would they keep these reserves for themselves in case of infighting to redistribute power and property? This is out of the question. Civil strife can arise when there is a loss on the front. So, they are preparing this reserve to avoid losing at the front. And just in case a fight breaks out, they are preparing the same PMCs. The Rosgvardiya and the Security Services prepare for internal suppressions (thousands of these forces there), but not the Armed Forces. Although they can be taken if there is an outright defeat at the front, and the bayonets can return to the Kremlin.

Yevgeny Prigozhin's media activity speaks only to the fact that there is only hysteria and not a well-thought-out information strategy. Prigozhin plans how to hold his position and present himself properly to his tsar. All these moves are precisely for this purpose. It's not more serious than that. When the enemy is hysterical, counting on any rational steps from them is impossible.

Read also: Li Huis visit to Zelenskyy: Beijing aims to show de-escalation dependence on China, says Klimkin

I will return to the topic of the arrival of Chinese special representative Li Hui. Firstly, he will try to push to bring the parties to the negotiating table. If there is a fundamental strategic turning point, hell understand perfectly that Ukraine will not go to any negotiations until it restores its borders. There are also serious comrades in China; they are not playing soldiers. They know all these schedules very well. This is not chess. It is Go, an ancient Chinese strategy game. No one will play it better than them.

By and large, China is playing a game of Go with the US. To evaluate the geopolitical landscape, the war does not end with only the defense of territorial integrity. There will be talk about what will happen to Russia after its defeat. It will be watched how all these events affected the regime's stability. Will the processes of the states collapse begin? If it does, what forces will be at play? Who will there be to lean on? Maybe someone can be strengthened, and someone else can be weakened. This whole thing will be interesting to observe that there will be enough room for everyone - for the USA, Great Britain, and China.

Both the US and China are watching the situation closely. If there are serious strategic successes at the initial stages of our offensive, the USA will finally place its bets on Ukraine. I do not rule out that the transfer of aviation and long-range missiles will follow. All those pictures that appear in the media - how far the Storm Shadow reaches, to which cities - this is very telling for the audience of us civilians. All this firepower will be used not for intimidation, but to strike at advancing reserves (if any).

Read also: Russian propaganda accuses Ukraine of using tanks on Russian territory

It will be horrible to thwart the Armed Forces' offensive. This is a very pessimistic scenario. We are not asking for aviation to scare Russia, saying we can reach Moscow or elsewhere. The main thing for us is to prevent the Russian reserves from advancing. To cut off the possibility of strengthening that group located on Ukrainian territory.

Ensuring our offensive by the West depends on how they see Ukrainian victory and the defeat of Russia. And major factor they will be observing is the prospects of a defeated Russia. So what's going to happen? Is it going to fall apart or be given a bit of a break and then get off their knees, meaning we will have to deal with this monster again?

There are a lot of different versions and possible variants of the behavior of the West. We have faced this more than once. They raised Iran and Iraq, and China is back on its feet due to the West. And now they are thinking about what to do with China. The lack of such a strategic vision has always been the West's Achilles heel.

If China started to fit into the strategic landscape, it means that China saw how some changes were taking place.

But I will say one thing. Before that, they sat silently for a year and waited - which of the tigers would win? That's how I understood how they assessed the situation, that some tiger was starting to win, and it was not Russia. Therefore, the Chinese are starting their game to keep Russia from bending completely. For China, Russia is the West's primary irritant. This is the main battering ram of China's anti-Western policy. The Chinese are counting on this - not to ram the West themselves but by using Russia. Let all these sanctions fall on it, and everything else too. And we, the Chinese, will sit aside and wait.

Beijing will try to prevent the collapse of Russia. But they don't let Russia win, either. A victorious Russia is not very good for China either.

Read also: China urges foreign embassies to remove signs showing support for Ukraine

We see some strategic perspectives, but ultimately the course of those strategic perspectives is laid out as individual tactical steps. And the situation can turn dramatically at any moment.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Harrison Ford moved to verge of tears while accepting honorary Palme dOr at Cannes

Harrison Ford got visibly emotional while accepting an honorary Palme dOr for lifetime achievement at the Cannes Film Festival

The 80-year-old actor was in attendance for the premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on Thursday (18 May).

Reports from the festival say Ford was greeted with thunderous applause as he arrived for the premiere, with a highlights reel of Fords biggest performances playing on a screen behind him.

They say when youre about to die, you see your life flash before your eyes, Ford quipped. I just saw my life before my eyes.

The actor then thanked his wife Calista Flockhart, 58, for enabling his dreams and his creative collaborators. To have the opportunity to work with artists like [director James Mangold], Phoebe [Waller-Bridge]... even Mads [Mikkelsen], he said, poking fun at the Danish actor.

He concluded: Im very moved by this But I got a movie you ought to see. Its right behind me. So let me get out of the way and thank you again for this.

The New York Times reporter Kyle Buchanan tweeted a clip of Fords speech with the caption: Presented with a lifetime-achievement clip montage and an honorary Golden Palme, Harrison Ford is on the verge of tears at Cannes.

Presented with a lifetime-achievement clip montage and an honorary Golden Palme, Harrison Ford is on the verge of tears at Cannes pic.twitter.com/QUth998SC8  Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) May 18, 2023

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is released on 30 June. Ford co-stars opposite Waller-Bridge as the adventurers goddaughter and Mikkelsen as the main antagonist, a former Nazi official.

Its the first Indiana Jones film not to be directed by Steven Spielberg, who handed the reins over to Mangold. Spielberg revealed recently that hed already had a chance to watch Mangolds effort and gave his verdict.

Dial of Destiny is also the first instalment of the franchise since 2008s critically derided Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Ford has confirmed that Dial of Destiny will be his last performance as the character.

The film is mostly set in 1969, but a 25-minute opening sequence will go back in time to 1944, with Mangold using de-ageing technology on Ford to make him look decades younger.
For nearly five thousand years, native tribes have resided in and around Joshua Tree National Park.

Of course, it wasnt a park way back when the Serrano, Chemehuevi, Mojave, and other tribes called this magnificent desert home.

No, it was a place to raise families, hunt, gather, and live in one of the more unique areas of the Colorado Desert; that huge hunk of 7 million acres of desert located within the boundaries of San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Imperial counties.

Today, Joshua Tree National Park comprises nearly 800,000 acres within that massive Colorado Desert.

That is a lot of acres. In comparison, my humble abode is situated on just two. I cannot imagine what it would be like using a hula-hoe on that much acreage come springtime.

Joshua Tree has a lot to offer across 800,000 acres of desert and wildlife.

Two hours of scraping the weeds in the yard leave me ready for a cold libation and a nap.

Laureen, my lovely wife, has visited Joshua Tree National Park, as have all my children and their spouses.

Me? Nope, never.

A two-hour drive through the quaint town of Lucerne Valley and I would have crossed through the rock gates marking this national park.

Shame on me.

Excuses? I cannot think of one that would hold a barrel cactus of water.

It was time - Laureen could not make the three-day planned camping trip, so I turned to my old traveling partner, Paul Bakas.

Your truck and pop-up trailer? He asked.

Yep.

Are you cooking?

Yep.

Count me in.

Joshua Tree has a lot to offer across 800,000 acres of desert and wildlife.

It seems that during the late 1920s, roads were being cut here and there through the desert to make it easier for travelers to come into the area and marvel at the rock formations dominating the park's western side.

Unfortunately, some of those folks were not going to sightsee but to steal.

The city of Los Angeles was booming, and the folks there wanted those strange but iconic cacti all over the desert near Joshua Tree.

Cactus poaching became a real challenge.

Jed, the cactus poacher was believed to have said. We can make some good money with these big old cacti in LA.

Jed, I thought we were after cactuses, the other poacher responded.

Thats why I made it through the sixth grade, and you barely finished second grade. Cacti is plural for cactus.

Hmm, whats a plural?

So, out of concern for Jed and his nefarious partner, Minerva Hoyt, from Pasadena, brought attention to the desert's destruction. 1936 President Franklin D. Roosevelt set aside those desert acres as a National Monument.

In 1964, the band, The Beach Boys recorded a song in honor of Hoyt.

The Little Old Lady from Pasadena was a huge success - then again, it may have been about an old granny driving a fast car.

Research is confusing sometimes.

Joshua Tree has a lot to offer across 800,000 acres of desert and wildlife.

In 1994, under the federal Desert Protection Act, the monument was redesignated as a National Park.

Over three million people visit the park annually, from day-time visitors to overnighters.

Many tourists come from around the world to gaze upon the unique animalia, Cactaceae, planta, and rock morphia.

I made that up last term, but how the rocks in the park obtained their various shapes had to do with morphing into this or that.

There was a long wait at the front gate near the town of Joshua Tree to get into the park, but since I had a Senior Pass, I was waved through quickly.

Probably thought they shouldnt keep the senior waiting long, you know?

One of the first things I noticed when entering the park were the dozens of pull-outs with little kiosks explaining what the visitor is looking at in the distance or close up, for that matter.

This is a group of yucca brevifolia.

This is Porcupine Wash.

There is nothing to look at here. We just like to fool tourists.

We stopped at nearly every turnout or parking lot to wander about nature's spectacular creations.

People were hiking, picnicking, and taking photos of people hiking and picnicking.

A lot of selfies were shot during the drive to our campground on the far end of the park near the city of Indio.

Joshua Tree has a lot to offer across 800,000 acres of desert and wildlife.

Not by Paul or me. No, from tourists who could not get enough of standing too close to a jumping cactus.

I have read too many tragic stories about folks taking selfies at national parks.

Dont worry honey, one honeymooner once said to his bride, soon to be his widow. Im sure the rangers here at the Grand Canyon dont mind if I step over the railing and take a . . .

Tragic but somewhat humorous - yes, I expect emails for that.

According to the National Park Service, Joshua Tree is one of the premier places where people go climbing the often-bizarre-looking rock formations.

Joshua Tree welcomes climbers, boulderers, and highlighters worldwide. This high desert monzogranite climbing mecca is famous for its traditional-style crack, slab, and steep face climbing.

I have no idea what that means. But we saw a lot of folks climbing rocks freestyle, roped up, and being yelled at by their partners.

I said are you belaying me? A husband shouted down to his wife on the ground with a rope in her hands.

I thought you said, are you bugging me, the wife shouted back.

You better be, he responded. Its pretty steep.

Babe, she replied, Let go of the ropes and take a selfie.

With over 8,000 climbing routes, 2,000 boulder problems, and many natural gaps, the park boasts it is one of the best places in the world to climb.

It makes one wonder who went out and counted all these routes and problems.

The weather was perfect, high seventies and no wind.

We visited Quail Springs, Hemingway, Hidden Valley, and Hall of Horrors. We even stopped off at the Oyster Bar, which was disappointing since it was just another rock formation instead of an establishment for much-needed libations.

One of the most interesting stops was the picnic area below Cap Rock.

A short loop of a hike where visitors can view beautiful desert plants, and since this was a wet winter, everything was in bloom and will be for some time.

Travel tips: Heading to Joshua Tree this spring? Beat the crowds at a lesser-known park entrance

There was the desert sage, Indian rice grass, rock cinquefoil, and wooly marigold (not to be mistaken for a wooly mammoth).

Vibrant colors of pink, yellow, and blue sparkling in the afternoon sunshine made the hike spectacular.

Above the picnic area is a vast rock balancing against the face of a rock mountain. It looked like, at any moment, this humongous hunk of granite may fall.

But Joshua Tree has many such unusual and almost gravity-defying natural wonders. No wonder people from around the country and world flock here each year.

Skull Rock was by far the place where everyone stopped and wandered about the most.

A park sign states that the visitor is staring at Skull Rock.

Nope, Skull Rock is staring at the visitor.

Huge hollowed-out crevices mimic the human skull preciously and are a little creepy.

Joshua Tree has a lot to offer across 800,000 acres of desert and wildlife.

It reminded me of a million pirate films where the hidden treasure is below skull rock.

I had Paul break out a couple of shovels from the truck, but we got a stern finger wagging from a Park Ranger.

Aye, Matey, I said to Ranger Ruin-My-Find.

Having resided in Southern California for most of my life, I still could not understand why I had not visited this awesome stretch of nature just a few hours away.

We spent three days there - camping, hiking, relaxing, and never seeing the entire park.

Once the campfire was out, our camp's night sky was fantastic. There were so many stars that picking out certain constellations seemed impossible.

The International Dark-Sky Association states that the park is one of the best places in Southern California to observe the wonders of the cosmos. For some visitors, it is their first chance to see the Milky Way.

For me, there were so many stars lighting the night sky up I could only count two notches on Orions Belt.

The Joshua Tree experience could make a person slow down and contemplate how much beauty and wonder there is on this beautiful planet and the skies above.

Joshua Tree National Park is a must for anyone who enjoys being outdoors and viewing nature at its best.

John can be contacted at beyersbyways.com

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Haven't visited Joshua Tree? Shame on you
New on HBO and Max June 2023: And Just Like That, The Idol, and More

Photo Illustration by Luis Rendon/Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/HBO

HBO Max is getting a bit of a facelift in Maywhich means the Warner Media streamer is all-the-more ready to unveil new titles this June. Though HBO Max only launched in May 2020, the platform is already being morphed into something entirely new: Max. (Find out what you need to know about Max in our guide.)

Dont worryyour favorite titles like Succession, Barry, and Euphoria will still be living on Max. Better yet, there are plenty of new and returning titles coming your way too.

At the start of the month, HBO will unveil Sam Levinsons (Euphoria) wildly controversial new series, The Idol. On June 4, get ready for more twisty cameras, statement makeup, and crop tops. Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd (who now goes by his birth name, Abel Tesfaye) star as a popstar and her twisted mentor, respectively, in this series about influencers, sex, and rock n roll.

Then, on June 17, take a bit of a breather with John Early: Now More than Ever. This comedy special from the Search Party star will be a mixture of traditional stand-up, sketches, and musical numbers. If you know anything about Early, youll know that this is worth tuning intoand if you dont, its still probably going to be worth a watch.

Finishing off June, Max will unveil the sophomore season of And Just Like That. Catch up with Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and, of course, Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez) when the divisive Sex and the City reboot returns on June 22.

Although its hard to believe it, HBO Max/Max are finding titles to replace Succession as it finishes its fourth and final season this month. Take a look below at whats coming up next.

June 1

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

A Star Is Born (1954)

A Star Is Born (1976)

Army of Darkness (1993)

Balls of Fury (2007)

Beautiful Creatures (2013)

Big Daddy (1999)

Breach (2007)

Bulworth (1998)

Class Act (1992)

Click (2006)

Dave (1993)

David Copperfield (1935)

Demolition Man (1993)

Diggers (2006)

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

Dolphin Tale (2011)

Dumb & Dumber (1994)

Dumb & Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)

Eastern Promises (2007)

Edge of Darkness (2010)

Eli Roth Presents: The Legion Of Exorcists (Travel Channel)

Enter The Dragon (1973)

Fame (1980)

Fifty Shades Darker (2017, Extended Version)

Fifty Shades Freed (2018, Extended Version)

Gold Diggers of 1933

Gold Diggers of 1935

Grease (1978)

Hairspray (2007)

I Origins (2014)

I, Tonya (2017)

Jackie Brown (1997)

Jeremiah Johnson (1972)

Jersey Boys (2014)

Just Mercy (2019)

Knock Knock (2015)

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Magic Mike (2012)

Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat (2002)

Military Wives (2019)

Moneyball (2011)

Monster-In-Law (2005)

Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)

Moonlight (2016)

Naked.Loud.Proud (Max Original)

Narc (2002)

National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985)

Never Say Never Again (1983)

Objective, Burma! (1945)

On Moonlight Bay (1951)

Operation Crossbow (1965)

Police Academy (1984)

Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment (1985)

Police Academy 3: Back In Training (1986)

Police Academy 4: Citizens On Patrol (1987)

Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach (1988)

Radio (2003)

Ready Player One (2018)

Romance on the High Seas (1948)

Selena (1997)

Sex And The City (2008)

Sex And The City 2 (2010)

Sunday in New York (1964)

Tea for Two (1950)

The Big Wedding (2013)

The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015)

The Boy Next Door (2015)

The Dead Files (Travel Channel)

The Drop (2014)

The Evil Dead (1981)

The Evil Dead (2013)

The Evil Dead II (1987)

The Family (2013)

The Hurt Locker (2009)

The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete (2013)

The Lodge (2019)

The Nun's Story (1959)

The Painter and the Thief (2020)

The Saint (1997)

The Turning Point (1977)

Tooth Fairy (2010)

Woodstock: The Director's Cut (1994)

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

You're Next (2013)

June 2

Magic Mikes Last Dance (2023)

Painting With John, Season 3 (HBO Original)

Well Designed (Magnolia Network)

HBO

June 4

90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days (TLC)

Battle on the Beach (HGTV)

The Idol (HBO Original)

June 5

Louisiana Law (Animal Planet)

June 6

Burden of Proof (HBO Original)

Bugs Bunny Builders, Season 1E (Cartoon Network)

June 7

Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

Ghost Adventures (Discovery)

June 8

A Star Is Born (2018)

American Pain (Max Original)

June 9

AEW All Access (TBS)

First Five (Max Original)

June 10

Build It Forward (HGTV)

Red 2 (2013)

Walker, Season 3

June 12

Celebrity IOU, Season 4A (HGTV)

June 13

Vacation (2015)

June 14

How Do You Measure A Year? (HBO Original)

Small Town Potential (HGTV)

June 15

Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens, Season 3

Crack Addicts (TLC)

Outchef'd (Food Network)

Rap Battlefield, Season 2 (Max Original)

June 16

Hoffman Family Gold (Discovery)

Meet the Batwheels shorts, Season 1C (Cartoon Network)

The Cabin Chronicles, Season 3 (Magnolia Network)

HBO

June 17

John Early: Now More Than Ever (HBO Original)

June 18

Beachside Brawl (Food Network)

The Great Food Truck Race: David vs. Goliath (Food Network)

The Righteous Gemstones, Season 3 (HBO Original)

We Baby Bears, Season 2A (Cartoon Network)

June 19

Street Outlaws: Mega Cash Days (Discovery)

June 21

7 Little Johnstons (TLC)

The Stroll (HBO Original)

HBO

June 22

And Just Like That, Season 2 (Max Original)

Christina On The Coast (HGTV)

Downey's Dream Cars (Max Original)

June 23

Rich & Shameless, Season 2A (TNT)

Teen Titans Go!, Season 8B (Cartoon Network)

June 25

Mini Reni (Magnolia Network)

June 26

Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham (2023)

June 27

Chopped (Food Network)

Taylor Mac's 24-Decade History of Popular Music (HBO Original)

June 28

Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed (HBO Original)

June 29

Revealed (HGTV)

Ten-Year-Old Tom, Season 2 (Max Original)

Warrior, Season 3 (Max Original)

June 30

Beachfront Bargain Hunt Renovation, Season 7 (Magnolia Network)

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Head of Ukrainian President's Office reveals what he discussed with Chinese envoy

Andrii Yermak, Head of the Ukrainian President's Office, has said he met with Chinese Special Representative Li Hui to discuss the current security situation in Ukraine.

Source: Yermak on Twitter

Quote from Yermak: "On behalf of President Zelenskyy I held a briefing on the current security situation in Ukraine for the Chinese government delegation led by Li Hui, the special representative for Eurasian affairs."

Details: Yermak also added that together with Ukraines Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, he told Hui the details of Zelenskyy's 10-point peace formula.

"We would strongly appreciate China joining international efforts to implement [the formula]. I thanked China for supporting Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity," Yermak concluded.

Background:

Earlier, the Chinese Foreign Ministry reported that Li Hui, Chinese Special Representative, met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Ukraine and told him that there is no panacea for the "crisis", and ending the war will require all parties to "create conditions for ceasefire and peace talks".

On 16-17 May, Li Hui, a special representative of the Chinese government who had been China's ambassador to Russia for 10 years, visited Ukraine.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Here's how South Texas schools will spend $7.8 million for CTE programs

The community room at Del Mar Colleges Oso Creek Campus was full of giant checks Wednesday afternoon.

One after another, 11 South Texas school districts took home hundreds of thousands and, in several cases, more than $1 million in grant funding to support career and technical programs.

In this 2016 file photo, Woodsboro High School student Justin Spears competes in a welding competition the Nueces County Junior Livestock Show at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds in Robstown.

The Texas Workforce Commission awarded nearly $7.8 million in Jobs and Education for Texans grant funds to area school districts and Coastal Bend College.

Alice ISD  $216,716 for equipment to train 126 nursing students in partnership with Coastal Bend College

Aransas Pass ISD  $705,255 for equipment to train 99 physician assistants and $712,500 for equipment to train students in welding professions in partnership with Del Mar College

Rockport-Fulton ISD  $657,089 to train 88 students as water vessel pilots in partnership with DMC

Bloomington ISD  $54,806 to train 30 students as chefs in partnership with Victoria College

Brooks County ISD  $712,500 for welding equipment and $301,506 for equipment for a nursing program in partnership with DMC and $192,182 for equipment to train students in HVAC installation with Lamar Institute of Technology

Coastal Bend College  $333,352 for equipment to train an additional 80 nursing students

Corpus Christi ISD  $389,253 for the districts maritime program in partnership with DMC

Gregory-Portland ISD  $164,554 for welding equipment in partnership with DMC

Skidmore-Tynan ISD  $509,101 for welding equipment in partnership with DMC

Tuloso-Midway ISD  $712,500 for equipment to train an initial 225 students as medical assistants and $687,738 for welding equipment to train 152 students in partnership with DMC

West Oso ISD  $90,108 for equipment to train 130 students as radiologic technicians in partnership with DMC

Woodsboro ISD  $682,237 for equipment to train students as medical assistants and $665,394 for welding equipment in partnership with DMC

Corpus Christi ISD used the funding to purchase 12 simulators for the maritime program, which allow students to virtually steer a boat and learn about navigation, CCISD CTE coordinator Melody Pro said. The geographical settings are based on the Port of Corpus Christi.

At Gregory-Portland ISD, new welding equipment will allow students to be more competitive in the workforce and increase the capacity of the program, CTE director Hilda Salinas said.

West Oso ISD dedicated grant funds to the West Oso High School health science academy, purchasing an Anatomage Table for virtual surgeries and dissections.

West Oso ISD interim Superintendent Kimberly Moore, right, shakes hands with Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Bryan Daniel on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at Del Mar College. West Oso ISD and 11 other South Texas educational institutions were presented with Jobs and Education for Texans Grants from the Texas Workforce Commission.

West Oso ISD interim Superintendent Kimberly Moore said the equipment will serve the schools EKG and phlebotomy programs, as well as students in anatomy and physiology courses.

Aransas Pass ISD PTECH/CTE coordinator Matthew Esqueda said the funding will allow the district to expand its welding shop from eight to 24 booths, increasing capacity from about 50 students this year to about 90 signed up next year. For the districts health science program, the funds will result in new patient care beds, phlebotomy stations and virtual reality anatomy tools.

Rockport-Fulton ISD, formally known as Aransas County ISD, launched a maritime science program this year. Maritime science teacher Joshua Nguyen said the funding will go toward simulators.

Nguyen trains students on the water, but it can be difficult to schedule time for students to get out on a boat. Additionally, students will be able to use the simulators to learn what to do if something goes wrong on the boat and they need to make repairs.

This year, about 90 students took a maritime studies course. Next year, 220 students are signed up at Rockport-Fulton High School, and Nguyen also plans to open up the program to middle school students.

Lenora Keas, Del Mar College executive vice president and chief operation officer, said that the educational partnerships created by the grants are propelling CTE training in the region to a new level.

They place in the students fingertips the expert instructors and advanced equipment they need to be career ready in fields that are hiring and paying well in the Coastal Bend, Keas said.

Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Bryan Daniel said that the high number of grants awarded to Coastal Bend schools shows that there are strong partnerships in the community and that schools are actively seeking out opportunities for students.

I think its a testament to them taking the programs very seriously and having a successful program in place, Daniel said.

New Del Mar College program trains electrical workers 40 feet in the air

Coastal Bend schools invest in career and technical programs

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: How South Texas schools will spend $7.8 million for CTE programs
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Think all the way back to the year 2001. Snapple still came in glass bottles. Corona was not yet usurped by hard seltzer as the easygoing drink of the summer. Rapper Ja Rule was "Livin' It Up " on the Billboard charts  and on movie screens. And The Fast and the Furious, a little Point Break homage about street-racing thieves and the adrenaline-seeking FBI agent who goes undercover to catch them, beat the odds to be one of the highest-grossing movies of the summer.

Who could've known that movie would spawn a series that, more than 20 years later, would be the second-longest-running continuous, non-rebooted, not-recast franchise? (It's second only to the Mission: Impossible movies, which has been around longer but has fewer entries.) And that those lowly street-racers would go on to race around the Vatican, drive through the skyscrapers of the Middle East and zoom through the favelas of Rio de Janiero, picking up mega-watt movie stars to join their family along the way?

If you want to trace how the movies went from fun diversions for car enthusiasts to super-special-effect-heavy blockbusters, here's how and where to watch all the Fast and the Furious movies in order. The initial list is in order of release date, with streaming links where available. Then it's followed by a list of the events in chronological order because, like some of the race tracks they've been on, the series takes some twists, turns and double-backs. As for where to stream them, there's no one service that hosts them all, and most of them are not streaming for free, but it's good to have Peacock and HBO Max if you don't want to pay a rental fee for all of them.

Then, once you've seen Fast X, you can re-watch the Spider-Man movies in order, the Transformers movies in order, the Indiana Jones movies in order and the Marvel MCU movies in order, since those franchises all have new entries coming out this year too.

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

The Fast and the Furious franchise eventually transcends its humble origins as a turn-of-the-century Point Break re-do centered around the relationship between Dominic "Dom" Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O'Connor (Paul Walker). But here, it starts small: Director Rob Cohen, in his first and only work with the franchise, leads a diverse cast through a fast-paced movie about cops and criminals on the hunt for thrills. And while the bleached hair and Ja Rule-heavy soundtrack may seem dated today, you can still see why it became a hit  the seeds for a successful franchise are in there.

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2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

The Fast and the Furious franchise is so largely synonymous with its star, Vin Diesel, it's hard to remember that he's mostly absent from this one. Instead, Boyz n the Hood director John Singleton takes up the reins and adds Ludacris and Tyrese to the cast in a story that centers on the character of Brian and his life post-law enforcement.

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The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

Remember the character of Sean, played by Lucas Black? What about Twinkie, played by Bow Wow? This movie  the first of a run of four directed by Better Luck Tomorrow's Justin Lin  moves the action to Asia and focuses mostly on characters that are only tangentially related to the rest of the franchise, so it's the one that's the least connected to the others. The true star is the drifting, a.k.a the way the cars skid around tight corners. The other best thing to come out of this one is Sung Kang's character Han  sometimes referred to as Han Seoul-Oh, get it?  who does return in other movies.

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Fast & Furious (2009)

After a few movies that headed in different directions, this one is back to basics: Both Dom and Brian are in it, Brian is back in with the FBI and Dom and his crew are back to doing crimes. And while it feels good just to have the old band together, the action sequences start to get more ambitious here, too  as you can see in the famous scene where they hijack an oil tanker together  which is a precursor for what's to come.

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Fast Five (2011)

With the crew firmly in place, Fast Five is free to up the ante when it comes to heists and stunts, culminating in an action sequence on the streets of Rio de Janeiro that's up there with the best in the whole series. In this one, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson jumps in as agent Luke Hobbs, adding another huge name to the series' set of returning stars.

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Fast & Furious 6 (2013)

In this one, Michelle Rodriguez's Letty has fallen in with a bad crowd  namely Owen Shaw (Luke Evans), a London-based bad guy with a dangerous device that he's ready to sell to the highest bidder. It's up to the team again to stop Shaw in his tracks and hopefully save Letty in the process. How? Mostly through bananas driving stunts, but they also have to team up with Gisele, a former Mossad agent played by Gal Gadot. (And for eagle-eyed fans, who's the flag girl who starts the race in London? It's Rita Ora!)

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Furious 7 (2015)

This is the only Fast and Furious movie directed by franchise guru James Wan, who has also had success directing long-running series like Saw, Insidious and The Conjuring, along with two Aquaman movies. He takes the series to Abu Dhabi, where Shaw 2.0  Deckard Shaw, played by Jason Statham  is out for revenge against Dom's family. Dom won't let helicopters, drones or even luxury high-rise buildings stand in his way as he seeks to protect the ones he loves. Sadly, this one was marred by a behind-the-scenes tragedy when Paul Walker died in a single-vehicle car accident. His brothers were used as stand-ins to complete the filming of the movie. In a touching tribute, his character of Brian was not killed in the movie to explain Walker's future absences  he's just presumably living out his life peacefully off-screen.

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The Fate of the Furious (2017)

You'd think after seven movies that they wouldn't be able to add any more big-name stars to the already-full roster, but you'd be wrong. The Fate of the Furious  get it, "fate," or "F8," after the eighth movie  gets Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron as the new big bad, Cipher. Cipher blackmails Dom into stealing dangerous weapons on her behalf, making him the family's antagonist for once.

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Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019)

This spin-off movie sees two bad-guys-turned-good teaming up while still maintaining a rivalry. Dwayne Johnson's Luke Hobbs and Jason Statham's Deckard Shaw have to combine forces to track down a pilfered super-virus. Watching this one, you kind of get the sense that Johnson and Statham are contractually obligated to have an equal number of zingers in the script, but there's an element of mismatched buddy comedy that works, and there are plenty of action scenes worthy of a movie presented by The Fast and the Furious.

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F9: The Fast Saga (2021)

Yes, the Fast and Furious franchise is big enough to have not one but two wrestler-turned-actors among its cast. This time, John Cena shows up as Dom's foil  and someone from his past, who may be involved with Cipher. Meanwhile: Tej and Roman fly their cars into outer space!

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Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures

Fast X (2023)

Jason Momoa plays a villain that can only be described as extra  though he has good reason to get revenge on Dom and his family. This one sees a new director, though one who has car cred: Louis Leterrier, who previously directed Statham through The Transporter franchise. Leterrier is meant to wind-down the series with a two-part finale, though Diesel has hinted that maybe it'll be a closing trilogy.

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And a Chronological Order

Lots of the Fast and the Furious movies refer to previous Fast and Furious movies, especially when it comes to villain backstories, so the timeline does loop around on itself. If you want to see the events in chronological order, watch them like this:

The beginning of F9: The Fast Saga The Fast and the Furious 2 Fast 2 Furious Fast and Furious Fast Five The beginning of Fast X Fast and Furious 6 The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift Furious 7 The Fate of the Furious Hobbs & Shaw The rest of F9 The Rest of Fast X

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High tides leave parts of Seal Beach under inches of water, with more flooding expected

Ron Larson, 75, stands in seawater that left some parking lots and neighborhood streets flooded in Seal Beach on Thursday. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Crews in Seal Beach worked to clear pools of water from the beachfront Thursday morning as parts of Southern California's coastline braced for another round of potential flooding from the evening's next high tide.

A strong southern swell and high tide on Wednesday night led to flooding of beach parking lots and areas around the boardwalk, the Seal Beach Police Department said. Water reached the streets and parking areas of housing complexes near the beach, but no major damage was reported.

A high tide advisory was in place in Old Town Seal Beach between 10th and 12th streets.

On Thursday morning, the ocean level rose above Ron Larson's ankles as he stood just outside the beach in shorts and a hoodie.

"This is the privilege of living on the beach. It's just an inconvenience," said Larson, 75, who has lived by the water in Seal Beach for 23 years.

Police said the citys public works department was monitoring the situation and working to create an emergency berm  or raised patch of land  to prevent water from cresting the sand.

Free sandbag kits were being offered to nearby residents at the 8th Street lot.

High surf saturated parking lots and neighborhood streets in Seal Beach on Wednesday night and will continue Thursday as crews work to contain the flooding. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

The National Weather Service also issued a beach hazard warning for Orange County beaches for Thursday.

Breaking waves are expected at 4 to 6 feet with some climbing as high as 8 feet, forecasters said. That element creates dangerous swimming and surfing conditions, according to the National Weather Service.

There is expected coastal flooding of low-lying areas throughout Seal Beach with the high tide anticipated at just over 6 feet at 9 p.m. All beachgoers are advised by the National Weather Service to remain out of the water to avoid hazardous swimming conditions.

Calls to the citys public works and police departments were not immediately returned.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Higher Council of Justice signs off on arrest of former Supreme Court chief Knyazev

Vsevolod Knyazev

The decision was made on May 18, with all 14 members of the Higher Council of Justice voting unanimously in favor of the arrest. Knyazev himself was present at the meeting.

The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutors Office (SAPO) sought permission from the Higher Council of Justice to detain the former chief justice on May 17. Now that the arrest has been approved, SAPO can submit a motion to the High Anti-Corruption Court to request preventive measures in the form of detention.

Read also: French court denies Ukraines extradition request for Zhevago in Finance and Credit Bank case

The Knyazev Case

On the evening of May 15, reports emerged that Knyazev was suspected of receiving a bribe of $2.7 million, which was documented by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and SAPO.

In response to the discovery of a substantial sum of money in his office, Knyazev claimed that virtually anyone can enter the space, according to the anti-corruption NGO Anti-Corruption Action Centre.

Read also: Ukrainian businessman Kostiantyn Zhevago detained in France under suspicion of embezzlement

Subsequently, SAPO confirmed that Knyazev had been arrested. Semen Kryvonos, the Director of NABU, described it as the largest exposure of a high-ranking official within the judicial branch since the establishment of SAPO and NABU.

According to Kryvonos, law enforcement agencies have evidence of contact between Konstantin Zhevaho, the owner of financial firm Finance and Credit Group, and one of the owners of a law firm allegedly used to conceal criminal activities. The contact involved an agreement related to an illicit benefit provided to court officials in exchange for making necessary decisions for this entrepreneur.

On May 16, the plenum of the Supreme Court voted in favor of a no confidence motion in Knyazev. He was removed from his position as the head of the court, but remains a judge  pending a decision by the Higher Council of Justice. Knyazev and his associate, a lawyer, have been charged with receiving an unlawful benefit.

Zhevaho denies any involvement in the multimillion-dollar bribe, though on April 19, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Zhevahos company in a lawsuit that stemmed from 2005.

Read also: Ukraine gets closer to recovering $113 million from Zhevagos Swiss accounts

Knyazev was elected as the head of the Supreme Court in late October 2021. Since 2017, he had served as a judge and secretary of the Supreme Chamber of the Supreme Court.

Law enforcement agencies are also investigating other instances of judges of the Supreme Court accepting bribes.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A leading Hispanic civil rights group warned immigrants on Wednesday not to travel to Florida, and vowed legal action against the state in response to Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) ongoing immigration crackdown.

During a livestreamed press conference on Facebook, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) issued a travel advisory warning immigrants and their families to avoid traveling to the state of Florida due to the potential threat it poses to them.

Florida is a dangerous, hostile environment for law-abiding Americans and immigrants. LULAC President Domingo Garcia said.

If you bring your tia (aunt) to Disney World ... to Miami or Universal Studios, they are going to charge you with a felony for bringing your undocumented friend or relative to Florida, Garcia said.

The warning comes after DeSantis signed Bill 1718 into law earlier this month. The new rule, which will take effect in July, intends to stop the flow of illegal immigrants by enacting stricter employment requirements and harsher punishments against those who smuggle them into the state. It also allocates $12 million for the transport of migrants to other states.

The measure mandates that businesses with 25 or more workers utilize the federal E-Verify system to determine whether or not a potential employee is legally able to work in the United States.

The legislation is already having an impact on local businesses in the state, with some company owners saying that long-term workers are quitting their jobs and leaving the state, WPBF reported.

LULAC said it is taking unprecedented action in Florida in response to the law and will not tolerate acts of fear-mongering, scapegoating and immoral policies hurting Latinos that divide Americans for political gain.

DeSantis, who is planning a presidential bid in 2024, is among the Republicans who have chastised President Joe Biden over his immigration policies.

Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that made it easier to expel migrants, expired last week, which DeSantis said could worsen the already exploding flood of illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. Border crossings have dropped by half since the expiry, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN on Sunday.

The new Florida law also opens the door to anyone that looks like me to be stopped and questioned if (they) have the authorization to be in this country, Lydia Guzman, LULACs immigration committee chair, said. And that is racial profiling, that is the violation of our civil rights.

Guzman said the bill is meant to harass immigrants and is similar to Arizonas Senate Bill 1070, which authorized police to demand papers from whomever they suspected were illegal immigrants.

Guzman added that the law negatively impacted Arizonas economy and tourism, and it might do the same to Florida. LULAC issued a similar travel warning for Arizona in 2010.

The Florida legislation also imposes additional limitations, such as requiring hospitals that take Medicaid to ask patients about their citizenship status and ending the states acceptance of out-of-state drivers licenses and permits for illegal immigrants.

Migrants will forgo seeking medical attention, Guzman said. As that happens, people may die.
FILE- Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee gives a speech following a swearing-in ceremony to inaugurate the city's new government in Hong Kong on July 1, 2022. Hong Kong's leader said Thursday, May 18, 2023 the city's public libraries would not recommend books featuring bad ideologies" to residents after they pulled titles related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and certain political figures, further shrinking the city's freedoms. (Selim Chtayti/Pool Photo via AP, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kong's leader said Thursday the city's public libraries would not recommend books featuring bad ideologies" to residents after they pulled titles related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and certain political figures, further shrinking the city's freedoms.

Chief Executive John Lee was addressing a lawmaker's question about dozens of books in public libraries that were taken down without a clear explanation. Those include publications about the bloody crackdown and others written by pro-democracy politicians and political commentators.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to Chinas rule in 1997, promising to retain its Western-style freedoms. But the city's cultural and creative sectors said the city's freedoms have shrunk since Beijing imposed a tough national security law following massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Critics said the book pulling would further undermine Hong Kong's reputation for having free access to information and freedom of expression.

But Lee defended the sweeping law at the legislature, saying Hong Kong's freedoms are protected by the city's constitution.

The books we offer for residents to borrow are those that we recommend, he said. We would never recommend books that are illegal and violate copyrights. We would never recommend those that we deem to be featuring bad ideologies.

He said residents could still find such books to read elsewhere. He did not elaborate on what was considered bad ideologies and why the books were removed.

Asked why the books were removed, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department said public libraries review and withdraw materials that do not conform to the collection development from time to time. If any material is suspected of being contrary to the interests of national security or violating laws, the libraries will immediately suspend services of the material in question for review, it said.

The removal of the books was reported by local media outlets after a Chinese newspaper stopped publishing works by the city's most prominent political cartoonist on Sunday following government complaints. Comic strip collections by the cartoonist were also no longer available in public libraries.

Political scholar Ivan Choy said one book he co-authored was pulled despite a previous endorsement by former Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam. Lam wrote the foreword for the title and said it was the most comprehensive book on the citys electoral system, Choy said.

We wrote this book as academics and are not trying to make any political statements. So I feel they have overreacted," he said.

After the books were pulled and the publication of political cartoons halted, Choy questioned how Hong Kong could still stay as an international metropolitan without being broad-minded and inclusive. He added China wants Hong Kong to become an international cultural exchange center, where the East meets the West.

He said the changes keep Hong Kong from living up to its reputation.

Since a sweeping security law was enacted in 2020, the citys art and media communities have learned to be wary of crossing vaguely defined red lines in producing art and other content that might be perceived as challenging the Chinese Communist Party's control.

The group that organized Hong Kongs annual vigil in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square crackdown also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law. The annual vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the event on Chinese soil and was attended by massive crowds until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures.

Supporters say the group's closure shows that the freedoms and autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 are diminishing.

This year, a massive vigil is unlikely to take place in its usual spot, Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, on June 4. Instead, some pro-Beijing groups will host a bazaar to celebrate the city's handover to Chinese rule there.
Syrians in Saudi Arabia are sharply divided on President Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit in Jeddah

Tributes to Syrian culture are everywhere at Riyadh's Damascu Cafe - from the traditional bean stew on the menu to folk songs that pour from the speakers, name-checking the war-torn country's cities and towns.

There's even a staffer who was hired for his resemblance to beloved Syrian comedian Duraid Lahham, and who spends long shifts posing for selfies with homesick customers

But while the crowds that flock to the cafe each day are united in love for their native country, they are sharply divided on whether their adopted home, Saudi Arabia, has done the right thing by welcoming President Bashar al-Assad to this week's Arab League summit.

Some hope the move, which ends Assad's exile of more than a dozen years from the pan-Arab body, signals an easing of Syria's broader isolation and related economic hardship since the start of the war there in 2011.

"We were waiting for this moment," said 37-year-old Syrian expat Hiba Sidawi.

"It's a pain now to visit our country and see our family. War didn't bring us any added value."

In the other camp are those who can't bear the thought of Assad on Saudi soil - all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid riling both Saudi and Syrian officials.

"I hate him! I hate him!" said one woman. "Let him come for what, what will he do? Will he fix things? Will he change the country? He's the one who needs to be changed. I want to say out loud I am against him but I have relatives in Syria, they will drag them all and kill them."

- 'Will he heal our pain?' -

Saudi Arabia cut ties with Assad's government in 2012 in response to the brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protests that triggered the civil war, which has killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions. It was also the reason Syria was suspended from the Arab League.

The steps leading to Syria's reintegration into the Arab fold go back to at least 2018, when the United Arab Emirates re-established ties with Damascus.

But the process picked up speed after a deadly earthquake struck Syria and Turkey in February, prompting an influx of aid from the region.

During the conflict, Saudi officials had openly championed Assad's ouster.

But after the quake, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said a consensus was building in the Arab world that a new approach to Syria requiring negotiations with Damascus would be needed to address humanitarian crises.

The two countries' foreign ministers have since exchanged visits, and Riyadh lobbied hard for Assad's invitation to Friday's summit in Jeddah.

As waiters at Damascu sang birthday songs for a customer earlier this week, one man said news of Assad's impending arrival was nothing to celebrate.

"How can I be optimistic about it? Whenever I look into his face, I remember how many people died because of him," he said.

"Will he bring back our beloved who died? Will he heal our pain and injuries?"

But Fatima, a diner, said the move stirred hopes of a return to pre-war normalcy, even though there is still no political resolution to the Syrian conflict.

"The main problem is travelling, imports and investment. Those are all things which have been closed," she said.

"Now they will go back to normal and things will become better."

Ahmed Abdulwahab, who performs at the cafe, said he shared Fatima's optimism.

"In the past we were left alone... now we are coming back together," he said, referring to the Arab League.

At the same time, he stressed that reintegration hardly undoes the pain of the past 12 years.

"Any Syrian, when you talk to them about their country, you see tears in their eyes," he said.

"It's more than sadness. It's like your heart is burning."

rs-rcb/th/ami
Hoping for invitation to WHO meeting, Taiwan gathers more support

By Sarah Wu and Yimou Lee

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan said it still hoped to be invited to the World Health Organization's annual assembly opening in Geneva on Sunday, as support for its participation was growing despite China's efforts to isolate the democratically governed island.

Foreign Minister Joseph Wu noted several diplomatic allies and friendly countries had issued statements of support for Taiwan's participation, or arranged bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the WHO assembly, set to run from May 21-30.

"Support for us is stronger than in the past," Wu told a news conference in Taipei on Thursday.

"Even though we still haven't received an invitation letter for the assembly this year, we haven't given up and continue to through various channels clearly express our demand to the WHO."

Taiwan is excluded from most international organizations due to objections by China, which considers the island its own despite Taiwan's claims that it is an independent country.

After China began blocking Taiwan's World Health Assembly (WHA) participation in 2017, the island started a diplomatic campaign to join the annual meeting as an observer.

Earlier this month, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a statement encouraging the WHO to invite Taiwan as an observer, drawing criticism from China.

On Thursday the de facto embassies in Taiwan for the United States, Australia, the UK, Canada, Germany, Japan, Lithuania, and the Czech Republic issued a joint statement reaffirming support for Taiwans participation in the WHA as an observer.

"Taiwans isolation from the WHA, the preeminent global health forum, is unjustified and undermines inclusive global public health cooperation and security," the statement said.

Taiwan, which is allowed to attend some technical WHO meetings, says its exclusion from the WHO hindered efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

China has in recent years ramped up diplomatic and military pressure against Taiwan to force the island to accept Chinese sovereignty. Taiwan's government rejects China's claims and says only the island's 23 million people can decide their future.

(Reporting By Sarah Wu and Yimou Lee; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
Hundreds of Disney employees had already relocated from California to Florida before the company axed its $1 billion campus in its escalating feud with DeSantis

Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida warned on April 6 that his battle with Walt Disney World wasn't over. Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images and Joseph Prezioso/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Disney scrapped its plans to open a new $1 billion campus in Florida on Thursday.

The New York Times reported that hundreds of Disney employees had already relocated to Florida.

Internal messages said they would be offered the chance to move back to California.

At least 200 Disney employees had made the move to Florida from California for the company's projected new campus, which was axed on Thursday after Disney's spat with Gov. Ron DeSantis reached a fever pitch.

Disney announced its plans to scrap the $1 billion complex in an internal email on Thursday, a week before the Florida governor was expected to announce a presidential run. Amid an ongoing legal battle with DeSantis, the company said that 200 employees had already moved to Florida but that they would be offered an option to move back to California, the Disney chairman Josh D'Amaro told employees in an internal email seen by Insider and first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

"For those who have already moved, we will talk to you individually about your situation, including the possibility of moving you back," D'Amaro said in the email.

According to the New York Times, at least 1,000 employees were set to be relocated to the Lake Nona Town Center campus. The employees largely worked in a department that collaborated with the company's movie studios to design theme park rides. Many of them were disgruntled about the move, per the Times.

Though DeSantis was not mentioned in the email, anonymous sources privy to conversations among Disney's top brass told the Times that DeSantis' crusade was a major factor in the decision to pull back.

Walt Disney World employs 75,000 people in Florida, and the new campus would have brought another 2,000 jobs to the state.

Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The feud between DeSantis and Disney kicked off when Disney spoke out against a Florida law that clamped down on lessons related to sexual orientation and gender in public schools. The spat intensified after a DeSantis-appointed board took control of Disney's special-tax district. Disney sued the board, which later countersued, and the cases are now in the courts.

"While some were excited about the new campus, I know that this decision and the circumstances surrounding it have been difficult for others," D'Amaro said in the email, according to the Journal. "Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward."

DeSantis' office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Husband killed when hes ambushed in driveway and shot in front of wife, PA cops say

A 34-year-old man died after being shot multiple times in his driveway, Pennsylvania police say.

The shooting happened around 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 18, outside a home in Philadelphia, police say. Officers were sent to the area after reports of a person with a gun and gunshots fired.

Police said the man was backing into his driveway with his wife when he was ambushed, according to WPVI. Two people walked up and fired nearly 40 shots at the vehicle, the station reported.

The man was shot in the chest and arm, police said. He was taken to a hospital, where he died about 15 minutes after the shooting, according to a police report.

No arrests have been made and a motive for the shooting is unclear.

The suspects were described as being in their early teens, and they were seen in the area for a period of time before the shooting, Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told WTXF.

Police said the victims wife is considered lucky to not be hit by the gunfire.

His wife  who was in the front passenger seat  very, very lucky that she was not struck by gunfire because multiple bullets went in the drivers side and exited the passengers side of the vehicle they were in, Small told WCAU.

A neighbor described the aftermath of the shooting as the scariest thing ever.

It was sad, kids were screaming, Help my dad, help my dad. What do you do? Shannon Ayala told WPVI.

Beloved teacher shot dead in Dunkin drive-thru with 11-year-old son in car, PA cops say

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Vyshyvanka Day greetings are being shared on social media [a vyshyvanka is a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt, part of Ukrainian national dress  ed.], since embroidered ornaments are considered a talisman and a code of the nation.

The Ukrainian military and their commanders have also been greeting each other on this special day.

For instance, Ukraines State Border Guard Service pointed out that the vyshyvanka is a symbolic reminder of the traditions of our ancestors.

"The Ukrainian vyshyvanka is one of the brightest symbols of our culture. By wearing an embroidered shirt, we demonstrate not only its beauty and uniqueness but also our belonging to our ancestors  the Cossack line, whose work we continue today," the State Border Guard Service said.

A servicewoman in an embroidered shirt. Photo by the National Guard of Ukraine

The Security Service of Ukraine emphasised that history is being made right now.

"Every day of our struggle is a bright pattern on the canvas of Ukrainian history.

We will pass any test, withstand and defeat all enemies! And the path to victory will remind our children of the ornament of invincibility and life," the Security Service added.

A National Guardsman in uniform and a vyshyvanka

Brigadier General Viktor Khorenko of the Special Operations Forces Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stressed that it is thanks to Ukrainians that the "kosovorotka" has not become our new tradition [a kosovorotka is a traditional long Russian mens peasant shirt  ed.].

"For many Ukrainians, the realities of today have changed the embroidery patterns to completely different colours. And now the genetic code of the nation is forever written in the stains on our uniforms.

When you wear a Ukrainian vyshyvanka, remember those who made it possible for our new tradition to avoid becoming the occupiers' kosovorotka," he says.

Oleksii Biloshytskyi, First Deputy Head of the Patrol Police Department of Ukraine, posted a video of patrol cars "dressed" in vyshyvankas.

The National Police of Ukraine showed law enforcement officers swapping their uniforms for festive vyshyvankas for the day.

Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, also sent out a message to mark this special day.

"A unique ornament on military uniform. An unbreakable symbol of national consciousness, identity, unity and the future Victory of our people," he stated.

Greetings from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that this year's Vyshyvanka Day coincides with the anniversary of the deportation of the Crimean Tatars.

"Today, I am wearing a special vyshyvanka with ornaments that symbolise the unity of the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar peoples. Symbols of our strength and our desire to live in our home.

Let this year's Vyshyvanka Day in Ukraine be a reminder of what our people have been through and how strong our culture is," the president explained.

The president wearing a vyshyvanka embroidered with Crimean Tatar ornaments. Photo from Zelenskyys Facebook

The Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, sent a brief greeting to Ukrainians featuring a photo of a fighter jet decorated with embroidered ornaments.

The National Guard of Ukraine noted that Vyshyvanka Day is a revival of Ukrainian traditions and values.

"The vyshyvanka is a symbol of the resilience, freedom-loving spirit and talent of our people, and their desire for self-improvement! A symbol that has endured through the centuries!" the National Guard added.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine shared a touching video to mark the day.

"The vyshyvanka is cultural armour for Ukrainians, our talisman that symbolises the strength, invincibility and unity of our people," the General Staff said.

"This is not just a garment, but a reminder of how far Ukrainian culture has come, and how whole generations have cherished the customs of the people in order to proudly call themselves Ukrainians!" the Ministry of Internal Affairs emphasised.

The First Presidential Brigade highlighted that the military are the Cossacks of today.

A soldier of the First Presidential Brigade in a "combat" vyshyvanka

"The Cossack bloodline will never perish! The soldiers of the Burevii Brigade embody the indomitable spirit of the Ukrainian Cossacks in the determined and courageous patriots of modern Ukraine.

The Cossacks of the 21st century wear embroidered shirts with tactical unloading systems, and instead of a sabre, they carry a rifle," the brigade added.

The brigade shared this greeting despite currently being in Avdiivka and under Russian fire.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
With a rich cultural heritage, central China's Henan Province is one of the birthplaces of Chinese civilization. During this year's May Day holiday, Henan Museum, located in the province's capital city of Zhengzhou, welcomed over 70,000 visitors.

Yu Ru was one of them. She traveled all the way from Beijing to learn more about the ancient history of the central plain area.

"The museum is like a sand table of history, it presents the development of the city's civilization through cultural relics," she said.

In recent years, there has been a growing appreciation of fine traditional culture among Chinese people, with museum visits increasing in popularity.

By 2021, China was home to 6,183 museums that had been registered with authorities, and with 90 percent of them offering free admission, according to the National Cultural Heritage Administration.

"Visiting museums can help us better understand traditional culture, enhance cultural confidence and gain insight into the future," said An Laishun, vice president of the Chinese Museum Association.

With the rise of modern technology, more high-tech methods have been used to present treasured relics, providing easier access and better experiences to museum lovers.

Fahai Temple was first built in 1439 in Beijing, and is noted for its frescoes. Although the murals are still shining after nearly 600 years, those who want a clearer picture of their original magnificence might not feel satisfied.

By applying digital technology to cultural relics, an immersive digital art gallery was held earlier this year. At the exhibition of Fahai Temple Mural Art Center, the original scale of mural paintings was presented with a 4K HD display. Each one of the 77 figures was portrayed with immaculate attention to detail by 3D modeling of pixel-level.

The facial details of Water-moon Avalokitesvara, one of the most representative figures on the frescoes of Fahai Temple, are hard to make out in dim conditions. However, after 3D modeling, the over 3-meter-high figure's face can be seen clearly on the 4K HD screen at the Mural Hall in the basement of the art center.

China has proposed to promote the free opening and digitalization of public cultural venues and develop online digital experience products and new cultural tourism services such as immersive tours, virtual exhibitions and high-definition live broadcasts during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

Apart from attracting people to visit exhibitions, museums in China have also explored social education activities through various means to create "mobile museums."

With the help of livestreaming platforms, a museum in Beijing held a lively online course last month for primary school students in Qinghe County in north China's Hebei Province, which is located more than 360 kilometers from Beijing.

Children in rural areas rarely have the opportunity to visit museums, and we hope to provide more resources to them through online courses, said Li Jing from the eastern suburbs exhibition hall of China Railway Museum.

According to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, museums nationwide held 36,000 exhibitions and more than 320,000 education activities in 2021.

"Museums should share its historical and cultural resources with society, and work together with schools and communities so that people can learn more about history and enhance their cultural identity," said An.
Indias top court allows bull-taming sport to continue despite criticism from animal rights groups

FILE- A bull charges towards tamers during a traditional bull-taming festival called Jallikattu, in the village of Allanganallur, near Madurai, Tamil Nadu state, India, Jan. 17, 2019. Indias top court on Thursday ruled to allow the continuation of the bull-taming sport of jallikattu, which is criticized by animals rights groups but celebrated as cultural heritage in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

NEW DELHI (AP)  Indias top court on Thursday ruled to allow the continuation of the bull-taming sport of jallikattu, which is celebrated as cultural heritage in the southern state of Tamil Nadu but criticized by animals rights groups.

Five justices held that the state government was taking sufficient steps to reduce the pain and suffering of the animals, and ruled the sport and other bull races in the country could continue.

Animal rights organizations had filed court petitions saying jallikattu is a bloodsport and dangerous, with the bulls often attacking their riders and bystanders as they try to escape crowded areas.

The sport, which dates back centuries, is extremely popular in Tamil Nadu during the four-day Pongal harvest festival in January in which hundreds of bull vaulters compete in a carnival-like festival.

As drums beat and the crowd cheers, a man leaps onto the back of a large bull and hangs on tightly to its hump as the animal bucks and jumps. If he can hold on for three jumps or 30 seconds, or for a distance of 15 meters (49 feet), he has a chance to win prizes such as cooking pots, clothes, bicycles, motorbikes or even cars.

Poorvi Joshipura, a spokesperson for PETA India, said the court verdict "makes our country look regressive in the eyes of the world."

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, a global animal rights organization, was a complainant in Indias top court demanding a stop to the sport in the country.

Joshipura said the court order came despite people and animals dying and sustaining injuries.

"Since 2017, at least 104 men and children and 33 bulls have died. More deaths will occur," she said, adding that other countries have been moving to ban such sports.

The Supreme Court in 2014 had held that jallikattu violated the rights of the animals and the Prevention of Cruelty Act.

Two years later, the federal government carved out an exception for jallikattu and bullock cart races from the scope of the PCA. Animal rights organizations then challenged the move in the Supreme Court.

Later, the Tamil Nadu state government also enacted a law saying it was taking steps to prevent cruelty to the animals, paving the way for jallikattu to continue.

On Thursday, the top court upheld the federal and state governments' actions.
Indian actress Aishwarya Rai wore an extreme hoodie on the red carpet

"Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" got its world premiere on the French Riviera on Thursday, with Harrison Ford walking the red carpet for one last crack of the whip as the world's favourite adventuring archaeologist.

The veteran star, who has vowed this will be the last time he dons the famous fedora, was honoured by the festival with an honorary Palme d'Or on stage ahead of the screening.

Ford, was visibly moved as he accepted the award.

Trailers and teaser images from the film promise some classic Indy action in the streets of Tangiers and Sicily.

He was joined by supporting stars Mads Mikkelsen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Antonio Banderas.

The 80-year-old star is de-aged for an extended -- and very expensive -- flashback sequence in the $294 million new blockbuster, which is due for general release at the end of June.

It is the first of the five films -- which began back in 1981 with "Raiders of the Lost Ark" -- not to be directed by Steven Spielberg.

Spielberg passed the reins to James Mangold, known for "Logan" and Johnny Cash biopic "Walk The Line".

The franchise is now part of the Disney empire, who bought it along with "Star Wars" when they took over Lucasfilm in 2012.

Several fans showed up for a glimpse of the stars wearing fedora hats and leather jackets.

No one would want to be seated behind Bollywood superstar Aishwarya Rai, who walked the red carpet in a towering space-age hoodie.

Also on the red carpet was Amazon tribal chief Raoni Metuktire, in full traditional regalia, who was in town to promote forest conservation.

- Long docs -

Oscar-winning "Twelve Years a Slave" director Steve McQueen was also on the red carpet.

His four-hour documentary about wartime Amsterdam, "Occupied City", which premiered out-of-competition on Wednesday, wowed some critics while boring others to tears.

Premiering at the festival just after Indiana Jones was "Black Flies", an ultra-tense drama about New York paramedics starring Sean Penn, with an unlikely supporting role for ex-boxer Mike Tyson as his station chief.

Another lengthy documentary also premiered earlier in the day from a master of the genre, Wang Bing, who offers rarely seen insights into daily life in China.

His 210-minute film, "Youth (Spring)", came from five years of footage of migrant textile workers around Shanghai and is a rare documentary in the main competition for the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

Documentaries have done well on the festival circuit recently, with "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed" (Laura Poitras's film about big pharma) winning Venice last year, and "On the Adamant" (about a daycare centre for mentally ill patients) winning in Berlin in February.

There are 21 films competing for the top prize at Cannes -- the Palme d'Or -- including several previous winners such as Japan's Hirokazu Kore-eda, Germany's Wim Wenders and two-time British winner Ken Loach.

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Lydia Williams, a certified wound care nurse, rebinds a patient's wounds during her shift offering street-side medical services throughout Kensington in Philadelphia, on April 27, 2023.

Lydia Williams, a certified wound care nurse, rebinds a patient's wounds during her shift offering street-side medical services throughout Kensington in Philadelphia, on April 19, 2023. Credit - Anisha Kohli for TIME

Devin Bair, a 42-year-old Pennsylvania resident, had used opioids on-and-off for years, but she never experienced anything like xylazine. She first took it without knowing two years ago when it infiltrated her dealers supply, and she unknowingly became addicted to it. Xylazine, a veterinary tranquilizer that isnt meant for use in humans, is an increasingly common adulterant pervading the U.S. illicit drug supply, but little is known about its effects on the human body or how to treat the intense withdrawal symptoms it causes.

Xylazine has taken a stronghold in Philadelphia, a city at the forefront of addiction crisis and care. A 2021 study conducted by the citys public health department found traces of it in more than 90% of samples of dopea mix of different illicit drugs. Its unclear exactly how many people in Philadelphia are using xylazine, but in 2021, at least 434 fatal overdoses there involved xylazine. How lethal and dangerous xylazine is remains a mystery, and as puzzled health care providers struggle, fear grows that the crisis will escalate in other parts of the U.S. The Biden Administration deemed xylazine-laced fentanyl an emerging threat in April and asked Congress for $11 million to combat it.

Infamous for causing severe flesh wounds that can require amputation, xylazine isnt approved for human consumption but also isnt a controlled substance, which means it isnt regulated by the U.S. government. The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has seized xylazine-fentanyl dope in at least 48 states and warned in November 2022 that many people dont realize theyre taking it.

Bair said life on xylazinealso known as tranqwas pure survival mode. When you start getting sick from the tranq, you start shaking violently, salivating, and vomiting. Youre pretty much just a mess on the ground, she says.

More from TIME

Bair was living in her hometown of Harrisburg in 2021 when she noticed concerning changes in the drugs she was buying that caused her to lose consciousness and go into withdrawal just a few hours later. After some research, she found out the supply was coming from Philadelphia, and the symptoms sounded like those caused by xylazine.

Within a few months, Bair decided she needed to get clean. None of the treatment facilities near her knew what xylazine was, prompting her to travel across the state to Philadelphia, where she waited four months to get admitted to an in-patient treatment facility. Although providers in Philadelphia are more experienced with xylazine than in many other places, most programs are designed for opioids, and Bair was left to fend off an excruciating three-month-long withdrawal mostly on her own.

Carla Sofronski, executive director of Pennsylvania Harm Reduction Network, which advocates for compassionate care for substance users, says that people she works with didnt intend to get hooked on xylazine. They had no idea what they were buying. There are people that still think theyre using heroin, and they havent used [pure] heroin in years, she says.

Philadelphia was ground zero for xylazine in the U.S. when the drug permeated the street supply around 2019. During the pandemic, xylazine became even more popular as a cheap way to cut dope for a longer-lasting high. It also kept heroin and fentanyl users hooked because of the intense withdrawal symptoms it causes, which are painful and hard to treat.

For communities like Philadelphia that have fought drug epidemicsfrom crack to heroin, to opioids and fentanylfor decades, xylazine is a familiar story but with raised stakes. As new drugs continue to pop up, we cant just keep playing whack-a-mole, says Dr. Ashish Thakrar, who researches addiction at the University of Pennsylvania.

Advocates, substance users, and their loved ones have spent years pushing for a humanistic approach to treating addiction, with both short and long-term solutions. But if nothing changes, were going to have a generation of children raised by grandparents or the child welfare system and a generation of people losing their limbs, Sofronski says.

Treating xylazine addiction

Once Bair began treatment in 2021, the facility put her on a typical opioid withdrawal treatment course, but the regular medication dosages didnt help. Bair still felt incredibly sick, couldnt get out of bed to join group therapy, and lost 30 pounds that month from not being able to eat. When I was in rehab, it was like they didnt even want to hear the word tranq, Bair says. I guess because they knew they couldnt treat it.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasnt approved any specific medications for xylazine withdrawal, but some preliminary research suggests that certain drugs might be helpful for managing the pain and acute anxiety that xylazine withdrawal is known for.

Xylazine is almost always found with opioids, so in cases of suspected overdoses, experts say people need to work to address multiple drugs simultaneously. For example, naloxone (an opioid overdose reversal, available as a nasal spray) should be administered, and if that doesnt revive someone, xylazines sedation effects can also warrant CPR.

People withdrawing from tranq are not going the same course as folks who were using heroin. Its very different, and the approach in treatment is going to need to change, says Lydia Williams, a wound care nurse at Project HOME, an organization that provides accessible health care in Philadelphia. Medical guidance for how to treat xylazine withdrawal is limited and needs more research, she says.

Sofronski believes that one of the biggest challenges with xylazine is not treating it seriously enough. This is an emergency, the epicenter of it is right here [in Philadelphia], and we havent even scratched the surface, she says. Treatment options are even sparser outside of Philadelphia. In rural Pennsylvania and other states, doctors and hospitals dont know how to treat this and dont have the education around it.

Eventually, Bair left rehab and spent the next few months recovering at home, but the doctors labeled her non-compliant for leaving against medical advice, which later threatened custody of her children.

Bair went to family court and was able to convince the judge with her medical records that she left because she wasnt being treated adequately at the facility. She got to stay with her kids, who she says are still recovering from a traumatizing several months in foster care.

Kensington in Philadelphia is home to the East Coast's largest street drug market. Anisha Kohli for TIME

The unique challenges of providing care for xylazine use

Williams, the wound care nurse, regularly treats people who are suffering from wounds caused by xylazine. The gaping wounds can be so large that the flesh starts to corrode and attract maggots. Reaching people early and often helps her save patients limbs, which would likely be amputated in the hospital.

The Project HOME team provides other services, including diabetes, HIV, and pregnancy care, but since xylazines emergence in 2019, their primary focus has been on caring for people who use the drug. Around that time, they noticed that a growing number of patients were dying, says Kara Cohen, the street medicine teams assistant medical director and a nurse. We have to go to people, Cohen says. Setting up and waiting for people to come to us wasnt going to cut it.

Meeting xylazine users where they arewhich, in Philadelphia, often means Kensington, home to the east coasts largest street drug marketgives health care workers like Williams the best chance at helping people who need her the most. The health care that someone getsfor being poor, Black, white, living in a certain community, using drugs, or having mental illnessshould not be different than the care any of us receives, Williams says. Philadelphias numerous drug crises have been exacerbated by systemic issues, including poverty, gentrification, and racial segregation, and xylazine has proven no different.

Wounds are common among drug users because anytime you pierce the skin, you risk introducing bacteria. But those caused by xylazine are unusual. For people who inject xylazine, wounds sometimes appear in places where they dont inject, Thakrar says. Its a new phenomenon.

Seeing their wounds improve week-by-week with simple sterilization gives people hope for full recovery, says Cohen. I hope that people going through this in other parts of the country realize its not like every single time someone gets one of these wounds, its going to lead to limb loss, she says.

Monique Taylor, an outreach worker for the team who overcame a heroin addiction years ago, explains that building trust to retain patients is hard when so many people with addiction feel ignored by society. If youre not willing to take time and look at them like human beings, she says, youll never see them again.

Samuel Santiago, outreach leader for the team, always carries a pack of cigarettes on his drives to break the ice with people, much to the disdain of the teams nurses. The drug crisis has been personal for Santiago, a Philadelphia native, who lost his son to it.

The street medicine team currently cares for more than 500 peoplemany of whom use xylazine, and at least a dozen of whom died in April. Part of it is all this junk that theyre putting in the drugs to keep people coming back, giving them free samples, Santiago says. Then tomorrow, you come and pay because you need it. How do you battle that?

Xylazine remains virtually unregulated

This spring, Congress proposed several bills to regulate xylazine and to fund research on the drug, but no measures have passed yet. Experts note the government has been quicker to act on the xylazine threat than it was with fentanylbut its not fast enough. We need to prioritize those changes urgently rather than waiting the traditional months and years, Thakrar says.

Throughout the opioid epidemic, stigma around addiction and substance use has persistently limited life-saving policies from passing, according to an editorial published in 2021 in the Lancet. Products and programs like syringe-exchange centers, naloxone, and xylazine test stripswhich became available in Marchare proven methods to reduce overdoses, but arent always widely available.

Many health care providers are frustrated that access to addiction servicesboth medical and psychosocialcan be costly and limited under insurance. Addiction is a treatable condition, Thakrar says. We have incredible medications that should form the backbone of treatment. Although theyre not yet specialized for xylazine, greater access to such medications could help prevent addiction issues that lead people to xylazine use.

A handful of states, including Ohio, Delaware, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, have moved to classify xylazine as a controlled substance in recent weeks. However, harm reduction advocates worry that scheduling measures could punish users through fines and prison time, rather than pave the way for better addiction treatment. Dont police us; we have a disease, Taylor says. Its not a crime to be in active addiction.

Another concern is that restricting xylazine could lead to the spread of newer, more potent drugs. Thakrar says that synthetic drugs like xylazine and fentanyl are cheap and easy to manufacture, so theyre likely to keep popping up, faster and faster.
The end of third grade is supposed to be marked by parties, cupcakes and notes to beloved teachers  not parental uproar over porn.

But at Sacred Heart, a tiny Catholic elementary school about an hour southwest of Kansas City in Ottawa, Kansas, the past two months have been filled with angry parents, accusatory emails, tears, phone calls and meetings with the schools first-year principal over what might have been six to seven weeks of access to pornography on the third graders unfiltered iPads.

The principal insists the school took measures as soon as it understood the severity of the situation.

I think the most I can say, the principal, Patrick P.J. Greer, told The Star, is that there was a time period where there was some really unfortunate things going on with the use of iPads in our building.  When it became known to me that things were happening at the level they were happening, I took action.

But angry parents maintain they alerted the school at the start of March that some third graders may have been viewing sexually inappropriate content on their iPads, but the school failed to act for weeks. Worse still, they say, is the schools attempt to cast at least partial blame on some of the kids, who are 9 or 10 years old.

Its basically a complete dismissal of accountability, said outraged parent Brian Desch, who, because of this incident, does not plan on re-enrolling his third grade son in the school next year. Theyre just pointing the finger everywhere. I was paying my sons tuition because I bought into the image of, you know, Were going to hold ourselves to a higher standard. Were going to be accountable. Were going to live a moral life filled with integrity and honesty. And I have yet to see where any of that has been displayed with the leaders of that school.

As grandparents, John and Debbie Duncan help care for their third grade granddaughter because of family problems.

Im the reason she was sent to Sacred Heart, said Debbie Duncan, who attended Catholic schools for 12 years. I thought she would be in a more protective surrounding. Not only would he (the principal) not take responsibility, he attacked her. He said I wonder where a child would learn a word like that? The word was porn. I said, I dont know where she got it, but she accessed it at school. All they had to do was type in the word porn on Google. 

Its just been one horrible step after another of trying to get somebody to take responsibility.  I dont think the Catholic Church needs any more bad publicity when it comes to issues like this.

The plan for their granddaughter next year: At this point, shes not going back, Duncan said.

Parents notified school about the porn

Part of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, Sacred Heart is a school of 93 preschool to fifth grade students in a town of 13,000. The third grade has 16 students.

An email thread shared with The Star indicates a set of parents notified the principal in March that a child said kids were searching terms for breasts and images had appeared. Rumors of students calling up pornographic images began swirling around the school. The parents again emailed the principal about three weeks later that kids were talking about access to porn.

Three more weeks passed. On April 18, Desch, who works in information technology, said he met with the principal and offered help. He was told that the school had mistakenly let its paid filter protection lapse on the devices. Without the filters  software that blocks certain websites or specific material  the kids could search sexual sites.

I offered my services for free, Desch said. I said, Hey, if you have an issue blocking these things out, give me five minutes per iPad, I can do this for you. He dismissed it.

Six days later, on April 24, nearly seven weeks after the first alert, the school sent out a letter on growing problems with the use of technology in the third grade classroom.

There have been reports of students using the google search engine to look up inappropriate things and pictures, it reads.

But disturbing to some parents was the next line, which they say sounded as if blame was cast at the kids:

Pinpointing and proving which student(s) have been responsible for these actions at the current oversight we have of our student devices has proven difficult.

The letter said the school acquired an Apple account that offered better oversight. The principal updated the devices security, added extra parental locks. Instead of sharing iPads, each student would have their own.

This will be the iPad that they are responsible for, Greer wrote. I will be looking at the use history of each device and they are responsible for what is on that device. They are not to let anyone use or borrow their device.  Some students have approached me with information about who has been looking at these things. I told them to write in a note for me what they know, and I will look over the information.

Further letters outlined more action. The principal sent out two parental guides on dealing with childhood exposure to porn. Greer told parents he was considering bringing in a counselor to help both parents and students process and identify any grief or trauma regarding the event.

Inappropriate online access

Parents are split. Some are still angry and feel the school and church are trying to brush aside a traumatizing event. Others are calling for understanding.

Sarah Smiths father attended Sacred Heart. She attended Sacred Heart. Her daughter, she said, is among the what she believes to be only a small number of students in the class to view any images.

She thinks the school has handled the situation well and, in an email to parents, urged understanding.

Our kiddos have TWO years left at our treasured school  TWO  and then we release them into the wilderness , she wrote. Yes, I know every parent would want to know if their child was exposed to porn in the classroom.  I truly feel this is a time for ALL OF US to come together for our children. Lets stop the secret meetings, full of nothing but negative words regarding our (Sacred Heart School) Staff who care so much for every student at that school  lets LOVE MORE and offer grace to others.

Nationwide debates have raged in public schools, where books have been taken off of library shelves in response to parental complaints over children having access to materials with sexual themes or content regarding gender.

We went to the Nelson-Atkins Museum over spring break, one upset mother told The Star. An Ottawa business owner, she asked to remain anonymous, concerned about how the split among local parents could affect her livelihood. I have no problem with my child seeing Greek statues of naked people at all. None.

There is no question, psychologically, the extensive damage to the development in the brain of children who are exposed to this type of pornography. It undermines their ability to develop a very fundamental part of life.

The diocese is not denying that its safeguards lapsed and the matter was not handled well.

Our school has fallen short in safeguarding our youngsters from this inappropriate online access, Allison Carney, the Archdioceses associate superintendent of schools, told The Star in a written statement. We know that our school families are disappointed and concerned by this incident, but we want them to know that we are working hard to discover what happened here, and we hope what we learn from this situation will help us improve our systems and processes going forward.

In early May, Greer sent a letter saying that all iPads in the third grade had been removed. A psychological counselor was brought to the school. A new online security system has been purchased. He apologized.

The events that occurred leading to this are truly horrible, Greer wrote. That this occurred under my leadership of the school is something that saddens me as someone who is responsible to help keep our kids safe.
Iran warns Afghanistan's Taliban rulers not to violate its water rights, over Helmand River

In this photo released by Pakistan Prime Minister Office, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, left, chats with Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi during an inauguration of the Mand-Pishin border in Pishin, border of Pakistan-Iran, Thursday, May 18, 2023. The leaders of Pakistan and Iran on Thursday jointly inaugurated the much-awaited first border market in the southwest amid warming relations between the two sides to improve bilateral trade and economic ties, officials said. (Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP)

TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Irans president warned Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Thursday not to violate water rights of the Iranian people over their shared Helmand River, the state-run IRNA news agency reported..

President Ebrahim Raisi said his government is determined to defend Iran's water rights.

We will not allow the rights of our people to be violated," he said and warned the Taliban to take his words seriously, emphasizing the importance of Helmand River, which flows from Afghanistan into Iran .

Raisi spoke in a Pakistani border town on Thursday, during his first official visit to the neighboring country in 10 years, to inaugurate the first of six markets along the Iran-Pakistan border.

He also urged the Afghan Taliban to allow Iranian hydrologists to check the water levels of the river, which originates in the Afghan Hindu Kush mountain range.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 after the United Sates and NATO pulled out of the country following two decades of war.

Iranian officials have always stressed the importance of the implementation of the 1973 Helmand River treaty between Iran and Afghanistan, which envisions shared water resources.

Drought has been a problem in Iran for some 30 years, but has worsened over the past decade, according to the U.N.s Food and Agriculture Organization. The Iran Meteorological Organization says that an estimated 97% of the country now faces some level of drought.
The Internal Revenue Service has revealed that Black taxpayers are more likely to be subjected to financial investigations.

According to The New York Times, IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel sent a letter to the US Senate with research indicating the disparity between Black taxpayers and other non-Black Americans, which he calls concerning.

Let me start by stressing that the IRS is committed to enforcing tax laws in a manner that is fair and impartial, Werfel wrote to Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. When evidence of unfair treatment is presented, we must take immediate actions to address it. It is also important to reiterate that we do not and will not consider race as part of our case selection and audit processes. Nevertheless, a recent study estimated, using imputed race values, that Black taxpayers are audited at three to five times the rate of non-Black taxpayers.

Current federal tax forms are distributed at the offices of the Internal Revenue Service November 1, 2005 in Chicago, Illinois. A presidential panel today recommended a complete overhaul of virtually every tax law for individuals and businesses.

As soon as I was confirmed, the letter continued, I met with the IRS team that has been studying this issue. Their research is ongoing, and additional time is needed to yield a robust understanding of the drivers of this disparity and to thoroughly evaluate the right potential programmatic changes to address it. In this letter, we provide our initial findings. I want to note that fairness in audit selection is a complex topic, and our initial findings will evolve as the work continues. IRS does not collect data on race, and there is substantial uncertainty in any estimates of the audit rate by race or differences in audit rate by race.

CNN reports that the head of Stanfords research team, Daniel E. Ho, and his unit does not have access to how the IRS conducts its audits. However, their analysis indicates the EITC and a focus on lower dollar, higher certainty claims as opposed to lower certainty, higher dollar value claims as potential factors for the racial disparities.

Furthermore, Warfels letter claimed that research is ongoing and additional time is needed to yield a robust understanding of the drivers of this disparity and to thoroughly evaluate the right potential programmatic changes to address it.

Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Daniel Werfel prepares to testify before the Senate Finance Committee about the Biden Administrations proposed budget request for FY2024 and the 2023 tax filing season in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on April 19, 2023 in Washington, DC. Confirmed by the Senate in March of this year, Werfel is tasked with overseeing the IRSs $80 billion overhaul to modernize its technology and enhance its abilities to crack down on tax cheats.

In response to the IRS revelation, Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee stated they are committed to equality in audit rates.

Commissioner Werfel publicly confirmed that audit rates are disproportionate. He has committed the IRS to address the biased methodology used in the audit program and implement changes to fix this issue by the next tax filing season. Ways and Means Democrats will not rest in our quest to build a tax system that works fairly for all Americans and we will continue our rigorous oversight of the IRS to end these disparities.

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Palestinian-British filmmaker Farah Nabulsis upcoming drama The Teacher, which is shot and set in Palestines West Bank, has been acquired by top Italian indie distributor Eagle Pictures just as Vincent Maravals Goodfellas launches sales on the timely title in Cannes.

Goodfellas, formerly known as Wild Bunch, on Thursday will be presenting to buyers the almost completed film that takes its cue from a real prisoners swap that took place in 2011 when Israel freed more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one soldier who had been kidnapped by Palestinian militants.

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In The Teacher a Palestinian school teacher played by Saleh Bakri (Costa Brava, Lebanon) struggles to reconcile his commitment to political resistance with his emotional support for one of his students. There is also a subplot involving his romantic relationship with a British volunteer worker, played by Imogen Poots (The Father).

It takes place at a moment where an Israeli-Jewish-American soldier has been kidnapped by Palestinians for three years. The American-Jewish family comes to Israel to negotiate with the Israeli authorities, Eagle Pictures president and owner Tarak Ben Ammar told Variety.

Its the whole torment of one life against 1,000. The true story is that they did end up freeing 1,000 for one. But the teacher is trying to make sure that his kids dont join the freedom fighters, Ben Ammar added.

The Teacher marks the feature film debut of Nabulsi who made a splash with Oscar-nominated short The Present that also starred Bakri.

Goodfellas is always looking for new and innovative directorial talent and to support first features, said Goodfellas head of sales Eva Diederix, in a statement. Having Eagle on board ensures that The Teacher will have major exposure in Italy.

The film is produced by Cocoon Films and Native Liberty Productions in the U.K. and Philistine Films in Palestine. CAA Media Finance is representing U.S. Sales.

The Teacher/Courtesy Eagle Pictures

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Jaguars Defensive End, Roy Robertson-Harris will be at local Dunkin to support childrens hospital

Jacksonville Jaguars Defensive End Roy Robertson-Harris, ROAR Cheerleaders and Mascot Jaxon de Ville to surprise guests and distribute free Dunkin merchandise and gift cards to encourage guests to return for Dunkin Iced Coffee Day at a local Jacksonville Dunkin.

Roy Robertson-Harris will go behind the register to surprise guests at the Jacksonville Dunkin restaurant at 7005 Gate Parkway and encourage them to sip on a cup of good karma on Dunkin Iced Coffee Day.

Read: Contest: Watch Action News Jax weeknights at 11 p.m. to win $300 in Florida Lottery scratch-offs

During the event, Roy will be joined by ROAR Cheerleaders and Mascot Jaxon de Ville to help serve guests and distribute free Dunkin merchandise and Dunkin gift cards to encourage guests to return for Dunkin Iced Coffee Day on Tuesday, May 23, when $1 from every iced coffee sold at participating Dunkin locations will be donated to the Dunkin Joy in Childhood Foundation.

Read: Photos: Coffee with a Cop

Local proceeds throughout the greater Jacksonville region will support Wolfson Childrens Hospital to bring joy to kids battling illness in their local communities.

Hundred percent of funds raised on Dunkin Iced Coffee Day will support local childrens hospitals nationwide through the Dunkin Joy in Childhood Foundation.

Harris will be at Dunkin this Friday, May 19, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

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Offshore wind turbine

A subsea cable factory in the Highlands is expected to bring 200m of investment and create 150 jobs, the UK and Scottish governments have said.

Japan's Sumitomo Electric Industries announced plans last month to build the facility in the Highlands.

On a visit to Easter Ross, Scottish Secretary Alistair Jack confirmed the plant would be located at Nigg on the Cromarty Firth.

The cables would be used to connect offshore wind farms.

Mr Jack said: "It's 150 direct jobs with an additional 350 jobs behind that and obviously support companies as well.

"It will be a real boost to the area."

Port of Nigg would feature as part of the planned Cromarty Firth Freeport special economic zone.

Scotland government energy secretary Neil Gray said Sumitomo's investment would promote the rapid expansion of the renewables industry.

He said: "These will be highly-skilled green jobs from a business with a strong record in producing high-voltage underground cables.

"The cables and the wind turbines they connect can help reduce emissions as part of the fastest possible just transition for our oil and gas workforce."

Sumitomo's factory in Osaka in Japan has already manufactured and installed subsea links between England and Belgium.

It has also secured work to link the UK to Ireland and projects in Germany.
Jealous woman tries kidnapping child from mom on Mothers Day, Florida cops say

A woman became jealous after seeing a daughter walking with her mother on Mothers Day and tried to kidnap the child, according to Florida police.

The woman, who is 30, tried to snatch the 6-year-old child away from her mother as they were walking in Daytona Beach just before noon on May 14, according to a police report from the Daytona Beach Police Department.





The woman walked up to the mothers face and blocked her path, the report says. As the mother tried to step out of the way with her daughter, the woman continued to step in front of her and block her path, the report says.

The mother and daughter were holding hands when the woman tried to karate chop them, the childs father told WFTV9.





Police arrested the woman on May 16, charging her with kidnapping and battery second offense, according to Volusia County Court records.

The woman had a child herself but lost custody and told investigators she was depressed on Mothers Day, Daytona Beach Police Chief Jakari Young said during a news conference recorded by the Daytona Beach News-Journal.

She was very upset by seeing that mother and daughter walking together, that triggered something inside of her, Young said.

The woman is being held without bond, according to Volusia County jail records.

Daytona Beach is a coastal city about 60 miles northeast of Orlando.

Van stolen with sleeping kids inside, WA cops say. Then Facebook users spotted it

Family receives chilling video after they cant pay 19-year-olds ransom, feds say

Man lies to 911 about burglary, then women call screaming, California cops say
You are here: Business

Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2020 shows the Tencent building in Nanshan District of Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. [Photo/Xinhua]



Chinese internet giant Tencent has reported year-on-year revenue and net profit increases during the first quarter of 2023.

Tencent raked in over 149.9 billion yuan (about 21.4 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue during the first three months of 2023, up 11 percent year on year, according to the company's financial results released on Wednesday.

Its net profit rose 27 percent year on year to over 32.5 billion yuan in the first quarter.

Wednesday's report noted that the international games business contributed 13.2 billion yuan's revenue in the first quarter of 2023, up 25 percent year on year, which hit a record high.

In the first quarter, Tencent invested more than 15 billion yuan in R&D. The company had obtained more than 30,000 patents in major countries and regions globally by the end of 2022, said the report.
Transport Minister Miri Regev (R) was among Israelis waving flags at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City hours before the rally

Jerusalem police and residents were bracing for extremist ministers and their supporters to rally on Thursday in an annual flag-waving march commemorating Israel's capture of the Old City.

Palestinians in Jerusalem, who tend to close their shops and are banned from the social hub of Damascus Gate to make way for the marchers, view the parade as provocative.

In late morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Jerusalem celebrations were being held "3,000 years after being established by King David, 75 after it was re-established as the capital of the reborn state of Israel, and 56 years after being reunited".

Two of his extreme-right cabinet members, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, are expected to attend Thursday's rally, one of the events marking what Israelis refer to as Jerusalem Day.

Following the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel annexed east Jerusalem and its Old City in a move never recognised by the international community.

Thursday's rally takes place days into a ceasefire which ended deadly cross-border fighting with Islamic Jihad militants in Gaza.

Thirty-three people including multiple civilians were killed in the blockaded Palestinian enclave and two in Israel, a citizen and a Gazan labourer.

Militant group Hamas which rules the coastal territory said ahead of the march it "condemns the campaign of the Zionist occupation (Israel) against our Palestinian people in occupied Jerusalem".

Two years ago, after weeks of violence in Jerusalem in which scores of Palestinians were wounded, a war between Hamas and Israel erupted during the march.

- 'Acquiescence' to extremists -

Some 2,500 police officers were securing the march, which begins in the western part of the city at 4:00 pm (1300 GMT), proceeds through the Old City and ends at the Western Wall plaza.

On Thursday morning, an AFP journalist saw tourist groups walking through the historic gateway, while Palestinians sold bread from a stall and opened their shops before the afternoon shutdown.

Later in the day, the vast majority of shops in the Old City were closed, with Palestinian resident, Abu al-Abed, 72, saying he wanted "to go home".

The marchers "are harmful, they're walking and start to hit the doors of the shops and the doors of our houses," he told AFP.

Scuffles between Jewish and Palestinian youths were taking place as early marchers arrived in the Old City, with police saying that in some cases forces "were required to act to prevent friction and provocations".

Prior to the march, dozens of Jews -- including at least three lawmakers from Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party and a minister from Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power faction -- visited Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, Islam's third holiest site.

Jews, who call it the Temple Mount and revere it as their religion's holiest site, are allowed to visit but not pray.

One of them, Tom Nissani, was sitting at Jaffa Gate with an Israeli flag, awaiting the march.

"It's our capital city, we have to show it, to enjoy it, to fight for it", the 34-year-old West Bank settler who works for an organisation promoting Jewish presence on the Temple Mount told AFP.

"Israel is not stable enough to be naive about the capital or the whole country, we still have to fight... many forces that are trying to prevent us from making roots in the land of Israel," he said.

Transport Minister Miri Regev, from Netanyahu's Likud, was among Israelis waving flags at Damascus Gate hours before the official rally.

A spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas warned Israel "against insisting on organising the provocative flag march".

Pushing ahead with the parade "confirms the acquiescence of the Israeli government to Jewish extremists", spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said Wednesday.

Since last year's rally, Israel's leadership has taken a marked shift to the far-right.

Ben-Gvir, the country's national security minister who is expected to attend, was convicted in 2007 of supporting a terrorist group and inciting racism.

Far-right ally Smotrich holds the finance portfolio along with some powers in the occupied West Bank, and also has a history of inflammatory remarks about Palestinians.

bur-jjm/kir
Jim Jordan blocks Democrats from seeing evidence in chaotic weaponisation of government hearing

A hearing of the House Judiciary Committee descended into chaos on Thursday morning when Ohio representative and chair Jim Jordan asserted that the Republicans on the committee do not have to turn over key evidence to their Democratic colleagues because it came from a whistleblower.

Mr Jordan convened the committee on Thursday for a hearing on the weaponisation of government, calling witnesses to testify to alleged biases in federal law enforcement agencies such as the FBI.

Shortly after the hearing began, however, Democrats began raising an issue: Mr Jordans refusal to turn over evidence, including witness testimony, to the Democrat members of the committee.

Rep Stacey Plaskett, a delegate from the US Virgin Islands, asked Mr Jordan whether he would turn over the testimony regarding the Republicans conversation with a witness. Mr Jordan said no, arguing that the witness is a whistleblower.

Right now, youre not getting the testimony, Mr Jordan responded.

His refusal to turn over testimony to the minority party, a highly unusual practice for a committee hearing, continued to rankle Democrats.

I find it incredible that evidence that one side has garnered is not going to be shared with the other side, Rep Linda Sanchez of California said. Thats not how committees work.

Ms Sanchez went on to argue that the hearing as a whole was a vehicle to legitimise the events of January 6 and the people who legitimised it as former President Donald Trump makes another run for office.

Dems try to point out to Jim Jordan that he's violating the committee rules by not sharing testimony with them. Jordan just keeps plowing ahead. pic.twitter.com/ORzHbZ72uQ  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 18, 2023

Rep Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida then argued that Mr Jordan was violating committee rules by refusing to turn over evidence.

Its my understanding that the minority, in this committee, under the rules, is entitled to the same testimony, information, documents that the majority is titled to, Ms Wasserman Schultz said. Im not aware that youre able to withhold information from the minority that we would need to use to prepare.

Mr Jordan again argued that there are different rules concerning whistleblower evidence.

Dems try to point out to Jim Jordan that he's violating the committee rules by not sharing testimony with them. Jordan just keeps plowing ahead. pic.twitter.com/ORzHbZ72uQ  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 18, 2023

When it comes to whistleblowers, youre not, Mr Jordan said. When it comes to whistleblowers, you are not.

The hearing then descended into chaos, with several members speaking over each other and Mr Jordan growing animated  particularly at Ms Wasserman Schultzs observation that the witnesses in question have not been legally classified as whistleblowers at all.

These are not whistleblowers, Ms Wasserman Schultz said. Theyve been determined by the agency not to be whistleblowers. Are you deciding that theyre whistleblowers?

Mr Jordan then accused Ms Wasserman Schultz of not listening to witness testimony as the hearing eventually continued in a contentious fashion.
Fox News

Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) repeatedly denied Democrats requests to receive the testimony of one of the GOPs self-described whistleblowers during Thursdays House hearing on the weaponization of the FBI, prompting Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) to confront him with the actual rules.

Needless to say, Jordan was less than pleased.

During this latest hearing pushing the GOP narrative that the FBI is weaponized against conservatives, Jordan told Democrats that youre not getting the testimony of FBI staff operations specialist Marcus Allen, claiming the minority party isnt entitled to all evidence collected from whistleblowers.

These are not whistleblowers, Ranking Member Stacey Plaskett (D-VI) exclaimed. The law has not determined they are whistleblowers. His attorney is just asserting that.

Later in the hearing, after initially being shut down by Jordan, Goldman requested a point of order to state the rules, which he noted required transcripts to be made available to all members of committees.

Where is the whistleblower exception to the rules? Goldman wondered.

An animated Jordan said it was the prerogative of the committee to decide before adding: We have the whistleblower testimony. The whistleblower does not wish it to be made available to the Democrats at this time!

Goldman quickly shot back that the whistleblower doesnt make committee rules before Jordan attempted to move on to another committee member, eventually arguing with Goldman a bit more.

This isnt the first time that Goldman and Jordan have sparred during the subcommittees weaponization hearings. Back in February, the New York congressman questioned the chairmans claims that he had dozens of whistleblowers lined up, pointing out that Democrats had not been provided with any statements from any of these individuals.

Democrats, meanwhile, have questioned the credibility of Allen as a whistleblower, noting that his FBI security clearance was revoked after expressing support for the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Besides peddling Jan. 6 conspiracies, the other so-called whistleblowers at Thursdays hearing have also been paid thousands of dollars by Kash Patel, a former Trump administration official.

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Photo of Senator Joe Manchin

Joe Manchin wont give up on his pro-gas stove, anti-regulation crusade. The barely blue West Virginia senator single-handedly stymied a vote to confirm a key Biden Department of Energy nominee on Wednesdayall because of his personal opposition to reining in fossil fuel-powered appliances.



Manchin, who is chairman of the Senates Energy and Natural Resources Committee, used his position to cancel what shouldve been a routine vote. Jeff Marootian, currently a senior advisor to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, is nominated to serve as assistant secretary of the DOEs Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Marootian cant officially begin that new role until confirmed by the Senate, and he cant move on to Senate confirmation until he passes committee vote.

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Enter Manchin and his petty resistance even to reasonable, phased appliance requirements that would make people safer, save people money, reduce disease-causing indoor pollution, and *bonus* help the climate. The Office of Energy Efficiency is the DOE sector behind a proposed rule that would force gas stove manufacturers to comply with more stringent efficiency requirements. The rule wouldnt ban gas stoves, just require new cooktops to not use more than 1,204 kBtu in gas energy annually. About half of all the appliances currently on the market would be unaffected, according to Granholms comments during a House Appropriations Committee hearing in March.

Regardless, to punish the DOE office for daring to work toward its assigned mission of transitioning the U.S. to a cleaner energy economy, Manchin opted to shut down the Marootians nomination proceedings in protest. This is the second time Marootian has been up for the assistant secretary role. During the last round, he made it through Manchins committee, but his nomination never got to the full Senate. The Senators new stance represents a significant reversal.

While I supported Mr. Marootians nomination in December, since then the office hes been nominated to lead has proposed stove efficiency rules that Ive raised concerns about, Manchin said in a statement to multiple news outlets. While I appreciate that these rules would only apply to new stoves, my view is that its part of a broader, Administration-wide effort to eliminate fossil fuels. For that reason, Im not comfortable moving forward with Mr. Marootian at this time. Gizmodo reached out to the DOE for comment but didnt receive a response by time of publication.

Friendly reminder: In addition to being an elected representative and a perennial thorn in the side of environmental progress, Manchin is also a verified coal baron who receives ample financial backing from utilities and the natural gas industry. Its hard to separate the mans vocal opposition to common-sense gas stove regulation from the fact that he is the single biggest recipient of fossil fuel funding out of all national legislators. Sure, his state has a big stake in the industry, but by and large Manchins motivations dont seem to stem from helping his constituents. Even the states coal miners have a bone to pick with their senators policy stances.

When it comes to full Senate votes, the Democrats admittedly have little sway over Manchin. Thanks to their slim-majority Senate lead, the fossil-fueled politician holds most of the cards. But Manchins position on Senate committees is a different story. The Dems would be acting fully within the rules if they chose to unseat Manchin from his position as chairman of the Energy & Natural Resources Committee. In fact, theres no law that means Manchin has to be allowed on that committeewhere he is clearly tied up in a web of conflict of interests--at all. Committee assignments are mostly determined within the parties. Democrats could take a page out of the GOP playbook and decide that Manchins actions warrant a removal.

For now, Marootians nominationand the leadership of the Office of Energy Efficiencyis in limbo. The newly blocked committee vote is just a preview of whats likely to come. Earlier this month, Manchin vowed to block all incoming Biden EPA nominees until the environmental agency halt[s] their government overreach. There he goes again: greasing the wheels of fossil fuel profit, while gunk-ing up the gears of necessary climate change mitigation. Too bad the main opponent set to face Manchin in his likely re-election run is no better.

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Johnny Depp poses for portrait photographs for the film 'Jeanne du Barry', at the 76th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, Wednesday, May 17, 2023. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

CANNES, France (AP)  Just a year ago, the image of Johnny Depp smiling and waving atop the Palais steps at the Cannes Film Festival would have been unthinkable to most  including to Depp, himself.

When you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, then you find the basement to the bottom, Depp told The Associated Press the day after Jeanne du Barry," in which he stars as King Louis XV, opened Cannes.

This time last year, Depp was immersed in a libel trial he brought against Amber Heard, his ex-wife, based on a 2018 Washington Post op-ed piece in which she referred to herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse. A British court had ruled in 2020 that a tabloid labeling Depp a wife beater were substantially true. Soon after the ruling in the U.K., Hollywood had largely cut ties with Depp, jettisoning him from both the Fantastic Beasts and Pirates of the Caribbean franchises.

When it all went down, confusion is a good word. Befuddled. Because it does almost reach the Bugs Bunny experience, Depp says now. You say to yourself: Is this my life? What happened?

Some greeted Depps feting in Cannes with similar degrees of befuddlement.

A Virginia jury eventually ruled that Heard had defamed Depp on three counts and awarded him $15 million in damages. In a countersuit, Depp was found guilty of one charge of libel and Heard was awarded $2 million. Depp may have won in court, but public opinion remains divided on the actor who was once one of the most bankable stars in movies  with many supporters of abused women and the #MeToo movement wondering if sexual assault victims would be more reticent to come forward if they might be sued for defamation.

Outside the premiere of Jeanne du Barry in Cannes, fans grasped for autographs and signs read Viva Johnny! On social media, the reception was more fraught. Supporters of Heard rallied around the hashtag #CannesYouNot, arguing that Cannes  which has been criticized for welcoming men accused of misconduct  shouldn't have invited Depp.

If you support Cannes, you support predators, posted Eve Barlow, a journalist and friend of Heard. Heard herself hasn't commented on Depp's Cannes premiere.

Depp has seldom spoken in public since the trial, but he granted an interview with the AP on Wednesday after a day of interviews with mostly French media. (Depp remains very popular in France where he has sometimes lived and where the film industry is contending with its own #MeToo reckoning.) He was eager to cast his own battles in the light of Hollywood scandals of the past.

Never boring but unpleasant, curious years. Escapades. Rumors. Accusations, Depp said. I read far too much about Fatty Arbuckle but I didnt see any (Buster) Keaton coming my way to save my ass.

One of the things that kept going in my head was Hunter, he continued, invoking longtime mentor Hunter S. Thompson. I could hear his voice: Buy the ticket, take the ride.

I dont think Marlon would have survived, Depp said, referencing Brando. I dont think he came close to going through something like this. Had he been alive to watch this happen, he would have gone sideways. He would have killed somebody.

One thing thats been unclear was if Depp had any remorse for how the trial  a bitter and often theatrical legal battle played out in front of cameras  unfolded. Depp became a hero to some right-wing critics of so-called cancel culture. Asked if he had any misgivings about the supporters he attracted, Depp responded:

I did notice that people actually opened their mouths about it. At that time, that was brave.

Not for a moment will I regret anything unless Ive done something horrible to someone, which I havent, Depp added. Im not going to regret being taken down a strange road for that period of time because I learned so much more about myself.

Jeanne du Barry, directed by the French filmmaker and actor Maiwenn, is Depps first film in three years. Maiwenn stars as Jeanne Vaubernier, a working-class woman who becomes Louis XVs mistress. Depp speaks French in the film, which doesnt yet have U.S. distribution. Maiwenn, too, is a controversial figure. She recently admitted to assaulting prominent French journalist Edwy Plenel at a cafe, yanking his hair back and spitting in his face.

Its not the only business Depp has in Cannes. He's seeking financing for Modi, a biopic of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani that he hopes to shoot this fall, with Al Pacino attached. Depp, who will perform next week at a London tribute for the late Jeff Beck, a close friend, also recently renewed his contract with Dior in a $20 million deal.

I dont know the image of Johnny Depp in the U.S., Cannes director Thierry Fremaux said Monday. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned, we wouldnt be here talking about it.

And theres been plenty of conversation generated by Depps appearance in Cannes, even in reviews havent been good. Times Stephanie Zacharek called it less a comeback than a tepid lurching into a very small spotlight. But the overall reception has been warm. Depp, who said he lives 45 minutes away, was taken aback by the thrall.

I didnt know what planet I was on, he said, smiling.

Speaking to reporters in the festival press conference, Depp mocked the idea that he has many critics, likening anyone who protested his presence in Cannes to some species, some tower of mashed potatoes, covered in the light of a computer screen, anonymous, with apparently a lot of spare time.

Sitting on a terrace overlooking the Cannes Croisette later, Depp appeared relaxed and jovial, though his thoughts remained fixed on his legal battles with Heard.

Youre not powerless but youve been postponed, he said of how he felt before the trial. At that point, I just thought: F--- it. Ive been lucky. Ive been around for a long time. Ive made a lot of films. Thats, I suppose, my legacy. Alright. I can live with that. I didnt do anything wrong. But he said after years of swimming through that horrible molasses, he came out much stronger.

Depp said in the press conference that he has no further need for Hollywood. In the interview, he said he remains intent on making more films but outside the studio system. At the same time, Depp rejected that he was ever really a movie star in the first place.

Thats the last thing to call me, he said. For 20 years they never mentioned that until Pirates 1. Oh, hes a movie star now! We like him!

Many have portrayed Depps Cannes return as an attempt to win back moviegoers after a thoroughly revealing trial. Depp says hes not trying to convince anyone of anything. To him, theres no such thing as an unsullied movie star.

You mean peoples obsession that everybody must be Doris Day? Even Doris Day wasnt Doris Day. They have to know that, Depp said. And Rock Hudson certainly wasnt Rock Hudson. I can only try to offer that I feel like might be interesting or different.
Johnny Depp says he has "no further need for Hollywood"

Actor Johnny Depp said he has "no further need for Hollywood" during an appearance at the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of his film "Jeanne du Barry."

The actor met with the press to answer questions after the opening night of his French film, directed by Maiwenn, in which Depp plays King Louis XV and speaks in French. "Jeanne du Barry" marks Depp's first movie since 2020's "Minamata."

Most recently, Depp was in the headlines after suing his ex-wife, actor Amber Heard, for defamation. Heard alleged that Depp abused her  an allegation Depp claimed hurt his ability to get work. The jury largely sided with the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star in the case, awarding him $10.35 million last June, while Heard was awarded $2 million in a counterclaim.

Johnny Depp attends the

Supporters of Heard have questioned Depp's appearance at the film festival, launching the #CannesYouNot campaign on social media. The 59-year-old actor, however, did not appear to be concerned with the criticism or his perception within the industry.

"I don't feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I don't think about Hollywood," Depp said. "It's a strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves, but they can't. They must fall in line with the person in front of them. If you want to live that life, I wish you the best."

Depp said that he is focused on promoting his new film and the acting process, adding that he is not going anywhere.

"I've had about 17 comebacks apparently," Depp said. "I keep wondering about the word 'comeback' because I didn't go anywhere. As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away."

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Johnny Depp Says He Has No 'Further Need For Hollywood'

Johnny Depp and Maiwenn attend the

Johnny Depp and Maiwenn attend the "Jeanne Du Barry" press conference at the 76th annual Cannes Film Festival at Palais des Festivals on May 17.

CANNES, France (AP)  Appearing at the Cannes Film Festival the day after premiering his first film in three years, Johnny Depp said Wednesday that he has no further need for Hollywood.

Depp made a rare public appearance to face questions from the press following the opening-night premiere of Jeanne du Barry, in which Depp plays King Louis XV. The French film, directed by and starring Maiwenn and featuring a French-speaking Depp, is the actors first film since a jury last year largely sided with him in his legal battle with his ex-wife, Amber Heard.

Part of Depps argument in that 2022 defamation trial was that he had lost work due to Heards allegations. Heard was ordered to pay Depp $10 million in damages, vindicating his allegations that Heard lied about Depp abusing her before and during their brief marriage. Heard was also awarded $2 million.

Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? Youd have to not have a pulse to feel like, No. None of this is happening. Its a weird joke, Depp told reporters. When youre asked to resign from a film youre doing because of something that is merely a function of vowels and consonants floating in the air, yes, you feel boycotted.

Depp was most notably asked to step down from the Harry Potter spin-off franchise Fantastic Beasts. Now, though, he says hes not interested in returning to studio projects.

I dont feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I dont think about Hollywood. I dont have much further need for Hollywood, myself, Depp said. Its a strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves, but they cant. They must fall in line with the person in front of them. If you want to live that life, I wish you the best.

Jeanne du Barry opened Tuesday in French cinemas. It doesnt have U.S. distribution as of yet.

The Jeanne du Barry press conference was among the most circus-like in recent years at Cannes. The press conference began unusually late and started with Maiwenn and other cast members there, but no Depp. He arrived about 20 minutes in, and quickly took the spotlight.

Depp called the majority of whats been written about him in recent years fantastically, horrifically written fiction.

Its like asking the question: How are you doing? But the subtext is, God, I hate you, said Depp.

Some have debated whether Cannes ought to have given Depp such a prominent platform. Asked how he would respond to such critics, Depp made a comparison that suggested few people feel that way.

What if one day, they did not allow me to go to McDonalds for life because somewhere thered be 39 angry people watching me eat a Big Mac on a loop? pondered Depp. Who are they? What do they care?

Ive had my 17th comeback, apparently, said Depp. I keep wondering about the word comeback. I didnt go anywhere. As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away. Maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time. But I didnt go nowhere.

___

Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP

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In public at least, Boris Johnson was all smiles with Emmanuel Macron including at the G7 summit in 2021

Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson called French President Emmanuel Macron a four-letter obscenity and "Putin's lickspittle" as tempers frayed over the war in Ukraine, according to a former Johnson aide.

Guto Harri became director of communications in Johnson's 10 Downing Street just over a fortnight before Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Harri recounted his boss's incensed reaction when Macron queried whether the UK was doing enough to help Ukrainian refugees early in the crisis -- a criticism that was made also by many in Britain.

"He just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron," former BBC political correspondent Harri said on a new podcast series, recalling his time in government up to Johnson's ouster last September.

"Basically, saying 'He's a four-letter word that begins with C, he's a weirdo, he's Putin's lickspittle'," the ex-aide added.

"'We need an orgy of frog (French) bashing. I'm going to have to punch his lights out'," he quoted Johnson as saying.

UK officials were critical of Macron's attempts to broker peace in Ukraine, including after a strained meeting with Putin at the Kremlin just before the war.

Johnson found that meeting "nauseating", according to Harri.

Johnson was all smiles with Macron whenever they met, although tensions related to Brexit were never far from the surface in their dealings.

After the war broke out, Johnson became a full-throated supporter of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Britain a leading supplier of arms to his government.

Harri recounted a telephone call those two leaders had on the night that Russia invaded.

"It was massively sobering. We really could not believe that this was seriously underway," he said, adding: "The two of them had this extraordinary bond.

"And, dare I mention it, this kind of really dark gallows humour that was obviously a coping mechanism."

A spokesman for Johnson's office declined to comment on the claimed language used against Macron but stressed the former prime minister was not involved in the podcast.

jit/phz/jm
Josh Hawley never fails to show us who he is.

John Durham, the federal prosecutor appointed by then-President Donald Trump to investigate the FBIs investigation into Trumps Russia connections, concluded his inquiry this week after four years. Despite Trumps promise Durham would uncover the crime of the century, the prosecutor came up with a whole lot of nothing, legally speaking: One guilty plea to a minor crime by a former FBI lawyer, and two prosecutions that ended in acquittals. Thats it.

The FBI had a predisposition to open an investigation into Trump, Durham wrote in his concluding report. But he recommended no new charges, nor even any wholesale changes to the agencys policies.

Were there flaws in the investigation? Absolutely. Americans should demand both rigor and respect for the law from the nations top law enforcement agency. Thats particularly true where politically sensitive investigations are concerned. Even  especially  when Donald Trump is involved.

But a deep-state conspiracy? Nope. Durhams investigation was kind of an embarrassment, really, yet another case of real-world facts falling far short of the Trumpian hype.

Hawley, the Republican Missouri senator, naturally ran straight to Fox News to proclaim victory.

What Durham really demonstrated, Hawley told host Jesse Watters on Monday, is that Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee tried to use the FBI against Trump in order to swing the 2016 presidential election.

Thats what this report shows, the senator said. That one political party, the Democrats, tried to use the FBI to rig a presidential election and just about got away with it.

Thats conspiratorial nonsense, of course.

But one particular Hawley statement stood out for its breathtaking audacity.

You cant interfere in a presidential election, he said, without consequences.

Josh Hawley said that.

Josh Hawley.

The same Josh Hawley who on Jan. 6, 2021, led Senate Republican efforts to block the certification of Joe Bidens presidential victory, based on little more than Trumps empty and baseless lies about the election.

The same Josh Hawley who that morning gave a raised-fist salute to the Trumpist crowds who would later that day violently attack the U.S. Capitol.

The same Josh Hawley who, long after the attack, is still selling coffee mugs and beer koozies emblazoned with the image of that same raised fist (in ongoing violation of U.S. copyright law).

The same Josh Hawley caught on video scurrying away from the insurrectionist attack.

That Josh Hawley.

If the fate of American democracy werent at stake, I might be amused at the senators brazen nerve, and maybe use a word like chutzpah to describe it.

Instead, lets just be appalled at the utter gall.

Lets take stock of Josh Hawleys post-Jan. 6 career. He has published two books since the insurrection, including his tome Manhood: The Masculine Virtues America Needs out this week. He is a regular on Fox News programming, and regularly pens columns for other conservative outlets. His profile is higher than its ever been.

The man clearly has ambitions, and the insurrection  far from rendering them futile, or discrediting him once and for all  has somehow brought them to fulfillment. The man who went on TV this week and said you cant interfere in a presidential election without consequences has spent the last few years offering America a master class in the art of interfering in a presidential election without consequences

Indeed, hes made it look like a savvy career move.

Hawley wasnt the only insurrection-friendly senator from this region, of course. Kansas Roger Marshall also cast a vote, one of his very first in the Senate, against certifying Joe Bidens presidential victory. That will forever define him, as it does Hawley, but  and this is the barest minimum of praise possible  at least he doesnt continue to dine out on that particular public sin the way that Hawley still does.

Instead, Missouris senior senator struts upon the national stage crying out for accountability while facing none, proclaiming so-called masculine virtues while barely practicing them in his public service.

What a joke.
On Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed into law four different measures attacking LGBTQ+ rights. One of them bars minors from receiving gender-affirming care, blocks health insurance from covering such care for adults, and prohibits trans people from changing the sex indicated on their birth certificates. Another says that adults can be criminally charged if they dont use the bathroom that matches the sex they were assigned at birth.

Its little wonder that in the current landscape, and at a time when teens are facing unprecedented mental health challenges, trans youth in particular are at risk. A 2022 survey of almost 34,000 LGBTQ youth ages 13 to 24, conducted by the Trevor Project, found that almost two-thirds of trans and nonbinary youth reported symptoms of depression in the past year, and nearly 1 in 5 trans and nonbinary young people had attempted suicide in the past year. Rates were even higher for young people of color.

Not every mental health issue that a trans teen faces is necessarily related to their gender identity. However, as the above data shows, trans teens are disproportionately affected by depression and thoughts of suicide. To be clear, its not being trans that puts these young people at such alarming risk. Rather, its the discrimination and the transphobia they face.In addition to the usual ups and downs of adolescence, trans teens often face outright hostility in their communities, their schools and even their homes.

While some may need specific assistance with gender-related issues, such as gender dysphoria [identifying as a gender other than your assigned sex], others may be seeking help with depression, anxiety, or other mental health concerns, Caroline Fenkel, a trained social worker who oversees programming at Charlie Health, a mental health care provider for teens, told HuffPost.

Fenkel cites a study recently published in The Journal of the American Medical Association showing that gender-affirming care  that is, helping kids to transition, socially and/or medically (using puberty blockers or hormones)  was associated with 60% lower odds of moderate or severe depression and 73% lower odds of suicidality over a 12-month follow-up in 104 trans or nonbinary youth ages 13 to 20.

Meeting kids where theyre at with their gender identity, and supporting their transition in a way that feels right to them, seems to mitigate some of the mental health risk they face.

HuffPost spoke to young trans people, and mental health professionals who work with them, about what trans people need when it comes to their mental health, and ways to offer this support.

I was thinking about it for a long time, and I really feel like this is who I am, says Passion Childs, 22.

I was thinking about it for a long time, and I really feel like this is who I am, says Passion Childs, 22.

Passion Childs is a 22-year-old living in Detroit who identifies as a nonbinary trans woman. She became depressed while working full-time after high school.

It got to the point where it was very scary, because I genuinely wanted to be happy. But I just couldnt be happy, Childs told HuffPost.

One day, Childs came across a video of a woman talking about her transition and was struck by how well she passed.

I started to question myself, Childs said. She had a boyfriend in high school who disapproved of her wearing makeup or playing up her femininity in other ways. When Childs confided in him that she wanted a vagina, he would look at me crazy. And I was so serious. But it was always in the back of my head because I felt like it would just never happen.

Far from being impulsive, Childs decision was preceded by years of longing and another month of internal questioning after she finally identified her desire.

I was thinking about it for a long time, and I really feel like this is who I am, she explained. Characteristics like the way she walks and gestures with her hands made sense in this new context. Childs decided: I dont want to live with any regrets.

She told her brother, who also identifies as queer, and he was accepting. For her birthday, her brother and his friend bought her a wig and makeup. Honestly, it was the best birthday ever.

I started socially transitioning and it was the best decision Ive ever made in my life to this day, Childs said.

While she felt certain she was becoming a truer version of herself, transitioning hasnt been an entirely easy experience.

I was walking to my door and my neighbors were taking pictures of me and they were calling me names, [saying] that they know that I have on a wig, calling me a bitch. And after that, I went into a deep depression. I started self-harming again, said Childs, who had periods of cutting her arms prior to her transition.

Looking back, she believes she was cutting because I just didnt feel real. I felt like I didnt matter. I just felt  I dont know. It was a low point in my life and in my transition.

Her grandmother, who she was living with at the time, didnt understand what she was going through and wasnt helpful.

Childs ended up hospitalized in a psychiatric ward. She says that it was among the other patients there  a very diverse, open and accepting group  that she found the support she needed to get through this difficult period.

She has now been taking hormones for a year and half, and recently had top surgery. Shes happy with these physical elements of her transition, but she still faces obstacles related to passing, like being misgendered in the workplace. It really messes with me, mentally, Childs said.

I struggle with confidence, my self-esteem, she continued. Im just afraid of letting anyone see me without makeup.

These days, she has a small group of trans friends whom she feels close to and can call on for support. She went to therapy in conjunction with her hormone treatment, and is participating in art therapy at the Ruth Ellis Center, a Detroit organization providing trauma-informed services for LGBTQ+ youth.

Last week, she says, she made a dream box.

I put things that I want out of life inside of it, Childs said, including getting married one day and having a pet. I just want the life that I deserve.

Lee, 18, is another young trans person who has found support at the Ruth Ellis Center. He told HuffPost that he remembers feeling like there was something different about him as early as perhaps age 4 or age 6, but he didnt come out to his parents until he was 12 or 13.

While his mother was supportive, his father was not, initially, nor were other members of the family.

My mental health wasnt the best around that time, since I was denied mostly what I needed, said Lee. Not being able to access gender-affirming care, he said, drove my mental state worse.

Lee said he is now doing much better thanks to the support of his mom and the Ruth Ellis Center. They have been a great help and left a big impact on my life, he said. My mental health needs are being met.

He says he wishes parents understood that having a trans kid doesnt mean that you lost your kid  they just found themselves in a way that shows who they are.

Trans teens, said Lee, are in more need of support than discrimination. Hopefully people will realize it without backlash.

How parents can offer support

Katie Horton is a registered mental health counseling intern working toward her license. She has been in practice for two years in Florida. Horton, who is trans, said that after earning her masters degree on the West Coast, [I] wanted to open my practice here, because this is where I came out.

Many of her clients are also trans, and given the onslaught of anti-LGBTQ legislation, Florida is perhaps the most hostile place in the U.S. for trans people right now. This hostility and lack of acceptance causes stress for trans teens. Without support, theyre more likely to turn to behaviors like substance abuse and cutting, which Horton says is not uncommon among the young people she works with.

Its a coping mechanism, she explained, when youre feeling so much and something makes you feel numb, and then it becomes addictive and that becomes harder and harder to stop.

She continued, When you dont have an outlet for support, when you dont have an outlet and understanding of what resources are out there so you can connect with others and not feel alone  then it makes sense. It makes sense that people go to those places and get stuck in them.

The statistics on self-harm and suicidal thoughts in trans teens are alarming, but the good news is that parents can make a difference by showing their support and getting their child some resources. Horton says she has seen patients depression and anxiety improve when they find a safe space, whether thats in therapy or elsewhere.

This is not an experience many parents have been through, and theres no expectations that they should know how to deal with it, Horton said. But, she explained, being able to sit in with your child during a [therapy] session and ask these questions, and get that connection and that equality in a relationship between child and parent, shows that you are in this with them.

Finding community, whether its in support groups specifically for trans youth or a Dungeons & Dragons group thats a safe space for gender-nonconforming teens, is also important, says Horton. Online communities like Discord are another place where shes seen trans teens find a sense of belonging.

In addition to helping teens find those safe spaces, Horton says the biggest thing that parents can do to show their support is to listen to their child. Horton recommends letting your child guide the conversation.

Ask them, What does it mean to be an ally? she suggested. You may be the only person in their life to take their gender identity and their expression seriously.

This doesnt mean you have to become an expert in trans issues overnight, but try to show that you are open to learning and making an effort. There are lots of organizations that have useful resources, including PFLAG, the Family Acceptance Project and Gender Spectrum. You can also check out The Transgender Teen, a handbook for parents and professionals.

Helping your teen get their hair cut or styled, or helping them find and purchase clothing they feel comfortable in, are other ways to show up for your child.

You also need to acknowledge mistakes, Horton said. If you mess up, acknowledge [it], be willing to correct yourself, move on and practice.

If you misgender your teen, for example, correct yourself and move on without making a big deal out of it. If you are too apologetic, you may make them feel like they need to tend to your emotional reaction instead of experiencing their own.

Horton has also noticed parents getting pushback from their kids for sharing someone elses story. For example, you wouldnt want to blast your social media with the news that your child is changing their name and pronouns if your child isnt ready for this information to go public.

Its letting your kids tell their narrative, Horton explained. Let them know you understand that gender is complicated and it can take time.

The words they use to identify and describe themselves may evolve and change as they grow into their individual identity, and you want them to feel safe sharing any new developments or understandings with you. Your role is not to provide all the answers, but to ensure that your child feels heard.

If you or someone you know needs help, dial 988 or call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. You can also get support via text by visiting suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat. Additionally, you can find local mental health and crisis resources at dontcallthepolice.com. Outside of the U.S., please visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention.

Related...
China has released a guideline to support people living in rural areas to purchase and use new energy vehicles (NEVs), with a focus on boosting the construction of charging infrastructures.

The guideline was jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the National Energy Administration.

Noting that the country's vast expanse of rural areas currently fall short in terms of charging infrastructure, the guideline said the country will accelerate its pace to ensure the full coverage of charging stations at the county level and the full coverage of charging points at the township level.

China will also encourage localities where conditions permit to use NEVs in public transport, logistics and delivery and other sectors, and offer consumption coupons to rural residents who intend to purchase NEVs in the county areas of their registered permanent residence, it noted.

China's charging infrastructure network has the largest number of charging facilities and the widest coverage in the world, as well as the capability to serve all types of NEVs, Meng Wei, an NDRC spokesperson told a press conference on Wednesday. The total number of charging points in China has reached 5.21 million, Meng added.

China's NEV development has been on a fast track. The output and sales of NEVs were 2.29 million and 2.22 million in the first four months of this year, respectively, both surging 42.8 percent year on year, according to Meng, citing data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
Kansas Gov. Kelly signs education budget. In a test of her power, she vetoes one piece

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill Thursday funding Kansas public schools for the next year that included an expansion of an existing school choice program. But in a test of her powers, she rejected a policy provision that would have cut funding to many rural school districts.

The Democratic governor emphasized the need to fully fund the states K-12 schools, but criticized the Legislatures approach that ties policy decisions to funding and said the portion of the bill affecting rural district funding could violate the states constitutional obligation to fully fund public education.

Today, I am keeping my commitment to Kansas families by fully funding our public schools for the fifth year in a row, Kelly said in a statement. Whats more, I am proud to stand up for rural schools, the heart and economic engines of communities throughout the state, by rejecting efforts to cut the funding necessary to keep them open and continuing to serve Kansas students.

The provision Kelly vetoed adjusted the formula for determining funding to each district by allowing schools to calculate aid based upon their current or previous years enrollment rather than any of the past two years. The change would have helped growing districts in suburban parts of the state, but it would have harmed shrinking rural districts and the states largest urban districts. Districts that closed a school in the last year would be required to use current year enrollment only.

This provision jeopardizes the vitality of our rural communities and threatens the economic engines of many small towns, she said.

While rural districts faced often faced the highest percentage cuts to their funding under the proposal, Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools and the Olathe School District would have lost the largest raw dollar amounts at $3.2 million and $1.6 million respectively. The Bonner Springs district in Wyandotte County would have lost nearly $760,000.

But every other Johnson and Wyandotte County district would have gained funding, including an additional $1.1. million in the Shawnee Mission School District.

Wichita Public Schools would lost more than $200,000, under the plan, but the Maize district in the suburbs would have gained more than $1.2 million.

The move marks the first time Kelly has attempted to use her line-item veto power on the education budget bill. The Kansas constitution grants the governor the power to veto specific lines in appropriations bills, but Republicans and Democrats have been divided on whether that power extends to the K-12 budget, which passed in a separate bill from the broad state budget.

In recent years, Republican lawmakers have passed the education budget separately from the main budget as a way to impose education policy that may not be able to pass on its own.

Speaking to reporters last week, Kelly said her team was studying the line-item option and that she was not eager to enter into a special session.

In her veto message, Kelly said she held the power to line-item veto the policy because debates in the Legislature acknowledged it was an appropriations bill. She criticized the practice of combining policy with the schools budget as logrolling.

This process lacks public transparency and prevents the collaboration that could prevent unintended consequences of hastily crafted legislation, Kelly said in her veto message.

GOP leaders in the Legislature are likely to challenge Kellys decision in court. Speaking to The Star earlier this month Rep. Kristey Williams, an Augusta Republican and chair of the K-12 Budget Committee, said she believed a line-item veto is beyond Kellys powers.

Senate President Ty Masterson, an Andover Republican, and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, in a joint statement questioned the legality of Kellys decision.

We are extremely concerned, however, that with the Kelly/Toland administrations decision to line-item veto policy provisions within SB 113, the administration exceeded their authority under the Kansas Constitution, which limits line-item vetoes to items of appropriations. We strongly encourage the Attorney General to immediately review this unconstitutional overreach, the GOP leaders said in the statement.

A spokeswoman for Kansas Republican Attorney General Kris Kobach said in a statement that the office is reviewing the constitutionality of Kellys veto of the provision.

Stephen McAllister, a University of Kansas law professor and former Kansas solicitor general, said in an email last month that he believed the governor had clear line-item veto authority on the education budget.

In her veto message, Kelly said the policy would have dangerous and devastating consequences to our rural districts.

Since Republicans sent the budget bill to Kelly last month public education advocates  key allies of Kelly  have urged the governor to veto the funding bill and call lawmakers back to Topeka for a special session.

They expressed frustration over several policies including expanded eligibility for a tax credit scholarship for private schools and the funding adjustments.

Leah Fliter, a lobbyist for the Kansas Association of School Boards, applauded Kellys decision. She told The Star that districts had already budgeted assuming the finance formula would be the same as it was in previous years. The proposed change on enrollment would have thrown that process into upheaval, she argued.

There had been a lot of plans made and then they found at in April that they might have to change the way that their budgets are allocated, Fliter told The Star. Districts, she said, begin their fiscal year July 1 and must give non-renewal notices to teachers by Friday.

Though she acknowledged continued uncertainty from a likely legal challenge, Fliter said districts have more certainty than they did yesterday.

A lot of the districts who are going to lose either get a lower amount or actual end up negative. Its just that they didnt know that was coming, she said. Theyve already been budgeting and signing contracts based on what current law is and so theyre left kind of, they feel like, holding the bag.

While she vetoed the provision on shrinking districts, Kelly ultimately allowed the expansion to an existing school choice formula to take effect.

The tax credit scholarship was first established in 2014 under former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback and has been steadily grown over the years. The budget bill increased student eligibility for the scholarships to anyone below 250% of the poverty line and allowed donors to claim a higher percentage of their donation as a credit.

According to the Kansas Department of Revenue, $21 million has been claimed in tax credits since the program began in 2014. Last year, less than $5 million was claimed in credits though the state allocates up to $10 million for them. This year 1,340 students are using the scholarships at 88 schools.

Fliter said she was disappointed the tax credit scholarship expansion would become law but pledged to continue fighting similar programs in the future.

Republicans in the Legislature had sought a more wide-reaching policy allowing public dollars to be used in private schools, arguing solutions were needed for students who dont thrive in the traditional public school. But no bill offering a larger program could pass both the House and Senate.

Kelly also criticized the Legislatures refusal to add the $72 million for special education she had requested. The law instead includes the creation of a task force to study the issue.

When legislators return in 2024, they need to correct their mistake and put Kansas on track to fully fund special education, Kelly said.

This story has been updated to include data on the potential impact to school districts under the provision Kelly vetoed.
Gov. Laura Kelly signed the state's $13 billion education budget Thursday, though she attempted to use her line-item veto powers.

Gov. Laura Kelly signed the state's multi-billion-dollar education budget Thursday, though she attempted to use her line-item veto powers to remove a controversial change that could hurt rural Kansas districts, a move that will prompt outcry and a possible legal challenge from Republicans.

The education budget has increasingly become a lightning rod for controversy in recent years, as Republican lawmakers have included policy items in the funding bill, a move that has drawn frustration and condemnation from schools, who have sought a clean funding bill.

Republicans have defended the budget as a way of melding historic funding levels for schools with policy items, arguing that, by and large, districts are benefiting from court-ordered spending increases.

And while Kelly praised the money flowing to schools, she opted to reject language in the bill that would reward districts seeing an enrollment increase and cut funding for those losing students, which are generally located in rural areas.

Today, I am keeping my commitment to Kansas families by fully funding our public schools for the fifth year in a row, Kelly said in a statement. Whats more, I am proud to stand up for rural schools, the heart and economic engines of communities throughout the state, by rejecting efforts to cut the funding necessary to keep them open and continuing to serve Kansas students.

While districts are seeing a funding increase across the board due to the state's compliance with a Kansas Supreme Court-mandated funding blueprint, many are seeing fewer dollars than they would have otherwise. A few are seeing an outright loss in money.

Senate Bill 113 would give school districts the option of either taking their current year enrollment or the headcount from the previous school year to calculate how much state funding they are to receive.

That is a departure from the system that has existed over the last six years, where districts could choose to count the number of students enrolled in either of the two previous school years, a move originally designed to throw a lifeline to districts that were losing students.

More: 'Nail in the coffin': As tensions run high on school funding, rural Kansas fears impact

Kansas Republican leaders push AG Kris Kobach to review veto decision

Kelly left in place other controversial measures, such as an expansion of the state's primary school choice mechanism, a tax credit program for donors giving to private school scholarship funds.

Speculation has swirled in recent weeks over whether Kelly's line-item veto powers, which are usually expansive on the budget bill, also extend to the education funding measure. Her office played its cards close to the vests, with Kelly only telling reporters last week that they were weighing the legal ramifications of using the line-item veto.

The Kansas Constitution states that, in an appropriations bill, "one or more of such items may be disapproved by the governor" while other parts are signed into law.

Republicans are likely to object to the move and could elect to file suit, though Kelly's decision to limit her vetoes to funding-related items may give her stronger legal footing.

Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, said in a joint statement that they "strongly encourage the Attorney General to immediately review this unconstitutional overreach.

"We are extremely concerned, however, that with the Kelly/Toland administrations decision to line-itemveto policy provisions within SB 113, the administration exceeded their authority under the Kansas Constitution, which limits line-item vetoes to items of appropriations," the legislative leaders said.

A spokesperson for Kobach said only that they were "reviewing the constitutionality of the line item veto in question."

Kelly in the veto message argued that a procedural move on the House floor determined the bill to be an appropriations measure, allowing for her to use her line-item powers.

"The Legislature must end its process of 'logrolling' education funding bills that have such critical consequences for our children, families and the state," she said.

In 1981, a similar standoff between then Attorney General Robert Stephan and Gov. John Carlin emerged over Carlin's decision to reject a policy item related to school finance in a broader budget bill.

The Kansas Supreme Court ultimately rejected Stephan's request to address the action, however, ruling that the policy item at issue were "wholly foreign and unrelated to their primary purpose" and thus unallowable.

More: Kansas state employees to officially get a pay raise. Here's what to know about the plan.

Kansas special education funding shortfall has frustrated school districts

Sen. Molly Baumgardner, R-Louisburg, argued the reason for including the enrollment year changes was to ensure the state didn't have to pay two districts at once for the same student. Bigger districts lobbied for its passage, she noted, saying they now would lose some funding they otherwise would have received.

"They will be taking on expenses and we heard, right off the bat, that it was going to be millions of dollars going to schools to help them with their growth," Baumgardner said.

But 29 districts across the state would have been in line for a funding cut, even with more dollars flowing to schools statewide. The largest cut would have hit Fowler USD 225 in southwest Kansas, with the over $500,000 cut potentially scuttling a possible merger with a nearby district and put the district's future in jeopardy.

Jamie Wetig, Fowler's superintendent, said that the mood around the district lately had been grim, but when news reached school officials on their final day of classes, people were "ecstatic."

"Small, rural communities support their schools, they want their schools," Wetig said. "It seems like the governor understands that more than the other side of the aisle."

School districts have objected to a number of other shortcomings of the bill, including a paltry increase in special education funding, rather than a bigger chunk of money that schools had sought to bring the state into compliance with a requirement that it cover 92% of costs for special education students beyond what is spent to educate an average pupil.

Kelly said she would urge lawmakers to take that matter up again in the 2024 legislative session, as well as lobby the federal government for more dollars. Republicans have said it should be incumbent on Congress, rather than the state, to provide more money for special education.

"Republicans and Democrats agree we must put Kansas on track to fully fund special education, something that would impact each and every student," Kelly said. "When legislators return in 2024, they must correct their mistake and fulfill my plan to increase investments in special education."

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas school funding cut axed controversially by Gov. Laura Kelly
FILE - Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly speaks to reporters during a news conference, Tuesday, April 25, 2023, at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. Kelly and legislative leaders were required by law to sign off on a legal settlement between the state and a fitness studio owner whose business was forced to shut down in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/John Hanna, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP)  Kansas' Democratic governor on Thursday vetoed parts of the Republican-backed $6 billion funding plan for the state's K-12 schools, setting up a likely legal battle that will test her office's powers.

Gov. Laura Kelly, who won reelection in the conservative state in November, issued a statement explaining her decision to take the unprecedented step of vetoing parts of the proposed education budget, saying she objected to one provision, in particular, that she says would cut funding for rural public schools, which have been dealing with declining enrollment.

This provision pulls the rug out from rural school districts at the 11th hour, Kelly said. If the provision is enacted, it will bring dangerous and devastating consequences for our rural districts.

Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, leaders of the GOP-controlled Legislature, quickly issued a joint statement criticizing Kelly, saying the state's constitution limits line-item vetoes to appropriations.

"We strongly encourage the Attorney General to immediately review this unconstitutional overreach, they said.

The spending plan, which would provide the bulk of the money that the state's 286 school districts rely on, would also expand a program aimed at providing private school scholarships for low-income families. Although Kelly opposes that provision, she didn't veto it.

Kelly said that because the bill mixed policy with funding, the Kansas Constitution allows her to veto parts but not all of the bill, as it does with legislation setting the state's annual budgets. Top Republicans are likely to object and to challenge the assertion in court.

The issue has never been tested legally, creating uncertainty about how much money school districts might have and what policies they might face the next academic year.

In her statement, Kelly said the GOP-backed bill would change the way districts count their enrollment, which determines their funding. Currently, districts are allowed to use one of the two previous school years to determine how much money they will receive.

The new education bill requires districts to use the current or previous year's enrollment to determine appropriations. That provision would force districts with declining enrollments to immediately make changes to budgets they have already approved for the upcoming year, she said.

Kelly also noted that the Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the current method for determining enrollment, and she said changing the formula would raise questions over the state's compliance with that law.

Education groups had pushed Kelly to veto the bill even though it would increase the states total aid to districts by about 4% for the next school year. The increases would vary by district, with 29  most with fewer than 700 students  receiving less aid than they did this school year.

Kelly has signed education bills with a similar marriage of funding and policy in the past. But she and top Republicans clashed repeatedly over her handling of the coronavirus pandemic. GOP lawmakers forced her to accept a whittling away of the powers of her office and of local officials to close schools and businesses and impose mask mandates.

If Kelly had vetoed the entire bill, she would have forced a special legislative session to ensure that schools are funded for the next school year because lawmakers have adjourned for the year. If she were to lose a court battle over her vetoing parts of the bill, it's unclear if the entire bill would become law or if it would die altogether.

Educators also were upset that GOP lawmakers rejected Kellys proposal to phase in a 70% increase in funding for programs for students with physical or intellectual disabilities, or behavioral problems. It would have required an extra $72 million in the next state budget, but legislators only approved $7.5 million.

Kelly said she was disappointed that lawmakers didn't increase special education funding and that they need to correct their mistake when they return for next year's session.

In a statement Thursday, the Kansas Association of School Boards praised Kelly's line-item veto and also expressed disappointment in lawmakers' inadequate response to special education funding at a time when the state has a record budget surplus.

And educators opposed provisions that would expand an income tax credit program for donors to funds that provide annual private school scholarships of up to $8,000 annually to students from low-income families. Although the total credits would remain capped at $10 million a year, more students would be eligible for the scholarships.

Kelly said most Kansans don't support such policies, and she chastised lawmakers for logrolling them into the education funding bill rather than proposing them as separate bills.

Conservative Republicans wanted to pass a far broader plan to use state education dollars to help parents pay for private or home schooling for their children, something GOP lawmakers have enacted in other states, including Iowa,South Carolina and Utah.

Kelly is strongly opposed to the idea, saying public funds should go to public schools. Republican legislators were split.

The state constitution says that if any bill contains several items of appropriation of money, the governor can veto one or more such items while signing the rest.

While lawmakers often set policy in the budget with provisions directing how money must be spent or prohibiting some spending, those provisions are in effect only for a year. In the past, it's been uncommon for lawmakers to mix spending with measures rewriting state laws permanently, so governors haven't previously taken actions similar to Kelly's.

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Stafford reported from Liberty, Missouri. Follow John Hanna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/apjdhanna
Kathryn Harris

Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher named the former division manager of library services at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum as the new interim chief of the city's main library Thursday as a national search continues for a new full-time head.

Kathryn Harris, who has worked in local libraries for over 40 years, will assume the role of interim director of Lincoln Library beginning June 1. Harris retired from her role at ALPLM in 2015 after a career that began at Lincoln Library in 1971, where she took a job in the reference department.

After stints at the University of Illinois Springfield  back when it was known as Sangamon State University  the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and the Illinois State Library, she joined the staff of the Illinois State Historical Library in 1990, becoming the agency's director in 1996. When ALPLM opened in 2002, Harris shifted over to that building when the ISHL went under its umbrella.

More: New state flag commission passes the House

Harris is also well-known for her work in the community with study circles on race, the city's zoning commission, the Illinois Humanities Council and the Abraham Lincoln Association, of which she became the first woman and African-American named president. She's also known for her portrayals of Black women in American history, most notably Harriet Tubman and for her continuing work of educating the public on historical topics.

In 2020, Harris was named the 58th First Citizen by the SJ-R in recognition of both her career and work in the community.

More: Kathryn Harris selected 2020 First Citizen

For the moment, she is replacing Summer Beck-Griffith, who was fired Monday after Buscher made comments insinuating that the director needed to be a librarian due to requirements in some of their grants.

Those comments were disputed by at least 30 library employees who penned a letter to the public last week saying that Beck-Griffith's skills in communication and public administration suited the role well and that grant money would not be affected by her lack of a traditional library degree. The main signatory of the letter, community relations manager Hillary Rains, was fired on Friday as a result of the letter, which was printed on library letterhead.

Buscher said in a statement that she was confident in the ability of Harris to provide not just strong leadership, but a direction for the library's future.

"It is truly an honor to have Kathryn Harris lead this library in this transition for our Citys library," Buscher said. "Her contributions to the community go beyond and Im very confident in her abilities to not only run the department, but to also provide direction for the librarys future. Im very excited to build on the City of Springfields efforts to provide the best services to our citizens (and) ensuring the library can get all the support it needs to grow services and raise its profile in serving the community is my priority."

Harris will also assist the city in finding a permanent replacement for Beck-Griffith.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Kathryn Harris named interim director of Lincoln Library
Kayla Unbehaun (left) around the time of her disappearance and in an age-progressed photo (right) (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children)

Six years ago, Kayla Unbehaun vanished from her Illinois hometown in an apparent abduction by her mother, who did not have custody.

Six months ago, the nine-year-olds photo appeared on an episode of the Netflix show Unsolved Mysteries about parental abductions, an age-progression image flashing on screen to depict what she would look like now.

This month, someone at a North Carolina store recognised Kayla as a missing child  setting off a chain of events that led to her mothers arrest and Kaylas reunification with her father in the Midwest.

Heres everything we know about Kaylas abduction and safe recovery  and the questions that remain unanswered in the case.

Kayla Unbehaun is pictured with her father, Ryan Iskerka, before she vanished in 2017 in the company of her noncustodial mother, Heather Unbehaun (NCMEC)

A child and mother vanished on July 4th

Kayla was born on 5 July 2008 to Ryan Iskerka and Heather Unbehaun in the western suburbs of Chicago. After the couple split, a judge awarded the childs father permanent custody. Kayla was spending July 4th with her mother in 2017, however, and was scheduled to be returned to her father the next day, on her ninth birthday.

According to police interviews, Heather was last seen packing her belongings up to the roof of her car, Mr Iskerka wrote in a GoFundMe established just days later. Her closest family members indicated she went on a camping trip to an unknown location in Wisconsin and was expected to return on Wednesday July 5th at 7pm for a parenting time exchange with me.

Heather and Kayla did not show up for the court ordered exchange and the police were immediately contacted and an investigation was launched. It was discovered that all of Heathers social media had been canceled and her phone turned off. As far as we know, no one has been able to reach her or has talked to her since the 4th of July.

Because of this, the following day I had filed a missing persons report for both Kayla and Heather. Heather also did not show up for a court date motioned by her on Friday June 7th. Her lawyer had not talked to her for days, was unaware of what happened and was very concerned.

Mother charged with abduction as father pleads for help

After Mr Iskerka filed the missing persons reports, Ms Unbehaun was charged in 2017 with child abduction, a Class 4 felony, the Kane County States Attorney said Tuesday in a statement. A judge set her bail at $10,000 and, since then, South Elgin police pursued numerous leads and tips, working with police agencies from around the country in an attempt to locate the child and Unbehaun.

Heather Unbehaun pictured in mugshot (Buncombe County Jail)

Mr Iskerka, meanwhile, was appealing for donations and information, writing on the GoFundMe that he planned to use the assistance to hire a private investigator and any additional cost concerning the search for them and their health and safety for when they are found. The safety and return of Kayla is the top priority of all of my family and I and any help we receive through this funding is greatly appreciated, he wrote.

Between July 2017 and May 2023, the page raised just over $2,500 toward its $10,000 goal, the last donation recorded on the site coming in nearly four years ago.

In November, however, Kaylas picture featured on an episode of Netflixs Unsolved Mysteries. At the end of Abducted by a Parent, the final instalment of the programs third Netflix season, missing posters and age progression images are shown from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Heather Unbehaun pictured in an alert promoted by MCNEC during the search for her daughter (MCNEC)

For just under five seconds, a photo of Kayla at nine appears onscreen alongside a picture of what she might look like as a teenager.

A Bring Kayla Home Facebook page, meanwhile, was also promoting the age progression image  sharing it as recently as 21 April. Created the same day as the GoFundMe  five days after Kayla was last seen in Wheaton with her mother  the page has more than 7,000 followers.

Search meets unlikely ending

Kayla and her mother were at Westgate Regional Shopping Center on Saturday evening (13 May) in Asheville, North Carolina, when they caught the notice of a person at upmarket consignment shop Platos Closet, according to authorities.

That person recognized Unbehaun and recalled that the child was missing, Kane County States Attorneys Office posted Tuesday on social media. A store employee immediately contacted Asheville police, who contacted South Elgin police.

South Elgin police confirmed the identity of the two individuals as Heather Unbehaun and the missing child.

Ms Unbehauen, 40, was subsequently taken into custody, and Kayla has since been reunited with her father.

Mr Iskerka, in a statement issued through the NCMEC, that he was overjoyed that Kayla is home safe.

I want to thank the South Elgin Police Department, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case, Mr Iskerka continued. I also want to thank all of the followers on the Bring Kayla Home Facebook page, who helped keep her story alive and were instrumental in spreading awareness. We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning.

South Elgin Chief of Police Jerry Krawczyk also thanked citizens across the country and other law enforcement agencies who worked so dedicatedly to help bring Kayla home.

We are overjoyed to report that the child is in good condition and in good spirits since being reunited with her father, he said Tuesday in a release.

Law enforcement agencies  and well-wishers  were celebrating across several states as the case offered hope to investigators and families looking for people whove been missing for years.

I certainly think this is a unique case, Asheville Police Lt. Jonathan Brown told WLOS. It is unusual, its not a case that we see routinely or often.

Ryan Iskerka, pictured with his daughter before her abduction, says he is overjoyed at her return (NCMEC)

He marveled at how Kaylas mother had managed to go undetected for years.

Whats most unusual is the ability to stay off the grid, if you will, for that period of time, he said. Typically we leave a technological bread crumb and those are usually very easy and quick to be tracked down. This was not.

What happens next

Following Ms Unbehauns arrest in Buncombe County, she was charged with the felony offence of extradition, which she declined to waive. She posted $25,000 bond on Tuesday and was released from custody, then turned herself in the following day in Kane County, Illinois, where she was booked on the abduction charge.

The 40-year-old appeared before Judge Julia Yetter on Thursday (18 May) and has been released on bond with an electronic monitoring device. Kaylas father obtained an order of protection against Ms Unbehaun, who is barred from being within 1,000 feet of his residence and cannot leave Illinois without court permission, a Kane County States Attorneys Office spokesman told The Independent.

The 40-year-olds next scheduled court date is 14 June. A Class 4 Felony in Illinois can carry a sentence of one to three years, often probationary.

The Independent has reached out to lawyers for Mr Iskerka and Ms Unbehaun.
The father of slain University of Idaho student Kaylee Goncalves has expressed his support for the young women who survived the attack in which his daughter was killed.

Dylan Mortensen and Brittany Funke were inside their off-campus home in Moscow when roommates Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kernodles boyfriend Ethan Chapin were stabbed to death in the early morning hours of 13 November.

According to an affidavit released earlier this year, Ms Mortensen told investigators that on the night of the murders, she saw a figure clad in black clothing and a mask that covered the persons mouth and nose walking towards her.

Ms Mortensen and Ms Funke faced online harassment as speculation grew and questions were raised over the eight hours that passed between the attack and the time police were called. They were never considered suspects and authorities have described them as survivors since the early stages of the probe.

In an interview with NewsNations Ashleigh Banfield aired on Wednesday, Goncalves father Steve Goncalves thanked Ms Funke and Ms Mortensen for their cooperation with the investigation, which he called critical to build a strong case against suspect Bryan Kohberger.

Theyre going through a lot; I appreciate what theyve done for the case and all the information that theyve provided, Mr Goncalves said. I wish they wouldnt have to go through it but its critical, its absolutely going to make the case so I commend them for their courage and to go through this and to know I cant fix it for them.

The grieving father said he has spoken with one of the surviving roommates and hopes he can support them in any capacity to make the process easier.

Ive been able to talk to one of them. They know where we stand. These girls... If I saw them, Id give them a hug, Mr Goncalves said. Im there to let them know that we really appreciate it and, all the parents, were vulnerable so we need those girls to come forward and provide those details and they have done that, and we really appreciate it.

Mr Goncalves also said that at least two other families will attend Mr Kohbergers arraignment on Monday following his indictment on one burglary and four murder counts by a grand jury. The bombshell indictment on Tuesday effectively rerouted the case directly to the states felony court level and allowed prosecutors to skip the preliminary hearing process, the Associated Press reported.

I know on Monday, I wont be the only parent down there. Therell be other families there. And, I think its a moment of solidarity that were getting were getting more and more people active, and you got to give people time to figure out how they want to respond and how theyre going to just wake up and deal with an everyday situation, Mr Goncalves said.

Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21 (Instagram)

He said that his family and other victims parents have been planning the route theyll take to the courthouse on Monday.

But theyre all starting to get their power and their strength and theyre all ready to go to court and I think that courtrooms gonna get more and more crowded, he added.

Mr Kohberger said through a public defender earlier this year that he was eager to be exonerated. He was linked to the crimes by DNA evidence, cellphone data and surveillance video of what prosecutors believe is his white Hyundai Elantra leaving the scene, according to the arrest affidavit.

Another roommate, who survived the attack, was also able to partially describe the killer to investigators after she came face-to-face with him. The murder weapon, a fixed-blade knife, was not recovered during searches and remains missing.

Two warrants obtained by The Independent show that investigators collected a Glock .40 calibre gun, empty gun magazines, a knife, a pocket knife, black face masks, black gloves, electronic devices, and clothing items from the home of Mr Kohbergers parents in Pennsylvania where he was arrested.

The family home was raided on 30 December, the same day that a search was also carried out at Mr Kohbergers apartment in Pullman, Washington a 15-minute drive from the crime scene in Moscow. He was arrested in Pennsylvania that day and later extradited to Idaho.

The Washington warrant revealed that investigators seized a collection of dark red spotting and a pillow with a reddish/brown stain at Mr Kohbergers apartment. At least two items seized from that search tested positive for blood.
The film has constantly run into controversies

India's Supreme Court has stayed a ban imposed by West Bengal state on a controversial film that shows three women from the country joining the Islamic State group.

The court also asked the film's makers to add a disclaimer that the film is "a fictionalised version of events".

The Kerala Story was banned in West Bengal last week.

The state government said the decision was in the interests of maintaining peace.

The film's makers say The Kerala Story is based on years of research, but critics have called it propaganda.

In the southern state of Tamil Nadu, an association of multiplex owners had also said they would stop screening the film, citing protests and low audiences.

The film's makers approached the Supreme Court against the ban in West Bengal and the move by multiplex owners, which they called a "de facto ban" against their work.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court asked authorities in Tamil Nadu to provide adequate security at theatres for people to see the film safely.

It also directed authorities in West Bengal not to take any steps to prevent screenings of the film.

The Kerala Story - based in the southern state of Kerala - had sparked controversy months before its release.

In its teaser, released in November, an actress had claimed that her character was one among 32,000 women from the state who had joined Islamic terror groups.

But after criticism and legal challenges, the makers updated the film's description on YouTube to the "compilation of the true stories of three young girls from different parts of Kerala".

In its Thursday's order, the Supreme Court asked the makers to add two disclaimers to the film as well - one which said that the was "a fictionalised version of events" and another saying that "there is no authentic data to back up the suggestion that the figure of converted people is 32,000 or any other figure".

The court said that it will watch the film before hearing other petitions against it in July.

After West Bengal had announced the ban, some filmmakers and several leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had criticised the move. The BJP is in power nationally but is in the opposition in West Bengal, which is governed by the Trinamool Congress.

Two state governments - Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, both governed by the BJP - have made the film tax-free.

This week, over 100 people were arrested in the western state of Maharashtra after one person died and eight others were injured in communal clashes triggered by a social media post on the film.

BBC News India is now on YouTube. Click here to subscribe and watch our documentaries, explainers and features.

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It was one of the more puzzling moves in recent political history.

Instead of enacting a slam-dunk policy win supported by broad majorities of the publica ban on members of Congress trading stocksformer Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and other Democratic leaders dragged their feet last year and ultimately did nothing.

With a Republican takeover of the House, most lawmakers thought their opportunity for action had passed.

But not even six months into the new Congress, an unexpected thing has happened: A determined bipartisan coalition has used a fresh raft of suspiciously timed member stock trades to put renewed pressure on Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to act.

For a legislative effort that much of Capitol Hill had left for dead, theres perhaps more energy behind it now than at any point in over a year.

While McCarthy hasnt commented much publicly on a ban since winning the speakershiphe actually leveraged the issue to needle Pelosi last yearthere are promising signs of action.

Dems Quietly Try to Jam Pelosi on Stock Trading Ban

McCarthys office didnt respond to a request for comment, but as bipartisan support continues to grow, key GOP lawmakers arent ruling out advancing a stock ban in the coming months.

Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), who chairs the House Administration Committee with jurisdiction over the issue, told The Daily Beast on Wednesday that hes not taking anything off the table at this time.

Theres a real opportunity for us to explore ways we can, at the end of the day, enhance voters confidence in what is taking place here on Capitol Hill, Steil said.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)a top sponsor of one stock ban proposalexpressed optimism about getting something done this Congress.

Were not getting any sharp pushback, said Fitzpatrick, who co-chairs the centrist Problem Solvers Caucus. Its more like the devils-in-the-details kind of thing.

Since January, the coalition of lawmakers supporting action has grown. From Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), members across the political spectrum have signed onto bills to ban members trading stocks.

Part of the new energy is explained by a bonanza of suspiciously timed trading: In recent months, at least 10 members bought and sold shares of bank stocks around recent regional bank collapses, a subject on which federal officials and banking executives have briefed Congress.

Its just one after another, Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), a sponsor of leading stock ban legislation, said of the most recent trading scandals. Certainly, there have been a lot of conversations among colleagues aboutyet again, we find ourselves in this place.

The fact that lawmakers in either party would pass up an obvious political winand an opportunity to restore trust in a deeply distrusted institutionremains baffling to many supporters of the stock bans.

But despite that sense of incredulity growing among members and their constituents, the same factors that slowed stock legislation last year remain in this new Congress.

Reluctance to curtail member stock trading is not, strictly speaking, partisan. Senior members in both parties dont want to go through the hassle of reworking their stock portfolios. And many dont respond well to the idea that they shouldnt be able to supplement their government salaries with investmentsabove-board ones, of course.

Pelosi Deflects on Stock Trading and Punts Reform to Members

Republicans, however, might be more philosophically disinclined toward the basic principle, which could be one of the biggest obstacles for supporters of a ban to navigate.

Ive got concerns, constitutional concerns, over that because the right to engage in commerce is an inherent part of the Constitution that belongs to everybody, said Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA), who sits on the Administration Committee.

Instead of passing a ban, Loudermilk said lawmakers could tighten disclosure requirements for stock activity. He also suggested there wasnt much of a problem to begin with, given that members have been investigated and charged with insider trading before. That is true, though the vast majority of members who violate existing stock rules face no penalties.

The Senate also remains a challenge, where 60 votes are needed to pass legislation. Few Republicans in that chamber have lent their support to stock ban proposals.

But the House could drastically change that dynamic by passing a bill. The more immediate question for Republicans, and really for McCarthy, is whether the obvious political upside to moving a stock ban might one day overwhelm the clear inertia among members when it comes to regulating their own portfolios.

When he was the Minority Leader last year, McCarthy was happy to use the stock ban push to tweak his nemesis Pelosi, who was always chilly toward the idea and ultimately slow-walked it until the clock ran out.

Like many Republicans, McCarthy claimed prolific stock trading by Pelosis husband was the reason she stifled the bills. But in doing so, he seemed to occasionally endorse the idea behind them; last July, for instance, he told reporters, I think we need to bring trust back to this institution.

In the 2022 election that handed the GOP a House majority, many Democrats wished they could have campaigned on telling voters they had finally put an end to stock scandals. By leaving the issue on the table, however, theyve given McCarthya political creature known for devouring polls and campaign strategy memossomething to pick up.

Asked if Republicans recognize the political rewards at play, Fitzpatrickwho has won a number of tough races himselfhad a quick response. I do, he said. I put it on every single letter.

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Democrats, like Spanberger, who all but begged their leadership to take the win last year, believe that McCarthy is hardly incapable of recognizing one.

Im never going to give Speaker McCarthy advice on how he could perhaps charge his own path and differentiate himself from predecessors, Spanberger said, perhaps an implicit nod to Pelosi.

But the politics on this are phenomenally good, she continued. Hes said all the things one would want to hear him saynow he has to bring it.

For now, McCarthy and his team are focused on negotiating a debt limit deal with President Joe Biden and Democrats. There has been no hearing focused on the stock ban bills since the new Congress convened in January.

But whenever the debt limit issue is resolved, lawmakers on both sides think they will have room to make progress on a rare bipartisan priority.

Steil, the GOP chairman with jurisdiction on the issue, said he is weighing various proposals before deciding what, if any, bill to formally consider. Notably, members from both parties have signed on to competing bills that offer slightly different solutions.

The bill with the broadest support is the TRUST In Congress Act, which has been introduced in the past three congresses by Spanberger and Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX). It currently has some 55 cosponsors, ranging from the far right to the progressive left, powerful senior members to new freshmen.

The legislation would require members, their spouses, and their dependent children to either sell their individual stocks, or put them in a qualified blind trust while serving in office.

Another main proposal is the ETHICS Act, which is being led by Fitzpatrick, as well as Reps. Michael Cloud (R-TX) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), and has cosponsors like Ocasio-Cortez. That bill aims to offer lawmakers more options for where they can park their investment assets during their time in Congress.

Want More Trust in Congress? Ban Them From Stock Trading.

The fact that lawmakers would have to smooth out those differences deepens the challenge. Indeed, that was largely the dynamic that helped Pelosi and her allies draw out the legislative process last year, claiming supporters of the bans needed to get on the same page.

Still, even Republicans who have not signed onto any specific proposal are sharing the general sentiment that doing something would be preferable to doing nothing.

Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), a leading GOP moderate, said he was generally supportive of the idea and would be inclined to vote in favor of a bill.

Being able to trade stocks as a member of Congress, Bacon said, just leaves you open for speculation, even if you have no malice or wrong intent.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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(Bloomberg) -- The bid of Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of Thailands opposition group Move Forward, to form a coalition government hit a setback when a key political party said it wont back a prime minister who wants to relax the law against criticizing the monarchy.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Bhumjaithai Party, which came in third in Sundays vote with about 70 seats in the 500-member House of Representatives, said Wednesday night that it would rather stand in the opposition than be part of a coalition led by a party that wants to amend Article 112. Thats Thailands lese majeste law that can put offenders in jail for as many as 15 years if convicted of royal insults.

This is Bhumjaithais core principle that cannot be changed or negotiated, the party said in a statement posted on Facebook. Bhumjaithai cannot vote for a prime minister candidate of a party that has a proposal to amend or abolish Article 112.

The issue is proving to be a roadblock in Move Forwards bid to form a government after it stunned the nation by winning Sundays parliamentary election. Earlier this week, Thaksin Shinawatra also sought to distance his family from the push of Pitas party to lese majeste even as Pheu Thai party which the former premier backs had agreed to join hands with Move Forward.

The 42-year-old Harvard-educated Pita is seeking 376 votes in the lower house to bypass the military-appointed senate for him to become Thailands 30th premier. The coalition said it has secured about 310 seats so far, which means the 70 held by Bhumjaithai could prove pivotal.

Anutin Charnvirakul, the leader and prime minister candidate of Bhumjaithai, played kingmaker after the 2019 election before eventually siding with the military-backed Palang Pracharath and securing ministry positions for his party.

The decision of Anutins party not to back Pita for prime minister means Move Forward will now need to look to pro-royalist senators and the conservative Democrat Party for support after previously ruling out any alliance with military backed groups.

The push to directly change laws affecting the monarchy breaks a longstanding taboo in Thailand, where in years past, even the suggestion of disloyalty to the palace had been grounds for the military to stage a coup.

Move Forward vowed to press ahead with the reform after the election. Pita has since said preliminary talks about government formation are going well and the bloc will hold a briefing Thursday in Bangkok to reveal details about a memorandum of understanding between the parties.

--With assistance from Suttinee Yuvejwattana.

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Kia and Hyundai will pay out millions to people who had their cars stolen in Tik-Tok inspired 'Kia Boys' thefts

TikTokers have suggested a "hack" to get a Kia or Hyundai car started without the key. @negasi_enterprise999/@sophiestumbles/@roos_4_ever/TikTok

Kia and Hyundai will pay millions to people who had their cars stolen in a Tik-Tok inspired trend.

The "Kia Boys" trend involved using a common USB charging cord or metal object to start the car.

The settlement is valued at more than $200 million.

Kia and Hyundai will pay millions of dollars to people who had their car stolen thanks to a missing antitheft device and a TikTok-inspired trend.

The proposed settlement is valued at more than $200 million, the law firm Hagens Berman, which represented car owners in the lawsuit, announced Thursday.

It affects owners of certain 2016 to 2021 Hyundai models and certain Kia models made between 2011 and 2021. These models were built without an immobilizer  a common antitheft device that prevents cars from being started without the code from the vehicle's individual smart key.

"The owners of these cars have experienced enough upset, and we worked to achieve a settlement that covers many types of losses  from those who were lucky enough to have never had their theft-prone car stolen, to those whose stolen cars were totaled completely due to Hyundai and Kia's negligence," Steve Berman, managing partner at Hagens Berman, said in a statement.

Thieves targeted these cars because they were easy to steal using a common USB charging cord or a similar metal object to start the engine. Last year, Cook County Sheriff's Office warned people about the rise in thefts, reporting they'd seen 642 reports of Kia and Hyundai thefts in the area in just a few months compared with 74 reports all of 2021, Insider previously reported.

The spike in theft of the models is partially thanks to a TikTok trend from the "Kia Boyz," which followed people breaking into Kia and Hyundai models only using a screwdriver and a USB cord.

"The increases are believed to be connected to the sharing of videos on social media that demonstrate how to start these vehicles without a key," Cook County's Sheriff Office said in a press release. "Thieves appear to be targeting unoccupied vehicles that require a physical key, not a starter button."

At the time, spokespeople for Hyundai and Kia said they were concerned about the the auto thefts and the social media trends targeting the vehicles but assured their cars met or exceeded Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.

The suit alleged that the lack of an immobilizer and other flaws allowed thieves to steal these cars in less than 90 seconds.

On Thursday, Ash Klann, a spokesperson for Hagens Berman, told Insider that car insurers who already paid out to drivers whose thefts were covered will have their own claims against Kia and Hyundai.

"Those claims are separate from this," Klann said. "Today's proposed settlement doesn't at all affect insurers' claims."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Xi calls on Shaanxi to write new chapter in advancing Chinese modernization

Xinhua) 08:05, May 18, 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

XI'AN, Shaanxi/YUNCHENG, Shanxi, May 17 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has called on northwest China's Shaanxi Province to give full play to its strengths and play an exemplary role in advancing Chinese modernization in the country's western region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Wednesday while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province.

Shaanxi should prioritize the primary task of promoting high-quality development, base its work on local reality, and actively integrate into and work for the creation of a new development pattern, Xi said.

Efforts are needed for breakthroughs in building self-reliance and strength in science and technology, modernizing the industrial system, boosting coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between regions, expanding high-level opening up, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection, he said.

To catch up with and surpass other regions, Shaanxi must make new breakthroughs in sci-tech innovation and modernizing the industrial system, Xi noted, calling on the province to cultivate new strengths while consolidating its leading position in traditional industries.

Shaanxi should speed up modernizing the industrial system that is intelligent, green and integrated, and meets the requirements of integrity, advancement and security, Xi said, demanding more efforts to strengthen its modern energy industrial clusters.

The most arduous tasks in building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting common prosperity remain in the rural areas, Xi said, stressing efforts to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and build county economies with county seats as hubs and small townships as junctions.

He also called for vigorously developing industries with distinctive features in light of local conditions, creating more channels for increasing farmers' incomes and ensuring that people would not slide back into poverty in large numbers.

Efforts should be made to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of development patterns and enhance ecological conservation, Xi said.

He stressed the need to strictly implement the Yellow River Protection Law and related plans and strengthen ecological protection and restoration of the river basin to protect the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of the Chinese nation.

Xi called for promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development, facilitating the green transformation of the energy industry while actively and prudently advancing carbon peaking and neutrality.

Work should be done to advocate green consumption and further promote the economical and intensive use of resources, Xi said.

He urged efforts to open up wider and develop the inland province into a high ground for reform and opening up. The province should give full play to the city of Xi'an as an assembly center for China-Europe freight trains, move faster in becoming a pivotal opening-up channel for countries in Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia.

Speaking of the Party-wide education campaign on the study and implementation of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi called on Party organizations at all levels to advance the campaign profoundly and steadily and yield tangible results in forging inner strength, gaining wisdom, improving Party conduct and motivating actions.

Xi stressed the importance of handling complex situations, pooling strength from across the society, and guarding against political risks, calling for translating the worldview and methodology of the thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods running through it, into a "master key" of problem-solving.

Xi also underlined the need to work more scientifically with foresight, initiative, and creativity, and enhance the capabilities of promoting high-quality development, serving the public, preventing and diffusing risks, and being more professionally competent.

Shaanxi should use its historical and cultural resources and red culture to continue advancing the education campaign and make solid progress, he said.

On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province, where he visited a museum and a salt lake Tuesday afternoon.

Valuable cultural relics in the Yuncheng Museum, some of which are national treasures, are witnesses to the Chinese history of humanity, culture and civilization, he said.

He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization to improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage.

At the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which has a history of over 4,600 years of exploitation, Xi noted that the ecological values and functions of the salt lake are increasingly important, urging coordinated efforts to protect and utilize it to further protect its historical and cultural values.

The ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin is a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and the Chinese civilization, Xi said.

He required provinces and regions along the Yellow River to uphold ecological conservation in the Yellow River basin as the bottom line in planning development and pursuing high-quality development.

Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and accompanied Xi on the inspection trip.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Salt Lake in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. [Photo/Xinhua]

President Xi Jinping has called on northwest China's Shaanxi Province to give full play to its strengths and play an exemplary role in advancing Chinese modernization in the country's western region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Wednesday while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province.

Shaanxi should prioritize the primary task of promoting high-quality development, base its work on local reality, and actively integrate into and work for the creation of a new development pattern, Xi said.

Efforts are needed for breakthroughs in building self-reliance and strength in science and technology, modernizing the industrial system, boosting coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between regions, expanding high-level opening up, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection, he said.

To catch up with and surpass other regions, Shaanxi must make new breakthroughs in sci-tech innovation and modernizing the industrial system, Xi noted, calling on the province to cultivate new strengths while consolidating its leading position in traditional industries.

Shaanxi should speed up modernizing the industrial system that is intelligent, green and integrated, and meets the requirements of integrity, advancement and security, Xi said, demanding more efforts to strengthen its modern energy industrial clusters.

The most arduous tasks in building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting common prosperity remain in the rural areas, Xi said, stressing efforts to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and build county economies with county seats as hubs and small townships as junctions.

He also called for vigorously developing industries with distinctive features in light of local conditions, creating more channels for increasing farmers' incomes and ensuring that people would not slide back into poverty in large numbers.

Efforts should be made to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of development patterns and enhance ecological conservation, Xi said.

He stressed the need to strictly implement the Yellow River Protection Law and related plans and strengthen ecological protection and restoration of the river basin to protect the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of the Chinese nation.

Xi called for promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development, facilitating the green transformation of the energy industry while actively and prudently advancing carbon peaking and neutrality.

Work should be done to advocate green consumption and further promote the economical and intensive use of resources, Xi said.

He urged efforts to open up wider and develop the inland province into a high ground for reform and opening up. The province should give full play to the city of Xi'an as an assembly center for China-Europe freight trains, move faster in becoming a pivotal opening-up channel for countries in Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia.

Speaking of the Party-wide education campaign on the study and implementation of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi called on Party organizations at all levels to advance the campaign profoundly and steadily and yield tangible results in forging inner strength, gaining wisdom, improving Party conduct and motivating actions.

Xi stressed the importance of handling complex situations, pooling strength from across the society, and guarding against political risks, calling for translating the worldview and methodology of the thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods running through it, into a "master key" of problem-solving.

Xi also underlined the need to work more scientifically with foresight, initiative, and creativity, and enhance the capabilities of promoting high-quality development, serving the public, preventing and diffusing risks, and being more professionally competent.

Shaanxi should use its historical and cultural resources and red culture to continue advancing the education campaign and make solid progress, he said.

On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province, where he visited a museum and a salt lake Tuesday afternoon.

Valuable cultural relics in the Yuncheng Museum, some of which are national treasures, are witnesses to the Chinese history of humanity, culture and civilization, he said.

He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization to improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage.

At the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which has a history of over 4,600 years of exploitation, Xi noted that the ecological values and functions of the salt lake are increasingly important, urging coordinated efforts to protect and utilize it to further protect its historical and cultural values.

The ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin is a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and the Chinese civilization, Xi said.

He required provinces and regions along the Yellow River to uphold ecological conservation in the Yellow River basin as the bottom line in planning development and pursuing high-quality development.

Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and accompanied Xi on the inspection trip.
What to Know About the History of the Debt Ceiling

Credit - Getty Images

The Biden Administration remains locked in a standoff with congressional Republicans over raising the federal debt ceiling, just two weeks before the nation is set to default on its obligations for the first time.

The U.S. government hit its congressionally imposed $31.4 trillion borrowing limit in January, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that the country could run out of cash as early as June 1 if Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are unable to reach a deal to raise the debt ceiling.

But while a default would be unprecedented, according to most experts, this isnt the first time Washington has been down this road.

Since the 1950s, both political parties have engaged in legislative battles over the debt ceilingeach using it to paint the other as financially irresponsibleonly to reach an agreement before markets began to panic.

Heres what to know about the history of the debt ceiling and how it provides context for the current political battle.

What is the debt ceiling and why was it created?

The debt limit refers to a ceiling imposed by Congress in 1917 that sets the maximum amount of outstanding debt the U.S. can incur.

The first debt limit was established to give the Treasury autonomy over borrowing by allowing it to issue debt up to the ceiling without congressional approval, making it easier to finance mobilization efforts in World War I. Before that, Congress generally had to authorize the Treasury to borrow in smaller increments.

But the U.S. began accumulating more debt as it got involved in more wars abroad. After entering World War II, the U.S. raised the debt limit every year to accommodate increased borrowing. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, By the end of the war, in June 1946, the debt limit is lowered to $275 billion as war costs dissipate and the federal government begins to run three years of surpluses. The federal debt limit remains unchanged at this level for eight consecutive years  the longest such period since its inception.

In the last two decades, the U.S. has added $25 trillion in debt, spending nearly $1 trillion more than it receives in taxes and other revenue every year since 2001in large part due to financing wars, tax cuts, emergency responses, and expanded federal spending. To make up the difference, the government has to borrow money to continue to finance payments that Congress has already authorized.

Now that the U.S. has hit its limit, unless Congress raises or suspends the debt limit, the federal government will lack the cash to pay all its obligations.

How many times has the debt limit been raised?

Since 1960, Congress has raised, extended, or revised the debt limit 78 separate times, of which 49 were under Republican presidents and 29 were under Democratic presidents, according to the Department of Treasury. In each of those instances, Congress took action on the debt limit before the nation defaulted.

But in recent years, raising the cap has become an increasingly political issue, particularly when power in Washington is divided. Since the debt ceiling is one of the few must-pass bills, both parties have tried to use the vote as an opportunity to take a political stand and exact concessions, blaming the other side for its profligacy.

Read More: Previous Debt Ceiling Fights Offer Clues to How This One Will End

That is what we are seeing play out this year. House Republicans are demanding steep spending cuts and a rollback of some of President Joe Bidens legislative accomplishments in exchange for their votes to raise the debt ceiling. Meanwhile, Biden and Senate Democrats have insisted that they will not negotiate over the debt limit, calling on Congress to pass a clean increase without any strings attached.

When was the last time the U.S. was debt free?

January 1835 was the first and only time all of the governments interest-bearing debt was paid off, according to the Treasury Department. President Andrew Jackson, who was suspicious of banks and did not trust the paper money they issued, liquidated the Second Bank of the United States, returning the governments original investment plus a profit.

As a result, the government had a huge surplus of money, at $17.9 million, far greater than the actual government expenditures for the year. Congress divided the surpluses up among the states, which were bogged down with debt.

The last time the federal government ran a surplus was in 2001.

Has the U.S. ever defaulted before?

It depends on who you ask. Yellen, the Treasury Secretary, has said that the U.S. has always paid its bills on time and that if Congress does not raise the debt ceiling, America would default for the first time in history.

The White House has also claimed that the U.S. faces a first-ever default if Congress is unable to raise the debt limit.

But Alex Pollock, a former Treasury Department official, argued in a 2021 op-ed in The Hill that there are four precedents for U.S. defaults: 1) During the Civil War in 1862, when the U.S. printed paper money after the Unions reserves of gold and silver coin were depleted; 2) during the Great Depression in 1933, when the government refused to repay bondholders with gold, as agreed to when the securities were sold; 3) in 1968, when the U.S. did not honor silver certificates with an exchange of silver dollars; and 4) in 1971, when the government abandoned the Bretton Woods Agreement, which included a commitment to redeem dollars held by foreign governments for gold.

However, according to Politifact, these precedents do not mirror the type of default that would happen today. A debt limit breach could lead to a decline in real GDP, nearly 2 million lost jobs, and an increase in the unemployment rate, per a recent report from Moodys Analytics.

Whats the history of work requirements?

Stricter work requirements for federal aid programs have emerged as a key issue that appears to be holding up negotiations over raising the nations debt ceiling. Biden has signaled openness to compromise, even as other Democrats have balked.

Legislation passed by House Republicans in April would impose new or expanded work requirements for beneficiaries of three federal programs: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which offers aid to low-income families with children; and Medicaid assistance for adults without dependents.

Read More: What Republican Work Requirements in the Debt Ceiling Bill Would Do

Work requirements for federal aid programs are not a new idea. Biden told reporters last weekend that he voted for tougher aid programs when he was a senator from Delaware. Thats in the law now, he said. But for Medicaid, its a different story.

In 1996, Biden was one of 78 senators who voted for a welfare reform package that then-President Bill Clinton signed into law. The law eliminated the nations main welfare program and replaced it with TANF, which requires recipients to participate in work activities as a condition of receiving cash benefits. In remarks about the debt ceiling on Wednesday, Biden said its possible there could be a few work requirement provisions in the deal but not anything of any consequence.

Im not going to accept any work requirements that go much beyond what is already I voted years ago for the work requirements that exist, he said.

Do other countries have a debt ceiling?

There are only two countries that maintain a debt ceiling: the U.S. and Denmark. But the debt ceiling in Denmark does not regularly threaten economic disruption since it is set much higher than the countrys spending. In 2021, Denmarks debt was about 14% of its ceiling.

Only once has Denmark approached its limitin 2010 after the 2008 financial crisisand the nations parliament quickly decided to raise it.

Other countries have temporarily had a debt ceiling. Australia introduced one in 2007 amid a large budget deficit, though it was repealed six years later.

What is the role of the 14th Amendment?

Some Senate Democrats are urging Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to lift the debt ceiling on his own, without an act of Congress.

The controversial legal theory, which previous administrations had ruled out, builds on Section 4 of the 14th Amendment to argue that it would be unconstitutional for the U.S. to fail to make payments even if the debt limit isnt raised, effectively challenging the debt limit on legal grounds.

Read More: Could Joe Biden Use the 14th Amendment to Solve the Debt Ceiling?

The 14th Amendment states that the validity of the public debt, authorized by lawshall not be questioned. Some legal scholars argue that this clause gives the Treasury Department the ability to keep borrowing money past the current $31.4 trillion debt limit that requires congressional approval to raise or lift.

Its a constitutionally tenable argumentand a strong argumentto solve the current debt ceiling crisis, says Rebecca Zietlow, a professor at the University of Toledo College of Law whose research focuses on the 14th Amendment.

Biden said after his first meeting with top congressional leaders that he was considering using the 14th Amendment, but also acknowledged drawbacks to that approach. The problem is it would have to be litigated, and without an extension it would end up in the same place, he said.
Springtime bibimbap is on the menu at Kinn, a small tasting menu restaurant on 6th Street in Koreatown. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

When Kiyong Ki Kim opened his 20-seat restaurant, Kinn, in Koreatown late in 2021, he funneled all the ideas and ambitions that had been percolating in his brain for years into a 10-item menu of starters and entrees.

Kim had cooked in the kitchens of the most acclaimed modern Korean dining destinations in the United States  tasting-menu paragons Atomix and Jungsik in New York; cerebral, ultra-luxe Benu (where Corey Lee also interlaces nods to Chinese cuisines) in San Francisco  and he aimed to bring the interpretive freedom of such pacesetters to his modestly scaled business.

Chef-owner Ki Kim moved to Los Angeles from New York in 2020 and opened Kinn. Diners started to connect with the individuality he expresses through his cooking. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Among Kinns first inventive wave of dishes were rosy kerchiefs of brisket bathed in horseradish-tinged soy sauce and blanketed with bell pepper slices; a riff on a Korean-style corndog made of prosciutto and Dungeness crab and squiggled with house-made ketchup; and tiny turnips punctuated with batons of radish kimchi and dressing that evoked the flavors of gaejang (soy-marinated raw crab).

The earliest customers didnt always connect with what was being presented.

People were confused about why we were doing such untraditional things and still calling ourselves a Korean restaurant, Kim said recently.

To eliminate guesswork altogether, he and business partner Dustin Donghyuk Lee made a fast, firm decision: The restaurant switched from a la carte to a seasonal tasting menu, beginning with five courses for $72. Freed from the big choices, diners began to connect with the individuality of Kims cooking, and he started gaining his audience.

Promising right from the start, Kinn needed some time and space for the chef to find his grounding. A year and a half in, as his menus have grown surer in conception and execution, Kim is emerging as one of the freshest culinary voices in Los Angeles.

A signature dish at Kinn  crispy octopus with gochujang aioli. Its inspiration came partly from nakji-bokkeum, spicy stir-fried octopus. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Raised in Korea before his family immigrated to the U.S., Kim moved to Los Angeles from New York in 2020. While orchestrating dosirak takeout pop-ups to stay afloat during the shutdowns, he settled in to understand the new home in which hed be striving to express himself.

Koreatown  our nerve center with its layers of cultures and generations and dichotomies teeming in its three square miles  defies static characterization. But its finest Korean restaurants generally lean toward time-honored articulations of the cuisine. Well never tire of tabletop barbecue, in rooms both weathered and gleaming. We cherish cloudy, nourishing soups; feasts of banchan and raw crab at treasured Soban; and specialists that excel in soondubu, cold noodles and dumplings, bossam and galbi. In its gastropubs and kimbap bars, novelties may roll through in the form of truffle kimchi fried rice, cream cheese-anchovy rolls or bulgogi nachos. But the area isnt yet known as an incubator for young Korean chefs with fine-dining backgrounds rendering their personal narratives on the plate.

Kim has been steadily clearing a path for himself. It helps that he came ready with a hard-to-resist signature dish, one he likely wont ever pull from rotation, that conveys his essence as a chef in a few bites. Crispy octopus with gochujang aioli, the staff will say while setting it down. A simple description doesnt do justice to the labor involved.

On Kinn's menus, the ingredients emphasize the current moment while also acknowledging the transition from the previous season. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Its inspiration came from both nakji-bokkeum, a classic dish of spicy stir-fried octopus, and a standout braised octopus course at Jungsik that Kim helped make daily during his time at the restaurant and now takes in his own direction.

Theres technically no gochujang in Kims sauce. He and his small crew  chefs Joshua Suh, Zack Cornell and Daniel Chong  emulate the pastes flavor by simmering octopus heads with chile flakes, scallions and onions in stock. It reduces from 10 liters down to a half-pint of an intense, nearly sentient substance thats somewhere between liquid and solid. It turns a shimmery burnt orange folded into aioli; the chile registers more as a dusky, earthy flavor than as an element of heat. The team pipes the sauce across plates in squiggles and yolk-sized blobs. Its silken texture stands out sharply against wisps of octopus that have been boiled until tender, air-dried, and then deep-fried to crispness just before serving.

Heady, yes, and also plainly delicious. The octopus was a $20 supplement until recently. So many people opted in that Kim added it as a permanent sixth course, bumping the total price of dinners up to $95 per person.

Kinn has never been about the ornate, hours-long notion of a tasting menu. The meal unfolds at a synchronized clip  not rushed, but definitely not draggy  with most of the dishes assembled by the chefs behind the counter of what was a sushi bar in the spaces previous life cycle. Rather than a preset beverage pairing, theres a concisely edited list of a dozen-plus wines, mostly Old World and nearly all of them available by the glass, and a Brooklyn brewer's milky, savory-sweet makgeolli that vibes with the food.

Ki Kim's rock cod arrives in a doenjang broth rippling with umami. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

At the restaurants inception, Kim followed a line of thinking often pursued by newly arrived chefs: He dipped into L.A.-themed signifiers. As a starter snack he would fashion tiny tacos filled with avocado and truffle or braised pork and kimchi; the shells were painstakingly formed from sheets of seaweed dehydrated and fried in-house. A crackery wafer, resembling a flour tortilla, might be topped with uni and trout roe and presented in a pizza box. Mulhwe, a soup of raw fish in chilled broth, was reengineered to evoke ceviche.

None of these creations fell flat per se, and engaged Angelenos are forever drawing creative influence from the citys rich pluralism. In Kims case, it felt like he was flashing a decoder ring to fast-track membership into a club he wasnt even sure he wanted to join. He didnt need to perform belonging. He needed to rely on his own instincts and skills.

Particularly since the turn of the year, hes been cooking more like he trusts himself and trusts his customers.

He hasnt abandoned visual playfulness: The current menu starts with a dish called Eat Your Kimchi. The first two words are spelled on the plate in moss-green seaweed dressing. A hunk of gem lettuce smeared with the peppery, garlicky paste used to ferment kimchi and then blanketed with shaved Manchego completes the sentence. This opener makes me want to read on.

Asparagus and clams steamed in soju, a spin on a Korean street food, arrive hidden under a wafer imprinted with images of other bivalves. The salad barked with spice, but this course, with a trace amount of bacon fat to impart smoky warmth, whispered its astringent springtime flavors.

Crispy octopus at Kinn is a signature dish, a study in flavors and textures. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Kim is masterful with these kinds of dynamics. Next comes the octopus, with its crescendo of textures, and then rock cod arrives in a doenjang broth quietly rippling with umami.

As Kinn has come into itself, the restaurant is bringing to mind both the early days of Kato, where Jon Yao also found self-determination in a concise tasting-menu structure, and the exploratory spirit of Kwang Uhs food at much-missed, hopefully returning Baroo.

With a Southern California converts epiphanies over the farmers markets, Kinn arguably leans even further into nimble seasonality than those two restaurants. He fills a small bowl of bibimbap, the evenings last course before dessert, with blanched, roasted, raw and pureed vegetables that refresh the eyes before they reach the palate.

Kim mentioned in a phone conversation that in his menus the ingredients most emphasize the current moment, while also acknowledging the previous season (as in the wintry bit of bacon in the clam and asparagus dish) and whats just ahead. Thats a concept straight from Japanese kaiseki philosophy; in theory and in practice it feels organic to Kims admirably work-in-progress style.

So it made perfect sense when my last spring meal at Kinn ended with summery bingsoo. A server drizzled blackberry syrup over a milky-sweet mound of snowy ice and it tasted of the future  of all the good things yet to come.

Diners fill the small 6th Street restaurant Kinn, in the heart of Koreatown. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Kremlin maintains levels of patriotic hysteria by way of futile attacks on Kyiv  Ukraine's Security Council Secretary

Serhii Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine (NSDC), says that Vladimir Putin's regime is attacking the capital of Ukraine with expensive missiles out of despair and to fuel patriotic hysteria among Russians.

Source: Danilov on Twitter

Quote: "Kyiv remains putins maniacal and unattainable goal. Symbolic places of Kyiv are the target of russian missile attacks. The kremlin needs those senseless and super-expensive attacks for russia on the capital to raise the degree of patriotic hysteria inside the country."

Details: According to the Secretary of the NSDC, Russia is developing a process of despair and disappointment with the authorities against the background of the failure of the offensive and failures at the front.

Background: The Russian Federation has launched nine airstrikes on Kyiv since the beginning of May, deploying various weapons. Ukrainian air defence has done a remarkable job intercepting the Russian missiles and drones. On the night of 1516 May, when Russian forces deployed 18 missiles of different types and a number of Shahed kamikaze drones, Ukraines air defence forces shot down all Russian targets, including 6 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Kremlin says freezing of Finland's bank accounts in Russia was forced retaliatory step

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Thursday that a decision to freeze the bank accounts of Finnish embassies and consulates in Russia was a response to what it called the unfriendly acts of "the collective West", including Finland.

Officials from Finland and Denmark said on Wednesday that the diplomatic bank accounts of both countries in Russia had been frozen, prompting their embassies to make payments in cash.

Finland, which has a long border with Russia, formally joined NATO on April 4 in a historic policy shift triggered by Russia's war on Ukraine, something Moscow calls "a special military operation."

Russian embassies across Europe have had problems with their bank accounts since, and in some cases have had funds confiscated to punish Moscow for its actions in Ukraine.

Commenting on Russia's freezing of Finnish diplomatic bank accounts, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said:

"This is not an initiative from the Russian side. We are reacting to the situation created by the authorities of several countries of the collective West, including, to our regret, Finland."

Peskov said Russia never left what he called "unfriendly actions" unanswered.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told reporters on Wednesday that Helsinki had sent Russian authorities a note on May 4 requesting that Moscow ensure the diplomatic missions' ability to function and asking for an official explanation for the freeze, but had not received one so far.

Peskov said Moscow would reply.

"We will respond to the note by reiterating that the principle of reciprocity and the principle of responding appropriately to unfriendly steps will continue to prevail in our relations," he said.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
A high-tech Patriot air defence system provided to Ukraine by the United States was damaged

Ukraine said Thursday it had downed nearly an entire barrage of Russian missiles overnight, the latest in an "unprecedented" wave of aerial attacks on the capital Kyiv.

The defence ministry said Russian forces had launched 30 cruise missiles from land, sea and air, targeting several regions and killing one person in Odesa.

The military said its air defence units had destroyed 29 of the cruise missiles and shot down four drones.

"A series of air attacks on Kyiv, unprecedented in their power, intensity and variety, is continuing," said Serhii Popko, head of Kyiv's civil and military administration.

The attack follows other recent barrages in which Ukraine claimed to have downed several advanced Russian Kinzhal missiles.

The United States also confirmed that one of its Patriot air defence systems supplied to Kyiv had been damaged, following claims by Russia its forces had fully destroyed one of the advanced systems.

In Ukraine's southern port city of Odesa, one person was killed and two were wounded after a missile hit industrial infrastructure, the military said.

In Kyiv, officials reported explosions in the Desnyansky district and said a fire had broken out at a business in the Darnytskyi neighbourhood as a result of falling debris.

The military also reported "cruise missile" attacks in the central Vinnytsia region, while local media reported explosions in Khmelnytskyi, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) further west.

G7 leaders meanwhile arrived in Hiroshima in Japan to weigh tighter sanctions on Russia, surrounded by reminders about the harrowing cost of war.

- Train derailment -

An EU official said the leaders meeting in Japan would discuss sanctioning Russia's billion-dollar trade in diamonds, hoping to further starve Moscow of funds for its war in Ukraine.

"We believe we need to limit exports from Russian trade in this sector," the official said.

Separately, a train carrying grain derailed in the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula in what Moscow-installed officials on Thursday called a deliberate act.

"Train carriages loaded with grain derailed in the Simferopol region," said Crimea governor Sergei Aksyonov. The railway operator said the incident was caused by "the intervention of third parties".

Telegram channel Mash, which claims to have sources close to Russian law enforcement, said the disruption was caused an explosive device that left a large crater.

One regional parliament member also said the incident was caused by an explosive device, without giving evidence.

Baza, another Russian Telegram outlet with police sources, distributed images of what it said was the aftermath of the incident, showing several overturned rail cars.

Earlier this month, explosive devices derailed two Russian trains in a region bordering Ukraine over consecutive days.

Crimea, annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has been hit intermittently by explosions at military facilities in incidents since Moscow ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

bur/jm
The Los Angeles Police Department's downtown headquarters, shown last year. Mayor Karen Bass' spending plan for 2023-24 seeks to add 400 officers to the LAPD. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

The Los Angeles City Council signed off on Mayor Karen Bass' plan for expanding the Police Department on Thursday, approving a budget that calls for the hiring of about 1,000 officers over the next fiscal year and record spending to fight homelessness.

The council voted 13 to 1 for Bass' $13.1-billion budget, despite warnings from critics that her plan for the LAPD  increasing the size of the force by 400 officers  is unrealistic and unnecessary. The department expects nearly 600 to resign or retire in the coming budget year, which starts July 1.

Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez cast the lone opposing vote, saying she could not support a spending plan that provides $3.2 billion to the LAPD at a time when city agencies that repair sidewalks, provide programs for the city's youth and give aid to its elderly populations are having to "fight over scraps."

We are celebrating moving pennies around, while we put a quarter of our entire budget into just one department, Hernandez said in an impassioned seven-minute speech.

Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, a close political ally of Hernandez, said the spending plan is "not perfect." Still, he praised it as "the most progressive budget in the history of Los Angeles," one that will provide expanded mental health teams, drug treatment facilities and a record $1.3 billion to combat homelessness.

Soto-Martinez said the mayor's budget would focus on issues that are root causes of homelessness, such as poverty and a lack of mental health services.

"The budget represents the beginning of a new path on dealing with homelessness," he said. "And while it might be just a few steps forward, it stops us from going backward."

Soto-Martinez and Hernandez  both backed by the Democratic Socialists of America-Los Angeles  won office last year after campaigning on the idea that the LAPD should have fewer officers, not more. Both represented a growing effort to push policies leftward at City Hall.

During Thursday's budget deliberations, the pair tried without success to cut $7.4 million set aside for the purchase of an LAPD replacement helicopter. They called for that money to be used instead for the acquisition of new electric buses.

Their effort to force a floor vote on the electric bus funding failed on an 8-6 vote, with Hernandez, Soto-Martinez and Councilmembers Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Heather Hutt, Nithya Raman and Katy Yaroslavsky falling short of the majority needed. The proposal now heads to several council committees for more review.

Bass welcomed the council's actions, saying her spending plan would help the city to confront homelessness with urgency and use "bold new methods" to make neighborhoods safer.

This budget process has been a prime example of how working together, we can move L.A. forward," she said in a statement.

A second, technical vote on the budget is scheduled for next week.

Thursday's action will provide $250 million for Inside Safe, the mayor's program to move homeless Angelenos into hotels, motels and other facilities  and eventually permanent housing. Bass' team plans to use nearly a fifth of that money to acquire three or four larger motels. Slightly more than two-fifths would go toward the leasing of hotel and motel rooms.

In recent weeks, some on the council have grown frustrated with the mayor's team over the lack of publicly available information on the program, which moved about 1,200 people out of encampments in Hollywood, Venice, South Los Angeles and several other neighborhoods.

Two reports have been issued on the program since December, when the program was launched. Neither has been uploaded to the council's online file focusing on Inside Safe.

Under a compromise reached last week, Bass' homelessness team will provide council members biweekly reports on Inside Safe. So far, the mayor's team has committed about $44 million of the $50 million provided previously to the program, according to a report issued Tuesday.

Bass' homeless team booked rooms in 25 motels and hotels during the first four and a half months of Inside Safe. For example, the city has been paying $4,684 per room per month at the L.A. Grand Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

The cost of the Inside Safe program could easily exceed $300 million in the coming budget year if Bass' team completes its planned acquisition of the 294-room Mayfair Hotel in L.A.'s Westlake neighborhood. That 15-story building is being eyed for interim housing.

Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who heads the council's budget committee, said the mayor's spending plan shows that city leaders have "redefined what public safety is," putting more money into unarmed response teams. At the same time, he also spoke in favor of Bass' push to hire more police.

The LAPD has lost about 9% of its officers since the outbreak of COVID-19, falling to a deployment of 9,100. Blumenfield said he fears the number of officers could soon fall below 9,000, putting the city and the department in "a perilous spot."







"I have actually concerns that we are dipping dangerously low with the number of officers that we have on the streets," he said.

The mayor called last month for an increase in the size of the LAPD to 9,500 officers. As part of her plan, the department would bring on 780 new recruits, while persuading another 200 retirees to return to the force.

Some on the council have voiced doubts about her chances of reaching her target, given the sluggish pace of hiring. Meanwhile, several of those who attended Thursday's council meeting argued against a bigger LAPD, saying Angelenos desperately need other types of services.

This overreliance on police to solve all our problems undermines our ability to have a society where people, neighborhoods and communities are invested in, said Greg Akili, a longtime activist and organizer with Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles. Every dollar going toward police, he said, is money that can't be spent elsewhere. We simply cant have it both ways.

Yasser Nokoudy, 29, called on the council to take money from the LAPD and use it to purchase Hillside Villa, an apartment building in Chinatown where dozens of residents have been facing huge rent increases.

"Instead of hiring more cops, use the money to hire unarmed crisis responders and preserve affordable housing like Hillside Villa," said Nokoudy, a six-year resident of the building.

The council took an initial step toward buying the building last year. Blumenfield, after Thursday's vote, said the budget does not set aside any specific funding for such a transaction.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The city of Los Angeles has sued a local journalist and an activist group after officials accidentally released photos of undercover officers through a public records request. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A coalition of media organizations including the Los Angeles Times threw its support Wednesday behind a local journalist and a group of local activists who were sued by the city of Los Angeles last month after publishing photographs of LAPD officers that the city itself had provided.

Joining a chorus of constitutional and media rights scholars, the media coalition denounced the city's lawsuit against Knock LA journalist Ben Camacho and the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition as a blatant violation of their 1st Amendment rights and a dangerous attack on press freedoms more broadly.

"An order of the kind the City seeks here would set a dangerous precedent that will undermine the news media's ability to freely disseminate lawfully obtained information to the public," the coalition said in a legal motion seeking to register its outside opposition to the city's lawsuit.

"Granting the City's request would encourage future lawsuits of this kind," the group wrote, "chilling the dissemination of important information in records obtained through public records requests, and undercutting the vital role of journalists in our society."

The coalition asked the court to reject the city's efforts to claw back the photographs, which have already been widely disseminated online. It also asked the court to grant requests from Camacho and Stop LAPD Spying for the lawsuit to be tossed under California's anti-SLAPP laws, which are designed to protect people from frivolous lawsuits over constitutionally protected activity.

The media coalition is being led by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and includes The Times and the union that represents Times journalists. It also includes the Associated Press, E.W. Scripps Co., Gannett Co., Nextstar Media, Southern California Public Radio, the Los Angeles Press Club, various journalism associations, unions and 1st Amendment organizations, and other small and nonprofit newsrooms.

City Atty. Hydee Feldstein Soto's office declined to comment Wednesday. It has previously said its goal in filing the lawsuit was to protect officers "whose lives and families' lives could be in grave danger as a result of this exposure."

Camacho, a Knock LA photo editor, said in a statement that the media coalition's support was "essential" to combat "a shameful attempt at unconstitutional censorship and an example of elected officials relinquishing their leadership."

Hamid Khan, lead coordinator of Stop LAPD Spying, said he appreciated "the journalist community coming out strong in support of us, defending our right  our 1st Amendment right  to speech."

The case is not just about police records being available to the public but about "the whole idea of public records" in general, Khan said.

"Who do they ultimately belong to? That's exactly what our fight is."

The city gave the photographs to Camacho as a result of a public records request he filed and then fought in court to have fulfilled. After receiving the records, Camacho published them online and provided a flash drive containing them to Stop LAPD Spying, which published them on a website it created called WatchtheWatchers.net.

The launch of the website caused an uproar among LAPD officers and the union that represents them, which alleged that the release of the photographs had comprised the safety of officers working undercover and in other sensitive assignments. Some of those officers sued the city, alleging their families had also been placed in danger.

The city, in turn, sued Camacho and Stop LAPD Spying, saying that it had inadvertently provided the photographs of undercover officers and those assigned to sensitive roles and wanted them back.

The city asked the court to order Camacho and Stop LAPD Spying to return the images of officers in sensitive roles, to take them off the internet, and to forgo publishing them in the future.

The case, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, is pending.

Experts in 1st Amendment and media rights law roundly rejected the lawsuit as meritless, saying that any court order granting the city's demands would amount to an unlawful "prior restraint" on the publication of clearly newsworthy material obtained legally.

Jennifer Nelson, senior staff attorney for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, echoed that point Wednesday, saying the city was asking for "an extraordinary remedy" that would obviously represent prior restraint  and violate established law.

"If the city could get an order like this, it could really present a lot of problems in future cases," she said. "It could end up with a real chilling effect on important journalism if the city could go out and just seek to claw back records that have already been provided to a journalist."

Mayor Karen Bass has previously declined to weigh in on the lawsuit, though she has denounced the release of the officers' pictures  as has LAPD Chief Michel Moore.

Jeffrey Glasser, a Times attorney, said the city's attempt to get a court order allowing the LAPD's "neighboring law enforcement agency," the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, to seize records the city had itself released was unconstitutional.

"Many courts have recognized that you cannot force the press and public to return previously disclosed government records," he said, "even where the records were disclosed by mistake."

Matt Pearce, a Times reporter and president of Media Guild of the West  which represents unionized journalists at The Times, the Southern California News Group and other newsrooms  called the city's lawsuit "a disturbing abuse of the 1st Amendment and the Constitution of California," and one that "deserves to be opposed."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Lack of quorum blocks operation of state gambling commission for three months

Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAlL) has not been able to hold any meeting since February 21, 2023 due to lack of quorum

In two words, its a disgrace and shame, he wrote.

Read also: Ukraine blocks hundreds of illegal online casinos

Merely establishing a collegial body is insufficient to restore order to the market  the involvement of the Verkhovna Radas Temporary Special Commission is necessary.

A report on KRAlLs activities reveals that the commission has been unable to convene any meetings since Feb. 21, 2023, resulting in hindered progress in fulfilling various obligations.

Read also: Ukraine sanctions Russian bookmakers and lotteries

Following a committee meeting, Hetmantsev summarized the situation, noting that the commission is currently blocked, and the online monitoring system is non-existent.

In a recent development, the Cabinet of Ministers has proposed dissolving KRAlL and implementing an automated system for issuing gambling licenses.

Mykhailo Fedorov, the Minister of Digital Transformation, emphasized that automation would eliminate human intervention in the licensing process, making it an automatic procedure based on clearly defined criteria.

Read also: Lotteries, gambling now within competence of Ukraines digital ministry, Cabinet says

The Verkhovna Rada passed legislation on July 14, 2020, to regulate gambling activities in the country, which included the establishment of a commission to oversee this sector.

In February 2021, KRAlL approved the first six premises that meet the necessary requirements for conducting gambling activities.

Read also: Zelenskyy enacts bill depriving gambling business of tax benefits

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Lambert Wilson Named President Of Locarno Jury

The Matrix franchise actor Lambert Wilson will be the President of the Jury at the 76th Locarno Film Festival this year. The French star will chair the panel, which will award the Pardo doro (Golden Leopard) to the winning film on the final night of the Switzerland fest. Wilson has worked with many top European directors, such as Claude Chabrol, Andrzej Zuawski and Andre Techine, and is best known in the U.S. for his role as the Merovingian in The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions and The Matrix Resurrections. His acting credits include Julia, La Boum 2 and Five Days One Summer. Recently he appeared in Prime Video series Totem and starred in Eric Besnards Les Choses Simples. The Locarno Film Festival will run from August 2-12.

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Cineflix Launches First FAST Channels

UK-based Cineflix Rights is the latest distributor to go direct-to-consumer by launching a suite of FAST channels. More than 1,000 hours of content from Cineflixs library will be included as the channel hit platforms such as Amazon Freevee and Xumo Play in the U.S. and Roku in Canada. The FAST networks comprise Real Disaster Channel, including Mayday: Air Disaster and Rogue Earth; Crime & Justice, featuring Bizarre Murders, Crimes That Shook Britain and Murder She Solved; and Property & Reno, with shows such as Dream Home Makeovers with Sophie Robinson, Tori & Dean: Cabin Fever and Worlds Greenest Homes.

Israeli Actress Roni Nadler Launches London Production Company

Roni Nadler, an Israeli actress, as launched a London-based production company. Nadleroni, Inc., opens its doors this week on Soho with lofty ambitions to pump millions of dollars into British films in coming years. The producer will operate with Nadlers Roni Nadler Inc business. Nadleroni will look to create fresh and impactful content through collaborations with Israeli and international organisations, with a particular focus on addressing controversial topics through documentaries and feature films. Reality formats are also on the radar. Nadler said she would recruit 15 staff by year-end. Nadleronis firsy project, a docu-reality project, will be announced in due course. A spokesman for Nadler said the business was backed by investments by international media entities, though no further details were provided.

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Drivers traveling on Interstate 70 in Preble County will be impacted due to road work tonight into tomorrow morning.

>>RELATED: Road work to impact travel on I-675 in Greene County starting tonight

Continued work on the U.S. 127 bridge rehabilitation project over Interstate 70 in Preble County will require overnight lane closures, according to an ODOT spokesperson.

There will be single-lane closures on both Eastbound and Westbound Interstate 70 under U.S. 127 starting tonight at 7 p.m. until 10 a.m. Friday morning.

ODOT contractors are rehabilitating the bridge that carries U.S. 127 over I-70 by replacing the bridge deck, raising the structure, and painting the structural steel, ODOT said.

The project is being done by the Complete General Construction Company, which was awarded a $4.9 million contract.

The first phase of the project is expected to be done by this fall and all work is scheduled to be completed by the summer of 2024.
A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday said that Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities pose a real threat to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

The DPP authorities have adhered to their "Taiwan independence" agenda and colluded with external forces to provoke the mainland and create tension across the Strait, Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said at a press conference.

He made the comment in response to Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen's claim that the mainland had stepped up its "threats" against Taiwan with military drills and undermined regional peace and stability.

Ma said that relevant military exercises conducted by the People's Liberation Army were justified acts that responded to provocations, defended national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and protected peace, stability and the interests of people on both sides of the Strait.

The best way for the DPP authorities to avoid wars is to abandon their separatist "Taiwan independence" stance and turn to a path of peaceful development for cross-Strait relations, he said.

The consequence of creating confrontation across the Strait and acting as a pawn that foreign forces use to contain China is gradually dragging Taiwan into war, Ma warned.
Lauren Boebert has denied a claim that her husband flew into a rage and set his dogs on a man after he was served with divorce papers.

The Republican from Colorado called the claim by a process server in the state who handed the divorce papers to Jayson Boebert a complete lie.

The allegations were made in an affidavit, which stated that Mr Boebert was drinking a beer out of a glass and was cleaning a gun when he was served at his home in Silt, Colorado, last month, reported The Daily Beast.

Now Boebert has bashed the claims in a text message to the outlet.

Jayson doesnt sit around cleaning guns and he certainly doesnt drink beer out of a glass, just as much as he doesnt drink Bud Light, she said, referencing the recent right-wing controversy.

She added that the dogs were already out in the yard when the papers were served.

Our divorce is a private matter, but the misrepresentations must be addressed, Ms Boebert added. Jayson deserves his privacy, not slanderous stories.

Ms Boebert announced on Tuesday that she was ending her marriage.

It is with a heavy weight on my heart that I have filed for divorce from my husband, the Colorado congresswoman said in a statement.

I am grateful for our years of marriage together and for our beautiful children, all of whom deserve privacy and love as we work through this process. Ive always been faithful in my marriage, and I believe strongly in marriage, which makes this announcement that much more difficult.

This is truly about irreconcilable differences. I do not intend to discuss this matter any further in public out of respect for our children and will continue to work hard to represent the people of Colorados 3rd Congressional District.

Ms Boebert and her husband, Jayson, have been married for more than a decade and a half. They live in Silt, Colorado with their four sons and operated a restaurant in nearby Rifle until last summer, when the businesss lease was not renewed.

A staunch conservative and outspoken Christian, Ms Boebert announced in March that her 17-year-old son and his girlfriend were expecting a baby, making her a grandmother at 36.

The MAGA supporter re-won her seat in November after the race between the mother-of-four and Aspen Democrat Adam Frisch became so close that it forced a recount. Mr Frisch has launched a second campaign to unseat her.

Ms Boebert, along with Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, is one of the most caustic and controversial stars of the GOP, following along the vein of the 45th presidents brand of politics. Mr Frisch targeted her national presence, arguing that she seemed far less concerned about matters within her district.

He ran on a moderate platform; in the end, the congresswoman kept her seat by just 546 votes.

Mr Frisch continued: Ranchers and farmers in western and southern Colorado are pragmatic, and they dont see a representative thats doing the job that they want to see happen, Mr Frisch told The Independent one day after announcing his new campaign earlier this year.

He said the campaign chose to announce early on 14 February because the momentum that we had from the last campaign was still there and because he believes any possible Boebert course correction ... its pretty solidified that its not happening.

He outlined three hurdles that we had last time: We had a short period of time, we had very low name recognition, and even though we raised more money than she did  during July through the end of the campaign  she had more money saved up than we did.

And and I think if we had another quarter million dollars or another two weeks of the race, we probably would have won, Mr Frisch told The Independent. And I think if the race would have been run a week later, we would have won.
With the vast majority of troops not starting the Transition Assistance Program early enough to ensure a smooth exit from the military, some lawmakers are seeking more accountability from unit commanders and the Defense Department.

Timely TAP completion should be incorporated into unit commanders performance metrics, to ensure service members have time to start the process at least one year before their separation date, as is required by law, said Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisconsin, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs economic opportunity subcommittee, during a hearing Wednesday.

I strongly recommend you do that, Van Orden told the DoD official who oversees TAP. These service members and the Department of Defense will not take this program seriously until commanders are held accountable, which means theyre not getting promoted, he said.

The full-year requirement was implemented with the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act; before that it had been 90 days. But in December 2022, the Government Accountaibility Office reported that between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, 70% of service members had not started the transition assistance process a year before separating.

The result of that failure is lost opportunities, which can make a difference to service members future success, said Dawn G. Locke, GAOs director of strategic issues, in testimony before the subcommittee.

For example, troops who start the process late may not be able to participate in DoDs SkillBridge program, which provides on-the-job training with civilian employers during the last six months of military service. They may also miss the chance to apply for a disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs and possibly get a decision about their disability benefits before leaving active duty, she said.

GAO auditors were given a variety of reasons for the delays, including deployments, lack of commander support and medical discharges, Locke said.

The idea to include TAP compliance in commanders performance metrics came from the field, Locke said. GAO didnt look at data on whether commanders were being held accountable, but at the five installations they visited and across the services, auditors were told they were not.

Another suggestion auditors heard was to incorporate TAP into DoDs mission. If TAP were part of that mission, it might be given a higher priority, she said.

The Transition Assistance Program is administered by the Defense Department, but a number of federal agencies work together to deliver and assess the program. Both DoD and the VA deliver part of the core curriculum. The TAP interagency governance structure includes senior officials from DoD and VA, the departments of Education, Homeland Security and Labor, the Office of Personnel Management and the Small Business Administration.

Military transition classes are falling short, lawmakers warn

Alex Baird, acting director of the Defense Support Services Center, said the department and the services were in the process of implementing the one-year mandate when the pandemic hit. They then had to shift from mostly in-person training to virtual training online.

Each service is working to get back on track, he said.

Part of each services corrective action plan is to make it a commanders program and determine how to hold commanders responsible, he said.

I need to get all of our commanders to the 365 days (before separation to start TAP), he said, adding that he also needs IT infrastructure in place to help researchers assess the effectiveness of TAP and measure long-term outcomes.

Theres not enough information to determine if TAP is successful, Locke agreed, and DoD needs to make better use of the data. DoD and its partners are sponsoring a number of studies on TAP outcomes, she said, which will help them determine how quickly service members get jobs and how much they earn.

Van Orden questioned whether just one lead agency should be accountable for the program. There needs to be a captain of the ship, he said, and asked Baird whether he would be opposed to having VA be the lead agency.

We work as a team, Baird said. I dont think it makes a difference who you make lead.

Four of five leaders of private entities that work closely with veterans, who testified in a second panel, said they would support having VA as the lead agency.

Rep. Mike Levin, D-California, pressed Baird on which agencys mission statement makes more sense program leadership: DoDs mission to provide the military forces needed to deter war and ensure our nations security; or the VAs mission to fulfill President Lincolns promise to care for those who served in the military, their families, caregivers and survivors.

Baird conceded TAP is more in line with the VA mission.
OpenAI CEO Samuel Altman Testifies To Senate Committee On Rules For Artificial Intelligence

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law May 16, 2023 in Washington, DC. Credit - Win McNamee/Getty Images

At a Senate hearing on Tuesday, the CEO of OpenAI Sam Altman received a warm welcome from lawmakers, many of whom expressed surprise at his main argument: that AI should be regulated, and fast.

It was a far cry from the grueling ordeals that tech CEOs have previously faced on Capitol Hill. Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey and Shou Zi Chew have all endured antagonistic Senate hearings in recent years about the wide-ranging impacts of their platformsFacebook, Twitter and TikTok, respectivelyon American democracy and the lives of their users.

I think whats happening today in this hearing room is historic, said Senator Dick Durbin (D., Ill.) during the Senate judiciary subcommittee hearing about oversight of AI. I cant recall when weve had people representing large corporations or private sector entities come before us and plead with us to regulate them.

But in calling for legal guardrails to govern the tech his company is building, Altman is not unlike the other Silicon Valley leaders who have testified before Congress in the past. Tech CEOs like Zuckerberg have often used their appearances in Washington to plead with lawmakers for regulation. We dont think that tech companies should be making so many decisions about these important issues alone, Zuckerberg testified in front of Congress in 2020. I believe we need a more active role for governments and regulators, he said, before outlining a list of policy suggestions.

Altmans pitch to lawmakers on Tuesday was not so different. He suggested a suite of regulations that could include licensing and testing requirements for the development and release of AI models above a threshold of capabilities, and agreed with calls for both U.S. and international agencies to govern AI.

What was different this time was the receptiveness of the audience. One of the things that struck me about the Senate is that they were all willing to admit that they didnt really get social media [regulation] right, and were trying to figure out how to handle AI better, Gary Marcus, a professor at New York University, who testified alongside Altman on Tuesday, told TIME after it concluded.

One senator appeared to be so taken by Altmans suggestion that the U.S. government create a regulatory agency to govern AI that he suggested the OpenAI CEO could control it. Would you be qualified to, if we promulgated those rules, to administer those rules? said Senator John Kennedy, Republican of Louisiana. After Altman said he loved his current job, Kennedy proceeded to ask Altman for suggestions about who else could run such an agency.

Altman did not suggest any names for possible regulators during the hearing. But Kennedys attitude perhaps indicated that senators, keen not to leave a transformational new technology almost entirely unregulated like they did during the era of social media, are perhaps over-correcting by being too credulous toward technologists own views of how their tools should be regulated. We cant really have the companies recommending the regulators, Marcus, the AI professor, told TIME after the hearing. What you dont want is regulatory capture, where the government just plays into the hands of the companies.

While senators did ask some tough questions of Altman, including about whether his company should be allowed to continue using copyrighted work to train its AIs, the hearing had more the feel of an introductory seminar on OpenAIs policies and Altmans views on the best ways to regulate AI.

The recent experience of European Union regulators should also provide a lesson for U.S. lawmakers about the risks of hewing too closely to what the tech companies describe as optimal AI regulation. In Brussels, where legislation governing AI is fast progressing toward becoming law, large AI companies including Google and MicrosoftOpenAIs principal funderhave lobbied hard against the most powerful AI tools being subject to the draft laws strictest provisions for high risk systems. (Thats even as, in public, Google and Microsoft profess to welcome AI regulation.) E.U. lawmakers appear to have ignored much of that lobbying, with the latest draft of the bill containing limits on powerful so-called foundation AI models.

Still, a cordial relationship between companies and lawmakers isnt by itself a cause for concern. Past testimony from Zuckerberg, Dorsey and Chew on Capitol Hill often resembled a game of political point scoring, with lawmakers seemingly lining up to record sound bites taking potshots at CEOs, rather than an opportunity for policy discussion or genuine scrutiny. I dont think theres any reason why governments and companies have to be adversarial, Marcus says. But it has to be at arms length.

As AI creeps further into our lives, the tone of future hearings is yet to be seen. Zuckerbergs first appearance before Congress came in 2018, when Facebook was more than a decade old, and after it had been compromised by Russian intelligence agencies, after a series of high-profile data leaks, and after misinformation became an integral part of U.S. politics.

ChatGPT, by contrast, has been around for less than six months.
Lawyer for the hospital worker at the center of a viral bike video says her life has been 'effectively destroyed' by false allegations

The unnamed woman argues with a young Black man over a rental bike. Twitter/@Imposter_Edits

The NYC hospital worker at the center of the viral video has had her life "effectively destroyed," her lawyer said.

"The whole thing is so ridiculous," lawyer Justin Marino told Insider of the backlash to the footage.

The white woman was accused in the video of trying to take a rental bike from a Black man.

The white New York City hospital worker at the center of a now-viral video in which she is accused of trying to take a rental bicycle from a young Black man is facing an onslaught of threats and has had her life "effectively destroyed" by false allegations, the woman's attorney told Insider on Thursday.

Lawyer Justin Marino called his pregnant client a healthcare "hero" who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic, but said people are accusing her of being a "racist villain" because of "a tiny snippet of a video."

"The whole thing is so ridiculous," Marino told Insider of the mass backlash.

The viral one-minute and 30-second video shows the woman repeatedly screaming for help as she grips the handlebars of a Citi Bike while a Black man also holds on and says the bike is his.

During the incident, the woman shouted, "Please help me, help! Please get off me" and told the Black man, "Get off me. Get off me. You are hurting my fetus" before appearing to cry, the footage shows.

Marino told Insider that his client  an NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue staffer  paid for the Citi Bike herself and has the receipts to prove it.

Marino also said he doesn't "judge" his client for how she reacted in the video.

The video has gotten tens of millions of views on social media, with users condemning the woman as "racist."

"There's no racial statements. There's nothing, but suddenly she's a 'Karen,' which you and I understand to be a racist," Marino said.

The attorney said that his client is now "in hiding" because people are going to her house and "threatening her."

The woman was placed on leave from her job following the incident, which NYC Health + Hospitals  New York City's public hospital system  called "disturbing" as it said it was investigating what happened.

Read the original article on Insider
Delaina Doyle Walley, a May 2023 graduate from Hineston, with a major in English and a minor in graphic design, served as a graphic design intern at the Louisiana Baptist Foundation this spring and will begin her position as communications coordinator there on June 1.

More Louisiana Christian University students had the chance to do in-person internships this academic year, and one of them was able to transform her position into a job.

Delaina Doyle Walley, a recent LCU graduate from Hineston, served as a graphic design intern at the Louisiana Baptist Foundation. She will begin her new position as communications coordinator there on June 1.

I was not looking for a job or an internship at the beginning of last semester, but the universitys Center for Calling & Career sent out an email that caught my eye, Walley said. Most of my courses during my last semester were graphic design courses, so the idea of doing a paid internship in graphic design sounded like a great learning experience. Meredith Rennier connected me with the foundation, and I soon joined the team as an intern. I am very blessed and thankful because it led me directly to a career in my field of interest and expertise.

Louisiana Christian University has made a concerted effort in the past two years to have every student incorporate experiential learning initiatives into their collegiate education, and its been paying off. Dozens of students have gotten hands-on experience in various career fields across central Louisiana.

Experiential Learning Initiatives are so very important to our students, as they can take the knowledge learned within the classroom and apply it through actual experiences within the workforce and local community, said Vice President of Student Life Meredith Rennier.

While not required for every major, including Walleys, Rennier said she recommends everyone take advantage of the opportunities.

All students, in their freshmen year at LCU, take the Clifton StrengthFinder Assessment to identify their Top 5 strengths, Rennier said. We focus on building these strengths throughout their college career and use the strengths to identify areas of opportunity for internships and deciding upon a career path best suited for the student.

For Walley, her internship was a perfect fit.

It helped me discover different ways to use my degree as well as how to take advantage of my minor, she said.

Her supervisor, LBF Executive Director Jeff Steed, approached her about a permanent position that Walley said LBF created and offered to her, she said.

I will continue to use my knowledge with design programs to help the foundation create graphics for advertising their services, and I will also be using my English knowledge and skills to coordinate communication between the foundation and other organizations, institutions, etc., Walley said. I will be able to combine my creativity with my love for language to communicate effectively and efficiently with everyone in my path.

LCUs unique Center for Calling & Career is equipping students for internship opportunities, which simply cant be overemphasized in preparation for the competitive marketplace awaiting our graduates, said President Dr. Rick Brewer.

When future employers include our students as interns, Brewer said, they discover the quality education LCUs students have received preparing them to think critically, conduct analytical reasoning, and serve as problem-solvers while exhibiting a Christ-like attitude.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: LCU graduate graduates from intern to full-time employee
Leader of Move Forward Party Pita Limjaroenrat, center, waves during a press conference with other party leaders, in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Thailand's election winner Move Forward Party on Thursday announced an 8-party coalition that its leader declared will become a "democratic government of the people. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

BANGKOK (AP)  The leader of the progressive opposition party that won a stunning victory in Thailands national election said Thursday that eight parties have agreed to form a coalition government with him as prime minister, despite fears among supporters that his military-aligned opponents may use the unelected Senate to block them.

Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat said at a news conference that the proposed coalition would have a total of 313 seats in the House of Representatives, a solid majority of its 500 members.

But under Thailand's Constitution, drafted under military rule after a 2014 coup, the lower house and the 250-seat Senate must vote together to select a new prime minister. All of the senators were appointed by the military junta that took power after the coup.

Because of the joint vote, Sundays election victor is not certain to take power.

The key message of todays news conference is to assure the public that my coalition is firmly taking shape, said Pita, a Harvard-educated businessman. Theres momentum, theres progress and we also a have very clear roadmap from today until the day I become prime minister."

He said the plans include teams to work out any differences among the parties and to "make sure there is a continuation of power, minimizing risk as well as reducing destabilizing factors that could damage the country or the economy or the financial markets.

Move Forwards progressive agenda resonated with a public weary of nine years of military-steered rule under Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who led the 2014 coup as army chief.

It enjoyed a surge in support before last Sundays poll, driving it to become the largest party with 151 seats. Prayuths United Thai Nation Party captured only 23 House seats.

Move Forward edged out another opposition party, Pheu Thai, aligned with popular former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in an earlier 2007 military coup.

Pheu Thai leader Cholanan Srikaew pledged unequivocal support for Pita as prime minister and for Move Forward's bid to form a new government.

Young voters were particularly attracted by Move Forwards policies, including a proposed amendment of Thailand's harsh lese majeste law, under which criticizing the monarchy is punishable by up to 15 years imprisonment. Critics say the law is frequently misused to punish critics of the government, while conservatives who consider the royal institution sacrosanct strongly oppose any amendment.

All senators voted for Prayuth as prime minister after the last election in 2019, allowing him to remain in office despite a Pheu Thai victory in those polls. Some senators have already said they will not support Pita as prime minister because they oppose any change to the lese majeste law.

The law, known as Article 112, is also a sensitive subject within Pita's coalition.

I confirm we want to protect the monarchy but also not allow 112 to be used to harm other people," said Sudarat Keyuraphan, leader of the Thai Sang Thai Party and a former public health minister.

She said each party in the coalition has a different stance on the law. "We have to talk about this article, as well as all the other policies, she said.

Pita said the parties will sign a memorandum of understanding next week to create a common understanding of how they will work together as a government.

___

Associated Press video journalist Jerry Harmer contributed to this report.
President Joe Biden, fourth right, and other G7 leaders pose for a photo during a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, Japan, Friday, May 19, 2023, during the G7 Summit. Pictured from left: President Charles Michel of the European Council, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, U.S. President Joe Biden, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom and President Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission.(AP Photo/Susan Walsh, Pool)

HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  Leaders of the world's most powerful democracies warned China and North Korea against building up their nuclear arsenals, pivoting to major northeast Asian crises ahead of the arrival later Saturday of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The focus on Asia at the Group of Seven summit comes as leaders tighten sanctions meant to punish Moscow and change the course of its 15-month invasion of Ukraine. Japan confirmed that Zelenskyy's decision to attend the G7 in person stemmed from his strong wish to participate in talks that will influence his nation's defense against Russia.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that President Joe Biden and Zelenskyy would have direct engagement at the summit, a day after Biden announced his support for training Ukrainian pilots on U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, a precursor to eventually providing those aircraft to Ukraines Air Force.

World leaders have faced a high-stakes balancing act in Hiroshima as they look to address a raft of global worries demanding urgent attention, including climate change, AI, poverty and economic instability, nuclear proliferation and, above all, the war in Ukraine.

China, the world's No. 2 economy, sits at the nexus of many of those concerns.

There is increasing anxiety in Asia that Beijing, which has been steadily building up its nuclear bomb program, could try to seize Taiwan by force, sparking a wider conflict. China claims the self-governing island as its own and regularly sends ships and warplanes near it.

The G7 leaders issued a statement warning that China's accelerating build-up of its nuclear arsenal without transparency (or) meaningful dialogue poses a concern to global and regional stability.

North Korea, which has been testing missiles at a torrid pace in an attempt to perfect a nuclear program meant to target the mainland United States, must completely abandon its nuclear bomb ambitions, the leaders said, "including any further nuclear tests or launches that use ballistic missile technology. North Korea cannot and will never have the status of a nuclear-weapon State under" international nuclear treaties, the statement said.

The green light on F-16 training is the latest shift by the Biden administration as it moves to arm Ukraine with more advanced and lethal weaponry, following earlier decisions to send rocket launcher systems and Abrams tanks. The United States has insisted that it is sending weapons to Ukraine to defend itself and has discouraged attacks by Ukraine into Russian territory.

Weve reached a moment where it is time to look down the road again to say what is Ukraine going to need as part of a future force, to be able to deter and defend against Russian aggression as we go forward, Sullivan said.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity to brief reporters on the deliberations, said Zelenskyy will take part in two separate sessions Sunday. The first session will be with G7 members only and will focus on the war in Ukraine. The second session will include the G7 as well as the other nations invited to take part in the summit, and will focus on peace and stability.

The G7 leaders also used their summit to roll out a new wave of global sanctions on Moscow as well as plans to enhance the effectiveness of existing financial penalties meant to constrain President Vladimir Putins war effort.

Our support for Ukraine will not waver, the G7 leaders said in a statement released after closed-door meetings. They vowed to stand together against Russias illegal, unjustifiable and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.

Russia started this war and can end this war, they said.

Zelenskyy has consistently called for the supply of Western fighter jets to bolster his countrys defenses against Russias invasion, but has until now faced skepticism from the United States that they would turn the tide in the war.

Now, as Ukraine has improved its air defenses with a host of Western-supplied anti-aircraft systems and prepares to launch a counteroffensive against Russia, officials believe the jets could become useful in the battle and essential to the countrys long-term security.

Biden's decisions on when, how many, and who will provide the fourth-generation F-16 fighter jets will be made in the months ahead while the training is underway, Biden told leaders.

The F-16 training is to be conducted in Europe and will likely begin in the coming weeks. Thats according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss Bidens private conversations with allies.

Zelenskyy said Friday that he had opened a visit to Saudi Arabia, where Arab leaders were holding their own summit.

The latest sanctions aimed at Russia include tighter restrictions on already-sanctioned people and firms involved in the war effort. More than 125 individuals and organizations across 20 countries have been hit with U.S. sanctions. The financial penalties have been primarily focused on sanctions evaders connected to technology procurement for the Kremlin. The Commerce Department also added 71 firms to its own list.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Friday sanctions will further tighten the vise on Putins ability to wage his barbaric invasion and will advance our global efforts to cut off Russian attempts to evade sanctions.

In addition, new reporting requirements were issued for people and firms that have any interest in Russian Central Bank assets. The purpose is to fully map holdings of Russias sovereign assets that will remain immobilized in G7 jurisdictions until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine, the U.S. Treasury Department said.

Russia is now the most-sanctioned country in the world, but there are questions about the effectiveness.

Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said going into the summit that while G7 countries deserve credit for their sanctions, Russia still maintains capacity to fight this war in the long term.

She added that war's costs are "easily manageable for Russia in the next couple of years at least, and the cumulative effect of sanctions is just not strong enough to radically alter that.

The G7 nations said in Fridays statement that they would work to keep Russia from using the international financial system to prosecute its war, and they urged other nations to stop providing Russia with support and weapons or face severe costs.

World leaders Friday visited a peace park dedicated to the tens of thousands who died in the worlds first wartime atomic bomb detonation. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in parliament, wants nuclear disarmament to be a major focus of discussions.

The peace park contains reminders of Aug. 6, 1945, when a U.S. B-29 dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, a city that has become synonymous with anti-nuclear peace efforts.

Biden, who scrapped plans to travel on to Papua New Guinea and Australia after his stay in Japan so that he can get back to debt limit talks in Washington, arranged to meet Saturday on the G-7 sidelines with leaders of the so-called Quad partnership, made up of Japan, Australia, India and the U.S.

As G7 attendees made their way to Hiroshima, Moscow unleashed yet another aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital. Loud explosions thundered through Kyiv during the early hours, marking the ninth time this month that Russian air raids have targeted the city after weeks of relative quiet.

In a bit of dueling diplomacy, Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting the leaders of the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a two-day summit in the Chinese city of Xian.

The G7 leaders are also to discuss efforts to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices that are squeezing families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

A U.S. official said the leaders on Saturday would issue a joint communique outlining new projects in the G7's global infrastructure development initiative, which is meant to offer countries an alternative to China's investment dollars.

The G7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, as well as the European Union.

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Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Elaine Kurtenbach and Mari Yamaguchi in Hiroshima, Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Fatima Hussein in Washington contributed to this report.
Jerry Mathers was ready to give Hollywood a break after "Leave It to Beaver."

The former child star famously played Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver in the hit sitcom from 1957 to 1963. The actor was just a teen when he found himself out of a job once the series came to an end. But life, he said, was blissful when cameras stopped rolling.

"It ended at the right time for me," the 74-year-old told Fox News Digital. "I wanted to play sports and of course, working at the studio, that wasnt something I was able to do. I was [now] able to be on the track team and football team. That was something I really wanted to do. And it was nice being in [a normal school]. I had a private tutor for the whole time that I was on the show. Now I was at a regular school, and it was a lot of fun. And I made a lot of good friends."

Jerry Mathers starred as Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver in "Leave It to Beaver."

The close-knit cast and crew were also ready to move on, he noted.

"Not that we were tired of it, but it was a lot of work," Mathers admitted. "We had to be at the studio every day at 8 oclock, work till 5. And on the weekends, a lot of times, we had PR to do Im not saying I didnt like it, but it was just time I was getting ready to go to high school and [my co-star] Tony Dow was getting ready to go to college. That was something we really couldnt do if we were still on the show."

Jerry Mathers said he was never pressured by his mother to pursue a Hollywood career.

Most recently Mathers and his 96-year-old mother, Marilyn Mathers, made an appearance at The Hollywood Museum to host a special tribute to the Motion Picture Mothers. The nonprofit was formed in 1939 as a small social group of women whose children were involved in showbiz. Marilyn currently serves as president of the organization.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

'LEAVE IT TO BEAVER': A LOOK BACK AT THE CAST OF THE BELOVED TV SHOW

Jerry Mathers' mother, Marilyn Mathers, is president of Motion Picture Mothers.

Mathers said the matriarch never pushed him into having a Hollywood career. Instead, she was determined to give her son as normal of an upbringing as possible.

"She took really good care of me," he said. "I know some other child stars had very tough lives, but I had a very good time. I never had any problems with it. I loved going to the studio. It was a fun place with a lot of fun people."

"Id been working since I was 2 years old," he shared. "I started on live TV. I did a lot of different shows, but only for like a minute or five minutes, six minutes. And then when I got the part on Leave It to Beaver, of course it was a series, so we worked a long time on it. But it was just a lot of fun."

From left: Marilyn Mathers, Norman Mathers, Susie Mathers, Jimmy Mathers and Jerry Mathers at home, circa 1960.

Mathers said his family was just as supportive when he was ready to take on a completely different role in life.

"I spent six years in the National Guard," he said. "There [wasn't] any kind of combat or anything like that, but we were a transport unit. A lot of times, the planes would come back, and they had a lot of damage to them It was not a lot of fun because we were doing very, very hard work, but it was something that I [felt] I should do for my country It was something I was proud to do."

Mathers was discovered while he and his mother were at a department store. A chance encounter forever changed their lives.

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Jerry Mathers' career in showbiz started when he was just 2 years old.

"She was looking for clothes for me, and she had taken her eyes off me for a second," he said. "Then a lady came up and said, Is that your little boy? I had gotten maybe three or four feet away from her. And my mom said, Oh, no matter what he did, Ill pay for it. Im very sorry, did he wreck something? And the lady said, No, but we noticed that youve been trying clothes on him, and he fits all our clothes. We were wondering if he could be at our fashion show.' My mom said, Well, this is the big city, I dont know. Then the lady said, Hell take a ladys hand, hell walk out on stage, maybe do a couple of twirls, and we would pay him $15. And he could keep one of the outfits he wears.' My mom said, He could do that!"

"I got a lifetime deal," he chuckled.

"Leave It to Beaver" explored the misadventures of a suburban boy. It ran for six seasons and aired more than 200 episodes on primetime. A syndicated sequel series in the 80s resulted in more than 100 episodes. The show starred Mathers, as well as Tony Dow, Barbara Billingsley and Hugh Beaumont.

The cast of "Leave It to Beaver," from left, Jerry Mathers (Beaver), Tony Dow (Wally), Barbara Billingsley (June) and Hugh Beaumont (Ward).

"I think the thing that makes me smile the most [when I think about it] is all the people I got to meet  the cast and crew," he explained. "You just [saw] the cast members, but there were probably 60 to 70 people on the crew. And we were all friends. One thing about having a child on the set is you have to keep them happy because if they dont want to work, they just say, I dont wanna work. But all the people were so nice. They made sure that everybody had families. So they had kids. And they knew what kids did Everybody liked everybody. There wasnt somebody who said, We dont want to work with that person."

Over the years, Mathers focused on life outside the spotlight. At one point, he became a real estate agent and sold houses.

There was no urgency to return to acting, he insisted.

LEAVE IT TO BEAVER STAR JERRY MATHERS MOURNS BROTHER TONY DOW: MY LIFELONG FRIEND

Jerry Mathers was getting ready to start high school when "Leave It to Beaver" ended.

"It was something that I liked doing, but I also liked being able to have my own life," he said. "Life for me today is very, very good. I have Leave It to Beaver, but I can also go out and meet people. Im a grandfather now  I have five grandchildren. Its wonderful. I also have a wonderful wife, and we have a great time with the grandchildren. We get to babysit them every once in a while I still do autograph shows because those are fun. I get to go all over the country. People still come up to me with questions about the show and what Im doing Im just so grateful I have just a wonderful life because Leave It to Beaver' has made me so many friends."

Mathers said the series resulted in a lifetime friendship with his TV brother Dow, who passed away in 2022 at age 77.

Tony Dow passed away in 2022 at age 77.

Dows death leaves Mathers and Rusty Stevens, who played Beavers friend, Larry Mondello, as the only surviving members of the shows core cast. Beaumont, Mathers' TV dad, died in 1982 at age 73. Billingsley, who played mother June Cleaver, died in 2010 at age 94. Ken Osmond, who played Haskell, died in 2020 at age 76.

Jerry Mathers and his TV big brother Tony Dow became close friends.

"Tony and I have always been very good friends," Mathers reflected. "He was a wonderful person to work with He was just a wonderful guy, and he taught me a lot of things. It was funny because Im the oldest in my family and Tony was the baby of his. [But] it was exactly opposite of what was on the show."

Mathers shared that the series could still be remade in 2023  and he would support a reboot.

LEAVE IT TO BEAVER STAR TONY DOW EXPLAINS WHY HE WASNT ALLOWED TO WATCH HIT SERIES GROWING UP

Jerry Mathers has been married to Teresa Modnick since 2011.

"All the things that are on the original Leave It to Beaver are things that people can relate to," he said. "Its just about a boy growing up in America A couple of people say, Well, its not very realistic. But I think its very realistic kids are always the same. They may act a little different, have different kinds of clothes or whatever, but it was just a fun show to be on I had a wonderful time. I had no problems. There werent any big things that happened to me. All the things that happened to me were so good."
BEIRUT (Reuters) -Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh al-Shami called on Thursday for Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh to resign following Frances issuing of an arrest warrant against him as part of a fraud investigation.

Salameh, his brother Raja and his assistant Marianne Hoayek are being investigated in Lebanon and at least five European countries on suspicion they may have taken more than $300 million from the central bank.

"In any country when someone is accused of such crimes, they should not remain in a position of responsibility and should recuse themselves immediately," Shami told Reuters.

"I think he should resign."

Salameh, who along with his brother denies any wrongdoing, told Saudi-owned Al-Hadath TV on Thursday that he will step down if any court ruling goes against him.

He plans to appeal against the French warrant, which he told Al-Hadath violated principles of a Lebanese-French agreement without giving more details. "The judicial pathway is unfair, but I am ready for it," he said.

A Lebanese judge overseeing a local case against Salameh has rejected his lawyers' defence arguments, clearing the way for a June 15 hearing, a senior judicial source told Reuters.

Critics had doubted the judiciary, where appointments largely depend on political support, would seriously investigate a figure of Salameh's stature given his political connections.

The Salameh brothers and Hoayek have been charged with fraud and embezzlement in two separate cases in Lebanon. Hoayek and her lawyer have not been reachable for comment.

The judicial source told Reuters a new hearing date for Raja Salameh had also been set for June 15.

French prosecutors' warrant for Riad Salameh, issued on Tuesday, was the first from any of the foreign probes into him.

Though some of his support bases in Lebanon and abroad are starting to fray, Salameh wants to end his 30-year tenure as bank head when his latest term expires in July.

His departure would mark a milestone in the financial meltdown resulting from decades of profligate spending, corruption and unsustainable policies by Lebanon's leaders.

(Reporting by Laila Bassam; additional reporting by Nayera Abdallah and Jana Choukeir in Dubai, Writing by Maya Gebeily; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Andrew Cawthorne)
A Lexington city program is trying to keep youth out of the cycle of violence. Heres how

One Wednesday morning in early March, Fatou Sow was busily gathering her familys belongings and showing others what needed to be moved from her familys home. She was moving after someone opened fire outside her apartment building and sent bullets through her walls.

Devine Carama, the director of One Lexington, was among those helping Sow  loading the contents of an apartment on Winter Garden Drive into a U-Haul parked out front on the street.

He, along with Kenneth Payne, who also is employed by One Lexington, and a handful of volunteers maneuvered mattresses, dressers, a large sofa, boxes and bags down the stairs and carefully placed them in the truck.

Sow, a single mother, had been warming some food in her kitchen about a month earlier when the shots were fired. She and her young children were terrified.

I had a bullet in my kitchen and in my car, she said. Five police officers came inside to investigate.

Sow and her family were not the intended targets of the shooting, but it left the children traumatized and made Sow uneasy to continue living in the neighborhood they had called home for nine years.

Im all the time worried that that may happen to my kids, she said.

When crisis response advocates from One Lexington reached out to her, Sow told them she just wanted to get away.

I told them I dont feel safe here, she said.

So One Lexington helped her get away. The organization rented the U-Haul and provided the labor needed to help Sow get her furniture loaded up. They also paid for her first months rent in a new place across town.

And they offered emotional support and care.

How are you? Carama asked Sow as he took a momentary break from moving furniture. Are you good?

He told her about a summer camp for kids and encouraged her to get connected with it. Transportation could be provided if needed, he said.

Marcus Patrick, left, Devine Carama, Tania Walker and Kenneth Payne helped a family affected by gun violence move to a new location in Lexington, KY, Mar. 1, 2023. ONE Lexington provided the volunteers, truck and first months rent to the family. Karla Ward/kward1@herald-leader.com

Helping support people like Sows family who have been hurt by gun violence is a major focus area for One Lexington. The organization, which operates out of the mayors office, is the citys primary tool for trying to stop gun violence among people between the ages of 13 and 29.

Were taking a different approach to youth violence, and its working, Mayor Linda Gorton said in a recent interview. It is a wonderful, community-oriented program. Its very, very focused on victim support and helping ... the young people find ways to cope, ways to deal with disappointment in our lives, deal with disagreement.

One Lexingtons work is broad-sweeping.

Carama and other workers are trying to prevent violence by helping mediate conflicts, mentoring kids in schools and hosting summer programs for them.

Theyre visiting shooting victims, helping them move to new neighborhoods if necessary, and taking groceries to areas where shootings have occurred just to show someone cares.

Theyre working with young people in the court system.

Theyre helping people feel like their voices are being heard by holding community forums on violence and facilitating meetings between the mayor and moms who have lost children to gun violence. Theyve also held hip-hop and poetry workshops as a way of letting kids use music to express themselves.

And theyre partnering with community organizations  both small and large  that are already working toward the same goals.

To tackle these issues, we understand that the city cant solve these problems alone, One Lexingtons website states. This work calls for our faith and non-profit communities, schools, neighborhood leaders, along with our city government partners to wrap all our arms, hearts, and resources around these issues to make a difference.

The agency is looking to the medical system, school system and smaller community organizations for help in preventing shootings.

Recently, One Lexington has worked with the University of Kentuckys trauma unit on a hospital-based violence intervention program called Safety Net. When someone comes in with a gunshot wound, a hospital social worker can help connect the victim with One Lexington and other organizations to find out what they might need in terms of mentoring, help with bills or other supports.

In the past, Gorton said, people injured in a shooting would be discharged, end of story.

Now, she said, they can have an intervention with people who have a gunshot wound ... to determine what it is that they might need to get off the path right then and there while theyre in the hospital.

Earlier this year, the city and One Lexington presented grants to 16 Fayette County schools whose students have been most affected by homicides and non-fatal shootings. The schools Family Resource and Youth Service Centers can use the grants to help families with basic needs and to help kids with mental health.

When the high school grant recipients decided to use their funding to host a symposium on gun violence, Payne, a former state social worker, used One Lexingtons van to drop students off.

The conference featured five stations designed to educate the youth on how to refrain from using violence as a way to solve conflict, preventive measures to gun violence, healthy coping skills, gain trauma informed education, yoga and other forms of mindfulness, Carama said in an email.

Focused on root causes

Carama said that when kids have witnessed shootings, One Lexington asks how can we prevent them from getting in the cycle of violence?

This summer, Carama said the agency will hold a summer program that will offer educational and skill-building opportunities to some of the kids who most need help. All are from lower-income homes, and many have been directly impacted by gun violence.

In the mornings, he said the program brings in mental health specialists and offers workshops on topics such as conflict resolution and money management. The latter part of the day, Carama said, is about loving on them and having fun.

You start to peel the layers back, Carama said. Once we build the relationship, you find that theres mental health resources needed. Youve got low income in the house.

One Lexington is able to help connect those families with employment opportunities, counselors or other help.

Were focused on root causes, he said. Were trying to gear our resources toward those things before they lead to violence.

For Carama, its a constant back-and-forth between meetings and administrative duties and more boots-on-the-ground work like moving couches and sitting with middle school boys to talk about their lives.

In the middle of helping Sow move, he and Payne stopped what they were doing, jumped in a car and headed to a nearby public library. There they quickly reserved a conference room and hosted an online meeting with representatives from law enforcement and public safety, Fayette County Public Schools, prosecutors, nonprofits and the UK trauma center.

Its known as the Violence Intervention Group, and the purpose of these weekly check-ins is to review every shooting case involving young people that has happened since the last meeting and to plan how One Lexington, school support staff and other community agencies can support the people involved.

Sometimes representatives of One Lexington may already know or have relationships with people involved.

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Violence can spread rapidly in the city

When there is a shooting involving someone in the 13 to 29 age group, or a home is shot at with minors there, one of several crisis response advocates contracted by One Lexington tries to visit them and their family as soon as possible to find out how they can help.

We look at violence as a cancer that can rapidly spread in the city, said Nestor Gomez, one of the crisis response advocates. Revenge in the streets leads to more violence.

Terry Dumphord, who is also a crisis response advocate, said they try to get to the root of the problem. Who do you have problems with?

If possible, he said they will try to create a positive resolve.

When we give them an out, a lot of times theyll try to to take it, Dumphord said of young people facing personal conflicts that have escalated to violence. A lot of these kids are in over their head. ... If you need help in your household, were going to try to step in.

Through the advocates, Gomez said One Lexington will also try to alleviate some of the burden shooting victims are facing by helping with a rent or mortgage payment, utility bills or other expenses.

Gomez said the key is making sure that they feel seen and know that theyre being heard by the city.

Recently, he said he worked with a Latino couple and their children. He said the two older boys were driving when somebody just rolled down the window and shot at them, hitting one of the brothers, a college student who also holds down a job, in the leg.

They were really concerned, like, Why did this happen to us, Gomez said. They were just in so much distress.

He said the family was afraid and wondered if they had been targeted. They didnt know what steps police were taking in investigating the case and there was a language barrier as well.

Gomez, a pastor who is bilingual in English and Spanish, said he was able to arrange a visit by the police detective to help keep the family informed.

Because the parents had lost income from having to take off work while dealing with the situation, he said the city was taking care of their utilities and mortgage for a month or so.

Heres a life that has been completely changed, he said. Regardless of their immigration status, the citys here to back them up.

Crisis response advocates also try to address the broader neighborhoods concerns after a shooting.

Well just go out with some grocery bags, Gomez said. Just to show them that we know whats going on.

Devine Carama, director of One Lexington, delivered bags of produce to residents on Chestnut Street on May 4, 2023. Karla Ward/kward1@herald-leader.com

Those kinds of efforts might just be what keeps someone from retaliating with another shooting, he said.

The more we do this, the more were coming across (people saying), I was getting ready to go out and find whoever did it and engage, Gomez said.

Earlier this year, the city hired Payne to oversee One Lexingtons crisis response efforts and began contracting with Gomez, Dumphord and a third advocate to help.

Carama said that has allowed One Lexington to respond to more shooting scenes than before, reaching out to more people.

I feel like weve seen a really positive response in the narrative that is being told in the neighborhood and in the streets, Gomez said.

He thinks organization and community participation will be key going forward.

The more organized these communities become, the safer we will all be, Gomez said. One or two of us may not be strong enough to chase out the bad guys, but if we all come together, that will happen.

He said that if the city makes the most vulnerable a priority, the whole city flourishes.

I dont know where me and my family would be without them

Markita Givens said Carama himself reached out to her after she was injured in a shooting, and though she hadnt heard about the team at One Lexington before that, she learned that Carama had already met and connected with her son.

He has been a tremendous support system, she said. Hes one of those people that you can talk to about anything. It doesnt matter what time of day or night. Hes always there for me.

She said Carama has become someone she can text if shes having a rough day, and One Lexington has helped connect her with resources to help her cope.

They were very accepting, loving and gracious, she said. I dont know where me and my family would be without them, without One Lexington.

We built the relationship

One recent spring evening, Carama, Payne, Dumphord and Doyle Lee showed up to see a boy from one of Dumphord and Lees school mentoring groups at his home.

One Lexington has 15 mentoring groups in 11 Fayette County schools. Four are led by Carama, while others are led by mentors like Dumphord and Lee, who contract with One Lexington and together work with kids at Martin Luther King Jr. Academy, Success Academy, The Learning Center and STEAM Academy.

At one of their meetings, Dumphord had picked up on the fact that the boys family could use some help with food, so the group of men stopped by with boxes of groceries and a Kroger gift card.

We built the relationship with this young man, Lee said. Sometimes its the first time in their life that they can be open and honest. ... He literally was taking from his plate and making sure his brothers and sisters eat.

The men circled up in the quiet house and offered him some encouragement during their visit.

Dumphord urged the teen to pay it forward by helping someone else.

Lee told him that included his brothers and sisters. Have your mom reach out if more help is needed, he said.

During the 2022-23 school year, the It Takes a Village In-School Mentoring Programs had 4,178 interactions with students, including more than 80 interactions with students in the court system, Carama said in a recent update. He said 80% of the participants in the programs have been directly impacted by gun violence.

Is it working?

Gorton said the strategy is working.

From 2021 through the first quarter of this year, she said the city saw a 75% decrease in gun-related homicides among youth and young adults.

Thats huge, and thats measurable, Gorton said. This is what were going for.

Lexington did report a handful of additional homicides and shootings at the end of April into early May, a few of which involved younger residents: an 18-year-old was killed in a shooting April 30, and a 23-year-old and 16-year-old were killed in separate shootings on May 5.

Through May 15, there had been seven gun-related homicides in Lexington, compared to 10 by the same point last year and 15 the year before, according to Lexington police data. Of those, four of the victims this year were between ages 13 and 29, compared to five in 2022 and 11 in 2021.

Excluding homicides, police reported 28 shootings through May 15 this year, compared to 41 by the same point last year and 39 by that point in 2021. In those cases, 19 of the victims this year were between 13 and 29 years old, as opposed to 31 by that point last year and 29 by May 15, 2021.

How do you measure homicides that dont happen? Carama said in an interview. Youre starting to see progress, because these things take time.

Carama said the problems connected to gun violence were centuries in the making.

Were fighting more than just food deserts and gentrification, he said. We cant ignore what we were all fighting for in 2020.

As he closed a recent meeting with people working to address gun violence in Lexington, Carama said things are a lot better than they were last year and the year before.

But he said the numbers dont tell the whole story.

Theres a lot of bullets flying around out there right now, he told the group. Stay vigilant. Stay humble. Keep working.

As summer nears, Lexington leaders and advocates ask youth to put down guns

Community partners are One Lexingtons special sauce in fight against gun violence

Only way to change the world. How One Lexingtons director uses mentoring to curb violence
A Lexington woman previously accused of murder was indicted Wednesday on a lesser charge of manslaughter, according to court records.

Jennifer Kashuba  who has been accused of a deadly stabbing  was also indicted on charges of abusing a corpse and evidence tampering.

Kashuba made her first Fayette Circuit Court appearance on the new charge Thursday. She pleaded not guilty and her bond was reduced to $25,000. It had previously been $110,000.

When she was arrested on February 27, the 35-year-old Kashuba was originally charged with the murder of Jimmy Medlock. They both shared an apartment at the time of the deadly incident, according to court documents.

Kashuba allegedly stabbed Medlock with a kitchen knife in August 2021 after a verbal and physical altercation, a Lexington police detective said in a previous court hearing.

The investigation started months after the incident when police and the coroner found Medlocks decomposed body wrapped in plastic near Cambridge Drive in February 2022. The body could not be identified at first and the investigation continued for more than a year. Eventually investigators were able to identify Medlock through a breakthrough in DNA testing.

Kashubas attorney argued in a March hearing that the stabbing was in self-defense. The attorney, Marcel Bush Radomile, pushed for Kashubas charge to be lowered to manslaughter during that hearing. Fayette District Judge John Tackett denied Radomiles request, but a grand jury ultimately decided not to keep the murder charge in place.
A women looks at books in a public library in Hong Kong

Hong Kong must not "recommend books with unhealthy ideas", the city's leader John Lee said on Thursday, following the removal of library books related to the deadly Tiananmen Square crackdown and other political issues.

The finance hub has undergone huge legal and political changes since Beijing imposed a national security law on the territory in 2020, silencing dissent following massive, and at times violent, pro-democracy protests the year before.

The latest measure comes after a prominent political cartoonist -- whose work often satirised Hong Kong's relationship with mainland China -- was suspended indefinitely from publishing in a mainstream newspaper, and his books were removed from the city's libraries over the past week.

The flash removal prompted Hong Kong journalists to comb the public library department's database for books on other politically sensitive issues -- including the 1989 Tiananmen Square bloody crackdown against peaceful protesters -- discovering dozens of titles were missing.

Lee defended the apparent removal of politically sensitive materials, saying the books found in Hong Kong's public libraries "are those we recommend for the residents".

"We must not recommend any books that are unlawful, that violate copyrights, that contain unhealthy ideas," he said.

"The government is obliged not to recommend books with unhealthy ideas."

The former security chief did not specify how the government defined "unhealthy ideas", nor when the books were removed, but added that residents could still find the literature "in your own way and read them".

Since the enactment of the national security law, Hong Kong has seen its autonomy eroded, despite Beijing's promise to uphold it after Britain's handover in 1997.

Room for expression of overt political differences has shrunk, with the territory's courts, legal procedures and cultural spheres irrevocably altered.

An annual vigil commemorating the Tiananmen Square crackdown had drawn thousands to Hong Kong's Victoria Park every year in a vivid illustration of the city's former political freedoms.

But it was banned in 2020, and the vigil's organisers have been charged with "incitement to subversion" under the security law.

hol-dhc/dhw/sco
Lincoln couple charged with abuse after child beaten with paddle, deputies say

A couple from Lincoln County is facing child abuse charges after it was discovered one of their children had been beaten with a paddle, according to the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office.

Deputies said they received a report from Cleveland County DSS regarding the abuse of a child that occurred at a home in Vale, North Carolina on May 12.

Cleveland County DSS told deputies that they observed bruising on the young childs bottom while they were in speech therapy.

A Cleveland County social worker then went to the childs home to meet with the parents. While at the home, the social worker said they took photos of a wooden paddle with holes drilled into it.

ALSO READ: 2 Gastonia women face child abuse charges after toddler found dead in Asheville hotel

The worker also said they viewed home security camera footage showing the child being hit with the wooden paddle, according to deputies.

Deputies said a detective with the sheriffs office went to the home to follow up on the investigation and also viewed the home security footage. The investigation revealed the child had been abused on a number of different occasions.

On May 17, 38-year-old Jonathan Niles Orren and 39-year-old Silvia Orren, 39 were charged both charged with one count of child abuse involving any serious injury.

Silvia Orren was released on an unsecured bond and Jonathan Orren was released on a $7,500 secured bond, according to deputies.

The six-year-old victim and her five-year-old brother have been removed from the home and placed with relatives out of state.

VIDEO: 2 Gastonia women face child abuse charges after toddler found dead in Asheville hotel
Over the past decade, according to curator Priya Khanchandani, the sari has seen the most rapid invention in its 5,000 year history

The sari is being reinvented for the modern age in an Indian "fashion revolution," with around 60 trailblazing examples due to go on display at a new exhibition in London.

Over the past decade, according to curator Priya Khanchandani, the sari has seen the most rapid transformation in its 5,000-year history.

From sari styles worn by young women on their way to work in Delhi and Mumbai to the spectacular creation that was the first sari to grace New York's famous Met Gala, the London showcase spotlights the garment's 21st century revival.

Khanchandani says she first became aware of a renaissance in 2015 when she met some of the designers in Delhi who were transforming the sari, traditionally a single long piece of unstitched fabric draped over the body.

"I saw the sari being revived as an everyday garment in a way that was very fashionable. They were being worn by younger women than I knew before," she told AFP ahead of the show, The Offbeat Sari, which opens at the Design Museum on Friday.

"They were often quite intellectual women, writers and artists... wearing them in ways that I didn't expect," she said.

Having previously viewed saris as a garment to be worn for special events or weddings, she suddenly noticed them being reinvented as everyday clothing, even teamed with T-shirts and sneakers.

The birth of mass consumerism and social media in India combined with the growth of the country's urban middle class has accelerated the sari's revamp, Khanchandani said.

"The influence of digital media which has a really significant reach in India, particularly among young people, allowed trends to spread and I think allowed the way that saris were being worn to become a grassroots movement," she added.

- Pushing boundaries -

Popular hashtags that have seen a vast array of images shared online include #sarilove, #sarifashion, #designsarees and #sareeindia.

Despite the sari's long history, it was not until last year that a sari was seen at the celebrated annual Met Gala event in New York.

Worn by Indian businesswoman and socialite Natasha Poonawalla, the showstopping ensemble featured a flowing gold sari by Sabyasachi with a gold Schiaparelli bustier.

In addition to extravagant couture saris, designers in India have also pushed boundaries by experimenting in a range of ways.

The Raj Kilt, by the Little Shilpa brand, is described as "half kilt, half sari" and reflects the cross-cultural experiences of Indian designer Shilpa Chavan who studied in Britain.

Some of the most eye-catching and innovative exhibits include a sari adorned with sequins cut from old X-ray images from hospital waste and another in distressed denim.

But while the sari's potential for extravagance and creativity is on full display in the exhibition's selections, there are also examples of how it is being pressed into use to express ideas of identity and resistance.

Hundreds of thousands of members of the so-called Gulabi Gang, a group set up to fight domestic violence, including sexual abuse and child marriage in rural India, have adopted bright pink saris along with bamboo sticks as the symbol of their movement.

Also included in the show is a purple silk sari embroidered with sequins and crystals by the brand Papa Don't Preach.

After the label posted a photograph of the sari being worn by the author and comedian ALOK, who founded the #DeGenderFashion movement, it decided to remove the "womenswear" wording from their messaging.

har/jj/pvh
The federal trial of Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo has followed the same pattern of his political career: Its stretched longer than it should. Its been full of twists and turns. And its been downright bizarre.

The trial has wrapped up its sixth week, and its anyones guess when it will end. Attorneys and jurors are getting a two-week break, and testimony is expect to resume on May 30. The city of Miami is on the hook for Carollos legal costs.

Carollo, whos been in public service for four decades, is a known bully who demeans citizens who speak during commission meetings. Most notably, he put the public through an expose on how a tight Elvis costume outlined former Police Chief Art Acevedos crotch area. That really happened during a hearing that led to Acevedos firing in 2021.

This is the first time someone has tried to hold Miamis most mercurial, vindictive and controversial politician accountable at such high level  and its about time.

Plaintiffs William Fuller and Martin Pinilla accuse Carollo of violating their First Amendment rights by weaponizing the citys code enforcement against their businesses after they supported his opponent in the 2017 election. Fuller and Pinilla own several establishments along Southwest Eighth Street  Calle Ocho  including the historic club Ball & Chain. They are asking for $2.5 million and possible punitive damages.

Being a bully isnt necessarily unconstitutional and bad behavior isnt necessarily illegal. The Broward County jury could still find in Carollos favor. But the past several weeks in federal court have painted a familiar picture of a man fueled, it seems, by paranoia and vengeance.

For Miamians used to the citys good-ol-boys-club style of politics, this might be just Carollo being Carollo. But the trial brings to light how a city that fancies itself as cutting edge  the next New York or San Francisco  is still run as it was 30 or 40 years ago.

Witnesses take stand

Former police chiefs, including Acevedo, staffers and a city manager who took the stand said Carollo targeted the plaintiffs businesses as a political vendetta, the Herald reported. Carollos former receptionist testified he asked her to make a false sexual harassment accusation against two of his former male aides  one of whom later testified Carollo asked him to spy on Fuller. After his testimony, Acevedo reported he was followed from the courthouse to a restaurant. Police determined the two men tailing him were private investigators, but its unclear who hired them.

The best TV writers couldnt make this stuff up.

Taking the stand two weeks ago, Carollo accused a dozen witnesses of lying and he called his former receptionists testimony ridiculous. His lawyers contend that he didnt target Ball & Chains owners but was looking out for the Little Havana residents who must coexist with the neighborhoods rowdiness.

In typical Carollo style, he testified that wealthy Venezuelans are trying to buy up Little Havana. He went off on a weird tangent about a story he heard of Iranians infiltrating a mosque in Cuba with nefarious aims somewhere in Latin America. U.S. District Court Judge Rodney Smith cut him off, the Herald reported.

The trial got even more bizarre Tuesday when the judge briefly threatened Carollos defense team with prison time after one of them took a photo inside the courtroom, a violation of federal law. The photo appeared to depict the plaintiffs attorneys speaking to a member of the media and was included in a sealed filing from Carollos defense, the Herald reported. Smith had previously prohibited lawyers from speaking to the press.

Mistrial requests

Carollos attorneys  some of whom snickered among themselves during witness testimonies  unsuccessfully asked for a mistrial a number of times, the Herald reported. Perhaps the point is to turn federal legal proceedings into a dragged-out spectacle. The longer this trial takes, the more expensive it likely is for the plaintiffs, and the better it is for Carollo. Hes not the one footing his legal fees.

As of last August the city had paid close to $500,000 to the law firm of Benedict Kuehne, the Miami New Times reported. The Herald Editorial Board asked for the latest costs, but hasnt yet received a response. A spokeswoman did not answer whether the city will be on the hook for possible damages if Carollo loses or if he settles the civil lawsuit.

The Florida Supreme Court has made it very clear that public officials are entitled to legal representation at public expense to defend themselves against litigation arising from the performance of their official duties while serving a public purpose. . . . The purpose of this common law rule is to avoid the chilling effect that a denial of representation might have on public officials in performing their duties properly and diligently, a statement from Miamis office of the city attorney read.

For a great part of his career, Carollo has been bankrolled by the taxpayers whose resources hes accused of abusing. His trial isnt any different.
On a cold, snowy March day, students from Monument Valley High School in Oljato, Utah, planned a walkout to protest the termination of their Navajo Heritage teacher, Dr. Victoria Yazzie, and raise other issues they believe have gone unaddressed.

Students stood outside the front of the school, bundled up in their coats, with jacket hoods covering their hair from the snow and rain that fell. They held signs that read Reinstate Dr. Yazzie Now,""We need loving Admin,""Need Admin who care.

A month later, students, community leaders, parents and supporters of Yazzie crowded into the San Juan County School District board meeting to address the administration and school board. Some also sent in their comments to be read aloud during the public comment period.

So that there is no confusion on my stance, I fully support the reinstatement of MVHS Heritage Language Teacher, wrote Otis Anthony Kinney in an email that was read aloud during the comment period of the board meeting. In this current climate you hear about the lack of educators. Whether it's educators that are no longer coming back, or educators who have their hands tied for some reason. But you have educators who want to stay, who want to teach and that is what the MVHS Heritage Language Teacher wants to do.

A month after a field trip she planned for her students in 2022, Yazzie received a parent complaint, one she thought sounded vague but that was eventually the catalyst for her termination. A hearing left her with more questions, but the board meeting opened up a dialogue for other community members and students to highlight issues they expressed have been ongoing and never addressed.

The firing tops a long list of concerns

At the start of 2023, Yazzie's daughter, Dayhenoa Yazzie, started a GoFundMe campaign, hoping to raise enough money to pay a lawyer to help fight the school district over her moms termination. On the GoFundMe page, she said Yazzies was fired for an "unjustifiable and unfair" situation related to an April 2022 school field trip.

A long and detailed list of some issues and concerns from a grassroots group called Tse BiiNdzisgaii and Our Future (Creating Schools Our Community Deserves), which is made up of parents, students, alumni and community members was sent to the the 25th Navajo Nation Council. Among the 25 issues:

Lack of culture competency training at MVHS led to students experiencing hostile treatment from administration, staff and facility.

The dismissal of a heritage language teacher did not align with Utah Department of Education law R277-328. Students are not receiving quality instruction in the Navajo language, nor are they prepared to apply for scholarships that require Navajo language classes.

Specialized government funding is not being spent in alignment with federal policies and the program's budget is not shared with the parents and community at large.

Lack of cultural competency training at MVHS led to students experiencing hostile treatment from administration, staff and faculty

Cultural activities and Navajo language preservation are not the priority of the administration and violate the agreement between the community of Monument Valley, Utah, and the Utah board of education in the establishment of Monument Valley High School.

Its a list of things happening with myself and the school district, Yazzie told The Republic. There are a lot of policies that they named in regards to my termination. I know they (students) did their walkout. I understand they want me to be reinstated within the school, and thats not happening. I have a lot of kids texting, messaging me, and I try to be there for them as much as I can.

"My mom is a single mom of three daughters," Dayhenoa wrote in the Go FundMe introduction. "She is a Dine language and culture teacher who lives in a hogan in the Arizona community of Cane Valley.

I am scared and my family is scared, she wrote, also indicating she is in her first year of college and she has two younger sisters.

Why was she fired?

Yazzie hadn't been teaching at Monument Valley High School for long  she was in her first year when the controversy erupted  but her experience in education runs deep. She has been an educator for over 20 years and has over six years of administration experience, and she understands managing federal funds like the Johnson O' Malley grant.

The grant program provides supplemental funds for programs to meet the special educational needs for Native American students, especially those attending public schools and schools in non-tribal communities.

At the time of her hire at Monument Valley, Yazzie was secretary for the National Johnson OMalley Association, as well as secretary for the Navajo Nation Board of Education.

"I spent six-plus years in regards to those federal funding sources," said Yazzie. "I am well rounded with how those funding sources play out within the school system and how the funding sources are suppose to be primarily student base."

Before her termination, Yazzie was interested in how the school was spending the grant money, so she became involved by attending meetings and started writing a proposal on behalf of the students and parents requesting certain funding sources.

"It wasn't a first-time attempt, it was many several attempts of requesting funds and going though their proper channel and proper chain to get what students had requested," said Yazzie. "These were some of the issues happening in the school system."

There were other issues and observations Yazzie made before she was terminated, and she believes there's a correlation to why she eventually lost her position.

"The list is long and I kind of think all of this, in a nutshell, led to my termination," said Yazzie.

After a field trip last April, Yazzie said she was told an investigation was suggested in connection with a student left behind in the bus as the rest of the students participated in part of the trip.

Yazzie said the students mother had signed the parent permission slip to go on the trip, and the slip asked parents whether a child has medical needs or allergies, and the mother didn't indicate of any medical or allergy concerns. Since the student was in her class, Yazzie said she was aware the student was wearing a walking boot and using crutches, but the parent wanted him to go anyway, so she allowed him to.

The next month, Yazzie got word that the student's mother had registered a complaint that said Yazzie had made the student stay on the bus during part of the trip. Yazzie said she was never notified by the principal or vice principal, but heard about it through word of mouth from the bus driver first, and finally by the human resources director in an email.

I did not know what was going on, said Yazzie. I said I will meet you on this day. That entire time, no principal. No one said anything, the principal or vice principal, or anyone else came to me directly. I was waiting on the reasoning, what was happening in regards to the field trip.

Eventually she met with the human resources center to get more information. The director asked Yazzie why the student was left on the bus, and told her that was the complaint with no other information.

Related: Former Navajo speaker candidate files legislation to remove the current speaker

Them themselves did not know the childs name, who they were talking about, said Yazzie. They were asking me for the name. I was like if you know the child that is supposedly left on the bus, wouldn't you know the childs name?

During a hearing on the matter, which did not occur until January, witnesses and exhibits were provided, but Yazzie said the districts lawyer did not call the parent as a witness, which seemed peculiar. The parent complaint she requested as an exhibit was also not provided.

They said they didnt have a complaint, Yazzie said. It was all oral to the principal. They indicated that the principal and vice principal is more credible, and the parent is more credible. If you have a complaint, if I was a parent, I would be the first one to be the witness. Id be the first one behind my child if something happened.

The student was fine during the field trip, Yazzie said. The class made another stop that day to the mall as part of the trip and the student shopped for shoes and clothes along with his peers.

"He participated in the activities," said Yazzie. "He went to the mall. He ate. Came back and everyone was happy. A month after the field trip this is when the parent finally had a complaint and brought it to the principal's attention."

Monument Valley High School

'I feel like my whole family is being targeted'

Dayhenoa Yazzie graduated from Monument Valley High School last year, and is currently Miss Western Navajo Nation, in her first year attending Dine College. She said they have reached out to chapter leaders, council delegates, the high school's administration and San Juan County School Board members, and she feels no one is actually listening to what they are saying.

There is no official who is actively trying to help and support reinstate Dr. Yazzie, said Dayhenoa, who was the only person to accompany her mom to the hearing. It's important because once they take away the heritage and language teacher how do they view our cultural values? How do they see that our language and culture are important in our communities?

Her younger sister is currently Miss Monument Valley High School and her youngest sister just started at the high school.

Because my mom is being targeted in this situation I feel like my whole family is being targeted, said Dayhenoa. This whole process, I am greatly affected mentally and emotionally, because I have to be a part of my family and continue to help and support them.

The weight of the issue was what led Dayhenoa to reach out to a family friend to help her start the GoFundMe. She said as it unfolded and her mom confided in her about what was happening, Dayhenoa felt powerless and wondered what she could do to help. She said her family was concerned about the fear of retaliation toward the family and community members by the district and school, so much so the family did not speak up about what was happening until recently.

I was actually the first person to talk about it on social media, said Dayhenoa regarding the fundraising effort. She felt everything was against her. I felt there was nothing in the world that I could say or do that was going to change. At this time we still as a family didnt say what we were going through just because we were scared of what the administration would do.

The GoFundMe goal is $14,000 and has so far reached $5,370. It notes that the family tried referring the case with some help to the Navajo Nation Department of Justice and nothing came of it. Lawyers would not take the case or they did not hear back in time.

"The field trip was just an excuse to get rid of Dr. Yazzie, who is a very beloved educator of Dine culture and language and an invaluable mentor to her students, who are mainly Dine," the supporters wrote.

San Juan School District includes Monticello High School, San Juan High School, Whitehorse High School Navajo Mountain High School and Monument Valley High School.

Tse BiiNdzisgaii and Our Future (Creating Schools Our Community Deserves) wrote a letter to the Navajo Nation Council on the issues and another to SJSD board member Nelson Yellowman and SJSD superintendent Ron Nielson. Questions in the emails included issues connected to Johnson O'Malley line-item budgets, results on a survey by the district, and how the survey was accessible for parents or guardians who need Navajo translator or technology needed to partake in the survey, and when a response will be made to comments gathered at the board meeting.

The group also held chapter meetings at Oljato Chapter to ask questions of Monument Valley High School representatives.

Related: Navajo Nation wants US government to account for tribes water needs

In an email sent to the board and read aloud, Ophelia Holiday, a member of the Tse BiiNdzisgaii and Our Future (Creating Schools Our Community Deserves) group, referred to Utah law R277-328, which states that "educational equity means acknowledging that all students are capable of learning and distributing resources to provide equal opportunities based upon the needs of each individual student. Equitable resources include funding, programs, policies, initiatives and support that recognize each students unique background and school context to guarantee that all students have access to high-quality education.

"What is the explanation to the very limited opportunities and skills available to the students of Monument Valley High School?" wrote Holiday.

"San Juan High, Monticello High, White Horse High have more active clubs than Monument Valley High. Students and parents knock on the doors of administration but they are not answered. How can students and parents be heard?" Holiday wrote. "The majority of the questions, and that's why, issues, complaints, correlate to the unbalance equity in this school district. What can be done to ensure all students in the district are given the equity they so deserve as human being and as our future leaders?"

Superintendent: 'Monitor and improve where needed'

Nielson said he couldn't comment on Yazzie's termination since it's a personnel issue, but he wanted to address the other accusations that have been made about the district and Monument Valley High School. He noted that many of the claims made have only recently come up following the personnel issue.

"We refute much that is claimed is happening at that school is actually happening at that school," Nielson told The Republic. "We do survey two or three times a year and we have a pretty good feel of where our parents are at, and we believe our stakeholders are fairly satisfied with what is happening at the school and the community with the teachers. We will continue to monitor and improve where needed."

When it comes to the Johnson O'Mailey funding not being spent correctly, which is one of may issues community members have cited as a concern, Neilson said the district is monitored by the Navajo Nation Johnson O'Mailey Office.

"We have signed documentation yearly of their audit of all our books, of all our program, and they have no concerns," said Nielson. "In fact, verbally they committed to write a letter that San Juan School District has been 100 percent compliance with JOM expectation and spending. That is another accusation that again came out of left field. We refute that it has any validity."

Regarding concerns about the lack of activities the school has available for students, Nielson explained the small size of student population governs this.

"We believe we are providing an appropriate amount of activities," he said of the 1A school. "I don't know specifically what is being claimed there, but we are not aware of any programs that they are asking for that is being denied."

The letter to the Navajo Nation Council raised the issue regarding nepotism practices when it comes to school hiring, and "sidestepping" the Navajo Preference in Employment Act.

"We would love to have a deep pool of homegrown talent that is qualified," said Nielson, who has been superintendent at SJSD for the past six years. "That would be a dream come true, but we don't have that presently. We do have to fill many positions with outside talent that is certified. It is lucky if we find them, it's a real struggle, right now we are looking for teachers we don't have."

In one of the emails read during the district board meeting last month, a former student of Whitehorse High School who took Yazzie's Navajo Government class, when she taught at that school, wrote in support of her former teacher and praised her teaching.

"She has given me the strength to embrace my Dine culture by providing us the tools to continue our education," wrote Kylie Scott. "She encouraged me to seek an education and come back to help my people. She had a positive impact for students to have confidence in where they came from. It's challenging to be a Native kid within the San Juan school district, it feels like everything is built against you. It's tough not to compare myself to the successful students at larger schools, but Dr. Yazzie made me feel like I had an equal opportunity as my peers."

Arlyssa Becenti covers Indigenous affairs for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Send ideas and tips to arlyssa.becenti@arizonarepublic.com.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: A longtime Navajo heritage teacher was fired, but doesn't know why
Black woman sitting on the edge of cenote azul

Every time someone visits Mexico, they marvel at how much there is to see and do. While pondering under the Mexican sunshine, theyre probably very hot with temperatures reaching over 90 degrees during the summer. If youre looking for a place to cool off while exploring the Riviera Maya, look no further than Cenote Azul.

Pronounced sey-no-tays, this web of underwater caves and rivers attract tourists and travelers worldwide. Drawn to its turquoise waters and stunning cave formations, theres nothing like Cenote Azul. However, there are many other cenotes throughout Mexico.

What Exactly Is A Cenote?

According to ancient Mayan culture, cenotes were mystical, underwater portals that could transport them to the underworld. The indigenous people would hold rituals in the cenotes and consider them sacred spaces.

Today, we know that cenotes are natural sinkholes that have developed over many centuries. As the limestone collapses around the hole, rainwater fills up the pool and flows through the underground caves to the river. There are three types of cenotes and many can be found throughout Mexico not far from Cenote Azul.

Open cenote s  This includes caves that have fully collapsed and are exposed to the sky.

Semi-open cenotes  These cenotes are mostly underground with small openings for light and air to seep through.

Underground cenotes  Cenotes like these are completely beneath the land surface.

Although these underground water worlds may be common in Mexico, some consider Cenote Azul to be the biggest and most beautiful. Located south of Puerto Aventuras, just twenty minutes from Playa del Carmen, this cenote with turquoise waters has fun for the whole family. From snorkeling and diving to lounging by the water taking in the view, theres plenty to do at Cenote Azul.

Photo Credit: Hector Vivas

Fresh Water & Cliff Diving

Remember, cenotes are comprised of a series of underground caves. While some cenotes are completely underground, Cenote Azul has some areas that are accessible without diving gear. This open-air cenote is perfect for fun and play.

Areas that have deeper water are great for diving, with some cliffs spanning 15 feet in height. The natural pool at Cenote Azul is also bursting with fish that can be seen through the clear water. They might even nibble on your toes if you decide to take a dip.

Plenty To See

Cenote Azul is a family-friendly place with plenty to see and do for travelers of all ages. Winding paths take you through lush, green trees to the first pools where visitors can cool off. There are shaded areas for guests who need a break from the water and a shallow pool for children to play.

The World Is A Playground says the shallow pool is a bit warmer however the large pool is best for diving. White limestone walls line the pools giving swimmers leverage as they walk to the water. Life jackets are always available for those who need them and light drinks and refreshments are also available for purchase.

Cenote Azul can be accessed from Cancun, Tulum, and Playa del Carmen. Admission to the cenote is $7 USD per person. Travelers suggest visiting the natural beauty in the mornings during the weekdays to avoid large crowds.

Before visiting the cenote, be sure to review what is and is not allowed in the park. Things like mosquito and bug repellent are not allowed to avoid water contamination and feeding the fish is banned. Do your research beforehand to get the most out of your experience while also respecting the sacred pool.

RELATED: Mexico Magic: 8 Best Cenotes In Yucatan
Lottery player knew something big was coming when he saw clerks reaction to ticket

A regular lottery player from Baltimore, Maryland, recently stopped by one of the places he frequents to check his latest batch of tickets.

When he got to Tobacco Outlet, the clerk was celebrating selling a big ticket, the 72-year-old told officials, according to a May 17 Maryland Lottery news release.

Im friendly with several of the owners of the places where I buy tickets, he said. I joined my friend as he celebrated having sold a big Powerball winner in his store. He was very excited.

After the celebration, the man finally got around to asking the clerk to check his lottery tickets, including a $20 Powerball ticket, officials said.

The look on his face told me something big was coming, he said.

Thats when the pair realized that the big Powerball win theyd been celebrating was in the mans pocket the whole time, officials said. He had won a $100,000.

We were all stunned, he said. Between me and the owner, it got pretty loud in there, but that was nothing compared to when I got home and told my wife.

The retired computer specialist said he and his wife had discussed moving into a retirement community. With their big prize, the couple plan to move earlier.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

Lottery player startles husband awake after her huge NC lottery win. Whats wrong?

School teacher stunned after seeing huge lottery prize. Then asks son, Is this real?

Veteran misses huge MD prize by one number  so he plays again. I was feeling lucky
The brush fires that threatened homes in Lynn in the past week were intentionally set, fire officials said Wednesday.

An investigation revealed that eight separate fires were set on May 12, May 13 and May 17, the State Fire Marshals office said.

Over 400 acres have burned since the first blaze that called every Lynn firefighter to Lynn Woods Friday afternoon.

Any fire can present a hazard, but we saw rapid fire growth threatening numerous homes in our community as a result of these fires, said Lynn Fire Chief Daniel Sullivan. Firefighters from Lynn and our mutual aid partners worked extraordinarily hard to bring them under control, and were extremely fortunate that we had no serious injuries or property damage.

Massachusetts has been experiencing abnormally dry weather conditions this spring. Coupled with dry winds, the circumstances are ripe for dangerous brush fires.

Dry, windy conditions ripe for brush fires

Fires like these put people, property, and wildlife at risk, said Chief Fire Warden Celino. Were experiencing Red Flag conditions across Massachusetts right now, with high winds, low humidity, and very dry fuel. Outdoor fires will burn rapidly, spread quickly, and produce dangerous fire behavior under these conditions. That puts an enormous strain on firefighters, their departments, and the communities they serve.

Jimmy, the owner of Superior Roast Beef, Pizza, Seafood told Boston 25 News he hopes the arsonists actions are halted.

Not right, he said. It was very concerning because it was close to the neighborhood we live in.

Anyone who may know anything regarding the suspicious fires is asked to contact the State Police Fire & Explosion Investigation Unit at 978-567-3310 or the Arson Watch Reward Program at 1-800-682-9225.The Arson Watch Reward Program offers rewards of up to $5,000

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

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Mae Muller makes cheeky dig at Tory critics as she makes bid for top 10 chart spot

Mae Muller has taken a swipe at her right-wing critics as her Eurovision entry I Wrote A Song rises up the UK charts.

Despite coming second-last in Saturday (13 May) nights Eurovision final, the 25-year-olds song has found success on social media and is hoping to reach the Top 10 in Fridays (19 May) chart.

While promoting the song on social media, Muller made a cheeky nod to controversy that surrounded her representing the UK, after tweets in which she criticised the government and Boris Johnson resurfaced online.

In a clip shared to TikTok on Wednesday (17 May), Muller filmed herself walking around London while the song played.

Stream my song to p*** off a Tory! she wrote.

When one follower joked that Muller was finally out of the Eurovision contract and able to speak on politics again, the 25-year-old replied: I cant read suddenly.

In the lead up to Eurovision, a number of Twitter posts made by Muller in 2020 were highlighted by the press.

They included tweets in which she said she didnt feel sorry about Boris Johnson having Covid, and one in which she said: I hate this country in response to debates about free school meals.

In an interview with The Independent ahead of the Eurovision final, Muller said that she didnt regret the tweets, but denied actually hating Britain.

I love this country, and I wouldnt represent it if I didnt. I love where Im from I love how inclusive and diverse it is, but nowheres perfect. When you love something, you want it to be better.

At the time of her posts, Muller said that the people in the UK werent getting the best treatment and thats something that I care about.

While Muller is hoping to place highly in this weeks charts, she has some stiff competition from two other Eurovision stars.

Swedens Loreen, who won the contest with her song Tattoo, could take the No 1 spot, while runner-up Kaarija from Finland may also break the Top 10 with his song Cha Cha Cha.

Loreen previously won Eurovision in 2012 with the song Euphoria, which peaked at No 3 and became the most downloaded Eurovision single in UK history.
The 360 shows you diverse perspectives on the days top stories and debates.

Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Whats happening

The gunman who killed eight people in a mass shooting at an outlet mall in Allen, Texas , earlier this month presented an identity that, to some, seemed like a contradiction. He had all of the markings of a white supremacist: Nazi tattoos , a  Right Wing Death Squad  patch on his tactical vest and a trove of online posts detailing his extremist beliefs. But Mauricio Garcia was also Hispanic.

Some conservatives have zeroed in on these facts to question the narrative that arose in the wake of the attack, or as the Fox News host Mark Levin put it on his radio show: How can you be a nonwhite and be a white supremacist? Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene , R-Ga., tweeted that only dumb white people would believe the official story. Elon Musk , owner of Twitter, repeated the conspiracy theory that the attack was some sort of psyop designed to mislead the public.

As counterintuitive as it may seem, however, experts on extremism have long understood that white supremacy does not exclusively attract Caucasians. There are many examples of people of color, often Latinos , aligning with racist movements designed to promote white dominance over all other groups.

For example, Nick Fuentes  a popular extreme-right commentator who argues for the superiority of white identity and whom Garcia mentioned in his writings onlne  has Mexican heritage. Enrique Tarrio , who was once leader of the far-right group Proud Boys and was found guilty earlier this month of seditious conspiracy for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, is Cuban American. The neo-Nazi website Daily Stormer has been publishing a Spanish edition since 2017.

Why theres debate

While being white might seem like a prerequisite for supporting white supremacy, experts who study racial identity and extremism say there are a variety of reasons why nonwhite people might be drawn to the movement.

Many say that one of the main appeals of racist groups is that they can offer some people of color an opportunity to distance themselves from their own backgrounds  which they may view as inferior  and to gain some of the perceived power that comes from being aligned with whiteness. Others say that race is far more complicated and individualized than the broad categories we tend to lump people into. This is especially true of American Latinos, an incredibly diverse group representing a broad spectrum of backgrounds, political views and attitudes toward race.

Researchers also say race can sometimes be something of an afterthought for troubled people attracted by other ideologies espoused by extremist groups, including antisemitism, sexism, mistrust of government and glorification of violence. In other cases, individuals may be willing to latch onto any movement that provides them an outlet for their anger, gives them a sense of power or makes them feel less alone.

Perspectives

The concept of whiteness isnt nearly as cut-and-dried as many believe it to be

There are MANY people who would count themselves as white in one community who would not count as white in another. It has been this way for whiteness for a long time, because whiteness is a *socially constructed category*, by which I mean it is invented and enforced by people in a social formation.  We made it up.  Kathleen Belew , historian

Extremism can seem like a means of acquiring some of the privileges of being white

White people are often considered more employable, are more likely to receive promotions, dominate the most prestigious industries, have a larger share of wealth, are often more sought after in the dating pool, and so on and so on. Most minorities dont want to be white, but they do want a larger share of the privileges the mainstream white world enjoys. A lot of people from minority communities engage in this striving, famously on the far right.  Ali Breland, Mother Jones

Violence, not ideology, can be the primary draw for some people

People  including people who are non-white  can develop an interest or obsession in Nazis or white supremacist killers because they themselves have become obsessed with murder and death and mass killings in general.  It's not that they're necessarily sympathetic to white supremacy, what fascinates them is the killing aspect.  Mark Pitcavage, extremism researcher, to USA Today

White supremacy takes many forms and is always evolving

Its important to keep in mind that white supremacy has always been composed of multiple strands. Some of it is literally about white domination over Black people, but some of it is also about deep anti-Semitism. Some of it in the past has been anti-Catholic and that speaks to how the boundaries of whiteness have changed over time.  Omar Wasow, race and politics researcher, to Vanity Fair

The anger and resentment at the core of white supremacist ideology can be appealing to members of all groups

When I hear them talk, its often with this grievance-driven narrative: That liberalism is attempting to destroy their masculinity, and they must protect their children from the same fate. That can encompass rejecting vaccines, requiring women to carry unwanted pregnancies or stopping gender nonconformity. That righteous warrior bit is nothing new, but its powerful bait for luring others into extremism, and it crosses a lot of demographic and geographic lines.  Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times

Aligning with white supremacy can be a way for people to distance themselves from their own background

Whats the best way to distance yourself from feeling like youre part of an oppressed group? Its to align yourself with those who are part of the oppressors.  People who today we think of as white people with Italian American or Irish American ancestry were, at the turn of last century, viewed as non-white. Whiteness sort of expanded to include them.  Tanya Kateri Hernandez, race and racism researcher, to the Boston Globe

Extremist groups provide an outlet for all kinds of prejudices that arent strictly about race

You can check enough boxes, like to be Latino and be anti-Black, anti-gay, anti-Jewish, anti-drag or neo-Nazi. And now theres a subculture available for you in a way that hasnt before.  Forget about ethnicity. If you check enough of those checkboxes, there will be a space for you in the umbrella of the fragmented, syncretic set of hatreds, a la carte.  Brian Levin, extremism researcher, to Dallas Morning News

People are often drawn to extremism for personal reasons that have little to do with ideology

White supremacy is often rooted in personal insecurity. People can be forgiven for finding the idea of a non-White white supremacist confusing. This confusion, though, stems from overly rigid understandings of both White and white supremacist.  It is not at all impossible for someone with a Hispanic name to embrace white-supremacist rhetoric.  Philip Bump, Washington Post

A long history of racism among elements of Americas Latino population is often ignored

Latino participation in extremist political projects has a long history in the United States, going back to the John Birch Society. And with the rise of digital organizing in recent years, Latino involvement in the far-right movement is in fact growing. We must understand the alleged shooter in Allen within this context, or else we risk seeing him as a lone wolf rather than as a member of a growing and dangerous movement that will require focused attention to defeat.  Cecilia Marquez, New York Times

Is there a topic youd like to see covered in The 360? Send your suggestions to the360@yahoonews.com.

Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
An 86-year-old man was killed by Mequon police after exiting a home and firing shots, police say

An 86-year-old man was killed by a Mequon police officer Wednesday afternoon after exiting a residence and firing shots at officers, the department said in a statement.

Mequon Police Department officers were dispatched to a residence in the 3100 block of Bonniwell Road around 3:30 p.m. for a neighbor dispute involving a firearm, police said.

Online court records show that Ozaukee County prosecutors on Wednesday brought charges against 86-year-old Pietro Lalicata of Mequon. An arrest warrant was obtained and issued for him on Wednesday at the same address of the fatal shooting.

On May 17, Lalicata was charged with second degree recklessly endangering safety, disorderly conduct and failing to comply with officer's attempt to take him into custody.

Court records indicate that, following Lalicata's death, prosecutors plan to dismiss the case.

According to the criminal complaint:

A neighbor was mowing his lawn when he noticed his neighbor, Lalicata, standing on his porch holding a gun and yelling at him. The neighbor heard a gun shot and believed that Lalicata was shooting at him.

The neighbor called police and told them that Lalicata had run into the home. Police attempted to make contact with him, but his phone went straight to voicemail. Lalicata refused to come out of the house when instructed to. His family members told police that he had approximately 30 guns inside the home.

According to police, Lalicata barricaded himself into a residence and later left the home while firing toward officers, who shot back, striking him.

Officers attempted to render aid, however Lalicata died at the scene, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation.

No officers or members of the public were injured in the incident.

The involved officer from the Mequon Police Department has been placed on administrative assignment, per department policy.

DCI will lead the investigation since the shooting involved an officer, assisted by the Ozaukee County Sheriffs Office, Wisconsin State Patrol, Wisconsin State Crime Lab and a DCI Crime Response Specialist.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Man killed by Mequon officers after exiting a home and firing shots
Photograph: Gabrielle Lurie/AP

The man accused of fatally stabbing Cash App founder Bob Lee has pleaded not guilty to murder.

Nima Momeni, 38, was arraigned on Thursday in a San Francisco courtroom on a single murder charge in Lees death last month.

Momenis attorney entered the plea on her clients behalf. The judge ordered Momeni to remain in jail without bail.

Related: Suspect arrested in killing of Cash App founder Bob Lee in San Francisco

San Franciscos district attorney, Brooke Jenkins, has alleged that Momeni planned to kill Lee and left him at the scene bleeding after the stabbing.

Lee was found by police with multiple stab wounds in downtown San Francisco in the predawn hours of 4 April. He was taken to San Francisco general hospital and died while doctors operated on him. A kitchen knife was recovered from the surrounding area, Jenkins had previously said.

In the days after the killing, pundits and some tech executives had been quick to argue that Lees death was an example of violent crime running rampant in the northern California city.

But prosecutors soon revealed that Lee and Momeni had been acquainted with each other. Prosecutors allege the stabbing was the result of a dispute between the two men that centered on Lees relationship with Momenis sister, Khazar Elyassnia, who has become a key figure in the case that now centers around alleged drug use and romantic intrigue.

Elyassnia, 37, is married to well known Bay Area plastic surgeon Dino Elyassnia. Momeni, her older brother, was the owner of a Bay-Area IT consulting firm called ExpandIT, and has worked as a consultant and system engineer at a number of tech companies over the years, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Khazar Elyassnia, center, walks through the courthouse to attend the arraignment of her brother Nima Momeni on 18 May in San Francisco. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

According to court filings, Momeni had confronted Lee about his relationship with Elyassnia and an incident the day prior to the stabbing, when Lee and Elyassnia had spent time together in an apartment.

Prosecutors say a witness had said that Momeni and Lee went to Lees hotel room, where Momeni demanded to know if his younger sister was doing drugs or anything inappropriate, which Lee denied.

Related: Bob Lee knew his killer. But that wont ease the pressure on San Francisco

Security footage shows Momeni and Lee leaving a building together on the night of the stabbing, and getting into Momenis BMW around 2am. Prosecutors say that Momeni drove to a dark and secluded spot, where he attacked Lee with a kitchen knife, stabbing him three times, including once in the heart. He then sped away and left victim to slowly die, according to court documents.

In a motion filed on Monday, Paula Canny, Momenis defense attorney, argued that the narrative put out by San Francisco police is based on hard-to-see video evidence, the San Francisco Standard newspaper reported.

Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom on Thursday, Canny described Lees death as a combination self-defense and accident, the Standard reported. She also said Momeni is not a US citizen, and is at risk of being deported to his home country of Iran.

Canny and the San Francisco districts attorney office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Man arrested for fatal shooting of 16-year-old in Fresno gang violence

[Source]

A man has been arrested in connection with the death of a teenager during a gang-related shooting in Fresno, California, last month.

The incident, which investigators say involved Asian gang members, occurred at the intersection of Valentine and Princeton Avenues at around 2:20 p.m. on April 15. Deputies arrived and found Nolyn Chann, 16, on the ground with gunshot wounds.

The shots were fired while the nearby Fresno Cambodian Buddhist Temple held a celebration with hundreds of guests. Police said those involved in the incident were supposed to attend the event.

Investigators said Chann and others attacked 20-year-old Tyvanh Sysaknoi, a member of a rival gang. The latter retaliated and struck Chann.

More from NextShark: Watch: Hong Kong residents bid farewell to Jumbo Floating Restaurant as it is towed to secret location

Chann was given CPR before being rushed to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries. He was a student at Sunnyside High School.

Sysaknoi was booked into Fresno County Jail on a charge of voluntary manslaughter. His bail was set at $95,000.

More from NextShark: 7-year-old Japanese boy is officially thanked by police after protecting lost toddler

Fresno authorities have been dealing with gang violence for years. In September 2021 alone, police made nearly 300 felony arrests from focused investigations that began only in the previous month.

Investigation into the case continues. Anyone with information is urged to contact Detective Aurelio Flores at 559-600-8208 or Crime Stoppers at 559-498-7867 or www.valleycrimestoppers.org.

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A Lake Elsinore man was arrested earlier this week for allegedly prowling around the Montecito estate of Britains Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Office.

Deputies were dispatched shortly before 2 a.m. Monday to the incident at the royal couples property on the 700 block of Rockbridge Road, according to Raquel Zick, Sheriffs Office public information officer.

The suspect  identified as Kevin Garcia Valdovinos, 29  had been placed under citizens arrest by security at the estate, Zick said.

Investigation by sheriffs detectives determined the case to be an alleged violation of Penal Code Section 647(h)  misdemeanor prowling, Zick said.

Valdovinos was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail, then released after posting $2,500 bond, she said, adding that the case remained under investigation.

The incident occurred a day before the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were pursued by paparazzi photographers as they left a New York City charity event Tuesday night.

A spokeswoman for the couple originally described that incident as a near catastrophic car chase through the streets of Manhattan.

However, New York City police later said the pursuit was relatively short and led to no injuries, collisions or arrests, and warranted no further investigation, according to the Associated Press.

For some, the pursuit evoked memories of the 1997 car chase through Paris that resulted in the death of Harrys mother, Princess Diana.

Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com.
Prosecutors charged a man with murder on Thursday in connection with the death of a 5-year-old boy in Massachusetts nearly a decade after the child's body was found in a suitcase on the side of a highway.

Alberto Sierra Jr., 32, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in Worcester County for the death of Jeremiah Oliver, officials said. Sierra, who was also charged with disinterring of a body for allegedly moving Oliver's remains, was ordered held without bail. A spokesperson for Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said the office is not currently publicly sharing any information about what led to the murder charge.

Oliver was last seen in Fitchburg, where he lived with his mother and siblings, on Sept. 14, 2013, the district attorney's office said. His disappearance wasn't reported until two months later when his 8-year-old sister shared concerns with a teacher and a counselor at school, CBS News reported. The sister told authorities her mother's boyfriend used a belt and his fists to beat her, her siblings and her mother, court records said.

Police arrested Sierra, who was dating Oliver's mother, on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in December of 2014. They also charged Elsa Oliver, the boy's mother, with two counts of reckless endangerment of a child and two counts of accessory after the fact of a felony. The family was being monitored by state social workers since 2011, CBS News previously reported, and court records reportedly showed that Sierra had a history of abusing women and children.

Investigators didn't find Oliver's body until the following year in April. They recovered a suitcase with a body inside on the side of a highway near Sterling, which is about 12 miles from Fitchburg, authorities said.

Medical examiners deemed Oliver's death a homicide in 2016, prosecutors said. The autopsy report listed his cause of death as "homicidal violence of undetermined etiology."

Though Oliver's death had been ruled a homicide, at that point in the investigation his mother and Sierra were not facing any murder charges. They'd been charged with kidnapping of a child and multiple counts of assault and battery.

Both Sierra and the mom pleaded guilty to several charges in August of 2017, District Attorney Early said at the time. The charges were only connected to Oliver's siblings. Prosecutors said the children were required to stand in a cold shower or kneel for extended periods of time, CBS News Boston reported.

Early's office had dropped charges against the pair related to Oliver. Prosecutors at the time said they'd dropped some of the charges against the mom and boyfriend to avoid possible double jeopardy claims, CBS News Boston reported.

Sierra was sentenced to six or seven years in state prison with three years of probation after he pleaded guilty to three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of assault and battery and two counts of reckless endangerment of a child, District Attorney Early said at the time.

He was not in custody when he was arrested Wednesday on murder charges in connection with Oliver's death, authorities said.

The boy's mother pleaded guilty to assault and battery and two counts of reckless endangerment of a child in August of 2017, prosecutors said. She was sentenced to more than seven years in prison and local media reported she was released in 2020.

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Two months after a pair of Morris Knolls teens were arrested at school with a handgun in their possession  igniting a furor among parents and students over security at the regional high school  Morris County prosecutors have charged the man they say sold the firearm to the youths.

Dwayne Allen, 21, of Palmyra, was arrested Wednesday on charges stemming from the March 23 incident at the school, that left parents rattled and questioning why administrators and police had not placed the building on lockdown.

Prosecutors stated Allen has no known connection to the school.

Allen remains in custody at Morris County's jail while he awaits his first hearing on charges that he sold a firearm to a juvenile, possessed and sold a high-capacity magazine, and the unlawful possession and transportation of a handgun.

Meanwhile, the two students continue to face charges for possessing the handgun and bullets.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Morris Knolls NJ: Man charged with selling students gun
Passersby observe the scene where a limousine crashed in 2018 in upstate New York, leaving 20 people dead

The manager of a limousine company was found guilty Wednesday of second-degree manslaughter for the deaths of 20 people in a 2018 accident involving one of his vehicles in New York state.

It marked one of the deadliest US traffic accidents in the past two decades. All 17 passengers in the stretch limousine were killed as well as the driver and two people in a parking lot who were struck by the speeding vehicle.

The limousine had failed a vehicle inspection, and the driver apparently ran a stop sign moments before the crash in Schoharie County, near the state capital Albany.

Among the passengers were four sisters, one of whom was celebrating her birthday.

As the verdict was read against Nauman Hussain, son of the owner of Prestige Limousine, which operated the vehicle, some relatives of the victims screamed while others broke into tears.

An investigation showed that the limousine had failed its inspection, and that the driver was not licensed to operate the vehicle.

Hussain faces up to 15 years in prison for the 20 counts of second-degree manslaughter. He is scheduled to be sentenced May 31.

After the verdict, his lawyer Lee Kindlon said he was "heartbroken for everybody involved" in the 2018 tragedy.

Hussain was taken into custody after the hearing.

Seeing Hussain taken away in handcuffs "gave me some kind of justice," Sam Bursese, father of one of the victims, told reporters outside the courthouse.

led/tjj/mlm
Man found fatally shot in the Mojave Desert city of Needles

San Bernardino County homicide officials are investigating after the body of a man was found fatally shot near the Mojave Desert city of Needles.

Sheriffs officials reported that at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, deputies were dispatched to a desert area in Needles after a California Highway Patrol officer discovered a dead man near a truck.

San Bernardino County homicide officials are investigating after the body of a man was found fatally shot near the Mojave Desert city of Needles.

Needles deputies responded to a desert area west of Interstate 95 and south of Highway 163 near Needles. Authorities found the body and determined that the man had suffered a fatal gunshot wound.

The SBC specialized investigations division  homicide detail assumed the investigation, which is ongoing.

At this time, it is unknown when the murder occurred. The victim was transported to the SBC Sheriff-Coroners Office where identification and next-of-kin notification are pending.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the homicide detail at 909-890-4904. Callers wishing to remain anonymous can contact the We-Tip Hotline at 800-78-CRIME (27463) or wetip.com.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Man found fatally shot in the Mojave Desert city of Needles
A Chicago based man has recently celebrated his 98th birthday, as hes continued to spend his life working seven days a week.

Joe Grier, who turned 98 on 9 May, recently spoke Fox 32 Chicago about his ongoing work ethic, as hes believed to be one of the oldest full-time employees in the country.

As noted by the publication, Grier works for Victory, which is a manufacturing company based in Chicago. At the job, he makes the moulds for different trophies and awards.

While celebrating his milestone birthday at work, he explained what the main thing is that keeps him coming in everyday.

It makes me feel good, Grier said about working. Im able to associate myself with things that Ive associated myself with for so long. Its a habit.

He also expressed how his secret to a long life is controlling [his] own thinking, before sharing the positive perspective that he has on everyday problems that hes faced.

Its how you look at them and how you deal with them and then, theyre no longer a problem, he explained.

Grier emphasised that positivity is a major reason he can able to laug a lot and said that laughing is a very easy thing for him to do.

The craftsman acknowledged that daily attitude may have to do with his age, adding: Perhaps its because of my long years of living and the things that Ive experienced, most things are funny.

Eric Priceman, who is the president of Victory, went on to praise his 98-year-old employee for supporting his team at the company and being a mentor to them.

Hes just somebody who has been here for so long, who teaches us everything, who has taught us everything, Priceman explained.

However, this isnt the first time that Grier has spoken out about his work ethic. During an interview with Fox 32 in July 2020, he opened up about working seven days a week during the pandemic and joked that this was quite enough time for him.

The publication noted that throughout the pandemic, he still continued going to the Victorys factory to train new co-workers. Hes also been working at the company since some of the machinery has gone through multiple upgrades.

Grier explained that because hes been working for so long, he doesnt necessarily feel all that nervous when different problems arise.

Whatever comes up, Ive already been through it, he said. So, I have no surprises. In other words, Ive said: Whatever comes next, bring it on. Whats next?

He also pointed out what one of his life goals is, while still in his nineties. To help as many people as I can, not just on an industrial level, but on a personal level, he said.

The Independent has contacted Victory for comment.
Prompted by his belief that the 2020 election was unfair and fraudulent, Marine Corps Cpl. Micah Coomer, along with two friends, traveled from their station at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, to participate in the Jan. 6, 2021, Stop the Steal rally in support of former President Donald Trump.

When the rally turned into a riot and Trump supporters broke past barriers to enter the U.S. Capitol, Coomer and his friends joined, spending 52 minutes inside, according to the Department of Justice.

This week, the 24-year-old Marine became the first active duty service member convicted of taking part in the Capitol riot.

The FBI had tracked his movements minute by minute using security footage, which showed Coomer and his two friends moving from room to room and using their phones to take photos, videos and answer phone calls. At one point, they placed a red MAGA hat atop a statue and took photos with it.

Coomer later posted photos from inside the Capitol on Instagram  posts that became FBI evidence against him.

Everything in this country is corrupt, he wrote. We honestly need a fresh restart. Im waiting for the boogaloo.

Boogaloo is a term referencing a future civil war. When asked to explain the word by the person he was Instagram-messaging, Coomer responded, Civil war 2.

On Wednesday, Coomer pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one misdemeanor count of illegally parading or demonstrating in the Capitol. His attorney, Phillip Stackhouse, did not respond to request for comment following the hearing. Judge Ana C. Reyes set his sentencing for Aug. 30.

As part of Coomers plea agreement, he agreed to pay $500 in restitution to the Architect of the Capitol for damages he may have caused. An estimated $2.8 million worth of damage was done to the Capitol and grounds during the riot. He also agreed to cooperate with investigators who are still probing the Jan. 6 attack, answering their questions and giving them access to his social media accounts, according to the plea documents.

Four other active-duty troops, including Coomers two friends, also have been charged in the siege. Dozens more rioters with military backgrounds were charged  and some convicted  in the years since the attack.

As of Thursday, Coomer remained on active duty and was assigned to Camp Pendleton in California, where he works as an intelligence surveillance reconnaissance system engineer, according to information provided to Military Times by the Pentagons Marine Corps public affairs office. He enlisted in 2018.

Police arrested Coomer in January this year, along with Sgt. Joshua Abate and Sgt. Dodge Dale Hellonen. All three Marines work in intelligence-gathering. This occurrence of anti-government sentiments infiltrating the intelligence community is dangerous, said Tom OConnor, a retired FBI agent who focused on domestic extremism for 20 years.

This guy mentioned boogaloo, and he mentioned the second Civil War  thats a dangerous thing to have within our U.S. government because its completely anti-government, OConnor said. To have somebody like that in there, hes a danger to the public and to people who are working within that government entity.

He pointed to the recent harm caused in the case of Jack Teixeira, a Massachusetts Air National Guard member who leaked highly classified military documents about top national security issues on the social media platform Discord.

As of Thursday, Abate was still assigned to National Security Agency headquarters at Fort Meade in Maryland, where he works as part of the Marine Cryptologic Support Battalion. Abate enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2018 and was interviewed in 2022 as part of his security clearance for the NSA job. During the interview, he discussed entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, according to the FBIs complaint.

Abate told the interviewer that he entered the Capitol with two buddies, one of whom smoked a cigarette while they walked around and tried not to get hit with tear gas. Like Coomer, Abate was charged with a misdemeanor count of illegally parading or demonstrating in the Capitol. A district court hearing for Abate has not yet been scheduled.

FILE - Rioters loyal to President Donald Trump rally at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. (Jose Luis Magana/AP, File)

Hellonen, who enlisted in 2017, was working as a special communications signals analyst at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina as of Thursday. He was charged with the same misdemeanor as Abate and Coomer. His case was assigned to Judge Reyes, and a hearing hasnt been scheduled for his charge yet, either.

All three Marines are recipients of the Navy and Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the National Defense Service Medal, according to their service records.

While the Marine Corps provided information about the Marines current assignments, officials didnt expound on the nature of their job duties while their criminal trials progress.

I hope theyve been put in positions where they have no access [to intelligence], and the military is letting the investigations continue before going after their security clearances, OConnor said.

FBI agents used security footage, social media and the help of three other Marines who worked with Coomer, Abate and Hellonen to identify the men and track their movements on Jan. 6. Meta, which owns Instagram, granted access to the FBI to view Coomers Instagram messages. The messages revealed Coomers anti-government feelings and his belief that the 2020 presidential election wasnt legitimate.

Footage showed Hellonen carrying the Gadsden flag inside the Capitol. The flag depicts a coiled snake over the phrase, Dont tread on me, against a yellow background. It was first flown in 1776 in protest against British rule and later became a symbol of libertarianism. More recently, its been used by anti-government groups to promote the fear of government overreach, according to George Washington University.

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 06: Pro-Trump protesters entered the U.S. Capitol building during demonstrations in the nation's capital. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The symbols and language used by the Marines align with the creed of the Boogaloo Movement, OConnor said. Boogaloo is an anti-government, anti-authority and anti-police extremist movement that began on the website 4chan over a decade ago. The groups in-person activities increased since 2020 and have included rallies around gun rights, pandemic restrictions and police-related killings.

Its not uncommon to see service members join the Boogaloo Movement. According to the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, known as START, a handful of other people with military backgrounds who participated in the Jan. 6 attack were forthcoming about their affiliation with the Boogaloos.

START, which keeps database of veterans and service members charged with extremist crimes, said that 25 of the 628 people in the repository were part of the Boogaloo Movement.

People with military backgrounds were over-represented on Jan. 6. Of the rioters, 17% were veterans, Harvard University found. In addition to the three Marines, two other active-duty service members were charged: Marine Corps Maj. Christopher Warnagiris and Navy sailor David Elizalde.

In addition to the Boogaloo Movement, participants with military backgrounds were representing other extremist groups that day, including the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, Three Percenters and Aryan Nations, among others.

Mollie Saltskog, a senior intelligence analyst at The Soufan Group, a global intelligence and security consultancy, said the cases of Coomer, Abate and Hellonen highlight the need to bolster educational resources given to service members about false or misleading narratives they may find online  for the sake of national security.

Foreign entities pushing polarizing and anti-government disinformation narratives to active or former service members is concerning, as these individuals may have had or currently have access to classified information that could be attractive to foreign entities seeking to harm the United States, Saltskog said.

We The Veterans, a pro-democracy nonprofit created by veterans and military families in 2021, said that service members themselves are the best people to combat these types of extremist sentiments among the military community.

Fellow military members and military family members are often the closest people to an active duty member who has been targeted with misinformation or expresses extreme anti-democratic views, said Ellen Gustafson, a co-founder of the group. We the Veterans is working to bolster civic knowledge and patriotic engagement among veterans and military family members so they are prepared to push back against this targeting.

This story was produced in partnership with Military Veterans in Journalism.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has announced articles of impeachment against President Joe Biden and several others in his administration, according to multiplereports Thursday.

Joe Bidens refusal to uphold our immigration laws has given Mexican drug cartels, human traffickers, violent criminals and terrorists operational control of our border, Greene said in a tweet.

The move marks the first impeachment introduction since Republicans took control of the U.S. House earlier this year, but Greene also introduced impeachment articles against him in 2021.

The far-right congresswomans articles of impeachment against Biden were divided into three parts, according to NBC News.

The first blamed Biden for an increase in illegal aliens and illegal narcotics. The second blamed him for allowing illegal aliens who had tested positive for COVID-19 to enter the country and infect American citizens. And the third claimed that Biden created a national security crisis and is endangering the lives of everyday Americans with his open border policies.

Her remarks mirror an anti-immigration push among far-right Republicans, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a possible 2024 presidential contender, that has gained more traction since the expiration this month of Title 42, an emergency health order from the Trump administration that allowed migrants to be turned away at the U.S.-Mexico border. (Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN earlier this week that there was actually a 50% decline in border crossings since the expiration of Title 42.)

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Greene also filed impeachment articles against U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, FBI Director Christopher Wray, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Mayorkas.

White House spokesperson Ian Sams called Greenes impeachment effort a political stunt.

Sams told HuffPost: Is there a bigger example of a shameless sideshow political stunt than a trolling impeachment attack by one of the most extreme MAGA members in Congress over national security while she actively demands to defund the FBI and even said she wouldve been armed and would have won the Jan. 6 insurrection if only shed been in charge of it?

The president is focused on whats important to the American people, Sams added, like preventing House Republicans default that would crash the economy and protecting investments that are creating American manufacturing jobs, not silly political attacks.

Greenes actions come on the heels of a public argument with Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) and her claim that calling someone a white supremacist is equivalent to calling a Black person the n-word.

HuffPost reached out to a representative of Greene but did not immediately receive a response.

Related...
BOSTON (AP)  Superiors of the Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with leaking highly classified military documents had raised concerns internally on multiple occasions about his handling or viewing of classified information, according to a court filing Wednesday.

Justice Department lawyers made the disclosure in court papers urging a magistrate judge to keep Jack Teixeira behind bars while he awaits trial in the case stemming from the most consequential intelligence leak in years. The judge is expected to hear more arguments Friday on the prosecutors detention request and issue a ruling.

Teixeira is accused of sharing highly classified documents about top national security issues in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. He has not yet entered a plea.

FILE - The artist sketch depicts Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, right, appearing in U.S. District Court in Boston, April 14, 2023. A bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation that would require the National Archives to screen documents leaving the White House for classified material. It's the first major proposal to respond to a series of intelligence breaches over the last year. (Margaret Small via AP)

Prosecutors told the judge in their filing that Teixeira continued leaking documents even after he was admonished by superiors on two separate occasions last year over concerning actions he took related to classified information.

A September memo from the Air National Guard 102nd Intelligence Wing that prosecutors filed in court says Teixeira had been observed taking notes on classified intelligence information and putting the notes in his pocket. Teixeira was instructed at the time to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, the memo says.

Another memo from late October says a superior had been made aware that Teixeira was potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence information given to him the month before. The memo says Teixeira attended a meeting and proceeded to ask very specific questions. He was told again to focus on his job, not any deep dives into classified intelligence information.

Still, a third memo from February says Teixeira was again observed viewing information that was not related to his primary duty and was related to the intelligence field. Teixeira had previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and to not seek out intelligence products, the memo said.

The Defendant even continued to share information with his online associates, defying these admonishments and taking further efforts to conceal his unlawful conduct, prosecutors wrote.

Lawyers for Teixeira, who was arrested last month on charges under the Espionage Act, are urging the judge to release Teixeira to his fathers home, noting that the man didnt flee when media outlets began publishing his name shortly before his April 13 arrest. His lawyer told the judge last month that Teixeira will answer the charges and will be judged by his fellow citizens.

In their own court filing Wednesday, Teixeiras lawyers noted there have been many Espionage Act cases in which courts have approved release or the government did not seek to keep the person behind bars pretrial. They have also said there is no allegation that Teixeira ever intended for documents to be distributed widely.

But prosecutors said in their filing Wednesday that one of the servers on the social media platform he posted classified information to had at least 150 users at the time the information was shared and now may have many more users that are actively seeking access to information.

Among the individuals with whom the Defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses, prosecutors wrote.

In messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to, writing, The information I give here is less than half of whats available, prosecutors said. He also acknowledged he wasnt supposed to be sharing the information, prosecutors said, writing in another message, All of the s- Ive told you guys Im not supposed to, according to the Justice Departments filing.

Magistrate Judge David Hennessy heard arguments from lawyers over detention late last month but has yet to issue a ruling and scheduled a second hearing on the matter for Friday. In earlier court records, prosecutors revealed that Teixeira kept an arsenal of weapons before his arrest and has a history of violent and disturbing remarks.

The leaked documents appear to detail U.S. and NATO aid to Ukraine and U.S. intelligence assessments regarding U.S. allies that could strain ties with those nations. Some show real-time details from February and March of Ukraines and Russias battlefield positions and precise numbers of battlefield gear lost and newly flowing into Ukraine from its allies.

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A groundbreaking change in access to mental health care for people across Massachusetts has been paying off.

The Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line, which was launched on January 3rd, has already received over 11,000 calls and over 3,000 texts and chats.

The line can be reached 24/7 by calling or texting 833-773-2445.

Trained licensed clinicians offer immediate assistance free of charge and then connect people with the help they need right away.

Mental health appointments are set up with urgency at one of 25 newly opened community behavioral health centers in Massachusetts.

The helpline is able to work with people who dont have health insurance and connect them with appropriate care.

We to make sure that help is truly available at the time the person is seeking it, said Department of Mental Health Commissioner Brooke Doyle. The intention is to offer people a community-based alternative so they dont have to rely on emergency rooms.

The state granted Boston 25 News access to one of its new centers in East Boston.

The centers started operating this year as part of the Roadmap policy to improve mental health care.

Many of the centers provide outpatient, inpatient and emergency services.

This, for me is really a chance for us to meet the needs of a diverse population who sometimes are not seen or heard, said Sharon Hanson, CEO of the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Partnership.

Hanson told Boston 25 News people havent only been calling about themselves.

She said school districts have been reaching out for assistance with students in crisis, and parents have been looking for help too.

We received a call recently from a mom who was concerned about her 10-year-old who was bullied and experiencing some sexual harassment at school, said Hanson.

The state is now looking to track where the highest volume of calls is coming from to make sure everyones needs are being met.

The intention behind tracking where people are calling from is so we can track volume by location and help us identify where we might need to do more engagement, added Commissioner Doyle.

The Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line is different from the national 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and strictly caters to residents in Massachusetts.

It has the capacity to communicate with people in over 200 languages.

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FILE - In this photo provided by Castro County Emergency Management, smoke fills the sky after an explosion and fire at the Southfork Dairy Farms near Dimmitt, Texas, on April 10, 2023. A fire and explosion at the dairy farm in the Texas Panhandle that critically injured one person and killed an estimated 18,000 head of cattle was an accident that started with an engine fire in a manure vacuum truck cleaning part of the massive barn, according to state investigators in a report on April 24. (Castro County Emergency Management via AP, File)

DIMMITT, Texas (AP)  A fire and explosion at a dairy farm in the Texas Panhandle that injured one person and killed an estimated 18,000 head of cattle was an accident that started with an engine fire in a manure vacuum truck cleaning part of the massive barn, according to state investigators.

A State Fire Marshal report of the April 10 fire at the Southfork Dairy Farm about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Amarillo did not determine what caused the engine fire, but found there was no intentional act to cause a failure." The April 24 report said the investigation was closed.

A worker driving the truck through a section of the 2 million-square-foot barn told investigators he noticed what he first thought was steam coming from the engine compartment. He tried to drive out of the barn when he realized it was a fire, but couldn't make it.

The driver said he tried to put out the fire with two extinguishers but failed. Several other employees told investigators they rushed to help, but the fire quickly spread.

The report noted the dairy farm had a second manure hauling truck on the property outside of the barn. A dairy manager told investigators it too had previously burned. The report noted burn marks near the engine compartment consistent with the truck fire inside the barn.

According to the Animal Welfare Institute, the number of cattle killed made the incident the deadliest barn fire involving cattle recorded since the organization began tracking barn fires in 2013.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Thursday sounded more optimistic than he has in months about finalizing a debt ceiling deal in time to ward off default.

Ideally, White House and congressional negotiators can finalize an agreement in the coming days, with a vote on the House floor next week, McCarthy said. But that timeline is likely still very ambitious, since both sides remain divided on a number of issues, including work requirements for federal benefits and potential spending cuts demanded by House Republicans.

Were not there, we havent agreed to anything yet, McCarthy told reporters this morning. I see the path that we can come to an agreement. And I think we have a structure now and everybody's working hard. And I mean we're working two or three times a day, then going back getting more numbers.

McCarthy's not alone in projecting renewed confidence that the talks could lead to a bipartisan deal, as top White House adviser Steve Ricchetti and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young now join White House Director of Legislative Affairs Louisa Terrell in negotiating on behalf of President Joe Biden, alongside Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.) as McCarthy's deputy. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday the negotiations are "currently making process," and warned senators to be prepared to return to the Capitol within 24 hours if the House passes a debt deal.

"As Speaker McCarthy has said, he expects the House will vote next week if an agreement is reached. And the Senate would begin consideration after that," Schumer said on Thursday afternoon. "Members should remain aware and be able to return to the Senate with a 24-hour period to fulfill our responsibilities to avoid default."

Graves and McCarthy have kept the results of the negotiations close, with the speaker not yet sharing details with the rest of his leadership team or heads of his conservative and centrist blocs.

With McCarthy still promising that members will have 72 hours to read the bill before a vote, Republicans say they'd likely need to see text by Tuesday. Lawmakers could always delay their Memorial Day recess, but party leaders are trying to avoid that due to multiple planned trips abroad.

Time is running short, however. Government and independent experts have projected that the U.S. could default on its debt as early as June 1. The Senate, meanwhile, is scheduled for a break next week, with the House departing for recess the week of May 29.

McCarthy told reporters he has the greatest respect for Young and Ricchetti, who are both no strangers to navigating tricky bipartisan deals on Capitol Hill.



I mean, they are exceptionally smart. They're tough, McCarthy said. I just believe ... where we are today is a much better place because we've got the right people in the room discussing it in a very professional manner, with all the knowledge, all the background from all the different leaders.

The White House has maintained that its negotiating on budget and spending issues separately from the debt ceiling, a position thats becoming harder and harder to maintain as talks ramp up. House Republicans' bill to lift the debt limit, passed last month, also cut $130 billion from federal spending, in addition to imposing a decade of overall funding restrictions, tougher work requirements for federal benefits and more.

The Biden administration, meanwhile, has signaled support for a shorter budget deal, possibly in the realm of two years, in addition to some flexibility on work requirements, although not for federal health programs. Both sides have expressed an interest in attaching energy permitting reforms to a broader budget deal.

Its too bad we had to wait this long, said Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, a senior Republican appropriator. I really am worried about the time. I do expect that well probably have to be called back during what could be recess, but thats part of the job.

Cole also said it seems like both sides are starting to exchange paper, signaling that negotiations are starting to get serious. Thats pretty important in this too, because we havent been able to get the Democrats to put anything on paper.

Members of McCarthys right flank continue to insist they wont back a final compromise just because the speaker himself supports it, especially if it differs substantially from the bill nearly all House GOP lawmakers rallied to pass last month.



The speaker, to his great credit, is an optimistic guy. And I think that's actually one of his great strengths, said Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas.). But it does need to be said that what the House passed is what the House passed.

And some Democrats are starting to bristle at negotiations, too. Progressives aren't happy that Biden is negotiating on the debt limit at all, despite his months-long refusal to consider anything but a "clean" hike to the debt limit. And they've indicated that any additional work requirements for federal benefits like SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, and health programs like Medicaid are a non-starter.

Lets have that discussion [about work requirements] during the normal legislative process, or in the context of the farm bill, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on Thursday. But weve continued to make clear as House Democrats that so-called extreme work requirements that MAGA Republicans want to try to impose as a ransom note are a non-starter. Period. Full stop.

Olivia Beavers, Sarah Ferris, Jennifer Scholtes and Nicholas Wu contributed to this report.
Media reveals secret transformation of COVID hospital in Moscow into ward for Wagner mercenaries

Leader of Wagner Prigozhin with his fighters

According to the source, the mercenaries are currently receiving treatment at a hospital in the village of Voronovskoye (Novaya Moskva), which was established on the premises of the Komunarka Infectious Diseases Center.

Read also: Ministry of Health reports COVID-19 death toll as WHO downgrades pandemic

Staff members are being recruited from Moscow hospitals, and all employees are required to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Accessing the hospital is not as straightforward as it may seem: multiple checkpoints are stationed at the entrance, where visitors documents are thoroughly scrutinized, the report reads.

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russia has lost over 200,000 military personnel since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Read also: How Ukraine keeps migrants connected to home, explains Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna  NV interview

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Melissa Highsmith  a Fort Worth woman who was kidnapped as a baby in 1971 and reunited with her family in November 2022  has officially changed her name back to her birth name, her family announced Wednesday. She used to go by Melanie Walden and Melanie Brown before her family found her.

My breathtaking wife and an amazing woman has been officially given her identity back as Melissa Highsmith, wrote John Brown, Melissas husband, in a Facebook post Wednesday. She is an inspiration to all and a beacon of Hope for many.

Melissa was 21 months old when she was abducted from her Fort Worth home by a babysitter in 1971, according to her family.

She was missing for 51 years.

Melissas father, Jeffrie Highsmith, submitted his DNA to 23andMe, a website customers can use to find relatives and create a family tree. The database found a match to three grandchildren, who are the children of Melissa, her husband wrote in a previous Facebook post in November. A DNA test was done and confirmed she is Melissa Highsmith, he wrote.

The Fort Worth Police Department also recently confirmed Melissas DNA.

My whole life was a lie, Melissa told the Star-Telegram at a rally for cold cases in Fort Worth.

She said that she didnt have a happy childhood. She described her home life as abusive and said she ran away at 15 years old and worked the streets to survive. For 17 years after running away from home, Melissa didnt have a relationship with the people who raised her and was not in contact with them, she told the Star-Telegram. Fort Worth police are still investigating her disappearance and what happened to the person who abducted her.

Melissas parents, siblings, members from her church  Hope Works Church  and other family members and loved ones accompanied her at the Tarrant County Courthouse on Wednesday to officially change her name.

Melissa Highsmith was accompanied by family including her father, Jeffrie Highsmith (far left), and her mother, Alta Apantenco (far right), as she officially changed her name back on Wednesday, May 17.

We want to thank the Lord for this great work that he has done by reuniting Melissa Highsmith back to The Highsmith Family, John Brown wrote.

Melissa and John plan to renew their wedding vows under her new name so her father can walk her down the aisle.

Over the weekend, Melissa and her mother, Alta Apantenco, spent their first Mothers Day together since their reunion. Today, our family is so grateful that Mom has all five of her children to wish her a happy Mothers Day, Melissas sister Sharon Highsmith wrote in a Facebook post Sunday. Something shes been waiting for for 51 years!!
A 41-year-old man  who police alleged was driving drunk  was arrested on suspicion of three misdemeanors after police said he hit another vehicle, fled the scene and then crashed his pickup truck into a building.

At about 8:50 p.m. Wednesday, the Meridian Police Department responded to a report of a hit-and-run near the intersection of East Franklin Road and South Eagle Road in Meridian, according to a news release. Kelsey Winett, a spokesperson for the department, told the Idaho Statesman by phone the other driver wasnt injured.

Police then responded to a report of a crash after the Boise mans blue pickup truck crashed into a building a little over half-a-mile away. According to the news release, police located the mans truck upside down near the 3000 block of East Magic View Drive.

Crews from the Meridian Fire Department stabilized the car and were able to extract the driver.

He was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and later booked into the Ada County Jail. He was arrested on suspicion of three misdemeanors: leaving the scene of an accident, consumption or possession of an open container and driving under the influence.

Hes being held in custody on a $1,300 bond, according to online jail records.
FILE PHOTO: Increase in volcanic activity from the Popocatepetl volcano in Mexico

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican authorities canceled in-person classes for more than 100,000 students on Thursday in multiple towns clustered around one of the country's most active volcanoes as its fiery activity intensified in recent days, raising health concerns.

A series of relatively small but powerful eruptions from the snowcapped Popocatepetl volcano prompted Puebla state officials to suspend both public and private school classes at all levels across 22 towns due to falling ash, according to officials.

Classes in the affected towns will temporarily be conducted online.

Falling ash, plus gases spewed by the eruptions, can be harmful when inhaled, and in a worse case scenario could trigger the need for massive evacuations.

Popocatepetl, meaning "Smoking Hill" in the native Aztec language Nahuatl, is one of the world's most closely monitored volcanoes. It rises only about 45 miles (72 km) southwest of Mexico City, home to about 9 million people or around 22 million including the metropolitan area.

Images shared on social media in the picturesque colonial-era main plaza of the Puebla state capital showed many people wearing masks to protect themselves from ash in the air.

Even though schools in the state capital remained open, officials recommended that locals avoid outdoor activities.

Mexico's disaster prevention center Cenapred maintained its alert level for the volcano at yellow on Thursday, which indicates moderate risk.

Cenapred reported that over the past 24 hours it has registered 154 exhalations of mostly ash and gas from Popocatepetl, one "minor" explosion and one volcano tectonic earthquake.

Popocatepetl is Mexico's second tallest volcano at 5,550 meters (18,209 ft) above sea level, and on clear days is a fixture of the Mexican capital's distant southern skyline.

(Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Richard Chang)
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham warned Thursday that debt ceiling negotiations could have a chilling effect on states economic growth and climate change efforts.

But she said she also takes it as a compliment that Republicans in Congress are mounting such an effort to undo the clean-energy investments that the Biden administration and her state are trying to make.

When someone's trying to take the wind out of your sails because you are moving that sail up and clipping along the ocean, you've done something right, the Democratic governor said at POLITICOs Energy Summit in D.C.

For now, though, Lujan Grisham said the threat of fiscal chaos in Washington is a problem for the effort to stand up a clean energy economy.

You have to have predictability with all of your partners, stakeholders, advocates, businesses, she said. You cant move the needle on any event where the full state and credit and consistency of the United States is on the line.

The governor blamed narrow-mindedness in Congress for making life worse for families and imperiling climate change investments.

These are separate issues, she said of policy priorities that Republicans are trying to push in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling. To try to hold hostage or call it a negotiation is really nothing more than not moving on the appropriations work that Congress is elected to do on behalf of the American people.

On an issue closer to home, Lujan Grisham defended her recent line item vetoes of several climate items in New Mexicos budget package, including tax credits for electric vehicles, geothermal and energy storage and rebates for heat pumps.

These were important, but way too small, she said, arguing that the money would be better directed toward larger, more ambitious projects.

They dont move the needle  sometimes when you get something, you dont get a second bite at it, and I had to do something different, Lujan Grisham said.
Mexico issued its first non-binary passport Wednesday in honor of International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, which takes place annually on May 17.

The passport was issued in Naucalpan, a municipality north of Mexico City, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard confirmed on Twitter. Ebrard called the occasion "a great leap for the freedom and dignity of people."

The passport was given to Ociel Baena, Mexico's Foreign Ministry said. The ceremony was attended by representatives from the Foreign Ministry and by various other officials, including Salma Luevano Luna, one of Mexico's first trans federal legislators.

Primer pasaporte no-binario de Mexico entregado hoy en Naucalpan, un gran salto por la libertad y dignidad de las personas pic.twitter.com/NCZAPS7nt4  Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) May 17, 2023

"Within the framework of #DiaContraLaLGTBIfobia, we endorse our support for sexual diversity. All rights must be guaranteed for all identities. No more hate speech; diversity enriches and flourishes," the Foreign Ministry wrote on Twitter about the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia.

Ministry staffers commemorated the day in more than 40 countries and U.S. states with flags and signs, according to a video on the ministry's TikTok page.

More than a dozen countries allow for non-binary documents at the national level, Human Rights Watch said in February. The U.S. State Department started providing an "X" (or unspecified) gender option on identity documents in April 2022.

The State Department first previewed the change after Dana Zzyym, an intersex and nonbinary resident of Colorado, filed a federal lawsuit in 2016. The activist and U.S. Navy veteran sued after years of lobbying the State Department to offer an "X" gender marker option on U.S. passport applications. Zzyym, who was recognized by Lambda Legal in their lawsuit, received the first passport of its kind in October 2021.

Mexico will start issuing non-binary passports at its consulates and embassies in the U.S., Canada, and the rest of the world in July, the ministry said.

Nicole Sganga contributed to reporting.

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The teenage gunman who fatally shot three elderly women used three weapons  including an AR-15  before officers brought him down in front of a church, New Mexico authorities said Wednesday.

Beau Wilson, 18, opened fire from his own home before he walked out and continued to shoot indiscriminately beginning about 11 a.m. Monday, hitting seven houses and 11 cars, San Juan County Sheriff's Capt. Kevin Burns said.

Investigators have picked up at least 176 rounds, 141 of which were fired from Wilson's home, Burns said.

He had squeezed off 18 shots at officers in front of First Church of Christ, Scientist, at 713 N. Dustin Ave., when police killed him, Burns said.

In addition to the three weapons Wilson used, 10 more firearms were in his house, police said. There were more than 1,400 rounds between those he fired and the ammunition in the house, Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said.

"The suspect had access to a lot, a lot, of ammunition," Hebbe told reporters.

Image: Investigators work along a residential street following a deadly shooting on May 15, 2023, in Farmington, N.M. (Susan Montoya Bryan / AP)

After he used the AR-15 to shoot from his house, Wilson dumped it in some nearby bushes, Hebbe said. The high-capacity weapon had one round in the chamber and a magazine with some rounds remaining, he said.

The AR-15 was bought in November, shortly after Wilson turned 18 in October, and he then bought three magazines for it just two days before the attack, officials said.

"I'm not sure why he made that decision to discard it at that point, but he did," Hebbe said, referring to the AR-15.

Wilson also fired and discarded a .22-caliber pistol with at least one round left in it before he encountered police in front of the church with a 9 mm pistol, Hebbe said.

The shooter was wearing a bulletproof vest during some of the exchange but then ditched it, as well, Hebbe said. "By the time we confront him at the final battle place, he's removed it for whatever reason."

"We find the 9 mm pistol is with him. We believe that is what he was using in the final exchange of shots with our officers. That pistol was emptied by the time the battle was over," he said.

Authorities also revealed Wednesday that investigators found a note on Wilson's body that appeared to show he knew his actions would end in death.

Monday's carnage unfolded a little more than 24 hours before his classmates walked across the stage at Farmington High School's graduation.

In a long statement Wednesday, Wilsons family acknowledged the communitywide pain.

We would like to start by sending our condolences to all of the victims and their loved ones," the family said. "We know that the community and families involved are dealing with a lot of pain."

Investigators have not been able to discover any obvious motive for Wilson's action, but they said loved ones had worried about his mental health.

"My brother was fighting a battle of mental illness that he lost. He was set to graduate on Tuesday," the family said.

Wilson's loved ones insisted they knew him as a caring person and not the gun-wielding killer he turned out to be Monday.

"This is all very shocking to us as we only knew him as a kind hearted young man that loved his family and friends dearly. We understand that a lot of people are experiencing many emotions," the family's statement continued. "We are also grieving the loss of our brother, son, grandson, uncle and friend. We once again just want to send our condolences and deepest sympathy to everyone involved. We will continue to pray and search for answers.

Wilson's gunfire struck and killed Shirley Voita, 79, Melody Ivie, 73, and Gwendolyn Schofield, 97, who were all in cars. Schofield was Ivies mother.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Even as several countries have offered to mediate in the search for a political solution to the war in Ukraine, including several in Latin America, a high-ranking North Atlantic Treaty Organization official insists that only the Ukrainian government can determine what it will consider a just and lasting peace.

In an interview with the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald during a visit to Miami this week, the Deputy Assistant Secretary-General for Public Diplomacy at NATO, Carmen Romero, said that helping Ukraine to recover territory occupied by Russia would allow the Ukrainian government to come to the negotiating table with a stronger hand.

A former journalist with extensive diplomatic experience as a former NATO spokesperson, Romero avoided criticizing comments by Latin American presidents and officials who have downplayed Russias actions. But she said the United Nations Charter condemns the use of violence against a neighboring country.

These and other topics were discussed in the interview conducted in Spanish, which has been lightly edited for conciseness.

Question: Although most Latin American countries have condemned the Russian invasion, the position of some countries such as Brazil, Argentina and Colombia, which have refused to send weapons to Ukraine, has stood out. What do you make of it, and what could the NATO alliance do to reverse it?

Answer: It is very important to see things as they are. What Russia has done is invading a neighboring country, trying to break the territorial integrity of a sovereign, democratic nation. Therefore, it is totally condemnable and unacceptable. That is the position of all the member countries of the Atlantic Alliance and the countries of the European Union The war in Ukraine did not start last year. It began in 2014 when Russia illegally annexed Crimea and militarily occupied certain areas of Ukraines Donbas region. What we have seen in the past year is an unprovoked invasion, a full-scale war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine. Therefore, countries that do not condemn have to be consistent with this fact because we can see a violation of the United Nations Charter, the use of force to eventually change the borders of another country.

Q: Is there any diplomatic effort right now to get some of these countries in Latin America with Russian weapons to send them to Ukraine?

A: Member countries have their own diplomacy. NATO as such dialogues with partner countries. So we have a partner country, not a member, but a partner in Latin America, a very important country, Colombia. We have a political dialogue and a practical cooperation relationship with Colombia that is very important and can also influence Latin America. But NATO member countries have to use their influence and their diplomatic relations to explain the reality to countries that, for example, have not condemned the invasion of Russia, which is a flagrant violation of the rules-based international system and of the values and principles of the United Nations.

Q: In a recent interview with Spains newspaper El Pais, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said the war in Ukraine will easily end if we stop seeing Ukraine as NATO territory. At another time, he also said Europe has shielded itself in NATO, but through NATO, it has invaded. Why is the invasion of Libya good and the Russian invasion of Ukraine bad? Whats your reaction to these comments? Is there concern within NATO that relations with Colombia as a global partner will deteriorate under his mandate?

A: We have a partnership relationship with Colombia that has not changed; that is, since there has been a presidential change, the relationship has not changed for the moment. Our relationship of both political dialogue and partnership with Colombia will evolve as Colombia wishes since we are not the ones who decide, but the countries that come and want to work together with NATO. Therefore, that is up to Colombia. But I can assure you that we have had many years of fruitful relations that have been very positive for both parties. Regarding the first part of the question, I would tell you what NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says: if President [Volodymyr] Zelensky decides to stop fighting, then Ukraine would disappear, Russia would fully absorb it, it would stop existing as a country, as a sovereign state. On the other hand, if President [Vladimir] Putin stops fighting tomorrow and withdraws troops, the war Russia has launched against Ukraine will end tomorrow.

Q: The Russian government has launched a diplomatic offensive in Latin America. Several Russian officials have frequently visited countries traditionally considered allies, such as Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, but also countries like Brazil. Many experts believe Russia is trying to gain ground by filling the vacuum left by the United States in the region. Is there concern within NATO about Russias increasing presence in Latin America?

A: Russia is trying to gain influence not only in Latin America but also in Africa and certain regions of Asia... .Above all, Russias strategy is to divide us. We consider this as a miscalculation by President Putin. He thought he would take Kyiv and that Ukraine would cease to exist as a country in a matter of days. And we see how Ukraine has been able to resist thanks to the courage of the Ukrainian peoples security forces but also to the assistance it has received from the international coalition that supports Ukraines right to self-defense, which is a right enshrined in the United Nations Charter. NATO, as such, is governed by the values and principles of the United Nations and is a defensive political-military organization. It is not an offensive organization. Therefore, the member countries of the Alliance are the ones that can use their diplomatic instruments so people understand what Russia is doing. But, obviously, Russia uses its diplomacy to influence; it is part of a pattern that it has been following for years and is serious.

Q: The president of Brazil, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, has proposed himself as a mediator in a so-called peace club that would not include NATO nor the United States to reach a diplomatic resolution to the conflict in Ukraine. But Lula and his security adviser, Celso Amorim, have made controversial statements. Lula suggested that Ukraine should cede Crimea, and upon returning from a recent Kyiv trip, Amorim said the photos of the Russian massacre in Bucha were disturbing but not enough to conclude what had happened there. Do you believe Brazil is a neutral, credible negotiator in this conflict?

A: The important thing is helping Ukraine achieve a just and lasting peace as soon as possible. And for that, what can we all do? Help Ukraine to be ready, to retake as much of the territory that Russia has occupied as possible. Ukraine has not occupied it; it is Ukrainian territory, according to the United Nations Charter. Therefore, Ukraine must be helped to come to the negotiating table in a strong position because advances on the ground will determine whether Ukraine comes out strong or not. Then, it will be for Ukraine to decide what it considers to be a just and lasting peace. That can only be decided by Ukraine.

Q: Haiti has one of the worst security crises in the Western Hemisphere. The countrys government has requested assistance from an international force that can support the police in their fight against armed gangs. So far, several initiatives have failed. Do you see any role for NATO in solving the crisis in Haiti?

A: NATO is a collective security organization whose mission is to preserve and maintain peace within our borders. But if there is a United Nations mandate for it to play a role, then that is something NATO could consider. That was the case in Libya. When Colonel [Muammar] Qaddafi was there, there was a United Nations Security Council resolution, and NATO was asked to play a role in protecting civilians in Libya. So, if there is a request from the United Nations, NATO can consider a role, but NATO cannot wake up in the morning and decide, We are going to have a role in Haiti.

Q: Many organizations, experts and governments have noted the increase in Russian propaganda and disinformation in Spanish. One of the most common Russian narratives is blaming the war on NATOs expansion towards Russian borders. Do you think this propaganda and disinformation effort has something to do with some countries in the region not supporting Ukraine more strongly? And what is the Alliance doing to counter disinformation in Latin America and other regions like Africa and Asia?

A: Russian disinformation is a matter of great concern. NATO is developing a series of projects with the member countries civil society and partner countries so that societies become more resilient and better prepared to contrast the information they receive and differentiate what is true from what is false. We are working with the United Nations in campaigns that they have to fight disinformation. We are working with the G7, with the European Union, exchanging information, and learning what impact Russia can have with its disinformation to prepare ourselves better to react.

It indeed impacts the Global South, where Russian narratives are more present.

One of the things that NATO did in the months prior to the invasion was to declassify intelligence to show public opinion the preparation that Russia was carrying out militarily along the borders with Ukraine, at the same time that Russia was saying, We have no intention of entering Ukraine. Thanks to that, we were able to do two things: show our citizens what the Russian president was really preparing and, at the same time, foster political unity. Because on February 24 last year, when Russia launched an unprecedented invasion of Ukraine, our public opinions were primed for the crucial decisions our organizations and governments were about to make. NATOs political role also meant that political unity was forged very quickly.

NATO has an open door policy, but NATO has not expanded: European countries from the Atlantic area have been knocking on the door to say, We want to be members of the Alliance...This is the case of Finland, and Sweden, two traditionally neutral countries. It is Russias aggression that changed public opinion in those two countries. Finlands entry into NATO doubles the physical borders of the NATO countries with Russia. And this has been provoked by President Putin.

Q: What message do you have for governments in Latin America invoking non-interventionism and non-alignment so as not to support Ukraine more decisively?

A: Well, the right of each country to be able to decide its security affiliations and, above all, the importance more than ever of the United Nations Charter that prevents or prohibits the use of force to change the borders of a neighboring country. This is about respect for the United Nations Charter and about respect for a rules-based international system.
Michael Saunders & Co. is the largest independent real estate firm in the region with 19 sales offices across Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Last year, the firm sold more than $3.8 billion in real estate.

Michael Saunders & Co. has consolidated its downtown Sarasota operations  consisting of about 75 employees  last week into the fourth and fifth floors at the Wells Fargo Advisors Building at 1605 Main St.

The real estate company's downtown offices had been located at 1801 Main St., 40 N. Osprey St. and 100 S. Washington Blvd., with the company owning the Osprey and Main street buildings. Both those buildings are now under contract.

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The additional employees will join a branch office that's been on the first floor of the 13-story building at the corner of Orange and Main streets.

A news release about the move noted the "company's commitment to providing efficient services to its agents and customers from one central location."

Michael Saunders & Co. is the largest independent real estate firm in the region with 19 sales offices across Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Last year, the firm sold more than $3.8 billion in real estate.

This has always been a long-term goal for us, Founder and CEO Michael Saunders said. By consolidating all our agent services teams  marketing, technology, accounting, relocation and call center, as well as our commercial division, developer services division, MSC Title and the executive team  we will be able to provide greater efficiencies in the delivery of services to our agents and customers.

Michael Saunders & Co. is the largest independent real estate firm in the region with 19 sales offices across Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Last year, the company sold more than $3.8 billion in real estate.

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The company was founded in 1976 in a small office on St. Armands Circle.

Saunders has grown her company into the "top independent real estate company in the region" that now includes 150 support team members with more than 600 real estate agents under the Michael Saunders & Co. banner, according to a news release about the consolidation.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Michael Saunders & Co. moving offices into Sarasota Main Street site
Quantel McKissic, 31, of Lansing, speaks about the challenges of mental and physical recovery after violence on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. (Photo: Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal)

Corrections: The U.S. Department of Justice allocated $1,815,000 for compensation to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services for its crime victim compensation program in 2021. A total of $4.94 million was paid out to 564 claimants and for 2,346 sexual assault forensic exams. And, the Safer Michigan Act goes into effect on Aug. 12. This information was incorrect in an earlier version of this story. Additionally, the MDHHS was not given an opportunity, prior to the publication, to respond to data that shows the department denied compensation claims to Black applicants at a higher rate than white applicants when behavioral issues were factored in. A statement from MDHHS addressing that finding has been added to this story.

LANSING  Michigan is one of multiple states that disproportionately denied claims from Black applicants to its crime victims compensation program because of "behavioral denials," according to an Associated Press analysis of data from across the U.S.

Michigan's program, in which crime victims can seek compensation for lost wages, medical bills, funerals and other expenses, is also widely underused, with the state ranked 40th out of 50 states and Washington D.C. for the 2021 fiscal year for most used compensation programs.

The states program did have denial rates on par with the race of applicants, at least across five racial groups, when behavioral issues were not a factor, the analysis showed. That put Michigan ahead of states such as Indiana, Georgia and South Dakota, where Black applicants were nearly twice as likely as white applicants to be denied.

In the 20 states that provided the AP data on the reasons for denial broken down by race, about 18% of white applicants were denied compensation for behavioral issues, compared to 33% of Black applicants, the Associated Press found.

The numbers were starker in Michigan, where about 23% of white applicants were denied compensation for behavior reasons, compared to 54% of Black applicants.

Michigan denies claims for behavioral issues if a person is criminally responsible, said Bob Wheaton, a spokesperson with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. That includes breaking into property, firing a weapon first and being injured, or assaulting someone and becoming injured, he wrote.

Victims Compensation

The AP gathered extensive racial data from 23 states from 2018-21 on people who sought help with medical expenses, funerals, crime scene cleanup or grief counseling after being the victim of a violent crime and who were denied. The analysis of that data found that Black victims and their families are disproportionately denied compensation in many states, often for subjective reasons that experts say are rooted in racial biases. From 2018 through 2021, the denials added up to thousands of Black families each year collectively missing out on millions of dollars in aid.

The news organization also found 51 disparate systems in the states and Washington D.C. that largely make their own rules on who gets denied and why. Oversight from the federal government is minimal  and in some states, the programs are dark little corners of larger departments that rarely get attention or scrutiny unless they fall short on funds, the AP said.

Wheaton declined to be interviewed for this story but issued statements via email.

"Michigans Crime Victim Compensation Program has been a lifeline for thousands of victims. Michigans approval and denial rate is roughly equal across racial categories. However, like many states, Michigans original statute was drafted over 30 years ago and incorporated elements that require staff to deny where the victim is criminally responsible, an accomplice or contributed to the crime," the department said in a statement.

"The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) recognizes the existence of systemic racism and its impact on people of color. Providing equitable access to benefits is a top priority for MDHHS. The program is actively working to modernize its approach and re-evaluate existing practices.

"We are proud of our program in Michigan and especially our dedicated staff that have assisted tens of thousands of victims and survivors throughout the programs history. We are committed to continually reviewing our processes and making improvements.

"We are looking forward to Aug. 12, 2023, when important statutory changes that were supported by our Division of Victim Services will go into effect that make the program even more accessible and meaningful to those we serve. DHHS is also implementing a web-based claims filing system that make filing claims easier for Michiganders and implementing a Navigator program to help victims gather the paperwork and information necessary to complete and process claims."

The AP analysis found that:

 State employees reviewing applications often base decisions on information from police reports and follow-up questionnaires that seek officers opinions of victims behavior  both of which may contain implicitly biased descriptions of events.

 Those same employees may be influenced by their own biases when reviewing events that led to victims injuries or deaths. Without realizing it, a review of the facts morphs into an assessment of victims perceived culpability.

 Many state guidelines were designed decades ago with biases that benefited victims who would make the best witnesses, disadvantaging those with criminal histories, unpaid fines or addictions, among others.

Victims Compensation

Michigan pays out about $4M each year

The U.S. Department of Justice allocated $1,815,000 for compensation to MDHHS for the program in 2021, one the highest out of all states and six territories. A total of $4.94 million was paid out to 564 claimants and for 2,346 sexual assault forensic exams, Wheaton wrote.

Wheaton said in a statement that the program is administered through the department's Division of Victim Services. The department received 683 applications last year for assistance, up slightly from 653 in 2021 and 649 in 2020, and seven employees work to assist victims. On average, he wrote, MDHHS paid out $3.98 million between fiscal years 2018 and 2022 for the program and for forensic exams for sexual assault.

Revenue, he added, is generated from post-conviction assessments of $130 per felony violation and $75 per misdemeanor or ordinance violation, and is matched by the federal government.

Change is coming: New Michigan laws in 2023: Service dogs, school safety and crime victim compensation

"The funds primary purpose is to support crime victim rights services required by the Crime Victims Rights Act and the Michigan Constitution, with excess funding directed to Crime Victim Compensation in Michigan," he wrote. "State funds spent on crime victim compensation are also eligible for federal matching funds that must be reinvested into crime victim compensation."

Michigan's application for compensation can be submitted via email, fax or by mail to MDHHS, according to application instructions, but the application can soon be submitted wholly online this summer because of a new law. The state health department has an online guide for victims on who qualifies for compensation.

In both fiscal years 2020 and 2021, MDHHS blamed the pandemic on how few applications it received, according to performance reports submitted to the DOJ. Still, the state denied nearly 33% of all applicants each year with 204 denials for 653 applicants in 2021.

Healing from a traumatic crime

Quantel McKissic, 31, of Lansing, speaks about the challenges of mental and physical recovery after violence, and the stigmatization of being labeled a "survivor," Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

Two years ago Quantel McKissic, 31, was wounded in a shooting that killed his cousin, Victor Clayborn, 27.

He suffered a gunshot wound, a torn ligament in his right shoulder and a puncture to his right ribs in the incident on Aug. 18, 2021, in the 800 block of Edgewood Boulevard in Lansing. He was forced to quit his catering job in order to heal from the wounds and loss of his cousin.

He applied to the crime victim compensation program and was denied due to what the department said were discrepancies in his application.

"It looks like a college application to a preschooler, but you wouldn't really understand it unless you had somebody next to you who's done it before," he said. "Or it has to be the person who created it because it's complicated."

He said he wasnt emotionally prepared to handle a complicated questionnaire after he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder while healing from his injuries. He couldn't round up the required documents for the compensation application during that time.

"I have probably locked myself in the house for about a month just because of PTSD and stuff," McKissic said. "So a lot of the stuff they wanted me to do, I wasn't able to go get those and attain those."

From 2021: Police ID man, 27, killed in shooting Wednesday night in south Lansing

One of the criticisms of Michigans program is that victims have to report a crime to the police within 48 hours to be eligible

Detroiter Qiana Wembly was shot in 1997 while home from college in a case of "wrong place, wrong time" during a domestic dispute, she said. It placed her in the hospital for a week and she permanently lost sight in her right eye. She never applied for assistance, she said, because she didn't know the program existed. Michigan's fund has existed since 1989, according to the state Legislature.

"I was often traveling from Ann Arbor to Detroit several times a week just to go to my appointments and it was quite overwhelmingly expensive," she said. "And so I can imagine some support through victims' compensation would have really made my experience more tolerable at that time."

Rachel Carr-Shunk, a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, called the 48-hour window for crimes to be reported to police "unrealistic," especially for Native Americans.

"We know historically that the access to justice for AI/AN victims is both complicated and limited in certain aspects (jurisdictional challenges)," she wrote. "The expectation that crime victims report their crimes immediately (in addition to requiring cooperation with the investigation) has impacts on communities and people that dont have positive experiences with the criminal justice system."

She's the executive director of Uniting Three Fires Against Violence, a statewide tribal nonprofit organization focused on domestic violence and sexual assault survivors.

Since 2018, 53% of the 15 Native Americans who applied were denied, according to the AP's analysis. Less than 1% of the state's population is Native American, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Changes on the horizon for victims

Priscilla Bordayo from Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice Michigan talks about her advocacy in getting compensation for victims of crimes Monday, May 15, 2023.

Clayborn's family told the State Journal in 2021 that he made the best of any situation he was in and always helped out his family. Part of that included lending a hand to McKissic as he was trying to open Hank's Cuisine.

The restaurant, named after McKissic's dad Hank, will feature Southern and breakfast cuisines. Clayborn played a major role in remodeling the north Lansing property before his death, McKissic said. He said he had hoped that if he secured lost wages from the compensation program, he could focus on his business's summer grand opening.

He's able to reapply for compensation because current program requirements give him an extra year to reapply for benefits.

For others, change is on the horizon. Priscilla Bordayo, statewide manager of the Michigan chapter of Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice, said her organization and Alliance for Safety and Justice lobbied to pass House Bills 4674 and 4675, with bipartisan support, in the 2021-22 legislative session.

Effective Aug. 12, those needing help now and in the future have the benefit of the Safer Michigan Act, which provided several expansions to the compensation program.

House Bill 4674 expanded qualified victims to those who faced mental and emotional harm and their loved ones and household, and increased awards to cover relocation, bereavement and other expenses.

House Bill 4675 lengthened the 48-hour window victims have to report a crime to one year and victims can apply for compensation up to five years after reporting a crime instead of one year and mandated MDHHS to allow for the application to be submitted online.

"The funding is available," Bordayo said. "It's just a matter of how to remove those barriers. How do we give victims more time to heal so that they can focus on their healing?"

Once Hank's Cuisine opens, McKissic said there will be permanent tributes for his loved ones. His dad will be on the entry wall of the restaurant and desserts will be named after Clayborn. He hopes to step into an advocacy role for victims and survivors and to promote the health department's program.

"I plan on being the focal point for that when I do get it, just to show everybody we're not alone, we have help," he said.

The Associated Press contributed.

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Contact reporter Krystal Nurse at 517-267-1344 or knurse@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @KrystalRNurse.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Michigan denies claims from Black crime victims at disproportionate rate
The City of Mackinac Island Fire Department has 25 paid, on-call workers who live on the island year-round and five part time seasonal members, responding to roughly 100 calls a year, according to Fire Chief Jason St. Onge.

MICHIGAN  One hundred and thirty-two people died in fires in Michigan in 2022, according to the Michigan Fires Inspectors Foundation. This year, so far, 50 have died.

On average, the state reports firefighters respond to 10,000 to 12,000 wildfires each year. Total fires and related deaths have risen significantly between 2017 and 2022, with an 11 percent increase in fires and a 15 percent increase in related deaths.

And yet, the vast majority of firefighters do their job with little or no compensation relative to the risks they endure.

Out of 972 fire departments in Michigan, the majority (62 percent) are comprised of volunteers, 23 percent are mostly volunteer and the smallest portion (15 percent) consist of career or mostly career firefighters, according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

The average pay for full-time "career" firefighters in Michigan is $42,046 according to Indeed.com, but many rural communities rely heavily on part-paid, on-call firefighters for staffing.

In Hillsdale County, only two of 14 departments serving 18 different townships and municipalities employ full-time firefighters.

The city of Hillsdale employs four of them, each working rotating 24-hour shifts. The remaining staff are part-paid firefighters who respond from work or their homes to emergencies in the city.

Pay amongst the part-paid departments varies widely, depending on the municipality and department budget.

In Montgomery, Michigan, on the tri-state border with Indiana and Ohio, firefighters aren't paid at all. In fact, most of the department's annual budget is derived from grants and fundraisers initiated by firefighters themselves.

While the neighboring Camden Fire Department pays a flat $10 per call rate  no matter how long firefighters may be on-scene  other departments pay up to $23 an hour while firefighters are working an active scene.

But many of the people fighting the fires say the pay doesn't matter.

Children participate in the Firefighter Show at the Emmet-Charlevoix County Fair.

Attracting and retaining

Its been just over a month since the Blissfield Township Fire Department in southeastern Lenawee County began operations for its day shift program.

Blissfield Fire Chief Dale Fruchey said he's ecstatic the department can offer the service to residents of Blissfield, and said things have been going smoothly since the shift got underway in early April.

For us, this day shift idea is a first for the department, Fruchey said. Its been excellent. We've needed this for a long time.

But like most fire departments throughout Michigan and across the country, Blissfield Township is struggling to find and retain personnel for fire and emergency services.

The Blissfield Township Fire Department covers 21.1 square miles and provides service to more than 3,900 residents, and assists nearby municipalities when needed.

The day shift that just began runs 7 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, with some weekend hours, and was made possible by a recent millage that Blissfield voters passed. Personnel scheduled during the day are responsible for cleaning and working throughout the department, taking care of fleet vehicles, heading out into the community and handling public relations with local school districts.

We have to go through every option we can, Fruchey said on attraction and retention. "I ended up going for an extra millage. With the millage passed by the voters, we were able to create this day shift.

The department has also promoted openings on social media, hung a banner out front, and entered schools to chat with students.

It doesnt matter if its a volunteer fire department, a part-time fire department or a full-time department. Departments everywhere are hiring or are going to be hiring, Fruchey said. Its a common thing right now.

Thirty minutes away, Dundee Fire Department shares the sentiment.

Monroe Township probationary firefighter Nicholas Adrian learns to raise the ladder for a water intake exercise.

The department, comprised of 27 volunteer firefighters, responds to all kinds of emergencies.

One of the first things visible on the fire departments website is a call-out for people who want to become a firefighter themselves, followed by contact information for Dundees Fire Chief Dan Motylinski.

The department exceeded 1,000 calls in 2022, compared to roughly 800 calls in 2020 and 2021.

Volunteer firefighters, the website said, spend an average of 30 hours per year training to stay current in lifesaving and firefighting skills, plus continuing education credits. That's in addition to 385 hours of initial training.

I would be hard-pressed now to say I would want to come in with the amount of training that's required, said Dundee Assistant Fire Chief Rob Justice.

Justice has been with Dundee Fire for 30 years. A lack of pay and incentives, he said, are whats really hurting fire departments.

At one point in time, Justice said, he made more money cutting grass and landscaping than he did serving the fire department. In his 30-year career, he's received four raises.

Nowadays, the young people are looking at the pay and what they're going to make, he said. All of our neighboring departments are dying for bodies to serve.

Monroe Township firefighters Brian Merkle and Austin Foley in the bucket of the Monroe Township ladder truck.

A cadet program launched in Dundee for high school juniors and seniors throughout Monroe County during the 2022-23 school year has been well-attended, Justice said, and trains and educates student to assure the availability of competent, well-trained firefighters in the future.

The program meets at Dundee High School and is offered as a dual-enrollment course, providing state firefighter certification, college credit hours and vocational training, Justice said.

We also look at building character in the program, he said.

Most volunteer or part-time fire departments are involved in their area schools, Justice said, because students become the next generation of community leaders and emergency personnel.

Im still on the department for the kids and for my kids, Justice said. I want to make sure I do what I can to make things better for the next man up. I want to see it better for the next guy.

Changing demographics, but sense of duty remains

Mackinac Island houses the oldest fire department in the state, turning 204 years old in December.

The City of Mackinac Island Fire Department has 25 paid, on-call workers who live on the island year-round and five part-time seasonal members, responding to roughly 100 calls a year, according to Fire Chief Jason St. Onge.

The island itself covers 4.35 square miles and is located on Lake Huron, with a permanent population of 583 that rises into the tens of thousands from May 1-Oct. 31.

Islands are unique when it comes to receiving emergency assistance from nearby communities, putting extra pressure on local firefighters. Unlike mainland departments, they can't get aid in minutes. On a good weather day, the nearest help is 45 minutes away.

After 20-25 minutes they need a break," St. Onge said. "The younger guys can take a 10-minute break and they're ready to go again, but us older guys are going to need longer to recover. If its going to be a four-hour operation, we're going to have to call for mutual aide."

For help, the island makes a call to the Upper Peninsula community of St. Ignace, where responders take a boat or plane, depending on weather and circumstances.

St. Onge said he shares in the nationwide labor shortage, adding his main problem is recruiting young people. He said the average age of his department is steadily climbing, now in the upper-40s.

Putting out fires is a young mans game, he said.

The city was recently in the news for its ban of e-bikes on the island. The island had two e-bike battery fires last year, including one that put two firefighters and one homeowner in the hospital with inhalation injuries, according to a report from the Detroit Free Press.

"It was the first time in our 204-year history we had firefighters hospitalized overnight," St. Onge told the Free Press.

Speaking about the dangers inherent in the job: "Asking anyone to enter a burning structure is dangerous ... everything in there is going to kill you. In the old days, you were sending guys into a fire with a canvas jacket and a horse blanket on their back, and now we have the finest.

"Our coats cost upwards of $2,000-$3,000 because of the fire-resistant materials they didnt have 30 years ago. Its almost $5,000 to outfit a guy from top to bottom.

Although the Mackinac Island Fire Department is well-funded, St. Onge spoke of the financial struggles many departments across the state face.

For those that dont like to vote yes on (bonds), remember those are the guys getting up at three or four in the morning to help solve your problems," he said. "Its a real slap in their face when minimal bond issues get voted down. That hurts my heart. All they ask is for you to be there for them on voting day. Nobody wants to see their taxes go up, I get that. But nobody wants to see their house go up either."

A native to the island, St. Onge started working as a volunteer for the fire department when he was 15  he turns 50 this year.

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Our group is really close," he said of his team. "They truly are a band of brothers. They dont ever want to let each other down. They're community-minded and worry about the safety of this town, but more than anything, nobody wants to let another one of the members of this department down. You cant put a price on that sort of camaraderie. Its a real joy to be a part of.

He describes the experience itself as forging the brotherhood in the department.

Nobody else in the world knows what its like to do what we do, except the guys who do what we do," he said.

 Contact reporter Annie Doyle at adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com. Contact Corey Murray at cmurray@hillsdale.net. Contact Brad Heineman at bheineman@lenconnect.com.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Firefighters in Michigan take small pay for big risks
EAST LANSING  Michigan State University reiterated, in a letter sent to Eagle Township this week, plans to sell a large plot of land in the township and emphasized the approximately 1,200 acres could be used to benefit the community and region.

It is the most detailed statement yet from Michigan State University about the property that is key for a potential multi-billion-dollar megasite.

"The eventual sale of this property stands to bring hundreds, perhaps thousands, of good-paying jobs to Eagle Township and our region, boosting the local tax revenue and strengthening the vibrancy of our collective economy," says the letter, which was sent to Eagle Township officials. "The proposed development will bring engineering and professional service careers to the area and additional collaborations with our university and Lansing Community College."

Farmland near M-100 and State Road in Eagle Township, seen Wednesday, April 5, 2023.

The university has been mostly quiet about the property. Its statement does not use the word megasite or the formal name of the property, Michigan Manufacturing Innovation Campus, nor does it address the type of project that state and regional economic developers have outlined for the property: Battery or computer chip manufacturing.

The statement highlights MSU's agricultural heritage, farm-first research, in-the-fields outreach programs and other training opportunities.

When the State Journal first reported on the site in October, MSU spokeswoman Emily Gerkin Guerrant said the university was not involved in selecting the type of industry or directing any type of development but would be happy to be in partnership with any company because the university's skill set is broad enough to fit a wide variety of potential companies.

University officials have not spoken at the many township and county meetings that have dealt with the potential megasite.

The township's board is scheduled to meet Thursday evening and is expected to continue work on creating a township-led planning commission, which would have authority to rezone the property that is now agricultural. Clinton County currently handles zoning for the township and 10 others.

The potential use of the farmland for a manufacturing site has led to months of protests from residents.

The property has been leased to a local farmer for years.

The university said in the statement that its land, the majority of around 1,900 acres under options for the Lansing Economic Area Partnership, was a donation from farmer David Morris, a university alumnus.

Morris was a beloved former township supervisor and his intents with the donation have been openly questioned by residents for months with people who knew him saying he would, or would not, support the sale of his land for a megasite property.

The university said: "Mr. Morris' expressed expectation was that this land would eventually be sold and that 55% of the proceeds would fund four endowments within the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and therefore benefit agricultural research, education and outreach in perpetuity. He was clear in his wish that this gift to MSU would support the college's causes closest to his heart, and we intend to honor that wish. The remaining 45% of the funds will benefit Clark Retirement Community in Grand Rapids, as Mr. Morris stipulated."

The university statement was signed by Melissa Woo, executive vice president for administration and chief information officer, and Kathleen Wilbur, senior vice president for government relations.

Morris died in April 2009. He had donated land to MSU in 2006 with the intent that it eventually be sold to benefit those causes, according to the university.

Morris Property - Letter to Eagle Township 2023 - Clark Foundation | PDF

The retirement center also released Thursday a statement about Morris' bequest, saying he was an active benefactor for about two decades and was connected to the retirement center through a friend who was United Methodist minister.

"We are confident Mr. Morris would be pleased knowing his philanthropic intentions to all parties were fulfilled," said the statement, signed by Brian Pangle, president of Clark Retirement Communities, and JoAnn Abraham, executive director of the Clark Foundation.

Contact Mike Ellis at mellis@lsj.com or 517-267-0415

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Michigan State to Eagle Township: Megasite acreage will be sold
(Bloomberg) -- Micron Technology Inc. is poised to land about 200 billion ($1.5 billion) in financial incentives from the Japanese government to help it make next-generation memory chips in the country, according to people familiar with the matter, the latest step in Tokyos effort to bolster domestic semiconductor production.

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The US company will use the money as part of its plan to install advanced, EUV chipmaking equipment from ASML Holding NV at its facility in Hiroshima to fabricate DRAM chips, said the people, asking not to be identified because the agreement isnt public. Micron on Thursday confirmed it would invest as much as 500 billion in Japan, as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with a delegation of chip executives, including Micron Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Mehrotra.

Micron shares rose 2.4% in premarket trading before New York exchanges opened on Thursday. The stock had previously closed at $64.92.

Tokyo Electron Ltd. spearheaded a rally in chipmaking gear suppliers, particularly those that provide gear or technology that support EUV. It rose 5.5% in Tokyo trading, while peers such as Lasertec Corp. and Hoya Corp. rose more than 3%.

The financing is the latest sign of Japans ambitions in developing its own semiconductor industry, a potential backup to Taiwan amid intensifying tensions between the US and China. The government is already spending billions of dollars to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. to add production capacity in the country, and to finance a domestic chip venture, Rapidus Corp., with aspirations to make 2-nanometer chips by 2027. The Micron deal will bring EUV equipment to Japan for the first time, a step toward cutting-edge manufacturing the government has sought.

Read more: One Man Tries the Impossible in Restoring Japans Chip Industry

The agreement is also a retort to Beijing, which launched a cybersecurity review of the Boise, Idaho-based company after the Biden administration leveled sweeping restrictions on chip-related exports to China. That threatens the last American memory chipmakers ability to sell into China, where it now gets about 11% of its revenue. Kishida will receive leaders from the Group of Seven countries, including US President Joe Biden, in Hiroshima between May 19 and May 21.

Microns Hiroshima factory will play a key role in the G-7s ambition to strengthen semiconductor chip supply chains, said Akira Minamikawa, an analyst with the research firm Omdia. It is the most important location for the US company.

Microns Hiroshima factory, a former production site for the now-defunct Elpida Memory Inc., houses some of the US firms best engineers, Minamikawa said. Japans Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said last year it would provide as much as 46.5 billion to Micron for production at the facility.

The US company has invested more than $13 billion in Japan since 2013, including for a push last year to produce what it calls one-beta DRAM chips. The latest funding will help Micron produce with what it calls one-gamma production, a more advanced technology that Micron plans to launch in late 2024. Suppliers that will benefit from Microns investments include Tokyo Electron, as well as ASML of the Netherlands.

In announcing its Japan investment, Micron didnt specify how much support it would receive from the government. The city of Hiroshima is also expected to support the project.

The last remaining US maker of computer memory survived fierce industry consolidation through a string of acquisitions in prior downturns. While its added scale, something that helps with the brutal cost competition of manufacturing memory, its still much smaller than Samsung Electronics Co., the leader in the industry.

As the memory chip industry hit a supply glut this year, Micron reported a loss of more than $2 billion dollars in the latest quarter, as the selling price of memory fell below the cost of production. Microns management reacted with what they called a historically quick response, cutting pay, jobs and production and calling on its peers to follow suit. The company has said that the second half of 2023 should prove the bottom for the market for DRAM particularly if others also cut production.

The only other US company still involved in the memory chip industry at scale is Western Digital Corp., which doesnt manufacture its own products, instead relying on partner Kioxia Corp.s facilities in Japan to make flash memory. Micron has used its status as the lone US memory maker to push Washington to subsidize the return of domestic manufacturing in the US. Its executives have been leading voices in the lobbying of government.

Unlike rivals Samsung and SK Hynix Inc., Micron didnt move any of its wafer fabrication work to mainland China. Outside of its home country, Micron has plants in Taiwan, Singapore and Japan, holdovers from past acquisitions.

While that makes Micron less vulnerable to any actions by Beijing, its close relationship with Washingtons efforts to bolster chip production domestically may have contributed to Chinas regulatory scrutiny. Like other US chipmakers, Micron is still dependent on the global electronics supply chains that often run through Chinese factories.

(Updates with Microns announcement of 500 billion investment in Japan)

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A bus driver in Butler County is out of a job after an investigation into an inappropriate communication complaint with the district.

The incident occurred last week in Middletown and involved a driver for Petermann, a bus service Middletown City Schools has used since August 2011.

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A spokesperson for the district told News Center 7 that the alleged communication was reported to the district Monday morning. By noon, the bus driver had been suspended by Petermann and an investigation was launched.

The driver was terminated by Petermann the next day for violating policy.

While the district said they could not confirm any students involvement, multiple Cincinnati-area news outlets have reported the driver was communicating with a student.

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News Center 7 reached out to Petermann about the incident. A spokesperson confirmed the investigation and that the driver had been terminated.

Middletown Police also investigated the incident but determined it did not rise to criminal charges, according to the district.

News Center 7 has reached out to Middletown police for more information.
Off North Sixth Street in north Fort Smith, across from the Midland Heights Clothes Closet, and two blocks north of the Graphic Packaging International on Boone Avenue, is a church that has been in the United Methodist denomination.

Midland Heights United Methodist Church, near a former glass plant, northwest of downtown in an industrial area along Midland Boulevard/ U.S. 71, has disaffiliated from the second-largest denomination in Arkansas.

The Rev. Dan Williams, Midland Heights pastor, has said that differing views on homosexuality represent the core of the split.

Midland Heights Methodist Church, 3500 N. 6th Street in Fort Smith has left the United Methodist denomination. The disaffiliation was ratified by the Arkansas Methodist special meeting Saturday, May 13, 2023.

In the early 1900s, the Midland Heights district of north Fort Smith became more industrialized. A fire in 1917 heavily damaged the Tulsa Glass Co., but it would return as the Radiant Glass Co. Factory workers arrived for work and departed for home by trolley car that stopped at N. 11th and Van Buren, the Southwest American newspaper reported.

More United Methodists exit

As of May 17, a total of 102 Arkansas United Methodist churches have split from the United Methodist denomination. Midland Heights and Greenwood Methodist churches are the latest to leave the denomination from the Arkansas River Valley. The Alma Methodist church severed its ties in November.

Williams, the Midland Heights pastor, began the process by asking for a list of questions about the church disaffiliation.

After members voted to leave the United Methodist Church, the plan was ratified in Hot Springs at a special meeting of the Arkansas churches' conference.

At the core of the split is a divisiveness over the United Methodist Church doctrine regarding gay marriage in the church and the ordination of gay clergy. Gay marriages are not performed in United Methodist churches under current church doctrine.

Churches in Arkansas that have left the United Methodists have leaned toward more conservative views. The issues have also involved property rights.

At the largest United Methodist church in Fort Smith, the pastor says its mission in the community is to keep the congregation there and at other local Methodist churches united.

With about 1,500 members, Fort Smith First United Methodist will remain in the denomination.

In June 2022, the church board decided disaffiliation would not be considered.

The Rev. William O. "Bud" Reeves said 30 board members voted against letting the congregation decide the issue.

"The decision as to whether or not to enter into the conversation about leaving the United Methodist Church starts with what we call the administrative board," Reeves said. "The board has to start that process. And our board voted unanimously not to start that process."

The board voted unanimously to stay in the United Methodist denomination.

"It was not a churchwide vote, but it was the vote of our leadership council, which is the appropriate body to make that decision," Reeves said.

He talked about what has kept First United together. All churches have been trying to recover from the pandemic. Other Fort Smith United Methodist churches are Cavanaugh, Faith, Goddard, St. Paul and Wesley United Methodist churches.

"Our mission as a church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world," Reeves said. "That's the mission of the church in the United Methodist church and we try to focus very much on what our true mission is."

He said his church chooses to highlight its Sunday worship, the children and youth ministry, music and its community outreach, which includes food pantries and music.

"We try to focus on the positive things that are going on in our church and interact with the community in a positive way," Reeves said. "Most of our United Methodist churches in Fort Smith are doing the same."

He said that it's important the church remained centered.

"We're trying to keep the main thing the main thing," Reeves said. "Trying to emphasis our worship, children, youth outreach in the community and strengthen all of those. All of the churches are trying to recover from the pandemic so we're just trying to build up our church and do what the church is supposed to do."

People have learned to live with differing opinions, he said.

"Our church has been incredibly unified, but that doesn't mean that everybody has the same opinion. We have a lot of people and therefore a lot of different opinions, and we try to honor those, honor the differences and love one and other and we can see that the church is sort of a big tent where people of different opinions can co-exist and you know, worship Christ together and be in a mission together. We all don't have to agree on every single thing" Reeves said.

A few reasons Methodists stay in the United Methodist church include family ties, the history of the church, their mission and theology.

"We have a doctrine that is sound and our doctrine has not changed. As Methodists, we love scripture. Things we do are based on scripture. And a lot of the division of the other churches has been brought about by accusations made against the United Methodist Church that simply are not true," Reeves said.

"Our doctrine has not changed. We still love the Bible. We still believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and our savior. And that is how we and most of the churches who are staying United Methodists are staying that way because of those things, our mission, our history, our theology, and our doctrine," he said.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: How the Midland Heights Methodists decided to leave the church
Missouri S&T professor explores the history of breakfast cereal in new book

The Missouri University of Science and Technology's Dr. Kathryn Dolan.

For the first several thousand years of its time of existence, cereal was porridge - grain boiled inside clay pots.

It developed spontaneously around 10,000 years ago in cultures all over the world, said Kathryn Cornell Dolan, a professor at Missouri University of Science & Technology in Rolla. Her new book, "Breakfast Cereal: A Global History" was published by The University of Chicago Press.

"It's a great source of complex carbs," Dolan said of the ancient porridges. "The pyramids were built by people eating wheat-based porridge."

In other regions, it was barley or oats. In the Americas, corn was boiled, she said.

Oatmeal, Malt-o Meal and Cream of Wheat are modern versions of the ancient porridges. That's what cereal was until 1863 when James Caleb Jackson came up with baked wheat he called granula, Dolan said.

"The problem was it was unpalatable unless you soaked it overnight in water or milk," Dolan said.

John Harvey Kellogg tweaked the recipe at his sanitarium in Battle Creek, Mich.

"He came up with his own," Dolan said.

Kellogg called his bran nuggets granola.

"They were bland and quite easy to digest," Dolan said.

Kellogg developed new cereals and formulated new recipes for his patients, patenting cornflakes.

"He was very proud of himself," Dolan said of Kellogg. "He would give tours of his test kitchen."

C.W. Post was very ill when he visited Kellogg's Battle Creek Sanitarium, Dolan said.

It did wonders for his health and his wealth, she said.

"He gets healed," Dolan said. "He goes to the test kitchen and he steals the recipes. He starts a rival sanitarium and breakfast cereal."

Kellogg sues unsuccessfully because Post had altered the recipes slightly, she said.

"Post has his own version of cornflakes and shredded what," Dolan said. "Post starts selling his own cereal and he does great."

The Missouri University of Science and Technology's Dr. Kathryn Dolan.

Nearly disabled when he entered Kellogg's sanitarium, he now was a healthy millionaire, she said.

Will Kellogg, convinced his brother, John Harvey, to add some sugar to his healthy cereal and market it more widely, a successful strategy.

"Everything kind of comes after that," Dolan said. "Those two names are still really major ones in the cereal business."

A T.C. Boyle novel in 1993 "The Road to Wellville," and a 1994 film are fictionalized versions of the situations, but Dolan said many things in the novel and film are true.

The prepared cereals remained popular during the Great Depression, she said. When people could afford nothing else, they could afford cereal.

"The Great Depression was a boom time for breakfast cereals," Dolan said.

In the 1920s, the government asked cereal companies to add vitamins and minerals to their formulas, credited with reducing childhood diseases and illnesses, she said.

Cereal was eaten by soldiers on battlefields and went to the top of Mt. Everest with Sir Edmund Hillary, she said.

The next market was children, Dolan said.

Television proved the perfect medium for cereal ads marketed to children. Then came cereals like Fruit Loops, Cap'n Crunch and Lucky Charms, in an era of cereal as candy.

Plastic toys were added to cereal boxes.

"The toys came in the 1950s," Dolan said. "They added scads of sugar to get kids to like it more."

The sugar counteracted the health benefits of the vitamins and minerals, she said.

There was a backlash in the 1960s. A startup in St. Louis began producing crunchy granola, made from rolled oats, dried fruit and nuts.

"It was a rebellion against those super sugary cereals," Dolan said.

Granola now is not always healthy, she said.

"Some of them are healthy, but some of them are candy bars," she said. "Who are we kidding?"

People started eating breakfast at home during the pandemic and what they ate was cereal, Dolan said.

"Suddenly everyone was staying home," Dolan said. "There's simply weirdly comforting about those traditional favorites."

They were so popular that some were in short supply.

"There was a run on Grape-Nuts," Dolan said. "You couldn't find them on the shelves."

People were hoarding the childhood comfort food, she said.

"There was a robust aftermarket trade on eBay," Dolan said. She noted a box of Grape-Nuts sold for $100 there.

Post geared up production and thanked their loyal fans, she said.

"They marketed the heck out of it," Dolan said.

Roger McKinney is the Tribune's education reporter. You can reach him at rmckinney@columbiatribune.com or 573-815-1719. He's on Twitter @rmckinney9

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: New book looks at cereal over 10,000 years of marketing and theft
These moms have been judged for their parenting decisions, and now they're speaking out

Robyn Phelps/Insider

These moms have been misjudged for their parenting decisions, and now they're speaking out.

Whatever choices they make, moms are criticized.

If they formula feed, they are bad moms; if they breastfeed into toddlerhood, they're also bad moms. If they have an elective C-section, it's bad, but if they accidentally give birth on their bathroom floor, that's also their fault.

The judgment touches every aspect of parenting, from cosleeping to how often kids are bathed. And moms are often judged more harshly than dads.

The "bad moms" narrative is not new, but social media has made it worse. Someone who posts day-to-day content about their kids might share something that they think is harmless  like pushing their 6-year-old in a stroller  that opens the floodgates of criticism. Judging parents, especially moms, has turned into an online "national sport," as The Atlantic described it.

So we wanted to celebrate and tell the stories of those who have been publicly scrutinized for their parenting decisions. They are not, in fact, bad moms. They are just moms who refuse to cave in to the judgments of strangers.

There's nothing wrong with breastfeeding your 3-year-old.

Courtest of Falyn Huang; Robyn Phelps/Insider

After a Time magazine cover featuring Jamie Grumet breastfeeding her then-3-year-old son went viral, strangers called Grumet a pedophile. Former "The View" host Elisabeth Hasselbeck said, "If you can spell milk you should not be breastfeeding." Now, 11 years later, Grumet says her son is proud of the image.

Read her story here.

Moms can have careers that take them away from home too.

NBC Universal; Robyn Phelps/Insider

Sara Bradley left her then-9-month-old baby to compete in "Top Chef" season 20. Since she was still breastfeeding her child, she pumped around the clock and sent breast milk from the UK back to her home in Kentucky for her husband to feed their baby. Some people suggested she should have stayed home instead.

Read her story here.

Having a big family doesn't mean you can't be deeply involved in all your kids' lives.

TLC; Robyn Phelps/Insider

Karen Derrico and her 14 children star in TLC's "Doubling Down With the Derricos." She often gets asked questions about having such a big family, with many people assuming that she can't love them all equally or that their house is a constant mess.

Read her story here.

Motherhood can wait until your late 50s.

Barb Higgins; Robyn Phelps/Insider

Barbara Higgins had her third child when she was 57. She says that having kids in your 50s is much less stressful than doing it younger because "you've stopped overthinking and don't give a crap about what other people think."



Read her story here.

Credits

Editing: Conz Preti, Frank Olito, Rosemary Donahue, Ariel Schwartz, and Joi-Marie McKenzie



Reporting: Jane Ridley, Kelly Burch, Ashley Abramson, Janet Manley, and Frank Olito



Design: Robyn Phelps

Read the original article on Insider
Good morning, Quartz readers!







Heres what you need to know

Montana became the first US state to ban TikTok. The state law also compels Apple and Google to drop TikTok from their app stores under penalty of a $10,000-per-day fine.

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Its no wonder, then, that Home Depot, one of the largest retailers in the US, is expecting its yearly sales to drop for the first time since 2009. Read more about whats driving people to abandon their measuring tapes and hammers.







Pop quiz: How much money would put you in Indias 1%?

A. $175,000

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D. $1.5 million



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Charted: Union membership in the US is nearing a 100-year low

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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, loner nouns, and vending machines to talk@qz.com. Reader support makes Quartz available to allbecome a member. Todays Daily Brief was brought to you by Sofia Lotto Persio and Morgan Haefner.



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Photo: Thom Bridge/Matt Slocum (AP)

Montanas governor signed a bill into law banning TikTok from his state Wednesday.

The legislation, the first in the nation to forbid downloading the app at the state level, is slated to go into effect in January 2024. It prohibits app stores like Apples and Googles from offering downloads of the app, which is used by more than 150 million Americans. If Apple or Google were to allow downloads, they would face a $10,000-per-day fine, as would TikTok; users downloading the app would not face the same penalty.

Read more

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte said on Twitter, To protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana. Other states have barred TikTok from government-owned phones and devices, but no others have issued a blanket ban that applies to regular citizens.

A TikTok spokesperson said in response, Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok. Apple and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment about their compliance with the ban.

Experts expect legal challenges to the legislation. NetChoice general counsel Carl Szabo previously told Gizmodo of the TikTok ban, Nobody ever writes a bill that is this clearly unconstitutional. TikToks own statement forecasts a legal challenge: We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.

Others, like the American Civil Liberties Union, said the law blatantly infringes on users freedom of speech.With this ban, Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature have trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, ACLU of Montana Policy director Keegan Medrano said.

Montana TikTokers previously spoke to Gizmodo about the ban and described a legal limbo that threatened to upend their lives. They expressed a deep fondness for the app because they had found both business success and sincere friends there. One veteran, a metal sculptor who showcases his profession in videos, said his fellow veterans would call him if he hadnt posted in a few days because they worried about his mental health. He said he did not know where else he could find such a community.



Like Gianforte, the federal government is considering prohibiting the app. Joe Bidens administration has warned ByteDance to either sell TikTok to a U.S. company or be barred from the country. Congress took time to browbeat TikToks CEO in a hearing over national security concerns with the app in a five-hour hearing earlier this year.

Update: 5/17 7:25 P.M. EST: Added statement from ACLU.

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TikTok: Montana to become first US state to ban app on personal devices

A persons hands use a moblie phone showing the TikTok logo

Montana is set to become the first US state to ban Chinese-owned media giant TikTok from personal devices.

Governor Greg Gianforte signed the ban into law on Wednesday. It is due to take effect on 1 January.

The video-sharing platform says the ban "infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana".

TikTok has come under scrutiny from authorities around the world over concerns that data could be passed to the Chinese government.

Mr Gianforte, a Republican, told lawmakers that a wider ban would further "our shared priority to protect Montanans from Chinese Communist Party surveillance."

TikTok said in a statement that it was used by "hundreds of thousands of people" in Montana.

"We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana," it added.

TikTok is expected to challenge the legislation in the courts.

Last month, lawmakers in Montana passed a bill banning TikTok on personal devices by a vote of 54 to 43.

The law will make it illegal for app stores to offer TikTok, but does not ban people who already have TikTok from using it.

Montana, which has a population of just over 1m, banned the app on government devices last December.

TikTok says it has 150m American users. Although the app's user base has expanded in recent years, it is still most popular with teenagers and users in their 20s.

However, there are concerns across the US political spectrum that TikTok could be a national security risk.

TikTok is owned by ByteDance - a Chinese company.

In March, a congressional committee grilled TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew about whether the Chinese government could access user data or influence what Americans see on the app.

Mr Shou repeatedly said that it would never spy on Americans - despite admitting that employees had used the TikTok accounts of journalists to obtain information about them.

Earlier in March, the US government said ByteDance should sell TikTok or face a possible ban in the country.

The penalties apply to companies, but not individual users. Firms that break the law face penalties of up to $10,000 (8,012), which would be enforced by Montana's Department of Justice.

It means that technology giants like Apple and Google could face fines if they allow TikTok to be downloaded in Montana from their app stores.

TikTok's owner ByteDance has repeatedly denied it is controlled by the Chinese government.

You may also be interested in:
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) signed legislation banning TikTok on Wednesday, making the state the first in the nation to block access to the app amid growing data privacy concerns.

The law, which is set to go into effect Jan. 1, bars TikTok from operating within Montana and prohibits app stores, such as Apples App Store and the Google Play Store, from making TikTok available to download in the state.

TikTok and app stores could face fines of up to $10,000 per day for violations under the law. However, the penalties would not apply to users.

The app, which is owned by the Chinese-based company ByteDance, has faced increased scrutiny over its handling of U.S. user data, with federal lawmakers also looking at legislation that would allow the federal government to restrict or ban apps like TikTok.

The Montana law points to concerns that the Chinese government exercises control and oversight over ByteDance, like other Chinese corporations, and can direct the company to share user information.

To protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana, Gianforte tweeted on Wednesday.

However, the law appears likely to be challenged in court.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other groups urged Montana state lawmakers to oppose the bill last month, calling it censorship and claiming it would violate the First Amendment rights of hundreds of thousands of Montanans.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Montana becomes first US state to ban TikTok

An unprecedented ban on TikTok in the state of Montana that critics say tramples free speech rights would be voided if the app's China-based owner sells it to a country not designated by the United States as a 'foreign adversary'

Montana on Wednesday became the first US state to ban TikTok, with the law set to take effect next year as debate escalates over the impact and security of the popular video app.

The prohibition signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte will serve as a legal test for a national ban of the Chinese-owned platform, something that lawmakers in Washington are increasingly calling for.

"TikTok may not operate within the territorial jurisdiction of Montana," said a copy of the freshly-minted law at the state website.

The ban makes it a violation each time "a user accesses TikTok, is offered the ability to access TikTok, or is offered the ability to download TikTok."

Each violation is punishable by a $10,000 fine every day it takes place.

Under the law, Apple and Google will have to remove TikTok from their app stores and companies will face possible daily fines.

The move almost certainly will be challenged by lawsuits.

State political leaders have "trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment," said ACLU Montana policy director Keegan Medrano.

The ban will take effect in 2024, but be voided if TikTok is acquired by a company incorporated in a country not designated by the United States as a foreign adversary, the law read.

"Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok," a spokeswoman for the company told AFP.

"We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

TikTok has gone on record saying that the ban's constitutionality will ultimately be decided by the courts.

The law is the latest skirmish in duels between TikTok and many western governments, with the app already banned on government devices in the United States, Canada and several countries in Europe.

The app is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance and is accused by a wide swathe of US politicians of being under the tutelage of the Chinese government and a tool of espionage by Beijing, something the company furiously denies.

Gianforte himself said on Twitter that he signed the ban in order to "protect Montanans' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party."

Despite its immense popularity, TikTok faces an ultimatum by the White House that it split from its Chinese owners or stop operating in America.

Montana's clampdown on TikTok comes as the app faces proposals of national legislation -- including one bill that could give the White House massive new powers to oversee Chinese tech companies.

gc/mlm
Montana Governor Greg Gianforte just signed into law the nation's strongest restrictions on Chinese-owned social media app TikTok.

TikTok has faced mounting pressure in the U.S. from Congress and state legislatures alike in recent months, but Montana's actions escalate those threats considerably, even if the issue of enforcement remains an open question.

To protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana.  Governor Greg Gianforte (@GovGianforte) May 17, 2023

"Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party," Gianforte said.

In a statement, Gianforte claimed that it is "well documented" that TikTok shares its data with the Chinese government  a claim that is not substantiated by public information about the app and how it operates.

TikTok is just one app tied to foreign adversaries. Today I directed the states Chief Information Officer to ban any application that provides personal information or data to foreign adversaries from the state network. pic.twitter.com/92Im6D9Jgx  Governor Greg Gianforte (@GovGianforte) May 17, 2023

While there is no evidence that TikTok or its parent company ByteDance have ever shared the app's information with the Chinese government, TikTok has admitted to an incident in which employees spied on journalists' locations using app data  a scandal that's often cited in conversations around the app and privacy concerns.

Lawmakers in Montana unveiled the TikTok ban bill earlier this year, kicking off a firestorm of debate around the ban and other proposals to limit the app's use in the U.S. While restrictions on the use of TikTok on government devices and campus networks are already commonplace, Montana's ban is designed to block app stores from distributing the app to any users within the state.

Whether that would even be feasible remains to be seen. Google and Apple are likely to push back on state-level laws that limit where apps can be downloaded within the U.S. lest they face the logistical nightmare of more state legislatures issuing their own bans against TikTok or other apps. TikTok's users are likely to push back too, and the company has already been leveraging its enthusiastic user base to oppose the Montana law.

There are a ton of unknowns about how this will all play out, but the one certainty is that Montana's newest law is sure to face some strong challenges in court in the coming months. We'll be following along to see how it all goes down.
Montanas statewide TikTok ban came under legal attack Wednesday just hours after it was signed into law by the governor.

The law firm Davis Wright Tremaine filed the lawsuit in Montanas federal trial court on behalf of five TikTok creators who live in the state and use the app thats popular among 150 million Americans.

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the law that bans app stores from offering TikTok in Montana starting Jan. 1, 2024. Gianforte said the law aims to protect citizens from foreign influence by the Chinese Communist Party since TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, with app stores facing penalties starting at $10,000 for continuing to offer the app.

While Montana is the first state to fully ban new downloads of the app, the hysteria around the alleged national security threats posed by TikTok has led to more than 30 states banning TikTok on government-issued devices. Congress has multiple bills ranging from a nationwide TikTok ban to legislation empowering the executive branch to restrict TikTok and other apps from foreign adversaries. But momentum has stalled in recent weeks after Republicans and progressive Democrats alike came out against a ban.



The lawsuit, announced Thursday, asserts that Montana has no authority to enact laws based on national security interests, or that infringe on residents constitutionally protected free speech.

Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban The Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes, the suit said. Even if Montana could regulate any of the speech that users share through TikTok, SB 419 wields a sledgehammer when the First Amendment requires a scalpel.

The lead counsel on the lawsuit  Ambika Kumar  represented other TikTok creators in the lawsuit filed against former President Donald Trumps previously unsuccessful attempt to ban TikTok in 2020. Its unlikely to be the only lawsuit, as TikTok is also considering its next legal steps.

In fact, the lawsuit notes that federal judges have blocked three separate attempts to ban the app, holding that Trump lacked the authority to block personal communications on TikTok.

We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana, Brooke Oberwetter, a TikTok spokesperson, said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Biden administrations Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. has been reviewing whether to ban or force the sale of TikTok to a U.S. owner  but efforts have stalled in recent months.



Gianfortes office continued to defend the law Thursday. While the Chinese Communist Party may try to hide their nefarious spying and collection of individuals' personal, private, sensitive information under the banner of our First Amendment, the governor has an obligation to protect Montanans and their individual privacy right, as guaranteed by the Montana Constitution, from the Chinese Communist Party's serious, grave threats, Kaitlin Price, a spokeswoman for the governor, told POLITICO.


Montana has become the first US state to ban TikTok, forbidding the popular social media app from operating within the states borders. The state law also compels Apple and Google to drop TikTok from their app stores under penalty of a $10,000-per-day fine.

To protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana, governor Greg Gianforte wrote on Twitter.

Read more

Only, the ban does neither of those things. And experts say its extremely unlikely to hold up in court.

TikTok access is a First Amendment issue

TikTok has received bipartisan scorn from US lawmakers for its ties to Chinese parent company ByteDance and its data privacy practices.

Former US president Donald Trump failed to ban TikTok in 2020 after a federal judge ruled that he overstepped his emergency economic powers in doing so. Trump also failed to successfully ban WeChat, an app owned by Chinese tech giant Tencent, with a different judge finding that a ban likely violated American users First Amendment right to free speech. Trumps successor, US president Joe Biden, has reportedly explored forcing ByteDance to sell TikTok on national security grounds, an effort also started during the Trump administration.

Montanas TikTok ban is sure to face a similar First Amendment challengeone legal experts are certain the state will lose.

The government may not block our ability to access constitutionally protected speechwhether it is in a newspaper, on a website or via an app, Carl Szabo, the vice president and general counsel of the tech trade association NetChoice, wrote in a statement. In implementing this law, Montana ignores the US Constitution, due process and free speech by denying access to a website and apps their citizens want to use.

Jameel Jaffer, the executive director of the Knight First First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, wrote, Because Montana cant establish that the ban is necessary or tailored to any legitimate interest, the law is almost certain to be struck down as unconstitutional.

A TikTok ban doesnt solve any privacy problems

Cindy Cohn, executive director of the digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation, called the law wrongheaded and predicted it will fail in court. She also said that, from a privacy standpoint, its misguided.

I am very concerned about the privacy implications of social media, but I think the way forward is to have comprehensive privacy protections against all of these systems; I dont think theres a good reason to single out TikTok and let everyone else scot-free, especially when we know theres a very thriving data market, Cohn told Quartz. If the Chinese government wants data on you and me, they have so many places they can go. They dont need TikTok.

Taking TikTok off government-issued phones

Already, multiple states have banned TikTok from government-issued phones, but thats something thats safely within their powers. The Biden administration ordered federal agencies do the same in February.

But the legality and practicality of Montanas TikTok ban on non-government devices is another issue entirely. Itd be difficult to pull off: Geofencing an app isnt an exact science and can be often be easily bypassed by virtual private networks (VPNs).

Tarah Wheeler, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, put it simply in a recent interview with The Atlantic: I rarely see a bill that is this technically stupid.

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The investigation into potential racism at the Boise Police Department did not yield widespread evidence of racism, though a number of minority employees said they have experienced discrimination on the job.

The investigation began after revelations that a retired captain, Matt Bryngelson, expressed white supremacist views in blog posts and a video interview while he was employed at the department. Mayor Lauren McLean hired the Washington, D.C. law firm Steptoe & Johnson in December, allocating $500,000 for initial work.

Lead investigator Michael Bromwich on Tuesday recommended a number of changes to department policy and practice. Here were the firms key recommendations to Boise police.

Recruit diverse officers; dont lower hiring standards

Bromwich said Boise should focus on recruiting more racially diverse officers. Boise did not hire its first Black officer until 1989, which is way too late, he said.

Despite its staffing shortages, Boise police also should not lower its hiring standards, Bromwich said.

In August, the department lowered its education standards and nixed a college requirement. Bromwich said the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C. lowered its standards in the 1980s because of staffing shortages, and that within a decade, the department began to encounter higher levels of officer misconduct and corruption.

Training should be rigorous

Investigators found the department should ensure its training for new recruits is rigorous and incorporates adult learning principles, which are a set of educational approaches for teaching adults.

Bromwich noted that until recently, no one had failed out of the departments academy in a decade. He said the average failure rate at police departments across the country is between 10% and 25%.

If youre failing no one, your standards are not high enough, he said.

Bromwich said he had learned that because all recruits passed at the academy, post-academy field officers who provide further training for new recruits became responsible for problematic trainees, either having to recommend they be terminated or passing the responsibility off to a supervisor.

Boise must look at how police promote officers

The department should scrutinize its promotion practices, Bromwich told the council.

Bromwich detailed numerous complaints from within the department about Bryngelson that officers had anonymously written in surveys when he was promoted as sergeant in 2009 and as lieutenant in 2019. While many comments in the surveys about Bryngelson were positive, some officers called him lazy, described him as rude to the public, and said he was unable to keep personal dislike for other officers out of his professional decisions.

He was also accused of being liked but not respected by his peers. One senior member of the department said in 2009, when Bryngelson was promoted to sergeant, that he was strongly opposed to the promotion, and that if it went through, we will be reading about this in the newspaper some day.

Its clear that Bryngelson was singularly ill-equipped for a supervisory role, Bromwich said. This really does represent a failure of the promotional process within the Boise Police Department, because the overall diagnosis was that he had the right contacts (and) was a member of an internal club within BPD where members took care of each other.

Training records kept inconsistently

Bromwich said it is important to know exactly who has been trained when and on what topics, and that leadership training should develop a strong bench of internal officers capable of becoming supervisors.

Bromwich said he was not aware that such training existed at the department. He also said it is vital that the department conduct exit interviews with all employees, and that those interviews be conducted by current or former officers rather than command-level staff.

Reform critical incident investigations

The standard practice for Ada Countys Critical Incident Task Force, which reviews serious use-of-force incidents, is for the interview to be led by a separate local police department. Bromwich said that set-up primes the investigations to take longer, because they are a lower priority for the outside department than its own business.

He also said internal investigations into such incidents should happen concurrently with criminal investigations, rather than afterward. Otherwise, internal investigations must wait until after the critical incident team and the Ada County prosecutor completes its work, which can take months or years. Bromwich said its a mistake to wait that long if internal justice and discipline is necessary.

Body camera audio must be recorded

Officers should be required to record sound on their body cameras, Bromwich said.

Bromwich said the previous chief, Ryan Lee, changed the policy by executive order, but that until then it was standard practice for officers to turn their audio off during interactions with the public. Bromwich said that undermines one of the central purposes of the cameras, which is to have a record of the full interaction.

Boise police should approve speaking engagements

The department should have a rigorous process for reviewing and approving outside consulting and speaking engagements, Bromwich said. Other than Bryngelson, who was scheduled to speak at the American Renaissance Conference  an organization known for white supremacist views  after his retirement, Bromwich said other current and former members have had extensive speaking engagements and consulting gigs.

He said those activities can become problematic if it distracts officers from their policing work.

Boise should look at other police agencies

Department leadership should fight the natural instinct to be insular, Bromwich said, having cited Bryngelson as a problematic internal promotion and what he saw as policy improvements when Boise hired leaders from other agencies.

Bromwich said its important to look at what reforms other police departments around the country are doing, and not to assume that the way things are done in Boise is the best way.

You need to welcome outside scrutiny, he said. You need to learn from other departments in order to be the best department you can be.

Boise police racism investigation outlined problems. What the law firm found
More than 200,000 Louisiana workers quit their jobs in the first quarter of 2023, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows, the most on record in the states history.

Louisiana saw 73,000 workers voluntarily leave their jobs during March  the most the state has ever recorded for the month. In March 2022, the state had about 63,000 workers quit their jobs. The 15.9% jump between the two months was the fourth-largest percent-increase of all U.S. states.

The state has seen a dramatic uptick in workers quitting for more than a year, with Louisiana seeing a record number of workers quit in 2022. Compared to the first quarter of 2022, Louisiana has had 36,000, or 20% more, workers quit so far in 2023, recording 216,000 through March.

Louisiana workers saw their pay rise this year, and they could be expecting a raise

Several other states have seen large numbers of workers quit in that same period, but few have seen as many as Louisiana. In March 2023, Louisiana had the highest quit rate in the nation, with 3.7% of all workers quitting during the month.

While quitting has spiked, the state has seen relatively few workers lose their jobs due to firings or layoffs. In the first quarter of 2023, about 84,000 workers in Louisiana were involuntarily separated from their employers.

The state has seen an increase in firings from 2022, but last year was near a record-low for the state. Compared to the first quarter of 2022, the state has had 29,000 or 52.7% more firings or layoffs in the first three months of 2023.

The 27,000 involuntary separations was tied for the second-highest mark since September 2020.

In terms of total separations  both voluntary and involuntary  Louisiana had 313,000 in the first quarter of 2023, the second-highest mark on record for the first quarter. Only the first quarter of 2020, which included the beginning of the COVID pandemic, had more separations.

Louisiana had 105,000 total separations in March, marking only the third time in the states history that it has had three consecutive months with at least 100,000 separations.

Alongside the high number of separations, the state has had a record number of job openings so far in 2023. The state had 153,000 openings in March 2023 and 477,000 in the first quarter. Compared to 2022  when the state set a record for job openings  the state had 39,000 or 8.9% more openings in the first quarter.

Is your water safe to drink? 1 in 10 Acadiana systems received a D or F grade in 2022

Louisiana also continues to have two job openings per unemployed person, according to the BLS.

Louisiana has also seen a high number of hirings this year, but not quite at the same pace of the separations and openings. In March, the state had 99,000 new hires, giving it 304,000 in the first quarter of 2023.

March was the first time the state has had fewer than 100,000 hires in a month since November 2022.

CONSIDER SUBSCRIBING TODAY: Help support journalists like William Taylor Potter

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: More than 200,000 Louisiana workers have quit their jobs in 2023
Volunteer firefighters ride their dinghy across a street flooded by the river Savio in the Ponte Vecchio district of Cesena, central eastern Italy, on May 17, 2023

Authorities in Ravenna issued an immediate evacuation order Thursday for three villages threatened by floods after heavy rains left nine people dead across northeastern Italy.

Buses were being sent to help residents leave Villanova di Ravenna, Filetto and Roncalceci after the river Lamone burst its banks.

Nearly two dozen rivers and streams have flooded across the southeast of the Emilia Romagna region following downpours earlier this week, submerging entire neighbourhoods and farmland.

More than 10,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and hundreds of landslides were reported, regional officials said.

The rain stopped mid-afternoon on Wednesday and meteorologists said they expected no significant rainfall on Thursday.

"But when we have six months of rain in 36 hours, falling where there had already been record rain two weeks ago, there is no territory that can hold out," Stefano Bonaccini, president of the Emilia Romagna region, told La7 television channel late Wednesday.

"We had an estimated two billion (euros) of damages two weeks ago... the ground no longer absorbs anything," Bonaccini said.

Two people died in the same region earlier this month after 48 hours of almost continuous rain.

Italy's armed forces and the coastguard have joined the emergency effort, deploying helicopters to lift desperate residents from their homes and inflatable boats to reach houses surrounded on all sides by water.

As the floods receded in some areas, residents were left cleaning homes and streets thick with mud and filled with debris.

"I've lived here since 1979, I've seen floods go by, but I've never seen anything like that," Edoardo Amadori, a resident of the city of Cesena, told AFP on Wednesday.

Thousands of farms in the fertile agricultural area were affected, but Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida said the water would have to subside before the government could quantify the damage.

The flooding caused the cancellation of Sunday's Formula One Emilia Romagna Grand Prix scheduled in Imola, with organisers saying they could not guarantee the safety of fans, teams and staff.

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MOUNT ST. HELENS, Wash.  It was 43 years ago on May 18, that Mount St. Helens exploded to life, erupting in violent fashion, spewing towering clouds carrying 520 million tons of ash that choked the skies with grit and darkness and claiming the lives of 57 people in what remains the largest volcanic eruption in American history.

While the most devastating acts occurred on that fateful day, scientists began getting an inkling something was up a little more than two months before the eruption.

For this year's anniversary, the U.S. Geological Survey poured back over its historical records leading up to the eruption, providing day-by-day updates on social media mimicking what happened 43 years ago each day before the mountain blew.

Mount St. Helens had slept peacefully for 123 years while nestled in its spot in southwestern Washington along the Cascade Mountains; a tall, majestic snow-capped mountain that dotted the horizon in between sisters Mount Rainier, which sits closer to the Seattle area, and Mount Hood near Portland.

MOUNT ST. HELENS ERUPTION: SURVIVORS RECOUNT THE DARKER THAN MIDNIGHT FURY IN 1980

The mountain only had 44 documented earthquakes between 1975 and early 1980. However, on the afternoon of March 20, 1980, the ground began to shake. Seismologists measured a 4.2 magnitude quake at a shallow depth.

Over the next three days, seismologists would measure dozens of quakes a day.

Seismologists raced to the mountain to install more seismometers around the volcano as another 4.2 quake rattled the mountain on March 22 and another greater than 4.0 struck on March 23. Scientists determined the quakes were not "typical" quakes with aftershocks, but many individual quakes, indicating a potential precursor to volcanic activity.

Frustration soon surfaced when seismologists returned to the mountain only to find their new portable seismic recorders are not working correctly due to bad batteries.

On March 24, 1980, the USGS's David Johnston visited the Pacific Northwest Seismology Network's lab at the University of Washington in Seattle and finds "bedlam" as the quake count neared 500 per day while the mountain trembled every few minutes.

The quakes triggered avalanches on the snow-capped summits but otherwise were not causing any damage yet.

The first visible signs of a possible eruption came on March 27, when the first steam and ash explosion opened up a crater 200-250 feet wide and 80-100 feet deep, according to the USGS, That prompted evacuations within a 15-mile radius of the volcano and roadblocks to keep out the curious.

A dozen more bursts of ash continued into the 28th, each lasting minutes to hours.

"It's like standing next to a dynamite keg with the fuse lit - only we don't know how long that fuse is," Johnston said at the time.

More steam and ash explosions continued into the 31st  one bringing ash to the town of Kelso about 35 miles away.

Still, the largest problem that day was keeping gawkers at a safe distance. The National Guard came in to help enforce roadblocks.

LANDSLIDE NEAR MOUNT ST. HELENS STRANDS DIVERS OVERNIGHT AFTER WASHING OUT ROADWAY

Larger quakes and more vigorous explosions marked the start of April, indicating an increased possibility of an eruption. However, USGS scientists at the time suggested it was more likely a series of small eruptions would occur instead of one large cataclysmic event.

The weather cleared enough again April 3, 1980, for scientists to fly over the summit and get a peek at the bulging mountain. Explosions sent plumes upward almost hourly, and winds carried ash east about 50 miles to the town of Glenwood.

Snow storms returned to the mountain on April 5, but scientists were still putting in 14-hour days to collect ash, measure gasses and install new equipment.

By April 8, 1980, volcanologists noted what may be a "new reality" of a relatively stable pattern where melting snow ran into the crater and was blasted into steam by the bubbling hot volcanic cauldron.

The mountain occasionally belched some ash  on the 9th, the ash carried into the Puget Sound region, meaning just about every corner of Washington received ash at some point.

The rest of the week, the mountain settled into "ho-hum" steam and ash explosions. Attention waned and the media moved on to more pressing stories. With the constant monitoring also a constant drain on the USGS budget, some staff members returned to their regular jobs.

Harry Truman, owner of the Spirit Lake Lodge and long-time resident of the Mount St. Helens vicinity, refuses to evacuate his home near the dormant volcano. | Location: Near Mount St. Helens, Washington, USA.

The 11th provided a fateful encounter as scientists went to check on local mountain resident Harry Truman who lived at a lodge along the mountain's Sprit Lake for 54 years. He swore that despite the danger, he would not leave. Truman did not live to see his 55th year at the lake, becoming one of the 57 people who perished in the eruption.

April 14, 1980, marked nearly a month since the volcano had sprung to life, but a local newspaper chided Mount St. Helens for putting on a "half-hearted" show. Four days later, another paper panned the mountain for its "listless performance." One local TV station was brazen enough to send their helicopter to the summit to get footage of it.

"The area is closed, but it's hard to enforce," the USGS wrote.

The volcano occasionally sent out steam plumes, and seismic activity remained "moderate."

As the weather cleared once again, scientists sent choppers to get fresh aerial photography of the summit. A bulge was found on the north side that had moved some 300 feet up and out from where it was the previous year.

WATCH A VOLCANO MAKE ITS OWN WEATHER

Meanwhile, the quake count for the entire reawakening had reached 1,500.

A sensor placed at Goat Rocks about midway up the mountain's slope was found to have moved 3 yards to the north.

Concerns rose that there would be a massive avalanche on the bulging northern flank of the mountain, which would dump debris into Spirit Lake and instantly flood the North Fork of the Toutle River.

Toutle Lake School, some 26 miles downstream, started conducting volcano drills and practiced loading 511 students and 85 staff members onto school buses to head to higher ground.

Meanwhile, officials installed new gates to lock down access to the northern side of the mountain as scientists established a new monitoring site closer to the volcano, just 5.5 miles from the summit. The "Coldwater II" site was staffed 24/7 to enable constant monitoring.

Other than measurements that the bulge near Goat Rocks was moving about 4-5 feet a day, the USGS said the volcano hadn't done anything to convince a non-scientist that a hazard existed. If not for news media reports highlighting how much the bulge was moving, the growing clamor to ease restrictions in the area would've grown louder.

"Local residents growing weary of life near an active volcano," the USGS said. "Like saint-turned-sinner, the mountain has gone from a calm, dependable friend that radiated beauty, to a misshapen, ash-tarnished rebel. Nobody knows what to expect next."

The volcano's two-week break came to an end as bursts of steam and ash reached 13,000 feet on May 7, 1980, while the bulge continued to move and quakes shook.

As the bulge continued to grow and move, scientists believed it was only a matter of time before the bugle failed and a massive mudslide ensued.

Meanwhile, officials kept pleading with Harry Truman to leave his Spirit Lake-front cabin.

On May 12, 1980, a strong 5.0 quake shook loose an 800-foot-wide avalanche of ice and rock on the north side while ominously, the crater's high point stood 500 feet taller than it was two months earlier.

WHAT MAKES PELES HAIR' DURING A VOLCANIC ERUPTION?

In the days after, the mountain goes quiet again. In a twist, scientists were baffled when a meeting with officials where it was assumed they would discuss expanding restricted areas instead turns into talks of which areas could reopen for Memorial Day weekend.

Cabin owners inside the restricted "red zone", who had been clamoring for access while threatened with $500 fines and 6 months in jail if they enter the restricted area, were finally granted access to visit their cabin on May 17. Cabin owners signed waivers and headed to their homes to pack up items before leaving by the end of the day.

USGS's David Johnston was the lone team member to stay at the Coldwater II monitoring site on the night of the 17th.

A 7 a.m. check on the mountain from Johnston found nothing unusual. The 7:30 a.m. morning meeting was also mundane.

Then at 8:32 a.m.: "Vancouver! Vancouver! This is it!" radioed Johnston from the lookout point as the mountain violently erupted. Vancouver didn't hear the warning, but the message was heard and recorded by a ham radio operator.

(Original Caption) 7/23/1980-Spirit Lake, WA- Looking more like a smoke cloud from an A-bomb blast than steam and ash from a volcano eruption, Mt. St. Helens sent this plume of steam and ash some 60,000 feet in the air, as the volcano awoke from a six-week nap.

A mad scramble ensued. Campers by the Green River reported hearing distant sounds, then blasted by winds as the skies turned pitch black and the ground vibrated. Trees blew over as mud and ice rained down. It was a cold blast at first, but soon everything began to burn and warm ash started to fall. The campers scrambled to walk out.

Geologists from Spokane were on a helicopter ride near the crater moments before the blast and witnessed a mile-long fissure in the volcano as the eruption started. The pilot dove from the skies and managed to safely fly back to Portland.

Broadcasters scrambled to find out what was happening and get on the air. Loggers in the area heard screams about a volcano as trees jiggled and fell as they were knocked down by the wind. Massive mudflows from instantly-melted snow raced down mountains and flooded the nearby terrain under feet of water and mud, wiping out roads and bridges along the way. Day turned to night in communities in Eastern Washington as upper-level winds spread thick clouds of ash across the skies.

A before and after look at Mt. St. Helens.

In the aftermath, the USGS sadly learned that Johnston did not survive the eruption, becoming one of the 57 people killed that day. An aerial tour of the devastation confirmed the Coldwater II lookout was destroyed. Johnston's legacy lives on both at the USGS and at the volcano.

The Coldwater II site was renamed the Johnston Ridge Observatory in his honor.

David Johnston

As mentioned earlier, Spirit Lake Lodge resident Harry Truman also lost his life when the mountain erupted.

So much more happened on that fateful day. The USGS is running a timed Twitter thread all day Thursday with minute-by-minute accounts of what happened on May 18, 1980, and beyond.
A South Carolina circuit court judge is expected to make a decision soon that will impact one of the most important civil suits facing convicted murderer and accused fraudster Alex Murdaugh and help determine who could be held financially responsible for the death of a Hampton County teen in a high-profile boating under the influence case in the S.C. Lowcountry.

Judge Daniel D. Hall is expected to rule by May 26 on whether or not to dismiss Gregory M. Parker and his Parker's Corporation from a Hampton County wrongful death suit, and leave Murdaugh to defend himself alone in the upcoming civil trial in Hampton County.

The lawsuit was filed by the family and estate of Hampton County teen Mallory Beach, who died after being ejected from Murdaugh's boat in February of 2019. The young man charged with driving the boat under the influence, his younger son Paul Murdaugh, was shot and killed in 2021 before he could stand trial.

Mallory Beach and one of her furry friends posing for a selfie.

While several parties were named in the original suit, most of them settled early, bringing an undisclosed amount of financial damages to the grieving family, and now Murdaugh and Parker/Parkers are the only named defendants as the civil suit heads to a jury trial Aug. 14 in Hampton County Court of Common Pleas.

The Beach family's attorneys think that Murdaugh and Parker's should both be held liable during a joint trial, but Parker's, in a recent court filing, contends that it is has not violated any laws and should be dismissed from the case.

Both sides have valid arguments.

Witness Mark Tinsley, the attorney for Mallory Beachs family, is questioned by prosecutor Creighton Waters during Alex Murdaughs trial for murder at the Colleton County Courthouse on Thursday, February 9, 2023. Joshua Boucher/The State/Pool

Beach attorneys want to hold both Murdaugh, Parker's liable in court

The Beach wrongful death suit, originally filed in March 2019 but amended several times, alleges that Murdaugh and his late wife, Maggie, knowingly allowed their underaged son, Paul, to consume alcohol to excess, often further enabling him by providing the alcohol, and then allowed him to operate the family's watercraft while intoxicated.

The complaint further alleged that Parker's Corporation is liable for making an illegal sale of alcohol to the underaged Paul Murdaugh, and for failing to verify his ID or to check that it matched the name on the credit card he used to pay for the alcohol.

Paul Murdaugh purchased the beer from Parker's store in Okatie just prior to the crash using a driver's license belonging to his brother, Richard Alexander "Buster" Murdaugh Jr., according to court filings.

The front page of The Hampton County Guardian as it continued to cover the Beaufort County boat crash that killed Mallory Beach and introduced the world to the Murdaughs of Hampton County.

Renee Beach, Mallory's mother, and her family are pursuing a "joint and several award" against both defendants for actual and punitive damages that could be worth millions of dollars, as well as costs and legal fees.

Arguably, from a financial standpoint, it is crucial to the Beach's case that Parker's be included when the matter goes to trial Aug. 14. Parker's is a multi-million corporation with stores around the Southeast and on track to exceed a billion dollars in sales per year, according to industry reports.

While Parker's would have the ability to pay damages, Murdaugh, who is currently facing more than 100 criminal charges and 11 other lawsuits, has had his assets frozen and liquidated by the court and would be extremely limited in how much he could pay to any of his multiple alleged victims and plaintiffs.

The Beach family is represented by a legal team led by Allendale attorney Mark Tinsley, whose testimony was instrumental in helping earn a double murder conviction against Murdaugh in March.

Parkers claim no criminal charges filed, Murdaugh is at fault

In its latest legal filings, Parker's acknowledges that Beach's death is an unfortunate tragedy, but they say it is a death that could have been prevented by several other people, including the boaters and the parents of the boaters, and they are not liable.

On March 24, attorneys for Parker's filed a motion for summary judgment asking for all claims against them to be dismissed with prejudice. The motion makes several key points:

The motion contends that Parker's did not knowingly sell alcohol to a minor and that it was a valid South Carolina sale because the S.C. Law Enforcement Division (SLED), the state agency that handles illegal alcohol sales, investigated the matter and did not issue the store any citation or reprimand.

"Accordingly, because there is no evidence that Parkers violated South Carolina law by knowingly selling beer or wine to an underage person, as SLED confirmed, Plaintiff cannot maintain her claims sounding in negligence in connection with the alcohol sale at issue in this case," the filing states.

The motion points out that all of the boaters were adults and alleges that all knew that Murdaugh was "noticeably intoxicated" but they "voluntarily chose to ignore several different opportunities throughout the night to arrange for alternative transportation or to simply not get back on that boat with a highly intoxicated driver."

"Indeed, the evidence is uncontroverted that the Boaters, who drank with Mr. Murdaugh for many hours that evening, waited for him and Mr. [Conner] Cook to go to a bar in Beaufort to drink even more alcohol, instead of getting alternative transportation home, and then the Boaters, including Ms. Beach, voluntarily got back on the boat being operated by a clearly drunk Mr. Murdaugh."

Parker's claims that the boaters, including Beach, knew about Paul Murdaugh's "proclivity for excessive alcohol drinking and his unpredictable, reckless, and dangerous conduct while drunk... "

The boaters were aware it was a dark and foggy night, and the only light on the boat was a handheld flashlight, yet they traveled by water anyway, despite several parents advising them not to, the filing states, adding:

"The tragedy of that evening also could have been prevented if the adults at the oyster roast, some of whom were relatives of the Boaters, including parents, uncles, and aunts, would have stopped the group from getting back on the boat after drinking in their presence all evening.

The filing alleges that Parker's is a victim of fraud perpetrated by Paul Murdaugh, who used his brother's ID. Both brothers have red hair and could arguably have facial similarities.

Ironically, Parker's used the Beach family's own evidence against them in this filing. Attached to a May 1 court filing was a May 4, 2022, affidavit from Morgan Doughty, one of the boaters, which included numerous photos and videos allegedly proving that Paul's parents enable him and his underage friends in their drinking, and all of the boaters knew about it. This affidavit had previously been attached to the Beach's amended lawsuit complaint against Murdaugh.

Judge Hall expects to rule on this motion no later than May 26. The Greenville News will continue to cover this case and other cases associated with the Murdaugh crime saga.

Follow Michael DeWitt's reporting on Twitter @mmdewittjr.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Mallory Beach wrongful death: Who should have to pay?
The pill is safe and effective and essential, said U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D) WA when referencing the FDAs decision to move forward and allow a contraceptive pill to possibly become the first over-the-counter birth control medication.

The senator says getting birth control onto the shelves of your local pharmacy is a priority and she was joined by her fellow lawmakers early Thursday morning to speak out on the issue.

Murray has proposed what is being dubbed the Affordability is Access Act. It would ensure that FDA approval of OTC birth control would mean that insurers fully cover over-the-counter birth control without any out-of-pocket costs.

The FDA last week recommended approval for the first-ever application for over-the-counter birth control. The drug is called Opill and it actually was first approved by the FDA back in the 1970s, but the advisory panel decided the benefits of the drug outweigh some of the risks as far as putting it into the OTC market. Over-the-counter medications are usually cheaper than prescriptions, but in general, insurance companies dont cover them. The FDAs decision will only apply to drug maker Perrigos O-pill. It would be the first and only brand of pill available OTC so Murray wants to make sure its accessible.

The Affordability is Access Act will make sure that once the FDA determines an over-the-counter option to be safe and effective for use without a prescription that pill is fully covered by insurance, just like every other FDA-approved birth control, said Murray.

Murray admitted that the fight now for affordable OTC birth control is more important than ever in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed a womans right to have an abortion.

The Catholic Medical Association in a recent release said it had deep concern and disappointment regarding the FDA decision on OTC contraceptives. The groups president, Dr Craig Treptow said, Given the extensive medical studies demonstrating the risks and adverse effects of hormonal contraceptives, CMA is disappointed and concerned for the health and safety of women across the United States.

Even though Murray and her fellow lawmakers are trying to push legislation to guarantee access to OTC birth control, the process with the FDA isnt done. The agency will have another vote on the recommendation this summer. If its approved, Opill could be on shelves by the end of this year.
Colombian Air Force via Reuters

In the early hours of May 1, a light aircraft flying over the Amazon rainforest in Colombia issued a mayday alert over an engine failure before vanishing from radar systems.

Rescue teams later found the wreckage of the Cessna 206 and three adult bodies insideincluding that of Ranoque Mucutuy. But Mucutuys four children, which included an 11-month-old babywere missing. On Wednesday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro shared some wonderful news.

Andes Crash Survivors Recall Resorting to Cannibalism: We Got Used to It

After arduous searching by our military, we have found alive the four children who went missing after a plane crash in Guaviare, Petro tweeted, referring to the Colombian province where the aircraft went down. A joy for the country.

But local media reports soon contradicted the celebratory news. Defense sources told Colombias El Espectador newspaper that the three kidsaged 13, 11, and 4and the baby had not been confirmed found.

On Thursday, Petro deleted his tweet and apologized, saying the initial information had not been confirmed. Im sorry about what happened, he added. The Military Forces and the indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for.

Earlier on Thursday, the countrys Institute of Family Welfare (ICBF) issued a statement about the confusion, saying that it had received information from a contact that the children had appeared alive and in good health, according to El Espectador, but that soldiers involved in the search have not been able to have contact with the children due to weather conditions and difficulties operating in the search area.

An official confirmation of the childrens well-being has not yet been made as of Thursday morning. But local plane operator Avianline, which owned the downed Cessna, put out a statement saying it had received reports that the children had been found alive, according to the BBC.

Avianline said one of its pilots landed in Cachiporro near the crash site and was told by locals that they had been contacted by people in a place called Dumar where the children had been found. The company said it could not confirm the informations accuracy but said its possible that the children had not yet been taken to Cachiporro by boat due to heavy rains making the river dangerous.

Indigenous radio stations have similarly reported that the children would be brought by river to Cachiporro after they had been found by a local.

Rescue efforts were stepped up on Wednesday after a search party discovered a shelter built with sticks and branches that indicated there could have been survivors.

Authorities also published photographs online showing a hair band and a pair of scissors that were found during the search, while a baby bottle and some partially eaten fruit were also discovered.

The family are from the Indigenous Huitoto people who live in Colombias southeast and the north of Peru. A message was reportedly played over the remote rainforest search area in the Huitoto language from a helicopter, in which the childrens grandmother instructed the kids not to attempt to move through the rainforest.

More than 100 soldiers have taken part in the rescue mission along with sniffer dogs. Military aircraft have also been deployed to assist the search teams on the ground moving through the dense jungle.

The crashed Cessna was carrying seven passengers on a flight between Araracuara, in Amazonas province, and San Jose del Guaviare, a city in Guaviare province. Along with the childrens mother, the body of the pilot and another adult were found in the doomed aircraft.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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This mid 1970s image shows Grand Ole Opry pioneer Carlos DeFord Bailey. The city of Nashville is naming a street after Bailey, the Harmonica Wizard," whose popularity and contributions to country music and blues are still being recognized decades later. On Saturday, DeFord Bailey Avenue will be officially dedicated in the Edgehill neighborhood of Nashville where Bailey lived most of his life until his death in 1982. (Marilyn Keeler Morton via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  The city of Nashville is naming a street after Grand Ole Opry pioneer DeFord Bailey, the Harmonica Wizard" whose popularity and contributions to country music and blues are still being recognized decades later.

On Saturday, DeFord Bailey Avenue will be officially dedicated in the Edgehill neighborhood of Nashville where Bailey lived most of his life until his death in 1982. Two of Bailey's grandsons, Carlos DeFord Bailey and Herchel Bailey will perform at a concert after the dedication.

Bailey overcame huge obstacles on his way to stardom. He contracted polio as a child, which led him to learn the harmonica while he was bedridden. He came from a family of Black musicians and his music created a link between the rural Black hillbilly music he learned living in Smith County, Tennessee, and the contemporary country music that was being formed on the Opry stage.

He traveled throughout the South with Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe and Minnie Pearl and that gang there, and he was the star of the show," said his grandson Carlos DeFord Bailey.

In 1927, Bailey's performance of Pan American Blues, in which his harmonica imitated the sound of a rolling locomotive, helped inspire the name Grand Ole Opry, and he was the first musician to hold a major recording session in Nashville in 1928. Despite his success and popularity, Bailey faced racism during the Jim Crow Era of segregation in the South, especially while touring with other white Opry members.

He wasnt allowed to do a lot of things that the other artists were able to do, like going to restaurants, going into the hotels, using the bathrooms," said his grandson. He had to sleep in the car from time to time.

Bailey performed on the Opry for about 16 years until 1941 when a dispute between the Opry and the performing rights organization ASCAP created a rift. The Opry management forbade Bailey from performing his songs that were licensed through ASCAP, including listener favorites like Fox Chase. When he refused, the Opry fired him.

Bailey retired from playing professionally and channeled his attention to a second career as the owner of a shoe-shine parlor in Nashville. His grandson remembers spending Saturdays at the parlor and recalls that his grandfather often dressed very dapper  wearing suits underneath his overalls to protect them from stains.

Bailey's impact on country music was overlooked or whitewashed from the history books for decades. Acuff, for example, argued publicly shortly after Bailey's death that Bailey's music didnt rise to the level of other Country Music Hall of Fame members like himself.

An author named David Morton wrote the definitive biography on Bailey in 1991 that finally led to recognition for the musical pioneer and acknowledgement of the racism he endured.

In 2005, Bailey was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. And last year, the Opry issued a statement and apology for its role in racism within country music, including using blackface performers during the early decades and its firing of Bailey.

Carlos DeFord Bailey, who followed in his grandfather's footsteps as musician and as a shoe-shiner, said he appreciates the steps taken by the Opry to recognize its mistakes.

The Grand Ole Opry has gotten younger and they believe in doing the right thing, said Bailey. "And its opened the doors for a lot of people of color.

In addition to the street renaming, a new edition of Morton's biography is currently on sale through the CMHOF's website and museum  complete with a new forward, more illustrations and a complete recording session discography. It will be rolled out to more bookstores in June. Carlos DeFord Bailey believes the moves will help keep Bailey's legacy alive for a new generation.

I think a lot more people will hear about him and and will learn about him," he said.
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force to celebrate 100th anniversary

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force will be celebrating its 100th Anniversary with events this weekend.

>>National Museum of U.S. Air Force to welcome F-15C Eagle to collection

It will host a special Plane Talks in honor of Armed Forces Day on Saturday, May 20, and the public opening of the museums 100th Anniversary exhibit on Sunday, according to a spokesperson.

100 Years of Heritage: National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, 1923-2023, will be held in the Cold War Art Gallery located in the third building. The exhibit will display the history of the museum.

On this day (Wednesday) in 1923, the museum at McCook Field was ready for visitors, the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force wrote on its Facebook page. Our exhibit celebrating this anniversary opens this Sunday!

The Dayton Convention & Visitors Bureau also wished the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force a happy birthday on social media.

Dayton-area Congressman Mike Turner also congratulated the Air Force Museum for 100 years.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force is not only a significant landmark in Dayton but a source of pride throughout the country, he wrote on his Facebook page. Since 1923, the museum has grown from a small engineering collection to the worlds largest military aviation museum, with more than 360 aircraft and missiles on display.




[Photo/VCG]

At a time when the European Union is urged to maintain an objective and correct perception of China, EU foreign ministers appear keen to back a plan to reduce the bloc's so-called economic dependence on China. The proposal also calls for a deeper focus on Beijing's role as a self-identified "political rival." According to foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, initial support was communicated in a meeting of top EU officials in Stockholm, part of a "recalibration" of EU strategy on China.



Brussels' fear of being drawn into the U.S.'s "zero-sum" competition with China is at the heart of the recalibration push and should warrant greater partnership with Beijing to advance a truly multipolar world order. China has consistently echoed Brussels' concerns over unchecked U.S.-China competition, including on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting last year. Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi underscored joint imperatives to oppose "zero-sum games" with EU foreign policy chief Borrell. Thus, Brussels should view China as a partner to strengthen the EU's strategic autonomy amid hardening competition with the U.S., rather than a rival subject to so-called "de-risking" in a range of economic fields.

The EU's proposed policy adjustment plan on China will also benefit from a drastic rethink of self-identified economic "dependency" on China. "Today, we have dependencies on China, with respect to the digital transformation, that is bigger than the ones we had with Russia," said Borrell at a press conference after the Stockholm meeting.

It is in the interests of EU ministers to interrogate the logic of "economic dependency," given China's firm opposition to any monopolization of power or resources, as reaffirmed through Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang's visit to Europe. The EU's two-decade strong comprehensive strategic partnership with China has scored substantial economic and trade benefits home, including a 96.6% year-on-year surge in EU investment in China last year. Both sides continue to invest in a working consensus to protect global industrial supply chain vulnerabilities, a key consideration for EU ministers that wish to protect rising global competition from "affecting all policies areas."

Hence, leaving the "rival-partner" dichotomy unresolved in the EU's policy plan risks understating the economic and strategic strengths of its relationship with China.

Recent visits by senior Chinese diplomats to Europe underscored the EU as a top priority in China's foreign policy. For instance, Foreign Minister Qin's high-level engagements in France gave hope to a working consensus on developing more resilient transnational supply chains that benefit Europe at a time of heightened economic uncertainty. At the same time, Qin proposed a three-fold proposal to drive China-Europe relations forward, calling for an "inclusive worldview," commitment to "a progressive view of history," and "upholding the perspective of mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation." Such principles have played a valuable role in cultivating strategic mutual trust through established mechanisms and can support EU ministers' efforts to maintain a healthy balance in its future relations with China.

The EU's policy document also assumes that "systemic rivalry" is likely to feature in almost all areas of engagement with China, ignoring the importance China associates with Europe to address major global issues. Common-ground ranges from resolving protracted conflict in Ukraine through Special Envoy Li Hui's visit to Europe to addressing barriers to free and open market investments in wide-ranging talks.

The EU's high command is prudent in its recommendation that governments should remain consistently engaged with Beijing amid a climate of intensifying competition with the U.S. Such prescriptions are a far better alternative to attracting what the policy plan describes as "essential" U.S. support to inform China-EU relations. Such a trajectory could challenge efforts to achieve a China-EU relationship that is "not targeted at, subjugated to or controlled by any third party," as affirmed by the Chinese Foreign Ministry recently. For the EU to maintain its principled opposition to any "zero-sum" contest, it should build on its stated desire to partner with Beijing on global issues and avoid misconstruing its partner as a political rival.

An EU approach calibrated in light of such wisdom stands the best chance to consolidate relations of mutual trust with an eye on the future.

Hannan R. Hussain is a foreign affairs commentator, author and recipient of the Fulbright Award. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/HannanRHussain.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
Jens Stoltenberg

When asked about the potential transfer of jets to Ukraine, Stoltenberg noted that some countries, such as Poland and Slovakia, have already provided the country with their Soviet-era MiG-29s.

Read also: Netherlands, France, UK support fighter coalition says Zelenskyy

We are constantly discussing whether modern Western fighters are needed  both within NATO and with Ukraine, the secretary said.

I expect this topic to be discussed at the NATO Defense Ministers meeting in June.

Read also: Poland has handed over nearly all of its MiG-29s, but cant provide F-16s, says Duda

Stoltenberg added that if a positive decision is made, Ukraine will require huge amounts of ammunition, spare parts, and round-the-clock technical maintenance  in addition to the aircraft themselves.

Ukrainian officials previously said that Kyiv hopes to receive between 40 and 50 F-16s from its allies and use them to form three to four squadrons to protect its skies from Russian attacks.

Read also: Ukraine's NATO membership to be decided after the war, UK defense secretary says

On May 16, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba announced that several countries are ready to transfer modern aircraft to Ukraine, as part of a broader international coalition. According to Kuleba, this will ultimately require the United States to sign off on the decision.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
When you consider North Carolinas new abortion law, whats striking isnt that it limits access to abortion from 20 weeks to 12 weeks, but that it allows abortion at all.

How is it that Republican lawmakers who see abortion as murder can allow it within the first 12 weeks of a pregnancy? A life cannot be a little less alive any more than a person can be a little bit pregnant.

Some who believe life begins at conception do not support abortion personally, but they believe the choice should be made by the pregnant individual prior to a fetus viability. Many supporters of tighter abortion restrictions think legislators should protect the fetus as soon as a pregnancy can be known.

The latter view is the conundrum at the center of the North Carolina law and all efforts to limit abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Those who oppose abortion as the unacceptable taking of a life at any stage have no room to endorse compromise. They have to support banning abortion.

Thats what Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson says. Hes the leading Republican candidate for governor in 2024. Appearing on Republican state Rep. Jeffrey McNeelys WSIC radio show, Robinson said, If I had all the power right now, say I was the governor with a willing legislature, we could pass a bill saying, You cant have an abortion in North Carolina for any reason. 

Republicans dont have the governorship, but they have a veto-proof majority. They didnt go Robinsons way because they dont have a willing legislature for his kind of clarity. House Bill 533 proposed a total abortion ban, but it never got a hearing. Instead, Republican lawmakers retreated into private meetings in which they weighed the viability of a fetus against their political vulnerability.

What emerged from this secretive process was a lengthy bill that contradicts the belief that inspired it. It says abortion is OK up to 12 weeks. After that, its an abomination. Republicans restricted abortion as far as they could without exposing themselves to defeat (a calculation they appear to have bungled).

In the end, the anti-abortion true believers, as opposed to the opportunists who exploit the anti-abortion vote, are left feeling little gained while abortion rights supporters feel stung by much lost.

Dr. William Pincus, president of North Carolina Right to Life, told me that the new law, created by a one-vote override of Gov. Roy Coopers veto, wont do much to end abortion. Ninety percent of abortions occur before 12 weeks, It really doesnt protect very many babies in North Carolina, he said. Many abortions that might have occurred after 12 weeks will just move up to before 12 weeks.

Pincus, an ear, nose and throat doctor in High Point, supports abortions in cases involving rape, incest, danger to the pregnant womans life or severe abnormalities in the fetus, or, as he prefers to say, the unborn child. Otherwise, he and his group want to see abortion banned.

With the passage of this bill, North Carolina has taken some steps to protect some babies, but theres still a lot more to do, he said.

Gillian Frank, a fellow at Princetons Center for Culture, Society and Religion, said abortion abolitionists are unlikely to achieve a ban, particularly in purple states such as North Carolina. The obstacle, he said, isnt pro-choice advocates but Republican voters who support abortion rights to varying degrees.

The North Carolina law, he said, appears to be an attempt to circumvent that obstacle. It appeases strong abortion opponents without alienating otherwise conservative voters who take a more moderate view on abortion access. But the political calculation that settles on a 12-week ban can lead to complications, Frank said.

When you get into second and trimester abortions, most of those pregnancies were wanted, he said, but some sort of tragedy, usually medical in nature, has occurred. He said the new law will end compounding medical emergencies. among people who wanted to have a child.

Republican lawmakers approved a law based on polls, not their supposed convictions. It exposes the phoniness of the whole exercise.

Associate opinion editor Ned Barnett can be reached at 919-404-7583, or nbarnett@ newsobserver.com
Most child care providers in North Carolina say it will be difficult to hire experienced staff or keep current workers if lawmakers dont include millions of dollars for the industry in the 2023-24 budget, according to a March survey.

Nearly all child care programs in the state  more than 4,400  have received North Carolina Child Care Stabilization Grants, made possible by funding from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, totaling $276.8 million. But that money is set to expire at the end of 2023, and so far, neither the House nor Senate budgets include new funding to offset when those grants end.

(They) invest shockingly little for our young children, their families and their educators, said Jenna Nelson, executive director of the NC Early Education Coalition, a statewide advocacy group.

To better understand staffing challenges providers will face when the money ends in December, the North Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Council conducted a state survey. Roughly 2,518 child care programs responded. More than eight in 10 programs who responded used the money to provide salary increases, first-time salaries for many family child care providers and/or bonuses, according to the survey. Additionally, about six in 10 programs used the money to hire more staff.

Rhonda Rivers, regional director of education for LeafSpring Schools of Charlotte, says pandemic grants allowed the school to keep teachers in place and classrooms opened. LeafSpring Schools serves more than 600 families and have about 130 staff members.

We used the grants to increase pay across the board (which was an absolute necessity simply to compete with area businesses including restaurants and retail that were all paying more than child care) and for hiring and retention bonuses, Rivers said.

A teaching assistant helps a child wash their hands before lunch at Lollipops daycare on Monday, April 10, 2023.

Pay raises are particularly important, child care programs in North Carolina say, because they have waitlists that average about 25 children. Retaining and increasing staff to open more classrooms after the pandemic has been a key, survey respondents said.

Extra funding allowed programs to provide a $2 to $3 hourly increase in wages and provide bonuses totaling between $2,000 and $3,500, according to the survey.

Additionally, more child care programs offered benefits after receiving Stabilization Grant funds such as mental health support, paid sick leave and health insurance. More than four in 10 of the programs noted they would be unlikely to maintain the increased benefits when the funding ends, according to the survey.

When the incentives end and we do not get further funding, I look for my staff to walk out the door because I will have to cut their pay, benefits, and bonuses, one survey respondent wrote. These young ladies are very tired and feel they should continue to receive these incentives. Its a different world out here from what we were dealing with before Covid.

Asked what could happen to their programs once stabilization funding ends, child care providers said staffing and affordability concerns could threaten their ability to operate. More than eight in 10 providers indicated they would not be able to maintain current salary levels or were uncertain if they could do so.

Our communities cannot afford for this to happen, Rivers said. Ending the financial support of the stabilization grants will make maintaining staff salaries very challenging. It would probably result in tuition increases for parents and tough financial decisions would have to be made in other areas.

Advocates are encouraging parents to reach out to North Carolina legislators.

Every legislator votes on bills and budgets that impact this child care, Nelson said.

The Charlotte Observer reached out to multiple lawmakers but none responded.
Nassau County Sheriffs Office is asking the community for information about a local scam artist.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Paul Arnett Rushing, the owner of Stateline Home Services, has a lengthy history of receiving payments for home projects and not performing the work or giving refunds to customers.

Rushing was recently arrested in Nassau County on multiple warrants out of Georgia for grand theft. He allegedly received over $9,000 for work that he never started.

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If anyone has fallen victim to Rushing or Stateline Home Services crimes, they are encouraged to call NCSO at 904-225-5174. You can also contact Detective R. Goethe directly at 904-548-4078 or rlgoethe@nassauso.com.

Read: Shooting investigation at University Park apartments affects bus traffic

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A 15-year-old is asking her school to apologize after she was suspended for recording her teacher saying the N-word in class

Empty classroom. Andrea Chu

A high schooler was suspended for recording her teacher saying the N-word in class.

Mary Walton was suspended from Glendale High School in Springfield, Missouri for three days.

School officials stand by their discipline of Walton, pointing to the student handbook for support.

A 15-year-old student at Glendale High School in Springfield, Missouri, is asking her school for an apology after officials suspended her for recording her teacher saying the N-word repeatedly in class on May 9.

Mary Walton was suspended for three days, from May 12 to May 16, after she recorded a 55-second video in which her geometry teacher said the N-word twice before realizing what the teen was doing and asking her to put her phone away, the Washington Post reported.

"We are asking for an apology and for the suspension to be expunged from Mary's record," Walton's lawyer, Natalie Hull, told Insider.

Walton's geometry teacher said the N-word multiple times in class

According to the Washington Post, Walton pulled out her phone and started recording because she thought her teacher's repeated use of a racial slur in class was wrong. The Post reported that the teacher, who has not been publicly identified, had already said the word multiple times before Walton started recording.

The teacher can also be heard trying to justify his use of the word, according to the Post, telling a student that although he doesn't like the word, it's still as derogatory when a Black person uses it to address another Black person. A student then responded that plantation owners used that word to address slaves, the Post reported.

The Post reported that the video shows him attempting to say the N-word again before a student cuts him off: "Don't say it right now as a teacher if you want to keep your job," the student said, according to the Post. "This isn't a threat."

"I'm not calling anyone a [N-word]," the teacher replied, according to the Post. "I can say the word."

The teacher then pointed at Walton and told her to put her phone away, the video reviewed by the Washington Post shows. When she refused, he told her to "go to the office," the Post reported.

Instead, Walton stayed in class and sent the video to her mom and a friend, asking for advice, the Washington Post reported. Thirty minutes later, the video had made it to social media, but Walton didn't post it and does not know who did.

Walton continued attending her classes for the rest of the day and over the next two days, the Post reported, as concerned parents contacted the school regarding the video, according to an email Grove sent to parents on May 9 that was shared with Insider.

The teacher was initially placed on administrative leave, according to the May 9 email from Groves, in which he also called the teacher's comments "inappropriate and inexcusable." But Groves on Monday announced that the teacher "is no longer employed by the district," according to a statement from the school shared with Insider.

"I don't know how much louder this has to get for Springfield to listen."

Walton's mother, Kate Welborn, isn't sure how much more they have to fight "for Springfield to listen," Hull told Insider.

"Language can be harmful, and Mary captured proof of her teacher, a person who is supposed to protect children, harming them through his use of a racial slur," Hull said in a news release, according to the Post. "If he had been hitting a student  or worse  would the school have reacted the same?"

"Even though Mary got in trouble, her mother believes this is frankly good trouble," Hull told the Post.

School officials stand by their discipline of Walton

School officials have stood by their choice to suspend Walton for three days, pointing to the student handbook, in a statement to Insider, that outlines consequences for students who use their cell phones inappropriately at school.

Officials are "confident that the district appropriately and promptly handled all matters related to what occurred at Glendale," a statement from Springdale Public Schools shared with Insider said. "We want our schools to be safe and welcoming learning environments. When students have concerns, they should follow the appropriate steps for reporting."

According to the student handbook, students are allowed to have cell phones in school "as long as they are not disruptive to the educational process or in violation of site use procedures." It states that students are prohibited from recording others on campus  including teachers  without their permission and that punishment for a first-time offender could range from a parent-teacher meeting to a three-day suspension.

Hull told the Post that the maximum punishment wasn't fair in Walton's case because officials never asked the student her side of the story and only spoke with her mother after they had punished her.

"This is the perfect opportunity for the school to show their students how to admit when they made a mistake and how to apologize for those mistakes," Hull told Insider.

"It would also be wonderful if the school looked at their policy because it does not allow for times like this  when indisputable video evidence could be essential to right a wrong."

Read the original article on Insider
Ron DeSantis at a bill signing

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Wednesday signed new laws targeting LGBTQ+ people, especially trans people. The Republican governor presented the bills as a pushback on extremism.

He signed the slate of anti-LGBTQ+ bills on the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia.

At a Christian school, he promised to make Florida a citadel of normalcy.

The bills signed are House Bill 1069, which legislatively expands the state's "don't say gay" law; Senate Bill 254, which bans gender-affirming care; House Bill 1521, which restricts what bathrooms transgender people can use; and House Bill 1423, which restricts drag shows.

One new law threatens business licenses for venues that allow minors into drag shows, while a second prohibits doctors from providing gender-affirming care to minors. Both had been carried in the Florida Legislature by Florida state Sen. Clay Yarborough and Florida state Rep. Randy Fine, both Republicans. The two laws go into effect immediately.

He also signed a bill extending the states controversial dont say gay law, which will now prohibit any classroom instruction regarding sexual orientation or gender identity through eighth grade. In that case, a DeSantis-named Board of Education has already gone even further, prohibiting those topics though high school graduation.

He also signed a bill segregating bathrooms in publicly owned buildings in the state of Florida.

The legislation also expands the ability for those outside of Florida schools to challenge books from appearing in classrooms or even remaining on library shelves. While creating an appeal process for putting materials back into circulation, it still pulls books immediately after objections claiming material to be politically controversial or pornographic.

The new law takes effect on July 1.

Fine, when he presented his anti-LGBTQ+ bills on the House floor, described transgender people in apocalyptic terms.

There is evil in this world, he said repeatedly, and we face it here today.

Fine notably has fought against local Pride festivals on Floridas Atlantic coast, and repeatedly alluded to his fight with Space Coast Pride. He tried unsuccessfully to shut that event down over the inclusion of a drag queen story time that event organizers invited families to attend.

Even before the drag show ban went into effect, it already shaped other events in the region. A Pride event in Port St. Lucie canceled a parade and restricted attendance to those 21 and older.

During this years legislative session, Fine supported the erasure of the LGBTQ+ community, implying children were recruited into queer identities.

If it means erasing a community because you have to target children  then, damn right, we ought to do it! Fine said in a committee meeting in April.

Yarborough was less invective when pushing the legislation. While both he and Fine denied the bill targeted only drag shows, it covers live adult performances that have even prosthetic breasts shown to the audience, and covers any sexually suggestive content.

Florida law already prohibits minors from going to strip shows with actual nudity.

Yarborough made clear on the Senate floor the bill could cover even live reenactments of The Rocky Horror Picture Show done in theaters, along with stage productions of Tootsie.

The GOP lawmakers denied the bill threatens the decision-making power of parents about whether children should be allowed to see drag performances. The bill does threaten business licenses and individual workers who allow children into venues.

Notably, the DeSantis administration earlier this year went after a hotels liquor license, even though culinary staff were simply catering A Drag Show Christmas event at a different venue.

Another law signed by DeSantis comes for any kind of gender-affirming care provided to minors, including puberty blockers and surgeries. The new legislation codifies restrictions already largely put in place by a DeSantis-appointed Board of Medicine.

The legislation could open the door to parents of transgender children facing child abuse charges.

While the legislature ultimately dropped House language that would bar insurance companies from covering such care even for adults, this legislation mirrors bills being enacted in Republican legislatures across the country. It opens the door for the state wading into family disputes about care when parents live in separate states.

The legislation also puts a new definition into state law of sex to say Florida only will recognize the gender assigned at birth for individuals.

Fine refused to recognize the term gender-affirming care during House debate, instead referencing puberty blockers as castration drugs.

While all medical associations fought against a ban on surgeries, DeSantis called such expert testimony rogue elements of the medical establishment.

This will permanently outlaw the mutilation of minors, DeSantis said of the law. It will outlaw the surgical procedures and experimental puberty blockers for minors and will also require any adults receiving the surgeries to be informed about the irreversible nature. and about the dangers of the procedures."

Gender-affirming medical care is safe. Major medical associations in the U.S. support such treatment for trans people, even transgender youth.

Lakey Love of the Florida Coalition for Transgender Liberation has described the legislation as a step toward genocide for transgender people. The refusal to recognize gender identities as valid in state law takes an enormous step toward erasure of trans identity altogether, and now threatens to criminalize parents providing the best care for children.

It also makes a third-degree felony out of providing care.

The law changes the definition of sex to deny that trans folx exist, they wrote in an action email.

These bills were among a wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation passed by Florida lawmakers this year. DeSantis has already signed a right to discriminate bill allowing medical professionals to deny care to LGBTQ+ people based on moral and religious beliefs.

DeSantis has just signed into law the largest slate of anti-LGBTQ bills in one legislative session in the states history, said Joe Saunders, senior political director of Equality Florida, in a statement. This is an all out attack on freedom. Free states dont strip parents of the right to make healthcare decisions for their children. Free states dont ban books, censor curriculum, or muzzle free speech. DeSantis doesnt see freedom as a value worth defending, he sees it as a campaign slogan in his bid for the White House. And he is setting freedom -- and Floridas reputation -- ablaze in his desperation to win the GOP nomination. The nation should be on high alert. We are all Floridians as DeSantis seeks to export this blueprint of authoritarianism to the rest of the country.
In this photo illustration, a World Health Organization logo

Credit - Getty ImagesSOPA Images/LightRocket

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended on May 18 that the next COVID-19 vaccines should no longer include the original SARS-CoV-2 viruswhich all existing vaccines currently doand instead contain a different version of the virus to better match circulating variants.

Currently, this means a version of the virus from the XBB.1 family, which is now responsible for most of the new COVID-19 infections around the world. The group that made the recommendation, called WHOs Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19 Vaccine Composition, suggested that the XBB.1.5 variant be included in the next vaccine.

WHO also recommended that the updated vaccine contain only an XBB variant, and not more than one version of the virus. While the advice isnt binding, it forms the foundation for decisions made by health officials for vaccines in their respective countries. Some public-health officials have been urging including at least two different virus strains in the next shot, since that increases the likelihood of matching whatever viruses might be circulating in the future. These experts have looked to influenza as a model; the annual flu shot targets four different strains of the virus to maximize the chances of protecting people against disease.

Read More: The Pandemic Didnt Really Change How Americans Think About Sickness

In explaining its recommendation, the WHO group noted that there are only small differences among the existing XBB variants, and that other formulations and/or platforms that achieve robust neutralizing antibody responses against XBB descendent lineages can be considered.

The most recent COVID-19 shot in the U.S. is a bivalent booster that targets the original version of SARS-CoV-2 and two Omicron variants: BA.4 and BA.5. While this shot and its predecessors continue to protect well against severe COVID-19, hospitalization, and death, they are less effective at blocking infection, since the antibodies they produce tend to wane after several months. Updating the COVID-19 vaccine is an important way to counter this waning effectiveness, but only if the strains in the vaccine match relatively well to whichever ones are causing infections. Targeting only one version of the virus could lower the chances that this coordination will happen.

The WHOs recommendation will likely be one piece of data that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)s vaccine experts consider when they meet in June to discuss which strains of the virus should be included in the next COVID-19 vaccine. The group is moving toward recommending a single COVID-19 shot once a year for most people, and additional shots for the elderly and those with weakened immune systems. In previous meetings, the FDA committee noted that the WHOs recommendation would be important to consider, as aligning vaccine guidelines around the world reduces confusion and increases the likelihood that people will get vaccinated.
U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba  who sailed through the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings last year en route to become the first Latina on the Fresno-based U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California  had a bumpier experience Wednesday morning in her effort to be confirmed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

De Alba was grilled by Republican Senators about her decision to allow Conrado Virgen Mendoza  who was entenced to 21 months for hiding his brother from police after Paulo Virgen Mendoza killed a Newman police officer during a December 2018 traffic stop  to remove one of two monitoring devises.

She was also questioned about giving a 66-month sentence to a Fresno man convicted of possession of child pornography when the guideline ranged from 78 to 97 months.

In both instances, the 44-year-old de Alba explained she followed federal guidelines and considered recommendations from prosecutors in making those decisions.

I am required to look at many factors anytime I impose a sentence, said de Alba, responding to questioning from Sen. Tom Cornyn, R-Texas. Im required to look at factors under 18 US Code Section 3005 53a, the Ninth Circuit as well as Supreme Court precedent.

Its also required that I look at, as you stated, the pre-sentence report. I also need to look at any requests from defense.

Committee Chair Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, noted that in the ankle-monitoring case involving Conrado Virgen Mendoza, the defendant was also wearing a GPS device managed by federal immigration officials.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Conrado, a Mexican citizen, had driven his brother through Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Merced counties in an effort to hide him from law officers and escape to Mexico to avoid capture. (Paulo was captured in Kern County days after the shooting death of Newman Police Cpl. Ronil Singh and later sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole).

He had every incentive not to stick around and get convicted, said Cruz. And yet, somewhat inexplicably, you granted the defendants motion to remove the GPS location monitoring device assigned by a prior judge that the defendant had previously worn for about four years.

Cruz also blasted de Alba for not holding a hearing in the case, but the judge said she had all of the papers that I needed to review and pointed out she has 1,156 cases on my docket.

Durbin pointed out that Conrado had lived in California for 22 years with his three children who were born in the U.S. He had continually complied with all conditions of release over a prolonged period of time and had never missed a court date, said Durbin.

De Alba expected to win confirmation

De Alba, who was a Fresno County Superior Court Judge before moving into the district court bench, was nominated for the Ninth Circuit in April by President Biden.

Despite the grilling by Cruz and other Republican senators, de Alba should advance for a full vote by the Senate, according to University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias, who follows judicial confirmation hearings.

She did well. She was clear and comprehensive; very articulate, said Tobias. They asked her some tough questions.

I dont think theres anyone that can satisfy Sen. Cruz and Sen. (Mike) Lee, and perhaps even Sen. (John) Kennedy, he said. I think she will be confirmed.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, did a solid job of introducing de Alba, said Tobias.

Shes in fine shape. She has all the qualities a judge should have: Hard working, good temperament, said Tobias.

In her introduction, de Alba said she went into law because one summer her mother never got paid despite assurances that she would get a paycheck next week.

At the end of the harvest, the rancher filed for bankruptcy.

That summer we went without (new) school clothes, said de Alba, who heard her mother crying in the bathroom. My poor brother had to go through the eighth grade with high-waters because he outgrew his pants.

Her mother, she said, did not have the means to drive to seek legal aid because living in South Dos Palos meant lack of transportation to a city like Fresno.

De Alba received her bachelor of arts and law degrees from UC Berkeley. She was an associate at Lang Richert & Patch (2007-13), and a partner at the firm (2013-18) before being serving on the Fresno County Superior Court (2018-22)..

Judge de Alba has more than proven herself to be a qualified jurist, continuing to demonstrate an expansive breadth of legal knowledge and an unwavering commitment to public service, said Padilla. She is dedicated, fair, and universally respected by her colleagues.
Paramount+

No two words have the capacity to inspire terror in parents quite like the words "gap" and "year", in that order. Given the freedom of a year abroad in a country far from watchful eyes, those once bouncing bundles of joy could and often do get up to all manner of mischief.

That is exactly what unfolds in No Escape, when best friends Lana (Abigail Lawrie) and Kitty (Rhianne Barreto) board a one-way flight to the Philippines, albeit with monkey business behind them in London as well as in front of them in Manila.

Armed with stolen credit cards and a perfectly forged signature, the pair quickly tick off the gap-year delights: roof-top bars, casual sex, beachside raves, then add in a bit of fraud and petty theft. But there is more to this than meets the eye.

The new Paramount+ drama opens in the style of many thrillers these days, with a mysterious flash-forward  a yacht aimlessly floats in the coral blue waters of the Philippine Sea, following a distress call to shore.

The police who come upon the modern-day Mary Celeste, adrift and deserted, find nothing but a creepy anguished message  "I confess"  written in what is a toss-up between ketchup and blood, or an unlikely mixture of the two.

When the thriller flashes back six weeks, we see how Lana and Kitty came to be on said party yacht The Blue and meet its eccentric crew of wayfaring misfits.

Once the two Brits abroad agree to stay the course on the creaky yacht, The White Lotus-style tale of insecurities and burgeoning sexual tension unfolds in its claustrophobic cabins, with newcomers Kitty and Lana taking up the mantle of Sicilian double act Lucia and Mia.

Paramount+

They're told by the domineering unofficial captain Aaron (Jay Ryan)  who has taken a hiatus from the domesticity of his wife and child to sail the seas of south-east Asia  that there is absolutely, positively, no sex between the crew members of his majestic liner.

Meaning there absolutely, positively, will be sex had between the crew members.

Amid the bubbling chemistry between Lana, Kitty and their cabin cronies, the drama of No Escape gets going when they come across an abandoned ship at night. The crew decide to make off with a smells-like-drug-money bundle of cash stored on board and their seafaring idyll goes pear-shaped.

Paramount+

No Escape may not boast the dark satire or build the tension quite as exquisitely as Mike White's powder-keg hotel sojourns, but that's a tall bar to clear. Yet just as in White Lotus, the characters that gather as part of this wandering motley crew turn out to be harbouring secrets that start to unravel.

While the flash-forward is a reminder that this drama is leading nowhere good, the pace of the show is slightly hampered by the multiple timelines.

We see Lana under interrogation in Australia, once The Blue has been discovered. When the detectives play her Kitty's distress call from the yacht, she frets for her friend behind a poker face claiming to know nothing of the deserted vessel.

Paramount+

While we understand Lana and Kitty are besties, because they say as much, we're not shown much evidence beyond that. When we get a greater understanding of each  quiet and calculating Lana, brash and hard-partying Kitty  you wonder if they're the type of friends that met as tots at school and, despite becoming radically different people, never had the nerve to sever ties.

And now they're trauma-bonded over whatever happened in London and on The Blue.

Much like The Beach before it, the drama of No Escape is occasionally upstaged by the lush backdrop of Thailand, where it was shot. Mesmerising offshore rock formations and characters lolling in hammocks half asleep draw the eye away from the principal drama, leaving you to wonder whether the intrigue and mistrust aboard The Blue could really be that bad.

The needle drops are another high point, with Brit musicians Mahalia and Joy Crookes bringing a fresh party feel, while also reminding us of whatever it is Lana and Kitty are on the run from.

That urge to bring each of the questions left up in the air plummeting back down to sea level is enough reason to binge all seven episodes.

All episodes of No Escape are now available to stream on Paramount+.





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The Black Sea Grain Initiative on exporting foodstuffs from Ukraine was unblocked, and it continues to be valid till July 18, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Wednesday.

"The world will continue to receive Ukrainian products thanks to the efforts of our partners under the agreement --Turkiye and the UN," Kubrakov wrote on Facebook.

Ukraine has exported 30.4 million tons of foodstuffs since the deal came into effect on Aug.1, 2022, Kubrakov said.

Welcoming the resumption of the initiative, the official noted that certain issues should be resolved for its sustainable functioning.

On July 22, 2022, Ukraine and Russia separately signed a document in Istanbul with Turkiye and the United Nations to ensure supplies of grain and other agricultural products to global markets through the Black Sea amid the Russia-Ukraine armed conflict.

Initially in effect for 120 days, the deal was extended in November 2022 and in March 2023.
Pet owners paying for Advantage II and K9 Advantix II topical flea-and-tick treatments could have saved hundreds of dollars by now had they switched to the generic versions that first hit the market six years ago.

But first, they would have had to find them.

Cheaper equivalents for the blockbuster brands, which both kill and repel pests, have quietly eluded consumers for years. Even today, theyre nowhere to be found at many of the biggest pet specialty stores, like PetSmart or Petco. And theyre absent from popular online pet pharmacies like Chewy.com or PetMed Express.

Their elusiveness is not by accident, according to a federal lawsuit by one of the generics makers, but a scheme by the brand-name products company to block competition.

Filed in the U.S. District Court in Northern California, the lawsuit by Tevra Brands offers a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse of the multibillion-dollar pet medication market, where a few major companies have a stranglehold on pricing. Tevras suit claims it lost tens of millions of dollars because Bayer Animal Health, a former subsidiary of the German pharmaceutical giant, conspired to maintain its monopoly over the treatment it created.

Tevra sells its generic topical treatments for cats and dogs on its website, on Amazon and elsewhere, but the company argues that Bayer prevented it from reaching pet owners where theyre most likely to shop and depriving them of a better deal.

Its line includes TevraPet Activate II for dogs and ActiSpot II for cats, as well as Vetality Avantect II for dogs and Advotect II for cats. Its ActiSpot II six-dose treatment for large cats cost $30 on Amazon.com, as of May 15. The brand-name equivalent, Advantage II for cats, cost more than twice as much  $64  on Chewy.com.

Tevra's ActiSpot II 6-dose treatment for large cats cost $30 on Amazon.com, as of May 15. The brand-name equivalent, Advantage II for cats, cost more than twice as much  $64  on Chewy.com.

Unlike the human pharmaceutical industry which abounds in cheap alternatives once brand-name patent protection expires, the pet med market offers relatively few choices.

Just 14% of federally approved animal drugs have a generic version, according to the Generic Animal Drug Alliance. Meanwhile, generics in human health care last year accounted for 9 out of 10 filled prescriptions, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Among the many reasons for the difference is that human health insurance requires generic drug substitution whenever possible, which has spurred the development and availability of low-cost alternatives. Pet insurance is nowhere near as widespread or influential.

That allows pioneer drug companies  those that own the brand-name or patented versions  to dominate much of the pet medication market. And industry insiders have long decried their outsize leverage through exclusivity agreements.

Such agreements block vendors  including pet stores, online pharmacies and wholesale distributors that supply retailers and veterinarians  from selling products that directly compete with their brand-name goods.

Tied to those deals are often lucrative financial incentives such as discounts and rebates that vendors can ill afford to turn down, especially if their rivals are taking advantage of them.

Its price-fixing in its purest form

Exclusive dealing is a common and legal practice in many industries, according to the Federal Trade Commission, which enforces consumer protection laws. The practice can encourage distributors and retailers to specialize in specific products and offer consumers related services and amenities.

When big companies use them to choke rivals out of the market, however, the deals become unlawful and the FTC can intervene.

The agency has known about the dubious use of exclusivity deals in the pet medication market since at least 2012; industry stakeholders complained about it during a public workshop the FTC hosted that year to examine competition and consumer protection issues in the pet medications industry.

A representative of the Generic Animal Drug Alliance told the agency she knew of at least two large drug companies whose agreements banned national distributors from carrying the generic versions, or any similar versions, of their brand-name products.

The alliances then-chairperson, Jennifer S. Johansson, said in a statement sent to the FTC that such deals limit the availability of generic treatments and drive up consumer prices. She didnt name any companies.

An excerpt from a letter the Generic Animal Drug Alliance sent to the Federal Trade Commission ahead of the FTC's 2012 workshop about competition in the pet medications industry.

In an email to USA TODAY, Vicky Graham, a spokeswoman for the FTC declined to comment on whether the agency investigated any such complaints raised during or after the workshop. It appears, though, the FTC took no action; it deemed the evidence and effects of the agreements presented at the workshop contradictory, according to a staff summary report.

The report was published in 2015, just as Tevra Brands was being formed. Two years later, the Omaha, Nebraska-based startup says it learned for itself the effects of the agreements.

Its price-fixing in its purest form, Tevra said in its complaint against Bayer, which it initially filed in 2019 and has amended twice. The only losers in the deal were consumers who were forced to pay higher prices, generic manufacturers such as Tevra that were foreclosed from competition, and the rule of law as enshrined in the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act.

The Sherman Act prohibits actual or attempted monopolization, as well as any contracts and conspiracies that result in the unreasonable restraint of trade. The Clayton Act bans certain discriminatory prices or services between merchants, as well as mergers and acquisitions that restrict competition.

Tevra claimed in its lawsuit that Bayers scheme cost it more than $76 million in net profits that it would have earned on the sale of those products from 2017 through 2021.

Bayer denied Tevras allegations in court filings. It said Tevra failed to make a case that Bayer intended to, or even succeeded in, blocking generics from the market. Bayer claimed that its agreements with distributors and retailers were legal and provided only modest incentives for exclusivity but did not require it.

Even if the deals blocked Tevras generics from the online and brick-and-mortar pet specialty stores  which Bayer denied  Bayer said Tevra could still sell elsewhere, including directly to consumers on websites like Amazon, or through veterinarians.

Tevra Brands alleged in a lawsuit that Bayer Animal Health blocked Tevra's generic version of the popular K9 Advantix II and Advantage II flea-and-tick treatments from major retail and online stores. A display of flea-and-tick treatments at a major pet specialty store in May 2023 does not feature Tevra's generic products.

But Tevra said in its lawsuit that it does not market its over-the-counter generics to veterinarians, most of whom prefer private-label brands. And its lack of name recognition makes direct-to-consumer sales difficult. Without access to the biggest pet retailers, the lawsuit said, Tevra's financial aspirations were dashed.

Bayer sold its entire animal health division in 2020 to Elanco, an animal health business spun off from pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co., for $7.6 billion. Although Elanco is not named as a party in the lawsuit, it is now responsible for defending the case. It said in its latest Securities and Exchange Commission report in March that it intends to defend our position vigorously.

USA TODAY asked Elanco if the company has maintained any exclusivity agreements in effect at the time of the acquisition, but Colleen Dekker, a spokeswoman declined to comment, citing pending litigation. Elancos attorneys did not respond to requests for comments.

Bayers parent company, Bayer AG, is no longer a party in the case, nor is its Bayer Healthcare subsidiary, both of which initially were named as defendants, along with its former animal health division. Bayer AG spokesman Philipp Blank had no comment other than to note the companys lack of involvement.

Tevra did not respond to multiple requests for comment. A spokeswoman for the Polsinelli Law Firm, which represents Tevra, said attorneys there are unable to discuss the lawsuit.

The case, which has survived several motions to dismiss, is still in the discovery and deposition stages. It could go to trial as early as July 2024.

If I lose Bayer, Ill get fired

Even before it won federal approval to sell its line of generics in May 2017, Tevra had hired a sales team to pitch it to major pet product distributors, retailers and e-pharmacies for pets.

Tevra had expected to sell nearly $10 million of the topicals the first year and projected steady annual sales revenues of nearly $30 million by 2019. Instead, it sold less than $600,000 worth in the first year as, one by one, distributors and retailers turned the company down, citing the no generics agreements with Bayer, its lawsuit claims.

That included at least two major national distributors: Veterinary Service and Animal Supply Company.

In March 2017, according to the lawsuit, a Veterinary Service representative told a Tevra salesperson they werent sure whether the Bayer agreement allowed them to purchase another product made with imidacloprid and would have to find out. Imidacloprid, an insecticide, is the key ingredient in both the brand name and generic versions of the flea and tick treatment.

Ultimately, the company chose not to purchase Tevras topicals.

Animal Supply Company was even more explicit when its agent told a Tevra salesperson in March 2021 that they could not purchase any products with Imidacloprid from Tevra because of an agreement with Bayer, and added If I lose Bayer, Ill get fired, according to the lawsuit.

An excerpt from Tevra Brand's second amended complaint against Bayer Animal Health.

Similar statements were made by representatives of PetMed Express, which owns 1-800-PetMeds; Drs. Foster & Smith, which is now Petco.com; and Chewy.com, the lawsuit said.

A representative of Chewy.com told Tevra if they bought its imidacloprid generics, theyd forfeit a huge rebate from Bayer.

Without the rebate, the lawsuit said, Chewy.com, would lose $3 million dollars in net margin taking into account the reduced Bayer rebate vs. what they thought they would make selling Tevras imidacloprid products.

At least one national pet retail chain that bought Tevras products still got discounts from Bayer by agreeing not to say the generics compared to the brand name versions in store displays or on websites and advertisements, the lawsuit said. The discount applied not just to the spot-on treatments, but an entire bundle of Bayer products, including the popular Seresto flea-and-tick collar.

This restriction severely handicapped the sale of the generic Imidacloprid topical at Pet Supplies Plus, Tevra said in its lawsuit.

In court filings, defendants dispute Tevras allegations that Bayer had a no generics agreement with retailers or that it used discounts to block generic competition.

Bayers marketing efforts in no way point to the existence of an exclusive dealing arrangement, much less the who, what, where, and when of an extra-contractual conspiracy, defendants said in a 2021 motion to dismiss the case. They described Bayers purchase agreements with retailers as being of short duration and easy terminability.

USA TODAY reached out to the vendors cited in the lawsuit for comment. Petco.com and Chewy.com did not respond; PetMed and Animal Supply declined to comment.

Loyal Burns, chief operating officer at Veterinary Service, said he doesn't recall Tevra Brands pitching its products and denied that his company ever had a no generics" agreement with Bayer.

Flea-and-tick products market grows as Americans spend more on pets

More Americans own pets than at any time in recent history, and more of them treat their fur babies like members of the family. Nothings too good for Fluffy and Fido and, last year alone, we collectively spent $137 billion on them  from pet food and supplies to boarding and veterinary care.

Thats more than double spending from a decade ago.

A sizable chunk went toward flea-and-tick treatments, according to the 2023-2024 American Pet Products Associations National Pet Owners Survey. Roughly 6 in 10 dog owners use some form of flea-and-tick treatment, ranging from collars and shampoos to pills or spot-ons, for which they spent an average of $92 in the past year, the survey said.

Usage was less common among cat owners  about 4 in 10 collectively spent an average of $76 over the same timeframe.

Those numbers have climbed from the groups previous survey. And theres no slow down in sight, especially as veterinarians and public health officials push for more pets to use them.

"Preventing tick bites on people and pets is a critical issue, said tick expert Thomas Mather, a professor of public health entomology at the University of Rhode Island. Mather added that protecting pets also protects humans from the many diseases these pests can carry.

But consumer surveys show that cost is the top reason people dont protect their pets from fleas and ticks, Mather said. And cost can vary significantly depending on how the products are marketed and where theyre sold.

Companies typically develop different lines of the same product, each with a different price: a generic line that offers the best value; a brand-name line thats modestly priced; and an exclusive veterinary line thats more expensive, according to the lawsuit and industry experts.

Novartis said its generic topical was blocked, too

Veterinarians have long relied on product sales for a significant chunk of income, and for many years, they were often the sole supplier of such treatments. Vets used to be able to mark up prices by as much as 100%, said John Volk, a senior consultant for Brakke Consulting focusing on the animal health industry.

Online and retail competition has cut into that markup, though. The industry standard for flea-and tick-treatments today is about 65%, according to the American Animal Hospital Association.

Most people, Mather said, "want to buy the less expensive product they think is the same."

But while generics offer the best bang for the buck, exclusivity deals have interfered with their widespread availability. Even big pharmaceutical firms have been thwarted in efforts to get their generics to the masses.

Novartis, itself a major drug company, couldnt overcome the exclusivity deals it blamed for dooming one of its generic pet medications, its then-Animal Health Division Vice President Clinton Vranian said at the 2012 FTC workshop.

Vranian, who did not name the branded product or its generic equivalent, said the generic was more effective than the brand name version and well-received by veterinarians, but distributors wouldnt touch it.

Novartis achieved just 1%-2% market penetration in the drugs launch, Vranian said.

Eli Lilly and Co., the pharmaceutical giant that used to own Elanco, acquired Novartis in 2015.

Elancos spokeswoman at the time revealed the generic product as Parastar Plus, a flea-and-tick treatment that directly competed with the brand name version, Frontline, then owned by Merial, according to a story by VIN News Service, which serves the veterinary industry.

The spokeswoman, Christina Diane Gaines, told the news service that Elanco itself does not use blocking agreements.

Elanco believes competition drives innovation in the industry, which results in greater customer benefit, the article quotes Gaines as saying. Our product strategy is focused on investing in innovation over restrictive contracts.

Elancos current spokeswoman, Colleen Dekker, declined to answer a question from USA TODAY about whether the company still eschews such agreements.

Because this is part of pending litigation, Dekker said, we dont have any further comment beyond whats in our legal documentation.

Generics give consumers lower prices and more choices

Not all flea-and-tick treatments are the same.

Products like Frontline Plus, whose active ingredient is fipronil, are effective at killing fleas, ticks and lice only after theyve bitten pets. Treatments made with imidacloprid, like K9 Advantix II, not only kill, but repel the parasites, making them more effective at preventing the spread of flea-and-tick-borne diseases.

By the time Tevra came along, the market for fipronil-based topical treatments was saturated. Frontline, first introduced in 1997, faced a host of generic competition starting in 2011 and, by 2018, had lost more than half its market share, according to Tevras lawsuit.

The results of generic Fipronil topicals entering the separate market for Fipronil topicals have been more competition against Frontline, lower prices, and more choices for retailers and consumers in that market, Tevras lawsuit said.

Tevra decided to introduce its own line of fipronil-based generic topicals, which includes Vetality Firstect Plus and TevraPet FirstAct Plus, from which it anticipated modest revenues. But, according to the lawsuit, it believed its biggest moneymaker would be in the imidacloprid market, where, at the time of the companys founding, only one line of treatments was available: Bayers.

Tevra hoped to capture a large chunk of the untapped market  with earnings potentials 10 times greater than that of its fipronil line  by being one of the first to roll out a generic equivalent.

Tevra Brands projected earning millions of dollars from sales of its fipronil and imidacloprid topical flea-and-tick treatments, according to this chart in its lawsuit against Bayer Animal Health.

When another company with the same plan, CAP IM Supply, introduced its generic line a few months before Tevra, in January 2017, Bayer sued for patent infringement. The parties settled two years later.

As part of that settlement, CAP IM Supply had to pay Bayer royalties on its generic products, which allowed Bayer to maintain a monopoly of the imidacloprid-based topical flea-and-tick market, Tevras lawsuit said, since it earned money from both its brand-name line and the generic equivalent.

Because Tevras formulation differs from the patented version, the lawsuit said, it does not infringe on Bayers patents.

How the Brown Shoe case factors into flea-and-tick treatments

The outcome of the case likely will hinge on which sides definition of the relevant market prevails, said R. Mark McCareins, a clinical professor at Northwestern Universitys Kellogg School of Management who spent three decades litigating antitrust cases for a global law firm.

Tevras lawsuit defined the relevant market as one that includes only topical, squeeze-on flea-and-tick treatments whose active ingredient is imidacloprid.

Several product lines fit that definition, most notably: Bayers brand-name Advantage and Advantix series, now owned by Elanco; the generic Advecta and PetLock series for which CAP IM Supply pays royalties; and Tevras Activate, ActiSpot, Avantect and Advotect products, which have struggled to gain a foothold.

Bayer made roughly 85% of all sales in that market in 2018 and earned patent license royalties for most of the other 15%, Tevra said in its lawsuit, arguing that Bayer effectively had monopolized the market.

Other generic imidacloprid topicals also are now on the market, but are equally absent from major pet specialty stores and online pharmacies. They include, PetArmor Max, Adventure Plus for Dogs and Amazon Basics Flea, Tick & Mosquito Topical.

But Bayer argued the market encompasses all flea-and-tick treatments regardless of insecticide or delivery method. That includes fipronil topicals like Frontline, as well as shampoos and collars, Bayer said.

In that case, Bayer said, the brand name Advantage and Advantix products represent a fraction of the market and its contractual agreements did nothing to block Tevra from fairly competing.

Courts determine a products relevant market based on which other products consumers would reasonably consider a substitute for it. And within that market may exist separate submarkets, which courts determine by considering things such as the products peculiar characteristics and uses, unique production facilities, distinct customers, distinct prices, sensitivity to price changes, and specialized vendors, according to the landmark antitrust case, Brown Shoe v. United States.

The Brown Shoe case, in which the government sought to block the merger of two of the nations then-biggest shoe manufacturers and retailers, set the standard for this process more than 60 years ago and is still used today.

Both sides cited Brown Shoe in various court filings.

If Bayer is able to convince the court that its broader market definition conforms better to the legal requirements  set forth first before (the U.S. Supreme Court) in a case called Brown Shoe in 1962  then Bayer is a likely winner in the case, McCareins said. Alternatively, through the same type of evidence, if the plaintiff prevails in its narrow market definition, then the odds shift in its favor.

Emily Le Coz is a reporter on the USA TODAY investigations team. She can be reached at elecoz@usatoday.com or @emily_lecoz. Jonathan Hettinger is a reporter with Investigate Midwest (previously The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting), an independent, nonprofit newsroom focused on exposing dangerous and costly practices of influential agricultural corporations and institutions.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cheap flea and tick products elusive? Lawsuit claims it's intentional.
Jeff McNeely and Abraham Jones (North Carolina General Assembly)

A Republican lawmaker in the North Carolina statehouse has apologised after questioning whether one of his Black Democratic colleagues in the legislature was only admitted to Harvard due to his race.

It was an appalling moment that occurred during official proceedings and led to the white Republican who made the remarks, Jeff McNeely, walking them back only a few hours later.

The remarks in question were directed at state Rep Abraham Jones, a Democrat who has represented Wake County, North Carolina, since 2021. Mr Jones is a graduate of both Harvards undergraduate program as well as the universitys law school.

"Would you have not been able to achieve these if you were not an athlete or a minority?" Mr McNeely asked Mr Jones on Wednesday.

Mr Jones responded by noting his class rank at Harvard, the second-highest out of five, before commenting calmly in response: I earned my place, and I did well.

VIDEO: Heres the exchange between Republican Rep. Jeff McNeely and Democratic Rep. Abe Jones of Wake County during school choice bill debate > #ncpol pic.twitter.com/fsr33xq602  Bryan Anderson (@BryanRAnderson) May 17, 2023

Mr McNeely was reportedly suspended from speaking further during the proceedings at hand and later issued an apology.

I respect Representative Jones. I think hes a great legislator. I think hes a great man. What I tried to ask or say did not come out right. That happens a lot, and I apologize, said Mr McNeely, according to statehouse reporter Bryan Anderson.

North Carolinas legislature is home to a supermajority of Republican lawmakers, thanks to a recent surprise defection of a Democratic lawmaker who blamed the mistreatment supposedly coming from her colleagues for her shift in ideology.

But the state also is presided over by a Democratic governor and is often a purple state in presidential elections.

Mr McNeelys statements were condemned by Democrats in the state legislature, including Mr Jones himself who described the thinly-veiled racial aspect of the encounter in his statement.

JUST IN: In statement, Rep. Jones tells me he has accepted Rep. McNeely's apology, but will let his colleague's conduct and statement speak for itself. He says the "thinly-veiled racial aspect of the encounter is inexcusable." #ncpol

Story updated here --> https://t.co/lolus3DeYD pic.twitter.com/qLfsv4b60e  Bryan Anderson (@BryanRAnderson) May 17, 2023

He added separately: I worked hard to get where I am today. It is disappointing that another member of our chamber would imply that I have been successful simply because of the color of my skin, or because I am an athlete. I appreciate the member apologizing for his remarks.
This North Texas students artwork about family and culture could get featured on Google

A North Texas resident is the only Texan finalist for Googles 15th annual Doodle for Google contest.

Doodle for Google is a competition where contestants draw the search engine home page following a theme.

This years theme was I am grateful for... and students from kindergarten through 12th grade were invited to compete.

Grand Prairie resident Haley Ma is one of the 55 state and territory winners for this years contest. Doodle for Google selected the winners from thousands of submissions.

Mas artwork shows an Asian American family at a kitchen counter preparing Lao lotus flower cookies together. A pet dog is seen jumping up to grab a cookie from one of the girls hands.

In her prompt response, Ma said she is grateful for homemade dishes that remind her to cherish her culture and time spent with family.

One of my favorite dishes are Lao lotus flower cookies, and whenever Im away from home, Im sure Ill remember the hectic but heartwarming process of baking them, Ma said in her prompt response.

Texans can vote for Ma to become one of the five national finalists starting Thursday. Votes can be cast on the Doodle for Google website and one winner will be selected out of the five finalists.
Four former mall security guards charged in the death of McKenzie Cochran are headed to trial nearly 10 years later, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's Office announced on Wednesday.

Cochran, of Ferndale, was 25 at the time of his death in January 2014. He was pinned to the floor and pepper-sprayed by Lucius Hamilton, John Seiberling, Gaven King, Aaron Maree and a fifth security guard, who passed away in 2017. Once handcuffed, Cochran was unresponsive; an autopsy showed the cause of death was compression asphyxiation that prevented him from breathing.

McKenzie Cochran, 25, of Ferndale, died in 2014 after three security officers held him to the ground at Northland Mall. No charges were filed. HIs family hopes the George Floyd protests help reopen his case.

The incident took place at the now-closed Northland Center mall in Southfield after a jewelry store owner reported that Cochran made threats.

More: 4 security guards charged in 2014 'I can't breathe' death at Northland Mall

The former security guards were each charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter in 2021. But after further reviewing the case, Nessel said that justice would require criminal charges and a trial.

"Video evidence shows Cochran remained face down with his arms under his body while the five security guards restrained him," according to the news release. "Witnesses at the mall, and subsequent interviews with the guards involved, reported hearing Cochran say he couldnt breathe during the restraint."

On Wednesday, Hamilton, Seiberling, King, and Maree were bound over and appeared before Judge Shelia Johnson in the 46th District Court in Southfield.

More: Detroit City Council moves ahead with proposing gun-free zones, if state agrees

I am grateful for the efforts of the family of McKenzie Cochran, and the diligent work of the prosecutors in my department, to bring this case to trial despite the intervening years, Nessel said.

Charges were not initially pursued in 2014 because former Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper declined to bring criminal charges against any of the involved guards, and said there was no intention to kill.

"In early 2020, Cochrans family requested the Oakland County Prosecutors Office take a second look at the case who then referred it to the Department of Attorney General," stated the release. "Hamilton, Seiberling, King, and Maree will appear next before the Oakland County Circuit Court for a pre-trial conference at a date not yet determined.

Contact Nour Rahal: nrahal@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Security guards charged in 2014 death of McKenzie Cochran bound over
An area school district will be holding an open house for a soon-to-be-closed elementary school.

>>RELATED: Northmont school board votes to close elementary school, more cuts expected

The Northmont City School District will be holding the open house at Englewood Elementary School Thursday from 4 p.m. until 6:30 p.m.

It will take place at the 700 block of Albert Street, the district announced on social media.

Visitors will be able to walk through the building and the district will have food available.

News Center 7 previously reported the school board voted unanimously to close the school after voters rejected a school levy.

The district also approved nine staff cuts and the superintendent also said during the meeting up to 30 positions could be cut.




Norway to supply Ukraine with 8 rocket artillery systems

Ben Wallace and Bjrn Arild Gram

According to the message, the decision was made following Bjrn Arild Gram meeting with his UK counterpart, Ben Wallace.

Read also: Shmyhal and Wallace visit Ukrainian troops training in UK

Additionally, Norway will double the number of military instructors training Ukrainian soldiers in the UK's Operation Interflex this summer.

Gram said that Norway and the UK are trying to "maximize efforts" to deliver weaponry and ammunition to Ukraine.

Read also: Norway allocates over EUR 300 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine

In February, Norway approved a 7.5 billion aid package to Ukraine over the next five years.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ron DeSantis signed a sweeping package of bills targeting transgender people, in whats been described as the most impactful series of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in state history.

The bills  which restrict gender-affirming care for minors, threaten drag shows, forbid people from using bathrooms that match their gender identity, and prevent people from using their chosen pronouns at schools  were sharply criticised by LBGTQ+ advocates, and are out of step with established procedures for trans people back by major medical organisations like the American Medical Association.

Former Florida state representative Carlos Guillermo Smith, the first openly LGBTQ+ Latino elected to the state legislature, wrote on Twitter the bills are revoking our freedoms and ruining peoples lives in his quest for political power.

We will NOT be erased, he added. We will RESIST. We will FIGHT BACK. We will proudly RAISE OUR FLAGS. We will WIN.

State representative Anna V Eskamani accused the Republican governor, who is widely thought to be running for president in 2024, of pushing an extreme agenda that is fueled by disinformation, isolating already marginalised people.

In Florida, diversity is our strength  not a weakness or something to demonize and be afraid of, she wrote in a statement on Twitter on Wednesday.

The governor signed the bills on Wednesday at a campaign-style event at an evangelical school in Tampa, where he tossed Sharpies into the crowd and stood before a banner that read, Let Kids Be Kids.

We are going to remain a refuge of sanity and a citadel of normalcy, and kids should have an upbringing that reflects that, Mr DeSantis said.

Lambda Legal, which advocates on behalf of LBGTQ+ people, said in a statement to The Independent that the bills showed a callous disregard for LGBTQ+ Floridians and, in particular, trans youth by facilitating homophobia and transphobia and exposing this most vulnerable population to discrimination, harassment, and abuse.

The bills backed by the Republican governor include restrictions on gender-affirming treatments for minors like puberty blockers and sex reassignment surgery.

One provision classifies such care, which is supported by the medical establishment, typically for older teens, as a form of child abuse that can lead to children temporarily being taken away from their families.

They have cloaked themselves in being the party of less government and parental rights, and what were seeing now is the total opposite, Democratic state senator Shevrin Jones, who is gay, told CNN. Every other parent has the right to raise their child the way that they want to as long as your child is not gay, trans, bisexual. Thats freedom for some parents but not for all parents.

Others effectively legislate away the concept of being transgender altogether, including a bill forbidding trans people from using bathrooms or changing rooms that match their gender identity, and another law that requires schools to hold that a persons sex is an immutable biological trait and forbids faculty and students from using their chosen pronouns.

The Florida legislation is part of a larger trend, where Republican leaders have made cracking down on LGBTQ+ and in particular trans people a central part of their platform.

According to the Human Rights Campaign, nearly a third of transgender youth in the US live in states that have passed bans on the kind of gender-affirming care thats often a lifeline for young people.
Notice a hazy orange sunrise? You guessed it, its from our friends to the north

Much of Washington awoke to a hazy sunrise Wednesday, tinted orange by smoke from wildfires in western Montana and the Canadian province of Alberta.

Smoke could continue to drift across the state, but it is expected to stay high in the sky and air quality should remain good near the ground, a Northwest Clean Air Agency spokesman told McClatchy.

Were observing hazy skies over the region this morning as smoke from wildfires in Alberta usher into the area. Much of it looks to remain aloft and away from the surface, but itll continue to be monitored, meteorologist Maddie Kristell of the National Weather Service in Seattle said in the online forecast discussion.

Air-quality readings around the state were mostly good on Wednesday, with a few moderate readings at the state Department of Ecology website.

Mostly sunny and warm conditions during the day will allow for good smoke dispersion to help to keep air quality conditions in the good category, Seth Preston of the Northwest Clean AIr Agency told McClatchy in a text message.

Forecast models for both FireSmoke Canada and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show high-level smoke drifting across Washington state for the next several days.

Air quality is expected to remain good near the ground, according to current forecasts.
Nuclear repository site near Carlsbad on track for most waste shipments since 2014 incident

This year could see the most nuclear waste brought to the federal repository near Carlsbad since an accidental radiological release in 2014 contaminated portions of the facility and led to its closure for three years.

The incident was caused by a mispackaged drum of waste from Los Alamos National Laboratory, which ruptured in the underground disposal area of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, releasing radioactive materials into the facility.

That meant WIPP was closed to waste shipments for three years as workers cleaned up the contamination and established stronger safety protocols, reopening in 2017.

More: Holtec licensed to store nuke waste in New Mexico despite outcry from elected officials

Since then, shipments of TRU waste were brought to WIPP for disposal from U.S. Department of Energy facilities and cleanup sites throughout the U.S., buried 2,000 feet underground at WIPP in an underground salt deposit.

After the DOE hired a new contractor Salado Isolation Mining Contractors (SIMCO) to run daily operations at the facility, President Ken Harrawood set a goal of 400 shipments by the end of the year.

That would be the most annual shipments since the 2014 incident, with WIPP already taking in 146 shipments through May 15, records show.

More: Nuclear waste license cheered by southeast New Mexico leaders

That total meant there were roughly 35 shipments per month in the first four months of 2023, meaning that pace could equate to up to 420 shipments in 2023.

In 2017, the year WIPP reopened, there were 133 shipments to the site, records show, and 311 the year after in 2018, according to data provided by the DOE.

In 2019, WIPP received 292 shipments of nuclear waste, and 192 during 2020  a year known for the start of the COVID-19 health crisis that impacted staff and interrupted work at the WIPP site.

More: Nuke waste drum stranded at Carlsbad-area repository for 6 more months as feds find plan

The pandemic continued in 2021 and WIPP was held to 210 shipments, records show.

As the U.S. recovered from COVID-19, shipments increased to 272 last year.

SIMCO spokesman George Rangel said the site was working to meet the 400-shipment goal, while ensuring waste was sent from LANL as soon as it was ready.

More: Nuke waste shipments travel 16 million miles to site near Carlsbad amid safety concerns

This was in response to pressure from the State of New Mexico that WIPP prioritize waste from within the state.

Our workforce continues to focus on all facets of safety and quality in characterizing, receiving, and emplacing waste at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Rangel said in a statement. We understand and are fully supportive of the DOEs goal to safely achieve 400 transuranic waste shipments at WIPP this year while ensuring there is no backlog of shipments from Los Alamos.

SIMCO is working collaboratively with the DOEs Carlsbad Field Office, the generator sites, and our communities, to achieve the goal.

More: Carlsbad and Eddy County have differing views on possible nuke storage lawsuit

Jack Volpato, chair of the Carlsbad Mayors Nuclear Task Force said the goal was achievable but would require additional personnel and air in the underground.

That could be achieved by the completion of a new air intake shaft at the site, expected this year, to improve airflow for underground workers.

WIPP is also undertaking an about $400 million rebuild of its ventilation system known as the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System (SSCVS) that when completed and in service in the coming years will increase available air from about 170,000 cubic feet per minute (cfm) to 540,000 cfm.

More: More warheads, more nuclear waste to New Mexico. Santa Fe fearful, as Carlsbad leaders support efforts

I think its something to work toward, Volpato said of the shipment goal. Were going to have to make a lot of changes to personnel. Were going to need a lot more air down there to meet that goal.

Also working in WIPPs favor was the closure of the disposal panel where the drum rupture occurred in 2014, meaning workers are now operating without concerns of radiological contamination.

That allows work to continue quicker, without the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) needed in the wake of 2014.

More: Feds fighting nuke waste requirements called for by New Mexico at Carlsbad-area repository

One of the biggest things is to work in a non-contaminated environment, Volpato said. Thats a big plus. I know the new contractor wants to increase shipping rates. Thats fine. We support whatever they want to do as long as they do it safely.

Don Hancock, nuclear waste program director at government watchdog group the Southwest Research and Information Center said the DOE and its contractors have a history of lofty annual shipment he said are often not met.

In recent years, theyve always overestimated how many shipments they will receive, Hancock said. The question is to what extent can the site handle it? What extent can the generator sites handle it?

More: New Mexico considers permit renewal for WIPP. Critics say its too risky

To get that much waste underground, Hancock said WIPP would mostly need to take in shipments from Idaho National Laboratory  historically the biggest shipper to WIPP under a settlement agreement between the State of Idaho and the DOE.

Idaho was the source of a little more than half of WIPPs shipments since the repository opened in 1999, sending 6,880 of the 13,460 overall during WIPPs lifetime, records show as of May 13.

But continue to get mostly Idaho waste would contradict the desires of the New Mexico Environment Department, which during its recently proposed permit renewal dictating the next 10 years of WIPPs operations added a clause that LANL waste at WIPP exceed all other generator sites.

More: More nuclear waste coming to Carlsbad-area repository as new contractor takes over

In its public comments responding to the proposal, the DOE sought to strike that clause, arguing it would result in shipment delays from multiple generator sites, disrupting WIPPs disposal operations.

Hancock said his organization and other New Mexico groups planned to defend the proposal during the ongoing permit renewal process and subsequent public hearings.

DOE and SIMCO have rejected that, Hancock said. This is a problem and is an issue. They have clearly stated a very strong no to that. Theyre not going to prioritize LANL. Theyre going to regret that. The renewal process will be more contentious than it needs to be. I hope they change their attitude.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Carlsbad-area nuclear site on track for most waste since 2014 incident
The centre will test innovative products for use the offshore renewable energy industry

A test centre for robotic products intended for use in the offshore renewable energy market has opened.

The Digital, Autonomous and Robotics Engineering Centre (DARE), in Blyth, is the first of its kind in the UK.

It will help developers and researchers trial products including underwater vehicles, robots or drones.

The government says technology tested at the 3m centre in Northumberland, which it has funded, will help triple offshore wind capacity over a decade.

Graham Stuart, minister for energy security and net zero, said advances in robotics "can reinforce the UK's position as the world leader in offshore wind, make us even more competitive and keep turbines turning".

He said the new centre "will increase the safety and productivity of our highly skilled offshore wind technicians, lower costs and contribute both to lower consumer bills and energy security".

'Real world testing'

A robotics assembly bay, airborne robotics test zone, control rooms and three dry docks make up the DARE centre.

It is the latest part of the National Renewable Energy Centre, also in Blyth, which was set up to deliver the UK's net zero targets by accelerating the growth of offshore energy companies.

Three companies, Enshore Subsea, BeeX, and Aspira Aerial Applications, have said they will test their products at DARE.

Aspira is developing a specialist turbine-blade spray coating, that will be applied via drones, to remove salt build up and improving the turbine's efficiency.

It said the centre would be "pivotal" for providing opportunities to "perform real world testing" of "bespoke drones".

Helen Golightly, chief executive of the North East LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership), which will manage DARE, said it would help the region "unlock the economic opportunities provided by net zero".

Follow BBC North East & Cumbria on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk.
Xi holds talks with Kazakh president

Xinhua) 08:13, May 18, 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday held talks in Xi'an with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi warmly welcomed Tokayev to China for the summit and the state visit. Xi expressed his pleasure at hosting Tokayev in Xi'an and once again wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

Xi pointed out that Tokayev's state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to his unique bond with China.

China and Kazakhstan are trustworthy good friends, good brothers and good partners, he said.

Xi stressed that both countries are at a crucial stage of development and rejuvenation, and China-Kazakhstan relations have entered the next three golden decades.

The two sides should vigorously carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, pursue development and rejuvenation, and build a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, strong mutual trust and solidarity, Xi said.

An independent, stable, and prosperous Kazakhstan meets the common interests of the Chinese and Kazakh people, Xi said, noting that China firmly supports Kazakhstan in safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and in choosing its development path based on national conditions.

Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the Belt and Road Initiative 10 years ago.

He called for joint efforts to expand cooperation in economy, trade, investment, agriculture, automobile manufacturing and energy, deepen connectivity, and explore new cooperation areas including e-commerce, innovation and big data.

China and Kazakhstan will take the signing of an agreement on mutual visa exemption as an opportunity to strengthen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, Xi said.

He welcomed the launch of the Kazakhstan tourism year in China in 2024, and expressed his belief that the opening of a Kazakh consulate general in Xi'an will promote local exchanges between the two countries.

Xi said the forthcoming summit is of milestone significance and will usher China-Central Asia cooperation into a new era.

China is ready to work with Central Asian countries including Kazakhstan to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform to promote the in-depth cooperation of the six countries, Xi said.

Tokayev extended congratulations on China's great achievements under Xi's leadership and expressed his belief that China will have an even more brilliant future.

Tokayev said he totally agrees with Xi on the evaluation of bilateral relations and the suggestions on further strengthening cooperation. Stressing China's special and important position in his country's foreign policy, he said the Kazakhstan-China relations are based on strong friendship and solid mutual trust and enjoy common goals and missions.

Kazakhstan is ready to work with China to further strengthen their permanent comprehensive strategic partnership and lay a solid foundation for the two countries to usher in another three golden decades, said Tokayev.

He applauded the signing of the mutual visa exemption agreement and vowed to continue taking part in the Belt and Road Initiative.

He said Kazakhstan actively champions the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

Kazakhstan stands ready to work with China to fully leverage the China-Central Asia mechanism and jointly promote the regional security, stability and development, said Tokayev.

After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement and witnessed the signing of a raft of bilateral documents on cooperation in areas including economy, trade, energy, transport, agriculture, connectivity, culture, and local affairs.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang were present at the events.

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
 Flash

Delegates attend a ceremony for Finland's accession to NATO at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 4, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO's) "reckless expansion" undermines the prospect for further normal dialogue on European security, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday.

As NATO is expanding in the eastern, northern and other directions, the bloc is "absorbing almost all neutral nations," Lavrov said during a briefing following talks with his Belarusian counterpart Sergei Aleinik.

The situation in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is "deplorable" and "continues to worsen due to the unwillingness of NATO members to moderate their ambitions to dictate everything and to return to a respectful, equal dialogue," he added.

Most countries strive for a multipolar world but some only want to maintain their hegemony, Aleinik said.

"The process of global transformation and the progressive transition to a multipolar world launched by the West itself cannot be reversed," he said.
Oklahoma may be hurting itself with a ban on some big banks and financial firms

Stillwater officials had worked for months on a plan to update the citys heating and cooling systems, install new street lights and improve water infrastructure in an effort to significantly reduce rising energy costs. In April, the city council voted to borrow money for the $13.5 million project from Bank of America, which offered the lowest interest rate.

But less than a week later, Oklahomas treasurer announced Bank of America was no longer allowed to do business with government entities across the state. The bank was one of 13 deemed to be boycotting oil and gas companies in violation of a new state law.

The next best lender had an interest rate 0.7% higher, which would cost Stillwater nearly $1.2 million in additional costs.

It was frustrating, said Will Joyce, Stillwaters mayor. It means we have to do less of the project, we've got to take stuff out of it.

Stillwater's inability to choose the bank with the lowest interest rate is an example of how the states ban on so-called oil and gas boycott firms is already costing taxpayers money. Financial observers believe it will only get worse. A recent study by Econsult Solutions Inc., estimated Oklahoma could pay nearly $50 million more in bond interest costs annually because of the ban.

Oklahomas (ban) is one that banks and financial institutions are generally against because it forces them to limit the kinds of risk analysis they can do and it undermines competition in the municipal bond market, said Jordan Haedtler, a climate financial consultant who works with Sunrise Project, a pro-clean energy organization that commissioned the Econsult Solutions report.

Oklahoma's Republican Legislature approved the ban last year because they said some financial firms were pushing political agendas by moving more investments to clean energy companies.

More: Turnpike authority loses bond adviser after Oklahoma's blacklist of financial institutions

An oil rig is pictured in Newcastle. Under a new state law, Oklahoma will no longer do business with banks and investment firms deemed to be boycotting oil and gas companies.

But Haedtler said investment firms looking for long-term growth are wisely considering a partial move away from fossil fuels. They disagree that such a strategy is costly to Oklahomans who depend on their retirement through state pension programs.

I would argue that when you are dealing with pensions and the retirement savings of people who may not retire for 10, 20 or 30 years, it is foolish and quite costly to force investment managers to not consider these long-term strategies, Haedtler said.

Oklahoma lawmakers claim banks are pushing 'woke' financial policies

Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law the ban on banks the state treasurer believes are "boycotting" oil and gas companies.

The ban follows a trend among some Republican states that have complained of woke finances. Oklahoma's law targets firms that have adopted ESG standards, which stands for environmental, social and governance and refers to a business strategy that considers environmental impacts when making investment decisions.

The anti-ESG push in Oklahoma has appeared to hamper the state's business development efforts. Volkswagen recently referenced that opposition in not selecting the state for a new manufacturing plant.

Gov. Kevin Stitt, who signed the financial ban into law last year, said he still supports the ban.

More: Is Oklahoma's fight against pro-environmental policies hurting business recruitment?

As soon as you stop attacking the oil and gas industry and as soon as you stop pushing a political agenda with our pension funds we are happy to do business with you, Stitt said.

But critics of the ban said lawmakers are pushing their own political agendas by tapping into the anti-"woke" rhetoric common within the Republican base.

And some banks on the state's list deny they "boycott" oil and gas firms.

As the nations largest bank, we are among the top financers across the energy sector, including traditional energy sources. Between 2021 and 2022 we provided over $2 billion in financing and other services to 40 Oklahoma companies in the oil and gas space," JPMorgan Chase officials said in a statement.

"Our business practices are not in conflict with this anti-free market decision, and we look forward to continuing to serve customers and communities in Oklahoma."

The financial impact of 'boycott' law is much higher than a legislative estimate

Oklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ

Oklahoma's financial ban required state Treasurer Todd Russ, a Republican, to compile a list of firms that were boycotting oil and gas companies.

Claiming he thoroughly reviewed information from more than 160 firms, Russ blacklisted 13 financial companies, including Blackrock, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo. The names of two of the firms, however, were misspelled on the treasurers initial list.

"The energy sector is crucial to Oklahomas economy, providing jobs for our residents andhelping drive economic growth," Russ said in a statement. It is essential for us to work with financialinstitutions that are focused on free-market principles and not beholden to social goals thatoverride their fiduciary duties.

More: Oklahoma Legislature reaches deal on school funding, teacher pay and tax credits

When the law was presented to lawmakers last year, legislative staff reported a fiscal impact of just $250,000 for administrative work within the treasurers office.

But Joyce, the mayor of Stillwater, said the true financial impact already has shown itself to be much higher.

While we certainly understand the intent behind this state law, I think it is important that we kind of go back through and look at what are all the other consequences that might come into play, Joyce said.

It's frustrating because clearly there are other costs with this.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma blacklist of 'woke' banks is already costing taxpayers
Oklahoman charged over US Capitol breach tried an 'I was praying' defense. It didn't work

An electrical contractor from Oklahoma claimed all along that he was not protesting when he went inside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

Anthony Alfred Griffith Sr. said he instead was following God's will and praying for the unborn.

"God is with me all the time," Griffith testified in March at his federal trial in Washington, D.C. "He ordains every step that I take."

On Tuesday, a judge rejected his "prayer" defense.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly found Griffith guilty of four misdemeanors "for his participation and actions at the insurrection."

"In general, Defendant maintained in his testimony that he thought it was lawful to enter and remain in the Capitol and its grounds until instructed otherwise. The Court does not find this testimony credible," the judge wrote in an explanation of her verdict.

More: 'We will not concede,' this Oklahoma man said at US Capitol Jan. 6. Now he, and his boss, faces charges

Anthony Alfred Griffith Sr., at left, is seen inside the U.S. Capitol in this image from a video from the investigation of the riot.

"Although Griffith testified that he was guided by firm religious convictions, particularly in regards to his views on abortion, those religious convictions do not negate the clear video and photographic evidence speaking to his intent to engage in political demonstrations in concert with the mob around him."

Anthony Griffith Sr. the first Oklahoman charged in Jan. 6 riots to go to trial

Griffith is one of 10 Oklahomans who have been charged so far as a result of the investigation of the riot. He is the first one to take his case to trial.

He chose to have the judge, rather than a jury, decide whether he was guilty. Sentencing is set for Aug. 25.

Griffith, now 58, operates an electrical business in Fort Gibson. He was charged in February 2021.

Griffith told the FBI that he first went inside "because he thought the Capitol police were letting people in," according to a court affidavit. He told the FBI he went in a second time and took pictures.

Griffith acknowledged at the trial that he was a supporter of Donald Trump. He said he heard the then-president speak at the "Stop the Steal" rally before going to the Capitol.

More: Trump supporter from Oklahoma pleads guilty to civil disorder for role in US Capitol riot

He testified that he is praying in a video shown at the trial, not confronting the Capitol police, right before he went inside.

"What I said was, 'You damn demons don't get to kill no more babies in this country. It's over. It's done. You're finished,'" he said. "And ... I'm thankful that the Lord give me the opportunity ... to do that for him."

He testified that he chanted "USA" inside the Capitol to promote God's spirit.

"This country deserves God's word," he said. "I could say maybe that it was the excitement of the Holy Spirit inside of me that just forced it out."

Griffith knew 'that his actions at the Capitol were unlawful,' judge says

The judge in her explanation said Griffith actually can be seen on video shouting at a police officer, "Open the door."

The judge also decided Griffith was protesting when he was chanting inside the Capitol.

"Beyond a reasonable doubt, Anthony Griffith knew on January 6, 2021, that his actions at the Capitol were unlawful," she wrote.

He witnessed numerous signs that his presence in the Capitol was unauthorized, including rioters ripping a door off its hinges, she found.

More: 4 Proud Boys, including leader Enrique Tarrio, guilty of seditious conspiracy for Jan. 6 Capitol attack

He first went in the Capitol at 2:45 p.m., over a piercing alarm, and "shouted with excitement," the judge wrote. He stepped on broken glass, left and entered again through another door at 2:50 p.m.

"He saw and stepped over broken furniture directly in front of him," she wrote. "Members of the mob continued to shout and protest all around him."

The mob was chanting "Traitors" and "Fight for Trump," among other things, she noted. He left at 3:33 p.m.

At the rally and with Griffith for a time inside the Capitol was Jerry Ryals, who then worked for him as an apprentice electrician.

Ryals, 28, of Fort Gibson, is now in federal prison.

The judge last October ordered Ryals to spend nine months in prison and pay $2,000 in restitution for his role in the attack.

Ryals pleaded guilty to civil disorder, a felony, for interfering with police efforts to protect the Capitol.

"It's my hope that the sentence ... sends a message ... to deter you and others from ever engaging in this type of disruptive behavior in the future," the judge told Ryals. "A democracy is fragile, and it requires that all citizens appreciate it."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Trump supporter from Oklahoma found guilty in US Capitol breach
The man who opened fire at Old National Bank April 10, killing five people before he was fatally shot by police, planned the assault, according to messages recovered from the iPhone he used to livestream the mass shooting.

The content of the texts and emails, as well as a manifesto seized at Connor Sturgeons home, have not been disclosed. But an affavit filed in support of an application for a search warrant of the phone says they show Sturgeon planned the massacre.

The search warrant says the phone was found affixed to his shirt and used to stream the attack from his Instagram page.

The phone was seized after Sturgeon was shot and killed by Officer Cory Galloway.

More: A 'tragic situation': What we know about the Shively Animal Clinic shooting

Jefferson District Judge Sara Nicholson signed a warrant to take the phone, and District Judge Amber Wolf signed search warrants issued to Apple, Google, Snapchat and AT&T for access to its contents, include phone, email and social media accounts.

Nicholson ordered the contents sealed for 30 days and applications were recently unsealed by the Jefferson Circuit Court Clerks Office.

Citing a continuing investigation, Louisville Metro Police declined to elaborate.

The affidavit for the warrants says that Sturgeons family told lead investigator Detective Kevin Carrillo that Sturgeon had attempted suicide about a year earlier and that his mental health disorder may have played a part during this criminal act.

The affidavit says that was supported by mental health texts to his girlfriends and in the manifesto found in his home in the Camp Taylor neighborhood.

Sturgeon, who worked at the bank, had turned 25 on Feb. 11.

More: A Louisville corner changed forever: How 9 minutes of terror unfolded at Old National Bank

Sturgeons parents previously disclosed that he was being treated by a psychiatrist and counselor for depression and anxiety but that they saw no warning signs of the attack. They also said they did not know he had legally purchased the assault rifle used in the attack from a gun dealer six days earlier.

The search affidavit lists the names of the five people Sturgeon killed  Thomas Elliott, James Tutt Jr., Juliana Farmer, Joshua Barrick and Deana Eckert  and six who were injured and survived. They are James Evans, Julie Anderson, Dana Mitchell, Darrin McCauley, Dallas Schwartz and Officer Nickolas Wilt.

Wilt was shot in the head as he responded to the scene with Galloway, and the Louisville Metro Police Foundation announced Wednesday that he continues to make progress in his recovery. On May 17, the foundation said on Facebook that he was "the most awake he has been since his injury occurred."

More: Old National Bank shooting: What we know about Louisville gunman Connor Sturgeon

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville bank shooting: Gunman planned massacre, affidavit says
Olivia Wilde has sparked a debate about wedding guest etiquette after she revealed she wore a wedding dress to Colton Underwoods nuptials.

This week, the Booksmart director, 39, attended the former Bachelor stars wedding to Jordan C Brown in Napa Valley, California.

For the occasion, Wilde wore a backless white silk gown, which she described as a wedding dress on Instagram.

Wore a wedding dress to a wedding just so I could make a joke about it in my toast, Wilde captioned a since-expired photo of herself wearing the dress and holding a white parasol at the ceremony on her Instagram Stories.

The outfit choice was met with criticism on social media, with some accusing Wilde of trying to make the day about her by wearing the white gown.

Always trying to make it about her, one person tweeted, while another said: Why does everything need to be about her all the time?

Someone else said: Olivia Wilde thinking its okay to wear a wedding dress to a wedding is very on brand for who I thought she was lol.

Olivia at her friend Jordan Browns wedding recently ! pic.twitter.com/nrlSXQ2XeN  Olivia Wilde Daily  (@wilde_daily) May 15, 2023

According to another person, it was so weird of Wilde to wear the white dress because it was wildly inappropriate for the occasion.

More of Olivia Wilde at her friend Jordan Brown's wedding!  pic.twitter.com/9IvVpUM6GW  Olivia Wilde Daily  (@wilde_daily) May 17, 2023

Others revealed how they would feel if it was their wedding, with one critic claiming theyd cut ties with a friend if they wore a wedding gown to their nuptials. If someone did this in my wedding I would probably cut ties with them and kick them out of the wedding, they wrote.

Thats just so rude and messed up. If someone did this at my or my friends wedding Id personally kick them out of the ceremony, another person alleged.

According to Diane Gottsman, a national etiquette expert and founder of The Protocol School of Texas, who previously spoke to The Independent, the no-white rule still applies for most weddings, as she noted that white is still reserved for the bride and that guests should select another colour when choosing an outfit. She also said the rule should be followed by guests of all genders.

Wedding guests typically avoid wearing white to weddings because they do not want to upstage the bride, according to wedding dress designer Madeline Gardner, who spoke to The Knot.

When youre a guest at a wedding, the most important thing to keep in mind is not to upstage or upset the bride, she said, adding: Its safe to stay away from any outfits that are predominantly white, cream or ivory.

However, some of Wildes fans have defended her dress choice on the basis that there was not a bride at the wedding, and because the grooms themselves chose not to wear white.

Colton wore a green custom Tom Ford suit, according to People, while his husband wore a blue custom suit from the designer.

Its just a white slip-looking dress at a wedding where neither of the two getting married were wearing a wedding gown everyone can calm down, one person tweeted.

Another said: I dont see a problem if theres no bride.

Wilde also revealed that the grooms approved her dress selection in a follow-up post, in which she could be seen embracing the newlyweds. The grooms approved, she wrote.

If the grooms werent mad why should you be? Genuine question, one person asked on Twitter, while someone else wrote: Shes clearly joking and the happy couple clearly had no issues with her dress. Stop setting her up for unnecessary hate.

Although the grooms did not address Wildes dress specifically, Underwood told People before the wedding that he and Brown wanted to break some of the traditional norms of what a ceremony and a wedding look like.

The backlash over Wildes outfit choice comes after a woman recently reignited a debate about wedding guest etiquette after accusing two women of being disrespectful by wearing white, bridal-like gowns to her friends nuptials.

The Independent has contacted a representative for Wilde for comment.
One of the humblest humans: New president takes over FIU amid tumultuous time in higher ed

In a ceremony that attracted about 850 and cost about $45,000, Kenneth Jessell, who landed in the top office of Florida International University after an unexpected turn of events, officially took the helm of the largest public university in South Florida on Thursday.

I feel so excited, said Jessell after his swearing-in, held at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center at FIUs main campus in West Miami-Dade. Im so proud and honored to be the sixth president of FIU.

Jessell, 67, became the interim president at FIU in January 2022, after former President Mark Rosenberg suddenly resigned when a woman who worked in his office accused him of misconduct. At the time, the FIU Board of Trustees scrambled and tapped Jessell, who had worked as FIUs chief financial officer and vice president for 13 years, to fill the spot.

Former FIU president Mark Rosenberg (left) greets Kenneth Jessell during his investiture ceremony where he was sworn in as FIUs sixth president, Ocean Bank Convocation Center at Florida International Universitys Modesto A. Maidique campus in Miam-Dade, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

RELATED: After outcry, ex-FIU president wont return to teach. But he will still get a $376K salary

When the presidential search began soon after, Jessell vowed not to apply, but then said he enjoyed the job so much that he did. In September, the Presidential Search Committee advanced him as the lone candidate for the post. In October, the Board of Trustees selected him as the next president, and in November, the Florida Board of Governors confirmed the appointment.

Jessell, a first-generation college student like most at FIU, received a bachelors in political science, a masters in business and a doctorate in finance from Florida State University. He spent nearly three decades at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton before coming to FIU.

About 850 people attended the investiture of Florida International Universitys sixth president, Kenneth Jessell, Thursday, May 18 , 2023, at FIU..

He now manages about 56,000 students, and about 8,000 faculty and staff. His total compensation is nearly $1 million.

Daniella Levine Cava, Miami-Dade Countys mayor, praised Jessells calming spirit and heart that is so large that it fills the room.

Then she added: He stepped up and leaded when we needed him the most.

FROM 2022: Five things you may not know about FIUs Interim President Ken Jessell

Florida International University President Kenneth Jessell speaks after being invested as FIUs sixth president, Ocean Bank Convocation Center, FIU, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

FIUs fight in Tallahassee, DC

Jessells investiture comes after a tumultuous spring semester, which featured protests on campus over recent bills championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that will dramatically alter higher education in Florida, especially faculty tenure, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and what can be taught in college and university classrooms.

Asked what he would tell those concerned about these issues, Jessell said: I tell them that were going to continue to do what weve always done, and that is to focus on our students, faculty and staff. You heard it in my oath. I respect the dignity; I promised to respect the dignity of every individual that we have and that will never change.

READ MORE: UM, FIU protest proposed changes by HB999 to FL higher ed

Florida International University President Kenneth Jessell reacts after being invested as FIUs sixth president, Thursday May 18, 2023.

In part of his oath, Jessell vowed to uphold academic freedom: I will advance the universitys commitment to freedom of thought and expression, he said.

Rep. Daniel Perez, a Republican representing House District 116 in Miami-Dade County and the upcoming speaker of the Florida House, led the investiture.

Jessell customized the oath from the one Rosenberg took when he rose to the presidency in 2009, but both versions included the line about academic freedom, according to FIU spokeswomen Madeline Baro and Maydel Santana.

Florida International University Board Chair Dean Colson, left, joins Kenneth Jessell as he takes the oath during his investiture at FIUs International University Modesto A. Maidique campus in Miami, Thursday May 18 , 2023. Jessell was sworn in as the sixth president of FIU.

Jessell described that as an integral part of the oath.

Asked what he considered the biggest challenge going into his second year at FIUs helm, Jessell cited the need to advocate for funds. FIU relies on money from federal and state sources along with private donors. Among those in attendance: Miami philanthropists Trish and Dan Bell, who recently gifted the majority of the money for a nondenominational chapel to be built at the Modesto Maidique Campus, off Southwest Eighth Street and 112th Avenue near Sweetwater.

Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez greets FIUs sixth president, Kenneth Jessell, during his investiture ceremony at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center, Florida International University Modesto A. Maidique campus in Miami-Dade, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

Jeanette Nunez, the lieutenant governor of Florida and an FIU graduate, also attended the induction.

Im honored and thrilled that we have President Jessell to continue leading the charge ... I am confident that with his background and his passion, hell continue to work collaboratively, but that hell also fight for FIU in the halls of Tallahassee and in the halls of DC., she said.

Historic ceremony

Universities usually hold investitures  centuries-old traditions  during the first year or after the first year of a presidency to give new presidents a chance to prove themselves.

Already during Jessells short tenure, FIU has hit milestones, including the law school ranking third in the state  higher than the private University of Miami School of Law for the first time ever, and FIU medical school partnering with Baptist Health South Florida.

READ MORE: For the first time ever, FIU law school surpasses UMs in national rankings

FIU professor Valerie Patterson carries the Torch of Knowledge during the presidential investiture ceremony of Kenneth Jessell, Florida International Universitys sixth president, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

Academic investitures typically represent a symbolical passing of a torch from one leader to the next, but at FIU, the investitures feature an actual torch.

At one point, an alumnus, the Student Government president, a professor and two administrators passed down a torch of knowledge from the back of the convocation center, down a middle aisle and up to the stage.

Florida International University Faculty Senate chair Deanne Butchey leads the opening procession of the FIU presidential investiture ceremony, where Kenneth Jessell was sworn in as FIUs sixth president, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

Modesto Maidique and Rosenberg, both past presidents, participated in the processional and recessional.

The ceremony, which started with the Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland performed by the Wertheim FIU Marching Band, lasted for about two hours.

READ MORE: FIU medical school to partner with Baptist what it means for patients, doctors, students

Miami Dade College President Madeline Pumariega and Florida Memorial University President Jaffus Hardrick walk in the opening procession of the FIU presidential investiture ceremony, where Kenneth Jessell was sworn in as FIUs sixth president, Thursday May 18 , 2023.

Among the attendees were Madeline Pumariega, president of Miami Dade College, Florida Memorial University President Jaffus Hardrick and Rudy Fernandez, executive vice president for external affairs and strategic initiatives and chief of staff at the University of Miami, as well as administrators from Boston College, New York University, the University of Florida, Princeton, Harvard and Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

In his speech, FIU board chair Dean Colson called Jessell the right person at the right moment to guide FIU, and one of the humblest humans he knows.

For his part, Jessell spent most of his 22-minute-long speech thanking others.
A 26-year-old man has pleaded guilty to murder and been sentenced to life in prison for the 2019 death of a man in the commission of a home-invasion robbery, according to the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorneys Office.

Cameron Jerrell Marble, at the time 22 years old, and two other men wore masks and broke into the Fort Worth home of David Plotts, 26, according to a news release from the district attorneys office. Marble shot Plotts in the head and then fled with the two other robbers, authorities said.

Another man, 25-year-old David Sharray Shelton, was arrested in Plotts killing before Marble and is scheduled to appear in court for a plea docket Friday, according to court records.

Officers responded to an apartment in the 2900 block of Phoenix Drive around 3:30 a.m. June 16, 2019, police said at the time. An investigation revealed three masked robbers had forced their way into the apartment by kicking in the front door before Plotts was shot.

Plotts mother, Lisa Ernesti, said she is thankful for the sentence because the person who killed my son wont be able to hurt anyone else today or tomorrow, not ever, according to the DAs office.

I want peace and closure to all this, said Steven Ernesti, father of David Plotts. It has gone on too long and it needs to come to an end.
Then-interim Superintendent of Columbus City Schools Angela Chapman listens to Board of Education members Tuesday night as they discuss the qualities of their choice to become the district's next superintendent. Shortly afterward, the board voted to elevate Chapman to the top job during a special meeting at Mifflin High School.

When Angela Chapman was promoted from interim to permanent Columbus City Schools superintendent Tuesday night, one word was raised over and over: relationships.

What Columbus Board of Education members and community partners said they see in Chapman is someone who forges relationships and take risks.

The state's largest district of more than 45,000 students had been searching for a new leader since outgoing Superintendent Talisa Dixon announced in December that she would be retiring at the end of the current academic year.

The board chose Chapman at a meeting Tuesday night after an extensive national search that began on March 27.

Board Member Carol Beckerle said Chapman's focus on relationships will be important going forward, and was one of the things that stood out about her.

"Her focus is on relationships  I think they're important to her and important to her on every level," Beckerle said. "And I think that's something you sense, and you feel, and you watch  and we've had a chance to see that over the past few months in action."

Chapman, board to negotiate contract

Board members and Chapman said Tuesday that they planned to negotiate the details of her permanent contract in the near future. Those details will be "shared as soon as it is solidified," according to Board Vice President Christina Vera.

Chapman's current salary is $157,874.68. Dixon's annual salary is $262,520 based on a renewal of her contract last year.

Who is Angela Chapman?

Chapman took over the helm of the district as interim superintendent on Jan. 1.

Dixon brought Chapman into the administration in 2019, and until earlier this year she served as chief transformation and leadership officer.

In her former role, Chapman oversaw many of the district's administrators and academic leaders, such as principals and regional area superintendents. That office also oversees school improvement and school leader recruitment, selection and development.

Chapman previously told The Dispatch that as interim superintendent she had been focused on fully developing the district's strategic plans, including its "Portrait of a Graduate." The plan was developed under Dixon's leadership with input from the community, and Chapman said the district was just beginning to implement some of the pieces.

On April 20, Angela Chapman, interim superintendent of Columbus City Schools, left, met with U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, who visited Avondale Elementary School and learned about Columbus' early literacy initiatives.

Chapman also has been prioritizing three areas  early literacy, graduation and attendance  that the Board of Education identified as important academic goals for the district to make improvements on in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

She also recently met with U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, who visited Avondale Elementary School and learned about Columbus' early literacy initiatives, including the "science of reading," which emphasizes phonetic reading skills.

Chapman began her career as a teacher and administrator in Ohio, Tennessee and Washington, D.C. She has a bachelors degree in elementary education from the University of Akron, a masters degree in curriculum and instruction from Ashland University, and a doctorate of education in curriculum and instruction from Tennessee State University.

Who else was considered?

Brian McDonald, superintendent of the Pasadena Unified School District in California, and Minneapolis Public Schools Associate Superintendent George Eric Thomas were the other two finalists. They, alongside Chapman, participated in several rounds of interviews.

A total of 31 people applied for the Columbus position, and six people were selected as semi-finalists. The full list of candidates was not made public.

While every board member was in favor of Chapman as the next superintendent, several others said they also liked McDonald's leadership style.

Who conducted the search?

Board members have previously praised the national search conducted to find the next chief executive.

The Columbus City school board approved paying a total of $250,000 to be handled by the Taft Stettinius & Hollister law firm, which has offices in Columbus.

The board also contracted with Ray & Associates, a Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based firm that specializes in school executive leadership searches, and Fahlgren Mortine, a Columbus-based marketing firm, to assist in the search. All applications were submitted directly to Ray & Associates and the firm had prescreened applicants before presenting them to the board.

Chapman is a 'great leader and partner'

When the U.S. education secretary visited Columbus last month, he took the opportunity to praise the collaborative workforce development initiatives between CCS and Columbus State Community College.

Columbus State President David Harrison said Wednesday he looked forward to continuing the partnership.

"She is a great leader and partner," Harrison said. "We look forward to working with her and her team to help students succeed."

Chapman said her transition to superintendent will allow workforce development and career pathway relationships built with partners like Columbus State to be expanded and built upon.

Angela Chapman was tapped as Columbus City Schools next superintendent during a special Columbus City Schools Board of Education meeting at Mifflin High School Tuesday night.

During the Tuesday meeting, board member Michael Cole said Chapman is "familiar with the city; she is familiar with the stakeholders," but more importantly, he added, the community has told the board they appreciate her leadership.

"That for me became the tilting factor," Cole said.

Even though the union and the district were at a loggerhead that led to a strike by teachers and other staff at the start of the current school year last August, Columbus Education Association President John Coneglio said the union is excited to work with Chapman.

The union represents more than 4,500 teachers and other employees in Columbus City Schools. Last year's strike was the CEA's first since the 1970s. CEA members were on the picket lines for three days before ratifying a contract that included raises, air conditioning guarantees and smaller class sizes.

"The Board of Education made the right choice selecting Dr. Chapman," Coneglio said. "We look forward to continuing our collaboration."

@Colebehr_report

Cbehrens@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Word at center of CCS Superintendent Angela Chapman: relationships
Tejay Fletcher, 35, was the founder of iSpoof.cc - CPS

A 100 million scammer who was caught in Britains biggest ever anti-fraud operation spent his ill-gotten gains on a fleet of luxury cars, designer watches and jewellery, a court has heard.

Tejay Fletcher, 35, who was described as an extremely bright young man developed a software tool called iSpoof.cc that enabled criminals to disguise their phone numbers and trick unsuspecting people into believing they were being called by their bank.

For a monthly subscription of 5,000, fraudsters had access to the technology allowing them to target millions of victims around the world. The site was so popular among phone scammers that at one stage it was estimated 20 people every minute were being contacted using the illegal software tools.

More than 200,000 victims in the UK - many of them elderly - lost 43m, while losses globally topped 100m.

The website, which had around 60,000 customers, earned over 3.2m in Bitcoins in less than three years, with Fletcher raking in around 2m, which allowed him to indulge in a luxury lifestyle.

Southwark Crown Court heard how he rented a docklands apartment with views over the City of London skyline.

He also owned a Lamborghini supercar worth almost quarter of a million pounds and spent 120,000 on two matching Range Rover SUVs for him and his girlfriend. When police raided his flat they found a money counter, designer jewellery and a Rolex watch worth 11,000.

Fletcher, a father of one, was snared by police last year in what is the biggest anti-fraud operation mounted in the UK.

John Ojakovoh, prosecuting, said: This is a case which concerns the facilitation of fraud on an industrial scale by iSpoof, the website. What it did, in brief, it provided tools for fraudsters to deceive unwitting members of the public.

He went on: There was no upper limit on the number of the victims, of the potential losses or other harm that was envisioned against the victims.

As well as allowing fraudsters to pose as bank employees, the software also allowed users to trick victims into entering new card details by claiming the information held by a trusted organisation was out of date.

One victim lost 3m, while the 4,785 people who reported being targeted to Action Fraud lost an average of 10,000, according to police.

The court heard Fletcher, a former drama student, carried out "market research", promoted new products and encouraged users to commit fraud.

In a message to customers on January 3 2022 he wished them "Happy New Year" and then urged: "All back to work, back to getting that bag.

10 million fraudulent claims

Of 10 million fraudulent calls made, 40 per cent were in the United States, 35 per cent were in the UK and the rest were spread across other countries.

Last month, Fletcher pleaded guilty to four charges, including making or supplying an article for use in fraud, encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence, possession of criminal property and transferring criminal property, between Nov 30 2020 and Nov 8 2022.

Simon Baker KC, said: His guilty plea reflects his genuine regret and remorse for his actions and his sincere wish to apologise to those who have suffered as a result of the frauds perpetrated against them as a result of the iSpoof website.

Mr Baker described Fletcher as an "extremely bright young man", adding: "It is extremely unfortunate that intellect was not channelled into gainful activities.

Fletcher will be sentenced on Friday.

Thomas Short, Specialist Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: Fraud is an insidious crime and the cost to the many victims in this case has not just been financial; it has also caused huge emotional distress and devastation.

Helen Rance, Metropolitan Police Det Supt, said: I am incredibly proud of my team in the Cyber Crime unit who ran this investigation resulting in Fletcher pleading guilty. He was the ringleader of a slick fraud website which enabled criminals to scam innocent people of millions of pounds.

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Open Source: VinFast will need to turn its reputation around

Im Brian Gordon, tech reporter for The News & Observer, and this is Open Source, a weekly newsletter on North Carolina business, labor and technology.

There are bad reviews, and then there are snark-filled bashings reserved for distinctly poor performances. For some car critics, the new electric SUV from VinFast inspired the latter.

North Carolina has a lot riding on the success of VinFast, the Vietnamese automaker thats building its first North American factory in Chatham County. But initial impressions of its five-seat VF8 model, which is now available to some U.S. customers, werent great.

Headlines included terms like Yikes, Return to Sender, Unacceptable, and Dont buy.

VinFast VF 9

You dont see a new car get roasted this hard very often these days, an auto journalist wrote in The Drive.

Another reviewer said driving the VF8 was the first time hed ever gotten car sick.

This is obviously unwelcome news for VinFast, a nascent car manufacturer thats forging its global reputation in real time.

Its also bad news for North Carolina officials who are supporting the companys planned $4 billion assembly plant in Chatham. The success of that plant could mean 7,500 new jobs in the rural county just west of the Triangle and enormous secondary economic benefits.

But people will have to buy the cars, and people arent likely to do so if the driving experience prompts some to grab barf bags.

Vietnamese automaker VinFast, a startup auto manufacturer, chose Chatham County for its first North American production facility. President Joe Biden has said that recent announcements of major corporations settling in North Carolina are evidence of his economic strategy at work.

For North Carolinas sake, I hope the issues can be addressed. These are still early days. And because electric vehicles are more reliant on software than gas-powered cars, technicians can make many improvements over-the-air.

But for VinFast, its a wrong turn.

VinFast is going public in an interesting way

One more VinFast news item this week. The company, which had been preparing to go public through a traditional IPO, will instead hit the market via a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC.

Basically, a SPAC is a shell company thats listed on the public markets and exists solely to help a private company go public. The private company merges with the SPAC and becomes public.

VinFast CEO Le Thi Thu Thuy and N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper sit inside a VF8 electric car Tuesday, March 29, 2022 outside the Raleigh Convention Center following an announcement that the company will build a manufacturing facility in Chatham County.

VinFast told The News & Observer a SPAC deal will afford the company a prestigious U.S. public listing without it needing to raise substantial amounts of capital from investors.

If youre curious about the details of this SPAC deal, and why VinFasts $23 billion valuation needs an asterisk, check out my story on what this could mean for the company (and by extension, North Carolina).

Short Stuff: REIs upcoming union vote

National Tech Happenings

Montana is the first state to totally ban TikTok, not just for state employees, but everyone. The social media company is expected to fight the ban in court.

Twitter has a new CEO, the former head of advertising at NBCUniversal, wholl spearhead the platforms business operations while Elon Musk will remain to work on product design.

Some people are using AI to write their wedding vows. Romantic.

Thanks for reading!

This story was produced with financial support from a coalition of partners led by Innovate Raleigh as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work.

Open Source

Do you enjoy Triangle tech news? Subscribe to Open Source, The News & Observer's weekly technology newsletter and look for it in your inbox every Friday morning. Sign up here.
Community colleges are uniquely positioned to support their local communities with pathways to economic and social mobility. But a recent report draws attention to a decline in Black college students, particularly at community colleges, which enroll over one-third (36%) of Black students entering postsecondary education.

From 2011 to 2019, Black enrollment declined at twice the rate (26%) of the overall decrease at two-year colleges (13%), a drop of almost 300,000 students. In 2020, Black enrollment plunged by another 100,000, a return to the same levels as 20 years ago. This threatens decades of gains in Black economic opportunity through college enrollment, according to the report, prepared for the Level UP National Panel, a coalition of 26 higher education executives, academics and national leaders assembled in response to this alarming trend.

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Not only does this promote inequitable opportunity for Black learners; it also comes at significant economic cost to Black families and the nation. Brookings Institution data suggest that downward mobility affects 7 in 10 Black Americans  a racial wealth gap that McKinsey & Co. projects could cost the U.S. economy between $1 trillion and $1.5 trillion between 2019 and 2028  4% to 6% of the projected [gross domestic product] in 2028.

Related Why Nearly Half of Black Students Have Considered Stopping College

Ensuring Black learner success is not solely about economics. It requires a commitment to redesigning structures and systems that many Black Americans encounter as barriers to economic and social mobility.

In recent years, community colleges have worked to introduce comprehensive supports inside and outside the classroom that help individual students access certificates, degrees and employment. They changed placement-test policies and accelerated transitions into college-level math and English courses. They implemented broad changes to strengthen advising, providing ongoing individual academic and nonacademic counseling when students need it, and created more agile financial aid policies, including emergency assistance. Additionally, community colleges have found resources for food banks and assistance to help students find housing and, in some cases, pay their rent, as poverty disproportionately impacts Black communities. In fact, according to a report from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, an alarming 70% of Black students experienced food or housing insecurity or homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, this work needs to be coupled with a new strategy to bolster access for Black learners, many of whom no longer see higher education as a viable pathway. The strategy must begin by recognizing the fact that many Black college students perceive that they are not welcome. A recent Gallup survey found that Black students are not only more likely to say they frequently or occasionally feel discriminated against, but also to say they feel disrespected and physically or psychologically unsafe.

To reach and support them, colleges must understand students experiences and the strengths and challenges of their local communities; present learning content that is relevant to their lives and cultural backgrounds; encourage students to take on inquiry-based assignments and projects that reflect their interests; and eliminate barriers to their success. This requires a student-centered approach to ensure that Black learners have what they need to enter and succeed in college.

Related Drop Out or Drown in Debt? Black Students Stark Choices in Paying for College

This means that schools must:

Transform existing notions of access from open doors that students can enter to lifelong career-matching institutions for students and the communities they serve. That means looking beyond traditional recruitment strategies and providing working adults who never previously considered higher education with credentialing and degree programs that help them secure living-wage jobs. It also means partnering with high schools to bridge the gap for students who are disconnected and disengaged.



Redesign dual enrollment and other college-in-high-school programs to more effectively reach Black learners. Programs such as dual enrollment, early college and joint career and technical education are increasingly important pathways. Nearly 1 in 5 community college students are enrolled through dual credit programs, which have significant potential to improve academic success. But racial inequities limit the availability of these programs to students of color and those from low-income families. The Community College Research Center reports that, [F]our out of every five school districts have racial equity gaps in access to dual enrollment.

Eliminate financial barriers by creating real transparency about the cost of college and strengthen policies that can help Black learners. As the Level Up coalition reports ,the vast majority  80%  of Black Americans believe that college is unaffordable. This is not surprising given that Black families have fewer assets to pay for college and, as a result, incur significantly more student loan debt than their white or Latino peers. This is true even at the community college level. Only one-third of Black students are able to earn an associate degree without incurring debt. One promising pathway would be to expand College Promise programs, which can have significant positive impact on Black enrollment.



Ensure that Black students have multiple pathways to attaining a credential that leads to upwardly mobile careers  and are not steered into lower-earning fields, as research suggests happens at many community colleges.

It is time for colleges, states and the nation to commit to providing Black students with postsecondary opportunities that lead to life-sustaining jobs and economically mobile careers, and support the vitality of the communities where these students and families live. The alternative is far too costly for Black Americans and the nation.
 Flash

Iran and Russia signed on Wednesday a contract to build a railway inside Iran to complete an international transport route linking South Asia to Northern Europe, the Iranian president's office said.

The 162 km railway between the northern Iranian cities of Rasht and Astara will be built as part of the international North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), according to a report published on the website of the Iranian president's office.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin attended the signing ceremony of the contract through a video conference, the report said.

According to the contract, Russia will invest 1.6 billion euros (1.73 billion U.S. dollars) in the construction of the strategic railway which is expected to be completed in 48 months, it added.

During the ceremony, Raisi said Iran plans to expand cooperation with Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) member states, noting the elimination of the bilateral trade tariffs can be a huge step toward the enhancement of cooperation among Iran, Russia and the EAEU members.

Describing INSTC as a "tangible" share in ensuring food security in Iran and regional Arab countries, Putin expressed hope that the completion of the corridor would lead to greater exchange of food and other products among the Caspian Sea littoral states and regional Arab countries.

Iran and Russia, both being under the sanctions imposed by the United States, have recently expanded bilateral political and economic relations to counter the U.S. moves.
For the first time in a long while, Michigan will have an open U.S. Senate seat in 2024. At such a pivotal moment for our state and country, its never been more important to elect a leader whos ready to fight for Michiganders, starting on day one. In the U.S. Senate, we need a listener, a fighter, a problem solver and someone with a real record of delivering for Michigan, including our states Black and Brown communities. This is why Im supporting U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin. Running for the U.S. Senate isnt something to be taken lightly, and Sen. Debbie Stabenow leaves large shoes to fill. Fortunately for us, Elissa is the type of person we need to take the baton.

I serve as Pastor of Space for Grace WithOutWalls United Church of Christ in Lansing, and Elissa has been my congresswoman for more than four years. Ive worked directly with her and her team and Ive seen how present and engaged she is in the communities she represents. Whether its lowering the cost of prescription drugs, addressing gun violence and police reform, or protecting our most fundamental rights, Elissa has been our champion in Congress  not just with words, but with real action.

Pamelajune Anderson

Since she was elected to Congress in 2018, shes taken on pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, and last year she helped pass the bill that capped the cost of insulin for seniors at $35 per month. Since then, all major drug companies have followed suit and set the same price cap. As the representative for Lansing  where weve experienced a spike in gun violence  along with Oxford and Michigan State University, Elissa has spearheaded bills to combat the gun violence epidemic. But she hasnt stopped with legislation: Just this year, she secured over $500,000 in funding for a nonprofit focused on preventing gun violence before it occurs. And as a co-sponsor of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, she has championed protecting and expanding access to the ballot box.

More: Opinion: Slotkin has virtually no record of representing Michigans Black communities

More: Slotkin's entry shapes US Senate race, others have to decide whether to jump in

Throughout my years as a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps, as a veterans advocate, and as a faith leader in Michigan, Ive seen lots of politicians come and go. I can tell you that when it comes to politics, there are workhorses and show horses. Its easy to show up for a five-minute speech at church, or to pose for photos. But legislating and acting on behalf of ordinary people is hard work. Elissa, our congresswoman, has demonstrated an impressive track record of actively seeking our input, advocating on our behalf and delivering tangible outcomes.

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin speaks during a campaign event at the New Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Lansing on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022.

But the best thing about Elissa is that she listens. Over the last few years, Ive seen her engage constituents in all kinds of settings  in town halls, at church services, and in marches across mid-Michigan. Its one thing to talk about empowering our marginalized communities. Its another to actually do it. When Black business owners in Lansing raised the issue of a lack of access to capital from banks, Elissa convened a meeting between a group of Black business leaders and the Michigan Bankers Association to talk about real solutions. After the killing of George Floyd, Elissa held listening sessions across our area before she voted to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in Congress. Then, she brought more than $1.3 million to the district to hire three new social workers at the Lansing Police Department to help prevent escalation and violence.

More: Slotkin seen by many as frontrunner to replace Stabenow in US Senate

No matter who you are or what your background might be, Elissa believes in bringing everyones voice to the table, and Ive seen her put that into practice again and again. To those who dont yet know her, Ill say this: She listens, and she leads.

Thats why she has won the support of dozens of local leaders and activists in mid-Michigan  folks from all walks of life. Just like me, these men and women know the kind of representative Elissa has been for our community. Weve seen her dedication, focus and grit firsthand, and we believe that theres no one better than Elissa to fight for what our Michigan communities need.

The Rev. Dr. Pamelajune Anderson is the founder and Soul Life Coach of Space for Grace Fellowship Ministries, UCC. Anderson is a lifetime member of the NAACP and a decorated and honorably discharged Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps and is a commissioned (RET) volunteer Chaplain (Major, Civil Air Patrol).

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Opinion: U.S. Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin has served Black voters
Sen. Tim Knopp, R-Bend, speaks during a March 21 Senate floor session. Knopp, the Senate minority leader, is now among the Republican senators no longer eligible to run for re-election after intentionally hitting 10 unexcused absences.

The Oregon Senate failed to reach quorum again Thursday, meaning six additional Republican senators have now disqualified themselves from running for reelection under Article IV, Section 15 of the Oregon Constitution.

Senators Lynn Findley, R-Vale; Bill Hansell, R-Athena; Tim Knopp, R-Bend; Art Robinson, R-Cave Junction; Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer; and Suzanne Weber, R-Tillamook, all hit 10 unexcused absences.

Under Measure 113, passed by 68% of voters in November, the senators are now barred from running for their current Senate seat in the next election.

That means, unless the rule is overturned in court by an expected legal challenge, only three of the state's Republican senators are left to run for re-election at the end of their term.

It also means another day of standstill in the Senate.

'Continue to disrespect our democracy'

Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, called it "another extremely challenging day for Oregon."

He delivered remarks after the sergeant at arms confirmed Republican senators could not be found, expressing disappointment and frustration at the now two-week walkout that's blocked progress in the state Legislature.

"By walking out in defiance of Article IV, Section 15 certain senators continue to disrespect our democracy," Wagner said.

The minority should not have the ability to silence the will of the majority, he said, quoting Alexander Hamilton and other founders who warned that minority veto meant "we do not have a democracy."

"If the voters wanted different policies, they would have voted that way. That is how a democracy works," Wagner said. "This walkout must end. The people of Oregon desire it. Democracy demands it."

Republicans are calling the walkout a "peaceful, constitutional protest" against deeply partisan bills. Votes have been blocked on House Bill 2002, a bill surrounding abortion and gender-affirming care.

About the bill: Abortion, gender-affirming care bill heads to the Oregon Senate

On the floor, Sen. David Brock-Smith was one of two Republicans present. He extended courtesies to his Republican colleagues for their "selfless" work to "defend the political rights of every Oregonian in this state."

Political game playing

In an emailed statement, Senate minority leader Tim Knopp said the party promised Oregonians and Democratic colleagues that they would return before the session ended to suspend reading and rules on "lawful, substantially bipartisan budgets and bills," meaning the Senate could vote quickly on those bills before the deadline to end the session.

State law requires the Legislature to pass a budget this year.

"While Democrats are laser-focused on the issues that do nothing but divide, we are focused on the real issues Oregonians care most about  homelessness, affordable housing, public safety, cost of living, job creation and fully-funded education," the statement said.

It's a move Wagner said he would not support.

During a news conference, he referenced Gov. Tina Kotek's remarks in 2020 when she was House speaker. She said Republicans had cheated during their 2020 walkout and criticized Republicans' offer to return 12 hours before the constitutional deadline.

"That's not what democracy is. It just isn't. The same standard is going to apply here," Wagner said.

He and Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber, D-Beaverton, said they have had 11 hours of conversation with Republicans.

They said they have asked Republican leadership to give them a "wish list" of demands. They've failed to do so, Lieber said, and instead continued to provide a kill list of bills they want killed.

Those bills included House Bill 2005, Senate Joint Resolution 33 and Senate Bill 27, Lieber said.

HB 2005 would raise the possession and purchase age limit on certain guns, allow local governments to prohibit concealed firearms in their public buildings and grounds, and prohibit unserialized ghost guns. SJR 33 and SB 27 are tied together, relating to a proposed constitutional amendment surrounding marriage protections for same-sex couples and abortion.

Democrats remain unwilling to negotiate away HB 2002, she said.

She was sad, she said, to see Republicans follow Knopp and "abandon" partnerships that have been built over years.

Wagner and Lieber said no additional conversations with Republicans are scheduled at the moment. They need to catch their breath, Wagner said, after the morning's events.

No Senate sessions are scheduled for Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

Dianne Lugo covers the Oregon Legislature and equity issues. Reach her at dlugo@statesmanjournal.com or on Twitter @DianneLugo

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon Senate walkout update: 10 senators ineligible for another term
Oscar Mayer says goodbye to the historic Weinermobile. Next up: the Frankmobile.

Oscar Mayer is rebranding its iconic Weinermobile. It's now going to be called the Frankmobile. The company says it's a bid to emphasize their dogs' all-beef ingredients. Business Wire

This week Oscar Mayer renamed its Weinermobile. It's now called the Frankmobile.

The rebrand marks a first in the vehicle's history since it initially debuted in 1936.

Anyone named some iteration of "Frank" can claim a free pack of hot dogs if they track the vehicle down.

It's impossible not to recognize and the name rolls off the tongue  Oscar Mayer's hotdog-styled vehicle has been eliciting some kind of reaction by viewers ever since the original model first hit the road in 1936.

On Wednesday, the brand announced a change to its fabled Weinermobile. It'll now be called the Frankmobile to reflect  the company says  a new recipe for its 100% beef franks.

"This month, we are introducing a tasty new recipe with a more balanced flavor profile and iconic beefy taste that is more flavorful than ever," an Oscar Mayer spokesperson told Insider.

Aside from the name change, the fleet of six vehicles that tour around the country all year long will boast new exterior decals  they read "Please do not lick the all beef beef frank frankmobile"  to go along with a new "franks for frank," offering.

Anyone with a name that contains some iteration of "Frank" will be able to receive a coupon for a free pack of Oscar Mayer's beef franks. That is, if they can track down the Frankmobile in person. The brand provides a tracker for interested fans to keep up with the fleet of vehicles as they drive around the US.

Drivers, formerly known as Hotdoggers are now Frankfurters and instead of passing out Wiener Whistles, will give Frank Whistles, to the public.

The Frankmobile measures 27 feet long, 11 feet tall, and eight feet wide, and serves as a form of physical marketing for the Kraft Heinz owned meat producer.

When it first hit the public eye, the vehicle was meant to "bring joy to people," during the Great Depression. The original model was 13 feet long and was designed by the General Body Company of Chicago, Oscar Mayer says.

A 1950s version of the weinermobile

A 1950s version of the WeinermobileBettmann

The last Weinermobile, ahead of a discontinuation in 1977, was mounted on a 1973 motorhome chassis manufactured by Chevy, Oscar Mayer says in a history of the vehicle.

In 1988. the mobile came back with a design overhaul: Six 23-foot long fiberglass vehicles were unveiled, featuring "microwave ovens, refrigerators, cellular phones, and stereo systems that played 21 versions of the Oscar Mayer Wiener Jingle." ("Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Mayer weiner ...")

Our current understanding of the Weinermobile stems from a 1995 concept by automotive designer Harry Bradley  the modern redesign was 27 feet long and 11 feet tall, the same specifications used today.

While the design remains similar to the 1995 changes, in 2004 the Weinermobile received some upgrades with regard to performance specifications, switching over to a Chevrolet chassis equipped with a 6-liter Vortec V8 with 300 horsepower.

Oscar Mayer Wienermoblie 75th Birthday Celebration

A view of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile 75th anniversary at West 75th street in Manhattan.Photo by Rob Kim/Getty Images

In its current state, the Oscar Mayer initiative offers jobs to new college graduates to drive around the country and promote the brand.

"We go to a city for a week to two weeks, do birthday party drive-bys, farmer's market visits, and go to museums. We've driven on racetracks. And we do events and media interviews," Katie Ferguson, a former Hotdogger told Insider in 2021. "The only consistency is how much joy it brings people."

Read the original article on Business Insider
By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden telephoned his Papua New Guinea counterpart James Marape on Thursday after cancelling a historic meeting in the Pacific islands nation to tell him Secretary of State Antony Blinken would travel in his place, the two leaders said.

Pacific island leaders will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a high-level U.S. delegation in Papua New Guinea on Monday.

Biden pulled out of the visit to Papua New Guinea due to debt ceiling negotiations in Washington, a move seen by some as a blow to U.S. diplomacy in the region.

Biden had been expected to meet 18 leaders from the region's main bloc, the Pacific Islands Forum, and sign a defence co-operation pact with PNG on Monday.

Marape told a press conference on Thursday that Biden had called him and invited him to a U.S.- Pacific island summit in Washington in September.

"I was privileged on behalf of the people that (Biden) placed a call directly to my cell phone ... he conveyed his sincerest apologies that he cannot make it to our country," Marape said.

Biden said Blinken would travel to PNG in his place, Marape added.

Biden called from Air Force One, the White House said in a statement, to personally convey the reason he was unable to travel to PNG was due to the need to ensure Congress took action to avert a default.

"The President emphasised continued U.S. commitment to the renewed partnership with the Pacific Islands," the statement said.

Marape said a defence co-operation agreement with the United States had been scrutinised by the PNG government solicitor and would be signed on Monday, before being presented in parliament.

FRAMEWORK PACT TO BE SIGNED

Despite criticism from some opposition politicians that the deal could upset PNG's trade with China, Marape said the U.S. pact would not compromise the country's foreign policy of "friends to all, enemies to none".

A framework pact would be signed, and the details of "how we deal with boots on the ground, how we deal with contractors on the ground, how we deal with airport-related issues, port-related issues, those will be worked upon", he said.

Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka arrived in PNG on Thursday, ahead of the Pacific leaders' meeting with Modi on regional co-operation.

The leaders will meet a U.S. delegation on Monday for talks on "areas of cooperation and challenges critical to the region and the U.S.," Fiji officials said.

In a statement, Rabuka's office said, "The meeting demonstrates the U.S. and Pacifics deep historical and people-to-people ties."

Action on climate change, protection of maritime resources and economic growth were priorities, it added.

The chairman of the Pacific Islands Forum, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, said he welcomed increased engagement by the larger countries in the Pacific as an opportunity to discuss and articulate regional challenges.

Analysts said the cancellation of Biden's visit, which would have been the first by an incumbent president to an independent Pacific islands nation, could damage U.S. credibility amid competition for influence with China in the strategic region.

"The Chinese are at least happy for now," the PNG Post Courier wrote in an editorial on Thursday.

The White House statement said Biden had told Marape the Pacific island leaders could continue discussions in Washington on "shared priorities including combating the climate crisis, increasing trade and economic ties, promoting maritime security, advancing sustainable and inclusive development".

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham in Sydney and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Clarence Fernandez and Alex Richardson)
If youre paid by the state of NC, this is the raise youd get in Senate-passed budget

The General Assembly controls the salaries of tens of thousands of state employees, teachers and other education workers, and some elected officials, too.

Increases in those salaries will go into effect on July 1, assuming the state budget becomes law by then. The state Senates version of the budget passed that chamber on Thursday with bipartisan support. Final raises will be negotiated in the legislatures compromise budget.

If you work for the state of North Carolina, heres what the Senate is proposing for your raise over the next two years. The Senate passed its budget Thursday with bipartisan support.

Raises for state employees

 State employees: 5% raises over two years, with 2.5% each year. That includes nonelected employees of the General Assembly.

Raises for elected officials

 Governor: A raise of nearly $40,000, or 22.5%, over the next two years.

 Council of State: For the rest of the Council of State  the lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor, treasurer, labor commissioner, agriculture commissioner, insurance commissioner and superintendent of public schools  a raise of nearly $22,000, or 14.9% over two years.

Raises for teachers, school staff

 Central office staff: 5% over the next two years  2.5% each year  for superintendents, assistant superintendents, associate superintendents, directors/coordinators, supervisors and finance officers.

 Teachers: An average of 4.5% over the next two years, which includes step increases. The state sets base salaries. Rural teachers receive an additional supplement. The 4.5% is not an across the board raise, and varies by teacher and experience.

 Noncertified public school employees: 5% over the next two years, with 2.5% each year.

Raises for retirees

 Retirees in the teachers and state employees retirement system: Retirees, or their beneficiaries, would receive a one-time bonus of 1% as a cost-of-living supplement, two years in a row. Those eligible would have retired on or before Sept. 1, 2023, and would be paid by Oct. 31. The amount is 1% of the retirees annual retirement allowance. Then in 2024, a 1% COLA bonus would be given out between September and October 2024.

Raises for UNC employees

UNC employees are in different classifications as they relate to the states Human Resources Act. SHRA stands for subject to the Human Resources Act, and those employees are most often support staff. EHRA employees are exempt from the act, and are often managers. Both groups stand to receive the same raise:

 SHRA UNC employees: 5% raise over two years, with 2.5% each year starting July 1.

 EHRA UNC employees: 5% raise over two years, with 2.5% each year starting July 1.

Raises for law enforcement

 State Highway Patrol, State Bureau of Investigation and Alcohol Law Enforcement personnel: 12% over two years, on a new salary schedule.

Raises for community college employees

 Community college faculty and non-faculty personnel: across-the-board raises of 2.5% the first year and 2.5% the second year, starting July 1. Minimum salaries, with different ranges for levels of education, would also increase.

Additional raises

More raises, for those not already set, can be given using funds from the Labor Market Adjustment Salary Reserve, with some limitations.
By Asif Shahzad and Mubasher Bukhari

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) -Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is facing corruption charges, said on Thursday he would not join an investigation by the powerful anti-graft agency while he was out on bail.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which has in the past investigated, put on trial and jailed all those who have served as prime minister since 2008, had earlier summoned Khan for investigation into the graft charges, a spokesman said.

Khan was arrested on the charges, which he denies, on May 9 and later set free on court-ordered bail that was extended to May 31.

In a statement addressed to the NAB's deputy director, and shown to Reuters by one of Khan's lawyers, the former prime minister called the allegations against him "absolutely false, frivolous and concocted".

He said he was in the process of applying for, and obtaining, bail in a number of other legal cases and would not be available before his protective bail expired on May 22.

Khan's arrest triggered a wave of violence that deepened political instability in the South Asian nation of 220 million. Pakistan has also been facing its worst ever economic crisis, with critical IMF funding needed to avert a balance of payment crisis delayed for months.

His wife Bushra Khan, commonly known as Bushra Bibi, is also on bail until May 23.

On Wednesday, Khan said that police had surrounded his house in Lahore, in Punjab province, and that he expected to be re-arrested soon, after the government warned him to hand over supporters who it blamed for attacks on the army.

Punjab's information minister Amir Mir said the government did not have any plans to arrest Khan as he had been given bail by court. "All we want him to hand over the terrorists hiding at his home," he said.

Khan has said authorities could search his home but only with legal warrants from a court, and has denied sheltering anyone involved in the violence.

On Thursday, Khan's aide Iftikhr Durrani allowed journalists into some areas of Khan's Lahore home to "look for terrorists".

(Reporting by Mubasher Bukhari in Lahore; Writing by Miral Fahmy; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Alex Richardson)
Amini, a Nairobi-based climate tech startup focused on solving Africas environmental data gap through artificial intelligence and satellite technology, has raised $2 million in a pre-seed funding round.

Pale Blue Dot, the European climate-focused venture capital firm that announced a $100 million fund last week, led the oversubscribed round. At the same time, Superorganism, RaliCap, W3i, Emurgo Kepple Ventures and a network of angel investors participated.

Kate Kallot, the founder and CEO of Amini, has worked for several years in artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science and deep tech roles for companies such as Arm, Intel and Nvidia. Kallot, in an interview with TechCrunch, explained how a work presentation on the intersection of natural capital and emerging technologies made her become fascinated by how she could use her experiences in AI and ML, including her work around social impact with the United AI Alliance, to provide a solution to the continents lack of data infrastructure, especially around environmental data.

The lack of data infrastructure for Africa, from the inability to collect data to analyzing it and its impact, is a deeper problem than most realize, the CEO said on a call. If you look at climate or environmental data in Africa today, its either nonexistent or difficult to access. And with climate change projected to hit Africa the most, theres a lack of data for farmers, for instance, to understand whats happening.

Often lauded as the last frontier market, Africa is home to 65% of the worlds uncultivated fertile land and 30% of its mineral resources, but only accounts for 3% of global GDP. In addition, frequent food and water scarcity still plague the continent despite having such enormous resources. One reason for this is the lack of reliable and trustworthy data, which has held back Africas development for decades by hampering business decisions and capital allocation, as well as making it difficult to measure the impact of climate change. There are other instances of nothingness in accessing weather or geospatial data on the continent.

Enter Amini. The six-month-old startup said it has developed a data aggregation platform that pulls in different sources of data (from satellites and other existing data sources like weather data, sensors and proprietary customer data) down to a square meter, then unifies and processes this data before providing them via APIs local and international companies that need them.

Today, on a granular level, Amini can provide farmers with data from the cycle between crop planting and harvesting to the amount of water and fertilizer used. On a higher level, the platform can help organizations understand the impact of natural disasters, flooding and drought across the entire continent in a few seconds, according to Kallot, who also said the platform could pull from almost 20 years of historical data and current data produced every two weeks.

Amini

Kate Kallot (Amini founder and CEO). Image Credits: Amini

Aminis current customers, primarily corporations and multinationals, are in the agricultural insurance sector and supply chain monitoring, specifically at the last mile, or the initial stages of the global supply chain. Kallot couldnt disclose the names of Aminis clients, while adding that the less-than-a-year-old climate tech startup is in discussions to sign up some of the biggest food and beverage companies and one of the largest insurance companies globally.

Addressing the lack of environmental data for organizations in these industries effects a necessary change. Take, for instance, global food and beverage companies with franchises in Africa, such as Nestle or Starbucks. Theres mounting pressure from international regulators such as the SEC Climate Disclosure rules and European Green Deal mandating that these companies understand their carbon emissions and environmental impact and how their operations and supply chain processes affect local farming practices in various regions, including Africa.

Platforms like Amini bring much-needed data transparency for these global organizations with vested interests in Africa, and helps them tackle supply chain issues at the last mile and provide agricultural insurance to farmers. The beauty of the platform is that its easily scalable because once you collect agricultural data for insurance, for example, that same data, 80 to 90%, can be sold into food and beverage companies who have supply chains in Africa or can be sold to governments who are trying to understand the impact of agriculture on their country.

Aminis business is such that it engages in a long sales cycle. International clients get access to the platforms API after paying a flat license fee in the multi-millions for two years. Local clients have tiered introductory pricing on a case-by-case basis, allowing them to access what they need and grow over time.

Gro Intelligence, a Kenyan-founded but New York-based AI-powered insights company that provides decision-making tools and analytics to the food, agriculture and climate economies and their participants, is the name that comes up the most when industry observers try to make sense of Aminis business, according to Kallot. However, the chief executive says there are noticeable differences: Amini collects and generates the data that the likes of Gro aggregate and use to illuminate the inter-relationships between food, climate, trade, agriculture and macroeconomic conditions.

Kallot says Amini, which recently became the first African company accepted into the Seraphim Space Accelerator program (scouts from the top 2% of global early-stage space companies), has direct competition with geospatial companies such as Planet Labs that have deployed a constellation of satellites that collects data around the globe and provide access for $15 per square kilometer. According to Kallot, using such technology is quite expensive for organizations in Africa or looking into the continent, and Amini proffers an alternative.

This piece highlights that venture capital activity around climate tech has been heating up in Africa since last year despite the global VC funding cooldown. Last year, the continents climate tech startups secured over $860 million in equity funding. Firms such as Novastar Ventures, Catalyst Fund and Equator are raising or have raised climate-tech funds for pre-seed to Series A startups.

Commenting on why her firm, which typically writes checks to European climate tech startups, invested in Amini, an African startup, Heidi Lindvall, general partner at Pale Blue Dot, said: The scarcity of high-quality environmental data in Africa is a concern as it prevents others from building important climate solutions such as improving farmer insurance, monitoring climate risk or supply chains. When meeting the team behind Amini, we were blown away by their ambition and expertise and we believe they are best positioned to fill the environmental data gap of Africa.

Before launching Amini, Kallot was a co-founder and chief impact officer at African web3/crypto startup Mara. Mwenda Mugendi, Muthoni Karubiu and Eshani Kaushal, all part of Aminis executive team, bring a wealth of experience in machine learning, data science, geospatial analysis and fintech, working for multinationals including Microsoft, NASA and MTN.
Palm Beach County man fights a murder charge for death of friend he found overdosing in his bedroom

WEST PALM BEACH  An intoxicated Palm Beach Gardens-area carpenter who found his friend dying of a drug overdose said he pushed ice into her body to "shock her back to life." When that didn't work, he covered her with a quilt to let her die in dignity instead.

Prosecutors blamed Tad Colby Johnson for Lacey Eichner's death, urging a jury to convict him of third-degree felony murder and manslaughter at the conclusion of a four-day trial this month. Jurors deliberated for an hour and opted for culpable negligence, a lesser charge.

Though they swayed from prosecutors' first two counts against Johnson, jurors found him guilty as charged Thursday for abusing Eichner's corpse and for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Their verdict followed days of testimony about the 35-year-old Eichner's time in Johnson's home, littered about with carpentry tools and bottles of painkillers. Not even Johnson could say with certainty what happened during her final hours alive, but attorneys did their best to fill in the gaps.

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Related: Five years after young mom's fatal fentanyl overdose, a judge hands her friend the final sentence

State Attorney Aleathea McRoberts told jurors that Tad Colby Johnson was responsible for Lacey Eichner's death because he didn't call 911 when he found her overdosing in his bedroom.

Tad Colby Johnson never called 911 during friend's overdose

Eichner and Johnson were good friends, said Assistant State Attorney Aleathea McRoberts. They both struggled with addiction. Johnson agreed to let Eichner spend the night at his home on Jan. 24, 2020, after she'd had a falling out with her boyfriend. He gave her his bedroom while he slept on the couch.

Eichner's father called police the next day to report his daughter missing. Deputies with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office tapped into the geolocation data of Eichner's Chevrolet Equinox SUV and tracked her to Johnson's home near Juno Beach. They knocked on the door for several minutes before the sound rousted Johnson out of a drunken stupor.

"She's in the bedroom," McRoberts said he told the deputy after opening the door. "She's dead."

Eichner had begun to mummify by the time the deputy pulled back the quilt covering her body, the prosecutor said. A medical examiner told jurors she had been dead for at least a day.

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A judge decides: Is life in prison 'cruel and unusual' when killer is mentally ill?

Lawyer says Lacey Eichner might have died before Johnson found her

Assistant Public Defender Maurissa Rhiannon Jones called Eichner's death a "tragic accident" but not a crime. She spoke of Eichner's addiction in more detail than McRoberts, suggesting that the cocktail of synthetic drugs in her system might have resisted the life-saving effects of Narcan even if Johnson called 911.

Instead, he called a paramedic he knew, who Johnson said told him to insert ice cubes into Eichner's mouth and other parts of her body to revive her. Johnson followed the advice, though his friend denied ever giving it.

The paramedic told deputies that Johnson slurred his words so badly during their telephone call that he couldn't understand what he was saying. The carpenter called other friends in search of Narcan before driving to a nearby store to buy more ice when his freezer ran out. He forgot his wallet and returned home empty-handed.

Judge Caroline Shepherd of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit will sentence Tad Colby Johnson to prison for culpable negligence, abuse of a corpse and being a felon in possession of a firearm later this year.

"He kept drinking because he was scared," Jones said. " ... He was going to call the police, but he blacked out."

Johnson drank heavily to treat the pain of 18 herniated discs when his prescription painkillers didn't cut it, Jones said. Johnson could walk at the time of Eichner's death but has since been confined to a wheelchair because of his injuries.

The defense attorney urged the jury not to take his statements to investigators as fact. Johnson said Eichner was still alive when he discovered her on his way to the restroom, but he could have been too drunk to know the difference, Jones said.

"Lacey Eichner and Tad Johnson were imperfect people making imperfect choices," Jones said. "This doesn't mean either one of them is responsible for Lacey Eichner's death."

Johnson is scheduled to return to court in August to arrange a sentencing date.

Hannah Phillips is a journalist covering public safety and criminal justice at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at hphillips@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Man who didn't call 911 for overdosing friend faces murder charge at trial
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, were allegedly involved in a "near catastrophic" car chase this week in New York. (Peter Dejong / Associated Press)

Photographers at the scene of an alleged "near catastrophic" car chase involving Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, have disputed the royal couple's account of the incident.

Celebrity photo agency Backgrid USA Inc. released a statement Wednesday defending its freelance photographers who witnessed the alleged chase and denied that the pursuit caused multiple near-collisions on the streets of New York City.

Backgrid claims it has reviewed photos and videos from four freelance photographers who were there that night  including three who traveled by car and one who was riding a bicycle.

"It is important to note that these photographers have a professional responsibility to cover newsworthy events and personalities, including public figures such as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle," Backgrid said in a statement provided Thursday to The Times.

"According to the accounts given by these freelance contributors, they were covering the couple's stay in New York City, including the possibility of a dinner after an award ceremony. They had no intention of causing any distress or harm, as their only tool was their cameras. A few of the photos even show Meghan Markle smiling inside a cab."

The paparazzi working for Backgrid went so far as to accuse one of the vehicles in Harry and Meghan's security escort of "driving in a manner that could be perceived as reckless." The photo agency alleges that video footage shows the SUV "blocking off streets" and "being pulled over by the police."

(The NYPD confirmed to The Times on Wednesday that officers assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex" that evening.)

"We understand that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's security detail had a job to do, and we respect their work," Backgrid said.

"We do, however, want to point out that according to the photographers present, there were no near-collisions or near-crashes during this incident. The photographers have reported feeling that the couple was not in immediate danger at any point."

Still, the photo agency promised it is "taking Prince Harry's allegations seriously and will be conducting a thorough investigation into the matter."

Another photographer-witness quoted separately by People magazine dismissed the Sussexes' "sensational" claims as "crazy hyperbole."

"Nobody got a ticket or arrested," the photographer told People. "I don't see how it was near catastrophic."

The statement released Wednesday by the duke and duchess tells a different, more harrowing story that many compared to the events leading up to the death of Harry's mother, Princess Diana. The prince has been vocal about his mission to protect his wife and children from suffering the same fate as his mother, who died in a 1997 car crash while her chauffeur was trying to evade paparazzi in Paris.

A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan deemed the paparazzi in New York "highly aggressive" and described the chase as a "relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours." The former actor, her husband and her mother, Doria Ragland, were tailed by photographers while leaving the Woman of Vision Awards at the Ziegfield Ballroom, where Meghan was among the honorees.

"While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyones safety," a representative for the Sussexes said.

"Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all involved."

The chase allegedly included six blacked-out vehicles and resulted in several traffic violations, such as driving on the sidewalk, running red lights, reversing down a one-way street, driving while on the phone, driving while snapping photos and illegally blocking a moving vehicle.

TMZ reported that one of the paparazzi vehicles drove the wrong way down a one-way street; Harry and Meghans car reached 80 miles per hour on the FDR Drive highway in Manhattan.

At one point, the duke and duchess abandoned their black SUV for a yellow New York taxi in an attempt to lose their pursuers. A cab driver  who said he transported the couple for about 10 minutes of their journey  later told the Washington Post that he felt safe during the trip and would not describe the incident as a chase. He did note, however, that photographers were following them "the whole time."

Representatives for Harry and Meghan did not immediately respond Thursday to The Times' request for comment.

Times staff writer Nardine Saad contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Papua New Guinea to sign security pact with US, PM says

Prime Minister James Marape said Papua New Guinea will sign two agreements with Washington on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance

Papua New Guinea will sign a security pact with the United States that gives American troops access to the Pacific nation's ports and airports, its leader said Thursday, as Washington jostles for influence in the region with Beijing.

US President Joe Biden has placed more importance on the Pacific over concerns about an increasingly assertive China, which is trying to woo nations with an array of diplomatic and financial incentives in return for strategic support.

Prime Minister James Marape said two agreements focusing on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance had been agreed with Washington and would be formally signed at the earliest opportunity after parliamentary approval.

"We are elevating to a specific defence cooperation agreement, something that is falling short of a treaty," he told a press conference.

"We are moving ahead, we are signing with the best military on the face of planet Earth."

The agreements, which can be renewed every 15 years, will give the United States vital movement in Papua New Guinea's waters near sea routes to Australia and Japan, in return for access to US satellite surveillance, he said.

"It now gives us an opportune time to focus not just on maritime access but satellite access on... illegal activities on the high sea," Marape said.

A leaked draft version of the defence cooperation agreement showed American forces would have broad autonomy at some of the country's key entry points, but Marape said any access would have to be approved by his government.

"The ports, the infrastructure... will not in any way stand to be exclusively used by the military," he said.

"They would always be asking our defence to have access to our facilities."

Biden -- whose uncle died in Papua New Guinea in the Second World War -- cancelled a historic first visit to the most populous South Pacific nation next week because of domestic debt ceiling crisis talks.

Marape said Secretary of State Antony Blinken would instead attend the summit with Pacific leaders in Port Moresby on Monday.

Washington is courting Pacific nations more intensely after the Solomon Islands became the unlikely epicentre of a diplomatic tussle between the United States and China last year when it signed a security pact with Beijing.

Marape said Papua New Guinea's pact with Washington would not prevent it from negotiating such deals with other nations, including China.

jfx/djw/axn
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on Thursday in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Rahmon is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi expressed his pleasure at meeting with his old friend in Xi'an and warmly welcomed Rahmon to China for the summit and the state visit.

He pointed out that since China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties, the bilateral relationship has grown from one of good-neighborliness to a strategic partnership and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Xi recalled his state visit to Tajikistan in 2019, during which they jointly announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community of common development and security, which has seen encouraging progress over the past four years.

Xi underscored that China-Tajikistan relations enjoy deep historical roots, a solid political foundation, substantive cooperation and extensive public support.

To ensure a bright future for the two peoples, China is ready to work with Tajikistan under the new circumstances to enhance cooperation in various areas and build a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit, Xi said.
Papua New Guinea to sign security pact with US, PM says

Prime Minister James Marape said Papua New Guinea will sign two agreements with Washington on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance

Papua New Guinea will sign a security pact with the United States that gives American troops access to the Pacific nation's ports and airports, its leader said Thursday, as Washington jostles for influence in the region with Beijing.

US President Joe Biden has placed more importance on the Pacific over concerns about an increasingly assertive China, which is trying to woo nations with an array of diplomatic and financial incentives in return for strategic support.

Prime Minister James Marape said two agreements focusing on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance had been agreed with Washington and would be formally signed at the earliest opportunity after parliamentary approval.

"We are elevating to a specific defence cooperation agreement, something that is falling short of a treaty," he told a press conference.

"We are moving ahead, we are signing with the best military on the face of planet Earth."

The agreements, which can be renewed every 15 years, will give the United States vital movement in Papua New Guinea's waters near sea routes to Australia and Japan, in return for access to US satellite surveillance, he said.

"It now gives us an opportune time to focus not just on maritime access but satellite access on... illegal activities on the high sea," Marape said.

A leaked draft version of the defence cooperation agreement showed American forces would have broad autonomy at some of the country's key entry points, but Marape said any access would have to be approved by his government.

"The ports, the infrastructure... will not in any way stand to be exclusively used by the military," he said.

"They would always be asking our defence to have access to our facilities."

Biden -- whose uncle died in Papua New Guinea in the Second World War -- cancelled a historic first visit to the most populous South Pacific nation next week because of domestic debt ceiling crisis talks.

The White House said Biden called Marape from Air Force One on Thursday to inform him that Secretary of State Antony Blinken would instead attend the summit with Pacific leaders in Port Moresby on Monday.

Biden invited Marape and other Pacific leaders to another summit in Washington later this year to carry on "discussions around enhancing US-Pacific cooperation", the White House said in a statement.

Washington is courting Pacific nations more intensely after the Solomon Islands became the unlikely epicentre of a diplomatic tussle between the United States and China last year when it signed a security pact with Beijing.

Marape said Papua New Guinea's pact with Washington would not prevent it from negotiating such deals with other nations, including China.

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Tyler Schindley, 46, and Krista Schindley, 47 (Spalding County Jail)

A Georgia couple have been arrested after their emaciated 10-year-old son was found searching for food in their neighbourhood.

Tyler and Krista Schindley were taken into custody and are being held in Spalding County Jail after a judge denied them bail.

The hungry youngster, who weighed just 36 pounds, was found by police in Griffin, Georgia after someone called 911 when he was seen walking to a supermarket to buy something to eat.

The malnourished youngster pleaded with officers to make him go back, according to WANF

As a mother, I cant comprehend it. As a human being, it breaks your heart, Griffin Judicial Circuit District Attorney Marie Broder told reporters, according to Fox5 Atlanta.

We arent releasing any photos of this child for obvious reasons, but I will tell you, the photos are absolutely horrible, and anybody with a human heart who looks at them should be shaken to their core.

And she added: It is my true belief that had he not gotten out of the home, this case would be a very different one.

Police described the boy as being thin with discoloured skin and visible injuries and he was taken to a hospital to be treated for malnutrition and a low heart rate. He is reportedly in a stable condition.

Tyler Schindley, 46, and Krista Schindley, 47, have been charged with attempted homicide in the second degree and attempted malice murder. They also face charges of cruelty to children in the first degree, second degree and third-degree, battery, simple battery and false imprisonment.

An arrest affidavit claims that the couple intentionally did not give the boy food and allegedly kept him locked in his bedroom without lights, toilet paper or any human interaction.

Four other children found inside the Schindleys home were taken into the custody of the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services.
A 2-year-old girl died in Holmes County, Florida, on Tuesday after being left unattended in her mother's vehicle for 14 hours. This is the fourth time this year that a child has died after being left in a hot car in the United States.

The toddler's parents, 23-year-old Kathreen Adams and 32-year-old Christopher McLean, have been charged with child neglect, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of methamphetamine, authorities said. However, according to law enforcement officials, more charges are forthcoming, pending the results of an autopsy that was performed Wednesday.

Holmes County sheriff's deputies responded to a 911 welfare check for a home in the county, which is on the Florida-Alabama state line, just before 4 p.m. EDT on Tuesday. Upon arriving, officers found Adams holding her child in her arms, authorities said. Adams reportedly told the officers she found the child unresponsive inside her house and didn't know what happened.

Child hot car deaths in the United States in 2023. (Kids and Car Safety)

According to the Holmes County Sheriff's Office, emergency medical services started conducting life-saving measures but ultimately pronounced the child dead at 3:59 p.m.

Once investigators started questioning the mother, they quickly found inconsistencies in her story, according to authorities. During a press conference on Tuesday, Holmes County Sheriff John Tate said the father was not cooperating with deputies during questioning.

"Investigators on the scene had EMS take a body temperature of the baby, which the body temperature of the child was 107 degrees, so we knew something was not adding up," said Tate.

Adams eventually admitted she picked up her children from a babysitter around midnight and decided to leave them both in the vehicle, authorities said. Officials said the 4-year-old child was able to get out of the car, and the Department of Children and Families currently has that child under custody.

Temperatures rise on a hot day. (Getty Images)

"So they decided to leave the child in the car and went inside and ultimately fell asleep and did not wake up or did not realize the child was in the car until around 3:41 that afternoon, and once they realized that the child was still in the car, they went out and found [her] unresponsive," said Tate.

When investigators searched the home, they found marijuana, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.

"I honestly believe methamphetamine drugs is the culprit behind this death; that's what happens when you use drugs, you lose [a] sense of what's going on in reality," Tate said.

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On Tuesday, temperatures in Holmes County reached the upper 80s. Although overnight temperatures were much lower, during the daytime hours on Tuesday, temperatures within the vehicle likely reached the triple digits within minutes of the sun rising.

According to Tate, investigators are waiting on the results from the autopsy to decide what homicide charges the couple will face, if any.

Child hot car deaths from 1990-2022. Numbers include U.S. children aged 14 and under. (Kids and Car Safety)

This is the fourth hot car death nationwide this year and the second death in the state of Florida during 2023, according to Kids and Car Safety, a national nonprofit child safety organization. Florida ranks second in the nation for child hot car deaths, with 111 reported fatalities between 1990 and 2022.

The first hot car death occurred in Alabama in late February when a father left his 2-year-old son unattended in his vehicle for eight hours. When the father went to pick up the child from daycare after work on Feb. 27, daycare workers informed him that the child was never dropped off that morning. That is when the father found the child unresponsive in the backseat of his car.

Nearly a week later, a 2-year-old died in Port St. Lucie, Florida, after his father left the child in his vehicle for more than five hours. The father dropped four of his children off at school and returned home. He forgot to take his youngest son out of the car when he arrived home and didn't realize until he went to pick up the other children later that afternoon, FOX13 reported.

On May 9, a 1-year-old girl died in Spring Valley, New York, which is just north of the New York-New Jersey border. According to Patch, the child was left in the family vehicle unattended for several hours.

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Salema and her five children walked for several kilometres to get to a safe place

Salema Masha speaks softly, but her slender frame is animated by an inner strength that saved the lives of her five children.

One day in March she walked them out of a remote wilderness where followers of a Kenyan televangelist were starving themselves to death in the belief that they could meet Jesus faster.

Among the horrific stories emerging from the Christian doomsday cult in the East African country, Salema's stands out.

More than 200 bodies have been recovered so far from mass graves in the vast Shakahola forest on the southern coast of Kenya, and more are being dug up every day. Survivors are still being found hiding under trees and bushes in the 800-acre territory.

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Mackenzie opened the Good News International Church in 2003. He repeatedly attracted police attention with his claims that children should not go to school, and that medical treatments should be rejected.

In 2019 he shut down the church and invited his followers to move with him to Shakahola, a place he called a new "Holy Land".

Salema's husband was among those who heeded the call.

As she tells her story, she breastfeeds one-year-old Esther, who was born in the forest. Her eldest, a boy named Amani, is eight.

"When I saw they were so weak, I gave them water and I told myself, I couldn't allow my children to die", Source: Salema Masha, Source description: Mother who escaped Kenyan cult, Image: Salema Masha, a mother who escaped a Kenyan cult with her five children

The mass suicide started in January. Salema says she followed instructions to begin fasting so that she could "get to heaven".

Mackenzie had been telling his followers for some time that the world was coming to an end. Initially he offered the forest as a sanctuary from the approaching apocalypse. But in a grisly twist it became a last stand to get to heaven before the "End of Days".

After seven days of fasting, Salema says she heard a voice from God telling her this wasn't his will and that she still had work to do in the world, so she stopped.

People around her were dying though - at one point she attended a funeral of eight children. It was called going to "sleep".

But they said: "If my children won't die, I should stop attending other peoples' funerals," she tells me.

Survivors say children were supposed to be the first to go, according to a macabre order drawn up by Mackenzie. Then the unmarried, the women, the men, and last of all, church leaders.

"When the child cries or asks for food or water, we were told to take a cane and beat them so that they could go and eat in heaven," Salema explains. "So I thought about it and I said I cannot go on with this situation, I can't eat while my child is starving. I told myself, if I feel this bad when I fast, how about my child?"

Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Mackenzie said children should not go to school and medical treatment should be rejected

A BBC analysis of Mackenzie's sermons on video do not show him directly ordering people to stop eating. However, according to Salema, he was explicit in weekly gatherings on Saturdays.

"At first, the pastor dug... water wells [in the forest] and told us to wait for Jesus and we waited. But then, suddenly, he told us we should fast and go to heaven," she says.

When they questioned the order, as Salema did, they were told that if they delayed their deaths, heaven would be full: "The gate would be closed."

Much of Mackenzie's preaching focused on a new Kenyan national identity card that will include personal data encoded in an electronic chip - the "sign of the beast" he called it, to be avoided at all cost.

The cost was very high, and Salema discovered that her husband, one of Mackenzie's deputies, was involved in managing it. A friend told her that when he went to work, he was actually going to bury the dead.

One day in March he put his foot down, forcing the family to fast. Four days later he left for work and Salema saw her chance. She grabbed the children and left.

"My children fasted for four days without food and water, and they were crying," she says. "So, when I saw they were so weak, I gave them water and I told myself I couldn't allow my children to die."

The children were guided by the steely will of their mother and protected by her status as the wife of a Mackenzie aide.

More than 200 bodies have so far been exhumed from mass graves in the Shakahola forest

Salema says she was challenged by other cult members but not stopped, and when she reached the main road after walking for several kilometres, got a lift from "a good Samaritan" to a safe place.

But other runaways were stopped. A group of male enforcers bearing machetes chased, beat, and dragged them back to the forest, in accounts told by survivors and former cult members.

Mackenzie surrendered to the authorities on 15 April. He denies ordering his followers to starve themselves. But the search and rescue operation found many dead children buried in his compound.

Police told local reporters they had learned from aides who had been detained that this was meant to be a way for Mackenzie to identify with Jesus' command to "let the little children come unto me," says journalist Marion Kithi.

Police also said that before Mackenzie left, he ordered his deputies to continue enforcing the mass starvation and burying those who died, according to Kithi.

Survivors say children were supposed to be the first to die, according to a macabre order drawn up by Mackenzie

It is the surviving children who've provided a lot of the information about what happened, says Victor Kaudo, a human rights activist from Haki Africa who first tipped off the police that young boys were dying in Shakahola.

Some of the adults refuse treatment even after they've been rescued. And there is suspicion that members of the cult are continuing to exert influence beyond the forest, quietly telling survivors to refuse food and medicine.

Kaudo says two people his group rescued and regarded as victims were actually "part of this militia that Mackenzie had," and needed to be separated from the others.

Former cult member Titus Katana says he knows most of Mackenzie's aides and the majority have been arrested. But this week a body was discovered lying in the forest, not buried beneath it. That makes him suspect some of the enforcers are still "supervising the process of people to fast".

Salema says Mackenzie's deputies came looking for her a week after she left and advised her to return, but did not threaten her.

But she knows others were not treated as kindly.

A woman came to her, asking for help to escape the cult with her children and find the money for transport back to their home village. Salema promised she would do so.

The woman went back to the forest to get her children and was never heard from again.
A 74-year-old patient was killed when the ambulance she was in collided with multiple vehicles in Alabama, officials say.

Dana M. Foster was being transported in a 2013 Ford F-350 ambulance the evening of May 16 when it struck a tractor-trailer head-on, according to a news release from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. The wreck happened on Alabama 21 in Talladega County.

Officials said the ambulance also struck a 2018 Nissan Pathfinder and a 2023 Honda CRV after colliding with the tractor-trailer.

The ambulance driver, on-board paramedic and the drivers of the Nissan and Honda were all taken to local hospitals after the wreck, officials said.

Regional Paramedical Services, which owns the ambulance, said it is cooperating with law enforcement as the wreck is investigated.

Our primary focus at this difficult time is to protect the privacy rights of the individuals involved in this accident, David Waid, the companys vice president, wrote in a May 16 Facebook post. We continue to ask that concerns and prayers be centered with the individuals and families who have been impacted by these tragic events.

Talladega County is about 40 miles east of Birmingham.

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The official portrait of former Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) was unveiled at the Capitol on Wednesday in front of a crowd of congressional heavy hitters, including current and former Speakers.

Speaking at the event, Ryan, who served as Speaker from 2015 to 2019, reflected on some of his proudest legislative achievements. He said the tax cuts Republicans passed in 2017 were his white whale.

We fixed the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs), we dealt with opioid addiction, we funded cancer research, we rethought how to better fight the war on poverty, Ryan said of his time as Speaker. And we reformed our tax code for the first time in a generation.

Ryan said the other white whales that got away from him were immigration reform and dealing with the nations debt.

If and when we fix that  and I do urge you to fix that  Im confident that America will be assured of another great century, Ryan said to the crowd, which included current lawmakers, alluding to the ongoing debt ceiling talks.

The event was attended by the likes of current Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and former Speakers Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and John Boehner (R-Ohio).

McCarthy, who is locked in high-profile discussions with the White House over the debt ceiling, reflected on Ryans warnings about the level of U.S. debt during his career.

Early on, Paul warned about the threats of the national debt.  I just wish more people had listened to you back then, McCarthy said during remarks at the event.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) also attended the event. McConnell applauded Ryans remarkable career in Congress.

Generational tax reform was the culmination of decades of devoted work, McConnell said. The Speakership capped off a truly remarkable legislative career.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who chose Ryan as his running mate when he won the Republican nomination for president in 2012, was also in attendance.

Ryan announced he would retire from Congress in 2018. Democrats took over the House majority the following year in the middle of former President Trumps tenure in the White House.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Taxpayers will be partially reimbursed for the alleged waste of money by former Architect of the U.S. Capitol Brett Blanton, according to the acting architect of the Capitol.

Congressional administrators are withholding $12,516 from the final annual payments due to Blanton, who was fired by President Biden in February, amid controversy over his personal use of a taxpayer-funded vehicle and questions about his adherence to agency policies.

File: Then-Architect of the Capitol Brett Blanton arrives to testify during House Administration Committee hearing in Washington on Feb. 9, 2023. / Credit: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

In a letter to the Senate Budget Committee, the acting architect of the Capitol confirmed some of Blanton's final pay would be withheld. The letter said that "all Architect of the Capitol employees must be accountable and comply with agency policies."

An internal review in October 2022 by the inspector general for the architect of the Capitol found "Blanton abused his authority and squandered taxpayer money, including by allowing his family to use his government-owned SUVs, and driving the vehicles on family vacations to South Carolina, West Virginia and Florida, and a trip to a craft brewery.

The inspector general's report also alleged Blanton allowed his wife and daughter to drive his government-issued car, including one instance in which his daughter was accused of driving recklessly. The report said Blanton's daughter "had transported both her friends and boyfriend in the vehicle and referred to using the [Architect of the Capitol]'s fuel as 'free gas.'"

In another instance, the report said Blanton claimed to be a law enforcement agent, and after a traffic accident, "when the driver inquired about Blanton's insurance information, Blanton told him it was a government vehicle and that he was an 'agent,'" said the report.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, Republican of Iowa, said Blanton's treatment of his office vehicles was a "blatant misuse of government property." In a Senate floor speech, Grassley quoted an excerpt of the office's internal review, arguing Blanton "violated every pillar the Office of Inspector General operates under including theft, fraud, waste and abuse against not only the architect of the Capitol, but also the taxpayer."

Blanton was also sharply criticized by Democrats at a hearing in early 2023 for failing to travel to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 to respond to the damage from the riotous violence of the Capitol Insurrection. During the hearing, Rep. Norma Torres, Democrat of California, told Blanton, "I am outraged that you would be in a comfortable place, sir, while the rest of us were thinking about dying that day and how we were going to come out alive that day."

An acting architect of the Capitol has been named to temporarily succeed Blanton. Senate sources told CBS News there are proposals for legislation this year to give Congress the ability to oust the architect of the Capitol, who is appointed by the U.S. president. Blanton was appointed by then-President Donald Trump.

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The Defense Department is now aiming to complete defueling of the the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in Hawaii by January 2024  months earlier than the Pentagon originally forecast.

A fuel leak at the facility in November 2021 affected approximately 9,000 Army, Navy and Air Force families at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Armys Aliamanu Military Reservation and Red Hill Housing. About 6,000 people were sickened after drinking or using the contaminated water and sought treatment for nausea, headaches, rashes and other conditions. The military subsequently paid for many families to temporarily relocated to area hotels.

The Pentagon said it will start defueling the facility in October and is shooting to wrap up removing the fuel by the end of January 2024, according to a new supplement released Tuesday. Defense officials had previously planned to complete the defueling process in July 2024.

This supplement demonstrates our intent to begin defueling the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on an accelerated timeline, Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement Tuesday. The prospect of defueling early is a testament to the commitment of the Department to safeguarding the environment and protecting the health of people in Hawaii.

The plan outlines the four steps needed to remove 104 million gallons of fuel at Red Hill:

Defuel tank mains

Defuel flowable tank bottoms

Unpack pipelines

Remove and relocate all fuel in surge tanks

Following these steps should remove approximately 99.85% of the fuel from the facility. But despite these efforts, the Pentagon said a sizable portion of fuel will still remain.

Pentagon to shut down leaking fuel tank facility in Hawaii

DoD acknowledges that a substantial amount of fuel (between 100,000 and 400,000 gallons) will remain in RHBFSF at the conclusion of defueling actions covered in this supplement, the document said. DoD will provide [the Department of Health] and [the Environmental Protection Agency] with additional supplements as needed to comprehensively address all additional actions necessary to ensure removal of all fuel from RHBFSF.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Hawaii Department of Health must sign off on the militarys new plan.

Kathleen Ho, Hawaiis deputy director of environmental health, said she was encouraged by the new proposal.

We will carefully review this submission to ensure that the updated timeline and plan can be executed safely without any further risk to the environment, Ho said in a statement.

The tanks can hold 250 million gallons of fuel but are at less than half capacity now. Thirteen of the 20 tanks, which were built into a mountain ridge in 1943, have fuel in them.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced in March 2022 that the military would shut down the facility and pursue more distributed refueling options instead.

The distributed and dynamic nature of our force posture in the Indo-Pacific, the sophisticated threats we face, and the technology available to us demand an equally advanced and resilient fueling capability, Austin said then. To a large degree, we already avail ourselves of dispersed fueling at sea and ashore, permanent and rotational. We will now expand and accelerate that strategic distribution.

A Navy investigation found a cascading series of mistakes, complacency and a lack of professionalism over the course of six months led to the 2021 fuel spill. It has yet to announce disciplinary action in response to the spill.

 The Associated Press contributed to this report.
TOPSHOT-UKRAINE-RUSSIA-CONFLICT-WAR

Ukrainian servicemen of the 95th Separate Air Assault Brigade prepare to fire a 120mm mortar towards Russian positions on a frontline in Donetsk region, on April 5, 2023. Credit - Genya SavilovAFP/Getty Images

The Pentagon said Thursday that it had overcounted the value of weapons and other equipment sent to Ukraine by roughly $3 billion, an error that means more U.S. defense funds will be available to support the Ukrainian effort to beat back the Russian invasion.

The mistake, which the Defense Department discovered after an internal audit in March, occurred because the military services were using cost estimates based on new hardware, rather than the depreciated older equipment that was pulled from U.S. stockpiles.

The department discovered inconsistencies in equipment value for Ukraine, Pentagon Spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said in a statement. In some cases, replacement cost rather than net book value was used, therefore overestimating the value of the equipment drawn down from U.S. stocks.

Using a so-called presidential drawdown authority (PDA), President Joe Biden has transferred weapons and equipment from U.S. stocks totaling about $21.1 billion since Russias invasion in Feb. 2022. The true cost is now estimated to be roughly $18 billion, officials said, which means the Administration has roughly doubled the $2.7 billion Congressionally authorized funds that were remaining to support Ukraine.

Read More: Inside the Race to Arm Ukraine.

When the miscalculation was discovered, the Pentagons comptroller re-issued guidance clarifying how to value equipment to ensure the services use the most accurate accounting methods, a Defense official said. The process is now underway, meaning theres a possibility additional savings could be found.

But Singh maintained the error has not hindered deliveries. This over-valuation has not constrained our support to Ukraine nor impacted our ability to flow capabilities to the battlefield, Singh said.

The race to supply Ukraine with the weapons it needs to win the war against Russia has taken on increased urgency as the Ukrainian military prepares to launch a counteroffensive against occupying Russian forces in the east and south. The Administration believes what happens in the coming months could shape the outcome of the war.

Read More: What to Expect From Ukraines Counteroffensive.

The Pentagons discovery drew fire from Republicans. House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers of Alabama and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul of Texas released a joint statement on the news. The revelation of a $3 billion accounting error discovered two months ago and only today shared with Congress is extremely problematic, to say the least, the statement said. These funds could have been used for extra supplies and weapons for the upcoming counteroffensive, instead of rationing funds to last for the remainder of the fiscal year.

The Republicans urged the Administration to make up for this precious lost time by using funds to provide Ukraine with more advanced weapons and systems that can tip the conditions on the battlefield in their favor.
LMPD: Man who escaped police custody still on the run after kidnapping on Brownsboro Road

Louisville Metro Police officials are searching for a man who escaped from police custody Thursday morning in the city's East End.

The man, identified as 31-year-old Norman K. Wolfe, broke out of an SUV being driven by a Trimble County deputy jailer at 8:40 a.m. near the Interstate 71 and Interstate 265 exchange, according to LMPD spokesperson Aaron Ellis. Drivers were advised to stay out of the area at that time as police searched.

About 11:30 a.m., Ellis said, officers were informed Wolfe had kidnapped two people in the 8500 block of Brownsboro Road about an hour earlier and forced them to drive him to an area near the River Road and Edith Road intersection. The two kidnapping victims were unharmed, he said.

Wolfe had not yet been found by 4 p.m. Thursday. Anyone with information about his location is asked to contact LMPD at 502-574-5673 or through the department's crime tip hotline.

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Wolfe had recently been charged in Jefferson County with burglary, fleeing and evading police and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. He was also facing charges in Trimble County, which is why a jailer from that Kentucky locale was driving the SUV he escaped. He will face additional charges after he is taken back into custody, Ellis said.

The nearby Kentucky Country Day School entered soft lockdown as police investigated the escape near I-71 and I-265, parents were told. Additionally, several Jefferson County Public Schools  Norton Commons Elementary, Norton Elementary, Bowen Elementary, Chancey Elementary, Wilder Elementary, Zachary Taylor Elementary, Kammerer Middle, Westport Middle, Ballard High and the Westport Early Childhood Center  briefly suspended outdoor activities, according to the district, though they were given the all-clear by LMPD about 12:30 p.m.

For subscribers: Andy Beshear vs. Daniel Cameron: An early look at the showdown in Kentucky governor's race

This story will be updated.

Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com. Reach Rae Johnson at rnjohnson@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: LMPD searching for Norman Wolfe after inmate escapes police custody
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks in the city of Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi welcomed Japarov to China for the summit and the state visit. Xi recalled their two meetings last year which produced important common understandings on China-Kyrgyzstan relations and cooperation in various areas. These common understandings are being implemented effectively, providing strong momentum for bilateral relations, Xi said.

Xi said Japarov has been working tirelessly to develop the economy, improve people's well-being, and promote reconciliation between different political forces since assuming office, which won him the support of the Kyrgyz people.

Xi expressed confidence that under the leadership of Japarov, Kyrgyzstan is bound to achieve new progress in all undertakings.

Noting that the China-Kyrgyzstan relationship has traveled a 31-year journey, Xi said China is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a China-Kyrgyzstan community with a shared future of good-neighborliness and shared prosperity, carry out cooperation in all dimensions, and contribute to the development and vitalization of both countries.
Zoe Petersen, Deseret News

Who is going to be the dad? When I was growing up and would occasionally play family with my girlfriends, I remember this question was the sticking point.

Everyone wanted to be the mother, changing the diapers and feeding the dolls. No one wanted to be the father. In the end, it was usually easier not to have one. The decision wasnt based on sexual preferences or anything deeper. We just didnt have a boy handy, and we all wanted to take care of the babies.

I was thinking about this as I read the recent New York Times piece on mommunes, groups of single women with children who are choosing to live together in order to save money and ensure a private social safety net.

Support system like no other, Kristin Batykefer wrote of her community of three mothers and their children in a TikTok post that has been viewed more than 1 million times. Shoulda moved into a mommune a long time ago.

The New York Times notes that the living arrangement isnt novel. Of course, historically, this particular family sharing structure was mostly done out of necessity, when husbands died or were away at war. But these days, being single in America is more often a choice. Women are choosing to have children without getting married or even living with the father. And they are more often responsible for initiating divorce than men are.

The piece, of course, makes mommunes sound quite appealing. As one psychologist explains, Sharing resources is key, and can be an antidote to not just role strain, but social isolation and stigma.

When one woman is sick, others take care of her children. They can share their money and afford larger residences or even buy a home when previously they would have only been able to rent. They have the companionship of other adults without having to leave the house. In other words, they have all the things they might have had if they were living in a traditional nuclear family, but without the hassle of having to deal with a man.

And there is another aspect to the mommune that makes these living arrangements sound, well, cool. The reporter writes that Mothers, particularly those in nonwhite communities, have been house-sharing for centuries. But a rising number of white, non-Hispanic single-mother households in the United States has put a new spotlight on the make-your-own-family structure.

Related

This racial angle  Black women sharing homes for centuries  is offered with no supporting evidence. But it has become a weirdly common trope. In Dorothy Roberts recent book about the child welfare system, Torn Apart, she holds up a tradition of African American women supporting each other as an alternative to losing children to child protective services. Its unclear what she means, and why its believed that these arrangements are new to white women.

The editor of the website Parents.com told the Times that In Latino cultures, theres this idea of a co-mother  a person who supports you and helps you raise your children. But there have long been multigenerational households of all races that included aunts and grandmothers and single women whose husbands had died or left. This is really not as new or exciting as the Times seems to think.

But the main problem with the article is that it doesnt address the challenges of these mommunes  for either the children or the women. There is, of course, ample evidence that children do better in myriad ways with a father living in their home, but theres not a mention of how fathers of these children feel about these arrangements, in which they seem so easily and breezily erased.

Its also unclear what happens when one of the women does find a male companion, or wants to date. How will these women feel when a man they dont know very well starts visiting the home or staying overnight? How will their children feel? Its not that these problems cannot be negotiated under the right circumstances but if women are not careful, they can place their children into inappropriate or even unsafe situations.

Unfortunately, media coverage of these living arrangements is often framed not as a way to make the best of difficult life circumstances, but as an exciting new approach to bringing up children. The lack of stability brought on by these communal homes  not to mention the lack of male role models and the frequent visits of nonrelative male adults  can be a serious impediment to successful child rearing. But you wont read that in The New York Times, which tell us all problems can be solved by the power of sisterhood.

Naomi Schaefer Riley is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a Deseret News contributor and the author of No Way to Treat a Child: How the Foster Care System, Family Courts, and Racial Activists Are Wrecking Young Lives, among other books.
Pete Buttigieg says GOP falling in delicious trap: Coca-Cola, Disney and Bud Light are on the other side

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said theres something delicious about far-right members of Congress positioning themselves against corporations that promote diversity or progressive ideas as he believes it unites most Americans who are on the other side of the fence.

Despite what seems like an increasingly polarised political environment, Mr Buttigieg expressed hope about common ground in America, in part thanks to the GOP, while speaking with Wired.

Over the last few years, several notable right-wing members of Congress have blasted companies like Bud Light, Disney, Coca-Cola and American Express for promoting inclusivity.

Speaking specifically to the Coca-Cola Company being called woke for protesting voter suppression laws in Georgia, Mr Buttigieg said, Theres something delicious about the way that [Senator Ted Cruz] and the rest of them have positioned themselves on one side of the fence.

And Netflix, Coca-Cola, Disney and Bud Light are on the other side. Along with most of America, Mr Buttigieg added.

Recently, anti-transgender people called for a boycott against Anheuser-Busch, the parent company of Bud Light, after they included a transgender woman in their advertising.

Over the last year, Disney has been targeted by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for openly criticising his legislation suppressing LGBTQ+ rights in the state.

But many have publicly mocked Mr DeSantis for going after the massive corporation due to their conflicting beliefs.

Mr Buttigieg seemingly pointed to the backlash, similar to the kind Mr DeSantis is facing, as an example of many Americans advocating for progressive ideas.

There may in fact be a center of gravity in this country that includes both a Democratic majority of the American people, and even something of a consensus, at least among mainstream business leaders, Mr Buttigieg said.

We have certain commitments around democracy and inclusion that are really elemental to the whole system, he added.

In the interview, Mr Buttigieg said that while the two goals of the mainstream right were to prevent legal access to abortion and to sustain lower taxes for the wealthy they had to make a lot of distasteful bargains to get there.

He cited coming after the US military as an example.

Sometimes the militarythe military, of all institutionscomes under attack from the far right. On ideological grounds. Yet another front in the culture war, Mr Buttigieg said.

You can only put yourself on the wrong side of so many red, white, and blue American institutions, and the question becomes, Is this about you?
Pharmacy and prescription Illustrated/Getty Images

Pharmacies can control what prescriptions they fulfill and which medications they stock, in some cases basing their decisions on moral reasoning. Amid the current diabetes medication shortage and with abortion access dwindling, pharmacies play a pivotal role in health care, wielding control over the lives of millions of patients. But state laws and economic pressures often dictate pharmacists' use of discretion when filling prescriptions.

What power do pharmacies have?

Many pharmacies, especially large companies like CVS and Walgreens, have significant control over the medications they stock and dispense. Pharmacists also have the final say when it comes to fulfilling prescriptions, allowing them to simply refuse to fill them. Pharmacies are legally allowed to deny fulfilling prescriptions at the discretion of the pharmacist.

Diabetes medication is one of the areas that pharmacies have leveraged control over. Medications including Ozempic and Mounjaro are in low supply largely because they have been adopted as weight-loss solutions. This has left both Type 2 diabetes patients and pharmacies in a tough spot. In turn, pharmacies have taken to prioritizing diabetes patients over those using the drug exclusively for weight-loss purposes despite being given prescriptions, per Healthline.

"High demand at the pharmacies means increased demand for manufacturers," Nancy Mitchell, a registered nurse and writer for the Assisted Living Center told Healthline. Limiting access to those drugs is "a means of dialing down on the urgency to manufacture more of the drug, dispensing it to those who are, for now, on the top of their priority list legally," she said. However, patients who use the drug for obesity are dealing with the consequences. "Obesity can lead to diabetes. Diabetes can lead to obesity," remarked Dr. Beverly Tchang, an endocrinologist and assistant professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, to Healthline.

Some pharmacies have opted to not carry Ozempic because the shortage is making it expensive to carry and insurance payouts are not covering the cost. "Many pharmacies will look at medicines that are being significantly underpaid and make a business decision to not let that drug deep-six their entire business," Antonio Ciaccia, the CEO of nonprofit 46brooklyn that researches drug pricing, told NBC News.

Also, following the overturning of Roe v. Wade (1973), many pharmacies were given the power to deny prescriptions for medication that could be used for abortions, even if it wasn't being used for that purpose, USA Today reported. For example, a person can be denied misoprostol, which can be used for abortions but also to prevent stomach ulcers. Some states also allowed for prescriptions to be denied due to moral disagreement, like in the case of birth control.

Why are pharmacies allowed to deny prescriptions?

Like the government, the health care system operates on a system of checks and balances. Since pharmacists are medical experts in their own right, they can exercise discretion on drug dispensing. "Just as doctors have the ability to decide whether or not to prescribe a medication, pharmacists are given professional discretion to fill or not fill prescriptions," according to Verify.

"Pharmacists are not machines. They always use judgment in dispensing," Donald Miller, a professor of pharmacy practice at North Dakota State University, told Verify. "Most of the time what is right is dispensing the prescription as written, but many times the right thing is to not fill it or more commonly clarify it." This is especially the case if a prescription is incorrect or if the drugs could clash with the medications the patient is currently taking. Pharmacists essentially act as a second round of defense after doctors.

This is all the more helpful as "polypharmacy," the simultaneous use of multiple medicines by a patient for their conditions, is becoming more common, per The Economist. "Of Americans who are 65 or older, two-thirds take at least five medications each day." According to the Lown Institute, medication overload "will lead to the premature death of more than 150,000 older Americans" in the next decade. The side effects of taking numerous meds have caused incorrect diagnoses and, in some cases, overdose deaths. Opioid painkillers and mental health medications have been the medications most overprescribed.

Pharmacists essentially double-check if "it's the right patient, the right drug, the right dose, the right route  how they're taking that medication  and then the right time," said Anna Legreid Dopp, a senior director at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, to Verify.

Where there's more controversy is in states that allow pharmacies to deny prescriptions for moral reasons. Six states allow pharmacists to refuse to dispense birth control medication and Plan B because of moral disagreement without having to recommend the prescription to another pharmacy. Some company policies may require prescriptions to be transferred. For example, Walgreens said in June 2020 that it "allows pharmacists to step away from filling a prescription for which they have a moral objection" but added that "they are also required to refer the prescription to another pharmacist or manager on duty to meet the patient's needs in a timely manner."

Because of this, the Biden administration released guidance stating that pharmacists refusing to fill prescriptions for abortion and birth control drugs may violate federal law, specifically those preventing pregnancy and disability discrimination, Reuters reported. "We are committed to ensuring that everyone can access health care, free of discrimination," said Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. "This includes access to prescription medications for reproductive health and other types of care."

Are pharmacies and pharmacists too powerful?

Pharmaceutical expertise is important in protecting patients' health. "The more pills someone takes, the more likely it becomes that some of them will interact in harmful ways," stated The Economist. "Pharmacists have reference databases that they check for nasty drug interactions." Catching prescription errors can potentially save lives. However, "druggists shouldn't act as morality police," according to the editors of Scientific American. "These professionals are hurting people, especially women, when they force them to go hunting for a place to fill a prescription."

There are state laws that inhibit pharmacists from doing their jobs. While some deny prescriptions for moral reasons, many located in states with anti-abortion laws fear the legal ramifications of fulfilling prescriptions for abortion drugs. "In some cases, we see risk in the pharmacist being disciplined or facing legal liability if they do something at the state level but then also facing legal liability from the federal level if they don't," explained Dopp. "That's a really hard place to practice, and that's not in the best interests of patients."

"As long as there is a reasonable expectation that the prescription is legitimate, you should be fine. I think pharmacies refusing to fill this is mostly fear and confusion and overreaction," remarked Miller. "I understand the fear  but I think if you're using your professional judgment appropriately for the benefit of that patient, that's a really ironclad defense."

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FILE - Mayoral candidate Cherelle Parker takes part in a Democratic primary debate at the WPVI-TV studio in Philadelphia, April 25, 2023. Parker, the Democrat who will almost certainly become Philadelphia's next mayor wants to hire hundreds of additional police officers to walk their beats and get to know residents. She wants to devote resources to recruiting more police and says officers should be able to stop and search pedestrians if they have a legitimate reason to do so. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

PHILADELPHIA (AP)  The Democrat who will almost certainly become Philadelphia's next mayor wants to hire hundreds of additional police officers to walk their beats and get to know residents. She wants to devote resources to recruiting more police and says officers should be able to stop and search pedestrians if they have a legitimate reason to do so.

Those positions, particularly the search policies that have been criticized for wrongly targeting people of color, would seem out of step in a progressive bastion like Philadelphia. But Cherelle Parker trounced her rivals in this week's mayoral primary with a message that centered on tougher law enforcement to combat rising crime and violence.

While local politics don't always align with the ideological divides that guide the national debate, Parker's victory offers a fresh case study for Democrats as they wrestle with how to approach the issue of violent crime, which increased in many U.S. cities during the pandemic and continues to be top of mind for voters across the country. The issue has divided Democrats from city halls to the White House, particularly over how much to rely on policing and incarceration to solve what many see as social problems, such as drug abuse and homelessness.

Parker, a former state legislator and city council member, argued that its a false choice to decide between investing in policing and addressing broader societal problems.

It is not either/or, the 50-year-old Parker said during the campaign.

That approach helped her defeat progressive rival Helen Gym by more than 25,000 votes. Gym, who advocated for measures including stronger police training and faster 911 response times, was backed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and appeared with the lawmakers at a rally on the eve of the election. Gym and her supporters blamed her loss, in part, on late attacks funded by wealthy donors who opposed her progressive policies.

The debate over policing intensified in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police prompted worldwide protests about policing and calls to defund police  a push that the GOP used against Democrats in 2020 elections. While Democrat Joe Biden won that year, some moderate Democrats said the party wasn't quick enough to denounce it.

In major U.S. cities that are Democratic strongholds, voters also have been divided in recent years.

New York elected Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain who vowed to invest more in public safety, and San Francisco voters recalled a progressive prosecutor amid frustration about public safety. In Chicago, progressive Brandon Johnson  who favored investing in areas like housing and youth jobs  topped a more moderate rival who had support from the police union. And progressive prosecutor Kim Foxx, who prioritized violent crimes over lower-level offenses and faced blowback for dropping charges against actor Jussie Smollett, said she will not seek reelection.

In Philadelphia, Parker was the only Black candidate among the top tier of hopefuls on Tuesday and she was backed by majority Black precincts across the city in both early and Election Day ballots. In addition to 300 more officers, her public safety plan also called for fixing broken streetlights, removing graffiti and investing in programs for at-risk youth.

Parker also defended her support for Terry stops, or for officers to use just and reasonable suspicion to stop pedestrians. She and other candidates faced criticism including a protest at City Hall last month from those opposed to stop and frisk.

The policy has riled the city in the past, with critics saying it was used disproportionately against Black and Brown pedestrians. According to ACLU Pennsylvania, Philadelphia police nearly doubled the number of pedestrian stops during Mayor Michael Nutters administration in the 2000s. Civil rights lawyers said at least half of the more than 250,000 such stops in 2009 didn't meet the legal standard, and almost none resulted in arrest. The ACLU sued to stop the practice, and monitors police use of stop and frisk under a settlement with the city.

We want to build that relationship and we also want folks to know that there will be zero tolerance for any misuse and or abuse of authority," Parker said in response to questions about her position. "But a proactive law enforcement presence is a key part of that plan, and I am unapologetic about it.

Tuesday's result suggests the salience of police reform may be subsiding from the days when people were protesting in overwhelming numbers, said Michael Sances, a political science professor at Temple University.

(Crime) has crowded out concerns about overpolicing," he said. "It doesnt mean that people have become anti-reform, that can easily be surfaced. Its just a sign of where the publics attention is, and where political leaders have moved, and thats really toward the center.

Philadelphia saw a record number of homicides in 2021, most of them gun-related. That number fell from 562 to 516 in 2022, but was still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels. On Wednesday, an 18-year-old was rearrested in Philadelphia after he escaped from a prison in the city along with another inmate. The man was being held on charges in four slayings.

But in a reminder that there's no easy trend line on the political dynamics related to crime, voters in Pittsburgh made a turn to the left in Tuesdays Democratic primary for county prosecutor. Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala, in office for nearly a quarter century, is trailing challenger Matt Dugan by double digits in unofficial returns, although Republicans launched a write-in campaign for him so the two could face off again in November.

Dugan, the countys chief public defender, ran on a range of progressive policies, including eliminating cash bail, diverting low-level and nonviolent crimes, and emphasizing mental health and substance abuse treatment.

What happens in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh could have national implications as Pennsylvania will again be a prime battleground in 2024.

Biden has walked a difficult line on crime, policing and the communities that have been disproportionately impacted by both. The president has said its possible to bring down crime and also reform criminal justice and policing at the same time, though Republicans claim crime is up because of those reforms.

Biden often says he believes police need better tools and training, calling them heroes who do a difficult job. Hes also been vocal about the need to reform how policing has worked in Black and other nonwhite communities in the wake of the deaths of Floyd and other Black people killed by police.

This week, the Senate voted to overturn a local Washington, D.C. law enacted to improve police accountability that was backed by the district's Democratic mayor. It was the second time this year that Democrats joined with Republicans to reject a D.C. measure amid high rates of crime. Earlier, Biden agreed with the GOP that some of the measures  such as lowering penalties for carjackings  went too far.

Biden was expected to veto this week's vote, which would mean upholding the D.C. law, saying that while he doesnt back all provisions in the D.C. law he does support commonsense police reforms that are part of it, such as banning chokeholds, limiting the use of deadly force and improving access to body cameras and requiring additional training.

___

Burnett reported from Chicago. Associated Press writers Colleen Long in Washington and Mark Scolforo in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.

___

Brooke Schultz is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Philip Morris may expand production in Ukraine after suspending business in Kharkiv Oblast

Due to the lack of a bomb shelter at the factory in Kharkiv region, Philip Morris cannot resume its work

Read also: Japanese man opens free cafe for Kharkiv citizens after living underground with them for 9 months

The company suspended production in Kharkiv Oblast at the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. Due to the lack of a bomb shelter at the facility, Philip Morris is still unable to resume its operation.

Andolina pointed out that after the shutdown of the factory, PMI supplied Ukraine with products from eight of the companys plants abroad.

Later, in search of a solution that would allow resuming production in Ukraine, PMI signed an agreement to produce its brands at the facilities of the Imperial Tobacco in Kyiv.

However, according to the PMI representative, we consider it our duty to launch our own alternative production, where we could resume the production of our goods in Ukraine.

Andolina explained that one of the reasons is the desire to independently produce their products in Ukraine.

Read also: Ukrnafta plans to launch gas station network, double production

And secondly, because we want to signal our commitment to Ukraine and that even in wartime, we are ready to invest in Ukraine, he said.

He clarified that the company is currently actively searching for these alternatives.

Read also: EU to allocate EUR 500 million to ammunition production

And I hope that we can soon announce investments in the launch of alternative production facilities until we have the opportunity to return to Kharkiv Oblast, he added.

Shortly after Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Philip Morris, like many other Western companies, announced its intention to withdraw from the Russian market, but has not yet done so.

Read also: Infrastructure, dormitory, apartment building hit in overnight Russian attack on Kharkiv

In February 2023, PMI decided that it would be better to keep its business in Russia than to sell it on Kremlins terms.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
By Karen Lema

BALABAC, Philippines (Reuters) - When the Philippine military chief addressed a small contingent of navy officers on a remote island in Palawan province near the disputed Spratly archipelago in the South China Sea, he reminded them their mission was to "ensure there is peace".

But he also told them they have a "very important" role to play in guarding Philippine waters against intruders - and assured them of more resources and troops as the Philippines shifts its focus from internal security to territorial defence.

"We make sure that we are deployed where we are needed. In Palawan, we are needed here because this is a strategic location, so we have to be prepared," Centino said after sharing a feast with troops over a banana leaf-lined table bedecked with crabs, chicken, rice, fruits and slices of roasted pig.

Centino's visit at the Narciso del Rosario naval station, site of a new beaching ramp and staging area, was his second stop in the Balabac group of islands, where he also inspected a 300-hectare Philippine air base.

The Balabac air base, whose location Centino called "very strategic" was one of four new sites the United States was given access to in February under a 2014 defence pact, which came at a time of concern over China's conduct in the South China Sea and tension over self-ruled Taiwan.

The 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) allows for joint training, pre-positioning of equipment and the building of facilities such as runways, fuel storage and military housing, but not a permanent presence.

Some local government officials have expressed reservations over the expanded EDCA, but Billy Adriano, a resident of Balabac, said he welcomed it because "that will help in the security of the country".

Manila has started building a 3-km (1.9-mile) runway at the air base, which will also host humanitarian assistance and disaster relief facilities and barracks that Americans could use under the EDCA.

"This is surrounded by islands, and this is where foreign vessels from international waters will enter and pass through our SLOCs (sea lines of communications)," Centino said of the air base's location.

"If we have to defend (our territory), we have to be able to detect and identify intrusions," Centino said, recalling an incident in which a foreign vessel slipped into the Sulu Sea near Palawan.

He did not say what vessel, but the Philippines in March 2022 said it detected a Chinese navy reconnaissance ship off the Cuyo Group of Islands within the Sulu Sea, where it entered and lingered without permission, ignoring demands to leave.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea with a "nine-dash line" on maps that stretches more than 1,500 km off its mainland and cuts into the exclusive economic zones of Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. An international arbitral ruling in 2016 dismissed that line as having no legal basis.

"It is important we are able to monitor to detect who is coming in and out... if hostile or friendly forces," Centino said.

(Reporting by Karen Lema)
Pierce Brosnan bears uncanny resemblance to his mother in smiling photo: Good looks from your mom

Fans cant get over how similar Pierce Brosnan is to his mother in his recent Mothers Day tribute on social media.

The James Bond star, 70, took to Instagram on Sunday 14 May to wish his mother, Mary May Smith, a happy Mothers Day. Happy Mothers Day, the Irish actor captioned his post, alongside a green shamrock and red heart emoji. I love you Mum!

His Instagram post featured several smiling photos of the mother and son duo, as fans couldnt help but notice their striking resemblance. In one image, the two were posing on a beach, while another showed the father of five hugging his mother.

The third selfie showed the pairs noticeable similarities, from their eyes to their same smiles.

Now I know where you got the smile from, commented one fan under Brosnans post, while another said: Ohhhh both of you have the same smiling and the eyes!!!!

You got your good looks from your adorable mom! a third fan wrote.

Pierce Brosnan was born in County Louth but raised in County Meath by his grandparents for 12 years, while his mother lived in London working as a nurse. When his grandparents died, the Mamma Mia actor lived with an aunt and uncle before he was subsequently sent to live in a boarding house.

He previously described his childhood as solitary, Roman Catholic upbringing. My father took off for the hills and, for my mother, it was a very difficult time in the 50s to be a single parent. So, in many respects, I created my own self, he told The Guardian in 2020.

Im very grateful that I didnt have the shackles of parenting, so to speak, and really cleaved my own path in life. When, as a young teenager, I told my mother that I wanted to be an actor, she was extremely supportive of that. She wholeheartedly said: Follow your dreams.

In 1980, Brosnan married Australian actor Cassandra Harris and they welcomed son Sean three years later. He also adopted Harris children, Charlotte and Chris, from her previous marriage and they each took on his last name. His wife was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and died in December 1991 at age 43. His adopted daughter Charlotte also died of ovarian cancer in June 2013.

He met American journalist Keely Shaye Smith in 1994 and they were married in Ireland in 2001. They have two sons together  Dylan Brosnan, 26, and Paris Brosnan, 22.

Last November, the Tomorrow Never Dies star celebrated becoming a grandfather for the fourth time after his son Sean welcomed his second child, a boy named Jaxxon Elijah Brosnan, with wife Sanja Banic.

In an Instagram post, the actor shared two close-up photos of the newborn and congratulated his son, daughter-in-law, and their seven-year-old daughter, Marley May on the newest addition. Jaxxon Elijah Brosnan, born 3:06pm 11/12/22, he wrote.

All good blessings to you my dearest grandson, welcome. Congratulations my darling Sean, Sanja and Marley. Peace be with you.

Brosnan also has two older grandchildren, Isabella and Lucas, from his late adopted daughter, Charlotte.
A Placer County court has ruled in a bitter dispute between county leadership and the union representing its sheriffs deputies over pay raises and benefits for county law enforcement.

Earlier this month, Placer Superior Court Judge Trisha Hirashima ruled in favor of the county, nullifying the voter-approved Measure F, a ballot measure adopted in 1977 that required the Board of Supervisors to set base pay by calculating the average salaries given to deputies in Nevada, El Dorado and Sacramento counties.

Measure F was the standard for labor negotiations with the Deputy Sheriffs Association for 40 years.

The court deemed the measure unconstitutional from its inception. Hirashima also decided that the law was overruled by the countys charter that gives supervisors the final say over pay negotiations.

Prior to the courts ruling May 2 against the union, which brought the suit, the issue had been boiling over for years.

In 2020, Placer County put forth in bargaining that the Measure F formula for wage increases could no longer be sustained and sought to override it, according to court documents.

The county said if Measure F had continued, it would have resulted in 18% higher salaries for Placer deputies than comparable jurisdictions, county spokesperson Chris Gray-Garcia said.

The county had previously put it to voters in 2002 and 2006, but voters rejected the repeal of Measure F on both occasions.

The Deputy Sheriffs Association argued that to do away with Measure F without voters consent was in violation of the law and voters rights.

During contract negotiations in 2021, the county offered deputies a 7% wage increase that exceeded the formula used by Measure F. But the countys proposal also gave the county power to eliminate some benefits plans, which the Deputy Sheriffs Association said was unlawful.

Negotiations two years ago reached an impasse, and the union filed its lawsuit, alleging the county was attempting to circumvent the voters, according to court documents.

The judge rejected the Deputy Sheriffs Association complaint, ruling that Measure F did not need to be repealed by voters. She also said the county had the power to do away with it to negotiate a new labor contract with the deputies.

The men and women of the Placer County Deputy Sheriffs Association are disappointed in the courts ruling, said Travis Thornsberry, president of the association. We feel this is a very complex matter and more importantly involves the rights of citizens to direct democracy. The representatives of the association intend to appeal the decision.

Following the ruling, the county extended its final offer to the union to increase wages 9%.

We hope this opens a fresh chapter in negotiations with the Deputy Sheriffs Association, starting with a strong salary offer in recognition of the excellent work of our law enforcement professionals, said Supervisor Jim Holmes, who chairs the board. Our goals remain for Placer County to be highly competitive for top law enforcement talent  with public safety as a critical priority.
The war has filtered in the play and worldview of Ukrainian children like 13-year-old Andriy Shyrokyh

The boys wear second-hand helmets and their guns cannot kill, but the war they play at in a verdant Ukraine field is real for them and carries consequences.

Over a year into Russia's invasion, the fighting has seeped into Ukrainian children's games and worldviews, impacting them in ways they will carry forever.

"I really enjoy playing war. I want to grow up to be a real war hero," said 10-year-old Maksym Mudrak, wearing child-size battle fatigues, a beat-up helmet too big for his head and a plastic toy gun.

Maksym's father, who was not in the military, was killed near Kyiv in the war's early days after going out to deliver supplies to volunteers defending against Russia's attack, the family said.

The boy's grandmother said he became steadily more interested in war following the invasion and the loss of his 40-year-old dad Oleksiy Mudrak on March 4, 2022.

"He was very, very affected by his father's death. Maksym constantly thinks about him. He goes to the cemetery and cries," 72-year-old Valentyna Mudrak said.

Maksym sees becoming a soldier as a way to preserve his father's memory and has a clear idea who is responsible for the war that took him.

"I treat Russians like my worst enemies," said Maksym, who lives with his grandmother near Kyiv in Stoyanka.

- 'They are evil' -

The war has brought staggering destruction and suffering to Ukrainians, and for children that has meant losing loved ones, being ripped from schools or homes and exposure to horror.

Also, over 500 children have been killed since the invasion, according to UN statistics.

Psychologist Kateryna Goltsberg said children have long played war in conflict situations and it is both a reflection and a means to process their experiences.

And while all Ukrainian children are impacted by the war in some way, it's not clear whether those experiences will result in life-long trauma.

"War changes us. But we have to realise that there is another such thing as post-traumatic stress growth, when a person who has survived traumatic events... becomes stronger," she said

The confrontation on the front line has changed the way children interact on the playground.

Lesya Shevchenko said her eight-year-old daughter Dana used to have just one question for the children she met in public: "What's your name? Let's go play."

But on a family trip to the beach in Bulgaria after the war began, Shevchenko was stunned when she realised her daughter was asking where potential playmates were from.

When children said they were Russian, Dana would turn silently and walk away.

"I just think that I don't want to talk to them, that's all. Probably because I think that all Russians are a certain way, because in my eyes they are evil," Dana said.

Her mother, a 49-year-old dentist, said this was not behaviour she had taught, noting that she has told her children they cannot hate everyone from Russia.

Yet Dana has been left traumatised by the war - shelling has made her fearful of loud noises and she has been afraid to leave the protection of a bomb shelter.

Dana's mother herself is willing to give the benefit of the doubt to Russians clear about their opposition to Moscow's seizure of Ukrainian land in Crimea and the eastern Donbas region.

"If a person says that 'this is a very controversial topic', then I won't talk to them. There is no grey area there - only black and white. We were attacked," Shevchenko said.

- 'I want revenge' -

Other parents see it as their duty to teach their children a view of Russia that leaves no space for discernment.

Iryna Kovalenko has taught her children since the invasion that Russians are collectively responsible for the war and those who are good have to prove it.

Her six-year-old daughter Sofiya summarised by saying: "My mother told me they are launching bombs into Ukraine from Russia."

"Mum also said that (Russian President Vladimir Putin) is very bad. And he beat cats and dogs when he was a child. And then, when he grew up, he turned to people," she added.

Kovalenko, a 33-year-old nurse, views her words to her children as a warning.

"One way or another, they should know who they live next to. Ukraine will always have a border - Russia will always be our neighbour."

One of the other boys who plays war with Maksym, the child whose father was killed in the war's opening weeks, has taken that message a step further.

"I really want to somehow take revenge for the soldiers who died at the front," said 13-year-old Andriy Shyrokyh, who wore battle fatigues and homemade body armour.

He dreams of becoming a soldier, and says he has absolutely no interest in going to school - unless it is to learn military tactics.

"I want to do to the Russians the same as they did to us," the boy said.

bur-jmm/jbr/lcm/mca
"We were sitting ducks. We were amazingly calm, but underneath we were thinking, 'Oh my god,' " said passenger Janet Morris

Stephen Bidwell / SWNS

A British couple had a frightening encounter with a pod of orcas while out at sea earlier this month.

Janet Morris and Stephen Bidwell from Cambridge told The Sunday Times that they were on the second day of training for their week-long sailing course off the coast of Morocco when the incident took place on May 2.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw them," Morris, 58, told the outlet, noting that they had been awed by the sight at first. "It's extremely rare."

"We were sitting ducks. We were amazingly calm but underneath we were thinking, 'Oh my god.' [But] because everyone was calm, it felt okay," she added.

Stephen Bidwell / SWNS

Related:Orcas Continue to Clash with Boats off the Coast of Europe, Reportedly Sinking Two Sailboats

Things took a turn for the worst, however, while the couple had been napping while preparing for a night watch.

They told the Times that they woke up to the sound of loud bangs on the hull and crew members shouting about the orcas. When they went outside, they found the creatures bumping into their 46-foot boat.

"We were petrified," Morris said. "It wasn't until afterwards that we talked about being very scared. We got our valuables and our passports and talked about getting the life raft ready."

"It really didn't help that conditions were bad before the orcas. The boat was moving around a lot," she explained.

According to the Times, the boat's crew said that the pod of orcas had been chasing sponge-like debris that drifted beneath the boat before they started bumping it, which they did for an hour.

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Morris noted that the captain of the ship had been "calm and orderly," which "got everyone through the experience."

"We all remained calm because we were aware that if any of us got anxious, it would be infectious," Bidwell, 58, told the outlet. "We were able to do that because the skipper was so calm. Orcas enjoy the thrill of the chase, so ideally we'd have kept still. But that wasn't possible because of the winds."

The couple said that following the chase, the boat's steering system failed, which prompted Morris, Bidwell and the rest of the crew to return to shore. There, they realized the orcas had been chasing pieces of the yacht's rudder.

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The area that the couple had been sailing in, the Strait of Gibraltar, is known as "orca alley" because of the number of orca sightings there. Two boats were reportedly sunk by the animals off the coast of Portugal last month, with other vessels having to be towed back into port after orcas wrecked their rudders.

The incidents of orcas encountering yachts and other boats in the area have been increasing over the years, with several sailing magazines and websites noting that the creatures appeared to be attracted to a ship's rudder because of the water pressure it gives off, according to NPR.

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Li Hui (R), special representative of the Chinese government on Eurasian Affairs, shakes hands with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Ukraine during a visit to the country from May 16-17, 2023. [Photo/Chinese Foreign Ministry]

A Chinese special envoy has stressed the need to build trust among all the parties to the Ukraine crisis and create conditions for peace talks during a two-day visit to the country.

Li Hui, special representative of the Chinese government on Eurasian Affairs, met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and held separate talks with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and other senior officials in Ukraine from Tuesday to Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement released on Thursday.

"There is no panacea to resolve the crisis," said Li.

He called on all parties to make their own due efforts to build up mutual trust and create conditions for ceasing the hostilities and securing peace talks.

The Chinese envoy is now on a trip to five European countries  Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia  in a bid to engage with various parties on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

The trip comes about two weeks after a phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Zelenskyy, in which the Chinese leader renewed Beijing's commitment to standing on the side of peace over the Ukraine crisis.

Push for 'broadest common understanding'

China released a 12-point paper stating its position on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis on February 24, 2023, the first anniversary of the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

During his talks with the Ukrainian side, Li said, on the basis of this position paper, China is ready to work for the broadest common understanding in the international community in the resolution to the Ukraine crisis, and make its own efforts to secure a ceasefire and restoration of peace as soon as possible.

He added that, China has always played a constructive role to ease the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capabilities.

The Ukrainian side said it values the important role China has played in international affairs as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, and welcomes China's playing of an active role in ending the conflict and restoring peace.

China-Ukraine relations

According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, during the special envoy's trip to Ukraine, both sides agreed that as the phone talks between Xi and Zelenskyy have pointed out the direction for the development of bilateral relations, the two countries should work together to carry forward the tradition of mutual respect and sincerity so as to advance their mutually beneficial cooperation.

The Ukrainian side reiterated its adherence to the one-China principle, and said it is ready to work together with the Chinese side for greater development of bilateral relations.
The Lexington Police Department has used body cameras since 2016, and all the departments sworn officers are now required to use them when they interact with the public.

But how are the cameras used, what happens to the video they record, and who gets to see it? Heres what to know about Lexingtons body cameras.

The cameras capture video and audio of interactions between police officers and civilians. Lexington police first began using body cameras in 2016 when they were given an 800-camera shipment that cost the city $2.6 million.

Lexington police renewed their body camera policy in 2021, which required all sworn officers to wear body cameras. The department has authorization to employ more than 600 sworn officers, according to the city. The renewal of the body camera policy was a five-year contract with Axon Enterprise, Inc., a company that manufactures equipment for law enforcement.

Previously, not all officers wore the cameras. The costs of the cameras and the cloud-based video storage are covered in the contract, according to police.

Police say they consider new body camera technology as it develops.

As new technology for BWC comes available our agency evaluates pros and cons of the technology, said Sgt. Guy Miller.

When do police use their bodycams?

The police departments body camera policy says officers have to active the cameras when such use is appropriate to the proper performance of their official duties, where the recordings are consistent with this policy and law.

The policy dictates how police are expected to use the cameras.

Officers are expected to have their camera in buffering mode when they are available for calls or reporting to or from an assignment. In buffering mode, the camera continuously records video. but its not being saved to the cameras memory. The camera begins storing the recordings when its placed into event mode.

Officers are required to place their camera in event mode before they officially make contact with a civilian. According to the body camera policy, examples of encounters that should be recorded include:

Detentions and arrests

Vehicle and foot pursuits

Suspicious situations

All searches

Interviews

Disorderly subjects

Motorist assists

Traffic collisions

Parking enforcement and towing

Emergency operation of a vehicle

Initial documentation of evidence that could be used in criminal or traffic prosecution

Any situation deemed appropriate by the officer

When a camera is activated to event mode, the previous 30 seconds from buffering mode are saved, and then the camera continues to record beyond that point until its turned off. Officers are expected to keep their body camera in event mode until their encounter ends.

How reliable are the cameras?

In 2022, Lexington police body cameras were successfully used 252,211 times, according to Lexington police. There were 166 incident reports filed for cameras failing to record or not being turned on. That indicated a 0.06% failure rate for all situations that should have been recorded in 2022.

The biggest reason contributing to the failure rate was officers not activating their camera, which happened in 116 separate instances, police told the Herald-Leader.

Other reasons for the cameras not recording seemed to be technical: there were instances in which the camera didnt activate when officers tried to turn it on. There were also battery or cable malfunctions, camera malfunctions and accidental deactivations. In some instances, damage to the camera and concerns for officer safety led to video not being captured.

In 2021 there was a 0.1% rate of body cameras not recording, according to police.

Do officers have to notify people theyre recording?

Officers are not required to inform others when they are being recorded because Kentucky is a one-party state for audio and video recording. Only one person involved in an interaction has to consent to recording. But officers are expected to truthfully answer any questions about body cameras.

Officers are also allowed to record inside peoples homes if theyre given consent, if there is a valid warrant, or if there is a legal exception for police to enter the home, according to the departments body camera policy.

During strip searches, officers will use their body camera to record a 360-degree view of where the search will happen, according to the body camera policy. But during the search, only audio will be recorded. Officers are expected to reposition their body camera as soon as appropriately possible afterward.

There are several situations in which officers are permitted to deactivate their body cameras, according to department policy. These include times when officers are discussing strategies and tactics, having an investigative discussion with another officer or being directed to turn off their camera by a supervisor. Officers also arent required to have their body cameras turned on in specific scenarios:

When communicating with other employees without their knowledge

When communicating with undercover members of federal task forces

When in interview rooms, if the room is being recorded in other ways

When part of conversations between individuals with privilege, such as attorneys and clients

While inside a juvenile detention facility

If entering a location that contains sensitive assets

While talking to someone who wants to submit an anonymous tip

When communicating with undercover officers or confidential informants, unless authorized by a supervisor

Any situation where the officer has reasonable concerns that recording an incident would create undue safety, confidentiality or privacy issues

Who is in charge of bodycam footage?

A body camera administrator, appointed by the police chief, has full access to stored camera footage, according to the departments body camera policy.

There are docking stations at the departments stations which recharge the cameras and download and store recorded footage. After an officer ends their shift, they are required to dock their cameras by the beginning of their next shift or within three days. If a recording contains criminal information, they must dock their camera no later than the end of their shift.

The original recordings from body cameras cannot be edited by anyone, including system administrators, according to police. Authorized users can create copies to make redactions, such as blurring people or objects, removing audio or shortening the video to relevant sections, according to police. This is commonly done when police publicly release body camera footage.

Officers are required to maintain the body cameras they are assigned. Theyre allowed to keep their body cameras at home when theyre not in use.

Who can see bodycam video? Is it open to the public?

Police officers and the public can view body camera video, but only in limited circumstances.

Officers can review their own camera footage when theyre filling out reports or preparing for court matters. Field training officers and probationary officers are allowed to view their own body camera footage for teaching purposes.

But there are also instances when officers are prohibited from reviewing their footage. They cant review the footage if theyre making a statement with the departments public integrity unit after using deadly force or causing serious injury or death. But the officers are allowed to review the footage after giving a statement.

If a recording has been categorized as restricted, only select members of the department are allowed to view the recording. When a recording is deemed restricted, only the administrator or an assistant chiefs designee can grant limited access to the recording.

Recordings are not made available to the public unless theyre deemed releasable under department policies and state open records law. The police department says it doesnt release body camera video more frequently due to individual privacy.

Individual privacy is one of the most critical issues for people interacting with police, LPD says on its website. People often need to seek police assistance when they are going through difficult personal challenges, and the police department is sensitive to those circumstances. Certain groups, particularly juveniles and crime victims, have strong specific privacy protections provided by law.

The police department must balance the legitimate interest of public transparency with the protection of the individuals privacy rights. 

Despite rarely releasing body camera video, LPD contends that body cameras still increase police accountability by recording interactions from start to finish and being available to those involved in the incident, partners in the criminal and civil justice system, and any government agency that investigate the police.

Recordings are maintained in the departments storage system for at least 60 days, unless theyre needed longer for litigation or open records purposes. After recordings are no longer needed, they can be deleted automatically. They also can be deleted manually if a criminal case is adjudicated or if the recording was accidentally taken in a private place.
Police find note on body of teen shooter who killed 3 in Farmington, New Mexico shooting

FARMINGTON  The Farmington High School senior who killed three people earlier this week in a neighborhood shooting spree before police fatally shot him was carrying a note in which he warned people to leave his little sister alone.

The existence of the note apparently written by 18-year-old Beau Wilson was revealed by Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe during a Wednesday, May 17 news conference at the Farmington Civic Center. An image of the note  scrawled on what appeared to be two Post-it notes  was projected on a screen behind Hebbe as he described its contents.

If (you're) reading this, Im (at) the end of the chapter, the note states. Lay eyes or (dare) put a finger on my little sister I (promise) there will be regrets.

The note was just one of several additional details authorities brought up about their investigation into the Monday, May 15 shooting on North Dustin Avenue in Farmington. Besides the three women who were killed, several people were wounded, including two police officers.

Chief Steve Hebbe of the Farmington Police Department addresses the media during a Wednesday, May 17 news conference at the Farmington Civic Center about the May 15 shooting in the city that left three victims and the gunman dead.

More: Gunman who killed 3 in Farmington, NM was high school senior, fired indiscriminately: police

Earlier on Wednesday, Farmington police released photographs of the three women  Shirley Voita, 79; Melody Ivie, 73; and Gwendolyn Schofield, 98  who perished. The families of the three women, in a message released by police, asked for privacy as they grieve.

Hebbe said new details about the shooting are still emerging and police would be releasing body camera video from the incident on Thursday, May 18.

We learned new stuff just in the last 24 hours, he said.

Shooter wore modified body armor, had other weapons at home

The shooter apparently was well-armed and prepared for the conflict, authorities said.

Hebbe said Wilson had an AR-15 assault rifle, a .22 caliber pistol and a 9 mm pistol. A subsequent search of the Dustin Avenue residence where Wilson was living with his father revealed that Wilson was in possession of more than 1,400 rounds of ammunition - in the weapons he was carrying or accessible to him in the house - Hebbe said.

More: Outpouring of support after 3 die, 2 officers injured in Farmington, New Mexico shooting

Wilson also was wearing a bulletproof vest with soft body armor that he modified to include steel plates, the chief said. Wilson purchased three magazines for the AR-15 just two days before the shooting, Hebbe said.

Capt. Kevin Burns of the San Juan County Sheriffs Office, one of the law enforcement agencies that responded to the shooting, said the investigation into the incident shows that seven houses and 11 vehicles were struck by gunfire. He said Wilson fired at least 141 rounds from the home he shared with his father before heading south on Dustin Avenue and firing dozens of more shots.

Farmington police officers confronted Wilson in what Hebbe described as a sharp exchange of gunfire at the First Church of Christ Scientist at 713 N. Dustin Ave. just minutes after the incident began, Burns said.

Wilson began firing from outside his home, discarding the AR-15 after expending most of its ammunition, Hebbe said. He then began firing from the .22 caliber pistol and nearly emptied it before discarding it and moving on to what Hebbe called his last stand at the church. Wilson took off his bulletproof vest and emptied the 9 mm pistol before officers shot and killed him.

Hebbe said the search of the family home showed Wilson also had an additional 10 weapons.

More: Farmington, New Mexico shooting victims: 3 women killed, 2 officers injured identified

Investigators still dont know what Wilson's motive was, Hebbe said.

Shooter was scheduled to graduate the next day from Farmington High School

Roberto Taboada, the public information officer for the Farmington Municipal School District, confirmed on Wednesday that Wilson, a participant in the schools wrestling program, had been scheduled to graduate with the Class of 2023 during its commencement exercises on Tuesday, May 16. Taboada said he was prohibited from releasing any disciplinary records Wilson may have accrued during his time at the school.

Hebbe said on Wednesday his department was seeking a subpoena for those records. He said the information Wilsons family shared with investigators continues to indicate Wilson was experiencing mental health issues.

Hebbe, who on Monday had been attending a family gathering in Wisconsin with his wife, said he was contacted by his officers shortly after the shooting began and was monitoring the situation over the phone. He and his wife drove back to Farmington right away and arrived on Tuesday, he said.

It was frustrating and difficult to be so far away at a difficult time, he said.

Hebbe said the community and his officers have experienced a difficult five weeks, going back to the shooting in early April of a Farmington man in the doorway of his home by three Farmington Police officers after they mistakenly went to the wrong address while responding to a domestic violence call.

Hebbe alluded to the sharp criticism his department received in the wake of that incident, but he said his officers have tried to rally and conduct themselves professionally. The way his officers handled themselves during Mondays shooting was a testament to their commitment and sense of duty, he said.

They responded and did the job, he said.

Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 ormeasterling@daily-times.com.

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This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Teen shooter who killed 3 in Farmington, NM wore body armor, had note
Wreckage from downed Russian missiles has fallen in Kyiv Oblast, but there was no significant damage or casualties.

Source: Andrii Niebytov, Chief of the General Directorate of National Police in Kyiv Oblast, on Telegram

Quote from Niebytov: "Russia again tried to hit our capital with missiles. Thanks to the professional actions of fighters from the Air Defence Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the enemy's plans failed once again.

Police officers are inspecting the sites where the debris has fallen and are recording the damage. So far, no significant damage has been recorded, and no persons have been injured."

Details: Niebytov posted a photo of the wreckage of the downed missiles and called on Ukrainians not to ignore air raid sirens.

"If fragments of missiles, UAVs, or other unknown objects are discovered, do not touch them under any circumstances, call the special line 102, if possible, limit access by outsiders to the scene of the incident and wait for the arrival of special services," the head of the Kyiv Oblast police reminded.

Ruslan Kravchenko, Head of the Kyiv Oblast State Administration, reported that there were no incidents of hits in the oblast, and there were no casualties.

In several hromadas [an administrative unit designating a town, village or several villages and their adjacent territories  ed.], debris was found falling into people's yards. Several private houses were damaged  their windows were broken, and the roof slate was damaged.

Two cars were also damaged by debris.

Background:

Earlier, Kyiv authorities reported that all Russian targets in Kyiv's airspace had been detected and destroyed, with debris falling in the Desnianskyi and Darnytskyi districts of the capital.

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Blaschak reminded that the Kremlin cannot be trusted

Commenting on the possible end of Russias war against Ukraine, the minister stressed that Ukraines victory should be based on Kyivs rights and terms.

It is the sovereign Ukrainian government that will decide on this, he said.

And well support it in this. I hope were just witnessing, at least, the end of Putins era.

Read also: Poland has handed over nearly all of its MiG-29s, but cant provide F-16s, says Duda

Baszczak reiterated that the Kremlin constantly has imperialist tendencies.

Unfortunately, Russian aggression has confirmed the old truth  the Kremlin cannot be trusted in any way, the minister said.

Imperialist tendencies are present there constantly and in full force. And weve been talking about it for a long time. We signaled and warned the free world about the threat from Russia. After the full-scale attack on Ukraine, its time to test our solidarity, unanimity, and determination. Fortunately, the West and NATO have done it well.

The Polish official added that the Polish army is quickly being equipped with modern weapons amid the war in Ukraine.

Read also: Poland wants to update Treaty on Good Neighbourship with Ukraine by late 2023, says Polish MFA

Its about Polands subjectivity and independence, he stressed.

Were aware of this responsibility and moment in our history. Thats why were strengthening the border and forming military units in eastern Poland.

Secretary of Ukraines National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov said on May 12 that the Ukrainian authorities want to see the end of Russias war against Ukraine by winter 2024.

According to Ukrainian military intelligence, Russia has the resources for the war to continue at the current pace for another two years.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
The exhibit begins with a human head the size of a Halloween pumpkin made entirely out of gray LEGOs, which would be impressive enough except that its artist also sculpted four brick people crawling out of the sawed-off cranium  one of them holding a golden key.

Along the way, Raleighs new all-LEGO art collection hits viewers with a black and blue portrait of Andy Warhol, then a collage of colorful skulls, then a perfect replica of American Gothic accurate down to the button on the farmers collar.

Lego artist Nathan Sawayas depiction of Grant Woods classic American Gothic painting, now in display in Raleigh

So as a dabbling art critic, a LEGO enthusiast and a father who has spent multiple Christmas mornings on his knees, searching for the last brown brick for a Jurassic Park safari Jeep, I offer this review:

I should have thought of this first.

The Art of the Brick opened Thursday, May 18, in a north Raleigh strip mall called Pleasant Valley Promenade, behind a Dicks Sporting Goods, in a surprisingly good space (a former movie theater) that also hosted the recent Van Gogh immersive experience.

For about an hour, anybody who ever dreamed of assembling the Star Wars Death Star can see the limits what LEGOs offer as a sculpting medium  which, for me, has got to be the two dozen hands reaching from a sea of scattered red bricks the size of a backyard pool, straight out of Dantes Inferno.

This vision in LEGO comes to us via Nathan Sawaya, a onetime Manhattan attorney who toiled in mergers and acquisitions before chucking a six-figure salary to enter a national LEGO contest  which he won, taking a brick artists job as his prize.

Shocking Self-Portrait, a depiction of the Lego artist Nathan Sawaya, is now on view in a Raleigh gallery

He quit his job as a lawyer in New York and got a job building LEGOs, said Melinda Jackson, a publicist for the exhibit. Its insane.

A 2003 Newsday profile followed Sawayas LEGO itch back to Christmas day in 1978, when as a 5 year old he transformed the living room floor into a multi-colored megalopolis, then graduated to a scale model of the Oregon state capitol. Even as a freshman in his New York University dorm, he secretly toyed with his brick collection.

Once childhood fascination blossomed into a full-time gig, his LEGO work turned up everywhere: as a 20-foot tyrannosaurus, as a mosaic replica of Lindsay Lohans face, as a 7-foot recreation of the Brooklyn Bridge  all touring cities and museums for the last 16 years.

Green by Nathan Sawaya, made entirely of Legos, now on view in a Raleigh gallery

As I write this, Art of the Brick is also showing in Atlanta, which is rumored to be a more immersive experience for the little ones.

But in an hour of roaming the Raleigh gallery, I saw Sawaya built a full-size Venus de Milo out of 18,000 LEGOs  and think of how much higher that total would go had she any arms.

The other art museum classics hit the exhibits high notes, especially Monets Saint Georges Majeur au Crepscule rendered in 3,708 orange and magenta bricks, or Gustave Klimts The Kiss reconstructed to life-size with 18,893 yellows and browns.

The real message you pull from his blockish figures, who all look like Minecraft characters wearing full-body leotards, is that art springs from what is nearest and most cherished.

This aesthetic truth holds whether an artist is a kindergartner given a tubful of dry macaroni or a frustrated philosophy student working exclusively in black shoe polish.

And with LEGOs as a tool, an artist like Sawaya shows the mechanics of the world meticulously snapped together, pulled apart and even  in the most visceral moments  stepped-on.

The Lego sculpture Yellow, by Nathan Sawaya, now on view in a Raleigh gallery

How to go: The Art of the Brick in Raleigh

What: The Art of the Brick

Where: Pleasant Valley Promenade, Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh (behind Dicks Sporting Goods)

When: May 18 until an indefinite ending

Open: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, except Tuesdays

Tickets: $21.90 for adults 13 and up, $13.90 for children, $18.90 for seniors, students and the disabled.

More information: theartofthebrickexpo.com/raleigh
John Hoyt Fullen, 42, of Prescott, received a 10.5-year sentence for fraud schemes and forgery. Fullen, throughout his tenure owning and operating American Veteran Movers company, advertised the company to clients as being veteran owned and operated.

A man was found guilty of fraud schemes and forgery and sentenced to prison on Monday by a Yavapai County jury.

John Hoyt Fullen, 42, of Prescott, received a 10.5-year sentence.

Fullen, throughout his tenure owning and operating American Veteran Movers company, advertised the company to clients as being veteran owned and operated.

However, according to authorities, Fullen was never enlisted in the Marine Corps or any other branch of the military and misled clients about his own service for a financial advantage.

Fullen claimed to be wounded in combat in Iraq and owned a fraudulent Purple Heart certificate that he purchased in order to receive veteran license plates for his vehicles, according to a Yavapai County attorney.

Id like to thank the jury for their service and hope this verdict and lengthy prison sentence sends a message to anyone who contemplates falsely stealing the valor of our veterans. This crime not only defrauded Mr. Fullens victims, who believed their hard-earned dollars were supporting a veteran-owned business, but also defrauded the veterans in our community who run small businesses," Yavapai County attorney Dennis M. McGrane said in a statement.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Prescott man sentenced for fraudulently claiming to be veteran
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex were shaken up after they were pursued by paparazzi through New York City earlier this week, the head of the security firm responsible for their transportation told NBC News.

Tom Buda said the "chase was frightening for the couple and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, and putting them in danger. He added that he felt bad they were shaken up. Meghans mom had been particularly affected, he said.

Buda, the president of Buda Security Inc, spoke out after it emerged that the trio had taken refuge at a New York City police station following what law enforcement sources said was a chaotic pursuit by photographers when they left a charity event in midtown Manhattan on Tuesday night.

A spokesman for the couple said Wednesday that the near catastrophic car chase came at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi. They added that it lasted more than two hours, and that it resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers.

Law enforcement sources pushed back against any characterization of the incident as near catastrophic but conceded that the incident was a bit chaotic.

Megan Markle receives Ms. Foundation's Woman of Vision Award in New York ( Selcuk Acar / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Police officials said the couple had attended the Women of Vision Awards and left New Yorks Ziegfeld Ballroom at about 10 p.m.

It was the first public event that Harry and Meghan had attended since King Charles IIIs coronation, which the duchess didnt attend.

Julian Phillips, the police departments deputy commissioner of public information, said officers assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Buda, who was hired by the TorchStone global security company, said the photographers pursuing them were driving aggressively and badly. He added that they were following us to find out where we were staying. He added that some cars were trying to leapfrog them and two cars ahead were working to slow traffic down.

Although it was not a high speed pursuit, Buda said it was reckless by them. He added that they went to the NYPDs 19th Precinct station.

The couples claims were disputed by one of the picture agencies, Backgrid USA Inc., which said in a statement that it had received photos and videos of last nights events from four freelance photographers, three of whom were in cars and one of whom was riding a bicycle.

They had no intention of causing any distress or harm, as their only tool was their cameras. A few of the photos even show Meghan Markle smiling inside a cab, the statement said.

The photographers report that one of the four SUVs from Prince Harrys security escort was driving in a manner that could be perceived as reckless, it said, adding that it wanted to point out that according to the photographers present, there were no near-collisions or near-crashes during this incident. The photographers have reported feeling that the couple was not in immediate danger at any point.

Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, were pursued in their car by photographers after a charity event in New York, Tuesday evening May 16, 2023. (David R. Martin / AP)

At the police station, the couples team flagged down a taxi driven by Sonny Singh, 37, of the Queens borough. Singh said Wednesday they were about to take off when a garbage truck pulled in front of them, blocking their departure and giving pursuing photographers enough time to converge around the party.

Instead of going to their ultimate destination, they simply drove around the neighborhood and ran up a $17.80 fare before Harry and Meghan got out of the cab back at the police station and back into their car, he added. They paid the fare and left a $50 tip, said Singh.

For Harry the incident was clearly going to be incredibly triggering for him because of what happened to his mother Princess Diana, who died in a Paris car crash while being pursued by paparazzi in 1997, according to NBC News royal contributor Katie Nicholl.

Hes spoken before about the intrusion of the cameras, how the clicking of the cameras has a triggering effect on him, she said Wednesday, adding, One can imagine that he was feeling quite frightened and certainly threatened in that moment.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Prison camp guard accused of war crimes pretended to be refugee to enter US, feds say

A man tried to bury his past as a particularly vicious Bosnian prison camp supervisor by pretending to be a refugee fleeing from persecution, federal prosecutors said.

Doing so allowed him to enter the U.S. in 1999 as a refugee  before becoming a U.S. citizen in 2009  after he oversaw a notorious prison camp during the Bosnian war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s, according to officials.

More than a dozen survivors of the Celebici prison camp, where Serb prisoners were held, have accused Kemal Mrndzic, 50, of beating, abusing and threatening prisoners, court documents show.

Some survivors said Mrndzic practiced karate on prisoners, according to an affidavit.

Mrndzic, who lives in Swampscott, Massachusetts, about 15 miles northeast of Boston, was arrested on May 17, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Massachusetts.

Hes facing charges of falsifying, concealing, and covering up a material fact from the U.S. government by trick, scheme, or device; using a fraudulently obtained U.S. passport; and possessing and using a fraudulently obtained naturalization certificate and fraudulently obtained Social Security card, prosecutors said.

Mrndzic posted a bond of $30,000 and was released after his initial court appearance in Boston, prosecutors said.

McClatchy News contacted his attorney for comment on May 18 and didnt immediately receive a response.

Man accused of taking part in camps most notorious mass beating

A brutal war involving crimes against humanity and genocide broke out after Bosnia and Herzegovina declared its independence from the former Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992, the affidavit says.

The countrys civil war lasted until 1995 and involved three ethnic groups: Bosniaks, or Bosnian Muslims; Serbs; and Croats, according to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. The war involved Bosnian Serbs campaign of ethnic cleansing against Bosniaks and Croatian civilians.

Mrndzic, a Bosniak, supervised guards at Celebici prison camp  where Bosniaks and Croats detained non-combatant Serbs, including older men and a small number of women  from June to December 1992, according to the affidavit.

Guards there committed numerous murders, rapes, and had engaged in torture and other forms of persecution of Serb prisoners, according to the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), officials said in a statement.

The Celebici prison camp.

The ICTY ultimately convicted three of Mrndzics fellow guards of crimes at a trial in The Hague, Netherlands, prosecutors said.

According to camp survivor testimonies and recent interviews with Homeland Security Investigations agents, Mrndzic is accused of taking part in the camps most notorious mass beating in August 1992 after the International Committee for the Red Cross visited the facility, the affidavit says.

The purpose of the beating was to punish prisoners for telling Red Cross representatives about the camps harrowing conditions, according to the affidavit.

After one prisoner collapsed from a severe beating, Mrndzic is accused of grabbing his hair, saying no one would leave the camp alive and using an ethnic slur against him, the affidavit says.

The man pretends to be a refugee

After the Bosnian war ended, ICTY investigators interviewed Mrndzic in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and accused him of war crimes at Celebici, prosecutors said.

Then, Mrndzic fled to neighboring Croatia, where he applied to enter the U.S. as a refugee, according to prosecutors.

Hes accused of lying and saying he was captured, imprisoned and beaten by Serb forces in 1992, according to the affidavit.

He pretended to be the target of the type of persecution which he perpetrated on others, the affidavit says.

He also lied about wanting to join his half brother, who didnt actually exist, in Massachusetts, according to the affidavit.

On March 22, 2022, Homeland Security Investigations agents found Mrndzic at his home in Swampscott where he admitted he was a guard at Celebici prison camp and lied on his refugee application, the affidavit says.

He also denied abusing camp prisoners, according to the affidavit.

Mrndzic could be sentenced up to 10 years in prison each if convicted on the fraudulently obtained passport charge as well as the fraudulently obtained naturalization charge, prosecutors said.

He could be sentenced up to five years in prison for each of the other two charges against him, the release said.

About 100,000 people were killed during the Bosnian war, which ended when NATO carried out a bombing campaign, resulting in the Dayton Accords peace agreement in 1995, according to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Security worker threatened to blow all the Democrats up at campaign office, feds say

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Three charged in Nigeria-based sextortion ring that led to teens suicide, feds say
ESA's Sentinel-6 satellite, which tracks methane emissions across the globe

From satellites that can pinpoint the sources of industrial pollution, to others that track hurricane movements by the hour, space has emerged as a key front in the fight against climate change.

New launches are -- literally and metaphorically -- skyrocketing, and giving rise to increased cooperation between space agencies and private companies.

Among the most fruitful areas of collaboration: tracking greenhouse gas emissions.

The potent planet heating gas methane is regularly measured in the atmosphere by one of the satellites of the European Union Space Programme's Copernicus mission.

The spacecraft scans the entire globe, but its resolution is in the order of several kilometers, making it hard to zero in on the exact source.

That's where private companies can step in.

One of them, the Canadian GHGSat, currently has nine small satellites in orbit, each the size of a microwave. Their mission: to fly over oil and gas sites, looking for methane leaks. By orbiting at a lower altitude, they can take a detailed look at each site.

"Think of it as the wide angle lens camera, versus the telephoto lens camera," Stephane Germain, the company's founder, told AFP. The Copernicus team is in constant touch with GHGSat, telling them where to point their cameras.

GHGSat then sells its information to oil companies, such as Total, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell.

"More and more companies are interested in that because they're realizing they have to better understand their own carbon footprints," said Germain, especially since their customers are insisting on better accounting of emissions' life cycles.

A common source of methane emissions are unlit flares, which are meant to burn off the gas.

GHGSat estimates it has prevented the equivalent of 10 megatons of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere, equivalent to 1.3 million homes' energy use for a year.

Other companies plan to enter the sector, including France's Absolut Sensing. Another company, Kayrros, has no satellites of its own but is analyzing Copernicus data to track down the biggest leaks.

- Technological advances -

"The big picture shows you that there is a problem. And the small one then focuses in higher resolution and sells information to somebody. So this works very well together," European Space Agency director Josef Aschbacher said of such public-private partnerships to AFP.

But government agency constellations -- comprised of mostly large, very expensive satellites -- remain the backbone of the Earth observation system.

Copernicus will soon enter a new era, with new missions such as CO2M measuring the carbon dioxide released specifically by human activities. NASA has about thirty Earth observation missions.

In the last six months alone, the US space agency has launched the SWOT mission to survey the Earth's surface water in unprecedented detail, TEMPO to measure pollutants in the troposphere above North America, and TROPICS, to track tropical weather systems, including hurricanes, hour by hour.

Advances in technology make it possible to measure today what was thought impossible just five or 10 years ago, said Aschbacher.

- Better forecasts -

In addition to these scientific missions, meteorological satellites, such as those overseen by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), play a vital role.

Their data, collected over decades, have revealed stark shifts to global climate systems: from warming sea and land temperatures to receding Antarctic ice sheets, helping feed the models climate science relies on today.

But increasingly, they can also help play a major role in adapting to a heating world. To mitigate the impact of increasingly frequent natural disasters, "you've got to provide better forecasts," NOAA's chief scientist Mitch Goldberg told AFP.

The agency has been increasing its partnerships with the private sector. For example, it has teamed up with the company GeoOptics to collect information on the humidity or the temperature of the atmosphere.

According to a report by Inmarsat and Globant, if current satellite technologies were universally adopted, they could reduce carbon emissions by 5.5 gigatons -- quadrupling current reductions of 1.5 gigatons enabled by the sector.

These savings could be achieved by, for example, helping the aviation and maritime sectors decarbonize through voyage optimization, weather routing and air traffic control management.

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Vivek Ramaswamy, the longshot presidential candidate, is getting some high-octane political help from a longtime veteran of New Hampshire politics and nine presidential campaigns.

Michael Biundo, a former senior adviser to Donald Trumps 2016 presidential campaign and Rick Santorums 2012 presidential campaign manager, will be a senior adviser to the American Exceptionalism PAC backing the wealthy 37-year-old biotech entrepreneur. Biundo, one of only a handful of operatives to notch wins in both the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries, will bring with him his Ascent Strategic firm, including partners Derek Dufresne and Kory Wood.

I have had the opportunity to evaluate and meet with most of the 2024 Presidential field, Biundo told POLITICO in a statement. What I keep coming back to is how much Vivek Ramaswamy has impressed me, but more importantly, how he is captivating and converting Republican voters.

Biundo had been in talks to be a possible operative with the campaigns of both former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Scott Schweitzer, the co-chair of the PAC, said in a statement that Biundo and his partners would be invaluable to our efforts of helping to elect Vivek Ramaswamy as the next President of the United States.
The Idaho State Board of Education made a stunning announcement Wednesday afternoon: The following day, it would consider a proposal by the University of Idaho to create a not-for-profit entity to acquire the University of Phoenix.

The proposal was listed as an action item, meaning with almost no public debate, the board could act Thursday.

Almost all that is known about the deal comes from a Q&A posted to the University of Idahos website on Wednesday afternoon. While the vote to create the entity to acquire the University of Phoenix had not yet taken place, the Q&A treated the matter as a fait accompli  giving us serious concerns about whether the outcome of the vote had been determined in nonpublic meetings beforehand.

The Q&A indicates that a nondisclosure agreement prevented prior public discussion of the proposal. It is improper for public institutions to operate in the dark, regardless of what an NDA says.

The Q&A indicates that the deadline for the deal to go through is Friday, only two days after the announcement and one day after the meeting. It indicates that the University of Idaho could be on the hook for up to $10 million each year if the University of Phoenix isnt able to generate sufficient revenue to cover payments on the bonds that would be issued to fund the $550 million purchase price  nearly three times the University of Idahos annual budget.

This is a lot of public money, and this process is moving far too fast with no debate. The board should defer action and wait until this idea gets a much more thorough vetting. If that means the deal falls through, so be it.

The action comes less than a month after the Arkansas university system turned down a deal to buy the for-profit college at a reported potential price of $500 million to $700 million.

There are important reasons to be wary of buying the University of Phoenix, which once boasted a roster of nearly half a million students, but had fallen to 86,000 as of 2021, according to Higher Ed Dive.

The reputation of the school is that it overcharges students, many of whom are misinformed, for degrees that are not worth nearly what it costs to get them. Many students who believed a degree would land them a lucrative job instead wound up with no improvement in job prospects, plus a mountain of debt.

The University of Phoenix has a graduation rate of just 27%, roughly half the national average, according to a U.S. Department of Education scorecard. After financial aid, the typical student graduates with about $32,000 in debt. For students who dont qualify for a lot of aid, the cost can be nearly $20,000 per year. Slightly less than half of graduates earn more than the average high school graduate.

Of those left with debt, a third have their payments in forbearance, another third are not making progress toward paying it down, 5% are delinquent and 11% have defaulted. Only about 10% are making progress, have paid off their debt or have had their debt discharged.

In 2019, the for-profit university had settled with the Federal Trade Commission for $191 million, including debt that had to be forgiven and cash payments to former students, for deceptive marketing. It was the largest settlement a for-profit college had ever agreed to. The FTC alleged that Phoenix had lied by saying it worked closely with prospective employers so that students would receive job-ready skills.

Why would Idaho want to own a for-profit college with a history of behavior like that?

In Arkansas, the answer seemed to be money. A trustee there compared the potential acquisition to Blockbusters missed opportunity to acquire Netflix, according to the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.

An affiliation with Phoenix would help the (University of Arkansas) System appeal to a new audience and create cash flow, the latter of which could address deferred maintenance needs and possibly avoid tuition increases, the paper reported.

There appears to be a similar profit motive in Idaho, according to the Q&A.

The initial benefit is $10 million in supplemental education funding to U of I. We expect that amount will grow over time, it states.

If the plan is for the University of Idaho to operate the University of Phoenix as an income-generating sideline to subsidize traditional students, as appeared to be the plan in Arkansas, its a bad one. If morals matter, dont buy the University of Phoenix because its exploitative. If morals dont matter, just buy up a whole bunch of payday lenders instead. Their margins are probably better.

This is way too much, way too fast. The State Board of Education is supposed to be administering public assets, not running a hedge fund.

Statesman editorials are the unsigned opinion of the Idaho Statesmans editorial board. Board members are opinion editor Scott McIntosh, opinion writer Bryan Clark, editor Chadd Cripe and newsroom editors Dana Oland and Jim Keyser.
The Education Department announced Wednesday it was proposing a rule that would take away federal money from for-profit colleges and certificate programs where data shows graduates dont make enough to pay back their student debts or the debt is excessively high.

The rule, which was first brought up under the Obama administration, is commonly known as gainful employment. It was bulldozed under former President Trumps administration as Republicans argue it unfairly targets for-profit colleges.

The proposal by the Department of Education would make it so all for-profit schools and select certificate programs at nonprofit colleges would have to go through two tests to determine whether students will be burdened with unaffordable debt or insufficient earnings.

For a program to pass the first test, a graduates average student loan payments cant exceed 20 percent of their discretionary income or 8 percent of their total income. To pass the second, more than half of the graduates from the college program need to make more than others in their state who have only a high school degree.

If a program fails one test, it would have to tell students their program is at risk of losing federal money. If a program fails both tests twice in a three-year period, it would get federal money taken away.

[We] need to hold colleges accountable for unaffordable costs and better protect students from programs that fail to deliver real value and upward mobility, said Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. The rules proposed today are about helping ensure that when students invest in a postsecondary education, they get a solid return on investment and a greater shot at the American dream.

The proposal is already getting pushback for mostly going after for-profit schools.

The rule unfairly targets programs at proprietary institutions and fails to account for the unique challenges facing students and communities that career-oriented programs serve, said Jason Altmire, president and CEO for Career Education Colleges and Universities President, adding it continues to exempt the majority of postsecondary education programs and fails to protect millions of students.

The department says the proposed rule would help around 700,000 students who go into the estimated 1,800 programs deemed low-quality by the administration.

The rule will have to go through a 30-day public comment period and be finalized before Nov. 1 to go into effect by July 1, 2024. An education administration official said the department is confident they will meet all the deadlines.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A Daytona Beach man was sentenced to three life terms plus 30 years in prison after he was found in violation of probation related to accusations he stabbed a woman, according to the State Attorneys Office.

Sherman Lamar Doughtry, 45, was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon Dec. 22 after he stabbed his wife twice in the head and once in the left arm as she tried to protect herself, according to prosecutors and court records. He was also charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a child. That case remains open.

Doughtry and his wife were in a verbal altercation when she warned him she would call the police. Doughtry then said, I will kill all of you if you call the police, an affidavit stated.

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Doughtry was already on probation after serving about 13 years of a 17-year prison sentence for two counts of kidnapping with a victim under 13, aggravated child abuse, burglary with assault or battery, and felony arson of a dwelling.

Daytona Beach Police investigated the case and Doughtry was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Sarah Thomas. Circuit Judge Leah Case presided.

This afternoon following a hearing in Volusia County, defendant Sherman Doughtry was found in violation of probation and received three life sentences plus 30 years in Florida State Prison. pic.twitter.com/RFz1RjClXY  State Attorney, Florida's 7th Circuit (@SAO7FL) May 17, 2023

State Attorney R.J. Larizza said everyone was fortunate that Doughtry would be unable to commit any further acts of violence.

Three life sentences plus 30 years highlights the vicious and violent nature of the defendant, Larizza stated in the release.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona Beach man sentenced to 3 life terms for violating probation
Queen Elizabeth II died in September last year and was laid to rest after 10 days of national mourning

Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral and related events following her death last September cost UK taxpayers nearly 162 million ($201 million), the government revealed on Thursday in its first public estimate.

The elaborate state funeral for Britain's longest-serving monarch, held on September 19, entailed a vast security operation for hundreds of foreign heads of state and royals.

It followed hundreds of thousands of people queuing round the clock for days to view her coffin as it lay in state at the UK parliament in London and in Edinburgh, which also required costly security and logistical arrangements.

In a written statement to parliament, finance minister John Glen said the total estimated cost ran to 161.7 million, with the interior ministry -- responsible for policing -- accounting for the biggest proportion (73.7 million).

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport spent 57.4 million, while the Scottish government billed 18.8 million.

"The death of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022 and the period of national mourning that followed was a moment of huge national significance," Glen said.

"The government's priorities were that these events ran smoothly and with the appropriate level of dignity, while at all times ensuring the safety and security of the public."

The disclosure comes shortly after the coronation earlier this month of Elizabeth's son, King Charles III, with its likely bill raising eyebrows -- and complaints -- as many Britons struggle with the worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

Buckingham Palace has rejected reports that the total for that vast security operation would top 100 million.

- Security -

More than 5,000 police officers from across the UK supported 10 days of ceremonial events to mark the late queen's death and Charles' immediate accession to the throne last September.

Many were redeployed to support the events taking place in London and Scotland, where she died aged 96 at her Balmoral estate after a year of declining health.

Policing was also required in Windsor, west of the UK capital, and in Norfolk, to its northeast where the royals' Sandringham estate is situated.

The day of the funeral was the then-largest policing operation London's Metropolitan Police had ever staged, beating the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2012 Olympic Games.

That has since been topped by the operation around the May 6 coronation, which saw the Met leading an operation involving 11,500 officers, staff and volunteers on duty.

Anti-monarchists have branded the coronation a "vanity parade" and waste of scarce public money.

But supporters have countered that the weekend-long celebration, which included an additional public holiday, would pay for itself in extra spending by people and visits to the UK by tourists.

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Rachel Weisz has revealed that she suffered a miscarriage in the past, while speaking about her new series Dead Ringers.

The actor, 53, discussed the negative reaction to scenes of childbirth and baby loss in the show. Weisz plays twin gynaecologists in the series, which is gender-reversed remake of the 1988 horror of the same title.

Speaking to Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel of The News Agents podcast, Weisz, who is married to fellow actor Daniel Craig, said she was surprised by the reaction, adding: I was just telling this story about the female experience and it didnt seem to have been like heightened or overdramatised.

Women had miscarriages, Ive had a miscarriage, so you suddenly see blood coming out of your body and these are just all part of a female experience of being alive.

Weisz, a mother-of-two who prefers to keep her personal life out of the public eye, did not offer further details about when her miscarriage occurred.

She continued: I think were not used to seeing any of those things being represented cinematically or fictionally. So maybe this is breaking some new ground, this show.

The Favourite star also gave her thoughts on US anti-abortion activists who believe in the death penalty.

Both ends of life have different rules, it is very strange, she said. Children have to be born but theres going to be no free healthcare for them. Theres no free schooling for children under the age of five.

And now every day, there seems to be more and more of a chance that you might get shot by an assault rifle at school. You can take life at the end of life; the government can choose to say you deserve to die. But at the beginning of life, a woman has no choice. How do you rationalise that?

(Getty Images)

Last month, the actor addressed the graphic birthing scenes in the first episode of Dead Ringers, describing them as beautiful.

Speaking on BBCs Womans Hour, she said: [Writer Alice Birch] and I were really interested in showing birth in the first episode. I think we felt like it was something we dont often see.

Were incredibly used to seeing violence and people being killed, death, blood surrounding that. Were almost immune to that at this point. For me, its a beautiful moment. Its something were really interested in showing.

Weisz shares 16-year-old son Henry with former partner Darren Aronofsky and four-year-old daughter Grace with husband Craig.

She married Craig, 55, in 2011 in an intimate ceremony in New York with just four guests in attendance. The James Bond star also has a daughter from his previous marriage to Fiona Loudon.
England's water companies have been criticised for allowing the discharge of raw sewage into waterways

England's privatised water companies pledged Thursday to make massive investments to stop raw sewage being pumped into waterways as concerns mount about water quality and laxer environmental protections post-Brexit.

But campaigners expressed outrage that the billions of pounds promised to upgrade infrastructure would be passed on to consumers already struggling with higher bills for utilities.

Water firms have been under fire for years over releasing untreated wastewater into rivers and seas, blighting fragile ecosystems and leading to illnesses in people and the closure of beaches.

The long-running scandal has endured despite many of England's nine water and sewerage companies paying out billions of pounds in shareholder dividends in recent years and rewarding executives with multi-million pound remuneration packages.

Last year, three French Euro MPs even asked the European Commission to try to stop the UK releasing raw sewage as it was polluting beaches, marine life and waters across the Channel and North Sea.

They accused the UK of abandoning its international environmental regulations.

Apologising Thursday for "not acting quickly enough on sewage spills", trade body Water UK said the firms will invest 10 billion ($12.4 billion) in "the biggest modernisation of sewers since the Victorian era" in the 19th century.

The plan to overhaul 350,000 miles (563,000 kilometres) of sewers will also include the launch next year of a new environmental hub, giving the public "near real-time information" on sewage overflows for the first time.

The companies will also support up to 100 communities to create new protected waters for swimming and recreation.

Water UK chair Ruth Kelly said the plan was to introduce improvements "as fast as is physically possible".

But in a series of broadcast interviews, Kelly admitted consumers will face "modest upward pressure" on bills to help pay for the package.

- 'Oops. Sorry' -

Feargal Sharkey, the former frontman of Northern Irish punk band "The Undertones" who has become a figurehead of the campaign to improve water quality, led the sceptical response.

"This is nothing to celebrate whatsoever. What they should be saying is 'we messed this up, we're terribly sorry, we're going to compensate you all'," he told BBC radio.

"We should have an apology for the suggestion they are going to put bills up by 10 billion for their incompetence and their greed."

Greenpeace UK's policy director Doug Parr echoed the public fury around the issue.

"After years of relentlessly flooding our streams and beaches with raw sewage, an 'oops, sorry' from the water firms won't cut it," he said.

"The promised 10 billion is a start but if it's all charged on peoples' bills whilst the shareholder dividends remain untouched, that would be a very strange way of being sorry."

Last month the UK government announced its latest plan to better protect England's water supplies, promising more investment from water companies, alongside stronger regulation and tougher fines for polluters.

It included a consultation on a ban on wet wipes containing plastic, which are blamed for causing sewer blockages when flushed down the toilet, and 1.6 billion ($2.0 billion) of infrastructure investment between now and 2025.

But critics called the proposals too little too late and still leaving the water industry, in private hands, profiting from failure.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman said the firms' investment plans will need regulatory approval to "ensure they deliver on the targets that we've set, whilst not disproportionately affecting customer bills".

"We've been clear that we think water companies must put consumers above profits," he added.

jj/phz/rl
Receipts show the white hospital worker accused in viral video of trying to steal a Black man's rental bike paid for it herself, lawyer says

The unnamed woman was seen arguing with a young Black man over a rental bike in the viral clip. Twitter/@Imposter_Edits

A woman accused of trying to take a rental bike from a Black man paid for the bike, her lawyer says.

The attorney provided Citi Bike receipts to Insider, saying that it proved it was her bike to take.

The video of the incident drew millions of views online as some condemned her reaction as "racist."

The attorney for the white New York City hospital worker who was accused of trying to take a rental bicycle from a Black man in a viral video says that the woman paid for the bike herself  and has the receipts to prove it.

A receipt shared with Insider shows payment for a Citi Bike on the app on the evening of May 12 in Manhattan; the bicycle was relocked to its dock a minute later with no charge logged.

The Citi Bike identification number in the viral video is the same as the one on the receipt, and the location matches the view seen in the video.

"It was her bike," the woman's lawyer, Justin Marino, said in an interview with Insider on Thursday.

Marino said that bike was pushed back into its docking station after the young Black man and his friends told the woman  a pregnant NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue staffer  that the man had already paid for the same bike.

"She had reserved it, and then they pushed the bike back into the docking station, preventing her from taking it out again," Marino told Insider.

Another receipt provided to Insider showed payment for a second Citi Bike taken from the same docking station one minute after the first bike was relocked. That receipt also showed a 25-minute trip that Marino said was his client's ride home after the incident.

"Everyone who's accused her of a crime of stealing the bike  it's outrageous, and it doesn't make any sense," said Marino.

In the viral video, the scrubs-wearing woman appeared to start crying, repeatedly screamed for "help," and accused the Black man of putting her fetus in danger.

The video was viewed millions of times as critics on social media accused her of racism. The civil-rights attorney Ben Crump said the woman "tried to weaponize her tears to paint this man as a threat."

Marino said that his client was a healthcare "hero" who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic but was made out to be a "racist villain" because of "a tiny snippet of a video."

The woman was placed on leave from her job following the incident, which NYC Health + Hospitals  New York City's public hospital system  called "disturbing." The hospital said it was investigating the incident.

"I'm hoping the employer will not violate her rights and will do what's right and bring her back at some point," Marino said, adding that his client was planning to sue "against individuals and media organizations who defamed her."

Read the original article on Insider
WHO recommends new COVID shots should target only XBB variants

(Reuters) - A World Health Organization (WHO) advisory group on Thursday recommended that this year's COVID-19 booster shots be updated to target one of the currently dominant XBB variants.

New formulations should aim to produce antibody responses to the XBB.1.5 or XBB.1.16 variants, the advisory group said, adding that other formulations or platforms that achieve neutralizing antibody responses against XBB lineages could also be considered.

The group suggested no longer including the original COVID-19 strain in future vaccines, based on data that the original virus no longer circulates in human beings and shots targeting the strain produce "undetectable or very low levels of neutralizing antibodies" against currently circulating variants.

COVID-19 vaccine makers like Pfizer/BioNtech, Moderna Inc and Novavax Inc are already developing versions of their respective vaccines targeting XBB.1.5 and other currently circulating strains.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also set to hold a meeting of outside experts in June to discuss the strain compositions of COVID-19 shots for later this year; vaccine manufacturers will be expected to update their shots once the strains are selected.

The bivalent booster shots developed and distributed last year targeted two different strains - the Omicron variant as well as the original virus.

WHO's advisory group, which recommends if changes are needed to the composition of future COVID-19 shots, said currently approved vaccines should continue to be used in accordance with the agency's recommendations.

In late March, WHO had revised its COVID vaccination recommendations and suggested healthy children and adolescents might not necessarily need a shot, but older and high-risk groups should get a booster between six and 12 months after their last vaccine.

The latest recommendations come about two weeks after WHO ended the global emergency status for COVID-19.

(Reporting by Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
ALBANY, N.Y.  The use of the red flag law in New York has surged over the past year to allow judges to confiscate weapons from people they deem dangerous.

The rise in cases, according to prosecutors and elected officials, has helped quell gun violence in New York after an alarming spike during the Covid-19 pandemic.

With an expanded law and more attention to it, the growth in cases has been extraordinary after it was barely used when it was first passed in 2019. In 2021, there were a mere 538 extreme risk protection orders issued. A year later, the number soared to 4,257, and already through early April of this year there were 2,743, according to records from the state Office of Court Administration.

Red flag allows us to not solve a crime after the fact but to prevent the crime, Gov. Kathy Hochul said recently, touting the success of the program.

Hochul and some criminal justice officials point to a correlation between the law and a drop in major crimes. Shootings in New York went down by 17 percent in New York City and by 15 percent outside of New York City between 2021 and 2022. Murders were down 11 percent statewide over the same stretch.

"If you identify these people (mass shooters) beforehand and can take away their weapons, clearly I believe that's going to make your community safer," Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said in an interview.



New York is one of 19 states and Washington, D.C., that have adopted the red flag laws, and Michigan is poised to do so soon. But the law in New York and other states is not without controversy: Gun-rights groups have opposed it, and theres a court fight in New York over its use.

In 2019, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state Legislature passed the Extreme Risk Protection Order law in New York. Also known by its abbreviation "ERPO," the law is designed to prevent gun crimes by temporarily restricting individuals considered dangerous to themselves or others from access to any firearm.

Family and household members, district attorneys, law enforcement officers and school administrators have the right to petition for a temporary order if they fear a person's behavior and know or suspect the individual could own or possess guns.

If the court accepts the petition, the guns are removed from the individuals home, and the order is added to the background check system to bar gun purchases.

Between three and 10 days from the issue of the temporary order, the court holds a hearing in which evidence is taken into consideration, and it determines whether the person poses a serious threat of violence. During the process, the individual deemed dangerous can challenge the petition.

If the judge rules in favor of the petitioner, a final order is issued and held in place for up to one year.

According to court data obtained by POLITICO from 2019 to 2021, the use of the red flag law was rare in New York. For example, in the five boroughs of New York City, just nine people were issued one-year orders.

But a mass shooting at a Buffalo supermarket that killed 10 people last May seemed to help change the trend. Hochul and the state Legislature last summer passed legislation and issued executive orders to strengthen the petition process of the red flag law.

The red-flag law was strengthened also in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that tossed New Yorks century-old law that limited who could have a concealed carry permit, raising additional concerns about gun violence.



The change made it mandatory for prosecutors and police to petition for an order whenever they determine it is likely that an individual could be dangerous. Also, Hochul expanded who may file a petition to include health care practitioners, and she required additional training for law enforcement about the red flag law.

It has led cases to soar.

The numbers skyrocketed, Flynn said. The number of red-flag orders issued in Erie County, where the Buffalo shooting occurred, increased from five people in 2019 to 82 so far this year.

Flynn said the increase is related to two main factors: the mandatory aspect of law enforcement to make a petition and, most of all, the increase in awareness and knowledge about the red flag law. In the Buffalo case, the shooter had written racist and violent messages online, but the law was not used to potentially preempt his attack,

"We had a mass tragedy here in Buffalo,  and then four days later, the governor issued an executive order, and that gave it publicity," Flynn said. "Beforehand, I just think that it wasn't known widely enough."

Experts said public attention about red flag laws can fuel people and law enforcement filing petitions.

"We see that (behavior) occasionally in states that have an extreme risk reduction order, but it wasn't used. Then a high profile shooting happens, and people question why it wasn't used," Lisa Geller, director of state affairs for the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions and co-director of Johns Hopkins ERPO Resource Center, said in an interview.

"Extreme risk protection order laws were in the news quite a bit after the Buffalo shooting, and so people found out about them and realized that they might be useful in certain circumstances to prevent violence," Geller added.

Question of constitutionality

The future of the law, however, remains uncertain.

Two New York State Supreme Court judges  Thomas Moran in Monroe County and Craig Stephen Brown in Orange County  ruled in separate red flag cases this year that the law is unconstitutional because it does not provide due process for the plaintiffs.

"New York's Red Flag Law, as currently written, lacks sufficient statutory guardrails to protect a citizen's Second Amendment Constitutional right to bear arms," Brown wrote in his decision April 4.

Brown argued that before issuing an extreme risk protection order, the court needs input from a medical or mental health expert to confirm that a person is likely to engage in conduct that would seriously harm themselves or others.

Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler, a Republican, agreed with Brown's decision, though the case is being appealed by the state.

His decision is very succinctly worded and very concise, Hoovler said in an interview. He doesn't attack it (the legislature). ... He attacks it, saying procedurally, If you're going to take someone's rights away and take their weapons away, you need somebody saying they're a danger other than a police officer or a lay person.

Rebecca Fischer, executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, doesn't agree with the two Supreme Court judges' interpretation of the law.

"We strongly believe that an appeals court will strike that ruling down largely because there is due process as a part of this procedure," Fischer said. "An individual who's in crisis doesn't necessarily need a mental health diagnosis in order to be shown to be violent."

Tim Carey, a law and policy adviser at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Gun Violence Solutions, also thinks Browns ruling will not put in peril New Yorks law.

Both the Monroe and Orange County opinions hinged their decision on the fact that New Yorks ERPO law uses similar language as New Yorks mental hygiene law, but (ERPO) doesnt require a qualified medical professional to diagnose the respondent before an order can be granted, Carey said in an interview.

Only the mental hygiene law required a finding of mental illness from a qualified medical professional. ERPO, however, does not require a finding of mental illness to be applied, he said.

Red flag law advocates also emphasized that obtaining a final order to confiscate weapons requires the judges approval and entitles the respondent to challenge the petition.

I think this law strikes a perfect balance of reasonableness, said Flynn, the Erie County district attorney.

Red flag law's effectiveness

Some red flag law experts said its too early to say that the law has directly fueled the states recent decline in gun violence.

"It's also difficult to assess a drop or a rise in gun violence to one policy alone because we know that there are so many policies at play, Geller said.

"A state like New York is passing other gun violence prevention policies. At the same time, a state like Florida, which also has an extreme risk protection order, is passing legislation that would make gun violence more pervasive. So it's really challenging at this stage to assess an increase or decrease tied solely to the extreme risk protection order," she said.

But research done in other U.S. states  including California  has shown extreme risk protection orders helped prevent suicide, mass shootings and domestic violence.

"I think it's important to continue to trust the implementation in New York State so that we can get good data to show that it's also having an effect here," Fischer said.

William Fitzpatrick, the Onondaga County district attorney, has no doubts about the safety improvements brought to New York by the red flag law.

"Just this past week, we had a young man  20 years old  he was on some obscure chat room somewhere and had made references he was going to shoot up a local top store," Fitzpatrick said in an interview with POLITICO. Through a red flag order, they took the guns he had access to away from him.

But Hoovler, in Orange County, thinks that some aspects of the law have to be improved.

"We're already months and years into this, and now we're running into these issues (judges' rulings that the red flag law is unconstitutional), he said.

These things need to be thought about when they're being drafted and to be put together rather than being thrown together so quickly." Hoovler continued. "I think that in the original process of drafting it and creating it, law enforcement needed to be consulted a little bit more."
Relatives of Riverside family slain by 'catfishing' Virginia cop plan to sue over his hiring

Mychelle Blandin's parents and sister were the victims of a triple homicide in Riverside committed by a Virginia police officer that authorities say began with a "catfishing" case involving Blandin's niece. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Attorneys for relatives of the Riverside family slain by "catfish" cop Austin Lee Edwards have notified Virginia officials of their intent to sue, citing gross negligence by the state and local law enforcement agencies that hired him.

Edwards killed Sharie Winek, 65; Mark Winek, 69; and Brooke Winek, 38, in their Riverside home on the morning of Nov. 25 and kidnapped Brooke's then-15-year-old daughter. Police have said that Edwards, 28, catfished the girl online, telling her that he was 17.

Edwards, a former Virginia state trooper then employed by the Washington County, Va., sheriff's office, drove into the Mojave Desert, where he died in a confrontation with authorities. Police initially said he was killed in a shootout but later said he died of a self-inflicted gunshot with his service weapon. The girl was found physically uninjured.

Virginia law requires parties who intend to sue state and local agencies to send notice before filing suit in court.

Virginia-based attorneys who represent the kidnapped teen notified Washington County in March of their intent to sue. California-based attorneys for the teen's younger sibling and aunt, Mychelle Blandin, who is the younger child's guardian, notified Virginia officials on Wednesday that they also plan to file a lawsuit.

The California attorneys' notices allege that Edwards' employers demonstrated negligence; gross negligence; negligent and gross negligent hiring, supervision and retention; breach of mandatory duties and other violations of Virginia state law. The California attorneys' notices argue that the family's damages exceed $100 million.

"Virginia law enforcement is not going to share a shred of information without being forced to," said David Ring, a Manhattan Beach-based attorney who represents Blandin and the younger of her two nieces. "The only way the family is ever going to get real answers is through litigation. Without this lawsuit, the truth will get whitewashed."

The Times previously reported that Edwards told the Virginia State Police that he went to a mental health facility in 2016, indicating that the agency had evidence of his mental health issues during the application process. This visit triggered two custody orders and led to a judge revoking his gun ownership rights.

The agency hired him anyway.

Although Edwards' admission wouldn't have been an "automatic disqualifier" on its own, it should have triggered Virginia State Police to investigate further, Col. Gary Settle, the state police superintendent, wrote in a December letter to the state's inspector general.

Unfortunately, the error allowed him to be employed, as there were no other disqualifiers, Settle wrote.

The Times also reported that Edwards groomed another girl before he became a police officer. The woman, now 21, told The Times that Edwards, then 20, solicited nude photos from her when she was 13.

The Wineks' surviving relatives want "to change how the police screen potential new hires so this never happens again," Alison Polin Saros, an El Segundo-based attorney who also represents Blandin and her younger niece, said in a statement.

Blandin told The Times that it was "devastating" that the two agencies had hired Edwards despite the resources at their disposal.

"This shouldn't have to happen to any other family," Blandin said. "My parents and my sister didn't deserve this. My nieces and my kids didn't deserve this. I didn't deserve this."

"My parents loved their neighborhood and community," Blandin added. "To take them away from something that they loved so much is just unfathomable."

Virginia-based attorney Scott Perry, who represents the teenage girl, sent a separate notice to Washington County in March. That notice also alleges negligence on the part of the sheriff's office, which employed Edwards until his death.

Washington County's Board of Supervisors is scheduled to meet on May 23 to discuss the matter.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Rep. Bowman slams Greene for comparing the term white supremacist to the n-word

Her comments were not only racist, [but] they were dangerous and reckless, and she needs to be held accountable for those comments, Congressman Jamaal Bowman told theGrio.

U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-NY, condemned Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for saying during a recent press conference that the term white supremacist is equivalent to the n-word, a racial slur.

Her comments were not only racist, [but] they were dangerous and reckless, Bowman told theGrio on Thursday. She needs to be held accountable for those comments.

Left to right: U.S. Reps. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., and Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. (Photo: Getty Images)

The New York congressman explained that Greenes recent remarks exemplify the importance of accurate teaching of American history, specifically African-American history, in schools in a comprehensive way so that people like Marjorie Taylor Greene can understand the difference in what calling someone the n-word  especially a Black man or Black person  actually means.

Greene held a press conference on Thursday morning at the U.S. Capitol where she introduced impeachment articles against President Joe Biden for what she characterized as the mishandling of security at the U.S.-Mexico border, Politico reported.

The conservative firebrand then pivoted her attention to a heated debate that took place on Wednesday after Reps. Jamaal Bowman and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., shouted at Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., to resign as reporters tried to interview the embattled congressman.

Greene reportedly stepped in to defend Santos, which prompted an interaction between her and Bowman. The Georgia congresswoman told reporters on Thursday that Bowman called her a white supremacist during the fiery exchange.

Calling me a white supremacist  which I take great offense to  that is like calling a person of color the n-word, said Greene. She continued, I feel threatened by himhes someone people should watch.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) speaks during a news conference announcing a resolution to condemn replacement theory outside the U.S. Capitol June 8, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Bowman told theGrio that he does not remember whether or not he called Greene a white supremacist; however, if he did, its because of the evidence connected to that.

He explained: Greene gave a keynote address at a white nationalist conference. She has consistently engaged in rhetoric that is demeaning to people of color, Black people, Muslims and the like.

The New York lawmaker told theGrio that Greenes remarks of being threatened by his presence is a bullhorn to other white nationalists who seek excuses to dehumanize and kill Black people.

U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, told theGrio, Marjorie Taylor Greene is a complete and total embarrassment to the United States Congress, to the district that she represents, and to the people of Georgia.

He added, Her words and her actions speak for themselves.

US Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) gives a thumb down as US President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, February 7, 2023. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Video of the debacle shows Bowman telling Greene to save the Republican Party, America and children and to do something about guns. Greene fired back at Bowman, Save the country. Close the border. She then inquired about alleged missing migrant children and told Bowman that Democrats, led by President Biden, are to blame.

Before walking away, Bowman insinuated that Greene received her talking points from the Fox News Channel and that he had no idea what she was referring to.

The quarrel between the members of Congress came after the Democratic Party introduced a resolution on Tuesday to expel Congressman Santos from office after his recent indictment of 13 federal charges for allegedly partaking in fraudulent schemes, as theGrio previously reported.

Bowman told theGrio, Its not just Marjorie Taylor Greene, its the entire Republican Party who have continued to refuse to hold George Santos accountable.

He added, With regard to the U.S. Capitol and the trust and integrity it should bestow upon the American people, he should resign or be expelled.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku and Android TV. Also, please download theGrio mobile apps today!

The post Rep. Bowman slams Greene for comparing the term white supremacist to the n-word appeared first on TheGrio.
Serial liar Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) reportedly suffered yet another setback on Wednesday with the resignation of his communications director.

With respect for my colleagues, the people of New York, and most importantly, myself, I am honored to tender my resignation, Naysa Woomer wrote in her resignation email, reported Scripps News. Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given, she added in a clear dig at Santos.

Also Wednesday, House Republicans swerved from voting on expelling Santos  who following his 2022 election victory was found to have made up many details about his background  from Congress.

Last week, Santos was indicted on 13 federal charges, including allegations he pocketed campaign donations. He has denied all the accusations.

He also signed an agreement with public prosecutors in Brazil to avoid prosecution for forging stolen checks.

Woomer joined Santos team in January following communications roles at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue and the Massachusetts GOP. Woomer did not immediately reply to HuffPosts request for comment.

Related...
Debt ceiling

To Congressman Simpson,

I read your May 14 constituent update with a mixture of disappointment and frustration. Under the heading The Government Must Do What American Families Do Every Day  Prioritize Responsible Spending, you urge us to look at the facts. In your discussion, you neglected to mention two major causes of our current debt:

During the previous administration, you voted to raise the debt ceiling three times without any apparent concern about what you now call the underlying debt crisis. Why werent you troubled then but are now?

In 2016, you voted for the Trump tax cuts which resulted in the single greatest increase in the national debt in U.S. history. Why werent you bothered then but are now?

The tax reduction for individuals and families will expire in a little over 18 months, while the cuts to corporate profits, investment income, estate tax, and pass-through corporations are permanent.

If you are truly concerned about the debt ceiling, I urge you to take a closer look at the 2017 tax cuts and introduce legislation to reverse the more egregious aspects rather than continue to support the current Republican plan which has no chance of enactment.

Rick Simon, Boise

Gun violence

Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott recently opined we have to address the mental health issue related to gun violence. On average, 120 Americans die every day from gun violence vs. England (less than one every two days). The mental health issue is Republicans refusal to address any common sense laws that rein in gun violence. The Second Amendment was added to our Constitution by Southern legislators in order to raise militias to maintain slavery. Ironic we are all slaves to our gun culture. A sane nation would abolish the Second Amendment and follow the lead of the United Kingdom, Australia and other responsible nations that restrict and regulate gun ownership. We have been brainwashed into believing that owning weapons of war that result in mass murder is our constitutional right. But doesnt our Constitution guarantee the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Maybe we should show photos of slaughtered Americans on the nightly news? Maybe we should interview the families of the 120 Americans who died today? How is their pursuit of happiness working out? This country has a mental health issue called Republican greed and denial. Lets vote them out of office and get them some help.

Kurt Smith, Boise

Ranked voting

Thank you, George Moses, for the excellent rebuttal to the gentleman from the Mountain States Policy Center who thinks voters are just stupid! Voters can walk and chew gum at the same time, so suggesting voters would find it too hard to vote in ranked voting elections is ridiculous. If the Republican Party had not closed its primary to Republicans only, this would not even be an issue. My independent nature prevents me from voting party. I like to know who the candidates are and what they stand for. I do not want some group to determine who I vote for. Any party can put forth a candidate or candidates that are not up to par.

I know that the Republican Party is only going for purity tests for their members, so that they are being called out for not being pure enough for their liking. So much for trusting their members to make common sense voting decisions. Four Republicans voted against making librarians criminals for books some deemed inappropriate to a few people, so they are censored?

I cant wait to sign the petition to put ranked voting on the ballot!

Margaret Anderson, Boise

Boise police study

I was puzzled by your passionate but woefully uninformed editorial, Not one more dime on Boise police investigation until $500,000 is accounted for. The puzzling part is that every dime  no, every penny  has been accounted for through the invoices we supplied to the city. And you should have known that because your own reporter has written about our costs and expenditures, in detail. All of our invoices document our costs  time recorded to the one-tenth of every hour with detailed descriptions, every hotel stay, every meal  down to the penny. All of the very specific and detailed questions that your editorial demands be asked have already been answered. If only you had made any effort to find out.

Michael R. Bromwich, Steptoe & Johnson

Armed teachers

I taught in the Boise Public Schools for 32 years. I must say that I am amazed that many people are advocating arming teachers. Many of these advocates are unwilling and/or unable to trust teachers and their ability to teach unless the teachers are monitored by the Idaho Freedom Foundation or other (largely) conservative groups.

My question is this: How can you trust teachers armed with lethal weapons if you cant trust them with anything else? Every day I hear about school districts closely monitoring teachers to make sure that FACTUAL information and tolerance for individuals are NOT being taught in the classroom. Books that a teacher might read to students are also being closely monitored.

The irony of arming teachers and yet being unable to trust them to teach historical facts, or assuming that teachers may well be grooming students, is beyond anything I can understand.

Kathy Zuckerman, Boise

Stoking fear

The state government is owned by the (Washington) Idaho Freedom Foundation and the American Legislative Exchange Council. We are fertile ground, chipping away at health, food, income and shelter assistance over the decades. It is said that the cruelty is the point. No, cruelty is the tool, division is the point. Heritage, Federalists and ALEC always had the endlessly giving schisms of guns and abortion but then the dog caught the car. Being against reproductive rights is now not such a good idea; in fact, its unifying in the wrong direction. Where to turn? LGBTQ fear has always been a deep well. Only .5% of Americans are transgender, but they are now the new evil. ALEC needed a new divisive enemy. The Idaho Republican Party only wants zombie ALEC representatives so they are closing their primary even more tightly. They expect to be making all the rules.

Scott Thomas, Eagle
Man taken down by Jacksonville K-9 after hours-long SWAT standoff at Gregory Cove Apartments

A man was taken into custody late Thursday morning following an hours-long SWAT standoff after police said he fired several rounds in a second-floor apartment at the Gregory Cove Apartments.

Police responded at around 2 a.m. were faced with a man with a gun. Investigators later found no one was in the apartment with the suspect.

Jacksonville Sheriffs Office Sgt. Karen Dukes said officers saw the suspect standing in window of apartment with gun in his hand and he appeared to be a very active threat to our community.

Dukes said the SWAT team was called in and K-9 officers responded as well.

During the apprehension, one of our K9s were deployed and the K9 assisted in taking the suspect into custody, she said.

Dukes said the man is in his 20s and has a history of drug abuse, but he is not a convicted felon. Two weapons and ammunition were found in the home. Police said he shot into unoccupied vehicles.

The man was taken to the hospital for treatment for dog bites.

Read: JSO investigates shooting in Grand Park neighborhood, leaving 1 dead, 2 hospitalized

This could have ended very badly because these are two apartment complexes, Dukes said.

Dukes said the K-9 officer was deployed because the entire time, he was not compliant. We tried to negotiate with him peacefully. And we were working with his family members to try to get this to a resolution that didnt hurt him.

During the police response, Edenfield Road was closed to car and foot traffic. Some residents were able to be evacuated, while others were encouraged by police to shelter in place.

Edenfield Road is closed to vehicle and foot traffic due to police activity. If you reside off of Edenfield Road, University Blvd will currently be inaccessible. Please stay at your residence or your current location. pic.twitter.com/VwvxytuprG  Jax Sheriff's Office (@JSOPIO) May 18, 2023

Weve got an armed suspect that has already fired rounds in a community with apartment buildings and so our first thing is to shut it down and evacuate people, Dukes said.

Some Duval County Public Schools students were also not able to catch the bus due to police activity.

We sure dont want kids out walking to standing at a bus stop when we still dont have a suspect detained, Dukes said.

Read: Prince Harry, Meghan involved in near catastrophic car chase, spokesperson says

DCPS shared the following statement about the students who were affected:

Because families have been told to shelter in place, children couldnt get to the bus stops and we couldnt get buses to them. We just informed families to be safe and that there would be no academic consequences. Any work or tests missed will be able to be made up.

Celestine Anderson, who lives at the neighboring Sundance Pointe Apartments, said one of the bullets fired came through her wall.

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Im devastated right now, she told Action News Jaxs Meghan Moriarty.

She said her sons girlfriends 6-year-old daughter was sleeping on the couch feet away from where a bullet later came through the wall when the shooting started.

STORY: Jacksonville mother accused of starving baby now facing murder, manslaughter charges

He had grabbed her up, she said.

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Anderson showed Moriarty where the bullet came through and became lodged in the wall.

Theres a hole through here, she said. It looked like it came through and went this way.

Im still shooken by it. Im scared, she said.

Action News Jax also sent them a higher-quality video of the K9 deployment to JSO, and it said the incident is now under administrative review. However, JSO said it cannot say anything else on the matter right now since the review is ongoing.

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
MADISON - A sweeping piece of legislation aimed at boosting state funding for local governments across the state could be in jeopardy after the state Senate's leader said his caucus won't support a provision that would require Milwaukee officials to get approval from voters before raising sales taxes  a move that Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said could kill the bill that his caucus already passed.

Vos said Wednesday his caucus was done negotiating on the bill Assembly Republicans passed Wednesday night even though Gov. Tony Evers said he wanted to continue to discuss with the Legislature's two GOP leaders. A key provision Vos said he did not want to amend requiring a referendum before hiking sales taxes in Milwaukee.

But Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu told reporters Thursday his caucus would likely not include that measure in a bill they pass, a move Milwaukee officials and Evers would support. Vos said that could "kill the bill."

LeMahieu said instead of a referendum, Senate Republicans would likely back a provision that requires a vote of the Milwaukee governing boards but did not specify whether the vote would be required to be unanimous.

"It likely won't include a referendum vote, because I think that would not fix the problems in my view, because I think a referendum vote would fail," LeMahieu said. "So I think the way to do it is through a vote by the common council and the county board."

A spokeswoman for Vos said the Assembly would not agree to take up a new bill.

"That could unfortunately kill the bill and all of our good work," Vos told the Journal Sentinel. "Requiring voter approval for enacting a new tax, which was included in the original Evers proposal, should not be all that controversial.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, left, and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, right.

LeMahieu said "it's unfortunate that he's drawing a line in the sand now with his version of the bill and stopping negotiations on the bill that not everybody's in agreement on."

"You know, there are two houses in the state Legislature," he said. "We're going to do our due diligence, make sure we have a bill that at least all the stakeholders can get behind, and if the Assembly at some point refuses to take up that bill, a bill that was going to make generational changes to townships, counties, municipalities all around the state, he's going to have to answer to his caucus."

LeMahieu said he and Evers met with Vos earlier this week to hash out details of the bill but Vos did not indicate he would stop negotiations.

"I know he wanted a final bill. And we talked about if there were still negotiations to be done that we could make some changes in the Senate and send it back to him but I had no idea that a line was going to be drawn in the sand yesterday afternoon," LeMahieu said.

Evers said Thursday afternoon he agrees with LeMahieu's approach after initially proposing to allow Milwaukee County to impose an additional 1% sales tax, if approved by voters through a referendum.

"... given Milwaukee's urgent financial needs a referendum is likely untenable based on other restrictions on local control included in (the bill) as introduced," Britt Cudaback, spokeswoman for Evers, said in a statement released on Twitter. Cudaback said the governor supports requiring local officials to sign off on a sales tax increase as LeMahieu has proposed.

"Gov. Evers appreciates the Majority Leader LeMahieu's willingness to keep working together and looks forward to continuing negotiations toward making significant investments in local communities across our state," Cudaback said.

Assembly Republicans on Wednesday released revisions to the bill that boosts state funding known as shared revenue and implements policy changes in communities across the state on policing, public health, quarries and more. The revisions were made just before lawmakers met on the Assembly floor to pass the legislation 56-36.

Evers said Wednesday morning he was optimistic about finding a compromise supported by both houses of the Legislature, stakeholders and his office. But by the end of the day, Vos said discussions were over even as Evers spokeswoman said the governor was looking forward to continuing them.

As written, the legislation would allow the City of Milwaukee to levy a 2% sales tax while Milwaukee County could add a 0.375% sales tax on top of its current 0.5% tax  if voters approve.

All Assembly Democrats opposed the legislation, and three Republicans joined them. GOP Reps. Scott Allen of Waukesha, Janel Brandtjen of Menomonee Falls and Chuck Wichgers of Muskego joined Democrats to vote against the bill.

Milwaukee and Milwaukee County leaders have raised concerns that voters would not approve new sales taxes to fund the citys and countys pensions. If not approved, Wisconsins two largest local governments would confront massive cuts to services.

In a statement Thursday, Common Council President Jose G. Perez called the Assembly's passage "an important moment in the Legislatures path to finding a better way to provide much-needed funding for local governments across Wisconsin."

However, he said he did not see that move as the end of the process.

"We appreciate the efforts the Assembly has made thus far, but, as with any negotiation, I am optimistic that we will see additional improvements. I look forward to moving on to the next phase and achieving an even better outcome for our great city, which has the states most diverse population and is the economic engine of Wisconsin," he said.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson on Thursday said he would prefer that the County Board and Common Council be empowered to approve local sales taxes as opposed to putting the question to voters.

He said allowing for the local governments to approve the taxes removes the most uncertainty as both local governments face the prospect of significant cuts without additional revenue.

Johnson anticipated the Assembly and Senate would come to a compromise.

Molly Beck and Alison Dirr can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com and adirr@jrn.com.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Republican rift puts municipal funding bill in jeopardy
Here are the restrictions on transgender people that are moving forward in US statehouses

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holds up bills he signed during a bill signing ceremony at the Coastal Community Church at Lighthouse Point, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Lighthouse Point, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

A federal judge is considering whether to block Florida's ban on gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth, as bills targeting the rights of trans people are being embraced by Republican governors and statehouses across the country.

The restrictions are spreading quickly despite criticism from medical groups and advocates who say they are further marginalizing transgender youth and threatening their health.

Here's what's happening:

FLORIDA'S RESTRICTIONS

Attorneys for the parents of three transgender children appeared before a federal judge in Florida on Friday, seeking to block the ban on gender-affirming care for minors that Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis approved this week.

Along with the treatment ban, DeSantis on Wednesday also signed bills that restrict pronoun use in schools and force people to use the bathroom corresponding with their sex assigned at birth in some cases.

DeSantis also signed new restrictions on drag shows that would allow the state to revoke the food and beverage licenses of businesses that admit children to adult performances. The DeSantis administration has moved to pull the liquor licenses of businesses that held drag shows, alleging children were present during lewd displays.

The rules on gender-affirming care also ban the use of state money for the care and place new restrictions on adults seeking treatment. They took effect Wednesday, along with the drag show restrictions. The bathroom and pronoun restrictions take effect July 1.

DeSantis has advocated for such restrictions, and championed a Florida law that restricts the teaching of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. Florida has expanded that prohibition, which critics have dubbed the Don't Say Gay law, to all grades.

WHERE BANS STAND NATIONALLY

Hundreds of bills have been proposed this year restricting the rights of transgender people, and LGBTQ+ advocates say they've seen a record number of such measures in statehouses.

At least 17 states have enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming care for minors: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, South Dakota and West Virginia. Federal judges have blocked enforcement of laws in Alabama and Arkansas, and several other states are considering bills to restrict or ban care. Proposed bans are also pending before the governors of Texas, Nebraska and Missouri.

Oklahoma on Thursday agreed to not enforce its ban while opponents of the law seek a preliminary injunction against it in federal court.

These bans have spread quickly, with only three states enacting such laws before this year.

Before DeSantis signed the latest ban, Florida was one of two states that had restricted the care via regulations or administrative action. Texas' governor has ordered child welfare officials to investigate reports of children receiving such care as child abuse, though a judge has blocked those investigations.

Three transgender youth and their parents who are suing to block Florida's earlier ban on the care for minors expanded their challenge on Wednesday to include the prohibition DeSantis signed into law.

Every major medical organization, including the American Medical Association, has opposed the bans and supported the medical care for youth when administered appropriately. Lawsuits have been filed in several states where bans have been enacted this year.

STATES POISED TO ACT

Nebraska lawmakers on Friday approved and sent to Republican Gov. Jim Pillen proposed restrictions on gender-affirming care for children as part of legislation that includes a 12-week abortion ban. Pillen has promised to sign the combined measure into law.

The bill would prevent transgender people 18 or younger from receiving any gender-confirming surgery. The states chief medical officer  a political appointee who is currently an ear, nose and throat doctor  would set rules for puberty blockers and hormone therapies. There would be some exceptions for minors who were already receiving treatment before the restrictions were enacted.

A proposed ban on gender-affirming care for minors is awaiting action before Republican Gov. Mike Parson in Missouri. The states Republican attorney general, Andrew Bailey, this week withdrew a rule he had proposed that would have gone further by also restricting access to the care for adults.

Bailey cited the bill pending before Parson as a reason for eliminating the rule, which had been blocked by a state judge.

A proposal that failed in New Hampshire's House on Thursday would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender. Opponents said the bill would have exposed LGBTQ+ students to the risk of abuse at home.

Not all states are adopting restrictions, and some Democratic-led states are enacting measures aimed at protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ youth.

Michigan Democrats introduced legislation Thursday that would ban conversion therapy for minors, a discredited practice of trying to convert people to heterosexuality.

The legislation is expected to move quickly with Democrats in control of all levels of state government. Democratic state Rep. Jason Hoskins, a sponsor of the bill, told The Associated Press that he hopes the legislation passes by the end of June, which is Pride Month.

___

Associated Press writers Anthony Izaguirre in Tallahassee, Florida; Brendan Farrington in Tallahassee, Florida; Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire; Margery Beck in Lincoln, Nebraska; Margaret Stafford in Kansas City, Missouri; and Joey Cappelletti in Lansing, Michigan, contributed to this report.
I returned to Sacramento and was shocked to find my home leaves so many without one | Opinion

I returned to once again make Sacramento my home almost exactly one year ago.

I settled into a cute, smaller home in West Tahoe Park, just east of Stockton Boulevard and south of Broadway.

I like it here. I like the neighborhood. I like Sacramento. I like the Central Valley. It is, after all, my home. I grew up in Manteca, went to college in Fresno and have worked and lived up and down the valley  Manteca, Clovis, Madera, Fresno, Turlock, Modesto, Salida, Sacramento.

Every milepost along Highway 99 seems to evoke a particular memory and moment in time.

My sons middle name is Joaquin. In part to honor his and his mothers Latino heritage, but also because his dad grew up in San Joaquin County. It mattered that much.

Homelessness: Our urgent human crisis

Follow our ambitious, newsroom-wide series examining the growing problem of homelessness across Sacramento and California in 2023, examining government policy, money, addiction, mental health and more.

But then came lifes detour. In 2009, I moved from California for the first time, leaving Sacramento, where I had lived for three years for the opportunity to become an editor at the Indianapolis Star.

I stayed in Indy for more than 13 years. It was an interesting time  a great place to raise a child, a great place to work, and a place where you could afford a 4-bedroom, two-bath house on a three-quarter acre lot for a mortgage payment hundreds less than the cost to rent an apartment in Sacramento.

Still, this is home. So when The Sacramento Bee provided me with the opportunity to return, I did.

My brother lives in Folsom so its not as though I have remained entirely absent from the area, I was aware of some of the changes  good and bad  that have taken place in the community..

Nothing, though, has struck me or disturbed me more than the change I witness daily on our citys streets:

An elderly man on the sidewalk, a mom and child in a parking lot, a disabled man with a sign at an exit ramp, a blur of homeless humanity, from the mentally ill to the substance-impaired, creating a new landscape of despair.

Homelessness is not new. It is a chronic problem.

We are now approaching 10,000 homeless people in our county and its cities, assuming we already have not surpassed that number. The most recent total from January was 9,728, according to the federally-mandated point in time count. This number has surged from 5,570 in January 2019, and 3,665 in January 2017.

But that same report also concluded that 20,000 people in the county and its cities are expected to experience homelessness at some point this year.

The problem has never been more acute or in more need of attention  from lawmakers, from nonprofits, from public agencies, from the community, and, yes, from us here at The Sacramento Bee.

Over the next months and likely well into next year, The Bee is launching an ambitious newsroom-wide effort called Homelessness: Our urgent human crisis to examine the issue.

We will investigate and assess previous efforts and programs. We will take a hard look at the money being spent. And we will do out best to uncover and illuminate what has worked elsewhere.

Im not naive enough to think that a series of stories by the local newspaper is going to magically solve a problem of that magnitude. Not even close.

But I have been a journalist long enough to know that good, honest reporting that seeks the truth, that calls out failures and illuminates successes can make a difference. Ive experienced it.

Still, even more importantly, its what we should be doing. And its what you should expect from us as journalists who live among you and call Sacramento our home.

Lets be transparent about where we are coming from and some of our assumptions going into this. Homelessness is a complicated problem without simple solutions. Thats due, in large part, because those who live on the streets find themselves there for myriad reasons  and the solutions need to target those varying issues: substance abuse, mental illness, housing prices and unemployability (either because of a lack of skills or, yes, a lack of inclination to work).

Blame can be spread far and wide. Virtually every level of government has failed to do anything it seems other than to blame another level of government. And when elected officials do act, too often it seems it is for the cosmetic purpose of moving the problem, rather than sincerely dealing with the complicated factors that have created this societal crisis..

I also want to emphasize that our coverage will never be void of compassion and humanity. We are mindful that behind each program success or failure, each novel new approach, people are affected, in some cases in ways it would be impossible for many of us to begin to understand  or ever want to grapple with.

Finally, let me reiterate why we are investing so much time and energy into reporting on this issue. The people you see on the streets are someones spouse or sibling or child or parent or friend. And they are part of our community.

We owe our community no less than a sincere effort to use our journalism to help ease this first-world shame. And you, as loyal readers and supporters of The Bee, should demand no less.

Thank you for that continued support, as well as your feedback.
Rick Ross

Over the past decade and a half, Rick Ross has built a sprawling estate in Fayetteville, Georgia complete with farm animals and an annual car show. Now, the Maybach Music boss is looking to become the leader of his town.

Rozay took to his Instagram Stories yesterday (May 16) to share his plans. I love Fayetteville so much. Next year, Im running for mayor, the Hustlin' rapper said. Thats right. The boss Rick Ross is running for mayor of Fayetteville. I want to know how many votes did it actually take to vote in the mayor of Fayetteville. I need to know that cause we gon become that. We gon make that happen, and we gonna have a good time.

We gon give some people opportunities, we gon give some people raises and, of course, we gon have to clean some people out, he added. Check out the clip below.

Rick Ross announces that he wants to run for mayor after officials reject his car and bike show permit request. pic.twitter.com/SMOg437Hf9  Episodes (@episodesent) May 16, 2023

The Bawses candidacy comes after the local government denied his permit application to host his annual car show at his Promise Land estate on June 3. According to WSB-TV, the MCs neighbors approached the Fayette County Board of Commissioners in April and complained about the traffic that last years car show brought to the area. Some even signed petitions to have the event canceled.

Deborah Bell, the director of planning and zoning for Fayette County, declared that the upcoming celebration was not in compliance with the Fayette County Zoning Ordinance. She cited several factors in the bodys decision to pull the plug on the permit, including what the event was being advertised as. A plain reading of the phrase horse show/rodeo/carnival and/or community fair does not anticipate a car and bike show, she wrote, per WSB-TV. Whatever similarities exist between these uses, they are not significant enough for staff to determine that they are the same.

The next mayoral election in Fayetteville is on Nov. 7, 2023.

Trending Stories
Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, arrives at the British Embassy in Berlin on May 17 - Christophe Gateau/Avalon

Ben Wallace has expressed an interest in becoming the next leader of Nato, saying the alliances top job which is set to become vacant this autumn is "fantastic".

Current secretary general Jens Stoltenberg is due to step down in September and Mr Wallace has positioned himself as a potential candidate to succeed him.

The Defence Secretary indicated he would be keen to succeed Mr Stoltenberg during a trip to Berlin for talks on Ukraine with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.

Mr Wallace reportedly told German news agency dpa: "Ive always said it would be a good job. Thats a job Id like. But Im also loving the job I do now. I mean, to be Defence Secretary of the British Government at a time of reform and investment, just like Boris Pistorius."

He added that secretary general of the transatlantic alliance "is a fantastic job and Nato is an incredibly important part of all our securities" but it was "not for me to decide".

Nato member states normally make the decision on who should be secretary general behind closed doors.

You can follow the latest updates below.

04:00 PM

That is all for today...

Thank you for joining me for today's politics live blog.

I will be back tomorrow morning.

03:01 PM

Funeral and lying-in-state of Queen Elizabeth II cost Government 162million

The funeral and lying-in-state of Queen Elizabeth II in September last year cost the UK Government an estimated 161.7million, according to figures published by the Treasury this afternoon.

The largest cost was reported by the Home Office at 73.7million, followed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (57.4million) and the Scottish Government (18.8million).

The figures were published as part of a parliamentary written statement by John Glen, Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

02:54 PM

Sunak and Kishida sign 'Hiroshima Accord'

Rishi Sunak and Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida have signed a new agreement to build closer defence, security and cyber ties amid growing Chinese aggression.

Becoming the first Prime Minister to visit Hiroshima, Mr Sunak joined his ally for dinner at his favourite restaurant today.

Fumio Kishida and Rishi Sunak shake hands before their working dinner ahead of the G7 summit in Hiroshima - AP

After signing the "Hiroshima Accord", Mr Sunak and Mr Kishida sat down for a dinner of seasonal sashimi and conger eel rice at the Tosho restaurant.

The Prime Minister told his ally: "I genuinely believe that the relationship between our two countries has never been stronger than it is today. You and I have now signed the Hiroshima Accord to strengthen and deepen our partnership even further."

02:20 PM

Tory MP and Minister for London Paul Scully announces bid to be next London mayor

The Conservative Party is yet to select its candidate for the next Mayor of London race but another contender has now declared their intention to seek the Tory nomination:

Even the greatest city in the world can be greater still. We need a Mayor who won't deflect but will deliver on housing, transport and crime, switching the ULEZ cameras off in the extended area on day 1. That's why I'm running to be the next Mayor of London... https://t.co/cPaXdWHeCh  Paul Scully MP (@scullyp) May 18, 2023

01:26 PM

Pictured: Rishi Sunak shows off Hiroshima Carps baseball socks to Japanese PM Fumio Kishida

Rishi Sunak shows his Hiroshima Carps Baseball socks to Fumio Kishida Prime Minister of Japan after arriving in Hiroshima for G7 summit - Simon Dawson/No10 Downing Street

01:19 PM

Ben Wallace on Nato chief job: 'That's a job I'd like'

Ben Wallace has expressed an interest in running Nato, saying the top job which is set to become vacant this autumn is "fantastic".

The military alliances current secretary general Jens Stoltenbergs term is expiring in September and Mr Wallace, the Defence Secretary, has positioned himself as a potential candidate to succeed him.

Mr Wallace indicated he would be keen to succeed Mr Stoltenberg during a trip to Berlin for talks on Ukraine with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.

Mr Wallace reportedly told German news agency dpa: "Ive always said it would be a good job. Thats a job Id like. But Im also loving the job I do now. I mean, to be Defence Secretary of the British Government at a time of reform and investment, just like Boris Pistorius."

He added that secretary general of the transatlantic alliance "is a fantastic job and Nato is an incredibly important part of all our securities". He said it was "not for me to decide". Nato member states normally make the decision on who should be secretary general behind the scenes.

01:12 PM

Sunak rules out building on green belt

Rishi Sunak has ruled out allowing house building on the green belt after Sir Keir Starmer said a Labour government would allow development there in certain circumstances.

The Prime Minister said he wants to "make sure our green spaces are protected" after being accused by Sir Keir of killing off the dream of home ownership by failing to build enough houses.

Speaking to reporters travelling with him in Japan, Mr Sunak said: "I was very clear over the summer, I wanted to make sure our green spaces are protected. I think that is what local communities want. At the same time, we have empowered local communities with local plans.

"What I find is that its not necessarily an opposition to housing itself, its how and where exactly it is done and the infrastructure that comes alongside it."

Sir Keir said that under his plan local areas would be given "more powers to direct where houses are built", including on the green belt in some circumstances, but he insisted "I want to protect the green belt, I value our countryside".

12:31 PM

Sunak wants Hiroshima summit to 'show Putin that the G7 stands by Ukraine'

The @G7 focus is and always has been on promoting peace & global economic security.



This year will be no different, I want to seize this opportunity to:



Boost economic growth

Show Putin that the G7 stands by Ukraine

Bolster peace and security in the Indo-Pacific pic.twitter.com/zUZxQAo9pn  Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) May 18, 2023

11:54 AM

No10 says water companies must 'put customers above profits'

Downing Street said water companies must "put customers above profits" as No10 warned investment in infrastructure must not have a "disproportionate" impact on household bills.

Told that bills are expected to increase to pay for the biggest overhaul of the sewage system since the Victorian era and asked if Rishi Sunak believed that would be fair, the Prime Ministers Official Spokesman said: "We have been clear that we think water companies must put consumers above profits.

"We have said that previously and we have taken steps to help drive progress and ensure they put consumers first.

"But again, the plans that we have seen set out this morning need to go through the proper regulatory approval and we have been clear throughout that we dont want to see things disproportionately impacting customer bills, especially given we know that there are people up and down the country who are struggling with the cost of living which is why we have provided the help that we have in that area."

11:47 AM

Downing Street welcomes apology from water companies over sewage dumping

Downing Street has welcomed an apology by water companies for dumping sewage into rivers and waterways for decades (see the post below at 10.00).

The Prime Ministers Official Spokesman said: "We welcome this apology from the water industry but acknowledge there continues to be more that needs to be done.

"You will know that we put the strictest targets ever on water companies to reduce sewage pollution and demanded that water companies deliver their largest ever infrastructure investment of 56billion.

"But the plans that have been set out today will of course need to go through the correct regulatory approval first to both ensure they deliver on the targets that we have set whilst not disproportionately affecting consumer bills."

11:32 AM

Water bills will rise for a century to stop sewage leaking into rivers and seas, companies admit

Household water bills will rise for as long as a century to pay for the biggest overhaul of the sewage system since the Victorian era, the water industry has said.

There will be "modest upward pressure" on bills for decades to come to fund 10 billion investment to reduce sewage overflows into rivers and waterways, Ruth Kelly, chairman of Water UK, said today.

You can read the full story here.

10:58 AM

Rishi Sunak arrives in Hiroshima

Rishi Sunak has just arrived in Hiroshima after completing the short flight from Tokyo.

The Prime Minister and his wife Akshata Murty were welcomed on the tarmac by officials, with the former holding a large blue umbrella to protect against what appeared to be fairly heavy rain.

It is just before 7pm in Japan. The G7 summit in Hiroshima will get underway tomorrow.

Mr Sunak is the first British prime minister to visit the city.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arriving by plane in Hiroshima after their visit to Tokyo - Stefan Rousseau/PA

10:35 AM

Rishi Sunak to sign landmark security deal with Japan amid China tensions

Rishi Sunak will agree a historic deal on security with Japan amid rising tensions with China.

The Prime Minister will sign the Hiroshima Accord with Japan ahead of the G7 meeting of Western leaders, under which the UK will step up defence cooperation to uphold stability in the Indo-Pacific, amid concerns about warmongering from Beijing.

The two countries will also launch a partnership on semiconductors, working together on research and development to help the West keep ahead of the game.

You can read the full story here.

10:10 AM

Pictured: Rishi Sunak and wife Akshata Murty leave Tokyo to fly to Hiroshima for G7 summit

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty board a plane in Tokyo, traveling to Hiroshima ahead of the G7 summit in Japan - Stefan Rousseau/PA

10:03 AM

Labour: Households must not pick up the bill for sewer upgrades

Households must not be forced to foot the bill for upgrades to sewage systems after a modernisation plan was announced, a Labour frontbencher said this morning.

Shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon told Sky News: "We cant allow in a cost-of-living crisis for families to take the burden of that because water companies still think they can carry on business as usual."

He condemned the Government for effectively "legalising" sewage spills, despite having the "levers of power" to outlaw them as Labour has pledged to do.

10:00 AM

Water companies apologise for sewage spills and promise to invest 10bn to reduce them

The water industry body has apologised for the first time for dumping sewage into rivers and waterways for decades, and promised the biggest modernisation of sewers since the Victorian era.

The 10bn plan includes installing water storage tanks equivalent to thousands of new Olympic swimming pools, and ripping out concrete to replace it with ponds.

Sewage spilled into rivers and seas by water companies hundreds of thousands of times a year has been blamed on decades of underinvestment in critical infrastructure.

You can read the full story on the announcement here.

09:57 AM

No return of EU freedom of movement under Labour government

A return of EU freedom of movement "isnt on the table" with a Labour government, the shadow environment secretary said this morning.

Asked if Labour could look to reinstate freedom of movement, Jim McMahon told Sky News: "Well, Keir has been very clear that that isnt on the table, that is not something that we are going to return to and in the end what we need to do is almost to take the politics out of it as much as we can do but to say, what does the economy need?

"How do we build a Britain that can thrive in the future where we go away from that 13 years of decline and depression to a point where people can be hopeful and optimistic for the future.

"That requires a strong foundation and for us to respond to what businesses are saying. They are saying that they want the barriers to trade reduced and they want simplicity, for that red tape to be taken away."

09:29 AM

Starmer views current Brexit deal as a 'starting point', says Labour frontbencher

Sir Keir Starmer views the current Brexit deal between the UK and the EU as a "starting point", a Labour frontbencher has said.

Jim McMahon, the shadow environment secretary, said Sir Keir had no intention of ditching the deal but insisted it is "not the end".

Sir Keir said yesterday that he would seek to improve the deal to deliver a closer trading relationship with the EU.

Asked whether Sir Keirs remarks had meant he would rip up Brexit and "start again" with talks, Mr McMahon told Sky News: "He certainly hasnt said that.

"Hes been very clear that the agreement is a framework and is a starting point but its not the end because there are naturally gaps that we need to fill."

09:15 AM

Boris Johnson called Macron Putins lickspittle in foul-mouthed tirade, claims ex-No10 official

Boris Johnson described Emmanuel Macron as Putins lickspittle and called for an orgy of frog bashing during a row over the handling of the Ukrainian refugee crisis, a former No10 official has claimed.

Guto Harri, ex-head of communications in Downing Street, also said Mr Johnson had labelled the French Presidents trip to Moscow in February last year for talks with Vladimir Putin as nauseating.

Speaking on the latest episode of his Unprecedented podcast, published by Global, Mr Harri said: So when the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the frontpage of The Guardian one Friday I think and much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped and at our morning meeting I think with a small gang of us he just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron, basically saying he is a four letter word that begins with C, he is a weirdo, he is Putins lickspittle, we need to go studs up on this one, a rugby term that basically means gloves off, we need an orgy of frog bashing, I am going to have to punch his lights out.

Mr Harri said that just a few weeks later Mr Johnson and Mr Macron had patched it up and went for a whisky together at the G7 summit.

The Telegraph understands Mr Johnson does not recognise the account given by his former colleague. Mr Johnson, who had no part in Mr Harris podcast or in its contents, is said to deplore attempts to comment on the matters discussed in the newest episode.

09:09 AM

I want to bring soaring legal migration down, says Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak has insisted that he wants to bring down legal migration, as the annual net figure is expected to balloon to around 700,000 next week.

However, the Prime Minister refused to promise that he would deliver Boris Johnsons manifesto pledge of getting migration below where it was in 2019.

You can read the full story here.

08:37 AM

PM: UK and EU discussing automotive industry's trade deal concerns

Rishi Sunak said Britain is talking to the EU about automotive concerns following warnings of an "existential threat" posed by a looming Brexit trade deal deadline.

Speaking to broadcasters on board the JS Izumo aircraft carrier in the Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo earlier today, the Prime Minister said: "Its something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern.

"And as a result of that we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally."

On concerns about UK battery-making capacity, Mr Sunak said: "Nissan have invested a billion pounds in battery manufacturing capability in the North East. Ill be talking to the Nissan CEO and other Japanese business leaders later about investment into the UK."

You can read the full story on the trade problems facing car manufacturers here.

08:20 AM

Rishi Sunak's schedule during his first day in Japan

Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arrived in Tokyo at about 1am UK time and they were greeted off the plane by British ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom.

The Prime Minister then travelled to the Yokosuka naval base where he received a guard of honour from the Japanese navy as he inspected the JS Izumo aircraft carrier.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak disembarks the Japanese aircraft carrier, JS Izumo where he inspected a guard of honour with vice defence minister, Toshiro Ino during a visit to the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSF) at Yokosuka Naval Base - Stefan Rousseau/PA

Sailors played the British and Japanese national anthems for the Prime Minister and defence minister Toshiro Ino.

Mr Sunak then addressed a meeting of business leaders as he hailed 18billion worth of new Japanese investment in the UK economy.

The premier is now due to travel to Hiroshima, the location for the G7 summit which is taking place Friday through Sunday, where he will have dinner with Japanese PM Fumio Kishida.

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (2nd R) walks on board the Japanese aircraft carrier JS Izumo during a visit to the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSF) at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka - Stefan Rousseau/AFP

08:14 AM

UK is an 'island of innovation', Sunak tells Tokyo business leaders in pitch for greater investment

Britain is "unambiguously pro-investment", Rishi Sunak told business leaders in Tokyo this morning.

Continuing his pitch for more investment in the UK (see the post below at 08.10), the Prime Minister said: "Secondly, the United Kingdom is unambiguously pro-investment.

"The lowest rate of corporation tax of any G7 country. One of the most generous capital allowances regimes in the OECD and a smart agile approach to regulation.

"And thirdly just like Japan the United Kingdom is an island of innovation. We have the funding, with 20billion of public investment in research and development, we have the people with a highly skilled workforce, we have the ideas with some of the worlds best universities and we have the businesses."

08:10 AM

Rishi Sunak uses trip to Japan to 'bang the drum for Britain'

Rishi Sunak said the opportunity for UK and Japanese businesses to work together is "incredible" as he told business leaders in Tokyo: "Lets go and seize it together".

The Prime Minister said he wanted to use his visit to Japan to attend the G7 summit in Hiroshima to "bang the drum for Britain".

Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, delivers an address to business leaders in Tokyo this morning - Stefan Rousseau /PA

He said: "While I have you all here I wanted to briefly bang the drum for Britain and give you three quick reasons why the United Kingdom is right now one of the most exciting destinations in the world for Japanese businesses.

"First, our strong secure trade links. The UK is the only European country to join the CPTPP. That is a huge opportunity. The UK will stand with Japan to uphold the CPTPPs high standards and maximise the benefits for our businesses from this dynamic and fast growing free trade bloc."

08:06 AM

Japanese investment in UK a 'huge vote of confidence' in British economy, says Sunak

Rishi Sunak said new Japanese investment in the UK worth 18billion represented a "huge vote of confidence" in the British economy.

The Prime Minister told an event in Tokyo this morning: "Businesses from our two countries have a long, proud history of partnership. From the trains that we ride to the cars that we drive and the drinks that we enjoy.

"UK and Japanese firms work together every single day to power each others economies and today we are going even further.

"I am delighted to announce new investment commitments worth nearly 18billion. This is a huge vote of confidence in the UK economy, it will create hundreds of good, well-paid jobs with significantly more to come as these projects get underway."

08:04 AM

Rishi Sunak: UK-Japan relationship 'strongest it has ever been'

Rishi Sunak said the UK-Japan relationship is now the "strongest it has ever been" as he hailed 18billion of new Japanese investment in Britain.

Speaking to business leaders in Tokyo this morning before he attends the G7 summit in Hiroshima, the Prime Minister said the opportunities for both countries to work together are "incredible".

He said: "I couldnt miss this opportunity to come here and thank all of you, the brilliant businesses who have together made the relationship between our two countries the strongest it has ever been."

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Rishi Sunak has agreed new defence and economic deals with Japan in a visit to Tokyo, ahead of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

Speaking on board the JS Izumo aircraft carrier, the PM announced a partnership featuring closer UK-Japanese co-operation between armed forces, cyber-agencies and semiconductor companies.

He also said Japanese firms would be investing almost 18bn in the UK.

But Labour said foreign investment had plummeted under the Conservatives.

The government is emphasising it sees the region providing economic opportunity for the UK post-Brexit UK, as well as working with Japan and Australia to counter the strategic threat from China.

About 10bn of the investment is coming from trading and investment business conglomerate Marubeni and is earmarked for offshore wind and green hydrogen projects in Scotland and Wales.

Similarly, Sumitomo Corporation intends to inject 4bn in offshore wind projects off the Suffolk and Norfolk coastline.

The government said both the investments would further solidify "the UK's status as a clean energy pioneer" and would help the UK achieve its net zero target by 2030.

The announcement came as Mr Sunak hosted a reception in Tokyo highlighting the strength of the UK and Japan's economic relationship ahead of the UK joining the regional CPTPP trade bloc (the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership).

The government said Japan was the fifth largest investor in the UK, with trade in goods and services worth 27.7bn last year.

Mr Sunak said the new investment was a "massive vote of confidence in the UK's dynamic economy" from some of Japan's top firms.

"The sky's the limit for British and Japanese businesses and entrepreneurs."

Labour's shadow international trade secretary, Nick Thomas-Symonds, pointed to figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility which predicts exports are set to fall by 6.6% this year, equivalent to a 51bn hit to the UK.

Responding to the announcement about Japanese investment, he said the "devil will be in the detail".

Aside from energy, two of Japan's largest real estate companies, Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan, confirmed 3.5bn for affordable housing, office space and a life-science laboratory in London.

There is also investment travelling in the opposite direction - from UK businesses into Japan.

Octopus Energy is set to invest 1.5bn in the Asia-Pacific energy market by 2027, to "speed up the region's transition to a cleaner, smarter energy system", creating 1,000 jobs in the UK.

UK consultancy Mott MacDonald will help develop an offshore wind farm in western Japan which could power more than 175,000 homes with clean energy, the government added.

Separately Mr Sunak will commit to a partnership combining British expertise and Japanese materials to boost supply chains for semiconductors.

Mr Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arriving in Hiroshima, following his visit to Tokyo

The silicon microchips, used to produce supercomputers and AI technology, are hugely important to modern economies and there has been concern about depending on China for their production.

The UK prime minister also pledged to deploy a naval battle fleet in the Indo-Pacific region by 2025.

After agreeing the Hiroshima Accord, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Mr Sunak will attend the G7 summit, where the focus is expected to be on economic security and the conflict in Ukraine.

During the gathering, Mr Sunak will hold bilateral talks with France's Emmanuel Macron and India's Narendra Modi.

Speaking on the plane to Tokyo, Mr Sunak said: "Prime Minister Kishida and I are closely aligned on the importance of protecting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and defending our values, including free and fair trade.

"The Hiroshima Accord will see us step up co-operation between our armed forces, grow our economies together and develop our world-leading science and technology expertise."

The two men had dinner together at Mr Kishida's favourite restaurant on land once owned by his grandfather. Mr Sunak attended the meal wearing socks featuring Mr Kishida's sports club - the Hiroshima Toyo Carp baseball team.

During his visit to Hiroshima, Mr Sunak will plant a tree to remember the victims of the atomic bomb, which killed an estimated 140,000 of the city's 350,000 population in 1945.
Roadmap To Billions

Black Women Talk Tech launched Roadmap To Billions, which is an initiative that provides guidance, resources and networking opportunities to Black women entrepreneurs. The annual event kicked off on May 18 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where 1500 tech founders, investors and professionals educate Black women to become successful bosses. Esosa Ighodaro, the founder of the event, wants to inspire and assist Black women business owners who are striving to build their businesses.

Obstacles that Black Women in the Tech Industry Face

Photo credit: Christina Morillo

Ighodaro witnessed inequality among Black women in start-up sectors. This realization fueled her inspiration for the Roadmap to Billions campaign. In a recent interview with Shoppe Black, she said that Black women are underrepresented in the tech world.

The tech mogul revealed that Black women face discrimination and racial biases, which hinders their funding chances for their businesses. She believes that Roadmap To Billions will help combat those prejudices placed on Black women. She also said that she believes it will create a community. Ighodaros goal is to grant Black women with the resources to advance their businesses and reach billion-dollar valuations.

Roadmap To Billions Takes Black Womens Businesses to the Next Level

Photo credit: Christina Morillo

Ighodaro believes the conference, which is in its seventh year, will empower Black women to amplify their voices. Participants have a chance to win $20,000 in cash prizes and network with experts in the tech industry. The event will have various mixers with tech giants and inspiring mentors.

She also revealed the event will make its debut in London and Toronto. Ighodaro intends to reach international collaboration and promote diversity within various regions. Aside from technology, the entrepreneur plans to include environmental issues within her conference. She intends to create conversations about climate change and sustainability.

She advises prospective attendees of Roadmap To Billions to study, network with key speakers and gather information to obtain a promising entrepreneurial journey,

The post Roadmap To Billions Expo Uplifts Black Women-Owned Businesses appeared first on 21Ninety.
Work on the project was first announced in 2014

Rolls-Royce jet engine technology powered by sustainable fuel has completed its first tests at a facility in Derby.

The firm says the UltraFan technology is quieter and more fuel efficient than anything it has made before.

UltraFan delivers a 10% efficiency improvement over the world's most efficient large aero-engine in service, the Trent XWB, Rolls-Royce said.

Company bosses have described the technology as a "game-changer".

Rolls-Royce said the successful tests meant the industry was a step closer to achieving its target of net zero flight by 2050.

Tests have been taking place at the company's facility in Sinfin, Derby

Chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic said: "The UltraFan demonstrator is a game changer - the technologies we are testing as part of this programme have the capability to improve the engines of today as well as the engines of tomorrow.

"That is why this announcement is so important - we are witnessing history in the making, a step-change in engine efficiency improvement."

Tests took place at the Testbed 80 facility in Sinfin and the demonstator was powered by 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

This is derived primarily from waste-based sustainable feedstocks such as used cooking oils, Rolls-Royce said.

The UltraFan project, which has been supported by the UK government, has been a decade in the making after being unveiled publicly in 2014.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said: "This cutting-edge technology will help the transition towards a greener future for aviation while attracting further investment into the UK's aerospace industry, helping grow the economy."

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WASHINGTON - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving forward with plans to formally announce his 2024 presidential campaign by the end of the month, setting up a an intense Republican battle with Donald Trump.

The Florida governor plans to file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission next week in connection with a May 25 meeting with donors in Miami, said two Republicans familiar with the rollout.

DeSantis plans a public speech and announcement the next week, sources said, perhaps in the Tampa area near his home town of Dunedin, Fla.

Precise details of the rollout are still being worked out, and things could get moved up or back, a source said.

On Friday, DeSantis is scheduled to meet with a group of Republican lawmakers in New Hampshire, which is expected to host the first primary of the 2024 nomination calendar.

DeSantis has been hinting at a presidential run for months and would formally enter the race at a time when he has become something of an underdog.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

Trump currently enjoys fairly big leads in polls for the Republican presidential nomination, despite his indictment in New York City on falsifying business charges and a civil jury decision finding him liable of sexual abuse to writer E. Jean Carroll.

DeSantis supporters say he is doing better in individual states polls, including early contest states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

In planning the rollout, CNN citing two anonymous Republican sources familiar with the matter, noted that one of its sources "cautioned that the planning remains a moving target and DeSantis is known to surprise even his closest allies with last-minute changes."

The Washington Post and Reuters also cited two anonymous sources to report DeSantis will move forward next week.

In a conference call Thursday with members of a pro-DeSantis political action committee called Never Back Down, the Florida governor sounded very much like a presidential candidate.

DeSantis told backers there are only three credible White House contenders at this point - himself, Trump, and President Joe Biden - and that he is the only one capable of defeating the Democratic incumbent.

"Two (candidates) have a chance to get elected president - Biden and me, based on all the data in the swing states," DeSantis said, according to the New York Times.

DeSantis and Trump will have plenty of company in the chase for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is already campaigning. Current South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott is scheduled to announce his 2024 candidacy on Monday.

Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence is expected to make a 2024 announcement next month. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also say they are mulling presidential bids.

CBS News reported that there may also be a dark horse entrant: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

A former congressman who won a Florida governor's race in 2018, DeSantis built a Republican-heavy political reputation by fighting so-called "woke culture," resisting COVID restrictions, reducing government regulations, and generally promoting a Trump-like agenda.

"In Florida, our higher education institutions will not be spending public dollars on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or other initiatives that promote an ideological agenda," DeSantis tweeted earlier this week.

For nearly a year, DeSantis has given every indication of planning to run for president, from taking a foreign trip to promoting a legislative agenda that looks much like a 2024 Republican Party platform.

Previous coverage: GOP star Ron DeSantis is overhauling education policy in Florida

DeSantis' formal filing would come at the end of a Florida legislative session in which the governor targeted DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) and ESG (environmental, social, and governance) programs in schools and businesses.

DeSantis is also embroiled in a legal battle with his state's most prominent employer, Disney. It sued the governor over his attempts to remove the company's special tax district, claiming he wants to punish them for opposing an anti-gay bill.

Many Republicans promoted DeSantis' presidential prospects last year, as he rolled up a landslide re-election bid in Florida that carried the state by more than 19 percentage points.

As DeSantis' poll numbers rose, Trump and his allies escalated their attacks.

Trump frequently accused DeSantis of neglecting his job as governor while planning to run for the presidency. DeSantis recently signed a bill changing the state's "resign to run" law to allow him to keep his job as governor while running for president.

In a recent Truth Social post, Trump predicted that DeSantis' campaign would crash and burn.

"A really bad politician," Trump said. "Enjoy the trip, Ron!"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ron DeSantis plans to formally join the 2024 race next week
Roseanne Barr says co-star Sara Gilbert stabbed me in the back with tweet that cancelled sitcom reboot

Roseanne Barr has blamed former co-star Sara Gilbert for the cancellation of the Roseanne reboot.

Originally airing from 1988 to 1997, the hit sitcom returned in 2018 for a revival season starring Barr once again.

The reboot was renewed for a second outing, but months later, ABC abruptly pulled the plug on the reboot.

The cancellation came after Barr tweeted racist remarks about former US President Barack Obamas presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett, prompting outrage on social media.

Producer Wanda Skyes tweeted that she would not be returning to the show, while actor Gilbert condemned Barrs abhorrent comments. ABC cancelled the series that same day.

In a new interview, Barr admitted that she was floored by Gilberts response to the controversy, ultimately blaming her for the shows cancellation.

It was [Gilberts] tweet that cancelled the show, Barr claimed while appearing on SiriusXMs The Megyn Kelly Show, adding that Gilbert repeatedly twisted [the knife].

After she begged me to come back, saying, Ive got your back this time, I wont let anyone at you, I wont let anyone hurt you, Im gonna protect you. I know you have mental health problems, but Im going to be there, Im gonna stand in the way. This is all the crap she told me, said the 70-year-old.

Roseannes recent comments about Valerie Jarrett, and so much more, are abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show. I am disappointed in her actions to say the least.  sara gilbert (@THEsaragilbert) May 29, 2018

It wasnt enough that she stabbed me in the back, and did what she did to me there, but then she would go on her talk show every day and talk about how shocked she was at my racism on top of it.

It was every day, and I had done that show when she needed a guest, she continued. I called her up and I said, just like this, You better shut your blanking mouth about me. Im telling you, you better shut your f***ing mouth. And then she did.

The Independent has contacted Gilberts representative for comment.

While ABC cancelled Roseanne, they later announced that a spin-off, titled The Connors, would air in its place.

The series featured all of the original cast except Barr, with the first episode featuring an explanation that the character of Roseanne had died off-screen. Gilbert serves as an executive producer for the spin-off.

In 2018, amid the backlash, Barr claimed Gilbert and other co-stars were throwing her under the bus with their reactions to her original tweet.

She then told the Washington Post in a later interview that Gilbert destroyed the show and my life with that tweet.

Gilbert played the daughter of Barrs eponymous character throughout the entire original series and its 2018 revival.
Mykhailo Podolyak

Vasily Nebenzya, Russias Permanent Representative to the United Nations, wrote a letter on May 10, a copy of which was distributed to other members of the UN Security Council.

In the letter, he complained about Budanovs Russophobia, as well as about a poll conducted by Ukrainian news agency UNIAN, asking which Russians should be eliminated next, after the death of Kremlin propagandist Daria Dugina in a car bombing.

Read also: Ukrainian military captures another Russian mercenary near Bakhmut  video

Russia's Permanent Mission to the United Nations wrote on Twitter on May 17 that UN leadership basically gave no reaction to the hate speech by Head of Ukrainian Intelligence Budanov and dismisses all questions while citing the inability to verify such statements by the Kyiv regime.

In turn, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted that the representatives of Russia, a state of serial killers, will undoubtedly pay all their debts.

Yes, Ukraine hates you, Podolyak wrote on Twitter on May 18.

Yes, we will persecute you. Always and everywhere. Yes, there is nothing to talk to you about  you dont know modern human languages. Yes, Ukraine will get each and every one of you, whether legally or physically. And stop exploiting the UN  undeniable war criminals have no international law. Just wait for your finest hour at the Tribunal.

Read also: Crimea may lose its autonomy after liberation, Podolyak says

Earlier in an interview with Yahoo News, in response to a request to comment on Ukraines possible involvement in the assassination of Kremlin propagandist Daria Dugina, Budanov asked not to continue on this topic.

All I will comment on is that we have killed Russians and will continue to kill Russians anywhere in the world, until the complete victory of Ukraine, he said.

Later in an interview with Ukrainian media outlet ISLND TV on May 16, Budanov said that his quote in a recent interview with Yahoo News about killing Russians anywhere in the world had been misinterpreted.

This is a cut version, he explained.

The most important part was cut from it: only Russians who are war criminals, who have committed crimes against humanity, crimes such as gang rapes, rapes of minors, murders... It was about them. That clarification was removed from the quote.

Read also: Podolyak muses on how Russian army will disintegrate after defeat

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
In this handout photo taken from video released by Lefortovo District Court, Robert Shonov walks escorted by officers to the court room at the Lefortovo District Court in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Robert Shonov, a Russian national who worked at the now-closed U.S. consulate in Vladivostok for more than 25 years, was detained in the far eastern city and is facing charges of "cooperation on a confidential basis with a foreign state, international or foreign organization." The charge carries punishment of up to eight years in prison. (Lefortovo District Court via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

MOSCOW (AP)  A Russian court on Thursday extended by three months the detention of a former employee of the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok on charges of cooperating with a foreign state.

The U.S. State Department has condemned the arrest of Robert Shonov, which was reported this week. He was detained in Vladivostok on the Pacific coast and brought to Moscow.

The specifics of the charges haven't been reported, including Shonov's alleged actions or what country he was suspected of cooperating with.

The U.S. State Department says Shonov is a Russian national who worked at the consulate in Vladivostok for more than 25 years. The consulate closed in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened.

In 2021, Russia ordered the dismissal of all local employees from U.S. diplomatic outposts in the country. From then on, Shonov worked at a company which held a U.S. contract to support the embassy in Moscow, the department said.

Shonov is being held in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo pretrial detention center. Also held in Lefortovo is Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Gershkovich has been in custody since his March 29 arrest by Russias security service on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government have denied.

The arrests occurred amid a sharp rise in pressure on critics within Russia since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, particularly those regarded as discrediting the armed forces.

Yevgeny Roizman, the former mayor of Yekaterinburg and one of Russia's most visible and charismatic opposition figures, is on trial for discrediting the military, a charge that could bring a prison sentence. But the prosecutor on Thursday called for him to be fined 260,000 rubles ($3250), suggesting he could avoid prison time.

News reports said that police on Thursday detained Mikhail Lobanov, a Moscow professor who has criticized the military campaign in Ukraine.

Also Thursday, the Mediazona website said that court documents showed that a case will be considered against Boris Grebenshchikov, the renowned veteran rock musician, for discrediting the army. Grebenshchikov has lived in the West since 2018.
 Russias losses in full-scale war against Ukraine exceed 200,000

Russia has lost around 200,590 of its troops since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in Ukraine, including 610 of them in the past day alone, Ukraines General Staff reported in their daily update on Facebook as of May 17.





 Ukraines post-war reconstruction cost estimates raised to $411 billion, says UN

It will take $411 billion to cover Ukraines reconstruction costs after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the UN revealed in a report titled World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2023, published on May 16.





 UK honors Ukrainian artists during Eurovision 2023

An estimated 170+ million people around the world tuned in to see Great Britain celebrate Ukrainian music. The UK was chosen to host Eurovision in 2023 instead of 2022s winner, Ukraine, due to Russias full-scale invasion of the country.





 Black Sea grain deal extended by two months

Just as it was about to expire, the Black Sea Grain Agreement has been extended for a further two months, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a Telegram post on May 17.





 Ukraine to receive 90% of major global investments only after wars conclusion  Fiala

Major global investors will provide 90% of their funding only after the end of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Tomas Fiala, CEO of Dragon Capital, said in an interview with Radio NV on May 17.





 Poland has handed over nearly all of its MiG-29s, but cant provide F-16s, says Duda

Poland has too few F-16 fighter jets to donate to Ukraine, but has handed over nearly all of its MiG-29s, Polish President Andrzej Duda said at a Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, on May 17.





 South African president wants to visit Ukraine with peace initiative

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is hoping to visit Kyiv as part of a mission composed of several African countries, Sergii Nykyforov, press secretary for Ukrainian President Voplodymyr Zelenskyy, told the Ukrainska Pravda online newspaper on May 17.





 Ukraine's NATO membership to be decided after the war, UK defense secretary says

The question of Ukraine's membership in NATO is not currently being addressed as the country remains in a state of war, and will be settled after the conflict with Russia concludes, UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said at a press conference on May 17.





 Li Huis visit to Zelenskyy: Beijing aims to show de-escalation dependence on China, says Klimkin

Top Chinese diplomat Li Hui has been dispatched to Europe to show that China is a real player in international relations, former Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pavlo Klimkin, told Radio NV on May 17.





 Jewish tombstones used for paving being moved to cemetery in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast

About 300 matzevot, or Jewish tombstones, that had historically been used as paving slabs in the town of Sniatyn, will be returned to a Jewish cemetery in Ivano-Frankivsk thanks to the efforts of Ukraine's Jewish community activists, the head of United Jewish Community of Ukraine, Vitaliy Kamozin, wrote on Facebook on May 16.





Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Russia proposes imposing tax on bar and restaurant patrons to fund war against Ukraine

The initiators of the draft law propose to establish a fee of 1% of the invoice amount

The initiators of the draft law propose to set a fee of 1% of the bill for adult patrons of the establishments.

Read also: Russia arrests hypersonic missile engineers

Reportedly, legal entities or entrepreneurs who own the establishments will be responsible for collecting the funds and transferring them to the budget. Russian parliamentarians believe that these fees will not draw a negative reaction from patrons.

The funds will be used by the Defenders of the Fatherland foundation, headed by the wife of the governor of Kemerovo Oblast, Anna Tsivilieva  reportedly the niece of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Russia has banned its own top officials from resigning to avoid any impression of defeatism, according to UK.

The British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful Presidential Administration have been banned from resigning while the Special Military Operation continues.

In an intelligence update posted on Twitter, the ministry said: In private, many officials are likely highly sceptical about the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely enforced with strong hints that resignees will face trumped up criminal charges.

As well as being concerned about capability gaps resignees would leave, the authorities are likely also attempting to prevent any impression of defeatism, and to bolster a sense of collective responsibility for the war, the ministry claimed.

It comes as explosions rocked cities across Ukraine overnight as millions were subject to air raid alerts ahead of a much-anticipated counteroffensive.

Air strikes hit Kviv in the ninth Russian air raid to target the capital this month, and one person was killed in the Odesa region after a Russian missile attack.

Key Points

Air raid alerts blare across Ukraine, military warns of strikes

Satellite images of Bakhmut show buildings reduced to rubble

Ukraine says territory gained in Bakhmut, Wagner firing all weapons

Ukraine denies Russia destroyed Patriot missile defence system

Russia firing more weapons to overwhelm Ukraine, says US official

Putin bans officials from resigning to avoid impression of defeat

10:43 , Martha Mchardy

Russia has banned its own top officials from resigning to avoid any impression of defeatism, according to UK.

The British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful Presidential Administration have been banned from resigning while the Special Military Operation continues.

In an intelligence update posted on Twitter, the ministry said: In private, many officials are likely highly sceptical about the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely enforced with strong hints that resignees will face trumped up criminal charges.

As well as being concerned about capability gaps resignees would leave, the authorities are likely also attempting to prevent any impression of defeatism, and to bolster a sense of collective responsibility for the war, the ministry claimed.

It comes as explosions rocked cities across Ukraine overnight as millions were subject to air raid alerts ahead of a much-anticipated counteroffensive.

Air strikes hit Kviv in the ninth Russian air raid to target the capital this month, and one person was killed in the Odesa region after a Russian missile attack.

Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 18 May 2023.



Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/m2Jer1K5tu



 #StandWithUkraine  pic.twitter.com/hCyZxu5xEK  Ministry of Defence  (@DefenceHQ) May 18, 2023

Russian mercenary boss accuses regular army of leaving Bakhmut's flanks exposed

11:37 , Martha Mchardy

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of Russias Wagner mercenary group, on Thursday accused regular Russian army units of pulling back 570 metres north of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, leaving his own fighters flanks exposed.

The claims have not been independently verified and there was no immediate comment from the defence ministry.

Wagner forces have been spearheading the assault on Bakhmut, one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the war, something Moscow calls a special military operation, with some support from the regular army in recent months.

Prigozhin, who has repeatedly accused Russias top military brass of not doing enough to back his men, asked the defence ministry to do all it could to protect Bakhmuts flanks after what he alleged was a withdrawal.

Unfortunately, units of the Russian Defence Ministry have withdrawn up to 570 metres to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks, Prigozhin said in a voice message.

I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence - publicly - because my letters are not being read, Prigozhin said.

Please do not give up the flanks, he said, addressing Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff.

Wagner says it has taken most of the shattered city - albeit at enormous human cost. But Ukraine says its forces have retaken territory around Bakhmut in recent days.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before the war, as a potential stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern industrial Donbas region bordering Russia.

More than 1,000 Russians fled conscription to Finland

11:35 , Martha Mchardy

A total of 1,109 Russian citizens have fled to Finald to avoid military conscription in Russia, the Finnish Immigration Service has said.

Finland now awaits a decision from the EU about their stance on the fate of Russians who have fled conscription, before the country decides whether to grant over 1,000 Russian asylum.

it is not known when such a decision will be made by the EU.

We havent been able to issue decisions regarding asylum, Sanna Sutter, the interior ministrys immigration director, told Finnish news agency STT.

Russia to export up to 55 million tonnes of grain in 2023-24, Russian agricultural minister says

11:19 , Martha Mchardy

Russian agricultural minister Dmitry Patrushev on Thursday said that Russias grain exports would be between 50 million and 55 million tonnes in the 2023-2024 season.

Speaking at a televised government meeting, Patrushev said that Russias 2023 wheat crop was seen at 78 million tonnes, and that 93% of winter grains had made it through the winter in normal condition.

Putin says Russia increased food exports last year

10:50 , Martha Mchardy

Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the country had increased its food exports last year, and that Russia needed to help farmers in the regions it claims to have annexed from Ukraine last year.

Kremlin says freezing of Finlands bank accounts in Russia was forced retaliatory step

10:47 , Martha Mchardy

The Kremlin said on Thursday that a decision to freeze the bank accounts of Finnish embassies and consulates in Russia was a response to what it called the unfriendly acts of the collective West, including Finland.

Officials from Finland and Denmark said on Wednesday that the diplomatic bank accounts of both countries in Russia had been frozen, prompting their embassies to make payments in cash.

Putin clashes with own finance minister over damage done to Russian economy by oil sanctions

10:42 , Martha Mchardy

Vladimir Putin has shot down concerns of his own finance minister who acknowledged a problem with Russias energy revenues, underscoring the damage done by Western sanctions to its economy.

In a televised meeting chaired by President Putin through a video link, Anton Siluanov said on Wednesday that Russias revenues from oil and gas have taken a hit, blaming deep discounts offered to countries following the Ukraine invasion.

Russias non-energy revenues are on track for growth as planned, with the potential for a small surplus by year-end, but there is a problem with energy revenues, said Mr Siluanov.

Shweta Sharma reports:

Putin clashes with own finance minister over damage by oil sanctions to Russia

Kremlin says African Ukraine peace delegation will visit Moscow

10:26 , Martha Mchardy

The Kremlin said on Thursday that a delegation from African countries hoping to present their initiative to end the conflict in Ukraine would visit Moscow.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Moscow would be ready to listen to any proposals that help resolve the conflict.

Kremlin says a qualified result for Russia allowed Black Sea grain deal renewal

10:25 , Martha Mchardy

The Kremlin on Thursday confirmed that it had renewed the Black Sea grain deal, saying a deal had been reached after what it called a qualified result for Russia in negotiations over easing restrictions on Russian agricultural exports.

In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that different scenarios were being worked out regarding easing restrictions on Russias state agricultural bank, a key demand of Moscow in the renewal talks.

Ukrainian refugees living in EU forced to travel back for abortions, study warns

10:04 , Martha Mchardy

Ukrainian women who sought refuge in European Union countries are being forced to travel through dangerous conflict zones to access abortions and contraception in their native country, a study has warned.

Research found some women from Ukraine now living in Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia are having to temporarily return home as it is easier to access reproductive healthcare there, despite the stress of travelling back into the war-torn country.

The study, by the Center for Reproductive Rights and eight global and national human rights organisations, warned refugees are being put at risk as they grapple with issues such as legal restrictions and cost barriers when trying to access the right care.

Other barriers include information shortfalls, poor quality care as well as institutional racism and substandard care, it said.

Maya Oppenheim reports:

Ukrainian refugees living in EU forced to travel back for abortions, study warns

China asks embassies to avoid propaganda in apparent nod to shows of support for Ukraine

09:47 , Martha Mchardy

Foreign embassies in Beijing have been asked by the Chinese government to avoid displaying what it calls propaganda in an apparent response to shows of support for Ukraine.

Chinese leader Xi Jinpings government says it is neutral in Moscows 15-month-old invasion of Ukraine but has repeated Russian justifications, accusing Washington and the US-European military alliance Nato of provoking Moscow.

A Chinese envoy visited Ukraine this week and was due to go to Russia to discuss a possible political settlement but little progress is expected.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry asked diplomatic missions last week not to use their exterior walls to display political propaganda, according to a European Union spokeswoman and a diplomat from a European government.

The May 8 request cites a need to avoid causing disputes between countries but does not define propaganda or give other details, EU spokeswoman Nabila Massrali wrote in a statement.

Ms Massrali said the EU Delegation in Beijing has not changed any items displayed at its front wall.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, center left, and Li Hui, Chinese envoy, center right, during their talks in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, May 17, 2023 (Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Press Office)

The request did not mention Ukraine, according to the diplomats.

But flags and placards set up by embassies of Canada, France, Germany and other governments are the only public displays by most foreign missions, other than tourism advertisements.

The European diplomat, who asked not to be identified further due to the sensitivity of the issue, said his government does not see any reason to change its display.

A placard at the front gate of the Finnish embassy has the flags of Finland and Ukraine and says #WeStandWithUkraine.

A billboard hung on Swedens embassy has the same phrase and flags of the two countries.

Those displays have been up for months. It is not clear why China made the removal request now.

Asked for confirmation and details, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said embassies are obliged to respect Chinese laws and regulations but gave no details.

China calls on embassies of all countries in China and representative offices of international organisations in China to perform their duties in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations or relevant international agreements, Mr Wang said.

One killed after Russian shelling in Donetsk region, according to reports

09:26 , Martha Mchardy

One person has been killed after Russian shelling in Kostyantynivka in the Donetsk region, the ministry of foreign affairs said.

In a message posted on Telegram Ukraines state broadcaster Suspilne said: On the night of 18 May, the Russian army shelled Kostyantynivka in Donetsk region, one person was killed, the ministry of foreign affairs reported. According to preliminary findings, the shelling was conducted from the S-300 complex, several private and apartment buildings, a shop, and administrative buildings were destroyed and damaged.

The claims have not been independently verified.

Ukrainian troops make gains on Bakhmut flanks - military

09:22 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraines military said on Thursday it had made new territorial gains in heavy fighting around the eastern city of Bakhmut, despite being outgunned and outnumbered by Russian forces.

In the past week, Kyiv has said it has stepped up pressure on Moscows troops to the north and south of Bakhmut. Russian mercenary forces say they have moved forward inside the city, where Kyiv has acknowledged they have made small advances.

Despite the fact that our units do not have an advantage in equipment ... and personnel, they have continued to advance on the (Russian) flanks, and covered a distance of 150 to 1,700 metres (165 to 1,850 yards), military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said in televised comments.

He did not specify over what period the gains had been made. The claims have not been independently verified.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before Russias full-scale invasion nearly 15 months ago, as a stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern Donbas region.

Ukrainian officials have signalled that the advances around Bakhmut are not part of a broader counteroffensive planned by Kyiv to push back the Russian forces.

Ukraine says it shot down 29 of 30 missiles in overnight Russian attacks

08:53 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine shot down 29 of 30 missiles launched by Russia in overnight air strikes but one person was killed in an attack on the southern city of Odesa, the Ukrainian military said on Thursday.

All we know so far about Thursdays air strikes on Kviv and Odesa

08:52 , Martha Mchardy

Russia launched cruise missiles at Ukraines capital and the Odesa region early Thursday, officials said, in an escalation ahead of a much-anticipated counteroffensive. Most of the missiles were shot down, and one death was reported from the attacks.

Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv, and falling debris caused a fire in a nonresidential building.

It was the ninth Russian air raid that targeted the capital this month, a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons.

The attack was carried out by strategic bombers from the Caspian region, probably using cruise missiles, and Russia later deployed reconnaissance craft over the capital. According to preliminary information, all enemy targets were destroyed, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv Military Administration, said in a Telegram post.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts and the fire at a garage complex was extinguished. There was no information so far about any victims, Popko said.

In the southern region of Odesa, one person died and two were wounded in a Russian missile attack, Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on Telegram.

Most of the enemys missiles were shot down over the sea by the Air Defense Forces. Unfortunately, an industrial object was hit: 1 person died, two were injured, Bratchuk said.

Moldova no longer using Russian natural gas, PM says

08:36 , Martha Mchardy

Moldova is no longer using Russian natural gas or electricity after cutting its dependence since war started in Ukraine, prime minister Dorin Recean said on Thursday.

If at the start of the war 100% of energy consumed in Moldova originated in... Russia, today Moldova can exist with absolutely no natural gas or electricity from Russia, he told a security conference in Bucharest.

Moldova no longer consumes Russian gas, it is integrated in the European energy network both technically and commercially.

In pictures: Russian air strikes hit Kyiv

08:11 , Martha Mchardy

Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike, amid Russias attack on Kyiv (REUTERS)

Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv (REUTERS)

Police officer inspects remains of a Russian cruise missile shot down by Air Defence Forces, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv (REUTERS)

A Russian cruise missile shot down by Ukrainian Air Defence Forces is seen in the backyard of a private house, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv (via REUTERS)

No injuries in Crimea blast, governor says

07:29 , Martha Mchardy

In a statement posted on Telegram, the regions Russian-backed governor Sergei Aksyonov said that wagons loaded with grain had been derailed and that there were no injuries in the Crimea blast.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Japan military hospital to treat injured Ukrainian soldiers

07:27 , Martha Mchardy

Japan is set to receive injured Ukrainian soldiers at a Tokyo hospital run by its military, a senior member of Japans ruling coalition said on Thursday.

It would be the first time the Self-Defence Force Central Hospital has treated foreign soldiers, a lawmaker told Reuters, requesting anonymity because the deal is not yet public.

Details will be decided at a meeting between Japanese defence minister Yasukazu Hamada and Ukrainian ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky later on Thursday, but costs will likely be shouldered mostly by the Japanese side, the lawmaker said.

Crimea official says railway traffic suspended after reported blast

07:23 , Martha Mchardy

Rail traffic has been suspended between Simferopol, the capital of the Crimean peninsula, and the city of Sevastopol, a Russian-installed official in the area said on Thursday.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Russia banning people from quitting jobs as doubts over war grow, says UK

07:10 , Arpan Rai

The Russian state is likely effectively banning senior officials from resigning from their jobs while the Special Military Operation continues, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said today.

The measures likely extend to at least regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful Presidential Administration, it said.

It added: In private circles of Russia, many officials are likely highly sceptical about the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely enforced with strong hints that resignees will face trumped up criminal charges.

As well as being concerned about capability gaps resignees would leave, the authorities are likely also attempting to prevent any impression of defeatism, and to bolster a sense of collective responsibility for the war, the ministry claimed.

Fallen missile debris sparks fires at two Kyiv sites

06:59 , Arpan Rai

Falling debris during an air raid triggered two fires in the eastern districts of Kyiv, officials said today.

One fire had broken out in a garage facility in the Darnitsya region of the capital and debris also fell in the Dnipro region of Kyiv, mayor Vitaly Klitschko said. He added there were no casualties from either of the incidents.

The head of Kyivs military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on Telegram that a fire had broken out in non-residential premises in the Desnyansky district, just east of the capital. He provided no information on casualties.

Recap on military activity in Bakhmut

06:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Ukraine, it claims, is still holding on to a large area of Bakhmut after taking some back from Russian troops and continuing to advance in some parts.

Almost 20 square kilometers liberated in the suburbs in recent days have not been lost. We are moving on. We are advancing in some areas, said Ukraines deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar.

She did however add the fierce fighting is still ongoing in the area, and Russian troops are also advancing.

China and Ukraine should work together, says Beijing

06:19 , Arpan Rai

China and Ukraine agreed they should work together to continue their mutual respect and keep their mutually beneficial cooperation moving forward, the Chinese foreign ministry said today.

China has always played a constructive role in alleviating the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capacity, the foreign ministry said.

The statement comes after Chinas special envoy of eurasian affairs Li Hui met with the president of Ukraine.

One killed in port city Odesa, missiles downed over Kyiv

05:36 , Arpan Rai

At least one person was killed by a Russian missile strike on an industrial facility in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa today.

Two more people were wounded in the Odesa attack, military administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk wrote on Telegram.

Officials said the falling debris during an air raid triggered two fires in the eastern districts of Kyiv.

Kyiv was attacked with cruise missiles for the second night in a row but all of them were downed by air defences, the head of Kyivs military administration Serhiy Popko said.

Council of Europe establishes register of damage'

05:30 , Lucy Skoulding

In a bid to hold Russia more accountable for the loss, damage and injury cause by its invasion of Ukraine, the Council of Europe has set up its first ever Register of Damage.

It is one of the first legally binding decisions to hold Russia accountable for its acts, said Marija PejAinoviA BuriA, the councils secretary general.

Wagner not facing any ammunition shortage, says Ukraine

04:50 , Arpan Rai

Ukrainian military spokesperson has said there is no sign of Russian forces facing shortage of ammunition, contradicting statements by Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group spearheading the Bakhmut assault.

The enemy is seeking to take over the city at will, striking with all systems and calibres, spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said.

They are moving new units there (to Bakhmut), primarily paratroopers, in an attempt to achieve some kind of intermediate success.

Questions over Hungarys support of EU sanctions against Russia

04:30 , Lucy Skoulding

A Hungarian official says it would be difficult for Hungary to support the EUs next round of sanctions against Russia amid the war due to Ukraines blacklisting of a Hungarian bank.

The Ukrainian National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NAZK) included Hungarian Bank OTP on its list of international sponsors of war.

Peter Szijjarto Hungarian foreign minister, said that as long as OTP stays on this list, it will be very difficult for us to even enter into negotiations on the eleventh sanctions package, and it will be very difficult for us to negotiate economic restrictions that require additional sacrifices.

Air raid alerts blare across Ukraine, military warns of strikes

04:06 , Arpan Rai

Air raid alerts were sounded for all of Ukraine in the early hours today and the military warned of possible Russian missile strikes in a wide arc extending from Kyiv to central regions and the south.

Even an hour after the warnings were issued, the residents in Kyiv were asked to remain in shelters by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Telegram channel. Warnings were issued for a range of other regions, including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkassy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine.

People in Kyiv reported hearing anti-aircraft units in action. There were also reports of explosions in other major cities, but it was uncertain whether these were from missile impacts or anti-aircraft activity.

The warnings also extended north of Kyiv and to the south and west to Vinnystia, Khmelnitskyi and Chernivtsi regions.

Other Telegram channels warned of possible strikes in the central region of Poltava and further south in Mykolaiv region.

Finlands bank accounts in Russia frozen

03:30 , Lucy Skoulding

The bank accounts at Finlands embassy and consulate in Russia have been frozen, Finlands foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters, Pekka Haavisto, the Finnish foreign minister, said: The accounts of Finnish embassies have been frozen in Russia and at the moment they cannot be used.

Finland, which has a border with Russia, joined Nato on 4 April this year in a policy shift triggered by the war in Ukraine and the threats from Russia.

Haavisto reported that Finland sent a message to Russia on 4 May requesting answers and an explanation as to why the accounts are frozen but they have not yet responded.

Devastating photos of Bakhmut

02:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Satellite images of Bakhmut show the damage caused by recent attacks and air strikes.

Aerial photos show the destruction caused in the eastern Ukraine city of Bakhmut (Maxar)

01:30 , Lucy Skoulding

After an announcements from the Bosnian-Serb nationalist leader Milorad Dodik that he would visit Moscow, the head of the EU body responsible for its enlargement warned that EU allies do not visit Russia.

Bosnia-Herzegovinia applied to join the EU in 2016 and was finally granted candidate status last December over concerns that the war could destabalise the Balkan region.

EU enlargement commissioner Oliver Varhelyi said in a news conference in Sarajevo: We need Bosnia-Herzegovina to be our ally. He was referring to the necessity of a common front in Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Our allies dont go to Russia, that is my message, Varhelyi continued, Who wants to be our ally, does not go to Russia.

New advances for Ukraine at Bakhmut

Thursday 18 May 2023 00:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Serhiy Cherevatyi, Ukraines military spokesperson claimed on TV on Wednesday that Ukraine has made new advances in the eastern city of Bakhmut.

Speaking of the heavy fighting in the areas, Reuters quotes Cherevatyi as saying: We are successfully conducting a defensive operation, counterattacking and during this day our units have penetrated up to 500 metres in some parts of the Bakhmut front.

He continued: The enemy is seeking to take over the city at will, striking with all systems and calibres. There can be no talk of any kind of shell hunger. They are moving new units there, primarily paratroopers, in an attempt to achieve some kind of intermediate success.

Belarus partially restores control on borders

Wednesday 17 May 2023 23:30 , Lucy Skoulding

One of Russias closest allies, Belarus, has partially gained control back over its border with Russia.

Sergei Aleinik, Belarusian foreign minister, shared the news on Wednesday.

Its the first time in 28 years that there has been checks at this border, which spans 770 miles, according to AP.

The aim of border controls was to avoid third-country nationals from entering Belarus.

It comes before the implementation of an intergovernmental agreement on the mutual recognition of visas.

Human rights activists, however, believe these controls will be targeted at Russian men trying to avoid having to be mobilized into the army.

Speaking of the checks at the border, Aleinik said: Its not really control, its more like monitoring the situation on the border.

Ukraine denies Russia destroyed Patriot missile defence system

Wednesday 17 May 2023 22:30 , Joseph Rachman

Ukraine denied that a Russian hypersonic missile had destroyed a US-made Patriot missile defence system during an air strike on Kyiv.

Russias defence ministry made the assertion that it had destroyed the $1.1bn surface-to-airmissile system on Tuesday after an overnight air attack on the Ukrainian capital.

Two US officials later said a Patriot system had probably suffered damage but that it did not appear to have been destroyed.

I want to say: do not worry about the fate of the Patriot, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat told Ukrainian television.

He ruled out the possibility of a Russian Kinzhal missile knocking out a Patriot system.

Destroying the system with some kind of Kinzhal, its impossible. Everything that they say there, it can remain in their propaganda archive, he said.

Russian attack on Kherson Oblast kills 3, including a child

Wednesday 17 May 2023 21:30 , Joseph Rachman

An attack by Russian troops on the village of Zelenivka in Ukraines southern Kherson Oblast killed a 5-year-old boy and two men, according to a report by Ukraines Prosecutor Generals Office.

Another man and a child were injured when a Russian projectile hit an area near a local shop.

Germany does not have the capacity to help supply Ukraine with jets, defence minister says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 20:30 , Joseph Rachman

Germany lacks the training capacity or military equipment to actively contribute to a British-Dutch initiative to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said.

We cannot play an active role in such an alliance, in such a coalition, because we have neither the training capacities, the competencies or the planes, Pistorius said in Berlin after a meeting with Britains Defence Minister Ben Wallance.

Germany has previously been reluctant to supply Ukraine with offensive weapons including Leopard 2 tanks.

No progress on delivery of F-16 jets to Ukraine says Dutch foreign minister

Wednesday 17 May 2023 19:30 , Joseph Rachman

We havent reached a solution yet, said Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch Foreign Minister, when asked about talks to between the Netherlands , the UK, Denmark, Belgium and other partners to possibly deliver F-16s to Ukraine.

When we are ready to cross that bridge and are ready to communicate this, we will.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Tuesday that he had agreed with his Dutch counterpart, Mark Rutte, to work to build an international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting with everything from training to procuring F-16 jets.

Ukrainian forces are ready to start counter-offensive Western official says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 18:50 , Joseph Rachman

Ukraines forces are about ready to start a counter offensive claimed a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The key may not be breaking through Russian lines so much as the cognitive effect any attack has on the Kremlin says Dan Sabbagh, The Guardians defence editor, in a Twitter thread.

Ukrainians will have to be able to show that they are having momentum perhaps pushing towards to the Sea of Azov.

Ukraine's forces are broadly ready to start a counter offensive says a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Key point is the "cognitive effect" any attack has on the Kremlin. It is "more important, arguably than cleaving through Russian lines" they add  Dan Sabbagh (@dansabbagh) May 17, 2023

Ukraine tells Chinese envoy it wont accept giving up land to Russia

Wednesday 17 May 2023 18:10 , Joseph Rachman

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told a top Chinese envoy that Kyiv would not accept any peace proposals that involved losing territory to Russia, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said.

Li Hui, Chinas special representative for Eurasian affairs and former ambassador to Russia, became the first senior Chinese envoy to visit Ukraine since Moscows full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Since the start of the invasion China has leant towards Russia and avoided referring to Russias actions as invasion.

In a statement the Ukrainian foreign ministry said:

Kuleba briefed the special envoy of the Chinese government in detail on the principles of restoring a sustainable and just peace based on respect for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ministry said.

He stressed that Ukraine did not accept any proposals involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

UN secretary-general welcomes extension of grain deal

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:45 , Lucy Skoulding

Today UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has also welcome the extension of the deal that will enable the safe export of Ukraine grain via the Black Sea for 60 more days.

Guterres told reporters: The continuation is good news for the world.

Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilisers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably.

He noted that there are still issues and Ukraine will continue to discuss these with Turkey, Russia and the UN.

Poland cant supply Ukraine with F-16 jets president says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:30 , Joseph Rachman

Polish President Andrzej Duda said that Poland could not supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets.

Speaking to journalists at a summit in Iceland, Duda said Poland has a relatively small number of F-16s. This meant that supplying Ukraine with these jets was not an option.

However, Dudad said Poland was ready to support the process of training Ukrainian pilots.

We donated unprecedented amounts of armaments to the EU, we donated more than 300 tanks to Ukraine, we donated almost all our MiG-29s, which Ukraine asked us for from the very beginning of the war, he added.

Satellite pictures of Bakhmut show devastating destruction of school and university

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:25 , Lucy Skoulding

Devastating photos show before and after shots of some buildings destroyed in Bakhmut, Ukraine.

The satellite pictures show a school, university and a theatre in Bakhmut before the recent strikes.

They also show homes and shops in the city, which is in eastern Ukraine.

In the photos taken after the attacks, smoke can be seen rising up from buildings and everything has been destroyed, including trees and green spaces.

A school and homes in Bakhmut before the attacks (Maxar)

The school and homes in Bakhmut after the attacks (Maxar)

Aerial view of a theatre and shops in Bakhmut before the attacks (Maxar)

The same view of the theatre and shops in Bakhmut after the attacks (Maxar)

Black Sea grain deal extended

Wednesday 17 May 2023 16:50 , Joseph Rachman

The Black Sea Grain Initiative, the agreement that allows Ukraine to continue exporting its grain without Russian attacks, has been extended for 60 more days, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on May 17.

The Black Sea grain corridor deal has been extended by two months with the efforts of Turkey, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised speech.

He also thanked the Russian and Ukrainian leaders and U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres for their help.

Negotiations went down to the wire with fears of worsening global food shortages if the agreement lapsed.

As part of the agreement Russia will recieve help with exporting its grain and fertiliser.

Activist jailed for 7 years in Russia for justifying terrorism

Wednesday 17 May 2023 16:10 , Matt Mathers

A Ukrainian-born activist was jailed for seven years by a Russian court on Wednesday for "justifying terrorism", according to a Telegram channel petitioning for his release.

Mikhail Krieger, 63, was arrested last November over social media posts he wrote in 2020 in which he praised two men who staged attacks on buildings of Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) as "heroes".

Prosecutors also said Krieger had "incited hatred" when he posted in 2020 that Russian President Vladimir Putin should be hanged, according to Russian news outlet Insider. They had sought a nine-year prison term, according to the Telegram channel organized in Kriegers support.

He denied the charges against him and spoke out during the trial against Russias war in Ukraine.

"I consider this war to be that rare conflict in which the truth is 100% present on one side. And that side is Ukraine," Krieger said on Wednesday, referring to himself as a native of Ukraine, according to the Telegram channel.

Wagner fighters entering Bakhmut like rats towards a trap

Wednesday 17 May 2023 15:20 , Matt Mathers

Fighters from Russias mercenary group Wagner are entering Bakhmut like rats going to a trap, the commander of Ukraines ground forces has said.

Oleksandr Syrskyi visited troops on the frontline in Bahmut, which has become the longest-running battle since Russia invaded in February last year.

Wagners men went into Bakhmut like rats into a mousetrap, he said, referring to the Russian paramilitary group.

Turkish official sees high probability of Ukraine grain deal being extended

Wednesday 17 May 2023 15:00 , Matt Mathers

There is "a quite high probability" of the Ukraine Black Sea grain deal being extended, a senior Turkish source said on Wednesday, a day before Russia could quit the pact over obstacles to its own grain and fertilizer exports.

Earlier, the last ship left a Ukrainian port under the deal, which allows for the safe export via the Black Sea of Ukrainian grain but which is due to expire on Thursday without agreement on an extension.

"The talks (in Turkey) are continuing. Theyre heading in a positive direction. As far as I can see there is a quite high probability of an agreement being reached," a senior Turkish official said.

"Some contacts are continuing. We are seriously hopeful," the source added.

Hungary demands Ukraine remove OTP from list of war sponsors to get EU military support

Wednesday 17 May 2023 14:10 , Matt Mathers

Hungary will block the next tranche of European Union military support for Ukraine and any new sanctions package against Russia unless Kyiv removes Hungarian bank OTP from its list of war sponsors, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Wednesday.

Hungary did not approve the disbursement of the next tranche of military support for Ukraine provided under the EUs European Peace Facility (EPF), a government spokesmans office said on Tuesday.

UKs defence secretary: We can enable others who wish to supply Ukraine with jets

Wednesday 17 May 2023 13:40 , Matt Mathers

Britain can support Ukraines military by enabling other countries which wish to supply fighter jets and other military equipment to Ukraine to do so, British defence minister Ben Wallace said on Wednesday.

"What we can, obviously contribute, is training and support, again, within limits, because we dont have F16 pilots," Wallace said at a press conference in Berlin with his German counterpart when asked about international plans to send jets to Ukraine.

"We can do, what weve done throughout this ... which is we can enable other people who wish to," he added. "Any nation that comes to us and says we want to get tanks into Ukraine ... we will help with that process."

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace (PA) (PA Wire)

Like a scene from Apocalypse Now: I was there when the missiles shook Kyiv

Wednesday 17 May 2023 13:20 , Matt Mathers

The noise that repeatedly filled the air early this morning was extraordinary: shuddering, horribly percussive waves of sound that burrow down through your chest and into your stomach, writes Kit Macdonald.

You can read Kits full piece here:

Opinion: Like a scene from Apocalypse Now: I was there when the missiles shook Kyiv

India hits back at EUs criticism over Russian oil: Look at your regulations

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:50 , Matt Mathers

India has hit back at the European Unions suggestion of cracking down on the country for reselling refined Russian oil to Europe by considering it a circumvention of Western sanctions on Moscow for its war on Ukraine.

Indias foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who was in Brussels during the last leg of his three-nation tour, strongly denied that his country was violating any sanctions imposed on Russia and said the oil in question could not be treated as Russian oil if it is refined in another country before being exported.

Mr Jaishankar was asked a question at a press conference shortly after the EUs foreign minister Josep Borrel said the the bloc will have to act if sanctioned diesel or gasoline is still making its way into Europe via India.

Shweta Sharma reports:

India hits back at EUs criticism over Russian oil: Look at your regulations

Finland says embassy bank accounts in Russia frozen since April

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:28 , Matt Mathers

The bank accounts of Finlands embassy and consulate in Russia are frozen and the Nordic country has not had an explanation from its neighbour, the Finnish foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Finland, which has a long border with Russia, formally joined NATO on April 4 in a historic policy shift brought on by Russias invasion of Ukraine that drew a threat from Moscow of counter-measures.

Finnish foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told reporters the bank accounts had stopped working on April 27.

"The accounts of Finnish embassies have been frozen in Russia and at the moment they cannot be used," Haavisto said, adding the missions had been using their cash reserves to pay bills.

Haavisto said Finland had sent Russian authorities a notice on May 4 requesting that Russia ensure the missions ability to function in Russia and asking for an official explanation for the freeze, but it had not received one so far.

Russias central bank did not respond to a request for comment.

Finlands Foreign Affairs Minister Pekka Haavisto (Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty Images)

Russia says hypersonic missile scientists face 'very serious' treason accusations

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:04 , Matt Mathers

Three Russian academics who have worked on hypersonic missile technology face "very serious accusations", the Kremlin said on Wednesday, in a treason investigation that has spread alarm through Russias scientific community.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was aware of an open letter from Siberian scientists in defence of the men, but that the case was a matter for the security services.

In the letter, published on Monday, colleagues of Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev protested their innocence and said the prosecutions threatened to inflict grave damage on Russian science.

"We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of," they said.

President Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles, capable of travelling at speeds of up to Mach 10 (12,250 kph) to evade enemy air defences. On Tuesday, Ukraine said it had managed to destroy six of the weapons in a single night, although Russia disputed this.

Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles (AP)

German govt: Russian assets could be used to pay for Ukraine war damages

Wednesday 17 May 2023 11:32 , Matt Mathers

The German government is looking into mechanisms to secure war damages for Russias invasion of Ukraine, including the possibility of using Russian assets to compensate the country, a government spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz was among European leaders who agreed to set up a register of damages for the Ukraine war during a meeting in Reykjavik this week.

The UKs prime minister Rishi Sunak, EU Commission president Usual von der Leyen and Emmanuel Macron, the French president, were among other attendees at the Council of Europe conference which primarily focused on the war:

European nations zoom in on establishing system to pinpoint how much damage Russia caused in Ukraine

Kazakhs increasingly wary of Russias belligerence - poll

Wednesday 17 May 2023 10:57 , Matt Mathers

The number of Kazakhs who believe neighbouring Russia may invade the former Soviet republic has doubled over the past six months as the war in Ukraine continues, an opinion poll by Kazakh researchers showed on Wednesday.

The Central Asian nation of 20 million has close historical, economic and security ties with Moscow, but has maintained neutrality in the Ukrainian conflict, refusing to recognise Russias annexation of parts of Ukraines territory.

According to the poll of 1,100 respondents, carried out by non-government organisations MediaNet and PaperLab between May 3 and 12, almost 60% are also neutral with regards to the war, 12.8% support Russia and 21.1% support Ukraine, figures similar to those produced by a similar poll last December.

However, the number of people who think Russia may also invade Kazakhstan has risen to 15% from 8.3% in the previous poll.

Nearly a third of respondents said their perception of Russia had worsened because of the war, over a half said it had not changed and only 4.7% said it had improved.

Kazakhstan is home to about 3 million ethnic Russians and shares the worlds longest continuous land border with Russia. Astana also has close ties with China, another giant neighbour, and the West, which has invested hundreds of billions of dollars into its oil and gas industry.

APTOPIX Russia Victory Day Parade (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Russia orders arrest of prominent producer, director who criticized Ukraine war

Wednesday 17 May 2023 10:55 , Matt Mathers

A Moscow court has ordered the arrest of prominent film producer Alexander Rodnyansky and theater director Ivan Vyrypaev for spreading false information about the Russian army.

The initial court hearings against Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev were held on 27 April, but not reported by the court until Wednesday.

According to the courts press service, Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev, who are outside Russia, will be placed in custody once Russian authorities manage to detain them or to get them extradited. Russias Interior Ministry additionally put Vyrypaev on the federal wanted list.

Kyiv-born Rodnyansky has been among the most influential figures in Russian cinema in recent decades. He left Russia after the start of the countrys full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has repeatedly spoken openly against the war. In October 2022, Russias Justice Ministry declared Rodnyansky a foreign agent.
Russian forces launch UAVs to see aftermath of their attack  Kyiv City State Administration

The Russian occupiers have launched attack and reconnaissance drones after the night missile attack on Ukraine to record the aftermath of possible strikes.

Source: Mykola Povoroznyk, First Deputy Head of the Kyiv City State Administration, on the air of Svoboda Morning (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty project)

Quote from Povoroznyk: "The UAV was supposed to reveal the results of the missile attack. They are also observing [this] right after the attack, but it [the drone  ed.] was also shot down. The fragments fell in three districts. This is mostly the left bank, particularly Dniprovskyi, Darnytskyi, and Desnianskyi [districts in the city of Kyiv  ed.]. There was no significant damage."

Details: He added that two fires broke out due to this attack, including in garages and a non-residential building in Desnianskyi district. No casualties have been reported so far, and there have been no calls to the emergency hotline in this regard.

The relevant services are currently working on the spot.

The official stressed that this is the ninth attack on Kyiv since the beginning of May.

"This is a pure terror to harm not only Kyiv but all Ukrainians," Povoroznyk said.

Background:

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Russias hypersonic missiles have taken a dual hit this week from Patriots fired by Ukraine and patriots arrested at home.

Once touted as unstoppable, the program faces growing domestic fallout from treason charges against three scientists who worked on the technology, just as Kyiv claims its U.S.-supplied air defense systems have been able to shoot many of the missiles down.

The Kremlin said Wednesday that the scientists face very serious accusations after a rare public outcry over a wartime crackdown that has fueled a growing sense of unease across Russian society.

In an open letter criticizing the arrests published Monday, colleagues of the three academics in hypersonic technology warned that Russias research on the subject faces impending collapse.

The three scientists  Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev  were employees of the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk. They were all detained on suspicion of high treason over the past year, according to the letter published on the institutes website.

The letter professes the mens innocence and praises their academic achievements, adding that all three chose to stay in Russia rather than accept highly paid and prestigious work abroad.

We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of, it said.

It is rare and risky in modern Russia to speak out in defense of people charged with treason, especially after a bill was adopted last month increasing the maximum sentence for the crime to life in jail.

The Russian state media agency Tass reported on the arrests of Maslov and Shiplyuk last summer and on Zvegintsevs this week. It said Zvegintsev was detained about three weeks ago and is under house arrest. NBC News could not verify those details.

Shiplyuk was in charge of the laboratory of hypersonic technologies at the institute, which has unique hypersonic aerodynamic installations designed to study the fundamental and applied problems of hypersonic flight, according to his bio on the website. Maslov is a renowned expert in the field of aerogasdynamics, it said.

The institute released an open letter in support of Maslov after he was arrested in June for what it said was high treason, saying his colleagues were shocked by his detention. It was also raising money on behalf of the families of Maslov and Shiplyuk to cover their legal expenses.

Tass reported this week that the materials in Maslovs case are classified and have been handed over to a judge in a St. Petersburg court. The agency said Maslovs case was investigated by the FSB, Russias secret service.

While the details of their cases have not been made public, the open letter by their colleagues said the three men could have been arrested for simply doing their jobs, including making presentations at global conferences and taking part in international scientific projects. Their work was also repeatedly checked by the institutes expert commission to ensure it did not include restricted information, the letter said.

In this situation, we are not only afraid for the fate of our colleagues. We just do not understand how to continue to do our job, it added, raising concerns about a rapid decline in the level of research if employees are too afraid to do their work.

Such cases are dissuading young Russian scientists from staying in the field, the letter said, and they could bring Russian science to a brink it last faced after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which was characterized by a massive brain drain from the country. Domestic science may not endure the second such blow, the letter added.

The letter also mentioned the controversial case of another Russian scientist, Dmitry Kolker, who was arrested last year on suspicion of treason even though he suffered from an advanced form of cancer. He was flown to Moscow for detention and died several days later.

The Kremlin said it was aware of the letter in defense of the academics, but spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was a matter for Russian special services, the state media agency RIA reported. This is a very serious accusation, he said, according to the agency.

But the scientists are not the only patriots seemingly bedeviling the Kremlin.

A wave of the hypersonic missiles  which Russian President Vladimir Putin once boasted were all but unstoppable  were seemingly shot down by Ukraine this week.

Kyiv claimed Tuesday that it had shot down six Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night, a statement Moscow disputed.

Russia considered the air-launched ballistic missiles to be next-generation technology, and Putin praised them in a highly publicized speech in early 2018, when he said they are invulnerable to existing missile and air defense systems, which simply cannot catch up with them.

The apparent vulnerability of the missiles is likely a surprise and an embarrassment for Russia, the British Defense Ministry said in its daily dispatch Wednesday.

The Russian Defense Ministry said one of its Kinzhal missiles struck and completely destroyed a U.S.-built Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system in Kyiv on Tuesday, citing what it called reliable data. But two U.S. officials confirmed that the Patriot battery had incurred some damage but was still operational.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Debris of the Russian Kalibr missile, which the occupiers use to attack Ukraine

According to the channel, it was allegedly found near the village of Vulkanivka early in the morning of May 17. The Russian missile was discovered by a shepherd.

Read also: Freight train derailed after huge blast rocks railway in occupied Crimea

The experts who arrived at the scene concluded that the downed missile was a Kalibr belonging to the Russian Defense Ministry.

There are no reported victims.

Read also: Russia under attack  multiple drone attacks inside Russia, including massive oil fire near Crimean Bridge

Russian troops systematically use Kalibr missiles to attack mainland Ukraine, typically launched from warships stationed in the Black Sea.

During a mass missile strike in the early hours of May 16, nine Kalibr missiles were fired at Kyiv, all of which were shot down.

During another attack in the early hours of May 18, Ukrainian air defense forces managed to intercept all six missiles launched at Ukraine.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A Russian lawmaker wants to boost Russia's army by using 'large' and 'aggressive' stray dogs as military assets

A Ukrainian serviceman feeds a stray dog and its puppies on the frontline with Russia-backed separatists near town of Krasnogorivka, Donetsk region, on April 23, 2021. ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP via Getty Images

A Russian lawmaker has floated the idea of using "large" and "aggressive" stray dogs in the military.

The dogs could be trained to rescue wounded troops, and to sniff out hidden mines.

His proposal came just before Kyiv's military claimed 200,000 Russians had been killed in the war.

A Russian lawmaker has made an outlandish proposal to boost Russia's army  using "aggressive" stray dogs as military assets.

State Duma deputy Fedot Tumusov floated the idea during a parliamentary session on Tuesday, per a report by The Moscow Times.

"We have a lot of cynologists in our country who can teach dogs all sorts of different skills," Tumusov said. Cynology is the study of dog behavior.

He added: "Cynologists can train large and aggressive dogs and send them to the Special Military Operation zone to help rescue wounded people and take part in mine clearance."

Anton Gerashchenko, an advisor to the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, posted a clip of the broadcast on his Twitter, saying: "In case you were wondering about the level of insanity in Russia."

Tumusov's proposal came just before the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces claimed on their Facebook account on Wednesday that more than 200,000 Russian troops had been "liquidated" since the start of Russia's invasion into Ukraine in February last year.

While Ukrainian soldiers have not trained stray animals for combat, some have turned to them for companionship, a report by AFP revealed.

A Ukrainian soldier named Mykyta told the AFP in January last year that troops adopted a stray dog, who became a valuable asset to them because she "barks and growls if the enemy is planning an attack."

"It's safer and calmer with her  no wonder they say that a dog is man's best friend," Mykyta told the AFP.

This is not the first time Russia has considered using animals for military purposes. In April 2022, the country's military used specially trained dolphins to protect a naval base in the Black Sea, per a report by the United States Naval Institute.

The Russian government did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment sent outside regular business hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
On May 18, Russia attacked Kyiv once again

"The UAV was supposed to show the results of these missile strikes," Povoroznyk said.

They are watching after the attack, but it (the drone  ed.) was also shot down. The debris fell in three districts. This is generally the left bank  Dniprovskyi, Darnytskyi, Desnianskyi [districts]. There was no significant damage.

Read also: Nighttime attack in Khmelnytskyi Oblast leaves at least 11 injured, air defense covers Kyiv and Lviv oblasts

According to him, the attacks are a continuation of Russias terror campaign against the civilian population, as it significantly affects the city's life.

Read also: Russia attacks Mykolaiv with Kalibr missiles: one person killed, at least 23 wounded

"The city, by and large, has been awake for nine nights now, with explosions, worries, staying in bomb shelters and shelters," he said.

In the early hours of May 18, an air raid alert was declared in most regions of Ukraine, following the detection of yet another Russian missile strike. Explosions were heard in a number of regions, as well as in Kyiv.

In total, Ukrainian air defenses shot down 29 of the 30 missiles fired; Russia used Kalibr, Iskanders, and Kh-101/Kh-555 missiles for the attack, as well as a number of drones.

An industrial facility was hit in Odesa Oblast (killing one person and wounding two), and an infrastructure facility was damaged in Khmelnytskyi Oblast.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Kyiv authorities have reported that all enemy targets in Kyiv's airspace have been detected and destroyed, with debris falling in the Desnianskyi and Darnytskyi districts of the capital.

Source: Kyiv City Military Administration press service

Quote from Serhii Popko, head of Kyiv City Military Administration: "Preliminary reports indicate that all enemy targets in the Kyiv airspace have been detected and destroyed! The Air Force will report confirmed information on the number and type of missiles and UAVs soon."

Details: Popko said that the Russians attacked the Ukrainian capital from Tu-95MS and Tu-160 strategic bombers deployed from the Caspian Sea, probably using Kh-101 or Kh-555 cruise missiles. After the missiles had been launched, the Russians deployed their reconnaissance UAVs over the capital.

Preliminary reports indicate that debris was recorded falling in Desnianskyi and Darnytskyi districts of the capital. The most damage was recorded in Darnytskyi district with fire breaking out on the grounds of a garage cooperative. The fire has since been extinguished.

In other districts, there may have been debris falling on parked cars, in the yards of the buildings or parks. No information on casualties has been received so far. "The information is being collected and clarified," Popko said.

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Russians "arrest" civilians on occupied territories and train them to fight against Ukraine

Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar reported that the Russian invaders are conducting raids in the occupied Ukrainian territories, arresting men there and trying to create a "reserve" of them to participate in hostilities.

Source: Maliar on Telegram

Quote: "The Russians are trying to create reserves using residents of the temporarily occupied territories.

The goal is to urgently replenish the personnel of the front-line units of their troops, which are experiencing significant losses in manpower on a daily basis."

Details: According to her, in some settlements in the occupied territory of Ukraine, the occupiers are carrying out raids and detaining residents.

During these raids, men old enough to be drawn for military service are arrested, mostly on false pretexts.

Next, these men are sent to field camps, where convicts imported from Russian prisons who have agreed to participate in hostilities are held.

Several such camps have been set up near the settlements of Rohove and Mozhnikivka in Luhansk Oblast, to which batches of recruited convicts are delivered under convoys from the Russian Federation.

Together with them, local men detained for minor offences who did not agree to support the occupiers are held there.

By the end of May, the number of personnel in the camps is expected to increase with the arrival of two more batches of convicts from Russia, convicted mainly for committing murders with particular cruelty.

Currently, over 800 people in these camps are undergoing intensive combat training, which is planned to be completed within a month.

After completing the combat training course, contracts will be signed with the convicts, which provide for participation in combat operations.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Though Russia continues to fail in its attempts to soften Kyiv through air attacks, the Kremlin has fortified its defensive lines on Ukrainian territory with minefields and more than 200,000 troops to present potentially formidable resistance to Ukraines expected counteroffensive.

Russias latest overnight barrage featured 30 missiles fired at different parts of Ukraine early Thursday, including the ninth assault on the capital this month, but 29 of the projectiles were intercepted, Ukrainian officials said. The one that got through killed a civilian and injured two others in the southern city of Odesa.

Early Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses boosted by Western weapons had downed all 18 missiles Russia launched from air, sea and land, including six of the supposedly unstoppable Kinzhal hypersonic rockets, Ukraines military said.

While Ukraine is establishing its ability to repel air attacks, a large question remains about its ability to recapture territory claimed by Russia, including the four provinces in the east and south illegally annexed in the fall. A Western official who requested anonymity told The Associated Press that Moscows defenses along the 600-mile front line are potentially formidable.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has enjoyed great success persuading allies to contribute advanced weapons to his countrys cause, most recently garnering an arsenal of missiles, tanks and drones on a European tour to bolster the counteroffensives chances against an enemy with dwindling armament.

"All players are well aware of the limited resources and time available to the Russian Federation and #Putin's elite,'' Ukraine presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted Thursday. "The path is unchanged. We will finish it off.''

This satellite image provided by MaxarTechnologies shows the demolished university buildings and the radio tower in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on May 15, 2023.

Developments:

 An explosion caused the derailment of eight train cars Thursday in Russian-occupied Crimea, prompting renewed concerns about possible Ukrainian sabotage behind Russian lines.

 The Patriot air-defense battery damaged in Tuesday's Russian attack on Kyiv has been repaired and is working properly, the Pentagon said. Russia had claimed to destroy the system.

 Senior Russian officials who may want to resign during the war are probably being dissuaded by veiled threats of facing trumped-up criminal charges, the British Defense Ministry said in an update.

 A Russian court extended by three months the detention of Robert Shonov, a Russian national who's a former employee of the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok, on charges of cooperating with a foreign state. The U.S. State Department has condemned his arrest.

 Moldova, a former Soviet republic of about 2.6 million people that borders Ukraine, has severed its dependence on Russian gas, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said.

New sanctions aimed at 'tightening the screws' on Russia

A "substantial'' new package of sanctions shows the U.S. is intent on "tightening the screws" on Russia for invading Ukraine, a senior Biden administration official said Thursday.

The latest measure aims to make it harder for Russia to evade sanctions, access the international financial system and continue waging its war. Group of Seven nations, which are meeting in Japan, will also take steps to further reduce their reliance on Russia energy sources, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Biden administration said it would blacklist 70 entities from receiving U.S. exports and introduce more than 300 new sanctions on individuals, entities, vessels and aircraft that the official said would target financial facilitators and other actors in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

 Francesca Chambers

US won't oppose allies providing Ukraine with F-16 jets, report says

The Biden administration, which has resisted calls from the Ukrainian government to provide it with F-16 fighter jets, is hinting it won't stand in the way of European allies supplying them, CNN reported Thursday.

Permission to export the American-made planes to a third country is required because they contain sensitive technology.

Zelenskyy has been lobbying for the warplanes and found a receptive audience in prime ministers Rishi Sunak of Britain and Mark Rutte of the Netherlands, who on Tuesday agreed to put together an international coalition to procure the jets and train Ukrainian pilots. The Dutch have said they would be open to exporting the planes.

West paying for freedom with guns, money, Ukrainians 'with our lives'

Ukraine's much-anticipated spring counteroffensive "cannot determine the course of the entire war," and the West should have reasonable expectations, Natalia Halibarenko, ambassador of Ukraine's mission to NATO, said Thursday.

Halibarenko told Lithuanian media outlet LRT it will probably take several offensives to drive Russian troops out of her country. Military support from the West is increasing, and she acknowledged that her country's success depends heavily on international assistance.

"I understand that a certain fatigue is felt over time, this is normal human nature," she said. "There cannot be that state of constant pressure. We tell Western societies that you help us with money, things, other support, but Ukrainians pay for freedom with their lives, and this should be kept in mind and not underestimated."

1,100 Russians avoiding draft seek asylum in Finland

More than 1,100 draft-age Russians trying to avoid military conscription have fled to Finland and are seeking asylum, some of thousands awaiting determination of their fate in several European countries.

The Finnish Immigration Service says it is awaiting the European Union's position on the asylum requests, Finnish news agency STT reports.

"We haven't been able to issue decisions regarding asylum," said Sanna Sutter, the Interior Ministry's immigration director. He said other Nordic nations also have decided to wait for EU guidance, but the EU has not provided a timeline on the question.

Thousands of Russians have fled since President Vladimir Putin announced the "partial mobilization" of 300,000 people last September. But one soldier, who made global headlines when he fled the war and sought asylum in Norway, says he wants to go back to Russia.

Andrei Medvedev, 26, had fought for Russia's Wagner mercenaries before slipping into Norway in January. A few weeks later he was arrested on charges involving multiple barroom scraps and was sentenced last month to 14 days in a Norwegian jail.

"I hoped that I could find peace and calm here, that I could leave all the politics, the war, the army behind, but somehow I couldn't manage," Medvedev said in Russian on a video translated by Reuters. "We shall see what happens in Russia. If they kill me, OK. If they don't, thanks a lot."

Russians rejecting claims of their country's gains

The leader of Russian mercenary troops and a popular pro-Kremlin blogger both rejected Russian Defense Ministry claims of gains in the crucial battle for the eastern Ukraine city of Bakhmut as the war slogs toward its 15-month mark with little indication an end is near.

Ukraine's military claimed modest gains in areas north and south of the beleaguered, nearly deserted city that once was home to more than 70,000 people. Russian claims of marginal advances were dismissed by the mercenary Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin, who criticized the defense ministry on Telegram for spinning what was actually a retreat.

Russian blogger Rybar agreed, posting on Telegram that Ukraine's "unannounced counteroffensive" is underway with fierce battles that are allowing Ukraine to fulfill an important goal against Russian Federation troops.

"They are forcing the RF Armed Forces to stretch their forces and remove the most combat-ready units from other critical areas, forcing them to be transferred to threatened sectors of the front," Rybar posted. "Now, unfortunately, we are in the position of playing along and are following the lead of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, pulling the most experienced units of the RF Armed Forces into the Bakhmut meat grinder. ... What this threatens in the short term, even a fool will guess."

Kremlin accuses 3 hypersonic missile scientists of treason

Employees at Russia's Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mathematics in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk published an open letter in defense of three of their hypersonic missile scientists  Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk, and Valery Zvegintsev  whom Russian authorities reportedly arrested under suspicion of high treason, the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War reports. The scientists says the arrests deter the younger generation from pursuing careers in science, which contributes to a decrease in the quality of scientific research. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin was aware of the letter and that Russian security services were involved in the case.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ukraine updates: Russia fortifies defensive lines with 200K troops
Russians have made two attempts to kill Major General Ihor Tantsiura, Commander of Territorial Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Source: Sources of the Ukrainska Pravda in military circles

Details: On 2 May, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Russian Wagner Group Private Military Company, said that his militants killed the commander of the Territorial Defence Forces, Ihor Tantsiura, in Donetsk Oblast, when he was driving from the city of Chasiv Yar to Bakhmut in an armoured car. But this turned out to be untrue.

According to Ukrainska Pravda, the Territorial Defence Forces Commander has indeed suffered an assassination attempt: his column was fired upon, and the car in which Tantsiura was supposed to be was hit. But on that day the Major General got into the escort car, he managed to escape from under fire.

According to the sources of Ukrainska Pravda in military circles, this is the second attempt to eliminate Ihor Tantsiura.

Earlier, the Ukrainian side intercepted the data of the Russians, according to which they knew in detail the route of movement of the Commander of the Territorial Defence Forces at the front for the next few days. The Ukrainian forces intercepted this just in time to make changes.

The question of where the Russians received information in both cases remains unanswered.

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Britt Macias felt something unfamiliar in a dingy motel room two years ago: hope.

She had been homeless for months, but on July 13, 2021, she and her two beloved dogs moved into the Vagabond Inn and slept inside. She quickly got a job she could walk to, helping other homeless people; the hotel provided her meals, so she planned to save up her money.

Maybe she could scrape together enough to fix her car, even rent an apartment.

Her life had become a series of catastrophes. But finally  finally  here was something that seemed good. It seemed like progress.

Nearly two years later, Macias, 38, is still stuck in the same roach-infested hotel that the county has vowed to shut down at the end of June, evicting whoever is still there. Every modest gain shes made  her new job, her ability to see how much shes been able to accomplish on her own  would be wiped out if the countys plan forced her to move back onto the streets.

Homelessness: Our urgent human crisis

Follow our ambitious, newsroom-wide series examining the growing problem of homelessness across Sacramento and California in 2023, examining government policy, money, addiction, mental health and more.

She walked into the Project Roomkey hotel believing it would be a step toward a real home. But in April, the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors voted to close the two remaining COVID emergency shelters without a plan to house everyone who lives in them. Last month, that amounted to more than 200 people.

Britt Macias lives in her car with her dogs in 2021, before she and the animals were able to move into the Vagabond Inn as part of Project Roomkey.

To Macias, it was almost unbelievable.

I thought that I would get help with housing, Macias said. The help that is, really isnt any help at all.

Under the supervisors plan, downtowns Vagabond Inn will close first, at the end of June, and Rancho Cordovas Comfort Inn will close at the end of October. The ramp-down plan included funding for on-site navigators and rehousing services  new resources that began less than three months before everyone in the Vagabond Inn would have to get out.

On average, the participants had lived in Roomkey hotels for nine months, with access to outside rehousing services. How the rehousing timeline could accelerate enough to keep everyone indoors is unclear.

Since the plan passed, the Department of Human Assistance has not hired two of five funded on-site navigators, with the end of the shelter swiftly approaching. As of May 15  six weeks before the Vagabond is supposed to close  the three hired navigators had not yet met with any of the residents.

Benjamin Frazier, 26, has lived at the downtown hotel for eight months. He is soft-spoken but did not mince words:

I feel like theyre just slapping us on the hand and saying, You figure it out.

Project Roomkey participant Benjamin Frazier, 26, stands in the hallway at the Vagabond Inn on Wednesday. His room is on the third floor and the elevator is broken, and no fix is promised.

Social workers cannot assist

A document from the Department of Human Assistance shows that Sacramento County officials deployed a rehousing effort mere weeks before funding for a COVID emergency homeless shelter was set to expire.

Though the agency expected the Board of Supervisors would extend the program beyond the end of April, residents said the outreach still came unnervingly late in their stays.

The document shows that in the first two weeks of April, county officials planned informational meetings between social workers who expressly cannot assist with connections to resources or housing and residents at the Vagabond Inn.

They could have had us meet with the county a lot sooner, said Richard Washington, frustrated with the delays. Washington has lived at the Vagabond Inn since September.

Project Roomkey participant Richard Washington, 34, stands outside the Vagabond Inn motel in Sacramento on Wednesday. He said he is stressed about where he will go when the program at the motel closes at the end of June. Washington, who is recovering from a bout of shingles above his eye, has lived at the hotel since September.

Project Roomkey was only supposed to exist for three months, said Julie Field, the Department of Human Assistance division manager who has overseen the hotels since they opened in 2020. Designed to address a public health emergency  not homelessness per se, but COVID  Roomkey, she said, was never intended to provide meaningful help so residents could find a more permanent home. That role would fall to outside agencies.

PRK is strictly a sheltering program, Field said. Its meant to keep people safe from the pandemic, keep them from getting sick, keep them from spreading the virus. It is not a rehousing program. Theres no true rehousing components within the program.

Still, she said, 26 people from the program were already slated to move into public housing units, and program staff had found an additional 18 to 20 room-and-board slots.

That right there, she said, is a huge swath of people.

Project Roomkey housed 212 people as of April 17, county spokesperson Janna Haynes said, and 44 people represents about 21% of them.

Field said that her department had worked with Sacramento Steps Forward to bring on a dedicated housing navigator for the 200 or so people living in the hotels last June; that person works half-time. She said that the county also attempted to hire two additional housing navigators for the program in the summer, but that deal fell apart by September.

The intent was there, Field said. Its just, we werent able to get it going.

Field could not say how many people would end up back on the street once the hotels shuttered. I have no idea, she said.

She acknowledged, There will be some folks that end up returning to the streets.

Were people at the end of the day

Macias worked as a case manager at Sacramento Self-Help Housing before an eviction left her living in her car in 2021. She said that the meetings in April gathered information about the residents that the county should have already had. Frazier and Washington found the process redundant as well.

They talked about these options that we have, Macias said. Theres nothing.

She has a coveted emergency housing voucher  and cant find a landlord who will accept it.

About 140,000 people in the county live in severe poverty, and the lack of coordinated effort to ensure that Project Roomkey residents had a dignified place to live made Macias feel dehumanized.

The only thing f------ separating you from me is a f------ house, she said. Everybody seems to f------ forget: Were people at the end of the day. OK? Youre one paycheck away from being homeless yourself.

We called  found only three vacancies

The Board of Supervisors said that as Project Roomkey ramped down, new housing navigators would take a more hands-on approach in helping residents find permanent housing. However, more than a month after the supervisors passed the new funding, Field said, those navigators had not begun contacting residents.

In the interim, officials provided the homeless residents an extensive list maintained by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency of 160 properties, most of which were associated with a phone number for prospective tenants to call themselves.

The Sacramento Bee called every number on the list. Out of 148 properties with a phone number, The Bee was only able to identify three properties that had immediately available housing.

A few rooms were available in an SRO, but only for people who had a referral from a social services agency; one unit was available for two seniors over 55; and a couple of apartments were open in a complex in Meadowview. The Bee determined that at least 64 of the properties contacted had a waitlist, generally one that was months to years long.

A single-room-occupancy building downtown that was only for veterans had a wait of at least a year and a half.

Another property was trying to fill a vacancy with people who had applied for affordable housing there in 2015  eight years ago.

In making 148 phone calls, The Bee only spoke to staff at seven properties who said they were not working off a waitlist (though most of them still had no available units to offer the people on their interest lists).

At least 33 phone numbers on the list did not lead to an affordable property at all. Three staffers who answered the phone said they actually only had market-rate units in their buildings. Another staffer said he had no record of the building in question. Two of the properties were still under construction and wont exist until 2024. Another property had burned to the ground. The list contained 26 numbers that appeared to be disconnected or non-functional. Five of those numbers connected callers to scams, such as an offer to win a gift card or a $100 Walmart rebate.

The Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency has not responded to questions about the list of properties.

Amber Box-Matson, who has lived at the Vagabond Inn since November, said she had called many of the numbers on the list. She said it was fruitless: Theres no openings right now.

Project Roomkey participant Amber Box-Matson, 37, gets teary-eyed with her dog Aphrodite outside the Vagabond Inn motel in Sacramento on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. With the program at the motel ending, she said she called many of the numbers on a list of potential housing options provided by county officials. She said there were no openings.

Box-Mason said she believed she had a housing navigator, but that person hasnt returned her calls in at least a month. She is trying to find a home to avoid having to live in her car again, and shes also very motivated by the dream of regaining custody of her four children, three of whom are under 18.

Because of a strict no-visitors policy, her children arent allowed to visit her in the hotel. Between that and the odd hours she works as a restaurant cook, she struggles to see them as much as she wants.

Box-Matson worries that shell end up back in her car when the hotel closes. In that scenario, she had no clue what she would do, except for one thing:

Cry, she said. Ill cry.

Project Roomkey participants Amber Box-Matson, 37, pets her dog Aphrodite as her boyfriend Edward Aubry, 56, holds her leash at the Vagabond Inn motel in Sacramento on May 17, 2023. Box-Matson works as a waitress at Dennys, and Aubry as a chef at Petes Restaurant and Brewhouse, but they said they cant afford to live anywhere else on their wages.

People back into the street

Frazier and Washington recently bought a tent together, even as they were frantically applying for housing.

Frazier was adopted and recently met his biological parents, who are also homeless. It was as if every force worked against him  when he took one step forward, he got two shoves back.

His aspirations are humble. All he wants is a small apartment where he can try to stay healthy, try to get a job and live quietly with his little dog. These, he said, appear to be out of the reach of the countys affordable housing bureaucracy.

And after failing for eight months to transition Frazier into a stable apartment, the county was now pursuing a backward plan that, he said, would just make the homelessness crisis worse.

Its not making sense, Frazier said. Youre closing it to put money towards funding for other homeless people on the street, but youre about to send 200-something people back into the street. It doesnt sound right.

Tami McGraw, 59, lives in the Vagabond Inn with her cat. We need this place, she said. If this program gets shut down, a lot of people like me and worse than me are gonna be out on the streets and dying.

The Bees Renee C. Byer contributed to this story.
Sacramentos first-world shame: What can we do to help our homeless neighbors on the streets?

Our communitys most intractable problem is also painfully its most visible.

The first-world shame that is homelessness is impossible to miss. Drive around Sacramento any time, any day and one will see any  and more likely all  of the following:

An elderly man curled up on the sidewalk, trying to sleep and seemingly dead to all that is around him.

A mom holding her childs hand as they traverse a parking lot, hoping at least one kind soul acknowledges her plea to lower a car window and listen to what she has to say.

A mentally ill man aimlessly and methodically pacing up and down a median  and hopefully not into the oncoming traffic.

A substance-impaired person  looking just dangerous enough you wish you had stopped for gas somewhere else  hanging around outside the gas pump.

A disabled man clutching a desperate homemade cardboard plea for help while strategically positioned at the exit of the fast food drive through lane.

A group of people chatting it up  giving the appearance of old pals  while huddled near tents under the overpass.

Or a young woman carelessly  perhaps defiantly  crossing a busy street, with no regard to personal safety, shouting profanities at you or herself or the world.

How we have arrived at this moment in time is instructive. But the blame game at times seems more like a convenient means to shirk responsibility than an introspective search for solutions.

The county can blame the city for not doing more  or better  and vice versa. Local government can blame state government. And everyone can lay blame at the feet of the federal government. In truth, all almost certainly bear some responsibility for how we landed here, and all play a critical role in how we move forward.

So, too, do the nonprofits, the advocates, the religious institutions, the substance abuse counselors and the mental health professionals. So, too, do many of those who live the scenarios above  many of whom are in their position through no fault of their own, but also others who have simply not availed themselves of resources, or remain unemployed either because they lack skills, education or inclination.

Whatever your worldview or your politics  whoever you choose most to blame  there is room for greater understanding and a seemingly sincere shared desire to solve the problem, or at least make Sacramento a better place to live for all of us.

The situation is too dire to ignore. We at The Sacramento Bee understand this, too,

A Sacramento Bee investigative project

Over the next months and likely well into next year, The Bee will publish Homelessness: Our urgent human crisis  an ambitious newsroom-wide reporting effort. As part of this series of stories, we will investigate and assess previous efforts and programs. We will take a hard look at the money being spent. And we will do out best to uncover and illuminate what has worked elsewhere.

Among our first stories the report today by Ariane Lange and Renee C. Byer on Sacramento County discontinuing Project Roomkey. The move will close two shelters and could toss about 200 residents onto the street with no real plan to house them.

There is much more to come. Along the way we will ask tough questions that might also be on your mind:







Why is it that people who are approved for affordable housing can wait not weeks or months, but years on Section 8 waiting lists? How is it that California can spend unprecedented amounts of money on the problem and it only becomes worse? How is it that people who clearly are not able to fend for themselves can be left by society in such vulnerable positions? And why is it that so often the focus of lawmakers is to move the problem elsewhere, but so infrequently offer any real alternative to where people can live safely?

We will ask these questions  and so many more. Also, we will do so with care, compassion and honesty, by sharing with you the lives of those who are most affected by this crisis.

10,000 people, and many reasons why

We are now approaching 10,000 homeless people in our county and its cities, assuming we already have not surpassed that number. The most recent total from January was 9,728, according to the federally-mandated point in time count. This number has surged from 5,570 in January 2019, and 3,665 in January 2017.

But that same report also concluded that 20,000 people in the county and its cities are expected to experience homelessness at some point this year.

To accommodate that need, there are roughly 2,300 shelter beds opened by the city and county  all of which are typically full. Volunteers in January counted 1,600 tents  five times higher than the number they counted in 2019.

Those numbers represent life on the streets. There is also death.

At least 11 homeless people have died from hypothermia in Sacramento since 2021.

We understand that those who live on the streets are not a monolithic population, that there are no one-size-fits-all solutions when dealing with such complicated issues as mental illness, substance abuse and a cost of living that can overwhelm even the hardest working and best intentioned.

We also are not naive. A series of stories will not magically solve this problem  no matter how many or how revelatory or how powerful. There is no grand expectation that The Sacramento Bees reporting will put a roof over everyones head, or ensure a safe place for the mentally ill or needed treatment for those ravaged by substance abuse, or change mindsets of those who either have given up or perhaps never really tried.

Still, its a mistake  and a dereliction of our duty to our community  for us to not try. Because when dutiful journalists living in your community raise awareness, hold those responsible accountable and reveal triumphs, progress is possible. Together, we can improve the quality of some lives.

This is an invitation not only to follow along and take in our coverage over the months ahead, but also to hold us accountable for the role we need to play  to offer feedback and tips, and most importantly, to engage with us. We have a created the form below that will allow you to do just that.

Our commitment is that we will do our very best. Our communitys most intractable, most consequential and heartbreakingly most visible problem deserves no less.
Billionaire investor Sam Zell speaks during a 2007 interview in Chicago. (Associated Press)

Sam Zell, who made his billions resurrecting troubled businesses that ran the gamut from bicycles to real estate, has died at 81.

His death was announced by Chicago-based Equity Residential, the real estate company he founded.

Where others saw red ink, Zell saw potential value, calculated the risks and plotted a path to profit.

You gotta dance around the edge, the brash, bearded mogul, who delighted in calling himself the Grave Dancer, once wrote of his investment philosophy. But you dont fall in.

Then came what he would later call the deal from hell.

In 2007, Zell made national headlines when he acquired Tribune Co., a distressed media conglomerate that owned radio stations and major newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. Believing that the newspaper business had a future, he rode in, promising innovation and reinvention.

Less than 12 months later, however, Tribune collapsed in what then was the largest bankruptcy in American media history. A new wave of turmoil hit the companys venerable papers and caused 4,000 employees to lose their jobs during Tribunes long slog out of insolvency.

Zell lost $315 million  his personal stake in the $8.2-billion transaction that made him an unlikely baron of the news business  but he retained his famous swagger.

People tend to ask me about the Tribune like it was something equivalent to having lost a child, Zell, who died Thursday in Chicago due to complications from a recent illness, told Crains Chicago Business in 2014. I promise I never had any kind of emotions like that.

Known for his bluejeans, foul language and love of motorcycles, the man Forbes once described as one of Americas most creative dealmakers strode into the newspaper world during a perilous time for the industry.

The internet was laying waste to a business model that had held up for more than a century, causing print readership and ad revenues to nosedive. Tribune, which in 2000 had purchased The Times and more than 30 other daily papers and television stations from Times Mirror Co., had been languishing on the auction block when Zell made a successful eleventh-hour bid.

The deal hinged on the creation of an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP, a structure that would allow Tribune to avoid most federal income taxes. The ESOP would borrow the lion's share of the $8.2-billion purchase price, adding greatly to the companys already considerable debt.

Although Los Angeles billionaires Eli Broad and Ron Burkle expessed interest in acquiring Tribune, Zell, who maintained homes in Chicago and Los Angeles, became Tribunes chairman and installed a cocky new management team to shake up what he saw as a moribund corporate culture.

"The challenge is, how do we get somebody 126 years old to get it up?" Zell told an auditorium full of Times employees shortly after gaining control. "I'm your Viagra, OK?"

Zell had no experience owning newspapers. But in other industries, particularly real estate, where his fortune started, he was an undisputed master of the turnaround, admired for his uncanny sense of when to buy and when to sell.

His biggest payday came the same year he bid on Tribune. He sold his Equity Office Properties Trust, the nation's biggest office building landlord, to Blackstone Group for $39 billion just before the nation spun into recession in 2008. It was then the largest private equity deal in history.

People in the industry want to know what his thinking is, and they look at it as they do their own strategic thinking, Stan Ross, a real estate accounting specialist and former vice chairman of Ernst & Young who died in 2018, once said of Zell, whom he advised for years. He is a visionary. It doesnt mean hes right every time, but hes a visionary.

Zell was entrepreneurial from an early age. He was barely out of grade school when he noticed a new magazine called Playboy, got his hands on dozens of copies and sold them to his friends for $3.

I recognized a need common in all 13-year-old boys, saw a restriction on supply and I took advantage of it, Zell told Forbes in 2013. Fifty-odd years later Im still doing the same thing.

He was the son of Bernard and Ruchla Zielonka, who escaped Poland with their daughter Leah just before the Nazi blitzkrieg in 1939. They fled to Lithuania and crossed Siberia to Japan, where they managed to find passage to the United States.

They eventually settled in Seattle, where Zell was born on Sept. 28, 1941. The family later relocated to Chicago, where his father shortened the family name to Zell.

The senior Zell was a businessman who dealt in grain, jewelry and eventually real estate. He was demanding and opinionated, and so was his son. According to Greg Burns in the Chicago Tribune, Sam Zells quote in the 1959 Highland Park High School yearbook read: I am not arguing with you. I am telling you.

After high school he went to the University of Michigan, where he earned a bachelors degree in political science in 1963. While still an undergraduate, he got a job managing his 15-unit student apartment building. Teaming up with fraternity brother Robert Lurie, he moved from managing apartments to buying them. By the time Zell finished law school, in 1966, he was overseeing several thousand apartments and owned several buildings. He told Bloomberg that he practiced law for only four days before throwing all his weight into business dealings.

While in college, he married the first of three wives. His survivors include his wife, Helen, three children and nine grandchildren.

After law school, Zell briefly worked at a blue-chip Chicago law firm but found the work dull and financially unfulfilling. He opened a solo practice but continued to invest in real estate, snapping up distressed apartment buildings in small secondary markets such as Toledo, Ohio, and Tampa, Fla. He found a mentor and early backer in Hyatt Hotel founder Jay Pritzker, "the smartest guy I've ever met, Zell told Barrons in 2011, who had an incredible grasp of the art of the deal."

In the 1970s, Zell and Lurie began to diversify into office buildings such as Chicagos landmark Field building, which they bought for $52 million in 1978 and sold for $94 million in 1981.

In 1976, Zell founded Equity Office Properties Trust, the first real estate investment trust to be traded as part of the S&P 500. A real estate investment trust enables the public to buy and sell shares of commercial real estate portfolios the same way they invest in other industries, and Zells use of it was revolutionary.

Zell created the public real estate market, Richard Green, Lusk chair in real estate at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, told The Times in 2020.

For Zell, a good deal had to meet three basic criteria: The property had to have high profit potential, an acceptable level of risk and a structure to minimize taxes. The latter requirement would land him in legal hot water.

In the 1970s, he led an investment group that wanted to acquire a $9-million apartment and hotel complex in Reno. The family that owned the property was reluctant to sell until Zells group came up with a plan to deposit part of the purchase price in an offshore account, thereby reducing the sellers tax bill. That transfer led to federal charges that Zell and his partners had conspired to defraud and impede the Internal Revenue Service.

Zell agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors if they dropped the charges against him. As a result of his testimony at the 1977 trial, his brother-in-law, Roger Baskes, went to prison for two years and Zell went on to build his fortune.

His drive to make money eventually led him to diversify his portfolio. "The Grave Dancer became a successful corporate raider, taking over radio stations, trailer parks, barges, wire and cable factories and garbage-fueled power plants.

One of his best-known deals involved Itel Corp., a rail-car and container leasing firm, which he took over in 1985 after it emerged from bankruptcy with $400 million in tax credits on its books. Zell as chairman methodically purchased other companies for Itel to operate that could share in its tax credits. He increased revenue through moves such as selling off a cargo container unit for a $250-million profit, and Itels stock tripled in value.

Zell made another shrewd purchase in 1991 when he spent $280 million on bankrupt Carter Hawley Hale Stores Inc., a Los Angeles-based department store chain. Four years later, he sold the still-struggling retail giant to Federated Department Stores Inc. for $373 million.

The short (just over 5 feet tall), craggy-faced tycoon stormed boardrooms like the proverbial bull in a china shop. At an early Itel Corp. meeting, he reportedly flicked cigarette ash over his chair and grounded the butt into the pristine carpet.

"Zell is a helluva asset manager, but hes a brusque sort of man and not very genteel," Herbert Kunzel, Itel's retired chairman, told the New York Times in 1991.

After closing the sale of Equity Office Properties Trust to Blackstone Group, Zell began the negotiations that led to the leveraged buyout of Tribune, whose assets included 25 TV stations and the Chicago Cubs as well as nine daily newspapers. Among the papers Tribune owned, in addition to the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, were the Baltimore Sun, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel and the Hartford Courant.

Im sick and tired of listening to everyone talk about and commiserate over the end of newspapers, Zell told the Wall Street Journal in 2007. They aint ended and theyre not going to end. I think they have a great future.

After successive waves of budget cutting under Tribune, many employees were hopeful that Zell could stop the bleeding and save the company.

Sam Zell was sort of a rock star when he went around and toured the various properties, Ann Marie Lipinski, who quit as editor of the Chicago Tribune less than a year after Zells takeover, told the New York Times in 2010. People had been living with uncertainty for so long and they hoped something good would come from an owner with a proven track record of success in other businesses.

But Zell quickly disabused them of that hope. At a meet-and-greet session with Tribune employees, he spoke about the need to shake up the corporate status quo to increase revenue. He expressed no reverence for traditional journalistic values.

When a photographer at the Orlando Sentinel questioned his commitment to serious news  Were not the Pennysaver, were a newspaper, she said  he capped his response with an acerbic F you."

Nor did he try to charm reporters and editors during a visit to the Tribune papers Washington bureau. This is the first unit of the Tribune that Ive talked to that doesnt generate any revenue. So all of you, he said, are overhead.

One of the most tangible signs of Zells determination to change Tribunes cultural dynamics was installed at the companys Chicago headquarters: a multi-legged statue he dubbed the bureaucratic shuffle. Another not-so-subtle message was the acronym printed on employee badges: A.F.D.I., which stood for Actually Friggin Doing It.

Zell chose Randy Michaels as Tribunes new chief executive, a former shock jock who had headed Zells Jacor Communications radio group (later sold to Clear Channel Communications). Known to share Zells nonconformist tendencies, he had a flair for marketing that pushed the boundaries of good taste. The former DJ once used his airtime to pretend to puree a live frog  the mascot of a rival radio station  in a blender.

Michaels installed former associates from the radio world in top management, even though newspapers made up the bulk of Tribunes business. One of his hires was former radio programmer Lee Abrams, who, as Tribunes new chief innovation officer, flooded employees inboxes with long-winded and disjointed emails that were riddled with typos. One of his most memorable missives expressed surprise that reporters covering the Iraq war were actually in Iraq.

The new managers moved quickly to disrupt business as usual. A few months after taking charge, they wrapped The Times in a fake front page that was actually an ad for Disneys Alice in Wonderland. Similar pages were later sold to Universal and NBC. Those decisions rankled the papers rank-and-file and elicited a formal letter of protest from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, which said the advertising ploys made a mockery of the newspapers mission.

Across Tribunes papers, circulation and revenues continued to decline at a far faster pace than Zell had anticipated. Although he had said he wouldnt cut staff, jobs and budgets were slashed across the company as the economy began to tank. Assets were sold, including Newsday. Top editors who resisted the Zell teams decisions were forced out, including Lipinski at the Chicago Tribune and James OShea at The Times.

I had never witnessed anyone quite like Zell who, I would soon learn, was one of those media executives who voiced more concern about the first quarter than the First Amendment, OShea wrote in the Guardian in December 2008 after Tribune filed for Chapter 11 protection.

The company entered bankruptcy proceedings with $7.6 billion in assets and $12.9 billion in debt, most of which stemmed from the loans made to complete Zells buyout. Staff cuts mounted while top executives received lavish, court-approved bonuses that totaled $57.3 million.

Abrams was terminated in October 2010 after sending a companywide email with pornographic content. Michaels resigned about 10 days later, after denying a story in the New York Times that he had told a group of Tribune executives to watch this as he offered a Chicago waitress $100 to bare her breasts.

They threw out what Tribune had stood for, quality journalism and a real brand integrity, and in just a year, pushed it down into mud and bankruptcy, newspaper analyst Ken Doctor said.

Zells fortune remained largely intact, thanks in part to a widening portfolio of international investments. But the fall into bankruptcy was a blow to his reputation as "the Grave Dancer who never stumbled.

In some remarks he seemed more upset about the bad publicity he received than the money he lost.

The media loves nothing more than to cover the media, he told Forbes in 2011. Thats fine for the media. ... I just dont need to be the medias bitch anymore.

Woo is a former Times staff writer.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
This satellite image is from Planet Labs. Defense News annotated the image. (Planet Labs)

MELBOURNE, Australia  A satellite image obtained by Defense News shows what appears to be a WZ-8 supersonic reconnaissance drone parked outside one of two newly built hangars at Chinas Luan Airbase.

China is continuing to revamp a bomber base that was identified in recently leaked U.S documents as hosting a new supersonic reconnaissance drone.

The satellite image, provided to Defense News by Planet Labs, shows Luan Airbase in Chinas Anhui province. The previously unoccupied base is undergoing an upgrade, with construction beginning sometime between April 2018 and early 2019. Improvements include the resurfacing of the 3,200-meter (3,500-yard) runway, the widening of taxiways, and the construction of 20 bomber-sized aircraft shelters and two hangars to replace open aircraft parking bays.

China also built munitions checkout facilities on base, according to Decker Eveleth, a student at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey who reviewed the satellite photo given to Defense News. Eveleth explained that such checkout facilities are used to inspect munitions before theyre loaded onto aircraft for use.

These buildings are usually found at bases for bombers and ground-launched missiles, Eveleth added, and tend to be long, tall buildings with doors at both ends, with missiles usually fixed to a rail for inspection at various stations for examining various components.

Luan Airbase is home to the 29th Air Regiment of the Peoples Liberation Army Air Forces 10th Bomber Division, according to Andreas Rupprecht, who has authored several books on Chinese military aviation and the industry.

WZ-8 drones are seen on vehicles. (Chinese Defense Ministry)

He told Defense News that the unit currently flies the Xian H-6K and H-6M bombers. The latter is the primary launch platform of the WZ-8, carrying the supersonic drone on an hardpoint on its fuselage underside and releasing it from a high altitude.

The WZ-8 was also seen on a satellite photo taken in December 2022, while another from early April 2023 showed continued progress in widening the aircraft taxiways leading to the bases underground aircraft facilities south of the runway.

Using Google Earths measuring tool, Defense News assesses that the new taxiways are approximately 25 meters (82 feet) wide, compared to 14 meters (46 feet) previously. However, the underground facilities, which run underneath nearby hills, have yet to be widened.

The presence of WZ-8s at the base was noted in a document ostensibly from the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and leaked online through the social media platform Discord. A member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard is accused of leaking the highly classified information.

A military vehicle carries a WZ-8 supersonic reconnaissance drone during a parade in Beijing, China, on Oct. 1, 2019. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Defense News has been unable to verify the veracity of the document. Aric Toler, a researcher with investigative journalism group Bellingcat who has written extensively on the Discord leaks, told Defense News he had not seen the document before.

The published document showed two WZ-8s at the base, which it called Liuan, and claimed the imagery was taken during a reconnaissance satellite pass on Aug. 9, 2022.

One of the drones was outside the same hangar as that seen on the satellite photo provided to Defense News, while the other was being towed along the runway.

The document also outlined possible mission flight profiles of the WZ-8, suggesting that it could perform reconnaissance missions over South Korea and Taiwan with a daylight sensor suite including a synthetic aperture radar and electro-optical sensor while flying at Mach 3 at an altitude of 100,000 feet.

It also suggests the drones could recover at Chinas coastal airfields following the completion of their missions, landing at bases such as Dashuibo in Wendeng on the Shandong Peninsula or Huian, which is west of Taiwan.
South Carolina moved closer to a six-week abortion ban on Wednesday after the House voted to ban abortions once fetal cardiac activity is detected, an effort to put the measure back before the state Supreme Court, which already ruled a previous ban unconstitutional.

The 82-33 vote, mostly along party lines, occurred after 24 hours of debate over two days and hundreds of unsuccessful tries by Democrats to amend the bill by tacking on changes to, for example, move the limit to 12 weeks; put the issue on the ballot; and to require the state cover funeral costs should the mother or fetus die as a result of being denied an abortion. The Democrats hold 36 seats in the 124-member chamber.

None of you in here, as far as I know, are an obstetrician-gynecologist, state Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, told colleagues Tuesday, the first day of the debate. Yall dont get it twisted. When these universities give you these little honorary degrees and you think that makes you a real doctor, youre not a real freaking doctor. You have no real medical training.

The House vote was yet another effort by Republicans to further restrict abortions in the state, down from the current 20-week ban, after the U.S. Supreme Courts June 2022 Dobbs decision, which overturned the 1973 landmark case Roe v. Wade, and after the S.C. Supreme Court in January ruled the states previous six-week ban unconstitutional.

The so-called fetal heartbeat bill now heads back to the Senate, where lawmakers could agree to the House changes, sending the bill to the governors desk. Senators also could reject the House changes, putting the legislation back on the negotiating table.

Either way, should the governor sign the bill  Gov. Henry McMaster has indicated he would  it is highly likely to be challenged.

The six-week ban would prohibit abortions once fetal cardiac activity is detected, typically around the sixth week of pregnancy, when most people dont know that theyre pregnant, critics argue. The bill, S. 474, includes exceptions for rape and incest no more than 12 weeks, fatal fetal anomaly and the mothers life.

Vicki Ringer, director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, said Wednesday theyre ready to file a lawsuit to challenge the bill as soon as the Legislature passes it.

Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, speaks to press and activists at the South Carolina State House on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. The South Carolina House of Representatives were called back by Governor Henry McMaster to finish bills left over from this years session, including a bill that would ban abortion after six weeks.

Ongoing debate about abortion restrictions

For months, House and Senate Republicans have been at a standstill over how restrictive an abortion ban should be. That struggle was highlighted in a fall special session when the House voted to pass a near-total ban while the Senate pushed for six weeks.

Lawmakers appeared to be in a similar standstill this session, which started in January, after the Senate last month rejected the Houses near-total abortion ban, with limited exceptions for rape, incest, fatal fetal anomaly and the mothers life.

But Republicans said the higher-than-average abortion data, due to people coming from out-of-state to seek the procedure, and North Carolinas now-12-week ban adopted Tuesday, added a layer of urgency.

This bills not perfect, said state Rep. John McCravy, R-Greenwood, who for months pushed for a near-total ban. We know from experience that while this bill will save thousands of lives, it will likely allow 3,000 abortions before a heartbeat is detected in our state every year. Maybe well have a situation where the Senate will allow us to save 99% of unborn citizens.

The legislation includes a handful of House-backed amendments, ranging from a child support requirement at conception and a requirement that a minor must have parental consent or court approval before the minor can get an abortion.

Tell them theres another option. Yes, pro-life means after birth, throughout their whole life. Lets teach our young people how to be responsible, said state Rep. Melissa Oremus, a Graniteville Republican who had a child at 16. It is a win today.

Lawmakers returned to the State House Tuesday to debate the bill after McMaster called the Legislature back for a rare special session, given lawmakers did not pass a sine die agreement, or an outline dictating what they could return to debate post-session.

So, $60,000 a day because of the Republicans calling us back into session, said state Rep. John King, D-York, referring to the Tuesday cost for lawmakers to convene. So, I want to stand up because Im not gonna get blamed for something that (Republicans) caused. Weve wasted a whole legislative session executing people, providing guns to everybody, and today you want to save lives.

The South Carolina House of Representatives are called back by Governor Henry McMaster to finish bills left over from this years session on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

Democrats seek to expand abortion access

Before the debate, Democrats filed more than 900 amendments in an attempt to expand abortion access, and repeatedly deployed numerous procedural tactics to stop and slow down debate, to no avail. Defending the strategy, state Rep. Heather Bauer, D-Richland, said Wednesday, every minute were here, were helping women gain access to health care.

Some of the amendments said, were frivolous and absurd, House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, said.

For example, Smith said there were amendments for a new state motto, Yall means all.

We have welcome to South Carolina signs, that (say), South Carolina does not support womens rights as you enter our state, Smith said. We have drivers licenses messages that say, South Carolina does not support womens rights. Abortion is illegal here. We want signs on buildings, saying that, We dont support womens rights.

We required each person in this state to read The Handmaids Tale, Smith continued. Were having male masturbation being declared illegal, and were having menstrual cycles reported to DHEC (Department of Health and Environmental Control).

Critics say the legislation mirrors what the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in January. Now, the court is made up of all men after Justice Kaye Hearn, the only woman on the high court, retired due to the states 72-year age limit and was replaced by now-Justice Gary Hill.

Republicans say the latest measure responds to the high courts decision, with hopes it passes muster during the inevitable court battle that will ensue.

Well see you at the polls, Bauer said. Well see you in court.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Longtime South Carolina Judge Alison Lee, whose mostly quiet career on the bench included a few controversial moments, retired Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Judicial Merit Selection Commission confirmed.

Lee, who will turn 65 in September  the state has a 72-year age limit on judicial service  gave no explanation for her retirement, news of which had quietly been circulating in judicial and legal circles for several weeks but not publicly announced.

Lee notified South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald Beatty on April 27 of her retirement from active status, effective May 16, said Erin Crawford, chief counsel for the Judicial Merit Selection Commission.

Lee also notified the commission, Crawford said.

Shes going to serve in an active retired capacity, Crawford said, meaning Lee could fill in from time to time to handle trials or other judicial tasks on a part-time basis, serving at the pleasure of the chief justice.

Lee, a circuit judge since 1999, was a state administrative law judge from 1994 to 1999. She was one of 16 at-large judges, meaning she was not assigned to any particular one of the states 16 judicial circuits.

In June 2013, Lee was nominated to a prestigious seat as a federal judge by then-President Barack Obama.

She appeared headed to the judges post. But the next month, July 2013, a popular Columbia baker, Kelly Hunnewell, was gunned down by intruders seeking money at her commercial bakery early one morning as she worked alone, preparing bagels.

Newspapers reported soon after that Lee had previously sharply reduced the bond of one of the accused killers, allowing him to make bond and be free at the time of Hunnewells killing. Law enforcement and Republican critics called Lee soft on crime, and, soon after, South Carolinas two Republican U.S. senators  Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott  opposed her nomination, causing her to withdraw.

In 2019, Lee lost a contentious race to Blake Hewitt in the S.C. General Assembly to win a seat on the S.C. Court of Appeals.

In response, Lees supporters charged racism was the reason behind her 87-73 loss to Hewitt, who is white, and Black lawmakers walked out of the joint assembly to protest the outcome.

It was Lees sixth and final attempt for a Court of Appeals seat.

Lee also made news last year in one of South Carolinas most notorious criminal cases.

In an action that belied any criticism that she might have be soft on crime, Lee denied a motion by attorneys for now-convicted killer and accused embezzler Alex Murdaugh to reduce his bond from what was then $7 million.

After considering all of the information provided, this Court finds that the current bond is reasonable to assure his appearance in court, Lee wrote in an order that called Murdaugh both a flight risk and a danger to the community.

It was one of South Carolinas highest bonds ever set in a criminal case, if not the highest, lawyers said at the time.

Murdaugh is now serving two consecutive life sentences for murdering his wife, Maggie, and youngest son, Paul.

And, last year, Lee dismissed a case brought by The State newspaper against the Lexington-Richland 5 School District. The newspaper alleged a violation of the S.C. Freedom of Information Act when the school board secretly approved a $226,368 payment from the district to former district superintendent Christina Melton after she resigned in June 2021.

Lee did not rule on the merits of the case, but dismissed it because of a procedural matter the newspaper contends was not within its control. The State has appealed the decision to the S.C. Court of Appeals.

Lees official South Carolina biography notes that from 1994 to 1999, she served as a state administrative law judge in South Carolina. From 1989 to 1994, she worked as staff counsel for the South Carolina Legislative Council, and from 1984 to 1989, she practiced civil litigation with the Columbia-based McNair Law Firm, then one of the states most prestigious.

She graduated from Vassar College in 1979 and Tulane Law School in 1982, the South Carolina Legislative Manual says.

In South Carolina, where relationships are highly valued, Lee had a credential of consequence: She is the niece of the late South Carolina civil rights icon Matthew Perry, who successfully represented Black protesters in landmark cases across the state in the 1950s and 1960s.

Perry went on the become South Carolinas first Black federal judge. Columbias federal courthouse, dedicated in 2004, is named after him.

In fact, Lees first legal job in South Carolina was in 1983-84 as a law clerk to C. Tolbert Goolsby, a white judge on the S.C. Court of Appeals, who had a legendary long and close friendship with Perry.
Director Catherine Corsini arrives for the screening of the film "Le Retour" (Homecoming) in Cannes

On-set scandal may have haunted French director Catherine Corsini's new film, but the movie was well-received by critics in Cannes for its strong acting performances.

"The Homecoming," which premiered late Wednesday, lost some funding over an intimate scene featuring a 15-year-old actress that was ultimately cut from the final take.

It was the second movie, after Johnny Depp's comeback as French King Louis XV in "Jeanne du Barry", to cause upset at the world's leading film industry shindig, held on the French Riviera.

The coming-of-age story tells of a black mother who returns to Corsica with her two teenage daughters, years after fleeing the French island in a hurry. The trio explore a mysterious past, sexuality and drugs.

While some critics called out the film for occasional longwindedness and failing to satisfy key questions, it was largely well-received, particularly for the acting.

"Whatever else happened on-set, Corsini has delivered a wonderful film... that ever so elegantly flutters questions of race, class, guilt and opportunity through a seaside summer breeze," wrote The Wrap.

Catherine Corsini, 66, an outspoken gay activist, had a film in the running for the top award, the Palme D'Or, "The Divide," in 2021, featuring Guinean-born actress Aissatou Diallo Sagna, who also appears in this year's feature.

Corsini won the Queer Palme for the film, while Sagna won France's highest Cesar film award for her role.

- 'Intense' -

Drama erupted, however, over Corsini's "The Homecoming" which was initially left out of the official selection at the last minute, only to be added back in.

The controversy centred on a scene involving actress Esther Gohourou, who was 15 at the time, and a love interest.

Corsini told Variety magazine the moment "suggested something of a sexual nature" but remained centred on the actors' faces.

The controversial scene was eventually cut from the film, leaving in just a quick kiss between the actors.

In an interview with Le Monde, Corsini -- one of a record seven women directors in the main competition at Cannes -- slammed the barrage of criticism as "a new form of patriarchy".

Responding to accusations of verbal and physical violence on set, Corsini admitted she was "intense" and "eruptive at times" when working under pressure.

The film depicts moments of intimacy between the older sister, played by 22-year-old Suzy Bemba, and her lesbian love interest.

"Not remotely out for provocation, the film handles its sexual moments, such as they are, with restraint and discretion  with little to scare the horses," wrote Screen Daily.

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Schiff not backing down in face of Republican bid to expel him from Congress

Adam Schiff said he was not backing down, after a Republican from Florida filed a motion to expel the California representative from Congress.

Related: House Republicans sidestep effort to expel George Santos from Congress

Referring to the failure the same day of a motion to expel George Santos, the New York fabulist indicted on multiple criminal counts, Schiff said: When Democrats do something for the right reason, [Republicans] use the precedent to do something for the wrong reason.

Ana Paulina Luna moved against Schiff after the release of the Durham report, which Republicans claim shows the investigation of Russian election interference and links between Donald Trump and Moscow was a conspiracy between Democrats and the FBI.

Schiff was House intelligence chair and led Trumps first impeachment, for seeking political dirt in Ukraine. He published a book about the Russia investigation and is now running for Senate.

Luna said Schiff lied to the American people. He used his position on House intelligence to push a lie that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars and abused the trust placed in him as chairman. He is a dishonour to the House of Representatives.

The Durham report makes clear that the Russian collusion was a lie from day one and Schiff knowingly used his position in an attempt to divide our country.

John Durham was appointed to investigate the FBI inquiry, which led to the appointment of the special counsel Robert Mueller. Mueller did not establish collusion between Trump and Moscow but did secure criminal convictions and lay out evidence of potential obstruction of justice.

Schiff said: When Republicans lacked the courage to stand up to the most unethical president in history, they consoled themselves by attacking those who did. Im not backing down.

Speaking to MSNBC, he added: The Durham investigation was an investigation Donald Trump demanded, investigating the investigators.

Durham, he said, spent four years trying to prove this deep state conspiracy theory that Trump kept telling his base was going to be proven  The whole thing of course, was a big bust.

 And so their response  is, Lets go after Adam Schiff. Lets go back to the person they most view as standing up for the rule of law, standing up against Trump, leading the first impeachment, participating in the January 6 committee. Thats what this is about.

Republicans have removed Schiff and another California Democrat, Eric Swalwell, from the intelligence committee.

Only five members of the House have ever been expelled, three for fighting for the Confederacy in the US civil war. The other two were convicted criminals. Expulsions require two-thirds majorities. Lunas resolution is likely to fail.

Schiff said: When Democrats do something for the right reason, [Republicans] use the precedent to do something for the wrong reason.

Related: A xenophobic autocrat: Adam Schiff on Trumps threat to democracy

This serial fabricator George Santos, this person whos just been indicted, whos admitted guilt to a foreign crime, to distract attention from that in the wake of the added disappointment of the Durham report, lets go after Adam Schiff, lets please the Maga crowd and send a message to anyone else that stands up to Donald Trump.

Luna has experienced controversy of her own. In February, the Washington Post reported that she swapped liberal positions and claims to be Middle Eastern, Jewish or eastern European for a Hispanic identity and Trumpist beliefs.

Lunas sharp turn to the right, the paper said, her account of an isolated and impoverished childhood, and her embrace of her Hispanic heritage have come as a surprise to some friends and family who knew her before her ascent to the US House.

Luna called the report racist.
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is heading to Iowa next month to participate in Sen. Joni Ernsts (R-Iowa) annual Roast and Ride fundraiser as Scott gears up for a White House bid.

The Thursday announcement of Scotts participation from his campaign comes before he is widely anticipated to formally launch his presidential campaign Monday.

Im grateful to Joni for inviting me back to her annual Roast and Ride. I know from my frequent visits to the Hawkeye State that Iowans are committed to defending the conservative values that make our nation exceptional, Scott said in a statement.

He is the latest Republican to announce hell be heading to Iowa for the Roast and Ride, joining the likes of announced and presumed White House contenders former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, former Vice President Pence, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and conservative talk radio host Larry Elder.

Iowa is a crucial early presidential primary state for Republicans, and different candidates have been making the rounds to the state in hopes of garnering support ahead of the Iowa caucuses next year.

Former President Trump was scheduled to host a rally in Des Moines this past week but canceled due to weather concerns. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who had already scheduled several visits in the state for the weekend, added a last-minute stop in Des Moines as he seized on the former presidents absence there.

Both men have previously made appearances in the Hawkeye State.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
I just cant see Scott Petersons latest appeal getting any more traction than his previous ones.

To accept his claim of new evidence, appellate justices would have to disregard facts established at his 2004 trial. That seems unlikely, no matter how much his supporters keep harping about the burglary across the street or about people who say they saw his pregnant wife, Laci, dog walking in their Modesto neighborhood on Christmas Eve 2002.

Either theory would mean Scott did not kill Laci and their unborn son, to be named Conner, which is why his legal team has spent years trying to substantiate them. But neither makes sense to those of us who observed the six-month trial in Redwood City, and Ill tell you why.

First, the defense theories. If Laci confronted the burglars and they kidnapped and killed her, or if someone else snatched her as she walked their golden retriever, then of course Scott is innocent. Either guilty party would have dumped her body where everyone knew Scott had been fishing that day in San Francisco Bay, framing him for the crime.

His defense team, led by celebrity attorney Mark Geragos, tried to make a version of these theories work for jurors at trial, without success. Scotts previous appeals, as well as the latest, accused Geragos and his team of not trying hard enough. And thats just not true.

Balloons danced in the wind outside Laci Petersons home on Covena Avenue in Modesto in 2003.

Recapturing six months of testimony here isnt possible, but it all comes down to the Christmas Eve timeline. Because of proven cellphone calls and receipts, the following is undisputed.

Scott left the Covena Avenue home before 10:08 a.m. Neighbor Karen Servas, leaving to do errands, found the Petersons dog running loose and put it in their backyard with its leash attached about 10:18 a.m.

Across the street, Susan and Rodolfo Medina left home about 10:30 a.m. Burglars broke in sometime between then and Dec. 26, when the Medinas returned.

All reported sightings of a pregnant woman and her dog  about a dozen  came after 10:30 a.m.

Scott returned home around 5 p.m. and found the dog, McKenzie, in the backyard, leash still attached. He reported Laci missing and a massive search was launched. He told detectives Laci had been preparing to mop and to walk the dog when he left that morning.

Why didnt Geragos and his team call to the stand witnesses who might support the burglary or dog-walking theories? Because these lawyers arent stupid. Were getting to that.

Scotts subsequent appeals speculate that Laci was still alive and probably in the house when Servas found the dog wandering free, and that Laci later retrieved the retriever, went on her walk and met her doom.

Why Scott Petersons stories havent flown

To buy this scenario, it would be nice to know why the dog was free with leash attached in the first place; I guess thats possible, if Laci started walking, then got distracted, left the dog unattended (or it escaped) and later resumed the walk. But to expect that whoever snatched Laci in the neighborhood would take the trouble to secretly return the dog to her backyard and leave the leash attached, exactly as Servas left it earlier and Scott found it later, defies reason.

To believe the burglar scenario, first you have to discount the work police did to establish that it didnt happen Christmas Eve before Scott returned. Then you have to believe that Laci walked the dog and for some reason put it in her backyard with the leash attached before the burglars grabbed her. Or maybe the polite or clever burglars returned the dog to her backyard, leash attached  exactly as Servas left it sometime earlier.

Seriously, what makes more sense  any of the above, or this theory: That Scott murdered Laci, took her body and let the dog run free? Someone would find it with leash attached, matching both the theory that Laci vanished while dog walking and the alibi Scott would feed to police.

A framed wedding photo of Laci and Scott Peterson in an office at Janey Petersons family business in Poway, Calif. in 2018.

Geragos arranged to call one of the burglars to the witness stand, but didnt. Only Geragos and his legal team know why, but heres an educated guess: the burglar had significant credibility issues, and jurors wouldnt believe him.

Neither did Geragos call any of the 12 or so people who thought they might have seen a pregnant dog walker in the neighborhood. I might shed some light on this, from personal experience.

In those days, the Peterson story was among the biggest in the nation, often topping newscasts and always in cable shows  especially after Amber Frey, Scotts secret girlfriend, came forward. The Modesto Bee was what we call the paper of record, overturning every rock in search of information that might keep us ahead of very intense competition.

A Bee reporter at the time, I tracked down and interviewed some who reported these sightings, and found none to be credible. All began with something like, In my minds eye, I think I can recall the blurred shape of .... All knew, perhaps subconsciously  thanks to oodles of media reports  exactly the time they should say they saw a pregnant woman walking a dog.

I came to the conclusion that these well-meaning people were just like hundreds of volunteers scouring Modesto parks, all hoping to help locate the missing 27-year-old substitute teacher with the gorgeous smile who had become a media darling.

Geragos knew that each witness would be picked apart by prosecutors on cross-examination. Thats why he didnt call them to the stand.

Third burglar theory

In the end, the weak-sauce theory Geragos tried to sell to the jury  that vagrants must have captured and killed Laci, and framed Scott  was not terribly different than those in his two subsequent appeals. Those who didnt buy any of these alternate facts include authorities, jurors, appellate justices and the California Supreme Court.

Scott Peterson is resentenced after his death penalty was overturned, in December 2021.

The Supreme Court did overturn his death penalty because of an error made during jury selection  the biggest win of Scotts appeals.

So whats this latest appeal? Its another habeas corpus petition, which inmates can bring if theyve found new evidence. This one claims to have turned up people who say they heard banter from someone else who claims he helped the others break into the Medina home  a third burglar, previously unknown to anyone despite numerous investigations over two decades.

Well yeah, if they can actually locate this guy, lets hear what he has to say. But the fact that Scott could not find a single licensed attorney to sign the 264-page appeal speaks volumes. Its most significant request may be for money to hire experts to prove that Laci was still alive when her husband left that Christmas Eve morning  an idea which judges on all levels have rejected.

In December, a judge ruled that a juror in 2004 made mistakes on a pretrial questionnaire but did not secretly plot to deceive attorneys and the court to help punish Americas most notorious accused killer, at the time, and he remains behind bars with a life sentence.

That was Scott Petersons best chance at a new trial  not this latest appeal.
Lorna Slater said Scottish ministers would have to decide its future if the UK does not give the go-ahead

Scotland's deposit return scheme could be axed later this month if UK ministers do not give the go-ahead, the circular economy minister has said.

Lorna Slater said if an exemption from the Internal Market Act was not confirmed then the Scottish government would have to decide on its future.

The BBC understands UK ministers are unlikely to reach an early decision.

Ms Slater told the Scottish Grocers' Federation that a lack of response could render the scheme "unviable".

Opposition parties accused the Scottish government of trying to "pass the buck" for problems with the recycling scheme to Westminster.

A UK government spokesman said it received a formal request for an exemption on 6 March, with the Scottish government having since paused the scheme until March of next year.

The spokesman added: "It therefore hasn't been possible yet for us to fully assess the impacts of the exclusion request on cross-UK trade, firms and consumers.

"We will continue to engage with the Scottish government to realise our shared ambition to improve the environment while meeting the needs of consumers and businesses across the UK."

The scheme, which is aimed at increasing the number of single-use drinks bottle and cans that are recycled, was due to start in August.

Open letter

Ms Slater said she was still working closely with the UK government to make the launch happen.

The Scottish Green co-leader, who has been driving the initiative, said she would know "one way or the other" by the end of the month.

Groups such as Greenpeace UK, Keep Britain Tidy and the Marine Conservation Society have signed an open letter to the prime minister, demanding the UK government grants an exemption for DRS in Scotland under the Internal Market Act - which regulates trade in the different parts of the UK following Brexit.

The letter, which has also been signed by the Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland, Friends of the Earth Scotland, WWF Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful, Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful and Keep Wales Tidy, said the scheme was "the single most effective policy tool available to reduce litter in our towns and countryside".

They told Mr Sunak that businesses in Scotland have "already invested hundreds of millions of pounds" ahead of the scheme being brought in, and they "would be substantially out of pocket if the launch date was changed again".

Bottles and cans could be returned over the counter or through reverse vending machines

The scheme requires Westminster to grant an exemption to the UK-wide Internal Market Act, given its possible implications for business elsewhere in the UK.

It has faced opposition from many small breweries and distillers.

It will see 20p added to the price of a single-use drinks container in Scotland, which will be refunded to people who return the container for recycling.

Some retailers will accept returns over the counter while larger stores, shopping centres and community hubs will operate automated receiving points known as reverse vending machines.

Recycling schemes are currently operated by local authorities, with glass collections being a source of income for councils.

'Growing urgency'

Circularity Scotland, a not-for-profit company established to administer the new scheme, said the ongoing uncertainty was causing a crisis for its future.

Its chief executive David Harris, said: "We have written to the prime minister and first minister to stress the growing urgency around this and make it clear that many millions of pounds and hundreds of jobs are at risk if there is further delay.

"Business and industry have come together to make this a reality, without any cost to the taxpayer.

"However, we now find ourselves caught in a policy vacuum which calls the very future of delivering successful deposit return schemes in the UK into question."

Analysis box by Jamie McIvor, news correspondent, BBC Scotland

If the Deposit Return Scheme is scrapped, how would it reflect on the Scottish government?

Would it be a political humiliation for them? A decision to scrap an initiative they had defended then delayed in the face of intense criticism from some businesses?

Or would it be a demonstration of the limits of devolution and an argument for independence? A decision effectively forced upon the Scottish government because the UK government would not play ball.

The signs are the Scottish government is preparing to argue the latter is the case.

If the UK government did not grant an exemption to the Internal Market Act, supporters of independence could attempt to turn it in to a constitutional issue.

As with gender recognition reform or the power to hold a second independence referendum, the issue for many independence supporters would ultimately be about the power of the Scottish Parliament - not the rights or wrongs of the policy in question.

But pro-union parties would in turn accuse the Scottish government of simply engaging in a turf war with Westminster.

And with so many in the business world concerned about the practicalities of the Deposit Return Scheme, the opposition parties would be likely to accuse the Scottish government of picking the wrong fight.

Ms Slater, who previously came under fire for refusing to reveal details of Circularity Scotland's finances, told BBC Scotland the delay was causing "enormous uncertainty" for businesses in Scotland.

"We're in such a frustrating situation," she said. "We have put in so much work towards Scotland's return scheme.

"We estimate around 300m has been invested in Scotland, jobs have been created, IT systems been set up, vehicles have been purchased, sorting centres are underway, we are ready to go.

"The only thing we're waiting for is the prime minister to issue this exemption to the Internal Market Act that we first started working on with the UK government back in 2021."

The minister urged the UK government to agree to the exclusion "by the end of May at the latest", adding it was "essential to the successful delivery of the scheme."

'Trying to pass the buck'

But the Scottish Conservatives accused Ms Slater of "trying to pass the buck" to Westminster.

MSP Maurice Golden told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme that Ms Slater's intervention was "utterly bizarre" and an "attempt to stoke constitutional grievance".

He said while an exemption "would be welcome", there were still "major concerns about the operational viability which have nothing to do with UK government".

Mr Golden called for a change of minister in charge of the scheme because Ms Slater had "completely lost the confidence of environmental groups, businesses and consumers".
The Scramble to Take Over What Bed Bath & Beyond Left Behind

A Bed Bath & Beyond store in Manhattan, on April 24, 2023. (Karsten Moran/The New York Times)

Engaged couples are struggling to navigate Bed Bath & Beyonds faltering wedding registry system. Suppliers are scrambling to cultivate new business partnerships. Landlords are quickly closing deals on leases for suddenly vacated big-box locations. On TikTok, a shoppers daily trips to a Manhattan store have found a receptive audience.

After Bed Bath & Beyonds recent Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, the winding down of the 52-year-old home-goods giant has led to frustration, sorrow and a race to capitalize on its demise.

C.C. Manstrom is one person who feels left in the lurch. Since setting up her wedding registry with the retailer in January, she has watched a majority of the 30 items on the list slowly become unavailable. This month, when her great-aunt went to a location in Fargo, North Dakota, she was told that the retailer could no longer keep track of what had been purchased off the registry. Manstrom is now concerned she may receive multiple George Foreman grills or baking sets as gifts.

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The retailer also stopped honoring credits, which means Manstrom is out the $60 that had been put into her account for gifts that were purchased but not available. She hasnt been able to get a customer service representative on the phone, and when she went to her local store, the employees werent able to help.

It is frustrating, Manstrom, 25, said. Its a new task you have to deal with on the wedding checklist.

As a backup, Manstrom and her fiance, whose wedding is scheduled for July 23, decided to set up another registry on Amazon.

Julie Strider, a spokesperson for Bed Bath & Beyond, said the retailer was searching for a third-party partner to transfer customers data so shoppers could complete their registries. She added that customers were still able to view and download the existing registry data.

In the meantime, other companies are swooping in to fill the void for the newly engaged. Etsy unveiled a wedding registry on May 10 and said thousands of couples had signed up. Zola, an online registry business, has received several hundred emails from couples asking to transfer over their Bed Bath & Beyond registries, Emily Forrest, a company spokesperson, said.

Competitors of Buy Buy Baby, which Bed Bath & Beyond owns and is also being liquidated, are seeing benefits, too. Babylist, an online registry business, said the number of registries created on its platform in the past few weeks since Bed Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy was 35% higher than a year ago. More than 1,200 registry accounts have been transferred to its site, Natalie Gordon, the companys CEO, said.

Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby suppliers have been revising their strategies in recent months. Many held back inventory and devoted less resources to the retailer as it tried to work through a turnaround plan. Still, because Bed Bath & Beyond is known for its ability to carry a vast array of products, it continued to attract smaller companies trying to raise their profiles.

I do think that theres going to be some lost opportunities for some brands, said Steve Greenspon, the chair of the International Housewares Association and CEO of the home storage brand Honey-Can-Do, which stopped selling with Bed Bath & Beyond last year.

Christina Carbonell and Galyn Bernard, the founders of the gender-neutral clothing brand Primary, are rethinking their strategy to sell within stores as Buy Buy Baby goes out of business. Shortly after their apparel hit shelves in April last year, they felt the impact of the retailers financial troubles. In August, when Bed Bath & Beyond rolled out its turnaround plan, Buy Buy Baby cut its order with Primary, as it did with several other suppliers. Inside stores, they saw that their merchandise inventory was low.

The experience caused the founders to focus on becoming profitable without relying on the sales from the Buy Buy Baby partnership, which accounted for about 10% of their business, they said.

Going into the next wholesale partnership, I would be more inclined to start small and learn and build on that learning than to go big right away, Carbonell said.

Overstock.com, the online retailer known for selling larger furniture such as sofas and beds, is using this moment to court Bed Bath & Beyonds former suppliers. In the second half of 2022, Overstock steadily expanded its offerings of pots and pans and coffee makers from Keurig and Mr. Coffee.

Today, Bed Bath & Beyond suppliers continue to look for alternative distribution channels and are expanding their footprint with us, Jonathan Johnson, the CEO of Overstock, said in an interview. As others struggle, more people are willing to sell products to us because they need the distribution.

Other retailers are using Bed Bath & Beyonds own tools to win over the shoppers they are leaving behind. The Container Store, Big Lots and the regional department store Boscovs have said they will honor the big blue coupons even after Bed Bath & Beyond stopped accepting them. It is likely that these once-ubiquitous calling cards will remain in circulation for some time.

While the strategy of accepting the coupons distributed by a now-failing competitor is an intriguing one, it probably creates more buzz than sales, said Kelly Goldsmith, a professor of marketing at Vanderbilt University.

Will it necessarily juice your revenue directly? Probably not, Goldsmith said. But its a good way to remind people that you are out there and should they need a substitute for Bed Bath & Beyond, you are available.

For the moment, a number of Bed Bath & Beyond locations remain open, and shoppers are keeping a close eye on liquidation sales. Since the bankruptcy announcement, Ellie Maeda has made a habit of going to Bed Bath & Beyonds last Manhattan location as soon as the doors open each day to monitor the latest discounts and share them with her 5,400 followers on TikTok.

In her posts, she gives updates on whats still well stocked (coffee pods and dining sets) and the new stacks of products that pop up (purifying systems and Breville blenders). She laments the merchandise that hasnt been marked down enough yet for her to buy (KitchenAid mixers and bedsheets).

Im just a gal with a dream, manifesting 40%, Maeda, 27, said. I want everyone to get what they want so badly. If we all collectively wait it out together, hopefully the sales will get a little better.

Amazon, Walmart, Target and Kohls are expected to be the retailers that benefit most once Bed Bath & Beyond closes its doors permanently. While they may see a sales lift, some analysts caution that not all of the bankrupt retailers sales will be absorbed by competitors. The market for home goods could just shrink.

People who really, really shopped them wont shop anywhere else, said Dave Marcotte, a senior vice president of Kantar Consulting. Along the way, a lot of money disappears.

That was the case when Circuit City filed for bankruptcy in 2009, he said.

One notable difference between the Bed Bath & Beyond bankruptcy and those of retailers during the 2008 downturn is that it probably wont leave scores of empty storefronts in its wake.

In the weeks since Bed Bath & Beyond said it would close its 480 stores by the end of June, Brandon Svec, who studies retail analytics at the real estate firm CoStar, has seen how potential tenants have swooped in to sign leases for locations the retailer is exiting. The demand is so great that some of the locations will never hit the open market, as landlords and tenants negotiate directly, he said.

Grocers like Natural Grocers, off-price retailers like Burlington, T.J. Maxx and Five Below and gyms like Crunch Fitness and Urban Air are among the tenants that have moved in after Bed Bath & Beyond vacated. Canadian Tire paid $1.6 million this month to acquire 10 former Bed Bath & Beyond locations.

In some cases, the locations that housed Americans fading obsession with brick-and-mortar retail are making room for a new favorite pastime: Landlords are moving pickleball gyms into old Bed Bath & Beyond stores.

Theres a lot of good real estate, Svec said. Its going to be some locations that are going to take a little bit longer to sell. But for the most part, this seems to be a good time for this to happen from a perspective of the market.

c.2023 The New York Times Company
An Uzbek archaeologist's perspective on China-Uzbekistan cooperation

People's Daily Online) 08:19, May 18, 2023

Nasibillo Kambarov, the author of the story. (Photo courtesy of Nasibillo Kambarov)

The China-Central Asia Summit will be held soon in Xi'an, China. I'm confident that cooperation between China and Central Asian countries will be more fruitful in the future. As an archaeologist, I anticipate seeing how this summit will help China and Central Asian countries deepen cultural exchanges and collaboration.

Uzbekistan boasts a long history as a nation along the Silk Road. The Silk Road is not just a trade route; it's a pathway connecting the peoples and cultures of various countries. The Belt and Road Initiative has emerged as a way to bolster the links between the East, Central Asia and the West.

Central Asia serves as a vital hub, linking China and Europe. The flourishing trade and sustained peace along the Silk Road Economic Belt have created a wealth of tremendous opportunities for cultural exchanges between Eastern and Western countries.

Since 2014, I have been a part of the Uzbekistan-China joint archaeological team, which, while working in Uzbekistan, made significant breakthroughs in studying the Da Yueji and the heritage of Kushan culture. This research has unveiled a great deal of information about Uzbekistan's history. Under the leadership of Wang Jianxin, chief scientist of the Collaborative Research Center for Archaeology of the Silk Roads of Xi'an-based Northwest University and a professor at the university's School of Cultural Heritage, the study was conducted in Rabot village, Boysun, in southern Uzbekistan.

The son of the author. (Photo courtesy of Nasibillo Kambarov)

I hope China and Central Asian countries will further their cooperation in archaeological studies and museums. China has had immense success in the musealization of history and cultural relics. For Central Asian countries, China's experience and methods are worth learning. To my knowledge, Chinese and Uzbek experts have jointly restored the renowned ancient city of Khiva, with Chinese archaeological restoration methods gaining significant popularity in Uzbekistan. I am also compiling China's advanced archaeological experience and achievements, translating them for use in Uzbekistan, and sharing them with my students. In the future, I plan to conduct research on the Da Yuan Kingdom and solve the archaeological problems related to it. I'm sure cooperation with Chinese archaeologists will yield fruitful results.

Nasibillo Kambarov is a Ph.D. student at Xi'an-based Northwest University and a member of the Uzbekistan-China joint archaeological team.

(Web editor: Liang Jun, Du Mingming)
Seattle among six areas to get help from Biden administration to address homeless crisis

The Biden Administration unveiled a new initiative on Thursday to partner with six places -- including Seattle -- to address the ongoing homelessness crisis.

Seattle will be joined by Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and the state of California. Labeled the All INside initiative, it will embed a federal official in each locale to accelerate locally-driven strategies and enact system-level changes to reduce unsheltered homelessness. Federal teams will also work to identify funding streams, while philanthropic and private sector organizations step in to help as well.

The overarching goal of the White House is to reduce homelessness by 25% by January 2025.

This plan meets the urgency of the moment, President Biden said in an initial release outlining the program. It recognizes that its not enough to go back to the way things were before the pandemic.

We must build a better future for all Americans, he continued. This plan also recognizes that homelessness should not be a partisan issue. A great nation has a moral obligation to ensure housing, but its also the smart thing to do.

Several agencies within the Biden administration will work together to address issues related to equitable housing across the six areas included in the All INside initiative. That includes the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Social Security Administration, the Department of Labor, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.




By Zohra Bensemra and Mahamat Ramadane

KOUFROUN, Chad (Reuters) - Fleeing the village to escape from attackers, crossing a desert border, building a shelter from straw and rags, waiting for food aid: these are familiar hardships for Halime Adam Moussa, who has fled Sudan for Chad with her family for a second time.

Moussa, 68, is one of 60,000 Sudanese refugees, mostly women and children, who have poured over the border since war broke out on April 15, seeking safety in Chad, one of the world's hungriest, most neglected countries.

For her, it is a repeat journey. In 2003, she had fled her village of Tidelti, in Sudan's western region of Darfur, when it came under attack by government-backed janjaweed militia, ethnic Arabs who were then targeting African farmers and herders.

A mother of seven, she spent six years in a refugee camp in Chad with her children before being allocated a small plot of land to farm, which allowed her to get by for a decade.

Her children grew up in Chad and some married Chadian citizens, but she yearned for home and went back to Darfur with some of her children and grandchildren in 2020, rebuilding her old house and reconnecting with family and friends.

Now, the fighting in Sudan between the military and a paramilitary force that evolved from the janjaweed has stirred up tensions in Darfur that were never fully resolved and intercommunal fighting has forced her to flee again.

Moussa is now living in a makeshift refugee camp that is rapidly spreading into the desert around the sleepy Chadian border town of Koufroun, reeling from the latest loss of her home and livelihood from farming.

HUNGER

"If you have land, even if you have no money you can sell your produce to survive, but when you have nothing, you suffer," she said, sitting on a mat in front of an improvised hut made from straw, pieces of cloth and plastic.

Moussa is sharing her meagre space and resources with children and grandchildren who fled Tidelti with her.

The landscape is flat and barren, a brown expanse of sand dotted with scrubby trees. Water comes from wells dug into the arid soil and carried in jerricans by the women. Getting food involves long queues in the glare of the sun.

Chad, which shares a 1,400-km (870-mile) border with Sudan, was already struggling to cope before the latest influx of Darfuris joined some 600,000 refugees, mostly Sudanese who fled earlier waves of violence in their country.

In total, 2.3 million people in Chad are in urgent need of food aid and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has issued an urgent appeal for $162.4 million to help feed them.

Chad has one of the worst hunger problems in the world. More than a third of its children under five are stunted. The U.N.'s $674 million annual programme to support the country is so far only 4.6% funded.

The WFP is warning that without more funding, food assistance for refugees and Chadians risks drying up.

"We have no choice but to fend for ourselves if humanitarian aid stops," said Harana Arabi Souleymane, 65, who like Moussa fled Darfur for a second time. She had spent two years in Chad in 2003-2005, at the height of the Darfur conflict, before returning home.

She said that if the situation stabilised in Sudan, she and her relatives would go home, where they have houses and land.

"But if violence continues, we will have to build houses to restart our lives here. We can stay here for years, for as long as the Chadian authorities allow us."

(Additional reporting by Nafisa Eltahir; Writing by Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Christina Fincher)
From Day One, information about the killings of four University of Idaho students last November has been lacking, and community members have been misled or kept in the dark.

Remember when police first responded to the scene of the off-campus house in Moscow, where they found four students stabbed to death? They communicated to the public that there is no imminent threat to the community at large, even though whoever killed those students was still on the loose, meaning there was indeed an imminent threat to the community at large.

It took days to even hold a press conference to inform the community the basics of what police had discovered, something Moscow Police James Fry has admitted was a misstep.

The vacuum created by a lack of public information led to wild speculation and rumors, doing further damage to the victims and their families.

Even after the arrest of Bryan Kohberger in December, the dearth of information continued. The judge in the case issued a broad gag order, leaving more questions unanswered.

To make matters worse, we learned this week that prosecutors used a grand jury, a secret process, to indict Kohberger.

Using a grand jury allows prosecutors to move forward with the case without disclosing details publicly. Its a perfectly legal thing to do, of course, but now a community that has been waiting for answers will have to wait even longer.

A preliminary hearing, originally scheduled for June 26 but now canceled, would have been public, and prosecutors would have laid out some details of the case against Kohberger for a district judge to decide whether there was sufficient evidence to move the case forward.

A preliminary hearing would have been a chance for the community to learn from police and prosecutors some idea of what happened and how the investigation played out. Instead, the prosecution has chosen to hide the details for another year or more until Kohbergers trial begins.

Even though some information about Kohberger has since been learned, much is still unknown.

We still dont know what police are asserting Kohbergers motives might have been. We dont know whether police think Kohberger targeted one of the students in particular, or if he did, why. We still dont know how police found Kohberger or how they did their work to connect him to deaths they say he caused.

The only reason that the people of Moscow and the students at the University of Idaho right now have to believe that the killer is in custody is from police convincing them that he did it. A preliminary hearing laying out at least part of the case was the chance to let the community know, and the state passed on that opportunity by going with a grand jury.

Police and prosecutors did not do a thorough job disclosing information right from the start, and continued secrecy often does little to restore trust.

Some will say that releasing too much information creates a feeding frenzy. The opposite is true: When information is withheld, thats when imaginations run wild, when speculation and rumors are rampant, when people feel the need to dig.

Others may suggest that releasing too much information would make it harder to find an untainted jury pool. There may be some truth to that, but that doesnt outweigh the importance of informing a community that is waiting for answers.

Students and their parents are especially eager to know Moscow is a safe choice. A preliminary hearing would have been a better path in this case. The secrecy of a grand jury just leaves the people of Moscow and beyond to wonder, guess and speculate.

And thats not good for anyone.

Statesman editorials are the unsigned opinion of the Idaho Statesmans editorial board. Board members are opinion editor Scott McIntosh, opinion writer Bryan Clark, editor Chadd Cripe, newsroom editors Dana Oland and Jim Keyser and community member Mary Rohlfing.
'We are selling a product that we hope gets discontinued'

Invasive silver carp have damaged rivers in the US, and Canadian authorities want to keep them out

Invasive species cause ecological and economic damage around the world. Now some firms are seeing a commercial opportunity, by using such non-native animals and plants as a valuable resource.

Caitlin Benn, marketing director for dog food business Wilder Harrier, explains that the company hopes it will one day no longer be able to make one of its most popular products.

"It may sound weird to be actively selling a product that we hope gets discontinued," says Ms Benn. "But that's part of our purpose... because we want to make a difference.

"And that includes a product line with - all going to plan - a diminishing supply of its main ingredient."

Ms Benn is talking about the Canadian firm's "Sustainable Fish" dried dog food. It is made from an invasive species of fish called silver carp.

Native to China and eastern Siberia, silver carp were introduced to fish farms in the US in the 1970s, only to then escape quickly into the wild. Fast-forward to today, and the fish have spread widely along the Mississippi River and its tributary rivers and connected canals.

A voracious eater of fresh-water plankton, silver carp's presence has decimated native fishing stocks as it outcompetes them for this food source.

Canadian firm Wilder Harrier turns silver carp into dried dog food

The big fear of both US and Canadian environmental authorities is this invasive species reaching the Great Lakes. That could potentially cause a collapse in commercial and recreational fishing on the lakes, and see the fish move on to Canadian rivers.

The Canadian province of Ontario's Invasive Species Awareness Programme doesn't mince its words when it calls the silver carp, and fellow invasive species bighead carp, "unwanted invaders" and "representing the most severe threat to Ontario's waters".

One key way to significantly reduce silver carp numbers is to catch the fish as a food source. Yet while silver carp is fine for humans to eat, and one taster described the fish as "quite palatable", getting people to actually buy the species appears to be a tough sell.

Thankfully dogs are far less picky, and so Wilder Harrier is doing its bit to help tackle the problem.

It launched its silver carp-based dog food in 2020, using fish removed from waters in the US state of Illinois. To date it says it has sold more than 10,000 2kg and 5kg bags.

"We've removed roughly 12,000 silver carp from American lakes and rivers, that's 50 tonnes of fish," says Ms Benn.

The firm's dog food is now available both online and at shops across Canada and the US.

In the Caribbean, one of the most problematic invasive species is sargassum, a large seaweed that first floated in from the Atlantic Ocean in 2011.

When it accumulates on shorelines it can smother beaches, and as it decays it gives off a foul smell like rotten eggs. It suffocates resident wildlife, and the toxic gases it releases - hydrogen sulphide and ammonia - can cause headaches, nausea and breathing difficulties in humans.

"We don't have white beaches anymore," says Pierre-Antoine Guibout, who moved to the Caribbean island of St Barts eight years ago. "We have brown beaches. It's not nice. It smells bad."

Pierre-Antoine Guibout wanted to make use of all the sargassum that was covering beaches on St Barts

In just over a decade the amount of sargassum washing ashore across the Caribbean has tripled, with mounds up to a metre deep.

This increase has been fuelled by rising water temperatures, and fertiliser release into the sea, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

The fishing industry suffers through loss of species and damaged equipment, and it is terrible for tourism.

"We usually see sargassum [on the shore] from March to July," says Mr Guibout. "But this period is becoming longer and longer."

The huge influxes have been recognised as a natural disaster, and many countries have declared national states of emergency.

But Mr Guibout sees a resource. Recognising that the seaweed is both strong and flexible, he realised its potential as a cardboard-like material.

In 2019 he launched an initiative called the Sargasse Project, whose sargassum cardboard is now being tested by laboratories in France before the project moves onto the commercial stage.

Mr Guibout hopes that online retailers like Amazon and France's La Redoute will one day switch to the material to make their delivery boxes.

The Sargasse Project's sargassum cardboard is currently undergoing testing

"We don't know how to eliminate invasive species like this," he says. "The only solution we have right now is to make something useful with it."

In South Korea a company called Star's Tech is using another invasive species - Japanese common starfish - as an ingredient in its environmentally-friendly de-icer Eco-ST.

"Asterias amurensis - or Japanese common starfish - is a predator causing massive damage to aquaculture," says Dan Shin, sales manager at Star's Tech. "They have a high fertility rate and huge appetite."

Star's Tech removes an extract from the starfish's skeleton structure, which it says makes its de-icer less corrosive to concrete and metal.

The product launched in the South Korean market two years ago, and now Star's Tech has set its sights overseas, hoping to break into Canada, the US, Europe and Japan.

Global Trade

More from the BBC's series taking an international perspective on trade.

The impact and control of invasive species now costs the global economy many billions of dollars a year, according to global conservation body the International Union for Conservation of Nature. While it does not put an exact figure on the total, it says the impact from non-native insects alone accounts for more than $70bn (56bn) a year.

And Prof Helen Roy, an expert on the problem, says things are only going to get worse. "The problem is increasing regardless of species, regardless of where in the world," says the researcher from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

One 2020 study predicts that the number of alien species around the world will increase by more than a third between 2005 and 2050. This increase is fuelled by more human movement around the world.

Back in Montreal, Caitlin Benn says Wilder Harrier is determined to do its bit. "As far as other invasive species go, we've got a long list of ones we're actively exploring.

"Right now, the one that we're most excited about is wild boar."
Sen. Dianne Feinsteins return to Capitol has been closely watched. Can she still do her job?

For seven months in 1988, Joe Biden was absent from the Senate, recovering from operations to repair brain aneurysms.

The first lasted eight hours. Three months later, a second aneurysm sent him back to surgery.

The Delaware senators convalescence was so guarded that he wouldnt take phone calls from President Ronald Reagan. Colleagues feared that even if he recovered, he wouldnt be the same, according to a Biden memoir and Delaware Today.

Press scrutiny was respectful and scarce. But when the gregarious Biden returned to the Senate, it was pretty much business as usual.

The Washington Post reported he came buoyantly back into his senatorial duties yesterday, greeted at almost every turn by reunions, tributes and the other rites by which the Senate tribe honors the return of a fallen warrior.

Fast forward to 2023.

As Sen. Dianne Feinstein tries to ease herself back into the comfortable, collegial Senate, shes finding an endlessly curious press corps and public.

Can the California Democrat, whose term ends in January 2025, continue to do her job in a world where her every utterance and appearance will be played, replayed and scrutinized? How long will Californians tolerate an ailing, frail senator they remember as the dynamic, savvy San Francisco mayor who became a Washington power broker for a generation?

The roll calls and being present for committee votes are probably the biggest thing right now, and she is doing that. There are other representational activities that she is not doing that could mean it is a bit harder to represent the needs of all Californians, said Christian Grose, academic director of the University of Southern California Schwarzenegger Institute.

Her May 10 return to the Senate, after an three month absence due to shingles, illustrated the huge challenge ahead.

When Feinsteins car pulled up to the Senate entrance that afternoon, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer greeted her and an aide pushed her into the building in a wheelchair. The roughly 50 journalists who watched were instructed to keep about 20 feet away.

The Feinstein watch had begun.

I think Senator Feinstein is facing a high level of scrutiny because her long absence came when she was already facing public reporting by her hometown newspaper (the San Francisco Chronicle) that she was mentally unfit to serve in the Senate, said Gregory Koger, professor of political science at the University of Miami.

Her staff attributed her stay in California to shingles (with little other medical information), which is a painful malady but not ordinarily severe enough to keep someone from their job for two months, so there are a lot of unanswered questions about her capacity to do her job.

Biden and Feinstein

There are some significant differences between now and then, of course. Biden was 45 at the time and returned full of energy. Feinstein turns 90 next month, and her frail condition and memory lapses have been in plain view for some time. Her vote is crucial in a 51-49 Senate. In 1988, Biden was part of a 55-45 Democratic majority.

The biggest difference: The public and press.

There was kind of a moral code that has given way to super aggressiveness, said Ross Baker, professor of American politics at Rutgers University and a veteran congressional observer.

Even if reporters in years past did ask tough questions of ailing elected officials, the public often refrained from calling for their resignation or demanding more personal details.

Today, with cell phones at the ready to record anything and on-line audiences with a seemingly bottomless appetite for content, Feinstein is struggling with a different media culture.

The press is now more visual, more diverse, more critical, said Donald Ritchie, Senate historian emeritus.

Home in the Senate

The Senate is still a place where colleagues refer to each other as the gentleman or gentle lady, and where  unlike the more raucous House  personal attacks are exceedingly rare. Tolerance is as traditional in the Senate as the two spittoons that sit under each leaders desk (one for the Republican leader, one for the Democrat).

Its also a place with a long history of members who missed months, even years, of votes, and returned frail and sometimes confused.

Sen. Carter Glass, a Virginia Democrat, was 87 and had not voted in more than two years when he returned in 1945.

The distinguished senior Senator from Virginia was frail and silent, enfeebled by age and long illness, reported Time Magazine. Last week Virginia newspapers, respectfully but almost unanimously, were urging the aged Senator to retire.

Time found that this week reporters heard that the question of resignation had been put up to him. The man Franklin Roosevelt once called an unreconstructed rebel gave his answer: no. Glass would die a year later, still having cast no votes since becoming ill.

Sen. Clair Engle, a California Democrat, had a brain tumor and was partially paralyzed when the roll was called on breaking a filibuster on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He was able to lift his arm and point to his eye, and was recorded as an aye vote. He died six weeks later.

In 2001, Sen. Strom Thurmond was 98 when he fainted on the Senate floor.

Sen. Bill Frist, a cardiac surgeon, and others attended to the South Carolina Republican, and he was taken to a hospital. Thurmond was released the next day. Earlier in the year, he had suffered what CNN called a variety of low-level but persistent ailments, including stomach upset, back pain, dehydration and exhaustion.

More recently, Sen. Mark Kirk, an Illinois Republican, suffered a stroke in early 2012. He was paralyzed on his left side and didnt return to the Senate for a year. He sought re-election in 2016 and lost to Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat.

Sen. John McCain underwent brain surgery in 2017, then returned to the Senate to cast the decisive vote that ended the Trump administrations effort to partially repeal Obamacare. The Arizona Republican stopped voting that December as his health worsened. He died in August 2018.

While four House members, including Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, a leading progressive voice, have have called for Feinsteins resignation, Senate colleagues remained supportive.

Even in a polarized political environment, the Senate remains a collegial institution, Ritchie said.

Feinstein in the 2020s

Feinstein has in recent years been a shadow of the shrewd, confident politician who became a senator in 1992.

She infuriated many Democrats in 2020 after the Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Barrett had been whisked through the process with unusual speed after the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

After the contentious hearing, Feinstein hugged Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and said This has been one of the best set of hearings that Ive participated in.

With the urging of party Senate leaders, who were concerned not only about the criticism but her ability to lead the committee, Feinstein stepped down from her post as the committees top Democrat. Three years later, she declined to become Senate President Pro Tem, a largely ceremonial position that would put her third in line for the presidency.

But Feinstein still holds powerful positions on the Judiciary Committee and the Appropriations Committee, where key spending decisions are made. And she is still the senior senator representing the state with the worlds fourth largest economy and roughly 10% of the nations population.

When she came back to the Senate May 10, someone shouted a question asking her how she felt. Much better, she said, barely audible.

She didnt speak to the media, instead issuing a detailed statement saying she would pursue a lighter schedule. That means she will participate in floor votes and committee work, depending on whats on the schedule. She declined an interview request with The Bee.

Democrats control 51 seats. In the Senate Judiciary Committee, Democrats have 11 members to the Republicans 10, which means in her absence, its more difficult to move Bidens judicial nominations to full Senate consideration.

She attended the committee meeting last week, arriving late but in time to cast a vote sending three of the controversial judges to the floor.

The Senate has voted 14 times since she returned. She missed one on May 10 and three on Wednesday. All the votes since her return have been noncontroversial, usually involving judicial nominations or executive appointments.

Though she has been in a wheelchair, Feinstein walked while on the Senate floor. She had been diagnosed with shingles on February 26, was hospitalized until March 7, but is still feeling temporary side effects, including vision and balance impairments.

Even a somewhat limited Feinstein is important, said USCs Grose.

Feinstein being back in the work and casting votes on the judiciary committee for judges and engaging in these and other roll calls is a key part of representing her constituents, he said, so her being back to work  even with a light schedule  is representing a large group of her constituents.

And constituent service continues, because, Grose said, as most senators rely on their staff to do this work so I think that can still be done too.

Whats unknown is how much Feinstein can engage with those constituents. That means finding out what is on the mind of Californians, and it may be more challenging for Senator Feinstein to do this kind of work at this time, Grose said.
WASHINGTON  Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., experienced more complications than were publicly disclosed from a recent case of shingles that left her absent from Washington for nearly three months.

Feinstein, 89, had also suffered from Ramsay Hunt syndrome, which occurred when shingles spread to her head and neck, and a case of encephalitis, which is swelling of the brain, a person familiar with her situation said Thursday.

The New York Times first reported the previously undisclosed complications.

In brief appearances in the Capitol this week, Feinstein appeared to have paralysis on the left side of her face, a side effect of Ramsay Hunt syndrome.

A spokesperson for Feinstein later confirmed the complications.

The senator previously disclosed that she had several complications related to her shingles diagnosis. As discussed in the New York Times article, those complications included Ramsay Hunt syndrome and encephalitis," the spokesperson said in a statement Thursday night.

While the encephalitis resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital in March, she continues to have complications from Ramsay Hunt syndrome, the spokesperson said.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., during a Senate meeting on May 18, 2023. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

One of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's daughters, Nancy Corinne Prowda, has been helping Feinstein navigate the halls of Congress as she recovers from shingles  stoking speculation by Washington insiders about political motives of keeping Feinstein from retiring from the Senate.

Nancy Corinne "is a dear friend of Senator Feinsteins going back more than 40 years," a spokesperson for Feinstein said in a statement earlier Thursday. "She has been spending time with the senator as she continues to recover from shingles."

Feinstein has already announced she will not seek another term in the Senate, setting up a competitive Democratic primary to replace her. Should Feinstein retire before her term ends, California Gov. Gavin Newsom would name a temporary replacement, which some have argued may give an advantage to one of the candidates in the primary race.

Feinstein has been using a wheelchair. The San Francisco Chronicle first reported Prowdas assistance.

Feinstein returned to the Capitol last week after having been diagnosed with singles in February and hospitalized in San Francisco. She attended a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting where she helped Democrats advance three judicial nominees to the floor in party-line votes.

Some Democrats have called on Feinstein to resign from Congress because of her health, but she has been adamant about sticking around.

She said this year that she plans to retire from Congress at the end of 2024 after having served three decades in the Senate and over 50 years in public office. She is the oldest sitting senator and the longest-serving senator from California, having been elected in 1992.

CORRECTION (May 19, 2023, 1:04 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article misspelled part of the name of one of Nancy Pelosis daughters. Her name is Nancy Corinne Prowda, not Corrine.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Mike Rounds is first senator to endorse Tim Scott for president

South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds (R) says he will endorse Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) for president, becoming the first Republican senator to publicly endorse a candidate other than Donald Trump for president in 2024.

Rounds told The Washington Examiner on Wednesday that he has committed to backing Scott, who is expected to formally announce his campaign for president Monday in Charleston, S.C.

I do, Rounds said when asked whether he plans to endorse Scott. Ive already told him I would.

I think he is the closest to Ronald Reagan that youre going to see, he said.

Rounds praised Scott as a candidate who would bring our country together and cares deeply about making the right decisions.

I believe he will build a good team. Hes got a business background. Hes got a great personal story and he understands and he truly cares about people, he told The Examiner.

Scott, who has already formed an exploratory committee for a White House bid, says he will make a major announcement in Charleston May 22.

He is the only Black member of the Senate GOP conference and took a leading role in crafting elements of former President Trumps 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, notably tax incentives for investment in underserved communities.

The 57-year-old senator is running in sixth place in the expected Republican presidential primary field, garnering an average of 2 percent support in the polls.

Scott plans to travel to Iowa next month to attend Sen. Joni Ernsts (R-Iowa) Roast and Ride fundraiser, along with several other announced and presumed 2024 GOP candidates.

Iowa will host the first contest of the 2024 Republican presidential primary process.

Trump has the support of 11 Senate Republicans, including Sens. Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.), Mike Braun (Ind.), Ted Budd (N.C.), Steve Daines (Mont.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Bill Hagerty (Tenn.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.), Markwayne Mullin (Okla.), Eric Schmitt (Mo.), Tommy Tuberville (Ala.) and JD Vance (Ohio).

Graham, Scotts home-state colleague, explained in a CNN interview last month that he endorsed Trump over his fellow South Carolinian because he thought Trump was a good president on the things that mattered the most such as securing the U.S.-Mexico border and fighting Islamic terrorist organizations.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California talk to reporters after meeting with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Washington, about the debt ceiling. | Manuel Balce Ceneta, Associated Press

A day after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., met with President Joe Biden to try to hammer out an agreement on the debt ceiling, Republicans from the House and Senate gathered on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday to show they are united in their demand for cuts and reforms in exchange for increasing the amount of money the federal government can borrow.

House Democrats plan to test that resolve. They started collecting signatures on a discharge petition Wednesday to force a vote on a so-called clean debt ceiling bill, that would raise the ceiling with no conditions attached.

Senate GOP united behind House colleagues in debt ceiling fight

But it isnt just in the House that Democrats face resistance to raising the debt ceiling without conditions. In the Senate, where it takes 60 senators to pass a bill, Republican senators  several of whom were at the press conference Wednesday  say theyre backing the House Republican bill.

That includes Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who has been out front on the debt ceiling issue, pushing Republicans to hold the line on their demands.

Earlier this month, he wrote a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, signed by 42 fellow Republican senators, saying they are united behind the House Republican conference and that the House bill should be a starting point for negotiations on the debt ceiling.

Lee spoke at the press conference Wednesday, where he reiterated his support for a bill passed by House Republicans that increased the debt ceiling while including spending cuts and structural reforms.

We all understand the gravity of the situation, we need to address the debt ceiling, and we need to do so in a way that makes a difference to make sure that were not back here in just a few more months, Lee said.

Lee says Biden views debt ceiling as staring contest

In an op-ed for Fox News, published Wednesday, Lee said Biden viewed debt ceiling negotiations as a staring contest.

For decades, Washington has spent money it doesnt have, piling on debt year after year. The result is an unsustainable debt burden that threatens to strangle our economy, cripple our ability to invest in national priorities and leave future generations holding the bag, he wrote.

Senate Republicans stand united behind Speaker McCarthy, and the House Republicans. We all understand the gravity of the situation, we need to address the debt ceiling, and we need to do so in a way that makes a difference. -@SenMikeLee pic.twitter.com/Kf8aoW6Cm5  House Republicans (@HouseGOP) May 17, 2023

Related

Given resistance in the House and Senate, Biden has little choice but to continue negotiations. He struck a positive tone after his meeting with congressional leaders Tuesday.

There was an overwhelming consensus, I think in todays meeting with congressional leaders, that defaulting on the debt is simply not an option. Our economy would fall into recession, Biden said.

Debt ceiling debate forces Biden to cut trip short

Biden is expected to cut a visit to Asia short in order to continue debt ceiling negotiations. While he will visit Japan this week, planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia will likely be postponed, Politico reported.

But even as Biden gets more involved in the talks, some Republican lawmakers are frustrated it took him so long to agree to come to the negotiating table, especially as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen continually warned Congress about the dangers of a possible default.

While in Japan this week for a meeting with G7 finance ministers and central bankers, Yellen said a U.S. default would lead to an economic and financial catastrophe.

Moore says Biden is being disingenuous

In an interview with the Deseret News, Utah Rep. Blake Moore, a Republican who represents the 1st District, said the members of his caucus think a default is bad, but so are sky-high budget deficits. He also questioned why Biden stalled over starting negotiations.

The minute that Republicans won the majority in the House, President Biden knew he was going to have to negotiate on the debt ceiling, Moore said. He knew that and hes being completely disingenuous that for 97 days he refused to meet with Speaker McCarthy.

Moore is on the House debt ceiling task force, and he said theres a sincere desire among House Republicans to come to a resolution  but only if it includes spending reforms and cuts.

We are the only branch of government thats actually raised the debt ceiling, he said. Now its in the hands of Speaker McCarthy, President Biden, and leader Schumer and McConnell.

Sen. Mitt Romney also weighed in on negotiations Wednesday, saying in a tweet, POTUS correctly says default is catastrophic  so cut a deal with the House and end the madness.
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., on Thursday called for firings at the Federal Reserve over the central bank's failure to regulate Silicon Valley Bank in the run-up to its collapse.

The imperative from Scott came during Senate testimony from Michael Barr, the Fed's vice chair for supervision, who faced scrutiny from members of both major parties over his admitted failure to lead proper oversight of Silicon Valley Bank.

Barr authored a report last month that faulted the Fed's lax oversight and an inability to anticipate the systemic threat posed by the bank's failure.

MORE: Silicon Valley Bank CEO slammed by senator for 'really stupid bet'

In his testimony on Thursday, Barr took "full responsibility" for the inadequate performance of the Fed. Soon after, Scott responded: "Who did you fire?"

Barr said: "We have not fired someone as a result of this review."

"We plan to conduct further review of our supervisory structure and as we do that we'll be making sure we have the right personnel in place to get the job done," he added.

PHOTO: Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) speaks during the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on May 16, 2023. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Indicating dissatisfaction, Scott said, "I hope that includes making room for the right personnel by removing the wrong personnel."

The collapse in March of Silicon Valley Bank, the nation's 16th largest bank, set off a financial panic that led to the failure two days later of another major lender, Signature Bank.

The financial stress continues to weigh on the banking system. Late last month, regional lender First Republic Bank was seized and sold to JPMorgan Chase after a sudden downfall.

MORE: First Republic Bank fails: Was it a bailout?

The Fed report described Silicon Valley Bank as "an outlier" for its degree of financial exposure and mismanagement, but the report criticized the central bank for failing to recognize and address such risks before it was too late.

"Our first area of focus will be to improve the speed, force, and agility of supervision," Barr said in the report.

PHOTO: Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair for Supervision, Michael Barr, testifies before a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing in the wake of recent bank failures, on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 18, 2023. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

The report also criticized the Fed for underestimating the systemic risk posed by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, suggesting that regulators overlooked the panic that could result from a bank concentrated in a slice of the tech industry.

"The buck stops here," Barr told the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. "I'm committed to fixing the problems we've had in supervision and regulation going forward."

Senator calls on Fed to fire staff over Silicon Valley Bank failure originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Sensorio in Paso Robles to unveil 2 new light installations, celebrate fourth anniversary

In 2019, a British artist installed the Sensorio Field of Light  a sea of fiber-optic spheres that illuminate the Paso Robles countryside.

On Friday, to celebrate its four-year anniversary, Sensorio will unveil two new outdoor art exhibits, the organization said in a news release.

The event will be held from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. and is open to the public, who can buy tickets at the Sensorio website.

As part of the festivities, attendees can enjoy a slice of cake and a glass of champagne as they tour the new art installations, the release said.

The Sensorio Field of Light is located off Highway 46 East in Paso Robles.

The Field of Light features 100,000 stemmed spheres lit by fiber-optics, which illuminate the landscape in subtle blooms of morphing color, the release said.

Nearby, 69 Light Towers made of 17,000 wine bottles lit by optic fibers change colors to an ethereal musical score, the release said.

British artist Bruce Munro designed both art exhibits.

Sensorio was initially planned as a temporary exhibit, but organizers announced in 2021 that the installation will stay in Paso Robles indefinitely.

The newest attraction at the Sensorio Field of Light in Paso Robles is called Light Towers, a display of 69 columns assembled from 17,388 bottles illuminated by fiberoptic threads that gradually change colors. Each tower has 252 bottles.

Sensorio is located at 4380 Highway 46 East in Paso Robles. Tickets cost $22 for children 3 to 12-years-old and $44 for adults and can be purchased at sensoriopaso.com.




[Source]

SEVENTEEN's Wonwoo is taking part in a new mental health initiative launched by The Jed Foundation (JED) and Mindset, a self-care and wellness platform created by media company DIVE Studios.



During AAPI Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month, Mindset and JED will launch episodes featuring Wonwoo opening up about his personal journey and hardships as an artist.

The first episode was released on Thursday on Mindset's YouTube channel and can also be accessed through the Mindset app.

In the opening episode, Wonwoo discusses accepting imperfection.

More from NextShark: Markiplier to direct and star in movie adaptation of horror game Iron Lung

What I want to tell you is that there's an obvious difference between doing your best and seeking perfection. Actually, SEVENTEEN doesn't seek perfection. But we always do our best so that we have no regrets. What's important is in the process, not in the result. We make many mistakes onstage too. Even though fans may say our performance was perfect, we can see the little mistakes we made on stage. When we release an album, there are many times we feel like we could have done better. But because we did our best, we don't feel burdened. At the very least, we don't deceive ourselves in the process. Sometimes, it helps when you put everything down and break free from the word "perfect."

A second episode will be released on May 24, followed by the third and final episode on June 1. In the coming months, two additional collections will be launched, featuring the Korean indie rock band The Rose and an upcoming artist yet to be disclosed.

JED and DIVE's collaboration stems from their shared commitment to initiate discussions about mental health within their target audiences  Generation Z, BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ youth.

More from NextShark: Jackie Chan blasted as an Assad 'accomplice' for filming movie in bombed Syrian town

Statistics from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) revealed that AAPIs have the lowest rate of seeking help for mental health among all racial and ethnic groups.



Additionally, research by the National Latino and Asian American Study showed that only 8.6% of Asian Americans sought mental health services, compared to 19.2% of the general U.S. population.

Dr. Laura Erickson-Schroth, JED's chief medical officer, acknowledged the significance of the partnership, stating:

This is an important partnership for us, since we know Asian Americans are among the least likely to seek help for mental health out of any racial or ethnic group. Mindset's audience finds safety and support in music fandoms, making it a powerful tool paired with JED's mental health expertise to both reach and assist youth where they are. More from NextShark: New Studio Ghibli collection includes Inami chokuku Totoro figurine costing $2,450

Brian Nam, CEO of Mindset, emphasized the intention behind their platform, saying, "We started Mindset with the intention of normalizing these difficult conversations and supporting our audience through community and shared experiences.

To further facilitate the conversation, Brian and his brother, K-pop soloist Eric Nam, and JED expert Dr. Monica P. Band will be hosting the first-ever public virtual Mindset Town Hall event on May 18. Registration for the event is currently available via Eventbrite.

The virtual town hall event is an adaptation of Mindset's recent college tour events. NextShark previously interviewed Brian about Mindset and the tour.

More from NextShark: Ashs Japanese voice actor of 25 years performs viral remix of original Pokemon theme song
Shopper uses fake cash at Walmart and CVS but Dollar Tree rejects the bills, feds say

A New Jersey man purchased $2,590 in products from multiple stores in Pennsylvania with counterfeit money, but Dollar Tree refused to accept the fake money, according to federal authorities.

The 35-year-old man from Mercer County was indicted by a federal grand jury May 16 in the Middle District of Pennsylvania, according to a news release.

Authorities said he and an unidentified woman spent $1,400 at a Michaels store in Dickson City on April 20, 2022, and paid for it using fake $50 bills.

That same day, they used $750 in counterfeit money at a CVS Pharmacy in Scranton, according to court records.

Three days later, authorities said the man traveled to a Walmart in Montoursville and bought $280 worth of product using counterfeit $20 bills. He then used $160 in fake money at a Weis Market in the same city, officials said.

But when he and a female co-conspirator went to a Dollar Tree store in Bloomsburg on April 23, 2022, an employee stopped them from using fake money to buy merchandise, according to court records.

The man is charged with one count of conspiracy to pass counterfeit obligations, four counts of passing counterfeit obligations and one count of attempting to pass counterfeit obligations.

If he is convicted, authorities said hell face up to 20 years in prison for each charge.

Couple spent fake money all over town  until officials inspected their trash, feds say

Man used bleach, $1 bills and a little creativity to make $235K in fake cash, feds say

Home Depot worker swaps $387,500 in deposits for fake cash and keeps money, feds say
Show must go on for a Ukrainian director drafted for war ahead of opening night

KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  The show must go on, even when its Ukrainian director is drafted by the army weeks before opening night.

Silence, Silence, Silence, Please, a play that tackles Russias war in Ukraine had its world debut in Portugal last week, but its chief creator was conspicuously missing from among the packed audience.

Pavlo Yurov had meant to be there. Weeks before the opening, he had gone to get special documentation that would permit him to make a trip out of Ukraine. Men of fighting age are barred from leaving, but there are exceptions and Yurov, 43, expected to be given a pass to attend his own show.

Instead he was drafted by Ukraines National Guard and is now a press officer attached to a brigade preparing to participate in a much anticipated counteroffensive.

So Yurov had no choice but to stay, while his actors took to the stage in the Portuguese city of Coimbra and performed, and his name flashed in neon lights outside the theater halls.

The play is art imitating life. Drawn from real-life experiences of Ukrainians living under constant shelling and enduring Russian occupation, it touches on the lives of soldiers and paramedics working on the front lines of the war, and volunteers delivering humanitarian aid to the population.

But Yurov wanted the play to touch the audience in a deep and immersive way. The show forces the audience to confront the psychological toll of being exposed to constant artillery fire and of inhabiting life in survival mode.

My goal is kind of to make it possible for the audience to feel the conditions and mental and physical states of the people who are experiencing this, Yurov told The Associated Press in Kyiv.

The play was originally staged in 2020. When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Yurov decided to rewrite it to reflect recent, real-life developments.

I hope many people in the audience, for the  duration of this play, feel what its like to be inside this situation, he said.

For the actors, performing in the play was both surreal  the themes were so close to home  and therapeutic.

Im playing a woman who has to leave the territory which is under the threat of being occupied, and then it is actually occupied. said 37-year old Ukrainian actress Oksana Leuta. I can tell you that for me its special, because I chose not to leave the country and I have different, mixed, feelings about those who left.

___

Alves reported from Coimbra, Portugal.

___

Follow the APs coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Shrimp Dock and a mile of sidewalks, what else is Port Royal going to do with $5 million?

A new shrimp dock. Extending the Spanish Moss Trail. A mile of new sidewalk. Resurfacing downtown roads.

Port Royals about to go on a spending spree to improve its public facilities.

Were due, Town Manager Van Willis says.

The Town Council is reviewing a long list of projects in its proposed $5 million capital project fund for 2024.

In 2023, the town budgeted $500,000, making this years proposed spending a 900% increase.

Its probably the biggest weve had in decades, Willis said of projects earmarked for funding in the towns capital fund, which still needs approval by the Town Council.

Heres the preliminary plans:

 Demolishing the rickety shrimp dock on Battery Creek and building a new dock where commercial shrimp, tuna and swordfish boats can offload. Over the last several months, the town has worked through federal courts to remove derelict boats from the crumbling dock to prepare the way for a new dock, with the aim of preserving the towns deep ties to fishing.

A shrimp and a sail boat are the sole remaining vessels as seen on Sept. 21, 2022 at the Town of Port Royal shrimp dock on Battery Creek. The town expects to demolish the dock this year and build a new one, in additional to a seafood processing facility.

Construction of a new seafood processing plant also is planned. In May 2021, the town suspended seafood processing, until new facilities could be constructed, because of financial losses incurred subsidizing operations. The town has $1.9 million from state grants in addition to $600,000 from an insurance settlement to pay for the work. The insurance money came from a settlement paid after a July 2015 fire burned down a sea market at the site.

Well make some changes to the configuration so its more accommodating to the shrimp boats, Willis said of the shrimp dock.

A day dock will be built as well to provide a place to tie up boats while visiting the Fishcamp on 11th Street restaurant, the Shellring Ale Works or downtown, Willis said.

Demolition estimates are being gathered now, Willis said, with the work expected to begin in 2 to 3 months.

 Extending the Spanish Moss Trail from the Bluff Neighborhood to Fischcamp on 11th St. Funding will come from an $800,000 grant. In April, the South Carolina Department of Transportation OKd a permit to extend the trail from Smilax Road to Ritter Circle. That $600,000 project includes a signal for safely crossing busy Ribaut Road, a major cog in the popular biking and pedestrian trail stretching from Beaufort to Port Royal. The project funded in Port Royals capital budget through the Bluff Neighborhood to Fishcamp will get riders and walkers to Sands Beach and downtown Port Royal.

An expansion of the Spanish Moss Trail will start near this location at Smilax Road where the current trail ends and cross Ribaut Road with a pedestrian-controlled stop light. Once the trail is across Ribaut Road, the town of Port Royal is planning to extend it through the Bluff neighborhood to Fishcamp on 11th Street.

 Resurfacing all of the downtown roads for $2.3 million. Paris Avenue, the main street, is a separate project that is still in the planning stage.

 Building about 1 mile of new sidewalk.

 Stormwater improvements in the downtown and Casablanca neighborhood.

 Remodeling the second floor of the police department.

Including the work in 2024, the town is expecting $8.5 worth of capital projects in the next few years, Willis said.

The town is able to finance more public projects these days, Willis said, thanks to COVID-19 and the towns growth.

The town received $5.4 million in federal COVID-19 relief from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, which provided $350 billion in additional funding for state and local governments.

And with the towns property tax base expanding, its borrowing capacity has increased, too, Willis says. Port Royals population grew by 10,678 residents to 14,220 between 2010 and 2020, or 33%.

The capital budget is separate from the towns proposed 2024 spending and revenue budget, which also is being reviewed now. That proposed budget is $9.1 million, a $5.8% or $470,000 increase.

Much of the increase is related to a 5% cost of living raise for employees and hiring additional employees: Code enforcement officer in the Planning Department, police officer, administrative staff member for the Building Department and a Public Works Department employee. Salary increases also are planned for police command staff. The town shares fire services with the city of Beaufort. Because of a cost of living adjustment for those employees, Port Royals contribution to fire services also is increasing $33,000, or 1.3%, to $2.5 million

Because of the reassessment, and growth in the town, the value of one mill is expected to increase from $58,000 to $66,500, Willis said. That will result the town levying fewer mills, he said.

A mill is equal to $1 in taxes per $1,000 of property value, with property taxes calculated by multiplying the assessed property value by the mill rate and dividing that number by 1,000.
Amy Silverstein on CBS Sunday Morning in April 2023, speaking about the need for better drug regimens for transplant recipients (YouTube/CBS Sunday Morning)

Amy Silverstein, a celebrated author who wrote about her life as a two-time heart transplant recipient and highlighted the need for better transplant care, shared a final call to arms two days before her death at the age of 59.

Ms Silverstein was in her twenties when she was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. She received her first heart transplant aged 25. Twenty-six years later, she was diagnosed with vasculopathy, a common condition for heart transplant recipients, and moved across the US to receive a second transplant.

She wrote about her experiences in two books: Sick Girl, published in 2007, and My Glory Was I Had Such Friends, published in 2017. Ms Silverstein, who graduated from NYU School of Law, worked as an attorney before turning to her writing career.

On 11 May, a message posted to Ms Silversteins Twitter account announced that she had died peacefully in her sleep on 5 May. According to The New York Times, the cause of her death was cancer.

In a video shared on 3 May, Ms Silverstein urged other transplant recipients to get in touch with the American Society of Transplantation, an organisation comprised of more than 4,000 transplant physicians, and share their own stories.

I just wanted to speak up one last time, because I feel that things are getting a lot worse in my body, and I probably wont be here for long, she said in the video. So I just wanted to say that there is something that you can do right now. Many of you have reached out and asked how you can contribute to the effort to bring about change for the bettering of transplant medicine, and awareness of the issues.

How can you impact research funding and meaningful improvements in transplant medicine right now? Start by sharing your #truthintransplant with the largest org of transplant professionals (AST) here: https://t.co/xW2JW1F113 pic.twitter.com/sxrFvk1cxk  Amy Silverstein, author (@ajsilverstein16) May 3, 2023

Ms Silverstein said more updates will keep being posted to her social media accounts, but meanwhile, the best thing you can do is reach out to the American Society of Transplantation.

They have a voice, and they need to hear your voice, she said. Your honest voice, the things you have been writing to me, your transplant truths. Because, you know what? Doctors are only going to get us part of the way there. This is going to come from patients, from what you live, from what youre hoping for.

I know its hard to be open. Theres a lot of pressure not to be open. But please do. I hope you will carry the torch that I have lit here. I know you can do it, and I know there will be change, so I can leave this world feeling very grateful and very hopeful for how it is going to be for all of you. So thanks so much.

On 18 April 2023, The New York Times published an essay by Ms Silverstein, in which she detailed many challenges faced by transplant patients after their surgeries.

Transplantation is no different from lifelong illnesses that need newer, safer, more effective medicines, she wrote. Improvements in drug regimens are needed for lupus, Parkinsons and a host of others. The key difference is that only in transplantation are patients expected to see their disease state as a miracle. Only in transplant is there pressure to accept what youve been given and not dare express a wish, let alone a demand, for a healthier or longer life.

In April, Ms Silverstein appeared on CBS Sunday Morning to highlight the need for better drug regiments for transplant recipients.
Singapore Airlines gives staff bonus of 8 months' salary after record results and pandemic sacrifices

Singapore Airlines gives staff bonus of 8 months' salary after record results and pandemic sacrifices

Singapore Airlines will give eligible staff a huge bonus of up to eight months' salary.

That's thanks to a formula based on a deal with its staff union, and the airlines' record profits.

It includes an extra bonus of up to 1.5 months, which senior management won't get.

Singapore Airlines will pay some staff a huge bonus of more than eight months' salary after posting the highest profits in its 76-year history, Bloomberg first reported.

That's thanks to "a long-standing annual profit-sharing bonus formula that has been agreed with our staff unions," a spokesperson for the airline told Insider.

Eligible employees will receive a bonus of 6.65 months based on Singapore Airlines' record profit in the last financial year. The group, which includes the budget airline Scoot, reported an annual net income of $1.6 billion, per Bloomberg.

There's also an additional maximum of 1.5 months' salary  half a month for each of the last three years  as an extra bonus which isn't given to senior management.

The gesture of goodwill is "in recognition of our employees' dedication, hard work, and sacrifices, including pay cuts during the pandemic," the spokesperson said.

In September 2020, its pilots agreed to take pay cuts of up to 60% in a deal which saved about 400 jobs, according to Today, a Singaporean newspaper.

Singapore Airlines reported losses totaling $2.75 billion over the 2020-2022 financial years as the industry was hit by COVID-19, Bloomberg reported.

But by March this year, passenger capacity for the airline group was back up to 79% of pre-COVID levels, the company said.

"The SIA Group's record financial performance for FY2022/23 is a testament to its proactive strategic initiatives, pre-emptive preparation that was made when borders remained closed, and the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices of its employees," it added.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Senate Democrats on Thursday warned regulators against allowing big banks to grow even bigger, saying the trend was posing a threat to the financial system.

New regulations to police the industry could backfire by undermining smaller lenders, Sen. Jon Tester of Montana cautioned, pointing to rules developed in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis.

In 2008we railed on regulators, we railed and railed and railed, because they didnt do their job, and you know what they ended up doing? They ended up regulating the hell out of the banking industry to the point where we made the bigger banks bigger, Tester said during an oversight hearing the Senate Banking Committee held with top regulators.

Regulations need to fit the risk, Tester said. My concern is that these community banks that dont have a risky portfolio will end up paying the price.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr has said he's looking at toughening rules for larger regional banks.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) noted that the nations largest bank, JPMorgan Chase, has already gotten bigger as a result of the recent banking crisis after regulators approved a deal this month to let the megabank purchase First Republic Banks assets.



Warren scolded Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu for permitting the deal.

Your job, by law, is to determine risk to the system from making big banks even bigger, she said. Did you just ignore the fact that a failure at JPMorgan would blow a hole in our banking systemand let them grow by $200 billion?

Hsu said he had to take into account a range of factors other than size when evaluating the deal.

Other potential buyers would have presented less of a threat, Warren said.

The single biggest threat to the U.S. banking system is concentration, Warren added. You chose the one that gives us more concentration in the system. I am very troubled by that decision.
(Reuters) - Slovakia's parliament is expected to vote soon on a legal change that would make it impossible for transgender people to change their gender on official documents, removing legal recognition that has been in place for over half a century.

The proposal, which sailed through a first reading in March, would allow change in gender on documents only on the basis of a genetic test showing it had been wrongly identified - blocking transgender people from making the change.

The amendment from conservative lawmakers follows a similar law adopted in fellow EU member Hungary in 2020. It has sparked outcry from human rights groups and would almost certainly be challenged at the constitutional court.

It comes to a vote as Slovakia nears an early election in September amid political turmoil. A caretaker government was installed this week.

At present, transgender people can change their names and surnames - which have different endings in Slovak for men and women - as well as gender and birth number on ID cards.

Under the amendment, transgender people could still change their names but not the other data.

"A person ... would have, for example, male gender in documents, but at the same time could still change name and surname to female," said Martin Macko, executive director at Iniciativa Inakost, a civic group for LGBTI rights.

"It would be a modern-day Jewish star... They could be identified in documents, for example by employers. That is of course absolutely unacceptable."

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic urged lawmakers last month to reject the change.

The Slovak psychiatric society said that, apart from transgender people, there were also medical conditions where genetic tests do not indicate gender correctly.

Authors of the amendment did not respond to requests for comment.

Slovakia's constitution recognises marriage only between men and women, and parliament narrowly rejected a proposal in 2020 to make abortions more difficult.

Final reading of the bill, which won 87 out of 150 votes in its first reading, may come by next week.

Approval could trigger a veto by liberal President Zuzana Caputova, possibly blocking a re-vote until the election.

Macko said he believed the Constitutional Court would strike the change down.

"This is such a clear matter that I believe the Constitutional Court would not hesitate," he said. "...We have the advantage over Hungary that we still have an independent Constitutional Court."

(Reporting by Jan Lopatka in Prague; Editing by Nick Macfie)
Amy Sussman - Getty Images

With a quantity of flowers and fashion moments on par with the coronation, Sofia Richie just took the concept of a wedding to new glamorous heights. Even among celebrity weddings, the South of France soiree was one for the record books.



The model and beauty entrepreneur wore not just one but three (!!!) custom Chanel bridal gowns on the big day, and rocked earrings designed by her sister, Nicole Richie, during the wedding weekend.

Dad Lionel Richie walked Sofia down the aisle to exchange vows with music label founder Elliot Grainge. Then the couple and their lucky guests celebrated with cakea multi-tiered creation that they sliced with a saberand surprise performances from Lionel as well as the rock band Good Charlotte, which includes Nicoles husband, Joel Madden.

Oh yes, and did we mention that this all took place at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Rock in Antibes, France? This is arguably one of most exclusive resorts in the French Riviera, and just so happens to host the annual amfAR Gala during the Cannes Film Festival, too.

The night concluded with a fireworks display over the Mediterranean Sea. All in all, a dreamy day, and one that has Richie raving about and recommending on Instagram: Marry your best friend. In reply, Grainge writes, Thank you for making me the happiest man on earth. I love you.. wife.

According to the celebrity couples wedding registry at Beverly Hills retailer Gearys , their gifts were just as luxe as their weekend. Were swooning over the entire lineup!

Here are just a few of the items marked purchased, fulfilled and giftedand jumping to the tops of our wish lists, too.

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(Reuters) - South Carolina's Republican-controlled state House of Representatives late Wednesday passed a "fetal heartbeat" bill to ban abortions about six weeks into pregnancy, before most people know they are pregnant, moving it to the state Senate where its fate is less certain.

The measure, which passed mostly along party lines with a vote of 82 to 33, is a heavily amended version of a ban that the state Senate passed in February.

It failed then because House Republicans wanted to instead push through a near-total abortion ban, which five women in the state Senate banded together to block. A similar six-week ban passed last year was ruled unconstitutional by the South Carolina Supreme Court in January.

South Carolina is one of several U.S. states where Republican lawmakers are considering aggressive abortion restrictions this week over strong Democratic opposition. Near-total abortion bans have taken effect in 14 states since the Supreme Court revoked federal abortion rights in June 2022, according to the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights advocacy research group.

South Carolina's Senate is expected to consider the new six-week ban on Tuesday. Some of the state senators who supported it originally have expressed opposition to the House version, leaving its fate uncertain.

The House passed the measure on Wednesday night after more than 24 hours of debate, as Democrats discussed hundreds of amendments they had introduced and the Republican majority rejected each one.

Republican Representative John McCravy defended the House bill as an improvement over the Senate version in brief remarks on Tuesday, noting that it toughened penalties for providers who violated the law and required minors to obtain a court order before getting an abortion in the first trimester.

Democrats used their amendments to draw attention to a range of related issues, from domestic abuse to gaps in existing healthcare services across the state.

Representative John Kirby on Wednesday asked Republicans how his constituents could possibly get abortions before six weeks, given that his district has no obstetrician-gynecologists. It took his own daughter 14 weeks to get an appointment after she realized she was pregnant, Kirby said.

One early amendment that Republican lawmakers rejected would have replaced the legislation with a statewide referendum over whether abortion should be protected in the state constitution.

"What are y'all afraid of?" asked Democratic Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter when introducing it on Tuesday. "Why won't you allow the voters to tell you what you claim... they believe?"

(Reporting by Julia Harte; additional reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
House lawmakers in South Carolina passed a bill late Wednesday that would ban most abortions in the state after six weeks of pregnancy, moving it closer to continuing a trend in the South of restricting abortion access.

The bill passed by an 82-33 vote, largely along party lines with two Democrats in the chamber joining Republicans. The bill now heads to the state Senate.

The Legislature was called back into a special session by Gov. Henry McMaster (R) to continue work on the legislation, which would ban most abortions after cardiac activity can be detected in a fetus or embryo, which usually happens as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

The bill cleared the chamber only after strong opposition by Democrats, who offered more than 1,000 amendments to the measure. Lawmakers debated the bill for several days.

A move earlier this year to pass an abortion ban in the state stumbled when the Senate failed to approve a bill the state House had passed. Three Republican senators voted against the bill in April.

A similar 2021 law in the state that would have banned most abortions at six weeks was struck down in January, with the court ruling in a 3-2 decision it violated the state constitutions privacy protections.

The move in South Carolina to pass the six-week ban comes after lawmakers in North Carolina voted to override the veto of Gov. Roy Cooper (D), banning most abortions in the state after 12 weeks.

Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, a leading anti-abortion group, applauded the move by South Carolina to advance the bill.

Enacting a heartbeat law that can withstand legal challenges will be a giant step forward for South Carolina, said Caitlin Connors, the groups Southern regional director, in a statement. We thank Gov. Henry McMaster for calling legislators back and look forward to the Senate swiftly sending the heartbeat bill to his desk.

Updated at 8:09 a.m.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Roads in and around the South Park neighborhood reopened Thursday hours after firefighters battled a massive blaze, but not before causing traffic issues throughout the day and into the evening.

The westbound lanes of Fairview Road between Sharon Road and Tyvola Road reopened to traffic shortly before 5 p.m., Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police announced on social media, followed by the eastbound lanes reopening about 7 p.m.

CMPD had asked drivers to avoid the South Park area and seek alternative routes, cautioning that roads likely would be closed into the evening.

The blaze shut down Liberty Row Drive, Assembly Street and Barclay Downs Drive for much of the day. The southbound lanes of Park South Drive were also closed initially but reopened about 11:15 a.m., CMPD said previously.

A Charlotte Observer journalist near the scene reported major traffic backups and that police were rerouting motorists away from the area throughout the morning.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools said on Twitter the road closures would impact dismissal and school bus routes for some students Thursday.

CMPD also asked folks to not call 911 unless you have an emergency.

The fire was near the South Park Business Park towers near Fairview Road and Piedmont Row Drive, according to first responders.

Reports and emergency radio traffic indicate the fire involved a parking garage construction zone. Video from the scene and radio traffic between first responders indicated part of the garage structure collapsed before 10 a.m.

Use the interactive map below from the GPS service Waze to track traffic in the area:

Observer reporter Kallie Cox contributed to this story.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Do you have any photos or video to share? Did you see the fire? Submit photos or information for publication using this form or email news@charlotteobserver.com.
WASHINGTON  After awarding a contract to Northrop Grumman last year to build the first of three deep-space radars, the Space Force may choose a second provider to develop the remaining two systems.

Northrop is on track to deliver the Deep-Space Advanced Radar Capability by early 2026, a ground-based system to be stationed in Australia. The radar will provide all-weather, 24/7 observation of objects in geosynchronous orbit, around 22,000 miles above Earth.

The Space Force said in a May 16 notice it is imperative that the second and third DARC radars follow in quick succession, with site two established in the United Kingdom by 2027 and site three in the U.S. by 2028. With those rapid timelines in mind, the service is surveying the industrial base to determine if other companies can meet that schedule.

Its not immediately clear what firms will respond to the Space Forces market research, but prior to awarding Northrop a $341 million contract to build the first radar site, the service and the Air Force Research Laboratory established a broad base of industry and academic partners to mature various supporting technologies.

Those partners include John Hopkins Universitys Applied Physics laboratory  which received a $54 million contract to build a prototype radar  L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Georgia Tech Applied Research Corporation and Centauri, a space and intelligence company purchased in 2020 by Texas-based engineering firm KBR.

The Space Force expects to spend nearly $844 million to build all three DARC sites and included $214 million for DARC in its fiscal 2024 budget. The bulk of that request will support efforts to field the first radar.

Frank Calvelli, the Space Forces top acquisition official, said during an April 26 House Armed Services Committee hearing that DARC is progressing well through testing at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.

We proved out the concept that DARC can actually work, he said.

Tracking activity in space, and particularly in geosynchronous orbit, has been a growing priority for the Space Force as adversaries like Russia and China have shown signs of possible aggression in the regime. In 2020, then-Chief of Space Operations Gen. Jay Raymond revealed that two Russian satellites were trailing a U.S. spy satellite and called the behavior unusual and disturbing.

The service uses a mix of ground radars and in-space sensors to conduct this mission. DARC will join the most recent ground-based capability known as Space Fence, which was built by Lockheed Martin and became operational in 2020. The radar, located at Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, significantly increased the number of objects the service can see from Earth.

Later this summer, the Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office expect to launch the newest space observation satellites, dubbed Silent Barker. Much of the details about the program are classified, but its mission is to surveil areas of GEO that the service cant observe with its existing radar network.

Two spacecraft will fly in the first launch, and NRO Director Steve Scolese told reporters April 18 at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Co., the constellation will eventually include more satellites.
MADRID  Navantias fourth of five Avante 2200 corvettes will be delivered to the Saudi Royal Navy next week, as the Spanish shipbuilder expects to receive a proposal from the Kingdom by 2024 to build five new multi-mission combat ships.

Navantia was contracted by Saudi Arabia in 2018 to build five corvettes based on the Avante 2200 design and adapted to specific requirements, including the ability to operate in extreme temperatures. The program, dubbed Alsarawat, called for the units to be delivered on a fast schedule, which meant the company eventually had to produce a ship every four months.

While the first three vessels were commissioned in Spain, the final two will be inaugurated in Saudi Arabia.

After delivery, the latest vessel will undergo further testing, Agustin Alvarez, naval construction director at Navantia told Defense News on the sidelines of the FEINDEF defense exhibition here. He added that additional non-European countries had shown interest in the ships.

Roughly 500 prospective crew members from the Royal Saudi Naval Force (RSNF) are now undergoing training at a Navantia facility in San Fernando, Spain.

In recent years, the Spanish manufacturer has increasingly looked to deepen its cooperation with Riyadh. It recently created a joint venture with Saudi Arabia Military Industries (SAMI)  now known as SAMINavantia  to position its platforms in the Arab market. The two organizations developed the first Saudi naval combat management system, the Hazem.

Last year, Navantia signed an Memorandum of Understanding with the Saudi Ministry of Defense to explore an opportunity to build a number of multi-mission combat ships. Alvarez confirmed that the country is eying five of these types of vessels, and that the company expects to receive a further detailed proposal for requirements by 2024.

Under the agreement, the Spanish firm would localize up to 100 percent of naval shipbuilding, integration of combat systems and ship maintenance to contribute to the Kingdoms Vision 2030 objectives, the monarchys signature political agenda. Navantia officials are currently assessing which local shipbuilders and manufacturers would best fit into a program.

Gulf countries have often looked to European shipyards to meet their naval weaponry needs: Frances Naval Group has been the choice for the United Arab Emirates, Italys Fincantieri is Qatars go-to maritime partner, and Saudi Arabia has turned to Spains Navantia for its largest acquisition program in the naval sector.
The special forces travel fad among young people in China could be bad news for Beijing

Chinese tourists take their photo with the Forbidden City in the background from Jingshan Park during a sandstorm on March 28, 2021 in Beijing, China. China's capital and the northern part of the country was hit with a sandstorm Sunday, sending air quality indexes of PM 2.5 and PM 10 ratings into the thousands for the second time in as many weeks.

Young Chinese travelers are hitting the road after three years of covid restrictions, and their approach is all about speed, thrift, and fun.



The new fad, called special forces-style travel (), has gone viral in China over the past couple months. The idea is simple: travel to as many touristic sites in as little time as possible, all while spending the least amount of money. The grueling itineraries that result from the philosophy have earned it the military comparison.

Read more

Special forces tourism began trending during Chinas Qingming Festival holiday (April 4 to 5) and Labor Day holiday (April 29 to May 3). During that time, frenetic videos of special forces travel started popping on social media feeds, depicting young people jam-packing their schedules on a shoe-string budget while traveling (and eating) their way through cities across China.

Shanghai-based digital news outlet The Paper () interviewed (link in Chinese) a tourism manager who attributed the fads emergence to the release of pent-up demand following covid, the warming weather and the start of travel season, influence from the media, and desire to jump on the trend.

The fact that a record one in five young people in China are unemployed might also be a contributing factor.

Sleeping anywhere, traveling everywhere

University students following the special forces tourism trend have been getting their shut eye in internet cafes and even sleeper trains in order to travel cheaply, as CGTN reports. In some cases, university students have even opted to sleep at 24-hour locations of a Chinese hot pot chain, Haidilao, in order to save on costs (link in Chinese).

A major part of the trend has been documenting ones hyper-efficient special forces itinerary. In one video (link in Chinese), a university student boasts of traveling everywhere in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, visiting 10 different sites in just 24 hours (and a little over 40,000 steps).

Other itineraries show off extremely low travel costs, sometimes totaling as little as 150 yuan ($21) to 300 yuan ($43) for a two-day trip.

Cheap travel tips.

Special forces travel is not likely to help Chinas economy recovery

The anti-spending sentiment could be bad news for Beijing as its economy struggles to recover from its near standstill during covid lockdowns. So far, some economic recovery has been driven by a rise in consumption, but it seems the appetite for spending on travel is still depressed.

During the Labor Day holiday, Chinese travelers made 274 million trips, representing a 19% uptick from 2019, as Reuters reports. But spending didnt appear to keep up, with an average of 540 yuan ($77) spent on travel over the May holiday in 2023, down from 603 yuan ($86) in 2019.

Related stories

 Young people in China are struggling to find work

 A niche Chinese Gen Z meme is ringing alarm bells for Beijing

 WeChat is the worlds biggest superapp, but its not the only one

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Starbucks has affirmed its support for the LGBTQ+ community amid calls for a boycott over a recent ad for its India market that featured a trans model.

Released on May 10, the 2-minute commercial marks the debut of a new campaign called #ItStartsWithYourName, which aims to further Starbucks commitment to inclusion and creating a sense of belonging for all customers. The U.S. coffee giant entered India in 2012 through a 50-50 joint venture with Tata Consumer Products, creating Tata Starbucks.

At Starbucks, we unequivocally support the LGBTQIA2+ community, a representative said in response to the backlash, as per NBC News.

Our campaign in India, #ItStartsWithYourName, shows how Tata Starbucks is committed to making people of all backgrounds and identities feel welcome. We will continue to use our voice to advocate for greater understanding on the importance of inclusion and diversity across the communities we serve around the world. More from NextShark: 6-Year-Old Shot in Arm While Playing With Friends, Suspect Released on $10K Bond in Michigan

The new ad, which stars trans model and actress Siya, depicts a father and a mother meeting their daughter (Siya) at a Starbucks store. It is implied that the father had not seen his daughter since her transition.

What starts at a tense introduction, however, ends on a heartfelt reconciliation as the father acknowledges his daughter by calling her Arpita. And he does this by surprise, providing her name to a barista while making the order.

Tata Starbucks Chief Marketing Officer Deepa Krishnan said the companys growth is driven by the unique experience of everyone feeling welcome at its stores.

More from NextShark: Woman trying to adopt kitten loses $764,000 to crypto scam

In a statement, Krishnan said:

At Starbucks, we are not in the coffee business serving people, but in the people business serving coffee, nurturing the limitless possibilities of human connection every day. With the #ItStartsWithYourName campaign  we hope to further drive the message of being a welcoming, inclusive brand where nothing matters to us more than our customers comfort. We understand that our customers enjoy and cherish their individuality and we are always ready to celebrate it with them.

The new ad easily divided social media users.

More from NextShark: Long-awaited UN report on human rights abuses in Xinjiang triggers fiery Beijing response

Many expressed outrage and accused Starbucks of being too woke.

Starbucks facing a backlash in India after going full Bud Light, tweeted Rukshan Fernando, a political commentator based in Australia. If saturating the market with a mediocre US coffee brand wasn't bad enough, now they are bringing their woke corporate culture to the Sub-Continent.

Fernando was referencing the controversy surrounding Bud Light, which has come under fire for weeks after sending trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney personalized beer cans to commemorate her first year of being a woman. The partnership also sparked a conservative boycott that has resulted in plunging sales, as per the New York Post.

Starbucks facing a backlash in India after going full Bud Light. If saturating the market with a mediocre US coffee brand wasn't bad enough, now they are bringing their woke corporate culture to the Sub-Continent. pic.twitter.com/09EU5ZPFwe  Rukshan Fernando (@therealrukshan) May 14, 2023

Meanwhile, other outraged Twitter users called for a boycott against the coffee company.

Alright India here's your chance to resist properly, internet personality Nuance Bro tweeted. Let's see if [Indian Prime Minister Narendra] Modi is truly the right wing dictator the West claims he is. Don't let this programming gain a foothold.

Some users took offense to the commercials use of a Hindu name, arguing that Starbucks would not portray Muslims and other religions the same way. Others pointed out that the company would not release such an ad in Middle Eastern countries.

Amid the backlash, many also expressed support for the ad and welcomed it as a sign of progress.

Cant believe people have [a] problem with this ad too? We [are] becoming so rigid to our belief systems that anything that tries to show us the other side will be trolled and abused. A society damaged beyond repair, one Twitter user wrote.

These days common sense is very uncommon so some bigots wont understand the emotion, another commented. This is an incredible ad so lets hope that the LGBTQ+ community finds more such allies.

One of the best and most touching ads Ive seen in my life! A parents love and acceptance to their trans kid is truly everything. Thank you, [Starbucks India]. What a beautiful way to commemorate International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexphobia, and Transphobia, another wrote.
A new Starbucks India campaign featuring a trans model has caused a stir among social media users worldwide.

The two-minute ad, titled #ItStartsWithYourName, depicts a Hindi-speaking family meeting at a Starbucks to reconcile a fathers strained relationship with his trans daughter. After brief tension, the man shows his acceptance of his daughter by ordering coffees for everyone under her new name, Arpita.

For me, you are still my kid, the dad says in the ad, translated to English in subtitles. Only a letter has been added to your name.

The ad has been viewed online millions of times since its release last week, and reactions have run the gamut from praise to staunch opposition. Many South Asians said the depiction hits close to home and is an important step forward for young Indians in the LGBTQ community.

I cannot imagine being estranged from my children for any reason let alone for them being who they are, but I know not everyone is there yet, one person tweeted. This advert for Starbucks from India, still an incredibly conservative country, sends a powerful statement.

But some in the U.S. and India lambasted Starbucks for going woke, even calling for a boycott of the company.

Starbucks facing a backlash in India after going full Bud Light, an Australia-based news podcast host tweeted, referring to the beer brand that recently collaborated with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney. If saturating the market with a mediocre US coffee brand wasnt bad enough, now they are bringing their woke corporate culture to the Sub-Continent.

A spokesperson for Starbucks said that despite the backlash, the company will continue to support the trans community.

At Starbucks, we unequivocally support the LGBTQIA2+ community, the representative said. Our campaign in India, #ItStartsWithYourName, shows how Tata Starbucks is committed to making people of all backgrounds and identities feel welcome. ... We will continue to use our voice to advocate for greater understanding on the importance of inclusion and diversity across the communities we serve around the world.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Josh Tully, owner of Bosley Drain & Septic ,left, and Joe Judy, work to replace the riser to a septic tank at a home in Lawrence Township.

The Health Department has a long list of Stark County homeowners who need help paying to repair their septic tanks.

The agency receives about $150,000 per year from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's Water Pollution Control Loan Fund to administer a program that provides assistance to low- to moderate-income households in need of home sewage treatment replacement or repairs.

It would take about three years to get through its list with the current level of funding.

"It's not a lot of money for the number of people that are on our list to repair these systems," said Paul DePasquale, director of environmental health for Stark County.

Now, county officials want to use $450,000 in remaining Community Development Block Grant CARES Act funds to help more low-income homeowners bring their failing septic systems up to code.

County commissioners in 2021 approved $1.1 million in CARES Act money to the Health Department to help businesses outside of Canton, Massillon and Alliance with safety initiatives in response to the pandemic. The board will need to approve the proposed use for the funds before the plan can move forward. The commissioners will likely take action on the matter sometime in the next few weeks, according to Administrator Brant Luther.

Diane Sheridan, chief of community development at the Stark County Regional Planning Commission, said that remaining CARES Act funds must be used to respond to COVID-19 or future infectious diseases. The Regional Planning Commission asked the Health Department to identify its needs. Officials brought up the need for septic system replacements in the county.

"Stark County has the most septic systems in the state of Ohio," said Todd Paulus, a unit manager at the Stark County Health Department. "We're estimated around 43,000 septic systems. So this is a real need in this community, to help folks that need some assistance."

Failing septic systems can lead to sewage backups in homes, groundwater contamination and algae blooms in nearby bodies of water, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Josh Tully, owner of Bosley Drain and Septic in Louisville, said he has been seeing a lot of septic tanks from the 1950s and 1960s that are clogged and need replaced.

"These last couple years, we've seen numerous systems that are failing," he said. "A lot of it came from COVID. There were more people at the houses, more water being used. People are now working at home. Kids were getting homeschooled. That was more water going into the systems on a daily basis that was making these systems fail even more."

Josh Tully, owner of Bosley Drain & Septic , mixes cement while working to replace the riser to a septic tank at a home in Lawrence Township.

Tully said there are a lot of families that cannot afford to replace their tanks and are taking out loans to pay for it.

How many systems will be replaced?

Health Department officials estimate that between 24 and 32 systems will be replaced using the funds, but the exact number of projects will depend on the cost and scale of each.

The department already has a list of homeowners from its assistance program, which covers a certain percentage of the cost of a project based on the household's total income and the number of individuals living in the home. Requirements for the program include that the home is owner-occupied and located in Stark County and that applicants are up to date on their property taxes.

Sheridan said there are certain income requirements that individuals must meet on the Regional Planning Commission side, including that they are under 80% of the area median income.

The Regional Planning Commission will facilitate the repairs, similarly to the way it does with CDBG and HOME rehabilitation jobs. The county health department will manage permits, fees, soil testing, design contractors and coordinate with the Environmental Protection Agency. The Health Department will also utilize $29,400 for administration costs.

The department will still have approximately $177,000 in leftover funds to continue COVID business safety outreach, particularly focusing on childcare centers outside of Canton, Massillon and Alliance, according to the Regional Planning Commission.

Sheridan said the agencies are working to amend the contract and plan to start the projects as soon as possible.

Reach Paige at 330-580-8577, pmbennett@gannett.com or on Twitter @paigembenn.

Josh Tully, owner of Bosley Drain & Septic , replaces a septic tank part at a home in Lawrence Township.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Stark County looking to use CARES Act funds to repair septic systems
Sacramentos homeless crisis has rapidly grown in recent years, and in July it hit a grim milestone  more homeless people than San Francisco.

A federally-mandated count in February 2022 found that there are an estimated 9,930 homeless people in Sacramento on any given night  higher than San Franciscos 7,754. San Francisco still has more homeless people per capita, but Sacramentos homeless crisis has tripled since 2017, according to the count.

Since that year, contrary to popular belief, unhoused people have consistently told The Sacramento Bee they are desperate for housing. Many have jobs. Most are from here.

Homelessness: Our urgent human crisis

Follow our ambitious, newsroom-wide series examining the growing problem of homelessness across Sacramento and California in 2023, examining government policy, money, addiction, mental health and more.

In recent years The Bee has reported on a couple who both have jobs at an auto parts store and still dont make enough for an apartment for themselves and their small children, so they live in an RV, constantly fearing the city will tow it. The Bee also reported on a mother who has been on a waiting list for a Section 8 housing voucher for 13 years, and a beloved father who died of hypothermia last winter.

Each person has their own story, but the numbers can provide a snapshot of the crisis our community faces.

Who are the unhoused of Sacramento?

9,278: Number of homeless people in Sacramento County, including its cities, as of January 2022, according to the federally-mandated point in time count. This number has surged from 5,570 in January 2019, and 3,665 in January 2017. The next count will occur in January 2024.

20,000: The number of people in Sacramento who were expected to experience homelessness at some point in 2022, according to the report.

1,600: Number of unsanctioned tents volunteers counted in Sacramento in January 2022  five times higher than the number they counted in 2019.

48%: Number of homeless respondents to the 2022 count said the need for affordable housing was the primary problem Sacramento needs to confront, according to a report that accompanied the count.

84%: The number of homeless respondents who said their last housing was located in the Sacramento region.

Whats being done to help the homeless?

Roughly 1,100: Number of shelter beds the city has open, all of which are typically full.

Roughly 1,200: Number of shelter beds the county has open, all of which are typically full.

2: Number of Safe Ground sanctioned tent camping sites the city has opened. At those locations, people are still in tents or vehicles but have access to bathrooms, showers, drinking water, security and help finding housing. One is located at Miller Park and the other is Camp Resolution in North Sacramento.

2: Number of large tent-like so-called Sprung shelters the city has opened. The structures contain beds, heating and cooling. People who stay there receive services including help finding housing.

430: Number of tiny homes the county is planning to open for the homeless this summer in North Highlands and south Sacramento.

350: Number of tiny homes Gov. Gavin Newsom is sending Sacramento to place at Cal Expo for the homeless by fall.

How have we fallen short?

At least 230: Number of homeless people who died in Sacramento in 2021 of all causes.

8: Number of homeless people who died from hypothermia in 2021.

At least 3: Number of homeless people whom the coroner has determined have died from hypothermia so far since Nov. 1, 2022.

420: Number of families with children that were homeless during the February 2022 count. That included 745 children under the age of 18.

3: Number of homeless shelters the city and county have closed since 2018. They include the Railroad Drive large shelter in North Sacramento, the Capitol Park shelter downtown, and a Project Roomkey hotel in North Sacramentos Woodlake neighborhood.
State authorities to take over probe of fatal shooting by Oxnard police

An apartment building's security camera shows Oxnard police Officer Manuel Garcia, at lower left, as Michael Owens, 24, appears to engage Garcia in a physical struggle after being shot by the officer on April 28.

State authorities said Wednesday evening they would investigate the April 28 fatal shooting by an Oxnard police officer.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office said in a release the state Department of Justice will look into the incident under provisions of Assembly Bill 1506. The law requires the department to investigate all fatal shootings of unarmed California civilians by law enforcement officers.

The shooting  the Oxnard Police Department's third fatal use of force this year  wasn't initially believed to meet AB 1506 criteria, Bonta's office said. But closer analysis of body-worn camera and security video showed the law does apply.

Oxnard police released video of the incident last week. It shows Officer Manuel Garcia responding to a two-story apartment building at 235 E. Seventh St. Firefighters at the scene had sought help with an "uncooperative subject" who had reportedly been getting aggressive and had been cutting himself on his left wrist with a knife.

The subject, 24-year-old Michael Owens, had reportedly barricaded himself in a communal bathroom on the upper level, the police officer was told as he arrived.

During the encounter, Owens can be seen in the video exiting the bathroom with a knife and approaching Garcia. As Owens appeared to ignore Garcia's commands, the officer fired his handgun. Owens can be seen falling, then getting up after initially getting shot, leaving the knife on the ground.

After getting to his feet, Owens can be seen attempting to grab the officer's gun as he shouts: "Give me the gun! You little b---!". Garcia again shot Owens during the ensuing physical struggle, during which the knife was on the ground nearby, the department's video shows.

The Oxnard department issued its own release Wednesday evening minutes after Bonta's announcement.

The local department had been notified by state officials Monday that the state DOJ would "assume control" of the police investigation, Oxnard's release said.

The law defines an unarmed civilian as "anyone who is not in possession of a deadly weapon," Oxnard officials said.

Oxnard police Chief Jason Benites said in a statement his department promptly notified the state DOJ after each of the recent officer-involved shootings, including the April 28 incident, "which concerned an officer shooting a man that was armed with a knife."

The knife recovered by Oxnard police from the scene of a fatal shooting by an officer on April 28.

Benites said after state authorities reviewed the video, they advised the department they would assume control of the probe.

"In our continued pursuit of transparency, we welcome this," Benites said. "Our department will work with DOJ to ensure they have all the information and materials they need to conduct a thorough and independent review of this incident."

The process helps maintain the public's trust, Benites said, "which we value."

Bonta's office said the completed investigation will be turned over to the DOJ's special prosecutions section in the criminal law division for independent review. More information on AB 1506, as well as a list of cases currently under review, is available at the attorney general's website at oag.ca.gov/ois-incidents.

Two other fatal shootings by Oxnard police preceded the April 28 incident. The state is only reviewing the April 28 encounter.

On March 12, an Oxnard officer shot and killed Adam Barcenas, 60, as he advanced toward police with a large metal pole during an unrelated DUI investigation in the downtown area.

On April 7, police fatally shot 18-year-old Christian Baltazar Torrez as he approached officers while holding a knife near Oxnard College.

DA review also supplanted

Any fatal use of force by a local law enforcement agency routinely launches several investigations, including a review by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office to determine whether an officer's actions were legally justified.

Since state authorities have taken over the investigation under AB 1506, the legal review of the April 28 shooting will also fall to the attorney general's office rather than local prosecutors, said Joey Buttitta, spokesman for the county DA's office.

Oxnard police Cmdr. Alex Arnett said Thursday that even though the state will investigate the shooting, the department can still carry out its own internal administrative review and discussion of any potential "learning points" that arise after a critical incident.

The department is aware some community groups have expressed concern after the recent string of fatal shootings by officers, he said, adding that the chief has recently met with some groups. In addition, the matter is likely headed to a future City Council meeting for public discussion.

Arnett confirmed that at least one and possibly two rounds fired by Garcia went through the apartment wall and entered an occupied room on the second floor. The person inside wasn't hurt, Arnett said, adding he was "tremendously grateful" no one else was injured.

Officials with the attorney general's press office hadn't responded to questions as of 5 p.m. Thursday.

The two-story apartments where the April 28 incident took place are part of the Ventura County Rescue Mission campus, an official with the nonprofit said Thursday. The building is used as housing for the mission's transitional living program participants.

The official said for privacy reasons, the Rescue Mission doesn't disclose if or when an individual has been a participant in its programs.

Owens had initially called 911 on April 28 and asked for help from a paramedic, telling dispatchers he was located at the Rescue Mission, according to audio released by Oxnard police along with video of the subsequent encounter.

Arnett has previously said Owens wasn't a tenant at the apartment building that night but may have known about the communal bathroom.

This story may be updated.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: California Justice Department to probe fatal shooting by Oxnard police
DOUGLAS  A white U.S. Border Patrol bus trundled into the Douglas Visitor Center parking lot shortly before 8 a.m. Wednesday morning, carrying dozens of asylum seekers that agents had processed hours before.

They were among the growing numbers of asylum seekers being released by the Border Patrol in this border city and other communities in southern Arizona after Title 42 restrictions ended last week. The asylum seekers are now being transported by the state directly to Phoenix. Shelters in Tucson are full, and border communities don't have shelters to accommodate asylum seekers.

Two idling charter buses waited in the parking lot for the Border Patrol bus to arrive. Three agents stepped out of the white bus and helped usher asylum seekers off, directing them to one of the two coach buses.

As the buses departed from the parking lot, Dennis Walto looked on a few steps away. He's the chief of external affairs for Chiricahua Community Health Centers, a nonprofit rural health clinic in Cochise County.

Walto has been observing the bus transfers every day since the program was implemented last week. He applauded the coordination between the U.S. Border Patrol, city officials and religious organizations in Douglas to help receive and process people in an orderly fashion.

This is a resource-stretched community anyway, but the fact that everyone stepped in and stepped up really speaks to the community, Walto said.

Its what community looks like.

Douglas, a border city of nearly 15,500 residents in southeastern Arizona, is about 70 miles south of Interstate 10, the nearest major transportation corridor, and 115 miles from the nearest airport in Tucson.

But since last week, it is one of several small rural communities along the Arizona-Mexico border where Border Patrol agents have been releasing asylum seekers paroled into the United States.

In the lead-up to the end of Title 42, a pandemic-era health rule that expired May 11, large numbers of migrants had arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border. U.S. border officials anticipated it would be the start of a sustained wave of asylum seekers attempting to reach the southern U.S. border.

That did not materialize. Migrant encounters along the U.S.-Mexico border have dropped in half since last week, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

"We attribute the reduction in encounters at our border both to the consequences that we have strengthened and put in place for unlawful entry and the lawful pathways that we have expanded, but also to the actions of our foreign partners," Blas Nunez-Neto, the DHS assistant secretary for border and immigration policy, told reporters on Wednesday.

Why migrants are released into border communities

Even though that sustained increase did not happen, U.S. Border Patrol agents have been releasing asylum seekers into small communities along Arizona's border with Mexico for more than a week.

These communities are located next to Border Patrol stations where agents take in and process migrants. Border agents have been releasing an average of 150 asylum seekers in Douglas each day. In Bisbee, it is about 120 people daily.

Since these small communities lack the infrastructure to house or transport asylum seekers, on May 8 state government under Gov. Katie Hobbs stepped up to pay for charter buses to transport them from the border to Tucson and Phoenix, the two main transportation hubs in Arizona. There, asylum seekers can take buses or airplanes to destinations elsewhere in the United States.

We're just hoping everything continues because, for us, we don't have any facilities, Bisbee Mayor Ken Budge said.

In his city, border agents have been dropping off asylum seekers at the parking lot of the nearby Brian A. Terry Border Patrol station. Agents apprehended most of those people at other locations throughout southeastern Arizona but took them for processing at the Brian Terry station and released them afterward, according to Budge.

There's no transportation, there's no trains, there's no other buses, no public transportation out of here, so it would be really difficult for (migrants) to move on from here, he added.

A helping hand: Title 42 has ended. Here's how Phoenix humanitarian groups prepared to help

From May 8 to May 14, the state transported 3,025 asylum seekers on 87 buses, according to Judy Kioski, public information officer with the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs. That's the state agency that has been coordinating with local governments and nonprofits to prevent having migrants released or stranded in the streets of southern Arizona.

Typically, nonprofit organizations such as Tucsons Casa Alitas and Somertons Regional Center for Border Health have received asylum seekers and transported them to Phoenix or Tucson once they are released in southern Arizona.

Concertina wire is placed along the U.S.-Mexico border in San Luis, Ariz., as seen from San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, on May 12, 2023.

They help arrange their travel to their final destinations but also have provided housing, meals and other services such as medical screenings and vaccines.

However, if there is an increase in arrivals, shelters may reach their capacity and cannot accept any more asylum seekers.

The Border Patrol can only hold migrants for a certain amount of time in its facilities, and if the agency also is at capacity, they resort to releasing people seeking asylum under parole directly into border communities that are often unequipped to help them.

It is unclear how long the community releases will go on. Border Patrol officials in Arizona have not responded to requests for comment.

But it has happened before. Starting in October 2018 and continuing well into 2021, Border Patrol has occasionally released asylum seekers directly from their patrol stations near small communities like Ajo or Gila Bend as they struggled with capacity at their holding facilities. The releases caught community leaders off guard as they scrambled to respond and transport them to Phoenix and Tucson.

Statewide network kicks into gear to transport asylum seekers

This time around, these communities are better prepared.

As Title 42 ended, southern Arizona braced for the arrival of more asylum seekers at the border and possible releases. A vast communication, transportation and shelter network that had been developing since the first round of community street releases kicked into high gear. And the state government has played a more active role.

Initially, DEMA-chartered buses had been transporting asylum seekers from Nogales, Naco, Douglas and Bisbee to Casa Alitas in Tucson twice a day when the bus routes began May 8.

Opinion: Border chaos in Arizona seems inevitable as Title 42 ends

But the shelter facilities in Tucson are at capacity and unable to receive more people, according to Jan Lesher, the Pima County administrator.

This border county has played a leading role in the humanitarian response in southern Arizona. It recently was awarded $29 million from the federal government to assist with the transportation and housing of asylum seekers, which the county can then disperse to the nonprofits and local governments it partners with.

On average, Tucson has been receiving about 1,400 asylum seekers per day, Lesher told Pima County commissioners at a meeting Tuesday. That includes the individuals that both Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement release directly in Tucson.

U.S. Border Patrol transfers a few dozen migrants to a state-run charter bus headed toward Phoenix from the Douglas Visitor's Center parking lot on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

Given the limited resources, the county administrator said officials had to seek a new solution and look further north.

We now have a system where if people were picked up in Douglas, Naco, Nogales, they will transported back to the Phoenix area for sheltering," Lesher said. "So at this point, were hoping to transition into a mode where we are getting those individuals that the Tucson Sector of the Border Patrol drops in our community.

Starting on Wednesday, Kioski said the charter buses leaving southeastern Arizona would instead make a 4-hour ride to Phoenix, instead of Tucson, where there is greater capacity to assist people seeking asylum. DEMA already has been operating a bus route from Somerton to Phoenix since May 9, she added.

But the new process to transport asylum seekers out of these small communities in southern Arizona has had glitches.

In Douglas, migrants were initially dropped off at the Walmart parking lot near the port of entry. However, after objection from store officials, the location was changed to the Douglas Visitor Center on Friday.

Douglas Mayor Donald Huish and Budge, the Bisbee mayor, said theyre content with how the states busing program has helped their communities remain relatively calm.

Related: Here's what to expect at the Arizona-Mexico border this week now that Title 42 is gone

However, both mayors called on the federal government to step up and take charge of a national issue, which is currently being handled by the state.

Between us and Nogales, we're fairly calm, Huish said. (The Biden administration) still has a big problem to fix, and I hope that it's not forgotten at a national level.

On the other end of Arizona's border with Mexico, Fernando Quiroz, director of the Yuma-based AZ-CA Humanitarian Coalition, independently chartered four farmworker buses to help transport the asylum seekers to a church in Phoenix who agreed to help given capacity constraints in that region as well.

Quiroz coordinated the effort on May 12 to help asylum seekers reach their final U.S. destinations as Yuma County nonprofits were at capacity.

Mesa church agrees to accept migrants from border communities

An idling state-run charter bus waits for U.S. Border Patrol to drop migrants off at the Douglas Visitor's Center parking lot on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

With shelters and resources in southern Arizona exhausted, the Phoenix metro area will begin to see the arrival of more asylum seekers in the coming days.

Already, the Regional Center for Border Health has been transporting migrants from the Yuma area to Sky Harbor International Airport.

But the Phoenix area also boasts a permanent 340-bed migrant shelter and a network of churches that can also take in asylum seekers as needed.

The Montevista Church in Phoenix was among the first to receive asylum seekers from southern Arizona on Thursday. Pastor Angel Campos told The Arizona Republic that ICE officials had dropped off 24 people, mostly from the Yuma area.

The Department of Emergency and Military Affairs also dropped off 81 asylum seekers at the church on Thursday after they were released in Cochise County and transported to Tucson, Campos said.

Officials normally will email the church the day before to estimate how many people will be dropped off so that members can prepare.

Campos said the end of Title 42 has brought more concern from elected leaders to find accommodations for asylum seekers than he has seen in previous years. Campos said he has received calls from the Governor's Office and has talked with several mayors, including Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.

"They talked to me about the emergency that is happening right now, and that if they can't find a place to drop off the immigrants, they will have to leave them in the street, and I told them no, they should send them to me," Campos said.

The Iglesia Cristiana Buen Pastor-Good Shepherd Christian Church in Mesa is another church that has agreed to begin receiving people bused from border communities in southeastern Arizona, said Hector Ramirez, the pastor at the church.

The first busload of asylum seekers will arrive May 23, after the church has time to line up volunteers to provide humanitarian assistance, the pastor added.

Until recently, the church only had been accepting asylum seekers dropped off there by federal immigration authorities on Thursdays after being processed by the Border Patrol's Yuma sector, Ramirez said.

ICE officials notified him on Wednesday to expect to receive 32 people from India, China, Brazil and countries in Africa on Thursday, he added.

The Welcome Center, a 340-bed shelter in Phoenix run by the International Rescue Committee, already has been receiving asylum seekers that had been initially dropped off in Tucson. Because they still had capacity, the center's staff sent buses to bring asylum seekers to Phoenix when Casa Alitas in Tucson ran out of space, according to Beth Strano, director at the Welcome Center.

Strano declined to say Wednesday if the center had started to receive asylum seekers bused directly from border communities in southern Arizona to Phoenix.

Strano said the center has received about 2,000 people in the first two weeks of May. That's on track to exceed the 3,000 asylum seekers the center had been receiving monthly. But the 24-hour shelter still has had enough space to accommodate asylum seekers brought in from Tucson, she added.

"We've been busy," Strano said. But "it hasn't been a super dramatic increase."

Most of the increase in asylum seekers occurred the week before Title 42 ended just before 9 p.m. May 11, when the center was receiving about 250 people per day, compared with about 110 before that. The center continued to receive about 250 asylum seekers through the weekend but the number appears to be leveling off and may even be decreasing, Strano said.

Like Casa Alitas in Tucson, The Welcome Center receives asylum seekers released by federal immigration authorities after they cross the border and are processed by Border Patrol agents.

The center has received asylum seekers from many countries, Strano said. The No. 1 country of origin this year has been India, primarily Sikhs, Strano said.

The other top 10 countries of origin are Peru, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Ecuador, Russia, Colombia, Brazil and Mauritania, which replaced China in the 10th spot, she said.

The Department of Emergency and Military Affairs is also continuing to bus asylum seekers from Arizona to nonprofits in Washington. The state government began those efforts last May under Republican Gov. Doug Ducey. But his successor, Democratic Gov. Hobbs has continued that program.

Since May 2022, the state government has paid for 113 charter buses transporting 4,155 people to Washington as of Tuesday. Of that total, the state has sent 25 buses with 1,077 asylum seekers in 2023.

Javier Arce, editor of lavozarizona.com, contributed to this article.

Have a news tip or story idea about the border and its communities? Contact the reporter at josecastaneda@arizonarepublic.com or connect with him on Twitter @joseicastaneda.

Daniel Gonzalez covers race, equity and opportunity. Reach him at daniel.gonzalez@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8312. Follow him on Twitter @azdangonzalez.

Have any news tips or story ideas about immigration in the Southwest? Reach the reporter at rafael.carranza@arizonarepublic.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RafaelCarranza.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: State expands busing of migrants as shelters fill in southern Arizona
The stealth F-22 Raptor's days are numbered, and the Air Force is officially looking for designs for the fighter jet's next-gen replacement

A USAF F-22 Raptor flying during a solo handling display on February 28, 2023 in Avalon, Australia. Photo by Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

The Air Force is officially seeking designs for the next-gen fighter to replace the F-22 Raptor.

The service said it published a solicitation to industry and will award a contract next year.

"We will lose that edge if we don't move forward now," Frank Kendall, Air Force secretary, said.

The US Air Force has officially started looking for someone to design a next-generation fighter to replace the stealth F-22 Raptor as it stares down eventual retirement.

To formally initiate the process, the Air Force said Thursday that it published a "classified solicitation" to the defense industry so it can obtain an engineering and manufacturing development contract for its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) platform  a US military's sixth-generation project.

The solicitation informs the defense industry of the specifications that the Air Force requires for NGAD, which will eventually succeed the advanced fifth-generation F-22, which Air Force leadership hinted two years ago would not be a part of the future fighter fleet. The service intends to award a contract in 2024.

"The NGAD Platform is a vital element of the Air Dominance family of systems which represents a generational leap in technology over the F-22, which it will replace," Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said in a statement.

"NGAD will include attributes such as enhanced lethality and the ability to survive, persist, interoperate, and adapt in the air domain, all within highly contested operational environments," he added. "No one does this better than the US Air Force, but we will lose that edge if we don't move forward now."

NGAD is intended to be a family of systems that can boost US air dominance. There are two of these sixth-generation projects currently underway, one for the Air Force and the other for the Navy. Lawmakers have allocated billions of dollars to NGAD since 2015, according to a 2022 Congressional Research Service report, and although the development program is classified, a few details have been released to the public.

An F-22 Raptor from the 411th Flight Test Squadron, 412th Test Wing, takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, California, Aug. 1. US Air Force photo by Chase Kohler

According to the report, the NGAD is expected to replace the F-22 beginning in 2030. The new project, meanwhile, will likely include a mix of crewed and unmanned aircraft and feature complementary cyber and electronic systems. All this means that the program may not resemble that of a traditional fighter.

"The NGAD Platform is one of many critical combat capabilities that will enable counter-air missions with the ability to strike both airborne and ground-based threats to achieve air superiority and support the Joint Force," the Air Force said in a statement Thursday.

The F-22, the first fifth-generation stealth fighter, was first introduced in 2005 as a solution to counter threats posed by China's Shenyang J-11 and the Soviet-era MiG 29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker. The F-22 is 62 feet long with a 44-foot-long wingspan and can reach supersonic speeds. Though the F-22 didn't have an air-to-air kill until this year, the aircraft has long been considered the top US air superiority fighter.

The US doesn't produce F-22s anymore. The Air Force has pushed for the retirement of some earlier F-22s, but it has received pushback from Congress. Updates and upgrades have continued for others in the fleet.

The fighter is capable of hitting ground targets from high altitudes while flying at cruise speeds, and it can also engage enemy aircraft. Despite operational experience targeting Islamic State assets in Syria, it took the F-22 nearly two decades in service to record a confirmed air-to-air kill  when it downed a Chinese spy balloon and an unidentified, high-altitude object in two separate engagements earlier this year.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Do You Still Need to Isolate If You Have COVID?

The COVID-19 public health emergency may be over, but certain protocols still remain.

Getty Images / Justin Paget

Fact checked by Nick Blackmer











As of May 11, the United States government and the World Health Organization have declared that COVID-19 is no longer considered a public health emergency.

Even though the public health emergency has ended, experts say people should still isolate for at least 5 days if they test positive for COVID-19.

People who test positive for the virus should continue to follow other health protocols like wearing a mask and notifying close contacts.











COVID-19 is not the same focal point it was three years ago, but there are still certain precautions and practices in place to keep the general public safe.

Recently, both the United States government and the World Health Organization have declared that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a public health emergency.

Despite hitting this major milestone, experts say it does not mean that COVID-19 is no longer of concern. Additionally, they caution against disregarding the health protocols that many people diligently followed throughout the pandemic.

While the federal Public Health Emergency declaration has ended, COVID-19 has not, Kate Grusich, CDC spokesperson, told Health in an email. COVID-19 remains an ongoing public health threat that we have to address alongside other infectious diseases.

Its also important to keep in mind although COVID-19 hospitalization and deaths are on consistently downward trends, there are county-based hotspots that are still occurring, Mark Cameron, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University, told Health.

In addition, COVID-19 is still causing nearly ten thousand hospitalizations a week, with the majority of U.S. states reporting hundreds of provisional COVID-19 deaths over the last three months, Cameron noted.

Given the ongoing risks associated with the virus, it remains crucial for people to adhere to proper health protocols, especially if they test positive for COVID-19 or experience any symptoms related to the virus.

Despite the bureaucratic end of the COVID-19 emergency, along with more readily available public health support and tracking data and often, workplace accommodation of isolation, we should still be testing and isolating, Cameron continued.

Grusich added that because some people can still get very sick from COVID-19, following proper health protocols like isolating can help protect you and others from the potential transmission and serious disease.

Getty Images / Justin Paget

Related:What the End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Means for Testing and Treatment Costs

How Long Do I Need To Isolate For If I Test Positive?

If you test positive for COVID-19 or suspect that you have it, you should follow the CDCs guidelines for isolation, regardless of your symptoms and vaccination status, Grusich said. The current recommendation is to isolate yourself from others in your household for at least 5 days.

You are likely most infectious during the first 5 days, Grusich explained. By isolating during this time, you can help prevent further spread of the virus to others.

Isolation Timeline, Symptoms, and Vaccination Status

If you are experiencing any symptoms related to COVID-19, such as shortness of breath, new loss of taste or smell, cough, or fatigue, you should still isolate for 5 days, Stuart Ray, MD, infectious disease specialist and a professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, told Health.

However, if your symptoms improve or go away, you may end isolation after day 5, but thats only if you are fever-free for 24 hours, without the use of fever-reducing medications.

If you do not have any symptoms but test positive on a COVID-19 test, you may end isolation after day 5, said Grusich. If you had moderate illness, like shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, she recommends isolating for 10 days.

Grusich added those with severe illness (hospitalized or weakened immune system), should consult with their healthcare provider before ending isolation.

Despite any vaccinations you may have received for COVID-19, you should continue to follow the recommendations from the CDC, including isolation for 5 days or longer depending on your symptoms.

Vaccination remains the safest way to gain immunity to this virus, but many people have been infected one or more times, Ray said. Because people have gained some degree of immunity in various ways at this point, vaccination status is not a major consideration when deciding on isolation times.

If you still have questions regarding whether or not you need to isolate or how long you should isolate, reach out to a healthcare provider or consult online tools.

I wouldnt call the CDCs guidance simple, because it allows for various checkpoints and is therefore flexible to ones course of illness, Cameron explained. But it boils down to if youre feeling fine, youre free after five days of isolation that is, but note the isolation can extend to 10 days if more moderate or severe symptoms persist.

Additional COVID-19 Protocols to Follow

Beyond isolating at home, if you test positive or suspect that you have COVID-19, experts recommend following these standard health protocols:

Notify close contacts when you become aware of a new infection

Inform any healthcare professionals involved in your care, including caregivers or nurses about infection to ensure you are receiving care appropriate to your risk

Wear a high-quality and well-fitted mask for at least 5 days after isolation if you are around others at home or in public places

Do not go to places where you are unable to wear a mask

Avoid travel

Stay home and separate from others as much as possible

Use a separate bathroom from others, if possible

Try to take steps to improve ventilation in your home

Dont share any personal household items, like cups, towels, and utensils with others

If you have an emergency warning sign (like trouble breathing), seek emergency medical care immediately



Related:The 7 Best At-Home COVID-19 Tests of 2023, Tested and Reviewed

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Read the original article on Health.
They call themselves the Cygnus Suborbitals, a team of nine undergraduate students from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical Universitys Prescott Campus. In April, the team sent a rocket on a record-breaking flight, pushing the boundaries for student-led projects.



The rocket, called Deneb, took off from the Friends of Amateur Rocketry facility in Californias Mojave Desert, clearing the launch tower at 9:42 a.m. local time on April 16, 2023. Deneb, with a total burn time of 26.1 seconds, reached an apogee of 47,732 feet (14.55 kilometers) while attaining a top speed of 1,150 miles per hour (1,851 km/hr). The rocket was named after Deneb, the brightest star in the Cygnus constellation.

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Deneb Launch Shatters 3 World Records! 

According to an Embry-Riddle statement, its the highest undergraduate and collegiate amateur liquid rocket launch in the United States, and it more than doubled the previous record of 22,000 feet (6.7 km), set by students at the University of California, Los Angeles. Deneb also broke the amateur rocketry record, according to the team. The nine students responsible for designing, building, and testing Deneb spent 4,000 hours over the past year on the project. The team had to spend an extra night in the desert after failing to launch the rocket on three attempts during the previous day.

Left: Deneb during flight. Right: The Cygnus Suborbitals team.

I fell to my knees, sobbing, from witnessing such an incredible feat, Dalton Songer, team leader and aerospace engineering student, said in the statement. Everyone was celebrating in a giant group hug. That moment was special. Something that only happens when a dedicated group of individuals come together and make something incredible happen against all odds.



For context, Deneb flew much higher than Mount Everest, which stands 29,032 feet tall (8.8 km), and higher than commercial airliners, which fly no higher than 42,000 feet (12.8 km).

Previous student-built rockets have flown higher than Deneb. Much higher. The Traveler IV rocket built by students from the University of Southern California technically flew to space, soaring above the 62-mile-high (100-km) Karman Line in April 2019. But Traveler IV was a solid fuel rocket, which is far simpler, cheaper, and less dangerous to build and operate than liquid rockets, among many other differences. Liquid fuel rockets, like SpaceXs Falcon 9 and Rocket Labs Electron, feature higher performance and greater flexibility, and are typically used to power large launch vehicles.

Propulsion engineer Zoe Brand cleaning parts in preparation for cold-flow.

Deneb is the successor to a rocket called Altair, which got delayed by the covid-19 pandemic and then blew up when the team tried to launch it in October 2022. Zoe Brand, a team member specializing in propulsion, said the Cygnus Suborbitals learned much from that experience. Altair was very heavy, she said. So, we deliberately focused on making our rocket lighter by integrating the propellant tanks into the structural rigidity of the rocket.

Elliott Bryner, director of Embry-Riddles Propulsion Laboratory and Rocket Test Complex, said several graduating students from the team have landed full-time jobs at SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Firefly Aerospace. The team began its work as a senior capstone propulsion design course taught by Daniel White and Jonathan Adams, and is part of the student-driven Rocket Development Lab, which promotes rocketry at the school and provides hands-on opportunities for undergraduates.

We needed to prove to the world that Embry-Riddle was not only capable of building liquid bipropellant flight vehicles but the very best at building them, said Songer.

It blows my mind to know that undergrads are capable of designing and launching complex liquid fuel rockets, and I eagerly await the next great achievement from similarly motivated and ambitious students.

For more spaceflight in your life, follow us on Twitter and bookmark Gizmodos dedicated Spaceflight page.

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By Mai ShamsElDin and El Tayeb Siddig

CAIRO (Reuters) - After surviving weeks of fighting in Khartoum, Sanaa Mahmoud has finally got her family to safety in Cairo but says her daughter still wakes up at night screaming because of the gunfire and airstrikes that rocked her neighbourhood.

"They saw everything, the gunfire was falling on us at home ... they saw horrible scenes," said Mahmoud, speaking at a shelter in Cairo where she has found sanctuary for her two daughters.

"She still screams at night and cries out to me 'why are these people coming to kill us?'" she said.

In Khartoum, Mahmoud describes how her daughter would run to her in alarm whenever she heard warplanes overhead, fearing they were in danger.

The account is a glimpse of the trauma being suffered by hundreds of thousands of children in Sudan, where the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in weeks of conflict that has killed hundreds of people.

UNICEF, the U.N. children's agency, says 368,000 children have been forced from their homes in Sudan, and a further 82,000 have fled into neighbouring states. It estimates 190 children were killed in the first 10 days of the war, and 1,700 injured.

"Before the conflict, we already had 7 million children, between 6 and 18 years of age, of school-going age, out of school. We already had 611,000 kids under five suffering from severe acute malnutrition, with 3 million kids under five suffering overall from malnutrition," UNICEF country director in Sudan, Mandeep O'Brien, told Reuters.

"With this conflict, we have seen a nationwide closure of schools and educational institutions," she said.

"Children are under enormous distress, particularly in the hot spot locations of this conflict due to continuous bombardment and shooting. We have seen this and experienced this firsthand," she said.

In Port Sudan on the Red Sea, where thousands of people have fled in the hope of evacuation, a group of artists has volunteered to organise recreational activities for children to alleviate the pressures on their mental health.

"We have a number of cases for children who have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder who were transferred to the psychiatric hospital, we also have similar cases among adults," said Rasha Mohamed Taher, the head of mental health division at the Sudanese health ministry in Red Sea State.

"The thing that we can do now for children is to support them and alleviate the bad psychological impacts on them."

(Additional reporting by Cairo visuals team; Editing by Tom Perry and Christina Fincher)
This article originally appeared on Outside

A window of calm conditions on Mount Everest allowed more than 100 climbers to reach the summit on Wednesday, May 17.

The Himalayan Times reported on the successful ascents on the world's highest peak, which brought the total number of climbers to reach the summit this year to 166. While that number may sound big, the record for Everest summits happened in 2019, when an estimated 891 people summitted. Last year, 690 reached the top.

Multiple expedition operators reported their successes throughout the day, among them 8K Expeditions, Furtenbach Adventures, Climbing the Seven Summits, Elite Expeditions, and Imagine Nepal. "Today, our whole Everest expedition team summited Mount Everest in the morning in perfect conditions," Furtenbach Adventures wrote online.

"26 climbers, guides and Sherpa touched the roof of the world and experienced vistas over the Tibetan Plateau and into the valleys and gorges of Nepal," Climbing the Seven Summits posted on its Facebook page. "There is no feeling quite like it."

The day was not without tragedy, however. According to reports, Moldovan climber Victor Brinza died at the South Col, becoming the sixth fatality of the year on the mountain. Brinza was climbing alongside Nepali operator Himalayan Traverse Adventure, which has not commented on his death or provided information on the cause.

His death came a day after a climber named Phurba Sherpa died near Camp III. According to The Himalayan Times, Phurba was participating in a cleanup expedition with the Nepal Army at the time of his death.

Among the list of climbers to summit on Wednesday were a handful of Mount Everest celebrities, as well individuals who claimed historic marks for reaching the top. Nepali climber Kami Rita Sherpa, 53, claimed his 27th Everest summit, which places him one ahead of Pasang Dawa Sherpa, who recorded his 26th successful climb on the mountain earlier this week. Kami Rita was guiding a Vietnamese client for expedition company Seven Summit Treks when he reached the top at 8:30 A.M. Nepal time.

"We're trying to get details. For now it's 100 percent confirmed that Kami Rita scaled for the 27th time," Thaneswar Guragai of Seven Summit Treks told media.

Another Everest veteran, British guide Kenton Cool, 48, recorded his 17th summit on Wednesday, setting a new record for successful climbs by a non-Sherpa mountaineer. Cool, who hails from Gloucestershire, was guiding Richard Walker, the executive chairman of Iceland Foods, when he made the top.

Other climbers to reach the summit include Igor Kushnir, 51, a former deputy minster of defense for Ukraine, and his wife, Oksana,46. A 16-year-old Chinese climber named Sui Cho Yuan also summitted, as did a retired sniper from the British Royal Marines named Aldo Kane.

Yandy Martinez Nunez, a Cuban national who lives in Iceland, also reached the summit, and is believed to be the first climber from Cuba to successfully ascend the mountain.

The push for the summit on Wednesday came after high winds delayed climbers for more than a week. Rope-fixing teams affixed lines to the summit on Thursday, May 11, and the first trickle of climbers to the top happened in the ensuing days.

May is the busiest month on Mount Everest, and according to The Himalayan Database, a website that tracks Himalayan mountaineering, approximately 80 percent of the 11,341 successful Everest summits have occurred between the dates May 15 and 26. Historically, this year's May 11 date for fixed ropes to reach the top is slightly later than usual, but there have been later first summits on the peak. In 2014, the first climbers didn't reach the Everest summit until May 24. According the Himalayan Database, May 19 is the date with the most successful Everest climbs, with 13 percent of the total summits; May 21 second at 11 percent.

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(Bloomberg) -- Rishi Sunak said his UK government is in talks with the European Union about Brexit-related rules that have triggered warnings from carmakers about the impact of looming tariffs on their profitability.

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Its something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern, Sunak told broadcasters Thursday in Japan, where the British prime minister is attending the Group of Seven summit. We are engaged in a dialog with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally.

Read More: UK Lobbies for Laxer Brexit Rules as Carmakers Seek Help

Sunaks comments come after Stellantis NV, the Vauxhall maker which is retooling its Ellesmere Port site in northern England to make electric vans, said its unable to meet requirements on local content because of rising raw-material prices and a lack of domestic battery supplies.

The warning relates to a rule that 45% of an electric vehicles value must be sourced in Britain or Europe from 2024 to avoid export tariffs of 10%  a burden for UK automakers selling cars abroad. Sunaks government has been urging the EU to push back the cliff-edge on the so-called rules of origin.

Read More: UK to Unveil Battery Plant Strategy in Bid to Retain Carmakers

In a written submission to Parliament, Stellantis said the origin requirements should be pushed back by three years. Japans Nissan Motor Co. also said assembling cars in Britain is at risk of becoming too expensive. Sunak met executives from Nissan and other Japanese companies on Thursday.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a case concerning Title 42 as moot, days after the policy ended along with other pandemic emergency measures.

The judicial death knell of the controversial border policy was foreshadowed in February by Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, the administrations litigator for the case, when she wrote absent other relevant developments the end of the emergency would moot the case.

Justice Neil Gorsuch agreed, writing a blow-by-blow account of the litigation around Title 42 and the whiplash of lawsuits and competing injunctions that fed the case.

This case concerns the Title 42 orders,' wrote Gorsuch. Those emergency decrees severely restricted immigration to this country for the ostensible purpose of preventing the spread of COVID-19. The federal government began issuing the orders in March 2020 and continued issuing them until April 2022, when officials decided they were no longer necessary.

If that seems reasonable enough, events soon took a turn.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch joins other members of the Supreme Court as they pose for a new group portrait

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch joins other members of the Supreme Court as they pose for a new group portrait, at the Supreme Court building in Washington on Oct. 7, 2022.

Litigation against and in defense of Title 42 pitted immigrant advocates against a group of Republican state attorneys general, with lawsuits filed in Louisiana and the District of Columbia, either seeking to perpetuate or nix the policy.

The Supreme Court last ruled on Title 42 in December, saying the policy should remain in place until its final review of the matter, which never came because it ended May 11.

At the time, the continuation of the policy was seen as a victory for Republican states and for the Biden administration, which had warned the end of Title 42 would bring an unmanageable number of asylum seekers to the border.

The lead-up to Title 42s sunset on May 11 came with a significant increase in the number of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, but that number dropped precipitously with the end of the policy.

More Title 42 coverage from The Hill:

While tens of thousands of migrants, many of whom are potential asylum-seekers, remain camped at the border, the return to regular border processing is likely one factor in the decreased number of crossings.

Under the regular border management statute known as Title 8 and the Biden administrations new asylum rules, migrants risk criminal prosecution if they are caught crossing the border without authorization more than once, and they face a five-year bar from entering the United States if their asylum cases are not adjudicated.

Under Title 42, border officials could immediately expel migrants encountered, without granting them their right to claim asylum and without producing a paper trail of the interaction.

The lack of a paper trail led to recidivism in border crossings because there were few consequences for multiple attempts.

The policy was nominally a sanitary protection during the pandemic, but it was widely seen as an attempt to gut asylum by the Trump administration.

Gorsuch dissented from the majority in Decembers ruling that kept the policy alive, writing even if the States manage on remand to demonstrate that the Title 42 orders were lawfully adopted, the emergency on which those orders were premised has long since lapsed.

At the time, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson joined Gorsuchs dissent; Thursday, Jackson dissented from Gorsuchs opinion on a technicality.

Gorsuchs decision rendered the case moot, but Jackson would have dismissed it as improvidently granted, meaning the Court should have never taken on the case.

Zach Schonfeld contributed

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
In a victory for social media sites, the Supreme Court declined Thursday to rule on a challenge to Section 230, which protects websites from being sued over its users' posts. (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press)

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a major challenge to the internet legal shield known as Section 230, which has long protected social media websites from being sued for what users post there.

In a short unsigned opinion, the court said it would not rule on the potentially momentous issue because the plaintiffs had no valid claims that Twitter or Google had aided terrorists, an allegation that was at the heart of their lawsuit.

The outcome came as relief for social media sites such as Facebook and YouTube that have grown and prospered due in large part to the protections set by Congress at the dawn of the internet.

"This is a huge win for free speech on the internet, said Chris Marchese, Litigation Center director for the tech lobbying group NetChoice. The court was asked to undermine Section 230  and declined.

But the justices left open the question that first drew their attention, so it could arise in a future case.

Section 230 has been dubbed "the 26 words that created the internet" because it said that "interactive computer service" can be a platform for free speech and shall not be "treated as the publisher or speaker of any information" posted there.

So while publishers and broadcasters can be sued for content they print or put on the air, interactive websites cannot.

In recent years, critics have complained that social media companies were pushing the limits of those protections with computer algorithms that steer users toward content that might be of interest to them, based on their past activity. At times, those algorithms direct users to content that could be deemed dangerous, violent or offensive.

Critics of Section 230 argued that even if companies are not held liable for what their users post, their algorithms' suggestions to guide users to similar content are essentially the companies' speech and should not be protected.

The Supreme Court had never ruled on Section 230, but last year it sent a shudder through much of the high-tech industry when it agreed to hear a pair of cases that challenged the legal immunity for websites.

The two lawsuits came from victims and survivors of terrorist attacks. In 2016, Congress made it easier to sue those who "aid or abet" an act of international terrorism by "knowingly" providing "substantial assistance" to the perpetrators.

In Twitter vs. Taamneh, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals cleared the way for social media platforms including Facebook and Google to be sued on the grounds that their sites had helped recruit the terrorists who carried out a nightclub attack in Istanbul.

Meanwhile, in Gonzalez vs. Google, the court agreed to consider whether the platforms could be held liable  despite Section 230  on the grounds that their algorithms had played a role in recruiting terrorists for a series of attacks in Paris.

In February, the justices heard arguments over two days in the two cases, starting with the focus on algorithms. During the second day, several justices voiced skepticism about the lawsuit in the case of the Istanbul attack.

On Thursday, they handed down a unanimous ruling dismissing the aiding and abetting lawsuit against Twitter. Justice Clarence Thomas said that such claims should be limited to "truly culpable conduct," and that there was no convincing argument that Twitter had knowingly helped recruit terrorists.

Based on that conclusion, the justices also dismissed the companion case against Google that had raised the issue of algorithms, saying that since the underlying lawsuit cannot proceed, "we therefore decline to address the application of 230 to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief."

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said in a statement Thursday that the court's nondecision should prompt Congress to change Section 230. Both Republicans and Democrats have been critical of the growing power and influence of Big Tech.

"The justices passed on their chance to clarify that Section 230 is not a get-out-of-jail-free card for online platforms when they cause harm," Durbin said. "Enough is enough. ... Congress must step in, reform Section 230, and remove platforms blanket immunity from liability."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
(Bloomberg) -- The US Supreme Court scrapped a showdown over pandemic-era border restrictions after President Joe Bidens administration ended the emergency declaration that had formed policys legal basis.

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The high court had already canceled arguments in the case, which stemmed from a judges conclusion that the Trump administration didnt give an adequate explanation when it put the Title 42 policy in place in 2020. The justices previously put that decision on hold while they considered whether a group of Republican-led states could intervene in defense of the policy.

In a new order Thursday, the high court said the effort to intervene had become moot. The justices set aside a federal appeals court ruling that had rejected the intervention request.

Until the restrictions ended on May 11, they had let the Trump and Biden administrations quickly expel about half the people arriving at the Mexican border.

The Supreme Court case is Arizona v. Mayorkas, 22-592.

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(Bloomberg) -- The US Supreme Court handed social media companies a new line of defense as they face an increasing number of lawsuits alleging their algorithms have harmed users  whether by addicting children or selling suicide kits.

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In a unanimous ruling, the justices knocked down a case alleging Alphabet Inc.s Google, Twitter Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. should be held liable for aiding and abetting terrorism by hosting and recommending Islamic State videos and posts to their users.

The court said that under a federal antiterrorism law, social media companies cant be held responsible simply for deploying algorithms that in some cases recommend harmful content. Thats an argument that the tech giants will likely point to as they face cases across the country on other issues.

The courts decision is pretty clear that generally providing a platform, even if that platform has recommendation algorithms, is not enough to find liability just because some people used that platform to do criminal things, said Evelyn Douek, a professor at Stanford Law School who studies online speech. So platforms will be able to point to that general principle in other cases in the future.

Read More: Supreme Court Keeps Social Media Legal Shield in Google Win

The social media companies notched a significant win on Thursday when the Supreme Court declined to weigh in at all on the issue of Section 230, a statute that prevents the online platforms from facing most lawsuits over posts by their users. That means the high court likely wont try to pare back the tech industrys prized legal shield anytime soon.

Agnostic Algorithms

But social medias headaches go beyond just the fate of Section 230. Meta and other social media companies will soon face consolidated litigation in California over claims that Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms cause addiction and self-destructive behavior in adolescents. That case was on hold as the Supreme Court considered its social media cases. Meanwhile, Amazon.com Inc. is facing a lawsuit accusing the platform of selling suicide kits to teenagers.

Tucked into the courts opinion is an assertion about the nature of social media algorithms that the companies may be able to point to in battling lawsuits over these other topics.

As presented here, the algorithms appear agnostic as to the nature of the content, matching any content (including ISIS content) with any user who is more likely to view that content, wrote Justice Clarence Thomas on behalf of the court. The fact that these algorithms matched some ISIS content with some users thus does not convert defendants passive assistance into active abetting.

There are significant portions of Thursdays decision that the big tech companies will likely use to their advantage, experts said. Thomas in his opinion also wrote that social media platforms do not have a duty to remove customers using their platforms for illicit activity.

The court categorically states these internet services do not owe a duty of care to their users with regards to the Anti-Terrorism Act, said Jess Miers, legal advocacy counsel with tech-funded group Chamber of Progress. Miers previously worked for Google.

Plaintiffs in the past have tried to claim internet services have a duty to their users, but they dont actually have that legal relationship with users, Miers said.

Punting to Congress

The debate over social medias culpability in enabling the spread of harassment, violence, hate speech, misinformation and more is only set to intensify. Some lawmakers on Thursday said the Supreme Court missed an opportunity by failing to weigh in on Section 230 and said its time for Congress to step in.

Companies turn a blind eye to child sexual abuse material, drug sales, and border smuggling on their platforms while rushing to censor free speech, said Tennessee Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn. Congress must reform the law.

But efforts to reform Section 230 have failed amid partisan fighting for years. For now, the Supreme Courts opinions on Thursday will likely boost the social media companies arguments. The high court this summer will decide whether to weigh in on laws in Texas and Florida that bar internet platforms from removing political speech. Those cases would tee up a novel set of questions about social medias relationship with the First Amendment, and legal experts are divided over whether the initial social media cases provide any glimpses into what will happen next year.

The court seemed to understand the content moderation difficulty of online services, said Miers. They seem to appreciate the technology.

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A retired staff sergeant who pleaded guilty to a sexual assault that occurred after his time as an active duty Marine has asked the Supreme Court to decide whether his prosecution under military law was unconstitutional.

Retired Staff Sgt. Steven M. Larrabee in November 2015 sexually assaulted a civilian bartender at a bar in Iwakuni, Japan, and recorded it on his phone, according to his cert petition, the document in which he asked the court to review his case.

After Larrabee, then a member of the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve, was charged under military law, he pleaded guilty to sexual assault and indecent recording. A military judge sentenced him to 10 months confinement and a dishonorable discharge, according to the petition.

Enlisted Marines with more than 20 years but less than 30 years of active service can choose to be transferred to the Fleet Marine Reserve, according to the cert petition.

Despite the name, its not like the Marine Corps Reserve  its a de facto retirement status, Larrabee stated, with the possibility that members can be summoned to service again in case of war or national emergency.

In exchange, members of the Fleet Marine Reserve receive retainer pay, unlike non-retirees in the Individual Ready Reserve, or IRR. Members of the IRR generally arent subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Military Times previously reported.

Larrabee appealed his conviction, arguing that military law shouldnt apply to him because he was no longer in the military. He maintained he should have instead been tried under civilian law, Military Times previously reported.

After getting rebuffed by appeals courts, he asked the Supreme Court to review his case, filing cert petitions first in 2018 and again in May.

Though the Supreme Court in early 2019 declined to hear his case, a federal judge in D.C., Richard J. Leon, in 2020 agreed with Larrabee that the military prosecution he faced was unconstitutional.

Can the Pentagon prosecute military retirees under the UCMJ? Maybe  it depends.

Under current federal law, courts-martial can try members of the Fleet Marine Reserve or the Fleet Reserve, the equivalent for the Navy. Congress passed that law due to the clause in the Constitution that lets it make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces.

But Larrabee argued that retirees in the Fleet Marine Reserve are functionally living as civilians. As a result, in his view, that constitutional clause shouldnt apply.

The Justice Departments Office of the Solicitor General, which represents the government, argued in 2018 that members of the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve and Fleet Reserve are still part of the naval forces. The offices brief noted that some of these retirees were called back to active service during recent decades conflicts.

Its far from guaranteed that the Supreme Court will take up the case. The justices receive about 7,000 to 8,000 cert petitions each year but hear only around 80 cases, according to SCOTUSblog.

The last time Larrabee asked the justices to review his case, in 2018, they declined, after lawyers for the government pushed back on his claims and indicated that there were still questions for appeals courts to resolve before the Supreme Court should take a look at the case.

By refusing to take up the case, the court left in place the status quo, which lets members of the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve and Fleet Reserve face prosecution under military law.

Two appeals courts have since agreed that these retirees could be tried under military law, but they arrived at that conclusion through divergent  and independently unpersuasive  rationales, Larrabee argued in his cert petition this year.

Larrabee warned in the petition that lower courts rulings may affect the countrys two million retirees, even those who arent in the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve or Fleet Reserve. Federal appellate courts have found that retirees from the active component can be subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, according to the Congressional Research Service.

It could be possible for retirees to be tried under military law for actions that are legal under civilian law  such as anti-war speech or speaking contemptuously of the president  Larrabee argued.

There could even be implications for veterans with ties to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, Larrabee indicated. In June 2021, then-Rep. Elaine Luria, a Democrat from Virginia raised a military prosecution as a possibility for retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn for appearing to endorse a coup, CNN reported. As a retired soldier, Flynn was not part of the Fleet Marine Reserve or Fleet Reserve, which are for retirees from the sea services.

In a 2019 Lawfire post, retired Maj. Gen. Charles J. Dunlap Jr., a former deputy judge advocate general of the United States Air Force and a professor at Duke Law School, emphasized that Larrabee had chosen to transfer to the Fleet Marine Reserve rather than sever his military ties entirely.

I recognize that (Larrabee) may now regret transferring to the Fleet Marine Reserve given the outcome of his trial, but my bet  based on literally everyone I know  is that the overwhelming majority of retired military personnel are proud of their service, and would hardly be pleased to have it downgraded to some lesser connection simply so that a rogue vet might not be held accountable in the military justice system, Dunlap wrote.

The Justice Department declined to comment on the case. It has until June 7 to file a response to Larrabees petition but has requested another month.

Steven Vladeck, one of Larrabees lawyers, did not respond to a Marine Corps Times request for comment.

The case is Steven M. Larrabee v. Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy, et al.
The Supreme Court on Thursday passed up a chance to weigh in on the Biden administrations decision to declare an end to the coronavirus public health emergency and allow strict pandemic-related limits on asylum-seekers to expire.

A coalition of conservative states sought to enter long-running litigation over the policy known as Title 42, after the Biden administration was ordered to end the immigration restrictions last year and agreed to a wind-down period to do so.

Last December, the justices voted 5-4 to temporarily block a lower court judges order requiring an end to the immigration restrictions. The Supreme Court also added the dispute to its docket to be argued earlier this year.

However, after the Biden administration announced plans to unilaterally terminate the public health emergency earlier this month, the justices removed the case from their argument calendar. Last week, the administration formally ended the emergency and the related immigration controls.



On Thursday, the justices effectively declared the legal dispute moot and wiped out an order from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals denying the red states effort to wade into the long-running legal case brought by lawyers representing asylum-seekers.

Despite their move deep-sixing the Title 42 fight, the justices could soon be confronted by legal issues arising from the Biden administrations attempt to replace the pandemic-related rules with other policies designed to discourage asylum-seekers from simply showing up at border stations or crossing without being checked by immigration officers.

Acting at the request of the state of Florida, a federal judge in Pensacola has blocked two of the administrations plans to release some immigrants after processing at the border. The Justice Department has appealed both those decisions and has said it plans to seek emergency relief, raising the possibility the matter could be in front of the Supreme Court within days.



Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, an appointee of President Joe Biden, dissented from the courts action Thursday. She said would have simply had the Supreme Court drop the matter without directing the appeals court to do anything.

Justice Neil Gorsuch endorsed the high courts action but authored an eight-page opinion arguing that it was a mistake to use the pandemic-related measure to control a long-standing problem with irregular immigration on the southern border.

The Court took a serious misstep when it effectively allowed nonparties to this case to manipulate our docket to prolong an emergency decree designed for one crisis in order to address an entirely different one, Gorsuch wrote. Todays dismissal goes some way to correcting that error.

Gorsuch, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, also used the opportunity to lament what he described as overreach by government officials who seized on the pandemic to wield power they would otherwise have never tried to assert.

Courts bound to protect our liberties addressed a few  but hardly all  of the intrusions upon them, Gorsuch wrote. In some cases, like this one, courts even allowed themselves to be used to perpetuate emergency public-health decrees for collateral purposes, itself a form of emergency-lawmaking-by-litigation.  Rule by indefinite emergency edict risks leaving all of us with a shell of a democracy and civil liberties just as hollow.
This Oct. 4, 2018, file photo shows the U.S. Supreme Court at sunset in Washington. | Manuel Balce Ceneta, Associated Press

A pair of Supreme Court decisions published Thursday on cases that involve tech giants Google and Twitter confirmed protections provided by a controversial communications law that mostly shields social media companies and digital platform operators from liability for content posted by users.

In Twitter vs. Taamneh, the court ruled against a family member of Jordanian citizen Nawras Alassaf, who died in the 2017 attack on the Reina nightclub in Istanbul where a gunman affiliated with the Islamic State group killed 39 people. Alassafs relatives sued Twitter, Google and Facebook for aiding terrorism, arguing the platforms helped the militant organization grow and did not go far enough in trying to curb terrorist activity on their platforms. A lower court had earlier let the case proceed.

In the second ruling with direct implications for Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the court dismissed Gonzalez vs. Google, leaving a lower court ruling in place. The case stemmed from the death of American college student Nohemi Gonzalez in a terrorist attack in Paris in 2015. Members of the Gonzalez family sought to sue Google-owned YouTube for helping the Islamic State group spread its message and attract new recruits, in violation of the Anti-Terrorism Act. Earlier lower court rulings sided with Google.

The decisions allow the court to avoid directly assessing the merits of Section 230s protections, ones that have been defended by the tech industry but maligned by some elected officials and other critics as being too broad.

Related

The court will eventually have to answer some important questions that it avoided in todays opinions, Anna Diakun, staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said in an emailed statement to The Associated Press. Questions about the scope of platforms immunity under Section 230 are consequential and will certainly come up soon in other cases.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, widely credited with helping online companies prosper since its adoption, provides protection for platform operators against legal issues raised by content published by users under the stipulation that no provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.

In its simplest interpretation, the section places the liability for any posting squarely on the user/poster and creates a legal firewall between that user and the website or platform operator, as well as other users. But, the protection is not absolute as the Electronic Frontier Foundation notes, in that it does not protect companies that violate federal criminal law, create illegal or harmful content, or illegally repurpose someone elses intellectual property.

Ahead of a 2021 congressional hearing focused on misinformation and extremist content on social media platforms, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in written testimony that without Section 230, online platforms would be obligated to over-filter content or not filter it all and that the clause allows companies to take decisive action on harmful misinformation and keep up with bad actors who work hard to circumvent their policies.

Regulation has an important role to play in ensuring that we protect what is great about the open web, while addressing harm and improving accountability, Pichai wrote. We are, however, concerned that many recent proposals to change Section 230  including calls to repeal it altogether  would not serve that objective well.

In fact, they would have unintended consequences  harming both free expression and the ability of platforms to take responsible action to protect users in the face of constantly evolving challenges.

In his own memo ahead of that hearing, which included Pichai as well as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitters then-CEO Jack Dorsey as witnesses, chairman of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. D-N.J., said that social media operators were failing to effectively staunch the flow of misinformation and extremist postings.

Facebook, Google, and Twitter operate some of the largest and most influential online social media platforms reaching billions of users across the globe, Pallone wrote. As a result, they are among the largest platforms for the dissemination of misinformation and extremist content.

These platforms maximize their reach  and advertising dollars  by using algorithms or other technologies to promote content and make content recommendations that increase user engagement. Users of these platforms often engage more with questionable or provocative content, thus the algorithms often elevate or amplify disinformation and extremist content.
The Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has issued two rulings in favor of tech companies that will continue to shield them from liability for what users post on their platforms. In the first case, the justices unanimously agreed that Twitter will not have to contend with claims that it aided and abetted terrorism over tweets that terrorist group ISIS posted.

SCOTUS reversed a lower court decision that allowed a lawsuit against Twitter to proceed after another judge initially dismissed it. The lawsuit was filed by US relatives of Nawras Alassaf, a man who was killed in a 2017 Istanbul attack that was claimed by ISIS. The justices determined that hosting general terrorist speech doesn't create indirect legal responsibility for specific terrorist attacks, as CNN reports. That is likely to make it more difficult for victims of terrorist attacks or their relatives to make a similar case against online platforms in the future.

"To be sure, it might be that bad actors like ISIS are able to use platforms like defendants for illegal  and sometimes terrible  ends. But the same could be said of cell phones, email or the internet generally," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in the court's opinion. "We conclude that plaintiffs allegations are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack.

The justices also dismissed the case of Gonzalez v. Google, which accused the company of violating US anti-terrorism laws. As such, they left intact a lower court decision to throw out a suit against YouTube brought by the family members of a victim of the 2015 terror attack in Paris. They argued that Section 230 protections should not apply to Google and YouTube in this case, as the latter's algorithms surfaced ISIS videos in recommendations.

"We decline to address the application of Section 230 to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief," the court wrote in an unsigned opinion. "Instead, we vacate the judgment below and remand the case for Ninth Circuit to consider plaintiffs complaint in light of our decision in Twitter.

Section 230 refers to a clause in the Communications Decency Act of 1996. In essence, it protects online platforms from being liable for what their users post as well as the ability of companies to moderate third-party material.

The clause has faced opposition from both sides of the aisle over the years, with both Democrats and Republicans seeking to reform or scrap it. President Joe Biden claimed during his campaign that he would see Section 230 "revoked, immediately" if he were elected, but that obviously hasn't come to pass. In relation to Gonzalez vs. Google, Biden's administration argued that Section 230 protections don't extend to Google's algorithms, as the clause does not "bar claims based on YouTubes alleged targeted recommendations of ISIS content."

"Countless companies, scholars, creators and civil society groups who joined with us in this case will be reassured by this result," Google's public policy team said in a statement on Twitter. "We'll continue to safeguard free expression online, combat harmful content, and support businesses and creators who benefit from the internet." Twitter does not have a communications team that can be reached for comment.

Digital rights groups are among those who have welcomed the SCOTUS rulings. We are pleased that the Court did not address or weaken Section 230, which remains an essential part of the architecture of the modern internet and will continue to enable user access to online platforms," Electronic Frontier Foundation civil liberties director David Greene said in a statement to Engadget. "We also are pleased that the Court found that an online service cannot be liable for terrorist attacks merely because their services are generally used by terrorist organizations the same way they are used by millions of organizations around the globe.

With this decision, free speech online lives to fight another day, Patrick Toomey, deputy director of ACLUs National Security Project, said. Twitter and other apps are home to an immense amount of protected speech, and it would be devastating if those platforms resorted to censorship to avoid a deluge of lawsuits over their users posts. Todays decisions should be commended for recognizing that the rules we apply to the internet should foster free expression, not suppress it.

Update 5/18 3:05PM ET: Added Google's statement.
Jack Teixeira, 21, was arrested by the FBI and has been in custody since 14 April

A US airman suspected of leaking classified files was warned repeatedly about his handling of classified information, prosecutors say.

In a court filing, US prosecutors argued Jack Teixeira should remain in detention because of his "wilful disregard" for protecting information.

He allegedly leaked files even after he was warned by his superiors on two separate occasions last year.

The 21-year-old has been in custody since the FBI arrested him on 14 April.

He was charged with the unauthorised transmission and retention of defence materials after dozens of classified files appeared in the online chat room Discord. They included sensitive information about US allies and the war in Ukraine.

A judge will soon decide whether he should remain in detention until his trial and is expected to hear arguments on Friday.

The court filing from justice department prosecutors on Wednesday alleged Mr Teixeira's superiors had flagged "concerning actions" around Mr Teixeira's handling of classified information.

It said that on one occasion he was seen taking notes and putting them in his pocket. His superiors then asked him to stop taking notes in any form on classified information, prosecutors said.

A month later, Mr Teixeira's bosses discovered he was "potentially ignoring a cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence" after he went to a classified briefing and posed "very specific questions" about what was discussed. They told him to stop and "focus on his job", the court filing said.

Then, in February 2023, after someone saw the airman viewing intelligence information that was "not related to his primary duty", Mr Teixeira's supervisors were notified, according to the court document. It is unclear if he was disciplined.

Prosecutors have argued Mr Teixeira should not be released on bail because he poses a threat to national security, while defence lawyers argue he should be released with restrictions.

Prosecutors claim the airman has bragged to people online about violating rules on classified information. They say he acknowledged in December that he was "breaking a ton of UD regs", a reference to unauthorised disclosure, but said, he did not care "what they say I can or can't share".

Prosecutors say the posts make clear that Mr Teixeira "simply did not care" what the government or his superiors told him and that he would not listen to a court's instructions either.

Mr Teixeira's defence lawyer said he should be free to stay in his home in the presence of either relatives, Air Force personnel, or lawyers.

He denied his client posed a serious flight risk, and said suggestions by prosecutors that foreign adversaries would seek to take advantage of Mr Teixeira's release were rooted in "speculation".
School officials are investigating after they say a hateful image was found drawn on the wall of a high school bathroom Thursday morning.

In a letter sent home to parents, Newton High School South Principal Tamara Stras says a swastika was drawn with chocolate or a similar substance on the wall of the boys bathroom located in the 6000 wing of the school.

I cannot express the anger and disappointment that we all feel because we have people who are continuing to perpetuate hate in our building, she said.

The school has also contacted Newton Police as well as the Anti-Defamation League to assist with the investigation. Similarly, school officials say theyve contacted the South Human Rights Council, their incident response team, and their Jewish Staff Affinity Group for student support.

I want to assure you that we as a school and district are deeply dedicated to addressing hate and discrimination issues and educating our students to stand up against hate, Stras said. South will always strive to be a place where all feel seen, heard, and supported.

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Man barricaded himself inside motel room with woman, baby, 6 dogs, 2 snakes and a turtle, police say

Clayton County police took a man into custody after he barricaded himself inside a motel room. When police cleared the room, they found several animals also inside.

Channel 2s Steve Gehlbach reported live on Channel 2 Action News This Morning as it unfolded at the American Inn and Suites on Old Dixie Highway.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, police responded to complaints of criminal activity at an abandoned motel nearby.

One of the officers heard two gunshots fired about 20 feet from him and spotted a man, identified as Kendrick Thomas, running across the parking lot.

Officers saw Thomas run into a room at back of the American Inn and Suites, then proceeded to barricade himself for about 90 minutes.

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The situation ended peacefully when police said Thomas came out of the room along with a woman and small baby. Police said they confirmed with surveillance video that Thomas was the man who officers saw.

Police said Thomas didnt tell them if anyone else was inside the motel room.

SWAT teams entered, did a clean sweep and found no one else inside the room; however, police did discover six dogs, two snakes and a turtle. They also found a gun and shell casings.

Thomas faces the following charges: Reckless Conduct, Cruelty to Children 1st Degree, Cruelty to Animals, and Obstruction of Law Enforcement.

IN OTHER NEWS
Syria's Assad arrives in Saudi Arabia for regional summit, sealing his return to the Arab fold

In this photo provided by Saudi Press Agency, SPA, Syrian President Bashar Assad, is accompanied by Prince Bandar Bin Sultan, the deputy governor of Makkah, upon his arrival at Jeddah airport, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, May 18, 2023, ahead of the Arab summit. (Saudi Press Agency via AP)

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP)  Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived on Thursday in Saudi Arabia to attend a regional summit that is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold, marking his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syrias conflict began in 2011.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts Friday, is a major step in normalizing relations following a 12-year suspension which saw the embattled leader turn toward non-Arab allies Iran and Russia to maintain his grip on power.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, once viewed as a regional pariah, back into its ranks. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

Assad appeared relaxed and cheerful as he descended onto the tarmac, where he was greeted by Prince Badr bin Sultan, deputy governor of the shrine city Mecca, along with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit and several local officials.

It was not immediately clear if Assad will meet some of the Arab leaders attending Friday's summit. During Syria's conflict, Assad only visited Russia and Iran and over the past two years he went to Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia was formerly key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad. However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syrias pre-war population.

Assads troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to the support of Russia and Iran that helped tip the war in his favor.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad. The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syrias conflict. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad. Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdoms yearslong war in Yemen. Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assads government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalization of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syrias conflict based on U.N. Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the Feb. 6, earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.

In addition to Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt have also renewed ties with Damascus, following normalization efforts from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain years ago.

Still, Kuwait, Morocco, and Qatar, remain opposed to normalizing relations with Syria and Qatar continues to be a key backer of Syrian rebel groups fighting Assad.

___

Associated Press writer Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria, contributed to this report.
During Syria's war, Saudi officials had openly championed Assad's ouster

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in Saudi Arabia Thursday, state media said, to join an Arab League summit for the first time in more than a decade of war.

Assad "arrived at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to participate in... the Arab League summit" on Friday, Syrian state television reported.

The visit marks Assad's official return to the Arab fold after the body suspended Damascus in November 2011 over its bloody crackdown on protests, triggering a conflict that has killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions.

Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries either severed or downgraded ties with Assad at the time -- with Riyadh openly championing his ouster during the conflict.

But earlier this month, the pan-Arab body welcomed Damascus back, with host Saudi Arabia inviting Assad to Friday's summit despite objections from other Arab countries.

Syrian pro-government newspaper al-Watan said Assad will likely meet "a number of leaders in bilateral meetings" Thursday evening and Friday morning.

The last Arab League summit Assad attended was in 2010 in Libya.

- Reconstruction -

Regional capitals had gradually been warming to Assad as he has held onto power and clawed back lost territory with crucial support from Iran and Russia.

In 2018, the United Arab Emirates re-established ties with Syria and has been leading the charge to reintegrate Damascus into the Arab fold.

Arab outreach to Assad picked up pace after a deadly earthquake struck Syria and Turkey on February 6.

A decision in March by Saudi Arabia and Damascus backer Iran to resume ties has also shifted the Middle Eastern political landscape.

Less than two weeks later, Saudi Arabia announced it had begun talks on resuming consular services with Iran ally Syria.

Officials at several recent meetings have said Arab leadership is needed to find a settlement to the conflict.

The fate of millions of Syrian refugees -- many of them living in neighbouring Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon -- are among some states' main concerns.

Several Arab countries are also seeking increased security cooperation with Syria, which critics say has turned into a narco-state with a $10 billion captagon industry, mostly trafficked to the Gulf.

Assad is hoping full normalisation of ties with wealthy Gulf monarchies and other Arab states will help finance reconstruction.

Following a preparatory meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said "reconstruction will facilitate (refugee) returns, and we welcome any Arab role in this field."

While Syria's front lines have mostly quietened, large parts of the north remain outside government control, and no political solution to the conflict is in sight.

aya/kir
Photo: Ivan Alvarado (Reuters)

Air. Its everywhere. Its invisible. And frequently its so full of germs and particles that some call air the new poop.



Indoors, its hard to quickly assess whether the air youre breathing is clean or not. But determining that could have made people less sick during the pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis is almost certainly an indoor air crisis; it is very likely a ventilation crisis, Yuguo Li, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Hong Kong, and his colleagues wrote in the journal Indoor Air in late 2021.



Read more

In the US, new ventilation targets emerged last week, thanks to a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance as well as a draft industry standard (pdf) from the Association of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). These targets aim for the kind of ventilation that can lower the risks posed by infectious pathogens. But setting targets is one thing. Putting them into practice is a whole different ball game.



Theres no one-size-fits-all solution to indoor air

One major challenge is reconciling a buildings energy efficiency and its indoor air quality. In places where outdoor air is very cold or very hot, pumping large amounts of it into indoor spaces could then require even more energy to heat or cool the building accordingly. We dont want to solve one problem by making another one worse, Li said.



Different places also have drastically different built environments. In a subtropical location like Hong Kong, for example, the vast majority of homes are sealed apartments with no heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to circulate air. Thats fine during temperate months of the year, when windows can be left wide open, but it poses a ventilation problem when windows are shut to keep cool air-conditioned air in. By contrast, natural ventilation using wind and the chimney effect of rising hot air works best in a city like Bengaluru, with a dry climate and moderate temperatures, and is more energy-efficient than mechanical ventilation systems.

Apartments in a residential building in Hong Kong



Hong Kong apartments are densely stacked

Hong Kongs population density also means tall buildings have to be engineered to mitigate the vertical spread of infectious diseasesan issue that standalone homes dont have to deal with.



Setting a unified standard that covers such high variabilities in climate and built environments is difficult. Theres no one-size-fits-all solution, said Joey Fox, a heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC) engineer based in Canada and chair of an advisory group on indoor air quality.

Should governments mandate CO2 monitoring in buildings?

Among the low-hanging fruit in this field is the monitoring of carbon dioxide levels. These levels serve as a proxy for how frequently fresh air is pumped into a space to replace exhaled air. A room with lower CO2 readings poses lower risks of spreading germs, because any pathogen-laden air breathed out by an infected person is replaced more quickly with clean air than in a poorly ventilated room

Li wants to see governments mandate real-time monitoring and display of CO2 levels in public spaces and transportation.Thats a first step the world should take, he said. Without measurement, forget about discussion, you dont know whats going on.

datawrapper-chart-TSvHu

Displaying CO2 details also gives people more information with which to assess risks and adjust their behavior. Consider, for example, a diner walking into a restaurant, seeing a CO2 reading of 1,300 parts per million (ppm)far above the 800 ppm level considered to represent good ventilationand deciding to eat somewhere else.



It is, in fact, possible to smell whether C02 levels are too high in a space youve just entered, said Li. Such spaces often feel stuffy or filled with odors. If [the smell] is not so good, then you go away, he said. But for those with less acutely tuned olfactory senses, CO2 monitors can help.

Belgium presents a test case for indoor air quality



One government is betting that requiring CO2 monitoring by law will have big public health payoffs. Belgium will soon become the first country in the world to mandate continuous monitoring of CO2 levels in public indoor spaces.

Last December, Belgium enacted a law regulating indoor air quality in enclosed spaces accessible to the public. The law states that, within a year of enactment, all operators of publicly accessible indoor spacesrestaurants, gyms, bars, and officesmust use an air quality monitor such as a CO2 meter.



It is important to incorporate the experience, knowledge and expertise on indoor air quality and respiratory diseases gained during the Covid-19 pandemic, notes the explanatory memorandum (pdf, link in Dutch) to the law.

A bar in Brussels, Belgium, in 2021

And by 2025, operators of Belgiums public indoor spaces will have to alert visitors to air quality levels. Just as food safety inspectors award visible certificates to restaurants, these spaces must display certification labels that show an official has determined them to have met the required standards.

The Belgian law currently sets two different (and, as of now, non-mandatory) indoor air quality targets that buildings should aim for: less than 900 parts per million (ppm) of CO2 in a room, meaning that CO2 comprises less than 0.09% of the rooms air; and less than 1,200 ppm of CO2.

And its not just at the national level where CO2 monitoring can become part of standard practice. This coming September, the public school board in the Canadian city of Waterloo will pilot a program to track CO2 levels in classrooms.



Its really the best tool we have, Fox said of CO2 monitoring. Its not the perfect tool, but its the best tool.

Part I: How covid could turn out to be like cholerain a good way



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A US court has approved the extradition of Chicago businessman Tahawwur Rana to India where he is wanted for his role in the 2008 terror attack in Mumbai.

Rana was convicted in 2011 of supporting an Islamic militant group blamed for the attack on India's financial capital that killed 166 people.

But he was cleared of the more serious charge of helping plot the attack.

The businessman was arrested after an extradition request by India in 2020.

Rana, who denied all the charges against him, had challenged India's extradition request which was also supported by the US government.

But a court on Monday consented his extradition. The court said that Rana had been charged in India with criminal conspiracy, committing terrorist acts and murder - all of which are extraditable offences as per the treaty between US and India.

It, however, added that Rana will remain in US custody till the Secretary of State to India takes final decision on his extradition.

More than 160 people were killed in November 2008 when a group of 10 men stormed a train station, hotels and cafes and a Jewish centre, shooting and throwing bombs.

Indian authorities accused Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian, of conspiring with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley to assist Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which was blamed for the attack.

Prosecutors in the case said that in 2006, Rana allowed Headley to open an office of his Chicago-based immigration services firm in Mumbai, which Headley then used as cover to scout sites for the 2008 attack.

Rana was also accused of allowing Headley to pose as a representative of his firm in order to gain access to newspaper offices by feigning interest in purchasing advertising space.

Headley, who is serving a 35-year jail term in the US for his role in the attacks, testified against Rana in 2011.

Rana's defence team at the time said he was manipulated and mislead by Headley, an old friend from their days in a Pakistani military school.

In 2011, jurors at the federal court in Chicago convicted Rana of providing support to LeT and for his role in an aborted plot against a Danish newspaper. But he was cleared of charges of direct involvement in the Mumbai attacks.

In 2013, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison. In 2020, Rana was released from jail in the US on compassionate grounds after testing positive for the Covid-19.

He was arrested again after the extradition request by India.

BBC News India is now on YouTube. Click here to subscribe and watch our documentaries, explainers and features.

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Ihor Tantsyura has been in charge of the Territorial Defense Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for more than a year

According to UP, a convoy of cars, one of which carried the general, was shelled in Donetsk Oblast. The car in which the commander of the Territorial Defense Forces was supposed to be traveling that day was struck, although he was in another car which managed to escape from the attack.

Read also: Russian attempts to intimidate Ukrainians are bound to fail, says NSDC secretary Danilov

Sources told UP that the car change was not coincidental  the Ukrainian side had intercepted Russian communications which revealed that the enemy had learned of Tantsyuras intended movement at the front for the next several days in detail, allowing Ukrainian forces to make the necessary adjustments.

The publication notes that the question of where the enemy received information in both cases remains open.

Read also: Kharkiv territorial defense fighters tell the story of the liberation of Kharkiv Oblast

In early May, the leader of the Wagner PMC, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed that his militants had allegedly destroyed a car near Bakhmut that might have been carrying Tantsyura, though Prigozhin later refuted his own claim.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces also confirmed that the officer was alive.

Tantsyura assumed command of the Territorial Defense Forces on May 15, 2022. In 2019, he was the Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Joint Forces Operation, and as of September 2021, he was the Commander of the Southern Military Grouping. He also held the position of Chief of Staff - Deputy Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A 16-year-old boy shot last week in a south Melbourne neighborhood died Wednesday morning, police confirmed Thursday.

Now Melbourne detectives are combing through the city working to locate the possible gunman, who may have targeted the teen.

The shooting was the first of several that took place in Melbourne over the weekend, including another shooting the following night at a vacant house.

Generic police tape scene. A blurred police car in the background behind yellow crime scene tape. [Via MerlinFTP Drop]

Its still an active investigation, Sgt. Ben Slover, spokesperson for the Melbourne police said Thursday of the homicide. The case is the 20th reported homicide of the year for Brevard County.

Melbourne police responded to the shooting which led to the teen's death about 9:30 p.m. Saturday in the 900 block of Cedar Drive.

Callers reported several shots being fired. Officers located the unnamed shooting victim, who suffered a gunshot wound to the head. The teen was transported to Holmes Regional Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition for several days, investigators said. A motive for the shooting was not released.

Melbourne police did not release any suspect information, including age, whether the case could be connected to other recent shootings in Melbourne or Palm Bay, or if there are any concerns of possible retaliation.

More: Melbourne police investigate series of shootings over weekend; one arrested

On Saturday night, someone fired a volley of shots at a home on Xavier Avenue. Melbourne police would not say if the shooting was connected to the suspect being sought in the teens shooting. Police arrived within minutes and blocked off Marshall Avenue to collect evidence. Witnesses told police that they saw a sedan of an unknown color pull up and then fire off several rounds. Witnesses also told officers that at least one person appeared to run after the car, records show.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to call Melbourne Police at 321-608-6731.

J.D. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Gallop at 321-917-4641 or jgallop@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @JDGallop.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Teen dies in Melbourne shooting; police search for suspect
GREEN BAY  A 17-year-old Milwaukee male charged with fatally shooting a 31-year-old Green Bay man last year pleaded no contest to a charge of second-degree reckless homicide Thursday.

The man was shot multiple times in the back on Feb. 18, 2022, outside the Walgreens at 1165 W. Mason St., and was later pronounced dead at Aurora BayCare Medical Center.

According to a criminal complaint, police chased two individuals running from the scene after the shooting. They arrested Robinson, who was then 15 years old, and found a gun and bags of heroin and marijuana in his backpack, the complaint says.

In a police interview, Robinson said he was a runaway from Milwaukee and had only been in Green Bay for a few days at the time of the shooting. He told police that prior to the shooting, he had gone into the Walgreens with a friend he knew as "John," when a man confronted John about money. Robinson said John and the man argued for about 30 seconds, then Robinson and John left the store, followed by the man, the complaint says,

RELATED: 15-year-old boy charged as adult with homicide in Feb. 18 shooting outside west-side Walgreens in Green Bay

While walking outside the Walgreens, a van pulled up and a man with brass knuckles came out, Robinson told police. The man and John began fighting, and Robinson said he fired a gun at the man in self-defense.

Robinson initially told police he did not own the gun, but later in the interview said it was his and he had purchased the weapon about a month before the shooting, according to the complaint.

In addition to the homicide charge, Robinson was charged with one count of possession with intent to manufacture, distribute or deliver heroin as party to a crime, three counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, one count of possessing a dangerous weapon while under 18, one count of resisting or obstructing an officer, one count of carrying a concealed weapon, and one count of possessing THC.

Robinson initially faced a first-degree intentional homicide charge, as well as more first-degree recklessly endangering safety charges and a charge of possessing a firearm on the grounds of a school, before those charges were amended.

As part of a plea deal, Robinson pleaded no contest to second-degree reckless homicide, the THC possession charge, and one of the first-degree recklessly endangering safety charges, while all other charges were dismissed, according to court records.

The Milwaukee man who Robinson identified to police as "John" was previously arrested in connection with the incident and charged with possession with intent to manufacture, distribute or deliver heroin as party to a crime, but those charges were dismissed.

Robinson's sentencing hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. July 18.

Contact Kelli Arseneau at (920) 213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ArseneauKelli.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Teen pleads no contest to homicide charge in 2022 Green Bay shooting
A teenager has been charged with murder after two teens died of a suspected overdose Tuesday in Fayette County.

Two teenage girls were found dead from a suspected drug overdose at a Fayette County high school late Tuesday afternoon, according to Fayette County Public Schools. A third teenage girl was rushed to an area hospital in critical condition, but was later upgraded to stable condition, according to the Fayette County Sheriff's Office.

All three of the students, one 16 years old and the others age 17, attended Fayette-Ware High School and were completing their junior year at the high school, Fayette County Public Schools released in a statement on Wednesday.

Fayette County District Attorney Mark Davidson confirmed that the girl who has been charged was the third girl who was hospitalized following the incident. The teenager has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder and one count of possession of a controlled substance. All charges have been filed in juvenile court.

All three students were found in the parking lot of the high school, hours before the graduation ceremony was slated to begin in the school's gymnasium.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is also investigating the circumstances around the students' deaths, along with the Fayette County Sheriff's Department.

While overdoses and overdose deaths have increased over the last decade in Fayette County, similar to every other Tennessee county and U.S. state, overdose fatalities are still not necessarily common in the county. With a population of around 43,000, according to data from the Tennessee Department of Health, 19 people have overdosed and died in the county in 2021  the latest year for which data is available.

The rise of overdose deaths in Fayette County, Tennessee, and the U.S. overall, is largely driven by the prevalence of synthetic opioids, like Fentanyl. While it is too early in the investigation to know for certain, Davidson said that this incident clearly appears to be related to a drug overdose and that there are signs pointing to fentanyl.

"We have not seen, to my knowledge, 16- to 17-year-olds dying from fentanyl in my district and this is an extremely alarming development," Davidson said. "What I've been saying to people is, if you buy any drug off the street, you think your buying meth, you think your buying cocaine, you think you're buying a pressed pill or ecstasy, or Xanax or whatever there's a real chance that it's got fentanyl in it. And it can kill you. So if your getting drugs that are not from a pharmacy, you are placing yourself at risk of serious harm or death."

Vigil planned

A balloon release in honor of the victims has been planned for 5 p.m. Thursday in the rear parking lot of Fayette-Ware Comprehensive High School.

"We encourage everyone to keep the friends and families of these young ladies and Fayette County Public Schools in your thoughts and prayers," the school district said in a written statement released Wednesday.

Davidson said they are trying to start a drug free coalition in Fayette County, similar to one that they already have in Tipton County, that focuses on educating youth on drugs as well as issues like vapes, cigarettes and underage alcohol.

"We've been watching the numbers [of overdoses], we've been sufficiently alarmed," Davidson said. "We've already been doing public service campaigns and, if you look at my Facebook, you'll see where I've been doing it for about a year. It's just very troubling and it's sad that despite those efforts, here we are today talking about this case."

Micaela Watts contributed to this report.

Gina Butkovich covers DeSoto County, storytelling and general news. She can be reached at 901/232-6714.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Teenager charged with murder in Tennessee student overdose deaths
Legislation in Florida and Texas to crack down on undocumented immigrants is prompting some Hispanics to reconsider where they live and work.

In Florida, videos of empty workplaces began to go viral after Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a bill that ratchets up sanctions for employing undocumented workers.

Those videos have caused a stir and energized some Hispanic communities, but they also reflect real fears, say advocates.

I think there is a form of protest to it. Im sure there is, Well youre gonna regret it because you need us, which is absolutely true. But also, Im sure theres a palpable sense of fear among the immigrant community, said Mario Carrillo, campaigns manager for Americas Voice, a progressive immigration advocacy group.

The Florida law goes into effect July 1, stacked with provisions that will make daily life harder for undocumented immigrants and their communities.

Texas bill would create state-run border protection unit as Title 42 ends

Florida is a dangerous, hostile environment for law-abiding Americans and immigrants. Its not always been that way, said Domingo Garcia, national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC).

And we need to make sure that everybody understands that you can be arrested for literally taking somebody to the hospital, for literally taking somebody to Disney World.

Among other provisions, the state will no longer recognize drivers licenses issued out of state to undocumented immigrants, and it will prohibit Florida counties from issuing ID cards to them, as well.

The law also mandates the use of E-Verify for hirings, a controversial registry program that opponents say too often returns false positives, preventing documented immigrants or U.S. citizens from working legally.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holds up bills he signed during a bill signing ceremony at the Coastal Community Church at Lighthouse Point, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Lighthouse Point, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holds up bills he signed during a bill signing ceremony at the Coastal Community Church at Lighthouse Point, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Lighthouse Point, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

According to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, which runs E-Verify, nearly 60,000 job applicants who were marked as undocumented have been able to prove their legal right to work in the country.

Out of more than 48 million job applicants, the system only found about 525,000 unauthorized applicants.

The law also penalizes transportation of undocumented immigrants in a way that advocates say far exceeds any human trafficking prevention statute.

In Texas, Republicans last week passed a bill through the state House that would create the Border Protection Unit, a specialized immigration police force that would operate in counties along the border, where the states Hispanic population is concentrated.

DeSantis says Florida sending help to Texas border

The Border Protection Unit bill was folded into another immigration bill in the House after Democrats thought they had killed the proposal through legislative maneuvers a day earlier.

Theres always hope that with our very short session every two years that things die  but it very unfortunately seems likely to pass, said Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas).

With the path clear for Texas and Florida to enact the strictest enforcement actions against undocumented immigrants in their history, the states will join a group that has attempted to supplant federal immigration enforcement with local laws.

Historically, the most stringent of those laws have come with a political cost.

Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas)

Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) is seen during a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing to discuss fraud and waste in federal pandemic spending on Wednesday, February 1, 2023. (Greg Nash)

In California in 1994, passage of Proposition 187 precipitated the states shift toward Democrats, and Arizonas 2010 law known as SB 1070 energized young Hispanics to become more involved in politics, often on the Democratic side.

I want the governor of Florida and the politicians in Florida to remember what happened in California when they did something similar, what happened in Arizona when they did something similar, Garcia said.

Garcia also announced LULAC is issuing a travel advisory against Florida, a move the group has only taken once before, when Arizona approved SB 1070.

On the travel advisory, and as the governor noted previously, this type of thing is a political stunt. We arent going to waste time on political stunts but will continue doing what is right for Floridians, said Jeremy Redfern, a spokesman for DeSantis.

How the pandemic turned Florida red

Asked about concerns of a lack of workers in Florida with the new law, DeSantis on Monday said the state has historically required workers to be in the country legally.

When we have something like an E-Verify, thats a tool to make sure that longstanding Florida law is enforced, said DeSantis.

You cannot build a strong economy based on illegality.

But some in Florida say cracking down on the more than 770,000 undocumented people in the Sunshine State will have dire consequences.

I am deeply concerned. DeSantis has declared war against immigrant workers in Florida. Their exodus could bring our tourism, agriculture and construction industries to a grinding halt, said Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.).

Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.)

Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) discusses the 106th anniversary of Puerto Ricans being granted U.S. citizenship during a press conference at the Capitol on February 28, 2023. (Annabelle Gordon)

And while DeSantis has broad support in Florida, including among many sectors of the Hispanic community, some say tough enforcement could erode it.

The more this stuff plays out, people who are profiled  it might be hard to tell in a car if youre Cuban or Mexican, said Mario H. Lopez, president of the Hispanic Leadership Fund, a conservative advocacy group.

So itll be interesting to see if Cubans start getting pulled over and start being questioned about their status and who is in their car, and what they might be guilty of, Lopez added. Only time will tell. but thats certainly a strong possibility.

Opponents of the bills are especially frustrated by what they see as a bald political move by both governors in light of the 2024 presidential race.

This is all part of that Greg Abbott and Ron DeSantis cruelty contest to be the next Donald Trump, Casar said.

Many Hispanics in Florida and Texas say they feel sidelined by the political rush to score points with the GOP base, potentially putting their communities at risk.

Carrillo, who considered leaving Texas because his wife is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, said that race to the right could end badly.

I dont think for Greg Abbott its really about protecting migrants; I dont think its about protecting the border communities. Its just about amplifying his bona fides as anti-immigrant in what might be a presidential run for him, Carrillo said.

I dont know what his political ambitions are, obviously, but it just seems like between him and DeSantis, theyre kind of trying to outdo each other on who becomes the most anti-immigrant governor in the country. And Im just afraid to see the results of that.

And whether the bills are motivated by politics or principle, opponents say, is irrelevant.

Im not sure whats worse in the end, if hes a true believer in the replacement theory, or if its just posturing, said Lopez.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
LGBTQ activist Morgan Davis reacts before Senate Bill 14 is voted on in the Texas House of Representatives Friday, May 12, 2023. SB14 would ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender children.

The Texas Senate on Wednesday approved changes made by House members to Senate Bill 14, a proposal to ban certain gender affirming medical treatments for transgender children, sending the bill to Gov. Greg Abbott to be signed into law.

Despite efforts by House Democrats to stop the bill, the House approved it Monday, after a House committee added a provision that allows, and requires, patients who are on puberty blockers or hormone treatments by June 1 to be weaned off their medications in a safe and medically appropriate period of time. The provision only applies to patients who attended 12 or more therapy sessions at least six months before beginning medical treatment.

More: Watch our documentary 'Existing as transgender in Texas'

SB 14 would prohibit doctors from providing gender affirming medical treatments  including puberty blockers, hormone therapy or certain surgeries  to minors experiencing gender dysphoria, a condition where ones gender identity does not align with their sex at birth. It would also ban any public money from going to physicians, hospitals or other entities that provide such treatments, and revoke the medical licenses of any medical professionals that do so.

The bill would not apply to children who are intersex, or who need such medication to treat premature puberty.

Major medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and the American Psychiatric Association support the provision of developmentally-appropriate and individualized gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth, saying it can be lifesaving and medically necessary. However, Republicans and other supporters of the bill say minors should be prevented from making decisions about their medical care that could have long-term impacts or side effects.

While the bill was previously amended in the Senate to allow patients who are receiving puberty blockers or hormone therapy by June 1 to be exempted from the ban, the bills author later reversed course and removed the amendment before the bill was passed out of the Senate. A House committee then amended the bill to allow for current patients to be eased off their medications, a change the Senate agreed to Wednesday.

RELATED: Texas House gives initial OK to bill to enact limits on transgender college athletes

SB 14 faced a tumultuous path to approval in the House, with Republicans attempting to bring it up for debate on the House floor twice at the beginning of the month. But Democrats both times managed to successfully use a procedural tactic called a point of order to identify minor errors in the legislation that violated House rules, delaying the debate for more than a week.

After fixing the mistakes found in the bill two times, Republicans on Friday brought SB 14 to the House floor for a third time, where, despite an emotional and tense debate and several attempts by Democrats to kill or amend the legislation, the House approved the measure with a 92-48 vote.

Several Democratic House members reported their voting machines had malfunctioned and were incorrectly recorded as voting in favor of the bill. When it finally passed in the House on Monday, the vote was 87-56.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Legislature: Path clear for ban on some care for trans kids
The Texas Legislature passed a bill Wednesday banning doctors in the state from providing gender-affirming care to minors.

The legislation, which next heads to Gov. Greg Abbotts (R) desk, would prohibit health care providers from prescribing hormones and puberty blockers to minors or performing a variety of surgeries with the purpose of aiding their gender transition.

While the bill provides an exception for children currently on hormones or puberty blockers, it requires that they wean off the drugs in a manner that is safe and medically appropriate.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on Friday slammed the Texas House for advancing the bill that blocks evidence-based, life-saving health care for transgender adolescents.

This is a dark day in Texas, Ash Hall, a policy and advocacy strategist at the ACLU of Texas, said in a statement. Our legislature has turned its back on science, parents, and the safety and lives of children. Our hearts break for transgender young people in our state who have repeatedly been attacked by their own government for callous political gain.

The bill follows an effort by Abbott last year to have parents who provided their children with gender-affirming care investigated for child abuse.

With the governor widely expected to sign the legislation, Texas would join 16 other states  Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Iowa, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida  that have already banned such care for transgender youths.

Georgia has also banned most gender-affirming care, while the Missouri Legislature passed a similar bill last week that is awaiting signature.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Texas may abolish annual vehicle inspections, but Metroplex drivers arent off the hook

Texas may soon join most other states that have done away with annual safety inspections on vehicles.

State lawmakers are considering removing the requirement for yearly inspections in noncommercial vehicles, though emissions inspections would still be required in some counties, including the Metroplex.

Vehicle inspections are costly, time consuming and provide little benefit to public safety, Republican Sen. Mayes Middleton told lawmakers during a May 11 committee hearing.

The majority of states do not require periodic car safety inspections, according to Kelly Blue Book.

The proposal, filed by Republican Rep. Cody Harris of Palestine, could be brought up for debate in the Senate this week. Lawmakers adjourn the legislative session May 29. If it passes out of the Senate without amendments, the legislation would head to Gov. Greg Abbotts desk.

Opponents of the bill have raised concerns about unsafe cars on road. The inspections check for things like brakes, steering, horn, mirrors and other vehicle safety features, said Jose Escribano, who works on a task force for a Travis County constables office.

The first line of defense...for the safety of our fellow Texans is going to be actually a safety inspection, he said.

Middleton noted that many cars now have features that detect potential problems with vehicles.

Opponents also raised concerns with the jobs that could be eliminated by not requiring the annual inspection.

Vehicle owners would pay a $7.50 fee when they renew their registration and a $16.75 fee when they buy a new car. Most of the money would go to the Texas Mobility Fund, which helps finance construction for state highways.

A separate bill to remove the inspection requirement didnt get the votes to pass out of the Senate Transportation Committee in March.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Texas is No. 1 on this Forbes list  but thats not a good thing

Texans finally had something they already knew confirmed: the Lone Star state is home to the worst drivers in America.

In an article analyzing the best car insurance companies, Forbes came to the conclusion that Texas tops the U.S. in bad drivers. The analysis even hints at the Red River rivalry with Oklahoma ranked below Texas.

Texas has 683,533 miles of paved roads, the most in the U.S. Texas also ranks third in the nation with 7,784,067 cars registered in the state. It is no surprise that news of car crashes on Texas highways have become all too common.

Forbes ranked each state using several metrics such as fatal car accidents involving a drowsy driver, a driver who was driving the wrong way, number of drunk drivers and distracted drivers gleaned from Department of Transportation data.

Texas led with 1.35 fatal car accidents per 100,000 licensed drivers involving a drowsy driver. Texas also scored high in fatal car accidents involving a driver driving the wrong way at 1.53 accidents per 100,000 drivers.

The Lone Star State also reported the third highest number of drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes at 17.24 per 100,000 licensed drivers. The number of fatal car accidents involving a distracted driver was good for ninth overall at 1.92 accidents per 100,000 drivers.

Heres how other southern states scored in the Forbes report:

Texas- Scored 100 out of 100 Louisiana- Scored 89.32 out of 100 and had the third highest number of fatal car accidents involving a distracted driver at 3.74 accidents per 100,000 licensed drivers. Kansas- Scored a 84.79 out of 100 and had the third highest number of fatal car accidents involving a driver who disobeyed traffic signs, traffic signals or a traffic officer at 1.47 accidents per 100,000 licensed drivers.



Oklahoma- Scored 80.53 out of 100 and is the ninth worst for drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes at 13.02 per 100,000 licensed drivers. Kentucky- Scored 78.96 out of 100 and had the fourth highest number of fatal car accidents involving a distracted driver at 3.37 accidents per 100,000 licensed drivers.

Washington D.C. and Vermont ranked at the top of the list along with several states on the east coast.

As for the best insurance companies to choose from, Forbes recommends USAA for military members, Geico for overall insurance rates and Westfield for family discounts.
Photo: Getty (Getty Images)

The Texas state legislature passed a cruel bill Wednesday night that bans gender-affirming health care for minors. When Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signs it into law, the Lone Star State will become the largest in a wave of states to try to deny young trans people the right to exist.



The bill, specifically, will block hormone therapy and surgery for minors (note that gender confirmation surgery is very rarely performed on children) and take away the license of anyone who provides gender-affirming care to people under 18. Abbott will almost certainly sign it, as hes made his hatred for trans people abundantly clear. (Last year, he directed the state child welfare agency to investigate parents who support their childrens transitions for child abuse.)

Read more

State Sen. Bob Hall (R) said the legislature is just protecting children by taking away some of their needed healthcare. We are the Legislatureour job is to protect people, Hall said, according to the Texas Tribune. We protect children against lots of things. We dont let them smoke. We dont let them drink. We dont let them buy lottery cards.  And so we are doing the right thing.

But the Texas bill is very non-specific, thereby setting up a quandary for children and their doctors. Trans teens are at a high risk of suicide. More than 50 percent of trans and enby youth across the country seriously considered suicide in the past year, according to data released by the Trevor Project in December. Randell, a 16-year-old trans child who wouldnt allow their full name to be published, told the Texas Tribune that being forced to de-transition because of this law would push me past my breaking point.

But Republicans are plowing ahead with their new culture war narrative that all trans people pose a threat to kids. The morning after the Texas vote, seemingly right on cue, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) popped into a Fox News interview to help with the PR push, disingenuously demanding an investigation into Bud Lights ties to trans influencer Dylan Mulvaneybecause they sent her a promotional can of beer roughly two months ago.

Day 58 of the Right melting down over a trans woman being sent a can of beer with her face on it: Senator Ted Cruz demands an investigation pic.twitter.com/zJ7V6ZlndG  Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) May 18, 2023

Meanwhile, the Texas bill has already drawn a potential legal challenge. Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, and Transgender Law Center announced Thursday that the organizations will sue the state of Texas if the trans youth healthcare ban goes into law. Their suitaimed at protecting the rights of trans people under 18 to access medically necessary healthcarewill be yet another massive financial undertaking for the state of Texas.

We will be filing a lawsuit to protect transgender youth in Texas from being stripped of access to health care that keeps them healthy and alive, the organizations said in a joint statement to media on Thursday. Coming on top of the effort last year to classify providing medically necessary and scientifically proven care to transgender youth as child abuse and threatening to tear Texas families with transgender children apart, an effort currently blocked in state court, Texas lawmakers have seen fit to double down.

While this bill will make Texas the largest state to ban gender-affirming care for children, similar laws in states like Alabama and Arkansas have already been halted in federal court, and legal challenges have been filed against others in Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Montana.

The LGBTQ-rights coalition says having access to gender-affirming carewhether thats hormones or social transitioning like being allowed to grow their hair or use a new namejust allows kids and teens to succeed and live authentically. We will defend the rights of transgender youth in court, just as we have done in other states engaging in this anti-science and discriminatory fear-mongering, they said.



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Texas is primed to become the latest state to ban gender-affirming care for trans minors as Republicans nationwide continue their assault against queer Americans.

Lawmakers sent Senate Bill 14 to Gov. Greg Abbotts (R) desk Wednesday with a vote of 19-12. The bill would bar doctors from providing hormone therapy and puberty-blocking treatments to minors, as well as gender-affirming surgeries. Patients already receiving care would be required to wean themselves off such treatment in a medically appropriate way.

Its unclear what that provision means, as medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, have long said such care is medically necessary.

If signed, the law would go into effect on Sept. 1 and would be a notable moment in Republican efforts to limit health care to trans minors. Texas would be the largest state to do so, and the provisions could impact many of the estimated 30,000 trans youth between the ages of 13 and 17 that live there.

Civil rights groups have vowed to oppose the law in court. Ricardo Martinez, the CEO of Equality Texas, said the effort was part of a nefarious plan to eliminate us from public life but pledged the group would continue to fight the bill.

This legislation is vicious, its cruel and its blatantly unconstitutional, Ash Hall, the policy and advocacy strategist at the ACLU of Texas, said in a statement last week. The bigotry and discrimination in this bill will not stand up in court and it will not stand the test of time.

The Texas GOP has taken multiple steps to limit the rights of trans people this session. Lawmakers in the statehouse voted to advance a separate bill Wednesday that would require athletes on public college teams to play on teams based on their gender assigned at birth.

BREAKING: The TX House just voted to advance #SB15 banning trans athletes from playing sports at public universities and colleges.



Students should be able to play the sports they love as their true selves  free from extreme government overreach and cruel political attacks.  ACLU of Texas (@ACLUTx) May 17, 2023

State Sen. Bob Hall (R) told the Texas Tribune that Republican lawmakers equated access to health care to protecting kids from smoking and alcohol, saying it was the legislatures job to protect people.

We protect children against lots of things. We dont let them smoke. We dont let them drink. We dont let them buy lottery cards, he said. And so we are doing the right thing.

Abbott has supported similar measures in the past. Last year, he drew fierce criticism after signing a directive ordering a state agency to investigate parents for child abuse if they seek gender-affirming treatment for their kids. Lambda Legal and the ACLU sued over that effort, which has been on hold since June as the case makes its way through the court system.

The assault on trans people has become a flashpoint in Republican politics in recent years. At least 14 states have enacted bans or limitations on health care for trans minors, making the effort key legislative priorities despite the small number of people such laws impact. Other GOP-driven efforts have targeted drag queens, access to bathrooms and discussions on gender identity or sexual orientation in classrooms.

Related...
Thai election monitoring group says video does not show poll staff 'filling in ballots'

Ahead of a general election in Thailand, a video was viewed thousands of times in posts that misleadingly claimed Thai Election Commission staff were caught filling in voters' ballot papers. But the footage -- taken from a security camera on May 10 -- shows staff carrying out administrative duties ahead of the vote, not filling in the ballots, according to a poll monitoring group and the election commission.

"Election commission staff are involved in mass fraud. Marking (the ballots) without concern. Please help share this clip with pro-democratic groups," reads the Thai-language caption of a Facebook post from May 11, 2023.

"Everyone has received an order from who? We (the people) see you."

The 19-second video shows Thai Election Commission staff working in a room filled with boxes and papers.

Screenshot of the misleading Facebook post, captured on May 16, 2023

Thailand's progressive Move Forward Party claimed victory in the country's election on May 14, as voters turned out in record numbers to deliver a brutal verdict on the near-decade-long rule of former coup leader Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha (archived link).

The video was shared alongside identical claims here and here on Facebook.

It also circulated on TikTok here, here and here alongside similar captions.

Not voting ballots

Ahead of the elections, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) announced it had installed security cameras in locations where voting ballots were placed and granted access to live camera feeds (archived link).

The footage circulating online is identical to this screenshot from a local news report of one of the poll station livestreams (archived link).

Text in the livestream's top left-hand corner indicates the screenshot was captured on May 10 at 7:16 pm, as shown in the comparisons below:

Screenshot comparisons of the misleading video (left) and screenshots from the Thairath news report (right), with identical features circled by AFP

In response to the misleading social media posts, the Thai election commission published a statement clarifying that they show polling station officers signing ballot cover pages as part of their routine administrative duties (archived link).

"The Election Commission would like to state that the video clip has circulated alongside misleading reports that it shows the signing of ballot front covers before they are sent to the polling stations," the statement reads.

"We can confirm that the officials did not mark the ballot for the eligible voters."

Pongsak Chanon, director of election monitoring group We Watch Thailand, also told AFP on May 12 that the documents shown in the clip were ballot cover pages, not the ballots themselves (archived link).

"Our war room has also investigated this issue," he said. "We can confirm that the documents signed were front covers for the ballots."

Examples of front covers for voting ballots were featured on page 10 of the election commission's manual for handling voting ballots (archived link).

The manual explains that after the number of ballots has been checked by an election official, he or she must sign their name on the ballot booklet's front cover before they can be sent to polling stations.

Below is a screenshot of a sample image of the ballot booklet front cover, published on the Facebook page of the Royal Thai Embassy in the UK (archived link):

Image of ballot booklet front cover, taken from the Facebook page of the Royal Thai Embassy in the UK

Below is a screenshot comparison of the document seen in the misleading posts (left) and an image of the same document in the Thai election commission's manual (right):

Screenshot comparison of document from the misleading post (left) and an image of the front cover from the Thai election commission's manual (right)

On page 64 of the commission's manual, it further explains how poll staff must register voting ballots before sending them to polling stations.

"(1.1) Voting ballot - Check the book number, identification number, number of ballots, and the seal on all voting ballots," it says. "Then the recipient must sign their name as evidence on the front cover of each ballot booklet."
Mr Pita unveiled his coalition of seven parties on Thursday but still needs more support to form government

The leader of the reformist party that won Thailand's election says he is confident he will be able to form a coalition government.

Pita Limjaroenrat says his Move Forward party has secured an alliance with seven other parties that give them at 313 of the 376 votes needed.

More than 36% of Thais voted for Move Forward in a rejection of the military-backed rule of the past nine years.

But the party is not guaranteed government due to parliament's set-up.

Thailand's parliament consists of 500 elected seats in the lower house and 250 unelected positions in the Senate appointed by the military.

There are fears the military-appointed Senate could block the new administration, however Pita this week has presented his party's path to government as a democratic inevitability, to counter conservative opposition from the Senate.

"We've got the momentum behind us," he said on Thursday, standing next to party leaders in his alliance at a joint press conference.

Following its election success on Sunday, Move Forward reached out immediately to the second most popular party, Pheu Thai, to establish the basis of a viable coalition.

Move Forward won 152 of the 500 seats in the lower house, while Pheu Thai won 141.

Following several party negotiations, Move Forward's leader said on Thursday they had reached an agreement on broad policy issues, that would form the basis of a new government administration.

He added: "The 313 votes we have in the lower house are sufficient in a normal democratic system, and we do not need to seek any more partners."

The dramatic surge in support for Move Forward, and the clear majority won by the two main opposition leaders, has being widely interpreted as the Thai public's rejection of the military-backed rule since the 2014 coup.

The 250-member Senate was created and entirely appointed by the then-military government and allowed to vote on the selection of a new prime minister - a role rejected by many Thai parties as incompatible with democracy.

Move Forward and its supporters have argued that if the Senate were to use that power, it would not only go against the expressed will of the people at the ballot box, but would represent the last gasp of an authoritarian system that has been spurned by the voters.

A few senators have said this week they will support a Move Forward-led coalition. Mr Pita's alliance has been hopeful there will be enough of the others to get them over the threshold of the super-majority of 376 votes needed to form government.

But other senators have refused to back them because of the party's policy to reform the lese majeste royal defamation law.

Mr Pita's party had struck a chord with Thailand's young voters by promising reforms to those laws which severely punish those found guilty of criticising the royal family.

But the third largest party, Bhumjaithai, which won 70 seats at the polls, has stated it will not support Move Forward because of those planned reforms.

Bhumjaithai has been seen as a potential kingmaker in any new government. However Move Forward has said it has not invited Bhumjaithai to join its coalition, and argued its coalition already has a clear majority in the lower house.

Move Forward has worked this week to leverage the weight of public sentiment on its side, following an election that ignited voter passion and hope.

Others have warned that if the military authorities were to revert to the old playbook of extra-parliamentary intervention, that could risk provoking an angry public backlash.
STUART - A circuit judge has ruled in favor of Tiger Woods in his public dispute against his ex-girlfriend, ordering the matter to be resolved in private arbitration after it spilled into public court with allegations of sexual harassment and a messy breakup between the two in October.

Judge Elizabeth Metzger issued the ruling late Wednesday, handing the famed golfer a victory in his quest to keep his private conflict with Erica Herman out of the public eye.

"The parties are ordered to submit this action to arbitration," Metzger ruled. "Pursuant to applicable law, this case is stayed pending completion of arbitration. The parties shall advise the Court once arbitration has been completed. The Clerk of the Court shall administratively close this case."

What was this about?

The issue at hand was about whether this dispute between these two former lovers should be resolved privately in arbitration under terms of the nondisclosure agreement (NDA) that Woods' attorney said they signed in 2017. But the larger dispute started with their breakup in October, when Herman said Woods arranged to kick her out of his house in violation of an oral tenancy agreement she said she had to keep living there for several more years.

In response to her ouster from the home, Herman sued the trust that Woods established for that house, claiming more than $30 million in damages. This led Woods to try to steer the dispute into private arbitration pursuant to the terms of the NDA.

Brightline: Treasure Coast has long history with the passenger rail; What happens next?

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The dispute got even uglier after that. In March, Herman filed this lawsuit against Woods to challenge that NDA and have the court declare it invalid. Her attorney even cited new federal laws in which NDAs and forced arbitration agreements dont apply in disputes involving sexual harassment. Established in 2022, such laws were designed to eliminate the use of NDAs and private arbitration as a way for sexual predators to avoid public accountability.

In a court filing dated May 5, her attorney also said Herman didnt even recall signing the NDA in question. The judge didn't buy it, however.

"Importantly, Herman has not 'denied' that her signature is on the NDA," the judge ruled. "Herman additionally has not 'denied' that the clear terms of the NDA require the resolution of her disputes, claims or controversies with Woods via binding, confidential arbitration."

Tiger Woods and Erica Herman in July 2022.

What was her sexual harassment case?

Herman didnt get into any detail about it until May 5, when her attorney filed a court document that said Woods pursued a sexual relationship with her when she was his employee at his restaurant and then forced her to sign an NDA about it  or be fired from her job if she did not. Herman worked at his restaurant, The Woods, in Jupiter, Florida, until she resigned in 2020.

At a court hearing in Stuart, Florida, May 9, Metzger asked Hermans attorney, Benjamin Hodas, to clarify this part of his case. But Hodas declined to go into further detail, saying it might violate the disputed NDA, which required Herman to keep her private life with Woods confidential.

Hodas instead wanted the court to provide more clarity on what more he could reveal about this issue under the law without violating the disputed NDA.

Erica Herman's attorneys Zachary Potter (center) and Benjamin Hodas (front) discuss Herman's case in Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger's courtroom, Tuesday, May, 9, 2023, at 100 S.E. Ocean Blvd. in Stuart. Herman, 39, ex-girlfriend of Tiger Woods, is suing Woods to get out of a nondisclosure agreement, saying she was the victim of his sexual harassment. Woods' attorneys argued the lawsuit against him should be halted because she signed a nondisclosure agreement requiring that any disagreements between them be settled in private by an arbitrator. Judge Metzer did not give a ruling in court, but is expected to rule this week.

"There are issues we have not filed with the court yet, facts, that involve the sexual harassment prong of the EFAA," Hodas said, referring to the federal law known as the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act. "Unfortunately, because of this document (the NDA), weve just been very careful on what allegations we make to the court, that we put in writing because, given the broad scope, at least on its face, of the purported (NDA), we dont want to run afoul of any of those provisions."

But the judge said Herman and her attorney didn't sufficiently make their case on the sexual harassment issue.

"Herman has had the opportunity (to) provide factual specificity for any claim relating to sexual assault or sexual harassment," the judge ruled. "However, she has not done so. Additionally, at no time has Hermans counsel requested an opportunity to file a second amended complaint to include additional allegations. Therefore, Hermans implausibly pled claims do not permit this Court to find that the EFFA is applicable."

What was Woods' response?

His attorney, J.B. Murray, said the NDA was "valid on its face" and previously called Herman a "jilted ex-girlfriend" making meritless claims. He told the judge May 9 that Herman didnt go through the necessary procedural steps to make a formal sexual harassment claim under federal law and instead was making an "end run" around them.

The judge agreed.

"Herman has not pursued any claims for sexual assault or sexual harassment against Defendant," the judge ruled. "She has solely pursued a declaratory judgment action and has only made vague and threadbare references to behaviors or actions she contends constitute sexual harassment within her response filed on May 5, 2023."

Tiger Woods' attorney J.B. Murray argues before Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger Tuesday, May, 9, 2023, in the Martin County Courthouse in Stuart that his ex-girlfriend's lawsuit against him should be halted because Erica Herman, 39, signed a nondisclosure agreement requiring that any disagreements between them be settled in private by an arbitrator. Judge Metzer did not give a ruling in court, but is expected to rule this week. Herman is suing Woods to get out of the agreement, saying she was the victim of his sexual harassment. She has also filed a separate $30 million illegal eviction lawsuit against the trust that owns his $54 million Florida mansion.

In the hearing May 9, Hermans attorney didnt discuss the sexual harassment part of his case until prompted by the judge with less than 10 minutes left in the 45-minute proceeding. Prior to that, he spent much of the hearing questioning the validity of the NDA and said he wanted an evidentiary hearing to get to the bottom of that issue.

But the judge appeared skeptical about that part of his case. After months of court filings, it wasnt until May 5 that Hodas made the argument that Herman didnt recall signing the NDA in question. That specific allegation was not mentioned in her lawsuit challenging the NDA.

"Hermans counsels attempt to equivocally allege that Herman cannot remember signing the NDA or cannot say 'for certain' that she did, does not create a disputed issue of fact requiring an evidentiary hearing," the judge ruled. "Herman has not met her burden to dispute the existence of the NDA."

Contributing: Melissa Holsman, TCPalm

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY Sports: Tiger Woods wins ruling in Stuart in messy dispute with ex-girlfriend
One day after Montana Governor signed the first statewide ban on TikTok into law, the measure is already facing a legal challenge. Five TikTok creators are suing in an effort to block the ban from taking effect.

In court filings, lawyers representing the TikTok creators say the ban is unconstitutional and that it violates their First Amendment rights. They also take issue with Montanas supposed national security justification for the ban.

Montana has no authority to enact laws advancing what it believes should be the United States foreign policy or its national security interests, nor may Montana ban an entire forum for communication based on its perceptions that some speech shared through that forum, though protected by the First Amendment, is dangerous, the suit states . Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban the Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes.

In an interview on Fox News, Montanas Attorney General, Austin Knudsen, said that legal challenges to the ban were expected. There are some important issues here that I do think we probably need the federal courts to step in and answer for us here, he said. And that was part of our calculus in bringing this.
(Bloomberg) -- Isaac, a Montana-based TikTok influencer who usually posts window-cleaning videos, told his 456,300 followers that he has to quit the popular video-sharing platform soon.

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2023 might be the last year you guys see me around on TikTok, he posted on one of his recent videos, where he goes by only his first name. If youve enjoyed the content over the years I have my YouTube linked and I am also gonna start an Instagram this summer. I am gonna be focusing on building those up and providing the same content Ive been pushing out over here.

Isaac is one of many TikTok users adjusting to the implications of an announced ban in Montana. The states Republican governor, Greg Gianforte, signed a measure Wednesday that will prohibit the apps download by the general public beginning next year.

The new law will impose the broadest and strictest limitations on use of the social media platform yet, spurred by widespread governmental concerns about Chinas access to American users personal data. TikTok will be fined $10,000 for every day its platform operates on devices in Montana once the law takes effect on Jan. 1. So will the mobile app stores offering it for download in the state.

A group of TikTok creators and viewers on Thursday sued Montana to challenge the ban, arguing it violates their First Amendment rights under the Constitution. The law attempts to exercise powers over national security that Montana does not have and to ban speech Montana may not suppress, according to the complaint filed in federal court in Missoula.

On TikTok, which has 150 million users in the US, an overwhelming number of people expressed confusion and opposition toward the Montana ban, arguing it has intruded on their right to free speech and disrespects the amount of time and effort content creators put into the platform. Some argued it wouldnt solve the US security problems either, as Montana is not a populous state with important people whose data would be susceptible to Chinese influence.

Montana has a population of only 1.1 million people and about 200,000 TikTok users.

The amount of work, the amount of time, the amount of effort people have made and put into this app to create things, its really just 2 steps forward 5 steps back, a music influencer who goes by Lilxlunatic, with 20,000 followers, said in his TikTok video. He said he doesnt feel he can speak as freely on other platforms, and that hes concerned government officials are doing it because they dont want to see uncomfortable TikTok content highlighting incidents of gun violence and oil spills. I understand it was made by China, but the fact that all our information goes through US branches, and our side of TikTok is completely different than the Chinese side of TikTok, just doesnt make sense to me.

The TikTok app as Americans know it doesnt exist in China, where TikToks parent company, ByteDance Ltd., operates Douyin. Its content is similar but is restricted by Chinese censorship rules. TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew has said TikTok is independent of its Beijing-based owner and the platforms headquarters are in Singapore and Los Angeles.

I think our governor is being a little goofy, said Christian Poole, a 20-year-old influencer with 418,500 followers who usually posts fun strings about living in Montana. His video got more than 3,000 likes. Poole wondered why the governor is worried about the Chinese Communist Party getting information of our fellow Montanans? He said nobody drastically important, or with any influence over politics, lives in the state and uses TikTok so much that the CCP would be able to gather enough information about them to the point that it becomes a liability for the United States security as a whole.

While Montana is the first state to prohibit the general public from using the app, targeted bans focusing on government devices and networks cascaded across the country late last year. The US government and 38 states have issued such bans and President Joe Bidens administration is in negotiations with the company to resolve national security concerns. The European Union, UK, Canada, and a handful of other countries have more recently imposed similar restrictions.

The Montana laws current text doesnt explain how removing the app from devices on which its already installed would be enforced. It also fails to explain details on cross-state travel. And users are also discussing options to bypass the legislation, such as buying a virtual private network to get a fresh IP address.

We hope this doesnt spread to actual states with real population. Time to invest in VPN companies, said Trey, an influencer who posts commentary and interviews and has 148,900 followers.

One thing I know is that this is not the time to be quiet, said Fiona, an influencer in fashion and lifestyle with 14,600 followers on TikTok. Call your representatives  call them, Tweet them, beep them anyway you can reach them. This is not the time to lay down and Montana is just the beginning.

(Updates with lawsuit in the fifth paragraph)

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Adam Botkin, a football TikTok influencer, edits a video for a post at a Chipotle Mexican Grill while eating dinner in Missoula, Mont., on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. Botkin, a former walk-on place kicker and punter for the Montana Grizzlies, gained notoriety on the social media platform after videos of him performing kicking tricks went viral. (AP Photo/Tommy Martino)

HELENA, Mont. (AP)  Five TikTok content creators have filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn Montana's first-in-the-nation ban on the video sharing app, arguing the law is an unconstitutional violation of free speech rights.

The Montana residents also argued in the complaint, filed in federal court late Wednesday without public notice, that the state doesn't have any authority over matters of national security. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the bill into law Wednesday and said it would protect Montana residents private data and personal information from being harvested by the Chinese government.

The ban is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2024.

The law takes the broadest possible approach to its objectives, restricting and banning the protected speech of all TikTok users in Montana to prevent the speculative and unsubstantiated possibility that the Chinese government might direct TikTok Inc., or its parent, to spy on some Montana users, the complaint states.

We expected a legal challenge and are fully prepared to defend the law, said Emily Flower, spokeswoman for the Montana Department of Justice.

TikTok has argued the law infringes on peoples First Amendment rights.

However, spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter declined to comment on the lawsuit Thursday. She also declined to say whether the company helped coordinate the complaint.

The plaintiffs are Montana residents who use the video-sharing app for things like promoting a business, connecting with military veterans, sharing outdoor adventures or expressing their sense of humor. Two of them have more than 200,000 followers.

One content creator, Carly Ann Goddard, shares videos about living on a ranch, parenting, recipes and home decor. Her account has 97,000 followers and has allowed her to roughly triple her family's household income, the complaint states. TikTok creators can make money in several ways, including by being paid to advertise products to their followers.

The lawsuit  filed just hours after Gianforte signed the measure into law  states the ban would immediately and permanently deprive Plaintiffs of their ability to express themselves and communicate with others.

Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban the Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes, the plaintiffs attorneys wrote.

The case could serve as a testing ground for the TikTok-free America many national lawmakers have envisioned. Cybersecurity experts say it could be difficult to enforce.

Some lawmakers, the FBI and officials at other agencies are concerned the video-sharing app, owned by ByteDance, could be used to allow the Chinese government to access information on U.S. citizens or push pro-Beijing misinformation that could influence the public. TikTok says none of this has ever happened.

A former executive at ByteDance alleges the tech giant has served as a propaganda tool" for the Chinese government, a claim ByteDance says is baseless.

China passed laws in 2014 and 2017 that compel companies to cooperate with the countrys government for state intelligence work. TikTok says it has never been asked to hand over its data and it wouldnt do so if asked.

TikTok is spying on Americans. Period, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen told a legislative committee in March. TikTok is a tool of the Chinese Communist Party. It is owned by a Chinese company, and under China law, if you are based in China, you will cooperate with the Chinese Communist Party. Period.

More than half the U.S. states, including Montana, and the federal government have banned TikTok from government-owned devices.

Montanas law would prohibit downloads of TikTok in the state and would fine any entity  an app store or TikTok  $10,000 per day for each time someone is offered the ability to access the social media platform or download the app. The penalties would not apply to users.

Opponents say Montana residents could easily circumvent the ban by using a virtual private network, a service that shields internet users by encrypting their data traffic, preventing others from observing their web browsing. Montana state officials say geofencing technology is used with online sports gambling apps, which are deactivated in states where online gambling is illegal.

The idea of a TikTok ban has been around since 2020, when then-President Donald Trump attempted to bar the company from operating in the U.S. through an executive order that was halted in federal courts. President Joe Bidens administration initially shelved those plans, but more recently threatened to ban the app if the companys Chinese owners dont sell their stakes.

Montana's law would be nullified if the federal government placed a ban on TikTok or if it was sold to a company not based in a country that is federally designated as a foreign adversary, which currently includes China, Russia, North Korea, Iran and Cuba.
FILE PHOTO: TikTok logo is displayed on the smartphone while standing on the U.S. flag in this illustration

By David Shepardson

(Reuters) -Five TikTok users in Montana who create content posted on the short-video app filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to block the state's new ban on the Chinese-owned platform.

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte on Wednesday signed legislation to ban TikTok in the state, effective Jan. 1. The five users seek to block the law, which makes it unlawful for the app stores of Alphabet Inc's Google and Apple Inc to offer TikTok within the state.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Montana late on Wednesday, names the state's attorney general, Austin Knudsen, who is charged with enforcing the law.

The TikTok users argue the state seeks to "exercise powers over national security that Montana does not have and to ban speech Montana may not suppress." The suit said users believe the law violates their First Amendment rights.

"Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban the Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes," the lawsuit said.

Emily Flower, a spokeswoman for Knudsen, said the state was ready for lawsuits. "We expected a legal challenge and are fully prepared to defend the law," she said.

TikTok, which is owned by China's ByteDance, has faced growing calls from U.S. lawmakers and state officials to ban the app nationwide over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform.

According to the lawsuit, the five plaintiffs, all Montana residents, include a designer of sustainable swimwear who uses TikTok to promote her company and engage with customers; a former U.S. Marine Corps sergeant who uses TikTok to connect with other veterans; a rancher who uses TikTok to share content about her outdoor adventures; a student who is studying applied human physiology and shares content about her outdoor adventures; and a man who shares humorous videos on TikTok and earns revenue from the content he posts.

On Wednesday, following the governor's signing of the law, Knudsen, who, like Gianforte, is a Republican, called TikTok "a Chinese Communist Party spying tool that poses a threat to every Montanan."

TikTok on Wednesday, shortly after the governor signed the bill, said Montana's ban "infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok," and said it will "continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

Gianforte said the bill will further "our shared priority to protect Montanans from Chinese Communist Party surveillance."

TikTok has repeatedly denied that it has ever shared data with the Chinese government and has said the company would not do so if asked.

The suit is assigned to Judge Donald Molloy, who was appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1995.

Montana, which has a population of just over 1 million people, said TikTok could face fines for each violation and additional fines of $10,000 per day if it violates the ban.

An attempt by former President Donald Trump to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat through a Commerce Department order in 2020 was blocked by multiple courts and never took effect.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler and Anna Driver)
What is title 42? What crossings at the Southern border look like now that the policy has ended.

Debates over American border policy have become increasingly fraught in recent years. On either side of the aisle, leaders seem to agree there is an issue to address, but differ drastically on the "how."

Democrats call for comprehensive immigration reform that creates a more accessible legal pathway to citizenship. Republicans opt for a more security-focused approach to the border, arguing that an influx of migrants is unsustainable and places an unreasonable burden on law enforcement and schools in the United States.

Title 42, a public health statute turned border security measure, has become a lightning rod for these tensions.

Here's what to know about its recent expiration and how the Biden Administration is responding.

What is Title 42?

Title 42 refers to the emergency powers invoked during the coronavirus pandemic that have restricted migrant crossings at the southern border.

Part of a decades-old public health law, Title 42 has allowed for the swift rejection of many migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border over the past three years. Instated in March of 2020 by former President Donald Trump, the rule allowed officials to turn migrants, including asylum seekers, away in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Additionally, under Title 42, migrants could no longer seek asylum after crossing the border illegally, a practice long permitted in the U.S. Instead, they were turned back either to Mexico or to their country of origin, depending where they were immigrating from originally. The argument was that keeping migrants in federal facilities at the border could worsen the spread of the disease.

Title 42's impact at the border A closer look at the numbers

Why is Title 42 ending now?

While President Joe Biden initially kept Title 42 in place, in April 2022 the administration attempted to halt its use. A number of Republican states sued, countering that it was an essential measure for border security, and the policys status was caught in legal limbo for months.

However, in January, Biden announced that his administration planned to end the national COVID-19 emergency, effectively circumventing the lawsuit and leaving Title 42 to expire.

The border after Title 42 When Title 42 expires, will migrants be prosecuted for crossing border illegally?

What does Title 42 expiring mean?

Title 42 officially expired at 11:59 p.m. ET on May 11.

Though technically Title 42's end lifts a previous restriction for migrants, and many began waiting in Mexico for this reason, crossing the southern border has not suddenly become a walk in the park.

The Biden administration put in place a series of border policies meant to de-incentivize illegal crossings, which some worried would surge after Title 42's expiration. The numbers of crossings do not so far point to a large increase in migrants entering the U.S., the Department of Homeland Security reports.

The new policies includes strict new rules for asylum seekers and harsh penalties for those that cross illegally.

Our overall approach is to build lawful pathways for people to come to the United States and to impose tougher consequences on those who choose not to use those pathways, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said of the new policy.

Some advocacy groups are not convinced, however. The American Civil Liberties Union joined others in filing a lawsuit against one of the Biden administration's new policies in federal court, alleging it was a violation of asylum law. The asylum bans were cruel and illegal then, and nothing has changed now. Katrina Eiland, managing attorney with the ACLU Immigrants Rights Project said in a statement.

What do border crossings look like after Title 42?

While Title 42s end marks the elimination of one quick way to turn migrants away, it does not mean the immigration process is now easy, or straightforward.

New rules from the Biden administration mean asylum seekers that arrive at the border must have applied online or prove that they sought asylum first in one of the other countries they traveled through. Many of the migrants crossing the southern border are not native to Mexico, and instead have fled violence or difficult economic conditions in other countries and made the pilgrimage with hopes of crossing over to the U.S.

Those who crossed illegally prior to Title 42 were allowed to seek asylum after the fact. While their cases were being processed in immigration court, which can take years, they were often released.

Title 42 upended that process, and Bidens new restrictions are set to do the same. Under new regulations, migrants who cross illegally will be barred from returning to the border for 5 years and may face criminal prosecution if they do.

The U.S. has signaled it will accept up to 30,000 migrants from Venezuela, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Cuba per month as long as they arrive by air, have a sponsor and have applied online first. Up to 100,000 migrants will be accepted from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras if they have family in the country and apply online, the Associated Press reports.

The online application is through an app called CBP One. The digital approach may provide challenges though, as reports emerge the app can be flawed and is predicated on internet access, which is not universal.

Did Title 42 get reinstated?

No, despite an effort from Republican states to keep Title 42 instated, it was allowed to expire once the COVID-19 state of emergency was lifted.

Because Title 42 is technically a public health statute, without a public health emergency it has no bearing.

When was Title 42 written?

Title 42 was signed into law originally as part of the Public Health Service Act of 1944. It stipulates that federal authorities can deny the entry of both people and products to the country in order to limit the spread of disease.

Title 8 vs Title 42

While Title 42 is officially a public health statute, Title 8 directly deals with immigration. Upon the expiration of Title 42, the Biden Administration vowed to return to enforcing Title 8.

Title 8 is the section of the U.S. Code entitled "Aliens and Nationality" and contains all of the country's immigration laws. It instructs border patrol agents on who can enter the country, who is eligible for a visa or to seek asylum and what the penalty is for entering illegally.

What is Title 8? What to know about the nation's immigration law and border enforcement

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is Title 42? What to know about the expired border policy.
Photograph: Andriy Popov/Alamy

The top five executives at the USs largest companies have amassed close to $9bn in tax-free retirement saving accounts while many of their employees have struggled to set aside any funds for retirement, according to a new report released on Thursday.

The report, A Tale of Two Retirements, from the Institute for Policy Studies and Jobs With Justice found the top five executives at S&P 500 firms held a combined $8.9bn in special tax-deferred accounts at the end of 2021. Income taxes will be due on this compensation when they withdraw the funds, but in the meantime, they benefit from the tax-free compounding of investment returns.

Related: Its official: billionaires arent the brainboxes they like to believe | Arwa Mahdawi

These so-called top hat plans allow unlimited tax-deferred retirement while ordinary workers face strict limits on their 401(k) retirement plan contributions. The survey found that at many of these companies, a sizeable percentage of workers  in some cases as much as half  had no money in their 401(k)s.

Under a top-hat plan, an executive who sets aside $1m a year for seven years would wind up with an estimated $1.3m more in after-tax earnings and $1m less in tax liabilities than an executive who does not defer compensation.

At Walmart, CEO Doug McMillon held more than $169m in his deferred compensation account at the end of 2022  enough to generate a monthly retirement check of more than $1m, according to the report.

Meanwhile, among eligible participants in Walmarts 401(k) plan, nearly half (46%) have zero balances saved for retirement. The median pay at Walmart is $27,136.

Thomas Pritzker, billionaire chair of Hyatt Hotels, is sheltering $91m from taxes in his deferred pot. The report found 36% of eligible participants in the hotel chains 401(k) plan have not been able to set aside any funds. Half of Hyatt employees make less than $40,395.

DIY chain Home Depot chair Craig Menear has amassed $14.8m in deferred compensation. The majority (53%) of eligible participants in Home Depots 401(k) plan have zero balances. Menears savings would generate a monthly retirement check three times larger than his workers median annual pay of just $30,100.

The biggest top hat surveyed by the study belongs to Paul Saville, chair of NVR, one of the largest homebuilders in the US. The $488m in Savilles account at the end of 2022 would generate a retirement check worth more than $3m every month  1,513 times as much as a typical American retiree could expect to receive in monthly social security and 401(k) benefits.

The mean value of US retirement accounts was $255,200 in 2019, the most up-to-date figure from the Federal Reserves family finances survey. But that figure hides huge disparities in savings. Less than 40% of families in the bottom half of the Feds income brackets were enrolled in a retirement plan, compared with more than 80% of upper-middle-income families and more than 90% of families in the top 10%.

Some 42% of Americans age 56-64 have zero retirement account savings, according to the US Census Bureau. Latino (28.3%) and Black (36.1%) workers have the lowest savings rates.

Theres no rational argument for allowing wealthy executives to shelter unlimited amounts of compensation from taxes while ordinary workers have strict limits on their annual 401(k) contributions, said report co-author Sarah Anderson, global economy director of the Institute for Policy Studies. Nothing but the power of corporate leaders to rig rules in their favor can explain this double standard.

Rather than giving corporate CEOs unfair special retirement tax benefits not available to those they employ, Congress should eliminate the cap on payroll taxes paid by corporate executives so that Social Security benefits can be strengthened, especially for the 40% of American workers for whom Social Security is their sole retirement income, said report co-author Scott Klinger, Jobs With Justice senior equitable development specialist.
FILE PHOTO: Gary Millershaski, a farmer and scout on the Wheat Quality Council's Kansas wheat tour, inspects winter wheat stunted by drought near Syracuse

By Tom Polansek

MANHATTAN, Kansas (Reuters) - Wheat yield potential in Kansas was estimated at 30.0 bushels per acre (bpa) on Thursday by crop scouts on an annual Wheat Quality Council tour, the lowest since at least 2000.

The figure in the biggest U.S. winter wheat producer is below the five-year crop tour average of 45.62 bushels per acre from 2017-2022, reflecting the impact of months of drought. No tour was held in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The U.S. Agriculture Department on May 12 estimated yields at 29 bushels per acre in Kansas.

Farmers, grain traders and food companies are watching crop conditions closely as the U.S. government expects domestic wheat stocks to fall to a 16-year low. A poor crop from the United States, the world's No. 5 wheat exporter, leaves the world more vulnerable to shortages and could result in higher food prices.

Tour scouts on average projected the Kansas harvest at 178 million bushels, below the USDA's estimate for 191.4 million and last year's harvest of 244.2 million due to expectations that many farmers won't bother to harvest their wheat.

In most of the 652 fields the tour checked, scouts could see the ground through the wheat crop because plants were thin and short. When crops are in good shape, they form a canopy over the soil.

One field in Marion County, Kansas, had visible cracks in the soil on Thursday. Plants that would normally be about 30 inches (76 cm) tall were only 20 inches (50 cm) due to dryness.

"You can tell that this is not normal for this part of the country," said Dave Green, executive vice president of the Wheat Quality Council.

Some farmers in western Kansas said rains helped improve the crop in recent weeks. They want more rain, along with cool temperatures, between now and harvest in about four to six weeks.

Experts caution that rains now are arriving too late to significantly benefit yields in many places.

"In southern Kansas, it's getting to the stage where it's too late," said Joel Widenor, an agricultural meteorologist with the Commodity Weather Group. "Sure, (rain) will help out a little ... but it certainly won't have the impact that some of the earlier rains had."

Another round of more widespread showers is expected in the last week of May that could benefit wheat in northern Kansas, where crops are less mature and still developing, Widenor said.

In Healy, Kansas, located in the western third of the state, wheat grower Vance Ehmke said he is living rain-to-rain and already expecting the worst harvest in his 48 years of farming.

"If it quits raining, we're just dead meat," Ehmke said.

(Reporting by Tom Polansek; additional reporting by Julie Ingwersen in Chicago; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
(Bloomberg) -- Thailand hasnt been spared the political uncertainty that usually comes with elections, yet foreign tourists returning by the millions this year are counted on to help shield Southeast Asias secondlargest economy.

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The influx of visitors  totaling 6.5 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared with 498,000 a year ago  is aiding greater business and consumer activity in Thailand. On track to hit the governments target of hosting three times more foreign guests this year from 10 million in 2022, tourism is seen as an anchor amid the political noise, even as the exports growth-engine sputters.

Tourism will be the key pillar supporting our growth this year, said Thitima Chucherd, an economist at Bangkok-based Siam Commercial Bank. In our worst-case scenario, government spending, consumption and investment may be affected by longer-than-expected government formation. But tourism will stay out of the political impact.

A bedrock of Thailands economy before the pandemic, tourism is reclaiming its key role as investors are waiting and watching days after a national vote on Sunday. While pro-democracy parties secured the most number of seats in the election to Thailands 500-member House of Representatives, the support of the 250 senators appointed by the military will play a crucial role in who becomes prime minister.

Should the Senate oppose Move Forward partys Pita Limjaroenrat for premier, government formation can be delayed for months, which in turn could set back the budget for the fiscal year starting October and hurt state spending. The secretary-general of Thailands statistic agency Danucha Pichayanan said Monday after reporting faster first-quarter economic growth that the budget should not be delayed past the first three months of 2024.

Gross domestic product will grow 3.6% this year, up from 2.6% in 2022, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. That will make Thailand the only Southeast Asian economy to experience faster expansion every year since the pandemic-induced downturn in 2020.

Still, any escalation in political uncertainly could hamper the influx of visitors thats getting closer to returning to the 40 million count in 2019, supported by Chinas reopening late last year. Visitors from the mainland accounted for almost a third of Thailands foreign guests before the pandemic.

If political tensions spill over onto the streets, growth will be adversely impacted, said Krystal Tan, an economist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group. Tourists are notably sensitive to political instability, with arrival growth slumping during such periods in the past two decades.

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Traffic alert: Street near Target in Hollywood to stay closed after fiery plane crash

The crash of a banner plane in Hollywood that killed the pilot will close a stretch of busy road through Thursday.

What to know about road shutdown and detours

 Timeline: North Park Road will remain closed from Hollywood Boulevard to Fillmore Street until at least 5 p.m. Thursday, Hollywood police said, after the small plane crashed and caught fire Wednesday near a Target shopping center.

 Hospital: The area is east of a major hospital, Memorial Regional. If youre heading to the Johnson Street hospital, stay clear of the crash area and take an alternate route, police spokeswoman Deanna Bettineschi said. Alternatives include 40th and 46th avenues, to the west of North Park Road. Johnson Street also intersects with U.S. 1.

 Police: The crash site is just north of Hollywood Police Department headquarters.

 Highway/Trains: Interstate 95 and the Tri-Rail station, to the east of the Target center on Hollywood Boulevard, are not affected although traffic in the area could be heavier than usual.

 Shopping: The Target center can be accessed on Hollywood Boulevard. The plane went down just north of Hollywood Boulevard, the Target on one side of North Park Road and office buildings and restaurants on the other.

 Investigation: NTSB investigators are working in the closed-off area. The mangled and charred wreckage remained on the street early Thursday to the side of the Target store and parking lot.

 Damage: The plane crash did not affect buildings or injure anyone on the ground, authorities said.

KNOW MORE: Truly a hero: Pilot of small plane dies after crashing near a Hollywood shopping center

N Park Rd from Hollywood Blvd to Fillmore Street will remain closed for at least another 24 hours. Please use an alternate route.  HollywoodFL Police (@HollywoodFLPD) May 17, 2023

Video: What the scene looked like
Nicola Sturgeon SNP politics Scotland transgender LGBT+ rights crime court case trial - Eamonn M McCormack/Getty Images

The juxtaposition of the two events could not have been more startling  or more unfortunate.

In a glitzy ceremony at the Natural History Museum in London, Nicola Sturgeon received a prestigious award for her support of the LGBT+ community and her role in promoting equality for transgender people through her governments Bill to allow anyone over 16 to change their gender by simply self-identifying.

Roughly 12 hours later, 400 miles away at the High Court in Edinburgh, Andrew Miller admitted that he had kidnapped, held captive and sexually assaulted a girl of primary school age  while dressed as a woman. Lord Arthurson, the judge, said that the former butchers abhorrent crimes were of the utmost depravity and criminality.

He told Miller, who was also known locally in the Scottish Borders as Amy, that his actions were the realisation of every parents worst nightmare.

Seldom, surely, has a judge uttered truer and more appropriate words.

Miller had been a staunch supporter of what became known as Ms Sturgeons Gender Recognition Reform Bill, which was passed by the Scottish Parliament last December, and was also a vocal critic of Westminsters decision to block the Bill becoming law.

But in spite of the former first minister being named Celebrity Ally of the Year at the Rainbow Honours on Wednesday night, the details of Millers shocking crimes bore out, in the starkest fashion possible, the dire warnings that the Bills opponents had sounded.

Andrew Miller transgender sex attacker Scotland court case crime - Police Scotland/PA Wire

Throughout the passage of the Bill at Holyrood, its supporters had insisted that there was no evidence men ever had to pretend to be anything else to prey on girls. That assertion was killed stone dead by what happened to the little girl in this case because she had only gotten into Millers car because she felt safe as he had been dressed as a woman.

Rachel Hamilton of the Scottish Tories echoed earlier protests from leading opponents of the Bill, such as JK Rowling, when she said that the case was a vile example of how predatory men are able to, and will, abuse the system to prey on vulnerable women and girls.

But for her part, Ms Sturgeon repeated her support for her administrations measure. At the awards ceremony, she insisted: My rights as a woman are not diminished in any way, shape or form by the enhancement of the rights of trans men and women.

Edinburgh High Court was told that Miller was in the process of transitioning to a woman. This case followed that of Isla Bryson, also known as Adam Graham, who had been sent to a womens prison after being convicted of raping two women. Only a public outcry saw Bryson sent to a male prison.

In Millers case, the judge deferred sentence on him until August, until reports ascertained whether he should suffer indefinite imprisonment.

What will shock people most about these cases would be the ease with which Miller and Graham appeared able to switch gender virtually at will.

Miller watched Thursdays court proceedings via videolink from prison in Edinburgh while wearing male clothing. He told police after they had arrested him that while he was transitioning to a woman, he wanted to be referred to as a man and to be identified by male pronouns.

However, the court was told that now Miller identifies as a transgender female named Amy George.

We can only wish that this young girl recovers from the horrendous ordeal she has been through.

However, notwithstanding her brand new award as a celebrity, it is clear that the rush adopted by Ms Sturgeon to get this Bill made law and to put her name on such a significant social change was simply inexcusable.

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Miller trans butch

A transgender butcher has admitted abducting a schoolgirl while dressed as a woman and then subjecting her to a series of sexual assaults at his home.

Andrew George Miller, who was known locally as Amy, pleaded guilty on Thursday at the High Court in Edinburgh, which heard he had locked his young victim inside his bedroom.

The court heard that the 53-year-old, who is believed to have begun living as female around six years ago, offered to give the girl, of primary school age, a lift home in February this year.

She had agreed to get into Millers Jaguar car as she considered him non-threatening in his female clothing.

However, he instead drove her to his house and confined her in his bedroom, subjecting his victim, who was a stranger, to a series of sexual assaults over the course of a day.

The girl was later found by police at the home near Galashiels, after going missing for more than a day.

The case is likely to reignite the debate over transgender rights in Scotland, following a highly divisive row over SNP proposals to allow Scots to change their legal sex simply by signing a declaration.

SNP ministers repeatedly insisted that making it far easier to obtain legal recognition, which critics claim would make it easier for male predators to access female-only spaces, would not pose a risk to women or girls.

However, gender-critical campaign groups will argue that the Miller case undermines the claim, particularly as he presented as a woman when luring the girl into his car.

It follows the case of Isla Bryson, also known as Adam Graham, who in January was initially sent to a womens jail after being found guilty of raping two women. Bryson was sent to a male jail after an outcry.

Andrew George Miller

In the Miller case, the court was told he is in the process of transitioning to female.

The girl was able to escape after Miller fell asleep and she was able to call 999 to contact police, who arrived within minutes.

Miller, who had been remanded in custody, entered guilty pleas by video link.

He admitted to charges of abduction, sexual assault, intentionally causing a child under 13 to look at a sexual image and possession of indecent images of children.

Miller previously ran a butcher shop, where he became known for his abrupt manner with customers. He was often seen drinking alone in local pubs.

Before the arrest, Miller maintained social media profiles as both Andrew Miller and Amy George.

On his Facebook page, he was an outspoken supporter of the SNPs plans to make it easier for Scots to change their legal sex.

Four days after the UK Government announced it was blocking Nicola Sturgeons controversial Bill due to fears the provisions would put women and girls in danger, Miller wrote on Facebook: But the Transgender Policy. How can Westminster decide what we have decided? He added: When we decide in Scotland It works for us in Scotland Simple as that.

In another post in January, Miller said: Silly Billys in Westminster Never mess with Scottish Transgender Issues.

I have won many awards in butchery and in cuisine cooking skills. I am Amy G Miller.

Andrew George Miller trans butcher

Among the items displayed in the window of the butcher shop was a framed picture of JK Rowling, an outspoken voice on gender issues, after the business was mentioned in one of her books.

Miller announced that the shop would not be reopening at the start of the year, closing after four generations and nearly 200 years in the trade.

The shop was boarded up by police after Miller was arrested, with locals jeering him and chasing a police van after he was driven away from an earlier court appearance in Selkirk.

Lord Arthurson, the judge, deferred sentence on Miller to obtain reports about whether he meets the criteria for an order for lifelong restriction.

Addressing Miller, Lord Arthurson said: Your actions represent abhorrent crimes of the utmost depravity and criminality. Your actions in this case are the realisation of every parents worst nightmare.

The Scottish Tories said the case shattered claims by Shona Robison, who steered the gender bill through Holyrood and is now Scotlands Deputy First Minister, that there was no evidence men ever had to pretend to be anything else to prey on girls.

Rachael Hamilton, the Scottish Conservative equalities spokeswoman and a Borders MSP said the Miller case offered a vile example of how predatory men are able to and will abuse the system to prey on vulnerable women and girls and added: This case shocked the local community and my thoughts are with the young girl.

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Inside their Clintonville home, Malaz Bakhit, 35, and her husband, Joseph Campbell, 38, talk about their family being trapped in Khartoum, Sudan for three weeks due to fighting between the Sudanese military and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The family has been left with very little food, water, and spotty electricity.

Upper Arlington resident Siema Eljacks 85-year-old father is trapped in Khartoum.

Eljack, 47, a mental health therapist, told The Dispatch that her father, a university professor, is stuck at home in the Sudanese capital, which has seen fierce fighting since a civil war broke out about a month ago between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. He takes various medications and has enough medicine for two months, but Eljack worries what will happen after that time has lapsed.

A lot of people are like that. My aunt has kidney failure, and does dialysis three days a week. There's only one place in Khartoum that does it, Eljack said.

Eljack is one of more than 1,500 Sudanese and Sudanese Americans in central Ohio, according to community leader Mohamed Jadkarim Salim, who lives in Hilliard. Many have family members affected by the fighting.

The community is largely supportive of the Biden administrations ongoing efforts, with Saudi Arabia, to broker talks between the warring military factions, but few are optimistic about peace returning soon. Community members are raising funds for humanitarian relief efforts back home, and some are petitioning the U.S. government to give refuge to those fleeing the conflict by using humanitarian parole.

Tarig Mukhtar, president of the nonprofit Sudanese American Community Development Organization (SACDO), said he feels torn between the organizations local work and the need to support Sudan.

We have constituents here we need to take care of, but most importantly, we have our fellow Sudanese back home, and their lives are in jeopardy, said Mukhtar, 52, a Dublin resident and a pharmacist.

Tarig Mukhtar, of Dublin, and Mohamed Salim, of Hilliard, talk about their efforts to raise money for medical supplies and aid for those displaced due to the ongoing war in Khartoum, Sudan, over the past month due to fighting between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. Both men were born in Sudan and still have family there who have been forced to flee the capital city due to fighting.

How did the conflict start, and why is the humanitarian situation so bad?

Not long ago, many Sudanese people felt optimistic about the countrys future. In 2019, a popular democratic uprising overthrew the 30-year autocratic regime of President Omar al-Bashir. A civilian council then shared power with military leaders ahead of planned elections, but in October 2021 the military and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) took over in a coup  dashing hopes for democracy.

Then, on April 15, fighting broke out between the Sudanese military and the RSF. It is unclear who fired the first shot, but both sides seemed motivated to establish their supremacy amidst a proposed transition to civilian rule, which has since fallen through, according to the International Crisis Group. Fighting has been concentrated in the capital, but has also continued in areas like the western Darfur region, where the RSF got its start in the early 2000s as a militia supporting al-Bashirs bloody effort to suppress a rebellion.

The current conflict is not primarily ethnic, but some fear it could eventually take on ethnic dimensions like the earlier Darfur conflict  for which al-Bashir faces genocide charges at the International Criminal Court.

Malaz Bakhit, 35, is a Sudanese American dentist practicing as a dental assistant who lives in Clintonville and whose parents and quadriplegic brother are stuck in Khartoum. The family's neighborhood in Khartoum was bombed by Sudanese armed forces and overrun by RSF fighters, she said, and her family recently fled to another part of the city, where they venture out only to find essentials like food and water.

Bakhit said the leaders of the military and of the RSF  Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Hemedti Dagalo, respectively  are both motivated by personal ambitions.

Theyre the same to me. Both of them are not good, Bakhit said.

Malaz Bakhit, a dentist practicing as a dental assistant who lives in Clintonville, said her parents have been struggling to care for her brother, who is a quadriplegic, after their neighborhood in Khartoum was bombed by the Sudanese Armed Forces. They recently fled their home for another part of the city, she said, and venture out only to find essentials like food and water.

Nearly 700 people have been killed and a million people across Sudan have fled their homes since mid-April, including 200,000 people who went to neighboring countries, according to the United Nations. The lack of a cease-fire has made it difficult for civilians caught in the crossfire to find basics such as food, water and medicine, and has hindered the efforts of professional humanitarian groups, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The fighting has also affected 1.1 million refugees from South Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia who were living in Sudan, according to the U.N. Refugee Agency. Refugees in Sudan have been targeted by robbers and kidnappers amidst the conflict, according to Mulugeta Gebresilasie, a refugee resettlement worker with Community Refugee and Immigration Services on Columbus Northwest Side, who is originally from Eritrea.

The U.S. government recommended Americans there leave the country because of the deteriorating situation. On April 23, U.S. forces evacuated the American Embassy, although several thousand Americans  primarily Sudanese-American dual citizens  may be left in the country.

What is Sudans strategic importance?

Besides humanitarian arguments, there are strategic reasons why Americans should be concerned about Sudan, according to Joseph Campbell, 38, a lecturer at Ohio State University and Bakhits husband.

From the geopolitical (side) it's extremely important that Sudan remains a stable place with some level of freedom, because if it moves towards parties that are hostile towards the United States, that's a major blow to global security, he said.

Malaz Bakhit, 35, and her husband, Joseph Campbell, 38, are worried for family trapped in Khartoum, Sudan. Family there has been left with very little food, water, and spotty electricity.

Sudan controls part of the Nile River, which is essential to life in much of Egypt downstream. Sudan also has a strategic location along the Red Sea, where Russia is seeking to build a military base to match the U.S. base in nearby Djibouti.

U.S. officials have accused Russia of supporting the RSF in the current conflict. The RSF is also seen as close to the United Arab Emirates, whereas the Sudanese military has ties to the military regime in Egypt.

Salim, the local community leader, said the U.S. should not get involved in helping either the military or the RSF, since neither are dedicated to democracy.

Mohamed Jadkarim Salim, of Hilliard, said many of the roughly 1,500 Sudanese community members in central Ohio have family who have been affected by ongoing fighting between the military and Rapid Support Forces in Sudan.

What efforts does the local community support?

Salim and Tarig say they want the U.S. to continue its diplomatic efforts with Saudi Arabia to broker a peace, but in the meantime, more effort is needed to bring essential humanitarian supplies to people in Sudan and refugees in neighboring countries.

Tarigs Sudanese American nonprofit, SACDO, is holding a bake sale fundraiser on Friday after prayers at the Noor Islamic Cultural Center, 5001 Wilcox Road, Hilliard. Donations will support the Sudanese American Physicians Association, a Texas-based nonprofit that is providing medical care to displaced people in Sudan, as well as Sudan NextGen, another nonprofit providing humanitarian aid, according to Tarig. Sumia Mohamed, 46, a Sudanese American environmental consultant and Ohio State University lecturer, has also been helping to raise funds for Sudan NextGen in Upper Arlington.

Sudanese community members protest the fighting between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces during Eid al Fitr prayers on April 21 at the Ohio Expo Center.

Separately, other organizations like Doctors Without Borders and the International Rescue Committee are also collecting donations for Sudan.

Another group of Sudanese Americans have started an online petition calling on the Biden administration to admit Sudanese people who have American relatives into the U.S. using humanitarian parole  a temporary status that was given to many Afghans and Ukrainians, and which was recently expanded to include Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans.

Eljack, the mental health therapist from Upper Arlington, said humanitarian parole is the right thing to do.

Look at what the U.S. and other countries have done for Ukraine over the past year  its double standards, Eljack said. It is just a basic humanitarian call to action that we are asking (for).

Peter Gill covers immigration, New American communities and religion for the Dispatch in partnership with Report for America. You can support work like his with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America at: bit.ly/3fNsGaZ.

pgill@dispatch.com

Mohamed Salim, left, of Hilliard and Tarig Mukhtar, of Dublin, talk about the ongoing war in Khartoum, Sudan due to fighting between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. Both men were born in Sudan and still have families there who were forced to flee the capital city due to the fighting.

Sudanese community members protest violence in Sudan during Eid al Fitr prayers April 21 at the Ohio Expo Center.

Get more political analysis by listening to the Ohio Politics Explained podcast

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Sudanese Americans in central Ohio worry for loved ones amidst war
Rental prices are rising in Kyiv - what's the reason?

Read also: Rent, Primary and Secondary Housing: Real estate market activity in April

Dmitry Korchev, director of the Brock Realty real estate agency, told NV he recently rented out his last apartment for UAH 7,000 per month. This is rather an exception, but his colleagues from other real estate agencies confirm this trend: it is now possible to rent out housing that customers were not even looking at a few months ago.

Demand, they estimate, is now a third higher than in winter, which allows landlords to raise prices by 10%. However, rents have not yet rebounded to their pre-war levels.

People are coming back

3.6 million people now live in Kyiv, compared to 3.9 million before the beginning of the full-scale invasion, mayoral advisor Dmitry Belotserkovets told Espresso.

Read also: Crimean real estate no longer of interest to buyers

The people of Kyiv are continuing to return, and realtors are feeling it. Oksana Suslova of the Left Bank real estate agency says there have been a number of indicators of the market strengthening.

Activity in the rental housing market is now higher. People have begun to come and look at what is on offer, and new options have appeared, she explains.

Korchev says that against this background, demand has also decreased in Lviv and other cities in western Ukraine, which suggests that there are people returning home.

Residents of regions like Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhya are also choosing the capital, says Yuriy Pita, president of the Association of Real Estate Specialists (ASNU).

He adds that Kyiv is considered the safest city in Ukraine due to the large number of Western air defense systems. On top of that, theres plenty of work to go around. According to the work.ua recruitment management system, in April the number of vacancies increased by 13% in Kyiv Oblast, to 25.7 thousand.

Read also: Rent in Kyiv considerably cheaper than in west of Ukraine, research shows

Prices have gone up

According to Suslova from Left Bank, apartments costing up to UAH 5,000 ($135) per month were renting out well a few months ago, but other apartment owners had to wait for weeks for clients and make concessions, like agreeing to rent out to families with children or pets. Now there are fewer such offers.

The greatest demand is for housing in areas near metro stations or in buildings erected in the past 7-10 years, says Suslova. Unlike the winter period, when Kyiv, like other large cities, suffered from power outages, now potential tenants are not afraid to rent housing on high floors.

Customers are paying attention to the proximity of buildings to power infrastructure and railway stations, says Suslova.

However, we recently rented an apartment near Lukyanivska metro station, even though (Russian) missiles have struck the area three times before.

Pita adds that demand is gradually increasing for apartments located in Kyiv Oblast outside the city itself  even in towns that fell under Russian occupation, like Bucha and Irpin.

Greater demand has led to a 10% increase in rents, says Pita. In Kyiv, one can still rent an apartment for 5-6 thousand UAH per month, plus utility. These options are primarily in Soviet-era apartment blocks or studio apartments on the outskirts of the city and away from metro stations, for example, in Troyeshchyna or Voskresenka, where units rent for roughly UAH 5,500 per month.

Read also: Infrastructure, dormitory, apartment building hit in overnight Russian attack on Kharkiv

However, despite the low price, there are not very many people who want to live in these areas. In Darnitsya, for example, which is closer to the metro and has better transport connections, there is more active demand, says Suslova.

The best housing options can be found for UAH 7,000-8,000 per month, including apartments in nine-story buildings in good condition, not far from metro stations. Apartments in new buildings will cost more  upwards of UAH 11,000. So far, housing prices remain below pre-war levels.

Read also: Patriot missile defense in Kyiv sustained minor damage and remains operational, report says

Realtors surveyed by NV are confident that rent prices will rise in price by another 10% this year. The next period of price increases will be observed in fall, when students from other cities will come to Kyiv, which will lead to an increase in demand for apartment rentals.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Paris Paradise Morton, 32, stands in court during her hearing on Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Las Vegas. Morton, who legally changed her name in October 2015 from Lakeisha Nicole Holloway, is accused of intentionally driving her car onto a Las Vegas Strip sidewalk in December 2015, killing one person and injuring dozens more. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)

LAS VEGAS (AP)  Trial was delayed Thursday for a woman who has been in state psychiatric care for more than seven years after being accused of intentionally plowing a car into pedestrians, killing one, on a Las Vegas strip sidewalk in December 2015.

Paris Paradise Morton told Clark County District Court Judge Tierra Jones she wants a different court-appointed attorney to represent her on murder and 70 other felony charges. The crash killed an Arizona woman and injured dozens of other people near the Paris Las Vegas and Planet Hollywood resorts.

Morton rejected a plea bargain this week that would avoid trial, which had been scheduled to begin May 30. The judge set a closed-door hearing with Morton next Wednesday to determine if she will get a new lawyer. No new trial date was set.

Morton, now 32, has been prosecuted as Lakeisha Nicole Holloway, the name she gave to authorities following the crash a few days before Christmas 2015. Records show she legally changed her name before the crash from Holloway to Morton.

Jessica Valenzuela, 32, a tourist from Buckeye, Arizona, was killed and authorities said at least 35 people from several states, Mexico and Canada were injured.

Clark County and Las Vegas have in recent years installed rows of vehicle barriers called bollards along Las Vegas Boulevard and other sidewalk curbs with large pedestrian crowds to prevent similar crashes.

Morton's daughter, who was 3 years old at the time, was with her in the car during the crash, after which Morton drove to a casino-hotel off the Strip and asked employees to call police. Morton's court-appointed defense attorney, Scott Coffee, has said she no longer has custody of the child.

Coffee has said his client was from Portland, Oregon, and traveled through several cities in the U.S. and Canada before arriving in Las Vegas a few days before the crash.

Morton told investigators she and her daughter had been living in the car and sleeping in casino parking areas until being told by security officers to leave. Authorities said she may have been on her way to Texas to see the girls father at the time of the crash.
Trump 2020 lawyer indicated he may be target of Fulton County probe, court docs say

Ray Smith III, a lawyer who represented President Donald Trump in litigation aimed at reversing Georgias 2020 election results, has indicated he may be a target of Atlanta-area District Attorney Fani Willis criminal probe.

Smiths attorney, Bruce Morris, characterized Smith as something between a target and witness in Willis nearly completed investigation, according to documents filed Wednesday in a federal civil lawsuit in Washington D.C. That characterization was revealed by lawyers for the plaintiffs in the lawsuit  two former Georgia election workers who are suing Rudy Giuliani for defamation.

According to the newly filed documents, the former election workers  Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss  want to subpoena and depose Smith as part of their lawsuit against Giuliani. But on May 1, a lawyer for Smith told Freeman and Moss attorneys that he would seek to block the subpoena.

Mr. Morris indicated that they would file a motion to quash because Mr. Smith was something between a target and witness in the Fulton County District Attorneys investigation of the 2020 election, wrote John Langford, an attorney for Freeman and Moss.

Its the latest indication of the wide net Willis is casting as she nears the expected indictment phase of her investigation. She recently indicated that she has obtained information about potential crimes committed by at least one or two of the false presidential electors enlisted by Trump as part of a last-ditch bid to overturn the election results. Trump himself is believed to be a target of her probe, which was the subject of a year-long special grand jury investigation that concluded in January.

The special grand jury, which had no power to issue indictments, issued a still-secret report recommending charges against an unknown number of figures connected to Donald Trump  potentially including Trump.

Willis is now conducting additional witness interviews as she prepares to present her case to a traditional grand jury with the power to issue indictments. She has reportedly told local law enforcement to expect indictment decisions as early as July.

Days after Freeman and Moss attorneys spoke with Morris, they were contacted by another attorney for Smith, Randy Evans, who attempted to negotiate a limited deposition where Smith could formally plead the Fifth to their inquiries. But talks broke down on May 12, after Freeman and Moss attorneys sent a list of proposed deposition topics that prompted a sharp response from Evans.

I understood that you wanted a deposition for defensive purposes to make sure that your clients were not ambushed at trial by Ray Smiths testimony. I had advised you that Ray Smiths deposition implicated several issues including the Fifth Amendment, the attorney-client privilege, and work product doctrine among others, Evans wrote, adding, The list of topics clearly demonstrates an offensive use of the deposition which directly implicates the privileges that we have previously discuss[ed].

Freeman and Moss lawyers are now seeking assistance from U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell to order Smiths deposition.

Smith, Evans and Morris did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did a spokesman for the district attorneys office.
Jim Trusty, an attorney for former President Donald Trump in his classified documents case, brought up the Presidential Records Act in defending Trump for failing to comply with a Department of Justice subpoena issued last year when he wasnt president. (You can watch his defense below.)

CNNs Sara Sidner, in an interview with Trusty on Wednesday, acknowledged that no president is above the law and asked the attorney why his client ignored a subpoena that sought the return of classified records from Trumps Mar-a-Lago estate.

After the FBI asked for the boxes, they came back to find 15 more boxes and so they did not pay attention to the subpoena  so why is that OK is what Im asking? If I did that as a citizen, thered be hell to pay, Sidner said.

Well, you also dont have the powers under the Presidential Records Act for declassification and Im pretty sure youre not president right now, Trusty said.

Trustys remarks arrive just over a week after Trump falsely claimed at a CNN town hall that documents under the act, enacted in the years after the Watergate scandal, became automatically declassified and he was allowed to take them when he took them to his estate.

Over a dozen presidential records reportedly show that Trump, whose attorney Tim Parlatore just stepped down from the case, and his advisers knew of the correct declassification process during his time in office, according to a CNN report on a letter from acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall.

Sidner: If I ignored a subpoena, there would be hell to pay

Trusty: Well, you also dont have the powers under The Presidential Records Act.. and Im pretty sure youre not president right now pic.twitter.com/nQR2UeLzqU  Acyn (@Acyn) May 18, 2023

Twitter users slammed Trusty for his comments and joked that Trumps lawyers are ripped from an SNL sketch.

If this is their legal defense, they are in for a world of hurt. No part of this is remotely accurate in terms of how the PRA works, to say nothing of disregarding the false statements in Bobbs declaration and alleged evidence of people relocating boxes. https://t.co/oYnpWgeSFI  Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) May 18, 2023

This works for now, to spin a political narrative. It failed before the 11th Circuit. It has failed so far before the grand jury. It will fail if there is an indictment.  Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) May 18, 2023

And Trump wasnt president when he was subpoenaed. Whats his point?  SnarkTank (@TheSnarkTank99) May 18, 2023

The presidential records act? That doesnt give you the protection to avoid testimony. What is he talking about? The PRA makes it a crime to do what Trump did. If convicted he could be disqualified from running again.  J Sadowsky (@BLMMF1) May 18, 2023

OMG. Trumps lawyers are AS insane & delusional as he isit actually makes total sense. https://t.co/7aQ7f5BEMr  Spiros Ghost (@AntiToxicPeople) May 18, 2023

Its really weird that hes saying its a NEGOTIATIONnoits really not. You do what they say, and you do it now. Its the same rules we all have to follow.  newt (harig55) (@newtnewtriot) May 18, 2023

Related...
The man-made Illinois River island north of the McClugage Bridge has grown into a lush habitat since work began in 2009. Though no trees were ever planted on the island, wind- and water-borne seeds have grown to a 40-foot-tall stand of timber.

Ask Dean is a Journal Star column focusing on all things Peoria: its history, mysteries, quirks and culture. Send your questions to dmuellerleile@pjstar.com.

Question: As I was driving westbound over the McClugage Bridge this morning, I noticed how much the trees on the island have grown. That got me to thinking, how long ago did they create that island, and does anyone know if it has served its purpose?  Jim Helms, Peoria

Answer: After years of planning and engineering, work on the man-made island in the Illinois River began in July 2009.

The goal was to deepen the river, which had been silting in for decades, and create better habitat for fish. (Outside the navigation channel, river depths were only 12 to 30 inches deep.) Some 200 acres of muck and silt were to be dredged from Lower Peoria Lake to create, eventually, three such islands. Funding for the multimillion-dollar project was assembled from state and federal sources. Removing silt from the river was a beneficial byproduct of the project.

By October 2011, a "squishy" island was taking shape. Some 70,000 cubic yards of dredged silt and river soil  nearly enough to fill both of Peoria's Twin Towers  had begun to form the outline of the 24-acre isle. Grasses, trees and other vegetation had taken root on the new banks, where ducks and geese had found refuge. Turtles were spotted on the new shore, as well as raccoon prints.

Ask Dean: 50 years ago, police standoff at a Peoria school shocked a city and the nation

By April 2012, the perimeter was largely completed, and the islet's core was being filled in.

A July 2013 Journal Star story noted the island's improved habitat: Beavers had made a home on the man-made landmass. The article noted additional plans, including "jetties surrounding the island and a handful of deep holes off the shore, providing calm, deep pockets of water for fish to spawn. The rivers prolific Asian carp population can spawn in the channels shallow, choppy waters, but the islands extra features will support more delicate species, such as bass, catfish and bluegill."

One year later, the island was "ready for its close-up." A July 2014 Journal Star article reported, "The Army Corps of Engineers will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony ... signifying the completion of the ... project."

Anthony Heddlesten, an environmental engineer with the Army Corps, who hadn't visited the site since the previous November, said then, Im in shock at how much stuff weve got growing here. The story added, "A trip across the 24-acre island meant pushing through a forest of cottonwoods, willows and hibiscus, many ranging in height from eight to 10 feet. Some willows top 20 feet in height. All the growth is a result of seeds that have blown or washed into the river."

The story said plans for the other two islands, to be located near the Spindler Marina in East Peoria, had been prepared by the Army Corps but funding had not yet been authorized.

An island update

Today, some of the trees on the island top 40 feet. Canada geese have settled in, sometimes amusingly aggressively.

Heddlesten, now the chief of the civil and environmental engineering department for the Rock Island District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, recently commented on the project.

He said it has largely accomplished its goal: providing deep-water overwintering habitat for fish. Previously, he said, the only place deep enough for that was the actual navigation channel, where barges travel up and down, disturbing the fish. Heddlesten said secondary benefits include providing habitat for migratory birds and other wildlife.

He said the side channel around the island has been deepened, and more than 20 rock jetties extending into the river have been constructed.

Heddlesten said a total of 400,000 cubic yards of silt and soil was dredged from the river, but some areas near the island began to resediment very quickly. He added, "The river is constantly accumulating more silt." He said siltation "absolutely" remains a concern, affecting navigation and habitat: "Pick a river, it's a problem on all of them."

Heddlesten said a forestry team visited the island in 2020 and reported the trees, mostly willow, had grown as tall as 40 feet. He said the tree stands were "very healthy." He added, "We never planted a thing. It all came up on its own."

Meanwhile, wildlife is thriving. Heddlesten said the few unhealthy trees found were stressed due to beavers doing what beavers do  gnaw on trees. He recounted being chased by Canada geese defending their nesting sites.

Beavers have built a lodge on the northeast corner of the island in this 2020 photo.

Heddlesten said the project was one of his favorites: "I mean, who gets to build an island?" He has pictures of the isle in his office, and a chunk of fabric from the silt-bearing retainment bags used to build it hanging on the wall.

He said whenever he drives through Peoria, he makes sure to drive across the McClugage Bridge to take a look at the artificial island he helped create.

Officially, the island has no name, but Heddlesten noted a historical marker located nearby, in Chillicothe. The marker honors the Potawatomi leader Gomo and translates his name as "Resting Fish." Heddlesten added, "The purpose of the project is to make a place for fish to overwinter (or rest). ... Seems very apropos."

Whether it's a person, place or product, send your "Whatever happened to ...?" and "Wasn't there a ...?" questions, comments and suggestions to dmuellerleile@pjstar.com. Please put ASK DEAN in the subject line.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Man-made island near McClugage Bridge in Peoria, Illinois a refuge for fish, birds
Tunisian President Kais Saied (L) greeting his country's Chief Rabbi Haim Bittan following a deadly shooting attack

Tunisian President Kais Saied has hosted Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders following a deadly mass shooting outside a local synagogue, telling them Tunisia was a country of "tolerance and coexistence".

The May 9 attack on the resort island of Djerba killed five people and sparked panic during an annual Jewish pilgrimage at the historic Ghriba synagogue, Africa's oldest.

The interfaith meeting on Wednesday "attests to the tolerance and coexistence that have characterised Tunisia for centuries", Saied said, according to a video released by the presidency.

It included Tunisia's Grand Rabbi Haim Bittan, Mufti Hichem ben Mahmoud and Archbishop Ilario Antoniazzi.

The gunman, a police officer, killed three other officers and two worshippers, a French-Tunisian and an Israeli-Tunisian man, before being shot dead himself by police.

During the meeting, Saied said a probe was underway to determine whether the shooter had any accomplices.

Four people linked to the gunman and suspected of involvement in the attack have so far been arrested, the private Mosaique FM radio reported late Wednesday.

Tunisian officials have denounced the attack as "criminal" but refrained from referring to it as a "terrorist" operation which would imply anti-Semitic motives.

Saied told the religious leaders on Wednesday that the attack sought to "undermine Tunisia and its stability, and sow discord and division".

"You can live in peace, and we will guarantee your safety", he said, addressing the Jewish community.

Saied noted a "distinction between Judaism and Zionism", rejecting any "normalisation" with Israel and calling on the international community to "put an end to the tragedy of the Palestinian people".

Rabbi Bittan called the meeting "excellent" and said he had received "guarantees that what happened (in Djerba) would not repeat".

The pilgrimage to Ghriba is at the heart of Jewish tradition in Tunisia, where only about 1,500 members of the faith still live -- mainly on Djerba -- compared with around 100,000 before independence in 1956.

The Ghriba pilgrimage was previously targeted in a 2002 suicide truck bombing that killed 21 people and was claimed by Al-Qaeda.

ezz-kl/tmt/ami/fz
In December 2022, former Twitter employee Ahmad Abouammo was found guilty of taking bribes from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in return for sensitive account information on dissidents using the website. Now, the sister of Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, who was allegedly kidnapped and tortured for operating a Twitter account critical of Saudi Arabia, has filed a lawsuit accusing Twitter of breaking the law for letting its employees reveal his identity.

Areej al-Sadhan filed the complaint on her and her brother's behalf under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute. Her brother, Abdulrahman, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for supporting terrorism. In her complaint, Areej accuses Twitter of giving her brother's "identifying information to the government of Saudi Arabia, which blatantly violates its terms and conditions." She continued: "This puts every Twitter user at risk. As a result, Saudi Arabia kidnapped, tortured, imprisoned, and  through a sham trial  sentenced my brother to 20 years in prison, simply for criticizing Saudi repression on his Twitter account." The Saudi government has apparently denied Abdulrahman contact with his family, who has no idea whether he's still alive.

Abouammo and another former Twitter employee named Ali Alzabarah accessed confidential Twitter user data 30,892 times in 2015, the lawsuit states. They then allegedly handed Saudi Arabia identifying information for 6,000 Twitter user accounts, including names, birthdates, device identifiers, phone numbers, IP addresses and session IP histories associated with user accounts.

While Twitter will likely defend itself by saying that it didn't approve or wasn't aware of Saudi's espionage activities, the lawsuit also states that US intelligence agencies warned the company about Alzabarah giving Saudi Arabia user information in late 2015. Six months after the warning, Jack Dorsey, who was Twitter's CEO back then, met with Mohammed bin Salman "despite knowing full well [Saudi Arabia's] malign activities and various crimes," the complaint reads.

As The Washington Post notes, Twitter faced two other lawsuits related to Saudi's spying activities on its website. However, one was dismissed after it failed to establish a connection between the 2015 leak of information and the hacking of the plaintiff's phone three years later, which had led to his family and friends getting imprisoned. Saudi also isn't the only country conducting espionage on the website. Twitter's former security chief turned whistleblower, Peiter Zatko, revealed last year that the company was also previously warned that it had Chinese intelligence agents on its payroll.
Two banned from Disney World in Florida over family fight about photo-op

Two people have been banned from Walt Disney World, after a brawl broke out earlier this week between two families both seeking to take a picture in front of a sign commemorating the parks 100th anniversary.

The incident began around 2.30 pm on Monday when a member of one family posing for a photo asked a member of the other family to move out of the frame. A member of the second family punched one of the people in the first family, and a fight ensued from there, the Orange County Sheriffs Office said of the incident.

No one was arrested, as the unidentified victim in the fight didnt want to press charges, police added.

One person was treated for their injuries on scene, according to the sheriffs office.

The two people banned from the park have been given a trespass warning, meaning they can be arrested if they return to the Magic Kingdom.

Video of the incident, reported by Fox 35, shows a group of at least five people locked in a fistfight, with one man struggling to get up off the ground.

In the background of the video, bystanders can be heard saying, "Did you see how it broke out?" and, "I was just walking right here and I saw it just happening."

Police told NBC they couldnt verify if the video showed the fight.

In July of 2022, three people were arrested and one person was hospitalised in a massive brawl that broke out at the Orlando theme park.

At the end of 2022, Disney warned guests that they needed to be the magic you want to see in the world, treat each other with common courtesy and avoid using profanity or engaging in unsafe, illegal, disruptive or offensive behaviour, jumping lines or saving places in lines for others.
Two California transplants opened a Boise restaurant in 18. Now theyre on Food Network

When John and Julie Cuevas moved to Boise to transform an old cinder-block building into a bustling, boutique taqueria, they promptly got their priorities in order.

Idaho order.

Were transplants from California, Julie told the Statesman in 2017, adding with a laugh: Were trying to change our license plates as quickly as possible.

Since then, the couple has found a welcoming new home in the Treasure Valley. The Cuevases fast-casual restaurant, Madre, 1034 S. La Pointe St., has become a neighborhood hit in the Lusk District near Boise State.

The taco meccas profile is about to get higher.

Madre will be featured on the long-running reality TV series Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives this weekend  and, as is the case on Food Network, into rerun infinity.

Premiering at 7 p.m. Friday (check your providers listings), the episode is titled Down South & South of the Border. Host Guy Fieri  aka the mayor of Flavortown  appreciates creative food. So expect plenty of euphoric grunts as he invades Madre and bites into tacos.

The Cuevases relocated to Idaho from San Juan Capistrano, California, bringing years of food-service experience.

Julie came from a hotel background. John, who runs the kitchen, is a classically trained chef. He was a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef: Pacific in 2008. He has been everywhere from five-star restaurants to really cool gastropubs, Julie told the Statesman.

Restaurants on Triple D immediately feel an impact after a show airs. Curious customers visit, often ordering whatever Fieri tried.

This episodes Food Network synopsis describes Madre as a taco spot gone wild thats blowing up the beef and getting creative with carnitas.

Madre specializes in creative tacos sometimes featuring outside-the-box ingredients.

Madres food is made fresh and in-house daily. Taco options on the menu include temptations such as Braised Carnitas (spiced coleslaw, blue cheese and barbecue sauce, $7), Wild Mushroom (mojo sauce, smoked bacon, jalapeno and radish, $6.50) and Korean Short Rib (kimchee, pickled relish, peanut sauce, $9).

Fieri chose to highlight the Braised Carnitas, along with Quesabirria (two stewed beef and cheese quesadillas, plus consomme, $20), according to a Facebook post from Madre.

Madre is the latest among a string of Idaho restaurants featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives recently. Fieri traveled to Boise in February and filmed at several locations, ranging from Sunshine Spice Cafe and Westside Drive-In to Tangos Empanadas and Alyonka Russian Cuisine, among others.
Two religious freedom lawsuits cost California more than $1 million. Heres how

Supporters of abortion rights protest outside a Planned Parenthood clinic in West Hollywood, Calif., after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday, June 24, 2022. | Jae C. Hong, Associated Press

The state of California will pay more than $1 million in attorneys fees after losing battles with four churches over health care coverage for abortion services, according to the Christian Post.

The churches  Skyline Wesleyan Church near San Diego, Foothill Church in Glendora, Calvary Chapel Chino Hills in Chino and Shepherd of the Hills Church in Porter Ranch  successfully fought a state policy requiring employers to cover abortion in employee health plans. They argued the requirement violated religious freedom protections.

In two separate cases, judges ruled against California officials, deciding that churches with faith-based objections to elective abortion procedures should receive a religious exemption from the coverage rules.

U.S. District Chief Judge Kimberly Mueller, who heard the lawsuit involving Foothill Church, Calvary Chapel and Shepherd of the Hills, wrote in her decision that the state had failed to justify its claim that offering exemptions would create an impossible amount of work for the California Department of Managed Health Care, as the Los Angeles Times reported.

Even assuming similar religious challenges materialized in California in large numbers, (the state) has not offered evidence showing that entertaining these religious objections would be so difficult and time-consuming that DMHCs operations would grind to a halt, Mueller wrote.

Related

California owes $1.4 million

The cases were wrapped up recently with orders specifying what the state owes to the churches that challenged the abortion policy.

The Alliance Defending Freedom, which was involved in both lawsuits, said in a May 12 statement that California had agreed to pay $1.4 million total in attorneys fees to settle the disputes.

This is a significant victory for the churches we represent, the conscience rights of their members, and other religious organizations that shouldnt be ordered by the government to violate some of their deepest faith convictions, said Jeremiah Galus, senior counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom, in the statement.

Birth control and abortion lawsuits

Although the legal battles centered on a California state policy, they had much in common with several recent federal lawsuits, most notably the many faith-based challenges to the Affordable Care Acts birth control mandate.

Various religious organizations spent years in court fighting the acts requirement that most employers cover birth control in employee health plans. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of faith-based companies and nonprofits multiple times, ensuring broad access to accommodations and exemptions.

Abortion-related religious freedom lawsuits have also become more common in recent years, especially after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June of last year.

In blue states, faith groups are finding ways to challenge laws expanding access to abortion by, for example, working to limit the use of abortion pills.

In red states, on the other hand, religious organizations have argued that abortion bans violate religious freedom protections, as the Deseret News has previously reported.
Sam Wing and Gizmo

Gizmo, the OG small but mighty, big-eyed, big-eared hero is back! The adorable Gremlins creature returns in animated form to take us back in time and uncover his history in Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai.

io9 sat down with the showrunner of the new Max series, Tze Chun, and Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch director Joe Dante to talk about the return to the beloved cult franchise after nearly 40 years. I came in a little late, Dante explained. I found out about the show, I called Warner Bros., and I thought it was a great concept; I said, If theres anything I can do to help you guys, let me know. And they were very accommodatingthey brought me in, I gave my input and all that kind of stuff. But it was well on the way before I went in there.

Read more

Chun (whose other credits include Gotham and comics publisher TKO Studios) gave Dante his flowersAll Joe did was inspire the entire series!before adding, This just came out of a conversation with Warner Bros., Amblin, [Warner Bros. Animations] Sam Register, and [Gremlins executive producer] Steven Spielberg about wanting to do a Gremlins animated prequel. And I came in with a take about the young Sam Wing.

Secrets of the Mogwai canonically exists in the same universe as Dantes Gremlins films, the showrunner explained. Theres the old Mr. Wing from the original movies that hes in, number one and number two, Chun said. In the films, the elderly character is played by the late Keye Luke, and he does not want to sell Gizmo to the Peltzer familyfor all the chaotic reasons we see as the story progresses. The animated series takes us to 1920s Shanghai, China, where it introduces 10-year old Sam Wing and explores the characters first adventures with Gizmo before they embarked to America. Really early on when we were talking about the show, [it was] something that we wanted parents, kids, and teenagersthe whole family to watch together. Me and my co-showrunner Brendan Hay, were obviously huge fans of the original movies and we want to make sure that the show appealed to fans of the original movies while also bringing in new fans.

Gremlins secrets of the Mogwai

Audiences are in for a real treat with the Amblin-produced series, which has earned Spielbergs stamp of approval. It harkens back to the energy of the original films with its action scenes and signature dashes of dark humor and scary momentssomething that was important to Chun. One of the things that I remember really clearly when I first watched the Gremlins movieand like many members of our writing team, cast and crew, we all watched Gremlins probably too earlywe love the movie, laughed really hard. Were also traumatized by the movie, Chun said. And so we really want to capture that tone of being funny and scary and idiosyncraticeverything that Joe did with the movies.

Dante jumped in, adding, But thats part of the key of the whole showone of the things I most admire about the series is that its managed to keep that light and dark thing going on, very much like the original two movies.

Secrets of the Mogwais approach to that signature Gremlins tone is infused with Chuns take on Sam Wings family history and culture, connecting Gizmo and his fellow Mogwai to Chinese folklore. You know the Mogwai as supernatural creatures; theyre kind of like Chinese legends and myths and creatures and monsters in that Chinese monsters typically have rules of how they operate. Theyre really scary, but theyre also really funny. And so to be able to meld those twothe Gremlins franchise with the backdrop of 1920s Chinawas really, really fun.

The Mogwai origins in the mind of Dante and original screenwriter Chris Columbus actually took inspiration from Warner Bros. own legacy of animation. Theres a lot of Looney Tunes influence, Dante confirmed. His Gremlins share some DNA with the gremlin in 1934 Looney Tunes short Falling Hare, directed by Robert Clampett, where Bugs Bunny encounters a cute but chaotic little creature who instigates some dangerous hijinks on a plane. Dante elaborated: And in fact, [Looney Tunes animator] Chuck Jones is even in the movie and Billy wants to be a cartoonist, he said, referencing the scene where Gizmos new guardian Billy Pelzer meets with Mr. Jones, played by the animation great in a brief cameo, to show him his art.

Looney Tunes 1934 short Falling Hare



Bugs meets a trouble-making gremlin in Looney Tunes 1934 short Falling Hare.

The thing about about the franchise is, the reason its been so popular over the years is because Steven Spielberg decided at the last minute that Gizmo should not change into the bad gremlin after 30 minutes, Dante said, taking us back to that behind-the-scenes moment. And he should, in fact, stick around for the entire movie and be the heros pal, which was horrifying to us because wed only built this little bucket of bolts to last for 30 minutes, and now we had to make him the hero of the movie. But in retrospect, I really believe that the difference between Gremlins and and the Ghoulies and the other imitations and munchies was that this character had a heart. Its the appeal of, like, a baby; hes kind of like a baby. And Howie Mandel did this voice that was very like a baby character. Thats what the audience fell in love with. And that was the difference between a movie thats just got a lot of monsters eating people, and a movie that has heart. I think that just kept it alive all these years.



Gremlins Secrets of the Mogwai Gizmo

With Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai expanding the Wing family history, we had to ask if theres room to explore Mr. Wings grandsons story in any future Gremlins projects, maybe even crossing over with the grown-up Billy Peltzer in a live-action Gremlins 3? Dante laughed and steered the conversation back to the series (we tried!), saying, Thats the time travel episode that we have not discussed yet.



Chun added, I mean, we certainly have a lot of time between 1920s China and the original Gremlins movies. And so were hoping for many more seasons after this.

Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai starts streaming on Max (formerly HBO Max) on May 23.





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A U.S. F-22 Raptor, based out of Al Udeid Base in Doha, Qatar, receives fuel from a 28th Expeditionary Air Refuelling Squadron KC-135 Stratotanker during a combat air patrol mission over an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Air Force intends to award a contract in 2024 for its sixth-generation fighter jet as it races to retain its edge against rapid advances in Chinese military technology, the service said on Thursday.

Lockheed Martin Corp, Boeing Co and Northrop Grumman Corp are expected to compete for the Next Generation Air Dominance program, which will replace Lockheed's F-22 Raptor with a fighter built to battle alongside drones.

Boeing, Lockheed and Northrop did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Air Force released a classified solicitation to industry on Thursday laying out the technical requirements. Details have been mostly kept secret but in 2020 the Air Force disclosed that at least one prototype of the jet had flown.

The new fighter will "survive, persist, interoperate, and adapt in the air domain, all within highly-contested operational environments," Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said in a statement. "No one does this better than the U.S. Air Force, but we will lose that edge if we don't move forward now."

The Air Force plans to spend $2.3 billion on the program in fiscal 2024, and an additional $595 million to continue engine development for the new fighter.

(Reporting by Valerie InsinnaEditing by Leslie Adler and Richard Chang)
U.S. Democrats warn Biden against toughening aid for the poor

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Senate Republicans hold weekly policy lunch at the U.S. Capitol in Washington

By Richard Cowan, Leah Douglas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Democrats in the U.S. Congress expressed frustration with President Joe Biden's willingness to engage with Republicans demanding tougher work requirements for food aid recipients as part of any deal to raise the nation's debt ceiling.

They have stopped short of threatening to block such moves, as talks on lifting the federal government's $31.4 trillion borrowing limit shifted into a bilateral format between Democrat Biden, Republican House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy and their staffs.

If Biden and McCarthy reach a deal, possibly as soon as Sunday, Congress could struggle to get enough votes for passage ahead of a June 1 deadline, when the Treasury Department has warned the government may be unable to pay all its bills.

Some hardline Republicans may push back against any increase in the debt ceiling, while some progressive Democrats voiced opposition to the work limits after spending months calling for a "clean" hike without conditions.

Liberal Democrats, including Senator Raphael Warnock and Representative Ro Khanna, put Biden on notice that they do not support more stringent requirements to existing law.

Khanna, asked whether revisions would prompt him to vote to torpedo a deal, said: "It would be a strong consideration."

Republicans have called for saving $120 billion by expanding work requirements to qualify for food aid, monetary help for poor families and other assistance. Biden on Wednesday reiterated his opposition to imposing new requirements the Medicaid program for low-income Americans.

He added that there could be a "few" changes in current law but none "of any consequence."

Those assurances did not soothe Democrats, as negotiations kicked into high gear over spending and the urgent need to raise the borrowing limit.

Warnock accused Republicans of "using poor people as pawns" in negotiations, saying their proposal "presupposes that poor people are in some way morally deficient. People want to work. And some people can't."

Warnock is a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee which, writes the farm bill that funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps.

A Republican bill that passed the House in late April would place more work demands for SNAP on adults without disabilities or dependents up to age 56, instead of the current cutoff of 49.

Massachusetts's Jim McGovern, a House Democrat known for his anti-hunger work, said: "I will not support anything that screws poor people -- period."

The Republican-controlled House Ways and Means Committee describes the steps as "common-sense work requirements to help lift families out of poverty and revitalize the American workforce."

"Why wouldn't he want to help people get out of poverty?" McCarthy told reporters.

A U.S. Department of Agriculture spokesperson said expanded work requirements for SNAP would be especially harmful to those "experiencing homelessness or people affected by local economic conditions like the closure of a major local employer."

The USDA estimates an additional 1 million low-income older adults would be subject to SNAP time limits and, as a result, could lose vital food benefits.

Eric Mitchell, executive director of the nonprofit Alliance to End Hunger, called such requirements "punitive and ineffective" against people who face obstacles to employment or community service.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan and Leah Douglas; Editing by Scott Malone, Aurora Ellis and Jonathan Oatis)
Students demonstrate in support of University of California students who lack legal status and work permits. outside a Board of Regents meeting Wednesday at UCLA. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

The University of California regents, saying they support an equitable education for all, unanimously agreed Thursday to find a pathway to enact a bold policy to hire students who lack legal status and work permits.

The groundbreaking move would reshape the lives of thousands of young people who were brought to the country without papers as children and have lived precariously without legal access to jobs, research positions and career opportunities. California is home to about 1 in 5 of the nations college students without legal authorization.

The public university system has been under pressure to challenge a 1986 federal law barring the hiring of immigrants without legal status by asserting that it does not apply to states. A novel theory developed by UCLA law scholars argues that the federal law does not specifically include states  or UC, as a state entity  in its language establishing employer sanctions and therefore does not apply to them.

The regents voted to form a working group to examine that legal issue, along with practical considerations about how to roll out a policy that is already igniting controversy. But they made clear they are committed to their immigrant students and said the working group would complete its proposed plan by November.

"Absolutely, it is our intention to find a way to allow employment opportunities for all our students, regardless of their immigration status," said Regent John A. Perez, one of the key leaders in the effort to push a new policy forward. But he added the university needs time to work through the complex issue.

"This is too important to get wrong," he said.

UC President Michael V. Drake and Board of Regents Chair Rich Leib also affirmed UC's commitment to equity. "The University is committed to ensuring that all students, regardless of their immigration status, can pursue and attain a world-class UC education. This should include providing enriching student employment opportunities to all students," they said in a joint statement.

Students without legal status, along with their allies who have been collectively pushing for the right to work, said they were thrilled.

"This is a historic win for the immigrant rights movement that UC has agreed that undocumented students should have equal access, that we should have a seat at the table," said Karely Amaya, a UCLA graduate student in public policy who was brought to the United States illegally from Mexico at age 2. She lost out on a campus job that would have given her financial stability and research opportunities because of her status.

The high-stakes decision evolved over the last few days, as advocates for immigrant students listened to concerns of uncertain regents and tried to bring them around. Some questioned whether hiring students without work authorization would imperil their safety and any future ability to legalize their status. Students, however, say it should be their decision to weigh those risks.

UC officials have also weighed the potential for litigation against the university, public backlash and possible legal exposure to faculty and staff who would hire the students. Leib said regents need to make sure they consider the effect on all university members, including campus leaders who will need to implement any new policy.

Critics have warned of ramifications if UC moved forward with hiring those without legal status.

"If officials at the University of California were to knowingly hire aliens not authorized to work under federal law, they would be opening themselves up to both civil and, potentially, criminal penalties," said George Fishman, a senior legal fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Bonsall) wrote to Gov. Gavin Newsom this week asserting that federal law preempts state or local immigration actions and implied that UC would lose its federal funding by adopting the "legally unsound and sweeping policy."

Regent Jose Hernandez, the son of Mexican migrant workers who became a NASA engineer and astronaut and now heads an aerospace firm, said he had been prepared to vote to authorize the hiring despite the risks, but supported the working group.

"It's these tough decisions where one has to stand up and do the right thing," he said. "We need to give every student the same educational opportunity. And right now we have a two-class system where our undocumented students aren't allowed to partake in gaining that experience that's going to be useful for their careers."

Students from all nine UC undergraduate campuses participated in a rally Wednesday at UCLA to support students lacking legal status. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

The plight of students without legal status has intensified since 2017, when the Trump administration ended an Obama-era program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals  or DACA  which granted work permits and protection from deportation to certain youths who were brought to the United States as children.

A court ruling subsequently limited the government to granting DACA renewals  not accepting new applications  which has shut out a new generation of recipients. In 2023, an estimated 100,000 immigrant youths graduated from high school without legal status or DACA benefits  including about 27,000 in California.

About 44,000 students without DACA attend California colleges, which means many are prohibited from entering the labor market. About 4,000 of them attend UC.

At a rally Wednesday at UCLA, where the regents met this week, students without legal papers came from all nine UC undergraduate campuses to share their stories.

Yamir Aleman, a UC Irvine fourth-year student studying psychological science, said he was brought to the United States from Mexico at age 10 in 2010  missing the window of eligibility for DACA status by three years.

Aleman managed to land a paid fellowship at the UC Irvine Dream Center, which supports those affected by immigration policy, but he worries and wonders about his future.

Students and supporters demonstrate at UCLA, where the Board of Regents is meeting this week. About 4,000 students in the UC system lack legal status. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

"There's been a lot of insecurity and instability," he said. "Undocumented students give their best, but a lot of times we feel overlooked and overshadowed."

The ban on hiring noncitizens without work authorization stems from the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act. The landmark law, signed by President Reagan, granted residency to about 3 million people in the country illegally and outlawed the hiring of workers without papers.

But scholars at the Center for Immigration Law Policy at the UCLA School of Law last year crafted a new legal analysis arguing that the federal law did not apply to states because it doesn't mention them. A memo signed by 29 immigration and constitutional scholars argued that before the 1986 law, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that if Congress wanted to change the balance between federal and state power by regulating an area under traditional state control, it must do so with unmistakably clear language.

Fishman, however, argued that Congress established the employer sanctions to weaken the job magnet luring migrants to the United States without papers and did not feel a need to "state the obvious" that states acting as employers would be subject to the law.

For Student Regent Marlenee Blas Pedral, the issue has been deeply personal. Blas Pedral, who graduated from UC Berkeley law school this week, said she empathizes with students because she was born in Mexico, was brought to the United States without papers and was able to legalize her status  allowing her to take full advantage of the opportunities here.

"This issue is near and dear to my heart," she said. "At the end of the day, I have benefited so much from my UC education, both as an undergraduate and now as a law student, and I want students to be afforded that same opportunity."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
(Bloomberg) -- Ugandan LGBTQ rights activist Clare Byarugaba was looking forward to showing her country off to her French partners parents. They were interested in visiting her hometown, and she planned to take them hiking into Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, in the countrys lush southwest, to track one of the more than 400 mountain gorillas. But the parents scrapped their plans because they disapproved of Ugandas new, more extreme anti-LGBTQ legislation.

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The Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2023, which Ugandas Parliament passed twice between March and May with few changes, imposes a harsh penalties on members of the LGBTQ community, including life imprisonment for sexual acts; the death penalty applies for aggravated homosexuality, defined in part as engaging in sex if one is HIV-positive.

The bill currently sits on the Republic of Uganda President Yoweri Musevenis desk to sign or to veto. And its impact on tourism is being felt.

The Uganda hotel sector is already getting cancellations because of it, said Jean Byamugisha, executive director at the Uganda Hotel Owners Association, in a March news report.

As in much of Africa, homosexuality is widely disapproved of in Uganda, where homosexual acts are already illegal, but under the new legislation the sanctions are toughergay marriage or promotion of homosexuality provisions will impose 10 and 20 years of imprisonment, respectively.

Under the new law, Uganda would join Brunei, Iran, Mauritania, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Yemen as the only countries in the world imposing the death penalty for consensual LGBTQ sexual acts.

We have had a handful of clients that asked us about these changes in policies and have chosen not to travel to these areas because of the advancing laws not lining up with their personal beliefs, said Teresa Sullivan, co-founder and travel adviser at boutique travel company Mango Safaris, in a statement to Bloomberg.

Whether or not the topic comes up, the agency absolutely addresses these topics in conversations with LGBTQA+ clients because these types of laws could impact them directly, she added.

Similar to Indonesias recent ban on extramarital sex, and by extension all same-sex relationships, the sweeping provisions of this bill would apply to everyone in the country and could lead to wider repercussions for all visitors.

Far-Reaching Consequences

Anti-LGBTQ stances continue to have popular support in many African countries, whether or not a law is on the books. In Uganda, given the heightened level of state-sanctioned homophobia, tourists could be at risk of vigilante justiceeven if theyre not gay, and even if the amended bill does not criminalize anyone for appearing gay or identifying as such. An earlier version suggested imprisonment.

Read more: Why Ugandas LGBTQ Community is Under Renewed Fire

Traveling with a gay friend or a gay family member, traveling with a same-sex friend or being an outspoken ally, for example, may not be well received by locals.

A gay couple would have to pretend to be siblings or friends and stay in separate rooms from the moment they reached immigration. Same-sex siblings could also be prevented from sharing a room, which has happened in the past, Byarugaba says, or they could be targeted by the hotel staff because businesses can be held liable for offering premises for purposes of homosexuality under the bill.

Its going to have far-reaching consequences, says Byarugaba, who is the coordinator for the equality and nondiscrimination program at Chapter Four Uganda, a civil liberties nonprofit. Given the safety risks it places on every person, straight or gay, shes discouraging tourism at this time, despite realizing there are Ugandans who depend on the sector, unlike the members of Parliament pushing the bill.

President Musevenis rhetoric of White people bringing gayness to to Uganda, aside from its erroneousness, is causing division, she says: Its creating an atmosphere of them against us, which is unacceptableand that is not a good look for tourism.

Yvonne Muthoni, Kenya country director at Open for Business, agrees: International conferences might not want to host their [events] in an environment that is not safe for everyone to attend regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Open for Businesss coalition of major global companies such as American Express Co., AT&T Inc., Google (part of Alphabet Inc.) and Virgin Group Ltd. conducts research into the business development and economic effects of antigay policies.

The Economic Impact

In Kenya, discriminatory LGBTQ+ practices cost the economy up to $1.3 billion every year, according to a 2019 Open for Business report, with $102 million of that being tourism revenue. As of 2021, anti-LGBTQ laws and discrimination in the English-speaking Caribbean islands, cause an annual loss of $4.2 billion to their economies, with up to $689 million a year in lost tourism.

The potential costs are likely to be high for Uganda as well, Muthoni saysits a safety and security issue.

Tourism was a sector that was steadily growing pre-pandemic, reaching 1.5 million international visitors in 2019 who spent $1.24 billion, according to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. Its recovered quickly, with 815,000 visitors returning in 2022, spending $730 million.

The travel industry was also helping to reduce the countrys trade balance deficit, according to a recent presentation emphasizing the sectors importance, and provides 14% of all jobs or about 1.5 million Ugandans.

In recent years, a number of African countries have advanced LGBTQ rights by decriminalizing same-sex relationships, including Angola, Botswana, Mozambique and the Seychelles; South Africa is the only African country where gay marriage is legal. Meanwhile, Ghana and Kenya, two African tourism heavyweights, have anti-LGBTQ legislation making its way through their parliaments.

Visiting Uganda Now

The anti-LGBTQ bill in Uganda comes amid socioeconomic issues in the country, Byarugaba says, including labor strikes and a spate of gun violence, and she believes its being used to divert the nations attention.

We plan to go to court immediately if and when the president assents to the law, she adds, noting that a similar anti-LGBTQ law introduced in 2013 brought major backlash and was struck down a year later when the Uganda Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional.

In the meantime, the US State Department travel advisory for Uganda doesnt warn about antigay sentiment in the country, but its likely to do so if the bill becomes law. In providing advice to tourists, Mango Safaris Sullivan said the company will strongly suggest other destinations and experiences for our LGBTQA+ clients. She added, however, that Uganda is more than just one law and that the travel company doesnt want to penalize a country for the actions of a select group of politicians.

As for Byarugaba, as much as shed like her partners parents to know her country, she prefers that tourists wait until Uganda drops this law before visiting. I would encourage tourists to understand the impact of this law, to stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ community in Uganda and the rest of Africa, she says, and not be complacent to the legalized homophobia that is encompassed in this bill.

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(Bloomberg) -- Rishi Sunak announced 18 billion ($22.5 billion) of new investment by Japanese businesses in the UK, mostly in clean energy, as well as a bilateral semiconductor partnership aimed at boosting supply chain resilience amid fears over Chinese interference in Taiwan.

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A Hiroshima Accord seeks to deepen economic, security and tech cooperation between the two countries, the British premier said as he landed in Japan on Thursday ahead of the Group of Seven summit.

Stress testing and strengthening supply chains are a key aim of the leaders in the wake of Russias war in Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic, with their reliance on chips from Taiwan high on the agenda. The UK will unveil its long-awaited Semiconductor Strategy Friday.

Sunak said he and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are closely aligned on the importance of protecting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and defending our values, including free and fair trade.

Trading house Marubeni Corporation and its partners intend to invest some 10 billion in the UK over the next decade, largely in offshore wind, Sunaks office said in an emailed statement.

Sumitomo Corporation will invest about 4 billion in offshore wind projects off the coasts of Suffolk and Norfolk, while Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan will invest 3.5 billion to build affordable housing and office space, it said.

Meanwhile, UK energy firm Octopus Energy said it would invest 1.5 billion in the Asia-Pacific energy market by 2027.

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UK not planning to supply Typhoon fighter jets to Ukraine: it would not be the right choice

The United Kingdom is not intending to supply Ukraine with Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft.

Source: UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace during a press conference broadcast by Sky News

Quote: "...Britain is not going to donate any fighter jets to Ukraine at this time. Weve been consistently saying that were not going to deliver Typhoon [fighter jets], Tranche 1 is not a plane that would be suitable," he said.

Wallace compared the supply of fighter jets to Formula One, noting that the supply of such aircraft would require sending hundreds of specialists to Ukraine, including pilots and engineers.

The UK is also prepared to provide support with pilot training, as well as to assist countries wishing to supply Ukraine with fighter jets.

Previously: Following a meeting on 17 May on the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, the prime ministers of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands agreed to facilitate the creation of an international "fighter jet coalition" to strengthen Ukraine's air defence.

In his nightly video address on 16 May, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that the UK and the Netherlands, as well as France, had joined the so-called "fighter jet coalition".

On 17 May, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said that there was no progress in international negotiations on the possible supply of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.

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(Bloomberg) -- The UK government has invited bosses from some of the worlds biggest artificial intelligence firms to a meeting, people familiar with the matter said, as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak crafts a policy to manage the risks and benefits of the technology.

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The summit will be convened as soon as this month, with invitations likely for OpenAI chief Sam Altman and the leaders of Alphabet Inc.s DeepMind and Anthropic, the people said. Sunak could be among officials in attendance, they said, requesting anonymity because the plans havent been finalized.

Anthropic, which recently opened an office in London, declined to comment Thursday. Representatives for OpenAI and DeepMind didnt immediately respond to requests for comment. Altman is expected to be in London in the coming days and participate in an event Wednesday at an OpenAI event at University College London.

The UK is trying to embrace the fast-developing technology while ensuring its not used for nefarious purposes. During an appearance before the US Senate this week, Altman touted AIs potential to make our lives easier while warning about the risks it poses to labor markets and elections.

Representatives from the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology didnt immediately respond to requests for comment. Asked in an interview Thursday whether he planned to meet Altman, Technology Minister Paul Scully said such conversations would happen at the secretary of state level.

Were looking at how we can use our position as a sort of global leader in AI development to convene the international community to make sure we can have some sort of some standards and some ground rules, Scully said. Youve got to hear from practitioners, from industry leaders, from academia. I think we need ethicists and other people involved in that conversation as well, because these are tricky times.

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Rishi Sunak addressed business leaders at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Thursday announced Japanese investment of more than $22 billion into the UK, but accepted carmakers' concern about Brexit trade rules as he confirmed talks with the European Union.

Visiting Tokyo ahead of a G7 summit in Hiroshima, Sunak said the investment by Japanese companies of 17.7 billion ($22.1 billion) was a "massive vote of confidence" in the UK economy.

It includes planned funding of about 10 billion for offshore wind and hydrogen energy projects from Japanese trading house Marubeni, Downing Street said.

Sunak said the deals showed the fruits of post-Brexit Britain becoming the first non-regional economy to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

But the UK's divorce from the EU remains a serious headache for companies.

European carmaker Stellantis has warned it could close some UK factories should Sunak's government fail to tweak Brexit trade rules, to ease the supply of batteries for electric vehicles.

Ford, Jaguar Land Rover and German car industry lobby group VDA have all reportedly joined in calls for tariff-free access to be maintained despite a looming deadline under the EU-UK Brexit deal.

"It's something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern," Sunak told British media in Japan.

"And as a result of that we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally," he said.

jit/phz/ach
Ukraine already procuring drones capable of flying 1,000 kilometers

But we are definitely purchasing them, and they will fulfill their tasks according to the General Staffs plan, Shchyhol said.

He further disclosed that over the past month, Ukraine has procured and delivered over a thousand drones to the Armed Forces, with a similar number being provided by volunteers.

Throughout May and June, we will fully meet the needs of the Armed Forces, despite the fact that they are falling almost by the dozens every day, he declared.

Read also: Netherlands, France, UK support fighter coalition says Zelenskyy

Shchyhol also revealed that prior to Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there were 30 companies manufacturing drones, but now the number has increased to over 90.

Each company has two, three, five, or even seven types of drones in their product range, which are being purchased today, he explained.

So, we have several hundred types of drones, and each unit, each military formation, trains on the ones that are convenient for them. Conducting reconnaissance, for example, near Bakhmut, near Avdiivka, and in the southern part of the country, involves completely different tasks. The technical characteristics of these drones for long distances will also vary. There are global brands that are part of NATOs arsenal, which are quite expensive kit, but they work in conjunction with artillery and help immediately guide artillery fire on targets. That is why we need this menagerie so that the enemy cannot quickly figure out how to deal with it.

Shchyhol stated that approximately 50 companies are currently contracted to manufacture over 1,000 drones by the end of the year.

Read also: Germany not joining Fighter Coalition for Ukraine, says Scholz

Currently, 50 companies are in the contracting stage, and all of them indicate figures exceeding a thousand. So, you can do the math, said Shchyhol.

Our goal is to have 200,000 drones by the end of the year. I am confident that this project, which is financed by the state with almost 40 billion, will be completed by the end of the year.

The official also announced that over the past six months, 25 schools in Ukraine have trained 10,000 military personnel for the Armed Forces and Defense Forces who are now proficient in operating any type of drone.

Our goal is to train another 10,000 pilots within three months, he added.

On May 15, reports emerged that the United Kingdom will transfer hundreds of combat drones with a range of over 200 kilometers to Ukraine.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
The Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar flags were lowered at the Foreign Ministry on May 18 to commemorate the forced deportations carried out by the Soviets in 1944, Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzheppar reported.

From May 18-20, 1944, the Soviet secret policy forcibly deported thousands of indigenous Crimean Tatars  including women, children, and the elderly  across thousands of kilometers from Crimea to Uzbekistan.

An estimated 8,000 Crimean Tatars died in the process. Estimates on total deaths from harsh exile conditions range from 34,000 to over 100,000.

The deportation has officially been recognized by Ukraine and several other countries as a genocide against the Crimean Tatars.

The Crimean Tatar flag lowered at the Foreign Ministry to commemorate the Soviet's forced deportations in 1944. (Photo: Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzheppar / Twitter)

Afterward, the Soviet authorities attempted to erase any remaining traces of the Crimean Tatars on the peninsula.

"History repeated itself in 2014. Modern Russia applies the worst repressive practices in Crimea. But it failed before and it will fail again. Liberation of the Crimean Peninsula will put an end (to Russia's) perverted imperialistic ambitions and respect for human rights be restored worldwide," Ukrainian-Crimean Tatar deputy minister, Dzheppar, wrote.

Crimea has been under Russian occupation since 2014, and the Crimean Tatars who remained on the peninsula have faced regular persecution by occupation authorities.

Russia has also continued its tradition of using forced deportations as a tactic of terror against Ukraine. The Reintegration Ministry confirmed in late March that over 19,000 Ukrainian children had been forcibly deported to Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion.

In late April, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing the deportation of Ukrainians in occupied territories who refuse to take Russian citizenship.
China ready to make pie of cooperation bigger with Tajikistan: premier

Xinhua) 08:29, May 18, 2023

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon in Beijing, capital of China, May 17, 2023. Rahmon is paying a state visit to China and will attend the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon in Beijing on Wednesday.

Noting that China-Tajikistan relations have realized leapfrog development in recent years under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping and President Emomali Rahmon, Li said China is willing to further synergize development strategies with Tajikistan, deepen win-win cooperation and share new opportunities brought about by Chinese modernization, to continuously make the pie of bilateral cooperation bigger and more substantial and deliver more tangible benefits to the two peoples.

He urged the two sides to further strengthen pragmatic cooperation by focusing on high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, continuously optimizing the trade structure and working for trade facilitation.

Li also said the two countries should deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in agriculture, industrial parks and infrastructure, among others, continue to promote connectivity and strengthen exchanges in the fields of culture, education, medical care and sister cities.

Noting that the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit will inject new impetus into the overall cooperation between China and Central Asia and bring new opportunities for deepening China-Tajikistan cooperation, Li expressed the hope that Tajikistan will continue to play an active role in promoting new development of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Rahmon said Tajikistan is willing to learn from China's experience, absorb China's technologies, deepen exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in such fields as production capacity, energy, agriculture, water conservancy, connectivity and culture, and jointly promote the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative to bring bilateral ties to a new high.

Rahmon is paying a state visit to China and will attend the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
U.S. officials are planning for the growing possibility that the Russia-Ukraine war will turn into a frozen conflict that lasts many years  perhaps decades  and joins the ranks of similar lengthy face-offs in the Korean peninsula, South Asia and beyond.

The options discussed within the Biden administration for a long-term freeze include where to set potential lines that Ukraine and Russia would agree not to cross, but which would not have to be official borders. The discussions  while provisional  have taken place across various U.S. agencies and in the White House.

Its a scenario that may prove the most realistic long-term outcome given that neither Kyiv nor Moscow appear inclined to ever admit defeat. Its also becoming increasingly likely amid the growing sense within the administration that an upcoming Ukrainian counteroffensive wont deal a mortal blow to Russia.

A frozen conflict  in which fighting pauses but neither side is declared the victor nor do they agree that the war is officially over  also could be a politically palatable long-term result for the United States and other countries backing Ukraine.

It would mean the number of military clashes would fall, the costs of supporting Kyiv also likely would drop, and public attention to the war would wane.

We are planning for the long term, whether it looks frozen or thawed, said a U.S. official familiar with the Biden administrations discussions on Ukraine. The official said such planning is a growing focus of the administration, whereas in past months it was all about the urgent and short-term.



Two other U.S. officials and a former Biden administration official confirmed that an extended freeze in fighting is one possibility for which the U.S. is preparing. U.S. officials also are thinking through the long-term security ties Washington will have with Kyiv, as well as Ukraines relationship with the NATO military alliance.

Theres a school of thought that says, Oh, the Ukrainians have to have [the city of] Mariupol and Azov Sea access. Theres others less hung up about the placement of the lines as long as Ukraine is secure going into the future, the former administration official said, describing the internal conversations.

Such discussions remain in early stages, with the U.S. officials stressing that the war will remain hot for quite some time and that the Biden administration is intent on providing Ukraine with the weapons and support it needs to push the Russians out of as much territory as possible.

Still, even the suggestion of such planning could undermine Ukrainian leaders confidence in Americas continued commitment to their cause, especially given agitation among some Republicans to lessen support for Kyiv.

A fifth person, a senior Biden administration official speaking on behalf of the White House, said an array of contingency plans are being weighed, but the situation is fluid and the only safe prediction is that Russia will not conquer Ukraine. Like others interviewed, the official was granted anonymity to describe sensitive issues.

While many U.S. officials avoid publicly talking about how the Russia-Ukraine conflict will evolve, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley has repeatedly predicted that it will end in negotiations, not a military victory for either side.

And the makeup of recent military aid packages to Ukraine reflects the Biden administrations shift to a longer-term strategy, a Defense Department official said.

The amount of equipment sent directly from existing U.S. stockpiles has steadily diminished over the past few months, while the packages of aid used to purchase new weapons from industry  a process that can take months to years  has increased.

The Biden administration recently transferred $300 million worth of weapons from existing U.S. stockpiles, primarily ammunition, while providing $1.2 billion to purchase more complex weapons, such as air defenses, from industry.

At the moment, Ukraine is preparing a counteroffensive against Russia, although the timing remains unclear. In recent days, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has suggested the counteroffensive would be delayed because Ukraine still needed more weapons from its Western partners, while also saying the first important steps will be taken soon.



U.S. officials expect fighting to continue even after the counteroffensive.

In the medium-term, many expect a stalemate, during which fighting continues but neither side gains much ground, or a war of attrition, which involves both sides trying to wreak massive losses of personnel and equipment on the other in the hopes the adversary will collapse.

How Ukraine and Russia perform depends on sometimes uncontrollable factors ranging from air superiority to whos in charge at the Kremlin.

Once you get past few months or a year, these wars tend to last years, said Benjamin Jensen of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, who has analyzed the historical data. Even with the most wildly successful Ukraine counteroffensive, you could still be seeing yourself fighting this time next year.

None of the administration officials who spoke to POLITICO would offer specifics about how the U.S. would handle a years-long war or describe the exact depth of planning for a frozen conflict  information thats largely classified. One U.S. official stressed that the administration has always planned for both long-term and short-term possibilities.

The longer the fight drags on, the more likely Russia and Ukraine will feel international and domestic pressure to negotiate a ceasefire, an armistice or another legal mechanism to halt, if not officially end, the war.

Some U.S. officials and analysts say one rough model could be the Korean War. Active fighting in that conflict ended with an armistice in 1953, but, even 70 years later, the war has not been formally declared over.

A Korea-style stoppage is certainly something thats been discussed by experts and analysts in and out of government when it comes to Ukraine, the former Biden administration official said. Its plausible, because neither side would need to recognize any new borders and the only thing that would have to be agreed is to stop shooting along a set line. (The negotiations for the Korea armistice lasted two years.)

Other potentially relevant examples include the 2008 dispute between Georgia and Russia over two provinces; the more than 70-year-old India-Pakistan face-off over the Kashmir region, a period that includes three wars separated by long cold stretches; and arguably even segments of the Russia-Ukraine conflict between 2014 and 2022, waged over parts of Ukraines east and its Crimea region.

Such halted wars occasionally resume: A 1994 ceasefire between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region held  though not perfectly  until heavy fighting broke the peace in 2020. The two countries are now trying to negotiate.

Western involvement in each case also varies. The United States fought in the Korean War and still has thousands of troops in South Korea  a key difference with Ukraine, where American forces are not fighting. But Washington has had little role in other conflicts, such as Kashmir.

A former U.S. intelligence official who handled Russia-related matters said Biden aides appear to be more willing these days to discuss long-term security guarantees for Ukraine  another sign they are thinking well past the coming Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Ukraine wants to join NATO, and the military alliances secretary-general has said its members agree that eventually it will.

The senior Biden administration official confirmed that U.S. officials are talking to the Ukrainians about the nature of the relationship in the future. We want a Ukraine that can defend itself and deter future attacks, the official said, stressing that Washington will not pressure Ukraine to enter negotiations against its will.

If Ukraines NATO membership bid stalls, such guarantees could range from a NATO-style Article 5 mutual defense deal to Israel-style arms deals with Ukraine as a deterrent against Russia.



At a minimum, some current and former U.S. officials say, Ukraines military must get special attention. That could include making sure Ukraines weapons and equipment are compatible with those of NATO countries and conducting joint training, even if Kyiv isnt in the military alliance.

Analysts and officials warned against assuming that a frozen conflict translates to geopolitical stability or less suffering among civilians caught in the disputed territories. The Korean peninsula and India-Pakistan are both now nuclear flashpoints as a result of decisions made by governments involved in the decades since the fights first began.

Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Ukraines defense minister, said one reason Kyiv is constantly urging its Western partners to send more weapons and other aid is precisely because it wants to end the war quickly, not find itself in an endless face-off.

Even if active fighting ceases, he said, we will continue to live in a world in which on a daily basis, we have nuclear blackmail. On a daily basis, we have the risk of a global food crisis. On a daily basis, we are witnesses to atrocities and war crimes.

The Russian embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment.

U.S. officials stress that they are trying to avoid black-and-white thinking as they map out the ways the Russia-Ukraine war can go. Its possible, after all, that the conflict will wind up somewhere in between an active war and a chilled standoff.

Jensen said that supporting Kyiv more long-term will mean thinking beyond immediate weapons needs and implementing plans to man, train and equip entire formations, as well as developing a relevant military doctrine.

Other questions to consider in such circumstances include whether it is worth bringing in a multinational peacekeeping force.

If active armed conflict ceases, the costs to the United States and other Ukrainian partners likely will fall over time. Its cheaper to arm a country that isnt expending the weapons every day, the former Biden administration official said.

The former official speculated that the odds that a ceasefire would hold is higher than from 2014 to 2022  when Russia seized Crimea and sowed chaos in parts of Ukraines east because professional militaries are fully involved on both sides, as opposed to separatists backed by Russia.



But the current war also has drawn in mercenary forces such as Russias Wagner Group, which could prove hard to tame.

If a ceasefire or other type of stoppage holds long enough, attention from the public to the war also is likely to fade. That could ease political pressure on Western capitals from critics of the effort to help Kyiv. But it could also mean less of a push from those capitals to resolve the conflict once and for all.

U.S. and European officials argued that it would be unwise to believe the threat from Russia to Ukraine will fade anytime soon  even if the fighting is halted for a long period or Putin exits the scene.

Conflict and potential for a renewed attack will not disappear, perhaps in decades, said a European official familiar with Ukraine-related discussions.

Lara Seligman contributed to this report.
(Bloomberg) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he expects talks with the African nations seeking to mediate in the conflict to take place in June or July just as Group of Seven leaders are gathering in Hiroshima to discuss the invasion.

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Russia is seeking to force people in occupied areas of Ukraine to enlist in its military reserves, Ukraines deputy defense minister, Hanna Malyar, said. Fighting continues in and around the eastern city of Bakhmut, where the Russians have made some progress in the city center while Ukrainian troops have advanced by as much as 1.7 kilometers (1 mile) since Wednesday on the outskirts.

Ukraines Third Assault Group, made up of former Azov battalion soldiers, said on Telegram it has captured the western outskirts of Bakhmut, creating a bridgehead for a further advances. It said Russian reserves and several ammunition warehouses were destroyed.

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Markets

Corn traded near the lowest level since November 2021 after a two-month extension of a deal allowing Ukraine to ship crops through the Black Sea. Wheat hovered near the weakest in more than two years, while soybeans fell to the lowest since July last year.

Coming Up

Friday: Start of Group of Seven meeting in Hiroshima, Japan

Chinas Li Hui expected in Warsaw, also Friday

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RAF STORM SHADOW

The U.K. Ministry of Defense has confirmed that Ukraine has launched Storm Shadow cruise missiles to hit Russian targets in the country. The U.K. Defense Minister Ben Wallace announced today that an undisclosed number of the long-range weapons had already been used but didnt provide any more details of when and where they were employed, or even how they were delivered.

All I can say is it is my understanding that it has been used since we announced its deployment to Ukraine, but Im not going to go into further details, Wallace said, during a joint press conference today with Norways defense minister Bjoern Arild Gram.

https://twitter.com/afshinrattansi/status/1659222361021841408?s=20

Only last week did the United Kingdom confirm that it was supplying Ukraine with Storm Shadow, a combat-proven weapon with an officially stated range of over 155 miles in its export configuration. This makes it, as far as we know, the longest-range standoff weapon to be delivered to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

An infographic on the Storm Shadow missile prepared by the U.K. Ministry of Defense. (Note that the missile was never cleared for use by the F-35 stealth fighter). Crown Copyright

At that point, Wallace said that the missiles are now going into, or are in, the country itself, suggesting that at least some of the missiles were already in Ukraine at the time of that announcement, something that has now been confirmed.

In the meantime, the Russian Ministry of Defense has claimed that Ukraine used Storm Shadows to attack targets near the city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine. Photos purporting to show debris from at least one of the missiles have been circulating online.

https://twitter.com/GuyPlopsky/status/1658319084508028928?s=20

https://twitter.com/clashreport/status/1658041608703561728?s=20

https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1657543222300667904?s=20

While we dont know what platform is being used to launch the Ukrainian Storm Shadows, in the past we have pointed out that the Su-24 Fencer strike aircraft and/or the Su-27 Flanker fighter jet would be the most likely candidates due to the size and weight of the weapon.

Earlier this week, French President Emmanuel Macron said that his country will provide Kyiv with SCALP-EG, which is nearly the same weapon as Storm Shadow.

The British Storm Shadows have apparently been supplied with Kyivs assurance that they wont be used against targets in the Russian Federation.

Before we head into the latest from Ukraine, The War Zone readers can catch up on our previous rolling coverage here.

The Latest

In his latest verbal salvo aimed at the Russian Ministry of Defense, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the boss of the Wagner Group private military company, has said that a withdrawal of Russian Army troops from the besieged city of Bakhmut has left his own soldiers dangerously exposed.

Unfortunately, units of the Russian defense ministry have withdrawn up to 570 meters [0.3 miles] to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks, Prigozhin said in a voice message. I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defense  publicly  because my letters are not being read, he added.

https://twitter.com/officejjsmart/status/1659181612200873984?s=20

Prigozhin then addressed the Russian defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, and the chief of the general staff, Valery Gerasimov, requesting that they Please do not give up the flanks.

https://twitter.com/BalkanInd/status/1659138117750620160?s=20

While the withdrawal of Russian regular troops from the eastern city of Bakhmut cannot be independently confirmed, this is the latest in a long line of invective from Prigozhin, whose troops have been spearheading the 10-month long campaign to take the city, an offensive that has cost tens of thousands of lives on both sides and left the city in ruins.

https://twitter.com/radioukraine1/status/1659229720767070213?s=20

Russian regular units have provided increased support to the offensive in recent months, although Prigozhin has continued slamming the Russian Ministry of Defense for its perceived failings.

In particular, Prigozhin has hit out at Kremlin officials for the lack of ammunition being provided to his mercenary fighters. This has even led to his previous threat to withdraw his troops from the city. He later stepped back from that, stating that his soldiers would be considered traitors if they abandoned their positions.

In an audio statement last week, however, Prigozhin said: Were not receiving enough shells, were only getting 10 percent.

A Ukrainian YPR-765 armored infantry fighting vehicle heading to the front line south of Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, on May 17, 2023. Photo by Vincenzo Circosta/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

The situation on the ground in Bakhmut remains finely balanced, according to reports.

In recent days, Wagner has claimed that it now controls most of the now-ruined city, while Ukraine has said that its forces have retaken territory around Bakhmut.

Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesperson for Ukrainian troops in the east, has spoken of Ukrainian troops advancing in parts of Bakhmut by more than a mile, Reuters reports.

https://twitter.com/DenesTorteli/status/1659194332174503937?s=20

In comments broadcast by Ukrainian television, Cherevatyi said: Despite the fact that our units do not have an advantage in equipment  and personnel, they have continued to advance on the flanks, and covered a distance of 150 to 1,700 meters [500 feet to 1 mile].

https://twitter.com/TheStudyofWar/status/1658995465763934210?s=20

Another claim of recent Ukrainian advances came from Petro Podaru, the commander of a Ukrainian artillery unit, who said that his troops had made progress in the face of Russian shelling.

Now, for the most part, as we have started to advance, Podaru said. They are shelling all the routes to front positions, so our armored vehicles cant deliver more infantry, ammunition, and other things.

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced today that it has undertaken its latest round of missile attacks against what it described as Ukrainian military targets. The claim followed reports from Ukrainian authorities of another barrage of missiles directed at the capital, Kyiv, overnight.

https://twitter.com/TWMCLtd/status/1659076345031274496?s=20

In Kyiv, authorities reported several explosions early this morning and that falling debris had caused a fire at a business located in the citys Darnytskyi district.

The attack on the capital continues, Kyivs mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said on Telegram. Do not leave the shelters during the air alert!

According to Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kyiv Military Administration, preliminary information indicated that all the enemy missiles were destroyed by Ukrainian air defenses. Popko added that the attack was launched by Russian long-range bombers, which released cruise missiles over the Caspian region.

https://twitter.com/kaitlancollins/status/1659145740520751104?s=20

The latest missile assault is part of a wave of strikes that have targeted the capital, this being the ninth raid of its kind this month. This represents a major uptick over previous months, suggesting a concerted effort to degrade Ukraines resolve ahead of a long-awaited Ukrainian counteroffensive and perhaps also reflecting the growing urgency behind the Russian hunt for Ukrainian-operated Patriot air defense systems.

The Kyiv City Regional City Administration, or KMBA, described the ongoing attacks as unprecedented in their power, intensity, and variety.

The KMBA said that the missiles used were of the Kh-101 and Kh-555 types, delivered by Tu-95MS and Tu-160 bombers.

After launching the missiles, the enemy deployed its reconnaissance UAVs over the capital, the KMBA added.

Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the national security and defense council of Ukraine, described Kyiv as Putins maniacal and unattainable goal following the latest attacks.

Symbolic places of Kyiv are the target of Russian missile attacks, Danilov wrote on Twitter. The Kremlin needs those senseless and super-expensive attacks for Russia on the capital to raise the degree of patriotic hysteria inside the country. In Russia, a process of despair and disappointment with the authorities is developing against the background of the unsuccessful offensive and failures at the front.

https://twitter.com/OleksiyDanilov/status/1659118914717077505?s=20

Despite Ukrainian claims that all missiles directed against Kyiv were destroyed, Ukrainian targets were apparently hit outside of the capital.

Serhiy Bratchuk, a military administration spokesman, took to Telegram to announce that one person had been killed by a Russian missile strike on Odesa, and another two people injured. Most of the enemys missiles were shot down over the sea by the air defense forces, Bratchuk said. Unfortunately, an industrial object was hit: one person died, two were injured.

https://twitter.com/sonjaeftimovska/status/1659117354767245312?s=20

The central Vinnytsia region was also subject to overnight cruise missile attacks, according to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, while local media also reported explosions in Khmelnytskyi, about 60 miles further west. An air raid alert was also issued today for Mykolaiv, a city near the Black Sea in southern Ukraine.

https://twitter.com/ka_hmel/status/1659175529445052419?s=20

In Russian-occupied Crimea, the derailment of a freight train carrying grain was blamed by the local rail provider on interference by outsiders. The Russian-installed governor of the region, Sergei Aksyonov, confirmed that rail traffic was suspended between Simferopol, the capital of the Crimean peninsula, and the city of Sevastopol, after the incident. Aksyonov said that no one was injured.

https://twitter.com/deminiopas/status/1659211041006567431?s=20

Earlier, the pro-Russian Baza Telegram channel had reported an explosion on a railway line.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Crimea has been hit by a steady flow of apparent attacks, directed against Russian military installations, key infrastructure, and local officials. Moscow has repeatedly blamed these on saboteurs, while, far less frequently, Ukraine has also claimed that certain attacks are the work of its elite military units.

As well as cruise missile strikes, Russia has reportedly again used its S-300 series surface-to-air missiles to attack ground targets.

Suspilne, Ukraines state broadcaster, posted to its Telegram channel for Donbas the following:

On the night of May 18, the Russian army shelled Kostyantynivka in Donetsk region, one person was killed, the ministry of foreign affairs reported. According to preliminary findings, the shelling was conducted from the S-300 complex, several private and apartment buildings, a shop, and administrative buildings were destroyed and damaged.

The results of the attack on Kostyantynivka are purportedly shown in the following video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJXJzft-CDY

Following yesterdays announcement that Belgium was ready to help teach Ukrainian Air Force fighter pilots to fly F-16s, the issue of providing training specifically tailored for these aircraft has again been addressed by the U.K. Ministry of Defense.

Speaking at a press conference in Berlin, Ben Wallace, the British defense minister, said: What we can obviously contribute is training and support, again, within limits, because we dont have F-16 pilots.

https://twitter.com/Janebon34813396/status/1659118856865042432?s=20

Wallace also pointed out that the United Kingdom was willing to assist other countries that are able to supply the F-16 fighters that Kyiv wants, although how this help would manifest itself was not made clear.

Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelensky recently spoke about plans for a coalition to train pilots on modern Western aircraft, noting that the United Kingdom and Poland had both agreed to the proposal, with France likely to follow suit.

Meanwhile, Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch foreign minister said yesterday there had been no further progress in international talks around the possible collaborative delivery of F-16s to Ukraine. We havent reached a solution yet, Hoekstra said.

https://twitter.com/SoizaDavid/status/1658972399990345731?s=20

Meanwhile, Norways defense minister Bjoern Arild Gram has said that Norway doesnt currently plan to donate any of its now-retired F-16s to Ukraine.

When it comes to F-16  its not on the agenda now and I really dont want to speculate on any possible future donations, he said.

In the past, the Norwegian Ministry of Defense said it would try and sell its F-16s to allies once they were no longer needed. As well as an agreement to sell 32 of the jets to Romania, up to 12 more of the jets have been earmarked for Draken International, the adversary air contractor. With only 56 of the Norwegian F-16s having undergone the Mid-Life Update (MLU) that added new capabilities, including the AIM-120 AMRAAM missile, the number of suitable jets that Oslo could actually provide Ukraine is likely limited.

Next, the latest video showing what has become something of a trademark of Ukrainian mine-clearing operations: playing whack-a-mine with a stick or branch. While it looks extremely hazardous and replicating it is certainly not to be recommended, it appears that Ukrainian personnel regularly use this approach to deal with smaller anti-personnel mines. In this video, the mines are said to be Soviet-era PFM-1s: also known as the Green Parrot or Butterfly Mine, each of which contains around 1.4 ounces of liquid explosive.

https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/status/1658981324252692481?s=20

Improvisation of a different kind, now, with a video that appears to show the worrying lack of basic medical supplies afflicting some Russian units on the front lines. In this footage, an injured Russian soldier is fitted with a splint crafted from an AK-series assault rifle and is apparently transported on a door in the absence of a real stretcher.

https://twitter.com/666_mancer/status/1659135275593859074?s=20

Thats it for now. Well update this story when there is more news to report about Ukraine.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
Key developments on May 18:

Russian attacks kill 2, injure 5 in Odesa, Kharkiv oblasts

Ukraine's military reportedly makes gains in Bakhmut

Russian troops forcibly conscript locals in occupied territories, says official

African leaders expected to visit Moscow with 'peace mission' in June, Russian Foreign Minister says

Russian May 18 attacks on Odesa and Kharkiv oblasts killed two civilians and injured five others, local authorities reported.

A residential building was directly hit in the village of Tsyrkuny in northeastern Kharkiv Oblast. A 52-year-old man was killed, and two more were injured, according to Governor Oleh Syniehubov.

All the injured have been hospitalized.

Due to its proximity to the Russian border, Kharkiv Oblast has been targeted by Russian attacks on a near daily basis since Feb. 24, 2022.

A Russian overnight missile attack on Odesa killed one and injured three people, according to Serhii Bratchuk, a spokesman for the regional military administration.

Natalia Humeniuk, a spokeswoman for Ukraine's Southern Command, said on national television that an industrial facility on the outskirts of Odesa was hit, and the two injured people were the guards working there.

Russia launched several missile attacks against Ukraine from 9:00 p.m. on May 17 until 5:30 a.m. on May 18, firing 22 long-range X-101/X-555 missiles from two Tu-160s and eight Tu-95s, six Kalibr cruises missiles from the Black Sea, and two Iskander missiles from ground-based operational-tactical missile systems.

Ukraine's air defense downed 29 out of 30 Russian missiles, two kamikaze drones, and two reconnaissance drones, according to the General Staff.

Kyiv was once again the main target of the attacks. According to Andrii Nebytov, the Kyiv Oblast police chief, no significant damage was recorded from falling debris, nor were there any casualties.

The previous mass attack came on May 16, during which Ukrainian air defense successfully shot down 25 Russian missiles targeting Ukraine overnight, including six Kinzhal ballistic missiles.

However, Russia was able to slightly damage the Patriot air defense system, CNN reported on May 16. U.S. officials do not believe the Patriot system must be removed from the battlefield for repairs, according to the followed up report on May 17.

The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said in its 6 p.m. update on May 18 that it recorded 23 airstrikes and 36 shelling over the past 24 hours against Ukraine's forces and settlements.

Russian forces also attacked Sumy, Chernihiv, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts on May 18, the military reported.

Eastern Donetsk Oblast is the primary military goal for Russian forces, as Moscow aims to occupy the entire region, more than half of which it currently controls.

The region is the site of the war's fiercest fighting.

Patriot air defense faces its toughest challenge ever in Ukraine The wait is over  after almost a year of refusals and hesitation, Western-provided MIM-104 Patriot air defense systems have finally arrived and become operational in Ukraine. On April 21 and 26, Ukraines Air Force confirmed the full employment of two Patriot batteries. As Ukraines own Soviet-er Kyiv IndependentIllia Ponomarenko

Marginal gains reported in Bakhmut

Russian forces are trying to capture Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast, where Ukraine's forces repelled several Russian assaults, according to the General Staff.

However, Ukraine's 3rd Assault Brigade said it had made marginal gains during the counteroffensive in the western outskirts of the embattled town of Bakhmut on May 18.

The brigade reported it had regained 700 meters. The General Staff hasn't commented on the offensive operation. The Kyiv Independent couldn't independently verify this claim.

Bakhmut has been the epicenter of fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces for almost a year.

The Wagner mercenaries have served as the primary shock troops in Russia's attempts to expand control over Donetsk Oblast. However, they have made small gains since last June.

Ukraine still holds some outskirts of Bakhmut.

"No matter what Russia does, its aggression will be defeated," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Russian troops forcibly conscript Ukrainians in occupation

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said the Russian forces set up field camps in occupied Luhansk Oblast to train forcibly conscript locals and force them to fight against Ukraine.

Maliar said that Russia carries out "raids and detention of local residents" in occupied territories to forcibly conscript them.

As training is finished, it would be mandatory to participate in combat missions in the Russian-occupied territories, according to the report.

Russia started the forced conscription of locals in occupied Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in mid-February 2022, a week before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.

Many were grabbed by local Kremlin-controlled militants and forcibly sent to the front lines to fight against Ukraine. Most of them were sent without any training, equipment, or combat experience.

Russia often uses Ukrainians, forcibly mobilized in the occupied territories, as "cannon fodder."

Forced conscription in occupied territories constitutes a war crime, according to the Geneva Conventions. It also violates the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Escaping Russian army: The story of one Ukrainian forced to fight against his homeland Editors Note: The name of the person interviewed by the Kyiv Independent for this story has been changed to protect his identity as he has shared sensitive information that could place him and his family in danger. If Russia orders us to invade the entire galaxy, we will, the Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet

Lavrov claims African leaders to visit Russia in June with 'peace plan'

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on May 18 that a delegation of African representatives would visit Moscow "in mid or late June."

Several African countries are set to present a "peace plan" that would envision steps to end Russia's full-scale war. The plan is currently unknown.

"We would like to understand what specific initiatives South Africa's President and his African colleagues would like to formulate in order to discuss with us," Lavrov told the press conference after meeting with Uganda's Foreign Minister Jeje Odongo in Moscow.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is willing to come to Ukraine on a "peace initiative" with the leaders of other African countries, Zelensky's spokesperson Serhii Nykyforov told Ukrainska Pravda news outlet on May 17.

News reports suggest that the leaders of South Africa, Zambia, Senegal, the Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Egypt could join the coalition.

South Africa has been caught up in several public scandals regarding the war in Ukraine.

In mid-May, the U.S. accused South Africa of supplying weapons and ammunition to Russia. However, South Africa denied the accusation.

Furthermore, South Africa, as one of the 123 countries party to the Rome Statute, would be obliged to execute arrest warrants issued to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant on Putin and Lvova-Belova on March 17. Ramaphosa said his country wouldn't arrest Putin if he visits the country, adding that the ICC has an "unfair treatment" of some countries.On April 25, Ramaphosa's office walked back on his public statements.
Ukraine's defenders kill 510 occupiers and destroy 32 Russian artillery systems in a day

Russia has already lost more than 201,000 soldiers, 3,198 artillery systems, 2,759 drones and 7,373 armoured fighting vehicles in its war against Ukraine.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook

Details: Total approximate losses of Russian troops between 24 February and 18 May 2023 are estimated to be as follows [figures in parentheses represent the latest losses - ed.]:

approximately 201,100 (+510) military personnel

3,773 (+2) tanks

7,373 (+8) armoured fighting vehicles

3,198 (+32) artillery systems

563 (+1) multiple-launch rocket systems

318 (+0) air defence systems

308 (+0) fixed-wing aircraft

294 (+0) helicopters

2,759 (+11) operational-tactical level UAVs

990 (+8) cruise missiles

18 (+0) ships and boats

6,073 (+6) vehicles and tankers

418 (+1) other vehicles and equipment

The data is being confirmed.

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Andrii Yusov, representative of Defense Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, has commented on the explosion on the railway in Simferopol district of Crimea.

Source: Andrii Yusov, representative of Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, on air of the national joint 24/7 newscast

Quote: "Weapons, ammunition, armoured vehicles and other means, which are used for the war of aggression against Ukraine, are transported on those railway lines among other things. To kill Ukrainian civilians and Ukrainian defenders.

It is quite natural that these railway lines did not hold up, got tired, and now dont function for some time."

Details: According to the representative of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, the infrastructure of Crimea will work normally and safely when the peninsula returns to Ukraine, and "there will be no rest" while Russian terrorists are there.

Yusov added that in Crimea, the occupiers are most hindered by the local population, who, after the full-scale invasion, hope that Ukraine will bring Crimea back, and Russia will lose.

Currently, the Russians are intensifying filtering measures in Crimea. According to the intelligence representative, the occupiers do not trust the local population.

The Russians are also preparing for the liberation of Crimea by Ukrainian defenders.

Yusov added that the Russian-backed "heads" and the occupying leadership of the peninsula are starting to sell their real estate and take families out of Crimea, despite propagandists' claims that everything is "going according to plan".

According to him, the Russians are using Crimea as a logistics hub and transport hub to transfer manpower and equipment to the occupied territories of the Ukrainian south. The contingent of Russians in Crimea remains unchanged.

Background:

An explosion rang out on the railway in the Simferopol district of Crimea on the morning of 18 May, resulting in five wagons containing grain being derailed, and the movement of trains suspended.

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Vsevolod Kniaziev, the head of Ukraine's Supreme Court, was detained on suspicion of accepting a bribery. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine shared photos of US banknotes found during its investigation. Leah Millis/Reuters and Press Service of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine

Vsevolod Kniaziev, Ukraine's head of the Supreme Court, was detained.

Prosecutors alleged that Kniaziev accepted a $2.7 million bribe in exchange for a favorable ruling.

Ukraine is cracking down on corruption as it hopes to meet the conditions of joining the EU and NATO.

The head of Ukraine's Supreme Court was detained on suspicion of accepting a $2.7 million bribe in exchange for a favorable ruling on a case involving a financial group owned by a wealthy Ukrainian businessman.

In its Tuesday announcement of the detainment, the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) did not identify the top judge by name but said it was the head of the court. Vsevolod Kniaziev has served as the chief justice since December 2021. A formal "notice of suspicion" would be served.

"At this time, the head of the Supreme Court has been detained and measures are being taken to check other individuals for involvement in criminal activity," Oleksandr Omelchenko, a prosecutor for SAPO, said in a joint briefing with the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), according to Reuters.

Kniaziev was removed from his position as head of the court on Tuesday, The Financial Times reported. A different body must convene to strip him of his title as a judge.

NABU said in a statement that the detainment was related to accusations of a $2.7 million bribe in exchange for a ruling in favor of the owner of the Finance and Credit financial group, Konstiantyn Zhevago.

Zhevago told the Financial Times that the allegations were "incorrect" and "politically motivated."

The anti-corruption unit also released photos of piles of US dollars it says were found by detectives during their investigation into Supreme Court judges. NABU did not specify who the money belonged to or where it was exactly found. Reuters, which also shared the images was not able to independently verify the photos shared by the agency.

In a joint statement, the judges vowed to cooperate with the investigations.

Money found in an undisclosed location in Ukraine by National Anti-Corruption Bureau detectives during their investigation into a corruption case involving Supreme Court judges. Press Service of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine/Handout via Reuters





"This is a dark day in the history of the court," the judges said in a joint statement, according to The New York Times. "We must be worthy and withstand such a blow."

The ousting of a top Supreme Court judge is part of Ukraine's latest efforts to crack down on corruption in the country as it hopes to join the European Union and NATO.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said last February that he officially applied to join the EU days after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The country's officials have also made clear the need for more military assistance. On Tuesday, Zelenskyy's presidential advisor Mykhail Podolyak said on Twitter that Ukraine can be easily "tortured" without more fighter jets and long-range missiles.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A policeman examines the remains of a Russian missile shot down over Kyiv on May 18

The missiles, along with four unmanned aerial vehicles, were intercepted and neutralized, marking the ninth attack by Russia on Ukraine and Kyiv since the beginning of May.

Read also: All Kinzhal hypersonic missiles targeted Kyiv, Air Forces reveals details of Russian overnight attack

Zaluzhnyi stated that the missile attacks, consisting of waves from different directions, occurred between 21:00 p.m. and 5:30 a.m., involving maritime, aerial, and land-based missiles.

The attack included 22 Kh-101/Kh-555 missiles launched from strategic aviation aircraft, including two Tu-160s and eight Tu-95s, six Kalibr missiles fired from ships in the Black Sea, and two Iskander-K missiles from ground-based systems.

Read also: All Kinzhal hypersonic missiles targeted Kyiv, Air Forces reveals details of Russian overnight attack

Ukrainian defenders also successfully shot down two Shahed-136/131 kamikaze drones and two tactical-level reconnaissance drones.

In response to the extensive aerial assault, a large-scale air alarm was declared throughout Ukraine during the night of May 18.

Explosions were reported in various regions, including Kyiv, with all missiles and drones neutralized over the capital, resulting in debris falling in the Desnianskyi and Darnytskyi districts.

ANDRII NEBYTOV/Telegram

ANDRII NEBYTOV/Telegram

In Odesa Oblast, the majority of Russian missiles were intercepted over the sea by the air defense forces, resulting in one fatality and two injuries when an industrial facility was impacted, Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Odesa Oblast Military Administration (OVA), reported on Telegram.

Khmelnytskyi Oblast also experienced a missile impact on an infrastructure object, the Khmelnytskyi OVA Telegram channel reported.

A series of explosions occurred, the report read.

Read also: Vulnerability of Kinzhal missiles likely surprise for Russia, says UK intelligence

The air defense forces were operational. Unfortunately, there was an impact on an infrastructure object in the Khmelnytskyi district. There were no casualties. Information on the extent of the damage is being established.

Andriy Nebytov, the head of the Kyiv Oblast Police, shared photographs on his Telegram channel depicting the aftermath of the enemy missiles impact, while ongoing inspections of debris landing sites and documentation of the damage are being conducted.

At present, no significant destruction or casualties have been reported.

The Kyiv OVA clarified that debris fell into private homes yards in several communities, causing minor damages such as shattered windows and damaged roofs, while two vehicles were also hit by debris.

Additionally, photos have emerged showing remnants of enemy missiles at a garage, likely located in Kyivs Darnytskyi district, where falling debris was reported along with the Desnianskyi district. The Darnytskyi district suffered the most significant damage due to an outbreak of fire at the garage, which has since been extinguished.

Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters

Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ukrainian Air Force responds to CNN report on damaged Patriot system after Russian strike

Patriot

"Adhering to all NATO standards, we say, in real-time mode: sorry, but no comments, he explained.

Read also: Patriot missile defense in Kyiv sustained minor damage and remains operational, report says

We maintained this no comments stance throughout the day.

The spokesperson was responding to a report aired on May 17 by U.S. TV news channel CNN, claiming that two components of a Patriot air defense system, sent by the U.S. and deployed in Kyiv, had been damaged as a result of a recent Russian attack on Ukraine.

Three U.S. officials cited by CNN described the losses as minimal, and one referred to them as insignificant.

Read also: No damage to Patriot battery in Russian missile attack on Kyiv, says military expert

If there are certain damages, they will be restored, said Ihnat.

The Patriot is operational, AND perhaps it was operational last night as well. Therefore, I ask everyone to remain calm.

Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ukrainian forces control southwest of Bakhmut and make gains in areas around the city  Deputy Defence Minister

As of the evening of Thursday, 18 May, Ukrainian forces control the southwest of Bakhmut and are making gains in some areas around the city.

Source: Hanna Maliar, Ukraines Deputy Defence Minister, on Telegram

Details: Maliar said that Russia has deployed most of its reserve forces to Bakhmut, significantly reinforcing its troops in the city. Russian forces conducted numerous assaults on Thursday, but the Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully repelled all Russian assaults.

Russian troops attacked the Ukrainian forces on the northern outskirts of Bakhmut; those attacks were equally unsuccessful. Ukrainian forces advanced by up to 500 metres in parts of the Bakhmut front.

Maliar said that fierce fighting also took place on the southern outskirts of Bakhmut. Russian forces went on the offensive in an attempt to regain the territories they had lost, but sustained losses and were not able to accomplish their goals. Ukrainian forces advanced by up to one kilometre in this area.

She has stressed that the defence of Bakhmut and its outskirts is fulfilling its military tasks. Ukraine is now gaining time for certain planned actions.

The Deputy Defence Minister stressed that the commanders of the Khortytsia Operational and Strategic Group of Forces  the group responsible for the Bakhmut front  maintain control over the situation in and around Bakhmut.

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Ukraine's defenders have advanced by 150 to 1,700 metres on the Bakhmut front over the past 24 hours, killing 130 Russian soldiers and capturing 4.

Source: Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesperson for the East Grouping of Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, during the national joint 24/7 newscast on 18 May

Quote from Cherevatyi: "Bakhmut remains the epicentre of the hostilities in Ukraines east Our units continue to advance on the flanks in the course of combat, although they have no advantage in personnel, ammunition or assets. We managed to cover 150 to 1,700 metres over the past 24 hours."

Details: He added that the occupiers are forced to run away when "they get a good hit [from Ukraines forces  ed.]".

At the same time, Cherevatyi noted that Russian forces were still trying to take the city of Bakhmut, which they had almost completely destroyed.

In particular, Russian troops hit the Ukrainian forces positions 487 times with tube and rocket artillery. Twenty-five combat engagements and six air strikes occurred as well.

The defenders killed 130 Russian soldiers and captured 4; 145 more invaders were wounded.

Ukrainian soldiers also destroyed two Msta self-propelled artillery systems, an Orlan-10 UAV and eight Russian storage points.

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Ukrainian frontline commander 'Witch' explains why they're so determined to hold on to Bakhmut: 'We are exhausting them morally and psychologically'

Ukrainian frontline commander 'Witch' explains why they're so determined to hold on to Bakhmut: 'We are exhausting them morally and psychologically'

Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Oleg Palchyk

Ukraine has faced questions about why it will not retreat from Bakhmut, now mostly held by Russia.

As Ukraine gears up for its counteroffensive, one commander told Insider why the city is crucial.

"Giving [them] even the tiniest thing ... encourages the aggressor," Jr. Lt. Olga Bigar said.

For the last eight months, a huge amount of Russian and Ukrainian military power has been concentrated on a 16-square-mile patch of eastern Ukraine: the beseiged city of Bakhmut.

With Russian forces now holding the majority of the city, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced questions over whether Ukraine can  or even should  try to hold on to the city.

Some soldiers have made plain the difficulty of the task, as Politico reported.

But Junior Lieutenant Olga Bigar, known by her callsign of "Witch," whose mortar platoon fought in Bakhmut for several months, is determined not to give an inch.

"If you give Russia a fingertip, you encourage them to chop off the whole arm," she told Insider. "Giving even the tiniest thing to Russia encourages the aggressor. They will come for more."

Speaking to Insider in late April and early May, Bigar, who gained a large social media following for her platoon's exploits in Bakhmut and beyond, described from a fighting perspective why Bakhmut remains so important, and what Ukraine needs in order to keep it.

Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Oleg Palchyk

'They don't know how to fight' smartly

Ukraine has long argued that fighting for Bakhmut allows Ukraine to wear down Russia's vastly larger force, with one NATO official saying in March that Russia was losing five fighters for every one Ukrainian killed in the city.

Bigar also said Ukraine is losing fewer fighters there.

"The losses of our army are significantly lower than those of the occupier," she said, which she attributed to superior tactics.

"We do have wounded, but we have very few killed in action," she added.

Insider was unable to independently confirm this assessment.

Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Oleg Palchyk

Still, the fighting has been tough.

Bigar said that over the last year they've learned to work point-to-point, "to shoot only at command posts and strategic targets."

Russia burns through ammunition because it can  a luxury Ukraine cannot afford, she said. "For every four shots the orcs take, we can answer one  so we count very well," she added, using a common Ukrainian insult to describe Russian soldiers.

This has sharpened a distinction between the two forces, she said, with Russian artillery tactics basic and the army's overall organization "feudal in nature."

Because of this, she added, "the Russians absolutely do not know how to fight with a small amount of ammunition."

One battle Bigar described to Insider exemplified the disparity  when her well-coordinated and strategically-placed mortar platoon of 18 soldiers held off a 70-strong wave of Wagner Group fighters blundering towards them during Russia's drive to take the city over the New Year.

Give Russia nothing to celebrate

Bigar said a key reason to stay in Bakhmut is to deprive Russia of any symbolic victory.

Observers have long noted that Putin is desperate for a win to tout domestically, with Western onlookers vocal in their assessment that Bakhmut holds little strategic value.

"I think it is more of a symbolic value than it is strategic and operational value," US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in early March, hinting that there would be no great shame in a tactical retreat for Ukraine.

But Bigar said that by staying there they are "destroying their moral and psychological condition." In this way, she said, "we are preventing Russian mass media from being able to brag about their victories."

That became apparent in the damp squib that was Putin's much-reduced Victory Day parade earlier this month.

Destroyed buildings in the city of Bakhmut on February 27, 2023. AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images

'We count every shell'

Looking ahead, for Ukraine to keep a hold on Bakhmut it will need more than just grit and determination, said Bigar.

Ukraine cannot afford to waste equipment and ammunition, she said. To make a dent in Russia's well-supplied land defense and push them back, Ukraine needs artillery ammunition, she added, and a lot of it.

This is made all the more complicated by the fact that Ukraine is fighting with two different ammunition standards: those belonging to its existing Soviet and post-Soviet weaponry, and those used in the weaponry provided by its Western allies.

Bigar points out that NATO artillery shells are 155mm, while Soviet Howitzers use 152mm, "and this situation applies to many samples of heavy and small weapons," she said.

But with "even a few units" of precise, modern weapons Ukraine has "a tangible advantage" over Russian forces, she said.

To gain an edge, Ukraine also needs advanced radar technologies and electronic warfare systems, she added.

Nowadays Bakhmut is in ruins, its pre-war population of 70,000 reduced to roughly 4,000 as of March.

Still, for Bigar, the city must be held, despite the toll it is taking.

"This is the way to stop the aggression and to stabilize the situation on the frontline," she said, adding: "We count every shell, every mine, and every human life."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate clergyman who blessed Russian troops during occupation of Izium was exposed

Law enforcement services in Kharkiv Oblast uncovered the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) clergyman who publicly justified Russian armed aggression against Ukraine.

Source: press service of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutors Office, source of Ukrainska Pravda in law enforcement

The source of Ukrainska Pravda reported that this clergyman is Mykhailo Pimashyn (Matvii), vicar of the all men Monastery Honouring the Pishchansk Icon of the Mother of God of the Izium diocese of the UOC-MP.

During the temporary occupation of Izium district in Kharkiv Oblast in August 2022, the 36-year-old clergyman voluntarily supported the Russian occupiers and called upon other local residents to "follow his example".

He gave interviews to Russian propagandistic media outlets, in which he justified and denied the Russian armed aggression.

Screenshot provided by sources of Ukrainska Pravda

The investigation reports that Pimashyn publicly claimed that a local religious community is subordinate exclusively to the Russian Orthodox Church.

In connection with this, the clergyman, on his own initiative, wrote a letter to an associate of Moscow Patriarch Cyril with a request to send "humanitarian aid" to the occupied part of the oblast.

Further on, Pimashyn used Russian goods to ensure the local populations loyalty to the occupiers.

In addition to this, he gave interviews to the propagandists of the Kremlin, who came to the occupied Izium, numerous times.

In his comments he discredited the Ukrainian troops, denied the facts of the Russian aggression and treated the killed occupiers as heroes.

On the ground of collected evidence, Pimashyn was served with a notice of suspicion for justifying the armed aggression of Russia against Ukraine with the use of the media.

The restriction measure is being determined. All circumstances of the crime are being established.

Pimashyn faces a sentence of up to eight years in prison.

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Li Hui was on a two-day visit to Kyiv

In particular, Yermak emphasized that Ukraine, defending itself against the aggressor who carried out an unprovoked invasion of our territory, acts exclusively in the framework of international law and the UN Charter.

Read also: Li Huis visit to Zelenskyy: Beijing aims to show de-escalation dependence on China, says Klimkin

According to him, Ukraine seeks to establish a sustainable and just peace, restore its territorial integrity, as envisaged by the Ukrainian Peace Formula.

In addition, Yermak and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba spoke in detail about the 10 points of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyys peace formula.

Were interested in China being involved in the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, Yermak said.

Read also: China urges foreign embassies to remove signs showing support for Ukraine

Meanwhile, Chief of the Defense Ministrys Main Intelligence Directorate Kyrylo Budanov and deputy presidential chief-of-staff Roman Mashovets briefed the Chinese delegation on the situation at the front, enemy losses, and recent Russian mass missile strikes against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and the casualties these strikes have caused.

In turn, Ukrainian Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets spoke about Ukrainian prisoners of war, both civilian and military, held by Russia. He informed the Chinese envoy about the violations of rights of civilians and servicemembers, as well as war crimes committed by Russia.

Meanwhile, the presidential Commissioner for Childrens Rights and Childrens Rehabilitation, Daria Herasymchuk, spoke about the abduction of Ukrainian children by the Russian invaders and their forced adoption in Russia.

The diplomats also discussed the Black Sea Grain Initiative, as well as Russian military actions at Ukraines Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant.

According to U.S. news channel CNN, Hui met with President Zelenskyy and stated that there is no panacea to solve the crisis.

The Chinese envoy will also visit Russia, Germany, Poland, and France.

Read also: Rebooting the world. What now, after Xis call with Zelenskyy?  opinion

On April 26, Zelenskyy held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time since the start of Russias full-scale invasion. Afterward, Beijing announced that it would send a special representative for Eurasian affairs to Ukraine and several other countries to engage in in-depth communication with all parties on a political settlement of the full-scale war, which Beijing calls the Ukrainian crisis.

This envoy is Li Hui, who served as Chinas ambassador to Russia from 2009 to 2019 and received the Order of Friendship from Vladimir Putin.

On Feb. 24, Beijing released a 12-point position paper on the settlement of Russias full-scale war against Ukraine. In particular, China called for a ceasefire and negotiations, but not for the withdrawal of Russian troops. It also did not condemn Russias invasion.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Ukrhydroenergo records almost $320 million in net profit during year of war

During the war year, Ukrhydroenergo earned almost UAH 12 billion in net profit

Almost UAH 2.2 billion ($58.5 million) will be allocated to pay dividends to the state budget, the Cabinet of Ministers noted.

According to the decree, the distribution of the company's net profit for 2022 is as follows:

 UAH 2.16 billion ($58.5 million) for dividend payments;

 UAH 3.6 billion ($97.5 million) to finance the restoration of destroyed and damaged property as a result of missile strikes by Russia;

 UAH 6.02 billion ($163 million) for production development.

Read also: Disarming Russias energy weapon: Ukraine begins electricity exports to Moldova

Earlier, NV reported that Ukrhydroenergo has already restored 500 MW of capacity lost as a result of Russian attacks and plans to restore another 1,500 MW.

Ukrhydroenergo is Ukraine's largest hydroelectric generation company, with 10 facilities on the Dnipro and Dniester rivers. One of the company's plants, the Kakhovka Hydropower Plant, was occupied by Russia in the first days of the war.

Read also: Russian forces shell one of Akhmetovs power plants for the third time in a month

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Griffiths stressed that assistance must be scalled up dramatically to respond to the spiralling situation in Sudan

The UN aid chief decried Thursday multiple serious breaches of an agreement by Sudan's warring parties last week to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure and to let in badly needed aid.

Martin Griffiths, heading the United Nation's aid efforts, welcomed the May 12 declaration signed in the Saudi city of Jeddah by the two sides in Sudan's bloody conflict vowing to refrain from attacking humanitarians delivering desperately-needed aid.

While aid deliveries have picked up, Griffiths told AFP in an interview, "there are breaches of the declaration however, which are important and egregious, and which have happened since the signing."

The Doctors Without Borders (MSF) charity said Wednesday that its Khartoum warehouse had been raided a day earlier, and Griffiths pointed to an attack the same day on the World Food Programme office in the Sudanese capital among "many" examples.

"We are naturally enough building up a record of such events, and we will be talking to the two parties about them as the process goes forward," he said.

Griffiths stressed that assistance must be scaled up dramatically to respond to the spiralling situation in Sudan since the conflict erupted on April 15 between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who leads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

- 'Disgraceful' -

Around 1,000 people have been killed, mainly in and around Khartoum as well as in the long-troubled western region of Darfur, while more than a million others have been uprooted by the battles.

And "we're only a month in," Griffiths pointed out.

The UN said Wednesday that half of Sudan's population needs humanitarian aid, and that more than $3 billion will be needed this year alone to provide urgent assistance inside the country and to those fleeing across its borders.

Given the enormous needs, Griffiths insisted this was "a very modest appeal", urging donors to step up.

Hopes for a ceasefire remain dim after multiple truces were violated in the past weeks.

While discussions in Jeddah are continuing to reach a ceasefire, Griffiths explained that the negotiations around the declaration signed last was separate.

They were focused on ensuring that aid could flow even if the fighting continues, and to help bring an end to the relentless attacks and looting that depleted food stocks and put most health facilities in Khartoum out of service.

The WFP told AFP Thursday that since the start of the conflict, it had lost nearly $56 million due to looted food, stolen cash and fuel, damaged or stolen vehicles and office equipment.

"That's an enormous and shocking figure, a disgraceful figure," Griffiths said.

- 'Inconceivably dreadful' -

He acknowledged that it could take time for the commitment agreed to by the leadership on the two sides to filter down to people on the ground, adding important work is being done at the local level to ensure aid can get through.

"Getting dependable local agreements of safety and security for humanitarian safe passage, for supplies and people", he said, have for instance enabled UNICEF to begin moving supplies in an area south of Khartoum.

The Sudanese capital remains "one of the most dangerous places in the world" for humanitarians to work, Griffiths said.

In Darfur, he warned of the "dangerous and added ethnic element, which by the way is now facing the whole country".

Violence in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state, has killed hundreds and caused the health system to "collapse", according to medics.

Darfur "was a place of dire need and extraordinary insecurity and great fragility" even before the latest crisis, Griffiths pointed out, saying the renewed conflict was "just inconceivably dreadful for its people".

He said efforts were underway to organise aid deliveries across the border from Chad into Darfur, and that he hoped airlifts could be organised "maybe out of Nairobi" into Darfur and Khartoum.

At the same time, Griffiths lamented that due to continued bureaucratic hurdles "we're still having difficulty moving supplies that are coming into Port Sudan" further into the country.

This situation could be fixed, he said, and "it should be done urgently".

nl/giv
U.N. humanitarian aid coordinator Martin Griffiths speaks in Geneva, Switzerland, Thursday, May 18, 2023. A top U.N. official said Thursday he hopes efforts to ensure that Russian food and fertilizer can be shipped through the Black Sea will come to fruition in coming days, Martin Griffiths, the head of the U.N. humanitarian aid coordination agency and a top envoy of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in working to get foodstuffs and fertilizer from Russia and Ukraine through the Black Sea despite their war, said his boss recently met with insurance titan Lloyds to help iron out shipments of Russian products through the Black Sea. (AP Photo/Jamey Keaten) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

GENEVA (AP)  A top U.N. official said Thursday that he hopes for a breakthrough soon after months of efforts to ensure that Russian food and fertilizer can be shipped to developing countries struggling with high prices.

A day after Moscow agreed to renew a wartime accord allowing Ukraine to export critical food supplies, U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths told The Associated Press that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently met with insurance titan Lloyds to help iron out coverage for shipments of Russian agricultural products.

Moscow has repeatedly complained that Western sanctions, which don't target its food or fertilizer, have hindered insurance, financing and logistics for its exports. However, analysts and trade data say Russia is shipping huge amounts of wheat through other ports.

U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq declined to confirm whether Guterres had met with Lloyds. The insurer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

We are engaged with the private sector at all levels, including that of the secretary-general, to ensure the agreement to facilitate Russia's food and fertilizer exports is "fully implemented, Haq said.

The U.N. and Turkey brokered two separate agreements last summer with the warring sides: one that has allowed more than 30 million metric tons of Ukrainian grain to get to world markets through a demilitarized sea corridor and another to ease Russia's exports.

Griffiths said Russia  despite its vocal reservations  agreed on Wednesday to renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative because Moscow recognized its important to help underpin global food security and keep prices of grain, fertilizer and other farm products down.

Countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia rely on affordable wheat, barley, vegetable oil and other food that comes from the Black Sea region, dubbed the "breadbasket of the world."

Griffiths, the top U.N. envoy on the grain deal, pointed to a whole range of elements that led to Russias decision. Those include the views of developing countries that overwhelmingly support the deal, including China and India, as well as the role of Turkey, which helped broker the agreements, he said.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is in a tough reelection contest and has cast himself as a neutral intermediary, announced Russias extension of the deal a day earlier.

Griffiths said meetings continued Wednesday and he would take part in another virtual one in the next day or two to nail down the other commitments that we didnt get in Istanbul during grain talks last week.

Yesterday we saw great progress, he said Thursday. And I hope for tomorrow or the next day, well see it come to a conclusion.

Griffiths said the talks include work toward consensus on the export of Russian ammonia  a key ingredient in fertilizer  through the Black Sea, part of the deal that has not been executed.

Talks also will examine registration and inspections of vessels bringing Ukrainian grain out from its three open ports to parts of the world struggling with hunger, Griffiths said. Both have slowed considerably in recent months, and less grain has gotten out.

He pointed to a huge amount of detail work behind the scenes to ensure both agreements are carried out, including by Guterres and Rebeca Grynspan, head of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development. She has visited Moscow repeatedly as the lead on the Russian side of the deals.

Theres daily efforts by her and her team and indeed by the secretary-general, who recently, I think, met the head of Lloyds, for example, looking at insurance issues," Griffiths said.

Moving forward, he hopes to see major advances in the next couple of months on aiding Russia's shipments "as well as on the specific issues now facing the Black Sea, which I hope  I would like to think  will enable us to have a more dependable future.

___

AP reporter Edith M. Lederer contributed from the United Nations.
The same week the North Carolina legislature appeared to show strong financial support for the proposed School of Civic Life and Leadership at UNC-Chapel Hill, the universitys chancellor said the first faculty member had been hired for the school, which could begin offering courses next spring.

Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz provided the updates on the school during his remarks at a university Board of Trustees meeting Thursday, saying the university is making significant progress in establishing the school.

The meeting followed the release of a budget proposal Monday from the state Senate, which included a $2 million allocation to the civic life school in each of the next two fiscal years. The state House included the same proposal in its own budget, released in March.

Both chambers including the school in their budget proposals is a clear signal from the legislature that there was strong support for the school, UNC director of state affairs Amy McConkey said in a legislative update she provided to trustees on Wednesday.

Board chair David Boliek told The News & Observer on Wednesday that he appreciated the legislatures support of the school. Boliek in January introduced the resolution requesting university leadership accelerate the development of the school, which has been a source of controversy and contention at the university ever since.

First faculty member hired

Since the trustees approved the resolution on the school in January, the School of Civic Life has been described as a way to make the universitys Program for Public Discourse, which was previously criticized for conservative influence, more robust.

The Senate budget proposal released this week says state funding provided to the school would allow for an expansion of the curricular work of the existing program.

Guskiewicz said during Thursdays meeting that personnel policies for fixed-term faculty in the universitys Program for Public Discourse were approved in mid-May, and the university has also hired Rory Hanlon, a teaching fellow at the University of Chicago, as the programs first faculty member.

Hanlons website says he will start as a teaching assistant professor in the program and the universitys philosophy department in July.

Hanlon holds his doctoral degree from the University of Chicago and his bachelors degree from St. Johns College in Santa Fe, New Mexico, per his website. His research focuses on ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, especially Aristotles conceptions of mind, soul, and life, and their place within the Greek and Roman philosophical tradition.

Guskiewicz said a faculty group has been assembled to report on key components for the school to him and provost Chris Clemens later this summer. The report will be presented to the universitys Faculty Council and the Board of Trustees at some point early this fall, Guskiewicz said.

Faculty have previously criticized the process by which the trustees proposed the school, saying they were not consulted ahead of time. That goes against typical shared governance structures at the university, faculty have said, because faculty  not trustees typically propose new academic programs.

Courses could begin next spring

Guskiewicz said development of the school will continue throughout the fall semester, and hopefully some courses will be taught as early as the spring 2024 semester. Guskiewicz said the university would ideally have a permanent director for the school identified by then, as well.

If the timeline Guskiewicz outlined pans out, it would mark a relatively quick development of the school, compared to other schools established at the university. For example, the universitys new School of Data Science and Society launched last fall, more than two years after the Board of Trustees endorsed a formal feasibility plan to establish it.

I think we were making great progress, and I want to thank those who have been working hard to move this issue forward, Guskiewicz said.

Thursdays board meeting also included a presentation from Benjamin Storey, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a professor at Furman University, who largely focused on the benefits that the School of Civic Life could provide on campus.

Storey mentioned in his presentation that other universities have proposed similar schools and programs to the School of Civic Life, saying that the university should move quick to hire faculty. Last week, for example, the University of Texas system governing board approved a School of Civic Leadership to be established at the University of Texas at Austin.

The competition to hire the best people to do this work is already becoming intense, Storey said. UNC, the nations first and greatest state university, can and should attract the best.
FREEHOLD  An uncle and nephew who admitted they killed a man by using a machete to strike him in the back of his head are facing some 20 years in prison, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said Thursday.

Omar Rivera-Rojas, 33, and Alberto Rojas-Hernandez, 21, both of Lakewood, were sentenced to 22 and 20 years in state prison, respectively, Santiago said. Each must serve at least 85 percent of their terms before the possibility of parole under the provisions of New Jerseys No Early Release Act.

On October 18, 2019, Howell Township Police Department responded to a 911 call just after 3:45 a.m., on a report of an unconscious man lying on his stomach on Hurley Pond Road, just east of Route 547, the announcement said. When officers arrived, a man later identified as 33-year-old Domingo Merino-Rafael of Lakewood was found at the scene, unresponsive and "obviously deceased."

Members of the Serious Collision Analysis Response Team (SCART) responded, but quickly determined that the victim's injuries were inconsistent with a motor-vehicle collision and were instead the result of a homicide, Santiago said. The post-mortem examination confirmed the manner of death to be homicide and the cause of death identified as multiple chop wounds.

An investigation found that Rivera-Rojas, Rojas-Hernandez, and Merino-Rafael had traveled from Lakewood to Middlesex County on the evening of Thursday, October 17, 2019, the prosecutor said. The men were returning to Lakewood early the next morning when they got into an argument that resulted in the uncle and nephew each taking turn striking Merino-Rafael in the back of his head, killing him, Santiago said.

Rivera-Rojas was arrested on October 22, 2019, and taken to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, Santiago said. Two and a half weeks later, Rojas-Hernandez was taken into custody and brought to the Middlesex County Juvenile Detention Center due to the fact that he was 17 at the time. Rojas-Hernandez was subsequently waived to adult court to face prosecution alongside his uncle.

During a plea hearing in September 2022, both men admitted that they each struck the victim in the back of the head with a machete, pleading guilty to single counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter, according to the news release.

The Monmouth County Prosecutors Office and Howell Township Police Department credit the Lakewood Police Department and the Ocean County Prosecutors Office for their assistance during this investigation, Santiago said.

Jenna Calderon covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Uncle and nephew sentenced in machete manslaughter
Uncovered accounting error frees up $3 billion in additional US aid to Ukraine

U.S. Prapor

Eliminating the accounting error opens up the possibility of sending more weapons to Ukraine, according to the report.

Read also: Czech President Pavel urges expedited transfer of weapons to Ukraine

Two high-ranking Pentagon officials said that the mistake was due to an overestimation of the value of weapons taken from existing U.S. stocks and delivered to Ukraine.

"We've discovered inconsistencies in how we value the equipment that we've given," said one of the officials.

Read also: US position on long-range missiles unchanged after UK gives Storm Shadow to Ukraine, says Pentagon

Furthermore, an aide to an unnamed senator said that Congress will be informed about these accounting corrections on May 18.

Read also: Damage to Patriot battery in Kyiv fully repaired, Pentagon says

The source added that the margin of overvalued equipment may increase as the Pentagon continues the audit, possible pushing the figure of freed up funds beyond $3 billion.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
The front entrance to the Los Angeles Police Department headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A gunman opened fire Tuesday morning on a Los Angeles police detective working in an undercover surveillance unit that was tracking a potential suspect on the 110 Freeway, authorities said.

LAPD Capt. Kelly Muniz said the detective was in a vehicle traveling on the 110 near Gage Avenue in South Los Angeles when gunfire erupted about 10:45 a.m.

The shooting was not related to the person being tracked, and the detective  who was dressed to blend in with civilians and had no outward indications he was a police officer  was not injured, Muniz said. The unmarked vehicle, however, was struck by gunfire, she said.

Although Muniz declined to identify the detective's unit, two law enforcement sources not authorized to discuss the shooting said he is part of the Special Investigation Section of the Robbery-Homicide Division, which tracks potential suspects in violent, often serial, crimes.

Muniz said two suspects have been taken into custody in connection with the shooting, although no one has been booked yet.

A motive has yet to be determined, authorities said.

Despite no immediate evidence to support it, speculation spread quickly among LAPD personnel as to whether the detective's cover may have been revealed by the recent online publication of a database of LAPD photos that includes those working in the Special Investigation Section, or SIS.

Attorneys for the city filed a lawsuit in April against Knock LA journalist Ben Camacho and the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition, saying the release of the officers names, photos and serial numbers in response to a public records request and related litigation was inadvertent."

They argued that publication of the images of officers who serve in undercover assignments posed a safety risk. After receiving the photos, Camacho provided them to the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition, which published them online in an accessible database.

In one of several declarations filed by the city, LAPD Capt. Jonathan Tippet, who oversees the Robbery-Homicide Division, wrote that the publication had exposed the photos of undercover officers, including those in the SIS unit. Tippet said the images permanently endangered the lives of the officers and jeopardize the investigation of significant criminal cases.

Lawyers for Camacho have called it a "thinly veiled attempt to silence" him and other journalists who report on law enforcement and "shield the Los Angeles Police Department from any measure of accountability and transparency.

A judge last month rejected an initial effort by the city of Los Angeles to force the return of more than 9,000 photos and names of LAPD officers by rejecting a request for a temporary restraining order that would have prevented Camacho and the watchdog group from doing anything with the data.

The judge said that the case was essentially about prior restraint and that the city would need to address it and wider 1st Amendment issues before any decisions would be made.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
United unveiled the next phase of its brand new flight attendant uniforms to include a name tag with the employee's pronouns  take a look

United Airlines is allowing customer service agents and flight attendants to wear pronouns on their uniform. United Airlines

United Airlines will be one of the first major carriers to allow employees to wear pronouns on their uniforms.

Flight attendants will begin wearing the new name tags and wings starting "later this year."

The change is part of United's evolving uniform design, with an all-new collection rolling out in 2025.

United Airlines is creating a new look for over 70,000 of its frontline workers.

United Airlines pilots. Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images

Source: USA Today

Since 2017, the Chicago-based carrier has been working on a mammoth project to completely redesign its employee uniforms.

United Airlines pilot. United Airlines

Source: USA Today

Created by fashion designer Tracy Reese and retailers Brooks Brothers and Carhartt, a sneak peek of the collection was first revealed in 2019.

The new uniform as published by United in 2019, but will not be on the final 2025 collection. United Airlines

Source: USA Today

One of the biggest changes in the 2019 rollout was the updated color scheme, which included purple and teal accents on dresses, ties, and other pieces. However, United told Insider it has since ditched the colors.

The new uniform as published by United in 2019, but will not be on the final 2025 collection. United Airlines

Source: USA Today

Though, in early 2020, some 28,000 ground and maintenance workings actually received new uniforms after successful wear tests that assessed things like functionality and fit, particularly for female uniforms.

United Airlines' new employee uniforms introduced in 2020. United Airlines

United just gave 28,000 employees snappy new custom Carhartt uniforms  here's what they look like

More than 50 items were created to ensure the uniforms could be used across a wide range of duties and weather conditions, from mechanics working in the Denver snow to ramp agents hauling luggage in Florida's summer heat.

United Airlines' new employee uniforms introduced in 2020. United Airlines

Source: Insider

While these "below-the-wing" workers have their new uniforms, the customer-facing collection's full rollout will not happen until 2025. The initial 2020 debut was delayed due to COVID-19.

Customer-facing roles include customer service, flight attendants, and pilots. United Airlines

Source: Insider

In the meantime, United has announced one new design feature that will be seen on workers as it continues its drive for inclusivity.

Flight attendant at Denver International Airport. Robert Alexander/Getty Images

Source: United Airlines

According to the airline, flight attendants will have the option to have their personal pronouns printed on their employee wings and name tags starting "later this year."

United's new pronouns name tag. United Airlines

"This new feature gives our employees the option to celebrate their years of service with our airline while also identifying in the way that feels most true to themselves," United said.

United flight attendants wearing pronoun pins. United Airlines

Pilots will get new wings starting in 2025 when the full collection is available, but will not have pronouns.

Customer service agents will also get pronouns on their name tags. United Airlines

United told Insider it has not determined how many pieces will make the final collection, but said "we will be testing a range of designs with this final wear test with the goal of paring down pieces...to promote a uniform look."

United Airlines employee uniforms. United Airlines

With the new option, United will become one of the first major airlines to allow employees to wear their pronouns

United's new pronouns wings. United Airlines

joining the ranks of carriers like Alaska Airlines, which announced gender-neutral uniforms and pronoun pins in March 2022.

Alaska Airlines' new uniform grooming included relaxed policies for hair, makeup, and nails. Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines is creating gender-neutral uniforms for flight attendants and airport staff

United's new initiative will complement the carrier's recently updated grooming standards for cabin crew, which changed in 2021 to allow visible tattoos, natural makeup, and nail polish on anyone, regardless of gender.

The new uniform as published by United in 2021. United Airlines

"This is part of bigger brand evolution, as we shift to a warmer, more human brand where Good Leads The Way," United told Insider.

United Airlines employee uniforms. United Airlines

Historically, the aviation industry has maintained rigid uniform policies  especially for women.

Three women model uniforms for American Airlines in September 1967. Susan Wood/Getty Images

24 photos of flight attendants' uniforms that show how much they've changed

But, more and more carriers are starting to deviate away from an industry focused on the female appearance, like Virgin Atlantic Airways dropping its makeup requirement and allowing any person to wear any uniform available

Virgin Atlantic crew members in uniforms. Courtesy of Virgin Atlantic

Virgin Atlantic flight attendants, pilots, and ground staff can now wear any uniform regardless of their gender

and Ukrainian carrier SkyUp allowing female flight attendants to ditch skirts and heels for pants and sneakers.

New SkyUp flight attendant uniforms. SkyUp

Budget airline SkyUp says female flight attendants will no longer be forced to wear high heels and can opt for sneakers instead

In 2019, United announced non-binary gender options when booking a flight, including "U" for undisclosed and "X" for unspecified.

Screenshot of United's booking site with gender-neutral options. United Airlines

"Fly how you identify," United said in a March 2019 Twitter post.

United Airlines flight attendant. Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

In 2022, United announced the Aviate Academy, a pilot training program created to address the pilot shortage.

A United Aviate training plane. Jamie Killin

However, it also has another purpose  to offer more opportunities to groups who have historically not been represented in the flight deck.

A United Airlines 787-10 Dreamliner. JanValls/Urbanandsport /NurPhoto via Getty Images

This includes having at least 50% of flight students be women or people of color, as well as offering financial assistance to make training more affordable to more people.

Aviate graduate Rick Foster with a training aircraft. Courtesy of Ricki Foster

"We know it's a competitive advantage in this industry to look like the customers we serve," managing director of Aviate & pilot strategy Michael Bonner said in November 2022.

United Airlines passengers at the ticket counter. Chicago Tribune/Contributor

Read the original article on Business Insider
University of Idaho needed State Board OK to acquire U of Phoenix. See what it decided

The Idaho State Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday to approve the University of Idahos plan to buy the University of Phoenix for $550 million  just one day after the deal became public.

The State Board gave its approval at a special meeting with nearly no public input or debate.

The University of Phoenix is a predominantly online school with about 85,000 students, according to an FAQ page about the acquisition on U of Is website. U of I plans to purchase the university through a not-for-profit entity it created called NewU.

U of I President Scott Green said at the meeting that the University of Phoenix first approached Idahos land grant university in March. State Board President Linda Clark said the members held three meetings regarding the possible acquisition in executive session, meaning the discussions were not open to the public.

Green said a very strict nondisclosure agreement prevented university leadership from publicly disclosing the bid.

We didnt go into this lightheartedly, Green told the State Board. The value proposition to the state of Idaho is the opportunity to enhance affordable online education to the entire state.

Idahos deal came less than a month after the University of Arkansas System board of trustees voted to reject a similar measure to acquire the University of Phoenix, Inside Higher Ed reported in April.

U of I acknowledged on its website that the deal posed reputational issues, even noting that the University of Phoenix has been criticized, and sued, for business decisions leading to millions of dollars in fines and punitive actions by regulators.

In 2019, the school had a lawsuit settlement over deceptive advertising that totaled $191 million.

The college once enrolled over 450,000 students and had physical locations across the country, including in Meridian, but those have mostly shuttered as the school faced sharp declines in enrollment. According to a U.S. Department of Education scorecard, the University of Phoenix has a graduation rate of just 27%, roughly half the national average.

State Board member Kurt Liebich said weve received a number of letters at the office since news of the transaction was announced Wednesday.

I was trying to put them into buckets of areas of question or concern, and there were three that jumped out at me, he said. One is, are we taking on reputational risk if we do this transaction because of some of the prior missteps University of Phoenix made?

He also said the State Board received letters from U of I faculty who questioned why they were left in the dark. Liebich said others imparted concern about the lack of opportunity for public input.

Green tried to rebuff worries about damage the deal could cause to U of Is standing.

We understand theres been problems in the past, and people were rightly upset with them for past behaviors, but it is our opinion in dealing with them and going through our due diligence that theyre on a very different path now, Green said. There is some reputational risk there because all private institutions are under attack. Were not afraid of it because we are comfortable with who they are, and we know we can help them.

He also made comparisons to Purdue Universitys acquisition of the formerly for-profit Kaplan University in 2017, which Purdue similarly claimed would allow it to extend its reach into online and adult education, according to reporting from The Washington Post.

The University of Phoenix will be transitioned from a for-profit institution to a not-for-profit with the U of I deal.

Green said he doesnt believe Purdues acquisition of Kaplan tarnished its reputation. Purdue ranked No. 51 in the latest college rankings done by U.S. News & World Report. The University of Idaho ranked No. 176.

I dont think its diminished them one iota, Green said of Purdue, long known for its outstanding engineering and science programs.

To acquire the University of Phoenix, U of I formed NewU to purchase all assets. That includes the universitys digital education platform and a few remaining leases for physical locations. According to U of Is website, a few of the schools campuses remain open but are soon expected to transition completely online.

U of I said it plans to keep the University of Phoenixs leadership and staff on for at least a year with similar pay and benefits. The universitys Phoenix campus, which houses administrative offices, will not close.

The transaction is expected to be finalized by early 2024. The universities still need approval from U of Is accreditor, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, and University of Phoenixs accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission.

The purchase price is $550 million, but the seller would provide $200 million in cash that would transfer to the not-for-profit entity once the transaction is complete, according to U of I.

U of I said it would finance the deal through both nontaxable and taxable bonds, which would be separate from the money used to fund the universitys budgets. Idaho taxpayers would not be involved in paying for the acquisition, but the university has agreed to fork over $10 million a year should the not-for-profit entity running University of Phoenix miss payments on debt.

Green said the acquisition would allow U of I to diversify its revenue streams and improve access to higher education for working adults in the state. More than 600 students in Idaho are enrolled in the University of Phoenix, according to Green.

State Board member Cally Roach voiced her support for the deal along with others.

Many adult learners or people out in the workforce dont have the opportunity to stop their careers and go to the University of Idaho or another university, and they have to continue to work, so this type of situation is a great opportunity for many adult learners, Roach said.

Clark said that the move would level the playing field and that someones address shouldnt determine their access to various programs and training.

As we face a national enrollment cliff in traditional students and increased demand from adult learners, this brings together two institutions that complement each other and share a vision for student success, U of I said on its website.

Before the vote, Liebich echoed concerns of an impending enrollment cliff. He said the acquisition would allow U of I to be innovative in the way it approaches a shrinking market for higher education as Idahos go-on rate declines.

The transaction is also expected to bolster the university financially. U of I said on its FAQ page that the University of Phoenix acquisition will provide $10 million in annual supplemental education funding to the Moscow school, an amount it expects to grow over time.

The higher education landscape is changing, Green told State Board members at the special meeting. The way we engage with students is changing. As a land grant institution, it is imperative that we meet the mission that has shaped us for nearly 140 years, as well as embrace new ways to learn and meet the needs of our students for the next 140 years.

University of Idaho has a plan to acquire University of Phoenix. Heres what we know
A Fresno restaurant has temporarily shut down after an internet-fueled rumor took off alleging it was serving dog meat.

Tasty Thai is a little, 6-month-old takeout restaurant on First Avenue near Belmont Avenue that closed Wednesday and Thursday after receiving a death threat and other negative comments via phone calls from around the country. People also posted negative reviews of the restaurant on Google and Yelp.com.

We have nothing to do with any of this, but were Asian and somehow we eat and serve dog? said David Rasavong, who owns the restaurant with his parents. Just because were an Asian restaurant? Thats disgusting.

The controversy started several days ago with an allegation of abuse of a pit bull tied up at the home next door to the restaurant.

Maria Alvarez Garcia posted a Facebook video of herself confronting the owner of a panting pit bull tied up by its front paws with no water near where it was laying. She said the dog was approaching heat stroke.

Fresno Police visited the home and decided the dog was not being abused, according to the departments Instagram post Tuesday. The dog had been newly purchased and was later returned to its original owner, the post said.

In later videos, Garcia continued to insist the dog was abused and commenters started to suggest that someone is eating the dogs. The family living in the home is Asian.

Some people reached out to me thinking that those people are eating the dogs, she said in an Instagram video. That kinda breaks my heart to consider that. I hope that were able to save this dog and all the dogs that end up in that house.

She later posted a picture of the restaurant. Commenters started assuming the restaurant was serving the dogs. No evidence of it was shared.

The restaurant is next door to the home and separated by a fence  not attached to it, as some commenters have said.

The Bee reached out to Garcia several times via phone and social media, but she did not immediately respond.

Garcia was in the spotlight more than a decade ago, advocating for Adams Law. Its named after her grandson, who was violently shaken as a 1-year-old by his mothers boyfriend, leaving him partially paralyzed and brain damaged. The law allows tougher sentences for child abusers.

The restaurant

Tasty Thai does not serve dogs, Rasavong said, nor do the restaurateurs own, live in or are otherwise associated with the house.

Rasavong is a longtime Fresno entrepreneur whose family has been in the restaurant industry for 20 years. Hes also a dog owner, and has a maltipoo and bichon frise at home.

We have been bombarded with nasty reviews and comments, he said.

People left one-star reviews on Google and Yelp repeating the accusation. He shared several screenshots with The Bee, including one that said, Several reports have came in this place STEAL DOGS and EATS THEM!! This place is Evil and needs to be SHUT DOWN IMMEDIATELY!!!

Rasavong has worked with the websites to get the reviews removed.

He was going to stay quiet about the situation until he listened to the voicemails at the restaurant.

One caller said, Go back to your country, you dog-eating mother------.

He decided to close the restaurant for the near future for the safety of his parents, who are 74 and 67, and his staff. Hes not sure how long it will stay closed.

We started receiving direct threats. I actually received a death threat, he said. What if Im not there and someone threatens or attacks my staff?

He posted a video of his own denying the accusations on the Tasty Thai Facebook page.

Rasavong filed a police report Thursday.

The restaurant isnt the only one fielding calls. Animal rescue agencies have been getting phone calls from all over the country, one confirmed. An online petition encouraged people to report the dog owner to the police and another rescue agency.

Fresno police said they had noted that the social media posts had identified the exact location of the house.

Thursday afternoon, Alvarez Garcia posted a video on Instagram asking people not to target the restaurant.
WASHINGTON  The U.S. Air Force plans to award a contract for its Next Generation Air Dominance platform in 2024.

The service said in a Thursday release that it sent industry a classified solicitation for an engineering and manufacturing development contract for the secretive and highly classified NGAD program.

The release of this solicitation formally begins the process of selecting a contractor to build the Air Forces next advanced fighter system, which will replace the F-22 Raptor. The solicitation came with requirements the Air Force expects companies to include in their NGAD designs.

However, this solicitation and source-selection process does not include the drone wingmen the Air Force refers to as collaborative combat aircraft, the service said.

The NGAD platform is a vital element of the air dominance family of systems, which represents a generational leap in technology over the F-22, which it will replace, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said in the release. NGAD will include attributes such as enhanced lethality and the abilities to survive, persist, interoperate and adapt in the air domain, all within highly contested operational environments.

No one does this better than the U.S. Air Force, but we will lose that edge if we dont move forward now, Kendall added.

The Air Force has repeatedly said its concept for an NGAD platform will not exactly mirror a traditional crewed fighter such as the F-22 or F-35, but will instead be a family of systems that incorporates a crewed aircraft component as well as collaborative combat aircraft. Increased sensor capabilities as well as advanced abilities to connect with satellites, other aircraft or other assets could also be part of NGADs family of systems.

The Air Force on Thursday said its acquisition strategy for NGAD will invigorate and broaden the industrial base to deliver rapid and innovative warfighting capabilities.

As the service develops NGAD, the statement said, it will use lessons learned from other recent acquisition programs, and will use open-architecture standards. The service said this will allow it to take advantage of as much competition as possible throughout NGADs life cycle, create a larger and more responsive industrial base, and cut down on maintenance and sustainment costs.

The Air Force said other technical and programmatic details on NGAD are classified to protect operational and technological advantages.

Kendall and other service officials said last year they hope to start fielding the crewed component of NGAD by the end of the decade, with collaborative combat aircraft possibly arriving first.

In June 2022, Kendall raised eyebrows when he said at a Heritage Foundation event that the service had now started on the EMD program to do the development aircraft that were going to take into production  a remark that some took to mean NGAD was already in the engineering and manufacturing development stage.

Kendall later walked back those comments, explaining that he was using the term EMD in a colloquial sense. He said NGAD was still being designed and had not yet gone through the Milestone B review process.

Milestone B marks the point where a programs technology maturation phase finishes and an acquisition program formally starts in which the service takes its preliminary design and focuses on system integration, manufacturing processes and other details ahead of production.

Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said in an email to Defense News that when the source-selection process finishes, NGAD will go to the services top acquisition official  who is now Andrew Hunter  for the Milestone B decision to award the EMD contract to the winning company.

Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin have expressed interest in pursuing the Air Forces NGAD contract.

Its unclear how much the contact would be worth, but Kendall told lawmakers in an April 2022 hearing that each aircraft could cost multiple hundreds of millions of dollars, though he did not get specific about the potential price tag.
By Nupur Anand

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Bankers are beefing up risk management, monitoring and emergency procedures around the use of social media after an internet-fueled run toppled Silicon Valley Bank two months ago and sparked turmoil in the industry.

In board rooms across the United States, executives are devising programs and plans to counteract online threats including rumors around the health of the banks that could lead to deposit outflows or weigh on the stock, according to seven banking industry executives and analysts.

The efforts, which have not been previously reported, underscore banks' urgent efforts to adapt to changing times, prevent depositors from sparking a bank run or stop online attacks on their shares by short sellers.

Lenders are taking action, rethinking social media's role as a potential risk rather than marketing tool, after tweets questioning SVB's financial health prompted nervous customers to pull $1 million per second from their accounts before the bank failed on March 10.

"Social media risk was primarily reputational, but now it has led to deposit flight risks, which are existential," said Sumeet Chabria, founder of ThoughtLinks, a consulting and advisory firm that works with banks.

Greg Becker, the former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, blamed social media as an "unprecedented" factor in the lender's demise. Depositors withdrew $42 billion from SVB in 10 hours, he wrote in testimony to the Senate Banking Committee on Monday.

SVB's swift downfall stunned markets. On March 8, the lender announced it was selling securities and raising capital. As concerns about its financial health escalated, clients in the Bay Area tech industry tweeted about their worries and pulled out funds via mobile apps or online banking.

The former CEO of First Republic Bank, Michael Roffler, also blamed social media for its collapse two months later.

"It has been a wake-up call for some smaller lenders who are now working on updating their emergency response and risk capabilities, along with business continuity plans to tackle this threat," Chabria said.

Bank executives and directors have ordered their companies to add social media into risk-management programs, according to regional bank executives who declined to be identified because the discussions are private.

Risk departments "have been pulled in to detail out a plan which allows banks to measure internet-related risk, prepare for it and respond to it," one of the executives said.

"NIP IT IN THE BUD"

Banks are also contacting customers who complain on social media to address their issues quickly.

"We want to nip it in the bud," the second executive said.

What played out at SVB could easily happen elsewhere, said Greg Hertrich, head of U.S. depository strategies at Nomura.

"Any bank that doesn't pay attention to their social media presence, and the effect it might have on deposit behavior is doing themselves, their stakeholders and most importantly, their depositors, a pretty significant disservice," Hertrich said.

Smaller lenders are focused on identifying who their depositors are and tapping into influential community members to counter any misinformation, said Lindsey Johnson, CEO of the Consumer Bankers Association, an industry group whose members hold $15.1 trillion in assets, or about 68% of the U.S. total.

"Many banks are taking a proactive approach to communicate to their customers to convey the right message," she said. The outreach includes "providing facts and resources to their depositor bases via email, Twitter and LinkedIn," she said.

The biggest lenders are also taking note. JPMorgan Chase & Co CEO Jamie Dimon cited social media as a factor in SVB's failure, and Citigroup Inc CEO Jane Fraser called it "a complete game changer."

As the collapses of SVB and Signature banks shook confidence in regional lenders, First Republic's stock plunged. A $30 billion deposit lifeline from 11 major lenders did not stop its decline, nor did the customer testimonials it posted on LinkedIn to shore up confidence.

First Republic was seized by regulators and bought by JPMorgan earlier this month.

Regulators, too, are watching. The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Federal Reserve both underscored how technology has sped up bank runs. The Financial Stability Board, an international body, is also investigating the role of social media in recent market turmoil, a source said.

While some banks have a game plan, others are still struggling, an analyst said.

"There are so many social media monitoring tools today, but the use of those tools is often delegated to threadbare marketing teams or third party vendors," said Jim Perry, senior strategist at Market Insights.

"Banks are cognizant of the risks and are beginning to understand that they need to dedicate more human resources to social media monitoring, it just hasnt become a priority for many small lenders," Perry added.

(Reporting by Nupur Anand in New York; Editing by Lananh Nguyen and Anna Driver)
US does not allow Ukrainian pilots to train on F-16 in Europe  NYT

The United States does not allow Ukrainian pilots to begin training on F-16 fighter jets in Europe, despite the readiness of several countries to conduct such training.

Source: The New York Times with reference to an unnamed Ukrainian official.

Details: The official noted that without US permission Ukrainian pilots can only be familiarised with the technical language and conduct tactical lessons. Test flights on the F-16 are not possible.

According to The New York Times, President Joe Biden's administration, which must approve the transfer of any American-made aircraft, is still not convinced that Ukraine needs expensive fighter jets.

A senior US official said the White House opposes F-16 deliveries to Ukraine because the fighter is too expensive. As a result, a very large share of the budget for supporting Ukraine may go to the sending of these fighters. Instead, the US administration is going to focus on supplying other weapons.

At the same time, the source did not rule out that Biden's administration may allow European countries to transfer their F-16s to Ukraine.

Background:

On 17 May, following the results of a meeting on the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, the prime ministers of UK and the Netherlands agreed to lead a "coalition of fighter jets" to provide Ukraine with F-16s.

In his Tuesday evening speech, President Zelenskyy announced that the UK and the Netherlands, as well as France, had joined the so-called coalition of fighter jets.

Wopke Hoekstra, the Netherlands Foreign Minister, said on Wednesday, 17 May, that international talks concerning the possible supply of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine have so far seen no progress.

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By Raghav Mahobe and Mariam Sunny

(Reuters) -Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday backed the safety and effectiveness of Pfizer Inc's experimental respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, boosting its chances of becoming the first available maternal shot to protect babies from the illness.

The FDA's advisory committee voted unanimously that available data supported the vaccine's efficacy for giving the shot to women in their second or third trimesters of pregnancy to prevent lower respiratory tract infection and severe disease in infants up to 6 months of age.

The expert panel voted 10-4 that the data also supports the safety of the vaccine for that patient population, paving the way for likely U.S. approval.

Infants are among those at greatest risk for severe illness from RSV. An estimated 58,000 to 80,000 children below the age of five years are hospitalized due to RSV infection annually in the United States, according to government data.

The FDA, which is not obligated to follow the recommendations of the advisory panel but usually does, is expected to make an approval decision by August.

The FDA's staff reviewers on Tuesday deemed the safety data for Pfizer's vaccine "generally favorable".

If approved, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will then need to sign off on its use to make it widely available to pregnant mothers.

Pfizer is counting on new medicines and vaccines to help offset declining revenue from its COVID-19 products.

Though FDA staffers flagged a higher number of pre-term births among participants taking the Pfizer shot in a clinical trial compared to those who received a placebo, the FDA said the difference was not statistically significant, so that may have occurred by chance.

But some panelists expressed concern about the potential link.

"I worry that if preterm births are in anyway a consequence of this vaccine that would be tragic in many ways," said Paul Offit, director of vaccine education center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, who was one of the no votes on safety.

Dr. Daniel Feikin, a respiratory diseases specialist and temporary voting member of the panel, was less concerned. "I'm not convinced that there's a clear causal relationship between this vaccine and preterm birth," he said.

Demand for a maternal RSV vaccine could be limited compared to other childhood vaccinations that are often mandated for attending schools, said pediatric expert on RSV Dr. Jonathan Miller of Nemours Children's Health, ahead of the meeting.

While there is no maternal RSV vaccine available in the United States, GSK Plc earlier this month became the first to secure U.S. approval of an RSV shot for older adults. The FDA is expected to decide on Pfizer's vaccine for the older age group later this month.

Pfizer has said it is ready to launch its RSV vaccine for both older adults and pregnant women in the United States and Europe later this year. Analysts have estimated the market for RSV vaccines to surpass $10 billion by 2030.

Data from the Pfizer vaccine's late-stage trial had shown it was 82% effective in preventing severe infections in infants when given to expecting mothers in the second half of their pregnancy.

"If the vaccine actually lives up to the data that we've seen today. I can guarantee that many infants and their parents will breathe easier in the coming years," said Jay Portnoy, one of FDA panelists.

(Reporting by Raghav Mahobe and Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
(Bloomberg) -- The US government has assured the United Nations that contributions to its humanitarian fund for Venezuela will be safe from seizure by creditors, a reversal that could allow the relief effort to begin operating as soon as this month, according to eight people with knowledge of the dealings.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Biden administrations decision to green light the New York-based fund, which resulted from an agreement struck last year between Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and opposition representatives, could provide a spark to stalled negotiations over the South American nations years-long political crisis ahead of presidential elections next year.

The administration earlier this month notified the UN in an official cable that the fund will be allowed to operate within the US financial system without fear that it will be vulnerable to lenders seeking debt repayments, the people familiar with the situation said.

The US is willing to work with banks that hold Venezuelan assets  some of which will feed the fund  to ensure their safe transfer, the people said.

Venezuela defaulted on a $60-billion debt pile in 2017 and owes billions of dollars in unpaid commercial loans and arbitration awards.

Different types of creditors have since targeted offshore assets frozen by US sanctions as they seek to collect debts owed by the government and state-owned oil firm PDVSA. The countrys main offshore asset, Citgo Petroleum, is at high risk as creditors like Crystallex and oil giant ConocoPhillips push courts to force the sale of its parent companys shares so they can collect arbitration awards for the expropriation of their Venezuela assets.

The Biden administration last year told the UN that it could not ensure that funds would be safe from creditors, Venezuelan government leaders have said. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The White House in recent months has sought to kick start renewed talks between Maduros government and Venezuelas opposition over improved electoral conditions for the 2024 presidential vote. The fund has been a key reason why those negotiations have stalled after their initial restart last November.

Part of a broader humanitarian agreement reached during those talks, it is intended to finance electricity, water, health and education projects in Venezuela. But access to frozen assets proved more complicated than expected, leading to delays and accusations from Maduro that the opposition had broken its promises.

Read More: US to Lift Sanctions Only If Venezuela Returns to Democracy

The UN remains engaged in efforts to implement the agreement, said Farhan Haq, a spokesperson for the UN secretary-general. The humanitarian deal has the potential to support millions of vulnerable Venezuelan people, Haq said.

The first contributions to the new fund are likely to come from Venezuelan accounts in Europe, the people said.

But it will likely take months to begin dispersing funds, and it remains unclear whether Maduro will return to the table. The Venezuelan leader has also conditioned future negotiations on further easing of sanctions and the release of Alex Saab, a top ally who has been imprisoned in the US since 2021.

Neither the Venezuelan Information Ministry nor the head of the government delegation responded to requests for comment.

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By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee said on Thursday he accepted the State Department's invitation to view a classified cable related to the August 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan and would "pause" attempts to enforce a subpoena to obtain it.

In light of this invitation, I will pause efforts to enforce the Committees subpoena pending my review of the documents, Republican Representative Michael McCaul wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Please note, however, that the subpoena remains in full force and effect, and the acceptance of this accommodation does not waive any of the Committees rights regarding the subpoena," McCaul wrote.

The State Department said on Wednesday it would let McCaul and committee Democrat Gregory Meeks view a redacted version of the cable to protect the identity of those using its "dissent channel," which allows State Department officials to air concerns to supervisors.

McCaul had scheduled a committee meeting next week to consider a contempt of Congress charge against Blinken over his refusal to release the cable despite the subpoena.

In his letter, McCaul said he still wanted every member of the foreign affairs committee to be able to view the cable, something the State Department has resisted to protect the integrity of its dissent channel system.

McCaul is investigating the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Republicans - and some Democrats - say there has never been a full accounting of the chaotic operation, in which 13 U.S. service members were killed at Kabul's airport.

McCaul has for months been seeking a "dissent channel" cable sent in July 2021 that a Wall Street Journal article in August 2021 said warned top officials of the potential collapse of Kabul soon after the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on McCaul's letter.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; editing by Grant McCool)
US man rescued from Thai sewer after 7 hours of being trapped

[Source]

An American tourist has been rescued after being trapped for hours in a filthy sewer in Pattaya, Thailand, this week.

Jonathan Ioane Vaimaona, 36, was returning to his hotel when he fell into the sewer in the Jomtien area at around noon on Tuesday. He arrived in Thailand with his girlfriend on May 12, as per the Bangkok Post.

The Hawaii man reportedly wandered through the sewer for hours to look for a way out. The sewer was about 2 feet wide and 5 feet deep.

Vaimaona cried for help but there was no one around to hear him.

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I just fell down a hole, and I didn't know where I was going, he said, as per the Daily Mail. It feels like I was in there for days. I don't remember what was happening.

Vaimaona continued to wander until he heard voices coming from a light-emitting storm drain. Chalee Boonsri, a 26-year-old security guard, was heading toward a convenience store to buy soda when he heard his screaming.

I looked around but didn't see anyone there. But when I looked at the pavement, I saw a man peeking at me from the drain, Boonsri recalled.

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A local resident then called authorities for help, according to the Pattaya Mail.

By 8 p.m., rescuers managed to lift the drains metal grate and free Vaimaona.

Images from multiple reports show the American traveler emerging from the darkness without a shirt and covered in mud. While he did not appear to sustain injuries, he was said to be somewhat disoriented and had slurred speech.

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Vaimaona was washed and offered hydration at the scene. Following the rescue, he was escorted to police to receive further assistance.

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US Pilot Seeks To Become First Black Woman To Fly Around The World Solo

A small percentage of Black women are pilots within the aviation industry in the United States. However, one aviator is looking to make history and become the first Black woman to fly solo around the world.

Leona Serao, 23, currently lives in New York City and will begin her three-month journey around the world in early August. Yahoo News reported that the young aviator plans to travel to 33 countries in four continents before she returns home.

The fact that Im going to be the first one means Im going to be able to inspire other Black and other African people who want to join the aviation field, she told the outlet.

Earthrounders, a site that tracks aviation accomplishments, reported that there have been 142 known solo flights around the globe to date. Only 11 pilots were women, but none of them were Black, according to Yahoo News.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are more than 158,000 licensed pilots in the United States. Black aviators account for 2.6% of the pilots, which is about 4,100 working in the industry. Of that number, only around 150 of them are Black women, per Yahoo News.

The 23-year-old was born in the U.S. and raised in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the second-largest country in Africa, where only three women are licensed pilots.

For Serao, breaking racial barriers in the aviation industry could inspire other young Black women to follow in her footsteps.

It is a challenge because its a male-dominated field and women didnt really get the opportunity to be pilots before, she said. We couldnt even drive before [the 20th century]. And in the aviation industry, it stayed like that.

Serao faced several challenges after returning to the states from college seven years ago. She said adjusting after returning to the U.S. was difficult for her. The 23-year-old remained focused on her future and spent at least $70,000 on six months worth of aviation courses in flight school.

She later became a licensed pilot at the end of 2020, with her father, a former pilot, being her biggest inspiration. Recently, she launched an online campaign for those who would like to donate money toward her food, fuel and lodging costs during her three-month trip.

Serao isnt the first Black person to make history in the aviation field. Jamaican-born American pilot Barrington Irving was the first Black person to fly around the world solo in 2007. He was also 23 years old when he completed the task.

Today, Irving is surprised at how he accomplished the journey after leaving Miami 16 years ago with only $30 in his pocket. He was not able to swim and did not have a life vest, per Yahoo News, but he said he knew he wanted to succeed in his chosen career path.

Ill never forget major media outlets interviewing me, a couple thousand people at the airport cheering, Go Barrington, go! and I only had three $10 bills, he told Yahoo News. But folks were so inspired. This was before crowdfunding was a big thing.  I just told myself, I need to get from point A to point B and see how far it could go.

Years after returning from his trip, he launched an aviation school to help the next generation of pilots. He also mentored a few young people who have flown around the globe, and he said he hopes Serao will inspire others to do the same.

There is 100% a void of young women seeing other young women who look like them in the field of aviation that they can aspire to, Irving said. She will have the attention of so many women, not just Black girls, but so many women, to inspire them. And theres nothing like being the first.
By Daniel Trotta

(Reuters) - Oklahoma's governor has signed into law a bill making it a felony to provide gender-affirming healthcare to a minor.

Indiana has enacted a law requiring teachers to tell parents when students ask to be called by a new name or different pronoun. North Dakota has approved a law that lets public school teachers and state employees ignore using a transgender person's preferred pronoun.

And the latest such action came in Florida on Wednesday when Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill that bans gender-affirming medical care such as puberty blockers or hormone therapy for transgender youths - a measure that joins the state's growing list of legislation that limits the rights of LGBTQ people.

This month's rush of bills, certain to attract court challenges, has become central to the Republican agenda in statehouses across the country and inflamed the so-called culture war in the United States that also encompasses abortion, gun rights and school curricula.

A group of Florida parents has already sued in federal court to try to stop new law there.

To many political observers, these measures offer a preview of the 2024 elections, with Republicans portraying Democrats as out of touch on issues of sex and religion, and Democrats calling Republicans extremist and anti-democratic.

Republicans have introduced more than 500 bills affecting LGBTQ people in 2023, with at least 48 passing, according to the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ rights group. Those numbers are up from 315 bills introduced and 29 passed in 2022.

The majority of those bills specifically affect transgender people, touching on nearly every aspect of a transgender person's public life. Some seek to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' sports. Others require transgender people to use the bathroom corresponding to their gender assigned at birth or prevent transgender people from changing their sex on identity documents.

Neal Allen, chair of the political science department at Wichita State University, said it remains unclear whether the transgender issue will help Republicans defeat Democrats in 2024, but that many Republicans are more concerned about an internal party challenge from the right.

"You have to win the first election first. And the vulnerability of most Republican state legislators right now is in the primary, if at all," Allen said.

'FLORIDA IS THE VANGUARD'

Among the governors at the forefront is DeSantis, who is expected next week to announce a bid for the 2024 Republican U.S. presidential nomination. The bill he signed on Wednesday also adds obstacles for transgender adults and grants courts jurisdiction in child custody battles in some cases involving gender-affirming care.

"I've watched anti-trans legislation for four years now and I can tell you that Florida is the vanguard," said Erin Reed, an independent researcher who tracks the bills. "You see it pushed in Florida, and then you see it emanate across the country."

LGBTQ rights activists are pushing back.

Florida protesters flung underwear at state House Republicans from the gallery with messages such as "not your business" and "leave my genitals alone."

Demonstrators swarmed the Texas House, leading lawmakers to send a bill banning gender-affirming care back to committee. The bill finally passed the legislature on Wednesday.

In Montana, protests contributed to the censure of transgender state Representative Zooey Zephyr, who was banned from the state House floor by Republican legislators.

President Joe Biden's administration has entered the fray. Last month, the Justice Department sued Tennessee to challenge its Republican-backed ban on gender-affirming care for minors, one of several states where it has filed a complaint or supported lawsuits.

Some Republicans have said they have momentum.

The State Freedom Caucus Network, a coalition of conservative legislators in 11 states, has helped pass transgender-related bills in five states.

"In five to 10 years, I feel like the country will look back on this and realize that it was a horrible mistake to let (gender-affirming care) occur," said Andrew Roth, president of the network. "I think that's the eventual conclusion of this."

A recent Fox News poll found 57% of respondents believe political attacks on families with transgender children is a major problem. A Data for Progress poll found 72% of Democrats, 65% independents and 55% Republicans think too much legislation is aimed at limiting LGBTQ rights.

But a Reuters/Ipsos poll from March found 55% of respondents agreed that doctors should be banned from providing transgender treatment to minors, versus 33% who disagreed.

The major pediatric, endocrinology and mental health associations endorse gender-affirming care such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy when appropriate, some calling it life-saving for many transgender youths.

But many Republican supporters of the bills distrust the prevailing medical consensus, characterizing the treatments as dangerous and experimental. Some have called the measures chemical castration or child abuse.

Since 2021, least 15 states have banned gender-affirming care for minors.

"It's catastrophically bad," said Cathryn Oakley of the Human Rights Campaign. "The number of young folks who are going to be losing access to medically necessary, best-practice, age-appropriate healthcare is really scary."

(Reporting by Daniel Trotta; editing by Paul Thomasch)
US Senator Feinstein still suffering complications from shingles, her office says

By Costas Pitas

(Reuters) -U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, who returned to Washington last week after a months-long absence due to shingles, is continuing to suffer from a medical complication known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome, a spokesperson said on Thursday.

Feinstein had also previously suffered encephalitis, her office said, after the New York Times reported on medical conditions that had not been publicly disclosed.

While the encephalitis resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital in March, she continues to have complications from Ramsay Hunt syndrome," a spokesperson for the 89-year-old Democrat said.

Ramsay Hunt Syndrome affects the facial nerve and can cause partial facial paralysis or weakness.

Feinstein said earlier on Thursday that she did not have encephalitis, saying it "really has never been diagnosed," CNN reported.

First elected to the Senate in 1992, Feinstein had been sidelined since February as she recovered from shingles. Her absence led to calls from some fellow Democrats that she step aside and allow someone else to take her place.

The Senate Judiciary Committee that she sits on was deadlocked with her away, slowing Democrats' drive to approve some of President Joe Biden's most controversial nominees to vacant court positions.

Feinstein, who will not seek re-election in 2024, said on May 10 after her return to Washington that she would work a lighter schedule and that she was experiencing some side effects of her illness, which included vision and balance impairments.

"I'm back in Washington, voting and attending committee meetings while I recover from complications related to a shingles diagnosis," Feinstein said in a statement provided earlier on Thursday to the New York Times. "I continue to work and get results for California."

(Reporting by Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Editing by Alistair Bell and Tim Ahmann)
By Mike Stone

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of State said on Thursday it wants to update internal processes for the tens of billions worth of foreign military sales it oversees each year to speed up approvals "for an age of heightened strategic competition."

The move comes as the war in Ukraine has shown the process of getting weapons in the hands of American allies is too slow, to counter potential threats from Russia and China.

"The time has come to reassess and adapt security cooperation to meet new and emerging challenges" the State Department said in a fact sheet, adding that competition with China and Russia's war in Ukraine were factors that led to the 10-point plan to re-tool the department's oversight of foreign military sales.

The plan, which followed an internal review at the State Department, involves "anticipatory policy decisions" for allies' potential future purchases to begin the decision process earlier for allies' requests.

Industry has long hoped that the State Department would anticipate an ally's request for a weapons system, rather than begin its review only after the formal request for a weapons system was made.

Other items in the plan included more training for the military attaches stationed at embassies that are the front line of the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process.

Foreign military sales arranged through the U.S. government rose 49.1% to $51.9 billion in 2022 from $34.8 billion the prior year.

The Pentagon conducted a parallel review of its own FMS implementation mechanisms, the State Department said.

There are two major ways foreign governments buy arms from U.S. companies: direct commercial sales negotiated between a government and a company, and foreign military sales in which a foreign government typically contacts a Defense Department official at the U.S. embassy in its capital. Both require U.S. government approval.

(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Sonali Paul)
US steel bridges need better maintenance to prevent collapse, safety board says

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The National Transportation Safety Board on Thursday urged federal and state officials to improve maintenance oversight for more than 10,000 U.S. bridges made of a specific type of steel, based on its review of a 2022 bridge collapse in Pittsburgh.

The NTSB said officials should make sure any problems identified in inspection reports are addressed for bridges made of uncoated weathering steel. The 447-foot-long Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh fell approximately 100 feet after a structural failure, injuring four people.

More than 10,000 bridges in the United States are made of uncoated weathering steel and can be used for decades if properly used and maintained, the NTSB said.

NTSB investigators found annual inspections of the Pittsburgh bridge identified blocked drainage for the 10 years prior to the accident, but it was not corrected. NTSB investigators found other Pennsylvania bridges with similar issues with drainage, debris accumulation and corrosion.

Adequate drainage is necessary to allow the uncoated weathering steel to dry off after rain to prevent corrosion and structural weakening.

President Joe Biden said in 2022 the Pittsburgh accident underscored the urgency of rebuilding U.S. infrastructure.

The NTSB wants the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to develop a process for making sure owners of bridges made with uncoated weathering steel perform needed maintenance and fixes.

The FHWA said it was reviewing the NTSBs interim report and latest safety recommendation on bridges with uncoated weathering steel components.

"As part of our oversight role with bridge safety inspections required under the National Bridge Inspection Standards, FHWA will help ensure that federal and state authorities review inspection reports for all bridges, including those that are owned by local agencies such as the Fern Hollow Bridge, and perform necessary follow-up actions," the agency said.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Leslie Adler)
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai, pictured in 2022, said a deal with Taiwan 'represents an important step forward'

The United States and Taiwan have concluded negotiations on a trade agreement to deepen economic ties, amid growing tensions between Washington and Beijing.

"This accomplishment represents an important step forward in strengthening the US-Taiwan economic relationship," US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai said in a statement on Thursday.

The US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade looks to boost trade by streamlining customs checks, improving regulatory procedures, and establishing anticorruption measures between the United States and the self-governing island of Taiwan, which China has long claimed as part of its territory.

While the United States and Taiwan do not have official diplomatic relations, they do maintain unofficial ties through the de facto US embassy in the country, the American Institute in Taiwan.

Beijing has in recent years stepped up its threats and rhetoric against Taiwan, increasing military drills in the seas around the island and working to cut off its official ties with countries around the world.

The issue prompts rare bipartisan agreement in the United States, with politicians including Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his Democratic predecessor Nancy Pelosi both meeting publicly with Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen over the last 12 months, drawing sharp criticism from China.

The first agreement under the initiative will allow American businesses "to bring more products to Taiwan and Taiwanese customers, while creating more transparent and streamlined regulatory procedures that can facilitate investment and economic opportunities in both markets, particularly for small- and medium-sized enterprises," the statement said.

The agreement, which still needs to be signed by the two sides, will "deepen the trading partnership and enhance US-Taiwan trade flows in order to promote innovation and inclusive economic growth for workers and businesses," USTR said.

"We look forward to continuing these negotiations and finalizing a robust and high-standard trade agreement that tackles pressing 21st century economic challenges," Tai said.

A spokeswoman for Tsai's office said in a statement that "the president affirms and looks forward to further deepening of Taiwan-US trade relations."

The final agreement "will also benefit and serve as a framework for trade agreements with other countries and strengthen our integration with the international community," the statement said.

The Chinese embassy in Washington announced Thursday that China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao will meet with US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Tai next week, in a rare trip to Washington by a top Beijing official.

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OSAKA, Japan  The U.S. will unveil a substantial sanctions package against Russia on Friday at the Group of 7 (G-7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, as the global meeting puts international support for Ukraine at the forefront of the agenda.

But the expected U.S. sanctions package will be announced in the shadow of the debt ceiling standoff between President Biden and Republicans in Congress, with a senior administration official saying GOP brinkmanship risks undermining the effectiveness of American financial penalties.

I do think that itll be an opportunity to highlight just how essential it is that the Republicans work to get this done expeditiously with the president because a lot is riding on ensuring that the United States continues to lead, and lead alongside the G-7, the official said.

Sanctions being issued by the U.S. will include blacklisting 300 individuals, entities, vessels and aircraft across Europe, the Middle East and Asia  the penalties aimed at targeting streams of Russian sanctions evasion.

The U.S. will also announce an expanded sanctions authority to target sectors of the Russian economy key to its military-industrial complex, the senior official said, and impose new bans to prevent Russia from benefiting from our services.

And the U.S. will add roughly 70 entities from Russia and third-world countries to the Commerce Departments blacklist, cutting them off from receiving U.S. exports.

The Commerce blacklist is an effort to target Moscows sanctions evasion strategies, with analysis highlighting Russias increase in imports of common electronics from third-world countries in an effort to access semiconductor chips blocked by the U.S. sanctions and those of partner countries.

This is going to be a significant effort that will extensively restrict Russias access to goods that matter for its battlefield capabilities, the official said.

Its not yet clear how member nations of the G-7  the grouping of the worlds most advanced economies  will match the U.S. penalties, but the group is expected to put forth a joint statement in support of Ukraine that will stand apart from the traditional communique published at the end of such meetings.

All G-7 members are preparing to implement new sanctions and export controls. I wont get into the specifics of what partners are doing but the United States will be rolling out a substantial package of our own, a senior administration official told reporters on a briefing call late Thursday evening in Japan.

Among the principles to be included in the Ukraine statement, the senior official said, will be a commitment by G-7 nations  U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom  to squeeze Russias access to the international financial system and an ongoing commitment to keep precious sovereign assets immobilized until the end of the war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is also expected to participate in the summit in some form, with his appearance likely to be virtual.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan on Wednesday teased that the U.S. would announce a package of new sanctions to align with the summit. He said they would be centered on enforcement, like closing loopholes and shutting down Russian evasion networks.

The focus on Ukraine will be a major part of the summit but will take place alongside another priority focus of threats posed by the Peoples Republic of China, as Chinese President Xi Jinping seeks to exercise influence globally and provide Russian President Vladimir Putin international legitimacy.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
By Doina Chiacu and Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Vice President Kamala Harris and top White House economic adviser Lael Brainard said on Thursday that a default on the U.S. debt of $31.4 trillion would throw the American economy into a recession.

In a conference call for Democratic activists, Harris and Brainard urged them to contact lawmakers to express opposition to a debt default that could be less than two weeks away.

Harris used the call to keep the focus on the looming default as President Joe Biden spends the next few days in Japan attending a Group of Seven summit of world leaders.

"A debt default could trigger a recession," she said.

Negotiators for the White House and congressional Republicans met again on Capitol Hill to discuss their search for common ground on lifting the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, and plan to meet again on Friday, a White House official said.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said lawmakers from his chamber should be ready to return to Washington on 24 hours' notice from their recess next week in case they are needed for a vote.

The Democratic senator said he is "pleased that the other side has recognized the best way forward is a bipartisan piece of legislation that can secure enough votes to get through both the House (of Representatives) and the Senate."

Brainard, director of the White House National Economic Council, said Biden's negotiating team has been instructed to not agree to any Republican proposal on lifting the debt ceiling that would take healthcare away from Americans or push any of them into poverty.

Republicans, who are threatening to let the government default, are trying to persuade Democrats to accept tougher work requirements for some federal aid programs, as well as spending cuts, in exchange for lifting the borrowing cap.

Brainard said the administration's goal, in its talks with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's team, is to work toward a reasonable, bipartisan budget agreement.

"The administration's negotiating team is fighting against extreme attempts to reverse the progress we've made: creating clean energy jobs, combating climate change and lowering costs for middle-class families, including for students and for insulin and other drugs," she said.

The U.S. Treasury Department reiterated Monday it expects to be able to pay the government's bills only through June 1 without a debt limit increase, increasing pressure on Republicans and the White House to reach a deal in coming days.

The limit needs to be lifted regularly because the government spends more than it receives in taxes.

(Reporting by Steve Holland and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chris Reese, Leslie Adler and Jonathan Oatis)
KABUL, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Afghan caretaker government's supreme leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada has appointed Deputy Prime Minister Mawlawi Abdul Kabir as the acting prime minister, chief government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.

"Since esteemed acting Prime Minister Mullah Hassan Akhund is sick and needs treatment and rest in Kandahar for some time, esteemed Mawlawi Abdul Kadir has been appointed to take charge of the Premier Office affairs," Mujahid said on his Twitter account on Wednesday.

Mawlawi Kabir served as the deputy prime minister on political affairs and a member of the Taliban negotiating team with the United States on the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan in August 2021.

As an influential member of the Taliban, he served as the governor of Nangarhar province during the previous regime of the Taliban, which collapsed in 2001 after the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan. 
"The older you get the less you care about what everybody else has to say," Williams said on the Jennifer Hudson Show

Chris Millard/Warner Bros. Vanessa Williams

Vanessa Williams is celebrating the joys of aging.

The Ugly Betty alum, 60, is reflecting on her latest milestone birthday by offering advice to those worried about getting older. During an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, Williams opened up about the "privilege" of celebrating another year.

"It's a privilege. There's a sense of ease. The older you get the less you care about what everybody else has to say," Williams began.

Related:Vanessa Williams Recalls Bursting 'into Tears' When She Met Lena Horne: 'She Meant That Much'

"You're living in your own glory. You accept yourself, you give yourself grace," she continued. "And you don't beat yourself up the way when we're 20s and 30s, 'I've gotta do this, I've gotta be this, I gotta please people.'"

"So there is a sense of satisfaction and ease the older you get," the actress added. "And I am embracing that and love it."

Williams celebrated her 60th birthday with family in March by embarking on a 10-day Bahamas getaway. They swam, fished and biked around the area together.

"60 was like, 'OK, how many years do I have left? Is it 25? Is it 30? So this was a big one," Williams said.

Related:7 Beauty Essentials Vanessa Williams Can't Live Without

Hudson, 41, later asked Williams how long it took her to no longer be concerned about aging. To that, Williams responded: "You've got a whole empire that you've got to run, so you're concerned with a lot at this point."

"But I understand that," Williams added. "There are certain times in your life when you're the franchise. So in order to have longevity in your career, which we always talk about people when we have mentors or mentees  how do you last for, I've been in the business for 40 years?"

As she explained, longevity happens when you're "showing up on time," "knowing your stuff" and ultimately "following your skillset."

Chris Millard/Warner Bros.

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Over the years, Williams has been vocal about enjoying the process of aging. Previously, she told MadameNoire that when it comes to her changing views on getting older, it's "a daily thing."

"Sometimes lighting is like, 'Whoo! This is not my friend.' Then sometimes with good lighting, your like, 'I'm not doing so bad today,'" Williams, the first Black woman to be crowned Miss America in 1983, said in 2018. "And then I look at myself and I look at my life and I'm 55 years old and I have grown kids who are wonderful and productive and talented and salt to the earth human beings that I know I have guided and streered and developed. And I said, 'Well, this is who I am and this is what I need to be.'"

She added, "So I embrace what I have, sometimes it's a struggle, but I embrace it and I look for science to help me maintain. I want to look like myself, not anybody else."

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Read the original article on People.
Members of a cocoa cooperative wait for transportation after harvesting and collecting cocoa from a plantation, to be processed in the town of Chuao, in Aragua state, Venezuela on April 21, 2023

Armed with rubber boots and a sharp machete, Nidia Chavez heads to the plantation in search of "black gold" -- not a reference to Venezuela's plentiful oil, but rather cocoa.

In Chuao, in the northern state of Aragua, this type of black gold means everything in a town that has built a large part of its economy on labor-intensive, artisanal chocolate production.

"It is the black gold that we have here, this is what we live on," Chavez, 43, told AFP after collecting three containers of the fruit.

With the help of her machete, Chavez and her companions cut the cocoa into two to extract the pulp.

But there is an important rule in Chuao, inhabited by the descendants of slaves brought from Africa: Don't pluck the cocoa fruits unless you're a farmworker. It applies to both tourists and locals alike.

"It is forbidden," said Mauricio Sosa, 48, a boat operator and tour guide. "If not, we would be without cocoa," because the seed "is very tasty."

It's tempting, as the burgundy and yellow fruits abound around the town and all the way down to the coast.

Instead, the 18 to 20 tons of cocoa produced in Chuao each year are sold en masse by the Empresa Campesina Chuao, a civil society organization, to a businessman with close ties to the community. The prized chocolates made from the cocoa always note the origins.

A kilo (2.2 lbs) of cocoa beans can sell for about $10.

- 'Our pride' -

Estilita Ache was born 63 years ago in this remote village of about 3,000, which is most easily accessed by the sea. The other option is a multiday trek through mountains and jungle.

"Cocoa is everything," she said. "It's special. It must be, because you grab it with love."

Freshly extracted seeds lay in the fermentation room, covered by banana leaves, as women joke around in the old, wooden structure about gifts they want for Mother's Day.

It's suffocatingly hot inside -- a perfect environment for the seeds to acquire the ideal flavor and texture.

They're then dried in the sun, and packed in 61-kilo (134-lb) sacks.

This old-school process doesn't allow for mistakes, as any error would affect the quality of the product.

Empresa Campesina Chuao aims to produce "100 percent pure" cocoa. Vicenta Gamez, 66, points to a selection of chocolates, spreads, punch and tea that she prepares with her son, Robin Herrera, 28.

"We don't have big machines to prepare all this," she said with a smile. "Our cocoa is our greatest pride -- and the best in the world."

mbj/jt/ll-nro/tjj/bgs
A ship of Chinese Coast Guard is seen near a ship of Vietnam Marine Guard in the South China Sea

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam on Thursday criticised recent conduct by a Chinese research ship and the Philippine coast guard in the South China Sea, accusing its neighbours of separate actions that were violating its sovereign rights.

Tensions are high in contested parts of the South China Sea, one of the world's most important trade routes and a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce.

Chinese and Vietnamese vessels confronted each other in recent days on multiple occasions as a Chinese research ship moved within Hanoi's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which experts said was likely a survey. Such a survey would usually be considered hostile if conducted without notification.

Asked for comment, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang told a press conference those vessels were "violating the sovereign rights and jurisdictions of Vietnam", which was taking "appropriate measures" to defend its rights.

China has said that scientific research is a normal activity in areas under Chinese jurisdiction.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea as its territory, based on what it says are old maps, including waters that lie within the EEZ of Vietnam and four other Southeast Asian countries.

The Philippines was also rebuked for placing navigational buoys in five areas of its EEZ to assert sovereignty over the hotly disputed Spratly islands, to parts of which Vietnam also lays claim.

Asked about the Philippines' move, Hang said: "Vietnam strongly opposes all acts violating Vietnam's sovereign rights."

Philippine Foreign Ministry spokesperson Teresita Daza said Manila's coast guard's installation of buoys was consistent with the country's rights as a coastal state under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

"They are meant to improve safety of navigation in our waters and should be of no cause for concern," Daza told Reuters in a phone message.

(Reporting by Phuong Nguyen and Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio; Editing by Martin Petty and Bernadette Baum)
The BlackGEM array, consisting of three new telescopes at the European Southern Observatorys La Silla Observatory in Chile, has begun operations. This photograph shows the three open domes of the BlackGEM telescopes, with three other telescopes at La Silla visible in the background.

A new telescope array has begun to hunt for the most violent and cataclysmic events in the cosmos, clashes so powerful that they cause the very fabric of space and time to "ring."

The BlackGEM array, consisting of three new telescopes located at the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) La Silla Observatory in Chile, will search in visible light for events like neutron star collisions and black hole mergers, which launch ripples in space-time called gravitational waves .

"With BlackGEM, we aim to scale up the study of cosmic events with both gravitational waves and visible light," BlackGEM Principal Investigator Paul Groot, of Radboud University in the Netherlands, said in a statement . "The combination of the two tells us much more about these events than just one or the other."

Related: Hunting gravitational waves: The LIGO laser interferometer project in photos

Colliding neutron stars produce gamma-ray bursts as well as powerful gravitational waves.

Thus far, only one explosive event has been detected in both gravitational waves and visible light, the collision between two neutron stars with masses between eight and 20 times that of the sun, which occurred 130 million years ago.

By detecting both the gravitational waves and visible light generated by such events, scientists can not only hone in on their precise locations but can also learn more about their nature. For example, astronomers could confirm that collisions between neutron stars, also known as kilonovas, do indeed forge heavy elements like silver, platinum, and gold, as suspected.

Following up ripples in space-time predicted by Einstein

Gravitational waves were first predicted by Albert Einstein in his theory of general relativity . This 1915 theory says that objects of mass "warp" the fabric of space-time, a four-dimensional unification of space and time, like objects placed on a stretched rubber sheet. This warping gives rise to gravity. General relativity also suggests that when massive objects accelerate, they generate gravitational waves.

Objects of tremendous mass circling each other, like binaries of black holes and neutron stars, produce gravitational waves that carry angular momentum away from the system, causing them to spiral together faster and faster. When the two objects finally collide and merge, they create a burst of gravitational waves that can be detected from Earth, even after traversing millions or billions of light-years at the speed of light to reach us.

The first detection of gravitational waves was made on Earth in 2015 by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and came from the collision of two black holes 1.3 billion years ago. Since then, LIGO, based in the U.S., and its fellow gravitational wave detectors Virgo in Italy and KAGRA in Japan have detected gravitational waves from other black hole mergers, neutron star mergers and even collisions between black holes and neutron stars (which are the super-dense corpses of massive stars).

As impressive as this is, however, gravitational wave detectors can't accurately pinpoint the location from which gravitational waves originate. Nor can they see the energetic blasts of light that are emitted with the gravitational wave bursts that occur during these collisions.

That's where BlackGEM will come in, quickly scanning large areas of the sky to hunt for gravitational-wave sources in visible light and more accurately honing in on their locations.

Related stories:

 How do gravitational waves work?

 Unusual 'revived' pulsars could be the ultimate gravitational wave detector

 Did a holographic phase transition in the early universe release gravitational waves?

How BlackGEM will fit in

Once BlackGEM identifies the source of gravitational waves, larger instruments like the Very Large Telescope (VLT) located on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile will follow up on its findings by zooming in on the event.

The three telescopes of the BlackGEM array are each 25.6 inches (65 centimeters) in diameter and can investigate different areas of the sky simultaneously. Eventually, these telescopes, built by Radboud University, the Netherlands Research School for Astronomy and KU Leuven in Belgium, may be joined in the array by a further 15 scopes.

This should give an impressive boost to the sky-searching power of the BlackGEM array, the first system of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

"Despite the modest 65-centimeter primary mirror, we go as deep as some projects with much bigger mirrors because we take full advantage of the excellent observing conditions at La Silla," Groot said.

BlackGEM won't just be hunting for the sources of gravitational waves, however. The telescope array will also survey the southern sky in fully automated mode, allowing it to quickly find and identify events and objects with rapidly changing brightness, also known as "transients."

These could include supernovas , titanic explosions that accompany the deaths of massive stars and then quickly fade from view.

"Thanks to BlackGEM, La Silla now has the potential to become a major contributor to transient research," La Silla Observatory site manager Ivo Saviane said. "We expect to see many outstanding results contributed by this project, which will expand the reach of the site for both the scientific community and the public at large."
A Virginia student watched his high school graduation ceremony from a hospital bed after a shooting left him paralyzed. Seven years later, he walked across the stage to receive his college degree.

With the help of robotic technology, Khalil Watson rose from his wheelchair on Monday and walked across the stage to receive his associates degree from Reynolds Community College in Richmond, Virginia.

It kind of felt like a dream, Watson told USA TODAY. It didnt really hit me until a couple days later after doing some reflecting on what I had to go through to get to this point.

Professors, parents and his fellow graduates all gave him a standing ovation as he made his way across the stage.

Khalil proved that anything is possible and his resiliency is an inspiration to all of us, a spokesperson at Reynolds Community College told USA TODAY.

With the help of Ekso Bionics robotic exoskeleton, Khalil Watson rose from his wheelchair and walked across the stage to receive his associates degree from Reynolds Community College.

'Nothing was going to stop me': Michigan woman walks across graduation stage while in labor

Things can always be worse than what they are

On May 26, 2016, Watson was shot in the neck after leaving a barber shop in Virginia. The gunshot wound fractured his spine and left him paralyzed from the chest down, Watson said.

The shooting happened two weeks before his high school graduation, which caused him to miss graduation and his senior prom.

I know that things can always be worse than what they are, Watson said. Thats how Im able to keep going.

He was released from the hospital on August 11, 2016, Watson said.

Another chance to walk across the stage

After Watson was discharged from the hospital, he attended two different rehab facilities including Sheltering Arms Institute in late 2016.

The following year, Watson went back to Sheltering Arms and has been there ever since.

When we started therapy after Khalils injury, he needed significant assistance for any mobility. Now, he is progressively increasing the amount of movement he can do on his own, Sheltering Arms physical therapist Christina Smith said in a news release. Every time I see him, he masters a new skill.

In 2021, Watson was introduced to Ekso Bionics exoskeleton, a wearable device that helps patients with endurance and allows them to go beyond previous limits, the company says on its website.

In 2021, Khalil Watson was introduced to Ekso Bionics robotic exoskeleton, a wearable device that helps patients with endurance and allows them to go beyond previous limits.

When Watson found out he was graduating in May, he asked his physical therapist if he could use the device to walk at graduation.

Knowing that I wasnt able to attend my graduation physically in high school just added fuel and motivated me to make sure I was able to attend it in college, Watson said.

Watson said its just the beginning. He plans to transfer to Virginia Commonwealth University in the fall, and earn a bachelors and masters degrees in social work.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Virginia student walks at graduation after shooting left him paralyzed
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LAGOS  Consumers in key African markets who depend on virtual dollar-denominated debit cards to use online services like Amazon, Spotify, and Apple Music face increasingly strict measures by providers anxious to fight fraud and preserve crucial access to the world's largest card networks.

Virtual Mastercard and Visa cards have become popular with African residents over the past five years because they are easier to sign up for, compared to physical cards linked to dollar accounts from traditional banks. The cards, accessed using smartphone apps, have come in handy in countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and Zimbabwe where central banks impose strict limits on foreign currency transactions that can be conducted with local bank cards.

But startups offering virtual cards say they have faced an increase in two types of suspicious activity in the past year that threaten their business model: transactions initiated by card holders with insufficient account balances, and dubious requests for refunds after online purchases, a scam known as chargeback fraud.

Zambian company Union54, a licensed Mastercard partner for startups that issue virtual cards in Africa, suspended its operations in October  only a year after a launch funded by $15 million raised from investors including Tiger Global  because it had to pay nearly half a million dollars in fees for declined transactions.

Pan-African fintech Chipper Cash this month said it will revoke cards belonging to excessive repeat offenders. The company complained that it had borne the burden of paying fees for its users declined transactions but will now charge offenders "to maintain the sustainability of the product." It will charge users in Nigeria a 500 naira ($1) penalty fee for transactions that fail due to insufficient balances. Payday, a U.S.-registered startup with a user base in Rwanda and Nigeria, has also introduced fees for declined transactions.

Alexander's view

The move to pass costs on to consumers marks an attempt to fix a problem that, as Union54 has shown, could pose an existential threat to some fintechs.

If we hadn't paid, we would have lost our license with Mastercard, Union54 chief executive Perseus Mlambo told Semafor Africa. The Lusaka-based company had issued 3 million virtual debit cards after just a year. But, seven months after halting operations, Mlambo's team is now considering a comprehensive strategic overhaul to continue offering the cards.

The change in business model reflects the fact that card payments are still a new technology in Africa. Only between 5% to 7% of payments are electronic or digital in Africa, a McKinsey report last year found. For a consumer in Nigeria, paying for recurring services like cable TV or utility bills entails going to a physical shop or initiating a new bank transfer each time, not by having a card that is automatically charged each time the payment is due.

That is not to overlook attempts at fraud that have slowed digital payments in general, raising the urgency for unified action by fintech players. At the same time, some of the blame lies with providers that dropped the ball on identification systems that alert them to consumers who want to abuse their systems. Union54, for example, found it difficult to track all the startups that used its software to issue cards to users, such that when those entities suddenly shut down operations, it could not follow up with them to collect fees for declined transactions.

How the startup, and its competitors like Flutterwave, address such faults remains to be seen. African fintech startups often complain about rigid constraints by regulators that prevent their products from reaching as many users as possible. But the lesson from the evolution of virtual cards so far is that uncontrolled user access in the financial services sector can be damaging to businesses.

Room for Disagreement

Focusing intently on creating the best functioning foreign currency cards for African residents to trade with the world could be diverting attention from the need to make the world be more accepting of African currencies.

Omoniyi Kolade, founder of Nigerian payments startup SeerBit, says more effort should go towards convincing Western companies that intend to increase their consumer base in Africa that their businesses are best served by not insisting on dollar card payments. "Cards are often not the popular option in African markets but one of many that should be considered," Kolade told Semafor Africa. "M-Pesa mobile money's dominance in Kenya is a typical example."

The View From KAMPALA

Stone Atwine, chief executive of Eversend which provides Visa virtual dollar cards in Uganda, thinks the long-term solution to card problems is that Africa needs its own versions of Mastercard and Visa. But it will be "an extremely difficult undertaking that takes decades and large amounts of funding. It is like wanting to colonize Mars."

Notable
BEIJING (Reuters) - Beijing's special envoy noted there was no panacea to the war in Ukraine during a visit to Kyiv earlier this week, but urged all parties to create conditions for peace talks, China's foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Special envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui visited Kyiv on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he exchanged views with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian foreign minister and other state leaders on ways to end the Ukraine-Russia conflict through a political settlement, the foreign ministry statement said.

"China is willing to promote the international community to form the greatest common denominator for resolving the Ukrainian crisis, and make its own efforts to stop the fighting and (establish a) ceasefire and restore peace as soon as possible," the statement said.

"China has always played a constructive role in alleviating the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capacity," it added.

Ukraine's foreign minister told Li on Wednesday that Kyiv would not accept any proposals to end the war that involved losing territory or freezing the conflict, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said.

Li, who is a former ambassador to Russia, will also visit Poland, France, Germany and finally Russia during a multi-day trip. He is the most senior Chinese official to visit Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022.

During Li's visit to Kyiv, bilateral relations were also discussed, and both sides agreed to work to maintain mutual respect and keep moving forward with mutually beneficial co-operation, China's foreign ministry said.

Both governments agreed that a recent phone call between President Xi Jinping and Zelenskiy had pointed out the direction for the development of relations.

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Writing by Bernard Orr; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
How can you tell someone is a Johnny Depp fan? Because they will tell you. This snide but often well-aimed joke generally reserved for vegans rings far truer for Depps dedicated fanbase. But while vegans might irritate some for harping on about their animal product abstinence, in their defence, they are helping the health of the planet.

Unfortunately, I am not sure the same can be said for Depps legion of disciples  many of whom have become infamous for relentlessly harassing anyone who disagrees with them on social media. But the spiteful vitriol spouted by the 59-year-old actors online apostles makes them no less profitable to the film industry, and perhaps they hold the key to questions that have surfaced about Depps film Jeanne du Barry which opened the Cannes Film Festival this week.

Unsurprisingly, the festivals decision to roll out the proverbial red carpet for the Pirates of the Caribbean actor has stirred controversy, with Depps detractors furious the prestigious film festival has put an alleged domestic abuser at the forefront of the event. Jeanne du Barry, in which Depp plays King Louis XV of France, is his first major movie role since millions around the world tuned in to watch his defamation trial against his former wife Amber Heard last year.

It is not hard to see why people are cross about Depps resurrection; just a quick revisit of Depps recent history in the limelight makes the decision feel not just perplexing but disturbing. This is a man who verbally abused his then-wife, Heard, in audio recordings. (He told her: Shut the f*** up  Dont f***ing pretend to be authoritative with me. You dont exist.) Depp is also a man who joked with a mate in text messages about killing Heard. In a message to Paul Bettany in 2013, before Depp and Heard were married, Depp said: Lets burn Amber. He added later: Lets drown her before we burn her!!! I will f*** her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure shes dead.

And lets not forget the venomous, highly misogynistic slurs he used to refer to Heard in texts to his ex-agent Christian Carino: 50 cent stripper and gold-digging, low-level, dime-a-dozen, mushy, pointless, dangling, overused flappy fish market being the ones which reside rent free in my mind. I wouldnt touch her with a goddam glove. I can only hope that karma kicks in and takes the gift of breath from her, he added. Or the time that Depp branded Heard a worthless hooker and joked about how he would smack the ugly c*** around in texts to an unnamed individual before he married her.

Many things emerged about Depp during the trial against his ex-wife, but among the bombshell revelations was the fact this is a man who has a way with words. Depps words were not just aggressive and disturbing but they were creatively, imaginatively, verbosely so. To recount the origins of Depps court case, the actor sued Heard back in March 2019, claiming a column she wrote for The Washington Post about domestic abuse titled I spoke up against sexual violence  and faced our cultures wrath. That has to change was defamatory and requesting $50m (44m) in damages. Heard submitted a $100m countersuit. Although the article did not include any reference to Depp, his legal team argued that the piece contained a clear implication that Mr Depp is a domestic abuser, which they maintain is categorically and demonstrably false.

After a six-week trial in Virginia, Heard was ordered to pay Depp $10m in compensatory damages and $5m in punitive damages. The seven-person jury found Heard made false statements about the pairs marriage and acted with actual malice. Meanwhile, Heard was awarded $2m, after the jury found that Depp had defamed her via his lawyer. The high-profile battle came after the High Court in London across the Atlantic ruled in 2020 that The Sun had not defamed Depp by referring to him as a wife beater. A judge described the statement as substantially true, as well as finding 12 of Heards 14 abuse accusations were proven to be substantially true.

But to return to the decision to have Depps film open the Cannes Film Festival  which received a seven-minute standing ovation  it feels a troubling choice. As a journalist with an admittedly poor knowledge of the inner machinations of the film industry, it is hard to know what paved the way for the decision without being a fly on the wall in a glass meeting of movie execs. But I do know that criticism should not only be aimed at Cannes, but at those who cast Depp in Jeanne du Barry.

No doubt those keen to have Depp at the festival will insist he is there because he is an immensely talented actor who had an unjust fall from grace, but one cant help but wonder if it is an opportunistic attempt to grab some easy, guaranteed PR for the festival. After all, Depps controversy has already found itself to be lucrative. The actor just nabbed another $20m contract for being the face of the massively popular Dior fragrance, Sauvage, which describes itself as having a smooth animal charm. Perhaps this was inevitable given sales of Dior Sauvage were actually bolstered by the US defamation trial.

Whatever you think about Depp, there is no denying the actor has a gargantuan fanbase, many of whom appear to unconditionally adore him. In their eyes, Johnny can do no wrong. He is immune from criticism and anyone who is perceived to slight him deserves vitriol. This is not a spurious statement but one based on first-hand experience, having myself fallen prey to hundreds of trolling Depp fans on Twitter.

For some, the decision to let Depp open the festival boils down to the perennial philosophical and moral question of whether you can separate the art from the artist. While this is a debate people feel intensely differently about, irrespective of which side you sit on, there is something which feels troubling about Depp soaring back to stardom as if nothing happened.

But it would be naive to think film industry insiders have the memory of goldfishes - make no mistake, they will not have forgotten the deeply disturbing details which surfaced about Depps behaviour - perhaps they just dont care. Or if they do care, this is usurped by a desire to profit from Depps throngs of followers.

The term Depp renaissance keeps popping into my head, but perhaps this is a misnomer. It implies he disappeared and has now made a comeback, but in reality it feels like he didnt go anywhere. Yes, Depp was dropped from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, but who knows, perhaps Jack Sparrow will return. Stranger things have happened. Welcome back are the two words Depp fans are writing on social media, but this implies he went away.
Voters, not Arizona lawmakers, should have the final say on killing light rail

Some lawmakers want to scale back transit investments in Maricopa County's 20-year transportation plan.

Brinkmanship this legislative session turns out to involve not the behemoth state budget but, of all things, local transportation.

Left hanging in the sessions waning days is the fate of Proposition 400, an extension of a half-cent sales tax to fund regional transportation in Maricopa County.

Or, actually, the ability for county residents to even exercise their right to vote on whether to approve extending the tax.

The stall at the statehouse has been a curiosity.

Some lawmakers want to nix light rail

Legislation enabling a public vote on Proposition 400 was passed without drama in the 2022 session, only for Gov. Doug Ducey to unexpectedly veto it days after the Legislature had adjourned.

The new set of GOP lawmakers this year decided to make hay with it, taking apart the Maricopa Association of Governments proposal with demands to change the funding percentages on public transit and nix money toward light rail expansion.

It made sense to veer out of their lane to gain a bargaining chip with the governor and Democratic leadership on budget negotiations.

Republicans won a good deal of concessions out of the budget deal, including transportation projects for their own districts.

What are they holding out for now?

Why did Hobbs leave this unresolved?

Sharper questions could be asked of Hobbs and the Democrats.

Why did they sign off on a budget agreement that leaves unresolved a proposal affecting two out of three Arizonans?

The stalemate puts in jeopardy a tax that expires at the end of 2025.

It threatens to disrupt years of transportation planning and to take Maricopa County out of the running for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants and matching funds.

What motivation would Republicans now have to cede ground, when they have an opportunity to ax light rail, which in their view is the epitome of government waste?

That is, motivation beyond the obvious: Local transportation is none of their business.

Local transportation is none of their business

Some of their ancillary complaints about the updated Proposition 400 warrant debate:

Some money would be redirected from freeways toward buses and light rail.

Money for arterial roads will now compete with undefined regional programs.

(Though it seems far-fetched to call funding for transportation-related projects such as bike lanes, pedestrian paths and lane reductions a slush fund when they would be evaluated on a set of criteria  which are defined.)

But the Legislature is neither the proper forum nor arbiter of regional transportation policy.

Failed attempt: Why Gilbert tried to block commuter rail funds

That belongs to local government and the voters they answer to.

MAG, metro Phoenix mayors and city officials have to convince voters, against the backdrop of an uncertain economy, that the half-cent transportation tax is worth extending.

That includes defending a reconfigured funding formula directing less money than before to freeways and roads and more toward subsidies for public transportation and new projects.

Let voters decide in an election year

The opposition is free to resurrect the complaint that light rail is the most expense mode of transit that serves but a tiny sliver of residents, or to raise questions about rising operational costs and declining fare revenue.

Just as supporters are free to ballyhoo the economic stimulus that light rail purportedly generates.

The best outcome Republicans could force has already been accomplished.

Duceys veto meant Maricopa County couldnt put the Proposition 400 extension on the ballot this spring, as planned.

Continuing the sales tax rightly deserves a vote during an election year, when turnout is greatest.

That can happen in 2024 only if the Legislature drops its foolish efforts to determine local policy.

Reach Abe Kwok at akwok@azcentral.com. On Twitter: @abekwok.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Light rail and local transportation are none of lawmakers' business
He waited two years for heart transplant at Jackson. With program suspended, time running out

Lyle Ryman had just arrived home from a procedure at Jackson Memorial Hospital for his weakening heart. He parked his truck and switched off the engine.

And thats the last I remember for six hours, said Ryman during a recent interview with the Miami Herald. My wife came down, found me  eyes rolled back in my head. I was drenched in sweat and shaking.

An ambulance took him to Jackson North Medical Center in North Miami Beach, where doctors diagnosed him with a blood infection, a hurdle that would temporarily downgrade him on Jacksons wait list for a new heart.

A couple of weeks later, his doctor, Dr. Anita Phancao called with worse news for the Miami Gardens veteran, who had been waiting over two years for a heart transplant at the Miami Transplant Institute, part of Jackson Health System, the taxpayer-supported public hospital network in Miami-Dade County.

All I was told was that they were suspending the program, and that I could transfer to a new hospital or wait out the suspension, Ryman said.

The Miami Transplant Institute, housed in Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, temporarily suspended its adult heart program in mid-March, upon the insistence of the nonprofit that oversees the nations organ transplant system. Both Jackson and the national group had received anonymous complaints about bad patient outcomes, including deaths and infections, after heart transplants at the institute.

Read: Probe of Jacksons suspended heart transplant program expands; top surgeon cant see patients

The complaints spurred the nations organ transplant system to send a team of experts to review the institutes program. Also deployed to examine the program were federal Medicare/Medicaid officials and state officials who oversee Florida hospitals. The institute recently overhauled its physician leadership team.

READ MORE: He died after getting a heart transplant at Jackson. His loved ones want answers

A waste of my life

Ryman was one of 15 people who was on the wait list to get a new heart at the Miami Transplant Institute when the institute suspended the program. The veteran, who was 69 at the time, chose not to be transferred to another hospital because he would be turning 70 just two weeks later and was told by his doctor that would make him ineligible to receive a new heart, he said.

Lyle Ryman, a 70-year-old veteran who was on Jacksons heart transplant wait list and is now in limbo after the Miami Transplant Institute suspended its adult heart transplant program at Jackson Memorial Hospital in mid March, shot Thursday April 27, 2023.

Phancao had told him the age limitation came from the non-profit United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which oversees transplants around the country, he said. The national organ group, however, does not impose age restrictions for organ transplants. Some hospitals accept sicker, older patients, some do not.

In a statement to the Herald, Jackson said no single factor would make a patient ineligible for a transplant. When asked whether Phancao cited an age limit, Jackson said, There is no evidence in his medical notes to indicate that. Ryman had not been removed from the transplant list and had chosen to stay with institute, Jackson said.

But as additional reporting has emerged about the heart transplant program and its problems, Ryman has become increasingly angry. He thought about the multiple infections and issues he had while seeking treatment there.

All the things that I went through were a waste of time, he said. ...A waste of my life.

Now, Ryman is researching other transplant centers, with plans to ask the VA hospital for a transfer.

Gotta be strong-minded

For Juan Llanes, family is everything. Sometimes, his grandson likes to listen to Llanes heartbeat.

It sounds different from his grandsons. Instead of ba-bump, ba-bump, Llanes heart sounds more like a machine  ba brr  because of the mechanical pump implanted in his chest.

The pump, a left ventricular assist device, also known as an LVAD, is helping keep Llanes alive while he waits for a new heart. The 65-year-old grandfather has end stage heart failure. He was a level four on the heart transplant wait list at the institute before the suspension  one being most severe, six being the least.

Hes currently inactive because of the institutes suspension of its adult heart transplant program, which means he wont be considered for a heart until the program reopens or until he transfers to another center.

Juan Llanes with his grandchildren.

Llanes has chosen to wait out the programs suspension because of how well Jacksons staff has treated him, he said. Phancao and Dr. Matthias Loebe, the former chief of the heart transplant program, were his doctors. Hes also on Jacksons wait list for a kidney.

From the very first day, they treated me so good that I cant complain, Llanes said. Besides, if I go anywhere else, I have to start from scratch. I have to go through all the screenings, all the things, and everything so its going to take longer anyway.

Llanes first signs of heart problems began with discomfort in his stomach. Then on Jan. 16, 2021, he had a heart attack at home. He was taken to the hospital, where doctors inserted a stent in his coronary artery to help restore his hearts blood flow. He went into multiple-organ failure, cardiogenic shock and was taken to Jackson, where he was placed into a medically induced coma for two weeks and on dialysis for two months.

Phancao and her staff, with consultation from Loebe, decided a heart pump was his best chance for survival. In March 2021, he underwent surgery. The next year, his doctors determined he could be a possible candidate for a heart transplant and added him to the list.

Juan Llanes doctors implanted a left ventricular assist device, or heart pump, into his chest to boost his survival chances while he waits for a heart transplant at the Miami Transplant Institute at Jackson Memorial Hospital. In mid-March, the institute suspended its adult heart transplants.

Its unclear when Jacksons adult heart transplant program will reopen. Llanes is focusing more on enjoying life with his family, rather then his placement on the list.

Ive been through hell. I died. I came back from that. Im here, I have a great family. And Im telling you, I never been afraid of anything. Ive never been afraid of anybody, he said.

Still, whenever he sees Jacksons phone number appear on his phone, he cant help but think: It [a new heart] might be here.

Its not hard, but to be able to put up with something like that, you know, you gotta be strong minded, he said.

READ NEXT: This heart pump can be a better option than a transplant. But its not for everyone

Four trips to Jackson over three years

Ryman has heart failure, but says hes otherwise healthy. Like Llanes, he was at level four on the list before the suspension.

He went to the Miami Transplant Institute at Jackson Memorial three times over the past three years, thinking he would get a new heart. His fourth visit occurred weeks before the institute suspended its adult heart transplant program.

READ NEXT: How do Florida hospitals get organs for the sickest patients in need of transplants?

For a person who needs a new heart, certain factors  distance from the donors hospital and whether a patient has a heart pump or other support device, such as an intra-arterial balloon pump  help determine their urgency status, according to the heart allocation policy of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. The balloon pump is often used as a bridge to help keep patients alive while they await a heart transplant. It usually elevates a patients status to a level 2.

Rymans first trip to Jackson was in 2022 to get the balloon pump inserted into his chest. But he said he was told he had a blood infection and could not get the pump. The infection also made him temporarily ineligible to get a heart transplant.

The second time he was brought in for the balloon procedure, he tested positive for COVID just two days later. He got the balloon pump put in while he was in isolation for two weeks, but no new heart.

Lyle Ryman, 70, sits up in bed at Jackson Memorial Hospital on Thursday, April 27, 2023. He had gone to the Miami Transplant Institute at Jackson three times over the past three years, thinking he would get a heart transplant but complications ensued. With the adult heart transplant suspended at the institute, he is weighing his options.

The third time he went to the hospital, Ryman had a catheter inserted to monitor his blood pressure and oxygen levels.

The fourth time he was at Jackson was in March, just weeks before the adult heart transplant program was suspended. He went in for an echocardiogram, where a dye is injected into his arm to allow contrast to show in a cardiogram. After he was discharged, Ryman began to shake in his truck. After a few minutes the shaking subsided, so he said he drove home. Tremors, shaking and feeling cold are side effects that can occur from the dye.

Ryman then woke up in Jackson Norths emergency room six hours later, diagnosed with a blood infection.

Medical team disagreements about what was happening to him or issues with medications prescribed by different doctors were common, he said.

But once he complained to Phancao about the medication issues  whether it was side effects or different medications interacting poorly with one another she got it sorted out, he said.

She did everything she possibly could for my medical care, Ryman said. She was always there.

Top leadership changes

Complaints about Phancao and the LVAD program are at the center of a report, reviewed by the Herald, that was sent to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid a few weeks ago. In a staff meeting last week, Jackson leaders announced an overhaul of the Miami Transplant Institutes leadership team for its heart program:

 Dr. Joshua Hare was named the new interim chief of heart failure for both Jackson and the University of Miami Health System, whose doctors staff the transplant institute. Hare, a cardiologist, is head of the University of Miamis Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute and a pioneer in stem-cell research.

 Dr. Leonardo Mulinari was named new interim chief of heart transplants. Mulinari is chief of pediatric and congenital heart surgery at UMs Miller School of Medicine and co-director of the Comprehensive Heart Center at Holtz Childrens Hospital, located at Jackson.

Read more: Jackson overhauls top staff at heart transplant program, amid patient deaths, investigations

These positions were previously held by Phancao and Loebe, respectively. The hospital did not announce the changes publicly but confirmed the shakeup to the Miami Herald, which learned of the leadership change independently.

Dr. Joshua Hare and Dr. Leonardo Mulinari are the new interim chiefs of heart failure and heart transplant, respectively.

Dr. Matthias Loebe and Dr. Anita Phancao of Jackson Health System

READ MORE: Jackson overhauls top staff at heart transplant program, amid patient deaths, investigations

What comes next

Since Ryman is a veteran and the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs oversees his care, his process is likely a bit different from other patients.

He went back to the VA and on May 1 had an electrocardiogram  which records the hearts signals to test for different conditions. The procedure was part of the process to see if he could be referred to another transplant program.

The VA has since given him the OK to transfer to another center. Hes considering switching to the heart transplant program at Cleveland Clinic Weston in Broward County or Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.

My expectations as to what Id like to see from here? Well, I guess Im going to be on medication for the rest of my life, however long that is, because Im not going to do an LVAD, said Ryman. And if somehow for some reason I could get a heart transplant, Id be all for it. Not there [at Jackson]. But if I could get a heart transplant, it could certainly extend my life and my quality of life.
XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the city of Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Xi welcomed Mirziyoyev to China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit. He recalled his state visit to Uzbekistan last September and the hospitality of Mirziyoyev.

He congratulated Mirziyoyev on Uzbekistan's recent successful referendum and the adoption of the new Constitution, which fully demonstrated the deep trust and wholehearted support of the Uzbek people for Mirziyoyev.

He expressed confidence that under Mirziyoyev's leadership, reform and opening up in Uzbekistan will enjoy broader prospects and the development of "New Uzbekistan" will yield greater outcomes.

Xi noted their joint announcement of the implementation of the vision of a community with a shared future at the bilateral level and the new characterization of the bilateral relations last September. He expressed China's readiness to work with Uzbekistan to deepen cooperation across the board and build a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future. 
Walgreens will pay another record settlement for its hand in the opioid crisis

Pedestrians walk towards a Walgreens store entrance. Two cars are parked outside.

Walgreens reached a $230 million settlement deal with San Francisco for its role in the opioid epidemic, after a landmark trial last year that found the pharmacy giant liable for fueling the crisis.



A press release published yesterday (May 17) from the San Francisco city attorneys office said that a total of $229,610,000 would be paid to the city over 14 years, with most of the funds paid over the first eight years.

Read more

Opioids have wreaked havoc across our nation leading to immense suffering and untold damage, city attorney David Chiu said in a statement. This historic agreement ensures Walgreens is held accountable for the crisis they fueled and our City receives appropriate resources to combat the opioid crisis and bring relief to our communities.

Chiu said at a press conference yesterday, quoted in Reuters, that the payout marks the biggest opioid-related settlement won by a local government in the US.

Quartz has reached out to Walgreens for comment.

One big number: $8.1 billion

The settlement agreement is just a fraction of the amount San Francisco said it needs from Walgreens to address its opioid crisis. A brief filed in October in Californias Northern District Court said the city requires an estimated $8.1 billion (pdf) paid over 15 years to implement a well-coordinated, longitudinal, multi-stakeholder abatement plan.

In November, the drugstore chain agreed in principle to pay $4.95 billion over 15 years to various state and local governments, as well as federally recognized tribes, to settle drug-related lawsuits. Litigation did take a chunk out of Walgreenss bottom line in the first quarter of fiscal 2023, resulting in a $3.7 billion loss.

Walgreens played a significant role in San Franciscos opioid crisis

The latest settlement follows a historic ruling (pdf) last August, in which US district court judge Charles Breyer found that Walgreens knowingly handed out large volumes of medically illegitimate opioid prescriptions in San Francisco, that were a substantial factor in its drug crisis.

San Francisco sued several drug manufacturers and dispensers in 2018, including Walgreens, alleging that their corporate practices flooded the city with drugs and led to a rise in opioid addiction. Since then, a series of companies, like Endo, CVS, and Walmart have agreed to settle their cases with the city for millions of dollars.

In 2013, Walgreens agreed to pay record civil penalties, at the time, of $80 million for record-keeping and dispensing violations at a distribution center and six retail pharmacies in Florida.

San Franciscos opioid crisis, by the digits

163,645,704: Opioids distributed in San Francisco from 2006-2014, enough for each person to receive 22 pills each year

478: Percent increase in the citys opioid-related deaths from 2015-2020

49: People per 100,000 in San Francisco who died from an overdose in 2020, compared to 13 in 100,000 in 2010

620: Accidental drug overdose deaths in San Francisco in 2022, a slight decrease from 640 in 2021 and 725 in 2020.

Related stories

 Minnesota is trying to prove Juul got teens addicted on vaping in a first-of-its-kind trial

 The US may make anti-overdose drug naloxone available over the counter in 2024

 Most Americans cant tell whether they are being prescribed opioids

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Click here to read the full article.
Walgreens will pay the city of San Francisco nearly $230 million after a federal judge found the company liable for contributing to the citys opioid epidemic.

The settlement, which will be paid out over 14 years, will go toward addressing the citys opioid crisis, San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu announced Wednesday.

Opioids have wreaked havoc across our nation leading to immense suffering and untold damage, he said in a statement. Cities like San Francisco have shouldered much of the burden of the opioid epidemic.

Following our win against Walgreens during the liability phase, this historic agreement ensures Walgreens is held accountable for the crisis they fueled and our City receives appropriate resources to combat the opioid crisis and bring relief to our communities, Chiu added.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer found last August that Walgreens helped fuel the opioid epidemic in San Francisco by failing to provide its pharmacists will sufficient resources and putting pressure on them to quickly fill prescriptions.

The evidence at trial established that from 2006 to 2020, Walgreens pharmacies in San Francisco dispensed hundreds of thousands of red flag opioid prescriptions without performing adequate due diligence, Breyer said in the decision.

As a result of Walgreens fifteen-year failure to perform adequate due diligence, Plaintiffs proved that it is more likely than not that Walgreens pharmacies dispensed large volumes of medically illegitimate opioid prescriptions that were diverted for illicit use and that substantially contributed to the opioid epidemic in San Francisco, he added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Lake Nona Development



Lake Nona Campus

During the post-lockdown wave back to the office, the Walt Disney Company planned on relocating employees from its theme parks and experiences Imagineering division in Southern California to a new campus in Lake Nona, Florida. Those plans are now canceled, as reported by the New York Times, with Disney effectively striking a blow back against Governor Ron DeSantis by not bringing more jobs and construction dollars to Florida.

Lets take it back to the initial plans for the move, set in motion during the rocky tenure of former CEO Bob Chapek. Disney employees cited concerns with the growing threat against LQBTIA+ families as Floridas Dont Say Gay legislation was being put in place. The companys initial reluctance to take a stand was not well-received, and neither was the expectation that 1,000 employees and their families would relocate somewhere that could potentially endanger loved ones.

Read more

About 200 employees and families have since made the move to Florida; as the Times reports, Disney Parks chair Josh DAmaro sent an email to employees saying the company will explore the possibility of moving you back. He also explained the Lake Nona plans are being terminated due to changing business conditions. Originally, the move was meant to cultivate Disneys relationship with Florida through the construction of a $1 billion office complex, which would have brought 2,000 jobs to the regionbefore DeSantis decided against the best interest of his states economy and people.

Sure, all of this is a part of a bigger political game at play, but thankfully it benefits individuals and families who might have had to leave Californiawhere LGBTQIA+ civil rights are protectedfor a state rife with legislation that actively threatens marginalized groups. Well call this a win for the voices that expressed their concerns under Iger. To top it off its sort of divine retribution too, as the news comes so soon after the May 17 birthday of the late Howard Ashman, Oscar-winning Disney composer and LGBTQIA icon.





Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, whats next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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Tacomas Commencement Bay is changing color. So are sunsets. Heres what is going on

It was hard to tell on Wednesday which was murkier in Pierce County: the skies or the water.

Wildfires burning in Alberta are pushing smoke into western Washington while unseasonably warm temperatures in the Cascades are sending sediment down the Puyallup River and into Commencement Bay.

Wildfires

While Mount Rainier was out Wednesday it appeared to be on a smoke break. The Canadian fires are layering smoke in the 10,000-15,000-foot range, said National Weather Service meteorologist Maddie Kristell

The good news is that air pollution is remaining comparatively better at sea level. Winds coming in from the Pacific should soon send the smoke on its way.

By Friday it should be scooting out of here, Kristell said.

Milky waters

The Puyallup River was the color of chocolate milk Wednesday afternoon. As sediment was filtering out, various parts of Commencement Bay looked white, blue and green.

Last weekends record-breaking heat wave accelerated glacial and snow melt on Mount Rainier and raised river levels. Further to the south on the slopes of Mount St. Helens, runoff demolished a highway bridge and trapped several motorists. They were later airlifted to safety.

Paradise was reporting a balmy 66 degrees late Wednesday afternoon. The warm weather should stick around through Saturday on the mountain with highs in the mid-60s.

Authorities in the area are reminding water lovers that ice-fed rivers remain just above freezing, even if the air temperature is summer-like.
Ethan Miller

The CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, the conglomerate that owns CNN, boasted on Thursday of the cable news networks newfound ability to get Republicans to appear on its airwaves.

Republicans are back on the air. Republicans werent on the air, David Zaslav said during an appearance at the MoffettNathanson conference. The Warner boss also claimed that he and CNN boss Chris Licht have told Republicans that appearing on CNN could help them at the ballot boxes.

During the McCarthy hearings, for those four days, we had 75 Republicans on the air, 41 went on us before they went on Fox, the WBD chief boasted. And the reason is, as Ive said, and Chris has too, to a number of them, they are not going to get one more vote on Fox News. Theyve already got that.

With CNN currently suffering near-historic low ratings, Zaslav reiterated his confidence in Licht while celebrating the recent promotion of anchor Kaitlan Collins to primetime. CNN should be where people come for the best version of the truth and for journalism, and that is what we are building, he said. We announced yesterday our new 9 oclock. Chris is rebuilding the network. Its going to take some time.

CNNs Defense of Trump Town Hall Is It Made Newsbut Did It?

At the same time, he claimed sponsors have positively reacted to the networks more centrist approach. But advertisers are interested in CNN again, Zaslav stated. They dont want to be part of an advocacy network. Weve had meeting after meeting and they say, We are with you.

Of course, his remarks come as the network is currently facing widespread backlash, both publicly and internally, for giving former President Donald Trump the opportunity to spew lies and disinformation at a disastrous town hall, which was moderated by Collins.

While Licht has defended the decision, he also scolded CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy for his emotional reporting on the anger from CNN staffers over the town hall, prompting additional fallout for Licht and the network.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour told Columbia Journalism School graduates that she publicly disagreed with Licht giving Trump a public platform to lie. Describing the event as an earthquake, she said that she hoped that your trust in us might have been shaken but not shattered, and that CNN can survive and rebuild that trust.

She also provided this parting message to the soon-to-be journalists: Be truthful, but not neutral. Bothsidesism is not always objectivity. It does not get you to the truth. Drawing false moral or factual equivalence is neither objective nor truthful.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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A water main break shut down a portion of a Shaler road overnight.

RIGHT NOW: Crews have repaired a water main line on Soose Road in Shaler Township and are now working to repair/reopen the road. The Hampton Shaler Water Authority says once water service is restored, customers may experience discolored water @WPXI pic.twitter.com/N4HTS0me2c  Lauren Talotta (@LaurenTalottaTV) May 18, 2023

According to Shaler police, Soose Road is shut down near Parker Street and Seavey Road.

The line was repaired around 6:30 a.m. and crews told Channel 11 they were working to get the road repaired.

11 News spoke with officials, who said there is no need for water buffalos at this time.

The Hampton Shaler Water Authority said that residents may notice discolored water when service is restored.

Discolored water is safe for consumption unless you have health issues, according to the water authority.

Water was shut off in the area for crews to repair the break.

As of 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Soose Road has reopened to traffic.

Our crews spoke with Shaler police Wednesday night, who said one of the homes had water in the basement. We dont know how many homes were impacted.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

TRENDING NOW:

RESULTS: 2023 Pennsylvania primary election Prince Harry, Meghan involved in near catastrophic car chase, spokesperson says Fire crews called to North Side house where 11 shot, 2 killed on Easter 2022 VIDEO: Innamorato, Dugan declare victory in Allegheny County Democratic primary races DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
This article originally appeared on Climbing

Readers, please send your Weekend Whipper videos, information, and any lessons learned to Anthony Walsh, awalsh@outsideinc.com.

Laura Tociu wasn't sure if this clip was Weekend Whipper-worthy when she submitted it, because she didn't think there were any lessons to be learned. While we wholly appreciate that she didn't want to waste our time, we also think there is no reason not to celebrate big, clean falls.

Tociu was climbing at the Tecolote Cave in El Salto, Mexico. She was getting increasingly close to sending Soul Power (5.12d), a 120-foot beast of a pitch with a steep, pumpy crux right below the chains. Realizing she didn't possess quite enough horsepower to make it to the chains with all her draws clipped, Tociu chose to skip two of them mid-crux and punch it with the rope waving between her legs.

Tociu logged nothing but air miles thanks to Tecolote's steepness and called her whip "the craziest air I've ever had." Buoyed by her positive experience during the fall, Tociu says she hopped back on the route, skipped those same two bolts, and sent without drama. Congrats!

Happy Friday, and be safe out there this weekend.

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New wetlands are seen following the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

A red vintage 1950 McCormick Farmall tractor in cherry condition has been loaded up with hay on its trailer, ferrying guests to a spot at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton to see the latest project to help both wildlife and the lakes water quality.

To a casual observer, the area is full of mud and grasses and echoes of the work that has been underway for months, part of a project that has been years in the making.

This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a solutions journalism initiative that partners news, education and media organizations to help inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake  and what can be done to make a difference before it is too late. Read all of our stories at greatsaltlakenews.org.

The wind sends ripples across a pool of standing water after a morning of brief rain followed by the sun breaking through the clouds.

In the distance you can hear the call of multiple species of birds, and Janice Gardner, conservation ecologist with the Sageland Collaborative, said that just recently, the 2-ounce bobolink, a member of the blackbird family, arrived at the preserve after a 6,000-mile journey from Argentina. Here, this tiny bird that sings a sound like R2-D2 from Star Wars, will nest, raise its young, and when its parental duties are complete, it will make the 6,000-mile trek back to Argentina.

This is the most important habitat for wildlife and its value is exponential in Utah, Gardner said.

These birds from Chile and Argentina know how to find these wetlands, on this planet, she said, a look of awe moving across her face. These wetlands are the sponge that are calming the floodwaters.

Dave Livermore, Utah director for The Nature Conservancy, and Chris Brown, the groups director of stewardship, join others in a ribbon-cutting after the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Related

The Freeport Drain

This is what happens when marbles bounce around in the consciousness of Chris Brown, who is the stewardship director of The Nature Conservancy in Utah.

The Freeport Drain of 40 acres of wetlands, celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, is the brainchild of Brown and Mike Kolendrianos, manager of the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve.

Brown said it was Kolendrianos idea to apply for some grant money from the Utah Department of Natural Resources for the Freeport Drain.

Even with the marbles bouncing around, Brown said he was skeptical because The Nature Conservancy rarely gets those kinds of grants. But the money came through, along with partners that include Big West Oil, Chevron, and others such as Davis County. An engineering firm, Equinox, also stepped up.

This is a big day, Brown said. This is something we have always wanted to do.

The water from the Freeport Drain used to just shoot directly to the Great Salt Lake. Now, it makes its way through these wetlands, which is natures purifier, removing metals, debris and garbage.

Related

The drain is a gift that keeps on giving, Brown explained. So I think its gonna be a real, great asset for that. So it just keeps giving life to the preserve, its bringing birds but it also brings gifts.

He held up a small stuffed gorilla toy and an Elmo figurine he presented to a pair of guests.

One thing we get out here is a lot of stormwater and we used to get a lot of tailwater from agriculture, he said. But the farms are starting to go away so were losing a lot of that free water we used to get back in the day when they would irrigate the crops. So we looked at ways to try and store some of the stormwater again.

Brown added these wetland projects are not about boosting the ailing levels of the lake.

Dont get me wrong, were not trying to offset the loss of the Great Salt Lake. Were trying to create something no matter what size it is to kind of create some stable area, some stable habitat for some of these birds when they come through along the lake.

The wetlands are natures great cleanser, putting a scrub brush to urban runoff to rid it of many of its impurities, boosting the water quality of the Great Salt Lake.

Visitors walk around the new wetlands following the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

The hallmarks of this site are foresight, generosity and persistence, explained Dave Livermore, Utah director of The Nature Conservancy.

The first land purchase for the preserve happened in 1984 with an eye for not only helping the tens of thousands of birds that rest here as part of the route along the Pacific Flyway, but for improving quality life for Utah residents with open space.

Over the years, 61 transactions have been stitched together and $27 million have been invested to form the 4,400-acre preserve, a chunk of land on the eastern shores of the Great Salt Lake.

We are not preserving nature from people but for people and all living things, Livermore said.

Utahs Central Park

Livermore recalled a conversation he had years ago with a Davis County commissioner about his vision for a preserve and why the organization wanted to preserve something that, at the time, was so far away from any development.

He said the commissioner told him, Oh, youre building the Central Park of Davis County.

Livermore said that is true in some fashion.

Its not quite a good analogy because this is a nature preserve, not a recreational facility. But nonetheless, the same way that Central Park is about the quality of life and enriches people in New York, it also helps the economy. Id like to argue that the shoreland preserve has preserved the quality of life in Davis County, around the lake and also the economy.

Dave Livermore, The Nature Conservancy director in Utah, left, leads a tour of the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Preserving the preserve has not been without its challenges. Development is all around, there is money in precious demand to build up these wetlands and stabilize uplands for the birds who visit. Its a far out place many residents may not know about, and some may simply pass by with a critical eye to the acres upon acres of space that appear devoid of usable land in this modern area.

But Davis County Commissioner Randy Elliott said the preserve is critical to not only the county, but the state as a bastion of preserved land to be enjoyed for years to come.

We know that we have a lot of growth coming to Davis County and we knew that growth was coming and so we, Davis County, are welcome to help in any way we can. We only have 11,000 developable acres left in Davis County, he said. Were the second smallest county in the state, but we have one of the largest populations and so we dont have much land left. Being able to preserve that is tremendous.

That commitment is ingrained in him as a Farmington native who comes from a tradition of ranching and farming.

Whatever we can do we will continue to do that in Davis County as long as Im in office. We will continue to do that because I love this and this is what brings people out to enjoy nature and connect again with Mother Earth because it is a beautiful, beautiful thing that we have here to enjoy, he said.

Chris Brown, director of stewardship with The Nature Conservancy, speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

The Nature Conservancy Director of Stewardship Chris Brown speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Janice Gardner, a conservation ecologist with the Sageland Collaborative, speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

New wetlands are seen following completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Davis County Commissioner Randy Elliott speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News
United States Supreme Court Building

Credit - Getty Images

The biggest headlines about the Supreme Court typically involve one of two subjects: the major substantive rulings the Justices hand down each spring (like the decisions to eliminate a federal constitutional right to abortions and expanding a federal constitutional right to keep and bear arms in June 2022); and the confirmation process for new Justices (like the successful nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson to succeed Stephen Breyer in February 2022). Indeed, a casual observer might draw the impression that these are the two contexts in which the Court plays its biggest role.

The reality is far more complicated. By volume, each years substantive rulings make up only a tiny sliverroughly 1%of the Supreme Courts overall docket. Most of the Courts work comes through unsigned, unexplained, and opaque orders that, in 2015, a University of Chicago law professor William Baude dubbed the shadow docket. And although such orders are as old as the Supreme Court, for most of the Courts history, its effects were limited. Americans could reasonably ignore itand we did. Until now.

Since 2017, the Courts new conservative majority is using these inscrutable orders to intervene far more often than ever before in some of the most controversial issues our country faces. From abortion to asylum; from elections to executions; from COVID-19 vaccinations to the Clean Water Act, and from redistricting to religion, the Court is regularly usingand abusingthe shadow docket in ways that directly affect all of us.

Take, for example, the 2022 midterms. After two different federal trial courts had ordered Alabama to redraw its congressional districtsto create a second majority-minority district out of seven in a state in which 28% of the population identifies as Blackthe Supreme Court froze those rulings through an unsigned, unexplained order in February 2022. No majority opinion explained why the lower courts were wrong; the Court just acted by fiat.

History repeated four months later, when the Court likewise put back into effect the congressional district maps drawn in Louisianaafter multiple lower courts had blocked those, as well. Those two rulingsand their effectsmeant that somewhere between five and 10 House seats in the 2022 election were safe Republican seats rather than competitive (or safe Democratic seats). And given that Republicans won the House by five seats, that means that the Republican majority might not just be a result of Supreme Court rulings, but of Supreme Court rulings that provided no analysis or explanation.

And in April 2022, the Court put back into effect a Trump-era regulation that reduced pollution limits for certain power plants after a federal judge had blocked it five months earlier. Although the district court had provided a lengthy explanation for why the rule was unlawful, five of the Courts nine Justices voted to stay the district courts injunctionagain, with no explanation. The lack of explanation was especially problematic, as Justice Elena Kagan pointed out in her dissent, because there was no evidence that the injunction had caused the kind of irreparable harm that the Court has said is a prerequisite for obtaining such relief.

Whats telling about both of these rulings is that Chief Justice John Roberts joined the three Democratic appointees in dissent both times. For him, the issue wasnt whether the lower courts were correct; it was that the Court is generally not supposed to freeze a lower court ruling pending appeal absent extraordinary circumstances, and those circumstances were noticeably lacking both times. Roberts thus went out of his way to flag that his fellow conservatives were taking unjustified procedural shortcutsand werent deigning to explain why.

These two rulings are not outliers. Similarly unexplained rulings from the Court allowed Texass controversial six-week abortion ban to go into effect in September 2021; blocked an array of blue state COVID mitigation measures throughout 2021; cleared the way for all 13 of the federal executions carried out in the last six months of the Trump administration (including seven in which lower courts had blocked the executions); and allowed President Trump to carry out an array of controversial immigration policies that no court ever actually upheld as legal. Almost overnight, the shadow docket thus became at least as significant in the effects it produced as the Courts more substantive rulings on its merits docket.

Read More: Texas Abortion Law Could Worsen the States Maternal Mortality Rate

A common retort from the Courts conservative defenders (and some of the Justices themselves, including Justice Samuel Alito in a September 2021 speech at Notre Dame Law School) is that these rulings are nothing new under the sunthat the Court hasnt changed any of its behavior in these kinds of cases, and that resolving these kinds of emergency appeals without full briefing, oral argument, or detailed explanations is consistent with its historical approach.

Those defenses are simply wrong. The Court in the past six years has repeatedly acted in ways that differ in both kind and degree from how it dealt with emergency appeals in the pastintervening more often to both undo lower-court rulings and directly block government action; doing so in ways that have far broader impacts on all of us than, for instance, deciding whether a particular execution in a particular state can go forward; and treating these unsigned, unexplained orders as precedents for future rulings. More fundamentally, the Justices behavior bespeaks an indifference to those departuresand their implicationsthat have grave long-term implications for public confidence in the integrity of the Court. As Justice Kagan put it in dissenting from the September 2021 Texas abortion ruling, the Courts recent use of the shadow docket every day becomes more unreasoned, inconsistent, and impossible to defend.

And, as Chief Justice Robertss votes underscore, criticism of the shadow docketas opposed to the headline-generating substantive rulingsdoes not neatly sort the Justices into their ideological camps. Instead, deeper appreciation of what the shadow docket is and how it was used historically only underscores how its being abused todayand why liberals and conservatives alike should be alarmed by the Courts behavior regardless of the bottom lines the Justices are reaching.

But even for those who are less troubled by the Justices behavior, what cant be gainsaid is the importance of paying more attention to what happens on the shadow docket; its impossible to fully understand the Court today, and the power it exercises, without it.
White House negotiators are willing to make some concessions to tighten work requirements for federal cash aid as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling.

The negotiators are narrowing in on possible changes that would further restrict access for low-income Americans to the emergency aid program known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, according to two people familiar with the talks, who were granted anonymity to discuss internal conversations. Republicans are also pressing the White House team to agree to expanded work requirements for some adults without children receiving food assistance, which Biden didnt rule out in comments he made to reporters on Wednesday.

An agreement on new restrictions on those federal aid benefits could be a breakthrough on one of the major remaining sticking points in the negotiations to raise the debt limit, which the U.S. risks breaching as early as June 1. But even small concessions on either program would cause a major uproar within the presidents own party, and changes to SNAP in particular could cause a revolt in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Biden first said publicly that hes open to some additional restrictions on government aid for low-income Americans while speaking with reporters in Delaware on Sunday. His remarks caught many Democrats on Capitol Hill and even some White House officials off guard  leaving key congressional allies scrambling to try to hold the line against any changes to the requirements, which are anathema to most of their caucus.

The presidents comments emboldened Republicans, however, as did Bidens statement to reporters Wednesday that some work requirement changes were on the negotiating table, but not anything of consequence.

White House officials have tried to clarify those comments, and the president, himself, warned in a tweet on Monday that, The House Republican wish list would put a million older adults at risk of losing their food assistance and going hungry.

In a statement, White House assistant press secretary Michael Kikukawa said, If you are serious about reducing the deficit, the Presidents proposal to cut $30 billion dollars in oil and gas subsidies  to companies that made over $200 billion dollars in profits last year  is a better place to start rather than cutting aid to the neediest Americans.

The president, however, continues to open the door to negotiations, giving GOP lawmakers hope they can secure something on work requirements, which House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has labeled a red line for any deal.

McCarthy on Thursday sounded a newly optimistic note on the debt limit talks with the White House, telling reporters, I see the path that we can come to an agreement. And I think we have a structure now and everybodys working hard.

"I do think it's a good point in the conversation," said Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) in an interview, referring to possible work requirement expansions. "I know it's real important to many people on my side of the aisle, and it's great that the President agrees."

Democrats, meanwhile, are still holding out hope that Biden won't support the GOP push to expand work requirements and other restrictions for low-income Americans to receive emergency cash assistance under TANF and food aid from SNAP. They believe that Republicans are reading too much into the presidents latest comments.





I don't think he really is open to that. I think he shares my concerns, Sen. Debbie Stabenow, the No. 3 Senate Democrat, said in an interview. The Michigan senator, who is retiring after this term, added she was sharing those concerns with the White House directly.

Stabenow, who chairs the Senate Agriculture Committee that oversees SNAP, briefly discussed the GOP plans to expand work requirements in SNAP , the countrys leading anti-hunger program, with Biden during a private meeting on the farm bill last week, according to four people familiar with the conversation. She also gently pushed back when Republican Rep. G.T. Thompson of Pennsylvania defended to the president his partys plans to increase work requirements for key government aid to the president, as Thompson argued they would help, not hurt, low-income families.

Democrats argue that raising the age limit for so-called able-bodied adults without dependents who need to work to receive food assistance could cause nearly 1 million Americans to go hungry. But they privately acknowledge that theyve struggled to explain to the American people whats at stake, and what stricter work requirements actually mean for low-income families  especially as Republicans tout public polling that shows the moves are popular with voters.

McCarthy said Thursday that if Biden doesnt want to make changes of consequence to current work requirement programs, as the president said Wednesday, he wants to borrow more money from China to pay an able-bodied person, who had no dependents, not even to look for a job, not even go to school for 20 hours.

It's very disingenuous to include the term able-bodied individuals, countered Rep. Jahana Hayes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Agriculture subcommittee overseeing SNAP. We really need to be more clear about who those people are we're talking about. I think that a person with mental illness still deserves to eat in this country, she said, adding homeless veterans would also be hit by the GOP moves.

Moderate Democrats, including Rep. Jim Costa (D-Calif.), have been hesitant to outline specific concessions. But their considerations on possible moves much more closely resemble the presidents statements than those of their progressive colleagues. Asked whether he could accept smaller changes to TANF, and maybe even SNAP, in order to head off bigger concessions, Costa replied: Possibly, it depends what they are. He noted both programs are critical anti-poverty programs.

Another Democratic lawmaker said the work requirement proposals coming out of a GOP-controlled House could have been much worse and critical aid programs could be facing steeper restrictions.

They represent a growing number of Democrats who say they are privately open to further restricting how states can spend TANF funds, if theyre forced to do so.

The notion of any work requirement concessions in general faces widespread backlash in the House, where Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is under immense pressure to head off any such moves. But the effort to protect SNAP at all costs among Democrats is raising some eyebrows  since the TANF changes Republicans are pushing would restrict key aid for people with children in their house while the SNAP changes wouldnt.

Asked about Biden appearing open to some concessions on work requirements in debt talks, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), a key anti-hunger crusader in the House, replied flatly: Well, Im not open to any.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the chair of the House Progressive Caucus whose members fiercely oppose any movement on work requirements in the debt talks, slammed Republicans for hostage taking.

She described Bidens comments as confusing after he appeared to walk back statements from earlier this week.

But look, I have been clear  that is a nonstarter with us, Jayapal said.
KAMPALA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Uganda on Thursday hailed its tripartite cooperation with China and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) under the South-South cooperation framework.

David Kasura Kyomukama, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, said various poverty alleviation projects have been implemented in rural Uganda.

Kyomukama, while meeting a visiting delegation from the College of International Development and Global Agriculture of China Agricultural University, said through the third phase of the FAO-China-Uganda South-South Cooperation Project, the ministry is collaborating in the value chains of foxtail millet, dairy, hybrid rice, aquaculture and poultry.

"Through this cooperation, we have picked good lessons from the People's Republic of China, one of the leading producers of foxtail millet. Foxtail millet can be harvested 80 to 90 days after sowing with an average yield of 1,000 to 1,200 kg per acre," said the permanent secretary.

Kyomukama said experts from Uganda and the Chinse team are working together to develop at least two value-added products from foxtail millet, establish at least three demonstration sites, and support at least 500 small-scale foxtail millet farmers.

FAO, Uganda and China early this year launched the third phase of the FAO-China-Uganda South-South Cooperation project.

In the new phase, the project will reach more than 9,600 beneficiaries across 20 districts, including about 7,000 small-scale crop farmers of mainly rice and foxtail millet, 1,000 livestock farmers and hundreds of fish farmers in the eastern, western and northern parts of the country. 
Republican Rep. Jeff McNeely interrupted Democratic Rep. Abe Jones, who is Black, to question whether his athletic or minority status contributed to his educational achievements.

A white North Carolina lawmaker apologized for asking his Black colleague a racially motivated question about his educational achievements during a heated exchange on the House floor Wednesday.

According to The News & Observer, Rep. Jeff McNeely, a Stony Point Republican and a member of the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus, interrupted Raleigh-based Democratic Rep. Abe Jones, who is Black, amid a discussion about an education bill that would extend the requirements for North Carolina Opportunity Scholarships.

McNeely started his question by noting Jones public school education before attending Harvard University and Harvard Law.

During a heated exchange Wednesday on the House floor at the North Carolina Capitol in Raleigh, Rep. Jeff McNeely, a white lawmaker, interrupted a Black colleague, Rep. Abe Jones, to question whether his athletic or minority status contributed to his educational successes. (Photo: Adobe Stock)

And the question I guess, is, he continued, according to The News & Observer, would you have been able to maybe achieve this if you were not an athlete or a minority or any of these things, but you were a student trapped in a school 

McNeely continued, making a reference to the slowest gazelle in the wild, when House Democratic leader Robert Reives intervened and raised a point of order, saying he hoped he wasnt the only one taken aback by the remark as he sought clarification from the Republican representative.

I did not say that, McNeely replied, The News & Observer reported. I said, would that, did that end up being one of the reasons? I do not know that. I asked him this.

Added McNeely: I apologize, and Ill refrain.

Jones replied that he didnt know the answer to McNeelys question but pointed out that he ranked in group two on Harvards five-point scale. So I earned my place, he added, and I did well.

McNeely kept his word and personally apologized to Jones before the meeting ended, alleging lawmakers misinterpreted his words.

Jones accepted McNeelys apology. I assume he didnt mean any harm to me, he said.

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The post White North Carolina lawmaker apologizes after asking Black colleague racist question appeared first on TheGrio.
Barbara Walters and Whoopi Goldberg

Whoopi Goldberg is going viral with a surprising story she shared on The View. As she and her colleagues were talking about a Missouri teacher who went recently viral for using the N-word multiple times in his classroom, Goldberg said she once dared the late Barbara Walters, who created The View in 1997, to use the racial slur. We used to have this conversation every couple of months on this show because Barbara would pose that same question: Well, why cant I say it?' the 67-year-old EGOT winner said. I said, Well, go ahead and do it. See what happens.'

The View co-host Sunny Hostin chimed in, saying no person of any race should be allowed to use the N-word. A lot of folks in the African American community believe that by using it, theyre reclaiming that word. I dont have that belief, she said. My belief is that it should not be used because its a racial slur, by anyone.

In 2011, Walters received backlash when she said the N-word while discussing a controversial story involving Rick Perry, who was the governor of Texas at the time. According to a report from The Washington Post published that same year, Perrys family had named their hunting camp N****rhead. When Walters repeated the offensive name on-air, she faced backlash from former The View co-host Sherri Shepherd, Decider reported. I heard you say it, and it was fine. You said it a different way, she said to Goldberg at the time of airing before going on to condemn Walters. When I heard you say it, I didnt like the way you said it. I know, its a semantics thing. But theres something that goes through my body.

Walters was seemingly offended by Shepherds comment. Its because Im white that I shouldnt use the word? she responded. So, no white person should use that word? Im repeating what was on the rock.

Goldberg once again made it clear that there are consequences when non-Black people utter the N-word. Whenever people who are not Black say this to me, Why cant I say it? I always say, Go ahead. You know, I might not punch you out, but somebody else might, she said. But, thats up to you to find out. If youre not interested in finding out what happens if you do say it, I suggest you dont say it and just keep moving on with other things.
Senator Dianne Feinstein Returns To The Senate Judiciary Committee

Senator Dianne Feinstein attends a Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing at the Hart Senate Office Building on May 11, 2023 in Washington, DC Credit - Kent NishimuraLos Angeles Times via Getty Images

This article is part of The D.C. Brief, TIMEs politics newsletter. Sign up here to get stories like this sent to your inbox.

The news of ailing Senator Dianne Feinsteins return to Washington this week crackled through Capitol Hill aides messaging apps, journalists note-trading clouds, and donors inboxes. The oldest member of the Senate had come back to work after almost three months away, recovering from illnessesses that werent entirely disclosed during her absence, and she looked markedly older than when she had left. The senior Senator from California was back, but was she really?

Theres nothing Washington likes better than second-guessing, and the Feinstein situation was no different. The 89-year-old icon has made clear, at least for the moment, that she would ignore the merciless drumbeat of calls for her to cede the seat immediately to someone who can discharge the duties more consistently.

As The D.C. Brief wrote last week, Feinstein is giving a masterclass in how to mangle a legacy in what could be its final chapter. And yet, that verdictalong with dozens of others like it emerging from D.C. and around the country in recent daysmay have missed the point.

Heres an updated take that will undoubtedly draw some objections: Feinstein holding the seat until the election next year may be the most responsible thing she can do in case of one possible, albeit unlikely, scenario: a vacancy on the Supreme Court. In indulging her stubbornness, her ego, her paranoiawhatever we want to call itFeinstein may be what stands between a 6-to-3 conservative Supreme Court majority tilting to a 7-to-2 position, or the key to it shifting back to 5-4. Either of those outcomes would be one liberals may regret not having taken more seriously.

The reason why Feinstein holds all this power is tied to her seat on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Democrats have an 11-to-10 advantage over Republicans on the panel, giving them zero margin for error in advancing President Joe Bidens nominees for lifetime appointments to federal courts, including the Supreme Court. A tied 10-to-10 vote, at least under the current rules, leaves those nominees potentially stuck in limbo. Whenever shes absent, Feinstein leaves Democrats on the committee with an insufficient 10 votes.

So one might argue that all that is more reason for Feinstein to resign, and let a younger, healthier Democrat take over her spot on the committee. But thats not what would be guaranteed to happen. Even if Feinstein were to leave her seat early, allowing California Gov. Gavin Newsom to appoint an interim lawmaker until after the 2024 election, there is nothing ensuring that that successor could be the 11th vote on Judiciary. Committee assignments are part of the start of every Congress, and changes are subject to 60 votes if some lawmakers object and demand a recorded vote. That means 10 Republicans would have to allow Democrats to either send Feinsteins replacement or another lawmaker into that role. There is scant evidence that Republicans would accede to that request.

Need proof? In April, the Senate considered Feinsteins request that she be allowed to step away from Judiciary for a beat, and to allow another Democrat to take her seat. The effort, clearly heading to defeat, wasnt even put to a floor vote. Even in a body known for its cordiality across party lines, Republicans saw the ability to confirm nominees to lifetime gigs in robes and wielding gavels as more important than courtesy to an ailing colleague. Were not going to help the Democrats with that, Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa said.

Fellow Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah was even more transparent about his partys intentions: I dont think Republicans are going to lift a finger in any way to get more liberal judges appointed, so whether shes resigned or leaves temporarily from the Judiciary Committee, I think we will slow walk any process that makes it easier to appoint more liberal judges, he said.

Bad juju? Arguably. Good politics? Probably, especially if youre a partisan wearing a red jersey.

By an objective measure, Feinsteins best days are behind her. She made a name for herself as a fierce advocate for her ideals, an independent mind who famously defied the intelligence agencies and a President from her party. Yet Feinstein has been coasting on her reputation for some time. Even her biggest defenders will acknowledge she has missed a beat, and her friendsespecially her female ones, to whom she has been a role model and mentorhave found her brushback frustrating. Her ability to effectively advocate for the state of California is questionable.

Feinsteins choice is hers alone. While the 25th Amendment provides a mechanism from removing an unfit Presidenta process considered by Donald Trumps own Cabinet after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrectionthere is nothing that provides for the ousting of a sitting Senator for incapacitation. Of the 15 Senators in history to be booted from their gigs, 14 of them were Confederate supporters and the final one was for treason. The last time Senators even considered such moves was in 1995, and Sen. Bob Packwood resigned in the face of abuse of power and sexual misconduct allegations. (He later found redemption as a high-powered lobbyist.)

For more than a year, the rumble about Feinsteins age and fitness in the job has been growing. When she was hospitalized in February for shingles, Democrats accepted that they were in a holding pattern until Feinstein could recover and resume her unapologetic pursuit of an agenda she sees as righteous.

But Feinstein, outwardly, hasnt seemed to recover. Her return came via wheelchair, her face frozen, and her mind seemingly distracted. It has now come out that her shingles has spread to her face and neck, leaving her vision and balance impaired. Her face is, for now, paralyzed. Swelling in her brain brought on by post-shingles encephalitis could lead to difficulties walking, talking, remembering, or sleeping.

When she met with reporters on Tuesday, after casting a vote while standing on her own, she appearedat bestconfused. When a reporter asked how she was being welcomed back by colleagues, she said she had never been away. No, I havent been gone, she said. You should follow theI havent been gone. Ive been working, she continued. So working from home, then? No, Ive been here. Ive been voting, she said. Please. You either know or dont know.

Clearly, this is not serving Feinsteins legacy well, at least not at the moment. But there is an argumenta cynical, craven, dark one, to be fairthat can be made that Feinstein is playing the long game. Should an opening on the Supreme Court come to pass, a Feinstein-free Senate may not be able to do anything until 2025. That could push that decision beyond Bidens reach and potentially into the hands of a Republican President should Biden lose his re-election bid. (Remember: Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell held up Barack Obamas pick for the high court, Merrick Garland, for 293 days.) The 2024 Senate map is about as hostile for Democratic incumbents as weve seen in some time, meaning their continued control of the chamber is far from assured, too.

To be clear, no one expects a Supreme Court retirement is imminent. The three Democratic-nominated Justices range from ages 52 to 68, and the six Republican-tapped onesages 51 to 74are expected to stay in office until they can have a GOP President to nominate their successor. The Supreme Courts average age right now is 62 years old, but the unexpected is what roils Washington.

So it comes down to whether Democrats can quiet their churn about a less-than-lion Feinstein in the seat in case they can get a high court pick and Republicans hold the line, or whether they sabotage themselves in pursuit of doing what they see as the right thing. The record here should give Democrats little reason to show swagger.

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Why does Putin need Bakhmut, and what did the drone attack on the Kremlin change

Putin on May 9 next to Presidents Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan and Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan behind him

Read also: Chechen fighters believe Russia may collapse sooner or later

From the experience of the Chechen wars, it is known that Russians always support their authorities regarding their perceived personal safety.

There was quite a serious effort to get at least some foreign leaders to be guests at the May 9 Victory Day parade. And as a result, obviously, they could invite only those who did not have the opportunity to refuse. Did Kazakh leader Tokayev not have the opportunity to refuse? Does he not understand his reputational losses when he appears in the May 9 parade with Putin? Tokayev surely understood his reputational losses when he invited STO troops to Kazakhstan last January; when he said there was an external attack on Kazakhstan.

Tokayev is a politician who knows how to balance reputational losses and political priorities. This is not some kind of big news. On the one hand, he can vote in the UN in a way that Russia will not like. But, on the other hand, he may turn a blind eye to the tools that allow Russia to circumvent Western sanctions. This is a traditional policy of the Kazakh leadership both during the time of Nursultan Nazarbayev and that of Kasym-Zhomart Tokayev. I would even say that Nursultan Nazarbayev was more cautious in implementing this strategy because he was historically a more independent political figure.

Read also: Russia complaints to UN about Ukrainian spy chiefs 'hate speech'

Is Tokayev, after the events of January 2022, always indebted to Putin? In politics, you cannot always be in debt. You choose your opportunities. If possibilities allow, you can refuse the debt. Or you can overestimate your capabilities.

As you remember, Viktor Yanukovych believed that he was in debt to Vladimir Putin, who always supported him and helped him come to power. And on the other hand, he could sign the Association Agreement with the European Union to get more Western money for the existence of his regime. And we remember how this reassessment of his capabilities ended for Yanukovych. The situation is almost the same with Tokayev.

Read also: If Kyiv fell, Putin would have invaded Kazakhstan next, official says

Recently, news broke that Russia allegedly offered its own gas to Kazakhstan at a price possibly even lower than it provided to Belarus.

In exchange, Kazakhstan wants Russia to build a gas pipeline to pump Russian gas to China. Kazakhstan can afford cheap Russian gas because it can live without it. Therefore, the issue of this gas pipeline will not be related to the fact that Kazakhstan may or may not be afraid of falling into Russia's economic trap, but relates more to Chinas energy needs. Here, not only Putin and the heads of Russia's Gazprom, but also Xi Jinping and the heads of Chinese energy companies, must talk to Tokayev.

Did the drone attack on the roof of one of the Kremlin towers change anything? If it was a Ukrainian special operation, that's one story. If the Russians were cooking it themselves, that's another. It is obvious that to mobilize Russian society, they must demonstrate that there is no safety anywhere and that the only way out of the situation for every Russian citizen is to win the war. This is not a bad sign.

Read also: Russia's Defense Ministry braces for major defeat in Ukraine, expert says

I think that, as Russia's military defeats continue, there will be more and more such signs in order to accustom Russian society to full-fledged, long-term military mobilization. From the experience of the Chechen wars, it is known that Russians always support their authorities regarding their perceived personal safety. If it is not possible to provide security even for Putin, then obviously, there is no security for an ordinary person in a residential area of Moscow. It is a symbol of danger.

The average Russian does not think much about the Kremlin or the State Duma. But if something can hit the center of power, then it is clear that he alone cannot hope for anything at all. If Ukrainians can get to the Kremlin, they can definitely get to his cowshed or Khrushchevka. And nothing will stop them.

This is precisely how Russian propaganda spoke about Chechnya.

Therefore, the only possibility for the average Russian to feel at ease in his bed is the cessation of the existence of the Ukrainian state. I am simply reconstructing their thoughts and intentions from the recent past. And it worked.

What Bakhmut means to the Putin power vertical depends on their plans for the future and what Bakhmut was to them. Did they consider Bakhmut simply as an ideal place to grind the human reserves of the Ukrainian Armed Forces? Did they consider Bakhmut a key to capturing the Donetsk region within its administrative borders?

From a strategic point of view, coming to Bakhmut and its complete capture does not provide such apparent opportunities for occupying other cities of the Donetsk region. Therefore, I am still inclined to think that the Russians hoped that Bakhmut would be the place where they would destroy the Ukrainian military and thus prevent the Ukrainian Armed Forces from launching an offensive against Russian positions.

Read also: 3rd Assault Brigade conducts successful advance on western outskirts of Bakhmut

The fact that "Wagnerians" are generally fighting in Bakhmut, and other parts of the Russian Armed Forces are elsewhere, preparing for the Ukrainian offensive or developing some other plans, possibly for an offensive of Russian troops in other Ukrainian regions, suggests that Bakhmut was not a priority target for the Russian army. They also used Bakhmut to grind Yevgeny Prigozhin's reserves. This is also part of the struggle in the power structures of the Russian Federation for a place near the throne.

The public quarrel between the leader of the Wagner Group, Prigozhin, and the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation, Shoigu, means restoring the position of a court jester, traditional for the Russian authorities. Russian rulers always wanted someone who could shout, scare, and grab beards while having no real political will and influence on actual decisions. It is enough to read the history of any Russian government to find such a fool. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that these foolish actions sometimes gained enormous influence, but only when the monarch wanted it. Without the monarch, they mean nothing.

Read also: No path to Russian presidency for Prigozhin, expert says

One way or another, Evgeny Prigozhin plays precisely such a role in this vertical of power. His attempts to fight with St. Petersburg Governor Beglov for some of his own business projects, for example, always ended in complete defeat.

This appears to be the recent story with the Bakhmut ultimatum. First, he promised that his mercenaries would leave Bakhmut on May 10. Then he said he had already got everything he needed and would not go anywhere. We understand this is a simple attempt to keep face. They simply called him and said: "Zhenya, sit where you sit and don't... well, you understand." And he quickly wrote down another statement.

Then there are the assassinations or deaths of various propagandists. For the top propagandists like Solovyov, it means nothing. In a totalitarian state, anyone can die at any time. If you remember the 1930s in the Soviet Union, members of the Politburo of the Party Central Committee were killed, not just propagandists. They also died; we just don't remember it.

Read also: Medvedev hints suspect in attempt on life of propagandist Prilepin could be taken out

Regarding Prilepin. In general, it is a strange situation when a person who has a driver suddenly takes his seat, and the driver is in the passenger seat. And this same person takes his daughter out of the car five minutes before the explosion. We are most likely dealing with a staging that was needed for something.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Why kids in this new Bluffton development likely wont go to school across the street

It is part of the new American dream. Buy a house in a nice development and send your children across the street to the neighborhood elementary school.

It is a dream until it doesnt happen.

Student overcrowding will likely prevent children in a new Bluffton community from attending the elementary school less than a mile away.

New Riverside Village, planned at the southeast corner of New Riverside Road and S.C. 46, is expected to have 174 residential units. Its website advertises that children can attend Pritchardville Elementary, a three minute drive across May River Road. While this would normally be the case, Pritchardville Elementary is over capacity. Students living at New Riverside Village will likely be bused about seven miles away to Bluffton Elementary, according to preliminary conversations by the school board.

Its putting us in a tough situation, Board Member Rachel Wisnefski said at the meeting Tuesday night. When these people move into these homes they get this expectation that theyre going to be zoned for that school. Thats not our policy.

New Riverside Village, planned at the southeast corner of New Riverside Road and S.C. 46, is expected to have 174 residential units.

The discussion will go back to the board operations committee and then be voted on in a future board meeting, though they didnt say when. Currently, five neighborhoods in the schools normal attendance zone have students bused to Bluffton Elementary School.

There shouldnt be an issue with students in New Riverside Village attending their normally zoned middle and high school: H.E. McCracken Middle School and May River High School, according to Chief Operations Officer Robert Oetting.

Construction for New Riverside Village began in 2021, but there isnt any indication of when residents will move into the townhouses.

Pritchardville Elementary School is listed as a New Riverside Village area highlight.

New Riverside Village representatives didnt immediately respond to phone calls for comment.

Overcapacity

From 2010 until the last U.S. Census report in 2021, Blufftons population has increased by over 150% from 12,530 to 31,191, and the district is reacting to the population growth. In the Bluffton area, Pritchardville Elementary opened in 2010 and River Ridge Academy opened in 2015.

(Busing the students) is not something wed like to do because (the development) is so close to Pritchardville, Oetting said. But we need to do something to give some relief to Pritchardville from the overcrowding.

Pritchardville Elementary School is currently at 126% building capacity without considering its mobile units, and 87% building capacity considering mobiles. For program capacity, which considers curriculum and program offerings, its at 161% capacity.

Students will likely take the bus from New Riverside Village to Bluffton Elementary, despite Pritchardville Elementary being across the street.

Bluffton Elementary, where the students will be bused to, is at 77.4% building capacity and 84% program capacity.

Students who already attend Pritchardville Elementary shouldnt be worried about getting re-zoned, according to Oetting. He said the school board can only change attendance zones for areas without people already living in them.

If there are residents living there then its off the table at that point, he said.

Another option instead of busing students would be to add more mobile classrooms. The school has fourth and fifth-grade mobile buildings, installed in 2018 and 2022. The fourth grade building has six classrooms and the fifth grade building has eight classrooms.

According to Oetting, it would be more expensive to add mobiles than to bus the students to Bluffton Elementary, especially because there are already similar bus routes servicing nearby communities. He also said that Pritchardville Elementary doesnt have much more room for mobile classrooms.

Pritchardville Elementary attendance zone.

Typically the school district finds out about new buildings and potential student influxes from zoning notifications developers submit to the town or the county, according to Oetting.

He said theyve tried to reach out to New Riverside Village multiple times to understand when they can expect students from the development to be in schools, but havent received any response.

We need to talk to them about removing or putting an asterisk on their advertising pamphlets where they list the schools theyll be going to because thats not for certain, Oetting said.
Victory Day Parade Takes Place In Red Square

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) wavesas Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev (2R) looks on while visiting the Victory Day Red Square Parade on May 9, 2023 in Moscow, Russia. Moscow marks Victory Day with a parade after a new wave of strikes across Ukraine. Credit - Contributor-Getty Images

Roman Emperor Domitian is remembered for only one joke. Its a terrible thing to be an emperor, Domitian said, because everything thinks your paranoia about being assassinated is groundlessuntil youre actually murdered! Soon after Domitian was assassinated. Extreme vigilance is the essential mood of tyranny, which must inhabit that condition not just first because it is indeed in danger of overthrow and surrounded by enemies but also because it requires its people to be fearful and isolated, therefore conditioned for extreme solutions. President Vladimir Putin is living proof of this conundrum.

The recent drone attack on the Kremlin may have been the work of Ukrainian or internal Russian factions, possibly within his own wider security organs, or a false flag operation by the regime itself, but it was inevitable that the dictatorship would claim it was an assassination attempt on Putin. This is absurd since everyone knows that the president does not live in the Kremlin but outside Moscow in his gilded mansion, Novo-Ogaryovo. Yet Domitian would sympathize because Putin has every reason to fear assassination.

It is a cliche of the cliche-ridden Western press on Putinand his predecessors Stalin, Peter the Great, Ivan the Terriblethat they are paranoid to the extent of madness. It is a cliche that ignores and misunderstands the nature of dictatorship particularly in Russia. All absolute systems in world history depend on coercion to crush opposition and maintain power, thereby creating internal enemies who can only use violence to overthrow the ruler. All such systems deploy war and xenophobia to inspire and control their own people which creates another legion of enemies. The Western press always emphasizes the omnipotence of the autocrat in a system without limits without seeing that a system without limits means the leader exists in a permanent state of carnivorous chaos without any real or lasting security. Systems without clear rules of succession grant enormous power to the ruler but also mean they have no means of retirement. In Russiawhether under Tsars Ivan IV and Peter I , Stalin or Putinrulers could appoint their successors but could never do so without creating a potential present menace.

In October 2011, during the Arab Spring revolutions, Putin spent hours watching the gruesome smartphone footage of longterm Russian ally, Colonel Gadaffi, who was sodomized with a bayonet before being shot. Putin resolved to save his ally, Bashar al-Assad in Syria. And himself. He no doubt reflected on the nature of Russian tsardom. He was aware of it from the start: when Yeltsin offered him the presidency in 1999, Putin hesitated, asking how will I protect my family? The answer? To establish a dictatorship and keep it for life.

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Read More: Putins Path to War in Ukraine

Every wise tsar knows that his constant poise must be ferocious vigilance. Peter the Great set the standard of the all-talented emperor and supreme commander to which Putinalong with every other Russian ruleraspires but he faced constant plots against his life which he handled himself by personally torturing and executing thousands of mutinous musketeers; he even tortured his own rebellions son Alexei to death. Peter invented modern Russiaeven its name Roosiya was coined by himas a new empire; he took the title imperator. The state has never developed from that vision. But this imperial self-image also sets a perilous standard for Peters admiring successors: the tsar  whether president or general-secretaryis also a military commander.

If a Russian ruler cannot dominate the Russian world, he will disappoint history. Peter was overwhelmingly successful in his warsbut even he was nearly captured and defeated by the Ottomans. Yet the dream of every Russian ruler is conquest. In 1904, Nicholas IIs Interior Minister V.K. Plehve, supposedly advised, What this country needs is a short victorious war. Every ruler (even in our democracies) aspires to one of those. Nicholas II instead faced a disastrous defeat vs Japan; but Putin built his imperial presidency and garnished his swaggersome overconfidence with a run of three short victorious wars in Chechnya, Georgia and Syria. But they were minor skirmishes; Ukraine is proving very different

Out of the last twelve Romanov emperors, six died violently. Ivan the Terrible and Stalin died in their beds by wreaking such havoc around them that no one dared destroy them. Putin is a killer but not yet a mass killer on their scale.

Circa 1700, Peter the Great (1672 - 1725), Tsar of Russia, beheading one of the rebel Streltsy (semi-professional musketeers) in front of his nobles. Hulton Archive-Getty Images

In June 1762, the new young Emperor Peter IIIpuny grandson of Great Peterthrew away costly Russian gains against Prussia. His own Guards and his wife Catherine the Great overthrew him; the Guards strangled him. The press release announced he had died of haemorrhoids. When Catherine later invited the French philosopher dAlembert to Russia, he joked I must decline because I suffer from haemorrhoids which are a fatal disease in Russia. After midnight, on 11th March 1801, Russian Emperor, Paul, son of Catherine and Peter III, was awakened by footsteps on the stairs of his Mikhailovsky Castle; he hid behind a tapestry as the conspiratorsslightly drunk after a pre-homicidal champagneburst into his bedroom.

The conspirators were let in by trusted servant; they were led by his chief minister & top generals; and backed by his own son, who waited downstairs. What happened next was historys most savage liquidation of a Russian autocrat.

Paul, inconsistent and menacing, was destroyed by war , capricious foreign policyincluding sending an army to attack British India. The conspirators saw his feet peeping out of the wallhanging and dragged him out; conspirators hit him with a golden snuffbox, knocking out an eye, then threw themselves onto him, shattering his head on the floor, strangling him with his sash, then drunkenly stomping his head to pulp.

Just over a century later Nicholas II was not killed by his generals but he was overthrown by them. Yes the crisis was accelerated by hungry crowds in the capital Petrograd but contrary to popular history, he was forced to abdicate by his generals when he was isolated in his railway carriage on his way to put down the revolution.

Putin knows all this history. How will history remember me? he kept asking historians in recent years. His isolation during Covid made him one of historys most dangerous creatures: the omnipotent history-buff. Stalin read history obsessively and collected a huge libraryhalf of which is in Putins Kremlin office. Before the war, Putin liked to ask visitors to chose a book then together they would examine Stalins pungent marginalia. He is not an intellectual like Stalin but he reads historical biographiesincluding a famous Russian biography of Paul and my own biography of Catherine the Great and Potemkin. History matters to him; he has always been obsessed by eighteenth century Russian leaders, Peter, Catherine and Prince Potemkin. They were the trio who dominated Ukraine; all subsequent Russian-Soviet leaders including Lenin and Stalin regarded the possession of Ukraine as essential to their vision of Russian statehood.

It was Peter who founded St Petersburg and won the Baltic. It was Catherine in partnership with her brilliant lover, co-ruler and secret husband, Prince Potemkin, who conquered Crimea in 1783 and south Ukraine 1787-91, founding the cities Sebastopol, Odessa, Kherson that form todays battlefield. When I wrote that first book in 2ooo, Putin, waiting for it to be translated, asked for a one-pager on Potemkins conquests and cities. In his speeches and essays before invading Ukraine, he cited Catherine and Potemkin. When his troops took Kherson, they captured Potemkins tomb and when they retreated late last year, they stole the Princes body. I predict that Putin will create a splendid tomb for Potemkin in Moscow to prove the Russian claim to Ukraine.

But the history also shows what happens when tsars fail. In 1964, Khrushchev was fortunate that he was only overthrown and retired after he risked nuclear war and delivered an unprecedented national humiliation in the Cuba Missile Crisisthough his successor Brezhnev did propose his assassination.

Victory makes a Russian ruler invulnerable, almost sacred. Defeat places a Russian ruler in danger from his closest courtiers, ministers and generals. While one thinks of tsars overthrown by crowds, most are actually destroyed by their closest colleagues deep within their own palaces. The modern prototype would be another secret-policeman-aspiring- to-rule, Lavrenti Beria, overthrown in June 1953 by his trusted, somewhat inferior comrades, Khrushchev and Malenkov (whose house at Novo-Ogorovo is now Putins homewhat a small world) at a surprise meeting. He was shot.

When Russian leaders fall, nemesis usually comes from those closest. When you walk down the corridors, mused Stalin, you never go when its going to come. Putin is not paranoid; he has ever reason to be vigilant.

Domitian would sympathize.
The former Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

The Supreme Court is slated to weigh in on a case involving a Washington, D.C., hotel that was once owned by former President Donald Trump. In a strange plot twist, the battle is not coming from the former president, but from the Biden administration.

What are the facts of the case?

The case, Carnahan v. Maloney, will produce the final say on whether Democratic lawmakers can access government documents relating to Trump's lease on the city's historic Old Post Office. The former president acquired the rights to the building in 2013 and turned it into the Trump International Hotel, where it "became a regular haunt for foreign dignitaries and GOP officials during Trump's presidency," USA Today reported. The hotel, which was besieged by controversies throughout Trump's term, was sold by the Trump Organization in 2022 and is now a Waldorf Astoria.

Democratic congressmen first began pushing for insights into the hotel in 2016, after Trump won that year's presidential election. The Democrats, which had a minority in the House at the time, had originally questioned whether the then-incoming president would have a conflict of interest due to his corporation's ownership of the hotel. These lawmakers had submitted various requests for documents to the General Services Administration (GSA) regarding the hotel, NBC News reported, but the GSA refused to hand anything over, saying individual lawmakers from the minority party didn't have the right to conduct oversight. The GSA had previously said Trump's election as president meant he would have to give up his stake in the hotel  though the agency later backtracked on this after he took office.

The lawmakers eventually sued in 2017, alleging that Trump's continued ownership of the hotel violated anti-corruption provisions. They cited a federal law called Section 2954, also known as the "Seven Member Rule." This allows "any seven members of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability or any five members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee" to ask for information from a federal agency, The Hill reported. A federal judge threw out the lawsuit, reiterating the GSA's claim that Section 2954 doesn't allow individual members of Congress to conduct oversight. This led to an appeal from the Democratic lawmakers that the Biden administration is trying to stop. The Supreme Court will now have the final say on the matter.

Wait, the Biden administration is on Trump's side?

In this case, yes  the ongoing objection to the lawmakers' request is coming not from Trump, but from the current White House. This is due to the Biden administration's fear that giving Congress Trump's records would set a precedent allowing "members of the minority  typically largely shut out of decision-making power  to demand significant information from federal agencies and the White House," Politico reported. This "puts the Biden administration in the awkward position of aligning itself with Trump."

The White House's decision to push back against the Democrats is also aligned with the policy of only responding to oversight requests from the House majority, Politico added. This has been the stance of both the Biden and Trump administrations.

U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar defended the GSA's decision not to release information about the hotel in a legal filing for the DOJ, claiming it would allow congressional members of the minority party to harass the executive branch. "A congressional minority  'or even an ideological fringe of the minority'  could bring cases to 'distract and harass executive agencies and their most senior officials," Prelogar wrote in the filing. She also said there was historical precedent preventing the court from getting involved, writing that a dispute between branches of government is "not of the sort traditionally thought to be capable of resolution through the judicial process."

Could the case affect future presidents?

Possibly.

If the Supreme Court were to force the GSA to hand over the hotel documents, it "could lead to a flood of lawsuits from individual members of Congress," The Associated Press reported. Potential lawsuits aside, a win for the Democratic lawmakers would, at the very least, "give members of the minority in Congress more power to probe a presidential administration of the opposite party  even though they wouldn't have the votes needed to issue a subpoena," USA Today reported.

No matter the outcome, the case will raise "questions about when members of Congress  and not a full committee  have the legal right to sue an executive agency for documents," according to CNN.

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PEN America and publisher Penguin Random House filed suit against Escambia County School District over its removal and restriction of books from school libraries following a wave of book bans backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, right. (Rick Bowmer; Wilfredo Lee / AP)

As school library book bans proliferate across the country, the resistance is becoming more organized. This week, a book publisher  the largest in the world  entered the fray. A lawyer for the publishing conglomerate Penguin Random House told The Times it was suing to stop "one of the most unsubtle attempts at viewpoint discrimination" ever seen.

Joined by free-speech advocacy group PEN America and several authors and parents, Penguin Random House filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against the Escambia County School District and its school board, alleging they were violating the 1st Amendment by scrubbing library shelves of books based on a political or ideological disagreement with the ideas the books express.

They also allege a 14th Amendment violation citing the Equal Protection Clause, because the challenged books are disproportionately titles by nonwhite and/or LGBTQ+ authors and explore diverse stories and themes.

Penguin Random House has had two of its books, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison and Push by Sapphire, removed from some Escambia School District libraries. Numerous other books, including The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, were targeted for removal pending a review process that the suit claims is essentially bogus.

For many instances theres not even the attempt at a pretext," Dan Novack, Penguin Random House vice president and associate general counsel, told The Times. "These are being removed because there are depictions of [LGBTQ+] characters, there are depictions of racial identity, and that's the reasons why they are being flagged by individuals for removal.

And on top of that," Novack continued, "when these titles do get flagged, what we're seeing is that there is a committee that its supposed to go to that's filled with actual members of the community, experts, etc., and they're saying these are educationally appropriate. And then the school district is just overruling their own people. So it's one of the most eye-popping fact patterns we've seen, and we think that when the court sees it, and certainly the public sees it, they'll understand the strength of the case.

According to the lawsuit, the majority of the book bans in the county, which encompasses Pensacola in the Florida panhandle, stem from a single Northview High School language arts teacher, Vicki Baggett, who embarked on an aggressive campaign to remove student access to 116 books, stating the books should be evaluated based on explicit sexual content, graphic language, themes, vulgarity and political pushes.

Among the challenged titles were Drama by Raina Telgemeier; quotes from the book relating to one characters identification as gay were listed as the sole ground for removal, according to the lawsuit. Baggett also petitioned for the removal of Duchess Harris' Race and Policing in Modern America," a nonfiction resource guide intended for middle-school readers, arguing it was anti-police and written "to race-bait.

The suit also alleges that Baggett admitted shed never heard of The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, which she petitioned to remove, until learning it was frequently targeted elsewhere. Many of her objections seemed to be copied and pasted (including typos) directly from the website Book Looks, which was founded by a member of the Brevard County, Fla., chapter of the group Moms for Liberty.

After a panel consisting of Northview leadership, faculty, staff and one parent voted in favor of Wallflower remaining on library shelves, Baggett appealed the panels decision with a letter to the school districts assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, copying members of the school board, the superintendent and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The assistant superintendent responded by convening a district review committee, which echoed the initial panels vote in favor of "Wallflower."

Baggett appealed the decision again, which led to the school board overruling the committees decision and removing Wallflower from school district libraries.

Baggett did not immediately respond to The Times' request for comment.

According to the lawsuit, the total number of books currently being challenged in the Escambia County School District has reached 197; 70% of these remained restricted as of Wednesdays filing. Statewide, more than 500 books were permanently or temporarily removed between July 2021 and June 2022. And nationwide, according to PEN Americas Index of School Book Bans, 2,532 individual titles were banned during the same time period.

We've been looking at this escalating pattern nationwide of censorship," Novack said. "And when we found out that our partners on the ground, PEN, and authors and parents were interested in formally and legally pushing back, the case was irresistible to us because they need the support, and we're here to provide it."

As for a nationwide legal strategy to fight book bans, Novack says publishers have a challenging road ahead: These laws are like snowflakes, there's so many different variants, and they all work in slightly different ways.

So while this is an important precedent to set thematically and legally, it doesn't work the same way in Tennessee versus Florida or Texas or Missouri or Utah. So we're really ... figuring out where we can have impact.

Nadine Farid Johnson, managing director of PEN America Washington and Free Expression Programs and lead counsel on the lawsuit, told The Times that PEN hopes this suit will help turn the tide against the current wave of book bans.

PEN America has been documenting and analyzing these bans for the better part of two years, and the numbers are continuing to grow, Johnson said. We have upwards of 4 million students across the U.S. affected by these decisions, and our lawsuit is looking at this through the constitutional lens, which I think is the correct lens, because ultimately what is at stake here are the fundamental rights that are in our Constitution.

DeSantis is not named as a defendant in the suit, but the Republican governor, who is expected to announce his 2024 presidential campaign this month, has championed policies that embolden book-banning efforts, specifically in relation to cultural divides on race, gender and sexual orientation.

Thirty-two different states have experienced a ban of some sort, and Florida really is a leader in this realm," Johnson said. "And Escambia County in particular, it truly epitomizes what is happening around the country. And for that reason we chose to go into this district."

On Wednesday, Macmillan Publishers CEO Jonathan Yaged released a statement expressing support for the suit. Macmillan staunchly supports our author, George M. Johnson, PEN America, and all the plaintiffs in their lawsuit," Yaged said in the statement. "... As future leaders of our democracy, children need and deserve access to the full breadth of who we are as Americans. The censorship of books is a direct attack on the founding principles of our country and our constitutional rights as citizens.

Escambia County school officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
A Wichita landscaping business and its owner face paying over $25,000 after being accused of consumer violations.

The Sedgwick County District Attorneys Office alleges that AJ Landscaping and Irrigation and its owner, Anthony Davis, violated the Kansas Consumer Protection Act by failing to disclose to a consumer that the business was not licensed to perform the work and failing to provide a material benefit after the consumer was forced to hire a second contractor to correct and finish a concrete retaining wall, according to a news release from the office.

Both AJ Landscaping and Davis denied intentionally violating the consumer protection act but accepted a consent judgment to settle the matter. They agreed to pay over $5,900 in restitution to the consumer, and the court assessed $20,000 in civil penalties plus court and investigative expenses, the release said.

AJ Landscaping and Davis promised to refrain from future work they do not have the license or skill to perform and to cooperate with the investigation of any future complaints.

They also promised future door-to-door sales will include proper notification of the three-day right to cancel under Kansas law, according to the release.

Both were placed on a 12-month probationary period with the Consumer Protection Division.
A Wichita man is facing federal charges for allegedly threatening the life of President Joe Biden in Facebook messages in April.

Cody McCormick, 27, also reportedly told U.S. Secret Service agents interviewing him at a local hospitals mental health facility that he would kidnap the president if he had the chance. My intent is to kill Joe Biden if I dont get the help I need, McCormick said, according to an affidavit attached to an April 27 criminal complaint detailing the accusations and charges.

McCormick was indicted by a grand jury on the charges  three counts of making a threat against the U.S. president  on Tuesday, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Kansas. The indictment alleges he knowingly and willfully made a threat to take the life of, to kidnap and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States in violation of federal law.

McCormicks defense lawyer, James Pratt, declined to comment on the case late Wednesday afternoon. McCormick was arrested on April 27 and is currently in custody at the Sedgwick County Jail pending a May 22 detention hearing, court and jail records show.

If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison, up to a $250,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release on each count.

The affidavit included with the criminal complaint gives details about the contents of the Facebook messages beyond whats mentioned in the indictment. According to it:

Using a Facebook profile that spelled his first name with a K, McCormick on April 23 sent a message to the Lane County Sheriffs Office saying, among things, that he was planning to get an AR 15 and I will be going to kill Joe Biden.

In the message, McCormick called Biden the worst (expletive) president ever and said that the country is going to hell because of him and that its my job to kill and finish him.

McCormick also suggested in the message that he, too, might die, saying law enforcement, including the FBI and the ATF, will kill me.

On the same day, McCormick sent a Facebook message to local TV news station KSN expressing similar threats and opinions about the presidents performance.

I will get a Greyhound bus ticket and go and shoot him, that message says. ... I will go end his (expletive) life I promise you.

He made more statements about planning to kill the president to staff at Ascension Via Christi Hospital St. Joseph on April 23 and told U.S. Secret Service agents who interviewed him the next day at the hospitals behavioral health center that he would force Biden to step down from office if he had the opportunity. McCormick also told the agents he would kidnap him (Biden) and would travel as far up as Oregon to reach him.

Asked whether the Secret Service should worry about McCormick if Biden ever visited Wichita or the surrounding area, McCormick responded: Yeah.
CAIRO, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Major museums in Egypt welcomed visitors with a range of special events and activities on International Museum Day on Thursday.

Free narrated tours led by curators and sign language tours of certain collections were offered at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC) in the capital Cairo.

The museum announced that, in cooperation with professional intermediary interpreters, it prepared to offer the sign language guide twice a month as a regular service.

The move would make NMEC "the first museum in Egypt to provide such service," said Azza El-Sayed Rezk, a curator and education supervisor of NMEC.

Themed "Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing," this year's museum day called on museums worldwide to become key contributors to the well-being and the sustainable development of their communities, said the International Council of Museums on its webpage dedicated to the annual event.

"It's not a memorial day as much as a moral and ethical directive for the future vision of museums," Maissara Abdullah Hussein, NMEC's deputy director of antiquities, told Xinhua.

Changes in decades of functions and values show that "a museum is no longer just a place for exhibiting artifacts. It has become a scientific, educational, and cultural institution, which plays a big social role," Hussein said next to a slideshow introducing NMEC's history.

In downtown Cairo, the iconic Egyptian Museum in Cairo (EMC), which houses the largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities in the world, offered free curator's narration and talks to raise awareness of how museums benefit societies.

Speaking of the transfer of pieces to Cairo's newly-established museums to enrich their collection, EMC's Director General Ali Abdel-Halim said such an outreach effort would not affect EMC's popularity.

Over 20 royal mummies have been transferred to the NMEC and a collection of famous King Tutankhamun to the recently-built Grand Egyptian Museum, but EMC's visitors' turnout, which varies between 10,000 and 12,000 daily, has been quite good, he said.

"It is the mother of Egypt's archeological museums," he noted. 
RICHMOND, Ind.  A Winchester man is accused of breaking into a garage in Richmond and then using it to store motorcycles.

Vladyslav Korniyenko, 32, was charged this week in Wayne Circuit Court with burglary, a Level 3 felony carrying up to 16 years in prison, and auto theft, a Level 6 felony with a maximum 30-month sentence,

One of the motorcycles found in the garage was determined to have been stolen from a local man.

Korniyenko was arrested May 12 after the owner of the garage, along North 12th Street, reported finding him inside.

The property owner said the garage had been entered after a door was broken. She also said the motor vehicles in the building  including at least two motorcycles and a moped  did not belong to her.

Korniyenko said he "thought the place was vacant and he was just using it to work on his bikes."

"Mr. Korniyenko stated that he did not do anything wrong because there was not a no-trespassing sign," a Richmond police officer wrote.

The Winchester man continued to be held in the Wayne County jail on Thursday under a $15,000 bond. An initial hearing in his case is set for Tuesday.

At the time of his latest arrest, Korniyenko already faced a total of five charges in two cases pending in courts in Randolph and Franklin counties  two counts of possession of meth, along with single counts of possession of marijuana, possession of paraphernalia and driving while suspended.

According to court records, he has been convicted of theft, driving while intoxicated, possession of paraphernalia and driving while suspended.

He has also been listed in court documents at addresses in Richmond and in Lakeland, Florida.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Richmond Palladium-Item: Winchester man charged with burglary, motorcycle theft in Wayne County
Winona Ryder Seen in Costume as Her 'Beetlejuice' Character  36 Years Later!  in Tim Burton's Sequel

Production on Tim Burton's Beetlejuice sequel reportedly kicked off in London on May 10

ISO Images

Winona Ryder is throwing it back to 1988 with her look for the sequel to Beetlejuice.

On Thursday, Ryder was spotted wearing jet-black hair and sporting matching black clothing as she sat in the passenger's seat of a car while filming a scene for the upcoming Tim Burton movie, in which she is expected to reprise her role from the original Beetlejuice as Lydia Deetz.

The Tesla Ryder, 51, filmed scenes within was outfitted with a camera setup as the production filmed a scene showing her character being driven away from a school by an unknown driver, further photos from the production published by The Daily Mail show.

The outlet reported that production on the new movie began in London last Wednesday, with Thursday's filming taking place in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, north of the United Kingdom capital.

The first image of Stranger Things star Ryder filming the long-anticipated sequel comes amid a smattering of casting reports in recent weeks, though plot details for Beetlejuice 2 remain unknown.

Related:Beetlejuice 2: All About the Sequel Starring Michael Keaton and Jenna Ortega

Moviestore/Re/REX Shutterstock

PEOPLE confirmed last Tuesday that the sequel, directed by Burton, is scheduled to hit theaters on Sept. 6, 2024, 36 years after the original horror-comedy released in theaters.

Ryder costarred alongside Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey Jones, Glenn Shadix and Keaton in Beetlejuice, which follows a shady spirit who helps a recently deceased couple drive out an unbearable family who moved into their home.

Multiple outlets reported in March that Wednesday's Jenna Ortega is in talks to star in the sequel as Lydia's daughter. Last Thursday, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Monica Bellucci had signed on to play Beetlejuice's wife in the upcoming film, with Michael Keaton expected to reprise his titular role as well.

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.

The outlet reported first last week that Ryder and Catherine O'Hara are expected to reprise their roles in the sequel, while Justin Theroux and Willem Dafoe, who is expected to play a law enforcement officer in the afterlife, are among its new cast members.

Amy Sussman/WireImage, GEFFEN FILM/WARNER BROTHERS/Alamy

Related:The Cast of Beetlejuice: Where Are They Now?

The sequel, which has been rumored to be in the works for at least a decade, reportedly features a script written by Wednesday creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. The pair previously collaborated with Burton on the hit Netflix series; the Edward Scissorhands filmmaker directed its first four episodes.

As far back as 2011, Deadline reported that producers David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith had signed with Warner Bros. and aimed to create a Beetlejuice follow-up. Director Burton, as well as Keaton and Ryder, expressed interest in making a sequel at different times throughout the 2010s.

Beetlejuice 2 will release in theaters Sept. 6, 2024.

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Read the original article on People.
Photo: Getty (Getty Images)

An anti-abortion group in Wisconsin used geofencing to target patients at Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health clinics with ads promoting bogus abortion reversal, according to a bombshell Wall Street Journal report published Thursday.



The group, Veritas Societya nonprofit fund created by Wisconsin Right to Lifereportedly used the marketing gimmick to place anti-abortion ads in users Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat feeds between November 2019 through late 2022. Geofencing refers to the location-based technique that allows advertisers (or, say, anti-abortion groups) to direct specific ads to smartphone users (and their social feeds) in a particular area. Anti-abortion groups have taken advantage of these targeted ad opportunities to reach prospective patients at reproductive health clinics and other highly sensitive locations.

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Some of the ads Veritas directed at people who entered Planned Parenthood clinics in Wisconsin read, Took the first pill at the clinic? It may not be too late to save your pregnancy. Those who clicked on these ads were directed to a website registered to Veritas that offered them two options: I want to undo the abortion pill, or I am thinking about the abortion pill.

So-called abortion reversal is a medically unproven, even dangerous practice that anti-abortion activists claim can stop a medication abortion thats underway. Targeting clinic-goers with this misinformation is especially dangerous, as medication abortion has become the most common form of abortion since Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Veritas worked with a digital ad company that allegedly attained the unique identifiers of patients phones through a location data broker, Near Intelligence. But around the end of 2022, the unnamed ad company told the fund that it had to stop because it was violating the companys rules about targeting sensitive locations, a former employee at the ad company told WSJ. Its not clear why the company allowed Veritas to engage in this practice or why it took them nearly three years before realizing it was happening. Near Intelligence did not immediately respond to Jezebels request for comment, but a spokesperson told the Journal it doesnt permit data extraction from abortion clinics, suggesting it stopped working with the ad company over its use of this data to target possible abortion seekers.

Before the campaign ended, Veritas boasted on its website that its geofencing campaign in Wisconsin yielded 14.3 million ad impressions in late 2019 and 2020 from mobile devices that had been carried into abortion clinics.

According to WSJ, Veritas once regarded its geofence strategy in Wisconsin as a step toward a national campaign. It sought other anti-abortion groups as partners, and even geofenced abortion clinics in Arkansas. But since the ad company Veritas worked with barred the organization from geofencing abortion clinics, its parent group, Wisconsin Right to Life, has been assessing whether to instead geofence bars and clubs as another potential way to reach sexually active young women, per WSJ.

Photo: Francois Picard (Getty Images)

Of course, the possible health and safety risks posed by abortion reversal arent the only threat that Veritas campaign posed, Reproactions deputy director Shireen Shakouri says. Location data can be used as evidence to build criminal cases against abortion patients, abortion seekers, or people who lose pregnancies or self-manage their abortions, Shakouri told Jezebel.

When were in a time when people could very easily be criminally prosecuted for seeking abortion, beyond even just getting the procedure itself, this type of technology and how its being used has a lot of implications, Shakouri said. Anti-abortion groups have been exposed using geofencing to target ads that try to dissuade patients from getting abortions as far back as 2016. The stakes have always been high since digital activities have often been used to surveil and criminalize pregnant people and abortion seekers. But post-Roe, as misinformation runs rampant and more states ban abortion like Wisconsin has, the threat has only grown.

WSJ reports that geofencing can potentially link someones phone to a real-life address and even a name, though its not clear whether Veritas was able to perform this. Cynthia Conti-Cook, technology fellow at the Ford Foundation and author of Surveilling the Digital Abortion Diary, previously told Jezebel that law enforcement can obtain reverse geofence warrants to ask Google for everyone within the radius of a specific location, at a specific time, based on their phones. This allows police departments to create a lineup from that to investigate crimes in a specific location and generate possible leads. Just last year, a Vice investigation found one data broker sold location data incriminating potential abortion patients for as cheap as $160, potentially opening abortion patients to civil suits or litigation from abusive partners, or even criminal charges, based on the laws in their states.

Google, which has been in hot water after being exposed for breaking its promise last year to automatically delete all location data from sensitive locations including reproductive health clinics, shared internal data that shows the company received 11,554 geofence warrants in 2020 alone. Most of these warrants came from police departments in states with abortion bans.

Technology often moves faster than the common persons ability to understand it, or ability to understand the implications that has on their lives, Shakouri said. We need laws that restrict any type of geolocation advertising within a medical setting, or a buffer zone around any medical clinicespecially something as sensitive as reproductive care in this era.



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Woman chases sex offender who spied on her out of metro Atlanta Target store, police say

A man with a history of spying on women was arrested again after getting caught at a Target in Newnan.

Channel 2s Matt Johnson was in Newnan Thursday, where police said hes preyed on women in multiple counties.

On April 4, a woman chased Jesse Kirk, 49, out of the front of the Newnan Target into the parking lot. She made sure to get a vehicle description of the car that Kirk got into, which led police to his tag number.

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Johnson talked to Det. Renee Edwards, who said the woman at Target caught the Peeping Tom in the act.

She noticed him looking over the door, Edwards said.

Edwards said the victim didnt even put on her shoes to chase him out of the store.

On April 21, police arrested Kirc before he walked into a Target in Peachtree City.

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Our victim was the reason why we were able to find him so quickly, Edwards said.

Channel 2 Action News first reported on Kirk in January, when we aired his photo. That photo was taken by another woman who said he spied on her with a phone at the dressing room at Platos Closet in Buford.

An employee there got a partial plate number and Gwinnett County police said they may consider charges against him in that case.

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In 2019, Brookhaven police arrested Kirk for allegedly filming under womens skirts at Costco.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation lists Kirk as a registered sex offender for a 1999 conviction in California for assault to commit rape.

Police said these cases are a reminder to keep an eye out.

When youre walking through the store pay attention to whos walking close to you, Edwards said.

Kirk was released from jail a day after his arrest on a $2,400 bond. Its unclear if his previous criminal history was considered.
Woman who refused tuberculosis treatment found in contempt of court weeks after arrest warrant

A Washington state woman who has repeatedly refused a judges order to take medication for tuberculosis remains at large weeks after a rarely used arrest warrant was issued.

The woman, identified in court documents as V.N., did not appear at a scheduled court hearing on Friday in Pierce County, south of Seattle.

V.N. was found to be in contempt of the court's orders. A warrant for her arrest remains in effect, according to court documents filed on Friday.

Once she is arrested, V.N. is ordered to be held at the Pierce County Jail for 45 days to receive testing and treatment for tuberculosis so that she no longer poses a threat to the public, the documents state.

A lawyer for the woman did not respond to requests for comment.

The next hearing is scheduled for June 23.

The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department in Washington. (Google Maps)

A spokesman for the countys public health department declined to comment on the case ahead of the hearing and pointed to a previous statement saying the agency has the legal authority to compel people who pose a public health risk to comply with court orders.

A judge signed the warrant for V.N.s arrest in March, after public health officials said they had asked the judge 16 times to order her to self-isolate or take medication for the illness, described in court filings as an active case of the disease.

Tuberculosis often damages the lungs and can be fatal. The disease is spread through the air when people cough or sneeze and can be cured with medication.

According to the The News Tribune of Tacoma, legal petitions from the Tacoma-Pierce County Public Health Department said V.N. had at one point started taking medication but then stopped.

V.N.s condition isnt clear. A May 10 petition from the department said an officer with the agency believes V.N. is still infected with the bacteria.

A court document filed last month showed that a sheriffs deputy who had been surveilling the woman after the warrant was issued saw her boarding a bus to a casino.

The surveillance was revealed in a declaration filed with Pierce County Superior Court by Patricia Jackson, chief of the countys corrections bureau.

Jackson said the deputy had been tasked with surveilling V.N. to execute the warrant in a safe manner. She did not say why V.N. wasnt arrested or why she told the officer to stop watching V.N.

Sgt. Darren Moss, a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriffs Department, confirmed on Thursday that V.N. was not yet in custody but has declined to comment further on the case, saying his office wont comment on how we conduct surveillance, when we do it or when we will attempt to make an arrest until after that person is in custody.

In another May 10 court filing, a legal assistant with the Tacoma-Pierce County Public Health Department said a person who identified himself as V.N.s son called the office and asked if his mother had missed a court hearing.

He also asked for the next hearing date and for her lawyers information, according to the filing.

Nearly 100,000 cases of tuberculosis were recorded annually in the United States in the early 1950s. By 2021, that number had declined to 7,882, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Pierce County sees roughly 20 active cases of the disease annually, according to the local public health department.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Woman stabbed to death while putting air in tire, Michigan cops say. Just ruthless

A 60-year-old woman was stabbed to death in a random attack at a Michigan tire shop, police say.

The stabbing reportedly happened around 6 a.m. Wednesday, May 17, at Belle Tire in Roseville. Larry Parsley told WJBK he was dropped off at a bus stop by his wife, Cheryl Ryan-Parsley, before she went to the store to fill her tires with air.

She chose Belle Tire because the air was free, her husband told WDIV.

I wish I would have never let her go because if I would have stopped and paid for it, shed be alive right now, Parsley told the station.

Police in Roseville alerted Lakeview Public Schools about the stabbing, leading schools in the district to keep students and staff indoors and keep all exterior doors closed and locked.

The man used a hunting knife as he stabbed Ryan-Parsley multiple times, killing her, WDIV reported.

The guy had a knife. What was she gonna do? Parsley told WJBK. Its such a waste. People are just stupid now, and they dont care about each other no more.

The male suspect then stabbed another person at a bus stop nearby, the school district said. The second victim survived.

Officers in Roseville alerted surrounding agencies about the suspect, who was captured at 12 p.m in Warren, police said. The Warren Police Department said he was caught during a traffic stop.

The suspect has not been identified, but WWJ said he is a 30-year-old man from California with a long criminal history. Charges have not been announced.

Ryan-Parsley had reportedly been married for 23 years. She was described by her daughter as a pure, great-hearted person.

This is just ruthless, Jennifer Ryan told WXYZ. I mean, who does this? Who does this to somebody who was minding their own business?
The Rhode Island Working Families Party endorsed former state Rep. Aaron Regunberg for Congress on Wednesday, boosting his progressive credentials and sparking a rare endorsement complaint from Democratic primary rival state Sen. Sandra Cano.

"It is deeply disappointing to learn that the Rhode Island Working Families Party has chosen to not endorse the type of candidate they claim to champion: a woman of color, an immigrant, a working mother," Cano's campaign manager Sydney Keen said in a news release.

"They continuously claim credit for the electoral victories of many women of color and working class people, often while lifting up the lived experiences of those same candidates  so why then, with an historic slate of diverse candidates, would RI WFP choose to support a person who enjoys extreme life privilege over an actual working person?" the release added.

Working Families endorsed Cano, of Pawtucket, for reelection in the 2020 and 2022 General Assembly elections, but opted to back Regunberg to succeed the outgoing David Cicilline in Rhode Island's 1st Congressional District race.

"He has an unshakeable commitment to progressive values. Hes dogged enough to take on the Republicans and corporate Democrats organizing to block progressive change, and skilled enough to get things done in tough conditions," Working Families Party New England Regional Director Georgia Hollister Isman said in an announcement of Regunberg's endorsement.

Aaron Regunberg

Back in 2017 when Regunberg was a state representative, Working Families joined with him in the successful campaign to mandate paid sick time in the workplace.

"We have spent a lot of time and energy supporting working-class women of color in Rhode Island, including [Pawtucket state Representatives] Leonela Felix and Cherie Cruz," Isman said in response to Cano's accusation that the endorsement betrayed Working Families' commitment to candidate diversity. "We've done that alongside Aaron."

"In this particular case we were thinking about what we need in Congress and what do we need to win this race," she added.

State Sen. Sandra Cano

Cano's criticism of Working Families is the latest factional disagreement among left-leaning Rhode Island Democrats over whether Regunberg should claim the progressive lane in the crowded field to replace Cicilline in Washington.

In April, a group of former candidates with ties to the left-wing Rhode Island Political Cooperative attacked Regunberg for failing to support them in a variety of campaigns.

In a crowded special-election congressional race that has, so far, featured little debate over policy or interaction between the candidates, attitudes about Regunberg have been one of the bigger issues.

Regunberg, who moved to Providence from Chicago to attend Brown University, was a community organizer and consultant before being elected to the General Assembly. After leaving the state legislature and working briefly in Providence City Hall, he attended law school and resigned a federal court clerkship to run for Congress.

Cano's family left Colombia to seek political asylum in the United States when she was 16. A Bryant University graduate, she worked in banking before running for public office and is now commerce director for the City of Pawtucket.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: State Sen. Sandra Cano protests Working Families' backing of Regunberg
A burnt landscape caused by wildfires near Entrance, Wild Hay area, Alberta, Canada on May 10, 2023.

A burnt landscape caused by wildfires near Entrance, Wild Hay area, Alberta, Canada on May 10, 2023. Credit - Megan Albu/AFPGetty Images

Its impossible to ignore the impact of climate change as early-season fires rage in western Canada right now. And scientists are getting better and better at calculating the likelihood of a specific event happening because of climate changesuch as a drought or heat wave that can exacerbate fire conditions. Now, scientists are also able to pin-point just how responsible the top polluters are for the impact of these wildfires.

According to a new study published May 16 in Environmental Research Letters, 37% of the total area of forest burned in the western U.S. and Canada since 1986 can be linked to the emissions released by the worlds 88 biggest fossil fuel producers and cement manufacturers.



The researchers determined this by looking at the role these companies pollution played in creating an ever-hotter world that dries-out vegetation to create tinder-box forest conditions. In the past several decades, everything about wildfires has increased: the amount of land burned, the severity of the burn, the number of large fires, the length of the fire season, and the elevation at which fires are occurring. The study found that since 1901, the 88 companies emissions helped drive nearly half (47%) of the increase in the drier conditions that have heightened the risk of these more intense fires across western North America.

The findings add to a growing body of evidence specifically linking the worlds biggest polluters to climate change and its impacts. Previous studies have shown that between 1880 and 2010, carbon emissions from these companies have contributed to more than 40% of the global warming the world has experienced, along with a quarter of all sea level rise, and 50% of ocean acidification.

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As this weeks study emphasizes, the findings underscore the responsibility these companies bear for the impacts of climate change. But its not just about the amount of forest lost, the researchers note: These impacts extend far beyond a given fire scar and cause both direct and indirect harm to economies, ecosystems, public health, and communities.

U.S. federal fire suppression costs, for example, have increased by sevenfold between the late 1980s and 2017, while similar costs in Canada have doubled during that same time.

The researchers hope the findings can be used to hold fossil fuel polluters accountable for these impacts. Our study offers scientifically backed answers to questions of who bears the responsibility for this gut-wrenching destruction, said Kristina Dahl, a principal climate scientist at the Union for Concerned Scientists and the reports lead author. Were hopeful that with new evidence in hand, policymakers, elected officials, and legal experts will be better equipped to truly hold fossil fuel companies accountable in public, political, and legal arenas.
Chinese President Xi Jinping rolled out the red carpet in Beijing on Monday for his Eritrean counterpart Isaias Afewerki, saying that China opposed sanctions imposed on the Horn of Africa nation.

Eritrea is heavily sanctioned by Western nations for alleged human rights abuses, but in a meeting with President Isaias, Xi said that China opposed external interference in Eritrea's internal affairs.

He added that Beijing would firmly support Eritrea to safeguard its own sovereignty, security and development interests.

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"China is willing to exchange experience with Eritrea on state governance, continue to support each other, jointly oppose unilateralism and bullying, and safeguard the common interests of the two countries," state-run Xinhua News Agency quoted Xi as saying.

Isaias and Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Xinhua alt=Isaias and Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Xinhua>

Eritrea, which won independence from its East African neighbour Ethiopia in 1993, is located at a strategic hot point along the Red Sea, one of the world's critical shipping corridors.

It also shares a border with Djibouti, where China set up its first overseas naval base in 2017.

Xi said that Beijing encouraged and supported Chinese-funded enterprises that invest in Eritrea and wanted to strengthen cooperation with Asmara in infrastructure construction, telecommunications, agriculture, mining, fishery and other fields.

Xi added that China would continue such initiatives as sending medical teams and agricultural experts to Eritrea.

Xi thanked Eritrea for providing support and assistance for the recent evacuation and transfer of Chinese citizens from Sudan, which is beset by warring military factions.

The help, Xi said, "once again demonstrates the profound friendship between China and Eritrea who share weal and woe and help each other".

Isaias, who was elected Eritrea's president in 1993 in the first weeks of independence, cancelled subsequent elections and has remained in office ever since.

He spoke of his fondness for his special relationship with China, which stretches back more than half a century. He said Eritrea would never forget China's support for its liberation and independence.

On May 24, the two countries will celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Isaias said that Eritrea hopes to strengthen its ties to China, and believes that their bilateral partnership would help Eritrea with its economic and social development.

Because of Eritrea's positioning on the Horn of Africa, which provides trade access to the Suez Canal and Europe to the north and the Indian Ocean to the east, analysts say that China is likely to use the country to expand its Maritime Silk Road, part of Xi's signature Belt and Road Initiative.

In November 2021, Asmara joined the BRI, China's multibillion-dollar programme that has helped build ports, highways, power dams, railways and roads across Africa.

David Shinn, a professor at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, said that because of Asmara's authoritarian government, human rights abuses and support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Eritrea has strained relations with Western countries and looks increasingly to countries like Russia and China for support.

And China regards Eritrea as "an important ally along a waterway that transports many of China's imports and exports", Shinn said.

Asmara supported Addis Ababa during its civil war in the Tigray region last year, Shinn noted, and the easing of tensions between the two nations made it easier for China to strengthen relations with Isaias while not offending Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

Shinn also pointed out that Isaias' history with China dated back to 1966 and 1967 when he received political training there.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki attend a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: EPA-EFE alt=Chinese President Xi Jinping and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki attend a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: EPA-EFE>

"He admires aspects of China's political system and still uses Chinese doctors for his personal medical care. It is possible he will receive routine medical attention on the occasion of this visit," Shinn said.

By enhancing its partnership with Asmara, Beijing increases its influence in the region in times of intensifying geopolitical competition

China is engaged in gold and polymetallic mining in Eritrea and has plans for developing a large potash mine, which might have been on the agenda for discussion during the visit, Shinn added.

Tim Zajontz, research fellow in the Centre for International and Comparative Politics at Stellenbosch, South Africa, focused on Eritrea's almost 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) of coastline along the Red Sea.

"More than 10 per cent of global trade sails through the Red Sea every year. Beijing is therefore keen to further expand the Chinese presence in Eritrea's two main ports of Massawa and Assab to have alternative seaports that serve Chinese trade with the Horn of Africa," Zajontz said.

"By enhancing its partnership with Asmara, Beijing increases its influence in the region in times of intensifying geopolitical competition between China and the West," Zajontz said.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2023. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Courtesy of Netflix

Netflix has struggled to create another teen romantic comedy as strong as To All the Boys Ive Loved Before, which blew up online and garnered a massive following after its August 2018 premiere. Following that summer successwhich also brought the equally pleasant, office-set rom-com Set It Up to the platformthe streamer tried to capitalize on Noah Centineos charm, with films like Sierra Burgess is a Loser and The Perfect Date. It followed up those uninspiring releases with splashy teen movies like Hes All That and Work It, neither of which worked either. Even the two sequels to the original To All the Boys werent quite as good.

Could XO, Kitty, a To All the Boys spinoff series following Lara Jean Coveys (Lana Condor) younger sister Kitty (Anna Cathcart), break Netflixs rom-com curse? Seeing how the show brings back To All the Boys Ive Loved Before author Jenny Han, there seemed to be a big chance. But it turns out that XO, Kitty, which premieres today on Netflix, cant drum up off-the-charts chemistry like To All the Boys and lacks Centineo-levels of charismayet the premise is just enticing enough to make it worth the watch.

Netflixs To All the Boys Finale Will Make You Cry (and Cringe a Little)

Our Kitty is all grown up since the last time we saw her. Shes now a high schooler, but she is just as loud (if not louder) and stubborn as she was back in middle school. After visiting Korea with her family in the third To All the Boys installment, Kitty has developed a long-distance relationship with Dae (Minyeong Choi). Dae is sweet and willing to keep their relationship goinghes a keeper!but Kitty is struggling to stay afloat in this whole LDR sitch. Why not make life easier and move to Korea, to be closer to him? After all, Kittys mother, who passed away when she was a baby, went to the Korean Independent School of Seoul (KISS, an acronym that made me giggle every time I heard it in the show). What a coincidencethats where Dae goes, too.

Kitty whips together a PowerPoint presentation, to convince her father (John Corbett) that she needs to attend KISS. She reveals that she secured the last spot at the prestigious international boarding school. Its fate! Its destiny! Shes meant to be with Dae and, of course, Dad obliges with little-to-no hesitation. Except that, when Kitty sets foot in Korea, its hard to get the ball rolling with Daebecause he has another girlfriend: Yuri (Gia Kim), the daughter of a wealthy hotel mogul and the headmaster of KISS.

Courtesy of Netflix

No, Dae didnt cheat on Kitty. The audience knows something that Kitty doesnt, a juicy twist in what turns out to be a tangled, A Midsummer Nights Dream-esque love story. Yuri is only dating Dae because shes trying to cover up her real romance with a girl named Juliana (Regan Aliyah), who has been expelled. Fearful that her stuck-up parents will disown her if they discover her true sexuality, Yuri specifically uses Dae as a beard because she knows he needs help with his tuition. Although Kitty is left in the dark about this plan, Dae tries to clue her into the fact that he still has feelings for her with small moments of affectionproving his relationship is fake without outright saying itto reignite their summer flame. Too bad XO, Kitty is a repetitive comedy of errors, and every time Dae attempts to confess his feelings, someone distracts him away from the conversation.

This techniquewhich feels like a Diabolus ex Machina, in which new crises are introduced by a narrative higher power to continuously inflict pain on the protagonistsgets tiring over time. Whenever two characters are having a heart-to-heart, be it Dae and Kitty or Yuri and her mother, someone else is forced into the situation to awkwardly break things up so that everyone is in constant miscommunication. The entire plot hinges on these invasions of privacy. Almost every chapter in the 10-episode season features a conflict thats caused by someone butting in on two other characters important conversation.

Courtesy of Netflix

But to some viewers, that silliness is part of the appeal of XO, Kitty, which manages to introduce a cheesy tone that had no place in the earnest To All the Boys Ive Loved Before movies. Watching XO, Kittywhich introduces Kitty to not one, not two, not three, but four love interests over the course of one 10-episode seasonfeels a lot like strapping in for an episode of Emily in Paris or even And Just Like That, two similarly goofy serialized rom-coms. Maybe thats only because its a similar fish-out-of-water story and John Corbett, respectively, is involved. Still, XO, Kitty has that lighthearted campiness that isnt too overbearing or forced.

The chaotic number of love interests XO, Kitty throws at its protagonist even ends up as a positive for the series, because each episode becomes more unpredictable than the last. Kitty has crushes on girls and guys, on enemies and exes, on her neighbors and strangers she meets at parties. Not only does this feel like an extremely accurate representation of a teenage girl and her many crushes, but its also a real delight to watch. The series veers away from the traditional, more predictable rom-com set-up, with a storybook ending and one perfect love interest, heading toward a more chaotic story of mismatched couples instead. In doing so, XO, Kitty loses a bit of the rom-com appeal, but the show makes up for it with exciting new twists.

The Summer I Turned Pretty Proves Jenny Han Is Gen Zs Nancy Meyers

In the Jenny Han cinematic universe, XO, Kitty lies somewhere in between To All the Boys Ive Loved Before and Prime Videos The Summer I Turned Pretty. The acting (with a stellar performance by Anna Cathcart as Kitty, though shes missing the connection with her two sisters, who are absent from all of this spinoff) and storylines are nearly on par with Netflixs original bright and fun concept for Hans TATBILB universe. It contributes something new with the KISS element, watching Kitty fumble her way around Seoul a la Emily Cooper in Paris. None of the romantic pairings are quite as big a draw as Peter and Lara Jeanbut again, who could beat that hot tub scene?

Courtesy of Netflix

Nevertheless, any fans of Hans work will be as pleased with XO, Kitty as they are with her other adaptationsperhaps even more so, considering the series is brand new material. XO, Kitty lovingly portrays its teenage girl protagonist as three-dimensional, akin to both The Summer I Turned Pretty and To All the Boys Ive Loved Before, which is refreshing in and of itself. The concept is, indeed, preposterous (the likelihood that a teenage girl gets away with an international move to be with her very first boyfriend is slim)but XO, Kitty trusts its leading lady enough to run away and have a great time. After ending on a cliffhanger (no spoilers!), Kitty is primed to really go wild in Korea, if the show is granted a Season 2.

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ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Four children were killed and three others injured in a wind storm in Pakistan's east Punjab province on Wednesday night, police said.

The kids were sitting beside the wall of a mosque in Mianwali District when it collapsed on them on Wednesday night, the police told the media.

The injured kids were shifted to a nearby hospital where one of them is in critical condition.

Pakistan is currently facing a weather pattern due to which wind and thunderstorms coupled with rain are expected to persist in the country till May 18, Pakistan meteorological department said in a statement. 
This 'Yellowstone' Moniker is The Fastest-Rising Baby Name In The U.S.

"Yellowstone" follows the exploits of a powerful ranching family in Montana.

This current season of Yellowstone will be the last, but the cultural impact of the hit Western will live on in hundreds of U.S. households (as well as, yknow, in that sequel series weve been hearing about).

New data from the Social Security Administration shows that Dutton, the last name of the fictional family of ranchers featured on Yellowstone, is the fastest-growing baby name in the U.S.

Between 2021 and 2022, the name Dutton jumped up 986 spots on the list of popular names for baby boys, from No. 1,821 to No. 835. Its the first time the name has ever appeared in the U.S. Top 1,000, as 291 newborn boys (plus 16 girls) were named Dutton last year. Its also the biggest increase for any single name on the boys or girls lists.

According to experts, Yellowstone is assuredly behind the names rise. The Paramount Network show is one of the most-watched series on television and has spawned talk of a growing list of spinoffs.

Most parents absolutely discovered Dutton on Yellowstone, Abby Sandel, creator of the baby name blog Appellation Mountain, told HuffPost. Dutton doesnt appear in the U.S. Social Security Administration data at all before the series 2018 premiere.

Indeed, the SSA shares every name given to at least five newborns in a given year, and Dutton didnt show up in that data until 2018.

This is the age of children named Kylo and Khaleesi, Sandel said, referring to characters from the Star Wars and Game of Thrones franchises. Borrowing Dutton from a family of fictional ranchers is pretty tame by comparison. It helps that John Dutton III, played by Kevin Costner, is strong, principled, and looks good in a cowboy hat. We love boys names that project a strong, capable image. Dutton borrows the characters backstory, and instantly picks up the same bona fides.

She believes that Dutton feels like a more subtle alternative to other tough guy names like Ryatt and Wylder, which also appear in the Top 1,000.

Jennifer Moss, founder of BabyNames.com, notes that the name Dutton is an English surname based on the personal name Dudd/Dudda  meaning from the town/village of Dudd.

Its been a trend in the last ten years or so to use surnames as given names, Moss said. From Madison to Parker, Hudson, Harrison, Lincoln, et al., and Dutton fits that trend.

Choosing a surname as a babys first name has long offered a way for parents to honor family members, particularly those in the maternal line where names are often changed after marriage. Using your grandmothers maiden name as your childs first name, for instance, can be a thoughtful and creative way to pay tribute while avoiding common or outdated name options.

But even when theres no family connection, surnames often make for a more gender-neutral baby name, which is an increasingly popular approach for parents. Historically, weve seen a rise in presidential last names like Taylor, Kennedy, Grant, Carter, Lincoln, Jackson, Clinton, Ford, McKinley and even Hayes.

But pop culture offers a more recent example with Cullen  the last name of the vampire family in the Twilight series  which jumped up almost 300 spots on the popularity list the year after the first movie was released. Like Cullen and other surnames-as-first-names, Dutton has a familiarity that makes it easy to spell and pronounce, but a sense of distinctiveness that feels fresh.

As parents look for more unique and unusual names, theyll hear a name like Dutton, that theyve never heard used as a baby name before, and feel theyre being cutting edge by being the first, Moss said. They just dont realize that hundreds of other parents are thinking the exact same thing. I suspect Dutton will rise quickly on the charts, depending on how long the series lasts.

The name also sits at the intersection of multiple trends.

We love D names for our sons, whether its classic David and Daniel, or the more contemporary Dylan and Dash, Sandel said. Dutton fits right in, but it also owes something to fellow surname Sutton. Thanks to actress Sutton Foster, the name Sutton now ranks in the Top 1,000 for girls and boys. Dutton shares the same style, but feels more obviously masculine.

Baby name consultant Taylor Humphrey similarly believes Dutton offers a fresh alternative to more popular choices like Dustin and Duncan with its phonetic similarities and sense of fortitude. She pointed to the preppy cowboy name trend in contemporary baby naming as well.

Fit for the prairie or a prep school, the preppy cowboy name feels just as comfortable roaming the ranch horseback as it does hobnobbing at a yacht club, Humphrey explained, adding that these monikers often consist of a two-syllable first name and a one-syllable middle name.

When saying the full name aloud, preppy cowboy names have the charm of a double-barrel sound  think Suzie Q or Jesse James  without the commitment to using the middle name along with the first name, she said. Preppy cowboy names offer a really lovely flow that feels reminiscent of a bygone era, but also offers the professional versatility of a single name when the child eventually enters the workforce.

Humphrey said theres a combination of sophistication and playfulness in this category of name, and compared it to a dusty old pair of cowboy boots.

Preppy cowboy names evoke a sense of legacy and gravitas, she said. These names feel sturdy, enduring, built to last and ready to overcome any obstacle.

Related...
New York City plans to order restaurants and bodegas to set out their trash in trash cans instead of bags, as the city continues its fight against rats.

The new rule proposed by the New York City Department of Sanitation on Thursday is an effort to reduce food sources for rats, the department said in its proposal. The rule could apply to around 40,000 food businesses in the city, according to the citys sanitation commissioner, Jessica Tisch, who said in an interview with the New York Times it would cover everything from Dunkin Donuts to Tavern on the Green.

Under current rules, restaurants are allowed to place trash in bags outside until it is hauled away before the next business day. But Tisch said to the Times that this only attracts more rats, which have been a lingering problem in the city.

We want people to understand that bags on the street attract rats, and we need everyone to do their part  residents, businesses and the city  to get the black bags of rat food off the streets, Tisch said.

The proposed rule said the businesses would have to place the trash in rigid receptacles with tight-fitting lids.

The new proposal comes after New York City Mayor Eric Adams named Kathleen Corradi as the citys new rat czar last month, tasked with getting control of the rat problem. Corradi has placed an emphasis on the need to get rid of waste from the streets.

It is also part of a large-scale containerization effort announced by Adams earlier this month, with the city saying it was possible to use trash containers on nearly 90 percent of streets.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
An Islamic State supporter behind the deadliest terror attack in New York since 9/11 has been told he will die in prison serving multiple life sentences.

Sayfullo Saipov killed eight when he drove a truck at pedestrians and cyclists on a Manhattan street in 2017.

He was given 10 life sentences - eight of which run consecutively - plus 260 years, and will never be released.

As he was sentenced, he was told he had "destroyed so many lives" - but showed no remorse during the trial.

Saipov was confronted by victims' families and survivors in court, with the judge noting his "sheer unrepentant nature" during sentencing on Wednesday.

The Uzbekistan national, now 35, used a rented truck to attack cyclists and pedestrians at random on downtown Manhattan's West Side on the evening of Halloween 2017.

He shouted "God is great" in Arabic and was shot by police as he emerged from the vehicle. He hoped the atrocity would earn him membership of the group, a previous hearing was told.

He is expected to be held in Colorado's high-security "supermax" prison, where inmates spend up to 23 hours a day in their cells.

Monica Missio, the mother of victim Nicholas Cleves, told the courtroom: "It disgusts me that he gets to wake up every day while my son does not."

"His barbarism and cruelty fills me with rage," she said.

Rachel Pharn, who survived the attack, said she could forgive Saipov for the impact on herself, but not for the suffering he had caused to others who had come to hear the sentencing.

She added: "When I look around the room, when I think of all the pain you caused, that I cannot forgive. That is between you, them and Allah."

Five of those killed were tourists from Argentina, and a 31-year-old woman from Belgium who was visiting the city also died.

Two Americans, a 32-year-old financial worker and a 23-year-old software engineer, were killed, while 12 others were injured.

US District Judge Vernon Broderick said Saipov's crimes were notable "both in terms of the impact it had on the victims and on the sheer unrepentant nature of the defendant".

Addressing the court before sentencing, Saipov appeared to repeat his praise of the terror group and suggested he was unmoved by the testimony he had heard.

He was spared the death penalty when a jury did not unanimously agree to impose one at a hearing last week.
Nicola Shaw, pictured here in 2010, says she is sorry for sewage discharges into rivers

Yorkshire Water's boss has apologised to customers for sewage being discharged into the region's rivers.

In a letter to every household, chief executive Nicola Shaw said the company would invest 180m in reducing sewage leaks from storm overflows.

She apologised on behalf of the company, adding: "We should have acted more quickly to change the situation."

The firm would also spend 50m improving the quality of the River Wharfe, Ms Shaw added.

Earlier this year, Ms Shaw gave up her bonus - which could have been up to 800,000 if the company met the year's performance targets - following public anger over sewage pollution in the county's rivers.

'People are angry'

In her letter, she said: "There has been a huge amount of criticism of, and anger at, the water industry over recent months.

"I get why people are angry - seeing sewage in our rivers and seas isn't right.

"We should have a system that befits the 21st Century. So, on behalf of Yorkshire Water, I am sorry."

Storm overflow discharges happen when the sewerage system is at risk of being overwhelmed, usually in rainy weather when there is more water in the system.

Yorkshire Water said it planned to target improvements at 190 overflows which caused the most discharges.

Three of the worst rivers for raw sewage discharge in England and Wales are in Yorkshire, according to recent Environment Agency figures.

Campaign group Top of the Poops analysed figures for the amount of sewage spilled into rivers.

The Aire, the Calder and the Ouse all featured in the top 10, with Yorkshire Water pumping sewage directly into them on more than 10,000 occasions in 2021.

The area of the River Wharfe in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, is a popular spot for paddling and fishing

Yorkshire Water said improvement work would include building more storage for wastewater, measures to slow the flow of rainwater before it reached sewers, and changes to the operation of treatment works.

Ms Shaw said: "Our teams are already on the ground working on the first of these overflows and the investment will help to reduce discharges by at least 20%, but in most cases we'll be going way beyond that and reducing them significantly."

The investment would be partly funded by shareholders, the firm said.

Yorkshire Water said it also aimed to improve the quality of bathing water in the river Wharfe at Ilkley after it was given a rating of "poor".

The company said it started tunnelling for an underground sewer to double the capacity of the sewage system in the town in March as part of a 15m project expected to be complete by the end of 2023.

The firm said it also planned to invest more than 50m in improving the quality of the water along the river.

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk.
Authorities in New Zealand have arrested a suspect in relation to a fire at a hostel that killed at least six people on Tuesday.

The man has been charged with two counts of arson, but police say they have not ruled out further, more serious charges in relation to the deaths at the scene.

Police are not seeking anyone else in relation to the fire, a spokesperson added Thursday.

Fire crews were called to Loafers Lodge hostel in the city center just after midnight local time and found the top floor of the four-story building well alight, according to a statement from Fire and Emergency New Zealand.

As firefighters fought the blaze, 52 people were evacuated.

Firefighters stand outside the hostel where a fire broke out overnight. - Nick James/AP

Tala Sili, who was staying in the hostel, told CNN affiliate Radio NZ the experience was really scary.

He said he saw smoke coming under his door on the top floor of the hostel, and he jumped two floors onto the roof of a nearby building, where he was ultimately rescued by paramedics and treated for a sprained ankle.

Local politician Paul Eagle told RNZ the transient nature of many of the buildings residents had made it hard for authorities to determine who may have been inside the building during the blaze.

Its not unusual that they wont know exactly whos there right at that moment because people can come and go all the time, the Rongotai MP told RNZ. Its a simple place, theres a roof over their heads, simple lodging.

Emergency services survey the scene after a fire on May 16, 2023 in Wellington, New Zealand. - Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

According to the Loafers Lodge website, the hostel offers 92 rooms with common areas, kitchens and laundry facilities within walking distance of Wellington Hospital in Newtown.

Wellington Central MP Grant Robertson told reporters that many residents had lost absolutely everything that they had.

New Zealands Prime Minister Chris Hipkins visited the site on Tuesday and expressed his sympathy for the victims and their loved ones.

Weve not seen an event of this scale for quite some time, he said.

A drone inspects damage following the fire at the four-story hostel in central Wellington, New Zealand. - Mark Mitchell/AP

A mayoral relief fund has been set up through the Wellington City Mission for those impacted by the fire, Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau told reporters.

Most of the residents evacuated from the hostel were sent to a safe accommodation, where they were given food, shelter and warm blankets, Whanau said in a video shared on her Facebook page.

In a press conference, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had spoken with Hipkins and offered to assist as needed.

I expressed my condolences on behalf of Australia to our friends in New Zealand at this very difficult time, Albanese told reporters in Melbourne. Any assistance of course will, as always, be available from Australia to New Zealand.

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A Lynchburg woman is facing several charges following an officer-involved shooting in the 1500 block of Longview Road in Lynchburg on May 12, according to a news release from Virginia State Police.

State police have charged Ashley D. Biggs Neeley, 34, with two misdemeanor counts of assault and battery, one felony count of assault on a law enforcement officer and one felony count of attempted malicious wounding on a law enforcement officer, according to the department.

The state police were called in to investigate the officer-involved shooting at the request of Lynchburg Police Chief Ryan Zuidema.

According to state troopers, at about 9:37 a.m., Lynchburg Police were called to an apartment complex in the 1500 block of Longview Road for a report of Biggs Neeley assaulting Child Protective Services (CPS) personnel who had arrived at her residence that morning. When the police officers arrived at her door, Biggs Neeley opened it and began attacking the officers with knives.

One officer fired his department-issued handgun and struck Biggs Neeley. Two knives were recovered at the scene, state police said.

Biggs Neeley still is being treated at Lynchburg General Hospital and is in the custody of the Blue Ridge Regional Jail, according to the release. No Lynchburg police officers were injured in the incident and the CPS personnel did not require medical attention.

State police said the investigation remains ongoing, and once its completed, they will turn its findings over to the commonwealths attorney for final review and adjudication.

 Bryson Gordon
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Brianne Duede is the city administrator clerk for Carson, Iowa. She has been an employee of the city for almost 23 years and is responsible for making things run smoothly in the community, whether assisting citizens, city council members or the mayor.

Brianne says the people of her community keep her returning to work daily, and she loves helping citizens visions become a reality.

When Brianne isnt busy serving the Carson community, she enjoys weekend brunch at 712 eat + drink in Council Bluffs and spending time on the Historic 100 Block of West Broadway, where she shops at one of her favorite boutiques, Dusted Charm.

She mentioned the Dreamland Theatre in Carson when asked what she believes is a hidden gem in Pottawattamie County. The theater has been around since 1921 and offers an affordable experience for community members and visitors from the surrounding area.

Its so nice to see our downtown full of cars and life on the weekends. It brings us a lot of community pride, Brianne said.

The Dreamland Theatre, originally opened in 1921, is owned and operated by the Carson Business Club as a nonprofit organization, and community volunteers keep the place running. Movies are shown on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings at 7:30 p.m.

During National Travel and Tourism Week (May 7-13), the Council Bluffs Convention & Visitors Bureau announced on their website and social media channels that the Dreamland Theatre won the Omaha Metropolitan Area Tourism Award for the best attraction in Pottawattamie County. These awards are given to the business that received the most online nominations and votes from the public earlier this spring.

To learn more about the Dreamland Theatre and their upcoming showing schedule, visit them on Facebook.
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If youre looking for a chance to try on a different identity, it may come sooner than you think.

Heartland Family Service will hold its 19th annual Strike a Chord Gala on Friday, June 9 from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs.

A Mystery Masquerade is the theme for this years event.

Even though the dress code is casual, we would encourage people to dress up and tie in with (the theme), said Larry Williams, development manager. This is a time for people to just dress up and have fun.

The event will start with a cocktail hour at 6 p.m. with a silent auction, games and hors doeuvres, followed by a dinner at 7 p.m., program and live auction. Proceeds will help fund the organizations services in southwest Iowa.

The cocktail hour will feature a wine toss, cornhole games and a photo booth, Williams said.

Our cornhole game did really well last year, he said.

The silent auction will close at dinnertime.

River City Mixed Chorus, a metro-area community ensemble, will entertain during the meal. The nonprofit chorus is a member of the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses and carries a message of diversity and inclusion.

Heartland Family Service will present two awards during the event: The Leadership Award to Council Bluffs Fire Chief Justin James and the Client Achievement Award to a client who overcame homelessness and adversity to become one of the organizations success stories. Video segments will provide background information on each person and why they were chosen for their respective awards.

The client, whose name has not been released, became disabled and was unable to work. As a result, he lost his apartment and car.

He was just living in a survival state of mind, Williams said. This person was able to overcome a lot. Now, he has an apartment again and he has a car.

A live auction will also be held. Bidders can face off for a trip to Costa Rica, a trip to the Colorado Rockies, a half-day with Fire Chief James (including lunch) and a ride-along with a fire crew, among other things.

Honorary co-chairs for the event are Mark and Jennifer Hanwright.

Tickets are $90 each. For tickets, visit heartlandfamilyservice.org.

Heartland Family Service provides trauma-informed programs in three areas:

Housing, safety and financial stability  Assistance for domestic violence, sexual assault, homelessness and financial crisis.

Counseling and prevention  Therapeutic services for treatment, intervention and prevention.

Child and family well-being  Education and support for all stages of life.

For more information, see heartlandfamilyservice.org, email info@heartlandfamilyservice.org or call 402-552-7400.
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Washington County prosecutors filed additional charges, including first-degree murder, against a Council Bluffs man accused of shooting the mother of his child and killing her brother last week.

Elijah Logan, 22, now faces seven felony charges: first-degree murder, two counts of use of a firearm to commit a felony, first-degree assault, first-degree domestic assault, burglary and intentional child abuse without injury. He was ordered Wednesday to be held in custody without bail, according to court records.

According to an affidavit for Logans arrest, 22-year-old Samantha Ely called 911 in the early hours of May 12 to report that she had been shot. She identified Logan  the father of her child  as the alleged gunman, and reported that her brother, Jordan Ely, also had been shot and was laying on the floor.

Jordan Ely was pronounced dead at the scene. Samantha Ely was shot several times, according to the affidavit, but she survived and was transported to the hospital. The child was not injured.

Logan allegedly fled from the scene after the shooting. On Monday, he turned himself in to authorities without incident, according to the Blair Police Department.

Alexis Ely, 27, said Jordan was shot when he put himself between Logan and her sister, Samantha. She also said Jordan Ely was sleeping but woke upon hearing his sisters cry for help. He ran upstairs to his sisters bedroom, where reports say he confronted Logan, who had allegedly broken into the house.

Most people would run away or hide from the sound of an intruder, but not Jordan, Alexis Ely said. He lost his life saving our sister and our nephew, and I know for a fact he would choose the same path if given the opportunity to do it again. My brother died a hero.

A GoFundMe for Jordan Elys funeral expenses and Samantha Elys medical care has raised over $14,000.
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OMAHA, Neb. (AP)  Engineers who operate trains for Union Pacific will soon have much more predictable schedules allowing them to plan when they are going to be off, a change that addresses one of the key quality-of-life concerns that pushed the rail industry to the brink of a strike last fall.
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After leaving the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) thanks to its financial transparence, Morocco exits the European Commissions list of high-risk countries presenting strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT).

The decision, announced this Wednesday by the European Commission, will help Morocco attract more foreign investment and boost further the investors trust in the Kingdom.

Two African countries have been added to the EC-watch list. These are South Africa and Nigeria. The European Commission said that the list takes into account the information from FATF and the changes decided at the last FATF Plenary of February 2023 in the list of Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring (grey list).

The EUs executive body revises regularly its list, taking into account recommendations from global financial crimes watchdogs. The European block is protecting itself from financial threats posed by high-risk third countries, defined as nations with significant weaknesses in their AML/CFT system.

The EC directive requires European companies to exercise due vigilance in transactions with customers based in high-risk countries.
Moroccos Saharan region of Dakhla Oued-Edahab is expanding the circle of its regional and international alliance for shared progress and prosperity in the new world order taking form.

After having signed lately twinning agreements with U.S. Hollywood city and Perus Pueblo Libre in Lima, the Moroccan Saharan region sealed on Tuesday a Memorandum of Understanding with Senegalese tourist city of Mbour, located in the Thies Region, southern Dakar.

The MoU was inked in Dakar by Head of Dakhla Oued Ed-Dahab region Khettat Yenja, and Chief of Mbour municipal Council Saliou Samb, in presence of several Moroccan and Senegalese diplomats and officials.

The signatories pledged to exchange experiences & expertise in local governance, strengthen cooperation ties in sectors of common concern and develop joint socio-economic and cultural development programs and projects.

The MoU was signed on the sidelines of a business forum organized in the Senegalese capital to give a new impetus to economic cooperation between the two countries regions which share huge potentials in tourism and fisheries.

The Moroccan delegation held working sessions with officials from the Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Dakar & Saint-Louis as well as with the National Agency for the Promotion of Investment.

The leaders of Dakhla Oued Eddahhab region travelled to Senegal to showcase the huge business offered in the region, a gateway for investment in Africa.

After Dakar, members of the Moroccan delegation will head to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, for talks on partnership projects and south-south cooperation.
Moroccan foreign minister Nasser Bourita is taking part in the preparatory meetings for the 32nd Arab Summit due in Jeddah on May 19.

The summit comes amid ongoing Sudan crisis, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, continuing tension between Morocco and Algeria over the Sahara issue, Syrias return to the Pan-Arab organization, the Iranian and Turkish interferences in Arab internal affairs

Addressing Arab foreign ministers, Saudi Arabias top diplomat Prince Faisal bin Farhan said the region is facing several socioeconomic and political challenges, and called for more cooperation between Arab countries to achieve security, stability and economic prosperity.

He welcomed Syria back to the Arab League after a 12-year suspension over its bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters against Bachar Al Assad.

The Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit also welcomed Syrias return which comes within the frame of geo-strategic changes taking place in the region, including the war in Ukraine, the reconciliation between Riyadh & Teheran and the rapprochement between Cairo and Ankara.

Several ministerial committees are meeting to discuss the summits agenda and submit their recommendations to the Arab leaders for endorsement.

Morocco is a member of the committee monitoring the threat of Iran and the committee supporting the Palestinian State and its full UN membership.

On the sidelines of the Arab league gatherings, M. Bourita met with the Arab league chief and several Arab ministers to coordinate stands on issues of common concern including the respect of the territorial integrity & sovereignty of Arab countries and the Iranian threats and backing to terrorist and separatist groups.

Last year, the Arab ministerial committee monitoring Iranian interference in Arab countries domestic affairs expressed full solidarity with Morocco following the involvement of Tehran and its Hezbollah proxies in supporting Polisario separatist militias.

Besides Morocco, the committee includes Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and the general secretariat of the Arab League.

The support of Iran and Hezbollah for the Polisario is part of Tehrans agenda to sow instability and insecurity in the Arab region. Morocco severed ties with Iran in 2018 after it showed Iranian authorities evidence of their involvement in backing militarily the separatist Polisario front in connivance with neighboring Algeria.
Museums revive revolutionary history in NW China

Xinhua) 08:40, May 18, 2023

YINCHUAN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- On a Sunday afternoon earlier this month, some 100 high school students walked on a trail in the Liupanshan Mountain in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

Eighteen significant historical scenarios of the epic Long March were re-enacted on the 2.5-km-long "Red Army Path," where visitors can retrace the history of the Long March and better understand the Long March spirit.

The Long March was a military maneuver carried out by the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army from 1934 to 1936. During this period, the army left their bases and marched through raging rivers, frigid mountains, and arid grasslands to break the siege of Kuomintang forces and continued to fight Japanese aggressors.

The students were trying to have a real-life experience of the Red Army soldiers when passing through the mountain in southern Ningxia. They finally reached the top of a hill where a large museum complex built from 2005 to 2014 stood in memory of the Long March.

Ningxia was a significant battlefield and milieu of revolutionary activities of the Red Army and thus is rich in historical records of its endeavors nearly nine decades ago.

More than 80 years ago, American journalist Edgar Snow penned "Red Star Over China," which gave a rare and detailed account of the Chinese Revolution in the 1930s.

Snow had numerous interviews with Red Army leaders, soldiers, and local people in Yuwangpu, now in Tongxin County of Wuzhong City in central Ningxia.

A modern museum at a central plaza of Tongxin County seat is reviving the period of history with photos, old objects, replicas, and multimedia documents. It receives hundreds of visitors daily.

Visitors there can see original objects or replicas of military banners, books, leaflets, weapons, uniforms, and shoes used by the Red Army. Scenes of fierce battles show in multimedia videos.

"The revolutionary history of Yuwangpu is an important treasure for local people, who set up the first revolutionary government in Ningxia by ethnic Hui people with the support of the Red Army," said Ma Yuhai, a staff member working at the museum.

After the Red Army arrived in southern Ningxia in 1935, it began a series of military actions and revolutionary activities, re-animated by many museums in Ningxia.

An old courtyard house in Shanjiaji of Xiji County, which once hosted Chairman Mao Zedong in 1935, has become a museum with hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

A "Kang," or heatable bed, common in northern China and once used by Mao, is on display in the house.

"Locals in Shanjiaji then welcomed the Red Army with food, tea, and other necessities, but the soldiers, abiding by strict discipline, paid all with money and refused to take anything for free," said Ma Xiao with the local chronicles office in Xiji County.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
International and regional efforts to combat armed groups linked to al-Qaeda, the Islamic State and other extremist groups have failed to stop their expansion in Africas Sahel region, a senior United Nations official has warned.

The joint force set up in 2014 to combat groups linked to al-Qaida, ISIL (ISIS) and others in the Sahel, which has in the meantime become a hot spot for violent extremism, has failed to stop their inroads, according to UN Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Martha Pobee. She also told a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday (16 May) that without greater international support and regional cooperation, the instability will expand toward West African coastal countries. Resolute advances in the fight against terrorism, violent extremism, and organized crime in the Sahel desperately need to be made, said Pobee, adding that the devastating effects of the continuing destabilization of the Sahel would be felt far beyond the region and the African continent.

The counterterrorism force, which includes Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania and Niger, lost Mali a year ago when its ruling junta decided to pull out. Pobee said the force has had to adjust to new realities after Frances withdrawal from Mali because of tensions with the military government, and the latters decision to allow Wagner mercenaries to deploy on Malis territory. Burkina Faso and Niger have recently strengthened military cooperation with Mali to counter a surge in attacks, but despite these efforts, insecurity in the tri-border area continues to grow, she said. Eric Tiare, the Executive Secretary of the regional G5 Sahel force, said experts have put forward a new concept of operations that is yet to be endorsed by the African Union. Given that the Sahel is at a crossroads, as it is seeing many threats to international peace and security, its absolutely vital that we provide support to the force, Tiare said. The force needs what it has always lacked and what it has always sought  that is sustainable funding and equipment as we seek to counter terrorism.
Cooperation prospects between Morocco and the Republic of Ireland were at the center of the first meeting of the inter-parliamentary group held Tuesday remotely.

The group, which gathers members from Moroccos Parliament upper House and Irish senators, seeks to promote closer relations and understanding. It also aims to strengthen political, economic, and cultural partnership between the two countries.

Councilor Youssef Benjelloun, Head of the Moroccan side, stressed the importance of direct flights launched between Morocco and Ireland, saying the move contributes to strengthening relations between the two countries, leaders in renewable energy, agriculture and other high value sectors.

This is a fertile ground for the exchange of experiences & expertise and for building a win-win partnership with competitive edge and shared growth, he added.

For his part, Senator Paul Daly said the Moroccan-Irish cooperation is gaining momentum in renewable energy, especially in solar energy, praising the success accomplished by the North African Kingdom in this sector to power its transition towards a green economy.

In 2022, Irelands exports to Morocco reached $123 Million, while its imports from the country stood at $ 89.8 million. Ireland sells the North African country miscellaneous chemical products, essential oils, perfumes, Pharmaceutical products, cosmetics, toiletries, eggs, honey, edible products, precious metal compound, technical, medical apparatus

The main Moroccan products exported to Dublin are edible fruits, nuts, peel of citrus fruit, melons, organic chemicals, fish and seafood preparations, electrical, electronic equipment, copper, clothing, beverages, ceramic products, carpets, works of art, wood and articles of wood..
Egypts Health ministry and GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK), a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, have signed an agreement to improve health in the Arab country.

The agreement encompasses several key areas, including increased public awareness campaigns and specialized training for professionals in the field of child and elderly immunizations, the ministrys official spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar told the media.

The two partners will collaborate on joint projects to achieve multiple objectives, including raising awareness about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and combating antimicrobial resistance, Abdel-Ghaffar added.

Under the agreement, GSK will provide training for healthcare experts on vital topics such as smoking cessation, disease prevention, and accurate patient diagnosis.

GlaxoSmithKline is a multinational healthcare and pharmaceutical company, actively involved in research, development, and manufacture of pharmaceutical medications, vaccines, and consumer healthcare products. GSK is the 10th largest pharmaceutical company in the world and number 294 on the 2022 Fortune Global 500.
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Total U.S. winter wheat production is forecast at 1.13 billion bushels this year, up 2% from 2022, in a May report issued by the USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service.

As of May 1, the U.S. winter wheat yield is forecast at 44.7 bushels per acre, down 2.3 bushels from last years average yield of 47.0 bushels per acre.

The Nebraska winter wheat yield is forecast at 34 bushels per harvested acre, up 6.3% from last year. Nebraska farmers are forecast to harvest 970,000 acres of winter wheat, up 18.3% from last year.

NASS is also forecasting that 67.4% of the winter wheat acres that were planted in the U.S. last fall will be harvested for grain or seed. That is down from last years 70.5% and the 9 year average (2014-2022) of 77.1% harvested.

However, the total harvested acres of winter wheat is forecast at 25.3 million acres, up 8 percent from last year.
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Smoke from wildfires in Canada could begin impacting air quality for people involved in outdoor activities Thursday across Nebraska.

The National Weather Service posted an alert for possible moderate to unhealthy air quality from 9:30 a.m. Thursday through noon Friday for the entire state. Conditions could range from moderate to unhealthy for sensitive populations to unhealthy for anyone engaged in outdoor activities.

Dirk Petersen, a meteorologist with the weather service in Valley, said forecasters already were seeing reduced visibility due to smoke in the northern part of the state, at times below one mile, Thursday morning.

The federal airnow.gov website, home of the U.S. Air Quality Index, indicated that the Nebraska Panhandle and parts of northeast Nebraska already were seeing air quality in the very unhealthy category.

Kim Engel, director of the Panhandle Public Health District, said conditions were overcast and smoky in the area.

Petersen said a cold front moving slowly into the region is pushing down smoke that had been staying higher aloft.

Were going to start seeing smoke moving into the Omaha metro area this afternoon into early evening, he said.

Officials with the Douglas County Health Department said smoke from the wildfires was expected to push air quality index in the area into the unhealthy for sensitive groups category and possibly the unhealthy zone Thursday and possibly into Saturday night.

Residents are likely to see a distinct haze in the sky. The particulate matter in the air from the fires can create serious health issues for people with heart and lung disease, older adults and children, health officials said.

Anyone who may be impacted by such conditions is advised to minimize outdoor activities during such times. Residents can monitor local conditions at douglascountyairquality.com or by going to Air Quality in the drop-down menu on the health departments home page, douglascountyhealth.com.
Iger and DeSantis. Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photo: Getty Images

Ron DeSantis is discovering that he cant push Disney around the way he can public-school teachers and transgender teens.

On Thursday, Disney announced that it would be nixing a $1 billion development plan near Orlando, Florida, marking another front in the bitter battle between corporate behemoth and far-right governor. In an email to employees, Disney Parks chairman Josh DAmaro cited changing business conditions as a reason for exiting the deal. He did not need to elaborate further.

Per the Orlando Sentinel, Disney had paid $46.4 million in 2021 for 58 acres of land in Lake Nona, Florida, that was meant to house hundreds of members of its Imagineering team, many transplanted from California, who would make an average of $120,000. According to the New York Times, a number of employees didnt want to move to Florida  some quit rather than relocate  but Disney stuck with the deal until now because of the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks the state had agreed to.

DeSantis has used his relentless attacks on Disney  which first drew his ire for criticizing Floridas so-called Dont Say Gay law  as a way to shore up conservative support for his anti-woke agenda in Florida and nationwide. After revoking the companys special-district status last year, DeSantis romped to reelection by almost 20 points, which seemed to prove that there was little political downside in going after a company that generates such goodwill with American children (and some strange adults). But recently, his strategy has shown signs of wear.

For one thing, Disney has been counterattacking in increasingly aggressive fashion, especially since last fall, when Bob Iger, who had personally objected to the Florida law, came out of retirement and snatched the CEO crown back from Bob Chapek. (Iger opposed the project Disney canceled on Thursday from the beginning, even before his feud with the governor.) Earlier this year, DeSantis proudly proclaimed that he was deposing the board of Disneys special tax district. But when the DeSantis-approved board reconvened, it emerged that the outgoing board had stealthily passed a measure hamstringing its replacement. The dispute between the two boards is now tied up in court. In April, Disney filed a broad lawsuit against DeSantis, alleging a targeted campaign of government retaliation. Given that DeSantis hasnt bothered to disguise his motivations as much more than naked political revenge, the company appears to have a pretty good case. Donald Trump, who has soared to a vast lead over DeSantis in early primary polls, accused DeSantis of getting absolutely destroyed by Disney.

But its not just candidates directly competing against DeSantis who are criticizing the governor for his scorched-earth campaign against a private company. While Florida Republicans have generally gone along with DeSantiss war, some have clearly had enough of it  which makes economic sense given the companys enormous footprint in the state.

In his email on Thursday, DAmaro said he retained hope that Disney could continue with a planned $17 billion of investment in Florida over the next decade, which would include 13,000 jobs. All that may depend on DeSantiss next few moves.
Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photo: Risto Bozovic/AP Photo

Today, Do Kwon is awaiting trial in a small Eastern European country with a questionable human-rights record. But only 14 months ago, he was in a much more favorable place: sitting on billions of dollars worth of crypto he created out of nothing, with millions of enthusiastic followers at his back, as he pursued a plan for world domination.

Since then, just about everything that could have gone wrong for his master plan did. Its not an exaggeration to say that Kwon, a 31-year-old coder and Stanford University graduate, was patient zero in the string of collapses that reduced the cryptosphere to a fraction of its former size, leaving most of those around the world who dabbled in it far poorer than they otherwise would have been. The digital currencies that he built his fortune on, terraUSD and luna, crashed to zero in a matter of hours, wiping out his $40 billion empire (and the wealth of many of his retail acolytes). Theres a straight line that links the collapse of Kwons digital currencies to the two other major calamities that defined 2022 as cryptos worst year: the cratering of hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and the arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried on charges of criminal fraud and illegal political-influence peddling.

With law enforcement circling Kwon in multiple countries, he went on the lam for about ten months, insisting on Twitter the entire way that he did nothing criminally wrong. Then, in March, authorities in Montenegro  a small country in the Balkans squeezed between Serbia and Albania  arrested him as he boarded a private plane headed to Dubai using an allegedly fake passport.

On Friday, Kwon and his chief financial officer, Han Chang-joon, were placed under house arrest by the Montenegro courts, their release secured by a roughly $450,000 bail payment. For Kwon, being under house arrest might be a big step down from his old life, but it is also a big step up from Montenegros prisons, which were rebuked by the State Department over reports of torture and beatings. He is now set to begin the first of his trials in as many as three countries  that is, if he doesnt successfully evade his minders again.

Whats clear about Kwon is that, though he may not be a billionaire anymore, hes still rich. The bail was sent over by Kwons wife and Hans wife, and the apartment in which they live is worth several million, according to the court. (Its not clear which apartment Montenegro authorities are referring to here. An apartment they bought last year in Serbia is worth about $2.2 million, and Korean authorities had earlier seized about $175 million in assets, including a Seoul apartment.) Where this money came from, or how much more they have access to, is unclear. Prosecutors are worried that the bail amount is too low  that it does not guarantee the presence of the defendants to show up to further court hearings. Translation: Kwon and his buddy might be happy to say good-bye to the bail money and the apartment and go on the lam again.

Its unclear what challenges and hurdles he might face if he tries to skip out on his trial. Montenegro does not have the capacity to surveil Kwon with an ankle monitor, according to his lawyer. Instead, the authorities there will have to rely on weekly police visits to his apartment in the countrys capital, and there will be some security presence around his building to keep tabs on him. The view from Kwons perspective is bleak: Even if he beats the charges in Montenegro, hes been indicted for criminal fraud in the U.S. and in South Korea. Both countries are seeking his extradition. Years of trials lie ahead.

From the time his cryptocurrencies crashed last April, he has played a worldwide game of catch-me-if-you-can with authorities. In late 2021, just months before everything collapsed, hed moved to Singapore. This past summer, he gave a widely mocked interview to a crypto reporter whose company Kwon had invested in. By September, local authorities couldnt find him. After South Korean officials accused him of not cooperating with their investigation, he taunted them from his Twitter account. Im making zero effort to hide, he wrote in September. (Korean officials said he was obviously on the run.) When Interpol issued a Red Notice for his arrest, he sowed doubt online that it was even true. (The policing agency doesnt post all its notices online, but Korea confirmed that there was one.)

It was a very modern and very crypto version of being a fugitive, continuously playing to his fans  known as Lunatics  and trolling his enemies on social media while making scarce in meatspace. But hed always been a gifted and audacious influencer. This was the guy who had built up his following by being an asshole and roped in big-deal Wall Street types like Mike Novogratz to his crypto project. His stated ambition was nothing short of supplanting the whole idea of money itself.

Kwons project centered on a pair of linked digital tokens called terra and luna. There was a complicated relationship between them  one was theoretically stable while the other floated with the markets, a design that was supposed to make an ever-shifting counterweight. What matters now is that the design proved to be unstable. In a few days last May, both melted down, vaporizing a sum of wealth equivalent to the GDP of Bolivia.

There were immediate calls to bring Do Kwon to justice, accusing him of defrauding his customers, knowingly taking money out of his companies, and being reckless with other peoples money. In South Korea, where many terra and luna holders lived, officials started to investigate.

In the weeks after the crash, Kwon still appeared to believe that he could just move on from it, as hed moved on from the implosion of a prior, smaller project that was similar to terra. He launched a new cryptocurrency called luna 2.0, then retweeted messages of support for him. FTX supports Luna 2.0, Kwon posted on May 25 with a link to a since-deleted tweet from the now-bankrupt exchange. That same day, he retweeted a similar message of support from Huobi, a cryptocurrency exchange believed to be controlled by Justin Sun, another digital-currency billionaire who is now facing civil-fraud charges in the U.S. At that time, just a few months after bitcoin had hit an all-time high of nearly $69,000, the idea that he could just move on and instantly create another multibillion-dollar fortune was at least plausible. But luna 2.0 soon crashed, too.

After that, the sales pitch changed. No longer was he pushing cryptocurrencies very hard. Instead, he wanted his followers to buy something even more valuable, at least to him: Do Kwons innocence. He would defend himself as merely a fallible entrepreneur, someone who got it wrong  definitely not a fraud. In November, the consulting firm J.S. Held finished an audit of one of his companies, the Luna Foundation Guard  its initials echoing a crypto meme meaning Lets fucking go!  which had spent $2.8 billion trying to keep his currencies from crashing. None of the money from that fund was stolen or embezzled, the firm found. I was wrong, but that doesnt make me a scammer, he wrote in December. Its a strategy thats going to presumably get its first airing in the court system of Podgorica, Montenegros capital city.

But civil and criminal prosecutors have already been saying otherwise. Even before the May crash, the Securities and Exchange Commission had sued him for illegally offering unregistered securities, serving him with a subpoena while he was onstage at an event in New York. The SEC alleged that he repeatedly misled the public, as Kwon argued that it didnt have the jurisdiction to sue him. In September, Korean authorities issued a warrant for his arrest as well as four former employees. According to a civil class-action suit filed in California, Seouls prosecutors office had obtained private messages of Do Kwon allegedly telling a Terraform Labs employee to manipulate the market price of the Terra stablecoin and the associated Luna cryptocurrency. After Kwon was arrested in March, U.S. and Korean prosecutors unsealed indictments.

Its not clear what will happen next for Kwon. Although Montenegro doesnt have an extradition treaty with the U.S., the country has sent back convicted fraudsters before. When I reached out to Su Zhu, the Three Arrows Capital co-founder who was close with Kwon, to ask if hed been in contact with Kwon, he deleted an entire conversation on Telegram going back to the fall.

Still, Kwons posting has retained him some fans. There are even some who still call themselves Lunatics, though there are fewer now that Kwon is a lot poorer than he used to be. One of his fans, who goes by MB and runs a luna Telegram chat, defended Kwon  even predicted that hed be up to his old tricks in no time. Do Kwon remains one of the top guys in this industry, he told me. So when the time comes and the truth comes to light, he will continue his vision about decentralized economies and money.
Dianne Feinstein with Nancy Corinne Prowda. Photo: Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Senator Dianne Feinstein needs help. For at least three years, staffers and fellow senators have said that the 89-year-old lawmaker suffers from memory lapses and even fails to recognize colleagues she has worked with for years. Returning to the Senate last week after a three-month absence owing to shingles, she now has aides helping her do the very basics of her job and guiding her around the Capitol in a wheelchair.

Putting aside the question of whether or not Feinstein should remain in the Senate in her current state of health, a new detail raises a concern regarding the interests of who is helping her. Politico reports that Nancy Corinne Prowda, the eldest daughter of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, is chaperoning Feinstein as part of the swarm of aides who encircle her when reporters come asking questions. Prowda, who works in the corporate offices of Hilton Hotels & Resorts, has recently become a key aide, helping Feinstein around the Capitol as she recovers from shingles.

On its face, this is not unusual: Pelosi and Feinstein are the two most powerful politicians to come out of San Francisco in decades, and Pelosis communications director says that both Pelosi and her daughter are friends with Feinstein. But it could mean that the Pelosis have extra sway in choosing a successor should Feinstein resign before her term is up in 2025. California governor Gavin Newsom has said he would appoint a Black woman lawmaker, which could influence the contested Democratic primary already underway.

If DiFi resigns right now, there is an enormous probability that Barbara Lee gets appointed, a source close to the Pelosi family told Politico, referring to the representative running for the Senate seat in 2024. That would be a problem for Representative Adam Schiff, whom Pelosi has endorsed in the race next year. With Prowda in Feinsteins ear at a vulnerable moment, the family confidant added that the relationship between Pelosi, her daughter, and Feinstein is being kept under wraps and very, very closely held.

Meanwhile, the secret of Feinsteins acuity is getting out more and more as she remains in public life. Days after her return to the Senate, she told a reporter that I havent been gone for the past three months. She was promptly wheeled away by an aide after the short exchange.

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Lina Khan is a different kind of Federal Trade Commission chair. Khan, who is only 34, made her name with a much-discussed paper titled Amazons Antitrust Paradox while she was still in Yale Law School. The paper, which bucked longstanding consensus about how to evaluate monopolies, marked her as a leading voice against corporate consolidation  a stance that has largely been out of fashion in Washington for decades. During her two years leading the FTC, Khan has pursued an aggressive regulatory strategy in sectors from big tech to book publishing, with tactics that have inspired many admirers and many critics. In the latest episode of On With Kara Swisher, Kara speaks with Khan about how to regulate new tools like ChatGPT, her focus on Meta in particular, and, of course, Elon Musk.

Kara Swisher: You just wrote a terrific op-ed in the New York Times, calling for more regulation on AI. Explain your argument and why its not too late.

Lina Khan: The argument was really underscoring that we have all of these new AI tools entering the market that are becoming more widely adopted, but theres no AI exemption from the laws already on the books. Sometimes there can be a perception that these new tools are coming amid this regulatory vacuum, and my argument was that actually, we already have laws and tools, and we dont even necessarily need new ones. Maybe we do, and Congress can decide that. But lets not forget that the existing laws, the existing rules prohibiting deception, prohibiting unfairness, prohibiting discrimination, prohibiting collusion  all of those laws still apply, and where the FTC has authority, were going to be vigorously enforcing those laws, even if it involves AI tools.

Swisher: People seem to love playing with these chatbots, kind of like they did with social media. Its fun, its fascinating. The dangers can seem abstract and sci-fi-ish. A lot of polls show people arent that worried, even though the people who make this stuff are more worried. Walk us through two of the practical downsides that you wrote about: scam and fraud.

Khan: Because of our jurisdiction, we are entirely focused on the here and now. And weve already seen how these AI tools, while they might provide a lot of opportunity and benefits, can also be misused in ways that are turbocharging fraud. They allow scammers and fraudsters to disseminate fake content much more cheaply, much more quickly, and on a much wider scale. And so weve already seen, for example, how people have used voice cloning to make phone calls, to pretend to be peoples family members, to do very, very convincing impersonations, pretend to be a family member in distress and end up scamming family members out of thousands of dollars. Weve seen how some of these tools can be used to generate very, very convincing phishing attempts, where youre using somebodys social media profile to basically generate a message that is entirely targeted to them and what their vulnerabilities might be. And again, were seeing people being scammed out of thousands of dollars.

Swisher: And in this case, its not linked to Section 230, which gave the early internet companies broad immunity. These are actually the same companies, but they dont get that exemption here, correct?

Khan: Thats right. I mean, Im sure therell be various issues tested in the courts, but our sense is that Section 230 is unlikely to apply here. The companies that created these tools could be on the hook.

Swisher: And they cant say theyre just a benign platform, from your perspective.

Khan: Thats right.

Swisher: When I interviewed Sam Altman, whos the CEO of Open AI, he essentially said the safest way to deal with AI is to release it to the public and fix issues as they come up. Yet the FTC recently warned AI firms not to over rely on post-release detection. Youd like them to test and catch in advance. Is it possible to anticipate all the issues?

Khan: I think we need to be very wary of systems where its the public that is carrying the burden of doing cleanup. I mean, these companies have the information, they have the resources. These are multibillion-dollar firms, and the responsibility should really be on them to make sure that before they put these tools out into the wild, that theyre safe for people.I think a system where youre putting the burden on, under-resourced civil society groups, under-resourced academics, under-resourced public servants, is just going to create a system where youre endlessly doing cleanup rather than addressing things on the front end by the actors that are best positioned to do that.

Swisher: So was this a warning to them?

Khan: Absolutely. Were looking to make sure that businesses are on notice, that the FTC is watching, that our existing laws and authorities apply in this space, and that they need to be complying with the law as they introduce these tools.

Swisher: Another thing the FTC is worried about is AI bias. You put out a joint statement with the DOJs Civil Rights Division and the Consumer Financial Protection Board. I love a statement just as much as anyone else, but whats the point?

Khan: The point is to make sure these firms know that the existing laws prohibiting discrimination  each of our agencies has laws, be it the Civil Rights laws, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act  that these laws are going to apply. And so if their tools are being used to automate discrimination, they need to be on guard to make sure they know that these laws prohibiting that discrimination are going to be applied. And they could be on the hook for that.

Swisher: Do you think it scares them in any way?

Khan: I think its really important for us as enforcers to, again, make sure that the market knows that these existing tools apply. I think weve seen all too often instances in which companies play fast and loose with the rules, especially right at the beginning when there can be some confusion about, Hey, are these new tools? Did the existing laws apply? What does that look like?

Swisher: What, me? Huh?

Khan: Exactly So we as enforcers thought it was incredibly important for there to be absolutely no doubt, for there to be clarity and transparency for businesses, that they know all of these existing laws apply and we as law enforcers are going to be applying them.

Swisher: Do you think that makes them nervous or wary or not? Some people suggest the power to regulate AI should lie with the FTC, but you are understaffed as it is.

Khan: I think the big issue here is a lot of these tools are just going to be used in ways that are naturally part of our work. We go after fraud and scams. When these tools are being used to, to propagate fraud and scams on a massive scale. Thats clearly within our jurisdiction. We enforce the nations antitrust laws, so when we see mergers or acquisitions or potentially collusive behavior that is being facilitated through these tools, thats also going to be part of our work.

So I think this is a broader point where increasingly the distinction between digital and non-digital or tech and non-tech is being blurred as these tools and as these technologies get implemented across business. So if we get a merger of grocery stores, there can be a really significant digital aspect of that merger. Relating to how these companies are using the data. So I would just say the digital aspect of our work is increasing and expanding across the board, just given the realities of how businesses are evolving.

Swisher: Okay, lets move on to Facebook. Whats the philosophical underpinning for the monopoly case against them?

Khan: Facebook is a repeat violator at the FTC. There was a consent decree that goes back close to a decade, which the FTC in 2019 found that they violated. The recent news suggests that they may have also been in violation of this latest consent order. And that is really prompting a step back and a close look at: What does it take to make sure that firms across the board are actually complying with the law? Are fines, even if theyre big, enough? Or do we as an agency need to be looking at the underlying business models and the incentives that those business models are creating to make sure that firms are not able just to treat these consent decrees or even fines as a cost of doing business, and that theyre actually fully complying with the law.

Swisher: So in this case, where does it stand right now?

Khan: So we voted out an order that would change a consent decree. Now Facebook has an opportunity to make a filing, and then well take it from there. We also have a separate lawsuit that was filed before I arrived at the FTC, looking to address the fact that Facebooks acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp were illegal  that it allowed them, basically, to maintain its monopoly as the market was transitioning from desktop to mobile. So that lawsuit is underway. When I came in, the judge had tossed the case out. We filed an amended complaint. We survived a motion to dismiss, and so now the trial is proceeding.

Swisher: Does Khan have a Meta fixation? That was in the Wall Street Journal. It seems like the Wall Street Journal has a Lina Khan fixation, but 

Khan: I think when you have companies that are repeatedly before a law-enforcement agency, you need to ask serious questions about whether these companies are recidivist and whether they have a challenge in abiding by existing laws.

Swisher: Recidivist  thats a good word. Thats a loaded word. Meaning that they will continue to do this until you stop them.

Khan: I think we have a serious problem where companies  oftentimes big companies  can treat law-enforcement actions or even fines as a cost to doing business. And we need to make sure that theyre abiding by the law and that honest businesses that are abiding by the law are not at a competitive disadvantage because theyre actually following the rules, and losing out to companies that arent.

Swisher: Do you think Meta is particularly a particularly bad recidivist?

Khan: The FTCs own history shows that time and time again, the agency  again, under my predecessors  has had to take action against this company. And so thats just part of the public record.

Swisher: Twitter is under two consent decrees, speaking of which. In an active investigation, I know you cant comment on it, but let me pose a hypothetical. Is it okay for a company to misrepresent who is and isnt paying for the service they offer? For example, I did not buy a blue check, and it looks like I did.

Khan: On its face, that type of deception could be quite concerning and clearly fall within the FTCs jurisdiction.

Swisher: And what are you going to do about it for me particularly?

Khan: [Laughs.] Look, weve been following a lot of the developments at Twitter quite closely. As you noted, this is a company thats been under a consent decree at the FTC for a decade, right? This far preceded any new ownership that took place last year. Even a decade ago, the FTC found that the company was misrepresenting how it was using peoples data. Theres a lot of personal data thats tied up in Twitter. So anytime we see reporting that that data might be susceptible to misuse, we take that seriously and look at that very closely.

Swisher: Do you think the blue-check thing is misrepresentation?

Khan: Theres a legal test that you go through to show deception, but on its face, I think if theres a marker that somebody has paid for something, but in fact they havent, thats a concern. I think we also can see glitches and changes where it might not be intentional. So we need to be aware of that distinction as well.

Swisher: According to the GOPs subcommittee on the weaponization of federal government, youve been harassing Twitter. How do you respond to that?

Khan: Again, Twitter has been under FTC order for over a decade. This is a company that was found early on to be playing fast and loose with peoples data. Last year, again, it was found that Twitter had actually violated that original consent decree. We take law enforcement very seriously. We think its incredibly important that companies are abiding by the laws on the books.

The consent order is public. It lays out what Twitter was required to do. One of the things it was required to do is monitor and police very closely what types of third parties had access to user data. So if we at the FTC are suddenly reading that all sorts of people have been granted access to Twitter systems, that legal teams that were responsible for complying with the FTC consent order have been fired, it would be malpractice for us to turn a blind eye to that. And so I think its absolutely our obligation, especially when you have these repeat offenders, to look very closely to make sure were protecting people.

Swisher: So youre not harassing Twitter?

Khan: Absolutely not.

Swisher: Now, Elon Musk reportedly tried to meet with you. Why did you say no?

Khan: We oftentimes hear from executives about wanting to do meetings, and we consult with our staff who are doing the investigation on the ground. One thing we want to avoid is companies that are obstructing FTC investigation, trying to short-circuit around that by just trying to ask for a meeting at the top. And so we engaged with our staff and learned from them that unfortunately there were still some deficiencies in Twitters compliance, and let them know that they should focus their efforts on complying with the FTCs requests.

Swisher: So did you want to meet with him?

Khan: Look, theres always a time to meet top-level executives as part of our process. And so if that comes to bear, well be happy to do so.

Swisher: But for right now, no.

Khan: For right now, we recommended that Twitter focused on complying with existing information and requests that FTC staff had put out.

Swisher: So Elon: If you comply, shell meet with you, I guess.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

On With Kara Swisher is produced by Nayeema Raza, Blakeney Schick, Cristian Castro Rossel, and Megan Burney, with mixing by Fernando Arruda, engineering by Christopher Shurtleff, and theme music by Trackademics. New episodes will drop every Monday and Thursday. Follow the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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New York Times bestselling author and illustrator Jerry Craft visited Opelika Middle School students Wednesday morning to share an inspiring story about his journey to success.

The auditorium room was filled with over 700 seventh and eight graders cheering his name as he walked down the aisle and onto the stage. He shared his story about how he became a Newbery Award-winning author.

As a writer and illustrator, Craft said hes often alone in a room working. Hearing and seeing energetic students let him know that the books he spent so much time creating were worthwhile.

Craft earned his bestseller title for his graphic novels New Kid and Class Act. His latest book School Trip was published in April.

New Kid became the only book in history to win the John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to childrens literature (2020); the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers Literature (2019); and the Coretta Scott King Author Award for the most outstanding work by an African American writer (2020), according to Crafts website. Craft is also the creator of the award-winning comic strip Mamas Boyz and cofounder of the Schomburg Centers annual Black Comic Book Festival.

Anna Jones, community relations specialist for the Opelika Public Library, said they were excited to have Craft speak at the library and middle school. She said he inspires kids and shows them graphic novels are real books, too.

I hope that they took away the fact that it takes a long time to get to follow your dreams. Working hard for them and never giving up pays off in the end. Doodling is not a bad thing, Jones said after the program.

Becky Brown, the director of public relations at Opelika City Schools, said the school system loves having guest speakers like Craft visit the students. OCS hasnt had an author visit in a long time, but Brown said they quickly agreed to partner with the Opelika Public Library when Jones reached out about Crafts visit.

Opelika City Schools is so honored to have him and so excited to partner with the library to bring this opportunity to students, Brown said. We thought he gave just a great presentation and the kids loved it.

Craft said he loves visiting schools while on his book tour. He said middle school kids often focus on what they cant do, but he wants to show them that all they have to do is try by taking it one step at a time.

Climbing the ladder

Craft compared his career to climbing a ladder.

He was born in Harlem and grew up in Washington Heights, New York. While he started out as a reluctant reader, he always loved to draw and wanted to grow up to be an artist. His favorite thing to draw was superheroes. He often drew them on his homework when there was space on the page.

I went from reading Dr. Seuss to Marvel Comics to almost nothing. Because if there was one thing I hated to do when I was your age, it was reading books, Craft told the students. So the closest that I came to enjoying reading was Marvel Comics. My teachers hated us reading comics, because they thought that they would rot our little brains. So they would take them from us.

Crafts teachers replaced the comics with books like, The Jungle, As I Lay Dying, An American Tragedy, and others. By the time he was in eleventh grade, Craft received the book Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. That was the first book hed ever read, finished and actually enjoyed.

He believes he liked the book, because it was about a young boy. This led Craft to search for books about characters that looked like him.

Most of the books at that time that featured kids who look like me were kinda depressing. It was history or it was misery, Craft said.

He eventually decided he would create the fun books that he wished he had when he was a kid.

Craft started with comic strips, which allowed him to incorporate his passion for drawing. He put his comic strips into a book form and sent it out to publishers across the country.

After receiving multiple rejections, he decided in 1997 he would learn how to self-publish his own book, Mamas Boyz: As American as Sweet Potato Pie!

Im not gonna lie. I did feel rejected, but there are times in your life when people are not going to believe in you. It will be up to you. Do you want to stay there or take that leap of faith? And thats what I did, he told the students.

Craft self-published two more books and other authors began asking him for help with self-publishing their own work. He decided to take another leap of faith and establish his own publishing company, which has published nearly 30 books in 20 years.

Craft set his next goal to write a chapter book.

In 2013, he completed The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention! This chapter book caught the attention of Diary of a Wimpy Kid author Jeff Kinney, who asked Craft if he would like to be one of the first authors to have a signing event at his newly opened bookstore in Massachusetts. Craft was thrilled for the opportunity and brought his two sons with him.

Next, Craft received an email from Scholastic requesting him to illustrate a book for them. He turned Mamas Boyz into a full color graphic novel. Then he completed the novel New Kid after writing and rewriting and drawing and redrawing for about 13 months.

Now with a publisher and an agent, Craft said his life started becoming bigger than his dream. His book became the first graphic novel to ever win the John Newbery Medal and he became the fifth African American author to win it. New Kid is also in the works to become a live-action adaptation film with the help of LeBron James and Universal Pictures.

The only author to ever win the Newbery, Scott King and Kirkus Prize was a young kid born in Harlem who hated to read and was told that comics would rot his brain, Craft said. I grew up to make the comic thats the only book ever to win those awards. Just shows you that theres really nothing that you cant do.

Craft encouraged the kids to work hard, practice what they love to do and keep pursuing their dreams.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  A commuters group has urged transportation authorities to launch an investigation into the alleged tip requirement of some ride-hailing firms, stressing this practice creates a bidding atmosphere among riders as drivers would choose the highest tipper.

In a statement Thursday, the Coalition for Filipino Commuters lead convenor Ira Panganiban lambasted transport network company Joyride for allegedly asking tips from potential passengers even before they can book a ride.

Including this feature on the platform, Panganiban said, would put those commuters who do not include a tip at a disadvantage.

We are calling on the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to put a stop to this practice as it is not fair to commuters, Panganiban said.

Joyride has yet to respond to a request for comment.

Upon checking the Joyride app as of 5 p.m., users can see an add tip feature before securing a rideeither for motorcycle taxis or cars. But giving a tip is optional, the company noted in the platform.

The LTFRB earlier warned public transport operators, particularly motorcycle taxis, against overcharging of fares.

The agency said industry players must comply with the fare matrix.

The fare matrix was crafted to ensure that the fares charged by all public transport operators from commuters regardless of vehicle type are fair and equitable, said LTFRB Chairman Teofilo Guadiz III.

We reiterate that this practice of overcharging has no place in our public transportation system. We will not allow it, Guadiz added.
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CAMP HILL  Camp Hill residents feel forgotten and neglected after being denied federal aid more than a month after a hailstorm hit the community on March 26 and left over 400 homes severely damaged, according to the Alabama Center for Rural Organizing and Systemic Solutions.

Most of the homes have severe roof damage from hail the size of grapefruit and soft balls raining down on the majority Black town for 20 minutes. Tarps cover holes on the roofs and the risk of black mold lingers as moisture builds up on houses.

About 80 to 90% of the vehicles in town have been destroyed, said Warren Tidwell, the executive director of ACROSS

Ive never seen nothing like it. It destroyed everything  cars and my home. Everybody was affected by it, Camp Hill resident Jessie Francis said. Its real hard. Its already a little poor town. Its so limited with jobs. Its hard for the people. It was just tragic.

Many people in the small town of 1,000 feel forgotten as very little in the way of volunteers and federal help have come to provide relief.

FEMA recently made a disaster declaration for the town, but denied individual assistance for residents. FEMA only approved public assistance to cover things like roads, bridges, public facilities and schools. The state has one month to appeal the government agency's decision not to provide individual assistance to Camp Hill residents.

Camp Hill mayor Messiah Williams-Cole said the Alabama Emergency Management Agency would have to ask Gov. Kay Ivey to appeal FEMA's decision.

The community has received support from volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Southern Baptist Association and Auburn United Methodist Church. Still, Camp Hill is in desperate need for more help.

If there was a category for hailstorms, this would be a Category 5 hailstorm. Its affected 98% of the town, Tidwell said. If you fly a drone over that town, it looks like a hurricane.

Most of the people in town were asleep when the storm barreled through town around 3:30 a.m. No one lost their life, but Tidwell said the hail pummeled many animals to death.

The property damage is more than enough to ensure a long road to recovery for residents.

There's no one who got hurt, per se and it seems like it's just property," Williams-Cole said. "It goes by the wayside, but right now it's just people hurting that have often been forgotten.

Rosalie Bundy, a resident in Camp Hill, was awakened by the storm as it ravaged her home and broke her windows.

Those big gobs of ice  I guess were falling against my wall It just sounded like someone throwing big rocks against the wall, she said. I got up, got dressed and went to the foot of the bed. I got dressed because I said, They might have to take me out of here.

Tywanda Greers mobile home is covered in tarps after the storm. Her family of four had to sleep on a single couch. She said she has been in touch with the American Red Cross to repair her roof. She reached out to others, but they couldnt help since she couldn't afford to pay for repairs.

It was like a disaster. Windows were broke out. It was raining everywhere, Greer said. Everything got wet, mattresses and all...clothes. It was very uncomfortable.

Camp Hill resident Red Walton said the hailstorm caused a steady leak in his bedroom. The sheet rock soaked up so much water his ceiling fell in the day after the storm.

It was getting worse and worse. Then the rain stopped, he said. I wasnt prepared to see what I seen. The whole ceiling fell out just about.

A volunteer relief headquarters has been set up in Camp Hill. At least 223 requests have come through from residents asking for volunteer help. The volunteer fire department has put in 16 to 20 hour days just to place tarps on roofs.

Camp Hill Fire Chief Josh Darling said they still need help with roofing, cleaning out houses and donating supplies.

Tidwell said the groups that have helped have done an amazing job. Still, they need more support, particularly from people with roofing experience.

In the meantime, Camp Hill continues to suffer the effects of the hailstorm. Some residents feel like they are at a point where no one cares what happens to them.

I definitely think the town has been forgotten about, Francis said. I think people dont care about this town, because its so little. We need everything food, transportation, money. People are out of work. Its hard Its sad, but try to do something about it. Just dont say it. Be about it. Put out a helping hand.

Those who wish to help should contact Tidwell at 334-663-5472. Volunteers can also report to the volunteer resource center set up in Camp Hill at 41 Heard St.

See Camp Hill after a hailstorm left the town with devastating damage
Fallon is the worst.

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no excuse for Fallon to not do the same thing the other guys are doing. He definitely has more money than Seth Meyers I'm guessing. cheapass.

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nothing about this surprises me, but sucks for everyone on staff/crew

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WGA should picket outside his dumb ass ride @ universal

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Yall expect him to dig into his coke fund to pay????????? Yeah right.

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fallon may be the worst talk show host of the last 20 years. he has been and always will be a huge loser. hope none of them return when the strike is over. the man should be persona non grata among all writers, union or non-union.

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yeah, I can't handle watching him. the secondhand embarrassment is too much

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I still can't believe he was in Band of Brothers.



How did that even happen?!?!?!

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Only for like 2 seconds. They needed all hands on deck to fill roles for the entire US army.

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To be fair, everyone was in Band of Brothers.

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fallon has had a lot of shakeups with his writers room since 2017, like he went through a few head writers and showrunners within a matter of months in 2020

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POS. I bet if James Corden was still the

Late Late Show host hed do the exact same thing.

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I wouldn't be surprised either, Corden seemed like the worst of the bunch

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iirc Corden also has some union-busting in his past?

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He ended his show so he wouldn't have to pay through the strike

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Although the host shouldnt be obligated to pay, doesnt mean that he doesnt have the means to go above and beyond to support people. This is when it matters when we make these decisions instead of throwing your hands in the air about helping people. Jimmy has the money. Support your people as long as you can.



Really taking up Jays mantle, huh?

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i hate him!

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Fallon continues to be a piece of shit.



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Sigh. Of course he would be the one.

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Fallon is the actual worst. Fuck him.

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good on seth and colbert and kimmel for doing the right thing and putting their money where their mouths are in regards to their writers. repeats of late night with seth meyers have all had pieces that prominently feature his writers and has started pointing out what segment was written by which of his staff writers.



fallon has to be shamed into doing the right and good thing after the other three do it first, it's such a leno move man.

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I really appreciate that about Seth. I feel like his tenure as head writer at SNL has compelled him to really give his people their flowers when he can.

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definitely, hes talked about seeing himself more as a writer than a performer too so he feels that alliance with his writers

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Does the article say Kimmel is paying them?

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Seeing the responses to Depp's antics at Cannes this past week have been interesting. While there are still plenty of Depp fans, it feels like the average person is now starting to recoil in disgust.

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I try to avoid Depp pics and news, so I'm out of the loop. What has the human shower scum been up to?

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Crying during a 7 minute standing ovation for a movie with terrible reviews he is barely even in at Cannes.

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Showed up to the premiere, cried.



Turned up 40 minutes late to a 45 minute press conference the next day, said he didn't see the movie (that he was photographed at) and then made a series of weird, rambly statements about how he doesn't care about "the haters" that somehow involved a long metaphor about mashed potatoes.



Was photographed with visibly rotting teeth.



tl;dr -- was his usual self: unprofessional, unwashed, incoherent.



And apart from the remoras, most people have been laughing at him.

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Thinking about this court case makes me so sad.



The only good thing to come out of it is peoples true colours came out - blocked quite a few people I classed as friends. Can't be arsed with them.

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I've caught people claiming they never supported him even though I know for a fact that they were chuckling at the tiktok memes this time last year. So bizarre. It genuinely felt like everyone lost their minds for a couple of months.

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It honestly felt like a fever dream - all these previously self-confessed feminists/people who were yelling 'believe the abused!!! not the abuser' suddenly did a 180 because everyone else was.

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Remember the brands memeing the case? SNL? Celebrities? It was completely crazy. It was like tirs been too long we had a proper witch trial and everybody wanted in on it.

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Looking back it does seem like an odd kind of mass hysteria almost

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i felt on edge for a while with people after the verdict, for example if someone wanted a film suggested to watch i was praying no one mentioned a depp film, bc then i would just know and i didn't want to think the people closest to me were on his side.



it was such a horrible time, such a horrible time.

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People are still coming out. I saw a youtube short ie tiktok video the other day and it was new yet the dude made an Amber joke.

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Same. Some celeb crushes died for me during that time as well. (As in the crushes themselves died, not the celebs, though at this point I wouldn't care if both did.)

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I got to know a lot of feminists from uni, I felt in place compared to high school, but with this trial, those same feminists either were quiet or supporting Johnny/mocking Amber. Just thinking about how I was the only person I know to not only publicly support Amber but do so repeatedly is heartbreaking.



Most feminists will only stand for feminist causes as long as it benefits them.

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same. Coworkers too.

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i was watching some uncle roger cooking reviews a while back, but then he made a joke about amber and i unsubscribed immeddiately. fucking revolting, and for what? it wasn't even a good joke!

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eaux, I was looking at BBC America and BBC talked to Depp. Like .... gag.

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But seriously, I hope they show how disgusting it was seeing people openly mock Amber, through social media but also on tv (I'm looking at you Drew Barrymore and SNL). That was some of the most vile shit I've seen in my life. Like the Thank you, Helen Mirren But seriously, I hope they show how disgusting it was seeing people openly mock Amber, through social media but also on tv (I'm looking at you Drew Barrymore and SNL). That was some of the most vile shit I've seen in my life. Like the #MeToo movement didn't happen at all.

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#MeToo had no meaningful gains and yet the backlash has been ENORMOUS

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Im laughing at the Helen Mirren part not the rest of your comment.



I agree I hope the series is factual and shows everyone how Amber got railroaded.

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thought helen mirren said it was just loreal campaign not support

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Oh, I know.

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Interesting. Looking at her IMDB , she has directed a lot of Louis Theroux stuff. I've never seen anything of hers and the write-up makes me a little bit suspicious that it could be 'both sides' nonsense...but then again maybe there will be real empathy here. Too early to tell, I suppose.

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That journalist that Depp fans sent to Virginia just put out his book and most reviews say that in an attempt to be "neutral" he favors Heard because... you know, she's telling the truth. So even "both sides" will likely still feel pro-Amber.

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Wait, the fans sent him?

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The write-up also makes me nervous, but I'll reserve judgment for when I see it. If anything I hope it'll be something like Louis Theroux 'The Night in Question', which I was also very anxious for before watching. Citing it as a neutral, 'both-sides' approach will (unfortunately) bring the people to the table who actually have to watch this. In TNIQ Theroux made the accused do all the talking and in doing so made him show just what a creepy idiot he was and just how guilty he was. Just let Depp do his own defense and people will (hopefully) see right through the image he seeks to create. I see she doesn't have a credit on that specific project though.

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Im in the same boat. I want to be optimistic, but everything around this case has been so soul sucking.

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I'm praying it's a trojan horse Pro amber

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I wonder if this will talk about the not so slippery slope utilized by the far right to spread far-right views to people who watched Pro-depp content in the context of the spread of far right and misogynistic talking points openly spreading on TikTok, especially to male teens.

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this whole trial had me questioning ppls ethics and critical thinking. if she didn't mention Depp's name why it even make it there

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Idk if a trust the media to treat this in a decent way, the trial still feels very recent and seeing derp's face on my twitter tl for his attendence in Cannes made me sick, I ended up silencing his name. And I find it curious that they call it "tiktok trial", I know it went viral on tiktok but it was also viral in every social media, I couldn't enter youtube without being recomended a stupid fucking reaction of the trail while it was happening, tweets about the trial went viral every fucking day, that stupid hashtag was trending for idk how long, it wasn't just tiktok, it was every social media AND media outlets, news, etc. also treated the trial like a fucking reality show



Edited at 2023-05-18 04:15 pm (UTC)

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Right? I felt like I was being attacked on every platform. ONTD was the only safe haven.

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hate to give the english any credit, but since Johnny Depp is legally allowed to be called a wife beater in the UK - somewhat optimistic that he'll, like, be called a wife beater.

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I don't trust anyone to actually not attempt to appeal to his fans.

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Milani Cosmetics has yet to be held accountable for helping start the TikTok trend of dragging Amber. They continue to block and hide replies on their twitter account and the tiktok is still up. Loey Lane has a seat reserved in Hell for tweeting how Milani exposed Ambers abuse in quotations.

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I've tried contacting their customer service many times and I've been ignored. Tweets are ignored or hidden. They were previously blocking people on social media who called them out. Fuck Milani.

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Speaking about beauty brands, Fenty deserves a dragging too for platforming an abuser.

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They've also been bleeding followers. The case got them a tiny bump but they've been on a middling/downward trend since and have lost pretty much everything they gained from their stunt. So... best of luck to them.

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Milani brought out the ugly side of a lot of professional MUAs, taking Milani's side because Amber's lawyer used one of their palettes as an example.



I haven't seen a lot of them the same since, especially Kevin James Bennett, who supposedly did his "research" on the trial. Dude, just stick to what you know, makeup.



The irony is, Amber's MUA testified for her saying she saw the bruises. And yet, they still don't believe her.

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So many youtubers showed their asses.



Any make-up artist worth a damn would know that we have make up that can cover a whole body of tattoos; a bruise is nothing in comparison. And the fact that Amber is a white woman means that her make-up artist would have a tons of brands and shades to choose from to make those bruises completely disappear; she'd likely have access to a ton of industry products that aren't sold to the public too, just like how you can only buy salon quality shampoo from your hairdresser.

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I can't even really feel happy about the people starting to turn. I see the "He fooled us!" tweets and I'm like... okay, so y'all "believe" he was the abuser now but aren't giving him even half of the vitriol you were giving her. You just want to say you believe her because the narrative is changing but I don't see the pure glee to tear him down like what she was experiencing. Amber supporters were constantly providing receipts and the same people saying they were fooled and the evidence was suppressed were straight up calling those people liars at the time and just wanted to get their jokes off. You weren't fooled, you were just a terrible person having fun hating a woman.

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Your comment is so right and depressing. Any opportunity, 'safe pass', people get to tear down a woman in the media, there's such a wave of gleeful vitriolic misogyny.

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Right? He fooled you? How? How stupid were you to be fooled by him?

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lmao listen!!! So you're admitting you were so stupid you fully believed that that woman was snorting coke from a tissue during a huge televised trial cause you saw a tiktok?

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I still remember my ex said Amber sliced off Depp's finger and she deserved jail and everything bad to happen to her. I was like, how's a bottle gonna do that if chucked. My ex literally is the gifted math/physics guy and I failed at that shit and even I know how the fuck physics work.

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I feel this is why it'll be hard for a lot of people, if not most, to revisit DvH at length, because they'll have to face their role in Amber's abuse though the victim blaming and/or cyberbullying they directed at her.



They can't really direct so much vitriol at Depp because they're also guilty in another form of abuse.

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I aint ever going to give them the benefit of the doubt, the amount of people I argued with who were all pikachuface when I pulled out facts because they were relying on TikToks and 5min gotcha clips, and STILL sided with him after getting schooled.



THE NORTH REMEMBERS.

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so many people made it clear that they need the tiktok hivemind to think for them, which was equal parts frustrating and horrifying.

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So many of them are falling back on "they both sucked" because that's easier than admitting they were idiots who got snowed or monsters who no longer have the fig leaf of complete public support to hide their misogyny behind.

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I'm so wary of things like this - I would speculate that Amber Heard would prefer if this wasn't regurgitated all over again.



I'm not sure if this would move the needle towards any sort of change for DV victims/survivors like Amber - either in laws or in media etc. And if there is no positive then I just can't get behind it.

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"Few countries any longer use juries, and most of them are former British colonies, such as the US, Canada and Australia."



https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/22/justice-system-crisis-abolish-jury-trials-covid



Also, I hope these jurors can protect their identity forever.



"BAFTA-nominated" <---- so fucking what. I agree with you. People are going to tune into this for more salacious replay of this horror and no change will come. Start focusing forward, not backwards. Do planet earth, as a society, even care about truth anymore? Acting like social media only started existing with TikTok is ridiculous and pandering to the idiots."Few countries any longer use juries, and most of them are former British colonies, such as the US, Canada and Australia."Also, I hope these jurors can protect their identity forever."BAFTA-nominated"

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The societal damage it did was too deep. That Pick-Me energy from everyone defending/infantilizing Depp was completely unprecedented, and he milked that weaponized incompetence for all its worth. I don't think I've seen a single youtube channel that criticized Amber supporters and mocked the trial with glee have anything to say when the blocked documents got leaked. They either ignored it or tripled down in their biases against Amber while combing through it like they're CSI experts or whatever.



All I know is, any upcoming documentaries that fail to criticise that pathetic excuse of a judge are completely INVALID. You can "both sides" it all you want, but there's no denying that the judge was more than happy turning that courtroom into a circus freak show. In what world would any judge allow a lawyer to giggle with their client on the side, in the middle of a trail, like a bunch of children? In a domestic abuse case, no less?? And whatever happened to that stenographer who partied with Depp after her laptop was in custody of Depp's team for hours? Why was there no follow-up on this?

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I don't have high hopes for the angle of this series, if they try to do the 'fair and balanced' approach when the two sides do not add up AT ALL, I will be super pissed. Hopefully because it's in the UK where legally he can be called a 'wife-beater' they will outline how his behaviour follows the typical domestic violence checklists that are out there and instead of this being treated as a shocker one-off type of thing, it can be educational for viewers to see that rich and famous or not, an abuse pattern is a pattern.

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On the global stage, we are seeing a swift shift in geopolitical strategy away from free market trading toward protectionist policies and friend-shoring as a direct response to last years European energy crisis. Years of a free market approach to energy trading had left Russia with enormous influence over European energy markets. In 2021, countries in the European Union sourced 45% of their total gas imports  about 155 billion cubic meters (bcm)  from Russia alone. Then, Russia illegally invaded Ukraine and all hell broke loose.

After the invasion in February of last year, a political scuffle turned into an all-out energy war between Brussels and the Kremlin, causing a crisis in European energy markets that reverberated around the world. Europe condemned Russias actions with a mix of actual and threatened economic sanctions; Russia responded by cutting off gas supplies overnight to flex its leverage over European markets; and thus, the relative danger and vulnerability of relying on one (particularly volatile) source for a significant portion of the blocs energy mix was thrown into stark relief. Related: Chances Of World Reaching Net-Zero By 2050 Unlikely: Exxon

As a result, leaders in the West have swiftly changed their trade strategy. United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has openly called for a shift of strategy away from free market trading to the concept of friend-shoring, in which countries shift supply chains to trusted countries with similar values and political allegiances  that is to say, away from Russia and China. The European Commissions Strategic Foresight Report 2022, too, has called for a similar reconfiguration of trade networks. Staking out spheres of influence and assessing the reliability and trustworthiness of suppliers and countries is the order of the day, read a recent analysis from Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, the German Institute of International and Security Affairs.

In addition to trying to break economic ties with Russia as the war in Ukraine drags on, increasing attention is being called to the global dependence on China for clean energy supply chains, and to strategies to break that dependence and decrease supply chain vulnerability before history repeats itself. According to the International Energy Agencys Energy Technology Perspectives 2023 report, China is the leading global supplier of clean energy technologies today and a net exporter for many of them. China holds at least 60% of the worlds manufacturing capacity for most mass-manufactured technologies (e.g. solar PV, wind systems and batteries), and 40% of electrolyser manufacturing.

Experts have argued that after years of neglecting the domestic clean energy industry, the United States will have to make an assertive and accelerated effort to build up domestic production and manufacturing capacity to have any chance of competing with China on the global market. According to a recent study from Cornell University, it would also be essential for meeting national decarbonization targets (and therefore global targets, as the United States is the second largest greenhouse gas emitter after China). The study found that nationalizing United States solar energy supply chains would greatly reduce their carbon footprint and energy use.

Just this month, in an attempt to shift the balance of clean energy power away from China, the United States treasury department released new guidance limiting clean energy tax credits to U.S.-based solar developers that produce their photovoltaic cells domestically. However, clean energy experts have warned that this approach will backfire spectacularly, as the United States has negligible extant solar panel production capacity. Instead of breaking the United States dependence on Chinese solar panel imports, the requirement would simply prevent virtually all existing U.S. developers from accessing the credit.

Directly and indirectly, the US will rely on supply from China, Pol Lezcano, a senior associate at BloombergNEF, was recently quoted by the Financial Times. This guidance may encourage more cell manufacturing to take place in the US, but most of the cells used in US solar projects will continue to come from . . . factories in south-east Asia, most of them owned by Chinese companies.

While this specific policy approach may be misguided, the intent behind it is spot-on, and many experts argue that it actually does not go far enough. Solar cells are only one small part of a very long supply chain that will have to be reconfigured from top to bottom in order to diversify clean energy markets. Primary materials will also become increasingly important in clean energy markets and geopolitics in general as demand for finite rare earth materials skyrockets. Currently, China has a chokehold on these supplies as well, but the U.S is scrambling to build up its own lithium operations and to forge new trade agreements in South America  though this will present its own challenges.

In short, increasing clean energy production in the West without also increasing cash flow to China will be very, very difficult to pull off. Piecemeal policy measures such as the one introduced by the Treasury last week are doomed to fail without system-level coordination. In fact, as solar panel manufacturers are currently finding out, inadequate measures designed to support local supply chains can  and will  make matters even worse.

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com

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Latin Americas largest economy Brazil has experienced a massive oil boom over the last decade and a half that saw the country become the top regional and leading global petroleum producer. For some time, analysts have asserted that Brazil has the potential to boost hydrocarbon production by as much as 70%, which would see it become the worlds fourth-largest oil producer, but there are several headwinds that can impede such significant growth. There are fears that leftist President Lula da Silva will implement unfavorable policies and ratchet-up government intervention in Brazils booming hydrocarbon sector. That, as it occurs, will deter foreign energy investment and impact national oil company Petrobras, the leading driver of production growth.

Already international energy companies are expressing concern over the direction taken by Lulas administration with regard to Brazils energy patch. According to data from Brazils hydrocarbon regulator the National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP  Portuguese initials) April 2023 hydrocarbon output plunged sharply compared to a month prior. The agencys data shows (Portuguese) total hydrocarbon output was 3.5 million barrels of oil equivalent a day for April 2023, which represents a worrying 12% decline month over month and is 9% lower than the comparable period a year earlier. That marked slump can be attributed to significantly lower oil production. ANP data indicates that in April 2023 petroleum output averaged 2.7 million barrels a day compared to 3.1 million barrels a month earlier and three million barrels daily compared to a year earlier.

That sharp decline in oil production occurred at a crucial time for Brazils oil boom. Foreign energy companies are increasingly leery of the policies being proposed and enacted by President Lula because they indicate that increased government intervention in the oil industry is the new norm. In the latest development, national oil company Petrobras, which is nearly 37% owned by Brazils government, announced a new fuel pricing policy that will significantly reduce costs for consumers. This saw the integrated energy major dump its market-friendly approach to fuel pricing that closely aligned fuel prices with oil prices and exchange rates for one that essentially subsidizes domestic consumers.

This marks a return to the government interventionist policies which hampered Petrobras performance and marred its operations for nearly a decade eventually causing the energy major to become the worlds most indebted energy company by 2015. According to Petrobras, as quoted by Reuters, the new policy will reduce gasoline and diesel prices at the pump by 13% while liquified petroleum gas will fall by 21%. President Lula had made controlling fuel prices a key election pledge. Indeed, it was spiraling fuel prices during the administration of hard-right President Jair Bolsonaro, triggered by rising international energy prices, which was responsible for sparking civil unrest and various protests.

There are concerns this new policy has the potential to impact Petrobras profitability to the detriment of private shareholders who were enjoying a monster 62% dividend yield. Petrobras 2022 dividend payments attracted the ire of Lula who criticized the state-controlled oil company for paying out a whopping $41.5 billion in dividends for 2022. Brazils leftist President went on to emphasize, according to Reuters, that the state-controlled energy giant should have invested at least half of that sum in the countrys economy by bolstering investment in shipping as well as oil and natural gas production. Those statements certainly indicate that Lula views Petrobras as a government policy tool rather than a company acting solely in the interests of its shareholders.

The new administration in Brasilia in early March 2023 implemented a surprise oil export tax. According to Reuters, Brasilia announced it will collect taxes on oil exports for four months to offset the financial losses created by keeping fuels partially tax-exempt. This, oil industry executives asserted, indicates that Brazils current government has departed from an established tradition of respecting existing oil contracts. This in conjunction with a lack of industry consultation sparked fears among energy industry participants that it foreboded a return to heavy-handed government intervention. There are very real dangers that under Lula the oil industry will be used as a source of funding for social policies as occurred during Dilma Rousseffs tenure as president. It was her governments constant intervention in Petrobras that left the energy company teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

These events have the potential to derail Brasilias plans for Brazil to become the worlds fourth-largest oil producer. Earlier this year the Ministry of Mines and Energy announced a plan known as Potencializa E&P programme which is designed to promote investment in exploration and development activities in Brazils hydrocarbon basins. The main tenets of the program are to promote investment in the exploration of frontier regions as well as in the development of marginally economic and mature oilfields. According to Brazils energy ministry, the plan will be responsible for driving oil production to over five million barrels per day by 2029, an ambitious target considering that the country is only pumping around three million barrels a day at this time.

For this to occur, Brazil must attract considerable energy investment both from foreign oil companies and Petrobras, which is the main company responsible for developing the countrys vast offshore pre-salt oilfields. Brasilias increasingly interventionist policies will deter investment from overseas energy companies. Shell, which is Brazils second-largest oil producer, declared at the time, as per Bloomberg, the controversial oil export tax being introduced will increase uncertainty about future investments in the countrys oil and gas resources. Furthermore, any policies enacted by Brasilia which materially impact Petrobras profitability will negatively affect the national oil companys ability to muster the considerable capital required to develop Brazils ultra-deep-water offshore oilfields.

By Matthew Smith for Oilprice.com

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The Brazilian environmental protection agency has refused to grant approval for a controversial offshore oil project led by state oil major Petrobras.

The agency based its decision, which was celebrated by environmentalists, on a function of a group of technical inconsistencies.

The FZA-M-59 block was originally under license to BP Energy but Petrobras took over in 2020. The block, located in the Foz do Amazonas basin, off Brazils northern coast, is close to the mouth of the Amazon River, which prompted the environmentalist protest that eventually led to the regulators decision.

As many as 80 organizations, including Greenpeace and WWW Brasil, called for the regulator to not grant an exploration license to Petrobras for the block, claiming sensitive ecosystems, including a coral reef.

Petrobras already operates several blocks in the area, which, according to Brazils oil and gas regulator, has a similar geology to the Guyana-Suriname Basin where several massive discoveries have been made.

There is no doubt that Petrobras was offered every opportunity to remedy critical points of its project, but that it still presents worrisome inconsistencies for the safe operation in a new exploratory frontier with high socioenvironmental vulnerability, the environmental watchdogs head Rodrigo Agostinho, wrote in the agencys decision, as quoted by the AP.

Agostinho is protecting a virtually unknown ecosystem and maintains the coherence of the Lula government, which has promised in its discourse to be guided by the fight against the climate crisis, a network of environmentalist organizations dubbed the Climate Observatory said in comments on the regulators decision.

Yet the same government is working on a program aiming to boost Brazils oil production to turn it into the worlds fourth-largest producer of the commodity. The program will seek to guarantee investment in new oil exploration in both mature fields and frontier areas, Offshore Energy reported earlier this year.

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The likelihood of the world reaching net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 is remote, Exxon said in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission communication.

The IEA's 2050 Net Zero Emissions does not "meet the level of likelihood required to be considered in our financial statements," Exxon said, adding that the world is not on its way toward achieving net zero by 2050. Exxon also cautioned that cutting energy production to levels that fall below consumption would push energy prices higher, like in Europe.

The IEA has said that all new oil exploration would have to have stopped in 2021 in order to reach the 2050 target, and countries would have to ditch fossil fuels in favor of renewables.

"It is highly unlikely that society would accept the degradation in global standard of living required to permanently achieve a scenario like the IEA NZE," Exxon said, pointing out that by the IEA's own assessment, Net Zero 2050 is unlikely.

The statements were made in response to an Exxon shareholder proposal that would request a report on how much it would cost to abandon projects. The proposal is set to be voted on at the end of this month.

"The requested report clearly would not provide new, decision-useful information," Exxon said.

The proposal is also asking for Exxon to evaluate the ramifications of a worst-case oil spill offshore Guyana.

Despite the pushback from Exxon on the shareholder proposal and the IEA's zeal for its Net Zero scenario, Exxon's CEO Darren Woods said in March that the company's Low Carbon business has the potential to outperform its legacy oil and natural gas business within a decade, generating hundreds of billions in revenues.

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Nevertheless, ExxonMobil scrapped its 14-year-old algae biofuels project in the same month due to the project's lack of economic viability.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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As Gazproms natural gas exports and production drop, the Russian gas giant plans to have a record-high level of gas reserves in domestic storage during the next winter.

Gazprom on Thursday said that it expects its stocks of natural gas at Russian underground storage facilities to hit an all-time high of 72.842 billion cubic meters. The daily maximum capacity of the gas reserves is thus expected at 858.8 million cubic meters, says Gazprom, as carried by Reuters.

Gazprom has seen its natural gas exports drop in recent months after Russia last year cut off pipeline supply to many of its European customers.

Russias natural gas exports via pipeline to Europe fell by 11.4% between May 1 and May 15 compared to the average pipeline flows in April, estimates from Reuters showed earlier this week.

Russia still sends some gas via pipelines to Europe via one transit route through Ukraine and via TurkStream.

Between May 1 and May 15, Gazprom sent 67 million cubic meters per day of gas to Europe, down from 75.6 million cubic meters per day last month, as spot prices for gas in Europe fell to a 21-month low.

Last month, Russian gas deliveries to Europe rose by 7.5% compared to March, due to higher volumes shipped in transit via Turkey, according to Reuters calculations from earlier this month.

Gazprom has stopped publishing numbers on its gas deliveries to Europe.

Russia halted gas supply to Poland, Bulgaria, and Finland in April and May 2022, slashed gas deliveries via Nord Stream to Germany in June, then cut off Nord Stream supply in early September, weeks before the still mysterious sabotage on the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea at the end of September.

Germany, Russias biggest customer of gas before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, doesnt import any Russian gas via pipeline now. Norway became Germanys single-largest natural gas supplier in 2022, overtaking Russia, as total German gas imports dropped by 12.3% compared to 2021.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 17)  The widow of slain Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo does not believe there are threats to the life of suspended lawmaker Arnolfo Teves Jr.

Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo said Teves, the alleged brains behind her husband's murder, is just paranoid.

"Paranoid because ang dami niyang pinapatay eh. Pinapatay niya hindi lang si governor and 10 others [Paranoid because he killed so many people. He killed not only the governor and 10 others]. There are others that when the governor was still alive have become victims of Congressman Arnie Teves," Degamo told CNN Philippines' Politics As Usual on Wednesday.

"Kasi kung ano yung ginawa natin, babalik din kasi sa atin 'yan. Baka yun ang fear niya," she added.

[Translation: Because what we've done will come back to haunt us. Maybe that's his fear.]

The mayor also pointed out that even President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has guaranteed Teves' safety.

In response, the camp of the Negros Oriental representative challenged Degamo to present evidence to back her claims.

"Ipadala mo yung abogado mo sa DOJ (Department of Justice), mag-file siya ng sinasabi mong pinapatay ni Cong. Arnie Teves. Malakas lang ang loob mo dahil kampi sa'yo ang Secretary of Justice," Teves' lawyer Ferdinand Topacio said.

[Translation: Send your lawyer to the DOJ to file a case over what you say were killings involving Cong. Arnie Teves. You're just gutsy because the Secretary of Justice is on your side.]

"If I killed so many people, you prove it. Prove it please. Don't say things you cannot prove. I never say things I cannot prove," Teves responded in the same interview.

"Definitely, there will be cases that will be filed. More than the cases that you will be facing with what happened to the governor," Degamo said.

The National Bureau of Investigation earlier filed murder complaints against Teves over Degamo's assassination last March before the DOJ.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla previously said Teves applied for, but failed to get political asylum in Timor-Leste.

Teves neither confirmed nor denied this. He also maintained there are credible threats against him and his family.

READ: Teves on Remullas claim on his possible return: 'Fake news'
Iran and Russia are considering the joint development of as many as 10 oil and gas fields in Iran, media have reported following a meeting between Iranian officials and a Russian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak.

The proposal has come from the Iranian side amid talks about the development of other oil and gas resources in the country.

Novak told reporters that the sides had discussed specifically the development of six oil fields and two gas deposits. Gazprom was considering taking part in the development of the Kish and North Pars gas fields and building an LNG production facility, Novak also said, as quoted by TASS.

"Our oil companies are considering six oil fields, and Gazprom is considering two fields: Kish and North Pars, for joint development with the Iranian side, followed by the implementation of a natural gas liquefaction project and supplies to world markets, he said, adding Now, virtually all technical issues on this gas project have been settled. The evaluation of commercial conditions with Iran is currently underway.

The Iranian government is in talks with Russias Gazprom about investments worth as much as $40 billion, Irans oil minister Javad Owiji said during the visit. The amount is stipulated in a memorandum of understanding but, according to Owiji, Some of these agreements are already turning into real contracts.

Russia and Iran have been actively forging closer ties in the past few years, and that process got an additional push last year after Russia joined the small but growing club of Western-sanctioned countries following its invasion of Ukraine.

"The oil and gas industry is a backbone for the economies of our countries. Strengthening bilateral cooperation in this area will undoubtedly increase the economic sustainability of Russia and Iran," the Russian government said in a statement during the visit, as quoted by Reuters.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Russia's crude oil production should fall 350,00 barrels per day from February 2023 levels, reaching 10.709 million bpd, Kpler analysts said on Thursday in a note, indicating that the country could be making good on its promise to cut 500,000 bpd.

Leading the production cut charge are Russia's state-owned companies, Kpler said, although exports are unlikely to drop.

Heading in the second half of the year, Russia's crude oil output could rebound to 10.83-10.85 million bpd, Kpler said, with higher demand coming out of China.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that the country had decided to slash crude oil production in order to support global oil prices. Originally, the production cut was thought to last for a single month, but Putin later said that the cuts would run through the remainder of the year.

"All our actions, including those related to voluntary production cuts, are connected with the need to support a certain price environment on global markets in contact with our partners in OPEC+," President Putin said, adding that "We are reducing production, but nevertheless it is at the required level."

According to a person familiar with Russian Energy Ministry figures who spoke to Bloomberg, the country's March production cuts were down 700,000 bpd.

Russia originally stated the reason for the production cut was as a punishment for the price caps and EU import bans. Now, however, Russia is arguing that its production cuts are designed to support the oil market.

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Russia's 500,000 bpd promised cuts were to be taken off February as the baseline, making the total target production 10.1 million bpd. But according to Bloomberg sources, the Energy Ministry data shows Russia produced an average of 9.4 million barrels without condensate, or 10.36 million bpd with condensate. Russia's February production, including condensate, stood at 11.1 million bpd.

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Russias revenue from the sale of crude oil has sagged considerably since the implementation of the price cap by Western countries, the U.S. Treasury Department said on Thursday in a post on its website.

The Price Cap on Russian Oil: A Progress Report, published on Thursday by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, tells a story of two seemingly contradictory goals: restricting crude oil revenues and maintaining the supply of Russian crude in an effort to choke off Russias funding for its war in Ukraine. The story, according to the U.S. Treasury Department, is a happy tale in which the price cap is achieving both goals.

While Russias crude oil exports have continued to flow, ensuring market stability, Russian crude oil prices have dropped off significantly, the Treasury Department said, cutting into the countrys revenue stream, which is largely dependent on the sale of crude oil. The Treasury acknowledges the period of time following Russias invasion of Ukraine, where higher crude oil prices handed Russia a windfall in profits. But the price cap remedied the situation, the Treasury claims, which allows for low-and middle-income countries to purchase oil while at the same time making it increasingly challenging for Russia to finance its aggression.

The price of Russias flagship Urals grade also climbed higher after OPEC+ announced it would cut oil production further. In addition, Russias Deputy Finance Minister Vladimir Kolychev said in April that Urals was trading near $60 per barrel, indicating that Russias 2023 crude oil revenues could actually be higher.

Russias response to the price cap was a threat that it would refuse to sell oil to any country that enforced the cap.

Barrons commentator Ben Cahill said in April that Russia was exporting its crude oil abroad at the same rate as it was before the invasion of Ukraine.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has joined a Wisconsin Native American tribe in seeking a court injunction to shut down Enbridges Line 5 pipeline due to an increased risk of erosion and rupture.

The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa last week filed an emergency motion with a federal court in Wisconsin requesting that Line 5 be closed, due to erosion of the Bad River riverbank in the past month, which threatens to lead to a rupture of the pipeline.

In an opposition brief to the court, pipeline operator Enbridge argued that Despite having to prove both liability and grounds for an injunction, the band has done neither. The motion must therefore be denied.

No release of oil is 'ready to take place,' 'happening soon,' or 'real and immediate,' lawyers for Enbridge argued in the brief, as carried by The Canadian Press.

The Wisconsin bands motion was supported on Wednesday by Attorney General Dana Nessel of Michigan, the state which has been trying to shut down Line 5 for years.

In an amicus brief, Nessel asked a Wisconsin federal court to take emergency action to protect Lake Superior from an imminent threat posed by Enbridges Line 5 pipeline. A pipeline rupture in Wisconsin would cause irreparable damage in Michigan, too, according to Nessel.

The alarming erosion at the Bad River meander poses an imminent threat of irreparable harm to Lake Superior and necessitates injunctive relief, the AGs amicus brief reads.

Michigan also says that The potential impacts of a court-ordered shutdown of Line 5 do not outweigh the risk of irreparable harm posed by Line 5s continued operation on the Bad River Reservation.

The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians sued Enbridge in 2019, seeking the removal of Line 5 from the Bad River Reservation.

Enbridge is proposing a relocation of a 12-mile section of Line 5 from the Bad River Reservation, replacing it with approximately 41 miles of pipe outside of the Reservation. The company, however, hasnt obtained yet from the Department of Natural Resources the permits it needs for the relocation project.

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By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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JERUSALEM (AP)  Thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded on Thursday through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city.

The marchers, who were overwhelmingly male Orthodox teens and young men, were celebrating Jerusalem Day, which marks Israels capture of the Old City 56 years ago. The Palestinians see the event as a provocation. Two years ago, the parade helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Throughout the afternoon, dozens of groups hoisting blue and white Israeli flags streamed through Damascus Gate  the entry to the areas Muslim Quarter  as they made their way across the Old City to the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray. The area is normally bustling on Thursday afternoons with Palestinians doing their errands ahead of the weekend.

The boisterous crowds danced and chanted Jewish religious songs outside Damascus Gate as scores of Israeli police stood guard. In several cases, groups chanted slogans such as Death to Arabs, Mohammed is Dead and May Your Village Burn" as they stared at Palestinian onlookers. Some of the youths wore clothing identifying themselves as members of Lehava  a far-right Jewish supremacist group that opposes assimilation or romantic relationships between Jews and Palestinians.

Israeli police, who had said that violence and incitement would not be tolerated, kept the sides apart but did little to stop the chants. Palestinian businesses were either shuttered or empty, and marchers occasionally threw water bottles at nearby journalists, eliciting cheers from the crowd. Police said two people were arrested for throwing objects.

Several lawmakers in Israel's new far-right governing coalition, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, joined the procession. Under heavy police guard, Ben-Gvir waved to the crowd as he made his way into Damascus Gate and then high-fived security forces inside. Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nation's police force, is a former far-right activist and hard-line West Bank settler who has been convicted of incitement and support for a Jewish terror group.

While there were repeated scuffles and confrontations between Jews and Palestinians, the parade appeared to pass without serious violence. By nightfall, the massive crowd had converged in the plaza in front of the Western Wall.

Jerusalem Day is meant to celebrate Israel's capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its capital, but its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

The event has been a source of friction over the years, and over 2,500 police were deployed for this year's parade, with hundreds more stationed around the city.

Israel decided to allow the marchers to take the traditional route through Damascus Gate, instead of an alternate path circumventing the Muslim Quarter, despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and heavy fighting last week between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Ahead of the march, Gazas ruling Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to oppose the event.

On Thursday, dozens of Palestinian protesters gathered along the perimeter fence separating Gaza and Israel, raising Palestinian flags, burning tires and Israeli flags, and throwing stones toward the heavily guarded frontier.

Israeli troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets toward protesters, hurting three people, according to local media reports. There was no immediate comment from Gazas health authorities.

The protest ended without further violence that could have threatened a flare-up. It comes days after an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire ended five days of fighting between Israel and the smaller, more radical Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian president in the occupied West Bank, said allowing the march to snake through Palestinian areas of the Old City will only lead to a rise in tension and could lead to an explosion.

In a test ahead of the parade, nearly 1,300 Jews visited Jerusalems most sensitive holy site earlier Thursday, about half the number of last year, according to Beyadenu, an activist group that promotes Jewish visits to the site. Police were seen escorting groups of Jewish visitors walking through the compound and five members of the far-right coalition government also arrived at the site, the group said.

Jordan, Israels neighbor which acts as a custodian of the Jerusalem shrine, condemned the Jewish visits there and the trajectory of the march. Egypt, the first Arab country to make peace with Israel, and the United Arab Emirates, which established ties with Israel as part of the 2020 Abraham Accords, also condemned the visits to the site.

The hilltop compound is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, home to the ancient Jewish Temples, and is the holiest site in Judaism. Palestinians revere it as the Noble Sanctuary, and it is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there. But an increase in such visits, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, has raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo  a charge Israel denies.

The competing claims to the site lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and often spill over into violence, including a 2021 war between Israel and Hamas.

AP correspondents Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, and Jack Jeffery in Cairo contributed to this report.
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WICHITA, Kan.  Mark Gietzen, a longtime conservative Republican and anti-abortion activist in Kansas who forced a recount of the states decisive vote affirming abortion rights last year, has died in a plane crash. He was 69.

The Kansas Republican Party said in a Facebook post that Gietzen, of Wichita, died Tuesday evening in Nebraska.

He was flying a single-engine Cessna 172 Skyhawk when it crashed in a field near ONeill, Nebraska, about 190 miles northwest of Omaha, according to the Federal Aviation Administrations crash log. Gietzen was the only person on board, and the log said the plane crashed in unknown circumstances.

Jim Howell, a county commissioner in Sedgwick County, Kansas, which includes Wichita, told The Wichita Eagle that Gietzen had flown to Nebraska to visit his mother.

Gietzen grew up in the Bismarck, North Dakota, area and served in the U.S. Marines before coming to Kansas in the late 1970s to work for aircraft manufacturer Boeing Corp. He became chair of Sedgwick County GOP after Summer of Mercy anti-abortion protests in Wichita in 1991 and recruited anti-abortion activists into the party.

A fellow anti-abortion activist, Operation Rescue President Troy Newman, described Gietzen as irreplaceable.

Newman told The Eagle: He was the hardest-working guy I know in the pro-life movement.

In August 2022, voters statewide rejected Republicans proposed amendment to the states constitution to declare that it doesnt protect abortion rights, which would have allowed the GOP-controlled Legislature to ban abortion.

When a handful of anti-abortion activists demanded a hand recount of ballots in nine counties that accounted for more than half the vote, Gietzen used credit cards to cover most of the $120,000 cost so that it could proceed.

The recount confirmed the results of the election, and Gietzen then filed a lawsuit seeking a statewide hand recount, but a judge dismissed it.
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An African elephant at the Omaha zoo is being relocated as part of an effort to help preserve the endangered species.

Callee, a 22-year-old male who has been at Omahas Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium since 2019, will be moved to the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, the Omaha zoo announced Thursday.

Callees move was recommended by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums African Elephant Species Survival Plan, according to a press release from the zoo. He is expected to be moved this spring and the zoo is currently working to prepare him for transport and coordinate travel arrangements.

The move mirrors the behavior of elephants in the wild, as adult males live together in small bachelor herds while females raise calves and live in multigenerational family groups, according to the release. Male elephants typically move on after finding females to breed.

Callee fathered three calves while at the Omaha zoo: Eugenia, who was born Jan. 7, 2022, to Kiki; Sonny, who was born Jan. 20, 2022, to Claire; and Mopani, who was born March 2 to Lolly, according to the release.

The zoo also is expecting the birth of two more elephant calves fathered by Callee over the next 10 months, the release said.

One of those will be to Jayei, whose calf is due in August or September, The World-Herald previously reported. The other expecting female elephant is Omma, according to a zoo spokesperson.

The zoos five females, plus one male, arrived in Omaha in 2016 from Swaziland, and since their arrival, the elephants have been housed in the zoos $73 million African Grasslands exhibit.

In September 2017, Warren, a bull elephant in the original herd, died during a procedure. He had been the herds lone male until the arrival of a male named Louie that summer.

Louie was never able to reproduce with the herds females and was transferred to the North Carolina Zoo in 2021. By contrast, Callee led to a baby boom at the zoo, with his three calves born in the span of just over a year and two more expected.

Callee made a lasting impression on both his fellow elephants at the zoo and the elephant care staff, elephant manager Sarah Armstrong said in the release.

While he will be greatly missed in Omaha, we are happy he will be moving to Wichita, where he will not only have the opportunity to breed, but also socialize and mentor other male elephants, Armstrong said.

Photos: Sonny and Eugenias 1st birthday at Henry Doorly Zoo
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A towering froth of dirt lifted by the blast of 1,000 sticks of dynamite broke ground for the Gavins Point Dam 71 years ago today.

Lt. Gen. Lewis A. Pick of Washington, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and co-author of the plan under which the dam was built, was the lead speaker. He also was the one who set off the blast of dynamite at the groundbreaking.

More than 8,000 people attended a ceremony jointly sponsored by Yankton, S.D., and 22 surrounding Nebraska and South Dakota communities that took place on the Nebraska side of the dam, 4 miles west of Yankton.

Gavins Point was described as the "mighty mite" of Missouri River main stem dams by Col. Henry J. Hoeffer, Omaha district chief of the Army Engineers. The dam's purpose was not only to fill the multiple functions  power, flood control, bank stabilization and navigation water control  of the big dams, but it was also essential to allowing the Fort Randall Dam to generate its full output of power.

"Today's ceremony marks the beginning of work on the last of the multiple-purpose main stem dams of the Pick-Sloan Plan," General Pick said. "It marks, too, the approaching end of the reign of a ruthless master of the valley."

The Gavins Point Dam, which cost $51 million to build, is 8,700 feet long and 74 feet high.

Photos: Gavins Point Dam
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As French and American flags whipped behind them in the breeze, Mayor Jean Stothert and Isigny-Omaha Intercom President Patrick Thomines signed an agreement linking Omaha with the French region encompassing the D-Day landing sites, including Omaha Beach.

The brief signing ceremony before about 40 people at the Gene Leahy Mall was the culmination of a four-year project to unite Omaha with Isigny-Omaha Intercom, a consortium of 59 townships in Normandy, France, through the Sister Cities program.

Its an honor and a privilege for Omaha to formalize our Sister City relationship, Stothert said. History brings us together. This is truly the beginning of a very, very special friendship.

Under the arrangement, the two regions will engage in cultural, educational, and business exchanges through what the Sister Cities organization calls citizen diplomacy.

Omaha has six other sister cities: Shizuoka, Japan; Braunschweig, Germany; Siauliai, Lithuania; Naas, Ireland; Xalapa, Mexico; and Yantai, China. An agreement with Carlentini, Italy, is in the works.

The villages near Omaha Beach that make up the Intercom mostly have only a few hundred residents each. Isigny-sur-Mer, the Intercoms namesake city, has a population of about 3,700. The entire Isigny-Omaha region numbers about 27,000.

The friendship between the two regions is rooted in the link between Omaha and Omaha Beach, one of five code names for the landing beaches used on D-Day.

The reason one of the sites was named for Omaha has never been proven. But in 2008, World-Herald reporter Henry J. Cordes uncovered a possible link through Omahan Gayle Eyler, a carpenter who helped remodel the London office of U.S. Army Gen. Omar Bradley. After the war, Eyler served for many years as a building inspector for the City of Omaha.

Bradley picked the names of the target beaches, and decades later Eyler, who died in 2003, told relatives he understood the general had named Omaha and Utah Beaches after the homes belonging to him and another carpenter. Historians consider the story to be plausible.

In October 2019, Stothert led an Omaha delegation in a visit to Isigny, including stops at the D-Day beaches and the Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer.

Thomines and a small contingent from Isigny will remain in Omaha for a few days, and will be the guests at a banquet Friday night at the Field Club.

He thanked Omahans for what he described as a warm welcome, and he thanked Americans for helping to liberate France from German occupation during World War II.

There is always a possibility for peace ... but we do not forget those who fought to bring us freedom, Thomines said. Long live Omaha!

Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of May 2023
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Australia will provide equipment and training to the Philippine Coast Guard to enhance its capabilities in maritime awareness and protection, a senior Australian official announced Thursday amid simmering tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

Visiting Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong also said Australia would continue its presence in the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, and is open to "cooperating with all our partners to exercise freedom of navigation and overflight."

Australia wants to work with the Philippines to support the "vital contribution" of ASEAN to peace and security in the region, she added.

"We discussed today the ways in which we will enhance cooperation. This includes Australia providing drone equipment, training, and other technology to strengthen your Coast Guard's maritime awareness and protection capabilities," Wong said at a joint press conference with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.

RELATED: Australia 'deeply committed' to developing strategic partnership with PH

The foreign minister said Australia is also sharing information and providing technical assistance to legislators and government officials to help boost the Philippines' capacity to deal with illegal fishing in the maritime zone.

"The Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and Minister for Defence in his visit here in February spoke about the importance of increased cooperation including increased combined maritime activity such as joint patrols," she said. "Our departments are discussing the best pathway to take this forward and we want to keep working with the Philippines on that."

In February, Australia voiced its support for the country after a Chinese vessel allegedly pointed a military-grade laser at a Philippine boat near Ayungin Shoal.

Earlier this month, Australia's ambassador also expressed worry about the unprofessional and dangerous conduct against the Philippines following the near collision of a Chinese ship with a Philippine coast guard vessel which was on sovereignty patrol in the West Philippine Sea.

RELATED: Marcos: PH to propose 'fishing rights map' to China after near-collision in WPS

In a separate interview on CNN Philippines' The Source on Wednesday, Wong said, "We all want a region in which rules ameliorate the exercise of power and it is through that that countries can maintain their sovereignty and their capacity to make their own decisions."

Planning is also underway for further joint training activities of the two countries' armies.

RELATED: PH-Australia kick off joint army-to-army exercises
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LINCOLN  A bill that has stirred session-long turmoil in the Nebraska Legislature and now includes two contentious issues  abortion and transgender health care  will see its final chapter of floor debate Friday.

State lawmakers are slated to debate and vote on Legislative Bill 574 in its final round. If it once again gets 33 votes to end an opposing filibuster, it will go to Gov. Jim Pillens desk, where its expected to be signed into law.

According to an amendment adopted Tuesday, the bill would ban gender-affirming surgeries for individuals under 19, and impose restrictions on puberty blockers and hormone therapy for the same age group based on the direction of the states chief medical officer. It also will ban abortions beyond 12 weeks based on gestational age, likely affecting a relatively small share of the states abortions.

Each round of prior debate on the bill has spurred high emotions and sometimes outright chaos. Opponents have launched an ongoing filibuster that has slowed almost every bill on the floor to protest the legislation, and recently several lawmakers have promised to continue filibustering during next years 60-day session if the bill passes.

Before the amendment, LB 574 would have completely banned puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgeries for people under 19, but did not include any abortion restrictions.

Supporters framed the amendment as a compromise, but opponents dont see it that way  especially with this weeks addition of abortion restrictions, which revived an effort that was previously thought dead for the year.

Last month, lawmakers blocked the advancement of LB 626, which would have banned abortions at around six weeks of pregnancy, once embryonic activity could be detected via ultrasound. The bill fell one vote shy of the 33 needed for a filibuster-ending cloture motion.

Usually when that happens, it means a bill is dead for the session. Instead, the abortion issue came back through the amendment to LB 574. And the proposal was enough to sway a lawmaker  State Sen. Merv Riepe of Ralston  who had helped scuttle the previous abortion bill.

Riepe had proposed his own amendment to LB 626, which would have banned abortions at 12 weeks post fertilization and included an exception for fetal anomalies. No vote was held on his amendment, but it had been panned by senators who wanted more restrictions on abortion. Tuesday, however, many of those same lawmakers backed the amendment to LB 574.

The 12-week ban included in LB 574 is more restrictive than Riepes amendment, as it doesnt include an exception for fetal anomalies and it is based on gestational age. Gestational age measures a pregnancy based on the womans last menstrual period, whereas fertilization refers to the moment the egg is fertilized. The difference between the two could amount to several weeks. Multiple opponents thus referred to the proposal as a 10-week abortion ban.

However, the LB 574 bill would allow more abortion access in Nebraska than if the six-week abortion ban had passed. According to 2021 statistics from the state Department of Health and Human Services, about 85% of Nebraskas abortions happen beyond the six-week mark, while only about 13% occur after 12 weeks of gestation.

In terms of transgender health care, the amendment is somewhat less restrictive than LB 574 originally intended. It includes a grandfather clause for people already receiving gender-affirming care. It also calls for the states chief medical officer to regulate puberty blockers and hormone therapy, while maintaining the ban on gender-affirming surgeries.

Because the chief medical officer is appointed by the governor, who supports LB 574, opponents have argued this was a thinly veiled attempt to maintain the full ban of the original bill. In February, Pillen chose ear, nose and throat physician Timothy Tesmer to serve in the position.

If the bill passes, Tesmer would follow a set of guidelines as to how to regulate the medication, including setting a minimum number of gender-identity-focused therapeutic hours a patient must undergo to receive it, and a minimum waiting period between a medical practitioner receiving the patients consent and prescribing the treatment.

Opponents have maintained that LB 574, as amended, will be harmful to women, doctors and trans youth.

You do literally have blood on your hands if you vote for this, said Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha.

Photos: 2023 Nebraska legislative session
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Shannon Vanderheiden wanted a way to remember her son, Tyler, that involved the outdoors that he loved so much.

Just as important is a focus on mental health, since Tyler Vanderheiden died by suicide when he was 20.

He always had a fishing story or a hunting story, Shannon Vanderheiden said.

When Tyler Vanderheiden died in 2015, the family asked mourners to make contributions to Nebraska Game and Parks. A few years later, Shannon Vanderheiden decided she wanted to hold a run in North Platte to honor her sons memory.

This race and the efforts we are making has been a huge part of our grief journey, she said.

Shannon Vanderheiden spoke with Game and Parks staff about her goal, and together they came up with an idea. The last two years, proceeds from the run have gone to a specific Game and Parks project.

Last year, combined with a grant, $40,000 was raised to benefit Platte River State Park, where a future project will make the trail to the waterfall ADA compliant.

Funds raised from the race this Saturday will be dedicated to the Smith Falls State Park improvement project, which is making the trail ADA accessible.

Registration for Saturdays 2- and 5-mile runs at Cody Park in North Platte starts at 7:30 a.m. at a tree the family planted for Tyler Vanderheiden. His dad, Tim Vanderheiden, will sing Amazing Grace and then runners will take off at 8:30.

Because of the pandemic, Shannon Vanderheiden also started a virtual race online. For a $28 donation, anyone in the world can participate.

She was thrilled Wednesday to have someone sign up from Kentucky, giving the race a virtual runner from all 50 states. Last year, people from 73 of Nebraskas 93 counties signed up.

A person from Omaha is going to run the race in Scotland. Another Nebraskan plans to run while visiting Dubai.

Go to tylervanderheidenmemorial.com to sign up for either version of the race.

Shannon Vanderheiden said its hard to express how important the race is to her and her family.

Its a way to keep Tys memory alive, but at the same time, I know very clearly that this is my purpose, she said. My purpose is to continue to be a voice for those who didnt have one. This year, the importance of mental health is something that is absolutely critical. Just like physical health, mental health is just as important.
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WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden marked Jewish American Heritage Month on Tuesday by highlighting his administration's efforts to combat rising antisemitism, at a White House reception that featured performances from the stars of the Broadway revival of Parade.

Biden told the crowd it was important to him personally to guard against the rise of antisemitic bile in the world, and in particular the U.S.

Jewish Americans are shattered by a long and painful history of the oldest, the most sinister forces hate and anti-semitism, he said, talking about how he learned of the horrors of the Holocaust from his father and how it has motivated him to speak out against hate.

He also reiterated how his decision to run for the White House in 2020 was shaped by a 2017 neo-Nazi march in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The president, who just weeks ago announced he would run for reelection, spoke frequently during the 2020 campaign about the Unite the Right rally led by white nationalists bearing torches. Clashes between that group and a large gathering of counterprotesters led to the death of counterprotester Heather Heyer when a white nationalist drove his car into the crowd.

Then-President Donald Trump said of the incident that you also had people that were very fine people, on both sides.

Thats when I knew we had to stay engaged in the work of our time, Biden said. Hate never goes away. It just hides under the rocks until someone breathes oxygen on the rocks and it comes roaring back out.

Biden highlighted his appointment of Americas first ambassador-level special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, increased federal funding to help secure synagogues, Jewish community centers and Jewish day schools, and convening a White House summit on combating hate-fueled violence.

The president was briefly delayed to the celebration because of earlier negotiations on the debt ceiling, so Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond, both 2023 Tony Award nominees for their performance in Parade," performed first. The musical centers on the trial and imprisonment and lynching in the early 20th century of Jewish American factory manager Leo Frank. Composer Jason Robert Brown accompanied Diamond and Platt.

The trio did two from their show, and a third number from Into the Woods, before dashing back to New York for evening curtain. First lady Jill Biden chatted with the crowd until Biden arrived. Apparently, Joe made it, she joked as she took her seat.

Biden late last year established an inter-agency group to better coordinate U.S. government efforts to counter antisemitism, Islamophobia and related forms of bias and discrimination within the United States. He said his administration would soon be releasing its national strategy to counter antisemitism.

Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, has made countering antisemitism a hallmark issue as the first Jewish (and male) vice presidential spouse. He said that around the nation, Jewish Americans were achieving at the highest levels of success

How proud our ancestors would be to see us all here today, after many fled persecution to live their dreams in the United States of America.

But there was much to do to combat rising anti-semitism in the world. My wife, the vice president, encouraged me to lean into this fight, he said.
A teenager, Tochukwu Ndukwe, 13, from Federal Government Girls College (FGGC) Leeja, Nsukka, Enugu State on Wednesday emerged the overall winner of the Nigerian Mathematics Queen Competition for 2018.

Saibu Medina from FESTAC College, Lagos, took second position while Olayiwola Adedagun, FGGC, Ketu, Osun came third at the competition.

115 female students of Junior Secondary School across the country participated in the Girls Mathematics Olympiad Competition, organised by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

At the ceremony, Prof. Stephen Onah, the director NMC said that the competition was aimed at encouraging and addressing the gap between males and females in the learning and teaching of Mathematics in the country.

Onah said the maiden edition with the slogan Leaving No One Behind of SDGs Mathematics Competition and Award ceremony for the crowning of Nigeria Mathematics Queen was geared towards achieving SDGs 4.

The Nigerian Girl Student has been placed in a disadvantaged position especially in the area of education which has relegated her in the general scheme of things.

Being a victim of discrimination and male chauvinism, the girl-child hardly could compete educationally with her male counterpart.

This attitude has badly affected the girl childs education in the area of enrolment in school, performance in class and her quest to progress educationally.

The girl childs low interest in Mathematics is a serious concern to NMC and it is on this note that we encourage and boost the interest of the girl-student in Mathematics, he said.

He added that one of the objectives of the competition was to stimulate enthusiasm in the learning of Mathematical Sciences among young Nigerian girls.

On her part, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the President on SDGs, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, called on teachers and parents to work harder towards improving the learning of Mathematics sciences.

Orelope-Adefulire, who was represented by Dr Ify Nnamchi, called on relevant organisations to adequately fund the girl-child education to reduce street hawking among young girls in the country. (NAN)

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The President-elect Bola Tinubu has opposed the application by the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar for a live broadcast of the proceedings of the election petition.

In response to the application, Tinubu through the team of their lawyers said the application is an abuse of the processes of this honourable court.

They implored the Presidential Election Petition Court to dismiss the application arguing that the relief demanded by the applicants is not such that the court could grant it.

According to them, The application also touches on the powers and jurisdiction invested in the President of the Court of Appeal by the Constitution, over which this honourable court as presently constituted cannot entertain.

The application is aimed at dissipating the precious judicial time of this honourable court.
Police have arrested a stalker, identified as Kevin Valdovinos, 29, who was caught lurking around outside Prince Harry and Meghan Markles California mansion in the dead of the night.

Valdovinos from Lake Elsinore spotted by the royal couples security team around 2 am on Monday has been charged with stalking, the Mirror reported on Wednesday.

According to Santa Barbara Sheriffs Office, the suspect was later released on $2,500 bail after he was detained and taken into custody.

It is unknown whether the couple and children were at home when the stalker was apprehended.

This marks the second time the family has been targeted by intruders since the princes taxpayer-funded protection was removed after the prince stepped back as a senior royal and relocated to the United States in early 2020.

A 37-year-old man from Ohio was warned after he was also caught trespassing on the couples property on Christmas Eve in 2020.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The lawyer of the Degamo camp on Thursday claimed a former Department of Justice (DOJ) undersecretary bribed suspects in the murder of Gov. Roel Degamo to not cooperate with the government.

We know for a fact and the secretary of justice is looking at it now that a certain high ranking official of the Department of Justice before with a rank of usec (undersecretary) is working with some jail guards at the NBI detention facility. Ino-offeran nila ng pera yung detainees para hindi sila mag-cooperate sa government (They offered money to detainees for them to not cooperate with the government), lawyer Levy Baligod told CNN Philippines The Source.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said the filing of murder complaints against alleged mastermind Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves was pushed back because six or seven suspects are no longer cooperating with authorities after hiring a private lawyer.

Baligod did not name the former justice undersecretary, but noted the former government official is one of the lawyers of the respondents.

The Degamo camp counsel said four detainees talked to him after the preliminary investigation hearing at the DOJ to tell him about the situation. When they rejected the money, the suspects claimed they were bullied by Marvin Miranda, the alleged co-mastermind in the Degamo slay, he added.

Baligod also said Remulla has identified the person, and the DOJ is set to take administrative action on the matter.

The suspects will also eventually name the jail guards involved, he added.

There are currently 11 suspects under the custody of authorities. While Remulla said he sees the possibility of recantation, Baligod said he is confident the case will still push through with the help of their two credible witnesses.

The National Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday filed murder complaints against Teves over the assassination of Degamo.

Baligod said these are now being evaluated to possibly issue a subpoena against the embattled lawmaker.
The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Wednesday, presided over another session of the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House, Abuja; the second for this week.

Fresh from his recent two-week trip to London, the President is leading other Council members to deliberate on new and outstanding memoranda from various government Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

National Daily gathered that at least 60 memoranda will be considered as the regime winds down in less than two weeks.

The meeting began around 10:00 am and would serve as a precursor to the forthcoming valedictory session for cabinet members next Wednesday.
United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, had assured president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu that Nigeria will get a good and mutually-beneficial relationship with America.

Blinken stated this during a telephone conversation with the president-elect on Tuesday evening.

A statement issued yesterday by his media aide, Tunde Rahman, noted that the telephone discussion, which was frank and friendly, was initiated by the US diplomat.

Blinken promised to play his part in ensuring and sustaining a cordial relationship between the two nations, saying a democratic and peaceful Nigeria is important to the United States as it is to Africa.

On his part, Tinubu promised to hit the ground running and unify the country upon his assumption of office on May 29.

He pledged to work to ensure continued positive relations with the United States.

The president-elect said his immediate priorities would be to deliver institutional reforms and development programs to deepen our democratic institutions and bring help to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.

He also expressed his determination to strengthen Nigerias democracy and faithfully serve the people as their president.

During the phone talk that lasted about 20 minutes, Tinubu recalled being granted asylum by the US when he was forced on exile during his struggle for the restoration of democracy in Nigeria.

Reaffirming his democratic bona fides, the president-elect expressed his absolute belief that the result of the elections, which he clearly won, reflected the will of the Nigerian people.

He urged the US to factor in Nigerias important place in Africa and provide needed assistance in the areas of security and economic investment in order for the nation to lead the way and be a shining example to the rest of the continent.

Both President-elect Tinubu and Secretary Blinken ended their discussion with pleasant greetings and a promise to keep the channels of dialogue and communication open, whilst maintaining a strong relationship between the two nations, Rahman stated.

Meanwhile, former Vice President and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in 2023, Atiku Abubakar has said the call by United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to President-elect Bola Tinubu contradicts the position of the United States government on the 2023 general election.

Atiku who said he is in disbelief over the call, added that to give legitimacy to the election which according to him was widely acknowledged as fraudulent election is demoralising to citizens who have hedged their bet on democracy and the sanctity of the ballot.

Describing the US as the bastion of democracy, the former vice president said it is inconceivable that such an interface between Blinken and Tinubu took place since the US was well briefed on the sham election of February 25.

A press statement from the US Department of State early yesterday disclosed that Blinken spoke with Tinubu emphasising continued commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Nigeria relationship.

The statement read, The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller: Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke this morning with Nigerian President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu to emphasize his continued commitment to further strengthening the U.S.-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration.

The Secretary noted that the U.S.-Nigeria partnership is built on shared interests and strong people-to-people ties and that those links should continue to strengthen under President-elect Tinubus tenure. Secretary Blinken and President-elect Tinubu discussed the importance of inclusive leadership that represents all Nigerians, continued comprehensive security cooperation, and reforms to support economic growth, the State Department statement said.

On Monday, however, Blinken, on his twitter handle disclosed that visa restrictions have been slammed on specific individuals for undermining the 2023 polls.

He said, We have imposed visa restrictions on specific individuals who undermined the democratic process during Nigerias 2023 elections. We remain committed to supporting Nigerian aspirations to strengthen democracy and rule of law.

Reacting however to the Blinkens call to Tinubu, Atiku, in a tweet on Wednesday said, I am in disbelief that @SecBlinken called Tinubu, a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigerias 2023 presidential election. This is inconceivable considering that America, as the bastion of democracy, is well briefed on the sham election of February 25.

To give legitimacy to the widely acknowledged fraudulent election in Nigeria can be demoralising to citizens who have hedged their bet on democracy and the sanctity of the ballot @StateDept @POTUS @USinNigeria. -AA.

Atiku and PDP are challenging the outcome of the February 25 presidential election at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PETP).
The Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) said its officers intercepted 23 packages of tramadol worth N1.8 billion imported into the country from India and Pakistan.

Speaking during a media briefing at the Lagos airport, yesterday, to announce activities of the command in the first quarter, the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Command, Mohammed Yusuf, said the tramadol seized were above the threshold permitted by law to be imported into the country.

According to him, the Tramadol came into the country in 22 packets of 225mg tramadol and 12 packets of 120mg from the shed of the Nigeria Aviation Handling Company Limited (NAHCO) and Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL).

Through credible intelligence, the command recorded seizures of packages of pharmaceutical products that included 22 packets of 225mg of tramadol and 12 packets of 120mg of tramadol. They were concealed and imported into the country through India and Pakistan

The above seizures were recorded based on intelligence-driven operations within the airport. The total Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seizure stood at N1.8 billion, he said.

Yusuf, however, stated that the seized drugs will be handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further action. He also disclosed that the command also generated a total sum of N21.4 as revenue between January and March 2023.

It is worthy to note that the revenue activities of the command comprise importation and exportation of legitimate goods, goods under the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS), he stated.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The Philippines and Vietnam have vowed to push for the completion of the South China Sea code of conduct and strengthen their maritime ties, as both nations expressed serious concern over aggressive actions that threaten peace in the region.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Philippines and Vietnam committed to working closely to come up with an effective and substantive code of conduct on the disputed waters.

The code is envisioned to prevent any armed confrontation in the contested waterway, in which China, Taiwan, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei have overlapping territorial claims.

The Philippines and Vietnam had the opportunity to exchange views on the situation in the South China Sea," the DFA said, following the two Southeast Asian nations two-day meeting on maritime issues. "The two countries expressed serious concern over unilateral activities that undermine peace and stability in the region."

Delegations from Manila and Hanoi held the 10th meeting of the Philippines-Vietnam Joint Permanent Working Group on Maritime and Ocean Concerns on May 15 and 16 in Ha Long, Vietnam.

Previous reports showed Chinas bullying and aggression against some Asian countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia. China also has a conflict with Taiwan as Beijing claims the island as part of its territory.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier said the Philippine government would initiate talks with Vietnam regarding recent maritime disputes.

READ: Marcos eyes PH-Vietnam agreement amid maritime disputes

In March, the Philippine Coast Guard reported that there were Vietnamese vessels and 20 other Chinese ships spotted in waters off Sabina and Ayungin shoals.

According to the DFA, both countries also agreed to work closely in protecting their rights and interests under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Assistant Secretary for Maritime and Ocean Affairs Maria Angela Ponce, the head of the Philippine delegation, said discussions with their counterparts were critical in strengthening the friendship and strategic partnership between the Philippines and Vietnam.

She added that the two nations work towards promoting peace, stability, and prosperity in the region.
A Senatorial Candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party for Jigawa Northwest in the 2023 general elections, Alh. Rabiu Isah Taura has been reported dead.

Rabiu Taura died in the early hours of Thursday after batting with a serious backache for quite some time.

The deceased served in different capacities under Sule Lamido PDP-led regime, as Commissioner of Land and later posted to the Ministry of Agriculture, he was also a one-time Secretary of PDP in Jigawa state.

The late politician defected to NNPP alongside his boss, Aminu Ibrahim Ringim who was then at loggerheads with Sule Lamido.

He served as a campaign council member of the NNPP gubernatorial candidate in Jigawa state before he was given the Senatorial slot.

A friend of the deceased, Hon. Muhammad Mago described Tauras demise as a great loss not only to his immediate family and Taura people but to the entire Jigawa people and beyond.

His words: The death of Rabiu Taura has really shocked me, I pray to Allah SWT to grant him internal rest and give his family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Mago described Taura as a complete gentleman of repute and a man of the people who will be remembered for his kind gesture.

The deceased is survived by his wives and children and will be buried according to Islamic rites in his home town Taura local government area of the state.
The government of Lagos state has closed the Deck-on-Pile Bridge at Ijora Olopa inbound Ijora Oloye, over a massive crack.

A statement released by the state Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Fredric Oladeinde, who on Wednesday May 17, added that the bridge has been shut down for repairs.

Oladeinde, who did not give specific period the repairs and diversion would last, stressed that there will be road diversion and that the diversion became necessary pending repairs to be carried out by the Federal Government, in collaboration with the state government.

The commissioner listed the following routes already mapped out to minimize inconvenience, including Motorists from Eko Bridge to utilize Iganmu/Sifax to access Ijora Oloye or Apapa.

Motorists from Iddo heading to Ijora-Oloye/Apapa will be diverted at the intersection underpass to reconnect at the U-Turn inwards Ijora-Oloye or Apapa.

The ministry, therefore, appealed to motorists who make use of the corridor to cooperate with the states Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA and the interventions put in place to manage the traffic.


Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) has revoked the Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC) of the shipping company that owns and operates MT Princess Empress, the sunken tanker behind the massive oil spill in Oriental Mindoro.

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Thursday announced this decision against shipowner RDC Reield Marine Services, Inc., saying the revocation was contained in a May 11 resolution.

MARINA defines the CPC as an authorization it issues to a domestic water transport service provider to operate a vessel for commercial or public use, for which no franchise is required by law.

According to the DOTr, MARINA-National Capital Region revoked the CPC based on the findings that the company operated MT Princess Empress without authority.

CNN Philippines has contacted RDC for comment.

The department also said it is looking into the possible liability of personnel from relevant maritime agencies in relation to the sinking of the tanker

We have had sinkings before but no one has been held to account," Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said. "This time all parties, whether private or public, will be held accountable. There will be no exception."

Questions have been raised regarding the seaworthiness of MT Princess Empress. It was able to sail for at least 17 times  despite not being authorized to operate  before it sank on February 28.

In a House hearing on May 9, the Philippine Coast Guard clarified that the vessel was carrying over 900,000 liters of industrial oil when it sank, contrary to earlier reports that it was transporting some 800,000 liters of oil.
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Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Idowu Owohunwa, has arrested and detained the policemen involved in the brutal assault of an Okada rider in Lagos.

A video which has now gone viral on social media had shown the three officers decked in police uniform in a struggle with an Okada rider now identified as Al-Hassan Usman.

Usman was trying to fend off the violent officers who were hell-bent on taking his motorcycle.

One of the policemen was seen clubbing the victim as another one repeatedly pushed him away from the bike aggressively, leading to severe injury on his forehead where blood was seen gushing out.

The third police officer rode away on Usmans bike while his two other accomplices hurriedly left the scene in a tricycle.

The incident, which reportedly happened in the Abule Egba area of Lagos State four days ago, has generated angry reactions from Nigerians on social media leading to calls for the punishment of the erring officers.

READ ALSO: Timi Frank urges court to direct police to investigate Sylva conflicting certificates

Reacting to the development on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, the Force spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, confirmed the arrest and detention of the officers.

He made this known while speaking during a Twitter Space webinar organised by Premium Times, where he said the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba Alkali had sent the video to him on WhatsApp.

They have been detained, Im saying it now. I got the video of the Abule Egba incident on my WhatsApp from the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, and when he sends material to me like that, I know what it means, the senior police officer said during the webinar.

He added that CP Owohunwa had swung into action and detained the officer without even waiting for any order, reserving some praise for the Commissioner over his proactiveness.

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We dont waste time when our men misbehave, Adejobi added.

Adejobi also disclosed that the Lagos police spokesman, Benjamin Hundeyin, will make photos of the detained officers available to the public anytime from now to further confirm that the police had taken action on the matter.
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal the ruling APC filed for the review of the Bayelsa Governorship election the party lost at the apex court to the PDP.

The Court in its ruling said the appeal lacked merit.

Justice Amina Augie who read the judgment pointed out that the apex courts decisions were final.

She said the applicants failed to point out errors in the earlier judgement, insisting that the judgment is final for all ages, saying that no court can fault or reverse it.

Counsel to Lyon and APC, Afe Babalola SAN and Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN respectively prayed the court to review and set aside the judgment of February 13, which voided their participation in the November 16, governorship election.

Babalola said that the Supreme Court has inherent decision and power to set aside its own decision because the judgment which voided the election of his client was a nullity on account of denial of fair hearing of his client.

According to him, the procedure adopted by the apex court on February 13 was wrong because there was no cause of action at the time the Supreme Court gave judgment against Lyon.

Olanipekun argued that the apex court erred in law when it invoked section 36 of the Electoral Act to disqualify the APCs participation in the election when the Federal High Court judgment restored by the Supreme Court did not disqualify the partys eligibility.

He said the Supreme Court cannot give consequential order on a relief not granted by a trial court except due to human error.

However, counsel to the PDP Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) informed the apex court that the application by APC and its governorship candidate was an invitation to the Supreme Court to violate section 285 of the 1999 constitution, for the court to sit on appeal over its own matter.

Oyetibo argued that having delivered final judgment in the matter on merit on February 13, the court has no jurisdiction to sit on appeal in the judgment, adding that it is scandalous to ask the apex court to review the judgment.

He further stated that the apex court was right in disqualifying Lyon as the governor-elect because section 187 of the 1999 constitution is clear and unambiguous to the effect that a governorship candidate who has no deputy candidate is not qualified to contest any governorship election in Nigeria.

When Supreme Court gives judgment, it is deemed correct. It has never happened in the history of Supreme Court to reverse itself, its judgment is final and finality. And whatever Supreme Court says in the interpretation of the law is the law.

His submissions were adopted by other respondents in the matter

After taking arguments from parties in the matter, Justice Sylvester Ngwuta announced the stand down of the matter, and the court later reconvened to gives its decision.

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Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford to replace Luis Suarez, according to Patrick Kluivert.

There has been speculation in recent months that the Catalan giants are looking to the future and want a new striker to take Suarezs throne.

Rashford has been in brilliant form recently for the Red Devils after being deployed in a central role by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

And Kluivert thinks Rashford would be the perfect long-term replacement for 32-year-old Suarez, who has scored 16 goals in all competitions this term for Barca.

I like Marcus Rashford, a lot. It will be really difficult to get him over. But he is a good player, Kluivert told Sport360.

I dont see a lot of players who can play in Barcelona. [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang, perhaps he can play.

There is not a lot. Maybe some players who can play in La Liga, young players. But, for me, I think the best one is Marcus Rashford.

I think so. He has got the skills, the attitude, hes quick, hes fast, he can score goals. He is not always in the first XI at Manchester United and maybe he wants to change club. So, why not?
Atiku Abubakar

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2019 election, Atiku Abubakar, has revealed that his son has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19).

He disclosed this on Sunday night on his Twitter page.

According to him, his son has been moved to a specialist hospital for treatment.

He tweeted:

My son has tested positive to coronavirus. @NCDCGov has been duly informed, and he has been moved to Gwagwalada Specialist Teaching Hospital in Abuja for treatment and management. I will appreciate it if you have him in your prayers. Stay safe, coronavirus is real.

See his post below:
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Heartland to present 10-Minute Play Festival

BLOOMINGTON  Heartland Theatre Company will present "The Waiting Room" for the 20th annivesary of the 10-Minute Play Festival.

The show will open Thursday, June 1 with a pay-what-you-can preview performance, with performances continuing through June 24.

The show is sponsored by Deanna Frautschi and Alan Bedell. The plays were selected from over 650 submissions from around the world and will premiere on Heartland's stage in Normal.

The eight plays are directed by Darlene Lloyd, Lynda Rettick, Rich Tinaglia and Jason A. Vales.

Actors include Adam Alexander, Corrina Angel, Bruce Boeck, Jayson Butler, Jared Cantrell, Patti Geske, Gayle Hess, Lisa M. Howard, Dave Lemmon, Jen Maloy, Wes Melton, Brooke Moonan, Jacqueline Schwarzentraub, Christos-Leo Sirigas, Audrey Sutton, Terry Tinaglia, and Russ Wolf.

The winning plays include "What Happens in the Waiting Room" by Daphne Macy, New Rochelle, NY; "Weight" by Chris Shaw Swanson, Westerville, OH; "The Choice" by Dale Griffiths Stamos, Santa Barbara, CA; "This Baby" by William R. Boersma, Skokie, IL; "What Happens on Monday" by Benjamin Tyler Roberts, Maytown, PA; "That's the Worst Part" by Katie Lee, Victoria, Australia; "The Good Old Days" by Roy Von Hooydonk, Ontario, Canada; and "Next Up" by Sean Abley, Los Angeles, CA.

Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. except for matinees on Sunday, June 11 and Saturday, June 24 at 2 p.m. Note there are two shows on the 24th.

For reservations contact boxoffice@heartlandtheatre.org. Tickets are $17 for general admission, $15 for seniors and military, and $7 for students.

The theater is located at 1110 Douglas St., One Normal Plaza, Community Activity Center, Normal

Visit heartlandtheatre.org for more information.

Champaign AIR Art Show set for Saturday

CHAMPAIGN  The Developmental Services Center will showcase the AIR Art Show from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 20.

The event will feature Alliance for Inclusion and Respect, or AIR art at DSC's The Crow at 110, 110 E. University Ave., Champaign.

AIR artists recently held their annual art show at Ebertfest.

AIR is a community collaboration that works to address and challenge the negative impacts of stigma.

Visit dsc-illinois.org for more information.

Lincoln Library and Museum to test AI

SPRINGFIELD  The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will host "Our 16th President in the 21st Century: Lincoln and Artificial Intelligence" at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24.

The library's historians will quiz ChatGPT to see how well it handles historical research and interpretation related to Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War.

Reserve a seat under the "Events" page at PresidentLincoln.Illinois.gov.

Sculpture Walk Peoria set May 25

PEORIA  The Peoria Art Guild 2023 Sculpture Walk Peoria "Sip N Stroll" will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 25.

Two pours of wine from Tres Rojas Winery in Washington will be provided to guests. The private walk will be led by tour guides, John and Jeff Heintzman.

The event will conclude with an additional pour of wine at the Guild.

All proceeds from the event go back to support the Sculpture Walk program. The event is only for those ages 21 and up.

Only a limited number of tickets are available. Tickets are $45 and can be purchased at peoriaartguild.org/swp.

The Sculpture Walk is an initiative of the Peoria Art Guild and coordinated with the City of Peoria, and funded through corporate and individual sponsors.

It it made possible in part by an grant from the Illinois Arts Council.

Lincoln Library to host volunteer orientation

SPRINGFIELD  The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will welcome new volunteers during an orientation session on Wednesday, May 24.

The event will talk about how to become a volunteer and what that involves, including greeting visitors, assisting at events, helping researchers and more.

The one-hour session will begin at 5:30 p.m. in library building.

Volunteers will be also be asked to attend three additional two-hour training sessions on Wednesday, June 7, June 24 and June 21.

Call 217-558-8872 to register.
(CNN)  The Biden administration is looking at arranging a series of possible visits to Beijing by top administration officials in the coming months as part of an effort to reengage with China on substantive issues after the Chinese spy balloon incident prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a planned trip to Beijing, multiple US officials told CNN.

There are ongoing discussions about visits for four top Biden administration officials  Blinken, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Climate Envoy John Kerry  but the order of those visits remains unclear, even among US officials who will be involved in the planning.

Inside the administration, some officials have strong views about who should travel first, while others are less concerned about the sequence, multiple US officials told CNN.

Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan have met Chinese officials since the balloon incident but within the administration there is a recognition that high-profile visits to Beijing to discuss substantive issues are vital to managing the relationship with the US main geopolitical adversary. And more than two years into President Joe Bidens presidency no members of his cabinet have visited China.

The discussions about the possible visits have been taking place ahead of Bidens trip to Japan for the G7 where he is expected to focus on strengthening the alliance against Chinas coercive behavior globally. Stops in Australia and Papua New Guinea intended to demonstrate Americas commitment to the Pacific region were canceled due to ongoing debt ceiling negotiations.

State Department officials are making the case that Blinken should be the first administration visitor to Beijing, ahead of any other cabinet officials, two sources familiar with the conversations told CNN.

They believe it is important for Blinken to address a wide swath of issues with Chinese counterparts that he planned to during his cancelled visit earlier this year, including the Ukraine war, the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals from China, tensions over Taiwan, and Americans wrongfully detained in China.

There are no specific dates currently under consideration for a possible Blinken visit, the officials said. The sources noted that its possible Raimondo and Yellen may visit before Blinken.

The reality is that China has a vote, said one US official, noting that China would likely prefer to initially engage with the US on economic issues.

When Kerry announced that he was invited to visit China in the near term in recent weeks officials in Foggy Bottom were frustrated because they have long been working towards re-scheduling a Blinken visit and initially felt concerned that Kerry might try to leapfrog the top diplomat. But administration officials now believe that Kerrys trip is unlikely to come first with the other three officials having discussed possible visits for months.

The officials arent expected to travel within the next few weeks and the administrations economic and national security teams are keenly focused on debt ceiling negotiations and Bidens G7 meetings.

But one thing is clear: Biden administration officials are ready to engage with Beijing after the Chinese spy balloon incident, and they are expressing confidence that trips by senior officials can take place after Sullivan met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi last week in Vienna.

Sullivan and Wang met for more than 8 hours over the course of two days and covered a wide range of topics, administration officials explained to reporters. After the meeting both the US and Chinese sides described the engagement as candid, substantive and constructive.

US wants to move beyond the spy balloon drama

A senior administration official clearly stated the US wants to move forward beyond the spy balloon drama that tainted an already tense relationship.

I think both sides recognized that that unfortunate incident led to a bit of a pause in engagement. Were seeking now to move beyond that and reestablish just a standard normal channel of communications, the official said on a call with reporters after the meeting.

Blinken also left the spy balloon incident out of his opening remarks during a congressional hearing on Tuesday, in what US officials said was a clear public demonstration of the administrations willingness to move on from the incident.

The world is watching how we, and Beijing, manage this relationship. And it is in our best strategic interest to do so responsibly, Blinken said. We will purposefully engage China not as a favor or with engagement as an end in and of itself, but in ways that reflects our values and where we can find areas of cooperation that are of mutual interest.

Blinken faced questions from some lawmakers about efforts to get the Chinese to clamp down on precursor chemicals for fentanyl that are flowing out of the country, fueling the fentanyl crisis in America. Blinken said we do not have that now when asked if there is genuine cooperation with China on the topic, while suggesting that the China will only face growing pressure from the US and its allies to focus on this issue.

Fentanyl is one of the topics that Blinken planned to address with his Chinese counterpart earlier this year. But the cancelled meeting meant months of no substantive engagement between the two countries on the topic, the department said.

We continue to press the PRC (Peoples Republic of China) at multiple levels to resume bilateral engagement on this issue. While the PRC has not engaged on these issues in recent months, we continue to actively seek PRC cooperation to stop the criminal diversion of chemicals to illicitly manufacture fentanyl and other synthetic drugs. The PRC needs to do more as a global partner to disrupt synthetic drug supply chains, a State Department spokesperson told CNN.

Blinken also planned to raise the issue of Americans wrongfully detained in China on his visit earlier this year. The special representative for hostage affairs at the Department specifically called the families of Americans wrongfully detained in the country the day before the trip was supposed to begin to tell them that their cases would be raised and suggested that he may do even more than raise the names, a source familiar with the discussions told CNN.

I believe that we would be in a different place now in terms of getting my father home if Blinken had gone ahead with the visit, Harrison Li told CNN. His father, Kai Li, is one of three Americans deemed wrongfully detained in China by the State Department.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Biden administration looking at arranging high-profile visits to China by senior officials"
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LOS ANGELES  Jurors in Danny Masterson's rape retrial finished their first day of deliberations Wednesday without reaching a verdict in the case against the former "That '70s Show" star.

The jury of seven women and five men got the case in the morning when prosecutors finally finished their rebuttal after all-day closing arguments a day earlier. They deliberated for about three and a half hours before going home without asking any questions or giving an indication of how discussions were going. They resume Thursday morning.

Late last year, a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case against Masterson involving rape allegations by three women, and Los Angeles Judge Charlaine Olmedo declared a mistrial.

Prosecutors said in their closing argument Tuesday that Masterson drugged the women in order to assault them, then relied on his status as a prominent member in the Church of Scientology to avoid consequences for decades.

"You don't want to have sex? You don't have a choice," Deputy District Attorney Ariel Anson told the jury. "The defendant makes that choice for these victims. And he does it over and over and over again."

After closing arguments, Masterson's attorney Philip Cohen made a motion for a mistrial, one of several that he made during the three-week trial, because of the prosecution's mention of drugging, which is not part of the charges. Olmedo rejected the motion, saying that the prosecution was acting within the bounds of her pretrial decision allowing them to assert that the women were drugged.

Masterson, 47, pleaded not guilty to raping three women at his home between 2001 and 2003. During the defense's closing, Cohen told jurors that the women's accounts are so full of inconsistencies that there is more than enough reasonable doubt for jurors to acquit Masterson.

Cohen emphasized the lack of any physical evidence of drugging, with the investigation that led to Masterson's arrest coming some 15 years after the alleged rapes.

"Miss Anson presented a case as if she was arguing a drugging case," Cohen said. "Maybe it's because there is no evidence of force or violence."

Scientology played an outsized role during the trial. Masterson is a member, and all three women are former members. Prosecutors said the institution protected him, and helped convince the women that they were not raped and could not go to authorities to report a fellow Scientologist in good standing. The church denied having any such policy.

Masterson could get more than 40 years in prison if convicted on all three counts.

Photos: Danny Masterson Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson Danny Masterson, Sam Elliott, Ashton Kutcher Danny Masterson, Ashton Kutcher Danny Masterson Danny Masterson Danny Masterson Danny Masterson Danny Masterson, Bijou Phillips Danny Masterson
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PEORIA  A Normal woman has pleaded guilty to a role in illegally purchasing a firearm that was used to kill Champaign police officer Chris Oberheim in 2021.

Regina Lewis, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to illegally purchase and transfer a firearm and conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct, according to a statement released Wednesday by the U.S. Attorneys Office in Peoria.

Lewis faces up to five year in prison. Each charge also carries a penalty of up to three years of supervised release and up to a $250,000 fine.

Lewis admitted in court that she conspired with co-defendants Ashantae Corruthers and Darion M. Lafayette to purchase and transfer a firearm to Lafayette, who could not legally purchase a firearm himself because he was a convicted felon, the statement said.

Prosecutors stated that Corruthers purchased a 9mm Glock 48 semiautomatic pistol from a federal firearms licensee in Indianapolis on Nov. 17, 2020, at the direction of Lafayette and Lewis.

Lewis then further admitted that she conspired with Corruthers and Lafayette to cover up the illegal purchase and transfer by having Corruthers falsely report to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department on April 26, 2021, that the pistol was stolen from her.

Prosecutors stated that 23 days after the firearm was falsely reported as stolen, Lafayette used the firearm to fatally shoot Oberheim in Champaign on May 19, 2021. Lafayette was shot and killed by another Champaign officer, whom Lafayette also struck with gunfire.

After Oberheim's death, Lewis continued to cover up the illegal purchase by agreeing to have Corruthers falsely tell an ATF agent investigating the shooting that she purchased the gun for herself, that it had previously been stolen from her in March 2021, and that she did not know Lafayette.

Lewis remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending her sentence.

Corruthers' trial is scheduled to begin June 27 in Urbana.

PHOTOS: Family, friends gather in Decatur for fallen officer's funeral
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BLOOMINGTON  Hundreds gathered Thursday morning as bright sunshine poured in through the skylight, and dozens of small children, donning red graduation robes and caps, sat anxiously inside Illinois Wesleyan University's Hansen Student Center.

The children, part of Heartland Head Start's preschool program, were graduating.

The 4- and 5-year-olds squirmed in their seats as parents and grandparents, cameras and phones at the ready, watched excitedly from the audience.

Kalessa Edgerson, executive director of Heartland Head Start, said the 53 children were graduating from their preschool program into kindergarten with public school systems in the area.

Jocelyn McClain Hazlewood, president of the Central Illinois Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, told the children to "get used to walking across this stage."

And each time a youngster's name was read, and they proudly walked to center stage to display their graduation certificate, the crowd roared.

Edgerson said she was "overjoyed" at the reception.

Heartland Head Start is part of the federal Head Start program, which was established in 1965 and has since served over 13 million children in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to its website.

The program helps families with young children at or near the poverty line "by offering educational, nutritional, health, social and other services."

Edgerson, who took over the Heartland division a year and half ago, serving McLean and Livingston counties, said Head Start is different from other early childcare programs.

"We provide comprehensive services," Edgerson said, "which means that we provide the health part of our program." She said this includes physicals, dental care, nutrition programs and even mental health services.

But it's more than that, Edgerson said: "We start with 'children zero,' because we start with the pregnant mom. The babies come into our program because we have an Early Head Start program."

Sylvester Woodson's son, Malachi, was one of the 53 graduating Thursday.

The elder Woodson said, "I feel good. I'm excited for his journey. Excited for him to proceed forward."

The Fairbury resident said he is "honestly eager to see what awaits (Malachi) in life, because he is a smart child."

The Links, Incorporated is an international nonprofit with five assets, according to its website: "Services to Youth, The Arts, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services, and Health and Human Services."

McClain Hazlewood said each family was gifted a package that included summer work material and a book titled "KINDergarten: Where Kindness Matters Every Day."

"It applies to every aspect of life, that we have to be kind going forward," she said.

She continued, "It's the basis for how we contribute to the world. It starts with empathy and compassion at every aspect.

"That's humanity  'How can we help others?' First, be kind."

She said kindness and compassion are qualities that children inherently possess, and that the book helps remind them to "listen to that small voice that's inside of you.

"Sometimes, we have to take a moment to be still, drown out all those other things that come into our world and into our lives, and listen to that voice that's within  it's kindness."

Photos: Heartland Head Start graduation ceremony at Illinois Wesleyan University
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SPRINGFIELD  A years-long effort to expand Central Illinois Regional Airports tax base from Bloomington-Normal city limits to encompass all of McLean County is on the runway and about to take flight.

Legislation to make the effort a reality passed the Illinois House 73-40 Wednesday afternoon. It was amended, so it heads back to the Senate, where an earlier version passed in March, before going to Gov. J.B. Pritzker's desk.

The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Dave Koehler, D-Peoria, would establish the Central Illinois Regional Airport Authority and dissolve all previously existing airport authorities within McLean County.

Instead of confining the airports tax base to the Twin Cities, it would expand it to cover the entire county. Proponents of the move say it will spread the tax burden out, thus reducing property tax bills for Bloomington-Normal residents.

CIRA officials have lobbied for the expansion for at least a decade, arguing that it would give them more flexibility to respond to a future crisis or take advantage of development opportunities in the future.

"CIRA is an important cog in the economic engine that supports McLean County and surrounding counties in Central Illinois and this legislation is a vital step in ensuring the long-term viability of CIRA," CIRA Board chairman Alan Sender told the Pantagraph in a statement.

"The entire airport board is gratified at receiving the support of the state House and looks forward to receiving similar supportive action in the state Senate in these last days of the Spring legislative session," he added.

Residents of rural McLean County, under the airport authority for the first time, would likely see their tax bills increase if the bill is signed.

Sender told The Pantagraph last month that owners of a $175,000 home outside Bloomington-Normal are estimated to see a $55 annual increase to their airport tax. Homeowners in Bloomington and Normal, on the other hand, are estimated to see their annual airport tax bill decrease from $83 to $55.

Among those opposed to the bill are a coalition of rural McLean County mayors along with Republican state legislators and the Illinois Farm Bureau.

In addition to spreading out the tax burden across the county, the legislation would allow the airport authority to nearly double its tax rate in the future from 4 cents per $100 of assessed value to 7.5 cents. Airport officials, however, say they have no plans to increase the levy.

For years, the county's state legislative delegation was a reliable backstop halting the effort. In 2017, for instance, then-state Sen. Jason Barickman, R-Bloomington, told airport executive director Carl Olson that he would not advance the effort in Springfield.

But the political terrain has changed. Koehler, a Democrat, picked up significant portions of McLean County following state legislative redistricting in 2021. McLean County voters also sent state Rep. Sharon Chung, D-Bloomington, to the General Assembly in 2022.

With new legislative allies, the airport authority renewed its push.

Under the legislation, Bloomington Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe and Normal Mayor Chris Koos will each get two appointments to the seven-person board.

The remaining three appointments will be made by the McLean County Board chairman John McIntyre. Of those, two have to be from rural communities with less than 5,000 residents and one from unincorporated McLean County.

State Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, who sponsored the legislation in the House, said the it was specifically amended to ensure that all portions of the county would have representation on the new board.

Anna Ziegler, assistant manager of the McLean County Farm Bureau, said she appreciates the amendments to allow for more rural representation on the airport authority board.

However, the farm bureau still opposes the legislation because it imposes a new property tax on rural residents with the possibility of higher rates in the future.

"They're nearly doubling their maximum tax rate without a referendum and that affects Bloomington-Normal as well as rural McLean County," Ziegler said.

Although the new tax rate doesn't mean that the airport will levy at that rate, Ziegler said it still gives them the option without seeking input from the public.

The legislation passed on a party-line vote. House Republicans who represent portions of McLean County voiced their frustration ahead of the vote Wednesday.

"This is a property tax increase on every small community, every farm in McLean County," said state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur. "And yet none of these people have had any input into how this process is going down."

Caulkins, to no avail, urged Hoffman to hold the legislation to allow McLean County voters to weigh in via a referendum.

Sender, however, countered that the legislation is "almost identical to the legislation the General Assembly has approved in previous years in support of airports in Peoria, Crawford and DuPage airports."

The bill now heads back to the Illinois Senate, where it is expected to come for a vote in the next couple of days. If passed and signed into law, the authority would take effect within 30 days of initial board appointments being made.

Drew Zimmermann contributed to this report.

10 of the world's longest flightsand what to do if you're on one 10 of the world's longest flightsand what to do if you're on one How the 10 flights stack up What to do if you're on one of the world's longest flights
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How Time Flies is a daily feature looking back at Pantagraph archives to revisit what was happening in our community and region.

100 years ago

May 18, 1923: Employment is now at its peak in Bloomington, according to Less Jones, superintendent of the state free employment office. With factories running 90% of normal, a new high mark for this year, and with more men needed than are available for the farms and hard roads, prosperity need no longer be pointed to but is now out in full view of everybody.

75 years ago

May 18, 1948: Miss Jeannine Brent, 1311 W. Elm St., and Miss Darby Day Smith, 1407 N. Clinton Blvd., have won voice scholarships to the Illinois Wesleyan University School of Music, it was revealed when competition winners were named by Dean Spencer Green.

50 years ago

May 18, 1973: The final recommendation is out to form a new junior college district in the McLean County area. The recommendation is from the executive committee of the McLean County Area Junior College Feasibility Study Committee. James Gardner is chairman of the committee.

25 years ago

May 18, 1998: The Normal Police Department's 333 drunken driving arrests ranked 14th among Illinois cities in 1997, continuing a string of five top 20 rankings for the town. The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists' annual survey of DUI enforcement reflected Normal's 14% increase in arrests, up from 292 the previous year.

101 years ago: See vintage Pantagraph ads from 1922 Gerthart's Union Gas and Electric Co. Hoover Dr. J.A. Moore Dentists Moberly & Klenner W.P. Garretson W.H. Roland Pease's Candy Thor 32 Electric Washing Machine The Kaiser's Story of the War Ike Livingston & Sons Gossard Corsets Cat'n Fiddle 'Stolen Moments' Case Model X The Johnson Transfer & Fuel Co. The Pantagraph want ads Franklin Motor Car Co. 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court' Calumet Baking Powder Mayer Livingston & Co. Newsmarket 'The Emperor Jones' 'California Fig Syrup'
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SPRINGFIELD  Illinois' state flag could undergo a redesign in the near future as state lawmakers approved legislation that would create a commission to decide its fate and make recommendations for a new or revised flag.

The legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, cleared the Illinois House on Wednesday on a 72-40 vote. It previously passed the Senate in March. It would become law with Gov. J.B. Pritzker's signature.

The 22-person commission would be charged with selecting up to 10 flag designs by September 2024 and submitting a report to the legislature by Dec. 3, 2024, offering a recommendation for a revised or new state flag.

The commission would establish goals and guiding principles for the redesign and a process for submitting proposals.

This would include the creation of a website to provide historical information about the flag and an online suggestion box so state residents can offer their ideas. Residents would also be able to vote on potential flag designs.

This would all be done in concert with a public awareness campaign.

"It's a great opportunity for us to engage individuals from throughout the state to really get them excited about Illinois," Turner said Wednesday afternoon after the bill's passage.

The current flag was adopted by the state legislature in 1915 at the behest of Ellen Park Lawrence, an Illinois member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

The flag features the state seal, which dates to 1868, on a white field. It depicts an eagle with a banner in its beak with the state motto, State Sovereignty, National Union. The bird is also carrying a shield in its talons, with 13 stars and strips representing the original colonies.

It also features a prairie with the sun rising over water in the background. The flag was amended in 1970 to include the state's name below the seal.

In a 2001 poll of its members, the North American Vexillological Association ranked Illinois' flag 49th out of 72 U.S. state and Canadian provincial flags.

While it is not universally reviled, the flag has never been considered an iconic symbol of the state as its universally-recognized counterparts are in California, Colorado and Texas, for example.

Turner said she hopes the legislation generates civic engagement, encourages a more cohesive state identity and sparks Illinois pride.

She said it's already working. When speaking with several Girl Scout troops who visited the Capitol a few weeks ago, Turner mentioned her bill. Each said they were going to make it a troop project.

"While we work on a lot of very meaty, heavy subjects, we also have to look at those other subjects that are uplifting and enlightening," Turner said.

The legislation was opposed by Republicans, who questioned whether a state flag redesign was a priority. Turner dismissed this, however.

"Everything is not all doom and gloom," Turner said. "We have to have some things that throw a little bit of excitement into our work."

The process is modeled loosely after Utah, which established a task force last year to explore a new state flag. After more than 7,000 flag designs were submitted and 44,000 comments received, the state settled on a redesign, which was approved by the legislature in March and takes effect next year.

Photos: Pritzker sworn in for second term
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SPRINGFIELD  Illinois ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines will remain in force, at least for the time being.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to grant a temporary injunction to block enforcement of the law, known as the Protect Illinois Communities Act, pending an appeal of five consolidated lower court decisions at the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

On April 26, the National Association for Gun Rights, or NAGR, filed an application for an injunction with Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who hears emergency requests from the Seventh Circuit. According to a notation on the courts website, Barrett referred the application to the full court, which declined to issue the injunction.

The court did not issue an opinion giving its reasons for the denial. It would have taken votes from five justices to grant the injunction. Once the full court has acted on an application, the application is considered closed and there is no further opportunity to request the same relief.

State Rep. Bob Morgan, D-Deerfield, who was the laws chief sponsor in the House, issued a statement praising the courts decision.

The Protect Illinois Communities Act has already prevented the sale of thousands of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in our state, he said. This ruling is a victory in the fight to keep these weapons of war from creating more carnage in communities like mine and countless others across this state.

NAGR, along with a Naperville gun dealer, are plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging both the state weapons ban and a local ban enacted by the city of Naperville in August 2022. Both laws were enacted in response to a mass shooting at an Independence Day parade in Highland Park that left seven people dead and scores more injured or traumatized.

On Feb. 17, U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall declined to block the laws while the case was being heard. In a 33-page opinion, she said the plaintiffs failed to meet the high legal standard for a preliminary injunction.

That standard requires someone to show that they are likely to succeed on the merits of their case, that they will suffer irreparable harm without an injunction, that the balance of equities tips in their favor and that an injunction is in the public interest.

On the balance of equities test in particular, Kendall said the plaintiffs stand to suffer only minimal harms from the ban on the sale and possession of certain weapons. She also said the state and city compellingly argued that their laws protect public safety by removing particularly dangerous weapons from circulation.

NAGR appealed that decision to the Seventh Circuit, which also declined to issue an injunction. Wednesdays decision from the U.S. Supreme Court upholds both denials.

The Gun Violence Prevention PAC, or G-PAC, issued a statement praising the decision and the states lawyers.

Stopping enforcement of the law would allow resumption of a continuing flow of new assault weapons and large capacity magazines into our communities, G-Pac said in a statement. Sale of those dangerous weapons has now stopped and it should never be resumed.

In a separate case in the Southern District of Illinois, Judge Stephen P. McGlynn granted a request for a preliminary injunction on April 28. That ruling involved three consolidated cases, including one filed by the Illinois State Rifle Association.

That order was quickly put on hold by the Seventh Circuit, which is now scheduled to hear a consolidated appeal in five federal cases challenging the law  the three from the Southern District, the NAGR case from the Northern District, and one other Northern District case challenging local weapons bans in Chicago and Cook County.

Oral arguments in that appeal are scheduled for June 29.

Photos: Pritzker sworn in for second term
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THUMBS UP! To Cop on a Rooftop. The Special Olympic fundraiser on the part of police and Dunkin' is marking its 20th year. It's outgrown the original comedy. Part of the event's appeal early in its existence was police playing along with the cliches about them and doughnuts. Our comic cliches come from elsewhere now, and we can focus on the fun of the event, which has raised in excess of $7.6 million for Special Olympics. The event is all around Illinois on Friday, May 19.

THUMBS DOWN! To violence toward federal employees. A stunning report shows 496 postal employees were robbed in 2022, almost doubling the number of attacks in 2021. Postal employees can be vulnerable, but you also hope they have the protection of the people they're delivering to.

THUMBS DOWN! To a stunning increase and fentanyl-related deaths among people under 20 years old. Between 1999 and 2021, more than one-third of fatal pediatric opioid poisoning was caused by fentanyl. That's just the start of the latest horrible news about the poison. Nearly 70,000 adults died of fentanyl in 2021. Everyone knows someone affected by this epidemic, and there's really no end in sight.

THUMBS DOWN! To misplaced frustration. In our post-COVID world, for a multitude of reasons, businesses do not have enough people to fill service needs properly. When looking for someone to complain to about it, though, be sure you dont pick on the wrong ones. Leave the cashiers and waitresses alone. The front-line soldiers have nothing to do with decisions made by their employers and may empathize with you. They have nothing to do with insufficient labor and supply chain issues.
Marijuana laced with fentanyl is rising across the US, a Washington doctor has warned, after cases of the drug cocktail were found in New York, Alabama, Illinois and Louisiana.



Fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid that's 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin, is increasingly being mixed with other substances to make them more potent at a cheap price.



Just two milligrams of fentanyl  imagine 10 to 15 grains of table salt  can prove fatal, and staggering figures showed it is killing the equivalent of an entire classroom of children every week.









Read Full Story .... dailymail >>> :

















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Three children and a baby were reported to have been found alive more than two weeks after a plane crashed with them on board in the Colombian Amazon jungle.



Colombian authorities had deployed more than 100 soldiers with sniffer dogs to search for the children who were travelling in a plane that crashed in the Amazon 17 days ago, killing three adults.



Colombias President Gustavo Petro said in a tweet on Wednesday that the children were discovered after arduous search efforts by the military. A joy for the country, he said.



Earlier on Wednesday, the Colombian armed forces said that search efforts intensified after rescuers came across a shelter built in an improvised way with sticks and branches, leading them to believe there were survivors. However, there were no reports from the Colombian military confirming the discovery of the children.



Read Full Story .... Aljazeera >>> :









Source: Aljazeera









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(CNN)  Beijings newly appointed special envoy for the Ukraine war has met with President Volodymyr Zelensky, China confirmed Thursday as its attempts to fashion itself as a potential peacemaker in the grinding conflict, despite close ties with Russia.

Li Hui a seasoned former diplomat who served as ambassador to Russia from 2009 to 2019, is the highest ranking Chinese official to travel to Ukraine since the start of Moscows devastating war.

His two-day visit to Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday kicked off a wider tour of Europe where Chinas close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin has sparked growing alarm.

Western leaders have hoped Chinese leader Xi Jinping might use his close rapport with Putin to end the war raging in Europe  an outcome that analysts say may be unlikely at this stage, given Beijings interests in maintaining the relationship.

China had previously remained tight-lipped on details about the visit of Li, Beijings Special Representative on Eurasian Affairs, which it had billed as part of a five-country tour to promote communication toward a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

In its statement Thursday morning, Chinas Foreign Ministry confirmed Li had met Zelensky and other senior Ukrainian officials.

Li reiterated that China is willing to serve as a peace broker for resolving the Ukrainian crisis, on the basis of its previously stated positions on the war.

There is no panacea in resolving the crisis. All parties need to start from themselves, accumulate mutual trust, and create conditions for ending the war and engaging in peace talks, Li said, according to the readout.

Kyivs readout made no mention of the meeting with Zelensky.

Instead, it said Li met foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and discussed topical issues of cooperation between Ukraine and China, as well as ways to stop Russian aggression.

Last week, Chinas Foreign Ministry announced Li would visit Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia starting May 15  just days before the Group of Seven (G7) leaders are expected to affirm their solidarity against Moscow in a summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

Genuine peace effort?

China has attempted to cast itself as a peace broker and deflect criticism that it has not acted to help end Russias war in Ukraine, more than one year after Moscow invaded its western neighbor.

The Ukrainian statement on Lis visit appeared to allude to daylight between Beijing and Kyivs positions on ending the conflict.

Kuleba talked about restoring peace based on respect for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity and emphasized that Ukraine does not accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

He also stressed the importance of Chinas participation in the implementation of Zelenskys peace formula, according to the statement.

China  which released its own vaguely worded paper on a political settlement to the conflict earlier this year  has been criticized for not calling on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukrainian territory, as Kyiv and more than 100 governments around the world have done.

Lis arrival this week in Kyiv coincided with an exceptionally dense aerial assault by Russian forces on the capital, though Ukraine said most of the Russian munitions failed to hit their marks after being destroyed by its defense systems.

Zelensky this week wrapped up his own tour of European countries, where he welcomed promises of fresh military aid from countries including Germany, France and the United Kingdom.

Diplomatic mission

Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Zelensky spoke late last month for the first time since the start of the war, and according to Beijing, Xi pledged to facilitate peace talks, including by dispatching an envoy.

While Xis call with Zelensky was their first, the Chinese leader has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin five times during the conflict  including twice in person.

Since the early days of the war Beijings diplomatic and economic support of Russia has accelerated alarm about Chinas foreign policy across European capitals.

Those ties with Moscow were under close scrutiny over the past week as European officials discussed a recalibration of the blocs China strategy.

EU Foreign Affairs chief Josep Borrell on Friday said the blocs relations with China will not develop normally if China does not push Russia to withdraw from Ukraine.

Chinas selection of Li to head its diplomatic efforts toward resolving the conflict have also raised eyebrows among some Western observers.

Lis resume includes significant contributions to the China-Russia relationship during a key era of deepening cooperation under Xi and Putin.

In 2019, Putin presented Li with the Order of Friendship, making him only the second Chinese national to receive a state decoration from the Kremlin, according to Chinese state media. Xi was the first, receiving the Order of St. Andrew two years earlier.

Political settlement

While there was a tentative welcome of Xis call to Zelensky in parts of the West, there is also deep-rooted skepticism there over any push for a peace for China, given its close ties with Russia.

Beijings call for a ceasefire in its political settlement drew criticism from Western officials who said it would only help Russia consolidate its territorial gains in Ukraine, as it did not include a call for Russia to withdraw.

After his call with Xi last month, Zelensky said the exchange was meaningful, but underscored that there can be no peace at the expense of territorial compromises  a theme which also appeared to be stressed in the Kuleba and Li meeting.

On Monday ahead of Lis arrival in Ukraine, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen called for Ukraines peace plan to be the basis of efforts to resolve the conflict.

We should never forget that Ukraine is the country that was brutally invaded. It is therefore the one that should set out the core principles for a just peace, she said in Brussels.

Analysts say Beijing views its rapport with Russia  a key partner amid rising tensions with the West  as foundational for its foreign policy, and this will limit how far China will go to call for concessions from Russia, even as it attempts to play peacemaker.

Beijing has sought to deflect such criticisms by repeatedly accused the US and its allies of fueling the conflict through weapons support to Ukraine.

An editorial in the state-run English-language China Daily on Sunday said that Li would visit Poland, France and Germany during his tour as they are key stakeholders in Europe when it comes to any peace agreement.

The US, the editorial said, was excluded from Lis itinerary as it was questionable whether Washington was open to efforts to advance peace.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Chinas special envoy met Zelensky during two-day Ukraine visit, Beijing says."
The Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II says he will be collaborating with King Charles III of the United Kingdom to reclaim lands that have been destroyed by illegal mining activities in Ghana.



The Asantehene disclosed this at the launch of the 2023 edition of the Green Ghana Day held in Kumasi today, Wednesday, 17 May 2023.



He said he had a discussion with King Charles III when he attended his coronation in London about land reclamation in Ghana.



During the private discussion, Otumfuo said, King Charles III accepted to collaborate with him to reclaim lands destroyed by galamsey activities in the country.



Otumfuo said his technical team together with King Charles' team will meet to formulate a policy to embark on the land reclamation.



When I attended the coronation of King Charles III whose number one legacy is perhaps his commitment to afforestation, reforestation and the fight against climate change, interestingly, my discussions with him were on land reclamation in Ghana and we had some private discussions and he has accepted to collaborate with me for us to do that, the Asantehene said that.



He added he [King Charles III] has directed his technical team to meet mine so we can direct a policy to meet for that to help Ghana reclaim some of our land that has been destroyed by galamsey.













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The Director of Communications of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Richard Ahiagbah has asked Ghanaians to rally behind the government to turn the economy around.



According to him, the government is building back the economy stronger and better.



His comment is in reaction to reports that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is likely to approve Ghanas $3.5billion bailout on Wednesday, May 17.



Mr. Ahiagbah indicated that It is all clear, and the IMF is likely to approve Ghanas extended credit facility (ECF) application as soon as this month. But please note that the conditions requiring this ECF application were brought on almost exclusively by the twin factors of covid-19 and the war in Ukraine, unlike the 2015 ECF application which was 95% a function of internal mismanagement of the economy. Ghana is building back stronger and better! Support NPP to deliver for Ghana.



This comes after the Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam Anta confirmed to Reuters in an interview that the first tranche of $600 million would be disbursed immediately after the Executive Board of the IMF approves Ghanas request for an ECF.



He said a second tranche of the same amount will drop by end of year with the rest disbursed in equal tranches of $360 million after semi-annual reviews.



We expect a deal on Wednesday, the former Deputy Energy Minister is quoted as saying.



With the disbursement, there is going to be $600 million as a first tranche just immediately after the approval.



The first tranche is expected to be received by the country within a week after the Executive Boards approval.



This development follows the massive support given to Ghana on Friday, May 12 by the Paris Club.



It was at its meeting co-chaired by China in Paris.



The creditor committee examined the macroeconomic and financial situation of Ghana, including its long-term debt sustainability, and its formal request for a debt treatment under the Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the DSSI endorsed under the Saudi G20 Presidency in November 2020, which was also endorsed by the Paris Club, the Paris Club said in a statement on Friday.



The creditor committee supports Ghanas envisaged IMF upper credit tranche (UCT) program and its swift adoption by the IMF Executive Board to address Ghanas urgent financing needs. The creditor committee encourages Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to maximize their support for Ghana to meet its long-term financial needs.



This brought joy to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who talked highly of the last hurdle crossed when he met the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference at the Jubilee House.



Today is a very special day in the recent history of Ghana. At long last today, we have been informed that the last hurdle towards our agreement with the [International Monetary] Fund has been overcome, which is that the Paris Club met today in Paris with the creditors committee co-chaired by China and has okayed and approved Ghanas request of the IMF.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









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Bawumia Must Win (BMW), a group in the interest of Vice President Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia has responded to a viral circulation of pictures/videos of branded-Bawumia pick-up vehicles with misleading captions and voiceovers on social media by perpetual critics and cynics of Dr. Bawumia within and outside the NPP aimed at causing disaffection for the Vice President of Ghana.



In a statement signed by its General Secretary, Sir Obama Pokuase, while they appreciate the tensed inter and intra political temperature with regards to the upcoming presidential primaries of the NPP and its attendant 2024 general elections, they find it repulsive and unfortunate the decision by reckless apparatchiks of some NPP flagbearer hopefuls and apologists of John Mahama to engage in such libelous exercise.



Viral video



A video of a convoy of pick-up trucks displaying the picture of Vice President (VP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has gone viral on social media.



The footage displays the MG T60 pick-up trucks, branded with Dr. Bawumias campaign logo, travelling through the streets of the capital.



The Vice President, Bawumia is a major contender in the NPPs flagbearership contest, joining other competitors such as Kennedy Agyapong, Alan Kyerematen, Afriyie Akoto, and Kwabena Agyapong.



Read below the full statement



Bawumia Must Win (BMW) has observed with utmost shock viral circulation of pictures/videos of branded-Bawumia pick-up vehicles with misleading captions and voiceovers on social media by perpetual critics and cynics of Dr. Bawumia within and outside the NPP aimed at causing disaffection for the noble Vice President of Ghana.



While we appreciate the tensed inter and intra political temperature with regards to the upcoming presidential primaries of the NPP and its attendant 2024 general elections, we find it repulsive and unfortunate the decision by reckless apparatchiks of some NPP flagbearer hopefuls and apologists of John Mahama to engage in such libelous exercise.



For the records:



1. The number of branded pick-ups are Six (6), and not One-hundred (100) as alleged and publicised by the NDC Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Hon. Rockson Dafeamekpor and his collaborators.



2. The vehicles (Pick-ups) in question were neither bought, branded and paid for by Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia nor his campaign office.



3. The vehicles were not and could not have been bought with proceeds from a yet-to-arrive.



4. IMF Funds as mischievously put out by the NDC and asserted by the "internal saboteurs".



5. The vehicles belong to a group of individuals who believe and share in the vision of Dr. Bawumia.



6. The vehicles are to be used and returned to the owners after the campaign.



This is not and will not be the first or last time private citizens have donated vehicles to support a politician's campaign.

To the extent that there are no laws in Ghana that bar individuals or volunteer groups from contributing logistically and financially to support a politician, the general public is entreated to ignore the propaganda sophistry. It is worth stating that Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia remains focused, and will not be distracted by negative commentary by political desperados!

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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A parliamentary aspirant in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) primaries in the Asawase constituency has denied claims he was sponsored by the partys executives during his contest with the incumbent MP, Muntaka Mohammed.



According to him, there is not an iota of truth in the allegations, as 70 per cent of the money he spent during his elections was from his coffers.



Speaking at a press conference in Kumasi, he said, The issue about me being a favourite candidate, wow how lucky I am? I remember last year this same establishment barred me from contesting. So, I dont think theres any iota of truth in these allegations. I wasnt in any way sponsored. 70 per cent of the money I have spent came from my personal coffers, and 30 per cent came from people I have empowered in one way or the other. I never had any contributions from any business or party person, I can say that with authority.



He further added that, following the election results, he extended a congratulatory message to Muntaka Mohammed.



Let me once again congratulate my brother Muntaka Mubarak for his success in the just-ended parliamentary candidate elections. I have already communicated and congratulated him. Theres a need for my supporters to stay calm and let cool heads prevail. Lets all unite and rally around our re-elected parliamentary candidate so that, come 2025, Muntaka Mubarak will return to Parliament. He has all my support, and Im encouraging my supporters to also support him so that at the end of the day, NDC will come out victorious in the upcoming elections.



Muntaka Mubarak who was keenly contested by Masawudu Mabarick, has now emerged victorious after the electoral process.



Muntaka polled 1,063 votes against his only contender, Masawudu Mabarick who also polled 735 votes.



The total valid vote cast was 1798 and 09 were rejected.



















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On Monday, May 15th 2023, astute politician and the NPP Presidential Aspirant, Hon. Joe Ghartey, joined the Ashanti Regional branch of the New Patriotic Party in their one-month massive campaign for the parliamentary by-election in Kumawu Constituency.



The 2024 Presidential Hopeful was led by the NPP Ashanti Regional Deputy Organiser, Mr Atta Sarpong.



Hon. Ghartey, a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, was joined by the NPP National Youth Organizer, Salam Mustapha, the Suame Constituency Chairman, Chairman Count Abban, the Tafo Constituency Chairman, Chairman Kwadwo Okyere Gyimah and the Effiduase Constituency Chairmam, Chairman Yeaboah and another constituency, polling station officers and party functionaries. The team visited Oyoko, a community in Kumawu Constituency to hold a town hall meeting with Party faithful.



The former Railways Minister encouraged the group, who were mainly young ladies, to be committed to the Party and do their bit to ensure that NPP wins the bye-election.



A bye-election is slated to take place at Kumawu Constituency following the demise of Hon. Phillip Basoah, the MP for the Constituency.



The five times Member of Parliament for Essikado-Ketan Constituency, Hon. Ghartey said he was so encouraged by the group that he decided to make a donation to the Oyoko Youth wing.



He charged them to work and vote for the party's candidate.



"We have come far as a nation", he said, and " and it is clear that the policies of the NPP such as the Free SHS create opportunities for all.



Prior to that Joe Ghartey has visited the mother and family of his colleague Hon Phillip Boasoh to express his condolences. He told the gathering that Hon Basoah was a gentleman who always maintained his cool regardless of the challenges.



Joe Ghartey was joined at the family house of Hon Basoah by the Parliamentary Candidate by the Parliamentary Candidate Mr Anim. Joe Ghartey made a donation to him to assist in his campaign



Hon Joe Ghartey was led by Nana Agyapong Ntra Sompahene of Effiduase Ekuose Bomeng in Ashanti.

Source: Peacefmonline com









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As the current Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu remains the longest-serving Member of Parliament in the House, on the side of the New Patriotic Party.



Having entered parliament in 1996 as the MP for Old Tafo Suame, the MP, who is also the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, is considered one of the most experienced lawmakers in the country.



In his experience, he has been both Minority Leader and Majority Leader in Parliament; positions that only the sitting Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, can match him on, just as with the number of years both of them have been in the House.



However, there are two other senior Members of Parliament from the New Patriotic Party (NPP).



These MPs: Kennedy Agyapong (Assin Central) and Kobina Tahir Hammond (Adansi-Asokwa).



Kobina Tahir Hammond



K. T. Hammond, as he is popularly known, is also one of the longest-serving MPs in Ghanas parliament. He has served in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and in the 8th parliaments.



He joined parliament in 2001 for the Adansi-Asokwa Constituency in the Ashanti Region and has since retained his seat.



His hard work and knowledge in the oil and gas industry make him one of the best MPs in the field.



He is the current Minister of Trade and Industry.



Kennedy Agyapong



Kennedy Agyapong joined the House as the Member of Parliament for Assin South, which is now known as Assin Central.



He joined parliament in 2001 and has since served in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th parliaments.



He is currently seeking a mandate to lead the NPP as its presidential candidate for the 2024 general elections.















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National Democratic Congress (NDC)s Deputy Director of Legal Affairs says the party has no intention whatsoever to present a new candidate for any possible bye-election in the Assin North constituency.



This comes after the Court asked James Gyakye Quayson not to hold himself as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the area.



Ahmed Mohammed Baba Jamal who represents the NDC on legal issues told NEAT FMs morning show, 'Ghana Montie' that despite the Courts verdict the party disagrees and will challenge the Court in due time.



There is a verdict but we [NDC] do not agree with the court, he said.



The Member of Parliament for Assin North has expressed his disappointment in the Supreme Court's ruling to get his records expunged as a Member of Parliament.



A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court ordered Parliament to expunge the name of the NDC MP.



In the ruling, the Apex Court barred Mr. Quayson from holding himself as an MP for Assin North.



James Gyakye Quayson had been accused of holding dual citizenship prior to the 2020 election, an allegation he vehemently denied.



James Gyakye Quayson's Reaction



Gyakye Quayson reacting to this in a letter said: I am, of course, disappointed by the Courts decision. I am especially surprised that the Court now says that foreign bureaucrats now determine whether natural born Ghanaians have the right to contest for parliamentary elections in Ghana or not. Thus, a country that does not allow renunciation of its citizenship can bar a natural born Ghanaian, who has severed all relations with a country of acquired citizenship, from ever standing for MP.



According to him, he has "turned the page on litigating this matter in the courts of justice. I leave the matter to the court of conscience, which Ghandi reminds us, supersedes all other courts".

A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, ordered Parliament to blue-pencil the name of James Gyakye Quayson as a valid Member of Parliament.



The ruling further noted that Mr Quayson was not qualified at the time he contested the election in 2020.



The ruling has, however, paved the way for a bye-election in the consistency to elect a new Member of Parliament for the area.



But Baba Jamal said the NDC will again present the striped MP to contest the seat again.



We are still presenting James Gyakye Quayson as our parliamentary candidate for Assin North bye-election. He emphatically told the host of NEAT FMs morning show, McJerry Osei Agyemang

Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com/ghana









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RAS Caleb Appiah-Levi, one of the three aspirants for the post of President in the upcoming general election of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), says he doesnt trust the election scheduled for Tuesday, August 8 to select a new MUSIGA President will be free and fair.



His contention is that the acting MUSIGA President, Bessa Simons, is also an aspirant and such a situation cannot be trusted to bring about an impartial election.



All the same, he doesnt intend to fight for the right things to be done when those he describes as at the helm of affairs have turned a blind eye to measures that can create an equal playing field for all aspirants.



Speaking with Graphic Showbiz on Tuesday, May 16, Ras Caleb said he had been in favour of the establishment of an interim management committee to handle affairs for the upcoming election but his efforts had not yielded any results.



I have been saying at committee meetings that we need an independent body to handle the election and its processes. I have been requesting an Interim Management Committee because the Electoral Commission of Ghana doesnt contest elections. They only conduct elections.



They also dont compile the voters register. That is why I think Bessa Simons, who is the acting MUSIGA president, should not be a referee and a contestant at the same time. Per his role, he will supervise the compilation of the voters register to be given to the election committee set up by MUSIGA and that is where the conflict of interest arises.



He has an interest and if I were him, I would have stepped down for an interim management committee, comprising the arbitration committee and people from the creative arts to run the union.



Once we are affiliated with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, they can bring us somebody from the National Commission on Culture or other entities to support the election, he stated.





Ras Caleb said though he had been fighting for the right things to be done, he had rather been peddled as the black sheep of MUSIGA, stalling the groups growth.



Im tired of being seen as the bad one because Im fighting for the right things to be done. Besides, God has told me to let it go and allow them do what they want to do.



It is up to the members to see the light and say that okay, even though these people are trying to manipulate things, we will vote as our hearts tell us, he said.



Ras Caleb pointed out that he would start an official campaign tour in July but he was also doing his underground work to secure him the needed votes.

Source: Graphic Showbiz









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Movie producer, Zik Zulu Okafor has narrated how actor Saint Obi's marriage took him away from his friends and acting.



In an article he shared after Obi's death, Okafor who is also a former President of Association of Movie Producers of Nigeria revealed that the actor's wife was a top executive in a telecommunication company and her siblings always saw him as a gold digger.



He revealed that Saint Obi was always harassed by his wife's siblings and this eventually led to the end of the marriage. Okafor disclosed that the actor's health deteriorated mid last year before his eventual death.



Read the article below



"His social life was blunted. Perhaps by his reticent disposition.His persona, two dimensional. To a distant public, he was upscale and cool. His manly bearing spoke loud. His onscreen image ironically amplified some idiosyncrasies; heroics, romantic adventures and traits that did not gel with the mortal privacy that eerily define his quiet and lonely life.



"Saint Obi, real name, Obinna Nwafor, was shy, almost bordering on timidity and insecurity. He cherished the pleasantly tranquil interactions among a few friends. He would vanish at any outburst that could upset the poise of such small meetings. As he repeatedly told me, he just wanted to live a cool, quiet and fulfilled life. But, has he lived this cool and fulfilled life he envisioned ? I have my doubts.



"I tell Saints story here with painful tears in my eyes; because he was a star, a super star whose life turned out a gleam of irony . Yet, it was this stardom that fetched him his much professed financially strong and powerful wife . And their wedding, that solemn ritual of love, would drastically alter the cause of his life and tragically yank him off the creative community that threw him up for the wife to capture and indeed conquer.



"Their marriage was at best a dramatisation of love. It was quick. He barely told us that he found a wife. Then, the marriage happened. It was something of a mystique, only those involved understood the histrionics that played out . None of us who were his closest pals, who walked with him through the crucible to the crest of his career in Nollywood, was invited. The distance between us and the guy I admirably called Saint of the Storm had begun. This gulf would widen with each year. We saw him perhaps once in a year after this marriage.



"And life actually seemed to have given him a fair shake of the dice. He dressed well, drove big cars and even his skin, in literal lingo, spelt wellness.



"The Saint would be blessed with three beautiful children. But not one occasion were his friends in Nollywood invited for christening or birthday. We were told that his wife was of the topmost hierachy in telecom giant, MTN . But even if their celebrations were designed to be a rendezvous of the elites of the technocracies that his wife chiefly belonged, you expected that Saint would reach out to a few of his fellow creatives, for even if they would herald his small beginnings, there could be no tinge of shame to it because we all have our journeys and our stories. And even at that, the actor or cineaste in Nollywood is by no means poor.



"But more tragic is the fact that his marriage did not only take away Obinna from his friends, it took him away from Nollywood. Saint stopped acting, absconded from his career and perhaps his calling.



"It would seem prognostic now. Yes, because I recall leaving my house in Lagos Mainland for his massive office in Lekki, Victoria Island, Lagos. It was about six years ago. There, I demanded to know why my friend abandoned our industry. He told me with his usual shy expressions that he wanted to focus on some other businesses and also to work behind the camera. Because his visage was unconvincing to me, I told him in stark terms, that whatever his new vision and pursuits, he must not abandon the trade that made him who he was.



"It took another three years for Saint to return to his homies. But when he did, some of the deeply disappointed ones sniggered behind him. This was because the simmering rumours of cracks in his marriage had hit home. And though secretive in his ways, he knew it was time to open up. And he did. I do not know why my wifes sibblings see me as a gold digger. They confront me, harass and fight me in my own matrimony. And my wife did nothing to stop them. I work hard, I earn my money. I have never depended on my wife, he lamented, eyes blurred with tears. You could tell he was in deep pain. By the next visit, the Saint returned with a deep cut from knife on his left eye. His wifes brothers, he said, scaled the wall fence of their house to attack him. They were captured by hidden closed-circuit television, CCTV, installed for surveillance and security, he revealed.



"He reported them at the police station and subsequently acquired a gun to defend himself. This effectively marked the beginning of the end of his marriage and perhaps Saint Obis long walk to a sad end. He moved out of his marital home to a new house to begin the reconstruction of his destiny, alone without his wife and worse still without his three beautiful children.



"Meanwhile, his wife went to the police to defend her sibblings using her financial power to manipulate the cause of justice, Saint stated unequivocally. The wife also sued for divorce, not in Lagos, but in Ogun state. As Saint put it, It was to make the journey difficult for me. But I will not bend neither will I break. I will fight with my last blood to take custody of my children. They love me and they know it will be hard for me to live without them.The divorce is not an issue. My marriage has long been over, he said with a mix of courage and a quaky heart that betrayed his distress.



"About mid last year, however, Obinna took ill. But he told no one. He simply became scarce. He was in and out of hospital, we would later learn. He sold two of his three big SUVs to take proper care of his health and to acquire six camry cars hed use for Uber. But his vanishing health continued unabated. He seemed to have a premonition of his own passing as he wept repeatedly about not seeing his children. He emaciated. Life took a grim picture. When I saw him by chance in January 2023, the dude called Saint looked 15 years older than his age. His macho cut had shrunk. His fat wallet was gone. What was left was only his fat will. His eyes seemed lost in their socket. This would be the last time I would see him.



"Saint snuck out of Lagos to hang in with his sister in Jos. He told no one. But a month ago, in April precisely, the once delightful actor who brought joy to many a home broke his icy silence. He called our mutual friend in US to give him a devastating message. He was on a deathbed, he said and wanted our friend to pray for him. Its not looking good, pray, pray for me, he appealed passionately.



"His next call came on May 1, 2023. This time to his mentor, the man who made him a star with his productions, Zeb Ejiro, OON. He told him with a wavering voice that he had had three surgeries but was still in hospital in Jos. He averred again that his situation was not looking good, that he is also in a deep pain, distressed that he could not see his children. But still he begged him not to tell anyone about his ailment. Such was the life of this creative hermit, a lonely trouper. I was the first to hear the news of his death late on Sunday, May 7. Having confirmed it, I called Zeb Ejiro. I have a very bad news my brother, Zeb, I began.



What is it, what is it, Zik Zulu?, he asked anxiously. A big star has fallen in Nollywood. Zeb broke down in tears. I hadnt said who it was. But sobbing helplessly now, he said, Dont tell me it is Saint Obi. Sadly, Zeb was right. May his soul find peace."











Source: LIB









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" " Getting caught red-handed is the equivalent of getting caught with your hand in the cookie jar. You're basically busted. GraphicsRF.com/Shutterstock

When an Ohio woman's wallet was stolen in 2006, she didn't think she would see her missing driver's license again.

Two weeks later as the woman was tending bar, she asked a female customer for her I.D.  and was presented her own stolen license. The thief was, as they say, "caught red-handed," in a moment that police later said had odds that "defy calculation."

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Coincidence aside, there are plenty of examples of people being caught red-handed in real life and in fiction. But where does the phrase caught red-handed come from? Turns out, its roots are steeped in both blood and history.
(CNN)  Ecuadors embattled President Guillermo Lasso, who was facing a looming impeachment vote, has triggered a constitutional clause to dissolve government, a politically fraught move that could spark protests with the country already tackling a fragile security situation.

The Ecuadorian leader invoked a procedure known as mutual death, whereby the opposition-led National Assembly is dissolved and snap elections will be called, according to a decree published on the website of the presidency.

The presidents decision to instate muerte cruzada means that Lasso can rule by decree until elections are held for a new president and legislative body. The elections will take place within the next 90 days, according to Ecuadors Electoral Council president Diana Atamaint.

Calls for Lassos resignation have grown louder in recent months as the country is engulfed by a cost-of-living crisis and high rates of criminal violence.

But the mutual death announcement has halted impeachment proceedings against Lasso in the National Assembly, which began yesterday. Lawmakers had accused the President of interfering in the negotiation of a shipping contract related to the export of oil products. He has denied all allegations and claims they are politically motivated.

Lasso said his order for snap elections was the best decision to pave the way for hope. He argued his decision was the way to stop political confrontation in the country, adding that the crisis cost Ecuador millions of dollars.

This is a new moment for optimism. Lets build a better future for Ecuador, he told the nation in an address on Wednesday.

This is a democratic decision not only because its constitutional, but also it allows you to decide on your future, Lasso said.

Former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, who is a left-wing opposition leader, said on Twitter that Lassos move was illegal but also a great opportunity to get rid of Lasso, his government and his rented assembly members, and recover the country.

Ecuadors opposition and influential federation of Indigenous organizations have previously promised mass protests if Lasso instated muerte cruzada.

Lasso is besieged by high profile corruption scandals, criminal investigations, an impeachment process, a crumbling security situation, and record low approval ratings, Guillaume Long, a former foreign minister for Ecuador in Correas government, told CNN. The dissolution of Ecuadors congress is a reckless move from a debilitated and discredited president.

Members of Ecuadors National Police were seen standing guard outside the building that houses the countrys National Assembly after Lassos announcement. The police said it was guarding the facilities to guarantee citizen safety and public order.

Ecuadors Chief of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces, Nelson Proano told Ecuadorean citizens that Lassos decision was constitutional and should be respected. This country will not accept any attempt to disrupt the constitutional order and democracy through violence he added.

It is normal for the armed forces and police in South American countries to give a statement of support to a current government in crisis to prevent coup rumors.

The President has seen his political capital recede in recent months. On Sunday, opposition lawmaker Virgilio Saquicela was re-elected as president of the Assembly with 96 votes while Lassos coalition holds 25 seats in the legislative chamber, a scenario that could give the opposition a chance to get enough votes to approve the impeachment.

Will Freeman, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the application of muerte cruzada would absolutely cause instability.

Lasso is too unpopular to benefit from the impression that hes overriding checks and balances to finally get something done, he told CNN, before the announcement on Wednesday.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Ecuadors president, facing looming impeachment vote, dissolves countrys national assembly"
" " During declassification projects, documents that cannot be released are removed from the files and replaced with withdrawal notices (like these). The withdrawal notice contains unique information used by National Archives staff to retrieve the withdrawn item if a researcher requests it informally or under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

The order, however, doesn't cover Presidential authority to declassify, or lay out guidelines for the procedure that presidents should follow if they want to declassify a document. The only official guidance on that seems to come from a 2020 federal appeals court decision, in which the judges noted that "declassification, even by the President, must follow established procedures." However, the normal practice seems to be that the president records the declassification decision in an official memorandum.

Even Trump, who's claimed that he could declassify documents merely by thinking about it, followed this practice Jan. 19, 2021, when he issued a memorandum declassifying certain documents related to the FBI's investigation of links between his 2016 campaign and the Russian government's efforts to interfere in the election. (Trump did accept certain redactions proposed by the FBI.)

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A U.S. president is recognized as having ultimate power to classify or declassify documents, as part of the powers as commander in chief of the U.S. military in Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, which was affirmed in a 1988 Supreme Court case, Department of the Navy v. Egan.

"Some people would argue that the President can do whatever he wants, no matter what," Mary DeRosa, who served as National Security Council Legal Adviser in the Obama administration, said at a recent panel discussion on the handling of secrets, held by the Schar School at GMU. "I think that probably overstates it a bit."

Critics of the declassification process have long contended that it still results in the government keeping too many secrets.

"There is nearly universal agreement that the existing declassification process is inadequate, to put it mildly," Steven Aftergood, director of the Federation of American Scientists' Project on Government Secrecy from 1991 to 2021, says via email. "Under current policy, too much information is kept classified for too long without a valid national security justification. As a result, the historical record has gaps and blind spots, and public deliberation on current national security matters is impaired."

Aftergood cited the federal government's own Information Security Insight Office, which in a July 2022 report to President Joe Biden concluded that "the automatic declassification system as it currently exists ... is unable to meet the requirements for existing paper records and will never keep up with the tsunami of digital CNSI [Classified National Security Information] being created daily, making it likely that most of it will never be reviewed for declassification."

Aftergood says he thinks the system would be improved by changing the rules and setting an automatic "drop dead date" on classification  say, 40 or 50 years  after which older documents automatically would become available to the public, without the need for formal reclassification or even review. Imposing mandatory expiration dates for secrecy actually was considered by the Clinton administration back in the mid-1990s, Aftergood says.

There's also the question of whether presidents, who hold the ultimate authority on what should be classified and what should be released, should have more checks on their power, or at least be compelled to explain their decisions.

"Written justifications for classification can be useful in some circumstances," Aftergood says. "And the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, for one, has adopted such a requirement in its own classification policy. But considering that tens of millions of classifications actions are taken each year, it would not be practical to require individual written justifications in each case. "

The sheer volume of classified documents that must be evaluated for possible declassification is a problem. In 2020, the most recent year for which figures are available, agencies completed automatic declassification review of approximately 40 million pages of records by Dec. 31. But they were unable to get to another 23.6 million pages that were scheduled for release.

Now That's Interesting Another of the GMU panelists, John Fitzpatrick, the senior director for records access and information security management in the Obama administration, noted that declassification isn't about just documents, but the pieces of information that are being declassified. "If I declassify a fact  the location that a special thing happened, or the person that did that special thing  whatever that fact is, it can exist in many forms," he says. That makes it necessary to find all the documents that contain the fact and remark them, so that government officials know what can be disclosed and differentiate it from other information that still needs to be protected.
" " Lawrence Lynch poses with his Thai wife Thapenee, in Kidderminster, England, in 2006. The couple, who run a U.K. mail order bride agency from their music shop, have arranged hundreds of Thai women for clients and now use the Internet to introduce Weste... Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

You can't buy a spouse on the Internet. There's no Amazon that will drone-deliver a blushing bride to your doorstep.

But, you can look for a bride online, if you're of the mind. Thousands of women on websites all over the world will gladly tell you what they desire in a man. They'll flirt. They'll mention family, commitment and, maybe, marriage.

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And that can start you on your way to wedded bliss. Or not.

The mail-order bride business  object to the term, but there's no sidestepping it  is alive and well in the 21st century. For many brave enough to wade in, though, it can kick them right in the teeth.

Sometimes, the mail-order bride industry brings people together in holy matrimony, although the numbers are sketchy. And it may allow women in some pretty horrendous situations control of their future. But there are also stories of abuse or scamming, from both sides of the transaction.

So it's a complicated business, this mail-order marriage.

Much like love.

A New Frontier

When Marcia Zug, a law professor at the University of South Carolina, began researching her book, "Buying a Bride: An Engaging History of Mail-Order Matches," she figured she'd expose the seedy side of the industry.

"I expected to find that modern mail-order marriages are fundamentally harmful and that these problems are long-standing," Zug writes in the introduction to the book, due in June. "I was surprised that this is not what I found. Despite significant risks, mail-order marriages are typically beneficial and even liberating for women."

In her book, Zug details the history of mail-order brides  English and French women who emigrated to help build the Virginia colony in the U.S., for example. French women known as the filles du roi (king's daughters) who came to New France (mostly Canada now) in the late 1600s.

Later, as the American West was being settled and a need for women there became acute, both men and women began to advertise for spouses. Zug found this in a Missouri paper, circa 1910:

Attractive women, not a day over thirty, would be pleased to correspond with eligible man. Not absolutely necessary that he should be young. Would prefer one with property, but one with a good paying position would be satisfactory. The young lady is of medium height, has brown hair and gray eyes, not fat, although, most decidedly, she is not skinny. Her friends say she is a fine looking woman. Object matrimony. Reason for this advertisement, the young woman lives in a little dinky town, where the best catches are the boys behind the counters in the dry goods and clothing stores, and every one of them is spoken for by the time he is out of his short pants.

In many ways, modern mail-order brides are not far removed from this ad: women in dire situations, taking charge of their lives for the promise of something better.

"The idea that men are buying women and that the women have no say, no free will, basically that they're trafficked [is not true] ... mail-order brides are very much, in most cases, in control," says Zug. "It doesn't mean that it always works out. But they know what they're doing in the sense that they believe that this is going to be something that offers them an opportunity to improve their lives."
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Study area: (a) Location of the study city in the U.S. (b) Location of the study area in the state of Connecticut. (c) Parks in the study city, Hartford. Credit: Applied Geography (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2022.102857

Urban green spaces provide innumerable benefits for surrounding communities. They are places to enjoy nature, exercise, and gather. Green spaces are also vital for combating urban heat island impacts, they help clean the air, and can be important for slowing stormwater.

However, not everyone has equal access to green spaces, and knowing who does is important for making these places accessible and equitable. Though many studies have tried to understand these questions, the results are unclear. College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources doctoral researcher Pan Zhang and Assistant Professor Sohyun Park, both in the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, wanted to take a deeper look at factors contributing to inequity in park access and park quality and fill in the gaps from previous studies. Their research was published in Applied Geography.

Zhang's interest in the topic started before her Ph.D. studies when she worked at a nonprofit organization in a neighborhood adjacent to Keney Park, the largest of Hartford's parks. Zhang noticed fewer people visiting the part than she expected, and wanted to understand why:

"Because I spent a lot of time in the area, I realized even though the residents are very close to the largest park in the city, it was very quiet. When I started my Ph.D., under the encouragement of Dr. Park, I wanted to learn more."

Zhang approached the question of park inequity and access by studying its relationship to socio-economic variables.

"Normally, these kinds of studies look at whether people have access or not, but also, I was looking at the acreage, or particularly park congestionhow many people were sharing one acre of the park. The third factor was crime, which could explain the phenomena. I was able to explore the patterns within the city, not just talk about the fact that there is unequal access, but I was able to identify areas that should be improved."

Zhang looked at spatial data including roads and parks within the city limits to assess accessibility within a 10-minute walk for residents. Zhang also looked at three years of police incident data, and the American Community Survey to assess demographic and socioeconomic data. To assess park access and spatial patterns Zhang used spatial analysis in ArcGIS and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR).

The results of this multidimensional analysis show that understanding park disparity requires a more rigorous approach to have a more accurate and unbiased assessment of park access since the patterns observed were very location specific and the factors had low correlations to one another.

"The three access factorsproximity, congestion, and crimehave very different patterns and distributions," Zhang says.

For example, areas with higher crime rates have a different equity pattern compared to other areas of the city. Specifically, Zhang explains the southern neighborhood has more severe park inequity despite being close to parks and having high park congestion rates.

"I found that in the city, socio-economic factors were negatively related to the crime rates in some of the northern parts of the city, but it was positively related to a higher crime rate in the southern part of the city. We also saw that housing vacancy rates were associated with higher crime rates in the southern part of the neighborhood. Dr. Park and I work on these issues in Hartford, and usually, it is due to negative aspects like blight and crime, but we always say these spaces could also be an opportunity if they have better maintenance and if we can increase the green space by using those lots, maybe we can change the issue of the neighborhood needing more green space."

Zhang explains that when she saw the distinct patterns, she could explain some aspects by considering the post-industrial history of Hartford and surrounding cities in the Northeast. The parks were designed in the last century or earlier, for the white working or upper-class populations living within the city. Gradually, factors like redlining and white flight led to demographic and socioeconomic changes in the city, Zhang says,

"Now other populations inherited those spaces, but because of the post-industrialization, these spaces become less well-preserved and that draws attention to the quality of the space instead of whether it's there or not."

With urban shrinkage, the researchers cite a silver lining with empty lots in that they provide opportunities to build new green spaces.

"The strength of the study is the specific patterns of the park inequity in different locations, even within the same city," says Park. "If you are thinking about taking measures, it should be really geography specific."

Future directions for the research include further exploring the shrinking city theory, says Zhang, who is interested in seeing if other shrinking cities share similar patterns to those seen in Hartford. Zhang is also interested in examining legacy cities and fast-growing cities like Denver, Colorado, to compare patterns.

"I know there are a lot of environmental justice studies, but most of them focus on a growing city because with new investments there are injustice issues in terms of where these resources go," says Zhang. "Another future direction is to analyze the funding distribution supporting park establishment and maintenance to see equity. An interesting detail is even though Hartford Parks have these issues, a lot of funding from the municipality goes to support parks outside the city boundaries in West Hartford and Wethersfield."

Data from the study suggests that resource availability is a factor for the lower-income neighborhoods that experienced the highest crime. These methods could be beneficial in addressing social justice issues and funding disparities to help municipalities determine where to allocate funding for the greatest, most socially just, impacts.

"Though this study focuses on the Hartford context, I think the methodology employed can be replicated in other regions as well. The findings can then point where we can try to use discretion about where to spend resources to provide more park spaces, where would need better maintenance, or where you should develop enhanced safety measures," says Park.

More information: Pan Zhang et al, Investigating spatial heterogeneity of park inequity using three access measures: A case study in Hartford, Connecticut, Applied Geography (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2022.102857
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

In just a few months, higher education has moved from being afraid of how generative AI like ChatGPT could help students cheat, to cautiously embracing it by allowing students to use it under certain circumstances.

In getting to grips with how AI will change education and society, we've heard mainly from educators, university management and other experts. But what about students, whose studies, careers, relationships and futures will be most impacted by AI?

We are academics from universities in Sydney and Hong Kong, specializing in higher education practice and research.

Over the last two months, we have asked students their thoughts about how AI should be used in their education through questionnaires and focus groups. This includes a survey of more than 450 students in Hong Kong and pilot focus group panels with 13 Australian students.

Here are some the key themes to emerge so far from this ongoing research.

AI makes knowledge easier to access

Students recognized that ChatGPT was helpful for summarizing, brainstorming, explaining and suggesting. They mentioned how it made it easier to learn difficult topics in a conversational way.

As one told us: "I've had a mostly positive experience [] Explanations of new concepts are always really well done and you [can] ask it to explain something a little more clearly. "

Others mentioned it helps them learn during classes: "To grab quick definitions, explain concepts to me, and assist in discussions when the conversation goes quiet or people are confused."

Students are aware of the risks

The more experience students had with ChatGPT, the more nuanced their views were. One student noted ChatGPT "will miss out on important points or misunderstand".

"That's why I am not relying on it for assignments, instead it is very helpful for my daily learning."

Another went further to say that using AI improved their critical thinking: "I simply put the whole assignment in to see what it would generate. The answer was quite abysmal [] This was really valuable information because I developed critical thinking while critiquing its work."

Another student added, "I think students really need to understand that AI is not always correct".

In the survey of more than 450 students across Hong Kong universities, 80% said they understood its limitations and potential inaccuracies.

AI is key to their future careers

Students talked about how AI could remove less desirable parts of work, to focus on more important thinking.

"Busywork can be done for us, and will be done for us in our future careers."

As one student put it: "For learning, it's [like] an upgraded version of Google. Let's say if you are new to a topic, you can ask ChatGPT questions and treat it as interactive Wikipedia."

Students said they wanted their teachers to teach them "how to best use AI tools and make AI tools a common part of education, just like PowerPoint and Excel".

This includes educating them about risks, biases and limitations so they can understand the technology they will inevitably be using.

Students agreed guidelines about "what happens if AI is used" are needed going forward. As one noted:

"Please do not assume the worst of us. Rather, teach us how to use this technology in the right way and learn alongside it."

Concerns about equity and ethics

Students were concerned about the disadvantages that lack of access to ChatGPT would mean for some people.

"All students should have the same resources as one another, being of a lower income should not be a reason why other students can do their assessments more efficiently."

Others noted AI was not necessarily free, as there were costs of accessing premium tools. Schools are also taking different approaches globally and locally, with some banning and some embracing AI. This could widen existing inequities.

Where to from here?

The Australian Universities Accord discussion paper highlights AI as a significant opportunity, and challenge.

This is something we cannot ignore. And students want universities to actively engage with AI for their benefit.

They do so knowing this is a "difficult time" for their teachers.

"The traditional ways of learning [] are changing. But this technology is now our present and the future, we need our teachers to prepare us for it."

But they are worried about their futures and they want their education to prepare them for life after study, in a world that is changing rapidly.

"If university wants to prepare people for later in life, why not encourage usage of a tool that would be available to us outside a strict academic setting?"

We need to work with students, industries, communities, and governments to figure out how we can help our students engage productively and responsibly with AI. This is urgent work as the pace of AI development accelerates and has wide-ranging impacts across society perhaps beyond its developers' understanding.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Congruence in the relative contribution of insect families to specimen abundance and species richness. a,b, Each chart shows the taxonomic composition of a sample obtained by an individual Malaise trap at a specific site. The inner circle represents the proportion of biodiversity in the top 10 (green), next 10 (blue) and remaining families (grey). The outer ring shows what proportion of biodiversity belongs to the top 10, next 10 and the remaining families. Black is used to illustrate the extraordinary diversity of Cecidomyiidae (Diptera). All charts are scaled relative to number of specimens (a) and species (b) at each site. Map made with Natural Earth. Supplementary Fig. 2 provides precise geolocations for each site. Credit: Nature Ecology & Evolution (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02066-0

Biodiversity loss ranks among the top three risks to humanity, as stated in the 2023 World Economic Forum Global Risks Report. Understanding biodiversity's basic building blocks is essential to monitor changes, identify influencing factors, and implement appropriate policies. However, much of terrestrial animal diversity, including insects, remains unknown or "dark taxa."

For example, the global biodiversity information portal GBIF has nine times more information on birds than insects and arthropods, despite birds only accounting for 0.2% of biodiversity. Prof. Rudolf Meier, head of the Center for Integrative Biodiversity Discovery at the Museum fur Naturkunde Berlin, highlights the importance of this study in addressing this deficit for effective nature conservation. He emphasizes the need to learn more about insects, as their combined biomass and biodiversity far surpass that of all vertebrates, and they are crucial for survival.

To determine the global taxonomic composition of flying insects, researchers used Malaise traps. These standardized traps are widely employed in global biomonitoring programs. However, analyzing samples is challenging when examining individual insects. Thanks to recent advances in sequencing technologies, biodiversity can now be estimated with "DNA barcodes."

Researchers used DNA barcodes to assign 225,261 specimens to 25,000 species to 458 families. Dr. Amrita Srivathsan, the study's lead author, noted the surprising finding that 1020 families dominate flying insect communities worldwide. This is remarkable as samples were collected from various climates and habitats like tropical rainforests, montane forests, cedar savannas, scrub forests, thorn fields, mangroves, and swamps, with only Australia and Antarctica not being sampled.

Describing insects is a major challenge in understanding life on Earth, with over 80% still undescribed. The authors emphasize that a large fraction of terrestrial animal biodiversity remains unknown to science and will continue to be, unless "dark taxa" become a priority target in biodiversity research.

The work is published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

Provided by Leibniz Institut fur Evolutions-und Biodiversitatsforschung
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Caribou from the Klinse-Za herd in northeastern BC graze in this handout photo. Line Giguere, Wildlife Infometrics. Credit: Line Giguere, Wildlife Infometrics.

Climbing caribou numbers in northeastern British Columbia prove that collaborations between Indigenous and colonial governments can reverse decades-long declines, but focus needs to shift to culturally meaningful recovery targets, a consortium of researchers and community members say in a new paper published this week in Science.

UBC Okanagan's Dr. Clayton Lamb and West Moberly First Nation Chief Roland Willson co-led the paper, Braiding Indigenous Rights and Endangered Species Law, alongside nine others for the journal.

"Abundance matters. There are many cases where endangered species laws have prevented extinction, but the warning signs of decline can appear long before the laws take effect. People who live and work on the land see these changeswe need to listen and act with them to prevent declines," says Lamb, a biologist and MITACS postdoc in UBCO's Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science. "There is a large gap between what the laws see as species recovery and what communities need for health, food security, and cultural well-being."

The policy paper builds on collaborations between UBCO's Lamb and Dr. Adam Ford, who have previously published research highlighting recovery efforts of the Klinse-Za caribou herd near the West Moberly and Saulteau First Nations. They also looked at evolving bison and salmon recovery efforts in North America.

Researchers heard stories from West Moberly Elders about a "sea of caribou" once looking like "bugs on the landscape," but only 38 animals remained in 2013. Those numbers climbed to 115 a decade later thanks to interventions led by Indigenous groups. While these early signs of recovery are cause for immense celebration, the herd remains much smaller than historic levels.

"We need to move past a life support mentality for biodiversity," says Ford, head of UBCO's Wildlife Restoration Ecology Lab. "We must restore nature and the time-honored ways people interact with the land."

Canada and the United States have endangered species laws that are designed to recover species abundance to levels that will minimize the chance of extinction, but these recovery targets do not take into account culturally meaningful abundance or distributions of plants and animals, the authors say.

The paper highlights the current caribou count would only provide about three animals, or one meal per person, per year for Saulteau and West Moberly First Nations. The culturally significant count would require a herd of over 3,000 animals, an abundance more reflective of the historic "sea of caribou" level.

Naomi Owens-Beek, manager of Treaty Rights and Environmental Protection for Saulteau First Nation, contributed to the research and the policy paper.

She says the collaboration between Canadian and Indigenous leaders is essential to preserving traditional ways of life. Some Elders in the region have never tasted caribou, yet it was a staple of their ancestors and provided vital nutrition, material, spirituality, and a sense of place.

"We looked out at the land and thought, 'What do these caribou need to be once again the great herds our Elders spoke about?' We first reduced predation to make sure the caribou weren't lost. Now we're focusing on protecting and restoring habitat," she says.

"Caribou habitat has long been mistreated, and now there's so few caribou. These herds need space to thrive, and that's why we're working with the nations, the province of British Columbia and Canada, to heal these lands and increase the population so we can one day go back into the mountains and hunt caribou."

The paper also examined efforts to restore salmon and bison habitat in North America. Chief Willson says each species shows modest signs of recovery, but that isn't nearly the progress needed.

"Braiding Indigenous rights with laws protecting endangered species can enable nations to respect and safeguard the rights of Indigenous communities, curb the threat of species loss, and ultimately confer broad societal advantages," he says.

More information: Clayton T. Lamb, Braiding Indigenous rights and endangered species law, Science (2023). DOI: 10.1126/science.adg9830. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adg9830 Journal information: Science
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A burnt landscape caused by wildfires in Alberta, Canada.

Canada called for foreign help Wednesday to combat wildfires burning out of control and spreading across vast swathes of the western half of the country.

The fires that have devastated the oil-producing Alberta province have in recent days spread to neighboring British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well as the Northwest Territories.

Some 2,500 firefighters from across Canada backed by 400 military personnel have been deployed across Alberta to try to tame the wildfires, which have already burned more than half a million hectares of forests and grasslands and destroyed many homes and businesses.

But they aren't enough, officials said.

"It's still a very significant and dangerous situation in Alberta," federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Blair said the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center "is reaching out to foreign countriesthe United States, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand... We're asking them to come and help us."

Smoke from the wildfires has blanketed western Canada, leading to warnings about poor air quality posing risks to health.

In Calgary, the sky had an orange hue to it as the smoke grew thicker throughout the day.

Hundreds of kilometers (miles) to the east, residents of Regina and Saskatoon in neighboring Saskatchewan province said they woke up to a thick haze and a strong smell of smoke in the air.

Across the region, almost 180 wildfires were burningincluding 48 out of controlforcing tens of thousands to flee over the past two weeks.

Evacuation orders and alerts were lifted in some parts on Tuesday and Wednesday, including hard-hit Drayton Valley west of Edmonton in Alberta and Fort St. John in British Columbia, as those fires were subdued.

Air quality indexes in several cities, however, indicated wildfire smoke that spread from the Pacific Coast to Manitoba province still poses a "very high risk" to health.

In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.

This has brought floods and mudslides, forest fires that destroyed an entire town, and record-high summer temperatures that killed more than 500 people in 2021.

This spring's mostly hot, dry weather has resulted in what Alberta leader Danielle Smith described as an "unprecedented" crisis.

As evacuees trickled back to Drayton Valley, local fire Chief Tom Thomson urged caution.

"There are still extremely hazardous areas... There are concerns about falling trees. There are concerns about ash pits," he told a news conference.

"We do still have fire crews actively working on the fire," he added, warning people to remain vigilant.

 2023 AFP
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Reading about climate-induced immigration prompted negative, nativist attitudes among people toward the affected migrantsan unintended, perhaps even paradoxical effect of many delivering the original messages, according to researchers at the University of Michigan and elsewhere.

The findings, the researchers say, raise cautionary flags for reporters, advocates and other communicators in their work related to forced migration caused by global climate change.

The research was published in Climatic Change and represents one of the first known experimental tests of messaging about the effects of climate-induced immigration on opinions about climate change and immigration.

"Our studies uncovered a conundrum: People who already knew about how climate change may spur migration tended to want to take actions to help immigrants and help slow climate change. But telling people about the connection between climate and migration had the opposite effect," said Kaitlin Raimi, associate professor at U-M's Ford School of Public Policy.

Raimi and colleagues surveyed U.S. residents both male and female, with most being white and having at least some college education. The research incorporates two studies: A correlational pilot study consisting of 350 participants and an experimental messaging study incorporating more than 1,000.

Initial results of the pilot were promising: Those aware of the connection between climate change and immigration also reported greater perceived climate concerns and policy support as well as more positive immigration attitudes and greater support for immigrants.

However, results from the main study provided preliminary evidence that exposing participants to information about climate-induced immigrationrelative to solely climate change or immigrationdid not increase prosocial responses on climate change or immigration. In fact, it resulted in more negative attitudes toward immigrants.

Researchers also were surprised the backfiring effect was present among both Republicans and Democratsthough to a lesser degree among the latter group.

The authors say it's possible that learning about climate-induced immigration engenders an initial, defensive reaction, followed by a longer-term change in attitudes toward a more prosocial direction. More work is needed to understand the conditions that can spur empathic vs. nativist responses.

Dealing with the disconnect now is critical, as global climate change starts to cause widespread forced migration to countries in the Global North, such as the United States.

"One thing that I'd hope reporters take away is that stories about climate migration may not have their likely intended effect of increasing public concern about climate change and empathy toward migrants," Gillis said. "Instead, they may invoke a nativist response, making people view migrants more negatively and possibly less human."

The research article advises caution among communicators, and recommends that fellow researchers "focus intently on developing effective methods of inoculating the public from nativist reactions to climate-induced immigration."

"If the goal is spur action on climate change and helping migrants, communicators may do better by focusing on these issues separately," Raimi said. "We need more work to find better ways to talk about climate-induced migration that don't result in a backlash against immigrants."

More information: Ash Gillis et al, Climate changeinduced immigration to the United States has mixed influences on public support for climate change and migrants, Climatic Change (2023). DOI: 10.1007/s10584-023-03519-y Journal information: Climatic Change
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A summary of some of the potential outcomes of the CBI identified in the literature. These are grouped into three themes: (1) post developmentthe impacts on the well being of recipient communities, contributing to their flourishing in ways that are driven locally and not by externally imposed development agendas. (2) Socialecologicalthe ways in which CBI can contribute to alternative forms of humanenvironment relations. (3) Biodiversitythe impacts on biodiversity and wildlife through changed socialecological relations. Credit: Nature Sustainability (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41893-023-01115-7

Publishing in the journal Nature Sustainability, a team of conservationists led by the Wildlife Conservation Society say that providing a "Conservation Basic Income" (CBI)of $5.50 per day to all residents of protected areas in low- and middle-income countries would cost less than annual subsidies given to fossil fuels and other environmentally harmful industries.

CBI is an unconditional cash payment to individuals, similar to universal basic income (UBI) but targeting residents of important conservation areas. A Conversation Basic Income would support stewardship of land and biodiversity by Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

The authors provided the first global estimates for the gross costs of CBI using spatial analyses of three plausible future conservation scenarios. Gross costs vary widely, depending on the areas and populations included as well as the payment amounts: from $351 billion to $6.73 trillion annually.

The authors say a CBI is a potentially powerful mechanism for facilitating a radical shift in conservation. They say that evidence from other poverty-alleviation cash transfer programs that are unconditional with respect to conservation outcomes suggest that a CBI could achieve conservation in many contexts. For example, Indonesia's national program of anti-poverty cash transfers also reduced deforestation across Indonesia.

Said lead author Dr. Emiel de Lange of WCS's Cambodia Program, "CBI more equitably distributes the costs and benefits of conservation because basic income schemes improve well-being, reduce poverty, and redress inequalities including gender inequity. Inequalities, including gender, are key drivers of biodiversity loss. CBI could enable communities to pursue their own visions of a good life and avoid exploitation by extractive industries."

"Moreover, through redistribution of wealth from affluent populations and/or harmful industries, CBI can reduce aggregate global consumption and environmental impact."

These costs of a CBI are significant compared to current government conservation spending, (~$133 billion in 2020) but represent a potentially sensible investment in safeguarding incalculable social and natural values as well as the estimated $44 trillion in global economic production dependent on nature.

More information: Emiel de Lange, A global conservation basic income to safeguard biodiversity, Nature Sustainability (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41893-023-01115-7. www.nature.com/articles/s41893-023-01115-7 Journal information: Nature Sustainability
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Credit: Kert/Shutterstock

Emotions are affective reactions we experience to stimuli. They can be positive, such as feeling relaxed or enjoying what you are doing (shopping or going for a walk, for example); and negative, such as being angry, sad or worried.

But are we happy, irritated or depressed in the same way in different countries and cultures? It seems that the answer is a resounding no: different levels of positive and negative emotions differ according to where we come from.

In a study involving more than 50,000 adults in Spain, Mexico, India, China, Russia, Ghana, South Africa, Finland and Poland, the day reconstruction method assessed the extent to which people felt worried, irritated or angry, rushed, depressed, tense or stressed; or calm, relaxed and enjoying themselves.

The results revealed that people in Finland, China, Ghana and South Africa express fewer negative emotions. As for positive emotions, they are more homogeneous across countries, with the participants from African nations having higher values.

In China, emotions are considered pathogenic factors

Culture can influence the way people showcase their emotions. For example, Chinese emotions and their expression differ from other cultures in their low frequency, intensity and duration. In fact, there is a long history of considering emotions as pathogenic, understood as factors that disturb the normal functioning of the body. This tradition consequently discourages their expression.

Finns tend to be emotionally reserved and rarely score high on the expression of joy or anger. In fact, the Finnish concept sisu means to demonstrate strength, stoicism and resilience. Social norms in some African countries analyzed in another study (Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe) point to negative emotions as undesirable.

Taking social factors into account is important, as promoting and improving people's emotional well-being should be a key aspect of public social agendas.

And are these factors associated with emotions in the same way in different countries? Despite differences in the extent to which emotions are reported and the cultural, social and economic gap, we agree on many social aspects. Among them, unwanted loneliness stands out, i.e., the discrepancy between the relationships a person has and the ones he or she would like to have. This is one of the greatest enemies of emotional well-being wherever we live.

Loneliness increases feelings of depression

The emotion most affected by loneliness is depression, especially in European countries. Higher levels of loneliness correspond to higher levels of depression and lower levels of positive emotions. We are talking about feelings and emotions of depression: feeling depressed is not the same as suffering from depression.

Surprisingly, in only one country, Mexico, loneliness was not associated with any emotion. Previous evidence affirms that the negative consequences of loneliness in the Mexican population are mitigated by social interactions and family support. Indeed, less than 1% of participants lived alone, a possible indicator of the relevance of family ties. This indicates that the effects of loneliness vary culturally.

Social participation is associated with higher positive emotions and trust in society with lower negative emotions. Trust creates a sense of security, bringing calmness in daily life and stimulating cooperation, increasing the perception of social support. Living alone leads to greater feelings of depression, without being associated with other emotions.

Perhaps it is the subjective experience of loneliness that has the greatest influence on people's day-to-day emotions, rather than an objective measure such as living alone, which may or may not be desired.

Human beings are naturally inclined to social relationships and social exchange. Social aspects are relevant to emotions in all countries, but the form and strength of their relationships depend on the country and culture.

Taking into account the different cultural settings, policies to promote emotional well-being should be implemented. For example, social participation could be intensified, involving people in their community through volunteering and facilitating access to leisure activities. Another interesting strategy would be to ensure social relations in all countries to avoid loneliness and isolation, as well as to increase the security of neighborhoods to foster social trust.

At the same time, it would be necessary to create an international dialogue on loneliness in order to raise awareness of the problem, identify it and reduce its impact on people's emotional well-being.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Hong Kong: HK, Germany to boost healthcare ties

Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau today met an official delegation from Germany to exchange views on strengthening primary healthcare, healthcare service digitalisation and other issues of mutual concern.

The delegation was led by German Parliamentary State Secretary to Federal Minister of Health Prof Edgar Franke.

Prof Lo pointed out that many economies around the world, including Hong Kong and Germany, are grappling with challenges of an ageing population.

He stated that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government released the Primary Healthcare Blueprint in December 2022 with the goal of shifting the emphasis of the citys healthcare system from its current treatment-oriented, hospital-based structure to a prevention-focused, community-based system.

Noting that digitalisation is powering the future of healthcare, Prof Lo said the Hong Kong SAR Government has introduced and supported a variety of digital initiatives over the years.

The initiatives involve the Electronic Health Record Sharing System launched in 2016 and the Hospital Authoritys Smart Hospital development.

We, together with our industry partners, will continue to strengthen efforts on this front in supporting the healthcare development of Hong Kong, Prof Lo added.

Moreover, both parties agreed to continue to strengthen co-operation and experience sharing, knowing that such actions will benefit the international community at large.

This story has been published on: 2023-05-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
(CNN)  At least eight people have been killed by heavy flooding and mudslides in the northern Italian region of Emilia Romagna, with more than 13,000 residents being forced to evacuate, according to local authorities.

Three people died in the city of Forli, one died in a mudslide in Cesenate, and a married couple died in the village of Ronta di Cesena, according to the attendees of an emergency meeting of the Council of Ministers on Wednesday. Two others died overnight.

Regional president Stefano Bonaccini said 3,000 people were evacuated from Bologna, 5,000 from Faenza and another 5,000 from Ravenna.

Our thoughts go to the eight victims and some missing. All the condolences of the Region go to them and their families, he said.

The vice president of Emilia Romagna, Irene Priolo, told reporters that the rains were easing but that river levels were still rising, according to Reuters.

The region, which has been suffering a prolonged drought, is under a red alert  the highest level warning or state of emergency for life-threatening weather events. The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, scheduled for this weekend, has been canceled and the site evacuated.

Fourteen rivers burst their banks in the region, forcing people in cities such as Cesena to climb onto the roof of their buildings to escape incoming water, Reuters reported. Firefighters rescued them with helicopters or rubber dinghies.

A total of 600 firefighters have been deployed from across Italy to assist with evacuations in the region after Italys longest river, the Po, broke its banks, the Italian Department for Civil Protection said in a tweet.

Residents in numerous areas across the region, including in the city of Bologna, were asked not to leave their homes.

Worst night in history

The city of Ravenna has also been heavily affected. Its probably been the worst night in the history of Romagna, Ravenna Mayor Michele de Pascale told RAI public radio according to Reuters, saying that 5,000 people had been evacuated from his city alone overnight.

Ravenna is unrecognizable for the damage it has suffered, he added.

Tweeting on Tuesday evening, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni extended her total sympathy to those affected by the flooding, adding that the government stands ready to intervene with the necessary aid.

This pledge was echoed by Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani in a tweet Wednesday morning, saying that the government will do everything necessary to help everyone from evacuees to those who have lost crops due to the flooding.

In the neighboring eastern region of Le Marche, also severely hit by flooding, 200 firefighters have been mobilized for rescue efforts in the past 24 hours, according to the Vigili del Fuoco fire service.

Water disasters linked to climate crisis

The torrential rains come after months of drought that dried out the land  which meteorologists say has reduced its capacity to absorb water, worsening the floods, according to Reuters.

Water levels on northern Italys Lake Garda fell to record lows in February, with Venice experiencing unusually low tides.

From lengthy droughts to severe flooding, the intensity of water-related disasters around the world has increased over the last two decades as global temperatures climbed to record levels, according to recent research.

The study from NASA scientists published in March in the journal Nature Water found that increasingly frequent, widespread and intense droughts and floods were linked more strongly to higher global temperatures than to naturally changing weather patterns, like El Nino and La Nina. This suggests these intense events will increase as the climate crisis accelerates, the study says.

Formula 1 race canceled

Formula 1 has announced the cancellation of this weekends Emilia Romagna Grand Prix because of heavy flooding in the region, citing safety concerns.

In a statement shared on Twitter, it said, It would not be right to put further pressure on the local authorities and emergency services at this difficult time.

On Tuesday, Formula 1 staff were asked to leave the site of the race as a precautionary measure, an F1 source told CNN.

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix is the first event of the Formula 1 season in Europe and was scheduled to take place this weekend.

This story was first published on CNN.com, At least eight killed by heavy flooding in Italy, as river levels continue to rise"
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Protathlitis cinctorrensis gen. et sp. nov., near coastal areas where it lived. Credit: Grup Guix.

A dinosaur specimen from Castellon, Spain represents a new proposed species of spinosaurid, reports a paper published in Scientific Reports. The identification of a potential new species suggests that the Iberian peninsula may have been a diverse area for medium-to-large bodied spinosaurid dinosaurs and sheds light on the origin and evolution of spinosaurids.

Spinosaurids comprise of different groups of dinosaurs that are often large, stand on two feet, and are carnivorous. Well-known examples of spinosaurids include Spinosaurus and Baryonyx. It is thought that spinosaurids may have originated in Europe and then migrated to Africa and Asia, but evidence of their existence in Spain is mostly based on fossilized tooth remains.

Andres SantosCubedo and colleagues analyzed fossil fragments (a right jaw bone, one tooth and five vertebrae) discovered previously in the Arcillas de Morella Formation in Spain and dated to the late Barremian, Early Cretaceous period (between 127 and 126 million years ago). Based on the remains the authors estimate that the specimen is around 10 to 11 meters long. They compared the specimen to data on other spinosaurids to determine its evolutionary relationship to other species.

Protathlitis cinctorrensis gen. et sp. nov., in the foreground. In the background Iguanodon and two sauropods. Credit: Oscar Sanisidro/Grup Guix.

Based on a comparative analysis of the specimen with other spinosaurids, the authors identified the specimen as both a new species and a new genus of spinosaurid and named it Protathlitis cinctorrensis. The authors named the genus Protathlitis meaning "champion" in Greek and used cinctorrensis in the species name to reference the townCinctorresin which the specimen was uncovered.

The authors propose that this new species may indicate that spinosaurids appeared during the Early Cretaceous in Laurasiaa large area of land in the northern hemispherewith two sub-groups of species occupying western Europe. The spinosaurids may have later migrated to Africa and Asia where they diversified. In Europe, baryonychines like Protathlitis were dominant, while in Africa, spinosaurines like Spinosaurus were most abundant.

Paleontologists working at ANA site (Cinctorres, Spain) in 2011 in the seventh digging campaign. Credit: Grup Guix.

More information: Andres Santos-Cubedo, A new spinosaurid dinosaur species from the Early Cretaceous of Cinctorres (Spain), Scientific Reports (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33418-2. www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-33418-2 Journal information: Scientific Reports
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Early humans in Europe were making and controlling fire at least 50,000 years earlier than previously thought, researchers at Heriot-Watt University in Scotland have found.

In a paper published in the journal, Scientific Reports, the scientists set out evidence that our ancestors in Europe were using fires for activities like cooking, heating and defense at least 250,000 years ago. Previous evidence had suggested humans were managing fire in Europe much later than this, around 200,000 years ago.

Using forensic chemical methods to identify molecules of incomplete burning, the research team at Heriot-Watt's School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society detected fire at Valdocarros II, an archaeological site near Madrid in Spain.

Dr. Clayton Magill, an Assistant Professor at Heriot-Watt who specializes in using geochemistry to reconstruct ancient environmental conditions, led the project in collaboration with Spanish archaeologists Susana RubioJara and Joaquin Panera of Complutense University of Madrid. Geochemistry involves studying the chemical composition of the earth and its rocks and minerals.

Dr. Magill said, "We have found definitive evidence of things being burnt and those remains are organized into a pattern, suggesting it's humans who are making and controlling the fire. Either they were using the fire to cook or to defend themselves. The spatial patterning in the fire tells us that they were encircling something, like a home or sleeping area, a living room or kitchen, or an enclosure for animals."

The chemical profiles of the charred remains also suggest our human ancestors chose certain types of firewood for its burning properties, such as heat and lack of smoke.

The findings are "very exciting" and close a gap in our understanding of human-controlled fire and human development, Dr. Magill said.

"This is important because our species is defined by our use of fire," Dr. Magill said. "Being able to cook food to feed our big brains is one of the things that made us so successful in an evolutionary sense. Fire also brings protection and fosters communication and family connection. And we now have definitive, incontrovertible evidence that humans were starting and stopping fires in Europe about 50,000 years earlier than we suspected."

Chemical analysis is a more reliable way of confirming fire than analyzing remains in archaeological hearths, which can be eroded by weather conditions or the extraction process, Dr. Magill added.

In the next phase of the project, the research team will study stone tools found near fire hearths to identify whether these were used in particular ways around the making and controlling of firefor example, to cut meat or pulverize plants.

"We want to understand whether the selective or specialized use of tools is something that should go at least theoretically hand-in-hand with fire control," said Dr. Magill, who is also Assistant Professor in Geoenergy at the Lyell Centre for Earth and Marine Sciences, one of Heriot-Watt's Global Research Institutes.

Archaeologists Susana RubioJara and Joaquin Panera gave the Heriot-Watt team access to highly regulated and rare samples from the Valdocarros II site, and worked with former Heriot-Watt Ph.D. student Lavinia M. Stancampiano to collect samples with forensic-level cleanliness and attention to detail.

The other researchers in the project are David Uribelarrea del Val and Alfredo Perez Gonzalez, also from Complutense University of Madrid.

Globally, the oldest clear evidence of human-controlled fire is in East Africa about 1.5 million years ago and in Israel about 790,000 years ago. In Europe, countries including Hungary, France and Germany have been linked with previous evidence of fire.

More information: Clayton Magill et al, Organic geochemical evidence of humancontrolled fires at Acheulean site of Valdocarros II (Spain, 245 kya), Scientific Reports (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-32673-7 Journal information: Scientific Reports

Provided by Heriot-Watt University
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Joan Palumbo wasn't told the danger she was in when she stepped under the showerhead in her bathroom in Jacksonville, North Carolina.

She wasn't told about the toxins mixing into her daughter's food every time she blended formula with water from the kitchen sink.

Or that cooking her own food in that same water would eventually lead to her death.

Palumbo didn't know that beginning in 1953 toxic chemicals had begun seeping through the ground into two of the eight water treatment plants on Camp Lejeune, the Marine Corps base near Jacksonville where she and her husband, Fred, lived in the Tarawa Terrace neighborhood.

Trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, benzene and vinyl chloride, deadly chemicals known to cause health problems including miscarriages, birth defects, cancers and childhood leukemia, leaked from underground fuel storage tanks, an off-base dry cleaning facility, industrial area spills and waste disposal sites. The contamination of the base's waters continued through 1987 and mostly affected the Tarawa Terrace and Hadnot Point neighborhoods.

It is estimated that more than 1 million people were likely exposed to the toxic waters on Camp Lejeune. Beginning in August, half of those people had filed claims asking for the government to make right what happened to its Marines and their familiesbut no offers from the government have been extended. And without those offers, the claimants have been forced into litigationpotentially for yearsif they want justice.

Palumbo is among those people. The Palumbos moved in 1962 to Camp Lejeune and together had their first child. Fred deployed overseas in 1963.

Subtle signs include miscarriage, premature births

The first signs of trouble for the Palumbo family from drinking Lejeune's water were subtle. While Fred was serving across the world from his wife, Joan suffered a miscarriage.

That same year, Joan became pregnant, this time with twin daughters. They were born three months premature, and entered the world fighting for their lives. The Palumbos' daughter, Kristine, died after three days, on New Year's Day. Her sister's fight continued for six long months before she was able to leave the hospital and join the rest of her family at home.

The Palumbos went on to have six children, and it seemed that tragedy had left them.

When their youngest entered grade school, Joan Palumbo returned to her job as a pediatric nurse. She would eventually become a psychiatric nurse. Fred continued serving in the Marines until retiring in August 1981.

Less than subtle signs? Breast cancer, multiple myeloma

Then, in 1997, Joan's own health took a drastic turn. Her husband calls it her "medical nightmare."

Breast cancer led to a lumpectomy in her right breast.

Another lump in her left breast led to a bilateral mastectomy.

Then she needed a spinal fusion.

A new diagnosis: multiple myeloma.

She had a mitral valve in her heart replaced.

Then she went into renal failure.

If all of that wasn't bad enough, she was inflicted with shingles before her death in January 2011.

Learning about Camp Lejeune's contaminated water

Fred Palumbo told McClatchy he and his wife pored through her family's medical history. Heart problems and cancer weren't part of their story. Nothing made sense.

"We couldn't determine what the problem was," Palumbo said. "And I didn't realize there was a problem until after she died."

He can't remember exactly how he learned about the water contamination. He believes it was a news segment on television that led him to connect with Jerry Ensminger.

Ensminger, a retired Marine, has become the face of the fight for justice for those who lived and worked on Camp Lejeune. Ensminger lost his 9-year-old daughter born on the base, Janey, to leukemia in 1986.

Ensminger led efforts to uncover what happened with the water on the North Carolina base, hold the government accountable for covering up the contamination and ensure that no one who served at Camp Lejeune was left in the dark.

Fighting for justice and the PACT Act

Ensminger spent decades traveling to Washington fighting for the government to take responsibility for what happened to his fellow Marines at Camp Lejeune.

In 2012, President Barack Obama signed into law the Janey Ensminger Act, which ensured family members of veterans who lived on Camp Lejeune during the years of the water contamination had access to health care.

Last summer, Ensminger's "Oorah," the Marine's battle cry, echoed in the Senate chamber when Congress passed the PACT Act, giving anyone exposed to and affected by the water on Camp Lejeune two years to file claims with the U.S. Navy. The bill also allowed service members to file claims if they were exposed during specific dates to burn pitsa form of waste disposal that can give off toxic fumesor had illnesses connected to service in the Gulf War, southwest Asia or the Vietnam War.

More than 500,000 claims have been filed because of the PACT Act, Biden announced on April 26.

The claims detail when someone was on the base, their exposure to the water and what health issues they developed.

The Navy can then do one of three things: offer a settlement, deny the claim or do nothing.

If a settlement is offered, the person filing the claim can then accept it or litigate it.

If an offer isn't made within six months or the claim is denied, then the person can pursue litigation.

Attorneys work with victims to file lawsuits

In February, when Camp Lejeune victims could first file lawsuits, a name repeatedly popped up on the court documents: attorney Eric Flynn with Bell Law Group, a firm out of South Carolina, who has since opened an office in Raleigh to help handle the Camp Lejeune claims.

"I couldn't be prouder to represent these clients," Flynn told McClatchy. "These people have suffered tremendously and I think it only takes talking to a handful of them, hearing their stories to hear the suffering they went through."

Bell Law Group's namesake, Edward Bell, began working with victims of Camp Lejeune more than 15 years ago. In the beginning, Flynn's firm tried to sue over the effects of the water, but ran into two hurdles: a time limit for how long after exposure someone could sue, and the government's immunity.

Until the PACT Act, the law firm ran into roadblock after roadblock to get their clients justice.

Flynn can rattle off their stories with ease: the women who suffered miscarriages while their husbands fought in Vietnam, the members of the military who developed neurological effects, the Marine with Parkinson's, the wife with multiple sclerosis. The divorces as medical problems and losses became too much for a couple to handle. The missing faces at family gatherings.

"There have been times where I think any attorney that has talked to these folks have walked out in tears because what these people have gone through is horrible," Flynn said. "To be able to fight for these folks, to be able to bring their claims and hold people accountable is extremely gratifying."

Civil case could become largest in US history

Flynn said that while the government lost sovereign immunity and the time limit constraints, officials still have a lot of arguments they can make.

He said he won't predict what they'll do, but they could raise challenges based on the government's liability, on whether the water caused someone's health issues, or on the length of time they were exposed.

"On top of that, we still have to go through the process of getting experts to review all the documents, picking the jury, getting in front of the jury, convincing the jury of our case," Flynn said.

Catherine Dunham, a professor of law at Elon Law School, told McClatchy that the largest civil case in U.S. history saw 300,000 claims filed due to 3M military earplugs. Camp Lejeune's claims are expected to far exceed that number.

Despite victims being scattered worldwide now, and attorneys as far away as at least Puerto Rico fighting for their business, the case is not multidistrict, meaning all of the lawsuits are being filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

District Judge James Dever told parties in March that he would handle the cases expeditiously. If he were to handle each lawsuit filed so far individually, it would take four judges 1,900 years, Public Radio East reported.

"We don't have a court system that could ever hear all those cases," Dunham said

Finding a lawyer

Meanwhile, victims of Camp Lejeune's toxic waters still need to navigate finding a lawyer. Once the PACT Act passed Congress, commercials flooded the airwaves for lawyers who could help secure money for people who lived on the base and even off base.

"The honest to God truth is if they don't advertise, then no, the injured people aren't going to know what to do," Dunham said.

But she understands that some of the commercials leave people uneasy.

"I'll tell you what my philosophy is, is that the justice system has to be available," Dunham said. "You have to have access points for regular people, because it's always regular people who are injured."

Dunham said if that means lawyers need to flood television to reach those who are injured, so be it. She added that someone is at greater risk of being taken advantage of if they walk into a random attorney's office who doesn't have experience but wants to go after a few claimants so they can take his share of the settlement.

Flynn said it's important that people aren't victimized once again, this time by lawyers, through this process. Bell Law Group does not advertise on television.

Flynn said to do your homework on law firms. Call around and ask to talk to attorneys to see if they're the right fit.

"The good ones will do that, and you should be able to speak to somebody that you just click with and feel like this person really knows what they're talking about," Flynn said.

Commercials predicting a specific payout amount have frustrated Flynn. It's impossible for a lawyer to make that promise since none of these cases have been heard and there's no precedent.

In the original draft of the bill to help Camp Lejeune water victims, lawmakers included a 25% cap on attorneys' fees so that lawyers couldn't take advantage of their clients. That cap was taken out before the PACT Act passed into law.

Bloomberg reported in March that Bell Law Group spent more money than any other legal firm lobbying federal lawmakers over the past two years, and one of its requests was for the cap to be removed. Bell said he wouldn't object to a cap but believed lawyers should be able to charge up to 40%, Bloomberg reported.

When asked about the cap, Flynn said the legislation was supported by an overwhelming and bipartisan majority of senators and representatives.

"We, too, support the law as enacted and are eager for these veterans and their families to finally get the justice they have long been entitled to," Flynn said.

Ensminger told McClatchy he had felt that years ago Bell, who he had previously recommended to people like Palumbo, took advantage of Ensminger's connections to drive up business. Ensminger has since cut ties with the firm, and is now working with Mikal Watts out of Texas.

Despite that and the attorneys' fees, Palumbo said he is grateful to the Bell group for helping him navigate through the legal system.

Cancer after drinking, cooking and bathing in poisonous water

Jeff Freuler, 57, a Townsville resident, also said he was thankful to the law firm as he navigates the long legal process ahead of him.

Like the Palumbos, Freuler had no idea he drank, cooked with and bathed in poisonous water while stationed on the Marine base in the 1980s.

Almost immediately after leaving the military, he began noticing neurological problems doctors couldn't explain: anxiety, depression, irritability, poor concentration, and changes in his mood and personality.

Freuler did receive a letter in the early 2000s from the U.S. government warning him that he had been exposed to toxins at Camp Lejeune. But details in the letter were sparse and Freuler dismissed it.

"It was a very generic letter that held very little information," Freuler said.

Then, things got serious.

"In 2012, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer," Freuler said. "At a very young age, according to my urologist."

Freuler underwent a robotic prostatectomy the week of Thanksgiving. The surgery was a success and the tissues taken from around his prostate came back negative for any spread.

Initially, Freuler had to return to his doctor every few weeks to ensure the cancer didn't return. He now goes once every year.

"I was still in the dark," Freuler told McClatchy. "I mean, there was really no information out there that could tie everything togetherthe cancer that I had to the chemicalsuntil just a few years ago."

But as Ensminger continued to work, word reached Frueler, who said that as more information surfaced, the more he could connect both his neurological ailments and his cancer to the toxin exposures.

"Continuing to do the research and reading stuff, I mean, it just all started making a little bit more sense," Freuler said.

What happens next?

It's an emotional process for the Marines to come to terms with what happened and that the government was not upfront about it when officials first learned about the toxins.

"I signed up to serve my country, and I'll never regret it," Freuler said. "What I do get emotional over is the fact that so much was done to cover this up, and it was some very hard work by a handful of people that wouldn't give up that brought all this to the surface.

"When we asked to join the military, when we were assigned to Camp Lejeune, we didn't have to get treated like this, to get poisoned like this by that water," Freuler said.

For Frueler, there's always the question of what's next.

"It's always in the back of my mind, as long as you're walking around with a ticking time bomb and that's cancer, yeah it's not a matter of if it's going to go off, but when it's going to go off, and that plays with your mind," Freuler said.

He said he had to compartmentalize that and push it to the back of his mind every day just to function.

Then there's Palumbo. The illnesses didn't end with his wife. His oldest daughter, Kimberly, born on Camp Lejeune, died last June just months before the PACT Act passed, at age 59. Like her mother, she suffered from a series of painful health conditions before her death.

"I look back and I've said to myself many times if I just didn't live in the village rather than going to Tarawa Terrance, maybe my life would be different now," Palumbo said. "I don't know. I'm just following what God's put in my path and trying to do the best I can with my children that I have now."

Freuler said he filed his lawsuit to lend a voice to those of people like Palumbo, but also to look out for both himself and his daughter, because if another health issue arises because of the water, he doesn't know what they would doand they were only given until 2024 to figure it out.

2023 McClatchy Washington Bureau.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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The 152 images that make up this mosaic of Belva Crater were taken by the Mastcam-Z instrument aboard NASAs Perseverance Mars rover on April 22, 2023, the 772nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. Belva is a 0.6-mile-wide (0.9-kilometer wide) impact crater within the much larger Jezero Crater. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

The Mastcam-Z instrument aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover recently collected 152 images while looking deep into Belva Crater, a large impact crater within the far larger Jezero Crater. Stitched into a dramatic mosaic, the results are not only eye-catching, but also provide the rover's science team some deep insights into the interior of Jezero.

"Mars rover missions usually end up exploring bedrock in small, flat exposures in the immediate workspace of the rover," said Katie Stack Morgan, deputy project scientist of Perseverance at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. "That's why our science team was so keen to image and study Belva. Impact craters can offer grand views and vertical cuts that provide important clues to the origin of these rocks with a perspective and at a scale that we don't usually experience."

On Earth, geology professors often take their students to visit highway "roadcuts" places where construction crews have sliced vertically into the rock to make way for roadsthat allow them to view rock layers and other geological features not visible at the surface. On Mars, impact craters like Belva can provide a type of natural roadcut.

Signs of past water

Perseverance took the images of the basin on April 22 (the 772nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission) while parked just west of Belva Crater's rim on a light-toned rocky outcrop the mission's science team calls "Echo Creek." Created by a meteorite impact eons ago, the approximately 0.6-mile-wide (0.9-kilometer-wide) crater reveals multiple locations of exposed bedrock as well as a region where sedimentary layers angle steeply downward.

This anaglyph of Perseverances mosaic of Belva Crater can best be viewed with red-blue 3D glasses. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

These "dipping beds" could indicate the presence of a large Martian sandbar, made of sediment, that billions of years ago was deposited by a river channel flowing into the lake that Jezero Crater once held.

The science team suspects the large boulders in the foreground are either chunks of bedrock exposed by the meteorite impact or that they may have been transported into the crater by the river system. The scientists will search for answers by continuing to compare features found in bedrock near the rover to the larger-scale rock layers visible in the distant crater walls.

To help with those efforts, the mission also created an anaglyph, or 3D version, of the mosaic. "An anaglyph can help us visualize the geologic relationships between the crater wall outcrops," said Stack. "But it also provides an opportunity to simply enjoy an awesome view. When I look at this mosaic through red-blue 3D glasses, I'm transported to the western rim of Belva, and I wonder what future astronauts would be thinking if they were to stand where Perseverance once stood when it took this shot."

Provided by NASA
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ESA's Sentinel-6 satellite, which tracks methane emissions across the globe.

From satellites that can pinpoint the sources of industrial pollution, to others that track hurricane movements by the hour, space has emerged as a key front in the fight against climate change.

New launches areliterally and metaphoricallyskyrocketing, and giving rise to increased cooperation between space agencies and private companies.

Among the most fruitful areas of collaboration: tracking greenhouse gas emissions.

The potent planet heating gas methane is regularly measured in the atmosphere by one of the satellites of the European Union Space Programme's Copernicus mission.

The spacecraft scans the entire globe, but its resolution is in the order of several kilometers, making it hard to zero in on the exact source.

That's where private companies can step in.

One of them, the Canadian GHGSat, currently has nine small satellites in orbit, each the size of a microwave. Their mission: to fly over oil and gas sites, looking for methane leaks. By orbiting at a lower altitude, they can take a detailed look at each site.

"Think of it as the wide angle lens camera, versus the telephoto lens camera," Stephane Germain, the company's founder, told AFP. The Copernicus team is in constant touch with GHGSat, telling them where to point their cameras.

Canadian company GHGSat uses a group of small satellites to monitor methane emissions.

GHGSat then sells its information to oil companies, such as Total, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell.

"More and more companies are interested in that because they're realizing they have to better understand their own carbon footprints," said Germain, especially since their customers are insisting on better accounting of emissions' life cycles.

A common source of methane emissions are unlit flares, which are meant to burn off the gas.

GHGSat estimates it has prevented the equivalent of 10 megatons of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere, equivalent to 1.3 million homes' energy use for a year.

Other companies plan to enter the sector, including France's Absolut Sensing. Another company, Kayrros, has no satellites of its own but is analyzing Copernicus data to track down the biggest leaks.

Technological advances

"The big picture shows you that there is a problem. And the small one then focuses in higher resolution and sells information to somebody. So this works very well together," European Space Agency director Josef Aschbacher said of such public-private partnerships to AFP.

NASA recently launched the SWOT mission to survey the Earth's surface water in unprecedented detail.

But government agency constellationscomprised of mostly large, very expensive satellitesremain the backbone of the Earth observation system.

Copernicus will soon enter a new era, with new missions such as CO2M measuring the carbon dioxide released specifically by human activities. NASA has about thirty Earth observation missions.

In the last six months alone, the US space agency has launched the SWOT mission to survey the Earth's surface water in unprecedented detail, TEMPO to measure pollutants in the troposphere above North America, and TROPICS, to track tropical weather systems, including hurricanes, hour by hour.

Advances in technology make it possible to measure today what was thought impossible just five or 10 years ago, said Aschbacher.

Better forecasts

In addition to these scientific missions, meteorological satellites, such as those overseen by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), play a vital role.

Their data, collected over decades, have revealed stark shifts to global climate systems: from warming sea and land temperatures to receding Antarctic ice sheets, helping feed the models climate science relies on today.

Hurricane Ian approaching Florida, as seen by a NOAA satellite.

But increasingly, they can also help play a major role in adapting to a heating world. To mitigate the impact of increasingly frequent natural disasters, "you've got to provide better forecasts," NOAA's chief scientist Mitch Goldberg told AFP.

The agency has been increasing its partnerships with the private sector. For example, it has teamed up with the company GeoOptics to collect information on the humidity or the temperature of the atmosphere.

According to a report by Inmarsat and Globant, if current satellite technologies were universally adopted, they could reduce carbon emissions by 5.5 gigatonsquadrupling current reductions of 1.5 gigatons enabled by the sector.

These savings could be achieved by, for example, helping the aviation and maritime sectors decarbonize through voyage optimization, weather routing and air traffic control management.

 2023 AFP
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Satellites launched into outer space could send back improved warnings of dangerous solar storms thanks to a breakthrough in the way scientists use space weather measurements.

Experts from the University of Reading have found that using satellite data that is less reliable but is returned to Earth rapidly can be used to improve the accuracy of solar wind forecastswhich are harmful streams of charged particles sent from the sunby nearly 50%.

Their research, published today in Space Weather, could pave the way for agencies, such as the Met Office, to provide more accurate forecasts for severe space weather, which can cause blackouts and harm human health.

Lead researcher Harriet Turner, from the University of Reading's Department of Meteorology, said, "We know lots about how to prepare for storms that form on Earth, but we need to improve our forecasts of the dangerous weather we get from space. Space weather threatens our technology-focused way of life as it can cause power grids to fail, damage satellites, such as GPS, and even make astronauts ill.

"Our research has shown that using rapid satellite measurements to forecast space weather is effective. By sending spacecraft far from Earth, we can use this new technique to get better solar storm predictions and ensure we are prepared for what's to come."

Simon Machin, Met Office Space Weather Manager, said, "This is a great example of the value that can result through our collaboration with academia. By pulling through scientific research into the operational domain, improved space weather forecasting will ultimately enhance our nation's ability to prepare for and mitigate against space weather events."

Old dogs and new tricks

To predict space weather, scientists need to forecast the solar wind conditions at Earth. To do this, they combine computer simulations with observations from space to estimate what space weather will be like. This is known as data assimilation. The highest quality observations only become available many days after they are made, as they are processed on the ground and "cleaned," meaning forecasts take longer to achieve.

To obtain forecasts faster, the research team tried using near-real-time (NRT) data. NRT data undergoes no processing or cleaning, meaning it is less accurate but can be made available within a couple of hours. The research team found that forecasts produced using the NRT data still produces reliable predictions and enables greater warning time. This could enable authorities to better prepare for power failures that cost up to 2.1 trillion dollars over a century in the U.S. and Europe.

To the stars

The scientists behind this new study say using this new technique with upcoming space missions will enable better forecasts.

The European Space Agency (ESA) will launch "Vigil" in the mid-2020s, a first-of-its-kind mission that will monitor potentially hazardous solar activity using a number of U.K.-built instruments.

By launching the spacecraft into a position 60 degrees behind Earth in longitude, the Met Office will be able to improve space weather forecasts by using data assimilation of the NRT solar wind data.

It is hoped the unique location of Vigil will allow scientists to see the solar wind that will later arrive at Earth, maximizing forecast accuracy and warning time.

More information: Harriet Turner, Mathew J Owens, Matthew Simon Lang, et al. Solar wind data assimilation in an operational context: Use of near-real-time data and the forecast value of an L5 monitor., Space Weather (2023). DOI: 10.1029/2023SW003457 Journal information: Space Weather
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Two SuperCDMS detector towers resting inside storage containers within the Low Radon Cleanroom at SNOLAB. Credit: Vijay Iyer/University of Toronto

After years of pioneering work, researchers at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have completed the detector towers that will soon sit at the heart of the SuperCDMS SNOLAB dark matter detection experiment.

The team finished building the towers this past September, and SLAC, which leads the SuperCDMS project, sent the first two towers to SNOLAB in Ontario, Canada earlier this month.

SuperCDMS SNOLAB will look for relatively light dark matter particles, between about half the mass of the proton to roughly 10 proton masses, and in that range it will be the world's most sensitive direct-detection experiment, said Richard Partridge, a senior staff scientist at SLAC and a long-time SuperCDMS researcher. That accomplishment comes down to two things: improvements in the detector design and the location of the experiment itself, Partridge said.

"It's been a lot of fun," Partridge said. "We've learned a lot of new things, and we've built some really interesting technology," including flexible superconducting cables, electronics systems that function in extreme cold, and improved cryogenics systemsalong with advances in shielding the detectorsthat have made the detectors and surrounding systems better able to sense passing dark matter than ever before.

The experiment will also benefit from its new location 1.25 miles underground at SNOLAB, where the background of cosmic rays will interfere less with efforts to find a dark matter signal.

"SNOLAB and SuperCDMS are made for each other," said SNOLAB Executive Director Jodi Cooley. "We are extremely excited about the potential for SuperCDMS to detect dark matter directly and advance our insight into the nature of the universe."

Vitaly Yakimenko, SLAC's deputy director for projects and infrastructure and SuperCDMS project director, said researchers look forward to bringing the experiment online. "It's been 10 years of technological development to build these state-of-the-art detectors," he said. The team hopes the experiment will capture signs of illusive dark matter particles, but regardless of the outcome, it will establish a path forward for even more sensitive experiments, Yakimenko said. "It's a major accomplishment."

JoAnne Hewett, head of SLAC's Fundamental Physics Directorate and the lab's chief research officer, said she was pleased by the experiment's progress. "Understanding dark matter is one of the most important areas of research, both around the world and here at SLAC," Hewett said. "We're excited to reach this milestone and to work with our partners to build this cutting-edge experiment."

Searching deep underground

Scientists know that all the visible matter in the universeall the dust and planets and stars that we can already detect through telescopesmakes up only about 15% of what's actually out there. The rest is dark matter, but no one knows exactly what that is. Physicists can tell it's there through its gravitational pull on ordinary matter, but it is otherwise very hard to detect.

That's where experiments like SuperCDMS SNOLAB come in. The project is the latest iteration of a series of experiments that use silicon and germanium crystals to try to find dark matter particles. These crystals are cooled to a fraction of a degree above absolute zerohence the experiments' name: Cryogenic Dark Matter Search, or CDMS. The hope is that at such low temperatures, researchers could detect passing dark matter particles by the tiny vibrations they create when colliding with the crystals.

Those collisions would also produce pairs of electrons and electron deficiencies, or holes, that move through the crystals, triggering more vibrations and amplifying the dark matter signal. Sophisticated superconducting electronics help detect these signals.

To make that job possible, the experiment will be built and operated at SNOLAB, 6,800 feet underground inside a nickel mine near Sudbury, Ontario. There, the SLAC-built detectors will be shielded from high-energy particles, called cosmic radiation, which can create unwanted background signals.

A long journey

Once the detectors were done, the next step for the SLAC team was getting them to SNOLABand here there were tradeoffs. To protect them from cosmic rays, the team wanted to get them to their new underground home as quickly as possible, which might suggest a direct route over the Rocky Mountains or even a flight to Ontario. However, the thinner atmosphere at higher altitudes affords less protection from cosmic rays.

"In principle, we want to keep things as low as possible, but there's also a cost to the total number of days you're on the surface," said Tarek Saab, a University of Florida physicist and SuperCDMS spokesperson. "So, we want a route that gives you the least overall exposure to cosmic rays."

In the end, the team decided to take a route east to Texas and then north to SNOLAB.

Meanwhile, SNOLAB has been busy getting the SuperCDMS facility ready for the detectors, the first two of which arrived on May 12 and made the trip 6,800 feet underground the following day. The remaining towers will arrive later this year, and initial preparations for the experiment are expected to be complete sometime in 2024, at which point the experimental team can begin taking initial data and working out any kinks that remain in the system. Researchers expect to run the experiment for three to four years before they have enough data to push the limits of what we know about dark matter.

But for now, everyone is looking forward to delivering the detectors, Saab said. "It will be a significant milestone to have the detectors at SNOLAB."
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Looking northeast, the Imperial Valley and Salton Sea in southern California is photographed from the Earth-orbiting Gemini-5 spacecraft. Photo Credit: NASA

More than 50% of the largest lakes in the world are losing water, according to a new assessment published today in Science . The key culprits are not surprising: warming climate and unsustainable human consumption.

But lead author Fangfang Yao, a CIRES visiting fellow, now a climate fellow at University of Virginia, said the news is not entirely bleak. With this new method of tracking lake water storage trends and the reasons behind them, scientists can give water managers and communities insight into how to better protect critical sources of water and important regional ecosystems.

"This is the first comprehensive assessment of trends and drivers of global lake water storage variability based on an array of satellites and models," Yao said.

He was motivated to do the research by the environmental crises in some of Earth's largest water bodies, such as the drying of the Aral Sea between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

So he and colleagues from the University of Colorado Boulder, Kansas State University, France, and Saudi Arabia created a technique to measure changes in water levels in nearly 2,000 of the world's biggest lakes and reservoirs, which represent 95% of the total lake water storage on Earth.

The team combined three decades of observations from an array of satellites with models to quantify and attribute trends in lake storage globally.

Globally, freshwater lakes and reservoirs store 87% of the planet's water, making them a valuable resource for both human and Earth ecosystems. Unlike rivers, lakes are not well monitored, yet they provide water for a large part of humanityeven more than rivers.

But despite their value, long-term trends and changes to water levels have been largely unknownuntil now.

"We have pretty good information on iconic lakes like Caspian Sea, Aral Sea and Salton Sea, but if you want to say something on a global scale, you need reliable estimates of lake levels and volume," said Balaji Rajagopalan, a CIRES fellow, professor of engineering at CU Boulder, and co-author. "With this novel method we are able to provide insights into global lake level changes with a broader perspective."

For the new paper, the team used 250,000 lake-area snapshots captured by satellites between 19922020 to survey the area of 1,972 of Earth's biggest lakes. They collected water levels from nine satellite altimeters and used long-term water levels to reduce any uncertainty. For lakes without a long-term level record, they used recent water measurements made by newer instruments on satellites. Combining recent level measurements with longer-term area measurements allowed scientists to reconstruct the volume of lakes dating back decades.

The results were staggering: 53% of lakes globally experienced a decline in water storage. The authors compare this loss with the magnitude of 17 Lake Meads, the largest reservoir in the United States.

To explain the trends in natural lakes, the team leveraged recent advancements in water use and climate modeling. Climate change and human water consumption dominated the global net decline in natural lake volume and water losses in about 100 large lakes, Yao said. "And many of the human and climate change footprints on lake water losses were previously unknown, such as the desiccations of Lake Good-e-Zareh in Afghanistan and Lake Mar Chiquita in Argentina."

Lakes in both dry and wet areas of the world are losing volume. The losses in humid tropical lakes and Arctic lakes indicate more widespread drying trends than previously understood.

Yao and his colleagues also assessed storage trends in reservoirs. They found that nearly two-thirds of Earth's large reservoirs experienced significant water losses.

"Sedimentation dominated the global storage decline in existing reservoirs," said Ben Livneh, also a co-author, CIRES fellow, and associate professor of engineering at CU Boulder. In long-established reservoirsthose that filled before 1992sedimentation was more important than droughts and heavy rainfall years.

While the majority of global lakes are shrinking, 24% saw significant increases in water storage. Growing lakes tend to be in underpopulated areas in the inner Tibetan Plateau and Northern Great Plains of North America and in areas with new reservoirs such as the Yangtze, Mekong, and Nile river basins.

The authors estimate roughly one-quarter of the world's population, 2 billion people, resides in the basin of a drying lake, indicating an urgent need to incorporate human consumption, climate change, and sedimentation impacts into sustainable water resources management.

And their research offers insight into possible solutions, Livneh said. "If human consumption is a large factor in lake water storage decline, then we can adapt and explore new policies to reduce large-scale declines."

This happened in one of the lakes the team studied, Lake Sevan in Armenia. Lake Sevan has seen an increase in water storage, in the last 20 years, which the authors linked to enforcement of conservation laws on water withdrawal since the early 2000s.

More information: Fangfang Yao, Satellites reveal widespread decline in global lake water storage, Science (2023). DOI: 10.1126/science.abo2812. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abo2812 Journal information: Science
Washington (CNN)  The National Archives has informed former United States president Donald Trump that it is set to hand over to special counsel Jack Smith 16 records that show Trump and his top advisers had knowledge of the correct declassification process while he was president, according to multiple sources.

In a May 16 letter obtained by CNN, acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall writes to Trump, The 16 records in question all reflect communications involving close presidential advisers, some of them directed to you personally, concerning whether, why, and how you should declassify certain classified records.

The 16 presidential records, which were subpoenaed earlier this year, may provide critical evidence establishing the former presidents awareness of the declassification process, a key part of the criminal investigation into Trumps mishandling of classified documents.

The records may also provide insight into Trumps intent and whether he willfully disregarded what he knew to be clearly established protocols, according to a source familiar with recent testimony provided to the grand jury by former top Trump officials.

Trump and his allies have insisted that as president, Trump did not have to follow a specific process to declassify documents. At a CNN town hall last week Trump repeated the claim that simply by removing classified documents from the White House he had declassified them. And, by the way, they become automatically declassified when I took them, Trump said.

According to the letter, Trump tried to block the special counsel from accessing the 16 records by asserting a claim of constitutionally based privilege. But in her letter, Wall rejects that claim, stating that the special counsels office has represented that it is prepared to demonstrate with specificity to a court, why it is likely that the 16 records contain evidence that would be important to the grand jurys investigation.

The special counsel also told the Archives that the evidence is not practically available from another source.

The letter goes on to state that the records will be handed over on May 24, 2023 unless prohibited by an intervening court order.

A source close to Trumps legal team told CNN that the former president has received several letters like this from the Archives over the course of the investigation.

Trumps team may challenge this in court, this person said, but claimed in the past the Archives has handed over documents before the Trump team has had a chance to challenge the release in court.

Trumps legal team would not reveal what was in the 16 records, but the source said the former presidents attempt to block the special counsel from accessing them is more of a strategic fight about constitutional and presidential protections rather than keeping evidence from the special counsel.

The special counsels office and the Archives declined to comment.

Jim Trusty, an attorney for Trump in the classified documents case, told CNN that the former president relied on constitutional authority to take the documents to Mar-a-Lago.

At the end of his presidency, he relied on the constitutional authority as commander-in-chief, which is to take documents and take them to Mar-a-Lago while still president as he was at the time, and to effectively declassify and personalize them, Trusty told CNNs Sara Sidner of the former president. He talked about declassifying them, but he didnt need to.

Last year, after the FBI seized classified and top secret documents from Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort, the former president and his allies claimed that Trump had a standing order to declassify documents he took from the Oval Office to the White House residence.

But 18 former top Trump administration officials said they never heard any such order issued during their time working for Trump, telling CNN that the claim was ludicrous ridiculous, and a complete fiction.

NARAs letter to Trump comes amid a flurry of activity by Smiths team, including grand jury appearances by former national security officials who testified that they told Trump there was a process for a president to declassify material, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The 16 records may help federal investigators overcome a significant obstacle to a potential prosecution of the former president. While presidents have ultimate declassification authority, the limits of that authority havent been tested in the courts.

That means the various claims by Trump and his allies that he declassified material without going through the standard process cannot be completely dismissed by the Justice Department.

In her letter, Wall says that NARA began searching for relevant records after receiving a subpoena from Smiths team on Jan. 23, 2023. The Archives found 104 unclassified documents that matched what federal prosecutors had requested.

When notified that NARA intended to provide those documents to the grand jury, Trumps legal team raised privilege concerns over 81 of those records. The Biden White House was also notified but told NARA the incumbent president would not assert privilege to block those records from being shared with the grand jury.

The special counsel was also given access to other records not challenged by the Trump team.

Ultimately, the special counsel identified the 16 records in question as relevant to the grand jury investigation.

In the CNN town hall last week, Trump misrepresented the Presidential Records Act, falsely claiming that he was allowed to take documents when he left office.

In reality, the Presidential Records Act provides that as soon as a president leaves office, the National Archives becomes the legal custodian of the presidents records, which belong to the public.

I had every right to under the Presidential Records Act, Trump said when asked by CNNs Kaitlan Collins why he took documents when he left the White House. You have the Presidential Records Act. I was there and I took what I took and it gets declassified, he added.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Exclusive: New evidence in special counsel probe may undercut Trumps claim documents he took were automatically declassified."
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A Greenwich man was sentenced recently to 8 years in prison for possessing illegal guns.

Andrew J. Fisk, 29, was one of three men arrested in August after state police seized two fully automatic machine guns, and more than 40 high-capacity rifle and pistol magazines at a residence in Easton where the three men were staying.

Fisk and 68-year-old John Petteys Sr. and 28-year-old John Petteys Jr. were accused of manufacturing various firearm parts, including kits that would convert firearms into fully automatic weapons.

All three were indicted in December on 29 counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, nine counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and one count of third-degree criminal sale of a weapon.

Fish pleaded guilty in Washington County to a felony count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced on April 21.
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The man accused of driving his motorcycle drunk, striking and killing an 8-year-old and his stepfather on the Warren County Bikeway in Lake George in June 2022 could receive less time in prison after one of his previous convictions is being challenged.

Anthony Futia, 34, of Albany, was set to go before Warren County Court Judge Robert Smith on Monday to determine if he should be charged as a persistent felony offender, meaning he has two previous felony convictions for which he spent time in state prison. Or, he could be sentenced as a second-time felony offender which carries a lighter sentence than the 20 years to life he could face as a persistent offender. However, the court date was cancelled and has yet to be rescheduled, according to Futias lawyer Tucker Stanclift.

During Futias last appearance in Warren County Court, he asked his lawyer to object to the two prior felony convictions on his record in Albany County Court, claiming his public defenders at the time did not explore all options for his defense. Stanclift filed a motion challenging the convictions.

The (Warren County) hearing is not being rescheduled until a decision is made in Albany County Court, Stanclift shared exclusively with The Post-Star on Monday.

I actually went back and obtained the court transcripts and the problem is that he was 18 at the time, but youthful offender status was never considered until his lawyer brought it up at sentencing; and the judge said he would consider it, but then decided he did not want to alter the negotiated plea deal, Stanclift explained.

He also said the judge should have made his own decision independent of the prosecutions recommendations or objections to the youthful offender status.

Albany man enters plea in motorcycle crash that killed two on Warren County Bikeway The Albany man who crashed his motorcycle into a group of pedestrians on the Warren County Bikeway last June, killing two, has entered a plea.

In order to qualify in New York, the accused must be between 16 and 19 years old. Youthful offender status is granted at sentencing in the interest of justice, according to the law. It is meant help the minor avoid having a criminal record.

If Futia had been convicted under that statute, his record would have been sealed and he would only have one previous felony conviction and would no longer be considered a persistent offender.

Stanclift says either way its a win for the case.

As soon as Albany decides to reopen the case, its a win. Either he is granted youthful offender status and the felony is sealed or they rule the initial conviction was lawful and the conviction is now from 2023, not 2008, making it after the accident, Stanclift said, the latter making also making Futia ineligible to be given the heavier sentence.

Futia previously served time in state prison for felony third-degree larceny in 2008 and again from 2012 to 2017 for felony second-degree attempted assault.

If Futia is only sentenced as a second-time felony offender, he faces a minimum required sentence of 4 1/2 to 9 years in prison with a maximum of 12 and a half to 25 years in prison.

At the end of January, Futia entered Alford pleas to felony counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and second-degree assault and misdemeanors of driving while ability impaired by alcohol and drugs, reckless driving and third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation.

In an Alford plea, the defendant does not admit wrongdoing, but agrees that prosecutors have enough evidence to prove the charges. Futia has said he has no memory of the crash due to the injuries he sustained.

Police said Futia was driving while intoxicated and without a license on June 12 on Route 9 when he crashed into a group of pedestrians walking and riding their bicycles. Jamie Parsons, 38, and his stepson Quinton Delgadillo, 8, were killed in the crash and Delgadillos mother, Jasmine Luellen, was seriously injured.
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WHITEHALL  Additional charges have been filed against a Whitehall man who was arrested on Wednesday after police said he possessed a stolen excavator and trailer.

Jerrick P. Jones, 37, of Whitehall, was charged with two counts of felony third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, one count of felony criminal possession of a firearm and two misdemeanor counts of second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office in a news release Thursday. The drug charges came as a result of an investigation conducted by the sheriffs office, Whitehall Police Department and the New York State Police.

The additional charges came after Jones was arrested on two felony counts of third-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

An investigation determined that Jones was in possession of a 2015 Kubota excavator and 2009 Cross Country flatbed trailer that were reported stolen last October, according to a news release from the sheriff's office on Wednesday. The vehicles have an estimated value of more than $3,000. The excavator and trailer were reported stolen from the city of Troy.

Jones was was arraigned in Washington County Centralized Arraignment Court and is due in Whitehall Village Court at a later date.

The Washington County Sheriffs Investigation Unit and Road Patrol handled the excavator case with assistance from New York State Police, the Whitehall Village Police Department and Troy Police Department.
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GLENS FALLS  Police arrested two men on drug charges following a traffic stop on Sunday in Glens Falls.

Joseph E. Millington, 33, of Warrensburg, and David D. Rock, 54, of Fort Ann, were arrested and charged two misdemeanor counts of seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and an unspecified public health law violation, New York State Police said in a news release. Millington was also charged with false personation.

Troopers said that around 1:19 a.m., a vehicle on State Route 9 in Glens Falls was stopped for a vehicle and traffic law violation. Millington, who was in the passenger seat, lied about his identity and was found to have an active warrant for his arrest. While being taken into custody, troopers found drugs in Millington's possession.

Rock, another passenger in the vehicle, was also found to possess drugs, according to the release.

Both defendants were arrested and transported to the state police station in Queensbury for processing. They were issued appearance tickets returnable to the Glens Falls Town Court on June 15. Rock was released, and Millington was turned over to the Warren County Sheriffs Office due to the active warrant.
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GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  An Absegami High School teacher is scheduled to receive the New Jersey Governors Award in Arts Education for Leadership in Music Education in a ceremony at The College of New Jersey in Ewing.

Absegami Director of Bands Patrick OKeefe will be honored with the award at the June 2 event.

OKeefe, 35 and a teacher in Galloway since 2009, started out at the Smithville School prior to his current role as the band director at Absegami. He also served as the president of the New Jersey Music Educators Association from 2019 to 2021, and currently serves on its executive board.

He also conducted the All South Jersey Symphonic Band at Rowan University this past January, has served as an applied lessons instructor for Stockton University since 2017, and his students recently were involved in executing the annual Galloway Arts Festival in Smithville.

Get South Jersey news at your fingertips Your story lives in South Jersey. From reporting on all of your favorite teams to the news t

The New Jersey Governors Awards promote the arts by honoring students and educational leaders who have achieved national and state recognition in their fields. The program was established in 1980 by the Alliance for Arts Education and the state Department of Education.

The ceremony June 2 will recognize not only OKeefe but other leaders and students in the areas of creative writing, music, theater, visual arts and more.
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ATLANTIC CITY  When Wayne Stetson hired Beverly Tizzano as a receptionist at the Greater Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Bureau on Oct. 4, 1971, Richard Nixon was president, Rod Stewarts "Maggie May" was a No. 1 hit and the bureaus office was on Central Pier.

Fifty-two years later, Tizzano is set to retire June 1.

The members of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority honored her at the Tuesday meeting of the authority board, at which board Chair Modia Butler praised the work she has done and her commitment to Atlantic City.

Well, I want to thank you so very much. Youre going to make me cry. But I cant say enough about the CRDA and everything that theyve done for me, Tizzano said at the meeting, after the resolution was read into the record.

She said the employees at the authority have been wonderful, describing her employment at CRDA as a wonderful ride.

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The city of Atlantic City, and CRDA, are both better places because of your decades of service, Butler said.

Butler read about her career, saying she served under 14 New Jersey governors, from William T. Kato to Phil Murphy.

The Convention and Visitors Bureau was founded in 1908 and was one of the countrys oldest convention bureaus. Tizzano worked there as an executive assistant.

In 2013, the CRDA absorbed the Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Authority, at which point Beverly became a welcome employee at CRDA, Butler said, describing her as playing an integral role at the authority.

In her career, Tizzano saw the city grow after the approval of casino gambling in 1976, the Atlantic City Convention Center open in 1997 and the opening of the Atlantic City-Brigantine Connector tunnel in 2001, among other major changes.
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A 55-year-old Vineland man has pleaded guilty to embezzling nearly $850,000 from a Cumberland County trucking company, the state Attorney General's Office said Thursday.

Antwoin L. Brown pleaded guilty last week to theft by deception in a hearing before Superior Court Judge George H. Gangloff in Cumberland County, the Attorney General's Office said in a news release.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, the state will recommend that Brown be sentenced to four years in prison and be required to pay restitution to his former employer. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 27.

Brown, who was a coordinator of the independent truck drivers with the unnamed company, admitted that from January 2016 through December 2019, he wrote hundreds of company checks to himself to steal $846,347 from his employer, the Attorney General's Office said. Brown disguised the thefts by logging the checks into company records as payments for fake invoices he created in the names of others.

Browns scheme involved creating phony trucking hauls and fake invoices for payments owed to drivers who purportedly made the hauls. But instead of making the checks out to the drivers, Brown would write the checks to himself. His scheme went undetected until early 2020, when an independent truck driver received notification from the IRS about unpaid taxes, according to the Attorney General's Office. The investigation revealed the driver had not received the compensation in question because Brown had been writing the checks to himself.

Antwoin Brown gained the trust of his employer and then he abused that trust for years by stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from him, said Pablo Quinones, chief of the Office of Securities Fraud and Financial Crimes Prosecutions. Our prosecution of Brown should send a message that anyone who embezzles money from their New Jersey employer will be found and prosecuted.
(CNN)  An agreement has been reached to extend a deal that allows grain to be exported from Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea, according to Turkish and Ukrainian officials.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the agreement between Ukraine and Russia, which was brokered by Turkey and the United Nations, would be extended for two months. It was scheduled to expire this Thursday.

The deal was originally signed last year and has since been extended.

Oleksandr Kubrakov, the Ukrainian Minister of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development, confirmed the grain deal had been extended until July 18 in a post on Facebook.

The world will continue to receive Ukrainian products thanks to the efforts of our partners in the agreement  Turkey and the UN, Kubrakov said.

We are grateful to our partners for their unwavering and focused position that the agreement should continue to work and on the terms signed by all parties, he added.

Kubrakov also claimed that Russia has been restricting grain shipments.

Almost 70 vessels are currently waiting in Turkish territorial waters, 90% of them are ready to deliver the products of our farmers to the world, he said.

We welcome the continuation of the initiative, but emphasize that it must work effectively.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also confirmed the extension, although she added that distortions in the implementation of the grain deal should be corrected as quickly as possible.

The United Nations has not yet commented on the extension.

A deal with global impact

After invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russia blockaded vital grain exports from key Ukrainian Black Sea ports, including Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Pivdennyi, which meant that millions of tons of Ukrainian grain were not being exported to the many countries that rely on it.

The impact of the war on global food markets was immediate and extremely painful, as Ukraine accounts for 10% of the world wheat market, 15% of the corn market, and 13% of the barley market.

At the time, the UNs Food and Agriculture Organization warned that as many as 47 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity because of the war, and Western officials accused Russia of using food as a weapon.

The deal reached in July 2022 created procedures to ensure the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports and allowed exports to resume.

This story was first published on CNN.com, Ukraine grain deal to be extended for 2 months"
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ATLANTIC CITY  The Board of Education voted Tuesday to promote Shontai Nicholson to principal of the Richmond Avenue School. Nicholson had been serving as assistant principal at the school for about 10 years and is replacing Shelley Williams, who the board agenda indicated is being promoted to a director position.

Friends, family and colleagues of Nicholson filled the small school board chambers to near capacity during the vote to celebrate the occasion, as did various school and city leaders.

Nicholson said she was proud of her local ties and said she valued the strong show of support.

Im from the community, Nicholson said. Im local, Im vested in the community as such.

Nicholson, 53, was born and raised in Philadelphia. She said she remembers growing up in what she described as an underfunded school system and was among the last wave of students who were bused to different catchments in order to integrate schools.

In Atlantic City, Nicholson said she worked at Resorts Casino Hotel for about 10 years. She is now in her 24th year of working in schools. She began her education career teaching first grade at the Chelsea Heights School before assuming the role of technology coordinator there and later rising to Richmond Avenue assistant principal.

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Reflecting on her long career in education, Nicholson said she was excited to continue it as principal.

It was 24 years, it went by very fast, but here I am, Nicholson said.

Nicholson spoke about the progress the Atlantic City School District made in finding new resources for students when she was Chelsea Heights technology coordinator. She said she remembers the wave of new computers and other devices introduced for students in recent years and how it generated new enthusiasm for learning. Thanking the district for its support, she said she wanted to focus on continuing to find ways to capitalize on new technology during her tenure at Richmond Avenue.

"The district gave us and still continues to support and push technology," she said. "I mean, I think were at the forefront.

Nicholson laid out a set of priorities for her tenure as principal, with focuses on promoting literacy and community engagement.

She said the presence of parents and guardians in schools has decreased since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with schools having shut their doors and turned to virtual learning. Nicholson said she wanted to explore ways to have parents return to the building and increase attendance at the schools regular Parent Advisory Committee meetings.

Students tour world's largest pipe organ in Atlantic City ATLANTIC CITY  Before Monday, Arcadia Pena, as a young piano player, had never had the chan

We definitely want that to come back, where parents feel they can come back into the school, Nicholson said.

Another priority was addressing chronic absenteeism among what she said was a small number of students in the school. She said she was interested in organizing monthly multidisciplinary meetings where a group, possibly including the nurse and guidance counselor, administrators and herself, meets with parents to discuss the absences and identify any underlying problems that may be causing the absences. Rather than trying to reduce absenteeism through punitive measures, Nicholson said she wanted the process to be a collaborative one that addressed student needs.

Its not that theyre in trouble, but weve identified that your child missed a lot of school, Nicholson said. Is there a problem, is there anything that we can do to support you? Because we need our children to be in school.

Nicholson, demonstrating the mindset of progress she honed as technology coordinator, said there was interest in exploring modern approaches to increase engagement. She cited the tools and strategies developed over the course of the pandemic for virtual learning and the possibility of using them during Parent Advisory Committee meetings and meetings between parents, teachers and school officials. She said she was also interested in circulating surveys to learn what school matters families are interested in discussing during PAC meetings.

With the times and technology, just thinking of other ways that we can reach out, where parents can feel a part of the school without actually having to physically come into the school, Nicholson said. Im curious to test it out and see if our engagement numbers rise. Its worth a shot.
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NORTH WILDWOOD  New Jersey environmental officials will allow the city to carry out emergency repairs to its badly eroded beachfront, even as they continue a years-long fight with city officials over how best to protect the Jersey Shore resorts fragile coastline.

On Wednesday, the state Department of Environmental Protection told North Wildwood it could reshape three blocks worth of dunes and repair public access points to a condition that can be safely used in time for the approaching Memorial Day weekend.

The move marked a turning point in a long-running dispute between the city and the state over how to ensure the beach is wide enough for recreation and to ensure that dunes are sturdy enough to protect the city from coastal storms.

North Wildwood and its surrounding coastal neighbors have not received the periodic beach replenishment projects that most of the rest of the Jersey Shore has been getting for decades, due in part to the difficulty of getting approval from property owners.

As a result, it has experienced serious erosion over the past decade, and says it needs to take immediate emergency steps including shoring up dunes and building another steel sea wall to complement one it already built.

The state has repeatedly denied permission for such work, saying it could actually worsen erosion due to the scouring effect of waves carrying sand along hard barriers like sea walls. It says the city should continue to rely on trucking in sand from mainland quarries. But the city has spent $21 million doing that over the past decade, and is suing the state to recoup those costs.

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In a letter to the city, the DEP cited the emergency nature of the work to be done in explaining why it is now giving permission for it.

The permission to repair the dunes represented a victory for North Wildwood, even if it proves short-lived.

What we have been requesting is so obvious that it would have been ridiculous if they said no again, said Mayor Patrick Rosenello, a Republican. For them to finally agree with what weve been saying is certainly satisfying.

The federal government has said a beach replenishment in the Wildwoods would begin 18 to 24 months after all approvals are granted, Rosenello said.

Even if we got every approval tomorrow, were still looking at 2025 at the earliest before we get that project here, he said.

Rosenello said trucks should begin moving sand next week, and predicted the repairs would be complete before Memorial Day weekend.

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In tangled, ongoing litigation, the state is suing North Wildwood for $12 million over previous unapproved beach repairs. The city is suing the state back to recoup the cost of trucking sand onto the eroded beach.

Numerous violation notices issued by the state remain active, including one that involves work the city did several years ago along a section of beachfront it said had become badly eroded. The state said the work destroyed 8 acres of vegetated dunes, including 6.7 acres of critical wildlife habitat, and 1.1 acres of freshwater wetlands.

North Wildwood built a vinyl and steel bulkhead for about 10 blocks without state approval, saying it needed to act urgently to protect lives and property. That is separate from the latest bulkhead the city wanted to build but agreed to forgo for now.

Rosenello said the city has reapplied through normal channels for permission to do more extensive beach work instead of seeking emergency approval as it has been since last fall.

GALLERY: North Wildwood beach erosion
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TRENTON  Offshore wind power development runs the risk of devastating Cape May Countys tourism and fishing industries, each worth billions of dollars, Assemblyman Antwan McClellan said Thursday during a legislative committee hearing.

Absolutely not, responded Shawn LaTourette, commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Protection. I dont mean to interrupt you, but thats false.

The exchange came at what was described as a science-based hearing on marine mammal deaths, presented by the Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.

It was the latest in a flurry of attempts to discern what killed dozens of whales and other marine mammals over the winter, and how much, if any, of the blame belongs to the offshore wind industry.

None at all, at least as far as LaTourette was concerned. He cited changing behavior of humpback whales and other species as the warming ocean changes where the whales can find the small fish they live on, bringing them closer to shore and into shipping lanes.

Additional speakers included Shelia Dean, director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, and Danielle Brown, who works with the center and is a doctoral student at Rutgers University.

With concerns climbing about whales, watchers say population climb continues as well In the waters off Cape May, things look much like they have in previous years, according to 

Dean said the center has responded to nine whale deaths in recent months, including three in which the crews could not get close to the whales, which remained in the water, and six in which necropsies were performed.

In some instances, Dean said, the animals showed evidence of being struck by a vessel. But she said the cause of death for each remains inconclusive, while the center awaits results from overloaded labs investigating samples taken from the animals.

There are few laboratories capable of doing the work, and whales died in multiple regions.

We just have to wait. Were waiting our turn patiently, Dean said. It could be many months before we know anything.

Since the first whale washed up on an Upper Township beach in December, some critics of the wind energy projects proposed off the New Jersey coast have argued the sound waves used to map the ocean floor in advance of construction have contributed to whale deaths.

Those concerns quickly mounted as the deaths continued, with multiple whales and dolphins washing up in New York and New Jersey, including several incidents in Cape May and Atlantic counties.

Federal experts, and those who spoke at the committee hearing Thursday, say there is no evidence linking the deaths with offshore wind surveys.

LaTourette suggested that some of those who have been most vocal about protecting the whales have not appeared to have been much concerned with them in the past, but he said he welcomes everyone to the cause of protecting wildlife.

But he told the committee it is the environmental disruption of climate change that poses the greatest risk to marine life.

We shouldnt be distracted by misinformation. We should call out disinformation every time we see it, LaTourette said.

He said the DEP evaluates all projects based on data, not on the political agenda of the current governor, in this case Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who has made expanding wind energy a priority.

To be clear, Im not asking you to trust me. Im asking you to trust the hundreds of scientists who work for you, LaTourette said.

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McClellan, R-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, questioned LaTourette and other experts about the potential impacts of both the survey work and the wind farms themselves, and asked about the potential harm from the wind turbines to migrating birds and other species.

Work is expected to begin this year on the first of a series of wind energy projects, with about 98 large turbines beginning 15 miles off the coast.

As proposed, the turbines would be visible from the beaches of McClellans hometown of Ocean City. In shore communities, officials and residents have criticized the wind power proposals, not only over a perceived impact on marine mammals, but also on the potential disruption of the local fishing industry and the possibility of harm to the summer tourist business that remains central to the local economy.

In a May 3 hearing, state Senate Republicans pushed for a moratorium on wind energy work offshore, with a slate of witnesses from the fishing industry and activists.

The chairman of the Assembly committee, Christopher Tully, D-Bergen, Passaic, said the focus of the Thursday hearing was on what hurt the whales.

Like many of you, were upset about whales washing up on our shores and are seeking evidence today of whats contributing to it, Tully said.

He said the public should know the government is paying attention.

But before acting, we must understand the problem, Tully said.

Brown, who said she has participated in each of the whale necropsies, told the Assembly committee that the efforts require a sizable team to try to understand what may have killed an animal that can weigh 35 tons. She said it is a daylong process. Dean described the work as grueling and dangerous. Brown said many people who come to watch soon have to walk away.

In most cases, the whale has been dead for weeks and is badly decomposed.

Its a little bit gory, she said.

Dean said the Marine Mammal Stranding Center does not accept funding from industry groups, including from the wind power industry, and that the organizations financial details are public record. She said the center also shares the information it gathers from the whale deaths with supporters and the public.

Seaside Park whale necropsy shows signs of propeller strike, marine experts say SEASIDE PARK  A 30-foot humpback whale that washed ashore last week had bruising and injuri

To assign blame for the deaths before the data is complete would be unfair, she said, stating that the stranding center approaches the investigations without bias.

The death of an animal is a sad event, and its come too often recently, Dean said.
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ATLANTIC CITY  Teens have been going through the same process of filling out paper forms to get working papers since their grandparents were minors, but that is all about to change.

The Department of Labor on Thursday unveiled a new website and process for those under 18, their parents or guardians, and employers to use rather than the old paper chase.

We are two weeks out from the change taking place, said Robert Asaro-Angelo, the state commissioner of labor and workforce development, of an all-online process at MyWorkingPapers.nj.gov.

Schools will no longer be involved, and a doctors note will no longer be required.

We are absorbing the work of 600 school districts around the state, Asaro-Angelo said of processing an estimated 130,000 sets of working papers per year.

The changes are required by a new law (based on bills A4222 and S2796) signed by Gov. Phil Murphy last year to enhance protections for the states young workers.

We typically hire 250 to 300 teenagers (who need working papers) annually, said Denise Beckson, vice president of Moreys Piers and Water Parks in Wildwood. This approach is more dynamic and relevant to the times.

Until now, she said, the same paper process has been used that she used decades ago to get working papers.

Anyone who needs working papers before June 1 should continue using the old paper forms, which are available at nj.gov/labor/youngworkers/find-a-job/working-papers, Asaro-Angelo said.

And anyone who has already gone through the process the old-fashioned way by June 1 doesnt need to do anything more, he said.

Asaro-Angelo led a roundtable discussion of the new process in a room at the Casino Control Commission, where representatives of employers who use a lot of teen workers, such as Wakefern Shop-Rite, Steel Pier, Chick-fil-A, Six Flags, Billys Beach Service in Wildwood and more met to learn about the new system and suggest possible improvements.

I think when you talk about youth employment, we have all the biggest names in the state, said Asaro-Angelo, who grew up locally and whose first job as a teenager was on the Atlantic City Boardwalk in a store that no longer exists.

Temporary Workers Bill of Rights goes into effect in New Jersey The Temporary Workers Bill of Rights went into effect, in part, on Sunday, and the New Jers

Representatives of programs for disabled youngsters and county workforce development boards also attended.

Those under age 18 need working papers to get a job in New Jersey, Asaro-Angelo said, to protect them from exploitation and to ensure they get the special treatment required under law. There are limits on hours they are allowed to work and the type of work they are allowed to do.

Assistant Commissioner Nick Toth led participants through a slideshow of the application process.

1. Teenagers and their employers each go to MyWorkingPapers.nj.gov to get started.

2. Employers receive a unique eight-digit code when they register, which they share with every minor they hire.

3. The minor completes the online working papers application, entering their caregivers name and email address, and the employers eight-digit code, which links the application to a specific employer.

Training to start for offshore wind jobs; here's how to apply ATLANTIC CITY  The application period is open for 21 slots in a Wind Power Ready training p

4. Emails prompt the employer and teens caregiver  a parent or guardian  to complete their portions of the application and sign their permission. Caregivers also will be asked to upload a copy of a birth certificate, passport or other official document verifying the minors age.

5. The minor begins working when their application is approved.

As the law allows, however, if the caregiver does not respond in 14 days, the working papers will be approved, Asaro-Angelo said. If the caregiver responds negatively, they will not be approved.

After getting feedback from participants, Asaro-Angelo said the department will look into changing it slightly so employers dont have to attest to a teens age until later in the process when the teen has to provide documentation.

Some participants also asked that the forms be available in more languages than just English, and Toth said the department plans to also offer it in Spanish.

Others expressed concerns that not all teens and caregivers have easy access to computers and knowledge of using them.

The only concern I have is about people who do not have access to online services, said Francis Kuhn, executive director of the Atlantic County Workforce Development Board, who is gearing up to place about 200 young people in summer jobs.

Dominique Hyder, director of business development for Avenues to Independent Living, which serves those with disabilities, said her population will be particularly challenged to negotiate the new system. School involvement has been helpful for those teens, she said.

Toth said the department will reach out to all school districts so they can share information on the new process with students.

More information for young workers on resume writing and interviewing skills, child labor laws and more can be found at MyWorkingPapers.nj.gov.
A vehicle thief involved in multiple crimes has been arrested by the police. The Pimpri Chinchwad police and the Pune Rural police have seized eleven stolen bikes from the possession of the accused.

The arrested criminal has been identified as Rahul Dagdu Shinde (age 20, resident of Otascheme Nigdi).

As per the police, during the investigation, it was revealed that the accused not residing at his permanent resident address on the police record. The crime branch unit 4 further investigated the issue and arrested the accused Rahul Shinde.

The accused confessed to stealing eleven bikes from the Pune Rural and Pimpri Chinchwad police limits during further questioning. The police seized stolen bikes worth Rs 5.10 lakh from the accused. Shinde has been given to Sangvi police custody for further investigation.
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Food trucks and local entrepreneurs will make their way to Bettendorf High School this weekend to help students raise funds for charity and prom.

The Bettendorf High School Student Council will welcome the public to its makers' market and first-ever Food Truck Fest 1:30-5 p.m. May 20 in the Bettendorf High School gym and north parking lot, located at 3333 18th St.

Class of 2025 Vice President Addi French said five food trucks had signed up so far, as well as around 18 market vendors. The event has been mostly planned by students, who will also ensure things run smoothly the day of the event.

"It's been a team effort," French said. "I think right now we have about 25 students that are all working in on this, so we have a lot of people that are all involved in getting prepared for this weekend."

The two coinciding events each have a different cause, Student Council Adviser Katy Mahoney said. Proceeds from market booth rentals will go toward prom for the classes of 2024 and 2025 so seniors can attend for free, and money from food truck spot rentals will go to the Student Hunger Drive in the fall.

"We chose to do the Food Truck Fest because we wanted to make sure that we're getting the word out about why we're fighting to get rid of hunger in our area and how we're going to do that," French said.

French said if all went well and they saw a good turnout for the Food Truck Fest, the Student Council hopes to make the event an annual occurrence. She and Mahoney both expressed the hope that the public comes by to support the students and businesses involved in the events.

"We've had some success with our makers' markets before, and adding on this food truck thing, I know they're really excited to try something a little bit different and see how it goes," Mahoney said.

Photos: Area High Schools Compete in Cardboard Boat Regatta
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A 24-year-old Clinton man on probation in Missouri is facing a charge of attempted murder after he allegedly wounded a person in a shooting May 11, Clinton Police Chief Kevin Gyrion said.

Antwand Jevonie Tinon Jr. is charged with one count of attempted murder. The charge is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of 25 years.

According to a statement issued by Gyrion, at 2:22 p.m. May 11, officers were sent to 514 8th Ave. S. to investigate a report of a person who had been shot.

Officers learned that the shooting occurred a few minutes earlier and that the suspect had fled the area.

The victim, a 29-year-old man, was taken to MercyOne Clinton Medical Center for treatment. The man was then transferred to University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, Iowa City, for treatment of non-life-threatening wounds.

Man wounded in Clinton shooting A 29-year-old Clinton, Iowa, man was wounded by gunfire Thursday at an apartment house at 514 8th Avenue South, Police Chief Kevin Gyrion said in a news release Friday.

Gyrion said the investigation led to an arrest warrant being issued for Tinon, formerly of Jefferson City, Missouri.

On Wednesday, Clinton Police along with agents of the Blackhawk Area Task Force served a search warrant at 650 6th Ave. S. and arrested Tinon.

Tinon was being held Thursday night in the Clinton County Jail on a $100,000 cash-only bond.

During a first appearance Thursday in Clinton County District Court, District Associate Judge Kimberly Shepherd scheduled a preliminary hearing in the case for May 26.

According to electronic records out of Cole County Circuit Court in Missouri, on Sept. 4, 2019, Tinon pleaded guilty to a charge of discharging a firearm into a motor vehicle and second-degree property damage.

He was sentenced to serve five years on probation. A five-year prison sentence was suspended. Tinon has violated his probation, according to Cole County Circuit Court electronic records. During a hearing on Sept. 13, 2022, regarding his last probation infraction, he was allowed to continue on probation.

Because of the allegations involving the shooting in Clinton, Cole County authorities could move to revoke Tinons probation and sentence him to the original five years in prison.

East Moline house where 15 people were found squatting with nine dogs

East Moline house where 15 people were found squatting with nine dogs
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On A Date

Sip, sample and shop your way through historic downtown LeClaire during the sixth annual Shops With Hops from 3 to 6 p.m. this Saturday.

Starting at 3pm, local businesses will host 12-plus of the Midwest's best breweries so you can sip, sample and shop your way through town.

Local and regional breweries will pour samples of beers throughout the shops of downtown. In addition to sampling favorite brew and shopping, visitors can chat with the Brew Masters.

There also will be a Getting Heroes Home Official After-Party from 6 to 7 p.m. at Green Tree Brewery, featuring a raffle with all proceeds going to benefit this local nonprofit organization.

Tickets are $25 and include a 5-ounce souvenir tasting glass. For more information or to get tickets, visit ShopsWithHops.com.

Just For Fun

"Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience," will be on display in the Great Hall of the RiverCenter, 136 E. 3rd St., Davenport, from May 20 to July 20.

Walking through this exhibit, visitors can immerse themselves in Van Gogh's artwork and look at it as it has never been seen before. Be amazed at the way the images of iconic masterpieces, including such classics as "The Starry Night," "Sunflowers" and "Cafe Terrace at Night," and many revealing self-portraits come to life.

Through the use of cutting-edge projection technology and an original score, this exhibit breathes new life into over 300 of his artworks.

Comprised of over 4 trillion content pixels, this high-resolution portrayal of Van Gogh's work gives guests the opportunity to become one with his paintings as well as hear the artists own dreams, thoughts and words set to a symphonic score that drives an unmatched narrative experience.

The visit will take approximately one hour with the last admission one hour before closing. Several ticket options are available starting at $29.99 for adults and $19.99 for children (5-15 years), plus ticketing fees.

For more information, hours or to get tickets, visit https://paq-ent.com/3LuuGY8.

Dine and Drink

Join hundreds of wine enthusiasts in an outdoor setting under the Ambrosian Oaks on Saturday for the St. Ambrose Wine Festival.

Participants can sip their way through a spectacular assortment of 150 wines from around the world and try culinary highlights from Quad-City restaurants.

The festival will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. on the St. Ambrose University Campus in Davenport with proceeds benefiting SAU scholarship funds.

Tickets are $50 per person before 1 p.m. Saturday or $60 per person at the door. For more information visit: www.sau.edu\winefest.

With the Family

Kids to Parks Day is a national day of outdoor play, celebrated annually on the third Saturday of May. This year parks on both sides of the Mississippi will host events to celebrate the day.

In Illinois, families can come celebrate with Moline Parks and Recreation from 1 to 3 p.m. at the East Shelter/Playground area of Riverside Park located at 34th Street and 5th Avenue. The afternoon will feature outdoor activities including playing with bubbles and sidewalk chalk, flying a kite, a scavenger hunt, giveaways and more.

This event is free and open to children and families of all ages. In the event there is inclement weather or for more information, visit fb.me/e/48mBjPxDt.

In Iowa, Fejervary Learning Center, located at 1800 W. 12th St. in Davenport, will host free family activities including a petting zoo, bounce house, local vendors and nature crafts. No registration is required.

The learning center hosts free family activities every third Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. Each day will have a special theme to make each one different and unique.

For more information, visit https://www.davenportiowa.com/government/departments/parks_recreation/freefamilyfun.

In Real Time

POLYRHYTHMS Third Sunday Jazz invites guests to get caught up in the spell when the Judy Page Quartet works musical magic on the Becherer Hall stage, Rivermont Collegiate, 1821 Sunset Drive, Bettendorf.

Judy Page performs with a jazz trio, based mainly in Peoria. Sunday's concert will feature bassist, Mike Nellas; keyboard player, Daniel Leahy; and Manuel Lopez III on percussion.

Polyrhythms demystifies jazz with an all-ages workshop at 2 p.m. followed by a matinee concert from 5 to 7 p.m. Admission to the workshop is $5 for adults and free for kids. General admission is $15 or $20 for reserved seating. For ticket information, call 309 373-0790.
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A 24-year-old Clinton man on probation in Missouri is facing a charge of attempted murder after he allegedly wounded a person in a shooting May 11, Clinton Police Chief Kevin Gyrion said.

Antwand Jevonie Tinon Jr. is charged with one count of attempted murder. The charge is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of 25 years.

According to a statement issued by Gyrion, at 2:22 p.m. May 11, officers were sent to 514 8th Ave. S. to investigate a report of a person who had been shot.

Officers learned that the shooting occurred a few minutes earlier and that the suspect had fled the area.

The victim, a 29-year-old man, was taken to MercyOne Clinton Medical Center for treatment. The man was then transferred to University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, Iowa City, for treatment of non-life-threatening wounds.

Man wounded in Clinton shooting A 29-year-old Clinton, Iowa, man was wounded by gunfire Thursday at an apartment house at 51

Gyrion said the investigation led to an arrest warrant being issued for Tinon, formerly of Jefferson City, Missouri.

On Wednesday, Clinton Police along with agents of the Blackhawk Area Task Force served a search warrant at 650 6th Ave. S. and arrested Tinon.

Tinon was being held Thursday night in the Clinton County Jail on a $100,000 cash-only bond.

During a first appearance Thursday in Clinton County District Court, District Associate Judge Kimberly Shepherd scheduled a preliminary hearing in the case for May 26.

According to electronic records out of Cole County Circuit Court in Missouri, on Sept. 4, 2019, Tinon pleaded guilty to a charge of discharging a firearm into a motor vehicle and second-degree property damage.

He was sentenced to serve five years on probation. A five-year prison sentence was suspended. Tinon has violated his probation, according to Cole County Circuit Court electronic records. During a hearing on Sept. 13, 2022, regarding his last probation infraction, he was allowed to continue on probation.

Because of the allegations involving the shooting in Clinton, Cole County authorities could move to revoke Tinons probation and sentence him to the original five years in prison.

East Moline house where 15 people were found squatting with nine dogs

East Moline house where 15 people were found squatting with nine dogs
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Agents with the Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group seized guns and meth and arrested three men from an East Moline home early Wednesday where 15 people and nine dogs had been living amid refuse and trash both inside and outside the home.

Neighbors have complained about the problem home, and city officials have been pursuing legal means to condemn the property at 724 20th Ave., East Moline City Administrator Doug Maxeiner said.

We first became aware of the condition of the property about nine months ago, in August and September of 2022, Maxeiner said.

Its a bank-owned property that hired a management company to oversee the property, he added. So we were trying to get with somebody to get this thing resolved.

Bank officials told East Moline that nothing could be done about the property until everyone living there was evicted, Maxeiner said.

It took forever, he said. We had an eviction hearing scheduled for May 26. I dont know what the status of that is at this point.

Our police department has fielded in excess of 100 calls to the property since January of 2022, he added.

The water and sewer had been turned off to the house, he said.

Weve been pursuing a search warrant for public health reasons, but todays search warrant on the criminal activity took care of that, Maxeiner said.

As of about noon on Wednesday, three truckloads of refuse had been removed from the property, particularly the back yard, and about that much remained Wednesday evening, he said.

The interior is just as bad as the outside, he added.

People had been living in the garage as well as inside the home.

Maxeiner said the city would go after the bank to help pay for some or all of the cleanup.

East Moline police are glad this property is contained, he said. The neighborhood has to be breathing a little easier. We felt very sorry for them, but we had to stay within the bounds of the law and we were finally able to get some progress today.

Agencies were trying to line up shelters for the other people who were evicted from the property, Maxeiner said. Most of them were homeless and have other issues.

The house has been boarded up, and condemned, he added.

It is probably some of the worst living conditions Ive ever seen, Andrew Fratzke, director of the Quad-City Metropolitan Enforcement Group, said.

Weve been investigating this property for about a year based on citizens complaints and information received about the property, Fratzke said. While agents were seeking drugs and weapons, Fratzke said closing the house down was a win for the neighborhood.

Whether we got anything out of this or not, we did our job today for this neighborhood, he said.

Darren Lyle Abney, 53, was arrested for failure to appear in Henry County Circuit Court on a charge of possession of meth less than 5 grams, a Class 3 felony that carries a prison sentence of two to five years. Abney was supposed to have appeared for a preliminary hearing in the case Monday. His bond is set at $20,000, or 10%.

Dean C. Johnson, 31, was arrested for failure to appear on a Henry County charge of aggravated identification theft, a Class 3 felony, and identity theft, a Class 4 felony. His bond is set at $50,000, or 10%. A Class 4 felony in Illinois carries a prison sentence of one to three years.

Leon Hubert Starberg Jr., 43, was arrested on charges of unlawful possession of a firearm and possession with the intent to deliver meth. He was being held without bond. He is expected to make a first appearance on the charges Thursday in Rock Island County Circuit Court.

All three men were being held Wednesday night in the Rock Island County Jail.

Assisting at the scene were the East Moline Police Department, Moline-East Moline Crisis Containment Unit, Illinois State Police and city of East Moline Maintenance Services Department.

The case remains under investigation by the East Moline Police Department and the Quad-City Metropolitan Enforcement Group.

Anyone with information is asked to call the East Moline Police Department Investigations Unit at 309-752-1547, Crime Stoppers of the Quad Cities at 309-762-9500 or use the Crime Stoppers P3 Tips mobile app.

East Moline house where 15 people were found squatting with nine dogs

Photos: Rockingham Road Burger King sustains damage from Tuesday morning fire
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South Dakotas Custer State Park has been named number 72 among the 150 best things to do in the United States this summer by Travel Lemming.

Custer State Park is the single South Dakota attraction to make the list of 150 top things to do, alongside diverse attractions including a Bavarian Village in Washington and a wild animal sanctuary in Colorado.

The article cites land and lake recreation, including hiking, boating and bike riding, as key features of the park. It also encourages travelers to make time for several scenic drives in the park, noting that 1,350 bison call the state park home, and herds are visible along Wildlife Loop Road.

Travel Lemming Senior Travel Writer Laura Falin commented, Although South Dakota is best known for Mount Rushmore, youll find more to do at nearby Custer State Park! Watch for bison, swim in a mountain lake, or hike one of the many trails in the park. You can spend several days exploring the largest state park in South Dakota and still not see all of it!

The annual list aims to help Americans discover unique and diverse attractions around the country and in their own backyards.

Travel Lemming is an online travel guide with more than 10 million annual readers. It publishes guides written by local and expert travelers who have first-hand experience in destinations across the United States and the world. The full list of 150 best things to do can be found at: https://travellemming.com/best-things-to-do-in-usa-2023/.
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Communities across the Drug Enforcement Administration Omaha Division safely disposed of 10,554 pounds of prescription medications during the 24th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day April 23.

Working with 132 law enforcement partners, the DEA Omaha Division hosted 177 Take Back Day sites in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota. North Dakota, which boasts more than 100 year-round pharmaceutical collection sites, did not host Take Back locations on April 23.

Nationally, DEA and its law enforcement partners came together to protect communities from prescription misuse by safely disposing of 663,725 pounds of unneeded medications at nearly 5,000 collection sites across the country. Since its inception in 2010, DEAs bi-annual National Prescription Take Back Day has removed more than 17 million pounds of unnecessary medications from communities across the country.

We encourage those who werent able to safely dispose of their unneeded prescription medication at a Take Back site on April 23, to locate a year-round receptacle within their community, said DEA Omaha Division Special Agent in Charge Justin C. King. Law enforcement partners and pharmacies across the nation host these year-round sites, where its easy to get rid of prescriptions in a safe and anonymous manner, while also removing the threat of temptation for experimentation from their houses.

For more than a decade, Take Back Day has helped Americans easily rid their homes of unneeded medications  those that are old, unwanted, or expired. These medications can be a gateway to addiction, and have helped fuel the opioid epidemic.

DEA continues to expand opportunities to make safe disposal of medications more accessible nationwide. A list of permanent drug-drop boxes located in communities across the country can be found here. Safe medication disposal receptacles along with DEA Take Back events provide families easy, no-cost opportunities to get rid of unnecessary medicines stored in the home that can be susceptible to abuse and theft.
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A Canadian cold front flowing south into Montana on Tuesday brought more than cooler temperatures.

Smoke from Canadian wildfires settled into central and eastern Montana overnight and will continue through Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service forecast office in Great Falls.

Air quality is expected to improve by Friday as wind flow across the state turns to the west.

Over the last 24 hours air quality readings in the Helena area have fluctuated between moderate and unhealthy.

Monitoring stations as of 11:30 a.m. Wednesday reported hazardous air in Malta and Sidney; very unhealthy air in Miles City; unhealthy air in Broadus and the Flathead Valley; unhealthy air for sensitive groups in Bozeman, Dillon, Havre; Seeley Lake and Thompson Falls; and moderate air in Billings, Butte, Cut Bank, Great Falls, Helena, Lewistown, Libby and Sleeping Giant outside Helena.

The Montana Department of Environmental Quality has issued an air quality alert for Big Horn, Blaine, Broadwater, Carbon, Carter, Cascade, Chouteau, Custer, Daniels, Dawson, Fallon, Fergus, Flathead, Gallatin, Garfield, Glacier, Golden Valley, Hill, Judith Basin, Lewis and Clark, Liberty, McCone, Meagher, Musselshell, Park, Petroleum, Phillips, Pondera, Powder River, Prairie, Richland, Roosevelt, Rosebud, Sheridan, Stillwater, Sweet Grass, Teton, Toole, Treasure, Valley, Wheatland, Wibaux, and Yellowstone counties in effect until 9 a.m. Thursday.

An air quality alert means that particulates have been trending upwards and that an exceedance of the 24-hour national ambient air quality standard has occurred or may occur in the near future.

To track current air quality levels visit the Montana Department of Environmental Quality's monitoring website.
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(CNN)  Just a week after her return to the United States Senate after a roughly three month absence, questions continue to swirl around Sen. Dianne Feinstein and her mental capacity to serve in the worlds greatest deliberative body.

The 89-year-old Democrat had been recovering from shingles at home in California, and had been absent from the Hill since February.

Her long-awaited return on May 10 not only meant that the Senate Democratic Caucus would be at full attendance  since both Feinstein and Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman had been absent for much of the spring  but that the one-seat margin Democrats held on the powerful Judiciary Committee would be reconstituted to help advance President Joe Bidens judicial nominations.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer greeted the frail Feinstein personally upon her return, when she was wheeled into the Capitol for a vote accompanied by staff on and off the floor. Schumer said Feinstein was exactly where she wants to be, ready to do the things she loves the most  serving the people of California. First elected to the Senate in 1992, she is the longest-serving woman senator in US history.

But questions quickly sprang up on whether Feinstein, though present, would really be able to resume her demanding job. In a statement released by her office last week, Feinstein said that she is still experiencing some side effects from shingles and her doctors have advised her to work a lighter schedule as she returned to the Senate. During her arrival at the Capitol for votes, she appeared confused and was heard asking staff, Where am I going?

And in an interaction with reporters Tuesday, as reported by the Los Angeles Times and Slate, Feinstein appeared confused by questions about her absence, saying, I havent been gone. Ive been here, Ive been voting. Please, either know or dont know. It is not clear if Feinstein was referring to just the past week since her return or referring to the past several months while she was recovering at home.

Feinsteins office was asked for comment but indicated the senator did not have one at this time.

Fellow Democrats remain unwilling to discuss Feinsteins ability to serve, saying only they are glad to have a colleague back in the chamber.

Im happy shes returned, and thats all Im going to say about it, Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono told CNN.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, who replaced Feinstein as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said, We certainly hope that Feinstein will be able to serve the remainder of her term in the chamber, but demurred when asked if he is confident that she can serve.

I cant be the judge of that. But I will tell you that she has to make that decision for herself and her family as to going forward, but were happy to have her back, he said. Were monitoring her medical condition almost on a daily basis. Our staff is in touch with her staff.

The top Republican on the panel, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said of Feinstein, Shes a dear friend. As a friend, you can see shes hurting.

Other Republicans echoed that sentiment, wishing Feinstein well, but reluctant to weigh in on her mental acuity.

I have a lot of respect for Dianne Feinstein. Shes been great to work with. Shes a great committee member, North Carolina Republican Thom Tillis told CNNs Manu Raju, but said that I havent had the chance to speak with her, so I couldnt really comment on it.

If you just take a look at anybody that spent ten months with a chronic case of shingles, that has a huge impact, I dont care how old you are, but again I just havent spoken with her, he said.

Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn said that he is not qualified to render a diagnosis, but criticized some Democrats for calling on her to resign.

That seems a little harsh to me. I think that decision ought to be made by Senator Feinstein, he said.

Questions about a Senators health, and whispers about their fitness to serve, are not new. In the past decades, the median age of the Senate has ticked increasingly upward, with the 118th Congress median age at 65.3 years, according to the Pew Research Center.

The current Senate has multiple members in their eighties, including Feinstein, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley. Another 41 Senators are at least sixty-seven years old, the official retirement age in the United States.

In recent years, there have been prolonged absences by members of the Senate, notably Arizona Sen. John McCain, who battled brain cancer and was absent from the Senate almost eight months, but never faced calls from his colleagues to resign his seat.

The late Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran was also out for several weeks with lingering health issues in the fall of 2017, and faced questions about his metal fitness, appearing frail and pale when he returned. The then-chairman of the influential Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters that he was fit to serve, and said at the time that he planned to run again in 2020, saying its up to the people to decide. I think I am.

But the 79-year old Republican needed to be guided by staffers to a Senators Only elevator to find his way to the Senate floor. Cochran resigned from the Senate the following March.

I regret my health has become an ongoing challenge, Cochran said in a statement announcing the end of a four-decade long career in the Senate. I intend to fulfill my responsibilities and commitments to the people of Mississippi and the Senate through the completion of the 2018 appropriations cycle, after which I will formally retire from the U.S. Senate.

It is unclear if Feinstein will be given the same gentle off ramp afforded to her colleagues.

On November 2020, Feinstein relented to pressure from other Democrats to give up the chair of the Judiciary Committee. In November 2022, under similar pressure, she announced that she would not want to serve as the Senate Pro Tempore, a high-ranking constitutional position granted to the longest-serving member of the Senate majority. Feinstein also announced the following February that she would not run for re-election in 2024. Her February 16, 2023 votes on the Senate floor would prove to be her last ones for months.

Criticisms for Feinsteins long absence started in earnest in April when fellow California Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna tweeted, its time for @SenFeinstein to resign. We need to put the country ahead of personal loyalty. Feinsteins office pushed back on the criticism, arguing that there had not been a significant delay in advancing and confirming judicial nominees.

After Fetterman and McConnell  who was injured in a fall and spent nearly two weeks in a rehabilitation facility  returned to the Senate, but Feinstein did not, it prompted more questions about the impasse created by her absence and Feinstein asked Schumer to temporarily replace her on the Judiciary Committee. Schumer proposed that Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin take her spot, but Senate Republicans blocked the effort, saying the move would allow judicial nominees they opposed to advance.

The-CNN-Wire

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The National Weather Service issued an air quality alert for Ravalli County on Thursday morning due to smoke from wildfires in Canada infiltrating the Northern Rockies.

An air quality alert means that particulates have been trending upward and have exceeded or are expected to exceed the 24-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) in the near future. As of 9 a.m. Thursday, particulate levels in Lolo, Missoula and Stevensville were moderate according to the National Weather Service (NWS). When air quality is moderate state and local health officials recommend that unusually sensitive people should consider reducing prolonged or heavy exertion.

Temperatures in the Bitterroot Valley are expected to rise into the mid-80s this weekend as a ridge of high pressure builds over the region. Widespread haze is expected to continue through Saturday morning, when westerly winds associated with this ridge should help to push the smoke out of the region. The clearing air should allow temperatures to climb to around 15 to 20 degrees above normal for this time of year, according to the National Weather Service (NWS), with a high of 86 expected on Saturday and 87 on Sunday. A high of 84 degrees is predicted for Friday. Overnight lows are expected to hover in the lower to mid-50s.

The City of Hamilton's Parks Department is warning residents of flooding in Skalkaho Bend and River Park. The Bitterroot River has breached its banks in lower lying areas of the parks, flooding out some trails. Residents are advised to use caution as spring runoff is expected to continue with above average temperatures driving snow melt.

The Bitterroot River measured at 10.24 ft. on Thursday, May 18 at Bell Crossing near Victor. The river is predicted to rise to 11.46 ft. on Monday, May 22. Flood stage is 11.5 ft. The Bitterroot River near Darby measured 5.89 ft. on Thursday. The river is predicted to rise to 6.35 ft. in Darby on Monday, May 22. Flood stage is 7.5 ft.

There's only a 510% chance the river will rise higher than forecast and hit flood stage this week, the National Weather Service predicted Monday. But there's up to a 25% chance it will hit minor flood stage next week before dropping off after May 28.

NWS models show a trough of low pressure moving into the region by Monday. A cold front associated with the system is predicted to push through the region on Sunday night into Monday causing showers and potential thunderstorms. Temperatures are expected to cool by Monday with a high of 75 predicted.
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Peggy S. Ratcheson

HAMILTON  Peggy S. Ratcheson, 80, of Hamilton, MT passed away Saturday, May 6, 2023, at her home after surviving a 20-month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was born Feb. 6th, 1943, in St. Louis, MO.

Peggy was raised in Clayton, MO and graduated from Clayton High School in 1961. She attended Miami University in Oxford Ohio for two years, then began a peripatetic university journey which included University of California Berkley, and upon her engagement, Washington University in St. Louis. She married then-medical student Robert A. Ratcheson, moving to Chicago in 1964, and graduated from Roosevelt University in Chicago in 1965.

Her next stop was Baltimore, MD where she taught English at Dundalk High School. In 1967 she relocated to Bethesda, MD, accompanying Bob who was working at the National Institutes of Health. During that time, Peggy earned her master's degree in English at the University of Maryland.

In 1969, she and Bob moved to St. Louis where she taught English at Ladue High School. In 1970 they adopted a son, Alexey, and from 1972 to 1973, they lived in Sweden. While there, she dedicated herself to an intensive study of the Swedish language. Upon returning to St. Louis in 1973, Peggy and Bob adopted a daughter, Rachael, and Peggy taught English at the University of Missouri in St. Louis.

The family moved to Shaker Heights, OH in 1981 where Peggy taught Swedish and English at Lakeland Community College. In 1986 she was awarded a PhD in Cultural Anthropology from Washington University. Her thesis focused on contemporary American food habits, particularly the rising gourmet movement. During her thesis work, Peggy met many of the major food critics and writers in the United States. The knowledge she gained from them allowed her to explore many of the special, but often lesser-known restaurants throughout the US.

Peggy began teaching in the Anthropology department at Cleveland State University in 1986 and had her second daughter, Abigail, in 1987.

From 1995-2003 she worked as an Associate Curator of Anthropology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. While there, she dedicated herself to the exploration of other cultures through far ranging field work. Notably, Peggy made a trip deep into the Amazon where she and her colleagues made the first contact with the Brazilian Waimiri-Atroari tribe after decades of their isolation. This led to a visit by tribal chiefs to her home in Cleveland. Her field work carried her to such places as Burkina Faso, Timbuktu, Mali, and Chiapas, Mexico, among many other countries. In the United States, Peggy worked with the native tribes of Owens Valley to study indigenous basket weaving techniques, culminating in the publication of the book Weaving a Legacy: Indian Baskets and the People of Owens Valley, California.

From 2004-2008 she worked as the Director of Education and Community Outreach at the Cleveland Artists Foundation.

In 2008 Peggy moved to Hamilton, MT, fulfilling her lifelong dream of living in Montana which was formed during her teenage years at a riding camp at Flathead Lake. Peggy immersed herself in conservation activities in the Bitterroot Valley, including serving on the board of Bitterroot Trout Unlimited where she was Secretary for seven years. In 2010 she joined the board of the Bitterroot Land Trust where she became President from 2021-2022.

Peggy loved the outdoors, venturing every year on a women-only trip with the Bitterroot Babes  a group of her friends who hiked, camped, rode, and pack tripped throughout Montana. She was an avid fly fisher and rafter, often rowing her family down the Bitterroot River. Peggy had a never-ending sense of humor and adventure, exploring foreign countries through her work or while traveling with her husband. She introduced each of her children to the wonders of the American West and instilled in them an appreciation for the beauty of America's wilderness. Peggy passionately believed in the causes she championed and dedicated herself to leaving the world a better place.

She is survived by her husband of 58 years, Robert A. Ratcheson, MD, her son Alexey Ratcheson, daughter Abigail Ratcheson, brother Jerome Steiner Jr., cousins Jack and Shelley Meyer, and beloved golden retriever Sophie.

A memorial service for friends and family will be held this summer in Hamilton. The family suggests that any memorials be made to the Bitterroot Land Trust, 170 S 2nd St, Hamilton, MT 59840.
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A woman being investigated on suspicion of hitting and killing an Indigenous woman in Arlee appeared in Butte-Silver Bow County court on Thursday for charges related to a separate incident. The charges stem from accusations that she broke into a Butte home and took her two kids illegally just seven days after the Arlee crash.

Mika Westwolf, 22, was walking along Highway 93 near Arlee on March 31 when a Cadillac Escalade traveling north on the highway struck and killed her, according to Montana Highway Patrol. Westwolf was declared dead at the scene. Two children, ages 2 and 4, were in the car, the report stated.

Court filings show Sunny K. White, 28, was charged in Butte-Silver Bow District Court with one count of burglary and one count of parenting interference, both felonies, in connection to an incident that happened on April 7, seven days after Westwolf was killed. She also is charged with one count of misdemeanor criminal mischief.

White pleaded not guilty to the charges at a court hearing on Thursday morning.

On April 7 at about 1:15 a.m., according to the case affidavit, White contacted Butte law enforcement requesting a civil standby to pick up her children from their biological fathers house.

White told the officer that she had two children with a man who lives in Butte and said she wanted to take the children from him because he was not a fit parent, the affidavit states. The childrens names are Aryan and Nation, which the Montana Human Rights Network said clearly indicate her support for white nationalist ideals. The childrens ages and genders match those in the March 31 fatal crash report.

The affidavit states the officer that responded to the April 7 call was aware of Sunny being in jail for an incident where someone was killed on a road and Sunny was driving a vehicle that was involved. White, according to the charging document, told the officer that charges were dropped due to her blood results being negative. But prosecutors wrote, It was later discovered that she bonded out and the charges were not dropped."

The officer advised White to wait the night out at a hotel and return the following morning to speak with day shift personnel to establish a plan. About 20 minutes later, 911 got a call about a woman breaking into a house in Butte, suspected to be White. She allegedly took two children from the house. Dispatch advised she was traveling in a black F-150 truck.

When he was interviewed, the childrens father told officers that White killed someone while driving a vehicle and she had the two kids with her. He told officers White was charged with criminal endangerment and other charges were pending toxicology results.

White is not currently in custody and is not currently facing criminal charges in connection to Westwolfs death. However, Lake County court records show White was cited with two counts of child criminal endangerment the same day Westwolf died, though the counts were dismissed without prejudice pending crime lab results. Dismissed without prejudice means the charges can be brought against White in the future.

Jay Nelson, public information officer for Montana Highway Patrol, confirmed that the agency was notified of a vehicle vs. pedestrian fatality crash on Highway 93 north of Arlee on March 31. He said the vehicle involved was located later that day, and the driver was interviewed. He confirmed that White is being investigated as a suspect and said the investigation is ongoing, pending search warrants and reports from the Montana State Crime Lab.

Lake County Attorney James Lapotka told the Missoulian last week that Whites Cadillac Escalade is being investigated by Montana Highway Patrol as the suspect car involved in hitting a pedestrian on March 31 near Arlee.

Westwolfs parents, Kevin Howard and Carissa Heavy Runner, who started a GoFundMe to help with the investigation of the death of Westwolf, watched Whites arraignment remotely on Thursday and said they were disappointed in the outcome.

Well, shes free again, said Heavy Runner.

Were just confused why shes not in jail, Howard added.

Whites next court appearance for the burglary and interference charges is scheduled for July 27.

Montana Standard Reporter Mike Smith contributed to this story.
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A friendly PSA never hurt anyone, right?

Here it goes: Folks, crush your barbs unless you plan to harvest your catch.

Ive known this forever as a practice to make hook removal much easier when releasing a fish.

But Ill have you know, barbs can also wreak havoc on human flesh.

No matter how great the day seems in a given moment, misery is always waiting around the corner.

As I was enjoying a beautiful spring morning last weekend, I managed to net a personal best (not an incredibly high bar, but still exciting) brown trout I hooked on one of the first flies I learned to tie after buying a vice last winter  a red San Juan worm.

If youve ever tried to safely release a trout while on a solo walk-and-wade excursion, like me, youve probably wished you had at least one more arm on more than one occasion.

Keeping the fish wet while simultaneously keeping my rod clear of the high water  which would have surely carried it downstream to never be seen again  I had my hands full.

And somehow I had to try to figure out how to remove the hook.

As it turns out, when a 20-plus inch brown trout wants to flop around with a hook in its mouth, it can do some damage.

I finally got the hook out, but not until it sliced my middle and index fingers and then dove barb-deep into the top of my thumb.

The fish swam off with plenty of energy, as most do this time of year.

And I was able to free myself from the hook. Stopping the bleeding was another story. Soon enough my waders were doused in my blood and I was headed home to find some disinfectant and a bandage.

Dont be like me. Crush your barbs.

Top picks

Bitterroot Lake  Kokanee fishing is picking up and is expected to continue improving through the month of May. Ice fishing techniques  vertical jigging with Hali jigs or Swedish Pimples tipped with maggots  is still a good way to catch fish here.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen

Hauser Reservoir  Shore anglers are still catching rainbows at the York Bridge boat ramp and Black Sandy while using egg pattern flies, Power Bait, night crawlers or spinners. Boat anglers are finding mostly rainbows and an occasional kokanee while trolling cowbells or dodgers with a wedding ring and while using orange or silver crankbaits. The walleye bite on Lake Helena has turned on, and most are being picked up while trolling perch-colored crankbaits and bottom bouncers with various colored walleye spinners or floating jigs tipped with crawlers.  FWP, Helena

Missouri River, below Holter  The water is somewhat colored, but not enough to create fishing difficulties as the trout have been biting just fine. BWO nymphs have been the primary fish catcher. Firebeads, sows, scuds and worms are still in the mix. PMD nymphs are in the water column as well. Anglers have also had success stripping white streamers.  Headhunters Fly Shop, Craig

Around western Montana

Beaverhead River  The Beaverhead opener is Saturday. Folks havent been able to fish the upper Beaverhead since it was closed early last season. The reservoir is filling rapidly, and we are looking forward to an excellent water year. Fishing right now on the lower river in town is fair depending on water clarity and tributaries contributing mud to the main stem. Sow bugs, midges and perdigons as well as various colors of San Juan worms will be your best bet fished on a drop shot rig. Special regulations apply to sections of the upper river. Guides and out-of-state anglers are not permitted High Bridge to Henneberry on Saturdays all season.  Frontier Anglers, Dillon

Big Hole River  The Big Hole is on the rise again. Fishing may become tough but not impossible. There is a lot of snow still expected to come down from the mountains and we are probably a little ways off from peak run off. Nymphing big Pats Rubberlegs with a red or pink San Juan worm will be the best bet for the high water. Skiddish Smolts, big Dungeons, Sparkle Yummy Minnows and Double Gongas are going to be great streamers especially if the water slows down. Be careful out there.  The StoneFly Fly Shop, Butte

Bitterroot River  The Bitterroot is big and muddy. Area creeks open Saturday and will open up some more fishing options. There are a lot of downed trees and blockages so contact a local fly shop or outfitter if you do decide to get on the Root..  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Blackfoot River  The Blackfoot is in full runoff; head elsewhere.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Canyon Ferry Reservoir  Rainbows are being caught from shore on the north end of the reservoir at the Outhouse, Shannon and Hellgate while using leech or egg pattern flies, worms or egg sacks. A few walleye are being caught between the Silos, Hole in the Wall and around Goose Bay by anglers trolling bottom bouncers with white, green or chartreuse spinner blades or crankbaits in 15 feet of water. Rainbows are also being caught with this same setup.  FWP, Helena

Clark Fork River, Missoula  The Clark Fork is in full runoff. There are better days ahead.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Gallatin River  The Gallatin is currently too high and muddy to fish. We might get a short window of better clarity in the next couple days due to colder nights. It might be worth checking out some local ponds around Bozeman, or fishing the lower Madison until the Gallatin clears up.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Georgetown Lake  The lake opens Saturday except for the south and east shorelines. Refer to the regulations on all bodies of water to ensure you know specific regulations that may have been put in place. When the lake opens, be sure to have black, olive, wine, brown and purple leeches. Slowing strip them back to you or let them hang under an indicator. Stillwater nymphs, chironomids, Sheep Creeks and damsel nymphs will soon become very good as well.  The StoneFly Fly Shop, Butte

Holter Reservoir  Shore anglers are still catching rainbows at the Gates of the Mountains, the BLM boat ramp and the Log Gulch boat ramp while using egg patterns, black and red leech patterns, Power Bait, night crawlers, spawn sacks or spinners. A few perch are being caught from the Log Gulch docks while pitching small green jigs tipped with crawlers. Boat anglers are finding good numbers of rainbows and an occasional kokanee on the lower end of the reservoir while trolling cowbells and wedding rings with lead core line, and while pulling a variety of crankbaits.  FWP, Helena

Madison River, Lower  The Lower Madison has probably been the most productive river recently with relatively consistent flows and clarity. However, flows were bumped up Tuesday by 700 CFS and will most likely continue to rise. There are some Mothers Day Caddis starting to pop off in great numbers as well as a large variety of other bugs including BWO's, midges, yellow Sallies and a few green Drakes.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Madison River, Upper  This stretch of water is starting to get muddy below where the west fork dumps in. Above that, the river is clearer, and fishing has been OK. Fish have been biting nymphs and streamers.  Montana Troutfitters, Bozeman

Rock Creek, Missoula  Runoff has rendered this stretch unfishable.  Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop, Missoula

Rock Creek, Philipsburg  Rock Creek flows are trending down. Anglers have been out on the creek and picking up a few fish but it has not been lights out. This last push of water was the main culprit with fish displaced and difficult to pick up in the main channel. While the creek is floatable, it is dangerous. If you're planning a float, be safe. Wear a life jacket. If in doubt, scout it out.  Flint Creek Outdoors, Philipsburg

Thompson Lake, Middle  The kokanee bite has been so-so, but the quality of fish has been whats attracting anglers. A lot of folks who manage to catch a few are coming away with fish to 14-15 inches. The strike zone has been in the 35-45-foot range while trolling wedding rings, cowbells or spinners tipped with maggots.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen

Thompson Lake, Upper  If youre looking to have a fish fry, this might be the spot. Fillet-size perch in the 7-10 inch range are on the chew. Anglers have been regularly putting up some really good numbers.  Chancey and Daves Fish Camp, Evergreen




XIAN, China (Reuters) - Central Asian heads of state converged in China's historic city of Xian on Thursday for one-on-ones with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seal pledges of "enduring" friendship, and paving the way for a summit expected to result in a regional pact with Beijing.





The bilateral talks will set the stage for a group meeting on Friday, the first in-person gathering of the six leaders, where Xi will deliver an "important" speech and an "important" political document will be signed, China's foreign ministry has said.





Across the Silk Road city of Xian, banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit, with some in both Chinese and Russian.





A large contingent of foreign journalists was also present to cover the event, including reporters from Africa where China is similarly seeking to assert and expand its economic and political clout.





The president of energy-rich Turkmenistan, the most distant of the Central Asian states from China, was the last of the five leaders to arrive, landing in Xian in the early hours of the morning on Thursday.





The first to land was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan - China's largest trading partner in Central Asia - with his face-to-face meeting with Xi on Wednesday ending with a deal to build "enduring friendship" and share "weal and woe".





"We have a common goal - to intensify bilateral relations," Tokayev told Xi.





"We are also united by the desire to strengthen regional and international security and cooperation."





The two sides agreed to take measures to ensure the safe and stable operation of the Kazakh section of the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline. They also agreed to deepen cooperation in oil and uranium.





Tokayev's deal with Xi will set the tone for the other bilateral meetings, where China will seek deeper cooperation with other Central Asia states in its quest to achieve greater food, energy and national security.





Two-way trade between China and Central Asia hit a record $70 billion last year, with Kazakhstan leading with $31 billion. Kyrgyzstan followed with $15.5 billion, Turkmenistan with $11.2 billion, Uzbekistan with $9.8 billion and Tajikistan with $2 billion.




BEIJING (Reuters) - Drawing lessons from the Ukraine crisis, a top Chinese general urged greater integration of novel capabilities, including artificial intelligence, with conventional warfare tactics ahead of any confrontation with the West.





A new genre of hybrid warfare has emerged from the Ukraine conflict, with the intertwining of "political warfare, financial warfare, technological warfare, cyber warfare, and cognitive warfare," General Wang Haijiang, commander of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Western Theatre Command, wrote in a front-page article in an official newspaper on Monday.





In the name of national security and to fend off perceived threats from the West, Chinese efforts to prepare the country for security challenges have not relaxed despite a slowing economy and COVID-19. Defence spending is set to rise for the eighth straight year in 2023.





The scale and sweep of Chinese military preparations are closely watched not just by the West, but also by China's neighbours and democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own.





"At present and in the future, local conflicts and turmoil are frequent, global problems are intensifying, and the world has entered a new period of turmoil and change," Wang wrote in Study Times.





"Various 'black swan' and 'grey rhinoceros' events may occur at any time, especially with the containing, encircling, decoupling, suppressing, and military threats of some Western nations," he continued.





Despite the hundreds of billions of dollars poured into defence spending, China's armed forces do not have much recent experience in a hot war, with its last - and brief - military conflict in 1979 with Vietnam.





The ability to win is needed to maintain national security, Wang wrote.





The PLA's combat-readiness in a hypothetical war has become a focus in recent months as China flexes its military muscle over Taiwan, putting itself in potential conflict with the United States.





Washington has a policy of "strategic ambiguity" over whether it would intervene militarily to defend Taiwan, but is bound by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.





China will seek new military advantages by building up capabilities in areas such as artificial intelligence, information networks, and aviation and space, Wang said.








A member of the security team protecting Prince Harry and Meghan has described a chaotic chase in New York involving paparazzi photographers on Tuesday, saying it could have ended with fatalities.





Speaking exclusively to CNN, Chris Sanchez said the Sussexes were chased by photographers after leaving the Women of Vision Awards at the citys Ziegfeld Ballroom.





In the end, no one was injured and the couple arrived safely, but shaken, at the apartment where they were staying, he said.





I have never seen, experienced anything like this. What we were dealing with was very chaotic. There were about a dozen vehicles: cars, scooters and bicycles, Sanchez said.





The public were in jeopardy at several points. It could have been fatal. They were jumping curbs and red lights. At one point they blocked the limousine (carrying the couple) and started taking pictures until we were able to get out, he added.





Police said the incident was challenging but there were no collisions and no one was hurt.





Sanchez said he was concerned about the principals (Prince Harry and Meghan) but more about the public because they (the paparazzi) were being so erratic. People were on sidewalks and crossing streets and the (paparazzi) were crossing red lights. We did everything by the letter of law.





Harry and Meghan switched cars more than once during the car chase, Sanchez said. The couple was seen leaving the awards ceremony in a black car and they were spotted in a yellow cab later.





After the incident, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were were scared, exhausted, but relieved to be back, he added.





The New York Police Department (NYPD) said it had been assisting the Sussexes private security team on Tuesday evening and that there were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging.





The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests in regard, said Julian Phillips, Deputy Commissioner for Public Information at the NYPD.





Prince Harry has been outspoken about the security of his family, often comparing his wifes treatment to that of his mother, Diana.





The couples spokesperson said that while being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyones safety and called on the media not to publish photographs from the incident.





A local law enforcement source corroborated some of the couples account, telling CNN that they were followed by a swarm of paparazzi on Tuesday.





The mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, said the incident was reckless and irresponsible.





Buckingham Palace told CNN on Wednesday that it would not be commenting on the incident.

CNN
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Seeking to counter rising antisemitism nationally and locally, the city of Richmond declared May as Jewish American Heritage Month to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments Jewish Americans made in the U.S.

Jewish Americans have left an indelible mark on every facet of American life, said Daniel Staffenberg, CEO of the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond. Jews have a proud tradition of philanthropy and community service, and we strive to make a positive impact on the cities and communities we call home.

Wednesdays event at City Hall was an initiative between the city, JCF and the Combat Antisemitism Movement to educate the public on Jewish American history and culture.

The Jewish community in Richmond was established in 1769, and later founded the citys first and the countrys sixth Jewish congregation in Beth Ahabah  then Kahal Kadosh Beth Shalome  in 1789.

Naval Commander Dana Griffin, a Richmond resident who served on active duty for 26 years and is a member of Jewish War Veterans, highlighted the Jewish veterans who fought for the U.S. in battles throughout American history.

Griffin recounted the story of Tibor Ted Rubin, a Holocaust survivor who immigrated to the U.S. and joined the Army. Rubin served in the Korean War while dealing with an antisemitic sergeant who frequently assigned him dangerous jobs.

Rubin was captured and sent to a Chinese prisoner of war camp, but survived his time there, saving dozens of other prisoners in the process. He was awarded the Medal of Honor in 2005, and is one of 18 Jewish service members to earn that distinction.

As we celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month, I ask each of you to recognize the achievements of Jewish people across all spectrums: the arts, military, science, medicine and law, Griffin said.

The celebration also served as a message discouraging the spread of antisemitism in the country and the commonwealth.

Antisemitic incidents increased 50% in Virginia in 2022, with five incidents occurring in Richmond, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

The fight against antisemitism and hatred is tiring, Staffenberg said. We are grateful for the opportunities weve had to partner with our city and its leaders to address issues affecting our community and the wider community of Richmond.

In 2022, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney spoke at the CAM Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism in Athens, Greece. This month, Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a bill defining antisemitism in Virginia law.

Today, Virginia has one of the fastest-growing Jewish populations in the country, Stoney said. My hope is that this trend continues as we continue to work hard to ensure Richmond is a welcoming and inviting city and home with the Jewish community.

Earlier this year, Stoney sent a letter to the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the League of Cities encouraging leaders to acknowledge JAHM. One hundred and thirty U.S. mayors signed the letter, and more than 70 localities proclaimed May as Jewish American Heritage Month for the first time.

Griffins 18-year-old grandson Peter Chumbris said that it is good to see more cities and states recognizing JAHM. He added that this kind of recognition can help decrease antisemitism.

The hate comes from stories and different things that arent true, especially stuff on the internet like memes on social media that depict Jews in a cruel way, Chumbris said. But people can educate themselves on why this happens, so that they can stop it when they see it.

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This weekend, a few hundred people will gather to select a GOP nominee to represent a Southside House District that extends from Goochland and Fluvanna counties to Appomattox.

Among the GOP candidates in the 56th District are a former state senator-turned-congressman, an attorney and a small-business owner with a background in marketing.

Tom Garrett, a former state senator-turned 5th District congressman, is hoping for a comeback nearly five years after he announced he would not seek re-election to Congress in order to focus on dealing with his alcoholism.

After attending conventions and GOP meetings over the years, Appomattox attorney Kevin Bailey thinks he can do a good job in the state legislature.

After serving as a legislative aide to a state senator and engaging with communities around the 56th District, Jennie Wood is eager for the chance to represent it.

With no apparent Democratic or independent candidates so far, whoever wins the GOP convention on Saturday is likely to represent the district next year.

The positions of the conservative candidates overlap on certain issues  they are in favor of restrictions or bans on abortion access, fiscal conservatism and supporting businesses in the rural agricultural district.

They each also echo the popular conservative call to give parents more say in school curricula, and they support the education savings accounts that GOP legislators attempted to create this recent session. (A bill sponsored by Del. Glenn Davis, R-Virginia Beach and backed by Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, stalled in a House committee. It would have allocated a portion of per-pupil state funding to a savings account for parents to spend on private school tuition or other specified education expenses.)

A number of people, apportioned per locality, have been selected to vote in Saturdays convention at Cumberland High School. That means less than a thousand of the districts more than 40,000 registered voters will choose the nominee.

Kevin Bailey

Bailey, an Appomattox-based attorney, is a graduate of the Liberty University School of Law. A conservative Republican, he supports smaller government and lower taxes. He plans to support funding for law enforcement and believes that life begins at conception.

While the 56th District is strongly Republican, Bailey noted that it will be important for Republicans to hold onto their edge there and secure an advantage in the Democrat-controlled Senate in order to pass any abortion restrictions or bans.

With his experience in criminal justice law, Bailey would like to make sure that repeat offenders receive harsher sentencing. He is critical of a 2022 law that allowed defendants to choose a trial by jury or to face a judge in what is called a bench trial. Bailey said the process can sometimes lead to lighter sentences for some defendants.

And, for instances where someone is repeatedly caught up in the criminal justice system due to addiction issues, he thinks incarceration can end the cycle.

I dont think if you have a first offense for a Schedule I drug, you should be locked up. You should first look to rehabilitation, Bailey said. But after someone has had several goes at it, I think lengthy incarceration is the only way to help them get off drugs.

Baileys inspiration to run for the seat partly stemmed from the recent years of Democratic control in the state legislature. He said he has heard a lot about education concerns from his potential future constituents, who he says have expressed a desire to have more input into school curricula.

Certain topics should be off-limits in a classroom setting, Bailey said.

He had been frustrated with COVID-related restrictions spearheaded by then-Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat. While Bailey noted the fear and lack of information at the onset of the pandemic, he was critical of the duration of the restrictions.

Bailey feels ready to represent voters in the conservative district. His endorsements include Sen. Amanda Chase, R-Chesterfield; Del. Les Adams, R-Pittsylvania; along with a variety of local elected officials in Lynchburg, Buckingham and Fluvanna  people he is ready to work with or for.

Ive been practicing law for almost 15 years. I am friends with several people in the General Assembly, Bailey said. Though Ive never been a politician, Im ready to work day one  to chip in and be part of the process.

Jennie Wood

Wood, a single mother with a background in marketing and events, said she would not just represent the district, but also the demographic of single, working mothers.

There arent many people like me in the General Assembly, Wood said.

She initially took an interest in government during the pandemic, when she felt the limitations on gatherings that the Northam administration established had gone on too long and were too restrictive.

Putting her paralegal studies degree from the University of Richmond to use, in 2022 she worked as a legislative aide for Sen. Mark Peake, R-Lynchburg. The experience gave her a firsthand look at the inner workings of state government and the legislative process.

In preparing for her campaign, Wood said she has spent a lot of time meeting with people from groups and industries within the district to get a better sense of how she could help with issues at the state level.

For example, in meeting with volunteer fire departments, she heard of their struggles to afford the equipment their members need. Volunteer departments exist to fill gaps where professional departments are lacking. Insufficient resources within departments can negatively affect the people the departments serve.

This affects response time. We need to support these volunteer departments, she said.

Noting the rural nature of the district, Wood plans to address gaps in rural broadband access, support area farmers and find ways to create more jobs in the district. She said the area is ripe for hemp agriculture, and she plans to support the industry within the legislature along with other agriculture, like farms and timber-cutting industries.

Wood supports bolstering technical education programs in schools to expose students to various career paths should they not wish to pursue a career that requires a college degree. It can also be a way to retain population in the area, she said.

We are losing population in this district because theres less incentive to keep kids here or bring people here, she said. We can provide services for our residents that are much needed. We can provide these kids with amazing careers and business opportunities that they can go start businesses in our community, bring economic growth, and we can keep them here.

She noted the role of broadband in education and telehealth, as well as business and economic development.

Growing broadband access can also bring data workers and remote workers, she said. I think people would love to live here with our rolling hills and gorgeous mountain views.

Tom Garrett

Garrett, the former senator and congressman, is hoping for a political comeback after a hiatus to cope with his alcoholism. The military veteran and solar company co-founder was an assistant state attorney general and Louisa Countys top prosecutor before he served Virginias 22nd Senate District from 2011 to 2017. That Senate district included a number of the same counties he is now seeking to represent in the House of Delegates.

Garrett represented the 5th District in Congress from 2017 to 2019. The district was then the size of the state of New Jersey and stretched from the North Carolina border upward, almost to Maryland.

At the time, he had also been subject to an Office of Congressional Ethics investigation that later found had Garrett misused staff for personal tasks outside of their official duties.

After struggling with his addiction for years, Garrett decided in 2018 not to battle challengers for the congressional seat and to battle alcoholism instead.

Im an alcoholic. Ill always be an alcoholic, he said last November when he announced his candidacy for the 56th District seat. I havent had a drink in 4 1/2 years. As soon as I start declaring victory over anything, it will come back and tap me on the shoulder.

In the meantime, Garrett said that, if elected, his experience will help him be ready to dive back into work immediately.

The biggest issue he wants to tackle is education, having grown dissatisfied with school curricula in recent years.

I think COVID has a legacy that will be written about for generations. But I think the preeminent legacy of COVID is allowing parents to peer over the shoulders of their children, Garrett said.

During the 2021 gubernatorial election, a key issue had been the debate over when to reopen schools. Some parents began to look at their childrens schoolwork with more scrutiny.

Critical race theory is a legal framework taught in college that explores how systems and institutions have disadvantaged people based on their race. Though not technically a course within K-12 education in Virginia, opponents say the writings on the topic are still influential in curricula and training at those levels.

Opposing alleged CRT in schools became part of Republican Glenn Youngkins successful gubernatorial campaign, but Garrett thinks the work is not done.

Garrett worries that schools are teaching children not to feel encouraged or empowered to achieve.

We need to start teaching our kids not about differences between races, he said, but instead that there is but one race  and I genuinely believe this  and thats the human race.

Close 01-29-1970 (cutline): Capitol is focus for women lobbyists' work during session. 01-23-1973 (cutline): Maybe a last look--legislative page David King, 13, looks at model of the State Capitol by Thomas Jefferson which soon may be removed from the building. 02-06-1962 (cutline): Byrd (left) and Del. Pollard view model of Capitol at Commitees' session yesterday. 10-10-1963: Capitol's lunch room. 03-13-1972: Inside of Capitol. 01-13-1962 (cutline): Virginia's Capitol early today, all ready for the Harrison inaguration ceremony. 02-21-1968 (cutline): Sign proclaims 'Fire Lane' along north side of Capitol. Parked cars are almost bumper-to-bumper, but Fire Chief is tolerant. 03-20-1964: Easter Sunrise service at the Virginia State Capitol 03-12-1974:In March 1974 at the state Capitol, Virginia first lady Katherine Godwin (second front right) unveiled a painting of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. The work, by Jack Clifton of Hampton (front), was presented by the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution; it commissioned the painting in cooperation with the Virginia Independence Bicentennial Commission. Assisting Godwin with the unveiling were state Sen. Edward E. Willey Sr. of Richmond and DAR official Mrs. John S. Biscoe. From the Archives: The Virginia state Capitol building A look back at the Virginia State Capitol building in the 60s and 70s. 01-29-1970 (cutline): Capitol is focus for women lobbyists' work during session. 01-23-1973 (cutline): Maybe a last look--legislative page David King, 13, looks at model of the State Capitol by Thomas Jefferson which soon may be removed from the building. 02-06-1962 (cutline): Byrd (left) and Del. Pollard view model of Capitol at Commitees' session yesterday. 10-10-1963: Capitol's lunch room. 03-13-1972: Inside of Capitol. 01-13-1962 (cutline): Virginia's Capitol early today, all ready for the Harrison inaguration ceremony. 02-21-1968 (cutline): Sign proclaims 'Fire Lane' along north side of Capitol. Parked cars are almost bumper-to-bumper, but Fire Chief is tolerant. 03-20-1964: Easter Sunrise service at the Virginia State Capitol 03-12-1974:In March 1974 at the state Capitol, Virginia first lady Katherine Godwin (second front right) unveiled a painting of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. The work, by Jack Clifton of Hampton (front), was presented by the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution; it commissioned the painting in cooperation with the Virginia Independence Bicentennial Commission. Assisting Godwin with the unveiling were state Sen. Edward E. Willey Sr. of Richmond and DAR official Mrs. John S. Biscoe.
A debate over whether Christianity is necessity for freedom and democracy to flourish misses the point: no one religion has a monopoly on planting the seeds for liberty. Instead, freedom is the very essence of what it means to be human. Grasping this will make cooperation between civilizations more likely.

Paul D. Miller, a professor of the practice of international affairs at Georgetown University, has argued in a recent essay in Christianity Today that Christianity is not necessary for democracy. Miller challenges conservative evangelicals who believe that Christianity is necessary for a free society. While admitting that Christianity played a significant role in inspiring Americas founding principles, Miller gives examples of non-Christian or fairly new Christian democratic societies to make the point that Christianity and democracy are indeed separable.

In response to Millers compelling essay, Trey Dimsdale presents a powerful rebuttal, highlighting significant concerns regarding Millers use of terminology. Dimsdale rightfully points out the confusing and inconsistent manner in which Miller employs terms such as democracy and free society. This inconsistency extends beyond semantics but points to a troubling trend as evidence indicates that not all democracies guarantee individual freedoms. In other words, the mere existence of electoral democracy does not automatically ensure the protection of individual liberties. Dimsdale further argues that Britain and France imported (or exported?) Christianity and democracy to their colonies and the presence of any democratic institutions [in former colonies] points toward an essential link between the two [Christianity].

Dimsdale also admits that there are some non-Christian or newly Christian parts of the world where human freedom is valued. He insists, however, that those parts have absorbed Christian ideas into their religious and political systems naturally, by proximity, or by force merely by adopting democratic principles.

The notion that colonizers disseminated democratic ideals fails to acknowledge the mechanisms employed by these powers to sustain their authority and subdue indigenous populations. For example, the British Empires civilizing mission was reformist in its claims, but in practice it was brutal. The violence took the form of electric shock, fecal and water torture, castration  sodomy with broken bottles and vermin; forced marches through landmines; shin screwing. Violence in the empire was not just an occasional means to liberal imperialisms end; rather, it was a means and an end for as long as the British Empire remained alive. It would be naive to think that the colonizers were deliberately introducing Christian ideas or developing democratic institutions in the Heart of Darkness.

Moreover, while it is crucial to engage in discussions about the influence of religious concepts on the development of the modern world, it is troubling to limit the importation of individual freedom and the rule of law exclusively to a particular religious tradition. Embracing such reductionist approaches is not only ahistorical but also detrimentally undermines the pursuit of human freedom.

A Novel Idea

For all humans, and not just Christians, liberty is the highest ideal and democracy the form of government that best affords liberty by recognizing the dignity of every individual. The ideas of liberty and individual dignity cannot be ascribed exclusively to Christianityor for that matter to any other religionas they are inherent in human nature. In short, they are what it means to be human.

Ibn Tufayl, a 12th-century Arab Andalusian philosopher, known for writing the first philosophical novel, Hayy ibn Yaqzan(Alive, the Son of the Awake), noted that it is in the very nature of humans to reach enlightenment through objective inquiry rather than merely their respective belief system or cultural lens. The protagonist, Hayy ibn Yaqzan, lives out the main idea of the novel, which is that true knowledge can be acquired through the process of reasoning and contemplation. Hayys extraordinary tale commences on a magnificent island in India, blessed with a climate of utmost harmony and perfection. Flourishing with exquisite flora and fauna, this island became the backdrop for the emergence of the first human, a baby boy named Hayy ibn Yaqzan.

The author presents two intriguing theories about Hayys origin. The first suggests that individuals could come into existence on this island through spontaneous means, without the involvement of parents. The second theory narrates the tale of a concerned princess from a neighboring island, who, like the biblical Moses, entrusted her baby to the sea in hopes of securing his safety on foreign shores. Regardless of his arrival, Hayy embarks on a solitary journey, finding solace in the care and nurture of a kindhearted gazelle aptly named Mother the Roe. As he grew up, he used his reason and observation to understand the working of nature, which ultimately enabled him to understand the principles of science, mathematics, and philosophy on his own.

It is important to note that such Enlightenment philosophers as Baruch Spinoza, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, and John Locke were all admirers of Ibn Tufayls work. Translated into Latin and English during the 17th century, the novels impact extended far beyond its immediate context, shaping the broader understanding of human reason and fostering intellectual progress during this era.

Notions of liberty and democracy are the outcome of human reason but, of course, various religious traditions like Christianity played an important role in their dissemination, as Miller notes in his Christianity Today article. However, these ideals cannot be labeled merely as Christian or Muslim. Doing so will seriously undermine their scope and character and provoke another Clash of Civilizationsthe idea that one civilization alone promoted the idea of human dignity while all others oppose it.

Is There Room for Liberty in Islam?

The current state of democracy and freedom in the Muslim world presents a deeply concerning picture. Out of the 50 Muslim-majority countries in the world, only a small number can be classified as electoral democracies. A recent Freedom House report reveals that while 60% of countries worldwide are considered to be democratic, only 14% of Muslim countries have achieved democratization. Similarly, most authoritarian Muslim governments have strict blasphemy laws to suppress critique and control the public discourse. Thirty-two Muslim-majority countries out of 71 criminalize blasphemy. Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Brunei, Mauritania, and Saudi Arabia have the strictest lawsi.e., capital punishment. These facts and figures lead us to a more serious and precise question: Is Islam inherently anti-democracy and anti-secularism?

Khaled Abou El Fadl notes that Islam does not offer any specific system of governance; rather, it demands certain values to be institutionalized as central to any Muslim polity. There are primarily three values described in the Quran: pursuing justice through social cooperation and mutual assistance (49:13, 11:119); establishing a nonautocratic, consultative method of governance; and institutionalizing mercy and compassion in social interactions (6:12, 6:54, 21:107, 27:77, 29:51, 45:20). In the contemporary world, democracy is the only system in which justice and the promotion of human dignity can credibly be established.

The Muslim Golden Age, spanning from the eighth to the 11th centuries, stands as a testament to the compatibility of Islam with individual freedom and entrepreneurship and offers a compelling demonstration of how Islamic principles laid the foundation for a transformative era. During this period, Muslim societies flourished, giving rise to renowned philosophers, merchants, and revolutionary advancements in agriculture. Moreover, numerous Western scholars acknowledge the significant contributions of early Muslim financial innovations to the emergence of modern capitalism.

During this period, it is worth noting that Western Christian countries witnessed a notable alignment between the Catholic Church and monarchy. In these regions, the enforcement of religious orthodoxy and intolerance were prevalent. In the words of Ahmet Kuru, Western Europe had neither a philosopher like Ibn Sina, nor a city like Baghdad, nor its own gold coin.

This discussion leads to a more pertinent question: What happened to the Muslim Golden Age and these formative phases of philosophical inquiry, liberty, and capitalism?

Human experience shows that individuals and societies grow if they are open and free. John Stuart Mill rightly noted that a state which dwarfs its men in order that they may be more docile instruments in its hands even for beneficial purposeswill find that with small men no great thing can really be accomplished. Early Muslim civilization offered space for the evolution of philosophy and creative theology that ultimately contributed to the well-being of society.

Ahmet Kuru argues in his most celebrated book, Islam, Authoritarianism, and Underdevelopment: A Global and Historical Comparison, that during the Muslim Golden Age, there was a certain degree of separation between the ulema (religious class) and the state (the political class) that made it relatively more open and conducive to human development. Most ulema did not work for the government; instead, they were either involved in nongovernmental jobs or commerce. This led, in Kurus view, to the creation of a religiously and philosophically diverse society where Muslims, Christians, and Jews contributed to economic and scientific development during that period.

However, over time, notes Kuru, owing to certain structural and economic changes, the Muslim world began to see the emergence of a symbiotic alliance between the state and ulema that stifled creativity and dynamism. Kuru insists that this alliance legitimized regressive interpretations of Islam and is responsible for the unnatural notions of Islam that continue to this day. For example, the presence of blasphemy laws, restrictions on womens mobility, and claims that music, photos, and art are haram (forbidden) do not present Islam as a religion of peace and love that expands human freedom. The reason such controlling and oppressive notions of Islam continue to exist is to legitimize the rule of unrepresentative dictators and their alliesi.e., power-hungry ulema.

In reality, as the experience of early Muslims reflects, Islam arrived as a liberating force. It advocated justice, the promotion of human dignity, and creativity. The Quran clearly states that God commands justice and beauty (Q 16:90), which means anything that is not beautiful is contrary to Islam and its teachings. It also implies that violations of human rights; disregard for privacy, personal property, and justice; or any other ugly thinking or actions are not Islamic.

The Quran and the experience of the early Muslims does not make what are essentially universal human values exclusively Islamic, just as the subsequent development of the same values in the Western world does not make them exclusively Christian. It also needs to be understood that if we ascribe universal human values to a particular religion, we may be unwittingly diminishing their utility and making them appear foreign and partisan, potentially engineering conflict.

In the face of rising populism and far-right movements, we need to reframe the narrative from a Clash of Civilizations to a Conversation of Civilizations, and ultimately to the Cooperation of Civilizations. I do believe that as much as there is a need to explain Islam, or Islamic Civilization, to the West, there is an equal, or arguably greater, need that Western civilization be explained to the world of Islam. Common ground must be explored between the two instead of merely competing interests so that instead of a Clash there is a Conversation, Cooperation, and Coexistence of Civilizations. The promotion of individual liberty, human dignity, and religious pluralism is certainly that common ground.
Meet DArcy Drollinger, a drag queen who's now the first drag laureate in the US

San Francisco has named the nation's first drag laureate to represent the citys famous LGBTQ+ community at a time when rights are under attack
Beer and wine were critical to the economy of France and Italy in the 1800s. It was not uncommon during Pasteur's life for products to spoil and become bitter or dangerous to drink. At the time, the scientific notion of "spontaneous generation" held that life can arise from nonliving matter, which was believed to be the culprit behind wine spoiling.

While many scientists tried to disprove the theory of spontaneous generation, in 1745, English biologist John Turberville Needham believed he had created the perfect experiment favoring spontaneous generation. Most scientists believed that heat killed life, so Needham created an experiment to show that microorganisms could grow on food, even after boiling. After boiling chicken broth, he placed it in a flask, heated it, then sealed it and waited, not realizing that air could make its way back into the flask before sealing. After some time, microorganisms grew and Needham claimed victory.

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However, his experiment had two major flaws. For one, the boiling time was not sufficient to kill all microbes. And importantly, his flasks allowed air to flow back in, which enabled microbial contamination.

To settle the scientific battle, the French Academy of Sciences sponsored a contest for the best experiment to prove or disprove spontaneous generation. Pasteur's response to the contest was a series of experiments, including a prize-winning 1861 essay.

Pasteur deemed one of these experiments as "unassailable and decisive" because, unlike Needham, after he sterilized his cultures, he kept them free from contamination. By using his now famous swan-necked flasks, which had a long S-shaped neck, he allowed air to flow in while at the same time preventing falling particles from reaching the broth during heating. As a result, the flask remained free of growth for an extended period. This showed that if air was not allowed directly into his boiled infusions, then no "living microorganisms would appear, even after months of observation." However, importantly, if dust was introduced, living microbes appeared.

Through that process, Pasteur not only refuted the theory of spontaneous generation, but he also demonstrated that microorganisms were everywhere. When he showed that food and wine spoiled because of contamination from invisible bacteria rather than from spontaneous generation, the modern germ theory of disease was born.
" " Thomas A. Edison stands with a replica of his first successful incandescent lamp, which gave 16 candlepower of illumination, the earliest precursor to today's 50,000 watt, or 150,000 candlepower, lamps. Bettmann/GettyImages

It is no exaggeration to say that the incandescent light bulb changed human civilization. With the advent of light bulbs, people could suddenly work and recreate deep into the night without relying on open flame (and its attendant heat, smoke and inherent danger) to illuminate a room.

While the impact of the electric light bulb is without dispute, the origins of the invention tend to be more open for debate. Conventional wisdom gives the credit to American Thomas Alva Edison, who obtained the earliest patents for incandescent light bulbs, the first in 1879 and the second in 1880. Yet some historians argue that it's far too reductive to give Edison all the credit. They posit that Edison was the one who invented the light bulb, but it was simply one in a long string of similar inventions.

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Others say that while Edison's electric light bulbs did stand out from their forebears, even more credit should go to British inventor Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, who worked on incandescent lamps at the same time and later partnered with Edison. And yet another set of historians argue that this revisionist history is an overcorrection, and Edison is indeed the rightful inventor of the light bulb. So what is the answer?
" " Researchers from University of California, Santa Cruz determined modern humans share much of their DNA with ancient Neanderthals and Denisovans. Yulia Serova/Shutterstock

Have you ever looked at an ad for a DNA test and wondered: What were my ancestors like? Who were these people that gave me their genetic code? Perhaps you pictured a group of shepherds, diligently tending their flock. Perhaps you imagined merchants selling spices from elaborate jars, or hunters tracking down a towering elk.

Did you picture a Neanderthal? Maybe you should have.

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New research from the University of California, Santa Cruz, suggests that only between 1.5 and 7 percent of the modern human genome is "uniquely human." "It's kind of interesting that it's such as small amount of the genome," says lead author Nathan Schaefer.

In the paper, published July 16, 2021, in Science Advances Genetics, Schaefer and his co-authors describe the genetic evidence that shows how our ancestors swapped DNA with other ancient hominins, like Neanderthals and Denisovans. However, "multiple bursts of adaptive changes specific to modern humans" make us distinct from those other contemporaneous species.

So, who were our mysterious human and nonhuman ancestors? Let's take a closer look.

" " This side by side comparison shows how a Neanderthal skull (foreground) looks next to a modern day human skull. Petr Student/Shutterstock
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FLORENCE, S.C.  Asset Technology Group recently cut the ribbon to officially join the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce.

Bill Lynch, owner of Asset Technology Group, surrounded by family, friends and chamber ambassadors, cut the ribbon welcoming him to the chamber.

Lynch began his business in 2005 to develop Asset Technology Group to provide fast, friendly, and highly responsive managed IT services for businesses and municipalities.

Most business owners find managing and protecting technology to be quite a challenge. ATG takes on all those IT tasks and issues so business owners can get back to what matters most  running their business. Asset Technology Group provides 24/7 support and pro-active maintenance offers peace of mind, according to the Chamber

Their services address multiple tiers of an IT system that include managed firewalls, network security, backup and disaster recovery, email and spam protection, VoIP, website design, hardware, software, and more. With security paramount, they work hard to protect networks and provide a layered approach with proven solutions and measurable results.

Asset Technology Group is located at 213 S. Main St., Darlington  business hours Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

The business also has a 24/7 line for client emergencies.

Their website is https://www.assettg.com/. They can also be found on Facebook, LinkedIn, & Instagram. Their phone number is 843-868-3001.
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Downy mildew is making its annual appearance in South Carolina a little early this year and a Clemson University specialist says now is the time to protect cucurbits.

Downy mildew destroys plant foliage and is common on cucurbits, a family of plants that includes cucumbers, various melons, squashes and gourds. It makes annual unwelcome visits to South Carolina in late May or early June. The first sighting for 2023 was on butternut squash in Charleston on May 12.

This is two weeks earlier than when it was first detected in 2022, said Tony Keinath, professor of plant pathology, and Research and Extension vegetable pathologist at Clemsons Coastal Research and Education Center in Charleston. The strain that affects squash and watermelon often is not seen until later in the year.

Keinath credits downy mildews early appearance with South Carolinas spring temperatures.

The moderate spring temperatures weve had may be responsible since the downy mildew organism doesnt like extremely hot weather, he said.

Growers should not be alarmed by this early appearance but should spray all cucurbits with one of the fungicides recommended in the Cucurbit Downy Mildew Management spray guide available from the Clemson Cooperative Extension Services Land-Grant Press.

Growers also should be prepared to start applying downy mildew fungicides weekly after the disease appears in their area, he said.

To stay updated, growers can get cucurbit downy mildew forecasts at https://cdm.ipmpipe.org/.

Cucurbit downy mildew is caused by the fungus-like oomycete Pseudoperonospora cubensis. It does not overwinter in South Carolina but spreads from more southern states via wind-blown spores and can travel up to 1,000 miles in two days.

This pathogen also can be spread through infected transplants. The disease begins as dark, irregular spots that spread quickly on plants leaves, causing them to curl. It ultimately leads to a reduction in photosynthesis that can interfere with fruit development.

In addition to South Carolina, Downy mildew also has been reported on watermelons in Florida and squash and cucumbers in southern Georgia. Keinath advises South Carolina watermelon growers to spray their crops with protectants. Spray recommendations can be found in the Watermelon Fungicide Guide, also available from Clemson Extensions Land-Grant Press.
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FLORENCE, S.C.  Florence County sheriffs deputies and the Florence County Coroners Office are investigating human remains found near June Lane off Church Street in Florence.

The remains were found Wednesday in a wood lot on June Lane about 100 yards from Prout Drive in what appeared to be an abandoned homeless village.

Florence County Coroner Keith von Lutcken said it appeared the remains had been in place at least two years and an examination at the scene didnt show any obvious signs of trauma.

The remains will be sent to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston to be examined by a forensic anthropologist..

The coroner said DNA from the remains, which were in excellent condition given the weather and scavenging animals, would be used to help identify the person.
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FLORENCE, S.C.  Wilson High School students had something extra with their lunch Thursday  bang bang chicken.

The chicken came in a sample-size package with their regular meal as part of Chartwells Global Eats program designed to teach students about other cultures through food.

We introducing the kids to different countries. Today were going to China and thats why we have the Szechuan chicken, bang bang chicken. Its a healthy way to eat it but still good food, said Katrina Smith, Florence One Schools head chef for its food vendor, Chartwell.

Its a little spicy, but most of our kids like spicy, they love spicy, Smith said.

Its important to expose them to new cultures and new food, Smith said of school students. When you learn about food you learn about a lot of stuff. Food is culture.

Thursdays sampling also gave Smith the chance to grab a couple of spatulas and get behind a cooktop.

Its definitely fun for me and the kids love to watch me cook, Smith said.

This is garlic and ginger, brown rice, peas and carrots, green onions, this is the chicken, sesame seeds and cucumbers and bang bang sauce and shredded cabbage  in the right order at the right time.

Most of the ingredients can easily be from leftovers of other, different, meals, Smith said.

The meals, part of next years Global Eats program, are inspired by Italy, China, India and Mexico, said Angela Price with Chartwells.

It gives the students an opportunity to have food from different cultures. They can travel around the world still be in a school cafeteria, Price said.

If you think where families gather its around the dining table. Food is a big part of what makes everybody happy, Price said.

Thursdays sampling was in addition to the students usual lunch  free to those who bought a hot lunch and those who brown-bagged it.

The meal also came with some decorative accoutrements, some literature about the program and a recipe card for students who want to make it again at home.

A positive reaction to the dish means that students next year could find it in rotation with other lunch selections, Price said.
Seguin, TX (78155)

Today

Partly cloudy early with increasing clouds overnight. Low 67F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy early with increasing clouds overnight. Low 67F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
Several southeast Asian countries, prominently Malaysia and Singapore, have strict punishments dictated by law for drug crimes, demonstrating zero-tolerance for drug related offences and crimes in the region (AFP via Getty Images)

Malaysia is looking to decriminalise the possession and use of illegal drugs in small quantities in a reform aimed at bringing down its prison population, and taking the first step as a southeast Asian country to water down capital punishment for drug offences.

The countrys home minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said a new bill on this is in progress and will be presented to the Cabinet in July.

The bill Drugs and Substance Abuse Act will then be taken to the Parliament for its first reading in this year.

With this law, for the type of offences where drugs are found on the body, whether in terms of possession or use in a smaller quantity, the original idea was to not consider this as a common drug crime, the Home Affairs minister told reporters at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS) on Monday.

This proposed law will focus on rerouting these drug offenders guilty on smaller counts to rehabilitation centres covered under Malaysias anti-drugs agency Agensi Anti Dadah Kebangsaan (AADK) to reduce overcrowding in prisons.

They will be referred directly to rehabilitation centres, either institutional or community-based treatment and rehabilitation that are under the jurisdiction of AADK and not straight to jail, he said.

Drafting of the bill is also on schedule, the minister said.

This is the latest move by Malaysia in a series of criminal justice reforms pursued by prime minister Anwar Ibrahims government.

Earlier this year, Malaysia abolished the mandatory death penalty and natural-life prison terms as it also looked to decriminalise suicide attempts.

Geographically, Malaysia is considered a key transit point for illegal narcotics trade. The police said nearly 29,000 people were arrested in 2022 for various drug offences, the bulk of whom were addicts.

Several southeast Asian countries, prominently Malaysia and Singapore, have strict punishments dictated by law for drug crimes, demonstrating zero-tolerance for drug related offences and crimes in the region.

As a result, both nations have convicted and executed several national and international convicts on the grounds of consumption, trafficking or being involved in the conspiracy to carry out the illegal trade of drugs.

This has also sparked a wave of concern from the international community and activists.
Revolutionising stroke care: Singapore's National University Hospital employs AI triage for faster and more precise treatment. (PHOTO: NUH)

SINGAPORE  Stroke patients at Singapore's National University Hospital (NUH) can benefit from a faster and more efficient care delivery system, thanks to artificial intelligence (AI).

Using an AI triage tool called RapidAI, the hospital can quickly identify stroke patients who would benefit from endovascular treatment - a less invasive procedure for treating stroke.

NUH said on Thursday (18 May) that this approach saves crucial minutes, enhances patient outcomes, and potentially establishes a new standard of care for stroke patients in the country.

Since February, all suspected stroke patients at NUH have been receiving care with the assistance of RapidAI, with 400 patients benefitting from the tool so far.

Transforming stroke care

Stroke, particularly acute ischemic stroke which results from blockages in major brain blood vessels, is a leading cause of disability around the world. According to the Ministry of Health, it is the fourth leading cause of death in Singapore, affecting four per cent of adults aged 50 and above

Restoring blood flow promptly is crucial for effective treatment, and patients with blockages in their brain's large arteries undergo mechanical thrombectomy, which physically removes clots and unblocks the artery.

According to NUH, the success of this treatment depends heavily on time, making advanced imaging crucial for selecting appropriate candidates for treatment.

The RapidAI platform automatically processes imaging data from CT scans, generating colour-coded images with relevant information, and instantly notifies stroke neurologists and interventional radiologists. It also informs doctors about the extent of brain damage caused by the stroke and the volume at risk that can potentially be saved through mechanical thrombectomy.

Previously, radiographers manually processed CT scans, and it could take up to 20 minutes before relevant information was available for review by doctors.

Caring for over 1,000 ischaemic stroke patients annually

The stroke team at NUH takes care of over 1,000 patients with ischaemic stroke every year. About one out of every six cases receives endovascular treatment.

Adjunct Associate Professor Anil Gopinathan, head and senior consultant of the NUH's Interventional Radiology division, expressed his optimism about the AI platform,

"AI has the potential to completely change the speed at which therapeutic decisions are made, thereby reducing the amount of brain cells lost and improving the likelihood of a stroke patient walking out of the hospital," he said.

Dr Leonard Yeo, NUH senior consultant in the Division of Neurology, said the hospital sets a target of providing appropriate treatment to at least half of acute ischemic stroke patients within an hour of their arrivals.

He believes that with the AI-powered platform, NUH can significantly improve on this target and reduce the door-to-puncture time for patients.

"With each minute of delay in opening a blocked artery, the patient could lose 1.9 million brain cells. Hence, 'time is brain'," he said.

Do you have a story tip? Email: sgnews.tips@yahooinc.com.

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 92  65    2.5 3  AirwallexVisa 2653 905 50  55 0.68%  Netflix330     1.93% 2.25% 95% 22% 9200  265 5 50.51% 4700 VinFastSUV  8.6  668   2.06% 2.47% 6 49.9% University Hill190   AI 356  12 2000   0.97%0.76% mReferral_Column - 
The Supreme Court has sided with Google, Twitter and Facebook in lawsuits seeking to hold them liable for terrorist attacks. But the justices sidestepped the big issue hovering over the cases  namely the federal law that shields social media companies from being sued over content posted by others. The justices unanimously rejected a lawsuit alleging that the companies allowed their platforms to be used to aid and abet an attack in Turkey and. In the case of an American college student who was killed in an Islamic State terrorist attack in Paris, a unanimous court returned the case to a lower court, but said there appeared to be little, if anything, left of it.
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SOUTH SIOUX CITY  Nearly four years ago, Manuel Roblero Sandoval arrived in South Sioux City from Guatemala, ready to start high school but unable to speak any English.

South Sioux City High School counselors told him it likely would take him longer than the usual four years to finish school.

"When they told me this, I was sad," Manuel said.

But soon after starting school, Manuel heard encouraging news from another student who had faced a similar situation.

"My friend told me you can work harder and finish."

That's what Manuel did.

He took summer classes, doubled up on his class schedule when possible and gained credits through an online program school counselors usually discourage students who aren't natural English speakers from taking because it can be hard for them to understand. He took the classes anyway, successfully completing them.

"Basically, he was working twice as hard," school counselor Julie Moreau said.

On top of all that, Manuel works from 5 p.m. to midnight at the Tyson Foods plant, squeezing in homework before and after his work shift.

"I don't have so much time to sleep or to take a break," he said. "That's the most difficult part."

On Sunday, all that hard work will pay off. Manuel will receive his high school diploma, graduating in four years while learning a new language on the fly.

"Sometimes I thought I could never finish high school," the 19-year-old said. "It's important because I can get a better job, a more easy job."

Those possibilities are what led him to leave his home in Malacatan, Guatemala, by himself at age 16 after working to save money to come to the United States.

"I came to find more opportunities, schooling, to find a better job for my future and to help my family," he said.

After spending four months in Texas waiting for the completion of his immigration paperwork, Manuel came to South Sioux City to live with an uncle and almost immediately began high school despite not speaking any English. He took classes to learn English, but sat through other classes in which he had a hard time understanding the teacher. Other Spanish-speaking students helped him make sense of it all.

"I was half scared. I didn't know anybody," he said.

After two years, he picked up a job at La Isla restaurant to pay his bills before taking the job at Tyson.

The accelerated class schedule and learning English all while working were a challenge, Manuel said, but worth it. The diploma he's picking up is one of the reasons he left his home for a country that offers more opportunities.

"When I was in Guatemala, I had a harder life. Here, I feel better because I have better things and I have a good job," said Manuel, who now speaks and understands English well.

In the process, Manuel's become a mentor for younger students who face situations similar to those he faced four years ago. He encourages them to push through doubts about making it through school and graduating.

"If they think they can't do things like graduate from high school, they need to keep working," he said. "They need to work hard and think of a better life."

That desire for a better life remains at the top of Manuel's mind.

He plans to spend the next year improving his English and working to save money for college. He wants to be a nurse so he can help others. He'd like to stay in the United States, if possible.

"I feel so happy. I feel more comfortable. I feel more confident for myself," he said, speaking in a language that four years ago was foreign to him but is now familiar.
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SIOUX CITY -- A man was arrested with 434 fentanyl pills in Sioux City after an early Thursday morning pursuit.

Benito Miguel Curiel, 23, was arrested with the pills following a pursuit by South Sioux Police, Sioux City Police and Iowa State Patrol, according to a Sioux City Police news release.

At around 12:38 a.m. Thursday the three departments were in pursuit of a black Nissan Rogue driven by Curiel. It started in South Sioux City and went across the Veterans Memorial Bridge into Sioux City.

Once in Iowa, stop sticks were deployed, and the pursuit continued until the vehicle became disabled at approximately Hill Ave. and 27th St., according to the news release.

A plastic baggie with 434 fentanyl pills was found in Curiel's pocket.

He was charged with possession of a controlled substance (A class C felony), failure to affix a drug stamp (A class D felony), felony eluding, no driver's license, interference with official acts, failure to obey traffic control device, operating without registration, and driving on defective tires.

Curiel had outstanding warrants for his arrest. In November he was charged with carrying a handgun while intoxicated and unlawful possession of a prescription drug, which was 11 Xanax pills, according to court documents.

While out on bond he didn't show up to a pretrial hearing in March, leading to the arrest warrant.
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SIOUX CITY  A Sheldon, Iowa, man pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday of the 2021 armed robbery of a Sheldon bank.

Leon Sutton pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Sioux City to one count of bank robbery. According to terms of a plea agreement, lawyers will recommend Sutton receive an eight-year prison sentence. A sentencing date has not been set.

Sutton entered Iowa State Bank on June 3, 2021, brandished a handgun at two bank tellers and demanded they fill a bag with cash. The tellers put $17,379 in the bag, and Sutton left.

Sheldon police officers and FBI agents later executed a search warrant at Sutton's home and found a glove consistent with the gloves worn by the robber.

Sutton will be ordered to repay the bank as a condition of his sentence. A charge of using a firearm during a crime of violence will be dismissed after sentencing.
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Dennis Lee Lihs

Sioux City

Dennis Lee Lihs, 77, of Sioux City passed away on Monday, May 15, 2023, at a Sioux City Hospital.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 20, at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. Rev. David Hemann will officiate. Burial will be at the St. Wenceslaus Cemetery in Tabor, S.D. Visitation with the family present will be from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday with a Vigil Service at 7 p.m. on Friday at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel. Online condolences may be sent to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

Dennis was born Jan. 31, 1946, in Yankton, S.D., to Edwin and Lillian (Hroza) Lihs. Dennis spent his early years in Pickstown, S.D. There he attended elementary and high school, graduating in May 1964. His summers were spent fishing, hiking, and swimming at Lake Francis Case, near Fort Randall, S.D.

In his youth, one of Dennis' passions was cross country running. This led him to attend Southern State College in Springfield, S.D. As a junior, he was undefeated in all distance events and was twice named "most valuable" and team captain. He was a four-year athlete and went on to become one of SDIC's all-time greatest runners. In 1968, Dennis qualified for the Olympic trials in both the two-mile and three-mile steeple chase.

In 1969, Dennis graduated with a degree in industrial arts and married his wife Lois (Poulosky) Lihs. Dennis went on to earn his master's degree from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. From there, he and his wife spent two years teaching on the island of Guam. Upon returning stateside, Dennis taught for five years in Sioux City before relocating to Rapid City, S.D., in 1979. There, he owned an art gallery and framing business. Some of the unique items he framed while operating the gallery belonged to Pope John Paul II, Korczak Ziolkowski (sculptor of Crazy Horse), and many items for the Mount Rushmore Memorial. In 1994, Dennis and his family returned to Sioux City, where Dennis taught in area schools until his retirement in 2003.

Dennis was an avid outdoorsman who enjoyed hunting, hiking and fishing, as well as all kinds of water sports. If Dennis wasn't on the boat at the lake, he enjoyed traveling to local fish fries, church bazaars, and other festivals. He was proud to be from South Dakota, but he also loved to travel and to meet new and old friends when he and Lois wintered in Florida throughout their retirement years. Dennis and his wife enjoyed these winter months in Florida, where they spent time with friends from all over the world. Dennis especially loved trying new foods and restaurants while wintering in Florida, and he developed a love for deep sea fishing and spending time with his friends and wife on the beach.

Dennis also put his heart and soul into helping others. He enjoyed working with his hands, and he used his talents and skills to help those affected by hurricanes through Habitat for Humanity.

He is survived by his wife Lois; son Jason (Stacey) Lihs; daughter Erika (Paul) Richardson; son Ryan (Ashley) Lihs; grandchildren Madison, Morgan, Molly, and Alex Lihs, Chase, Pierce, and Elyce Richardson, and Aaron and Austin Lihs; brothers Delwin, Jerry, and David; sister Barbara; three aunts; and many cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents Ed and Lillian Lihs; father-in-law Jack Poulosky; mother-in-law Sheila Poulosky; grandparents; and several aunts and uncles.
The Auschwitz-Birkenau state museum has launched a two-year effort to preserve 8,000 shoes that belonged to children before they were murdered at the Nazi German death camp. In all, about 110,000 shoes of victims remain at Auschwitz, some on display in a large room where visitors file by daily. Many are warped and are in a state of decay, yet they endure as emotional testaments of lives brutally cut short.
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LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects allegedly sheltered inside expired on Thursday.

The siege and the authorities' demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khan's recent detention, have angered the former prime minister's many followers and raised fears of renewed clashes between them and security forces.

Last week, Khan's supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested in a graft case. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country in the days that followed. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khan's release.

On Tuesday, Khan demanded a probe into the violence, but denied his supporters were behind it. Khan accused Pakistan's ruling party of trying to foment trouble between his supporters and the army, without offering any evidence of his claim. He was speaking at a media conference held at his house, despite police surrounding it.

The popular opposition leader was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistans second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along with private guards. Police surrounded the residence on Wednesday, saying they want 40 suspects handed over.

The ultimatum for Khan ended at 2 p.m. local time, but there were no immediate signs of unusual movement by police. Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, invited reporters to the house to witness any police raid.

Hours after the expiry of the ultimatum, Hassan Javed, a senior police official, told reporters that officers were waiting for a signal from the government to launch the raid. He said police captured at least eight suspects after they left Khan's house and tried to escape via a nearby canal.

Typically between 200 to 300 of Khan's supporters, holding sticks, guard his residence around the clock, but most disappeared overnight. Police have barricaded a key road leading to the house and asked residents to use an alternate route.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest, the 70-year-old popular opposition leader tweeted Wednesday, after the siege started. Police have surrounded my house.

Later, Khan addressed his supporters saying that the police can only search his house with a search warrant and not barge in, creating chaos.

According to Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, police were ready to use firearms if attacked. He told a news conference Thursday that at least 3,400 suspects linked to the clashes have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir said authorities would send police to search Khan's residence on Friday, in comments that appeared to defer the threat of clashes overnight with the leader's supporters.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. Angered over the recent attacks on military installations, two lawmakers and some senior politicians have quit Khan's party, saying they cannot support the man who incited people to violence.

The plan to try civilians in military court has drawn criticism from the advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

Khan was ousted by a non-confidence vote in Parliament last year. He has claimed the ouster was illegal and a Western conspiracy.

He now faces more than 100 legal cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials and defying a ban on rallies. He has been summoned by National Accountability Bureau to answer questions Thursday in connection to a graft case he faces along with his wife.

But Khan informed the agency that he could not attend because he was busy struggling to get protection from arrest in many of the cases against him. In his written reply to the agency, he said its probe against him was politically motivated.
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With Republicans holding a razor-thin majority in the U.S. House, Winning For Women  a conservative political action committee dedicated to electing women to public office  released its first round of endorsements in 2024 battleground seats Wednesday.

Among them are Iowa Republican U.S. Reps. Ashley Hinson of Marion and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa.

In the last cycle, Winning for Women and related entities raised $17 million to support its endorsed candidates, including directing nearly $4 million in hard dollars to their campaigns.

With these endorsements, WFW PAC will max out to each candidate and commit to hosting fundraisers across the country to ensure they have the resources needed to win, according to a statement.

The PAC, according to its website, supports right-of-center women leaders who are working to advance free-market principles and a strong national defense.

WFW PAC founder and chairwoman Annie Dickerson, in a statement, said the candidates are rising stars in the party and that its never too early to start playing offense.

Hinson represents Iowas 2nd Congressional District, which includes Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Waterloo and Grinnell.

Telling Iowans stories in Congress and fighting for conservative policy solutions has been the honor of my life, but were just getting started, Hinson said in a statement. There has never been a more important time to have strong, conservative women join our fight.

Hinson said WFW PAC played a tremendous role in sending a historic number of Republican women to Congress in the 2022 midterm elections, by giving early support to top-tier candidates.

Im honored to have Winning For Women PACs continued support as we fight to expand our majority in the House, and work to elect more Republican women to stand up for working families, push back against the Biden administrations radical policies, and bring fiscal sanity back to Washington, Miller-Meeks said in a statement.

She represents southeast Iowas 1st Congressional District, which includes Davenport, Iowa City, Burlington and Indianola.
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Books are cool, even during the long, hot days of summer.

Thats why Michael Maxwell, the readers service specialist librarian recently compiled fiction and nonfiction books for the Sioux City Public Librarys 2023 Summer Reading Tracker & Prize Guide.

There are plenty of summer reading programs geared toward kids, he said. Three years ago, we decided to get grownups involved with reading.

This years eclectic selection of 12 books will, more or less, follow the theme of finding ones voice.

Among the most unusual books is It Cant Happen Here, Sinclair Lewis 1935 dystopian political novel which describes a U.S. dictator whose rise to power is similar to Adolf Hitler.

More contemporary is Sara Novics 2022 novel True Biz, which takes place in a school for the deaf and, even, offers a tutorial in American Sign Language (ASL).

Fans of pop star Beyonce might already be familiar with the work of poet Warsan Shire, whose book Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head is also a summer reading selection.

Beyonce used several of Shires poems in her Lemonade album, Maxwell said.

Graphic novel devotees will enjoy Marjane Satrapis Persepolis, which is an illustrated memoir about growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution.

A graphic novel or a book of poetry are perfect examples of literature you can read on the go, Maxwell said. You can read it cover to cover or, maybe, a few pages wherever you want. Theyre more accessible than a traditional novel or biography.

Several nonfiction entries can be enjoyed in hardcover or as an eBook.

They include A Little Devil in America, which is Hanif Abdurraqibs critically-acclaimed book examining Black art, music and culture, to Kim Kellys Fight Like Hell, the untold story of American labor union that even namechecks Sioux City in its pages.

Maxwell is encouraging everyone to sign up for the Beanstack Tracker App (siouxcitylibrary.beanstack.org/reader365), which will record activities to earn badges that will improve a persons chance to win prizes.

The prizes can be anything from water bottles to art pieces to a vinyl record player, Maxwell said. This years grand prize is a staycation package, courtesy of The Warrior Hotel.

Dont worry, there is no cost involved joining the Librarys Summer Reading Program.

You do not even have to read any of the recommended books to earn a badge, Maxwell said. You can read another book or, even, a magazine, an audiobook and a music CD, instead, and still be eligible for a prize.

However, he would prefer people to read his summer reading selections.

We literally have books that should satisfy every interest, from beach reads to more serious fare, Maxwell said.

Still, he is gratified by the response hes gotten from past Adult Summer Readings Programs.

Summertime is a perfect time to get back into a good book, Maxwell said.
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Dear Annie: Eleven years ago, I lost my 19-year-old daughter suddenly. Up until that point, I loved cuddling with babies. I loved everything about them, including their smell, their soft skin, their innocent eyes, etc. If a friend or family member had a baby, I wanted to hold the sweet thing and cuddle.

Since my daughter passed away, however, I no longer am comfortable with babies. I feel very nervous and anxious around them.

Recently, a woman I knew just briefly had a sweet little baby girl. When she introduced her new baby to me, she asked me if I wanted to hold her and she pushed the baby in my direction. I politely said, No, thank you, but she was persistent. Then the people in the group we were with were acting like I was being rude by not wanting to hold the baby.

I want people to know, first, that their baby is not a toy for others to play with. Second, not everyone wants or feels comfortable with a baby, for personal reasons. This is nothing against them or the baby necessarily.

A baby is a trigger to many people who have lost one.  Loves Babies from a Distance

Dear Loves Babies from a Distance: Thank you very much for your letter. It really highlights the theme of not judging someones actions when you dont know their full story. When the woman thrust her baby on you, she didnt respect your wishes and was not being very compassionate. At the same time, she might have been exhausted and just needed someone to hold her baby (but still not your job).

I am so very sorry for the loss of your daughter. There is life before and life after you endure a tragedy of such magnitude. If a baby is a trigger for you, you have every right to not want to hold a baby. Thank you for sharing your letter, and I pray that you have a wonderful grief support system in place.

Dear Annie: You answered a letter from Friends in Retirement, a lady whose husband is now retired and blind. You suggested he open his own bakeshop or work at one. May I offer other suggestions, since he needs someone to talk WITH not just TO? There is an organization called National Federation of the Blind and another called Council of the Blind. Both of these organizations have chapters in every state and possibly Canada. They could look in the government pages of a phone book or look up blind organizations on their phone. There may be a school for the blind in the near vicinity who could offer assistance. In our area there is even a local blind group. These organizations offer meetings, activities, assistance with blindness skills and friendship. Many of the members are retired. Good luck. My husband has been blind his entire life, so it is something we are used to.  Social Worker

Dear Social Worker: Thank you for your suggestions.
Its more fun via email (promise). This article first appeared in our Slatest evening newsletter, which seeks to surface the best pieces published across Slates digital and audio journalism. We publish it there to help you cut to the chase at the end of each day. To get it in your inbox, along with more of the best work we published that day, sign up below.

Donald Trump was apparently clued in on a plot to steal data from voting machines in Georgia. So why isnt the DOJ investigating?

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Ben Clements and Susan Greenhalgh, who first brought this alleged election crime to the attention of the FBI last year, review the evidence and why theres no excuse for the Justice Department and FBI to continue to ignore it.

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Speaking of the various Trump investigations: Trump may have just cooked himself in the Mar-a-Lago case, Dennis Aftergut and Laurence H. Tribe argue.

And in case you missed it: Robert Katzberg wrote about a blunder Trump made in the E. Jean Carroll trial that will keep haunting him again and again. So many crimes to keep track of!

A big-city myth

We tell ourselves a story about cities: that social norms can be enforced by the watchful eyes of a crowd, and that having more people around will keep us safe. Its the notion that regular people, not police, create safety and sometimes even enforce the rules, Henry Grabar writes.

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But Jordan Neelys killing on the New York subway shows thats a myth, he argues, and confounds liberals assumptions about homeless servicesas well as conservatives delusions about good Samaritans.

Royals on the run

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What actually happened in Harry and Meghans near-catastrophic car chase with aggressive paparazzi that allegedly lasted for over two hours? Nadira Goffe recaps everything we know about the situation so far.

Hes baaack

Debt ceiling negotiations are bringing back a 90s version of Bidenback then, he supported welfare reform, and now hes voicing his support for work requirements to social welfare programs.

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Its an alarming position on a number of levels. Decades of research have shown that work requirements have been completely ineffective when it comes to moving people out of poverty or even encouraging them to find workin fact, work requirements may actually make it harder for people to find and maintain employment. They work only in restricting access to lifesaving support and are, therefore, de facto cuts, which is why Republicans embrace them. Importantly, they are also a non-starter for House Democrats, according to top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffriesnot to mention a complete disavowal of the presidents own position on welfare expansion from just two years ago. Alexander Sammon looks at how Biden is considering selling out poor Americans to cut a deal with Kevin McCarthy.

A.I. oopsie

Sam Altman, the CEO responsible for ChatGPT, came off as self-critical and charming in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. But he made one meaningful slip-up, Heather Tal Murphy writesone that highlights just how complicated this whole A.I. thing is going to get.

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Plus: Lizzy OLeary talks to the president of Signal about how A.I. doom narratives hide the real thing we should all be afraid of.

Bad blood

Taylor Swifts fans apparently want to kill her new boyfriend. If you havent been following closely, Heather Schwedel is here to clue you in on whats going on. Theres a lot to unpack!

Today, Slate hasUNALLOYED CHUTZPAH*

You know, the kind it would take to misuse campaign funds to buy luxury designer clothing. Not that we would ever do something like that.

Thanks so much for reading! Well see you tomorrow.

Oh, and one more thingIf you think Slates work matters, become a Slate Plus member. Youll get exclusive members-only content and a suite of great benefitsand youll help secure Slates future. Join Slate Plus.

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The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is where law goes to diea place where the nations most partisan jurists recklessly wield their power to enact hard-right policy under the guise of judging. But even by the courts own dismal standards, Wednesday was a shitshow of epic and catastrophic proportions. A nightmare three-judge panel heard the never-ending mifepristone case, which seeks to pull the abortion pill off the market in all 50 states. The hearing was a humiliating farce from start to finish as Judges Jennifer Walker Elrod, James Ho, and Cory Wilson assumed the role of pro-life warriors hellbent on changing any rules and ignoring any evidence that might stand in the way of them ruling against abortion.

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And heres the punchline: Nothing these intellectual Lilliputians do will even matter. The Supreme Court has already decided that the 5th Circuit cannot be trusted with this case: In April, it froze the courts previous decision stringently limiting access to mifepristone, expressly maintaining the freeze until the justices themselves take further action. Elrod, Ho, and Wilson are howling into the wind; they have no power to change a thing about federal regulation of medication abortion. The adults in the room have already put them in timeout. And rather than demonstrate that they can judge responsibly, they seized on Wednesdays hearing to throw a combination temper tantrum/gaslight party. No lessons have been learned, no maturity acquired. This timeout probably isnt ending anytime soon.

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It would be cruel and unusual to subject the reader to a full recap of this sorry case, but here are the basics: In 2000, after a four-year review, the FDA approved mifepristone, in combination with misoprostol, for medication abortion. The agency imposed stringent limits on the drug and studied it extensively, eventually finding that it is incredibly safe and effective. In response to these findings, the FDA has reduced barriers to mifepristone since 2016: It authorized the drugs use until 10 weeks of pregnancy (up from seven), approved a generic version, reduced reporting requirements, and stopped mandating three in-person doctor visits.

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a group of anti-abortion activists created a group called Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine for the purpose of suing over mifepristone. They incorporated AHM in Amarillo, Texas, so that Judge Matthew Kacsmaryka former anti-abortion advocate known for extreme, dangerous, and incoherent far-right rulingswould be guaranteed to hear the case due to a jurisdictional loophole. Then they sued, represented by the Christian nationalist hate group Alliance Defending Freedom. Kacsmaryk played his part, issuing an unprecedented and unhinged decision purporting to suspend the FDAs 23-year-old approval of mifepristone. The 5th Circuit futzed with his decision in a hopeless effort to make it marginally more plausible, but the Supreme Court didnt bite: With only two dissenting votes, SCOTUS stayed Kacsmaryks whole ruling, meaning that nothing he or the 5th Circuit does to attack the drug will have any legal effect, unless the Supreme Court does an about-face and ultimately sides with the 5th Circuit.

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Which brings us to Wednesday, when the FDA and Danco Laboratories (which manufacturers mifepristone) tried to pull the 5th Circuit back into the orbit of reality. It was a futile exercise. Elrod, a George W. Bush appointee, is one of the most disingenuous and petty judges on the bench. Ho is an extremist and a troll whos blotto on his own power. Wilson, for his part, often seems to misunderstand basic facts about any given case. Both Ho and Wilson aredrum roll, pleaseTrump appointees. Sarah Harrington (for the FDA) and Jessica Ellsworth (for Danco) did an amazing job handling a comically hostile bench. But what was the point? Nobody seriously expects these robed ideologues to do their job with a modicum of integrity. Here are a few lowlights of the hearing:

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Ho credulously repeated the plaintiffs false claim that the FDA smuggled through mifepristone by calling pregnancy a life-threatening illness. (This argument rests on the lie that mifepristone went through expedited review, which Ho also parroted.) He asked Harrington angrily: When we celebrated Mothers Day, did we celebrate an illness?

Elrod, with evident exasperation, castigated the FDA for failing to produce a complete administrative record for the casewhich, as Harrington explained, would require lawyers to compile for the court hundreds of thousands of pages going back to the 1990s. In response, Elrod suggested that the government was unscrupulously keeping it a secret.

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Wilson asserted that, by allowing medical professionals other than doctors to prescribe mifepristone, the FDA made it much more likely that patients will need emergency care, including surgery. (He literally just made this up.)

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Elrod suggested that Danco Laboratories should spend countless hours and resources to prepare for a judicial imposition of draconian restrictions on mifepristone just in case the court chose to do so, dismissing any costs as a minor inconvenience. (This, of course, completely ignored the Supreme Courts order, which freed the defendants from this very obligation.) She also suggested, without evidence, that Danco may be complicit in smuggling the pills into states where they are banned.

Ho read aloud random peoples criticisms of the FDA and made Ellsworth respond to them, then declared that federal courts should override the FDAs scientific determinations because the agency isnt trustworthy.

Elrod chastised Ellsworth for calling Kascmaryks decision an unprecedented judicial assault in her brief, calling the rhetoric far outside the bounds of established [criticism] and a personal attack on Kacsmaryk. She then asked Ellsworth to retract the statements and apologize.

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These are not serious people. This is not how real judges conduct themselves. This was barely a judicial proceeding. It was a struggle session in which three anti-abortion zealots yelled at attorneys who have already prevailed in this case once at the Supreme Court. Their rage should have been aimed at SCOTUS, but its not a good look for lower courts to trash-talk their superiors, so they redirected it to Harrington and Ellsworth instead. (Erin Hawley, wife of Sen. Josh Hawley, argued against mifepristone; the less said about her unceasing stream of shameless falsehoods, the better.)

Its sad, really, what has happened to the 5th Circuit. In the Civil Rights era, this court led the charge for desegregation, fighting massive resistance with forceful decisions that helped break the back of Jim Crow. And today? Today it is the laughingstock of the judiciary; even other conservative judgesincluding some of the Supreme Courtrefuse to follow its march into the abyss. Wednesday painfully reminded us why.
This article was co-published with Understanding AI, a newsletter that explores how A.I. works and how its changing our world.

When Silicon Valley executives testify before Congress, they normally get raked over the coals. But OpenAI CEO Sam Altmans Tuesday appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee went differently.

Senators asked Altman probing questions and listened respectfully to his answers. Afterward, the committees chairman, Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut praised Altman.

Sam Altman is night and day compared to other CEOs, Blumenthal told reporters after the hearing. Not just in the words and rhetoric, but in actual actions, and his willingness to participate and commit to specific action.

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The centerpiece of Altmans testimony was a call for a new licensing regime for powerful A.I. models.

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I would form a new agency that licenses any effort above a certain scale of capabilities, and could take that license away and ensure compliance with safety standards, Altman said. He added these standards should be focused on dangerous capabilities such as the ability to self-replicate and self-exfiltrate into the wild.

Altmans proposal would represent a dramatic expansion of federal power over the A.I. sector. And as far as I can tell, theres been little work done to flesh out what such a system might look like.

Im a little perplexed by what hes proposing, University of Colorado legal scholar Margot Kaminski told me on Wednesday. It doesnt map onto all the laws that are out there.

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Intuitively, it makes sense that a radically new technology like A.I. might need a new kind of regulatory framework. The problem is that Altman and others who think like him havent explained how such a licensing scheme would work. And given how fast the technology is changing, theres a big risk of getting it wrong.

Another witness at Tuesdays hearing was IBM executive Christina Montgomery, who defended a more conventional approach to regulating A.I. IBM calls it precision regulation, and it focuses on overseeing the use of A.I. in high-stakes domains like criminal justice, hiring, and medicine, where youd want to be especially careful about removing humans from any decision-making.

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Kaminski told me that the European Union is currently developing a new A.I. Act that takes an approach consistent with IBMs recommendations. It would classify A.I. applications by their level of risk and subject higher-risk applications to stricter regulation. Some of the highest-risk applications of A.I.for example, tracking people in real time using biometric identifierswould be banned outright.

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The EU published an updated draft of the proposal last week. The new draft caused a stir because it proposed regulating providers of so-called foundation modelspowerful machine-learning models like GPT-4 with a wide range of potential uses. Before a European company could build a product on top of a foundation model, the models creator would need to provide EU regulators with detailed information about how the model was trained, what it could do, and how potential risks were being mitigated.

Critics warn that this could create a schism in the A.I. world, since U.S.-based creators of foundation models might be unwilling or unable to comply with EU requirements. European companies could then be cut off from access to cutting-edge U.S. models, which could hamper the development of Europes A.I. sector. Critics also warn that it could limit the development of open-source foundation models, since their sponsors might not have the resources necessary to comply with the EUs red tape.

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Still, the European proposal mainly focuses on regulating consumer-facing applications of A.I. In contrast, Altman seems to be advocating for governments to create a licensing regime for foundation models themselves.

I suspect these competing proposals reflect the divergent philosophical approaches I wrote about recently. Altmans proposal to directly regulate powerful language models reflects the singularist concern that sufficiently powerful A.I. models could become self-aware and wipe out the human race. In contrast, the IBM and EU proposals reflect a more physicalist approach: focusing on the harms that can occur when people apply A.I. to specific sectors of the economy.

Near the start of Tuesdays hearing, Blumenthal said his biggest nightmare about A.I. was the effect on jobs. He asked Altman to share his own biggest A.I. nightmare and then comment on whether he expected A.I. to cause large-scale job losses.

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Like with all technological revolutions, I expect there to be significant impact on jobs, but exactly what that impact looks like is very difficult to predict, Altman said. I believe that there will be far greater jobs on the other side of this and the jobs of today will get better.

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The panels third witness, psychologist and entrepreneur Gary Marcus, said he was also concerned about the potential for job losses. But he then pointed out that Altman didnt actually reveal his biggest nightmare. So Blumenthal offered Altman another chance to respond.

My worst fears are that we, the field, the technology, the industry, cause significant harm to the world, Altman said. Its why we started the company [to avert that future]. I think if this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong.

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This is still pretty vague, but Altmans past comments make it clear hes worried that A.I. could threaten the survival of humanity. For example, in an interview earlier this year, Altman said that the worst case is lights-out for all of us.

Later in Tuesdays hearing, Altman mentioned A.I.s designing novel biological agents as one of the threats regulators should guard against.

Like Altman, Marcus favors a licensing regime for new A.I. models. He called for a safety review like we use with the FDA to be conducted before a system like ChatGPT could be widely deployed.

Chatbots can produce a wide range of outputs that people might consider unsafe, from bad medical advice to instructions for committing crimes to biased or bigoted statements. Deciding when a chatbots responses are harmful enough to justify keeping it off the market seems like a political minefield.

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For example, several senators expressed concern that A.I.-generated misinformation could undermine democracy. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota raised concerns about ChatGPT giving voters inaccurate information about how to vote on election day. Others worried about generative A.I. systems generating deep fake images, audio, or video that could deceive voters and influence how they vote.

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But while almost every member of Congress probably agrees that disinformation is bad in the abstract, Republicans and Democrats are likely to disagree sharply about exactly how to define the concept. Moreover, Margot Kaminski told me that contemporary First Amendment jurisprudence would make it difficult for governments in the U.S. to limit A.I.-generated misinformation. For example, any law requiring a license to generate political speech using A.I. would likely be disallowed as unconstitutional prior restraint.

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Theres also a major conceptual problem with using FDA-style testing to guard against dangerous, superintelligent A.I. A basic premise of singularist thought is that such systems will be skilled at manipulating and deceiving humans. Such a system could presumably trick government regulators into approving it by pretending to be less capable and more benign than it really is.

Guarding against the worst-case consequences of A.I. seems like a legitimately difficult problem.

Even if an A.I. model isnt dangerous on its own, it could be a significant component of a dangerous system. In recent weeks, people have been experimenting with agentic A.I. systems like Auto-GPT and BabyAGI that effectively give large language models the ability to make plans and then carry them out autonomously. So far, these systems dont work very well and dont seem to pose a danger to anyone. But that could change as large language models get more sophisticated.

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All of which is to say Im not surprised Altman doesnt have all the details of his licensing scheme worked out. Guarding against the worst-case consequences of A.I. seems like a legitimately difficult problem.

But if these details arent forthcoming, the result could be a big mismatch between what policymakers say theyre trying to accomplish and what they actually do.

Tuesdays hearing made it clear that theres a strong, bipartisan appetite in Congress for new A.I. regulations. Their sense of urgency is driven by the belief that A.I. could pose a serious threat to our jobs, our democracy, and perhaps even our survival as a species.

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Yet concrete regulatory proposals tend to focus on more pedestrian goals. For example, last October the Biden administration published a Blueprint for an AI bill of rights that included sections on privacy, nondiscrimination, and transparency. Theres also a section on safe and effective systems that focuses on ensuring that physical systems like self-driving cars dont malfunction and hurt people.

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These are all worthy concerns, but I dont think theyre the concerns that keep Sam Altman up at night.

A recurring theme of Tuesdays hearing was that Congress moved too slowly to regulate social media and shouldnt make the same mistake with A.I. Im not sure I agree with this premise.

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Today theres a fairly broad consensus that social media has deepened partisan divisions and worsened mental healthespecially for teenage girls. But its not obvious to me that Congress could have anticipated these problems 10 or 20 years ago. And even today, theres no real consensus about how to solve them.

Right now, generative A.I. technology is changing so quickly that its difficult to predict what it will look like five or 10 years down the road. Its harder to predict what social or economic problems A.I. is likely to cause, and still harder to anticipate what policy changes are likely to be helpful.

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So its not obvious to me that Congresss sense of urgency on this issue is justified. Enacting a licensing regime now could also cement the dominance of industry incumbents like Google and OpenAI by making it harder for startups to create foundation models of their own. It might make more sense to wait a year or two and see how A.I. technology evolves before passing a major bill to regulate A.I.

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In the meantime, I think the best thing Congress could do is to fund efforts to better understand the potential harms from A.I. Earlier this month, the National Science Foundation announced the creation of seven new National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes focused on issues like trustworthy A.I. and cybersecurity. Putting more money into initiatives like this could be money well spent.

Id also love to see Congress create an agency to investigate cybersecurity vulnerabilities in real-world systems. It could work something like the National Transportation Safety Board, the federal agency that investigates plane crashes, train derailments, and the like. A new cybersecurity agency could investigate whether the operators of power plants, pipelines, military drones, and self-driving cars are taking appropriate precautions against hackers.

These precautions would make our systems more secure against attacks from humans as well as A.I.s. And it would also give us a margin of safety if Sam Altmans nightmare is eventually realized.
When Sgt. 1st Class William Reinier logs in to Reddit at work, hes not doing it to kill time or slack off. As a public affairs officer responsible for social media outreach for one of the Armys most senior service members, Reinier scans the site as part of his official duties. Hes looking for posts about some of the most pressing problems facing the Pentagon: suicide rates, sexual assault, and horrible living conditions at multiple installations. Users often tag him to get his attention.

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When Reinier finds a post that he determines merits further action, he assesses the information, reaches out to the user (if necessary) via direct message, and then works to obtain documentation or information about their specific problem, which can then be used to contact a soldiers unit or escalate the issue.

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For soldiers who are turning to Reddit as a last resort to address problems left unresolved by the militarys normal channels, this outreach is powerful. If youre a young soldier and youre all alone, the office of the highest enlisted soldier in the Army reaching down to ask whats troubling you  I think theres a unrealized status or presence the office has in that capacity, Kinmuan, a moderator of one of the subreddits Reinier uses, told me in a message. (Kinmuan asked not to be identified by his real name.)

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Reinier is part of a larger effort across the military thats actively using unofficial subreddits run by current and former service members to crowdsource ideas about the future of its services, conduct internal recruiting, troubleshoot service member issues, and provide services such as career advice for new recruits. Reinier said comments from soldiers on Reddit encouraging the Army to conduct annual mental wellness checks and to reduce restrictions on the amount of alcohol soldiers could keep in barracks rooms led to those ideas being piloted at select installations last year.

This may not sound revolutionary, but to me it sort of felt that waya 90s-esque bulletin board system with semi-anonymous posters is a strange venue for an institution that prides itself on total control and is often closed off to the outside world. Had I tried to email the headquarters of the U.S. Army when I was on active duty from 2010 to 2019, Im confident it would have been, at best, ignored (or, at worst, met with retribution from my immediate supervisors). This new form of digital outreach is certainly a meaningful step toward better engaging with service membersit gives them an opportunity to seek help and raise concerns in a place where theyre more comfortable, without even having to use their real names or worry about rank imbalances. But in some cases, its also a Band-Aid that does little to address the militarys many underlying problems.

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Currently, the two most active accounts of high-level officials on these subreddits are Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy James Honea and Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Grinston, both of whom have the highest rank in their respective branches that any enlisted service member can hope to attain. Honea and Grinston are responsible for addressing the issues of the hundreds of thousands of enlisted personnel in both services, which are the largest in the military. To do so, they enlist the help of public affairs representatives like Reinier (who works for Grinston) and forums like r/Army, which has more than 220,000 subscribers and sees dozens of topics with hundreds and sometimes thousands of comments posted each day.

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The usefulness of these sites is that they allow us to identify systemic problems worldwide that we may not have seen, giving us an opportunity to try to fix them, Grinston told me during a phone interview. In the future, I hope that leaders dont shy away from engaging on social media. Soldiers will continue raising issues on them, and we should respond.

These subreddits are also tools for Department of Defense officials to learn about (and, in the best of cases, address) service member issues before they become national news stories, including responding to individual mental health crises that service members sometimes reveal on these sites. Its those casesdelicate efforts that often involve direct messages, phone calls to units across the world, and tracking down at-risk service membersthat illustrate just how useful the platform can be. Accounts from the offices of these high-level officials have also helped service members with issues of pay, paperwork, housing, and health care. Although this outreach is giving service members access to new avenues for solutions, its telling that those members feel as if they must rely on Reddit in the first place. The militarys proposed budget for next year, remember, is $842 billion.

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When someone makes a post about suicide on one of these sites, were in reaction mode, Grinston said. But theres often larger issues that put stressors on soldiers and create these events. In an ideal world, he said, these stressors would be addressed by soldiers leaders before they became an emergencybut that doesnt always happen. Were not trying to replace chains of command; soldiers are contacting us when they feel like theyre not getting what they need, he said.

Military subreddits have been around for years, but official outreach on them seems to be a relatively new phenomenon. Each of the main military subreddits has active user bases into the hundreds of thousands and, importantly, allows users to post semi-anonymously, without their real name or rank. Most of the time, the posts are humorous. But they can often turn quite serious, as users discuss everything from their lives on deployments, the friends theyve lost, and the systemic issues surrounding sexual assault in the military.

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All of these discussions are happening on open forums, and people outside the military are also using them for information gathering. On Nov. 3, 2022, a soldier posted about repeated suicide deaths at his unit in Alaska, days before the DOD publicly admitted to these deaths on Twitter. In response to the Nov. 3 post, journalists from military news outlets reached out to soldiers on the platform, and multiple national news articles and responses from the Pentagon followed. And its not just journalistsin late April, the congressional office of U.S. Rep. Marilyn Strickland, a Democrat from Washington and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, reached out to members of the Army subreddit by responding to a post about systemic pay issues at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington. In a written statement, a spokesperson for Strickland said the congresswomans staff is always looking for new avenues to connect with constituentsmany of whom serve at Joint Base Lewis-McChordincluding educating them on the services a congressional office can provide.

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For Grinston and Honea, Reddit is one tool to keep track of problems facing their services, and both offices have engaged in Reddits Ask Me Anything, a series of open forums in which users on the site submit direct questions. But theyve also gone much further: Honeas office used comments from Reddit as part of testimonies to Congress about the state of military health care, and Grinstons office has crowdsourced ideas multiple times from the users of r/Army.

This outreach hasnt always been received positively by users on the site, thanks in part to general levels of distrust of high-level leadership. While users on the subreddit seem not to mind unofficial conversations being used for official purposes, the services themselves are extremely wary of categorizing the outreach on these sites as official. Theres also the risk of people posing as someone theyre not.

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The subreddits themselves are at times home to racist, sexist, and otherwise discriminatory posts that, despite moderation, highlight why the military continues to generally fail in those areas. Part of this may be reflective of the user demographics of Reddit and the subreddits: Internal censuses conducted by multiple military subreddits revealed that their user bases ranged from 90 to 97 percent male, compared with the militarys overall demographics, where women make up almost 20 percent of the force. These surveys did not ask about race.

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How Reddit became important to the military is an open question. It has fewer users than Facebook, where the Pentagon maintains multiple official presences. Even though Twitter has had more overall cultural power, military service members never seemed to create a community there en masseand the user experience on the platform has deteriorated over the past several months. Subreddits focused on the military, meanwhile, have continuously gained power and influence. Reddit puts everyone on equal footing, since we [as moderators] have far less to do [with] whats posted prominently on the pageusers choose what to highlight or not through the voting system, said Kinmuan, the r/Army moderator.

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The issue underlying all this, though, is that volunteer, unpaid site users are doing the heavy lifting of creating a forum to share information and triage issues, picking up where the militarys official systems and procedures are failing. These subreddits and their efforts around mental health are a prime example, a forced response to the poor state of the militarys suicide prevention efforts. The fact that the military is officially engaging in these spaces is on its face a positive development, but the fact that service members feel as if Reddit is their best shot at getting their issue addressed is a more fundamental problem. Theres also the problem of continuity: Whether the military will continue to use these sites after new leadership cycles in is unknownmany once successful efforts are forgotten or discontinued in leadership shuffles.

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In the meantime, public affairs officers like Reinier are still using Reddit. About a month ago, a soldier made a post on Reddit describing how a last-minute decision during his mandatory moving process meant that his immediate family could no longer accompany himthey were now staying with his parents, effectively homeless. The official account of the sergeant majors public affairs officer responded, telling the soldier to send them a direct message. Within a couple of days of the message from Grinstons PAO, according to a subsequent Reddit post, the soldier was able to meet with his immediate leadership, who promised to fix the issue.

The soldier posted an update a couple of weeks later: Despite the help from Reddit, he still didnt have housing.

If you need to talk, or if you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, text the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Late Saturday night, when I saw the tweet from Twitters Global Affairs account announcing it had complied with a government request to restrict access to content in Turkey on the eve of our countrys presidential elections, I felt a deep sense of Here we go again. Im pretty familiar with the governments attempt to limit Twitter accounts and tweets for political reasonsI research freedom of expression and internet freedom, and my own tweets have been blocked or limited by four different court decisions so far. Ive been part of three Turkish Constitutional Court cases that successfully overturned government decisions blocking access to Twitter, YouTube, and Wikipedia, and I also successfully challenged the Turkish government at the European Court of Human Rights for blocking access to YouTube between 2008 and 2010. Im currently part of more than 20 pending Constitutional Court applications, four of which involve blocking access to my tweets. (Those blocked tweets, ironically, were primarily discussing decisions to block other tweets or news websites.)

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After seeing Saturdays announcement, my first reaction was to check whether Elon Musk had anything to say about the decisionand of course, he did. Twitters logic, he explained, was that the choice was to have Twitter throttled in its entirety or limit access to some tweetsand they chose, in their justification, the lesser of the two evils. Twitter had already experienced throttling from Turkish authorities in the past few months, first after a terrorist attack in Istanbul in November and more recently after Februarys devastating earthquakes, while the crucial rescue efforts were still ongoing.

In response to criticism, Musk promised that Twitter would share the requests sent by the Turkish authorities, and on Monday, the company shared some court orders and communication with authorities. This was sort of a half attempt to make good on Musks promise: The decisions, ranging from 2018 to 2023, were partially redacted, and Twitter did not explain the reasoning behind these decisions or how the websites, Twitter accounts, and tweets included in these decisions breached national security, created public disorder, or threatened the lives of others (which would be the appropriate legal standard in this case). Usually, the office of the president or the interior ministry requests these kinds of decisions, and the decisions usually target Kurdish and left-wing news websites, as well as social media accounts and content that are associated with journalists, activists, and opponents of the government. In the documents released Monday, there was also no explicit reference to the throttling threats in the communication sent by the Turkish authorities; the communications reminded Twitter that it had not complied with the five previous decisions and that the company had been previously warned to comply.

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In its post on Monday, the day after the elections, Twitter said it had challenged these decisions in court, and that one such challenge had already been rejected. But the company did not give further details about the timeline or nature of the decisions. The urgency to act on decisions from 2018 and 2020 (two of the five decisions) hours before the elections remains dubious at the very least. If the appeals were rejected, Twitter could also lodge appeals with the Constitutional Courtwhich is what I would expect them to do, if they wanted to make good on their promise of protecting freedom of expressionbut the company did not say whether it had already done so or planned to.

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In the absence of such due process, restricting access to accounts and tweets is a dangerous game to play and sets a weak precedent for protecting freedom of expression on Twitter. The election is now going into a runoff, and its a safe bet that the government will continue to demand the sanctioning of accounts belonging to journalists, human rights activists, and others who oppose it. Thats the danger of respecting local laws by ignoring local context, regardless of how repressive that jurisdiction might be. Advocating for transparency and due process around the removal of content doesnt necessarily mean always agreeing with that content or the people behind such accountsit simply means recognizing that when the power to restrict content is in the hands of someone like Recep Tayyip Erdogan, things can go south quickly. You cant half-heartedly resist censorship: Social media platforms should do everything possible to fight such restrictions, rather than accept defeat when faced with threats of throttling.

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I wish I could say all this was surprising. In reality, it fits neatly into a pattern of internet censorship in Turkey that risks becoming even more entrenched under Musks obedient leadership. The countrys history of digital censorship goes back to 2007 and includes some platforms being completely blocked: YouTube between 2018 and 2020, and also for two and a half months in 2014; Twitter in 2014; and Wikipedia between 2017 and 2019. Those platforms were only made accessible after challenges were lodged with the Constitutional Court and also with the European Court of Human Rights. Theres also a specific history when it comes to elections: When Twitter was blocked during crucial local elections in March 2014, I joined two other Twitter users to lodge successful appeals with our countrys Constitutional Court to overturn the ban. At that time, the authorities claimed that Twitter did not comply with four decisions that required the platform to block a number of tweets that had been judged defamatory and in violation of personal rights. While the courts had ruled only to block access to specific content, the telecom authority arbitrarily and unlawfully blocked access to the platform as a wholewhich the Constitutional Court determined was a violation of users right to freedom of expression.

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As of the end of 2022, access to 712,558 websites was blocked in Turkey. In addition to those websites, approximately 150,000 individual URL addresses, 9,800 Twitter accounts, 55,000 tweets, 16,500 YouTube videos, and 12,000 Facebook and 11,000 Instagram posts are blocked in the country, subject to the thousands of court orders issued on a yearly basis. In June 2022, access to both the Voice of America Turkish news website and the entire German news website Deutsche Welle were blocked, purportedly because they did not obtain a broadcast license. Both news websites currently remain blocked in Turkey while applications are pending at the Constitutional Court. Since last year, the website of the National Film Board of Canada has also been among the websites currently blocked from Turkey for purportedly breaching national security and public order.

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This is all a part of an aggressive government strategy to systematically block access to political speech online, which becomes especially concerning when considered within the context of a general deterioration in freedom of expression and a crackdown on critical voices during Erdogans regime.

In addition to blocking access and removing content, in 2020 Turkey demanded social media platforms establish a physical presence in the country. Companies are required to respond to requests made by users, enforce access-blocking and content removal decisions, store user data in Turkey, and provide transparency reports. Obediently, companies including Twitter, Meta, Google, and TikTok have established their Turkish offices, hoping that empty shell companies would legally cover them. But then, in October 2022, an amended law extended their obligations and tightened regulationsnotably adding the requirement to provide user information to the judicial authorities in relation to certain crimes, including the newly introduced crime of disinformation. Noncompliance will result in sanctions such as throttling and fines. If companies do comply, they risk serving as the long arm of Turkish law enforcement agencies and thus becoming complicit in human rights violations. That will be the cost of doing business in Turkey, while the sharp democratic backslide and deterioration of freedom of expression continue.

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Prior to Musks takeover, it was clear that Twitter rejected the majority of the demands for content removal. My assessment of the Twitter transparency reports between 2012 and 2021 showed that Turkey demanded the blocking of 122,542 accounts, and Twitter only withheld 2,616 accounts (withheld content is geographically blocked within Turkey but not necessarily removed). Turkey tops the number of withheld accounts globally in the Twitter transparency reports. In second place, India complained about 78,382 accounts, and Twitter withheld 1,686 accounts. During the same period, 13,060 tweets were withheld subject to Turkish government requests (Twitter did not disclose the number of tweets the government requested be sanctioned).

Since Musk took over, its hard to know whether these numbers have changed, because Twitter stopped publishing biannual transparency reports and recently stopped sharing takedown notices with a transparency database dedicated to tracking such actions. Twitter before the Musk takeover generally refused to withhold content related to verified journalists and news outlets, or challenged such decisions. Based on my assessment, we are now witnessing a more obedient and government-friendly Twitter that is willing to withhold more accounts and tweets to comply with Turkish law. For example, data generated from court decisions that determined accounts or tweets should be blocked shows the total number of Twitter accounts and tweets with blocking orders was 46,812 at the end of 2019. The total number reached 71,733 on Oct. 26, 2022, the day before Musk took over Twitter. That number is now down for the first time to 69,254 as of the end of March. It is too soon to really speculate, but the decrease could indicate that more accounts and tweets have already been withheld in response to government demands.

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Erdogan is widely expected to win the runoff election on May 28, and his victory would continue the sharp democratic backslide that has played out over the past 10 years. His desire to control social media platforms is no secret; he continues to see them as one of the main threats to, in his framing, democracyor in a more realistic framing, his authoritarian reign. If platforms choose to cooperate in Erdogans mission to control what is being said online, they will be accused of becoming complicit in human rights violations in Turkey. How much they care remains to be seen.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
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Embarking on your photography journey involves understanding the basics of camera gear, mastering key techniques, and continually seeking opportunities to learn and grow. This guide to the best digital cameras will help you navigate the world of digital cameras, covering everything from the latest trends to the most in-demand features and accessories.

Introduction

Whether youre a novice or a seasoned photographer, this guide will provide valuable insights and recommendations to help you make an informed decision. By following these steps and remaining committed to your passion, you can develop your skills and become a more accomplished photographer.

Importance of choosing the right digital camera

Selecting the best digital camera for your needs is important for capturing high-quality images and honing your photography skills. The right camera can inspire creativity, improve your technical abilities, and provide a solid foundation for future growth in the field of photography.

Scope: beginners and budget-conscious buyers

This guide is tailored to the needs of beginners and budget-conscious buyers. We will focus on cameras that offer excellent image quality, user-friendly features, and great value for money. This will help you find a camera that suits your needs without breaking the bank.

Latest trends in the digital camera market

The digital camera market constantly evolves, introducing new technologies and features regularly. The latest trends include mirrorless cameras, in-body image stabilization, and continuous shooting speeds. These innovations make it easier for photographers to capture stunning images in various conditions.

A brief history of digital cameras

Digital cameras have come a long way since their inception in the 1970s. Todays best deals on digital cameras offer advanced features, impressive image quality, and a wide range of options for photographers of all skill levels. From entry-level models to professional-grade equipment, theres a digital camera for everyone.

Best Digital Cameras

Canon EOS R5 Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera

Top Pick: Not surprisingly, the top pick goes to Canon, an industry standard for many professionals. The Canon R5 full-frame mirrorless camera is versatile and designed for small business owners seeking superior image quality.

Key Features:

35.4 MP Full-frame CMOS Sensor

DIGIC X Image Processor

ISO range of 100-51200 (expandable to 102400)

Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity

3.2-inch screen

Full Frame (35mm) photo sensor size

Various shooting modes

Pros:

High-quality 45-megapixel images

Fast continuous shooting up to 20 fps

1,053 AF areas with Dual Pixel CMOS AF

8K UHD video capture

In-body Image Stabilizer High Resolution Shot

Cons:

Slightly heavier compared to competitors

High-resolution mode limited to specific situations

Costly investment

May require additional lenses for specific shooting needs

Capture stunning, high-resolution images with the 45-megapixel sensor and 8K DCI cinematic movie capabilities. The cameras focus and speed make it easy to track subjects with 1,053 Automatic AF zones, including Eye, Face, and Head Detection AF for people and Animal Detection AF for cats, dogs, or birds. The 5-axis in-body image stabilization compensates for camera shake with approximately 8 stops of stabilization, and the camera features 5GHz and 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity.

Canon EOS R5 Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera

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Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless

Runner Up: The Sony Alpha 7 IV is the runner up, but it has quickly become the favorite mirrorless camera for many people. This high-performance mirrorless camera is designed for small business owners looking for exceptional image quality without exaggerated claims.

Key Features:

33MP full-frame Exmor R back-illuminated CMOS sensor

BIONZ XR image processing engine

Up to 4K 60p 10-bit 4:2:2 video recording

5-Axis SteadyShot Image Stabilization

Real-time Eye AF for humans, animals, and birds

USB and HDMI connectivity

3-inch screen

Full Frame (35mm) photo sensor size

Pros:

High-resolution 33MP images

Fast processing speed with BIONZ XR engine

4K video recording with various frame rates

S-Cinetone color profile for natural colors

Comprehensive AF coverage and tracking

Cons:

Higher price point than some competitors

Limited optical zoom

No Wi-Fi connectivity

Learning curve for new users

Experience the power of the 33MP full-frame sensor and BIONZ XR image processing engine, providing fast processing speed and stunning image quality. Capture beautiful color expressions with the S-Cinetone color profile, and keep subjects in focus with Real-time Eye AF for humans, animals, and birds. The camera also features 5-Axis SteadyShot Image Stabilization and comprehensive AF coverage with 759 phase-detection AF points and 425 contrast-detection AF points.

Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless

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Sony RX100 VII Premium Compact Camera

Best Value: The best value camera is from Sony, and it is a premium compact camera with many features. The RX100 VII is a versatile point-and-shoot camera tailored for small business owners on a budget but who want quality.

Features:

20.1 MP 1.0 Type stacked CMOS sensor

Zeiss Vario Sonnar T 24-200mm F2.8-F4.5 high magnification zoom lens

High AF speed (0.02 sec) with 357 phase-detection and 425 contrast-detection AF points

Up to 20 fps blackout-free shooting

Real-time tracking, Eye AF for humans and animals, and touch tracking

4K video recording with S-Log3 and interval shooting

Built-in microphone jack and vertical position data recording

Active mode image stabilization for 4K video

Pros:

Compact size with powerful features

High-speed autofocus and blackout-free shooting

Versatile zoom range

4K video recording with image stabilization

External microphone compatibility

Cons:

Limited sensor size (1-inch)

No Wi-Fi connectivity

Smaller optical zoom compared to some competitors

May be complex for new users

Equipped with a 20.1 MP sensor, the Sony RX100 VII captures stunning images and offers a versatile 24-200mm zoom range. The cameras high-speed autofocus and blackout-free shooting ensure you never miss a moment. Thanks to external microphone compatibility, record 4K video with image stabilization and professional-quality sound. With a tiltable LCD monitor and touchscreen operation, this compact camera offers advanced features without compromising convenience.

Sony RX100 VII Premium Compact Camera

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Panasonic LUMIX S5 Full Frame Mirrorless Camera

The Panasonic LUMIX S5 is a full-frame mirrorless camera with various creative options, like Live View Composite mode, the LUMIX S5 helps bring your creative vision to life. Improved autofocus and powerful image stabilization make it easier to capture subjects with precision.

Features:

24.2 MP full-frame CMOS sensor

4K 60p, 10-bit video and FHD 180fps slow-motion option

96MP High Resolution mode

Dual Native ISO for minimized noise

V-Log/V-Gamut with 14+ stop dynamic range

Improved autofocus with head, eyes, face, and body detection

5-axis Dual I.S. 2 for 6.5-stop slower shutter speed

Live View Composite mode for creative shots

Pros:

Lightweight and powerful hybrid camera

Exceptional 4K video and high-resolution photo capabilities

Enhanced autofocus and image stabilization

Wide range of creative features

Cons:

Limited optical zoom (3x)

Battery life may be insufficient for heavy users

Dual card slots with mixed UHS compatibility

Learning curve for some advanced features

The Panasonic LUMIX S5 is a versatile full-frame mirrorless camera that combines 24.2 MP stills with 4K 60p video. Its advanced features, including Dual Native ISO and 14+ stop dynamic range, ensure high-quality content capture.

Panasonic LUMIX S5 Full Frame Mirrorless Camera

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Olympus OM-1 Micro Four Thirds System Camera

The Olympus OM-1, a mirrorless camera, delivers high-quality images and videos. Exceptional autofocus precision, advanced video features, and a high-resolution viewfinder make it perfect for adventure and wildlife photography.

Features:

20 MP Micro Four Thirds sensor

Cross Quad Pixel AF with 1,053 high-precision focusing points

TruePic X engine for 3x faster processing

IP53 weatherproof rating (dustproof, splashproof, freeze-proof)

40x optical zoom

Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and HDMI connectivity

Pros:

Remarkable autofocus performance and subject tracking

Enhanced video capabilities

High-resolution viewfinder and LCD screen

Class-leading weatherproofing and built-in stabilization

Improved battery life with USB-C charging

Cons:

Limited improvements in high ISO performance and dynamic range

Reduced mechanical shutter speed (10 fps)

Incompatible with older batteries and battery grip

Higher price compared to similar models

Its weatherproof design, built-in stabilization, and improved battery life ensure reliability in various conditions. However, if the improved autofocus, viewfinder, and video features arent a must, consider other Olympus models for similar image quality at a lower price.

Olympus OM-1 Micro Four Thirds System Camera

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Nikon Z 6II Full Frame 24.5MP 4K Video Mirrorless Digital Camera

The Nikon Z 6II, a versatile mirrorless camera that provides a superior balance of resolution and speed, with impressive low-light capabilities and 4K UHD video features.

Features:

24.5 MP full-frame sensor

14 FPS continuous shooting

4K UHD video at 60p with full pixel readout

Dual card slots (CFexpress/XQD + UHS-II SD)

3.2-inch screen

Compatible with NIKKOR Z lenses and F-mount NIKKOR lenses (with FTZ mount adapter)

Pros:

Excellent low-light performance

Fast and precise subject acquisition

3.5x increased buffer capacity compared to the original Z 6

Vertical grip compatibility and USB-C constant power

Wide range of lens compatibility

Cons:

FTZ mount adapter required for F-mount NIKKOR lenses (sold separately)

No built-in flash

Limited optical zoom (2.9x)

Some users may find the camera body less comfortable

Its dual card slots offer flexibility and peace of mind, while compatibility with a vast selection of lenses ensures adaptability for various shooting scenarios. However, some drawbacks include the lack of a built-in flash and limited optical zoom.

Nikon Z 6II Full Frame 24.5MP 4K Video Mirrorless Digital Camera

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Fujifilm X-S10 Mirrorless Digital Camera

The Fujifilm X-S10 is a mirrorless camera with a powerful combination of a 26.1 MP sensor, fast autofocus, and in-body image stabilization for great image quality.

Features:

26.1 MP APS-C X-Trans CMOS 4 sensor

3x optical zoom

3-inch vari-angle LCD touchscreen

20fps uncropped continuous shooting

5-axis in-body image stabilization (IBIS)

DCI 4K/30p and Full HD/240p video recording

18 Film Simulation modes

Pros:

Comfortable and secure handling with deep handgrip

Fast autofocus (up to 0.02 seconds) and low-light performance (-6EV)

Stabilized handheld shooting for sharp images and steady video

4:2:2 10-bit color via HDMI for professional filmmaking

Wide range of iconic Fujifilm Film Simulation modes

Cons:

External microphone required for optimal audio quality

May be challenging for beginners

No built-in flash

Limited optical zoom (3x)

This camera excels in photography and videography with cinema-quality 4K video and a range of Fujifilm Film Simulation modes. However, some drawbacks include the lack of a built-in flash and limited optical zoom.

Fujifilm X-S10 Mirrorless Digital Camera

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Nikon D850 FX-format Digital SLR Camera

The Nikon D850 is a powerful DSLR camera. With built-in focus stacking, HDR, and updated firmware, this camera is a solid choice for small business owners.

Features:

45.7 MP BSI full-frame image sensor

Nikon F mount compatibility

105mm focal length lens

No optical low pass filter

Up to 9 fps continuous shooting

4K Ultra HD video recording, slow motion up to 120 FPS at 1080p

Tilting touchscreen with focus shift shooting mode

Pros:

Significant improvement in image quality compared to previous models

Built-in focus stacking and HDR capabilities

Enhanced dynamic range for more natural-looking images

Extended battery life for longer shooting sessions

Firmware updates available for continuous improvements

Cons:

No built-in IR shutter release

WiFi connection can be complicated to set up

No hot shoe cover provided

Touchscreen usage may consume battery life more quickly

The Nikon D850 offers substantial improvements in image quality, dynamic range, and battery life compared to previous models. However, some drawbacks include the absence of an IR shutter release, a hot shoe cover, and a somewhat complicated WiFi setup.

Nikon D850 FX-format Digital SLR Camera

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Canon EOS 5D Mark IV Full Frame Digital SLR Camera

The Canon EOS 5D Mark IV Camera is a powerful addition to the 5D series, offering exceptional image quality, performance, and versatility. Whether you are a wedding or portrait photographer, nature or landscape shooter, or a creative videographer, you will appreciate the brilliance and power that the EOS 5D Mark IV delivers. With a 30.4 MP full-frame CMOS sensor, you can capture versatile shots in 3:2 aspect ratio, and up to 7.0 frames per second continuous shooting speed. The 61-point AF system has 41 cross-points, providing expanded vertical coverage.

Pros:

High-quality image and video capture

4K video recording at 30p or 24p and in-camera still frame grab of 8.8MP images

Large touchscreen LCD monitor for easy control and navigation

Versatile shooting with a full-frame sensor

Compatible with Canon EF lenses

Cons:

The camera is relatively heavy, making it challenging to carry around.

The cameras high-end features come at a premium price point.

The camera does not have built-in WiFi or Bluetooth, requiring additional accessories for wireless transfer of images.

The camera does not have a built-in flash, which means you need to purchase one separately.

Features:

Full-frame (35mm) sensor for high-quality image capture

30.4 MP resolution for versatile shooting

Up to 7.0 frames per second continuous shooting speed

61-point AF system with 41 cross-points

4K video recording at 30p or 24p and in-camera still frame grab of 8.8MP images

Touchscreen LCD monitor for easy control and navigation

Compatible with Canon EF lenses

Connectivity options include USB, HDMI, and NFC

D-Rings, handheld, shoulder strap, and trolley sleeve for easy transport.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark IV Full Frame Digital SLR Camera is ideal for professionals who demand high-quality performance, versatility, and excellent image quality.

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV Full Frame Digital SLR Camera

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GoPro HERO11 Black  Waterproof Action Camera

The GoPro HERO11 Black is a powerful action camera designed for capturing high-quality videos and images in any environment. This waterproof camera is perfect for small business owners seeking a versatile, reliable, and easy-to-use solution for their content creation needs.

Features:

USB connectivity

MicroSDHC flash memory type

Black color

Waterproof

1.9-inch screen size

CMOS photo sensor technology

Action camera camcorder type

Pros:

Exceptional 5.3K60 Ultra HD video quality

High-resolution 27MP photos

Live streaming and webcam capabilities

Advanced stabilization features

Durable, waterproof design

Cons:

May have a learning curve for new users

Accessories can be expensive

Battery life may be shorter in high-performance modes

No built-in memory storage

This camera has a revolutionary new image sensor for expansive field of view, great image quality, and smooth high-frame-rate videos. The Emmy Award-winning HyperSmooth stabilization ensures steady footage in various conditions, and the included components make it easy to set up and start capturing your adventures.

GoPro HERO11 Black  Waterproof Action Camera

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Best Digital Cameras for Beginners

Selecting the best camera for beginners is important for a successful start in photography. The following criteria will help you choose a beginner-friendly camera:

Criteria for selecting a beginner-friendly camera

Ease of use: The best camera for beginners should be user-friendly, with intuitive controls and a straightforward interface. Versatility: A good beginner camera should be versatile, allowing you to explore different photography styles and techniques. Affordability: Budget is often a concern for beginners, so its important to find a camera that offers great value for money. Availability of learning resources: Look for a camera with a strong online community and plenty of learning resources to help you master photography basics. Expandability: As your skills grow, you may want to upgrade your camera or accessories. Choose a camera with an expandable system that can grow with you.

Top 5 beginner digital cameras

Canon EOS Rebel: This popular entry-level DSLR offers excellent image quality and a user-friendly interface, making it a great choice for beginners. Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV: This compact mirrorless camera provides superb image quality and advanced features in a small package, perfect for beginners who want to explore different photography styles. Nikon D3500: This affordable DSLR boasts impressive image quality and a range of features designed specifically for beginners. Sony A6000: This mirrorless camera offers a balance of performance and affordability, making it an ideal choice for beginners looking for a versatile and user-friendly option. 5. Fujifilm X-T30 II: With its classic design and impressive image quality, this mirrorless camera is perfect for beginners who want a camera that combines style and substance.

Each of these cameras has its own unique features, pros and cons, price range, and user reviews. Availability may vary depending on your location, but most of these models can be found online or at local camera stores.

Best Cheap Digital Cameras

Finding a budget-friendly digital camera that doesnt sacrifice quality can be challenging. Keep the following factors in mind when looking for the best cheap digital camera:

Factors to consider when looking for a budget camera

Image quality: Look for a camera with a high-quality sensor and good low-light performance to ensure your photos look great, even on a budget. Features and capabilities: Consider the cameras features, such as autofocus, image stabilization, and video capabilities, to make sure it meets your needs. Build quality and durability: A budget camera should still be well-built and durable, able to withstand daily use and occasional accidents. Battery life: A longer battery life means you can spend more time shooting and less time charging. Value for money: The best budget camera should offer a good balance of price, performance, and features.

Top 5 budget digital cameras

Canon PowerShot SX620 HS: This compact point-and-shoot camera offers a powerful zoom lens and solid image quality at an affordable price. Panasonic Lumix ZS50: With its impressive zoom range and image stabilization, this compact camera is great for budget-conscious travelers. Nikon Coolpix B500: This budget-friendly bridge camera features a large zoom range and easy-to-use controls, perfect for beginners. Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX220: This compact camera boasts excellent image quality and a slim design, making it a great budget option for everyday use. Fujifilm Instax Mini 11: For instant photography fans, this affordable instant camera is easy to use and delivers fun, credit-card-sized prints.

Similar to the beginner cameras, each budget camera has its own features, pros and cons, price range, and user reviews. Availability may vary depending on your location, but these models can generally be found online or at local camera stores.

Camera Types

Understanding the differences between various camera types will help you determine which one is best suited for your needs. Here, well discuss the pros and cons of three main camera types: point-and-shoot, mirrorless, and DSLR cameras.

Point-and-shoot cameras

Overview: Point-and-shoot cameras are compact and easy to use, making them a popular choice for beginners and casual photographers. Advantages: These cameras are affordable, lightweight, and offer a range of features and capabilities. Limitations: Due to their smaller sensors and fixed lenses, point-and-shoot cameras may not deliver the same level of image quality as more advanced camera types. Best models for beginners: Canon PowerShot SX620 HS, Panasonic Lumix ZS50, Nikon Coolpix B500 Best models for budget-conscious buyers: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX220, Fujifilm Instax Mini 11

Mirrorless cameras

Overview: Mirrorless cameras have become increasingly popular due to their compact size and advanced features. They offer the flexibility of interchangeable lenses without the bulk of a DSLR. Advantages: These cameras typically provide excellent image quality, fast autofocus, and a wide range of features in a compact and lightweight body. Limitations: Mirrorless cameras can be more expensive than point-and-shoot options, and their battery life is often shorter due to the electronic viewfinder. Best models for beginners: Sony A6000, Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV, Fujifilm X-T30 II Best models for budget-conscious buyers: Canon EOS M50, Panasonic Lumix GX85

DSLR cameras

Overview: DSLR cameras use a mirror and prism system to provide an optical viewfinder, and they offer a wide range of features and excellent image quality. Advantages: DSLRs tend to have a longer battery life, a more extensive lens selection, and better low-light performance compared to mirrorless cameras. Limitations: These cameras are often larger and heavier than mirrorless models, which can be a disadvantage for those who prioritize portability. Best models for beginners: Nikon D3500, Canon EOS Rebel T7 Best models for budget-conscious buyers: Nikon D5600, Canon EOS Rebel T7i

Essential Camera Features

When comparing digital cameras, its important to understand the key features that can impact image quality and overall performance. Here, well discuss image sensors, lenses, autofocus, image stabilization, and video capabilities.

Image sensors

Overview: The image sensor is the heart of the digital camera, capturing light and converting it into an image. Sensor size and image quality: Larger sensors typically produce better image quality, particularly in low light conditions. Common sensor sizes include full-frame, APS-C, and Micro Four Thirds. Types of sensors: The most common types of image sensors are CMOS and CCD, with CMOS sensors being more common in modern cameras due to their lower power consumption and faster readout speeds. Impact on camera price: Cameras with larger sensors and higher resolutions tend to be more expensive. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Look for a camera with a decent sensor size, such as APS-C or Micro Four Thirds, to balance image quality and affordability.

Lenses

Overview: The lens is responsible for focusing light onto the image sensor, and its quality can greatly impact the final image. Focal length and zoom: The focal length of a lens determines its field of view and magnification, while zoom lenses offer the flexibility to change focal lengths without changing lenses. Aperture: The aperture controls the amount of light entering the lens, with larger apertures (lower f-number) allowing more light and better low-light performance. Interchangeable lenses: Mirrorless and DSLR cameras offer the option to change lenses, providing greater flexibility and creative options. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Start with a versatile kit lens and consider investing in additional lenses as you develop your skills and interests.

Autofocus

Overview: Autofocus helps ensure your subject is sharp and in focus, making it an essential feature for most photographers. Contrast detection vs. phase detection: Contrast detection autofocus is generally slower but more accurate, while phase detection is faster and better for tracking moving subjects. Autofocus points: More autofocus points can provide better coverage and more precise focusing. Impact on image quality: A fast and accurate autofocus system can help ensure sharp images, particularly when shooting fast-moving subjects. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Look for a camera with a good balance of autofocus points and a combination of contrast and phase detection for the best overall performance.

Image stabilization

Overview: Image stabilization helps reduce the effects of camera shake, resulting in sharper images, especially in low light conditions or when using longer focal lengths. Optical vs. digital stabilization: Optical stabilization occurs within the lens, while digital stabilization is applied in-camera during image processing. Optical stabilization is generally more effective. Importance for different photography styles: Image stabilization is particularly important for handheld photography, including telephoto, low light, and video shooting. Impact on camera price: Cameras with built-in image stabilization may be more expensive, but the added benefit can be worth the investment. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Look for a camera with in-body image stabilization or consider lenses with optical stabilization to maximize sharpness in your images.

Video capabilities

Overview: Many modern digital cameras offer video recording capabilities, allowing you to capture high-quality video in addition to still images. Resolution and frame rate: Higher resolutions, such as 4K, provide more detailed video, while higher frame rates enable smoother motion and slow-motion effects. Autofocus in video mode: Good autofocus performance during video recording is essential for sharp and professional-looking footage. Audio quality: Built-in microphones can vary in quality, and some cameras offer the option to connect external microphones for improved audio capture. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Look for a camera that offers at least 1080p video recording and a reliable autofocus system for the best overall video performance.

Camera Accessories

Once youve chosen your camera, consider investing in some essential accessories to enhance your photography experience. Well cover tripods, camera bags and cases, memory cards, external flashes, and additional accessories.

Tripods

Overview: Tripods provide stability and support for your camera, enabling sharper images and creative long-exposure techniques. Types of tripods: Options include full-size tripods, compact travel tripods, and flexible tripods with bendable legs for versatile positioning. Features to look for: Consider factors such as weight capacity, height, stability, and ease of setup when choosing a tripod. Price range: Tripods are available at various price points, from affordable options under $50 to high-end models costing several hundred dollars. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Choose a tripod that offers a good balance of stability, portability, and affordability to suit your needs.

Camera bags and cases

Overview: A quality camera bag or case protects your gear from damage, making it an essential accessory for any photographer. Types of bags and cases: Options include backpacks, shoulder bags, sling bags, and hard cases, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Features to look for: Consider factors such as size, capacity, padding, weather resistance, and ease of access when selecting a bag or case. Price range: Camera bags and cases are available at a wide range of prices, with options to suit every budget. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Choose a bag or case that offers adequate protection for your gear while remaining within your budget and fitting your personal preferences for style and accessibility.

Memory cards

Overview: Memory cards store your images and videos, making them an essential accessory for any photographer. Types of memory cards: Common types include SD, microSD, and CF cards. The type of card you need will depend on your cameras specifications. Storage capacity and speed: Larger capacity cards allow you to store more images and videos, while faster cards can improve performance when shooting high-resolution images or video. Price range: Memory card prices vary based on capacity and speed, but affordable options are available for most needs. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Choose a memory card with adequate storage and speed for your camera and intended usage, keeping in mind that its often more cost-effective to purchase a larger capacity card.

External flashes

Overview: External flashes provide additional light for your photos, improving exposure and image quality in low light situations. Types of external flashes: Options include speedlights, which mount on your cameras hot shoe, and off-camera flash units for more creative lighting setups. When to use an external flash: External flashes are useful for indoor photography, night photography, and situations where the built-in flash is insufficient or produces undesirable results. Price range: External flashes are available at various price points, from affordable options under $50 to high-end models costing several hundred dollars. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Choose an external flash that offers a good balance of power, versatility, and affordability, and consider learning off-camera flash techniques to further enhance your photography skills.

Additional accessories

Overview: There are many other accessories available to improve your photography experience and help you achieve the desired results. Lens filters: Lens filters, such as UV, polarizing, and neutral density filters, can protect your lens and enhance your images in various shooting conditions. Remote shutter release: A remote shutter release allows you to take photos without physically touching your camera, reducing the risk of camera shake and enabling creative techniques such as long exposures. Cleaning kits: Proper cleaning and maintenance of your camera gear are essential for preserving image quality and extending the life of your equipment. Recommendations for beginners and budget buyers: Invest in a few key accessories that match your photography style and needs, such as a basic lens filter set, a remote shutter release, and a cleaning kit to maintain your gear.

Photography Techniques for Beginners

Once youve chosen your camera and accessories, its time to start practicing and improving your photography skills. Well cover the basics of exposure, composition techniques, lighting techniques, post-processing basics, and building a photography portfolio.

Basics of exposure

Overview: Exposure refers to the amount of light that reaches your cameras sensor, which determines the brightness and overall appearance of your images. Aperture: The aperture is the opening in the lens that allows light to enter. A larger aperture (lower f-number) lets in more light and creates a shallower depth of field, while a smaller aperture (higher f-number) lets in less light and produces a deeper depth of field. Shutter speed: Shutter speed is the length of time the cameras sensor is exposed to light. Faster shutter speeds (e.g., 1/1000s) freeze motion, while slower shutter speeds (e.g., 1s) can create motion blur or allow for long exposures. ISO: ISO refers to the cameras sensitivity to light. A higher ISO setting increases sensitivity and allows for better low-light performance, but may introduce noise or grain to your images. Exposure triangle: The exposure triangle is a concept that illustrates the relationship between aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. Balancing these three settings is key to achieving a properly exposed image.

Composition techniques

Overview: Composition is the arrangement of elements within a frame, which can greatly impact the visual appeal and effectiveness of your images. Rule of thirds: The rule of thirds divides your frame into a 33 grid, suggesting that placing your subject or points of interest at the intersections of these lines can create a more balanced and engaging image. Leading lines: Using lines within your frame, such as roads, fences, or architectural elements, can guide the viewers eye toward your subject or create a sense of depth and perspective. Framing: Framing involves using elements within your scene to create a frame around your subject, drawing attention to it and adding context to your image. Depth of field: Controlling the depth of field, or the range of sharpness in your image, can help separate your subject from the background or foreground, adding depth and focus to your composition.

Lighting techniques

Overview: Understanding and controlling light is a critical aspect of photography, as it directly impacts the mood, atmosphere, and overall quality of your images. Natural light: Natural light, such as sunlight or moonlight, can provide a soft, warm, and often flattering look for your photos. Consider shooting during golden hour or blue hour for the most desirable natural light. Artificial light: Artificial light sources, such as lamps, flash units, or studio lights, offer more control over your lighting setup but may require additional equipment and expertise. Flash photography: Using your cameras built-in or external flash can help illuminate your subject and improve image quality in low light situations. Experiment with bounce flash or off-camera flash techniques for more creative lighting options. Light modifiers: Light modifiers, such as reflectors, diffusers, and softboxes, can help shape and soften your light source, creating a more flattering and professional look.

Post-processing basics

Overview: Post-processing involves editing your images after theyve been captured, allowing you to enhance colors, contrast, sharpness, and more. Basic adjustments: Start by making basic adjustments to exposure, white balance, and contrast to improve the overall appearance of your image. Cropping and straightening: Crop and straighten your image to refine the composition, eliminate distractions, or correct any issues with horizon lines or alignment. Filters and presets: Many editing software options offer filters and presets that can quickly apply a specific look or style to your image. Use these sparingly and selectively to maintain the integrity of your photos. Popular software options: Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, and Capture One are popular choices for post-processing software, with many free or affordable alternatives available as well.

Building a photography portfolio

Overview: A photography portfolio showcases your best work and helps you attract clients, network with other photographers, or share your passion with friends and family. Selecting your best work: Choose a variety of images that demonstrate your skills, style, and versatility as a photographer. Organizing your portfolio: Organize your images into categories or collections to make navigating and appreciating your work easier for viewers. Presenting your work online: Use a platform like Behance, 500px, or your own website to present your portfolio professionally and visually appealingly. Promoting your photography: Share your portfolio on social media, join photography forums or groups, and attend networking events to promote your work and connect with potential clients or collaborators.

Continuing your photography education

Overview: As you progress in your photography journey, its important to continue learning and expanding your skills to further develop your style and expertise. Online courses and tutorials: Websites like Skillshare, Udemy, and YouTube offer a wealth of photography courses and tutorials, catering to a range of skill levels and interests. Photography workshops: Attending in-person or virtual workshops can provide hands-on experience and personalized instruction from experienced photographers. Photography clubs and meetups: Joining local photography clubs or participating in meetups can help you connect with like-minded individuals, share tips and techniques, and gain valuable feedback on your work. Reading photography books: Numerous photography books are available, covering various topics from technical skills to creative inspiration. Consider adding some of these titles to your reading list to expand your knowledge and fuel your passion for photography.

Camera Maintenance and Care

Protecting your camera from damage: Ensuring your cameras longevity involves taking care of it and protecting it from potential damage. Using a camera case or bag: Invest in a quality camera bag or case to protect your camera and lenses from scratches, impacts, and environmental damage. Proper handling techniques: Handle your camera with care to avoid dropping or bumping it, and always use the provided camera strap for added security. Avoiding extreme temperatures: Keep your camera away from extreme heat or cold, as these conditions can damage internal components or cause condensation. Avoiding moisture and dust: Store your camera in a dry, dust-free environment, and consider using a weather-sealed camera body and lenses for added protection in harsh conditions.

Upgrading Your Camera Equipment

When to upgrade: Knowing when to upgrade your camera equipment depends on your individual needs, goals, and skill level. Outgrowing your current camera: If you find that it is limiting your creativity or requires specific features to pursue a photography niche, it may be time to upgrade. New features and technologies: Stay informed about advancements in camera technology and consider upgrading if a new feature or improvement will significantly enhance your photography experience. Improvement in image quality: Upgrading to a camera with a larger sensor or better image processing capabilities can lead to a noticeable improvement in image quality, especially in challenging lighting conditions. Pursuing a specific photography niche: If youre pursuing a specific type of photography, such as wildlife, sports, or astrophotography, upgrading to a camera tailored for that niche can enhance your results and overall experience.

FAQs

What is the best digital camera for a beginner photographer?

The best digital camera for a beginner photographer depends on the individuals needs, budget, and personal preferences. Some popular options include the Canon EOS Rebel series, Nikon D3XXX series, and the Sony a6XXX series.

How do I choose a budget-friendly digital camera without sacrificing quality?

Look for a camera that offers a balance of image quality, features, and ease of use, while also considering reviews and recommendations from trusted sources.

Is it better to invest in a more expensive camera or better lenses?

Investing in high-quality lenses can often have a greater impact on image quality and versatility than upgrading to a more expensive camera body.

How can I improve my photography skills without upgrading my equipment?

Focus on mastering composition, lighting, and post-processing techniques, and continually seek opportunities to learn and practice.

What are the most important features to consider when comparing digital cameras?

Key features to consider include sensor size, image stabilization, autofocus capabilities, video quality, and overall ease of use.

How do I know when its time to upgrade my camera or accessories?

It may be time to upgrade when you find that your current equipment is limiting your creative potential, you require specific features to pursue a photography niche, or there are significant improvements in camera technology that will enhance your photography experience.

What are the best resources for learning photography techniques and staying updated on camera technology?

Online courses and tutorials, photography workshops, books, blogs, and photography clubs or meetups are all great resources for learning new techniques and staying informed about the latest camera technology and trends.

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During a recent full Committee on Small Business hearing, lawmakers voiced serious concerns over the Small Business Administrations (SBA) recent alterations to its 7(a) Loan Program. The hearing, titled Taking on More Risk: Examining the SBAs Changes to the 7(a) Lending Program Part I, was led by Chairman Roger Williams (R-TX).

The 7(a) Loan Program is the SBAs flagship offering, providing a government-backed guarantee for loans given by regular lenders to small businesses that might otherwise struggle to secure funding. However, the SBAs changes to the program, which include reducing underwriting standards, are causing concern among lawmakers.

Todays hearing did nothing to assuage our concerns over the Small Business Administrations reckless rule changes to their 7(a) Loan Program which will reduce underwriting standards and add more risk of a taxpayer-funded bailout of the program, Chairman Williams stated.

The concerns raised in the hearing centered around the perceived risk to taxpayers, who could potentially bear the financial burden should the loans default. The Committee on Small Business expressed its commitment to safeguarding the SBAs cornerstone program and ensuring taxpayers are not left to cover the cost of bad loans.

One of the key concerns raised was the shift towards a more subjective underwriting method for loans under $500,000. This change is seen as increasing risk, as 75% of all 7(a) loans fall under this amount.

Rep. Meuser questioned the SBA representative, Mr. Kelley, on the matter: By moving the program, the 7(a) portfolio, towards a more subjective underwriting method for loans under $500,000, how does that protect taxpayers from losses?

The hearing also highlighted concerns around oversight. Rep. Luetkemeyer noted a shortfall in the Office of Credit Risk Managements (OCRM) oversight, with only 108 of its planned 358 reviews of high-risk lenders conducted in 2019. He pointed out that the situation has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, with staffing levels dropping by an additional 38%.

Despite these concerns, the SBA has lifted the Small Business Lending Company (SBLC) moratorium, allowing more non-depository entities to enter the market. These entities are regulated solely by the SBA rather than federal regulators.

The changes to the 7(a) program raise critical questions for small businesses relying on these loans. The hearing underscored lawmakers commitment to addressing these concerns and protecting the interests of small businesses and taxpayers alike.

For the latest, follow us on Google News.
After the announcement that "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 8" premiered May 12 on Paramount +, fans are already buzzing about which queen they think could take the crown, the spot in the Drag Race Hall of Fame, and the check for $250,000.

It wouldn't be "Drag Race" if there was not a twist, and this year's game has a big one. This season, the queens are given a second way to win, with the first-ever "Fame Games", where the eliminated queens will compete for a prize of $50,000.

Each week on "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars: Untucked" (and online), the eliminated queens will "showcase their runway looks and appeal for fan votes." Ultimately, the Drag Race audience will decide who becomes the Queen of the Fame Games"!

This year's crop of already-announced All Star queens are Alexis Michelle (Season Nine), Darienne Lake (Season Six), Heidi N Closet (Season Twelve), Jaymes Mansfield (Season Nine), Jessica Wild (Season Two), Jimbo (Canadas Drag Race Season One, UK vs. The World Season One), Kahanna Montrese (Season Eleven), Kandy Muse (Season Thirteen), LaLa Ri (Season Thirteen), Monica Beverly Hillz (Season Five), Mrs. Kasha Davis (Season Seven), and Naysha Lopez (Season Eight).

"All Stars" guest judges are known to be massive fans of "Drag Race" as well as dynamic stars in their own right, and this year's crop of guest judges are no exception. The guest judges that are joining the "Drag Race" judging panel this year include Maude Apatow, Brandon Boyd, Zooey Deschanel, Thom Filicia, Javicia Leslie, Idina Menzel, Ego Nwodim, Matt Rogers, Adam Shankman, JoJo Siwa, Robin Thede and Bowen Yang.

"Drag Race" judges Michelle Visage, Carson Kressley, Ross Matthews, and Ts Madison are all also headed back to the Drag Race judges table this year as well.

Follow "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" on Instagram @rupaulsdragrace
Searching for Bratislava activities on a budget? Join a group of foreigners on their trip to Male Karpaty or enjoy a piano concert.

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Nature | Festival | Music

Nature

The ruins of the Biely Kamen castle near Svaty Jur. (Source: Tomas Benedikovic)

Trip to Male Karpaty

Meeting point: Saturday, May 20 at 8:15, Hlavna Stanica (Main Railway Station), Bratislava

This Saturday group of hikers will meet at the Main Railway Station in Bratislava for the train to Svaty Jur. The village will be the starting point of the route.

From there the hikers will head to Kosarisko and Pod Kamennym Vrskom. The route will end in Stupava.

The tour is about 20 km. If you would like to go on the hike later, here's a map.

https://sk.frame.mapy.cz/s/kucupolupe

Festival

(Source: Metropolitny institut Bratislavy (MIB))

Festival "Ulica Na Hranie"

May 20 at 10:00, Myjavska Street, Mudronova Primary School.

The "Ulica Na Hranie" festivals aim to transform the surroundings of schools into lively public spaces with new opportunities for outdoor play. This is the largest event ever organised by the capital to promote the safer movement of children.

The surroundings of the elementary school will be turned into a one-day pedestrian zone so that children can play carefree on the street without cars. Various activities focused on sustainable transport and road safety are planned.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1tmSEXU4RZa8LGElRPdqnjWqtipmOUAc&ehbc=2E312F

Music

Devanas Duo (Source: hc.sk)

Piano duo DEVANAS

May 22 at Dvorana concert halls on Zochova 1 in Bratislava; start at 18:00.

The Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava invites you to a concert connected with the presentation of a new CD performed by an interesting piano duo called Devanas.

You can find the full list of concerts organized by the students of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava here (in Slovak).

https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1fQPFYJIAmQ6gJTBXk28ou4XZKg7cgHk&ehbc=2E312F

If you have tips for free events in Bratislava or you would like to share your hiking or cycling trip ideas with readers, let us know at kseniia.husieva@spectator.sk.
Incident happened on May 16.

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Up to 16 lions and tigers may be euthanised after these big cats killed a farmer in Kysucke Nove Mesto, northern Slovakia, on Tuesday.

Shortly after parts of his body were discovered in one of the animal enclosures, the police killed one of the felines and a vet euthanised another, the TASR news agency wrote. A lion and a lionness are said to have been killed.

The Ranc Pri Ziline farm owner had obtained permission to run a farm with these wild animals. The permit expired in 2019, and had not been extended by the state authorities since then.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1FJLTKRyI2URAlIw-2FTaUTdVvNTUv_M&ehbc=2E312F

Death or sale

Authorities are now deciding what will happen to the remaining felines. They may be sold to other facilities abroad or in Slovakia. Euthanasia also remains an option.

Agriculture Minister Jozef Bires has not ruled out the latter.

If such a tragic situation happens, the carnivorous instinct can usually repeat at different times, he said.

Though the farmer failed to create a suitable environment for the wild cats, the minister has claimed that the regional branch of the State Veterinary and Food Administration also neglected its obligations.

The last inspection on the farm took place in 2021. Prior to that, the administration fined the farmer 2,000, the Aktuality.sk news website wrote.

Before his appointment to the ministerial job earlier this week, Bires was the head of the administration.

The Environment Inspectorate also carried out several inspections on the farm, from 2014 until 2020. No violations of the CITES treaty have been discovered, which protects endangered species of animals and plants from threats of international trade, TASR wrote. The inspectorate fined the farmer for the unlawful use of the term zoo in 2014.

Big cats only in selected facilities

The possession and the sale of big felines has not been not allowed in Slovakia since March 2022, but exceptions apply to zoos and rehabilitation stations with valid permits.

The amendment to the law allows private breeders of big cats to keep them [until they die]. They cannot offer them for sale within Slovakia, and they cannot provide them for reproduction, added the inspectorate.

MEP Martin Hojsik and the Animal Ombudsman initiative are demanding that the authorities cancel the order to kill 16 felines, if any have been issued, arguing that it is the state, not the animals, that has failed in this case.

It's unimaginable that the body that is supposed to protect animals, the State Veterinary and Food Administration, is now threatening to euthanise 16 big cats unless it manages to find a new home for them, said the initiative.

Hojsik noted that animal organisations have been pointing to the farm in question for years, but the state authorities have not acted.

The State Veterinary and Food Administration is currently investigating why the farm was not shut down despite no valid permission for its operation.
Lay-offs not planned, unionists say.

The US company Whirlpool is leaving the Slovak market. (Source: Whirlpool Poprad)

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The American manufacturer of white goods Whirlpool, which runs a plant in Poprad, eastern Slovakia, will be leaving the Slovak market later this year.

The plant, the only Whirlpool facility where top loading washing machines are manufactured, will be taken over by the Turkish corporation Arcelik, writes the Korzar website.

A thousand employees work at the Poprad factory, but they do not seem to be stressed about the change.

For us, the employees, nothing should change. We have information that we we are supposed to stay and continue working, said the Whirlpool Slovakia Trade Union Chair, Tomas Hurajt.

Pending approval

The merger first needs to be approved in Slovakia, and by anti-monopoly authorities in other European countries, like Poland and Italy, where Whirlpool and Arcelik plan to merge.

Whirlpool will own 25 percent and Arcelik 75 percent in the newly created firm, with an expected turnover of 6 billion after the merger.

Today, Arcelik employs 45,000 people in 30 factories and 53 subsidiary companies in 83 countries. In Europe alone, the firm owns 25 firms and two factories in Romania. Whirlpool has nine factories and 14 daughter companies in 38 countries, including Italy, Poland, Great Britain and Slovakia.

The new company will also have regional user rights for the Beko, Blomberg and Altus brands and the Whirlpool brand for a period of 40 years.

Whirlpool in Poprad will end 31 years after its arrival in the town.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230517/us-debt-drama-as-biden-negotiates-some-suggest-he-use-law-to-bypass-talks-1110427758.html

US Debt Drama: As Biden Negotiates, Some Suggest He Use Law to Bypass Talks

US Debt Drama: As Biden Negotiates, Some Suggest He Use Law to Bypass Talks

President Joe Biden is being urged by political allies to invoke a statute within the US constitution to help avert a default on US payments as his rivals in Congress stand in the way of raising the countrys debt limit.

2023-05-17T21:34+0000

2023-05-17T21:34+0000

2023-05-17T21:29+0000

economy

us debt ceiling crisis

us

economic crisis

financial crisis

joe biden

janet yellen

republicans

congress

white house

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The 14th Amendment statute has not been used before and its legality in the matter is unknown. But some senators in Bidens Democratic Party are convinced it just might be the thing to bypass the opposition of congressional Republicans in raising the debt ceiling, reports said. Five Democratic senators, led by Tina Smith and Elizabeth Warren, said in the draft letter to Biden published by US media on Wednesday: The White House has argued without success with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling, which currently stands at $31.4 trillion. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the debt limit must be raised by June 1 to avoid a debt default, which, she said, would have untold ramifications for the US economy and the livelihood of Americans. However, Biden told reporters on Wednesday he was optimistic that there is a path to [an] agreement. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who heads the Republicans in Congress, also said on Wednesday he believes that the United States will not default on its debt. The senators who drafted the letter to Biden, however, noted growing dissatisfaction among Democratic with some aspects of the debt negotiations, including Republican demands to impose tougher work requirements to receive federal benefits. While we cannot default on our debt, we also cannot allow the destructive Republican budget to be implemented," they said. The Democrats, on their part, have suggested higher taxes on the rich, which the Republicans have ruled out.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230506/what-is-14th-amendment-biden-not-ready-to-invoke--how-is-it-tied-to-us-debt-ceiling-crisis-1110141414.html

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us debt ceiling crisis, economic crisis, financial crisis, joe biden, 14th amendment
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/as-russia-iran-cooperation-increases-us-sanctions-lose-their-bite-1110444376.html

As Russia-Iran Cooperation Increases, US Sanctions 'Lose Their Bite'

As Russia-Iran Cooperation Increases, US Sanctions 'Lose Their Bite'

Economic, military, and cultural cooperation between the Russian Federation and Islamic Republic of Iran has burgeoned in recent years, with trade turnover reaching $5 billion in 2022.

2023-05-18T19:02+0000

2023-05-18T19:02+0000

2023-05-18T19:02+0000

analysis

iran

ted cruz

russia

cooperation

sanctions

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Hossein Askari, the Aryamehr Professor of International Business at The George Washington University in Washington, DC, told Sputnik on Thursday there are a number of reasons the US feels so threatened by the growing cooperation between Russia and Iran, including insecurity over the effectiveness of the sanctions it has levied on both nations."Please note that it is US arrogance that has resulted in the current state of affairs. US policymakers have felt that they could take on all comers as the world's premier economic and military power. They must now face the music," Askari told Sputnik."It opens the door for many countries who also resent freewheeling US sanctions. Iran and Russia could provide a counter to US sanctions. If China were to join Russia and Iran, then the US would largely lose sanctions as a coercive tool of foreign policy," he explained. "Essentially, such Russia-Iran cooperation could open the floodgates as others defy US sanctions."He also noted that Israels close relationship with the United States meant that "US politicians do all they can to protect Israeli interests," and Jerusalem is strongly set against Tehran.Inversely, growing Iran-Russia cooperation also weakens Washingtons leverage over the Arab states, too, Askari noted.Askari also noted that Iran could potentially provide the Russian Navy with an important base on the Indian Ocean, which it lacks outside of the newly approved base in Port Sudan, on Africas Red Sea coast.On Thursday, US Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced the Sanctions Against Destabilizing Iranian-Russian Aggression (SADIRA) bill that would extend US sanctions against Russia to Iran as well, targeting sea harbors, airports, oil tankers and banks used by Russia and Iran for military purposes. It would also freeze Iranian financial assets abroad and require the Biden administration to use them to pay American victims of what he called "Iranian aggression" and to compensate Ukraine.Askari said that whether Cruz gets significant bipartisan support for the bill will depend especially on the Israeli lobby in Washington."If they feel that Israel is threatened, they will support Cruz's bill. Also, please note that sanctions are used as the kitchen sink. Lawmakers pile it on to feel good that they have done something, regardless of their effectiveness and wider fallout now and over time. So putting it all together, I would think that it is likely that he will get bipartisan support. But again, I don't think that the bill would have much bite," he explained.On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi signed a $1.6 billion deal toward construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, a key part of the International North South Transport Corridor. Askari said the project would provide both nations with an easier way to ship military assets across their borders."Although Rasht is in northern Iran, this railway will open up trade through Iran through the Persian Gulf for both exports and imports for Russia and enhance Iran-Russia bilateral trade and beyond," he explained. "It will also further reduce US influence in the Persian Gulf and enhance both Russian and Iranian influence with countries of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and Iraq."

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230512/made-in-russia-heads-to-iran-oil-show-2023-1110302013.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230501/iran-reopens-diplomatic-missions-in-saudi-arabia-1110006977.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230320/russias-iran-envoy-to-sputnik-moscow-tehran-relations-have-acquired-a-strategic-character-1108613856.html

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russia

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iran; russia; sanctions; hossein askari
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/danish-soldiers-sent-to-latvia-placed-in-toxic-dilapidated-gas-ridden-tents-1110433834.html

Danish Soldiers Sent to Latvia Placed in Toxic, Dilapidated, Gas-Ridden Tents

Danish Soldiers Sent to Latvia Placed in Toxic, Dilapidated, Gas-Ridden Tents

According to the Danish soldier trade union, the problem of diesel-powered heat guns has plagued staff for decades, marring overseas deployments as far back as the 1990s.

2023-05-18T09:50+0000

2023-05-18T09:50+0000

2023-05-18T10:17+0000

military

europe

latvia

denmark

baltics

nato

scandinavia

military & intelligence

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Some 800 Danish soldiers stationed in Latvia since November as part of NATO's advanced presence in the Baltics have been living in tents polluted with toxic fumes, the Danish Defense Ministry has warned in a memorandum.The tents of Danish soldiers at Camp Valdemar were heated with diesel-powered VA-M40-type heat guns throughout the winter, which has resulted in air pollution inside the tents and around them exceeding the limits of the Danish Working Environment Authority, the report revealed.The ministry also admitted that the measurements were when "the weather was mild," which is why the heat guns were not turned up full blast. Therefore, there may be "significant dark numbers" associated with the test.The soldier trade union said they were happy that the problem was finally being clarified.The Defense Sanitation Command does not consider that the polluted tents entails a significant risk of developing diseases later in life, yet nevertheless, it recommended reconsidering the use of similar heat guns in the future.This is not the first report of questionable conditions for Danish soldiers deployed overseas. Earlier, a trade union representative lamented about how the first team, when they arrived in Latvia, found themselves quartered in moldy, dilapidated tents. He also admitted a drastic lack of equipment."We lack everything from ammunition to underpants, to say the least. It is the saddest period I have been in the Armed Forces. And I've seen a little bit of everything for 20 years," the spokesman was quoted as saying back then.Earlier this spring, the Danish Defense Ministry said it would allocate DKK 38 billion ($5.6 billion) to bolstering its military in order to get closer to NATO's spending target. Among other things, the money will be spent on gear, equipment, buildings, information technology, personnel and new investments. The ministry cited the "current geopolitical situation" which warrants "more resources."The Danish military is admittedly plagued by severe staff shortages that forced the Nordic country to limit its Arctic patrols and curtail its overseas presence in Iraq starting from early 2024. Instead, more emphasis will be placed on its presence in Baltic countries. Furthermore, Denmark's military spending spree, which also involves mammoth aid to the Kiev regime in the Ukraine conflict, already resulted in unpopular measures, such as abandoning a cherished Christian holiday in order to replenish the state coffers.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230426/danish-arctic-patrols-so-understaffed-that-ships-stop-for-crews-to-take-nap-1109843389.html

latvia

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baltics

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danish military, overseas deployment, air pollution, diesel-heated generators, polluted tents, baltic states
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/deutsche-bank-agrees-to-pay-75mln-to-settle-jeffrey-epstein-victims-lawsuit---reports-1110438985.html

Deutsche Bank Agrees to Pay $75Mln to Settle Jeffrey Epstein Victims' Lawsuit - Reports

Deutsche Bank Agrees to Pay $75Mln to Settle Jeffrey Epstein Victims' Lawsuit - Reports

Deutsche Bank will pay $75Mln in order to settle a lawsuit, claiming that financial company was aware of Jeffrey Epsteins sex trafficking activities and continued to provide him with services.

2023-05-18T09:59+0000

2023-05-18T09:59+0000

2023-05-18T09:59+0000

beyond politics

deutsche bank

jeffrey epstein

sex trafficking

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In 2022, a woman, listed anonymously under the pseudonym Jane Doe, filed the collective lawsuit against Epstein in New York together with other victims, and accused Deutsche Bank of conducting business with the financier over five years, the report said. The report also said that the bank was allegedly aware of Epstein's activities to further his sex-trafficking business using the bank's money. Doe said she was sexually abused and trafficked to Epstein's friends from about 2003-2018 and was paid in cash for sex acts, while Deutsche Bank ignored suspicious payments to numerous young women, the newspaper reported. The settlement is expected to compensate dozens of Epstein's accusers, it added. The bank had not admitted wrongdoing as part of the settlement, according to the report. In July 2019, Epstein was charged with trafficking underage girls for sexual exploitation. The financier was later found dead in his jail cell with fatal neck injuries, purportedly a result of suicide.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230512/jpmorgan-chase-ceo-so-sad-bank-had-ties-to-epstein-but-were-not-liable-for-his-actions-1110275840.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230430/cia-director-chomsky-planned-to-meet-with-sex-offender-jeffrey-epstein-reports-1109999473.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/executives-of-collapsed-banks-reveal-greed-before-congress--1110424122.html

Executives of Collapsed Banks Reveal Greed Before Congress

Executives of Collapsed Banks Reveal Greed Before Congress

On this episode of Fault Lines, hosts Jamarl Thomas and Melik Abdul discussed several domestic and international topics, including the testimonies from the CEOs of Signature and Silicon Valley banks before US Congress.

2023-05-18T04:15+0000

2023-05-18T04:15+0000

2023-05-18T11:01+0000

fault lines

radio

bud light

george soros

elon musk

banks

silicon valley

african americans

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Executives of Collapsed Banks Reveal Greed Before Congress On this episode of Fault Lines, hosts Jamarl Thomas and Melik Abdul discussed several domestic and international topics, including the testimonies from the CEOs of Signature and Silicon Valley banks before U.S. Congress.

Aquiles Larrea - CEO of Larrea Wealth ManagementDaniel Lazare - Independent JournalistRobert Patillo - Civil Rights AttorneyManila Chan - Host of The Final Countdown Radio Show on Radio Sputnik & JournalistIn the first hour, financial expert Aquiles Larrea spoke with the Fault Lines team about the latest on the US economy as CEOs from Silicon Valley and Signature banks testify before Congress over their collapse. Later, journalist Daniel Lazare spoke to the Fault Lines team about the social consequences of a tumbling economy.In the second hour, civil rights attorney Robert Patillo joined Fault Lines to discuss the results of a study about how black communities have endured excess deaths and socio economic disparity in the past 20 years in the US.In the third hour, radio host and journalist Manila Chan spoke with the team about Elon Musks comments regarding George Soros and the controversy thereafter. They also discussed CNN's low ratings and the new beer advertisement mishap.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.comThe views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of Sputnik.

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fault lines, how is the economy in the us today, are banks crashing 2023, is the us economy slowing down, is the stock market going to recession in 2023, will there be recession in 2024, what are the health disparities in the black population, cultural barriers to healthcare for african american, medical mistrust in black community
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/florida-governor-desantis-to-formally-launch-his-presidential-bid-next-week---reports-1110432329.html

Florida Governor DeSantis to Formally Launch His Presidential Bid Next Week - Reports

Florida Governor DeSantis to Formally Launch His Presidential Bid Next Week - Reports

According to reports, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, long rumored to be eyeing a presidential run, will announce his campaign next week.

2023-05-18T03:50+0000

2023-05-18T03:50+0000

2023-05-18T04:01+0000

americas

ron desantis

donald trump

nikki haley

florida

gop

2024 us presidential elections

republican primary

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DeSantis' decision to file formal paperwork with the US Federal Election Commission declaring his candidacy, which would correspond with the donor meeting in Miami on May 25, puts the governor in direct competition with another GOP presidential candidate, ex-US President Donald Trump. Several other candidates, including former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are also running, though they are far behind in the polls. Trump's former Vice President, Mike Pence is also rumored to be considering a run.A more formal event would follow the meeting, but the details have yet to be revealed, US media reported. DeSantis is currently running second in polls to Trump, but it is likely that he will gain some ground after he officially announces. DeSantis looked to be gaining momentum last summer, he beat Trump in some polls and won a Republican activist strawpoll by a 4% margin. However, he has fallen off in recent months and poll aggregator FiveThirtyEight has him more than 31 points behind the former President.Still, DeSantis is likely to be the biggest hurdle for Trump before he secures the presidential nomination. Every other rumored or confirmed candidate is polling in the single digits.Trump announced his 2024 campaign late last year. Current officeholder Joe Biden officially launched his reelection campaign in April.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230227/ron-desantis-has-a-secret-weapon---hes-a-master-of-wedge-issues-1107854708.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/footage-captures-shocking-moment-us-cop-clings-to-car-roof-after-arrest-attempt-1110447414.html

Footage Captures Shocking Moment US Cop Clings to Car Roof After Arrest Attempt

Footage Captures Shocking Moment US Cop Clings to Car Roof After Arrest Attempt

In a shocking incident captured on video, a wanted man evaded the police during a routine traffic stop in Carroll back in 2021. The defendant's lawyer then argued that the man didn't know how to behave in situations involving a moving vehicle.

2023-05-18T22:22+0000

2023-05-18T22:22+0000

2023-05-18T22:17+0000

beyond politics

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viral

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police chase

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Newly released footage has offered insight into the 2021 incident in which an Iowa cop clings for dear life to a car roof after routine traffic stop goes awry.The video released by the Carroll Police Department shows Officer Patrick McCarty confronting arrestee Dennis Guider Jr. about an outstanding warrant from Illinois. However, instead of complying, Guider opened the driver door, pushed out a woman who had been driving the vehicle and accelerated, prompting McCarty to jump onto the car's hood just as the car was beginning to move away from the scene.Desperate to stop Guider, McCarty shouted at him to halt while clinging to the car's roof with his firearm drawn. Additional footage included in the release not only include body-worn recordings but also dashcam video that shows McCarty momentarily kneeling atop the car hood before being flung onto the roof.Additional police vehicles joined the pursuit, but it only lasted about a minute. McCarty is eventually seen being thrown onto the ground after Guider turned into a gravel lot and drove through a ditch. McCarty suffered a broken back and was treated at the St. Anthony Regional Hospital.Guider pleaded guilty to the charges in March 2023, two years after the incident occurred. During sentencing, Guider's attorney argued for leniency, claiming that McCarty had not received proper training on how to handle a situation involving a moving vehicle.Guider was sentenced on May 11 and will serve up to five years in prison, separately from his sentence in Illinois.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20220426/fbi-director-says-violence-against-police-being-ignored-as-officer-murder-rates-double-1095053964.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/gop-anti-iran-russia-bill-part-of-larger-war-between-the-two-parties-in-washington-1110448149.html

GOP Anti-Iran, Russia Bill Part of Larger War Between the Two Parties in Washington

GOP Anti-Iran, Russia Bill Part of Larger War Between the Two Parties in Washington

A push by some GOP lawmakers for new sanctions against Russia and Iran would be meaningless, and are really nothing more than a complex political game in Washington where one party tries to outdo the other, an expert has said.

2023-05-18T21:05+0000

2023-05-18T21:05+0000

2023-05-18T21:00+0000

analysis

iran

russia

ted cruz

gop

sanctions

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Dr. Hooshang Amirahmadi, founder and president of the American-Iranian Council and a professor of public policy at Rutgers University, told Sputnik that what Washington really fears is its adversaries uniting and forming an eastern NATO capable of standing against the Brussels-based alliance.This story is long, it has been for some time that the Americans have been very concerned with the cooperation between Iran and Russia. In fact, just two days ago, another senator, Senator Jim Risch, who is also a conservative senator [from Idaho], released a statement also saying that he is concerned with Iran, particularly now that the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action], as President [Joe] Biden has said, is dead, the administration should have an Iran policy, and that the present policy of strategic ambiguity is not working.In the meantime, of course, it is surprising that Mr. Cruz is focusing on Iran-Russia, but his colleague, Jim Risch, in that statement focuses on Iran-China cooperation. So in a way, the Republican Party, the party that opposes Joe Biden, has Iran in the middle, and on two sides, China and Russia. And it feels like Iran's cooperation with both of these countries is strategically dangerous to American interests and its future dominance of that part of the world.Amirahmadi noted that while Iran has maintained a traditional policy of nonalignment  in practice, any time a war has started - World War I or World War II, in both cases, Iran got involved. Not that Iran wanted that, the warring forces pushed Iran into the war. So Iran became a theater of war in both wars because of its strategic location, particularly vis-a-vis Russia.Indeed, he noted that next time around, the US is likely concerned they wont be able to force Iran into their camp or to deal with the Iranian government separately if it is  strategically on the side of China and Russia.At the same time, they know that they cannot just make this happen, that they cannot order or force Iran or Russia to stop cooperating. What they wanted to do is to weaken both sides, so that their alliance is an alliance of the weak. So they are using sanctions to further weaken Iran and Russia, so that that alliance will be the alliance of the weak nations and therefore less effective.Amirahmadi pointed out that Biden and his Republican opponents largely agree on who Americas enemies are, and that the disagreement is over whether to pursue a policy of engagement with partners and isolating others or to deal with US adversaries directly through a frontal attack.That is, they cannot do it economically. They cannot do it by Democratic propaganda. They cannot do it by getting other countries against them through proxy wars and so on," the professor said, pointing out that whether or not "the Americans like it," the majority of countries have either "not taken sides" or gone ahead and backed the China-Russia alliance and Russia's special military operation. "Only a few have taken sides with the US and Europe. So they feel isolated themselves."Turning back to Cruzs proposed bill to sanction Iranian and Russian military and infrastructure assets connected to the conflict in Ukraine, the Rutgers professor cast doubts on its ability to actually be effective.I'm not sure if they really can target and specifically say this bank or this ship or port is involved. For example, there is no port between Iran and Ukraine. So Iran will never be directly involved in anything that has to do with ports, he noted. It is going to be tough for them to identify any sanctionable actions, banks, ships, ports, and so on.Iran goes through Russia. Iran has nothing to do directly with Ukraine. There is no border, there is no sea - there is nothing. That, I think, is going to be more on paper. And it would just be something that will make the Republican Party stay oppositional and tell the voters that they did something and that they are opposing Biden, he observed.Certainly, the Republican Party members of the Senate will support this cause, most likely. I'm not sure if the Democratic Party members will support it, because it will be like a war against their own party. This is designed as a war against the Democratic Party, because they know that what so far they have done is to increasingly move Iran towards Russia, Iran toward China, and away from the West. I have been in US-Iran relations for 40 years. Sanctions have never had a major impact. I mean, they certainly have an impact, but they didn't have the impact that they wanted from them, meaning to change behavior. These sanctions, previous sanctions will never change Iran's behavior, as it hasn't changed Russia's behavior, Amirahmadi said.Iran-Russia trade relations are increasing, but they are constrained by a lack of railroads and transportation generally. The purpose is to get the national railway system connected to this piece of railway, which still hasn't been built, but then you will have a complete sort of East-West and West-North connection. That is a very important piece of railway. And of course it will also increase the trade relationship between Russia and Iran, but also it will be an important railway for the Iran-Azerbaijan relationship, the Iran-Turkey relationship. It is a very major railway. The only way that railway can be used against sanctions is because that railway will certainly increase trade relations. And any movement, it doesn't matter  trade, military, anything  the movement of goods goes between Iran and Russia. And that's very important.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/as-russia-iran-cooperation-increases-us-sanctions-lose-their-bite-1110444376.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230514/kyrgyzstan-sees-no-hurdles-to-cooperate-with-russia-despite-sanction-threat-1110351743.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/ukraine-conflict-direct-result-of-biden-foreign-policy-blunders-iran-hopes---us-senator-1110430213.html

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iran; russia; sanctions; gop; ted cruz
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/milex-2023-top-belarusian-arms-featured-at-military-expo-in-minsk-1110434855.html

MILEX-2023: Top Belarusian Arms Featured at Military Expo in Minsk

MILEX-2023: Top Belarusian Arms Featured at Military Expo in Minsk

Military exhibition MILEX-2023 is a smart way to attract new customers for Belarusian arms.

2023-05-18T18:55+0000

2023-05-18T18:55+0000

2023-05-18T18:55+0000

multimedia

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The 11th International Exhibition of Arms and Military Equipment MILEX-2023 was launched in Minsk this week, featuring the newest inventions that may attract customers to the Belarusian arms market.In 2017, Minsk supplied weapons to almost 70 states, including Middle Eastern and Asian countries. Military specialists have praised Belarusian weaponry, especially the Polonez multiple launch rocket system. Also Belarus is a produced of advanced UAVs, including the reconnaissance and strike complex "Hunter"  virtually a small unmanned helicopter.Follow Sputnik live feed to learn more!

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/moldovas-farmers-stand-ready-to-declare-indefinite-protest-starting-june-7-1110430472.html

Moldova's Farmers Stand Ready to Declare Indefinite Protest Starting June 7

Moldova's Farmers Stand Ready to Declare Indefinite Protest Starting June 7

Moldovan farmers have announced an indefinite protest starting June 7 if Chisinau fails to provide aid by June 3 and fails to prohibit the import of Ukrainian grain, the Asociatia Forta Fermierilor media office said Wednesday.

2023-05-18T01:51+0000

2023-05-18T01:51+0000

2023-05-18T01:46+0000

world

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"Asociatia Forta Fermierilor demands an urgent and very specific intervention by the state, following the example of the European Union," the statement read. The association said it has been asking for the government's support since February but has yet to receive it. Farmers once again voiced their demands, which they expect the authorities would respond to by June 3, including the reimbursement to small and medium grain producers in the amount of about $170 per hectare, the introduction of temporary restrictions on imports of wheat, corn, rapeseed, and sunflower from Ukraine, payment of subsidy debts for the past year, and refund of VAT for fuel. Farmers also believe that the Moldovan port of Giurgiulesti should export only Moldovan products from July 1 to July 31. The association added that the effect of many unresolved issues leads to the destruction of small and medium farmers in the country. The Commission has banned the sale of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed, and sunflower seed in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia from May 2 until early June in a bid to "ease logistical bottlenecks" but allowed their circulation in other European markets. Moldovan farmers asked the authorities to introduce a similar ban, otherwise, the country would face protests. Vladimir Bolea, the deputy prime minister and the minister of agriculture and food industry of Moldova, has said that Chisinau would assist farmers but would not ban imports from Ukraine. Ukraine was granted a temporary duty-free trade arrangement with the EU last June. In March 2022, the European Union additionally launched green corridors to facilitate the transit of Ukrainian grain to the world market amid Russia's special military operation. However, the cheap grain from Ukraine ended up flooding EU markets instead, prompting outrage among local farmers.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230328/moldovas-secession-from-cis-to-aggravate-economic-situation-in-country---ex-president-1108849888.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/projected-winner-of-thai-election-vows-to-fully-demilitarize-sountry-1110437567.html

Projected Winner of Thai Election Vows to Fully Demilitarize ountry

Projected Winner of Thai Election Vows to Fully Demilitarize ountry

With the election victory of two main Thai opposition parties yet to be officially announced, their possible win could mean an end to a decade of the countrys military-backed conservative government.

2023-05-18T09:40+0000

2023-05-18T09:40+0000

2023-05-18T09:40+0000

asia

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The projected winner of Thailands general election, Pita Limjaroenrat, has promised that over the next four years, his policy priorities would be to demilitarize, demonopolize and decentralize the country.He added that his opposition Move Forward Party (MFP)s success in Sundays election showed that his policy priorities resonate not only with the young but across society, something that he said is pretty sensational.The MFP leader also touched upon a situation with a major roadblock for his party in the form of the unelected 250-seat senate, which is chosen entirely by the military and has previously voted for a pro-military candidate.When asked what would happen if Thailands military tried to subvert election outcomes, he said, we have to minimize the risk of subversion.The MFP made it clear that hes prepared for every scenario in his country, which has seen at least ten coups since 1932, including two in the past 17 years.He admitted that there are professional and personal attacks against him but that he has prepared in the past in order to make sure he has solid legal ground in dealing with anything that comes his way.Given the fact that neither opposition party won an outright majority of 376 seats needed to form a government outright, they will need to strike deals and wrangle support from other parties to form a coalition big enough to ensure victory, according to media reports.Pitas promise to demilitarize Thailand comes against the background of the ongoing militarization of the Asia-Pacific region, not least due to US activities over Taiwan, that has caused China-Taiwan tensions. Beijing has slammed US missions to send warships and surveillance planes to the Taiwan Strait as provocations and portrayed Washington as "a security risk creator in the region."China has repeatedly warned Washington policymakers against militarizing Taiwan and fueling separatist sentiment on the island, which is seen by Beijing as an inalienable part of the People's Republic.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230427/russian-thai-businesses-to-benefit-from-transactions-in-national-currencies---official-1109903209.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230512/brics-to-discuss-common-currency-amid-de-dollarization--1110291379.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230513/top-thai-general-claims-theres-zero-chance-of-coup-after-sunday-election-1110306601.html

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thailand's general election, projected winner of thailand's general election, thailand's opposition opposition move forward party
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/russian-strike-eliminates-massive-stock-of-foreign-weapons-and-ammo-in-ukraine-1110442643.html

Russian Strike Eliminates Massive Stock of Foreign Weapons and Ammo in Ukraine

Russian Strike Eliminates Massive Stock of Foreign Weapons and Ammo in Ukraine

Russian Armed Forces delivered high-precision strikes with cruise missiles on Ukrainian depots containing foreign equipment and ammunition, MoD says.

2023-05-18T16:06+0000

2023-05-18T16:06+0000

2023-05-18T16:06+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

ukrainian crisis

russia

ukraine

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The Russian Armed Forces delivered high-precision strikes with cruise missiles on Ukrainian depots containing foreign equipment and ammunition, the MoD says. As a result, a significant part of Ukraine's stockpile was destroyed.The movement of reserves into combat areas was also thwarted.The Russian Armed Forces successfully operated in the Kupyansk, Krasny Liman, and Kherson directions, as well as in the Donbass and Zaporozhye regions, crushing Kiev militants and their equipment, including a cutting-edge US-made artillery system and a Soviet-designed Su-24 aircraft.When Russia launched its special military operation to protect the people of Donbass, Western countries ramped up military support for the Kiev regime, providing it with state-of-the-art equipment. Moscow officials have consistently warned that such moves have a detrimental effect on the crisis and that NATO weaponry, no matter how sophisticated, will eventually be destroyed. This week, a Russian Kinzhal missile hit a US Patriot missile battery in Kiev  an air defense system once considered a symbol of US military supremacy.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230127/four-reasons-leopard-2s--m1-abrams-will-bite-the-dust-in-ukraine-1106772754.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230517/nutcracker-what-we-know-about-russias-kinzhal-hitting-us-patriot-system-in-kiev-1110418058.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/russias-upper-house-to-consider-denunciation-of-cfe-treaty-on-may-24-1110442405.html

Russia's Upper House to Consider Denunciation of CFE Treaty on May 24

Russia's Upper House to Consider Denunciation of CFE Treaty on May 24

Russian upper house  the Federation Council  will consider denunciation of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe in May 24.

2023-05-18T14:06+0000

2023-05-18T14:06+0000

2023-05-18T14:06+0000

russia

russia-nato showdown

treaty on conventional armed forces in europe (cfe)

nato expansion

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On May 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin submitted a draft law on the denunciation of the CFE Treaty to the lower house of the country's parliament. On May 16, the chamber adopted a law on the denunciation of the treaty, saying that the decision was fully in line with Russia's national interests. The CFE Treaty was signed in Paris in 1990 by representatives of 16 NATO member states and six member states of the Warsaw Pact. The treaty introduced limits on the main types of conventional military equipment in Europe and provided for the destruction of excess weaponry. In 1999, an updated version of the treaty was signed at the summit of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Istanbul to take into account the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the expansion of NATO. However, the adapted version was ratified only by Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine. In 2007, Putin signed a decree suspending the country's participation in the CFE Treaty in 2007 until NATO countries ratify the agreement on adaptation and start implementing their commitments under the document. At the same time, Russia remained a party to the CFE Treaty.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/theres-a-reason-americans-hate-washington-dc-1110428776.html

There's a Reason Americans Hate Washington DC

There's a Reason Americans Hate Washington DC

On todays episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events including Joe Biden heading to the G7 summit in Japan, and Montana becoming the first US state to ban TikTok.

2023-05-18T04:52+0000

2023-05-18T04:52+0000

2023-05-18T11:37+0000

the backstory

radio

target

dhs

texas

cnn

george soros

tesla

china

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There's a Reason Americans Hate Washington DC On todays episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events including Joe Biden heading to the G7 summit in Japan, and Montana becoming the first US state to ban TikTok.

Ted Rall - Political Cartoonist, Syndicated Columnist | The Mainstream Media Smeared Russia for Years, How the Real Left Sees the Border Issues, and Was the Durham a Limited Hangout ? Todd Bensman - Senior National Security Fellow and Author | Biden is Fast Tracking Migrants into America, Asylum Laws are Broken, and Border Patrol Agents are Frustrated In the first hour, Lee spoke with Ted Rall about the Speaker of the House's comments on the Durham Report, the CIA interference in the 2020 election, and the American ignorance problem. Ted talked about Donald Trump's name being cleared from the Russiagate hoax and how the media gaslights the public on foreign policy. Ted discussed the CNN reaction to the Durham report and how the Biden administration has ruined immigration in America. In the second hour, Lee spoke with Todd Bensman about the worst border crisis in American history, the media coverage of the Title 42 expiration, and Todd's firsthand knowledge of the border crisis. Todd explained his coverage of the border crisis and his videos from the Mexican side of the border. Todd talked about the Mexican government and how they are allowing these migrants to pass through Mexico into America.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.comThe views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of Sputnik.

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the backstory, what are the dates of g7 2023, how did japan become part of g7, what are g7 and g8 countries, which country is not included in g7, how media smears russia, anti-russian campaign in mass media, what is in the durham report, how bad is the border crisis in america
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/uk-carrier-strike-group-to-return-to-indo-pacific-in-2025-1110431100.html

UK Carrier Strike Group Will Return to Indo-Pacific in 2025

UK Carrier Strike Group Will Return to Indo-Pacific in 2025

The carrier strike group of the United Kingdom will return to the Indo-Pacific in 2025 - four years after it first sailed in the region, the UK government said on Wednesday.

2023-05-18T02:38+0000

2023-05-18T02:38+0000

2023-05-18T02:34+0000

military

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carrier strike group

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"The UK will confirm today [May 18] that its Carrier Strike Group will return to the Indo-Pacific in 2025, following its maiden voyage to the region in 2021," the UK government said in a statement on the website. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, during the meeting in Hiroshima on Thursday, will sign a new global strategic partnership dubbed the Hiroshima Accord, including new agreements in defense, trade, investment, science, technology, tackling global issues and climate change, the statement read. Under the accord, Sunak is also expected to agree on a new Cyber Partnership with Tokyo. Sunak, during his visit to a naval base in Tokyo on Thursday, will announce doubling UK troop numbers to some 170 service members in the upcoming fourth UK-Japan joint Vigilant Isles military exercises, the government said. In May 2021, the UK carrier strike group led by the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier was on a 28-week voyage, during which it first called at ports of India, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. During the voyage, the group participated in joint military exercises with the armed forces of Japan, the United States, South Korea, and India. In July 2021, the aircraft carrier sailed through the South China Sea.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/ukraine-conflict-direct-result-of-biden-foreign-policy-blunders-iran-hopes---us-senator-1110430213.html

Ukraine Conflict Direct Result of Biden Foreign Policy Blunders, Iran Hopes - US Senator

Ukraine Conflict Direct Result of Biden Foreign Policy Blunders, Iran Hopes - US Senator

The conflict in Ukraine is a direct result of US President Joe Bidens foreign policy mistakes and his administrations attempts to secure a nuclear deal with Iran, US Senator Ted Cruz said on Wednesday.

2023-05-18T00:19+0000

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"We did not have to have this war, and this war was caused, directly, by the foreign policy mistakes of President Joe Biden," Cruz said during remarks at the Hudson Institute. Cruz also said the Biden administration is funding both sides of the Ukraine conflict by flowing money to Iran. Biden, he added, has put partisan politics above national security, failing to properly arm Ukraine or address cooperation between Iran and Russia. Cruz also criticized Biden for displaying "weakness" regarding construction of Russias Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which resumed following Bidens assumption of office, after having been suspended under the Trump administration. The senator said halting the project earlier could have prevented Russia from pursuing its special military operation in Ukraine.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230516/us-military-aid-to-ukraine-may-dry-up-by-july--1110394267.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/ukraine-joins-nato-cyber-defense-biden-botches-korea-us-election-meddling-1110429279.html

Ukraine Joins NATO Cyber Defense; Biden Botches Korea; US Election Meddling

Ukraine Joins NATO Cyber Defense; Biden Botches Korea; US Election Meddling

The Biden administration has been meddling in the Thai elections in their work to create an Anti-China proxy.

2023-05-18T05:03+0000

2023-05-18T05:03+0000

2023-05-18T11:42+0000

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Ukraine Joins NATO Cyber Defense; Biden Botches Korea; US Election Meddling The Biden administration has been meddling in the Thai elections in their work to create an Anti-China proxy.

Brian Berletic, ex-US Marine Corps independent geopolitical researcher and writer based in Bangkok, joins us to discuss foreign policy. The Ukraine offensive may have started but its effectiveness seems to be in great doubt. Also, China and Myanmar are deepening cooperation. The Biden administration has been meddling in the Thai elections in their work to create an Anti-China proxy. Also, Ukraine has joined NATO's cyber defense center.Jim Kavanagh, whose work can be found at Jim Kavanagh's Substack, thepolemicist.net, and Counterpunch, joins us to discuss US corruption. The Durham report shows that an intelligence operation interfered with the 2016 elections and attempted a soft coup against Donald Trump.Dr. Ken Hammond, writer, and professor of East Asian and global history at New Mexico State University, joins us to discuss China. President Biden has been increasing tension on the Korean peninsula. Also, China slams Liz Truss's visit to Taiwan and reiterates that it will not allow the US to weaponize the Island.Melik Abdul, Cohost of Fault Lines, joins us to discuss the 2024 election. RFK Jr rises in the polls as he pushes economic populism and the Democrats abandon all pretenses of democracy.Dr. Gerald Horne, Professor of History at the University of Houston, TX, author, historian, and researcher, joins us to discuss foreign policy. A group of former national security officials has penned an ad in the New York Times opposing the conflict in Ukraine. Also, China hangs the US out to dry in the Middle East.Robert Fantina, journalist and Palestine activist, joins us to discuss the Middle East. Dozens of families are left homeless after Israel attacks Gaza. Also, the Israeli military apologizes for killing Shireen Abu Akleh.Dr. Wilmer Leon, Co-host of The Critical Hour, joins us to discuss truth in education. Dr. Leon is in Tampa for a conference opposing Governor Desantis' recent administrative changes outlawing education about some aspects of US history and culture.Dan Lazare, investigative journalist and author of "America's Undeclared War", joins us to discuss Europe. There are reports that a number of EU nations are pushing for an end to the Ukraine conflict. Also, Hungary agrees with France on European autonomy.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.comThe views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of Sputnik.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/us-reportedly-unconvinced-kiev-needs-expensive-f-16s-amid-wests-schism-over-jet-supplies-1110433307.html

US Reportedly Unconvinced Kiev Needs Expensive F-16s Amid Wests Schism Over Jet Supplies

US Reportedly Unconvinced Kiev Needs Expensive F-16s Amid Wests Schism Over Jet Supplies

US President Joe Biden had repeatedly ruled out sending F-16 fighter jets to Kiev as part of America's military aid to Ukraine, saying that there is no rationale for doing so.

2023-05-18T09:21+0000

2023-05-18T09:21+0000

2023-05-18T09:21+0000

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uk

netherlands

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In a sign of a growing rift between Ukraines European allies and the US over F-16 supplies to Kiev, Washington remains unconvinced that Ukraine needs these expensive fighter jets, a US newspaper quoted an unnamed source as saying.Without explicit American approvals, the training is likely to be limited to merely technical language and tactical lessons that pilots would be taught, without ever touching an F-16, according to the insider. They argued that Kiev is asking at least for between 24 and 36 F-16s.A separate source told the newspaper that the Biden administration was still reluctant to deliver the fourth-generation fighter jets to Ukraine, in part because the planes multimillion-dollar price tag would absorb too much of an already-dwindling pot of [US] war funding.In addition, the source stressed, the US doesnt want the F-16s classified systems to be duplicated or to fall into hostile hands.The claims come after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced earlier this week that the UK would begin training Ukrainian pilots, starting this summer, as part of a plan with other countries on supplying the F-16s to Kiev.In another development, US media reported that Britain and the Netherlands are working on an international fighter coalition to help Ukraine procure F-16 jets. Apart from the UK and the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, and Norway have reportedly signaled willingness to deliver F-16s to Ukraine. Poland earlier made it clear that Warsaw would not provide Kiev with these fighters.A top-ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, for his part earlier said that the panel had determined that it [the F-16 supplies to Kiev] is not a wise use of the resources that are necessary to win the fight."Smith also noted that it would take a considerable amount of time and cost a significant amount of money to even deliver F-16s to Ukraine, train pilots and mechanics, as well as create air fields to accommodate the aircraft and supply the spare parts needed to keep them operating.The US and its allies boosted their military assistance to Kiev shortly after the beginning of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. Russia has repeatedly warned that such aid only prolongs the Ukraine conflict. The Russian Foreign Ministry underscored that NATO countries play with fire" by supplying weapons to Kiev, and that any convoy of arms for Ukraine would become a legitimate target of Russian forces.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230505/us-f-16s-in-ukraine-would-be-completely-outmatched-by-russias-s-400-air-defense-1110109419.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230517/does-poland-want-zelensky-to-quit-natos-proxy-war-as-sy-hersh-claims-1110421488.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20230518/washington-mulling-possibility-of-sending-us-officials-on-visit-to-china---reports-1110434626.html

Washington Weighs Possibility of Sending US Officials to China - Reports

Washington Weighs Possibility of Sending US Officials to China - Reports

According to American media, White House mulls sending some of high-ranking officials in China for talks, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen.

2023-05-18T06:40+0000

2023-05-18T06:40+0000

2023-05-18T06:54+0000

world

us

china

us-china relations

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The list of officials who might visit China shortly includes US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Climate Envoy John Kerry, the officials told media, adding that the priority of those trips was still unknown. Meanwhile, the visits are unlikely to take place in the next few weeks as the Biden administration is currently grappling with the debt ceiling and focusing on meetings between the US president and other leaders on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, the report said. The potential visits are expected to defuse tensions between the two countries caused by events in February, when Blinken called off his trip to Beijing after the Pentagon detected a Chinese balloon over US airspace. Washington insisted that the balloon had been sent to spy on military sites, while Beijing argued it was a meteorological airship that had been blown off course.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230426/pentagon-uses-ukraine-as-testing-ground-while-prepping-for-clear-china-standoff--1109847462.html

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A trip to Luray Caverns is No. 5 among the 150 best things to do in the United States this summer, according to a recent ranking by Travel Lemming, an online guide.

The annual list aims to help Americans discover unique and diverse attractions around the country and in their own backyards, according to a release.

Luray Caverns is the singular Virginia attraction to make the list alongside attractions like a Bavarian Village in Washington and a wild animal sanctuary in Colorado, the release stated.

The natural wonder in Virginia is located over the mountains in the Shenandoah Valley in Page County.

The Travel Lemming article calls Luray Caverns a mystical attraction and notes the natural landmark is home to The Great Stalacpipe Organthe largest musical instrument in the world.

The article also cites an underwater lake and 400-million-year-old stalactites and stalagmites as being key features of the caverns.

Luray Caverns is a mystical, unparalleled attraction located only 80 feet under the grounds surface, said Travel Lemming senior travel writer Sky Ariella.

As I descended deeper into the Luray Caverns, there was a sense of awe that washed over me realizing just how old these natural formations are. The maze of caves also happens to be part of the biggest instrument in the world, the Great Stalacpipe Organ.

The top ten entries on Travel Lemmings list are:

1. The Wild Animal Sanctuary (Keenesburg, Colorado)an open air sanctuary home to rescued animals, including 39 tigers once owned by Tiger Kings Joe Exotic and nine lions airlifted from Ukraine.

2. Leavenworth (Washington)a Bavarian-themed town offering a taste of Germany in the Cascade Mountains.

3. Valley of Fire State Park (Nevada)a 46,000 acre crimson oasis of desert outcroppings, petroglyphs, and petrified forests.

4. Pilsen (Chicago, Illinois)a culturally-rich Latino neighborhood featuring vibrant art, music, and mouthwatering food.

5. Luray Caverns (Virginia)a 400 million-year-old network of caverns, home to the biggest musical instrument in the world.

6. Sensorio (Paso Robles, California)a whimsical lightshow installation featuring 100,000 stemmed spheres.

7. New Jersey Lottery Festival of Ballooning (Readington, New Jersey)a festival featuring 100 colorful hot air balloons from July 28-30.

8. Brewery Hopping (Asheville, North Carolina)an everyday activity available in Americas Beer City.

9. Dead Horse Point State Park (Utah)an overlooked state park featuring 16.6 miles of singletrack mountain biking trails.

10. Olympia (Washington)an underrated state capital, home to a vibrant artistic community and nearby natural attractions.

See the full list at travellemming.com/best-things-to-do-in-usa-2023.

The guides team of two dozen writers and editors annually handpicks the list, with the goal of highlighting the USAs many hidden gems.

Many believe that international travel is key to experiencing different cuisines, art, history and ways of life, said Editor Abigail Bliss. But each region of the U.S. emanates a unique culture and is rich in new experienceswhich are often more economical and easily accessible.

Travel Lemming is an online travel guide with more than 10 million annual readers. It publishes guides written by local and expert travelers who have first-hand experience in destinations across the United States and the world.
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As the Gering High School Class of 2023 prepared to celebrate their greatest achievement yet at their graduation ceremony this weekend, they took a chance to revisit the places where it all began.

Gering seniors filled the halls of the districts three elementary schools on Wednesday morning, where they were greeted by the cheers and applause of teachers, current students and their families.

Soon-to-be graduates Monae Castro-Saenz, Danaeah Bennett, Carleigh Pszanka and Madison Mumm were among those who made a triumphant return to their old stomping grounds at Northfield Elementary School. The first thing that stood out to the girls was just how much they had grown while the building had remained the same.

It feels a lot smaller now, said Mumm.

The realization made Castro-Saenz a bit wistful. She said that time had moved very quickly since her departure from Northfield, and that she now wished she had a bit longer to enjoy it.

Its kind of sad to look back and see how much weve grown, said Castro-Saenz. I remember when I was in elementary school and people used to do this, I couldnt wait. But now I can.

Bennett agreed, stating that returning to Northfield brought back a lot of feelings and memories that she hadnt anticipated.

I feel like its really bittersweet, said Bennett. Being back here brings back a lot of memories. Playing on the playground, teachers in the hallway, its kind of a wow moment. Im sad, excited, nervousa little bit of everything.

The girls reflected on some of their favorite memories from Northfield. Bennett said that she always liked recess and PE class the best, Mumm fondly remembered checking out books from the library, and Pszanka was happy to see several of her old teachers still holding down the fort at her old school.

And they actually remember our names, added Bennett.

Those teachers, and many others along the way, helped inspire Castro-Saenz, Pszanka, and Mumm to pursue careers in education. Castro-Saenz plans to attend the University of New Mexico and become a Spanish teacher. Mumm plans to attend the University of Wyoming on her journey to become a history teacher. Pszanka will stay close, attending Western Nebraska Community College to play volleyball and study elementary education.

Bennett will also be attending Western Nebraska Community College, where she will study radiology there before continuing on to another school.

Northfield principal John Wiedeman said that the graduation walk is always a happy occasion for the school. It helps the teachers, administrators, and students really appreciate the moment that their work comes to fruition.

We love it. The reason were here as an elementary school is to set the foundation and instill hometown pride in our Bulldogs and give them a great education until they reach this point, he said.

Wiedeman also said that his current students will be experiencing the same sense of nostalgia felt by the graduates much sooner than anyone can imagine.

To be able to have them back in the building and celebrate with kids who are just a few short years away from the same achievement is an awesome experience that we get to participate in every year. And it gives our students who are still in their elementary years something to look forward to, he said.
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While the number of child deaths has decreased in Iredell County, the Iredell County Child Fatality Prevention Teams annual report highlighted the increase in the number of child-related death issues in the county and state, including suicide and firearm deaths.

Chair Amanda Treadway presented the report to the Iredell County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday. While the number of cases reviewed has dropped steadily since 2016, 20 deaths were recorded in 2020 and 18 in 2021.

Brad Stroud Sr. commented after her presentation that the issue is one that affects everyone in the community.

People realize it touches every socio-economic group. You can think a child is from a blessed family, blessed more than most, and those issues are still there, Stroud said.

In 2020, the majority of deaths came from children with birth defects or prenatal conditions, but as many were killed by suicide as illness, drowning, and motor vehicle deaths. The causes of death in 2021 were more evenly divided, but seven of the 18 deaths were listed as all other causes at this time.

According to the ICCFPT annual report, North Carolina is one of only two states that does not participate in the National Child Fatality Review Case Reporting System, which can provide aggregated data by county.

In North Carolina, suicides in 10- to 17-year-olds have seen increases as the cause of death, with the bigger increase coming in older teens.

The state also has a higher homicide rate among children than the national average, while 2020 marked the first year when firearms deaths overtook motor vehicle-related injury as a cause of death.

Some of the recommended changes by the CFPT include support for a standardized means of exchanging records between public agencies working to investigate abuse or neglect while a child is receiving services, support for caseworkers, bolstering safe sleep practices, and increasing public education on firearm safety.

CFPT said in 2022 it partnered with the Statesville Housing Authority to distribute 1,225 pieces of Safe Sleep Educational materials in both English and Spanish during their Toys for Tots drive, hosted Susan Tolle from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, educating the group on pediatric and general suicide prevention efforts in the county. The organization also worked with Safe Kids Iredell County to distribute more than 700 smoke detectors to local fire departments for distribution and installation in their communities.

This year, the organization looks to repurpose existing resources to collaborate with the newly formed Iredell County Firearm Safety Coalition, working to increase access to safe firearm storage. The organization also looks to collaborate with local schools for its suicide prevention education efforts.

Regular agenda

Iredell County EMS: Participated in the 2023 State Paramedic Competition and won at their regional competition to move on to compete at the state level on April 30. Iredell EMS was represented by Field Training Officer Brandy Mitchell and Paramedic Austin Huntington.

Human Resources: Approved revision to the Iredell County Personnel Ordinance to provide improved salary increases for employees who are promoted (currently gives a standard 9% increase) and reclassifications (currently gives a standard 5% increase). When promoted or reclassified, the change will increase an employees salary at least by 9%, or the minimum rate of the pay range assigned to the class to which he or she is promoted, or the employees salary shall be increased on a sliding scale based on years of service.

Administrative agenda

The following issues are considered administrative matters by the board and discussed in a pre-agenda meeting before the regular meeting at 7 p.m. All are passed with a consent vote unless moved to the regular agenda.

Emergency Medical Services: Proclaimed May 21-27, 2023 as Emergency Medical Services Week.

Finance: Public hearing on June 6 at 6 p.m. to consider the Fiscal Year 2023-24 budget.
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Students from the medical assisting program reveled in their accomplishments Tuesday as their hard work culminated with commencement exercises in Shearer Hall on the campus of Mitchell Community College.

Graduates celebrated their dedicated time and were recognized for their work at the medical assisting pinning ceremony.

Melissa Haines opened the ceremony with a prayer, asking for guidance and successful futures for all medical assisting nurses moving on.

Jeff Taylor, guest speaker at the ceremony, thanked everyone for attending and gave brief background information about the prestigious program. We could hire every student who comes out of this program, he said.

Taylor said graduating students have undergone intensive labs and classes and now have started their journey working in medical offices. Taylor also highlighted some of the comments from students, stating, They just want to make a difference.

And that is exactly what Piedmont Healthcare is looking for, Taylor said. He then gave the graduates advice about beginning their medical field careers, such as being open-minded, flexible, resilient and humble.

If you go in, youre there on time, and you have a good attitude, you will be successful. I promise, Taylor told the graduates. He concluded his speech by advising that it is important to be a lifelong learner. Never stop learning, he said. You can do anything you put your mind to.

Paula Cooke, presenter of the Joan Michaels Memorial Scholarship, gave brief background information about the founding of the scholarship and the importance of being awarded such a scholarship. The recipient of the Joan Michaels Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Lauren Johnson.

Another speaker, Laura Russell, talked about the importance of program support. This program would not run without this support, from staff, faculty, and students, she said. Russell acknowledged how students put a lot of hard work into the program to be where they are today.

Medical assistant graduate Deja Sharpe talked about how nervous but rewarding it was after completing two long semesters of hard work. I plan on going into nursing, Sharpe stated. Its just my foot is now in the door.
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Two Wythe County residents are awaiting trial on felony charges following an April 30 Bland County traffic stop.

Rhonda Lee Burkhardt, 47, and Corey Adam Kanode, 28, both of Crockett, were arrested on April 30 after Bland County Deputy T. Ramsey stopped a 2017 Kia with an expired registration on Interstate 77.

In his criminal complaint, Ramsey said Burkhardt was driving, and Kanode and a 10-year-old were passengers.

After getting consent to search the vehicle, Ramsey said he found ammunition and four cut straws containing a white powder  two of which were in the cup holder and accessible by the juvenile.

Once back at the office, Mr. Kanode stated that the straws would contain cocaine and Percocet, and admitted to using them as such, Ramsey wrote. Ms. Burkhardt stated that straws would contain ecstasy and Percocet, and admitted using them for such.

Burkhardt was charged with possessing drugs, child abuse or neglect, being a felon in possession of ammunition and expired registration. Kanode was charged with possessing drugs and child abuse or neglect.

Employed, Burkhardt has a criminal history that includes charges of bad check, drug distribution and obtaining money by false pretenses, according to court records.

Given a court-appointed attorney, shes free on a $1,500 bond while awaiting trial.

Also employed and released on bond, Kanode was given a court-appointed attorney as well.

Their preliminary hearings have been set for Sept. 13.

Wytheville man charged with DWI

After responding to a May 7 call about a vehicle in a ditch, a Bland County deputy charged a Wytheville resident with driving while intoxicated and other charges.

Darryl V. Logan, 52, was also charged with reckless driving and cited with a civil violation of refusing a blood or breath test.

In a criminal complaint, Deputy B.C. Dillow said he found Logans Chevrolet Suburban in a ditch along Little Creek Highway.

Mr. Logan stated his right front tire had hit the grass on the shoulder and it pulled him into the ditch line, Dillow wrote. While explaining the accident form to Mr. Logan I noticed he had red dilated pupils and a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person.

Dillow said he gave Logan three field sobriety tests and none of the three were performed as instructed to do so.

Employed and with no criminal history, Logan was released on a $1,500 bond.

His trial date has been slated for July 5.

Roanoke woman accused of trying to deliver drugs to inmate

Cassandra Mae McNeil, 50, of Roanoke was arrested on May 2 and charged with attempting to deliver drugs to a prisoner.

According to a Virginia Department of Corrections officers criminal complaint, a Pulaski County deputy searched McNeils vehicle after an Oct. 26, 2022, traffic stop and found a Gatorade bottle containing 179 Suboxone sublingual films and tobacco.

McNeil stated that she was attempting to deliver the items to her husband at Bland Correctional Center, inmate Greenway, Kevin, the complaint said. Documented phone conversations between McNeil and Greenway confirm conspiring the delivery of drugs to a prisoner.

Employed as a certified nursing assistant, McNeil is free on a $1,500 bond while awaiting her Aug. 9 preliminary hearing in Bland County General District Court.
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Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources were battling a brush fire in a rural area of Kelso late Wednesday afternoon, according to Battalion Chief Joe Tone.

He said he expects fire crews to work well into the night to contain the blaze.

Tone said there were multiple calls regarding smoke, and crews were dispatched at roughly 2:57 p.m.

The fire was located on Tybren Heights Road, just past Carroll Road, near a residential property that was under development. Tone said the fire was caused by a backyard burn and as of Wednesday afternoon more than an acre of land had burned.

Tone described the closest structure to the fire as a shed converted into a living space, adding that the structure was threatened by the blaze.

Tone told The Daily News it took crews a while to locate the fire.

As of Wednesday afternoon, three brush engines were engaged in the fire, two from Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue and another from the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. Also, being utilized was a water tender, two hand crews, one battalion chief and up to six supervisors.
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A Kelso High School senior is the only local U.S. Presidential Scholar finalist this year.

The announcement comes a year after the school district saw its first U.S. Presidential Scholar in 56 years when Kelso Cosgrove earned the title.

This year, senior Jack, or JJ, Robarge, is one of 77 semifinalists from Washington and one of only seven from Southwest Washington. He is the only semifinalist from Cowlitz County, according to a press release from the Kelso School District.

Every year since 1964, the U.S. Department of Education asks high schools to send names of well-rounded students who best represent the school.

Kelso High School counselor Kali Dalton said Robarge maintains a 4.0 GPA while overcoming medical hurdles.

When we looked at nominating a student from Kelso, academics, involvement and resilience in the face of obstacles were the key criteria that JJ easily demonstrated, Dalton said in the news release.

Kelso High School counselor Megan Elam said Robarge exemplifies the schools values of respect, responsibility, resilience and kindness

He continues to amaze me with his work ethic and drive, she said in the press release. JJ takes on challenges and is an exceptional student leader.

The Presidential Scholars Class of 2023 will be recognized in late June with an online National Recognition Program.
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The Cowlitz County Board of Health will meet more frequently, up to once a month, members decided on Wednesday.

The board was previously scheduled to meet quarterly at the end of January, April, July and October.

Board Chair Kelly Lane called the special meeting Wednesday to discuss adding more regular meetings to the calendar, which would be more predictable than additional special meetings.

Wednesdays meeting was the boards third special meeting this year, in addition to its two regularly scheduled meetings in January and April.

Increasing meeting frequency was first brought up when the three new citizen members joined last July.

Lane estimated needing more than six meetings per year but less than 12, meaning he will likely cancel meetings when the board has no business.

The board voted to keep the scheduled time of 10 a.m. Tuesday, during or just following the Cowlitz County commissioner meetings that begin at 9 a.m.

Member Mary Jane Melink was concerned about keeping the meeting time because commissioner meetings often run long and push the Board of Health start time.

Member Lindy Campbell spoke in favor of keeping the time because the commissioner meetings tend to draw more attendees.

I like the opportunity to have the public involved, she said.

Commissioner Arne Mortensen encouraged board members to arrive early on meeting days to set up their stations and allow a smoother transition between meetings.

The next Board of Health meeting will be on Tuesday, June 27. The board meets in the Commissioner Hearing Room on the fourth floor of the Cowlitz County Administration Building. The public can join virtually via Zoom.
Vertica by OpenText and Anritsu Service Assurance announced the extension of their long-running partnership providing a new generation of analytical database technologies to Anritsus next-generation architecture, designed to meet the demands of 5G networks around the world.

Anritsu Service Assurance delivers trusted insights and support to global telecommunication service providers. It is enhancing its portfolio to meet the new demands service providers face with implementing 5G, particularly the operational agility required for the wide range of use cases that 5G offers. Critical to the success of an agile 5G network is low latency at massive scale, new edge-computing services, and digital services, all of which increase network traffic and data. The Vertica analytical database capabilities embedded in the Anritsu architecture will allow for multi-petabyte scale data processing.

The fast-paced evolution of 5G networks means service providers need to balance the network and operational demands at scale while ensuring their customers experience. Our continued partnership with Vertica by OpenText scales our ability to bring customers the best possible solutions for managing their needs and the complexities of 5G, said Ralf Idling, CEO of Anritsu. Verticas powerful database technology will be a valuable asset as we continue to help our customers deliver the highest levels of service quality to their customers.

Muhi Majzoub, EVP and Chief Product Officer at OpenText, said, Adopting 5G in the telecommunications industry requires robust, fast networks, which can only be achieved with increased levels of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and modern data architectures. The advanced data analytics capabilities of the Vertica analytical database will play a significant role in Anritsus architecture. The result is that Anritsu customers can easily meet the demands associated with data-intensive workloads and fast data transaction requirements in the cloud.

Vertica by OpenText will help Anritsu meet its 5G and next-generation architecture needs by providing:
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A bis-dimethylamino-functionalized fullerene derivative (PCBDMAM) interlayer between the ZnO electron transport layer and the all-inorganic CsPbI2.25Br0.75 perovskite layer of the perovskite solar cell improves power conversion efficiency by improving electron transport. Credit: Nano Research Energy, Tsinghua University Press

Solar cells are a critical component to the transition to renewable energy sources, and enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE), or amount of power captured with a given amount of sunlight, increases the practicality of solar power in a society with high energy demands.

Perovskite solar cells that use all-inorganic perovskite light-absorbing materials are more thermally stable than organic-inorganic hybrid counterparts, but suffer from lower PCE. Researchers have overcome this hurdle in all-inorganic perovskite solar cells (PSC) by adding a conductive fullerene-derivative interlayer to enhance PCE and thermal stability.

All-inorganic perovskite solar cells have the advantage of increased thermal stability, which is critical for the longevity of solar cells, but lack in PCE compared to solar cells made with organic-inorganic hybrid counterparts. A group of leading material scientists recently investigated the use of an interlayer to ameliorate the defects found in all-inorganic PSCs.

In PSCs, layers of perovskite, a material that conducts energy when exposed to light, are susceptible to problems in morphology, energy level mismatches and electron traps that decrease electron transport and overall solar cell efficiency. Introducing an interlayer of a fullerene derivative called bis-dimethylamino-functionalized fullerene derivative (PCBDMAM), sandwiched between the perovskite and the electron transport layer, remedies these deficiencies, increasing electron transport and PCE improving temperature stability.

The team published their findings in Nano Research Energy.

"High-efficiency PSC devices are mostly based on organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite light-absorbing materials, which are intrinsically volatile and thermally unstable due to the existence of organic cations, resulting in poor thermal stability of PSC devices and hampering large-scale commercialization of organic-inorganic hybrid PSCs," said Shangfeng Yang, lead principal investigator of the study and professor at the CAS Key Laboratory of Materials for Energy Conversion at the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei, China.

(a) The device structure of CsPbI 2.25 Br 0.75 PSCs. (b) JV curves of the champion devices based on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs with different concentrations of PCBDMAM measured under reverse scan. (c) EQE spectra of the champion devices based on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM (2 mgmL1) ETLs measured in air. (d) Dark JV curves of the electron-only devices based on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs with different concentrations of PCBDMAM, from which the trap-filled limit voltage (V TFL ) is determined as the kink point. (e) Steady-state PL spectra of CsPbI 2.25 Br 0.75 perovskite films deposited on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs. (f) TRPL spectra of CsPbI 2.25 Br 0.75 perovskite films deposited on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs. (g) Dependence of V oc on the irradiation intensity of the devices based on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs. (h) Nyquist plots of the devices based on bare ZnO (control) and ZnO/PCBDMAM ETLs measured in the dark under a reverse potential of 1.0 V. (i) Energy level diagram of different layers in the CsPbI 2.25 Br 0.75 PSC device. Credit: Nano Research Energy (2023). DOI: 10.26599/NRE.2023.9120073

"To enhance the PCE of [all-inorganic perovskite] PSCs, interface engineering has been extensively applied and demonstrated to be effective in promoting electron transport by improving film morphology, lowering the energy level mismatch and passivating the antisite traps in perovskite," said Yang.

"By using different types of interlayers including small molecules, polymers, inorganic compounds, 2D perovskite layers as well as fullerene and its derivatives, defect passivations of all-inorganic PSCs have been accomplished," said Yang.

In particular, the team used PCBDMAM as an interlayer between an all-inorganic perovskite layer and a zinc oxide electron transport layer. In this application, the PCBDMAM was spin-coated onto the zinc oxide surface as a conductive surface coating to mitigate the film morphology and other defects of the all-inorganic perovskite layer, improving the overall thermal stabilities of both the zinc oxide and perovskite layers and increasing PCE from 15.44% to 17.04%.

The successful transition to renewable energy sources depends, in part, on robust solar cells that can efficiently convert solar energy to electricity and withstand environmental extremes. Direct recombination, in particular, is a limiting factor in the efficiency of solar cells and presents a significant challenge for the research team and other material scientists.

Direct recombination is the process by which electrons, created by light in the solar cell, and holes encounter one another and recombine. This recombination emits a photon, reversing electricity production in the solar cell.

The research team will continue to overcome hurdles to improve the functionality and lifespan of solar cells to make solar energy production more reliable and less expensive. Future challenges include further mitigating solar cell defects, including direct recombination, by altering the composition, concentration and application of solar cell layers to optimize temperature stability and efficiency in a commercially viable and cost-efficient way.

More information: Yanbo Shang et al, Synchronous defect passivation of all-inorganic perovskite solar cells enabled by fullerene interlayer, Nano Research Energy (2023). DOI: 10.26599/NRE.2023.9120073

Provided by Tsinghua University Press
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An unprecedented ban on TikTok in the state of Montana that critics say tramples free speech rights would be voided if the app's China-based owner sells it to a country not designated by the United States as a 'foreign adversary'

Montana on Wednesday became the first US state to ban TikTok, with the law set to take effect next year as debate escalates over the impact and security of the popular video app.

The prohibition signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte will serve as a legal test for a national ban of the Chinese-owned platform, something that lawmakers in Washington are increasingly calling for.

"TikTok may not operate within the territorial jurisdiction of Montana," said a copy of the freshly-minted law at the state website.

The ban makes it a violation each time "a user accesses TikTok, is offered the ability to access TikTok, or is offered the ability to download TikTok."

Each violation is punishable by a $10,000 fine every day it takes place.

Under the law, Apple and Google will have to remove TikTok from their app stores and companies will face possible daily fines.

The move almost certainly will be challenged by lawsuits.

State political leaders have "trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment," said ACLU Montana policy director Keegan Medrano.

The ban will take effect in 2024, but be voided if TikTok is acquired by a company incorporated in a country not designated by the United States as a foreign adversary, the law read.

"Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok," a spokeswoman for the company told AFP.

"We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

TikTok has gone on record saying that the ban's constitutionality will ultimately be decided by the courts.

The law is the latest skirmish in duels between TikTok and many western governments, with the app already banned on government devices in the United States, Canada and several countries in Europe.

The app is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance and is accused by a wide swathe of US politicians of being under the tutelage of the Chinese government and a tool of espionage by Beijing, something the company furiously denies.

Gianforte himself said on Twitter that he signed the ban in order to "protect Montanans' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party."

Despite its immense popularity, TikTok faces an ultimatum by the White House that it split from its Chinese owners or stop operating in America.

Montana's clampdown on TikTok comes as the app faces proposals of national legislationincluding one bill that could give the White House massive new powers to oversee Chinese tech companies.

 2023 AFP
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The Solar2Water team,. Credit: Northumbria University

Scientists at Northumbria University have developed a sustainable solution for clean drinking water that can be deployed to rural communities and set up easily without scientific know-how.

According to the United Nations, one in three people worldwide still live without access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene services, a problem which is only worsening with climate change, conflicts and population growth.

This lack of access to water leaves communities across the globe exposed to water- and sanitation-related diseases, with over 800,000 people estimated to die each year from diarrhea alone as a result of unsafe drinking water, sanitation and hand hygiene.

Over the last decade, Dr. Muhammad Wakil Shahzad, an Assistant Professor from Northumbria's Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, has been developing pioneering solutions to help tackle water scarcity. His latest project has seen the creation of "Solar2Water," an innovative water production unit, which uses solar energy to extract moisture from the air and turn it into clean, safe drinking water.

The patented Solar2Water system overcomes the operational limitations of conventional atmospheric water generators, with major advantages including that it can produce a constant amount of water, regardless of the outside air humidity, and that it generates double the amount of water using the same amount of energy.

Running on solar energy alone, the unit features two solar panels, which, once unfolded, begin harnessing energy from the sun to kick-start water production. A battery system that stores energy during the day and releases it at night enables 24-hour operation, producing water for daily usage.

No training or experience is required to use the system and its robust mechanical build means it can be operated in any environment. This allows Solar2Water to be deployed quickly and easily to any location, such as disaster zones, field hospitals, offices, refugee camps, army camps and remote communities where there is no grid connection or water availability nearby. It is a water neutral systemit can produce water without the need for a body of water.

Dr. Shahzad's technology could be game-changing in helping to achieve sustainable water supplies in under-developed areas and will help to progress two of the UN's Sustainable Development GoalsZero Hunger and Clean Water and Sanitation for all.

Speaking about the project, Dr. Shahzad said, "Previously I have done a lot of work on large hybrid water plants, especially in Saudi Arabia, where we successfully commercialized a seawater desalination system. During that experience, I learned that the most ignored communities are the remote and non-coastal communities, where they don't have any grid connection or water supplies. That is where the inspiration for this project came from, with the idea being to develop this decentralized water solution, to provide water for remote communities, refugee camps and even field hospitals, using solar energy and the ambient air.

"Importantly, Solar2Water also has the potential to help women and girls in remote communities, who often spend hours each day walking miles to collect water. Producing water from air at their locality using solar energy can help to remove barriers to education, recreational activities and escaping poverty."

Dr. Shahzad secured initial funding from the University to demonstrate the Solar2Water concept. Following the successful development of the prototype unit in the lab, Dr. Shahzad was granted Proof-of-Concept funding from Northern Accelerator, an exciting collaboration between the North East's universities, creating real-world impact from world-leading research, commercializing innovation and boosting the region's economy.

The pilot developed based on the Northern Accelerator Proof-of-Concept system can produce enough water for three to four households15 to 20 liters per daybut the team behind Solar2Water have plans to upscale the water production capacity to 50 liters per day, so that one unit can produce enough drinking water for a small community. The Proof-of-Concept funding is supporting the scaleup and commercialization of Solar2Water, with the ultimate aim of launching a university spinout company that could mass produce the units to supply to communities in need worldwide.

Tim Hammond, Program Lead of Northern Accelerator and Director of Commercialization and Economic Development Durham University, said, "There is significant potential for the excellent research conducted in the North East's universities to help address some of the challenges we face regionally, nationally and globally. Northern Accelerator has transformed university spin-out performance from the region's universities, helping academics use their research to achieve real world social and economic impact.

"Our integrated approach to the commercialization ecosystem includes providing funding for proof-of-concept projects. Northern Accelerator are pleased to be able to support Dr. Shahzad with this fundingto help bring the technology closer to being a commercial product that can be made available to those who struggle with access to clean drinking water."
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Anxiety about artificial intelligence has been driven by its rapid development as well as knowledge worker concerns about potentially being replaced by the transformative technology, says Robert Brunner, the associate dean for innovation and chief disruption officer at the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Credit: Fred Zwicky

Robert Brunner is the associate dean for innovation and chief disruption officer at the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Brunner spoke with News Bureau business and law editor Phil Ciciora about the transformative potential of artificial intelligence technology such as ChatGPT.

There's been a lot of hype about artificial intelligence technology and its potential to change every industry and every job in the global economy. What should we know about AI and its potential?

This is a difficult question to answer because if you're too bullish, you're accused of being a techno-optimist or apologist who's downplaying what's perceived by some as one of the greatest threats to society, perhaps in our history. Or if you're too bearish, you're a doom and gloom naysayera Chicken Little running around saying "The sky is falling!"

I think the real concern isn't ChatGPT, Bard or what are more generally called generative artificial intelligence tools. It's the pace from which we went from something like Siri, Apple's virtual assistant technology that is often comically wrong or doesn't do what you want it to do half the time, to a level of sophistication that's almost unimaginable outside of the realm of science fiction.

That's disconcerting to a lot of people, particularly those whose jobs might be most negatively impacted by AI. A plumber, for example, is unlikely to see much benefit or harm from generative AI. But there's a lot of anxiety among knowledge workers, who may fear that they're going to be replaced by AI.

I do think some work will be replaced by generative AI, but that doesn't mean there will be mass layoffs anytime soon. My guess is that if there's a natural attrition rate of, say, 10% at a company, those workers just won't be replaced.

And the reason why is that there will be an expectation that workers will be more productive because they'll be able to leverage AI, which will act as a force multiplier. If you were able to produce five widgets in a week, AI may help you produce 10 or more.

But the fact that this has happened so fast is what's most unnerving. When change happens this fast, people need time to process and adaptand I don't think most people feel like they've had a chance to do that. It just burst onto the scene in terms of public consciousness, so it's natural to go to the doom and gloom scenario, which is partly due to Hollywood and popular culture.

If you understand the underlying technology behind generative AI and how it works, it's not magic. We tend to anthropomorphize technology, and, for some, the knee-jerk reaction is to think this is like the HAL 9000, so it wants to kill us.

My gut feeling is that, right now, it's not as dangerous as people think or fear. The net effect overall could be that we'll see increased opportunities or better productivity in a number of different jobs. It's possible that workers will be encouraged to automate the parts of their job that they like the least. If you dislike taking and transcribing meeting notes, for example, you can let AI take care of it. We'll all be getting this personal digital assistant that will be very helpful to us.

So it's entirely possible that there's going to be tremendous new job opportunities that we don't even know about yet, because the technology is just so new.

Do you foresee technology such as ChatGPT continuously evolving?

We're on the fourth version of ChatGPT, but we're not getting version five anytime soon. The current version is the one we'll have for the foreseeable future, meaning that we've reached its limits for now. What we'll likely see next are applications of this fundamental technology to different areas or fields, which is very exciting.

Do we need to pause development on generative AI, as some notable tech luminaries have advocated for?

There are some legitimate things to think about in terms of pausing development. Could we pause and then ensure that the AI models are fair and equitable to all groups, that there are not going to be accentuated biases?

That would be nice, but I would say the toothpaste is already out of the tube. It would be wholly impractical right now to pause development. It's out there and it's not coming back. Also, we don't want to give any unfriendly countries or their militaries a six-month head start on development.

But that doesn't mean we shouldn't think about any potential downside effects. There's going to need to be regulations and thoughtful discussions around how we want this technology to be rolled out and used. For example, should children be allowed to use generative AI? Should high school students?

Hopefully, we don't follow past models and wait for the tech companies to go out and do questionable things before we realize we need to regulate it. We have to start thinking about such guardrails right now because the genie is out of the bottleand we want to make sure that the genie is a force for good. We have to be careful that we're not creating a future society that accentuates existing inequalities and biases.

What other potential pitfalls await with AI?

Heading into the 2024 presidential election cycle, the potential for deepfakes is very concerning. But the only remedy we have right now is that we have to be thinking and talking about this issue. How do we want AI to benefit society? How do we want it to help us become better?

We have lots of problems, but we also have an ability to try to work through them and get to a better place. I have a feeling that we'll hit some issues with AI but ultimately we'll struggle through.

Which is good because, at this point, it's hard to imagine a future in which generative AI is not an everyday, commonplace tool in your personal and professional life. Even if you're uneasy about this technology you should at least be aware of its transformative potential. Historically speaking, things don't tend to end well for Luddites.
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College Station native Sidney Glasshoff was only a few weeks old when she was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis (NF), a genetic condition where the gene that suppresses tumor growth is absent and often causes benign tumors to grow on nerve tissue. While some NF patients have minimal neurological problems, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons website said others experience profound effects.

In accordance with May being NF Awareness Month, Glasshoff sought two proclamations: one from her hometown of College Station and the other from her current town of Austin.

Both the city of College Station and the city of Austin responded pretty quickly and agreed to do a proclamation, Glasshoff said.

Both proclamations named Wednesday, May 17 as World Neurofibromatosis Day.

Thats just something thats been inspiring seeing that my hometown and the town I currently live in are both willing to help me drive this awareness and support me in my awareness efforts, Glasshoff said. It affects people no matter how old you are, no matter where you come from, no matter your race or ethnicity; it affects people of all genders, all sizes and so its really cool having the city on your side to help support you and bringing awareness to that.

Having graduated from A&M Consolidated High School in 2016 among other accomplishments, Glasshoff refuses to be defined by her diagnosis and strives to raise awareness for others diagnosed with NF.

From battling the comorbidities that NF brings, including being neurodivergent, and overcoming learning and social disabilities, Glasshoff said it was often a struggle to perform tasks that were easy for others. This in addition to traveling to doctors appointments made it difficult for her to make new friends and meet new people.

Glasshoff said NF is very rare. Because of this, she traveled to Texas Childrens Hospital in Houston to see a specialist and did not meet another NF patient until her early 20s.

This sparked Glasshoffs goal of starting a nonprofit in NF awareness so that others who are diagnosed have an organization to turn to for support.

Its kind of upsetting and depressing at times being so alone, so I want to start a nonprofit that raises awareness and makes people feel like its OK to talk about these things, she said. I feel like getting that awareness out will really help with that and help people realize our societal norms.

Being neurodivergent also affects Glasshoffs motor skills, which she combats on a daily basis. Following her graduation from Consol, she began working at a plasma center where she learned phlebotomy skills and became a top phlebotomist at her center.

She then moved to Austin where she works as an AmeriCorps member at a conservation-based nonprofit and does small-engine repairs on chainsaws. While this allows her to give back to her new community and make a difference  something she credits her grandfather for instilling in her  it also has allowed Glasshoff the opportunity to spread NF awareness.

Its been really difficult, but its also given me a lot of passion and a lot of drive just to make it through and given me this passion to drive awareness and make people more aware of the condition and the difficulties that come with it, she said. It just gives me a way to think and to problem solve in a way thats different than how other people process things.

About two years ago, Glasshoff began practicing graphic design in order to create stickers in celebration of and to raise awareness for NF. With a goal of selling 100 stickers, she is only asking buyers to pay for shipping.

To purchase a sticker or to learn more about Glasshoffs journey, go to linktr.ee/sidneysnfstory.
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With a key deadline looming and fierce opposition from all sides, the odds for the latest version of the Texas Senates priority school voucher bill are looking bleak.

Senate Bill 8, authored by state Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, appears to be in danger of dying in the House public education committee, which must approve a bill before it goes to the House floor for a full vote. The committees chair, state Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, told The Texas Tribune on Wednesday that he currently has no plans to bring the bill for a vote after Gov. Greg Abbott threatened to veto it.

It begs the question of  with this threat  is this the legislation to move forward? Buckley told the Tribune.

On Sunday, Abbott voiced his disapproval of the House version of the bill, which significantly rolls back eligibility for the legislations proposed voucher program. While the Senates bill wanted it to be available for most of Texas 5.5 million public schoolchildren, the Houses version would be for only certain groups of students, like those with disabilities or those who attended a campus that has recently received a failing grade in its state accountability rating.

Abbott, who has made school vouchers his top cause this session and has traveled across the state advocating for them, said he would call lawmakers in for a special session if the House didnt expand the scope of school choice this month.

The House Committee on Public Education, along with every other committee in the lower chamber, has until Saturday to vote out Senate bills before they can hit the House floor.

The education committee met Monday to hear invited testimony on the third iteration of SB 8, but Buckley did not bring it up for a vote that day or the next one, when the committee met again.

Things can change fast in the final days of a legislative session as leaders negotiate over an array of bills, so the proposals fate wont be sealed until lawmakers leave town. But it will still be a major hurdle to pass through the House a bill that can bring together enough supporters and critics of school vouchers.

Earlier this session, the House passed a budget amendment that would prohibit the use of state funds for school vouchers or other similar programs. While largely symbolic, the vote showed the House still lacks the appetite for vouchers.

And last week, when Buckley tried to advance a vote on SB 8, the House voted to not let the public education committee meet.

As the Houses Saturday deadline approaches, Creighton said in a statement that he isnt giving up on his legislation or school choice yet.

My goal remains to work with the House to deliver significant education freedom for families to make decisions for their kids that arent restricted by an address or ZIP code, he said.

SB 8 seeks to introduce a voucher-like program known as education savings accounts, which parents who opt out of their local school district would be able to use to pay for private schools and other educational expenses with taxpayer dollars.

Buckleys version of the bill also would eliminate the highly debated State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness  more commonly known as the STAAR program  and replace it with a new test that would be more aligned with what children learn in the classroom. The legislation also removes the requirement that high schoolers need to pass an assessment to graduate.

These changes were seemingly an effort to get more House members, specifically Democrats and rural Republicans, to vote for SB 8. This bipartisan coalition fears that voucher-like programs would siphon funds away from public schools and have successfully killed these proposals for decades.

Im hopeful that our coalition that defeated vouchers this session will stay united and in any special sessions that are called this year, said state Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin.
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The question of how to cut taxes for Texas property owners sparked one of the biggest disagreements between state lawmakers this year  but when its all said and done, either chambers proposal would save the typical homeowner about the cost of a nice dinner date each month.

Still, the two options are hardly alike.

While the Senates leader, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, advocates for an increase to the states homestead exemption, House Speaker Dade Phelan put his chips on a proposal to limit how much property appraisals  a key figure in calculating a tax bill  can rise each year. The Beaumont Republican wants to tighten the states cap on annual increases to a homes taxable value from 10% to 5%  and extend the benefit to owners of business properties like grocery stores, restaurants and rental homes.

But tightening the appraisal cap would lead to all kinds of repercussions that have already played out in California, New York and other parts of the country, tax experts and critics of the proposal from across the political spectrum warn. They say placing a hard limit on how much appraisals can grow would create vast inequities between taxpayers, accelerate housing costs and disproportionately benefit wealthy homeowners.

Even interest groups that represent the kind of businesses the cap is intended to benefit  including the Texas Association of Business and the Texas Association of Manufacturers  have come out against it, arguing that the proposal would create an uneven playing field that would benefit longtime business owners over new ones.

These California-style property tax caps have proven to be a failed experiment, said Carl Davis, research director of the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Theres no reason for Texas to emulate them.

Whats more, experts say any savings from the appraisal cap would be easy to undo by cities, counties and school districts. Local governments set their tax rates based on the value of properties in their jurisdictions and how much revenue they need  and they could simply raise rates to offset revenue lost to the cap.

It makes sense for people to fret when they see their property appraisals rise and anticipate a high property tax bill, said Janelle Fritts, policy analyst at the conservative Tax Foundations Center for State Tax Policy. But that doesnt mean capping them is the best way to bring about tax relief.

People in leadership positions are trying to show that they care and that theyre doing something about [rising appraisals], even if the thing that theyre doing is proven to not quite work like they think it will work, Fritts said.

Whats on the table

The two chambers have been in opposition for months over their competing proposals.

Republican leaders in the House and Senate want to use the states historic budget surplus to pump billions of dollars into property tax relief. And both chambers agree on directing $5.3 billion to continue paying for tax cuts approved in previous legislative sessions.

House leaders  including Phelan and state Rep. Morgan Meyer, a Dallas Republican and the Houses chief tax writer  want to tighten the appraisal cap and send the rest of the $17 billion theyve proposed for tax cuts, more than $12 billion, to school districts so they can lower their tax rates.

Senate leaders have sought more targeted relief in their $16.5 billion tax-cut package. Their proposal would send just an additional $5.38 billion to school districts. But the cornerstone of their package would be raising the states homestead exemption  the amount of a homes value that cant be taxed by school districts  from $40,000 to $70,000, plus an additional $20,000 bump to seniors and tax credits for businesses.

Disagreement over the dueling proposals has led to considerable public friction between the two chambers, much of it playing out on social media. Patrick declared the appraisal cap idea dead-on-arrival in the Senate and gave Phelan the nickname California Dade  a reference to a similar policy passed in California in the 1970s. Phelan responded with a video with past clips of Patrick backing a tighter appraisal cap, a position Patrick has since abandoned.

Every now and then, you have to kind of acknowledge maybe you were wrong, Patrick said at an April 13 press conference. I have. I came in as a senator who thought appraisal caps were the answer. I learned they werent.

The chambers Ways & Means Committee on Friday voted out a version of the Senates homestead exemption bill that could be seen as either a compromise or a taunt. The Houses version raises the homestead exemption boost to $100,000, with additional language designed to benefit seniors. They also tacked on the Houses appraisal cap proposal and $12 billion in school tax cuts.

Representatives for Phelan and Patrick did not immediately return requests for comment about the Friday vote.

Various estimates abound showing how much homeowners would save under the House and Senate plans.

An analysis of each chambers proposal by the Texas Taxpayers and Research Association  a business-backed group that advocates for tax cuts and that has publicly backed Patricks proposal  estimated that, combined with tax cuts already built into the states proposed budget for the next two years, the average owner of a $300,000 home would save about $650 on their 2024 tax bill under the House proposal and about $760 under the Senate plan. Seniors also would save more under the Senate plan  $945 compared with $625 under the House plan, according to TTARA.

Each side has their competing figures on savings, which they say will grow for homeowners over time. Phelans office estimates that by helping school districts reduce their tax rates, the owner of a $350,000 home would save $1,275 over the next two years. Those estimates dont appear to account for any benefit from the tighter appraisal cap.

Senate leaders give the House proposal more credit than its own backers, estimating that the House plan would save the same owner about $1,530 over the next two years, per figures provided by Patricks office. But that person would save about $1,748 over that same time span under the Senates plan, according to that chambers estimates, and seniors would pay $2,543 less than they otherwise would have.

This is an enormous magnitude reduction in tax liability, said state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican and Patricks point person on property taxes. For homeowners, its literally off the charts.

Just how much homeowners would feel any benefit from the proposals in their bank accounts is debatable. Based on each chambers figures, the savings from each proposal range anywhere from $53 a month on the low end to $73 on the high end  with seniors on a fixed income saving $106 a month under the Senate plan.







Side effects of the appraisal cap

Phelan has said the tighter cap proposal is in response to homeowners and business owners worries that eye-popping appraisals are translating into higher tax bills.

All I hear about are their appraisals  all the time  on their homes, their businesses, their rental homes, Phelan said last month after the appraisal cap proposal passed out of the House. Its not fair, its not right and we need to treat all taxpayers the same.

The idea of tamping down on rising property values as a way to provide property tax relief took off in the late 1970s after California voters adopted Proposition 13. The ballot initiative promised to reduce homeowners taxes after several years of rapidly rising home values by placing tight limits on property value growth as well as tax rates.

Now, 17 states and the District of Columbia have some kind of cap on how much properties taxable value can grow, according to the Tax Foundation. That includes Texas: Voters here adopted a statewide 10% appraisal cap in 1997.

The idea at the time was to give homeowners who lived in hot housing markets some cushion on their tax bill from a short-term spike in their appraisals, said Dale Craymer, head of the business-backed Texas Taxpayers and Research Association and former budget official for former Govs. Ann Richards and George W. Bush. If high housing demand causes property values to go up, the cap protects homeowners by limiting how much of their homes new value is taxable.

The intent of the cap was not to provide permanent tax relief, but it was to provide protection against huge market swings, Craymer said.

Tax experts and property appraisers have cautioned that growing property values dont necessarily go hand-in-hand with equally rising tax bills  and that values are only one part of the equation that goes into forming the final tax bill.

The concern that increases in appraisals are going to lead to increases in property tax bills is largely just a misconception, said Adam Langley, associate director of tax policy at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Whats more, tax policy experts warn, tightening the appraisal cap would have a number of negative consequences that have already come up in other states, like greater inequities between taxpayers.

For one, new homeowners could pay significantly higher property taxes than those who have been in their home for a longer time. Thats because the cap keeps a homes taxable value from going up at the same pace as its market value  and the longer someone owns a house, the bigger the difference between those two figures grows.

Research shows that the gap between new and longtime homeowners tax burdens barely exists under the states current 10% cap, but a Texas Tribune analysis showed that it would likely widen under the tighter cap proposed by the Texas House.

For example, a Texas home bought at the median sales price of $147,500 in 2011 wouldve had a market value of $340,000 last year. Had the Houses proposed cap been in place since then, that homes taxable value wouldve grown no more than 5% each year. At that pace, according to the Tribunes analysis, the owner of that home wouldve paid taxes only on less than three-quarters of that propertys value last year, or about $252,000.

In comparison, the owner of a home purchased in 2022 at the same $340,000 market value as the other house would pay taxes on almost that full amount.

I think youll see more people upset about appraisals when they have a similar property to their neighbors but are being taxed in a wildly different way, Davis of ITEP said. I really dont see this reducing the amount of complaints over appraisals over the long haul.

This already has borne out in places such as New York City and California, which have tighter appraisal caps than Texas and where new homeowners paid significantly higher property taxes in 2021 than others who have been in their home for a longer period.

A tighter appraisal cap also could upend the states housing market, experts say, by encouraging people to stay in their homes for a longer time in order to hold onto their tax benefit. That could lead to less turnover in the housing market and, as a result, higher home prices stemming from a tighter supply of homes. In that scenario, its younger generations and those with lower incomes who would lose out, Davis said.

People who own their homes now will eventually start to see some tax cut from this, Davis said. But what about their kids?

A study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research concluded that people in California were holding on to their homes longer as a result of Proposition 13, contributing to the states high housing costs.

The effect might not be widespread. Studies in Florida and Muscogee County, Georgia, didnt find a connection between those places appraisal caps and longer home retention. Nonetheless, Florida voters opted in 2007 to make the caps benefit portable  meaning they can take their tax savings with them whenever they buy a new home  in order to address those concerns.

A tighter appraisal cap would mostly benefit wealthier and gentrifying neighborhoods, where property values are rising quickly. Wealthier households already are the main beneficiaries of the states current 10% cap, according to the comptrollers office. Lower-income neighborhoods with more modest property value growth would be less likely to hit the proposed 5% cap  and would not get any help to lessen their tax burden.

That scenario has played out in New York City, which limits taxable property values on single-family homes and small multifamily buildings from rising more than 6% a year. That cap, according to a report from the New York-based Regional Plan Association, has shifted the tax burden away from wealthy areas in Manhattan and Brooklyn and left lower- and middle-income neighborhoods elsewhere in the city paying higher effective tax rates.

And for all those potential consequences, experts say, some property owners might actually end up seeing little to no tax relief.

Thats what happened in Cook County, Illinois  home to Chicago  after the county adopted a 7% appraisal cap in the early 2000s, according to researchers at the University of Illinois. At first, the cap benefited about three-quarters of qualified Chicago homeowners, with some parts of the city even seeing their tax bills fall. But local officials eventually raised tax rates throughout the county to make up for the loss in tax revenue  and some homeowners wound up paying higher taxes than they would have without the cap, according to the study.

Tax rates in Texas have been falling since the Legislature enacted laws aimed at reducing them, and observers expect them to continue going down if the 5% appraisal cap is approved  just not as fast as they would without it.

Even though I may benefit somewhat from the appraisal cap, I may end up a net loser because Im going to be paying on a much higher tax rate than what I would have seen otherwise, said Craymer, the TTARA head.

Thats what Daniel Ramos, head of Harris Countys Office of Management and Budget, hinted would happen if lawmakers passed a tighter appraisal cap. The amount of property tax revenue the county is allowed to collect will not change because it has nothing to do with property values, he said.

Hammered

The appraisal cap proposal does have its supporters. The idea passed with bipartisan support in the full House by a 139-5 vote. A smattering of industry groups like the Texas Restaurant Association and the Texas Homebuilders Association have come out in favor of the broader tax-cut bill its attached to, House Bill 2.

Galveston County tax assessor-collector Cheryl Johnson said she supports the appraisal cap proposal because it extends the benefit to businesses, which havent seen tax relief like homeowners have as property values have gone up. The average county tax bill for commercial businesses in her county  which includes restaurants, shopping centers and hotels  rose nearly 97% between 2019 and 2022.

When I look at my business community on the island in Galveston, theyve been hammered, Johnson said.

But experts consider a bump in the homestead exemption a more equitable benefit  at least among homeowners, who would get the same tax credit, no matter the value of their property.

Phelan has said hes open to once again boosting the homestead exemption, which Texans voted to raise from $25,000 to $40,000 last year. But hes skeptical of how useful the move alone would be in a time of fast-rising property values. The more a house is worth, the higher the property tax bill gets  and the more its value rises, the less relief the homestead exemption provides.

Then again, if a homes value rose without the benefit of a homestead exemption, a steeper jump in the tax bill would be guaranteed, said Lynn Krebs, a research economist at the Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M University.

Its always going to be more beneficial to have a higher homestead exemption, Krebs said.

Plus, real estate experts dont expect the Texas housing market to be as extreme as its been the past two years. And proponents of the homestead exemption in the Senate have argued that, unlike the appraisal cap, their proposal provides the same benefit, no matter what happens with property values.

Weve gone through a year post-COVID where, yes, there was a huge increase in appraisals, Bettencourt said. But now thats in the rearview mirror.
The City of London Investment Trust plc (LON:CTY  Get Rating)s stock price passed below its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of GBX 416.21 ($5.21) and traded as low as GBX 414.48 ($5.19). The City of London Investment Trust shares last traded at GBX 415 ($5.20), with a volume of 507,107 shares traded.

The City of London Investment Trust Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of 2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 4,125.00 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.14. The firms 50-day simple moving average is GBX 415.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 414.69.

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The City of London Investment Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 27th will be given a dividend of GBX 5.05 ($0.06) per share. This represents a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 27th. This is an increase from The City of London Investment Trusts previous dividend of $5.00. The City of London Investment Trusts payout ratio is currently 20,000.00%.

About The City of London Investment Trust

The City of London Investment Trust plc is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Henderson Investment Funds Limited. It is co-managed by Henderson Global Investors Limited. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United Kingdom. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors.

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Durango Resources Inc. (CVE:DGO  Get Rating)s share price dropped 20% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as C$0.04 and last traded at C$0.04. Approximately 196,000 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 108% from the average daily volume of 94,292 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.05.

Durango Resources Trading Down 20.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of C$3.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.33 and a beta of 0.66. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is C$0.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$0.06.

About Durango Resources

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Durango Resources Inc, an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition and exploration of precious and base mineral resource properties in Canada. It has a 100% interest in a group of properties totaling approximately 12,240 hectares in size in the Windfall Lake gold camp in the Abitibi region of Quebec, Canada.

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StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG  Get Rating) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Monday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 61 ($0.76) to GBX 56 ($0.70) in a research report on Thursday, May 4th. Barclays upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 55 ($0.69) to GBX 58 ($0.73) in a research report on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group dropped their price target on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 70 ($0.88) to GBX 69 ($0.86) in a research report on Thursday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $57.29.

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Lloyds Banking Group Stock Up 3.1 %

LYG opened at $2.31 on Monday. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $2.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $2.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. Lloyds Banking Group has a one year low of $1.70 and a one year high of $2.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.28.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

Lloyds Banking Group ( NYSE:LYG Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.03. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 11.52% and a net margin of 21.31%. The business had revenue of $14.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.68 billion. Analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 14th will be issued a $0.076 dividend. This represents a yield of 5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 13th. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Groups previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.04. Lloyds Banking Groups payout ratio is currently 37.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Great Diamond Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ascent Group LLC purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the companys stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

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Lloyds Banking Group Plc is a financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking and financial services. It operates through the following segments: Retail, Commercial Banking, Insurance and Wealth, and Other. The Retail segment offers broad range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, motor finance and unsecured consumer lending to personal, and small business customers.

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StockNews.com started coverage on shares of NovaBay Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:NBY  Get Rating) in a research note published on Monday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the stock.

NovaBay Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NYSE NBY opened at $0.72 on Monday. NovaBay Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $0.66 and a 52-week high of $12.64. The firm has a market cap of $1.97 million, a PE ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 2.72.

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NovaBay Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc engages in the development and sales of scientifically-created and clinically-proven eyecare and skincare. Its products include Avenova, NeutroPhase, CelleRx, and DERMAdoctor. The company was founded on January 19, 2000 and is headquartered in Emeryville, CA.

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The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG  Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 17th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.425 per share by the insurance provider on Wednesday, July 5th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group has raised its dividend payment by an average of 9.6% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 3 years. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a payout ratio of 17.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect The Hartford Financial Services Group to earn $9.49 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.70 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.9%.

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The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of HIG stock opened at $70.29 on Thursday. The stocks fifty day moving average is $69.22 and its 200-day moving average is $73.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.81 billion, a PE ratio of 12.10, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.85. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 52 week low of $60.17 and a 52 week high of $79.44.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

The Hartford Financial Services Group ( NYSE:HIG Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.68. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.70 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 18.45% and a net margin of 8.33%. The firms quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 7.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several research firms have weighed in on HIG. Piper Sandler increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Monday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Monday, February 6th. StockNews.com began coverage on The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Thursday. They issued a buy rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, March 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $92.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $86.15.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 14,542 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.38, for a total transaction of $1,125,259.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,608,152.02. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Adin M. Tooker sold 3,920 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $303,447.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,820 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,998,726.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 14,542 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.38, for a total value of $1,125,259.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,629 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,608,152.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 96,944 shares of company stock worth $7,549,248. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 17,704 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $1,271,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 3,952 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 1st quarter worth $674,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 88.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,238 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $807,000 after acquiring an additional 5,278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 235.4% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,070 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 751 shares during the last quarter. 89.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

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The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc is an insurance and financial services company. It operates through the following segments: Commercial Lines, Personal Lines, Property & Casualty Other Operations, Group Benefits, Hartford Funds, and Corporate. The Commercial Lines segment provides workers compensation, property, automobile, liability and umbrella coverage under several different products.

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Researchers working to unlock the secrets of Alzheimer's disease say they've been given a major clue that could help protect people at risk for this type of dementia.

A man who seemed fated to develop memory loss in his 40s or 50s, based on family history, kept normal function for decades longer than he should have. He seems to have been protected by a rare gene change that enhanced the function of a protein that helps nerve cells communicate.

Scientists say that understanding how this gene change defended his brain may help prevent Alzheimer's in other people.

The man is part of a large family in Antioquia, Colombia, with many members who have inherited a mutated gene called presenilin-1, or PSEN1. Carriers of PSEN1 are almost certain to develop Alzheimer's disease at a relatively young age.

The man, who had the PSEN1 mutation, did eventually develop memory and thinking problems. He was diagnosed with mild dementia at the age of 72, then experienced more memory decline and an infection. He died of pneumonia at age 74.

But by all indications, he should have had memory and thinking problems decades earlier. When doctors examined his brain after death, they found it loaded with beta amyloid and tau, two proteins that accumulate in the brains of people with Alzheimer's.

However, he had something working in his favor, too. A genetic analysis revealed that the man had a rare change in a gene that codes for a protein called reelin, which helps nerve cells communicate.

"In this case, it was very clear that this reelin variant makes reelin work better," said Dr. Joseph Arboleda-Velasquez, an associate professor of ophthalmology at Harvard University and lead author of a new study on the man.

"That gives us a huge insight," he said. "It makes it very obvious that just putting more reelin in the brain may actually help patients."

The study was published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine.

The enhanced reelin protein seemed to be protecting a very specific part of the man's brain, an area that sits behind the nose at the base of the brain called the entorhinal cortex.

"Another big insight from this case is, it seems like maybe you don't need this everywhere in the brain," Arboleda-Velasquez said.

The entorhinal cortex is particularly sensitive to aging and to Alzheimer's. It's an area of the brain that also sends and receives signals related to the sense of smell. Loss of smell is often a harbinger of brain changes that lead to memory and thinking difficulties.

"So when people have Alzheimer's, it starts in the entorhinal cortex, and then it spreads," Arboleda-Velasquez said.

This is the second time Arboleda-Velasquez and the team studying this extended family have found someone who defied their genetic odds.

In 2019, the scientists reported the case of a woman who should have developed early Alzheimer's but instead maintained her memory and thinking abilities until her 70s.

She carried two copies of a change in her APOE3 gene that was nicknamed the Christchurch mutation. It seems to have decreased the activity of the APOE3 protein. Like reelin, APOE is a signaling molecule that is known to play a role in shaping a person's risk for Alzheimer's.

And it turns out that there is a link between these two cases: The receptors on cells for reelin are the same receptors for APOE.

"So these two patients are pointing with like big arrows. They're telling us, 'Hey, these is the pathway. This is the pathway that is important for extreme protection against Alzheimer's,' " Arboleda-Velasquez said.

But the pathway may not be as protective for everyone. The sister of the man in the new study also shared the rare protective gene change, and it helped her, but not as much. According to her family, she began experiencing cognitive decline at age 58.

Arboleda-Velasquez said that may be because in women, the activity of the gene seems to drop off with age, so it doesn't make as much reelin protein. "They can have the variant, but they don't express it as much as men," he said.

The Harvard team says they're already working toward develop a therapy based on these findings.

Dr. Richard Isaacson, a preventive neurologist at Florida Atlantic University, says studies like this show us something important: "In certain cases, we can win a tug of war against our genes."

Does this mean a cure is around the corner? That remains to be seen.

"Can we use a study like this to transform care and improve care? I hope so. I wouldn't say that we're there just yet," said Isaacson, who was not involved with this research. "But I think this is this is an important study."

10 potential early signs of dementia Memory loss that disrupts daily life Challenges in planning or solving problems Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work, or at leisure Confusion with time or place Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relations New problems with words in speaking or writing Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps Decreased or poor judgment Withdrawal from work or social activities Changes in mood and personality
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Grammy Award-winning prog-grass band The Infamous Stringdusters and Rooster Walk festival organizers schemed up a new event for the festival site near Martinsville.

The Infamous Weekend is set for Sept. 15-16 at Pops Farm, with four sets from the Stringdusters, plus music from 49 Winchester, Yarn, Kendall Street Company, The Sweet Lillies, The Wilson Springs Hotel, Furnace Mountain and The Jared Stout Band. Tickets are on presale and go up for public consumption at 10 a.m. Friday via infamousweekend.com. Prices werent immediately available.

Lots of folks from Virginia and elsewhere remember when the progressive-picking, jam-leaning Dusters curated and hosted the Festy Experience at Devils Backbone Basecamp, in Roseland. Rooster Walk put on a smaller, reunion-style event during pandemic-era autumns.

Its really a perfect pairing, Rooster Walk and the Dusters, the festivals executive director, Johnny Buck, said in a news release. Were going to keep a small footprint on the event this fall, with plans of growing it every year going forward. Its exciting.

On-site camping, food, art and craft vendors, outdoor excursions and childrens activities are among the draws, in addition to live music on the festival sites Lawn Stage and Pine Grove Stage.
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Ongoing

Art exhibit featuring work by local artist Casey Hansen, through May 26, Grand Island Public Library, 1124 W. Second St. Library hours: 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday; 308-385-5333.

Thursday, May 18

The String Beans, a family-friendly concert for kids, traditional and contemporary bluegrass, 7 p.m., College Park. Presented as part of the Grand Island Music Series, this concert is free but seating is limited; call 308-850-3307 or email gims@artsincorporated.org to reserve a seat.

Spring Barn Festival, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, 3045 S. Marian Road, Hastings (take 281 south of Hastings, turn west on Prairie Lake Road). More than 70 vendors, indoors and out, featuring food, home decor, crafts, clothing, food trucks, and more. Free shuttle bus runs from the Adams County Fairgrounds every 15-20 minutes. Admission is $5 per day, four-day pass is $10; www.barnfestival.com

Tabithas Closet, free clothing giveaway, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Stolley Park Church of Christ, 2822 W. Stolley Park Road, Grand Island. Clothing donations accepted; no housewares; 308-384-2613.

Bingo, 7 p.m., United Veterans Club, 1914 W. Capital, Grand Island. Doors open at 6; open to the public; 308-381-1555.

Friday, May 19

Nebraska Volunteer Fire School, through Sunday, Fonner Park.

Coloring with Pastor Kelly, 2 p.m., the Chocolate Bar, 116 W. Third St., Grand Island. Adult coloring get-together led by the Rev. Kelly Karges of Trinity United Methodist Church most Friday afternoons; 308-382-1952.

Saturday, May 20

Live Horse Racing, last day, Fonner Park.

Classic Car Show, to benefit Childrens Hospital, hosted by Sams Club and Chef Anthony, noon to 3 p.m., Sams Club parking lot, 1510 N. Diers Ave. Registration starts at 10 a.m., entry fee is $20. Event also includes oldies music, food, raffles and more.

Ride for Woody Poker Run, Armed Forces Day event to benefit local veterans, Sams Club parking lot, 1510 N. Diers Ave. Registration starts at 10 a.m.; kickstands up at 11. Route includes stops in Ravenna, Gibbon and Doniphan, then back to Grand Island; $20 per hand, $30 per couple.

Bicycle Ride for Veterans, Armed Forces Day event to benefit local veterans, Northridge Church, 3025 Independence Ave. Registration starts at 8:45 a.m., ride begins at 9:30.; 20 mile route includes a stop in Cairo. Entry fee is $25 per rider; helmets and waivers required.

Family Saturday: Birding Hike, 1 to 3 p.m., Crane Trust Nature & Visitor Center, 9324 Alda Road (just south of the I-80 interchange at Alda). Event includes a brief bird-watching lesson and a trail walk; best for kids 5-15 with their grown-ups, dress for the weather. Free, but donations appreciated; Amy Sandeen, 308-382-1820.

Guided bird outing, hosted by Rowe Sanctuary in observance of Nebraska Bird Month, 9 to 10:30 a.m., Cottonmill Park, Kearney (meet in the parking lot facing the swim beach). Binoculars and field guides available to borrow. Free; suitable for all ages and abilities; rowe.audubon.org/events Nebraska Volunteer Fire School, through Sunday, Fonner Park.

Stolley Park Railroad, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Grand Island. Tickets are $3.50 for anyone age 3 and older; children age 2 and younger ride for free with a paying adult. Punch cards and group rates available. All dates and times are weather permitting; 308-389-0290.

Sunday, May 21

Heartland Lutheran High School graduation, 2 p.m., 3900 W. Husker Highway.

Fast & Furriest, event featuring cars and dogs to benefit the Good Life Rescue, 11 a.m., 1420 Ada St. Car show starts at 11 a.m., dogs (available for adoption) arrive at noon; trophies presented at 3 p.m. Event also includes food trucks, bounce house, raffles and silent auction items and more. Car show information: 308-381-4313.

Tosca Lee, author visit, 4 p.m., Grand Island Public Library, 1124 W. Second St. Lee will discuss her new World War II novel, The Long March Home, co-written with Marcus Brotherton; 308-385-5333.

Bingo, 2 p.m., United Veterans Club, 1914 W. Capital, Grand Island. Doors open at 1; open to the public; 308-381-1555.
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Smoke from Canadian wildfires has blanketed the state and elsewhere, and could be a health concern for some Nebraskans.

Smoke filled the air in Grand Island sometime around 9 a.m. Poor air quality and reduced visibility to as low as 1 mile is possible at times today, according to the National Weather Service office in Hastings.

The smoke is so visible because of a surface cold front that's moving through the area, said meteorologist Jeremy Wesely of the Hastings weather service office.

The front is allowing the smoke to "work down from the upper atmosphere" into the surface layer, he said.

Although the smoke is working its way south across the country, it won't make it much further.

The forecast model has the surface smoke dissipating across north central Kansas Friday morning, Wesely said.

In central Nebraska, the smoke will still be aloft in the upper atmosphere but will be less visible Friday morning.

The smoke caused the National Weather Service to issue an air quality alert this morning. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services said the smoky effects on air quality would likely linger in Nebraska through midday Friday.

DHHS issued an advisory listing various threat levels the smoke might pose.

During Moderate AQI (Yellow category) conditions, those who are unusually sensitive to particle pollution may experience health effects. When conditions rise to the yellow category, those who are unusually sensitive are advised to consider shortening outdoor activities and reducing the intensity of these activities.

Symptoms such as coughing, or shortness of breath are signs to take it easier.

During Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups AQI (Orange category) conditions, members of sensitive groups may experience health effects.

Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children. When conditions rise to the orange category, sensitive groups are advised to reduce prolonged or heavy exertion and avoid intense outdoor activities.

During Unhealthy AQI (Red category) conditions, some members of the general public may experience health effects and members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children.

When conditions rise to the red category, sensitive groups are advised to avoid prolonged or heavy exertion and consider moving activities indoors or rescheduling.

DHHS will anticipate the potential impacts and issue advisories through local media in areas where unhealthy effects are likely.
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The neonatal intensive care units (NICU) at Bryan Medical Center in Lincoln and Grand Island Regional Medical Center are celebrating a successful patient outcome in which both hospitals collaborated to provide lifesaving care to a mother and her premature baby.

Ashley Morris is from Clarks, a small village in east central Nebraska. Late in her pregnancy, she was diagnosed with preeclampsia, a complication that results in high blood pressure. Left untreated, it can have a negative health impact on both mother and baby. Early delivery is often recommended.

On Friday, Feb. 3, Morris made the 40-minute drive to Grand Island Regional Medical Center for her scheduled induction. She was kept for observation that night and induced for labor the next day. It was only a few weeks before her due date.

On Saturday morning, Morris began the birthing process. During labor, she suffered an unexpected reaction to an epidural. Doctors immediately noted she was in distress. Her baby was also experiencing complications, showing signs of acidosis and encephalopathy. At 9:10 p.m., Morris delivered a baby boy, Jackson, via emergency C-section. He was seven pounds, six ounces and immediately intubated on a ventilator.

The NICU team at Grand Island Regional Medical Center recognized Jackson would need a higher level of care. Amy Sytsma, a neonatal nurse practitioner, reached out to the NICU at Bryan Medical Center in Lincoln. She immediately contacted Dr. Craig Sitzman, a neonatologist, who was on call. Sytsma relayed all of Jacksons crucial information. He recommended transferring Jackson to Lincoln. Within minutes, the NICU transport team at Bryan gathered its equipment, jumped into an ambulance and headed west.

The NICU transport team at Bryan is made up of advance trained neonatal nurses, nurse practitioners and respiratory therapists. The team utilizes a portable isolette with advanced equipment to help with the delicate transport of tiny patients. It features a heating source, cooling source, oxygen, ventilator and pumps that allow for the administration of medication.

When members of the team arrived at Grand Island Regional Medical Center, they immediately tended to Jackson.

Doctors believed his best treatment option was neonatal therapeutic hypothermia. This method reduces a babys body temperature in order to slow disease progression and improve health. Within three hours of birth, Jackson was in the isolette and actively being cooled.

After the emergency C-section, Morris was moved to inpatient care at Grand Island Regional Medical Center. She was not well enough to leave the hospital and travel to Lincoln. Before the NICU transport team left, they wheeled the isolette into Morris' room and she was able to see her son for the first time.

Moments later, he was on his way to the Capital City.

Once Jackson arrived at Bryan Medical Center, he was placed in a room in the NICU. Sitzman and his team of neonatal experts took over care. For three days, Jackson remained in a cooled state, his body temperature being kept at 72 degrees. Slowly, they raised it, removed the ventilator and stabilized his condition.

After five days in the hospital at Grand Island Regional Medical Center, Morris was well enough to be discharged. She immediately made the drive to Lincoln to be reunited with her son. They spent additional time in the NICU at Bryan while Jackson continued to grow. He hit his feeding milestones and MRI images of his brain were promising. After a few weeks, Jackson was well enough to be transported back to the NICU at Grand Island Regional Medical Center for care that was closer to home.

Morris and Jackson have returned to their home in Clarks. Jackson now weighs over 11 pounds.

Morris has returned to work part-time and spends every free moment with her son to provide him the help and care he needs to continue to grow. Doctors, therapists and medical professionals will continue to monitor Jackson and work with him to ensure he hits those important milestones in the future and overcome any obstacles.

"Ashley is thankful for the collaborative care she received from the medical professionals at Grand Island Regional Medical Center and Bryan Medical Center," says a news release from Bryan Health. "It took several important steps to ensure a positive outcome, including a highly trained team, specialized equipment and statewide collaboration."
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Editors note: The largest segment of Nebraskas agriculture industry is beef production. It powers the states economy and has an unmistakable impact on almost everyone in Nebraska. In honor of beef month, the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is sharing a series that will feature people, places and research that are a cornerstone of Nebraskas land grant mission.

LINCOLN  As first-generation Husker Chaylee Tonniges wraps up her junior year in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources at the University of NebraskaLincoln, she is solidifying her future after graduation to work in the beef sector in her home statethe beef state.

An experience she had as a four-year-old showing bucket calf at the 2003 York County fair set her on a trajectory that she has maintained throughout her childhood, high school and now as she wraps up her college years.

Showing that calf at the fair would be a foreshadowing to what my lifelong passion would be, says Tonniges.

Growing up as the fourth generation on her familys row crop and backgrounding operating near Gresham, Tonniges naturally excelled in high school FFA, 4-H and showing cattle.

With Tonnigess energy and work ethic, it was no surprise to her family when she decided to be the first to attend college, and Nebraska was at the top of her list.

East Campus is its own community and makes university life seem more personal, says Tonniges.

The staff in any department makes you feel welcomed and seen, and I think thats really unique for a university with 20,000 students in attendance.

Working towards a degree in animal science with minors in the Nebraska Beef Industry Scholars Program and Engler Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program has allowed Tonniges to integrate all of her interests.

Tonniges says that her mentor, Gary Sullivan, and her advisor, Kacie McCarthy, have made all of the difference in her experience, encouraging her to get involved on campus and beyond.

With their guidance, Tonniges took the leap and got involved with the Block & Bridle club, helping put on the famous steak fry last year. She is also part of the FFA Alumni Club and the Young Nebraska Cattlemen, which have helped her build relationships with movers and shakers in the beef industry. As a result, she landed an internship with Nebraska Cattlemen during the school year, a real compliment to her involvement on campus already.

Im really understanding all of the work that organizations like Nebraska Cattlemen put in to advocate on behalf of producers, says Tonniges.

This June, Tonniges year as the Nebraska Cattlewomens 2022 Collegiate Beef Ambassador ends, which has given her the opportunity to teach and utilize her background and education in animal science when visiting with students and adults from all walks of life.

The best part about my role as an ambassador is being able to educate youth about beef and building relationships within Nebraska Cattlemen and Nebraskans across the state, said Tonniges.

Ive learned how to appreciate differences and to understand how others think and meet them where theyre at.

Throughout this past year, Tonniges has traveled the state to promote beef and answer questions at elementary schools, high schools and the birthing pavilion Nebraska State Fair. She has also attended countless regional cattlemens events.

In addition, Tonniges took the leap and purchased her very first Red Angus cows earlier this year with guidance from mentors in the Engler program and the support of her family.

Engler has helped me build my own brand off of my familys legacy to create my own facet of the operation at home.

Using her skills, Tonniges is building the foundation of her future herd at J Bar K.

Its very rewarding to see my family supporting me to refine the genetics for our operation so we can meet our goals and add more value to our operation, Tonniges said.

Her experiences within CASNR and the beef industry will doubtless lead to a bright future in the beef industry. Tonniges is eager to get back to the family operation full-time, but her parents have encouraged her to get more experience before coming home.

Over the summer, Tonniges will serve as the U.S. Business Channels Sales field intern for Merck Animal Health. She will be based out of Nebraska but will take part in a project with Bomgaars stores covering Nebraska and Kansas and several western states focusing on equine and cattle.
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Amateur radio operators have long been known for their steadfast emergency assistance before, during and after disasters. It was an amateur ra
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Herrin native Gene Stiman, 99, will receive the 2023 HerrinFesta Italiana Lifetime Achievement Award during the Mayors Honoree Banquet at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 23 at the Herrin Civic Center.

Stiman is an award-winning legendary musician with a distinguished career as a trombonist.

Stiman began playing in the Herrin region with his fathers band, The Smiling Cowboys, when he was only 10 years old. He performed in various orchestras in 1941-1942, then joined the U.S. Air Force and played with them from 1942 to 1946.

After World War II, he continued his professional career in the big-band era of the 1940s and '50s. During that period, he had a solo or lead position with the Benny Goodman Ochestra and performed with many of the top big bands. In addition to Benny Goodman, those bands included Tex Beneke, Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians, Les Brown and many others.

Stiman was band director for Salem Elementary School and junior high from 1952 to 1963 and earned the schools first First Superior award in music contests.

He joined the music faculty at SIUC in 1969, directing the jazz ensembles and arranging for the Marching Salukis.

He returned to Salem from 1976 to 1983, earning seven more First Superior awards, in addition to firsts for solo and ensembles.

After his retirement, Stiman continued playing in the Fox Theater Orchestra in St. Louis, and played for years with the Jerry Ford Orchestra out of Cape Girardeau.

Stiman is a 1941 graduate of Herrin High School and a 1952 graduate of Southern Illinois University with a degree in music education. He earned a master of science degree from the University of Illinois in 1957.

Stiman married Herrin native Iva Nell Hindman in 1945. He has one son, Kerry Stiman of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, who was born in Herrin and holds two degrees from SIU. They also have two granddaughters, one grandson and seven great-grandchildren.

"We are honored to be able to select Gene Stiman for the Lifetime Achievement award for 2023. He is a musical icon in the region. At 99, he is an artist with his trombone and the music he continues to make," Joey Helleny, HerrinFesta vice-president and member of the Honoree Committee, said in a press release.

Mr. Stiman's legacy remains as a man of music, talent, dedication, skill and excellent performance.

Since his retirement, he lives in Marion and has continued to perform throughout the region.

A display of Stimans memorabilia and photos from throughout his life is in the lobby of Herrin City Library.

Francis Pass of Pass Heating and Air Conditioning are the corporate honorees. Judge Paul Murphy and his wife, Susan Murphy, will be the 2023 Grand Parade Marshals. They all will be honored along with Stiman Tuesday evening.

For more information about HerrinFesta Italiana, visit www.herrinfesta.com or their Facebook page.

Cheryl Ranchino Trench, a trustee and member of the honoree committee of HerrinFesta Italiana, contributed to this article.
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Orangeburg County Council gave third and final reading Monday to an ordinance allowing the development of a 332-home subdivision outside the Town of Elloree.

Nearby residents continued to ask council to stop the rezoning for the development, but officials have been told there is no legal reason why the project cannot proceed.

Council's approval ends a process that began on Feb. 8 when the request for the development appeared before the county's planning commission.

Builder D.R. Horton Inc. has asked the county to change the zoning of the 331-acre property at the corner of Tee Vee Road and Cleveland Street from forest-agriculture to single-family residential development. Surrounding properties are zoned forest-agriculture.

Councilwoman Janie Cooper-Smith was the sole person to vote against the rezoning on Monday.

Prior to third reading, Dyanna Myers repeated her concerns, including concerns about traffic.

In addition, she said, We still have a lack of EMS, we have a lack of a sheriffs department on our end of the county. We have two deputies on staff that one shift.

If both are responding to an incident, it would leave the eastern portion of the county without law enforcement, she claimed.

With all these houses, this influx of over 2,000 will come in, it will really take a toll on the sheriffs department, she said. They are already short-handed.

Myers said the Elloree Fire Department is already short-handed.

They have been begging for volunteers and for people to come out, she said.

She also questioned whether the towns sewer system can handle the development following the approval of a 93-home development.

We dont have infrastructure in Elloree, Myers said. They dont have a backup plan for sewer.

Town officials have said the Elloree Water System does have the capacity to handle the new development, but it would be on a first-come, first-serve basis.

No one from D.R. Horton spoke at the meeting.

Canebrake Court resident B.J. Young wanted to make sure there will be 86 acres that will remain forest and agriculture as part of the rezoning of the parcel. He was assured that it would.

No one spoke in favor of the project at Monday's meeting, but during previous meetings those in favor of the project  primarily downtown business owners and local real estate agents  have said they hope population growth will lead to the town's revitalization.

According to conceptual plans submitted, the project will include the development of about 169 acres of land into a residential subdivision over the next eight to 15 years.

The plan includes about 332 houses with half-acre lots.

Initially the plan was to build 332 homes on the 332-acre parcel.

After hearing concerns from property owners, D.R. Horton pulled out 86 acres that would be adjacent to the Canebrake community. This will bring the total down to 246 acres.

When 59 acres of wetlands and 18 acres of a wetlands buffer are taken into consideration, about 169 acres can be developed. Of this 169 acres, about 25 are a pond.

The proposed development was rejected twice by the Orangeburg County Planning Commission.
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Environmental groups are celebrating a new rule proposed Wednesday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that could expand federal oversight to a number of previously unregulated coal ash storage sites in Wyoming.

The rule comes as part of a settlement between the agency and Earthjustice, a nonprofit that litigates environmental issues. It would expand the agencys existing contamination standards, which were put in place in 2015, to also include historical coal ash ponds and landfills that are no longer being used.

An analysis conducted by Earthjustice identified at least eight coal ash sites that are exempt from the 2015 rule but may be included in the new one. About half are located at active coal plants operated by Rocky Mountain Power, Wyomings largest utility. The remainder are on the site of the former Osage Power Plant, operated by Black Hills Energy and shuttered in 2010.

Rocky Mountain Powers parent company, PacifiCorp, is evaluating EPAs proposed action and the rules potential applicability to its coal ash handling sites in the state of Wyoming, David Eskelsen, a spokesperson for the utility, said via email.

We will evaluate the proposal and identify appropriate compliance solutions for those sites that may be regulated by this action, Eskelsen added.

Black Hills Energy was not able to provide a comment on its potential cleanup obligations before this story went to press.

Coal ash  whats left behind after coal is burned  contains a large number of human health hazards, including arsenic, lead and mercury. It has few commercial uses and is often stored indefinitely near the plants where its produced.

Earthjustice called the proposed rule a major win for communities near coal plants in a press release, citing the higher risk of groundwater contamination from older, often unlined legacy storage sites.

This proposed rule represents a crucial step toward safeguarding the air, groundwater, streams, and drinking water communities depend on, EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. Many of these communities have been disproportionately impacted by pollution for far too long.

Shannon Anderson, staff attorney for the Powder River Basin Resource Council, a landowners group, said the rule is particularly important because it recognizes the long-term impacts of historical coal use, and broadens the EPAs regulatory focus beyond the countrys dwindling fleet of active coal plants.

It catches some of those facilities that are inactive  making sure that theyre still addressed and dealt with, so groundwater isnt contaminated and we dont have further environmental damage from them, Anderson said.

The EPA expects to publish the rule in the Federal Register on Thursday, opening a 60-day public comment period.
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A Casper man shot by police last summer told a judge he was deeply sorry for pointing a gun at his estranged spouse before being sentenced Thursday to five to seven years in prison.

Gage Cordova, 25, fidgeted in his seat and repeatedly peered around the courtroom while awaiting his sentencing. Afterward, he hung his head as he was escorted from Natrona County District Court just before 9:30 a.m.

Its not the person that I am. Im a good father. I was a good husband... said Cordova. Drugs took that all away from me.

Last year, Cordova used a gun to threaten his wife, who was in the process of divorcing him, his arrest affidavit states. He was also accused of using a Ring doorbell surveillance system at his wifes home to spy on her and leave her threatening voicemails.

Police launched a search for Cordova and found him hiding inside a closet at an east Casper apartment. Police say he raised a loaded gun at an officer, who returned fire and wounded him.

Cordova originally pleaded not guilty to aggravated assault, possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent, stalking and criminal trespass. But in January, he accepted a plea deal.

He ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault  a felony with a maximum sentence of 10 years. The state moved to dismiss the other three charges in exchange.

Cordova was originally facing up to 16 years in prison.

Although his wife was present in the courtroom, she declined to make a victims impact statement. Assistant District Attorney Blaine Nelson asked for five to seven years on her behalf.

Nelson said a very difficult divorce, mixed with mental illness, substance abuse and a criminal past, combined to create a frightening pattern of violence and intimidation by Cordova.

Cordova sent his wife texts that still haunt her, including prepare for death and cops cannot help you, Nelson said. On the day Cordova threatened her with a gun, the rhetoric was no different.

You have five seconds to let me in now, Nelson said, recounting Cordovas threats from that day. You have just made the biggest mistake of your life.

District Judge Catherine Wilking ultimately said Cordovas remorse doesnt take away from the gravity of his crime.

It was clear to me the victim was terrorized for an extended period of time, Wilking said. This could have resulted in horrific consequences.

On May 30, a Casper police officer attempted to serve Cordova with an arrest warrant tied to the stalking case, the arrest affidavit states. Officials found him hiding underneath blankets in an apartment closet.

Cordova had a loaded gun on him at the time, and an officer fired once at him when he raised his weapon. The Natrona County District Attorneys office later determined the Casper police officer was justified in shooting at Cordova.

Cordova suffered a grazing wound to his arm and was treated at a hospital before being taken to jail, where he has spent nearly a year.

After the incident, he told police he had a mental illness and that voices were telling him to shoot himself, the arrest affidavit states. He also said he couldnt afford necessary medication for those illnesses.

On Thursday, Kurt Infanger, Cordovas public defender, pointed to his schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder as part of what led to this horrible event.

We cant discount that, Infanger said. He is extremely remorseful. He makes no excuses about that.
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Wyomings top education official laid out sweeping goals for the states K-12 system Thursday in a newly released strategic plan, setting the stage for reforms that would reach every corner of public education and change how the Wyoming Department of Education works with school districts.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelders plan would see the Department of Education take on more of a leadership role during her time in office. Under her vision, the department will proactively build model policies and outline best practices for the states school districts on a number of issues including student discipline, literacy and library book access.

I see the role of the state agency as putting together that model policy around appropriate library books, around parental access to health records, and then sharing that out with every single school board in the state and helping them to be able to implement that within their own district, and making that their own, said Degenfelder, a Republican who took office at the start of the year.

While the plan tackles traditional school issues such as literacy and student performance, it also leans into topics that have become a critical focus of Republicans in Wyoming: parental rights, school choice and the elimination of perceived political bias in education. School boards have been under increasing pressure from parents and lawmakers who are concerned about books and learning materials they consider inappropriate for public education. Lawmakers have also sought to ban the teaching of critical race theory, even though that academic framework isn't taught in Wyoming schools.

We're not shying away from those difficult hot-button topics, Degenfelder said. We're really rolling up our sleeves and getting to work on those because from my experience on the campaign trail I know that they matter to Wyoming people, and as a state education leader it is incumbent on me to take action in those areas.

Degenfelders strategic plan totals four pages, but many of the goals it outlines would be wide-reaching. Some of them are concrete, such as expanding financial literacy education or creating a statewide curriculum website that would allow parents to access local learning materials. Others are more ambitious and nebulous as Degenfelder envisions dramatic changes to Wyomings public education system.

The strategic plan centers on six tenets to create the most transparent, efficient, and excellent education system in the nation during her time in office. They include parental empowerment and eliminating political bias, reducing bureaucracy and improving efficiency, preparing students for jobs through career and technical education, citizenship education, supporting teachers, and improving early literacy.

Each focal area will have its own cabinet piloted by Department of Education leadership and composed of teachers, students, parents, education leaders and industry representatives. The cabinets will work with Degenfelder and department on the myriad goals identified in Degenfelders strategic plan.

We can only deliver successfully if we include all of the voices of stakeholders across the state of Wyoming, she said.

Among Degenfelders goals is spurring broad education regulatory reform. Over time, educational requirements imposed on districts have grown, Degenfelder said. But under Degenfelders strategic plan the Department of Education will look to reconsider the states requirements with an eye toward paring them back and streamlining them.

When we overregulate, we stifle innovation, and that's exactly what we don't want to happen in education, she said.

The Department of Education will also aim to improve the states reporting on education data and spending, automate school district data collection, introduce principal leadership training to its statewide professional development, and study how to test for students soft skills.

While Degenfelders strategic plan features dozens of benchmarks, they are all directed toward one outcome.

The number one goal for me is that our students are prepared for good jobs and that they are responsible American citizens, she said. That's the goal.

Degenfelder said she is usually uninterested in strategic plans, but that Wyomings education system is at a great crossroads. With the Wyoming State Board of Education, Gov. Mark Gordons office and the Department of Education agreeing last month to partner to remake K-12 education in the state, Degenfelder said she saw her strategic plan as an opportunity to coalesce the states work around a singular blueprint for action.

We have a tremendous amount of goals and action plans to move forward, but when it comes to education we cannot wait, she said. We get one chance when it comes to our students and so we have to deliver on these.

Many of Degenfelders objectives will take time; her strategic plan covers the next four years until her term ends in 2027. But she shared an energy and commitment to seeing them through.

This is the most exciting time to be a new leader in education because we are talking about really shaking up the very foundation of how we educate students, she said.
ENERGY Minister Stuart Young yesterday met with Woodside Energy officials on the progress that has been made on the deep-water hydrocarbon Calypso Project.

Young held discussions with the Woodside Energy team which consisted of executive vice president international operations Shiva McMahon, president and country manager of Woodside Energy Trinidad and Tobago Juan Vazquez, project director Stacy Patrick, and corporate affairs manager Carla Noel-Mendez.
Vote the United National Congress (UNC) into office and get more matters like Piarco Airport, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has told citizens.

Though stating that Thursdays political meeting in San Fernando was not the launch of the Peoples National Movement (PNM) local government campaign, Rowley trained his guns on Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and the UNC.
THE United States Supreme Court with its justices appointed for life is being portrayed as a divided group of jurists making them the butt of jokes worldwide.

These justices may very well focus without any bias on significant matters related to interpreting the law, on how a law should be applied or even its relevance in some instances.
In a victory for future mining in the Santa Rita Mountains, an Appeals Court panel tossed out a federal agency decision protecting hundreds of thousands of acres of land in the range south of Tucson and a lower court ruling upholding much of the agencys action.

The ruling Tuesday, if not successfully appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court or responded to adequately by future agency actions, will essentially eliminate the jaguar as a factor in making decisions about copper mining in the Santa Ritas. An adult male jaguar, nicknamed El Jefe, was repeatedly photographed by remote cameras in this area from 2012 to 2015 before disappearing from public view.

Much of the new 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling was based on its finding that the U.S. government must rely on whether a jaguar was known to roam that area when the animal was first listed as an endangered species by the wildlife service. That happened in 1972, at a time when no jaguars had been seen in this country for years.

That meant the 2012 discovery of El Jefe, in videos and photos taken by and for environmentalists, couldnt be considered in deciding whether that land qualified as critical habitat, the 9th Circuit found.

The ruling pulls the former Rosemont Mine site  now known as Copper World  from federally designated prime habitat for the endangered jaguar. It also voids more than half of all the 700,000 acres of federally protected critical habitat for the large mammal -- 362,000 acres total -- in Arizona and the U.S. as a whole, since this is the only state with critical jaguar habitat. Some critical habitat for the jaguar formerly existed in southwest New Mexico, but the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals voided that designation in 2020.

It leaves the area vulnerable to the Rosemont Mine, or other developments, said Michael Robinson, a conservation advocate for the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, whose lawsuit against the federal government led to Tuesdays ruling. The center has pressed for years to have that area in and around the mine site designated as critical jaguar habitat. The Rosemont Mine is a big one, an identifiable, huge threat. But any other threats that come along, the habitat would no longer have protection.

Hudbay Minerals Inc., which wants to build the copper mine, said in a statement that its pleased that the court recognized that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) erred in its designation of the northern Santa Ritas as jaguar critical habitat by not following the requirements of the Endangered Species Act and its own regulations.

The lands in question are not, in any normal sense of the word, essential to the survival of the jaguar species. The critical habitat designated in the United States accounts for 0.04% of all jaguar habitat and the species is not considered endangered on a worldwide basis, Hudbay said.

Robinson said he hopes the Santa Ritas land could ultimately be protected as critical habitat if the wildlife service revises its original determination to take into account the 9th Circuits ruling.

This was a procedural mistake or legal infirmity on the part of the Fish and Wildlife Service, Robinson said. It does not mean that these areas are not critically important for jaguars. They are. The Fish and Wildlife Service can go ahead, cross its ts, dot its is and redo it, he said of the original habitat designation.

The wildlife service did not immediately respond Wednesday to requests for comment on the courts ruling or Robinsons hope that it could revise its decision to make it more legally acceptable.

The decision comes at a time the original Rosemont Mine proposal to build an open pit copper mine on the mountains east slope is now essentially defunct, due to other, unrelated court rulings by a federal judge in Tucson and another 9th Circuit panel. Those rulings blocked construction of Rosemont on the grounds the U.S. Forest Service had erroneously approved the mining project without properly determining if Hudbays mining claims on federal land were valid.

Since those rulings occurred in 2019 and 2022, Hudbay has put its emphasis instead on developing private land it owns on the Santa Ritas west slope and calls the new project Copper World. Although that project would ultimately include the original Rosemont Mine site, it will cover much more ground and be mined much longer  44 years compared to 19 for the original Rosemont site. In addition, most of its early mining will be in the west slope area.

In its statement, Hudbay said, While the critical habitat designation has no impact on Phase I of the Copper World project, which will be on our private land, the decision will require the FWS to exercise more restraint in designating critical habitat in the future, as intended by Congress. It will also be helpful to Copper World in future consultations with the FWS, if required.

In the new jaguar case, by a 2-1 margin, the 9th Circuit panel concluded the wildlife service had erred in designating more than 350,000 acres of national forest, state and private land as jaguar critical habitat. It also concluded that U.S. District Judge James Soto in Tucson had mistakenly upheld much of the wildlife services original decision protecting that habitat.

The panel found that Soto erroneously maintained this land qualified as unoccupied jaguar habitat, even while he overturned a wildlife service determination that the vast majority of that land qualified as jaguar-occupied critical habitat.
PHOENIX  Two cities on the far urban fringe of Phoenix grew faster than any others in Arizona in the Census Bureaus new rankings.

In fact, the two, Queen Creek and Maricopa, were among the Top 15 nationwide for population increases between July 1, 2021 and a year later, Census figures released Thursday show.

The Census only ranks what it considers large cities, which means those with 50,000 or more residents.

A deeper dive into the data finds Coolidge, fueled by new factories and economic development, outpaced both Queen Creek and Maricopa with a one-year population increase of 11.9%. Queen Creek grew by 6.7% and Maricopa by nearly 6.2%.

The new report also finds that about one out of four Arizona communities lost population. The biggest loser was Douglas, which shed 4.6% of its residents, dropping the city below 16,000  essentially back to where it was at the turn of the century.

As for the Tucson area, Marana added 1,290 residents in the one-year period, bringing population to 55,962, for about a 2.4% growth rate.

Sahuarita registered less than 1.2% growth. Tucson itself came close to, but did not crack, the 1% mark.

Austin, Texas area takes top sports

The national report shows the fastest growing communities tend to be on the edge of existing cities, and most are in the U.S. South and West.

The Census says Georgetown, Texas, about an hour outside of Austin, grew the fastest by percentage in the past year at 14.4%. Kyle and Leander, Texas, tied at third and fourth at 10.9% year-over-year growth, also sit outside of Austin.

No. 2, Santa Cruz, California, at 12.5%, benefits from its location south of San Jose and the Silicon Valley.

Growth patterns in Arizona

In Arizona, decades ago cities including Glendale and Mesa grew by leaps and bounds, filling up most available space. At the same time, more freeways were built, widened and extended. That promoted living farther out, as it cut down commute times to main cities.

Queen Creek is a key example.

Not only did the state  much of it with county tax dollars  complete the Loop 202 freeway into the Phoenix areas southeast valley, it now is building and extending what had been a one-mile stretch of State Route 24 from the 202 all the way into Pinal County.

Thats just the beginning: The new state budget signed this month by Gov. Katie Hobbs gives Queen Creek $87.5 million to further extend SR 24, including a traffic interchange at Ironwood Road.

Even with the freeway still not complete, Queen Creek managed to add 4,416 residents in the year ending July 1, 2022. Maricopa added 3,844.

Other communities in  and beyond  the fringes of the Phoenix area also racked up strong year-over-year population increases, including 4.6% for Casa Grande, 3.8% for Goodyear and nearly as much for adjacent Buckeye.

Wickenburg and Surprise grew by more than 3%.
Space is vast. But are certain parts of space in danger of becoming overcrowded with Internet satellites and cosmic junk?

Concern has been increasing among government agencies, astronomers and others as the number of launched and proposed low-Earth orbit satellites surges.

Worries center on the increased risk of collisions that create debris fields capable of taking out nearby satellites; bright reflections that harm scientific astronomy and change the night sky; atmospheric pollution from thousands of deorbiting satellites burning up every few years; and radio signal interference that blocks access for rival satellite outfits, including sovereign nations.

All this is known as carrying capacity. "This is so important and so contentious  some people say we are nowhere near carrying capacity and others are saying the constellations that have been licensed already exceed carrying capacity. So, which is right?" said Mark Dankberg, co-founder and chief executive of Viasat.

Eight years ago, there were roughly 1,300 functioning satellites in orbit. Today, that number is estimated at 7,500 and rising.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has pending applications for more than 60,000 new satellites.

These new satellites aim to enter orbits that already have debris circling at 17,000 mph. The European Space Agency says more than 36,000 objects with a diameter the size of a grapefruit or larger are orbiting Earth. They're joined by 1 million fast-moving particles that range in size between a pea and a grapefruit. And there are some 130 million objects smaller than a pea.

SpaceX's Starlink satellites, which have propulsion to dodge objects, are estimated to have performed an increasing number of avoidance maneuvers, said Hugh Lewis, a professor of aeronautics at the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom.

In an email to the Union-Tribune, Lewis estimated that Starlink satellites conducted 5,340 avoidance maneuvers in March alone  though it's hard to know exactly why these dodges were done.

Jonathan McDowell, a well-known astronomer who works at the HarvardSmithsonian Center for Astrophysics, said "The more close approaches you have, the more avoidance maneuvers you're doing and the more disparate players there are  not just the number of satellites but the number of different organizations that own satellites  then it gets to the point where a collision ends up being pretty inevitable."

One collision probably isn't catastrophic. "But when you're getting one every couple of years, you very rapidly increase the amount of space debris, and you get on a path to it being really unusable in low-Earth orbit," said McDowell. "We are not there yet, but the risk is steadily increasing."

SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment. But in filings with the FCC, the company said it uses a conservative maneuver threshold that is more sensitive than the industry standard. The system is automated.

It also said it has developed collision avoidance agreements in conjunction with rival satellite operators to "facilitate physical coordination."

The company said its first-generation satellites, on average, have conducted about three collision avoidance maneuvers every six months in 2022  many of them to avoid debris from a Russian anti-satellite missile demonstration that destroyed one of Russia's retired satellites in November 2021.

Still, China notified the United Nations in December 2021 that its space station had two close encounters with Starlink satellites and performed evasive maneuvers.

Because its satellites have propulsion to move out of the way, the FCC found Starlink's first generation of 4,400 satellites posed no collision risk.

When Starlink sought approval for 30,000 second-generation satellites  each significantly larger than its first generation regulators tapped the brakes.

SpaceX has received approval for 7,500 second-generation satellites for now. Among the concerns are the impact of the sun's bright reflections off the satellites on telescopes used for things like tracking asteroids or Earth observation missions that take measurements of climate.

Starlink's first-generation satellites each has 600 pounds of mass and take up about 280 square feet of cross-sectional area, according to FCC filings. Its second-generation satellites each has 4,400 pounds of mass and take up 2,950 square feet.

"When you look at what's going on with these low-Earth orbit satellites, it used to be a large number of small satellites," said Dankberg, the Viasat CEO. "What's happening now is a large number of big satellites."

SpaceX has said it is working to reduce the brightness of its satellites, including with the National Science Foundation.

"I don't care about a few bright satellites," said McDowell. "They are annoying but not existential. But when you get up to 30,000 or 50,000  those sorts of numbers  then that starts to be a real big problem for astronomy because almost every picture you take will have a satellite passing through it."
U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar in December 2021. Photo by Gage Skidmore (modified) | Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0

A staffer for Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosar was revealed to have close connections to a white nationalist youth movement, the latest example of Gosars ties to and support of racists.

Earlier this week, Talking Points Memo detailed how Gosars digital director has been considered one the strongest soldiers for white nationalist leader Nick Fuentes. The staffer, Wade Searle, has been working for Gosar since November 2021. Searles other online personas traffic in racist rhetoric and in-person participated in events with Fuentes, including #StopTheSteal rallies in Phoenix.

Since Searle began managing Gosars digital activity, the Republican has posted a number of memes that spoke directly to groypers, the online white nationalist community Searle was a part of. The groypers are a collection of young white nationalists who use online trolling tactics against people they dont like and aim to normalize extreme and racist views by aligning them with Christianity and so-called traditional values.

Theyre all largely followers of Fuentes and they have a presence in the state and allies in Arizona.

On Holocaust Remembrance Day in April 2022, Gosar shared and then later deleted a meme that has roots in neo-Nazi and white nationalist culture. The meme, which featured Gosar with a red filter, invoked an aesthetic known as DarkMAGA, which advocates for conservatives and former President Donald Trump to be more hardline and violent with their rhetoric.

Remember when our government sent planes to Afghanistan and brought over 100,000 Afghans in less than a week? Gosar wrote. We have in the range of up to 40 million illegal aliens in our country. They can be deported by planes, trains and buses. We could easily deport 6 million each year.

Many groypers quickly jumped on the 6 million number, which is the approximate number of Jews killed during the Holocaust and quote tweeted the meme using antisemitic language and celebrated Gosars embrace of #DarkMaga.

Many others also saw the tweet as a call to action and violence.

A 9mm round is $0.49, one user on Gab wrote, while one Twitter user wrote #DayOfThePlane, a reference to the white supremacist book the Turner Diaries in which white supremacist rebels take over California and engage in mass lynchings. The book was an inspiration for Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.

Gosar has also advertised his support to groypers on his social media. In January 2022, his Instagram account posted the photos of himself posing with several prominent members of the movement, including Greyson Arnold, a white nationalist pro-Nazi blogger who has administered a chat room in which antisemitism runs rampant, as well as anti-LGBTQ provocateur Ethan Schmidt.

Gosar was also scheduled to attend an event with the white nationalist group American Populist Union on Adolf Hitlers birthday. Gosar campaign spokesman Rory McShane told the Arizona Mirror at the time that Gosar had never been invited to the event, even though Gosar promoted his scheduled appearance on his official Instagram account.

Just a month before Searle began officially working for Gosar, the congressman posted and deleted another meme that was popular among white nationalists and neo-Nazis. The meme, titled Gosar Grindset, was saved on the internet archive, begins with a cartoon image of a man looking dismayed as a number of headlines are displayed while the song Little Dark Age by MGMT plays.

Before the song crescendos, a buff cartoon with Gosars head superimposed on it appears in a doorway before the cartoon character, and a montage of Gosar is played before another photoshopped image of the congressmans head on a muscular man is shown while a spinning America First logo is shown around his head.

The meme follows a format that is popular among online neo-Nazis and white nationalists who take the same song and superimpose it with images from Nazi Germany, as well as other imagery, the Mirror found.

Before Gosar deleted the tweet, some white nationalists and white supremacists on Twitter discussed its similarity to popular alt-right memes. One, for example, said the only difference between Gosars tweet and w**nat content was the lack of an image called a spinsun.

The term w**nats is used by the alt-right to describe people within the white nationalist movement that generally advocate for violence, antisemitism and accelerationism. The spinsun being referred to is a sonnenrad, another image used by Neo-Nazis, most notably by the Christchurch shooter in his manifesto and on his gear.

The meme that Gosar tweeted had a spinning America First logo around the congressmans head.

Searles online alter ego, Chikken, said in a now-deleted post that hed never use a sonnenrad in his videos.

Btw, Ill never use a sonnenrad or anything like that in my videos, Searle said. Esoteric nazi imagery is extremely generic (used in literally every w**nat edit without exception) and it takes a very talented editor to make it not look cringe  not worth the effort frankly.

One of the main goals of groypers is to push conservatives in a white nationalist direction, and one way they attempt to do this is to present their views in a mainstream appearance or within mainstream organizations.

Gosars views have not gone unnoticed by those who hold antisemitic views either. Recently, the Congressman came under fire for promoting a website known for its antisemitism. The website praised him for going after the Jewish warmongers in Ukraine.

Gosars promotion of the far-right has also cost his constituents $8,000 in taxable expenses for traveling to events, such as the America First Political Action Conference, Fuentes annual conference for his white nationalist followers. Gosar was the first sitting politician to ever speak at the event, and he was warmly embraced by attendees.
PHOENIX  An attorney for Kari Lake is trying to use math to prove his contention that hundreds of thousands of early ballots were counted without the signatures being verified.

Kurt Olsen told Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson that records show that more than 264,000 ballots were processed at the rate of less than three seconds apiece. He said 70,000 had their signatures checked, on average, every two seconds.

Thats not signature review, he said Wednesday, the first day of what could be a three-day trial as Lake challenges the November election results in which she lost the governors race. He said county election officials, who were monitoring the activities of the verifiers, knew what was happening.

The evidence will show either that the signatures were not reviewed at all or that the signature verifiers were simply clicking through the computer screen and moving on to the next ballot without doing any cross-reference to the record signature, Olsen said.

None of that may help the losing GOP candidate in her quest to have the election results tossed out, in which she lost by 17,117 votes to Democrat Katie Hobbs.

Thats because Thompson said Lakes case is built not on a claim that any particular ballot should not have been counted, but on her contention that no signature verification was performed. The judge pointed out that claim was undermined by the fact that Lakes witnesses included people who were reviewers who, while testifying about conditions, avowed that they, themselves, actually were checking signatures and rejecting those that did not match.

That came into focus with the testimony of Jacqueline Onigkeit, called to the stand by Olsen.

After a tearful explanation that she signed up to be a verifier for my children and five grandchildren, I want their vote to count, Onigkeit detailed the training she went though and the process she used to determine if signatures were valid.

She then talked about reviewing signatures and finding some that were good and some that were not. Onigeit said she focused on quality, not the quantity of signatures she was processing.

So did you perform your duty? asked Jack OConnor, a deputy Maricopa County attorney who is defending the countys counting of votes.

Yes I did, she responded.

There was similar testimony from Andrew Myers, who did basic signature review in the 2022 primary and then was elevated to a Level 3 reviewer, someone who, confronted by ballot envelope signatures that did not match the records, tried to cure the problem by contacting voters. Here, too, OConnor asked if he thought he did a good job.

I think I did, Myers said.

The other key piece of evidence Lakes legal team presented was a video clip, taken from a camera inside the vote tallying room, that showed two workers at computer screens. One appeared to be simply clicking through signatures.

Hes clicking through them at a rate of less than three seconds per image, not conducting any signature review at all, Olsen told the judge. By contrast, he said, the other person was taking time, scrolling the screen up and down to make actual comparisons.

This isnt a question of not getting it right, Olsen said. Its simply they are not physically capable of reviewing the signature, both from the standpoint of being able to do an assessment with the respect to the procedures but also with respect to the functionality of the computer.

But Tom Liddy, another deputy Maricopa County Attorney, told Thompson none of that helps Lakes case. If nothing else, he said, it shows that one of the two people was doing his job.

And the other? That individual was then taken off the line, Liddy said.

Plus, he said, theres no evidence the other 153 reviewers were not doing their jobs.

Bryan Blehm, another of Lakes attorneys, tried a different tactic.

He said some people believe there should be requirements for identification when ballots are submitted while others are OK with simply a signature on an envelope. So Blehm questioned Rey Valenzuela, Maricopa Countys elections director, about whether he believes it is important to ensure that early ballots actually come from those whose names are on the envelopes.

Thompson, however, said Valenzuelas personal beliefs about the level of identification for early ballots are irrelevant.

The judge said it is the Legislature and not the court that sets the rules for early ballots. And so far, lawmakers have not adopted identification requirements for early ballots.

Thompson alreadyruled that if Lake wants to overturn the election results she needs to prove not only that no signature verification or curing occurred  something her own witnesses appear to have undermined  and that the county had systematically failed to materially comply with the law.

This is, of course, in addition to the requirement that she prove that this alleged complete failure to conduct signature verification resulted in a change in the outcome of the gubernatorial election, Thompson said.
Kari Lake at a campaign event in Scottsdale on Oct. 19, 2022. Photo by Jerod MacDonald-Evoy | Arizona Mirror

Kari Lake called multiple witnesses in her second election challenge trial on Wednesday whose testimony seemed to directly undermine her claim that Maricopa County did not perform signature verification for early ballots in the November 2022 election.

The evidence here today will show a failed process and that no actual signature verification is being performed, Kurt Olsen, one of Lakes attorneys, told the court on Wednesday, the first day of the trial.

Lake, a Trump-endorsed Republican, lost the governors race to Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs by more than 17,000 votes but has insisted during the six months since then that the election was rigged and that she is the true governor.

This is the second trial in the courtroom of Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson in Lakes lawsuit that aims to overturn the results of the governors race. Lake lost the first trial in December. After appeals, the Arizona Supreme Court sent the signature verification claim back to the trial court for further examination. Lake included 10 claims in her original filing.

Before the trial that began Wednesday, Thompson put Lake on notice that, to win her case, she would have to prove that Maricopa County conducted no signature verification efforts. Signature verifiers compare the signatures on ballot envelopes to those on file for that voter. If a signature is rejected by initial reviewers, it is sent to more experienced workers for a deeper examination.

Two of Lakes witnesses on the first day of the trial worked as those initial reviewers  known as level one reviewers  during the November 2022 election.

Deputy Maricopa County Attorney Jack OConnor made a point of thanking both of them for their work, driving home the point that they did, in fact, perform signature verification.

I was very focused on verifying signatures and ensuring they matched, Jacqueline Onigkeit told OConnor.

Onigkeit told Olsen that, during the signature review process, she became concerned that the more experienced level two reviewers were overloaded and that some of the signatures shed already rejected were sent back to her and the rest of the workers for further review, adding that many of the signatures were bad.

She also testified that those in charge urged them to be cautious and to be sure they were confident in their decisions to verify or reject signatures.

We were advised several times that we were being monitored and they were doing audits on all of us, Onigkeit said.

The other reviewer, Andrew Myers, repeatedly told the court that, in his perspective the math just didnt add up, when it took the team only 36 hours to verify signatures for 298,000 early ballots that came in on Election Day. But Myers didnt seem aware that there were many more people working on signature verification than those he was working with directly.

Both Onigkeit and Myers testified that there were between 24-40 level one signature reviewers and only three level two reviewers working to verify signatures directly following the 2022 general election.

But Maricopa County Co-Elections Director Rey Valenzuela later testified that the numbers supplied by those witnesses were way off. Valenzuela said that, in total, there were 155 people working on signature verification during that time, including the 24 temporary workers  like Onigkeit and Myers  along with full-time county employees.

But they were not all working at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center where the temporary workers interacted with them. Some worked at the county recorders offices in downtown Phoenix and Tempe.

Lakes team showed a video to the court taken from a livestream of signature reviewers in November 2022 that showed one man rapidly clicking through screens without scrolling down to look at signatures for comparison, saying that he was approving every signature without checking it against the voters signatures on file.

Youve taken it out of context, Valenzuela said of the video.

He explained that each signature reviewer works in batches of 250 signatures and once they get to the end of that batch, theyre required to go back through and check their work. Valenzuela said that could be what the man in the video was doing.
The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:

I learned to shoot on the family ranch, as ranch kids are wont to do. My gun education was furthered at a Catholic summer camp, and I still have my paper target proving my marksmanship. Hunter safety classes, and calm, clear-eyed common sense. This was the rural approach to guns I grew up with.

Then its a story we all know: Guns became politicized. Polarized. Lobby-ized. Humans are good at inventing things, so guns got more militarized as they turned into weapons of mass destruction. Our laws, sadly, didnt keep up, because humans can also move quite slowly.

Then, I had children, and suddenly, active-shooter drills were part of their curriculum. And then, on Valentines Day 2018, parents across Fort Collins, Colorado, received emails informing us that our children had been in a lockdown drill at roughly the same time that 17 children were being killed in Florida.

My brain fritzed out with confusion: Here a drill, but in Florida, children were being mowed down. Relief, and yet also great grief. Other mothers were getting different news.

My kids came home, stunned, and recounted their drill instructions, which included advice such as: If you must fight to save your life, fight with all your might, using anything within reach as a weapon.

Yes, kids, please fight with all your might against a grownup with a semi-automatic.

What a sad curriculum. What a sad country. Many of us know this. Many of us keep saying the same thing over and over, and a few loud voices keep pushing back. Why even discuss interpretations of the murkily written Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, written at a time when muskets were the weapon of the day? Some conversations arent worth having.

What I am interested in is brainstorming real solutions  with like-minded people who also felt a real crack in their hearts every day that innocent people are mowed down, which, it seems, is nearly every day. A day without a shooting now seems the exception.

It strikes me that besides gun zealotry or idolatry, the other tragedy here is our seeming unwillingness to act. Really act. Act like grownups. My daughter and friends helped organize a walkout to protest gun violence, which spread to other schools. Kids poured out of the high schools and toward the town center, and parents rode their bikes or walked alongside  especially near the coal-rolling trucks filled with counter-protesters that heckled them from the roads.

This was the first act of civil disobedience for most, borne out of a mix of desperation and courage.

Even as the kids gathered to pass the mic and speak, my heart was sunk even lower. Why? I knew what you know: Nothing would really change. Not until the adults of this country protested seriously, left work, took to the streets. The students protested, marched, wrote letters, made calls, and I watched, knowing. Adults wouldnt go the distance. Theres not enough will.

Its ironic: I grew up with guns, but my salient memory of childhood was peaceful summer walks through a green field, carrying a .22 to go practice shooting. Tragically, that is not true for youngsters today. They might not shoot as much, but theyre the ones forced by our irresponsibility and inaction to have it forefront in their minds and hearts.

So, solutions. I celebrate Moms Demand Action, a group founded by a mother of five right after the Sandy Hook tragedy, based on her belief that all Americans should do more to reduce gun violence. No group has risen so far, so fast, influencing laws, rattling major corporations, and provoking vicious responses from hardcore gun rights activists, according to Mother Jones.

Although Im all for background checks and safety locks, these seem like tiny bandages on a gaping wound. The big thing we can do is ban assault weapons immediately, and, even more importantly, elect gun-sensible politicians who dont take NRA money.

If not Moms Demand Action, there is the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence and Gun Owners for Safety. All these groups need people willing to spend some time calling legislators, step up, protest. People like you. People who believe in common sense. People who believe in childhood.

Laura Pritchett is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. She is the author of several novels and nonfiction books and directs a program in nature writing at Western Colorado University.
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SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  Videos released Thursday of this weeks deadly rampage in northwest New Mexico recorded a voice said to be the shooter urging police to kill me and officers rushing toward the 18-year-old gunman before fatally shooting him outside a church.

He is yelling on the Ring footage, Come kill me,'" Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said of Beau Wilson, the high school senior who authorities say killed three older women during the attack.

Hes making a stand, he has opportunities to run off, he does not use those opportunities, Hebbe said. "So yes its my belief that ultimately in his head, he has made the decision that he is going to stand and fight it out until he is killed.

Three older woman were killed Monday by the shooter, including a mother and daughter who happened to be driving through the neighborhood. The victims were identified as longtime Farmington residents Gwendolyn Dean Schofield, 97, her 73-year-old daughter, Melody Ivie, and 79-year-old Shirley Voita.

At least six other people were wounded in the shootings, which sent waves of grief rippling through the community of 50,000 people. They included two police officers, who have been released from medical care as they recover.

Hebbe's comments mirrored an account from witness Candi Brammell, who lives next to the church and told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday that the gunman seemed to be egging police on, saying: Come on!

Brammell said she couldnt believe what she was seeing as Wilson opened fire. Within an instant, he was exchanging shots with the police and then was down in the grass.

Wilson lived with his father in a home that contained an arsenal of weapons and ammunition, apparently legally owned, according to law enforcement authorities. He bought an assault-style rifle last year after he turned 18.

On Monday, police say, he began shooting indiscriminately with the rifle from the front porch area of the home.

The first person hit was Voita, a retired school nurse who was driving by. Video released by police showed her car rolling down the street with the door open after she managed to get out.

Video also showed the path of a vehicle carrying Schofield and Ivie, who stopped to help. Schofield was a teacher her entire career, and Melody followed in her footsteps by running a preschool for 40 years.

They see something in the road, which turns out to be (Voita), and theyre in the process of pulling over when another hail of gunfire erupts, Hebbe said, narrating the images. At that time we believe all those rounds are fired from (the rifle).

Police say Wilson soon dropped the weapon into some bushes even though it still held more live ammunition.

Wilson then walked down the street for about a quarter mile, spraying bullets indiscriminately using two pistols. He discharged a .22-caliber gun and then depleted rounds from a 9-mm weapon in the final shootout with police, during which he let off at least 18 rounds.

He wore what appeared to be a modified protective vest with steel plates, but authorities say he discarded the vest before the shootout with police.

Police body camera video showed the perspective of one officer walking and running down the middle of the residential street, readying an assault rifle in one hand while barking commands into a radio in the other. On the run, he takes cues from a local resident and a dog runs beside them.

That video is later partially obscured, but a shadow on the ground shows the officer bracing in firing position for the final confrontation.

I have eyes on the suspect. Hes walking south. Hes wearing all black, an officer tells dispatchers in another video segment.

He then yells, Farmington police! Lets see your hands!

A police car speeds by with flashing lights and sirens.

Video from the body camera of Sgt. Rachel Discenza showed her pointing her handgun toward where the suspect was standing. Amid an exchange of gunfire, she falls to the ground, and says: Im shot.

She struggles unsuccessfully to get up, and a fellow officer uses her belt as a tourniquet.

We got one hit. Get me a medic here for sarge, he yells.

In the grass in front of the church, officers rush to the suspect after the gunfire subsides, telling him not to move. One officer cuffs him, while another says, Subject is down. He is secured."

A note was later found in the pocket of the discarded vest that said, If your reading this im the end of the chapter.

The gunmans body was left in the grass for a time as investigators worked the scene, and it was unclear then how many times he was shot.

Police said earlier this week that they couldn't say how many gunshot wounds the victims had suffered and were waiting on the medical investigator's report, which had not been made public as of Thursday.

Neighbor Bryan Brown, who was among those who ran to render first aid, told AP that Voita had gunshot wounds to the leg and the head.

Relatives of the three slain women said each left an indelible mark that will continue to shape the lives of others.

In immeasurable ways, this heart-wrenching incident has impacted not only our family, but those of the Voita and Wilson families, the Schofield and Ivie family said Thursday in a statement. We have a shared grief and ask for continued prayers and privacy as we embody the faith, grace and love of our mother and grandmother and embark on a path of healing and forgiveness.

Police have been probing for motivations behind Mondays rampage, which took place the day before Wilson was due to graduate from high school, amid some indications from relatives of prior mental health issues.

Efforts were underway by authorities to access medical and school records that might shed light on his mental history.

Montoya Bryan reported from Albuquerque and Snow reported from Phoenix.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  Torture is how New Mexicos top prosecutor describes the treatment a 38-year-old developmentally disabled woman endured before her death at the hands of her caregivers, who he said were paid thousands of dollars a month through a special program meant to offer an alternative to institutional care.

Attorney General Raul Torrez detailed the womans injuries during a news conference Thursday, saying she died weeks after being found in the back of a van as the caregivers tried to take her to Mexico so her wounds could be treated.

"The abuse and neglect that she endured was horrific and the injuries she sustained are among the worst I have seen in my career as a prosecutor, Torrez said. This was torture. Theres really no other word for it.

Three people were arrested and charged Wednesday with abuse and neglect following an investigation that began with the stop at the U.S.-Mexico border in late February.

The case spurred a statewide review of New Mexico's entire developmentally disabled waiver system. Social workers spent weeks conducting individual wellness checks on thousands of developmentally disabled people who receive care through the federally-funded waiver program.

More allegations of possible abuse and neglect were turned up, and the state Health Department canceled contracts with four providers in the Albuquerque area.

An affidavit filed by the Attorney Generals Office details the abuse that resulted in the charges filed Wednesday against Angelita Rene Chacon, 52, and Patricia Hurtado, 42, both of Rio Rancho. They face counts of abuse or neglect of a resident resulting in death, false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

Luz Scott, 53, of Clovis, an acquaintance of the women, has been charged with false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

Messages seeking comment from Daniel Lindsey, an attorney listed for Scott, were not immediately returned. Court records didn't indicate whether Chacon and Hurtado had lawyers yet.

The women were scheduled to make their first court appearances Friday.

According to the attorney general's office, Chacon and Hurtado contracted with At Home Advocacy and three other contractors to provide supplemental care for the victim. They were receiving about $5,000 a month under the waiver program to care for her.

Prosecutors say a preliminary review of available business records indicate that At Home Advocacy received nearly $250,000 to coordinate care and support for the victim in the three years before her death.

Records show the company last visited the home on Jan. 25, one month before the victim was found at the port of entry in El Paso.

According to court records, a supervisor with At Home Advocacy told FBI agents the company conducted monthly wellness visits at Chacons home but that body checks were not conducted during those visits and that no injuries were seen.

Authorities said the woman who died was severely dehydrated and drugged when she was found in the van. She also had numerous open wounds, bedsores with exposed bone and bruises and lacerations on various parts of her body.

They also described marks consistent with being restrained for a prolonged period of time.

Unable to speak when discovered by federal agents at the border crossing, she was transported to University Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, where she died on April 7. The Associated Press generally does not name people who have been abused.

Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and top health officials had warned that any caregivers who mistreat and abuse developmentally disabled or otherwise vulnerable people would be held accountable.

Republican legislative leaders also requested that the federal government investigate, saying an independent inquiry would ensure transparency and might prevent such cases in the future.

Both Torrez and Raul Bujanda, FBI Albuquerque agent in charge, called the case a wake-up call about the treatment of developmentally disabled people in New Mexico.

The woman who died could easily have been our loved one," Bujanda said. "You expect, you demand that your loved one is taken care of in such a way that ... the only thing youll ever worry about is making to time to go and see them.

Torrez urged the governor and lawmakers to overhaul protocols at the state Department of Health. His suggestions included increased staff and training, mandatory inspections every 90 days and new civil and criminal penalties for companies and providers.

He tallied 12 auditors for more than 6,000 sites statewide and faulted administrators and the Legislature for relying on care providers to self-report problems.

Thats one of the fundamental problems that has arisen in this case, Torrez said, suggesting that lucrative contracts with the state provide no incentive for providers to police themselves.

State Health Secretary Patrick Allen said Thursday that an independent investigation is ongoing to identify any systemic flaws that would allow for abuse or neglect to go unchecked. He also said the agency will continue to refer any other cases of suspected abuse and neglect to law enforcement.

Persons with disabilities often rely on others for their day-to-day living. They literally entrust their caregivers with their lives, Allen said, adding that when their care is covered by a state program "everyone is accountable, and we must ensure their health and safety needs are met.

This story has been corrected to show the arrests were announced and a news conference was scheduled Thursday, not Wednesday.

Associated Press writers Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Walter Berry in Phoenix contributed to this report.
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WASHINGTON (AP)  In a rare judicial defeat for President Joe Biden, Michael Delaney is withdrawing his nomination for the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to a letter he sent to the White House on Thursday.

"At this time, I believe it is appropriate for me to withdraw my name from consideration for this position to advance the important work of the federal judiciary, he wrote in the letter, obtained by The Associated Press.

In a statement, White House spokesman Andrew Bates said the White House would consult with New Hampshire's two senators, Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, to find a new nominee. Both had strongly supported Delaney.

President Biden put forward a deeply qualified nominee, with a long and distinguished career in public service," Bates said.

Delaneys nomination lacked the needed votes in the Senate Judiciary Committee, said two people familiar with the confirmation process who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe internal dynamics.

Democrats' inability to secure the necessary votes both in the committee and on the floor is partly due to concerns over a legal brief on abortion that Delaney signed as deputy attorney general in New Hampshire. The brief defended a parental notification law in the state.

Delaney also faced scrutiny of his representation of St. Pauls School, a private boarding school in New Hampshire that was sued in connection with a sexual assault.

Delaney said in written testimony to senators that he did not write the 2005 abortion brief and otherwise had extremely limited involvement in the case that was brought while he was deputy attorney general in New Hampshire. But he was never able to gain the support of enough Democrats to win approval in the committee, on which Democrats have a narrow one-vote margin.

Delaney's nomination was held up for months as California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., was absent and Democrats could not move any party-line nominees through the committee. But it became clear last week, upon Feinstein's return, that Delaney did not have enough Democratic votes to move forward.

The committee chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., declined to hold a vote on Delaneys nomination as the panel considered other nominees. He then skipped over Delaney again this week when the committee met on Thursday.

After last week's meeting, Durbin said the votes werent yet there.

It wasnt the right moment, Durbin said last week of Delaney. Well see.

Delaney would be the first of Bidens judicial nominees to fail due to a clear lack of support from the full Senate. The White House has continued to back him despite the scrutiny, along with Shaheen and Hassan.

In a joint statement, Shaheen and Hassan said they strongly supported him and know personally his strong character and commitment to justice."

We disagree with the criticism that has been leveled against him, and we are disappointed that it got in the way of confirming a highly qualified individual, the senators said.

In his letter to Biden, Delaney wrote that he was honored by the nomination and added that he was deeply indebted to the support from his home-state senators.

Despite the New Hampshire senators' support, multiple Democrats on the committee were undecided as of this week, according to a person familiar with the process.

Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Cory Booker of New Jersey had all indicated that they were undecided in recent months.

For me personally, reproductive rights is a fundamental, core issue, Blumenthal told The Associated Press in March. And I think Id want to know why he put his name on the brief and what it reflects in his personal view.

At issue is a New Hampshire law, passed in 2003 but repealed in 2007, that required minors to tell their parents before they obtained an abortion. As the states deputy attorney general, Delaney was among those who signed a brief submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court that defended the law because it does not present a substantial obstacle to any womans right to choose an abortion.

The law, according to the brief filed in the case, Ayotte vs. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, promotes compelling state interests, not the least of which is protecting the health of the pregnant minor by providing an opportunity for parents to supply essential medical history information to the physician.

Biden nominated Delaney for the appeals court in January, almost a year after Shaheens office first contacted him to discuss filling the vacancy. Since then, Shaheen and Hassan have been Delaneys biggest patrons, despite a rocky confirmation hearing that even Democrats say did not go well for him after he faced repeated questions from Republican senators who attacked his handling of the St. Pauls case.

At Thursday's committee meeting, Durbin was quiet on Delaney's nomination and faced criticism from some Republicans.

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the committee, said the parents of the victim involved in the boarding school litigation had come to the committee continuously" and that Delaney had not sufficiently answered questions about that case.

I understand and share their concerns, Graham said. "I urge the Biden administration to withdraw Mr. Delaneys nomination.

Delaney told the committee that he had had limited involvement as a lawyer in the criminal case, in which a former student was eventually sentenced to a year in prison for sexually assaulting another student. Delaney said he was instead part of a team of advocates for the school who responded to civil claims filed by the family.

The expectation of Delaney's withdrawal was first reported by Bloomberg Law.
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WASHINGTON (AP)  Two New York Police Department officers ambushed and killed after responding to a 911 call and the rookie cop who took down the gunman were honored Wednesday, along with six others, by President Joe Biden with the Medal of Valor, the nation's highest honor for bravery by a public safety officer.

The three NYPD officers, a Houston police officer, Colorado police official, Ohio sheriffs deputy and three FDNY firefighters all received medals in a White House ceremony before Biden departs for Japan and the Group of Seven summit.

I dont know all of you, but I do know you," Biden said. "From small towns to big cities, youre cut from the same cloth. You run into danger when everyone else runs away from danger.

Biden told the crowd the award was given for actions above and beyond the call of duty, singling out the families of the officers to thank them.

NYPD officer Wilbert Mora and his police partner Jason Rivera were shot Jan. 21, 2022, while responding to a call about a family dispute in a Harlem apartment. Officer Sumit Sulan shot and killed the gunman, ending the deadly encounter moments after it began and keeping the civilians safe. Rivera died that night, Mora was pronounced dead four days later. The families of the two officers accepted their awards.

The fallen cops were no strangers to tensions between the NYPD and some of the communities they police; they'd both seen it growing up. Both sought to be catalysts of change when they became police officers, but neither got the chance they deserved, gunned down during a spate of shootings of police officers in 2022 in the city.

Biden, who recently announced he'd seek reelection, has spoken of the need to reform how police interact with communities, in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and the deaths of other Black people at the hands of police. But he also says law enforcement needs better funding and tools in order to do a highly stressful job that's only getting worse, particularly post-pandemic.

I think one of the hardest jobs in America, what you signed up for, the president said Wednesday as he presented the medals. You represent the best of who we are as Americans.

Rivera, 22, had been a police officer for barely a year. Mora, 27, was in his fourth year on the job. All three were promoted to detective  the fallen officers posthumously and Sulan in a ceremony where he was given detective shield No. 332, a symbol of the three from the 32nd precinct where they worked in Manhattan.

The nation's largest police department has roughly 35,000 officers; the next largest is Chicago with 13,000.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said the recipients showed extraordinary valor" above and beyond the call of duty.

At the end of every shift, you are there," he said to the families. "It is your care and encouragement that makes it possible for our public safety officers to do their jobs. We are so grateful to you.

Biden also honored three New York City firefighters for the bravery, including Lt. Justin Hespeler, who rescued a newborn baby from a burning house. Thats true heroism," Biden said.

Firefighter Patrick Thornton who, aboard an FDNY boat, saved a man trapped under a capsized vessel in the waters off the coast of Staten Island was also honored, along with retired Lt. Jason Hickey who was on the FDNY's marine training unit when he got a distress call of a man in the Harlem River, a tidal strait that flows swiftly between the Hudson and East Rivers. Hickey jumped in and saved the man from drowning.

The other recipients are:

 Corporal Jeffrey Farmer of the Littleton, Colorado Police Department. Farmer was responding to a call of shots fired possibly out of a car window, and chased the suspect to the door of an apartment where the man opened fire, hitting Farmer's partner. Farmer worked to fend off the shooter, then, realizing an ambulance was too far away, dragged his partner into his police car and drove him to the hospital himself, saving his life.

 Deputy Bobby Hau Pham of the Clermont County, Ohio Sheriffs Office. Pham saved a drowning woman who had driven her car into a lake, though he could not swim.

 Sergeant Kendrick Simpo of the Houston, Texas Police Department. Simpo was working a second job at the Houston area Galleria mall when he heard on the radio a heavily armed man wearing a black mask was roaming the mall, near where a group of children were gathered for a dance competition. Simpo tackled the suspect who was carrying an AR-15 rifle, handgun and 120 rounds of ammunition. No one was injured.
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The Tulsa City-County Library will host its 21st annual Asian-American Festival a little earlier this year, with a day of educational and entertaining events scheduled for 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 20, at the Martin Regional Library, 2601 S. Garnett Road. Admission is free.

In past years, the festival, sponsored by the Tulsa Library Trust, has been held in June. However, organizers decided to present the festival in May, to coincide with National Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

The festival will feature a variety of activities, as well as live performances, food vendors, traditional games and more, highlighting many of the Asian and Pacific Island cultures represented throughout the Tulsa region.

Among the highlights will be guided meditation led by members of the Tam Bao Buddhist Temple, Japanese tea ceremony led by Sand Springs-based Japan native Yumie Farringer, and a show of artwork by children from from Kyoto, Japan, courtesy of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce.

The festival will also feature performances by the Kanpai Drum Team; China Roses, a Chinese folk-dance troupe; Kaajhuab, a local Hmong dance team; Tulsa Kendo Dojo, a local martial arts school that teaches kendo, a traditional Japanese style of fencing, based on samurai swordsmanship; Di Dim Dol, a Korean dance team; and Nkauj Huam Ci, which performs traditional Hmong dance.

For more information: tulsalibrary.org/asianfestival.
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The takeover of the eateries formerly known as Zoe's Kitchen by Cava in Tulsa is complete, now that the Brookside location has made the transition from one Mediterranean-inspired menu to another.

The change in ownership officially happened in 2018, but with COVID-19 restrictions and hardships, it's taken awhile for all 261 Zoe's Kitchens in the country to become Cava restaurants.

My companion and I decided to sample a couple of items during a visit to the newest Cava, 3629 S. Peoria Ave.

The menu is more compact at Cava than what Zoe's Kitchen offered: eight bowl meals, plus a build-your-own option that can have greens, grains or both as the base ($10.35-$13.95); and four pita-wrapped sandwiches, plus a build-your-own ($10.35-$13.95).

To keep things simple, we choose to go with the Lemon Chicken Bowl and the Crispy Falafel Pita ($10.35 each). Drinks are either self-serve fountain drinks or specialty lemonades; some bottled and canned beverages, such as sparkling waters, are also available.

The Lemon Chicken Bowl included a generous amount of chicken, along with dollops of a red pepper hummus and a spicy concoction called Crazy Feta, along with sweet pickled onions, halved cherry tomatoes, chunks of cucumber, crumbled feta cheese, what at first looked to be black beans but was in fact lentils, spinach and romaine lettuce leaves, in a preserved lemon vinaigrette.

The vinaigrette had a good balance of sweet and sour, and the diversity of texture meant that no two bites were exactly the same. My companion especially liked the pickled onions, which were more sweet than tart.

"Is this for here, or to go? Because it'll make a difference how I wrap this up," said the young woman behind the counter. I have a feeling that however she chose to assemble and secure this thing, it was going to be difficult to eat.

The pita used as the wrap was, while pliable, quite thick and of serious diameter. I tried hefting the thing to take a bite, realized quickly that this way madness lies, and chose instead to deconstruct it.

The five falafel balls managed to retain their structural integrity and contained the odd whole chickpea, which gave them an unexpected textural element. The interior of the pita was smeared with a mixture of roasted eggplant and hummus and augmented with tomatoes, onion, cabbage, wonderfully sour salt-brined pickles and just enough of a cilantro-and-pepper dressing called skhug to keep it interesting.

We sampled the blueberry lavender and strawberry citrus lemonades and went back for refills of the blueberry lavender.

Cava offers cookies and brownies for dessert, but the best thing about going to the Brookside location is that, once the meal is finished, one can walk next door to the newly opened Big Dipper Creamery for some locally made, small-batch, inventively flavored ice cream. We would heartily recommend the Honeycomb Lavender.

Cava has four other locations in the Tulsa area. For more, go to cava.com. Big Dipper Creamery has two other locations, in Sand Springs and in Mother Road Market. bigdipperok.com.

Cocina 66 launches nine new concepts

Cocina 66, the food business incubator for Tulsa-area Latino entrepreneurs, celebrated the graduation of the latest group of participants with a ceremony held Monday, May 15, at the Mother Road Market, 1124 S. Lewis Ave.

A sister concept to the Kitchen 66 Launch Program, Cocina 66 teaches a seven-week business training course completely in Spanish to start-up food entrepreneurs. The program helps participants develop practical experience, sales training, marketing and communications skills, as well as access to a commercial kitchen space to develop culinary skills in a professional environment.

This sessions graduations, and the food concepts they created, are:

Elsa Ramirez: Bakery concept featuring a Mexican version of tiramisu plus custom cakes

Jesus Claudio: Barbecue concept combining local flavors with Mexican carne asada

Jose Colon & Karla Rosa: Puerto Rican concept featuring Tripleta sandwiches and bakery items like biscocho cake

Raquel Sandoval: El Salvadorian concept featuring pupusas

Adela Castaneda: Mexican sandwich concept

Maria Aidin Cuellar: Fried pastry concept focused on Venezuelan flavors

Bianca Bailon: Authentic Tamales and Mexican catering

Preetiben Dave: Indian-Mexican fusion concept

Karla Ivelisse: Authentic Puerto Rican food

To learn more about the Cocina 66 and Kitchen 66 Launch Programs: kitchen66tulsa.com.
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Can you find the wolves in this picture?

Those ominous words are heard twice in a teaser trailer for Martin Scorseses shot-in-Oklahoma film Killers of the Flower Moon. The trailer was released Thursday.

Set to premiere at Cannes Film Festival, Killers of the Flower Moon stars Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons and Brendan Fraser in a motion picture based on David Granns bestselling book about the serial murder of oil-wealthy Osages in 1920s Oklahoma. Greed is an animal is a phrase that appears on screen during the trailer.

Killers of the Flower Moon was shot in 2021. Pawhuska was a primary filming location. A train station was constructed alongside a railroad track in Pawhuska for the film, and an early scene in the trailer shows a train rolling into the Fairfax station. Pawhuska doubles for Fairfax in the film.

Killers of the Flower Moon will screen Saturday, May 20, at Cannes. Youll have to wait to see it in theaters. Apple Original Films announced March 27 that Killers of the Flower Moon will open on a limited basis Oct. 6 and open wide in theaters on Friday, Oct. 20 before the film streams globally on Apple TV+.

The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today.

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Related content Tulsa police chief laments lack of action to reduce gun violence

Tulsa police made an arrest in the citys 18th homicide of the year the day after a man was found fatally shot at a north Tulsa apartment complex.

Officers responded around 6:30 p.m. Sunday to Towne Square Apartments near Apache Street and Peoria Avenue, where James Tottress was already dead.

Detectives took Jordan Aasim, 22, into custody as a suspect in the case Monday, according to a Tulsa Police Department social media post.

Aasim, identified in court records as Aasim Shareef Jordan-Mansur, remains in the Tulsa County jail in lieu of bonds totaling $751,000. Police anticipate that he will face a first-degree murder charge.

The investigation remains ongoing, police said early this week. They asked that anyone with information call Tulsa Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS. Callers may remain anonymous.

The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today.
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A graduation confrontation over an eagle feather plume has prompted a civil lawsuit against Broken Arrow Public Schools and two district employees.

Citing the Oklahoma Religious Freedom Act and the free speech clause of the First Amendment, attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday on behalf of Lena Black in Tulsa County District Court.

High school graduation is a deeply significant event for Ms. Black and other Native American students who wish to practice their religious beliefs, celebrate their academic achievements and transition into adulthood by wearing an eagle feather and other tribal regalia at their graduation ceremonies, the petition states. This civil rights action seeks to protect the rights of all Native American students to wear religious items at graduation ceremonies unmolested by school officials.

The suit seeks $50,000 in damages, plus attorneys fees and court costs.

A citizen of the Otoe-Missouria Tribe and of Osage descent, Black graduated from Broken Arrow High School in May 2022. Before the start of the commencement ceremony at Broken Arrow Memorial Stadium, she was stopped by two school district employees who attempted to physically remove the plume from her mortarboard, calling it a decoration.

Black ultimately left the ceremony due to an anxiety attack brought on by the incident, which damaged the eagle plume.

I filed this lawsuit to ensure everyone understands the importance of items like my eagle plume, and to prevent schools from targeting Native students like me in the future. No student should face ignorance and discrimination in their school or their community, Black said in a prepared statement.

As published on the districts website, BAPS graduation dress code prohibits seniors from decorating their mortarboards and requires students to fill out an application if they intend to make any additions to the standard cap and gown. A district spokeswoman said more than 60 seniors have filled out the form in advance of Broken Arrow High Schools 2023 graduation ceremony, which is scheduled for Tuesday night.

Black asked a teacher prior to graduation day and said she was told that her plume did not count as a decoration due to its cultural and religious significance. However, no mention was made of filling out a form or seeking additional permission to wear the plume.

Additionally, in the filing, Blacks attorneys noted that her attire was reviewed without objection by at least five district employees at checkpoints in and around the stadium before being stopped by the two employees specifically named in the lawsuit.

Although Black and her mother met with a Broken Arrow High School administrator two days after the ceremony and received an apology, they said they were also informed that she should have gone through the districts Indian Education coordinator for permission to wear the plume at graduation rather than asking a teacher.

Broken Arrow Public Schools attendance area is entirely within the boundaries of the Muscogee Nations reservation. When reached Tuesday afternoon for comment, Broken Arrow Public Schools issued a statement.

At this time, the district has not yet been served with a court filing on behalf of Ms. Black. As a result, it would be inappropriate to comment publicly as to such a lawsuit.

In 2019, then-Attorney General Mike Hunter issued a formal letter to school districts, stating that an Indigenous students right to wear eagle feathers on their mortarboard is protected under the Oklahoma Religious Freedom Act. That position has since been echoed in a letter from current Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond.

On Wednesday morning, Blacks attorneys, Wilson Pipestem with Tulsa-based Pipestem Law and Morgan Saunders with the Native American Rights Fund, acknowledged the lag time between the graduation ceremony and Mondays filing and noted that they had given notice of a potential claim to the school district in late 2022.

Theres behind the scenes work that has to get hammered out, Saunders said. We wanted to make sure the lawsuit was in as good a position as it could be before going public with it.

The lawsuit comes on the heels of a decision by Gov. Kevin Stitt to veto Senate Bill 429, which would have codified protections for Indigenous students seeking to wear tribal regalia at graduation. The measure passed through the House and Senate by a combined margin of 135-1 but was vetoed on the grounds that it would usurp local control.

Blacks attorneys said the veto and its timing did not impact the decision to go forward with the lawsuit.

This lawsuit was going to be filed one way or another, Pipestem said. But this demonstrates that without the state acting here and clarifying the law, we believe that the law permits this one way or another without the states action.

Without clarification from the state, it could unfortunately lead to more litigation between students and school districts. The right thing now to happen would be for the governors veto to be overridden so theres less likelihood of litigation similar to this one.

Video: Oklahoma Gov. Stitt: My veto did not stop any student from wearing tribal regalia
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Area residents who live near a north Tulsa rock quarry are worried about a potential expansion of the lands mining operations.

Several dozen Owasso citizens attended the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday to voice their concerns about the project, which would extend Greenhill Properties LLCs quarry boundaries along Owassos fenceline.

A Greenhill quarry is currently located at 14701 E. 46th St. North, which is east of 145th East Avenue. The expansion would be northeast of 56th Street North and U.S. 169 on about 280 additional acres just west of Bird Creek, in closer proximity to residential areas.

Other quarries also are in the area.

Adding more mining activity to this area would be devastating, Owasso resident Barbara Morrison said, not only to the residents who live in the immediate area but also to the environment and to the city of Owasso.

Cindy Holt, who also lives in Owasso, added: The face of Owasso is going to be impacted. Traffics going to be affected, damage to landscapes, smoke, noise, dust,  loss of land and a deterioration of water quality.

Despite public pushback, the commission voted 4-3 to recommend rezoning the northeast and southeast corners of the high-traffic U.S. 169-56th Street North corridor to permit further industrial development.

Original plans to enlarge the quarrys operations covered a range of nearly 660 acres, stretching from U.S. 169 past Bird Creek to the east into more populated residential areas along 145th East Avenue.

The commission, however, updated the proposal to reflect the smaller acreage, which would have a reduced effect on surrounding neighborhoods, according to Dwayne Wilkerson, principal planner for the city of Tulsa.

I think basically the idea of removing several hundred acres out of consideration and limiting mining operations to the west side of Bird Creek is  much further away, Wilkerson said previously, so this would have much less impact than what the original application was.

David Charney, managing partner with Owasso Land Trust, echoed Wilkersons sentiments, adding that operations to extract significant limestone deposits within the updated sector would complement the ongoing industrial growth in the area.

Our effort is to try to bring  some future planning that allows us to do wonderful recruitment of good operations, Charney said. The demand is what the demand is. What were trying to do is  make certain that mining occurs where its supposed to.

Affected residents such as Ashley Parks, whose proximity to a quarry just south of 56th Street North gives her continued cause for concern, will have another chance to address the Tulsa City Council before the proposal goes up for a vote there.

Im surrounded by three rock quarries, and this (expansion) will make four, Parks said. My forever home has cracks in the foundation, in the walls, and broken windows.

Not only is this destroying my home, but it is also destroying the roads around my house, she said of the increased traffic, especially from heavy trucks, which frequently use 56th Street North to commute to and from the quarry.

The city of Owasso has taken some steps to help reduce the impact of quarry traffic within its fence line.

In March 2018, for example, city leaders installed Not a Truck Route signs along both 76th East Avenue and 129th East Avenue, which has led to a reduction in commercial truck traffic on those routes.
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City councilors heard Wednesday from a group of concerned citizens who questioned the quality of the water in the Arkansas River and asked the city to shoot straight about what activities will be allowed in the river when the renovated Zink Dam is opened next fall.

We are a group of like-minded individuals united by a shared concern for the Arkansas River in Tulsa and are here to educate this committee and suggest pathways forward that we hope will prevent economic and environmental catastrophes, said Kelsey Royce, a founding member of the Arkansas River Rights Coalition.

Royce provided councilors at a committee meeting with records she said show that it is not yet known whether the segment of the river that runs through Tulsa is suitable for swimming and fishing.

However, we know that the absence of data isnt the same thing as the absence of risk, Royce said.

She also provided councilors with pictures of pollution in the river, including one that showed a partially submerged vehicle in the river bed.

This is pollution you dont need a test to detect, she said, adding that all of the images were from within the footprint of what will be Zink Lake.

The bottom line is this: The river is unsafe for recreation, and I cannot reconcile the contradictory uses, industrial and recreational, so I ask you guys to please think long and hard about what is being asked of the public  to pay for amenities and to take an unacceptable risk, Royce said.

Engineer Charles Pratt, also representing Arkansas River Rights Coalition, said he was concerned about what he said was the seepage of pollutants entering the river from the HF Sinclair refinery on the west bank.

What is going to have to  happen is the refinery is going to provide some kind of long-term solution, not just putting Band-Aids on it, Pratt said. And I can guarantee you it is going to be a long time coming because it will be very expensive for them to do.

According to the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, Sinclair discovered a hydrocarbon sheen and discrete oil seeps along the river bank north of Zink Dam late last year.

Sinclair promptly installed hard and absorbent booms in the water and is seeking approval of a permit modification to install a containment cap and collection system to address oil seeps in the river, a DEQ spokesperson said.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Sinclair said it is working with the DEQ, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies to finalize its plans and begin implementation.

In the meantime, we are actively monitoring the riverbank and have installed containment, which is operating effectively, the statement said.

City officials have said they believe the renovation of Zink Dam and the new pedestrian bridge that will tower above it will finally provide Tulsans with a recreational option on the river and stimulate economic growth in the process.

But what exactly those recreational opportunities will be remains in flux.

Frequently asked questions and answers about the Zink Dam posted on the citys website states that programming and operations on the river will in part be subject to the citys operations agreement with the River Parks Authority, which has yet to be finalized.

It is expected that recreational opportunities will include things like kayaks, canoes and non-motorized watercraft, the website states. Water depth will also have the capacity to accommodate rowing events. Other water activities are subject to discussion after water testing protocols and guidance procedures are developed.

City officials said after Wednesdays meeting that the city tests the water discharges into the river produced by the citys stormwater system and water treatment plant to ensure that they meet state permitting standards and that the DEQ is responsible for permitting other discharges along the river.

The city also partners with the U.S. Geological Survey to test water within the river, officials said, but none of the testing is designed to provide guidance on whether the river is suitable for swimming and other recreational activities.

City Engineer Paul Zachary said that type of testing wont happen until the renovated Zink Dam is completed and water is impounded behind it.

We are going to test, and we are going to be able to provide that data that will show the E. coli and (other bacteria levels) so people can make informed decisions about their water recreation, Zachary said. And there is going to have to be an ongoing public education effort.

Mayor G.T. Bynums chief of staff, Blake Ewing, made a similar pledge during the committee meeting.

Obviously, we cant open a world-class recreational amenity while either ignoring or disregarding water safety, the quality of the water, Ewing said.

Ewing said that once the dam is completed and testing begins, the city plans to provide regular updates comparing the quality of the water in Zink Lake to the water in other lakes in the area.

People have been getting in Keystone Lake for the past how many years? Ewing said. And if they are comfortable with that, we can show you what Keystone Lake looks like and what Zink Lake looks like.

City councilors agreed to continue the discussion with concerned citizens and said they plan to hear from Zachary and other city officials next week about the issues raised Wednesday.

2020 video: Zink Lake project breaks ground
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Pieces of the landmark education package announced earlier this week continued forward without a hitch through the Oklahoma Senate and House of Representatives on Wednesday as leadership turned its attention to finalizing a budget deal by next Friday.

Also moved along on Wednesday were appropriations bills allocating close to $110 million in American Relief Plan Act funds, including $14.5 million for a downtown Tulsa mental health hospital.

The Senate and House each approved bills carrying their own chambers title designation  nine Senate and 10 House. The bills will now switch sides, with the House getting the Senate bills and the Senate getting the House bills.

The measures passed with little opposition, although some House Democrats questioned why the education package includes $150 million over three years to hire school resource officers  basically, police officers  but nothing for counselors and school psychologists.

They were also unhappy that each district receives the same allocation from that fund, regardless of enrollment or the number of school campuses, and that the legislation seems to leave open the possibility that virtual schools would qualify for the security funds.

Ultimately nine Democrats voted against authorizing the program, but all but one then voted to fund it.

The ARPA bills picked up a handful of no votes from Republicans but passed without much comment.

Besides the education and ARPA legislation, the House also passed and sent to the governor three unrelated measures on Wednesday.
The Ho Chi Minh City export forum and trade fair 2023 will take place at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in District 7 from May 25 to 28, featuring 250 booths.

On May 27 and 28 specifically, visitors will be able to buy a variety of Vietnamese goods at discounted prices, heard a press conference for the event on Wednesday.

The event will be organized as part of a series of trade activities in the city to boost the consumption of local commodities and widen the domestic market, Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade, said at the press briefing.

He also noted that the export forum and trade fair will act as a convergent venue to help local exporters connect with foreign partners.

The event is expected to serve some 3,000 foreign guests.

Until now, more than 1,000 visitors from key export markets, such as the United States, South Korea, Japan, India, Thailand, and Cambodia have registered to join the expo.

Some 170 exhibitors will showcase their goods  mainly woodwork, food, rubber, plastics, electronic items, apparel, and footwear  at 250 booths.

These groups of commodities are among the big earners in the Vietnamese economy.

The event will also feature the participation of supermarket chains, distributors, and e-commerce platforms to advance trade connectivity.

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A group of 75 young leaders from 10 ASEAN countries and Timor-Leste gathered in Hanoi on Tuesday morning to join a Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Regional Workshop featuring discussions on innovation in the higher education system.

The workshop is held by the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi in partnership with National Economics University (NEU) in Hanoi.

The 75 participants, who were shortlisted out of 900 applicants from 10 ASEAN nations and Timor-Leste, are lecturers, administrators, policymakers, advocates, and young professionals from higher education institutions.

During the four-day event, these young leaders are scheduled to take part in various activities such as plenary discussions, teamwork activities, training, and field trips.

To launch an initiative to establish collaboration among higher education institutions in the region, YSEALI Seeds for the Future, a small grants competition for young leaders in Southeast Asia, will offer funding to three most excellent projects presented at the workshop.

Each project will be awarded US$3,000.

Addressing the events opening ceremony, U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper stressed the U.S. government's commitment to supporting ASEAN nations and Timor-Leste in order to promote educational initiatives in the region.

Education is a top priority for the U.S. government and countries in the region as this sector offers training to equip future young leaders with knowledge, Knapper said.

The U.S. diplomat told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on the sidelines of the event that he hoped the young participants would promote educational initiatives in their countries and communities.

In addition, the application of technology to higher education is among the most discussed topics at the workshop.

The U.S. ambassador underlined the importance of technology application in education and cited virtual learning as an example, adding that the technology application in the field also poses certain challenges.

Hence, Knapper said this was a hot topic that this years YSEALI Regional Workshop should take into account.

Kosoma Kim, a 27-year-old start-up founder in education in Cambodia, said she was happy to join the 2023 YSEALI workshop in Vietnam.

I met many people sharing the same mindset with me in education. I want to exchange interesting ideas with them in the next days, Kim told Tuoi Tre.

Echoing the same view as Kim, SzeYing Teo, a 32-year-old participant from Singapore, said she would like to connect more deeply with other friends in ASEAN through education and culture.

Launched in 2013, YSEALI is a U.S. diplomatic initiative to strengthen leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia.

It seeks to build the leadership capabilities of youth in the region.

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Two South Korean women recently completed a remarkable journey to pursue bachelors degrees in Ho Chi Minh City, inspiring dozens of their peers thanks to their determination and courage.

Ahn In Soon and Kim Mi Ae, in their 40s, currently live in Ho Chi Minh City.

They successfully defended their graduation theses to earn bachelors degrees in Vietnamese studies from Ton Duc Thang University in District 7 earlier this month.

Determination

Among the 18 other foreign students who began the program alongside Ahn and Kim, only four persevered until the end.

After Kim married in Hanoi, she enrolled in a series of Vietnamese language courses so that she could better understand the language and hold fluent conversations with her child, who is studying in Vietnamese at a local high school.

The drive to become completely fluent is what motivated her to join the bachelors degree program at Ton Duc Thang.

For Ahn, earning a bachelors degree in Vietnamese studies was a way to further immerse herself in Vietnamese culture, just as she had with Japanese culture 20 years prior when she lived in the East Asian country.

Dedication

Ahn focused her graduation thesis on comparing tea culture in Vietnam and South Korea while Kims research centered on the two countries traditional costumes  Vietnams ao dai and South Koreas hanbok.

Ahns research earned her a 9.6 out of 10 while Kim got a 9.1 out of 10.

Nguyen Hieu Tin, head of the tourism department at Ton Duc Thang University and one of Ahn and Kims professors, said that the thesis defense board was greatly impressed by the remarkable dedication displayed by the two South Korean students in their graduation theses.

Ahns devotion was particularly highlighted by the fact that she had accessed nearly 80 books from Vietnamese universities, the National Library of Korea, and overseas bookstores in order to complete her 80-page thesis on tea drinking, especially the nutritional characteristics associated with tea drinking in both Vietnamese and South Korean cultures.

Several members of the thesis defense board evaluated that in terms of quality, the thesis was at a masters degree level, Tin said.

The successful defense of their graduation theses was the final step in Kim and Ahn earning their bachelors degrees, marking the culmination of four years of dedicated studies.

Now that she has graduated, Ahn hopes to open a cooking class in Ho Chi Minh City so she can teach Vietnamese locals how to prepare traditional South Korean dishes.

She expects her knowledge of the Vietnamese language to help her effectively communicate with her students.

Kim has plans to launch a project aimed at teaching Vietnamese to South Koreans, recognizing the demand for learning the language within her neighborhood of Phu My Hung New Urban Area in District 7.

She highlighted the current lack of South Korean-operated classes catering to this need, inspiring her to fill this gap and provide valuable Vietnamese language instructions to her fellow South Koreans.

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Countries should translate political commitments on issues in the East Vietnam Sea into specific and appropriate acts, Ambassador Vu Ho, acting head of the ASEAN Senior Officials delegation of Vietnam, said at a recent meeting.

Amid the complicated situation and ongoing unilateral actions that violate international law in the East Vietnam Sea, Ambassador Ho called on countries to 'walk the talk' at the 20th ASEAN-China Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties (DOC) in the East Vietnam Sea held in northern Quang Ninh Province on Wednesday after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19.

The meeting was co-chaired by Myanmar, the coordinator of ASEAN-China ties, and China.

Ho also stressed the need to handle issues in the East Vietnam Sea on the basis of international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

"While striving to achieve a Code of Conduct (COC) for the East Vietnam Sea, countries should seriously and fully abide by all the provisions of the DOC," Ho said.

"These efforts will contribute to creating a favorable environment for COC negotiations."

Ambassador Vu Ho, acting head of the ASEAN Senior Officials delegation of Vietnam, makes suggestions about issues in the East Vietnam Sea. Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

At the meeting, representatives of countries reiterated the values and importance of the DOC to the region and pointed out positive results in the DOC implementation over the past time.

They also voiced their concerns over the complex situation in the East Vietnam Sea, which has eroded trust, heightened tension, and affected the legitimate rights and interests of the countries bordering the sea.

They urged ASEAN and China to seriously, effectively, and fully comply with the DOCs provisions.

Attendees at the 20th SOM-DOC also reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Vietnam Sea.

They emphasized the respect for principles, such as exercising self-restraint, refraining from the threat or use of force, and peacefully settling disputes in line with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS.

The 21st SOM-DOC will be hosted by China in the last quarter of this year.

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Check out the latest news in Vietnam today:

Society

-- Investigators in Ho Chi Minh City have proposed that Nguyen Minh Quan, ex-director of Thu Duc City Hospital, and two police officers be indicted for their alleged wrongdoings in a COVID-19 test kit scandal that was uncovered in late 2021.

-- A nearly-two-hour downpour on Wednesday afternoon in Bien Hoa City, southern Dong Nai Province left multiple inner-city streets and schools inundated, causing commuters to struggle to get around.

-- The Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology on Wednesday afternoon hosted a ceremony to welcome the Akademik Oparin research vessel of the Russian Academy of Sciences that arrived in south-central Khanh Hoa Province to carry out a joint scientific survey in the East Vietnam Sea.

Business

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Export Forum and Trade Fair 2023 will take place at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center from May 25 to 28, the Vietnam News Agency cited the municipal Department of Industry and Trade as announcing at a press conference on Wednesday.

-- Vietnam exported close to 51,400 metric tons of cashew nuts worth over US$305 million last month, the highest since October 2021, according to data released by the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

-- Around 22,400 cars were sold in Vietnam last month, falling by some 7,620 units or 25 percent month on month, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association.

World News

-- For the first time ever, global temperatures are now more likely than not to breach 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) of warming within the next five years, Reuters cited the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as saying on Wednesday.

-- Montana Governor Greg Gianforte on Wednesday signed legislation to ban the Chinese-owned TikTok from operating in the state, making it the first U.S. state to ban the popular short video app, Reuters reported.

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Authorities in Da Nang recently gave permission for the conversion of thousands of condotel units into residential apartments.

The permission to convert the condotels was signed by Le Quang Nam, deputy chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee, on Wednesday and will affect an area of 3,988 square meters encompassing the CT1, CT2, CT3, and CT7 towers at the Da Nang Times Square project, located by My Khe Beach in Phuoc My Ward of Son Tra District.

The four affected towers were designed with 30-50 floors each, housing thousands of condotel units.

In Vietnam, such units are permitted to be built on commercial and service land as hybrid properties that combine condominiums with the option to rent out the units in much the same way as traditional hotels.

As per Wednesdays authorization, investors will be allowed to change the land use purpose of the Da Nang Times Square project from commercial services to urban residential land used to build apartment buildings.

Ownership certificates will also be granted to the buyers of condotels at the project with a term until March 30, 2056.

The grant follows a government decree issued last month about amending and supplementing several points of the decrees guiding the implementation of the Law on Land.

Before this amendment, condotels still lacked legality and buyers of this type of hybrid property could not obtain ownership certificates.

The regulation on granting ownership certificates for condotels was expected to tackle the legal bottlenecks for enterprises and individuals investing in these properties.

The 2016-18 period witnessed the rapid development of condotels with a number of projects built across Vietnam as a new investment wave in the real estate market, including the construction of Da Nang Times Square in the eponymous city in central Vietnam.

However, this segment has fallen into stagnation in recent years because of the market downturn and the legal obstacles in granting ownership certificates.

There are about 239 tourism property projects throughout the country with a total of 114,000 condotels worth around VND297 trillion (US$12.7 billion), according to the Vietnam Real Estate Association.

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The Peoples Committee of Ho Chi Minh City has come up with solutions for enhancing electricity saving and ensuring adequate power supply during this years dry season.

The solutions were sent to departments, agencies, and the administrations of Thu Duc City as well as other districts in the city.

In particular, the Peoples Committee called on officials and residents to limit wearing suits and formal outfits at work in order to decrease the need for air conditioning.

They also asked that schools, training and production facilities, and trade centers halve the number of operational elevators.

Air conditioners at these places should be set at 26 degrees Celsius, turned on one hour later than the office opening time, and turned off one hour earlier than the office closing time.

The city also encouraged these facilities to turn off or reduce lights in corridors and parking areas.

They should use electricity generators in order to increase their power supplies, if needed.

Additionally, lighting systems along streets will be switched on 30 minutes later and switched off 30 minutes earlier than normal.

The city will also turn off half of the lights on those streets with low traffic after 10:00 pm.

Half of the advertising lights and all decorating lights were also required to be turned off after 10:00 pm.

These policies will be applied until June 30 as a response to a power shortage risk this year as the El Nino weather phenomenon, which generally raises global temperatures, has led to low water levels in hydropower dams and reservoirs.

Ho Chi Minh City has seen daily electricity consumption set four new records in less than one month due to extreme weather, according to the Ho Chi Minh City Power Corporation.

The city consumed over 93.53 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity on April 21, the highest daily power consumption level ever at that point.

That number was bettered just four days later when the city consumed 93.57 milllion kWh on April 25, again 10 days later on May 5 when the city consumed over 94.43 million kWh, and again the following day, May 6, when the city consumed 94.8 million kWh.

Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) will intensify negotiations and signing of power purchase contracts with local power plants, weigh importing more electricity from China and Laos, and mobilize renewable energy resources in line with the law, EVN deputy general director Vo Quang Lam said during a recent online workshop held by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

Experts at the workshop agreed that it is a must to use electricity efficiently and sparingly to deal with the power shortage risk.

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The national authority for environmental affairs in Vietnam is pooling feedback to revise its decree on livestock farming regulations, including those stipulating that farms with at least 100 buffaloes or cows must obtain an environmental permit to run their business.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has written to the local administrations across the country, asking for their feedback on Decree No. 8 guiding the implementation of the Environmental Protection Law.

The ministry said it would mostly adjust regulations regarding the size and capacity of production and business facilities that pose risks of environmental pollution.

It will consider increasing the delegation of authority to localities in granting environmental permits to these facilities and monitoring the businesses compliance with environmental regulations.

Specifically, livestock farms with 10-300 head of cattle and poultry would be classified as small-sized facilities, compared with the current size of 10-100 animals.

Farms with 300-3,000 head of cattle and poultry would be categorized as medium-sized facilities, while those with at least 3,000 animals would be considered as large-sized farms.

As for the electronic and electrical equipment and accessories sector, medium-sized projects would need to have an annual capacity of below 2,000 metric tons, compared to the current capacity cap of one million devices or 1,000 metric tons of products per year.

The minimum capacity of large-sized projects in the field would be 2,000 metric tons of products per year, while the current lower limit is one million devices or 1,000 metric tons of products per year.

As per Decree No. 8, district-level Peoples Committees are responsible for granting the environmental permit to small-sized facilities.

The provincial administrations and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment are in charge of issuing the permits to medium- and large-sized projects, respectively.

The ministry said the adjustments will increase the delegation of responsibility to local administrations and streamline administrative procedures.

Decree No. 8 took effect on January 10 last year, but it shows certain inadequacies.

For instance, slaughterhouses with at least 10 pigs each or 100 chickens and livestock farms with at least 10 buffaloes or cows must get an environmental permit from the district-level administration to be operational.

Such regulation is likened to requirements that seafood processing plants with an annual capacity of 100-1,000 metric tons or livestock farms of at least 100 cows or buffaloes in vulnerable areas must have an environmental impact assessment report approved by the above-mentioned ministry.

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Police in Luc Nam District, Bac Giang Province, northern Vietnam have busted a drug trafficking ring and confiscated nearly 30,000 pills of synthetic drugs hidden in chocolate packs and cosmetics boxes.

The bust was the largest of its kind ever recorded in the district, according to Luc Nam District police officers.

Police officers identified a suspicious Hyundai car on National Highway 31 in Doi Ngo Town at 9:00 am on Wednesday and pulled it over for a check.

During the check, police discovered four large cardboard boxes in the trunk of the car, which was being driven by D.V.T., a 36-year-old resident of Doi Ngo Town.

The driver confessed that the boxes belonged to Pham Van Long, 27, who was also in the car.

After opening the containers, police found many imported cosmetics boxes and chocolate packs, each containing dozens of illicit pills.

Pham Van Long admitted that some 30,000 pills were illegal drugs bought from an acquaintance in Hanoi. He intended to sell them in Bac Giang Province.

Police are expanding the investigation into the case.

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The Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST) on Wednesday afternoon hosted a ceremony to welcome the Akademik Oparin research vessel of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) which arrived in south-central Khanh Hoa Province to carry out a joint scientific survey in the East Vietnam Sea.

This is the eighth survey trip by the Akademik Oparin vessel in Vietnams waters.

It is also part of a road map for marine research cooperation in the 2018-25 period between VAST and RAS.

During his virtual speech at the opening ceremony, VAST president Chau Van Minh reviewed the outcomes of the previous seven survey trips, saying that this eighth survey trip is a meaningful event as it is the first activity to implement a cooperation agreement between the two academies.

During this survey trip, Vietnamese and Russian scientists will conduct a comprehensive research about marine biodiversity in the East Vietnam Sea, as well as coral reefs and microbes in order to find a new source of biochemicals.

Konstatin Mogilevsky, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of Russia, hailed the long-term, effective collaboration of the two academies.

He hoped the two academies will continue executing the above-mentioned road map till 2025 and bolster cooperation in the years ahead.

After completing necessary procedures, the vessel with nearly 40 scientists on board will start a survey voyage scheduled to last for a month in the East Vietnam Sea.

A hybrid ceremony to welcome the Russian research vessel Akademik Oparin took place in Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam, May 17, 2023. Photo: Tran Hoai / Tuoi Tre

An official of Khanh Hoa Province in south-central Vietnam presents a gift to Russian scientists at the welcome ceremony for the Russian research vessel Akademik Oparin, May 17, 2023. Photo: Tran Hoai / Tuoi Tre

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Australian Story was granted access to patients at Melbournes St Vincents Hospital as it conducted Australias first psychedelic-assisted therapy trial.

Medical research into psychedelic drugs is undergoing a renaissance but what does the treatment actually look like?

Over six months, Australian Story was granted extraordinary access to Australias first psychedelic-assisted therapy trial, led by doctors Margaret Ross and Justin Dwyer from Melbournes St Vincents Hospital.

The trial looks at how psychotherapy combined with psilocybin, the compound found in magic mushrooms, might alleviate the mental anguish of the terminally ill.

Australian Story followed one of the trials 35 participants, Lindy Bok, as Ross and Dwyer led her through the therapy experience.

It was the most intense emotional thing Ive ever done in my life, says Lindy, who has stage four breast cancer.

In a surprise move, the Therapeutic Goods Administration recently approved the therapeutic use of psilocybin and MDMA for certain mental health conditions from July 1.

While Ross and Dwyer believe that decision is premature, they have been profoundly impacted by what they have witnessed.

What weve seen has surpassed all of our expectations, Ross says.

I am not the same psychiatrist I was before, says Dwyer. I cant go back to doing what I was doing before the trial started.

For Lindy, too, the therapy has been transformative.

Its changed everything. Its changed my whole outlook on life, she tells Australian Story.

I cant fix dying but at least I feel more emotionally peaceful with it.

8pm Monday on ABC.
On Four Corners, Cocaine Nation by Mahmood Fazal reports on the very real dangers the movement of illicit drugs in Australia poses.

Australians are the highest per capita users of cocaine in the world.

Were taking more than ever and were paying top dollar for it too  among the highest prices globally.

While police around the country celebrate big busts, the rivers of white continue to flood in, and out to market.

So, who is behind the booming trade?

This week on Four Corners, reporter Mahmood Fazal speaks with the people involved in the cocaine supply chain, lifting the lid on the shadowy underworld.

With unprecedented access to traffickers, importers, street dealers and high-ranking cartel operatives who break their code of silence, Fazal reveals the highs, the lows and the very real dangers the movement of illicit drugs in Australia poses.

Monday 22nd May at 8.30pm on ABC.
Mobile phone footage of a neighbourhood spat which went viral and became the basis of a story on A Current Affair has led to a breach of the Broadcasting Services Act by Nine.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority found the March 2022 story breached a participants privacy by including his name, part of his residential address and unobscured video footage of his face without his consent.

The dispute centred around a 19-year-old man living in a small community in regional NSW and an altercation with an older neighbour over the placement of a floodlight. A friend of the 19 year old filmed a scuffle when the neighbour entered the property, with the latter objecting to being filmed on the mobile phone.

ACA, in following up the stoush, referred to the neighbour by his full name while the video footage broadcast showed him in close-up.

Nine maintained that as the video had over 400,000 views on the web it did not invade privacy. ACAs own story subsequently has over 9 million YouTube views.

But ACMA Chair Nerida OLoughlin said, Broadcasters may only disclose personal information without consent if it is relevant and proportional to the public interest.

In this case our investigation found it wasnt in the public interest for Nine to disclose the individuals name and address because it wasnt necessary to enable the audience to understand the overall issue.

Even if material is already available in the public sphere, as some of this footage was, a licensee has an obligation to consider how broadcasting the material may further impact peoples privacy.

Nine will now train staff in the privacy requirements of the code. Again.
US dramedy starring and executive produced by Rose Byrne is returning for its third season in August, but Apple TV has announced it as the final season.

The 10 part series season also features Rory Scovel, Dierdre Friel and Paul Sparks. Zooey Deschanel also joins as Kelly, a network sitcom star who decides to enter the burgeoning Fitness Industry.

We are so grateful to Apple, Tomorrow Studios, and all our creative collaborators for the chance to bring Sheila to life in all her gritty glory, said star and executive producer Rose Byrne and creator, writer and executive producer Annie Weisman. With this final season, Sheilas three act saga of rebellion, recovery, and redemption comes to the satisfying conclusion that she and her fans so richly deserve. We feel so proud to share this last chapter with everyone.

Over the course of three enthralling seasons of Physical, we have been honoured to work with Annie Weisman and Tomorrow Studios to bring Sheila Rubins journey of transformation and personal empowerment to the screen through Rose Byrnes fearless, moving, and often very funny, portrayal, said Matt Cherniss, head of programming for Apple TV+. We are aware of just how much of an impact this character and story has had on audiences around the world and cant wait for them to join us on this final exhilarating ride that culminates in an immensely rewarding finale for this celebrated series.

Set in the idyllic but fragile beach paradise of sunny 1980s San Diego, Physical is a half-hour dark comedy following Sheila Rubin (Byrne), a quietly tortured, seemingly dutiful housewife supporting her smart but controversial husbands bid for state assembly. But behind closed doors, Sheila has her own darkly funny take on life she rarely lets the world see. Shes also battling a complex set of personal demons relating to her self-image that is, until she finds release through the unlikeliest source: the world of aerobics.

Physical is produced by Tomorrow Studios (an ITV Studios partnership) and created, written and executive produced by Weisman, who also serves as showrunner. This series is directed by Stephanie Laing, who also serves as executive producer alongside Adelstein, Clements and Bachner for Tomorrow Studios, and Byrne.

Wednesday, 2 August on Apple TV+
Mary Fitzgerald (nee Parker), who was the first woman to appear on TV in Melbourne, has died.

She died in hospital at the weekend after a short illness surrounded by her large and loving family, alert and witty until the last, her son-in-law Tim Lee wrote for ABC.

When television arrived in Australia in 1956, Mary Parker became an overnight star and a household name. She had already forged a name in England, where from the age of 21 she had appeared on stage in Londons West End and in feature films and television dramas, opposite actors such as Douglas Fairbanks Junior, Boris Karloff and Lloyd Bridges.

Film studios likened her star quality to Debbie Reynolds, and she had fielded offers from Hollywood. But homesick for Australia, she resisted.

In July 1956, the fledgling HSV-7 network, the first television station in Melbourne, began test transmissions. Soon after, it offered her an anchor role, alongside Eric Pearce and Danny Webb.

On November 4, 1956, HSV-7s opening night, Parker presented the news with Pearce, a ground-breaking achievement.

As a host, Parker top and tailed shows including Beauty is My Business, Eric and Mary (co-hosted with Pearce) and Guest of the Week.

Soon after, she co-hosted the Melbourne Olympic Games with Tony Charlton.

You can read more at ABC.
Senior advocate Zafaryab Jilani passes away

Ubair Ul Hameed

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Zafaryab Jilani, the renowned advocate who played a pivotal role in the historic Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, passed away in Lucknow on Wednesday. The 73-year-old was battling medical complications after he suffered a brain hemorrhage two years ago.

Jilanis rise to prominence can be traced back to the mid-1980s, a time when a significant event was brewing, casting a shadow over communal harmony. It was during this tumultuous period that the unlocking of the Babri Masjid in 1986 set off a chain of events that would forever alter the socio-political landscape of the nation. Jilani spearheaded the formation of the Babri Masjid Action Committee, assuming the key role of convener.

In the aftermath of the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, Jilani emerged as an influential, powerful voice of the Muslim community, becoming the advocate for the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. With determination, he pursued their claim to the disputed site, treading the path of negotiations and seeking a peaceful resolution.

Beyond his role as an advocate, Zafaryab Jilani embodied the essence of the Babri Masjid cause. His conviction resonated within the halls of the courtroom as he argued on behalf of the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Waqf Board, passionately declaring, Once a mosque, always a mosque.

Born and raised in Malihabad in Lucknow district, Jilani had humble beginnings. The era of Partition cast its shadow over his family, prompting his father, Abdul Qayoom Jilani, an employee of the Indian Postal Services, to make the difficult decision to resign and migrate to Pakistan. However, when he visited India in 1948 for his marriage, he had a change of heart and decided to stay back.

The family shifted to the state capital Lucknow where Jilani and his four brothers found solace and new beginnings.

Jilanis academic journey took him to Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), where he honed his legal acumen, joining the ranks of its esteemed alumni. Armed with LLB and LLM degrees, he embarked on a legal career in Lucknow under the tutelage of the renowned civil lawyer Shafiqur Rehman. Practising in the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court, Jilani passionately pursued justice in the courtroom, even as he taught law part-time at the citys Shia Degree College.

Jilani also served as Uttar Pradeshs Additional Advocate General during the last tenure of the Samajwadi Party government.

In the wake of the Supreme Courts verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi case in 2019, Jilani expressed his discontentment, voicing concerns regarding the impact on the Constitution and secularism. The judgment has just been pronounced, it says a lot of things about the Constitution and about secularism. We are very dissatisfied with this judgment. Article 142 does not let you do this, he had said in 2019.

I am now a man at peace. Whatever might the judgment have been, as an advocate, for me it is no more of legal manoeuvrings and court dates, he had told reporters.

Jilanis funeral prayer, the Namaz-e-Janaza, was offered in a solemn ceremony at Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama in Lucknow. He leaves behind a legacy carried forward by his two sons and daughter. His eldest son, Najam, following in his fathers footsteps, is a law practitioner in Lucknow.

The news of Jilanis passing reverberated far and wide, evoking heartfelt tributes from several senior lawyers, political leaders and organizations across the nation.

M.R. Shamshad, the lawyer-on-record from the Supreme Court who worked with Jilani in the Babri litigation, called him a great human being, lawyer with integrity and Commitment in a tribute he wrote to him in The Indian Express.

He was a true community leader, who ignored his personal interest and put his entire life in contesting and defending the issues of the Muslims. In my view, the community at large shall remain indebted to his services, which have no parallel, Shamshad wrote.

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board, of which he was secretary, acknowledged his contributions. Jilani was an experienced lawyer and had great sympathy towards the Muslim community. He had contributed a lot under the banner of All Indian Muslim Personal Law Board, the AIMPLB said in a tweet.

Asaduddin Owaisi, the AIMIM chief, referred to Jilani as a mentor in a video he shared on Twitter. He described Jilanis demise as a blow to the oppressed and marginalized, particularly the Muslim community, emphasizing his efforts in the legal battle for the Babri Masjid.

He dedicated his life to justice and equality for the oppressed, Owaisi said.

Ubair Ul Hameed is a fellow with TCN-SEED mentorship programme
RAF Sergeant who died in Cyprus remembered as master chef and was online DJ sensation

Gareth Thomas (RAF)

A Royal Air Force (RAF) Sergeant known for his culinary and music skills has been remembered as a central figure following his death of natural causes in Cyprus.

Gareth Thomas, known affectionately as Gaz, died while serving as part of a logisitics supply team that supported British forces in the Middle East. His body will be repatriated to RAF Brize Norton on Thursday.

He joined the Joint Force Support in Cyprus in March to help transport priority freight to British forces deployed in the region. He also supported the UKs operations in Sudan and previously in Afghanistan.

Coningsby Station Commander Group Captain Billy Cooper said Mr Thomas held the logistics squadron team together.

The thoughts of all of us at Coningsby are with Sgt Thomass family at this incredibly sad time. As a Station, we are a very close-knit group where real leaders and personalities come to the fore, Gaz Thomas was right at the top of that list.

Everyone who worked with Gaz looked up to him with huge respect as somebody who was not only incredibly professional but, particularly within the Logistics Squadron, the character that held the team together - his loss is felt deeply by us all.

Outside the job, Mr Thomas had a brilliant sense of humour and was a central figure in social activities, the RAF said in a tribute.

Gaz was known for his culinary skills. Whenever there was a function, you would always get the best sausages and burgers as Gaz was a master chef, the statement read.

He fed the vast majority of his squadron during social events, without complaint. He was the true king of the barbeque.

Squadron Leader A-J Littlefield said: If you were to get into a conversation with Gaz, you might want to clear your diary for the next hour. Whether work or social, Gaz loved to talk, and we all loved to talk to him.

Mr Thomas also attracted an online following for his livestreamed sets as DJ Itchy, the RAF said. He would give listeners shout outs, take requests and mix songs together thanks to his incredible musical knowledge.

Ask any question about an artist or a song from any genre of music and Gaz would invariably know the answer, the tribute said.

It would amaze many that he could happily work away on the Squadron while listening to rave music.

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Sergeant Gareth Thomas, from natural causes, whilst serving in Cyprus as part of Joint Force Support. Sgt Thomas will be repatriated to @RAFBrizeNorton later today.



Read Sgt Thomas' full eulogy here: https://t.co/UX6CxCcS8O pic.twitter.com/4sTdvYqNJm  Royal Air Force (@RoyalAirForce) May 18, 2023

Sergeant Thomas joined the RAF in July 1997 as a regiment gunner. His first posting in January 1998 was to No 15 Sqn RAF Regiment, then a posting to 26 Sqn RAF Regiment in March 2003.

He completed an operational deployment to Afghanistan as part of the Tactical Supply Wing in 2008.

In January 2013 he received the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. A posting followed to Cyprus, Akrotiri and then in August 2016 to RAF Coningsby.

On promotion to Sergeant in February 2020 he took charge of the Repairable Management Section and was then latterly posted into the Quality and Continuous Improvement Team SNCO role.
Vonage Conversational Commerce, Powered by Jumper.ai, Enables Full Messaging-First eCommerce for Customers

SINGAPORE, May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Vonage, a global leader in cloud communications helping businesses accelerate their digital transformation, has partnered with WhatsApp as a Business Solution Provider, to launch payments on the messaging app in Singapore. With this new capability, Vonage Conversational Commerce, powered by Jumper.ai, enables businesses and consumers to benefit from seamless, end-to-end shopping experiences, from discovery to engagement and payments, all within WhatsApp.

Vonage Conversational Commerce enables brands to create omnichannel, messaging-first customer buying experiences across popular messaging, social and web platforms such as WhatsApp, Messenger, Apple Business Chat, Instagram, Twitter, SMS, LINE, Google Business Messages, brand websites, and more. As messaging becomes more important to consumers across the globe as a quick and direct way of connecting with their favourite brands, Vonages application meets the needs of major global brands, helping them to connect with consumers, while also turning these conversations into richer AI-enabled customer experiences.

Additional value and scalability are provided by Vonages Communications APIs, including the capability to seamlessly invite buyers to a live video interaction with an in-store associate or customer service agent in just one click. This allows consumers to engage in personal conversations about products from anywhere while helping retailers build trusted relationships with customers.

Seamless and secure payments on WhatsApp in Singapore, enabled for businesses by Vonage Conversational Commerce, will transform the way people and businesses in Singapore connect. With an estimated 1 billion+ users connecting with businesses across Metas messaging services every week, the ability to process payments securely through WhatsApp will enable companies to deliver a differentiated, and real-time customer experience, which will boost customer engagement and build loyalty.

#NOEXCUSES, a boutique fitness studio, is now leveraging Vonages payments capability to collect fees and rental payments from customers through WhatsApp, along with homeware and fashion brands such as Tyetye, which is using WhatsApp to get closer to consumers and enable payments to provide a seamless experience to its customers.

"Backed by the power of the full Vonage Communications Platform, we are delighted to meet customers' evolving needs with Vonage Conversational Commerce powered by Jumper.ai - providing embedded commerce capabilities to drive more engaging and seamless shopping experiences through WhatsApp," said Yash Kotak, Sr. Director of Product Management at Vonage. "This development highlights our commitment to continue pushing the boundaries of conversational commerce and empowering businesses throughout Singapore to create meaningful relationships with their customers."

To find out more about Vonage, visit www.vonage.com.

# # #

Source: Meta

About Vonage

Vonage, a global cloud communications leader, helps businesses accelerate their digital transformation. Vonage's Communications Platform is fully programmable and allows for the integration of Video, Voice, Chat, Messaging, AI and Verification into existing products, workflows and systems. The Vonage conversational commerce application enables businesses to create AI-powered omnichannel experiences that boost sales and increase customer satisfaction. Vonage's fully programmable unified communications, contact center and conversational commerce applications are built from the Vonage platform and enable companies to transform how they communicate and operate from the office or remotely - providing the flexibility required to create meaningful engagements.

Vonage is headquartered in New Jersey, with offices throughout the United States, Europe, Israel and Asia and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ericsson. To follow Vonage on Twitter, please visit www.twitter.com/vonage. To become a fan on Facebook, go to facebook.com/vonage. To subscribe on YouTube, visit youtube.com/vonage.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005466/en/

Contacts

Nicola Brookes

+44 (0)207 785 8888

nicola.brookes@vonage.com
Group of Seven (G7) countries owe low and middle-income nations $13.3 trillion (12.3 trillion) in unpaid aid and funding for climate action, according to new analysis from Oxfam.

The figure was released ahead of the G7 summit due to begin in Hiroshima, Japan tomorrow.

Oxfam says these wealthy nations and their bankers are demanding that countries in the Global South pay $232 million (215 million) in debt despite failing to pay what they owe themselves.

Wealthy G7 countries like to cast themselves as saviours but what they are is operating a deadly double standard - they play by one set of rules while their former colonies are forced to play by another, Oxfam International interim executive director Amitabh Behar said in a statement.

Its do as I say, not as I do.

Behar adds that rich countries owe the Global South for aid which was promised decades ago but never came, the huge costs of climate damage from the reckless burning of fossil fuels and immense wealth built on colonialism and slavery.

Who owes these trillions of dollars?

Despite a commitment from the G7 last month to phase-out fossil fuels, Germany is now pushing leaders to endorse public investment in gas, Oxfam points out. The charity says the group owes low- and middle-income countries an estimated $8.7 trillion (8 trillion) for the damage done by excessive carbon emissions.

After finally agreeing to establish a loss and damage fund at COP27, there are still questions about how this will work. A longstanding promise to deliver $100 billion (92.5 billion) per year from 2020 to 2025 to help poorer countries cope with climate change but this target was never met.

Army troops evacuate people from a flood-hit area in Rajanpur, district of Punjab, Pakistan, Aug. 27, 2022. - AP Photo/Asim Tanveer, File

In 1970, rich countries also agreed to 0.7 per cent of their gross national income in aid. Since then, G7 countries have left $4.49 trillion (4.15 trillion) unpaid, according to Oxfam. This means they have paid less than half of what they promised.

Can G7 countries deliver their climate funding and aid pledges?

Oxfam is calling on G7 governments to cancel the debt of low and middle-income countries that need it, fulfil their aid commitments and bring in new taxes on rich individuals and corporations.

Leaders are expected to reaffirm their climate pledges at this weeks G7 summit. Developing countries say that they need support from rich nations otherwise they cant cut carbon emissions.

Japan has already called on these wealthy countries to boost financial and technical support for poorer nations to help them tackle climate change and achieve decarbonisation. The country says it has already started to disburse the $70 billion (65 billion) in funding it committed to over the five-year period.

Ono Hiroshi, vice-minister for global environmental affairs at Japan's environment ministry, told Reuters that all countries should follow the good example of Japan so that the $100 billion goal can be met.
Kremlin says it needs to see more progress after Black Sea grain deal renewal

FILE PHOTO: Commercial vessels including vessels which are part of Black Sea grain deal wait to pass the Bosphorus strait off the shores of Yenikapi in Istanbul, Turkey

MOSCOW (Reuters) -The Kremlin on Thursday confirmed that Russia had renewed the Black Sea grain deal for two months after achieving some results in talks which had given it "certain hopes", but said more progress had to be made to advance its own interests.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced the extension in a televised speech on Wednesday and it was later confirmed by Russia, Ukraine and the United Nations.

The United Nations and Turkey brokered the agreement - which allows Ukraine to export grain from Black Sea ports - for an initial 120 days in July last year to help tackle a global food crisis that has been aggravated by Russia's war in Ukraine, something it calls "a special military operation."

Moscow had initially appeared unwilling to extend the pact unless a list of demands regarding its own agricultural exports was met.

Commenting on the deal's renewal, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said what he called a "qualified result" for Russia had been achieved in negotiations over easing restrictions on Russian agricultural exports.

In a call with reporters, he said that different scenarios were being worked out regarding easing international payment transfer curbs on Russia's state agricultural bank, one of Moscow's key demands.

"Regarding guarantees for Rosselkhozbank - various options are being explored that would be equivalent to reversing its exclusion from the SWIFT payment system," he said.

"There are certain hopes based on the negotiations that have taken place so far."

Rosselkhozbank on Thursday said the grain deal had nothing to do with a jump in its first-quarter profit as the bank practically does not conduct international settlements currently due to the SWIFT block.

Peskov indicated that Moscow wanted to see more progress in the next two months.

"It is very important to understand that the fate of the deal is still in the hands of those with whom the UN must agree on the Russian part of the deal," said Peskov.

"A certain part of the way has been travelled - there are results - but not definitive ones. We will try to solve this problem definitively within these 60 days."

He added that talks on the export of ammonia from a Russian city to a Ukrainian port via a pipeline were ongoing.

(Reporting by ReutersEditing by Andrew Osborn, Kirsten Donovan)
(Dave Benett)

The naming of Tory donor and business tycoon Javad Marandi in a major money laundering case brought by the National Crime Agency is a vital victory for open justice in the public interest, campaigners and lawyers have said after judges criticised the businessmans failure to provide evidence to support his case for anonymity.

Anti-corruption organisations said the disclosure that Mr Marandi, a multi-millionaire OBE who owns the Conran Shop and other businesses here and abroad, was a person of importance in a case brought by law enforcers against three members of an Azeri oligarchs family raised serious questions about the relationship between money and power in Britain.

They said the decision by judges in the High Court and Court of Appeal to uphold an earlier judgment in favour of naming Mr Marandi  who has vehemently denied any wrongdoing  would also allow the public here and abroad to learn more about the Azerbaijan laundromat money laundering scheme to which the court found he was connected and where the wealth chanelled through it had gone.

Lawyers added that the judicial rulings over Mr Marandi set an important precedent that would counter increasing attempts by the rich to use privacy claims to keep their names secret during potentially damaging court proceedings.

The comments follow court findings that Mr Marandi, who had been protected by an anonymity order until a judge accepted applications by the Evening Standard and the BBC to lift it, received $49 million from one of the companies involved in the money laundering scheme and that one of the companies he owned received a further $107 million. Mr Marandi was not a party to the proceedings brought by the NCA against the Azeri family.

The court found that he was also the conduit for dirty money forfeited by an oligarchs son as the proceeds of crime and believed to be the owner of another company at the heart of the money laundering scheme.

Mr Marandis lawyers have insisted that all his wealth is legitimate. They say that he has not been investigated or questioned by any authorities and described the ruling as unsafe.

Daniel Bruce, the chief executive of the anti-corruption organisation, Transparency International UK, said the removal of anonymity for this significant case represents a landmark judgement in the fight for open justice.

He added: Transparency in court proceedings is vital both to ensuring the UKs efforts to tackle economic crime can be scrutinised in full as well as revealing information of significant public interest about political donors.

Understanding complex money laundering schemes such as these is essential to ensuring they cannot happen again in the future."

Mr Bruces colleague, Duncan Hames, a former Lib Dem MP, added: This case raises serious questions about the relationship between money and power in our democracy.

Susan Coughtrie, the director of the Foreign Policy Centre think tank, said: This is a very important victory for media reporting in the public interest. Given the role that the UK, and London in particular, plays as a hub for money laundering, the medias role as a public watchdog in this area is vital. When open justice is undermined there is a much wider impact, not only for redress here in the UK, but also for those in the countries where such illicit financial flows originate.

Dr Susan Hawley, the executive director of Spotlight on Corruption, said the disclosure that Mr Marandi, who has given 663,800 to the Conservative Party, had been found by the court to be either the owner or linked to several of the companies involved in the Azerbaijan laundromat case should be a wake up call to all political parties to develop proper know your donor policies.

The abject failure of political parties to do proper checks on who is donating money to them and the source of their funds is frankly scandalous, she said. It leaves our democracy hugely vulnerable to dubious influences and dirty money.

Andrew Smith, a partner at the law firm Corker Binning, said the naming of Mr Marandi was a major victory for open justice and investigative journalism, with significant implications for individuals and companies accused of wrongdoing in court proceedings but not formally under suspicion in a criminal investigation.

He said it also illustrates vividly the limits of the Supreme Courts decision in ZXC v Bloomberg, a controversial judgment which Mr Marandi sought to use to keep his connection to the money laundering case secret.

Javad Marandi (Harry Mitchell)

The judgment has been used in previous cases to win anonymity for those subject to criminal investigation, which Mr Marandi was not, before court proceedings begin, but Mr Smith said the ruling in Mr Marandis case indicated that when future asset seizing cases reached  public legal proceedings  anyone and everyone implicated in the alleged conduct can be named in open court and the media entitled to report their names.

Mark Stephens, a media lawyer at the Howard Kennedy law firm, added that the rulings in favour of naming Mr Marandi were a good reminder to all judges that the open justice principle is one of the basic tenets on which our justice system is founded and should stop anonymity orders from being dished out too lavishly.

Mr Marandis lawyers argued that because he was not a party to the proceedings brought by the NCA, which led to the forfeiture of 5.6 million of criminal proceeds from the bank accounts of three members of an Azeri oligarchs family  Parvana Feyziyeva, Orkhan Javanshir and Elman Javanshir  that he was unable to give evidence during the court proceedings, including a separate hearing over lifting his anonymity.

But his lawyers assertions have been rejected by three senior judges in the Court of Appeal and the High Court.

Lady Justice Andrews, refusing permission for an appeal at the Court of Appeal, said that although he may not have been a party to or a witness in the forfeiture proceedings .. that did not mean that he had no fair opportunity to address the allegations made against him. He could have refuted them in detail when he put in his evidence in support of his claim for anonymity. Instead, he chose to rest on a bare denial of wrongdoing.

She added that although Mr Marandis lawyers had insisted that he was only a peripheral figure in the money laundering case, his connection with the companies used to launder the money placed him at the heart of it.

Her judgment followed an earlier High Court judgment in which Mr Justice Mostyn said that during the hearing on removing anonymity Mr Marandi had relied on a letter from his solicitor denying wrongdoing but did not offer to be interviewed by, or to give a witness statement to, the NCA in order to give chapter and verse about the entities under scrutiny and to clear up any unwarranted suspicions about his role in them.

Mr Justice Mostyn added: In circumstances where the claimant never advanced an account of why the allegations against him (as they were..) or findings (as they became..) were wide of the mark, and where the evidence of the specific concrete harm he might suffer was of very little weight, his resistance to the discharge application [to remove anonymity] was in my judgment always doomed to failure.

His High Court colleague, Lord Justice Warby, said in the same judgment that Mr Marandi had the opportunity to attend the trial of the forfeiture proceedings or have someone do so on his behalf. We do not know if he did so, or if he made any attempts to provide relevant evidence. We have not been told that he did.

He also had a full and fair opportunity to press for the continuation of anonymity after judgment was delivered. There was a three-month window of opportunity in which to adduce evidence in support of his argument at that stage.
Heavy fighting in Sudan's capital as food aid needs grow Fleeing Sudanese seek refuge in Chad

KHARTOUM (Reuters) -Heavy air strikes pounded southern areas of Sudan's capital on Thursday as clashes flared near a military camp, witnesses said, in fighting that has displaced nearly 1 million people and left residents of Khartoum struggling to survive.

Air strikes by the army targeting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were heard across several residential neighbourhoods in southern Khartoum, including near the Taiba camp, while a police reserve force aligned with the army battled the RSF on the ground, the witnesses said.

Strikes could be heard across the Nile in the Sharg al-Nil district as well.

The army has mainly used air power and heavy artillery as it tries to drive back the RSF, which spread out across large areas of Khartoum and its adjoining cities of Bahri and Omdurman across the Nile after fighting erupted on April 15.

"The bombardment and the clashes don't stop and there's no way to flee from our homes. All our money is gone," said Salah el-Din Othman, a 35-year-old resident of Khartoum.

"Even if we leave our houses again we're afraid that gangs will loot everything in the house ... we are living a nightmare of fear and poverty."

Violence also flared about 1,000 km (620 miles) west of Khartoum in Nyala, one of Sudan's largest cities and the capital of South Darfur state, witnesses said. One said heavy artillery including tanks could be heard firing for the first time since a local truce was declared.

Armed gangs had started carrying out robberies in El Obeid, another major city and a trading hub in North Kordofan state, witnesses said.

Both army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, are thought to have remained in Khartoum throughout the fighting.

On Wednesday the army released a video showing Burhan dressed in army fatigues greeting troops at what appeared to be the army headquarters in central Khartoum.

AID SUPPLIES LOOTED

According to latest estimates, more than 840,000 people have been displaced within Sudan and over 220,000 have fled to neighbouring countries.

The U.N. World Food Programme said it was ramping up its operations across at least six states in Sudan to assist 4.9 million vulnerable people, as well as assisting those fleeing to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan.

"The fighting in Sudan is devastating lives and livelihoods and forcing people to flee their homes with nothing but the clothes they are wearing," WFP East Africa director Michael Dunford said in a statement.

The U.N. said on Wednesday that more than half of Sudan's 46 million population needed humanitarian assistance and protection, launching a $3 billion aid appeal.

It also said it had received reports of "horrific gender-based violence" in Sudan.

Sudanese non-governmental groups have reported such incidents amid the chaos and looting in Khartoum.

The Emergency Lawyers, an activist legal group, said in a statement that armed men had entered a university in Omdurman located in an area controlled by the RSF on Saturday and that a number of men had raped two women the lawyers group said were foreigners.

The Darfur Bar Association, a human rights organization, said on Tuesday they had spoken to three women who said they were raped after they ventured into central Khartoum searching for food supplies, without specifying who was involved.

The RSF has said its soldiers are instructed to protect civilians and those who fail to do so will be prosecuted.

The aid effort has been hampered by the deaths of some humanitarian workers early in the conflict and repeated cases of looting.

Medical aid agency MSF said that on Tuesday armed men had broken into its warehouse in Khartoum and taken two cars filled with supplies.

Burhan and Hemedti took the top positions on Sudan's ruling council following the 2019 overthrow of strongman Omar al-Bashir in a popular uprising. They staged a coup two years later as a deadline to hand power to civilians approached and they began to mobilise their respective forces.

The latest conflict broke out after disputes over plans for the RSF to join the army and over the future chain of command under an internationally backed deal for a political transition towards civilian rule.

Talks mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia in Jeddah have so far failed to secure a ceasefire.

(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz in Dubai and Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Andrew Heavens)
Moldova, fearing Russia, wants to join EU 'as soon as possible'

For Moldovan President Maia Sandu, EU membership is the only guarantee against becoming Russia's next target

Moldova wants EU membership "as soon as possible" as protection against a threat from Russia and hopes for a decision to start negotiations "in the next months," President Maia Sandu told AFP in an interview.

The small nation of 2.6 million people, nestled between EU neighbour Romania and war-ravaged Ukraine, will on June 1 hold its first major summit of wider Europe.

That gathering of the European Political Community -- a forum created last year that brings together leaders of all 27 EU countries with 20 neighbours of the bloc -- will be an occasion for Moldova to burnish its candidate credentials.

For Sandu, EU membership is the only guarantee against becoming Russia's next target.

Her country, a former Soviet republic, already has a breakaway region, Transnistria, where Russia has stationed a small number of troops.

"Of course, nothing compares to what is happening in Ukraine, but we see the risks and we do believe that we can save our democracy only as part of the EU," she said.

"We do believe that Russia will continue to be a big source of instability for the years to come and we need to protect ourselves," added Sandu, on the sidelines of a Council of Europe of summit in Iceland that wrapped up on Tuesday.

The 50-year-old leader, in office since 2020, in February accused Russia of fomenting a coup to try to seize power in Moldova.

She has called for Moldovans -- who polls show are overwhelmingly behind joining the European Union -- to hold a pro-EU rally on Sunday.

"The Ukraine war made things black and white. So it's very clear what the free world means, and what the authoritarian world means, for all of us," she said.

- 'Realistic project' -

Russia's war next door suddenly firmed up the prospect of EU membership for Ukraine and Moldova.

Both countries applied last year to join the bloc and in June 2022 became candidate countries, along with Georgia.

"We do believe that this is a realistic project for us and we are looking forward to see this happening as soon as possible," Sandu said.

Membership, however, could take a decade or more to attain, given the long list of requirements candidate countries must meet to be able to sit alongside the other nations in the European single market.

Unlike Ukraine, Moldova is small enough to be able to be integrated into the European Union relatively easily.

But it faces several challenges to bring its democratic standards up to EU levels, notably in terms of fighting corruption.

Its fragile economy, energy security and the issue of Transnistria, with its 30,000 pro-Russian population, all need to be addressed as well.

Transnistria, in the east of Moldova, is not recognised by the international community. The zone sprang up in 1990 after a brief civil war that erupted when the Soviet Union collapsed, and ended up from 1992 as a frozen conflict.

"We are struggling to have peaceful resolution of the conflict, and we've been calling on Russia to withdraw its illegally stationed troops," Sandu said.

"We need a geopolitical opportunity to be able to solve the conflict."

The president, who has started the process of taking her country out of the Russia-dominated Commonwealth of Independent States, added: "What kind of relations can you have with a regime which kills innocent people in the neighbouring country?"

Moldova was ready to cooperate only with "democratic countries, with countries which respect the territorial integrity of other countries, which respect the international rules based system," she said.

Russia brandished Ukraine's desire to one day join NATO as one of its justifications for invading its neighbour.

For Moldova, that is not a door on which it is about to knock.

Moldova was not rethinking its stance of being a neutral country for now, Sandu said.

"But there are discussions in our society about whether neutrality protects us and if at some point people will change their view, of course we will reconsider this decision. In the meantime, we are trying to consolidate the defence sector of Moldova and we are counting on our friends."

For "friends" Moldova is leaning heavily on the other participating countries of the European Political Community.

The June 1 summit in Chisnau, Sandu said, "is important because we see that we are not alone, that we have many friends".

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Swiss parliament to investigate Credit Suisse collapse A logo of Swiss bank UBS is seen in Zurich

ZURICH (Reuters) - Credit Suisse's collapse and its takeover by UBS will be investigated by a parliamentary commission (PUK), the office of Switzerland's upper house of parliament said on Wednesday.

The move comes after two sub-committees supported a deeper investigation into how the government, Swiss central bank and financial market regulator acted in the run up to the emergency rescue of Credit Suisse.

The investigation's exact mandate as well as the membership of the commission have not yet been determined, and will be decided by both legislatures during their next sessions, which begin on May 30, it said.

"Given the magnitude of the events and the financial impact, the office concludes that the establishment of a PUK is warranted," the office of the upper house said in a statement.

"The office advocates a broad formulation of the investigative mandate, ...and the clarification of the events of recent years that led to the emergency merger," it added.

Under the rescue deal engineered by Swiss authorities over one March weekend, UBS agreed to buy Credit Suisse for 3 billion Swiss francs in stock and to assume up to 5 billion francs in losses that would stem from winding down part of the business, marking the first rescue of a global bank since the 2008 financial crisis.

A regulatory filing on Tuesday in the United States showed how UBS was rushed into buying Credit Suisse in a deal it did not want, while UBS also flagged tens of billions of dollars in potential losses from the takeover.

The use of emergency laws to ease the state-engineered takeover could be among the topics up for discussion by the commission.

The bank's takeover by UBS has been backed by 200 billion Swiss francs ($225.00 billion) in support from the government, which was determined to prevent Credit Suisse's collapse triggering a broader crisis in the global financial system.

The Swiss government has also agreed to absorb up to 9 billion francs in potential losses incurred by UBS as a result of the takeover.

The investigative commission will not be able to stop the deal, it will have subpoena powers and would be expected to question managers of both banks as well government officials and have access to government meeting minutes.

The takeover, signed off by a small group of lawmakers, drew widespread public criticism, particularly for bypassing the parliament, which last month denied the deal its stamp of approval.

The action was largely symbolic and the takeover is due to go ahead, with UBS expecting to close it in coming weeks.

The commission's hearings could, however, yield new insights into how the biggest banking rescue since the global financial crisis came about.

It would be only the fifth time such a commission has been established in Switzerland's modern history, with the first one set up in 1961 to examine the commissioning process for Mirage fighter jets.

($1 = 0.8889 Swiss francs)

(Reporting by John Revill and Tomasz Janowski, Editing by Friederike Heine and Jane Merriman)
This is an important milestone for HFHs further growth as it celebrates the 25th Anniversary of providing first class healthcare to the Vietnamese and expatriate community in Ha Noi and Northern Vietnam.

Speaking at the Ceremony, Nicolas Warnery said: 2023 marks the 50th year anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Viet Nam. I highly appreciate the contributions of Hanoi French Hospital in strengthening the co-operation of the two countries in healthcare, such as recruiting talented French-speaking Vietnamese doctors and graduate students, corporations with training units and big hospitals in Ha Noi in information exchange and professional sharing."

To represent the Ministry of Health at the Ceremony, People's physician, Associate Professor Ph.D. Luong Ngoc Khue said: The Ministry of Health highly appreciates efforts by Hanoi French Hospital in applying innovative technology and recruiting talented medical professionals in Viet Nam and from other countries to provide international standard medical care."

Hanoi French Hospital launched this expansion project with the ambition of meeting the increasing demand for truly international standard healthcare of a fast-growing Vietnamese middle class along with a growing number of expatriates and foreign visitors in Ha Noi and Northern Vietnam.

In 2019, the 7-floor Inpatient building was put into operation, with state-of-the-art inpatient facilities, the latest technology and medical equipment in a unique European-style ambiance. In 2022, after COVID-19 pandemic-related delays, the refurbishment of the Outpatient and A&E building, with a dedicated Health Check Center was completed.

In December 2022, the hospital was honoured to be accredited with the Green Energy 5 Star Certificate by the Department of Industry and Trade in recognition of the hospitals efforts in being green in every aspect of operations.

With this full range of service facilities in place, Hanoi French Hospital is truly the premium European hospital in the center of Ha Noi, serving discerning local and international communities in Northern Vietnam.

Mr. Jef Peeters, CEO of Hanoi French Hospital, said: We are proud of over 25 years of track record of trusted first-class healthcare for many families and corporates. The new license that we commemorated today at our launch event is a key step in allowing Hanoi French Hospital to move forward serving more and more people who want international standard healthcare at their convenience. We will continue to bring in talented internationally trained doctors, local and foreign, who will continue to work side by side, sharing the commitment and values of providing First class healthcare to the wider local and expatriate community in Viet Nam.

Commitment to First Class Healthcare

Hanoi French Hospital is well poised for a new phase of growth with the consistent delivery of First class healthcare you deserve as the reaffirmed commitment of the hospital since its inception. Accordingly, safe and quality medical care is at the core of bringing "First class Health care". We continue to enhance our medical competencies through continuous improvement of medical projects under our Medical Strategy Plan, led by Dr. Erwan Debuc, the Chief Medical Officer who has a solid professional and leadership background and exposure to international healthcare best practices.

To continue growing HFHs Specialty medical care while continuing to align with our patient centric care model, the main thrusts of the HFH Medical Strategy Plan will be:

1. An absolute primary focus on bringing international standard quality and safety of care and patientcentered experience.

2. An integrated Mother & Child care path including comprehensive medical treatment and care dedicated to aspiring and young families. It covers from fertility assistance through pregnancy monitoring with issue management to newborn care and pediatrics for the child's well-being and parents peace of mind.

3. Deepen Internal medicine specialties with the setting up additional expertise centers for prevention, diagnosis and therapy with a particular focus on vascular disease including stroke and myocardial infracts, sleep disorders including sleep apnea, neurological conditions of aging including Parkinsons disease and tremors, cardiology including syncope center and cardiac rhythm disorders.

4. Strengthen surgical activities in a unique operating room environment, meeting the highest international standards with a team of experienced anesthesiologists to ensure the best safety for our patients and comfort (pain management) for our patients. The hospital consolidates surgical activities around specialization in the management of trauma patients with our orthopedic traumatology center, management of back pain with the spinal pathology center, adult & pediatric ENT, comprehensive medico-surgical care of hepatic diseases, stomach and colorectal disease screening and therapeutic center.

Central to the hospital is the dedication and competency of HFHs A&E Department catering to 24/7 medical needs for adults, infantile and obstetrical with an exclusive offer of emergency physicians trained in France.

On the occasion of the launch event of the expanded hospital, Hanoi French Hospital introduced a healthcare promotion campaign under the theme First Class Healthcare for Ha Noi as a confirmation of our commitment to first-class healthcare. Details of the program is in here.

Please visit our website: www.hfh.com.vn, FB Fanpage Benh vien Viet Phap Ha noi for more information about us.
The global giant Boeing inaugurated its new permanent office in Ha Noi on May 12. Its purpose, as Boeing's senior vice president Brendan Nelson said, is to house the company's growing workforce and to demonstrate its long-term commitment to aviation in Viet Nam.

Dr. Brendan Nelson spoke to Viet Nam News reporter Le Viet Dung about Boeing's operation in the country in light of the office's inauguration.

Viet Nam will be the world's 5th fastest-growing aviation market by 2035. How does Boeing plan to capitalise on this growth, and what opportunities do you see for the company in the country's aviation industry?

We have a significant presence in 20 countries outside the United States and a presence in another 35. Viet Nam is one of our most important countries - it is one of those 20.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that by 2035 there will be 150 million passenger movements in Viet Nam. And three years after that, in 2038, it will be 205 million.

We have made a commitment to Viet Nam, to its people, and to the aviation industry. We have now established a permanent office in Ha Noi, and our ten permanent staff in the office will grow in number.

This includes a master pilot, specialists in safety and air aviation regulation, and specialists in supply chain development.

We currently have six suppliers in the country. We want to grow those numbers and are working directly with five Vietnamese suppliers to train them in getting to the safety and technical standards necessary to join our supply chains.

We held the first Boeing Vietnam Aviation Industry conference last year. It attracted 100 companies, suppliers, and universities. In March, we held a four-day seminar to provide training and assistance in every aspect of airport and aviation management. We also held a suppliers conference.

And we are doing everything we can to assist Vietnamese airlines in operations and in the acquisition of new aircraft.

Major airlines are getting more serious about hydrogen-powered planes and Viet Nam is expected to produce around 20 million tonnes of the chemical by 2050. How does Boeing plan to help the country position itself as the leading hydrogen supplier for global airlines?

The Vietnamese Government has committed to net zero by 2050. We share this ambition. We are completely committed to decarbonising aviation, and every aspect of aviation in the manufacturing of aircraft, in the management of energy and waste, and in the use of fuels.

We admire the vision of the Vietnamese Government in working and investing in hydrogen. Boeing has been doing a lot of work testing hydrogen-powered and electric-powered aircraft.

In the near term, over the next 30 years, the key solution is sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). We have almost completed a detailed study of the production of SAF, feedstock, sources, and its production and distribution in Southeast Asia.

This is an area where we would like to work with Viet Nam because the country is ideally placed for the feedstock for SAF, and perhaps for its production.

We would like to explore with Viet Nam how we can work together for the production and uptake of SAF for aviation while seeing a longer-term place for hydrogen.

How does Boeing plan to support domestic suppliers?

We have six existing suppliers in Viet Nam and are working with five others to bring them up to speed. The companies are mainly what we call Tier 2 and Tier 3. Our ambition is to get more of those and get others to Tier 1.

Our responsibility is to help train Vietnamese companies to meet the quality, safety, and certification standards that are required to be part of our supply chain. We have already run one big supplier safety and quality seminar in this regard.

We have sought interest from Vietnamese companies in becoming Boeing's suppliers and are always interested in hearing from those coming to our permanent office to find out how to become one.

Regarding the current suppliers that we have in the country, about 95 per cent of their workers, professionals, and managers are Vietnamese people.

It appears that Viet Nam has an interest in Boeing's defence products. Has there been any arrangement between the country and Boeing in this regard?

Regarding defence equipment, we have already provided ScanEagles, our unmanned aerial vehicles, to the Vietnamese Coast Guard.

If the Vietnamese Government would wish to speak to us about items like helicopters for humanitarian and disaster relief, and assistance for the military, we would be willing to do so. But these are also matters for discussion between the Vietnamese Government and the United States Government.

Viet Nam's Prime Minister has asked Boeing to support the country's aerospace industry by building aircraft maintenance centres in Chu Lai, Quang Nam Province. What is your comment on this?

We have listened to the Vietnamese Government regarding the request for us to consider certain locations, including Chu Lai. We would give it serious consideration but do not have any decision to have a maintenance facility in Chu Lai or any other places at this time.

We are working with potential partners in Viet Nam, including airlines, to consider having a maintenance centre to support our customers. Part of the consideration is to have a critical mass of Boeing aircraft in need of maintenance.  VNS
HA NOI  The approval of National Power Development Plan VIII (Plan VIII) on May 15 has won loud applause from experts.

Ha ang Son, Director of the Centre for Energy and Green Growth Research, opines that Plan VIII would help Viet Nam move one step closer to its net-zero targets as it provides for the phase-out of thermal power plants toward 2030.

Another worth-noting green provision involves renewable energy, which is set at 70 per cent of the country's power mix by 2050. The provision, he believes, would give fresh impetus to the country's just energy transition.

"The Ministry of Industry and Trade has aligned the plan with Viet Nam's commitments in COP26 and JETP Political Declaration to pursue a dual goal of power security and green transition," said Son.

The director also praises the plan for its provision for new power grids in the Central Region and Southern Region, which would allow for more renewable energy plants to engage in the system.

Ngo Tuan Kiet, Head of the Institute for Energy Technologies, opines that Plan VIII would help accelerate energy projects in progress, reducing the risk of power shortages between 2025 and 2030.

Another good point of Plan VIII is that it is more flexible than the previous plans, giving policymakers more elbow room to pursue the dual goal.

The head also reveals that his institute was picked as an adviser to the Ministry of Industry and Trade during the formulation of the plan. From April 2022 to April 2023, the ministry was actively revising its drafted versions to keep the plan in line with the latest developments in the world.

"The ministry has incorporated into the plan a vision for energy hubs that would produce green power for not only domestic consumption but also exports," said Kiet.

Economist Vo Tri Thanh told Viet Nam News that the timely approval of Plan VIII would reduce the policy uncertainty perceived by investors, giving a boost to the economy across the board.

"Plan VIII would pay the way for a more competitive power market," said Thanh.

Against a backdrop of complicated geopolitical conflicts and fast-paced technological advancement, the plan would require unconventional ways of implementation to get its results within such a short time frame.

Analysts from the Vietnam Energy Magazine opine that several novel mechanisms introduced by Plan VIII are essential for the country's transition to green energy, including carbon taxes and energy bids.

However, they believe that the list of mechanisms is not exhaustive. They call for another mechanism to be added to the plan, which would serve as a catalyst for the phase-in of offshore wind energy in the country.

They also call for specific favourable policies to speed up slow-paced projects, such as Ca Voi Xanh and Long Phu, to have them completed on schedule.

"We need to conduct more studies on a mechanism for direct power purchase. The absence of such a mechanism has been a major hindrance to the growth of renewable energy," said an analyst. VNS
HA NOI  The Viet Nam-Japan joint venture Nghi Son Cement Corporation (NSCC) said it has exported 31,500 tonnes of cement to the US, its first batch to the market.

The shipment is considered a good sign given the gloomy situation facing the construction sector.

Experts said that between mid-April 2022 and now, Viet Nams quiet construction situation has directly affected the sales of the building material market. In addition, the countrys cement exports have also plunged to record lows in many years.

The joint venture between the Vietnam Cement Corporation (Vicem) and two Japanese multinational corporations, namely Taiheiyo Cement (TCC) and Mitsubishi Materials (MMC), was established in 1995.  VNS
HA NOI  Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Thursday hosted a reception for Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is on a working visit to Viet Nam.

At the meeting, PM Chinh spoke highly of the role and efforts of the WTO Director-General in managing and promoting the organisations activities, and congratulated Okonjo-Iweala on her remarkable achievements since she took office in March 2021.

He shared Viet Nam's successes, stressing that the nation is consistent with its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, diversification and multilateralisation of relations, and extensive and comprehensive international integration.

According to the PM, after more than 35 years of its renewal (oi moi), Viet Nam's economy reached US$409 billion, with per capita income increasing to $4,100 USD from $160. Viet Nam has been among 20 leading economies in terms of international trade. The country signed about 100 bilateral and multilateral trade agreements and over 60 investment protection and encouragement deals.

As a responsible member of the WTO, Viet Nam advocates promoting its active role in the WTO's cooperation frameworks, strives to fulfill its commitments and makes positive contributions to issues of common concern of the organisation, he affirmed.

Viet Nam has always supported an open, transparent, fair and rules-based multilateral trade system in which the WTO plays a central role in promoting trade and investment, and helping countries effectively respond to challenges, PM Chinh said.

He expressed his hope that the WTO will continue its support for member countries to seize opportunities from shifting trends and reshape supply chains, production, and investment, especially developing and underdeveloped countries.

The government leader suggested the WTO continue to strongly and practically reform itself to affirm its role as a foundation for the transparent and fair multilateral trade system that brings practical benefits to countries, including Viet Nam.

Viet Nam is willing to share its experience in fulfilling its WTO accession commitments; promoting trade growth, socio-economic development, poverty reduction, and inequality reduction in society, and women's empowerment, he said, adding that the nation is ready to coordinate with other WTO members to contribute practical and effectively to the organisations activities in the future.

The PM hoped that the Director-General and WTO will continue its cooperation and financial and technical assistance programmes for Viet Nam to help the Southeast Asian nation improve the efficiency of international economic integration.

For her part, Okonjo-Iweala congratulated Viet Nam on its socio-economic development achievements, saying that the countrys successes have inspired and provided experience for many countries around the world.

While the world economy has faced many difficulties and challenges, Viet Nam's economy has been still growing at a relatively high rate because the country has operated financial and monetary policies flexibly and effectively, the WTO Director-General said.

She agreed with PM Chinh's views on the WTOs reform as well as strengthening cooperation between the organisation and Viet Nam, saying that the WTO wants to cooperate with the country in developing green economy, digital economy, and inclusive economy, and in caring for vulnerable groups, women and children so that no one is left behind.  VNS
HA NOI  Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical and Tecnimont on Thursday signed a Front End Engineering Design (FEED) service contract for the Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant Project.

Alongside working with worldwide leading PDH and PP technology licensors, through international competitive bidding, Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Joint Stock Company recently announced Maire Tecnimont as its Front End Engineering Design (FEED) contractor for the Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant Project with the estimated completion time of 10 months.

Accordingly, the FEED services package will be handled by Tecnimont S.p.A, the Integrated E&C Solutions subsidiary of MAIRE, an Italian engineering group that develops and implements innovative technologies in nitrogen, hydrogen and circular carbon, fuels and chemicals, and polymers sectors. Tecnimont is currently one of the global leading players in the fields of engineering and construction of plant complexes using PDH and PP technology. The company is also a long-term partner of major technology licensors, namely Honeywell UOP and LyondellBasell.

inh uc Thang, Chairman and CEO of Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical, said: The global demand for petrochemical products is expected to increase in line with the strong growth of the downstream manufacturing industry, especially in Asia  Pacific. The demand for raw materials in the Vietnamese market alone in 2022 was about 8 million tonnes, with PP and PE having the largest consumption, accounting for 55 per cent of the total import volume of the whole industry. From now to 2025, the domestic market demand is still estimated to grow at an average rate of 6.6 per cent per year despite very limited domestic supply capacity, leaving so much room for development. With such potential, we are pleased to cooperate with Tecnimont to keep the project on track and further contribute to ensuring Viet Nams independence of raw materials for the processing  manufacturing industry, one of the main focuses of the Vietnamese sustainable and circular economy roadmap.

In Viet Nam, Tecnimont has successfully implemented the FEED service package for Phu My Plastics Production Project in 2021. With knowledge and experience of the local nature, management system, standards, and mechanisms, Tecnimont confidently will reap success with the Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant Project, promising to keep the project in line with the plan and achieve the highest safety, quality, and efficiency.

Emanuele Pozzati, Sales Chemical & Petrochemical Vice President of Tecnimont, said: As a world-leading EPC Contractor, Tecnimont is honoured to be part of the Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant Project and will do our best to bring our internationally recognised competence to realise a top-class petrochemical complex and boost Stavian growth to the top-ranked companies in the sector.

Front End Engineering Design is a crucial phase in any plant construction project. This will create the foundation for later important phases like detailed engineering design, procurement, installation of machinery and equipment, and plant construction. By choosing a well-known design partner, the company wants to bring Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Plant on par with the other sizable petrochemical manufacturing plants across Viet Nam and the region.

When put into operation, Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical Factory promises to contribute to the reduction of petrochemical products and raw materials import for domestic manufacturing industries while creating a foundation for future projects in downstream and related industries in the area. At the same time, the project will contribute trillions of dong per year to the State Budget and create thousands of highly skilled jobs. Not only that, Stavian Quang Yen Petrochemical commits to minimising the impact on the environment and accompanying the Vietnamese Government to reach the national net-zero carbon emission target by 2050.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam will be the Country of Focus (COF) of the 14th Asian Festival of Childrens Content (AFCC) as this year marks 50 years of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Singapore.

The festival, which will take place at the National Library Building in Singapore from May 25-28, returns as a fully in-person event, celebrating the theme Play!. With over 70 programmes featuring more than 100 writers and speakers from Singapore and around the world, AFCC 2023 explores the different dimensions of Play through books, stories and performances.

According to Nguyen Nguyen, Director of the Publishing, Printing and Distribution Department, Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese Publishers Association (VPA), the Vietnamese participants in this years event are encouraged to have thorough preparation and coordination with each other to promote Vietnamese literature.

The VPA and participating units will set up booths to introduce outstanding Vietnamese children's books, special and creative publications as well as reading devices.

Eleven Vietnamese publishers and contributors in Viet Nam will attend the event, including the HCM City General Publishing House, The Gioi (World) Publishing House, Kim ong Publishing House and inh Ti Books.

"Many foreign countries are not yet familiar with Vietnamese publishing, but those who know about it have a high opinion of it. Therefore, we need to make an effort to clearly demonstrate the development of Vietnamese books," the director told zing.vn.

According to Vu Thi Yen, public relations and copyright exploitation officer of the HCM City General Publishing House, AFCC 2023 offers an opportunity for the unit to promote the exploitation of foreign copyrights and vice versa, the selling of the copyrights of Vietnamese books to the world.

It is also expected to enhance further the position of Vietnamese authors, publishers and their works in the global publishing map, she added.

To prepare for this book festival, the publisher plans to introduce children's books that meet its criteria and target audience. Multilingual childrens books particularly include Hip Hop in the Land of Ellsaby and Hip Hop and the Golden Forest by author Isabelle Muller, which have been released in Viet Nam in three languages - English, German and Vietnamese, or bilingual book series Teaching Children Life Skills and Teaching Children Financial Management by Le Thi Linh Trang and Dr. Ngo Thi Thanh Tien.

According to the organisers of AFCC 2023, the COF Vietnam programmes at AFCC will be an occasion to celebrate this milestone and highlight the history of children's literature in Viet Nam and publishing opportunities, as well as a special showcase of the best picture book illustrations.

Participants will get the chance to meet the best of Viet Nams children's book writers and illustrators at the Country of Focus showcase.

In the opening session of programmes which will be held on May 25, translator Tran Le Thuy Linh, author Vu Xuan Hoan and moderator Nguyen Thanh Nam will offer an in-depth look into the current market of childrens books in Viet Nam. Participants will learn about the current publishing developments and trends, as well as the challenges and opportunities.

Viet Nam Women's Publishing House will share how they have developed the Sci-tales series that aims to bring the element of fun into the learning process in collaboration with a team of creators from Viet Nam on May 26.

On the final day of the COF Vietnam programmes, creators of three Vietnamese childrens books, Finding Mommy Elephant, The Call of the Wild, and My Daddy is a Runner, will share their inspirations, the process of creating stories and also practical advice on the diverse range of interactive activities that parents and children can engage in.

The programmes conclude with COF Vietnam Night which celebrates the partnership between Viet Nam and Singapore with performances and the launch of translated children's books.

AFCC is the leading festival in Asia for childrens stories and young adult fiction. Targeted at writers, illustrators, translators, publishers, educators and media professionals, the event offers a series of exciting programmes, including panel discussions, presentations, workshops, lectures, masterclasses, networking sessions and public programmes that promote the creation and appreciation of quality children's and young adult literature with a focus on Asian themes. VNS
HA NOI  Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh called for businesses to focus on investing in science and technological advances, especially in new inventions that foster green, sustainable and eco-friendly development.

In his speech at the ceremony celebrating Viet Nam's Science and Technology Day (May 18) held on Wednesday, PM Chinh emphasised the need to prop up the spirit of innovation.

"In an ever-changing world, to reach our goals, we need to nurture and further encourage the spirit of science, technology and innovation," said the Prime Minister.

The ceremony, titled "Science, Technology and Innovation - Source of Sustainable Development" was organised by the Ministry of Science and Technology to celebrate the annual Science and Technology Day, a celebration held annually for the past 10 years.

According to Huynh Thanh at, Minister of Science and Technology, the anniversary is a great celebration of scientists and innovators nationwide.

To celebrate the day, many activities are held this week across Viet Nam by authorities and localities, institutes as well as universities.

Laboratories and institutes are also open for students and citizens to observe and explore the works of science and the development of technology.

These activities are perceived by at to have ignited the passion for innovation in society, and formed a love for science in young people, helping to create a society that respects science and innovation.

In his speech, PM Chinh also highlighted the importance of developing a passion for innovation in young people.

"We need good teachers, scientists, engineers as well as good management to plan and develop science and technology in Viet Nam. Vietnamese expatriate scientists' help is also needed in this development," Chinh said.

"Late President Ho Chi Minh once said, 'The revolution of socialism is tied with the development of science and technology, as well as the development of the people's culture'.

"I believe that with the will and resolve, the science and technology industry in Viet Nam will conquer difficulties and challenges... to make great and practical contributions in building a greater, more prosperous Viet Nam," said Chinh.

Young scientists honoured for sustainable development

A conference, titled "Young Scientists and Sustainable Development Goals" was also held by VnExpress on Wednesday, in celebration of late President Ho Chi Minh's birthday (May 19) as well as Viet Nam's Science and Technology Day.

In his opening speech, Nguyen Hoang Giang, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, praised the conference's theme and hoped that the conference can be a place where scientists and regulators can congregate and come up with great solutions.

The environmental problems that Viet Nam is experiencing were a concern among the conference attendees, especially the effects of environmental pollution on human health. In order to address the problems of sustainable environmental development, the speakers discussed sustainable development solutions and offered numerous research directions for science.

Bui Thanh Van, head of the organising committee for the 2023 Science Innovation Competition, stated at the event that this is the second year the competition has been held with the intention of encouraging young people to love science and technology and finding practical applications for it in their daily lives.

The Science Innovation Competition, a part of the conference, aimed to act as a link between the innovations of both professional and amateur scientists and researchers and the investment funds and manufacturing firms that can put these innovations into use in real-world applications.

Furthermore, recognising exceptional innovations can encourage and motivate young scientists across the nation to conduct research.

Thirty out of 130 innovations made it to the final of the competition, with the first prize going to the project "New TIR lens for high-capacity LED light", by Nguyen oan Quoc Anh and his associates.  VNS
HA NOI  Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang hosted a reception in Ha Noi on Wednesday for Nicholas Moore, Australia's Special Envoy for Southeast Asia, who is on a working visit to Viet Nam.

Quang spoke highly of the fine development of bilateral relations, with two-way trade hitting US$15.7 billion in 2022, up 26.7 per cent year-on-year, making Australia Viet Nam's seventh largest trade partner, and Viet Nam the 10th largest trader with Australia.

Nicholas Moore said that the Australian Government and business community appreciated the "quality" of the Viet Nam-Australia ties, and affirmed that the relationship with Viet Nam was a "priority" of the Australian Government.

At the meeting, the two sides discussed measures to more effectively tap cooperation potential, especially in trade and investment, through increasing the awareness of the business community and consumers of the two countries, expanding market access opportunities, and cooperating to improve the capacity of enterprises.

The Deputy PM affirmed that the Vietnamese Government always listened to the opinions of enterprises and helped them deal with difficulties, while building a more favourable business and investment environment.

He proposed Australia support and share experience with Viet Nam in the fields of renewable energy, digital transformation, green transformation, and climate change response. Moore confirmed Australia would be willing to share experience and cooperate with Viet Nam in these fields.

Quang also suggested the Australian Government give Viet Nam a worthy position in the Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040.

Viet Nam and Australia set up their diplomatic ties on February 26, 1973, and upgraded their ties to a Comprehensive Partnership in 2009, an Enhanced Comprehensive Partnership in 2015, and a Strategic Partnership in March 2018.  VNS
(Photo : SERGEY SHESTAK/AFP via Getty Images)

Ukraine said that it had shot down six Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a weapon that Moscow had billed as a hypersonic missile of the next generation.

According to Ukrainian and American officials, Ukraine's air defense shot down six of the most sophisticated conventional weapons in Russia's arsenal, hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, during a bombardment of missiles and drones aimed at Kyiv on Tuesday.

At least one Kinzhal had struck a Patriot system, the most advanced US ground-based air-defense system, which Washington had delivered to Ukraine in response to its urgent requests for assistance in defending against an onslaught of a Russian missile and drone attacks.

Ukraine Reports Shooting Down Russian Hypersonic Missiles

The Ukrainian Air Force did not specify whether the Patriot system was responsible for intercepting Russian missiles during one of the largest aerial assaults by Moscow since early March.

Two US officials verified that a Patriot was disabled, not destroyed, in the attack on Tuesday night. And one of the Americans affirmed that six Kinzhal missiles had been intercepted by Ukraine, according to NY Times.

Officials from the United States stated that the Patriot system, which was stationed on an airfield, was still operational against all threats, including hypersonic missiles, following an evaluation of the system's damage to determine whether parts of the system needed to be replaced or could be repaired.

According to the RIA news agency, when queried about the Ukrainian claim, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu dismissed it. Shoigu said a Kinzhal obliterated an American-made Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system.

"A hypersonic Kinzhal missile carried out a high-precision strike on a Patriot anti-aircraft missile system in the Ukrainian capital," the defense ministry said, as per Reuters.

Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, stated earlier that his forces had intercepted six Kinzhals launched from aircraft, nine Kalibr cruise missiles launched from ships in the Black Sea, and three Iskanders launched from land.

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Russia's Advanced Weapons

Russian President Vladimir Putin has promoted the Kinzhals as a crucial strategic competitive advantage and one of the most advanced weapons in Russia's arsenal. Due to their hypersonic speed and maneuverability, it is difficult to detect and intercept these missiles, ABC News said.

If Ukraine's claim that it shot down six missiles launched on Tuesday is confirmed, it would be another setback to Putin's war efforts and demonstrate the country's increasingly effective air defenses.

According to Ukraine's military, Russia launched a total of 37 sorties and 27 missiles in a single day against Ukraine. Explosions were heard over Kyiv during a significant nighttime attack that was evidently intended to overwhelm Ukraine's air defenses. The mayor of Kyiv reported that three persons were injured.

European leaders were seeking new methods to punish Russia for the conflict, and a Chinese envoy was attempting to gain momentum for Beijing's peace proposal, which appeared to have little impact on the warring parties. It also occurred as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky returned from a whirlwind tour of Europe in search of additional military assistance.

Advanced Western air defense systems, including Patriot missiles, have helped to spare Kyiv from the devastation seen along the country's principal front line in the east and south. While the majority of ground combat is stalemated along this front line, both parties are employing long-range armaments to target another territory.

Related Article: Zelensky Reaps Billions of Dollars in Aids During Europe Tour as Ukraine Prepares for Counteroffensive Against Russia

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HA NOI  Politburo member and permanent member of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV) Central Committee's Secretariat Truong Thi Mai hosted a reception for a high-ranking delegation from the Committees for the Defence of the Revolution of Cuba (CDR) led by its National Coordinator Gerardo Hernandez Nordelo in Ha Noi on Wednesday.

During the reception, Mai expressed her joy at the fruitful development of the special solidarity and friendship between the two Parties, States and peoples, saying that the relationship is a valuable common property that needs to be preserved and constantly developed.

She affirmed that the Vietnamese Party, State and people always stood side by side and wish to further tighten the special solidarity and friendship with their Cuban counterparts, towards further strengthening the bilateral relations in the time to come.

Mai affirmed the support of the Party and the State of Viet Nam for Cuba in the process of updating the socio-economic development model, expressing the belief the Cuban people, under the leadership of the Communist Party of Cuba, would continue to make efforts to overcome difficulties and challenges, thus protecting the revolutionary achievements and realising the goal of socialism in the Latin American nation.

Mai also appreciated the traditional friendship between the Viet Nam Fatherland Front (VFF) and the CDR, suggesting the two sides work closely to effectively implement their cooperation agreement for the 2023-28 period, thus contributing to tightening and deepening the friendship and cooperation between the two organisations, and the Cuba - Viet Nam special friendship relationship in general.

For his part, Gerardo Hernandez Nordelo, who is also a member of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee, briefed on the current situation in Cuba and the CDR, affirming the admiration of the Cuban people at the resilient example of Vietnamese people in the past struggle for national liberation and national development at present.

He said he believed that under the leadership of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, headed by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, the Vietnamese people would achieve many greater achievements, for further development in the future.  VNS
HA NOI  Leaders and formers leaders of the Vietnamese Party, State, National Assembly, Government and Viet Nam Fatherland Front Central Committee laid wreaths in tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum in Ha Noi on Thursday, on the occasion of the late President's 133rd birth anniversary (May 19, 1890-2023).

Joining the delegation were President Vo Van Thuong, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong inh Hue, and President of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front Central Committee o Van Chien.

Former Party General Secretary Nong uc Manh, former President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, former NA Chairpersons Nguyen Van An, Nguyen Sinh Hung and Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan also attended the ceremony.

Expressing their gratitude to the late President, the Party and State leaders pledged that the entire Party, people and army will continue following his invaluable guidance to bring the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress to life and successfully accomplish socio-economic programmes.

Later, the delegation offered incense and paid floral tribute to fallen combatants at the Monument to Heroes and Martyrs on Bac Son Street.

On the morning of the same day, delegations from the Central Military Commission - Ministry of National Defence, the Central Public Security Party Committee - Ministry of Public Security, and the municipal Party Committee, Peoples Council and Peoples Committee of Ha Noi also laid wreaths in tribute to President Ho Chi Minh and fallen combatants.  VNS
Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son spoke to the media in Japan about Viet Nam's participation at the G7 Summit and the celebration of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Japan.

What is your view on the importance of Viet Nams participation at the G7 Summit with Partners in Hiroshima, Japan?

At the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will attend the upcoming G7 Summit with Partners in Hiroshima, Japan. His attendance at this Summit bears great significance for Viet Nam in numerous aspects.

First and foremost, the G7 Summit with Partners is an important international forum, where leaders of the top 7 industrial countries and representatives of other high-profile states and international organisations gather to exchange views on strengthening cooperation in addressing global issues.

This is the 3rd time that Viet Nam has been invited to attend the G7 Summit with Partners in the past 7 years. This bears vivid testament to the recognition by G7 countries and the international community of Viet Nams increasing stature and active contributions in high responsibility to bolster joint efforts worldwide in response to global challenges over the past years.

During this summit, Viet Nam will continue to work closely with the international community to outline and implement substantive and effective measures to bolster regional and international cooperation. Such endeavours will serve to maintain peace and stability, expedite sustainable post-pandemic recovery and growth, and tackle global issues on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. These include energy security, food security, climate action, disease prevention, and gender equality, among others.

Viet Nam is determined to fulfil its commitments to addressing common challenges facing the region and the world, including the pledge to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. At the event, Viet Nam will share its development experience in its capacity as a developing country currently undergoing industrialisation, modernisation, and comprehensive and extensive international integration.

In addition, Viet Nam hopes that G7 countries and those attending the summit will also provide useful lessons and effective practices in tackling issues around the world and resolving challenges against sustainable development, particularly for developing countries.

Bilaterally, this is the second time that Japan, as the G7 host, invites Viet Nam to attend the G7 Summit with Partners. Viet Nams participation in this summit is of even greater importance, for it coincides with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Japan.

This bears vivid testament to the strong political trust between the two countries, and the robust and comprehensive growth of the Viet Nam-Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership. This also demonstrates the common positions and interests between the two countries regarding regional and international issues.

On the occasion of the G7 Summit, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and meet with Japanese leaders, businesses, and friends. These meetings serve to exchange views on the ways and mean to add fresh impetus to the ever-thriving Viet Nam-Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership. They also bring about further benefits for the two peoples, and make greater contributions to peace, stability, and development cooperation in the region and beyond.

At the same time, the Summit also provides an opportunity for Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to meet with leaders of other countries and international organisations, with a view to strengthening bilateral cooperation and discussing issues of mutual interest.

2023 marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Japan. Can you elaborate on how Viet Nam wishes to further strengthen its ties with Japan? In which areas does Viet Nam wish to bolster its cooperation with Japan?

Viet Nam and Japan enjoy a great many cultural similarities. The connection between the two peoples has also enjoyed extensive growth throughout the history of Viet Nam - Japan ties. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 50 years ago, despite the ups and downs in the region and the world, the friendship and cooperation between Viet Nam and Japan have witnessed robust and comprehensive growth in all areas. These entail politics, economic cooperation, defence, security, socio-cultural relations, and people-to-people exchange, among others.

To this very day, the sincere affection, mutual trust, and the Extensive Strategic Partnership between Viet Nam and Japan have become the underlying foundation for the two countries collaboration at all levels, across all sectors, and among all social strata. Japan is among Viet Nams top economic partners.

It is also Viet Nams top ODA provider, 3rd largest partner in terms of FDI and tourism, and 4th largest trading partner.

We do hope that the two countries' relations will continue to grow extensively and sustainably on the basis of political trust, economic efficiency, and diverse people-to-people exchanges and socio-cultural activities, so as to fulfil the aspirations and interests of the two peoples.

To this end, the two countries need to continue to increase exchange of leaders visits, deepen political and diplomatic cooperation, and strengthen defence and security ties. Such endeavours will help consolidate political trust, and contribute to the development of each country as well as to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and beyond.

Viet Nam is striving to realise its development visions and goals. These include becoming an upper-middle income country with a modern industrial base by 2030, and a developed, high-income country by 2045. As sincere friends and reliable partners, Viet Nam looks forward to Japans increasingly substantive cooperation and support to achieve such goals.

For the time being, the two countries should continue to expand and improve the efficiency of economic collaboration, particularly in fostering post-pandemic economic recovery and diversifying supply chains. It is also important to maintain the effective and substantive implementation of signed bilateral agreements and treaties, especially the Viet Nam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, CPTPP, and RCEP.

We stand ready to work with Japan to explore new directions and cooperation mechanisms in potential fields. These include science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, green growth, and clean energy. We highly appreciate Japan's commitment to providing next-generation ODA to Viet Nam. Such assistance will be harnessed for building critical infrastructure for transportation, combating climate change and developing high-quality human resources. It will also be very much appreciated if Japan would encourage its businesses to increase their investment in Viet Nam in fields such as supporting industries, high-tech industries, agricultural modernisation, and the environment, among others.

In addition, it is necessary to further expand and deepen cooperation in education and training, healthcare, culture, tourism, and exchanges between the two countries localities and peoples. These should be carried out via increasingly diverse, high-quality and effective means. For the time being, the two countries should work closely to organise meaningful activities in celebration of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

What role does Viet Nam expect Japan to play in the international community? In which specific areas can the two countries enhance cooperation to fulfil regional and global security and development goals?

Japan has made many important efforts and contributions to regional and global security and development. Japan is currently the G7 host and will soon assume the UNSC non-permanent membership for the 2023-24 term. We hope that Japan, in such capacities, will play an increasingly important role and make active and responsible contributions to consolidating a peaceful and stable environment, promoting cooperation in addressing common global and regional challenges, and assisting developing countries in realising Sustainable Development Goals.

As Extensive Strategic Partners with high political trust and common positions on many international issues, Viet Nam and Japan will continue to coordinate and support each other on issues of mutual interest at multilateral and regional forums, especially the United Nations, ASEAN, APEC, and Mekong sub-regional cooperation arrangements.

Viet Nam wishes to join Japan and the international community in contributing to maintaining peace, stability and cooperation in the region, and upholding the UN Charter and international law.

We also strive to enhance regional economic linkages and infrastructure connectivity, especially in Southeast Asia and the Mekong sub-region. Moreover, Viet Nam also aspires to bolster collaboration in developing digital economy, green economy, and circular economy, protecting the environment, responding to climate change, and ensuring energy security and food security.

Given the strong foundation of friendship, sincerity and mutual trust, and the determination and efforts of the leaders and peoples of both countries, the Viet Nam-Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership will be increasingly and effectively strengthened, for the prosperity of each country and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.  VNS
HA NOI  The Vietnamese foreign ministry on Thursday criticised the use of 'unverified, incorrect information on the situation in Viet Nam" in the United States International Religious Freedom Report 2022 as well as the annual report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.

Deputy spokesperson for the foreign ministry Pham Thu Hang, during the regular press conference in Ha Noi, stressed: "As a multi-ethnic country with diverse religious life, the State of Viet Nam consistently implemented the policy of respecting and ensuring the freedom of religion and the right to follow or not follow a religion, ensuring equality and non-discrimination based on religious beliefs."

"Religious organisations activities are also protected under the law," Hang noted.

These rights are prescribed in the 2013 Constitution the 2016 Law on Belief and Religion as well as other relevant legal documents, and these rights have been upheld in practice, the diplomat said.

Hang said that while both these reports from the US, released in May this year, have recognised Viet Nam's certain progress in promoting religious freedom and referenced official information from Vietnamese Government agencies, but still made "unobjective assessments" based on unproven, erroneous information on the situation in the country.

The foreign ministry's representative also reiterated that Viet Nam is willing and ready to discuss with the US pressing issues of mutual interest, "on the basis of openness, candour, and mutual respect, to contribute to the strengthening of the comprehensive partnership between two countries."

Trafficking case

A question on the rescue of over a thousand people, which included Vietnamese citizens, in a police anti-trafficking operation in a city in the Philippines in early May, was also raised at the briefing.

Hang said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Vietnamese embassy in the Philippines are working closely with local competent authorities to determine the residential status of these labourers as well as working to provide information to help local authorities come up with solutions to address and investigate this case, so that together citizen protection measures could be promptly carried out to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the Vietnamese citizens.

"I'd like to take this opportunity to emphasise that the Vietnamese Government's policy is to promote legal, safe and orderly migration while resolutely fighting against illegal migration human smuggling and human trafficking," the deputy spokesperson said.

Hang stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has worked with competent authorities to raise awareness among the people interested in working abroad, to caution them against false promises of 'easy work, high salary' that don't require certification, as they could potentially become victims of labour exploitation of gambling facilities, illegal residence, or even human trafficking.

Death in Japan

Asked on the death of a 29-year-old man thought to be Vietnamese while being detained at a police station in Japan's Ibaraki Prefecture in late April, the foreign ministry's deputy spokesperson said they have received the information on the incident.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has directed Vietnamese diplomatic missions in Japan to continue working with local competent authorities to verify this information and report the result and to get ready to provide necessary protection measures to ensure the rights and interests of the Vietnamese national, Hang said.

The man in question was detained at the Shimotsuma police station in Ibaraki on April 20, 2023, for suspected violation of residency laws, and the police noted that at the time, he fell and injured his left shoulder.

Doctors at Tsukuba Hospital, Ibaraki, diagnosed the person with bruising and prescribed pain medication and a patch. The man's health was said to be fine, and there were no other injuries on his body.

On April 29th, he ate very little of the breakfast offered, then became unconscious and was taken to the hospital where he later died.

The Shimotsuma police station announced that they are investigating the temporary detention system, but "have not found any issues" so far.  VNS
HA NOI  Vietnamese authorities are taking appropriate measures to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of Viet Nam in the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea).

Deputy spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang made the remarks on Thursday during the press briefing in Ha Noi, in response to questions over Viet Nam's reaction to reports of activities of a Chinese survey vessel operating within Viet Nam's waters in recent days.

"Viet Nam holds sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction towards the waters in the South China Sea in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," Hang said.

For incidents that infringe upon the sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction of Viet Nam over these waters, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese authorities are implementing "appropriate measures in accordance with international and Vietnamese law to ensure the lawful and legitimate rights and interests of Viet Nam."

On a related issue, with regards to the recent opening of a Hong Kong restaurant in Phu Lam (Woody) Island of Viet Nam's Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago by the Chinese authorities, Hang said Viet Nam has full legal basis and historical evidence to assert its sovereignty over the Paracel Islands accordance with international law.

"We strongly oppose any action that violates Viet Nam's sovereignty and sovereign rights over these islands," the foreign ministry's representative stressed.

On Philippine Coast Guard's installation of navigational buoys to assert sovereignty over Spratly Islands, the deputy spokesperson said that "As reiterated on numerous occasions, Viet Nam has sufficient historical ground and legal basis to assert its sovereignty over Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands in accordance with international law."

Viet Nam objects to all actions that breach the country's sovereignty and sovereign rights over the archipelago, Hang said.

Viet Nam asks all relevant parties respect Viet Nam's sovereignty, international law, the Declaration of Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), and to make meaningful and active contributions to the maintenance of peace and stability in the South China Sea, as well as create favourable conditions for the negotiations of the Code of Conduct (COC).  VNS
By Le Huong

The new paint of a villa dating to the French colonial era at 49 Tran Hung ao Street in downtown Ha Noi has been a burning issue for the public and particularly heritage lovers. People have argued about the striking new colours of the building.

The renovation is great news for Ha Noi, Martin Rama, a consultant to the President of the World Bank, who had spent many years living in Ha Noi, told Viet Nam News.

Not that the building is extraordinary from an architectural point of view, but there are not so many of these villas left in the city, around 1,000 of them. And they are being demolished. They are crumbling. They're falling apart. They're being replaced by new buildings, and that's bad for the visual aspect of Ha Noi.

An extraordinary mix of different traditions, cultural, architectural, tree-lined streets. Keeping these buildings is very valuable for the city.

But there has been debate on the bold new colours. Many feel the building no longer fits with the aesthetics of the street.

People may have a point. We all like the more romantic looks of the villas in yellow tones with the vegetation growing on them," Rama said.

"But anyway, with the weather of Ha Noi we know what will happen. It will look like a normal Ha Noi building in a matter of years. The debate itself is very good as it shows that people now care about the preservation of the architectural heritage of the city. A few years ago, I would say very few people cared.

The two-storey villa, a government property on the area of 990sq.m, was almost abandoned for many years. The renovation project was planned in 2016, but it actually started in April 2022 at a cost of VN14.7 billion (US$630,000) by Hoan Kiem District authorities and experts from Paris. It is almost complete.

According to architect Emmanuel Cerise, who is responsible for the project, they had very few materials and images of the building to work with.

Its courageous and interesting to present an example of this type of restoration with gentle colours and faux bricks, he said.

We tend to think that French-era villas have pale colours because those are colours that have been weathered through time and lost their vibrancy. But the truth is that the colours are not pale.

Historian Duong Trung Quoc showed sympathy for the restorers. He said the experts must have done serious research on the villas materials and designs before making any final decisions.

The capital has a huge architectural heritage, besides big villas used as State offices, there are private villas, and even entire streets of villas.

Quoc complained that bad urban management in certain periods had resulted in the disappearance of many French-era buildings.

He also said Ha Noi authorities had paid much attention to this through serious research and surveys as well as policies.

"We have well-used many buildings like today's Central Library, the Presidential Palace, Albert Sarraut Lycee, and Government Guest House, and the People's High Court of Justice," he said.

Quoc said 49 Tran Hung ao was formerly a private villa with almost no materials or images of it recorded.

According to the Ha Noi Citys Construction Department, there are over 1,200 villas from the French era, of which 367 were managed by the State, 372 others by both individuals and State, and 117 possessed entirely by private individuals.

The buildings have been listed in various groups: 222 in Group 1 that need restoring following the original design; 356 in Group 2 needing to keep the external design; and 638 in Group 3, which can be demolished in case their conditions further deteriorate.

Adaptive restoration

Many experts have proposed adaptive restoration for French villas in Ha Noi.

Architect Truong Ngoc Lan, deputy head of the Architecture and Urban Planning Faculty under the Ha Noi University of Civil Engineering, appreciated the architectural heritage of the French era.

In terms of the professional architecture factor, buildings by the French built before 1954 have various values in terms of history, society and art, he said.

"The appearance of French buildings has created a new type of living style. Before, Vietnamese people lived in attached houses built in a rural style. Since the French arrived, they built houses in the Western style, with multi-functions. The French buildings marked the development of Vietnamese society from tradition to modernity."

Lan emphasised the change of art concepts and the way of thinking about beauty.

Before we had the traditional style of art, yet the next generations accepted a fresh western stream of art, which has turned out to be an essential part of Vietnamese peoples artistic life, he said.

Lan also mentioned the values in terms of the technology of French architects who skilfully combined the existing spaces with western design and eastern sloped roofs, local decorative patterns, and various adaptive solutions to the Ha Noi tropical weather.

Lan said the French houses in Ha Noi were a valuable architectural heritage, forming the identity of the city. But he was worried that the restoration of villas in the city had not been carried out properly.

Many buildings have been possessed by different individuals and organizations who are not fully aware of the heritages values, he said. Many villas have not been classified yet. Over time, such houses are sold and demolished for other modern buildings.

Lan said such restorations, like the building on Tran Hung ao Street, had been regularly conducted but due to limited budgets, there were only a few buildings restored this way.

We should learn the adaptive restoration from well-developed countries where people understand the value of heritage, know the benefits of doing good restoration and are bound by detailed and clarified laws he said.

Residents still can exploit the economic effectiveness of the buildings while keeping the core designs.

Architect Tran Quoc Bao, from the same faculty, supported this idea.

We should let residents know that they benefit from restoration like in other countries. They have strict regulations that people living inside heritage buildings who want to upgrade must submit plans to concerned agencies," he said.

"Most will upgrade the house while keeping the external appearance. They may make some changes like replacing wooden windows with metal frames, but they keep the original form. And the city spares a certain budget to support the renovation while keeping the appearance of historical buildings.

Lan and Bao both emphasised that authorities should have proper policies and budget to restore the French villas together with private owners.

Otherwise, we have to accept the fact that occasionally, French-era buildings may disappear and be replaced by other buildings like the house owned by Dr Tran Duy Hung, the first mayor of Ha Noi since 1954, in Ly Thai To Street, Bao said. This is a real regret.

Quoc said if the city found a proper way to renovate old buildings, the old architecture of the city could be restored and the beauty of Ha Noi would be much enhanced.

He mentioned the headquarters of the People's High Court of Justice, where the central building has been kept and surrounding buildings have been newly built, as well as Hang Trong Police Station as examples of successful adaptive restoration.

I think the renovation process is on the right track, he said.

This is a positive trend and we should support it. This does not mean one-way support. Citizens have the right to supervise restoration. But they should supervise it based on goodwill and affection. They should do their research and share their knowledge with concerned agencies. This will bring great benefits to the community in our capital. VNS

(with additional interview by Nhat Hong)
2023 Russia-Vietnam bilateral trade expected to be about US$3 billion

Bilateral trade between Russia and Vietnam had reached a record-high in 2021 of US$7.1 billion, however this has been halved by the impacts of sanctions upon Russia, according to Vietnams Trade Counselor Duong Hoang Minh.

He was speaking at the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia at a workshop in Moscow to promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation. Minh also said that the first four months of 2023 realized bilateral trade of US$1.01 billion. If annualised, this would suggest a 2023 total trade turnover between Russia and Vietnam of just over US$3 billion.

Nikita Kondratiev, of the Russian Ministry of Economic Development said that in 2022, bilateral trade faced difficulties, including supply chain disruptions, payment issues, and certain restrictions on investment.

Both speakers said that for the two countries to get back to a higher bilateral trade revenue, their businesses need to better take advantage of the Russia-Vietnam potential and opportunities. Both also recognised the problems in Western institutions and mechanisms that hinder the economic and trade activities between the two countries. particularly the issues relating to payment. Both sides pledged to cooperate to ease the issuance of visas for Vietnamese businessmen to Russia to seek cooperation opportunities and vice-versa.

Meanwhile, infrastructure and transport routes between the two countries have been improved. Russias FESCO shipping has introduced new direct routes from Vietnamese ports to Vladivostok, where goods can be transited across multiple destinations across Russia as well as onto Moscow and St.Petersburg. It has become common for example to see Vietnamese frozen seafood in Moscow supermarkets.

The two countries have also introduced a TransContainer service transporting consumer goods from Vietnam to Russia by rail. That transits China and Kazakhstan and enters Russia via its various border crossings with Kazakhstan and the Caspian Sea Volga River maritime routes near Astrakhan.

Source: Russia Briefing
The ASEAN Village Network (AVN) will focus on three cooperation areas in its implementation namely tourist village, digital village and One Village One Product (OVOP), in order to promote the comprehensive connectivity and development in the region.

The ASEAN Village Network (AVN) will focus on three cooperation areas in its implementation namely tourist village, digital village and One Village One Product (OVOP), in order to promote the comprehensive connectivity and development in the region.

Abdul Halim Iskandar, Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration (PDTT) Minister of Indonesia, the current ASEAN Chair, said on May 12 that the 42nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit agreed to form the AVN, an open, independent, and bottom-up network of villages, village groups, and village associations in ASEAN member countries.

According to Iskandar, some Indonesian villages would serve as pilot projects for the cooperation areas.

Villages that served as pilot projects for tourist villages comprise Mangunan Village in Bantul, Yogyakarta; Kembang Kuning Village in East Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara; and Sekapuk Village in Gresik, East Java, he said in a statement on May 11.

Meanwhile, Cibiru Wetan Village in Bandung, West Java; Duda Timur Village in Karangasem, Bali; and Kubu Village in Kubu, West Kalimantan, served as pilot projects for digital villages.

Muara Badak Ulu Village in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan; Namang Village in Central Bangka, Bangka Belitung Islands; and Blendung Village in Pemalang, Central Java, function as OVOP villages, he elaborated.

Moreover, the Senior Officials Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (SOMRDPE) will be held at least once per year and chaired on a rotating basis. The meeting concerns village development and poverty eradication, Iskandar remarked.

The first annual meeting for the ASEAN Village Network is scheduled to be held in July 2023 in Indonesia.

The minister expects other ASEAN countries to take a cue from Indonesia about its village development policies since it has the best in Asia, and thus, it can become a benchmark in village development.

The ASEAN Village Network is intended to serve as a platform for the exchange of worldviews and opinions on smart solutions in confronting challenges at the village level, he noted.

"ASEAN Village Network made the voice of villages to be heard at the local, national, and regional level," he remarked.

AVN is an open platform for discussion and knowledge sharing concerning various issues related to village development, poverty alleviation, and village development policies in the future.

Indonesian Chair of SOMRDPE Sugito stated that through this forum, countries in ASEAN can collectively foster cross-sectoral collaboration to develop villages, so that they are able to synergize and be competitive.

In this way, villages can contribute to the development of the nation, country, and ASEAN.

SOMRDPE is expected to be able to accommodate issues pertaining to village development, including food security, connectivity, electricity and water supply, education or literacy, manpower, migration to urban areas, land reformation, and infrastructure deficit, he said./.

Source: VietnamPlus
A training conference was held in Brussels on May 15 to promote Belgian businesses understanding of the business environment and culture of Vietnam.

A training conference was held in Brussels on May 15 to promote Belgian businesses understanding of the business environment and culture of Vietnam.

The event, jointly held by the Vietnam Trade Office in Belgium and the Belgian Vietnamese Alliance (BVA), provided Belgian firms with basic things that they need to know when doing business in Vietnam and contacting with locals.

Davy Jacob, supply chain manager of LIBEERT chocolate company that is operating in the central city of Da Nang, said that Vietnam has an attractive investment environment for foreign investors.

The countrys fast economic growth with the rapidly growing middle class has created good chances for foreign investors, including those from Europe, he held, expressing his hope to further expand the firms operations in Vietnam.

Joke Pattyn from Facil, a logistics company, said that her company has provided automobile spare parts for Vietnamese automaker Vinfast for three years. She stressed a wish to get a deeper insight into the traditional business practices of Vietnamese people to become closer to local customers and build up more relations.

Commenting on the Vietnam-EU economic cooperation outlook, Tran Ngoc Quan, Vietnamese Trade Counselor in Belgium and the EU said that despite facing many difficulties, European firms still pin high hope on the Vietnamese market, especially in the fields of garment and textile, leather and footwear, and agriculture.

Particularly, the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), which took effect in August 2020, has provided preferential tax rates to Vietnamese goods exported to the EU, he said, holding that this is a great opportunity for Vietnam and the EU to promote bilateral trade as the EU is prioritising countries sharing a FTA with the union to overcome difficulties.

The EUs compulsory regulations for imported products will take effect in the next 3-5 years, he noted, advising Vietnamese firms to meet the regulations by switching to green and clean production and sustainable development, thus clinching their position in the EU market./.

Source: VietnamPlus
(Photo : ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, found themselves in a frightening car chase scenario involving paparazzi in New York City.

Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, found themselves in a frightening car chase scenario involving paparazzi in New York City, according to a statement from their spokesperson on Wednesday.

Paparazzi followed the royal pair and Meghan's mother constantly after they left a humanitarian event in New York, which put them in a dangerous scenario while driving, according to NBC News.

According to the spokesman, the chase lasted more than two hours, resulting in many near-collisions with other vehicles, pedestrians, and even two NYPD policemen.

The statement blamed an aggressive gang of photographers for the traumatic experience and the "near catastrophic car chase."

Prince Harry and Meghan said they appreciate the public's interest in their life, but no one's safety should be compromised. They warned against publishing photos taken with such intrusive means, per The Guardian.

Read Also: Tony Awards to Proceed as Planned

Car Chase Incident Brings Back Memories of Princess Diana's Tragedy

On the same day, Meghan was presented with the Woman of Vision award during her and Harry's first public appearance since the coronation of King Charles.

The Ms. Foundation for Women's annual event included Meghan's acceptance speech, in which she encouraged women to strive for fairness and equality, per CBS News.

Harry's mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a 1997 automobile accident. Paparazzi pursued the princess and her boyfriend, Dodi Al Fayed, in Paris, which resulted in a tragedy.

The latest incident follows an arrest at the royal couple's Montecito property. Kevin Garcia Valdovinos was arrested for stalking at the house's service door by a staff member.

The Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department claimed that Valdovinos was later released from custody on a $2,500 bond after being arrested.

Related Article: Vice Media Files for Bankruptcy Protection

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Vietnamese dragon fruit exporters are expected to have another difficult year as more countries grow the fruit and make the international market increasingly competitive.

According to the General Department of Customs, Vietnams exports have been plummeting since 2019.

In 2021 and 2022 it did not make the list of billion-dollar export items. In fact last year dragon fruit exports were worth only US$632 million, a 39% decline from 2021 and 49% drop from their 2019 peak.

In the first two months this year exports were worth only $106 million, a 26.9% year-on-year decline.





Hoa, a trader in Binh Thuan Province, said since January exports have been meager.

"We used to ship dozens of tons a day, but now its only half of that", she said.

Vietnam exports the fruit to over 15 countries and territories, including to markets that set quality standards high for imports such as the U.S., Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and Australia.

Vietnam used to account for 80-90% of global shipments in the past, but with many countries starting to grow and export it, competition has become very intense, causing its share to fall dramatically.

Nguyen Dinh Tung, CEO of Vina T&T Import and Export Company, said China is now growing the fruit and so is not importing, including from Vietnam, even after reopening.

At the end of February China announced that it had harvested 1.6 million tons of dragon fruit, 200,000 tons more than Vietnams output and nearly meeting its annual demand of two million tons.

India has also successfully grown the fruit. Its government has recently set a target of increasing the area under it from 3,000 hectares now to 50,000 ha in the next five years.

Mexico has become another rival, grabbing a share of Vietnams exports to key markets like the U.S. and Canada.

Tung said Vietnam no longer exports white-flesh dragon fruit to these markets, and only ships red-flesh ones since Mexico does not grow them yet.

India and China are exporting large volumes of the fruit.

There is even the risk of imports taking over the Vietnamese market since they are cheaper.

In light of the competition from India and China, Dang Phuc Nguyen, general secretary of the Vietnam Vegetable Association, said farmers and businesses need to reassess the market to find appropriate strategies.

One of the key strategies is choosing the appropriate time for cultivation to take advantage of periods when India and China cannot grow the fruit.

For instance, the long winters in China are unsuitable for growing the fruit, and so Vietnamese farmers should time their harvests for the beginning and end of the year.

Tung agreed, saying local authorities need to inform farmers in time so that they could prepare and cultivate accordingly.

He also called for growing more red-flesh dragon fruit since it is hard to be grown in other countries and to focus on deep processing of the fruits.

Source: VnExpress
Armed with a rich portfolio of AI-driven solutions and backed by an illustrious track record, FPT Smart Cloud aims to empower businesses, optimise operations, and foster sustainable growth across various sectors, particularly the banking, finance and insurance industries in Indonesia  the largest economy in the Southeast Asia.

JAKARTA, Indonesia, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- With a proven track record of delivering cutting-edge AI solutions and an unrivaled expertise in the field, FPT Smart Cloud aims to replicate its success in Vietnam by bringing its innovative AI technologies to empower businesses and industries in Indonesia.

One notable recent event showcasing FPT Smart Cloud's capabilities and commitment to the finance sector was its participation in the Retail Banking Asia Summit, held in Jakarta on May 17. The event served as a platform for industry leaders to discuss the evolving role of data and AI in banking.

Among the attendees was Le Hong Viet, CEO of FPT Smart Cloud, who actively contributed to high-level panel discussions, sharing insights on harnessing the power of data and AI to drive innovation in the banking sector with other business leaders from Home Credit Indonesia, CIMB Bank, and OCBC INSP.

With a strategic focus on capturing the Banking, Finance, and Insurance (BFI) sector, FPT Smart Cloud aims to establish itself as a prominent player in the Indonesian AI market. However, questions were raised at the event regarding the increasing popularity of new technologies and the challenges and opportunities that AI solution developers like FPT Smart Cloud face in the rapidly evolving AI domain.

Viet highlighted the company's specialisation in developing conversational AI platforms that create task-oriented virtual agents for businesses.

"FPT Smart Cloud offers a comprehensive AI ecosystem that includes an AI platform and Cloud Computing services. This broader scope enables us to provide end-to-end AI solutions, from conversational AI and virtual assistant to automated operations and enhanced customer experiences," he said.





Mr. Le Hong Viet - CEO, FPT Smart Cloud - shares insights about "The growing role of Data Science and AI in Banking"

FPT Smart Cloud has solidified its position as the preferred AI partner for over 100 businesses worldwide through its flagship product, FPT.AI, serving millions of end-users in finance, insurance, banking, e-commerce, healthcare, and logistics.

Viet further emphasised that FPT.AI's Conversational platform helps clients automate up to 95 percent of customer engagement while significantly increasing customer satisfaction.

"Notably, one of our biggest clients in consumer finance, successfully serves more than six million customers through virtual assistants, resulting in substantial operational cost savings of up to 60 percent," he noted.

Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia with a population of over 270 million, is rapidly becoming a hotbed for technological advancements.

With an impressive AI adoption rate of approximately 24.6 percent, the highest among Southeast Asian nations, Indonesia has demonstrated its readiness to embrace cutting-edge technologies. The total contributions of AI applications to Indonesia's GDP from 2020 to 2030 are projected to reach a staggering $366 billion.

With a promising outlook and a fast-paced digital transformation journey, it comes as no surprise that FPT Smart Cloud has chosen to embark on this exciting venture.

On the product front, the company has developed and refined its natural language processing (NLP) technology for Bahasa Indonesia, covering both text and voice. FPT Smart Cloud's team of experts has collaborated with the Informatics & Business Institute Darmajay in Indonesia to jointly develop research projects on processing Bahasa Indonesia language.

Viet also revealed, "With a steadfast presence in Jakarta since 2017, our dedicated team of world-class professionals stands ready to offer unwavering support to clients and potential partners alike."

On the flip side, FPT Smart Cloud recognises the importance of cultural synergy between Vietnam and Indonesia. This cultural affinity lays a solid foundation for FPT Smart Cloud to seamlessly integrate with local businesses, co-create innovative solutions, and forge long-lasting partnerships that drive mutual growth and success.

Viet emphasised the company's determination, stating, "By leveraging its local team's deep understanding of the Indonesian business landscape, FPT Smart Cloud is well-positioned to provide comprehensive guidance and establish itself as a trusted partner for companies seeking growth and success in Indonesia."

Click here to read more about FPT.AI

Source: FPT Smart Cloud
US-based Amazon Web Services (AWS), the largest cloud service provider globally, is expanding its footprint in Vietnam and other ASEAN markets, where governments are taking bold steps to accelerate and simplify the process for public sector agencies to migrate to the cloud and leverage its benefits.

A new era for cloud services investment in ASEAN, illustration photo/ Source: Shutterstock

As part of AWS ASEAN Summit 2023 in Singapore in early May, Eric Conrad, regional managing director for ASEAN and Worldwide Public Sector at AWS, announced that the company was speeding up investments in the region.

It announced plans to invest more than $6 billion in Malaysia by 2037, while also committing to an extra $5 billion over 15 years in Indonesia. To date, it has invested over $6.5 billion in local infrastructure and jobs across Singapore.

Today, we are seeing public sector organisations move into a new phase of their digital evolution. We believe the cloud will play an even bigger role to help ASEAN governments and public sector organisations deliver national priorities, improve the lives of citizens, and drive economic growth, Conrad said.

AWS launched two AWS Edge locations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in August last year, an investment that will enable businesses of all sizes and across all industries in Vietnam to experience secure, high data transfer rates, and improve application-level protection.

The US cloud giant has also strengthened its network of customers and partners in Vietnam. In early April, it signed an agreement with VPBank to build digital banking experiences for VPBank customers.

At the Singapore summit, eCloudvalley Digital Technology announced a multi-year strategic collaboration agreement with AWS. The multi-year agreement aims to support eCloudvalleys new innovation lab developing cloud-based industry solutions, and establish a new Cloud Center of Excellence to train more than 1,000 employees on AWS.

Other international players have also made similar moves. Microsoft signed many cooperation agreements with enterprises in Vietnam, including VIB, Vingroup, VTC, and VINBRAIN.

According to Vietnams Ministry of Information and Communications, the local cloud computing market was valued at $196 million in 2020 and is projected to reach $603 million in 2026 with an annual growth rate of 18.8 per cent. Vietnam targets that its digital economy will contribute 20 per cent of GDP by 2025, with contributions from cloud computing expecting to be 1 per cent of GDP.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Strategy added that Vietnam had set a target that by 2025, all government agencies will use cloud computing. With the rapid development of cloud services, cloud computing will be one of the strong development trends in Vietnam, said vice president Dr. Tran Minh Tuan.

Currently, the Vietnamese computing cloud market now has more than 40 cloud service providers, including international groups like Google, Microsoft, and AWS, and domestic ones like Viettel, VNPT, CMC, and FPT. Foreign enterprises dominate 80 per cent of the local market share.

Growing attention from the government is also expected to enable the cloud computing market to further develop. At the fifth session of the National Committee on Digital Transformation in February, minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung said that in digital transformation, the most important factor is the use of cloud computing infrastructure.

State agencies, organisations, and enterprises in Vietnam, instead of investing and operating information systems themselves, switch to using cloud computing services that have lower cost and are safer and more flexible, he said. The government will also build a state data centre so that some key data of ministries, sectors, localities, and Party and state agencies will be located there.

Governments across ASEAN are taking bold steps to accelerate and simplify the process for public sector agencies to migrate to the cloud and leverage its benefits. Many are prioritising digital transformation, putting in place cloud-first policies directing government agencies to use commercial cloud services, or defining national roadmaps to enable modernisation of their IT services and systems.

For instance, Malaysias government has upgraded its Public Sector Data Centre to a special cloud computing service for the use of all government agencies. The new government hybrid cloud service, called MyGovCloud, is a combination of both private cloud services and public cloud from a cloud service provider (CSP).

To further strengthen the MyGovCloud, particularly to roll out the public cloud service, the government has also signed a cloud framework agreement with CSPs. The involvement of such companies is expected to bring in potential investments of up to $3.35 billion by 2025.

Meanwhile, Thailands data centre and cloud services markets are expected to grow substantially over the next five years thanks to the governments Cloud First initiative, which seeks to move 80 per cent of public data to hybrid cloud systems, allowing the public sector to quickly develop services without investing heavily in ICT infrastructure.

To realise their ambitions, regional governments have also signed MoUs with cloud service providers to save on costs, boost digital skills, and drive innovation. In 2022, for example, the Malaysian government signed a new cloud agreement with AWS to help accelerate cloud adoption in the public sector.

In Thailand, the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society of Thailand signed a MoU with AWS to help with the digital transformation of the Thai government cloud. It allows government agencies to consider using AWS for the cloud, including the central cloud infrastructure.

In Indonesia, the national public procurement agency LKPP worked with AWS to provide ministries, agencies, and local governments access to AWS cloud services through its national e-catalogue, helping them save time and resources.

Public cloud market revenue in the ASEAN region is expected to show an annual growth rate of almost 19 per cent over the next few years, resulting in a market volume of $19.72 billion by 2027, according to a recent Statista report.

AWS dreaming big for Vietnams cloud aspirations Amazon Web Services is expanding in Vietnam to tap into growing demands for cloud computing. Conor McNamara, managing director for ASEAN at AWS, talked to VIRs Bich Thuy about the future of the market.

Cloud technology thriving in Vietnam Cloud computing is changing the way businesses perform in Vietnam, and proving increasingly important for future growth. Werner Vogels, CTO at Amazon, spoke with VIRs Bich Thuy about how future tech trends will impact digital transformation in the country.
In late April, Taiwan-based Quanta Group signed an agreement with Nam Dinh Industrial Park Management Board and Dai Phong Infrastructure Construction JSC to develop a computer manufacturing project in Vietnams northern province of Nam Dinh, making it the companys ninth factory globally.

Asian investors leaning towards going greener across Vietnam

Chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee Pham Dinh Nghi said, Nam Dinh will create the best possible conditions to support investors in dealing legal procedures during the construction and operation process.

Also late last month, Malaysian group Petmal Oil Holdings proposed an oil refinery in the central province of Phu Yen worth $2 billion and spanning 500 hectares.

CEO Dato Paduka Affendi expressed his interest in the initiative. When the project is put into operation, it will contribute to the provincial budget and create jobs for workers, he said.

The refinery would be aligned with the provinces foreign investment strategy, which focuses on projects with high technology.

The first months of this year also witnessed new investment commitments from South Korean businesses. At a green growth promotion conference in Vietnam, a representative of SK Group said that they were considering making a big investment in Vietnam through a project to produce hydrogen gas.

Elsewhere, Seoul-based proptech startup Rsquare attended a high-tech investment promotion conference in

Danang in April to learn about opportunities in Vietnam.

Similar actions were taken in March when South Koreas SEP expressed their plan to invest more than $200 million in the first carbon-neutral industrial complex for the shoe industry, and carbon reduction infrastructure in Vietnam in the southern province of Binh Duong.

About 20 member enterprises of SEP will participate and invest in carbon-neutral solutions. This project is expected to contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting the environment.

According to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (Kotra), some key trade and investment trends relevant to Vietnam include the countrys vast infrastructure needs, energy, and telecommunications infrastructure, as well as renewable energy.

Lee Jong Seob, president of Kotra in Southeast Asia and Oceania, told VIR, There is a growing demand for sustainable products and services, driven by concerns about climate change and social responsibility. Vietnam has a robust manufacturing industry that might be used to generate sustainable products. Regulatory frameworks and the ability to access green financing may hinder this trend.

Japanese firms have also joined the investment trend. They attended the Vietnam-Japan investment conference in the northern port city of Haiphong to seek business and investment opportunities.

At a recent meeting with Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung, Takeo Nakajima, chief representative of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) in Hanoi, stated that Vietnam was an investment destination that Japanese businesses cannot ignore.

He mentioned new projects by Japanese firms in Vietnam, including a trade centre by AEON and a research and development centre in Danang by Fujikin.

In a JETRO survey of more than 3,000 Japanese companies conducted at the end of 2022, Vietnam was ranked second worldwide as a country in which to expand business in the future. The United States and China ranked first and third, respectively.

The manufacturing industry will likely accelerate its trend from manufacturing general-purpose products to high- value-added products and sales functions, according to JETRO.

The move to transfer some of the items manufactured in China and Japan to Vietnam has been increasing. In addition, according to our survey, the number of respondents who want to increase local procurement to strengthen supply chains and lower costs exceeded the ASEAN average by 12 points, Nakajima said.

In the non-manufacturing sector, respondents who will strengthen domestic sales increased by nine points over last year, reflecting the expectation of economic recovery after the pandemic and the expectation of medium- to long-term market growth, he added.

Green will be one of the keywords driving Vietnams economic growth in the future. Japanese companies have excellent energy-saving and environmental equipment and services and a proven renewable energy track record. Smart city development is also expected to progress throughout Vietnam.

Nakajima said that another promising space was Vietnam and Japans co-creation. Digitalisation will strengthen ties between Japanese companies and Vietnamese startups, and between Japanese startups and Vietnamese firms to expand into the Vietnamese market and third-country markets. Last year alone, collaboration occurred with Japanese company Gakken and Vietnamese companies Kiddihub, Denso, and Salex Motors.

Singaporean investors have also joined the wave. CapitaLand Group, at a meeting with leaders of the southern province of Binh Duong in mid-March, sought support of the local government for its project.

Chairman Wong Kan Seng said, In Vietnam, besides developing housing complex projects in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, CapitaLand is currently expanding its investment to neighbouring localities, including Binh Duong, a dynamic developing locality.

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Vietnam attracted $8.9 billion worth of foreign investment in the January-April 20, 2023 period. About 750 new projects were licensed during the period with a total registered capital of over $4.1 billion, up 65.2 per cent in the number of projects from the same period last year.

Asian investors, such as those from Singapore, Japan, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and South Korea, continued to lead the list, making up three-quarters of Vietnams total foreign investments in this timeframe, with Singapore coming in first and South Korea second.

Samsung Vietnam CEO drives sustainable development At the conference Stronger Investment Partnerships for a Thriving Vietnam organised by VIR on the morning of May 15, Samsung was noted as one of the nation's most successful foreign-invested enterprises.

VIR honours investors who help make Vietnam an FDI success story VIR has granted medals to honour the investors, businesses, and organisations that have contributed to making Vietnam a foreign direct investment (FDI) success story.
Raymond Gordon, BUV vice chancellor and president

At the second discussion panel on "Fostering new investment" at the VIR-hosted conference on May 15 titled "Stronger investment partnerships for a thriving Vietnam", Gordon, BUV vice chancellor and president said that investments in education, especially higher education, were large, long-term capital investments, so were not a very hot field in attracting investment.

"But this is one of the important areas in life and business activities because it affects the quality of human resources," he said.

Seeing a big promising land here, the BUV president said that Vietnam was now a gem or diamond in Asia, in terms of investment opportunities in education.

Asia is very densely populated, and the higher education sector also has many names in high-quality education. In Vietnam, there are many prestigious public universities, but investment in international higher education is still a promising land for investors, he said.

"Every day, people come to BUV to look for the learning model here and want to study," said Gordon. "Many other schools in the UK and other countries are also intending to learn about the business investment environment in Vietnam in education."

Although the opportunities are open widely and the potential is visible, so are the risks. He said that investors in education should choose a suitable and sustainable way of doing things, depending on every investor.

The BUV president said that the key issue was that while the legal framework and regulations had made many improvements and reforms, they had not moved quickly enough, adding that this hindered the development of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the education sector in Vietnam.

"Vietnam needs to further improve regulations and ways to attract more FDI in education, contributing to improving the quality of human resources, serving the socioeconomic development in the time to come," he said.

As for some other areas in education, he said that investing in kindergartens, middle schools and high schools would be easier for foreign investors.

We need to change skills training, improve curricula, create, innovate in the spirit of cooperation. In the future, how will we have to work together to solve the issues?" the BUV president said.

BUV currently has training programmes associated with about 3,000 high schools.

To encourage FDI in the education sector in the short term, Gordon said that there should be a mechanism for the state to dialogue with investors, including foreign-invested enterprises, in the implementation of educational institutions and regulatory frameworks.

I believe that in the future there will be more high-class, high-quality universities present and operating in Vietnam. And BUV will continue to build links with Vietnamese partners to train intellectual human resources, Gordon added.

Prof. Rick Bennett to become BUV deputy vice chancellor and vice president Rick Bennett, an experienced academic leader, has been appointed as incoming deputy vice chancellor and vice president of British University Vietnam (BUV).

British University Vietnam awarded QAA accreditation British University Vietnam (BUV) has officially become the only university in Vietnam awarded QAA university-wide accreditation.
The report focuses on Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, and provides valuable insights into the key developments that took place in 2022, shedding light on the growing trend of diversification in thematic issuances across Vietnam.

Across the ASEAN region, the green, social, sustainability, sustainability-linked (GSS), and transition debt market experienced a 32 per cent contraction in 2022 compared to the previous year.

This trend was in line with the global trajectory, which witnessed a 24 per cent decrease ($858.5 billion in 2022 versus $1.1 trillion in 2021). However, it is important to note that volumes remained robust, nearly doubling the levels recorded in 2020.

Several positive indicators emerge from this scenario, including an upswing in sovereign issuances and various policy and market development initiatives that have further fortified the regulatory and technical landscape. Notably, Indonesia and the Philippines exhibited tremendous growth in GSS+ issuances, largely attributed to robust sovereign issuance and record-breaking volumes in the green Sukuk and social bonds category.

One noteworthy trend in ASEAN was the increase in deal sizes and tenors. The region saw an increase in deal sizes and tenures  a considerably higher share (71 per cent in 2022 vs. 52 per cent in 2021) of deals were benchmark-size (more than $500 million).

The first sustainability bond with a tenure of over 20 years was issued in 2022 in the Philippines. Across the six markets covered (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam), Singapore was top in most debt segments, representing 63 per cent of the cumulative volume and 60 per cent of 2022.

Sovereign issuances play a key role in stimulating market activity and development as well as in allocating large amounts of capital to sustainable projects and activities.

In 2022, Singapore and the Philippines joined the ASEAN's Sovereign club. Sovereign issuance in the region is concentrated in sustainability bonds, which enable governments to raise funds for a combination of green and social projects.

2022 was an active year for policy and market development initiatives in the region, with the release of a regional ASEAN Sustainability-Linked Bond Standards, as well as stakeholder consultation on the first version of ASEAN Taxonomy conducted throughout the year, alongside a range of national-level sustainable finance initiatives and measures by respective ASEAN Member States, including but not limited to the spheres of disclosures, transition finance and taxonomies.

Kelvin Tan, managing director, head of Sustainable Finance and Investments, ASEAN, HSBC said: The sustainable finance market in ASEAN is now at an inflection point. The frequent sovereign issuances, which have become the norm in ASEAN, indicate a high level of interest from governments in the region to develop the market."

"Additionally, with greater awareness and stronger business impetus as a result of recent developments in policies and taxonomies, this sets a very promising tone for the future of sustainable finance in the region. We must continue with this momentum and build on the strong private-public partnership in the region, such as the Just Energy Transition Partnerships in Indonesia and Vietnam, to allow for more financing to be deployed to support the transition to a net-zero future.

Tim Evans, CEO of HSBC Vietnam said: "As economies in ASEAN face the threat of climate change, both physical and transition risks, banks like HSBC have an important role to play in providing thought leadership as well as providing funding to mitigate these risks and support our clients in their transition plans. In early 2022, we announced our commitment to help arrange up to $12 billions of direct and indirect sustainable financing for Vietnam and its corporate sector by 2030."

"This year, we have joined the GFANZ Working Group to continue our work alongside the Vietnamese Government to help mobilise private capital to support Vietnam's Just Energy Transition Partnership. Together with the efforts and policies on sustainable finance advocated by the ASEAN governments, we are positive that the sustainable finance market in ASEAN and Vietnam will continue to grow over the next years and provide the necessary support to the region's net-zero objectives".

On the other hand, Vietnam has seen an increasing diversification of thematic issuances in recent years, both in terms of instrument types and themes.

In terms of policy and development, supportive efforts and policies on sustainable finance were advocated by the Vietnamese government, with the release of a guidance on environmental risk management in credit extension activities by the State Bank of Vietnam, alongside the announcement of a national programme to support private enterprises in sustainable business development until 2025.

In a significant stride towards sustainable energy transition, Vietnam is set to receive a substantial boost through the Just Energy Transition Partnership. This partnership entails an initial financing injection of $15.5 billion aimed at facilitating the transformation of Vietnam's energy sector. Complementing this endeavour, the Vietnamese government has also expressed its commitment to enhancing the country's legal framework for green finance, thereby fostering greater interest and engagement in this burgeoning space.

Issuance activity in Vietnam during 2022 primarily revolved around loans, specifically green and sustainability-linked loans. Notably, five different issuers participated in this market, collectively reinforcing Vietnam's dedication to sustainable finance.

Among these transactions, the largest loan originated from Vinfast Trading and Production, an automotive company and subsidiary of the esteemed Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup JSC. This $500 million green loan marked Vinfast's second foray into this space, following a successful $400 million green loan in 2021. It is worth mentioning that Vinpearl JSC, another subsidiary of Vingroup, previously made its mark by issuing Vietnam's sole sustainability bond to date, amounting to $425 million in 2021.

Evolution in global value chains key for green and resilient ASEAN ASEAN has again proven itself to be among the worlds most resilient economic groupings. Relying on strong exports, sound macroeconomic policies, and effective buffers, the economies of ASEAN recovered rapidly from the devastating impacts of the pandemic, recording growth of 5.6 per cent in 2022 after falling to 3.2 per cent in 2020.
The first wind turbine has come into operation at DEEP C, Photo: Thuy Dung

The Starcharge energy equipment production factory from Singapore-based Starcharge Energy will provide vehicle chargers and other energy storage products with a scale of 273,000 devices per year.

Total investment in the project is $14.3 million, with real estate use of 1.4 hectares. The project is slated to finalise construction in the first quarter of 2024 and commence operation from Q2.

Starcharge provides diverse solutions for charging electric cars, for both industrial and domestic use. Its clients include Volkswagen, Hyundai, and BAIC Motor Corporation.

The second project is from HW International Investment Holdings HW Energy, which will involve producing 34 tonnes annually of alkaline and zinc-carbon batteries for export.

Total investment value exceeds $50 million, with real estate use of 5.5ha. The project will start construction by the end of this year, finish in Q3 of 2024, and the first production line will come on stream in early 2025. HW International Investment embraces manufacture and distribution of high efficiency and environmentally friendly batteries, among others, and its main markets are Europe, the US, Japan, and South Korea.

Projects in the electronic and energy sectors have strategic importance to commemorate Haiphong citys 68th liberation anniversary and other big events in Haiphong, said Le Trung Kien, director of Haiphong Economic Zone Authority. The level of investment into Haiphong has always been at the top nationwide, proving that the northen port city is a reliable and attractive location for local and international investors.

Besides the focus on investment attraction into the energy sector, DEEP C continues to pursue its goal of energy transition.

Bruno Jaspaert, director of DEEP C IZ, said it was one of the first zones to use wind turbines providing electricity for industrial production. Electricity coming from wind turbines and solar panels will be directly fed into DEEP Cs internal electric network that provides the energy for the entire IZ operation, he said.

In 2021, it installed a 2.3MW wind turbine in Haiphong II IZ, and is expanding of the installation and operation solar panels on the roof of secondary businesses, further bolstering its energy efficiency and reducing its carbon consumption footprints.

DEEP C has also commenced two solar energy projects with a total production rate reaching 3.1MWp, helping to curtail more than 2,600 tonnes of CO2 emission per year.

In March, DEEP C Green became one of nine carbon reduction projects across Vietnam to have been selected in the first cohort of Climate Finance Accelerator Programme funded by the UK government. The programme will allow DEEP C to further refine the business case of the project, and to have the chance to connect with policymakers to learn more about opportunities and challenges in climate finance; and to improve its credit profile to entice funding and investments from the financiers.

According to Jaspaert, the pursuit of sustainability projects has been the focus and difference maker for the IZ.

We are the pioneer in building a sustainable and reliable investment destination with our focus on building an eco-industrial park. Sustainability is not only a trend, its an inevitable future, said Jaspaert.

DEEP C will gradually transform from an energy consumer to renewable energy generator and distributor with the ambition of sourcing 50 per cent of its tenants energy consumption from renewables by 2030.

DEEP C looks back onto 25 years of development in Vietnam For DEEP C, 2022 means a year of breakthroughs, transformation, and success as it marks the companys 25th year of establishment and development in Vietnam.

DEEP C IZs in Quang Ninh prepared for hefty funding flow Over $1.5 billion is being committed for DEEP C Industrial Zones in the northern province of Quang Ninh thanks to a couple of new deals.
Richard Abadie, partner and leader of Global Capital Projects & Infrastructure at PwC; and Jennifer Tay, partner and leader of Infrastructure at PwC Singapore

What should Vietnam adopt in order to effectively augment its allure as a destination towards robust infrastructure investments?

Abadie: The question of how to attract more investment in infrastructure is a complex one, requiring attention to a range of factors.

One key aspect is the establishment of open markets, particularly with regard to the free flow of capital. When a country aims to entice overseas funding, it must create conditions that facilitate the unrestricted movement of money.

While legislation allowing limitations on the ownership of strategic assets exist in various countries, such as the UK and Australia, these constraints need not impede Vietnams progress, provided the process remains transparent and the rules are clearly understood.

It is essential for both the investing and recipient countries to maintain stability and confidence as ownership changes can significantly impact the underlying fundamentals.

The current focus on Vietnams economy has prompted concerns about financing infrastructure projects. Allocating funds wisely is a critical consideration, and decisions regarding expenditure must be carefully evaluated. For instance, the question arises as to whether investing approximately $60 billion in connecting the north and south of the country represents the optimal utilisation of limited resources.

While transport assets and connectivity are undoubtedly important, it is worth contemplating whether high-speed rail, which primarily caters to passenger transport rather than freight, should receive priority investment in a country as geographically elongated as Vietnam. Other areas, such as energy infrastructure, telecommunication infrastructure, and coastal developments, may hold greater significance.

Meeting the infrastructure needs of Vietnams sizable population is a compelling investment proposition, particularly when it comes to critical aspects like housing, water, and power.

Another positive aspect worth highlighting is Vietnams prudent management of its debt-to-GDP ratio, which currently stands at 43.1 per cent. Unlike countries facing significant debt burdens that act as constraints, Vietnams comparatively lower debt level presents an opportunity to attract private capital and collaborate with government entities on projects.

However, it is essential to address specific project-related challenges, such as credit rating and debt-to-GDP limits. While these conditions may pose certain difficulties, they can also be viewed as opportunities.

In todays financial markets, where investors seek the best risk-return opportunities, it is crucial to compete effectively for capital and investments. The challenge lies in navigating the complexities associated with public-private partnerships and ensuring openness in risk-sharing arrangements.

While there have been improvements in related laws in Vietnam, further progress is necessary to foster an environment of transparency and risk allocation. Continuous reflection on risk and the evolution of appropriate frameworks are vital to attract investors. Additionally, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors have become increasingly important for global finance. As Vietnam seeks overseas funds, financiers will inevitably scrutinise the environmental sustainability, social impact, and governance of projects. Consequently, requesting foreign capital will come with certain requirements that can positively influence governance practices and ensure thorough project evaluation. Vietnam needs to enhance its capabilities and tools to conduct comprehensive assessments and report on outcomes, as the integration of ESG considerations has become a global trend in financial decision-making.

Flexibility desired for infrastructure, illustration photo

What illustrative instances exemplify the multifaceted and divergent governmental perspectives on strategic allocations in infrastructure funding?

Tay: I recently engaged in a stimulating conversation about one nations attempt to replicate Singapores fibre optics network and its successful business model. As we delved deeper, examining why Singapores model thrived and the requisite conditions for success in Southeast Asia, we discovered that replicating the business model alone was insufficient.

Singapore boasts a robust regulatory framework governing tariffs within its broadband network. Each country, however, possesses its own distinct legal and regulatory frameworks. When foreign investors enter the scene, the endeavour often involves structuring contracts to fit those local legal and regulatory frameworks.

By incorporating these frameworks into contracts, a certain degree of flexibility emerges, allowing for effective asset management and regulation. Therefore, I agree with Richards assertion that asset ownership need not be limited to the binary choice of public or private.

Such an approach fails to acknowledge that, with proper regulation, privatised assets can still be subject to oversight. When I have encountered governments across Southeast Asia, I have noticed a tendency to employ a copy-and-paste strategy, replicating models without considering the need for adaptability in the regulatory structures. It is imperative to consider the entirety of the package, not merely the business or ownership structure.

On the other hand, the prevailing assumption that assets can only be either public or private is misleading. The key factor lies in effective regulation regardless of ownership. The regulatory body must possess independent authority, responsible for governance and oversight on health, safety, and customer charges. Even in cases where assets are publicly owned, an independent regulator should oversee these aspects.

It is essential to prioritise infrastructure based on citizens needs, with ownership serving as a secondary consideration. Investment in state assets can be facilitated by the private sector through concessions and other collaborative arrangements.

Abadie: Examining the disparity in governmental perspectives on this matter, the British government for example exhibits a highly receptive stance towards foreign investors, particularly in the water and energy sectors. Their openness manifests in their concerted efforts to allure foreign capital for infrastructure projects.

A few years ago, a significant shift occurred with the privatisation of the water sector. I recall a momentous occasion in the 2000s when we deliberated the sale of three vital transport assets based in London: Heathrow Airport, a bypass around the city, and securing investments for the underground network. Remarkably, all prospective bidders for these projects were international entities such as Qatari and Saudi companies, Australian infrastructure funds, and Canadian counterparts.

In a discussion with people within government, I inquired about any reservations or limits regarding the privatisation of these assets. The response was rather reassuring, as they emphasised that the regulated industry engendered confidence. The government did not interfere in making such decisions; instead, they had historically privatised or sold assets while maintaining stringent regulations. The regulator held the authority to determine appropriate owners for the capital spending programme and set tariffs.

Reflecting on Vietnam, a market I am not intimately familiar with, it appears that public or private ownership is often perceived as mutually exclusive, for example in toll road ownership structures. However, the pivotal factor lies in how assets are regulated. Ownership is not a prerequisite for ensuring optimal asset performance, protecting health and safety, or regulating tariffs.

Therefore, we must question the economic models in place and consider who they aim to safeguard. Going to either extreme, relying solely on public or private approaches, tends to yield suboptimal outcomes. In my experience, I would encourage you, as I would in any other market, to explore robust regulatory models that ensure fair tariffs and returns. These models are typically rooted in a strong regulatory framework rather than hastily implementing ill-suited strategies.

On the flip side, throughout history, foreign investment has never entailed the removal of physical infrastructure or the dismantling of roads. However, an emerging concern that necessitates our attention is cybersecurity. Consider a scenario where the infrastructure is located in Vietnam, but the computers controlling its operations are situated elsewhere. This disparity in location could pose significant problems. Thus, it is crucial to comprehend not only the tangible physical aspects of infrastructure but also the underlying IT infrastructure, and its placement and management.

In light of Vietnams ambitious goal to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, the country has placed great emphasis on promoting ESG criteria. How would you recommend striking a balance between economic growth and sustainability in this pursuit?

Tay: The significance of Vietnams role within the region must not be underestimated when contemplating the intertwining of economic and sustainability objectives. Notably, Vietnam has positioned itself as a promising hub for manufacturing activities related to electric vehicles and batteries, thus leveraging its advantages in this sector. This perspective is crucial as it expands the understanding of Vietnams commitment beyond merely decarbonising its own operations.

Instead, it encompasses the countrys impact on the broader supply chain and its contribution to overall economic development of the region. Therefore, while achieving absolute zero emissions might not be the primary driver of economic growth, the manufacturing sector and its associated supply chain play a pivotal role in driving the economy forward.

Moreover, an intriguing avenue for collaboration lies in electricity trading. The region faces a significant disparity in the supply and demand of renewable energy, which can be addressed through collaborative efforts. It would be worthwhile to explore the potential benefits and Vietnams involvement in this context, considering how the bankability of renewable energy projects depends heavily on demand dynamics.

By capitalising on its manufacturing advantages and aligning with the demand for renewable energy, Vietnam can consolidate its position in the region and foster economic growth.

Furthermore, Vietnam possesses a unique advantage in the realm of renewable energy. The country enjoys abundant solar potential as well as better conditions for wind energy, a resource scarce in neighbouring countries such as Malaysia and Singapore. This presents Vietnam with an opportune platform to harness solar, wind, and even hydro energy, which could be exported to supplement regional energy needs.

Cultivating an indigenous industry for manufacturing wind turbines, solar panels, and related components domestically would prove not only financially rewarding but also strategically advantageous for Vietnam.

By deftly navigating the interplay between economic growth and sustainability, Vietnam can carve a path towards net-zero emissions while bolstering its standing in the region. This endeavour entails capitalising on the manufacturing sector, engaging in collaborative electricity trading initiatives, and exploiting its renewable energy potential. Such a holistic approach will empower Vietnam to thrive economically and contribute meaningfully to the global sustainability agenda.

ASEAN+3 should unlock more capital for sustainable infrastructure COVID-19 has brought severe hardships to peoples and communities across the globe, but for the economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a resilient recovery is underway.

PPP model needs more balancing, equality for private investors Vietnam's increased demand for infrastructure development in the coming years requires governmental policies that encourage the private sector's participation, said economists and policymakers.
With a proven track record of delivering cutting-edge AI solutions and an unrivalled expertise in the field, FPT Smart Cloud aims to replicate its success in Vietnam by bringing its innovative AI technologies to empower businesses and industries in Indonesia.

One recent event showcasing FPT Smart Cloud's capabilities and commitment to the finance sector was its participation in the Retail Banking Asia Summit, held in Jakarta on May 17.

The event served as a platform for industry leaders to discuss the evolving role of data and AI in banking.

With a strategic focus on capturing the Banking, Finance, and Insurance sector, FPT Smart Cloud aims to establish itself as a prominent player in the Indonesian AI market.

Among the attendees was Le Hong Viet, CEO of FPT Smart Cloud, who actively contributed to high-level panel discussions, sharing insights on harnessing the power of data and AI to drive innovation in the banking sector with other business leaders from Home Credit Indonesia, CIMB Bank, and OCBC INSP.

With a strategic focus on capturing the Banking, Finance, and Insurance sector, FPT Smart Cloud aims to establish itself as a prominent player in the Indonesian AI market.

However, questions were raised at the event regarding the increasing popularity of new technologies and the challenges and opportunities that AI solution developers like FPT Smart Cloud face in the rapidly evolving AI domain.

Viet highlighted the company's specialisation in developing conversational AI platforms that create task-oriented virtual agents for businesses.

FPT Smart Cloud offers a comprehensive AI ecosystem that includes an AI platform and Cloud Computing services. This broader scope enables us to provide end-to-end AI solutions, from conversational AI and virtual assistant to automated operations and enhanced customer experiences, Le Hong Viet said.

Le Hong Viet  CEO, FPT Smart Cloud  shares insights at Retail Banking Asia Summit Indonesia 2023

FPT Smart Cloud has solidified its position as the preferred AI partner for over 100 businesses worldwide through its flagship product, FPT.AI, serving millions of end-users in finance, insurance, banking, e-commerce, healthcare, and logistics.

Viet further emphasised that FPT.AI's Conversational platform helps clients automate up to 95 per cent of customer engagement while significantly increasing customer satisfaction.

Notably, one of our biggest clients in consumer finance, successfully serves more than 6 million customers through virtual assistants, resulting in substantial operational cost savings of up to 60 per cent, he noted.

Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia with a population of over 270 million, is rapidly becoming a hotbed for technological advancements.

With an impressive AI adoption rate of approximately 24.6 per cent, the highest among Southeast Asian nations, Indonesia has demonstrated its readiness to embrace cutting-edge technologies.

The total contributions of AI applications to Indonesia's GDP from 2020 to 2030 are projected to reach a staggering $366 billion.

With a promising outlook and a fast-paced digital transformation journey, it comes as no surprise that FPT Smart Cloud has chosen to embark on this exciting venture.

On the product front, the company has developed and refined its natural language processing (NLP) technology for Bahasa Indonesia, covering both text and voice.

FPT Smart Cloud's team of experts has collaborated with the Informatics & Business Institute Darmajay in Indonesia to jointly develop research projects on processing Bahasa Indonesia language.

With a steadfast presence in Jakarta since 2017, our dedicated team of world-class professionals stands ready to offer unwavering support to clients and potential partners alike, Viet said.

On the flip side, FPT Smart Cloud recognises the importance of cultural synergy between Vietnam and Indonesia.

This cultural affinity lays a solid foundation for FPT Smart Cloud to seamlessly integrate with local businesses, co-create innovative solutions, and forge long-lasting partnerships that drive mutual growth and success.

By leveraging its local team's deep understanding of the Indonesian business landscape, FPT Smart Cloud is well-positioned to provide comprehensive guidance and establish itself as a trusted partner for companies seeking growth and success in Indonesia, Viet said.

Click here to read more about FPT.AI

Google, Microsoft top expectations as AI rivalry heats up Google parent company Alphabet beat market expectations in the first quarter of 2023 with a net profit of $15 billion, the company said on Tuesday, in a sign that the search engine behemoth is regaining its footing.

Manufacturers hope for AI boost in factories Manufacturers are hoping for the artificial intelligence revolution to reach their factories, envisaging robots being used to repair complex machinery.

Thailand to launch AI to scrutinise taxes Thai Director General of the Revenue Department Lavaron Sangsnit hass aid the department is using artificial intelligence (AI) to examine tax payments, enabling deeper scrutiny and preventing tax evasion.
Since 2020, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has created a number of draft legislative instruments on the DPPA pilot scheme, which included a draft circular in May 2021, a draft report in October 2021, and a draft decision in May 2022.

PM calls for end to long-delayed DPPA fulfilment

Although the pilots expected structure and conditions were revealed by the documents, a particular launch date for the programme was never suggested.

DPPAs are deemed a crucial mechanism to attract investors not only in the energy sector but also where companies have made commitments to renewable energy, carbon reduction, and sustainability.

Such agreements would make it possible for businesses in Vietnam to buy electricity directly from private companies that develop renewable energy, as opposed to doing so through regional power utilities. The policy would also support businesses in achieving their respective renewable energy supply goals.

The current DPPA pilot has been under design and review for around six years. In 2022, private companies in Asia-Pacific signed a record 7GW of DPPAs, an 80 per cent increase from 2021, demonstrating their willingness to drive new clean energy investments.

Greg Testerman, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ho Chi Minh City and Danang, said, DPPAs are a mechanism that has been used in many countries, and we hope it can come into force here this year. We believe that Vietnams approval of a pilot would also unlock billions in investment, especially from companies that have committed to renewable energy and carbon reduction,

The MoIT has been developing the mechanism and was collecting opinions through various web portals since September last year. The ministry initially planned to pilot the mechanism in 2021-2023, with total capacity of about 1,000MW.

Under the plan, after a pilot is eventually carried out, the Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam (ERAV) will evaluate the market as well as technical, financial, and legal aspects, before finalising the content to be reported to authorities for consideration and decision to widely apply the mechanism.

According to ERAV, a pilot would ensure that a competitive wholesale electricity market is completed, a more competitive retail electricity market is implemented, and direct electricity purchase and sale would become reality.

Over the years, international businesses have increased their calls for a DPPA pilot. In 2019, 26 top international companies and organisations signed a statement supporting such a model in Vietnam, and purchased more than 16 million mWh of electricity for an estimated $1.57 billion.

Strong DPPA scheme desired The Minister of Industry and Trade is likely to sign a draft circular regulating a pilot project for electricity purchases and sales between renewable energy generators and consumers under direct power purchase agreements. However, while the ministry is gaining support from some organisations, experts advise designing the schemes in an appropriate manner.

DPPA pilot to prompt low-carbon adoption Vietnams much-awaited direct power purchase agreement pilot will be an effective tool for global companies to meet their sustainability commitments, but it remains to be seen how Vietnam can meet the green energy demand from global businesses.
YouTube's recommendation system continues to steer young video game players toward violent and dangerous material, according to an alarming study.

Using social media research, the Tech Transparency Project, a nonprofit group, investigated the link between YouTube videos and gun violence, PBS reported. To do this, they created user profiles on the site that replicated the internet habits of common boys living in the United States.

The study's simulations were of two nine-year-olds with a common passion for video games, especially first-person shooters. The accounts were similar, except one clicked on YouTube's suggested videos while the other ignored them.

The account that actively clicked on YouTube's suggestions was flooded with graphic information about school massacres, tactical gun training, and how to turn guns into fully automatic weapons. The content showed an elementary school kid using a weapon and a shooter targeting a fake skull with lifelike blood and brains with a .50-caliber gun, which breaches YouTube's violent and graphic content restrictions.

Katie Paul, the leader of the research group, highlighted that the problem is with YouTube's algorithms rather than with video games in general. She noted that video games are among children's favorite activities, but playing a game like "Call of Duty" doesn't have to lead an individual to a gun store. Instead, YouTube leads people there because of its algorithms.

Read Also: Sam Altman Supports Regulations on AI Tech

YouTube's Safeguards For Children Are Not Enough

This study also underlines the pressing need for YouTube to improve its content filtering processes and solve the issues with its recommendation system.

The research reveals that YouTube's platform is unable to stop the distribution of unpleasant videos that might traumatize vulnerable youngsters or lead them to radical thoughts and violence.

The YouTube study also pointed out that there is insufficient evidence to back politicians' statements over the past 20 years associating video games with violent behavior. However, YouTube's recommendation system may expose young boys who play video games to mass shootings and gun violence, per The Guardian.

In reaction to the results, YouTube, owned by Google, said it protects its young users from harmful content. Platform users under 13, including the simulated 9-year-old viewers in the research, must connect their accounts to an age-verified parent's account when making accounts on the popular online platform, according to KPAX 8.

Related Article: Experts Warn of Growing Threat of AI-Generated Misinformation in US 2024 Elections

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Vietnams paper industry is affected by the trend of production relocation away from China. Have foreign paper ventures relocated from China to Vietnam in an effort to evade environmental pressure?

Vietnam Pulp and Paper Association general secretary Dang Van Son

Currently, Vietnams environmental standards are quite stringent. For instance, the standards for effluent and emissions have chemical oxygen demand and biochemical oxygen demand indices that are comparable to those of developed nations.

Therefore, many foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) must also exert considerable effort to satisfy Vietnams requirements.

Is foreign direct investment (FDI) in the paper industry still positive in the context of Vietnams current attraction?

Vietnams paper industry is relatively favourable for investment. It has expedited the growth of FDI, particularly in 2017 and 2018. The majority of FDI in the paper industry originates from China, Hong Kong, and Thailand. Vietnams total paper production was approximately 8 million metric tonnes in 2022, with FIEs accounting for more than 60 per cent.

Many foreign paper ventures have a capacity of 500,000 MT per year, whereas the majority of domestic enterprises are small in scale, with a capacity of less than 10,000 MT per year. This raises the possibility that FIEs will have a significant impact on the domestic market.

The rise in economic investment to ramp up production not only satisfies the domestic market, particularly during the period of economic recovery following the pandemic, but also benefits exports.

In 2022, several companies began putting their production lines into operation, including Linh Giang Paper with a capacity of 15,000 tonnes per year; Quang Binh Xenlulo with a capacity of 20,000 tonnes per year; and BBP Paper in Phu Tho with a capacity of 50,000 tonnes.

What are the benefits of luring FDI into Vietnams paper production?

There are policies intended to attract this and Vietnams ability in the manufacturing of packaging and paper goods. In addition, the packaging paper industry in Vietnam has a tremendous amount of untapped potential, as paper packaging accounts for nearly half of the industrys total consumption and 45 per cent of its total import turnover.

The food industry, cosmetics, consumer products, electronics, leather and footwear, and aquaculture are among the most significant industries that extensively utilise packaging paper.

Specifically, the rise in e-commerce in Vietnam and the massive expansion of exports over the past few years have accelerated the demand for packaging. The implementation of new restrictions on the manufacture of paper and packaging, which has transformed China into a major industrial paper superpower, presents numerous opportunities for Vietnamese businesses.

Vietnam has evolved as a nation with a remarkable increase in paper production and utilisation capacity, particularly in the packaging industry. Vietnams paper industry now has a reputation in the regional paper industry, which is a drastic change from the past 5-7 years. As well as domestic paper manufacturers, many paper FIEs in Vietnam benefit from the growing market for packaging paper in commerce and the recent restrictions on Chinese production.

Is it probable that increased FDI will increase competition with domestic paper firms?

To aid in the development of the entire paper industry, every market requires competition, particularly healthy competition. When Japanese, South Korean, Chinese, Thai, and other investors entered Vietnam, they brought relatively advanced technology with them.

This created a new impetus for domestic companies to improve their technology and invest in modern apparatus with greater capacity, thereby enhancing their competitiveness on home turf.

Will Chinas reopening have any effect on the manufacture of indigenous paper?

We anticipated a surge in paper industry investment following the opening of the Chinese government at the beginning of January, but this has not occurred thus far. Despite this, it is understandable that the Chinese market was subdued upon opening. China is the worlds factory, but its economy is significantly reliant on the US and EU markets.

Vietnam uses 3.5 million MT of paper annually, of which 350,000 are printing paper, 2.5 million are packaging paper, and 195,000 are tissue paper. The demand for packaging paper is anticipated to reach 10 million MT by 2025. In the next 10 years, it is anticipated that the demand for paper packaging will increase by 14 per cent to 18 per cent annually. Regulatory policy is focusing on the shift to a circular economy model as a result of the increasing preference for packaging made from fibres in accordance with sustainability objectives. Source: Vietnam Pulp and Paper Association

Thai packaging paper company increases investment in Vietnam Thailands SCG Packaging Plc (SCGP) will invest 11.79 billion baht (352.9 million USD) to develop a paper factory in its new production complex in northern Vietnam, which has grown into one of the region's major export centres, according to the Bangkok Post newspaper on September 21.
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NEW YORK (AP)  After most mass shootings that capture the public's attention, national news organizations will send reporters for a few days, a week maybe, before moving on. There's always another community, another tragedy.

ABC News tried something different after 19 elementary school students and two teachers were shot and killed in Uvalde, Texas, last May.

The journalists stayed.

For a year, ABC News kept a team in Uvalde. The result is a nuanced portrait of what happens over time to a suffering community, as seen in the two-hour documentary, It Happened Here  A Year in Uvalde, that airs Friday on ABC and Saturday on Hulu.

What we discovered has been profoundly moving and inspiring and, we hope, useful, said ABC News President Kim Godwin.

The story's richness is in the details: There are the children's rooms left undisturbed since May 24, 2022, the brush a parent can't give up because it contains a dead girl's hair, the survivor made upset by the sound of a block of ice being cracked, and the once-carefree boy who worries a lot. And we see a father who sits at his daughter's grave each night to talk to her.

There are those who lived but deal every day with survivor's guilt, and there's the mother who torments herself for not letting her daughter come home with her after a morning awards assembly.

ABC's idea was born out of a desire to bring something new to stories that have taken on a numbing familiarity.

I don't think that any community should be defined by a tragedy that befalls it, said Cindy Galli, executive producer of ABC's investigative unit.

A core team of about a dozen people were assigned to the project, a significant commitment at a time when ABC News, like many other news organizations, is cutting staff. The team, with reporters John Quinones, Maria Elena Salinas and Mireya Villarreal, rotated in and out depending on other assignments.

The project enabled the journalists to get to know community members and build trust by talking to them without cameras running all the time, she said.

One of the aspects of being in a small community is that we would run into people at Starbucks or the grocery store, Galli said. They knew that we were there and knew that we were there for the long haul.

That was important to families dealing with their grief, said Kimberly Rubio, whose daughter Lexi was killed in the attack. Rubio was featured in a segment early in the film, talking about how she uses time spent jogging to reflect upon what happened to her daughter.

It also helped that it wasn't different reporters all the time, Rubio said. I had two that I worked with. It made it much easier for me to be vulnerable.

The ABC team filed more than 200 stories during its time in Uvalde, Galli said. Their presence enabled them to break news, such as when Quinones got the first interview with a woman falsely accused of leaving a door open at the school that the killer used for access.

Questions about why it took police more than an hour to enter the affected classrooms kept Uvalde in headlines longer than most mass shootings. ABC's access deepened the documentary's narrative retelling of the story, with recordings of a chilling 911 call from a trapped girl pleading for a police response to the gunman.

I had a pencil, said Arnie Reyes, a teacher injured that day whose recovery is followed by ABC. It's not the same battle.

The documentary talks about tensions in Uvalde between affected parents and people who supported school administrators and police. That aspect of the story points out a hole in ABC's reporting, although it's not necessarily their fault: The network had trouble getting people in law enforcement and their supporters to talk.

Lexi's dad, Felix Rubio, eventually resigned his job as a deputy police officer, explaining that he couldn't go back to work with people who didn't rush into the school to try and save the children.

The film also traces the growing activism of Kimberly Rubio and 10-year-old Caitlyne Gonzales in seeking legislation to prevent future school shootings.

There are vital details, nuances that are missed, when we as reporters parachute in and out of a story, Quinones said.

The extended assignment meshed with how Quinones likes to report such stories. He doesn't see the point of reporters trying to force themselves on people when they don't want to talk. There were times when he had to step away, like when a family he'd been talking to learned that their child might have survived if police had moved more quickly.

The entire experience was eye-opening for the network, Galli said. Following the Uvalde team's lead, an ABC digital team is spending time in Buffalo, where 10 people were killed in a mass shooting, also in May 2022.

Quinones, a Mexican American who grew up in nearby San Antonio, said the extended Uvalde assignment has been the most powerful story he's ever been involved in.

There's no doubt in my mind that this is the kind of story that will live with me forever, he said.
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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP)  Kansas' Democratic governor on Thursday vetoed parts of the Republican-backed $6 billion funding plan for the state's K-12 schools, setting up a likely legal battle that will test her office's powers.

Gov. Laura Kelly, who won reelection in the conservative state in November, issued a statement explaining her decision to take the unprecedented step of vetoing parts of the proposed education budget, saying she objected to one provision, in particular, that she says would cut funding for rural public schools, which have been dealing with declining enrollment.

This provision pulls the rug out from rural school districts at the 11th hour, Kelly said. If the provision is enacted, it will bring dangerous and devastating consequences for our rural districts.

The spending plan, which would provide the bulk of the money that the state's 286 school districts rely on, would also expand a program aimed at providing private school scholarships for low-income families. Although Kelly opposes that provision, she didn't veto it.

Kelly said that because the bill mixed policy with funding, the Kansas Constitution allows her to veto parts but not all of the bill, as it does with legislation setting the state's annual budgets. Top Republicans are likely to object and to challenge the assertion in court.

The issue has never been tested legally, creating uncertainty about how much money school districts might have and what policies they might face the next academic year.

In her statement, Kelly said the GOP-backed bill would change the way districts count their enrollment, which determines their funding. Currently, districts are allowed to use one of the two previous school years to determine how much money they will receive.

The new education bill requires districts to use the current or previous year's enrollment to determine appropriations. That provision would force districts with declining enrollments to immediately make changes to budgets they have already approved for the upcoming year, she said.

Kelly also noted that the Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the current method for determining enrollment, and she said changing the formula would raise questions over the state's compliance with that law.

Education groups had pushed Kelly to veto the bill even though it would increase the states total aid to districts by about 4% for the next school year. The increases would vary by district, with 29  most with fewer than 700 students  receiving less aid than they did this school year.

Kelly has signed education bills with a similar marriage of funding and policy in the past. But she and top Republicans clashed repeatedly over her handling of the coronavirus pandemic. GOP lawmakers forced her to accept a whittling away of the powers of her office and of local officials to close schools and businesses and impose mask mandates.

If Kelly had vetoed the entire bill, she would have forced a special legislative session to ensure that schools are funded for the next school year because lawmakers have adjourned for the year. If she were to lose a court battle over her vetoing parts of the bill, it's unclear if the entire bill would become law or if it would die altogether.

Educators also were upset that GOP lawmakers rejected Kellys proposal to phase in a 70% increase in funding for programs for students with physical or intellectual disabilities, or behavioral problems. It would have required an extra $72 million in the next state budget, but legislators only approved $7.5 million.

Kelly said she was disappointed that lawmakers didn't increase special education funding and that they need to correct their mistake when they return for next year's session.

And educators opposed provisions that would expand an income tax credit program for donors to funds that provide annual private school scholarships of up to $8,000 annually to students from low-income families. Although the total credits would remain capped at $10 million a year, more students would be eligible for the scholarships.

Kelly said most Kansans don't support such policies, and she chastised lawmakers for logrolling them into the education funding bill rather than proposing them as separate bills.

Conservative Republicans wanted to pass a far broader plan to use state education dollars to help parents pay for private or home schooling for their children, something GOP lawmakers have enacted in other states, including Iowa,South Carolina and Utah.

Kelly is strongly opposed to the idea, saying public funds should go to public schools. Republican legislators were split.

The state constitution says that if any bill contains several items of appropriation of money, the governor can veto one or more such items while signing the rest.

While lawmakers often set policy in the budget with provisions directing how money must be spent or prohibiting some spending, those provisions are in effect only for a year. In the past, it's been uncommon for lawmakers to mix spending with measures rewriting state laws permanently, so governors haven't previously taken actions similar to Kelly's.

Stafford reported from Liberty, Missouri. Follow John Hanna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/apjdhanna
LYNNVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  A Tennessee deputy who responded to a call at a home early Thursday has been shot and wounded, a sheriff said.

The deputy was shot in the chest during a standoff at the home in Lynnville, Giles County Sheriff Kyle Helton told news outlets. The deputy was taken to a hospital and is expected to recover because he was wearing a bulletproof vest, Helton said.
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A Waco man with a long history of mental illness and substance use disorder had his commitment to a state secure mental health facility extended Wednesday for another year by a judge in a 2016 murder case.

Zachary Lamone McKee, 33, had his commitment at the Austin State Hospital extended Wednesday by Visiting Judge David Hodges on recommendation of McKees examining physician, Dr. Feroza Talukdar, and the superintendent of the hospital, psychologist Stacey Thompson.

McLennan County District Attorney Josh Tetens presented the states motion to extend McKees commitment. McKees attorney, Chris Bullajian, did not oppose the extension, and McKee did not appear in court.

Civil commitments in Texas are reevaluated by clinicians and a judge at least every 12 months.

McKee, whose court-ordered psychological evaluations reveal a long history of schizophrenia and substance abuse, was found in October 2019 not guilty by reason of insanity in the April 22, 2016, death of Kenneth Cleveland, 61, an AT&T technician for 43 years.

Cleveland was found dead in an alley near the 1400 block of Barron Avenue. Police initially believed Cleveland had been electrocuted, but further investigation, including an autopsy, revealed Cleveland suffered homicidal injuries, including at least 19 stab wounds as well as beating with a shovel, the Tribune-Herald previously reported.
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An 81-year-old woman died after a three-car collision Wednesday on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Waco police said.

Officers responded at about 12:15 p.m. to the crash in the 1000 block of North Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, according to a press release from Waco police spokesperson Cierra Shipley. The 1000 block is north of where MLK passes under Waco Drive.

A Mazda 5 was traveling south down MLK, made a U-Turn and was hit by a second vehicle causing the two to (collide) with a third vehicle, Shipley wrote.

The crash ejected two passengers of the Mazda, who were transported to a local hospital: a 3-year-old girl and the woman who died, according to Shipley. The 3-year-old girl suffered minor injuries, and the 81-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the hospital, Shipley said.

Police expect the occupants of the other two vehicles involved in the crash to be OK, she said.

Shipley did not say whether the department anticipates filing charges in the wreck.
Republicans have their candidate in Kentucky, Democrats have their majority in Pennsylvania and the 2024 GOP presidential primary has another clash between former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the books.

Voters threw DeSantis a pair of brushbacks on Tuesday, most notably in Kentucky where the Florida governors eleventh hour endorsement in the GOP governor primary flopped. Back home in Jacksonville, Democrats knocked off another DeSantis ally, electing the citys first female mayor.

Philadelphia is now likely poised to do the same. Former city council member Cherelle Parker emerged from a deep field of Democratic candidates to claim the partys mayoral nod  defeating a pair of leading liberals in the process. Progressives did better in western Pennsylvania, but the whole party was able to celebrate a special election result that, with Heather Boyds victory, preserved Democrats narrow control of the state legislature.

Here are 7 takeaways from the elections in Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Florida.
Timothy Parlatore, a key attorney defending Donald Trump in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents probe, had departed the former president's legal team.

On Tuesday, Trump's inner circle confirmed Parlatore's resignation, according to CNN. His important departure coincides with the apparent conclusion of special counsel Jack Smith's probe into possible misuse of top secret materials.

Parlatore conveyed in a statement his sincere gratitude for the chance to work with and solve challenging legal problems. The lawyer made it clear that his choice to depart is personal and shouldn't be regarded as having anything to do with the case.

Additionally, Parlatore stated he spoke with Donald Trump personally about leaving the legal team.

Throughout the continuing investigation being conducted by special counsel Jack Smith of the Justice Department, Timothy Parlatore has been crucial in defending Donald Trump. The main focus of the inquiry is the finding of multiple sensitive papers at Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, as well as any possible obstructive tactics.

Several Donald Trump associates have testified before a grand jury in recent months. Federal prosecutors effectively overcame the attorney-client privilege in March and questioned M. Evan Corcoran, another one of Trump's attorneys, in front of the grand jury, as per a report from the LA Times.

In his testimony in December, Timothy Parlatore voluntarily shared important details about efforts to find classified materials in response to government requests.

Read Also: Ex-Apple Engineer Accused of Attempting to Steal Technology

How Big Are Donald Trump's Legal Woes?

In a letter to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner, Timothy Parlatore urged the US Justice Department to stand aside and let the intelligence community investigate the confidential documents found in Trump's possession.

The abrupt resignation of the prominent lawyer coincides with several federal and local investigations against Donald Trump, The Independent reported.

In Manhattan last month, the ex-POTUS was charged with hush money payments. Additionally, a probe into Trump's efforts to have the Georgia 2020 presidential election results annulled is being carried out by the district attorney for Fulton County. Smith is also investigating Donald Trump's January 6 actions and endeavors to alter the outcome of the 2020 election.

Related Article: Donald Trump Mocks DeSantis

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Marking the 80th anniversary of the famous Dambusters raid, a new permanent exhibition, Strike Hard, Strike Sure: Bomber Command 19391945 is now open at the Royal Air Force Museum Midlands. Featuring the newly restored Vickers Wellington bomber, Guy Gibsons Victoria Cross, and the new arrival the Bristol Blenheim, discover how the RAFs Bomber Command took the war to the enemy. The new interactive displays tell the wider Bomber Command story, exploring stories of the crew, technology, and raids that were crucial to Allied victory.

At the center of the new exhibition is the Wellington B Mk X bomber, one of only two remaining examples, and on display for the first time in the Midlands after more than a decade of conservation work. The Wellington was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, and by 1942 Wellingtons were the most numerous aircraft in Bomber Command. They began to be replaced by more capable four-engined heavy bombers such as Halifaxes and Lancasters but continued to operate with Bomber Command as a training aircraft. The Wellingtons rear turret is displayed alongside the aircraft, allowing visitors to peer inside the fuselage and view its famous geodetic structure designed by Barnes Wallis. Interactive displays around the Wellington focus on the roles of the five-strong crew, their extraordinary service, and the close bonds they developed when flying together.

On display for the first time in the Midlands is the Bristol Blenheim Mk IV, a light bomber and night fighter. Although Blenheims were faster than other RAF fighters when they entered service in 1937, by the start of the war they proved to be too slow and lightly armed to defend themselves adequately. As a result, they suffered high casualty rates. With no surviving RAF Blenheims, this Royal Canadian Air Force example represents aircraft of No.139 Squadron, the first RAF squadron to undertake an operational mission in the Second World War.

Personal artifacts from the Museums collection are now on display, many for the first time, sharing the stories of RAF aircrew and groundcrew, including Wing Commander Guy Gibsons Victoria Cross and medal bar. Gibson received the medal for his leadership of No. 617 Squadron, The Dambusters, on their first operation over Germany, the daring Dams raid of 17 May 1943. He completed an astonishing 177 operations and was awarded the Victoria Cross as recognition of the leadership, determination, and valor he demonstrated throughout his career. Other artifacts featured in the new display include a collection of aircraft nose art, flying suits, aircrew lucky charms, uniforms, and caps, log books and post-raid reconnaissance photographs. Some of the innovative technical developments which supported Bomber Command to deliver their mission are represented through items including Barnes Walliss bouncing bomb test models and sketch.

Peoples stories are at the heart of the Bomber Command storytelling. Men and women from across the world, on the ground and in the air, played a part. Throughout the exhibition, silhouettes depict the stories of individuals who played crucial roles, like that of Squadron Leader Ulric Cross DSO DFC. Born in Trinidad, Ulric Cross enlisted in the RAF in 1941 and trained as a navigator. He flew Pathfinder sorties on Mosquitos and completed 80 operations, his proficiency and skill leading to his award of both the Distinguished Service Order and the Distinguished Flying Cross. Of around 6,000 volunteers who came to the UK from the Caribbean to support the war effort, 450 were aircrew and 360 of these flew with Bomber Command.

Interactive elements of the display will encourage participation from visitors of all ages. Learn about ordnance, navigation, protecting the bombers, pathfinders, and an unpredictable enemy  the weather! A timeline shows the key activities of Bomber Command during the Second World War and illustrates how bomber aircraft and tactics changed. View animations, video footage and personal accounts in a series of videos. Have your say and contribute to the debate about the RAFs contribution on the wall of reflection.

Other aircraft on display as part of the Bomber Command exhibition include; the de Havilland Mosquito, Junkers Ju 88, Messerschmitt Me 410, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Messerschmitt Me 262, a section of a Short Stirling Mk III and a Tiger Moth in which many bomber pilots received their first flying experience. Interactive display panels allow visitors to delve deeper into the role of each aircraft including a view inside the cockpit. Displayed alongside the aircraft is a V-1 doodlebug flying bomb and catapult ramp, and a V-2 supersonic ballistic missile.

The Strike Hard, Strike Sure: Bomber Command 19391945 exhibition is now open. The Museum is open daily from 10am and entry is free. Pre-book your arrival time online at rafmuseum.org/midlands.
As reported by Fire Aviation, Neptune Aviation and the National Museum of Forest Service History in Missoula have announced a partnership to provide Lockheed Martin P2V Tanker 12 a new home after its retirement in September 2017. This closes the final chapter on the worlds last active fleet of former maritime patrol aircraft, dating back to the Cold War era, which served for years as national aerial firefighting assets.

The Lockheed P2V Neptune is largely a forgotten aircraft, since it arrived too late for World War II and was eventually overshadowed by its replacement, the Lockheed P-3 Orion. However, through the 1950s and into the 1960s, the Neptune served in large numbers as the aerial backbone of the Wests defense of the seas. A somewhat similar and competing aircraft, the Martin Mercator, was only built in small numbers but served with distinction in Cold War secret spy flights.

On a statement on their Facebook page, Neptune Aviation said: Neptune Aviations T12 is moving to Missoulas National Museum of Forest Service History on May 17th. Both Neptune & the Museum have been working hard to prepare the P2V for the move  Neptune has been getting the aircraft ready for the static display and the Museum has been doing prep work on their grounds. T12s final flight isnt too far, she will be towed across the Missoula International Airport to the Museums Forest Discovery Trail.

NewsTalk KGVO reported that from 1993 Neptune operated a fleet of Lockheed Martin P2V aircraft, and its ships put in about 47,000 firefighting missions, dropping a total of 97 million gallons of retardant.

The National Museum of Forest Service History is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission of sharing the history of Americas conservation legacy. Neptune Aviation Services is based in Missoula, Montana.
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WATERLOO  Residents and police officers present and past gathered to remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to protect the community on Wednesday.

We all know that police are extremely important to us, that the protection of our freedoms in our community, of the ability to peacefully go about our work, needs protection, said Mark Nook, University of Northern Iowa president. But not every community takes time to reflect and thank and to honor those who engage in that service.

The audience outside Veterans Memorial Hall included active police officers from across Black Hawk County, retired officers and family members of those who died in the line of duty.

UNIs police department organized the annual Peace Officers Memorial Service.

Chiefs from local departments took turns reading the names of the fallen officers  a total of 14 since 1902  and the circumstance that led to their sacrifices.

Last week, the FBI released a report outlining line-of-duty deaths in 2022. According to the report, a total of 118 law enforcement officers were killed in line-of-duty incidents last year.

Of these, 60 officers died as a result of criminal acts, a decrease of 17.8% when compared to the 73 officers who were killed as a result of criminal acts in 2021.

Offenders used firearms to kill 49 of the 60 victim officers. Of the remaining officers, three were killed with vehicles used as weapons and eight were killed by punches and kicks, the report states.

A total of 58 officers died in accidents in 2022. Of those, 35 died in vehicle crashes, 13 were pedestrian officers struck by vehicles, six officers were in an aircraft crash, two officers were killed in falls and two died as a result of firearms-related incidents.

According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, four Iowa officers died in the line of duty in 2022.

Michael Earl German, chief of the Prairie City Police Department, died Jan. 13 of COVID-19 complications.

Sgt. John Karl Williams of the Coralville Police Department died July 3 after experiencing a chest pains while responding to a report of a shooting involving a toddler.

Deputy Austin Wayne Richardson of the Fremont County Sheriffs Office died June 14 in a traffic accident.

Deputy John Lawrence Grampovnik of the Allamakee County Sheriffs Office died Jan. 27 of COVID complications.

PHOTOS: Peace Officer Memorial Ceremony 2023 051723jr-police-memorial-4 051723jr-police-memorial-1 051723jr-police-memorial-6 051723jr-police-memorial-5 051723jr-police-memorial-2 051723jr-police-memorial-3
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INDEPENDENCE  A former Buchanan County sheriffs deputy has been sentenced to jail for allegedly asking a woman to show her breasts to get out of a speeding ticket.

Klint Michael Bentley, 38, of Fairbank, pleaded to one count of misconduct in office, a misdemeanor, and on Tuesday was sentenced to 350 days suspended to 15 days in jail with credit for time served and a $430 fine plus surcharges.

The judge also extended a no-contact order for five years.

Under the plea agreement, charges of extortion and bribery were dismissed.

Authorities said Bentley pulled over a woman for a traffic violation in the area of 120th Street and Fairbank-Amish Boulevard on Feb. 4, 2022. He allegedly implied he should get something in exchange for forgoing a speeding citation and asked her to show her breasts, asking her Whats in it for me? according to court records.

The woman recorded the incident, records state.

After the stop, Bentley allegedly continued to text the woman, asking her for nude photos, according to court records.

The case was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and Bentley was charged in June 2022.
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WATERLOO  Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity gifted another new homeowner the keys to her place on Tuesday through its homeownership program after revitalizing an older, dilapidated house in the 300 block of Allen Street.

Raquel Harmon and her son Steven Meeks, 9, plan to move in Thursday. As an avid cooker, shes most looking forward to that first meal  lasagna. Home ownership had been the last goal on her list after having graduated from college, paid off her car loan and gotten other debt under control.

Its been a journey, the 2004 East High School graduate told a crowd that gathered inside the home to celebrate the accomplishment. I never thought Id make it this far ever. Ive always been on the outside looking in on everybody elses success. And I told God that I need to accomplish everything on that list now, and this was the last thing on that list.

I couldnt have done it without all my family, the prayers, the push, the encouragement, and the matriarch (her grandmother Lucy Scullark).

The two-story, 1,476-square-foot home was built in 1901 at the corner of West Second and Allen streets. Habitat for Humanity took over the abandoned residence from the city that had been owned by a hoarder and was in less-than-ideal shape. The city had gotten it through the 657A property policy process for housing eligible to be rehabilitated.

This project is a metaphor for how we want to approach our neighborhood revitalization work, said Andy Conger, Iowa Heartlands construction director. Its changed the way we look at a home. We assess it for what it has going for it and we lift up the good.

Weve really given it a second chance at life even though it had been forgotten and abandoned. Were restoring hope where hope might have been lost.

Work on the house started in the fall. That goal  of finding its inner beauty and not modernizing it too much by instead preserving the history and character of the home  was reflected throughout the home with a kitchen, three bedrooms, and 1-1/2 bathrooms with hardwood floors and baby powder blue walls.

Since 1990, close to 200 families have achieved homeownership through Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity. The rehabilitated homes are bought for an affordable price with a no interest mortgage to a person who becomes eligible.

That person becomes eligible by initially putting in 100 hours of sweat equity and, eventually, 300 hours total. Most of that time is spent working on the house of their dreams. Remaining hours are spent on other housing projects, taking homeownership classes or volunteering at Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

That process typically takes about 18-24 months. For Harmon, that started in the fall of 2021.

Fifteen to 20 other people are working through the program in hopes of purchasing their first home with the help of many volunteers and funding  a lot of what comes with the help of big organizations like John Deere.

Harmons 84-year-old grandmother was in attendance along with other family, partners, and volunteers who presented gifts and mementos to the new homeowner. Others came, as well, who had joined in the process of helping make Harmons dream a reality.

Im most excited to see my room, said Meeks with a bunch of gifts in his hands hed received as part of the ceremony.

Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity has taken on other projects in the Church Row and Walnut neighborhoods as well as in Cedar Falls, Waverly, and throughout Black Hawk, Bremer, Butler, and Buchanan counties.

Photos: The Panther Caravan stops in Waterloo Panther Caravan 1 Panther Caravan 2 Panther Caravan 3 Panther Caravan 4 Panther Caravan 5 Panther Caravan 6 Panther Caravan 7 Northern Iowa football coach Mark Farley rallies support for the UNI Our Tomorrow campaign Northern Iowa assistant womens basketball coach Katelin Oney speaks on the Panthers 23-10 season Northern Iowa head wresling coach Doug Schwab fires up the crowd Northern Iowa head mens basketball coach Ben Jacobson addresses the crowd at the Waterloo stop of the Panther Caravan Northern Iowa head volleyball coach Bobbi Peterson discusses her team
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WATERLOO  Hawkeye Community College will host the Cedar Valley Respiratory Care Seminar from 8:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, June 8. It will take place in Buchanan Hall on the Hawkeye Community College Main Campus at 1501 East Orange Road.

The seminar is designed to update respiratory therapists and other healthcare professionals on the latest care that impacts patients with cardiopulmonary disease.

The cost to attend the seminar is $45, which includes a lunch. Attendees may also earn six AARC CRCE contact hours.

Registration closes June 1. For more information or to register, call (319) 296-4290 or visit hawkeyecollege.edu/respiratory-seminar.

Photos: Biden honors 9 with Medal of Valor
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WATERLOO  The Salvation Army of Waterloo/Cedar Falls Youth Center will host a summer day camp for Black Hawk County youth.

This years camp theme, "Growth," will provide kids and teens with an adventurous, active, and healthy summer highlighted by plant, animal, community, and personal growth. Camp programs have been designed to offer a fun, unique experience with an opportunity to explore the outdoors, meet new friends, and discover new interests.

The camp will run Monday  Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. between June 12 and Aug. 11. Campers may use the Youth Center entrance, 207 Logan Ave. In addition to small group activities, free time to explore personal areas of interest, and field trips, registered campers will receive lunch and an afternoon snack. The registration fee is $10 per child (6-17 years old); families experiencing hardships may apply to have their fees reduced or waived.

Limited spots available. Registration forms can be picked up at The Salvation Army, 89 Franklin St., or call (319) 235-9358.

Photos: Biden honors 9 with Medal of Valor
State quarter in 2004: School on the back. What could we possibly put on that quarter now? Polluted water, a hungry/homeless family, a student in need of mental health care or a public school hosting a bake sale would all be good choices. Take Washington off the other side and put on Trump. Reynolds and many Republicans ran on underfunding of public education and got elected. They ran on book banning  elected. They ran an on the harassment and bullying of students, tax breaks and school dollars for their wealthy donors, increasing voting difficulty, consolidating power to the governors office and reduction of oversight. Elected on all counts. Senate floor questions about child labor not allowed by majority party. This is what Nazi Germany looked like in the 1930s; our students wont know that. Those will be the next books banned. Those Iowans who voted for this should be ashamed of themselves. Those that approved these policies by failing to vote should be embarrassed. Those voting for this in Des Moines: soft-brained sheep. To keep power, Republicans must damage education as much as possible. Educated populations dont vote Republican. Woke indoctrination doesnt exist, Kim. Stop your right-wing fearmongering.
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The so-called fair and balanced news network that is anything but, got its comeuppance in the last couple of weeks. Fox News paid out nearly $800 million to Dominion Voting Systems after evidence of Tucker Carlson admitting he lied, and had other lying, conspiracy theory know-nothings on his show, denouncing accuracy of voting tabulation.

Why dont Trumps boot lickers just give it up? He lost big, and they know it. Fox should have fired Tucker long ago. Carlson also promoted Russian propaganda to the gullible, conspiracy-theory believing rubes who watched his show. Putler (Vladimir Putin) invaded his neighbor, routinely bombs schools, hospitals and apartment houses in Ukraine, and kidnaps and relocates children.

Tucker sells national security down the river, not dissimilar to Nazi sympathizers during WWII, in favor of Putler the pint-sized czar. When Tucker was fired, the Pentagon cheered while Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov jeered the loss of one of Russias biggest assets in the USA. Since Turncoat Tucker thinks Russia is so great he should move to Russia and learn to eat borscht instead of pizza. Maybe Putler will make him an honorary officer to be sent to the front line as cannon fodder.

Russell Broadway, Waterloo
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Ukraine's foreign minister told a senior Chinese ambassador in Kyiv that any ideas to end the war with Russia must not lead to territory loss or a frozen conflict.

Li Hui, a former ambassador to Russia and China's special envoy for Eurasian issues, visited Ukraine on Tuesday and met with Dmytro Kuleba, the country's foreign minister, on Wednesday, US News reported.

Since Russia's sweeping assault on Kyiv in February 2022, a top Chinese diplomat hasn't been to the Ukrainian capital until this trip.

Ukraine's foreign ministry emphasized that Kuleba briefed the Chinese representative in-depth on the fundamentals of forging a fair and lasting peace based on reverence for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

During the meeting, the Ukrainian official emphasized that it rejects any suggestions that will result in the loss of its territory or the escalation of the war. China's hesitancy to call Moscow's actions an invasion has raised questions about its legitimacy as a mediator, according to a report from Yahoo! News.

Chinese President Xi Jinping declares Beijing's neutrality and seeks to serve as a mediator in the continuing 15-month war. China has, however, backed Moscow politically.

Beijing launched a peace proposal in February, but it was mostly ignored by Ukraine's supporters, who demanded that Russian President Vladimir Putin withdraw his military from the country.

Pope Francis Wants End To Ukraine War

The update came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met privately with Pope Francis at the Vatican and requested the pope's backing for his peace initiative.

Zelensky was warmly welcomed by the pontiff on Saturday, who is well recognized for his desire to work toward putting an end to the Russia-Ukraine war that started a year ago and was then shown to a papal studio next to the audience hall at the Vatican, CNBC reported.

Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the pope for the privilege of meeting him. Francis thanked the Ukrainian chief executive during their 40-minute conversation.

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17.05.2023 (15:30)

Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation carried out a long-range sea-based high-precision weapons attack on a large ammunition depot at a ship-repair facility in Nikolayev.

The goals of the strike have been reached. The assigned target has been neutralised.

In Kupyansk direction, the attacks, launched by aviation and artillery of the Zapad Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the AFU manpower and hardware close to Novosyolovskoye (Lugansk Peoples Republic) Olshana, Petropavlovka and Masyutovka (Kharkov region).

The actions of six Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups have been suppressed close to Timkovka (Kharkov region), Rozovka, Stelmakhovka and Novosyolovskoye (Lugansk Peoples Republic).

The enemy losses were up to 115 Ukrainian servicemen, two armoured fighting vehicles, seven motor vehicles, as well as one Msta-B howitzer.

In Krasny Liman direction, the attacks, launched by Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, artillery, and heavy flamethrower systems of the Tsentr Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the AFU units close to Nevskoye, Chervonaya Dibrova (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and Grigorovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The units of the 252nd Motorised Rifle Regiment have repelled two attacks by the AFU assault groups with the support of two tanks close to Chervonopopovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic). The enemy losses were over 30 Ukrainian servicemen and one tank.

In Krasny Liman direction, the enemy losses were over 70 Ukrainian servicemen, one tank, two armoured personnel carriers, one Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system and one D-30 howitzer.

In Donetsk direction, the assault detachments continued to conduct combat actions against the enemy in the western part of Artyomovsk. The units of the Yug Group of Forces restrained the enemy on the assault units flanks.

The most difficult situation was in the areas of Krasnoye and Bogdanovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), where Russian troops have repelled seven AFU attacks.

As a result of the Airborne Troops offensive actions, a more favourable line of defence has been taken.

The attacks, launched by Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, as well as artillery and heavy flamethrower systems of the Yug Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the enemy manpower and hardware close to Konstantinovka and Krasnoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The aviation has made 7 sorties close to Artyomovsk. The Groups artillery has performed 64 firing missions.

In Donetsk direction, the enemy losses were up to 360 Ukrainian servicemen and mercenaries, four armoured personnel carriers, five armoured fighting vehicles, two motor vehicles, one British-manufactured L-119 howitzer, and one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system.

One munition depot of the AFU 110th Mechanised Brigade has been destroyed near Avdeevka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

One U.S.-manufactured AN/TPQ-50 counterbattery warfare radar has been destroyed near Stupochki (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

In South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, aviation, as well as artillery and heavy flamethrower systems of the Vostok Group of Forces inflicted a fire damage on the enemy units near Pavlovka, Shevchenko, Chervonoye, Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Novodanilovka and Malaya Tokmachka (Zaporozhye region).

The enemy losses were up to 150 Ukrainian servicemen, two armoured vehicles, six motor vehicles, and one D-30 howitzer.

In Kherson direction, the enemy losses were up to 40 servicemen, two armoured vehicles, three motor vehicles, two Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems, and one Msta-B howitzer.

Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, and Artillery of the Russian Group of Forces have engaged 83 AFU artillery units, manpower, and hardware in 112 areas during the day.

One AFU command post of Thunder tactical group has been hit close to Kherson.

One command post of the AFU 44th Artillery Brigade has been hit close to Preobrazhenka (Zaporozhye region).

One observation post of the AFU special forces has been hit near Velikiy Island (Kherson region).

Air defence facilities have intercepted nine HIMARS rocket-propelled projectiles.

Air defence facilities have shot down 19 unmanned aerial vehicles close to Chubaryovka, Inzhenernoye, Rabotino (Zaporozhye region), Velikiy Vyselok, Nezhdanovka (Kharkov region), Donetsk, Verhnetoretskoye, Staromlynovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Chervonopopovka, Novodruzhesk, Kolomiychiha (Lugansk Peoples Republic), as well as Novaya Kakhovka (Kherson region).

In total, 427 airplanes, 233 helicopters, 4,197 unmanned aerial vehicles, 422 air defence missile systems, 9,206 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,100 fighting vehicles equipped with MLRS, 4,837 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 10,267 special military motor vehicles have been destroyed during the special military operation.

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The Minnesota Department of Human Services is now offering text message reminders for Minnesotans who have Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare about renewing their health insurance.

Prompted by when its time to renew health insurance, the department of human services will now be texting important updates and announcements.

We want people to stay covered, Human Services Commissioner Jodi Harpstead said. Text messaging is a commonsense way to reach them with important information.

These text reminders are not interactive for recipients and no one should respond to the messages with personal information.

All texts about insurance from the Department of Human Services will come from the number 28343.

Additionally, individuals enrolled will receive renewal forms by mail along with text messages notifying them when to watch their mail along with deadline reminders.

Over the month of April, the Department of Human Services has sent out about 100,000 renewal notices to people with Medical Assistance via text message.

One in four Minnesotans have insurance through Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare.

By May 2024, state, county, and Tribal workers will check eligibility for over 1.5 million people with those programs.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services is also developing user-friendly ways to complete the renewal process online or over the phone.

For more information about renewals and to update contact information and get text messages visit mn.gov/dhs/renewmycoverage.
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Gamers with electric vehicles can now charge their cars while playing at Ho-Chunk Casino Wisconsin Dells.

The casino between the Dells area and Baraboo held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for two electric vehicle charging stations in its parking lot. Casino officials, Ho-Chunk Nation President Marlon WhiteEagle, and officials from Alliant Energy, Inertial Electric, and the Baraboo Area Chamber of Commerce all attended the event.

Were extremely excited to offer this new amenity to guests of our property, said David Abangan, the casinos Group Sales Manager.

Located on the west end of the lot, the new ABB Terra 184 stations allow for four vehicles to charge at once. A release announcing the new stations indicated that they are two of the fastest charging stations in the state, with 180 kilowatt dual ports. WhiteEagle said that the casino in Black River Falls also has a charging station.

Great to see that were moving more towards having these available for our guests to use, said WhiteEagle. This is a great addition to the property here.

Ho-Chunk Casino Wisconsin Dells Executive Manager Landon Owen added that installation of the EV stations has been in the works for 18 months. Owen credited Alliant Energy and Inertial Electric for their work on getting the stations to the casino.

The two new stations are somewhat distant from each other in the lot. Owen said the reasoning for that is the casino wants to evaluate usage levels of the charging stations and may look to expand its EV offerings over the next few years.

Alliant Energy is a proud partner on this project, said JP Brummond, Alliant Energys Vice President of Customer and Community Engagement. Its just a fantastic project. Were ready to share our electrification knowledge wherever we can.

Jim Bruette, the Sales Vice President with Inertial Electric, said that the charging station project at the casino is a good example of what can happen when good people come together to achieve a common goal.

Along with the energy partners, Ho-Chunk collaborated with Wisconsin Clean Cities, an environmental consultation nonprofit which partners with municipalities and energy companies throughout the state.

After the ribbon cutting, owners of two electric vehicles at the event offered to let attendees drive them to experience a little fun.
Weather Alert

...Strong thunderstorms will impact Pyramid Lake through 200 PM PDT... At 1259 PM PDT, Doppler radar was tracking a cluster of strong thunderstorms over Pyramid Lake, moving east at 30 mph. HAZARD...Winds in excess of 40 mph and half inch hail. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Gusty winds could capsize small vessels on the lake. Minor damage to outdoor objects is possible. Locations impacted include... Pyramid Lake, Sutcliffe, Nixon, The Needle Rocks and Tohakum Peak. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building. Frequent cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm. Lightning can strike 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. Seek a safe shelter inside a building or vehicle. && MAX HAIL SIZE...0.50 IN; MAX WIND GUST...40 MPH
The man accused of killing 18-year-old Hailey Nieto is now back in Washoe County after being extradited from Texas.

39-year-old Todd Tonnochy was booked into the Washoe County Jail on Thursday on charges of open murder and concealing/destroying evidence.

Tonnochy was arrested by U.S. Marshals on March 28 in Midland, Texas.

As of right now, there is a no court date scheduled for Tonnochy.

Nieto's body was found on the dirt extension of North Virginia Street in March, and her death was ruled a homicide.

MARCH 31, 2023:

Authorities say a man is now behind bars accused of killing 18-year-old Hailey Nieto and leaving her body near a road in Cold Springs last week.

On March 28, 2023, through an investigation led by the Washoe County Sheriffs Office, the U.S. Marshals Service arrested 39-year-old Todd Tonnochy.

On March 28, 2023, the U.S. Marshals, with the assistance of the Midland County Sheriffs Office Criminal Investigation Division and SWAT team, successfully located Tonnochy at a motel in Midland, Texas, where they took him into custody.

Washoe County Sheriffs Office detectives say there are no outstanding suspects in this case, and they would like to thank the members of the public who provided tips and information.

----

A viewing was held Wednesday for the woman whose body was found north of Reno last week.

The family sent us photos of the viewing they had for Hailey Nieto at Mountain View Mortuary.

Her brother and parents were among those who attended the 18-year-old's viewing.

As we reported, her body was found last week with a gunshot wound on the dirt extension of North Virginia Street and is being investigated as a homicide.

In a statement, her family said:

"Hailey was a daughter, mother, granddaughter, great granddaughter, cousin, niece and aunt. She loved her two baby girls and loved taking them to the park to see the ducks and go on the swings. She was a Reno Native, born and raised here. She was studying to be a mortician and wanted to work at Mountain View Mortuary someday. Its very sad that she ended up there in a different way. She loved doing art, makeup, fashion, loved music, camping, Hawaii and Lake Tahoe in the summer. She was so empathetic, she would occasionally go to cemeteries, read about peoples stories and show her respect. She leaves behind a two-year-old and nine-month-old, Luna & Mila."

Authorities are looking for anyone who may have been in the area between 5:00 a.m. and 12 p.m. on Thursday, March 23, 2023.

If you have any information that can help authorities, call or text your anonymous tip to Secret Witness at 775-322-4900. A $5,000 reward is being offered.

The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help expenses. Click below -
(Photo : Ted S. Warren - Pool/Getty Images)

The suspect in the stabbing murders of four Univesity of Idaho students, Bryan Kohberger, has been indicted on charges of murder and burglary.

Bryan Kohberger, the suspect in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students last year, has been indicted

The suspect's indictment was on charges of murder and burglary

Kohberger remains in prison without bond

The suspect in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students in November last year, Bryan Kohberger, has been indicted on charges of murder and burglary.

Kohberger is a Ph.D. criminology student from the same university as the victims and is set to appear for arraignment on Monday to enter a plea. Prosecutors previously charged the 28-year-old suspect on the charges, but the indictment allows the case to move directly to a higher-level court in Moscow, Idaho.

The University of Idaho Killing Suspect Indicted

The indictment issued by the grand jury was also on the same charges that the suspect was initially charged with. However, Latah County Court Deputy Clerk Charlotte Mansil said on Wednesday that Kohberger could face more charges if filed.

Mansil added that Kohberger was indicted on the original charges and noted that the hearing scheduled for the end of June was vacated. She noted it would be held in person on May 22 at 9:00 a.m. local time in Courtroom 3, as per USA Today.

Authorities revealed that DNA evidence left at the crime scene tied Kohberger to the killings of the victims, identified as 20-year-old Ethan Chapin, 21-year-old Madison Mogen, 21-year-old Kaylee Goncalves, and 20-year-old Xana Kernodle. Another roommate was the one who discovered the bodies of the victims on Nov. 13 last year.

In the state of Idaho, defendants who face direct charges from prosecutors are required to undergo a preliminary hearing. There, a judge will publicly hear evidence in the case and decide whether there is enough to move to a trial. However, an indictment by a grand jury allows prosecutors to skip that public hearing entirely.

Court officials on Monday said that the suspect would appear before a new judge as his case was transferred from county to district court. He is expected to enter a plea to the charges given to him related to the stabbing murders.

Read Also: Theranos Founder Loses Bid To Avoid Prison, Hit With Restitution Bill

Brutal Stabbing Deaths

The situation prevents the suspect from fighting against the evidence that the prosecution has against him. It also allows the two surviving housemates of the victims and other potential witnesses to skip testimony under cross-examination prior to trial, according to Fox News.

The indictment was somewhat expected as in January, prominent Boise defense attorney Edwina Elcox said that it could be announced at any time after a grand jury was chosen behind closed doors.

Authorities initially arrested Kohberger for the murders in December last year that occurred inside a home just outside of their university's main campus. The stabbing deaths prompted officials to conduct a weeks-long search for a potential suspect.

The surrounding community and the campus were filled with anxiety and fear until Kohberger was taken into custody. Authorities found the suspect at his parents' home in Pennsylvania, where an attorney for the defendant said that he went for the holidays, said CNN.

Related Article: Missing Illinois Girl Featured in Netflix Series Found Alive

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Siring offspring later in life is by no means uncommon. But when it happens, people raise a glass and a lot of questions  something actor Robert De Niro, 79, knows well after becoming a dad again. 

The Oscar winner isnt the worlds oldest father by a long shot. (That title goes to Australian Les Colley, who welcomed a son in 1991 at age 92, according to Guinness World Records.)

De Niro has fans gushing  and the public buzzing  over the news that his seventh child, daughter Gia Virginia Chen-De Niro, was born on April 6.

The actor is in good company. Billy Joel was 68, Clint Eastwood was 66, and Eddie Murphy was 57 when their youngest children were born.

Having children later in life is a trend that has been on the rise among the general population for some time.

The age of a new father in the U.S. rose from 27.4 to 30.1 years from 1972 to 2015, according to a 2017 analysis by Stanford University researchers. The percentage of new dads in their 40s doubled during that time, to almost 9 percent. 

John Duffy, a licensed clinical psychologist and national parenting expert based in Chicago, says hes come around over the years on the topic of older dads. An obvious concern is that at an older age, a father may not be around for all the milestones as a child progresses into the teenage years and adulthood. 

I will admit that I used to be concerned about this phenomenon, Duffy says. I thought these men seemed too old to start a family, given all the energy and time and patience thats required to have a child.

Duffys thinking has shifted. Ive found those concerns to be less than relevant, he says. There are ways to father effectively after age 50  but its a different way of parenting than when you're in your 20s and 30s.

Mark Liu knows that well. The 58-year-old digital content strategist from Brighton, New York, became a parent to his third child, Sammy, at 52.

Already father to a son and daughter  18 and 15, respectively  Liu found comfort in the fact that his own dad had his youngest child at age 60.

Ive kept in pretty good shape, and I love having kids, so I wasnt too worried, he says. In a way, it gives us one more chance to get it right, to model and share the things we think are important in life.

What should men take into account when thinking of becoming an older dad? Here are some things to consider. 

PROS

Bringing life experience to the job

Liu says he doesnt panic or worry about details as much as he did in his younger days.
Incidents of fraud have exploded in recent years, with 2.4 million fraud reports and nearly $9 billion reported stolen in 2022. And thats likely a small fraction of the total, since experts believe that the vast majority of fraud goes unreported.



Scams  and seemingly constant scam attempts by phone, email and text  have grown so pervasive, two-thirds of Americans say theyre at a crisis level.

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Thats based on a quiz of 1,000 U.S. adults, meant to assess their level of knowledge and awareness of various kinds of scams and fraud, summarized in a new AARP report, Consumer Fraud Awareness Gets D Grade. Adults 50 and older are more likely to agree that scams are at a crisis level, with 81 percent concurring, compared to 56 percent of respondents ages 18 to 49.

The questions also touched on the different ways that scammers request payment from their victims.

About one-quarter of those surveyed said they didnt know that its always a scam when you are asked to make a payment or send money by purchasing a gift card and sharing the number on the back of the card. Gift cards are a hugely popular way for criminals to receive cash; $228 million of the money lost to scams last year was in the form of gift cards, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

And while most people (79 percent) are aware that it can be risky to purchase products and services in response to social media ads, 15 percent said they werent sure, and 6 percent believed that it was always safe to do so. Social media was the most profitable contact method to scammers in 2022, the FTC reports.
A team of archaeologists with the Sapienza University of Rome have unearthed a rare figurine during a recent dig in central Italy. The enigmatic statue was discovered during an excavation of Battifratta Cave in Poggio Nativo and is believed to be around 7,000 years old.

News from the Neolithic cave deposit of Battifratta (Central Latium, IT). More at https://t.co/YdRTmyLM2J pic.twitter.com/agI1AApq4x  Daniele Moscone (@mosdann) May 17, 2023

According to a press release from the university, Battifratta Cave opens onto a ridge that sits along the tributary to the Farfa. The current entrance to the cave corresponds to the outlet of an ancient spring, probably with a seasonal regime, which was a point of attraction for the human communities of the past, the release reads.

Along with serving as a supply of water, the cave served a ritual purpose as well, as shown by the set of remains that were found with the figurine.

Currently, its unknown what or who the figurine depicts, other than its based on a female. It dates back to Neolithic times, when the area was inhabited by the regions first agricultural communities, and its face is outlined in a schematic way. Great care was noticeably taken with the statues hair and the decorations that adorn its body.

The archaeologists are hoping to learn more, and its been delivered to the Department of Ancient Sciences at Sapienza for further study. The hope is that itll allow the team to learn more about how it was made and its relation to the cultures and traditions of the ancient people who used to reside in the area.

More from us: 7,000-Year-Old Road Discovered Off the Coast of Croatia

The research at Battifratta Cave is being conducted as part of a larger initiative about the prehistoric residents of the Farfa Valley and neighboring territories. Its financed by the Grandi Scavi Sapienza Fund, and continues to be carried out with the concession of the Ministry of Culture, the province of Rieti and Superintendence ABAP Rome Metropolitan.
(Photo : OLEKSANDR GIMANOV / AFP) (OLEKSANDR GIMANOV/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey announces the extension of the Black Sea grain deal for two months, a move that Russia has confirmed and that the United Nations has hailed a good news for the world.

Turkey announces the extension of the Ukraine Black Sea grain deal for two months

Russia confirmed the news, alongside Ukraine and the United Nations

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the move was considered "good news for the world"

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the Ukraine Black Sea grain deal would be extended by two months, a move that Russia has confirmed.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hailed the move as "good news for the world" a day before Moscow was set to quit the agreement over various issues. The announcement of the extension was made in a televised speech by Erdogan.

Extension of Black Sea Grain Deal

In the last few days before the extension's announcement, the ships' flow through the corridor was slowly grinding to a halt. This was because the expiration of the agreement was on Thursday.

The Black Sea grain deal was initially brokered in July last year by the United Nations and Turkey with an initial 120 days of operation. It was meant to address a global food crisis exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, one of the world's top grain exporters, as per Reuters.

Initially, Moscow was only willing to extend the agreement if a list of demands regarding its own agricultural exports were met. In a statement, Russia's foreign ministry said that extending the deal is an opportunity to assist global food security.

It added that its moral assessment of the Istanbul agreements of July 22, 2022, remains the same. The ministry also argued that the distortions in implementing the deal should be corrected quickly.

Moscow has argued that restrictions on payments, logistics, and insurance, have all contributed to a barrier to its shipments. This comes as Russian exports of food and fertilizer are not affected by Western sanctions imposed following its invasion of Ukraine.

In a Facebook post, Ukrainian Minister of Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development, Oleksandr Kubrakov, confirmed that the grain deal was extended until July 18. According to CNN, he noted that this means the world will continue to receive Ukrainian products, thanking Turkey and the UN.

Read Also: Japan Witnesses Surge in Tourists With Nearly 2 Million Visitors in April

Restricting Russia's Exports

The Ukrainian official said they were grateful to the partners who showed their unwavering and focused position on the need for the agreement. Kubrakov also accused Russia of restricting Ukraine's grain shipments.

He said that nearly 70 vessels are now waiting in Turkish territorial waters and noted that 90% are prepared to deliver their products to farmers worldwide. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was the one who confirmed the extension of the deal for Moscow.

Before the agreement extension, senior officials from all involved countries, Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, and the United Nations, met last week in Istanbul. There, they continued negotiations regarding the Black Sea grain deal and how it would move forward.

Despite Moscow's claims, the United States rejected ideas that its sanctions were causing difficulties for Russia's export of goods. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that Russia was exporting grain and fertilizer at the same or higher levels compared to before the war, said Aljazeera

Related Article: Kyiv Rejects Proposals to End Conflict Involving Territory Loss

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Completion of Call Notice with LDA Capital

Perth, May 18, 2023 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Classic Minerals Limited ( ASX:CLZ ) ( 2I7:FRA ) ( CSMRF:OTCMKTS ) advises that the pricing period forthe LDA Capital Limited (LDA) subscription has expired and LDA has now completed the subscription for shares pursuant to the Call Notice given to LDA as announced on 31 March 2023 (see ASX Announcement: Classic Submits Call Notice to LDA Capital).



LDA has subscribed for 554,588,344 shares (Subscription Shares) of the 658,000,000 shares (Collateral Shares) put to LDA pursuant to the Call Notice for a total of $494,080.00 at a price per Subscription Share of $0.00089. The price per Subscription Share represents 90% of the average VWAP of shares during the 30-day pricing period exclusive of adjusting events being $0.00089. The remaining 103,411,656 Collateral Shares for which LDA has not subscribed will remain in the account of LDA to be applied for any further Call Notice to be put to LDA Capital Limited.



CLZ submitted the capital Call Notice under the terms of its strategic $15 million Put Option Agreement (Agreement or facility) with the US-based financier announced in December 2022. (See ASX Announcement dated 15 December 2022: Classic secures A$20.0m institutional funding package).



Under the terms of the Facility, LDA can subscribe for a minimum of 50% and a maximum of 200% of the Shares put to LDA Capital.



Market volatility during the pricing period over the 30 trading days meant that a number of days were eliminated from the volume and VWAP calculations, thereby lowering the Collateral Shares available for subscription to 554,588,344 which LDA has subscribed for resulting in a capital raise of $494,080.00 from the 554,588,344 shares.



Chairman John Lester said the LDA facility had allowed the Company access to capital at reasonable rates. "The LDA Capital Facility was established specifically to ensure the Company had access to a reliable source of capital not wholly dependent on volatile, short-term shifts in equity market sentiment," he said.



Mr Lester said the capital injection will be used to progress work at Kat Gap.







About Classic Minerals Limited





Classic Minerals Limited (ASX:CLZ) is an exploration and development company focused on gold deposits in Western Australia's famous Goldfields region. In March 2017, Classic acquired the Forrestania Gold Project, with seven tenements stretching across 450km2. Strategically located in a very prospective region, the FGP is an underexplored package surrounded by multimillion ounce deposits such as Bounty (2Moz) and Yilgarn Star (1.5Moz).
Dear J.T. & Dale: Im turning 25 this year, and my parents have told me that this means I can no longer be on their health insurance. I do have some pre-existing conditions, so I definitely need health insurance, but the job I currently have doesnt offer any. How can I figure out which companies will offer me health insurance and get hired by them?  Derrick

DALE: First, some good news: Your parents have that wrong about the age limit  its when you turn 26, not 25. That was part of the ACA (Affordable Care Act) and if your folks get their insurance via the ACA marketplace, then you wont be booted off till December 31st of the year you turn 26. For other insurance, its usually just your 26th birthday; however, there are state laws that might give you even more time. For instance, in Wisconsin, its 27, Florida and New York its 30, and in New Jersey its 31. (Although, its like the old line from TV commercials, Conditions apply.)

J.T.: But give yourself plenty of time to find a job with insurance. Most companies like to share all the benefits they offer in job descriptions they post, so you should easily be able to see which ones are offering medical insurance. Now, once you get to job interviews, you dont want to ask about this until you get the job offer. Asking about benefits too soon in the process can make you look greedy  the goal is to get the job offer first and then get some clarification on the benefits. And I definitely would get clarification because insurance can be expensive. Just because they offer health coverage doesnt mean theyre paying for everything  youre probably still going to have a pretty large copay, along with your contribution to the premiums.

DALE: Data from the Kaiser Family Foundation reports this for the average annual cost for insurance premiums: over $6K paid by the company, plus about $1,300 paid by the employee. Thats just premiums, not the copays or deductibles. So, you are indeed wise to factor that into your job search criteria.

Dear J.T. & Dale: I just got laid off from my job, which I didnt really care for anyway. I was thinking about going back to school and getting a degree in a different field. Given how bad the economy is right now, do you think thats a good idea?  Sloane

J.T.: If you can go back to school and not incur any debt (or very little debt), then its something you could explore. But I will caution you that these days getting a college degree does not guarantee achieving a career change. Unfortunately, a lot of people mistakenly think that as long as they get the degree, theyre hireable, but most companies also require work experience. So, if you do decide to get a degree, please make sure you know what career path you want to go in and make sure you can do some internships so that you have the work experience needed to successfully pivot. Otherwise, you could find yourself with a lot of debt and still not able to make that career transition.

DALE: First, let me back up and question your statement about how bad the economy is. Its a great job market, maybe the best youll see in your whole career. Dont let that become an excuse to go back to school. Next, changing careers probably doesnt require a different degree. One study put the percent of people working in the same career as their degree at just under half. Another study puts the number of college grads working in jobs that dont require a degree at 41%. My point is that degrees and careers dont always form a tidy dovetail. So, before you go back to school, meet people working in the field you want to pursue and ask them the question you asked us. Its great networking, and you might find yourself getting a job offer and, bang, youve made the fresh start you seek.

Jeanine J.T. Tanner ODonnell is a career coach and the founder of the leading career site www.workitdaily.com. Dale Dautens latest book is Experiments Never Fail: A Guide for the Bored, Unappreciated and Underpaid. Please visit them at jtanddale.com, where you can send questions via email, or write to them in care of King Features Syndicate, 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, FL 32803.
WELCOME

David Sutliff has joined New Mexico Mutual as an agency relations specialist. In his new role, Sutliff will develop and maintain the companys relationships with independent insurance agencies. He will oversee all aspects of agency relations and will serve as New Mexico Mutuals liaison to insurance industry associations and other business groups. He has 40 years of experience in the insurance industry and has worked for insurance companies around the nation in agency relations, sales, underwriting and business development. Sutliff holds a bachelors degree in management and human resources from California State Polytechnic University. New Mexico Mutual is the largest writer of workers compensation insurance in the state.

APPLAUSE

Gary Peterson, owner of One Community Auto and Rt66 Auctions, has been named winner of New Mexico Small Business Administrations Small Business Award in the category of Minority-Owned Business. A Roswell native, Peterson joined the US Air Force, retiring as a major in 2011. He founded One Community Auto in Albuquerque in 2013. One Community Auto is now working with 57 non-profits in New Mexico to handle all aspects of their car donations. Rt66 Auctions is an online sales platform that has grown to support estate charity, business and government liquidation auctions.

PROMOTION

Diane Duran has been promoted to Agency Relations Associate by New Mexico Mutual. In her new role, Duran will administer and maintain the companys relationships with their independent insurance agencies by overseeing all aspects of activities related to newly contracted agencies. In addition, shell manage the administration of all new agency contracts, and producer appointments and terminations, in accordance with state and company guidelines. Duran began her career with New Mexico Mutual in 2022 and has quickly ascended in her role of agency relations. Duran helps lead New Mexico Mutuals Volunteer Time Off Program and works with numerous organizations to find volunteer opportunities for their employees. Before joining the company, Duran served as a marketing coordinator and legal assistant for Giddens & Gatton Law, P.C. for more than eight years.

Gaabe Zamora has been promoted to project director at Forage, a program of Meals on Wheels New Mexico. Zamora began his career with Meals on Wheels in 2016 as a chef. He was promoted to kitchen manager, where he was responsible for developing tasteful and creative meals. Forage is a new program of Meals on Wheels, which places vending machines in high-traffic areas that dispense healthy food selections for people.

ETC.

Lissa Lowe has been named the court executive officer of the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court. Lowe previously served as a deputy court executive officer. Lowe started her career with the court in 2007 as a probation officer and was promoted several times within the Probation and Specialty Courts Divisions. An Albuquerque native, Lowe earned dual undergraduate degrees in Criminology and Spanish from the University of New Mexico. In this new role, Lowe is responsible for the administrative functions of the state court to include personnel matters, maintaining and securing the courthouse and adjoining properties and advocating to the state Legislature for the courts needed resources.

BULLETIN BOARD

Femcity Albuquerque will host its networking event happy hour for women of all ages and backgrounds 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at Two Cranes Bistro and Brew 901 Rio Grande NW Suite A192m. This networking event is for FemCity members, but a free 30-day membership is available, and events are free for first time attendees. To learn more or RSVP visit femcity.com/albuquerque. For questions email Terri Dean at Terri@femcity.com.

SCORE Albuquerque will host its workshop titled Ask the Expert Q&A: Marketing from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday via Zoom. Local expert DJ Heckes, chief executive officer of EXHIB-IT!, has decades of experience as a small-business owner. She will answer marketing-related questions such as branding materials, timing, message, social media and how to develop a marketing plan. This workshop is free; register at score.org/albuquerque/event/ask-expert-qa-marketing-5162023.

Connection Hub, a free professional small business owner club, is having their quarterly meeting 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Thursday, at 4801 Lange Ave NE, Suite 110. Connection Hub is hosted by Office Alternatives, which offers local executive office suites and virtual offices in Albuquerque. RSVP at: www.eventbrite.com/e/559715523197 or contact Office Alternatives at 505-796-9600.
Forty-six years after its founding in 1977, Albuquerques oldest bike shop is closed.

After moving from its original location on Central, the Bike Coop has been selling wheels at 120 Yale SE since 2013  but after repairs and builds are wrapped up on the remaining bikes in the shop and a final Memorial Day sale, current owner Amanda Batty said the shops doors will be closed for good.

A lot of people in the community have helped.  Its super supportive, Batty said. Its hard to walk away from the effort put in.

The decision came after a disgruntled customer came to the shop, forcing open the door and verbally berating owner Batty. The police were called, and the door was marked with a criminal trespass notification prohibiting the customer from returning.

But Batty said the incident was just one of many difficulties she faced as a small-business owner, which ultimately led to her decision to close the shop.

The long and short of it is that its demoralizing, Batty said.

Batty took over the shop three years ago; she said she invested $30,000 of her personal savings to bring the shop back to life. But at the end of 2022, Batty quietly cleared out the rest of the staff, and has been running the operation alone.

The ownership change came during the pandemic, when bike shops worldwide saw unprecedented business. The shop was already buried in customer repairs when Batty bought the Coop when the bike boom hit. But Batty welcomed it.

It was awesome, Batty said. It was absolute mayhem and it was so cool.

Batty is a former professional downhill mountain biker who learned mechanics on her own bikes. She had a vision for the Bike Coop; Batty said she wanted to bring new people into the bike industry, especially women and queer people.

She also wanted to start building custom bikes, bring in hard-to-find vintage parts and get more kids in Albuquerque biking.

Over the course of three years, the shop donated over 100 bikes during the Christmas season. The shop also started offering bike maintenance classes for women.

But the shop faced difficulties, including a wage theft lawsuit involving a former contractor, issues getting parts from distributors, and clashes with the buildings landlord, who served the shop with an eviction notice last December. The notice was eventually canceled.

Batty also said she sometimes butted heads with customers who didnt see her as the stereotypical bike shop owner.

Crime in the Bricklight District was a factor, Batty said, but it wasnt the main reason she chose to close the shop  it was just one of many struggles of small-business ownership.

I thought the shop was saveable, Batty said. And by the time I found out it wasnt, I was way too far into it.

Batty isnt sure what shell do next, except that it wont include the bike industry. She said she probably wont open another business, either.

However, she said she doesnt regret buying the shop. Keeping the legacy of the Bike Coop going was her main reason for sticking with it.

That was a huge part of why I wanted to save it, Batty said. You cant just let it die.
A museums permanent collection is chock-full of unique pieces.

At the National Hispanic Cultural Centers Art Museum, this is not different.

Each year, the permanent collection continues to grow and the NHCC is showcasing a few dozen with the exhibit, Hecho en Nuevo Mexico: Recent Acquisitions by NM Artists.

Theres an opening reception from 5-7 p.m. Friday, May 19, at the NHCC Visual Arts Museum. The exhibit will run through Jan. 21, 2024.

This is an exhibit that is showcasing a small selection of artworks that are recent acquisitions to our permanent collection, says Jadira Gurule, head curator and visual arts program manager. We had a huge period of time where we couldnt showcase these items. The exhibit is just a piece of all the amazing things we have in our collection. Some of the art work goes back to 2016 and each piece is done by a New Mexico artist.

Hecho en Nuevo Mexico showcases recent additions to the NHCCs permanent collection by artists who live and work in New Mexico. The exhibition includes 43 pieces, by 40 artists, spanning an incredible range of artistic mediums, including photography, prints, woodcarving, embroidery and more.

Each piece has been acquired by the museum since 2016, primarily via donation.

The NHCCs overall permanent collection features more than 3,500 pieces from around the world.

The National Hispanic Cultural Center is blessed with an art museum that showcases Hispanic art from around the world, and now we have an exhibition dedicated to artists from our own backyard, says Zack Quintero, interim executive director, in a statement. This is an exhibition by New Mexico, for New Mexico, located in New Mexicos hub for Hispanic art and culture.

The exhibition is the second of four new art exhibitions slated for the art museum in 2023, following the opening of Nexo Entre Raices/Nexus Between Roots.

The visual art museum has acquired important artworks over the last few years, many of which will be shown in Hecho en Nuevo Mexico for the first time. This is an exciting opportunity to celebrate the artists who created the work and to thank the donors whose continued dedication to the museum helps build a significant art collection for generations to come, Gurule says. Its also a great opportunity to teach about the way museums build their collections and the many people that contribute to this process.

Gurule says the museum acquires pieces of art in two ways  one is a purchase and the other is by donation.

The mission of the NHCC Art Museum is global in scope and includes collecting artworks by artists who identify as Hispanic, Latina/o/x/e, Chicana/o/x, Indigenous and Latin American, as well as the many other terms we use to describe the complexities of identity.

The Community Gallery, situated in the heart of the art museum, is dedicated to honoring artistic contributions that are birthed in the place we call home  New Mexico, Gurule says. While we couldnt show them all (yet!), we are grateful for every gift and museum purchase that has contributed to building the permanent collection over the last few years and we are excited to showcase a small selection of artworks that reflect the breadth of New Mexican art and culture.

She says there are longtime donors who have gifted incredible things to the collection.

Its important to talk about the process and be transparent, she says. There is a process to an item be acquired for the permanent collection. Were super grateful for the people who believe in the museums mission.
Local leaders attributed a drop in crime in Downtown Albuquerque to a proactive policing initiative funded by local businesses.

In September the Albuquerque police started an initiative placing additional officers Downtown during peak crime hours  asking local businesses to foot the bill.

Rebecca Atkins, an Albuquerque Police Department spokeswoman, said shootings, auto burglary and auto theft were down 50%, 42% and 34%, respectively, since APD started TEAM, or Targeted Enforcement and Active Monitoring. However, robberies doubled and residential burglary rose 11% in that same time period.

Other crimes saw lesser decreases. Aggravated assault and commercial burglary dropped by 2% and 22%, respectively.

Atkins said 11 Downtown businesses pitched in a collective $150,000 to pay the officers overtime for the TEAM initiative. Officials said they had burned through about half of those funds since September.

Friday through Sunday, there are eight officers on duty Downtown during the peak hours between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. with no issues receiving volunteers to work the overtime.

There had been five homicides in the Downtown area last year before TEAM was implemented. Since then, there have been two.

While these numbers are huge, we know there is still much work, APD Chief Harold Medina said on a Downtown rooftop Wednesday afternoon. We will continue to work the TEAM overtime concept to ensure that were putting resources in the proper place, and that were making individuals feel comfortable to go back Downtown.
HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met Thursday aiming to showcase the strength of their alliance ahead of a Group of Seven summit where leading democracies will tackle the challenges of Russias war in Ukraine, North Koreas ballistic nuclear threats and an increasingly forceful China.

Biden recalled that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history.

I couldnt agree with you more, Biden told the Japanese prime minister as they sat with their aides at a conference table. When our countries stand together, we stand stronger and I believe the whole world is safer when we do.

Kishida noted that the global tensions had brought the U.S. and Japan closer together, that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds.

The Kishida familys home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialized nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance. Members of the G-7, which also includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union, are grappling with the territorial ambitions of Russia and China, two nuclear powers.

Biden is also appearing on the world stage while trying to manage a divide back in the U.S. on how to raise the governments debt limit. He opted to cut short what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to Asia, so he can return to Washington to try to avoid a potentially catastrophic default in June that could ripple across the global economy. Its a drama that reveals how internal U.S. politics can spill over into global forums.

While aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters that Russias invasion of Ukraine looms large as a G-7 topic. He added leaders would discuss the state of play on the battlefield and sealing loopholes to strengthen sanctions that have been levied against Moscow.

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the U.S. president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner. The presidents first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet U.S. troops at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before he headed to Hiroshima for talks with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of Russian aggression in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the U.S. and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also discussed economic matters. They addressed efforts to bolster supply chains for critical minerals, new partnerships between U.S. and Japanese companies and universities and efforts to promote renewable energy, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

Kishida had planned to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has said that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule.

The U.S. and Japanese leaders also talked about ways to reinforce their three-way partnership with South Korea, which signed an agreement in April with the U.S. to strengthen their tools for deterring a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Koreas Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japans history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta citys buildings. But current conditions are testing Japans pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line, said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japans dependence on U.S. extended deterrence  that thats more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment.

There are outstanding issues between the U.S. and Japan. During his January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a U.S. Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official. Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims $1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

The early return to Washington to deal with the debt limit means Biden will skip planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he was to take part in a meeting of the so-called Quad partnership with leaders of Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea visit would have been the first to the Pacific Island country by a sitting U.S. president.

The White House said that Biden phoned the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, while traveling on Air Force One to personally convey the need to return to Washington. Biden invited Marape and other Pacific leaders to Washington later this year.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded on Thursday through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city.

The marchers, who were overwhelmingly male Orthodox teens and young men, were celebrating Jerusalem Day, which marks Israels capture of the Old City 56 years ago. The Palestinians see the event as a provocation. Two years ago, the parade helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Throughout the afternoon, dozens of groups hoisting blue and white Israeli flags streamed through Damascus Gate  the entry to the areas Muslim Quarter  as they made their way across the Old City to the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray. The area is normally bustling on Thursday afternoons with Palestinians doing their errands ahead of the weekend.

The boisterous crowds danced and chanted Jewish religious songs outside Damascus Gate as scores of Israeli police stood guard. In several cases, groups chanted slogans such as Death to Arabs, Mohammed is Dead and May Your Village Burn as they stared at Palestinian onlookers. Some of the youths wore clothing identifying themselves as members of Lehava  a far-right Jewish supremacist group that opposes assimilation or romantic relationships between Jews and Palestinians.

Israeli police, who had said that violence and incitement would not be tolerated, kept the sides apart but did little to stop the chants. Palestinian businesses were either shuttered or empty, and marchers occasionally threw water bottles at nearby journalists, eliciting cheers from the crowd. Police said two people were arrested for throwing objects.

Several lawmakers in Israels new far-right governing coalition, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, joined the procession. Under heavy police guard, Ben-Gvir waved to the crowd as he made his way into Damascus Gate and then high-fived security forces inside. Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nations police force, is a former far-right activist and hard-line West Bank settler who has been convicted of incitement and support for a Jewish terror group.

While there were repeated scuffles and confrontations between Jews and Palestinians, the parade appeared to pass without serious violence. By nightfall, the massive crowd had converged in the plaza in front of the Western Wall.

Jerusalem Day is meant to celebrate Israels capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its capital, but its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

The event has been a source of friction over the years, and over 2,500 police were deployed for this years parade, with hundreds more stationed around the city.

Israel decided to allow the marchers to take the traditional route through Damascus Gate, instead of an alternate path circumventing the Muslim Quarter, despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and heavy fighting last week between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Ahead of the march, Gazas ruling Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to oppose the event.

On Thursday, dozens of Palestinian protesters gathered along the perimeter fence separating Gaza and Israel, raising Palestinian flags, burning tires and Israeli flags, and throwing stones toward the heavily guarded frontier.

Israeli troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets toward protesters, hurting three people, according to local media reports. There was no immediate comment from Gazas health authorities.

The protest ended without further violence that could have threatened a flare-up. It comes days after an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire ended five days of fighting between Israel and the smaller, more radical Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian president in the occupied West Bank, said allowing the march to snake through Palestinian areas of the Old City will only lead to a rise in tension and could lead to an explosion.

In a test ahead of the parade, nearly 1,300 Jews visited Jerusalems most sensitive holy site earlier Thursday, about half the number of last year, according to Beyadenu, an activist group that promotes Jewish visits to the site. Police were seen escorting groups of Jewish visitors walking through the compound and five members of the far-right coalition government also arrived at the site, the group said.

Jordan, Israels neighbor which acts as a custodian of the Jerusalem shrine, condemned the Jewish visits there and the trajectory of the march. Egypt, the first Arab country to make peace with Israel, and the United Arab Emirates, which established ties with Israel as part of the 2020 Abraham Accords, also condemned the visits to the site.

The hilltop compound is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, home to the ancient Jewish Temples, and is the holiest site in Judaism. Palestinians revere it as the Noble Sanctuary, and it is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there. But an increase in such visits, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, has raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo  a charge Israel denies.

The competing claims to the site lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and often spill over into violence, including a 2021 war between Israel and Hamas.

___

AP correspondents Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, and Jack Jeffery in Cairo contributed to this report.
Celebrity

The 'Trainspotting' actor tells his online devotees that he has officially become qualified as a firefighter after finishing a course at Suffolk County Fire Academy in New York.

May 18, 2023

AceShowbiz - Jonny Lee Miller has obtained a qualification for a volunteer firefighter. The 50-year-old film star has announced Instagram that he's completed a course at Suffolk County Fire Academy in New York, and he's now qualified as a firefighter.

"Today I qualified as a Firefighter 1 after a five month course at Suffolk County Fire Academy," Jonny - who has previously starred in movies such as "Trainspotting" and "Endgame" - wrote on the photo-sharing platform.

"Huge thank you to all the instructors, but especially Chief Sicilian, who took great care of class 2, and never got mad at us (externally). Can't wait to serve the community I love on Fire Island NY (sic)."

CsRWlJPOpRj Meanwhile, Jonny plays former UK Prime Minister John Major in season five of "The Crown". The actor previously admitted that his attitude towards the Conservative politician has changed over time.

Speaking to Metro.co.uk, Jonny explained, "I grew up in a very socialist household, a very left-wing household. I'm pretty leftie, and as a youngster at the time, we thought we knew who John Major was and what it was about."

Jonny now respects the former Prime Minister, in spite of their political differences. The actor said, "He got a lot of flak back in the day, [but] the more I learned about him the more I began to like him, and we had a lot of similarities."

"We're from the same part of the world - he's from Worcester Park, I'm from Kingston. We both went to state grammar schools, we had theatrical parents. So I had all these things in common, and then the more you learn about the work that he did - my respect for him grew massively."

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Cover Images/FAYES VISION Celebrity

Ariana's revelations arrived shortly after a source claimed that the bar owner's 'focusing on his music' with Raquel, who is in a mental health facility, realizing that he's 'not for her.'

May 18, 2023

AceShowbiz - Ariana Madix doesn't buy claims that Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss have broken up. During her appearance on "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen", Ariana looked pessimistic over the recent reports.

"I don't buy that at all," she told the host in the Wednesday, May 17 episode. The "Vanderpump Rules" star went on sharing that Raquel, who is on a mental health rehabilitation, recently sent letters to Tom to her and Tom's shared house.

"She was sending letters to my house like four days ago," Ariana, who said that she and Tom still live in the same house but don't communicate, explained. "I didn't open it. It was addressed to him and it was her handwriting. I just brought in the mail, saw it, put it on the table and walked away."

Ariana went on noting that the letter was "just the one that I know of." When Andy asked, "From her treatment facility?" Ariana replied, "I guess. I don't know."

Ariana's revelations arrived shortly after a source claimed to The Messenger that Tom's "relationships with everyone right now are on the back burner, and he's focusing on his music." The insider added, "He's about to turn 40 and trying his best to move away from all of this, but he's struggling at times. Like anyone trying to better themselves, it's one day at a time."

Meanwhile, a different informant divulged to Page Six, "Raquel dipped out." The insider further noted, "Sandoval is not the one for her."

While neither Tom nor Raquel has confirmed the split rumors, the Tom Tom bar co-owner initially hinted at their split earlier this month. While taking the stage with his Tom Sandoval & The Most Extras band, the wannabe rockstar made a cheeky reference to his controversial affair with Raquel.

In a video during his performance, Tom joked about being interested in BFF Tom Schwartz's mom and not Raquel while singing his own rendition of "Stacy's Mom". "Schwartzy's mom has got it going on," he sang, "She's all I want and I waited for so long/ Schwartzy, can't you see that Raquel is not for me."

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Texas is set to ban transgender or gender-affirming medical care for minors.

The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature passed the bill on Wednesday, awaiting the signature of Governor Greg Abbott.

Texas To Ban Transgender Medical Care for Minors

As per The New York Times, the Texas legislature voted in favor of the bill. It prohibits healthcare providers from offering gender-affirming care, such as hormone therapy and surgeries, to transgender minors.

Senate Bill 14 specifically prohibits doctors from performing mastectomies, a surgery that removes breasts, on children. On top of that, it also seeks to ban surgeries that remove healthy body parts or tissues for minors.

The legislation banning trans medical care for kids triggered loud protests from trans and their advocates at the Texas Capitol. The police have arrested two protesters while the House was discussing the bill. Democrats have also opposed the bill.

Supporters of the law argue that it is aimed at protecting young people from irreversible decisions.

On the other hand, critics of the anti-trans measure argue that it denies essential medical treatment to a vulnerable population. Advocates believe that access to gender-affirming care is crucial for the mental and physical well-being of transgender youth, allowing them to live authentically.

According to Axios, some advocates believe that access to gender-affirming care is crucial for the mental and physical well-being of transgender youth, allowing them to live authentically. Medical organizations, such as the American Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and the American Psychological Association, raise mental health concerns for trans youth.

The bill prohibiting gender-affirming medical care for minors is now on its way to the desk of Gov. Abbott. CBS News notes that the Texas government is likely to sign the bill into law.

Read Also: Texas Lawmaker Faces Expulsion After Probe Claims Inappropriate Relationship with Teen Aide

Gender-affirming Care Ban for Children

Texas will not be the first state to pass such a ban if ever Gov. Abbott signs it. Just recently, the state of Florida banned gender-affirming care for minors. Governor Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law on Monday, May 15, alongside other anti-trans legislation.

In total, 17 states have passed a similar ban or restriction for trans youth seeking gender-affirming medical care. States like Utah and Montana have passed equivalent laws too. With the recent passing of the Texas Legislature, it might climb to 18, making Texas the largest state to carry out such a ban.

The Times notes that the latest anti-trans Texas bill may affect tens of thousands of transgender minors. To be precise, the William Institute estimates that roughly 30,000 trans youth reside in the states.

Related Article: Texas Mall Shooting Update: Authorities Identify Shooter Suspected to be Neo-Nazi Sympathizer

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The 41-year-old record executive's post arrives after the incarcerated rapper sent out a desperate plea from jail, claiming that 'Atlanta U.S. Marshals are trying to keep me from going home.'

May 19, 2023

AceShowbiz - Yo Gotti is going above and beyond to help 42 Dugg get his freedom back. The "Rake It Up" rapper declared on social media that he will give $2 million to any lawyer who can get the "Maybach" spitter out of jail.

Making use of Instagram Story on Wednesday, May 17, the 41-year-old record executive penned, "I got 2 Million for any lawyer that can get Dugg out Early !!" The emcee, who's celebrating his latest milestone on Friday, added, "Thanks what I want for my Birthday. #FreeDoggy."

Yo Gotti's post arrived after 42 Dugg posted a desperate plea from jail. "Let me update y'all on whats really going on. Atlanta U.S. Marshals are trying to keep me from going home. I was supposed to get out October 14th of last year. They illegally held me without reasoning because they felt my federal judge in Detroit shouldn't have given me bond," he penned.

"I let that slide. Then after I got sentenced, one of them tells me that he's not sending me to a prison, he's going to make me do my time in a county jail, which is ten times worse," he continued. "Then he had the nerve to tell me he knows where I live because his people sold me one of my houses."

"So, alright. Now I was supposed to have court today for an old case. The U.S. Marshals then told the jail don't let me on Zoom to handle the case, so I can't possibly go to the halfway house," the incarcerated musician further lamented. "Bruh, these motherf**kers been sending all kind of guards to talk to me, seeing if I'mma ask for something. The crazy thing is they putting me on game, they're telling me, 'The Marshals are trying to ruin your life. They don't want you going home.' "

42 Dugg, who was taken into custody in his hometown of Detroit in May 2022 for avoiding 6-month prison sentence, added, "They haven't even submitted my paperwork for me to receive my out date and calculate my days." He then told fans, "I need the best civil lawyer in Georgia man. I'm in jail for going to the gun range, dropping dirt, and failure to appear. I didn't steal from nobody, or hurt nobody. They handling me crazy man."

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Bot fraud saw a significant surge of 69% in 2022 compared to the previous year. This is one of the many findings of 2023 Global Insights Report by DoubleVerify (DV), the digital media measurement, data and analytics platform.



The report says that the number of CTV fraud schemes and variants detected annually by DV has tripled since 2020. Advertisers without proper protection face significant risks.



According to the report, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) has recently emerged as the region with the highest instances of brand suitability violations compared to other global regions.



The report has analysed trends from almost 5.5 trillion media transactions across over 1,000 customers in about 100 countries.



Despite a 15 percent reduction in fraud/SIVT (Sophisticated Invalid Traffic) violations in 2022, EMEA has experienced a significant surge in brand suitability violations, reaching a staggering 10.6 percent. This marks a concerning 13 percent increase from the previous year, firmly establishing EMEA as the region with the highest occurrence of such violations.



Advertisers are increasingly adopting attention-based measurement to optimize campaign performance and improve return on investment (ROI), especially in the face of economic uncertainty and identity deprecation. EMEA campaigns stand out for their ability to capture attention through high exposure and engagement across display and video placements.



The report shows major digital media quality trends, and establishes the need for verification across channels for creating the foundation for impactful performance.

Based on our research, in order to drive consistent performance, it is essential that advertisers engage verification across all campaigns and environments. When verification is turned off or not applied, an advertiser becomes vulnerable to the swings in quality caused by unpredictable news cycles and increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes. Moreover, always-on protection helps the industry maintain a common and consistent gauge of media quality everywhere, as verification techniques evolve to encompass emerging channels for content consumption. Having coverage, protection and insight into all channels is critical, says Collette Spagnolo, Vice President of Marketing Analytics at DoubleVerify.

Key findings:

CTV consumption is on the rise, but it remains vulnerable to fraud. According to eMarketer, advertisers are projected to spend nearly $24 billion on CTV advertising in 2023. The Global Insights Report indicates that CTV consumption and quality verification in the UK have grown by an impressive 252% year-over-year. However, as investment in CTV advertising increases, so does the risk of fraud. CTV ad fraud involves deceptive tactics aimed at generating revenue by inflating video ad impressions. Fraudsters use bots or fake CTV devices to simulate viewership, deceiving advertisers into paying for ads that are either non-existent or never viewed. To illustrate the risk, DV compared fraud rates of protected and unprotected advertisers. The campaign without verification measures in place experienced a fraud rate of 11.2%, whereas the protected campaigns had a significantly lower fraud rate of 0.6%  a difference of nearly 18 times. Most advertisers currently run campaigns on sites or apps with low attention rates. However, DV's analysis reveals a significant inventory available that could deliver better attention and performance if utilized effectively.

Today, the average person is exposed to between 6,000 to 10,000 ads a day. As such, attention has emerged as a vital, yet, an increasingly scarce resource. Attention-based metrics such as exposure and engagement have emerged to help marketers better understand the overall relevance and resonance of an ad experience  and how that experience translates to driving high-value business outcomes, said Nick Reid, SVP and Managing Director of EMEA at DoubleVerify.
Havas Media Group India, the media expertise division of Havas India, has announced a significant elevation of its senior leadership team across functions to further strengthen its structure. The strategic restructuring is part of the agency's aggressive expansion of its business and service portfolios through collaborations and increased efficiency, in line with its unprecedented growth.

The agency witnessed a remarkable growth trajectory in 2022 Q4 and 2023 Q1, adding several new clients to its roster and being recognized for its exceptional work in the media industry, particularly by R3 and RECMA. The elevation of the senior leadership team is a testament to the agency's commitment to delivering unparalleled media solutions to its clients.

The leadership team comprising of Roopali Sharma, Harbir Singh, Saurabh Jain, Manish Sharma, Sanchita Roy, and Rohan Chincholi has been elevated to new roles effective immediately. The newly elevated senior leadership team will bring their extensive industry experience and expertise to drive the agency's growth, foster innovation, and enhance its service offerings. Havas Media Group India is confident that the restructuring will strengthen its position in the media industry, enabling the agency to provide its clients with innovative and effective media solutions to achieve their business objectives.

Roopali Sharma and Harbir Singh now as President  North 1 and North 2, respectively at Havas Media India will further strengthen client partnerships, profitability, and business relations. North is home to some of the longest standing client relationships of Havas Media India and is uniquely positioned to handle fast emerging market opportunities.

Saurabh Jain has been elevated as President - South, Havas Media India and will be responsible for scaling up the momentum and growth of the agency's success story in South - a key focus market for Havas Media India. The agency has broadened its scale by tapping reputable clients across Bengaluru, Chennai, and Kerala markets during first quarter of 2023.

Manish Sharma, in his elevated role as Managing Partner - West, Havas Media India will continue making significant contributions to Havas' success journey in the West region. New business acquisition, growth of the existing roster and service strategy will be integral to his role.

Havas Media India takes pride in its strategy function for the value additional it does for client partners and as the Chief Strategy Officer for Havas Media India, Sanchita Roy will drive strategic innovation and growth to the next level for clients and the agency alike. Her deep industry experience and vision made her a fitting candidate to represent the agency at global platforms like Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and Campaign Agency of Year  South Asia in 2022.

Rohan Chincholi has been instrumental in elevating the digital ecosystem for several client brands and launching the agencys e-commerce function, Havas Market in India. In his new role as the Managing Partner - Digital Services, Havas Media India he will strategize on expanding and enhancing the agency offerings and outcomes in this ever-evolving function ensuring being at par with digital industrys evolution in current times which is dynamic.

The team will report to Uday Mohan, Managing Director, Havas Media India.

Commenting on the announcement, Havas Media Group India CEO, Mohit Joshi said, "We are delighted to elevate our core leadership team to new roles. Their exceptional dedication and business acumen have been critical to our success. In 2023, we have set very high growth targets for ourselves, and I am confident that the team will tap into attaining exceptional results aiding us create a meaningful difference in the countrys media eco-system. Congratulations to all."

Applauding the team on their new roles, Uday Mohan, Managing Director - Havas Media India said, I feel great pride in seeing the team on a rapid growth path. The elevations are aimed at recognizing the teams commitment and further strengthening our core ensuring heightened focus on sustainable growth and unlocking greater possibilities. Best wishes to all for the new journey with additional responsibilities.
Adgully has been turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series  START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the Vocal for Local movement and have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the country launched in the last few years.

Recode Studios is a Ludhiana-based cosmetics brand that offers a wide range of high-quality, affordable makeup products for Indian consumers. With a network of 30 stores across India, the brand has quickly established itself as a leader in the Indian beauty industry. Recode Studios is committed to providing exceptional customer service and innovative product offerings to its customers.

Dheeraj Bansal, Founder of Recode Studios, had a strong passion for entrepreneurship and a desire to create something unique. Despite pursuing studies in commerce, he decided to follow his entrepreneurial aspirations and established Recode in Ludhiana in 2018. His vision was to make Recode Studios a well-known name for various cosmetic and lifestyle brands, and he worked hard towards achieving this goal. Bansals motivation came from his belief that success comes from hard work and being true to oneself. Despite the challenges faced due to COVID-19, Recode has grown rapidly, and Bansals entrepreneurial journey has been nothing short of inspiring.

In an interaction with Adgully, Dheeraj Bansal, Founder, Recode Studios, speaks about the brands journey since its inception in 2018, growth target for 2023, how digital platforms have been a game-changer for Recode Studios, and more.

What was the need for this brand from a consumers perspective? What is the core business proposition?

Recode Studios recognised a gap in the market for authentic and affordable beauty products. The brand was established to provide quality cosmetic and lifestyle products to consumers at an affordable price, something that was missing in the market. The core business proposition of Recode Studios is to provide consumers with a diverse range of beauty and personal care products, with a focus on authenticity and affordability. By offering products from renowned brands at a reasonable price, Recode Studios has become a go-to destination for customers looking for high-quality beauty products.

What were your key learnings so far? How do you see the company's ecosystem progressing in 2023?

Recode Studios has learned the importance of being resilient and adaptable to changing market conditions. The brand has faced several challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, but it has continued to grow and expand its offerings. One of the key learnings for Recode Studios has been to focus on quality and authenticity. In 2023, the company aims to establish a presence in 20 stores and generate Rs 50 crore in revenue. Recode also plans to strengthen its digital presence and expand its product offerings to meet the evolving needs of its customers.

How is digital helping you further your business?

Digital platforms have been a game-changer for Recode Studios. The brands website provides customers with easy access to authentic and affordable beauty products, making it easy for them to shop from the comfort of their homes. Social media platforms have also been essential in creating brand awareness and driving traffic to the website. Digital marketing has been a cost-effective method for Recode to reach out to a broader audience and expand its customer base. The brand has also leveraged digital platforms to offer personalized shopping experiences to its customers, further enhancing their overall shopping experience.

How did you identify your TG? Did you carry out any feasibility study prior to starting your business?

Recode Studios identified women aged 18-35 as its target audience. The brand offers affordable beauty products and personal care products that appeal to a wide range of customers. The companys focus on authenticity and affordability has helped it reach a broader audience, including budget-conscious customers looking for high-quality products. Before starting the business, Recode conducted a feasibility study to assess the market demand for authentic and affordable beauty products. This helped the brand identify the gap in the market and tailor its offerings to meet the needs of its target audience.

What were the challenges that you faced in your startup journey, and how did you overcome them?

Recode Studios faced several challenges in its early days, including the COVID-19 pandemic and difficulty in raising funds. The brand overcame these obstacles by expanding its digital presence and offering affordable products. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the business, causing a temporary halt in operations due to the nationwide lockdown. However, Recode Studios quickly pivoted to a digital-first approach, leveraging social media and e-commerce platforms to stay connected with its customers and expand its reach. The brand also introduced new products to cater to the changing needs and preferences of customers during the pandemic.

What would be your message for budding entrepreneurs?

Being a business owner, my message to budding entrepreneurs would be to believe in themselves and their ideas, and to never give up in the face of challenges. Starting a business is a difficult and often unpredictable journey, but with passion, hard work, and persistence, it is possible to turn your vision into a successful reality. Its also essential to be adaptable and willing to learn from both successes and failures. Continually seek out feedback from customers, employees, and industry experts, and use that feedback to improve your product or service. Surround yourself with talented individuals who share your passion and vision, and empower them to take ownership of their roles. Encourage open communication and collaboration, and create a culture that fosters creativity and innovation.
LG Ad Solutions, a global leader in advertising solutions, and Tyroo, a leading regional adtech company in APAC, have joined forces to offer Connected TV (CTV) advertising solutions across the region. The partnership establishes exclusive reseller agreements for CTV native ad formats in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Advertisers in these countries can now benefit from LG Ad Solutions advanced targeting capabilities and premium native ad inventory that delivers more relevant ad experiences for viewers and optimised media investments for advertisers. Tyroos deep knowledge of local markets and consumer behaviour enables them to provide customised and effective advertising solutions in the region. The partnership with Tyroo as a regional leader is a perfect complement, as these formats bridge the gap between traditional and digital advertising to reach audiences wherever they are consuming content.

One unique aspect of this partnership is the ability to provide these ad units on both a Managed and Programmatic basis. This flexibility meets the needs of advertisers in the region who want to benefit from CTV advertising both through dedicated support from experienced advertising professionals, and programmatically using advanced algorithms to optimise campaigns automatically.

Serge Matta, head of commercial, LG Ad Solutions says, "We are thrilled to partner with Tyroo to offer our CTV native advertising solutions across the APAC region. Our premium CTV ad inventory will provide significant advantages to advertisers in the region who can now reach audiences through more than four million LG addressable smart TVs. By partnering with the regional leader, we can ensure that our solutions are tailored to meet the needs of the local market."

Siddharth Puri, CEO Tyroo adds, "We are excited to partner with LG Ad Solutions. We are committed to making CTV a mainstay for brands and this partnership will further bolster our platform's dominance in the CTV advertising space. LG Ad Solutions premium inventory across millions of LG smart TVs with unparalleled targeting, precision measurement capabilities, and personalised ad experience for viewers, will be an undoubted gamechanger for our clients.

The ability to offer these ad units on both a managed service and programmatic basis is also a huge advantage for our clients, and combined with our on-ground expertise, brands will succeed in capturing unique audiences and drive impactful message.
Mindshare, the largest media agency in India has secured one of the most coveted media mandates in the industry by winning the bid for Maruti Suzuki, the largest car manufacturer in India. The agency emerged victorious after a competitive multi-agency pitch. As a flagship agency from GroupM, Mindshares expertise, creativity, and strategic vision will help steer the Maruti Suzuki brand towards a faster lane of growth and success, operating from its Gurgaon office.

With a focus on innovative strategies and technology-driven solutions, Mindshare aims to leverage its expertise in performance, data, digital, and content to co-create innovative solutions for Maruti Suzuki's growth in the coming years. This partnership is a perfect fit, as Mindshare's vision of 'Good Growth' aligns perfectly with Maruti Suzuki's focus on delivering sustainable and responsible growth. The win is also a significant milestone for GroupM, making it one of the largest media wins in the region further demonstrating its commitment to delivering exceptional results for clients and driving growth for businesses.

Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Officer, Marketing & Sales, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said We are looking forward to this partnership with Mindshare (Group M) as our integrated media agency. We expect to leverage Mindshares strengths in the media industry to synergize and optimize our media spends and co- create ground-breaking initiatives that will give us an edge in todays competitive automotive industry. We look forward to the exciting possibilities that lie ahead.

Helen McRae, CEO - GroupM South Asia, "This win by Mindshare in securing the media mandate for Maruti Suzuki is a significant milestone for the advertising industry in India. It highlights the agency's exceptional capabilities in providing innovative and technology-driven solutions to their clients. We are excited to see the strategic vision and expertise of Mindshare to steer Maruti Suzuki towards sustainable and responsible growth. This partnership is a testament to the agency's commitment to delivering exceptional results for clients and driving growth for businesses in the region."

Prasanth Kumar, CEO  GroupM South Asia, expressed his excitement, said "We are thrilled to have a brand like Maruti Suzuki on board with Mindshare India. This win is not only a testament to the agency's outstanding capabilities and offerings but also demonstrates GroupM's commitment to delivering exceptional results for clients. It also demonstrates the agency's ability to drive brands forward and build trust with clients. We look forward to seeing the innovative solutions that Mindshare will develop to drive Maruti Suzuki's growth story forward."

With a focus on performance, data, digital, and content, Mindshare has built a future-ready team capable of partnering with clients in their digital transformation journey. The agency's continued focus on innovation, performance, and delivering client excellence has helped them maintain a top position in the industry.

Amin Lakhani, CEO  Mindshare South Asia, shared his enthusiasm, and said, We are thrilled and deeply honoured to have been awarded this esteemed mandate. We are committed to delivering outstanding results for Maruti Suzuki. Our continuous investments in new products, platforms, and people have helped us build a future-ready team that can partner with clients in their growth journey. We are excited to co-create innovative solutions using our expertise in performance, data, digital, and content to drive Maruti Suzuki's growth in the coming years."

Mindshare's ability to secure this integrated media mandate is a result of the agency's unwavering commitment to innovation and growth, helping them maintain a top-tier position in the industry. This also marks an important milestone in the agency's journey, showcasing its outstanding capabilities and expandin portfolio of prestigious clients.g its
NDTV is embarking on an expansion initiative under the ownership of Adani Group's AMG Media Networks. The company's first major move since the acquisition involves the planned launch of nine news channels in various Indian languages, signaling a significant milestone for the network.

Currently, NDTV operates three channels: NDTV 24x7 (English), NDTV India (Hindi), and NDTV Profit (business news). However, recognizing the vast potential in other regional-language markets, the network intends to tap into key linguistic demographics, including Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and more.

This expansion strategy aligns with the broader industry trend, as many news networks have successfully launched state-specific channels catering to localized markets such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh within the Hindi language segment.

NDTV recently disclosed in a stock exchange filing that its board has unanimously approved a proposal to seek licenses for the aforementioned nine news channels from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). This move showcases the network's determination to diversify its content offerings and engage a wider audience across India.

"The Board of Directors of New Delhi Television Limited ("the Company") has approved a phased approach to seek permission from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the launch of nine news channels in various Indian languages," NDTV stated in its regulatory filing.

Upon receiving approval from the MIB, NDTV will promptly inform the stock exchanges about the official launch dates of these channels, eagerly anticipating their introduction into the vibrant media landscape.

Under the leadership of Sanjay Pugalia, CEO of AMG Media Networks, NDTV is fortifying its newsroom and transforming the network into a dynamic and versatile multimedia digital platform. Pugalia has outlined ambitious plans to strengthen the organisation's journalistic capabilities and invest in state-of-the-art technologies to deliver a comprehensive news experience to its discerning global audience.
Schbang UK has bolstered its leadership team in the UK with the appointment of Sarah Coles as Creative Director and Partner. She previously worked at Wieden + Kennedy, Havas Group and Hakuhodo and has a track record of creating effective communication for global brands like Microsoft, Nokia, IndiGo and Veet. In addition, she has won numerous awards, including One Show and Kyoorius.

In her new role, Coles will collaborate closely with Martin Vinter, Business Head, to lead the new office, drive new business and creative projects, and help bridge cultural gaps. With her extensive experience and creative prowess, Schbang UK is well-positioned to strengthen its leadership in the UK market and build its presence by delivering transformative solutions for clients.

Speaking on the appointment, Harshil Karia, Founder, Schbang, said, I am thrilled to announce the expansion of our leadership team with the appointment of Sarah Coles as the Creative Director and Partner of Schbang UK.

Born and brought up in the UK, Sarah comes with rich experience working with global brands. She also has over 12 years of experience crafting impactful campaigns in Indias fast-paced market, making her the perfect fit to bridge the operations with our India Center of Excellence and deliver nuanced creative solutions in the UK. Sarah demonstrates our commitment to growing globally while retaining our obsession with having a deep understanding of consumers in any and every market. I look forward to seeing what we accomplish together with Schbang UK. he continued.

In a statement regarding her appointment, Sarah Coles expressed excitement about joining the Schbang family in the UK and looks forward to replicating the agencys success in India. Having worked at prominent American, French and Japanese agencies in India, Im thrilled to bring my diverse experience to an Indian agency in the UK. Its an exciting opportunity to apply my global perspective to the UK market and help drive success for the agency.
In a significant legal victory for India, a US court in California has approved the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India, where he is sought for his involvement in the horrific 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

The ruling comes just over a month before Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to the US on his first state visit at the invitation of President Joe Biden. He will be hosted by President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden for a state dinner at the White House on June 22.

US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the District Court of the Central District of California issued a 48-page order on Wednesday, saying 62-year-old Rana should be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between India and the United States.

The court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing.

Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offenses that are the subject of the request, the court order said.

Rana is currently in the federal lockup in downtown Los Angeles.

The order noted that the court cannot certify Ranas extradition unless there is probable cause to believe he committed the offenses for which extradition is sought.

Citing its reasoning in detail, the order states: Accordingly, the court finds there is probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offenses as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between the United States and India. India had filed a complaint on June 10, 2020, seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view to extradition. The Biden administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

In response to a question, a State Department spokesperson told PTI that we refer you to the Department of Justice for specifics on this case. However, we can say that we are committed to confronting terrorism across the world and we deeply value our counterterrorism relationship with India. We continue to call for those involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks to be brought to justice, the spokesperson said.

Commenting on Ranas extradition order, Ravi Batra, a prominent Indian-American attorney, said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will feel compelled to approve the extradition of a Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman to India as Washington is joined at the hip with every nation that suffers from foreign terrorism.

He said the order is transparent about our legal protocol, given our bilateral extradition treaty, that is needed to pass constitutional muster in our lofty American federal courts. Batra noted that the decision now legally goes from a court of law to the Executive Branchs Secretary of State Blinken, who will feel compelled to approve the extradition request as 9/11 was worse than Pearl Harbor and we, the United States, are joined at the hip with every nation that suffers from foreign terror. He noted that Rana has received significant judicial consideration over almost two years since the hearing and can still seek, as a right, a direct appeal to the Circuit Court.

Batra said he fully expects the Circuit Court to affirm the certification and extradition order.

Any further plea for leave to be heard by our Supreme Court, I expect, will be denied, unless a legal principle gets identified along the way, making it worthy for the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) to hear and determine Ranas transfer to India, where he will be extradited, and receive yet more due process under Indias Constitution, Batra said.

During court hearings, US government attorneys argued that Rana was aware that his childhood friend David Coleman Headley was involved with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and that by assisting Headley and affording him cover for his activities, he was supporting the terrorist organization and its associates.

Rana knew of Headleys meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets. The US government asserted that Rana was part of the conspiracy and that there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commission of a terrorist act.

Ranas attorney, on the other hand, opposed the extradition.

As many as 166 people, including six Americans, were killed during the attacks by the LeT terrorists. Because members of the conspiracy committed acts resulting in death with the intention of causing death, or at a minimum, committed those acts knowing their imminent dangers, there is sufficient evidence that the elements for murder would be satisfied, federal prosecutors said.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that Ranas extradition to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

India has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the offenses on which the United States is proceeding, the judge said.

These include conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act, waging war, murder, committing a terrorist act and conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

The foregoing charged offenses constitute extraditable offenses within the meaning and scope of the treaty and over which India has jurisdiction, the judge ruled.

The order states that for the court to certify Rana as extraditable, the government must establish that (1) the extradition judge has jurisdiction to conduct proceedings, (2) the extradition court has jurisdiction over the fugitive, (3) the extradition treaty is in full force and effect, (4) the crime falls within the terms of the treaty, and (5) there is competent legal evidence to support a finding of extraditability.

The judge said that sufficient competent evidence has been presented to establish probable cause that Rana is the individual who has been charged in India and whose extradition has been sought by India in this action, and that Rana committed the aforementioned offenses for which extradition has been sought.

Based on the foregoing, the court concludes that Rana is extraditable for the offenses for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding and hereby certifies this finding to the United States Secretary of State, the order said.

It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for a trial of the offenses as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Section 3186 and the treaty, the judge ruled.

Last month, official sources in New Delhi said the NIA was keeping itself in readiness to initiate proceedings in view of the possible extradition of Rana to India.

Sources said if the extradition request is ruled in Indias favor, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) will initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels.

Nine Pakistani terrorists who were involved in the attack on November 26, 2008, were killed by the Indian security forces. Ajmal Kasab was the only terrorist who was captured alive. He was hanged four years later, on November 21, 2012, after a trial.
(Photo : Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

The United Nations (UN) World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warns that the world is on track to reach the critical warming threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius in the next five years.

United Nations' World Meteorological Organization warns that global temperatures could reach a critical warming threshold in the next five years

The agency noted that the incident is possible due to the combination of heat-trapping pollution and a looming El Nino

The WMO released a report that said there is a 98% chance that one of the next five years, or the period in general, will be the warmest in the history of the planet

The United Nations (UN) World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned that our planet is now on track to reach a critical warming threshold for the first time in the next five years, renewing concerns over the climate change threat.

The WMO said the incident is possible due to various factors, including heat-trapping pollution and a looming El Nino. In recent years, the world has experienced temperatures rising as humans continue to burn planet-warming fossil fuels, including coal, oil, and gas.

UN Agency Warns of Critical Warming Threshold

Now, that trend is showing no signs of slowing down, and the WMO released its annual climate report that showed that between 2023 and 2027, there is a 66% chance that the global temperature will rise above 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for at least one year, as per CNN.

With the continuous temperature rise, the agency's report added that there is a 98% chance that at least one of the next five years, as well as the five-year period as a whole, will be the warmest in the history of the Earth.

Despite the report, the WMO said breaching the 1.5-degree threshold is only temporary but argued that it would be the clearest signal of how fast climate change is accelerating. The phenomenon is responsible for rapidly rising sea levels, extreme weather, and the end of vital ecosystems.

Various countries have pledged in the Paris Climate Agreement to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius. They preferred going at most 1.5 degrees compared to pre-industrial temperature levels.

Read Also: UK's Space Forge Unveils Groundbreaking Innovation for In-Space Manufacturing Satellites

Consequences of Severe Global Warming

If the world goes beyond the 1.5-degree threshold every year for a decade or two, it will have far greater consequences from global warming. According to BBC, there would be longer heatwaves and more intense storms and wildfires.

However, scientists said that passing the threshold in one of the next five years is not considered breaking the Paris limit. They said that there is still enough time to limit global warming by working to reduce emissions dramatically.

During a Wednesday press conference, the secretary-general of the WMO, Petteri Taalas, said that it practically guaranteed that the warmest year on record would come in the next five years. He cited data and modeling from 18 global research centers.

At the temperature threshold, most land areas will likely experience hotter days as about 14% of the world's population become "exposed to severe heat waves" at least once every five years.

The UN also warned that reaching this global warming would result in precipitation and droughts becoming more frequent and intense. This would result in greater risks related to energy, food, and water, said CBS News.

Related Article: Sodium Selenate Seen as Potential Remedy for Neurodegenerative Condition

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Here Dorit maintains the level of obfuscation we might expect following her article on the benefits of agency capture, only surprise she does not recognise any instance of capture and all the points where the CDC and industry meet  either through Task Force or the CDC Foundation  are ineffably benign and beneficent.Dorit:  Reading the Task Force's annual report, I see some ex-CDC among its people, and some projects in which the CDC is a funder. http://www.taskforce.org/sites .... The fact that the Task Force gets funding from CDC seems to suggest that if anything the CDC has input into their projects, not that pharma influences the CDC covertly through the Task Force. That's not good evidence of pharmaceutical control (or even influence) on the CDC. To remind you, the CDC's operations are funded by CongressMe: Surely, it is a matter of culture. Julie Gerberding was appointed head of Merck vaccine division within a year of leaving the directorship of the CDC - that is scarcely reassuring. You may be comfortable with such things, but I am not.It's a long time ago but Task Force according to Wiki was founded by three ex CDC execs who could thus form partnerships with both industry and the CDC.Another commenter Ember intervenes:Your article arguing the benefits of (regulatory) capture is not confusing. The term regulatory capture was originated by Woodrow Wilson to signify the phenomenon of state regulatory agencies which were created to act in the public interest but which instead advance the commercial or special interests that dominate the industries the agencies are charged with regulating. There's really nothing confusing about trying to rectify the term or the practice as a "good thing."Dorit responds to neither point. This is a later exchange:Me: Actually, when it comes to the issue of regulatory capture the CDC Foundation is a very interesting topic. Here is a list of the foundations corporate partners with the rubric:"Our diverse partners understand that linking with CDC through the CDC Foundation can significantly advance public health in this country and worldwide. Often, partners become engaged early on in a project to clearly understand its objectives or participate in the program design. Several partners may jointly fund a program to ensure its successful completion."Corporations whose goals or philanthropic interests align with CDCs work often partner with the CDC Foundation to advance CDC's work on a specific health threat, such as protecting patients from healthcare-associated infections, reducing tobacco use and increasing screening and treatment for chronic and infectious disease." ( http://www.cdcfoundation.org/what/partners#category-299) Of course, all the major pharmaceutical manufacturers are there (and none of them are really philanthropic organizations)Dorit: The foundation is actually set up as a good example of thekind of collaboration that we want to encourage and that does not really raise concerns about capture. The foundation operates outside the CDC, with a dedicated team; it does things that do not require direct regulation of companies - most of the projects are focused either on research or on activism abroad; it does not give funding partners direct access to decision making inside the CDC; it allows the CDC to do things that it would not be able to do on its regular budget to prevent health threat; and in case you noticed, funding partners include The Mayo Clinic, the World Health Organization, and others.Me: An alternative reading is that the agency simply becomes the instrument of various industrial (and other) interests, which as I understand it you welcome. That, after all, was where we came in.Dorit: I'm not sure where you read that I welcome an agency becoming the instrument of industrial interests - that's some serious misunderstanding of my article. But the CDC foundation certainly does not show that the CDC is an instrument of the companies. It does projects related to public health beyond the core responsibilities of the CDC, separate functionally from decision making, and I'm not sure how you can say any of the specific projects makes it the instruments of companies.Me: It certainly does not show careful distance - it makes the CDC a conduit for trade.To which Dorit does not respond.These two issues sit together, with Dorits attempt to de-legitimize and marginalize Jennys experience. I wrote:Me: When I wrote an article about you a couple of weeks agoI was disturbed at your attitude to agency capture, combined with your very hard line on vaccine compliance and an aggressive strategy to shut people out anddown who disagree - Jenny McCarthy would be a case in point.Dorit: I always do my best - time permitting - to respond to comments from the other sides on articles in journals, though I rarely engage on your home base, which seems needlessly provocative. I certainly do have a strong view on vaccine compliance: while I do not support mandatory laws (laws imposing fines and penalties on those not vaccinating), I support tight school attendance requirements and other mechanisms for encouraging compliance. But it is unfair to characterize this as shutting down people: nobody is preventing McCarthy - or anyone else - from voicing an opinion, and she - and you - do so in many forums. The opposition to her role on The View is because of the apparent legitimacy it confers on her opinions - not as an attempt to shut her up. She still has multiple forums to express her opinions, and I would certainly not deny her her right to free speech. On the other hand, I too can exercise my right to free speech and mobilize to get a private network not to hire her.Me: No, that's doubletalk. Her opinions are perfectly legitimate - she speaks from experience, and she asks for the vaccine program to be made safer - what could possibly be more moderate or reasonable? The basic point is that you want a say on what is legitimate. People who don't jump into line must be excluded from public life, shoved to the margins.It's perfectly reasonable to debate the pros and cons of vaccines in a blog and it ought to be on TV tooDorit:.. It's not double talk: free speech does not entitle one to a public, televised platform. Jenny McCarthy provides unfounded, problematic health advice - on vaccine and other things. I won't support shutting her up, but I do protest against putting her on the show.Me: No, you say it is unfounded, and you want to say it is unfounded in the case of every single parent who speaks up, but you weren't there - and frankly it is a bit of a nerve. The reality is that vaccines cause brain damage and they cause autism:After the Hannah Poling case Julie Gerberding, at the time head of the CDC but now of Merck's vaccine division was forced to admit .. if youre predisposed with the mitochondrial disorder, it [vaccination] can certainly set off some damage. Some of the symptoms can be symptoms that have characteristics of autism..While Vaccine Injury Compensation Program officials told Sharyl Attkisson:

"The government has never compensated, nor has it ever been ordered to compensate, any case based on a determination that autism was actually caused by vaccines. We have compensated cases in which children exhibited an encephalopathy, or general brain disease. Encephalopathy may be accompanied by a medical progression of an array of symptoms including autistic behavior, autism, or seizures."But apparently you know better, and you know better in every single case.Dorit: As to the cases: encephalopathy is not autism (nor is encephalitis) (see question 6 here: http://www.neuro.jhmi.edu/neuroimmunopath/autism_faqs.htm ) A mitochondrial disorder is not autism, even if some of the symptoms are similar. As these studies show, it is not clearly connected to autism: http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2350-12-50.pdf http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21404085 The fact that a child has both encephalitis and autism does not negate this. And to remind you, vaccine preventable diseases also cause encephalitis - at much higher rates than vaccines - and can also be horrible to children with mitochondrial disorders. So if those conditions translate to autism, the absence of vaccines would increase rates. But they're not autism, nor contribute to it.Liquidambar: Dorit;Autism is just the psych term of what you got left after a vaccine injury.Me: No one said encephalopathy is autism - straw man argument. 'Liquidambar' is right too: autism may not be the exclusive cause of autism but it is matter of the brain injury resulting in autism (which is a non-specific group of neurological impairments), and the officials admit that it happens.Of course, now we have an autism rate of about 1 in 50 so the issue of vaccinated vs unvaccinated is very pressing.Dorit: I wasn't there. But frankly, being there means the parent can offer excellent testimony onwhat happened (allowing for the natural limitations of perception and memory that apply to every eyewitness account, especially something this charged). They are less able to address the why, because they don't have the perspective of background rates and other potential causes: those things are invisible. And I've no doubt saying this hurts the parents, and if there's one thing I regret here is that pain: it can't be pleasant to hear, again and again, you are wrong about something this important to your heart. But I will still say it, for two reasons: A. Parents who believe vaccines caused their child's autism feel guilt for allow the child to be vaccinated and bitterness at others. I think it's important to remind parents that there is no evidence for that link because it's not fair to the parents to leave them with those emotions, when it's contrary to the evidence. B. Not vaccinating leaves children at risk of vaccine preventable diseases. That's dangerous. Leaving children at that risk without evidence of a link, and with evidence to the contrary is worse. I think it's important to point out the flaws and provide the information to correct that. But I do understand that it hits a nerve, and wish there was a way to make the argument without that.Liquidambar: Nope you were not there, as I kept vaccinating and kept seeing reactions that even the vaccine inserts says to talk to your doctor about. But something is wrong with the doctors - they did not listen untill a stroke like eventI think that is called rechallenged isn't it?Me: Almost immediately above I have posted statements by US government official[s] admitting that vaccination can give rise to autisms - it is certainly possible and certainly happens. I guess you don't like being told your wrong or having possible guilt foisted on you either, but relevance?Dorit: Neither statement admits that vaccine cause autism, and both point out that compensation was not for autism.Me: In bureaucrat-speak fairyland: autism is the effect of the injury. If there was no significant effect from the injury there would be no serious compensation.Dorit: "Symptoms that can have characteristics of autism" and "autism-like" symptoms are not autism. Symptoms cross over between conditions. The fact that I can have nausea after I broke my arm and nausea because of morning sickness does not mean a broken arm is a pregnancy.Me: This is completely wrong. - autism is entirely defined by it symptoms. If there were any difference between "autistic behaviour" and "autism" - only possibly a matter of degree - the HHS HRSA statement resolves it by naming both (as the result of vaccine induced brain injury) and also mentioning seizures, which alas often accompany autism. But as I have also pointed out the case for a brain injury would be hard to make out if there was no resulting impairment, so in principle the impairment is acknowledged too - has to be. What Dorit does here is demonstrate her total ignorance of autism diagnosis (which doesn't stop her pontificating).Dorit: Autism is defined by its symptoms, but it has requirement - just having some of the symptoms, or something like the symptoms is not enough. http://www.autreat.com/dsm4-autism.html Me: And your point is?Dorit: Encephalopathy is not autism; encephalitis is not autism; a mitochondrial disorder is not autism; the government officials did not concede vaccines cause autism, in fact they said they did not. They did point out that some of the injuries cause by vaccines can have some of the symptoms of autism. In no case did the NVICP or another court in the U.S. compensate a child on the theory vaccines caused her autism. There is no credible evidence for such a link.Me: Dorit, if you want to argue like that its up to you, and people can draw their own conclusions about your motives, but this is what they said:"The government has never compensated, nor has it ever been ordered to compensate, any case based on a determination that autism was actually caused by vaccines. We have compensated cases in which children exhibited an encephalopathy, or general brain disease. Encephalopathy may be accompanied by a medical progression of an array of symptoms including autistic behavior, autism, or seizures."Now, there is more than a touch of distinctions without differences about this (as Sharyl Attkisson was pointing out) but in so far as one can make sense of it the point is there is a mechanism (encephalopathy) which results in impairment (autistic behaviour, autism, seizures) and what you have to show is brain damage occurred as a result of the vaccine. But if there was no impairment it would be hard to argue that a case needed compensating, so they are forcing a point while admitting that autism is sometimes involved.Also, it is worth noting that in the statement "autism" and "autistic behavior" are symptoms of encephalopathy ("encephalopathy may be accompanied by a medical progression of an array of symptoms including...") and there is no mention of "symptoms of autism", which is erroneously interpolated by you in order suggest it is not proper autism. But not only is this technically silly - another distinction without a difference - what concerns parents is not whether there is some Platonic ideal of autism to which their child's disability corresponds, but their often reasonable belief that their child has been damaged.This conversation goes round in circles a few more times with Dorit splitting the same hairs. The government did not compensate the autism, they compensated the encephalopathy which caused the autism (but then if encephalopathy didnt cause anything why compensate it?) And at the end of it is simply not clear why Jenny McCarthy would be unreasonable in believing that her childs autism was caused by a vaccine, or why Dorit  who says she believes in free speech  is reasonable in wanting to ban Jenny from speaking in the mainstream media. Some might call it humbug, and who would I be to disagree?Me: There are lots of things which ought to be debated here - and now you are making a show of welcoming discussion but this has not been the pattern until this point.My own contention over vaccines is not that they don't have benefits but they are neither as effective or as safe as you or the propaganda would have everyone believe: in fact the truth is decidedly messy and we don't have proper accountability. I suspect if you had your way it would be reduced to zero. But this is done by silencing people and that is not a scientific project.Dorit: Obviously I also disagree with your claim that vaccines are not safe and effective and I think the evidence on this is very clear cut. I'm willing to discuss specific points with you.Me: Well, there are a great many specific points to discuss and one is aggressive campaigns against parents or professionals who have spoken up about vaccine damage - that in itself is a way of distorting the evidence base. The problem with Andrew Wakefield was not the quality of his research but the fact that he listened to parents - that was what was intolerable. But as was shown in the English High Court last year - in the appeal of his senior colleague John Walker-Smith - there was nothing wrong with the Lancet paper which the UK General Medical Council skewered all three doctors on. Of course, it was a warning to everyone else who stepped out of line.I was particularly sickened at the beginning of the year when GAVI/Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation successfully lobbied the UN to continue the use of thimerosal in vaccines on completely spurious arguments.I sent Dr Larson 90 abstracts of pubmed studies condemning thimerosal to no avail. It is very easy to conduct studies which don't find anything but these were 90 which did.That's two points. It's very late at night here.Dorit: The last point about thimerosal - as pointed out, thimerosal in vaccines has actually been studied in relation to autism, and no harm actually found. Your studies seem to be a combination of animal studies and tissue studies, and the human studies examining the issue - and examining it in the context of vaccines - are stronger. I would also add that I'm not sure why you think it's possible to fake a negative result but not a positive one. Seems that either result could be arrived at in a valid or flawed manner, depending on the methodology.Me: No, you can fake both positive and negative but it is easy to design studies poorly to obtain indeterminate results. This critique by Brian Hooker of two recent CDC studies is very telling, and nobody of any sense came to defend them.Dorit fails to respond to the Hooker question and moves on to Andrew Wakefield (with something of a concession):Dorit: I think your description of the Walker-Smith decision is incomplete. It is true that the judge found the council did not have evidence that the procedures performed on the children were clinically unjustified, and that may affect Wakefield's case; but the judge's overturning of the guilt for misrepresenting the ethic's committee approval was based on Wakefield changing the article after the last draft Walker-Smith saw - basically, on Wakefield misrepresenting the facts behind his co-authors back, and that is not an exoneration of Wakefield, quite the contrary. Similarly, the Walker-Smith decision does not address Wakefield hiding conflicts of interest and the other problems.However, silence reigns again when I demonstrate that there is nothing in the ethical approval issue to incriminate Wakefield either:Me: I think John Walker-Smith missed it because there wasn't much to see:"Ethical approval and consent"Investigations were approved by the Ethical Practices Committee of the Royal Free Hospital NHS Trust, and parents gave informed consent."The investigations needed ethical approval and had them and the paper did not have ethical approval and did not need it. The statement does not say the paper had ethical approval. Nor was it commissioned by the Legal Aid Board or based on their protocol, so no conflict there. Nor was it the convention in that period to declare court work as a competing interest.Perhaps Dorit might like to consider how peoples lives can be unfairly and erroneously trashed when they stand up against governments or industry, and wonder whether this is really the nice side to be on.I did not raise this but of course Offit is one of the four professional advisors of VFV. It was, of course, a VFV predecessor of Karen Ernst (and fellow St Paul citizen) Lisa Randall who in 2008 went after Sharyl Attkisson of CBS News because of her report on Offit, through Orange County Record who, finally  in 2011  published a retraction An OC Register article dated Aug. 4, 2008 entitled Dr. Paul Offit Responds contained several disparaging statements that Dr. Offit of Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia made about CBS News Investigative Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson and her report. Upon further review, it appears that a number of Dr. Offits statements, as quoted in the OC Register article, were unsubstantiated and/or false. Attkisson had previously reported on the vaccine industry ties of Dr. Offit and others in a CBS Evening News report How Independent Are Vaccine Defenders?July 25, 2008.Unsubstantiated statements include: Offits claim that Attkisson lied; and Offits claim that CBS News sent a mean spirited and vituperative email over the signature of Sharyl Attkisson stating Youre clearly hiding something. In fact, the OC Register has no evidence to support those claims. Further, Offit told the OC Register that he provided CBS News the details of his relationship, and Childrens Hospital of Philadelphias relationship, with pharmaceutical company Merck. However, documents provided by CBS News indicate Offit did not disclose his financial relationships with Merck, including a $1.5 million Hilleman chair he sits in that is co-sponsored by Merck. According to the CBS News documentation recently reviewed by the OC Register, the network requested (but Offit did not disclose) the entire profile of his professional financial relationships with pharmaceutical companies including: The amount of compensation hed received from which companies in speaking fees; and pharmaceutical consulting relationships and fees. The CBS News documentation indicates Offit also did not disclose his share of past and future royalties for the Merck vaccine he co-invented. To the extent that unsubstantiated and/or false claims appeared in the OC Register and have been repeated by other organizations and individuals, the OC Register wishes to express this clarification for their reference and for the record"Anyway Liquidambar raised the issue of Offits rotavirus vaccine conflict:Liquidambar: Get paid for your work - is fine, but how often is it that you get to actually vote on your own work and force it upon everyone because it is made mandatory. He got a hefty some for his work too - 6 million I do believe.Dorit: How can they vote to make their work mandatory?Me: "Unlike most other patented products, the market for mandated childhood vaccines is created not by consumer demand, but by the recommendation of an appointed body called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). In a single vote, ACIP can create a commercial market for a new vaccine that is worth hundreds of millions of dollars in a matter of months. For example, after ACIP approved the addition of Mercks (and Offits) Rotateq vaccine to the childhood vaccination schedule, Mercks Rotateq revenue rose from zero in the beginning of 2006 to $655 million in fiscal year 2008. When one multiplies a price of close to $200 per three dose series of Rotateq by a mandated market of four million children per year, its not hard to see the commercial value to Merck of favorable ACIP votes. From 1998 to 2003, Offit served as a member of ACIP . Before and during his ACIP term, Offit was involved in rotavirus vaccine development activities, the value of which ACIP influenced. Shortly before his term began in October 1998, Offits first two rotavirus patents were granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the first on May 6, 1997 and the second on May 12, 1998. During his ACIP term, Offit received two additional patents in 2000 and 2001"Dorit: It's a little unclear whether your insinuations about Dr. Offit stem from your feeling that he voted on his personal interests or because you see him as representing Merck. At any case, they are incorrect:A. Dr. Offit does not hold the patent for Rotateq - CHOP does. After the initial payment, he does not get royalties (and I am sure you don't begrudge a man payment for 25 years work, work that resulted in a vaccine with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives), so he does not have a financial stake in the success of the vaccine.B. As you yourself point out, Dr. Offit stopped serving on ACIP in 2003 and the Rotateq vaccine was voted in later. He was not involved.C. Dr. Offit does not work for Merck - as is pretty easy to find, he works in the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and for Penn Medical School. He does not depend on Merck for his salary.Me: I should have included the next paragraph:"Four months before Offit was appointed to ACIP in October 1998, the committee had voted to give the rotavirus category a Routine Vaccination status, in anticipation of an FDA approval of RotaShield (oddly, ACIP made this vote before the FDA approved Wyeths RotaShield vaccine on October 1, 1998). Shortly after Offits term began, there were several additional votes involved in establishing the rotavirus vaccine market and Offit voted yes in every case. In May of 1999, the CDC published its revised childhood vaccination schedule and rotavirus vaccine was included. This series of favorable votes clearly enhanced the monetary value of Offits stake in Mercks rotavirus vaccine, which was five years into clinical trials."Dorit: So the vaccine was added to the schedule before Offit joined, and he had to decide on specific issues after the facts, issues related to a vaccine that was not his - was, in fact, a competitor - while his vaccine was still in trials, behind in market entry. Sorry, not very good evidence of a conspiracy or capture.Dorit: It is true that the CDC's ACIP approves - and removes approval - from vaccines. For example, after concerns about intussusception arose from Rotashield, that vaccine was removed from the market - and removal from the market (like in this case), and non-recommendations - for example, not recommending meningococcal C for infants - is good evidence that ACIP does not blindly stamp industry recommendations and is not captured.Me: Even better for Paul O. His product also has a big record with intussusception.Found 914 events where Vaccine is RV5 and Symptom is Intussusception Found 7 events where Vaccine is RV5 and Symptom is Intussusception and Patient Died Found 266 events where Vaccine is RV5 and Patient Died Of course, VAERS is only passive surveillance and is likely only to record a small percentage of incidents.Dorit: Actually, to remind you, Rotateq tested for intussusception in the clinical trials, and the rate was lower for the vaccine group than the placebo group. The CDC examined the VAERS incidence, and it was found no higher than the background rate - remember, intussusception does happen naturally - which leads to the conclusion that rotateq does not cause intussusception, that we're just seeing the regular rate. http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafe.... And again, this whole incidence is evidence of how seriously real problems with vaccines are treated: a serious adverse event was discovered in one out of 10,000 children with Rotashield; the vaccine was removed from market; the new vaccines were tested to make sure they don't cause the same problem. http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vp.... This is pretty good evidence that there is no capture and the system works.Me: And post-marketing monitoring? The spirit of the three wise monkey reigns!In the UK we are just about to get rotavirus vaccine (the GSK version) so it is quite interesting to look at our Health Protection Agency charts - it seems to be fairly consistently around 15,000 lab confirmed cases a year (connected with hospital admissions). That's a lot, but what I don't see are any associated deaths (unlike the vaccines).I should have said post-market monitoring seemed to have worked better in the case of Rotashield than Offits Rotateq but raising the issue that the vaccine seemed more associated with death than disease was once again met with Dorits silence.I have not reported every aspect of the discussion: for instance Dorits hobby horse about suing parents who do not vaccinate for infection, as against the problem of vaccines that shed and spread infection (for instance the nasal flu vaccine Flumist/Fluenz), nor our exchanges about genetic research. But it was an interesting and ultimately revealing dialogue, which perhaps I enjoyed more than she did.John Stone is UK Editor for Age of Autism.
Hyundai and Kia have reached a $200 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit over design flaws that made its vehicles subject to a rash of nationwide thefts exacerbated by social media.

The settlement, announced today, affects owners of Hyundai and Kia vehicles purchased from 2011 through 2022 without insert-and-turn key ignitions.

The lawsuit stems from the automakers failure to equip models with an immobilizer, an antitheft device preventing most vehicles from being started unless a code is transmitted from the vehicles smart key.

According to the lawsuit, additional design flaws allowed thieves to steal them in less than 90 seconds. Lack of adequate security in the steering columns allowed easy access.

Last year, an analysis by the Highway Loss Data Institute found that among 2015 through 2019 model year vehicles, theft claims were nearly twice as common for Hyundai and Kia vehicles as a group as for all other manufacturers. This trend was fed by a challenge on the social media platform TikTok, which involved young teens looking out for Hyundai and Kia vehicles and using a USB cord to steal the car, then filming the results.

The issue is already the subject of additional lawsuits.

Attorneys say there are some 9 million owners of the vehicles, evenly split between Hyundai and Kia.

According to attorneys, up to $145 million is available for payments to those who lost their vehicles, had them wrecked by thieves, or incurred other expenses. Owners can also receive a software upgrade to fix the security flaw, or other compensation.

For more information on the settlement, visit the website.
We have our first trailer for Martin Scorseses long-awaited Killers of the Flower Moon starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro.

The film, which will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20, also stars Alabama native and Grammy-winning musician Jason Isbell.

The premise, according to Apples official website: At the turn of the 20th century, oil brought a fortune to the Osage Nation, who became some of the richest people in the world overnight. The wealth of these Native Americans immediately attracted white interlopers, who manipulated, extorted and stole as much Osage money as they could before resorting to murder.

Based on David Granns 2017 book of the same name, the film explores the improbable romance Ernest Burkhart (DiCaprio) and Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladstone) in what Apple calls an epic western crime saga, where real love crosses paths with unspeakable betrayal. The film also stars De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Brendan Fraser, John Lithgow, Isbell, Sturgill Simpson and others.

It marks the sixth collaboration between Scorsese and DiCaprio after Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, Shutter Island and The Wolf of Wall Street. It marks the 10th between the director and De Niro after classics like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and Goodfellas.

Isbell plays a character named Bill Smith. We did not spot him in this teaser trailer, but he remains listed in the films cast. It marks his second on-screen credit in a fictional role following an appearance as a wedding guest in Deadwood: The Movie back in 2019. Isbell has also appeared as himself on the Showtime series Billions.

DiCaprio tweeted the trailer Thursday morning, noting this is one hes excited to share with fans.

#KillersOfTheFlowerMoon will exclusively be in theatres from @ParamountMovies & @AppleFilms this October, he wrote. Its a project I am proud of & I cannot wait to share it with you all.

The films runtime is reported to be 206 minutes. In a recent interview with Deadline, Scorsese was asked about the near 3.5-hour length. He said, I say to the audience out there, if there is an audience for this kind of thing, Make a commitment. Your life might be enriched. This is a different kind of picture; I really think it is. Well, Ive given it to you, so hey, commit to going to a theater to see this.

Killers of the Flower Moon will release in theaters everywhere Oct. 20, 2023. It will later stream on Apple TV+. Watch the trailer above.
Seven years after closing its doors on Birminghams Southside, Rockys Pizza is slated to make a comeback.

Watts Realty Co. said the team behind Rockys Pizza has signed a lease to reopen the restaurant in the former Little Italy space at 1924 11th Ave S.

Rockys owner Joshua Dunlap has tapped Rene Mercado Angeles, who spent more than 16 years at Gianmarcos Restaurant, as co-owner of the pizzeria. Mercado Angeles will also run the kitchen.

Dunlap and Mercado Angeles plan to open Rockys part-time for two weeks starting in mid-August. The goal is to be open full-time by the start of September from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Rockys Pizza closed in 2016. In 2015, commercial real estate agency Retail Specialists announced plans to build a multi-million mixed-use development project on the property that housed Rockys Pizza on the corner of Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard and 7th Avenue South. That development is now called The Waites.

Dunlap initially planned to find a new location for the restaurant. He looked into moving the pizzeria to the corridor on 280, but the decision to relocate took a back seat once his father Dennis health started to decline.

Dennis Dunlap opened Rockys Pizzeria on Green Springs highway in 1986. The restaurant moved to the Lakeview district in the early 1990s. In 2001, Dunlap moved the restaurant to Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard and 7th Avenue South.

Dennis Dunlap opened the first location of Rocky's Pizza on Green Springs Highway in 1986. The restaurant moved to Birmingham's southside in 2001. (Courtesy, Watts Realty)

In a list of statements provided to AL.com, Joshua Dunlap said he was glad to start the process of putting Rockys back on the map after taking years to mourn the death of his father.

A lot of people have wondered why Rockys never re opened after the building that we were in was torn down, Dunlap wrote in the statement. If I remember correctly, we were told that we would need to find a new place for Rockys around 6 months before the building was set to be demolished.

As fate would have it, about 2 days after them telling us that news, my Father was diagnosed with Cancer. Obviously anything having to do with Rockys was placed on the back burner. About a year and half or so later my father passed away and so did part (of) my heart. We had spent so many years together running Rockys. It just destroyed me inside to lose him. I just didnt have it in me to pursue re-opening at that time.

Dunlap said he received a call from someone in 2020 who asked if he had any desire to reopen Rockys. While he was intrigued, the COVID-19 pandemic put a damper on plans to meet and it would be two years before serious talks about Rockys could resume.

Reopening on Birminghams Southside was important to Dunlap, but he changed his mind when a new location became available in Five Points South.

It would have taken a lot of convincing to get me to agree to re-open the first location outside of southside, wrote Dunlap. So I was very happy when I found out the location of where we would re-open. I think being in the heart of 5 pts south is better than I could have ever imagined.

Back in the day, Dunlap was in charge of the kitchen at Rockys while his father ran the front of the house. Dunlap said bringing on Mercado Angeles to run the kitchen will get the new location of Rockys Pizza back where it needs to be.

Joshua Dunlap and Rene Mercado Angeles will helm the new location of Rocky's Pizza in Five Points South (Courtesy, Watts Realty)

Gianmarcos has been good to me for 16 years. Only an opportunity for ownership and something special could have pulled me away. Rockys offers both, Mercado Angeles said in a statement. Im just happy to bring Rockys back to where it once was.

Dennis Dunlap named Rockys in honor of boxer Rocky Marciano. Joshua Dunlap says that concept will mostly remain the same. The team may possibly update the names of the pizzas to more modern boxers, but customers who loved Rockys should expect a lot of the same dishes: Calzones, pasta, salads, sandwiches, and Rockys famous wings and muffuletta.

Customers should also expect to see the Rockys wall of famous boxers. All of the photos in the same frames are set to make a return in the new location in Five Points South. Patrons should also expect to see another photo on the wall at Rockys-- Dunlap and Mercado plan to frame a large photo of Dennis Dunlap to pay tribute to the memory of the late restauranteur.

The new location will also have a full bar.
The Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald Museum in Montgomery has chosen author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates to receive its 2023 Fitzgerald Prize for Literary Excellence.

The museum awards the Fitzgerald Prize for Literary Excellence annually to an author whose work continues the legacy of American storytelling while also exemplifying the craft, wit, and social insight typified by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

F. Scott Fitzgerald was a playwright, novelist, poet, veteran, and author of short stories. The Fitzgerald Prize recognizes a writers contribution in one or more of these areas.

The Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald Museum are pleased to award Ta-Nehisi Coates the 2023 Fitzgerald Prize for Literary Excellence for his work in promoting social and racial understanding as an essayist and novelist, while also fostering American storytelling as an educator and writer across multiple disciplines and genres including screenwriter and graphic novelist, the museum wrote in an announcement.

Coates will be the eighth recipient of the Fitzgerald Prize.

Daron K. Harris, the Fitzgerald Museum vice president and public relations spokesperson, says the prize winners are selected from nominations by a committee of museum board members.

Coates was a national correspondent for The Atlantic where he wrote about the intersection of race, culture, economics, and politics. Coates is also the author of a number of books, including The Beautiful Struggle, and We Were Eight Years in Power. His book, Between The World And Me, won the National Book Award in 2015. His first novel, The Water Dancer, was released in September 2019. Coates was also named a MacArthur Genius that year. Coates also penned Marvels Black Panther series from 2016 to 2021 and Captain America from 2018 to 2021.

We are pleased to award an author whose works span as widely as Fitzgeralds did; Essayist, Novelist, and Screenwriter, Dr. Alaina Doten, the executive director of the museum, said in a press release about the award. The goal of the prize is to award authors who will help inspire the next generation of American writers, and we believe that Coates has and will continue to inspire young writers to express themselves across a wide spectrum of genres and topics as well.

Coates will accept the award during a ceremony and lecture in September.

Troy Universitys Davis Theatre in Montgomery will host An Evening with Ta-Nehisi Coates on Friday, Sept. 22 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. The evening will include a discussion between Coates and Dr. Derryn Moten, professor and chair of history at Alabama State University. Tickets for the award ceremony and lecture are $28 and available on Eventbrite. Organizers encourage potential audience members to submit questions for the discussion in advance using a submission link.

[Click here for the Q& A submission link]

Coates will speak to the students of Alabama State University earlier in the day.

Ta-Nehisi Coates Between the World and Me attempts to explain racism in the United States to his teenage son which is an attempt to explain pseudo American Exceptionalism, Moten said in the same release. " One is reminded of James Baldwins Letter to my Nephew where Baldwin attempts to explain the same realities. Alabama State University is delighted to have Coates speak on campus on September 22nd, 2023.

Previous recipients of the Fitzgerald Prize have been the retired Navy SEAL and author Clint Emerson (2022); Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and Southern writer Rick Bragg (2021); social and legal reformer and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, Bryan Stevenson (2020); and Alabama authors Frye Gaillard (2019), Wayne Flynt (2018), Katherine Clark (2017) and Kim Cross (2016).
Authorities are asking for the publics help in locating a 72-year-old man who has been missing from Birmingham for more than a week.

Birmingham police issued a critical missing alert Thursday for Earnest White.

He was last seen May 10 in the 1500 block of First Avenue West. He has not been heard from since then.

White walks with a cane and previously suffered a stroke. He was last known to be wearing a blue jacket and black pants.

He is 6-feet, 2-inches tall and weighs 195 pounds.

Authorities said White has been known to walk around the Lakeshore Walmart area.

Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
An Alabama Senate committee on Wednesday rewrote a bill that would have banned Chinese citizens from buying property in Alabama, including those who live and work legally in the state, a proposal that drew opposition after passing the House of Representatives last week.

Opponents of the original bill packed a committee room at the State House today and said the idea was discriminatory, racist, and ignored the contributions of Chinese Americans who contribute to Alabamas economy, educational institutions, medical care, and in other ways that enrich their communities and make the state a better place.

The bill, HB379, is called the Alabama Property Protection Act. The version of the bill that passed the House of Representatives last week would have made it illegal for Chinese citizens and businesses and the Chinese government to buy property in the state. It passed with support of most of the Republican majority and opposition from most of the Democrats in the House. The sponsor is Rep. Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, the House majority leader. Twenty-five Republican representatives are co-sponsors.

Today, the Senate Agriculture, Forestry, and Conservation Committee adopted a substitute version that changed the substance of the bill, narrowing the focus to farm property and land near military bases and critical infrastructure like power plants, water and sewer treatment plants, gas processing centers, seaports, and airports.

The substitute bill would not ban Chinese citizens who live in Alabama from buying property. It would ban the governments of China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia from buying property in Alabama that is used for agricultural or forestry or that is within 10 miles of a military base or critical infrastructure. People and businesses in those four nations, defined as foreign countries of concern, would also be under the ban.

The bill says the ban would also apply to a person, country, or government identified on any sanctions list of the United State Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Our land is very valuable to the American people, to our economy, to our way of life, said Sen. David Sessions, a Republican from Mobile County and chair of the committee. Being a farmer myself, I hold the land very dear and near. And I think we need to protect our natural assets of this country.

People who packed the committee room for a public hearing on the original bill still had a chance to be heard.

Michael Guo-Brennan, an associate professor of political science at Troy University, read from a statement he had prepared that said the ban on property ownership would have been a step back toward the era of Jim Crow laws targeting Black citizens.

Anyone who appears to possibly be Chinese will have to prove they are not, Guo-Brennan wrote. They will have to literally show their papers to prove they are good Asians. How long will it be until you require Chinese to wear yellow stars on their clothing much like Nazi Germany required of Jewish people in the 1930s?

Protecting the homeland, including national security interests and critical infrastructure is commendable, Guo-Brennan wrote. However, this legislation fails to accomplish that. Instead, it leads to blatant racism and discrimination that not only violates federal law, it turns back the clock in Alabama to a time when what you looked like determined your basic human rights.

Lily Moore of Montgomery was at the hearing to speak against the original bill. Moore was born in China but has grown deep roots in Alabama. Moore became a U.S. citizen when she married an American 25 years ago. She teaches math at Auburn University at Montgomery, teaches Sunday school, and is a licensed realtor.

It is much better than the original bill, Moore said of the substitute. Even the senators themselves agreed that first one shouldnt even pass. But Moore said she is still concerned about the original bill making it through the House and the discriminatory nature of it.

Moore said Alabama has been a great place to live but noticed changes in the way people reacted to her during the COVID-19 pandemic, an illness some politicians and others called the China virus or the Kung flu.

This is such a friendly state, Moore said. Even to walk on the street and people said hello, and people are interested in my nationality and think something positively. And hold my umbrella for me and my baby when I walk out from the store when its raining.

But nowadays, people start giving the dirty look. And the language started to just really confront us right after COVID and during the COVID until now, its just getting worse. I feel like, all of a sudden, I was kind of reminded, You are not from here. This is not your house. You need to go back to China. And its very disturbing.

Moore said the contentious relationship between the United States and China does not justify legislation that is punitive to Chinese citizens who are working as legal residents in America, including those who are working to attain American citizenship, a process that she said takes eight to 10 years.

Moore is vice president of the Central Alabama Association of Chinese, founded in 1982. According to its website, the organizations purpose is to share Chinese culture, improve understanding among ethnic groups, and contribute to the prosperity and development of Chinese American culture.

Moore said the association contributes to the community with activities such as raising money for the Montgomery Area Council on Agings meals program for senior citizens.

We are the contributors to work so hard to build up our Alabama state, to make this place a better state, Moore said. We are involved with lots of charities.

Yeqing Bao, a professor and chair of Department of Management and Marketing at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, is a naturalized citizen who has been in the country for more than 20 years. Bao said young faculty members in his department who are not U.S. citizens were distressed by the legislation and what it meant for their futures in Alabama.

We cannot buy a house, so why do I even work here? Bao said they were asking. They were all immediately feeling the fear and the panic. Do I need to move?

Bao said he appreciated the committee listening to the concerns of the Chinese American community and others in the Asian American community and changing the bill today. But he said the fact that the bill in its original form passed the House was troubling and called the whole process heartbreaking.

Together, we can make the state a lot better, Bao said. We need to come together to value the diversity, value the different cultures, the perspectives.

Sessions acknowledged the concerns of many of those at the public hearing who said the original bill discriminated against Chinese Americans

The original language was not what we would have liked to have had it, Sessions said. The substitute, I think when you read it, will hopefully satisfy a lot of your concerns.
An Alabama woman is suing United Airlines, claiming the airlines COVID-19 vaccine policy discriminated against her religious beliefs.

The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts on behalf of Sheyenne Myers, seeks lost compensation and benefits, and damages.

In the 15-page lawsuit, attorneys for Myers, a former flight attendant who worked out of Bostons Logan Airport, say the airlines 2021 COVID-19 vaccine policy violated the federal Civil Rights Act and Massachusetts state law.

According to the suit, Myers says she was terminated from her job in October 2021 after she attempted to use the companys religious accommodation policy to avoid taking the vaccine.

In her request, she explained to United that she sincerely believes she cannot inject unknown vaccines into her body and highlighted the fact that the ingredients and chemicals contained in the COVID-19 vaccines were unknown, the effects of the vaccines were unknown, and these variables without more information, precluded her from blindly injecting a substance into her body, the suit states.

Ms. Myers sincerely believes that her body is not to be altered in any way other than through means by which God created or through scientifically proven, safe, and effective manmade and necessary medical intervention. To consume or knowingly inject anything else into her body would constitute a sin and prevent her ability from one day, going to Heaven and sharing that Place with God.

The suit claims that Uniteds granting her religious accommodation request constituted nothing other than placing her on leave without pay, which was coercion.

The suit goes further, saying it is not subject to reasonable dispute that vaccination failed to prevent the transmission of COVID-19.

And whereas an unvaccinated individual has already contracted COVID-19 and developed natural immunity and antibodies to the virus, a vaccinated person is up to twenty-seven times (27x) more likely to contract coronavirus and transmit it thereafter, the suit states, appearing to cite a debunked study.

Attempts to reach United Airlines for comment were not immediately successful.
A fundraising site has been established for an Alabama man whose 32-year-old son was shot and killed at a fast food restaurant in Texas over the weekend.

Steven Davis of Dug Hill, Alabama said his oldest son Matthew Davis was working a Saturday shift at Sonic Drive-In in Keene, Texas.

According to WCCB Charlotte, Angel Gomez, 20, went to the restaurant with several passengers and was acting disorderly when Davis confronted him for urinating in the parking lot.

Police Chief James Kidd said the confrontation turned physical and a 12-year-old in Gomezs car pulled out an assault rifle and fired six rounds at Davis. Davis was air flighted to a nearby hospital but did not survive.

Gomez and the 12-year-old, whose name has not been released because he is a minor, are charged with murder. Police said the incident appears isolated with no gang affiliations or racial motivations.

In his GoFundMe, Davis said the act was senseless and that his son was getting his life on track and doing well when he died.

The money raised will go towards final expenses and to care for Matthews 10-year-old son, Tristyn.

You can donate to the GoFundMe here.
(Photo : Geoffroy Van der Hasselt / AFP) (GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images)

The Metropolitan Police is facing widespread criticism after its officers brutally and fatally shot two young dogs in London after an alleged attack on a woman.

Met Police is facing widespread criticism after fatally shooting two young dogs, Marshall and Millions

Police officers also tasered the owner of the animals in the middle of the altercation

The internet has poured immense support for the loss of the lives of the two dogs

The Metropolitan Police in London is facing widespread criticism after its officers were seen fatally shooting two young dogs, Marshall and Millions, after receiving a report of an alleged attack.

Marshall and Millions' Alleged Attack

The incident began on May 7 when the two young bulldogs allegedly attacked a woman and the police were called for assistance. Met Police arrived at the scene and claimed that the animals' "aggressive behavior" was of concern and argued that they were a threat to the officers.

However, some reports later said the woman only got caught up in the least of the two dogs and was not seriously injured. It was also discovered that the woman did not want the police to be involved in the incident, as per 8List.

Met Police did intervene in the matter and were able to track down the owner of the two dogs, identified as Louie Turnbull, who was homeless. A later viral video showed the encounter between Turnbull, his two young dogs, and seven armed police officers.

The homeless man could be seen in distress as the police demanded that he surrender his dogs to them. Marshall and Millions were leashed at the time, but police quickly shot the older dog after he barked a little closely at one officer.

Turnbull then tried to pull his injured three-year-old dog closer to him, but the police officers responded by hitting him with a taser. The other officers, meanwhile, tried to catch nine-month-old Millions, who was crying in distress. Police then shot the younger dog in the back of the head.

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Criminally Charging the Dogs' Owner

Following the altercation, Met Police took Turnbull into custody, and he appeared in court on May 9, facing charges of being the owner of a dog that was supposedly dangerously out of control, according to the Daily Mail.

Witnesses who saw the initial incident with the woman said that she got caught up in the leads of the two dogs, was not attacked, and was not seriously injured. Animal Rising also released a statement regarding the incident.

The group said that they wanted to hold the Met Police accountable for their horrific actions against Marshall and Millions. There is now a petition that was set up in the wake of the brutal killings of the dogs, with more than 34,000 people already calling for action against the department, said the Doncaster Free Press.

Nearly a week after the incident, the homeless man held a vigil for his two late dogs, attended by some 200 members of the British animal activist Animal Rising movement. Many people there lit vegan candles and chanted: "No justice, no peace, they're killing dogs on our streets."

We are here to remember the two beautiful dogs Marshall and Millions who were killed by the Met Police earlier this week, to remember all the human and non-human lives that are taken every day at the hands of the state and the police, and to hold the Met Police accountable for pic.twitter.com/6nIHuUIXhz  Animal Rising (@AnimalRising) May 11, 2023

A Filipino artist, Mary Mae Dacanay, also created leaf artworks in honor of Marshall and Millions and the call for justice for their untimely and brutal deaths.

'JUSTICE FOR MARSHALL AND MILLIONS' 



Artist Mary Mae Dacanay created leaf artworks to pay tribute to Marshall and Millions, the two bulldogs shot dead by metropolitan police officers in London on May 7, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Mary Mae Dacanay) pic.twitter.com/InIaRB29rl  The Philippine Star (@PhilippineStar) May 17, 2023

Related Article: UN Agency Warns of Reaching Critical Warming Threshold Within 5 Years

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
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This is an opinion column.

Jari Chen was born in this country, the daughter of UAB scientists. Shell graduate from Hoover High next week  Go Bucs  and head to UAB on a medical school track. Go Blazers.

She dreams of being a doctor.

She is an American citizen by birth, and Alabama is the only home she has ever known. It is home to friends and family and people who, 99 percent of the time, treat her like any other 17-year-old. Which is to say she goes to high school, so there are moments.

Now, thanks to the Alabama House of Representatives, she feels like her family is a target.

Dingguo Zhang is a postdoctoral researcher, studying cardiovascular and kidney diseases at UAB. Hes using next-generation sequencing to try to map genes responsible for cardiomyopathy and hypertension. In a state where those ailments are rampant.

Zhang loves Birmingham, and found the love of his life here. But Alabama politicians want to turn people like him into something to fear, and it hurts. A bill passed by the House and being debated by the senate, could have barred him from buying so much as a parcel of land for a home.

Because he is Chinese. Because of an overblown fear that the Chinese government wants to buy up Alabama farmland. In a state where the vast majority of foreign-owned land  1.8 million acres  is held by Canada and European nations.

So many Chinese Alabamians have lost sleep and faith in recent days because of a rash, arbitrary bill by Rep. Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, and 25 co-conspirators that would ban Chinese people and Chinese entities from buying any land in Alabama. Couched as the Alabama Property Protection Act, and singling out Chinese nationals, no matter their immigration status, as well as the Chinese government and businesses. It sent tremors through the Chinese community in Alabama.

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There was a reprieve of sorts Wednesday. The Alabama Senate in committee late Wednesday substituted a new bill that essentially rewrote the old one, removing the ban on Chinese citizens owning property but barring foreign principals in a country of concern from owning property. That includes political parties, businesses and an individual who is domiciled in a foreign country of concern and is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States. Countries of concern include China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia. If passed in the Senate it will have to go back to the House.

But so much damage has already been done. With so much absurdity.

This in a state that handed the Chinese copper tubing company Golden Dragon $202 million in subsidies to come to Wilcox County.

This in a state where UAB is a top employer and a research gem that employs many Chinese nationals. It is a state where Huntville draws a global population on the promise of science and welcome and livability.

It is a state that proclaims how it dares defend our rights. But it will trample all over yours if you aint from around here.

Ken Yang is a UAB researcher working on a green card. He loves Birmingham so much that he has taken to giving city tours each fall to new foreign students.

I like Alabama, he said. Thats why Im staying here.

He has been treated well here, he says. He has experienced no discrimination, and was impressed when his car broke down on the highway and strangers stopped to help. But he is frightened by this bill. Because he is a man trying to do good for his family and good in the world, and now he is seen as something to be banned.

We are not the Chinese government. We are individuals, he said, describing a very wide, deep panic in the Asian community. We are all afraid of what will happen next.

UAB, which employs many Chinese nationals, issued this statement:

UAB does not comment on pending legislation, but we do participate in the legislative process on issues of importance to us and those we serve.

That means, for those who dont speak bureaucratic jargon as a second language, that UAB is working on it. Its lobbyists were certainly pushing for the change in the Senate on Wednesday.

But the fear remains.

Shuang Zhao is a tenured associate professor at UAH, specializing in public policy. She married an American, is raising a family in a place she has loved, in a city billed as one of the best places Americans can live. To be tagged as a communist threat is not just demeaning. It is dehumanizing.

All of a sudden our face, our identity has changed from a friendly neighbor, from a doctor who serves you, to the so-called China threat, she said. All of a sudden its as if we are secretly purchasing, stealing farmland in Alabama, which is absurd.

The truth, she said, is that many Chinese nationals who choose to live in Alabama came to escape communism.

We are part of the community, but all of a sudden they see us, as a whole, becoming us vs. them.

Jari Chen, the 17-year-old, worries that this bill  particularly the original one  is like the foot-in-the-door concept she read about in psychology. If a discriminatory bill like this slips in, or is excused, then what next?

What happens when society targets whole groups of people to solve problems that dont really exist, to achieve cheap political gain? We send a message not just to those people, but to the world. We ignore the richness those groups bring to our communities and we lose sight, more than anything else, of the people themselves.

Dingguo Zhang found love in Alabama. And now he finds something else.

America has been down this road before. Does Japanese internment ring a bell, when we locked Japanese people in camps during World War II, but left Germans and Italians alone? Alabama has seen it, too. It was just more than a decade ago when the state attempted to criminalize most aspects of life for undocumented workers, and wound up arresting a Mercedes executive in the fallout.

When we lash out reflexively from fear, we hurt ourselves, our reputations, and our people. Neighbors. Friends. Geniuses and goofballs, just like us.

I asked Zhang, the UAB post-doc who moved here and got married, if he would have chosen a different research institution if he knew this type of legislation would pop up.

He pondered, weighing the question like the scientist he is. He spoke of other schools, but wound up with this conclusion:

I dont know, because UAB research is really good and UAB medicine is really good.

I couldnt help but interrupt.

And you found a wife here, right?

And suddenly the scientist vanished, and he was just a guy. Just any Alabama guy.

Oh, yes. Yes. Actually, yes, he said. Please let me rephrase. Yes. I would definitely choose to be here again.

And the Alabama House still thinks we have differences.

John Archibald is a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for AL.com.
Voters in Jacksonville, Floridas largest city, have made history by electing its first-ever female mayor.

Democrat Donna Deegan, a former local television anchor and a three-time cancer survivor, defeated her opponent, Republican Daniel Davis, with about 52% of the vote in Tuesdays runoff election, according to preliminary results.

Love won tonight, and we made history, the Jacksonville native said in a statement shared on social media.

We have a new day in Jacksonville because people chose unity over division  creating a broad coalition of people across the political spectrum that want a unified city, she added.

Deegans opponent, a former city council member and state representative who was endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, conceded Tuesday night promising to do everything [he] can to make sure Mayor-elect Deegan is successful in making Jacksonville the best Jacksonville it can be.

Deegan will replace Republican Lenny Curry, whose second term as mayor ends in July 2023. Curry, a former Florida GOP chairman, was ineligible to run again due to term limits.

Her victory was celebrated across the country. Some pundits celebrated Tuesdays results as a brutal setback for DeSantis and the states Republican party; and a massive upset that could be a signal that even Florida is finally getting sick of DeSantis and the Republicans.

The voters of Jacksonville, Florida, showed the nation that banning books and trying to erase the history of the black and LGBTQ communities wont work for Ron DeSantis, New York Rep. Ritchie Torres, the first openly gay Afro-Latinx man elected to Congress, wrote on Twitter late on Tuesday.

Jacksonville, a city of 950,000 located on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida, has elected Republican mayors for 26 out of the past 30 years, according to the Palmer Report.

With News Wire Services

2023 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) said bylaws approved by the Alabama Democratic Party (ADP) on May 5 could violate the partys rules and may have been adopted undemocratically, according to a letter obtained by the Reflector on Wednesday.

The letter from the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee, addressed to Randy Kelley, chair of the ADP, said the new bylaws appeared to create the unequal treatment of minority groups.

The letter also referred to allegations that voting at the meeting was not conducted properly, and that members of the State Democratic Executive Committee (SDEC) were charged a previously unannounced fee to attend.

More from Alabama Reflector

As you know, numerous members of the SDEC and the DNC from Alabama are alleging serious irregularities in the meetings conduct that call into question the validity of the actions taken at the meeting, wrote James Roosevelt Jr. and Minyon Moore, co-chairs of the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee.

At the May 6 meeting of the SDEC, leaders pushed through bylaw changes that abolished caucuses for Hispanic, LGBTQ+ and disabled members of the committee, and reduced the power of other minority caucuses created in 2019.

Supporters of the changes, including Kelley and Joe Reed, the vice chair of minority affairs for the party, said the changes would better reflect the presence of Black voters in the state Democratic electorate. But members of the affected caucuses said they were being erased.

Kelley could not be reached for a comment Wednesday. In a statement released after the May 6 meeting, Kelley said that no one lost representation in the bylaw changes and that losers lost. Reed Wednesday deferred questions to Kelley.

Antwon Womack, chair of the ADPs LGBTQ+ caucus, said in an interview Wednesday that he hopes that Kelley will take this letter as a way of saving the heartbeat of our party. He said that he sees this as an opportunity to get this right and that he has indicated to Kelley that he wants to work with him, but that he also wants to be sure the party is diverse.

Knowing that the DNC has heard myself and others who have reached out in concern of not being treated fairly and voices being silenced through some very divisive bylaws  this is a good sign, Womack said.

The changes to the bylaws reflected a brief victory for Reed, who clashed with the DNC and then-U.S. Sen. Doug Jones in 2019 over changes to party governance ordered by the national party. Jones faction prevailed. But Reed contested the validity of the election, and supported Kelleys election last August.

The letter suggests that the changes, if not addressed, could cost Alabama its representation in the primary presidential elections. If a challenge is filed with the DNC regarding these issues, the letter states we expect this precedent to be followed.

The DNC has maintained that the credentials of DNC members elected by state parties with this noncompliant structure may be revoked, the letter said. If a challenge is filed with the DNC concerning actions taken pursuant to these bylaws, such as approval of your states delegate selection plan, we expect this precedent to be followed.

The bylaws changes eliminated the three caucuses because they dont represent 15% of the executive council, according to the supporters of the changes.

The May 6 meeting was contentious. Several members of the SDEC alleged that they were asked to pay a previously unannounced $50 fee to enter the meeting. Several members have also challenged the voting procedures followed at the meeting.

Virginia Applebaum, chair of the Native American caucus, one of the affected caucuses, said Wednesday that she is concerned about the vote accuracy and as well as whether the body actually had a quorum when so many of our members were blocked and denied their credentials.

I, personally, as did many others, requested a roll call that was never taken, she said.

She also said that she was troubled that actions were taken to seemingly divide the membership into a black and white binary and turn one side against the other.

When there is a narrative being pushed that the membership of the party is either black or white, everyone else is simply erased, Applebaum said.

The only way that the party will be able to move forward and heal from this will be to find a way that supports and welcomes everyone, Womack said, even if they feel they arent welcome or they feel they are not a part of it.

Were going to have to recognize that, at the end of the day, we are all Democrats. We may have different views or different perspectives, but at the end of the day, we are all Democrats, and our ultimate goal is to unseat Republicans, Womack said.
The administrator of the federal department in charge of Medicare and Medicaid visited Birmingham Thursday to find out how communities are working to improve the health of their most vulnerable citizens.

Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, toured two buses operated as part of UABs Live HealthSmart Alabama program. One of the trailers contained a mobile marketplace where people can buy fresh produce and healthy foods. The other held a mobile doctors office where patients can get screenings and care without an appointment.

Live HealthSmart Alabama also includes efforts to improve neighborhood infrastructure to make it safer for people to exercise outside and walk to schools and parks. Officials at UAB launched the program four years ago as part of an effort to improve the health of residents, who suffer from some of the nations highest rates of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

What were seeing in health care, in particular, is how important primary care is. How important preventive care is, Brooks-LaSure said. People only get those services if they have these established relationships. So thats the other thing that really stood out to me, the importance of going to where people need care and developing those trusted relationships with the providers.

UAB President Ray Watts described Lived HealthSmart Alabama as a grand challenge. For years, rankings of physical and mental health have consistently placed Alabama at the bottom. Four years ago, the university community came together with the goal of improving those rankings, he said. UAB contributes $1 million a year.

The goal is to improve the health metrics of the citizens of Alabama in major chronic diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, Watts said. And we rank unfortunately in the lower forties in those areas. And so the goal is over a decade, by 2030, to move us into the low to mid-thirties.

The program targeted four neighborhoods in Birmingham: Kingston, Bush Hills, East Lake and Titusville. Corporate partners that include construction companies and Alabama Power helped improve lighting and park facilities. Medical students and engineering students have also participated in projects to improve neighborhood infrastructure and provide health care in the communities.

The mobile clinic accepts walk-in patients and can provide screenings for cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes. It can also connect patients to primary care at Cooper Green Mercy Health Services, which provides low-cost and free care to qualifying residents of Birmingham and Jefferson County. Many people dont know they can receive care at the clinic, UAB officials said.

UAB helps the county run Cooper Green. A new facility for the clinic is under construction.

Initially the Live HealthSmart Alabama program sought to educate people about healthy behaviors, encouraging people to exercise and eat fresh fruits and vegetables. However, the scope has widened since UAB began working in the neighborhoods and saw some of the economic and educational barriers to good health, Watts said.

In addition to bringing the mobile market and clinics to the neighborhoods, Watts said partners in the project are also discussing ways to reduce blight and improve educational outcomes. New goals include improving third grade reading proficiency, which is linked to higher rates of educational attainment.

Watts said the residents of the neighborhood told UAB staff what they needed to improve their health. Now he said the program is looking to expand.

The goal is to take it to other parts of Alabama, Watts said. And to challenge those cities, towns, counties, universities, hospitals and corporate partners to join together to do it in their neighborhood, because thats the only way were going to reach all of Alabama.
Music legend Jimmy Buffett has been hospitalized in Boston for treatment of an undisclosed condition and has cancelled an upcoming show in Charleston, S.C.

In a letter posted to his website, Buffett said he had stopped in Boston for what was to be a routine check-up, but wound up back in the hospital to address some issues that needed immediate attention.

Buffett said he was returning from a trip to the Bahamas where he had been thawing out from the California winter tour.

Growing old is not for sissies, I promise you, Buffett wrote. I also will promise you that when I am well enough to perform, that is what Ill be doing in the land of She-Crab soup.

Buffett is a native of Pascagoula, Miss., who spent many of his formative years in south Alabama, particularly Mobile and Fairhope, graduating from what is now McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in 1964.

He attended Auburn for a year before continuing his education at Pearl River (Miss.) Community College and the University of Southern Mississippi, where he earned a bachelors degree in History.

The concert scheduled for Credit One Stadium in Charleston this Saturday will be rescheduled, with all previously purchased tickets honored for the new date, once its announced.

Additional information will be emailed to ticket purchasers directly.

You all make my life more meaningful and fulfilled than I would ever have imagined as a toe headed little boy sitting on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico, Buffett wrote in addressing his fans.

Thank you for your prayers and thoughts, your amazing years of loyalty, and just remember, NOT YET!
The federal judge in the Alabama extortion case against Joran van der Sloot has recused herself from the case.

U.S. District Judge Karen Bowdre on Wednesday successfully sought the recusal, court records show. A reason for the request was not disclosed.

The case has been reassigned to U.S. District Judge Anna Manasco.

A Peruvian executive order last week paved the way for van der Sloot to be extradited to the U.S. to face charges he extorted thousands from Natalee Holloways mother.

There still is no finalized plan for the transfer and its unclear when he will arrive in the U.S.

Read full coverage of the case here

The 35-year-old van der Sloot has long been suspected in the disappearance and death of the Mountain Brook High School graduate visiting Aruba in 2005.

However, van der Sloot has never been charged in her death.

Instead, he will be tried in Birminghams federal court on charges that he told Natalees mother, Beth Holloway, that he would lead her to Natalees body in exchange for $250,000.

Holloway paid van der Sloot a $25,000 down payment only to find out that he lied about the location of Natalees remains.

A federal grand jury in Birmingham indicted van der Sloot in 2010 on charges of extortion and wire fraud.

Van der Sloot, a Dutch national from Aruba, is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence in Peru for the 2010 murder of Lima college student Stephany Flores.

Flores was killed five years to the day of Natalees disappearance.

Van der Sloot will not fight extradition on the extortion charge, Peruvian attorney Maximo Altez told the UK Daily Mail.

In the Alabama case, van der Sloot is represented by Kevin Butler of the federal public defender for Alabamas Northern District Court.

Altez also told the news site that van der Sloot plans to divorce his current wife and marry prettier and younger Eva Pacohuanaco, a 24-year-old woman accused of helping van der Sloot smuggle almost 300 grams of cocaine and 140 grams of marijuana into a Peruvian jail.

The act added another seven years to van der Sloots sentence.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville has spoken on the Senate floor twice this week, defending his hold on military promotions that has emerged as one of the more polarizing issues in the Senate in recent weeks.

Tuberville ceded no ground in standing firm on the holds as a protest over a Pentagon policy to provide travel expenses and paid leave for military servicemembers to travel to states where abortion is legal. Lloyd Austin, Secretary of Defense, enacted the policy in February as a response to the Supreme Court last year returning the issue of abortion rights to the states.

I have laid out two conditions for me to end my hold: Either follow the law or change the law, Tuberville said Wednesday. Ill drop my holds as soon as Secretary Austin suspends the memo. The burden is not on me to undo the policy  this illegal policy. The burden is on the Biden administration to follow the law.

These conditions have not been met and I will not drop my hold until they are met.

Tuberville declared that the majority of Americans support him on this issue. The senator also equated the travel expenses to taxpayer-funded abortions. The Pentagon policy does not allow for taxpayers to pay for the medical procedure of an abortion.

I am fighting against taxpayer-funded abortions, Tuberville said. Funding from taxpayers that was never, ever approved by this Congress. And, by the way, poll after poll shows that Americans agree with exactly what Im doing. The American people do not support taxpayer-funded abortions. Period.

Democrats have had a few retired secretaries in the last few weeks agree with them. But other retired military leaders  and thousands of service members and veterans  just happen to agree with me. Just like the majority of Americans.

In addition to opposition from Democrats, Mitch McConnell  the top Republican in the Senate  said last week he did not support Tubervilles tactic of military holds. A group of former secretaries of state said in a letter to Senate leaders last week that the freezing of promotions could jeopardize national security.

Tuberville has responded that the nominations could be approved by the Senate one at a time in floor votes, which opponents have said is too time-consuming compared to the traditional practice of approving all nominations instantly through unanimous consent.

If Democrats were actually concerned about these nominations  and Im going to say it for the hundredth time  if they were actually concerned about our national security and the things that are going on around the world, we would be taking these nominees one at a time and getting them knocked out, Tuberville said. Instead of worrying about coming here and doing this debate, complaining to each other about whats going on when the executive branch is doing our job and were not doing ours.
A Montgomery-based Anheuser-Busch wholesale beer distributor has taken to the airwaves to share his displeasure with the Dylan Mulvaney controversy that reportedly caused sales of Bud Light to plummet nationally.

Steve Tatum, of Montgomery-based Bama Budweiser, addresses the issue in a one-minute radio ad airing on about 10 Montgomery and Selma area radio stations.

We too at Bama Budweiser are upset about it and have made our feelings known to the top leadership at Anheuser-Busch, Tatum says in the ad. The voice of the consumer has been heard, and Anheuser-Busch has taken action.

Last month, Mulvaney, a trans social media influencer, posted an ad for Bud Light on Instagram showing a custom beer can. The video prompted a backlash among other celebrities and boycott among customers.

Earlier this month, Anheuser-Busch pledged to give a case of Bud Light to every employee of an Anheuser-Busch wholesaler. The countrys largest brewer has also pledged to boost its marketing spending on Bud Light.

According to the Wall Street Journal, in the week ending April 22, Bud Lights U.S. retail-store sales fell 21.4% over the same period from last year. Meanwhile, sales of rival brands Coors Light and Miller Lite grew by an almost equal amount.

Bama Budweiser, in business since 1988, has two facilities in central Alabama and covers Autauga, Elmore, Montgomery, Dallas, Lowndes, Perry, Wilcox and Clarke counties.

Tatum said feedback on the ad has been completely positive, with a phone call coming from Nevada to show support. There has been no response from the corporate level, he said.

Im just trying to look after Bama Budweiser, he said. Ive worked too hard to give it all away.

In a one-minute radio spot, Tatum, vice president and general manager of Bama Budweiser, says:

We at Bama Budweiser, an independent wholesaler, employ around 100 people who live here, work here, and our children go to school here. We do not, and as I said before, did not support this issue involving Dylan Mulvaney. There was one single can made. It was not for sale and wasnt properly approved. As a result, the Bud Light brand has new leadership.

Dylan Mulvaney is not under contract with Bud Light. The videos you may have seen are Mulvaneys own social media posts that went viral and many web-based news outlets have distorted the story. You deserve to know the truth, and life is too short to let a couple of individuals decide what you can eat or drink or spend your hard-earned money on. And remember, making friends is our business, not enemies.
Longtime Briarwood Presbyterian Church senior pastor the Rev. Harry Reeder III was killed Thursday morning in a Shelby County crash.

The wreck happened at 10:01 a.m. on Dunnavant Valley Road near Dunnavant Place.

Authorities said the driver of a 2022 International dump truck was stopped to make a turn when Reeders vehicle - a 2022 Buick Envision - crashed into the rear of the truck.

Reeder, 75, was pronounced dead on the scene, confirmed Shelby County Coroner Lina Evans. The dump truck driver, 38-year-old Brad Dawson, was not injured.

Reeder has served as the churchs senior pastor since Briarwood founder the Rev. Frank Barker retired from the pulpit in 1999. Barker oversaw Reeders transition to senior pastor.

The church has more than 4,000 members.

Briarwood Executive Pastor Bruce Stallings released this statement to AL.com:

It is with a deeply heavy heart that I communicate to you that our Lord has called Pastor Reeder home through a car accident. Please pray for Cindy, Jennifer, Ike, Abby and their entire family as well as our staff and church family as we all grieve this tremendous loss together. But we do not grieve without hope because we know our pastor is with His Savior and has been received by grace with - Well done My good and faithful servant.'

Reeder, also an author and podcast host, is survived by his wife, Cindy, as well as three children and numerous grandchildren.

Reeder began his undergraduate work at East Carolina University. After marrying, he withdrew in order to allow his wife to finish her BA degree in chemistry from UNCC.

After his wifes graduation, Reeder returned to East Carolina University but left after he was called into the ministry, and eventually finished his undergraduate work at Covenant College in 1974.

With a degree in History and Bible, he began to pastor an Independent Bible Church in the Chattanooga area. This ministry continued for six years, during which he went part-time to Tennessee Temple Seminary.

Reeder then became a Presbyterian pastor in Miami at Pinelands Presbyterian Church. While in Miami, he completed his Master of Divinity Degree with Westminster Seminary through the Florida Theological Center. Pinelands Presbyterian Church grew from an attendance of 50 to more than 400 in his two-and-a-half year pastorate.

In February of 1983, Reeder became the founding pastor of Christ Covenant Presbyterian Church in North Carolina. The ministry began with 38 committed members, and in seventeen years attendance grew to more than 3,000 during Sunday morning worship services.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
A Birmingham carjacking victim is fighting for his life at UAB Hospital after fatally shooting a suspect Wednesday night at an apartment complex, police said.

Meanwhile, officers located the victims car and set up a perimeter where they believe additional suspects may be located.

East Precinct officers were called to the 700 block of Springville Road just before 8 p.m. Wednesday on a report of a person shot at the Springville Landing apartments, said Officer Truman Fitzgerald.

Officers found an unresponsive man at the scene suffering from a gunshot wound, Fitzgerald said.

As a second group of patrol officers headed to the scene, they were flagged about a second person down from gunfire in grassy area, also in the 700 block of Springville Road.

Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service transported the carjacking victim, who was found shot outside an apartment, to UAB Hospital with life-threatening injuries, Fitzgerald said.

The carjacking suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.

We believe the first victim we got the call on was coming home when he was approached by multiple suspects, Fitzgerald said, adding that police believe he was the victim of a carjacking.

The victim returned gunfire, striking the second person, believed to be a suspect in the incident, the officer said.

At around 8:25 p.m. the departments Real Time Crime Center located the victims vehicle at 10 9th Ave. West in Smithfield, according to Fitzgerald.

As officers approached the vehicle, a male began to flee.

We have that entire area surrounded, Fitzgerald said. We have a perimeter set up, we have dispatched our BPD K9 unit to that area and we will deploy our K9 officers in an attempt to search for that suspect.

Police did not give descriptions of either the at-large suspects or the victims vehicle.
ChatGPT AI falsely claimed that the students of a professor in Texas cheated on their essays. And as such, the college instructor flunked all of them.

The viral chatbot of OpenAI ended up falsely accusing students of cheating, resulting in an unfortunate outcome.

ChatGPT AI False Cheating Claims

As per Digital Trends, a Texas A&M University instructor is now the talk of the town after using the ChatGPT to check if his students' assignments have been plagiarized from the viral AI chatbot.

Dr. Jared Mumm, a campus rodeo instructor, copied and pasted all of the final papers of his students to the chatbot over suspicion that they used the AI tool to generate their assignment. He then asked ChatGPT if it wrote the papers of his students. The chatbot did not hesitate to take credit for the school works of his student.

Digital Trends notes that ChatGPT is not an AI plagiarism checker. Instead, it typically takes credit for most of the original written work, including excerpts of classical novels written even before AI took the world by storm.

These days, academics have been using tools to detect plagiarism in written work. While ChatGPT does all sorts of things, such as writing a poem or computer coding, it fails to detect plagiarism.

Read Also: HNGN Weekly Top 3: Trump Deposed, NATO's New Office, ChatGPT & the Bible

Professor Fails Entire Class

The instructor emailed his students that he used ChatGPT to determine if they cheated on their final paper. And if the chatbot asserts that they just copied their schoolwork, Mumm warns them they will receive an X grade for their course.

As the AI bot told Mumm that ChatGPT generated all of their papers, he failed each one. These students he flunked have already marched the stage during their recent graduation. But due to the failing remark, Rolling Stone notes that the cheating accusation temporarily denied them their diplomas.

Some students have tried proving that they wrote their papers to clear their names. To do so, they provided timestamps on their Google Documents to prove their innocence.

But despite that, Mumm still insisted that they cheated on their final paper. His response was straightforward. He notes on the grading system software that "I [do not] grade AI bulls***."

Rolling Stones reports that one of the students has successfully proven otherwise, leading Mumm to apologize afterward.

Meanwhile, PC Magazine reports that Texas A&M University says they are aware of the matter. However, it clarified that all of their students have succeeded due to the issue. But due to the incident, their diplomas are temporarily on hold as the investigation rolls out.

Related Article: ChatGPT AI Shares Possible Doomsday Scenarios Amid Humanity Threat Concerns

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The Jefferson County Board of Health says Bluestone Coke has failed to pay nearly $300,000 in fines and penalties, violating a 2022 settlement agreement over air pollution violations in North Birmingham.

In December 2022, Bluestone Coke agreed to pay $925,000 in fines to resolve air pollution violations at its coking plant in North Birmingham, the largest fine ever assessed by the Jefferson County Department of Health. As part of the settlement, Bluestone agreed to pay in regular installments beginning in January.

But according to a court filing made Wednesday by the Board of Health, Bluestone fell behind on those payments by $181,249.99, as of May 17. The company also racked up $102,000 in penalties for not meeting the payment schedule. The company continues to accrue $3,000 per day in penalties for not making its payments on time, as laid out in the consent order.

As of May 17, the Board said Bluestone owes a total of $283,249.99.

Bluestone attorney Rob Fowler told AL.com by email that the company was working to catch up on its missed payments.

Bluestone Coke is working to overcome challenging financial issues since its operational shutdown over 18 months ago, Fowler said. It remains committed to fulfilling its obligations under its Consent Agreement with the JCBH and getting caught up on its civil penalty payments.

The Board of Health filed the petition with the Jefferson County Circuit Court on Wednesday asking the court to find Bluestone Coke in contempt because it had not made its required payments on schedule and for filing a false affidavit stating that the company was in compliance with the terms of the settlement when it was not.

The petition also seeks a court order forcing Bluestone to immediately pay all accrued fines and penalties, and to require that two high-ranking Bluestone officials -- Don Wiggins and Jay Justice -- appear in person for future hearings on the matter.

Jay Justice is the son of West Virginia Governor Jim Justice. The Justice family purchased the coke plant in 2019.

Wiggins, who signed the affidavit stating that the company was in compliance when it was not, said he was unaware that the company was behind on its payments when he signed the document.

I was unaware of the failure to make civil penalty payments when I submitted the report and promptly corrected that report upon learning that payments had not been made, Wiggins said via email.

The plant, previously called ERP Compliant Coke, Walter Coke, and Sloss Industries Coke, has been in operation in north Birmingham for more than 100 years making coke -- a coal product used to make steel. The coal is baked in high-temperature, low-oxygen coke ovens to remove impurities in coal and create fuel for steel-making. That process creates high levels of air pollution and water pollution if not properly controlled.

The residential areas surrounding the plant are part of the 35th Avenue Superfund Site, an area designated for clean-up by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency due to high levels of industrial contaminants in the soil. The EPA designated the coke plant as one of several potentially responsible parties, for the pollution in those areas.

The plant was shuttered in December 2021 after failing to meet the requirements of its operating permit. and has been idle since then. The consent order that included the fines also laid out conditions that would have to be met for the plant to reopen.

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin has urged the Board not to renew the plants permit.

Bluestone Coke has disregarded the health & safety of our residents for decades, the mayor said on Twitter after the December settlement was announced. Their irresponsibility has polluted our community and directly harmed the health of our residents. They dont give a damn about people. I encourage the Jefferson County Department of Health to NOT renew Bluestones permit to operate.

Birmingham-based environmental group GASP, which has been active in the North Birmingham area, collected several air samples surrounding the plant in 2019 and 2020 showing high levels of napthalene and benzene, two known or suspected carcinogens. GASP was granted intervenor status in the original complaint against Bluestone and has been a party to the legal proceedings.

We are disappointed but not surprised to learn that Bluestone Coke is already out of compliance with the consent order signed just a few months ago, GASP Executive Director Michael Hansen said via email. Their actions continue to show blatant disrespect for the people of Birmingham and contempt for the rule of law. We are paying close attention to every move Bluestone makes and stand ready to hold the company accountable for any violations if and when they occur.
The state Senate has passed a rewritten bill that in its original form caused alarm because it would have banned Chinese citizens from buying property in Alabama, a ban that would have applied to many people living and working in the state, preventing them from buying a home.

That ban on property ownership by individuals is not part of the rewritten bill, which would prohibit certain foreign governments from buying land used for agriculture or forestry and land within 10 miles of military bases and critical infrastructure like power plants, refineries, seaports, and airports. Those countries include China, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and any country, or government identified on any sanctions list of the United State Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control.

HB379, by Rep. Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, passed the Senate 26-7 today, with most Republicans supporting the bill and most of the Democrats voting no. It goes back to the House, which would have to agree with the extensive changes for the bill to get final passage.

Sen. David Sessions, a Republican from Mobile County, handled the bill on the Senate floor today after introducing the new version at a public hearing on Wednesday that drew an overflow crowd to a State House committee room.

My intent is to protect our agriculture, natural resources, Sessions said. Food to me is part of national security. I feel like we need to protect those fertile fields that are producing food for our citizens.

Alabamians of Chinese descent who spoke at Wednesdays hearing said the original bill was racist, discriminatory, and failed to recognize their contributions to medical care, education, business, churches, and organizations that benefit their communities. They said the legislation caused fear and panic, including among those whose goal is to become American citizens and see their children and grandchildren grow up here.

Sen. Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, said he was surprised to hear from many Chinese Alabamians in his district. Singleton met with them on a Zoom call and later worked with Sessions to revise the bill.

They shared their concerns with me, Singleton said. As a Black man in this country, I understand what it feels like to be discriminated against.

Were all a big melting pot, Singleton told Sessions, who agreed. All of us are from somewhere. I want to applaud you for narrowing this this down where it didnt cast this wide net.

Rep. Merika Coleman, D-Pleasant Grove, said two Alabamians of Chinese descent who work for a company that processes Alabama white marble came to her office to express their concerns about HB379. They told her the bill made them feel unwelcomed in the state they consider home. Coleman said the original bill was an example of one that carried unintended consequences, which she said is a recurring problem with legislation over the last decade or so.

While somebody is trying to make a political statement, that original version of the bill could detrimentally impact Alabamians, Coleman said.

Im hoping that legislation moving forward that we think about people, not just politics, Coleman said.
This is an opinion column

At the bottom of the bleachers in Kenan Stadium sat a sea of blue. Carolina blue. The roughly 5,000 graduates of the University of North Carolina class of 2023 filed in and sat down, wearing their caps and gowns and waiting for their adult lives to begin. My granddaughter was one of them.

These are lucky graduates. The University of North Carolina is the oldest public university in the country, founded in 1793. (The University of Georgia claims this spot, too.) Carolina produces thinkers, activists, statesmen, stateswomen, and hard-working people who managed to get through four years of a grueling undergraduate program and come out on the other side with a degree.

Maybe parents paid for this privilege. Maybe scholarships. Or maybe a student worked her way through, serving up steaming breakfast plates at the Carolina Coffee Shop and studying in the break room between shifts.

After tuneful renditions of both the National Anthem and Carolina in My Mind, the speeches began. If youve been to graduations, you know that students are congratulated for their hard work and given advice for the years that are just ahead.Theyre urged to be their best, make their mark, and climb the ladder to success.

But the final speaker gave a different kind of message. Bryan Stevenson, attorney and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama, took the podium to tell his story so it could become everybodys story.

Born in segregated southern Delaware in 1959, Stevenson was one of the first African-American children to attend the previously white schools. A bright student, he ended up at Harvard Law and eventually founded the Equal Justice Initiative, where hes worked with an incarcerated population, including young teens whove been sentenced to life in prison without parole.

His best-selling book about his work, Just Mercy, was made into a highly-acclaimed movie.

His message to the graduates? Dont hide from history, even the ugly parts of it. Especially the ugly parts of it. We have to teach it so we wont repeat it. We have to know what happened back then so we can keep it from happening right now. The beatings, the lynchings, the terror of the mobs. All of it.

The graduates can make a bundle on Wall Street but they can also make a difference on Main Street, and all the side streets where ordinary people struggle to get by. He tells them about his own grandmotheran ordinary person who made sure she made a difference in his life. She nearly hugged him to death.

When Mama, as he called her, came in for a hug, it was so powerful it took his breath away, literally. His small body ached after her embraces and he tightened up when she came across the room to grab him. When he finally asked her why her hugs were so hard, she said it was because she wanted them to last long after she was gone from the room and from this life.

It worked. Stevenson said he could feel her presence in that huge crowd. And then he directed the class of 2023 to go forth and do the same.

After 5,000 tassels were turned and 5,000 caps were tossed into a clear Carolina sky, the graduates poured out to greet family members and hug them so hard and so long theyd never forget it.

Contact Beth Thames at bethmthames@gmail.com
This is a guest opinion

In the month of May, which is recognized as the Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Heritage Month, various educational programs are being held in Alabama public libraries to celebrate the rich contributions of the AAPI community.

Regrettably, at the onset of this May, the House of Representatives in the State of Alabama approved HB-379, also known as the Alabama Property Protection Act. This legislation specifically aims to prohibit Chinese citizens, Chinese companies, and the Chinese government from acquiring property. Such a measure flagrantly infringes upon the civil rights of Chinese individuals residing in the state and demonstrates a blatant disregard for the principles upheld by the Fair Housing Act.

Recently, I had a conversation with my daughter about this act, and to her complete surprise, she had no prior knowledge of it. She was left utterly shocked and bewildered, her eyes widened in disbelief. It was disheartening for her, as she had recently learned about historical instances of anti-Chinese legislation in school, prompting her to question if history is tragically repeating itself.

This bill unabashedly targets a specific racial group, thereby impeding their participation in various facets of society. If passed through the Senate, it would be a regressive step, reminiscent of the dark era of the 1940s when Asian Americans were unjustly interned based solely on their race. It is imperative to recognize that this thinly veiled legislation represents racial discrimination that has no place in the United States.

It is crucial to halt the ratification of this bill before law-abiding citizens are unjustly deprived of their ability to purchase homes or engage in economic activities. HB379, introduced by Representative Scott Stadthagen, seeks to prohibit Chinese citizens from owning property in Alabama. While one may assume that such xenophobic legislation belongs to a bygone era, it is essential to acknowledge that Alien Land Acts have persisted until modern times.

In 2018, the residents of Florida finally succeeded in approving a ballot measure to remove provisions of the alien land law from their states constitution. Unfortunately, we are witnessing a distressing nationwide trend seeking to reinstate these discriminatory laws, with Florida leading the way. Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, on Monday, May 8th, signed a series of bills that prohibit Chinese citizens from purchasing land within the state, while Texas contemplates similar legislation.

During this AAPI Heritage Month, a time when natures splendor unfolds in the blossoming month of May, it is essential to celebrate the remarkable achievements and invaluable contributions of the AAPI community. We must resist the regression into xenophobic laws that mirror a bygone century. Our unwavering belief rests upon the establishment of a just and inclusive society that upholds the rights and dignity of all individuals, irrespective of their ethnicity. It is incumbent upon us to reject the existence of discriminatory legislation, as none of us would desire to witness the marginalization of foreign American nationals in their respective countries or the unjust exclusion of American corporations from foreign market investments.

Dr. Ken Yang, who holds an MD and PhD, lives in Birmingham where he has been a research scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham the past 19 years.
While House Rep. Scott Stadthagen celebrated Mothers Day with his wife and mother, many mothers in Alabama were distressed and anxious due to the news circulating in the Chinese community that a new bill would prohibit Chinese citizens and entities from purchasing land or homes in Alabama.

The Alabama Property Protection Act, introduced by Stadthagen, targeted a minority group that has contributed to Alabamas science, technology, education, economy, and culture, causing sadness for many Chinese mothers, families, and minority communities in the state.

The recently passed House bill aimed at combating the perceived China threat and bolstering national security only serves to boost the political image of the politician who seeks personal recognition by riding the national wave of containing a rising China. This approach, however, has direct detrimental consequences for all residents of Alabama. This legislation obstructs the interests of all Alabamians, impeding economic opportunities, scientific and educational advancements, and undermining cultural diversity.

Rep. Stadthagen shows a blatant disregard for facts, evidence, and the undeniable reality of the significant contributions made by Chinese Americans, Chinese citizens, and Chinese businesses residing in Alabama. His proposed legislation not only harms the well-being of citizens but also tarnishes the reputation of our state on both national and global stages.

Attracting foreign firms and investment has been a crucial driver of economic growth in Alabama over the past decade. As one of the largest agricultural states, rural communities have significantly benefited from the presence of these foreign companies, which have served as major catalysts for economic improvement.

Golden Dragon, a Chinese company, has played a vital role in Alabamas Black Belt by creating over 300 jobs and becoming a significant contributor to the local economy. Many view Golden Dragons endeavors in Wilcox County as a new economic model for developing rural economies in Alabama.

Implementing laws that prohibit foreign entities from purchasing additional properties is counterproductive to Alabamas longstanding efforts to attract foreign investment. The hostile image created by such a bill may discourage global investors from selecting Alabama as a preferred destination for their businesses and investments. Representative Stadthagen and his co-sponsors may have unwittingly jeopardized the promising futures of many young Alabamians employed in these globally competitive firms while also negatively impacting local economies.

RELATED -- Archibald: Chinese Alabamians remain in panic over legislative affront

In addition, North Alabama takes great pride in its advancements in technology, science, and education. The University of Alabama (UA) system, including UA, UAB, and UAH, houses a significant number of Chinese scientists, scholars, and students who contribute to the development of science and technology, the creation of patents, and the generation of millions of dollars in funding support. They also play a crucial role in starting businesses and providing job opportunities for local American citizens. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Marshal Rocket Center, and the Hudsonalpha Institute serve as hubs for thousands of Chinese and other minority scientists and engineers who have become the driving force behind scientific and technological innovation and development in the region. Many of these talented individuals work under H1B visas, and they now face the direct threat of losing their homes.

Alabama also faces challenges in public health, with a significant underserved population and deficiencies in healthcare access. Chinese Americans also have a well-established reputation in the field of medicine, and many Chinese physicians, family doctors, and nurses have been instrumental in providing essential healthcare services to the Alabama population.

Quoting a sincere Alabama resident, Chinese doctors: good enough to save you and your friends/familys lives during a three-year-long pandemic but not good enough to own a home. Not good enough to open a business that generates money into our community and economy.

This sentiment raises a valid concern. What will happen if Chinese doctors and other professionals leave Alabama because they are unable to purchase homes and feel unwelcome in the state? Their departure would not only result in a loss of highly skilled professionals but also impact the availability of healthcare services and hinder economic growth in local communities.

While Alabama possesses significant agricultural land, it is important to note that the top buyers of this land are countries such as Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Germany, according to the Alabama Commerce Department. Chinese citizens and entities play a minimal role in the acquisition of agricultural land, accounting for less than 1% of investments. In other words, without conducting careful factual research, Rep. Stadthagens proposed bill would not achieve its goal but inflict harm on Chinese people living in Alabama, Asian communities at large, and most importantly, the citizens of Alabama themselves.

On May 17th, HB379 was deliberated in the Committee to Senate Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry, and it underwent substantial revisions. While the bill no longer targets Chinese citizens specifically and offers protection for permanent residents, its overall tone of hostility remains unchanged. Notably, additional countries of concern were included, and the criteria for land purchases have become more stringent.

Unfortunately, this bill has already contributed to an atmosphere of hostility and tension in Alabama. The potential damage caused by such sentiments may require many years, if not decades, to fully mitigate.

It is important for you to reach out to your representatives and express your concerns about this bill. Together, lets make sure that this past Mothers Day was the last sad holiday, and strive for a future where all Alabamians can celebrate every holiday together, free from discriminatory policies.

Dr. Shuang Zhao is an Associate Professor of Political Science at UAH.
A roundup of conversations we're having daily on the site. Subscribe to the Reckon Daily for stories centering marginalized communities and speaking to the under-covered issues of the moment.

After Uganda passed an Anti-Homosexuality Bill that further criminalizes the identities and behavior of LGBTQ+ people, Ugandan LGBTQ+ rights activist Beyonce Karungi is fighting for a safe return while she temporarily remains in the U.S.

Karungi is the co-founder of Trans Equality Uganda, an organization that fights for gender diversity, human rights and non-discrimination in employment, and was visiting New York City for the 67th UN Commission on the Status of Women conference back in March.

She was scheduled to return to Uganda after the conference ended on March 17th when the Ugandan Parliament passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, that entrenches the criminalization of same-sex conduct.

Because Karungis short-term visa doesnt allow her to work or earn income in the U.S., the GoFundMe fundraiser aims to raise enough money to support Karungis living needs (food, airline-change fees, routine and gender-affirming medical care) and revise her visa for a longer, sustainable stay.

A $5,000 goal has been set while Karungi waits until she is able to safely return and continue her work in Uganda.

As of Thursday morning (EST), a little over $4,500 has been raised.

Karungi has not responded to Reckons inquiry on whether she intends to stay in the U.S. permanently due to the bills passing.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the bill is a revised and more egregious version of Ugandas 2014 Anti-Homosexuality Act, which enforced life imprisonment for sexual relations between same-sex individuals and outlawed the promotion of homosexuality but was struck down by a constitutional court saying that it was wrongly passed by Parliament.

This new bill makes aggravated homosexuality punishable by death if someone is found to be engaging in same-sex acts involving children or people with disabilities, having sex while HIV positive and incest between same-sex individuals.

It also imposes a life sentence on consensual same-sex relations among adults, institutes complete censorship on LGBTQ issues, criminalizes anyone who fails to report someone they suspect of participating in same-sex acts to the police, and criminalizes activities promoting homosexuality with up to 20 years in prison.

HRW Uganda Researcher Oryem Nyeko noted how intensely this bill criminalizes people simply for being who they are, further infringing on the rights to privacy, freedoms of expression and association.

Ugandan politicians should focus on passing laws that protect vulnerable minorities and affirm fundamental rights and stop targeting LGBT people for political capital, said Nyeko to HRW.

In an April rally outside of Uganda House, the Permanent Mission of Uganda to the United Nations in New York City, Karungi expressed how the passing of this bill is going to make living conditions tougher for an already marginalized population.

Its becoming more and more difficult for trans women, especially ones living with HIV, she said. Its going to be challenging to access meds because of this bill.

LGBTQ+ individuals living with HIV in Uganda face heightened discrimination due to their diagnosis, compounding the prejudice they already endure based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Many [trans people] are sex workers, and they cant go to work because theyre being attacked, theyre being stripped naked, said Karungi during the rally. Theyre always raided all the time by the police, so we need support to be able to help them get intermission during this period.

And is why Karungi has reason to believe that it would be dangerous for her to return.

It is unlikely she would be allowed outside of the airport, said the fundraiser organizer, Morgan Garcia. And with emboldened anti-LGBT sentiment, she fears attacks like she has experienced in the past.

Its unclear how much time remains on Karungis short-term visa.

Several news outlets have reported on demonstrations and actions in the U.S. in support of LGBTQ+ individuals in Uganda, highlighting the importance of global solidarity.

One of the facilitators of a New York protest denouncing Ugandas Anti-Homosexuality Bill stated how important it is to fight for queer rights regardless of race or nationality.

White people in Western and white-majority countries have a duty to show up in solidarity for our Ugandan queer and trans siblings, said AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition (AVAC) communications manager, Jason Rosenberg, to TheBody. Because its important that we recognize the historical role Western countries have played in colonization and imported hate.

Rosenberg helped facilitate pro-LGBTQ+ protests decrying the inhumanity of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill outside of Uganda House in New York City onThat April 25, as part of the Human Rights Not Hate: Global Day of Action.

Its no coincidence that Ugandas anti-LGBTQIA+ bill is on the table while over 400 anti-trans bills are sweeping across state legislatures, he said. This is an organized effort from right-wing religious extremists that want to eradicate queerness. And we have to meet their organized efforts with direct action.

As of May 2, Ugandas Parliament has officially passed one of the worlds strictest anti-LGBTQ bills, awaiting Uganda President Yoweri Museveni to sign it into law, something he vowed to immediately do once it reaches his desk.
(Photo : Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Deutsche Bank will pay $75 million to settle a class-action complaint alleging it helped Jeffrey Epstein's sex-trafficking company.

Deutsche Bank AG has agreed to pay $75 million to resolve a lawsuit brought by women who allege they were exploited by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and who accuse the German bank of facilitating Epstein's sex trafficking.

The agreement resolves claims in a proposed class action filed by Epstein's accusers in Manhattan federal court, as verified by their attorneys late Wednesday. Court authorization is necessary.

Deutsche Bank to Settle Jeffrey Epstein Suit

Epstein was a client of Deutsche Bank between 2013 and 2018. In August 2019, while awaiting prosecution for sex trafficking, he committed suicide in a New York City jail, according to the city's medical examiner.

The Wall Street Journal reported the settlement earlier and cited sources familiar with the matter, saying the bank did not confess misconduct. Deutsche Bank spokesman Dylan Riddle declined to comment on the agreement but referred to a statement from 2020 in which the bank acknowledged that making Epstein a client was a mistake.

He also stated that Deutsche Bank had invested more than 4 billion euros in strengthening its controls, processes, and training and employing additional personnel to combat financial crime.

David Boies, one of the accusers' attorneys, stated that Epstein's transgressions were unacceptable and "could not have occurred without the collaboration and support of numerous influential people and institutions. We value Deutsche Bank's willingness to assume its responsibilities."

Per US News, Boies Schiller Flexner and Edwards Pottinger represent the accusers of Epstein. A trial was scheduled for September 5.

Read Also: Ukraine Claims It Shots Down 6 of Russia's Hypersonic Missiles During 'Exceptional' Attack on Kyiv

Deutsche Bank Allegedly Ignored Red Flags

The settlement, which a federal magistrate must approve, would end a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging that the bank enabled the disgraced financier's sex trafficking of young women by ignoring red flags in Epstein's accounts that he was engaging in illegal activity.

The restitution fund was established by Epstein's estate several months after he committed suicide while awaiting prosecution on sex trafficking charges. The fund has paid over $125 million to Epstein's victims, most of whom were adolescent females at the time of their abuse.

Additionally, the estate has paid approximately $20 million in settlements to victims who did not pursue restitution from the fund. The tentative settlement brings to a close the relationship between Deutsche Bank and Epstein, which began in 2013 and lasted until late 2018.

Epstein became a client of Deutsche Bank after his primary bank of approximately 15 years, JPMorgan Chase, ceased doing business with him. The attorneys for the victims have filed a lawsuit against JPMorgan, alleging that the bank ignored warning signals about Epstein and profited from his sex trafficking operation, NY Times reported.

JPMorgan has been sued by the government of the US Virgin Islands, the territory where Epstein operated his enterprises for nearly two decades. Epstein's estate consented to pay the Virgin Islands $105 million to resolve a lawsuit filed by the government to recover tax benefits awarded to one of Epstein's St. Thomas businesses.

Related Article: Elon Musk Subpoenaed Over JPMorgan's Jeffrey Epstein Ties

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(Photo : Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The US Supreme Court upheld a Democratic-backed ban on assault-style rifles and large-capacity magazines enacted in Illinois.

The US Supreme Court will not halt a new Illinois law prohibiting the sale of certain semi-automatic firearms and high-capacity magazines.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court denied an emergency request from those challenging the law prohibiting assault weapons.

Illinois Assault Weapons Ban

Opponents of the legislation had urged the court to suspend the law pending the outcome of an ongoing legal challenge. The court did not comment, and no judge publicly dissented.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett ruled on Wednesday, a day after the Illinois Supreme Court heard a separate challenge to the state's assault weapons ban. The justices are considering placing the legislation on pause temporarily. The court's arguments centered on equal protection rights, as per CBS News.

Hundreds of mothers gathered in Springfield to advocate for gun safety legislation. Fifty percent of the mothers were from Chicago. They boarded a bus at Union Station to meet hundreds of other mothers in Springfield.

The organization wants the state legislature to approve legislation mandating safe gun storage, prohibiting domestic violence offenders from possessing firearms, and holding the gun industry accountable. In the meantime, a federal appeals court reinstated the Illinois assault weapons ban earlier this month after a federal magistrate in the state had halted the law.

The decision, contained in a brief, unsigned order, means that the Illinois law enacted in response to a shooting that killed seven people on July 4, 2017, in Highland Park will remain in effect while legal challenges continue. A federal magistrate halted the law in a separate case, but the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals has stayed that decision. In January, according to NBC News, the Supreme Court declined to halt new gun restrictions in New York.

Read Also: Jeffrey Epstein Case: Deutsche Bank Agrees To Pay $75 Million to Convicted Pedophile's Victims

Illinois Gov. Pritzker Hails Supreme Court's Decision

The combined effect of the two decisions indicates that the justices are willing to give lower courts time to contemplate the impact of last summer's Supreme Court decision that dramatically expanded firearms rights under the Second Amendment.

Additionally, the appeals court expedited the review of five cases challenging the new law. The Supreme Court of Illinois is contemplating an analogous case. Due to the Supreme Court's decision, a Naperville, Illinois, ordinance that bans assault-style weapons will also remain in effect.

In January, Democratic Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law the Protect Illinois Communities Act, which prohibits the sale and distribution of numerous types of high-powered semi-automatic "assault weapons," including AK-47 and AR-15 rifles and magazines that hold more than 10 rounds for long guns and 15 rounds for handguns.

Pritzker applauded the action of the Supreme Court. Existing proprietors are exempt and have until January 1, 2024, to register assault weapons with state police, as per Reuters. Last June, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision recognizing the right to carry a handgun for self-defense in public. According to Brown, subordinate courts have ignored this decision.

In signing the bill, Pritzker also referenced other recent mass shootings, which are a common occurrence in the United States, including an attack in 2022 that killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, and a shooting in 2012 that killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

Related Article: Missing Illinois Girl Featured in Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries' Found Alive in North Carolina After 6 Years

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
I've been interviewed several times by a podcaster who contacted me after reading one of my articles. We always have lively and respectful conversations  about even the most sensitive topics. She is a woman "of color." I on the other hand am so pale that I could sunburn from sitting too close to a bright table lamp. According to the CRT consultants, she and I should have diametrically opposed worldviews and couldn't possibly trust each other enough to have candid conversations. Our talks should be limited to her demanding and apology from me, for the slaves my ancestors never owned. And yet, we can talk about anything without taking offense  even things like racism, LGBT issues, morality, and civil rights.

We have found that our beliefs are more common than diverse. Our skin tones do not define us. The way we understand the world defines who we are  and as it happens, we're not very different at all.

It makes me wonder: what if our candid conversations were the national norm? How different would the country be if we could talk about racism without referring to privilege, trigger words, microaggressions, hate speech, and systemic racism?

Racism clearly exists in the world and has been experienced by people of all skin tones. It's the black man presumed guilty for driving in the wrong neighborhood at night. It's the white woman beaten into unconsciousness as an entry in the Knock-Out Game. It's the Asian denied college admission because his ethnicity is "over-represented."

But the vast majority of Americans mean no harm to their fellow citizens. Relative to the important things like values, aspirations, prosperity, and emotional fulfillment, melanin content is so far down on the scale of importance as to be meaningless. The presumption that one race is superior to another has been stigmatized to near extinction.

Our national problem isn't racism. It's a lack of trust in one another. We presume injustices are due to malice rather than mistakes. If only we could come to know one another, perhaps we would learn that we have much in common and little to fear  or hate. Is racial harmony best achieved through developing an understanding of one another or by encouraging hatred and distrust?

This brings me to Joe Biden's commencement speech at Howard University. He told a predominantly black audience that "white supremacy" is the greatest threat faced by our nation. I'm not going to analyze whether Joe has any substantiating evidence for that statement  or if it was just a flat-out lie. I want to talk about the effect that type of language has on the society he is charged to lead.

Biden made no mention of threats from Antifa, transgender mass shooters, pro-abortion assassins, or even narco-terrorists crossing our border. White supremacy must be a truly monumental problem (snark intended).

But Joe didn't elaborate on what a "white supremacist" is. Luckily, we have his prior speeches to help figure it out. In 2012 Joe told a mixed audience that if Mitt Romney were elected, the Republicans would "put you all back in chains." That sounds as though all Republicans are the threat to the republic.

In his 2022 Philadelphia "red speech," he called MAGA voters a threat to the country  even calling them fascists. That narrowed the population of threats from all Republicans to merely the Trump voters. The good Republicans (i.e., the NeverTrumps) are okay.

Now Joe is adding the "white supremacist" qualifier to his threat assessment. Perhaps the DOJ has narrowed the threat population to only white Trump voters. Luckily, there's a simple way to detect the threat: white people in red hats.

Did anything about his speech encourage open dialogue about racism  or did it sow distrust, fear, and hatred? Are people who distrust one another more or less likely to have candid discussions about sensitive issues?

For Joe Biden, the words are not just cynical pandering. He puts the force of law behind them. His DOJ and DHS have both issued threat advisories against "white supremacy"  and his administration has included those speaking against the government in that category. Merrick Garland even used the FBI to investigate school board protesters as domestic terrorists.

Joe Biden is telling non-white people to fear a late-night visit by men in white robes, and the people of pallor who question the preferred narrative to expect an early-morning raid by men in SWAT uniforms. Does that encourage candid conversation? He is stoking civil unrest for political advantage and is doing so with little apparent concern about the unrest transitioning into open conflict. What kind of man does such a thing? Only one with no moral compass.

How much healthier for the country would it have been if Biden had given a speech along these lines instead? Which message would better promote harmony in America?

How much healthier would our country be if we stopped worrying about triggering one another and had candid conversations to explore our concerns and aspirations? If we came to understand goodness in each other, could we stop attributing mistakes to malice? Is it possible that we could forgive past wrongs and drop our grievances before they destroy our future?

John Green is a political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Idaho. He has written for American Thinker and American Free News Network. He can be reached at greenjeg@gmail.com.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
(Photo : EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images)

French President Emmanuel Macron says France would provide Ukraine with missiles to help it resist Russian aggression.

In an interview with French television station TF1 INFO on May 15, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that France would send missiles to Ukraine with sufficient range to defend against Russian assaults during the forthcoming Ukrainian counter-offensive.

The source added that France communicated information with Ukraine and the United Kingdom regarding the outcomes of all military assistance provided to Kyiv, particularly about long-range missiles.

Ukraine Counter-Offensive Weapons

The UK had provided Ukraine with cruise missiles capable of striking targets over 250 kilometers distant. UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace subsequently verified the report and emphasized Ukraine's sovereign right to defend its territory against the Russian invasion.

Storm Shadow, also known as SCALP, is a French-British air-to-ground missile manufactured by MBDA with a range of over 250 kilometers and a payload weight of 450 kilograms.

In a recent interview, when asked if SCALP missiles could be supplied to Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly responded, "We are investigating all options."

However, he specified that it is not currently scheduled. France and the United Kingdom devised the SCALP system in the 1990s.

Depending on the modifications, its range can be increased to 500 or even 700 kilometers. Per Ukrinform, France began contemplating transferring long-range missiles to Ukraine after the United Kingdom pledged.

Meanwhile, a renewed drive by the United Kingdom and the Netherlands to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets has exposed the latest rift between Western allies who have repeatedly argued over dispatching powerful weapons of war, pitting the United States against some of its closest European allies.

Per NY Times, several European allies are willing to provide Ukraine with F-16s. However, the Biden administration, which must authorize any transfer of the expensive American-made aircraft, remains unconvinced that Ukraine requires the jets, a staple in many modern military arsenals.

According to a senior Ukrainian official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to candidly discuss a sensitive diplomatic matter, Washington's skepticism is so profound that Kyiv's pilots are not even permitted to train on the F-16s owned by European nations.

American reluctance to permit training would severely restrict the ability of a proposed new European coalition to assist Ukraine in acquiring and flying F-16s, whether in the current conflict or to protect against future aggressions by Moscow after the West withdraws its attention from the 15-month war.

A senior US official stated in Washington that the Biden administration hesitated to send Ukraine its F-16s partly because the plane's multimillion-dollar price tag would consume too much of the nation's already-depleted war budget.

The US official stated that the administration is more concerned with delivering other American weaponry to Ukraine in time for a counter-offensive against Russia and that the aircraft would not reach the battlefield for at least several months - presumably after the battle had already begun.

Read Also: Theranos Founder Loses Bid To Avoid Prison, Gets Hit with $452 Million Restitution Bill

Russia-Ukraine War

Ukraine asserts that it has slain 200,000 Russian soldiers, marking a new low point. According to this staggering number, since the invasion on February 24, 2022, one of Vladimir Putin's soldiers has perished every three minuteThe precise numbers provided by Kyiv must be taken with a grain of salt, but Western intelligence concurs that the Russians have suffered horrifying losses.

Russia would have lost approximately 13,300 personnel per month, 3,250 per week, 450 per day, 20 per hour, or one every three minutes if there were 200,000 fatalities. The Sun reported that brutal trench warfare, street-by-street combat, and soldiers flooding into No Man's Lands have come to define the Ukraine conflict.

The bloody, muddy scenarios are not what many envisioned for 21st-century combat. Despite Putin's proclamation that his so-called "special military operation" would last only two weeks, the conflict lasted approximately 447 days.

According to the daily summary, 610 Russians were slain yesterday, totaling 200,590. Ukraine claims to have destroyed thousands of Russian vehicles and hundreds of aircraft since the invasion, indicating that Putin is losing more than just personnel in large numbers.

Again, the numbers must be viewed with skepticism. However, Putin was disgraced last week when his annual "Victory Day" ceremony - an opportunity for him to show off his military might - featured only one tank.

Related Article: Ukraine Claims It Shots Down 6 of Russia's Hypersonic Missiles During 'Exceptional' Attack on Kyiv

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The New York City subway incident in which former Marine Daniel Penny, whose sleeper hold inadvertently killed career criminal and homeless vagrant Jordan Neely quickly became front-page news. Matters exploded when Alvin Bragg, Manhattans Soros-funded district attorney, charged Penny with second-degree manslaughter. Presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis made reference to at a campaign rally, and Pennys defense fund has thus far raised more than two million dollars from 42,000 contributors Hard to say where it will end, but the incident has obviously touched a public nerve. Theres something about the episode that transcends the simple facts of a good Samaritans intervention going wrong and a progressive local DA stirring the racial pot.

Most Americans do not ride New York City subways, so the psychological dimension to this incident is not easily grasped. Yet it is this psychological element that makes it important far beyond the bare-bones legal facts.

Regular subway riders -- me included -- are always aware of certain inescapable realities. These realities come with city life, knowing New York Citys troubled past (remember the film Death Wish?) and having a keen eye for ones surroundings.

Experienced subway riders know that they are trapped for minimally three minutes, longer on express trains and, occasionally even longer if theres a track fire, a broken switch, or a stuck train. You are also stuck with all the people on the ten-car train (usually a 100+). Furthermore, though walking between cars is prohibited, people ignore the restriction (doors are unlocked), so forget about choosing only cars with non-threatening fellow passengers. That scruffy vagrant you saw sleeping in the end car before you boarded a crowded middle car may soon be standing over you requesting a donation. This is not an airplane with screened passengers, cabin staff, and FAA rules banning unruly passengers. The subways unpleasant reality has been made even worse as cops now ignore turnstile jumpers.

Nor is there any police protection while you are trapped. Mayor Eric Adams has flooded the subway with cops, but the bad news is that you only see them outside the train, often chatting while watching their cellphones. Worse, they typically just mill about at the station entrance many yards from subway platforms. In other words, when the next Jordan Neely corners you yelling and screaming, youre on your own until the next station and then, if lucky, you can exit to summon law enforcement. Ironically, periodic recorded announcements via the cars PA system advise you that if you need help, the NYPD is only a station away to rescue you.

Being trapped means that you become a captive audience for grubby beggars, mariachi bands, aspiring rappers, gymnasts with boomboxes, candy sellers, and multiple other urban entrepreneurs. Yes, nobody fears a ten-year old boy hawking Kit-Kats, but it is uncomfortable to lack any escape route when he makes his pitch. And who knows what could happen if you accidentally make eye-contact with a disheveled panhandler strolling from car to car?

It is no wonder, then, that many New Yorkers, especially elderly women, prefer buses, though they are far slower and usually less frequent. A bus can always immediately stop and discharge its passengers to safety, and the driver can see trouble and summon help. Subways may have conductors and motormen, but neither can see and then help a passengers confronted by a wild-eyed nutcase.

There is a reality here that dare not speak its name. The New York subway, including many dark, deserted passageways, abound with people whose inescapable presence justifiably causes unease. Their presence is excluded from official crime statistics, but their existence projects a reasonable sense of criminal threat. And thanks to liberal DAs like NYCs Alvin Bragg, their numbers grow. Critically, this unease cannot be mitigated by upbeat reports about declining subway crime or endlessly preaching the joys of diversity. Jordan Neelys subway act was innocently impersonating Michael Jackson, but among his 42 prior arrests was one for assaulting a 67-year old woman whose nose was broken and eye socket fractured (he walked in exchange for 15 months of treatment that he never completed). Paranoia about the harmless can sometimes be justified.

Daniel Pennys arrest for intervening to stop a clearly deranged career criminal sends a loud message: only a fool would risk being a good Samaritan, especially since the culprits unseen physical condition from drug abuse may put him on the edge of death. Nearly everybody remembers drug-addled George Floyd. Chronic addicts may only require a gentle nudge to enter the hereafter. Meanwhile seemingly harmless crazy person may be armed with a gun or knife, and who can predict their reaction, particularly if high on amphetamines. Better to pretend not to notice than risk jail time.

The short-term impact of this legal fiasco will be a decline in subway ridership. Why take the risk when the odds are stacked against you? Uber rides are expensive, but how much is your life worth?

There is, however, a deeper issue that many Americans may be beginning to sense. Governments prime responsibility is safety, and without safety, nothing else matters. No urban economy, whether restaurants, concerts, or shopping, can survive if transportation becomes unaffordable. Personal safety is equally vital for family life -- why put children at risk? No wonder many fleeing to red states boast, you dont have to lock your doors.

Heres the takeaway from this New York City subway incident: not only will local government not protect you, but we will make you more vulnerable to a possibly horrific death, and it will make sure that the possibility of this death is a regular feature of your existence. Yes, the municipal government may struggle with picking up the garbage, but it does have the recipe for terrifying you: put you in an escape-proof metal box, release thousands of criminals and nutcases back into the subway, and then ensure that you have no recourse if assaulted. And if you are attacked, nobody will defend you, and don t even think of fighting back, let alone brandishing a weapon. Imagine if Sargent Penny had an AR-15, even if he didnt use it? And, if by chance, you do resist and win, hundreds of protestors will riot and then demand that you be punished.

This is a battle between human nature versus progressive politics. The survival urge is genetically driven, and progressives like Alvin Bragg prefer a docile, vulnerable, and easy-to-manage population. Its no different from forcing you to mask up and take the vaccine. The Daniel Penny episode is a public training exercise in domestication and judging by the outpouring of support for the former Marine, lots of people are tired of being forced to submit when cornered.

Recall when Rosa Parks decided that she was sick and tired of being legally required to sit at the back of the bus. Many are now fed up with having to suffer abuse from the crazies and risk being arrested if they fight back. If governments refuse to protect us, we may have no choice but to send in the Marines.

Image: PxFuel
Kentucky attorney general Daniel Cameron won an easy primary victory Tuesday to secure the GOP nomination for governor, beating out two impressive opponents -- Kelly Craft, the wealthy former UN ambassador in the Trump administration, and Ryan Quarles, the highly regarded two-term state agricultural commissioner. Cameron led throughout in the polls and the fall match-up with Democrat incumbent Andy Beshear will be the most watched and expensive race in 2023.

As I wrote four years ago, when he won his first office, Cameron is a true political talent. What other candidate has both Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell fighting to be in his corner? McConnell, his mentor, raised quite a bit of money while Trump cut ads and telecampaigned for him.

(Strangely, DeSantis endorsed Craft but waited until election morning, when it was meaningless. I assume this is just a shift of allegiance by Craft and her billionaire husband, when Trump would not endorse her. Especially after they raised big bucks for Trump last year, even hosting a lavish event at the Kentucky Derby. The Crafts will, no doubt, be key DeSantis fundraisers later this year)

It was thought Cameron might wait to run for the U.S. Senate seat McConnell will vacate in 2026, but Cameron sensed now was his time. If he wins, he becomes the only black governor in America, a national GOP figure, and the leader of what has become a very prosperous state, with massive Republican majorities in the state legislature.

Andy Beshear begins as the favorite, for now anyway, thanks to his $6 million war chest and a friendly legacy media, that allowed him to skate past his awful leadership during the COVID crisis. Opinion polls show him one of the more popular governors.

But those polls may prove a mirage once negative TV ads hit him. Like every other Democrat governor during COVID, he became drunk with power, intent on shutting churches, schools, and businesses. All this while Kentucky state government imploded in 2020, unable to carry out basic functions such as registering people for unemployment insurance.

To be fair, the administrative quagmire in Frankfort was not all Andys fault, it was also that of his father, Steve, the governor from 2007 to 2015, who had a long record of incompetence and corruption, leading to convictions of several members of the Beshear political machine. Add to that financial mismanagement of Kentucky state pensions.

Thankfully, the Republican legislature cleaned house, fixing the pension crisis, passing pro-business reforms such as Right to Work, reducing taxes, and embracing the conservative social agenda from anti-woke to constitutional carry. Kentucky, after decades in the doldrums, fits in nicely with its economically vibrant neighbors like Tennessee and Indiana, using the same conservative formula.

As governor, Cameron would be in position to further lead the state into real national prominence, much as Ron DeSantis has done for Florida.

First, of course, he will have to beat Andy Beshear, who will have his own aggressive TV ads from now until November. But Cameron is a cool customer. He won kudos around the state by suing Beshear to stop the lockdowns right at the beginning and in the riot summer of 2020 he would not allow the Brionna Taylor grand jury run away on an anti-police vendetta.

One of the key issues Cameron may use against Beshear is the crime in Louisville. Kentucky is generally a very safe place, but the poor minority section of Louisville is infested with deadly drug gangs, thanks to years of neglect by the Democrat mayors of that city, while Democrat governors looked the other way. Cameron has floated the idea of putting a State Police post in the middle of the city to take on these criminals, something that horrifies Beshear. Like all Democrats these days, he believes if you just ignore serious crime, it might go away. But there is a growing trend in Red State governments to take direct action on crime in their Blue Cities.

Ultimately, Beshear remains the same uninspiring figure, who barely won four years ago, thanks only to a polarizing Republican governor and a Trump backlash. Very few Kentucky voters today are enthusiastic about Beshear or Joe Biden. Meanwhile, the interest is growing about Daniel Cameron, the GOPs next-generation star.

Frank Friday is an attorney in Louisville, KY.

Image: Office of Attorney General Daniel Cameron
Gabe Roth, executive director for Fix the Court (a nonprofit on a mission to demand SCOTUS transparency and constitutional reform), mistakenly released his groups own financial recordsand hes in an absolute frenzy. In his words, he f***ed up.

From the Washington Examiner:

the organization [Fix the Court] is in disarray after unwittingly providingunredacted copies of its own donors in 2021 and 2022.

When you visit the Fix the Court homepage, youre met with a latest news piece with a headline (in big bold letters) that reads, Moral Ineptitude  well, maybe administrative ineptitude might be more appropriate?

This all started on Tuesday, when the Washington Examiner contacted Fix the Court to inquire as to why there was an apparent error regarding reported donations. Roth responded the following day, noting that he misunderstood filing instructions and in turn, dispatched entirely unredacted financial disclosures to the news outlet  some might call this financial transparency.

Upon realizing his mistake, Roth followed up:

I mean, basically, I've tried to donate money; I have failed, Roth added. I tried to raise money; I have failed. I have only two foundations that give me money, and if their names become public, they're never going to talk to me again, and Fix the Court is over. My screwup this morning probably cost me my job.

The group advertises itself as a nonpartisan venture, but particularly highlights its work with Republicans and conservatives ; from their website:

Since its founding in 2014, Fix the Court has joined forces with individuals and organizations across the country and across the political spectrum. Weve co-hosted events with the conservative Federalist Society and the liberal American Constitution Society at two dozen law schools, and weve hired advisers with varied backgrounds, including a former chief of staff to the House Republican Whip and a former national labor organizer. Each week, we work with Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, libertarians and independents, to advance policies that will open up the federal judiciary.

So why is Roth so hysterical about the identities of his donors being made public? Well, because the guy demanding openness isnt being so open! Fix the Courts largest donors include the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund  both of these foundations are funded by billionaire leftists  as well as the Lebowitz-Aberly Family Foundation, and the Weinberg McCann Foundation. Interestingly, Weinberg is for Gabriel Weinberg, the creator of the search engine DuckDuckGo; does it now make sense why DuckDuckGo joined Google and Bing in censoring information on the current round of Russo-Ukrainian conflict? (Unsurprisingly, at least three of the four above-mentioned donor foundations are violently pro-abortion, which explains Fix the Courts smears against Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Brett Kavanaugh.)

Fix the Court launched in 2014, with this message:

Theyve told us where we can pray, picked our President, allowed billionaires to buy elections and made choices of life and death. Nine judges appointed for life to a court that makes its own rules and has disdain for openness and transparency. The Supreme Court  Americas most powerful, least accountable government institution

Ironic, is it not?

Image: Free image, Pixabay license, no attribution required.
Portland, OR was one of the leading voices in the Defund the Police movement in the wake of George Floyds death. Politicians gave into the demands of like-minded rioters and activists and began cutting the budget of the citys Bureau of Police.

On its face, this should have been seen as a bad decision since the very people making the demands were rioting and damaging private and public property. So, at a time when a greater police presence was needed, city government cut back on police.

The politicians gave into the demands of criminals and expected them to what? Go home? Play nice?

Defunding the police has just emboldened the criminals wherever it was tried, endangering lives and driving away people and business.

Now, with the damage done and its tax base shrinking, Portland has realized it needs police. Unfortunately, now, it is more burdensome to fund them and harder to attract officers to a city where they know the government doesnt want them. Gee, if only they had maintained their police force and supported them when they had the chance, they might not find themselves in the predicament they do.

The city recently launched new task force focused on cracking down on retail and vehicle theft to halt the city's rampant crime. To do this, they are working to hire more DAs and investigators, which means they are putting more money toward policing after cutting the budget by $15 million.

Its about time. Portland residents are three times more likely to be a victim of property crime than the average U.S. citizen, according to Neighborhood Scout. The city had more than 63,000 property thefts last year, according to police statistics. The 11,000 or so vehicles that were stolen last year set a new record in the city.

And its the residents who are suffering. That is, if you can find a Portland resident. Those who can are leaving the city, not wanting to risk their lives for city living, and they are taking businesses with them. Since the pandemic, public data found that over 2,600 businesses filed changes of address with the US Postal Service after leaving their downtown Portland zip codes, according to the Daily Mail UK.

This will only exacerbate the problems the city government has in trying to pay for needed services when their tax base is shrinking. But they did it to themselves.

While all this has been happening, police officers have been retiring early, quitting, or transferring to municipalities that appreciate them. Rather than prosecute the criminals who are caught, liberal prosecutors are not following through and taking cases to court. This allows the accused to walk free and believe they are immune to prosecution.

While it would be nice to believe that the Portland City Council got the message that it needs to control crime, its not likely. Its also not likely that its efforts will bear much fruit. De-funding was done dramatically in a large amount and the result was a large increase in crime. Re-funding in dribbles is likely to only produce minimal results.

The council needs to send a message to residents, businesses, and criminals that is clear and unmistakable. Re-fund the police even more than they were cut and voice their support for the police.

Do that, and only if everyone believes it (which requires support through actions) can the Portland government or any other municipal government that defunded police begin to rebuild.

Michael A. Letts is the CEO and Founder of In-VestUSA, a national grassroots non-profit organization helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs.
In a startling example of cultural imperialism, coffee colossus Starbucks is promoting transsexualism in India, with a slickly-produced 2-minute video ad.

First, Starbucks exported their crappy overpriced coffee model to India.



Now, they are exporting their Woke corporate ideology. pic.twitter.com/UhweRGRbAo  Mythinformed (@MythinformedMKE) May 14, 2023

In the ad, we see a father sitting in a Starbucks making a cellphone call to his son, whose clearly male face appears as he calls, but with no answer. His wife counsels him to not be angry this time. In seconds, we see an attractive female version of the son entering the store, embracing his mother, and then awkwardly approaching the father, but with no embrace, just touching the old man on his back. As they sit, affecting music plays and he thanks his father for meeting him,

and remarks that its been years since they have seen each other, but you still mean the world to me.

The father softens, stands up and suggests, Coffee? and walks up to the counter to order. Soon, the barrista announces the family name and all is well, the family healed. Starbucks: softening the heart of a parent upset that his son has been pretending to be a woman for years.

To be sure, Starbucks is a very upscale establishment in India, with its hundreds of stores in mostly high-end business and residential districts in major cities. I saw numbers of ithem there on a trip to India a couple of months ago, all of them prominently featuring the name of its 50/50 joint venture partner, the Tata Group:

Photo credit: Ekabhishek CC BY-SA 3.0

Tata is Indias largest conglomerate, with well over a hundred billion dollars in annual sales, and regarded as highly prestigious and capable. It has recently taken over Air India and is in the process of rescuing it from dismal mismanagement under government control, impressively upgrading its systems and management with capital participation and help from Singapore Airlines. Air India recently placed massive order for 470 new Boeing and Airbus jets for its expansion plans.

My assumption is that the ad is targeting Indias younger, urbanized, tech-savvy elite, who must be presumed to adapting their personal beliefs about sex identity to Western values, just as they indulge in Starbucks coffee, perceived as trendy, upscale, and modern.

The indigenous version of transvestitism in India is not perceived as trendy or prestigious. I experienced a gaggle of transvestites gathering around a taxi in which I was riding as it was stopped in New Delhi's horrendous traffic, tapping on the windows and demanding money to go away, just like the squeegee men who swipe a dirty rag across the windshields of cars stopped at traffic lights in big cities here. The taxi driver was angry at this, and it was obviously nothing new to him.

There already is some backlash against Starbucks, but because its product is mainly consumed by wealthy, young members of the elite, there may not be a big penalty to pay at the cash register. We'll see.

Photo credit: Twitter video screengrab
While the Durham Report did not call for criminal indictments, one woman is responsible for this "crime." Her name is Hillary Clinton and we know her story. I agree with Victoria Taft:

Durham wrote the Clinton Plan was conceived to distract from her very real and very illegal destruction of evidence -- her emails -- which were under a preservation order. According to the declassified Clinton Plan intelligence, on July 26, 2016, Clinton allegedly approved a proposal from one of her foreign policy advisors to tie Trump to Russia as a means of distracting the public from her use of a private email server. Clintons apparatchiks, including Jennifer Palmieri, John Podesta, and Jake Sullivan, told the Special Counsel they knew nothing of the plan to distract from Hillarys email scandal, describing such a plan as ridiculous. Durham found their protestations ridiculous. Heres Hillary touting the connection between Trump and the Alfa Bank scam. Sullivan, Joe Bidens National Security Adviser -- which should help explain why his administrations foreign policy is such a cluster -- amplified her tweet as well. During the same week, Clintons campaign manager, Robby Mook, stated in media interviews that the campaign believed that the Russian government had carried out the DNC hack to assist Trumps electoral chances and that Trump had made troubling statements, the report states. And Hillarys pet attack dogs, Fusion GPS, seeded the fake story with their compliant fellow travelers in the media, including The Wall Street Journal news reporters and Reuters.

You know the rest of the ugly story. You take an angry woman plus a media obsessed with Trump ratings and the country is put through all of this just because a certain person lost the election.

Or as my late mother would have said: "Esta mujer es mala" or "This woman is bad." My mother was not referring to her political views but she did not like those either.

I understand that many want to prosecute Hillary Clinton for all of this. I get it.

Step back because God had a better idea.

First, she was defeated by Barack Obama, a junior senator in 2008. Then came Donald Trump in 2016, the guy whose wedding she attended.

Second, she will never get to give a victory speech thanking her second-grade teacher, who apparently saw presidential material many years ago.

In the end, this woman put up with a bad husband only to keep his name and run for president later. Would you raise your daughter to do that?

She put up with a terrible husband only to wait for her turn and then American voters said, Not you, sister.

Hillary Clinton is a bitter, angry woman who could not accept the results and decided to tear up the country instead.

"Mala mala mujer" who thankfully never sat in the Oval Office and made an important decision.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

Image: PxFuel
There was so much detail in the Durham report that the first round of responses quite naturally focused on what was included. Even if the report basically confirmed what conservatives have said for years about Russiagate, it was good to have it on the record and official, even though the lack of indictments, much less prosecutions, ensured that the miscreants remain, in the immortal words of Bill Ayers, Guilty as sin, free as a bird. A number of the worst ones enjoy lucrative contracts as commentators on CNN and MSNBC. And, of course, the outright lies of the big fat nothingburger school of progressive commentary allow the left to make sure that their own supporters never learn of the details.

But after absorbing the details of Durhams output, those with good memories started to point out what was NOT included in Durhams work product. Sundance of The Conservative Treehouse:

With John Durham outlining in granular details how the FBI, DOJ and larger intelligence apparatus acted politically to weaponize government on behalf of an allied presidential candidate in Hillary Clinton, a bigger question remains. There never was any merit to the Trump-Russia nonsense, so what exactly were Robert Mueller and Andrew Weissmann doing for two years? Using the silo defense as a method of obfuscation, John Durham noted in his report [page #2] as below, never delved into that obvious question. Durham specifically, and with great intent, says he did not look at what Mueller and Weissmann were doing; even though, Durham destroyed any predication that might have given merit to the intention of their special counsel existence. (snip) Durham never looked at it. Why? Because he knew Robert Mueller and Andrew Weissmann were installed to cover up the original fabrications by the CIA, FBI, DOJ and U.S. intelligence apparatus. Muellers probe existed in material fact to hide the Obama weaponization to target Donald Trump. Durham knew this; thats why he never touched it. Stop pretending. Once you stop pretending, you realize just how rotten this system is. (snip) Everything Durham found, Mueller could have easily found, and stated, and ended the nonsense.

Durhams investigation served a very useful purpose for Mueller:

You might remember, Robert Mueller was in front of congress in July 2019, answering questions about Chris Steele, the dossier and the Steele sources therein. Mueller was able to deflect and dodge answering questions about it because AG Bill Barr put John Durham into place in May 2019. When Robert Mueller is saying theres another group in the DOJ looking specifically at the Chris Steele, Dossier, Fusion GPS and Glenn Simpson aspect to the fraudulent 2016/2017 claims about Trump-Russia collusion in the 2016 election, he is talking about the John Durham investigation. Mueller was citing Durham as the reason why his purview, and subsequent report as released, did not include the Steele dossier, Fusion GPS and Glenn Simpson information. Mueller was saying that stuff is the responsibility of the other internal investigative unit, ie. John Durham.

Retired FBI special agent Mark Wauck points out another big time miscreant who has escaped consequences or even official scrutiny: acting AG Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller:

On August 2, 2017, Rod Rosenstein authorized the continuation of a hoax investigation instigated by the Clinton campaign. Rosenstein, the DoJ official overseeing the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation had had an easy half year to figure out what was going on, to figure out that it was all a hoax. Instead he gave Team Mueller the "full speed ahead" directive. To say that Rosenstein has a lot of explaining to do is a major understatement. How convenientfor Rosenstein, Mueller, and a host of othersthat Durham doesnt appear to have questioned them on these issues. In actual fact, of course, we know that the hoax nature of the Russia Hoax was known to the FBIand many, many othersmonths before January, 2017, because Durham clearly says so. They knew it from the start, so how does a hoax investigation get elevated to a nuclear Special Counsel level investigation of the POTUSthe ultimate political hitjob. (snip) I can tell you that, in my previous life, whenever I inherited an investigation that had been handled by some other agent the first thing I did was to go back to the beginning to find out for myself on what basis the investigation had been startedwhat the original predication had been. Common sense, right? Where did this investigation come from, where did it go from that point on? When the FBI came to Rosenstein, shouldnt he have done something similarand shouldnt Mueller have done the same? After all, were talking about taking down a recently elected POTUS for being a Russian agentor something very like that. Are we really supposed to believe that an honest Acting AG would simply say, You go for it, guysIll take your word for it all. And that an honest SC wouldnt look at the predication? There was absolutely nothing standing in Rosensteins way to prevent him from calling bullshit on the whole thing, and Mueller could have done the same. Durham, apparently, didnt go there.

Wauck also cites and embeds a half-hour discussion between Alex Christoforou and Alexander Mercouris on another significant missing person somehow left out by Durham: Professor Joseph Mifsud.

Wauck comments:

[Durham] spends all sorts of time discussing George Papadopoulos and the diplomats from Oz, but somehowand really quite implausiblymanages not to mention the mysterious Professor Joseph Mifsud. Mifsud did, after all, figure quite prominently in the whole Papadopoulos episode. Presumably Mifsud was a figure of some importance, because Bull [Durham] and Bluto Barr traveled to Rome and London to get the skinny on Mifsud, pick up some recording or otherremember? I did a Ctl+F search and there isnt a single mention of Mifsud.

We here at American Thinker devoted a lot of pixels to Mifsud as the scandal was developing. See, for instance, here, here, here, and here (Clarice Feldman). Mifsuds absence from the report may be like Sherlock Holmess dog that didnt bark  evidence whose absence speaks volumes about what really did happen.
If there is any question as to why a hyper-politicized FBI has failed to attract many whistleblowers, Thursday's coming congressional testimony from real FBI whistleblowers should show how they treat their whistleblowers.

According to JustTheNews

Three FBI whistleblowers will testify to Congress on Thursday about the bureau's alleged retaliatory efforts against them for questioning FBI practices and narratives on sensitive political issues. As House lawmakers continue to investigate the politicization of federal agencies under the Biden administration, numerous individuals within those organizations have come forward with claims of misconduct at the highest levels, and have often reported severe professional backlash from their superiors in the process. Just the News has obtained the prepared opening statements of whistleblowers Marcus Allen, Garret O'Boyle, and Stephen Friend, who will testify before the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.

The three FBI special agents who did blow the whistle were treated to an astonishingly vindictive retaliation -- starting with pullings of their security clearances, which left them unable to work -- and a whole host of other petty, mean-spirited actions that would put the KGB to shame.

Whistleblower Marcus Allen, using internal channels, not the press, questioned FBI Director Christopher Wray's congressional testimony claiming there were no FBI informants among the Trumpsters on January 6, politely suggesting that perhaps the Director was being misled by his own men who were involved with such activity.

What did he get for that?

Allen, on Thursday, will tell Congress that the bureau subsequently suspended his security clearance, questioned his loyalty to the United States, and accused him of holding "conspiratorial views."

More specifically, he got his clearance pulled while they "investigated" and while he was waiting for this big investigation of some kind, got his paycheck withheld, too. To make matters worse, the FBI brass refused to let him find some kind of outside employment while he waited for them to 'investigate' his questionings, apparently trying to starve him to death -- or more likely, force him to resign when he got hungry. They also yanked his health insurance, which of course, would put him in violation of federal Obamacare law on mandatory health care coverage. Good luck if anyone in his family got sick.

There also was FBI Special Agent Garret O'Boyle who questioned the FBI's targeting of pro-life activists even as radical leftist graffitied, trashed, menaced and set fire to pro-life crisis pregnancy centers without consequence.

For him it started with a demotion to a remote outpost. Then as the move was happening, the bureau decided to suspend him instead, rendering his family homeless and keeping his furniture and household effects en route for weeks, basically, all his stuff.

That's the kind of stuff Castro does to dissenters and people who try to flee over in Cuba. Even going along with their humiliating demotions is a recipe for worse to come.

As for Special Agent Stephen Friend, who internally criticized their use of SWAT teams and manipulation of crime statistics, they had a special bowl of hate for him -- not just a suspended security clearance, but special leaks of his private HIPAA-protected health care information to the New York Times. They also refused to give him his training records, presumably to defend himself or to show to a future employer, violating the Privacy Act, refused to let him seek outside employment as he waited out their suspension and issued an illegal gag order declaring he couldn't talk to his own attorneys.

It's beyond creepy stuff, and not just based on bad internal FBI behavior, but on bad behavior above the bureau at Merrick Garland's politicized Department of Justice.

According to trade journal Government Executive , a rule is coming up to strengthen whistleblower protections for FBI employees:

The Justice Department published a proposed rule on Wednesday that would revise regulations on FBI whistleblower policies. The new rule would include changes from a 2012 presidential policy directive on protecting whistleblowers with access to classified information, and the 2016 FBI Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2016, both enacted under the Obama administration.

It's not there now. It seems the important detail is that it would still fall short of allowing agents to have their cases heard in court. They will instead have to rely on Merrick Garland's politicized Justice Department to make the final rulings -- which just happens to be the agency directing the bureau to make its violations.

Creepier still, a court ruling from six years ago , seems to leave the bureau/DoJ exempt from sanctions for bad behavior, in this case, that of a whistleblower who reported FBI agents using company aircraft to solicit hookers:

FBI employees do not have the right to defend themselves in federal court or a third-party appeals agency against adverse personnel actions using whistleblower retaliation, according to a recent ruling from the Federal Circuit.

That leaves all whistleblowers, even those who report hooker behavior and let's not even think of political offenses, to the tender mercies of Merrick Garland's DoJ if they have a problem with retaliation for their whistleblowing. Just leave it up to Merrick for a fair ruling.

In an atmosphere like that, who would want to be a whistleblower? Who would dare it. One of the whistleblowers who came forward anyway, O'Boyle, spoke of an Orwellian environment in the bureau now, while whistleblower Friend participated in a live-talk panel on Twitter I heard where either he or a colleague described most agents as being generally conservative in line with most law enforcement and military personnel.

But with this kind of trash going on from Biden's politicization of agencies, who would want to stand up or speak out? That three agents did is remarkable testimony as to their courage and fortitude, given what has happened to them.
In traditional Buddhist teachings, contemplating about death is an integral part of meditation. Buddha himself said that death is the greatest of all teachers, for it teaches us to be humble, destroys vanity and pride, and crumbles all the barriers of caste, creed and race that divide humans, for all living beings are unescapably destined to die. Many Buddhist cultures also practice sky burials, where human corpses are left out in the open, such as mountain tops and forests, to be eaten by wild animals. This may seem macabre and gruesome for people of other cultures, but for practicing Buddhists, sky burial is yet another way of acknowledging the impermanence of life.

Such pragmatic and mature approach to the subject of death is the rationale behind the gory and unapologetic Japanese art form called kusozu that appeared in the 13th century and continued until the late 19th century. Kusozu, which means painting of the nine stages of a decaying corpse, portrays the sequential decay of a cadaver, usually female, in graphic detail. The shocking art genre appeared routinely for more than five hundred years in various formats, including scrolls and printed books.

One of the earliest examples of this genre is a 14th-century scroll titled Kusoshi emaki, whose English translation is rather lengthyIllustrated handscroll of the poem of the nine stages of decaying corpse. The scroll consist of ten narrative illustrations portraying the nine stages of decomposition starting with a healthy subjectan aristocratic female who has been identified as the 9th-century poetess, Ono no Komachi. In the second panel, she has died and is laid out on the floor and covered with a blanket. In subsequent panels, her body, now in the open, can be seen getting progressively decomposed and putrefied until all remaining flesh and bones had been pecked clean by scavenging animals.

Below: Body of a courtesan in nine stages of decomposition. Ink and color on silk, circa 1870s. Courtesy: British Museum

The function of these works is to demonstrate the effects of impermanence and the gross nature of the human form, especially the female one, writes Gail Chin. The pictorial function is attuned to Buddhist meditation on the corpse, which is to instill a deep sense of revulsion for the human body, particularly that of the opposite sex, so that the monk or devotee will not be tempted by the flesh and realize the impermanence of the body, especially their own, and renounce it.

In Buddhism, overcoming sexual desire is a necessary step towards achieving enlightenment. Since the female body was a source of desire for men, meditating on a decaying corpse became a form of aversion therapy for Buddhist monks. Not only men, women too were asked to meditate on the repulsive aspects of their own body.

The use of the female cadaver as a tool to despise ones own body has a long tradition in Buddhist literature dating back to medieval times. However, the visual depiction of this theme is a specifically Japanese adaptation.

Some modern scholars have interpreted the exclusive use of female corpses in the kusozu genre as a testament to the prevalence of misogyny in Japanese Buddhist thought. But Gail Chin denies this claim by arguing that because the female body is used to teach one of the most important Buddhist lessons, she must be inherently valued as representing Buddhist truth.

Below: The death of a noble lady and the decay of her body. circa 1700s

In the first painting a court lady in a kimono is seated indoors at a low red table, with a scroll in her left hand, upon which she has written her farewell poem: she is pallid, and her expression is preoccupied.

In the second painting, she has died, and is laid out on the floor covered to her shoulders with a blanket, with a lady and a gentleman in attendance.

In this painting, her body is out of doors, naked apart from a loincloth, on a mat, the lower part of which is folded up over her legs; her skin now has flesh tones.

In the fourth painting, putrefaction has just begun.

Here her body is decaying in the advanced stages of putrefaction.

The putrefying body is now carrion for scavenging birds and small animals.

The flesh has almost all decayed revealing the skeleton. There are wisteria flowers in blossom above her body.

Only a few fragments of bone, including the skull and fragments of rib. hand and vertebrae remain visible.

The final image is of a memorial structure upon which her Buddhist death-name is inscribed in Sanskrit.
On June 29, 1764, almost the entire town of Woldegk was in church attending a day of repentance and prayer. Also known as Bu- und Bettag, it is a public holiday celebrated in Saxony where German people go to the church to pray and show remorse for their sins and reflect on their faith in God. While still in church, a powerful tornado ripped through Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, destroying homes and barns and uprooting trees. Despite the violent nature of the twister, only one person lost their life; the rest safe within the rugged stone walls of the church. One can presume that had the tornado occurred on any other day, the death toll would surely have been greater.

A copper engraving by Gottlob Burchard Genzmer showing the tornado.

At the time, science was still in its infancy, most people were illiterate and freak weather events like hurricanes and tornadoes stuck without warning. There were no instruments to measure the severity of these weather events either, and only by piecing together information gathered from eyewitness accounts and damage assessments, can one hope to prepare a report of these incidents. German scientist Gottlob Burchard Genzmer did a fantastic job here researching the storm that hit Woldegk and published a detailed report on the occurrence six months later. Thanks to his brilliant work, we now know that the Woldegk tornado was an F5 on the Fujita scale (or T11 on the TORRO scale)the highest ever awarded, making it one of the strongest tornadoes ever documented in history.

The following description of the storm and its route is based on Genzmers report.

Genzmer's map showing the tornados path.

The tornado touched down about 1.5 km southwest of Feldberg at just after one in the afternoon. It uprooted some oak and beech trees, and as it moved northeast, it picked up two children and threw them into a lake. At this point, the tornado was believed to have been of F2-F3 strength. As the wind intensified, the skies began to rain down hail the size of a fist and up to half a kilogram in weight. The hail killed several geese.

The tornado was now 100 meters in width, and as it crossed the lake it caused the water level to rise and then retreat. After crossing the lake, the tornado destroyed a home, blowing away the roof and tearing down the walls. At this structure, the only fatality from the tornado occurred.

The tornado then shifted north and completely destroyed a beech timber forest. Now the tornado was 225 meters wide and increasing in strength. It was probably an F3-F4 now. It uprooted several solitary oak trees and threw them 35 meters into the air. It also scoured the ground, removing crops, grass and the topsoil. The tornado then turned northeast, where it completely destroyed Lichtenberg forest.

Shortly after emerging from the Lichtenberg forest, the tornado reached its peak intensity. It completely destroyed a mansion with an adjacent diary farm. Oak tree stubs were ripped out of the ground and cobblestones weighing 75 kilograms were thrown around. The European Severe Storms Laboratory estimated that the wind speed would have been around 300 miles per hour (480 kmph). An eyewitness saw several birds caught and trapped within the vortex of the storm.

A copper plate by Genzmer showing various types of forestry damage caused by the tornado.

At the ruins of the Rothe Kirche, the tornado uprooted an old oak and lifted a skeleton out of a grave. The tornado reached its maximum width of 900 meters as it caused severe damage to an oak and beech tree forest, followed by a mansion and some barns. Further to the northeast, the tornado struck an airborne flock of geese, killing some and injuring 60-100 others. The tornado finally dissipated at Helpte after moving for an hour, during which it left a trail of devastation 30 km long.

Genzmer, a Lutheran theologian, tutor and naturalist, visited the scene of catastrophe some two months later. He meticulously recorded the damage, measuring the circumference of mighty oak trunks that lie uprooted along the avenues, and the thickness of foundation walls upon which houses once stood. He paced the distance that lied between a barn and the blown-off roof. He made sketches of broken oak stubs and twisted branches. He inquired about the exact weather conditions on the day of the storm, and interviewed people who saw the twister, carefully checking their credibility in order to stay true to the truth.

Genzmer's observations resulted in a 56-page, 77-paragraph detailed report which he published as a book. It remains one of the most important testimonies in the history of science from the period.

Genzmer's report, despite being such a rarity, was forgotten for nearly 250 years until it was dug up from archives of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania State Library in Schwerin by Heidelberg physicist Bernold Feuerstein, who works intensively on extreme weather events and is involved in organizations such as Skywarn and ESSL (European Severe Storms Laboratory).

The report provides an excellently detailed description of the event, which still lives up to today's standards. There is no reference to a supernatural event. Genzmer proceeds very empirically. It's about facts, a description of the event, not so much an explanation, explains Feuerstein.

Thomas Savert, a meteorologist at the Meteogroup Severe Weather Center and an expert in extreme weather, agrees: This is unique for a tornado of this magnitude. In the late 18th century - a period of which we know very little - that is very rare.

References:

# A violent tornado in mid-18th century Germany: the Genzmer Report, ECSS 2015 - European Conference on Severe Storms At: Wiener Neustadt, Austria

# Der Jahrtausendtornado von Woldegk vom 29. Juni 1764, Norddeutscher Rundfunk
In July, at the Vilnius summit, NATO will be revisiting the past by approving secret military plans that will outline how the alliance would respond to a Russian attack.

This is a significant change for NATO, as they have not created large-scale defense plans in decades due to their focus on smaller conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

However, with the belief that post-Soviet Russia no longer posed a major threat, this shift in strategy shows a renewed concern for potential aggression from Russia.

The alliance is alerting that it needs to be prepared with proper planning before any potential conflict with a powerful opponent like Moscow arises, especially with the ongoing devastating war in Ukraine close to its borders, according to Reuters.

Admiral Rob Bauer, a high-ranking NATO military official, explained that crisis management and collective defense have a crucial difference. The affected parties determine the timeline of crisis management, while the collective defense is reliant on the actions of their opponents. Therefore, it's essential to be prepared for any potential conflict that could arise without warning.

NATO will provide guidance to countries on upgrading their military forces and logistics by outlining their regional plans.

NATO's leader, Jens Stoltenberg, stated that confidential papers would be used to determine the necessary resources, such as troops and equipment, and their deployment locations, which would be similar to the Cold War era.

This is in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, which compelled Western allies to dispatch soldiers to the east for the first time. Britain, Canada, and Germany each assumed responsibility for one of the Baltic nations.

It's Not Like the Cold War

The current NATO features are similar to those before 1990, but there have been significant changes due to the alliance's expansion and increased membership. With Finland joining, NATO's border with Russia had doubled, which requires a more adaptable approach to deployments than in the past when Germany was considered the primary area of conflict.

According to Ian Hope, a historian at NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), the alliance is not getting ready to engage in a massive nuclear war with Moscow and its allies anymore, as many of them have become members of NATO.

NATO is not inclined to increase the number of troops in the eastern region, despite the persistent requests of the Baltic states, due to its openness and clarity about the situation.

Read also: NATO's New Asia Office Boosts Japanese Cooperation, but Membership Remains Out of Reach

It's Not Going To Be Easy

Improving readiness for NATO will be a challenging undertaking. In 2022, NATO decided to increase its number of troops on high alert from 40,000 to 300,000.

However, there are still issues with producing enough weapons and ammunition, as seen with Ukraine's demands. Additionally, NATO needs to update its logistics system to allow for faster deployment of troops via rail or road, which has been neglected for a long time.

(Photo: by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) IN FLIGHT - MAY 16: A crew member aboard a P-3C Orion anti-submarine and maritime surveillance plane of the German Navy scans the sea below for ships on May 16, 2023, over the Baltic Sea. The German Navy is flying surveillance missions over the North and Baltic Seas as part of a NATO effort to monitor ships in the region, especially Russian military surface ships, and submarines.

Stoltenberg has urged leaders to increase the alliance's military spending target as one of the reasons is to fund the implementation of regional plans. This topic will also be discussed in Vilnius.

NATO officials believe that it will take some time to implement the plans, but they emphasize that the alliance is ready for combat at any moment.

Related article: Erdogan To Begin Ratifying Finland's NATO Membership Application

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Montana has become the first US state to ban TikTok. Governor Greg Gianforte confirmed on Wednesday that he has signed the bill banning the popular video-based social media app within the state. The bill was passed by the states legislature about a month ago. The ban is to take effect on January 1, 2024, but legal challenges may delay it.

To protect Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana, Gianforte tweeted on Wednesday evening. Once effective, the law prohibits TikTok from operating within the territorial jurisdiction of Montana. It also requires app mobile app stores such as the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store to remove the app for users in the state or block them from downloading it.

Montana wont impose any penalties on residents using TikTok. But the law, SB 419, states that app stores could face a fine of $10,000 per violation per day. It defines an individual violation as each time that a user accesses TikTok, is offered the ability to access TikTok, or is offered the ability to download TikTok. As pointed out by The Verge, the doesnt have a provision that holds app stores liable for providing updates to users who already have TikTok installed on their devices. It also doesnt mention the web version of the platform. The ban is only on the TikTok app.

However, Montana lawmakers will probably ban everything TikTok in the state once the law is effective at the beginning of the next year. That said, there certainly will be legal challenges to this decision. If a court blocks the rule, Montana residents wont lose access to TikTok on the first day of 2024. Moreover, the law has a provision that immediately voids it if TikTok switches ownership. In other words, the firm has to cut ties with its Chinese owner ByteDance and move to a new location. The new location shouldnt be in a foreign adversary nation, though.

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TikTok argues that the Montana ban is unlawful

TikTok has been having a hard time in the US for a few years now. American lawmakers have suggested that ByteDance allows the Chinese government access to its US users data. It poses a serious threat to national security and user privacy. The app is already banned on government-owned devices in most parts of the US. Montana has now made history by blocking everyone within the state from accessing TikTok.

Meanwhile, ByteDance has always argued that these decisions are unlawful. The company claims that it stores all data of American TikTok users within the country. But US lawmakers say these efforts dont go far enough to address their privacy and security concerns. To make things worse for TikTok, it self-admittedly spied on a few US-based journalists. A former ByteDance executive also recently said that the company had backdoors for the Chinese Communist Party, the sole ruling party of the country.

All this hasnt helped TikToks cause but it still doesnt concede any wrongdoing. Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok, a platform that empowers hundreds of thousands of people across the state, the company said in an official statement. We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.
Samsung Display has acquired New York-based OLED microdisplay maker eMagin in an all-cash deal valued at approximately $218 million. The two firms expect this merger agreement to complete in the second half of 2023. They will remain separate and independent companies until then. According to eMagins press release, it will continue to operate from its existing facilities in Hopewell Junction, New York following the closing of the deal as well.

Samsung Display and eMagin reach a merger agreement

Founded in 1996, eMagin has expertise in the OLED microdisplay industry. Over the years, it has developed several industry-first microdisplay solutions, which are typically smaller than an inch and have an extremely high resolution or pixel density, as high as 2,600 PPI (pixels per inch). Smartphone displays typically have a pixel density of less than 500 PPI.

eMagins main strength is screen brightness, though. The company recently demonstrated the industrys brightest WUXGA (19201200) full-color OLED microdisplay with a record-setting peak brightness of 15,000 nits. It surpassed its own brightness record of 10,000 nits set in 2021. The firm archives such high levels of brightness using a unique direct-emission OLED microdisplay technology. This approach allows for higher brightness than color-filter-based displays without damaging pixels.

Thanks to this unique technology, the firm received several multi-million investments from Apple, LG, Valve, and other tech biggies in the past. It has also worked with many industry giants, including Meta and Samsung Display. But the latter is now paying around ten percent higher than eMagins current stock price to outright acquire it. And it isnt surprising. Samsung Display has been interested in eMagins OLED microdisplay technology for a while now. Reports of merger talks between the two firms have been doing around since at least October last year.

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This acquisition will boost Samsungs microdisplay efforts

The Korean conglomerate wants to use the American companys resources and technology to boost its microdisplay efforts for AR/VR devices. The plan is to begin mass production of OLED microdisplays by the end of 2024 or early 2025 as the AR/VR industry starts to flourish. Samsung is already working with Google and Qualcomm on a new VR headset. It is also developing MicroLED displays for AR and VR products, as well as smartwatches. The acquisition of eMagin will help the company in all of these next-gen display efforts.

eMagin, meanwhile, has had close ties with the US military. The United States Department of Defense (DOD) has funded the company on several occasions in the past. It makes microdisplays for various military equipment such as night vision goggles and head-mounted display systems. It remains to be seen how this relationship play out following the merger with Samsung Display. Samsung also makes exclusive products for the DOD, so eMagin may be able to maintain some of its current ties.

By teaming with Samsung Display, we will be able to achieve the full potential of our next-generation microdisplay technology with a partner that can provide the resources and expertise we will need to scale production, said eMagins CEO Andrew G. Sculley in a press release announcing this merger agreement. Moreover, our customers will benefit from resulting improvements to our production capabilities in terms of yield, efficiency, and quality control.
Samsung may manufacture some of Qualcomms 2024 flagship smartphone processors. More precisely, the word from the rumor mill is that the Korean firm will manufacture the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 for Galaxy. TSMC will get orders for the standard Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. It will be Qualcomms first 3nm chip.

Qualcomm may go back to Samsung for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 for Galaxy

Qualcomm has been switching back and forth between Samsung and TSMC for manufacturing its smartphone processors over the past several years. It used Samsungs foundry for the Snapdragon 888+ (5nm) and Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4nm) in 2021. But, in 2022, it switched to TSMC, with the Taiwanese firm manufacturing both the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 last year using its 4nm process node. The Samsung-exclusive for Galaxy version of the latter was also manufactured using the same process.

Reports suggested that Samsungs poor yield rates and issues with process nodes made Qualcomm switch to TSMC last year. Chips made by the Korean firm have been having power and performance issues in recent years. Qualcomm is sticking with the Taiwanese firm for this years Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4nm) due to the same reason. But, Samsung has recently improved its yield rates and fabrication process. According to industry insiders, its now almost on par with TSMC in 4nm yields.

Moreover, Samsung has also improved its 3nm yields. The company is using the more efficient Gate-All-Around (GAA) transistor architecture in its 3nm chips. It has been sending 3nm samples to chipmakers around the world in a desperate bid to win back some customers it lost to TSMC in recent years.

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The latter is sticking with the existing FinFET architecture for one more generation. It appears the plan is working out for the Korean firm. Twitter tipster @Tech_Reve appears certain that Samsung will get orders for Qualcomms Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 for Galaxy next year.

Google may stick with Samsung for its Tensor G4 next year

Samsungs foundry struggles have been so huge in recent years that several companies switched to TSMC for manufacturing their chips. Google, which has been taking help from Samsung in designing its custom Tensor processors for the Pixel lineup, is also mulling switching to the Taiwanese firm for next years Tensor G4.

However, recent improvements from the Korean behemoth may make Google stick with it. TSMCs high prices have also been proving to be a stumbling block for the Pixel maker.

Meanwhile, if Samsung does manage to steal some chip customers from TSMC, it may finally close the massive gap with its Taiwanese rival in the foundry market. There are reports that the Korean firm wants to make custom processors for its Galaxy flagships.

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If true, it may soon stop using Qualcomm chips, which would mean a loss of potential business opportunities for its foundry division. Plenty could change by the time the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 enters the production stage. So nothing may be set in stone just yet.
Lawmakers in the EU parliament are working on a new bill that aims to prevent misleading product labeling and increase durability. The bill also wants to stop the companys misleading environmental claims.

The EU parliament has taken serious steps in the last few years to make products more durable and sustainable across the continent. Establishing a standard charging port for tech devices sold in the EU is one of those actions that hopes to reduce e-waste. As well as prevent customers from paying extra to buy a charger when purchasing a new smartphone or tablet.

The lawmakers in the green continent now want to go even greener. By banning misleading ads and generic environmental claims and increasing products durability. The proposed bill aims to empower customers for the green transition and encourage companies to launch more sustainable products.

The EU parliament regulates product labeling to prevent false environmental claims

According to the bill details, companies across the EU can no longer make generic claims like environmentally friendly, natural, biodegradable, climate neutral, or eco if their products cant uphold these claims. Additionally, any claim based solely on carbon offsetting schemes will be banned in the EU.

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The MEPs put forward even more restrictions on product labeling. Making a claim about a product, if that claim is true about a part of the product, will be forbidden.

The EU lawmakers also want to fight early obsolescence in order to make products last longer. As per the new legislation, any design feature limiting a products durability or leading to permanent malfunction is not allowed in the continent.

The MEPs further say that a company should not limit a products functionality if the consumer wants to use third-party accessories. The seller should also inform buyers of any repair restrictions.

The MEP Biljana Borzan says this legislation will no longer allow the industry to profit from making consumer goods that break just as the guarantee period is over. The parliament will soon start negotiations with member states to turn the legislation into a law. Of course, the bill could face opposition from particular companies.
Samsung makes some of the best gaming monitors on the planet, and although theyre not the only good option, its hard to argue that theyre not one of the top contenders and worth your consideration and money.

Many Samsung monitors designed for gaming come with advanced features. Aimed at enhancing the gaming experience in a multitude of ways. Whether its the use of HDMI 2.1 ports and variable refresh rate, or other elements like 4K or dual 4K Mini-LED panels and high refresh rates.

While not all Samsung gaming monitors will feature these specs, most of them have something to offer. But which Samsung gaming monitors are the best ones and if youre set on Samsung, which ones should you go for? Weve rounded up the best models that Samsung makes to help you narrow down your choices.

These cover a wide range of prices and features. So there should be something for just about every budget.

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Best Samsung gaming monitors

Odyssey Neo G7 43

Price: $699.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

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Were going to kick things off with what we think is not just one of the best gaming monitors that Samsung makes, but the best gaming monitor that Samsung makes. The Odyssey Neo G7 43. Why do we think its the best model the company offers? Well for a few reasons. Its a 43-inch Mini-LED panel with 4K resolution, a 1ms response time, and a 144Hz refresh rate.

Now its not the fastest refresh rate. And if you desire a refresh rate thats faster, there are other options on here. But, if youre fine with the 144Hz, you get a lot of other bonuses with this model. Like the 16:9 aspect ratio and 2 HDMI 2.1 ports as well as a DisplayPort 1.4 port. The aspect ratio and the ports makes this a perfect gaming monitor for someone who owns both a gaming PC and a console like the PS5 or Xbox Series X. Both of which benefit from the HDMI 2.1.

And the aspect ratio means when youre using the console, the picture will fill the entire screen. No black bars on the sides like with ultrawide monitors. However, the monitor does support changing to an ultrawide gaming view with a 21:9 aspect ratio if you want it. Which is honestly great for PC gaming. Its also a matte display so, little to no glare. Lastly, its available at a pretty good price. Normally its $999.99, but Best Buy is offering it at $300 off. Which makes this a steal.

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Odyssey G51C 32

Price: $299.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

Looking for something a little more on the budget end? The Odyssey G51C 32 is just about there at its $299.99 price point. For that you get a QHD display in a 32-inch size, a 165Hz refresh rate and compatibility with AMD FreeSync Premium.

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It also comes with a 16:9 aspect ratio so again this monitor will be good for both PC and console use. However, it does only come with HDMI 2.0 ports, so you wont get the benefits of HDMI 2.1 like the Neo G7 43 offers. But honestly thats not a huge deal for console use.

When it comes down to it this is a really decent monitor for around $300. You dont have to break the bank to get something good for gaming.

Odyssey Ark

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Price: $1,999.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

Next up is the Odyssey Ark. This is the big boy and the most expensive monitor on this list. And while it is cool, its not the most practical. If you have the money and are wanting to spend top dollar for a premium gaming monitor, then consider the Ark.

Its a 55-inch dual 4K panel with a 165Hz refresh rate, quantum Mini-LED technology for the panel, and a 1000R curve for that super immersive feel to your games.

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Theres a lot of really cool and nifty features in this thing. Like the Cockpit Mode that allows you to turn the screen vertical and play games in this orientation. While in this mode, you can split up the screen into multiple smaller size displays. So you could have your game that youre playing on a display in the middle, and have other displays on top and bottom. Like a YouTube video walkthrough if youre searching for tips and perhaps a movie on the other display.

Other neat features include the Ark dial remote and of course again, it has a 16:9 aspect ratio so great for both consoles and PC. Plus the ports are HDMI 2.1. All that being said, its pricey. An excellent choice if you have the money to spend though and dont mind spending it.

Odyssey Ark

Odyssey Neo G9

Price: $1,799.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

Another really great gaming monitor if youre looking to spend more money is the Odyssey Neo G9. This is not the model that Samsung announced at CES with a dual 4K display. But rather the older model from 2021. It has a 49-inch ultrawide panel with a 4K resolution.

It does also come with a 240Hz refresh rate. The thing to keep in mind here is that you will need a pretty beefy PC if you want to run games at the 4K resolution with a refresh rate that high. Otherwise you may need to look at decreasing your graphics in games or dealing with a lower refresh rate. This is really no different from the way it works with other monitors. But it is more noticeable here because of the size of the monitor.

All that aside, if youve got the PC to get the most out of it, the Odyssey Neo G9 makes games look stunning. This monitor is also on sale and down from its original price of $2,299.99.

Odyssey Neo G9

Odyssey G5 34

Price: $399.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

If youre looking for something ultrawide but dont feel like spending $1,800, the Odyssey G5 34 is a great ultrawide monitor for a fraction of the price. Resolution goes down to QHD from 4K and the refresh rate goes down to 165Hz from 240Hz. But those are still respectable and really the monitor is pretty good for games.

This is also a curved monitor so you get some of that immersive feel to your games. It does come with a pretty terrible stand, but the display is great. So if you go for this model, wed suggest you mount it. The only other complaint I we had with this one is that the brightness could be higher. Other than those two things, its great. Especially for $400.

Odyssey G3 24

Price: $169.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

Sometimes you dont need a lot of bells and whistles, or anything fancy. You just want a decent option that will work well and get the job done. Enter Samsungs Odyssey G3 24 gaming monitor. A smaller 24-inch panel means itll fit in a more compact space making it perfect for smaller desks.

Resolution is only Full HD but the monitor does come with a 165Hz refresh rate. And really, Full HD looks perfectly fine for most games. In fact, in our opinion a better refresh rate is more important than a high resolution. Its great when you can have both. But if you have to choose, and you often do when you get into budget monitors, refresh rate takes the cake every time.

The monitor also features support for AMD FreeSync Premium and has a port for both HDMI and DisplayPort. So you could plug in a PC and a console if you have both.

Odyssey G40B 27

Price: $279.99

Where to buy: Best Buy

Another really decent budget option is the Odyssey G40B. This ups the screen size to 27-inches while keeping the resolution at Full HD and bumping the refresh rate up to 240Hz. If you want a faster refresh rate but dont want to spend a lot, you cant go wrong here.

It has native G-Sync support and support for AMD FreeSync Premium, and it features a wide viewing angle with a 21:9 aspect ratio, so you see more on-screen in your PC games.

Odyssey G9

Price: $1,099.99

Where to buy: Samsung

Rounding out our list is the older Odyssey G9. Theres a lot to still love about this one, not the least of which is that its $700 cheaper than the Neo G9. But with this model you also get the same size 49-inch panel, the same 240Hz refresh rate, and the panel is DQHD.

One of the key differences is that this model is HDR1000 while the Odyssey Neo G9 is HDR2000. This model is also QLED as opposed to Mini-LED like the Neo G9. But overall youll get a pretty similar experience. And at a much lower cost.

Odyssey G9
(Photo : HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images)

Foreign embassies and international organizations in China have been warned not to put "political propaganda" on their buildings.

In apparent response to demonstrations of support for Ukraine, the Chinese government requested that foreign embassies in Beijing refrain from displaying propaganda.

The government of Chinese leader Xi Jinping claims to be neutral regarding Moscow's 15-month invasion of Ukraine, but has repeatedly defended Russia's actions by accusing Washington and the US-European military alliance NATO of provocation.

China Asks Embassies to Avoid 'Propaganda'

This week, a Chinese envoy visited Ukraine and was scheduled to travel to Russia to discuss a potential "political resolution"; however, little progress is anticipated.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry requested last week that diplomatic missions refrain from displaying "political propaganda" on their exterior walls, according to a spokesperson for the European Union and a diplomat from a European government.

Per ABC News, EU spokesperson Nabila Massrali wrote in a statement that the May 8 request cites the need to "prevent inciting disputes between countries," but does not define propaganda or provide additional details.

Massrali stated that the EU Delegation in Beijing "has not altered any of its front-wall displays." According to the diplomats, the request didn't mention Ukraine. Other than tourism advertisements, the only public displays by most foreign missions are flags and placards erected by the embassies of Canada, France, Germany, and other countries.

The European diplomat, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, stated that his government "sees no cause to alter" its display.

A 2-meter-tall sign at the entrance to the Finnish Embassy displays the flags of Finland and Ukraine and the hashtag "#WeStandWithUkraine." The same phrase and flags of both countries appear on a marquee affixed to Sweden's Embassy.

These exhibits have been on display for months. It was unclear why China requested the removal now. As part of Diversity Week and Wednesday's International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, some embassies also raised rainbow flags. Such matters are deemed politically sensitive by the Chinese Communist Party.

"Do not use the exterior walls of building facilities to display political propaganda in order to avoid inciting disputes between countries," China's foreign ministry said in a May 10 notice. The notice, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, was addressed to "all embassies and China representative offices of international organizations."

The notice did not specify Ukrainian flags or any specific "propaganda" displays, but four diplomats based in Beijing told Reuters, on condition of anonymity, that it was obviously related to Ukraine solidarity displays.

When asked about the notice during a press briefing, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated that embassies and international organization offices had a responsibility to respect China's laws and regulations. He did not elaborate.

According to a Reuters witness, weeks after Russia launched what it terms its "special military operation" in Ukraine, a Ukrainian flag poster on the exterior wall of the Canadian Embassy was defaced with anti-NATO graffiti.

In Beijing, the missions of the European Union, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Poland have also displayed Ukrainian flags. China has called for peace in Ukraine, but has refrained from condemning Russia, to the disapproval of Western nations.

Read Also: France Could Send Missiles to Ukraine Soon That May Fend Off Russian Aggression as Kyiv Prepares for Counter-Offensive

China's Stance on Russaia-Ukraine War

A 2-meter-tall sign at the entrance to the Finnish Embassy displays the flags of Finland and Ukraine and the hashtag "#WeStandWithUkraine." The same phrase and flags of both countries appear on a marquee affixed to Sweden's Embassy.

Some embassies in Beijing are also flying rainbow flags in support of the LGBT community to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia on Wednesday as well as LGBT Pride Month in June.

It was unclear whether China, which in recent years has been criticized by rights groups for suppressing LGBT activism, objected to such displays. In response to a request for affirmation and specifics, the foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated that embassies must "respect Chinese laws and regulations," but provided no further information.

According to the two governments, Chinese envoy Li Hui conferred with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba for two days. The Ukrainian government stated that they discussed "methods to stop Russian aggression," but neither side provided additional information. Chinese foreign ministry stated that the two governments should "create conditions for terminating the conflict and peace negotiations."

Political analysts are pessimistic about the prospects for peace because neither party appears willing to cease fighting. However, they assert that Xi's government may be attempting to deflect criticism of its friendship with Vladimir Putin and to drive European allies away from the United States.

In February, China proposed a peace plan, but Ukraine's allies largely disregarded it, insisting that Putin's forces must withdraw and face war crimes charges, Telagreph reported.

Related Article: China Closes 100,000 Social Media Accounts as Beijing Ramps up Crackdown on Fake News

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Anglian Water customers could face an increase on their bills of 91 a year  including 12 to help pay for investment in sewerage infrastructure  the company has said.

Water companies in England have announced a 10 billion plan to reduce the number of sewage discharges into rivers and seas, while apologising for the pollution.

The industry trade body, Water UK, said the money will be paid up front by investors but then recuperated from consumers by gradually raising their bills over decades.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4s World At One programme, Anglian Waters head of public relations Regan Harris said: The initial investment will be put forward by our shareholders and the way were financed is that they put up that investment and Ofwat allows us to recover a proportion of that from bills.

1/2 We fully support WUKs apology on behalf of the wider industry. We know we all need to act faster to address storm overflows. https://t.co/i4mG10xnAp  Anglian Water (@AnglianWater) May 18, 2023

What were looking at is a fairly small increase of probably a few percent a year between now and 2030.

Asked how much the rise might mean for customers, she said: What were probably looking at is something in the order of about 1.75 a week for bills.

(That is) 10-12% as a total between now and 2030.

An increase of 1.75 per week would amount to 91 extra per year.

After the interview, Anglian Water clarified that only 12 of this relates to storm overflow upgrades.

Ofwat said water companies will submit their National Overflows Plan by October 2 which will include any bill increases for the period 2025-30.

The regulator will analyse the plans, giving a final announcement in December 2024, so any bill increases related to the storm overflows plan will not be felt until 2025.

We've outlined new measures to penalise water companies that don't fully monitor storm overflows. As well as targets to reduce the average number of spills, where there isn't working monitor we'll assume they're twice as bad as the current averagehttps://t.co/drzUWYxcre pic.twitter.com/xW9t4Y1deK  Ofwat (@Ofwat) May 9, 2023

A spokesperson said: We will scrutinise the detail of the National Overflows Plan when it is submitted to Ofwat later this year, as part of companies wider investment plans for the 2025-30 period.

These plans will set out what companies intend to deliver in each area and a timeline for completion.

Water companies must explain how their proposals will be funded, the proposed impact this will have on bills and their expected return to shareholders and lenders.

It is important that companies continue to engage clearly with the public on how this proposed investment will benefit communities and improve quality of life.

There were 301,091 sewage spills in 2022 in England which amounted to 1.75 million hours of discharge, according to Environment Agency figures, though they do not include the volume of sewage.

Monitoring stations for Welsh Water, a non-profit organisation, show the company discharged sewage for 602,987 hours in 2022, while publicly owned Scottish Water recorded 14,008 spills in 2022 amounting to 113,230 hours.

(PA Graphics)

Northern Ireland is not required to produce the same data, said Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), which uses water company information to track discharges.

However, an investigation by the Belfast Telegraph in 2021 revealed that more than seven million tonnes of sewage was being dumped each year in Northern Irelands rivers and seas.

Izzy Ross, campaigns manager at SAS, said: Water companies have seemingly bared their souls and told us theyre going to change. But why should we trust them?

Theyve overseen decades of mismanagement of our sewerage network, all the while siphoning off tens of billions to shareholders and paying the fat cats at the top huge pay and bonuses.

And this new plan is no different with consumers set to foot the bill, again. We wont stand for it.

The campaigners are planning to protest on Saturday at 12 bathing locations across the UK  with a surfboard made from raw sewage at the main protest by Brightons West Pier  and are calling for an end to all sewage discharges into bathing waters by 2030.

Kate Norgrove, executive director of advocacy and campaigns at WWF, said: Todays apology from Water UK only scratches the surface of the urgent action needed to clean up our water.

UK nature is in crisis and sewage and agricultural pollution are choking the life out of our rivers and seas.

Beyond apologies and the threat of higher bills for consumers, we need better monitoring of water quality and more effective regulation from UK governments, including stronger action against water companies and others who pollute our waters with apparent impunity.
The Bank of England will not return its balance sheet to levels from before the financial crisis, the central banks Governor has told MPs.

The bank started a programme of quantitative easing following the 2008 financial crisis, where it purchased government bonds.

Its balance sheet swelled to around 1 trillion after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, as the institution increased asset purchases to 895 million in an effort to support the economy.

However, it has since contracted to 880 million after quantitative tightening, meaning the bank has reduced its stock of government bonds.

 Our session on quantitative tightening with the Governor of the @bankofengland has now finished. Thank you to our witnesses for their evidence today.  Catch up on the session at any time https://t.co/JNVOq4RxLn  Treasury Committee (@CommonsTreasury) May 18, 2023

Mr Bailey told MPs at a Treasury Committee session that the bank will hold on to more bonds than it did before 2008 despite recent sales to provide it with sufficient headroom.

He said: Its about being able to use the balance sheet should we need to do so. Having the scope to act is very important.

I do not envisage the balance sheet returning to what it was before quantitative easing started during the financial crisis.

However, the banks deputy governor revealed it was likely to increase its pace of quantitative tightening in the future.

Sir Dave Ramsden told the committee: Theres the potential for it to go up a little bit.

I dont see it going down, given the experience of the first year.

It came as Mr Bailey also denied there was a link between recent quantitative tightening and pressures in the wider banking sector.

He said: I dont think there is any connection between quantitative tightening effects and the events in the banking system that we have seen in recent months, not least because the UK banking system has not experienced stress in recent months.

As we discussed, the Silicon Valley Bank UK failure was a very idiosyncratic issue in that it was a subsidiary of a bank that failed in the US.
Ben Wallace has expressed an interest in running Nato, saying the top job which is set to become vacant this autumn would be fantastic.

The Defence Secretary has previously positioned himself as a candidate as the military alliances current secretary general Jens Stoltenbergs term is expiring in September.

Mr Wallace again indicated he would be keen to succeed Mr Stoltenberg, during a trip to Berlin for talks on Ukraine with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.

Mr Wallace told German news agency dpa: Ive always said it would be a good job. Thats a job Id like.

But Im also loving the job I do now. I mean, to be Defence Secretary of the British Government at a time of reform and investment, just like Boris Pistorius.

He added that secretary general of the transatlantic alliance is a fantastic job and Nato is an incredibly important part of all our securities.

But its not for me to decide. Its for all the other allies.

The race for the top job has been heating up, with Mr Stoltenberg indicating he will not seek a further extension after nearly a decade in the role.

Jens Stoltenberg (James Manning/PA)

Nato member states typically decide on the alliances next chief behind the scenes.

Mr Wallace would have to overcome the opposition of those said to be pushing for a woman or someone from eastern Europe, and of France, which would reportedly prefer an EU candidate.

If the Defence Secretary did succeed, it could trigger a by-election in his Wyre and Preston North seat, although it is set to be carved up under a planned shake-up of Westminster constituencies later this year.

The appointment of Labour MP George Robertson as Nato chief in 1999 led to a by-election in his Hamilton South constituency, south west of Glasgow.
The Culture Secretary has vowed to protect public service broadcasters and fearless truth-telling.

In a speech on Thursday, Lucy Frazer said the Government was taking steps to increase press freedoms and make sure journalists can do their jobs effectively, including by guaranteeing the long-term future of first class public service broadcasters.

Ms Frazer, whose grandmother came to the UK as a refugee from Nazi Germany, said: As the descendent of someone who had to flee persecution for freedom, I appreciate what it means to live in a free society, and how dangerous it is when those freedoms are threatened.

Speaking to a media conference in London, she said a free press played a vital role in protecting democracy, but was under threat across the world with the arrest of journalists in places such as Russia.

She added: No Government has all the answers to all the challenges the media faces, but what I can promise you is that my approach will be guided by the following principles  protect our public service broadcasters; stand up for independent voices; and nurture a thriving media landscape which upholds and champions fearless truth-telling.

The future of Britains public service broadcasters has been a subject of debate in recent months, with Ms Frazer saying on May 7 that she was looking very closely at the licence fee as part of a review of the BBCs funding.

The Government cancelled plans to privatise Channel 4 in January (John Walton/PA)

Only a month before Ms Frazer became Culture Secretary in February, the Government formally abandoned plans to privatise Channel 4 that had been pushed by one of her predecessors, Nadine Dorries.

Ms Dorries had described the licence fee as completely outdated and announced it would be frozen at 159 until April 2024.

On Thursday, Ms Frazer told the audience at the Enders Analysis And Deloitte Media And Telecoms 2023 & Beyond Conference: Through our draft Media Bill we are updating a decades-old regulatory framework to level the playing field and help guarantee the long-term future of those first class public service broadcasters.

The draft Media Bill, published in March, would create a new Ofcom content code for streaming services, end the ban on Channel 4 producing its own content and make it easier to access services such as BBC iPlayer.

Ms Frazer said: If we want a thriving media sector in the future, our focus has to be on a free press and a press that is free to grow.

She also announced a goal of creating one million extra jobs in the creative industries and growing the sector by 50 billion by 2030, an increase of around 50%.

Hailing the golden age of the silver screen, she said the Government would promote skills for the creative industries from primary school children to those returning to the workforce and harness talent in clusters across the UK.

She said: I have no doubt that we in Government can do more to support our creatives but we cannot simply rely on the formula for that past success. We face increasing global competition and we cannot afford to be complacent.

By turbocharging growth and investment in sectors like video games, visual effects, music, fashion, film and television and more, we can retain our status as a creative industries superpower for decades to come.
David Beckham said he was very excited to meet the King at a prestigious fashion award ceremony in London, claiming he is a huge royalist.

The former England captain presented Charles with a jar of honey, made in his own beehive, claiming it would be rude not to at the event hosted by the British Fashion Council.

He added that he had been a secret fan of fashion for years and always tried to dress different as a youngster.

The King visited the 180 Studios art gallery in the Strand to present the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design.

Before meeting him, Beckham, ambassadorial president at the BFC, said: Obviously its been a big few weeks for His Majesty and the family but we are all very excited about being here today.

It will be a pleasure to meet our King today. I have always been a huge royalist and I was brought up to love the royal family.

Fashion secretly has been a part of my life for many years  even when I was a young boy I always liked to dress in things that were different and different hair styles as youve seen over the years.

David Beckham offers the King a jar of his own home produced honey (Jonathan Brady/PA)

He added that it was a huge honour to encourage and inspire young designers who benefit from the BFCs scholarships.

Being part of the BFC over the years has been a huge honour for me to help encourage, inspire and inform these incredible creatives, especially over the last couple of years, he said.

Its been so challenging for them in their industry, so to see them adapt proves how inspired they are.

After the event, Beckham embraced the awards recipient, Sierra Leone designer Foday Dumbuya, in his design workshop, saying he had made his first Unicef trip to the country in 2008 as it really needs a spotlight.

Mr Dumbuya, who moved to London at the age of 12, said he shared a common ground with Beckham as he hoped to inspire a generation of boys from Sierra Leone after the country was torn apart by war in the late 90s.

The King after presenting Foday Dumbuya with the Queen Elizabeth II Design Award (Jonathan Brady/PA)

He said: As a kid, I remember him coming to Sierra Leone, the way that ignited kids who loved David Beckham.

It put Sierra Leone on the map, so we do have a common ground in a way.

As a global ambassador he inspires people to think they can do anything. For that young kid watching him on TV, he gets to connect to him and believe he can achieve whatever hes achieved.

It is telling stories about London, Sierra Leone, West Africa  for me its about how we bring those stories to life.

In a tearful speech after receiving his award, Mr Dumbuya said: Things like this dont happen to people where Im from.

This award is for all young British and Sierra Leone kids who continue to dream  please dont stop dreaming.
Senior CPC official meets with Singaporean deputy PM

Xinhua) 09:37, May 18, 2023

Li Ganjie, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee's Organization Department, meets with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Singapore Lawrence Wong in Beijing, capital of China, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Li Ganjie, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Singapore Lawrence Wong in Beijing on Wednesday.

Noting that China and Singapore are friendly neighbors and important partners, Li, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee's Organization Department, said that China stands ready to work with Singapore to follow the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, promote cooperation in various fields, and actively develop an all-around, high-quality and forward-looking partnership to bring further benefit to the two peoples.

Wong said the Singapore-China relations enjoy a sound momentum of development with extensive and in-depth cooperation in various fields, and Singapore is willing to strengthen personnel training cooperation, promote mutual visits of senior officials and advance the development of bilateral relations.

Li Ganjie, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee's Organization Department, meets with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Singapore Lawrence Wong in Beijing, capital of China, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
(Photo : Jens Schlueter/Getty Images)

Incredible new 3D images may hold the key to understanding what happened to the Titanic more than a century ago.

Over 100 years after its infamous sinking, the iconic Titanic has been unearthed with the first-ever full-size 3D reconstruction disclosing astounding new details about the doomed cruise ship.

In April 1912, more than 1,500 passengers perished when the ship hit an iceberg and sank while sailing from Southampton, England, to New York.

Never-Before-Seen Footage of the Titanic

According to NY Post, the catastrophe has captivated the globe for over a century. However, many details about the shipwreck are still unknown, but that may soon change. Over 700,000 scans of the wreckage obtained last summer by Atlantic Productions and deep-sea mapping company Magellan Ltd. were used to produce the breathtaking images.

Scientists have created full-scale digital photographs of the Titanic, disclosing intricate new details about the ship. Magellan Ltd, a deep-sea mapping company, and Atlantic Productions conducted digital surveys last summer.

Magellan stated in a press release that the readings provided a unique 3D view of the entire ship, allowing it to appear as if the water had been removed. A crew aboard a specialized vessel remotely piloted submersibles for more than 200 hours to survey the wreckage.

Even the serial number on one of the ship's propellers is legible in the latest photographs. The team hopes that the new images will cast new light on what transpired aboard the ship.

It was not until September 1985 that oceanographer Robert Ballard and the Woods Hole. Oceanographic Institution, in collaboration with the Institut francais de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer, discovered the wreckage of the Titanic.

Read Also: China Warns Embassies Over 'Propaganda' Displays as Ukrainian, LGBTQ+ Flags Raised Among Buildings

3D Images May Reveal What Exactly Happened to Titanic Sank

The mysterious sinking of the opulent passenger liner Titanic in 1912 has long fascinated many individuals. According to the press release, every millimeter of the three-mile debris field was mapped in minute detail. The final digital replica has successfully captured the entire ruin, including the stem and stern sections that separated during the ship's 1912 sinking.

Per CNN, an expert who has studied the Titanic for 20 years, Parks Stephenson, lauded the initiative as a "game-changer" that has unearthed "previously unknown details."

Approximately 715,000 images and 16 terabytes of data were collected during the expedition, which Magellan CEO Richard Parkinson estimates is "approximately ten times larger than any underwater 3D model ever attempted."

This vessel attempted to alert the Titanic of the iceberg. Now, scientists have discovered the ship's remnants. Parkinson characterized the mission as "challenging," citing the team's struggle against "the elements, poor weather, and technical obstacles."

In contrast to previous optical images of the ship, which were limited by low light levels and poor light quality 12,500 feet below water, the new imaging technique "effectively removed the water and let the light in," according to the press release.

According to 3D capture specialist Gerhard Seiffert, the "extremely accurate photorealistic 3D model" has "for the first time" allowed people to pan out and examine the entire ruin. Seiffert added, "This is the Titanic as no one has ever seen it before."

According to Stephenson, this mapping will mark the "beginning of a new chapter" for Titanic research and exploration. The BBC reported that the team used remotely controlled submersibles to acquire over 700,000 images of the Titanic from every angle to create the 3D reconstruction.

The team members spent over 200 hours surveying the ship, which planning chief Gerhard Seiffert instructed them to avoid handling. The scan provides a view of the radio room, the grand staircase, and other interior spaces. Only 706 of the approximately 2,200 passengers on board the ship survived. The preponderance of those slain were crew members and third-class passengers, with 710 third-class deaths and 700 crew deaths.

Since its collapse in 1912, the Titanic has been a historical phenomenon, with innumerable films and books devoted to its study. This trend lends itself occasionally to conspiracies and anecdotal evidence. Stephenson told NBC News on Wednesday that this scan is a "significant step" toward shifting the Titanic narrative from speculation to evidence-based, empirical research.

This is not the first time the ship has been photographed, but what distinguishes this scan is its unparalleled quality and scope. Typically, submerged cameras capture only small debris fragments, requiring individuals to piece them together to create a distorted composite image.

Related Article: Missing Illinois Girl Featured in Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries' Found Alive in North Carolina After 6 Years

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The death of a four-year-old boy found alongside the body of a 38-year-old man is being treated as murder, police have said.

Officers found the bodies when they attended a property on Argyle Street in Paisley, Renfrewshire, at around 8pm on Monday following a report of concern.

Police said that following a post-mortem examination, the death of four-year-old Kayden Frank is being treated as murder.

The death of the man is not being treated as suspicious.

Detectives say there is no reason to believe anyone else was involved.

Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Thomson, of Police Scotlands Major Investigation Team, said: Our thoughts are with Kaydens family and friends, along with everyone affected by this tragedy.

We are providing his family with specialist support at this incredibly difficult time and officers are continuing inquiries to try and get some answers for them.

Kaydens family have requested that their privacy is respected at this time.
Downing Street has said problems for the British car industry over a Brexit deal deadline can be resolved within the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA).

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch and UK officials have raised the issue with counterparts in Brussels ahead of a looming cliff edge when new rules covering electric vehicles (EVs) come into effect at the start of 2024.

Vauxhalls parent company Stellantis told MPs it would be unable to keep a commitment to make EVs in the UK without changes to Britains agreement with the bloc.

Under the TCA, from next year 45% of an EVs value should originate in the UK or EU to qualify for tariff-free trade.

Without meeting the requirements, cars manufactured in the UK would face a 10% tariff if sold in the EU  and vice versa  rendering them uncompetitive, prompting warnings of an existential threat posed by the deadline.

A No 10 spokesman said the UK wants to work closely with the EU on the problem and expressed optimism that a solution could be reached within the TCA.

We continue to want to work closely with the EU to find a solution to this problem, Downing Street said.

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch and UK officials had raised the issue with counterparts in Brussels (Victoria Jones/PA)

We think it can be resolved within the TCA and we want to continue to take that work forward.

Stellantis  which also owns Citroen, Peugeot and Fiat  is the worlds fourth biggest carmaker and employs more than 5,000 people in the UK.

But the firm told a Commons inquiry that UK investments were in the balance due to the terms of the trade deal and warned the Brexit deal was a threat to its export business.

It called on the Government to reach agreement with the EU to maintain existing rules until 2027, rather than introduce next years planned changes.

Professor David Bailey, from Birmingham Business School, told the BBC that without UK manufacturing of EV batteries I think there is a kind of existential threat to the UK car industry.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the UK was engaged in a dialogue with the EU on auto manufacturing more generally (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, while in Japan for the G7 summit, said the UK was in talks with the EU about how to address concerns relating to auto manufacturing more generally.

Speaking to broadcasters on board the JS Izumo aircraft carrier in the Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo, the Prime Minister said: Its something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern.

And as a result of that, we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally.

On concerns about UK battery-making capacity, Mr Sunak said: Nissan have invested a billion pounds in battery manufacturing capability in the North East.

Ill be talking to the Nissan CEO and other Japanese business leaders later about investment into the UK.
A former Metropolitan Police officer who allegedly missed an opportunity to properly investigate Wayne Couzens over two incidents of flashing hours before he kidnapped Sarah Everard has admitted she made some errors but said nothing she could have done would have changed the tragic outcome.

Former constable Samantha Lee is said to have failed to make the correct investigative inquiries over two incidents when Couzens exposed himself to female members of staff at a McDonalds restaurant in Swanley, Kent, on February 14 and 27 2021, a police disciplinary hearing was told.

On both occasions, Couzens was seen by female members of staff to have his pants open and his penis on display.

Wayne Couzens (Metropolitan Police/PA)

Ms Lee attended the restaurant on March 3 and interviewed manager Sam Taylor, hours before Sarah Everard was kidnapped by Couzens in Clapham, south-west London.

The former officer is alleged to have lied about her actions when later questioned about the interview, as she claimed she believed that CCTV at the restaurant was deleted automatically so there would be no footage of Couzens or the offence.

Throughout her evidence Ms Lee maintained Mr Taylor told her he did not have any CCTV of the incident.

She told the tribunal that Mr Taylor explained that a photo is taken of the driver when a car pulls up to the order box of the drive-thru, but it is deleted after the driver collects their order.

In his evidence, Mr Taylor said he had shown Ms Lee the footage and told her it could be downloaded on to a USB stick.

On Thursday, Ms Lee said: I accept now that there was CCTV and that I should have asked more questions about it.

Sarah Everard (Family Handout/PA)

However, she told the tribunal there was nothing she could have done that would have stopped Couzens from kidnapping and murdering Ms Everard.

I accept that I could have done more around CCTV and evidence gathering, that was errors on my part and I accept that, she said.

And as much as I have thought it over and over, I dont believe that anything I could have done would have changed the tragic outcome of what happened later that day.

Ms Lee is alleged to have breached the forces standards on duties and responsibilities as well as honesty and integrity.

If she is found to have committed gross misconduct, she could be banned from serving in the force again.

She denies the allegations.

The misconduct hearing is being held at Palestra House in Southwark, south London.
A man who waited for almost four hours to call an ambulance after inflicting fatal injuries on his undernourished 11-year-old son has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 21 years and six months.

Michael Harrison pleaded guilty last month to the murder of Mikey Harrison, who died in hospital in June last year after paramedics were called to a country park.

Harrison leaned forward in his seat staring at the ground, shielding his face from the public gallery, during almost all of his two-hour sentencing hearing on Thursday.

The court was told that he repeatedly punched Mikey, who weighed 3st 11lb, at his home in Derbyshire on the morning of June 18, causing a fatal laceration to his liver.

A paramedics car called to the country park (Derbyshire Police/PA)

The 41-year-old later drove to Heanors Shipley Country Park, phoned the ambulance service from his van and falsely claimed Mikey  who could have been saved by prompt treatment  had fallen from a tree.

Passing sentence at Derby Crown Court, Judge Shaun Smith KC told Harrison: At 18 minutes past one on Saturday June 18 you embarked upon a charade solely intended to protect yourself.

That was because you had attacked your 11-year-old son Mikey. You hit and punched him many times. At least one of those blows was so hard it lacerated his liver.

Rather than face up to what you had done, you made a call to the ambulance service to report that Mikey had fallen out of a tree.

What you did that morning ended the life of a little boy and emptied the lives of many others.

The judge added that what happened during the assault was a result of Harrison going crazy as he damaged furniture and caused multiple blunt force injuries to Mikey.

Opening the case against Harrison, prosecutor Peter Joyce KC told the court: At 1.20pm on Saturday June 18 this defendant, Michael Harrison, made an emergency 999 call to the East Midlands Ambulance Service, to report that his son had fallen out of a tree in Shipley Park, Heanor.

He told the emergency services the number of his vehicle and where he and Mikey could be found.

Mr Joyce said ambulance service staff then arrived to find Mikey struggling for breath, but he went into cardiac arrest and was taken to hospital in Nottingham, where he was pronounced dead at 2.39pm.

The prosecutor said of the victim: He was 11 years old when he died and he weighed three stone, 11lbs.

Shipley Country Park, where Harrison tried to stage a cover-up (Jacob King/PA)

The defendant was spoken to that day by the police as a witness in relation to what was then described as the accidental death of his son.

The prosecutor added: His first account was that he had been in Shipley Country Park when Mikey had fallen from a tree.

But inquiries established that this entire account was a fiction made up by the defendant to cover up the fact that he himself had fatally injured his son, Mr Joyce continued.

Following the assault, the court heard, Harrison stripped the Heanor property where he and Mikey had been living of almost every item that you would expect to find in a home.

Mr Joyce alleged that Harrison had also cleaned the scene of the attack to remove any prospect of any evidence being found in relation to what he had done to Mikey.

The 999 call took place almost four hours after the attack took place, Mr Joyce said, adding: In common parlance he (Mikey) had received many blows to many areas of his body.

In the opinion of an expert who had studied the evidence, Mikey may well have been saved with prompt and appropriate medical treatment, the court heard.

Offering mitigation, defence barrister Vanessa Marshall KC said Harrison would have to bear the awful, tragic, unforgivable death of his son for the rest of his life.

Submitting that Mikeys death was the result of an isolated outburst of gratuitous violence, Ms Marshall claimed Harrison had cleared out the property amid safety concerns, having been kidnapped and stabbed by a gang in 2006.

After he was sentenced, Harrison, wearing a white T-shirt with FAMILY printed on the front, gestured towards members of the media and said: I will always love my family no matter what you lot say. Put whatever version you like.
The father of man who was stabbed to death has said the pain of losing his son is never ending as police launch a nationwide crackdown on knife crime.

Cliff Marcus son Leo was stabbed to death, aged 22, in a botched mugging attempt in 2019.

Mr Marcus, 57, from Woolwich, south-east London, said: You spend 22 years raising somebody, and then all of a sudden that person is gone. Theres just a void left behind.

When I heard Leo had died, my heart was broken. I had nothing left.

Ive got a picture of him over my fireplace where I often speak to him.

Cliff Marcus, whose son Leo was stabbed to death in 2019 (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

The married father-of-five added: This one killer has affected 80 to 90 people in my family alone. The pain is never ending.

Mr Marcus comments coincide with Operation Sceptre, an annual week of intensified activity by police forces in England and Wales to tackle knife crime.

As part of the crackdown, he joined six uniformed and 12 plain-clothed Met Police officers on patrol in Croydon on Thursday.

They performed stop and searches and carried out a weapons sweep.

Local neighbourhood policing superintendent Mitch Carr said: In Croydon weve had issues over many years with lots of young people getting involved in gangs.

Its been well over a year now since there was a knife-related murder in Croydon.

Locally, theres still a lot of concern among the public around people carrying weapons, and unfortunately, there have been stabbings.

This week of action is to make sure that were really keeping the focus on it.

Croydon was branded Londons knife crime capital in 2021 after recording five teenage murders  the most of any borough.

A total of 30 teenage murders were recorded across the capital in 2021.

Knife crime campaigner Anthony King (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

Data from the Mayor of Londons office for policing and crime shows that between 2019-21 Croydon suffered the highest volumes of teenage violence in the capital with 141 offences recorded.

Met Police data shows there were 11,969 knife crime offences recorded in Croydon in 2021. In the 12 months to November 2022, there were 6,843 knife crime offences recorded, down 22 per cent on the same period the year before.

Acting police sergeant Jack Fordham said west Croydon was quite a violent part of London, he added: There are a lot of robberies and knife crime occurring.

The purpose of this operation is showing the community and commuters who pass through Croydon that we are present in the area.

Youth worker Anthony King, 40, who joined the operation on Thursday, said: We are working with our Met Police colleagues to turn the tide and hopefully reduce fear amongst young people.

Mr King is the chair of the My Ends project, a community group that brings together young people, local police and head teachers to address challenges facing the borough.

Working with the police has gone a long way to building trust and confidence in the community and reducing serious violent crime, he said.
Four men have been charged in relation to an attack on an NHS worker who was allegedly struck by a car as he walked to a bus stop.

Phillip Adams, 25, Patrick James, 21, Jordan McCarthy, 21, and Daniel Whereatt, 49, are all accused of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm to Katungua Tjitendero, 24.

Mr Tjitendero, an aspiring musician, was struck by a car after finishing work at Southmead Hospital in Bristol in July 2020.

The NHS worker was injured as he walked to a bus stop after finishing work (Claire Hayhurst/PA)

He suffered serious injuries including a broken leg, nose and cheekbone  leaving him unable to walk or stand up and requiring three operations.

Witnesses reported hearing Mr Tjitendero being racially abused in the incident on Monks Park Avenue.

Avon and Somerset Police said the four men, all from Bristol, would appear before magistrates in the city on June 27.

A fifth man who was arrested in connection with the investigation faces no further action, police said.

James also faces a charge of causing serious injury by dangerous driving in connection with an earlier incident.

On July 12 2020, a vehicle mounted the pavement on Broadlands Drive, Lawrence Weston, Bristol, allegedly injuring a man on a bicycle.

The cyclist, a man in his 50s, was taken to hospital for treatment to injuries including fractured ribs, a collapsed lung and bruising.

Police said Mr Tjitendero continues to be supported by the charity Stand Against Racism and Inequality (Sari).

Detective Superintendent Mike Buck, who is leading the investigation, said: We understand the length of time this complex investigation has taken has been difficult and frustrating, taking its toll on Katungua and his family.

Criminal proceedings are now underway and the defendants have a right to a fair trial.

Its important that there is no reporting, commentary or online posting which could prejudice this case and prevent justice from being done.
Published 19 May 2023 at 1:22 am

Harrison Ford said he was deeply moved and humbled as he received an honorary Palme dOr at the Cannes Film Festival.

The veteran US actor, 80, was presented with the accolade on Thursday ahead of the world debut screening of his new film Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny.

The film sees Ford return as the globe-trotting archaeologist more than 40 years after his first stint in Raiders Of The Lost Ark in 1981.

It stars Fleabag actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who plays Helena Shaw, Indiana Joness goddaughter, and Mads Mikkelsen.

Ahead of the screening, audiences saw a highlight reel of the actors career before he took to the stage to present the film.

Becoming emotional, he said: They say when youre about to die you see your life flash before your eyes. And I just saw my life flash before my eyes.

A great part of my life but not all of my life.

Ford paid tribute to co-stars Mads Mikkelsen, left, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge, right (Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

My life has been enabled by my lovely wife, supporting my passion and my dreams and Im grateful.

Addressing the audience directly, he continued: And I love you too.

Youve given my life purpose and meaning and Im grateful for that. So grateful to have the opportunity to work with others like  Phoebe (Waller-Bridge) and Mads (Mikkelsen).

I am deeply moved by this honour, and humbled  but I got a movie you gotta see. So let me get out of the way.

The US actor was presented with the accolade ahead of a world debut screening of his new film (Daniel Cole/AP)

Th fifth instalment of the Indiana Jones franchise takes place in the years depicted between Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade (1989) and Indiana Jones And The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

The latter film, starring Shia LaBeouf, also had its world premiere in Cannes in 2008.

The 2023 Cannes Film Festival has already seen appearances from other major Hollywood stars including Ethan Hawke, Johnny Depp and Dame Helen Mirren.

On Tuesday, the festivals opening day, Michael Douglas was also presented with an honorary Palme dOr  he too became emotional on stage.
Boris Johnson dismissed Emmanuel Macron as Putins lickspittle after the French president criticised the then-prime ministers response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis, according to a former leading No 10 official.

Mr Johnson also called Mr Macron a four-letter word that begins with c, former Downing Street director of communication Guto Harri said in his podcast Unprecedented.

When the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the front page of The Guardian, he recalled.

Much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross, nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped at our morning meeting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) meeting then-prime minister Boris Johnson in Kyiv (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/PA)

He just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron. Basically, saying Hes a four-letter word that begins with C, hes a weirdo, hes Putins lickspittle We need an orgy of frog bashing. Im going to have to punch his lights out.

Mr Harri said the two leaders had patched up their differences before a G7 summit a few weeks later.

The second episode of Unprecedented on Global Player also recounts Mr Johnsons relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying the two leaders shared gallows humour and recalling a phone call on the night Ukraine was invaded.

It was massively sobering, said Mr Harri. We really could not believe that this was seriously underway. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

Boris could not have been clearer that we were there to help the Ukraine in whichever way we possibly could, using whatever we could possibly deploy within reason.

The two of them had this extraordinary bond. And, dare I mention it, this kind of really dark gallows humour that was obviously a coping mechanism.

Listen to the second episode of Unprecedented on Global Player now.
The Princess of Wales has arrived at the Anna Freud Centre to meet pupils who have helped design the organisations anxiety toolkit for young people.

Kate is marking Mental Health Awareness week by visiting the centre, which she supports as patron, to meet experts, academics and schoolchildren supporting the charitys work.

The centre runs vital research and training programmes and develops and shares practice to support child and family mental health.

The Princess of Wales arrives at the Anna Freud Centre in London (Yui Mok/PA)

With this years Mental Health Awareness Week shining a spotlight on how anxiety affects the lives of many youngsters, the princess will take part in discussions on how evidence-based research, clinical expertise and young peoples lived experience can be used to help children.

Kate will also join a group of secondary school students who have just taken part in a series of classroom activities that explored how they deal with their own anxious feelings.
A Ukrainian MP said Kyiv residents are very angry following the ninth attack on the capital this month in a noticeable escalation after a quieter period.

In the early hours of Thursday, Ukraine shot down 29 out of 30 cruise missiles amid an escalation of attacks on the country, according to Ukrainian officials.

Speaking in Kyiv, Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun told the PA news agency: I think people are very angry. This is the major feeling. Everybody is angry.

Everybody is sleep deprived very much, including myself today, because its not like you can easily go back to sleep when this happens and just pretend that nothing happened.

Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun (Inna Sovsun/PA)

Ms Sovsun said she woke up to the sound of one big explosion in the early hours.

A couple of hours after that, I got a message from my neighbour and she sent me the picture of the fragment of the missile, which landed on our building, which is goddamn scary, she said.

Ms Sovsun believes the escalation of attacks by Russia is an attempt to undermine our spirit and hit warehouses possibly storing ammunition to weaken Ukraines ability to defend itself.

Russia fails dramatically to dampen Ukrainians determination, Ms Sovsun said, because after every single attack, people are getting more angry and less willing to negotiate, if there was anyone willing to do that.

The MP believes Russia is trying to find and to hit the warehouses with weapons ammunition, which we have received for the counter offensive.

Ms Sovsun said the country is extremely grateful to the UK for No 10s announcement that Britain will send hundreds of air defence missiles and additional unmanned aerial systems to Ukraine, saying the UK has been a great friend to Ukraine.

She said: I remember when there was a change of leadership, there was speculation that maybe the new leadership will not be as supportive, will not be providing so much help, but I always believe that this UK position about this war is based on an understanding of the UK interests.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Chequers, the country house of the serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, in Buckinghamshire (Carl Court/PA)

It is not just humanitarian help, it is an understanding to what extent Russia is a threat to the UK national interest as well, and that is why Im very happy to see this coming through, that the new leadership is still as supportive.

We really wish that the rest of the world were as proactive as the UK is in helping Ukraine to protect ourselves.

The recent escalation of attacks shows Russia is concerned about a counter-offensive, Ms Sovsun said, adding: Theyre definitely not happy about their so-called winter counter-offensive not being successful.

They were talking about their counteroffensive for so long but they still do not have the full control of Bakhmut city, which they have been trying to claim for three months now.

Ms Sovsun believes questions are being raised in the Russian army but also among Russian people about how much the army can achieve.

I think that that is why they are trying to target civilian infrastructure and cities, and then try to scare people, because they believe that they cannot do much on the frontline, she said.

The MP said the countrys residents have to continue to live our lives, adding: I am absolutely sure that we will win.
Lawyers representing a Wisconsin Native American tribe will make the case before a federal court on Thursday, May 18, asserting that the tribe's territory is in imminent danger from erosion and the potential rupture of an oil pipeline on indigenous grounds.

Pipeline Shutdown Petition

Last week, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa requested US District Judge William Conley to order energy firm Enbridge to shut down the Line 5 pipeline after substantial sections of the riverbank were swept away in northern Wisconsin.

According to AP News, the Bad River tribe claims that in four sites throughout the reservation, there are less than 15 feet (4.6 meters) of land between the Bad River and Line 5. The riverbed has deteriorated in some areas by more than 20 feet (6 meters) in the last month.

In court, experts and environmentalists have expressed concern that a damaged pipeline segment might easily break and release large quantities of oil.

According to Enbridge's engineers, the likelihood of the pipeline being exposed by erosion, much alone rupturing, within the next year is very low. In court documents, the firm claims the tribe has ignored its requests to help line the riverbank with sandbags to prevent erosion.

On Monday, May 15, Enbridge also requested permission from the tribe to install tree barriers along the riverbed as a means of stabilization.

Prior Agreements

Because the land agreements permitting Enbridge to operate on the reservation expired in 2013, the Bad River tribe filed a lawsuit against the firm in 2019 to compel the removal of the approximately 12-mile (19-kilometer) segment of Line 5 that traverses the tribal property.

In September 2022, Judge Conley agreed with the tribe, saying that Enbridge was trespassing on the reserve and owed the tribe compensation for doing so. However, he would not issue an order for Enbridge to remove the pipeline because of concern for the region's economy should the pipeline be shut down.

Instead, last November, Conley ordered Enbridge and tribe officials to devise a plan to cut down the pipeline in the event of an emergency, citing the "catastrophic" danger it posed to the reservation and its water supply if it were to rupture.

Also Read: US Debt Ceiling: House Speaker McCarthy Expresses Confidence, Defends Republican Proposals

Dispute Resolution

According to AP News, Line 5 runs 645 miles (1,038 kilometers) from Superior, Wisconsin, across northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario, carrying up to 23 million gallons (87 million liters) of oil and liquid natural gas daily.

Gas prices would rise, refineries would close, jobs would be lost, and the upper Midwest may experience propane shortages for years if the pipeline were shut down, according to court documents presented by Enbridge.

To settle its disagreement with the tribe, Enbridge has suggested a 41-mile (66-kilometer) pipeline routing and claimed in court documents that the work could be finished in under six years. However, Enbridge cannot begin construction unless the Department of Natural Resources issues the necessary permits.

Also Read: New EPA Standards Will Cut Power Plant Emissions That Cause Global Warming

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Kate, Princess of Wales, Helen Mirren and Florence Pugh are among the best celebrity hair transformations. (Getty Images)

Celebrity hair transformations never fail to catch us off guard. Just when were getting used to a celebrity's signature look, they give themselves a fringe, chop off all of their hair or dye it a completely different colour.

The latest hair transformation comes courtesy of Dame Helen Mirren who debuted her new blue hairdo at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

The actors vibrantly hued hair matched her powder blue gown  but shes not the only celebrity who has surprised us with a dramatic hair transformation in recent years.

From Julia Roberts fringe, to Florence Pughs shaved head and Stacey Solomons stint as a redhead, here are the most memorable celebrity hair transformations.

Dame Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren at Cannes in 2018 (L) and again in 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

While the actor has been growing out her hair since the beginning of the pandemic, the blue hue is the first time shes experimented with colour in recent memory. She debuted the look at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

Cara Delevingne

Cara Delevingne in September 2016 (L) and in May 2017 (R). (Getty Images)

The British supermodel shocked the world when she arrived at the Met Gala in 2017 sporting a shaved head painted silver. She's since experimented with multiple different styles, from pixie cuts and returned to her long, blonde locks.

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt in 1994 (L) and 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

Brad Pitt has been known to toy with various hair lengths, but he certainly appeared to be channelling Kurt Cobain in 1994.

Julia Roberts

Julia Roberts wore her signature centre parting in 2022 (L) and showed off her new fringe in 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

After having a signature hairdo of big bouncy curls in the 80s and 90s, Julia Roberts experimented with her hair colours for a while before landing on the look shes worn for the past decade or so: soft reddish-brown waves with a centre parting. Only this year has she switched things up yet again with a new fringe that she debuted in March.

Andie MacDowell

Andie MacDowell pictured in May 2019 (L) and May 2021 (R). (Getty Images)

The American actor returned to the red carpet in 2021 with a departure from her iconic brunette curls: naturally-coloured grey locks that inspired women globally.

Shania Twain

Shania Twain with her signature brown hair in 2017 (L) and her pink hair in 2022 (R). (Getty Images)

Shania Twain proved that she suits any hair colour when she debuted her light pink tresses at the 2022 Peoples Choice Awards.

David Beckham

David Beckham in 1998 (L) and 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

David Beckham is a bonafide hair chameleon. The former footballer has rocked everything from a bowl cut, to long hair, and bleached tips. He seems to have settled for a quiff for the last decade or so, however.

Florence Pugh

Florence Pugh in 2022 (L) and debuting her shaved head at the 2023 Met Gala (R). (Getty Images)

Florence Pughs shaved head was one of the most talked-about moments of the 2023 Met Gala. The actor had swapped her usual blonde bob for a completely shaven head.

Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama in 2009 (L) and in 2022 (R). (Getty Images)

The former First Lady of the United States has embraced her natural hair more since leaving the Whitehouse. Often wearing it curly or in plaits.

Lily James

Lily James in 2018 (L) and 2022 (R). (Getty Images)

Little James has tried most cuts and colours, but the last few years have seen her slowly move from being a grown-out blonde to a deep brunette.

Kate, Princess of Wales

Kate, Princess of Wales in 2015 (L) and in 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

The Princess of Wales has lightly experimented with her hairstyles over the years, from shorter collar bone-length styles, to even a few dalliances with a fringe. These days, she remains steadfast to her signature dark brown long locks.

Emma Watson

Emma Watson in 2011 (L) and 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

Emma Watson shed her Hermione image once and for all when she turned up to the final Harry Potter film premiere in 2011 with a short pixie cut. Over a decade on and she not opts for a tousled lob.

Lily Allen

Lily Allen in 2022 (L) and 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

Lily Allen has been rocking a fringe for quite some time now, but this year she decided to ditch her signature jet black hair for a bleach blonde look instead.

Charlize Theron

Charlize Theron in 2018 (L) and 2022 (R). (Getty Images)

Charlize Theron swayed from her usual blonde bob with a side parting in 2022 when she opted for a black mullet-style haircut instead.

Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake in 1999 (L) and 2018 (R). (Getty Images)

Justin Timberlake's blonde curls were the object of every teen girls affection in the 1990s, but the singer now sticks to a cropped brunette look.

Stacey Solomon

Stacey Solomon in 2022 (L) and in 2023 (R). (Getty Images)

The Loose Women presenter dabbled with being a redhead in 2022, before returning to her signature blonde.
A man has admitted abducting a primary school aged girl while dressed as a woman before sexually assaulting her repeatedly over more than 24 hours.

Andrew Miller, 53, who is also known as Amy George, pleaded guilty to four charges  abduction, sexual assault, watching pornography in the presence of the child under the age of 13, and possessing 242 indecent images of children.

At the High Court in Edinburgh on Thursday, a narrative of Millers offences were read out, which judge Lord Arthurson described as abhorrent crimes of the utmost deviance and depravity which were the realisation of every parents worst nightmare.

Miller is in the process of transitioning and was the proprietor of a local butcher shop, which had not been open for some months.

He and the victim were not known to each other.

The court heard Miller had approached the child in February this year when she was walking home to offer her a lift.

Instead of taking the child to her home, Miller took her to his home in the Scottish Borders.

Andrew Miller, right, during a previous court appearance in the case (PA)

There, he subjected her to acts of sexual assault in his bedroom over the course of the next 27 hours.

For the time the child was confined at the property, Miller was dressed as a woman, wearing a bra and womens underwear.

He also made the girl watch porn.

The following evening, Miller fell asleep in the bed next to the child. She tipped over a glass of water in an attempt to wake him, but he did not rouse.

Following this, the child turned on the bedroom light and Miller still did not wake.

She then attempted to escape from the property, but found the door was locked.

She found the landline phone and called police, saying she had been touched inappropriately, the court heard.

At the time of his arrest, Miller was wearing a bra, womens underwear, tights and one silicone breast  the other had become dislodged during a struggle.

During interview, Miller told detectives he did not abduct the girl and that it was all a mistake, saying he stopped to offer her a lift because she was freezing.

He said he put her in his bed with him because it was a motherly thing, and admitted he should have called police.

He admitted he should never have gotten into this situation during the interview, which lasted six hours.

Following his arrest, three laptops were seized from his property and a total of 242 indecent images of children were found, most of which were of the lowest category.

His internet history was also accessed, showing his searches for indecent images.

Scotlands First Minister Humza Yousaf confirmed Miller is being held in the male prison estate.

Speaking to media after First Ministers Questions at Holyrood, he said: I feel for the family, I feel for the community that are involved as well. I think as a parent its one of the most traumatic things that you think could ever happen to your child.

Its disgusting, its abhorrent. But it is still a live case, we know sentencing has still to happen, but I know that the individual involved, he is being kept in the male estate, which is right.

Asked whether Miller should be housed in a womens prison, Mr Yousaf said: No, in the male estate, where he currently is but of course what youre asking me to do is to make a judgment on a sentencing that is still to happen. That would be inappropriate for me to do so.

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has protocols in place, those have recently been updated in relation to some other very well publicised cases, and therefore Im very confident in any risk assessment SPS makes in this regard.

Miller, who appeared by videolink from HMP Edinburgh, was remanded in custody and will appear for sentencing on August 15.

Detective Chief Inspector Bryan Burns said: Our thoughts today are with the victim and her family, who have shown incredible courage and strength throughout this ordeal.

This was a significant investigation and I would like to thank all those involved for their professionalism and commitment during what was an extremely challenging inquiry.

Andrew Miller has pled guilty to serious offending and will now face the consequences of his actions.
Lloyds Banking Group has come under pressure from unions over trialling changes to its hybrid working policy, accusing the bank of discriminating against working parents, women and carers.

The banking giants chairman, Robin Budenberg, also faced disruption from climate protesters at the groups annual general meeting (AGM) in Glasgow.

Mr Budenberg said the policy changes  which reportedly will ensure staff go into the office for two days a week  were part of a pilot scheme and not set in stone.

It followed criticism from representatives of Unite the union, which represents staff members across the groups 63,000-strong workforce.

Lets be clear, this is an attack on flexible working, Unite member Rachel Boothroyd told the board, including chief executive Charlie Nunn.

She said the pilot scheme was disproportionately impacting women, carers and disabled workers at the bank, because it takes away their ability to work flexibly around caring duties.

The policy, introduced last month, involves 4,000 workers across the business, according to Unite.

A separate union member read out a testament from an unnamed married couple who both work at the bank, which said the policy will not allow them to look after their child who has additional needs.

Mr Budenberg responded to the criticism: At this stage we are conducting two pilots and have asked colleagues to share their views. I would stress that no decisions have been taken.

Any outcomes will be based on individual discussions between colleagues and their line managers.

No ifs, no buts No flexible working cuts!!! DROP THE COMPRESSED HOURS PILOT!  pic.twitter.com/Lm5jfZK3rM  Unite in Lloyds Banking Group (@UniteinLBG) May 18, 2023

He said he was proud of the bank for being leaders in the field with its flexible working policy, adding: We want to do something that is fair for everyone.

Protesters from Unite gathered outside the AGM, demanding Lloyds drops its compressed hours pilot.

Sharon Graham, Unites general secretary, said in a statement of support: Unite members are saying clearly that Lloyds Banking Group must drop this ill-conceived pilot which grievously disadvantages women, carers and disabled staff working at the bank.

At a time when progressive employers are moving towards modern ways of working, it is appears that Lloyds management are well out of touch.

Meanwhile, the meeting got off to a slow start after protesters from Extinction Rebellion interrupted Mr Budenburg before he could begin his opening speech.

He got as far as saying hello and welcome before four protesters stood up and interrupted with speeches over the banks contribution to financing fossil fuel projects.

pic.twitter.com/atF5yE0mBT  Unite in Lloyds Banking Group (@UniteinLBG) May 18, 2023

The livestream of the AGM was paused for around 10 minutes before the chairman could continue.

Extinction Rebellion said Lloyds increased fossil fuel funding by 500 million US dollars (402 million) in 2022 compared with 2021.

The campaign group asked Lloyds renounce the funding of fossil fuels altogether, and accused it of greenwashing.

It follows other British banking giants including Barclays and HSBC facing more significant disruption from climate protesters at their AGMs this month.

Lloyds is set to return long-term incentives to directors which could see executive directors receive a bonus in the form of shares of up to 300% of their salary from 2024.

The renewed remuneration policy was put to shareholders in a vote following the meeting.

Unofficial results showed that the long-term incentive plan and the groups annual report were approved by shareholders.
Railway workers at 14 train companies are to stage a fresh strike next month in a long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions, it has been announced.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) will walk out on June 2.

The union said an offer from the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) was unacceptable, adding that no new proposals had been made since the last strike on May 13.

The strike on June 2 will see 20,000 railway workers in catering, train managers and station staff take action, affecting train services throughout the country.

"The government now needs to unlock the RDG and allow them to make an offer that can be put to a referendum of our members."  RMT (@RMTunion) May 18, 2023

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: The Government is once again not allowing the Rail Delivery Group to make an improved offer that we can consider.

Therefore, we have to pursue our industrial campaign to win a negotiated settlement on jobs, pay and conditions.

Ministers cannot just wish this dispute away.

They underestimate the strength of feeling our members, who have just given us a new six-month strike mandate, continue to support the campaign and the action and are determined to see this through until we get an acceptable resolution.

The Government now needs to unlock the RDG and allow them to make an offer that can be put to a referendum of our members.

An RDG spokesperson said: In recent discussions with the RMT, we have continued to stand by the fair, industry-level dispute resolution proposal agreed line by line with their negotiating team, which would have resolved this dispute and given our lowest-paid staff a rise of up to 13%.

By calling more strike action, the RMT leadership have chosen to prolong this dispute without ever giving their members a chance to have a say on their own offer.

Instead, they will be subject to yet more lost pay through industrial action, customers will suffer more disruption, and the industry will continue to suffer huge damage at a time when the railway is taking more than its fair share from taxpayers to keep trains running post-Covid.

We remain open and willing to engage in national-level talks so that we can secure a pay rise for our people and the long-term future of an industry vital to Britains economy.

Train drivers are also striking in coming weeks in their ongoing dispute over pay.

Members of Aslef will walk out on May 31 and June 3, the day of the FA Cup Final at Wembley.

A Department for Transport spokesman said: Its extremely disappointing that for the second time in a month, RMT has decided to call strikes on the same weekend as Aslef strikes, going out of their way to make travelling by train to the FA Cup final, Epsom Derby and a number of music concerts more difficult for thousands of people.

The Transport Secretary and the rail minister have facilitated talks and there continues to be a fair and reasonable offer on the table, yet the RMTs executive committees actions will see their members lose money through strikes, rather than having the chance to vote on the offer and bring this dispute to an end.
FILE PHOTO: TikTok logo is displayed on the smartphone while standing on the U.S. flag in this illustration

By David Shepardson

(Reuters) - Montana Governor Greg Gianforte on Wednesday signed legislation to ban Chinese-owned TikTok from operating in the state to protect residents from alleged intelligence gathering by China, making it the first U.S. state to ban the popular short video app.

Montana will make it unlawful for Google and Apple's app stores to offer TikTok within the state, but will not impose any penalties on individuals using the app. The ban is to take effect Jan. 1, 2024, and is almost certain to face legal challenges.

TikTok, owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance, did not respond to a Reuters question asking if it planned legal action.

Earlier, TikTok issued a statement saying that the new law "infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok," and said it will "continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, has faced growing calls from U.S. lawmakers and state officials to ban the app nationwide over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform.

The app has become wildly popular with teens. According to the Pew Research Center, 67% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 use TikTok, and 16% of all teens say they use the app almost constantly. TikTok has said that the "vast majority" of its users are over the age of 18.

In March, a congressional committee grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about whether the Chinese government could access user data or influence what Americans see on the app. But calls to ban TikTok nationwide or give the Biden administration new powers to crack down or ban TikTok have not advanced in Congress.

Gianforte, a Republican, said the bill will further "our shared priority to protect Montanans from Chinese Communist Party surveillance."

TikTok has repeatedly denied that it has ever shared data with the Chinese government and has said the company would not do so if asked.

FREE SPEECH "TRAMPLED"

Montana, which has a population of just over 1 million people, said TikTok could face fines for each violation and additional fines of $10,000 per day if it violates the ban.

The short video app can be downloaded in app stores on Apple Inc and Google devices. Apple and Google, a unit of Alphabet Inc, could also face fines of $10,000 per violation, per day if they violate the ban.

Apple and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) slammed the law as "unconstitutional" and noted that it will go into effect on Jan. 1 if the courts do not act.

With this ban, Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature have trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment, Keegan Medrano, policy director at the ACLU of Montana, said in a statement.

An attempt by former President Donald Trump to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat through a Commerce Department order in 2020 was blocked by multiple courts and never took effect.

TikTok's free speech allies include several Democratic members of Congress, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and First Amendment groups like the American Civil Liberties Union.

Industry group NetChoice general counsel Carl Szabo also criticized the new law. "The government may not block our ability to access constitutionally protected speech - whether it is in a newspaper, on a website or via an app." he said in a statement, adding that Montana "ignores the U.S. Constitution, due process and free speech."

Gianforte, who had sought to convince the state legislature to broaden the ban to other social media applications that provide certain data to foreign adversaries, also prohibited the use of all social media applications that collect and provide personal information or data to foreign adversaries on state government-issued devices.

TikTok is working on an initiative called Project Texas, which creates a standalone entity to store American user data in the U.S. on servers operated by U.S. tech company Oracle .

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler)
A teenage mother accused of murdering her newborn son told police she cuddled him goodbye, kissed him on the forehead then gently placed him in (a bin bag), jurors heard.

Paris Mayo, who is now 19 but was 15 at the time of the incident, has gone on trial accused of inflicting complex skull fractures on little Stanley Mayo at her parents home in Springfield Avenue, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, on March 23 2019.

The Crown has alleged that after inflicting the fractures, possibly caused by Mayos foot on his head, she then stuffed five pieces of cotton wool into his mouth  two of which were found deep in the throat.

Her baby is thought to have lived just a little over two hours, Worcester Crown Court was previously told, although Mayo claimed in police interviews played to jurors on Thursday that the boy never showed signs of life.

She is alleged to have concealed both her pregnancy and the fact of her delivery of baby Stanley, which she did alone and unaided in a sitting room, claiming she was unaware she was carrying.

In what was the first time jurors have heard an account from Mayo as to what happened on the night of the birth, her interviews with police at Hereford police station were re-read in court.

When asked by police how two of the cotton wool balls could have got into the babys throat, she claimed to be panicking because he had all this blood coming out of his mouth, and started cleaning it up.

Mayo said: My whole finger never went into his mouth.

I could have been a bit rough or something, they could have gone down (his throat) like that.

Later, asked why she did not ask her mother, who was upstairs asleep, for help, Mayo replied: I didnt want her to be ashamed of me.

Mayos responses to officers interview questions, given on April 3, 2019, were read by prosecution barrister Chloe Ashley.

She told police how she was likely in denial about her pregnancy  having been studying childcare, including the different stages of pregnancy at school at the time.

After suffering painful cramps throughout the preceding 48 hours, it was sometime around 9.30pm, after her parents had gone to bed, that she delivered her son alone, in a downstairs sitting room.

When I was stood, I got sharp pain, I put my head on my arms and heard something make a noise  you could hear something hit the floor, she said.

I looked down and I saw him (baby Stanley) and I just thought oh God.

Paris Mayo arriving at Worcester Crown Court (Jacob King/PA)

When I saw the baby, he was on the floor, I saw his umbilical cord was around his throat, he wasnt crying, making any noise, he wasnt moving, he wasnt like a normal baby colour.

She placed the baby on a rug, and went to the kitchen, fetching water and a towel to clean up, but then saw Stanley had blood coming out of his mouth and I was like oh no.

Mayo said her father had left clean cotton wool balls in the room, as he was treating an ear infection, and said she reached to pick some up to absorb the blood in her newborns mouth.

I knew I couldnt help him, knew he wasnt going to come alive, so I just wiped all this blood up and left it (the cotton wool) in there (his mouth) so it would absorb all the blood.

She added: I was just that exhausted and tired, thats when I got back up, went to the kitchen and thats when I got the bag to put him in.

Like a black bag. I dont know why I just wanted it all to be over with.

Mayo said: I didnt pick him up and just chuck him in there, because thats horrible.

I opened it up and put it on the floor, so he wouldnt fall in or hurt himself, I picked him up and I cuddled him goodbye.

He still wasnt doing anything.

I kissed him on his forehead, gently placed him in there, (and) put the placenta in next to him.

I tied it (the bag). I picked it up from the bottom where he was, walked by the front door and put the bag there.

I knew my mum was going to see it there, I left it there to find  on purpose.

Afterwards, she went upstairs to bed and went straight to sleep.

Asked if she was responsible for the death of baby Stanley, she replied: No.

Jurors heard previously that the next morning, at 8.23am, Mayos allegedly sent a text message to her brother, George, which read: When you go outside, can you put the black bag in the bin, as its just full of sick from last night, pls?

Mr Mayo previously gave evidence that he picked up what turned out to be a blood-stained black plastic bin liner, finding it unusually heavy, watched by Mayos unsuspecting mother.

Seeing how heavy it was, it was then his mother was prompted to look inside and  finding the dead youngster  immediately dialled 999.

Mayo, of Ruardean, Gloucestershire, denies wrongdoing and the trial, expected to last six weeks, continues.
An SNP MP who believes he might have been a victim of forced adoption has called on the UK Government to formally apologise to the people affected by the appalling practice.

Chris Law told the Commons that despite the Welsh and Scottish Governments both issuing formal apologies, Westminster is always last to the table to accept state responsibility for the most vulnerable members of society.

The Dundee West MP said I stand here as possibly one of those children, adding that forced adoption is not simply a historical injustice but an ongoing injustice.

Hundreds of thousands of children were given up for adoption between 1949 and 1976 in the UK, at a time when unmarried mothers were often rejected by their families and ostracised by society.

Adoptions were generally handled through agencies run by the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church and the Salvation Army.

Speaking at business questions, Mr Law said: Why is Westminster always last to the table to accept state responsibility for the most vulnerable members of society?

Between 1949-1976, an estimated quarter million children across these islands were taken from their mothers and fathers and forcibly adopted.

I stand here as possibly one of those children.

He added: Despite the Scottish and Welsh Governments issuing a formal apology, the UK Government stopped short and said we are sorry on behalf of society for what happened.

Adoption is a form of state practice and its the state who is responsible for setting standards and protecting people.

Forced adoption is not simply a historical injustice, its an ongoing injustice.

So can we therefore have a statement in which the UK Government will finally issue a formal apology to those mothers, fathers and children who continue to be affected by what was an appalling practice?

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt thanked Mr Law for raising the important matter and for sharing his personal experience, adding: I shall make sure that the Cabinet Office have heard his concerns today.

Speaking to the PA news agency afterwards, Mr Law said his brothers mother was almost certainly underage and unmarried, which was the most common cause for children being put up for adoption, forced into it, either through churches or through health professionals.

In his own case, Mr Law said: When I looked up my mother, all I have is a piece of paper so Im still doing the research to find out.

So thats why I said likely rather than certain.

So Im uncertain, but over that period, in Scotland alone during 1949 to 1976, over 60,000 children for forced adoption.

Mr Law said he was born in October 1969 and adopted in January the following year. Meanwhile, his brother was born in November 1971 and also adopted at three months.

Asked why he thinks a formal apology has not been made yet, Mr Law said: I genuinely dont know.

But its deeply disappointing for those parents out there who may have never met their children, or indeed the children themselves who have never made that contact.
A nurse has denied she got a thrill from photographing a sympathy card sent to the parents of a baby girl she allegedly murdered.

The infant is one of seven babies that Lucy Letby is said to have murdered at the Countess of Chester Hospitals neo-natal unit.

Letby, 33, from Hereford, is said to have killed Child I at the fourth attempt. She also denies attempting to murder 10 other babies.

Her trial at Manchester Crown Court has heard that during a night shift on the unit she took a picture on her phone of a sympathy card she wrote to be passed to colleagues attending the childs funeral.

Cross-examining her on Thursday, prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said: You took a picture of a card, addressed to the parents of a child who had died in dreadful circumstances, at the place where she died.

Letby said: The place is insignificant. My usual behaviour is to photograph things that I send or receive.

Mr Johnson asked: Did it give you a bit of a thrill to photograph it at the place where this poor unfortunate child died?

A Morrisons carrier bag which contained a number of hospital shift handover sheets (Cheshire Constabulary/CPS/PA)

Letby replied: Absolutely not.

Jurors have been told that following her arrest a total of 257 shift handover sheets  some including the names of babies she allegedly harmed  were found at her then home in Chester and her parents address in Hereford.

One sheet found in pristine condition at her address in Westbourne Road, Chester, was dated June 1 2010  her first day of work as a student at the neonatal unit.

Mr Johnson asked: Did you have a keepsafe box with roses on it at Westbourne Road?

Yes, said Letby.

Mr Johnson said: What was in the keepsafe box?

Letby said: I cant recall from memory.

Mr Johnson said: One of the things in that box was that handover sheet, wasnt it?

Letby said: I dont have any recollection where the handover sheets were.

Mr Johnson said: How does it differ from all the other handover sheets?

Letby said: It doesnt have any writing on it.

Mr Johnson said: And it doesnt have any folds in it. Its in pristine condition.

Letby agreed.

Mr Johnson went on: Some 99 handover sheets from your home as a student.

Letby said: I wouldnt know.

Mr Johnson said: You have not been prepared to tell the truth about these handover sheets, have you?

Letby said: The truth is what I have told you.

The defendant previously told the jury of eight women and four men that the sheets inadvertently come home with in my uniform pocket.

Police found 31 handover sheets in a Morrisons bag  her work bag  under her bed.

Mr Johnson asked: Why put them in the bag at all?

Letby said:  I cant recall. They are just pieces of paper to me.

Mr Johnson said: You are not telling the truth, are you?

Court artist sketch of Nicholas Johnson KC cross-examining nurse Lucy Letby (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

Letby said: I am.

Mr Johnson said: Why dont you want to tell the truth?

Letby said: That is the truth. They have no meaning to me at all. I have copious pieces of paper and cards that I have not thrown away my whole life.

Also discovered in police searches was a blood gas reading of a baby boy, Child M, who she allegedly attempted to murder.

Mr Johnson reminded Letby that a nursing colleague who took the measurement had told the court she would have disposed of the printout in the units confidential waste bin.

The prosecutor asked: When did you fish it out of the bin?

Letby said: I never fished anything out of the confidential bin.

Mr Johnson said: How did you get it?

Letby said: I cant recall specifically.

Mr Johnson said: It was for your little collection, wasnt it Lucy Letby?

No, replied the defendant.

Letby admitted sometimes visiting the unit at night while not working a shift.

She said this was to fill in paperwork or speak to colleagues and the night-time visits were due to her shift patterns.

Mr Johnson said: So theres occasions you have been on the unit and no trace?

Letby said her swipe card used for entry would have been recorded.

Mr Johnson said she had been on the unit on a day off when a baby girl, Child G  who she allegedly tried to murder  was seriously ill.

The prosecutor said: You had been having a look at her, hadnt you? Why are you looking at this child?

Letby said she was checking on her as the paperwork she had come back to complete related to that baby.

Mr Johnson continued: Theres no record of you going into the unit from the swipe data. You would not need a pass to get in. You could ring the buzzer and walk in. People trusted you.

Letby replied: To go to the unit at night, you have to have a reason to go. It was quieter at night.

Letby, from Hereford, denies all the alleged offences said to have taken place between June 2015 and June 2016.

The defendant later became tearful when Mr Johnson suggested she had enjoyed the collapse and death of Child C, a baby boy she is said to have murdered in June 2015.

Jurors were reminded that another nurse on the shift had told the court she had to keep telling Letby to stop going into the family room as his parents cradled their son following his death.

Mr Johnson said: I am going to suggest you enjoyed what happened. Thats why you were in and out of the room.

No, said Letby.

The trial continues on Friday.
Nurses in Northern Ireland have staged a demonstration over the deteriorating health service in the region.

Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) gathered at the front gates of Stormont before walking the mile to Parliament Buildings holding placards.

The Department of Health said last week that officials were having to make decisions on spending reductions with great regret following the Budget which was set by Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris in the absence of locally elected ministers.

RCN members will voice their anger at Stormont today about the escalating crisis in health and social care, and the lack of political leadership and accountability for the system in NI. We must recognise this crisis, take responsibility for the human cost and act urgently. pic.twitter.com/BKIMvESQcr  RCN Northern Ireland (@RCN_NI) May 18, 2023

The expected cuts include reducing the number of nursing student places in Northern Ireland to 1,025.

RCN Northern Ireland director Rita Devlin said the current state of the health service was the worst she had seen in her career.

She said there were almost 3,000 unfilled nursing posts in the health service and a similar number in the independent sector.

We dont have enough nurses in Northern Ireland to look after our patients, she said.

RCN Northern Ireland director Rita Devlin said she felt members were being pushed into a corner (Rebecca Black/PA)

Nurses in Northern Ireland are the worst paid in the UK yet again despite the fact that when we took strike action in 2019, we were promised by the executive that that would never happen to us again, and they are cutting 300 student nurses places, that is going to have really difficult consequences for us moving forward.

It is no wonder we have issues with recruitment and retention to our health service.

Ms Devlin was adamant that money could be found and said there was instead a lack of political will.

She did not rule out further strike action by nurses.

Ms Devlin said: I feel our members are being pushed into a corner because if we dont take strike action, what else?

Were not going to sit by and let our nurses in Northern Ireland be the worst paid in the UK, were not going to sit by and let our health service deteriorate to the point where people have no choice but to spend their savings and go private, were not going to sit back and let this country and its health service be destroyed.

I think this is all politics, I think were being led to believe that there is no money. There is always money, there is always money when governments need to find money, theres always money for weapons, there is always money for failed PPE.

We dont believe there is no money, we believe this is a political stance, holding the people of Northern Ireland to hostage and we dont believe the Government.

The money is there, they are just choosing not to give it to the health service in Northern Ireland.
Ahead of the G7 conference geared at countering Russia and China, UK's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has come to Tokyo to launch a new defense collaboration with Japan and to lend his backing to private business transactions totaling 18 billion ($22 billion).

In a report by The Guardian, Sunak is meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of the conference with global leaders in Hiroshima on Friday, May 19. The said meeting will discuss increased defense cooperation in light of China's rising aggression towards Taiwan.

UK-Japan Ties

UK and Japan have agreed to disclose the Hiroshima Accord, which stipulates that they would consult one another on some military choices and will allow the Carrier Strike Group of the Royal Navy to conduct more drills in the Indo-Pacific.

It is believed that the British prime minister sees Japan as a strategic partner and a nation that shares his enthusiasm for cutting-edge research and development.

As global anxiety rises over Taiwan's dependence on manufacturing in the face of a threat from China, the two nations will talk about the supply of semiconductors. These semiconductors or chips are used in automobiles, smartphones, medical devices, and other gadgets.

Sunak said that Japanese companies, including Toshiba, Sumitomo, and Mitsubishi, would spend 18 billion ($22 billion) on wind farms, real estate, and other projects in the UK.

Along with at least three UK firms, Oxentia, Transreport, and Winnow, he will be representing Octopus Energy, a UK utility provider moving into Japan, and Mott MacDonald, an engineering business advising on offshore wind projects.

Impasse Caused by Brexit

During the defense pact announcement on Thursday, May 18, The Guardian said Sunak was asked if the UK was still a good place to do business after one company said Brexit was a roadblock.

"It's something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern. And as a result of that, we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally," he stated. "I'm going to be meeting the chief executive of Nissan later today ... they've invested a billion pounds in the north-east for electric vehicle manufacturing."

Also Read: G7 Summit Targets China's Economic Coercion; Beijing Displays Military Power Around Japan

The PM's Agendas

Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, are making their first official visit to Japan since he took the prime minister position.

In separate instances, Sunak is scheduled to meet with the president of France, Emmanuel Macon, and the prime leader of India, Narendra Modi.

CNN previously reported that Sunak's journey to Asia for the summit is being cut short due to concerns about the US debt limit. Therefore, they are not anticipating a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden.

Reportedly, Sunak's second top objective will be convincing foreign leaders to increase their support for Ukraine.

Also Read: 'Group of Seven' Member States Consider Asserting Influence in Taiwan Strait To Push China Back

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Ovo Energy and Good Energy are set to pay 4 million in compensation after overcharging customers during the energy crisis.

Some 18,000 households did not receive protection they were due, Ofgem said.

Ofgem said it was totally unacceptable that people were overcharged during an already so challenging and stressful time for consumers.

Errors by the two suppliers meant some people were charged above the maximum rates allowed under either the energy price cap or the Governments Energy Price Guarantee scheme.

The Governments scheme brought the typical household energy bill down to around 2,500 a year in Britain and 2,100 in Northern Ireland.

Good Energy overcharged more than 6,900 customers between January 2019 and October 2022, while Ovo overcharged nearly 11,000 customers between October 2022 and March 2023.

The affected households will receive a combined total of 2.7 million from the two companies while an extra 1.25 million will go to vulnerable customers in the UK under Ofgems voluntary redress fund.

The average amount paid to Good Energy customers will be 109 while Ovo customers will receive an average of 181, Ofgem said.

Dan Norton, deputy director of retail at Ofgem, said: Protecting consumers is always our top priority, and we expect suppliers to ensure customers pay no more than the level of the price cap or Energy Price Guarantee  schemes put in place with the very purpose of helping people.

It is totally unacceptable that Good Energy and Ovo Energy customers were overcharged, particularly at a time that is already so challenging and stressful for consumers across the UK.

Energy suppliers should hear this loud and clear: we expect suppliers to act with the utmost care and integrity.

We will continue to hold them to account if they do not meet their customer protection or reporting obligations.

Both suppliers self-reported the issues to Ofgem, which the regulator said meant the redress packages were lower than they could have been.

A spokesperson for Ovo said: Were very sorry to some of our fixed-price customers who experienced a delay in receiving the Energy Price Guarantee discount. We noticed immediately and self-reported the error to Ofgem.

The issue has now been fixed and compensation has been paid as an apology.

Nigel Pocklington, Good Energys chief executive, said: We are very sorry that we let some of our customers down and promise to put things right.

We have been contacting those impacted to apologise and issue their refunds and goodwill payments and will be fixing the issue so it does not happen again.

He added that the firm has submitted a formal improvement plan including new automated processes and standards to prevent any similar mistakes in the future.
A repugnant memorial to a slave owner which praises him for quelling a rebellion has been removed from a church to a museum in the first relocation of its kind.

The plaque in St Peters Church, Dorchester, Dorset, commemorates John Gordon who managed plantations in Jamaica for absentee British owners, and also owned some plantations himself.

Originally from Scotland, Mr Gordon died in 1774 in Dorchester as he was travelling to Falmouth to catch a ship to return to Jamaica but had no known Dorset connections.

The Church of England took the action to move the plaque to the nearby Dorset Museum where it will be viewable on request after churchgoers questioned its presence in the church.

A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Salisbury said: The memorial is highly unusual in recording an actual instance of rebellion by enslaved people  Tackys revolt of 1760  and is considered to be of historical importance for this reason.

Church warden Val Potter, left, with Elizabeth Selby, acting director of Dorset County Museum as the plaque is moved into storage (Geoff Moore, Dorset Media Services/Diocese of Salisbury/PA)

However the wording on the monuments explicitly refers to Gordons actions in quelling the rebellion, praising him and using offensive language.

Many worshippers at St Peters and visitors had long felt the monument had no place in a church which sought to be open and welcoming to everybody.

Max Hebditch, a historian who attends St Peters, carried out research into Gordon and the church applied through the Church of Englands planning system for the monument to be removed from the wall and put in Dorset Museum next door.

Ruth Arlow, diocese chancellor, said: The monument celebrated in language of acclamation the violent quelling of a rebellion by enslaved people against a status that is now universally acknowledged as morally repugnant and contrary to Christian doctrine.

Its continued presence in the building seemed to imply the continued support, or at least toleration and acceptance, of discrimination and oppression and was inconsistent with the message of the universality of Gods love which the community of St Peters sought to share.

Harvard University Professor Vincent Brown, author of Tackys Revolt, The Story Of An Atlantic Slave War, supported research into the monument undertaken by the church.

He said: The Diocese of Salisburys decision represents a model for taking history seriously by honouring the values of the present without erasing or forgetting the past.

To remember enslavers is not to celebrate them rather it is to acknowledge the dark legacy of their influence on our world.

The Archdeacon of Sherborne, Penny Sayer, said: Local people were asking if it was appropriate to have such a monument in a church, or is it more appropriate to have it somewhere else.

It is really important that the story is told, particularly because it mentions Tackys revolt which represents hidden voices, people whose stories are not often told.

There were very careful steps taken by the church to ensure the monument was researched and the right process followed.

The memorial is to be replaced with a simple plaque noting details of the life and death of Gordon whose descendants have been consulted on the replacement.
There is no doubt Russia has the intent and the ability to target the Wests underwater energy and communication lines, Ben Wallace said as he launched a security partnership with Norway.

At a press conference alongside his Norwegian counterpart at the Northwood military base on Thursday, the Defence Secretary said Moscow has submarines and spy ships specifically designed to potentially sabotage or attack critical national infrastructure belonging to its adversaries.

Mr Wallace and Norwegian defence minister Bjorn Arild Gram signed a statement of intent to increase cooperation on countering undersea threats in the wake of last years attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

While the Ministry of Defence did not name Russia in its release about the agreement, Mr Wallace left little doubt as to where the threat is emanating from.

He told the press conference: What we know is the Russians have a work programme, they have a specific naval programme designed to both look at and potentially sabotage or attack critical national infrastructure belonging to its adversaries.

It has a number of submarines and other pieces of equipment and spy ships and everything else specifically designed for that purpose.

So whether we are talking about Nord Stream, whether we are talking about our own infrastructure, that is an area that is vulnerable and needs to be protected.

He added: What we can say without doubt is Russia has the intent and the capability to target the Wests critical national infrastructure. We have to have the intent and the capability to defend it.

Asked whether he was aware of any underwater cables already being sabotaged, the Cabinet minister said any speculation on the UKs levels of knowledge on Russian activities would only help the Kremlin.

We have to be alert to the deliberate programme that the Russians have invested in, we must do the same, he said.

Mr Gram noted the difficulty of guaranteeing that no infrastructure has been undermined as we have almost 9,000 kilometres of gas pipelines on the bottom of the sea.

Neither Mr Wallace nor his Norwegian counterpart would comment on whether Russia was linked to the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, which are still under investigation.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace before a press conference with Norwegian defence minister Bjorn Arild Gram (James Manning/PA)

The two nations agreed to increase cooperation to improve their ability to detect submarines, counter mine threats and generally enhance North Atlantic security.

The agreement also bolsters the development of better technology to protect shared interests in the North Sea while streamlining the process for other allies to join their activity, according to the Ministry of Defence.

They have already jointly increased security patrols in the region where the unexplained blasts occurred.

From July, the Royal Navys new multi-role ocean surveillance vessel RFA Proteus will go to sea to help protect critical infrastructure, Mr Wallace said.

I fully expect a large part of the area that it will patrol will be Norway and the United Kingdom, the area where our gas pipelines are, where our wind farms are, where our electronic cables and optic cables are, he said.

Four leaks were discovered last September on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines that run from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea.

The pipelines were not operational at the time because of disputes between Russia and the European Union over Moscows invasion of Ukraine but were filled with natural gas.
The KS2 year 6 reading paper has been released early after complaints from parents and teachers over the difficulty of the questions.

Due to be published on Monday, the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) made the exam available due to public interest in the tests.

James Bowen, assistant general secretary at the school leaders union the NAHT, said: We are pleased that the Government will be looking at what happened with the reading test this year.

We have had clear feedback from school leaders that this years paper was not pitched appropriately for a large proportion of pupils and even highly proficient readers struggled with it.

It is essential that test papers are accessible for the large majority of pupils. We need to remember that these are 10 and 11-year-olds and the last thing we need are papers that leave them feeling demotivated and dejected.

Sats, or Standard Assessment Tests, are used to measure childrens English and maths skills in year 2 and year 6, and consist of six papers which last between 30 minutes and an hour.

Last week, the NAHT expressed concerns over the Sats reading paper, saying it planned to raise the issue with exams regulator Ofqual and the STA.

Sats are used to measure childrens English and maths skills in year 2 and year 6 (Danny Lawson/PA)

In the test, children had one hour to answer 38 questions about three set texts.

The first was an extract from a story about friends who believed they had come across sheep rustlers  a word used in the text, which means someone who steals animals from farms.

The second was an interview with a bat expert about a bat colony in Texas, adapted from a 2016 New York Times article.

The final passage was taken from a book called The Rise Of Wolves, where a young boy called Innis hears a wolf in the remote rural area he lives in.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: Key Stage 2 assessments are an important way of identifying pupils strengths and where they may have fallen behind as they head to secondary school.

The Standards and Testing Agency (STA) independently develop these tests, with questions rigorously trialled with year 6 pupils and reviewed by education and inclusion experts to ensure appropriateness. Ofqual regulate all national curriculum assessments, which includes observing STAs processes.

The STA will continue to work with schools, children and parents to understand the views on this years papers.

Outlined below are some of the more unclear or harder questions from the paper.

 Question 2 asked why the main character in the story, Priya, was surprised to hear two vehicles drive by at nighttime. But the mark scheme specified pupils should not be rewarded for giving the midnight setting as the response  even though this would be a logical inference.

Question: Why did Priya find it surprising to hear two vehicles drive by?

Relevant extract: Priya was surprised, and now she was completely awake. They had only seen a couple of cars all day, and now two had come past together.

Answer: Because they hadnt heard that many cars drive by.

Mark scheme note: Do not accept reference only to it being late at night/very early in the morning, eg because it was the middle of the night.

 Question 8 asked pupils to choose the correct meaning of wriggled in the same passage.

Question: She wriggled back inside the tent. What does this tell you about how Priya got inside the tent? Tick one.

She ran quickly inside/She jumped through the flap/She had to squeeze in/She crept in quietly.

Answer: She had to squeeze in.

But online thesauruses by Merriam-Webster and Collins list creep as a synonym for wriggle, among others.

 Question 30 asks why Innis, the main character in the third story who has just heard a wolf, found it hard to trust his own senses.

But the passage does not actually suggest Innis distrusts his own senses. Rather the boy understands straight away there is a wolf, and tries to convince himself the wolf does not exist. He walks quickly to leave the area which is becoming dark.

Question: What two things made it hard for Innis to trust his own senses when he was looking for the wolf? Tick two.

Relevant extract: The howl pierced the darkening sky and made Innis Munro stop dead in his tracks. He pulled his hood down, listened intently. The only sound was his beating heart. That was a wolf, he thought. But it couldnt have been. There were no wolves on the island of Nin, no wolves in Scotland any more, not for almost 300 years. It was just a trick of the wind. He pressed on but kept his hood down. The afternoon light of early March was fading fast, snow was falling, and he was still a good half-mile from home. Innis walked faster, told himself it was not the howl that made him hurry but the gloomy sky and gathering snow.

The choices: How flat the land was/the fading light/how tired he felt/the weather/how fast he was walking

Answer: The fading light, the weather.
A Scottish Government minister has criticised Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, furthering a spat over the countrys diplomatic missions.

Mr Cleverly wrote to UK officials last month, urging them to take a strengthened approach to visits from devolved ministers abroad and to ensure Westminster representatives attend any meetings with foreign governments.

The move angered Scottish External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson, prompting a scathing letter in which he accused Mr Cleverly of making misleading statements and calling for the guidance to be withdrawn.

The row escalated on Thursday, with Mr Robertson claiming he has not received a reply.

I wrote to the Foreign Secretary @JamesCleverly more than 2 weeks ago asking him to withdraw his guidance to UK missions abroad to obstruct Scotlands international work. I have yet to receive a reply. Zero common courtesy. Typical disrespect for Scotland. pic.twitter.com/dL4jBOc5Zj  Angus Robertson (@AngusRobertson) May 18, 2023

He said on Twitter: I wrote to the Foreign Secretary @JamesCleverly more than 2 weeks ago asking him to withdraw his guidance to UK missions abroad to obstruct Scotlands international work.

I have yet to receive a reply.

Zero common courtesy. Typical disrespect for Scotland.

Responding to Mr Robertsons letter in the House of Commons, Mr Cleverly  accused of implementing draconian rules on foreign visits by SNP MPs  said: The competences of the Scottish Government and the reserved position of the UK Government are clear. They are absolutely clear.

I would say to him and the House that Scotland has an excellent advocate overseas: its me.

James Cleverly has said he is an excellent advocate overseas for Scotland (PA)

A spokesman for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: Any suggestion that the UK Government is supressing Scotlands voice from being heard internationally is absurd.

The 800 staff based at FCDOs joint HQ in East Kilbride are at the very heart of shaping and delivering UK foreign policy.

The Scottish Governments Constitution and External Affairs Secretary, Angus Robertson, recently praised the FCDO at the Scottish Affairs Committee for its strong record of supporting the devolved governments. Promoting every area of the UK is part of our DNA.

The Foreign Secretarys guidance will not change the UK Governments commitment to working collaboratively with each of the devolved governments and their ministers in the delivery of devolved policy objectives, while ensuring reserved competences are fully respected.
Rishi Sunak has ruled out allowing building on the green belt after Labour backed the move in order to alleviate the housing crisis.

The Prime Minister said he wants to make sure our green spaces are protected after being accused by Sir Keir Starmer of killing off the dream of home ownership by failing to build.

Mr Sunak has dropped plans for mandatory local housing targets as part of a plan to build 300,000 homes a year in response to a revolt by Tory MPs and activists.

But he is under pressure to get Britain building in order to increase the supply of homes to alleviate soaring rents and shortages.

Speaking to reporters travelling with him in Japan, Mr Sunak said: I was very clear over the summer, I wanted to make sure our green spaces are protected. I think that is what local communities want.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer spoke at a British Chambers of Commerce conference (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

At the same time, we have empowered local communities with local plans.

What I find is that its not necessarily an opposition to housing itself, its how and where exactly it is done and the infrastructure that comes alongside it.

Sir Keir said that under his plan local areas would be given more powers to direct where houses are built, including on the green belt in some circumstances, but he insisted I want to protect the green belt, I value our countryside.

There is already building on the green belt, the question is do local areas have sufficient control over where that happens and how that happens, he said in a speech to the British Chambers of Commerce.

He highlighted an example of a car park which was in the green belt and a playing field which was not, with the latter site chosen for development.

Weve got to take better decisions than that, he said.

Former levelling up secretary Simon Clarke is among the Tory critics of the Prime Ministers housing approach.

After the partys poor local election results, Mr Clarke argued Mr Sunaks major mistake of dropping housebuilding targets had played a role.

Mr Clarke said that the Governments attempts to pander to the publics worst instincts of Nimbyism  wanting building but not in my backyard  was failing.
Britain is banning Russian diamonds in a new wave of sanctions to pressure Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine as Rishi Sunak warns allies against complacency at the G7 summit in Japan.

The Prime Minister announced the new measures against Russia, also including a prohibition on imports of Russian-origin copper, aluminium and nickel on the eve of the meeting in Hiroshima on Thursday.

Having signed a new defence and security pact with Tokyo, Mr Sunak will visit the A-bomb dome ruin with his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, to reflect on the atomic devastation in the Second World War.

Talks between G7 allies including the USs Joe Biden and Frances Emmanuel Macron will centre on military and economic support for Ukraine as they seek to show a united front.

The UK is also preparing new individual sanctions against 86 people and companies to apply further pressure on the Russian president and his supporters.

Downing Street expects other G7 allies, which also include Germany, Italy and Canada, as well as the EU, to impose similar sanctions.

The diamond export industry was worth more than 3 billion to Russia in 2021, but No 10 conceded direct imports have been low since the UK sanctioned state-owned miners Alrosa last year.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said discussions will include future security guarantees and long-term deterrence to prevent Ukraine ever facing a similar situation.

On the Chinese threat to Taiwan, the official said: Guarding against economic coercion is something that the Prime Minister is pushing for.

Becoming the first Prime Minister to visit Hiroshima, Mr Sunak signed a new pact with Mr Kishida to bolster strength in the Indo-Pacific region amid concerns over Chinese aggression.

For the sake of global peace and security, we must show that brutal violence and coercion does not reap rewards, he said.

As todays sanctions announcements demonstrate, the G7 remains unified in the face of the threat from Russia and steadfast in our support for Ukraine.

On Sunday, Mr Sunak will meet his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, who is attending the summit as a guest.

Mr Modi has remained neutral on the Russian invasion, calling for peaceful dialogue to end the war.

The Prime Minister told reporters travelling with him in Japan that he has seen positive steps from India in its stance.
The Croydon tram disaster driver was a special guy who exchanged waves with a colleague before his carriage derailed, killing seven passengers, a court has heard.

Alfred Dorris, 49, is on trial at the Old Bailey over the fatal incident at Sandilands in south London on November 9 2016.

Giving evidence on Thursday, fellow driver Keith Crump recalled how he had been coming back from Elmers End around to Sandiland when he saw Dorriss tram.

He told jurors: On the right-hand side was Alfs tram. He was going to New Addington. We exchanged waves and that was it. He was always pleasant.

Alfred Dorris at Croydon Magistrates Court (James Manning/PA)

Later, the power went off and he found out there had been an accident.

He agreed with Dorriss barrister that he was always friendly and gave an exaggerated wave.

Mr Crump added that he was a special guy.

He also agreed that Dorris was always smartly turned out, immaculate, pleasant and professional.

He said he had never heard of any concerns about his driving before the crash and was totally shocked to learn Dorris was the driver.

Mr Crump told jurors the conditions that day had been awful.

He said: I was going a lot more slowly and a lot more cautious because the rain was very heavy. It was very dark. Sometimes it can cause distractions. You are just extra careful.

The court has heard Dorris was going more than three times the speed limit when he attempted to negotiate a sharp turn out of a tunnel at more than 70kmh before the tram derailed.

Passenger Joseph McKoy boarded Dorriss tram at New Addington, sat down and put head phones on to read or listen to the news before disaster struck.

The scene of the crash in Croydon (Steve Parsons/PA)

He said: I used the phone as a torch to see what was going on in the drivers cabin. I decided to have a look to see the state of the driver.

I could not see too much. I could make out the driver was not responsive. I started shouting to get the attention of the driver. I remember kicking the glass.

Mr McKoy said that when the driver came round, he said: What happened. I must have blacked out.

Georgina Reeves had got the tram towards New Addington to secure a place on the return journey towards Croydon.

Asked what she was doing before the crash, she said: I was probably half asleep. I remember texting a friend because I was meeting her at Croydon but that was about it.

I was sitting behind the driver before the accident, the seat directly behind the cabin.

Ms Reeves said that after the tram derailed, she stood up to call 999 and noticed someone was shining a light into the drivers cabin before Dorris opened his eyes and opened the door.

She told jurors the driver said: I must have passed out.

He then asked if anyone was hurt, someone replied look around you, and Dorris said oh shit, the witness said.

The prosecution alleged Dorris may have had a micro-sleep at the time of the crash or became disorientated.

Dorris, from Beckenham, south London, denies failing to take reasonable care of the health and safety of himself and his 69 passengers on Tram 2551 on that day.

The Old Bailey trial continues.
The UK and Norway have signed a security partnership to counter undersea threats and protect critical energy infrastructure in the wake of last years attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

The two nations agreed to increase cooperation to improve their ability to detect submarines, counter mine threats and generally enhance North Atlantic security.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and his Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram signed a statement of intent during a visit to the Maritime Operations Centre on the Northwood military base on Thursday.

The UK and Norway have already jointly increased security patrols in the region where the unexplained Nord Stream pipeline explosions occurred. The blasts are subject to investigation but are believed to have been intentional.

Building on this, the new agreement will bolster the development of capabilities to protect shared interests in the North Sea while streamlining the process for other allies to join their activity, according to the Ministry of Defence.

Mr Wallace said: Cooperating through the JEF (Joint Expeditionary Force) and the Northern Group with our long-standing defence partner and Nato ally Norway, we are heightening our joint capabilities to protect Western critical national infrastructure on the seabed.

The attack on the Nord Stream pipeline has determined even closer collaboration across our collective assets to detect and defend against subsea threats and ensure continued North Atlantic security.

Four leaks were discovered last September on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines that run from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea.

The pipelines were not operational at the time because of disputes between Russia and the European Union over Moscows invasion of Ukraine but were filled with natural gas.

Mr Gram said: It is important that democracies like the UK and Norway stand together when the rules-based international order is under pressure.

The sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines last year is a concrete reminder of what is at stake here.

By working together, we can improve our ability to detect submarines, to counter mine threats and to protect critical infrastructure on the seabed.
Ukrainian forces have used UK-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles against Russian targets, Ben Wallace confirmed.

The Defence Secretary declined to give further details about the use of the long-range cruise missile.

The UK confirmed it would supply the weapons to Ukraine earlier this month.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace during a press conference with Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram (James Manning/PA)

Ukraines leader Volodymyr Zelensky has lobbied Western leaders to supply Nato fighter jets to his nation, particularly F-16s which the UK does not possess.

Mr Wallace suggested the Storm Shadow missiles could help provide some of the same capabilities to strike at Russian positions behind the front line.

At a press conference at the UKs Permanent Joint HQ in Northwood with his Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram, Mr Wallace said: It is my understanding that it (Storm Shadow) has been used since we announced its deployment to Ukraine.

He said the missiles gave the Ukrainians the ability to strike Russian command and control centres which had been moved further behind the front line to keep them out of range of the rocket artillery systems the West had supplied to Kyiv.

He added: Its also one of the mitigations that, if you cant supply fighter aircraft, can you help provide one of the things that fighter aircraft deliver, which is deep strike?

And yes, we can, we can do that with Storm Shadow.

The Defence Secretary warned that Vladimir Putin seemed determined to prolong the war in Ukraine no matter what the cost to the Russian people.

Mr Wallace said: Hes on the receiving end of over 250,000 dead or injured of his own troops, over 10,000 armoured vehicles destroyed or capture, hes low on his stocks, his international reputation is pretty much trashed on the rocks, and he is still pressing on.

So Im afraid to say at the moment Russia still seems determined, no matter what the cost to their own people.

And thats why its important that Ukraine is not only given the tools to defend itself, but also to go to the next step of expelling Russia from its borders.

Im not going to speculate when they will do that. We are on the right trajectory of their capability, their training their weapons systems.
Public confidence in the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) dropped to its lowest point in over 50 years in 2022 after the Dobbs ruling, which led to state-level abortion bans and other constraints.

In 2022, the gap between Democrats and Republicans on abortion rights hit an all-time high, as the General Social Survey indicates. The study, performed by NORC at the University of Chicago since 1973-the same year Roe v. Wade legalized abortion nationwide-measures public trust in the judiciary, according to News Nation.

Compared to 26% in 2021, just 18% of Americans said they had a lot of confidence in the SCOTUS, according to a study conducted last year. On the other hand, those with less confidence rose from 21% to 36%. In the most recent study, 46% of respondents said they had "only some" trust in the SCOTUS.

Women, Democrats, and supporters of abortion rights had the biggest drop in trust. Compared to 22% in 2018 and 32% in 2018, just 12% of women had great confidence in the SCOTUS in 2022.

Confidence among Democrats fell from 25% in 2021 to 8% in the same year. Similarly, faith in the court decreased from 25% to 12% among those who favor abortion for any reason.

Trust in the SCOTUS has recently declined modestly, even among Republicans. Compared to 31% in 2021 and 37% in 2018, 26% of Republicans had a lot of trust in the US Supreme Court in 2022.

Read Also: China Warns Embassies Over 'Propaganda' Displays

Method of Study

Over many months, the survey was carried out using a mix of in-person and online interviews, per The Guardian.

Following the conservative majority's Dobbs ruling overturning Roe v. Wade in late June 2022, all interviews took place seven weeks after a draft of the judgment was revealed.

Since 1972, NORC has been conducting the General Social Survey at the University of Chicago. Its sample sizes each year range from 1,500 to 4,000 individuals, and its margins of error range from plus or minus two percentage points to plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, according to News and Sentinel.

Between May 5 and December 20, 2022, 3,544 American adults were interviewed for the most current poll. For the whole sample, the margin of error is plus or minus three percentage points.

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South Carolina Democratic Reps. Gilda Cobb-Hunter and Heather Bauer call for a vote on one of the Democrats' many amendments that sent an abortion debate into the early morning hours on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/James Pollard)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  As more Southern states pass new restrictions on abortion, Virginia is poised to become an outlier in the region for its relatively permissive laws, setting up the state as a destination for women seeking abortions and raising questions about providers' capacity to meet demand.

South Carolina is among the last bastions in the region for those seeking legal abortions, but that status could end soon. Access would be almost entirely banned after about six weeks of pregnancy  often before women know theyre pregnant  under a bill expected to come up for a vote in the House on Wednesday. The state Senate, which previously rejected a proposal to nearly outlaw abortions, could give final passage next week.

And most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy will be banned in North Carolina beginning July 1 after the states Republican-controlled Legislature successfully overrode the Democratic governors veto late Tuesday.

Abortion is banned or severely restricted in much of the South, including bans throughout pregnancy in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. In Georgia, its allowed only in the first six weeks.

Such restrictions are possible because the U.S. Supreme Court last year struck down the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, which established a nationwide right to abortion.

It would be just devastating for abortion access in the South, Jamie Lockhart, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, said of the proposed six-week ban in South Carolina, the 12-week ban in North Carolina, and a six-week ban in Florida that will take effect only if the state's current 15-week ban is upheld by the state Supreme Court.

But North Carolina Rep. Sarah Stevens, a Republican, said she sees the 12-week ban and other restrictions in North Carolina's new law as safeguards, not obstacles to abortion.

We seek to balance protecting unborn babies while ensuring the safety of mothers, she said Tuesday.

Stricter bans across the South would heighten Virginias role as an access point and create a ripple effect as people travel from out of state to seek care, Lockhart said.

Despite abortion providers' efforts to increase available appointments and expand access for patients through telemedicine, the dramatic influx in out-of-state patients will lead to longer wait times for people in those access states, Lockhart said.

Virginia currently allows abortions in the first and second trimesters. An abortion is allowed in the third trimester only if three doctors certify the mothers mental or physical health is at serious risk.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, pushed for a 15-week ban during this years legislative session, but that was defeated by the narrow Democratic majority in the state Senate.

Victoria Cobb, president of the conservative Family Foundation of Virginia, said Wednesday that the state's laws became out of step with its neighbors during years of liberal influence.

Virginians are going to have to work to protect our Commonwealth from being exploited by the abortion industry," Cobb said.

The costs of travel for women who need to go outside their home states for abortions can quickly add up, said Ashlyn Preaux, who helps run an abortion fund in South Carolina.

Abortion remains legal through 22 weeks in South Carolina, and the state had already seen an increasing number of out-of-state patients before Florida and North Carolina enacted new restrictions. Farther west, women often travel to Illinois, Kansas, New Mexico or Colorado.

Provisional state health department data show South Carolina reported nearly 1,000 abortions in each of the first three months this year, after totaling just over 200 in the one full month that a previous six-week ban took effect last year. Nearly half of the patients reportedly came from other states.

Preaux fears the regions new barriers will increase the burden on South Carolina abortion providers already working to match the need. The state has just three clinics, which she stressed are already limited by regulations that largely block them from providing abortions beyond the first trimester.

Until Tuesday, North Carolina had been considered a safe space, said Dr. Erica Pettigrew, a family medicine doctor in Hillsborough. But now, "North Carolinians will be health care refugees to other states, she said, also criticizing provisions of the law for potentially creating more paperwork, along with additional medical and licensing requirements.

In Michigan, one of the leading states in protecting abortion rights since Roe v. Wade was overturned, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation Wednesday that will prohibit companies from firing or otherwise retaliating against workers for having an abortion.

The legislation amends the states civil rights law, which had previously only outlawed employment discrimination if an abortion was to save the life of the mother. It will ensure that workers cannot be treated differently for receiving an abortion regardless of reasoning.

___

Kruesi reported from Nashville, Tennessee. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti in Lansing, Michigan; James Pollard and Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, and Gary Robertson and Hannah Schoenbaum in Raleigh, North Carolina. Schoenbaum and Pollard are corps members for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
NEW YORK (AP)  Angelina Jolie announced a new fashion venture Wednesday aimed at allowing customers to participate in the making of their own creations with master tailors, pattern makers and artisans around the world while keeping discarded fabric out of landfills.

The actress, director, and former special envoy for the United Nations' refugee agency said on Instagram and the new website of Atelier Jolie that the project will make use of deadstock fabric and vintage materials.

We hope to create a community of creativity and inspiration, regardless of socio-economic background, Jolie posted on the brand's site. We will spotlight the people who play a part in each creation. We will bring together a diverse team, including apprenticeships for refugees and other talented, underappreciated groups, with positions of dignity based on skill.

The project hopes to help share the richness of their cultural heritage and support the development of their own businesses, Jolie wrote. In addition, customers will be able to repair or upcycle pieces from their closets as a way to eliminate waste.

We can all collect, appreciate, and be influenced by the designs of others. But the highest form of self-expression  and I believe the most fun  is to create for ourselves, she said.

The idea, Jolie said, stems from her appreciation and deep respect for the many tailors and makers Ive worked with over the years, a desire to make use of the high-quality vintage material and deadstock fabric already available, and also to be part of a movement to cultivate more self-expression.

No further details were released. When Jolie stepped down from her U.N. special envoy post in December, she said she felt it was time to work differently by directly engaging with refugees and local organizations.

Jolie's fashion choices generate intense interest in the media. She and her children are often photographed and their styles dissected. Two of her children, Shiloh and Zahara, wore pieces from their mother's archive to the premiere of her 2021 film, Eternals.
The mystery surrounding Tucker Carlsons ouster from the airwaves at Fox News  and his future plans in media  are coming into sharper focus.

On April 26, Carlson spoke by phone with one of Fox Corp.s eight board members, who told the host that his recent benching was a condition of Fox News settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the conversation.

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The unnamed board member told Carlson that the condition does not appear in any of the settlements documents, and instead was a verbal agreement. If Fox didnt comply, the settlement was off, Carlson was told. Dominion had plenty of leverage given that the $787.5 million deal to settle Dominions defamation suit against the network wouldnt officially close until late-May.

If Dominion opted to blow up the deal, Fox would return to square one on settlement talks or potentially subject the Murdoch family empire to a jury trial that would undoubtedly expose more embarrassing details about the operation of Fox News and fallout from its 2020 president election coverage. Unlike Sean Hannity, Jeanine Pirro and Maria Bartiromo, Carlson wasnt a key player in the suit that claimed Fox News repeatedly and knowingly aired false claims about the company with regards to the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

But Dominion was looking for the best way to maim the conservative news network, and forcing Fox News to cut ties with the most-watched personality in cable news would deal a potentially insurmountable blow and lead to a viewer exodus, according to Carlsons understanding.

That condition was intended to hurt Fox, and Tucker is just collateral damage, says a source familiar with the matter. Dominion wanted to punish Fox, and its working.

Dominion and Fox Corp. both strongly dispute that the decision to take Carlson off the air was directly linked to the settlement. A Fox News spokeswoman called it categorically false. Dominion issued a statement to Variety.

As the Fox principals who negotiated the settlement well know, Dominion made no demands about Tucker Carlsons employment orally or in writing, Dominion said in a statement. Any claims otherwise are categorically false and a thinly veiled effort to further damage Dominion. Fox should take every effort to stop these lies immediately.

Still, the speculation about Dominion and Carlson has spread. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, inserted himself into the drama on May 13 when he called out Dominions alleged role in Carlsons removal from the airwaves. I am happy that Dominion does not operate in Texas, and I dont think that they should do so in the future, Abbott tweeted. We may disagree with others positions, but we should never try to improperly silence views contrary to our own. (In 2020, Texas rejected the use of Dominion software.) Some other Republican governors are expected to follow Abbots lead.

Amid a standoff with Fox  technically still Carlsons employer given that the network has not terminated his employment  the polarizing but popular anchor is poised to launch a show on Twitter within the month, two knowledgeable sources say. With Tucker Carlson Tonight senior executive producer Justin Wells on board, Team Carlson is working as quickly as possible to post his debut show from his home in Maine, where he has a full production studio.

If Fox tries to prevent Carlson from launching the show on the social media platform, where he enjoys a following of 7.5 million, the host is prepared to litigate or watch the network implode attempting to challenge free speech, says one of the sources. As the battle plays out, Fox is continuing to pay Carlson, an enormously influential voice in conservative politics, his $20 million annual salary.

After learning that he was being sidelined on April 24, Carlson hired high-powered Hollywood attorney Bryan Freedman for the contract dispute. Freedman  whose other media clients include Don Lemon (ousted by CNN on the same day as the Carlson-Fox split), Megyn Kelly, Chris Cuomo and Tiffany Cross  is well known as the lawyer you retain when you are ready to go to war with a media giant. As such, Freedman sent a letter to Fox on May 9 saying Fox employees, including Rupert Murdoch himself, broke promises to Carlson intentionally and with reckless disregard for the truth. (A source says Fox has not yet responded to the letter.)

The attorney, who forced NBC News to pay Kelly $69 million after she was fired in 2019, has made it clear to Fox that its cabler breached Carlsons contract by pulling him from his top-rated 8 p.m. slot, and now he is free to do what he wants. (Carlsons contract expires in January 2025.) Freedman declined to comment for this story but recently told Axios: The idea that anyone is going to silence Tucker and prevent him from speaking to his audience is beyond preposterous.

Following the split, embarrassing Carlson text messages leaked to various media outlets, the worst being a missive in which he expressed mixed feelings about three Donald Trump supporters beating up on an Antifa activist during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Jumping a guy like that is dishonorable obviously. Its not how white men fight, he wrote. The text messages were part of Dominion legal filings, and unredacted versions were not available to the public. One of the sources says Carlson believes the leaks came from either Fox or Dominion.

But the leaks may play to Carlsons advantage. If Fox tries to cite Carlsons text messages as cause for firing, it will open a Pandoras box given that other popular anchors the network is trying to hold onto are said to have embarrassing text exchanges that would surface in any Carlson litigation, negating the point of Fox paying nearly $800 million to make the Dominion suit go away.

Carlsons Twitter move could have additional reverberations with talent at the network. A handful of Fox anchors have reached out to Carlson directly or had their surrogates contact him to say they are eager to join whatever venture he starts on Twitter when their contracts are up, according to sources.

Twitter owner Elon Musk stressed that Carlson does not have a deal with the social media giant. [W]e have not signed a deal of any kind whatsoever, he recently tweeted. Tucker is subject to the same rules & rewards of all content creators. As for how Carlson could monetize his mega following on Twitter, Musk also recently detailed how any such arrangement would work, noting that the company will take nothing the first year and then 10% on content subscriptions thereafter. Ever since Carlson interviewed Musk in mid-April, the two have been in constant communication, says a source familiar with their dealings. (Perhaps surprisingly, Carlson has been texting with recently ousted CNN anchor Lemon and also has been in talks with Kelly to appear as a guest on her titular SiriusXM show.) As for Carlsons relationship with his former bosses, that source says he still has some affection for Lachlan Murdoch and doesnt blame the scion for being sidelined.

Meanwhile, Dominion may not have been the only entity looking for Carlsons removal from the airwaves. Semafor recently reported that both Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch held separate calls with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy this spring, leaving open the possibility that Carlsons benching may be related. But a source in contact with the Ukrainian leader threw cold water on the idea of Zelenskyy lobbying the Murdochs to cut ties with the anchor who has been skeptical of the U.S. sending billions of dollars in weaponry to Ukraine.

Zelenskyy knows who Tucker is and is aware of him, but thats it, the Zelenskyy source says. He definitely likes Hannity better.

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Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill Thursday funding Kansas public schools for the next year that included an expansion of an existing school choice program. But in a test of her powers, she rejected a policy provision that would have cut funding to many rural school districts.

The Democratic governor emphasized the need to fully fund the states K-12 schools, but criticized the Legislatures approach that ties policy decisions to funding and said the portion of the bill affecting rural district funding could violate the states constitutional obligation to fully fund public education.

Today, I am keeping my commitment to Kansas families by fully funding our public schools for the fifth year in a row, Kelly said in a statement. Whats more, I am proud to stand up for rural schools, the heart and economic engines of communities throughout the state, by rejecting efforts to cut the funding necessary to keep them open and continuing to serve Kansas students.

The provision Kelly vetoed adjusted the formula for determining funding to each district by allowing schools to calculate aid based upon their current or previous years enrollment rather than any of the past two years. The change would have helped growing districts in suburban parts of the state, but it would have harmed shrinking rural districts and the states largest urban districts. Districts that closed a school in the last year would be required to use current year enrollment only.

This provision jeopardizes the vitality of our rural communities and threatens the economic engines of many small towns, she said.

While rural districts faced often faced the highest percentage cuts to their funding under the proposal, Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools and the Olathe School District would have lost the largest raw dollar amounts at $3.2 million and $1.6 million respectively. The Bonner Springs district in Wyandotte County would have lost nearly $760,000.

But every other Johnson and Wyandotte County district would have gained funding, including an additional $1.1. million in the Shawnee Mission School District.

Wichita Public Schools would lost more than $200,000, under the plan, but the Maize district in the suburbs would have gained more than $1.2 million.

The move marks the first time Kelly has attempted to use her line-item veto power on the education budget bill. The Kansas constitution grants the governor the power to veto specific lines in appropriations bills, but Republicans and Democrats have been divided on whether that power extends to the K-12 budget, which passed in a separate bill from the broad state budget.

In recent years, Republican lawmakers have passed the education budget separately from the main budget as a way to impose education policy that may not be able to pass on its own.

Speaking to reporters last week, Kelly said her team was studying the line-item option and that she was not eager to enter into a special session.

In her veto message, Kelly said she held the power to line-item veto the policy because debates in the Legislature acknowledged it was an appropriations bill. She criticized the practice of combining policy with the schools budget as logrolling.

This process lacks public transparency and prevents the collaboration that could prevent unintended consequences of hastily crafted legislation, Kelly said in her veto message.

GOP leaders in the Legislature are likely to challenge Kellys decision in court. Speaking to The Star earlier this month Rep. Kristey Williams, an Augusta Republican and chair of the K-12 Budget Committee, said she believed a line-item veto is beyond Kellys powers.

Senate President Ty Masterson, an Andover Republican, and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, in a joint statement questioned the legality of Kellys decision.

We are extremely concerned, however, that with the Kelly/Toland administrations decision to line-item veto policy provisions within SB 113, the administration exceeded their authority under the Kansas Constitution, which limits line-item vetoes to items of appropriations. We strongly encourage the Attorney General to immediately review this unconstitutional overreach, the GOP leaders said in the statement.

A spokeswoman for Kansas Republican Attorney General Kris Kobach said in a statement that the office is reviewing the constitutionality of Kellys veto of the provision.

Stephen McAllister, a University of Kansas law professor and former Kansas solicitor general, said in an email last month that he believed the governor had clear line-item veto authority on the education budget.

In her veto message, Kelly said the policy would have dangerous and devastating consequences to our rural districts.

Since Republicans sent the budget bill to Kelly last month public education advocates  key allies of Kelly  have urged the governor to veto the funding bill and call lawmakers back to Topeka for a special session.

They expressed frustration over several policies including expanded eligibility for a tax credit scholarship for private schools and the funding adjustments.

Leah Fliter, a lobbyist for the Kansas Association of School Boards, applauded Kellys decision. She told The Star that districts had already budgeted assuming the finance formula would be the same as it was in previous years. The proposed change on enrollment would have thrown that process into upheaval, she argued.

There had been a lot of plans made and then they found at in April that they might have to change the way that their budgets are allocated, Fliter told The Star. Districts, she said, begin their fiscal year July 1 and must give non-renewal notices to teachers by Friday.

Though she acknowledged continued uncertainty from a likely legal challenge, Fliter said districts have more certainty than they did yesterday.

A lot of the districts who are going to lose either get a lower amount or actual end up negative. Its just that they didnt know that was coming, she said. Theyve already been budgeting and signing contracts based on what current law is and so theyre left kind of, they feel like, holding the bag.

While she vetoed the provision on shrinking districts, Kelly ultimately allowed the expansion to an existing school choice formula to take effect.

The tax credit scholarship was first established in 2014 under former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback and has been steadily grown over the years. The budget bill increased student eligibility for the scholarships to anyone below 250% of the poverty line and allowed donors to claim a higher percentage of their donation as a credit.

According to the Kansas Department of Revenue, $21 million has been claimed in tax credits since the program began in 2014. Last year, less than $5 million was claimed in credits though the state allocates up to $10 million for them. This year 1,340 students are using the scholarships at 88 schools.

Fliter said she was disappointed the tax credit scholarship expansion would become law but pledged to continue fighting similar programs in the future.

Republicans in the Legislature had sought a more wide-reaching policy allowing public dollars to be used in private schools, arguing solutions were needed for students who dont thrive in the traditional public school. But no bill offering a larger program could pass both the House and Senate.

Kelly also criticized the Legislatures refusal to add the $72 million for special education she had requested. The law instead includes the creation of a task force to study the issue.

When legislators return in 2024, they need to correct their mistake and put Kansas on track to fully fund special education, Kelly said.

This story has been updated to include data on the potential impact to school districts under the provision Kelly vetoed.
An animal rights group said Wednesday that a Virginia farm that raised chickens for Tyson Foods mistreated the animals, allowing some of them to go without feed and water at times.

But Tyson says it cut ties with the farm in January after it uncovered animal welfare issues there on its own.

The group, Animal Outlook, said it had an investigator working undercover at Jannat Farm from August to November of last year observing as 150,000 birds were raised from chicks until they were ready for slaughter. In addition to seeing chickens go without feed for up to 52 hours, the group said it documented instances of physical abuse and filthy conditions at the farm.

The Associated Press could not immediately locate a contact at the farm itself. A spokesman for Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson, which processes 20% of U.S. beef, chicken and pork, denounced the conditions Animal Outlook documented in video and pictures shot at the farm and said the company ended its contract with the farm because it wasn't meeting Tyson's animal welfare standards.

Since January 2023, no Tyson Foods birds have been placed on this farm and the farmer no longer has a contract to grow for Tyson Foods," spokesman Derek Burleson said. We have a longstanding commitment to the welfare, proper handling, and humane treatment and care of animals in our supply chain.

Animal Outlook's Executive Director Cheryl Leahy said Tyson should have known about the abuse sooner because the farm had been raising chickens for the meat producer for at least seven years, and the company had a manager overseeing operations there. Plus, Tyson was responsible for delivering the feed chickens went without for more than two days. Video shot by the group's investigator also shows chickens being thrown and kicked by farm workers and in at least one case a worker ripped off the head of a chicken.

There is absolutely no excuse, Leahy said. The day-to-day suffering of these birds is palpable in each of the videos. Still, Tyson delivered birds, year after year.

Leahy said she believes Tyson's decision to end its contract with this farm may have been related more to its decision to shut down a processing plant in the area this spring  not animal welfare concerns.

Its very clear that Tyson is an important part of the puzzle here, and the cruelty that we see in this investigation is systemic, said Leahy, who cited two previous investigations her group has done at farms affiliated with Tyson.

The group filed a complaint with the local district attorney asking for a criminal investigation into the way the chickens were treated that was forwarded on to the state attorney general's office.

In addition to the abuse Animal Outlook found, the group said this farm failed to follow good biosecurity practices to limit the spread of disease despite the ongoing bird flu outbreak that has prompted officials to slaughter nearly 59 million chickens and turkeys to limit the spread of that virus.

Animal Outlook said workers failed to sanitize their boots in bleach before they entered barns, and some of the buildings had openings that could allow wild animals to get inside. Experts believe bird flu is primarily spread by the droppings of wild birds as they migrate past farms.

The animal rights group said its investigator also found instances of bugs in some of the chicken feed and rats in the barns where the chickens were housed.

___

Follow Josh Funk online at www.twitter.com/funkwrite
BERLIN (AP)  The president and government of Austria are at odds over whether the country should offer Ukraine help with civilian demining, with the defense minister and a major opposition party pointing to concerns over the implications for Austrian military neutrality.

President Alexander Van der Bellen, who is formally the militarys commander in chief but has no say over day-to-day policy, told the Austria Press Agency he doesnt understand why the government continues to hesitate on the issue.

Support in demining civilian areas such as residential buildings, schools, kindergartens or agricultural areas certainly doesnt contradict Austrian neutrality; it is a humanitarian matter, Van der Bellen said in a statement to APA.

Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner disagreed, telling Oe1 radio on Thursday that the situation is currently so unclear that we are not in a position to be able to distinguish between humanitarian and military demining.

She also said Austrian is currently providing demining expertise in the western Balkans, and it really makes sense after the end of the war.

Tanner said Austria would give financial support to a Europe-wide humanitarian demining mission, if one is put in place.

Austria, a European Union member, has engaged in a delicate balancing act since Russia invaded Ukraine last year, trying to maintain its longstanding military neutrality while condemning the invasion and joining in imposing sanctions on Moscow.

The resurgent far-right opposition Freedom Party, which has led recent national polls and has criticized EU sanctions against Russia, accused Van der Bellen of completely ignoring Austria's military neutrality. Conducting a military deployment in a belligerent country certainly cannot be reconciled with our neutrality, party leader Herbert Kickl said in a statement Wednesday.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP)  The former board chairperson of a Connecticut energy cooperative and estranged husband of a California congresswoman was sentenced Wednesday to six months in prison for using public funds to pay for lavish trips to the Kentucky Derby and a luxury golf resort.

James Sullivan, 56, a one-time Democratic congressional candidate in Connecticut, was convicted of helping plan trips in 2015 and 2016 for dozens of top staff, board members and family members totaling $800,000. Prosecutors said the trips were unrelated to the business of the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative, which receives federal funding from the U.S. Department of Energy.

The $800,000 included travel expenses, private chartered airfare, first-class hotel accommodations, meals, tickets to sporting events, golf fees, souvenirs and gifts, federal prosecutors said.

For a trip to the Kentucky Derby trip in 2015, which prosecutors said had an average cost of approximately $9,000 per guest, Sullivan brought his son, brother and sister-in-law, as well as a woman he knew and her friend.

Sullivan is married to Democratic U.S. Rep. Linda Sanchez, who dropped her bid for chair of the House Democratic Caucus after Sullivan's indictment in 2018. Connecticut court records indicate the couple is going through divorce proceedings.

A second case against Sullivan and the energy cooperative's former CEO is still pending related to $100,000 of Sullivan's personal and travel expenses, including several entries that included expenses for Sanchez, such as travel to the Kentucky Derby and to Key West, Florida, in 2014.

An email was left seeking comment with a spokesperson for Sanchez.

In 2018, a spokesperson for Sanchez said she attended a Kentucky Derby trip in her personal capacity as the spouse of a board member, which is expressly allowed under House rules. Although she was not required to do so, out of an abundance of caution she did seek the advice of the House Ethics Committee prior to attending, and the committee confirmed that she could attend.

Sullivan, the second of three people to be sentenced this week in the scheme, apologized in court and called the trips a serious lapse of judgment," according to The Day of New London. He's required to report to prison July 12.
BEIJING (AP)  China said Thursday its special envoy met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv earlier this week.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the meeting came amid discussions between envoy Li Hui and Ukraines foreign minister and other government officials.

There is no remedy to resolve the crisis, Wang told reporters at a daily briefing. All parties should create favorable conditions and accumulate mutual trust for the political settlement.

The visit followed an earlier phone call between Zelenskyy and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Over two days, Li and Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba discussed ways to stop Russian aggression, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Kuleba briefed Li, a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, about the principles of restoring a stable and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

According to the statement, Kuleba repeated his governments position that Ukraine wouldnt accept any proposal involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

Xi's government says its neutral and wants to serve as mediator in the 15-month-long conflict, but has supported Moscow politically and economically.

China sees Moscow as a diplomatic and military partner in opposing United States domination of global affairs. Beijing has refused to criticize the invasion and used its status as one of five permanent United Nations Security Council members to deflect diplomatic attacks on Russia.

Beijing released a proposed peace plan in February, but Ukraines allies largely dismissed it, insisting that Russian President Vladimir Putin must withdraw his forces. Zelenskyys own 10-point peace plan also includes a tribunal to prosecute war crimes committed by Russia.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said Li also will visit Poland, France and Germany, but didnt give details of his schedule.

Political analysts see little hope for a peace agreement because neither Ukraine nor Russia is ready to stop fighting.

African countries are also undertaking a peace initiative over the war in Ukraine.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  A Chinese envoy asked Australian authorities on Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in the search for 39 crew members who were aboard a Chinese fishing boat that capsized in the Indian Ocean, as Chinese media reported two bodies had been recovered.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian told reporters. We wish that our Australian colleagues would coordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible.

Xiao said China wanted to coordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, in the search and rescue effort.

The search coordinator, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, said three aircraft and seven ships including three Chinese navy ships were involved in the search in the center of the Indian Ocean on Thursday. A Sri Lankan navy ship was also heading for the scene, the authority said in a statement.

Two days after the capsize of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, the authority remains hopeful for a successful outcome, however the time elapsed combined with the weather conditions experienced make survival more challenging, it said.

Two bodies were pulled from the ocean on Thursday afternoon by the Chinese navy, Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The upturned hull was spotted Tuesday from a cargo ship 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth, the Australian search coordinator said.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

India, whose ties with China have been strained by a deadly border dispute, said it sent reconnaissance planes to help in the search.

The aircraft "have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, navy spokesman Commander Vivek Mehul said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

The search authority said the multinational search effort continued Thursday over an area of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles) south of where the upturned hull was found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Chinese and international agencies remained positive about the search and rescue operation.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing. Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

The capsized boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd.

Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, had been operating near the upturned hull and continued to search on Thursday, the Australian authority said.

___

Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma in New Delhi contributed to this report.
VENICE, Italy (AP)  The curator of this years Venice Architecture Biennale on Thursday denounced Italys denial of visas to three Ghanaian men who worked with her on the main exhibition giving voice to Africans and the African diaspora.

Lesley Lokko, a Scottish-Ghanaian who is the first African to curate the architectural Biennale, told a press conference that the Italian embassy in Ghana cited reasonable doubts" about the applicants intentions to leave Italy when the visa expires.

However, she said, the embassy gave no explanation for its decision.

For almost the first time in my life, words fail me, she said.

The Biennale, which opens on Saturday, features a preponderance of participants from Africa or the African diaspora under the title The Laboratory of the Future, exploring the themes of decolonization and decarbonization.

Lokko said it was not the first time she had been confronted with refused entry by Western countries.

It has happened to my family. It has happened to my friends. It has happened to collaborators. I think everyone in the global south understands this story only too well, she said.

While the refusal was grabbing headlines, she added, This is not a new story. Its an old and familiar tale."

She read from a press statement from the embassy in Ghana stating that it was at the forefront of policies to promote African cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible.

She responded: This is not the forefront of policy. This is its ugly rear.
The telecom firm BT plans to lay off up to 55,000 people by the end of the decade, largely in the UK. Its customer service department may lose as much as 20% of its employees to automation such as artificial intelligence (AI).

According to Forbes, staff and independent contractors will reportedly be cut, representing more than 40% of the current workforce of 130,000. "Whenever you get new technologies, you can get big changes," BT CEO Philip Jansen stated.

Human Staff vs. New Tech

In a report by BBC, Jansen justified that utilizing generative AI tools like ChatGPT offers them hope to go even further since it can compose essays, plays, poetry, and solve computer code problems in a manner that is indistinguishable from a human.

Jansen claimed that AI would improve their services by making them more efficient and streamlined. He assured consumers would not notice any differences or feel like they were communicating with robots.

He affirmed that the company's multi-channel, online, and 450 stores business model will not change.

Even though BT has said it would have a considerably smaller staff by 2030, Jansen emphasized that new technologies generate new jobs.

In an effort to phase out its use of copper, BT, the biggest internet and mobile provider in the UK, is rapidly expanding its fiber network. The corporation claims that once this is done, it will need fewer workers to construct and maintain its networks.

He predicted that fewer employees would be required to assist clients in the future owing to newer, more efficient technologies such as AI.

Shortly before this, Vodafone said it would eliminate 11,000 positions from its workforce over the following three years.

Also Read: Elon Musk Slams Work From Home Setup, Calls it 'Morally Wrong'

Decline in UK Employment

For BT to become "a leaner business with a brighter future," as Jansen put it, the company must eliminate between 40,000 and 55,000 positions by 2030.

Most of the layoffs will affect the company's roughly 80,000 workers in the UK. Roughly 20,000 people are stationed overseas.

It also employs 30,000 freelancers, mostly in foreign countries. Lots of those jobs are going away.

In a breakdown presented by BBC, BT will lay off 15,000 roles as it finishes constructing fiber networks throughout the UK. Then, an additional 10,000 will be fired as fewer repairs are needed for the new networks. More than 10,000 will be cut due to cutting-edge tools like AI.

BT will also remove roughly 5,000 jobs, resulting from organizational change.

BT reported a 12% decline in earnings to 1.7 billion ($2.1 billion) for the year ending in April, which prompted the announcement. After disappointing financial reports, its stock price dropped by more than 7%.

According to James Barford, director of telecommunications research at Enders Analysis, more general efficiency savings were behind Vodafone's layoffs, whereas fewer workers were required for network construction at BT. He claimed that overall strategies were in place for both situations, with savings having been discussed in terms of money rather than personnel reduction.

Also Read: Wells Fargo Settles With Shareholders for $1 Billion Following Controversies

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BOSTON (AP)  Superiors of the Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with leaking highly classified military documents had raised concerns internally on multiple occasions about his handling or viewing of classified information, according to a court filing Wednesday.

Justice Department lawyers made the disclosure in a court papers urging a magistrate judge to keep Jack Teixeira behind bars while he awaits trial in the case stemming from the most consequential intelligence leak in years. The judge is expected to hear more arguments Friday on prosecutors' detention request and issue a ruling.

Teixeira is accused of sharing highly classified documents about top national security issues in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. He has not yet entered a plea.

Prosecutors told the judge in their filing that Teixeira continued leaking documents even after he was admonished by superiors on two separate occasions last year over "concerning actions he took related to classified information.

A September memo from the Air National Guard 102nd Intelligence Wing that prosecutors filed in court says Teixeira had been observed taking notes on classified intelligence information and putting the notes in his pocket. Teixeira was instructed at the time to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, the memo says.

Another memo from late October says a superior had been made aware that Teixeira was potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence information given to him the month before. The memo says Teixeira attended a meeting and proceeded to ask very specific questions." He was told again to focus on his job, not any deep dives into classified intelligence information.

Still, a third memo from February says Teixeira was again observed viewing information that was not related to his primary duty and was related to the intelligence field. Teixeira had previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and to not seek out intelligence products, the memo said.

The Defendant even continued to share information with his online associates, defying these admonishments and taking further efforts to conceal his unlawful conduct, prosecutors wrote.

The revelations have raised questions about why military officials did not take further action and why Teixeira continued to have access to classified information after his superiors raised concerns.

Lawyers for Teixeira, who was arrested last month on charges under the Espionage Act, are urging the judge to release Teixeira to his fathers home, noting that the man didnt flee when media outlets began publishing his name shortly before his April 13 arrest. His lawyer told the judge last month that Teixeira "will answer the charges and will be judged by his fellow citizens.

In their own court filing Wednesday, Teixeiras lawyers noted there have been many Espionage Act cases in which courts have approved release or the government did not seek to keep the person behind bars pretrial. They have also said there is no allegation that Teixeira ever intended for documents to be distributed widely.

But prosecutors said in their filing Wednesday that one of the servers on the social media platform he posted classified information to had at least 150 users at the time the information was shared and now may have many more users that are actively seeking access to information.

Among the individuals with whom the Defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses, prosecutors wrote.

In messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to, writing, The information I give here is less than half of whats available," prosecutors said. He also acknowledged he wasn't supposed to be sharing the information, prosecutors said, writing in another message, All of the s- I've told you guys I'm not supposed to, according to the Justice Department's filing.

Magistrate Judge David Hennessy heard arguments from lawyers over detention late last month, but has yet to issue a ruling and scheduled a second hearing on the matter for Friday. In earlier court records, prosecutors revealed that Teixeira kept an arsenal of weapons before his arrest and has a history of violent and disturbing remarks.

The leaked documents appear to detail U.S. and NATO aid to Ukraine and U.S. intelligence assessments regarding U.S. allies that could strain ties with those nations. Some show real-time details from February and March of Ukraines and Russias battlefield positions and precise numbers of battlefield gear lost and newly flowing into Ukraine from its allies.
TOKYO (AP)  Leaders of seven of the worlds most powerful democracies will gather this weekend for the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, the location of the world's first atomic attack at the end of World War II.

From the emergence of crucial developing countries to security worries, including growing aggression from China, North Korea and Russia, here's a look at the G-7, who will attend and some of the key issues:

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WHAT IS THE G-7 SUMMIT?

The Group of Seven is an informal group of leading industrialized nations. It consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

This year is Japan's turn to host, but the presidency of G-7 summits revolves among the seven members. Two representatives of the European Union also join.

As is customary in recent years, leaders from some non-G-7 countries and international organizations will also participate in some sessions.

The leaders discuss a wide range of issues, including economic policy, security, climate change, energy and gender.

The first summit was in 1975, when France hosted what was then a Group of Six meeting to discuss tackling a recession that followed an Arab oil embargo. Canada became the seventh member a year later. Russia joined to form the G-8 in 1998 but was expelled after Moscows 2014 annexation of Crimea.

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WHO ELSE IS COMING?

This year, the leaders of Australia, Brazil, Comoros, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam are invited, as Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stresses the importance of reaching out to developing countries in the so-called Global South and U.S. allies and partners.

The invitations to leaders outside the G-7 are meant to extend cooperation to a broader range of countries.

The G-7 countries share of global economic activity has shrunk to about 30% from roughly 50% four decades ago. Developing economies such as China, India and Brazil have made huge gains, raising questions about the G-7s relevance and its role in leading a world economy that's increasingly reliant on growth in less wealthy nations.

Leaders of the United Nations, the International Energy Agency, the International Monetary Fund, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank, the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organization are also invited.

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WHY HIROSHIMA?

Hiroshima is Kishida's hometown. His choice of venue underscores a determination to put nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation at the top of the agenda of this year's summit.

A path to nuclear disarmament has appeared more difficult with Russias recent nuclear weapon threats in Ukraine, as well as nuclear and missile development by China and North Korea.

Japan, which is protected by the U.S. nuclear umbrella, has also faced criticism that its nuclear disarmament pledge is an empty promise. Kishida is trying to forge a realistic roadmap between the current harsh reality and the ideal of a world without nuclear weapons.

Kishida on Friday will welcome arriving leaders at the Hiroshima Peace Park. He also plans to escort the leaders to the A-bomb museum, in the first group visit by heads of nuclear states. There might also be a meeting with atomic bomb survivors.

I believe the first step toward any nuclear disarmament effort is to provide a first-hand experience of the consequences of the atomic bombing and to firmly convey the reality, Kishida said Saturday during a visit to Hiroshima to observe summit preparations.

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WHAT ARE THE TOP ISSUES?

G-7 leaders are expected to strongly condemn Russias war on Ukraine while pledging their continuing support for Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will join the session via the internet.

There will also be a focus on Beijings escalating threats against Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island Beijing claims as its own, and ways to reduce Western democracies economic and supply chain dependency on China.

To address the rise of Global South nations, including many former colonies of Western powers with varied views on and ties to Russia and China, the G-7 will offer these countries more support in health, food security and infrastructure to develop closer ties.

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WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING?

In a closely watched event on the sidelines of the summit, Kishida will meet together with President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to discuss closer security cooperation, possibly including stronger nuclear deterrence.

Kishida and Yoon will pay their respects together at a Hiroshima memorial for Korean atomic bomb victims in a trust-building gesture as the two countries repair ties strained by disputes stemming from Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Irans president warned Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Thursday not to violate water rights of the Iranian people over their shared Helmand River, the state-run IRNA news agency reported..

President Ebrahim Raisi said his government is determined to defend Iran's water rights.

We will not allow the rights of our people to be violated," he said and warned the Taliban to take his words seriously, emphasizing the importance of Helmand River, which flows from Afghanistan into Iran .

Raisi spoke in a Pakistani border town on Thursday, during his first official visit to the neighboring country in 10 years, to inaugurate the first of six markets along the Iran-Pakistan border.

He also urged the Afghan Taliban to allow Iranian hydrologists to check the water levels of the river, which originates in the Afghan Hindu Kush mountain range.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 after the United Sates and NATO pulled out of the country following two decades of war.

Iranian officials have always stressed the importance of the implementation of the 1973 Helmand River treaty between Iran and Afghanistan, which envisions shared water resources.

Drought has been a problem in Iran for some 30 years, but has worsened over the past decade, according to the U.N.s Food and Agriculture Organization. The Iran Meteorological Organization says that an estimated 97% of the country now faces some level of drought.
FILE - A pair of ruby slippers once worn by actress Judy Garland in the "The Wizard of Oz" sit on display at a news conference on Sept. 4, 2018, at the FBI office in Brooklyn Center, Minn. Federal prosecutors say a man has been indicted by a grand jury on Tuesday, May 16, 2023, on charges of stealing a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz. The FBI recovered the slippers in 2018. (AP Photo/Jeff Baenen, File)

A man has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of stealing a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz, federal prosecutors in North Dakota say. The shoes were stolen in 2005 and recovered in a 2018 FBI sting operation, but no arrests were made at the time.

Terry Martin was indicted Tuesday with one count of theft of a major artwork, prosecutors announced Wednesday. The indictment did not provide any further information about Martin and online records do not list an attorney for him.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported that Martin is 76 and lives 12 miles south of the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. When reached by the newspaper, he said, I gotta go on trial. I dont want to talk to you.

Janie Heitz, executive director of the museum, told The Associated Press she was surprised the suspect lived nearby but said no one who works at the museum knows him.

Garland wore several pairs of the ruby slippers during production of the 1939 musical, but only four authentic pairs remain. When they were stolen, the slippers were insured for $1 million but the current market value is about $3.5 million, federal prosecutors said in a news release.

The slippers were on loan to the Judy Garland Museum in the late actor's hometown when someone climbed through a window and broke the display case, prosecutors said when they were recovered.

Heitz said she and the museum's staff were a little bit speechless that someone had been charged nearly two decades after the slippers were stolen.

Over the years, several enticing rewards were offered in hopes that the slippers would turn up. Law enforcement offered $250,000 early in the case, and an anonymous donor from Arizona put up $1 million in 2015.

The road to the missing slippers began when a man told the shoes insurer in 2017 that he could help get them back. After a nearly year-long investigation, the FBI nabbed the shoes in Minneapolis in July 2018. At the time, the bureau said no one has been arrested or charged in the case.

On Wednesday, a summons was issued for Martin. An initial court appearance was set for June 1, and it will be via video. Terry Van Horn, spokesman for the U.S. Justice Department in North Dakota, said he could not provide any information beyond what was included in the one-paragraph-indictment.

The shoes are famously associated with one of the iconic lines in The Wizard of Oz, as Garland's character Dorothy clicks her heels and repeats the phrase, Theres no place like home. They are made from about a dozen different materials, including wood pulp, silk thread, gelatin, plastic and glass. Most of the ruby color comes from sequins but the bows of the shoes contain red glass beads.

The three other pairs Garland wore in the movie were held by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Smithsonian, and a private collector.

When they were stolen, the slippers were on loan from Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw, who received an insurance payment seven years after the theft, according to the museum's director.

Heitz said the museum staff hopes the slippers will return to Garland's hometown after the legal case ends.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects allegedly sheltered inside expired on Thursday.

The siege and the authorities' demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khan's recent detention, have angered the former prime minister's many followers and raised fears of renewed clashes between them and security forces.

Last week, Khan's supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested in a graft case. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country in the days that followed. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khan's release.

On Tuesday, Khan demanded a probe into the violence, but denied his supporters were behind it. Khan accused Pakistan's ruling party of trying to foment trouble between his supporters and the army, without offering any evidence of his claim. He was speaking at a media conference held at his house, despite police surrounding it.

The popular opposition leader was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistans second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along with private guards. Police surrounded the residence on Wednesday, saying they want 40 suspects handed over.

The ultimatum for Khan ended at 2 p.m. local time, but there were no immediate signs of unusual movement by police. Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, invited reporters to the house to witness any police raid.

Hours after the expiry of the ultimatum, Hassan Javed, a senior police official, told reporters that officers were waiting for a signal from the government to launch the raid. He said police captured at least eight suspects after they left Khan's house and tried to escape via a nearby canal.

Typically between 200 to 300 of Khan's supporters, holding sticks, guard his residence around the clock, but most disappeared overnight. Police have barricaded a key road leading to the house and asked residents to use an alternate route.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest, the 70-year-old popular opposition leader tweeted Wednesday, after the siege started. Police have surrounded my house.

Later, Khan addressed his supporters saying that the police can only search his house with a search warrant and not barge in, creating chaos.

According to Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, police were ready to use firearms if attacked. He told a news conference Thursday that at least 3,400 suspects linked to the clashes have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir said authorities would send police to search Khan's residence on Friday, in comments that appeared to defer the threat of clashes overnight with the leader's supporters.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. Angered over the recent attacks on military installations, two lawmakers and some senior politicians have quit Khan's party, saying they cannot support the man who incited people to violence.

The plan to try civilians in military court has drawn criticism from the advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

Khan was ousted by a non-confidence vote in Parliament last year. He has claimed the ouster was illegal and a Western conspiracy.

He now faces more than 100 legal cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials and defying a ban on rallies. He has been summoned by National Accountability Bureau to answer questions Thursday in connection to a graft case he faces along with his wife.

But Khan informed the agency that he could not attend because he was busy struggling to get protection from arrest in many of the cases against him. In his written reply to the agency, he said its probe against him was politically motivated.

___

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
One Pittsburgh-area state park was recently recognized among the top 100 secret beaches in the U.S., according to a reader poll conducted by vacation website Family Destinations Guide.

Raccoon Creek State Park, located near Hookstown in Beaver County, checked in at No. 34 on the top-100 list. A survey of roughly 3,000 families across the country helped assemble the list of hidden beaches, headlined by sites in Hawaii, Florida and New Jersey, but no additional locations in Pennsylvania.

Spanning 7,572 acres, this state park offers a sandy and relaxing 500-foot beach near Pittsburgh, Family Destinations Guide wrote online. You can sunbathe on the parks beach or relax on a more secluded spot on the verdant grass. Of course, you can take a dip in the lakes cool and rejuvenating lake water.

Heres what to know about Raccoon Creek State Park.

Raccoon Creek State Park is home to one of the top secret beaches in the country, Family Destinations Guide writes.

Raccoon Creek State Park

Known as one of the Keystone States largest and most popular state parks, Raccoon Creek State Park began as a recreational demonstration area through the National Park Service in the 1930s during the Civilian Conservation Corps era, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources reports. The park developed over the next several decades before joining the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Nearly a century later, the western Pennsylvania park spans across nearly 7,600 acres. Its premier attractions include the 101-acre Raccoon Lake and the 314-acre wildflower reserve that contains more than 700 species of native plants. Hiking is popular throughout the 4.5 miles of trails that stretch throughout the wildflower reserve, the DCNR says.

Visitors can traverse Raccoon Lake by rowboat, canoe or kayak, the DCNR says. You can also fish in the parks waterways, which contain trout, panfish, bass, carp and walleye. Additionally, the parks grounds are open to hunting for small game, deer and turkey.

Raccoon Creek State Park is open every day of the year from sunrise to sunset, though day-use areas close at dusk, the DCNR says. Environmental education programs, including hands-on activities and guided walks, are available upon request, while curriculum-based programs for schools and youth groups must be arranged in advance by calling 724-899-3611.

You can make campground reservations by heading online or calling 888-727-2757 between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Additionally, the parks Lakeside Lodge and cabins are available for overnight stays.

Raccoon Creek State Park is located roughly 136 miles from State College. You can access it from the east and west through U.S. Route 30 or from the north and south through Pennsylvania Route 18, which passes directly through the park.

Top secret beaches in the US

Heres a look at the top 10 secret beach sites as determined by Family Destinations Guide:
Russias hypersonic missiles have taken a dual hit this week from Patriots fired by Ukraine and patriots arrested at home.

Once touted as unstoppable, the program now faces growing domestic fallout from treason charges against three scientists who worked on the technology, just as Kyiv claims its U.S.-supplied air defense systems have been able to shoot many of the missiles down.

The Kremlin said Wednesday that the scientists face very serious accusations after a rare public outcry over a wartime crackdown that has fueled a growing sense of unease across Russian society.

In an open letter published Monday criticizing the arrests, colleagues of the three academics in hypersonic technology warned that Russias research on the subject faces impending collapse.

The three scientists  Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev  were employees of the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk. They were all detained on suspicion of high treason over the past year, according to the letter published on the institutes website.

The letter professes the mens innocence and praises their academic achievements, adding that all three chose to stay in Russia over highly paid and prestigious work abroad.

We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of, it said.

Its rare and risky in modern Russia to speak out in defense of people charged with treason, especially after a bill was adopted last month increasing the maximum sentence for the crime to life in jail.

The Russian state media agency Tass reported on the arrests of Maslov and Shiplyuk last summer, and Zvegintsev earlier this week. It said Zvegintsev was detained about three weeks ago, and is under house arrest. NBC News could not verify these details.

Shiplyuk was in charge of the laboratory of hypersonic technologies at the institute, which has unique hypersonic aerodynamic installations designed to study the fundamental and applied problems of hypersonic flight, according to his bio on the website. Maslov is a renowned expert in the field of aerogasdynamics, it said.

The institute released an open letter in support of Maslov after his arrest last June for what it said was high treason, saying that his colleagues were shocked by his detention. It was also fundraising on behalf of the families of Maslov and Shiplyuk to cover their legal expenses.

Tass reported earlier this week that the materials in Maslovs case are classified and have been handed over to a judge in a St. Petersburg court. The agency said Maslovs case was investigated by the FSB, Russias secret service.

While the details of their cases have not been made public, the open letter by their colleagues said the three men could have been arrested for simply doing their jobs, including making presentations at global conferences and taking part in international scientific projects. Their work was also repeatedly checked by the institutes expert commission to ensure it doesnt contain restricted information, the letter said.

In this situation, we are not only afraid for the fate of our colleagues. We just do not understand how to continue to do our job, it added, raising concerns about a rapid decline in the level of research if employees are too afraid to do their work.

Such cases are dissuading young Russian scientists from staying in the field, the letter said, and could bring Russian science to a brink it last faced after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which saw a massive brain drain from the country. Domestic science may not endure the second such blow, the letter added.

The letter also mentioned the controversial case of another Russian scientist, Dmitry Kolker, who was arrested last year on suspicion of treason despite suffering from an advanced form of cancer. He was flown to Moscow for detention and died several days later.

The Kremlin said it was aware of the letter in defense of the academics, but spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was a matter for Russian special services, the state media agency Ria reported. This is a very serious accusation, he said, according to the agency.

But the scientists are not the only patriots seemingly bedeviling the Kremlin.

The letter comes as a wave of the hypersonic missiles  which Russian President Vladimir Putin once boasted were all but unstoppable  were seemingly shot down by Ukraine this week.

Kyiv claimed Tuesday that it had shot down six Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night, a statement disputed by Moscow.

The air-launched ballistic missiles were considered next-generation technology by Russia and were praised by Putin in a highly publicized speech in early 2018, where he said that they are invulnerable to existing missile and air defense systems, which simply cannot catch up with them.

The apparent vulnerability of these missiles is likely a surprise and an embarrassment for Russia, the British Defense Ministry said in its daily dispatch Wednesday.

The Russian Defense Ministry said one of its Kinzhal missiles had struck and completely destroyed a U.S.-built Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system in Kyiv on Tuesday, citing what it called reliable data. But two U.S. officials confirmed that the Patriot battery had incurred some damage but was still operational.
After being discovered "choking" in his vehicle on Monday, May 15, passed out and apparently under the influence of crack, a call for his resignation as a Republican municipal councilman emerges.

Fentanyl Found in Reilly's Car

In a report by New York Post, police said Cranston City Council Member Matthew R. Reilly was discovered sleeping in his car at about noon. A body cam evidence confirms this.

In the footage, a police officer can be heard shaking awake Reilly, 41, and saying, "You were literally choking in your sleep. Someone was flagging me down about it."

Reilly apologizes, claiming he has sleep apnea, but the officer pointed out the crack pipe in his hand.

Initially, Reilly denied that he had drugs in his vehicle, telling police investigators that he had smoked "earlier" and was on his way to work at Family Court.

Reilly, who had been sober for 13 years when the cops discovered crack cocaine in the car's center console, confessed that the breakdown of his marriage was a contributing factor to his relapse.

The council member came forward about his struggles and said he was seeking treatment. One of the policemen questioned, "If you're getting help, what happened?"

A sample of the crack containing fentanyl was recovered in Reilly's car, and the police are shown analyzing it in the footage. Officers in the video describe smelling smoke, and the driver's seat is covered with a white substance.

Reilly has been arrested and charged with the minor offense of unauthorized possession of crack cocaine or fentanyl. He was given permission to leave before his scheduled June 15 arraignment.

Also Read: Georgia Republican Lawmaker to File Impeachment Papers Against Biden

Demand for Reilly's Resignation

According to the Boston Globe, Reilly has already resigned from his position as chairman of the Cranston Republican Party at the request of Mayor Kenneth J. Hopkins, who is a fellow Republican.

"By relieving himself of his elective duties, Matt will have time to focus his attention on his personal well-being. It will allow him to focus on his family, away from the important responsibilities and spotlight of public office," said the mayor.

Democrat and president of the city council Jessica Marino also weighed in, expressing her desire for Reilly to step down. She stated that Reilly's resignation would be best for him, his family, and the community.

She voiced concern for his and his family's health and happiness, saying, "Anyone that is going through the situation, my thoughts of his overall well-being as a human is first and foremost, and that of his family ... Politics should not be a priority in the situation that he's currently facing."

Also Read: Donald Trump's Key Lawyer Departs Legal Team as Classified Documents Probe Advances

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Thanks to a combination of human-caused global warming and El Nino, global temperatures are expected to soar to record levels within the next five years, the United Nations' weather agency says.

The World Meteorological Organization said Wednesday that there is a 98% likelihood at least one of the next five years  and the five-year period as a whole  will be the warmest on record.

In addition, there is a 66% likelihood that the annual average global temperature between 2023 and 2027 will be more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for at least one year.

That number is crucial because the 2015 Paris climate agreement set 1.5 degrees Celsius as a global guardrail in atmospheric warming. Countries pledged to try to prevent that much long-term warming if possible.

Here comes El Nino: Scientists warn an El Nino is likely coming that could bring scorching heat to Earth

Sounding the alarm

"This report does not mean that we will permanently exceed the 1.5C level specified in the Paris Agreement, which refers to long-term warming over many years. However, WMO is sounding the alarm that we will breach the 1.5C level on a temporary basis with increasing frequency," said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.

Long-term warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius would increase heat waves, lengthen warm seasons and shorten cold seasons around the world. The 1.5-degree Celsius mark above the long-term global temperature is a level world leaders had hoped to avoid.

"Global mean temperatures are predicted to continue increasing, moving us further and further away from the climate we are used to," said Leon Hermanson, a United Kingdom Met Office expert scientist who led the report.

'Humanity is on thin ice:' Major UN report says 'urgent' action is needed to combat climate change

'Uncharted territory'

"A warming El Nino is expected to develop in the coming months and this will combine with human-induced climate change to push global temperatures into uncharted territory," Taalas said at a news conference Wednesday. This will have far-reaching repercussions for health, food security, water management and the environment. We need to be prepared.

"We havent been able to limit the warming so far and we are still moving in the wrong, wrong direction.

The temporary warming of this years expected El Nino  which starts with a warming of parts of the central Pacific Ocean and then sloshes across the globe  makes it "possible for us to see a single year exceeding 1.5 C a full decade before the long-term average," said climate scientist Zeke Hausfather of the tech company Stripe and Berkeley Earth, who wasnt part of the WMO report.

"We dont expect the longer-term average to pass 1.5 C until the early to mid-2030s," Hausfather said.

What is El Nino?

El Nino is a natural climate pattern in which surface sea water temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean are warmer than average. El Nino and its counterpart, La Nina, can influence storms around the world, including hurricanes.

El Ninos typically also influence global temperatures, pushing them higher to record levels. The warmest year on record, 2016, occurred during an El Nino.

Texas State Park police officer Thomas Bigham walks across the cracked lake bed of O.C. Fisher Lake in San Angelo, Texas, in August 2011. A new study suggests that the double-whammy of heat and drought is growing more frequent due to climate change.

Impacts of climate change

According to the WMO, in addition to increasing global temperatures, human-induced greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane are leading to:

More ocean heating and acidification.

Sea ice and glacier melt.

Sea level rise.

More extreme weather.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Global warming and El Nino to push Earth's temperature to new record
NEW YORK (AP)  A federal judge in Houston has dismissed criminal charges against a Swiss banker accused of helping stash millions in bribes paid to senior Venezuelan oil officials over long delays in bringing the case to trial.

Judge Kenneth Hoyt ruled Wednesday that unjustified trial delays violated Paulo Murtas constitutional right to a speedy trial within 70 days of being charged.

Murta was indicted in 2019 on money laundering charges as part of a sprawling multi-year investigation into corruption at Venezuelas state-run oil company, PDVSA. He was extradited to the United States by his native Portugal after a lengthy legal fight and spent nine months in pre-trial detention before being released last year on $75,000 bond.

Prosecutors asked Hoyt to stay his order for at least seven days while they file an appeal with the 5th U.S. Circuit of Appeals, which oversees federal proceedings in Houston.

Murta is charged for his role in a sprawling foreign bribery and money laundering scheme. Society has a significant interest in those charges being adjudicated, prosecutors from the Justice Departments fraud division wrote. If this Court erred in dismissing the indictment and no stay is granted, those societal interests will be thwarted.

Lawyers for Murta did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

It is the second time Hoyt has dismissed charges against Murta. He found in 2022 that prosecutors lacked jurisdiction to charge the foreign national, but the ruling was reversed by the 5th Circuit and the case sent back to Hoyt.

Murta, who worked for an unnamed Swiss company closely connected to bankers for Portugals Banco Espirito Santo financial empire, was accused of creating fake loans and setting up shell companies in Switzerland, Curacao and Dubai to hide proceeds from the PDVSA bribery scheme.

Prosecutors said he was acting as an agent of two Venezuelan businessmen and a former official at Venezuelas state-run electric company -- all of whom pleaded guilty to involvement in the bribery scheme by which vendors were seeking favorable treatment from PDVSA.

___

Joshua Goodman on Twitter: @APJoshGoodman
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have separately agreed to host an African leaders peace mission to try to reach a deal to end the war, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Tuesday.

Ramaphosa said he spoke to Putin and Zelensky by phone over the weekend, and they agreed to participate in meetings with leaders from six African countries in Moscow and Kyiv, respectively. He said he would join the leaders of Egypt, Zambia, Senegal, Uganda and the Republic of Congo as part of the delegation to Russia and Ukraine.

Principal to our discussions are efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the devastating conflict in the Ukraine, Ramaphosa said.

He did not state what timeframe or parameters the talks would entail but said the two leaders authorized him to start preparations for them.

He said U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres has been briefed on the plan and welcomed the proposal.

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the United States would welcome any credible peace proposal, even if proposed by a third party. He said the proposal must have support from Zelensky and the Ukrainian people.

We would support any third-party peace proposal, as long as it can be seen as credible, enforceable and sustainable, he said at a press briefing.

South Africa, Senegal, Uganda and the Republic of Congo abstained from a vote in the U.N. last year to condemn Russias invasion of Ukraine, while Egypt and Zambia voted for it.

South Africa has also been grappling with how to deal with an international arrest warrant issued earlier this year for Putin, who was supposed to attend a BRICS summit in Johannesburg in August.

The news of the African peace mission comes as Ukraines air defense shot down 18 missiles, including six hypersonic missiles, that were aimed at Kyiv on Tuesday.

Ukraine is also expected to launch a counteroffensive soon to take back territory that Russia has captured during the war. Zelensky said earlier this month the offensive would be delayed in order to give the Ukrainian military more time to prepare and gain additional equipment.

The Associated Press contributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
KYIV, Ukraine  A retired U.S. Army Special Forces soldier who worked alongside the Ukrainians and died in an artillery barrage in Bakhmut earlier this week told NBC News in a February interview that he felt compelled to come help.

When the war started, Nicholas Maimer was already working in Europe, he said, as he walked the frozen grounds of a training compound for members of Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces.

I think in recent history  this was one of the most clear-cut violations of human rights and national sovereignty that we have seen, he said, the snow of a Ukrainian winter crunching underfoot as he strode past military green tents, public latrines and steel wire fences. So, I personally  with my background  I knew I was compelled to come help.

At the time, Maimer was training volunteers and helping Ukrainian officers develop training programs of their own. One challenge, he said, was overcoming a Soviet-era military mentality that sometimes discouraged individuals from taking the initiative.

He was working to give them the tools that they need to defeat the Russians, he said in a wide-ranging interview, in which he discussed training strategies, the capabilities of the volunteers, the spirit of those he trained and his 14-hour working days.

With his face wrapped in a ski mask and his eyes covered by dark sunglasses to hide his identity at the time, Maimer also mentioned the discord he saw at home. He said he hoped the U.S. would continue its support, despite calls by some politicians in Washington to cut back American aid to Ukraine.

Former U.S. special forces soldier Nick Maimer speaks to NBC News' Raf Sanchez in Ukraine Feb. 2023. (NBC News)

I think its short-sighted, he said. Because of the spirit of the Ukrainian people, what theyre asking for is materials and not asking for our people. The kind of existential threat that Russia poses to the world, I think this is the right place to take a stand.

Maimer served in the U.S. Army from 1996 to 1998. He then joined the Idaho Army National Guard until 2018, according to his military service record. He deployed to the Philippines in 2006 during Operation Enduring Freedom, in which Special Forces units advised the Armed Forces of the Philippines as they battled domestic and transnational terrorist groups.

During his service, Maimer earned multiple awards and decorations, including the Special Forces Tab, Army Commendation Medal and four Army Achievement Medals.

A Telegram post Tuesday by the commander of the private Russian military company Wagner Group cast a pall over Maimers death. Yevgeny Prigozhin, who runs the mercenary group, posted a video that he claimed showed the body of an American, which he appeared to be inspecting. He alleged the man had been firing at the Russians when he was killed and said the group would return the body to the U.S.

NBC News could not verify the claims made by Prigozhin, who often uses his channel for propaganda purposes or to further his own interests.

Vedant Patel, a State Department spokesperson, said the agency was aware of Maimers reported death and is working to confirm the details surrounding it. He emphasized Russias obligation under the Geneva Convention, however.

Let me just note though that, as part of the conflict in Ukraine, Russia, including its Wagner forces, have an obligation under the Geneva Convention to respect the dead, including from disrespectful and degrading acts, Patel said at a briefing on Tuesday.

Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, who is the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met Maimer in Kyiv when he visited Ukraine last year. The senator said he was deeply saddened to hear the news about Maimers death, but he knew the retired Green Berets training was of great benefit to the Ukrainians.

I am deeply saddened to learn of reports that Idahoan Nick Maimer was killed in Ukraine, Risch said in a statement. In meeting him, it was clear Nick was exceptionally well trained for, and sober about, the realities of the war in Ukraine. May he rest in peace.

Maimer said in a video he posted on his Facebook at the end of May 2022 that he had come to Ukraine a few weeks earlier and had first linked up with the Western volunteer organization, the Mozart Group, which was formed in response to the Wagner Group.

At that point in the war, he said he found the Mozart volunteer effort to be pretty unprofessional as it failed at taking care of basic security and stuff like that.

From there, Maimer said he met another retired Green Beret, Lt. Col. Perry Blackburn, who enlisted his expertise to help his nonprofit group called AFGFree. Through that group he began his work as a trainer of the Territorial Defense Forces. He said that he felt like they were really moving the needle.

The effort is going to allow me to hopefully save some lives by getting them some good training, because theyre basically taking local civilians that are willing to fight and defend and trying to turn them into soldiers, he said on the Facebook video. And of course, theyre trying to do this on the fly.

Almost a year later, standing in the snow on the training grounds, Maimer sounded as committed to the cause as ever. He said he had no imminent plans to give up his post, despite the fact that the group of Westerners, particularly Americans, had diminished in the months since.

To him, he said, it was important for the American public to know that this war is not someone elses war, as the Ukrainians had the same desires and principles as the U.S.

These people want the exact same thing that your average American wants, Maimer said. They want to raise a family, enjoy life, have a good quality of life and have the chance for prosperity  a better future for their kids. They want exactly the same thing. Its not somebody else, somewhere else. It could just as easily be America.
Explosions rocked cities across Ukraine overnight as millions were subject to air raid alerts.

Several explosions in the capital. In the Darnytskyi and Dnipro districts, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram, adding that the attack on the capital continues. Do not leave shelters during an air raid! the mayor said.

Widespread warnings were issued for a range of other regions, including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkassy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine. People in Kyiv reported hearing anti-aircraft units in action.

This comes as the Ukrainian military announced territorial gains in Bakhmut. We are successfully conducting a defensive operation, counterattacking and during this day our units have penetrated up to 500 metres in some parts, military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi told Ukrainian television.

He added that Wagner is facing no shortage of ammunition and said the enemy is seeking to take over the city at will, striking with all systems and calibres.

Key Points

Air raid alerts blare across Ukraine, military warns of strikes

Satellite images of Bakhmut show buildings reduced to rubble

Ukraine says territory gained in Bakhmut, Wagner firing all weapons

Ukraine denies Russia destroyed Patriot missile defence system

Patriot missile defence system likely damaged but not destroyed  reports

Russia firing more weapons to overwhelm Ukraine, says US official

Air raid alerts blare across Ukraine, military warns of strikes

04:06 , Arpan Rai

Air raid alerts were sounded for all of Ukraine in the early hours today and the military warned of possible Russian missile strikes in a wide arc extending from Kyiv to central regions and the south.

Even an hour after the warnings were issued, the residents in Kyiv were asked to remain in shelters by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Telegram channel. Warnings were issued for a range of other regions, including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkassy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine.

People in Kyiv reported hearing anti-aircraft units in action. There were also reports of explosions in other major cities, but it was uncertain whether these were from missile impacts or anti-aircraft activity.

The warnings also extended north of Kyiv and to the south and west to Vinnystia, Khmelnitskyi and Chernivtsi regions.

Other Telegram channels warned of possible strikes in the central region of Poltava and further south in Mykolaiv region.

One killed after Russian shelling in Donetsk region, according to reports

09:26 , Martha Mchardy

One person has been killed after Russian shelling in Kostyantynivka in the Donetsk region, the ministry of foreign affairs said.

In a message posted on Telegram Ukraines state broadcaster Suspilne said: On the night of 18 May, the Russian army shelled Kostyantynivka in Donetsk region, one person was killed, the ministry of foreign affairs reported. According to preliminary findings, the shelling was conducted from the S-300 complex, several private and apartment buildings, a shop, and administrative buildings were destroyed and damaged.

The claims have not been independently verified.

Ukrainian troops make gains on Bakhmut flanks - military

09:22 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraines military said on Thursday it had made new territorial gains in heavy fighting around the eastern city of Bakhmut, despite being outgunned and outnumbered by Russian forces.

In the past week, Kyiv has said it has stepped up pressure on Moscows troops to the north and south of Bakhmut. Russian mercenary forces say they have moved forward inside the city, where Kyiv has acknowledged they have made small advances.

Despite the fact that our units do not have an advantage in equipment ... and personnel, they have continued to advance on the (Russian) flanks, and covered a distance of 150 to 1,700 metres (165 to 1,850 yards), military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said in televised comments.

He did not specify over what period the gains had been made. The claims have not been independently verified.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before Russias full-scale invasion nearly 15 months ago, as a stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern Donbas region.

Ukrainian officials have signalled that the advances around Bakhmut are not part of a broader counteroffensive planned by Kyiv to push back the Russian forces.

Ukraine says it shot down 29 of 30 missiles in overnight Russian attacks

08:53 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine shot down 29 of 30 missiles launched by Russia in overnight air strikes but one person was killed in an attack on the southern city of Odesa, the Ukrainian military said on Thursday.

All we know so far about Thursdays air strikes on Kviv and Odesa

08:52 , Martha Mchardy

Russia launched cruise missiles at Ukraines capital and the Odesa region early Thursday, officials said, in an escalation ahead of a much-anticipated counteroffensive. Most of the missiles were shot down, and one death was reported from the attacks.

Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv, and falling debris caused a fire in a nonresidential building.

It was the ninth Russian air raid that targeted the capital this month, a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons.

The attack was carried out by strategic bombers from the Caspian region, probably using cruise missiles, and Russia later deployed reconnaissance craft over the capital. According to preliminary information, all enemy targets were destroyed, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv Military Administration, said in a Telegram post.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts and the fire at a garage complex was extinguished. There was no information so far about any victims, Popko said.

In the southern region of Odesa, one person died and two were wounded in a Russian missile attack, Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on Telegram.

Most of the enemys missiles were shot down over the sea by the Air Defense Forces. Unfortunately, an industrial object was hit: 1 person died, two were injured, Bratchuk said.

Moldova no longer using Russian natural gas, PM says

08:36 , Martha Mchardy

Moldova is no longer using Russian natural gas or electricity after cutting its dependence since war started in Ukraine, prime minister Dorin Recean said on Thursday.

If at the start of the war 100% of energy consumed in Moldova originated in... Russia, today Moldova can exist with absolutely no natural gas or electricity from Russia, he told a security conference in Bucharest.

Moldova no longer consumes Russian gas, it is integrated in the European energy network both technically and commercially.

In pictures: Russian air strikes hit Kyiv

08:11 , Martha Mchardy

Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike, amid Russias attack on Kyiv (REUTERS)

Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv (REUTERS)

Police officer inspects remains of a Russian cruise missile shot down by Air Defence Forces, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv (REUTERS)

A Russian cruise missile shot down by Ukrainian Air Defence Forces is seen in the backyard of a private house, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv (via REUTERS)

No injuries in Crimea blast, governor says

07:29 , Martha Mchardy

In a statement posted on Telegram, the regions Russian-backed governor Sergei Aksyonov said that wagons loaded with grain had been derailed and that there were no injuries in the Crimea blast.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Japan military hospital to treat injured Ukrainian soldiers

07:27 , Martha Mchardy

Japan is set to receive injured Ukrainian soldiers at a Tokyo hospital run by its military, a senior member of Japans ruling coalition said on Thursday.

It would be the first time the Self-Defence Force Central Hospital has treated foreign soldiers, a lawmaker told Reuters, requesting anonymity because the deal is not yet public.

Details will be decided at a meeting between Japanese defence minister Yasukazu Hamada and Ukrainian ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky later on Thursday, but costs will likely be shouldered mostly by the Japanese side, the lawmaker said.

Crimea official says railway traffic suspended after reported blast

07:23 , Martha Mchardy

Rail traffic has been suspended between Simferopol, the capital of the Crimean peninsula, and the city of Sevastopol, a Russian-installed official in the area said on Thursday.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Russia banning people from quitting jobs as doubts over war grow, says UK

07:10 , Arpan Rai

The Russian state is likely effectively banning senior officials from resigning from their jobs while the Special Military Operation continues, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said today.

The measures likely extend to at least regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful Presidential Administration, it said.

It added: In private circles of Russia, many officials are likely highly sceptical about the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely enforced with strong hints that resignees will face trumped up criminal charges.

As well as being concerned about capability gaps resignees would leave, the authorities are likely also attempting to prevent any impression of defeatism, and to bolster a sense of collective responsibility for the war, the ministry claimed.

Fallen missile debris sparks fires at two Kyiv sites

06:59 , Arpan Rai

Falling debris during an air raid triggered two fires in the eastern districts of Kyiv, officials said today.

One fire had broken out in a garage facility in the Darnitsya region of the capital and debris also fell in the Dnipro region of Kyiv, mayor Vitaly Klitschko said. He added there were no casualties from either of the incidents.

The head of Kyivs military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on Telegram that a fire had broken out in non-residential premises in the Desnyansky district, just east of the capital. He provided no information on casualties.

Recap on military activity in Bakhmut

06:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Ukraine, it claims, is still holding on to a large area of Bakhmut after taking some back from Russian troops and continuing to advance in some parts.

Almost 20 square kilometers liberated in the suburbs in recent days have not been lost. We are moving on. We are advancing in some areas, said Ukraines deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar.

She did however add the fierce fighting is still ongoing in the area, and Russian troops are also advancing.

China and Ukraine should work together, says Beijing

06:19 , Arpan Rai

China and Ukraine agreed they should work together to continue their mutual respect and keep their mutually beneficial cooperation moving forward, the Chinese foreign ministry said today.

China has always played a constructive role in alleviating the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capacity, the foreign ministry said.

The statement comes after Chinas special envoy of eurasian affairs Li Hui met with the president of Ukraine.

One killed in port city Odesa, missiles downed over Kyiv

05:36 , Arpan Rai

At least one person was killed by a Russian missile strike on an industrial facility in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa today.

Two more people were wounded in the Odesa attack, military administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk wrote on Telegram.

Officials said the falling debris during an air raid triggered two fires in the eastern districts of Kyiv.

Kyiv was attacked with cruise missiles for the second night in a row but all of them were downed by air defences, the head of Kyivs military administration Serhiy Popko said.

Council of Europe establishes register of damage'

05:30 , Lucy Skoulding

In a bid to hold Russia more accountable for the loss, damage and injury cause by its invasion of Ukraine, the Council of Europe has set up its first ever Register of Damage.

It is one of the first legally binding decisions to hold Russia accountable for its acts, said Marija PejAinoviA BuriA, the councils secretary general.

Wagner not facing any ammunition shortage, says Ukraine

04:50 , Arpan Rai

Ukrainian military spokesperson has said there is no sign of Russian forces facing shortage of ammunition, contradicting statements by Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group spearheading the Bakhmut assault.

The enemy is seeking to take over the city at will, striking with all systems and calibres, spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said.

They are moving new units there (to Bakhmut), primarily paratroopers, in an attempt to achieve some kind of intermediate success.

Questions over Hungarys support of EU sanctions against Russia

04:30 , Lucy Skoulding

A Hungarian official says it would be difficult for Hungary to support the EUs next round of sanctions against Russia amid the war due to Ukraines blacklisting of a Hungarian bank.

The Ukrainian National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NAZK) included Hungarian Bank OTP on its list of international sponsors of war.

Peter Szijjarto Hungarian foreign minister, said that as long as OTP stays on this list, it will be very difficult for us to even enter into negotiations on the eleventh sanctions package, and it will be very difficult for us to negotiate economic restrictions that require additional sacrifices.

Finlands bank accounts in Russia frozen

03:30 , Lucy Skoulding

The bank accounts at Finlands embassy and consulate in Russia have been frozen, Finlands foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters, Pekka Haavisto, the Finnish foreign minister, said: The accounts of Finnish embassies have been frozen in Russia and at the moment they cannot be used.

Finland, which has a border with Russia, joined Nato on 4 April this year in a policy shift triggered by the war in Ukraine and the threats from Russia.

Haavisto reported that Finland sent a message to Russia on 4 May requesting answers and an explanation as to why the accounts are frozen but they have not yet responded.

Devastating photos of Bakhmut

02:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Satellite images of Bakhmut show the damage caused by recent attacks and air strikes.

Aerial photos show the destruction caused in the eastern Ukraine city of Bakhmut (Maxar)

01:30 , Lucy Skoulding

After an announcements from the Bosnian-Serb nationalist leader Milorad Dodik that he would visit Moscow, the head of the EU body responsible for its enlargement warned that EU allies do not visit Russia.

Bosnia-Herzegovinia applied to join the EU in 2016 and was finally granted candidate status last December over concerns that the war could destabalise the Balkan region.

EU enlargement commissioner Oliver Varhelyi said in a news conference in Sarajevo: We need Bosnia-Herzegovina to be our ally. He was referring to the necessity of a common front in Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Our allies dont go to Russia, that is my message, Varhelyi continued, Who wants to be our ally, does not go to Russia.

New advances for Ukraine at Bakhmut

Thursday 18 May 2023 00:30 , Lucy Skoulding

Serhiy Cherevatyi, Ukraines military spokesperson claimed on TV on Wednesday that Ukraine has made new advances in the eastern city of Bakhmut.

Speaking of the heavy fighting in the areas, Reuters quotes Cherevatyi as saying: We are successfully conducting a defensive operation, counterattacking and during this day our units have penetrated up to 500 metres in some parts of the Bakhmut front.

He continued: The enemy is seeking to take over the city at will, striking with all systems and calibres. There can be no talk of any kind of shell hunger. They are moving new units there, primarily paratroopers, in an attempt to achieve some kind of intermediate success.

Belarus partially restores control on borders

Wednesday 17 May 2023 23:30 , Lucy Skoulding

One of Russias closest allies, Belarus, has partially gained control back over its border with Russia.

Sergei Aleinik, Belarusian foreign minister, shared the news on Wednesday.

Its the first time in 28 years that there has been checks at this border, which spans 770 miles, according to AP.

The aim of border controls was to avoid third-country nationals from entering Belarus.

It comes before the implementation of an intergovernmental agreement on the mutual recognition of visas.

Human rights activists, however, believe these controls will be targeted at Russian men trying to avoid having to be mobilized into the army.

Speaking of the checks at the border, Aleinik said: Its not really control, its more like monitoring the situation on the border.

Ukraine denies Russia destroyed Patriot missile defence system

Wednesday 17 May 2023 22:30 , Joseph Rachman

Ukraine denied that a Russian hypersonic missile had destroyed a US-made Patriot missile defence system during an air strike on Kyiv.

Russias defence ministry made the assertion that it had destroyed the $1.1bn surface-to-airmissile system on Tuesday after an overnight air attack on the Ukrainian capital.

Two US officials later said a Patriot system had probably suffered damage but that it did not appear to have been destroyed.

I want to say: do not worry about the fate of the Patriot, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat told Ukrainian television.

He ruled out the possibility of a Russian Kinzhal missile knocking out a Patriot system.

Destroying the system with some kind of Kinzhal, its impossible. Everything that they say there, it can remain in their propaganda archive, he said.

Russian attack on Kherson Oblast kills 3, including a child

Wednesday 17 May 2023 21:30 , Joseph Rachman

An attack by Russian troops on the village of Zelenivka in Ukraines southern Kherson Oblast killed a 5-year-old boy and two men, according to a report by Ukraines Prosecutor Generals Office.

Another man and a child were injured when a Russian projectile hit an area near a local shop.

Germany does not have the capacity to help supply Ukraine with jets, defence minister says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 20:30 , Joseph Rachman

Germany lacks the training capacity or military equipment to actively contribute to a British-Dutch initiative to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said.

We cannot play an active role in such an alliance, in such a coalition, because we have neither the training capacities, the competencies or the planes, Pistorius said in Berlin after a meeting with Britains Defence Minister Ben Wallance.

Germany has previously been reluctant to supply Ukraine with offensive weapons including Leopard 2 tanks.

No progress on delivery of F-16 jets to Ukraine says Dutch foreign minister

Wednesday 17 May 2023 19:30 , Joseph Rachman

We havent reached a solution yet, said Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch Foreign Minister, when asked about talks to between the Netherlands , the UK, Denmark, Belgium and other partners to possibly deliver F-16s to Ukraine.

When we are ready to cross that bridge and are ready to communicate this, we will.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Tuesday that he had agreed with his Dutch counterpart, Mark Rutte, to work to build an international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting with everything from training to procuring F-16 jets.

Ukrainian forces are ready to start counter-offensive Western official says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 18:50 , Joseph Rachman

Ukraines forces are about ready to start a counter offensive claimed a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The key may not be breaking through Russian lines so much as the cognitive effect any attack has on the Kremlin says Dan Sabbagh, The Guardians defence editor, in a Twitter thread.

Ukrainians will have to be able to show that they are having momentum perhaps pushing towards to the Sea of Azov.

Ukraine's forces are broadly ready to start a counter offensive says a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Key point is the "cognitive effect" any attack has on the Kremlin. It is "more important, arguably than cleaving through Russian lines" they add  Dan Sabbagh (@dansabbagh) May 17, 2023

Ukraine tells Chinese envoy it wont accept giving up land to Russia

Wednesday 17 May 2023 18:10 , Joseph Rachman

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told a top Chinese envoy that Kyiv would not accept any peace proposals that involved losing territory to Russia, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said.

Li Hui, Chinas special representative for Eurasian affairs and former ambassador to Russia, became the first senior Chinese envoy to visit Ukraine since Moscows full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Since the start of the invasion China has leant towards Russia and avoided referring to Russias actions as invasion.

In a statement the Ukrainian foreign ministry said:

Kuleba briefed the special envoy of the Chinese government in detail on the principles of restoring a sustainable and just peace based on respect for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ministry said.

He stressed that Ukraine did not accept any proposals involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

UN secretary-general welcomes extension of grain deal

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:45 , Lucy Skoulding

Today UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has also welcome the extension of the deal that will enable the safe export of Ukraine grain via the Black Sea for 60 more days.

Guterres told reporters: The continuation is good news for the world.

Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilisers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably.

He noted that there are still issues and Ukraine will continue to discuss these with Turkey, Russia and the UN.

Poland cant supply Ukraine with F-16 jets president says

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:30 , Joseph Rachman

Polish President Andrzej Duda said that Poland could not supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets.

Speaking to journalists at a summit in Iceland, Duda said Poland has a relatively small number of F-16s. This meant that supplying Ukraine with these jets was not an option.

However, Dudad said Poland was ready to support the process of training Ukrainian pilots.

We donated unprecedented amounts of armaments to the EU, we donated more than 300 tanks to Ukraine, we donated almost all our MiG-29s, which Ukraine asked us for from the very beginning of the war, he added.

Satellite pictures of Bakhmut show devastating destruction of school and university

Wednesday 17 May 2023 17:25 , Lucy Skoulding

Devastating photos show before and after shots of some buildings destroyed in Bakhmut, Ukraine.

The satellite pictures show a school, university and a theatre in Bakhmut before the recent strikes.

They also show homes and shops in the city, which is in eastern Ukraine.

In the photos taken after the attacks, smoke can be seen rising up from buildings and everything has been destroyed, including trees and green spaces.

A school and homes in Bakhmut before the attacks (Maxar)

The school and homes in Bakhmut after the attacks (Maxar)

Aerial view of a theatre and shops in Bakhmut before the attacks (Maxar)

The same view of the theatre and shops in Bakhmut after the attacks (Maxar)

Black Sea grain deal extended

Wednesday 17 May 2023 16:50 , Joseph Rachman

The Black Sea Grain Initiative, the agreement that allows Ukraine to continue exporting its grain without Russian attacks, has been extended for 60 more days, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on May 17.

The Black Sea grain corridor deal has been extended by two months with the efforts of Turkey, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised speech.

He also thanked the Russian and Ukrainian leaders and U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres for their help.

Negotiations went down to the wire with fears of worsening global food shortages if the agreement lapsed.

As part of the agreement Russia will recieve help with exporting its grain and fertiliser.

Activist jailed for 7 years in Russia for justifying terrorism

Wednesday 17 May 2023 16:10 , Matt Mathers

A Ukrainian-born activist was jailed for seven years by a Russian court on Wednesday for "justifying terrorism", according to a Telegram channel petitioning for his release.

Mikhail Krieger, 63, was arrested last November over social media posts he wrote in 2020 in which he praised two men who staged attacks on buildings of Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) as "heroes".

Prosecutors also said Krieger had "incited hatred" when he posted in 2020 that Russian President Vladimir Putin should be hanged, according to Russian news outlet Insider. They had sought a nine-year prison term, according to the Telegram channel organized in Kriegers support.

He denied the charges against him and spoke out during the trial against Russias war in Ukraine.

"I consider this war to be that rare conflict in which the truth is 100% present on one side. And that side is Ukraine," Krieger said on Wednesday, referring to himself as a native of Ukraine, according to the Telegram channel.

Wagner fighters entering Bakhmut like rats towards a trap

Wednesday 17 May 2023 15:20 , Matt Mathers

Fighters from Russias mercenary group Wagner are entering Bakhmut like rats going to a trap, the commander of Ukraines ground forces has said.

Oleksandr Syrskyi visited troops on the frontline in Bahmut, which has become the longest-running battle since Russia invaded in February last year.

Wagners men went into Bakhmut like rats into a mousetrap, he said, referring to the Russian paramilitary group.

Turkish official sees high probability of Ukraine grain deal being extended

Wednesday 17 May 2023 15:00 , Matt Mathers

There is "a quite high probability" of the Ukraine Black Sea grain deal being extended, a senior Turkish source said on Wednesday, a day before Russia could quit the pact over obstacles to its own grain and fertilizer exports.

Earlier, the last ship left a Ukrainian port under the deal, which allows for the safe export via the Black Sea of Ukrainian grain but which is due to expire on Thursday without agreement on an extension.

"The talks (in Turkey) are continuing. Theyre heading in a positive direction. As far as I can see there is a quite high probability of an agreement being reached," a senior Turkish official said.

"Some contacts are continuing. We are seriously hopeful," the source added.

Hungary demands Ukraine remove OTP from list of war sponsors to get EU military support

Wednesday 17 May 2023 14:10 , Matt Mathers

Hungary will block the next tranche of European Union military support for Ukraine and any new sanctions package against Russia unless Kyiv removes Hungarian bank OTP from its list of war sponsors, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Wednesday.

Hungary did not approve the disbursement of the next tranche of military support for Ukraine provided under the EUs European Peace Facility (EPF), a government spokesmans office said on Tuesday.

UKs defence secretary: We can enable others who wish to supply Ukraine with jets

Wednesday 17 May 2023 13:40 , Matt Mathers

Britain can support Ukraines military by enabling other countries which wish to supply fighter jets and other military equipment to Ukraine to do so, British defence minister Ben Wallace said on Wednesday.

"What we can, obviously contribute, is training and support, again, within limits, because we dont have F16 pilots," Wallace said at a press conference in Berlin with his German counterpart when asked about international plans to send jets to Ukraine.

"We can do, what weve done throughout this ... which is we can enable other people who wish to," he added. "Any nation that comes to us and says we want to get tanks into Ukraine ... we will help with that process."

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace (PA) (PA Wire)

Like a scene from Apocalypse Now: I was there when the missiles shook Kyiv

Wednesday 17 May 2023 13:20 , Matt Mathers

The noise that repeatedly filled the air early this morning was extraordinary: shuddering, horribly percussive waves of sound that burrow down through your chest and into your stomach, writes Kit Macdonald.

You can read Kits full piece here:

Opinion: Like a scene from Apocalypse Now: I was there when the missiles shook Kyiv

India hits back at EUs criticism over Russian oil: Look at your regulations

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:50 , Matt Mathers

India has hit back at the European Unions suggestion of cracking down on the country for reselling refined Russian oil to Europe by considering it a circumvention of Western sanctions on Moscow for its war on Ukraine.

Indias foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who was in Brussels during the last leg of his three-nation tour, strongly denied that his country was violating any sanctions imposed on Russia and said the oil in question could not be treated as Russian oil if it is refined in another country before being exported.

Mr Jaishankar was asked a question at a press conference shortly after the EUs foreign minister Josep Borrel said the the bloc will have to act if sanctioned diesel or gasoline is still making its way into Europe via India.

Shweta Sharma reports:

India hits back at EUs criticism over Russian oil: Look at your regulations

Finland says embassy bank accounts in Russia frozen since April

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:28 , Matt Mathers

The bank accounts of Finlands embassy and consulate in Russia are frozen and the Nordic country has not had an explanation from its neighbour, the Finnish foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Finland, which has a long border with Russia, formally joined NATO on April 4 in a historic policy shift brought on by Russias invasion of Ukraine that drew a threat from Moscow of counter-measures.

Finnish foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told reporters the bank accounts had stopped working on April 27.

"The accounts of Finnish embassies have been frozen in Russia and at the moment they cannot be used," Haavisto said, adding the missions had been using their cash reserves to pay bills.

Haavisto said Finland had sent Russian authorities a notice on May 4 requesting that Russia ensure the missions ability to function in Russia and asking for an official explanation for the freeze, but it had not received one so far.

Russias central bank did not respond to a request for comment.

Finlands Foreign Affairs Minister Pekka Haavisto (Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty Images)

Russia says hypersonic missile scientists face 'very serious' treason accusations

Wednesday 17 May 2023 12:04 , Matt Mathers

Three Russian academics who have worked on hypersonic missile technology face "very serious accusations", the Kremlin said on Wednesday, in a treason investigation that has spread alarm through Russias scientific community.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was aware of an open letter from Siberian scientists in defence of the men, but that the case was a matter for the security services.

In the letter, published on Monday, colleagues of Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev protested their innocence and said the prosecutions threatened to inflict grave damage on Russian science.

"We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of," they said.

President Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles, capable of travelling at speeds of up to Mach 10 (12,250 kph) to evade enemy air defences. On Tuesday, Ukraine said it had managed to destroy six of the weapons in a single night, although Russia disputed this.

Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles (AP)

German govt: Russian assets could be used to pay for Ukraine war damages

Wednesday 17 May 2023 11:32 , Matt Mathers

The German government is looking into mechanisms to secure war damages for Russias invasion of Ukraine, including the possibility of using Russian assets to compensate the country, a government spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz was among European leaders who agreed to set up a register of damages for the Ukraine war during a meeting in Reykjavik this week.

The UKs prime minister Rishi Sunak, EU Commission president Usual von der Leyen and Emmanuel Macron, the French president, were among other attendees at the Council of Europe conference which primarily focused on the war:

European nations zoom in on establishing system to pinpoint how much damage Russia caused in Ukraine

Kazakhs increasingly wary of Russias belligerence - poll

Wednesday 17 May 2023 10:57 , Matt Mathers

The number of Kazakhs who believe neighbouring Russia may invade the former Soviet republic has doubled over the past six months as the war in Ukraine continues, an opinion poll by Kazakh researchers showed on Wednesday.

The Central Asian nation of 20 million has close historical, economic and security ties with Moscow, but has maintained neutrality in the Ukrainian conflict, refusing to recognise Russias annexation of parts of Ukraines territory.

According to the poll of 1,100 respondents, carried out by non-government organisations MediaNet and PaperLab between May 3 and 12, almost 60% are also neutral with regards to the war, 12.8% support Russia and 21.1% support Ukraine, figures similar to those produced by a similar poll last December.

However, the number of people who think Russia may also invade Kazakhstan has risen to 15% from 8.3% in the previous poll.

Nearly a third of respondents said their perception of Russia had worsened because of the war, over a half said it had not changed and only 4.7% said it had improved.

Kazakhstan is home to about 3 million ethnic Russians and shares the worlds longest continuous land border with Russia. Astana also has close ties with China, another giant neighbour, and the West, which has invested hundreds of billions of dollars into its oil and gas industry.

APTOPIX Russia Victory Day Parade (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Russia orders arrest of prominent producer, director who criticized Ukraine war

Wednesday 17 May 2023 10:55 , Matt Mathers

A Moscow court has ordered the arrest of prominent film producer Alexander Rodnyansky and theater director Ivan Vyrypaev for spreading false information about the Russian army.

The initial court hearings against Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev were held on 27 April, but not reported by the court until Wednesday.

According to the courts press service, Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev, who are outside Russia, will be placed in custody once Russian authorities manage to detain them or to get them extradited. Russias Interior Ministry additionally put Vyrypaev on the federal wanted list.

Kyiv-born Rodnyansky has been among the most influential figures in Russian cinema in recent decades. He left Russia after the start of the countrys full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has repeatedly spoken openly against the war. In October 2022, Russias Justice Ministry declared Rodnyansky a foreign agent.
Momentum seems to be shifting to Ukraine on eastern Europes bloody battlefields. But Russia still has the resources to ride out a long war, despite US-led sanctions meant to starve the marauding nation and its president, Vladimir Putin, of warmaking capability.

After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the United States and many allies imposed sanctions on Russia widely touted as some of the toughest ever. Theyve tightened over time and now include limits on Russias ability to bank with the outside world, a ban on many technology imports to Russia, boycotts of Russian energy products, and a price cap on Russian oil meant to starve Russia of its top source of cash.

Yet Russia lumbers on. Russia is not under the kind of pressure that the US economically thought it would be a year ago, Ian Bremmer, president of the Eurasia Group, said at the Milken Institutes annual conference in Los Angeles. Theyre under military pressure, beyond where the US thought. But not economic pressure.

Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut, an eastern city where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Monday, May 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Libkos)

Ukraines economic output plunged by 29% in 2022, as the Russian invasion wreaked havoc. Yet Russias GDP dipped by just 2% last year, as robust oil and natural gas sales, largely to nations not participating in sanctions, offset damage caused by the wests punitive measures.

Have our sanctions meaningfully curtailed Russias ability to wage war? No! Robin Brooks, chief economist at the Institute for International Finance, tweeted recently. Our financial sanctions did not prevent Putin getting all his cash in return for energy exports.

Ukraines allies could do more. But there are risks of blowback and unforeseen consequences. Ukraines allies want to crimp Russias oil revenues, for instance, without actually forcing Russian oil off the market, since that would raise energy costs everywhere and undermine public support for sanctions. The voluntary price cap on Russian oil purchases by several large nations is $60 per barrel. But Russia is still selling tons of oil at a profit to other nations not participating in the price-cap plan, such as China and India. Russias oil exports actually hit a post-invasion high in April, according to the International Energy Agency.

Europe and the United States are also being careful not to target Putin personally, to avoid creating the impression that theyre trying to overthrow him, which could make Putin more reckless. We know of people who are very close members of Putins inner circle who arent being subject to sanctions, former Russian business tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, founder of the Russian Anti-War Committee, said at the Milken Conference. We know there are banks that are Putins personal money bags that are not being sanctioned. He likened the sanctions regime as trying to empty a basin of water with a teaspoon when a ladle is needed.

Russia has also become adept at evading sanctions, which the US and other nations first imposed after Russia seized Ukraines Crimean peninsula in 2014. An April report by the Center for Strategic and Intl. Studies (CSIS) found that 15 months of sanctions have impeded Russias ability to rapidly reconstitute military gear its losing in Ukraine. But the report also detailed a variety of crafty ways Russia still gets what it needs to keep the war going.

To obtain desperately needed computer chips and other components, Russia is now importing more dual-use products that could have both commercial and military applications than it was before the war. That includes semiconductors that are crucial to many weapon systems. Many of those products have to go through numerous obscure suppliers and multiple land corridors, according to CSIS, but they still make it to Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a news conference following the Astana Process summit in Tehran, Iran July 19, 2022. Sputnik/Grigory Sysoev/Pool via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.

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Iran is a big help. It obtains Western military equipment in Iraq, and commercial equipment in many other places, and ships it across the Caspian Sea to Russian ports. Theres discussion between Moscow and Tehran of building a sanction-busting rail line around the Caspian that would allow Russia to get products from India. Thats in addition to attack drones and other equipment Iran is selling to Russia.

Though China isnt sending Russia weapons, it does provide dual-use technology. Turkey, the Balkan Peninsula and Central Asian states such as Georgia, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan harbor fruitful smuggling routes. Russia sets up front companies in Europe, Asia, and Africa to obtain banned technology. Russia still possesses a remarkable degree of adaptability to Western sanctions, the CSIS report concludes. The size and scope of this war is forcing Moscow to work on an unprecedented scale.

None of this means Russia is winning in Ukraine. It isnt. But there seems to be little chance that sanctions will debilitate Russia, as Ukraine and its allies hope. When asked on a recent webcast if Russia can keep fighting, Dara Massicot of the Rand Corporation said, Thats where the bad news comes in. They can sustain it.

Russia can lose militarily, of course. But that would probably require even more advanced weaponry than the United States and Ukraines other allies have already provided. Ukraines military has outperformed at virtually every level, and it may retake even more terrain in a counteroffensive many analysts feel is imminent. Yet dislodging hundreds of thousands of enemy troops from an area the size of Pennsylvania is a herculean job that would require technical superiority Ukraine currently lacks.

The United States and other allies have drip-fed Ukraine much of the advanced equipment it has pleaded for, such a tanks and air-defense systems. Ukraine now says it needs fighter jets and longer-range missiles, among other things, which it might eventually get. If anything, Russias ability to survive sanctions adds to the case for amping up military aid to Ukraine.

A long war is in Russias interest, Marie Yovanovitch, the former US ambassador to Ukraine, said at the Milken Conference. That will increase the cost to the United States. Giving Ukraine everything they need now is the way to go.

Rick Newman is a senior columnist for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @rickjnewman

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Russia unleashed an offensive of 30 cruise missiles on several regions of Ukraine early on Thursday, escalating the war once more.

Twenty-nine of the Russian missiles were successfully shot down by Ukrainian air defenses, according to AP News.

Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the area's military administration, stated that one missile tragically managed to impact an industrial building in the southern district of Odesa, causing one fatality and two injuries.

Along with repelling the missile attack, Ukraine also successfully shot down two Russian spy drones and an exploding drone.

Russia launched six Kinzhal aero-ballistic hypersonic missiles in a single strike, according to Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat.

Attacks on Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, increased as Russian soldiers assaulted the city for the ninth time this month. The powerful explosions shook the city, causing debris to drop in two areas and a garage complex to blaze.

The chief of the Kyiv Military Administration, Serhiy Popko, said there was no current information about any casualties.

The latest Russian missile attack occurred following China's special envoy meeting with officials of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.

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Li Hui, the Chinese envoy, earlier met with the foreign minister of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, and other government representatives to advance a diplomatic resolution to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, according to Arab News.

The spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Wang Wenbin, said at a media briefing that there is "no remedy" for the problem and highlighted the need for all sides in the Russia-Ukraine war to cooperate to create favorable circumstances and foster trust.

Train Carrying Grains Gets Derailed in Crimea

The Chinese special envoy visited Ukraine following a phone dialogue between Ukrainian President Zelensky and Chinese Chief Executive Xi Jinping on April 26.

Meanwhile, there were reports of an explosion that derailed eight railway carriages in Russian-occupied Crimea. These occurrences sparked worries about possible Ukrainian sabotage inside Russian forces. The train carried grain, as per a report from CBC.

The Crimean Railway Company claims the disaster was caused by illegal intervention and happened close to the city of Simferopol. No fatalities were recorded.

Related Article: France Could Send Missiles to Ukraine Soon



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YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. A Chinese special envoy has stressed the need to build trust among all parties to the Ukraine crisis and create conditions for peace talks during a two-day visit to the country, Chinese state media reported citing a foreign ministry statement.

Li Hui, special representative of the Chinese government on Eurasian Affairs, met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and held separate talks with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and other senior officials in Ukraine from Tuesday to Wednesday, CGTN reported citing a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry released on Thursday.

"There is no panacea to resolve the crisis," said Li.

He called on all parties to make their own due efforts to build up mutual trust and create conditions for ceasing the hostilities and securing peace talks, CGTN reported.

The Chinese envoy is now on a trip to five countries  Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia  in a bid to engage with various parties on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

The trip comes about two weeks after a phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Zelenskyy, in which the Chinese leader renewed Beijing's commitment to standing on the side of peace.
What the ongoing power tussle shows are the complex dynamics of administrative authority in Delhi

The Delhi government finally got secretary, services, Ashish More to agree to a replacement by a new officer, but only after he was served a showcause notice by the minister in charge of the services department, Saurabh Bharadwaj. Earlier, the babu had refused to be transferred claiming that the power of the Delhi government to transfer and post officers independently has not yet been implemented  even after the Supreme Courts landmark verdict.

Following the SC verdict, the AAP government in Delhi immediately moved to remove Mr More but the move hit a wall when it was claimed that according to the prevailing order from the ministry of home affairs (MHA), the authority to remove an officer rests with the lieutenant governor until the MHA either revokes or revises it.

Clearly, there are still grey areas, despite the five-judge bench order. What the ongoing power tussle shows are the complex dynamics of administrative authority in Delhi. The clash between the elected government and the LGs office has been a long-standing issue, with each side claiming legitimate authority. It is hoped that well see some clarity and guidance on the scope and extent of the elected governments administrative authority in the days ahead.

Seeking accountability for damaged reputation

The case of Sandeep Silas, an IRTS officer from the 1984 batch, raises concerns about the irreparable damage caused to a babus reputation, even after corrective actions have been taken. Recently, the ACC headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved Mr Silas empanelment in Higher Administrative Grade (HAG) for the 2016-17 panel on a notional basis, almost three years after his superannuation and eight years after being falsely implicated in the Rail Neer scandal in 2015.

Sources have informed DKB that despite reports from the Railway Board Vigilance and the Central Vigilance Commission in 2016, clearly stating that no case is made out against Mr Silas, the railway ministry proceeded to issue a prosecution sanction against the officer, even disregarding the Delhi high court order quashing this sanction. Mr Silas, who interestingly, had earlier served as the private secretary to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge during his tenure as labour and employment minister, was subjected to custody, both by the CBI and subsequently by the judiciary, and his tenure as CCM (Catering) Northern Railway was cut short to just two months, due to a leave vacancy.

While a grievous wrong has been rectified, several babus and observers are asking questions about the role of key officers and the institutional negligence that led to a loss of reputation, career and harassment of the babu. It also serves as a reminder of the urgent need to address the systemic issues that allow such episodes to occur.

New CBI chief: A strategic move or partisan politics?

In the aftermath of the state Assembly elections in Karnataka, while one political battle may seem to have concluded, another one is brewing. The shifting battleground now lies within the power corridors rather than the polling stations. Just a day after the Congress partys triumph, the Centre announced the selection of Karnataka DGP Praveen Sood as the new director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a two-year tenure, replacing the outgoing director Subodh Kumar Jaiswal.

Given that Mr Sood had been targeted by senior Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar, who denounced him as a stooge of the BJP and even demanded his arrest, the move is being seen by many as a deliberate attempt by the Modi Sarkars way to continue to make things difficult for the new Congress government in Karnataka. The choice of Mr Sood as the head of the CBI clearly indicates that he is the preferred candidate of the Centre. Consequently, Mr Sood is expected to resume his battle with Mr Shivakumar and the Congress Party, both of whom are vulnerable to corruption charges.

However, Mr Soods appointment did not come without a hitch. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the Leader of the Opposition and a member of the three-member selection panel chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressed dissent by stating that Mr Soods name was not included in the original list submitted to the panel. Despite Mr Chowdhurys reservations, Modis decision prevailed. And now that Mr Sood will sit in Delhi as the head of the powerful CBI, observers eagerly await the resurgence of the battle between the BJP and Congress. As the dust settles, only time will reveal the true motivations behind this decision and the impact it will have on the political landscape of Karnataka.
by Sumon Corraya

It had been granted in 2016 after the massacre at the Holy Artisan Bakery. The foreign minister justified the measure by saying Bangladeshi representatives do not enjoy the same privileges. The opposition accuses the executive of "irresponsibility and arrogance."

Dhaka (AsiaNews) - A number of foreign ambassadors residing in Dhaka have had the additional security escort that was provided in 2016 after an attack in which several diplomats lost their lives withdrawn a few days ago.

The representatives of the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, India, Saudi Arabia, and Australia were all accompanied by a police team, which the Bangladesh government decided to stop granting as of May 14.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen explained at a press conference that the additional escort will no longer be provided for any country, "because our ambassadors do not enjoy such privileges. This protocol is established on an exchange basis. We will not give extra security to anyone," he said. "We used to give escort services to ambassadors of some countries. Seeing this other states have also started to ask for additional escort services."

"Moreover," he added, "the law and order system in Bangladesh is very good. Consequently, there is no need to provide this facility. However, if an ambassador feels he needs more protection he can hire a security team."

Foreign Ministry Secretary Masood bin Momen explained that additional security measures had been put in place for diplomats following the terrorist attack at an upscale restaurant frequented by foreigners. However, he commented, now the Islamic militia responsible for the attack is no longer a threat and the law and order situation is quite good, so the government sees no need for additional security measures.

"We will never compromise the basic security of foreign embassies and ambassadors. We guarantee it," the secretary assured.

On July 1, 2016, five armed militants stormed the Holy Artisan Bakery in the diplomatic area holding diners hostage before killing 20: three Bangladeshis, seven Japanese, nine Italians, and one Indian.

The security of diplomats in Bangladesh is guaranteed by the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (which governs bilateral agreements between states) and is provided by the Ansar Special Battalion, a paramilitary auxiliary force responsible for internal order. The foreign secretary also said that the withdrawal of additional security will have no impact on bilateral relations.

Former Ambassador Humayun Kabir recounted that he received no additional security services when he worked abroad as a diplomat: "There were no security crises in the Western countries where I served as a diplomat. So they did not provide me with security. We did not want it. We provided it where it was needed." Kabir has served as Bangladesh's ambassador to the United States and other countries.

Opposition leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, general secretary of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, expressed dissatisfaction with the government's decision to withdraw the additional police escorts. "I think there are two things-extreme irresponsibility and arrogance-behind the decision to withdraw the additional security escorts for the six ambassadors," Alamgir said.

Bangladesh is home to 58 diplomatic representations including embassies, high commissioners and consulates.
Taiwan, containing China, and the Ukraine War will top the agenda of this years summit of the most industrialised countries. In light of regional dynamics, they will be joined by India, South Korea, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Meanwhile, China is hosting a meeting with Central Asian countries in Xi'an. The World Food Programme makes an appeal for food security, while Oxfam reports that G7 countries owe US$ 13.3 trillion in unpaid aid and funding.

Hiroshima (AsiaNews/Agencies)  The worlds attention is set on Hiroshima, where G7 leaders have arrived for their annual summit, chaired this year by the host nation, Japan.

Russias invasion of Ukraine and its global repercussions will top the agenda once again. But Chinas threats against Taiwan will also dominate the discussions, as will steps to reduce Western democracies dependence on supply chains centred on China, especially in strategic sectors like semiconductors.

The balance of power in the Asia-Pacific region will be at the centre of sessions with other invited participants, an established practice at G7 meetings, including the leaders of South Korea, India, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Interestingly, as the G7 summit gets underway in Hiroshima, Chinese President Xi Jinping will chair a two-day summit in Xi'an with the leaders of the former Soviet republics of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Ostensibly, this is meant to give renewed impetus to Belt and Road Initiative, the new silk road, Beijings great infrastructural development plan designed to link China to Europe.

In light of all this, a highly anticipated trilateral meeting is set to take place on the sidelines of the G7 on Sunday between Japanese Prime Minister Kishida, US President Joe Biden, and South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol.

The three are expected to discuss ways to boost security cooperation, including stronger nuclear deterrence in Asia given recent developments. And to discuss such issues in Japan and in Hiroshima of all places cannot fail to raise heavy questions.

Prime Minister Kishida, who chose in fact his hometown to emphasise his message, will join South Korean President Yoon to inaugurate a monument to honour the Korean victims of the atomic bomb.

The is part of a journey the two countries are undertaking to boost cooperation by turning the page on the sensitive issue of Japan's colonial rule over the Korean peninsula between 1910 and 1945 and the lingering disputes it caused.

Finally, cooperation with the global South is another topic on the G7 agenda in Hiroshima.

The World Food Programme (WFP) has launched an appeal on food security, noting that 828 million people in the world wake up every day not knowing where their next meal will come from.

Food assistance is crucial to preventing acute hunger and malnutrition, but it is a short-term solution and comes at a high cost, writes the WFP. Instead, it must be combined with longer-term investments in development and increasing sustainable agricultural production.

Based on the experience gained during the COVID-19 emergency, G7 leaders will also discuss a plan to manufacture and purchase vaccines, as well as invest in low-temperature storage facilities and training of health workers to prepare for the next global pandemic.

In this respect, a grain of salt is needed since many of the development promises made at these summits are never kept.

In fact, a report just released by Oxfam suggests that G7 countries owe low- and middle-income countries US$ 13.3 trillion in unpaid aid and funding for climate action.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The story of a yoga teacher from Petrozavodsz fined for anti-war ribbons displayed on the street: "There are many of us expressing ourselves, even though they try to hide us. I fear for the future of my children, who will have no future, and from whom they have also robbed the present."

Moscow (asiaNews) - In Petrozavodsk, northern European Russia, mother of five Ekaterina Kukharskaya was fined 15,000 rubles (200 euros) after being found guilty of the usual charge of "discrediting the Armed Forces," used to punish the slightest sign of disaproval of the war. She had attached ribbons with the words "Don't kill people" and "No to war" at various places on the street.

In an interview with Sever.Realii, Ekaterina explains that "actually there are many of us who speak out against the war, even though they try to hide us." Forty-seven years old, a yoga teacher, the mother-courage has relatives in Ukraine, and the "silent protests" have been "almost the ultimate symbol of hope" for her from the start, beginning with social media posts. The oldest of her five children lives in another city, while the others are still with her, supporting and educating them on her own.

When the authorities began to punish internet posts as well, Ekaterina closed the accounts to the public like everyone else, leaving only an avatar in place of her photo, a cloud resembling a white dove flying.

Soon after the invasion began, she called a trusted friend, who told her not to worry, because those "in high places" know what they are doing, and it would all be over in two months at most. So she began to hang green stripes around with writing on them, "because green is the color of hope."

She leaves the house at night, in dark clothes with a hoodie, and even distributes the strips when she goes to work or takes her children to school, giving them even to children "who understand well what they refer to," even without any writing.

Eventually surveillance cameras recognized her despite the changes of clothes, because the dog she was walking was always the same, and within minutes she was surrounded by several cars with sirens and flashing lights as she attacked the "Thou shalt not kill" strip at 10 p.m. on May 15.

Upon questioning at police headquarters, Ekaterina signed a report with her confession, "I attack the strips because I am radically opposed to any war, as a yoga teacher I follow the philosophy of non-violence, and I did not intend to discredit anyone."

She was held in silence for a couple of hours until "the operations of the investigative team were concluded." Eventually an official came back to ask her questions, after they had combed through all her social accounts and checked her cell phone, and she realized that he was a member of the FSB, trying to get delusions from her about other "pacifists," "maybe someone gave her these tapes, offering her money?" Her yoga classes were also put under scrutiny, in case she ever spread "discrediting concepts" during breathing exercises.

Kukharskaya has not been frightened by pressure from investigators, "terror comes when they kill people, if anything, I fear for the future of my children, who will have no future, and they have taken away their present as well."

Her children support her, although the older ones try to warn her against excess activism, and many friends and acquaintances are on her side, although many others try to change her mind.

Some have suggested she move to quieter places, to villages in Karelia, of which Petrozavodsk is the capital, but where state propaganda takes root less. Her contacts in Ukraine include a cousin, "with whom we write every day," and to her she tells of her protest actions, so that even in the most devastated places "it will be known that in Russia someone is against this invasion."

Ekaterina concludes that "people often say that these ribbons and signs serve no purpose except to complicate their lives, but I say that they are absolutely necessary: do you know how good it does my heart when they tell me that they put another one next to mine?"
by Nirmala Carvalho

More than 500 altar servers attend a meeting organised by the Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore at the Shrine of Our Lady Periyanayagi. Many of them are girls even though there is still resistance in some parishes. For Archbishop Kalist, serving at the altar is a great ministry, which must be carried out with devotion and prayer.

Pondicherry (AsiaNews)  More than 500 altar servers from 26 parishes in the Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore gathered for the first time all after many years at the Shrine of Our Lady Periyanayagi, in Konankuppam, for the priestly ordination of Deacon Johnson.

Increasingly, girls are also participating in liturgical services in Indian parishes, a trend welcomed by Archbishop Francis Kalist, who spoke at the meet, as did representatives from several religious congregations, who related their experience, giving the event a vocational orientation.

Many vocations to the priesthood come from altar servers, said Fr Raj, the shrines parish priest. Yet highlighting the service is also important more generally to raise good Catholics.

However, "In some parishes, people are not yet ready to accept altar girls, but this mindset should change. This is also synodality.

For the children who serve at the altar, it "is not only about practical things in the liturgy, but about the presence of Jesus, Archbishop Kalist explained. It is a great ministry, which must be carried out with devotion and prayer, helping those who participate in the celebration.

"In my talk, I addressed the problem of caste that also afflicts the Church, the prelate went on to say. This can only be eliminated if from an early age these children learn about the synodality of communion involving each other, overcoming any division based on caste, language, culture or anything else.

Thus, I have entrusted these boys and girls with this task, mindful that the Holy Spirit always unites.
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The UK Treasury reported on Thursday that the government spent over 162 million ($201.4 million) on the royal funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest-reigning queen, died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8, 2022. National mourning lasted 10 days before her September 18 burial at Westminster Abbey. Many activities were canceled, but most companies and offices were operating.

In London, where Queen Elizabeth II was lying in state, around 250,000 people paid their respects. Many individuals patiently stood in line for more than 24 hours.

Queen Elizabeth II was buried in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, Berkshire.

CNBC reported that UK government expenses on the ceremonies of Queen Elizabeth II's death were recently disclosed. The Home Office spent 73.68 million, the Department for Culture, Media & Sport spent 57.42 million, the Department for Transport got 2.565 million, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office consumed 2.096 million, and the Ministry of Defence had 2.89 million.

The central UK compensated Scotland's 18.756 million expenditures for a leisurely hearse procession and a one-day laying in state.

Read Also: Russian Forces Fire 30 Cruise Missiles at Various Ukraine Areas

Public Safety Was Prioritized

The Treasury's chief secretary, John Glen, said the UK government's primary goal was to execute these events with dignity while ensuring public safety and security, per the BBC.

The UK police called the state burial and mourning preparations for Queen Elizabeth II's death "probably the biggest operation" in the country at the time.

According to Glen's written ministerial statement to Parliament, the UK Treasury supplied extra cash when required, and the governments of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland received full reimbursement for their respective expenses.

Queen Elizabeth II's funeral was the largest ceremonial occasion since World War II and the first state funeral since Sir Winston Churchill's in 1965.

King Charles III's coronation took place earlier this month; the costs associated with it have not yet been made public, although estimates place the whole cost at around 100 million, according to Town & Country.

Related Article: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Involved in Dangerous Car Chase with Paparazzi

@ 2023 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The vast Thompson Divide region has been the subject of a decade-plus push by conservationists and local governments seeking to protect it from any future oil and gas development.
Kids play next to the Yellow Brick Building on Wednesday. Pitkin County officials recently voted to spend part of a new influx of federal funds to create grants that will support the local child care system.
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Said goodies come primarily from a company dubbed American Expedition Vehicles. Black-painted wheels mounted with 35-inch rubber boots open the list of improvements, and the ZR2 Bison also boasts a 5-inch lift.Chevy teased its most capable midsizer clad in camouflage, although said camouflage doesn't cover the steel rear bumper and beefier underbody armor. The front bumper integrates a winch provision and two red tow hooks, because why not?Lo and behold, GMC has two red tow hooks and a winch provision in the offing for the Canyon AT4X AEV as well. The design teaser shows much of the 2024 model's underbody, including the drive shaft and Multimatic DSSV dampers.Tire dimensions and the 5-inch lift appear to carry over as well. Based on this pic alone, you know that GMC means a whole lotta business even though the Canyon AT4X AEV has a technically similar relative in the Colorado ZR2 Bison.That, however, is General Motors' way of doing trucks. With two brands compared to one for the Ford Motor Company and Stellantis' Ram, the biggest of the Big Three in Detroit perfectly understands that there is strength in numbers.Speaking of numbers, care to guess how much this fellow is going to cost? We're betting two bucks that it'll be pricier than the Colorado ZR2 Bison, although we don't have any idea in regard to how much. For reference, the AT4X retails at $56,995 versus $48,295 for the Colorado ZR2. The Bison/AEV package easily adds $5,000  if not more  which means that we're in for two ridiculously expensive off-roaders.Based on the 31XX-2 platform derived from the previous gen's 31XX, the Canyon AT4X AEV features an eight-speed automatic (Hydra-Matic 8Lxx series) and the high-output version of the L3B four-cylinder turbo. The 2.7-liter engine produces 310 horsepower at 5,600 revolutions per minute and 430 pound-feet (583 Nm) at 3,000 revolutions per minute. By comparison, the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 of the 2024 Ford Ranger Raptor belts out 405 ponies and similar torque.The Instagram post attached below reads that we're dealing with a pre-production truck fitted with available accessories. The fine print also states late 2023 availability, which means that GMC dealers nationwide will receive it for MY24.In addition to the Ranger Raptor , the mid-size truck segment also prepares to welcome another off-road brute in the form of the 2024 model year Tacoma TRD Pro. Based on the TNGA-F platform of the full-size Tundra, the Tacoma TRD Pro has been teased  time and again  with hybrid muscle. It remains to be seen, however, if the internal combustion part of said powertrain is a 2.4L turbo I4 or a 3.4L twin-turbo V6.
BEV

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First off, we start with Ford Australia's first battery-powered vehicle to arrive in the Land Down Under, the E-Transit. Yes, they are a bit behind other regions. Europe, for example, has already welcomed the Ford F-150 Lightning in Norway along with the all-new, first-ever compact Ford E-Transit Courier and E-Tourneo Courier. Meanwhile, at home in America, the Blue Oval company is now exploring the big E-Transit's versatility by showcasing cool stuff like Type A electric school buses, among others.Back to Australia, the new Ford E-Transit is alleged to be "the same Ford Transit Australians know and trust to get the job done but with the added benefit of zero tailpipe emissions, reduced noise, and lower operating and maintenance costs for business operators." Only two versions will be offered to customers: full-size long-wheelbase vans with RWD (420L) and a standard height or a High Roof. Positioned at the top of the range, the E-Transit features the most potent powertrain option in the current series, an electric motor with 198(266 hp) and 430 Nm (317 lb-ft).The E-Transit features a 68-battery pack with fast-charging capability (15 to 80% SoC in 34 minutes) and a 307 or 295 km range for the mid- or high-roof options, respectively. That is 191 and 183 miles, respectively, which is not that much, frankly. Obviously, this makes the new Ford E-Transit an inner-city option for most use-case scenarios. The onboard charging capacity peaks at 11.3 kW, with an overnight charge done in around eight hours. DC fast charging capabilities are also good at up to 115 kW. Ford then promises about the same "uncompromised cargo capacity" as an equivalent Transit 350L RWD diesel. Pricing starts at AUD104,990 (MLP), around $69,870 at the current exchange rate.Moving on to Hyundai Motor Australia, the local division of the South Korean conglomerate has set its sight on the Brisbane Truck Show (May 18-21) to reveal their new Mighty Electric Truck, a light-duty 7.3-tonne heavy truck touted with "high performance and zero tailpipe emissions" that are allegedly "perfect for last-mile delivery and urban vocation applications." Pricing kicks off at AUD150k (plus on-road costs), which is almost $100k. For the cash, business customers will receive a 4x2 light-duty heavy vehicle in a tray, tipper, or Pantech configuration.On board, there is a 120 kW (161 hp) and 320 Nm (236 lb-ft) electric motor powered by a large 114.5 kWh battery pack that should provide an "estimated working AER (all-electric range)" of up to 200 km (124 miles) even when fully loaded (max payload is around four tonnes) and with the air conditioning running. Interestingly, the Mighty truck uses an advanced 800-volt ultra-rapid DC charging system, which can replenish from 8 to 100% SoC in just 71 minutes.
Photo: Turquoise Yachts

HP

Ada Yacht built the hull of the 190 feet (58 meters), Baraka in 2007 for Proteksan Turquoise. The majestic yacht with a steel hull and aluminum superstructure was officially launched three years later, in 2010.It was the creation of three important names in the world of luxury yachts: H2 Yacht Design, Francesco Paszkowksi, and Proteksan Turquoise, which brought together the best of Italian and Turkish expertise. As a result, Baraka became a finalist in the naval architecture category for two of the most prestigious awards, the Showboats Award and the World Superyacht Award.This beautiful pleasure craft has changed little over the course of a decade. The most significant transformation focused on its hull color, which changed from the original dark blue to bright white.In terms of design, it was an exceptionally spacious vessel at the time of its build, boasting innovative features such as easy wheelchair access. Baraka was one of the first in its category to add an extra-wide wheelchair-enabled ladder. Once onboard, access across all decks is further facilitated by an elegant glass elevator. Theres also a circular staircase connecting all the interior spaces.One of the most remarkable areas onboard is the sundeck with an elongated shape. This area alone is like a five-star resort with all the bells and whistles. It houses not only a generous jacuzzi but also a sauna  a feature that's rarely placed on sundecks. Sun pads and cozy seating make this spot highly inviting, with an open bar and electric grill perfect for cocktails and al-fresco dining.Formal dining is just as appealing onboard Baraka, thanks to a huge table with 14 seats, surrounded by the sophisticated decor of the main salon. The finest dining experience is ensured not only by the gourmet meals but also by fancy details such as a dedicated storage area for wine bottles next to the perfectly-equipped galley. modern yacht with a classic soul, Baraka has something to offer everybody, from a beautiful library to a full gym and an updated water toy selection. Onboard accommodation includes an expansive master suite and a VIP cabin on the main deck, plus four more cabins on the lower deck, for a total of 12 guests.Al the rooms come with en-suite bathrooms and beautiful outside views. The owner's suite includes a private lobby, a lounge area, a separate office, and a glamorous bathroom with a freestanding bathtub. The yacht's large volume also allowed for generous crew quarters, suitable for a large crew of up to 13 people.The world-famous Francesco Paszkowksi Studio envisioned a contemporary, luxurious style that's equally relaxing and vibrant. Subtle LED lighting brings out the best in the clean, neutral color palette with striking pops of color. Every area onboard seems taller and much more spacious, thanks to the bold contrast of the dark floors and the calming shades of the walls and ceilings.Performance-wise, Baraka doesn't disappoint, either. Built on a high-performance hull platform, this world-cruising yacht can cover 5,000 nautical miles (9,260 km) at 15 knots (17.2 mph/27.7 kph), powered by twin Caterpillar engines of 1,911each. Regarding costs, Baraka is estimated at more than $25 million even after 13 years, and the price for one week onboard starts at 322,000 ($348,000).Baraka is one of the proudest creations of Proteksan Turquoise. This prestigious builder is known for bringing to life the first-ever Turkish motoryacht with a steel and aluminum construction after decades of experience with traditional wooden Gulets. Even to this day, Proteksan uses these two materials exclusively for all its superyachts.One of the Turkish shipyard's most notable projects was the 44 meters (144 feet) Galaxy Star, a stunning luxury yacht built with a unique garage meant to house a Chrysler when cruising in American waters and a Rolls-Royce when it switched to Europe.In the mid-1990s, Proteksan and Turquoise Yachts started their collaborative work that continues to this day. Together, they pioneered another milestone for the Turkish yacht industry with the launch of the 50 meters (164 feet) Mosaique, the country's first world-class superyacht. Decades later, Baraka followed in its footsteps, displaying the same impressive silhouette and style. No matter how many new designs try to dazzle the public with unexpected features and technical innovations, this Italian-Turkish vessel remains a lesson in elegance and balance.
Neue Klasse (New Class) cars, produced between 1962 and 1972, helped BMW recover after difficult times and put it on track for the successful years ahead. For this, it will always have a special place in the hearts and minds of people in Munich. It's no wonder that BMW's upcoming EVs, which will continue the brand's success in modern times, are also developed under the Neue Klasse code name. The forthcoming electric Bimmers will be built on a new, EV-dedicated platform . The first units will roll off the production line of the BMW factory in Debrecen, Hungary, starting in 2025.BMW projects that half the cars it produces in 2030 will have to be electric, so it's expanding Neue Klasse production facilities across the globe. BMW San Luis Potosi Plant in Mexico will enter an overhaul process to produce the Neue Klasse in 2027. Even before that, BMW will also make the Neue Klasse in China in its Shenyang factory it jointly operates with Brilliance. BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) will start production of the new generation of EVs in 2026. The announcement marks the 20th anniversary of the BBA joint venture.BMW will invest 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) to modernize the factory, including a new production facility for Li-Ion batteries. The battery plant will produce cells for BMW's six-generation battery packs in 2026, in time for the Neue Klasse production. In addition to Shenyang, new assembly sites for the sixth-generation high-voltage batteries will be added in Debrecen (Hungary), San Luis Potosi (Mexico), and Woodruff near Spartanburg (USA) in the next few years. It's fair to assume that Spartanburg will also produce the Neue Klasse EVs.The new generation of electric vehicles will abandon the prismatic cells used in today's BMW electrified cars and switch to cylindrical cells instead. Much like Tesla, BMW eyes a bigger cell format, only instead of 4680 cells, it will use 46120. This means that BMW cells have the same diameter (46 mm/1.8 in) but are taller at 120 mm (4.72 in) instead of 80 mm (3.15 in). For battery packs with a lower energy capacity, BMW might also use smaller 4695 cells, which are 95 mm (3.74 in) tall.BMW also intends to expand its research and development center in Shenyang, where the German carmaker develops technologies for electromobility and localizes its products. The site provides 19 test benches for low and high-voltage testing, pedestrian safety testing, improved electronic analyses, and charging capacity tests at extreme temperatures.
Apple is evidently very protective of its proprietary technology, so when it discovered that a former engineer who left the company took with him information about its autonomous driving project, it immediately took action to resolve the matter.

Former Apple Engineer Flees to China

The ex-employee, also known as Weibao Wang, has been an engineer at Apple since 2016. He was part of the team that worked on the tech giant's autonomous driving project called Project Titan, which Apple has been keeping under wraps.

Wang was said to have accepted employment in another company after a year and a half, which is based in China, where he will be doing the same job. Before leaving Apple, it was discovered that he may have stolen data from the company.

According to the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Wang accessed "large amounts of sensitive proprietary and confidential information," as mentioned in Ars Technica. The matter was further investigated by authorities as the ex-employee flew to Guangzhou, China.

Upon searching the home of the former engineer in Mountain View, California, huge amounts of Apple's data were found. This led to Wan being charged with six counts of stealing or attempting to steal trade secrets.

If apprehended, Wang will be facing ten years in prison, as well as fines that can reach up to $250,000, and that's for each count of charges. It also doesn't help that he stole from a US-based company and fled to China considering the current tension.

This wasn't the first time it has happened either. Back in December 2019, Apple employees who also worked on Project Titan were accused of stealing data. The accused, Xiaolang Zhang and Jizhong Chen were also caught trying to flee to China.

Federal agents were able to catch up to Zhang at the San Jose airport just as he was about to board a plane headed for China. Chen was also arrested at a train station on his way to the San Francisco International Airport on the way to China, according to Reuters.

Read Also: Apple Releases App to Test Out Car Key Feature

Apple's Project Titan

Apple has been working on the autonomous vehicle since 2016 and has consulted over a thousand car experts and engineers to develop the electric vehicle. The project is said to be based in Cupertino, near one of the company's headquarters.

Initially, the tech giant had more ambitious plans for the vehicle, but after the plan was halted and continued back in 2020, it slowly progressed to plans of creating a semi-autonomous car instead of a fully autonomous one, as mentioned in MacRumors.

Like Tesla vehicles, it will be able to drive on highways on its own, but the driver will have to do so manually when on city roads or in emergency situations. Since Apple is new in the car industry, it will partner with Hyundai for the project.

Sure, the new plan is far from the rumored fully autonomous car that was supposed to get rid of steering wheels and pedals altogether, but as technology advances, Apple might just make good on that promise in the future.

Related: Ex-Apple Employee Pleads Guilty of Stealing Apple Car Trade Secrets, Faces 10-Year Prison Term
A factory sleeper

Photo: Stellantis N.V.

FWD

Plebian engine architecture sprinkled with Lotus magic

Photo: Stellantis N.V.

DOHC

Fast, fun to drive, and, best of all, cheap

Photo: Stellantis N.V.

It's much more cheaper these days

Photo: Gateway Classic Cars of Chicago

After nearly disappearing in the late-1970s, the Chrysler Corporation (now part of Stellantis) was brought back to life under the stewardship of the legendary Lee Iacocca During the 1980s, it experienced about four years of rapid growth, but then sales began to stagnate, and people argued that its brands were delivering increasingly dull vehicles.While working for Ford, Iacocca learned that the best way to increase a brand's popularity was to inject some performance into the lineup. Therefore, he convinced his close friend Carroll Shelby to help bring excitement back to the Chrysler brands.Although the engineering legend had limited involvement and more or less only lent his name, the result of this collaboration gave birth to some interesting performances like the Shelby Omni GLH-S, Shelby Lancer, or Shelby Charger GLH-S - all based on plebian Dodge models.But excitement really came back to the corporation's brands - notably Dodge - when the iconic Viper was introduced at the 1991 Indy 500, with Carroll Shelby behind the wheel. A thoroughbred V10 supercar, it was by far the most groundbreaking vehicle developed by the American automotive industry in several decades.Apart from the Viper, Dodge also introduced another interesting performance model in 1991. Called Spirit R/T, it was by no means a supercar , but when it hit the streets, it was the fastest American sedan that money could buy.The standard Spirit, launched in 1989, was a basic and uninspiring mid-size sedan tailored for the masses. Like its main rival, the first-gen Ford Taurus, it came withand an economical four-cylinder as its base engine.However, those who wanted more performance from an American-made could go to a Ford dealership and buy the Taurus SHO, which came with a potent V6 engineered by Yamaha. The best that Dodge could offer was a Mitsubishi-built V6 capable of only 141 hp, so to fill the gap, the brand developed the Spirit R/T.Unlike the Taurus SHO, which had some subtle exterior improvements to go with the performance engine, the Spirit R/T looked exactly like its standard sibling. The only feature that gave it away was a set of bespoke 15-inch, two-tone wheels.But, under the hood, the sedan hid a mighty turbocharged four-cylinder that was just as capable as the SHO V6.Based on the standard inline-four and displacing only 2.2 liters, the unit at the heart of the R/T, dubbed Turbo III, was the smallest engine available in the Spirit lineup.Nevertheless, it proved that size doesn't matter by spitting out 224 hp and 217 lb-ft (294 Nm) of torque. That doesn't mean much today, but back then, it was more than what the SHO could make with two extra cylinders.While Ford enlisted Yamaha to help develop its performance sedan engine, Dodge commissioned Maserati , Hans Hermann, and Lotus to design engine prototypes, eventually choosing to go with the latter's proposal.To keep manufacturing costs low, Lotus engineers used the architecture of the existing 2.2-liter K engine and designed an all-newvalve cylinder head. Moreover, the engine received a Garrett turbocharger equipped with an intercooler, enabling it to make so much power out of an otherwise lackluster architecture.Apart from the Turo III engine, the Spirit R/T came with standard disc brakes on all four wheels and a heavy-duty A568 5-speed manual equipped with a Getrag gearset.Though it was no BMW in terms of driving experience , the performance sedan was unquestionably fun to drive for a vehicle in that price range. It could have been even better if Dodge upgraded the suspension and steering, but the R/T shared the same underpinnings with the standard Spirit.Speaking of BMW, the R/T could sprint from 0 to 60 mph (97 kph) in 5.8 seconds, according to a test conducted by Car and Driver, making it quicker than the E34 M5 (6.3 seconds). Moreover, it could run the quarter mile in 14.5 seconds, a full second faster than the Bimmer and half of a second faster than the Taurus SHO.Motor Trend magazine's "Domestic Sport Sedan of the Year" in 1991 and 1992, the Spirit R/T had a sticker price of $17,820 ($39,691 today), about $5,000 cheaper than the similar Taurus SHO.Despite being affordable and ridiculously fast , its lack of chassis, bodywork, or interior upgrades made the R/T too much of a sleeper for its own good.During the 1991 model year, Dodge only sold 1,208 units in the US, followed by a mere 191 examples in 1992 - when it was discontinued.As performance sedans became more capable during the 1990s, the Spirit R/T was quickly forgotten. Therefore, its value kept decreasing, something that hasn't changed today.An example in good shape is currently valued at around $7,000, while one in pristine condition, with few miles on the odometer , can go up in the $10,000-$13,000 range.Though it hasn't aged well and it's currently the cheapest, ugliest early-1990s performance sedan on planet Earth, the Dodge Spirit R/T remains an interesting, grossly underrated factory sleeper that deserves more respect.Below, you can watch an awesome retro review of the Spirit R/T courtesy of Motor Week.
One of these pieces of hardware is the Spitzer Space Telescope. Sent into space in 2003, it was retired in 2020 after spending almost two decades spying on the Universe in infrared. The amount of data it sent back is so vast it is still subject to study at the hands of specialized teams across the world.By combining data from Spitzer with info coming from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite ( TESS ) and other ground-based piece of equipment, a team from the University of Montreal discovered an exciting new Earth-like planet in a constellation called Crater.The red dwarf star this newly-found planet orbits is located 90 light years away from Earth, and it's part of a system about which we already know to have at least two more other planets. All three are larger than Earth and rocky, but it's this latest one that gets all the attention.Just a tad larger than our own planet, LP 791-18 d, as it's called, is tidally locked, meaning one of its sides always faces the local sun. It's also literally drowning in volcanos, most of them active.Because it's located roughly in its system's Goldilocks Zone , meaning far enough from, and at the same time close enough to its star for water in liquid form to exist. Sure, the conditions on the always-day side of the planet are too hot to allow for that, but the night side, and the presence of so much volcanic activity, point to water being there, at least in condensed form in the planet's atmosphere or even on the surface.News about the discovery just broke, as a paper on the subject was published this week in Nature. The place has so much potential, though, that it may catch the eye of humanity's most potent telescope currently in operation, Webb.The giant piece of tech has already been pointed at another planet in that system, LP 791-18 c (not much data on those observations are available yet), but d could also become an object of study in the near future (probably not during the upcoming observation cycle , as that has already been approved).As one of the few places we know of to be so volcanically active outside our solar system, the planet could help determine if or how big of a role volcanos play in the emergence of life. Something to look forward to, then, once Webb is pointed that way.
EV

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Photo: Everrati

Everrati was founded in 2019 in Oxfordshire, UK, where it still designs, develops, and builds its electrified cars. The company focuses predominantly on Porsche 911s regarding conversions, although it tackles other vehicles, such as Land Rovers.Last month, thespecialist announced that its first US customers took delivery of an all-electric Porsche 911, marking an important step in the company's global expansion. Now, Everrati is expanding its roster with a new model that pays homage to the ST.The Porsche 911 ST was manufactured in minimal numbers from 1970 to 1971 as a lightweight racing edition of the 911. In fact, only around 24 were built (the exact number is debated). This, paired with its impressive performance, was enough to make it one of the most sought-after models in Porsche's history.Everrati's ST-inspired model is based on a restored steel G-series base and features a motorsport-inspired hand-built body. The heart of the vehicle is an OEM-grade 62battery pack and management system  if it's the same as the brand's 911 (964) conversions, it should be a Tesla Model S Performance-sourced motor. It delivers 440 hp (446 ps) to the rear wheels through a limited-slip differential, enabling the car to reach 60 mph (97 kph) from a standstill in under four seconds. Moreover, the EV will offer over 200 miles (322 km) of range and supports AC and DC Fast charging.Other features of the vehicle are air conditioning, power steering, and Apple CarPlay . Furthermore, customers can complete the package with an extra TracTrive suspension, which provides multiple settings that enhance driving dynamics, performance, and comfort.Everrati is ensuring the EV will be as close as possible to the ST. It has teamed up with renowned specialist RS Werks, a US-based company specializing in restoring and customizing Porsche vehicles. It will make sure every bit of the car is true to the original ST, as well as the overall weight and weight distribution.Everrati has timed the announcement this year to coincide with Porsche's 60th anniversary of the 911 (901), which debuted at the Frankfurt IAA Motor Show back in 1963. The German brand is also rumored to celebrate the anniversary by releasing a brand-new 911 ST as part of the brand's heritage series.Even though we don't know any exact figures regarding the 911 ST's pricing, considering other of Everrati's models, it should start at around 290,000 (almost $361,000).
As far as motorcycles are concerned, such a wrong turn is the Rocker . A Softail by design, it came about in 2008. It should have been successful, like many other Softails, but for some reason it wasn't, and just three years later, in 2011, Harley pulled the plug.It's not exactly clear how many of them were produced during this time, but you can still stumble upon one every now and then, coming into the spotlight either as stock machines (very cherished in some circles), or as custom builds like the one we have here.The project is the work of a Polish shop that goes by the name Nine Hills . These guys don't like the Rocker in its factory incarnation either, calling it "boringly cut" and with a "very debatable beauty." Yet the Rocker does have a lot of potential, if one only knows how to bring it all to light. And this custom is such an attempt.Made in 2009, just one year after the breed was introduced, this Rocker was re-built in an old-school custom style, and the elements and colors used on it make that perfectly clear. Brown and black all over, and with a yellow headlight for good measure, the bike is not radically different than it used to be, but enough to please the eye a lot more than it did.Nine Hills says the idea was to create a chopper-style build, and that may be so in some respects: the bike now looks longer and more determined, there is a saddlebag on the right side for longer trips, and wheels taken off a Breakout to make the build's origins a bit more confusing.Everywhere one looks, some sort of Roland Sands Design accessory or part stands out. The most impressive such bit is the exhaust system, a stainless steel 2-in-1 piece of hardware that was left as is, in a bid to give the build a bit of ruggedness.All the metal bits perfectly blend, visually speaking, with the brown leather used on the seat and saddlebag. The look achieved is one somewhat warmer than what the Rocker originally had going for it.In this, brown form the bike is called Obsession , and it was put together a few years back by Nine Hills. The bike's current whereabouts and price of build are not known.
SUV

Photo: Lamborghini

Photo: Lamborghini

That's not to say that a Lamborghini can be tedious  unless you think horses are better than bulls at setting four-wheeled vehicles in motion (and your favorite color happens to be a specific type of Prancing Horse Red).To honor the anniversary of six decades of Lamborghini, the company put even more fun in one of their most successful models (from a sales perspective): the Huracan. What came out of that idea is logic-bending: an off-road mid-engined supercar  the Sterrato.The "baby Lambo" Huracan is actually the best-selling supercar from the Italian maker, with over 20,000 units in its nine-year production. Overall, the Urus is topping the sales charts, but that is a five-doorwith the engine in front of the driver. Not a bad thing at all, but not a supercar, also. However, the two raging bulls share one trait: they can do very well when the asphalt expires in the rear-view mirror.Launched late last year in the shadow of Porsche's 911 Dakar, the all-road Huracan promised uncompromising Lamborghini exhilaration on all surfaces: dead-flat speed tracks, remote dirt roads, or snow-clad trails. Come 2023, the acclaimed Italian is making its way to Palm Springs, California. Or thereabouts, to the Joshua Tree National Park to get some fresh air and warm up its bespoke all-terrain tires.Just to prove a point, Lamborghini put its deviant son through sand and dirt at the Chuckwalla Valley Raceway to show off the Sterrato's ability to transition from one surface to another at the touch of a button. As you can see in this vide o, the company's chief technical engineer details the hows and whys of Lambo's rebellious offspring with Germanic precision.But notice one thing: the mathematically-precise German wrench-turner turns absolutely mental when drifting the Sterrato at the company's test dirt track in the South of Italy. If a car can make a cool-as-a-cucumber German smile with excitement, the rest of Planet Piston can rest assured that it is a fine car indeed.Off-road or not, it is a Lamborghini, first and foremost, and the V10 roaring behind the driver doesn't accept any possibility of being taken for something else. All-wheel-driven, for cutthroat rally-like drifts and handling, the Sterrato feels equally in its habitual environment digging four-wheel ditches in soft ground or thrashing the track at 260 kph (162 mph).Slow, for a Lamborghini, but factor in that the all-road Sterrato sits 1.3 inches higher above ground (44 millimeters) than its closest relative, the Huracan EVO. It might not sound like a lot, but the increased ground clearance will affect aerodynamics. Also, the custom-made Bridgestone Dueler AT002 tires aren't built for 200+mph speeds but for sure-footedness on slippery surfaces.The V10 in this car is the 5.2-liter V10 that makes 602 hp (610 PS) and 417 lb-ft (565 Nm), taking in fresh air from the high-placed roof-mounted air inlets. The naturally-aspirated plant red-lines above 8,000 RPM (Lamborghini made no compromises there), sending the punishment to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.Larger wheel arches, roof rails, and fog lamps on the front grille give the Sterrato a meaner demeanor than its urban brethren  although no inhabitant of Planet Piston ever thought of thinking about any Lamborghini as a behaved automobile.
kWh

Who can the Brits thank for this price? In this particular context, Europe's eco-minded legislators. The peeps who approved Euro 7, that is, a set of regulations that's expected to add many thousands of euros to the sticker price of a given vehicle as opposed to Euro 6 regulations. Knowing the European Commission as a citizen of the EU myself, the next step is  most likely  the taxation of EVs based on weight Turning our attention back to Jeep , the UK configurator lists the Grand Cherokee 4xe as costing 85,615 ($106,905 at current exchange rates). Don't be fooled by this error, though, because said price tag applies to the Summit Reserve trim level, the best-equipped version at the moment of reporting.Between these extremes, British customers are presented with the Overland (75,915 or $92,305) and Trailhawk (73,915 or $94,795). Ludicrous money, but alas, you can't get a Grand Cherokee for cheaper unless you downgrade to the previous generation. Codenamed WL, the current generation is based on Alfa Romeo underpinnings. The culprit is called Giorgio, the platform that Alfa Romeo developed with Ferrari's help for the Giulia D-segment sedan and the similarly-sized Stelvio.Regarding the 4xe powertrain, the plug-in hybrid setup delivers 31 miles (50 kilometers) in all-electric mode under the Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure. Combined with the 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder engine up front and gas (pardon me, petrol in British English) tank out back, total range is estimated at 434 miles (698 kilometers).On full song, the plug-in hybrid system produces 375 horsepower and 470 pound-feet (637 Nm) of torque. Its 400-volt battery consists of 96 lithium-ion cells, totaling 17.3. Four driving modes are specific to the 4xe, namely Hybrid Mode, Electric Mode, eSave Mode (prioritizes internal combustion to save battery charge), and Regenerative Braking (recharging the battery while decelerating at up to 0.25 G).Quadra-Lift air suspension with electronic adaptive damping also needs to be mentioned, delivering best-in-segment ground clearance and water fording. Those are Jeep 's words, not mine, and I advise you to refrain from driving a plug-in hybrid through water if you don't want to write off your car.The most capable Grand Cherokee 4xe off the beaten path is the Trailhawk, which boasts a segment-exclusive sway bar disconnect for improved traction and articulation over rough terrain. Also equipped with beefy skid plates, the Trailhawk comes exclusively with 18-inch wheels and A/T rubber.
EV

In the past 40 years, the company's production footprint in the United States expanded twice. First in 1997 with the opening of the Decherd powertrain assembly plant in Tennessee, then in 2003 with Mississippi's Canton vehicle assembly plant.Smyrna currently flaunts a workforce that exceeds 7,000 souls, and a production capacity of 640,000 vehicles annually. Said vehicles include the Leaf hatchback, Maxima sedan, Rogue utility vehicle, Murano, Pathfinder, and the Infiniti QX60.Going forward, the plant will be retooled and expanded forproduction. There's nothing official to announce just yet, but we do know that Canton is gearing up for two all-new electric vehicles from the Nissan and Infiniti marques. Both will begin series production in 2025 for either MY24 or MY26.$500 million will be invested in Canton to make the switch to EVs, with Nissan targeting 40 percent of US sales to be fully electric by 2030. That's a pretty tall order for the automaker which sells only two electric vehicles in this part of the world as of May 2023.The yet-unnamed Nissan and Infiniti electric vehicles due in 2025 are part of the Ambition 2030 electrification strategy, which comprises 19 all-new electric vehicles by fiscal year 2030. In total, 27 electrified vehicles are in the pipeline.Somewhat weird, the 2025 electric vehicles that will be produced in Canton will be sedans rather than crossovers. Nissan didn't confirm this design in writing, but the automaker's rather lengthy press conference features a sequence in which both EVs are unmistakably sedans from the side view.Four-door sedans or five-door liftbacks, it remains to be seen. Another curious development is the imminent discontinuation of the Maxima, with Nissan believed to use this very nameplate for the upcoming electric sedan. The Q50 is on its way out as well, with Infiniti believed to revive this moniker for its future electric sedan. The zero-emission vehicle may be called Skyline in the Japanese market, which sounds plausible given that the Q50 is already called Skyline in the JDM.The big question is, what platform are said vehicles based on? A little over a year ago, back in March 2022, the peeps at Nissan Europe detailed the CMF-EV platform. It's going to serve as the basis for no fewer than 15 electric vehicles due by 2030. The CMF-EV already underpins the Nissan Ariya and Renault Megane E-Tech Electric, and due to its modularity, it also supports D-segment vehicles.The Q50 is a D-segment sedan, whereas the Maxima is based on the Renault-Nissan Alliance's D platform. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
EV

Three years later, the feature is available on just one model, as Ford 's Mustang Mach-E is the only vehicle where drivers can experience the "revolutionary"routing.Ironically, Apple promised a rapid feature expansion, with Ford and BMW originally said to adopt the EV routing en-masse. The German carmaker no longer appears to be interested in Apple's feature, especially as it plans to move to a custom version of Android Automotive starting in 2024.This doesn't mean the iPhone maker gave up on its dream of turning EV routing into a key feature of its navigation app. And today, this dream gets a reboot, thanks to Porsche.The Germans become the second company to adopt Apple Maps EV routing, with the US-based Taycan offering this feature alongside the integrated Porsche Charging Planner.The two systems come with almost the same purpose in mind. Porsche's Charging Planner monitors the battery range and provides recommendations based on traffic conditions and travel speed, including suggested charging stops. It can also estimate the state of charge upon arrival by monitoring the vehicle data.On the other hand, Apple Maps EV routing promises more capabilities, such as an estimate of whether you'll have to stop for a charge or not. The app does this by analyzing the distance to the destination and comparing it against the existing battery charge. It looks at additional data, such as the average speed for the route, the elevation levels, and so on, eventually trying to determine whether you need an extra charge or not.Apple Maps permanently monitors the battery level, and in case it drops below a certain threshold and you no longer have enough charge to reach the destination, it automatically reroutes to the closest charging station. The application can provide additional information, including charging station availability.The feature will be available on CarPlay, so Porsche Taycan owners in the United States must connect their iPhones to the vehicle to get the EV routing. The update is available in the latest My Porsche app on the iPhone.Apple hasn't shared any additional tidbits regarding the company's long-term strategy for EV routing, but two car models in three years is certainly disappointing. Apple will announce the new-generation CarPlay later this year, so the company is presumably working with more carmakers for this feature's expansion. As such, expect more exciting news on this front later this year, most likely in the fall, when the new-generation CarPlay launches alongside the 2023 iPhone lineup.
SUV

Last night, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Doria Ragland were involved in a terrifying paparazzi car chase involving six blacked out vehicles in a chase that could have been fatal.



A spokesperson for the couple confirms: pic.twitter.com/kSJssz9RNs  Omid Scobie (@scobie) May 17, 2023

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex , Harry and Meghan, are no longer senior working royals after choosing to move out of the UK to California following allegations of racism and invasion of privacy. The privacy they hoped to find in the U.S. is proving elusive, though, as the incident on May 17 shows. While on their way home from the charity event in New York, they were chased by at least six blacked-out SUVs, motorcycles, and scooters with paparazzi. It's movie stuff, but in real life.The situation posed a danger to Harry, Meghan, and Meghan's mother, Doria, their bodyguards, pedestrians and other drivers in traffic, and at least two police officers who had been called for help, according to a statement from the Sussexes available below. The party was traveling in an NYC cab they'd hailed in an attempt to ditch the paparazzi that had followed their. They would later ditch that one, too, to return to the safety provided by a local police precinct.The Sussexes say that the chase resulted in "multiple near collisions," with traffic violations ranging from speeding at 80 mph (129 kph) to driving on the sidewalk, running red lights, blocking a moving vehicle, driving the wrong way on one-way streets, and driving while photographing. At one point, the Duke and Duchess were inside the police station, and the entire street had to be cordoned off to keep photographers away.They were eventually able to make their way to their destination safely with a police escort. The NYPD has confirmed the incident , noting that no injuries or collisions were reported. The NYC Mayor Eric Adams also stepped forward to confirm it, criticizing the paparazzi for going to such extreme lengths for a photo. He added that the 2-hour interval cited by the Sussexes was likely, adding that even 10 minutes in such a situation would have been irresponsible behavior on the part of the paparazzi.In August 1997, after an acrimonious divorce from the then-Prince Charles, now King, Princess Diana, her boyfriend Dodi Fayed, and driver Henry Paul were killed when their Mercedes-Benz S280 crashed into a pillar in the tunnel under Place de l'Alma in Paris, France. The crash came as a result of another collision with an oncoming car, as Diana's driver lost control of the speeding vehicle. He, too, was trying to shake an entire paparazzi motorcade that had been trailing them through Paris at high speeds.Prince Harry has been very outspoken about the "aggressive" media both in the UK and abroad, and more so in the years following his self-exile from the Royal Family, even comparing the media's treatment of Meghan to what they did to Princess Diana. This recent incident will definitely not change his stance on that.
EV

Many Tesla skeptics don't understand why Tesla needs more production facilities when its current production exceeds demand. In the first quarter, Tesla throttled Giga Shanghai and its factory in Fremont to compensate for the production ramp at Giga Texas and Giga Berlin. And although the Model Y is more popular than ever, the other modules in Tesla's lineup are not as successful in finding new customers.As the inventory was building, Tesla had already tried price cuts without a significant result. Analysts who follow Tesla also noticed that the backlogs are at the lowest level ever. All these metrics seem to support the idea that the demand for Tesla EVs is low, questioning the decision to build more gigafactories. To add more weight, Elon Musk was even open to advertising , which undoubtedly caused hell to freeze over.The thing is, Tesla and Elon Musk are dead serious about the plans to get to the 20 million EVs sold annually by 2030. This is not a fantasy, despite the slowing sales for all Tesla EVs except the Model Y. The key is adding new vehicles to the lineup and expanding Tesla's customer base. The next-generation compactthought to sell for under $25,000 should provide much higher volumes. Elon Musk revealed during the 2023 Shareholder Meeting that he expects the Gen-3 platform to account for at least 5 million vehicles per year for two models.Tesla is already building Gigafactory Mexico for the next-gen compact model. Giga Mexico is poised to become Tesla's biggest manufacturing facility, surpassing even Giga Shanghai. But if Elon wants to reach that 5 million vehicle mark, it still needs additional production capacity. The best plan is to produce an affordable model in a country with low wages and a highly skilled workforce. If that country is a big automotive market, this is even better. India fits the bill perfectly, ticking all the checkboxes.This is why Tesla wants to build a gigafactory in India, even though the local government previously refused to lower import tariffs at the EV maker's request. Tesla could not export Giga Shanghai production to India because of the 110% tariffs on cars imported from China. This has been a problem in the previous negotiations because Tesla wanted to sell its vehicles in the country before committing to building them locally. In the meantime, the next-gen EV plans have changed the perspective.According to Reuters, Tesla officials traveled to India to discuss plans for its next gigafactory. The meeting took place on Wednesday, but no statement on the meeting results was made public. The discussion comes weeks ahead of the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US, planned for June. Tesla did not specify where it wants to locate its gigafactory or how much money it wants to invest. Still, the EV maker didn't mention lowering the tariffs during the discussions.
Actor Peter Thurnwald / Courtesy of Ben Cope



Peter Thurnwald to appear on Netflix's "XO, Kitty" as Australia-raised Korean adoptee



By Dong Sun-hwa



Among the cast members of Netflix's upcoming rom-com series, "XO, Kitty," Peter Thurnwald probably plays a character most resembling its actor. Thurnwald, who was born in Korea and adopted by his Australian parents when he was six-month-old, assumes the role of Alex Finnerty, an Australia-raised Korean adoptee. Alex is a teacher at the Korean Independent School of Seoul (KISS)  a fictional institution  who searches for his biological roots.



For Thurnwald, portraying a character whose circumstances are so similar to his own was both challenging and enjoyable.





The poster for the upcoming Netflix series, "XO, Kitty" / Courtesy of Netflix



"I am an adopted Korean, so playing an adopted character brought its challenges in the sense that it was very close to home," the 25-year-old told The Korea Times in a recent email interview. "As an actor, I enjoy delving into characters that are a little bit different from me because there is a distinct barrier between what is me and what is the character. But that is also the most enjoyable part because then I get to explore facets of my personality and get to share those with people on the screen, which is extremely exciting."



When he was filming "XO, Kitty"  a spinoff of the popular Netflix film franchise, "To All the Boys I've Loved"  Thurnwald could easily empathize with his character. "XO, Kitty" revolves around Kitty Song Covey  played by Anna Cathcart  who seeks to learn about her late Korean mother's life and reunite with her long-distance Korean boyfriend, Dae  played by Choi Min-yeong. It is scheduled to premiere on Thursday.



"I and Alex are both very loyal and care about other people a lot," Thurnwald noted. "But of course, the thing that is most similar for us is that we are both adopted and have experienced the same thing growing up in Australia. The experience of not knowing who you are and what your identity is."







Thurnwald says he grew up "very Australian."



"I did not have much of a chance to visit Korea when I was younger and I only went back once when I think I was about 10 years old," he said. "I barely remember what the country was like. I did go back when I was filming 'XO, Kitty,' and that was a completely new experience, but not for a very long time. I did not have a chance to learn too much Korean when I was growing up, although we did have a group of Korean adoptees on the Gold Coast."



When he turned 19, Thurnwald experienced an early quarter-life crisis. Since he grew up in a predominantly white part of Australia, he felt like he did not know much about his identity. There were many Koreans at his school, but he still felt there was something inside eating away at him. He almost left the country to find his birth mother. However, he later learned that his orphanage in Korea had burnt down, so he could not find records about her.



"But I found acting around the same time, which allowed me to vent those feelings of not knowing who I was," Thurnwald recalled. "At the moment, I would not say I am 100 percent actively searching for my mother. I think that is a completely different story that I would like to tell in the future. But as of now, I am very comfortable with who I am and what I stand for. If I was to go and find her, I would want it to improve my life not take away from it."



Asked whether he has any message for her, he said he does not have much to say.



"I do not think is necessarily a bad thing," he said. "I am just very satisfied with the upbringing that I had. And I enjoyed my life as it is. So I just hope that if she is reading this then she is happy. If she wanted to reconnect and say hi, then I would love that. I would love her to be a part of my life again. But I just hope that she is well and healthy."





Actor Peter Thurnwald / Captured from Instagram



Thurnwald did not dream of becoming an actor from the very beginning. However, after doing a play in high school in his final year, he was scouted by a casting agent.



"I ended up doing a bunch of extra work around South East Queensland," he said. "So I just fell into it, but I knew that I wanted to be an actor as soon as I stepped onto set. There was just something magical about being on a film set and creating beautiful stories that can give people a cathartic experience."



To date, Thurnwald has appeared on a number of series including, "Bump" (2020) and "Players" (2022). For those who are not yet so familiar with him, he recommends watching "Players" first.



"I have only done three series regular so far in my very short career, but playing Foresite on 'Players' was such an amazing experience and I enjoyed the show as a whole," he said. "E-Sports is something that I have been passionate about ever since I could go on a computer so of course I loved the show."





Actor Peter Thurnwald / Courtesy of Ben Cope
Operators in the global aviation industry agree that SAF (sustainable aviation fuel) is one of the best solutions that can be implemented right now to decrease emission levels because it's compatible with existing aircraft, with no need for further modifications to the engine or airplane itself. However, one of the main obstacles preventing the use of SAF on a broader scale is the limited availability. This is where Neste comes in, determined to improve things.Neste has big plans and a bold vision for the future of zero-emission transportation and a circular economy. One of them is to have its Porvoo oil refinery in Finland declared "The Most Sustainable Refinery in Europe" by 2030. Another one is to reach a total SAF production capacity of 1.5 million tons per year by the end of this year and a whopping 2.2 million tons by the first half of 2026. This will be possible once it completes the expansion of its second European refinery in Rotterdam, Netherlands.In the meantime, it reached a milestone in the Asia-Pacific region. It recently celebrated the opening of a freshly-expanded Singapore refinery. This doubles Neste's production capacity in this country, including almost 1 million tons of SAF, out of a total of 2.6 million tons of renewable fuel annually. With this increased capacity, Neste officially becomes the world's largest SAF producer.The SAF made at this newly-expanded refinery will be blended with conventional jet fuel at a dedicated blending terminal, then delivered to the Singapore Changi Airport. This is where Neste's customers in the area (regional and international airlines) will have direct access to the SAF supply.The Finnish company is an innovator, not just in terms of a larger capacity. It's also one of the first to introduce liquefied waste plastic as a source for SAF, which also helps reduce plastic waste. Another strategic move is developing a vast network of partner airports in the US, including San Francisco and Los Angeles.Last year, the Miami-based World Fuel became Neste's authorized branded distributor for several European locations. It started supplying the MY Neste Sustainable Aviation Fuel to the Paris-Le Bourget Airport (LFPB) in France, with plans for expansion in UK and Germany.Neste's SAF was connected to a historic aviation achievement . In 2022, it was successfully used for the first-ever SAF-powered flight with passengers onboard. The trailblazing flight was carried out by a Malaysia Airlines aircraft. With this alternative fuel available on a larger scale, these types of flights could become the norm in the not-so-distant future.
Knowing that in the absence of some sort of agreement the conflict could spill over Ukraine's borders any day now, Europe's militaries are doing their best to get ready for the worst-case scenario. And one way to do that is by attending specialized defense shows and see what's new in terms of weaponry.There's one such show taking place as we speak in Madrid, Spain. Called FEINDEF, it's the go-to venue for the latest in defense and security. And it's also where the BAE Systems -made Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV), currently in use at the hands of the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC), is being shown for the first time outside the United States. ACV is actually an umbrella term for a family of vehicles built on an 8x8 platform and capable of moving both over land and on water. At the time of writing there are four versions of it available (ACV-P, ACV-C, ACV-30, and ACV-R), each tailored to a different and specific job, from providing situational awareness and troop transport to field and combat support (the ACV-30 version packs a stabilized, medium caliber Remote Turret System).Generally speaking, though, such a vehicle weighs up to 35 tons and, depending on configuration, can carry a crew of up to 16 people. The things have a range of up to 325 miles (523 km), and can move at speeds of 65 mph (105 kph) on paved roads and at seven mph (11 kph) in the water.The variant shown in Spain these days is the ACV-P, the one that serves as basis for all the others. In this configuration the vehicle can carry 13 fully equipped soldiers plus an operating crew of three people.It is, according to its maker, "the only truly amphibious combat vehicle in full-rate production today," and that's also a hint as to why the vehicle was shipped all the way to Europe.And that reason would be that BAE plans to make customers of several other nations on the war-fearing European continent. It'll start with the Infanteria de Marina Espanola, but plans are to go much deeper, as the ACV can be customized to pretty much any specification desired by European nations.It's not clear at this point how many nations outside the U.S. have expressed interest in this family of vehicles, but given the current situation on the continent don't be surprised if you see the ACV deployed by more and more nations there soon.
According to Armenias Investigative Committee, Ashot Pashinian claims that the outspoken woman, Gayane Hakobian, tricked him into getting in her car after he ran into her and several other parents of fallen soldiers on a street in Yerevan on Wednesday.

Pashinian told investigators that Hakobian displayed inappropriate behavior as she talked about Armenian losses suffered during the war and drove him to the citys Yerablur military cemetery. The young man jumped out of the car moments before being hit by another vehicle that carried several other parents, the law-enforcement agency said in a statement.

Hakobian was taken to a police station in Yerevan along with three other parents. The police freed the latter but placed Hakobian under arrest late on Wednesday pending a preliminary inquiry into what the Investigative Committee described as a possible kidnapping attempt.

Under Armenian law, the committee has to formally charge the woman or set her free by the end of Saturday. She remained in police custody as of Thursday evening.

Hakobians lawyer, Vahan Hovannisian, categorically denied the kidnapping claims, saying that they are not substantiated by any factual evidence. Hovannisian demanded that his client and Pashinian Jr. be interrogated together.

The lawyer also said that Hakobian has gone on hunger strike despite suffering from serious health problems.

Ashot Pashinian could not be reached for comment. He suffered a leg injury during the incident, according to the Haykakan Zhamanak daily controlled by the prime ministers family.

Meanwhile, a group of other persons who lost their sons during the six-week war gathered outside a Yerevan detention center to show support for Hakobian.

How could a woman, who had given birth to a hero, use force against a 23-year-old guy or say something bad to him? one of them, Vahid Sahakian, told reporters.

I think they fabricated this case to shut us up, he claimed. But they cant shut us up because our fight is just.

The detained woman and several dozen other parents blame Nikol Pashinian for the deaths of their sons as well as at least 3,800 other Armenian soldiers killed in action. They have set up a non-governmental organization, named the Call of Sons, to campaign for the prime ministers prosecution on relevant charges.

Last September, the same parents gathered at the main entrance to the Yerablur Military Pantheon to try to prevent Pashinian from laying a wreath there on the occasion of Armenias Independence Day. Riot police violently dispersed them. At least 37 grief-stricken men and women were dragged away, forced into police vehicles and detained in dramatic scenes that caused uproar in the country.

Armenian civic groups strongly condemned the use of force and demanded the resignation of Vahe Ghazarian, the then chief of the national police who was promoted and appointed by Pashinian as interior minister in January.

Ghazarian ordered an internal inquiry into his officers actions at Yerablur. None of them has been fired or subjected to disciplinary action, however. Nor has the Investigative Committee indicted any policemen in a separate, criminal investigation launched after the Yerablur crackdown.
18 May 2023 16:38 (UTC+04:00)

Qabil Ashirov Read more

Azerkosmos and Agro Dairy, the largest agricultural company in Azerbaijan, have signed a cooperation agreement on the use of satellite images in monitoring agricultural fields, Azernews reports.

The contract was signed within the framework of the Caspian Agro Azerbaijan International Agricultural Exhibition.

Thanks to this cooperation, monitoring of the state of development of agricultural areas and crops in the country will be carried out using satellite images, and projects for the development of an electronic map of cultivated areas will be implemented.

Periodic satellite images in different months of the year, including images collected in the archive database of the Azersky satellite, will be used in the preparation of the vegetation map.

Based on satellite images, it is planned to monitor plowed areas and identify degraded lands. At the same time, the forecasting of productivity, the dynamics of the development of diseases spread in cultivated areas and the vegetation period of plants will be continuously monitored. In order to provide operational information on the changes occurring in the field of agriculture, the said satellite services will be provided on a digital platform.

Chairman of Azercosmos, Samaddin Asadov, said that satellite images play an invaluable role in the effective planning of agricultural areas in Azerbaijan. Thanks to our cooperation with the Agro Dairy company, the amount of fieldwork will be reduced many times with the use of satellite images, and we will contribute to more accurate forecasting and optimization of agricultural productivity in our country.

"Agro Dairy constantly pays attention to the use of modern technologies in accordance with the needs of the agricultural sector in our country. I am sure that with the satellite services of Azercosmos, we will create innovative solutions for the development of the "smart agriculture" economy of our country," said Niyazi Amirbeyov, executive director of the company.

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The Russian State Academic Symphony Orchestra has given a series of spectacular concerts at Moscow State Philharmonic.

The orchestra performed music pieces by renowned composers under the baton of the principal conductor and music director of the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, Honored Artist Ayyub Guliyev, Azernews reports.

The concert programs "History of a Masterpiece" and "Young Talents" were met with great interest.

Within "History of a Masterpiece", Franz Schubert's Symphony No. 8, also known as "Unfinished", was presented to listeners for the first time in its complete version.

The orchestra also performed a music piece restored by acclaimed musicologist Philip Legg, based on the composer's manuscripts. Along with the symphony, F. Schubert's play "Rosamunde, Princess of Cyprus" also found a special place in the program.

The host of the concert and the head of the project, well-known musicologist Artem Vargaftik, gave extensive information about the history of creation of the composer's most mysterious work.

Within "Young Talents" program, laureates of the International competition Nikolay Kuznetsov (piano), Alexander Papushev (violin) and Sergey Davydchenko (piano) thrilled the listeners with the works of N. Paganini, S. Prokofiev and J. Gershwin.

After the concert, local music lovers gave a standing ovation to the Azerbaijani conductor and young soloists.

Note that Honored Artist Ayyub Guliyev has successfully collaborated with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (United Kingdom), Hamburg Klassik (Germany), the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Wiener Consilium (Austria), Toscanini Philharmonic (Italy), Kolors Symphony Orchestra (Greece), Danube Symphony Orchestra (Hungary), Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra (Croatia) orchestra (Croatia), etc.

In 2018, Ayyub Guliyev was appointed as a principal conductor and music director of the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater. He is also an associate professor at the Baku Music Academy.

In 2021, Ayyub Guliyev signed a contract with the music agencies in Serbia, Slovakia and Germany.

Several projects have been already implemented as part of this cooperation. In November, the composer signed a contract with the Dutch company TACT.

The company is the global leader in personal artist management of established international artists.

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18 May 2023 10:00 (UTC+04:00)

With the organizational support of the Baku Network Expert Platform, international discussions of Azerbaijan's economic projects were held in Strasbourg.

Azernews reports with reference to Trend that deputies of the Milli Majlis of Azerbaijan Tural Ganjaliyev, Sevil Mikayilova and Nurlan Hasanov, as well as Polish MEP Richard Czarnetsky took part in the discussions.

The participants of the discussion exchanged views on the development of relations between Azerbaijan and the EU, the current dynamics of the implementation of joint economic projects.

During the discussions, the significant contribution of Azerbaijan to the energy security of Europe, the invaluable importance of the Middle Corridor and other topical issues were emphasized.

One of the priorities of the Baku Network Expert Platform is, in particular, promoting the development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU and strengthening inter-parliamentary ties.

To recall, the Baku Network Expert Platform has been operating since 2015, is a recognized non-governmental organization with registration by the Justice Ministry, and serves as one of the country's top think tanks. Additionally, Baku Network is listed in the UN system of public organizations and a list of the world's top think tanks "Global Go to Think Tank Index".

Azernews is presenting the full video version of the discussion:

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18 May 2023 13:22 (UTC+04:00)

Rena Murshud Read more

A trilateral meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia (Jeyhun Bayramov, Sergey Lavrov and Ararat Mirzoyan) will take place on May 19 in Moscow, and separate negotiations between Baku and Yerevan will also take place. This was stated on Wednesday at a briefing by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, Azernews reports.

"On May 19, Moscow will host trilateral and separate bilateral meetings between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia. Bilateral Azerbaijani- Armenian negotiations on a peace treaty will be held separately." - Zakharova said.

The diplomat noted that the parties at the meeting will discuss the prospects for the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia "taking into account the dynamic situation in the region."

"There will be a substantive discussion of the implementation of the tripartite agreements of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, which are the basis for this trilateral process, dated November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021 and October 31 last 2022, including the unblocking of transport and economic ties, the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, preparation of a peace treaty between countries, as well as contacts between the public, experts and parliamentarians," she added.

Zakharova also informed that in the course of separate meetings between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts, "an exchange of views on the most pressing issues of the bilateral and international agenda" is planned.

"We hope that the upcoming contacts will help to promote Baku and Yerevan in resolving disputes, searching for mutually acceptable solutions and generally increasing trust between the parties, as well as strengthening and stability in the South Caucasus," the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry concluded.

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18 May 2023 16:00 (UTC+04:00)

On May 18, at around 07:15, Armenian armed forces used combat UAVs against the Azerbaijan Armys several positions stationed in the direction of Yellija settlement of the Kalbajar region, Azernews reports.

During the inspection of the area, the remnants of projectiles made in a handicraft manner and thrown by Armenians by the use of UAVs were detected.

The Azerbaijan Army Units did not suffer any losses and took retaliatory measures.

We inform that the Armenian military-political leadership bears the entire responsibility for the tension caused in the region.

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18 May 2023 17:36 (UTC+04:00)

A meeting was held with the Deputy Chairman of the Hungarian National Assembly Sandor Lejak at Azerbaijan University of Languages (AUL), Azernews reports.

Academician Kamal Abdulla, the president of AUL, noted that Azerbaijan and Hungary are friendly countries. Cooperation in scientific, cultural, humanitarian and other fields, based on mutual trust and support, developed dynamically and rose to the level of strategic partnership.

"We are very glad to welcome you as a guest at our university. We have close relations with our Hungarian colleagues. We would like our scientific and cultural relations to develop further. These relations can also take place within the framework of teacher and student exchange. Thus, a new page will be opened in our partnership and friendship relations", the President added.

Expressing gratitude for the warm welcome and kind words, the guest spoke about active cooperation between Azerbaijan and Hungary in political, economic, educational and other fields. It was noted that new approaches are being applied in the management of higher education institutions in Hungary.

So, universities are managed by certain funds. This also creates favorable opportunities for taking more prompt and adequate steps regarding any issue.

"There are suitable opportunities for establishing cooperation relations with the university operating in Kecskemet, Hungary. I have connections with that university. We can use the opportunities provided by these relations and further expand our scientific cooperation," he said.

Kamal Abdulla highly appreciated the views of the guest and highlighted the prospects of scientific cooperation. It was noted that the center that studies the Hungarian language and culture at AUL can play an important role in this direction.

Later, the guest got acquainted with the center of Hungarian language and culture of ASU and met with students. During the meeting, students' questions were answered.

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China's top political advisor meets Tajik president

Xinhua) 09:39, May 18, 2023

Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets with President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan in Beijing, capital of China, May 17, 2023. Rahmon is paying a state visit to China and will attend the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Wang Huning met with President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan in Beijing on Wednesday.

The two sides should deepen political mutual trust, expand security cooperation, synergize development strategies and enhance mutual learning to boost the development of both countries, said Wang, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The CPPCC is willing to work with the Tajik side to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, strengthen exchanges through various channels and at various levels, and work together toward the goal of building a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future, Wang said.

Rahmon said Tajikistan attaches great importance to developing good-neighborly cooperation with China and sincerely congratulates China on its great achievements in the new era.

Tajikistan is willing to enhance high-level exchanges with China, strengthen cooperation in various fields and inject new and strong impetus into the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, Rahmon said.

Rahmon is paying a state visit to China and will attend the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province.

Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets with President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan in Beijing, capital of China, May 17, 2023. Rahmon is paying a state visit to China and will attend the China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The lobby entrance of KB Financial Group's headquarters in downtown Seoul / Korea Times file



By Lee Yeon-woo



KB Kookmin Bank's plan to increase capital in its Indonesian subsidiary, Bank KB Bukopin, is proceeding smoothly following recent approval from Indonesian financial authorities. KB Kookmin Bank anticipates that this subsidiary will start generating profits by 2025.



According to the bank on Thursday, it is planning to inject 1.08 trillion won ($808 million) of additional capital into its Indonesian subsidiary to stabilize its operations. The Indonesian Financial Authority, Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (OJK), recently approved the capital increase of Bank KB Bukopin.



Of the total, 700 billion won will be contributed by KB Kookmin Bank, while the remaining 300 billion won will be sought from external investment. STIC Investment and Eugene Private Equity are participating in the project as financial investors, with Meritz Securities involved as a limited partner. The Indonesian subsidiary of KB Insurance will also take part in the project.



The capital increase is expected to be finalized within this month.



Market watchers view that Bank KB Bukopin has demonstrated its potential for growth in the market by successfully attracting investors in this latest financing round.



Bank KB Bukopin was classified as an insolvent bank when it was acquired by KB Kookmin Bank in 2018. Since then, it has recorded a significant deficit, reaching 802.1 billion won last year.



The participation of Meritz Securities, a major securities firm in Korea, in the capital increase can be interpreted as a strong endorsement for the Indonesian bank's growth potential.



KB Kookmin Bank has expressed confidence in the normalization of Bank KB Bukopin's operations. The bank expects a financial turnaround by approximately 2025, with a contribution to KB's return on equity (ROE) expected around 2026.


18 May 2023 08:00 (UTC+04:00)

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday a Quad summit would not go ahead in Sydney next week without U.S. President Joe Biden, who postponed his trip due to debt ceiling negotiations in Washington, Azernews reports citing Reuters.

Albanese said the leaders of Australia, the United States, India and Japan would instead meet at the G7 in Japan this weekend, after Biden canceled a trip to Sydney on the second leg of his upcoming Asia trip, which was also to have included a visit to Papua New Guinea.

"The Quad leaders meeting will not be going ahead in Sydney next week. We, though will be having that discussion between Quad leaders in Japan," Albanese told a news conference.

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18 May 2023 09:40 (UTC+04:00)

Deepening and strengthening cooperation between law enforcement of Georgia and Israel was discussed between the Georgian Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri and Yaakov Shabtai, the Commissioner of the Israeli National Police, the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs said, Azernews reports with reference to Agenda.

The officials highlighted the existing cooperation between the agencies of the two countries, with Gomelauri emphasising the strategic partnership and the importance of increased and improved collaboration between the sides.

He also extended his gratitude to the Israeli side for expressing readiness to receive a Georgian police attache in the near future.

On his part, Shabtai said the Israeli side planned to maintain close cooperation with Georgia in a number of areas and said he hoped the cooperation would become even more successful with joint efforts.

The Ministry also said a delegation of the Israeli National Police was scheduled to visit its departments and learn about their daily operations in Georgia.

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Now that the public is allowed to know the truth regarding the Hunter Biden Laptop Scandal, after more that 2 1/2 years of deception by the corrupt Corporate Media Kabal, propropagandidats all, and the discredited Deep State, we have NOW learned that the infamous laptop is far less about the Biden Boy's fetish for pornography, narcotics and Russian whores, and far more about Hunter's pivotal role in the Biden Crime Syndicate's selling of deep access to our foreign adversaries, and to what extent it has compromised our national security: What is your opinion about this possible coordinated Treason?

It is imperative that we know the truth of what may be the greatest scandal in our Republic's history, and all aforementioned parties prosecuted for their crimes against the People.

Currently, our Two Tiered Justice System is constructed to protect all Democratic Socialists, their corrupt "Journalist" spokes-sheople, and their Deep State enablers ... so why bother.

It is Donald Trump's fault.
Chua Choon Hong



By Chua Choon Hong



In an increasingly volatile economic and political environment, it's important for firms to manage risks across their supply chains. Firms worldwide are thus upping investment in this area, according to new research.



South Korean companies face unique challenges in maintaining secure supplies. With South Korea being close to Russia and China geographically, and rising tensions between the West, China, Russia and North Korea, companies here are particularly vulnerable to the supply chain effects of this tension. But it's a delicate balance as China remains South Korea's largest trading partner.



War in Ukraine and subsequent energy shocks are causing problems too. For example, with fuel costs soaring, South Korean truckers went on strike last year, threatening supplies in multiple sectors.



These country-specific risks add to the greater complexity of supplier risks that most international companies are facing. These widespread risks come from an increasingly large and threatening number of sources, including natural disasters; pandemics; business failures; sanctions and export controls; cyber threats and environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) related problems.



Yet another challenge is that supply chains have grown larger and more tiered, making it harder to identify and mitigate risks. A few examples include a cosmetics company using palm oil linked to deforestation; a fashion retailer sourcing clothes made by forced labor and an electronics company connected to pollution from precious metals mining.



Uncovering such risks has become critical to corporate responsibility and safeguarding brands  especially for regulated entities and consumer-facing firms, which are more sensitive to reputational issues.



But managing these risks well through greater supply chain visibility can deliver a competitive advantage for businesses. For example, measuring and disclosing suppliers' environmental impacts can show that you work with fair and ethical companies, protect your reputation, and attract more consumers.





gettyimagesbank
From three major Surgery Partners partnerships to new pain institute partners, here are five major ASC partnerships to know from the first half of the year:

1. Cincinnati-based Bon Secours Mercy Health and Raleigh, N.C.-based Compass Surgical Partners partnered to grow outpatient surgical care.

2. Nashville, Tenn.-based Capitol Pain Institute partnered with Edina, Minn.-based Nura Pain Clinics.

3. Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Health and Nashville, Tenn.-based healthcare services company Surgery Partners signed a collaboration agreement.

4. Columbus-based OhioHealth and Nashville-based healthcare services company Surgery Partners formed a new company to grow ASC joint ventures across the state of Ohio.

5. Surgery Partners and management services organization Growth Orthopedics partnered for Lakeway (Texas) ASC.
Former Naples, Fla.-based physician Omar Saleh has pleaded guilty in a $2.6 million fraud scheme, the Naples Daily News reported Jan. 27.

Beginning in April 2020, Dr. Saleh participated in a scheme in which he received kickbacks for signing orders for medically unnecessary genetic testing. He is one of 36 defendants across 13 federal jurisdictions, according to the report.

He was recruited by Palm Beach, Fla.-based Michael Stein to sign the genetic testing orders for patients referred by Panda Conservation Group, a Texas company.

A total of $1.2 billion was fraudulently billed to Medicare over the course of the scheme, which included telemedicine, cancer genetic testing, and durable equipment schemes.

Dr. Saleh was charged in July 2022 and forfeited his medical license to the Florida Board of Medicine in December. He will be sentenced April 20, the report said.
Timothy Babineau, MD, principal at ECG Management Consultants, spoke with Becker's to discuss physicians' reimbursement concerns.

Editor's note: This response was edited lighty for length and clarity.

Question: What is the biggest threat to physicians right now?

Dr. Timothy Babineau: Physician burnout is at an historic high with no clear end or solution in sight. Unless concerted, coordinated and nationally organized efforts begin to tackle this problem in a meaningful way, we will continue to see early retirements and continued erosion of our physician workforce  to the great detriment of American healthcare.

Q: What are your biggest concerns regarding reimbursements right now?

TB: Continued downward pressure on reimbursement rates across all government and commercial payers even as hospital margins disappear. In addition, given the severe shortage of mental and behavioral health providers (all disciplines) in this country, there needs to be a recalibration of reimbursement rates for these professionals.
Cardiology procedures are continuing to migrate to the ASC setting, leaders said at a March 22 California Ambulatory Surgery Association summit with payers and industry stakeholders.

Here are three points on cardiology migration according to Kyle Michaelis, MD, a cardiologist at Sacramento (Calif.) Heart and Vascular, and Alex Bolanos, vice president of corporate development at United Surgical Partners International, who spoke at the event.
The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy gathered over 175 physician groups to cosign a letter to the UnitedHealthcare CEO opposing upcoming changes to prior authorization for GI endoscopy procedures, according to a May 16 press release from the organization.

The controversial changes, which were first announced in March, are set to take place on June 1.

Groups signing the letter include patient advocates, national and state medical societies, independent practices and academic institutions.

"[The new policy] is flawed and misguided and will harm patients, limit access to care for vulnerable populations, delay diagnosis of colorectal cancer in younger populations and needlessly increase physician and practice burden. Nearly 1,500 patients and their physicians have sent letters to UHC expressing the harms, both immediate and long term, that the program will cause," the letter reads. "In addition to harming patients, the GI endoscopy prior authorization program will cause undue burden to practices at a time when UHC says it is attempting to ease physician burden."

In a separate letter from the ASGE, the American College of Gastroenterology and the American Gastroenterological Association, leaders requested that UHC reconsider and rescind the upcoming changes, which include requiring prior authorization for diagnostic and surveillance colonoscopies.

In addition, the California Medical Association signed its own letter in opposition to the changes.

"The new prior authorization requirements for these gastroenterology endoscopy services perpetuates UnitedHealthcare's pattern of adding unnecessary administrative burden and compliance cost to physician practices by imposing overly broad, indiscriminate and unsubstantiated utilization policies," the group wrote.
Hillsdale (Mich.) Hospital has launched its first campaign aimed at promoting its healthcare services and advocating for patients getting care at local hospitals.

The campaign, dubbed "Hillsdale Strong. Hillsdale First," includes promotional content posted on traditional and digital media outlets, a guide for choosing patient care at Hillsdale, and engagement opportunities.

"Now is the time for rural communities to stand behind their local hospitals, and thats what Hillsdale First is all about," Rachel Lott, chief communications officer of Hillsdale, said in a May 15 press release from the hospital. "We are inviting our community to choose Hillsdale First when it comes to their medical care."
Fort Belvoir (Va.) Community Hospital will now bear the name of the first Black medical officer in the U.S. Army and the first Black professor of medicine in the U.S., Alexander Thomas Augusta, MD.

The new name for the hospital is Alexander T. Augusta Military Medical Center, according to a May 16 press release from the hospital. The name honors Dr. Augusta's legacy, which includes teaching anatomy at Washington, D.C.-based Howard University, fighting against racial injustices and being one of the highest-ranking Black officers in the Union Army.

The hospital held a renaming ceremony on May 16.
Walgreens is doubling down on clinical trials after competitor CVS Health said it would be exiting that market by the end of 2024, Yahoo Finance reported.

Retailers began launching research institutes during the pandemic to get access to more diverse study participants. However, CVS said May 15 it would be winding down its clinical trial business to focus on its "long-term strategic priorities."

"We are full steam ahead as we continue to support many of our manufacturers that have come into the ecosystem since June," Ramita Tandon, chief clinical trials officer at Walgreens, told Yahoo Finance in the May 15 story. "We're very focused on what we're doing at Walgreens because it's part of the broader healthcare mission and journey that we're on."
Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services, which is hoping to finalize its merger with Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health by the end of May, would not renew its current agreement with the University of Minnesota if terms are not altered, Fairview CEO James Hereford told investors May 9.

The current agreement with the University of Minnesota, which opposes the merger between Fairview and Sanford, is due to end in 2026, but differences remain as to how it could be renewed. The two entities are in "active conversations" about new terms, Mr. Hereford said.

"We have certainly made an investment in academic medicine," he said of the current affiliation. "We would certainly not continue with this agreement in its current form."

On the investor call, Fairview management outlined the recent refusal by the University of Minnesota to accede to Fairview's request of $65 million in payment relief.

Regarding the tie-up with Sanford, Fairview management said debt levels would likely not increase once the merger is complete.

While the merger is due to close soon, it has been complicated by opposition both from the University of Minneapolis and by legislative moves involving the state's attorney general, Keith Ellison, and the Minnesota state House.

"We are in the process of working with the Minnesota AG weekly; it feels more like on a daily basis," Mr. Hereford said.
Carroll, Iowa-based St. Anthony Regional Hospital will apply to become a critical access hospital, the Carroll Times Herald reported May 17.

The decision to seek the designation was spurred by changes in qualifications to become a critical access hospital, according to the report. The hospital became eligible after the definition of primary and secondary roads changed, CEO Allen Anderson told the news outlet.

Mr. Anderson said the change would stabilize the hospital's financial future and allow it to continue offering care locally, according to the report.

He said outside of possible changes to the revenue cycle department, staff members should not notice any differences in the hospital operations should the application be approved.
People walk through Togoshi Ginza, one of the longest shopping streets in Tokyo, May 8. AFP-Yonhap



By Lee Yeon-woo



The Japanese economy, which has long suffered from decades of stagnation, is showing signs of recovery. Its gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate has turned positive for the first time in three quarters, surpassing that of Korea.



If this trend continues, Japan will surpass Korea in terms of real economic growth rate this year, for the first time in 25 years since 1998 during the Asian financial crisis.



Japan's Cabinet Office announced on Wednesday that the country's GDP increased 0.4 percent year-on-year during the first quarter of this year. Its annual growth rate, which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) initially projected at 1.3 percent, is now expected to reach 1.6 percent based on its recent performance.



This stands in stark contrast to Korea, which is struggling to achieve a growth rate of 1.5 percent this year. Global credit ratings agency S&P cut the 2023 economic growth estimate for Korea to 1.1 percent from a previous outlook of 1.3 percent, while the IMF reduced its economic outlook to 1.5 percent from 1.7 percent.



Market watchers attributed the contrasting performance to the differing economic structures of the two countries. Japan's growth momentum has been driven by a surge in domestic demand, which has had a significant impact on its economy following the end of the pandemic.




A Texas bill that would require hospitals to provide an itemized bill when billing for medical services passed the state Legislature on May 17 and is headed to the governor's desk.

Currently, patients can request an itemized bill but cannot get it automatically. Under the legislation, the itemized bill would have to include the amount the hospital would accept as full payment for each service or supply, a plain language description of the charge, and the billing codes and costs provided to third parties involved in reimbursement.

Under the amended version of the legislation, the bill applies to hospitals and healthcare facilities, but not to physicians or federally qualified healthcare facilities.
The full effect a U.S. debt ceiling breach would have on healthcare is unknown but, Sara Rosenbaum, emerita professor at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., told Barron's on May 12 that "If the federal government can't pay the bills, the entire thing stops. The whole health system collapses."

With June 1  the date Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called the "X date" when the federal government would run out of money to pay its bills if Congress and President Joe Biden do not come to a compromise  only a couple of weeks away, analysts said they are looking at a worst-case scenario. Moody's put the possibility of a breach at 10 percent but also noted "a lengthy standoff no longer has a zero probability."

"It's Congress' job to do this," Ms. Yellen told ABC on May 7. "If they fail to do it, we will have an economic and financial catastrophe that will be of our own making, and there is no action that President Biden and the U.S. Treasury can take to prevent that catastrophe."

It is possible payments to Medicare and Medicaid payments could stop right away and the "trickle-down implications would eventually make their way through the medical system, worsening the longer the situation continued," the Barron's article said.

That said, "For at least a month, maybe two months, hospitals and doctors offices and other providers would continue to get payments from the Medicare program, but for services that they provided potentially months ago," Joseph Antos, PhD, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, told The Hill on May 18.

"Medicare is the financial backbone of our healthcare system, so the consequences to hospitals and healthcare providers will be profound," Katherine Hempstead, PhD, senior policy adviser at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, told The Hill. "Social Security and Medicare are major sources of federal expenditure, and in most scenarios, they will be impacted."

Even in the short term, depending on how much cash hospitals have to sustain themselves, a Moody's Analytics report said smaller hospitals, especially those in rural areas, would be affected immediately. All hospitals throughout the country might be forced to concentrate on providing emergency services and even consider canceling elective procedures if CMS payments stop.

The American Hospital Association declined to comment when contacted by Becker's.

A CMS spokesperson told The Hill that "even approaching default could damage the economy, as we saw in 2011. While the precise impact on CMS' programs depends on many uncertain factors, it is clear that if the federal government is prevented from making good on its promises, there would be significant consequences for Medicaid, Medicare and the Affordable Care Act marketplaces."






Orange, Calif.-based Children's Hospital of Orange County has named its former consultant Kim Milstien executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Ms. Milstien has more than 25 years of experience leading acute care operations, according to a May 17 news release. She has served the hospital for more than a year, first as a strategy and business planning consultant and then as chief strategy and affiliation officer.

She has held other roles with hospitals in the past, including the CEO title at both Ventura (Calif.) County Medical Center and Santa Paula (Calif.) Hospital.

Ms. Milstien succeeds Paul Van Dolah, who was named chief transformation officer last year.
St. David's Medical Center in Austin, Texas, has named Katie Perkins its next chief operating officer, effective May 15.

Ms. Perkins has served Austin-based St. David's HealthCare for more than a decade, according to a May 17 news release. Most recently, she served as chief operating officer of St. David's Round Rock (Texas) Medical Center.

St. David's HealthCare is a health system formed from a partnership between Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare and two Texas-based nonprofits: Georgetown Health Foundation and St. David's Foundation. It operates more than 180 care sites.
Nurses at MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Wash., who are members of the Washington State Nurses Association, have voted "no confidence" in the CEO of their parent organization.

Pamela Devi Chandran, the union's chief negotiator and counsel, told Becker's 377 nurses  more than half of the bargaining unit  voted unanimously May 16 that they lacked confidence in Bill Robertson's ability to lead. The union represents about 750 nurses at MultiCare Good Samaritan, part of Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare Health System. Mr. Robertson helms the health system.

The vote comes as union members have been in negotiations with the hospital since February and have met for 15 sessions. For the last several sessions, a federal mediator has been involved in negotiations.

MultiCare Health System shared a statement with Becker's saying that the organization "remains committed to bargaining in good faith with WSNA with the goal of reaching a fair contract that supports a safe, equitable and economically sustainable workplace. MultiCare has been negotiating with WSNA since February, and we believe the best way to come to an agreement that satisfies both parties is at the bargaining table."

During negotiations, staffing and break nurses are the most critical issues for union members at the table, Ms. Devi Chandran said, noting that raises/wages are not a point of contention.

She said the union has made several proposals on these issues, including proposing nurse-to-patient ratios, which the Washington State Nurses Association has in its collective bargaining agreement with MultiCare Tacoma General.

"The union's most recent staffing proposal was based on the hospital's state-submitted staffing matrix, clarifying that a charge nurse should be 'free' (that is, not have patients assigned to them), that units in dire need also have 'free' flex or resource nurses (an additional RN who can assist RNs with patients), and adequate break coverage," Ms. Devi Chandran said.

Regarding break coverage, she said nurses believe the hospital's current "buddy system"  in which a nurse with a patient assignment takes on another nurse's patients so that nurse can take a break  is an unsafe practice and "greatly diminishes the quality of patient care a nurse can provide, and puts unbearable stress on nurses who are already grossly understaffed."

Instead, the union seeks designated break nurses.

MultiCare Health System said management understands the pressures nurses are facing, which have intensified in the last six months during the "tripledemic" of flu, respiratory syncytial virus and COVID-19 surges.

"We hear the concerns they voice over staffing levels and burnout. We value and support our nurses not just with words, but also with actions," the health system said.

The organiztion said management has proposed adding meal and break assignments to each unit based on time needed to cover those meals and breaks.

"We built this proposal using an established model created by the bargaining team RNs, with two minor changes to the first set of effective dates," MultiCare Health System said. "We adjusted the effective dates to allow time to make this addition successful. Our proposal would allow time for the new contract (and new rates) to take effect, giving us time to recruit and train more RNs  thus gathering the required staffing levels to support adding meal and break assignments."

Regarding staffing, the health system said "it is worth noting that MultiCare currently has more than 300 open RN positions at Good Samaritan Hospital. We will continue to be aggressive in our recruiting as we seek to improve the existing workplace environment."

The union is accusing Mr. Robertson of disregarding staff proposals, according to mynorthwest.com.

Ms. Devi Chandran said management countered the Washington State Nurses Association's last proposal by offering an annual "financial workshop" presented by its CFO to rank-and-file nurses who sit on the staffing committee.

"Our top priority is a fair contract that supports staff as well as patients and the communities we serve. MultiCare believes in paying market-competitive salaries and benefits. We must also ensure our services remain affordable for patients and that our hospitals remain fiscally sound so that we can continue providing health care services to the community," the health system said.

The next bargaining session is May 22.
Members of Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West have reached a contract settlement with management, averting a five-day strike that was scheduled to begin May 22 at five HCA Healthcare facilities in California.

Both sides reached the contract settlement May 18, according to a union news release.

The three-year contract settlement was reached by about 3,000 workers at HCA's Good Samaritan Hospital and its Regional Medical Center in San Jose; Los Robles Medical Center in Thousand Oaks; West Hills Hospital; and Riverside Community Hospital. Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA's website states that it operates 182 hospitals and more than 2,300 care sites in 20 states and the United Kingdom.

According to the union, the settlement at the five HCA facilities includes 15 percent raises over the life of the contract and protects healthcare and education benefits for workers.

"Healthcare workers are still dealing with trauma and burnout from the pandemic, and we've watched too many of our colleagues leave for better-paying jobs with less stress," Xochitl Gonzalez, a patient care technician and union leader at Los Robles Medical Center, said in the union release. "Reaching this agreement wasnt easy but we stood together to advocate for worker and patient safety, improved staffing levels, and fair wages and benefits that reflect the vital work we do everyday."

HCA Healthcare Far West Division spokesperson Antonio Castelan said in a statement shared with Becker's: "We have been in productive negotiations for more than three months and are pleased to have reached an agreement."

He also thanked communities "for their ongoing support as we prepared to serve our patients had the union conducted a strike. We are fortunate that locally and nationally, our organization is able to draw upon its strength, its partners and colleagues across the country to support these five hospitals and communities."

The agreement must be approved by union members before it is final. The ratification vote is scheduled for later in May.
Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Mo., part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, violated federal labor law by withdrawing recognition from a Service Employees International Union affiliate on about Aug. 15, 2021, prior to the official certification of the election results, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled.

NLRB Judge Christine Dibble said in her 36-page decision May 16 that Research Medical Center illegally withdrew recognition from the SEIU as the collective bargaining representative of the unit and failed to fully provide relevant information requested by the SEIU.

Research Medical Center "withdrew recognition of the union on about Aug. 15, more than two years before expiration of the agreement which ran from April 6, 2021 through May 31, 2023," the judge wrote.

Moreover, the hospital "refused to honor any of the terms of the contract before it had expired. Therefore, the respondent effectuated an actual withdrawal of union recognition before the expiration of the current agreement in violation of" labor law, Ms. Dibble said.

The judge also said the hospital failed to meet and confer with the SEIU over "as needed staffing" pay as required by the collective bargaining agreement; refused to meet with the National Nurses Organizing Committee's designated representative; and stopped the deduction and remittance of union dues to the SEIU as required by the agreement. NNOC is an affiliate of National Nurses United.

Employees at Research Medical Center voted to remove the SEIU as their exclusive representative in June 2021.

The vote was the result of a union decertification process conducted by the National Labor Relations Board, which allows hospital workers to decide whether to keep third-party union representation. Employees including patient care technicians, certified nursing assistants, food and nutrition services, environmental services, imaging technologists and respiratory therapists had the opportunity to vote by mail between May 17 and June 14, 2021. Results of the decertification election were finalized on Feb. 8, 2022, according to NLRB documents.

Ms. Dibble dismissed some allegations, including board attorneys' claims that a worker was illegally told to remove a union button and that a consultant made an unlawful statement when meeting with workers about the voting process, according to Law360 .

Becker's reached out to HCA and will update this story if a comment is received.

Representatives of the unions did not immediately respond to requests from Law360 for comment.






West Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health and Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital invested in remote care platform HealthSnap as part of a $9 million funding round.

The company, which provides virtual care and remote patient monitoring for chronic disease management, said it plans to use the investment to expand nationally to develop new clinical use cases.

"Health systems have reached a turning point in their care delivery and population health strategy," said Matthew Warrens, managing director of innovation at UnityPoint Health, in a May 17 news release. "If we want to continue to provide world-class personalized care at scale, when and where patients want to receive it, we need to continuously invest in novel technology and partnerships that meet patients in their homes."

The oversubscribed series A financing round brings HealthSnap's total funding to $17.1 million.

"Implementing technology to monitor our patients from the comfort of their own home can be a highly effective way to avoid costly and unnecessary return visits to the hospital, while vastly improving our patients' satisfaction and ability to manage their care remotely," stated Rachel Feinman, vice president of innovation at Tampa General Hospital and managing director of TGH Innoventures.
An employee is suing Northville Township, Mich.-based Hawthorn Center for instructing him to act as an active shooter in an unannounced drill that resulted in him being handcuffed and detained, Click On Detroit reported May 17.

The Hawthorn Center is a state-run psychiatric hospital for children. On Dec. 21, Brandon Woodruff, a laborer and assistant to the skilled trades workers, was instructed by his supervisor to join a white male colleague to act as armed intruders in an unannounced drill. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Woodruff and his wife were expecting a child and he was afraid of losing his job if he refused to participate.

The colleagues were told to walk around the facility and ensure every room was locked and the people inside hidden, and to note anyone who was not hidden or barricaded. The pair, dressed in winter clothes, walked the building without any weapons or objects. According to the lawsuit, two announcements were made. The first stated there was an active intruder in the building and the second announced "two active intruders, one Caucasian male, one African American male, armed with AR 15s, shots fired."

Few of the staff and none of the patients were told it was a drill, nor were police notified a drill would occur, according to the report. 911 calls reported an active shooter, and 22 police officers from four departments rushed to the scene. They arrived with tactical weapons and heavy gear.

Mr. Woodruff and his colleague exited the building after completing their task, where they were met by officers. They were ordered to get on the ground, where they were both searched, then handcuffed for at least 30 minutes while the police sorted out the situation, according to the report.

The lawsuit said the following email was sent to staff that evening from hospital director Victoria Petti, PhD: "This morning an active intruder alert was announced on the overhead system. Although this was a drill it was not announced as such. Understandably, many in the building became frightened and some contacted 911. A tactical team responded to these calls and arrived armed and in full gear. I want to convey how deeply sorry I am that this occurred and for the stress it's caused."

Mr. Woodruff said the event caused him trauma that has resulted in depression, panic attacks and suicidal ideation. His lawsuit accuses Hawthorn Center of gross negligence, intentional infliction of emotional damage and false imprisonment and seeks financial compensation.

Lynn Sutfin from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement to Click On Detroit: "The health and safety of our staff and patients is our top concern. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services understands that our patients, staff and community were affected by the incident in December. We commend our staff who worked quickly to engage law enforcement partners and the responding agencies who worked to resolve the situation. The Joint Commission requires the state psychiatric hospitals conduct a hazard vulnerability analysis at least every two years to identify potential emergencies, including active shooter drills. MDHHS is working with township law enforcement and the Michigan State Police on an improved active intruder training and drill process as part of updating its emergency operations policy."
Nearly 11 months after Roe v. Wade was overturned, new data has emerged from a University of California, San Francisco study depicting how abortion bans can negatively affect patient health outcomes.

Increasingly, the university heard of reports from physicians throughout the country where individuals were being instructed to not speak with the press about cases of patient care that were negatively affected by the overturn of Roe, which prompted researchers to launch the Care Post-Roe Study in September 2022.

UCSF invited providers from states where abortion bans and restrictions are in place to submit stories of these cases with the option to remain anonymous and received 50 submissions from 14 different states between September 2022 and March 2023. Without sharing personal information, the submissions described instances of how abortion bans affected patient outcomes ranging from ectopic pregnancies, severe fetal anomalies, miscarriages and delays in obtaining abortion care or healthcare in general.

Analysis of those cases revealed the following insights about care amid a post-Roe landscape:

Patients between the ages of 18 and 24 accounted for 38 percent of the affected individuals in situations that physicians shared for this research, followed by individuals between 25 and 30 at 28 percent.





Thirty-six percent of affected patients were white followed by 24 percent who were Latino/Hispanic and 22 percent were Black.





Obstetric complications in the second trimester of pregnancy was the most commonly reported event and affected 18 of the 50 reported instances described, which included 11 cases of preterm prelabor rupture of membranes.





Ectopic pregnancies were the second most common experience described as a cause for eight out of the 50 described events.





Fetal anomalies were the third most reported experience affecting seven out of 50 patient events.

Many of the reported instances above were preventable conditions, researchers described, but without abortion being a legal form of care in certain states, patients often endured additional complications that sometimes led to severe or dangerous outcomes.

In one case, a physician shared that a patient who had an unwanted pregnancy was experiencing severe bleeding, but "Our hands are tied. She is hemodynamically stable. This is a threatened, not inevitable, abortion. The pregnancy may continue. So we have to simply wait, either for bleeding to get worse or for her to get to viability [when she could be delivered].  She may get to be cared for out of state, but she has social circumstances which seem to make that untenable," they explained.

In another, a patient developed a severe infection during her pregnancy in a state with an abortion ban, but was sent home after an initial diagnosis of a preterm premature rupture of the membranes.

A physician who worked with the patient told UCSF researchers that she met the patient "two days later in the ICU. She was admitted from the ER with severe sepsisand bacteremia. Her fetus delivers; she is able to hold [the fetus]. We try every medical protocol we can find to help her placenta deliver; none are successful. She is now on three pressors and in [disseminated intravascular coagulopathy]. The anesthesiologist cries on the phone when discussing the case with me  if the patient needs to be intubated, no one thinks she will make it out of the OR."

Further research collection around this effort is ongoing and has been approved by the UCSF Institutional Review Board, researchers noted.
Yoido Full Gospel Church Senior Pastor Lee Young-hoon speaks during a press conference to celebrate the church's 65th anniversary at Fairmont Ambassador Seoul hotel, Thursday. Courtesy of Yoido Full Gospel Church



By Kwak Yeon-soo



As part of activities marking its 65th anniversary, Yoido Full Gospel Church expressed commitment to expand support for the needs of underprivileged people in society.



Yoido Full Gospel Church, which started in 1958 by holding services under a makeshift tent in northwestern Seoul, grew to become the world's largest congregation. It now has around 580,000 members.



"In the past 65 years, the church has reached out to thousands of people providing relief materials and food for them. Our mission lies in helping marginalized communities," Lee Young-hoon, senior pastor of the church, said during a press conference held at Fairmont Ambassador Seoul Hotel, Thursday.



"I recently became aware of groups that need our assistance. They are North Korean children born to defectors who were sold to Chinese men by traffickers. They have no access to citizenship, health care and schooling. We also need to provide support to multicultural families, especially children of undocumented migrant workers and foreign brides."



Under the theme "Re-Bible, Revival," the church will hold an anniversary worship service until May 21. This year also marks the 120th anniversary of the 1903 Great Spiritual Revival that took place in Wonsan in present-day North Korea in August.



With the development of a strong digital and online presence, Lee said the church should evolve to meet changing needs.



"Membership is increasing at home and internationally. However, in order for the church to continue to prosper, it must make transitions online and expand our outreach to young people," Lee said.



He also called for the government to come up with policies to tackle the low birthrate. "The low birthrate is a disaster for the church and the country. I recommend that we give up to three years of parental leave like Germany, pay for the cost of raising a child until he or she is 17 and gift a free house when young adults get married," he said.



Lee also expressed his wish to resume building a cardiac hospital in Pyongyang, North Korea.



Since 2007, Yoido Full Gospel Church has been undertaking a project to establish a hospital in Pyongyang. Unfortunately, the construction has been on hold as inter-Korean relations have soured in recent years. "We really hope to complete the construction as soon as possible. However, inter-Korean relations must improve first." he said.




Governors from 11 states sent a letter to the Biden administration urging it to implement a federal policy ahead of a January 2025 deadline to help fight opioid deaths.

The Non-Opioids Prevent Addiction in the Nation Act was signed into law in 2022. The policy is designed to dramatically increase access to and use of non-opioid pain treatments for surgery patients, according to a news release from a coalition called Voices for Non-Opioid Choices shared with Becker's. Once implemented, the law would expand patient and provider access to FDA-approved non-opioid pain drugs and require a report to Congress on limitations, gaps, barriers and deficits in Medicare coverage for therapeutic services.

"As governors, we write to you with great urgency concerning the continuing epidemic caused by the opioid crisis in our states and local communities. As the Biden administration continues to do everything in its power to address this deadly epidemic, there is one straightforward step we believe the CMS can take expeditiously to decrease abuse and resulting deaths from opioids, including the prevention of opioid addiction before it begins," the governors wrote. "We urge you to expedite implementation of the NOPAIN Act by a full year to January 1, 2024."

The letter is signed by the governors of Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.
United Hospital Supply Corp. has been cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for 17 serious violations, three willful violations and one other-than-serious violation.

The company produces metal products such as steel cabinets, lockers and laboratory hoods for hospitals, laboratories and schools, according to a May 17 agency news release.

OSHA launched an investigation after a company employee lost three fingers on his first day of work while operating a press brake in New Jersey without required safety guards. OSHA cited United Hospital Supply with "willfully failing to remove or repair an inoperable forklift and to provide hazard communication training for chemicals used in the facility."

The proposed penalty is $498,464, and the company has been placed on OSHA's severe violator enforcement program. United Hospital Supply Corp. has 15 days to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director or contest the findings.
Dialogue with patients often includes questions about procedures for spine surgeons. Common threads include concerns about spinal fusions and how they will feel after surgery.

Seven spine surgeons shared with Becker's common patient questions they hear and how they address them.

Ask Spine Surgeons is a weekly series of questions posed to spine surgeons around the country about clinical, business and policy issues affecting spine care. Becker's invites all spine surgeon and specialist responses.

Next week's question: What cost-cutting measures are you taking at your practice?

Please send responses to Carly Behm at cbehm@beckershealthcare.com by 5 p.m. CDT Wednesday, May 24.

Editor's note: Responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.

Question: What concerns do patients voice most when it comes to spine surgery? Why?

Brian Fiani, DO. Mendelson Kornblum Orthopedic & Spine Specialists (Livonia, Mich.): It still surprises me to see how many patients voice concerns about "fusion." Their concern usually stems from a conversation with either a friend or family member who had an unusual and rare less-than-desirable outcome, such as continued pain or new pain. Historically, fusion surgeries sometimes required longer postoperative recovery processes that could take weeks to months. However, using new minimally invasive techniques, such as the ones that I acquired in my fellowship training, allow patients to have shorter hospitalization stays, less postoperative pain and quicker return to activities/work within weeks. The way to address the hesitation from the patients is to acknowledge their concern, but highlight the fact that fusion is often necessary for stabilization of the spine and helps to relieve mechanical neck or back pain. Successfully addressing their concerns will help them understand the importance of a fusion surgery.

Brian Gantwerker, MD. The Craniospinal Center of Los Angeles: Patients in nearly all of our first initial encounters voice that they dont understand the "why" of the surgery. I will start out by saying that not every patient should get a surgery, in even the busiest spine surgeon's office (i.e. the Oprah approach to surgery). The patients that do need an operation really need to understand what they are having done and the reason I or anyone is going to do it. Surgeons should be comfortable enough to be able to explain the philosophy of the operation and the reason why it is being done. The patients are entrusting their surgeon, their well-being in the hands of a stranger, more or less. Honesty and mutual respect is a great foundation for a good patient-doctor relationship. The trust established therein is a very strong bond, and it is the right thing to do for the patient.

Sohaib Hashmi, MD. UCI Health (Orange, Calif.): Patients having treatment for spinal disorders in the modern era most commonly ask about chances of success and failure. Whether treated with nonoperative conservative care or surgical management, patients would like to understand the probability of symptomatic improvement especially between various surgical solutions. Predictive analytics for patients undergoing decompression or decompression and fusion surgery are continuing to improve with higher level outcomes literature. Upcoming studies will give further insight into radiographic and patient reported outcomes metrics. With the use of more reliable and accurate imaging modalities, we will improve our understanding of the effect of global sagittal and coronal spinal alignment and segmental bone density. Patient-reported outcomes tracked pre-and postoperatively combined with patient expectations will allow us to better counsel our patients.

Mohammed Khan, MD. New Jersey Brain and Spine (Hackensack): Postsurgical pain is understandably a major concern for many patients because of the potential for discomfort and the need for pain medication during recovery. Complications and risks associated with surgery can also be a source of anxiety, including infection, bleeding, nerve damage, and other potential adverse outcomes. Patients may worry about the long-term effectiveness of the surgery, as well as the possibility of needing additional surgeries in the future, especially if their underlying condition is chronic or progressive.

Other common concerns include the length of the recovery period, potential limitations on mobility and activities, and the impact of the surgery on the patient's quality of life. Patients may also have concerns about the cost of the surgery and the impact on their finances, particularly if they are uninsured or underinsured.

Overall, patients' concerns about spine surgery reflect the complexity of the procedure and the potential impact it can have on their health, well-being and overall quality of life. By listening carefully to patients' concerns and addressing them with empathy, healthcare providers can help alleviate anxiety and ensure that patients feel informed and well-prepared for their surgery and recovery.

Kirk Owens, MD. Norton Leatherman Spine (Louisville, Ky.): I tend to hear two common concerns from patients considering spine surgery. Firstly, it is typical for a patient to ask if they can become paralyzed if something goes wrong with the surgery. Although this rarely occurs, it must be discussed thoroughly. Some surgeries place patients at higher risk for injury to the spinal cord (cervical myelopathy, tumors with spinal cord compression, epidural abscess) while other common procedures (lumbar laminectomy and discectomy) have little to no risk.

The second most common concern I hear relates to patient expectations. They will often express concern about their ability returning to normal activity. This, too, depends a lot on the type of surgery. A patient with a successful discectomy, laminectomy or single level cervical or lumbar fusion can have realistic expectations to return to a pretty normal level of activity. Conversely, a patient undergoing a large deformity surgery needs adequate counseling to explain the significant limitations they may have associated with a long, multilevel fusion surgery.

Vladimir Sinkov, MD. Sinkov Spine (Las Vegas): Spine surgery has evolved tremendously over the past several decades. Even lumbar laminectomy used to be a very invasive procedure with significant muscle dissection, blood loss, need for an inpatient hospital stay and prolonged recovery. Un-instrumented lumbar fusions required an even more invasive approach with painful iliac crest bone autograft harvesting, and either a body cast or a large and uncomfortable brace for a long period of time in order to achieve successful fusion. Complications were common and blood transfusions were frequently needed due to significant intraoperative blood loss. Traditional posterior lumbar interbody fusion technique required significant nerve retraction with a 17 percent rate of new postoperative foot-drop.

The field of spine surgery has advanced significantly since those times. Lumbar laminectomy and discectomy, cervical fusion and cervical disc replacement are now frequently outpatient procedures with quick recovery and minimal blood loss. With better implants, surface technologies and current bone graft substitute choices, the need to harvest iliac crest autograft is now very rare. Lumbar fusions, even with deformity correction, can now be done in a minimally invasive fashion with much quicker recovery, shorter hospital stay (sometimes outpatient), much lower rate of complications and much less postoperative pain.

Unfortunately, the stories of how "bad" spine surgery used to be still persist. The new advances in spine surgery with better outcomes have not become well-known not only among the general population but among other medical professionals as well. The main concern that the patients voice to me when faced with a choice to undergo spine surgery is that they have been told by their family, friends, and often their primary care doctor that spine surgery comes with prolonged recovery, high risk of nerve damage, paralysis, permanent disability and significant pain. I spend a lot of time dispelling the myths about modern spine surgery and explaining to my patients that we have come a long way from the way these surgeries were done in the past. At the end they feel relieved and willing to proceed with the surgery to help their pain and disability. The great outcomes of modern spine surgery speak for themselves.



Issada Thongtrangan, MD. Microspine (Scottsdale, Ariz.): The patient still is afraid of having spine surgery in general, especially open surgery or fusion surgery. They usually knew someone or heard the horror of spine surgery. I love to spend time educating and explaining to them how today's surgery is different from what we did in the past. Many patients are candidates for endoscopic spine surgery, minimally invasive spine surgery, and motion preservation surgery. Moreover, I spend time showing them the scientific data, so they have a better understanding. At the end of the day, I love how I can educate them and give them options. The decision is theirs.
A Co Down businessman denied defrauding 15 motorhome owners of around 420,000.

Lancelot William Walker pleaded not guilty at Newry Crown Court today to 16 dishonesty offences alleged to have been committed between August 2005 and August 2008.

The 60-year-old, of Ballynahinch Road, Carryduff, is a former director of a motorhomes firm which was liquidated in 2010.

He appeared via video link to deny 14 counts of fraud by false representation, a single charge of obtaining property by deception and a single charge of concealing criminal property.

It is alleged Walker told 15 people that he would sell their motorhomes and deliver the proceeds of the sale to them or use their profits towards payment for another motorhome.

The values of the motorhomes involved vary from 7,000 to 60,000.

Some of the charges accused Walker of committing the offences when performing in his role as managing director of Motorhomes Ireland Ltd.

The final charge of concealing criminal property totals the alleged proceeds of the sales of the vehicles, which is estimated to be 418,495.

The charge accuses Walker of concealing criminal property comprising of motorhomes which belonged to others and the proceeds of sales of motorhomes belonging to others.

Prosecuting counsel Geraldine McCullough said complainants came from various parts of Ireland and indicated the trial could last two weeks.

Freeing Walker on continuing bail, Judge Gordon Kerr KC scheduled the trial to begin on September 27.
A cowboy builder whose shoddy work left three home owners substantially out of pocket avoided an immediate jail term on Thursday

A cowboy builder whose shoddy work left three home owners substantially out of pocket avoided an immediate jail term today.

Lurgan trader Benjamin McCaughley received 67,500 from one householder in Bangor  but the work was so poor the new roof had to be replaced and consultants advised demolition of the rogue traders sunroom.

Passing sentence on the 34-year-old trader, Judge Geoffrey Miller KC told McCaughley: You are, like the foundations of the building work you carried out, a man of straw.

He said the builder was out of his depth in taking on the contracts and effectively blackmailed his clients.

The father-of-five, from Springhill Road, appeared at Downpatrick Crown Court, sitting in Belfast, where he was handed an 18-month sentence which was suspended for three years.

Despite initial denials, McCaughley pleaded guilty to six counts of engaging in a misleading commercial practice and five of recklessly engaging in commercial practice which contravenes professional diligence.

All the offences were committed on dates between November 2019 and July 2021 while he traded under the name Regional Contractors.

Following sentencing Alison Gilchrist of the Trading Standards Service (TSS) said: This is an extreme example of a trader carrying out substandard work and misleading his victims as to the level of service to expect from him.

He has left each of his victims in these cases with inferior work which is going to take thousands of pounds to rectify.

The cases involved customers in Bangor, Jordanstown and Holywood.

In all three cases, McCaughley offered a 10-year guarantee and initially said he would only take payment when the work was completed.

But all three homeowners experienced demands for money upfront and were left with jobs that were incomplete or in need or reconstruction due to a poor standard of work.

Judge Miller revealed some of the work undertaken by McCaughley was so incompetent it required demolition and starting again from scratch.

The TSS said in a statement: The job in Bangor involved the construction of a new garage and sunroom and later, on Mr McCaughleys advice to deal with a leaking roof, the replacement of the roof to the property. In total, Mr McCaughley received 67,500 from the householder.

However, the standard of the work was so poor that the new roof had to be replaced at a further cost of 14,000 and an independent report commissioned by the TSS concluded that the sunroom required so much remedial work that its demolition may be the most economic alternative.

TSS said McCaughley was paid 10,000 for the work he did for a customer in Jordanstown, which included the building of a retaining wall and some paving and resurfacing of a driveway.

The concerned householder commissioned her own report from a chartered civil and structural engineer who concluded the retaining wall was unsafe and recommended its destruction and the building of a new retaining wall

TSS said Mr McCaughleys final victim in Holywood paid him 6,000 to lay a patio and build some steps and a retaining wall. Having been paid 6,000 Mr McCaughley then told the householder that he could not complete all the work for the price he had quoted and left the job unfinished.

The TSS commissioned a report on the work, which concluded that the foundations and structure of the retaining wall were inadequate, possibly leading to structural failure.

In court Judge Miller said : As a result (of incompetent work), the three complainants not only have had to endure the discomfort and stress of living in an unfinished building site but are thousands of pounds worse off.

Revealing McCaughley started working in the building trade aged 14, the Judge said he was totally out of his depth in taking on these contracts and effectively blackmailed his clients.

Defence barrister Michael Ward indicated McCaughley's remorse and said his client has now confined his work solely to landscaping and was an industrious man who provided for his family.

Judge Miller said: Whatever hope there is of meaningful compensation being made in this case is dependent on your ability to work.

McCaughley was also ordered to pay 6,000 compensation and was banned from holding a directorship position with a company for three years.




North Korean Premier Kim Tok-hun has met with China's new ambassador to Pyongyang, the North's state media said Thursday.







Kim met Ambassador Wang Yajun, who paid a courtesy call, at the Mansudae Assembly Hall the previous day, according to the Korean Central News Agency.







The state media said the meeting was held in a "warm and friendly" atmosphere.







According to a separate statement released by the Chinese Embassy in North Korea on social media late Wednesday, Kim vowed that Pyongyang will push to further advance its friendly ties with China regardless of any changes in international politics.







Wang noted that the leaders of Pyongyang and Beijing have maintained strategic communications despite COVID-19, saying he hopes the two countries will bolster their ties and cooperate closely in many fields going forward.







Wang began his official duty in early April, after his arrival in the secretive state was delayed for more than two years due to the North's pandemic-related border restrictions. He was appointed as Beijing's top envoy to Pyongyang in February 2021.







Last week, he met with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui who vowed Pyongyang's "steadfast" willingness to further develop friendly ties between their nations.







North Korea has been strengthening its ties with China, the North's traditional ally and economic benefactor, amid global sanctions on its nuclear and missile programs, and stalled denuclearization talks with the United States. (Yonhap)






The Belfast Photo Festival will return to the city

The Belfast Photo Festival is returning this year at outdoor and indoor venues across the city for the month of June.

Launched in 2011, this now annual photographic event has been described as one of the best photography festivals in the world by Capture Magazine.

It attracts upwards of 100,000 visitors a year, celebrating some of the finest national and international contemporary photography across 30 museums, galleries and public spaces.

The Festival consists of exhibitions, talks, symposiums, workshops, screenings, masterclasses, portfolio reviews and tours. It is funded by Belfast City Council, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, and Arts and Business Northern Ireland.

The 2023 edition of Belfast Photo Festival explores how artists in the contemporary moment are interpreting the idea of the journey as a subject of art.

The festival organisers state: In this edition of Belfast Photo Festival, we explore how artists in the contemporary moment are interpreting the idea of the journey as a subject of art.

The festival features projects that approach this centuries old preoccupation from new and surprising angles: from works that chart global surges in civil unrest, re-trace epic pilgrimages, explore the passage of time, map out unwritten histories, and chronicle journeys of self-discovery that look inward rather than out at the world.

Riffing off of photographys long history of capturing our world through images, in this edition of the festival we follow photographers as they lead us on journeys through a variety of places, histories, and perspectives.

The Belfast Photo Festival will run from Thursday June 1 to Friday June 30, 2023. For more information go to www.belfastphotofestival.com
An asylum seeker who set fire to a building in Belfast which housed an agency offering him assistance was jailed for the arson attack today (Thursday).

Qadar Nazeri was handed a sentence of three years and four months custody for the arson attack at a unit on the Linfield Industrial Estate belonging to the Mears Group on January 27, 2022.

The agency offers a range of services including housing support for asylum seekers.

Belfast Crown Court heard that since arriving in Belfast the 22-year old Afghani national has a history of targeting the Mears Group - including smashing a window at their premises in December 2020.

As she jailed Nazeri, Judge Patricia Smyth told him the motivation for the arson attack "appears to be in relation to the failure to provide you with accommodate."

The court heard that just before 1pm on January 27, 2022 Nazeri - with an address at Upper Newtownards Road in Belfast - was captured on CCTV in the industrial estate.

He placed paper amongst a large pile of rubbish including old mattresses and sofas situated at the rear of a building.

Nazeri then lit the paper and left the area briefly before returning. He was again picked up on CCTV observing the pile of rubbish - then was seen walking away when smoke began to emerge.

The building includes the offices for Mears Group, which provided housing and social care, and several members of staff were present in the premises which had to be evacuated when the fire took hold.

The Fire and Rescue Service were called and tackled the blaze, which resulted around 17,000's worth of damage to the exterior of the building.

Nazeri was arrested, admitted what he did immediately and pleaded guilty to a charge of arson with intent to cause damage to property and being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.

Defence submissions made by barrister Con O'Neill revealed Nazeri was seeking asylum before his arrest for the arson attack and was being assisted by various agencies.

One of those agencies was the Mears Group, with the barrister saying Nazeri's actions were prompted in part by his "frustration with the lack of progress with his asylum application."

Also raised by the defence was the "significant trauma" Nazeri experienced due to the Afghan conflict as well as social isolation experienced whilst living in Belfast.

Judge Smyth said that after reading reports compiled on Nazeri "there is an underlying theme of uncontrolled rage and a willingness to threat others whilst behaving in a reckless manner, out of a sense of frustration."

She also revealed she agreed with a Probation Board assessment which concluded Nazeri was deemed a dangerous offender.

Due to this assessment, Judge Smyth imposed an extended custodial sentence comprising of three years and four months in custody followed by an additional period of three years on licence when he is released.

This sentence, the Belfast Recorder said, was to protect the public from the risk of harm posed by Nazeri.
Londonderry Crown Court heard James Donegan styled himself as the Gingerbread Man as he taunted cops on social media

A man who absconded after being granted compassionate bail and taunted police online while on the run has been jailed.

Londonderry Crown Court heard James Donegan styled himself as the Gingerbread Man as he taunted cops on social media.

The 35-year-old, of Cornshell Fields, Derry admitted a series of driving offences including driving with excess alcohol as well as breaching his bail.

The court heard that on October 2018 Donegan was granted compassionate bail and failed to return.

During his time on the run, Judge Neil Rafferty said he made a number of taunting posts on social media calling himself the Gingerbread Man.

The court heard that while on the run on January 12, 2019 he was seen driving a van in Ballykelly by an off-duty police officer.

A high-speed chase took place with the vehicle driven by the defendant going the wrong way round a traffic island, driving on the wrong side of the road and eventually ramming a police vehicle.

On July 12, 2022 a van was reported stolen in Donegal and later located at a garage in Abercorn Road in Derry.

Donegan was found in the driver's seat and when police approached he said, you didn't catch me driving.

He then pushed a police officer before running off and was arrested near the River Foyle.

A breath test revealed he had an alcohol reading of 57mgs  the legal limit is 35.

Passing sentence Judge Rafferty said that by breaching compassionate bail the accused took advantage of the courts compassion.

He said Donegan's life had been blighted by substance abuse but the type of offending merited a custodial sentence.

The judge said after listening to the defendant's mother he felt there was some degree of hope for the defendant.

He sentenced Donegan to two years in prison with half in custody and half on licence and disqualified him from driving for seven years.
Sinn Fein vice-president Michelle ONeill arrives to cast her vote during Thursday's local election (Liam McBurney/PA)   Liam McBurney

Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle ONeill has won a libel action against a DUP councillor for saying she would be put back in her kennel.

She obtained judgment at the High Court in her lawsuit over the social media comments by John Carson.

Mr Carson is now set to issue a fulsome and genuine apology at a further hearing to determine the level of damages, his barrister indicated today.

Defamation proceedings were issued after the posting appeared on Facebook in April 2021.

Mr Carson, an Alderman on Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, made the comments under a photo of the Sinn Fein vice president.

He subsequently apologised online, but was suspended for three months by a local government standards watchdog who held the remarks were unreasonable and misogynistic.

In her statement of claim, lawyers for Ms ONeill argued that the comments had a defamatory meaning by characterising her as a subservient and incompetent female politician.

The posting was demeaning, misogynistic and directed at core features of her womanhood, it was contended, as well as being motivated by personal bigotry and political gain.

It has now emerged that Ms ONeill obtained judgment by default last December when no defence to her claim was entered.

She was due to attend the High Court today to give evidence as part of an assessment of the appropriate damages to award.

But the hearing was adjourned to allow Mr Carsons newly instructed legal representatives more time.

Sinn Fein Vice President Michelle O'Neill arrives to cast vote

Counsel for Ms ONeill, Peter Girvan, expressed disappointment that the DUP councillor had not engaged in the proceedings sooner.

Its one of those cases where theres been a head in the sand (approach), he claimed.

Michael Bready, representing Mr Carson, confirmed no attempt will be made to set aside the default judgment.

My client has been advised and accepts that, he told the court.

There will be a fulsome and genuine apology in whatever form we can agree between ourselves.

Following the hearing Ms ONeills solicitor, Padraig O Muirigh, welcomed the decision not to contest the previously obtained judgment.

Mr O Muirigh said: The libel of our client was demeaning and grossly misogynistic.

It was published deliberately and maliciously in order to injure and denigrate her reputation, and inculcate a culture of derision of women in politics.
A convicted sex offender allowed children into his home to play with his pet hamster, a court has heard   Getty Images/iStockphoto

A convicted sex offender allowed children into his home to play with his pet hamster, a court has heard.

Ballymena Magistrates Court was told police saw several children leaving the home of Shane Currie where the youngsters said they had been playing with the pet.

Details emerged today as Currie (46), with a current address listed as Victoria Street in Belfast, admitted breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).

As part of the Order he was not to have association with children unless with the approval of his Designated Risk Manager except for every day inadvertent and unavoidable contact.

He pleaded guilty to breaching the Order on August 30, last year.

Ballymena Magistrates' Court heard he had been living in the Ballymena area at the time of the breach.

Details of the offence for which he received the SOPO were not disclosed but it was heard it had been given to him at Magherafelt Magistrates Court in 2020.

However, the Ballymena Court was told that on April 27, this year, the defendant was given probation at court in Belfast for breaching the SOPO on February 3, 2023, by failing to make a notification about a change of a mobile phone.

Regarding August 30 last year, a prosecutor said police attended Currie's home in the early afternoon and there were four or five young children in and around eight to 10-years-old exiting the address.

The prosecutor said the children locked the front door using the key. So they had his key.

She said police asked the children where Currie was and one of the boys replied that he was at another child's father's house and they indicated they were over at Curries house playing with the hamster. The boy then he left to get the defendant and returned.

A defence lawyer said police had gone to the address in connection with a SOPO condition regarding a phone and on that occasion there was nothing wrong with his phone.

The barrister said Currie had a hamster and a friends child knew he had it and a key was given to the youngster by the defendant.

District Judge Nigel Broderick said: That was quite foolish when he is subject to a SOPO. Does he have any other pets that might attract the interest of children on his premises?

The defence lawyer said he couldn't comment but said Currie accepted he had been very foolish and remorseful.

The lawyer added: Effectively the child knew that he had a hamster. The problem in the area, (was) he was worried for his own safety, if someone in the area was to know the reason why he shouldn't be allowed near children. However that is no excuse.

The barrister accepted it was Currie's responsibility to abide by the SOPO conditions.

The lawyer said the defendant no longer lives in the Ballymena area where the incident happened and is now living in Belfast.

Judge Broderick said the SOPO was there to prevent re-offending and he said he took a dim view of the breach.

The judge added: This hamster story, I am not sure if it bears up to any great degree of scrutiny.

He said Currie was treading a very fine line and not without some hesitation he was replicating the Order recently given at the Belfast Court  a two-year Probation Order.

The judge warned the defendant: I want to make it very clear. If you breach this Order a third time there is a real likelihood you will get an immediate custodial sentence.
A north Belfast man allegedly threw a petrol bomb at staff inside a shop after being asked to leave a neighbouring pub, a court heard yesterday.

Stephen Dalton is accused of lighting the device and hurling it at the feet of a member of staff in the convenience store near Carlisle Circus on Monday evening.

The 39-year-old, of Fairfax Court, appeared at Belfast Magistrates Court on charges of arson, throwing a petrol bomb, attempted grievous bodily harm, common assault, threats to damage property and theft of alcohol.

Police said an altercation started in Blacks Bar on the Antrim Road over claims that Dalton had tried to pour his own pint.

He was told to leave the pub but allegedly responded by making racist and threatening comments towards staff.

Moments later Dalton apparently returned to the area and entered an adjoining Spar store carrying a bottle and rags, according to an investigating detective.

CCTV footage showed others fleeing before the device was lit and thrown on the floor in the direction of a member of staff who sustained a cut heel from the shattered glass.

The fire was extinguished but caused scorch damage to the counter area.

Dalton faces further charges of assault on police and resisting arrest over claims he attempted to strike an officer after being put in a PSNI car.

Bail was opposed due to concerns for the publics safety.

He is alleged to have gone into a store and thrown a petrol bomb at the feet of a staff member, the detective said.

Defence counsel Turlough Madden acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations but insisted his client should be presumed innocent.

Mr Dalton is quite a vulnerable man, the barrister added.

Refusing bail, District Judge Steven Keown identified risks of re-offending, interference with witnesses and harm to the public.

He remanded Dalton in custody to appear again by video link on June 14.
A fresh application has been submitted to Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council for a new 8m hotel near Belfast International Airport .

The proposal will see the construction of a Premier Inn hotel at the junction of Ballyrobin Road and Antrim Road, Crumlin, if it is given the go-ahead.

An 81-bedroom development with restaurant and bar and 100 car parking spaces is planned at the location which is 250 metres from the airport. The proposal includes new access and a right-hand turning lane from Antrim Road.

According to a Pre-Application Community Consultation Report, the construction phase will support 30 jobs with 30 jobs expected to be created when the business is operational.

Tom McGrath, chair, of Belfast International Consultative Forum, said in the report: An 81-bed hotel will be a significant boost We have to build new facilities if we are to expand our tourism offer. As the airport grows, so too will demand for quality facilities. The 30 new jobs are important but theres a whole supply chain that will also benefit.

Richard Holmes, managing director, of Sam Mouldings, commented:  We host customers to our Antrim factory on a regular basis and sometimes its difficult to secure accommodation nearby. Bed space is at a premium which is why we warmly welcome what we all see as a clear vote of confidence in the area.

David Shaw, general manager, Woodgate Aviation, noted: The hotel directly mirrors the growth being experienced on the airport site. This proposed investment proves just how much an economic hub the airport is and what its capable of delivering for the wider Northern Ireland economy.

Five people attended a public consultation event at Belfast International Services, Airport Road, on March 2. The proposed hotel development had been approved previously by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council in 2018.

Read more Northern Ireland council election candidates  Full list

Whitbread Plc, the parent company to Premier Inn, operates 82,700 hotel rooms in the UK and Ireland.

Jill Anderson, property acquisition manager for Premier Inn, said recently: I am looking forward to building the pipeline of new hotels in the north of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The council is working with Belfast International Airport to promote the borough with an eye on the American market.

Glengormley Ulster Unionist Alderman Mark Cosgrove reported direct engagement recently between a council group and representatives from Translink and Belfast International Airport with a proposal to form a working group to examine economic development of the airport site.

The local authority will also be working with Translink and Department for Infrastructure to strengthen bus and rail links, especially access from Belfast International Airport.
A 73-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life following a fire at a property in Londonderry.

The PSNI said they understand a bin was set on fire at the back of the property on Chamberlain Street with the blaze spreading to the house on Wednesday evening.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service deemed the fire was set deliberately.

The man is currently in police custody and police remain at the scene this morning, conducting enquiries.

Detective Sergeant Ballentine said: "Fortunately, no one was injured and the fire didn't spread to any other properties.

"As we continue with our enquiries we would ask witnesses and anyone with information to get in touch with us on 101, quote reference 2239 of 17/05/23 or call Crimestoppers 0800 555 111 or online at http://crimestoppers-uk.org."
The incident happened at a polling station in the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council area.

DUP candidate for Bann Dawn Huggins who was "physically intimidated" at a polling station this morning

One man has been arrested following an incident involving a DUP local election candidate at a Co Londonderry polling station on Thursday morning.

Dawn Huggins, the partys candidate for the Bann district electoral area (DEA) of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council was subjected to what a party colleague has described as physical intimidation at a polling station in Macosquin.

After being contacted by canvassers at the station, police attended the incident and made an arrest.

"Police arrested a man in his 70s following the report of an assault in the Macosquin area on Thursday afternoon, May 18. Enquiries are continuing, said a spokesperson.

Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson insisted there were no no-go areas for his candidates in Northern Ireland.

One of our candidates standing in the Bann electoral area for Causeway Coast and Glens, Dawn Huggins, was handing out some leaflets outside Macosquin Primary School this morning when a very large gentleman, well over 6ft, approached her and tore the leaflets out of her hand, he said.

There was significant physical intimidation of our candidate. She was threatened, told to get out of the area.

I want to be absolutely clear and on behalf of Dawn say this: there are no no-go areas for our candidates in Northern Ireland.

This is a democratic process, elections are free and fair in Northern Ireland and candidates are entitled to put forward their perspectives.

The DUP leader called the man who threatened Ms Huggins a bully and called for intimidation of politicians, particularly women, to stop.

He added: There is no place in our society for this kind of intimidatory behaviour and the DUP will not stand for it.

She (Ms Huggins) is very badly shaken up by this, very upset by what has happened, by the threats that were made against her, by the physical intimidation to which she was subjected.

This is entirely wrong. This man is just a bully picking on a woman who has decided to stand for public office. There is no courage or bravery involved in any of that on his part.

Therefore we stand with Dawn and the courage she has shown putting herself forward for public office.

DUP candidate threatened and told to leave polling station

DUP election agent and East Antrim MLA Gordon Lyons had earlier tweeted that Ms Huggins was also told she was not welcome in the area.

"Ive just spoken with our Bann candidate, Dawn Huggins, who was the victim of physical intimidation at Macosquin polling station this morning and told she was not welcome in the area, he said.

"There are no no-go areas for the DUP or any party in this election. Dawn has not been deterred. Many thanks to the canvassers from other parties who called the police to her aid.

It comes after DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson condemned the abuse of candidates during the partys election manifesto launch last week.

Mr Donaldson told a gathering of candidates and political representatives at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Belfast that there should not be any no-go areas in Northern Ireland for any election candidate.

"It [abuse] is a lot more widespread than gets reported, even to the point where one of our candidates was told his life is at risk if he canvasses in part of his DEA, said the Lagan Valley MP.

"That is unacceptable behaviour. Utterly unacceptable and I will not tolerate that kind of situation. There are no no-go areas in Northern Ireland in electoral terms.

That applies to everybody. All candidates should have the ability to canvass freely, to put their perspective across whether on social media or the doorsteps. Thats the kind of society that we want.
18th May 2023 Presseye A security alert is ongoing in Belfast following the discovery of a 'suspicious object'. Police have been called to the Rosehead area, in the north of the city, following the discovery on Thursday afternoon, May 18. It comes as the public take to the polls for the council elections in Northern Ireland. The public have been asked to avoid the area but no further details have been released at this stage. Photo by -Presseye   Presseye

A security alert in the Rosehead area of North Belfast is now over.

"Police received a report of a suspicious object located in the area. A public safety operation commenced, with a number of homes in the area evacuated, said a spokesperson.

The object, which has been declared as nothing untoward, was removed from the scene. Those who were evacuated from their homes have now been able to return.

Police would like to thank everyone in the area for their consideration and understanding, as officers conducted the public safety operation to keep people safe.
Julie Turner, nominee for U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights, is seen speaking during her confirmation hearing before the Senate foreign relations committee in Washington on May 17, in this captured image. Yonhap



North Korea's disregard for the basic rights of its own people directly affects international security, the nominee for U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights insisted Wednesday.



Julie Turner said she, if appointed, will work not only to promote North Korean human rights but also to hold accountable those responsible for human rights violations and abuses in the reclusive North.



"The human rights situation in the DPRK is one of the most protracted human rights crises in the world," Turner said in her opening remarks before the Senate foreign relations committee confirmation hearing.



"As the DPRK's human rights record has deteriorated, the connection between its widespread violations and abuses and the threat it poses to international security are clear," she added.



DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.



Turner noted Pyongyang exports "thousands of North Koreans" overseas only to exploit their wages that are in turn funneled into the country's illegal weapons programs.



"The regime's human rights violations and abuses are inextricably linked to its weapons programs, which are funded through the exploitation and abuse of the North Korean people," she said.



She added, "The people of North Korea have suffered far too long under these abusive policies."



The nominee said she will focus on five key areas if confirmed.

"First, I will work with partners and allies, including the ROK, to reenergize international efforts to promote human rights and increase access to uncensored information in the DPRK," she said, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.



"Second, I will seek to reinvigorate accountability efforts at the U.N.," she added.



The other areas of focus will be undertaking efforts to urge the DPRK to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, protection of North Korean refugees and working with the Korean American community to identify separated families with family members in North Korea and advocating for family reunions, she added.



Turner currently serves as the director of East Asia and the Pacific at the state department.



She was nominated by President Joe Biden in January.



If appointed, she will be the first U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights since early 2017. (Yonhap)




The operation has been linked to the INLA

Police at the scene of the incident in Derry (Photo by NI Emergency Response Vids).

Police at the scene of the incident in Derry (Photo by NI Emergency Response Vids).

Video footage has emerged which appears to show the PSNI chasing a van driver in Derry who goes off-road in a bid to evade capture.

The PSNI has confirmed arrests were made in connections with drugs criminality which has been linked to the INLA, with 50,000 worth of drugs and 20,000 in cash seized.

The alleged incident took place close to an area known locally as the Creggan Reservoirs.

CCTV footage shows the van driver leaving Forest Park in the direction of Creggan Road.

However, seconds later the van can be seen reversing at speed with a car in pursuit, along with another individual on foot.

The van then appears to veer off road onto a pedestrian walkway above the reservoir and drives down a grass hill in an apparent attempt to get on to Creggan Road.

Photos indicate that the vehicle got stuck at the bottom of the hill.

Numerous images show armed, plain-clothed police officers, arresting a man and guarding the vehicle as searches are carried out.

The PSNI confirmed four people were arrested and suspected drugs with an estimated street value of 50,000 were seized during a proactive police operation in Derry on Wednesday night.

The arrests and seizure of suspected Class B drugs (cannabis) were made by the Paramilitary Crime Task Taskforce (PCTF) and PSNIs Organised Crime Branch. 20,000 in cash was also seized during the operation.

Two men, both aged 36-years-old, and a 38-year-old man remain in custody at this time. A 56-year-old woman arrested has been released on police bail to allow for further police enquiries.

PCTF Detective Inspector Phelan said the searches and arrests are part on an ongoing investigation into criminality linked to the North West INLA.

"Police are committed to tackling the scourge of drugs in our communities, and we will continue to proactively investigate and carry out searches linked to the drugs trade and identify those involved in this illegal activity," said Detective Inspector Phelan.

We have seen how the sale, supply and consumption of illegal drugs ruins lives, can devastate families and communities.

"The criminals involved dont care about the wider impact their drug dealing will have on the wider community and public services. All they care about is lining their own pockets.

"We are determined to disrupt their criminal activity and anyone involved in the drugs trade. Anyone tempted to become involved in illegal drugs should be under no illusion; we will seek to identify them, arrest them and place them before the courts."

Detective Inspector Phelan added: "We urge anyone with information about suspected drug dealing in their area to call us on 101, or call Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111."
Northern Irelands political parties have delivered their final messages to voters preparing to go to the polls in todays council elections.

Polling begins at 7am, with the DUP bidding to retain their status as the largest party in local government after taking the highest number of seats in the 2019 vote.

Read more Election 2023: Everything you need to know ahead of polling day

Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has urged voters to provide them with a mandate to restore Northern Ireland's place in the United Kingdom.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson

"In every area voters are uniting behind the DUP, some for the first time because they realise the stakes tomorrow, he said.

"Our goal for every council is to deliver the best services at the lowest possible cost to rate-payers. That means focusing on what matters rather than political pet projects.

"This election will be an important opportunity to determine the next four years in our 11 local councils but it will also help shape the future direction of Northern Ireland.

"We know that Northern Ireland is a great place and that its people have even greater potential. Therefore lets take the time to get it right.

"The Democratic Unionist Party and its candidates are pledged to put Northern Ireland first. Now is not the time for more division within unionism.

"At this election vote to strengthen our hand and ensure Unionism speaks with a strong and united voice.

Michelle O'Neill

Sinn Fein northern leader Michelle ONeill said the election was an opportunity to vote for positive leadership.

"Tomorrow, by voting for Sinn Fein you can send a clear signal that it is time to get the Assembly back up and running, she said.

"And show your support for a party that wants to invest in the health service, help people with the cost of living and deliver first class council services and economic regeneration across our communities.

"I am asking you to give Sinn Fein a stronger mandate to deliver for all in local councils by electing hardworking Sinn Fein councillors who will prioritise the issues facing workers and families.

Now is the time for positive leadership to achieve a better future and work together for all. Vote for your local Sinn Fein candidates tomorrow.

Naomi Long

The Alliance Party is standing 110 candidates across Northern Ireland, with leader Naomi Long telling voters the election is a chance to choose delivery over drama.

"I understand many people are apathetic and frustrated when it comes to local politics. That is understandable when faced with seemingly constant deadlock caused by divisive politics at the Assembly and Executive, she said.

Thats why it is more vital than ever to come out to vote and send a message ransom politics isnt acceptable. The power is in peoples hands.

"In 2019, the last council election also took place with no functioning Stormont. But voters sent a message  that they wanted and deserved functioning institutions which operate everyday. That message was heard loud and clear, with the bigger two parties restoring the institutions.

Local government is a tier of politics which continues to operate and Alliance councillors continue to work hard on every council the party is represented.

"More Alliance councillors and more influence means more solutions to the issues which matter to people. No drama, just delivery.

"Alliance councillors will work for you, so if you want politics that works, on Thursday vote Alliance right across Northern Ireland.

Doug Beattie

Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie said this is not an election about us and them and if anybody is telling you different they are being dishonest.

"Dont let fear drive you to what you dont want.

UUP leader Doug Beattie said the election was about providing the services required to make your community prosper.

"This election is about you, its about your relationship with your local council and local elected representatives, he said.

"It is about providing the services to make your community prosper and to give focus to developing infrastructure, the health service, housing and jobs.

"This election is an opportunity to elect UUP councillors who will work for you and build a better Northern Ireland alongside you.

"The last number of years have seen much stalemate and division in politics. As we continue to deal with the problems caused by the Northern Ireland protocol, the Ulster Unionist Party stands ready to provide the strong, confident, pro-union leadership that is needed.

Colum Eastwood

"This election offers an opportunity to elect Ulster Unionist Councillors with a long-term vision striving for better services, a more connected society and a brighter future.

"We offer an alternative to stalemate. We offer you a team who can deliver for you, the ratepayer. We have shown that we can deliver.

"Whether it has been on putting forward solutions to deal with the NI Protocol, or our record in the Department of Health under Robin Swann, Ulster Unionists have a record of getting things done.

"I take this opportunity to thank our candidates for putting their heads above the parapet. It takes a certain courage to put yourself before the electorate and I am encouraged by your commitment.

The SDLPs Colum Eastwood said his party would continue to work towards building a new Ireland.

"We want to work every single day in our substantial common interest to end division and build a new Ireland and to work in local communities for you, he said.

"Theres no movement more capable of delivering that new Ireland. So vote SDLP.

TUV leader Jim Allister   Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph

Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader Jim Allister focused on a message of strength, not weakness.

MrAllister said to vote TUV would signal irreversible opposition to the Union-destroying Protocol.

"We can never come to terms with the core tenet of the Protocol and Windsor Whitewash that GB is a foreign country and we must trade and run our economy accordingly, he said.

"We stand for the Union, the whole Union and nothing but the Union.

So I urge all unionists alarmed by the iniquitous Protocol and the infamy of Sinn Fein rule to vote TUV 1 on Thursday. Later transfers should not stray outside the unionist family. For strength, not weakness  Vote TUV.
SDLP leader Colum Eastwood casting his vote at the Model School in Co Londonderry with his two daughters   PA

UUP leader Doug Beattie arrives at the polling station at Seago Primary School in Co. Armagh. (Pic: Jonathan Porter/PressEye)   Jonathan Porter / Press Eye

Alliance Party leader Naomi Long casts her at a polling station in Ballyhackamore, east Belfast.   Jonathan Porter / Press Eye

Michelle O'Neill cast her vote at St Patrick's Primary School in Annaghmore (Pic: Pacemaker)

Leader of the DUP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson arrives at Dromore Central Primary School polling station in Dromore, County Down to cast his vote in the Northern Ireland council elections. Liam McBurney/PA Wire   PA

Voting in the local government election is drawing to a close.

Voters are choosing 462 councillors across 11 councils, with 807 candidates in contention.

The voting continues until polling stations close at 10pm, with party leaders out casting their ballots today.

Polling stations open for local government elections in Northern Ireland

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson cast his vote on Thursday afternoon. He voted at the polling station at Dromore Central Primary School in Co Down.

Earlier, Sinn Feins northern leader Michelle ONeill voted at St Patricks Primary School in Coalisland, Co Tyrone. After voting, Ms O'Neill spoke to some of her party's candidates in the area.

She said: Thats my vote cast for Sinn Fein, to send a clear signal that its time to get the Assembly up and running, and to elect hard working councillors to deliver for everyone.

Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie cast his vote at Seagoe Primary School in Portadown, Co Armagh.

He said he wanted to thank party candidates who put themselves forward.

"Its not easy to put yourself before the electorate, but they have put themselves forward with courage and with commitment, and I want to thank every single one of them, he said, in a video posted to social media.

"And regardless of what the results are on Friday and Saturday, you will know that what you did was promote a positive message focusing on local issues during this election.

Despite a dry and sunny start, early anecdotal evidence from count centres suggested a slow but steady stream of voters.

Mr Beattie said he thought more people would turn out to vote later in the day when they had finished work.

UUP leader Doug Beattie arrives at the polling station at Seago Primary School in Co. Armagh. (Pic: Jonathan Porter/PressEye)   Jonathan Porter / Press Eye

Alliance leader Naomi Long voted at the polling station at St Colmcille's Parochial Hall in the Upper Newtownards Road, east Belfast.

Alliance Party leader Naomi Long casts her at a polling station in Ballyhackamore, east Belfast.   Jonathan Porter / Press Eye

And SDLP leader Colum Eastwood voted at the Model School in Co Londonderry, accompanied by his two young daughters, Rosa and Maya. He posed for selfies with party workers.

He said he was looking forward to seeing our SDLP team return in numbers to continue their hard work in our communities.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood casting his vote at the Model School in Co Londonderry with his two daughters   PA

The 11 local councils are responsible for a number of services, including waste collection, street cleaning, local planning, leisure services and parks.

Those casting a ballot will require photographic ID, such as a passport, driving licence (provisional accepted) bus passes and travel passes, while an Irish passport card is also accepted.

Thursdays voting uses the single transferable vote (STV) method meaning the ballot will require voters to rank candidates in order of preference using numbers  beginning with 1 and then 2 and so on.

Read more Election 2023: Everything you need to know ahead of polling day

It has been a low-key election campaign, largely overshadowed by the visit to Northern Ireland of US President Joe Biden, commemorations of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and the coronation.

The DUP are currently the largest party in local government with 122 councillors and are running 152 candidates this time.

Sinn Fein, who will be hoping replicate their Assembly election results from last year, when they emerged as the largest party, are fielding 162 candidates.

Alliance are running 110 candidates across the 11 council areas while the Ulster Unionist Party are running 101 candidates.

The SDLP are running 86 candidates in this election and the TUV have 46 candidates.

The Green Party have 37, Aontu are fielding 19 and People Before Profit have 16 while a number of smaller parties and independent candidates will also contest the election.

Counting begins on Friday morning and is expected to last into Saturday afternoon.
No ATM skimming incidents recorded since senior crime gang figure, also wanted in NI, jailed

Since Iulian Craciun was taken into custody, there has not been one recorded incident of ATM skimming

Ireland is now deemed too risky by ATM crime gangs, so the thieves are stopping their operations, according to recent intelligence obtained by detectives.

Last week, in the latest garda success against these gangs, Iulian Craciun (52) was jailed at Trim Circuit Criminal Court following a lengthy trial.

He has been in custody since a European Arrest Warrant was issued for him by authorities in Northern Ireland for 21 ATM skimming offences which allegedly occurred in Omagh, Co Tyrone, in May 2015.

He is likely to be extradited to Northern Ireland in 2025 when he finishes his current sentence.

Noting the serious nature of the offences highlighted during his trial, Judge Elva Duffy gave Craciun a seven-and-a-half-year sentence, with credit allowed for his time already spent in custody.

Since Craciun was taken into custody in March 2019, there has not been one recorded incident of ATM skimming.

That compares to more than 550 ATM skimming crimes in a 10-week period in late 2018, according to figures from the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau (GNECB).

The fact that this type of crime has ceased since his arrest tells its own story, and he has now received a significant jail sentence, a senior source said.

But it is not just Craciuns criminal organisation that the GNECB are having major success against. They have engaged in multiple investigations against the Black Axe gang  and some of its main players have now left the Republic.

The criminals, who were at a senior level in the Black Axe gang, fled to Scotland and other parts of the UK.

There can be no doubt that Ireland is no longer considered a soft touch in terms of these gangs operating here, a senior source said.

An Garda Siochana is a part of an international operation involving Europol and international law enforcement agencies targeting the Black Axe criminal organisation, which is run in from Nigeria but has operations all over the world.

Iulian Craciun is a member of a long-established Romanian organised crime gang who have operated all over Europe for well over a decade.

He has previous convictions in Romania, Spain, the UK, and France

The gangs base was in Navan, Co Meath, and Craciun was considered to be its most senior member.

Last February, Craciun was found guilty of two gangland offences under Section 72 of the Criminal Justice Act, in that he was enhancing the abilities of the gang as well as participating in the organised crime organisation.

He was also convicted of charges of money laundering and possession of articles to facilitate credit card fraud.

The court heard that 150,000 (130,500) had been stolen in 440 illegal withdrawals from ATMs between September and December 2018.

After watching CCTV footage from the ATMs, gardai identified some of the gang as using a house at Tower Mount, Navan, as their base.

Following ATM thefts in February 2019 at locations in Dunshaughlin, Co Meath, and in Killester, north Dublin, gardai raided the house and found the defendant with some of his accomplices, as well as an array of paraphernalia used to clone bank cards.
Boris Johnson dismissed Emmanuel Macron as Putins lickspittle after the French president criticised the then-prime ministers response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis, according to a former leading No 10 official.

Mr Johnson also called Mr Macron a four-letter word that begins with c, former Downing Street director of communication Guto Harri said in his podcast Unprecedented.

When the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the front page of The Guardian, he recalled.

Much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross, nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped at our morning meeting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) meeting then-prime minister Boris Johnson in Kyiv (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/PA)   Ukrainian Presidential Press Office

He just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron. Basically, saying Hes a four-letter word that begins with C, hes a weirdo, hes Putins lickspittle We need an orgy of frog bashing. Im going to have to punch his lights out.

Mr Harri said the two leaders had patched up their differences before a G7 summit a few weeks later.

The second episode of Unprecedented on Global Player also recounts Mr Johnsons relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying the two leaders shared gallows humour and recalling a phone call on the night Ukraine was invaded.

It was massively sobering, said Mr Harri. We really could not believe that this was seriously underway. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

Boris could not have been clearer that we were there to help the Ukraine in whichever way we possibly could, using whatever we could possibly deploy within reason.

The two of them had this extraordinary bond. And, dare I mention it, this kind of really dark gallows humour that was obviously a coping mechanism.

Listen to the second episode of Unprecedented on Global Player now.
Nauman Hussain failed to carry out safety checks which would have prevented the crash in which 20 people died (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)   Hans Pennink

A limousine service manager was convicted of manslaughter on Wednesday over a crash that killed 20 people in rural New York, one of the deadliest US road wrecks in two decades.

Jurors reached their verdict during their second day of deliberations in the trial of Nauman Hussain, who ran Prestige Limousine.

He faces the possibility of up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced May 31.

The guilty verdict brought a torrent of emotions from relatives who waited years for someone to be held accountable. Shouts and cries could be heard as the verdict was read.

Its exhilarating, Kevin Cushing, who lost his son, Patrick, in the crash, told WNYT-TV outside the courthouse.

We had relatively low expectations because this four-and-a-half years has been filled with disappointment.

Packed with birthday revellers, the stretch-style SUV went off the road in 2018 after the vehicles brakes failed.

The limo hit a parked car and trees before coming to rest in a streambed in Schoharie, a village west of Albany. Seventeen passengers, the driver and two bystanders were killed.

Nauman Hussain, right, sitting with his attorney, Lee Kindlon, reacts as the verdict is read out in court (Jim Franco/The Albany Times Union via AP)   Jim Franco

Prosecutors said Hussain intentionally failed to conduct required, routine state inspections on the 2001 Ford Excursion, and that the checks would have revealed brake defects and prevented the wreck.

Defence lawyer Lee Kindlon said his client was misled by a repair shop. The shop was not criminally charged and denied it was at fault.

Hussain was taken into custody immediately after the verdict was read. Mr Kindlon told reporters outside the courthouse he was heartbroken by the outcome.

Im a little disappointed the judge decided to lock him up today, but not surprised, he said.

Wednesdays verdict marked a turning point on an emotional rollercoaster for the victims families.

After pandemic-related delays in the criminal case, the relatives were exasperated by the 2021 announcement of a plea deal that would have spared Hussain prison time.

In a surprising twist last fall, a judge rejected the deal, leading to the trial a few miles from the accident site.

During the trial, jurors heard from witnesses including a former manager of the repair shop, people who saw the wreck, and a state department of transportation inspector who flagged the SUV-style limousine for violations long before the crash. The defence called no witnesses.

No one likes to see someones life destroyed, and I dont want to feel that way, Mr Cushing said of Hussain.

Im certainly glad hes convicted and I believe hes getting a punishment that he deserves, but I take no joy in that.

Congressman Paul D Tonko chimed in after Hussain was found guilty.

Todays verdict marks the beginnings of justice being served, said Mr Tonko, who comes from Amsterdam, New York, the hometown of many of the victims.

While nothing can replace these precious lives lost, I hope this decision brings a measure of peace to all their loved ones.
A Russian television host has said Vladimir Putin and his countrys forces should supply the IRA with weapons to attack Downing Street and Buckingham Palace in retaliation for the UKs support of Ukraine.

TV pundit Vladimir Rogov made the comments on a television programme featuring Vladimir Solovyov which aired on Russias Rossiya 1 channel.

Mr Solovyov is reportedly a favourite of Russian president Vladimir Putin and is host of a talk show titled Evening with Vladimir Solovyov.

During a segment in response to the UK sending Storm Shadow long-range missiles to Ukraine, Mr Rogov suggested equipping the IRA accidentally to combat UK support for Ukraine which is currently engaged in a war with Russia following the formers invasion of the country last year.

In a rambling rant, he said: Cant we somehow (ensure) the remaining combat wing of the Irish Republican Army, which is fighting against British occupation, has normal weapons (to) hit Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street, and elsewhere?

He added the response would amount to self-determination for the Irish and would also somehow free Scotland.

During the programme, Mr Solovyov also criticised Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying he wants to use long-range weapons to strike Russia directly  and lies to Westerners.

He also suggested missiles be used against Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Westerners know he is lying  and support him. So here is a Kinzhal (missile). Rishi Sunak, here is a Kinzhal. We have to use them, he continued.

They will give them everything, including tactical nuclear weapons. And every time we will talk about red lines. Think again.

We just need to hit once hard with what we have and calm down. You dont like nuclear weapons, unlike us humble war hawks.
The military authorities found the ship approaching the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the Yellow Sea at night on May 6 and sent troops to intercept it soon after it sailed across the maritime boundary, according to the sources. Korea Times file



A group of North Koreans, including children, crossed the de facto inter-Korean sea border aboard a fishing boat earlier this month and are currently undergoing questioning by South Korean authorities, sources said Thursday.



The military authorities found the ship approaching the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the Yellow Sea at night on May 6 and sent troops to intercept it soon after it sailed across the maritime boundary, according to the sources.



The local daily Dong-A Ilbo reported earlier that the North Koreans include two families and they have expressed their intention to defect. If confirmed, it would mark the first such defection case, involving a family group, since July 2017.



An official at the unification ministry said a routine interagency questioning is under way to verify whether they have an intention for defection here, while refusing to go into detail on the border crossing.



A military official neither confirmed nor denied it.



"We cannot confirm details on that, but our military has been maintaining a thorough readiness posture to prepare against the possibility of North Korean provocations and of defections," the official said on condition of anonymity.



Observers said the inflow of North Koreans into the South might be another sign of economic and other hardships that people in the impoverished nation are facing amid biting international sanctions.



In recent years, the number of North Korean defectors here dropped due in large part to the reclusive state's stringent border controls put in place to fend off the spread of COVID-19. The number, which was tallied at around 1,000 in 2019, dipped to 229 in 2020 and 63 in 2021. Last year, it stood at 67. (Yonhap)




Malaysias first submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, a French-made Scorpene-class diesel-electric one, docks in Port Klang outside Kuala Lumpur Sept. 3, 2009.

A corruption watchdog on Thursday questioned the Malaysian Defense Ministrys decision to award fresh contracts to a company being scrutinized for a protracted delay in delivering warships to the Navy under a multibillion-dollar contract.

The Center to Combat Corruption & Cronyism (C4) said it was shocking that the U.S. $31 million in two new contracts were awarded to a unit of Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation Bhd (BHIC), a firm linked to a probe into alleged irregularities and mismanagement in the manufacturing of the combat ships.

On Wednesday, the firm announced that its wholly-owned unit, BHIC Submarine Engineering Services Sdn Bhd (BSES), was awarded the contracts for the upkeep of the Royal Malaysian Navys Prime Ministers Class Submarines and its facilities.

[I]t is shocking the ministry would risk a repetition of this scandal by awarding more defense contracts to another company directly linked to BHIC, especially when investigations have disclosed that the losses in the LCS [littoral combat ship] scandal were partially attributable to abuse of power and failures within Boustead Naval Shipyard, Pushpan Murugiah, the acting CEO of C4, told BenarNews.

The manner in which these contracts have been awarded seems to be by way of direct negotiations rather than an open tender, which raises further questions as to the reasons why the defense ministry opted for such a controversial company to handle this project, he said.

BHIC is a major shareholder in Boustead Naval Shipyard (BNS), which was awarded a 9 billion ringgit (U.S. $2.2 billion) contract in 2014 for the construction of six littoral combat ships, but has yet to deliver a single one.

The combat ship project has been marred by mismanagement and irregularities, with no ships delivered despite 6 billion ringgit ($1.3 billion) already spent, according to a Public Accounts Committee report last year.

A forensic audit report also revealed the company potentially lost 890 million ringgit ($196 million) of that money.

After these reports were released, Ahmad Ramli Mohd. Nor, the former Navy chief and BHIC managing director, was charged last August with three counts of criminal breach of trust amounting to 21.08 million ringgit ($4.6 million) related to the project.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner, Azam Baki, told media in March that the investigation into the LCS construction project was ongoing.

We will call up more witnesses not only in Malaysia but also abroad to record their statements. As our investigators needed help to get statements from overseas, we require a bit more time, he said, according to media reports.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has also repeatedly emphasized the need for the graft agency to take follow-up action and identify the culprits responsible for the delay in the warships construction project, as part of his commitment to combat corruption.

Provide an explanation to the public

Meanwhile, one analyst called for the government to explain its award of the submarines upkeep contract to BSES.

The first thing people need to know is the justification behind the governments decision to choose a Boustead-related company, despite their involvement in the LCS fiasco, Mohd. Mizan Mohammad Aslam, a professor at the National Defense University of Malaysia, told BenarNews.

It is crucial for the government, at the ministerial level, to provide an explanation to the public.

Mizan believes the contracts may have been given to the company because of its expertise in naval matters.

We have to admit that the expertise in dealing with the Navy or naval-related matters  only a few engineering companies are able to do that. And BSES is one of them, he said.

Security analyst Mohamad Faisol Keling emphasized the need to prioritize national defense without politicizing the contract awarded to Boustead.

The issue of the LCS ship issue should not be made a political issue anymore because various investigations have been carried out, Faisol, a senior lecturer in International Studies at Universiti Utara Malaysia, told BenarNews.

All parties need to make national defense the countrys priority.
Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat (center) flanked by leaders of his eight-party coalition, meets with journalists in Bangkok, May 18, 2023.

The leader of Thailands top vote-getting party said Thursday that a coalition government was firmly taking shape, although it appears that his proposed reform to the nations royal defamation law could prove a sticking point in negotiations.

Move Forward Party chief Pita Limjaroenrat announced an alliance of eight parties holding 313 of the 500 seats in Parliaments lower house. These include two new partners that are smaller parties, Palung Sungkom Mai and Pheu Thai Rumapalang (no relation to the Pheu Thai Party).

There is momentum, there is progress and we also have a very clear roadmap from today until the day I become prime minister, Pita said while sitting with coalition partners at a press conference in Bangkok.

That includes a couple of working teams to sort out any differences, as well as to make sure there is continuation of power, minimizing risk, as well as reducing destabilizing factors that might damage the country, economy or financial markets.

Though the coalition has added two more parties and three seats, it is short of the 376 required to govern in the 750-seat bicameral legislature.

Voting rules enshrined in a constitution drafted by the military in 2017 mean the alliance has to overcome 250 votes held by the junta-appointed Senate, Parliaments upper house.

Move Forwards ambition to amend the Lese-Majeste law, which human rights groups allege the current government has used to silence dissent, is shaping up as one of its biggest hurdles to forming a government. The law carries jail terms of up to 15 years for actions or speech deemed as insulting, defamatory or threatening to the monarchy.

It is unclear how the senators in the upper house will vote. While a few have expressed support for a majority government, many pro-royalist senators are likely to find Pitas campaign proposals too radical.

What sticks in my mind is the amendment to or the abolishment of Article 112, Sen. Chadej Insawang said, referring to the section of the criminal code concerning royal defamation or Lese-Majeste.

Changing the law would affect Section 6 of the Thai Constitution, which enshrines the monarchy as head of state, he said.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Bhumjaithai party, which won 70 seats in Parliament, said it would not support a prime minister who seeks to amend Article 112 of the criminal code.

Even within the new alliance there appears to be ideological differences on the extent of Lese-Majeste reform.

Before a memorandum of understanding could be signed, all aspects would be considered, said Cholnan Srikaew, leader of the second largest opposition party, Pheu Thai.

All parties will jointly consider the MoU and see what each of us can accept and what has to be changed. Article 112 is part of it, Cholnan said at the news conference. If we sign the MoU, that means we have reached a final conclusion on Lese-Majeste law.

Pheu Thai, the populist vehicle of the Shinawatra dynasty, previously said it does not support wholesale reform of the anti-royal defamation law, only its discussion in Parliament.

Another coalition leader, Sudarat Keyuraphan, from Thai Sang Thai, said it was a duty to conserve the monarchy, but added that 112 should not be misused.

We need to solve the problem to ensure Article 112 will not be used as a tool to hurt people who think differently, Sudarat said. We need to talk about this article and other issues.

The coalition MoU will be declared to the public on Monday, leaving the parties several days to hash out final details of the agreement.

Potential pitfalls

Thannapat Jarernpanit, a professor at Pibulsongkram Rajabhat University, said Pita faces potential pitfalls as he seeks to run the nations government.

Though the coalition becomes clear with eight parties, the support for the prime minister from the senators seems to be uncertain, Thannapat told BenarNews.

There are senators who would protect the monarchy rather than abiding with the democratic principle. The Move Forward Party has to work hard to explain its approach on the Lese-Majeste law to the senators, she said.

In addition, the legal process could block Pitas path.

Before the election, activist Ruangkrai Leekitwattana filed a complaint with the election commission challenging Pitas qualification for office over ownership of shares in a media company. Ruangkrai has claimed that Pita holds 42,000 shares in media company ITV Plc, noting that owners and shareholders of media companies are prohibited from running in national elections.

A similar complaint that followed the 2019 general election resulted in Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit losing his seat in parliament over his ownership of shares in the V-Luck Media Co. Ltd.

The court later disbanded Future Forward over a loan Thanathorn made to the party, leading Pita and other members to establish Move Forward ahead of this years election.

Meanwhile, it could be weeks or months until the next prime ministers identity is known, as the nations electoral system allows up to 60 days for the release of official results and parliament convenes two weeks later to vote for the nations leader.

While the opposition has been given a strong mandate to govern, a minority government formed by pro-military parties, which were trounced in Sundays vote, is possible if the 250 senators vote in a bloc.

Kunnawut Boonreak contributed to this report from Chiang Mai, Thailand.
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There are plenty of theories, but Kevin Swail doesnt know exactly how one of Lanesboroughs two drinking-water wells got so polluted with carcinogenic forever chemicals that it had to be shut down three years ago.

Swail, the towns Village Fire and Water District superintendent, also doesnt know how long high levels of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, known as PFAS chemicals, have tainted it.

Luckily, theres a second well. But the town has to find a new backup, and all of it is still costing a whole lot of time and money.

Turns out, Lanesborough isnt alone.

Its a serious issue, Swail said of PFAS contamination. Nationwide and worldwide.

It could be worse. While two other water wells in Berkshire County were also shut down due to mysteriously sky-high PFAS levels, most of the Berkshires has escaped severe contamination, according to state data gathered since testing was first required for public systems in 2020.

The chemicals, however, have seriously contaminated the three wells in Berkshire County, and in other parts of the state.

Most local systems show trace amounts and rarely at that. And a sample of private wells tested through a free and voluntary state program mostly showed scant contamination or none at all.

A household well in Richmond and another in Washington were the only ones to show elevated levels and those were at almost half the states safety threshold.

PFAS are added to a wide array of products for stain and water resistance, as well to cosmetics for texture. The chemicals are used in the lining of pizza boxes and takeout containers, microwavable popcorn bags, lipsticks, creams, nonstick pans, dental floss. The list goes on; thats why theyve also gotten into the food supply.

The problem is, PFAS dont break down easily, and they build up in the body. Scientists have found a connection between PFAS and cancers, thyroid problems and a slew of other health issues.

How the state regulates water for PFAS Regulators track six out of 12,000 PFAS chemicals

Massachusetts in 2020 began tracking PFAS not just in municipal water but in well water that serves the public, including schools, camps and restaurants

The federal EPA is proposing a safety threshold of 4.0 parts per trillion and the state will have to follow suit

The state Department of Environmental Protection has established a maximum level of the chemicals  alone or combined  as 20 ppt





Test results for public water systems on wells like some schools, restaurants and ski areas are available to the public on the DEP's website. The tests were part of a state's temporary free testing program

No one is sure exactly how much exposure is safe, and their proliferation makes them hard to control.

That is why regulators want to tighten the rules. In March the federal Environmental Protection Agency proposed significantly lowering the maximum safety threshold for the chemicals in drinking water. If those rules are finalized by the end of 2023, Massachusetts will have to follow suit.

Gov. Maura Healey also wants to crack down. But to do so means an expense that she says is astronomical.

Not just a money thing

In Lanesborough, the water district knows just how expensive PFAS contamination can be after the Bridge Street well hit a high of 317 parts per trillion in 2021 and had to be shut down. Thats about 16 times the states threshold.

The only water source now is the Miner Road well, which has only a trace amount of PFAS. Because the state requires two water sources, the district will probably drill a well off Bull Hill Road.

Swail said the district began testing for PFAS before the state required it.

It hasnt been easy or cheap. Testing for it alone cost $15,000 last year, according to a town report. One sample for one well can run from $250 to $350 at Housatonic Basin Testing in Lee, which gathers samples for most public systems in Berkshire County. The state also requires the water district to continue testing the shuttered well.

Lanesborough is applying for DEP grants to help cover costs. Theres the monthly testing, the $250,000 to $1 million it will cost to treat the system and another estimated $1 million to drill the new Bull Hill well, said William Prendergast, chair of the districts commission.

Its not just a money thing, he said. Its a time thing.

Prendergast can only speculate about the source of the chemicals. There hasnt been any related industry in the area.

The only other factor being considered is Teflon getting into the septic system, Prendergast said. Thats kind of a far-fetched suggestion at this point but nobodys ruling that out. Half the population of Lanesborough has septic systems upstream of our wells.

Cosmetics are another possibility, Prendergast said, since they get flushed.

The great unknown

No one is sure why the well at Egremont Town Hall tested last May at roughly twice the states maximum safety limit. Because the public doesnt drink the tap water there, the DEP said the town doesnt need to act.

We drink bottled water here, Juliette Haas, director of the Board of Health, said, and its available to anyone who comes here.

But the towns Board of Health wants to know what the contamination might mean for nearby private wells. The board might entertain suggesting well samples at properties in a radius around Town Hall, Haas said, and look for money to help homeowners pay for it should they choose to test.

Haas doesnt want to speculate about the cause of the pollution.

Thats the great unknown, Haas said. Wells are a great unknown. There are different veins  veins in wells have fissures.

PFAS are not found in Egremonts Water Department system, which draws from Karner Brook and serves about 650 people.

Health officials like Haas are still learning about PFAS. Great Barringtons Health Agent Rebecca Jurczyk said her office would step in if a private well was contaminated.

This, thankfully, has not come up in Great Barrington, Jurczyk said. If it does, I personally would want to work closely with DEP to ensure the best outcome for the property owner.

The hairpin turn mystery

In early April Gov. Healey announced a $1 million grant for a number of small public water supplies statewide. Included is $50,000 for Golden Eagle Restaurant on the Mohawk Trail in Clarksburg to test and install a new well.

Thats because PFAS levels in the well water tested last spring at nearly 40 times the DEP limit. Given the unacceptable risk, the DEP required the restaurant to use bottled water for drinking and for making soups or other foods that use water, according to DEP documents furnished by the agency.

Berkshire residents are more likely to be exposed through food, products Drinking water in this area is unlikely to deliver PFAS; instead, Berkshire County residents are more likely to be exposed to PFAS through products such as cosmetics and stain-resistant carpets, as well as food. We are now seeing a lot of PFAS in sludge, and then sludge is used a fertilizer and then the crops that are grown on here have PFAS, and then cows eat the forage thats grown on here, and then cows give milk and dairy products that are contaminated, said Dr. Phil Brown, a professor of sociology and health sciences and director of the Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute at Northeastern University. Day by day were discovering new sources of it. Brown, who leads the PFAS Project Lab, and whose department has teamed up for research with the Silent Spring Institute, said that for people who dont live near heavily contaminated sites or have significant pollution in their drinking water, eating presents a risk, especially fast food because of the chemicals in the wrappers. Food plus food packaging, he said. People who eat fast food have more PFAS in their bodies. Brown and other scientists think the state DEPs maximum contaminant level should be much lower than the current 20 parts per trillion. It should be 1, Brown said. The EPA is now proposing it be 4.0 ppt. It also is aiming for a phase-out of PFAS use by 2030. Until then, agencies and governments are trying to control the damage. Serious water contamination in other parts of the state set off an interagency task force in 2020. Some states have passed laws to restrict PFAS use. Others have pending legislation, and have sued manufacturers over contamination and the estimated billions of dollars in health problems linked to PFAS. In May 2022, then-Attorney General Maura Healey sued 13 manufacturers of PFAS used in firefighting foam. Massachusetts firefighters have also filed suits over the danger of the chemicals in gear and foam. Those and other cases are ongoing and new lawsuits are cropping up. Gov. Healey in February said the state would need federal money to help offset the cost of fixing the problems, which she said are just astronomical.

The owners did not respond to requests for comment.

Their attorney, Christopher Myhrum, said that even before the new DEP testing rules and the discovery of PFAS pollution, the restaurant gave guests bottled water because test results from the well revealed too much sodium. High sodium levels, Myhrum said, were caused by road salt over the years applied to the hairpin turn. The restaurant sits downslope at the bend, so the salt had seeped into groundwater.

Myhrum said that to treat the PFAS problem, the restaurant first has to deal with the sodium.

The bend in the hairpin turn also has been the scene of a number of crashes and fuel spills over the years, but the PFAS pollution might not be connected to that. A preliminary investigation by the owners found that it could be a chemical that the state has been applying to the road uphill from their well, according to DEP documents. The chemical is not named in a letter Myhrum sent to the DEP, and Myhrum would not comment on that. The owners and Myhrum are asking the DEP for help finding the culprit.

Such sleuthing can be full of surprises. In the Netherlands, for instance, road salt was found to have high levels of PFAS, according to the NL Times, an English language news website.

But most of the Berkshires has been spared that kind of PFAS mess.

In the vast majority [of communities] it hasnt been detected, said Erick Bartlett, a water operator at Housatonic Basin Sampling and Testing in Lee. A few places its been a surprise. Places we thought wed see it, we didnt.

Bartlett said PFAS are so prevalent in products that there is a list of things the person taking samples cant wear due to the sensitivity of the lab test. Those include Gore-Tex waterproof fabric, clothing with fabric softener and hand creams.

And thats one of the ways PFAS chemicals get into the water.

They end up going down the drain, Bartlett said.
MCLA will not move forward with plan to put a homeless shelter on campus In a letter to the campus community, James Birge explained the decision, which he said was a difficult one.

I read with disappointment Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts decision to not move forward with proposed housing for the homeless on their campus. I have also read and heard with even greater disappointment the commentary surrounding the proposed location and the people intended to be served, much of which was deeply rooted in NIMBYism, stigma and implicit bias around homelessness and substance use disorder.

And while MCLA President James Birge stated there were many unanswered questions that prompted his most recent decision, I would assert that the tone of our community and our leadership had a lot to do with the outcome.

Thank you Jess Sweeney for your recent letter to the editor regarding the need to help people of which I am in complete agreement, excepting one part. Ms. Sweeney chastised local leadership including President Birge for adding further trauma to the families that might have been impacted. Let us remember that he was the one who championed the idea of helping the homeless, standing firm against the opposition and unnecessary criticism.

Much of what I read and heard was baseless in fact and fraught with misinformation. All those writing letters and voicing opinions in opposition, including local officials, seemed to be asking the right questions, however they provided their own assumed and damning answers. Those answers were rooted in speculation and not fact, prompting fear and angst. Would the real answers have been good enough anyway?

But now that this is over, let us look at what I think was the biggest takeaway: how residents and leaders presented themselves and how we have been seen. To me, the most concerning part of the commentary was the implicit bias and stigma-based statements that sadly framed the discussion. One communication mentioned that Massachusetts is a welcoming state. What I have read and heard doesnt make it seem that we are.

That includes sentiments such as: I hope they find shelter as soon as possible, but not here. Recovery housing will kill the college. Im all for identifying safe and comfortable housing for our local homeless, but not in my neighborhood. The idea of importing more poor people is awful and destructive. What message does it send to parents who are bringing their children here when the college has substance abuse housing on one side and homeless families on the other? It is a nightmare in my community.

These comments are maddening. When the second collection comes up in church for the homeless or for those struggling with substance use, before we drop some cash in the basket, should we ask for clarification where that money will be spent?

I would like to see conversations take a tone that reflects who I believe we are as a community. I like to think that the city of North Adams is a much kinder place than has been portrayed by the outspoken critics. While this was a complex issue, we are dealing with real live people and families who need help. People should have been the focus. We could have been productively speaking about the people who need a place to live and/or a place to recover. We could have had a conversation about how we might help  not the poor people, not the people who might siphon off our limited services, not the kids who would burden our schools, not just local homeless, but all in need. It is so easy to say no to something that we refuse to understand.

As this homeless issue is laid to rest and before we have another uncomfortable request, I call upon our state and city leaders to convene and have discussions about community attitudes  maybe continuing conversations on how to think through issues without political noise and neighborhood vitriol. Lets face it, there was never a push on either side of the topic to talk about how we might make this work. As Jess Sweeney wrote in her letter, leadership should have helped the community understand why giving people shelter is necessary.

Whatever comes our way down the road, I hope we can remember that the people who come to our city needing help are real, live, breathing people. What will help is when we realize that we cannot solve world problems until we get a handle on our own. Be kind!
While working for a New York City-based magazine, the author was introduced to the magic of the publishing lunch  where deals were done, intelligence gathered, projects concocted and friendships forged.
Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, U.S. President Joe Biden, center, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attend a trilateral summit at the IFEMA Convention Center in Madrid in this June 29, 2022 file photo. Yonhap





President Joe Biden will try to hold a trilateral summit with his Korean and Japanese counterparts during the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Japan, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Wednesday.







Sullivan, however, said that nothing has yet to be arranged due to Biden's "packed schedule."







"That is basically a matter of scheduling. There is goodwill on all three parts to do it, particularly to recognize the real progress that has been made between the ROK-Japan, with U.S. support," he said when asked about if Biden was expected to hold a trilateral meeting with Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.







"Stronger bilateral ties between the ROK-Japan means a stronger trilateral relationship. So if we can find time in what is very packed schedule, we will try to hold the trilateral," Sullivan added while speaking to reporters on board Air Force One en route to Hiroshima, where Biden is set to take part in the G7 summit.







ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, Korea's official name.







Korea is not a G7 member, but has been invited to attend as a guest nation. Seoul officials earlier said the three leaders will likely hold a trilateral meeting on the margins of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.







Sullivan said the U.S. was still working through a number of schedules to see if a trilateral meeting between the U.S. and its two allies would be possible.







"But we don't have anything to confirm yet," he said.







Yoon made a rare visit to Tokyo last month for a bilateral summit with Kishida, becoming the first Korean president to make such a trip to Japan in 12 years.







Kishida reciprocated Yoon's trip with a visit to Korea earlier this month, also becoming the first Japanese leader to visit Seoul for a bilateral summit in 12 years. (Yonhap)






Campus Compact, a national coalition of colleges and universities working to advance the public purposes of higher education, has named 154 student civic leaders who will make up the organizations 2023-24 cohort of Newman Civic Fellows. Ries will join students from 38 states, Washington, D.C., and Mexico to form the cohort.

I am motivated by empathy and equity. I have led a life of struggles through poverty, substance abuse, and am a childhood trauma survivor. These parts of my identity are what make me strong and motivated toward enacting change in the world around me, Ries said in her personal statement as a Newman Civic Fellow.

The Newman Civic Fellowship recognizes students who stand out for their commitment to creating positive change in communities locally and around the world. The fellowship is named for the late Dr. Frank Newman, one of Campus Compacts founders, who was a tireless advocate for civic engagement in higher education. In the spirit of Newmans leadership, fellows are nominated by Campus Compact member presidents and chancellors, who are invited to select one outstanding student from their campus each year.

Hailed for her advocacy work aiding sexual and domestic violence survivors as well as serving as a crisis counselor and peer advisor at BGSU, Ries is a first-generation college student who plans to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology and is deeply passionate about helping others. She also is a Thompson Working Families Scholar and McNair Scholar. Ries participated in the BGSU College Credit Plus Program as a student at Edison High School in Milan, Ohio.

In addition to the Newman Civic Fellowship, Ries has been recognized for her advocacy and public service both in Bowling Green and nationwide. In 2022, she was selected as one of only 100 college students across America - and one of only three in Ohio - to receive the inaugural Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service.
Planned investment will contribute Rs 1,94,700 crore ($23.3 billion) to the GDP of India by 2030

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced it plans to invest Rs 1,05,600 crore ($12.7 billion) into cloud infrastructure in India by 2030 to meet growing customer demand for cloud services in India.

This investment is estimated to contribute Rs 1,94,700 crore ($23.3 billion) to Indias total gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030. This planned investment in data centre infrastructure in India will support an estimated average of 1,31,700 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs in Indian businesses each year. These positions, including construction, facility maintenance, engineering, telecommunications, and other jobs, are part of the data centre supply chain in India.

This follows AWSs investment of Rs 30,900 crore ($3.7 billion) between 2016-2022, which will bring AWSs total investment in India to Rs 1,36,500 crore ($16.4 billion) by 2030. AWSs investment in India has a ripple effect in the local economy in areas, such as workforce development, training and skilling opportunities, community engagement, and sustainability initiatives. See more details here.

AWS has two data center infrastructure regions in India  the AWS Asia Pacific (Mumbai) Region, launched in 2016, and the AWS Asia Pacific (Hyderabad) Region, launched in November 2022.

Hundreds of thousands of customers in India run their workloads on AWS to drive cost savings, accelerate innovation, and increase speed time to market. This includes government entities such as Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and public healthcare institutions like Aarogyasri Health Care Trust.
The interactive kiosk will serve as an educational platform

Bengaluru-based medtech firm Axio Biosolutions has launched ASK (Axiostat Suraksha Kavach) MIL Kiosk in collaboration with Olive Planet in a revolutionary move to empower armed forces with cutting-edge medical technology for bleeding control.

This state-of-the-art bleeding control kit has been thoughtfully curated in line with Axios vision to redefine the standards of emergency medical care for the frontline soldiers. The kiosk at Olive Planet was inaugurated by Dr Aruna Ramesh, Professor and HOD Emergency Medicine, Ramaiah Medical College.

The ASK MIL Kiosk features the ASK kit, MIL 300 Z-fold gauze, and an information leaflet, meticulously designed to provide the warriors with the required tools to save lives in combat situations. Under the collaboration the ASK MIL Kiosk will be placed at Olive Planet stores in Bengaluru, Indore, New Delhi, and Chennai to reach out to soldiers preparing for special operations and UN missions.

In 2021, the active bleeding control training for laypersons was launched along with the CHOPS - Children Hospital of Philadelphia, PediSTAR, GVKEMRI. So far, Ramaiah Medical College has trained over 2000 individuals in haemorrhage control of accident victims to be of help until EMS arrives.

The interactive kiosk will serve as an educational platform, empowering soldiers with the knowledge and skills required to handle critical situations with confidence.
Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia
By Ko Dong-hwan





Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Nguyen Vu Tung during his interview with the Hankook Ilbo, Feb. 3, 2022 / Korea Times file
South African wine and spirits producer KWV has named John Loomes as its new chief executive officer, succeeding Boyce Lloyd.

John Loomes takes the reins as KWV's new CEO. Source: Supplied

The leadership transition, which began in July 2022, was orchestrated to ensure a seamless handover between the two.

Loomes has been serving as the CEO incumbent in a temporary COO role from September 2022, taking on responsibility for most functions and reporting lines. Since January 2023 Loomes responsibilities further expanded and has has effectively been managing the business for the past five months, demonstrating his readiness to assume full accountability as CEO from 1 June.

Reflecting on his journey leading up to his appointment, Loomes expressed his pride in returning to South Africa and joining KWV. "Working in an iconic South African company like KWV has been a tremendous opportunity. As chief operating officer, I've gained an in-depth understanding of the entire business, both locally and internationally, solidifying my commitment to driving KWV's success and growth."

Driving KWV growth ambitions

With an extensive background in the beverage, FMCG and CPG sectors, Loomes brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of success to lead KWV into an exciting new chapter. KWV said this strategic appointment reaffirms the company's commitment to trailblazing the industry and driving its growth ambitions.

Loomes envisions a bright future for KWV, stating, "We have passionate people, excellent brands and systems, and we are really good at what we do. We aim to expand into new areas and categories, both with our own brands and through partnerships with international brands that align with our strategy and passion. We will continue to innovate, bring fantastic brands and products to the market, and strive to be the retail partner of choice in South Africa and internationally."

Loomes emphasised, "We employ some of the best people in the industry who are as proud and excited to be here as I am. We will uphold our high-quality standards for all our products, ensuring that KWV remains a trusted name in the industry."

Outgoing CEO, Boyce Lloyd, commented on the appointment, expressing confidence in Loomes' leadership. "John is a highly respected leader who has played a significant role in KWV's growth. I am confident that under his guidance, KWV will continue to thrive and succeed. John's commitment to quality, innovation, and exceptional customer service will ensure that KWV remains a company that consumers and customers can trust."
Jacobs Jam, the family business owned by Western Cape couple Nigel and Christynn Jacobs, has seen exponential growth after securing a deal with the Shoprite Group in October 2022. In under six months, the jam business expanded from supplying 10 Checkers stores to 20 across the Western Cape.

Jacobs Jam founders Nigel and Christynn Jacobs. Source: Supplied

The couple is based in the Ceres Valley  the biggest fruit-producing town in the country  where Jacobs Jam has created employment for 12 people. Most of its employees join the business without prior experience and are provided with the necessary skills training to work in the factory as well as to enter the workforce in related industries.

Combining Christynns experience as a food technologist with Nigels background in FMCG marketing, the couple quit their corporate jobs in 2018 and registered Jacobs Jam. While it was freeing for us to finally take that leap of faith, we werent prepared for the struggle that followed. We had no income for two years and securing funding was a long, arduous journey, says Nigel.

The Checkers deal was a massive breakthrough for us because it was the first formal, national retailer that said, we are going to support you.

Source: Supplied

Scaling the business

Christynn initially developed jam recipes in her home kitchen, but now production takes place in a facility fitted with state-of-the-art machinery and equipment. The couple wanted to launch their business at scale, and although they were already supplying to nearly 400 independent outlets throughout South Africa, the Shoprite Group gave them access to the formal retail market.

The jam comes in four flavours: mixed fruit, apricot, strawberry and pomegranate  the latter being a happy accident that Christynn discovered when she ran out of her usual fruit and decided to use the pomegranate that she had in her kitchen. The only pomegranate jam producer in the world, Jacobs Jam is also exported to Zambia. The products contain no preservatives, colourants or flavourants, and can be kept in the pantry for up to 18 months.

The business has plans to expand by increasing its range to include fruit juices, chutney and other fruit-related products. Getting support from the Shoprite Group has motivated us to think even bigger. We want Jacobs Foods to grow into a national food company and we are constantly learning about the retail business as we grow, says Nigel.
FCB Africa is proud to announce an account win with Bonitas Medical Fund, a leader in the medical scheme sector in South Africa. This win marks a significant milestone for FCB Africa, as it will showcase the agency's expertise in the health category.

We are excited to welcome back Bonitas into the business. Re-establishing this partnership will redefine how marketing can create a continuous performance for clients within the health segment and keep the brand top of mind for consumers. Bonitas return to FCB reiterates our position as business that strives to deliver timeless and timely brand communication solutions that not only people but brands love. Beyond this, we are excited and look forward to the prospect of working closely with Bonitas as a client under FCB, while also pulling on the strategic expertise in creating impactful work, said Reagen Kok, acting MD at FCB Africa.

Bonitas was awarded the Medical Scheme of the Year early this year at the inaugural News 24 Business Awards  with a perfect score for their product offering and how easy it was to understand.

As the medical scheme for South Africa, we offer a wide range of plans to meet the needs of South Africans from all walks of life. Our objective is to make quality healthcare more accessible and more affordable  while acting in the best interest of our members. We believe the renewed collaboration with FCB as our above-the-line agency partner will harness speciality skills that will dovetail perfectly with our brand strategy rollout and bolster our brand positioning. Partnering with FCB, with their proven track record of building South Africas favourite brands, makes this a very exciting new chapter for us, says Lee Callakoppen, principal officer of Bonitas.

Over the past few months, FCB Africa has remained resilient through changing market dynamics, by delivering value for its clients. Bonitas re-entry as a client, reinforces the trust in FCBs capabilities to increase market performance while delivering on creative ingenuity in a timeless manner for the brand. In an ever-evolving economic climate, this will serve as a cornerstone in building a growing health client segment under FCB.
Today, companies need sophisticated systems to manage and integrate their various processes seamlessly in a fast-paced, competitive environment. This is where enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems play a pivotal role.

As a quick overview, the benefits of ERP are practically endless. They enable businesses to streamline their operations, enhance productivity, and achieve optimal efficiency.

However, not all ERP systems are made equal.

Our biggest compliment we get, says Anton Oosthuizen, commercial director of QuickEasy BOS Software, a local ERP that has streamlined South African businesses for over 20 years, is that BOS is the most comprehensive ERP system our clients have found.

We decided to explore this a little further and see if this is the case.

First, whats the big deal about ERP systems?

The digital age rapidly marches on, leaving in its path a slew of companies who have not been able to - or interested in - adopting digital transformation. While much has been written about ERP systems, and how they can streamline operations in all industries and business sectors, as an overview, here is why ERP systems are critical for business growth and sustainability.

ERP systems are the ideal platform for companies to centralise their data and automate key processes. This unification of data gives decision-makers a holistic view of operations in real-time, and a sense of business health over time.

Additionally, ERP systems simplify operations. Data silos are eliminated, mundane, repetitive tasks are automated, and communications between departments are enhanced.

Would a unified ERP solution like QuickEasy BOS optimise business processes, improve productivity, and help them gain a competitive edge? Were here to find out.

Distinctive features of QuickEasy BOS

QuickEasy BOS Software offers a wide range of distinctive features that make it a comprehensive ERP solution for businesses of all sizes and industries:

Every. Single. Module. Seriously.

So, heres the deal: modular is nothing new, nor is it terribly exciting when it comes to ERP. So why have we started with that?

Well, there are a lot of ERP systems out there that offer individual modules to suit your needs. Want accounting functionality? No problem. Purchase the Finance module. Need production management? Here is our manufacturing module.

But this is what we found that is worth highlighting straight off the bat: QuickEasy BOS is designed with a modular structure that caters to each operational need, but everything - and we mean everything - is included in each ERP subscription. Thats pretty mind-blowing.

From finance and accounting to inventory management, sales, customer relationship management (CRM), production management, time tracking, NCR and reports, QuickEasy BOS stands apart from the rest in that it is pre-packaged to meet the entire businesss needs, down to department and designation level.

No extra add-ons or costs required. Thats pretty distinctive.

Digital delivery

With online orders and deliveries a must-have for companies nowadays, the delivery note - with data such as invoice number, product information, and most importantly customer signature - is crucial.

While digital delivery notes are nothing new, what we found to be pretty distinctive is how QuickEasy BOS integrates the delivery notes with the rest of the ERP.

That means everything from quotation to production to billing to delivery, is all integrated, automated, and paper-free! We love that.

Enhanced security measures

Cybercrime, data hacks, privacy leaks, and security risks are a real and present danger. QuickEasy BOS Software incorporates robust security measures to protect sensitive information. It ensures data integrity, confidentiality, and availability through encryption, user access controls, audit trails, and regular backups.

This might be available with all other ERP systems, but it is really important and so we wanted to make sure QuickEasy toes the line. They do. Businesses can have peace of mind, knowing that their critical data is protected from unauthorised access and potential threats.

The most comprehensive ERP? Lets see.

Heres what we found when we examined QuickEasy BOSs claim to be the most comprehensive ERP system.

Seamless integration. Seamlessly integrated. Integration and integrated are two separate factors when it comes to ERP. One speaks to the ability to unify all business operations into one system - integrated. The other refers to the systems capabilities of communicating with other apps and platforms - integration. With QuickEasy BOS ERP, you get both. Integrated ERP QuickEasy BOS offers unparalleled unification when it comes to all business data, customer data, and transaction data. This is great for your business, as it removes human error, duplication, manual data entry, and outdated information. It seamlessly integrates all core business functions, such as finance, sales, procurement, inventory, manufacturing, and human resources into one system. Effective system integration QuickEasy BOS allows for seamless integration with your important business documentation and your ERP. Through electronic data interchange (EDI) with BOS ERP, your business reduces paper-based documentation, speeds up processing, improves transmissions times, and secures greater information accuracy. So, you eliminate data silos and foster real-time data sharing. You achieve a holistic view of your operations, and are empowered to make informed decisions. It is astonishingly configurable and scalable Your business is not the same as every other business. What we found is that QuickEasy business operating system (BOS) doesnt expect you to. It is highly configurable to meet your businesss unique needs, specific workflows, and processes, no matter what your industry. Moreover, it is designed to scale with business growth. It easily accommodates increased data volumes and adapts to evolving requirements. This is highly useful, considering the cost and initial disruption associated with implementation of a new ERP system. For this reason, it is vital that your ERP is flexible and intuitive enough to meet your evolving needs as you grow, so that you do not have to put your team through new implementations as you scale. QuickEasy BOS supports your growth. It really is true full-suite ERP functionality As we mentioned in an earlier point, you get all the modules for an entire business in QuickEasy BOS. For this reason we believe it is truly an all-in-one ERP system. It boasts a wide range of features and modules that cater to the diverse needs of businesses. From project management and resource planning to supply chain management and customer relationship management, BOS covers all essential aspects of modern enterprises. This comprehensive functionality ensures that businesses can manage their operations efficiently, minimise manual efforts, and optimise resource allocation. Real-time business intelligence and forecasting capabilities Some ERP systems are so complex and difficult to use, they need specialist on staff just to operate the thing. What we liked about QuickEasy BOS is that it is easy to harness the power of your business data to drive strategic decision-making. As the entire businesss data is on one central system, with real-time data, dashboards, and reports, BOS gives you insights that you need to stay competitive. We didnt see the need for a single manual report, spreadsheet, or manual work when using QuickEasy for insights into key performance indicators (KPIs) and business metrics. Whats more, we found BOS turns your complex, fragmented data into meaningful insights that decision-makers can leverage for growth. You gain valuable visibility into your operations, are able to identify trends, detect bottlenecks, and make data-driven decisions that propel growth.

Our conclusion: QuickEasy BOS might just be SAs most comprehensive ERP system

Well, the evidence is in and the verdict is pretty clear. QuickEasy BOS stands out as one of South Africa's most comprehensive ERP systems in the market. QuickEasy BOS offers every single module needed for efficient business operations without requiring additional add-ons or costs. The system also prioritises security measures, safeguarding sensitive information through encryption, user access controls, audit trails, and regular backups.

QuickEasy BOS excels in its ability to seamlessly integrate all core business functions into one system including project management, resource planning, supply chain management, and customer relationship management. It unifies business data, customer data, and transaction data, offering real-time business intelligence and forecasting capabilities, combined with customisable dashboards and advanced analytics.

We are very proud to acknowledge that South Africas own ERP system is everything it claims to be: complete business management and ERP software.

Enquire today to improve productivity, streamline complex operations, and gain a competitive edge in today's fast-paced environment.




The Creative & Effective Marketing Effie dialogue will be steered by leading c-suite members of the sector and includes:

Camilla Clerke  executive creative director, Ogilvy South Africa



Nomsa Chabeli  GM brand and communication, MTN



Vaughan Croeser  vice president of marketing, SAB



Xolisa Dyeshana  chief creative officer and partner, Joe Public United

Pete Case, CEO and creative chairman of Ogilvy South Africa takes up the task of moderating the panel discussion and asking the tough questions.

The first dialogue takes place on Thursday 25 May at GIBS, with proceedings kicking off at 5.30pm. Seats are limited, and those wishing to attend are requested to RSVP directly to az.oc.asaca@adnawL.

Creativity has always been at the heart of business, but it still struggles to solidify its position at the top of the management agenda. By definition, the ability to create something novel and appropriate, creativity is essential to the entrepreneurship that gets new businesses started and that sustains the best companies after they have attained scale.

Join us for a kick-ass discussion on the role of creativity in driving brand and business results in an ever-evolving media and consumer landscape. Our world-class panelists will share their insights on how creativity can help you stand out from the competition and achieve your goals, says Anwar Jappie, Effie South Africa chair.

The panel will explore the interplay between creativity and marketing effectiveness. Panellists will be engaged to assist in unpacking the importance of creativity in relation to marketing effectiveness through building strong connections and driving consumer engagement.

The creative function is a key driver of delivering against business objectives, and therefore it should be positioned squarely in the cross-hairs of the c-suites top priorities. With this series of dialogues, were bringing together industry leaders to discuss and share insights on marketing effectiveness, a vital and much needed activity, designed specifically to highlight the importance of marketing effectiveness role in driving the future success of the marketing industry, adds Mathe Okaba, Association for Communication and Advertising (ACA) CEO.

The Effie Awards South Africa, hosted by the ACA and sponsored by Nedbank, Investec and GIB, recognise marketing communication that is not only creative but, most importantly, effective. The awards are now in proud partnership with the Nedbank IMC Conference, Africa's foremost integrated marketing conference. Winners of the 2023 Effie Awards will be announced on 15 September 2023.

Join the conversation using the hashtags #EffieAwardsSA, #MarketingUpClose, and #NedbankIMC2023.

For more information on the 2023 Effie Awards, visit www.effieawards.co.za.




Sports, arts and culture minister Zizi Kodwa and ambassador of South Africa to Italy Nosipho Nausca-Jean Jezile will officially open the South African pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia in Italy, on Friday, 19 May.

Installations at the SA pavilion

This years Biennale Architettura, which runs from 20 May to 26 November, is themed 'The laboratory of the future'. Curator Lesley Lokko has centred Africa as a protaginist of the future - a springboard to talk about economic, climate and political criticalities.

The South African pavilion was conceptualised around the sub-theme of 'The structure of a people'. This integrates with the broader exhibition theme and seeks to evaluate the ways in which architecture has defined or impacted our social structures, including how South Africas rich indigenous knowledge systems could hold solutions to global issues in this 'laboratory of the future'.

Three South African curators have been appointed with conceptualising the SA pavilion, namely:

Dr Sechaba Maape, an architect and the director of the design practice Afreetekture. He is also a senior lecturer at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits) School of Architecture and Planning.



Dr Emmanuel Nkambule, a senior lecturer in the Department of Architecture and Industrial Design at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT).



Stephen Steyn, a full-time lecturer and programme coordinator in the postgraduate programme in architecture at the Tshwane University of Technologys Department of Architecture and Industrial Design.

The curators have organised the pavilion space through three exhibition zones using about four tonnes of black rope that was made in South Africa. While there is an interplay of light and dark between the zones as visitors move between them, the zones all form part of a coherent, integrated exhibition.

[L-R] South African curators Dr Emmanuel Nkambule, Dr Sechaba Maape and Stephen Steyn

Three exhibition zones

The first zone is 'The past is the laboratory of the future' which looks to pre-colonial southern African societies, the Bokoni people in particular, to understand how they structured their societies as documented in a stone carving. This zone is curated by Nkambule.

The second zone, titled 'The council of (non-human) beings', presents Maapes contemporary drawings on the topic of animism in architectural practice, connecting to the mythology and indigenous knowledge systems of his heritage. Maapes work makes use of contemporary experiences and influences, including urban culture like hip hop and the South African musical genre of amapiano, which emerged in the mid-2010s, to create what he calls Kuru-mytho-futurism.

The third zone, 'Political animals', displays the results of national competition targeted at South African architecture schools and is curated by Steyn. The competition asked lecturers and students to consider the organisational and curricular structures of their schools and create architectural models depicting these structures.

The biennale will present us with a myriad of innovative solutions to contemporary issues that we are facing globally. That Professor Lesley Lokko has placed such an emphasis on African philosophies, schools of thought, and practitioners is a proud moment, and the hope is that we as a continent can use our moment in the spotlight to our fullest potential, says Kodwa.
As the winter chill settles in, it's time to get out the knitting needles and participate in Geknit Dit Met Tracey Lange, the Western Cape's beloved knitalong, in celebration of Mandela Day.

Tracey Lange, the popular host of Kfm 94.5s weekday Mid-morning show invites friends and supporters to once again join forces in knitting Cape Town warm. The challenge is simple: Knit and donate any item like a blanket, scarf, hat, gloves, socks, or shawl. Knitters of all levels, from beginners to experts are asked to participate and those who cant knit can donate warm knitted goods.

This year, the initiative focuses on supporting senior individuals and four deserving beneficiaries have been carefully selected to receive the donations.

We are reaching out to our oumas, oupas, aunties and uncles to show them that we care by sharing a chat over a cup of tea or coffee and our knitting needles.

 Tracey Lange, host of Kfm 94.5s Mid-morning show

Knitters have about eight weeks to complete their creations, just in time for Mandela Day on 18 July. On the day itself, knitters are encouraged to spend 67 minutes knitting alongside a senior family member, friend or any older person in need of connection and quality time.

Lange says the younger generations can learn a lot from seniors.

We are reaching out to our oumas, oupas, aunties and uncles to show them that we care by sharing a chat over a cup of tea or coffee and our knitting needles. Its about making sure they are cared for and brightening their day, but also about learning from their stories, wisdom, and life experiences. When we build bridges between generations, we also foster understanding, respect, and a strong community where people of all ages are valued, says Lange.

Stay tuned to Kfm 94.5 and connect with us on social media to also find out which local celebrities will join the quest to knit for seniors, spreading warmth, joy, and connection across the Western Cape.

Completed items (self-made, bought or gently used) can be dropped off at Kenilworth Centre or N1 City Mall from today, 18 May, until Wednesday, 12 July. Kfm 94.5 will distribute all donations to the beneficiaries by 18 July.

For more information, visit kfm.co.za and follow #GeknitDitMetTraceyLange on social media.

Geknit Dit Met Tracey Lange beneficiaries:

CPOA Lotus River House



Parkhaven Old Age Home Wynberg



KSA Kraaifontein Tehuis



Sen CIT Restheaven Home for the Aged




On Wednesday, 17 May 2023, OFM's BakkieArm fundraising campaign reached a climax when R100,000 was handed over to the Agri Securitas trust fund at OFM's outdoor broadcast unit on Nampo Park, during Grain SA at Nampo Harvest Day.

The campaign was launched just after Nampo Harvest Day 2022 when OFM's breakfast programme - The Good Morning Breakfast, during their 'word of the week' insert, discussed the term 'bakkie-arm'. The new creation refers to the sunburn pattern that a driver of a vehicle gets due to exposure to the sun. With listeners' input, the team then decided that it was necessary to create a piece of clothing to protect against sunburn. They then also dubbed this #BakkieArm.

Listeners could purchase a #BakkieArm for a donation from R100 and so a considerable amount, also supplemented by OFM, was raised.

In order to further market the campaign, #BakkieArm was also released as a song in June and the video for it has already been viewed around 40 ,000 times on YouTube.

With lyrics from the pen of Good Morning Breakfast presenter, Shandor Potgieter, OFM sales and marketing manager, Anchen Lintvelt, and exquisite mixing by Bobby Johnson of Rebirth Music, SOYL's "Bakkie Arm" gets feet tapping.

OFM launched the #BakkieArm campaign to raise funds for Agri Securitas, a non-profit organisation that works to improve rural safety.

The radio station chose this organisation because Central South Africa represents the heartland of agriculture in South Africa. Chairman Cobus van Zyl expressed his thanks during the handover. "One hundred percent of this money goes to the trust that is used to help rural communities, which include farmers and their workers, across the country."

Agri SA chief executive officer, Christo van der Rheede, who is also one of the trustees, announced that the funds will be used to help agricultural organisations to ensure rural safety.

"Crime is one of the biggest risks for the agricultural sector. This money is used for the purchase of cameras; setting up monitoring locations where teams must work together and the like. It also helps to prevent other risks, for example the outbreak of fires and vehicle theft."

Central Media Group CEO Nick Efstathiou explains that OFM has been supporting Agri Securitas for two decades. "Agriculture is very close to OFM's heart and it's good to be able to make such a difference. It is important for the company to contribute to the safety of producers and their workers as agriculture is an important sector. Many thanks to everyone who supported the

campaign."

For further information contact az.oc.mfo@gnitekram.
In this second piece in the three-article series on psychosocial palliative care, we focus on communication skills. Thoughtful communication and counselling between healthcare professionals, patients and families is crucial to ensure that patients are afforded the opportunity and right to die in dignity and as peacefully as possible.

One of the key issues the psychosocial professional may need to assess, and address, is the patients understanding and insight into his or her illness. Most clients and families have some understanding of their diagnosis, but often they need to have this information clarified and reinforced, which then becomes the task of the members of the interdisciplinary team.

Sometimes a patient will speak of feelings of extreme anger in terms of how the diagnosis was given by the medical staff. Responses to a diagnosis given insensitively may include feelings of shock and disbelief, experiencing a lack of caring or insensitivity on the part of the doctor, and a sense of being abandoned  all of which may contribute to the clients sense of isolation. It then becomes the task of members of the interdisciplinary team to confirm or break the bad news. On occasions, the team may have to break the bad news again, this time in a gentle manner, moving at the clients pace, and also be prepared to explore the effects of the previous breaking of bad news on the patient and their family.

When breaking bad news is done well

Generally, the psychosocial professional will have been requested to have this conversation by another member of the interdisciplinary team, usually the professional nurse or doctor. By way of preparation, the psychosocial professional makes sure that she or he is fully informed about the patients medical condition, family situation, treatment or care plan to be able to navigate these difficult conversations. The psychosocial professional will also check what the patient has been told up to this point.

Some of the following questions could be asked:

What have you been told about your medical situation so far?

Could you tell me what you understand from the doctor about your illness up to this point?

How did you know that something was going wrong in your body?

What do you make of your illness?

Not everyone wants to know the full extent of their illness, and some people may not be ready to absorb the full extent of their situation. Not all cultures place the same value on patient autonomy. In some cultures, it may be the family who needs to find out about the prognosis and plan of care and, in these situations, it will be necessary for the psychosocial professional to be sensitive about how this news is imparted. The following questions can be asked:

"Some people want to know everything about their condition, others prefer that we talk with their families. How would you like to be given this information?"

Are there things that you would like to know about the illness?

Has the doctor/nurse told you all that you want to know so far or are there still some things you have questions about?

Would you like to know the results of your blood tests?

If the patient does not want to know any information, the counselor might ask:

Do you think that not-knowing could affect your relationship with your family in any way?

How will not-knowing help you?

The wishes of the person are always respected. Sometimes people just need more time before they are ready to face more bad news. Denial is a useful defense mechanism to protect the integrity of the psyche.

Giving people a chance to express the effect of the news in terms of thoughts, feelings, and actions is an important step. Naming thoughts and feelings may bring a sense of control. Powerful feelings may subside once acknowledged. Silence and non-verbal support and simply being present, may be all that is needed at this time.

When done well, breaking bad news can achieve realistic hope and optimism, in that patients experience a measure of control and a sense that something can be done. Not life-saving actions, but actions that can assist and support. Families often feel far more empowered too, and trust is built with the healthcare team. Uncertainty in relation to an illness can be very hard for people to bear, as can inappropriate hope that may result in unnecessary treatments, expense, pain, guilt and anxiety.

Breaking bad news well allows for appropriate adjustment. Adjusting to bad news takes time and is a process. Patients and their families need to know about the situation in order to adjust both emotionally and practically and for both parties to start moving towards an end-of-life situation that is perhaps more bearable and dignified.

This series contains information from the Hospice Palliative Care Association (HPCA) Psychosocial Palliative Care Course manual. Online courses take place regularly, with the next courses planned for 9 May, 24 July and 11 September 2023. For more details, visit https://bit.ly/3nSpN1X




Data management and protection are crucial for the success of businesses in a fast-paced digital age. Consequently, companies must develop and uphold a strong plan to manage and secure their data, considering the increasing threat of cyberattacks and evolving legal requirements. This raises the important query: What defines a reliable data management and protection plan, and how can enterprises safeguard their security effectively?

Iniel Dreyer, MD at Data Management Professionals South Africa (DMP SA)

Identifying, Locating, and Classifying Data

Businesses must first identify the type of data they have, locate it, and classify it. From there, companies can build a plan that fits their organisational objectives by understanding the relevance of the data they possess and where it is located.

Furthermore, it is critical for businesses to have a strategy in place to protect sensitive data and address risks like ransomware, malware, and natural disasters.

Businesses should consider the following questions when they identify and categorise their data:

Which data needs to be restored initially in order to maintain business operations?Is the appropriate data viable and available?Does the data recovery process correctly prioritise your critical data?

A business can recover the data that is most important for carrying out business operations if it can promptly respond to the questions above and understand its recovery time objective (RTO).

Having the appropriate resources to support the strategy is also crucial. When something goes wrong, such data loss caused by ransomware or a natural disaster, it could be too late to start looking for suitable IT service providers or resources.

Applying best practices

Businesses must be able to govern who has access to their data, and multifactor authentication is an effective and excellent tactic from a security standpoint. To access or modify the data in this way, at least two authentication methods would be needed.

Encrypting data in flight and at rest is an additional layer of security that can prevent breaches. This occurs frequently when data is transferred between storage mediums, like the cloud, or between on-premises locations. Most businesses tend to spend a lot of money defending the perimeter from outside attackers while overlooking the likelihood of inside threats.

They must guarantee that the data is secure from threats coming from both inside and outside the organisation.

Keeping compliant

In terms of the regulatory landscape, companies must ensure they are following all regulations that are applicable to them and their industry by understanding what data they have and where it resides. Regardless of whether their data is on-premises, in the cloud, or a combination of both, businesses should think about a solution that offers a "single pane of glass" view of all storage platforms (hybrid).

The solution should also be flexible and economical, allowing a company to pay just for what it uses at the time. This highlights the "as-a-Service" approach, which ensures a company only pays for what they use and support is provided by professionals who are knowledgeable on how to build, administer, and more importantly, respond if something goes wrong.

There are IT service providers who help businesses identify and manage their data, and assist their clients with data protection compliance activities in line with applicable legislation. Ideally, they provide compliance-as-a-service (Caas) to help with the process.

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Over the past year, ransomware attacks have been at the top of the list when it comes to data threats. Insider threats, along with social engineering, are also high-ranking risks as companies do not always suspect a threat from within.

Therefore, it is important for companies to be vigilant and develop a comprehensive data management and protection strategy.

In conclusion, an effective data management and protection strategy is critical to the success of any business in today's digital age. By identifying the nature of their data, implementing best practices in terms of security, complying with relevant regulations, and using appropriate tools and solutions, companies can mitigate risks and protect their data from threats.
Tanks containing water from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant are seen at the power plant in Okuma town, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, March 8. Reuters-Yonhap



Tokyo plans to serve food from Fukushima at G7 summit



By Lee Hyo-jin



Korea's upcoming inspection of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is facing uncertainty with less than a week left until the dispatch of the delegation, as little progress has been made in talks with Japan on detailed plans.



Seoul and Tokyo have so far agreed that the inspection team, comprised of some 20 experts, will make a four-day visit to Fukushima including the dates May 23 and 24.



On Wednesday, the foreign ministries of Korea and Japan held a second meeting to discuss further details of the inspection plan. The closed-door virtual meeting between deputy-general-level officials lasted for over four hours, but the two sides failed to reach an agreement on specifically what the Korean inspectors will be allowed to examine.



"Yesterday's meeting focused on technical issues such as the specific place and time of the inspection. However, as several issues require further discussions, we are continuing the talks through diplomatic channels," foreign ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said during a briefing, Thursday.



Lim added that the Office for Government Policy Coordination will make an official announcement on the inspection plan once the details are settled, without giving an exact timeline.



During Wednesday's discussions, the Japanese officials reportedly declined the Korean government's demand to disclose the main facilities of the Advanced Liquid Process System (ALPS), a filtration process used to remove radioactive contamination from the water.









But a foreign ministry official said on Thursday that the Japanese officials had been cooperative during the meeting and that the two sides are still engaging in discussions in order to arrange minor details.



While negotiations with Japan are seemingly stalled, the Korean government seems to be lowering its expectations for the inspection.



During a press conference on Wednesday, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said the main role of the inspection team is "rechecking the water treatment procedure and facility." This was somewhat different from the government's initial stance that the inspection will be a "de facto verification" of Japan's water treatment capacity and the operation of discharge facilities.



Han also said the Korean delegates will not collect samples of the treated water, as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is currently conducting a comprehensive review.



Yang Ki-ho, a professor of Japanese studies at Sungkonghoe University, expressed skepticism that the Korean delegation will be able to conduct a thorough inspection.



"If they don't return home with samples of treated water, sending the inspection team is meaningless at this point in time when Japan will most likely push ahead with the water discharge," he said. "Plus, it's a big mistake of the government not to include civilian experts in the panel, as they would be able to offer more objective views without political calculation."





Officials from Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, right, hold a meeting with Japanese officials to discuss the details of Korea's planned inspection of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, at the ministry headquarters in Seoul, May 12. Yonhap
Menlo Electric South Africa has become an official distributor of JA Solar, one of the world's leading manufacturers of high-performance solar products. This partnership marks a step forward in South Africa for both solar-focused brands at a key time, when transitioning to a more sustainable energy system is top of mind for all South Africans.

L-R: Heino Louw, general manager of South Africa at Menlo Electric, Bartosz Majewski, CEO at Menlo Electric, Marcin Zienkiewicz, head of procurement and trading at Menlo Electric, Daniel Pasker, head of sales, Southern and East Africa at JA Solar, Hadyr Adebayo Koumakpai, general manager of Africa at JA Solar

This partnership was solidified by a signing ceremony between the leadership of the two teams that occurred at The Future Energy Show in Johannesburg in April. Commenting on the partnership, Heino Louw, general manager of Menlo Electric South Africa, said: "We are excited to partner with JA Solar, a company that shares our commitment to innovation and sustainability. With their high-quality products and our expertise in the South African market, we are confident that we can provide customers with the best possible solutions for their solar needs."

We are excited to be entering the South African market at a time when the energy transition is picking up momentum within the country.

 Daniel Pasker, JA Solar

JA Solar, a Chinese-based company, is one of the world's leading manufacturers of high-performance solar products having been named a Global Top 500 New Energy Enterprises for multiple consecutive years. With the companys focus on innovation, quality, and sustainability, they have established themselves as a trusted provider of solar modules, cells, and inverters.

The partnership with Menlo Electric South Africa marks a significant milestone for JA Solar, as it expands its reach in the growing South African solar market. Menlo Electric South Africa, with their extensive network and experience in the industry, will provide JA Solar with a strong local presence and a reliable distribution network.

We are excited to be entering the South African market at a time when the energy transition is picking up momentum within the country. I believe that Menlo Electric is the right company to partner with because of its extensive warehouse network, tailored logistics and convenient delivery methods. explained Daniel Pasker, head of sales, Southern and East Africa at JA Solar.

The partnership will also benefit customers in South Africa, who will now have access to JA Solar's cutting-edge solar technology and a range of high-performance products. With Menlo Electric South Africa's reputation for quality and customer service, customers can expect a seamless experience from start to finish.

This partnership comes at a critical time for South Africa, as the country seeks to transition to a more sustainable and resilient energy system. Solar power has the potential to play a significant role in this transition, as it is a clean and renewable source of energy that can help reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels.

Menlo Electric is the fastest-growing solar component distributor in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). In 2022, the company delivered more than 600 MW of renewable energy solutions to more than 30 countries from eight logistics hubs spread across Europe and Africa. Since expanding into South Africa in January of 2023 the company has captured over 10% of the market share.

JA Solar is a global leader in the manufacturing of high-quality solar modules. Its high-efficiency modules are installed in ground-mounted power plants, and in residential, commercial and industrial rooftop PV systems in over 135 countries and regions.

Contact Tara Williams at moc.cirtceleolnem@smailliw.arat.




Minister of mineral resources and energy Gwede Mantashe addressed delegates at the Enlit Africa 2023 conference in a keynote speech delivered at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on 17 May.

Source: Freepik.

Mantashe's speech ran parallel with his tabling on 16 May of the Department of Mineral Resources Budget Vote for the 2023/2024 financial year. With this in mind, R8.5bn of R10.7bn has been earmarked for transfers to public entities and municipalities.

In his CTICC address, Mantashe asserted the government's commitment to delivering South Africans universal access to energy sources, which he said includes the procurement of nuclear energy.

To this end, he said two new bills are currently being proposed to be revised and tabled in parliament: the revision of the Electricity Regulation Act and the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2019, both of which will change the landscape of independent power procurement in South Africa.

Given its passing into law, the Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill will clear the path for private-generation projects and power trading.

"Amendments to the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2019 will outline the just energy transition (JET) issue in detail," Mantashe said. He explained that the general public's current understanding of IRP 2019, as it stands, is that SA's energy sector is moving away from procuring coal-powered energy to renewables.

"The distinction [with the proposed amended IRP 2019] is that SA's energy sector is set to move away from high-carbon emission [power sources] to low-carbon emissions... and we're also talking about nuclear.

'Nuclear is clean energy'

"Nuclear is clean energy, but many South Africans say it is dangerous. In 2024, we will have been running Koeberg [nuclear power station] for 40 years, and in those years we never had a disaster. It is a safe, reliable energy generator; it is very efficient at generating energy and is not costly [when it comes to] decommissioning."

When the delegates attending Mantashe's keynote address were invited to ask the minister questions, Mantashe remained mute on the subjects of what nuclear power stations are being planned in South Africa and which companies will be funding them. This despite the procurement process for a 2,500MW nuclear new-build programme due to be completed by 2024, the same year in which the Koeberg nuclear power plant's license ends.

Mantashe did not mention Rosatom Central and Southern Africa's proposal that SA make use of a fleet of floating small nuclear reactors, which would be commercially available within the next six years or so. Floating nuclear reactors can provide countries with baseload electricity at a stable price.

When asked to elaborate on Russia's investment in SA's energy sector, Mantashe said: "We want capacity to develop gas and we want government to look at it, and whether the companies [that will be supplying it] are sanctioned or not. We're not focusing in particular on Russian capabilities."

This sentiment is in stark contrast to the sentiment expressed at this week's Brics Academic Forum hosted in Cape Town. Here, Russia's trade partnership with South Africa was highlighted. Vladimir Shubin, principal research fellow of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, called attention in his keynote speech to Russia's investment of $148m in South Africa's energy sector in 2020.

Nuclear-power procurement

In 2021, Rosatom, said it remains an "interested vendor" as South Africa restarts its nuclear-power procurement programme.

Rosatom is a state-owned enterprise located in Russia. Its history with SA runs deep.

It had plans to build nuclear power plants in South Africa six years ago, when a court ruling thwarted its objectives. Leading up to this, grassroots activists Makoma Lekalakala and Liz McDaid built a broad coalition to stop the South African governments secret nuclear deal with Russia.

On 26 April 2017, the High Court ruled that the $76bn nuclear power project was unconstitutional - a landmark ruling that protected South Africa from an unprecedented expansion of the nuclear industry and production of radioactive waste.

Learn how Makoma Lekalakala, 2018 #GoldmanPrize winner and director of @Earthlife_JHB, is working for a clean energy future in South Africa and ensuring no one is left behind. #PrizeWinnersToday



 Read more: https://t.co/x765RsUhdd pic.twitter.com/oSSa4RsayP  Goldman Prize (@goldmanprize) October 6, 2022

Addressing energy poverty

Mantashe said South Africans need to distinguish energy poverty from energy cleaniness, "and while we must never separate the two, it's important to address both", he said.

"When we talk about unity in South Africa today, everybody, including myself, will complain of load shedding and expect that everything must be resolved quickly. But there's something we never acknowledge, and that is the fact that in 1994 only 34% of South Africans had access to electricity. Today, over 90% of South Africans have access to electricity and that is very close to universal access to electricity.

"In our programme, we aimed to connect 917,000 households to the grid. Today, 673,946 households are connected. The remainder of 243,054 will be connected in this financial year. Notably [though], the single-most challenge we face to address the energy crisis is the grid unavailability. For instance, 3,200MW wind capacity of the 4,200MW procured under Bid Window 6 could not be allocated due to grid unavailability.

"... our Independent Power Producers (IPP) Office [has noted that], grid availability is critical to securing electricity supply in the future. It impacts not only on the public-procurement programmes, but also on private embedded generation initiatives."

Imagine a world where the headline "so-and-so bets on nuclear in carbon-neutrality push" would be business as usual. Now this is a worthy global goal! https://t.co/Fcp3GBd8MR  Rosatom Global (@RosatomGlobal) February 10, 2022

"Nuclear sits at 40 cents a unit, and renewables at 47 cents a unit," Mantashe said. "Actually, as we stand here today, the lowest-cost energy in South Africa is from nuclear and nobody else can beat that."

Mantashe declared, "Notwithstanding the headwinds of domestic and global factors impacting the performance of the mining and energy industries, I remain steadfast in setting objectives that our department should meet to realise this governments developmental agenda."

In a media statement last month, Ryan Collyer of Rosatom Central and Southern Africa said 75% of the country's coal fleet is due to be decommissioned by 2050.

"South Africa needs to plan for nuclear now.....sub-Saharan Africa remains a "priority" area and is "actively working" with several African countries "to assist them in reaching their nuclear ambitions".
Blink and you will miss it - at times, the rapid rate at which tech is changing our lives can be difficult to comprehend. I was reminded of this when I woke up on the morning of the 30th of November 2022 to a new era of communication.

De Wet Bisschoff, director of operations and sales at Accenture in Africa

I am, of course, referring to the release of ChatGPT, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Open AI which has entirely upended the ways in which we communicate and even conceptualise communication in the digital world. It has taken less than half a year for this technology to attract an astonishing 96 million visitors per month. ChatGPT has heralded the beginnings of accessible artificial intelligence and Web 3.0 in the history books of the internet.

While I'd happily dedicate the rest of this article to the many possibilities of more sophisticated artificial intelligence, this example only serves to show how in an era of increasingly accelerated digital expansion, old ways of doing business are becoming more and more irrelevant.

This brings me to the concept of total enterprise reinvention. My colleagues abroad define it as 'A deliberate strategy that aims to set a new performance frontier for companies and in most cases, the industries in which they operate. Centred around a strong digital core, it helps drive growth and optimise operations'.

Agility, adaptiveness and connectivity are key terms here and those embracing total enterprise reinvention are setting themselves apart from the rest for long-term success.

Accenture calls them reinventors and research shows that they make up a very small percentage of surveyed companies (8% to be exact). Most companies are trailing behind with two key differentiating factors: They focus on transforming parts of their business as opposed to the whole and treat transformation as a finite programme instead of a continuous process. Accenture calls them transformers and they make up 86% of the companies surveyed.

The research strongly points to the benefits of being a reinventor. These changemakers are thriving financially reporting higher incremental revenue growth, as well as higher cost reduction and balance sheet improvements. And they're not slowing down  66% of reinventors report that their strategy is unfolding significantly faster than previous transformations.

By now the necessity of total enterprise reinvention should be clear. The digital world is evolving rapidly and businesses must move with it. It isn't enough to use digital innovation as a single component of a bigger strategy  it must become the strategy in itself. The time to embrace total enterprise reinvention is now.

While this makes sense for global organisations, things are slightly different in South Africa. In a country where digital skills development is lacking, businesses that lead the charge in total enterprise reinvention put this way of thinking at the forefront of the national mindset.

I believe that the private sector has a huge responsibility toward eradicating the digital divide in this country  it's in everyone's best interests. Youth unemployment sits at 66.5% and, according to experts, there is a 'skills gap that's bigger than the jobs gap' when it comes to digital skills. By shifting our business models to digital-centric approaches, the need for digital skills training becomes more apparent and will hopefully spur greater private sector involvement in combating this challenge.

If the future of our country's private sector revolves around digital skills, surely it is in our best interest to provide access to these skills to the next generation of talent. According to Accenture, one of the key characteristics of a total enterprise reinvention strategy is the idea that 'talent strategy and people impact are central to the Reinvention, not an afterthought'. With this in mind, we cannot continue to ignore a lack of digital skills training and the massive digital divide in South Africa if our sector depends on these skills to survive and thrive.

So this is not only a call for South African organisations to become reinventors. It is a call for us to do everything in our power to ensure that future generations are able to thrive and continue to push the boundaries of adapting to an ever-evolving digital world.




In the digital age, social media is the first point of contact for information and an essential component of our everyday lives. The interaction between technology and business has become a self-sustaining cycle, changing how businesses conduct themselves, how they engage with audiences through content, and, as a result, driving businesses to be influential through these technologies.

Businesses have recognised the value of social media in building a strong brand image and communicating with consumers, prospects and employees. However, the value of employee social media engagement for brand exposure and reputation is typically underestimated. There is immense power in employee social media interaction with their company for brand recognition and reputation.

Employees are your strongest brand ambassadors; they are an excellent tool for companies to improve their brand image and reputation, and they are the most outspoken brand advocates. Engaged employees are more likely to share their positive experiences with their friends and family on social media. The more employees share their company's material on social media, the more likely it is to be seen by potential consumers, increase brand exposure which can lead to greater organic reach, and build trust and credibility for the company's brand.

While just around 3% of employees post company-related content, such shares are responsible for a 30% boost in a company's total engagement.

Some fundamental aspects to consider if you want to increase employee engagement:

First and foremost, content collaboration with your employees. Encourage technical specialists and thought leaders to develop content within the organisation. Your employees are your ambassadors, creators, and consumers of your product or service and therefore your content requires to be authentic and relatable.



Second, diversify the type of content created, and the platforms is key to knowing what works effectively for your brand. A short video has a different impact on Twitter than an opinion piece.



Finally, notify your employees of the content and reciprocate the engagement they offer. This shines the spotlight to your internal communications strategy and channels.

As a result, this power comes with huge responsibility. Employee engagement is important to businesses, but employees must be careful in how they interact on these platforms. Furthermore, negative comments or criticism from employees can damage the company's brand image and reputation. A social media policy needs to be in place to mitigate negativity while also serving as a valuable guide for employees to appropriately represent your business and brand. Build a healthy culture and encourage engagement - these tools will be a sure way to get your employees posting and showing off how proud they are of their company.
Montana is expected to be the first state in the US to ban Chinese-owned social app TikTok from personal devices.

According to reports Governor Greg Gianforte has approved the ban, which was signed into law on Wednesday. It is slated to be enforced starting from January.

TikTok has voiced its objection to the ban, contending that it encroaches upon the First Amendment rights of Montana residents. The popular video-sharing platform has faced global scrutiny as authorities express concerns over potential data transfers to the Chinese government.

The social media giant said hundreds of thousands of people use its app in Montana.

"We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana," it added.

TikTok is anticipated to mount a legal challenge against the legislation in court.
Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shake hands as they hold a joint press conference following their talks at the presidential office in Seoul, May 7. Yonhap



President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will hold a bilateral summit on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G-7) gathering in Hiroshima this weekend, the presidential office said Thursday.



Yoon and Kishida will meet Sunday on the last day of the president's three-day visit to Hiroshima, the office said. It will be the third Yoon-Kishida summit since March amid a thaw in the two countries' relations badly frayed over historical disputes.








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Updated at 10:22

Brian Killoran, chief executive of the Immigrant Council of Ireland has said that better communication and proper infrastructure are needed to avoid protests and 'tension points' over the housing of asylum seekers.

Mr Killoran told RTE radio's Morning Ireland, that communication should come from the top down alongside growth from the grassroots. There should not be a reactive approach, he warned.

You need to support communities, resource them, give them the power to do what they are doing now on a daily basis but do it in a more structured basis.

"We have to pull the trigger on it now so that we can build the capacity over the coming months to avoid these tension points and avoid protests.

We have heard repeatedly from the Department of the Taoiseach that they are mulling over the options.

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Unfortunately, the tension points and the protests show a very different message which is not actually reflective of what the actual approach of Irish society is and the attitudes of the Irish public.

That is the weight we have behind us, the momentum we have behind us, but we need to build ourselves out of this reactive approach.

Refugee accommodation could be in very rural, isolated places because of capacity issues, The current situation was not taking place under normal circumstances, he said.

It is happening on the back of a series of migration crises including Ukraine.

Local residents

It comes as Fianna Fail Senator Timmy Dooley warned that it is going to be difficult to resolve the protest outside Magowna House in Inch, Co Clare.

The concerns and fears of local residents had to be heard and acknowledged, he told RTE radios Morning Ireland.

It was important to de-escalate the situation, it was not good for anyone to have a light shining on the area like this. The issue needed to be viewed in the context of 84,000 arriving in the country seeking protection, he said.

Senator Dooley acknowledged that Magowna House was not ideal for the purpose of accommodating international protection applicants given its remote location, but it would be worse if the people had to sleep on the streets of Ennis, Galway or Limerick.

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Efforts by some with a more extreme ideology to join the protest had been resisted by the local residents, he said. They were asked to leave  politely and not so politely. The local community will push them back and rightly so.

While it was unlikely that the Minister for Integration Roderic OGorman would visit Inch, Senator Dooley was hopeful of organising some form of communication. 

"People like to be heard, to have their fears and concerns to be taken into consideration. They want to get back to their daily lives and move away from the narrative of name-calling.

Senator Dooley said he would continue to work to allay the fears of the locals and to get access for them to department officials.

These people dont want to be there overnight. We all know it has to end, its how it ends, the process to get to the other side.

Ireland O'Gorman says he has Cabinet support but more asyl... Read More

As the Irish Times reports, the Government plans to open centres in Santry, Clondalkin and Dun Laoghaire in Dublin for people seeking international protection in the coming months.

While the Government has indicated it will bring up to 350 beds on stream in the near future, documents distributed to TDs recently outline plans for a larger, phased process accommodating people at two larger sites  Dolcain House in Clondalkin and a warehouse in Airways industrial estate in Santry, Dublin, where a total of nearly 700 people will be housed between the two centres.

There will also be two smaller sites  Magowna House into which IP applicants are already being moved; while the fourth site, at the former Senior College Dun Laoghaire building on Eblana Avenue, needs significant works before it is habitable.

According to documents given to TDs, more than 300 single men will be accommodated in Santry, while 386 will be housed in Clondalkin.
Rep. Kim Nam-kuk of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea heads to his office on the National Assembly compound in Seoul, May 14. Yonhap



A special parliamentary ethics committee is set to review two motions calling for disciplinary action against Rep. Kim Nam-kuk over dubious cryptocurrency transactions, yet it is unlikely the embattled lawmaker will be unseated.



Kim left the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) to become an independent after it was revealed he owns a significant amount of coins, raising concerns about conflicts of interest and the source of the funds.



Amid growing criticism that he is attempting to evade responsibility by simply leaving the party, the DPK submitted a motion to the Special Committee on Ethics on Wednesday, separate from the ruling People Power Party's (PPP) earlier motion.



The bipartisan committee, which is evenly divided by the PPP and DPK, has the power to take discipline action against sitting lawmakers who are immune from arrest or detention while the National Assembly is in session.



Under the relevant parliamentary law, Kim may face one of four disciplinary actions  a warning, an order for an official apology, suspension of legislative activities for up to 30 days, or an expulsion from the National Assembly.



Nonetheless, it may take up to 80 days for the motion to be sent to the National Assembly's general meeting, and the likelihood of the expulsion motion being passed is uncertain, as it requires at least two-thirds approval.



Since the special committee voted to unseat a former lawmaker, Kang Yong-seok, for sexist and derogatory remarks in 2011, no other expulsion motion has been passed through the committee. The motion against Kang was ultimately voted down during a plenary session.



The PPP has called for Kim to be stripped of his parliamentary seat for violating parliamentary ethics rules, while the DPK has taken a cautious stance, citing the ongoing prosecution investigation on Kim.



The first-term lawmaker has come under fire following revelations that he owned around 800,000 Wemix coins in 2021, worth around 6 billion won ($4.5 million) at the time, a significant amount inconsistent with his frugal image. Wemix, the cryptocurrency operated by a gaming firm, was delisted in November 2022.



The transactions were reported to the Financial Services Commission's Financial Intelligence Unit, which classified the withdrawals as suspicious transactions and reported them to the prosecution.



On Monday, prosecutors raided two leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb, as part of the investigation into the snowballing suspicions surrounding Kim.



The young lawmaker has stated he did not cash out the assets but instead transferred them to another exchange, without clarifying the exact amount of his crypto assets. He further claimed he was not required to report such activities. (Yonhap)


A text message scam telling recipients they owe toll charges to eFlow is still widely circulating according to Bank of Ireland (BOI).

The fraudulent messages have been circulating since February, with up to 10 fake eFlow websites being set up by fraudsters in a day.

The fake messages tell the recipient they have outstanding toll charges, directing them to click a link contained in the message to pay the balance.

The website linked to in the text message is not genuine and aims to collect the victim's card and banking details.

"Smishing attacks tend to come in waves, and previously we have seen fraudulent messages appearing to be from delivery services, utility companies, Government agencies or banks," BOI's head of fraud Nicola Sadlier explained.

"But this latest attack, with fraudsters sending messages purporting to come from eFlow, has lasted now for several months, which is unusual."

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The bank warned it predicts more fraudulent texts will circulate pretending to be Irish brands over the coming months, "particularly electricity and gas companies," Ms Sadlier said.

"eFlow has advised that they do not send text messages with links to confirm account or payment details. Text messages purporting to be from any company should be treated with extreme caution  the general rule is to stop, think and check," she added.

If you receive a text message that you believe to be a scam, BOI advise that you do not click the link or respond to the message. Instead, take a screenshot of the text and then delete it before reporting the matter to your bank. If you believe you have given your information to a fraudulent website, contact your bank immediately.

More information and advice can be found on the FraudSmart website.
Minister for Justice Simon Harris and Minister for Integration Roderic OGorman will meet with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris on Thursday following last weeks attack on a refugee camp in Dublin.

As The Irish Times reports, last Friday, protests culminated in the belongings of asylum seekers being burned after they had vacated a makeshift camp in an alley off Sandwith St.

The ministers will meet the commissioner on Thursday evening to discuss the policing response to such incidents.

Further demonstrations have taken place outside the International Protection Office on Lower Mount St where other asylum seekers have formed a makeshift camp.

It is an opportunity for the gardai to update on their ongoing work to ensure public safety is maintained against the backdrop of anti-immigration protests and also to update on the events of the weekend, said a spokeswoman for the Department of Justice.

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Minister Harris is also eager that the gardai have an opportunity to provide those input into accommodation plans. Thursday's meeting is part of a regular and ongoing engagement with the gardai.

It comes as Brian Killoran, chief executive of the Immigrant Council of Ireland said better communication and proper infrastructure are needed to avoid protests and 'tension points' over the housing of asylum seekers.

Mr Killoran told RTE radio's Morning Ireland, that communication should come from the top down alongside growth from the grassroots. There should not be a reactive approach, he warned.

You need to support communities, resource them, give them the power to do what they are doing now on a daily basis but do it in a more structured basis.

"We have to pull the trigger on it now so that we can build the capacity over the coming months to avoid these tension points and avoid protests.

We have heard repeatedly from the Department of the Taoiseach that they are mulling over the options.

Unfortunately, the tension points and the protests show a very different message which is not actually reflective of what the actual approach of Irish society is and the attitudes of the Irish public.

Ireland Lack of communication and infrastructure causing '... Read More

That is the weight we have behind us, the momentum we have behind us, but we need to build ourselves out of this reactive approach.

Refugee accommodation could be in very rural, isolated places because of capacity issues, The current situation was not taking place under normal circumstances, he said.

It is happening on the back of a series of migration crises including Ukraine

Additional reporting Vivienne Clarke
The High Court has heard that the main beneficiary of a deceased Co Galway farmer's will has been investigated by gardai over alleged fraud and has also been served with a revenue bill from the Criminal Assets Bureau.

The investigations arise from claims made against Mr Peter O'Toole of Leagaun, Moycullen, Co Galway, who denies any wrongdoing.

Galway-based Detective Garda John Kerrigan told the court on Thursday that the DPP had after receiving a file had decided that no prosecution is to take place regarding complaints made over a will purportedly made by the late Margaret Hernon in 2006.

However, the garda said a decision is being awaited from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on another file in relation another complaint made against Mr O'Toole, who the court heard is aged in his 70s, made by the late Peter 'Bunker' Lydon.

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The files regarding both matters were sent to the DPP at the same time, he said.

In the will Mrs Hernon left the bulk of her valuable estate to Mr O'Toole. It was purportedly executed before retired solicitor Mr Liam O'Gallchobhar.

Gardai said the complaint in relation to the will was conducted at the same time as a complaint made by Mr Lydon before he died in July 2020.

Bachelor farmer

He was a bachelor farmer, aged in his 80s who had claimed that he was never paid for lands he owned in Kingston, Galway that he sold to Mr O'Toole.

The Garda said that an aspect of the investigation centres around lodgements of large sums of money totalling 1.5 million by Mr O'Toole in January 2019 to the benefit or favour of Mr Lydon who was in a nursing home at the time.

Mr Lydon, the Garda said, was not able to read or write.

The Garda said that, as part of the investigation into that matter, documents were presented which state that Mr O'Toole made a large number of cash payments to Mr Lydon.

Many of the receipts of those payments were witnessed by the late Mr John Concannon, who died in May 2017, who is alleged to have been a witness to the 2006 will that was purportedly signed by Mrs Hernon and executed before Mr O'Gallchobhair.

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The Garda said that one document, which had been altered, seemed to date the late Mr Concannon, a farmer from Barna Co Galway, as having witnessed one payment on the date of his death in May 2017.

CAB tax demand

The Detective Garda also said that the revenue wing of CAB had served Mr O'Toole with a tax demand.

The figure of that demand was not disclosed in open court, however the Garda said that the demand is currently under appeal.

The evidence was given on the third day of an application brought by Mr Agustus 'Gus' Kelehan who is one of over 40 children of the deceased first cousins, against the executor of the estate retired solicitor Mr Liam O'Gallchobhair of Highfield Park, Galway seeking to set aside the 2006 will.

It is claimed that the will was procured by deceit.

It has been claimed that Mr O'Gallchobhair was not the deceased solicitor, and that he is an associate of Mr O'Toole who in the past has been convicted of offences including possession of a weapon, forgery and deception.

The claims are denied.

Documents

Under cross-examination by Michael Hourican SC for Mr O'Gallchobhair, who questioned the relevance of the Garda evidence, the detective said that the allegations had been investigated by the Gardai as part of their remit to deal with the nature of the complaints made in relation to the will.

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He denied that he had been selective with the document she had furnished to the court as part of his evidence. All relevant material to this case had been provided to the court and he denied that anything had not furnished any documentation that would be of benefit to Mr O'Toole.

The court also heard evidence from Ms Meave Joyce solicitor of Horan & Son Solicitors in Galway. She said the firm had acted for Mrs Hernon and her husband Frank for many years.

She said she had discussions with Margaret Hernon on several occasions about making a will.

She told David Kennedy SC for Mr Kelehan that Mr Hernon would become upset on occasions when it came to drafting a will, particularly in the time leading up towards her death.

Ms Joyce said that Mrs Hernon was aware of what would have happened if she died intestate and said there would be "Helter-Skelter" if that happened.

Ms Joyce said that in her discussions with Mrs Hernon form 2010 onwards there was no mention of a will being executed and said that she wanted to leave her estate to members of her late husband's family as well as others including Maureen Donnellan who had been good to her.

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There was no mention of leaving Peter O'Toole anything in her will in any of their discussions, Ms Joyce said, adding she was very surprised to learn that Mrs Hernon had purportedly made a will in 2006.

Under cross-examination from Mr Hourican, she said she did not believe that Mrs Hernon had forgotten about the 2006 will.

Mrs Joyce also said that she did not accept a claim made by Mr O'Toole that he had been told by Mrs Hernon that she had gone to another solicitor in 2006 because she feared that her discussions with Horan's was being made public.

In her will she had left sums of money to a few family members, including Mrs Donnellan and her mother, and the local Catholic Church totalling 22,000 while the rest of the estate was left to Mr O'Toole.

In his defence of the claims against the estate Mr O'Gallchobhair claims the will was validly executed in 2006 and was witness by Mr Concannon.

Ireland Two Roma women awarded 6,000 after being asked to... Read More

He claims he knew the deceased for many years.

He accepts that he knows Mr O'Toole, and had acted for him, but denies all the allegations that he colluded with him regarding the will.

Mr O'Toole also denies any wrong-doing and claims that he had a good relationship with the deceased.

The hearing before Mr Justice Cian Ferriter continues.
A 25-year-old man who died after a row over a stolen scooter sustained a stab wound to the neck which cut his jugular vein and damaged a lung, resulting in "devastating consequences", a pathologist has told the Central Criminal Court.

John Titiloye (28), with an address at Mac Uilliam Crescent, Fortunestown, Tallaght, Dublin 24 has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ademola "Dizzy" Giwa (25) in the Mac Uilliam Road area in Tallaght on August 10th 2021. Mr Giwa was from Mac Uilliam Parade in the same west Dublin town.

Eyewitness Samson Fayemi (26) told the trial yesterday that he saw murder accused Mr Titiloye raise his arm, swing back and "strike" a knife into his 25-year-old friend's neck.

Giving evidence on Thursday, State pathologist Dr Sally Anne Collis told John Byrne SC, prosecuting, that she carried out a postmortem on Mr Giwa on August 11th 2021, where she found that he had sustained a stab wound to the neck.

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The expert witness testified that she was informed that Mr Giwa had been involved in an altercation in Tallaght at 6.55pm the previous day and had collapsed after receiving a stab wound to the right side of the neck. He was pronounced dead in Tallaght Hospital at 8.20pm on August 10th.

Stab wound

The witness said that Mr Giwa had a wound to the right side of the neck above the collarbone and that the track descended in a downward direction under the jawline. She said there was damage to the front wall of the jugular vein but that it was "not transected, just damaged". The track had penetrated the right chest cavity and terminated in the upper lobe of the right lung.

was also evidence of a second stab wound to Mr Giwa's right forearm, which was 8.6cm in length and was a relatively superficial wound. There was no muscle or nerve damage.

A toxicology report detected no alcohol in Mr Giwa's system. However, Ms Collis said Mr Giwa had consumed a cannabis product containing THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) some time prior to his death, which had not contributed to his death.

In conclusion, Dr Collis said there was a stab wound to the right side of Mr Giwa's neck and another to the right forearm. The stab wound to the neck had damaged the underlying tissues, the right jugular vein and the right lung, which had resulted in haemorrhage. The same stab wound had also penetrated the right side of the chest and had damaged the right lung, which resulted in loss of circulating blood, volume and air in the chest cavity.

Commotion

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Earlier, John Osbourne, who also lived on Mac Uilliam Road, said he heard a commotion from his bedroom and went outside to his gate where he saw black males involved in a scuffle.

When he went outside Mr Giwa came towards him holding his neck and said he had been stabbed. Mr Osbourne ran inside to get something to stop the bleeding as Mr Giva stood at the railings outside his house. When he returned Mr Giwa collapsed on the ground. The witness said he held Mr Giwa's head, but there was nothing he could do and within 20 seconds the deceased's eyes were dilating.

Thabiso Lyon Sibanda told Mr Byrne that the accused arrived in a black Ford Mondeo car at his half brother's residence at Cedarfield Lodge in Dundalk after 8.35pm on August 10th.

Mr Sibanda said Mr Titiloye asked to speak to him in private in a bedroom, where the accused pulled up his t-shirt to reveal another t-shirt underneath with blood-staining on it.

As he showed the witness the blood-stained t-shirt the accused said "I'm after doing a madness" and that he needed somewhere to stay for a while. The witness agreed that a link had appeared in 'Snapchat' that evening saying that someone had died after being stabbed in the neck and that it had been suggested to him that the accused had killed someone in Tallaght. He agreed that others in the bedroom became extremely uncomfortable at the time upon hearing this.

Nervous

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Under cross-examination, Mr Grehan asked Mr Sibanda what he thought the accused meant by "I'm after doing a madness". The witness said "that he after got into a fight or something". The witness said it was only later that he learnt that someone had been stabbed.

In cross-examination, Ryan Phillips, who was the half brother of the previous witness and living in Cedarfield Lodge where he was paying rent for a room, agreed with Mr Grehan that the accused was very nervous in his bedroom and at one stage apologised for not talking as he was "in his feelings" meaning he was in deep thinking within himself.

Ireland Witness tells murder trial he saw accused 'strike'... Read More

Mr Philips said the accused was also very nervous during the night and every time a car slowed down outside or came in the gate he would look out the window. He also agreed that Mr Titiloye had got sick in the bathroom the following morning.

Opening the murder case to the jury this week, prosecution barrister Mr Byrne said that Mr Giwa was fatally stabbed in the neck in Tallaght in a row over a small debt and a stolen scooter. The barrister said it was the State's case that in the course of an argument Mr Titiloye produced a knife and stabbed Mr Giwa in the neck.

The 12 jurors were also told by the State in its opening address that it was the accused's position that he was in possession of a knife for self-defence and having initially walked away from the altercation he returned to protect his father, who sustained a stab type injury to the eye.

The trial continues tomorrow before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of six men and six women.
The High Court has granted an injunction requiring a number of people who have taken over a building in Dublin to vacate the property.

The building is owned by the Cabhru Housing Association, which was granted the order after the court heard a number of "unknown persons" broke into the premises at James McSweeney House, Berkeley Street, Dublin 7 on May 12th.

The building was vacated three years ago for the purpose of redevelopment by Cabhru to provide 35 modern home units for older people. The redevelopment was delayed by the Covid pandemic and increased building costs, but construction is due to start next year.

The court heard there are serious concerns about safety in the building, given that gas and water had been cut off and the only electrical connection in place was for the alarm. The fire alarm also appeared to have been cut, Cabhru said.

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The case came before Mr Justice Rory Mulcahy on Thursday, when Padraig Drummond appeared on behalf of the "persons unknown" defendants. He said for the past week he had been advocating on behalf of 46 migrants who are in the building, adding he is chief executive of a group called Streetlink Homeless Support.

Mr Dummond said his group has been in direct contact with Minister for Integration Roderic OGorman, adding he was seeking a protection order to be put in place for the building, given migrant protests around the country and the fact there have been threats made by right-wing supporters online.

He said while he had nothing to do with "its acquisition", he was there to ensure welfare checks with the migrants living at the premises and to ensure there is power and running water.

He said he had tried to engage with Cabhru's representative in relation to the fire alarm and as a result had asked those in occupation to place individuals on each balcony to "fire watch".

Material reception conditions

Mr Dummond quoted a recent High Court decision stating the State was obliged to provide material reception conditions for migrants. This should be what is done before requiring the migrants in this building to vacate, he argued.

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His group were "seeking an amicable resolution for the 46 people there who are in 20 apartments and they are comfortable there".

He added: "When it was made public in the State media, right-wing agitators started agitating online, and we now have a situation where Roderic OGorman said it will be two weeks before he has accommodation when they are already accommodated in a State-owned building".

He said he had been in court three or four times when housing activists took over buildings and the State had sent in gardai with a helicopter to evict them. He said if that happens in this case, it will not just be activists being evicted but asylum seekers.

Andrew Whelan BL, for Cabhru, said his client was a private charity and not the State, who were providing homes for elderly people.

He said he had every sympathy for the plight of the homeless, but this was not the way to go about getting accommodation for them. Mr Whelan said there were serious safety concerns, adding that those in occupation had barricaded themselves into the property and there was clearly a trespass.

Mr Justice Mulcahy said he had every sympathy for what Mr Drummond was trying to do and even greater sympathy for the 46 migrants because they have nowhere else to go.

Ireland Former construction worker jailed for holding over... Read More

However, he found the case had been made out by the plaintiff, adding that where there is a trespass the appropriate remedy is an injunction.

He asked Mr Whelan if his client could provide a period of time within which the building could be vacated. Following a short break, Mr Whelan said such a decision would have to be taken by the Cabru board in consultation with its insurers.

The judge said he would grant the order but put a stay on it for seven days, with the case to return before the court in a week.

When the judge asked Mr Drummond to "do whatever you can do", Counsel replied: "I have nothing to do with those who have taken control of the building, I have no control over it."
A woman who was 10-weeks pregnant feared for the life of her unborn baby after being rear-ended in a road traffic collision, the Circuit Civil Court has heard.

Leanne Ballesteros was awarded 24,500 in damages over the collision at Belgard Road, Tallaght in November 2019.

Ms Ballesteros told Judge James McCourt she has such a rare blood group that if she was involved in any sort of accident or trauma she would require hospital treatment involving injections to protect her baby from dangerous antibodies.

Ms Ballesteros (37), of Beechdale Way, Ballycullen, Dublin 24, said she had to immediately attend the emergency department at the Coombe Hospital following the collision.

Barrister Conor Kearney, who appeared with Tiernan Solicitors for Ms Ballesteros, said liability in the case had been conceded and the court was being asked to assess the amount of compensation due to Ms Ballesteros.

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She sued Comans Beverages Limited and its driver, David Orr, both with addresses at Belgard Road, and Aviva Insurance for 60,000 in damages.

Ms Ballesteros said she had suffered serious stress and worry over the welfare of her baby for seven months after the collision, on top of physical injuries to her neck, shoulder and lower back. She added these injuries later made caring for her baby and two-year-old child more difficult.

She told Judge McCourt she had given birth to a healthy baby girl, but added her physical injuries had troubled her for up to two years after the incident.

Ireland Court upholds permission for co-living development... Read More

The court heard Ms Ballesteros baby girl had been delivered seven months after the collision.

"It was a terrifying situation for a pregnant person to find themselves in a situation where they had a rare blood group with potential consequences arising that could have resulted in the loss of the baby," Judge McCourt said.

"I have no doubt that the situation was absolutely terrifying, and I dont need any particular specialists report to convince me of that or otherwise," he added.

The judge commended Ms Ballesteros, who he said had presented as an exceptionally good historian in her case, adding she was an exceptionally honest and understated person.
Actor Alec Baldwins troubled western Rust is back on the market to international buyers at the Cannes Film Festival, little more than 18 months after its cinematographer was killed on set.

Halyna Hutchins died in the shooting in New Mexico in October 2021 when a prop gun was fired by Baldwin. Director Joel Souza was also wounded.

The independently financed production resumed shooting in Montana in April with Matthew Hutchins, the victims husband, serving as an executive producer as part of a settlement over a wrongful death lawsuit.



Alec Baldwin (Seth Wenig/AP)

The film lacks North American distributors but producers are seeking buyers at the Cannes film market, a satellite operation to the official festival line-up centred on the Palais des Festivals.

This is an unprecedented film in regards to the circumstances, producer Ryan Donnell Smith told The Hollywood Reporter. Were trying to keep realistic expectations but shepherd this in the best way we can.

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New Mexico prosecutors dropped criminal charges against Baldwin in April.

Involuntary manslaughter charges against the actor were abandoned three weeks after a new prosecutor team took over the case, although weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed faces the same charge.



A musician plays a violin behind a photograph of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a vigil in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (Andres Leighton/AP)

Assistant director David Halls has pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon.

Baldwin has booked another film circulating the Cannes market with the actor joining the cast of Kent State, a dramatisation of the 1970 killing of four students by the National Guard protesting the Vietnam War on the Ohio college campus.

Baldwin is to play Robert I White, Kent States then president, in the film written and directed by Karen Slade.
Hong Kongs leader said the citys public libraries will not recommend books featuring bad ideologies to residents  after they pulled titles related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and certain political figures.

Chief Executive John Lee was addressing a politicians question about dozens of books in public libraries removed without a clear explanation.

Those include publications about the bloody crackdown and others written by pro-democracy politicians and political commentators.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to Chinas rule in 1997, promising to retain its western-style freedoms.



The group that organised Hong Kongs annual vigil in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law (Duy Phuong Nguyen/Alamy/PA)

But the citys cultural and creative sectors said the citys freedoms have shrunk since Beijing imposed a tough national security law after massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

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Critics said the book pulling will further undermine Hong Kongs reputation for having free access to information and freedom of expression.

But Mr Lee defended the sweeping law at the legislature, saying Hong Kongs freedoms are protected by the citys constitution.

The books we offer for residents to borrow are those that we recommend, he said.

We would never recommend books that are illegal and violate copyrights. We would never recommend those that we deem to be featuring bad ideologies.

He said residents can still find such books to read elsewhere.

He did not elaborate on what are considered bad ideologies and why the books were removed.



Protesters in Hong Kong in 2019 (Alamy/PA)

The government has not immediately responded to a request for comment.

The removal of the books was reported by local media outlets after a Chinese newspaper stopped publishing works by the citys most prominent political cartoonist on Sunday following government complaints.

Comic strip collections by the cartoonist were also no longer available in public libraries.

Since a sweeping security law was enacted in 2020, the citys art and media communities have learned to be wary of crossing vaguely defined red lines in producing art and other content that might be perceived as challenging the Chinese Communist Partys control.

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The group that organised Hong Kongs annual vigil in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law.

The annual vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the event on Chinese soil and was attended by massive crowds until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures.

Supporters say the groups closure shows the freedoms and autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 are diminishing.
A nurse in the UK has denied she got a thrill from photographing a sympathy card sent to the parents of a baby girl she allegedly murdered.

The infant is one of seven babies that Lucy Letby is said to have murdered at the Countess of Chester Hospitals neo-natal unit.

Letby (33), from Hereford, is said to have killed Child I at the fourth attempt. She also denies attempting to murder 10 other babies.

Her trial at Manchester Crown Court has heard that during a night shift on the unit she took a picture on her phone of a sympathy card she wrote to be passed to colleagues attending the childs funeral.

Cross-examining her on Thursday, prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said: You took a picture of a card, addressed to the parents of a child who had died in dreadful circumstances, at the place where she died.

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Letby said: The place is insignificant. My usual behaviour is to photograph things that I send or receive.

Mr Johnson asked: Did it give you a bit of a thrill to photograph it at the place where this poor unfortunate child died?

A Morrisons carrier bag which contained a number of hospital shift handover sheets (Cheshire Constabulary/CPS/PA)

Letby replied: Absolutely not.

Jurors have been told that following her arrest a total of 257 shift handover sheets  some including the names of babies she allegedly harmed  were found at her then home in Chester and her parents address in Hereford.

One sheet found in pristine condition at her address in Westbourne Road, Chester, was dated June 1st, 2010, her first day of work as a student at the neonatal unit.

Mr Johnson asked: Did you have a keepsafe box with roses on it at Westbourne Road?

Yes, said Letby.

Mr Johnson said: What was in the keepsafe box?

Letby said: I cant recall from memory.

Mr Johnson said: One of the things in that box was that handover sheet, wasnt it?

Letby said: I dont have any recollection where the handover sheets were.

Mr Johnson said: How does it differ from all the other handover sheets?

Letby said: It doesnt have any writing on it.

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Mr Johnson said: And it doesnt have any folds in it. Its in pristine condition.

Letby agreed.

Mr Johnson went on: Some 99 handover sheets from your home as a student.

Letby said: I wouldnt know.

Mr Johnson said: You have not been prepared to tell the truth about these handover sheets, have you?

Letby said: The truth is what I have told you.

The defendant previously told the jury of eight women and four men that the sheets inadvertently come home with in my uniform pocket.

Police found 31 handover sheets in a Morrisons bag  her work bag  under her bed.

Mr Johnson asked: Why put them in the bag at all?

Letby said:  I cant recall. They are just pieces of paper to me.

Mr Johnson said: You are not telling the truth, are you?

Court artist sketch of Nicholas Johnson KC cross-examining nurse Lucy Letby (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

Letby said: I am.

Mr Johnson said: Why dont you want to tell the truth?

Letby said: That is the truth. They have no meaning to me at all. I have copious pieces of paper and cards that I have not thrown away my whole life.

Also discovered in police searches was a blood gas reading of a baby boy, Child M, who she allegedly attempted to murder.

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Mr Johnson reminded Letby that a nursing colleague who took the measurement had told the court she would have disposed of the printout in the units confidential waste bin.

The prosecutor asked: When did you fish it out of the bin?

Letby said: I never fished anything out of the confidential bin.

Mr Johnson said: How did you get it?

Letby said: I cant recall specifically.

Mr Johnson said: It was for your little collection, wasnt it Lucy Letby?

No, replied the defendant.

Letby, from Hereford, denies all the alleged offences said to have taken place between June 2015 and June 2016.
Ukraine shot down 29 out of 30 cruise missiles fired at Ukraine in the latest nighttime test of the countrys air defences, officials said.

One person died and two were hurt when a Russian missile got through and hit an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa, said Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the regions military administration.

Amid the recently intensified Russian air assaults, China said its special envoy met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during talks in Kyiv earlier this week with Ukraines chief diplomat.

Beijings peace proposal has so far yielded no apparent breakthrough in the war and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Thursday the warring parties need to accumulate mutual trust for progress to be made.





The illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is continuing.



The map below is the latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine  17 May 2023.



Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/FgxbWQEfeE



 #StandWithUkraine  pic.twitter.com/ClQLAjh9KY Advertisement  Ministry of Defence  (@DefenceHQ) May 17, 2023

Ukrainian officials sought during the talks to recruit Chinas support for Kyivs own peace plan, according to Ukraines presidential office.

Mr Zelenskys proposal includes the restoration of his countrys territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian forces and holding Russian President Vladimir Putin legally accountable for the invasion, which started in February 2022.

Leaders of the Group of Seven leading industrialised nations gathering in Japan on Thursday are expected to denounce Russias war and vow to keep helping Ukraine fight Moscow. They will hold discussions about the battlefield in Ukraine, according to Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser.

A western official said Russia has built potentially formidable defensive lines on Ukrainian territory, including extensive minefields, and has more than 200,000 troops along the 600-mile frontline, though it is unlikely to possess credible reserves.





This year, the two meanings are united by one date, May 18.



79 years ago on this day, the Soviet regime began deporting the Crimean Tatar people. A people they wanted to erase. Deprive of their homes, deprive of the right to life.



But the people survived. And they will live pic.twitter.com/PDgX56ST7s    (@ZelenskyyUa) May 18, 2023

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As Ukraine receives sophisticated weapons systems from its western allies, the Kremlin has started losing warplanes in areas previously deemed as safe, the official said, while Kyiv has proven able to shoot down Russias hypersonic ballistic missiles  the most advanced weapons in Moscows arsenal.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military intelligence.

Meanwhile, Kremlin-installed authorities in occupied Crimea reported the derailment of eight train cars on Thursday because of an explosion, prompting renewed suspicions about possible Ukrainian saboteur activity behind Russian lines.

Russian state media said the train was carrying grain.

The state news agency RIA Novosti, quoting a source within the emergency services, said the incident happened near the city of Simferopol.

The Crimean Railway company said the derailment was caused by the interference of unauthorised persons and there were no casualties.





Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 18 May 2023.



Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/m2Jer1K5tu



 #StandWithUkraine  pic.twitter.com/hCyZxu5xEK  Ministry of Defence  (@DefenceHQ) May 18, 2023

Ukraine officials refuse to comment on possible acts of sabotage.

Ukraines military intelligence spokesman, Andriy Yusov, said on Ukrainian television Russian railway lines are also used to transport weapons, ammunition, armoured vehicles.

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Overnight, loud blasts were heard in Kyiv as the Kremlins forces targeted the capital for the ninth time this month in a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced western weapons.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts, starting a fire at a garage complex.

There was no immediate word about any victims, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv Military Administration, said in a Telegram post.

Ukraine also shot down two Russian exploding drones and two reconnaissance drones, authorities said.

The missiles were launched from Russian sea, air and ground bases, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian commander in chief, wrote on Telegram.

Several waves of missiles were aimed at areas of Ukraine between 9pm on Wednesday and 5.30am on Thursday, he said.



A Russian 152mm self-propelled gun fires towards a Ukrainian position from an undisclosed location (Russian Defence Ministry Press Service/AP)

Russian forces used strategic bombers from the Caspian region and apparently fired X-101 and X-55-type missiles developed during Soviet times, Kyiv authorities said.

Russia then deployed reconnaissance drones over the capital.

In the last major air attack on Kyiv, on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defences bolstered by sophisticated western-supplied systems shot down all incoming missiles, officials said.

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That attack used hypersonic missiles, which have been repeatedly touted by Mr Putin as providing a key strategic advantage.

The missiles, which are among the most advanced weapons in Russias arsenal, are difficult to detect and intercept because of their hypersonic speed and manoeuvrability.

But sophisticated western air defence systems, including American-made Patriot missiles, have helped spare Kyiv from the kind of destruction seen along the main frontline in the countrys east and south.

While the ground fighting is largely deadlocked along that frontline, both sides are targeting each others territory with long-range weapons.

The most intense fighting has focused on the battle for the city of Bakhmut and the surrounding area, in Ukraines eastern Donetsk province, with a Ukrainian military official claiming on Thursday the army advanced up to 1.7km (more than a mile) there over the previous day.



Fragments of a Russian rocket shot down by Ukraines air defence system are seen after a night rocket attack in the Kyiv region (Ukrainian Police Press Office/AP)

At the same time, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the millionaire owner of Russias private military contractor Wagner, whose troops have spearheaded the battle, claimed Russian army units had retreated from their positions north of the city.

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Mr Prigozhin is a frequent critic of the Russian military.

At least seven Ukrainian civilians have been killed, including a five-year-old boy, and 18 people hurt over the past 24 hours, the presidential office said.

Two people were also wounded in a drone attack in Russias southern Kursk region, which borders Ukraine, the regional governor reported on Thursday.

In a Telegram post, Roman Starovoit claimed Ukrainian forces dropped an explosive device from a drone on a sports and recreation complex.
An White House official said about half of North Korea's missile program has been funded by its cryptocurrency theft. gettyimages



This is the first in a two-part series of interviews with global experts in cryptocurrency investigations and cybersecurity as North Korea's illicit cyber activities represent an alarming new threat for Washington and its two most important East Asian allies, Seoul and Tokyo, amid Pyongyang's development of its nuclear weapons program. _ ED.



'NK's hackers use services located in China and Russia for ill-gotten gains'



By Kim Yoo-chul



Over the last few years, a secret group of hackers has been launching campaigns apparently aimed at stealing classified data from think tanks, financial institutions, government agencies and academics in South Korea and the U.S., while laundering cryptocurrencies on the side.



That group, widely known as APT43, was believed to be a proxy for North Korean intelligence services, according to researchers at Mandiant, a part of Google Cloud. The revelation was not surprising to leading policymakers in Washington and its two East Asian allies, Seoul and Tokyo.



Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology at the White House, assessed that about half of North Korea's missile program has been funded by the regime's cryptocurrency theft. Cryptocurrencies are the tools for evading any economic sanctions because transactions are done through encrypted transfers and are not processed within mainstream banking systems.



In short, APT43 and other groups including the brazen Lazarus Group are the latest face of North Korea's hacking prowess as cryptocurrency theft is the most favored financing option for the regime.



And as global financing rapidly embraces sophisticated digital technology, crypto-related crimes are now becoming a bigger threat.



Speaking to The Korea Times, an executive at the New York-based blockchain analysis company, Chainalysis, which also helped the U.S. Department of Justice and South Korea's National Intelligence Service track illicit gains made by North Korean hacking attacks, said hackers linked to the regime shattered their own record for theft in 2022.





Erin Plante, vice president of investigations at Chainalysis / Courtesy of Chainalysis

"North Korea-linked hackers stole an estimated $1.7 billion worth of cryptocurrency across several hacks. Most experts agree the North Korean government is using these stolen assets to fund its nuclear weapons program," Erin Plante, a cyber financial crimes expert for The New York Times, CNN, Bloomberg and Axios, said in a recent interview.



Plante, who is also vice president of investigations at Chainalysis, added that about $1.1 billion of the cryptocurrency was stolen by hacking into decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, making North Korea one of the driving forces behind the hacking trend that intensified last year. DeFi does not rely on intermediaries such as brokerages, exchanges or banks by using smart contracts on a blockchain.



DeFi hacks are a kind of "smart contract exploit," which involves flaws in the codes of smart contracts executed by the DeFi protocol. This feature has some risk factors as hackers could be able to easily manipulate the DeFi protocol's behavior, helping them steal users' properties.



Chainalysis' key customers include the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, as well as the United Kingdom's National Crime Agency.



"North Korea's shift to DeFi hacks could be due to the bear market of 2022 and the exponential growth in the DeFi space. DeFi's protocols are publicly viewable by default, but that same transparency is also what makes DeFi so vulnerable  hackers can scan DeFi codes for vulnerabilities and strike at the perfect time to maximize their theft," the executive elaborated.



Regarding its findings about North Korean hackers' patterns on how to convert their cryptocurrencies into real cash, the executive said North Korean-affiliated hackers typically steal, launder and convert their cryptocurrencies into fiat currencies through the following five steps.



According to her, the process starts with "chainhop" between different blockchains and assets to try and evade investigators, followed by moves to convert all assets to bitcoins, including ethereum (since the sanctioning of Tornado Cash, there are no effective ethereum mixers available), to splitting bitcoins and holding them in thousands of intermediary wallets, to mixing bitcoins in a variety of mixers and finally cash withdrawal through crypto-to-cash conversion services.



Asked about the specifics of Lazarus Group, which has been designated as being responsible for the recent supply chain attack on 3CX and was also behind low-profile hacks such as the attack on Sony Pictures back in 2014 and the spread of the WannaCry ransomware in 2017, Plante said North Korean-affiliated hackers are sophisticated both in terms of hacking and laundering stolen funds.





A representation of the cryptocurrency is seen in front of Binance logo in this illustration taken, March 4, 2022. Reuters-Yonhap



"In order to steal funds, they make use of phishing lures, code exploits, malware and advanced social engineering to siphon funds into addresses they control. To launder the funds, they use obfuscation techniques such as mixing, using services like the now sanctioned Tornado Cash to create a disconnect between the cryptocurrency they deposit and withdraw and chain hopping, which is the process of swapping between several different kinds of cryptocurrency in a single transaction," she explained.



When questioned about Binance's possible role in this issue, the executive said Chainalysis is not able to comment on behalf of the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange.



Turning point, Russia-China connection



Security experts in Washington said the core of North Korea's cybercrimes and its continued efforts to advance its nuclear weapons are complicating the Joe Biden administration's efforts to pursue regional stability amid the rise of China.



But Plante said despite North Korean hackers' sophistication, law enforcement agencies are "increasingly able to trace the moves of stolen funds" through blockchain analysis, making it harder for the North's hackers to get away with "these types of attacks."



"Through advanced tracing technologies and blockchain analytics, investigators can follow stolen funds throughout these steps to cash out points and work with industry players to quickly freeze funds and seize them," she said.



According to its findings, more than $30 million worth of crypto assets stolen by North Korean-linked hackers from the Axie Infinity hack have been seized. About $1 million dollars in funds stolen by North Korean hackers from Harmony Bridge were also tracked and seized.





Bitcoins against a backdrop of the flag of North Korea / gettyimages
The remains of a Georgia woman killed 46 years ago were identified and confirmed as a victim of Samuel Little, known as the most prolific serial killer in US history, authorities said on Thursday.

Yvonne Pless was about 20 when Little killed her in 1977, according to a news release from the Bibb County Sheriffs Office and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.

She had been dubbed Macon Jane Doe by The Telegraph newspaper in the city.

Little, who died in December 2020, confessed in 2018 to killing two Macon women, prompting Georgia investigators to travel to Texas in 2019 to interview him.





They were able to confirm that his confessions matched the unsolved Macon cold case.

They were able to notify a remaining family member of the other woman, Fredonia Smith, who was killed in 1982.

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But Ms Pless remains had not been identified, so her family was not known.

Last year, investigators used forensic, genetic, genealogy to identify the remains of Ms Pless and then identified a relative who connected them with her remaining family in Macon.

By the time of his death at nearly 80 years old, Little had confessed to killing 93 people between 1970 and 2005. Most of the slayings took place in Florida and Southern California. Georgia authorities say eight of his victims were Georgia residents, and the remains of a Tennessee woman were also found in Georgia.

Little, who was in and out of jail for decades for stealing, assault, drugs or other crimes, for years denied killing anyone.

It was not until he was questioned by Texas Ranger James Holland in 2018 about a killing it turned out he did not commit that the details began to come out. Over about 700 hours of interviews, he gave details from scores of killings that only a murderer would know.

He said he started killing in 1970, on New Years Eve in Miami.

It was like drugs, he told Holland. I came to like it.

His last was in 2005, he said, in Tupelo, Mississippi. He also killed people in Tennessee, Texas, Ohio, Kentucky, Nevada, Arkansas and other states.

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Little strangled most of his victims, usually soon after meeting them during chance encounters.

Almost all of his victims were women, and he targeted people living on the edges of society, such as prostitutes or drug addicts. They were people he believed would not be looked for and would not leave much evidence for police.

He was not wrong  police around the country initially classified many of the deaths as accidents, drug overdoses or the result of unknown causes.

Kentucky authorities finally caught up with him in 2012 after he was arrested on drug charges and his DNA linked him to three California killings.

When he began recounting the other killings, authorities were astounded at how much he remembered. His paintings, they said, indicated he had a photographic memory.

Nothing hes ever said has been proven to be wrong or false, Holland told the CBS news magazine 60 Minutes in 2019.
Air China has swamped an Australian flight school with a request for commercial pilots, a sudden demand that points to a looming rebound as the vast Chinese market resumes international travel.

Beijing-based Air China had stopped sending its trainees to the Australian Airline Pilot Academy campus in regional Victoria after the pandemic halted overseas travel in early 2020. But talks resumed two months ago and the giant state-run carrier, almost out of nowhere, pushed the school to interview more than 100 candidates from China in just four days in April.

Air China is on the hunt for pilots as the post-pandemic travel rebound gains steam. Credit: AP

It went from nothing to when can we start? said Chris Hine, executive chairman of the academy. Logic tells me that we must only be at the start of it. Airlines are still rebuilding.

The urgency of Air Chinas personnel requirements underscores the pace of the post-pandemic passenger rebound  and the sheer number of flight crew needed to sustain it. The world will need more than 600,000 new pilots between 2022 and 2041, and the biggest requirement is in Asia, according to the latest forecast by planemaker Boeing.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned that the Coalitions objections to proposed gas tax changes could force Labor to cut another deal with the Greens and risk empowering the minor party to have a greater say over policies surrounding the future of fossil fuels.

Oil and gas sector representatives have backed the governments plan to bring forward payments under the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax (PRRT) to generate an extra $2.4 billion in revenue over four years, and say the move strikes an appropriate balance between ensuring ongoing energy supplies and a more sustainable national budget.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers during the budget press conference in Parliament House. Credit: Rhett Wyman

However, the Greens say the changes are less than the bare minimum and would encourage more investment in gas projects that will worsen climate change.

Chalmers on Thursday said the changes, which had been designed not to deter investment or interfere with key trading relationships, would be put at risk if Opposition Leader Peter Dutton continued to leave important energy policy legislation to the whims of the Senate.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size The weekends always flew by too fast. Monday morning brought meetings, complex problems and dry, impersonal emails. But ever since software company Our Community shifted to a four-day week, its employees began to share with colleagues what they did on their days off. Monday emails now bring tales of bushwalking, playing in a wannabe band, childrens birthday parties and making chilli syrup on a whim. The shorter week has radically changed the culture of the company, says Melbourne founder Denis Moriarty. People have more time to rest, to be with friends and family, and pursue hobbies. And here lies the other side of the coin for him: People are willing to work harder. Denis Moriarty: People are willing to work harder. Credit: Photo: Eddie Jim. Artwork: Monique Westermann A handful of Australian organisations and several hundred around the world are trialling a four-day work week, dismantling the five days that car magnate Henry Ford standardised for full-timers in the 1920s. Losing a day has been a leap too far for some. Detractors fear costs and say only certain organisations can do more with less. But others say there is no slip in productivity and four days is better for employees health and personal relationships, gender equality and retaining staff. After a recent trial by 10 Australian companies and 16 overseas, only one workplace did not continue with a four-day week. Meanwhile, a Senate committee looking at how peoples jobs and care responsibilities could be better combined recommended this year that Australia try out a four-day week. So, where did the concept come from? Where has and hasnt it worked? And could it really become the status quo?

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Where did the idea of a four-day week come from? Before getting carried away with hopes for a shorter week, spare a thought for those in Australia who worked up to 14 hours for six days every week in the 19th century. In 1856, skill shortages shifted bargaining power to stonemasons in Melbourne who led the world in gaining an eight-hour work day. A harsh outdoor climate compared to Britain was one reason, they argued, for shorter days. Until the two-day weekend took hold, people tended to work half of Saturday  Sunday was the only full day off. This began shifting post-war, formally changing in Australia when all awards were adjusted to 40-hour weeks on New Years Day in 1948. Then in 1981, metalworkers walked off the job as they pushed for a 35-hour week, securing what became todays standard 38 hours. Other sectors followed if they could show cost offsets as a condition of people working fewer hours. A rise in casual and part-time work has since dropped the average work-week in Australia to about 31 hours. But the average full-time worker still spends 37.8 hours on the clock, down a fraction from 38.1 hours in 1983. Weve had 30 or 40 years of technological progress, none of which has taken the form of a reduction in standard working hours, says Queensland University economics professor John Quiggin, who supports economies moving to four-day work weeks. For much of this century, talk of a shorter working week has been mostly among academics, entrepreneurs and unions. Iceland has acted on it: while both men and women already had generous parental leave, working hours were higher than its Nordic neighbours in 2015 when trials started to cut the 40-hour working week. After the trials, parents reported their kids wanted to come home directly from school to spend time with them. Many men took up more housework. Im more likely to take the initiative and do whatever is needed, hoovering or whatever, one said. Six years later, unions had negotiated a shorter week, or the right to one, for 86 per cent of the countrys workers. In New Zealand, Andrew Barnes and Charlotte Lockhart trialled a four-day week at their company, Perpetual Guardian, in 2018. Lockhart says the workers, who felt they had their lives back under control, upped productivity by 25 per cent. The couple then founded 4 Day Week Global, a non-profit organisation that has so far finished five trials for shorter work weeks across nearly 200 companies. More are underway.

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At the same time, many of the worlds white-collar workers have adjusted to doing their jobs partly from home  more than 40 per cent of Australians worked remotely during the pandemic. Proponents such as Quiggin say this is proof of concept for the four-day week, while others say working from home has, in itself, already delivered time savings to some workers. What is four days in practice? The idea behind a four-day week is that workers produce the same output, but in 80 per cent of the time and for no less pay. But it does not necessarily mean four consecutive work days. Lockhart says the trials are actually about reducing weekly work hours to 30 or 32 hours. In our global economy, its not going to mean a three-day weekend, she says. So while most workplaces do trial a four-day week, Lockhart says, several have trialled 10am until 3pm over five days. (Perpetual Guardian now offers time off flexibly during the week. Theres the guy who comes in at 10am, having walked his daughters to school, Lockhart says. Thats what matters to him.) Loading 4 Day Week Global helps workplaces find productivity improvements, and charges employers and governments for the trials, as well as receiving donations. Lockhart says the biggest donors have been private companies. It is yet to receive any donations from unions, she says, and wont accept donations from political parties. (In the UK, trials involving a separate 4 Day Week Campaign and the left-leaning think tank Autonomy were partly supported by a foundation describing itself as advancing education in Marxist philosophy and socialist history.) What has been the upshot of trials? All 10 companies that have been doing 4 Day Work Globals most recent trial in Australia are continuing with it for longer. Of the 16 other businesses from New Zealand, Europe, the US and Canada that participated in the same trial, one is not continuing. Most of these companies had 25 staff or less. The businesses ranged from accountants and civil engineers to marketing companies.

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Almost two-thirds of the 547 employees surveyed experienced reductions in burnout, 38 per cent were less stressed, 62 per cent reported an increase in positive emotions, and a third felt less anxious. Leaders surveyed rated productivity as seven out of 10, while absenteeism fell by 44 per cent. Seventeen per cent of men did more housework and childcare, numbers a little bit larger than what we see in the other [trials], Lockhart says. In a separate study of Australian organisations reviewed by Swinburne University researchers, none reported a drop in productivity and seven claimed it went up during a four-day week trial. A lot of them have said it was harder than they thought to do, says associate professor John Hopkins, who oversaw the research, to be published later this year. But all of the companies weve spoken to have either finished the pilot and theyve continued with the four-day week, or theyve continued the pilot. On average, the organisations showed no decline in performance. If anything, it went up, not down. In the UK, of 61 companies (with a total 2900 workers) that tried the four-day week in Britain, 56 made the switch longer term. Brendan Burchell, a professor of social science at the University of Cambridge involved in evaluating the results, says workers reported feeling less stressed, sleeping better and spending more time with family. Just their quality of life improved, Burchell says. On average, the organisations showed no decline in performance. If anything, it went up, not down. Loading But the trial had limitations. The organisations were self-selected. Two-thirds had 25 or fewer employees. Marketing, advertising and professional services businesses (such as insurers and bankers) made up about a third of sectors. Manufacturing, construction and engineering were the smallest portion in the trial. Tony Veal, an adjunct professor at the University of Technology Sydney, suggests there are companies with more slack in the system where a four-day week is easier to implement. But in quite a lot of places, there may not be that slack. Savings outweighed costs for British companies where either some staff or all worked four days, according to a study by the University of Readings Henley Business School. The savings came thanks to less absenteeism and better staff retention. But associate professor Rita Fontinha says the costs are there, especially for manufacturers, call centres and healthcare providers, where jobs typically involve shift work. They invest more initially, usually because they need to recruit more to cover the needs of the service.

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There is also debate about whether being more productive to achieve a four-day week simply creates more stress for workers. Fontinha says results generally have shown this not to be the case, but impact over the long term is not yet known. The plight of people working and caring at the same time, both forms of labour, led a Senate committee to argue in March there needs to be a right to care, alongside the right to work. It recommends a four-day working week be trialled in diverse sectors and geographies. The Australian Public Service Commission says it anticipates the four-day week to come up during bargaining. However, several employer groups have raised concerns for wider sectors. Australian Industry Group would oppose any regulatory change towards a four-day week. Its not to say it cant be done in isolated cases, says the groups chief executive, Innes Willox. But its something that, if mandated by a regulatory approach, would be unworkable, costly and not at all beneficial to business viability. Cat Yen is writing a memoir on her fifth day: Its having the mental space. Credit: Photo: Chris Hopkins. Artwork: Monique Westermann What do employees say  and what about their bosses? When Moriartys organisation, Our Community, shifted to a four-day week, it spent about three times its annual training budget to improve productivity. Automation replaced laborious data entry, for example. Staff also stopped attempting to multitask  not responding to emails during a meeting, for instance. Meetings, meanwhile, were shorter, smaller and more focused. I would have thought probably 25 per cent of our improvement was just by changing our meetings, he says. What motivated people to change, unsurprisingly, was the prospect of having an extra day off. It was like people were just willing to try anything, Moriarty says. He also hired 10 extra staff, but puts this mostly down to growth, not any loss of productivity. IT specialist Reino Basile picked up playing bass guitar while the pandemic kept him housebound. The extra day off has since given him time to play metal music with a high-school friend in a garage. Its a good way to blow off steam, he says. For data analyst Cat Yen, the four-day week was a big drawcard when she joined the company in February. On her day off, she is writing a memoir about working-class experiences and growing up in Melbournes north with migrant parents. I really finally feel like I have the time to do it properly, she says. Its having the mental space.

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Cannes: Johnny Depp says he doesnt feel boycotted by Hollywood, but that he has no further need for it.

Depp made a rare public appearance on Wednesday at the Cannes Film Festival to face questions from the press after the opening night premiere of Jeanne du Barry, in which he plays King Louis XV. The French film, directed by and starring Maiwenn and featuring a French-speaking Depp, is the actors first film since a jury last year largely sided with him in his legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard.

Pauline Pollmann, Johnny Depp and Maiwenn in Cannes on Wednesday. Credit: Getty Images

Part of Depps argument in that 2022 defamation trial was that he had lost work due to Heards allegations. Heard was ordered to pay Depp $10 million in damages, vindicating his allegations that Heard lied about Depp abusing her before and during their brief marriage. Heard was also awarded $2 million.

Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? Youd have to not have a pulse to feel like, No. None of this is happening. Its a weird joke, Depp told reporters in Cannes. When youre asked to resign from a film youre doing because of something that is merely a function of vowels and consonants floating in the air, yes, you feel boycotted.
The bus company director praised both his driver and the quick response of the schools staff. Without their actions, the outcome could have been significantly worse, he said. Loading Eight children suffered life-threatening injuries and another eight were seriously injured in the crash on the suburban border between Eynsebury and Exford about 40 km west of Melbourne on Tuesday afternoon. Truck driver Jamie Gleeson, of Balliang East between Geelong and Bacchus Marsh, has been charged with several counts of dangerous driving causing serious injury after the crash.

Dr Claire Wilkins, a field emergency medical officer and paediatric emergency physician at the Royal Childrens Hospital and St Vincents Hospital, rushed to the crash site. She had just arrived at the Royal Childrens Hospital when she was paged about the incident. She supports Ambulance Victoria, brings equipment to patients, makes rapid assessments about who first responders can manage at the site, and determines where patients should go. By the time she had arrived, it was a well-organised scene. The Country Fire Authority, State Emergency Service, police and ambulance were already there. She was there for about two hours and cared for 20 to 30 patients, mostly young people with wounds that needed to be irrigated or dressed.

Sore limbs that needed to be splinted. Some pain relief, and then prioritising moving people on to a sort of warmer, more comfortable environment, Wilkins said. Loading I think its always challenging when theres young children involved. Wilkins said most children were wearing seatbelts, which helped prevent more significant injuries. The Victorian government will investigate the bus crash to determine if changes need to be made to keep children safe.

Premier Daniel Andrews said on Thursday morning that it was important to establish what happened and then learn from it. I think we owe that to everybody who has been caught up in this, he said. [The government will take a] close look and see whether there is more that we can do to keep a different and better system to keep our kids safe. Andrews said there were practical challenges with mandating seatbelts on buses, citing the difficulty in putting the onus of responsibility on drivers to ensure all passengers were wearing them.

Andrews also thanked the bystanders who helped the children trapped in the crumpled bus. So often, at the worst of times we see the best of people, he said. People stepping in and doing amazing stuff, and Im proud of them. Seven children remain in stable condition at the Royal Childrens Hospital. Six children were rushed to Sunshine Hospital, but four were later discharged. Two boys remain there in stable condition. Road Policing Assistant Commissioner Glenn Weir said that although the driver had been charged, the polices really complex investigation was just beginning.

Loading He said it could result in the driver receiving more charges, with a range of possibilities as to what those could be. Weir said there was a trend of road trauma in growth corridors. Two years ago we saw some significant trauma in Casey and Cardinia, he said. We know [that planning] road infrastructure with local governments and state governments is really important.

It does sometimes concern me that we do sometimes just lump great big housing estates without the infrastructure around it. But Weir said he didnt think that was the case in this incident. There was one crash near the same intersection two years ago, but Weir said it wasnt serious and police werent aware of particular issues with the intersection. After every serious injury or fatal collision, police liaise with local government about potential fixes, and Weir said residents with concerns about the road could speak to local MPs and councillors.

Weir said police were investigating seatbelt use on the bus, but didnt want to retraumatise the children in their investigation. He clarified that bus drivers are exempt from enforcing seatbelt use, and said it was more important they focused on the road rather than ensuring 45 children were buckled in. Unless there is a seatbelt monitor on a bus, [but] thats a difficult thing, he said. Police from the major collision investigation unit examine a truck and Exford Primary School bus crash Credit: Jason South The trucking company whose driver is accused of causing the crash issued a statement on Thursday morning, saying their hearts go out to everyone involved, especially the children and their families. L&J Cartage described itself as a small, family-owned business that has operated for 30 years, and said 49-year-old driver Gleeson was a father of two. A spokesperson said Gleeson had 20 years experience driving trucks and had been with the company for more than 15 years. We are deeply shocked and saddened at what has happened.

Gleeson, of Balliang East, faced Melbourne Magistrates Court via a video link from a suburban police station on Wednesday. Loading The court heard more than 40 students were on the bus when it was struck from behind on Exford Road, pushing it sideways before it tipped onto a grass shoulder at the intersection with Murphys Road in Eynesbury, about 3.55pm on Tuesday. Exford Road has a speed limit of 80km/h. Nine children were trapped in the bus, the court heard. In addition to the serious and life-threatening injuries, 30 others were described as walking wounded at the scene. I tried to take evasive action. I couldnt, Gleeson reportedly told police.

If I couldve swerved around it, I wouldve. The court heard he called triple zero, helped children out of the bus and identified himself to the police. Prosecutor Ben Kerlin said more charges might be laid following a reconstruction of the scene. Gleeson has been granted bail on the condition he resides at his home and does not leave Victoria. He is also banned from contacting witnesses for the prosecution or driving a heavy vehicle.
The Yes campaign for a Voice to parliament has amassed a formidable war chest of more than $10 million and plans to flood Australia with merchandise to win over unsure voters as it hires a top Liberal to help steer its 7000-strong volunteer army.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is also planning to ramp up his campaigning from late June through a series of high-profile Indigenous festivals and speeches, with the government hoping to draw on popular Labor premiers to lift support in NSW, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia.

Liberal operative Simon Frost has joined Dean Parkins Yes23 group to campaign for the referendum. Credit: Chris Hopkins/Alex Ellinghausen

Simon Frost, a former Victorian Liberal Party chief and key adviser to former treasurer Josh Frydenberg, is Yes23s new chief operations officer  tasked partly with using the Yes campaigns financial advantage to increase street-level visibility.

The body has hired state co-ordinators to flood Australia with Yes merchandise, place banners in public places and help manage a network of pro-Voice figures  including leaders like Rachel Perkins and Thomas Mayo  who have begun crossing the country speaking at hundreds of forums at sporting clubs, religious institutions and community halls.
Sydney MP Alex Greenwich will launch defamation action against Mark Latham after the NSW One Nation leader refused to apologise for a series of homophobic and sexualised slurs.

A statement issued on Thursday by Greenwich, the influential NSW independent MP, confirmed he had instructed lawyers to begin defamation proceedings against Latham over a highly graphic and offensive tweet aimed at Greenwich, who is gay, last month.

Sydney MP Alex Greenwich will launch defamation action against the NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

Greenwich had given Latham until May 17 to apologise for the comments, but on Thursday said he had received correspondence from Lathams lawyers saying they would not accept that offer.

Mr Greenwich wrote to Mr Latham concerning his Tweet and commentary, provided Mr Latham with a required deadline of May 17 to apologise, and advised Mr Latham that were that not to occur Mr Greenwich would commence defamation action against Mr Latham, the statement read.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has conceded her government must do better in the areas of health, housing and youth justice after a rare reshuffle of senior roles pitched as a refresh ahead of a state election next October.

But the first changes among Palaszczuks ministerial team since the 2020 vote will neither elevate any backbenchers or outer-cabinet members, nor eject any from the frontbench ranks, instead swapping out those tasked with wrangling the complex problem areas.

Queenslands reshuffled ministers (left to right, from back row): Mark Bailey, Meaghan Scanlon, Craig Crawford, Leanne Linard; Yvette DAth, Leeanne Enoch, Di Farmer; Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Governor Jeannette Young, Shannon Fentiman. Credit: Matt Dennien

Ive been listening to Queenslanders about several issues, Palaszczuk told reporters after a swearing-in ceremony for the new roles on Thursday, capping off two days of speculation and meetings with ministers expected to bring fresh eyes and energy to their roles.

Those key issues have been in the areas of health and housing and youth justice, and this is exactly the reset the government has needed, and I have made these decisions ... we need to do better, Ive heard this message loud and clear. And we need to respond better to the public.
What in the World, a free weekly newsletter from our foreign correspondents, is sent every Thursday. Below is an excerpt. Sign up to get the whole newsletter delivered to your inbox.

Hiroshima: It is unseasonably warm in Japan for this time of year. Cherry blossom season has just passed and temperatures are already in the low 30s, a mark usually reserved for the long hot summers.

Cities here are among the worlds densest  which is both a blessing and a curse, driving the extraordinarily vibrant culture of the countrys metropolises, but also turning them into concrete heat islands.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida prepares to welcome leaders of the worlds largest advanced economies to the G7 summit in Hiroshima tomorrow. Credit: Kyodo News via AP

Into this environment will step the leaders of the worlds seven largest advanced economies on Friday for the G7 summit. Six of these leaders are men and all will be sweating in their blue suits. Joining them will be Australias Anthony Albanese, who has been invited to join the elite club as the leader of the eighth-largest advanced economy, and South Korean leader Yoon Suk Yeol. G7 plus they call it, which is really just an awkward attempt to keep the exclusive branding while inviting some extras to fill out the party.
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a ceremony in the southwestern city of Gwangju on May 18, to mark the 43rd anniversary of a pro-democracy uprising. The Gwangju May 18 National Cemetery honors hundreds of people who were killed in the city during protests against the military junta of Chun Doo-hwan in May 1980. Yonhap



President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed Thursday to courageously stand against any challenges to freedom and democracy by upholding the spirit of a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju.



Yoon made the remark during a ceremony marking the 43rd anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, in Gwangju, some 267 kilometers southeast of Seoul, which was attended by a large number of lawmakers from the rival parties and families of the victims.



"If we do not forget and inherit the May spirit, we must boldly fight against all of the forces and challenges threatening freedom and democracy and have such practical courage," Yoon said during the ceremony held at the May 18th National Cemetery.



Yoon said the spirit of the uprising lives on and called for the protection of liberal democracy.



"(The May spirit) is a unifying force that binds us together," he said.





President Yoon Suk Yeol buns incense during a ceremony in the southwestern city of Gwangju on May 18, to mark the 43rd anniversary of a pro-democracy uprising there, Thursday. Yonhap







Yoon further said the May spirit is nothing less than the liberal democratic spirit as enshrined in the Constitution and is a precious asset that should be passed down.



"We stand here today, together, to remember the resistance of May, 43 years ago, which defended the values of liberal democracy and human rights by shedding blood, and to honor the souls of the democratic spirit," he said.



Near the end of the ceremony, Yoon, along with mothers of some of the young students victimized in the uprising, sang along to the signature song for the pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju, called "March for the Beloved."



Previously, the song had been performed by a choir during the administrations of conservative Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye. However, Yoon's predecessor, liberal former President Moon Jae-in, officially mandated that the song be sung by all participants at the annual commemorative event.



Displaying a message of unity, Yoon expressed gratitude to families of the victims for their courage and for not losing hope over the years.



This marks the first time that a conservative president has attended the annual ceremony for two consecutive years. Yoon had made a promise to the families of the victims last year that he would attend the ceremony every year.



Nearly 90 members of the ruling People Power Party also visited the annual ceremony for the second consecutive year, in an apparent move to outreach to the rival region of Honam so as to improve its image and woo centrist voters ahead of next year's parliamentary elections.



The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea also had a strong presence with nearly 100 lawmakers in attendance.



The former authoritarian regime of Chun Doo-hwan ordered a crackdown on the uprising, which left more than 200 dead and 1,800 others wounded, according to conservative official data. (Yonhap)





Presiden Yoon Suk Yeol, center, sings a song during a ceremony in the southwestern city of Gwangju, May 18, to mark the 43rd anniversary of a pro-democracy uprising there, Thursday. Yonhap
Transgender health care, education focus of UB Pride event

Blair Peters, a gender-affirming surgeon and advocate for LGBTQ health, will be the keynote speaker at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences inaugural LGBTQIA+ Education and Inclusivity in Health Care event on May 23.

The event, to be held from 4:30-7:45 p.m. in the Dozoretz Auditorium, Room 2220 in the Jacobs School, is free and open to the public; registration is required. Dinner will be provided for attendees.

The event will begin with three consecutive workshops: EMS Care for Transgender and Gender Diverse Patients; Words and Actions Matter: Rethinking the Hippocratic Oath; and Transgender Protections under Federal and State Law.

Peters, assistant professor at Oregon Health & Science University with dual appointments in the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the Department of Urology, will speak on The Current State of Gender-Affirming Surgery.

A member of and steadfast advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community, Peters lectures frequently across the country regarding advocacy and policy change for all queer people. He strives to be a strong queer voice in medicine and surgery, focusing on mentoring future generation of gender-affirming surgeons.

Following his speech, Peters will join a panel of local experts for a discussion titled Affirming the Right to Be. Panelists are:

Dylan Stannard, paramedic and licensed physical therapist.

Mikaela Middleton, resident, Department of Emergency Medicine, Jacobs School.

Andrew J. Freedman, lawyer and diversity partner at Hodgson Russ LLP Attorneys.

Nat Voos, MD 23, Jacobs School alumnus.

OUTpatient, the Jacobs Schools LGBTQIA+ student organization, began planning the event with the schools Office of Inclusion and Cultural Enhancement after UB student groups hosted a controversial speaker with anti-trans views earlier this year.

The event is being funded by the Office of Inclusion and Cultural Enhancement and the Office of Biomedical Education.

The OUTpatient group came to us and said that the only way to combat hate and discrimination is with education, says Maria Wilson, inclusive workforce specialist in the Jacobs Schools Office of Inclusion and Cultural Enhancement. This event is providing a tremendous public service because it will educate about transgender and LGBTQIA+ health care in an inclusive, scientific and fact-based way.
As the biggest stars and names in the filmmaking industry grace the red carpet at the steps of Palais des Festivals, the rest of the world eagerly awaits the slew of new films that will show on their own big screens soon enough. Famously known as the mother of all film festivals, Cannes Film Festival 2023 is back in sunny France from 16 to 27 May to celebrate the best of cinema and its figures.

With 19 films competing for the prestigious Palme dOr soon, along with the presence of legendary filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson, and Todd Haynes, the calibre at Cannes could not be higher. Since its start yesterday, there has already been plenty of buzz around the slate of movies. Ahead, we gleaned nine of the most exciting and talked-about premieres you dont want to miss.

Asteroid City

Youve most likely seen the viral Wes Anderson TikTok trend (or even dabbled in it yourself) and the hilarious AI-generated images of fictional characters in a typical Anderson setting by now. Just when the Internet cant get enough of the American filmmaker, he marks his return on the Croisette with another eccentric and whimsical featurethis time involving the extraterrestrial. Contending for the Palme dOr, Asteroid City takes place in a fictional American desert town circa 1955 where a Junior Stargazers convention goes awry. The film also features Anderson regulars such as Tilda Swinton, Scarlett Johansson and Jeff Goldblum, as well as new additions such as Margot Robbie, Steve Carrell and Tom Hanks. Asteroid City will release worldwide on 22 June 2023.

Strange Way of Life

Its Brokeback Mountain meets Wild Wild West. Director Pedro Almodovar calls it his answer to the 2005 Ang Lee classic (which he was initially in discussions to direct). Unsurprisingly, there has been lots of talk surrounding the queer Western for several reasons. The first being that it stars current Hollywood Daddy of the Year, Pedro Pascal. The 30-minute sophomore English-language effort by the Spanish director follows Pascal and Ethan Hawke as sheriff and rancher, respectively, reconnecting after 25 years. Premiering today, Strange Way of Life also marks fashion house Saint Laurents endeavour into cinema, so expect gunslinging, shoot-outs and, of course, good fashion when it hits theatres on 26 May.

Jeanne du Barry

After a hugely publicised trial that captured the world, Johnny Depp is back to captivate us again as King Louis XV of France in Jeanne du Barry. The French-language biographical film tells the story of how the monarch fell in love with the eponymous working-class courtesan (who is played by the movies director, Maiwenn). The film comes with even more controversy as the director admitted to physically assaulting a French journalist recently. Either way, the movie earned a seven-minute standing ovation after its world premiere at Cannes.

Killers of the Flower Moon

Undoubtedly one of the buzziest names on the Croisette, Martin Scorsese will make his triumphant return to Cannes Film Festival after winning Best Director in 1985 for After Hours. Based on David Granns book of the same name, Killers of the Flower Moon is Scorseses first venture into the Western genre and follows the real-life string of murders of Osage Indians that took place in Oklahoma during the 1920s, known as the Reign of Terror. The film also stars a stacked ensemble with the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, and recent Oscar-winner Brendan Fraser and Lily Gladstone. Killers of the Flower Moon will release globally on 6 October.

Monster

Prolific Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda is a Cannes constant, and this year is no different. Since winning the Palme dOr for Shoplifters in 2018, hes back to contend for the grand prize with the unsettling coming-of-age drama Monster. Not much of the plot is known, but the trailer suggests that a mother begins to learn something is very wrong with her teenage son after a series of disturbing behaviour. Notably, the score is composed by the legendary Ryuichi Sakamoto, who sent Kore-eda two compositions before passing away in March. It premiered today and received a six-minute standing ovation. Monster releases globally on 2 June.

May December

With films such as Velvet Goldmine and Carol under his belt, Todd Haynes returns to the Croisette with another probing film on human relationships. May December centres on an aspiring actress (played by Natalie Portman) who is about to star in a biopic about an older veteran Hollywood actress (Julianne Moore) whose romance with her husband 23 years her junior (Riverdales Charles Melton) gripped the nation. Researching the once highly-publicised relationship, the two actresses lives become soon become entangled and threaten to rip the family apart.

Anatomy of a Fall

Those who love a good crime drama should be on the lookout for Justine Triets fourth feature, which is in contention for the Palme dOr. Titled Anatomy of a Fall, the upcoming French crime thriller centres on a widow who must fight against the French legal system to prove her innocence after her husband dies from a strange fall. Her star witness? Her blind son. Dissecting both the fall and the couples relationship, the feature film will have you glued to the screen when it releases worldwide on 23 August.

The Zone of Interest

What happens when a Nazi officer falls in love with the wife of a commander at the Auschwitz concentration camp? Inspired by the novel of the same name by Martin Amis, English filmmaker Jonathan Glazer is back with a film after nearly a decade away from the cameras. Any Holocaust movie is bound to get attention (good and bad), but if theres anything we can count Glazer on, its confronting and examining the lives of those complicit or participatory in one of the worlds greatest atrocities in a profound yet subversive way that will stick with us for a long time.

Club Zero

Director Jessica Hausner is a Cannes mainstayher previous film Little Joe won Emily Beecham the Best Actress Award, and almost all of her features have premiered on the Croisette. Now, she is back to contend for the grand prize with Club Zero. The Austrian filmmakers second English-language endeavour centres on a young teacher (played by Mia Wasikowska) who takes a job at an elite school and forms an incredibly close bond with five students. She teaches a conscious eating class where she instructs that eating less is healthy, as per the official Cannes synopsis. By the time the adults find out, it might be too late for the impressionable teens.

Bonus: Tiger Stripes

We know were technically cheating by putting a short film on this list, but when one of our very own Malaysian filmmakers gets into Cannes, were going to shout about it! Amanda Nell Eu is making waves with her directorial debut Tiger Stripes, becoming the first Malaysian film in Cannes since 2010. The movie will play in the Cannes Critics Week section and is in the running to win the coveted Camera dOr prize. The feisty Malay-language horror follows a 12-year-old girl and the horrors of puberty as she finds her body changing in terrifying ways.

For more reads on film and TV, head here.
Akasa Air on Thursday started daily flight services from Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport in Kolkata, the airline said in a statement.

The eastern metropolis is the airline's 17th destination and the second in West Bengal after Bagdogra.

The airline started non-stop flights between Kolkata and Guwahati and Bengaluru. In the inaugural flight, 174 passengers travelled from Kolkata to Assam's largest city and 167 arrived in Kolkata from the Karnataka capital.

On a daily basis, the airline's flight will arrive in Kolkata from Bengaluru at 5.15 pm and leave for Guwahati at 5.55 pm. The return flight from Guwahati will reach Kolkata at 9.10 pm and leave for Bengaluru at 9.50 pm, an AAI statement said.

"Akasa has introduced services such as a caf and allowed pets on the plane," Belson Coutinho, co-founder and Chief Marketing and Experience Officer of the airline said.

"We are delighted to launch operations from Kolkata, our second destination in West Bengal," Praveen Iyer, co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of the airline said.

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The move by billionaire Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta comes as its $500 million junk-rated bond matures at the end of this month, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. India's Vedanta Group, promoter of metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta Ltd, is in talks with banks to raise at least $500 million, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.



The group has been depending on money from its units to tackle its debt load, especially after it failed to sell some zinc assets to Hindustan Zinc Ltd for $3 billion. Vedanta Ltd did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Proceeds from the loan, with a maturity of as much as 5 years, would be used to for a bond repayment, sources told Bloomberg, adding that more lenders may take the deal size to $900 million rupees.
PRI ECO GEN NAT .MUMBAI DCM45 Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) Bharat Petroleum Unveils Ambitious Rs. 49,000 Crore Petrochemical & Capacity Expansion Project at Bina Refinery Mumbai, Maharashtra, India(NewsVoir) Ethylene Cracker Project at Bina Refinery, including downstream Petrochemical Plants, and expansion of Refinery from 7.8 MMTPA to 11 MMTPA, with capital expenditure of approx. Rs. 49,000 crore. Project to cater to the growing market demand for petrochemical products in India. Aligned with GOI's Atmanirbhar Bharat vision for petrochemicals in the country. Setting up two 50 MW Wind power plants in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra for captive consumption at Bina Refinery and at Mumbai Refinery respectively, with total project cost of approx. Rs. 978 crore (Rs. 489 crore for each project) Putting up of Petroleum Oil Lubricants (POL) and Lube Oil Base Stock (LOBS) installations with receipt pipelines at Rasayani in Maharashtra with project cost of approx. Rs. 2,753 crore. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a leading oil and gas company in India, is pleased to announce its ambitious expansion plans worth Rs. 49,000 Crore, further increasing the Company's footprints in petrochemical segment and renewable energy, together with augmenting marketing infrastructure. The core component of the expansion projects is the Ethylene Cracker Project, which will drive the production of essential petrochemicals. The project encompasses the establishment of an Ethylene Cracker (EC) Complex, downstream Petrochemical Plants, as well as the expansion of the existing Refinery capacity from 7.8 MMTPA to 11 MMTPA and associated facilities at Bina Refinery. With a capital expenditure of approximately Rs. 49,000 Crore, this initiative marks a significant milestone for BPCL and energy sector as a whole. Bina refinery expansion will meet the growing demand of petroleum products in central and northern India while also providing necessary feedstock to EC complex. While Petrochemical Plant will cater to the growing domestic demand for petrochemical products. Shri G Krishnakumar, C&MD, BPCL, said, BPCL has leapfrogged into the world of Petrochemicals as we embark upon the ?49000 Ethylene Cracker project in our Bina Refinery, in step with the expansion of Refining capacity to 11 MMTPA. Combined with our investment in Wind Energy and new age Petroleum Oil Lubricants installations built for sustainable processes, this is a watershed moment in our strategic endeavour to be at the forefront in meeting the rapidly growing demand for energy and Petrochemical products in India." We are steadfast in aligning our strategic imperatives with the Government's Atmanirbhar Bharat mission to make India a self-reliant and globally competitive petrochemical powerhouse. "These future defining projects will generate employment opportunities and bolster our sustainable energy capabilities, a step towards a secure and net zero future. In the endeavor to enhance Renewable Energy footprints, the company will set up two 50 MW Wind power plants in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra for captive consumption at Bina and Mumbai Refineries respectively. With a total project cost of approximately Rs. 978 Crore (Rs. 489 Crore for each project), these wind power plants will be contributing to a greener and more eco-friendly operation. Furthermore, Bharat Petroleum is making significant investments in Petroleum Oil Lubricants (POL) and Lube Oil Base Stock (LOBS) installations with receipt pipelines at Rasayani in Maharashtra. This project, with an estimated cost of approximately Rs. 2,753 Crore, aims to augment storage capacity, smoothen the supply-chain and streamline the distribution of essential petroleum products. The expansion project at Bina Refinery and the other initiatives demonstrate BPCL's dedication to meet the evolving energy needs of the nation and ensure energy security and sustainability. These investments will not only strengthen the company's position in the petrochemical industry but also contribute to the economic growth and development of the regions where the projects are based. The expansion project aligns with Bharat Petroleum's vision to diversify and expand in adjacent and alternative businesses to create additional revenue streams and cleaner environment by building the renewable energy portfolio to achieve our Net Zero targets in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. About Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) Fortune Global 500 Company, Bharat Petroleum is the second largest Indian Oil Marketing Company and one of the premier integrated energy companies in India, engaged in refining of crude oil and marketing of petroleum products, with a significant presence in the upstream and downstream sectors of the oil and gas industry. The company attained the coveted Maharatna status, joining the elite club of companies having greater operational & financial autonomy. Bharat Petroleum's Refineries at Mumbai, Kochi and Bina Refinery have a combined refining capacity of around 35.3 MMTPA. Its marketing infrastructure includes a network of installations, depots, energy stations, aviation service stations and LPG distributors. Its distribution network comprises over 21,000 Energy Stations, over 6,200 LPG distributorships, 525 Lubes distributorships, 123 POL storage locations, 53 LPG Bottling Plants, 70 Aviation Service Stations, 4 Lube blending plants and 4 cross-country pipelines. Bharat Petroleum is integrating its strategy, investments, environmental and social ambitions to move towards a sustainable planet. The company has chalked out the plan to offer electric vehicle charging stations at around 7000 energy stations over next 5 years. With a focus on sustainable solutions, the company is developing a vibrant ecosystem and a road-map to become a Net Zero Energy Company by 2040, in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. Bharat Petroleum has been partnering communities by supporting innumerable initiatives connected primarily in the areas of education, water conservation, skill development, health, community development, capacity building and employee volunteering. With Energising Lives' as its core purpose, Bharat Petroleum's vision is to be the most admired global energy company leveraging talent, innovation & technology. (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Newsvoir and

(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.)
President Yoon Suk Yeol, second from right, alongside a group of bereaved families, sings the song "March for the Beloved" symbolizing a 1980 pro-democracy uprising, during a memorial ceremony at a national cemetery in Gwangju, May 18. Yonhap





The presidential office on Thursday rejected opposition leader Lee Jae-myung's proposal for a "one-point" constitutional amendment to include the spirit of the 1980 Gwangju uprising in the preamble of the Constitution.







The leader of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) proposed Wednesday rival parties work together to carry out the revision, which was one of President Yoon Suk Yeol's campaign promises, in time for next year's parliamentary elections.







A presidential official expressed its disapproval, saying the proposal "disrespects the spirit" of the pro-democracy uprising and appears to be merely a tactic to divert public attention from corruption scandals engulfing the main opposition party.







"This one-point constitutional amendment proposal is nothing more than a ploy by politicians tainted by corruption to turn the political landscape around," the official said.







He assured President Yoon remains committed to fulfilling his promise of incorporating the spirit of the May 18, 1980, pro-democracy movement into the Constitution.







But it would be done through a national consensus and the proper procedures required for a constitutional amendment, he said.







"The spirit of May 18 will undoubtedly be reflected in the Constitution when we revise the constitution through appropriate procedures," he added.







The nation marked the 43rd anniversary of the historic event in which citizens of the southwestern city protested against the ruling junta led by Chun Doo-hwan in May 1980. The military's brutal crackdown left about 200 people dead and thousands injured.







Another presidential official raised concerns about the DPK undermining the fundamental constitutional values of liberty and human rights.







"The May 18 spirit should not be used in a political maneuver to turn things around by a force that tries to take 'freedom' away from 'liberal democracy' and turns a blind eye to the dire human rights situation in North Korea," the official said.







The official referred to the DPK's announcement in early 2018 that it will push to remove the word "free" from Article 4 of the Constitution, which stipulates the nation's pursuit of a peaceful reunification of the peninsula "based on the basic free and democratic order."







The party later retracted the announcement, saying it was a mistake.







Later on Thursday, DPK leader Lee once again urged President Yoon to fulfill his campaign promise.







"I again urge the president, the government and the ruling party to honor their commitment to include the spirit of the Gwangju Democratization Movement in the preamble of the Constitution through a one-point constitutional amendment in the upcoming general election," Lee told reporters after attending a memorial event in Gwangju. (Yonhap)




The acquisition is part of ELL's long-term strategic growth plan to diversify its portfolio and enter new markets. Eiko LifeSciences Limited (ELL), announced on Thursday that it has acquired a 25.01 per cent stake in Reflux Pharmaceuticals Private Limited (RPPL), a pharmaceutical company that specialises in manufacturing and exporting active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and intermediates.



The acquisition will help ELL to leverage its expertise in specialty chemicals and its global network to enter the lucrative European markets, where RPPL has a strong presence. Both ELL and RPPL will co-market some of the newly developed products, the company said in a BSE filing. In a regulatory filing, the company said, As part of the deal, ELL will assist RPPL in identifying, developing, and promoting new products and marketing thereof in the interest of both the companies. Both ELL and RPPL will use their manufacturing facilities/ expanded capacities to manufacture the products identified and developed. ELL will also be the preferred source of supply for some of the key raw materials to RPPL at "arm's length" transaction.



We believe that this partnership will enhance our capabilities and competitiveness in the global market. We shall continue to remain committed to the growth of our company and look forward to many more years of mutually beneficial association, he added. "We are delighted to partner with Reflux Pharmaceuticals Private Limited, a company with a strong reputation and expertise in the pharmaceutical API and specialty chemical industry. This acquisition will enable us to leverage our synergies and create value for our stakeholders, said Laxmikant Kabra, chairman of Eiko LifeSciences Limited.

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We cannot have multiple planes of one engine manufacturer on the ground in India, which is the case today, unfortunately, Scindia told reporters after an event of industry body FICCI. The government has told Pratt & Whitney (PW) to supply engines so that the grounded planes of Indian carriers are up and running, Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Thursday.



The minister indicated that the other airlines do not have enough planes to immediately start flights and fill the gap left by Go Firsts exit. Go First stopped operating flights from May 3, stating that almost half of its fleet of 54 aircraft was grounded due to a delay in engine supply from PW. Moreover, about 36 IndiGo planes powered by PW engines are currently grounded. IndiGo has about 140 PW-powered planes in its fleet.



The minister said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) was waiting for Go Firsts plan on resumption of flights. When asked if the government was pursuing other airlines to fill the gap left by Go First, Scindia replied: Yes, we are. But you have to understand that servicing that gap is limited not necessarily by an airlines desire to serve customers, but by the (limited) capacity of their fleet.

Also Read Go First saga: SpiceJet to revive 25 grounded aircraft, mobilises Rs 400 cr Go First may sue Pratt and Whitney over reliability issues in their engines Pratt & Whitney opens India Engineering Center facility in Karnataka Go First may take legal action against Pratt & Whitney over engine issues Go First has history of missing financial obligations: P&W on allegations Dispute between two promoters not to impact corporate performance: Hikal PNB Housing Finance Q4 net rises 65% to Rs 279 cr on improved margins, NII Container Corporation of India announces FY23 dividend of Rs 2 per share Sustainable fashion gets thrown a life jacket after PM wears upcycled sadri ITC net profit rises 23.35% to Rs 5,175 crore in Q4FY23, beats estimates



When asked if the government has had any communication with PW, he replied, There are a number of engines (and planes) that are on the ground. As a minister, I cannot get into what the contractual issues are between one company and the other. But certainly, we have impressed upon them that we need to have our planes up and running. We have very clearly said that we want a resumption of flights (by Go First) as soon as possible. They have to submit their plan to the DGCA. This plan will cover the number of planes, the number of routes. On the basis of this plan, the DGCA will decide how to take it forward, he added.



He said Go Firsts decision to suspend flights was not great for the civil aviation sector. However, each company has to manage its own situations. As far as the ministry is concerned, we are quite steadfast in our resolve to help airlines with whatever fundamental issues there are, he added. The minister said the key issue was not the lack of passenger traffic, but the capacity crunch. This capacity issue is an international one. All major (aircraft and engine) manufacturers are facing supply chain issues. Our airlines have put huge bulk orders and we hope these planes will come as soon as possible, he mentioned.


As part of its global R&D-led innovation and growth strategy, the company will expand the initial $160 million investment it announced for the Medtronic Engineering & Innovation Center (MEIC) in 2020. MEIC employs more than 800 people and the number will cross 1,500 over the next five years. Medtronic, a medical technology company, will invest Rs 3,000 crore ($350 million) in a research and development centre in Hyderabad that is its largest such facility outside the US.



Telangana has been a front-runner in the field of life sciences and was also one of the first states in India to recognise medical devices as a high-potential and high growth sector. The expansion of MEIC is a testament to the citys robust ecosystem and Hyderabads growing prominence in the global med-tech sector, Rao said. Mike Marinaro, executive vice president and president-surgical operating unit, and other Medtronics leaders met with Telangana IT minister KT Rama Rao who is visiting the US.



Marinao said: India is known as a global hub for technology innovation, and we believe in Indias potential as a growing market for healthcare innovation. Hyderabad has proven to be a strategic location for Medtronic, and we are proud to be collaborating with the Government of Telangana on this major investment in the country. We are committed to investing in India's healthcare ecosystem and delivering innovative solutions that improve patient outcomes. The investment will support robotics, imaging and navigation, surgical technologies, and implantable technologies. It will leverage the talent in India involving engineering, mobile apps, application and desktop software, cloud / web apps, data engineering, embedded software, product security, and cyber-product security.
In a letter to stockists, distributors, and hospitals, Pfizer has asked for temporary suspension of the sale and distribution of Magzex, Zosyn, Magnamycin injections, and Magnex forte supplies with immediate effect, the report said.

Pfizer Ltd, the Indian unit of Pfizer Inc, has halted the sale and use of its popular products used to treat bacterial infections in India due to technical difficulties at the contract manufacturing site, reported Economic Times (ET).


The exact issue with Magnex, Magnamycin, and Zosyn at the manufacturing site is not known, but trade sources said it is unlikely to be a major problem as the company has not issued a recall. US pharmaceutical major Pfizer has voluntarily suspended selling three antibiotics in India after "technical issues" at its contract manufacturing site.



Pfizer said that it places utmost emphasis on patient safety and product quality. Out of an abundance of caution, and following a request by our local contract manufacturer, Pfizer has currently placed a voluntary stop on further sale and use of its products Magnex, Magnamycin and Zosyn in India as a result of certain technical issues brought to our attention by the contract manufacturing site in India, said a company spokesperson. Magnex is used to treat gynaecological and abdominal infections and Magnamycin for bacterial infections of the respiratory tract, pelvic inflammatory disease and other issues. Zosyn is used for stomach, urinary tract, and skin infections.



Rajiv Singhal, general secretary of the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), said the company on May 16 issued a circular about deviations observed at its local contract manufacturing facility, Astral Steritech, regarding the three products. The manufacturer is investigating the matter and Pfizer will take any further action if required, the company said.

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The source said as part of the tie-up, Shein would source goods from India for its global operations. Chinese fashion e-commerce platform Shein is expected to make a second entry into India and has tied up with Reliance Retail for this, according to a source in the know.



According to media reports, it has received Indian regulatory clearance as well for its partnership. Also, the manufacturing of its products could happen in the country and they could be exported.



Over 200 Chinese applications were banned in India due to geo-political tensions between China and India. Due to this ban, many famous e-commerce and gaming sites and apps like TikTok and PUBG could not be accessed. The fashion ecommerce player had to exit the country in 2020 after the government cracked down on several Chinese sites operating in India.

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The US-based e-commerce firm had announced it would sell Sheins apparel in the country ahead of its Amazon Prime Day through a banner on its site in July 2021. After leaving the country, it did make a comeback and indirectly entered the country by selling apparel through e-commerce site Amazon in 2021.



Indias revenue in the apparel segment is projected to reach $7.145 billion in 2023 and is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-27) of 8.77 per cent, according to the data by Statista. Shein was earlier named ZZKKO and was founded in China in 2008 by Chris XU, an entrepreneur and search engine optimisation specialist and is currently headquartered out of Singapore.


Sriharsha Majety wrote about Swiggy's finances days after two US investors marked down their valuation of the company. A fund managed by asset management firm Baron Capital Group slashed the Swiggys valuation by 34 per cent to $7.1 billion as of December 2022, according to filings with USA's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Invesco, which led Swiggys previous funding round, marked down the valuation by 33 per cent from $8.2 billion to about $5.5 billion, according to a filing. Swiggy's food delivery business turned profitable in the March quarter of FY23 (Q4 FY23) after considering corporate costs and excluding employee stock options (ESOP), said its CEO in a blog post on Thursday.



As of March 2023, Swiggys food delivery business has turned profitable (After factoring in all corporate costs; excluding employee stock option costs), said Majety, a co-founder of the company. This is a milestone for food delivery globally, not just for us, as Swiggy has become one of the very few global food delivery platforms to achieve profitability in less than 9 years since its inception. Swiggys information about its financial performance comes a day before its chief rival Zomato announces its Q4FY23 and full-year performance.



He said his teams "are more in sync than ever" with restaurants to improve their experience with Swiggy. As a result, Swiggys restaurant NPS (net promotor score) has improved by over 100 per cent in the past 8 quarters. Majety said that the firm reached the milestone while bringing benefits to its delivery partners and customers. Our core value that the customer comes first has consistently been reciprocated with deep consumer love and industry-best NPS scores, repeat and retention rates, said Majety. We continue to make strides in gaining customer favour, including strong traction in Tier 2 and 3 markets.

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We strongly believe its still very early days in Indias journey of eating out and food delivery, and are very sanguine about the growth potential over the next 2 decades, said Majety. We will continue to make responsible and measured interventions to fuel further growth in food delivery. There are many underserved geographic and consumer segments and our goal remains to outpace industry growth by continuously investing in the right levers. Swiggy's monthly cash burn has reportedly come down to $20 million from about $45-50 million that it was losing each month during its peak in 2021.



From pioneering the use of a dedicated fleet in food delivery to creating the Indian quick commerce category through the early pilot of Instamart in 2019, our builders bias has not only created the right operating models for businesses but also saved us hundreds of millions in acquisition costs and the resulting dilution in equity, said Majety. Majety said Swiggys investments in Instamart, the instant delivery service, are paying off. The peak of our investments is behind us and today, Instamart is one of the leading players in the quick commerce space globally. In addition, weve also made strong progress on the profitability of the business and were on track to hit contribution neutrality for this 3-year-old business in the next few weeks.



In January this year, the firm laid off 380 employees from its 6,000-strong workforce, which Majety attributed to over-hiring. Swiggy has also, during the same time, shut down its meat delivery vertical as it failed to achieve a proper product market fit. Swiggy food delivery turning profitable also comes at a time when the Bengaluru-based on-demand delivery platform has undergone retrenchments since the start of this year as it prepares for a public listing. These came in the form of layoffs, shutting down some of the companys business verticals, as well as additions to its Board of Directors.



Aside from its meat delivery vertical, Swiggy has also shut down its premium grocery delivery business- Handpicked. In March this year, the firm also sold its cloud kitchen business, Swiggy Access, to Kitchens@ in a share-swap deal, through which it rented out kitchen spaces to restaurants. Not two weeks after the layoffs, the company made several additions to its Board by appointing Sahil Barua, managing director and CEO of Delhivery, Mallika Srinivasan, managing director of TAFE, and Shailesh Haribhakti, chairman of Shailesh Haribhakti & Associates, as independent directors.



Swiggy, in its results for the financial year 2022, reported that its losses widened 2.24 times to Rs 3,628.9 crore, from Rs 1,616.9 crore in FY21, fuelled by a 227 per cent rise in costs. Since then, the food aggregator has also introduced a Rs 2 platform fee for all its users. Through this modest charge, Swiggy  who delivers more than 1.5 million orders per day, stands to accumulate a sizable amount, which it will redirect to its core business.



According to analysts at HSBC, Swiggys cash burn in FY22 stood at Rs 3,900 crore compared to its rival Zomato, which burnt Rs 700 crore during the same period. Expenses came in at Rs 9,748.7 crore in FY22, compared to Rs 4,292.8 crore the year before. Despite this, Swiggy reported revenue of Rs 5,704.9 crore, a little over two-fold jump from the previous financial year.



Despite having its losses widen to Rs 346.6 crore for the quarter that ended in December (FY23), compared with Rs 63.2 crore in year ago period, executives at the firm were confident it would reach adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) break-even (excluding quick commerce) by Q2 of 2023-24. Zomato has gained around 13 per cent in terms of the food delivery market share since FY22 to reach a settled duopoly. As of the fourth quarter of FY23, the Gurugram-based firm is now the top dog in the market with a 56 per cent market share, versus Swiggys 44 per cent, on the back of its new Zomato Gold loyalty program, HSBC said in an earlier note.



The slackening was chalked up to a macro slowdown in the food delivery market, coupled with a boom in dining out and surge in travel at the premium end. Meanwhile, Zomatos revenue in Q3 surged 75 per cent to Rs 1,948.2 crore, compared with Rs 1,112 crore in the same period the previous financial year.

The firm is, however, like Swiggy, optimising investments across the board, including taking a hard look at resource allocation across functions, shutting down non-performing markets, and reassessing our headcount, among others, CEO Deepinder Goyal had said.


Toyota Motor Corp.s top scientist warned that transitioning to electric vehicles too quickly could lead drivers to hold on to old gas guzzlers and called for hybrids to be given a longer leash ahead of a Group of Seven leaders summit in Japan. By Nicholas Takahashi and Craig Trudell



Its an oft-repeated argument by the worlds No. 1 carmaker: the transition to fully electric vehicles will take longer than people expect, and that a multipronged approach embracing hybrids and alternate fuels will be better for the environment and the auto industry. Thats drawn criticism and fueled concerns that Toyota is giving Elon Musks Tesla Inc., Chinas BYD Co. and other battery-EV rivals an unsurmountable lead. Subsidies and restrictions targeting certain powertrains could make EVs attractive for customers who can afford it, but for others it might have the opposite effect, Gill Pratt, Toyotas chief scientist and chief executive officer of the Toyota Research Institute, told reporters in Hiroshima on Thursday.



Battery materials and renewable charging infrastructure will eventually be plentiful, he said. But it will take decades for battery material mines, renewable power generation facilities, transmission lines and seasonal energy storage facilities to scale up. Eventually, resource limitations will end, but for many years we will not have enough battery material and renewable recharging resources for a BEV-only solution, Pratt said.

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Battery electric vehicles are an extremely important option, Akio Toyoda, chair of both Toyota and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, said during a briefing Thursday. While Toyota and other Japanese carmakers pioneered hybrid technology, they have been slow to ramp up EV output. Several have promised to rapidly expand EV production in the next few years, but did so without elaborating on how and when they intend to phase out hybrid or gasoline-powered cars.



Critics say Toyodas strategy doesnt square with the carmakers goal to halve emissions by 2035 and become carbon neutral by the middle of the century, an assertion that he has refuted. Throughout his 14-year tenure as Toyotas CEO, which ended in April, the grandson of the companys founder was both lauded and criticized for his belief in an approach that involved selling BEVs alongside cars powered by hybrid or traditional internal combustion engines.



Koji Sato, the new Toyota CEO who took over in April, said that by 2026 Toyota will sell 1.5 million BEVs annually and roll out 10 new fully electric models. The worlds largest vehicle manufacturer sold 38,000 BEVs in the fiscal year that ended in March. The goal is to do something about global warming, Toyoda said. The mutual enemy is carbon dioxide.
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Footwear maker Bata India Ltd reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday as raw material costs softened and demand for brands such as Hush Puppies and Comfit rose.

Consolidated profit at the Netherlands-based Bata BN's flagship rose to 656.23 million rupees ($8.02 million) in the three months ended March 31, from 629.6 million rupees a year ago.

Analysts on average had expected the company to post a profit of 614.6 million rupees.

Bata's consolidated revenue from operations increased 17% to 7.79 billion rupees as fourth-quarter demand was also boosted by robust growth in its Hush Puppies, Comfit, Floatz, Red Label and North Star brands.

The company said in a statement that it had refreshed its portfolio to offer premium products under these brands.

"During the last few quarters, we are witnessing consistent demand for casual and comfortable footwear. This is due to increasing trend for purchase of non-occasion wear and demand for comfort and style," Bata Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Gunjan Shah said in a statement.

Also Read BSE Odisha 10th Result 2023: All you need to know about checking result CBSE Results 2023: Everything you need to know to check at website Karnataka SSLC Class 10 Result 2023: Result out, all details here Karnataka SSLC 10th Result 2023 Date, Time: Everything you need to know Haryana Board Results 2023: Date, How, Where to view result of HBSE PNB Housing Finance Q4 net rises 65% to Rs 279 cr on improved margins, NII ITC net profit rises 23.35% to Rs 5,175 crore in Q4FY23, beats estimates IndiGo posts Rs 919 crore net profit, its best-fourth quarter ever Container Corp Q4 results: Profit rises 7.7% to Rs 279 crore, revenue up 6% Gland Pharma profit declines by 56% on soft demand in March quarter

Strong demand for shoes and slippers also helped bigger rival Relaxo Footwears Ltd report a 9.6% jump in its quarterly profit last week.

Separately, Gurugram-based Bata recommended a dividend of 13.5 rupees per share.

Bata's shares closed 0.43% lower ahead of results.

($1 = 81.7800 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
President Yoon Suk Yeol sings "March for the Beloved" with people whose loved ones were killed in the Gwangju Uprising of 1980, marking the 43rd anniversary of the movement at the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju, Thursday. The song, which was written in the 1980s honoring an activist who died during the Gwangju uprising, has been widely sung to commemorate those who died under the authoritarian regime. Yonhap



Presidential office, DPK trade barbs over reflecting May 18 spirit in Constitution



By Nam Hyun-woo



President Yoon Suk Yeol called for national unity to safeguard liberal democracy in a speech, Thursday, at the 43rd anniversary ceremony of the 1980 May 18 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju.



However, his office and the main opposition party traded barbs over whether to amend the Constitution to incorporate the spirit of the May 18 uprising, blaming each other for insulting it, which encompasses the courage to stand up against forces threatening democracy.



"Under the spirit of May 18, we are all one," Yoon said during the ceremony at the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju. "The spirit of May 18 itself represents the essence of our Constitutional values of liberal democracy and it is a precious asset that we must inherit. It serves as a cohesive force that unites us as one."



Yoon added that the country "must courageously stand up against all forces and challenges threatening freedom and democracy," if it is remembering and inheriting the spirit of the May 18 uprising.





President Yoon Suk Yeol delivers a speech during the 43rd anniversary ceremony of the 1980 May 18 pro-democracy uprising at the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju, Thursday. Yonhap



The May 18 uprising was a watershed movement for Korea's democratization from the military dictatorship of former President Chun Doo-hwan. On May 18, 1980, pro-democracy protestors, students and other citizens of Gwangju held massive protests against the Chun junta, but were violently suppressed by the military, leaving hundreds dead.



Following the country's democratization, the spirit of May 18 has been used as a term referring to the people's revolutionary movement upholding the values of democracy, human rights and peace  mostly cited and respected by liberal politicians.



It was the second straight time that Yoon attended the May 18 ceremony after taking office, May 10, 2022. During last year's speech at the ceremony, Yoon said, "The May 18 spirit is a restoration of common values and represents the essence of the Constitutional value of liberal democracy."



During Wednesday's ceremony, Yoon and other participants sang the "March for the Beloved," an iconic song commemorating two victims of the May 18 uprising and widely sung during pro-democracy and labor protests. Some right-wing politicians have refused to sing it, as it was favored by their liberal rivals.





Leaders of the major parties  from left, People Power Party Chairman Kim Gi-hyeon, Democratic Party of Korea Chairman Lee Jae-myung and Justice Party Chairwoman Lee Jeong-mi  sing the national anthem during the 43rd anniversary ceremony of the 1980 May 18 pro-democracy uprising at the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju, Thursday. Yonhap
Realty major DLF's rental arm DCCDL's net profit increased 43 per cent to Rs 1,429 crore in the last fiscal on better income from office and retail properties.

Its net profit stood at Rs 1,002 crore in 2021-22.

According to an investors' presentation, DCCDL's total income increased 19 per cent to Rs 5,419 crore during 2022-23 from Rs 4,533 crore a year ago.

DLF Cyber City Developers Ltd (DCCDL) is a joint venture firm between DLF and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC.

DLF has a nearly 67 per cent stake in the JV firm, while GIC has the remaining.

As per the presentation, DCCDL's rental asset portfolio, comprising office complexes and shopping malls, is currently at 39.6 million square feet, and out of that 90 per cent area is already leased to tenants (corporates and retailers).

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The rental income of DCCDL from office space rose 13 per cent to Rs 3,232 crore during the last fiscal from Rs 2,869 crore in the year-ago period. Rentals from retail space increased 59 per cent to Rs 735 crore from Rs 461 crore.

DLF's Managing Director (Rental Business) Sriram Khattar told investors that SEZ has become a little concern in the market because of the sunset clause.

"In our portfolio, our SEZ has maintained a vacancy of about 15 odd per cent. Whereas our vacancy in the non-SEZ portfolio has dropped to only 6 per cent. And which is, I think, a very healthy sign and the combined vacancy is about 10 per cent," he said.

Khattar said industry bodies like CII and Naredco have urged the government for necessary changes in SEZ Act and rules.

On the office market, DCCDL said that "occupancy levels remain steady; demand recovery remains slow due to macro headwinds".

"New developments attracting healthy demand; implementing asset enhancement strategies to upgrade existing portfolio. SEZs space take-up remains slow; and changes in the existing landscape may provide the required fillip," as per the presentation.

On the retail real estate segment, DCCDL said that a resilient domestic economy, improving economic outlook along with growth in per capita augurs well for the retail sector in India.

"Footfalls have stabilised; we expect steady growth in footfalls and consumption. Leveraging this opportunity by creating new retail destinations at multiple locations," it added.

Khattar said the company proposes to develop Mall of India, Gurugram, and the construction work is expected to start this fiscal.

That apart, he said, "...in the Vasant Kunj complex where we have 2 malls, The Promenade and The Emporio, the total size of these malls is about 8,00,000 square feet...And we have the potential FAR (Floor Area Ratio) to do another 5,00,000 square feet in that complex. And that's right in the centre of town".

Similarly, at DLF Avenue mall in Saket, the company can construct another 2,00,000 square feet of GLA (gross leasing area), he added.

DLF is India's largest realty firm in terms of market capitalisation. It has completed more than 153 real estate projects and developed an area in excess of 330 million square feet. The company has 215 million square feet of development potential across the residential and commercial segments.

DLF, the parent firm, is mainly into housing (development business), although it continues to hold some commercial assets. The commercial rental business is in DCCDL.


The companys consolidated net revenue from operation rose by 12.45 per cent to Rs 12.37 crore for the March quarter as compared to Rs 11 crore in the year-ago period. Jet Airways, on Thursday, reported a consolidated net loss after tax at Rs 54.94 crore for the March quarter. The company reported a net loss of Rs 234 crore a year ago.



Formerly known as Saudi Arabian Airlines, Saudia is the national carrier of Saudi Arabia. On 17 May, Aviation industry veteran Sanjiv Kapoor, who stepped down as the CEO-Designate of Jet Airways last month, has joined Saudia Group.



He was the CEO-Designate of the grounded Jet Airways, for which the Jalan Kalrock Consortium has emerged as the winning bidder under the insolvency resolution process. In a Linkedin post, Kapoor said that aviation will play a key role in the Saudia Arabia's Vision 2030, which aims to attract 100 million visitors to the leading Gulf nation. "I am thrilled to share that I have joined the Saudia Group as Advisor to His Excellency Ibrahim Al-Omar, Director General of the Group," he said in a tweet on Wednesday. Kapoor was associated with a number of airlines, including SpiceJet, Vistara and Go First, in various capacities.


The companys consolidated interest income rose by 22.32 per cent to Rs 1,589 crore for the March quarter as compared to Rs 1,299 crore in the year-ago period. PNB Housing Finance Limited promoted by Punjab National Bank (PNB), on Thursday, posted a consolidated profit of Rs 279 crore for the March quarter. This is 64.11 per cent rise from Rs 170 crore a year ago, the company statement said.



The proceeds from rights issue will be utilised to fund strategic growth plans and capitalize on the available growth opportunities, the company said in BSE filing. In a regulatory filing, PNB Housing Finance said, the company successfully completed rights Issue of Rs 2,493.76 crore in May 2023. The issue was subscribed by around 1.21 times. The issue witnessed participation from all top 4 shareholders and other large domestic and foreign institutional investors.



Affordable segment presence expanded to 82 branches and outreaches as on 31st March 2023. PNB Housing Finances retail loan asset grew by 10 per cent YoY to Rs 55,471 crore as on 31st March 2023, which is 93.6 per cent of loan asset. Loan asset is at Rs 59,273 crore as on 31st March 2023 as compared to Rs 58,034 crore as on 31 December 2022.

Also Read LIC Housing Finance, HDFC: Trading strategies for housing finance companies Tata Capital to LIC Housing finance: Companies to raise funds from markets PNB plans to raise up to Rs 4,000 crore through issuance of tier-2 bonds PNB, IOB, DCB bank to offer AT1 bonds; may have to offer premium rates Nirav Modi loses bid to go to UK Supreme Court against extradition to India DLF Cyber City Developers net profit climbs 43% to Rs 1,429 crore in FY23 Airtel Payments Bank's FY23 profit rises over two-fold to Rs 21.7 crore IndiGo reports net profit of Rs 919.2 crore in Q4FY23, revenue up 76% GAIL Q4 profit falls 77.5% to Rs 603 cr as Ukraine war weighs on gas supply Zydus Lifesciences Q4 consolidated net profit dips 25.36% to Rs 296.6 cr



ICRA, CRISIL & India Ratings has upgraded the outlook to stable from negative in FY23. Capital risk adequacy ratio stood at 24.4 per cent as on 31st March 2023 and Tier I at 22.4 per cent, the company said in a statement.



As another milestone we have successfully concluded our rights issue, which received an overwhelming response resulting in 1.21x subscription. This demonstrates the investors' confidence in the Company. The infusion of capital will enable us to capitalise on the available growth opportunities," he added. "We are pleased to report that this fiscal year has been incredibly eventful for us. After 13 quarters, we have achieved the highest retail disbursement and loan asset as an outcome of our ongoing efforts to build the retail business. We have also witnessed a remarkable improvement in the asset quality which reduced by 52 per cent year-on-year, said Girish Kousgi, managing director & CEO.

Shares of PNB Housing Finance closed 2.5% higher at Rs 480.40 ahead of results.
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The EU barred imports of oil products from Russia from February, so European consumers turned to China, India and Turkey among others for fuel supplies. Europe absorbed up to 20 per cent of Indias exports of clean products in volume terms in the February-mid-May period. That was 11 percenta

It is a lucrative business, controlled largely by Reliance Industries. India earned $58 billion from exports of all petroleum products in FY23, accounting for 13 per cent of its total exports by value according to oil ministry data. The government also has its fill by way of windfall taxes on fuel exports.


Under this scheme, 3.5 million farmers are expected to benefit. The state government is expected to spend Rs 1,000 crore as interest subsidy. The loans will be disbursed through cooperative banks, an official of the agriculture department said. The state government has drawn up a plan to disburse Rs 22,000 crore as interest-free crop loans in 2023-24.



The minister said the present government had disbursed Rs 9,541.02 crore in 2019-20, Rs 15,325.38 crore in 2020-21 and Rs 18,101.68 crore in 2021-22. Cooperative Minister Udaylal Anjana said in 2022-23, as against the target of Rs 20,000 crore, Rs 19,740 crore was disbursed among 2.971 million farmers. This has been the highest disbursement of interest-free crop loans in a fiscal year, the minister added.



Meanwhile, the state government is extending the last date of repaying the short-term crop loan of kharif 2022 to June 30, 2023, or within 12 months of the date of taking a loan, whichever is earlier. This provides more time to farmers to repay their loans. Earlier the last date of repayment was March 31, 2023. It is to be mentioned that in 2022-23, in the kharif season, loans of Rs 180 crore were disbursed to 98,320 farmers and Rs 367 crore to 219,249 farmers in the rabi season. Interest-free loans of Rs 547 crore were disbursed to 317,569 farmers.

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Agriculture and its allied sectors contribute over 28 per cent to the states GSDP. Over 60 per cent of the working population depend on agriculture for their livelihood.
After three days of regular meetings, the Congress finally ended the suspense and has announced the party veteran leader Siddaramaiah as the next Karnataka chief minister and its state unit chief D K Shivakumar as his deputy.





"We have decided on Siddaramiah as CM of Karnataka; D K Shivakumar will be Deputy CM," said Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal in a press briefing today. The party also announced that D K Shivakumar will continue as Congress Karnataka state president till the Parliamentary elections.



Venugopal added that the Congress is a democratic party, and believes in consensus, 'not dictatorship'. All Congress leaders, including top leadership, worked very hard to make Karnataka victory a reality, he said. Newly elected MLAs' will meet this evening in Bengaluru to formally elect new Karnataka CM, while the swearing-in ceremony will be held on May 20.

Also Read Top headlines: Cong sweeps Karnataka, Siddaramaiah vows to fulfill promises YES Bank tanks 13% intra-day as 3-year shareholder lock-in period ends Karnataka Assembly elections: Finding balance in the juggling act Who will form the govt in Karnataka from among four chief contenders? Promises and sops: Political parties woo economically sound Karnataka Decision on appointment of CM of K'taka in a day or two: Cong leader Khera Shivakumar to reach Delhi for next Karnataka CM talks, says won't backstab Congress to decide Karnataka CM, Siddaramaiah, DKS in Delhi today Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, two aspiring CMs in race for state's top post Karnataka: Nearly 50% votes from women but only 5% in legislature



On Monday, the three central observers had submitted the report of CLP meeting and their voting through the secret ballot with Kharge. The Congress was facing a major challenge as both veteran leaders -- Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were vying for the top post in the state.



Kharge, 81, had held discussion with former party chief Rahul Gandhi, party general secretary K.C. Venugopal and party Karnataka unit in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, besides the two Karnataka leaders since Monday afternoon. After several rounds of meeting senior leaders, Kharge finally on intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday finalised the name of Siddaramaiah as the next Karnataka Chief Minister.

The Congress had won 135 out of 224 seats in the recently concluded Karnataka Assembly polls whereas the ruling BJP was reduced to 66 and the JD-S to 19 seats.




More Bollywood stars appeared on the prestigious red carpet on the second day of the Cannes Film Festival 2023. On day 1 of the 76th Cannes Film Festival 2023, cinema enthusiasts gathered to commemorate this iconic occasion. The celebration, facilitated at Cannes' renowned Palais des Festivals et des Congres, started off yesterday, May 16 and will go on until May 27. As they walk the red carpet, Indian celebrities have already made a big impression on the internet by attracting attention and admiration.

76th Cannes Film Festival 2023: The Jury



Ruben Stlund, a successful filmmaker accepts the job of jury president during the current year's Cannes Film Festival. He is joined on the prestigious jury by eight notable people: Denis Menochet, Maryam Touzani, Rungano Nyoni, Paul Dano, Julia Ducournau, Brie Larson, Damian Szifron, and Atiq Rahimi. Ruben Ostlund, the acclaimed filmmaker serves as the current year's jury president, adding further energy to the celebration. It is important to note that India was the official Country of Honour at the prestigious Marche du Film last year, which was held in conjunction with the Cannes Film Festival in France.





76th Cannes Film Festival 2023: Indian Celebs on Day 2 On day 2 of the Cannes Film Festival 2023, Sara Ali Khan donned a fusion ensemble after sporting a stunning desi look in an Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla lehenga the day before. Her evening gown was made by the talented couturier's Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla. Sara exquisitely matched a monochrome blouse with a saree draped elegantly over her arm. She wore the same colour pearls and put her hair in an impeccable bun. This diverse and talented group of professionals in the industry will play a crucial role in the festival's evaluation and recognition of outstanding cinematic achievements. The festival's prestigious awards and the celebration of exceptional filmmaking talent will be shaped by their collective expertise and discerning perspectives.

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Mrunal Thakur, on the other hand, made a remarkable debut at her first Cannes Film Festival in a chic black lace pantsuit and dazzling sequined jacket. The actor shared beautiful pictures from her terrace photo shoot, catching the grace of her Cannes experience. Mrunal's fashion decision radiated sophistication unfolding her flawless fashion sense. She celebrated her debut at the prestigious event, a significant turning point in her career, by showcasing her glamorous ensemble in captivating photographs. Urvashi Rautela is gorgeous in an orange tulle gown, she kept her tresses tied in a top knot bun and picked diamond studs as gems to complete her look.



Amy Jackson wore a black waist-cut gown to the Cannes Red Carpet 2023. A single strand of diamonds from the Chopard brand completed her look. Before arriving in Cannes, Anurag Kashyap revealed a glimpse of his preparations. At the Cannes Film Festival 2023, Anurag Kashyap's Kennedy will be shown in the "Midnight Screening" category on May 16-17. The movie in which Rahul Bhatt and Sunny Leone play the lead roles. While Mrunal Thakur, who was overjoyed, told a funny story that hinted at the "calm before the storm."





Cannes Film Festival 2023: Additional Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, a frequent attendee of Cannes, was spotted departing for the French Riviera from Mumbai airport. This will be her 21st appearance at the Cannes Film Festival. Her 11-year-old daughter Aaradhya, who has been Aishwarya's constant travel companion to Cannes since she was a baby, was there as usual. Meanwhile, L Murugan, the Indian Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, inaugurated "The India Pavilion" at International Village Riviera, which showcased India's creative economy.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Aaradhya Bachchan were welcomed with a bouquet at the airport upon landing in Cannes. At Cannes 2023, Aishwarya will also walk the red carpet.






India has a shortfall of 1.37 million nurses if we wish to meet the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations; and globally there is a need for 13 million nursing professionals. As hospitals embark on an expansion spree, perhaps the biggest hurdle that lies ahead of them is recruiting nurses to man the beds.



Speaking to Business Standard, Suresh K Sharma, Principal at College of Nursing, AIIMS, Jodhpur, said that there is no recent estimation of the shortfall in government sector for nurses, but with growing hospital beds, there is a significant shortfall of nursing manpower now. While there is no recent estimation of the shortfall of nurses in the government sector, the 22 All India Institution of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) alone have 1500 vacancies at each of them adding up to 33,000 vacancies for nursing staff. On top of this, there is demand from the private sector.



Two nurses are required to attend to six beds (working in a single shift), says Ranjan Pandey, Fortis HR Head. Hospitals work in two shifts, and then we have to also consider days off and leaves. So, the demand for nurses is going to surge tremendously in the coming days. Moreover, we have to grapple with a high level of attrition of around 30-40 percent already, Pandey explains. Private hospitals, which employ around 50 percent of nurses and midwives, are expanding bed-count post-pandemic. According to an ICICI Securities report in May, Fortis Healthcare will add 1300 beds in the next four years, Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) plans to add about 700 new beds over three years, Apollo Hospitals will boost its bed-count by 2000 beds in three years. Manipal Hospitals is eyeing 3600 beds in the next three years.

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Not only is there a demand-supply gap in nursing, the bigger problem seems to be losing Indian nurses to other countries. Usha Banerjee, Chief Nursing Officer, Apollo Hospitals points out that nurses are typically attracted to large institutions like Apollo where they train well, learn to document, but more than 80-90 percent of young nurses want to leave the country in 2 years of practicing in India. India ranks second after the Philippines with respect to the number of nurses working abroad, says the FICCI-KPMG report on Strengthening Healthcare Workforce in India. Dilip Jose, MD and CEO of Manipal Hospitals says that they have already taken more than three salary corrections in the last two years in an attempt to retain the nursing talent. We already pay better than the industry standards, Jose adds.



Smaller hospitals and nursing-homes pay meager salaries of Rs 5000-6000 a month, alleges Suraj Gupta, president of the All India Registered Nurses Federation. Most of the small nursing-homes do not go for registered nurses, they opt for quacks that they try to train, Gupta says. Overseas they get paid around Rs 2-4 lakh a month, compared to Rs 35000-45000 a month in a good private institution in the country, she says. Pandey says that corporate hospitals pay a starting salary of Rs 25,000 and above, while the government pays more than Rs 40,000 for a nurse of similar skillset.



Large corporate hospitals have resorted to wellness programmes like mental wellness, food and accommodation provisions, and opportunities to train and up-skill, in order to retain their nursing talent. AIIMS nurses get paid well  Sharma says that at the entry level the gross salaries are in the level of Rs 70,000 or so, and a chief nursing officer with 12-15 years of experience gets around Rs 2.5 lakh or so a month. Sharma feels that there is a general lack of awareness of the high-paying nature of the job, and men usually stay away from this profession. It is estimated that only 10 percent of Indias nurses are men.



In a 2016 study conducted by Sharma and Silvia Parihar in 53 nursing homes in Punjab where 218 participants were interviewed; 50.9 percent of the subjects had not obtained any nursing qualification or training. Out of them, 60.3 percent were having lesser than higher secondary education, and 9.9 percent were academic graduates, while 29.7 percent had paramedical training. Smaller hospitals and nursing homes have a bigger challenge in recruiting and more often than not they resort to hiring quacks, Sharma says.


Such is the situation that pulse traders are requesting the government to raise awareness about consuming other pulses like chana, masur, moong, and yellow peas, which are readily available at cheaper rates. High demand for arhar or tur dal, often called the yellow dal, is giving pulse traders a tough time. The processing industry is struggling to keep up with the demand for the highest-selling dal, a report published in The Economic Times (ET) said. The prices for the tur dal have also increased by about 60 per cent, given the love for tur dal.



Tur traders believe that changing consumer preference is quintessential to balancing the demand-supply situation. For the kind of demand tur has driven, the country's production is inadequate to meet it. To this end, the Indian Pulses and Grain Association (IPGA) has requested the Department of Food and Public Distribution to promote other pulses as an alternative to tur, the report said.



The average price of unprocessed tur dal at the Latur wholesale market in Maharashtra stood at Rs 90 per kg, which is 50 per cent more than last year's price of Rs 60 per kg. The report added that a rise of 24 per cent in the tur prices has been registered in the last four months. Government estimates suggest that India's tur production will be down 14 per cent compared to last year. The trader community believes the drop in production to be steeper at more than 20 per cent, the ET report said.


DPK tainted by number of corruption charges



President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating has hovered at around 30 percent since he took office a year ago, which is the lowest among recent presidents.



It is now approaching 40 percent for the first time, however.



But the rise is not due to Yoon's diplomatic feats as he wants everyone to believe. Yoon is moving too close to the U.S. and too far from China, making even experts sympathetic to him tilt their heads. Instead, Yoon turning a blind eye to all disadvantaged groups, such as unionized workers, farmers and nurses, has rallied his conservative support base.



There is a far more decisive factor  the self-harming main opposition party. The approval rating of the Democratic Party of Korea has fallen to the low 30 percent range. That of its leader, Lee Jae-myung, is even lower. The center-of-left DPK is at a crossroads with its very existence at risk.



On Wednesday, the party decided to refer Rep. Kim Nam-kuk, a DPK member until a few days ago, to the National Assembly's ethics committee due to his suspicious cryptocurrency transactions.



Lee made the decision belatedly and reluctantly after dragging his feet for weeks. Kim, one of Lee's confidants, owned 6 billion won ($4.5 million) worth of coins, which is a large amount considering his pretense of frugality. Suspicions abound over the sources of his funds, possible access to inside information and conflict-of-interest issues. The first-term lawmaker even traded coins even during National Assembly sessions.



Kim is only the latest such figure. Lee's immediate predecessor is suspected of "distributing envelopes" to party members in 2021. Lee and the DPK gave up questioning the money-for-party-chairmanship scandal and turned it over to the prosecution, the party's archenemy group.



There were two conjectures as to why the party did that.



First, the DPK could not uncover all recipients of bribes, who will "come up like a stalk of sweet potatoes," as an old Korean saying goes. Second, Lee could not do so, because his conscience would not let him.



And herein lie the fundamental problem and limitation of the DPK today.



Since he was a presidential candidate, Lee has been saddled with judicial risks. He still visits prosecutors' offices often to be questioned about various charges. Most visible is a land deal and development corruption scandal in Seongnam, south of Seoul, which started while he was mayor. After Lee took the party's helm a year ago, despite his defeat in the presidential election, the DPK turned the legislative body into what's been called a "bulletproof assembly" to prevent Lee's arrest. He barely escaped one such attempt recently.



The DPK cannot continue this way much longer.



Lee might have felt he had too much to lose to leave politics, given the razor-thin margin of 0.73 percent by which he lost last year's presidential election. "I will not avoid but instead confront problems and take responsibility (for the election loss) not with words but with actions," Lee said. One year has passed, but things turned out contrary to Lee's expectations.



Prosecutor-turned-President Yoon has not met with the opposition leader for 387 days and counting, citing his status as a suspect. That is Yoon's problem. But Lee's problem is more serious. Lee's criticism of the president have won him the sympathy of many voters. Still, more and more people are telling Lee, "Solve your problems first."



A progressive party that lost its moral high ground has nowhere to go. There are few substantive differences between the two mainstream parties by Western standards. But there is an unfounded belief among Korean voters that the center-right party is competent, while the center-left party is clean(er).



Lee should have left the scene after the election, if temporarily. He must solve his problems outside of politics. If he cannot do so there, he must not try it within the political community  if he prioritizes his party and the country ahead of himself. One year is not a long time, but the DPK, under a new leader, can restart after being born again before the parliamentary polls.



The president's many mistakes kept Lee from changing himself and his party. However, the inept Lee and the DPK have failed to change Yoon and his government.



The latter fault is far greater.


West Bengal and Vietnam have much to do in terms of strengthening bilateral trade, Ambassador of Vietnam to India, Nguyen Thanh Hai said on Thursday.

Though bilateral trade between the nations has touched USD 15 billion, it only accounts for two per cent of Vietnam's global trade volume, the diplomat said addressing a Bharat Chamber of Commerce organised special session on West Bengal and Vietnam.

Speaking on the scope for establishing trade ties with West Bengal, Hai observed that aquaculture, seafood, chemicals, iron and steel, rubber and tourism have been identified as the most vibrant sectors.

He felt that an effective FTA between the nations would prove to be beneficial.

Vietnam has 400 industrial parks and 18 economic zones. Foreign investors enjoy corporate tax holidays for 15 years, with zero tax liability for the first four years, he added.

Sharing his views on the issue of connectivity between West Bengal and Vietnam, the Ambassador said that 50 direct flights are operational between the two nations, including 14 direct flights between Kolkata and Ho-Chi-Minh City.

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Travelling between the nations now takes only 2 hours compared to the earlier 8 to 10 hours at prices as cheap as only USD 200, he said.

From the members of the Chamber, facilitation for exports of toys, rubber and issuance of Honorary Visas were requested to the Ambassador.

Meanwhile, in light of the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030' signed last year by the Defence Ministers of the countries, the Chamber would like to establish linkages with Vietnamese agencies interested in collaborating in defence production and procurement, Naresh Pachisia, Senior Vice-President of the chamber said.
The Commerce and Industry Ministry will hold a two-day Chintan Shivir to discuss ways to promote manufacturing trade, investments, startups, logistics and import substitution, among others, an official said on Thursday.

On May 19, the Department of Commerce will be holding a series of sessions on issues such as team building; expediting trade and investment promotion efforts; export strategy on goods and services; import substitution, reducing sub-standard imports and promoting manufacturing through PLI (production linked incentive).

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, Ministers of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash and Anupriya Patel will address the ministry officials.

On May 20, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) will hold sessions on subjects like innovate in India (startups and intellectual property rights) and the future-ready logistics sector, the official said.

India's exports contracted by 12.7 per cent, the third month in a row, to USD 34.66 billion in April even as the trade deficit reduced to a 20-month low of USD 15.24 billion.

According to the ministry's data, exports of goods and services in 2022-23 rose by 14.68 per cent to an all-time high of USD 775.87 billion.

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Merchandise exports increased by 6.74 per cent to USD 450.43 billion, while imports rose by 16.47 per cent to USD 714 billion in the last fiscal.

Services exports rose 27.86 per cent to USD 325.44 billion in 2022-23, while imports increased by 22.54 per cent to USD 180 billion in the preceding fiscal.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) into India declined by 15 per cent to USD 36.75 billion during April-December 2022-23.

The total FDI inflows, which include equity inflows, re-invested earnings and other capital, declined to USD 55.27 billion during April-December 2022-23 against USD 60.4 billion in April-December 2021-22.


The Machine, founded by the Internet Archive, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, allows users to see how websites looked in the past. The Delhi High Court on Thursday relied on the WayBack Machine to hold several persons guilty of patent infringement, marking the first time the digital archive of the web has been used in such a way.



The court found that Prakash and other defendants sold a drug akin to Sugens drug Crizotinib in an older version of their website. The court found the defendants guilty of infringing Sugens patent. The suit was filed by Sugen Inc, an indirect subsidiary of US pharma firm Pfizer Inc, against K Vijaya Prakash and others for not following a High Court order of 2016.



Even after the matter was decreed, Defendants infringing products were found to be listed on e-commerce third-party websites. Therefore, evidence was led on the contempt applications to establish a) relationship between the Defendants and b) the contumacious conduct of the Defendants, the plaintiff said. The court had on January 1, 2016, told the defendants to stop selling drugs similar in composition as that of Sugens. One of the defendants was a Bangladesh-based entity that appeared to have an established supply chain for its generic products in India, including Delhi.

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The case is unique since a contempt of court was found after extensive evidence was led by the parties based on a disputed internet document which the plaintiff was able to prove, said advocate Pravin Anand, of Anand and Anand law firm, who appeared for the plaintiff. The defendants during trial were shown Wayback Machines archives of their website, indicating that the Bangladesh-based entity was their associated company.

Plaintiffs have placed on record sufficient material on record in the form of printouts of the third-party websites where the infringing product was being sold as well as photographs of the infringing products purchased by the investigators engaged by the plaintiffs, said the order by Justice Amit Bansal.


Who is he? Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, a self-styled godman called Bageshwar Dham Sarkar by his followers, is the head of a temple in Chhatarpur, Madhya Pradesh. He claims he has superpowers but skipped an event that had invited him to prove it.



Shastri, 26 now, too began by holding court like his grandfather and became the chief of Bageshwar Dham Temple in the village of Gadha in Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh. Born as Dhirendra Krishna Garg in July 1996, he later adopted the name Dhirendra Krishna Shastri. His paternal grandfather, Bhagwandas Garg, was an ascetic who held court near the Hanuman temple at the Nirmohi Akhara, a Hindu order of warrior-saints, in Varanasi.



Rationalist challenge Shastri tells followers he can read minds and has mastered the power of Sanatan Dharma mantras. Several followers have claimed he used his abilities to solve their problems.

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We are making Hindus return to the religion they acquired at birth. Some people are creating a nuisance. They have to be taught a lesson. As long as I am alive, I will make all Sanatani Hindus return to their original faith, he said. Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, a rationalist group in Maharashtra, asked Shastri to prove his powers at a public event. He didnt turn up, telling news agency ANI in Raipur: "Anyone can challenge my words and actions on camera. Lakhs come and sit in the court of Bageshwar Balaji. Whatever inspires me, I will write and what I write will turn out to be true. I have faith in my God."



Bahot jyada bheed ho gayi hai, apaar bheed ho gayi...pagal hi pagal aa gaye hain (There is too much crowd, the crowd has become huge, the madmen have come)," he said. Videos and photos of Shastris talks to the devout often become viral on social media but he recently stoked controversy when during a programme he called his followers "pagal" (mad). He had had to cancel aarti when the crowd filled up the venues capacity.
Teachers must ensure parity in learning levels of students and opportunities beyond schools to fulfil the vision of 'Mission Buniyaad', Delhi Education Minister Atishi said on Thursday as she stressed the need for providing each child with customised learning.

Interacting with students and teachers at a 'Mission Buniyaad' class at an MCD School in New Friends Colony, the Delhi minister gave instructions for monitoring the learning progress of each child.

To fulfil the vision of Mission Buniyaad teachers must motivate every child in their class to learn, Atishi said. She said 'Mission Buniyaad' was initiated to bridge the learning gap among children.

"The process of transformation has begun in the MCD schools now. Following this, MCD schools are now focusing on creating a conducive learning environment for every child studying in them," she said. The Education Minister said the BJP had "neglected" MCD schools and "disregarded the efforts" of teachers in the past 15 years.

Highlighting the benefits of 'Mission Buniyaad', Atishi said, "Under this mission, children participate in classrooms of different levels. The objective is to take students from the basic level to the advanced learning levels." The Delhi government and the MCD recently teamed up to implement 'Mission Buniyaad' in the city schools this year with an aim to strengthen students' learning foundation.

"Merely relying on bookish knowledge is not sufficient to achieve this. Students should be provided with an environment where they can learn through play," she added.

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The minister also observed methods of teaching in a Hindi class where children formed words using playing cards, and an English class where interactive activities were held.
The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a notice on a bail plea by Satyendar Jain, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former cabinet minister in the Delhi government, in a money laundering case.

Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, representing Jain, submitted before a bench comprising A.S. Bopanna and Hima Kohli that his client has extreme health problems, he has lost 35 kgs and is a skeleton now.

The apex court issued notice on Jain's plea and also gave him liberty to move the court's vacation bench seeking urgent listing of his plea against a Delhi High Court judgment denying him bail. The bench said, "Issue notice...liberty to move vacation bencha." Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju appeared for the Enforcement Directorate.

In April this year, the Delhi High Court had dismissed Jain and his two aides' bail pleas in a money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma said that Jain is an influential person and cannot be said to have satisfied the twin conditions for bail under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

"The simple fact is the CBI has filed a case of disproportionate assets (DA). The present court cannot go into the validity of these proceedings. Facts show that certain DA were masked. The court has to see the prima facie case. The broad probabilities indicate that the companies associated with him are controlled and managed by him. Learned special judge order (rejecting bail to Jain) does not have any perversity. Order is well reasoned," the judge said.

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Jain has been in custody since May 30 last year. A trial court had, on November 17, 2022, dismissed the leader's bail application.

According to the trial court, it has prima facie come on record that Satyendar Jain was "actually involved" in hiding the proceeds of crime by paying cash to entry operators based in Kolkata and then bringing the money into three companies against the sale of shares to demonstrate that their revenues were clean.

--IANS

ss/dpb
Hundreds of activists of farmers' outfit Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMC) on Thursday squatted on railway tracks and blocked rail traffic at a number of places in Punjab over alleged inadequate compensation for the land acquired for the Bharatmala project.

The KMC said it also registered its protest against the alleged slapping of a woman by a policeman in Gurdaspur district on Wednesday when farmers were protesting over the compensation issue.

Railway officials said incoming and outgoing trains running between Amritsar and Delhi were affected for a few hours after 12.30 pm in the wake of the farmers' protest. Rail traffic was also affected a few other places in the state



KMC spokesperson Gurbachan Singh Chabba said the farmers were protesting on the compensation issue in connection with the acquisition of land for the Bharatmala project and the alleged high handedness of the police in Gurdaspur district against the farmers.

He said the government was acquiring the land but not paying adequate compensation as desired by farmers.

The protest at Devidaspura village, around 20 kilometres from Amritsar, was led by KMC leader Sarwan Singh Pandher.

Chabba said farmers squatted on railway tracks at seven points in the state for a few hours after 1 pm on Thursday.

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He said Tarn Taran, Jalandhar Cantt, Gurdaspur, Ferozepur, Fazilka, Moga and Amritsar were the points where the farmers held protests.

Chabba also alleged that a woman farmer was slapped by a policeman in Gurdaspur on Wednesday and accused the police of using force against protesting farmers.

A video of the slapping incident has also gone viral on social media.

"The highhanded attitude of the government and its police which applied force to uproot the farmers from their agriculture land is condemnable," Chabba said.

He alleged that police cane charged farmers who were protesting peacefully against the government for acquiring their farmlands for the expansion/construction of the Delhi-Katra national highway. He said the incident occurred at Cheema Khudi village in Gurdaspur.

Later in the evening, the KMC, in a statement, said during a meeting between farmers and state government officials at Devidaspura, it was assured that arbitration camps will be organized to sort out the issues of the farmers at the earliest. SSP Amritsar (Rural) Satinder Singh attended the meeting.

A meeting between the farmers and senior officials of the state government has been fixed for May 24. No government official would move ahead to acquire the agricultural land of farmers in Gurdaspur district till then, the farmers' outfit said.
The Gujarat cabinet has given its approval to a proposal of setting up 21 new industrial estates across 13 districts in the state, an official said.

Notably, the Gujarat government in March informed the Legislative Assembly that it was planning to establish new industrial estates in the state so that local youth get employment near their native places.

During the cabinet meeting held in Gandhinagar on Wednesday, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel gave a nod to the proposal of setting up 21 new industrial estates and also in-principle approval to prepare a pre-feasibility assessment report, a release said.

The pre-feasibility study would cover various aspects, such as availability of land to establish estates, demand and supply factors and agricultural production in those areas, it said.

These 21 new estates, to be managed by the Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), will be established in Rajkot, Mehsana, Mahisagar, Bharuch, Banaskantha, Patan, Chhotaudepur, Gir Somnath, Gandhinagar, Kheda, Amreli, Anand and Junagadh districts.

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Former Union minister and the BJP's Ambala MP Rattan Lal Kataria passed away on Thursday after a brief illness here. He was 71.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, senior leaders from the BJP and parties across the spectrum expressed condolences at Kataria's demise.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish at the death of Kataria and said he made a rich contribution towards public service and social justice.

Kataria was admitted to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research here after initial complaints of pneumonia. Later, he developed other health complications and he remained in the hospital for treatment, an aide told PTI.

For the past few days, he had been running a fever. His health deteriorated further on Wednesday, he said and added that Kataria died around 3.30 am.

Kataria is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son. His last rites will be held at Manimajra in the afternoon.

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Kataria served as minister of state in the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment from May 2019 till July 2021.

He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Ambala in 1999, 2014 and 2019.

A prominent Dalit face of the BJP, Kataria served as the party's Haryana unit chief from 2000 to 2003. He was also a minister in the Haryana government.

As a child artiste, Kataria had received an award the then-Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru.

Expressing his condolences, Khattar said, "I am deeply saddened by the demise of Kataria ji."



The Haryana chief minister, who reached Kataria's Panchkula residence along with Assembly Speaker Gian Chand Gupta, said in a tweet in Hindi that the former Union minister had always raised his voice in Parliament for the benefit of society and the progress of the people of Haryana.

Kataria's demise is an irreparable loss to politics, he added.

Modi said in a tweet, "Pained by the passing away of MP and former Minister Shri Rattan Lal Kataria Ji. He will be remembered for his rich contribution towards public service and social justice. He played a key role in strengthening (the) BJP in Haryana. Condolences to his family and supporters. Om Shanti."



Khattar and the BJP's Haryana unit chief Om Prakash Dhankar recalled Kataria's cheerful nature and said he always had a smile on his face.

Dhankar said Kataria rose from a humble background to become a Union minister, adding, "He left us very soon".

His death is a loss to the country, Haryana, the BJP and me personally, Dhankar said.

Jannayak Janata Party leader and Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala, Home Minister Anil Vij, Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Congress leader Kumari Selja also expressed condolences following Kataria's death.

The Haryana government has announced a one-day state mourning as a mark of respect to Kataria.


By Yun Byung-se



Last week marked the first anniversary of President Yoon Suk Yeol's presidency. It is no surprise that the most favorable approval ratings came from his performance in foreign policy and security-related matters. He himself highlighted major achievements made in these areas in a recent cabinet meeting.



His first summit meeting was with President Joe Biden last year in Seoul, which came on the heels of his inauguration less than two weeks before. He then attended the NATO summit in Madrid in June as one of NATO's four Indo-Pacific partners, sometimes called the Asia Pacific-Four (AP-4). His first year of diplomacy culminated in two recent milestone summits: His state visit to the U.S. in April and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to Seoul last week, reciprocating President Yoon's earlier visit to Tokyo in March.



Both of them impacted the mindset of many Koreans who initially doubted how much could change through diplomacy. By this point, however, they seem to understand that diplomacy is after all a matter of mutual trust, at its core. It is not a lonely voice in the wilderness, but, with time, can bring about an echo and convergence of interests.



As the saying goes, he who laughs last, laughs best. If anything, President Yoon seems to have chosen to laugh last.



Despite his lack of experience in diplomacy, President Yoon is on a fast learning curve about the importance of diplomacy and the requisite know-how for proliferating summitry to enhance our national interests at this historical inflection point.



Today, he is kicking off his second year of multilateral diplomacy in Hiroshima, sitting with G7 leaders, together with seven other specially invited leaders from across the world, including India, Brazil and Australia. Several G7 leaders have either just visited or are going to visit Korea immediately before and after the summit. As government authorities aptly said, this will be an unusual "super week" for Korean diplomacy.



More than anything else, the expected trilateral summit among the U.S., Japan and Korea  on the margins of the G7 summit  will be a crucial event, carrying forward the positive momentum from the two latest summits in Washington and Seoul. This summit has a special meaning in the recent history of trilateral cooperation among the three countries. It will be the first post-rapprochement  between Seoul and Tokyo  trilateral summit in several years, free from high tensions and confrontations over past historical issues, which characterized former President Moon Jae-in's summit with his Japanese counterparts. The Seoul-Tokyo axis had been regarded as the weakest link in trilateral cooperation.



President Joe Biden would be pleased to move the trilateral cooperation and Quad, two key components of his Indo-Pacific strategy, in tandem amidst the tectonic changes to the Indo-Pacific geopolitical landscape.



For President Yoon, the G7 summit heralds another year of breathless 100-meter dashes in his second year of non-stop multilateral diplomacy. If the past can be a useful guide, he will be hosting the inaugural Korea-Pacific Islands summit, attending the NATO summit in Vilnius, the ASEAN+3 and East Asia Summit in Indonesia, the G20 summit in New Delhi, the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, and chair the trilateral summit between Japan, China and Korea, and the 3rd Democracy Summit, to name a few.



As you can see, some of them are part and parcel of Korea's new Indo-Pacific strategy and others are related to its Global Pivotal State (GPS) initiative. Some are like-minded leaders' meetings, while others are more inclusive, with China and/or Russia participating.



Seoul has an additional agenda of its own: securing support for its bids for the World Expo 2030 Busan and a non-permanent seat of the UN Security Council for 2024-2025.



Korea's general election in April next year will be a moment of truth to assess the balance sheet of Yoon's second year of diplomacy. The Yoon government should get ready to answer what all these summits and diplomatic efforts have achieved, and why the GPS and the Indo-Pacific strategy matter for Korea.



However, the journey ahead will be long and bumpy, filled with many daunting challenges.



First, Korea has little maneuvering room amid the deepening U.S.-China strategic competition on almost all fronts  trade, economic and technology, military, ideology and values. China is now engaging in diverse forms of Korea bashing or taming strategy in response to Korea's apparent tilt toward the U.S. and Japan. The Taiwan Strait could be a time bomb at any time.



Second, North Korea's nuclear and missile brinkmanship is likely to be translated into real actions, including a possible seventh nuclear test. It could catch us by surprise again but now with impunity due to Chinese and Russian collaboration.



Third, the ongoing Ukraine war is likely to demand larger roles for Korea, which could trigger harsher Russian retaliation measures against "unfriendly countries," including South Korea.



Fourth, the stance of the Global South deserves special attention and fierce competition is underway between democracies and autocracies to bring the Global South countries on board at the G7, G20, U.N., and the Democracy Summit. Their fence-sitting or unaligned stance has sometimes tipped the delicate balance, including at the U.N. General Assembly.



Fifth, as Eric Schmidt, former Google chairman warned, technology will define the future of geopolitics. Technological primacy, economic security and supply chain stability for fragmented blocs is becoming the name of the new geopolitical and geo-economic long game.



Unless we are re-globalized, the best way to cope with all these challenges, is to expand and consolidate a united front with like-minded countries in the region as well as in the world. Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has declared recently, "The happy globalization is over." Also, Richard Haass, CFR President, counseled that "The course of this decade will depend on the quality of officials' political skills at home and their statecraft abroad". As the Yoon government embarks upon another journey, in its second year, of foreign policy, we should be reminded again, "It is diplomacy, stupid."





Yun Byung-se, a former foreign minister of South Korea (2013-2017), is now a board member of the Korea Peace Foundation and a member of several ex-global leaders' forums and task forces, including the Astana Forum and its Consultative Council as well as the Task Force on U.S. Allies and Nuclear Weapons Proliferation sponsored by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.


India has sent relief materials in four naval ships to Myanmar for its people affected by a powerful cyclone.

The mission to help the neighbouring country to deal with the devastating impact of the cyclone has been named as 'Operation Karuna'.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the ships are carrying emergency food items, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators and clothes.

A Navy official said Indian naval ships Shivalik, Kamorta and Savitri were the first vessels to arrive at Yangon with relief materials.

"India extends a hand of friendship to the people of Myanmar affected by #CycloneMocha. #OperationKaruna underway. Three Indian Navy ships carrying relief material reached Yangon today. A fourth ship will be reaching tomorrow," Jaishankar said on Twitter.

"The ships are carrying emergency food items, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators, clothes, sanitary and hygiene items, etc," he said.

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"India continues to be the first responder in the region," Jaishankar added. Cyclone Mocha hit the coastlines of Myanmar, especially Rakhine state's capital city Sittwe.
Hundreds of Hindu migrants from Pakistan who were displaced from the government land in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer district will soon be rehabilitated, an official has said.

The migrants also ended their protest following assurances of land allotment within a week.

On Tuesday authorities in Jaisalmer had demolished the encroachment of several Pakistani migrants claiming that they tried to occupy the government land.

On Wednesday, the migrants opposed the anti-encroachment drive outside the district collector's office and demanded that their concerns be heard.

Briefing the reporters then, Dabi said that the process for rehabilitation of the Hindu migrants from across the border will be done and soon land will be allotted to them.

"We have formed a committee, which will soon identify a suitable location where Pakistani migrants can be rehabilitated. Initially we will allot the land to those who have got Indian citizenship," said Jaisalmer District Collector Tina Dabi.

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Dabi said that though land will be reserved for people who are still Pakistani migrants, it would be allotted to them only after they get the Indian citizenship.

Dabi further said that the administration was repeatedly getting complaints that Pakistani migrants are encroaching the government land and water catchment areas.

She also said that the district administration had arranged accommodation for Hindu migrants at the government-run shelter house, also known as 'Ren Basera,' till the land allotment.

On Tuesday night, UIT had demolished 30 houses in the Amarsagar area.
The integration of AYUSH into mainstream public healthcare delivery is important as it can offer a more holistic approach to patient care, combining the strengths of both conventional medicine and AYUSH system of healthcare, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Thursday.

"India is significantly strengthening its healthcare services by striving towards an integrated health policy that will benefit not just the nation, but serve the world," Mandaviya said as he delivered the inaugural address at the National AYUSH Mission Conclave organised by the Ministry of AYUSH here.

The event witnessed the launch of Information and Communication Technology initiatives namely AHMIS (Ayush Health Management Information System) and eLMS (Education Learning Management System).

Mandaviya lauded the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that envisages integrated healthcare services in the nation by synergising the capacities and resources of both traditional and modern medicine.

Elaborating further, he stated that the collaboration between modern and traditional medicine is striving towards "establishing multiple systems of medicine at a single platform facilitating cross-referrals and enabling true integration of different systems of medicine.

The minister commended the integration of AYUSH systems in central government hospitals and further added that to fully empower the present healthcare system, "it is important to integrate AYUSH into mainstream public healthcare delivery as this integration can offer a more comprehensive and holistic approach to patient care, combining the strengths of both conventional medicine and AYUSH systems of healthcare.

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Highlighting the importance and relevance of Ayurveda and other traditional principles, he said, India's heritage of traditional medicine advocates and adopts a holistic perspective towards health with a focus on wellness at its foundation.

Commending the initiatives of 'Heal by India' and 'Heal in India' that have been well received by the world, the health minister said there is an increasing inflow of patients from world over who are travelling to India to receive treatment, and a rapidly growing demand for medical professionals from India, trained both in modern and traditional medicine.

He further cited the development of the WHO-Global Centre for Traditional Medicine at Jamnagar, Gujarat, empowering India as a global leader in traditional medicine.

Thanking Mandaviya for the support extended in the momentum of integrative medicine, Union AYUSH Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said mainstreaming the potential of AYUSH within a pluralistic system of integrative healthcare is being envisioned through the new initiatives of Ministry of Ayush in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

He further added that the National AYUSH Mission (NAM) provides support to states and Union territories for co-location of AYUSH facilities in primary health centres (PHCs), community health centres (CHCs) and district hospitals (DHs).

Additionally, he cited the provision for "setting up integrated AYUSH hospitals, new AYUSH dispensaries in various parts of the country are in the pipeline to facilitate easy accessibility and affordability of AYUSH services for the masses.

State health ministers, who joined the meeting, included Daya Shanker Mishra (Uttar Pradesh), Dr R Lalthangliana (Mizoram), Alo-libang (Arunachal Pradesh), Keshab Mahanta (Assam), S Pangnyu Phom (Nagaland), and Banna Gupta (Jharkhand).
As tension continues to simmer in Manipur, members of the majority Meitei group on Thursday said they are at the risk of "ethnic cleansing" in their own state while comparing their precarious situation with that of Kashmiri Pandits.

Addressing a press conference in the national capital, members of the World Meetei Council also came down heavily on the state and the central government, and rued that they have been unable to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah despite several attempts.

Clashes broke out in Manipur after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

The violence was preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserve forest land, which had led to a series of smaller agitations.

"The incidents that happened in Manipur were pre-planned. We kept warning the government that something like this may happen... We are today in a situation similar to what the Kashmiri Pandits faced," Nabashyam Heigrujam, president of civil society group World Meitei Council, said.

"We are at the risk of ethnic cleansing in our own state," he claimed.

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Heigrujam also said that they have been trying to fix a meeting with Shah for over a year now, but have not been given an appointment yet.

"Meiteis and Nagas are the original people of Manipur... We wanted to submit our viewpoint to the home minister. We tried our best to speak to him for at least five minutes. We have submitted our application, but even in this time of crisis, we are very much hurt that the home minister has no time to meet us," he added.

Nabakishore Singha Yumnam, spokesperson of the World Meetei Council, said urgent action is needed on behalf of the government by providing Scheduled Tribe status to the Meiteis at par with the Nagas and Kukis.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals -- Nagas and Kukis -- constitute another 40 per cent of the population and reside in the hill districts.

The Meitei community also demanded implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Manipur to weed out "illegal immigrants", and cancelation of the suspension of operations (SoO) agreement signed with various Kuki militant groups.

The SoO was signed by the Centre, Manipur government and two conglomerates of Kuki militant outfits - Kuki National Organisations and United Peoples Front. The pact was first signed in 2008 and extended periodically.

The May 3 ethnic clashes claimed more than 70 lives and some 10,000 army and paramilitary personnel had to be deployed to bring back normalcy in the northeastern state.
Delhi Services Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Thursday directed that no orders pertaining to employees will be passed by the chief secretary or the services department without his approval, amid a growing discord between bureaucrats and the city government.

The order comes close on the heels of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government seeking the Centre's approval to appoint 1989-batch Indian Administrative Service officer PK Gupta as the new chief secretary of Delhi.

Gupta is currently serving as additional chief secretary in the general administration department (GAD) of the Delhi government. The present chief secretary, Naresh Kumar, is due to retire later this year, officials said.

"In supercession of all earlier orders, it is hereby directed that no orders for any category of employees shall be passed by the chief secretary or secretary (services) or services department without the approval of the undersigned," Bharadwaj said in an order signed by him.

This order is the latest in a series of directions passed by the aaP dispensation after being given executive power in services matters, including transfer and posting of officers, in an important verdict by the Supreme Court.

On May 13, Special Secretary (Vigilance) Y V V J Rajasekhar was divested of his duties on the direction of Bharadwaj.

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Hours after the Supreme Court order placed the control of bureaucrats working with the Delhi government, excluding those related to police, public order, and land, under the elected government, Services Secretary ashish More was removed.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's support for the early construction of the proposed international airport at Puri.

Speaking at the flagging off of the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express, he urged Modi for two more such trains between Puri and Rourkela, and Bhubaneswar and Hyderabad.

"I met the prime minister recently and had a detailed discussion on the proposed Shree Jagannath International Airport at Puri. We will incorporate all the suggestions given by him for making it a world-class seaside airport," Patnaik said, addressing the programme through video conference in the presence of Modi.

"With the cooperation and support of the prime minister, this airport will be ready within three-four years. The prime minister will come to 'Shreekhetra' (Puri) to dedicate it to the nation," he added.

Patnaik said the state government was developing Puri as an international centre of heritage. "It is the first city in India to have 100 per cent drink-from-tap water supply."



At the programme, Modi launched railway projects worth Rs 8,200 crore and also flagged off the state's first Vande Bharat Express that will connect Puri to West Bengal's Howrah.

Thanking the prime minister, Patnaik said, "I would take this opportunity to request him for the introduction of a Vande Bharat Express between Puri and Rourkela, and another one connecting Bhubaneswar and Hyderabad. These trains will facilitate faster movement of passengers between these important cities."



He said that the introduction of Vande Bharat trains was a step towards India's aspiration of having bullet trains.

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"I am sure, under your leadership, we would soon have our own bullet trains," Patnaik told the prime minister who also joined the programme virtually.

He also urged Modi for the sanction of the Puri-Konark new railway line.

Noting that the Odisha government has always been very proactive in supporting railway projects in the state, Patnaik said the people of the state have willingly pledged their land in the past, hoping for new economic avenues through railways.

"The Odisha government offers 50 per cent of the construction cost, and bears the entire cost of land for railway projects, making it extremely profitable for the railways," the chief minister said.
India on Thursday said it is expecting several deliverables to come out of the Quad summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima that will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden and their counterparts from Japan and Australia.

Modi will embark on a six-day visit of Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia on Friday to attend three key multilateral summits including that of the Group of Seven (G7) and the Quad.

Prime Minister Modi's three-nation tour will be a hectic one as over 40 engagements have been lined up, officials said, adding he will interact with over two dozen world leaders in summits as well as through bilateral meetings.

In the first leg of his trip, Modi will visit Hiroshima from May 19 to 21 primarily for the annual summit of the G7 advanced economies in which he is expected to speak on challenges facing the globe including food, fertiliser and energy security.

From Japan, Modi will travel to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea where he will host the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) on May 22 jointly with Prime Minister James Marape.

In the third and final leg of the trip, Modi will visit Australia, where he will hold talks with his counterpart Anthony Albanese and address a diaspora event on May 23.

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The Quad summit was originally scheduled to be held in Sydney but it will now take place in Hiroshima as Biden postponed his visit to Australia to focus on crucial debt-ceiling talks in Washington.

"There are several deliverables which we are expecting to come out of it and I think all that would be showcased when the four leaders meet in Hiroshima," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing without elaborating.

Asked whether it will be a regular summit of the Quad at Hiroshima or just a meeting, he said "when the four Quad leaders meet, it is a Quad summit."



The foreign secretary said India's regular participation at the G7 summits clearly points to increasing recognition that it should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges including those of peace, security and development.

"This is even salient in the context of our ongoing presidency of the G20 and our particular efforts to prioritise the interests and concerns of our fellow members of the global south," he said.

Japan is hosting the G7 summit in its capacity as the current chair of the powerful grouping. Modi is travelling to that country at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

The broad agenda of the G7 summit will revolve around nuclear disarmament, economic resilience, economic security, regional issues, climate change, energy security, food and health.

Kwatra said India's participation at the summit would be structured around two formal sessions on May 20 and another one on May 21.

The first session would be on food, health, development and gender equality, the second one will be on climate, energy and environment while the third session would be on the theme 'peaceful stable and prosperous world'.

To a question on India's position on the Ukraine conflict, Kwatra referred to Modi's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that it is not an era of war during a bilateral meeting in the Uzbek city of Samarkand in September last year.

Modi clearly said this is not an era of war and the resolution of the conflict has to be through dialogue and diplomacy, Kwatra recalled.

"That is the fundamental anchor on which our political positioning and the pursuit of our economic interests and other interests is based insofar as this conflict is concerned," he said.

The foreign secretary said Modi will inaugurate a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima.

He said the prime minister will also hold bilateral meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima. He, however, said the details of the meetings are being worked out.

To a question, Kwatra indicated that the prime minister may raise incidents of attacks on Indians in Australia during his talks with his Australian counterpart.

Separately, officials said Modi will address over thousands of members of the Indian diaspora in Sydney along with Albanese.

The event will have a lot of elements from culture to commerce and diaspora to diplomacy.


By Song Kyung-jin



The 49th G7 Summit 2023 is held today in Hiroshima, Japan until May 21. President Yoon Suk Yeol has been invited to this G7 Summit. This is the fourth time for Korea's president to be invited to attend such a meeting after the Hokkaido Toyako G8 2008, L'Aquila G8 2009 and Cornwall G7 2021.



While the decision to invite non-G7 nations to the G7 Summit lies with the host country and is respected as the host's prerogative, the list of invitees is perceived to be strategically important in addressing global political and economic issues and better serving the global public good. Oftentimes, the host also invites countries that have special historical relationships.



Korea's participation in the G7 is an outcome of its credibility and leadership accumulated in the global collective endeavor and contribution toward the recovery from the 2008 global financial crisis and the promotion of democracy and universal values. It per se is in close alignment with Korea's aspirations to become a global pivotal state.



In discussions with the guest countries and the eight outreach international organizations, the G7 is stated to focus on securing the rules-based international order and expanding the G7 cooperation with the Global South in dealing with the global economy, climate change, food security, public health and development.



President Yoon has emphasized many times the central importance of freedom, the rule of law, human rights and democracy for peace, stability and prosperity in the region and around the world. Korea is determined to closely cooperate with like-minded countries to promote the values and beliefs it upholds, welcoming all that are willing to join this noble cause and not excluding anyone.



Korea, in particular, can do a great deal more on the front of cooperation with the Global South. Cooperation with the Global South is what Korea has been emphasizing since the Seoul G20 Summit 2010 whereby it brought the development agenda as a G20 core pillar after a series of strenuous negotiations with the G7. The world knows well that it is Korea's initiative.



Central to Korea's argument then was that the time had come for the global key players to do away with the charity-like assistance to emerging and developing countries and instead start assisting the developing world to learn how to catch fish. Korea offered itself as a bridge between the developed and developing worlds.



For instance, Korea knows more than any of the G7 countries what poverty and hunger are like. Investment in research and development for agricultural productivity emancipated Koreans from hunger. Korea is now committed to cooperation with developing countries so they may follow suit as quickly as possible with climate-resilient agricultural technology.



As part and parcel of this engagement, Korea has been deliberately increasing its official development assistance (ODA) as a share of the gross domestic product. The ODA budget was increased by 18 percent this year and will likely be increased equally or even further next year.



Cooperation with the Global South needs to be aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that both the G7 and the G20 endorsed and adopted as an integral part of their agenda. It requires much more coordination and cooperation between the G7 and the G20 where Korea's contribution is much expected to ensure delivery of commitments in the two important global steering committees. Hence, the progress of the G7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment pledged at the Schloss Elmau G7 2022 should be reviewed and recommitted in Hiroshima.



Korea together with India as the G20 presidency 2023 should call for expediting the climate financing enhancement of multilateral development banks such as the World Bank to support emerging and developing countries to deal with climate change.



President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the G7 host, have agreed to visit the Cenotaph for Korean Victims at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to pay respects to the Korean atomic bomb victims during the G7 Summit. The manifold significance of the first-ever joint visit by a Korean president and a Japanese prime minister cannot be overstressed. The noble act of the two leaders will go down in history as an immensely powerful message for peace and harmony for a nuclear-free world in sync with the Hiroshima Action Plan expected to be endorsed by the G7. It demonstrates a great leap forward toward better and future Korea-Japan relations. It is happening at the proposal and leadership of President Yoon. Prime Minister Kishida's leadership deserves appreciation, too.



The main agenda of the G7 proper includes Ukraine, the Free and Open Indo-Pacific, economic, energy and food security, digitalization, health and development, gender equality and nuclear disarmament. They all have great relevance to Korea, too, calling for its engagement and leadership. By living up to the expectations of the global community, Korea will be one step closer to the global pivotal state it aspires to be.





Dr. Song Kyung-jin (kj_song@hotmail.com) led the Institute for Global Economics (IGE), based in Seoul and served as special adviser to the chairman of the Presidential Committee for the Seoul G20 Summit in the office of the president. Now, she is the executive director of the Innovative Economy Forum.


The nine workers killed in the illegal firecracker factory explosion in West Bengal's East Midnapore district were forced to take up the job owing to acute poverty and lack of alternative income opportunities.

According to sources from the state government, the provision of 100-day job scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in the entire Egra block, like many other pockets in West Bengal, had been suspended for around the last couple of years due to paucity of funds under the scheme.

In such a situation, local people claim that owners of illegal factories in the region like that of Krishnapada Bag a.k,a. Bhanu provided an opportunity offering a daily wage of Rs 400 to those looking for jobs.

"Despite knowing the acute risk involved, these poor people were forced to accept the offers from people like Bhanu. The Trinamool Congress- controlled panchayats actually looted money by creating fake job-cards and fake master-roles. Because of this rampant corruption, the central funds under the job scheme have been stopped and people are forced to look for alternative jobs even at the cost of risking their lives," said local BJP leader Mamata Maiti.

Admitting that some people are often getting lured because of the lack of alternative income opportunities, the local Trinamool Congress MLA Tarun Maiti has alleged that the Union government had deliberately held back the funds under MGNREGA scheme out of vendetta after being defeated in the 2021 state Assembly polls.

"As long as the funds were there, all got jobs under the MGNREGA schemes. Even after the central funds were discontinued, the state government tried to continue with their limited resources, but it is impossible to continue with the scheme for long without the Centre's grants," he said.

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--IANS

src/shb/


Some of the other important cases that were heard today are: The Supreme Court on Thursday heard some important cases during which the court sought a response of the Delhi Police on a plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid seeking bail in a UAPA case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the riots here in February 2020.

- Controversial film The Kerala Story' will be now be screened in theatres of West Bengal as the SC stayed the ban while asking the producer to put a disclaimer that the movie is a fictionalised version and there was no authentic data to the claim that 32,000 Hindu and Christian girls converted to Islam.





- SC sought response of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the bail plea of former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain in a money laundering case being probed by the agency.

- The caste survey in Bihar will remain suspended as the SC declined to stay the Patna High Court's interim order, saying it will have to examine whether the state government was carrying out a census in the garb of survey.

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- SC directed a copy of the petition be served on the CBI, in which direction is sought that the Bombay High Court continue monitoring the investigation into the murder of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.

- The law of the land must be followed, SC said while expressing displeasure over the Nagaland Assembly passing a resolution to repeal the municipal act and resolving not to hold elections to the urban local bodies.



Here are some of the important cases heard by the Delhi High Court: - SC agreed to hear on Friday a plea challenging the Allahabad High Court order of conducting a scientific survey, including carbon dating, to determine the age of a Shivling' which was said to have been found at the Gyanvapi mosque complex in Varanasi.

- HC sought response of the NHAI and the Centre on a plea seeking to direct banks to pay interest to the authorities on the money collected by them with the issue of FASTag and minimum balance requirement on the card.





- HC rejected a plea against the appointment of Jamia Millia Islamia's current vice chancellor Najma Akhtar to the post.

- HC refused to set aside the conviction of a man for raping a woman and inserting sticks in her private parts before he strangled her.



- HC said it would hear in July the issue of maintainability of two petitions by Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust, the two NGOs headed by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, challenging cancellation of their Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licences.

- HC constituted a five-member committee for implementation of the National Rare Disease Policy-2021, including procurement and "indigenisation" of therapies and drugs for the patients who are mostly children.

- HC said Malpractice in admission processes in educational institutions are antithetical to the Constitution of India which provides that the process be held in a fair, transparent and non-exploitative manner.

- SC upheld the validity of amendment Acts of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka which allowed bull-taming sport "Jallikattu", bullock-cart races and buffalo racing sport "Kambala" respectively.
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the West Bengal government order banning the film 'The Kerala Story'.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said the court intends to stay the West Bengal government's order passed on May 8, banning the screening of the film 'The Kerala Story'.

The bench, also comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and J.B. Pardiwala, also directed Tamil Nadu to provide adequate security to every cinema hall for safe screening of 'The Kerala Story' and ensure safety of moviegoers, and also the state will not directly or indirectly thwart screening of the film.

During the hearing the bench told senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, representing the West Bengal government, that the state government banned the film on the basis of 13 people, "you get any 13 people they will say ban any movie. Unless you're showing them cartoons or sports..."

The top court noted that the film has been released everywhere in the country. Singhvi said West Bengal's demographic is very different and it has to be considered.

The Chief Justice said, "You can't expect demographic to be the same everywhere...power is to be exercised in proportional way..."

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The Chief Justice told Singhvi that you cannot make fundamental rights be dependent on public display of emotion and, "If you didn't like it, don't watch the film".

The Chief Justice told the West Bengal government counsel that steps can be taken by the state government in a particular district in connection with the screening of the movie, if there is an incident, but it cannot be banned across the entire state.

The West Bengal government has told the Supreme Court that the film 'The Kerala Story' is based on manipulated facts and contains hate speech in multiple scenes, which may cause disharmony between the communities, while justifying prohibition on exhibition of the movie.

The state government, in a counter affidavit, said if the movie is allowed to be exhibited the same will cause breach of peace which will not be in the interest of justice.

"The movie is based on manipulated facts and contains hate speech in multiple scenes that may hurt communal sentiments and cause disharmony between the communities which will eventually lead to a law and order situation, as has been gauged from various intelligence inputs received by the state government over a period of time," said the affidavit.

The state government said to maintain public order and for the benefit of the general public, and by exercising its power section 6 (1) of the West Bengal Cinemas (Regulation) Act, it has imposed a prohibition on exhibition of the movie.

--IANS

ss/dpb
In wake of budget airline Go First going for insolvency resolution proceedings due to financial difficulties, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday expressed concern over the situation, acknowledging that it is not favourable for the industry.

Talking to reporters here, he emphasised that while Go First's financial challenges impact the civil aviation sector, it is the responsibility of each company to address their individual issues.

He assured that the Ministry remains committed to supporting airlines in overcoming any underlying problems they may face.

Meanwhile, Go Airlines has extended the suspension of flight operations till May 26.

Earlier, on May 10, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitted the voluntary insolvency petition filed by the airline and appointed Abhilash Lal as the Interim Resolution Professional (IRP).

The Principal Bench of NCLT, New Delhi also declared a moratorium for the company and directed the suspended Board of Directors to cooperate with the IRP.

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The NCLT has also ordered the suspended management to deposit Rs 5 crore for the IRP to meet the immediate expenses to be adjusted by the Committee of Creditors (COC) to be formed soon.

It had also ordered the company from retrenching any of its employees.

Blaming global aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney of not providing spare engines for defective ones resulting in the grounding of nearly half of its fleet, Go First Airlines had approached the NCLT with a petition for resolution on May 2.

In reaction, Pratt & Whitney's spokesperson in a statement said: "Go First's (Go Airlines brand) allegations that Pratt & Whitney is responsible for its financial condition are without merit. Pratt & Whitney will vigorously defend itself against Go's claims, and is pursuing its own legal recourse."

The airline had approached the NCLT to retain its aircraft from being repossessed by the lessors. With the bankruptcy cover, the lessors have to petition the NCLT.

It was also reported rival airlines have started talking with the airport authorities to take over the slots occupied by Go Airlines.

--IANS

ssh/vd
After the Supreme Court allowed the screening of The Kerala Story' in West Bengal, the TMC on Thursday said if any issue arises due to the showing of the film, the opposition should not blame the ruling party.

The Trinamool Congress maintained that the ban on the screening of the film was imposed apprehending tensions among communities.

'The Kerala Story', starring Adah Sharma, was released in theatre halls on May 5. Directed by Sudipto Sen, the film claims that women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS).

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court stayed the West Bengal government's order prohibiting the screening of 'The Kerala Story'.

The apex court also said it is the duty of the state government to maintain law and order as the film has been granted certification by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

The TMC said the state government would abide by the court order, but apprehensions of communal tensions among communities drove the state's decision.

Also Read The Kerala Story gets 'A' certificate from censor board, 10 scenes deleted The Kerala Story: All you need to know about the raging controversy Why has the upcoming movie 'The Kerala Story' courted controversy? Bengal bans 'The Kerala Story'; filmmakers say will take legal action 'The Kerala Story' to be made tax-free in Uttar Pradesh, after MP Nagaland urban local body polls: Law of land must be followed, says SC CCI notifies setting up of regional offices in Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai Sebi issues Rs 5.35 cr notice to fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi 20 electric buses with upgraded features inducted into Goa's transport body Mandaviya calls for AYUSH integration into mainstream public healthcare

"The state government had taken the decision as it apprehended that there could be tensions if the film was screened. Now the honourable Supreme Court has passed an order. The state government would abide by the court's order. The opposition should not try to project it as a victory or a defeat of the state government," state minister and TMC leader Shashi Panja said.

Senior TMC leader and party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, "As the Supreme Court passed an order, the film will be screened again. Now if there are issues due to the film screening, the opposition should not blame us.

The BJP, however, welcomed the apex court's order staying the West Bengal government's prohibition on the screening of the movie, claiming that the court has exposed the ruling TMC's communal politics.

"We welcome the Supreme Court's order staying the ban by the West Bengal government on the screening of the film "The Kerala Story". The TMC government banned the film to send out a message to a particular community. The TMC is trying to create tensions among communities through such a decision. It has exposed the communal politics of the ruling party," senior BJP leader Rahul Sinha said.

A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud directed the producer to put a disclaimer in the movie by 5 pm on May 20 on the claim that 32,000 Hindu and Christian women were converted to Islam.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on May 8 ordered an immediate ban on the screening of 'The Kerala Story' in the state to avoid "any incident of hatred and violence", a senior state government official had said.

West Bengal was the first state to ban the film.

Senior BJP leader and actor Rudranil Ghosh said it is high time that the TMC should learn the lessons of the apex court.

"Such a decision won't help the TMC consolidate minority votes ahead of the panchayat or Lok Sabha polls. No other state has banned the film, and the TMC government wants us to believe that there will be problems if the movie is screened here. It is high time that they learn the apex court's lessons," Ghosh said.

Senior CPI (M) leader Tanmoy Bhattacharya accused the TMC government of giving "free publicity" to the film by banning it.

"This film is propaganda against the Left Front government in Kerala. But still, we don't believe in banning any film. The TMC prohibited the movie and provided it with free publicity," he said.
A US court has consented to the Indian request, through the US Government, for the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

On June 10, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

"The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request, the judge wrote.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks.

India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in 2008. The NIA has said that it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels.

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During court hearings, US Government attorneys argued that Rana was aware that his childhood friend Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley was involved with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and that by assisting Headley and affording him cover for his activities, he was supporting the terrorist organization and its associates.

Rana knew of Headley's meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets. The US government asserted that Rana was part of the conspiracy and there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commission of a terrorist act.

Rana's attorney on the other hand opposed the extradition.

A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

Because members of the conspiracy committed acts resulting in death with the intention of causing death, or at a minimum committed those acts knowing its imminent dangers, there is sufficient evidence that the elements for murder would be satisfied, federal prosecutors said.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

India, the judge said, has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the following offences on which the US is proceeding: (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

"The foregoing charged offences constitute extraditable offences within the meaning and scope of the Treaty and over which India has jurisdiction, the judge ruled.

The judge said that sufficient competent evidence has been presented to establish probable cause that Rana is the individual who has been charged in India and whose extradition has been sought by India in this action, and that Rana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been sought.

"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty, the judge ruled.
Maharashtra Minister for Cultural Affairs Sudhir Mungantiwar on Wednesday said he would visit the UK next month and try to bring back a sword and metal claws used by warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the 17th century.

The metal claws or 'wagh nakh' is a weapon designed to fit over the knuckles or be concealed under and against the palm. It consists of four or five curved blades affixed to a crossbar. This weapon was used by Shivaji Maharaj to kill Afzal Khan, the general of the Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur Sultanate.

"I had a discussion with the British deputy high commissioner earlier on making available the 'Jagdamba' sword and 'wagh nakh' here. We are signing an memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding the same," Mungantiwar said.

The minister had held a meeting with Alan Gemmell, British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India and Imogen Stone, Deputy Head, Political and Bilateral Affairs on April 16.

"We are celebrating the 350th anniversary of the coronation of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. More than 100 events will be held in the state to commemorate the occasion starting from June 2 this year. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, descendants of Shivaji Maharaj and others will be invited for the event," he said.

Mungantiwar said he would visit the UK in June and try to take the matter further with the finalisation of the MoU and to decide the further course of action.

Also Read Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Death Anniversary 2023: 10 things you must know Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti: History, celebration in Maharashtra Maharashtra salutes Chhatrapati Shivaji on 393rd birth anniversary Fadnavis to unveil statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Mauritius Traders' body supports Oppn's Pune bandh against remark on Shivaji Maharaj Higher education sector in doldrums in Kerala: Congress slams Kerala govt HC grants protection from coercive steps to Wankhede in Aryan Khan case Stakeholder consultation for next phase of Delhi EV policy on May 24 Top headlines: India EV penetration at 1.1%, RBI surplus to surpass targets BJP to form board on its own for 1st time in 13 UP municipal corporations

"We are trying to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi for one of the events here in Maharashtra, but it has not been finalised," he added.
In an effort to revive plans for India, Tesla officials have contacted numerous government agencies. They (Tesla) have approached us, said an official of the heavy industries ministry.

The Centre is unlikely to offer any import duty concessions to Elon Musks Tesla unless the company considers local investment, a report by the Economic Times (Et) said.


A vice president at hiring firm Teamlease Services, Balasubramaniam, was quoted in the newspaper as saying that summer season-related temporary hiring to cater to after-sales requirements has increased. On the other hand, the demand for the in-store workforce engaged in cooling products has also increased by 15-20 per cent. As the country faces simmering heat, there has been a 20-25 per cent rise in the hiring for the workforce engaged in sales and services related to cooling products, a report published in The Economic Times (ET) said. Recruitment companies say that it has resulted in higher demand for such staff.



Companies that manufacture cooling products expect a further rise in demand for the temporary workforce for sales and maintenance needs as the heat makes its grip tighter in the country in the coming weeks, the ET report said. This is despite the relatively late onset of summer, thanks to the unexpected rains in March and April in North India. With mercury rising, Central and East India have been facing heat wave conditions for over a month now.

Sharing insights about the industry, a VP at Godrej Appliances was quoted in the report as saying, Whenever demand for cooling products increases, it does lead to higher demand for workforce across the value chain  whether its manufacturing, retail, installation or after-sales. We are prepared to ramp up the temp workforce across the value chain, the official added.
Also Read Jindal Saw hits over 5-year high; zooms 94% in 3 months on healthy outlook Metal stocks: Will export duty rollback help? Crucial for India to secure its nickel needs, says Jindal Stainless MD Jindal Steel & Power net profit down 68 per cent to Rs 518.67 crore Roll-back of export duty on steel has no near-term earnings upside: Experts Jubilant FoodWorks dips 5% on disappointing March quarter results Weekly Expiry: Will Nifty hold 18,200 level at close today? Stocks to Watch today, May 18: HDFC Bk, Vedant Fashions, MM Forgings, NDTV MARKET LIVE: Sensex off highs, up 150 pts; Pharma, Realty, Auto stocks dip Nifty Pharma likely to remain bearish in near-term, can dip below 12,000

Shares of Jindal Saw hit a record high of Rs 198.25, as they rallied 13.5 per cent on the BSE in Thursday's intra-day, amid heavy volumes. The company, on Wednesday, reported strong March quarter (Q4FY23) earnings with consolidated net profit more-than-doubling to Rs 294 crore on the back of healthy operational performance. The stock has surpassed its previous high of Rs 179.65, touched on March 10, 2023.The company, engaged in iron & steel business, had posted profit of Rs 121.84 crore in the year-ago quarter and of Rs 143.23 crore in the previous quarter.Revenue from operations grew 30.7 per cent to Rs 5,188 crore from Rs 3,969 crore in the year-ago quarter. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (ebitda) also increased 50 per cent YoY at Rs 600 crore; Ebitda margin improved 148 bps YoY at 11.57 per cent.In a separate exchange filing Jindal Saw said its Board has approved, in-principle, to dispose off (either by way of sale or liquidation) Green Ray Holdings Limited, United Kingdom (subsidiary of the Company) along with its step down subsidiary, Derwent Sand SARL, Algeri.Thus far in the calendar year, the stock price of Jindal Saw has zoomed 91 per cent as compared to 1 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. At 10:02 AM, it was quoting 12.5 per cent higher at Rs 196.55, as against 0.30 per cent gain in the benchmark index. The average trading volumes on the counter jumped four-times today with a combined 11.7 million equity shares having changed hands on the NSE and BSE.Jindal Saw, the flagship company of the PR Jindal group, major products are longitudinal submerged arc welded (LSAW) pipes, helical SAW (HSAW) pipes, ductile iron (DI) pipes and seamless pipes and pellets.The Companys revenue is well balanced among various products with no single product contributing more than 30 per cent of its revenue. Most of the products contribute between 10 per cent to 30 per cent of the total revenue, thus providing diversification to the cash flows and hedge against market volatility related to any single product.Jindal Saw has a strong presence in the overseas market, with export contributing around 25 per cent to its top line. A larger portion of the exports are to Latin American countries and MENA region. Almost half of the Companys revenues come from water supply and sanitation (WSS), which is growing rapidly in India and globally.The Companys exposure to the oil and gas sector accounts for only one third of the total revenue. Due to its diversified portfolio, the Company has been able to protect itself from the volatilities in one or more strategic business units. Jindal Saws client portfolio includes the government and the private sector, with a strong domestic and international presence across brands.Analysts believe that the company shall be able to report healthy operating performance on the back of its relatively de-risked business model with the benefits of diversification in terms of both product segments and manufacturing locations, and competitive cost structure with captive availability of iron ore for its pellet plant. Furthermore, favourable industry tailwinds on the back of governments push towards investment in water sector and renewed focus on investments in global oil and gas sector shall benefit the company in the medium term.




Korea's Hyundai Motor said Thursday it will launch the G70 and G70 Shooting Brake upgraded models in the domestic market.







Beginning Friday, the G70 sedan will be available with a 2.5-liter gasoline turbocharged engine or a 3.3-liter gasoline turbocharged engine, with the G70 Shooting Brake equipped with a 2.5-liter gasoline turbocharged engine, the company said in a statement.







The G70 Shooting Brake, a sport wagon, is the first strategic model under Hyundai's independent Genesis brand for European markets.







The 2.5-liter G70, 3.3-liter G70 and G70 Shooting Brake models are priced at 43 million won ($32,000), 48 million won and 45 million won, respectively, it said.







Hyundai launched the Genesis brand in 2015 in the domestic market and has released Genesis models in the United States, Canada, Russia, the Middle East and Australia.







The Genesis lineup consists of the G70, G80 and G90 sedans, as well as the GV70 and GV80 SUVs. (Yonhap)


Twitter is all the rage right now. Like it has always been. And it has been rife with controversies since Elon Musk took over. He had fired almost 50% of the workforce including its CEO Parag Agarwal. He also privatized Twitter. And now, Musk has appointed Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO. So will she tick the right buttons and restore sanity at Twitter?

In our first story today, we take a peek at the road ahead for Indias electronics exports. In 2018, during the peak of the US-China trade war, Washington had imposed a 25% tariff on a slew of Chinese electronics products. While the move riled China, its smaller competitors rejoiced. They saw an opportunity. Since then, nations like Vietnam, Malaysia and Mexico, have seen a surge in their exports to the US. India, however, seems to have lagged behind. So how can it catch up in the US-electronics exports race?
After the Shiv Sena (UBT), even the Nationalist Congress Party has demanded that the issue of disqualification of 16 MLAs - including Chief Minister Eknath Shinde - must be decided quickly, here on Thursday.

NCP National Spokesperson Clyde Crasto called upon the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to act on the matter on priority now that the Supreme Court verdict is out.

"Narwekar should take a non-partisan and quick decision to solve the issue... If not, then the delay in taking the decision might raise questions on the Constitutional position of the Speaker," Crasto pointed out.

Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) ally Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Thursday raised questions over the Speaker addressing the media several times on the 16 MLAs disqualification issue.

Referring to Narwekar's statement that if the SC could take some 10 months on its judgement, why the Speaker should not get a reasonable period to take a decision, the NCP leader said the apex court had studied the case minutely and then directed the Speaker to take certain decisions prescribed under authority as a constitutional head of the Maharashtra Legislature.

Crasto said that the SC has already termed the appointment of Shinde Shiv Sena's Whip Bharat Gogawale as illegal and this will actually make it easier for the Speaker to give his ruling as all directives issued by an unauthorised Whip are rendered invalid.

Also Read Rs 2,000 cr deal to purchase Shiv Sena name and symbol, says Sanjay Raut Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde to visit Ayodhya with Shiv Sena leaders today MVA's collapse, its aftermath kept political pot boiling in Maha in 2022 Congress accuses BJP of fuelling speculation on Pawar's next political move Our govt formed legally: Shinde; Raut asserts Uddhav faction is 'real' Sena Everything you need to know about Siddaramaiah, Karnataka's next CM Arjun Ram Meghwal replaces Rijiju, a look at all law ministers under Modi Kuki MLAs, civil society groups decide against dialogue with Manipur govt Shifting Rijiju out of law ministry victory of judiciary system: Raut Failed law minister: Opposition hits out after Kiren Rijiju steps down

On May 15 (Monday), a Sena (UBT) delegation led by its Whip Sunil Prabhu met Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal and submitted a memorandum urging that the Speaker should take his decision as early as possible.

Last week, the SC had put the question of the 16 MLAs in the Maharashtra Speaker's domain, and to take the decision in a reasonable time.

Simultaneously, other MVA leaders like state Congress President Nana Patole, state NCP President Jayant Patil, and Sena (UBT) have adopted a similar stance in the matter and appealed to the Speaker to dispose of it at the earliest.

The ruling ally Bharatiya Janata Party's Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis has flayed the Opposition for indulging in "pressure tactics" on the Speaker, and said "the Speaker will not succumb to such pressures and take his decision as per the Constitution".

Meanwhile, the Speaker has already initiated the due process as directed by the SC verdict on this issue.

--IANS

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During his 22-month tenure, Rijiju had frequent run-ins with the judiciary. He took on the Supreme Court, including the collegium system of appointing Supreme Court and high court judges and described it as alien to the Constitution. Sources said the governments desire to reset its ties with the judiciary, with the Lok Sabha elections 10 months away, could have spurred it to divest Rijiju of the law portfolio. The Narendra Modi government on Thursday removed Kiren Rijiju as the Union law minister, replacing him with Arjun Ram Meghwal.



Meghwal, 69, the BJPs Dalit face from Rajasthan and a bureaucrat-turned-politician, assumed charge as the Union law minister on Thursday afternoon. Soon after taking over his new portfolio, Meghwal said there was no confrontation with the judiciary. The executive and the judiciary have a cordial relationship, which will stay cordial and constitutional. The boundaries are already there, he told reporters. Rijiju, who proposed the political resolution at the BJPs national executive meeting in January, signalling his growing stature in the party, was shifted to the low-profile earth sciences ministry, earlier held by Jitendra Singh. Rijijus surprise transfer was followed by the Rashtrapati Bhavan issuing another communique that said S P Singh Baghel, the minister of state for law, was being moved to the health and family welfare ministry.



In March, Rijiju received flak from some retired judges when he dubbed them as part of anti-India forces. It has been a privilege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law and Justice under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, Rijiju tweeted, thanking Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, all judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices and judges of high courts, lower judiciary and law officers for the huge support in ensuring the ease of justice and providing legal services for citizens. Meghwal is the minister of state (independent charge) for the law ministry and remains MoS, parliamentary affairs and culture ministries. Meghwals elevation, a three-term Lok Sabha MP from Bikaner, comes with the Rajasthan assembly election slated for later this year. Apart from bringing the governments relations with the higher judiciary to an even keel, Meghwal could also convey more persuasively the governments views on issues such as same-sex marriage.

Also Read Cabinet reshuffle: Arjun Meghwal replaces Kiren Rijiju as new law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal replaces Rijiju, a look at all law ministers under Modi Linking voter ID to Aadhaar not compulsory, Kiren Rijiju tells Lok Sabha Law minister Rijiju suggests inclusion of govt representatives in collegium Indian stock market to remain closed today on account of Ram Navami AAP government gave jobs to 29,237 youths in one year: Punjab CM Mann Shivakumar, Cong trouble shooter who failed to cross hurdle to CM's post TMC claims no responsibility after SC stays ban on 'The Kerala Story' Nagaland urban local body polls: Law of land must be followed, says SC Siddaramaiah: A veteran who is revered on both sides of the aisle

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi speculated whether the recent Supreme Court judgment on Maharashtra caused Rijijus removal. Is it because of the Maharashtra judgement embarrassment? Or the Modani-SEBI investigation? Chaturvedi asked in a tweet.
Veteran leader Siddaramaiah was elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party in Karnataka held here on Thursday, paving the way for his swearing in as the Chief Minister.

After the election, Siddaramaiah and state Congress President D.K. Shivakumar, who will be Deputy Chief Minister, went in the same car to meet the Governor at the Raj Bhavan.

Shivakumar moved the proposal to elect Siddaramaiah as the legislative party leader after the commencement of the meeting and it was supported by all the 135 MLAs.

Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, observers Sushilkumar Shinde, and Jitendra Singh also participated in the CLP meeting. The leaders handed over a bouquet to Siddaramaiah and congratulated him after his election.

The resolution on this regard was approved by senior leaders Dr. G. Parameshwara, H.K. Patil, M.B. Patil, R.V. Deshapande, Laxmi Hebbalkar, Tanveer Sait, and K.H. Muniyappa.

After the selection, Legislative Council floor leader B.K. Hariprasad, Shivakumar and Surjewala presented Siddaramaiah with a bouquet.

Also Read High-voltage campaigning for Karnataka elections to end today at 5 pm Cheap, not part of K'taka politics: CM Bommai on Siddaramaiah's remarks Former Karnataka CM Jagadish Shettar joins Congress post exit from BJP Congress will emerge victorious: Party leaders on Karnataka poll counting Karnataka Election Results 2023: Here is how the tally looks at 10:30 am Challenges for Siddaramaiah: Cabinet formation, poll guarantees fulfillment Bureaucrat-turned-politician Meghwal replaces Rijiju as law minister AAP government gave jobs to 29,237 youths in one year: Punjab CM Mann Shivakumar, Cong trouble shooter who failed to cross hurdle to CM's post TMC claims no responsibility after SC stays ban on 'The Kerala Story'

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar will take oath on May 20. Senior Congress leaders are also taking oath as cabinet ministers and the party is going to announce a major decision regarding implementation of guarantees assured to the people of Karnataka.

The party has promised to give 10 kg of rice to every member of BPL family, Rs 2,000 for woman heads of family, Rs 2,000 allowance for 2 years for unemployed graduates, Rs 1,500 allowance for 2 years for unemployed diploma holders, and free bus travel for women in the entire Karnataka state.

--IANS

mka/vd
After the announcement of the chief ministerial face for Karnataka, Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Thursday spoke to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot over the phone and will stake claim to form the government today evening, sources said.

The Raj Bhavan sources said the swearing-in ceremony will take place on May 20 at 12.30 pm in Bengaluru, for which Congress MLA G Parameshwara went to Raj Bhavan as a representative of the party and met the Governor.

"Karnataka CM-designate Siddaramaiah spoke with Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot over the phone. Siddaramaiah wished him on his birthday and discussed the date for the swearing-in ceremony. The ceremony will be held on May 20 at 12.30 pm. Siddaramaiah today evening will stake the claim to form the Government," sources told ANI.

"Congress MLA G Parameshwara went to Raj Bhavan as a representative of the Congress Party and met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot and gave information about the formation of the government by the Congress Party which has won victory in 135 seats in the 2023 elections," they added.

Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar, who were camping in the national capital for days after winning the Karnataka Assembly polls, left for Bengaluru this afternoon. A Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting will be held in Bengaluru today at 7 pm.

After days of deliberation, Congress on Thursday announced that party leader Siddaramaiah will be the next Karnataka Chief Minister and DK Shivakumar will be Deputy Chief Minister.

Also Read Congress high command will decide on who will be the CM: D K Shivakumar Congress to decide Karnataka CM, Siddaramaiah, DKS in Delhi today Congress victory in Karnataka is best birthday gift for me: Shivakumar Karnataka govt: Kharge to invite Oppn leaders for swearing-in ceremony Shivakumar to reach Delhi for next Karnataka CM talks, says won't backstab After Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP wants quick decision on MLAs' disqualification Everything you need to know about Siddaramaiah, Karnataka's next CM Arjun Ram Meghwal replaces Rijiju, a look at all law ministers under Modi Kuki MLAs, civil society groups decide against dialogue with Manipur govt Shifting Rijiju out of law ministry victory of judiciary system: Raut

Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal made the announcement at the party headquarters in the national capital.

He said Shivakumar will continue as state Congress chief till the Lok Sabha polls. He will be the only Deputy chief minister.

"DK Shivakumar will continue as the PCC president till the end of parliamentary elections. CM, Deputy CM and a group of ministers will be sworn in on May 20," Venugopal said.

The decision on the next Karnataka Chief Minister came following days of hectic parleys in Delhi after the newly-elected MLAs authorized party chief Mallikarjun Kharge to choose their leader.

Both Siddaramaiah, a former Chief Minister, and Shivakumar staked their claims to be chief minister.

The party leadership held a series of meetings over the past several days and numerous formulas were mooted before a decision was arrived.

.


The race for the position of CM was between Siddaramaiah, who had previously held the same post from 2013 to 2018, and D K Shivakumar, the Congress state unit President. The Congress party emerged victorious in the recent elections, securing 135 out of 224 seats in the legislative assembly. In a series of meetings held in New Delhi, both leaders, along with party officials, reached a power-sharing agreement in the early hours of Thursday.

Background

Born into a poor farming household in the Kuruba community in Siddaramanahundi, a remote village in Mysore district (now Mysuru), the 75-year-old Siddaramaiah is the second among five siblings.



India Today reports that Siddaramaiah was widely known as "farmer's lawyer" when he briefly practiced law. He became a voice for the farmers and a member of the Mysore Taluka Board. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree as well as a law degree from Mysore University. According to Moneycontrol he developed impressive oratory skills as a student and was influenced by the brand of socialism advocated by Dr Ram Manohar Lohia.

Also Read High-voltage campaigning for Karnataka elections to end today at 5 pm Karnataka Assembly polls 2023: All you need to know about May 10 elections Congress will emerge victorious: Party leaders on Karnataka poll counting Karnataka Election Results 2023: Here is how the tally looks at 10:30 am Karnataka Election Results 2023: Here is how the tally looks at 11 am Arjun Ram Meghwal replaces Rijiju, a look at all law ministers under Modi Kuki MLAs, civil society groups decide against dialogue with Manipur govt Shifting Rijiju out of law ministry victory of judiciary system: Raut Failed law minister: Opposition hits out after Kiren Rijiju steps down Only JPC probe will reveal 'full truth of the Modani scam', says Congress



Political Career He went on to marry his wife, Parvathy, and have two children. His eldest son, Rakesh, a Congressman passed away in 2016 after multiple organ failures in Belgium. His younger son, Yathinda is also a politician in the Indian National Congress party.



He later joined the ruling Janata Party and served as the Minister of State for Sericulture. Siddaramaiah's political career saw him play a significant role as the first chairman of Kannada Kavalu Samiti, a committee responsible for overseeing the implementation of Kannada as an official language, which was established during Ramakrishna Hegde's chief ministership. Siddaramaiah embarked on his political journey by contesting elections from the Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysore on a Bharatiya Lok Dal ticket in 1983. His unexpected victory led to his appointment as a member of the Karnataka legislative assembly.



Siddaramaiah is widely recognised as the architect of "Ahinda," an acronym representing the Kannada words Alpasankhyataru (minorities), Hindulidavaru (backward classes), and Dalitaru (Dalits). Coined by D Devraj Urs, the first backward-class leader of the state, Ahinda helped Siddaramaiah consolidate support across diverse communities in a state dominated by Lingayats, Muslims, and Vokkaligas, enabling him to position himself as a mass leader. In 2004, a coalition government was formed by the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) (also known as JDS), with Siddaramaiah, then a member of JDS, assuming the role of Deputy Chief Minister. He also served as the state party president of JDS from 1999 to 2004. However, in 2006, Siddaramaiah joined the Congress after being expelled by JDS due to differences with party leader HD Deve Gowda.



Chief Minister stint 2013-2018 Ahead of the 2013 elections, Siddaramaiah led a march to Ballari, challenging the Reddy brothersGali Janardhana Reddy and G Somashekara Reddywho were implicated in a major mining scam.



As chief minister from 2013 to 2018, Siddaramaiah implemented various welfare measures, including the Anna Bhagya (free rice scheme), Ksheera Bhagya (free milk), and setting up Indira canteens among others. In 2013, Siddaramaiah became the Chief Minister, surpassing M Mallikarjun Kharge, who currently serves as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) president and was the Union Labour and Employment Minister at the time. He also managed to retain his Varuna seat.



Siddaramaiah is only the third Chief Minister of Karnataka, following S Nijalingappa and Devaraj Urs, to complete a full term in office. During his tenure, he did face allegations of corruption from the Opposition and fights within Congress.



Leader of Opposition during BJP rule He holds the record for presenting 13 state budgets during his tenure as the Finance Minister.



During the BJP's rule, Siddaramaiah became the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) from 2019 to 2023. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 104 seats, missing the 113-majority mark by nine seats. Congress won 80, a significant loss compared to the 122 seats it won in the previous poll. Siddaramaiah lost in Chamudeshwari but won from Badami.

Next CM of Karnataka

During the election, Siddaramaiah had repeatedly announced that this would be his last election and that he would retire from electoral politics. Upon Congress' win in the state, Siddaramaiah is gearing up to take charge of Karnataka for a second time.



According to PTI, Siddaramaiah has vowed to fulfill Congress' five pre-poll guarantees. This includes Gruha Jyoti (200 units of free power to all households), Gruha Lakshmi (Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family), Anna Bhagya household (10 kg of rice free to every member of a BPL ), Yuva Nidhi (Rs 3,000 every month for graduate youth and Rs 1,500 for diploma holders, in the age group of 18-25, for two years ), and Shakti (free travel for women in public transport buses). During the 2023 assembly polls, Siddaramaiah had wanted to contest from Kolar and Varuna, however, he was only allowed to contest from Varuna. He won with more than 46,000 votes. Many news reports speculated on whether Siddaramaiah was banking on the Ahinda factor in the Kolar constituency.

In the same report, he further stated that these promises made by Congress will be fulfilled without burdening the state with debts. He added that it was BJP that had burdened the country with debt and pushed states into bankruptcy.


Karjol, a five-time MLA, decided to wait, and as soon as he glimpsed Siddaramaiah, walked up to the former chief minister with folded hands to inform him about his new assignment. With a pat on Karjols back and an arm around his shoulder, Siddaramaiah wished him well and told him it was richly deserved. On October 10, 2019, Govind Karjol of the Bharatiya Janata Party, newly-appointed deputy chief minister, was talking to a bunch of journalists near the legislators entrance of the Karnataka Assembly, when he heard that Congress Legislative Party leader Siddaramaiah was heading that way.



It was this ability to connect with MLAs big and, especially, small on both sides of the aisle, and his vast experience that ensured that Siddaramaiah, who hails from the shepherd Kuruba caste, won the support of the Congress new legislators after its decisive victory in the elections, a senior Congress MLA said. In the corridors of the Vidhana Soudha, many such anecdotes abound about the veteran leader, who is revered as perhaps the most approachable senior by almost all the MLAs.



Over the past four decades, the 75-year-old first-generation graduate and lawyer has remade himself into an expert in political management and budget making. And so, exactly 40 years after he first entered the Karnataka Assembly, the Congress leader is set to become the chief minister for the second time. He is only the second person in Karnatakas history to complete a full five-year term. Should he complete three years in the post, he will be the longest serving chief minister, and if he finishes the term at the head of the government, he will be the first person to do so in the states history.

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All about numbers

Siddaramaiah holds the record for presenting the highest number of Budgets in Karnataka  13 so far  and is likely to retain the finance portfolio like last time.



A senior bureaucrat, who was part of the previous Siddaramaiah administration, said the former chief minister very strictly abides by three principles in the budget-making exercise: The fiscal deficit must not exceed 3 per cent of gross state domestic product (GSDP), the debt-to-GSDP ratio must not exceed 25 per cent, and there has to be a revenue surplus. Except for some core welfare schemes that he introduced, he is willing to listen to concerns aired by the finance department, the bureaucrat said. He has often spoken about how he was mocked in 1994 before he presented his first Budget. Some people asked, Can he count sheep? Siddaramaiah told a regional news channel.



Challenges ahead The IAS officer said Siddaramaiahs approach is deliberative, and he holds extensive consultations with departments and a wide array of stakeholders, particularly eliciting contrarian views. He is present in every one of those meetings over the whole month of the budget making process, the officer said.



The party has promised to implement these measures in the first Cabinet meeting. A senior Congress leader said the party has estimated that the total cost could be around Rs 50,000 crore. In its election campaign, the Congress announced five guarantees for voters  Rs 2,000 a month to each woman who heads a household; unemployment assistance of Rs 3,000 per month for graduates and Rs 1,500 per month for diploma holders; 200 units of free electricity to all households; 10 kg of foodgrain free for every person in a BPL household; and, free bus travel for women.



The party will bank on these schemes to reduce the BJPs tally in the Lok Sabha elections next year. The saffron party won 25 of the 28 seats in the state in 2019. The bureaucrat quoted above said the guarantees would be hard to implement at one shot, considering the immense cost. They might be introduced in a phased manner, he added.



There is also the matter of the caste Census that the party has promised to release. The Congress had conducted the Census during its previous term, but did not release it because of pressure from the dominant Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities, whose numbers it had apparently reduced, according to a leaked report. Besides, Siddaramaiah also has his task cut out in managing intra-party disagreements, which were visible over the past three days, when both he and Congress Karnataka chief DK Shivakumar jostled for the top spot. He switched to the Congress from the Janata Dal (Secular) in 2006, and has been viewed by old Congress leaders as an outsider.

Indeed, state leaders of the party blamed a backlash from these two dominant groups for its poor performance in the 2018 elections. Siddaramaiah has called that election the most disappointing one in his career, because he lost in one of the two seats he contested, despite introducing a slew of welfare measures. He is looking to rectify that and cement his legacy this time, a close aide of his said.
We are excited to launch the market-leading feature phones, Nokia 105 2023 and Nokia 106 4G, more relevant than ever with the introduction of UPI feature. Through the introduction of UPI features in our feature phones, we aim to empower feature phone users with the ability to perform secure, convenient digital transactions with ease and move ahead with the times. By bringing UPI to our beloved feature phones, Nokia 105 and Nokia 106 4G, we strive to bridge the digital divide and enable financial access for all, said Ravi Kunwar, vice-president-India, HMD Global.

Phone maker HMD Global on Thursday launched the Nokia 105 2023 and Nokia 106 in India at Rs 1,299 and Rs 2,199, respectively. These phones boast an in-built UPI 123PAY functionality, which would enable users to perform digital transactions.
Apple CEO and the vice president tweeted

Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted about the Apple online store in Vietnam. He tweeted, "The Apple Store online goes live in Vietnam today! Were excited to bring the best of Apple to even more customers around the world."



Apple's senior vice president also informed Apple users about opening a new online store in South Asian Country. He tweeted, "Customers are always at the centre of everything we do, and were thrilled to bring the Apple Store online to Vietnam."



The tweet further reads, "With todays expansion, were proud to offer customers an incredible new way to discover and shop for our amazing products and services, connect with our knowledgeable team members, and experience the best of Apple.



Apple online store offers personalised shopping and retail services

Apple launched its online Apple Store in Vietnam. The company wants to expand their business to the South Asian country as its customers in the country can now shop directly from Apple.The users can also leverage exceptional services from talented team members who are ready to share their expertise in Vietnamese.An online store will also allow consumers to consult with experts to inform their purchasing decisions and customise certain orders with tools such as the Apple Watch Studio.People from South Asian countries can also consult with Experts who will assist the buyer with the purchasing decision and customising orders with the help of Apple Watch Studio.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, left, speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Lotte Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. Screenshot from Twitter



By Park Jae-hyuk



Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong was among the Korean business tycoons who met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Seoul on Wednesday afternoon, along with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and POSCO Holdings Chairman Choi Jeong-woo.



A day later, Trudeau uploaded photos of his meetings with the three Korean business leaders.



Although it was revealed on Wednesday that the prime minister met with the heads of SK and POSCO, his meeting with the Samsung chairman had not been known to the public until he posted the pictures.



"Canada is ready to work with Korean partners on critical minerals, high-tech innovation, clean energy solutions, and more," Trudeau tweeted just past midnight. "Today in Seoul, I spoke about that with officials from Samsung, SK Group, and POSCO Holdings  and about how, together, we can create both jobs and growth."



Canada's Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne, who accompanied Trudeau on his trip to Korea, also shared the photos with a message that reads: "Clean tech, the digital economy and critical minerals are all areas in which we will keep working with our Korean partners like Samsung, SK Group and POSCO Holdings."



He also tweeted that strengthening his country's ties with Korean allies will generate economic growth and create good jobs in both countries.





SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, left, speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Lotte Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. Screenshot from Twitter



Samsung, SK and POSCO kept silent on what exactly their chiefs had discussed with Trudeau.



Given that the three conglomerates have subsidiaries active in battery-related sectors and that Canadian government officials were busy meeting with electric vehicle (EV) and battery firms here this week, there is speculation that the mineral-rich North American nation may have asked the business leaders to make investments in the country's EV battery ecosystem.



Last September, Victor Fedeli, the Ontario provincial minister of economic development, job creation and trade, met with Samsung SDI officials to discuss manufacturing opportunities for EVs, consumer electronic batteries and the benefits of investing in the Canadian province.



As for SK Group, its chairman met with the Canadian leader, along with executives of EV battery maker SK On and SKC, which produces copper foil for batteries.



The POSCO Holdings chairman is said to have had talks with the prime minister on the business of POSCO Future M, which had decided to set up a joint battery materials plant in Quebec with General Motors.





POSCO Holdings Chairman Choi Jeong-woo, left, shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Lotte Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. Screenshot from Twitter
Facing a migration quagmire on the French island territory of Mayotte, off Africa's east coast, France's government has sent in 2,000 troops and police to carry out mass expulsions, destroy slums and eradicate violent gangs.

But the operation has become bogged down and raised concerns of abuse, aggravating tensions between local residents and immigrants from the neighbouring country of Comoros.

It is also laying bare entrenched poverty among both communities, tensions over the island's status and deep inequalities between Mayotte and the rest of France.

While Mayotte is a part of France, Comoros 100 kilometers (60 miles) to the northwest across a strait in the Indian Ocean was also once a French colony but has been independent since 1975.

Mayotte is by far the poorest corner of France, but its average annual income of around USD 3,500 is still more than double that in Comoros. This has created a powerful pull.

How can they imagine for a second that (the operation) will make things better? asked Momo, a father of five from Comoros who has lived in Mayotte for 30 years and is opposing efforts to expel him and his family from this island.

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He is among those who say a lack of attention from the French state is at the core of Mayotte's problems. Like most people who spoke to The Associated Press, Momo fears having his full name published for fear of reprisals or expulsion.

Meanwhile, anti-migrant collectives on Mayotte, a volcanic island north of Madagascar known for its vanilla and tea plantations, are starting to take things into their own hands.

Some are blocking a hospital treating foreigners, disrupting shipments of medicines and goods to Comoros and threatening to destroy slums if the authorities don't get there first.

Youth gangs are fighting back, and resisting efforts to make peace. Military forces and police are struggling to keep Mayotte under control.

Both communities are majority Black and trace their origins to a chain of islands whose status is the source of historical dispute.

In 1841, France bought Mayotte from its self-proclaimed sultan in exchange for protection.

French colonisation then extended to the other three main islands of the Comoros chain. As independence movements emerged after World War II, tensions arose among the populations of the different islands.

In a 1974 referendum, three islands supported independence and became the new nation of Comoros, but Mayotte voted against and remained French. Comoros still claims Mayotte as part of the same chain.

While development in Mayotte remains far behind that of the French mainland, Comoros is wracked by corruption and struggles to provide even basic public services. Mayotte is seen by Comorians as a land of refuge where people can at least get medical care and children can go to school.

Since 1991, the population of Mayotte has almost quadrupled to around 260,000, according to the French statistics agency Insee and many other immigrants are believed to remain uncounted. Many people arrive so that their children are born with French residency. Insee says that of the 10,600 children born on Mayotte in 2021, 46.5 per cent had two parents who weren't French.

But once they turn 18, these young people have few job options. Those with only a residence permit can't travel to mainland France. Many turn to the underground economy. Crime has flourished.

That's the backdrop for Operation Wuambushu, launched on April 24 for two months.

It's expected to be extended because of setbacks suffered by the French government and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, the architect of the operation and the driving force in France's overall efforts to stem migration.

Just as the police contingent arrived from the French mainland, a court blocked expulsions, and Comoros refused to take the migrants back. French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Comoros President Azali Assoumani last week to try to break the deadlock.

Many residents welcome the security surge. Earlier this month, more than 1,000 people demonstrated in Chirongui in southern Mayotte in support of the operation, and to express their attachment to France.

On Sunday, people in the village of Tsimkoura in southern Mayotte compiled a list of foreigner settlements and sent it to the mayor, demanding that he expel the residents by the end of the week.

Otherwise, we will take care of it, said Kourati Youssouffa, a public servant with the local administration of Mayotte.

In the isolated village of Hagnoundrou, a printed message circulating this week warned of an imminent hunt for migrants.

It warned, Don't forget your children, they are part of your luggage." Local authorities banned any such move.

There is little room for moderation or neutrality, and tension is worsening between those who define themselves as true Mahorais or Mayotte residents, and the population of Comorian origin.

Many Mahorais feel the arrivals from Comoros deprive them of potential development and of their right to live in peace.

Comorians like Momo, meanwhile, are well-anchored on Mayotte, but now live in fear of military patrols coming to mark their home with red paint to indicate the bulldozers are coming or violence by anti-Comorian militant 'collectives.'



If the police don't manage to carry out their mission, it's the collectives who will do the work.

They have warned us, said Momo, who has submitted documents to try to obtain property rights as a longtime resident of a neighbourhood of shanties in the town of Majikavo.

Some of his neighbours are giving up hope, and are demolishing their houses themselves to recover the materials and build elsewhere.

The French government has deported an average of 25,000 Comorians per year since 2018. It gave Comoros 150 million euros between 2019 and 2022 to try to fight illegal migration, according to France's overseas affairs minister.

But despite the risky sea journey, thousands of those deported return from Comoros. The policy has broken up families and left children and teens unaccompanied, pushing many to join gangs.

Operation Wuambushu enjoys the support of politicians like Mayotte lawmaker Mansour Kamardine, who decries threats and violence against local officials. He said Friday that it's a matter of days' before the situation explodes, pleading for tougher police action.

But human rights defenders worry about the fallout.

Among critics are the UN children's agency UNICEF, which warned that a surge in arrests and expulsions would increase the risk of children being separated from their parents. In a statement, it called on the French government to ensure housing for families expelled and mental health support for children whose homes are razed.

French refugees' rights groups CIMADE warned that the surge would aggravate the precariousness of the population and exacerbate the social tensions it's claiming to fight.

For now, security forces are acting as a buffer between gangs and anti-migrant militias, while the population, split in two, girds for new tensions as the operation unfolds.
After a months-long standoff, the Democratic president and the speaker of the House of Representatives on Tuesday agreed to negotiate directly on a deal. An agreement needs to be reached and passed by both chambers of Congress before the federal government runs out of money to pay its bills, as soon as June 1.

President Joe Biden and top US congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday underscored their determination to reach a deal soon to raise the federal governments $31.4-trillion debt ceiling and avoid an economically catastrophic default.


Citing people aware of the details of the deal, the newspaper reported that the transaction is likely to be finalised at an enterprise value of $500-550 million. IGI owes its lenders $150 million. Blackstone is ready to buy International Gemological Institute (IGI), the biggest independent diamond-grading company in the world, The Economic Times (ET) reports. The company is owned by China Fosun International, the Lorie family that founded the company, and various other small shareholders.



IGI was established in 1975 and it grades diamonds on their quality and provides certifications based on its assessment. Blackstone, the world's largest private equity firm is likely to sign an agreement with Fosun and IGI's other shareholders by the end of this week, the report added.



Given the situation around the Russia-Ukraine war, diamonds mined in Russia are likely to face G7 sanctions as Nato countries look to stifle Russia economically. IGI certifications are recognised around the world. Notably, India is the world's biggest cutting and polishing hub and accounts for 90 per cent of stones sold globally, primarily from Surat, Gujarat.

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Moreover, IGI also operates 14 schools that train professionals for the diamond industry. India is one of the biggest markets for IGI. IGI manages 20 laboratories around the world that grade and certifies finished jewellery, natural diamonds, lab-grown diamonds, and other precious stones.

Previously, in 2018, China's Fosun International had acquired an 80 per cent stake in IGI's business taking control from the founders, the Lorie family of Belgium.
Foreign embassies in Beijing were asked by the Chinese government to avoid displaying what it calls propaganda in an apparent response to shows of support for Ukraine.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping's government says it is neutral in Moscow's 15-month-old invasion of Ukraine but has repeated Russian justifications, accusing Washington and the US-European military alliance NATO of provoking Moscow.

A Chinese envoy visited Ukraine this week and was due to go to Russia to discuss a possible political settlement, but little progress is expected.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry asked diplomatic missions last week not to use their exterior walls to display political propaganda, according to a European Union spokesperson and a diplomat from a European government.

The May 8 request cites a need to avoid causing disputes between countries, but doesn't define propaganda or give other details, EU spokesperson Nabila Massrali wrote in a statement.

Massrali said the EU Delegation in Beijing has not changed any items displayed at its front wall.

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The request didn't mention Ukraine, according to the diplomats. But flags and placards set up by embassies of Canada, France, Germany and other governments are the only public displays by most foreign missions, other than tourism advertisements.

The European diplomat, who asked not to be identified further due to the sensitivity of the issue, said his government doesn't see any reason to change its display.

A 2-meter (6.5-foot) -tall placard at the front gate of the Finnish Embassy has the flags of Finland and Ukraine and says "#WeStandWithUkraine.

A billboard hung on Sweden's Embassy has the same phrase and flags of the two countries.

Those displays have been up for months. It wasn't clear why China made the removal request now.

Some embassies also raised rainbow flags for Diversity Week and Wednesday's International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. Such issues are considered politically sensitive by China's ruling Communist Party.

Asked for confirmation and details, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said embassies were obliged to respect Chinese laws and regulations, but gave no details.

China calls on embassies of all countries in China and representative offices of international organisations in China to perform their duties in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations or relevant international agreements, Wang said.

The Chinese envoy, Li Hui, met over two days with Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, according to the two governments.

The Ukrainian government said they discussed ways to stop Russian aggression, but neither side gave details.

Li said the two governments should create conditions for ending the war and peace talks, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement.

Political analysts see little chance of progress toward peace because neither side appears to be ready to stop fighting. But they say Xi's government might be trying to deflect criticism of its friendship with Russian President Vladimir Putin and split European allies away from Washington.

Beijing released a proposed peace plan in February, but Ukraine's allies largely dismissed it, insisting Putin's forces must withdraw and face prosecution for war crimes.
A former unit of Russian energy giant Gazprom has resumed supplying LNG to Indian state gas utility GAIL a year after it halted supplies due to the Ukraine war, GAIL chairman Sandeep Kumar Gupta said Thursday.

The resumption of supplies, which came to a halt in June last year, has shored up gas availability in the country.

Separately, six US companies have offered GAIL a stake in their liquefied natural gas export facility.

Sefe Marketing and Trading Singapore Pte Ltd (SMTS), erstwhile Gazprom Marketing and Trading Singapore Pte Ltd supplied two liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes each in March and April and has committed 4 shiploads each in May and June, Gupta said.

"Hopefully, similar volumes will renominated for future months also," he said.

Sefe will decide on volumes on a month-to-month basis.

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GAIL had in 2012 signed a 20-year deal with Gazprom Marketing and Singapore (GMTS) to buy 2.85 million tonnes per annum of LNG. Supplies started in 2018 and the full volume was to reach in 2023.

GMTS had signed the deal on behalf of Gazprom. GMTS was moved to Gazprom Germania, now called Sefe. But in early April last year, Gazprom gave up the ownership of the German unit without giving a reason and placed parts of it under Russian sanctions.

This followed the West slapping sanctions on Russia for its February 24 invasion of Ukraine.

It invoked force majeure and stopped supplies to India from June 2022.

Gupta said normal supplies have resumed and hope they will continue.

On the expression of interest GAIL had released in February this year to buy up to 26 per cent stake in a US LNG export facility in an attempt to shore up supplies to meet rising demand in India, he said half a dozen interests have been received.

"We are in the process of second stage shortlisting," he said without giving details.

The company in February released an expression of interest to acquire as much as 26 per cent equity in an existing LNG plant or a proposed facility that will be commissioned by 2027.

It was also interested in sourcing 1 million tonne a year of LNG from the facility for 15 years from 2026. The contract could be extended by another 5 to 10 years.

Liquefaction plants convert natural gas into liquid form, enabling its seaborne transportation.

GAIL (India) Ltd had run into supply disruptions last year after Russia-owned Gazprom Marketing and Trading (GMTS) failed to deliver contracted LNG due to Western sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

To make up for the shortfall, GAIL cut supplies to some customers, including its own petrochemical plant and bought LNG from the spot or current market.

It is also in discussions with Abu Dhabi National Oil Co and Russia's Novatek PJSC for long-term LNG deals.

Sefe, formerly GMTS, "in its annual delivery plan and in their latest communications have maintained their alleged force majeure stance citing various reasons such as Russian sanctions on its LNG source/portfolio and mandate from German authorities (BnetzA) for ensuring energy security for Europe for their inability to deliver LNG cargoes," Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Rameswar Teli had told the Lok Sabha in a written reply to a question on March 23 this year.

However, "while SMTS maintains its force majeure stance, as on date SMTS has informed that they shall be able to supply two cargoes (shipload) in March 2023 and two in April 2023," he had added.

To mitigate the shortfall in Russian supplies, GAIL imposed supply cuts to users from mid-July 2022 to mid-March 2023.

In order to meet the shortage, GAIL sourced spot LNG volumes from the domestic /international market and also partially/fully stopped its petrochemical complex at Pata in Uttar Pradesh to fulfilling supply obligations to the customers.

Gupta said all the supply cuts have been restored with effect from March 16.

Under the deal, GMTS was to progressively increase supplies to GAIL. It shipped 2 million tonnes of LNG in 2021 and was to supply 2.5 million tonnes or a minimum of 36 cargoes in the calendar year 2022. The full volume of 2.85 million tonnes is to be reached in 2023.

GAIL received one cargo of LNG in June 2022 and nothing after that.

Company officials said Sefe was supplying cargoes from its non-Russian portfolio in Egypt, United Arab Emirates and the United States. Because of the force majeure, they cannot supply from Russia, so they are giving GAIL LNG from non-Russian portfolios.
The Court of Appeal of Paris has upheld a prison sentence of three years, including two suspended, against former French President Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption and influence peddling.

According to the court ruling on Wednesday, Sarkozy will only need to serve one year of house arrest with an electronic bracelet, and his civil rights will be deprived for three years.

Right after the ruling, Sarkozy's legal team announced that they would continue to appeal at the highest court, Xinhua news agency reported.

Sarkozy served as French President from 2007 to 2012. He was sentenced in March 2021 to three years in prison for corruption and influence peddling. It was the first time that a former president has been convicted of corruption and sentenced to prison in France.

He was convicted of attempting to bribe, through his then-lawyer, a magistrate with a job offer in Monaco for information about an investigation of his 2007 presidential campaign.

--IANS

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int/khz/
Myanmar's military has imported at least USD 1 billion worth of weapons and related material from Russia, China and other countries since its February 2021 coup, some of which it has used to carry out atrocities against civilians, according to a UN report released Wednesday.

The weapons continue to flow to the military despite overwhelming evidence of its responsibility for the atrocities, including some that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, said Tom Andrews, the UN independent investigator on human rights in Myanmar.

As an example of what he called the junta's brutality, Andrews pointed to its April 11 airstrike using a Russian Yak-130 fighter jet on a ceremony attended by some 300 opponents of army rule, which was quickly followed by an attack by Russian Mi-35 helicopters on those who came to help. He said at least 160 people were killed, including many children.

In addition, the machine guns and bombs used in the attacks included parts and materials from companies located in Singapore, China and Thailand, he said.

Myanmar is mired in strife because of a political crisis unleashed when the military took power. Its takeover prompted widespread peaceful protests that security forces suppressed with deadly force, triggering armed resistance throughout the country that the army has been unable to quell.

Andrews said at least 22,000 political prisoners have been detained since the coup, at least 3.500 civilians have been killed and 1.5 million people have been forcibly displaced.

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The report documents over 12,500 purchases that were shipped directly to the Myanmar military or known Myanmar arms dealers working for the military from Feb. 1, 2021, when the military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, until December 2022, Andrews said at a news conference.

He said the volume and diversity of equipment the military received was staggering, ranging from fighter jets and attack helicopters and drones to advanced missile systems, tank upgrades, sophisticated communications equipment, radar complexes and components for naval ships.

Andrews, a former Democratic congressman from Maine , said he had received highly credible and detailed information from confidential sources identifying the major networks and companies involved in the arms trade with Myanmar.

The report to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council identifies USD 406 million in weapons and material that went to the Myanmar military from Russia, USD 267 million from China, USD 254 million from Singapore, USD 51 million from India and USD 28 million from Thailand.

Since the coup, the report said, 28 Russian private and state-owned companies have transferred fighter jets and their spare parts, advanced missile systems, reconnaissance and attack drones, attack helicopters and other systems to the junta.

The report identified 41 private and state-owned companies registered in China and Hong Kong that supplied the Myanmar military with an extensive array of arms, equipment and raw materials between October 2021 and December 2022, including advanced trainer jets, light attack aircraft, tank upgrades and repairs for Chinese fighter jets, which make up the Myanmar Air Force fleet, the report said.

They also supplied aluminum, copper, steel, rubber and lubricants for use in Myanmar's domestic weapons manufacturing, it said.

Unlike with Russia and China, and to a lesser extent India, Andrews said he received no information indicating that the governments of Singapore or Thailand approved or transferred arms to the Myanmar military.

He said companies in Singapore are of critical importance to the junta, having supplied spare parts, raw materials and manufacturing equipment, especially for Myanmar's KaPaSa weapons factories. Thai companies have done the same, the report said.

Twelve Thai companies were established after the coup, many by sanctioned arms networks already operating in Singapore, which suggests arms dealers may be looking at Thailand as an alternative route to avoid scrutiny, the report said.

Andrews said Singapore has a policy prohibiting the transfer of arms to Myanmar, and he reported his detailed findings to the government, which he said expressed appreciation for the information and indicated it was reviewing the effectiveness of its export controls.

If the Singapore government stopped all arms shipments to the Myanmar military, he said, the impact on the ability of the junta to manufacture arms would be significant.

Andrews said China and Russia both criticized the report, saying it went beyond his human rights mandate, and accused him of vilifying legitimate arms trade. He countered that identifying the sources of gross human rights violations and atrocities, including crimes against humanity and war crimes, is within my mandate and in my moral obligation.

Andrews said India responded to the report's findings that 22 state-owned and private firms shipped a coastal surveillance system, a remote-controlled weapons system, components from an ammunition and missile manufacturer, and 122 mm howitzer barrels by saying these involved contracts with the previous civilian government.

A U.N. General Assembly resolution adopted on June 18, 2021, calls upon all member states to prevent the flow of arms into Myanmar, but unlike a Security Council resolution it is not legally binding. The United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada and Switzerland have imposed sanctions on arms dealers providing support to the military.

Andrews said the sanctions weren't coordinated and have been largely ineffective. He called for countries to impose coordinated sanctions that target the networks that procure weapons and also the junta's finances.
The NATO's "reckless expansion" undermines the prospect for further normal dialogue on European security, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

As NATO is expanding in the eastern, northern and other directions, the bloc is "absorbing almost all neutral nations," Lavrov added on Wednesday during a briefing following talks with his Belarusian counterpart Sergei Aleinik, Xinhua news agency reported.

The situation in the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe is "deplorable" and "continues to worsen due to the unwillingness of NATO members to moderate their ambitions to dictate everything and to return to a respectful, equal dialogue," he said.

Most countries strive for a multipolar world but some only want to maintain their hegemony, Aleinik said.

"The process of global transformation and the progressive transition to a multipolar world launched by the West itself cannot be reversed," he added.

--IANS

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int/khz/
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Thursday claimed that Russia has aerially attacked the Ukrainian capital for the ninth time this month.

In a Telegram post, Klitschko said that falling debris started a in a garage in the Darnitsya area of Kiev, but added no one had been injured, reports the BBC.

The capital's military administration said preliminary information indicated that all incoming missiles had been destroyed.

Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration, said a heavy missile attack was launched from Russian strategic bombers over the Caspian sea.

Popko said the attack probably included cruise missiles, adding that Russia had deployed reconnaissance drones over Kiev after unleashing its wave of air strikes, the BBC reported.

He said a second fire had broken out in a non-residential building in the city's Desnyansky area, but did not give details on injuries or damages.

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On Thursday, blasts were also heard in central Ukrainian regions of Vinnitsa, Khmelnitsky and Zhytomyr.

Ukraine said it had shot down six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles as part of an "exceptionally dense" attack on Tuesday.

At least eight people were reportedly killed, including a five-year-old boy, and 17 others injured near Kherson due to shelling on Wednesday.

--IANS

ksk/
Jang Seong-hoon, chief operating officer of Elevar Therapeutics, HLB's U.S. subsidiary, explains the efficacy and safety of the company's Rivoceranib anticancer drug during a symposium hosted by Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Washington, D.C., March 21. HLB said on Thursday it recently submitted a new drug application to the U.S. FDA for Rivoceranib. Courtesy of HLB



By Baek Byung-yeul



HLB, an international biopharmaceutical company, submitted a new drug application (NDA) for its Rivoceranib liver cancer drug to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday. If successful, it would become the first Korean biotechnology company to win a new drug approval in the U.S., the company said Thursday.



It has taken the company about 12 years to get to this point since first launching a global trial of Rivoceranib in 2011.



"This is the first time a Korean biopharmaceutical company has completed its own clinical trials for a new anticancer drug and proceeded with the NDA process," a company spokesman said.



HLB, which holds global patent rights for Rivoceranib, has been developing a combination therapy of Rivoceranib and Camrelizumab, an anticancer drug of China's Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine, as a first-line treatment for liver cancer through its U.S. subsidiary Elevar Therapeutics.



HLB completed the global Phase 3 clinical trial of the anticancer treatment in May 2022. The Phase 3 trial for liver cancer treatment, which began in April 2019, was conducted on 543 patients in 13 countries including Korea, the U.S. and China. The results of the clinical trial using the combination therapy showed the two treatments succeeded to meet primary endpoints, which means that both the efficacy and versatility have been proven.



Particularly, the clinical trial showed a reduction of between 40 percent and 50 percent in the risk of patient death. Based on these results, the FDA indicated that it has "no concerns" with the submission of an NDA for a Rivoceranib-included combination after a pre-NDA meeting. The combination was already approved in China in February as a first-line treatment for liver cancer.



HLB said Dr. Ahmed Omar Kaseb, a professor at the Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine at the University of Texas, commented on the NDA application for Ricoveranib, stating that "the combination therapy shows clear promise as a potential treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma."



Jin Yang-gon, chairman of HLB Group, wrote on the company's website that he was grateful to employees and shareholders who had endured a very long and tough time before filing the NDA.



"Despite all the criticism and ridicule, we have come this far thanks to the solid efforts of our employees. On behalf of our leaders, I would like to express our deepest gratitude to you," the chairman wrote. "I would also like to express my gratitude to shareholders for your unwavering support. Whenever we sigh and shed tears, you were the first to reach out to us and encourage us."


A U.S. Navy commander said Wednesday there is no significant change in the conduct of Russian aircraft and warships toward Western naval and air assets in the eastern Mediterranean as Moscow's war in Ukraine grinds on.

Cmdr. Peter C. Flynn said that Russian warplanes and naval vessels have been conducting themselves professionally, like other military forces in the region, and there's been no indication of any heightened aggression or hostility.

We obviously study what is going on in theater and you know that certainly plays a role in what we do and what we prepare for, but not a significant change in the attitude of Russian forces, Flynn told The Associated Press aboard the USS Arleigh Burke.

The destroyer, one of the United States' most capable warships, is docked at Cyprus' main Limassol port.

Russia has a naval base in Tartus, Syria, the only such facility that Moscow has outside the former Soviet Union. In 2017, Moscow struck a deal with Syrian President Bashar Assad to extend its lease on Tartus for 49 years and keep up to 11 warships there, including nuclear-powered ones.

Tartus is 180 kilometers (112 miles) from Cyprus' eastern coastline.

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F-35 jets from the U.K.'s newest aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth, operating off Cyprus in June 2021 had stirred the interest of Russian warplanes, which tried to keep tabs on the cutting-edge warplanes.

The Arleigh Burke is three months into a 4-month patrol mission in the region. It docked in Cyprus after operating in the Red Sea and passing through the Suez Canal. Since February, the destroyer has also operated above the Arctic Circle, the Baltic and North Seas and the eastern Atlantic.

The Eastern Mediterranean is so important for maritime security and the history here is just so much, Flynn said.

The Arleigh Burke was the last U.S. Navy ship to sail in the Black Sea prior to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The Arleigh Burke has the most capable, offensive and defensive systems of any other U.S. ship, Flynn said. So if we can't do it, nobody else can.

The ship is equipped with an array of missiles that can engage aircraft, submarines, other surface ships and even ballistic missiles in outer space.

Flynn said the destroyer has recently conducted joint maneuvers with Saudi and Egyptian naval vessels. Apart from projecting U.S. power, the ship aims to buttress ties with friendly nations, he said.


The justices decision returns to a lower court the case of a family of an American college student who was killed in an Islamic State terrorist attack in Paris. The US Supreme Court on Thursday sidestepped a challenge to federal protections for internet and social media companies that free them of liability for content posted by users. The case involved a lawsuit against Google involving the practices of video-sharing platform YouTube.



The justices had agreed to consider whether the legal shield is too broad. But in arguments in February, several sounded reluctant to weigh in now. In an unsigned opinion on Thursday, the court wrote that it was declining to address the law at issue. The family wants to sue Google for YouTube videos they said helped attract IS recruits and radicalise them. Google owns YouTube. Google claims immunity from the lawsuit under a 1996 law that generally shields social media company for content posted by others. Lower courts agreed with Google.



The court also ruled in a separate lawsuit involving Google, Twitter and Facebook, heard on the same day in February, that seeks to hold them liable for a terrorist attack in a Turkish nightclub that killed 39 people. The outcome is, at least for now, a victory for the tech industry, which predicted havoc on the internet if Google lost. But the high court remains free to take up the issue in a later case.

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A lower court allowed the suit to proceed under a law against aiding and abetting terrorism. The justices unanimously ruled that case could not go forward.
World leaders landed in Hiroshima on Thursday for a Group of Seven meeting, the site of the world's first atomic bomb attack, with Russia's war in Ukraine expected to be high on the agenda.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida kicked off his summit diplomacy by meeting with US President Joe Biden after his arrival at a nearby military base.

He was due to hold talks with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak a bit later in the day, before the three-day summit opens on Friday.

The Japan-US alliance is the very foundation of peace and security in the Indo- Pacific region, Kishida told Biden in opening remarks.

We very much welcome that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds, he said.

When our countries stand together we stand stronger and I believe the whole world is safer when we do," Biden said.

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The US president exited Air Force One in heavy rain and briefly greeted troops on arrival at the nearby Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni.

As G-7 attendees made their way to Hiroshima, Moscow unleashed yet another aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital. Loud explosions thundered through Kyiv during the early hours, marking the ninth time this month that Russian air raids have targeted the city after weeks of relative quiet.

The crisis in Ukraine: I'm sure that's what the conversation is going to start with, said Matthew P Goodman, senior vice president for economics at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said there will be discussions about the battlefield in Ukraine and on the "state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular.

G-7 leaders and invited guests from several other counties are also expected to discuss how to deal with China's growing assertiveness and military buildup as concerns rise that it could could try to seize Taiwan by force, sparking a wider conflict.

China claims the self-governing island as its own and its ships and warplanes regularly patrol near it.

Security was tight in Hiroshima, with thousands of police deployed at numerous points throughout the city.

A small group of protesters was considerably outnumbered by police as they gathered Wednesday evening beside the ruins of the Atomic Peace Dome memorial, holding signs including one which read No G7 Imperialist Summit!



In a bit of dueling diplomacy, Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting the leaders of the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a two-day summit in the Chinese city of Xi'an starting Thursday.

During the meeting in Hiroshima, Kishida hopes to highlight the risks of nuclear proliferation. Leaders are expected to visit a memorial park that commemorates the 1945 atomic bombing by the US that destroyed the city and killed 140,000 people.

North Korea's nuclear program and a spate of recent missile tests have crystalised fears of an potential attack.

So have Russia's threats to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. China, meanwhile, is rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal.

The leaders are due to discuss efforts to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices that are squeezing families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

The debate over raising the debt limit in the US, the world's largest economy, has threatened to overshadow the G-7 talks.

Biden plans to hurry back to Washington after the summit for debt negotiations, scrapping planned meetings in Papua New Guinea and Australia.

The British prime minister arrived in Japan earlier Thursday and paid a visit to the JS Izumo, a ship that can carry helicopters and fighter jets able to take off and land vertically.

During their bilateral meeting Thursday, Sunak and Kishida are expected to announce a series of new agreements on issues including defence; trade and investment; technology; and climate change, Sunak's office said.

The G-7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, as well as the European Union.

A host of other countries have been invited to take part. The G-7 hopes to strengthen its members' ties with countries outside the world's richest industrialized nations, while shoring up support for efforts like isolating Russia.

Leaders from Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Korea are among those participating as guests. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to join by video link.
Hong Kong's leader said on Thursday the city's public libraries would not recommend books featuring bad ideologies" to residents after they pulled titles related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and certain political figures, further shrinking the city's freedoms.

Chief Executive John Lee was addressing a lawmaker's question about dozens of books in public libraries that were taken down without a clear explanation.

Those include publications about the bloody crackdown and others written by pro-democracy politicians and political commentators.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to China's rule in 1997, promising to retain its Western-style freedoms.

But the city's cultural and creative sectors said the city's freedoms have shrunk since Beijing imposed a tough national security law following massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Critics said the book pulling would further undermine Hong Kong's reputation for having free access to information and freedom of expression.

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But Lee defended the sweeping law at the legislature, saying Hong Kong's freedoms are protected by the city's constitution.

The books we offer for residents to borrow are those that we recommend, he said. We would never recommend books that are illegal and violate copyrights.

We would never recommend those that we deem to be featuring bad ideologies.

He said residents could still find such books to read elsewhere. He did not elaborate on what was considered bad ideologies and why the books were removed.

The government has not immediately responded to a request for comment.

The removal of the books was reported by local media outlets after a Chinese newspaper stopped publishing works by the city's most prominent political cartoonist on Sunday following government complaints.

Comic strip collections by the cartoonist were also no longer available in public libraries.

Since a sweeping security law was enacted in 2020, the city's art and media communities have learned to be wary of crossing vaguely defined red lines in producing art and other content that might be perceived as challenging the Chinese Communist Party's control.

The group that organised Hong Kong's annual vigil in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square crackdown also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law.

The annual vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the event on Chinese soil and was attended by massive crowds until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures.

Supporters say the group's closure shows that the freedoms and autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 are diminishing.
A global leader in advanced diagnostics, Beckman Coulter has challenged convention to elevate the diagnostic laboratorys role in improving patient health for more than 80 years. Our mission is to Relentlessly Reimagine Healthcare, One Diagnosis at a Time  and we do this by applying the power of science, technology and the passion and creativity of our teams. Our diagnostic solutions are used in complex clinical testing, and are found in hospitals, reference laboratories and physician office settings around the globe. We exist to deliver smarter, faster diagnostic solutions that move the needle forward from whats now to whats next. We seek to accelerate care with an extensive clinical menu, scalable lab automation technologies, insightful clinical informatics, and optimize lab performance services. Beckman Coulter is part of the Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) family of global science and technology companies.Headquartered in Brea, Calif., it has more than 11,000 global team members.
Black Hat, the producer of the cybersecurity industrys most established and in-depth security events, today announced the successful completion of the in-person component of Black Hat Asia 2023. The event welcomed a record number of attendees from May 9 through May 12, with more than 3,000 attendees joining at the Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre in Singapore.

Security professionals from 95 countries registered to attend the event and experience firsthand the latest in research, development, and trends in Information Security (InfoSec). The event featured separate two- and four-day deeply technical hands-on Trainings, followed by two days of Briefings presenting the latest research and vulnerability disclosures.

Black Hat is committed to being the event series where the best minds in the security industry continue to come together, said Steve Wylie, Vice President, Cybersecurity Market Group at Informa Tech. Im thankful for a successful close on Black Hat Asia 2023, and proud of our team, customers, partners, and sponsors who helped make this event possible.

Show highlights for 2023 included:

Keynote: This years Keynote was Xiaosheng Tan, Founder and CEO of Beijing Genius Cyber Tech Co., Ltd. Tans Keynote, Preparing the Long Journey for Data Security, provided attendees with insight into the challenges of data security in connection with current and upcoming regulatory requirements.

Omdia Analyst Summit: The Omdia Analyst Summit offered analyst insights into targeting cybersecurity investments, key cyberattacks in the region, and also introduced Omdias take on the evolving managed detection and response (MDR) landscape.

Business Hall: The Business Hall welcomed the industrys leading companies to showcase their latest innovations to attendees, providing exclusive opportunities for attendees to expand their InfoSec knowledge, network and connect with expert security practitioners and cutting-edge solution providers, and discover new open source tools at Arsenal, Black Hats dedicated space for developers to showcase the latest open source tools and products.

Student Scholarship Program: As a way to introduce the next generation of security professionals to the Black Hat community, Black Hat awarded 63 complimentary Black Hat Asia 2023 Briefings Passes to student applicants.



Top partners and sponsors of Black Hat Asia 2023 include:

Diamond Sponsors: Microsoft Corporation, Pentera.io, and Snyk; Platinum Sponsors: KnowBe4, Nokia, and RiskRecon; Association Partners: (ISC), AiSP, Div0, and Women on Cyber.

About Black Hat

For over 20 years, Black Hat has provided attendees with the very latest in information security research, development, and trends. These high-profile global events and trainings are driven by the needs of the security community, striving to bring together the best minds in the industry. Black Hat inspires professionals at all career levels, encouraging growth and collaboration among academia, world-class researchers, and leaders in the public and private sectors. Black Hat Briefings and Trainings are held annually in the United States, Europe and Asia. More information is available at: blackhat.com. Black Hat is brought to you by Informa Tech.

About Informa Tech

Informa Tech is a market leading provider of integrated research, media, training and events to the global Technology community. We're an international business of more than 600 colleagues, operating in more than 20 markets. Our aim is to inspire the Technology community to design, build and run a better digital world through research, media, training and event brands that inform, educate and connect. Over 7,000 professionals subscribe to our research, with 225,000 delegates attending our events and over 18,000 students participating in our training programmes each year, and nearly 4 million people visiting our digital communities each month. For more information, please visit www.informatech.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005836/en/
Ripple, the leader in enterprise blockchain and crypto solutions, announced today that it has been selected to showcase a real estate asset tokenization solution as part of the Hong Kong Monetary Authoritys (HKMA) inaugural e-HKD Pilot Programme.

The HKMA has adopted a three-rail approach to prepare for the possible rollouts of the e-HKD. As a leading provider offering real world asset tokenization capabilities, Ripple alongside its partners including Fubon Bank  one of the largest commercial banks in Taiwan  will demonstrate its use case under e-HKD Pilot Programme, which will focus on real estate asset tokenization and equity release leveraging the e-HKD. e-HKD Pilot Programme will see a series of pilots conducted with various industry players to gain in-depth research into application, implementation, and design issues related to the e-HKD.

With real world asset tokenization predicted to be a multi-trillion-dollar industry by 2030, tokenizing commodities such as real estate is gaining traction within the financial services and government sectors as a core use case. Ripples innovative solution combining the e-HKD, tokenized real estate, and lending protocols will run on a private and secure ledger, built with the same technology as the XRP Ledger (XRPL). The XRPL is an open-source, energy-efficient and decentralized blockchain that has been continuously operating for over 10 years.

For most people, their home becomes one of the main assets in their total wealth portfolio with the possibility of increasing in value over time. However, unlocking this increase in equity has considerable friction. The process can be costly, lengthy, and cumbersome. By leveraging the power of blockchain technologies, such as the XRPL and Ripples Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) Platform, Hong Kong citizens can experience the release of equity faster and more efficiently. Commercial banks can also expect to benefit from higher velocity of loan throughput and more flexible payments.

The Asia Pacific region has many forward-looking regulators such as the HKMA, who are looking to leverage the capabilities of blockchain and crypto technology. Its a huge honor for Ripple to be one of the select few organizations participating in the HKMAs e-HKD Pilot Programme. We now have the opportunity to demonstrate how real estate asset tokenization could be brought to the citizens of Hong Kong, and are confident that our fully integrated solution will be an industry-first use case demonstrating the power of leveraging a CBDC for real estate equity asset release, said James Wallis, Ripples Vice President of Central Bank Engagements & CBDCs.

As part of the inaugural e-HKD Rail 2 Pilot Programme, Ripple executives attended the commencement event on May 18th hosted by Mr. Eddie Yue, Chief Executive of the HKMA.

About Ripple

Ripple is a crypto solutions company that transforms how the world moves, manages and tokenizes value. Ripples business solutions are faster, more transparent, and more cost effective - solving inefficiencies that have long defined the status quo. And together with partners and the larger developer community, we identify use cases where crypto technology will inspire new business models and create opportunity for more people. With every solution, were realizing a more sustainable global economy and planet - increasing access to inclusive and scalable financial systems while leveraging carbon neutral blockchain technology and a green digital asset, XRP. This is how we deliver on our mission to build crypto solutions for a world without economic borders.

About the XRP Ledger

The XRP Ledger (XRPL) is an open source, public and decentralized Layer 1 blockchain led by a global developer community. It is fast, energy-efficient, and reliable. For more than ten years, it has been the blockchain best suited to enable settlement and liquidity of tokenized assets at scale. With ease of development, low transaction costs, and a knowledgeable community, it provides developers with a strong open-source foundation for executing on the most demanding projects  without impacting the XRPLs lean and efficient feature set. XRPL enables a wide variety of services and use cases including payments, on-chain finance, and tokenization. Learn more at XRPL.org.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005199/en/
President Joe Biden speaks during a Medal of Valor ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, May 17, in Washington. AP-Yonhap



President Joe Biden said Wednesday he was confident about reaching a deal with Republican leaders to avert a potentially catastrophic U.S. debt default as early as June 1.



"I'm confident that we'll get the agreement that we need on the budget and that America will not default," Biden said in brief remarks at the White House, shortly before departing for the G7 meeting of world leaders in Japan.



Biden and congressional leaders including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have held two rounds of face-to-face talks to try and reach agreement on a deal to raise the U.S. borrowing limit and allow the country to pay for its existing obligations.



The United States could begin defaulting on its debts "potentially as early as June 1," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Monday, while the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has forecast June 15.



McCarthy 'optimistic'



Speaking on Wednesday, McCarthy said time was running out to find a deal.



"Our timeline is short," he told reporters on Capitol Hill, adding that Biden and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had "finally backed off the insane, irrational, unsensible idea that you just raise the debt ceiling.



"I'm optimistic about our ability to work together," he said, adding: "the only question of whether we have a Biden default is the president himself."



Republicans continue to insist Biden must agree to significant spending cuts in exchange for their support to raise the ceiling, ignoring repeated Democratic calls for a "clean" increase of the borrowing limit with no strings attached.



Democrats have accused Republicans of using extreme tactics to push their political agenda ahead of the so-called "X-date" at which the United States starts defaulting on its debts because the government has run out of money.



In a sign of growing nervousness over the prospect of default, more than 140 top U.S. chief executives sent a letter to Biden and congressional leaders on Tuesday stressing the need for an agreement.



"We strongly urge that an accord be reached quickly so that the country can avert this potentially devastating scenario," the letter signed by the CEOs from Pfizer and Morgan Stanley, among others, said.





Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is joined by Republicans from the Senate and the House as he leads an event on the debt limit negotiations, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, May 17. AP-Yonhap
Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General of World Meteorological Organization (WMO), speaks about the Global Climate Update with predictions for 2023-2027, during a press conference at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, May 17. EPA-Yonhap



For the first time ever, global temperatures are now more likely than not to breach 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7F) of warming within the next five years, the World Meteorological Organization said on Wednesday.



But that did not necessarily mean the world would cross the long-term warming threshold of 1.5C above preindustrial levels set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement.



With a 66 percent chance of temporarily reaching 1.5C by 2027, "it's the first time in history that it's more likely than not that we will exceed 1.5C," said Adam Scaife, head of long-range prediction at Britain's Met Office Hadley Centre who worked on the WMO's latest Global Annual to Decadal Climate Update.



Last year's report put the odds at about 50-50.



Partially responsible for boosting the chance of hitting 1.5C is an El Nino weather pattern expected to develop in the coming months. During this natural phenomenon, warmer waters in the tropical Pacific heat the atmosphere above, spiking global temperatures.



The El Nino "will combine with human-induced climate change to push global temperatures into uncharted territory", said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas in a press statement.



Still, the likelihood of temporarily exceeding 1.5C has increased over time. Between 2017 and 2021, for example, scientists estimated just a 10 percent chance of hitting 1.5C.



Unlike the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's climate projections which are based on future greenhouse gas emissions, the WMO update provides more of a prediction-based long-range weather forecast.



The WMO also found a 98 percent chance that one of the next five years will be the hottest on record, surpassing 2016 which saw global temperature impacted by about 1.3C (2.3F) of warming. (Reuters)




A journalist takes a picture of a Russian hypersonic missile warhead that was shot down in Kyiv, May 12. Reuters-Yonhap



Three Russian academics who have worked on hypersonic missile technology face "very serious accusations", the Kremlin said on Wednesday, in a treason investigation that has spread alarm through Russia's scientific community.



Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was aware of an open letter from Siberian scientists in defence of the men, but that the case was a matter for the security services.



In the letter, published on Monday, colleagues of Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev protested their innocence and said the prosecutions threatened to inflict grave damage on Russian science.



"We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of," they said.



President Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles, capable of travelling at speeds of up to Mach 10 (12,250 kph) to evade enemy air defences. On Tuesday, Ukraine said it had managed to destroy six of the weapons in a single night, although Russia disputed this.



Notices of academic conferences stretching back over many years show the arrested scientists were frequent participants.



In 2012, Maslov and Shiplyuk presented the results of an experiment on hypersonic missile design at a seminar in Tours, France. In 2016, all three were among the authors of a book chapter entitled "Hypersonic Short-Duration Facilities for Aerodynamic Research at ITAM, Russia".



The open letter from their colleagues at ITAM - the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in Novosibirsk - said the materials the scientists had presented in international forums had been checked repeatedly to ensure they did not include restricted information.



The cases showed that "any article or report can lead to accusations of high treason", the open letter said.



"In this situation, we are not only afraid for the fate of our colleagues. We just do not understand how to continue to do our job."





A Russian armored personnel carrier and S-400 surface-to-air missile systems drive past the Kremlin wall after a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 78th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, Moscow, May 9. Reuters-Yonhap








U.S. President Joe Biden and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attend a bilateral meeting ahead of the G7 leaders' summit in Hiroshima, Japan, May 18, 2023. Reuters





Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida kicked off his summit diplomacy by meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden after his arrival at a nearby military base . He was due to hold talks with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak a bit later in the day, before the three-day gathering of leaders of the world's wealthy democracies opens on Friday .







The Japan-U.S. alliance is the "very foundation of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region," Kishida told Biden in opening remarks.







"We very much welcome that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds," he said.



Biden said: "When our countries stand together, we stand stronger, and I believe the whole world is safer when we do."







The U.S. president exited Air Force One and briefly greeted troops at nearby Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni.







As G-7 attendees made their way to Hiroshima, Moscow unleashed yet another aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital. Loud explosions thundered through Kyiv during the early hours, marking the ninth time this month that Russian air raids have targeted the city after weeks of relative quiet.







"The crisis in Ukraine: I'm sure that's what the conversation is going to start with," said Matthew P. Goodman, senior vice president for economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.







Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said there will be "discussions about the battlefield" in Ukraine and on the "state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular."







G-7 leaders and invited guests from several other counties are also expected to discuss how to deal with China's growing assertiveness and military buildup as concerns rise that it could could try to seize Taiwan by force, sparking a wider conflict. China claims the self-governing island as its own and its ships and warplanes regularly patrol near it.







Security was tight in Hiroshima, with thousands of police deployed at numerous points throughout the city. A small group of protesters was considerably outnumbered by police as they gathered Wednesday evening beside the ruins of the Atomic Peace Dome memorial, holding signs including one which read "No G7 Imperialist Summit!"







In a bit of dueling diplomacy, Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting the leaders of the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a two-day summit in the Chinese city of Xi'an starting Thursday.







During the meeting in Hiroshima, Kishida hopes to highlight the risks of nuclear proliferation. Leaders are expected to visit a memorial park that commemorates the 1945 atomic bombing by the U.S. that destroyed the city and killed 140,000 people.







North Korea's nuclear program and a spate of recent missile tests have crystalized fears of an potential attack. So have Russia's threats to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. China, meanwhile, is rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal.







The leaders are due to discuss efforts to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices that are squeezing families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.







The debate over raising the debt limit in the U.S., the world's largest economy, has threatened to overshadow the G-7 talks. Biden plans to hurry back to Washington after the summit for debt negotiations, scrapping planned meetings in Papua New Guinea and Australia.







The British prime minister arrived in Japan earlier Thursday and paid a visit to the JS Izumo, a ship that can carry helicopters and fighter jets able to take off and land vertically.







During their bilateral meeting Thursday, Sunak and Kishida are expected to announce a series of new agreements on issues including defense; trade and investment; technology; and climate change, Sunak's office said.







The G-7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, as well as the European Union.







A host of other countries have been invited to take part. The G-7 hopes to strengthen its members' ties with countries outside the world's richest industrialized nations, while shoring up support for efforts like isolating Russia.







Leaders from Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Korea are among those participating as guests. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to join by video link. (AP)






Kerala SSLC 2023 results will be released tomorrow, May 19. The Kerala Pareeksha Bhavan's official website will contain the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC), or Class 10, results. Previously slated to be released on May 20, the Kerala board SSLC results will now be released on May 19. Students can access the SSLC Kerala results in 2023 at keralapareekshabhavan.in.

How to Check Kerala SSLC Result 2023

Go to keralapareekshabhavan.in, the official website.

On the homepage, click the Kerala SSLC Result 2023 link.

Enter your login information and press the 'Submit' button.

Download the Kerala Class 10 result and save a hard copy for future use.

Kerala SSLC Result 2023

To pass the SSLC examination, students must get at least 33 percent in each topic and the aggregate. Students will be able to verify and download their scorecards using their roll number and school code after the Kerala 10th result is announced. Kerala Board Class 10 exams were held from March 9 to March 29, 2023. Every year, almost 4 lakh students take the Kerala SSLC exam. Last year, over 4.27 lakh children took the 10th board exams, with 99.26 percent passing.

Supplementary and Revaluation

Students that fail to qualify for the Kerala SSCL Board Exams 2023 and receive a D will be required to sit for the SAY (save a year) exam to improve their Kerala Class 10 results. Students who are unhappy with their SSLC Kerala 2023 results can apply for revaluation, the dates of which will be notified later.
Subaru and Mazda have topped the list when it comes to recommended carsnew or usedfor teen drivers. This is according to the U.S.-based In...
Understanding the Role of Staff Nurses in Hypertension Management in Primary Care Facilities in India: A Time-Motion Study

Ashish Krishna, MPH1,2; Sharan Murali, MD1; Andrew E. Moran, MD, MPH3,4; Ashish Saxena, MBBS5; Sandeep Singh Gill, MD6; Dagmara Hering, MD, PhD7; Prabhdeep Kaur, DNB1 (View author affiliations)

Suggested citation for this article: Krishna A, Murali S, Moran AE, Saxena A, Gill SS, Hering D, et al. Understanding the Role of Staff Nurses in Hypertension Management in Primary Care Facilities in India: A Time-Motion Study. Prev Chronic Dis 2023;20:220232. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd20.220232.

PEER REVIEWED

Summary What is already known on this topic? Nurses are responsible for multiple tasks in primary care facilities in India. However, understanding of the type of work and the time spent on various activities nurses perform for hypertension management is limited. What is added by this report? Nurses spent two-thirds of their time on hypertension activities in the 6 primary care noncommunicable disease clinics in India. Nurses in clinics using paper-based records took more time than did nurses in clinics using digital health records. What are the implications for public health practice? Primary care facilities require substantial time commitment by nurses to improve hypertension management in India. Using digital health records increases nurses productivity and should be promoted to improve patient care.

Abstract

Introduction

India is facing a shortage of staff nurses; thus, a better understanding of nurses workloads is essential for improving and implementing noncommunicable disease (NCD) control strategies. We estimated the proportion of time spent by staff nurses on hypertension and other NCD activities in primary care facilities in 2 states in India.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional study in 6 purposively selected primary care facilities in Punjab and Madhya Pradesh during July through September 2021. We used a standardized stopwatch to collect data for time spent on direct hypertension activities (measuring blood pressure, counseling, recording blood pressure measurement, and other NCD-related activities), indirect hypertension activities (data management, patient follow-up calls), and non-NCD activities. We used the Mann-Whitney U test to compare the median time spent on activities between facilities using paper-based records and the Simple mobile devicebased app (open-source software).

Results

Six staff nurses were observed for 213 person-hours. Nurses spent 111 person-hours (52%; 95% CI, 45%59%) on direct hypertension activities and 30 person-hours (14%; 95% CI, 10%19%) on indirect hypertension activities. The time spent on blood pressure measurement (34 minutes) and documentation (35 minutes) was the maximum time on any given day. Facilities that used paper records spent more median time (39 [IQR, 2662] minutes) for indirect hypertension activities than those using the Simple app (15 [IQR, 1119] minutes; P < .001).

Conclusion

Our study found that hypertension activities required more than half of nurses time in Indias primary care facilities. Digital systems can help to reduce the time spent on indirect hypertension activities.

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Introduction

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading global cause of increased illness and death (1). Hypertension is the leading risk factor for CVD (2). The prevalence of hypertension in adults aged 18 to 69 was 29% in India in 2017 through 2018 (3). Among patients with hypertension, only 12% had their blood pressure controlled, highlighting an urgent need to strengthen hypertension control services in India (3). Health care systems worldwide use a combination of interventions to prevent hypertension and improve its control, thus preventing the development of associated CVD (4,5). One intervention is to have an organized system of regular follow-up and medication review by health care professionals other than doctors, such as nurses and pharmacists (4). A meta-analysis of 31 interventional studies in low-income and middle-income countries showed that task sharing with nurses decreased blood pressure by 5.34 mm Hg (6).

In India, hypertension screening and treatment are part of the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Stroke. Nurses are assigned to conduct various activities under this program. Nurses conduct opportunistic screening for adults aged 30 years or older who visit noncommunicable disease (NCD) clinics and refer patients to a doctor if their systolic blood pressure is 140 mm Hg or higher and/or their diastolic blood pressure is 90 mm Hg or higher. Nurses also measure blood pressure, document the visit on the treatment card (digital or paper), and counsel patients on treatment of hypertension (7). However, there is a shortage of nurses, as shown by the nurse-to-population ratio of 1.7:1,000 in India. The World Health Organization recommends a nurse-to-population ratio of 3:1,000 in each country to achieve universal health coverage (8). Thus, nurses have to multitask because of the unavailability of a trained workforce in the NCD clinics, leading to compromises in patient care delivery (9).

Primary care facilities use 2 different types of patient monitoring systems in India. The first is the conventional paper-based system, where the nurses record the patient data on a printed treatment card. The second method is a digital system where the nurses record the patient data on a mobile devicebased application synced with a central server. The digital system enables the nurse to retrieve the data for their patients from the server. The Simple app (open-source software) is a digital technology used for patient tracking and monitoring in selected states in India (10,11).

Considering the urgent need to scale hypertension treatment with the available nurses, a better understanding of nurse workload is essential for improving and implementing strategies. Evidence is limited about the time distribution for nurses activities in NCD clinics in India. Time and motion studies calculate efficiency, simplify time-consuming processes, and eliminate repetitive tasks (12). Researchers worldwide have used this method to measure time spent on various activities to understand the workflow of pharmacists, physicians, and nursing staff in hospitals and clinics in multiple settings (13).

Therefore, we designed and conducted this time and motion study to estimate the proportion of time spent by the staff nurses on hypertension and other NCD activities in primary care facilities in 2 states in India. We also compared the time spent on hypertension and other NCD activities in the facilities using paper-based documentation systems with the facilities using the Simple app-based digital system.

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Methods

Study design and setting

We conducted a cross-sectional study in 6 purposively selected public sector NCD clinics in the primary care facilities in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab during July 2021 through September 2021. We selected 3 facilities in each state, considering feasibility and logistics. NCD clinics deliver services for diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of hypertension and diabetes, operate all weekdays during the forenoon hours (8:30 am to 2:00 pm), and have approximately 50 to 200 patients daily. All 6 clinics participate in the India Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI), which aims to strengthen the management of hypertension in primary care settings in select districts in India. The nurses in these clinics are trained and follow the IHCI screening, treatment, and follow-up guidelines (14). Individuals aged 30 years or older with hypertension diagnosed by a physician are registered into the IHCI program by the individual facilities. Nearly three-fifths of the population were aged 50 to 60 years and were women (15).

The 3 clinics in Madhya Pradesh use a paper-based documentation system for registration, follow-up, and patient monitoring. The staff nurses fill out treatment cards for each enrolled patient. Nurses store the treatment cards at the health care facility and retrieve them during each follow-up visit. Treatment cards are the source of NCD data, which are compiled to prepare reports for sending to the district NCD cell.

The 3 clinics in Punjab use the digital mobile-based app Simple to monitor their patients. Upon registration, each patient receives a BP Passport, which carries a quick response (QR) code unique to the patient (10). The QR code is scanned during every visit to load the patient data (blood pressure, capillary blood glucose, and medications) onto the Simple app. This app also works offline and syncs its data to the server later when the internet is available. The Simple dashboard can quickly create data downloads and reports for the district NCD cell.

Study population

Each selected health facility had 1 dedicated paramedical staff nurse or an available staff nurse designated for the NCD clinic. This NCD nurse, who was in charge of direct and indirect patient care, was observed as a part of this study.

Sample size and assumptions

We assumed that staff nurses spend approximately 50% of their time in the NCD clinic on hypertension activities. Using this assumption, we calculated the required sample size for the primary objective with a 95% CI and an absolute precision of 10% as 97 hours. The duty time for each nurse in the NCD clinic is approximately 4 hours per day. Hence we observed each of the 6 nurses for a minimum of 4 days to achieve the sample size. We used OpenEpi version 3.1 (open source software) to calculate the sample size (16).

Data collection

We observed each facility for at least 7 days, considering the daily variability in the number of patients and the nursing workload during the week. We trained 2 full-time research assistants to collect data using a paper-based tally sheet in all 6 clinics. They collected data for each nurse, including age, sex, years of work experience treating patients with NCDs, and details of training for hypertension management. The research assistants observed the activities of the staff nurses during the clinic working hours and recorded the time taken for each category of activity by using Google Clock on the Android mobile telephones of the data collectors to record the time. The study team observed the various activities performed by the staff nurse and categorized activities on the basis of whether the activities were directly linked to patient care or were related to other programmatic needs.

We operationally defined blood pressure measurement, counseling, recording blood pressure measurement, and other NCD-related activities (electrocardiogram, capillary blood glucose measurement, drug dispensing, and follow-up of patients with diabetes) as direct hypertension activities. Indirect hypertension activities were data management (updating patient records) and follow-up calls. We also measured activities unrelated to NCDs, including delivering care to antenatal mothers, nonspecific administrative duties, and idle time (no work) (Table 1). We did not collect any patient-related data from the facilities.

Statistical analysis

We entered the data from the paper tally sheets into Excel (Microsoft). We calculated the mean time a staff nurse spent per day in the clinic by dividing the total time observed for a specific nurse by the number of days observed for each facility. We analyzed the data separately for primary care facilities in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab to calculate the mean (SD) time spent by a staff nurse per day in the clinic.

We present the sociodemographic characteristics of nursing staff using descriptive statistics. We calculated the total time spent on defined activities as the median (IQR) time spent per day per nurse for each activity. We calculated the median (IQR) time spent per day on direct, indirect, and non-NCD activities. Total time spent for each category was divided by the total observed time to estimate the proportion of time taken with its 95% CI.

We separately summarized the median (IQR) time for direct hypertension, indirect hypertension, and non-NCD activities for facilities using paper-based systems and facilities using Simple. We compared the median time taken across the 2 types of facilities by using the Mann-Whitney U test. A P value less than .05 was considered significant. We used Stata SE (version 17) software (StataCorp LLC) for statistical analysis.

Ethical considerations

We obtained approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee of the Indian Council of Medical Research  National Institute of Epidemiology. The research assistants obtained written informed consent from staff nurses after explaining the study procedure. No patient data were collected or analyzed in this study. Data were de-identified at the collection level and stored under the confidentiality of the corresponding author.

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Results

Among the 6 observed primary care facilities, 3 clinics had dedicated NCD staff nurses who performed NCD activities. At the other 3 facilities, the staff nurse also performed non-NCD activities, including general outpatient department management, wound dressing, and administrative duties. The mean time spent per day by staff nurses in each of the 3 clinics was 4 hours 25 minutes (SD, 1 hour 35 minutes) in Madhya Pradesh and 3 hours 40 minutes (SD, 25 minutes) in Punjab (Table 2).

The staff nurses mean (SD) age was 37 (8) years, and 5 were women. The mean (SD) years of work experience were 12 (6) years. All 6 nurses had training in screening, treatment protocol, and follow-up management for diabetes and hypertension patients at the clinic. Five facilities had an outpatient load of more than 100 patients per day, while 1 had a load of fewer than 100 patients per day.

Time spent on hypertension activities

We observed the 6 nurses for 52 days, accounting for 213 person-hours. All 6 nurses spent a total of 111 person-hours (52%; 95% CI, 45%59%) on direct hypertension activities, 30 person-hours (14%; 95% CI, 10%19%) on indirect hypertension activities, and 72 person-hours (34%; 95% CI, 28%41%) on non-NCD activities (Table 3).

The median time spent directly on hypertension activities per day per staff nurse was 1 hour 45 minutes (IQR, 1 hour 18 minutes to 2 hours 45 minutes). Nurses spent 24 minutes (IQR, 15 to 44 minutes) per day for indirect hypertension activities and 1 hour 12 minutes (IQR, 50 minutes to 1 hour 56 minutes) per day for non-NCD activities.

Among the direct hypertension activities per day, measurement (34 [IQR, 2548] minutes) and documentation (35 [IQR, 2357] minutes) of blood pressure took the most time, followed by counseling (23 [IQR, 1336] minutes). The indirect hypertension activity of data management (updating patient records) took 37 minutes daily. The staff nurses spent 28 minutes daily on activities unrelated to the NCD clinic (Table 3).

Application-based versus paper-based records

The median time taken for direct hypertension activities was comparable in the paper-based (110 [IQR, 71195] minutes) facilities and the facilities using the Simple app (101 [IQR, 71124] minutes) (P = .22) (Table 4). However, the median time spent on indirect hypertension activities was much longer in the paper-based facilities (39 [IQR, 2662] minutes) when compared with facilities using the Simple app (15 [IQR, 1119] minutes); a difference of 24 minutes more on each workday in facilities using a paper-based information system (P < .001).

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Discussion

In this time and motion study, nurses spent nearly two-thirds of their time on hypertension activities in the primary care facilities of 2 Indian states. Nurses working in clinics with paper-based systems spent more time on documentation and record management than did those in clinics using the Simple app. Time and motion studies have helped managers to understand workforce efficiency in various healthcare settings, such as outpatient departments, intensive care units, and operating theaters (1719). This time and motion study has helped managers understand the workforce efficiency of specific clinical, documentation, and management tasks.

In our study, nurses spent 52% of their time on direct and 14% on indirect hypertension activities. Similar research assessed the activities and time spent by the community health officers (CHOs, nurses with additional training in India), at health and wellness centers, which manage to up to 5,000 patients. The CHOs spent 40% of their time on NCD service delivery, primarily on hypertension and diabetes-related activities, which is consistent with our studys results (20).

In our study, nurses spent approximately 66% of their total time on hypertension activities. In the primary health centers, a staff nurse does hypertension work and other duties such as outpatient care. Because of challenges in recruitment, training, and re-allocating tasks, nurses are either not appointed or are unable to do exclusive NCD-related work (21,22). Evidence suggests that multitasking might influence the nurses quality of care (23). Primary care facilities currently manage less than a quarter of the estimated population with hypertension (24). Even with the current coverage, nurses have to spend a large proportion of time in hypertension activities. We need to use this information to design more efficient hypertension services in the future. Apart from ensuring the appointment of nurses and protecting their time in the forenoon for hypertension services, other strategies such as the involvement of other health care workers also need to be explored.

Our study documented the multiple tasks performed by the staff nurses on a particular day in the primary care settings. Nurses spent 34 minutes on blood pressure measurement, 35 minutes on its documentation, and 23 minutes on patient counseling per day. Nurses spend less time on patient education and health promotion, an essential aspect of chronic disease care, than on other activities. (25). Sharing tasks between the available employees of the primary care setting may help create more efficient allocation of activities, especially during the busy hours before midday. Evidence from low-income and middle-income countries in the context of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis documented that task sharing is viable for addressing human resource constraints and providing a cost-effective approach (26,27). Paramedical staff or volunteers can help in measuring blood pressure and documentation in NCD clinics. Community health volunteers in NCD clinics have the potential to improve screening services and care of patients (28). The pharmacist can dispense and explain the medication schedules to the patient. As the NCD program expands, patients with hypertension and other comorbidities will require more complex care, which will be time-consuming and resource intensive. In addition, as caseloads increase, differentiated service delivery models, including clinical visits for stable patients every 3 or 6 months, will be needed to improve health care system functioning and convenience for patients.

Clinics using a paper-based system spent almost twice the time in recording patient data and clinic management compared with clinics using the Simple app. The Simple app is an efficient electronic health record management tool, designed in collaboration with health care workers, requiring minimal time to register and record a follow-up visit. Simple enables a health care worker to register a patient in 45 seconds and to record a follow-up visit in 15 seconds (10). The digital system eliminates paper-based cards, hence the need for organizing and retrieving cards for follow-up. Reports are automatically generated through the app dashboard, reducing the burden of manually compiling data and preparing reports. Evidence from a meta-analysis of 11 studies that investigated the impact of digitalization on nurses efficiency documented that using electronic health records could save 24.5% of time (29). Another novel intervention to reduce blood pressure measurement time is installing arm-in blood pressure monitors in the NCD clinics. The Government of Thailand documented using automated arm-in digital blood pressure measurement devices with an attached printer in their NCD clinics as a best practice (30). The system can use staff with less training than nurses to help the patients measure blood pressure in a validated arm-in blood pressure monitor.

Our study has several limitations. First, 2 research assistants observed the activities of the staff nurses in the NCD clinics. We gave detailed training to avoid interobserver bias and used standardized data collection tools and similar operational definitions for each activity. Staff nurses can change their behavior if they know they are observed (31). We minimized this Hawthorne effect by observing the staff nurses for 7 days, so that the nurses didnt know which observations were being recorded. Second, the ease of managing the NCD clinic and the Simple app depended on the staff nurses experience and training. Although all 6 nurses in our study had completed the training, they had varying skills in managing the clinic. Third, we conducted the study in 6 facilities in 2 states. The health system functioning and status of implementation of NCD activities may vary from state to state. Still, study findings may be robust because the diagnosis, treatment, and recording policies and formats are the same in the 2 states. Fourth, our study included 6 primary care facilities from districts participating in the IHCI program. The time nurses spend on hypertension activities might be higher in our sites compared with facilities in the non-IHCI districts. IHCI strengthens the hypertension control activities in a primary care facility through standardized treatment protocols, follow-up guidelines, and intense training of nurses in managing the clinic and data management (14). IHCI also conducts supervisory and monitoring visits to these centers to ensure the quality of care delivered to individuals with hypertension (14). Hence, the findings are not generalizable to districts where IHCI is not being implemented.

Our findings suggest that nurses substantial time commitment and practical digital tools can improve the functioning of the staff nurse in Indias primary care settings. The digital Simple app system reduced the time spent on nonclinical indirect hypertension-related activities. Introducing user-friendly digital tools that require minimal time for data entry and that provide analytical dashboards can increase the time spent on patient-centric hypertension control activities. We recommend designating or appointing a staff nurse for hypertension-associated activities in the outpatient settings in primary care facilities. The health system will need to adopt time-saving methods such as task sharing and arm-in blood pressure apparatus to improve the efficiency of hypertension care.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the mentorship support for the lead author from the Emerging Authors Program for Global Cardiovascular Disease Research. The initiative is a mentorship collaboration consisting of the Lancet Commission on Hypertension Group, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Resolve to Save Lives, and the World Hypertension League. We thank Dr Jatin Thakkar and Dr Vijay Kumar, cardiovascular health officers in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, for facilitating this study at the primary care facilities. We also thank the efforts of the medical officers and the nurses for supporting data collection at the study sites. We would also like to acknowledge the valuable technical inputs by Dr Bhawna Sharma and Dr Anupam Khungar Pathni from Resolve to Save Lives, India. The study was a part of the corresponding authors FETP-NCD Fellowships core learning activities and is funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research  National Institute of Epidemiology, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. We have not used any copyrighted materials in this article.

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Author Information

Corresponding Author: Ashish Krishna, MPH, Field Epidemiology Training Program Scholar, Indian Council of Medical Research  National Institute of Epidemiology, Chennai, Tamil Nadu Housing Board, Ayapakkam, Chennai  600077 (krishnaashish011@gmail.com).

Author Affiliations: 1Indian Council of Medical Research  National Institute of Epidemiology, Chennai, India. 2Resolve to Save Lives, New Delhi, India. 3Resolve to Save Lives, New York, New York. 4Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York. 5Directorate of Health Services, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal, India. 6Department of Health and Family Welfare Punjab, Chandigarh, Punjab, India. 7Department of Hypertension and Diabetology, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland.

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World Health Organization. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Accessed June 22, 2022. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases-(cvds) Fuchs FD, Whelton PK. High blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. Hypertension 2020;75(2):28592. PubMed doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.119.14240 Amarchand R, Kulothungan V, Krishnan A, Mathur P. Hypertension treatment cascade in India: results from National Noncommunicable Disease Monitoring Survey. J Hum Hypertens 2022. Published correction appears in J Hum Hypertens 2022;10:943. PubMed doi:10.1038/s41371-022-00692-y Glynn LG, Murphy AW, Smith SM, Schroeder K, Fahey T. Interventions used to improve control of blood pressure in patients with hypertension. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2010;(3):CD005182. PubMed doi:10.1002/14651858.CD005182.pub4 Correia JC, Lachat S, Lagger G, Chappuis F, Golay A, Beran D; COHESION Project. Interventions targeting hypertension and diabetes mellitus at community and primary healthcare level in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review. BMC Public Health 2019;19(1):1542. PubMed doi:10.1186/s12889-019-7842-6 Anand TN, Joseph LM, Geetha AV, Prabhakaran D, Jeemon P. Task sharing with non-physician health-care workers for management of blood pressure in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Glob Health 2019;7(6):e76171. PubMed doi:10.1016/S2214-109X(19)30077-4 Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government Of India. National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS). Operational guidelines (revised: 2013-17). 2013. Accessed June 22, 2022. https://main.mohfw.gov.in/sites/default/files/Operational%20Guidelines%20of%20NPCDCS%20%28Revised%20-%202013-17%29_1.pdf World Health Organization, Country Office for India. Health workforce in India: why, where and how to invest? World Health Organization. Country Office for India; 2021. Accessed June 22, 2022. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/350946/9789290228813-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Bavoria S, Nongkynrih B, Krishnan A. Health workforce availability and competency to manage noncommunicable diseases at secondary care level hospitals of Delhi. Int J Noncommun Dis 2019;4(2):3842. Simple. Fast, free software for clinicians to manage patients with hypertension & diabetes. Accessed June 23, 2022. http://www.simple.org/ Indian Hypertension Control Initiative. Simple app. 2022. Accessed March 31, 2023. https://www.ihci.in/resources/simple Harper S, Fariss-Terry M. Time and motion studies. Oxford Bibliographies. Accessed June 22, 2022. https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199846740/obo-9780199846740-0027.xml Lopetegui M, Yen PY, Lai A, Jeffries J, Embi P, Payne P. Time motion studies in healthcare: what are we talking about? J Biomed Inform 2014;49:2929. PubMed doi:10.1016/j.jbi.2014.02.017 Indian Hypertension Control Initiative. What is IHCI? Accessed July 19, 2022. https://www.ihci.in/ Kaur P, Kunwar A, Sharma M, Mitra J, Das C, Swasticharan L, et al. . India Hypertension Control Initiative  hypertension treatment and blood pressure control in a cohort in 24 sentinel site clinics. J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich) 2021;23(4):7209. PubMed doi:10.1111/jch.14141 OpenEpi. Open Epi Open source epidemiologic statistics for public health. Accessed September 25, 2017. http://www.openepi.com/Menu/OE_Menu.htm Roumeliotis N, Parisien G, Charette S, Arpin E, Brunet F, Jouvet P. Reorganizing care with the implementation of electronic medical records: a time-motion study in the PICU. Pediatr Crit Care Med 2018;19(4):e1729. PubMed doi:10.1097/PCC.0000000000001450 Chopade RR, Sharma NK, Sundar SM. A time and motion study in outdoor patient department of rural health training centre of tertiary medical college in Konkan region, India. Int J Community Med Public Health 2019;6(8):32425. Desjardins F, Cardinal L, Belzile E, McCusker J. Reorganizing nursing work on surgical units: a time-and-motion study. Nurs Leadersh (Tor Ont) 2008;21(3):2638. PubMed doi:10.12927/cjnl.2008.20057 Brar S, Purohit N, Prinja S, Singh G, Bahuguna P, Kaur M. What and how much do the community health officers and auxiliary nurse midwives do in health and wellness centres in a block in Punjab? A time-motion study. Indian J Public Health 2021;65(3):2759. PubMed Jeet G, Thakur JS, Prinja S, Singh M. Community health workers for non-communicable diseases prevention and control in developing countries: evidence and implications. PLoS One 2017;12(7):e0180640. PubMed doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0180640 Thakur JS, Paika R, Singh S. Burden of noncommunicable diseases and implementation challenges of National NCD Programmes in India. Med J Armed Forces India 2020;76(3):2617. PubMed doi:10.1016/j.mjafi.2020.03.002 McGillis Hall L, Pedersen C, Fairley L. Losing the moment: understanding interruptions to nurses work. J Nurs Adm 2010;40(4):16976. PubMed doi:10.1097/NNA.0b013e3181d41162 Indian Hypertension Control Initiative. IHCI progress brief. 2022. Accessed June 22, 2022. https://www.ihci.in/resources/ihci-progress-brief-2022 Group Bangkok Hospital. Needs of nursing for prevention and management of non-communicable diseases in primary care settings. Accessed June 22, 2022. https://www.bangkokmedjournal.com/article/needs-of-nursing-for-prevention-and-management-of-non-communicable-diseases-in-primary-care-settings/474/article Seidman G, Atun R. Does task shifting yield cost savings and improve efficiency for health systems? A systematic review of evidence from low-income and middle-income countries. Hum Resour Health 2017;15(1):29. PubMed doi:10.1186/s12960-017-0200-9 Crowley T, Mayers P. Trends in task shifting in HIV treatment in Africa: effectiveness, challenges and acceptability to the health professions. Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med 2015;7(1):807. PubMed doi:10.4102/phcfm.v7i1.807 Parmar PK, Rawashdah F, Al-Ali N, Abu Al Rub R, Fawad M, Al Amire K, et al. . Integrating community health volunteers into non-communicable disease management among Syrian refugees in Jordan: a causal loop analysis. BMJ Open 2021;11(4):e045455. PubMed doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045455 Poissant L, Pereira J, Tamblyn R, Kawasumi Y. The impact of electronic health records on time efficiency of physicians and nurses: a systematic review. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2005;12(5):50516. PubMed doi:10.1197/jamia.M1700 World Health Organization, Country Office for Thailand. Hypertension care in Thailand: best practices and challenges, 2019. World Health Organization. Country Office for Thailand; 2019. Accessed June 23, 2022. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/330488/9789290227403-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Pripp AH. Hawthorne-effekten. [The Hawthorne effect]. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen 2020;140(14). PubMed doi:10.4045/tidsskr.20.0395

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Tables

Table 1. Operational Definitions of Categories of Key Activities Performed by Staff Nurses in NCD clinics of Selected Primary Care Facilities of Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, 2021 Category Activity Description Direct hypertension activities BP measurement Time to place the BP cuff on the patients arm, measure the BP, and remove the cuff. Counseling Time taken to give instructions to patients regarding medication use and lifestyle modification. Recording BP measurements Time taken to record the measured BP to the registers or in the Simplea app. Other NCD-related activities Time taken during the following activities was collated under this heading, because these tasks were not performed for all the patients:

 Drug dispensing: Time taken dispensing drugs per the protocol and documenting the drug administration information on a treatment card or in the Simple app.a

 ECG: Time taken measuring the ECG of the patient, starting from attaching the ECG leads to removing them.

 Blood glucose measurement: Time taken for pricking the patients finger, loading the blood spot onto the glucometer, and retrieving the result.

 Follow-up of patients with diabetes. Indirect hypertension activities Patients record and data management  Time spent organizing, retrieving, and updating patient information (BP, ECG, and blood glucose) and documenting it on a treatment card or in the Simple app.a

 Time spent tallying the patient details and preparing reports for the district NCD cell. Making follow-up calls to patient Time spent accessing the telephone number, calling the patient, and planning the next follow-up call. Non-NCD activities Other activities Time spent having lunch, delivering care to antenatal mothers, and any nonspecific administrative duties. No work Total time when the staff nurses were idle without any specific work.

Table 2. Characteristics of Selected Noncommunicable Disease Clinics in Selected Primary Care Facilities of Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, 2021 (N = 6) Facility code Availability of dedicated staff Total time observed, min Total days observed Mean time spent by a staff nurse per day in the clinic, min Mean (SD) hours spent by a staff nurse per day in the clinic Madhya Pradesh using a paper-based system Facility 1 Yes 1,923 10 193 4 h 25 min (1 h 35 min) Facility 2 Yes 3,730 10 373 Facility 3 No 2,307 10 231 Punjab using Simplea app Facility 1 No 1,525 8 191 3 h 40 min (25 min) Facility 2 No 1,644 7 235 Facility 3 Yes 1,638 7 234

Table 3. Time Spent by the Staff Nurse on Each Activity and the Proportion of Time Spent on Various Categories of Activities in the NCD Clinics of Selected Primary Care Facilities of Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, 2021 Category of activity Activity Total time, min Time taken per day, min Proportion of total time, % (95% CI) Median IQR Direct hypertension activities Blood pressure measurement 2,106 34 2548 52 (4559) Counseling 1,703 23 1336 Recording blood pressure measurement 2,289 35 2357 Other NCD-related activities 525 8 321 Indirect hypertension activities Data management (updating patient records) 1,367 37 2160 14 (1019) Making patient follow-up calls 457 15 1223 Non-NCD activities Other activitiesa 1,897 28 1657 34 (2841) Idle time 2,424 85 54112

Table 4. Comparison of Time Spent by the Staff Nurse on Each Activity Category Using Paper-Based Documentation Versus Simplea App in the Clinics of Selected Primary Care Facilities of Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, 2021 Category of activity Time taken per day, min P valueb Facilities using a paper-based information system Facilities using Simple applicationa Median IQR Median IQR Direct hypertension activities 110 71195 101 71124 .22 Indirect hypertension activities 39 2662 15 1119 <.001 Non-noncommunicable disease activities 60 4687 110 63139 .02

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Sagar Cements to commission new clinker line

18 May 2023

Sagar Cements plans to commission its new clinker line at Andhra Cements Ltd (ACL) during the current quarter. This forms part of an INR4580m (US$55.6m) investment programme by Sagar Cements to upgrade Andhra Cements capacities from 1.65Mta to 2.3Mta of clinker and from 1.8Mta to 3Mta of cement. The full upgrade programme is due to complete in the 2HFY24-25, according to The Hindu. According to Sagar Cements, it is expecting an incremental 1Mta from Andhra Cements in FY23-24.

Sagar Cements acquired ACL in February 2023 for INR9220m, including its 1Mta Durga works and 0.6Mta Visaka plant. The deal was seen as a chance to not only boost Sagar Cements cement production capacity, which stood at 5.75Mta but also expand its presence across India.

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Alicem Sro completes Cement Hranice clinker cooler project

18 May 2023

Alicem Sro has successful fulfilled the guarantee conditions of the modernisation clinker cooler project in the Czech Republic. The contract included including a new kiln head, which Alicem Sro implemented as part of the overhaul at the beginning of this year for Cement Hranice, Czech Republic.

This technical and time-consuming project was completed while meeting and even significantly exceeding all guarantee conditions.

The clinker cooler project has enabled Alicem improve the performance and efficiency of the system, which will have a positive impact on operations and emissions.

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Guillermo Lasso, Ecuador's banker-president, has used Article 148 of the Constitution  known as the muerte cruzada or mutual death  to shut down the National Congress just two hours before the vote on his impeachment trial for corruption was due to begin. Elections must now be called within six months to renew both the executive (the president) and the legislature (the Congress), but in the interim, the president remains in office and rules by decree without parliamentary oversight. It is therefore a power grab or, as some have described it, an autogolpe (a self-coup).

[Read the original in Spanish here]

It is no coincidence that Lasso has deployed soldiers around Congress and the Presidential Palace. The army leadership, complicit in the decision, has come out in support of the muerte cruzada decree.

The leadership of the mass indigenous and peasant movement CONAIE has rightly come out to reject the measure, which its leader Leonidas Iza has described as a self-coup. CONAIE has called for vigilance, rank-and-file assemblies and the creation of a broad National Assembly of Popular and Plurinational Power. A national plenary of the organisation was called to organise possible mobilisations against Lasso's coup d'etat.

However, it is necessary to point out that the CONAIE communique asks for a ruling by the Constitutional Court on the legality of Lassos move. We must warn that it is a grave error to try to combat a bourgeois coup with appeals to bourgeois legality. Lasso's decree, which is technically legal since it is laid out in the Constitution, is a coup because it is a manoeuvre to evade the democratic vote of the Congress representatives, which he knew would be unfavourable to him.

The mass indigenous and peasant movement CONAIE has rightly come out to reject the measure / Image: Asamblea Nacional del Ecuador, Flickr

The most scandalous thing is that while the president dissolves the Congress, at the same time he reserves powers to govern by decree for six months on urgent economic matters. Already the cabinet has announced a series of decrees that it wants to implement by decree, the first being a tax reform and the second a labour reform. Obviously both of these are favourable to businessmen and contrary to the interests of the working class.

As we have explained in past articles, the Lasso government was a very weak government, which only managed to get elected in the second round due to the null vote of the indigenous Pachakutik party. What little popularity the government might have had, it lost during the national strike of June 2022, when it responded to the demands of the workers and peasants with brutal repression. In the local elections in February this year, his coalition was heavily defeated; and the referendum proposed by Lasso himself was a failure, being defeated on eight different questions. The president's approval rating stands at a paltry 13 percent, with 51 percent rating his performance as bad and 32 percent as very bad.

The economic and social situation has only worsened. CONAIE's communique gave the glaring figures: 70 percent of the population is unemployed, underemployed or in precarious conditions, more than six million families live in poverty or extreme poverty, more than 200,000 Ecuadorians have been forced to leave the country in what is the second biggest migration crisis in the last 40 years, more than 130,000 young people have not been able to enter university. To all this must be added the crisis of violence linked to drug gangs operating with impunity.

Fearing a movement of the masses from below, even the political representatives of the ruling class had decided to bring down Lasso, in a movement from above, thus creating a majority in favour of impeachment. The impeachment process was opened on Tuesday, 16 May, and its final vote was to take place on Saturday, 20 May.

Lasso's decree also demonstrates the disgusting hypocrisy of US imperialism / Image: Casa de America, Flickr

Lasso's decree also demonstrates the disgusting hypocrisy of US imperialism and its lackeys in the capitalist oligarchies of Latin America. When Peruvian President Castillo decided to dissolve Congress and call early elections, using a procedure analogous to Lasso's, the bourgeois military, business and political leadership immediately staged a coup d'etat. They feared that Castillo's decision (and his intention to call a Constituent Assembly) could awaken the movement of the masses on the streets. In the case of Peru, Washington was quick to recognise the coup against the democratically elected president, a coup about which the US embassy was already informed.



But in the case of Ecuador, when the same procedure is carried out by a banker president, a lackey of imperialism, whose intention is not to implement the popular mandate, but precisely to evade it and rule by decree for the benefit of capitalists and multinationals, then the US rushes to support Lasso's self-coup. In a statement within hours of the muerte cruzada decree, State Department spokesman Vedant Patel announced that our bilateral relationship with the Government of Ecuador... remains strong and added that President Biden was aware of Lasso's decision. Lasso clearly had consulted with his master in the White House before taking any decision. Without blushing, the US spokesman offered his support for Ecuador's democratic institutions and processes, just when democracy is being violated. He expressed his respect for the will of the Ecuadorian government and people, when these are clearly in contradiction.

Lasso clearly had consulted with his master in the White House before taking any decision / Image: Presidencia de la Republica del Ecuador, Flickr

We are facing a move by the ruling class, with the support of US imperialism, to keep in power a banker who no longer even has parliamentary support, so that he can apply urgent economic measures against the working class and in favour of the oligarchy. The only possible response on the part of the workers, peasants and the youth of Ecuador is to take to the streets to prevent this manoeuvre.

The struggle against Lasso's self-coup must not be limited to the question of democracy, but must be linked to a plan of demands that respond to the most immediate needs of the masses. For the people to have health, education, housing and work, the capitalists must be made to pay for the crisis, starting with repudiating the onerous foreign debt and expropriating the oligarchy.

The problem is not that the neoliberal model has failed, as both Correa and Iza claim, but that neoliberalism is the reflection of the crisis of capitalism in a country dominated by imperialism and the attempt of the capitalist oligarchy to make the masses of workers and peasants pay for this crisis. It is therefore capitalism that has failed.

In the last 25 years it has been shown time and again that the Ecuadorian people, the workers and poor peasants, when they are on the move, are capable of courageously defending their interests and overthrowing those who rule against the majority.

it has been shown time and again that the Ecuadorian people are capable of courageously defending their interests / Image: CONFENIAE

It is imperative to draw lessons from recent movements. On the last two occasions, in the October 2019 insurrection and in June 2022, what was missing was a leadership of the movement with a clear perspective of taking power. The promises made in both cases by the government (in 2019 by Moreno, in 2022 by Lasso), to appease the movement and get the masses off the streets, were never fulfilled. It is not a question of changing one government for another, but of overthrowing the capitalist oligarchy, so that the working class can rule for the benefit of the majority and not the private interests of a parasitic minority beholden to imperialism.

It is necessary to build a revolutionary leadership, based on the ideas of Marxism, with the perspective of the socialist transformation of society, in Ecuador, in Latin America and in the whole world.
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State Senator Bo Watson, chairman of the Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee, discussed how the budget drives policy decisions for the Tennessee Legislature at Wednesday's Friends of Hixson Monthly Coffee Meeting.

Senator Watson noted that Tennessee has a AAA credit rating and the states fiscal health is the third best in the U.S.

As the special legislative session approaches in August, Senator Watson said school safety discussions were already underway as the most recent legislative session began last January, resulting in new programs that provide funding for all schools to have an SRO Officer, funding of over 100 Homeland Security Agents, multi-tiered accountability plan to ensure exterior doors are locked at schools, active shooter training for private school guards, behavioral health teams and support services for schools and funding for private school security updates.

As the special legislative session begins in August, Senator Watson said he looks forward to hearing about Governor Lees safety plan as the session begins.



Senator Watson was presented with a thank you note from some of the attendees for his work securing the legislation designating the North Chickamauga Creek as a "Scenic River. This designation provides additional protection for this scenic waterway.


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Sheriff Austin Garrett and the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office School Resource Deputy Unit, in conjunction with the administration of the Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts (CSLA), hosted the second DARE graduation ceremony of 2023 on Wednesday afternoon. Also joining Sheriff Garrett as a ceremonial guest speaker in the graduation was Hamilton County Department of Education Chief Operations Officer Dr. Robert Sharpe.

Officials said, "Todays ceremony signifies the successful culmination of the HCSOs second DARE Program to be hosted in our public school system in over two decades and reinforces our offices commitment to the safety of our communitys children. Approximately 86 students graduated from the program.

"DARE was originally founded in 1983 and has proven so successful that it has been implemented in thousands of schools throughout the United States and many other countries. It is a law enforcement led series of classroom lessons that teaches children from kindergarten through 12th grade how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives. The modern national DARE Program teaches millions of children the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs and gangs, as well as lead lives free from substance abuse and violence. There is also a mental health component incorporated into the program."

Sheriff Garrett said, As part of my vision as Sheriff, I am pleased to see DARE re-instituted in our public schools. My administration understands the value of this safety program and the importance it plays in not only reducing drug addiction in children, but the many other important lessons and values it teaches our young people. With the unprecedented number of overdose deaths we are seeing across our state and our nation, along with the increase in juvenile violence, there could not be a more important time to reinstitute the DARE Program in our local schools. We must give our young people the tools they need to educate themselves about the dangers of illegal and prescription drug abuse and avoiding peer pressure by promoting respectful conduct, civility, and behavior.

Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts was one of two schools selected last year in September as the pilot locations for the program due to the fact their assigned School Resource Deputies proactively requested to undergo the extensive training required to become certified DARE Instructors.

In order to be a DARE Instructor, potential candidates are vetted by DARE mentors responsible for training new law enforcement personnel. The candidate must also be a POST certified, uniformed law enforcement officer with at two or more years of service and must successfully complete a rigorous 80-hour training course conducted by mentors with a significant number of years of classroom experience, as well as university-level educators from colleges of education. This coursework does not include the many additional hours of study and after-hours work required to test for the certification.

Sheriff Garrett said, I am proud of the efforts and initiative shown by School Resource Deputies Joseph Dangler and Rodney Brown to obtain their instructors certification and to get this important public safety program operational. As we get more instructors certified and trained to teach DARE, we will continue to expand the program in the coming months and years across our county.
Police were made aware by a guest of a possible firearm in the bushes near the parking lot of TownePlace Suites, 7010 McCutcheon Road. The guest told police they were walking on the sidewalk while smoking and noticed a firearm in the bushes near the front of the hotel. Police were able to locate the firearm nestled in the bushes and covered with leaves (a Taurus - G3 9MM - black). The firearm had a round in the chamber as well as magazine with approximately nine rounds inside. The firearm as well as the magazine/ammo were turned into CPD Property Division and made releasable to CPD Gun Team for further investigation. No return on the firearm was found through Info Channel or Watson.



* * *

A woman at a bank at 2120 Northgate Park Ln., told police a young black female entered the facility and attempted to cash a check for $4,819.25. The bank did not cash the check due to believing the check was fraudulent. The woman presented an Illinois I.D. with the name Angelica Tillman on it. Angelica left in a gray Hyundai Elantra. Police left their e-mail to have their security employee send any possible video footage. As of now, no actual money was lost, due to the bank catching the fraudulent check.

* * *

A woman on Lockington Lane called police to make a report about a damaged cell phone. She said she bought an iPhone 11 for her grandson. She said her grandson and his mother got into a verbal altercation and the iPhone was thrown during the altercation, which resulted in the damaged cell phone. She told police she took the phone to a repair shop in order to get it fixed. Police were unable to observe the damaged cell phone.

* * *

A man told police his mountain bike was stolen from his vehicle at the Chattanoogan Hotel, 1201 Broad St. He said he last saw his bike Monday night. He said the bike was black with green lettering. No Suspect information is known. Photos of his bike will be uploaded to this report.

* * *

A woman on W. 37th Street told police she had been receiving phone call after phone call from a no caller ID number and she believed it to be a woman she knows. She said her window had been knocked out a few days prior and another Chattanooga officer took that report. Police did not observe enough probable cause to apply for warrants. The officer spoke with the initial reporting officer, who stated that he was investigating the incident also. Police will continue to look into this incident.

* * *

A woman told police that she and a man went to the Hair of the Dog (bar) and had a couple of drinks. After that, they went to the CBC (Billiard Club), played pool and had more drinks. The man then drove her back to her place, and they had a verbal altercation about their relationship. The man told police he just wanted her out of his vehicle so he could go home. The woman wouldn't get out of the man's vehicle. Police told the woman to go and she went to her apartment on Frosty Pine Trail. The man waited on a ride, due to both of them being intoxicated.

* * *

A man at Life Storage, 4119 Hixson Pike, told police the catalytic converter had been cut off his vehicle. He said the last time he saw the truck intact was around 11 a.m. He had no suspect information to provide. He estimated the cost to replace the converter would be around $1,200. Police issued the man a complaint card for the incident.

* * *

A man on 416 Osborne Drive told police that morning around 5:30 a.m. he realized he left his vehicle, a 2019 Toyota 4Runner, unlocked and unattended at his residence from roughly 10 p.m. the date before until the time of discovery. He reported two firearms were stolen from the vehicle. The first he described as an "old pocket pistol" .32 Smith and Wesson Long caliber. A serial number was not made available for this firearm. The second reported stolen is a black Smith and Wesson M&P Shield 2.0, 9mm with black Talon Grips applied to the frame. He provided the serial number for this firearm and it was entered into NCIC as stolen.

* * *

A called reported a black male with a black vest, no shirt, teal bookbag and jeans in the area of E. 11th Street/Baldwin Street, who was checking car door handles. Police found a man matching that description at 500 E. 11th St., near Times Free Press. He was identified and claimed to have been with a friend (a blonde hair, white female who had walked off) all day and he did not check door handles. However, witnesses described him with great detail and the man has been observed doing this behavior previously. Police warned him to not attempt any more car doors or other illegal activity and instructed him to move along. The man was cooperative and easily identifiable from his multiple face tattoos. There was a white dog with the short haired, blonde woman who walked away (police never got her name).

* * *

A man came to the Police Service Center at 3410 Amnicola Hwy. and said he was scammed by someone on Facebook who was pretending to be a Chattanooga Police Officer. He said that the page's name is Alexys Duke Polster and she is selling fake concert tickets to people. He said that he sent $600 to $girley680 on CashApp and then was blocked by the Facebook page. He said that he received over five phone calls from acquaintances who were also scammed by the same page. He said that the person using the Facebook page also has people send money through Venmo to @Lucas-hoaglund. After checking the Facebook page, police determined that it was a female officer whose photos were on the account. Police spoke with that officer and she said that it was not her using that Facebook page.
An individual in the 9400 block of Ooltewah Industrial Drive reported that they had been scammed into paying two fraudulent bills.

An alarm was activated at the Truist Bank. The building was checked and everything checked out ok.



Police assisted with directing traffic around a broken down 18-wheeler in the 5800 block of Main Street until it was able to be moved.



A Collegedale fugitive was arrested by the sheriffs department during a traffic stop and transported to the jail to be booked on their warrants.



Two Collegedale fugitives were taken into custody during court for failure to appear and bond revocation warrants from original drug possession charges.



A resident in from the 4600 block of Sweet Berry Lane turned in a fraudulent cashiers check they had received.



An officer provided a courtesy ride to an elderly male with a cane in the 10100 block of Lee Highway, near Edgmon Road, to the Food City in the 9200 block of Lee Highway.



A traffic stop in the 5100 block of Ooltewah Ringgold Road resulted in the driver being charged with driving on a suspended license.



An officer responded to the area of University Drive and Otis Way after receiving a noise complaint regarding loud music in the area, however nothing was located.



Collegedale officers assisted the Blount County Sheriffs Office after they advised that a vehicle they had been pursuing had evaded their deputies and had gone to the Collegedale Walmart earlier in the day.

The suspects, no longer on scene, are believed to have also stolen merchandise while at the store.An employee at the Panda Express, in the 8900 block of Old Lee Highway, allegedly assaulted several other employees. A report was made but prosecution was declined.A Collegedale officer assisted a sheriffs deputy who had made contact with a homeless person who was lying on the ground in front of a closed business in the 5900 block of Main Street, near the Sonic. The individual was the same person Collegedale officers had encountered yesterday in the Four Corners area. The individual advised the sheriffs deputy that they were on their way to the homeless shelter and the deputy sent them on their way.An alarm was activated at the Collegedale Academy high school. The building was checked and found secure.A traffic stop in the 5500 block of Little Debbie Parkway resulted in the driver being charged with possession of illegal drugs and falsification of a drug test.A Collegedale fugitive was booked on a shoplifting warrant and released on bond.The sheriffs office made contact with a Collegedale fugitive who had bond revocation warrants for failure to appear, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving on a revoked license. They were transported to the jail and booked.
Xi'an summit to open new chapter of China-Central Asia cooperation

Xinhua) 10:04, May 18, 2023

The China-Central Asia Summit is about to be held from Thursday to Friday in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province. Experts from the five Central Asian countries said that the summit will offer a great chance for relevant parties to maintain regional security and stability, promote regional economic development and strengthen people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

ON MAINTAINING REGIONAL SECURITY AND STABILITY

Nurzhan Kasmalieva, head of the international department of Kyrgyzstan's Kabar state news agency:

The high-level meeting shows that the comprehensive strategic partnerships between China and the five Central Asian countries have reached a higher level. The event will be the first offline summit held by the heads of state of China and the five Central Asian countries and will open a new chapter in relations between China and Central Asia, marking a milestone in promoting stability and development in the region.

I believe that against the backdrop of global upheavals, this summit will contribute to strengthening security and stability in the region. At any time, terrorism and extremism pose threats and challenges to the security of Central Asia, and it is hoped that the meeting will achieve additional results in terms of cooperation in the field of security.

Shoazim Shazamanov, associate professor at Uzbekistan's Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies:

The upcoming Xi'an summit will be a historic event. It will open a new era in cooperation between the countries of Central Asia and China. I think the participants will discuss issues of cooperation in the field of transport infrastructure, energy, and measures to combat cross-border threats such as terrorism, drugs and organized crimes, as well as the situation in Afghanistan, stability in Central Asia and national security.

Sheradil Baktygulov, foreign affairs consultant at the Kyrgyz National Institute for Strategic Studies:

China deserves great respect and support for contributing to relations of peace, friendship and cooperation in Central Asia and for advocating mutually beneficial cooperation and peaceful development among all countries. And the Belt and Road Initiative also contains these notions.

China does not force the Central Asian countries to take side. It is a responsible country that respects the choice of the Central Asian countries, unlike the Western states.

ON PROMOTING REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Kubanychbek Taabaldiev, professor of international relations at Ala-Too International University of Kyrgyzstan:

The China-Central Asia Summit will provide a new platform and open a new chapter for cooperation among the six participating countries.

The expansion of economic cooperation is the main direction of the development of bilateral relations between the Central Asian countries and China. The region's trade with China has grown dramatically.

Another important reason for the close ties between the countries in Central Asia and China is China's success, not only in the economic field or the introduction of new digital technologies but also in poverty eradication and the improvement of civil society conditions.

The huge Chinese market is becoming the most attractive for manufacturers of all kinds of goods, and the export of green agricultural products from Central Asia to China is increasing.

Serik Korzhumbayev, editor-in-chief of Delovoy Kazakhstan newspaper:

The upcoming China-Central Asia Summit is very important as it will open up broad prospects for and inject impetus into long-term cooperation and development between China and the Central Asian countries in various fields.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. The venue of the summit is the city of Xi'an, one of the historic cities of China. It is a cultural, educational center and logistics hub, the place where the ancient Silk Road began.

The summit will have a positive effect on the long-term cooperation and development of our countries. A new format of cooperation will make it possible to involve the Central Asian region with China's large market in close economic ties.

Sheradil Baktygulov, a foreign affairs consultant at the Kyrgyz National Institute for Strategic Studies:

Thanks to the Belt and Road Initiative and the road transport corridors in the Central Asian countries, very beneficial relationships are being built between Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan with their major trading partner, China.

By implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, China can deliver goods via the territories of the Central Asian countries to Southern Europe, Turkiye and Iran, while the Central Asian states can supply products to Southeast Asian countries through Chinese ports.

Guzel Maitdinova, director of the Center for Geopolitical Studies at the Russian-Tajik (Slavonic) University:

The summit will promote the coupling of the Belt and Road Initiative with the national development strategies of the Central Asian countries. It will be a very significant event that will contribute to the development and modernization of the Central Asian states.

ON STRENGTHENING PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES

Adil Kaukenov, chief expert at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies:

The China-Central Asia Summit is an extremely important event. It will help foster cooperation between the Central Asian countries and China, boost people-to-people bonds, and further promote their good-neighborly relations.

It is no coincidence that Xi'an was chosen -- an ancient capital of China and the starting point of the ancient Silk Road. Today the city has become a strong industrial base for aircraft, automobiles, energy as well as home to giant companies of global importance. Xi'an is now considered as China's main hub of cooperation with Central Asia, where scientific, educational, business and other projects are being implemented.

There are a large number of Kazakh students studying in Xi'an, because this city is one of the main educational centers of China.

Guzel Maitdinova, director of the Center for Geopolitical Studies at the Russian-Tajik (Slavonic) University:

High-level interactions are observed not only in the political field but also in the cultural and humanitarian sphere. Thousands of Tajik students receive education in China. Many of them are successful entrepreneurs, translators, engineers and representatives of other professions.

Abdullayev Masharib Saydamatovich, deputy director of the Center for Promotion of Science at Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences:

Uzbekistan and China have been close partners on the Silk Road throughout history, establishing long-standing and stable economic and trade relations. After establishing diplomatic relations over 30 years ago, bilateral ties and cooperation in various fields, including economy and culture, have continued to develop.

The joint restoration project of the ancient city of Khiva is the best example of cultural cooperation between the two countries.

After the joint restoration project in Khiva, cultural cooperation between Uzbekistan and China will continue, and joint restoration work will become an important direction for future cooperation between the two countries.

Nurzhan Kasmalieva, director of the international department of Kyrgyzstan's Kabar state news agency:

China is a good neighbor of Kyrgyzstan. Just as in China, there is also a saying in our country: a close neighbor is better than a distant relative. I expect this summit to provide more convenience for personnel exchanges between Kyrgyzstan and China, such as a more convenient visa system.

The Central Asian countries, including Kyrgyzstan, have rich tourism resources, and we hope that more Chinese friends will visit Kyrgyzstan and more people from the Central Asian countries will go to China.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Executive Director Michael Walton will be transitioning to a strategic advisory role at green|spaces, it was announced on Thursday.

Officials said, "Michael has been an invaluable leader and member of the green|spaces team since 2014, and his contributions have been immeasurable. We are grateful for his vision, dedication, and commitment to promoting sustainability in the Chattanooga region.

"As part of this transition, Michael will be building a presence in Chattanooga for Emerald Operating Partners, a global energy transition advisory firm and we wish him all the best as he takes on this new challenge. While he may not be in the office as often, he will continue to provide strong support to the organization as a strategic advisor.

"During his time as executive director, Michael has achieved significant accomplishments for green|spaces. Under his leadership, we increased our staff from one in January of 2014 to twenty nine today, increased the diversity of our staff and board, quintupled our annual budget, and improved thousands of lives through our programming.

"Michael facilitated the community-led drafting of the Chattanooga Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, which was adapted by the City into the recently passed Climate Action Plan. He also designed, developed, and launched Empower Chattanooga, our education and outreach program, as well as launched green|light, Chattanoogas Green Business Certification program, and Green Leader, the sustainabilty professional certificate offered through Chattanooga State. Michael coordinated the Low-Impact Development Design Competition, Green Sparks Design Competition, and NextGen Homes Design Competition. He also managed the design, development, and construction of the NextGen Homes, Chattanooga's first net zero energy development.

"Among countless speaking engagements to spread the word about the great work happening in sustainability in Chattanooga, Michael facilitated the Equity and Resilience Workshop at US Green Building Councils 2019 Greenbuild Conference in Atlanta, was a panelist at the 2019 Department of Energy Better Building Summit Resilience Applications for Low Income Communities in Washington DC, and he served as a panelist at Oak Ridge National Lab Nexus of Resilience and Energy Efficiency in Buildings Workshop. Most recently he partnered with Associated General Contractors on the Construction Career Center to lead the integration of sustainability in both the building and the curriculum.



"Under his leadership, green|spaces received the Tennessee Governor's Environmental Stewardship Award in 2016 and 2020, the Footprint Foundation's Footprint Award in 2018 and the Chamber of Commerce's first ever Community Collaborator Award in 2019.

"These accomplishments are just a few examples of Michael's transformational contributions to green|spaces, and we are grateful for all that he has done. We will miss his leadership as Executive Director, but we are excited about his new role leading the global energy transition and his continued involvement with green|spaces.

"Please join us in thanking Michael for his exceptional leadership, dedication, and hard work over the past years. We wish him all the best in his new endeavors."

Former Board Chair Ken Jones said, The board is thankful for Michaels leadership and guidance for green spaces. Under his leadership, green|spaces has helped guide our community to adapt sustainable practices and in preparing our workforce for clean jobs. We will continue to build on the foundation that has been laid."

Mr. Walton said, "When I joined green|spaces in 2014 as executive director, I knew that it was a great opportunity to move from the project scale of sustainability, where I had been working as an architect in Washington, D.C., to the systems scale of sustainability in a place that deeply understands both the needs and the opportunities.

"Over the past nine years, thanks to your support, we designed, developed, and launched Empower and Empoderate, teaching low-cost and no-cost ways to lower electric bills, and built the NextGen Homes, the first zero energy capable development in the region. We worked with businesses to launch green|leader, an online certificate for sustainability professionals and green|light, Chattanooga's Green Business Directory, both helping organizations be stewards of the Scenic City. We launched the Chattanooga Green Prix, an electric car race for elementary, middle, and high school students and Build It Green, the leadership and workforce development program with Build Me a World. We received two Governor's Environmental Stewardship Awards, the Footprint Award, and the first ever Chamber of Commerce Community Collaborator Award. Let me be clear though, none of this is my work, or even green|spaces' work. It is your work.



"You, our partners and supporters, made all of this possible and it is your continued support of our growing team that will continue to build on the strong foundation you have laid. While I am no longer going to serve as executive director, my new role will still allow me to stay involved with our mission and support green|spaces moving forward. I have joined a global advisory firm, Emerald Operating Partners, that is opening an office in Chattanooga to take the energy transition work green|spaces has been leading at the local scale to the global scale, building the sustainable future we need.



"The green|spaces board is in the process of selecting the right executive leadership to take our already successful programs to the next level with my full support as a strategic advisor. We are considering all options and are posting the job description below for consideration for those with an expertise in sustainability paired with a track record leading a high-performance team to effectively deliver results for our stakeholders.



"Thank you for the opportunity to be part of such meaningful work and I look forward to working with you and the future executive leadership of green|spaces to keep getting great work done."
In July, there may be some sticker shock when residential property owners in Whitfield County get their tax assessment notices. However, officials said, while each notice will be mailed out with a calculation made with the current millage rate, both the Dalton City Council and Whitfield County Board of Commissioners "anticipate adopting a full 100 percent rollback millage rate for 2024 that will offset almost all tax increases."

Other local taxing authorities will also have the opportunity to adopt a full rollback rate, it was stated.

Im pleased to know that all taxing authorities in the county are going to have the opportunity to tax cut our way out of any significant increases, said Dalton City Council member Annalee Sams.

Georgia law requires each county to appraise property values at fair market value, with acceptable ratios ranging from 36% to 44%. To determine if a county is complying with this requirement, every three years the Department of Revenue studies a countys tax digest and compares the sales price of properties with their appraised property tax value. The most recent study of Whitfield Countys tax digest in 2021 showed that properties were assessed outside of the acceptable range at 31 percent for residential and agricultural properties. To reach compliance with state law, the Whitfield County Board of Assessors is anticipating raising the assessed value of residential properties by an average 26 percent, commercial properties by an average of 24 percent and agricultural properties by an average 22 percent.

"The commissioners look forward to continuing to lower property taxes for all residents this year, as we have the last three years," said Whitfield County Board of Commissioners Chairman Jevin Jensen.

In addition to an adoption of a rollback millage rate, property owners will also have the relief of a one-time increase to their homestead exemptions that has been granted by the state of Georgia. The state has granted a $25,000 increase to a property owners homestead exemption in the 2023 tax year. Whitfield County voters will also have an opportunity in November to vote on increases to homestead exemptions for senior citizens in the community that would take effect next year.

For more information, please contact the Whitfield County Tax Assessors Office at 706-275-7410.
Remember the Removal participant Samantha Cavin shakes the hand of At-Large Tribal Councilor Johnny Kidwell during the May 15 Tribal Council meeting. The RTR team introduced themselves to the council during the meeting.
What if I told you that one of todays most influential young activists is a rapper?

Sonita Alizadeh is a 27-year-old poet, humanitarian, and rapper who has been fighting against child marriage with the power of her words.

Sonita was born in Afghanistan in 1996. As a child, Afghanistan was under Taliban rule, so she fled to Iran with her parents and siblings as refugees.

After traveling hundreds of miles, her family finally settled at a refugee camp in Tehran.

Sonita began working at a young age to help support her family and eventually got an education through a local volunteer organization that taught Afghan girls in her area.

After learning to read and write, Sonita became very interested in writing poetry and music.

Sonita started writing songs about her life as a refugee and leaving her home. Although she started writing pop music, everything changed when she heard her first song by famous American rapper Eminem and found that she preferred rap music.

She loved how expressive and passionate Eminem was on the track, even if she didnt understand the words.

It was uncommon and, in some situations, illegal for a woman to speak her mind on political issues in Iran, but she did it anyway and wrote her first rap on child labor.

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Pexels/Catholics Protest

The Sisters of the Little Company of Mary-run Calvary Hospital will no longer be under Catholic control, according to a plan made public last week by the Australian Capital Territory. The non-religious organization Canberra Health Services will soon take over the management of the facility. The hospital's unwillingness to provide abortions and its resistance to euthanasia laws, which represent an open rejection of specific liberal ideas, are believed to be the unstated motivations underlying this decision.

The choice has provoked a lot of opposition from the Catholic and conservative communities. Both Peter Dutton, the Federal Leader of the Liberal Party, and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott condemned it as an "ideological attack on religion" and an "assault on the Church," respectively. Leaders of the Catholic Church have vowed to oppose the idea.

Catholic Hospital in Australia Faces Ownership Change Amid Ideological Concerns

According to the article in Catholic Herald, the Church should consider how to respond to perceived persecution from liberal ideology in light of this most recent action. Reaffirming and praising the values of our time, such as variety and tolerance, as well as accepting ideological defeat and withdrawing into religious groups, are some reactions.

Although it has helped the Church resist persecution and win certain concessions, this strategy of promoting variety and tolerance is under fire. The argument put up by critics is that it not only lays the way for present-day and upcoming persecution but also represents a denial of the Church's duty to serve as a witness for Jesus Christ.

These concerns are highlighted in recent debates around important cultural issues, where Church leaders have often used arguments of autonomy rather than focusing on core moral teachings. Opposition to the matters like same-sex marriage, abortion, and euthanasia has been framed primarily in terms of restrictions on freedoms of speech, expression, religion, and conscience.

Also Read:Henderson County's Inclusive Church Faces Anti-LGBTQ Protestors' Attack

Concerns Rise Over Rapid Legislation Affecting Ownership of Calvary Hospital

According to another source, The Archdiocese of Hobart, concerns have been expressed about the Australian Capital Territory government's decision to introduce legislation to seize control of Calvary Hospital quickly. The May 11 bill attempts to suspend customary procedures to enable quick passage.

According to reports, Canberra and Goulburn Archbishop Christopher Prowse has voiced extreme astonishment and worry over the abrupt action, which occurred without any formal discussion with the Archdiocese or justification for the choice. He is claimed to have expressed concerns and queries about the ACT Government's alleged lack of transparency. According to reports, he has called it a troubling precedent and a sad day when governments can decide at will to take over any business without giving any explanation.

Martin Bowles, the national chief executive of Calvary, expressed his worries in The Canberra Times, saying that the government's choice would have "material implications" for the hospital's 1,800 employees, its patients, and the general public.

Mr. Bowles claims that the ACT Government has decided to terminate their 44-year relationship as a long-term healthcare partner, compel the acquisition of the hospital's land, and remove Calvary as Calvary Public Hospital Bruce's operator. Bowles referred to this government's unilateral decision-making as a source of worry.

Bowles is also reported to have been extremely critical of the takeover's projected schedule, which he deems "unrealistic." He reportedly noted that the July 3, 2023 transition date is less than two months after Calvary first received notice and just over a month after the earliest date that the bill may pass. Additionally, he cautioned that this rushed course of action might breed uncertainty, which might prompt personnel to quit and adversely affect Calvary's capacity to deliver safe patient care.

Related Article:Parents Protest Gay Pride Flag in Catholic School District, Prompting Police Intervention
Wikimedia Commons/Gage Skidmore

The clashes between pro-life activists and faith-based healthcare professionals, which were instigated by the Biden administration and far-Left organizations, have once again brought the tension between religious belief and medical procedures into the spotlight. Critics contend that it becomes more difficult for pro-life healthcare providers to deliver services consistent with their convictions due to the frequency and severity of these attacks.

Federal Pressure on Faith-Based Health Care Groups Sparks Controversy

According to the article in Fox News, the St. Francis Health System, a sizable network of Catholic hospitals centered in Oklahoma, has lately been threatened with losing federal funding by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) during President Biden's administration. A sanctuary candle in the hospital system's chapel was left burning because the hospital system refused to do it for religious reasons.

Those who are aware of Catholic doctrine, which mandates that sanctuary candles should be lit near the altar in all churches and chapels, were outraged by this demand. This custom represents Jesus Christ's consoling presence in the Eucharist. Despite the local fire marshal and government's approval, the federal government declared that this posed a "safety threat," threatening to shut down St. Francis Health System effectively. In Oklahoma, the healthcare system employs over 11,000 employees and serves more than 400,000 patients.

After widespread public outcry, the administration backtracked on its threat. The targeting of St. Francis over a single candle, according to critics, may seem ludicrous. Still, it actually illustrates a larger pattern of politics in healthcare and prejudice towards those who serve in the field from a place of faith.

Also Read:Alarming Rise in Anti-Christian Sentiments Amid Biden Administration, Cultural Shifts

Proposed Repeal of Trump-era Rule on Religious Freedom in Education Triggers Debate

Another one is a rule that restricted religious activities on campuses in 2019 and was put in place by the Trump administration has been suggested to be repealed by the Department of Education (DOE). According to Religion News, the DOE argues that the regulation violates First Amendment rights and is both burdensome and unnecessary. They suggest returning to judicial oversight as a substitute, which is highly divisive.

The rights of students to exercise their religion on campuses, which are frequently essential spaces for meaningful conversation and First Amendment issues, could be violated, according to critics, who claim that such a strategy demonstrates apathy rather than restraint. Recent lawsuits filed against the University of Iowa for deregistering two religious student clubs have increased concerns.

Despite the fact that both lawsuits were eventually settled in the students' favor, critics contend that these cases highlight the necessity for executive avoidance of such offenses rather than relying on expensive litigation for settlement.

According to the article shared in the National Review, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has issued a warning because many schools still uphold First Amendment rights-restricting regulations. Some claim that the DOE's move to revoke the 2019 directive without putting up a replacement shows a lack of commitment to upholding both more general freedom of conscience and religious freedom. Many people believe that these liberties are essential components of a free society.

Related Article: Biden Administration Accused of Infringing Religious Freedom with Latest Actions
Pexels/Tae Fuller

The state officials of California have agreed to pay $1.4 million as a settlement in order to cover the expenses that have been incurred during the legal proceedings in contesting a statutory requirement that requires health insurance companies to cover abortions. This desicion gives the churches in the state a legal victory.

Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a nonprofit legal group, took the lead in bringing the litigation on behalf of the churches to a successful conclusion. Last Monday, ADF declared that the protracted legal conflict was over.

Legal Victory in California Upholds Religious Conscience Rights Against Abortion-Coverage Mandate

According to the article in Fox News, on February 2, the Foothill Church, Calvary Chapel of Chino Hills, and Shepherd of the Hills Church case were given a permanent injunction by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. Attorney General Rob Bonta of California, the plaintiff churches, and defendant Mary Watanabe, Director of the agency of Managed Health Care, reached a deal on May 9 that calls for the state agency to pay the plaintiff churches $500,000 in legal expenses by June 30.

After then, on May 11, Judge Ruth Bermudez Montenegro of the U.S. District Court of Southern California decided in favor of Skyline Wesleyan Church in the second complaint. By the same deadline of June 30, the court ordered the department to pay the church $900,000 in attorney expenses as compensation.

According to the shared article in BNN, Jeremiah Galus, senior counsel at the nonprofit Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), emphasized the significance of safeguarding the rights of religious employers to exercise their faith and conscience in light of a legal decision opposing a California state requirement requiring health insurance plans to cover abortion coverage.

In response to the verdict, Galus stated that the government couldn't force a church or any other religious employer to violate their faith and conscience by participating in funding abortion. He hailed the decision as a significant victory for the represented churches, the conscience rights of their members, and other religious organizations.

Galus emphasized that the government should not impose directives that contradict core faith convictions. He added that this win is a massive relief for those who were under a cloud of potentially crippling fines for having to hold on to their beliefs.

Also Read: California Catholic Diocese Declares Bankruptcy as 330 Sex Abuse Lawsuits Pile Up

U.S. District Court Rules in Favor of Physicians' Religious Freedoms in Assisted Suicide Case

In a related content, a Christian group of physicians is about to receive and is still being scheduled about $300,000 from the state, according to a news statement issued on Wednesday by Alliance Defending Freedom in response to the state of California's attempt to require physicians to offer assisted suicide services. In the report shared in Daily Caller, the First Amendment rights of a doctor could potentially be violated by new California law amendments, according to a decision made by a U.S. District Court Judge last year. The persistent conflict between healthcare regulations and religious freedom has been brought to light once more by this ruling.

The judge added that the plaintiffs showed they were likely to experience a constitutional right violation absent an injunction, stating that the deprivation of constitutional rights unquestionably constituted an irreparable injury. ADF emphasizes that doctors should not be forced to do operations that go against their religious beliefs and views this as an important win for the conscience rights of healthcare workers.

Related Article:California Church Hit with $1.2M Fine Over COVID-19 Defiance, Insists No Cases Linked to Services
Pixabay/Republica

The level of violence perpetrated by gangs in Columbus has increased. As a result, youth ministry members at Fourth Street Baptist Church planned an event to discuss information about gang members which usually influences young children to join their organization.

Fourth Street Baptist Church's Event

The Columbus Dispatch reported that together with the Columbus Division of Police, six National Network for Safe Communities researchers reviewed 107 homicides between January and September 2020 in Columbus to identify active gangs. In the report, active gangs are occasionally called "groups" rather than "gangs" since the researchers stated that there was no proof in some cases of the organization of a gang as much as there was an indication of a connection of like-minded members. Seventeen gangs, with an estimated total membership of 480 people, or about.05% of the city's population, have been determined to be or believed to have participated in 46% of homicides during that time. This is one of the most noteworthy facts the investigation uncovered. Additionally, these criminal groups were reportedly either victims, perpetrators, or both in these killings.

In a recent report from WTVM News, it was stated that due to this violence, residents of Columbus were invited to attend a local church that would be hosting an informational session on local gangs and the signs that may be used to determine whether or not their kid is involved with them. The youth ministry at Fourth Street Baptist Church has concluded that addressing issues such as gangs and gun violence is necessary. Pastor Johnny Flakes III has expressed that he receives motivation from the realization that the younger generation is active in the community. As mentioned, it was challenging to obtain the information that was discussed. Throughout the program, they discussed the actions that the city of Columbus is taking to combat gang activity in the Valley. According to Sheriff Greg Countryman, they have a Drug, Gang, and Fugitive Task Force Unit comprising approximately forty investigators with various skills.

The sheriff explained, "We have a gang task unit that solely goes after gangs because if we look at our population we have a roughly population according to the about 207,000 1% of that population is committing 80% 90% of the crime and so this lets you know that 1% of our population guess what we're battle that 1% is responsible for the majority of the homicides," Moreover, those locals who attended the event were given information on recognizing gang signs, tattoos, codes, and languages. The event, noted by Flake, III, is enlightening and has the potential to bring about change.

Also Read: Catholic Church in Bangladesh to Form a Team to Combat Violence Against Women

Former Gang Member's Point of View on Gang Violence in Columbus

Before becoming the Ministry Director at Take the City in Columbus, Blake Russell was a gang member and served time in a correctional facility. The recent spike in gang-related violence may have taken aback some people in Columbus and the neighboring areas. As per WRBL, the municipal and state top officials have made it a top priority to put an end to the bloodshed. On the other hand, Blake presents a viewpoint distinct from the others. "My first reaction was like, Man, what do we expect?" asked Russell. He observes that only some young people are actively engaged in the community where they live.

Investment in young people should reportedly be made throughout the formative years to support them in making decisions that are in their best interests. The attraction of power and flashy items can readily influence kids. "We're leaving it up to the system to indoctrinate our kids, which the teachers are tired. They're worn out. They're just getting through the day. And so the kids are raising each other," Blake added. Furthermore, city leaders and policies can not be the primary factors that bring about change. Russel noted that it is also the responsibility of the older members of the community and the mentors to invest in the younger members and show them a new path.

Related Article: St. Mary's Catholic Church Holds Prayer Every 6 Weeks To Help Stop Violence in Birmingham
Pexels/Tima Miroshnichenko

Several laws protecting kids and parental rights in the educational system of the state of Florida have been signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. He stated publicly that neither children nor teachers in Florida schools will "ever be compelled to declare pronouns."

According to a tweet from the governor's office, DeSantis implemented a series of regulations on Wednesday with the goal of having to expand the Parental Rights in Education law, ending pronoun insanity in schools, banning transgender hormones & surgeries for minors, ensuring bathrooms/locker rooms are SAFE for girls & women, protecting kids from sexually explicit drag shows, and more.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Measure to Protect Parental Rights and Children in Schools

According to the article in Fox News, one of the legislation signed by DeSantis is HB 1069, which forbids people in educational institutions from being forced to use or give particular titles and pronouns. The governor has emphasized that the bill is going to make sure that the teachers and students in Florida is not to be required to use pronouns that are not based on the biological sex of the students and prohibit them to be revealed in class.

During a press conference in Tampa, Florida, the governor expressed his strong belief on the issue. He stated that no one had done this through all of human history, not until two weeks ago, and he added that pronoun Olympics in Florida is never going to happen.

Additionally, the legislation guarantees that students will not face penalties or be treated differently for not providing specific titles and pronouns. It also prevents classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in levels ranging from prekindergarten through eighth grade. This signifies a major legislative step in Florida, reflecting the ongoing national debate over how gender identity is addressed in schools.

A contentious bill that broadens the state's ban on teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools has also been signed into law by the governor. In the article shared in Fox 35 Orlando, the law is called the "Parental Rights in Education" bill and its opponents as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, extends the ban from kindergarten through third grade to include prekindergarten through eighth grade.

At a Christian school in Tampa, DeSantis signed the legislation into law while being supported and accompanied by Republican politicians. The governor justified the legislation, saying it is vital to thwart attempts to include lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early childhood and middle school curricula.

DeSantis has previously been vocal about his objection to what he considers to be inappropriate content in educational materials. The new rule mandates that the necessary forms be easily accessible on school district websites in an effort to allow objections to specific textbooks and educational resources.

Also Read:Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops Denounce Gov. Ron DeSantis Bill on Death Penalty

Florida Student and Family Express Concern Over Newly Signed Laws Impacting Gender Identity and Expression

A 15-year-old nonbinary kid in Palm Beach County, Florida, named Blue Gilliam, has expressed grave worries about the new legislation that Governor Ron DeSantis approved because they fear that it will endanger their safety and right to express themselves. According to WFLX, Blue, who uses the pronouns they/them, expressed concern about the effects of the laws and hinted at a desire to leave the state because she felt singled out.

Blue said that they have such a connection with their teachers, and it's breaking their hearts to see that they can't really express themselves to them without them getting into some trouble.

Following the governor's actions, the family is even thinking about leaving the state since they believe these laws threaten the acceptance and understanding of nonbinary identities. Tuesday, Gilliam, Blue's mother, expressed her worries about the regulations, saying that they are not only backward-looking but also prevent honest discussions about gender identity and expression.

Related Article:Governor DeSantis Set to Sign Legislation Prohibiting Gender-Affirming Care for Minors and Other Restrictions
Flickr/ Tony Webster

Over 180 North Georgia churches have been permitted to resume the process of leaving the United Methodist Church after an abrupt halt and ensuing lawsuit.

According to the article in Now Habersham, Judge Steven Schuster of Cobb County Superior Court overturned the halting imposed by the North Georgia Conference of the denomination in late 2022 on Tuesday. According to the conference, the halt was required because widespread misinformation was endangering the legitimacy of the disaffiliation procedure.

North Georgia Churches Can Proceed with Split from United Methodist Church

Many of the conference's member churches may join the tide of theologically conservative congregations leaving the huge Christian denomination, according to critics who claimed the meeting was attempting in vain to retain unity as it faced a historic rift.

The article that was shared in Times Free Press says that the court's decision enables the churches in North Georgia to quickly hold formal congregational votes on whether to disaffiliate. Wesleyan Covenant Association of North Georgia, a group that supports disaffiliation of the churches, wrote in an email on Tuesday that several specifics, such as the date of a conference to confirm disaffiliations, still need to be worked out.

The United Methodist denomination devised a procedure to regulate how congregations might leave the denomination while keeping their property after years of conflict over LGBTQ policy, which exiting theologically conservative United Methodists sometimes see as signs of more profound differences. Regional conferences like North Georgia had a lot of discretion in handling this procedure, which resulted in many lawsuits from congregations looking to leave who believed they were being subjected to unfair barriers.

However, many believed that the North Georgia Conference, which consisted of over 700 churches, had gone further than any other by entirely stopping the process. Critics perceived this as a breach of a predetermined protocol and asserted that the conference leadership thought its participants had the ability to discriminate between opposing points of view.

Also Read: 33 Churches Set to Separate from Rio Texas Conference of United Methodist Church

Other Reports Regarding the Recent Disaffiliations from the UMC Denomination

The United Methodist Church, the second-largest Protestant denomination in the US, is going to address a divisive topic that's dividing its roughly 30,000 churches worldwide at its branch in Pennsylvania. According to the article in Penn Live, the debate is on whether or not the denomination's bishops should be permitted to perform same-sex weddings and whether they should be permitted to identify as LGBTQ people openly.

Due to this controversy, over 1,831 churches have decided to break up their affiliation with the denomination since 2019. The Susquehanna Conference is the most recent to discuss this issue; it has 870 churches and roughly 150,000 members; about 18% of its churches have requested a position.

The group forbids rituals honoring homosexual partnerships and traditionally sees marriage as a relationship between a man and a woman. But since 2016, there has been an increasing amount of pressure on the leadership to develop a thorough human sexuality policy in relation to the LGBTQ community.

According to William Lawrence, a retired professor, and ordained UMC elder, the disaffiliation procedure does not endanger the denomination's viability, despite generating grief and strife among churches. But he anticipates that the church will be smaller and different after this turmoil.

Related Article: Multiple Florida Churches Sever Connections with United Methodist Church Over LGBTQ+ Clergy Ordination
VICE President General Retired Dr Constantino Chiwenga, who is also the Minister of Health and Child Care, has arrived in Geneva, Switzerland, ahead of the 76th Session of the World Health Assembly which kicks off on Sunday.

Vice President Chiwenga is also expected to hold several meetings with key stakeholders in the global health sector and share notes with other health ministers from the 194-member countries that make up the assembly.

We are here to do two things; celebrate the 76th anniversary of the World Health Organisation and also attend the World Health Assembly of Ministers of Health. We will be meeting with different groups from the global fund of the UNAIDS and other health stakeholders. So we have come with a delegation of experts in the health sector and other dependent. This is going to run until the 29th of May, he said.

With the COVID-19 pandemic no longer a health emergency, the 76th World Health Assembly will provide a platform for health ministers and experts to share notes on how to navigate future health emergencies.

The focus of this assembly is to look forward to how the international global health community can come together as one and mobilise and coordinate so that the world is better prepared to handle this health emergency should it arise again in the future. So this meeting will give all 194 member states a chance to look back and learn the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and then plan for the future to make sure that even when such another emergency arises that the world is better prepared and from an African perspective there has been a lot of work done by the African union commission and the African centre for disease control have been working very hard with the world health organisation to try and put mechanism and to raise funds and resources to strengthen health care systems across the world and we are very much part of that, explained Zimbabwes permanent representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Stuart Comberbach.

The World Health Assembly is the decision-making body of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

It is attended by delegations from all WHO member states and focuses on current and future priorities for public health issues of global importance. ZBC
Pixabay/Sang Hyun Cho

In a landmark decision, the Malaysian government has withdrawn its appeal against a high court ruling that overturned a ban on using the word "Allah" in Christian publications. The move has been welcomed by the Christian community in Malaysia, who have long fought for the right to use the word in their religious materials.

Withdrawal of Appeal

According to Malay Mail, the withdrawal of the appeal was made through a notice of discontinuance filed on April 18. The Attorney General's Chambers, acting on behalf of the home minister and the Malaysian government, submitted the notice stating they did not intend to proceed with the appeal. It was reportedly made "without order as to costs," indicating that there would be no financial implications for either party.

Moreover, since the appeal was initially scheduled for case management on Friday, May 19, it will no longer be brought up in court as the government has dropped the entire appeal altogether. The decision signifies the conclusion of a legal saga that spanned an extensive 15-year period. The recent resolution by the Malaysian government to withdraw its appeal has been met with praise by the Christian community in Malaysia. They have long fought for the right to use the word "Allah" in their religious materials and view this development as a significant victory.

As mentioned, human rights organizations have also welcomed the government's decision, highlighting that the ban infringed upon the right to freedom of religion. The withdrawal of the appeal is seen as a positive step towards greater religious freedom and harmony in Malaysia, and the contentious issue of using the word "Allah" in Christian publications in the country has been resolved. Furthermore, the decision ends a protracted legal battle and opens the door for a more inclusive and tolerant approach to religious practices in the country.

Also Read: The Bible is Banned in Malaysia

Allowing 'Allah' in Christian Publications

Malaysia's High Court recently delivered a significant verdict, allowing Christians to use the word 'Allah' in their religious publications. The ruling overturned a previous government ban and has sparked religious freedom and harmony discussions. The decision stems from a legal battle that has been ongoing for years. BBC News reported that the Malaysian High Court's decision to use the word 'Allah' by Christians is seen as a landmark ruling. The court's judgment comes after a 15-year-long legal saga that began when the government confiscated eight educational CDs containing the word 'Allah' from a Sarawak Bumiputera in 2008. This case has since been a contention between the government and the Christian community.

On the other hand, the High Court's ruling favoring Christians using the term 'Allah' was met with enthusiasm by the Catholic Church and other Christian groups. Vatican News reported on the development, highlighting the Catholic Church's stance that 'Allah' is commonly used by Christians in many parts of the world, including Malaysia. The church argued that the ban violated their constitutional right to freedom of religion.

Accordingly, the ban on non-Muslims using the word 'Allah' was initially introduced in 1986, with the government citing concerns about potential confusion and religious sensitivities. However, the recent High Court ruling challenges this long-standing policy. They determined that the ban was unconstitutional, asserting that it infringed upon the religious rights of non-Muslims.



Related Article: Muslim Woman Threatens To Destroy Christians In Malaysia Following High Court Ruling
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A 6 year-old girl was attempted get kidnapped on their way home with her mother from attending church services last Mother's Day in Daytona Beach in Florida.

On Sunday at noon, police were called in response to claims of an attempted kidnapping. A woman has approached the victims as they were walking together, hand in hand, form attending Our Lady of Lourdes Church. The traumatic incident was brought out by ABC News affiliate WFTV.

Kidnapping of a 6-year old Girl Halted in Daytona Beach in Florida

The article in ABC News reported that according to the complaint, the suspect was a woman who has "intentionally grabbed" the kid vigorously intending to break the bond between her and her mother. Thankfully, the suspect failed and left the area. Both of the victims was luckily have been unharmed.

The identification of the suspect was released by the authorities, whereas she was a light skinned black woman, ages between 25 to 35, standing 5 foot 6 to 5 feet 8 inches tall. The suspect was last seen wearing a red skirt, and a grey t-shirt. The child's father, Kelly Grange, appealed to the suspect via WFTV. Given that it was Mother's Day, he surmised that the suspect's actions may have been motivated by fear or a wish for a child. Grange advised the suspect to come forward and ask for help, but he also pushed them to accept responsibility for their conduct.

Speaking to WFTV Orlando, Kelly Granger, the father, described the moment he learned of the attempted abduction of his daughter. He experienced an intense sense of fear and focus, likening it to 'tunnel vision.' Granger detailed how the assailant had tried to forcefully separate his daughter and her mother by using a karate chop-like motion. This prompted a robust protective instinct in him, making him wish he could have pursued the perpetrator himself.

In an emotional appeal, Granger addressed the assailant directly, and he suggested that the individual may have been motivated by fear or personal issues related to Mother's Day. Regardless of the reasons behind the attempted abduction, Granger urged the suspect to surrender to the authorities and seek professional help.

Also Read:Bandits in Nigeria Kidnapped 25 People at Bege Baptist Church

Other Incidents of Kidnapping on Mother's Day

Three adolescents are accused of robbing a mother who was selling flowers and purses on Mother's Day in a parking lot in east Charlotte. According to the shared article in Yahoo! News, the suspects have attacked the mother pointing a gun and was asking for money and threatened to kidnap her 2 year-old kid.

The anonymous victim mother, said that the teenagers attempted to buy handbags using a fake $100 bill. They used the terrifying threat when she faced them. One of the teenagers lunged at her youngster, which aggravated the situation. Fortunately, the victim's calls for assistance inspired others to respond quickly, including an ice cream salesman. In the end, out of concern for her child's safety, the mother gave some money to the offenders.

Even though nobody was hurt physically, she expressed her hope that the perpetrators would be found, highlighting the fact that neither she nor her little child deserved to go through such a horrific event. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg police are intensively investigating this upsetting armed robbery.

Related Article:Catholic Priest in Haiti Credits Divine Intervention for Escaping Kidnapping
Pixabay/ Steve Buissinne

The Nigerian government has been scrutinized for allegedly engaging in excessive spending to hide instances of Christian persecution within the country. The disturbing pattern of financial mismanagement and manipulation by authorities has also been criticized.

Concealing Christian Persecution

In a recent report by ACI Africa, the Nigerian government has allocated exorbitant funds to various projects and initiatives, ostensibly aimed at improving security and addressing social challenges. However, critics argue that the financial allocations serve a dual purpose: to address genuine concerns and divert attention from the growing issue of Christian persecution. Also, the report highlights several instances where substantial amounts of money were allocated to infrastructure development, national security, and poverty alleviation. While these endeavors are undoubtedly crucial for the nation's progress, concerns arise when the allocations consistently need to address the root cause of Christian persecution.

It also alarms the disparity between the government's stated commitment to religious freedom and the reality faced by Nigerian Christians. Despite official claims of equal treatment and protection for all citizens, numerous incidents of violence, discrimination, and targeted attacks against Christians persist throughout the country. Moreover, by overspending on projects that are only marginally relevant to addressing Christian persecution, the government appears to be employing a strategic diversion tactic. This alleged misuse of public funds not only perpetuates the suffering of persecuted Christians but also undermines the trust and confidence of the Nigerian people in their government's ability to tackle pressing social issues.

On the other hand, critics argue that instead of evading the problem, the government should prioritize comprehensive measures to ensure the safety and security of all citizens, regardless of their religious affiliation. Addressing the root causes of Christian persecution, such as religious intolerance and extremist ideologies, should be at the forefront of any genuine effort to protect the rights and lives of Nigerian Christians.

Also Read: Terrorists in Nigeria Killed Rev. Musa Mairimi of Evangelical Church Winning All, Wife Kidnapped

Christian Persecution in Nigeria

Mission Network News reported that Nigeria had seen a concerning rise in incidents of Christian persecution, catapulting the country to the 2023 World Watch List. It draws attention to the rising violence against Christians, including attacks on churches, kidnappings, and killings. Those acts of violence not only result in the loss of innocent lives but also lead to the displacement of communities and the destruction of places of worship. It is reportedly evident that the Nigerian government's response to the escalating crisis has been insufficient. Despite assurances of protection and support for all citizens, there have been allegations of negligence and inadequate measures to prevent and address these attacks on Christians. The lack of accountability for the perpetrators further exacerbates the situation, perpetuating a cycle of violence and impunity.

Furthermore, according to The Lausanne Movement, systematic persecution has created a climate of fear and uncertainty among Nigerian Christians, inhibiting their ability to practice their faith freely and live without constant threat. In addition, the international community has increasingly called for action to address the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Various human rights organizations and governments have urged the Nigerian authorities to prioritize the safety and security of all citizens, regardless of their religious affiliation.

Related Article:Bandits in Nigeria Kidnapped 25 People at Bege Baptist Church
Pexels/Rene Asmussen

On Tuesday morning in Raleigh, Memphis Police officers found a stolen Penske truck that was carrying hundreds of organ pipes for the Calvary Episcopal Church in the city. Church officials claimed that when the vehicle was stolen over the weekend, over 2,000 pipes that had been taken last week from an organ chamber for maintenance were inside.

Fifteen of the approximately 55 containers that were loaded aboard the truck are still missing, even though the truck and most of its priceless cargo have been found. The church is still optimistic that they will also heal, though.

Stolen Organ Pipes from Memphis Church to Resume Journey North After Truck Recovery

According to the article shared in WREG, the Spencer Organ Company of Boston was restoring the organ pipes. The majority of the work is being overseen by the company's owner, Joseph Rotella, who told WREG that even though the organ pipes had little value on the open market, replacing them would have cost the church close to a million dollars.

Because of Rotella's careful planning, the pipes' precise dimensions were taken before they were packaged. This enables the restoration project to move forward by allowing any still missing pipes to be recreated. It is anticipated that the project will be finished in around 18 months.

Leaders of Calvary Episcopal Church thanked the Memphis Police officers for finding the Penske truck while on patrol. They also expressed their gratitude to everyone who helped get the word out about the stolen car and made it possible for it to be found.

According to another source, Fox 13 said that after a theft that interrupted their journey, organ pipes from the Calvary Episcopal Church in Memphis are set to continue their trip to Boston for a restoration project. According to the church officials, the remaining containers will be loaded onto a different truck and will then continue their journey to Boston.

Scott Lane, CEO of Lane Music in Memphis, shared his thoughts on the misplaced crates. He emphasized that even if the pipes on the streets have no intrinsic value, replacing them would cost millions of dollars. In order to fit the precise scale of the chapel for which they were created, these pipes were painstakingly made from metal and wood, and he accentuated their distinctive character. The organ was essentially built especially for that particular church.

Before the pipes were packed, the Boston-based Spencer Organ Company scrupulously noted their exact measurements. This implies that any missing pipes can be replaced if necessary, allowing the repair process to move forward.

Also Read:Historic Bell Stolen At Malden Bridge Community Center, Offers $3,500 Reward

Historic Organ Pipes Valued at $800,000

Joseph Rotella, the owner of Spencer Organ Company, explained the tremendous significance of the stolen items. In the report in Action News 5, Rotella highlighted that despite the objects' modest value outside of their particular context, their historical significance makes them extremely precious to both the instrument they were designed for and the larger community. He further stressed their unique significance to this undertaking by stating that reproducing these goods would be a formidable challenge.

According to Kristin Lensch, Calvary's organist and choirmaster, the organ pipes are cherished for their considerable monetary value and their sentimental worth to the church and its congregation. Lensch stated that the loss of the organ pipes is devastating, but there is optimism that it is only a temporary setback.

Even though the truck has been recovered, fifteen out of the fifty-five crates containing the organ pipes still need to be included. Lensch expressed her hopeful anticipation of their return, stating they are confident that the truck will be found and will be returned to them for it to be used to serve God again.

Related Article:$2 Million Jeweled Gold Tabernacle Stolen From Brooklyn Church By Crook Who Decapitated Angel Statue
Pixabay/Ted Erski

Multiple statues of the Virgin Mary were severely damaged at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church on Mother's Day. It includes an enormous statue of the Virgin Mary, which has both hands and faces shattered.

Mother's Day Vandalism

On Sunday, May 14, just before 5:00 a.m., a blurry security video reportedly showed a male roaming throughout the church property, MSN reported. In the columbarium, considered one of the holiest parts of the church grounds, a prominent figure of Mary, also known as the Mother of God, was vandalized. The cremated remains of churchgoers, members of the church family, and acquaintances have been buried in this cemetery.

As mentioned, Mary's face was damaged, and her hands had been cut off when the statue fell from its pedestal. A second statue of Mary that was destroyed was located on a pedestal behind the church's parking garage, while a third statue of Mary that was vandalized was situated by the lake in the backyard. Members of the church have now removed these two sculptures from the church to take them to be repaired.

Moreover, the statue of the Virgin Mary that stands in front of the cathedral is missing the right hand that she was holding. According to the report filed by the police, it fell to the ground after being attacked. The individuals involved in vandalism also brought down the American flag. They severed the ropes that were attached to the flagpole, making it impossible for the pole to be used to raise another flag in the future. In addition, the church's main entrance was missing at least one of the planters with palm trees.

Furthermore, Count on News 2 reported that the priest at the Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception, Noly Berjuega, expressed his sorrow over the vandalism of sculptures of the Virgin Mary on Mother's Day. "Well, that was hurting, you know. Knowing that every day we celebrate Mother's Day, and that's the image of the statue of our blessed mother, Mary, the mother of God, the mother of God, and the mother of our Savior, Jesus Christ," he asserted. Father Noly also emphasized the importance of the conversion of the heart, a message from Blessed Mother Mary. Therefore, as a spiritual leader, he and the parishioners reportedly prayed for whoever committed the vandalism.

Also Read:Wooden Statues of Virgin Mary Damaged By Fire on Three Separate Incidents at the Start of Holy Week

Vandalism on Virgin Mary Statues

A Virgin Mary statue was destroyed in a little brick grotto at the entry point to the Sopo town in the Cundinamarca province of Colombia. Catholic News Agency reported that based on the video shared on several social media platforms, a young man who reportedly had mental illness hit the statue of the Virgin while being filmed from behind. After committing the act of vandalism, the man was apprehended right away.

A similar report from The Catholic World stated that the statue of the Blessed Virgin, which was located outside the church of St. Peter's Parish, had been set on fire and was damaged in the process. It was reported that an unidentified person had set fire to some plastic flowers in the monument's hands, which resulted in smoke and flame damage to the face, head, and upper body of the statue.

St. Peter's fire is the most recent in a string of fires and acts of vandalism that have broken out against Catholic churches over the past two days. The Diocese of Brooklyn announced on July 10, 2020, that the New York City authorities were looking into the vandalism of a Virgin Mary statue located at Cathedral Prep School and Seminary in the borough of Queens. A person is seen on surveillance film approaching the figure, which is 100 years old, and writing the word "IDOL" down the length of its surface. Fr. James Kuroly, who serves as both the rector and president of Cathedral Prep, described the event as "an act of hatred."

Related Article: St. Paulinus Catholic Church's Jesus Statue Destroyed, Altar Flipped Over
There are an estimated 29 million women in modern slavery, including some form of sex trafficking and forced marriage, today. To understand why so many girls and women have suffered as victims of sex trafficking in Asia, Sylvia Yu Friedman wants more people to look back at history.

Experts estimate that the Japanese Imperial military took up to 400,000 girls and women from nations they had occupied to more than 1,000 rape stations in China and hundreds of other military brothels across the Asia Pacific wherever soldiers were stationed, she says. UN experts have called this the largest human rights abuse against girls and women in the 20th century. However, the Japanese government has been unwilling to bear full legal and moral responsibility for conceiving and implementing this form of wartime sex slavery and has not issued a truly sincere apology that has satisfied the demands of the surviving victims and their families.

Though the government has not fully taken responsibility, separately Japanese Christians have personally apologized to elderly survivors of Japanese wartime sex slavery in China.

Their sincere apologies to these survivors and other Chinese and Koreans have brought a level of healing to generational pain that arose from the wounds of war that were never closed, says Friedman.

An author, filmmaker, and philanthropy professional, Friedman has interviewed women across Asia who have survived both historical forced prostitution during World War II and current-day sex trafficking.

I realized that a cycle of sex trafficking continues across Asia and that the enslavement that began with the Japanese Imperial military never went away due to gender discrimination and a lack of outcry and closure of historical wartime sex slavery, she says.

Friedmans passion for ending sex trafficking has led her to investigate its underworld for two decades. Through her work in philanthropy, she has been able to direct funds to some of the earliest anti-trafficking projects in Asia.

Friedman has also organized workshops educating others about the issue through the 852 Freedom Campaign. She is a pioneer in exposing different forms of human trafficking from her base in Hong Kong and won an award for her three-part documentary series on human trafficking in China, Hong Kong, and Thailand. She is also the author of A Long Road to Justice: Stories from the Frontlines in Asia and is currently developing a TV series based on this book with a Singapore-based film company.

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Friedman recently spoke with global books editor Geethanjali Tupps about her investigation into the trafficking underworld in Asia, and how through this pilgrimage, she has come to terms with her Korean identity and witnessed the potential that Asian professional women have in changing the current sex trafficking scene, and has seen the impact of prayer.

How did you first become interested in fighting sex trafficking?

My dedication to human rights had its genesis in my experience with the searing humiliation of racism as the only Korean kid in an all-white school in Canada in the 1980s. Strangers on the street called me a chink, and classmates said chink you instead of thank you. My friends said insensitive things about my appearance or asked if the kimchi jar in my house held a dead animal.

All of this deeply sensitized me to injustice. As a teenager, my mother relayed a story from a Korean newspaper about Kim Hak-soon, a survivor of forced prostitution for the Japanese military before and during WWII. Kim testified to the international media about her experiences as a wianbu or a comfort woman, forced into prostitution as a teenager for the Japanese army. Kim shared her story publicly because the Japanese government denied they had any involvement in wartime sexual servitude and called the women voluntary willing prostitutes.

I was troubled that I had not learned this history in my school textbooks. I couldnt shake off the fact that what she went through could have happened to me had I been born into her family at that time period.

What have you since learned about wartime sexual servitude?

Sexual violence in war currently exists in Ukraine and Nigeria through the Boko Haram. The cycle of sex trafficking continues with 6.3 million girls and women suffering around the world.

I believe this cycle of sex trafficking is continuing from the wartime sex slavery by the Japanese military. After the war, some Korean and Chinese victim-survivors were left behind in countries like Thailand, and in order to survive, they had to sell their bodies near military bases. What if governments, including the Japanese, had taken a stronger stance against the horrors of wartime sex slavery and comfort women after WWII and if they had declared, Never again!? A stance like this could have led to international agreements to stop the trafficking of women.

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How have you been transformed after investigating the trafficking underworld for two decades?

In 2013, while I was researching my documentary on sex trafficking in Hong Kong, I first entered the red-light districts with a missionary to look for victims to interview. I was so scared, I was tempted to reach for the hand of the missionary if it were acceptable for me as a grown professional woman to do so!

While we were out, we met a young, traumatized mother who was forced to walk all night in search of johns. While she didnt have physical chains to keep her tied to her traffickers, they had another more wicked grip on her: they knew her daughter lived with her grandmother in Africa and would threaten to harm her. We tried to think of ways to get this victim out and even brought her to a church service once, but her phone got cut off and she was moved to another location.

Ive been in many frightening situations. Ive been confronted by huge thugs in brothels while interviewing sex trafficking victims. Ive had to walk by armed soldiers at a border area.

Living through these moments has given me a steadfast belief in the power of prayer. I have witnessed the tangible impact of my mother's fervent prayers and those of my friends when I walked away unharmed from a dangerous encounter in a notorious red-light district.

While filming in one of the most notorious red-light districts near the Myanmar border, I had a near-death experience. We were surrounded by thugs and mamasans who accused me of posting a video of their brothel on social media when I had not done so. My life flashed before my eyes. Then one of them said, The police are coming, and they scattered like cockroaches. But this was a very remote area. I believe this was a miracle; a friend had been praying for me at this exact time.

How has your faith played a role in your work?

My faith motivates my commitment to advocating through my writing, philanthropy, and films for the downtrodden and enslaved and in raising awareness about the abhorrent realities of modern-day slavery.

My book is really my testimony of how God moved in my life and in the lives of the frontline workers and the survivors of modern slavery and even the perpetrators, the traffickers, Ive met along the way. Every step of my journey has been guided by prayer and the support of my mentors, pastors, and friends.

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How have the survivors you have interacted with impacted your understanding of sex trafficking?

I met Kim Soon-duk, a survivor of Japanese military sex slavery, when she was 83.

Kim was a gentle soul, but her experience had left her deeply traumatized even after 55 years. Despite this, she did not harbor any resentment toward the Japanese for what she had endured. Instead, she asked me to tell her story to the world and, most importantly, to convey her desire for a truly sincere apology from the Japanese government before she passed.

I went on to meet and interview dozens of other survivors of wartime sex slavery in different nations, including China. It was a sacred experience to meet these elderly survivors who defied the conservative values of their Asian cultures to speak out against sexual enslavement that took place more than a half century prior.

These women were the first #MeToo activists and have been at the forefront of one of the longest-running activist campaigns against sex trafficking and war crimes of sexual violence in armed conflict. They deserve to receive the closure and dignity they so desperately seek. But as these survivors age, time is running out. They need our support.

What have you heard about the work of Christians from survivors?

Ive spoken with North Korean women who were trafficked as brides in forced marriages and forced into online prostitution businesses. They have told me about Korean missionaries who have risked their lives to aid them in traveling along an underground railroad where they eventually can fly directly to Seoul and receive automatic citizenship and support. During one of the interviews, Ive heard about an elderly South Korean pastor who passed away while guiding a group of North Korean women across a swollen river several years ago.

Through the Door of Hope ministry, Ive met some brave young mainland Christian Chinese women who were fearlessly reaching trafficked women with Gods love in the red-light districts. These womens faith has helped them overcome their initial stigma toward prostituted women and their initially unsupportive house church. Today, they rescue trafficked women and provide both survivors and some traffickers with job and rehabilitation opportunities.

How did the men you interacted with help shape your book?

I have been deeply moved by the testimony of a former trafficker turned missionary in Southeast Asia, and his expertise on modern slavery has been invaluable in my investigation into the dark underworld of trafficking.

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Meeting elderly former Japanese soldiers helped me to understand the mindset of the perpetrators of military sex slavery. I have also had the privilege of meeting several brave Japanese Christians who felt it was their mission to share personal apologies with Chinese and Koreans that brought profound healing.

The generational war wounds inflicted by the Japanese military before and during WWII have left deep scars that continue to cause pain, trauma, and racial hatred in China, Hong Kong, Korea, and other nations.

How has covering sex trafficking affected your mental health?

I have a strong support networkmy family, husband, friends support me, and Im fortunate that I havent had to deal with serious mental health struggles. I also do not work on the frontlines full-time (thats where the risk is higher) and have only swooped in to interview and document sex trafficking cases.

However, I have experienced trauma after my near-death experience in the red-light district in China. I also had secondary trauma early on while interviewing elderly survivors of Japanese military sex slavery, largely because I didn't establish sufficient boundaries in my work and I wanted to stand in their shoes to write empathetically.

How has covering sex trafficking affected your Korean identity?

One side effect of this journey has been that Ive fully accepted my Korean heritage, a facet of my identity that I had previously dismissed due to encounters with racial prejudice during my formative years. However, living in China has helped me to embrace my cultural heritage.

Because I didnt speak fluent Mandarin, I was asked by strangers whether I was Japanese or Koreanor they assumed I was overseas Chinese. I was often confronted by my heritage, more than I would have been had I remained in Canada. When I mentioned that I was Korean, strangers would almost always say that they loved Korean dramas and music and say how cool Koreans are. That always surprised me since I had grown up in an era when Asian culture was not considered cool.

Meeting Korean sex trafficking survivors helped me to see that no matter how hard I try to reject my Korean heritage, I am Korean in my DNA. I had a visceral reaction to learning about Japanese colonialism and the comfort women, which I attribute to generational hatred/painI would say its similar to the generational pain of children, grandchildren of Holocaust survivors and Japanese internment survivors in the US and Canada.

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What is giving you hope?

More than 100 years ago, Asian women like me would have had bound feet, been considered property, not given a name until we were married, or allowed to go to school.

Weve come a long way since, and there are more influential Asian women than at any other time. But we still have a long way to go in improving the rights and dignity of women and girls in Asia. Ive heard of North Korean trafficked brides given flimsy slippers working all day in the fields to prevent them from running away and spoken with a woman chained up like a dog in her own home.

Last year, photos of a trafficked woman and mother of eight children chained up in Suzhou, China, sparked a discussion across the country. From what I hear from mainland Chinese, there is a growing anti-trafficking movement afoot there, and I believe its due to the increasing influence of professional women who are outraged by the horrific exploitation of women.

My friend Ai Jin was reaching out to women in the sex trade through Door of Hope for months when she found out that her 14-year old cousin was trafficked into prostitution. She was heartbroken and wanted to quit.

In my book, I write, Ai Jin helped reinforce that ordinary people can do extraordinary acts of heroism. She was the first to admit that she was weak and often wanted to quit. But her tenacious belief in God kept her going out to the world of sex trafficking and prostitution, and that challenged me.

Through meeting people like her, I have begun to dream that if 100 million Chinese Christians were to fight modern slavery, they would be one of the greatest forces in history.
Christ is indeed alive at the ground zero of the worst [Christian] persecution in Indian history.

Thats journalist and documentarian Anto Akkaras takeaway after 15 years of telling the stories of a Christian community in the eastern state of Odisha (formerly Orissa), India, systemically ravaged by Hindu mobs in 2007 and 2008.

Over these two years, extremists took the lives of 100 Christians, burned down 6,500 houses, and burned down or vandalized nearly 400 churches and places of worship. More than 40 women were raped and sexually assaulted, and the violence disrupted school for 12,000 children for years. (Previously, Kandhamal Christians had been subject to sporadic terror, though nothing at this level.)

Starting in 2008, Akkara has made 34 trips to the rural Kandhamal region, where he has filmed four documentaries focused on how this violence has impacted the victims lives. For his latest release, The Right Hand of God over Kandhamal, Akkara uncovers the fates of 10 assailants who attacked the Christian community and concludes there has been some sort of divine retribution at work. Eight have died, including two by suicide, one in a car crash, and one from paralysis. Another lost his ability to speak. Beyond those whose stories he investigates, there are even more that he says regret their actions and have embraced the faith they once tried to banish from Kandhamal.

Akkara recently spoke with CTs South Asia correspondent Surinder Kaur about his surprising conversations with the assailants, the ways his reporting changed how he sees God, and the courage and boldness of the Christians who lost everything.

Why did you decide to tell the story of these assailants?

In Christmas 2009, the government convened a peace meeting between Christians and Hindu extremists and activists. During the meeting, Bamdev Kanhar, an activist who had vandalized a church in 2007, stood up and said, We should not attack Christians. We must live peacefully; otherwise God will punish us.

After I heard this statement from witnesses, I contacted the priest who was also present in the meeting to confirm the report in 2010. I then went to meet Kanhar and spoke to him, and he verified his own statement. One after the other, I heard several confessions from various sources about assailants regretting their actions and began to investigate each one. Interviewing one source led me to anotheran act I did not see as a mere coincidence. Instead, I could see the divine intervention of God. Every investigation was a stunning revelation to me.

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How challenging was traveling to Kandhamal?

It was challenging indeed. The journey to Kandhamal takes five to six hours from Bhubaneswar, Odishas capital city. Depending on where you want to travel after that, you could end up traveling up to 100 miles through a sprawling jungle district. [Nearly two-thirds of the land in the district is covered by a dense forest.] These are sensitive stories, and I was extremely cautious to verify minute details before I published them because there is no room for mistakes. One needs infinite patience to pursue the leads in this remote region where documentation is unheard of.

What form of trauma do the victims of the anti-Christian violence continue to witness?

The victims of the violence continue to suffer the losses of the consequences of the attacks of 2007 and 2008 and sporadic incidents in the years prior. Some lost their lives. Many lost property. They still carry the pains and struggle with their harsh lives, while holding on to their faith valiantly. They have suffered the injustice at the hands of the government and judiciary where even murderers have not been convicted.

Though the Supreme Court of India in 2016 described the large number of acquittals in Kandhamal as unacceptable and ordered Odisha State to investigate wherever acquittals were not justified on facts, nothing has happened.

Further, most victims of the violence have not received the enhanced compensation that the Supreme Court ordered, as the government made no effort to inform them of these benefits.

Amidst struggle and hard life, these people have shown exemplary faith and witness. While working on my book Shining Faith in Kandhamal, I was worried about the safety of the victims quoted, and so I used pseudonyms and blurred the faces in the photographs I took to hide their identities. But when I took copies of the book to them, they were furious, and they said, We are not cowards.  Let them kill us. Kindly show our faces.

Since I first began visiting in 2008 to my latest trip in March 2023, their courage (about being identified) has not declined over the years and is manifested in their response to my book.

How has unmasking the persecutor through this documentary brought solace to victims?

Kandhamal has witnessed scores of incidents that I describe as divine retribution or God's punishment for injustice heaped on hapless people or for desecrating something sacred, like a cross or church.

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In 2004, a 22-year-old boy named Akhaya Mallick urinated on the Tabernacle of the Raikia church after it was torn down. A few days later, he was hospitalized for urine blockage. He confessed to the doctor about his act at the church and then went and met the parish priest and confessed his sin. Mallick died a few days later  his older brother Pramods wife, Sharddha Nayak, confirmed.

Mallicks sudden death instilled fear of the living God in his brother Pramod (who in 1999 had become a follower of Christ but due to pressure from family had recanted his faith), and Shardha and Pramod started to attend church regularly.

On the other hand, there are everyday incidents witnessed by the victims where their Hindu neighbors (who were part of the violence then) have confessed their participation and regret their involvement.

A pastor shared with me how his neighbor who had pulled down his house helped him rebuild it nearly two years later.

I know of Hindu assailants whom I met attending (Christian) prayers who told me, We assaulted them and looted them, but instead of staying angry, they were smiling at us. We saw that they are living peacefully, while we have no peace of mind. So, we decided to join them.

I have also met several Hindus sitting in houses of Christian victims and admitting that we joined in the attacks on Christians due to the false propaganda. Now we live in peace.

These incidents of Hindus embracing the Christian faith have given new confidence to the hounded Christian community in Kandhamal. The sense of fear they carried has disappeared, and they are now more hopeful.

How do you understand Gods act of justice in this context?

After documenting these incidents meticulously, I cannot endorse theologians or Christians who claim that God is ever merciful and will never punish. How can we judge God? I have solid experiences and a firm belief that Gods ways are inscrutable. We cannot brand God as A or B or C alone. God does not remain blind or sit idle to the atrocities on the earth. Even the secular world has the term natural justice.

Wherever persecution took place, whether [in] Kandhamal, Mangaluru, or other parts of India, there have been incidents of divine retribution.

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We had people from across the country who watched the documentary and then shared what they believe were examples of divine retribution following other attacks on Christians. One commenter shared about a police officer who led the brutalization of Christian protesters in Mangaluru in 2008 who later killed himself. People also wrote about similar events happening in Hyderabad and Bihar, where church desecrators met tragic deaths.

How has seeing what you believe is Gods intervention in the Kandhamal community changed your thinking about God and the reality of persecution?

By human logic, it is difficult to comprehend what God has planned or willed. Why did God allow 10 of Jesus disciples to become martyrs? Why God allowed those 21 Coptic Christians to be martyred by the ISIS in 2015?

But when I look at persecution, I remember the dictum of church historian Tertullian , The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. He wrote these words under Emperor Constantine, who legalized Christianity in 313, and I believe they still hold true. In fact, I call one chapter in my book Early Christians of 21st Century Kandhamal Proves Tertullian Right because it holds stunning testimonies of Hindu converts. I have also come across several St. Pauls of Kandhamaldisciples of the slain Swami who have embraced the Christian faith.

Why is your documentary important for the global church?

The unconditional forgiving attitude of the traumatized Christians has floored the Hindu nationalists in Kandhamal. Would anyone believe that there has not been a single revenge attack even in Christian-majority areas?

Kandhamals story of faith by the means of my documentary is a reminder to the global church of hope, faith, forgiveness, and that God is in charge.

Do you think Indian Christians and Christians globally pay enough attention to the reality of persecution of Christians?

There is global concern about what is happening in India, especially among organizations advocating for persecuted Christians, but unfortunately, there is hardly any act of solidarity when it comes to state-level interactions. I am reminded of the US President Donald Trumps India visit in February 2020. Christians in India had high hopes that Trump would mention religious freedom issues in India, particularly the persecution of Christians, but his visit went by without any mention of the increasing attacks on Christians under the Modi regime.

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Do you think there are more such individuals who might have met such horrendous ends? Are you motivated to carry on this investigation further?

There are much more than these 10 lives that I have traced back while working on this documentary. I have come across dozens more of such stunning incidents bordering on divine intervention and revelation. After the release of my documentary, I am getting messages and phone calls from sources who are eyewitnesses and have told me about the fate of the individuals involved in the violence. My aim is not to project lives that ended tragically but instead highlight the process of realization that these individuals had whether they are still alive or dead.

What do you hope this documentary accomplishes?

Given the increasing persecution of Christians across the country by the belligerent Hindu nationalists, with the connivance of the mandarins of ruling BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] regimes, I intend to convey the message of hope and encourage my Christian brothers and sisters to trust in God. I also hope this crisp visual presentation of the stunning incidents recorded over 15 years will instill the fear of God and his judgment on the oppressors.
On April 3, Malaysias parliament voted to abolish the mandatory death penalty. In its place, the courts may mete out alternative sentences such as life imprisonment or whipping.

[For] people who get involved in criminal activity due to economic hardships or exigent circumstances, there is now a way to proportionately punish them without the need to impose the ultimate penalty, which is death, said Malaysian human rights lawyer Andrew Khoo, who lives in Kuala Lumpur and has campaigned to quash the death penalty in his country for the past 20 years.

The Southeast Asian country imposed a moratorium on executions in 2018 when it first pledged to abolish the death penalty completely. Now, capital punishment will no longer be compulsory for 11 crimes like murder, drug trafficking, and terrorism. The new law will also be applied retrospectively to reviewing the sentences of more than a thousand prisoners on death row, including those who have exhausted their appeals.

CT spoke with Khoo on the impacts of this new law and what a robust Christian engagement in politics amid a majority-Muslim setting might look like.

What is the significance of abolishing the mandatory death penalty in Malaysia?

We return the decision about sentencing back to the hands of judges, rather than judges being forced by law to impose a sentence without their ability to include any mitigation. Its a return to justice and to proportionate sentencing.

Justice is about receiving an appropriate punishment for criminal activity, committing a crime, or going against the norms of society. But from a biblical perspective, justice needs to be tempered with mercy in the sense that we hate the crime but we dont hate the person who committed the crime.

We can reinforce or restate societys non-acceptance of criminal activity, but we can also allow ourselves to appreciate that sometimes people are driven to criminal activity through external pressures, economic considerations, and trying circumstances. This is not to say that we excuse the crime, but we allow ourselves a modicum of mercy when we impose sentences.

So the death penalty remains an option for some criminal offenses.

Yes. Generally speaking, we have not abolished the death penalty. If a crime leads to the death of an individual, the possibility of the imposition of the death penalty exists.

Theres been an attempt to decouple the death penalty from criminal activity that does not lead to the death of a person. For example, you could get the death penalty for illegally or unlawfully possessing a firearm in the past. The firearm didnt even need to be fired. The fact that you possessed the firearm without a license was sufficient for you to be sentenced to death if you were convicted. So, we have broken the connection between the death penalty and a crime that did not result in a persons death. That is a good thing.

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Has the Malaysian governments decision been influenced by events in neighboring country Singapore, where executions continue to be carried out?

I most certainly think so. Singapore was deaf to appealsnot just from Malaysia but from the international communityfor mercy, clemency, and mitigation in sentencing when it came to executing people who were intellectually compromised.

This forced us to rethink the idea of justice and fairness in terms of sentencing and whether it was right to impose the death penalty on people whose criminal conduct was very marginal. People who had just exceeded the threshold for being considered a drug trafficker were treated in the same way as someone who was seriously trafficking in drugs. It didnt matter whether it was 500 grams or 500 kilos of drugs; the sentence was still the same. This kind of injustice was reflected in some of the executions that were taking place in Singapore, where people with small amounts of drugs were found guilty and sentenced to death.

Even though the campaign to abolish the mandatory death penalty did not work in Singapore, it had a transboundary effect across the Causeway because Malaysian society began to see more clearly how these kinds of absolute mandatory sentences were unfair and unjust. It contributed to the environment whereby it made it possible for people to say, We can afford to do away with the mandatory death penalty.

How did the Malaysian church respond to the new law?

Issues like the criminal justice system or crime and punishment are not traditional issues which the church has spoken up for in the past.

There is an inherent contradiction here because the Christian witness is to all of life. There shouldnt be a reservation about giving input on a particular issue, topic, or controversy because we dont want to invite criticism, negative feedback, or pushback from the rest of society.

If we are sincere in our beliefs, we should be duty bound to share those perspectives and help influence public debate on all issues in Christian love. But because we have been brought up in a nation where Christianity is a minority religion, we are sensitive to the role that we play in public life. So, theres a hesitancy to speak up on certain areas sometimes.

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Does the notion of a sacred and secular divide affect Malaysian Christian engagements in the public square? Do Muslim leaders act differently?

In a true reflection of Christianity, there is no distinction between church and state. Even when America talks about the separation of church and state, they dont see any incongruity about having people like Rev. Raphael Warnock, an ordained minister and pastor, as an elected senator in the state of Georgia.

Islam doesnt see any separation between mosque and state. In Malaysia, Islamic religious leaders have become ministers in charge of religion, members of Parliament, and state assemblymen. But Im not sure how comfortable Malaysian society would be if we had a Christian pastor go into politics and keep his job as a pastor at the same time.

Why are we uncomfortable with that? Its something that Christians in Malaysiaand Malaysians in generalneed to reflect upon. As my favorite quote from Desmond Tutu says, When people say that the Bible and politics don't mix, I ask them which Bible they are reading.

What can the Malaysian church do more or less of?

Malaysian Christians need to get more involved in small-p politics. They should get more involved in national polity and decision-making processes to bring Christian perspectives and values into public life.

Some people will misunderstand this and say, Youre trying to Christianize Malaysia. Im not saying that at all. If we are people of faith, our ethics and morals are informed by that faith. We should be reflecting our perspectives in policy decisions that are being made in the country, because it affects people.

If we are commanded to love our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:31), then the idea that we should refrain from policy involvement even though we could help improve the quality and nature of life for the people around usour neighborsis a total antithesis of what the Bible tells us to do.

One area to do this is in terms of outreach and care for people in the prison system, which is very dehumanizing. Its not a glamorous job. Its difficult work, and its certainly not financially rewarding. People may shy away from this, but there are people in prisons who need help. They are hurting and in pain. There is an opportunity for us to minister to their needs and to give them some dignity in life and treat them as human beings. This is where we can show Christian love to people from all religious backgrounds and walks of life.

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What theological truth or concept informs your opposition to the death penalty?

I believe in a God who is the Creator of life. It is not the role of a human being to take away that life. A mature and civilized criminal justice system will reflect that respect for the dignity and sanctity of life.

What is the range of perspectives that Malaysian evangelicals have on this issue?

The Christian community, as a whole, does not have a consensus on what position they take with respect to the death penalty.

Some feel that the death penalty is justifiable. They acknowledge that there is a time and place for it and there are circumstances in which the death penalty can be justified and defended in terms of its use. Since it is mentioned in the Bible and since God did order the killing of whole groups of communities in Old Testament times, they believe that there is room for righteous anger to be reflected. One of the ways that this righteous indignation about unholy conduct or activity can be expressed is in the use of the death penalty.

Then there are those who will say it will never be correct for society to take a life or for the state to say they are justified in executing someone in the name of protecting society. Doing so gives society, and human beings, the power of God to give and end life.

How do you dialogue with fellow Malaysian Christians who favor the death penalty because they believe it serves as an effective deterrent against serious crimes?

There is no empirical evidence to show that the death penalty is a deterrent. There are empirical studies that show the reverse: When the death penalty is there, crime continues to take place. For example, homicide rates in US states that retain the death penalty are higher than states that have abolished it in the past 20 years according to nongovernmental organization The Death Penalty Project.

The very fact that Malaysia introduced the mandatory death sentence for drugs in 1983 didnt stop people from trafficking in drugs or getting involved in the business of carrying drugs. The logic just collapses.

If you say that the death penalty does work as a deterrent, why is it that people will continue to commit this crime, knowing full well that if caught and convicted they would face the mandatory death penalty?

What do you anticipate continuing to do now that this law has been passed?

My work will not be done until the death penalty is abolished in Malaysia in its entirety. To me, this is a milestone in that long journey, but there is still so much that needs to be done. It will probably take another 20 years.
Kirk Cameron to release new kids book, Pride Comes Before the Fall

Conservative Christian actor and author Kirk Cameron will be releasing his second childrens book, ahead of LGBT "pride month," titled Pride Comes Before the Fall.

The former star of the television sitcom Growing Pains gave a preview of the new book, which is slated for release on June 1, during an event at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, North Carolina.

This is a story called Pride Comes Before the Fall, and its a story of a tiger named Valor and his partner named Kevin. They need to learn the lesson of humility, said Cameron as he addressed a group of children gathered at the library over the weekend.

The books June 1 release coincides with what LGBT activists call "pride month," and which the American Library Association celebrates as Rainbow Book Month. The organizations website describes Rainbow Book Month as a nationwide celebration of the authors and writings that reflect the lives and experiences of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, pansexual, genderqueer, queer, intersex, agender, and asexual community.

The book will be released through Brave Books, a conservative childrens literature publisher through which Cameron published his first kids book, As You Grow. That book, as described on Amazon, is a fun story with brilliant art that teaches the Biblical truths of the Fruit of the Spirit and documents Sky Trees journey from a small acorn to a mighty tree that provides shade, sustenance, and lodging!

The Christian Post reached out to Brave Books for more information about Camerons latest book. However, the publisher did not return comment by press time.

Last year, Brave Books said several public libraries had refused to host Cameron for readings of his book As You Grow, even though the same entities allowed controversial drag queen story hours, which many see as predatory behavior to normalize drag, grooming and pedophilia. One public library in Texas hosted a drag performer who was also a registered sex offender (see here and here).

Among the libraries that declined to host Cameron was Rochambeau Public Library in Providence, Rhode Island, which told Brave Books, we will pass on having you run a program in our space.

We are a very queer-friendly library. Our messaging does not align, the library added.

In an interview with Fox News last year, Cameron cited libraries hostility toward hosting a story hour dedicated to his book as proof that more than ever, we are getting destroyed in the battle for the hearts and minds of our children.

Publicly funded libraries are green-lighting gender marker and name change clinics while denying a story time that would involve the reading of a book that teaches biblical wisdom. How much clearer can it get?

Last December, Cameron held a reading event at the Indianapolis Public Library after reportedly being denied an initial request to host such an event at the facility.

While Brave Books claimed online that more than 2,500 people showed up and that it was the most attended event in the librarys history, the library itself reported around 750 attended and said it had held larger events.

Although the attempts by Cameron and Brave Books to hold readings of his books at public libraries were initially met with hostility, the publishing company announced on its Twitter account that Cameron is scheduled to hold a story hour at Seattle Public Library on May 27.

We are excited to meet the BRAVE families in Seattle at our future story hour on May 27th! We want to acknowledge and thank the Seattle Public Library (SPL) for allowing us to practice our first Amendment Rights.



See you at the library soon! https://t.co/zb665Ez31F  BRAVE BOOKS (@BraveBooksUS) May 12, 2023
Tim Keller's family ask for continued prayers as pastor returns to hospital amid cancer battle

Tim Kellers family has asked for continued prayers for the pastor and bestselling author as he recently returned to the hospital amid his ongoing battle with pancreatic cancer.

A brief health update on my Dad: After being released from the hospital on Saturday, he returned late Sunday night to receive additional care. Please continue to pray for his recovery, Michael Keller, Tim Kellers son, wrote on social media Wednesday morning.

Keller, the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, was initially diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer in May 2020. Last year, he underwent immunotherapy at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, which he said at the time was successful in eradicating 99% of the tumors.

However, in March, the 72-year-old pastor revealed that new tumors had developed, requiring him to undergo a repeat of the immunotherapy treatment.

In an update Saturday, the pastors wife, Kathy Keller, revealed he had suffered complications from that treatment.

Tim is out of the hospital and recovering at home after complications from his treatment. Please continue to pray during this slow recovery," she wrote at the time.

Keller is also a survivor of thyroid cancer, which he had in 2002.

In November, the pastor told The Christian Post that the treatments had kept his cancer at bay, keeping him exactly where I was two-and-a-half years ago when I got the cancer diagnosis.

Most people are gone within months or a year; I'm still going strong and I'm going into two-and-a-half years. I'm very, very grateful to God, he said.

However, he acknowledged that the cancer was still there" and could "break out anytime." He added that every time he had a scan, he experienced "scanxiety."

"You know that it doesn't matter how good the last one was," he said. "This one could show that it's out of control."

Still, the pastor shared that he and his wife had seen their prayer lives grow and develop as they faced his diagnosis together.

"This is going to sound like an exaggeration. My wife and I would never want to go back to the kind of prayer life and spiritual life we had before the cancer, never," he said, adding that his cancer journey has led him to genuinely experience Psalm 90:14: "Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."

One of the most influential pastors of the last several decades, Keller has championed planting churches in urban areas through Redeemer City to City and popularized the term Gospel-centered churches.

In February, The Gospel Coalition, which Keller co-founded, announced the launch of The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics, an initiative designed to help pastors, young people and other Christian leaders adapt to a "post-Christendom culture."

Keller's books have also sold more than 3 million copies. Some of his bestsellers include The Prodigal God, The Meaning of Marriage and The Reason for God. His most recent, Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I?, addresses Americas forgiveness crisis.



There's a cultural moment here where I think forgiveness is very important to talk about, Keller told CP. "We live in a culture that is very fragmented, polarized, there's an awful lot of anger, and people are really after each other. Forgiveness is not in the air.



Collin Hansen, vice president of content and editor-in-chief for The Gospel Coalition and author of Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation, told CP that Keller has plenty of other things he wants to write.

We've been praying all along for another decade of energetic ministry, Hansen said.

It seems as though the spiritual work that God has done in his life through the cancer has been a kind of personal revival of sorts, he said.

So, there's sort of a combination of hopefulness and eagerness and planning for another decade ahead, Lord willing, but at the same time a sense that nothing is promised. And in that sense, Tim's just getting a concentrated dose of really all of our situations, no different for any of us, because, as Jesus tells us, we're not promised tomorrow either, he said.
ZIMBABWEANS have called on authorities to expedite the passage of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Amendment Bill (2022) and put an end to the tendency by opposition elements to badmouth the country for a few pieces of silver from detractors.

This comes as CCC spokesperson Advocate Fadzayi Mahere was in Geneva, Switzerland this week peddling falsehoods to her cheerleaders  who included well known enemies of Zimbabwe.

It also comes as the opposition, ahead of the harmonised elections this year, has upped its anti-Zimbabwe ante through a blizzard of falsehoods on social media platforms, again to their same audiences who maintain illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.

Such dastardly and cowardly acts are often committed in the name of freedom of expression, but their effects on the country have been devastating due to the unflattering negative tag that they leave on Zimbabwe  prompting Zimbabweans from across the globe to call for the authorities to pass the Criminal Law Bill.

Amendments to the Bill were approved by Cabinet in November last year. They seek to impose stiffer penalties on those who denigrate the country through correspondence with foreign governments and hostile forces whose intention is to harm national interests.

A Zimbabwean, Ms Abigail Mupambi, said: Fadzayi Mahere is a typical example of why we urgently need the Patriotic Act put into action. Her actions serve to confirm why even her Western masters, who were cheering her, activated the Logan Act in United States to safeguard their national interests.

Such inept individuals are dangerous and must be whipped into line time and again. You dont crop up from your backyard and speak like that on behalf of a nation, that is detrimental and unpalatable. Something must be done about this! Fighting Zanu PF is one thing, attacking Zimbabwe is something else!

Another Twitter user, Mr Larry Charamba, wrote: Some people would rather burn the ship because they cant be captain. Thats toxic politics par excellence. The Patriotic Bill should be fast tracked to deal with those who tarnish the countrys image.

Prominent lawyer Mr Tinomudaishe Chinyoka also wrote: I have been on the fence regarding the practice of badmouthing ones country while abroad, until now. I think it should be a crime, as it is detrimental to the countrys diplomatic relationships.

Bad mouthing politicians in Zimbabwe in order to win votes is fine, but doing it outside the country to achieve the isolation of the country is not.

Offenders should be banned from holding any public office for periods of up to 10 years. That way, politicians who cannot win votes on the ballot are deterred from inviting international regime change agents to help them get a leg up.

The introduction of patriotism aspects into the countrys laws have been in the pipeline for some time after it emerged that some opposition elements were globe-trotting around Western capitals calling for the imposition of illegal sanctions for cheap political gain.

One of the key sponsors of the event in Geneva is the Raoul Wallenberg Centre which is linked to Mr George Soros, the chairman of the Open Society Institute and a well-known anti-Zimbabwe billionaire and sponsor of regime change across the globe.

The Criminal Law Bill enhances the provisions of the Criminal Law Code in matters relating to the countrys sovereignty through the criminalisation of conduct that undermines Zimbabwes sovereignty, dignity, independence and national interests. Herald
Supreme Court sides with Twitter in ISIS terror attack case

The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Twitter was not responsible for aiding a terrorist attack that happened in Turkey in 2017 by allowing members of the Islamic State terrorist group to post content on its platform.

In a unanimous decision released in the case of Twitter, Inc. v. Taamneh on Thursday that was authored by Justice Clarence Thomas, the high court concluded that plaintiffs allegations are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack.

The litigation stemmed from a 2017 terrorist attack at the Reina nightclub in Istanbul, in which ISIS terrorist Abdulkadir Masharipov murdered 39 people and injured nearly 70 others.

Family members of one of Masharipovs victims sued Twitter, Facebook and Google, claiming that they failed to stop ISIS from recruiting members on their platforms via videos and ads, among other tools.

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However, Thomas wrote that the plaintiffs failed to show that Twitter, and, to an extent, other social media platforms, had truly aided and abetted the terrorist attack in Istanbul.

Notably, plaintiffs never allege that ISIS used defendants platforms to plan or coordinate the Reina attack; in fact, they do not allege that Masharipov himself ever used Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter, wrote Thomas.

Plaintiffs never allege that, after defendants established their platforms, they gave ISIS any special treatment or words of encouragement. Nor is there reason to think that defendants selected or took any action at all with respect to ISIS content (except, perhaps, blocking some of it).

Thomas added that we generally do not think that internet or cell service providers incur culpability merely for providing their services to the public writ large.

The fact that some bad actors took advantage of these platforms is insufficient to state a claim that defendants knowingly gave substantial assistance and thereby aided and abetted those wrongdoers acts, he concluded.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson authored a short concurring opinion, writing that while she joined the courts decision, she believed it was narrow in important respects and that other cases regarding social media platforms and content culpability presenting different allegations and different records may lead to different conclusions.

Additionally, the Supreme Court released a per curiam opinion in the case of Gonzalez v. Google, likewise centered on family members of a woman killed in a 2015 terrorist attack suing Google for its alleged liability in the tragedy.

The per curiam opinion decided to vacate an earlier Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in favor of the plaintiffs and remand the case back to the circuit court in light of the high courts decision in Twitter.

We need not resolve either the viability of plaintiffs claims as a whole or whether plaintiffs should receive further leave to amend, read the per curiam decision.

Rather, we think it sufficient to acknowledge that much (if not all) of plaintiffs complaint seems to fail under either our decision in Twitter or the Ninth Circuits unchallenged holdings below.

The Supreme Court also declined to address Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, a federal law that states that websites are not liable for the content that users publish on their platforms that could be deemed defamatory.
Revelation 13: The rise of the beast

Revelation chapter 13 describes the rise of the Antichrist and his activities. It will be necessary to tarry on this subject for a while, cross-referencing this chapter with Old and New Testament texts.

Here is what the apostle John wrote about him:

Then I saw a beast rising up out of the sea. It had seven heads and 10 horns, with 10 crowns on its horns. And written on each head were names that blasphemed God. This Beast looked like a leopard, but it had the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion! And the dragon gave the Beast his own power and throne and great authority. I saw that one of the heads of the Beast seemed wounded beyond recovery  but the fatal wound was healed! The whole world marveled at this miracle and gave allegiance to the Beast. They worshiped the dragon for giving the Beast such power, and they also worshiped the Beast. Who is as great as the beast? they exclaimed. Who is able to fight against him? Then the Beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God. And he was given authority to do whatever he wanted for 42 months. And he spoke terrible words of blasphemy against God, slandering His name and his dwelling  that is, those who dwell in heaven. And the Beast was allowed to wage war against Gods holy people and to conquer them. And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation. And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the Beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. Anyone who is destined for prison will be taken to prison. Anyone destined to die by the sword will die by the sword. This means that Gods holy people must endure persecution patiently and remain faithful (Revelation 13:1-10).

In recent years, the world has seen something of its incredible vulnerability for a global disaster of monumental proportions. The geopolitical tensions and the use of nuclear armaments could lead to catastrophic consequences. An economic collapse or financial crisis could trigger social unrest and upheaval across nations. With the increasing dependence on the internet and digital technologies, cyberattacks could cause widespread damage to critical infrastructure, financial systems, and national security. Extreme weather events and natural disasters could significantly damage infrastructure, homes, and human lives. The outbreak of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 can spread rapidly and cause significant social and economic disruption. Pollution and abuse of natural resources can lead to conflicts over water scarcity, food depletion, and widespread malnutrition.

Any leader who could sufficiently address these concerns and promise humanity peace and prosperity could gain control of the entire world. The Bible says that Satan will raise up a Superman who can do it. Revelation says he will come up out of the sea (Revelation 13:1). The sea is symbolic of Gentile nations (Revelation 17:15; Isaiah 57:20-21).

So, the likelihood is that this individual, the Antichrist, will be a Gentile world religious and political leader, who will astonish everyone with his incomparable abilities and be worshipped internationally. People will ask, Who is as great as the beast? (Revelation 13:4).

The name Antichrist is only found in the apostle Johns first and second epistles. In those texts, John says anyone who denies Christ is antichrist.

Today there are many clergy who could legitimately be labeled antichrist.

Recently I was teaching an adult Sunday School lesson at my home church, and I was sharing how progressive clergy can be so pomp and pious. Yet they support so-called abortion rights, celebrate LGBTQ, and laud socialism, something for which they should be ashamed. They rarely, if ever, raise their voices against the things destroying peoples lives: alcohol, marijuana, gambling, pornography, and other evils. They never speak out or challenge the false philosophies and doctrines of devils, ruining minds and twisting personalities. They encourage a disregard for biblical morality and the rejection of orthodox Christianity. These clergy never risk a confrontation with the forces of sin, and their silence gives tacit approval to the bad influences literally tearing our nation apart. They fear they may be branded an extremist, a holy roller, an out-of-date Puritan of yesteryear, or a prophet of doom. They prefer popularity and acceptance. If they had any love for the truth, they would be ready to fight for the fidelity of Gods truth. It is not an overstatement to call these religious leaders antichrists. Like the devil, they lead people away from God. They oppose the will of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Although anyone who denies Christ, or the way of Christ, can be labeled antichrist, the Bible still recognizes a real end-time person who will appear in a crescendo of opposition to the true Savior of the world.

So, the events of the final days and the person of the Antichrist are inseparable. The spirit of antichrists pervades the entire Christian era and is prevalent today. But there will be an individual who rises to world dominance and attains the accolades and affection of the masses. Although the nations will laud him as magnificent and majestic, Revelation refers to him as a Beast to reveal his characters beastly nature.

This Beast plans to plant his flag on this planet as a God-free zone. He will turn people away from the Lord and his mercies and coerce small and great to bow down to him.

We see types of the Antichrist in the Old Testament.

The book of Genesis says Nimrod was a great hunter and a king (Genesis 10:8-12). The expression great hunter refers to his remarkable ability to communicate and win over the hearts and minds of the people of his day. He was the founder and ruler of Babylon, and known for his great strength and military prowess. He was also a great builder and directed the construction of the Tower of Babel. The Tower would reach to the heavens, signifying the world unifying around a false religion.

Nimrods name has come to be associated with rebellion and defiance against God. Some scholars believe he was a god-like figure in the eyes of his people, and they worshiped him as a deity.

Nimrod was a shadow of the Antichrist.

Pharaoh was a type of the Antichrist. He was an oppressor and persecutor of the Jewish people, much like the Antichrist will be an enemy of Gods people in the latter days. Additionally, the Pharaohs rejection of Mosess messages and refusal to acknowledge the power of God mirrors the Antichrists rejection of Jesus and Gods authority in the end times.

Some believe Haman, as described in the book of Esther, is a foreshadowing of the Antichrist because of the similarities between his actions and character to those of the Antichrist. Haman and the Antichrist are seen as power-hungry, malicious, manipulative, and authoritarian characters determined to destroy the people of God. Both are also obsessed with control and dominance, as evidenced by Hamans desire to have all Jews killed and the Antichrists commitment to do the same and rule the world. Additionally, both use deception and flattery to achieve their goals, which results in significant harm and suffering for innocent people. Haman clearly serves as a warning of the coming of the Antichrist and the importance of being prepared for the latter days.

Through the years, there has been considerable speculation as to the identity of the Antichrist. The following are some of the many figures throughout history who were suspected or accused of being the Antichrist.

In the first century A.D., some Christians believed the Roman Emperor Nero was the Antichrist because of his cruel persecution of Christians.

In the 10th century, rumors circulated that Pope Sylvester II had made a pact with the devil and was the Antichrist. In the 12th century, St. Bernard called Pope Leo the Antichrist. In the 13th century, Frederick II, ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, accused Pope Gregory IX of being Antichrist.

In the 16th century, some Catholics believed Protestant reformer Martin Luther was the Antichrist because he departed from Catholic doctrine and had many sharp criticisms for the Catholic Church. Interestingly, Catholics of this period revived the old theory that the Antichrist would be a Jew. This position relieved the Pope of any possibility of Antichrist guilt. However, the revival of this theory which associated the Jew with the Antichrist also gave rise to the anti-Semitic overtones of the Inquisition.

In the early 19th century, some Christians believed Napoleon Bonaparte was the Antichrist because of his tremendous military conquests and growing political power over much of the world.

During World War II, some Christians were convinced Adolf Hitler was the Antichrist due to his acts of genocide against the Jews and his ambition for world domination.

In the 1980s, some Christian groups believed Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was the Antichrist because of his role in the Cold War, his efforts to reform the Soviet Union, and his development as someone with increasing influence on the world stage.

In the 21st century, some conservative Christians believed former U.S. President Barack Obama was the Antichrist because of his policies and political ideologies. Although the President claimed to be a Christian, he downplayed the influence of Christianity and erroneously showed favor for Islam as a beautiful and peaceful world religion.

Regarding the many conjectures and suppositions which sought to identify the Antichrist, and there have been hundreds of them, each one was proven wrong. It seems as though such labeling was often born out of political or religious hatred and suspicion. Christians should be more circumspect in their understanding and application of biblical prophecy.

The late M.R. DeHaan, in his book, Revelation, offers wise advice:

"The true identity of the Antichrist will not be known until the Church is gone [until the Church is raptured out of the world]. This is definitely stated in II Thessalonians 2:3, where we are told that the man of sin will not be revealed until after the Church is gone. It is foolish, therefore, to speculate as to his identity."

Nevertheless, as mentioned beforehand, it certainly seems the groundwork is being laid for the Antichrists appearance at the present hour. Current events such as increasing divisions and conflicts between nations, tremendous social unrest, a general hostility toward the Jews and Christianity, rank moral degradation, technological advancements that have enabled widespread surveillance and control, global pandemics, and the probability of a major worldwide economic crisis, are all signs of the last days pointing to the coming of the Devils superman, who will deceive the vast majority of the worlds population that he can solve every global issue. He will appear as a charismatic and persuasive leader who can provide salvation and deliverance. When in reality, he is a Beast  a human monster whose power comes from the dreaded Dragon  the devil himself.

Let me close with another quote from M.R. DeHaan:

Terrible are the days which lie ahead. The rumblings of the coming judgment can be heard in the distance. The clouds are gathering. Inventionshave made men tremble at what lies ahead. There is only one way out, and that is through him [Christ], who is the door to absolute safety. Those who receive him and enter through the door by faith are safe. They are described as those whose names are written in the Lambs Book of Life. Is your name written there? Are you ready for his coming? If not, will you turn to him [Christ] and be saved now?

Will you?
Rebekah Lyons unveils 5 strategies for cultivating mental resilience amid mental health crisis

Bestselling author Rebekah Lyons is dedicated to empowering Christians in cultivating mental resilience, a skill she believes has been lost in modern culture, as evidenced in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns.

We need to develop some muscle and some skills for resilience, the speaker, author and mother-of-four told The Christian Post.

What did other centuries do? What are we missing? How do we put those building blocks back into our lives for our generation? We need to stop repeating, We are the most depressed, anxious, angry civilization that we've seen in history. Well, that's probably true. But we can just keep repeating that refrain, or we can decide, What are we going to do about that?

Lyons' passion for helping others stems from personal experience.

She began her journey toward understanding resilience during a mental health summit in 2020, where she witnessed the struggles of young people during the early stages of quarantine.

Little did we know that within 12 weeks, suicidal ideation would triple starting in teenagers, just being home, isolated away from peers, away from regulatory rhythms that help calm the brain, she said.

And then at home, the pandemic began taking a toll on her family. Her son, Cade, who has a Down syndrome diagnosis, struggled with the isolation of online schooling  and because of his spiral, I think our whole family kind of spiraled for about the next 18 months, she said.

I realized that I needed resilience as a parent; our kids need it, our whole society needs it. It's not a muscle that we've developed, quite frankly.

Lyons began to research how, exactly, to build mental resilience. She discovered that throughout history, societies faced with challenges like wars experienced increased mental health issues.

However, these communities found resilience through shared purpose, a common enemy and a sense of agency. In contrast, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the traditional healing methods of community, regulatory rhythms and faith, leaving individuals to rely heavily on medication as a coping mechanism.

In fact, a November 2022 study found that 3 out of 4 of Generation Z said the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns adversely impacted their mental health. The most frequently cited conditions were anxiety and depression, which were reported by 90% and 78% of respondents, respectively.

We lost the ability to connect with our community, we lost the ability to have regulatory rhythms in our lives, we lost the ability to gather as a church, Lyons said. The only thing we had left was medicine, and medicine helps you cope with something; it doesn't help you heal. Unfortunately, that's why mental health declined in this particular moment because we were told to go home and sit down and be alone and wait.

Armed with a wealth of information, Lyons did what she does best: She wrote a book about the topic titled Building a Resilient Life: How Adversity Awakens Strength, Hope and Meaning. In it, she explores how previous generations coped with trauma and adversity and blends research, vulnerability and biblical wisdom to outline five rules for building resilience.

For my readers, I want it to be practical and approachable and based in fact and research and faith, she said.

The first rule, "Name the pain," emphasizes the importance of acknowledging and expressing one's pain and trauma. The second rule, "Shift the narrative," encourages individuals to challenge negative thought patterns and toxic thinking.

As a person of faith, I go, What does God have to say about this? Is everything doomsday and there's no hope? No, that's not what faith would lead me to believe. Ultimately, while it might be hard right now, that doesn't mean that I'm alone and that this is the end of my story, she said.

Lyons' third rule, "Embrace adversity," urges individuals to face their fears and anxiety head-on. The fourth rule, "Make meaning," highlights the transformative power of turning personal pain into a purposeful journey. The final rule, "Endure together," emphasizes the importance of community and shared experiences in building resilience.

We're in a bad spot, she said. But if we don't have real practical steps of agency to take, then we're going to succumb to that narrative and be swept up in it and feel a little powerless to it. I think we're all tired of feeling powerless to something when we have been given the tools by God, through Scriptures, through neuroscience, through research, through community, to be resilient.

Lyons challenged readers to prioritize their mental health by seeking support, engaging in honest conversations and nurturing healthy friendships. She emphasized that by embracing resilience and implementing practical steps, society can overcome its current mental health challenges.

This book is for anyone who is weary or maybe believe the lie that it's not going to change  I know I did  and that life is just going to always be hard or that they were not made to overcome, that they're just going to always struggle and be weak, Lyons said.

So, I just want people to be reminded they're stronger than they think, she added. Anyone that wants to grow in their resilience, I think this book can be a resource for them.

Building a Resilient Life: How Adversity Awakens Strength, Hope and Meaning is now available.
'Worse than Watergate,' 'Devastating to the FBI': 5 reactions to the Durham report

Politicians, media figures and legal experts are reacting to the release of the long-anticipated Durham report, which concluded that federal law enforcement agencies had a faulty basis for opening an investigation into former President Donald Trumps purported relationship with Russia and alleged foreign interference in the 2016 presidential election.

The allegations that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election loomed large throughout the Trump presidency and led to the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the matter four months into his Oval Office tenure. Special Counsel Robert Mueller concluded his investigation in March 2019, which did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.

Shortly thereafter, then-United States Attorney General Bill Barr appointed then-U.S. Attorney John Durham to investigate the origins of the Trump-Russia probe, which was given the name Crossfire Hurricane. The finished product of that investigation, the Report on Matters Related to Intelligence Activities and Investigations Arising Out of the 2016 Presidential Campaigns, was published Monday.

It concluded that the FBI opened and investigated Crossfire Hurricane during the presidential election season based on raw, unanalyzed, and uncorroborated intelligence. The release of the Durham report comes less than 18 months before the 2024 presidential election, where Trump is currently the frontrunner to receive the Republican nomination.

Here are five reactions to the release of the Durham report.

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Iran: Judge frees Christian couple from prison, rules house church gatherings not illegal

Iranian authorities released two Christian leaders from prison last week after a judge broke with common judicial practice in the country and ruled that home church participation was not illegal, sources said.

Throwing out a 2020 conviction, a judge in Branch 34 of the Appeals Court in Tehran on May 9 found there was no evidence the couple had violated Irans national security laws by participating in a home meeting, according to advocacy group Article 18.

Homayoun Zhaveh, 64, and wife, Sara Ahmadi, 45, both converts from Islam, were released later that day.

In his ruling, the judge found that belonging to or participating in a home-group with people of the same faith was not illegal but natural.

The reports by the officers of the Ministry of Intelligence about organization of home-groups to promote Christianity, membership, and participation in home-groups, are not considered as acts against the countrys security, and the law has not recognized them as criminal

activity, the judge wrote.

The ruling was in some ways similar to a Nov. 3, 2021, Supreme Court judgment that stated that nine converts could not be charged with acting against national security merely for belonging to a house church.

The acquittal struck down a November 2020 conviction in which Ahmadi, accused of being a house church leader, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for founding or leading an organization that aims to disrupt national security and membership in organizations that aim to disrupt national security. In December 2020, Ahmadis original sentence was reduced to eight years in prison.

Zhaveh had been sentenced to two years in prison for membership in organizations that aim to disrupt national security, or being a member of a house church. The sentences also mandated six months of community service and a two-year ban on foreign travel or joining any social or political group.

Mansour Borji, director of Article 18, said in a press statement that the initial 2020 verdict showed how for decades intelligence institutions within the Islamic Republic have disregarded judicial processes and the law of the land.

They have abused and exploited vague legal precepts to criminalize peaceful and constitutionally lawful activities of these Christians, he said, adding that it is rare to find independent, principled judges in Iran when it comes to freedom of religion cases. Unfortunately, not so many judges can be found who would so clearly acknowledge the rights of the wrongly accused Christians, and refute the unjust verdicts issued against them.

Last week when the couple was released, they had served nine months of their sentences.

In June 2019, state security officials arrested the couple as they vacationed with friends in Amol, about 13 miles (21 kilometers) south of the Caspian Sea. They were both released on bail the next month.

The couple was ordered to report to authorities to begin serving their sentences in June 2021, but upon arrival they were immediately turned away, likely because COVID-19 was still sweeping through the Iranian prison system. Particularly hard-hit was Evin Prison, where Zhaveh and Ahmadi eventually would be incarcerated.

While waiting to start their sentence, the couple applied twice to request a retrial, once in June 2021 and again in November 2021, but were rejected both times. They received a summons on Aug. 13, 2022, to report to prison and were under the impression that they were going to pick up property that had been confiscated from them, according to Article 18. Instead, they were ordered to start their sentences and were held at Evin Prison.

Zhaveh suffers from an advanced form of Parkinsons disease, and according to those familiar with his condition, his health deteriorated while in prison.

Iran is ranked eighth on the Christian support organization Open Doors 2023 World Watch List (WWL) of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. During the past few years, the government of Iran has severely cracked down on house churches, but the WWL report states, despite great oppression, the Islamic Republic of Iran has seen phenomenal growth in its underground church movement.

Christian gatherings in private homes have been denounced as illegal groups and acts against national security, while many churches continue to be closed, the report states. Converts from Islam to Christianity bear the brunt of religious freedom violations, carried out

by the government in particular, which sees these Iranian Christians as an attempt by Western countries to undermine the Islamic regime. Leaders of Christian convert groups, as well as members of other denominational backgrounds who support them, have been arrested, prosecuted and received long prison sentences for crimes against national security.
Durham grand jury indicts source in Trump-Russia probe for lying to FBI

More than five years after the FBI first began investigating then-presidential candidate Donald Trumps purported illicit ties to Russia, a key source for the report containing allegations of misconduct by his campaign has been charged with making false statements to the federal law enforcement agency.

Igor Danchenko was charged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia Wednesday with making false statements to the FBI. The grand jury indictment, filed Wednesday, noted that Danchenko was one of the primary sources used by former British intelligence official Christopher Steele, referred to as U.K. Person-1, when constructing the information that ultimately formed the core of the allegations found in the Company Reports, also known as the Steele Dossier.

In addition to listing the occasions where Danchenko lied to the FBI, the indictment mentions that the campaign of Hillary Clinton, Trumps rival in the 2016 presidential election, played an instrumental role in the creation of the Steele Dossier: A U.S.-based international law firm (Law Firm-1), acting as counsel to the Hillary Clinton Presidential campaign (the Clinton Campaign), had retained a U.S.-based investigative firm (U.S. Investigative Firm-1) to conduct research on Trump and his associates.

Steele was recruited to conduct the research on Trump and submitted information to the FBI containing derogatory information on then-candidate Donald J. Trump beginning in July 2016. That month, the FBI launched an investigation known as Crossfire Hurricane that probed whether officials within the Trump campaign were coordinating with the Russian government. The FBI repeatedly spoke to Danchenko as part of the investigation.

As part of its efforts to determine the truth or falsity of specific information in the Company Reports, the FBI conducted several interviews of Danchenko regarding, among other things, the information that Danchenko provided to U.K. Person-1, the indictment stated.

Specifically, Danchenko falsely told FBI agents that he had never communicated with a particular U.S.-based individual  who was a long-time participant in Democratic Party politics and was then an executive at a U.S. public relations firm  about any allegations contained in the Company Reports. As it turns out, the individual was identified as a source of at least one of the allegations in the Steele Dossier.

The longtime Democratic Party operative, identified by The New York Times as Charles Dolan, worked on both of former President Bill Clintons presidential campaigns as well as both of Hillary Clintons presidential campaigns. Dolan was not the only person Danchenko lied about to authorities.

According to the indictment, Danchenko stated falsely during the interviews that, in or about late July 2016, he received an anonymous phone call from an individual who Danchenko believed to be a particular U.S. citizen and who was then president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce (Chamber President-1).

Danchenko also falsely stated that, during this phone call, (i) the person he believed to be Chamber President-1 informed him, in part, about information that the Company Reports later described as demonstrating a well-developed conspiracy of cooperation between the Trump Campaign and Russian officials.

The assertion that Danchenko spoke with and later met with the aforementioned individual was later determined to be false. The indictment illustrated that the false assertion served as the basis for conducting surveillance on one of the Trump campaigns advisors, Carter Page. Danchenko was also accused of lying about his friends, associates and sub-sources knowledge about his relationship with Steele.

The Steele Dossier contained salacious allegations about Trumps behavior and dealings with Russia, most notably that he rented the presidential suite of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Moscow where he knew President and MRS OBAMA (whom he hated) had stayed on one of their official trips to Russia, and defiling the bed where they had slept by employing a number of prostitutes to perform a golden showers (urination) show in front of him.

The charges against Danchenko stem from former U.S. Attorney John Durhams investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia probe.

Durham was appointed as a special counsel by then-Attorney General William Barr to investigate whether any federal official, employee, or any other person or entity violated the law in connection with the intelligence, counter-intelligence, or law-enforcement activities directed at the 2016 presidential campaigns, individuals associated with those campaigns, and individuals associated with the administration of President Donald J. Trump, including but not limited to Crossfire Hurricane.

Former Clinton campaign attorney Michael Sussman and former FBI attorney Kevin Clinesmith have also been indicted for making false statements as a result of the Durham probe. Accusations of collaboration with Russia continued throughout the Trump presidency and eventually resulted in a special counsel investigation that lasted for approximately two years.

Stephen Miller, who worked in the Trump administration, responded to the indictment in an appearance on Fox News Tucker Carlson Tonight Thursday. Miller restated the opinion widely held throughout the Trump administrations inner circle that the Russia probe and the special counsel investigation were used to hamstring the Trump presidency, specifically that the deep state was using the Russia probe to overthrow the elected president of the United States.

This was a theft from the American people. They elected their president. His time, his energy and that of his staffers were stolen. Thousands upon thousands of hours were stolen by rogue bureaucrats working in our intelligence services, in the FBI and across the government to impose their will over the will of the American people, he asserted.

Wall Street Journal opinion writer Kimberly A. Strassel asserted that "The Clinton dossier should go down as one of the biggest scandals in U.S. political history. Not just for the breadth of the con, but for the time it has taken to expose it."
Scottish faith leaders urge Parliament not to legalize assisted suicide

Scottish faith leaders are making a joint plea to MSPs to reject the legalization of assisted suicide in Scotland.

The Moderator of the Church of Scotland General Assembly, the Rt. Rev. Iain Greenshields, the Vice President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Scotland, Bishop John Keenan, and the Imam of Dundee Central Mosque, Imam Shaykh Hamza Khandwalla, held a meeting with MSPs at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday to express their opposition.

During their meeting, hosted by the Logos Scotland think-tank, they signed a statement voicing their "deep concern" over the proposals and urged MSPs to vote them down.

The statement says that assisted suicide undermines human dignity and puts pressure on vulnerable individuals to end their lives.

"Our faith traditions are united in the principle that assisted dying in itself inevitably undermines the dignity of the human person, and to allow it would mean that our society as a whole loses its common humanity," the statement says.

"The Church of Scotland, the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland, and the Scottish Association of Mosques remain firm in their opposition to assisted suicide and euthanasia."

The latest campaign for the legalization of assisted suicide is being led by Liam McArthur, Lib Dem MSP for Orkney, whose Member's Bill would allow competent terminally ill adults to request assistance to end their life.

The faith leaders add in their joint statement, "The ways in which similar laws in other countries are being applied, and the effect that its introduction would have on some of the most vulnerable in our society, including the disabled and the elderly, would be extremely detrimental."

The statement ends with a call to MSPs "to consider carefully the implications of this bill, to express their concerns, and to vote against it."

Bishop Keenan said: "Assisted suicide attacks human dignity and results in human life being increasingly valued on the basis of its efficiency and utility. Implicit in legal assisted suicide is that an individual can lose their value and worth.

"Evidence from countries where assisted suicide or euthanasia is legal shows that vulnerable people feel pressured to end their lives through fear of being a burden. In such situations, the option of assisted suicide is less about having a 'right' to die and more about feeling the full weight and expectation of a duty to die.

"When vulnerable people, including the elderly and poor, express concerns about being a burden, the appropriate response is not to suggest that they have a duty to die; rather, it is to commit to meeting their needs and providing the care and compassion they need to help them live."

The Rev. Greenshields said: "Our opposition to assisted dying is based on our Christian faith, and involves concerns around the principle of assisted dying, around the application of the law in practice, the perception of the value of human lives, and also the effect which any change is likely to have on the provision of care  in particular, on palliative care."

Originally published at Christian Today
Senators to subpoena Twitter CEO for 'interfering' in election by censoring Hunter Biden reports

Republican senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee announced Thursday that they plan to issue a subpoena on Tuesday to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey over the social media platform's censorship of two New York Post articles that allege corruption involving the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee wants to know what the hell is going on," Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said live on C-SPAN Thursday.

The senator said the committee will be voting next week to subpoena Jack Dorsey to "come before this committee and the American people to explain why Twitter is abusing their corporate power to silence the press and to cover up allegations of corruption."

"Let me be clear: I don't know if these New York Post stories are true or not," Cruz said. "Those are questions [former] Vice President Joe Biden should answer. But Twitter and Facebook and Big Tech billionaires don't get to censor political speech and actively interfere in the election  that's what they are doing right now."

Dorsey would be required to testify before the committee on Oct. 23.

Twitter's censorship of the Post's story also included blocking anyone with a large Twitter following from sharing it. The platform went so far as locking the personal account of White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday after she shared the article. On Thursday, Twitter also blocked a post by Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who shared the article.

Emails published by the New York Post Wednesday raised new questions about Hunter Bidens relationship with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma and whether he used his fathers position as vice president for personal gain.

The younger Biden was paid as much as $50,000 a month by Burisma while his father was vice president.

The New York Post obtained emails sent by Hunter Biden more than a year after he allegedly dropped off a laptop containing the communications at a Delaware computer repair store.

According to the owner of the store, John Paul Mac Isaac, three laptops were dropped off in April 2019. While he said he couldn't identify Hunter Biden as the man who dropped them off for repairs, at least one laptop had a Beau Biden Foundation sticker on it, the name of his late brother and former Delaware attorney general.

Fox News reported that when Isaac began working on the only salvageable laptop, he discovered the emails.

Later last year, Isaac contacted an intermediary who then shared the emails with the FBI. When the FBI did not get back to him, he began contacting several members of Congress.

After failing to hear back from the FBI or members of Congress, the intermediary contacted an attorney working with Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor and one of President Donald Trumps attorneys. From there, it was only a matter of time before Giuliani provided a copy of the laptops hard drive to the Post.

The Post adds in its report that "... both the computer and hard drive were seized by the FBI in December 2019, after the shops owner says he alerted the feds to their existence."

Among the thousands of emails was one sent on April 13, 2014, one week before Biden's father appeared at a press conference with Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and around the time that he joined the board of Burisma. Hunter Biden had allegedly sent an email to his business partner, reportedly referring to his father, then-sitting vice president of the United States, as my guy.

According to the younger Biden, The announcement of my guys (sic) upcoming travels should be characterized as part of our advice and thinking-but what he will say and do is out of her hands. The younger Biden tried to make the case that his contract with Burisma should begin now-not after the upcoming visit of my guy and requested a retainer in the range of 25k p/m w/ additional fees where appropriate for more in depth work.

He also expressed hope that they really are smart enough to understand our long-term value. At the time of the email, the elder Biden was in charge of the Obama administrations Ukraine policy. We could be invaluable in expanding their operations outside Uk by promoting their US partnerships and expertise-whether thats China, Mexico, other parts of the Black Sea, Poland etc.  he allegedly suggested.

Just one month later, Hunter Biden received an email from Vadym Pozharskyi, an adviser to the board of Burisma, asking him for advice on how you could use your influence on the companys behalf. In April 2015, Pozharskyi sent the younger Biden an email thanking him for the opportunity to meet his father. Pozharskyis email calls into question the sincerity of the elder Bidens claims that he never spoke to his son about his dealings with Burisma.

In addition to containing emails that raise questions about Hunter Bidens business practices, the laptop also contained a video appearing to show him smoking crack while engaging in a sex act, as well as numerous other sexually explicit images.

As for the Biden campaign, they rejected the allegations in the New York Post article, calling them part of a Russian disinformation operation, in a statement to Politico. But the campaign nor Hunter Biden have denied the veracity of the emails.

The New York Post never asked the Biden campaign about the critical elements of this story, spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement. They certainly never raised that Rudy Giuliani  whose discredited conspiracy theories and alliance with figures connected to Russian intelligence have been widely reported  claimed to have such materials.

Moreover, we have reviewed Joe Bidens official schedules from the time and no meeting, as alleged by the New York Post, ever took place, Bates said.

However, the Biden campaign later said the former vice president might've had an "informal" meeting with the Burisma executive on behalf of Hunter.

With 19 days to go until the 2020 presidential election, the release of these emails has already led to political consequences. Along with the Senate Judiciary Committee's plans to subpoena the CEO of Twitter for interfering in the election, the Republican-led Senate Homeland Security Committee also announced that it's in the process of validating the information in the New York Post report.

The committee released an interim report on Hunter Bidens overseas business dealings last month. Even before the release of the emails Wednesday, questions about Hunter Bidens business practices and Joe Bidens knowledge of them had been raised by Republicans and President Donald Trump.

In 2018, the former vice president gave a speech recalling how he threatened to withhold $1 billion from Ukraine if the government did not fire prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who was investigating Burisma. Ukraine ultimately fired Shokin and Biden claimed that his push to fire Shokin had nothing to do with his son, but was instead motivated by concerns about the prosecutors corruption.

A request by Trump to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to look into this matter prompted the impeachment inquiry, as Democrats maintained that Trumps temporary freeze on military aid to Ukraine at roughly the same time constituted a quid pro quo.

A separate controversial phone call from 2016 was leaked last year of Joe Biden attempting to set up a foreign policy backchannel between himself and then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenkoa. Some speculated his actions to undermine the Trump administration could have been a violation of the Logan Act since private citizens are not supposed to get involved in foreign policy matters.

Because social media companies have worked to limit distribution of the Post's report, Trump and others have called for the repeal of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a provision that has allowed social media companies to grow in size, wealth and influence by providing them immunity from the liability of which most publishers are subject.

So terrible that Facebook and Twitter took down the story of Smoking Gun emails related to Sleepy Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, in the @NYPost. It is only the beginning for them. There is nothing worse than a corrupt politician. REPEAL SECTION 230!!! https://t.co/g1RJFpIVUZ  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 14, 2020

Trump also took to Twitter to call on his opponent in the 2020 election to immediately release all emails, meetings, transcripts, and records related to his involvement in his familys business dealings and influence peddling around the world.
UMC church hosts 'family friendly drag show' with children, 'furries' in attendance

Protesters, drag performers and at least one adult in a so-called furry costume were on hand last weekend for a family-friendly drag show that was moved to a local church at the last minute.

The Pride Prom event hosted by Grayson County Pride was originally scheduled for May 13 at Pecan Grove Park West in Sherman, located about 65 miles north of Dallas.

Prior to the event, however, the location was reportedly changed to 118 W Pecan Street, which is the address of the Mosaic Campus of First United Methodist (FUM) Sherman, according to the churchs website.

The location change was first reported by Protect Texas Kids, a conservative advocacy group, whose members were among several people on hand to protest outside the venue.

A handful of protesters held signs and one waved an American flag as the event got underway at the location, where kids were seen on video attending the drag show.

Another group of protesters, The New Columbia Movement, a Catholic advocacy group, marched with a flag reading DEFEND PURITY, REJECT PERVERSION were also on hand as they prayed the rosary alongside locals at the event.

As the day went on, counter-protesters  including a gay Spiderman holding a rainbow flag  showed up outside the church. Another person held a rainbow flag with the libertarian motto Dont tread on me.

Later in the evening, Sherman police officers were seen escorting drag performers and even a person in a furry costume around the location.

It's a mess out here. @shermanpolice officers are escorting the drag queens and furries around the "church."



Lots of kids are still inside the building for the drag show. pic.twitter.com/4xVWvkbx3p  Protect Texas Kids (@protecttxkids_) May 14, 2023

A spokesperson for Sherman police told The Christian Post that event organizers hired two off-duty officers to provide security for the event.

It is common practice for businesses and/or organizations to hire off-duty officers to provide security, Sherman Police Sgt. Brett Mullen told CP via email Wednesday. Sherman Officers engaging in off-duty employment are there solely to keep the peace and enforce state law.

Neither FUM Sherman nor Senior Pastor Rev. Denise Peckham responded to a request for comment Wednesday from CP. This story will be updated in the event that a response is received.

A statement on the FUM Sherman website indicated that the church is an LGBT-inclusive congregation: We are young and old, married and single, gay and straight, liberal and conservative, non-conformists and traditionalists, those recovering from addictions, those still battling addictions, and those whose challenges take other forms.

We are imperfect children of God who find meaning and purpose as followers of Christ, and who find authentic community at [the UMC church].

Last year, Grayson County Pride organized a similar all ages drag event at Pecan Grove Park, complete with an alcohol-free mocktail bar," though it wasn't clear whether that was continued at this year's event.

A bill that would restrict such all ages drag performances in Texas passed the Senate last month and is in committee in the state House.

Under Senate Bill 12, anyone under the age of 18 would be prohibited from attending sexually oriented events and could subject businesses which host such events to fines as large as $10,000 for each violation.
Bigger crime than Watergate: Trump issues statement on Durham report on Clinton campaign spying

Former President Donald Trump said special counsel John Durhams court filing provides indisputable evidence that Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign spied on his campaign and presidency to develop a completely fabricated connection to Russia, which is a bigger scandal than Watergate.

This is a scandal far greater in scope and magnitude than Watergate and those who were involved in and knew about this spying operation should be subject to criminal prosecution, Trump said in a statement, referring to the scandal that forced President Richard Nixon to resign in 1974.

The statement comes after Durhams team alleged that a Democrat-aligned tech executive was paid to spy on Trumps residences and the White House while he was president.

In a stronger period of time in our country, this crime would have been punishable by death. In addition, reparations should be paid to those in our country who have been damaged by this, the former president added.

Durhams motion is about potential conflicts of interest related to the representation of former Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann, who has been charged with making a false statement to the FBI that he was not working on behalf of Clinton at the time.

According to the filing, lawyers for the Clinton campaign allegedly paid the technology executive to infiltrate servers that belonged to the Trump Tower and the White House to establish an inference and narrative to tie Trump with the Russian government, The Epoch Times reported.

Sussmann assembled and conveyed the allegations to the FBI on behalf of at least two specific clients, including (i) a technology executive (Tech Executive-1) at a U.S.-based Internet company (Internet Company1), and (ii) the Clinton Campaign, the filing reads.

Sussmanns billing records reflect that he repeatedly billed the Clinton Campaign for his work on the Russian Bank-1 allegations and that the technology executive met and communicate with Mark Elias, a lawyer and operative who has filed numerous election-related lawsuits on behalf of the Democrats, said the Times.

In 2017, Sussmann came out with an updated set of allegations about Trumps Russian connection to another government agency, the filing said, according to Fox News.

Sussmann alleged at the time that Trump and/or his associates were using supposedly rare, Russian-made wireless phones in the vicinity of the White House and other locations, based on suspicious DNS lookups by Russian-affiliated IP addresses.

Durham said in the filing his office found no support for these allegations.

Kash Patel, former chief investigator of the Trump-Russia probe for the House Intelligence Committee under then-Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., told Fox News that the filing provides definitive evidence that the Clinton campaign put together a criminal enterprise to fabricate a connection between President Trump and Russia.
A STUDENT at the University of Zimbabwe is being sought by police over the alleged rape of his girlfriend in a campus hostel on Monday.

Emmanuel Sitimah disappeared from the campus shortly afterwards.

The 20-year-old victim, who is also a student at the university, informed another student, who advised her to report the incident to the police.

According to the victim, Sitimah forced himself on her despite her protests.

Harare provincial police deputy spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Webster Dzvova, said they were investigating the alleged rape.

On May 15 at around 7pm, the complainant visited the accused person at his hostel.

The accused person was reported to have raped the complainant and she informed another male student.

A report was made and the victim was taken to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals for a medical examination, said Ass-Insp Dzvova.

He also said police had arrested a schoolboy for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl from the same school in Kuwadzana Extension.

The two were also reported to be lovers and the boy is said to have lured the girl to his friends parents house where he raped her.

She was referred to Sally Mugabe Central Hospital for a medical examination. H Metro
Exposing the radical left's effort to destabilize the Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court is under all-out attack. Recent headlines reveal a concerted effort to manufacture an ethics scandal about Justice Clarence Thomas, the Courts leading conservative and one of the foremost defenders of religious liberty. Justice Neil Gorsuch has also been the target of this smear campaign.

Democrats in Congress, along with their allies in left-wing radical groups and the media, are bringing back calls for radical court reform. A constitutionally suspect judicial ethics bill was introduced and the Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings last week on whether to impose an ethics code on Supreme Court justices. On cue, a coalition of more than 30 organizationssome of the most radical activists in the country  launched the Just Majority campaign to bring structural changes to the nations highest court.

Under the guise of ethical concerns, the political Left is reviving its scheme to stage a Supreme Court coup and rig the judiciary in its favor. We must expose court reform for what it is: a brazen power-grab.

First Liberty attorney Mike Berry explains:

The Lefts end-game is obvious. They want the power to control our lives and they know the Constitution and judges who are faithful to it stand in their way. They want those judges out of the way so they can steamroll the Constitution and the American people. Great Americans like Justice Thomas are some of the last bulwarks of freedom.

Thomas Jipping, a senior legal fellow at The Heritage Foundation, says its all part of a plan for a hostile takeover:

The Left craves power, and Supreme Court justices who respect the limits on their power are just standing in the way. The Lefts takeover strategy requires convincing Americans that judges are just politicians in robes, that the conservative ones are the enemy and unethical to boot, and that they will  reap the whirlwind if they dont get with the political program.

Former U.S. Attorney General and federal judge Michael Mukasey agrees. He says its all about destabilizing the Court and eroding Americans confidence:

Its impossible to escape the conclusion that the public is being asked to hallucinate misconduct so as to undermine the authority of justices who issue rulings with which the critics disagree and thus to undermine the authority of the rulings themselves.

At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Mukasey told senators who is really responsible for destroying and undermining the Supreme Courts authority: If the public has a mistaken impression that the integrity of the court has been damaged, the fault for that lies with those who continue to level unfair criticism at the court and its justices.

Radicals also want to paint a caricature of the highest Court as hyperpartisan, in which the current justices are deciding cases politically, rather than impartially, Jipping says.

Contrary to the Lefts narrative, the Court is not a political circus. The Court has decided cases unanimously far more often than closely divided decisions. In 2016, for example, the Court decided an unusually large number of politically charged cases. More than half were ultimately decided by unanimous opinions. In those cases, there were no dissents. Everyone agreed. In its 2021 term, the rate of unanimous decisions actually went up. An ABC News report found that the Court had handed down more unanimous opinions than it had in the past seven years.

Whats more, theres congeniality among the justices, even those with different judicial philosophies. Retired Justice Stephen Breyer, a liberal nominated by former President Bill Clinton, recently defended Justice Thomas, describing him as a man of integrity.

As far as Im concerned, I sat next to him on the bench for 28 years, Breyer said. I like him. Hes a friend of mine. Ive never seen him do anything underhanded or say anything underhanded.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor admitted she and Thomas have different views, but that did not stop her from praising her colleague. I suspect I have probably disagreed with him more than with any other justice, that we have not joined each others opinions more than anybody else, she told the American Constitution Society last year. And yet, Justice Thomas is the one justice in the building that literally knows every employees name  every one of them.

Supreme Court coup by 'any means necessary?'

In its thirst for more power, the political Left appears to be unified behind the idea of reforming the Court by any means necessary.

Earlier this month, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin said everything is on the table, referring to the recent ethics hearing. Those words mirror statements by Durbin and his colleagues over the last couple of years. Sen. Elizabeth Warren said, everything is on the table when it comes to Supreme Court reform. Sen. Chuck Schumer repeated the refrain, everything is on the table if his party won the majority in the 2020 midterms.

Its clear from recent attacks how the political Left wants to hijack the Supreme Court. It wasnt long ago we witnessed them pushing not only for court packing but also term limits for justices. They even tossed around the far-fetched idea of ending judicial review, a historic legal doctrine dating back to 1803 that empowers the Supreme Court to declare a Legislative or Executive act unconstitutional.

Lets not forget about judicial intimidation. Recall the unlawful demonstrations outside the homes of Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett. Fox News reports that as recently as this week, Left-wing protesters could be seen outside the homes of conservative justices chanting, One, two, three, four: We want ethics on the court.

Its almost impossible to give court reform and its proponents any real credibility. The politicians and groups groaning today about the need for ethics are the same ones who previously pushed for some of the most extreme changes to the Supreme Court.

Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia, the sponsor of the Supreme Court ethics bill in the House, also introduced legislation to pack the Court by increasing it to 13 justices.

First Liberty and many other legal experts have explained that court-packing would be catastrophic. It would be the gateway to tyranny. It would end the legitimacy of the U.S. Supreme Court. It would destroy our Constitutions founding principle of separation of powers, erode all public confidence in future court rulings and eradicate our cherished rights and freedoms, including religious liberty.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse is sponsoring an ethics bill in the Senate. Hes also the one who introduced a bill to institute 18-year term limits for justices and give the president the power to select a new justice every two years.

Term limits appear benign. But theyre nothing more than an attempt to cancel justices. Its better to call them court purging. Its simply the Supreme Court coup by a different name. It is packing  and effectively destroying  the Court, two years at a time.

The timing doesnt appear to be a coincidence. The current uproar and this fabricated ethics scandal come with just two months left in the Supreme Courts term. By the end of June, the Court will hand down several major decisions about religious liberty, free speech, and other fundamental rights.

Make no mistake. This wave of attacks is not about restoring balance or fixing the Court. This is the political Left trying to get around decisions it doesnt like. When a ruling doesnt go their way  or if they think the Court might rule against them  the plot to reform the Supreme Court makes a comeback. Its clear what this is all about liberal zealots changing the rules and undermining the Courts authority so they can grab more power.

Originally published at First Liberty.
What are the 3 categories of spiritual maturity?

In my estimation, one of the most pastoral passages in the entire New Testament is 1 John 2:12-14, where the apostle John stops his flow of argument  where he has been giving tests of salvation  and he speaks to his readers from his heart. We can see John taking a moment to speak directly to his brothers and sisters in Christ, sharing his own heart with them about their common salvation.

Scholars and Bible students have often puzzled over the purpose of this passage, especially as it finds itself situated in 1 John 2  after a number of tests of salvation and before the first imperative in the letter in verse 15 (do not love the world). The passage seems quite repetitive, where John addresses children, fathers, and young men  and then he addresses all three groups again. Why does he call out these three groups? Are there three groups, or are these all designations for every believer, looking at Christianity from various angles and lenses? And how does this detour apply to us today?

As we begin to unpack what John is writing in these verses, we see that he is not giving a theological treatise or an academic description of salvation. Instead, John is speaking pastorally, addressing his readers by anticipating their concerns, questions, confusion, and their spiritual need at this point in the letter. For that reason, it seems clear that John is addressing all believers in the Church but speaking to them in three distinct groups. Each group has reached some level of spiritual maturity. There are spiritual children, spiritual young men, and spiritual fathers in the Church (which applies equally to the women in the church, too).

The repetition John employs does two important things in this passage. First, it highlights the significance of this passage for the readers to understand. Repetition in Scripture almost always occurs for emphasis. Second, this makes the passage more memorable. No one hearing this for the first time had their own personal copy of 1 John to read at home. The repetition thus makes this material stand out and stick in the minds of the hearers of this letter.

So why is this passage here?

First, because John wants to affirm that his readers are those who have eternal life. John is not writing to them because he is uncertain of their salvation  a point explicitly made in 1 John 2:21. Rather, the problem is that they arent sure if they have eternal life because of those who have tried to deceive them with false doctrine. They are looking at an apostate group that claims to be following Christ, and it is causing them to question their own salvation instead of the salvation of those who have departed from the truth.

In this passage, John critically distinguishes between spiritual maturity and salvation. One problem that spiritually immature believers can battle is a lack of assurance because they are immature. And so here, John is reminding his readers that their salvation is not dependent on their level of spiritual maturity. Just because you are less mature than another Christian does not mean you are less saved than that other Christian. Everyone is in a different place in their spiritual growth, and we must be clear that spiritual immaturity does not mean there is no spiritual life.

The second thing John does, which highlights the wisdom the Spirit gave to him, is to direct all his readers, regardless of their spiritual maturity, to greater spiritual growth. It is as if John comes along and says, If you are spiritually immature, dont let that shake you from your confidence in salvation, but then moves on to exhort, But also dont become complacent or comfortable in spiritual immaturity. ALL believers should desire to grow! Spiritual growth is vital to the life of a true follower of Christ, which is what Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3:18. This is perfect pastoral encouragement from the Apostle John, the beloved disciple.

Now, as we examine this passage, we see there are really two reasons John highlights why believers stagnate in their spiritual growth. First, sometimes we struggle to grow because we dont know where we are spiritually. Second, we struggle to grow because we dont know how to determine where we should be going or what growth would look like in our lives.

To help us with this, then, John gives us three groups by which we can evaluate where we are spiritually, where we need to go, and how we get there. Those groups are Spiritual Children, Young Men, and Fathers. Over the next three posts, I will dissect each group and elaborate on the evaluation that the apostle so succinctly provides. I hope you, the reader, will use this series to find what group you are in today and determine what steps you will take to increase in spiritual maturity as you grow closer to your reward in Heaven with our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Faith leaders urge Scottish Parliament not to legalise assisted suicide

Scottish faith leaders are today making a joint plea to MSPs to reject the legalisation of assisted suicide in Scotland.

The Moderator of the Church of Scotland General Assembly, the Rt Rev Iain Greenshields, the Vice President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Scotland, Bishop John Keenan, and the Imam of Dundee Central Mosque, Imam Shaykh Hamza Khandwalla, will hold a meeting with MSPs at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday to express their opposition.

During their meeting, hosted by the Logos Scotland think thank, they will sign a statement voicing their "deep concern" over the proposals and urging MSPs to vote them down.

The statement says that assisted suicide undermines human dignity and puts pressure on vulnerable individuals to end their lives.

"Our faith traditions are united in the principle that assisted dying in itself inevitably undermines the dignity of the human person, and to allow it would mean that our society as a whole loses its common humanity," the statement says.

"The Church of Scotland, the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland, and the Scottish Association of Mosques remain firm in their opposition to assisted suicide and euthanasia."

The latest campaign for the legalisation of assisted suicide is being led by Liam McArthur, Lib Dem MSP for Orkney, whose Member's Bill would allow competent terminally ill adults to request assistance to end their life.

The faith leaders add in their joint statement, "The ways in which similar laws in other countries are being applied, and the effect that its introduction would have on some of the most vulnerable in our society, including the disabled and the elderly, would be extremely detrimental."

The statement ends with a call to MSPs "to consider carefully the implications of this Bill, to express their concerns, and to vote against it".

Bishop Keenan said: "Assisted suicide attacks human dignity and results in human life being increasingly valued on the basis of its efficiency and utility. Implicit in legal assisted suicide is that an individual can lose their value and worth.

"Evidence from countries where assisted suicide or euthanasia is legal shows that vulnerable people feel pressured to end their lives through fear of being a burden. In such situations the option of assisted suicide is less about having a 'right' to die and more about feeling the full weight and expectation of a duty to die.

"When vulnerable people, including the elderly and poor, express concerns about being a burden, the appropriate response is not to suggest that they have a duty to die; rather, it is to commit to meeting their needs and providing the care and compassion they need to help them live."

Rev Greenshields said: "Our opposition to assisted dying is based on our Christian faith, and involves concerns around the principle of assisted dying, around the application of the law in practice, the perception of the value of human lives, and also the effect which any change is likely to have on the provision of care - in particular, on palliative care."
Unusual ruling frees Christian couple from prison in Iran

Iranian authorities released two Christian leaders from prison last week after a judge broke with common judicial practice in the country and ruled that home church participation was not illegal, sources said.

Throwing out a 2020 conviction, a judge in Branch 34 of the Appeals Court in Tehran on May 9 found there was no evidence the couple had violated Iran's national security laws by participating in a home meeting, according to advocacy group Article 18.

Homayoun Zhaveh, 64, and wife Sara Ahmadi, 45, both converts from Islam, were released later that day.

In his ruling, the judge found that belonging to or participating in a "home-group" with people of the same faith was not illegal but "natural."

"The reports by the officers of the Ministry of Intelligence about organization of home-groups to promote Christianity, membership, and participation in home-groups, are not considered as acts against the country's security, and the law has not recognized them as criminal activity," the judge wrote.

The ruling was in some ways similar to a Nov. 3, 2021 Supreme Court judgment that stated that nine converts could not be charged with acting against national security merely for belonging to a house church.

The acquittal struck down a November 2020 conviction in which Ahmadi, accused of being a house church leader, was sentenced to a total of 11 years in prison for "founding or leading an organization that aims to disrupt national security" and "membership in organizations that aim to disrupt national security." In December 2020, Ahmadi's original sentence was reduced to a total of eight years in prison.

Zhaveh had been sentenced to two years in prison for "membership in organizations that aim to disrupt national security," or being a member of a house church. The sentences also mandated six months of community service and a two-year ban on foreign travel or joining any social or political group.

Mansour Borji, director of Article 18, said in press statement that the initial 2020 verdict showed how for decades intelligence institutions within the Islamic Republic "have disregarded judicial processes and the law of the land."

"They have abused and exploited vague legal precepts to criminalize peaceful and constitutionally lawful activities of these Christians," he said, adding that it is rare to find independent, principled judges in Iran when it comes to freedom of religion cases.

"Unfortunately, not so many judges can be found who would so clearly acknowledge the rights of the wrongly accused Christians, and refute the unjust verdicts issued against them."

Last week when the couple was released, they had served nine months of their sentences.

In June 2019, state security officials arrested the couple as they vacationed with friends in Amol, about 13 miles (21 kilometers) south of the Caspian Sea. They were both released on bail the next month.

The couple was ordered to report to authorities to begin serving their sentences in June 2021, but upon arrival they were immediately turned away, likely because COVID-19 was still sweeping through the Iranian prison system. Particularly hard-hit was Evin Prison, where Zhaveh and Ahmadi eventually would be incarcerated.

While waiting to start their sentence, the couple applied twice to request a retrial, once in June 2021 and again in November 2021, but were rejected both times. They received a summons on Aug. 13, 2022, to report to prison and were under the impression that they were going to pick up property that had been confiscated from them, according to Article 18. Instead, they were ordered to start their sentences and were held at Evin Prison.

Zhaveh suffers from an advanced form of Parkinson's disease, and according to those familiar with his condition, his health deteriorated while in prison.

Iran ranked eighth on Christian support organization Open Doors' 2023 World Watch List (WWL) of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. During the past few years, the government of Iran has severely cracked down on house churches, but the WWL report states, "despite great oppression, the Islamic Republic of Iran has seen phenomenal growth in its underground church movement."

"Christian gatherings in private homes have been denounced as 'illegal groups' and acts 'against national security,' while many churches continue to be closed," the report states. "Converts from Islam to Christianity bear the brunt of religious freedom violations, carried out by the government in particular, which sees these Iranian Christians as an attempt by Western countries to undermine the Islamic regime. Leaders of Christian convert groups, as well as members of other denominational backgrounds who support them, have been arrested, prosecuted and received long prison sentences for 'crimes against national security.'"

 2023 Morning Star News
Ross was Senior Advisor for Innovation to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and traveled the world, visiting startup hubs and R&D labs, to uncover the latest advances that are emerging from every corner of the globe. In the book, he examines robotics, AI, cybercrime, genomics, big data, and more.

It covers the different aspects of what will drive global transformation and how these will cause progress or failure, says Vaidyanathan. Ross also looks at how the global economic future will be shaped and the trends that will drive the way we live.

For solving process issues

Andrey Ivashin, CIO at Dyninno, recommends three books that hunt for answers and valuable advice in business areas where leaders frequently experience challenges, he says. They have each helped me at various points in my professional life.

The first of which, The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement (North River Press, 2014) by Eliyahu M. Goldratt, is a treatise on modern economic theory, packaged as a novel.

It is a well-known book and a classic of business literature, says Ivashin. And because it is written like a novel, it is accessible and engaging. It offers helpful techniques and solutions for resolving typical corporate issues like bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and poor communication. The lessons you learn from the characters in the book can be applied to any business and it highlights the necessity for businesses to continuously enhance their processes to remain successful and competitive.

For building culture

Ivashin also recommendsWhat You Do Is Who You Are: How to Create Your Business Culture(Harper Business, 2019)by Ben Horowitz because it shows the importance of company culture and the role of leadership.

Horowitz is a venture capitalist and management expert who uses history and modern organizational practice to offer advice on culture building.

It offers helpful suggestions and examples of what does and doesnt work in terms of creating a strong company culture, says Ivashin. I think its more significant that the author examines how leaders may foster a healthy work atmosphere and inspire people to perform at their highest level throughout the book.

To understand the science of motivation

Ivashin also thinks IT leaders will enjoy Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us (Riverhead Books, 2009) by Daniel H. Pink.

Pink is a New York Times bestselling author of seven books about work, creativity, and behavior and his books have sold millions of copies around the world.

This book explores what truly motivates people, based on scientific research from psychology, economics, and neuroscience, says Ivashin. Pink points out that conventional motivational techniques, such as rewards and punishments, are less successful than we assume and might even be counterproductive. It shows that the three key motivation factors are autonomy, mastery, and purpose.

For learning what drives trust

Rick Johnson, chief digital officer of Marvin, recommends The Four Factors of Trust: How Organizations Can Earn Lifelong Loyalty (Wiley, 2022) by Ashley Reichheld and Amelia Dunlop. This title breaks teaches you to measure, predict, and build trust.

We need to really understand the drivers that influence customer and employee trust, as this is increasingly a litmus test, says Johnson. Those are the drivers we need to focus on and accentuate in our customer experiences as well as employee experiences  experiences that are shaped and delivered by technology. Technology leaders must be trusted by the enterprise. There must be trust that we are making the right technology decisions, designing and introducing technology that will work and deliver value, and trust in doing what we say we will do. It is imperative for technology leaders to be authentic, honest, candid, and transparent  in the pursuit of being trusted.

To learn from historic leaders

Bill Bragg, CIO at SymphonyAI, recommends Inspiring Leadership: Learning From Great Leaders(THO, 2002) by John Adair, which breaks down the lessons learned by great leaders from history  Alexander the Great, Attila, Churchill, de Gaulle, Einstein, Gandhi, Sir Edmund Hillary, Ho Chih Min, Hsun-Tzu, Kennedy, Lao Tzu, and many more  so that todays leaders can learn from them.

It showed me the human physics we need to account for, and to value, when we decide how to focus our time, says Bragg.

To inspire bold action

Bragg also enjoyed Do/Disrupt: Change the Status Quo. Or Become It (Chronicle Books, 2018) by Mark Shayler.

This advice book offers tips  as well as quotes from some of historys most famous innovators  on how to be strategic and bold as you take your own path toward transforming your ideas into reality. It is a fun and straight to the point guide or sketchbook, he says. Its suitable for all seeking a brave new way.

As a playbook for success

Barr Moses, CEO and co-founder at Monte Carlo, recommends Amp It Up: Leading for Hypergrowth by Raising Expectations, Increasing Urgency, and Elevating Intensity (Wiley, 2022) by Frank Slootman.

Frank Slootman, serial entrepreneur and CEO of Snowflake, shares his playbook for building a successful company, says Moses, having led Snowflake to the biggest software IPO ever. In his first book, he pulls no punches about the importance of speed and focus when leading a hypergrowth organization, as well as setting a high bar for the rest of your team. As co-founder and CEO of my own category-creating company in the data space, I found Slootmans tactical advice and insightful perspective on what it takes to reach unprecedented scale to be a goldmine. 10/10; would  and often do  read again.

For learning the power of lean software and DevOps

Rajesh Jethwa, CTO of Digiterre, suggests Accelerate: The Science of Lean Software and DevOps: Building and Scaling High Performing Technology Organizations (IT Revolution Press, 2018) by Dr. Nicole Forsgren, PhD, Gene Kim, and Jez Humble.

This book examines, through extensive research, ways that technology can drive business value.

Backed by considerable research, says Jethwa, the book provides data-driven insights and practical guidance on how to improve technology delivery capabilities and foster a culture of continuous improvement to build high-performing teams.

Practical, indeed.
Anunt de selectare a expertilor/ telor sau a unei echipe de experti/e cu scopul de a elabora 2 note analitice cu privire la transpunerea in legislatia nationala a doua Directive UE
Stockfotos-MG / Adobe

Homelessness charity Centrepoint has said it is monitoring the situation closely after an adviser and donor was named as a person of importance in a money-laundering investigation.

Javad Marandi has supported Centrepoint since 2019 and was appointed co-chair of its growth board in January 2020.

On Tuesday, the BBC published details of a High Court case that said Marandi was a person of importance in a probe concerning a complex money-laundering operation operated by Azerbaijans ruling elites that was exposed in 2017 by a global network of investigative journalists.

Marandi has offered a general denial of wrongdoing and is not subject to criminal sanction, according to the High Court case.

Centrepoint told Civil Society that it is not aware of any reasons for concern regarding any current or previous donations made by the Marandi Foundation but is monitoring the situation closely.

Meanwhile, a Charity Commission spokesperson said: We are aware of media reporting about Mr Marandi. We are assessing the information to determine if there is a regulatory role for the Commission and any next steps.

High Court: Marandi is a person of importance in the proceedings

The recently published High Court case said that Marandi was not a peripheral figure in relation to the money-laundering probe but a person of importance in the main proceedings.

It added: The claimant was neither a party nor a witness in the forfeiture proceedings, but he does have some connections with the respondents to those proceedings.

Previously, a judge had decided to protect Marandis identity over concerns that he may face reputational consequences should it be revealed.

Following a challenge by the BBC and London Evening Standard, the High Court discharged the anonymity order, arguing that it was no longer shown to be justified as both necessary for the protection of the claimants Article 8 rights and proportionate to that aim.

Meanwhile, Alison Thewliss, SNP MP for Glasgow Central, said in a parliamentary debate that she had received communication from Marandis lawyers that he denies any wrongdoing.

Links to Centrepoint

Marandi has been co-chairing Centrepoints growth board alongside financier and investor Jamie Reuben since 2021.

The board comprises senior professionals, investors and developers from the property sectors who support the charitys goal to raise 6m to build 300 new homes for single young people in London and Greater Manchester by 2026.

As co-chair, Marandi is also responsible for the Centrepoints works programme, which supports young people to progress into education, training and employment.

The Marandi Foundation, established in 2017 by Marandi and his wife, supports a range of charities including Centrepoint, the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and St Pauls School.

Unaudited accounts for the year ended 5 April 2022 showed that the foundation had a total income of 926,000 last year, with 903,000 of this being expended as grants, compared with 263,000 in 2021.

The foundation pledged 938,000 to Centrepoint over a four-year period, of which 128,000 was paid in 2021-22.

A Centrepoint spokesperson said that the charity is not aware of any reasons for concern regarding any current or previous donations but is monitoring the situation closely.

Mr Marandi has supported Centrepoint since 2019. His role has been as co-chair of our strategic growth board helping Centrepoint to build genuinely affordable homes for the homeless young people we support, they added.

sign up to receive the free Civil Society daily news bulletin here . For more news, interviews, opinion and analysis about charities and the voluntary sector,
If you were a reader in Florida, starting a few years ago, you might have noticed an uptick in climate-centric op-eds in your local newspaper. Thats thanks in large part to Rosemary and Tom OHara, veteran newspaper editors who launched and supervised The Invading Sea, a collaborative effort to hasten the climate conversation in their state. Through The Invading Sea, newspapers across Florida shared opinion content with one another and gained access to writing from an array of informed voices. The OHaras, who are married, announced their retirement this spring, handing over The Invading Seas reins to Florida Atlantic Universitys Center for Environmental Studies. Covering Climate Now spoke with the OHaras about the virtues of collaboration in a precarious media industry, the climate conversation in Florida, and the climate subjects that resonate most with readers.

The conversation, with CCNow deputy director Andrew McCormick, is part of a regular series of Q&As in which CCNow speaks with journalists about their experiences on the climate beat and ideas for pushing our craft forward. The OHaras comments have been edited for length and clarity.

What did you aim to achieve when you started The Invading Sea?

ROSEMARY: We started The Invading Sea in 2018, when I was the editorial-page editor at the Sun Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale. South Florida is the tip of the spear for climate change, so together with my counterparts at the Miami Herald and the Palm Beach Post, we decided to do something to raise awareness and increase public engagement on climate. We focused on sea level rise at firstour tagline was Can South Florida be saved?and then later expanded to the environment and climate change in general.

Because staffs had become so reduced over the years, it was helpful to know that we could count on one another to deliver editorials, well-edited op-eds, or even editorial cartoons. Which, in many ways, was unprecedented: We were competing newspapers, owned by competing companies, but still, we joined hands and made a splash. We were able to create a drumbeat of content on an important issue that I think we wouldnt have been able to do otherwise, individually. We also partnered with the local public radio station, WLRN, which had us editorial-page editors on once a month to talk about climate. As we grew, the drumbeat became more of a symphony.

TOM: So, initially it was just those three South Florida papers. After about a year, we thought, This really needs to be statewide. The Tampa Bay Times, the Orlando Sentinel, and the Gainesville Sun came on boardand eventually we counted twenty-six newspapers across the state as partners of The Invading Sea. I took on editing duties for op-eds sent directly to The Invading Sea. People realized that when they sent pieces directly to newspapers they usually didnt hear a peep backnewsrooms are up to their eyeballs every day trying to get a paper outwhereas we looked at pretty much everything we were sent. It was more efficient for those writers, too; instead of just one paper, a piece sent to us had a chance of ending up in quite a few. We started getting pieces from all kinds of people, from high schoolers to elected officials.

As Rosemary suggests, the impulse in the industry is often toward competition. What was your pitch to outlets? Did you encounter any skepticism about this sort of collaboration?

ROSEMARY: Well, although we were competitors, I knew and had worked with both Nancy Ancrum, the editorial-page editor at the Miami Herald, and Rick Christie, who is now executive editor at the Palm Beach Post. It helped that we had relationships and trusted one anothers standards.

As far as our publishers went, we didnt go seek permission. We just did it. When we did eventually tell them, they were excited about it, in part because we were already getting great feedback from the community.

TOM: And getting other newspapers on board was pretty easy, actually. You say to papers, How would you like some thoughtful content that you wont have to screw with much? Again, because of the diminished state of newsrooms, I think just about any editor is going to say, That sounds pretty damn good to me.

ROSEMARY: So few newspapers run robust opinion pages anymore. Publishers will say, Oh, people dont want to be told what to think or The political divide means half the audience is alienated anyway, so whats the point? But in truth, or at least in equal measure, stripping down opinion journalism has been a cost-cutting move. So we were glad to be getting pieces out there and saying, you know, Heres what we think about sea rise and climate change. After reading the facts that explain our positions, what do you think?

Florida is often in the national spotlight, but due to culture war questions and the latest on Disney and DeSantis, as opposed to a national wake-up call on climate. For people reading this who are not in Florida, does the public discourse there feel more grounded than what we might see on TV? Whats your sense of the public pulse on climate change?

ROSEMARY: I think awareness of climate change is greater in Florida than in much of the rest of the nation. Eighty percent of Floridians live on the coast, and theyre seeing things theyve never seen before. We have these storm drains, for example, that water is meant to pour down into during high tides; well, now water levels are so high that we often see water coming up through those. So I think most people believe in climate change. The questions are: Do they believe its human-caused, and what do they believe we should do about it?

About 90 percent of Democrats here believe climate change is human-caused and that actions we take can help solve it. That number is lower among Republicans, around 35 percent, but its growing, especially among younger Republicans. Another big difference in Florida, compared to some other parts of the country, is that the business community has gotten engaged. In South Florida, the chambers of commerce and the economic-development folks see whats on the horizon, in terms of threats to their businesses and property values and whether theyll be able to afford property insurance and flood insurance. Theyve started pushing Tallahassee to do moreand now, in the last couple years, were hearing more from the state capital about resilience, and were seeing more money on the table to address storm surge and protect ourselves.

The problem is that many lawmakers, including the governor, wont say the words climate change. Theyre not willing to bite the bullet and acknowledge whats causing thismuch less that we need our power companies to reduce carbon emissions.

TOM: Im a bit more pessimistic than Rosemary on this. People care all of a sudden about climate change when theres a hurricane, or when we get twenty-five inches of rain in just a few hours, like we did last month in Fort Lauderdale. But I suspect most people in Florida know very little about climate changethey dont know what to think about whether or when it will affect them, and many likely think the problem is too big to even worry about. Government officials are aware of the science. But I think many conservative leaders think the threat is overstated. Many think that technological innovations will solve the problemthat higher seawalls will alleviate the threat until technology finds solutions.

A thousand people a day are moving to Florida, most of whom are old people with money. Theyre moving here because taxes are low, and they dont want to hear that the government needs money to help reduce the states carbon footprint.

Oddly, perhaps, I think capitalism is our best hope to prompt change in Florida. People will take note when their insurance bills skyrocket, when gas prices soar and power bills keep climbing; people will embrace change if they can save money. Businesses will embrace clean energy if they can make a profit. The power companies, for example, are going to find out they can make more money with solar than they can burning oil and natural gas. When banks stop issuing thirty-year mortgages because homes in Florida arent going to last thirty yearsbankers are in the risk business, and theyre not stupidthats when well see change.

ROSEMARY: At the end of the day, so much comes down to Florida. I think theres a sentiment among activists and others who are really wrestling with the climate problem here that if only Florida would lead on climate, we would lead the nation, and in turn our nation would lead the world. Weve made strides in the last couple years, but the problem is we dont have time. Things need to be done now to avoid the worst of whats coming.

In your years with The Invading Sea, what subjects did you notice resonated most strongly with audiences?

TOM: Dead manatees. Readers love those creatures, and lots of papers would run manatee-related pieces, which provided us with many teachable moments. The climate connection is that water pollution largely caused by the warming waters is killing the seagrass that manatees eat by the ton to survive.

People do read about hurricanes and other major storms, and those are also teachable momentswhen youre stuffing towels under your front door, you want somebody to explain what the hell is happening. The two hurricanes of 2022, for example, Ian and Nicole, both caused an enormous amount of damage, and climate experts say both storms were made worse by the warming atmosphere and warmer waters.

And the legislative sessions always generate a lot of op-eds, particularly from climate activists.

ROSEMARY: You know, on the legislative sessions, we would hear a lot from readers, You just have it out for DeSantis. You never say anything good about him. Thats a concern we should listen to. Yes, the government isnt moving fast enough on climate change, but that doesnt mean nothing is getting done. So, at the end of the last legislative session, I wrote a column called Good and bad climate news from the Florida legislatureand I think a lot of readers were surprised to learn that there was any good news. Nothing is all black-and-white. We shouldnt pull punches, but I do think well bring more people into the conversation if we dont focus only on criticizing governments for what theyre not doing.

Are there any lessons youve taken from The Invading Sea that you think could help journalists elsewhere serve audiences better on climate?

ROSEMARY: Its important to hear from a lot of different voices on climate change. One of the things Im most proud of with The Invading Sea is that we were able to give a platform to so many different people who care about climate change in our state.

I also think The Invading Sea shows the importance of collaboration between news organizations. Theres a lot of climate news out there to cover, and with smaller staffs, outlets arent always going to have reporters to cover it. We can help fill each others coverage gaps. If one outlet doesnt have a reporter capable of explaining why your property insurance has doubled in five years, another newspaper mightand ultimately thats whats going to serve readers understanding of whats going on. Look at the state of the news industry, and its clear that most outlets cant make it alone. So journalists have got to start doing things differently and understand that were in this together.
Even though they have been suspended from the practice of law, attorneys with McClenny Moseley & Associates continue to rack up penalties as federal judges clean up a mess created by the law firms mass filing of hundreds of hurricane-damage lawsuits.

During an April 26 hearing, Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay with the US District Court for Western Louisiana in Lake Charles recommended an order that MMAs former New Orleans managing partner, William R. Huye III, pay $14,000 in sanctions and reimburse an insurance defense law firm about $3,000 in fees. Huye admitted that he had filed lawsuits on behalf of property owners he did not represent, sometimes against the wrong insurance company.

On April 14, Huyes former boss John Zachary Moseley was suspended from practicing law for 90 days in the Eastern District of Texas, which is where the law firms Houston headquarters is located. The disciplinary order was imposed to match an identical order by a Western District of Louisiana judge after MMAs mass filings came to light last October.

Comments by Judge Kay during last months hearing in Lake Charles demonstrates how far out of favor the McClenny Moseley law firm has fallen in the federal court system. Kay asked attorney Gwyneth A. ONeill, who was representing both Huye and MMA at the hearing, in what capacity her law firm was representing the law firm. ONeill said, in a roundabout way, that she doesnt have personal knowledge of the relationship.

You went to the same school of obfuscation as every attorney at MMA, Kay said. Anytime we ask a simple question, we get an answer that has many, many words in it that really gives me no answer at all.

After the hearing involving Huye ended, Kay brought Moseley before her because of reports that MMA was continuing to communicate with claimants despite its attorneys being suspended from the practice of law.

After hearing from Moseley, Kay issued instructions that one might expect from a school teacher to a school boy: She ordered Moseley to read the transcript of an Oct. 20 hearing before Judge James D. Cain Jr., where the law firms mass filings were first discussed, and then submit a certification verifying that he had read it.

Moseley filed the certification as directed. On May 4, Kay ordered Moseley and his law firm to cease communicating with former clients or face further sanctions.

Personal injury attorney Austin Marks, with the Morris Bart law firm in New Orleans, told Kay that he personally witnessed a courier for MMA going door to door in an attempt to persuade former clients to sign paperwork giving the law firm permission to deposit settlement checks from insurers.

In a telephone interview with the Claims Journal, Marks said he is aware of the solicitation because a courier company called one of his clients seeking a signature. He advised the client to make an appointment at her house so he could be there in person when the courier showed up.

Marks said the courier, who worked for a company called Legal Wings, wanted his client to sign a document that would allow MMA to take its 33% fee out a settlement check of approximately $25,000. He said the courier showed him a list of 35 client names from whom he was to obtain signatures on similar permission forms.

Marks is not a disinterested party. His law firm filed a lawsuit against MMA seeking an order that it surrender any claim to fees from its former clients. The firm has run advertisements on New Orleans television stations in an effort to persuade MMAs former clients to sign on with Morris Bart.

Marks said the Legal Wings solicitations show that MMA is continuing to attempt to settle hurricane claims even though all of its attorneys have been suspended from practicing law.

They have lied, cheated and stolen and they think they are entitled to a fee? Marks said. Not a chance.

Kay had called Huye into her courtroom to determine whether he should be sanctioned for filing lawsuits against the wrong insurers. A 219-page transcript of that hearing revealed new details that show how MMA, over the course of several days, was able to file 1,641 lawsuits against insurers in the Western District of Louisiana alone.

MMAs records showed an electronic signature on a May 6, 2022 client retention agreement with homeowner Michael Thomas. Five days later, MMA sent State Farm notice that it was representing Thomas for a potential claim.

MMAs case notes show that Thomas informed the law firm that he was not insured by State Farm. But MMA filed a lawsuit against the insurer anyway without getting Thomas permission. In fact, Thomas told MMA in September 2022 that he no longer wanted the firm to represent him.

Huye told Kay that he had informed Thomas in August that he would file a lawsuit against State Farm unless he was instructed otherwise and never heard a response.

Silence is not permission, Kay said. Failure to respond is not permission.

Later during the hearing, Kay said she has come across similar stories multiple times.

You think thats appropriate? she said. If I dont hear from you within a certain period of time, Im going to go ahead and sue on your behalf whether you want me to or not? You think thats the right way to handle that?

The judge clearly did not think so. She recommended that Huye be sanctioned $1,000 each for filing 12 lawsuits against the wrong insurer. In one other case, Kay recommended a $2,000 sanction because MMA filed the suit after the client said they did not want to take legal action.

A District Court judge must approve the sanctions.

New Orleans insurance defense attorney Matthew Monson, whose personal investigation instigated the judicial inquiry into MMAs mass filings, said more sanctions may be coming.

I think this is a step to support further discipline against William Huye, possibly including full disbarment from the Western District, he said.
MEDINA, Ohio -- Heres news about Medina County collegians.

Ohio Wesleyan University: Shannon Lang of Medina was inducted this spring into Ohio Wesleyan Universitys chapter of the Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society.

Phi Eta Sigma recognizes first-year students who are taking a full academic course load and who either achieve a grade point average of at least 3.50 or who are ranked in the upper 20 percent of their class.

Audrey Calvin of Medina was inducted May 12 into Ohio Wesleyan Universitys chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nations oldest academic honor society. The historic organization counts 17 U.S. presidents, 42 Supreme Court justices, and more than 150 Nobel laureates among its members.

Kathy Habian of Medina, has been selected as a 2023 Corns Business and Entrepreneurial Scholar by Ohio Wesleyan Universitys Woltemade Center for Economics, Business and Entrepreneurship.

The competitive program is open to sophomores who have demonstrated strong academic performance, leadership in campus or community service organizations, and potential for achievement in business or entrepreneurship.

Corns Scholars receive $5,000 scholarships during both their junior and senior years. The program is designed to help the students combine classroom knowledge with the spontaneity of daily business applications and challenges, putting them a step ahead in the business world with future employers.

University of Akron: Samantha Beuther, a native of Brunswick, was recently initiated into the University of Akron Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society. The Society welcomed 1,869 new initiates from 78 universities during April 2023.

Students initiated into the Society must be sophomores, juniors, seniors, or graduate/professional students in the top 35% of their class, demonstrate leadership experience in at least one of the five pillars, and embrace the ODK ideals. Fewer than five percent of students on a campus are invited to join each year.

Trine University: Courtney Welsh of Medina, a Trine University student, earned Deans List recognition for the Spring 2023 term.

Welsh is majoring in Elementary Education/Special Ed Dual Licensure.

Southern New Hampshire University: SNHU Winter 2023 Presidents List includes local full-time undergraduate students who earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.7 and above.

Honorees are Meghan Keal and Ryan Webster of Medina and Abigail Miller of Brunswick.

Nate Bennett of Medina has been named to Southern New Hampshire Universitys Winter 2023 Deans List.

Belmont University: Logan Bandi of Brunswick qualified for Belmont Universitys Spring 2023 Deans List. Approximately 49 percent of Belmonts 6,552 undergraduate students were named.

Ohio Dominican University: Margaret Krosky of Medina and Konner States of Brunswick have been named to Ohio Dominican Universitys 2023 Spring Semester Deans list. In order to make the Deans List, full-time undergraduate students must have achieved a 3.5 GPA or better after taking a minimum of 12 credit hours.

Capital University: Several local graduating students have been awarded The Main Street Scholarship, which promises a minimum of $20,000 annually to all first time-in-college, full-time undergraduate students entering their first year of college. Starting for students entering in fall 2023, the Main Street Scholarship was expanded to a full-tuition and mandatory fees award for applicants who meet GPA and minimum household income requirement.

Those receiving the scholarships, all from the Medina area, are Alexa Krzynowek, Corbin Derrig, Cooper Kirda, Jamie Zickefoose, Keegan Fernlund, Maxwell Andric and Nicholas Neumeyer.

Buena Vista University: Keirsten Trayte of Medina was named to Buena Vista Universitys Spring 2023 Deans List. Trayte was among more than 550 students named to the Deans List this semester.
AKRON, Ohio  A 63-year-old man was cut in the hand when he fought with a suspect who had jumped into his vehicle and attempted to rob him, police say.

The victim had stopped his vehicle at about 6:25 p.m. Tuesday at the corner of Crosby Street and Oakdale Avenue in the Highland Square neighborhood when a man armed with a knife entered through the passenger side, police say. The suspect threatened the driver, demanding his valuables.

Police say the victim began fighting with the suspect, who ended up running from the area. No arrests have been made, but the male suspect is believed to be between 50 and 60 years old.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- After a caustic start, Republican and Democratic leaders debt ceiling talks defaulted to being conciliatory and compromise to avoid a default catastrophe.

At the White House, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had met with Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate and House - Senators Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schumer, House Speaker Rep. Kevin McCarthy and House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.

Senator McConnell exited The Oval Office meeting conceding that the debt ceiling deal will ultimately be made between President Biden and Speaker McCarthy. But all the principles agreed that the U.S. must and will avoid going into default, the deadline for that happening is June 1, per Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

President Biden announced that he will return from the G7 meeting in Japan by Sunday, postponing the second leg of his trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea, to wrap up a deal with Speaker McCarthy.

What I have done, in anticipation that we wont get it all done till I get back, is Ive cut my trip short in order to be in the final negotiation and to sign a deal.

President Biden and Speaker McCarthy had also picked two individuals each to continue negotiations on a deal in their absence. All four of those people are well regarded.

The Presidents change of plans leaves many optimistic that a deal can and will be reached by Sunday. A deal that avoids using a Discharge Petition now put forth by Democrats or invoking the 14th Amendment, both of which President Biden is reluctant to use.

Progressives in the House have advocated using either the Discharge Petition or 14th Amendment to pass a Clean Bill raising the debt ceiling without President Biden conceding to a compromise on Republicans welfare work requirements demands.

Democrats have already gotten a significant number of signatures on the Discharge Petition on the floor. But for it to pass, they would need at least 5 Republicans. They think they could be drawn from 5 of the 18 districts Biden won and Republicans now serve in.

While on the Democratic side there are Progressives wanting to avoid any compromise on work requirements, there are far-right Republicans who are willing to see the country go into default.

President Biden indicated hes willing to look at some work requirements, but not any work requirement thats going to impact on the medical health needs of people.

I voted years ago for the work requirements that exist. But its possible that there could be a few others.

Showing that such talks are as much about face saving spin for both sides, President Biden was quick to claim that his compromising was not actually negotiating on the debt limit, but rather the budget outline.

To be clear, this negotiation is about the outlines of what the budget will look like, not about whether or not we are going to, in fact, pay our debts.

Work requirements both McCarthy and Biden agree on are the ones that keep them both in their current jobs. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greenes work requirement is that shes Vice President in 2024.
NOVELTY, Ohio  Jenny Campbell is a perfect example of blending love and talent.

Campbell, a syndicated cartoonist from Moreland Hills, has been sketching animals for Rescue Village, the Novelty-based shelter for animals.

Campbell  whose day job is creating the syndicated cartoon strip, Flo and Friends - met Rescue Villages former executive director Timy Sullivan in the late 1990s. She told Sullivan: If you ever need cartoons, Im a cartoonist.

Campbell didnt hear back right away from Sullivan. But in time, the shelters director took a trip west and visited Best Friends Animal Society in Utah. She noticed the shelter was using cartoons in its fundraising solicitations, Campbell said.

It was kind of cool, Campbell said. She sent out a couple fundraising appeals, and it got such great reaction. People are so used to giving money for shelters because you get this appeal saying, If you dont help us, these poor animals are going to die. Here I was sending out cartoons of little happy-faced animals appealing to the softer side, the happier side. The money started rolling in.

Years went by; the cartoons piled up. Executive directors came and went. Two years ago, Ken Clarke was hired to lead the shelter, which was founded in 1974.

I had been drawing a little bit, but a previous executive director had been moving away from cartoons, Campbell said. Ken came in, and he was looking through archives back in the storage room and found these two big binders. He said, What is this?  He loves cartoons, fortunately for me. He said, What other shelter in the country has anything like this? This needs to be a book.

That sparked a collaboration to cull the collection and focus on publishing.

Campbell said Karen and Richard Spector, longtime donors of the shelter, funded the project. Clarke found a book designer, and all of a sudden we had this awesome book.

Campbell has drawn 300 cartoons over 20-plus years. The binders held close to 250 cartoons; the book has almost all of them in its 208 pages.

Clarke is no stranger to cartoons. He previously worked in Chicago, and part of his job involved dealing with the family of Pulitzer Prize-winner Bill Mauldin, the noted soldier-cartoonist whose famous Willie and Joe cartoons of World War II gave a face to the American GI.

I was surrounded with piles of cartoons for a period of time in my life, Clarke said.

That served as a precursor for dealing with Campbells cartoons when he moved to Cleveland.

Her work is top-notch, he said. Its up there with any other cartoonist Ive been around. She really knows how to draw; shes good at what she does.

Clarke added what Campbell is doing is very rare: She gave the copyright to the organization free and clear.

Its a huge gift, he said. Its not a very common thing to experience. This work is sellable.

The shelter, which is in a 19,000 square-foot center that was completed in 2015, has about 140 animals, mostly an even number of dogs and cats, Clarke said, though it has a dedicated barn for domesticated animals. Recently, it housed three goats, a pair of ducks, a batch of roosters, couple of pigs, assorted guinea pigs, rabbits and a 21-year-old horse. The veritable Old MacDonalds Farm residents are all in need of permanent homes.

The cartoons are rooted in Campbells love of animals, but her inspiration is at her feet  literally. Campbell and her partner, photographer Amy Sancetta, have a dog and a cat, all of which were former Rescue Village residents. The dogs came from a shelter in Mobile, Alabama, displaced there because of a Florida hurricane. The couple got Tanner in 2017 and Grayson a year later. They have become best buddies with Riz the cat.

We were just going to foster  famous last words, Campbell said.

That love of animals comes out in the book, and Campbell is quick to delineate her cartooning work.

All of the other cartooning that Ive done over the last 35 years of being a free-lance cartoonist  including the daily cartoon strip  all of that stuff feeds my mortgage, she said. But drawing dogs and cats, drawing for Rescue Village and animal-welfare groups - that feeds my soul. Drawing dogs and cats is really easy for me; I can do it in my sleep.

She said a simple spot drawing of a dog takes about 20 minutes while a more involved scene can take a bit longer.

Flo and Friends, which Creators Syndicate picked up in 2002, is in 35 newspapers. Campbell said fewer than 200 syndicated cartoonists remain in the world, with less than 50 being women.

Its a pretty cool club to be a part of, she said.

The Rescue Village book is an artistic menagerie  showing dogs, cats, hens, sheep, horses, goats and others in various life tasks and daily moments. The common denominator is they are all smiling.

Ill continue drawing for these guys until the wheels fall off the wagon, she said.

About the book

The Cartoons of Rescue Village: Twenty years of love and lifesaving through the eyes of cartoonist Jenny Campbell, Rescue Village, 2023, 208 pages, $24.95.

Related coverage: LeBron James has 3 rescue dogs named for him; adoption fees tied to his playoff performance

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. Bill Wills of WTAM-1100 and I talk food and drink usually at 8:20 a.m. Thursday morning. Twitter: @mbona30.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio  A state panel has set the language that will appear before voters for the upcoming Aug. 8 election when theyre asked to make it harder to change the Ohio constitution.

The Ohio Ballot Board, chaired by Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, also voted Thursday to give the proposal its official ballot name, State Issue 1.

The ballot language is a key procedural development as the state prepares for the August election, the states first to decide a ballot issue since before World War II. Republican lawmakers voted to set the election, and put the question to voters more generally, earlier this month to try to help foil an expected abortion-rights ballot issue in November.

In a party-line vote, the majority Republican Ohio Ballot Board voted Thursday 3-2 to adopt the language, along with accompanying language summarizing the measure. The language does not include any explanation of the current rules, which LaRose said after the meeting was done for brevity, although Issue 1 opponents accused them of trying to stack the deck.

(Scroll to the bottom of this story to read the full language, or click here and here for a PDF.)

Republicans rejected proposed changes from a lawyer for One Person One Vote, the campaign group opposing State Issue 1, that would more explicitly describe the status quo that voters are being asked to change.

The groups lawyer, Democratic elections lawyer Don McTigue, said the language the ballot board approved falls short of the legal standard established in a 2012 Ohio Supreme Court case.

Democrats on the panel agreed.

It fails to mention what the existing law is. I think it fails to meet those standards, said state Rep. Elliot Forhan, a South Euclid Democrat who sits on the ballot board.

What happened here is an attempt to get one over on Ohio voters, Forhan told reporters after the meeting.

Ballot board Republicans said little during the meeting. But afterwards, LaRose offered an explanation for the ballot boards failure to include the information that would clearly spell out the current standard so voters could better understand the significance of the change.

The actual amendment is available to read, and the argument for and against is available for people to read, LaRose said. Putting a ton of words on the actual ballot is confusing for people in and of itself. So we provided an explanation of whats changing. We didnt provide an explanation of the way it currently is. We provide an explanation of what would be new if this were to pass, and we believe thats sufficient.

State Issue 1 would require a 60% supermajority in a statewide vote to approve future amendments to the Ohio Constitution. Thats compared to the current 50% simple majority standard thats been in place for more than a century. Citizen groups often use the constitutional amendment process to pass new laws without the state legislatures involvement. Republican lawmakers say the process allows for deep-pocketed special interests to write state laws, such as when gambling interests in 2009 got voters to legalize gambling while guaranteeing themselves a legal monopoly.

Republicans have talked for years about making it harder for ballot issues to qualify and pass, but fast-tracked the proposal this year specifically to try to spoil a potential November ballot issue that would gaurantee access to abortion.

The ballot language approved by the ballot board on Thursday describes the proposed changes as elevating the standards to qualify for and to pass any constitutional amendment.

It says it would require any future amendment to:

Get 60% approval in a statewide vote

Require any petitions submitted to initiate a constitutional amendment to be signed by at least 5% of eligible voters in each county

Specify that additional signatures cant be added to a petition submitted to the state after Jan. 1, 2024.

The summary referencing 5% of eligible voters in each county is inaccurate, McTigue said. Under current law, amendment campaigns must gather signatures equal to 10% of the most recent election for governor, or 412,591 based on the 2022 election. As part of that, groups must collect signatures equal to 5% of the most recent election for governor from 44 of Ohios 88 counties.

The amendment would expand the 5% requirement to apply to all 88 counties.

Five percent of the most recent election is not necessarily the same as 5% of eligible voters, which can be read to be a reference to registered voters.

Another inaccuracy, McTigue said, is the specifies additional signatures part. The change in the amendment eliminates a 10-day cure period during which amendment campaigns can collect and submit additional signatures if the first batch they submit ends up falling short. The more accurate term would be repeal, McTigue said.

More generally, McTigue and Democrats on the panel said the language fails to first explain to voters what the current standards are, meaning they have no sense of what theyre being asked to change.

They also took issue with the word elevating, saying it carried an unfairly positive connotation.

It is not free of any prejudice. The average person reading that would view that as a positive modifying term, McTigue said.

LaRose told reporters he thinks elevate is a neutral term. Elevating means to raise or increase. Thats the first definition in the Websters Dictionary, he said.

The issues Democrats and McTigue raised will provide legal fodder for the no campaign to consider filing a lawsuit. It already filed one last week, when it contended the process through which Republican state legislators set the Aug. 8 election was illegal itself. The Ohio Supreme Court, which Republicans control by a 4-3 majority, has not yet said if it will take up the case.

Were proceeding with an unlawful election. And now we have unlawful language, McTigue told reporters. This is all designed to prejudice the outcome.

Read more: Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealers ongoing coverage of the 60% proposal

Andrew Tobias covers state politics and government for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer
ATLANTA  Chick-fil-As first-ever restaurant, located in Atlanta, will close after more than 50 years of fast-food service.

Chick-fil-As restaurant at Greenbriar Mall in Atlanta, which opened in 1967, is set to close Saturday, according to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution. The restaurant locations Facebook page, however, already says the location is permanently closed.

A Twitter account named Everything Georgia (@gafollowers) posted an image on Monday of a sign at Chick-fil-As Greenbriar location confirming its closure on Saturday.

Our last day of operations here at Chick-fil-A Greenbriar Mall will be: Saturday, May 20, 2023, from 11:00 AM  4:00 PM, the sign reads. Please visit our other locations at Chick-fil-A Camp Creek Parkway and Chick-fil-A Cascade Road. It has been our pleasure to serve you!

Chick-fil-A said its Greenbriar location was groundbreaking, as it was the companys first restaurant and was located inside one of the first indoor malls in the Southeast, according to the companys website.

Chick-fil-As original Greenbriar location was only about 384 square feet in size - comparable to a two-car garage - but later moved to a larger location in the mall. The restaurants original menu included a 59-cent Original Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich, potato fries, salads with boneless chicken breast, coleslaw, lemonade and lemon pie.

Today, there are more than 2,300 Chick-fil-A franchise locations across 47 states and Washington, D.C.
COLUMBUS, Ohio  Dennis Kucinich, the former Cleveland mayor and U.S. congressman, has joined Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s presidential campaign.

Kennedy, the son of the former U.S. attorney general and environmental lawyer whos become well known as an anti-vaccine activist, is mounting a longshot challenge against President Joe Biden in the 2024 Democratic primary. Kucinich, who ran for president in 2004 and 2008, will manage the campaign.

Dennis Kucinich has brought invaluable electoral experience to our campaign, Kennedy said in a campaign statement. He knows how the system works from the inside out, and his deep knowledge of issues and his personal integrity are fully aligned with the core values our campaign is bringing to American politics.

In an interview with cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer, Kucinich said he has known Kennedy for more than 30 years, and called him an outstanding environmentalist. When asked how he hoped to draw on his own experience running for president, he quipped his plan is to get more votes.

When we began to have discussions about the campaign and when he asked me, it was very easy. Because we know each other and also because I have a deep respect for his courage and his integrity, Kucinich said.

Without specifying how, Kucinich said that Cleveland and Clevelanders will play a big role in this campaign.

Kucinich is one of Clevelands most memorable political figures. He was the citys mayor from 1977 through 1979. He represented Cleveland in Congress from 1997 until 2013, when he lost to Toledo Rep. Marcy Kaptur, following an unfavorable round of Republican-drawn redistricting.

In 2004, Kucinich gained attention as an outspoken voice against the Iraq War before ultimately withdrawing from the Democratic presidential primary after John Kerry clinched the nomination. He ran again in 2008, but failed to get significant traction.

Kucinich ran for Ohio governor in 2018, losing to eventual Democratic nominee Richard Cordray in the primary election. He also ran for Cleveland mayor in 2021, but placed third in a seven-candidate primary race eventually won by now-Mayor Justin Bibb.

Last year, Kucinich sued cleveland.com and related entities, claiming they sought to tarnish last years failed bid to again reach the citys highest office by publishing false information.

Andrew Tobias covers state politics and government for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer
DUNCAN FALLS, Ohio  An Ohio grandmother and grandson duo visited all 63 national parks across the United States, and the journey began right here in Ohio.

Joy Ryan, 93 and her grandson, Brad Ryan, both from Duncan Falls, Ohio, completed their 63-park voyage when they arrived at the National Park of America Samoa in the South Pacific on Monday.

We departed from our hometown of Duncan Falls, Ohio at 3:00 am on Saturday, Brad told Good Morning America via email. We took a two day break in Oahu before boarding our final flight to Pago Pago, American Samoa, on Monday. Three flights and nearly seventeen flying hours were required before we touched down in American Samoa on Monday evening.

Joy and Brad began visiting national parks in October 2015, when they saw the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. The duo began documenting their adventures in 2019 on an Instagram account named @grandmajoysroadtrip.

Brad described the end of their national park expedition as bittersweet, as his father, and Joys oldest son, died earlier this month.

Reaching our 63rd and final U.S. National Park is bittersweet, with an emphasis on the sweet, Brad wrote. Standing at the finish line in American Samoa affirms that seemingly impossible goals are in fact possible if you pursue them with passion and pure intention. Grandma Joy has taught the world that you are never too old to show up and live the adventurous life of your dreams. It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be in the drivers seat as Grandma Joy made history to become the oldest person to achieve this historic feat.

The Ryans will explore American Samoa for a few more days before heading home to Ohio, but rest assured their travel adventures have only just begun. The grandma-grandson duos next goal is to visit all seven continents.

Now that we have visited every U.S. National Park, we have our eyes set on the world, hopefully reaching all seven continents, Brad wrote. We are headed to Kenya for a National Geographic expedition in July. I wouldnt be surprised to see Grandma Joy flying through space or walking on the moon. This is what 93 should look like if were lucky enough to live as long as she has.

While the Ryans arent done traveling, grandma Joy made clear how much shes appreciated her time with her grandson.

Its really been a beautiful, beautiful time. And I wouldnt trade it for anything, Joy told GMA last year.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Citing inconsistent evidence, Cuyahoga County prosecutors Thursday dropped charges against a Cleveland man accused of stalking a paramedic who went missing for nearly a week.

Michael Stennett, 65, of Cleveland was released from the county jail, where he was being held on charges of violating a protective order involving Lachelle Jordan, 30. She limped to a convenience store in the 16600 block of Euclid Avenue last Thursday and called police, five days after she went missing. She told authorities that she had been kidnapped. No arrests have been made.
WASHINGTON, D. C. - Everyone on the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government chaired by U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan seems to agree that someone is trying to weaponize the federal government against someone else. They spent much of Thursday morning sparring over whos the perpetrator and whos the victim.

Jordan kicked off a hearing on government abuses by citing the revoked security clearances and ruined careers of three Federal Bureau of Investigation whistleblowers who alleged their agency is politicized as proof its leadership has weaponized the government against ordinary Americans.

The trio described how their security clearances were revoked after they expressed concerns about FBI activities they deemed inappropriate, such as use of a SWAT team to arrest a Jan. 6 riot suspect who was willing to turn himself in.

Youre not politically correct, youre not in line with what they think should be the political position, the proper political position ... you can be a target, the Champaign County Republican said. And maybe whats just as frightening is if youre one of the good employees in our government, who come forward to talk about the targeting, you then become a target.

Democrats on the committee declared Jordan is the one whos weaponizing his government position, noting that former President Donald Trump urged Republicans in Congress to defund the FBI and Justice Department as he faces multiple investigations of possible crimes. They also had testy exchanges with Jordan because they didnt get some of the witnesses testimony before the hearing.

The top Democrat on the committee, Del. Stacey Plaskett of the Virgin Islands, called the committees activities a clearinghouse for testing conspiracy theories for Donald Trump to use in his 2024 presidential campaign, and said it is focused on undermining law enforcement, so extremists can undermine our elections through corruption and control our government threats of political violence.

My colleagues on the far right are on a mission to attack, discredit and ultimately dismantle the FBI, said Plaskett. This is defund the police on steroids.

Before the hearing, Jordan released an 80-page report that alleged FBI leadership is pressuring agents to reclassify cases as domestic violent extremism in an effort to create the perception of rising extremism. It also said the FBIs partisan leadership is currently engaging in a purge of agents who hold conservative political beliefs.

According to the report, the FBI dispensed cash bonuses to local field office leadership for meeting certain arbitrary metrics and performance goals. The report was critical of this, saying it creates perverse incentives for the FBI to utilize law-enforcement tools and resources where they may not be needed or appropriate in order for FBI leadership to benefit financially.

It said the FBIs Washington Field Office pressured a field office in Boston, Massachusetts, to open investigations on 138 people who traveled to the Jan. 6 rally in Washington, D.C., with two individuals who entered restricted parts of the Capitol that day, even though there was no indication the rest of them were involved in criminal activity.

It said that shortly after Jan. 6, Bank of America (BoA) gave the FBI confidential customer datavoluntarily and without any legal process, including a list of individuals who had made transactions in the Washington, D.C. area using a BoA product between Jan. 5 and Jan. 7.

The FBI, under Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland, is broken, the report alleged. The leadership at the FBI and Justice Department have weaponized federal law enforcement against everyday Americans, seeking to silence those who dare to have a different viewpoint.

Three FBI agents who testified before the committee - Garrett OBoyle, Stephen Friend and Marcus Allen - said the agency wrongfully suspended their security clearances, which ruined them professionally and financially.

OBoyle said his was suspended after he made protected disclosures to his supervisor about potentially illegal activity. Friend said his was revoked after he questioned use of a SWAT team to arrest a Jan. 6 riot suspect who was willing to turn himself in. Allen said his was suspended after he was inappropriately accused of holding conspiratorial views after he questioned the official narrative of the events of Jan. 6, even though he played no part in those events and condemns all criminal activity that occurred.

It has been more than a year since the FBI took my paycheck from me, said Allen. My family and I have been surviving on early withdrawals from our retirement accounts while the FBI has ignored my request for approval to obtain outside employment during the review of my security clearance. We have lost our federal health insurance coverage. There is apparently no end in sight.

OBoyle said the agency wants to get rid of people who simply just dont toe the line that they want.

They dont want critical thinkers, said OBoyle. They dont want people who raise valid questions to their chain of command.

Jordan said the FBI mistreated the trio to send a message that would intimidate the rest of its employees to fall into line.

They said we can get this guy, we can get this guy to be quiet, we can get everybody to be quiet, said Jordan, expressing outrage that the federal government would mistreat longtime civil servants who served in the U.S. military.

Rep. Daniel Goldman, a New York Democrat, said he thought it was inappropriate to use the FBIs decision to revoke the security clearances of three employees to conclude the FBI is a political arm of the Democratic Party.

Observing that a 21-year-old national guardsman was recently arrested for leaking military secrets, people who served in the military, Plaskett responded that service in the military doesnt mean people cant be questioned about their security clearances. She said Jordans hearing was part and parcel of the Republicans attempt to make Americans distrust our rule of law so that if their candidate doesnt win the presidency again in 2024, more and more people will not believe the truth.

The truth matters and hiding information and stating a lie over and over again, does not make it true, Plaskett continued.

Sabrina Eaton writes about the federal government and politics in Washington, D.C., for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.
WASHINGTON, D. C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown wants to tweak a controversial upcoming tax rule that would require third-party payment platforms to issue 1099-K forms to small business owners and entrepreneurs who have at least $600 in sales.

The Cleveland Democrat on Thursday introduced legislation called the Red Tape Reduction Act with Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, that would raise to $10,000 the sales threshold that would trigger the forms. The pair said their legislation would ensure that fewer small businesses and casual sellers have to deal with that tax paperwork for online sales.

A statement from Brown said raising the threshold would prevent the Internal Revenue Service from interfering with minor transactions and cut down on excessive paperwork.

Ohio small businesses are frustrated with the 1099-K reporting threshold. This red tape hits small businesses and other Ohioans selling products online, sucking time and resources from the smallest online sellers, said a statement from Brown, who chairs the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

A statement from Cassidy said the low cap would hurt everyone  from small business owners to people who use apps to pay their rent.

This bill lifts that cap and prevents the IRS from spying on American taxpayers, Cassidys statement said.

Before the 2021 American Rescue Plan, third party payment platforms such as PayPal and Venmo didnt have to send their users a 1099-K form unless their businesses exceeded $20,000 in revenue or had 200 transactions. Backers of putting the change in the American Rescue Plan hoped it would boost tax revenue by lowering the gap between what people owe in their taxes and what they pay.

A group called the Coalition for 1099-K Fairness, which was founded by online retail outlets such as eBay, Etsy and Poshmark, said the low reporting threshold would mean that Americans who sell only used goods and dont owe taxes on them, would get confusing IRS forms, and be forced to consult costly tax experts instead of being able to handle their own tax returns.

Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee also opposed the $600 threshold, saying it would increase the paperwork burden for both taxpayers and the IRS.

This goes after hairdressers and your neighbors kid, not billionaires, and will create a digital trail for IRS agents to monitor more Americans regardless of whether these individuals actually owe any taxes on the payments they received, said a statement from its chairman, Jason Smith of Missouri.

The IRS said the new $600 rule was scheduled to kick in for transactions in the 2023 calendar year. It is aimed at people who use third-party payment platforms for small business sales or to get paid for part-time work, and not at people who use the services for non-business purposes, like settling a restaurant check.

During a Senate Finance Committee hearing last month, Brown asked IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel if a higher threshold would help relieve burdens on the IRS and small businesses.

Werfel told him higher threshold would reduce complexity, would make the IRSs job a lot easier. He deferred questions to the Treasury Department on whether the Biden administrations would support the potential change.

Sabrina Eaton writes about the federal government and politics in Washington, D.C., for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.

CNBC's Jim Cramer said on Wednesday not to agonize over investments as Washington edges closer to a debt-ceiling deal.

As investors saw on Tuesday, news about lawmakers' debt ceiling compromise often breaks after market's close, too late to maximize buying opportunities. To that, Cramer offered advice about how to keep cool and stay ahead of the curve.

"The answer to all of these issues is hidden in plain sight, like Poe's purloined letter," Cramer said, referring to one of Edgar Allen Poe's seminal detective stories. "Stay invested, but keep a nice chunk of cash to buy more into weakness. But if you haven't already put that cash to work at lower levels, you might want to leave on the sidelines for the moment and wait for things to cool down."

Cramer feels the debt-ceiling debacle illustrates why investing is so difficult: investors need to make predictions while ensuring they're ahead of the crowd.

"When everybody's betting on the same thing, there's rarely much money to be made by joining them," he said, adding that many investors lose sight of new opportunities when mired in market pessimism.

He highlighted Home Depot , the country's largest home-improvement retailer, whose second quarter earnings report showed revenue brought down by falling lumber prices and weather, especially torrential storms in California that obliterated many sales. The retailer was up 10 by Wednesday's close after a substantial drop on Tuesday.

"But students of the great orange know that what matters to their sales is the worth of a home and there's been a $15 trillion increase in home value since 2019," Cramer said, adding that even though people may spend less on housing this year, the demand for Home Depot products is far from gone. "Houses need maintenance, they need refurbishment, things go wrong, the housing center does not hold. So, Home Depot's sales will come back."

Cramer also opined the flawed logic of billionaires who prioritize caution and emphasize the market's danger. Billionaires have no need to take risks because, unlike most, their fortune has already been made, Cramer said.

"I want to remind people that you do not need to fret," Cramer said. "The amazing thing about the market is that it always gives you opportunities."
The electric vehicle market is still a "long way" from a shakeout, according to consulting firm Sino Auto Insights. China's EV market has been roiled by Tesla 's aggressive price cuts and the country's government ended subsidies for EV buyers. But Sino Auto Insights' managing director, Tu Le, is still bullish on EV giant Tesla and its Chinese counterpart BYD. "BYD has still been able to be head and shoulders above everyone else, and not only in the Chinese market, but they're the number one brand for EVs in Israel and Thailand," he said. There are still new players coming in and so the shakeout is coming for the weaker players, but the competition's really just begun in the China market... Sino Auto Insights Tu Le BYD is by far the largest domestic seller of electric cars in China. "Their tentacles are extending out to other countries ... They're currently selling EVs in 52 countries. So BYD is a machine that's going to keep on going." As for Tesla, "there's rumored to be a refresh on the model three later this summer. So that can really build some momentum for Tesla again," he said. In the first quarter, BYD reported selling 264,647 purely battery-powered passenger cars in the first three months of the year up more than 80% from a year ago . Tesla said it delivered more than 422,000 cars worldwide in the same period. Tesla reported a 24% decline in net income from last year, dropping to $2.51 billion from $3.32 billion. The decline in earnings was attributed to the "underutilization of new factories," higher raw material and logistics costs, among other factors. "I think that due to the messiness of China getting out of Covid we're really seeing that price war take effect and some of the weaker players are either running out of capital are just exiting the market." It may be quite a different picture for the EV giants, however. "I still see it taking another 24 [to] 36 months before we really see how this shakes out among the top players," he said. Other bright spots Tu acknowledges that Tesla and BYD are the EV market's top two players, but sees promise in some emerging ones. "I do see a bright spot for Xpeng for Nio, and there are new brands that are going to be coming out like G2 Auto," he said. Tu said emerging brands like the "Xpengs and the Nios" could sell almost 300,000 units this year. "There are still new players coming in and so the shakeout is coming for the weaker players, but the competition's really just begun in the China market when it comes to some of the more premium brands."
The year is nearing its halfway mark, and global stocks have been doing much better than they had in volatile 2022. The S & P 500 is up over 7% in the year to date, and the MSCI World index is up around 8% in the same period. Most notably, Japan's Nikkei index on Monday hit its highest level since Nov. 24, 2021, according to CNBC analysis. Many stocks have soared and beaten the overall market, but there's still more room for investor bullishness. CNBC Pro screened for stocks that are beating the market nearly halfway into the year  and that analysts love. These are the criteria used: Up more than 10% so far in 2023 and beating the market At least half of analysts rate the stock a buy Consensus price targets offering upside of at least 20% First Citizens BancShares stood out for being among the top year-to-date performers (67%), with analysts giving it a high average potential upside (64%) and among the highest buy ratings in the list (83%). It made waves during the regional banking crisis earlier this year, as it was announced it would buy over Silicon Valley Bank's deposits and loans. It acquired roughly $107 billion worth of SVB's assets at a discount out of receivership. The bank booked a preliminary gain of $9.82 billion after taxes on the acquisitions. That gave the bank a massive jump in profits, at least for one quarter. Only one stock had a 100% buy rating: Japan's Kansai Electric Power Company , a nuclear electric power generation firm. U.S. semiconductor firm Onsemi also made the screen, with analysts giving it 28% potential upside and a nearly 60% buy rating. BofA named it as its top pick in a May 12 note, saying it's a leader in the shift to electrified cars. "ON stock has been the top performer among auto/industrial peers," said the bank, noting that it's year-to-date performance has beaten that of its peers. "We see ON as a top-3 global/top US vendor of smart power and sensing chips for EVs, charging/storage infra, autonomous vehicles and factory automation," BofA analysts wrote. Italian bank UniCredit had the highest potential upside in the list, at 85%, on top of a decent 88% buy rating. Among other global stocks, Japanese trading firm Mitsui also made the list. It came into investor focus last month for being one of the five Japanese trading houses that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway raised stakes in. Finally, Danish pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk also appeared on the screen. Citi this month named it among its top biotech and pharmaceutical picks.  CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
M & T Bank is well positioned for a downturn and is a bargain for investors looking to take advantage of its sell-off this year, Bank of America said in a note Thursday. Regional banks have been slammed since the banking crisis began in March with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. Stocks sank as deposit outflows ramped up. Recent earnings reports show those outflows are stabilizing , but a number of banks cut their full-year guidance. While M & T Bank isn't immune to headwinds from worsening credit quality, rising fund costs and increased regulation, its management team is operating from a position of strength, Bank of America analyst Ebrahim Poonawala said. "We view M & T on relatively solid footing vs. peers given cash liquidity, excess capital, a relatively stickier deposit base, and a history of conservative credit underwriting," he wrote. MTB YTD mountain M & T Bank's year-to-date performance The bank's CEO, Rene Jones, and members of its senior management team recently sat down with Bank of America and said consumer demand continues to be healthy. "Deposit repricing was a recurring topic with mgmt. indicating expectations for M & T to outperform given its historical focus on primacy of client relationship which makes both commercial/consumer deposits stickier," Poonawala said. The team also said it wasn't expecting overall credit losses in its commercial real estate exposure to meaningfully exceed the 33 basis point historical loss rate for any sustained period, he added. "In an industry where market share consolidation (organic or via M & A) is likely to continue, we view the bank as a relative winner," Poonawala said. The institution is also trading at a 50% discount, he said. Shares are trading at 7.7 times price-to-earnings for 2023 and 7.9 times for 2024, he pointed out. Yet it had a 14.7 times five-year pre-pandemic median, he said. His price target of $145, which incorporates recession risk, implies nearly 21% upside from Wednesday's close. Shares are down about 18% so far this year.  CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed reporting.
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a meeting with Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, ahead of the China-Central Asia Summit in Xian, Shaanxi province, China May 17, 2023. Florence Lo | Afp | Getty Images

Central Asian heads of state converged in China's historic city of Xian on Thursday for one-on-ones with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seal pledges of "enduring" friendship, and paving the way for a summit expected to result in a regional pact with Beijing.



The bilateral talks will set the stage for a group meeting on Friday, the first in-person gathering of the six leaders, where Xi will deliver an "important" speech and an "important" political document will be signed, China's foreign ministry has said.



Across the Silk Road city of Xian, banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit, with some in both Chinese and Russian.



A large contingent of foreign journalists was also present to cover the event, including reporters from Africa where China is similarly seeking to assert and expand its economic and political clout.



The president of energy-rich Turkmenistan, the most distant of the Central Asian states from China, was the last of the five leaders to arrive, landing in Xian in the early hours of the morning on Thursday.

watch now





The first to land was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan - China's largest trading partner in Central Asia - with his face-to-face meeting with Xi on Wednesday ending with a deal to build "enduring friendship" and share "weal and woe".



"We have a common goal - to intensify bilateral relations," Tokayev told Xi.



"We are also united by the desire to strengthen regional and international security and cooperation."
Elon Musk spoke this week on a topic few CEOs want to weigh in on publicly: China's intentions to ultimately integrate Taiwan as part of the People's Republic of China.

"The official policy of China is that Taiwan should be integrated. One does not need to read between the lines. One can simply read the lines," Musk said in an interview with CNBC's David Faber. "There's a certain inevitability to the situation."

Musk, whose EV company Tesla has a major factory in China, said China and the rest of the global economy are like "conjoined twins" and any future attempts to separate them will have severe consequences. And he added, "the situation is actually a lot worse for a lot of other companies than Tesla. I'm not sure where you will get an iPhone."

Apple is taking steps to de-risk its supply chain from China, most notably through its recent efforts to increase manufacturing in India and in the U.S., including iPhone parts in India and chips in conjunction with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company in the U.S. Warren Buffett recently told Japanese news agency Nikkei Asia that a decision to sell most of the $4 billion in shares of TSMC his Berkshire Hathaway had amassed just last year was made with geopolitical tensions being "a consideration."

Dewardric McNeal, a China expert and senior policy analyst at strategic consulting firm Longview Global, says this is an issue that many more companies need to be taking seriously.

McNeal, a CNBC contributor who spoke at last year's CNBC CFO Council Summit on China's increasingly authoritarian regime under Xi Zinping  who has been warning for some time that the market needs to be taking China more seriously as a risk management issue  said in a CNBC interview after Musk's comments that he agreed there should be "a set of built-in assumptions" about the potential outcomes for Taiwan's future.

There should be no doubt that China' policy and intent is to integrate Taiwan into the People's Republic of China, and McNeal said its capabilities are growing to do that, as is its national level of confidence to do it. But he added that China is not the only actor with influence over the situation, which includes the U.S. and Taiwan and its allies, as well as multinational corporations. McNeal says the message that corporate leaders should take away from Musk speaking up about Taiwan is that even if they won't speak out as political actors, they should at least be speaking clearly about the potential risks to their businesses, and their own intentions for business relationships in China, and planning mitigation strategies now.

"Global corporations have a say here and it is time for people to speak more clearly like Elon about the potential outcomes and make it clear they are uncomfortable, and start to vote with your feet," he said.

That means de-risking supply chains to decrease dependence on China and make it clear that the heightened geopolitical tensions and threat to Taiwan are a concern, he added.

But McNeal stressed that his view remains that China won't act anytime soon. "I don't think it's imminent but I do think companies should heed what he [Musk] says."

The U.S. government policy remains to not take an official position on Taiwan as an independent and sovereign state. McNeal said China still has "too many problems at home to deal with," and isn't sure it can win in a military invasion scenario now. But companies and their investors can't procrastinate.

"By that I mean don't navel gaze ... whistle past the graveyard," McNeal said, adding that China's strategies to assert more control over Taiwan are not limited to invasion.

"If I'm on the board of a company with exposure or I am an investor, I am going to start to press on what the plan is to de-risk," he said. "Use this time between now and when a scenario may be one China could execute on, to plan and get prepared. I would not sit back and wait."

The business world was given a preview of the "conjoined nature" of the global economy when the Trump and Biden administrations began a crackdown on China's technology sector and access to key U.S. tech. During the chip shortages of Covid, McNeal told CNBC of the tech cold war, "what frightens me the most is the geopolitical ... the politics of this is just getting starting in Washington and Beijing," he said. "I don't know if industry is quite prepared to really understand how bad it is going to get between Washington and Beijing."

More recently, when Russia invaded Ukraine, the market was given a preview of all of the broader possibilities, from the extreme military side to the economic sanctions and export controls on the other side. And McNeal said Russia-Ukraine is "the base case" to analyze, but he added, "this is nothing compared to if China were to invade Taiwan or there were economic sanctions against China. It's a complex scenario but businesses need to start now," he said. "To me it means use this time to figure out how to untie this Gordion Knot."
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David Zaslav Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav supported CNN CEO Chris Licht during an investor conference Thursday as tension at the network rises over the decision to air a live Donald Trump town hall packed with his supporters. Zaslav said Licht "is working really hard" to improve CNN's brand and image, citing a recent YouGov poll that said trust in CNN has improved by 11 percentage points in the past year. For context, trust in Republican-leaning Fox News improved 17 points and trust in Democratic-leaning MSNBC improved 16 points in the same period. Trust in CBS, ABC and NBC all improved by more than CNN, as well. Zaslav emphasized CNN's desire for more balance on the network, citing a common refrain that he wants to ensure CNN isn't an "advocacy network." "We need to show both sides of every issue," Zaslav said. Zaslav continues to be supportive of CNN's decision to host the Trump town hall, according to a person familiar with his thinking. Trump is leading early polls to win the 2024 Republican nomination for president. Zaslav told CNBC earlier this month Trump, who continues to falsely claim he was the victim of election fraud in the 2020, should absolutely appear on CNN. "He's the frontrunner  he has to be on our network," Zaslav said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "We're happy he's coming on our network."

Amanpour slams 'bothsidesism'

His comments came a day after veteran CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour publicly challenged the notion of covering "both sides" of the political spectrum if both sides weren't factual. Amanpour spoke Wednesday at Columbia Journalism School's commencement. "Be truthful, but not neutral," Amanpour told the graduates. She said the phrase was "her mantra." "Bothsidesism is not always objectivity. It does not get you to the truth. Drawing false moral or factual equivalence is neither objective or truthful. Objectivity is our golden rule, and it is in weighing all the sides and hearing all the evidence, hearing everyone and reporting everything, but not rushing to equate them when there is no equating." Amanpour said she met with Licht this week to convey her disappointment with airing a Trump town hall in the format in which it happened. She said Licht told her that "the execution was lacking a little," as CNBC reported earlier this week. Amanpour noted the live audience should not have been allowed to cheer Trump's every sentence, calling the behavior "appalling." At one point, Trump called town hall host Kaitlan Collins a "nasty person." Amanpour said she would have dropped the microphone and walked out if he'd done that to her. Amanpour said airing a taped Trump interview would have been a better solution, as it would have allowed CNN to better fight off Trump's "disinformation and propaganda machine." Trump is facing multiple criminal investigations and was found liable earlier this month for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll. Trump has denied Carroll's accusations. He was also indicted in New York for allegedly falsifying business records. Amanpour is the first significant CNN journalist to publicly criticize Licht and Zaslav's decision to air the town hall. Several of her colleagues jumped to support her comments on Twitter, showcasing an undercurrent of dissent within the CNN ranks. "Speaking truth to power is a fundamental part of our job but to speak truth to the power that signs your checks? @amanpour showing everyone how it's done," tweeted Nima Elbagir, CNN's chief international investigative correspondent. CNN anchor Sara Sidner tweeted "she's a real one" about Amanpour, which CNN correspondent Erica Hill echoed. CNN Hong Kong anchor Kristie Lu Stout said Amanpour delivered "a masterclass in journalism."

Falling ratings, rising discontent
Leaders on both sides of the political aisle appear to be coming closer to reaching an agreement on a deal that would raise the government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling. They'll have to act quickly. In a recent letter to Congress, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen confirmed that her department would be able to pay the U.S. government's bills until June 1 before risking default. For now, both sides seem confident a deal is forthcoming. "I think, at the end of the day, we do not have a debt default," House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Wednesday morning. Later that day, while speaking at the White House, President Joe Biden echoed the sentiment: "We're going to come together because these is no alternative," he said. "Every leader in the room understands the consequences of failure." It's welcome news, but what has become a months-long political standoff isn't over. Here's what you need to know.

What's the debt ceiling?

The U.S. government funds much of its spending through debt issued by the Treasury. Currently, the limit on what Uncle Sam is allowed to borrow is $31.4 trillion. That limit, also known as the debt ceiling, must be raised to cover spending that Congress has approved. This isn't unusual  the debt ceiling has been raised 45 times in the past 40 years.

So the U.S. is about to hit the debt ceiling?

Actually, we already hit it back in January. Ever since, the Treasury Department has been taking so-called "extraordinary measures"  essentially strategic short-term spending cuts  to make sure the government can still pay its bills. Yellen estimates that these funds will last until June 1. The Congressional Budget Office says there's a "significant risk" that the government could default within the first two weeks of June if the ceiling isn't raised.

Has this sort of thing happened before?

Technicalities aside, the U.S. government has never defaulted on its debt. But this isn't the first time it's come close thanks to political stalemate. In 2011, a Republican-controlled House demanded cuts to spending in order to agree to raise the debt ceiling. Democrats hoped to pass a "clean" increase devoid of cuts. Democratic President Barack Obama met with Republican House Speaker John Boehner to help push a deal through at the eleventh hour. Sound familiar? In that case, a deal was reached two days before the Treasury's estimated deadline. Waiting until the last minute had some adverse consequences on the economy and markets. "You could argue that there was a mini technical default with some payments getting delayed back in 2011, but the real issue was the first downgrade of U.S. debt by [Standard & Poor's]," says Liz Ann Sonders, managing director chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab. The move sowed panic among investors: Following news of the downgrade, they fled the stock market, creating an 18% slide in the S&P 500.

How could the debate affect the marketsand your money?
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during the annual Feenstra Family Picnic at the Dean Family Classic Car Museum in Sioux Center, Iowa, May 13, 2023.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to formally announce next week he is running for president in 2024, NBC News reported Thursday, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

The governor's official entry into the Republican primary field will put him head-to-head with former President Donald Trump, the party's current frontrunner for the nomination. Trump has already spent months treating DeSantis as his primary campaign rival, thrashing him with torrents of criticism over his gubernatorial record, his political skills and his personality.

DeSantis was already on track to make a public announcement about his political plans by the end of May. His political operation's recent move to a new location reportedly triggered a 15-day window for him to file a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission.

But he will instead make an official announcement within the next seven days, NBC confirmed.

The announcement will come at a precarious moment for DeSantis. While he won an overwhelming reelection victory in November and enjoys high levels of support in Florida, polls of the potential primary field show him trailing Trump by increasingly wide margins.

Meanwhile, some in his own party have started to question his strategy about a few of his most high-profile actions as governor. DeSantis' willingness to use the power of his office to engage in polarizing social-issue fights helped propel him to the national stage. But one of his most significant battles against Disney has morphed into a protracted court battle that shows no signs of resolving soon.

"DeSanctus is being absolutely destroyed by Disney," Trump crowed Thursday after the company announced it was scrapping plans to open a new employee campus in Florida.

A spokesperson for DeSantis' political operation declined CNBC's request for comment on earlier reporting that the governor would be submitting key FEC filings next week.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed up 0.43% provisionally, with autos rising 2.5% and tech stocks up 2.5%.

European markets closed higher Thursday as U.S. debt ceiling talks made progress and several sectors made strong gains.

Germany's DAX ended the session 1.37% higher as firms including Commerzbank and Volkswagen climbed, taking it to its highest level since January 2022, according to Reuters data.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 managed to gain 0.25% despite shares of British telecoms giant BT falling 5%, trimming earlier losses, after announcing plans to cut between 40,000 and 55,000 of its workforce between 2028 and 2030.

British luxury retailer Burberry also shed 5% after it beat sales estimates but reported weak demand in the U.S. and among younger shoppers.
WASHINGTON, D.C - Sep. 16, 2022: U.S. President Joe Biden meets with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa (L) in the Oval Office of the White House. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Relations between the U.S. and South Africa frayed last week, when U.S. Ambassador Reuben Brigety openly accused Pretoria of running guns for Russia via a mystery merchant ship. Brigety was summoned to a meeting with senior South African officials on Friday to answer for his comments, which related to the "Lady R", a U.S.-sanctioned Russian merchant vessel that loaded from Russian port Novorossiysk before docking at Simon's Town naval base, around 22 miles outside Cape Town, for three days in December. After meeting with South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor, Brigety tweeted his gratitude for the opportunity to "correct any misimpressions left by [his] public remarks." South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), released a rather different interpretation of the conversation in its readout. Spokesman Clayson Monyela said DIRCO conveyed its "displeasure with [Brigety's] conduct," and said that Brigety "admitted that he crossed the line and apologised unreservedly." Monyela also claimed that "the National Conventional Arms Control Committee [NCACC] has not approved any sale of arms to Russia related to the period and incident in question  [and] any assertion that 'South Africa (Government) sold arms or is arming Russia' is factually incorrect." The sudden flare-up of tensions triggered a flurry of ensuing diplomatic activity, with Pandor speaking to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa issued a statement on Monday in response to the allegations, saying that, "since we do not have concrete evidence to support these allegations, we are establishing an independent inquiry headed by a retired judge to establish the facts." The Lady R The Lady R, a Russian-flagged roll-on/roll-off cargo ship sanctioned by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, docked at South Africa's largest naval base under the cover of darkness on Dec. 6 before returning to sea early on Dec. 9, sparking speculation among residents, local media and opposition political parties. The vessel's automatic identification system was reportedly offline, and photographers captured shots of cargo being transferred between the Lady R and several container trucks, according to multiple South African media reports. Military experts noted the strangeness of a civilian vessel docking at a naval base, particularly when the commercial Table Bay harbor was available nearby. At the time, Defence Minister Thandi Modise acknowledged that the vessel had docked in Simon's Town but told reporters that the offloaded cargo was "an old, outstanding order for ammunition used by the special forces." She promised further information and clarification, which never came. The Lady R is owned by OFAC-sanctioned Russian company Transmorflot, which did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. At last week's press conference, Ambassador Brigety said that the U.S. was "confident that weapons were loaded onto that vessel," and that he would "bet [his] life on the accuracy of that assertion."

PRETORIA, South Africa - Jan. 23, 2023: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (L) meets South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor (R) during his official visit in Pretoria Ihsaan Haffejee/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Louw Nel, a Cape Town-based senior political analyst at Oxford Economics Africa, suggested it was fair for Pretoria to demand evidence from the U.S. to support its claims, but noted that "the absence of explicit denials from senior administration officials only fuels the impression that South Africa has something to hide." Although he acknowledged that the U.S. has a "long history of weaponising intelligence," the circumstances surrounding the Lady R's docking in South Africa "are undeniably suspicious, and repeated demands (both domestic and foreign) for the country to explain itself have foolishly been ignored." "South Africa has been marked with a black spot, and it is now incumbent on the country to show that its image has been falsely tarnished," Nel said. "Proving its innocence will not be a simple exercise, and its immediate response has not inspired confidence." South Africa's 'non-aligned' position Ambassador Brigety suggested in the controversial press conference that the mystery of the Lady R rendered South Africa's policy of non-alignment regarding the war in Ukraine "inexplicable." In his statement on Monday, President Ramaphosa also insisted that South Africa "has not been, and will not be, drawn into a contest between global powers," implying that the country was being targeted with accusations because of its neutrality over the war in Ukraine. "That does not mean that we do not have a position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict," he added. "Consistent with our stance on conflicts in other parts of the world, South Africa's view is that the international community needs to work together to urgently achieve a cessation of hostilities and to prevent further loss of life and displacement of civilians in Ukraine." Ramaphosa reiterated calls for the international community to "support meaningful dialogue towards a lasting peace" and said South Africa's position seeks to create conditions that enable "the achievement of a durable resolution of the conflict." "We do not accept that our non-aligned position favours Russia above other countries. Nor do we accept that it should imperil our relations with other countries," he added. Pretoria's diplomatic efforts over the past week extended beyond Washington, as Ramaphosa also spoke to both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday. In a press conference on Tuesday, he announced that both leaders had signaled openness to meeting with a mission of African heads of state to discuss potential paths to peace. South Africa's relationship with Russia has been thrust under the spotlight since last year's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Earlier this year, the government welcomed a diplomatic visit from Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and conducted a controversial joint military drill alongside Russia and China, which coincided with the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

RICHARDS BAY, South Africa - Feb. 22, 2023: Russian military frigate "Admiral Gorshkov" docked at the port in Richards Bay on February 22, 2023. South Africa drew criticism from the U.S. and Europe for holding 10 days of joint naval exercises with Russia and China. GUILLEM SARTORIO/AFP via Getty Images
Every weekday the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer holds a "Morning Meeting" livestream at 10:20 a.m. ET. Here's a recap of Thursday's key moments. Equities rise on hopes for debt-ceiling deal Stick with Palo Alto Networks Watch Meta Platforms 1. Equities rise on hopes for debt ceiling deal Stocks climbed higher Thursday morning  the S & P 500 was up 0.45%  with the market anticipating a potential deal in Washington to raise the debt ceiling and avoid a catastrophic government default at the end of the month. "Now we have a structure to find a way to come to a conclusion," House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told CNBC Wednesday . He indicated House Republicans could reach an agreement with President Biden and the Democrats on raising the government's borrowing limit by the end of the week. Thursday's move higher came a day after the market's biggest single-day rally in roughly two weeks. Amid the investor optimism, we initiated a position Wednesday in GE Healthcare Technologies (GEHC), a global leader in medical imaging, diagnostics and digital solutions. 2. Stick with Palo Alto Networks Shares of Club holding Palo Alto Networks (PANW) came under pressure Thursday, as investors fled the cybersecurity name over growing recession fears. But Morgan Stanley said it would be "buying the recent dip" in PANW stock given the "positive setup" ahead of Palo Alto's fiscal third-quarter results on May 23. "I'm with that," Jim Cramer said of Morgan Stanley's analysis. "If it gets hit, we'll buy more." Morgan Stanley maintained an overweight, or buy, rating on Palo Alto stock, with a price target of $255 per share. The stock was down 0.88% in midmorning trading, at roughly $190 apiece. 3. Watch Meta Platforms Shares of Meta Platforms (META) initially edged up Thursday on news Montana will become the first U.S. state to ban competitor TikTok . Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been investing heavily in the company's Reels video offering on its Facebook and Instagram platforms to better compete with the Chinese-owned social media app. A broader ban of TikTok in the U.S. over security concerns would give Meta a significant advantage in the space for short social videos. Jim on Thursday said the Club holding also stands to gain from its growing artificial intelligence prowess, aided by its partnership with Club name Nvidia (NVDA). Meanwhile, Citi named Meta a new "top pick" internet stock. Shares of Meta, which have climbed more than 100% year-to-date, were trading around $242 apiece Thursday morning. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long GEHC, PANW, META, NVDA. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
The Starlink logo is seen on a mobile device with an grahpic illustration of planet Earth in this illustration photo in Warsaw, Poland on 21 September, 2022.

CNBC's Investing in Space newsletter offers a view into the business of space exploration and privatization, delivered straight to your inbox. CNBC's Michael Sheetz reports and curates the latest news, investor updates and exclusive interviews on the most important companies reaching new heights. Sign up to receive future editions.

Just over two and a half years after SpaceX's Starlink first rolled out its beta service, the satellite internet company now has more than 1.5 million subscribers. With more than 4,000 satellites operating in orbit, the Elon Musk-owned company's global coverage is active in over 50 countries around the world.

For a tech company, that would be fairly standard growth. But by satellite broadband standards, it's blistering. Where is it coming from?

Within the sector, it feels like Starlink overnight went from a speculative and ambitious project to conversation- and market-dominating force. With SpaceX jumping from 1 million subscribers in December to over 1.5 million five months later, I spoke with Brent Prokosh, senior affiliate consultant at France-based Euroconsult, to better understand the balance between Starlink expanding the pie of satellite broadband versus taking bites out of the slices of prior top players, such as U.S. firms Viasat and Echostar's Hughes.

"As a general point of reference, it took Hughes a good part of eight years or so, from the 2008 to the 2015-2016 timeframe, for them to get to about a million subscribers from pretty much zero in the U.S.," Prokosh told me. Starlink's rise by comparison has been "spectacular," he added.

By his estimate, "something on the order of 50% to 70%" of Starlink's base is from "growing the pie portion, as opposed to taking" from incumbents, with Hughes and Viasat in total losing "less than 500,000 subscribers." But those numbers change based on region and customer vertical. Prokosh pointed to the U.S., Brazil and Australia as three mini-case studies.

In the U.S., the "rural market is pretty fragmented," he said. Starlink "introduced a service that leapfrogs the capability, although not quite the cost," of existing satellite and terrestrial competitors. Prokosh likened it to when Hughes first rolled out its service at 1.5 Mbps back in the day, which was well above other offerings at the time.

Brazil, he noted, is the most dramatic example of Starlink taking share from incumbent satellite providers, where Starlink has added nearly the same amount of customers that Hughes has lost. It's also lowered prices locally to about $35 a month (versus the $120 a month base in the States).

But Australia's a different story: Prokosh said, according to the country's reporting in March, Starlink is up to 120,000 subscribers, while the incumbent satellite service provider NBN has seen only slight customer decay from its peak of about 106,000 customers.

"This is clear evidence of the pie absolutely growing because of Starlink, as opposed to just drawing from established business of other operators," Prokosh said of Australia.

With Starlink going after nearly every market vertical  from consumers to governments and everything in between  Prokosh noted customers are often just adding Starlink to existing options.

"In maritime  it's almost all net growth for the industry right now, because what's happening for the most part is that the vessels adopting the service aren't dropping their incumbent service yet  they're trialing Starlink," Prokosh said.
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It's been hard to get an exact read on the rise in retail theft. Best Buy sounded alarm bells back in November 2021 when it said thieves were traumatizing employees. Walgreens was vocal on the issue too, but then its chief financial officer James Kehohe did an about-face, telling analysts in January that the company may have overstated the issue and its impact on sales. Maybe we cried too much last year," he said on the January earnings calls. But this quarter's batch of retail earnings have brought the theft issue to the forefront again. Both Home Depot and Target cited rising retail theft. "The country has a retail theft problem," Home Depot CFO Richard McPhail said on a call with CNBC on Tuesday after its earnings. "We're confident in our ability to mitigate and blunt that pressure, but that pressure certainly exists out there." Home Depot's vice president of asset protection had told CNBC in March crime is increasing at double-digit rates. Target said organized retail crime will reach $500 million more in stolen and lost merchandise this year compared with a year ago. On its earnings call, Target CEO Brian Cornell said retail theft is "a worsening trend that emerged last year." If the threat is moving in severity from one retailer to another, the industry remains convinced it has the numbers to say the crime trend is rising, and that this is not a shoplifting issue reflecting tougher economic times for Americans but increasingly the work of organized retail crime networks. The National Retail Federation says organized retail crime is the main reason for retail "shrink"  a mismatch between actual inventory and what is on the books  which reached $94.5 billion in 2021, an increase of almost $4 billion year over year.

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Its president Matt Shay told CNBC on Thursday that the issue isn't going away. "Conversations we've had with members over the last several years indicate it is getting to be a really acute and serious problem," and as far as the annual numbers, remains "growing." While theft is "manifesting itself in stores with acts of violence," Shay stressed that in-store, individual crime is not the biggest scope of the problem. "It's not people shoplifting an individual item for personal use," he said. But shoplifting is a big part of organized crime. Target chief financial officer Michael Fiddelke had said after its earnings in November 2022 that shoplifting jumped about 50% year over and year, resulting in over $400 million in losses in the fiscal year, and Walmart's CEO Doug McMillon issued another warning about the rising threat on CNBC in December.

"This is very sophisticated local, state, national and transnational organizations, organized not just to steal at the store level, but throughout the entire supply chain ... on the docks, on trucks, off ships, through containers, on the railways. This is a really persistent problem and it's across the supply chain," Shay told CNBC on Thursday. That matches CargoNet data recently provided to CNBC by insurance company Travelers, which has a special investigations group and works with law enforcement to recover stolen goods. It found food and beverage coming into port or in a warehouse is No. 1 on the list of products being targeted by freight thieves who are increasing their criminal activity across the national supply chain, with household goods and electronics still high on the list of cargo thieves. Physical theft is still the No. 1 method used by thieves in the supply chain, but they are getting more sophisticated, creating fictitious pickups through use of identity theft  pretending to be trucking companies, including infiltrating online freight management systems and freight brokerage phone lines. "A lot of times, they will get away with it," Scott Cornell, transportation lead and crime and theft specialist at insurance provider Travelers, recently told CNBC. It has tracked a 600% increase in this form of cargo crime.

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Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., conducts a news conference with house and senate Republicans on the "debt crisis," on the west plaza of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

WASHINGTON  House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Thursday he is optimistic that congressional negotiators could reach a deal to raise or suspend the debt ceiling in time to hold a House vote on it next week.

"I see the path that we can come to an agreement," McCarthy told reporters in the Capitol. "And I think we have a structure now and everybody's working hard, and I mean, we're working two or three times a day, then going back, getting more numbers."

Investors have been watching Washington closely this week for any signs of progress in the monthslong debt limit standoff.

White House negotiators huddled with McCarthy's team in the Capitol complex Thursday, continuing their efforts to hammer out a deal that needs to pass the Republican majority House and the Democratic-controlled Senate ahead of a potential June 1 deadline, the soonest date the Treasury could run out of cash to pay debts already incurred.

McCarthy declined to give reporters any new details about what exactly was being discussed behind closed doors. He said, "I don't think it's productive if you go write something and then everyone who is not in the room all get mad over things."

"I just believe where we were a week ago and where we are today is a much better place, because we've got the right people in the room discussing it in a very professional manner, with all the knowledge, all the background from all the different leaders," McCarthy added.

The comments amount to a remarkable shift in tone from the Republican House speaker, who until now has sounded more pessimistic than either the White House or congressional Democrats about the odds of a compromise that could win the support of his fractious caucus.

McCarthy's newfound optimism came after a key meeting at the White House on Tuesday, after which President Joe Biden dispatched two of his most trusted negotiators to launch a new round of talks: Presidential counselor Steve Ricchetti and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young.

Leading the talks on the Republican side is Louisiana Rep. Garret Graves, who worked as a committee staffer in the House and Senate before being elected to office in his own right.

Like Graves, Young also worked as a House staffer for many years. Together, they bring to the talks a first-hand knowledge of how to move complex legislation through the lower chamber.

Setting aside partisan rhetoric, McCarthy took time to praise on the White House team Thursday.

"I have the greatest respect for Shalanda and for Ricchetti. They are exceptionally, smart, tough, they are strong in their beliefs on the Democratic side, just as who we have in the room," he told reporters in the Capitol's Statuary Hall.

"They're working through it in a very professional manner, seeing where we can be able to raise the debt ceiling, taking concerns of what the House has, and others, and put a bill together that will become law," said McCarthy.

The House and Senate both kept their original plans to leave for the weekend on Thursday, a sign that the steady progress of talks was raising confidence among congressional leaders about an eventual deal.

The Senate is not scheduled to be back session until the last few days of May. But Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., advised members to be ready to return to the Capitol with 24 hours notice.

While McCarthy's apparent turnaround was welcome news for jittery markets, it set off warning bells for congressional Democrats.

Members of the president's own party have become increasingly worried this week that Biden is giving House Republicans the upper hand, despite the fact that Democrats control both the White House and the Senate.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York warned that a key Republican demand Biden has said he is open to  stricter work requirements for some federal assistance programs  was a "nonstarter, period, full stop" for House Democrats.
Mark Zuckerberg told the world in October 2021 that he was rebranding Facebook to Meta as the company pushes toward the metaverse.

Meta has built custom computer chips to help with its artificial intelligence and video-processing tasks and is talking about them in public for the first time.

The social networking giant disclosed its internal silicon chip projects for the first time to reporters earlier this week, ahead of a virtual event Thursday discussing its AI technical infrastructure investments.

Investors have been closely watching Meta's investments into AI and related data center hardware as the company embarks on a "year of efficiency" that includes at least 21,000 layoffs and major cost cutting.

Although it's expensive for a company to design and build its own computer chips, vice president of infrastructure Alexis Bjorlin told CNBC that Meta believes that the improved performance will justify the investment. The company has also been overhauling its data center designs to focus more on energy-efficient techniques, such as liquid cooling, to reduce excess heat.

One of the new computer chips, the Meta Scalable Video Processor, or MSVP, is used to process and transmit video to users while cutting down on energy requirements. Bjorlin said "there was nothing commercially available" that could handle the task of processing and delivering 4 billion videos a day as efficiently as Meta wanted.

The other processor is the first in the company's Meta Training and Inference Accelerator, or MTIA, family of chips intended to help with various AI-specific tasks. The new MTIA chip specifically handles "inference," which is when an already trained AI model makes a prediction or takes an action.

Bjorlin said that the new AI inference chip helps power some of Meta's recommendation algorithms used to show content and ads in people's news feeds. She declined to answer who is manufacturing the chip, but a blog post said the processor is "fabricated in TSMC 7nm process," indicating that chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is producing the technology.

She said Meta has a "multi-generational roadmap" for its family of AI chips that include processors used for the task of training AI models, but she declined to offer details beyond the new inference chip. Reuters previously reported that Meta canceled one AI inference chip project and started another that was supposed to roll out around 2025, but Bjorlin declined to comment on that report.

Because Meta isn't in the business of selling cloud computing services like companies including Google parent Alphabet or Microsoft, the company didn't feel compelled to publicly talk about its internal data center chip projects, she said.

"If you look at what we're sharing  our first two chips that we developed  it's definitely giving a little bit of a view into what are we doing internally," Bjorlin said. "We haven't had to advertise this, and we don't need to advertise this, but you know, the world is interested."

Meta vice president of engineering Aparna Ramani said the company's new hardware was developed to work effectively with its home-grown PyTorch software, which has become one of the most popular tools used by third-party developers to create AI apps.

The new hardware will eventually be used to power metaverse-related tasks, such as virtual reality and augmented reality, as well as the burgeoning field of generative AI, which generally refers to AI software that can create compelling text, images and videos.

Ramani also said Meta has developed a generative AI-powered coding assistant for the company's developers to help them more easily create and operate software. The new assistant is similar to Microsoft's GitHub Copilot tool that it released in 2021 with help from the AI startup OpenAI.

In addition, Meta said it completed the second-phase, or final, buildout of its supercomputer dubbed Research SuperCluster, or RSC, which the company detailed last year. Meta used the supercomputer, which contains 16,000 Nvidia A100 GPUs, to train the company's LLaMA language model, among other uses.

Ramani said Meta continues to act on its belief that it should contribute to open-source technologies and AI research in order to push the field of technology. The company has disclosed that its biggest LLaMA language model, LLaMA 65B, contains 65 billion parameters and was trained on 1.4 trillion tokens, which refers to the data used for AI training.

Companies such as OpenAI and Google have not publicly disclosed similar metrics for their competing large language models, although CNBC reported this week that Google's PaLM 2 model was trained on 3.6 trillion tokens and contains 340 billion parameters.

Unlike other tech companies, Meta released its LLaMA language model to researchers so they can learn from the technology. However, the LlaMA language model was then leaked to the wider public, leading to many developers building apps incorporating the technology.

Ramani said Meta is "still thinking through all of our open source collaborations, and certainly, I want to reiterate that our philosophy is still open science and cross collaboration."

Watch: A.I. is a big driver of sentiment for big tech
When Marygrace Sexton named her local fresh-squeezed juice company after her 1-year-old daughter, she never expected Natalie to become her eventual CEO successor. Decades years later, Natalie's Orchid Island Juice Company brings in $120 million in annual sales, according to Natalie Sexton, 34  who is now the company's vice president of marketing, and preparing to take over whenever Marygrace, 65, decides to step down. Amid the Fort Pierce, Florida-based company's growth, the Sextons have spent years struggling with the complications of running a family business, even acknowledging it in a New York Times article back in 2016. That story referenced a "second-generation curse," citing a 1980s study: Only 70% of family businesses survive the transition to second-generation successors, and just 13% make it through the third generation. The lifespans of all business types have declined since the 1960s, according to a 2012 report from management consulting firm Innosight. The problem may be particularly severe at family companies, where the founders can be more dedicated to building a business that lasts generations than their successors. Succession is hard to execute, as illustrated by the HBO show. The next generation may not be interested or prepared enough to take on the responsibility, or see value in cashing out by selling the company. The Sextons say they don't want to fall victim to the statistics. "It's truly a fascinating concept to try and maintain a family business as you change generations," Natalie tells CNBC Make It. "It's definitely something that's complex, but there's tremendous opportunity with it as well."

Making the next generation prove herself

There are stereotypes about second-generation business owners, Natalie says: "Sometimes the second generation can 1) be entitled, 2) not have the same work ethic, and 3) not be as mindful of how to grow the company from a financial standpoint." Natalie joined the company in 2012, a year after graduating from Winter Park, Florida-based Rollins College with an economics degree. Her uncles, who are also executives at the juice company, were initially resistant to letting their young niece help run the show, says Marygrace. Initially, Natalie pushed for big digital marketing, rebranding and scaling plans. Marygrace and other family colleagues pushed back, skeptical that the brand's personality could ever be authentically conveyed online and wary of the company no longer feeling like a local business. Natalie ultimately found ways to incorporate digital marketing into the company's grassroots approach, helping grow its annual sales by nearly $100 million since 2011, she says. And while Marygrace is still adapting to the idea of having such an online presence, she says she trusts her daughter's gut. "[My brothers] have to learn to trust that [Natalie] is going to make good decisions even though she's brand-new, right out of the gate," Marygrace says. "I knew in my heart that she had it in her, so I never questioned that."

Finding competitive advantages at a smaller company

When Natalie graduated college, Marygrace remembers multiple people telling her that her daughter should find a job at a large corporation if she really wanted to learn business skills. "That's a myth that I think people need to get over," Marygrace says. Natalie's Orchid Island Juice certainly isn't small, but it competes with billion-dollar brands in a multibillion-dollar market. The U.S. bottled juices market generated roughly $8.7 billion in sales last year, according to market research firm Circana. People also tend to view family-owned businesses as somewhat scrappy and therefore inadequate training grounds for company leadership, Natalie says. To the contrary, Natalie says she's received a "more holistic" business education because the smaller scale of the company allows her to work in every department. On top of her full-time marketing role, she is an acting sales executive and regularly helps with financial management, production and product development. Her marketing counterparts at other companies may not receive the same well-rounded training, Natalie says: "They know marketing and sales, and that's it. They don't really know the ins and out of production or efficiencies."

Using family feuds productively
Nvidia , the company behind the most powerful chips used to enable artificial intelligence, has the potential to increase its stock value by five times within the next 10 years, according to investor and fund manager Philip Ripman. Shares of the Silicon Valley-headquartered firm have doubled since the start of this year over positive investor sentiment toward A.I. since ChatGPT was unveiled. Despite the gains, the stock is still down by 12% from its all-time high on Nov. 29, 2021, according to FactSet data. In addition, the stock halved in 2022. NVDA 5Y mountain Investor enthusiasm for Nvidia is centered around its business model of selling high-performance graphics processing units (GPUs) essential for running the complex algorithms behind artificial intelligence technologies. As A.I. has become increasingly important across industries, demand for GPUs has surged. According to Ripman, who has managed the $1 billion Norwegian Storebrand Global Solutions sustainable fund since 2015, the A.I.-led trend driving the market higher is still developing as investors are only beginning to understand what automation can do and how it will impact various industries. The fund manager said A.I. companies using Nvidia's chips could grow and disrupt other sectors, such as energy production, digital and financial services. Ripman also pointed toward Nvidia's initiative, the Cambridge-1 supercomputer used by pharma companies for research, as an example of the company's links to the health care sector. "I think the opportunities are really limitless and time will tell if they're able to capitalize on some of these opportunities," Ripman told CNBC's Pro Talks. "But I think Nvidia has a good track record of demonstrating that they can." Ripman added that he could see a scenario where Nvidia could grow five-fold due to the market size and demand. "What this really comes down to is, I think we're just scraping the surface really of what A.I. can be," he added. Nvidia makes up more than 4% of Ripman's fund, or approximately $40 million worth, and is among its top five holdings as of Apr. 30. The size of the A.I. market has also attracted interest from competitors such as AMD, Intel, Amazon, and Google. But according to Bank of America analysts, Nvidia has built a moat around its business that is unlikely to be disrupted soon. "Competitors are not new, but surging interest in generative A.I. and scarcity of certain NVDA products (H100) has raised the intensity of media noise," said BofA analyst Vivek Arya in a note to clients on May 10. "We remind investors that success in A.I. requires full-stack computing and scale/experience across silicon, software, application libraries, developers plus enterprise and public cloud incumbency." The upside potential at Nvidia, however, comes alongside certain risks, Ripman acknowledged. The fund manager pointed out that geopolitical tensions between China and Taiwan have caused some investors like Warren Buffett to pull back investments from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) due to concerns over instability. TSMC manufactures the chips in Taiwan that Nvidia designs in the United States.
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"Confusing" regulations in the U.S. will push more crypto companies to leave the U.S. as firms like Ripple look to hire and invest outside the country, the CEO of blockchain services company Ripple told CNBC in an exclusive interview. "Europe really has provided leadership and countries like UAE ... the growth you're seeing ... even the U.K. and Singapore  they're providing the clarity about how they will regulate these digital assets," Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said Thursday. "And that allows through those rules of the road that allow entrepreneurs, investors to engage constructively with regulators," Garlinghouse said on CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia." "Frankly, it's why you're seeing entrepreneurship and investment flowing into other jurisdictions  and certainly Europe has been a significant beneficiary of the confusion that has existed in the U.S.," he added. His comments come after the crypto firm announced Wednesday it had bought Metaco, a Swiss crypto custody services firm, at a time when U.S. regulators are cracking down harshly on companies like Ripple and crypto exchange Coinbase.

I think it's fair to say the U.S. has made it as confusing as possible as to what the rules of the road are for the crypto industry. The SEC has really been at the forefront of that confusion. Brad Garlinghouse CEO, Ripple

The Metaco acquisition is expected to expand Ripple's suite of products and allow it to access an attractive clientele that includes Citi and BNP Paribas. "We think Metaco is a perfect fit, from where we're trying to grow our customers today," said Garlinghouse. Crypto firms have threatened to leave the U.S. in a bid to send a signal to regulators that the country may miss out on a key technological innovation. Ripple is fighting a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC has accused Ripple, Garlinghouse and the firm's co-founder Chris Larsen, of breaching securities laws by selling XRP without first registering it with the SEC. XRP is the native cryptocurrency on the Ripple network.

Unfortunately, [the crackdown] has encouraged companies like Ripple to invest more outside of the U.S. Brad Garlinghouse CEO, Ripple

In April, Coinbase took legal action against the SEC after months of silence from the regulator regarding the crypto exchange's July 2022 petition on whether existing securities rule-making processes could be extended to the crypto industry. The U.S. has also accused Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, of violating compliance rules to solicit American customers. When asked about the bankruptcy of the crypto giant FTX, Garlinghouse said in the interview that "what happened in FTX is called a fraud" and "is not specific to crypto." "I think it's fair to say the U.S. has made it as confusing as possible as to what the rules of the road are for the crypto industry. As you described, the U.S. SEC has really been at the forefront of that confusion," said Garlinghouse.

"Unfortunately, that has encouraged companies like Ripple to invest more outside of the U.S.," said Garlinghouse, adding that 95% of Ripple's customers are non-U.S. and most of Ripple's hiring this year will be outside of the U.S. Garlinghouse said Ripple is in a good financial position. Ripple funded the Metaco purchase with $250 million of cash off its own balance sheet, according to him. "Ripple has a very strong balance sheet and we are leaning in and playing offense and this is just an example of that," said Garlinghouse. "Be greedy when others are fearful and be fearful when others are greedy," he said, quoting investor billionaire Warren Buffett.

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's independent panel of advisors Thursday recommended full approval of Pfizer's vaccine that protects infants from respiratory syncytial virus, but raised safety concerns over premature births that may be tied to the shot.

The committee unanimously said the vaccine efficacy data was sufficient. Ten of the advisors said the safety data on Pfizer's shot was adequate, while four said it was not.

"If the vaccine actually lives up to the data we've seen today, I can guarantee many infants and their parents will breathe easier in the coming years," said Dr. Jay Portnoy, medical director at the Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, after voting in favor of the safety and efficacy of the shot.

Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said he doesn't believe there is enough data that indicates the safety of the vaccine is "reassuring."

"If you're in any sense risking premature births with this vaccine, I think there'll be a big price to pay," said Offit, who voted against the shot's safety data.

Adam Berger, the director of clinical and healthcare research policy at the National Institutes of Health, voted in favor of the shot's safety and efficacy, but said Pfizer's post-marketing studies need to examine the risk of premature births.

Post-marketing refers to studies conducted on a product after it receives FDA approval.

The FDA typically follows the advice of its advisory committees but is not required to do so. The agency is slated to make a final decision on the shot in August, right before RSV season in the fall.

If approved, Pfizer's jab would become the world's first vaccine that protects infants against RSV, a goal scientists have been working toward for decades.

The FDA earlier this month approved the first RSV shot for adults ages 60 and older from GlaxoSmithKline. The agency is expected to make a decision within weeks on Pfizer's other RSV shot for that same age group.

RSV is a common respiratory infection that causes cold-like symptoms. Older adults and younger children are particularly vulnerable to more severe RSV infections.

Each year, the virus kills 6,000 to 10,000 seniors and a few hundred children younger than 5, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About one out of every 100 children younger than 6 months of age with an RSV infection may need to be hospitalized, the CDC said.

Pfizer's shot for infants is administered to expectant mothers in the late second or third trimester of their pregnancy. The single-dose vaccine triggers antibodies that are passed to the fetus, which provides it with protection against RSV from birth through the first six months of life.
A flag outside the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington, Feb. 23, 2022.

"It would be an injustice to pluck him out of the community," the lawyer said.

"He's a family man and a hard worker," said the defense attorney, Robert Lengeling, of Miller, who has been awaiting sentencing since he pleaded guilty in October 2021.

Miller's lawyer asked Judge David Doty to sentence Miller to probation, citing his contracting business which the Breezy Point man runs with his wife  the fact they have teenage children and what he called a "great disparity" in the punishment of probation meted out to one of his co-defendants.

The contractor, 45-year-old Mark Miller , is the last of three men to be sentenced for the securities fraud scheme, which became public through an indictment filed in June 2021 in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.

A Minnesota home contractor was sentenced to a year and one day in federal prison Thursday for a brazen scheme to hijack dormant publicly traded shell companies and then pump and dump their stocks to unwitting buyers.

Lengeling told Doty it "felt like we got punched in the gut, quite frankly" when he recently learned prosecutors were asking Miller spend a year in prison for the penny stock scheme. "It was a bit of a surprise."

"My client is here today incredibly fearful of what he will do with his business," said the lawyer.

The one-year sentence, recommended by prosecutors, was markedly lower than the sentence of 30 to 37 months suggested by federal sentencing guidelines for the charge of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

"Mr. Miller committed a serious crime," assistant U.S. Attorney Melinda Williams told the judge.

"I'm not hearing a lot of remorse," the prosecutor added.

In addition to his prison term, which Miller is expected to start serving in August, Doty sentenced Miller to two years of supervised release after he completes his time locked up. During that probationary period, Miller will be barred from buying, selling or trading stocks.

In giving Miller a day in prison beyond a full year, the judge was granting the defendant a sort of break. Under federal rules, any defendant who is sentenced to more than a year in prison is eligible to be released after 85% of their term is served. People who get a year or less in jail are not eligible for early release.

Miller also faces a demand for "more money" from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which has a pending civil complaint against him in connection with the scheme, Lengeling told the judge.

Prosecutors as part of a plea agreement with Miller dropped multiple counts of securities fraud and wire fraud he had been originally charged with.

Miller, along with his co-defendants Christopher James Rajkaran and Saeid Jaberian, from 2017 through 2019, used bogus resignation letters purportedly written by the officers of multiple shell companies to seize control of at least four firms.

The companies, which had no meaningful business, also failed to make required regulatory filings for some time.

The conspirators then used the SEC's EDGAR public filing system and fake press releases to fraudulently inflate the share prices of the hijacked companies by claiming new business opportunities, prosecutors said. Miller and Jaberian, as well as an unidentified person related to Miller, became the nominal CEOs and presidents of the targeted companies, prosecutors said.

The defendants, who had purchased many of the stocks for less than 1 cent per share, then sold them on the over-the-counter market for many times more than what they paid for them. Prosecutors said the men earned hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits from the scheme.

At the time he was criminally charged, Miller was involved in an effort to seize control of a Florida penny-stock company, New World Gold Corp.

That company had not been identified as one of the seven shell-company targets in either the criminal case or a civil lawsuit against Miller filed by the SEC.

Miller voluntarily dropped a suit related to efforts to take over New World Gold soon after CNBC reported his involvement with that company.

Rajkaran, a resident of Queens, New York, and Guyana, pleaded guilty in the case in 2021. He was sentenced in January 2022 to 18 months in prison. After his release, he was arrested last November and charged with gross misdemeanor driving while intoxicated, according to a federal court filing in April.

Jaberian, also a Minnesota resident, was on track to go to trial in his criminal case until last November, when he pleaded guilty. Doty sentenced him on May 10 to two years of probation.

During his sentencing Thursday, Miller's lawyer told the judge, "My client has great concerns about how much we will talk about this case," referring to his criminal prosecution.

Noting a CNBC reporter was monitoring the hearing via Zoom, Lengeling said, "There's at least one media outlet that has taken great interest in Mr. Miller's case."

"For some reason, this has been a salacious type of case for this particular media person and I'm not sure why," Lengeling added.

"Mr. Miller has made a mistake and has made amends," Lengeling said.

The lawyer ended the hearing by asking Doty to seal the transcript of the proceeding for a decade. Doty did not immediately rule on that request.
Signs have emerged the Chinese economic recovery is losing momentum coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic, and if the negative trend continues, these U.S. companies with high revenue exposure to the region could get hurt. Goldman Sachs analyzed company 10-K filings to determine the geographic revenue exposure of each stock in the S & P 500. It found several stocks with revenue exposure to Greater China of over 40%. If China continues to show an uneven path of recovery in the wake of its stringent Covid-19 restrictions being lifted, these stocks could be hurt. The initial rebound in consumer and business activity early in the year has largely faded. However, if China ends up injecting more policy stimulus to boost growth, these companies tied to the nation could see a near-term tailwind. Companies that generate a significant amount of sales from Greater China were exclusively in the chip industry, according to Goldman. Semiconductors have been caught up in the U.S.-China battle for tech dominance. Washington has tried to cut China and Chinese firms off through sanctions and export restrictions in the past few years, including blacklisting Huawei. The U.S. also introduced broader chip restrictions last year, aiming to deprive Chinese firms of critical semiconductors that could serve artificial intelligence and more advanced applications. Monolithic Power Systems is on the top of the list with 65% of its 2022 revenue derived from Greater China, according to Goldman. The stock has gained about 18% this year. Qualcomm also generated more than 60% of its revenue from the region. Qualcomm recently saw a big decline in sales from handset chips, a core business for the company. CEO Cristiano Amon also said it had not seen evidence smartphone sales are recovering in China. Other stocks on the list include Applied Materials, Lam Research, Nvidia, Western Digital and NXP Semiconductors.
Here are Thursday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Truist downgrades Procter & Gamble to hold from buy Truist downgraded Procter & Gamble mainly on valuation. "We believe the company has done a remarkable job of refocusing its product portfolio, cutting ~$10B of overhead and other costs and improving investor sentiment over the past five years. However, we now believe the current valuation of the stock fully reflects those turnaround efforts." Citi names Meta top pick Citi said Meta is its new top pick pick based on the strength of its ad platforms. "Key among them include stabilizing trends across online advertising, but those platforms focused on ads innovation should continue to outperform, and we highlight META , our new Top Pick overall." JPMorgan reiterates Netflix as overweight JPMorgan said it's getting "incrementally positive" on shares of Netflix . "Incrementally Positive Coming Out of Upfront Presentation, w/Paid Sharing Broad Launch During 2Q; Overweight, $380 PT." Jefferies reiterates Amazon as buy Jefferies said it sees a "strong AI opportunity" for the e-commerce giant. " AMZN's advertising platform is still laps ahead of its eCommerce competition, and all the data exhaust is creating a strong AI opportunity." UBS upgrades Albemarle to buy from neutral UBS said it sees a compelling entry point for the lithium company. "We upgrade ALB to Buy, as we see the current inflection in China lithium pricing and 2023 earnings reset leading to increasingly positive sentiment on the stock." Read more about this call here. Deutsche Bank names FedEx as a catalyst call buy idea Deutsche added a catalyst call buy idea on FedEx and said it's bullish heading into earnings next month. "We believe upcoming results from FedEx next month can be a meaningful positive catalyst for shares. We see little to no risk on the quarter itself, and we are very positive on the potential for 2024 earnings and guidance relative to consensus." Read more about this call here. Citi adds a negative catalyst watch on Williams-Sonoma Citi added a negative catalyst watch on Williams-Sonoma and says it's concerned about a consumer spending slowdown. "We expect a SSS miss based on weakening trends in our Citi card data related to home furnishing spend and cautious commentary from retail peers regarding home demand." Jefferies upgrades Rambus to buy from hold Jefferies said the chip interface technology company is underappreciated. "As a provider of IP and chips for acceleration and security of data transfer in data center infrastructure to the Big 3 DRAM vendors and chip designers, RMBS is a critical player for the sustainability of the semis value chain." Susquehanna reiterates Nvidia as positive Susquehanna said it's bullish heading into Nvidia earnings next week. "Overall, we expect better results/ guidance, driven largely by the ongoing AI gold rush." Citi reiterates Tesla as neutral Citi said its recent survey checks show Tesla has an "impressive loyalty lead." " Tesla continues to sport the industry's most impressive loyalty metrics, holding a ~67% brand loyalty rate (LTM as of Q1) vs. ~46% for luxury brands." Deutsche Bank names Charles Schwab a top pick Deutsche Bank said it sees Schwab shares rebounding. "We are encouraged by the recent improvement in the pace of balance sheet deposit decline at SCHW, with client cash sorting continuing to moderate." Read more about this call here. Jefferies reiterates Walmart as buy Jefferies said the big box giant is still a top pick after its robust earnings report on Thursday morning. " WMT demonstrated strong Q1 results across the board, with Q1 net sales, SSS, GM, EBIT margin, and EPS all ahead of consensus." Evercore ISI upgrades Teva Pharmaceuticals to outperform from in line Evercore said the pharmaceutical company is underappreciated. "Meanwhile, a very interesting setup has emerged: in spite of Teva's cost cutting drive in last few years, 2 branded programs are approaching major clinical events." Oppenheimer reiterates Toll Brothers as outperform Oppenheimer said the housing builder is a top pick heading into earnings next week. " TOL will report FY 2Q23 (April quarter-end) EPS next Tuesday (5/24) afternoon. Though we expect a clean beat and optimistic commentary, expectations have ramped up since the winter and the bar has been raised for both EPS and orders." Bank of America upgrades Cincinnati Financial to buy from neutral Bank of America says it sees margin upside for the insurance company. "Commencing in mid-2022, rising umbrella claims have weighed on Cincinnati's results, driving underperformance vs the peer group. However, we believe the worst is over." Seaport initiates Array Technologies as buy Seaport said in its initiation of the solar company that it sees earnings upside. "As the world's second largest provider of tracker solutions (equipment, software, and support services) for utility-scale solar projects, ARRY 's earnings should grow on the back of the continued secular uptrend in tracker deployments, with global installations over 2020-30 expected to total 650-to-700 GW."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be in the Japanese city of Hiroshima on Sunday to meet in person with leaders of the Group of Seven, the Financial Times reported.

China said it is willing to help bring about a ceasefire in Ukraine, but insisted "there is no panacea to resolve the crisis" as it called on Russia and Ukraine to come to the negotiating table.

"All parties need to start from themselves, build mutual trust and create conditions to stop the war and talk," the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement issued on Thursday following a visit to Ukraine by China's special representative on Eurasian affairs, Li Hui.

Meanwhile, Kyiv was hit by another series of Russian missile attacks overnight, with one official describing it as "unprecedented" in terms of intensity. The latest attack is the ninth since the start of the month.
Mark Gorton, Founder of LimeWire, a peer-to-peer file sharing client for the Java Platform, sits for a photograph in the firm's offices in New York.

A veteran Wall Street executive told CNBC that he has been helping bankroll Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s anti-vaccine group and has become an informal advisor to the organization.

Mark Gorton, founder and chairman of high-frequency trading firm Tower Research Capital, said he has given $1 million to the anti-vaccine nonprofit organization called Children's Health Defense since 2021.

Kennedy, a longtime vaccine critic and a son of late senator and U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, founded Children's Health Defense. The younger Kennedy was also chairman of the group's board before he launched his run for president as a Democrat in April.

While President Joe Biden is the clear favorite to win the 2024 Democratic nomination, Kennedy has drawn a surprising amount of support, with a recent Fox News survey showing that 19% of the Democratic primary voters surveyed would back him in the primary.

Polls also show that Kennedy's rise in influence coincides with an increase in skepticism about vaccines, despite scientific evidence that the shots are safe. Kennedy has attracted support from some longtime political players, including former Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who is running the campaign. Michael Flynn, former President Donald Trump's national security advisor, was reportedly pictured with Kennedy in 2021, according to ABC News.

During an almost 90-minute interview at Cafe Fiorello in New York, Gorton said he is cheering on Kennedy's campaign for president and has repeatedly met with him since he donated to Children's Health Defense.

"I like him a lot. He's a super smart guy. Again, he's not really a politician. He's a corruption fighter," Gorton said, adding that he has Kennedy's cell phone number.

Asked about Gorton's donation, a spokeswoman for the Children's Health Defense said in an email, "CHD's donor information is confidential and only communicated to the IRS in compliance with their rules/regulations."

A Kennedy campaign spokesperson did not return requests for comment before publication.

The Associated Press reported that Children's Health Defense played a key role in pushing back on Covid vaccines and helped elevate Kennedy's profile. The nonprofit's most recent publicly available tax documents show that it raised just over $6 million in 2020, the year the Covid pandemic started, more than double what it raised a year earlier.

The organization sent CNBC its tax documents from 2021, which show the group raised just over $15 million that year. It went into 2022 with over $11 million in assets. The documents don't name the group's donors.

Beyond his donation, Gorton said he's been talking to the nonprofit's staff through Zoom calls, and advising the group on its messaging strategy. "I basically have been working with them to try and develop a strategy to go after the core of the beast which is the pharmaceutical industry," he said.

Federal Election Commission records show that Gorton donated $500,000 last year to a super PAC that was then called the People Pharma's Movement and run by other Kennedy allies. That PAC rebranded as American Values 2024 and has spent over $200,000 in print ads backing Kennedy's candidacy, according to FEC records.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., urges Congress to make child care affordable, pass paid leave, support care infrastructure, and raise the debt ceiling on May 17, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

Many workers need to take leave at some point to address their own health needs or to care for a loved one. Yet whether workers have access to those benefits is up to their employer or state.

This week, Democrats in Washington re-upped a push to create a national program to give every worker access to paid family and medical leave.

"After 10 years fighting for paid leave, we are still the only industrialized nation without this essential program," said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.

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A law that lets workers take unpaid time off to take care of their loved ones or their own health  the Family and Medical Leave Act  recently reached its 30th anniversary.

Now, Gillibrand and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., are putting forward an updated version of the Family and Medical Insurance Leave, or FAMILY, Act, first introduced in Congress in 2013, which would provide for paid leave.

"Thirty years ago, we broke ground by enshrining the Family and Medical Leave Act into law, providing unpaid family and medical leave for working Americans," DeLauro said in a statement, referencing the law passed under President Bill Clinton.

"Let's break ground again by making it paid," DeLauro said.
Semiconductor bosses in the U.K. had expressed frustration with the lack of a concrete strategy from the government on semiconductors. Mailsonpignata / 500Px | 500Px | Getty Images

LONDON  The U.K. on Friday announced up to 1 billion ($1.24 billion) of support for its semiconductor industry, seeking to boost its domestic chipmaking capabilities and prevent further disruptions to supply after cries for help from bosses at some of the country's leading firms. The investment will form part of a 20-year strategy on semiconductors  which has faced lengthy delays  outlining the U.K.'s plan to secure its chip supplies and protect against national security risks. related investing news Bank of America says this chip stock could be one of the best A.I. plays The strategy, which is set to be published later Friday, sets out a range of measures aimed at growing the U.K.'s domestic chip sector, mitigating the risk of supply chain disruptions, and protecting national security. The U.K. will look to increase cooperation with international partners as part of its strategy. This week, Britain struck a deal with Japan in Hiroshima to boost collaboration on defense and semiconductors. The government will initially invest up to 200 million from 2023 to 2025 before expanding its commitment to up to 1 billion in the next decade, the government said. The funding will be used to improve talent pipeline and access to prototyping, tools, and business support. "Semiconductors underpin the devices we use every day and will be crucial to advancing the technologies of tomorrow," British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement. "Our new strategy focuses our efforts on where our strengths lie, in areas like research and design, so we can build our competitive edge on the global stage."

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"By increasing the capabilities and resilience of our world-leading semiconductor industry, we will grow our economy, create new jobs and stay at the forefront of new technological breakthroughs," he added. To prevent disruption from future supply shortages, new guidance will be published informing businesses of the risks of supply shocks, while the U.K. will look to increase collaboration with international partners to improve resilience of the global chip supply chain, the government said. An advisory panel consisting of figures from industry, government and academia has also been set up to work closely on shared solutions and implementation, it added.

'Applied in the right way'

Rather than match some of the mega spending commitments tabled by regions like the U.S. and EU, the U.K. is setting out a different approach that aims to boost the areas it has expertise in. Officials admitted it wouldn't make sense for the U.K. to build its own massive fabrication plants, such as those operated by Taiwan's chipmaking giant TSMC for making the most advanced chips. Instead, they are focusing on other parts of the semiconductor industry, such as intellectual property and design and producing non-silicon chips. A U.K. semiconductor strategy was expected to come out last year. But it has faced a series of delays due to political instability. Semiconductor bosses in the country had expressed frustration with the lack of a concrete strategy from the government on semiconductors. Whereas the U.S. and European Union have pledged billions of dollars in support for their respective chip sectors, the U.K.'s strategy faced delays and setbacks amid numerous changes in government owing to the resignations of former Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Pragmatic Semiconductor, a Cambridge, England-based startup that produces non-silicon chips, warned earlier this year that it may be forced to relocate overseas if the government doesn't issue a plan for the industry soon. IQE, a microchip firm in the semiconductor "cluster" in Newport, Wales, also warned it may be forced to relocate to the U.S. or EU if the government did not act soon. Scott White, founder of British chip firm Pragmatic Semiconductor, said the government's 1 billion pledge  though small compared to that of the U.S and EU  "actually feels like the right kind of number" Britain's industry needs. However, he cautioned that the funding would need to be "applied in the right way." "Equally, if it's just a repackaging of other things that exist, that won't be particularly helpful," White told CNBC earlier this week. Britain is an understated player in the global chip market, specializing in design, intellectual property, research, and fabrication of advanced compound semiconductors.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 17)  The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday green-lighted electronic or internet voting for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) for the national and local elections in May 2025.

"We approved the policy direction and therefore we are now to prepare the roadmap for Electronic Voting for Overseas Filipinos," Comelec chairman George Garcia said.

Garcia added that Comelecs goal is higher overseas voter turnout.

In a press statement, the Comelec said it approved the online mode of voting based on Republic Act No. 10590 or the Overseas Voting Act of 2013, which gives the poll body the authority to explore other modes or systems using automated election system, and RA No. 9189 or The Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003.

[W]ith the additional authority granted to the Commission under Republic Act No. 10590 vis-a-vis its stronger implementing authority, it can be assumed that the Congress has yielded to the expertise and knowledge of the Commission in understanding the peculiarities attendant to the overseas voting process, to the extent that Congress no longer required prior approval in the form of legislation in order for the Commission to promulgate rules and regulations and consequently, implement other means of overseas voting that are more reliable, secure, and efficient, the Comelec said.

Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco said the go signal is also based on RA No. 9369, which mandated an automated election system.

"Based on RAs 9369 and 10590, the Commission is of the opinion it is empowered to do so even without prior legislation," Laudiangco told CNN Philippines.

Laudiangco stated that the approval of internet voting for OFWs is for implementation in the national and local elections in May 2025.

The Comelec was directed to study and explore the use of internet to cast votes for OFWs as early as the enactment of RA 9189 in 2003, according to Laudiangco.

He added that RA 9369 authorized the poll body to use an automated election system "as it may deem appropriate and practical."

"Then came RA 10590, again expressly mentioning, and unequivocally stating that voting may be done either personally, by mail, or by any other means as may be determined by the Commission, and that internet based technology or whatever latest technology may be explored, he explained.

The Comelec did not include online voting in the 2022 national elections, but it made test runs for the 2025 polls that yielded "promising" results.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 17)  Rains reminiscent of "Ondoy" are possible in western parts of the country before El Nino begins in June, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) warned on Wednesday.

"Posibleng mangyari 'yun [Ondoy-like rains]. Yung Ondoy nangyari yun El Nino yun eh. Possible mangyari," PAGASA Officer-in-Charge Deputy Administrator for Operations and Services Bonifacio Pajuelas said during the House hearing on the dwindling water supply in Metro Manila.

[Translation: It is possible for Ondoy-like rains to occur. Ondoy happened during an El Nino episode. It's possible.]

Pajuelas said the state weather bureau sees a 90% probability of El Nino during the months of June to August, adding that it would likely persist until the first quarter of 2024.

READ: El Nino likely to begin in 2nd half of 2023  PAGASA

He also warned that the El Nino phenomenon would bring lower-than-usual precipitation, prompting some concerns from Valenzuela 2nd District Representative Eric Martinez, who feared the dry period would worsen the looming water shortage.

"Paano kung yung weather pattern natin because of El Nino because of global warming, mag-shift yung alignments ng umuulan dati rito, dati doon umuulan," he asked. "Paano kung hindi umulan sa Sierra Madre mountain ranges na sasakop sa Angat watershed?"

[Translation: What if our weather pattern, because of El Nino, because of global warming, shifts alignments, and not rain where it used to? What if it doesn't rain in the Sierra Madre mountain ranges that cover the Angat watershed?]

In response, Pajuelas assured Martinez and other lawmakers at the hearing that the western part of the country can still expect above normal rainfall during El Nino.

READ: Localities begin preparing for El Nino impact

"Yung epekto naman ng El Nino parating tinatamaan yung eastern side ng ating archipelago. Sa western sections lalo na kapag southwest monsoon, madaming ulan. Itong parating na pag-pasok ng southeast monsoon na nakikita namin, enhanced yung pag-uulan niya eh," he said.

[Translation: The El Nino always affects the eastern side of our archipelago. In the western sections, especially during the southwest monsoon, there is a lot of rain. In the approaching southeast monsoon we are seeing enhanced rains.]

READ: NDRRMC: Up to 46 provinces could be affected as El Nino worsens

Pajuelas said a massive amount of rainfall is needed before June to replenish major dams and watersheds.

Meanwhile, water concessionaires Maynilad and Manila Water said they are working to make their treatment and sewerage facilities climate-resilient to avoid interruptions. They said they regularly consult with local and international experts, as well as regulators, and undergo audits to make sure their designs pass standards.

Tropical Storm Ondoy dumped a massive amount of rain over a 24-hour period, flooding many parts of Metro Manila, Central and Southern Luzon, and leaving 400 people dead.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  After nine hearings of the House of Representative's Committee on Agriculture and Food, two ranking lawmakers have zeroed in on an agricultural trader previously tagged in the smuggling of basic commodities as the supposed operator of the "biggest onion cartel" in the country.

Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo, vice chairperson of the House Appropriations Committee, alleged that Lilia "Lea" Cruz engineered the artificial spike in onion prices late last year until the early part of 2023 through companies involved in all levels of the value chain.

Cruz established the Philippine Vegetable Importers, Exporters and Vendors Association (PhilVIEVA), which Quimbo claimed is being used for operating the alleged onion cartel.

"Leah Cruz operates the biggest onion cartel in the country. She does this through an SEC-registered corporation called Philippine VIEVA Corporation," Quimbo said.

The lawmaker added that PhilVIEVA controlled the onion supply by buying cheaply from farmers, then cornering the importation of onions.

She added that Cruz can command the price of onions through PhilVIEVA and other dummy companies by timing when, how, and to which traders the stocks should be released.

"Paano ginagamit ang PhilVIEVA para pataasin ang presyo ng sibuyas? (How do they use the PhilVIEVA to raise the prices of onions?)" said Quimbo. "To be able to manipulate the price, you must have control of a lot of supply of onions. This is where PhilVIEVAs power comes from."

The House began its investigation into the alleged price manipulation of onions late last year, when its price rose to as much as 700 per kilo. Cruz denied in one of the hearings that she's involved in the smuggling of basic commodities.

In 2014, Cruz was accused in a congressional hearing of monopolizing the importation of onion and garlic. She said there was no truth to the allegation.

Quezon Rep. Mark Enverga, chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture and Food, said there could be succeeding hearings on the issue to tie loose ends.

A report containing the panel's recommendations could be finalized in two weeks, he added.

"Hindi mangyayari ang cartel, hindi magiging successful ang operations kung walang kasabwat (The cartel will not be possible and successful if there is no one behind this). So, we will look back at transcripts and everything so we will see from there," he said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday said a partnership with Australia is "extremely important" and is "key to maintaining peace" in the Indo-pacific region.

"Now we have a situation where partnerships have become extremely important and it might be the key to maintaining the peace not only in the Asia Pacific but the Indo-Pacific region," Marcos said during a courtesy call with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong at the Palace.

Wong earlier said the country would work with the Philippines and other nations in ASEAN to "shape" the region into a "peaceful, open,and prosperous one."

"[W]e want to work with the Philippines and other parties, other nations in the region to help shape the region we all want. A peaceful, open, prosperous region," Wong said.

Wong made the statement at a joint press briefing with Department of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo who said both countries discussed a shared commitment "to working and deepening relations with regional partners both in bilateral and multilateral mechanisms and thereby advancing our shared strategic interest."

"I look forward, we look forward to discussing with Australia and our other partner Japan, and even with the, perhaps, the United States on possible modes of cooperation," Manalo added.

"We are certainly planning to take forward these discussions in the very near future," he said.

Australia also said it is "deeply committed" to elevating its relationship with the Philippines following a meeting between the two countries' top diplomats.

"We are committed, deeply committed, to elevating our relationship with the Philippines to a strategic partnership," Wong stressed on Thursday.

Marcos also said Australia and the Philippines should continue the efforts to sustain relationships, partnerships, alliances in response to the rapidly changing geo-political situation.

"And therefore, we have to stay in very close communication so that we present a common plan to meet not only with ASEAN but all member states around the Indo-Pacific," Marcos told Wong.

Meanwhile, Wong took note of the 77 years of diplomatic relations between Canberra and Manila, and described the Philippines as a "vital, long-standing security partner for Australia."

For his part, Secretary Manalo said discussions with his Australian counterpart included how they could enhance existing relationships.

On the matter of trilateral cooperation among the Philippines, Australia, and Japan, Manalo said this remains "under consideration."
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The Court of Appeals (CA) has denied the Mandaluyong Citys appeal to reconsider its earlier ruling declaring the citys three ordinances banning male back riders on motorcycles as unconstitutional.

In its decision released on Thursday, the appellate court said the city government failed to provide sufficient evidence to challenge its earlier ruling and justify the reconsideration sought.

Mandaluyong City Ordinance Nos. 550 S-2014, 595 S-2015, and 694 S-2018 prohibit males from back riding on motorcycles, except if he is within the first degree of consanguinity of the driver or if he is seven to 10 years old.

The city said the ordinances were prompted by the increasing rate of crimes perpetuated by assailants "riding-in-tandem" on motorcycles.

READ: CA: Mandaluyong ordinances vs male backriders on motorcycles 'unconstitutional'

The case against the ordinances started when lawyer Dino de Leon filed a petition after he was apprehended and sued for riding on the back of a motorcycle in March 2019.

A Mandaluyong court dismissed his appeal for lack of merit in 2020. After being denied of his motion for reconsideration, de Leon asked the CA to review and reverse the lower courts decision.

The CA then ruled that the ordinances were oppressive as there is no statistical data presented before the court to show that motorycle-riding criminals are males. Lack of merit was also the same reason why the court retained its decision and denied the citys motion for reconsideration.

It said it did not find a compelling reason to disturb its earlier decision as the grounds raised in the appeal are mere rehash of matters already considered and passed upon.

We are one in preventing crimes for the City of Mandaluyongs peace and order, the Court of Appeals said. However, we cannot uphold the constitutionality of the subject ordinances when, among other things, the mechanisms provided therein are beyond what is necessary to accomplish the purpose that the City of Mandaluyong aspires.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The lawyer of the Degamo family on Thursday said he is confident justice will prevail even if all 11 suspects related to the murder of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo take back their statements.

Im telling you with confidence na kahit mag-recant yung 11 na yan, we have two other very credible witnesses na ipe-present namin during the trial, lawyer Levy Baligod told CNN Philippines The Source.

[Translation: Im telling you with confidence even if those 11 recant, we have two other very credible witnesses we will present during the trial.]

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Wednesday filed murder complaints against Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves, the alleged mastermind behind the death of Degamo.

Department of Justice Sec. Jesus Crispin Remulla said the NBI filed murder, frustrated murder, and attempted murder complaints.

Baligod said the National Prosecution Service is already conducting preliminary evaluation to possibly subpoena Teves if authorities find prima facie evidence.

While there is no direct proof linking Teves to the murder, Baligod explained a number of circumstantial evidence could prove his involvement in the crime.

These include the alleged use of Teves helicopter to transport the suspects to safer grounds, co-mastermind Marvin Miranda still working for the congressman, and the use of facilities within the sugar mill partly owned by the lawmakers brother Henry Teves, Baligod noted.

The suspended congressman maintains he is innocent.

But he refuses to return to the country after flying to the United States late-February for medical purposes, citing security concerns.

Teves, who was suspended on March 22, might also face stiffer sanctions over his continued absence in Congress.

The House Committee on Ethics will convene on May 23, a day after Teves suspension ends, to determine the next action to take regarding his case.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Nine Filipinos who were forced to work in online scams and sex trafficking rings in Malaysia and Myanmar are now back home, arriving in two batches earlier this month, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said Thursday.

Three of the Filipinos went overseas in 2022 to work as massage therapists in Miri, Malaysia via boat through Zamboanga and Tawi-Tawi. They were then forced to engage in sex work in spa parlors, the BI added in a statement.

It quoted the three Filipinos as saying that after being rescued by Malaysian authorities, they were forced to clean restrooms in a police station where they were also verbally abused.

However, the Filipinos were able to contact the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, which assisted in their repatriation.

They arrived in the country on May 9.

The BI said six other Filipinos rescued in Bangkok also left in 2022 after they were promised customer service jobs paying 40,000 to 60,000. They were recruited by strangers on Facebook.

BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the victims were transported to Myanmar where they were forced to work in online love scams and crypto rings.

They were rescued and traveled to Thailand after contacting the Philippines' police attache in Bangkok.

RELATED: 6 Filipinos rescued from human trafficking syndicates in Myanmar

The BI said the victims were physically tortured when they were unable to meet their quota and detained until they could pay ransom for their release.

"It is gut-wrenching hearing how they suffered. One of them shared how their parents had to sell their farm land to produce a large-sum of money just to be given to those criminals," Tansingco said.

He reiterated the warning for the public not to fall prey to human trafficking schemes and for those who want to work abroad to secure the proper documents that will protect them against illegal recruitment and other hazards overseas.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Seven Filipinos made it to Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list this year which recognizes outstanding people 29 years old and below.

Among those selected were a CEO of a finance tracker app, founders of an AI-powered automation service for supply chain businesses, co-founder of a sustainable high fashion brand, and a co-founder of a delivery platform.

In the Finance and Venture Capital category, Forbes recognized 25-year-old Aaron Villegas, CEO of the app Lista that helps people and small businesses in the Philippines track their finances, plan their spending, and set payment or debt reminders.

Founded in 2021, Lista said it has over 1.6 million downloads.

The four founders of the company Expedock, meanwhile, were listed under the Industry, Manufacturing & Energy category: 25-year-olds Rui Aguiar, King Alandy Dy, and Jeff Tan, as well as 27-year-old Jig Young.

According to its website, Expedock helps move thousands of freight containers internationally every week by using artificial intelligence to [automate] the manual processes and connect all physical and digital data sources into one platform.

Citing information from the company, Forbes also noted that large corporations, such as Michigan-headquartered logistics company Ascent, France's CEVA Logistics and Jusda (a spinoff from Taiwan's Foxconn), use Expedocks services.

Under The Arts category, fashion designer Isabel Sicat from Manila also made it to the global media company's list.

The 29-year-old is one half of the duo behind TOQA, a brand that turns deadstock fabrics into sustainable high fashion.

She completed a dual degree at Brown University-Rhode Island School of Design and interned at New York fashion houses, such as Alexander Wang.

Shipmates co-founder David Marquez, 28, meanwhile, joined other Asian names in the Retail & Ecommerce category.

Forbes said Marquez helped establish the Manila-based delivery platform to usher in next-generation shipping technology and infrastructure for the Philippines.

The company was founded in August 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic increased demand for e-commerce and accompanying courier services.

Before Shipmates, the young entrepreneur co-founded t-shirt printing startup Shirt.ly and supply chain and storage startup Xpanse.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  A member of the House Committee on Ethics said Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves request for political asylum will be a factor that the panel will consider in possibly slapping the suspended lawmaker with stiffer sanctions over his continued absence in Congress.

That is definitely isa sa mga titingnan ng ating committee (one of the factors our committee will look into) and that will also determine the recommendation of the committee on May 23, 2023, House ethics panel vice chairperson Raul Angelo Bongalon told CNN Philippines' The Source on Thursday.

Teves, who was tagged as one of the alleged masterminds behind the murder of Gov. Roel Degamo, has refused to return to the country, citing security concerns. He flew to the United States late-February for medical purposes.

On March 22, the House of Representatives slapped Teves with a 60-day suspension due to his continued absence.

Early this month, the embattled lawmaker filed for political asylum in Timor-Leste, but the application was rejected, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

For Bongalon, Teves' request only aggravates his situation.

Technically speaking, if someone is seeking for a political asylum, he is taking a refuge into a foreign country. So, there is an impression that he has no trust anymore to our government, Bongalon said.

He also said that the move made by Teves tarnishes the dignity, reputation, and honor of the House.

Bangolan said the ethics panel is left with two options, either to implement another period of suspension or to expel Teves.

He urged Teves to heed to the call of the lower chamber to return to the country and be physically present in the proceedings regarding his case being tackled by the ethics panel.

The ethics committee vice chair also assured his colleague that they will protect him as he remains a member of the lower chamber.

Bongalon said the panel may come up with its recommendation next week. This will be submitted to the Committee on Rules then to the plenary so the members of the House can act on it before adjourning in June, he added.

READ: House eyes some action on Teves before adjournment of session in June
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Travelers, rejoice! Air fares will get cheaper next month after the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) lowered the fuel surcharge rate for all flights by a notch.

Based on the CABs price matrix, the Level 4 fuel surcharge in June for domestic flights range as follows depending on the distance traveled:

117 (0-200 kilometers), 184 (201-400 kms), 232 (401-600 kms), 296 (601-800 kms), 318 (801-1000), and 342 (greater than 1001 kms).

In May, the Level 5 domestic fuel surcharge stood at 151, 238, 316, 418, 487, and 542, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Level 4 passenger fuel surcharge for international flights are priced as follows based on destination:

385.70 (Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei), 523.68 (China), 533.42 (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Guam), 600.00 (Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Port Moresby, India), 1,327.14 (Australia, Middle East), 1675.36 (New Zealand, Honolulu, Ethiopia), 2,731.26 (North America, United Kingdom, Netherlands, and 2,867.82 (more than 14,000 kms).

Comparatively, the Level 5 international flight fuel surcharge for May stood at 498.03, 676.20, 688.79, 774.75, 1,713.68, 2,163.32, 3,526.77, and 3,703.11, respectively.

AirAsia Philippines on Thursday said the lower surcharge would benefit passengers.

Now that AirAsia Philippines has opened more international destinations, our guests can use the extra savings toward additional baggage allowance for pasalubong and other activities on their travel bucket list, it added.

The airline noted that the continuous lowering of passenger fuel surcharge positively affected the travel behavior of guests as manifested in AirAsia Philippines March to May bookings which yielded 1.57 million seats which is equivalent to 75% of the pre-pandemic figure.

In December 2022, the fuel surcharge stood at Level 8. The CAB downgraded it to Level 7 in January, where it remained until March.

Fuel surcharge was further downgraded to Level 6 in April, then Level 5 in May.

The CAB last set the fuel surcharge to Level 4 in May 2022.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Aside from Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr., five more suspects have been tagged as respondents in the March 4 killing of Governor Roel Degamo and nine other people, Justice Secretary Jesus Remulla said on Thursday.

Remulla did not name the additional respondents, saying he has not yet been given the details.

The NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) was able to identify them. I have to ask the NBI about it. I havent been briefed. I cannot micromanage. Malamang 'yang mga 'yan tumulong sa paggawa ng mga krimen. Mga accessory [Most likely, these people helped in the execution of the crimes. They are what we call accessories], he explained to reporters.

The NBI filed the murder complaints on Wednesday before the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The bureau has not released a copy of the documents to the media, but Remulla earlier said Teves was sued for murder, frustrated murder, and attempted murder in relation to the massacre in Pamplona town.

Teves, who is still at large, has repeatedly denied the accusations against him.

Meanwhile, the DOJ chief maintained that his department and the panel of prosecutors assigned to the case are objective and partial only to justice.

Prosecutors kami. Can the prosecutors be neutral? Prosecutor, kumakampi 'yan sa naapi, sa pinatay. Sa pamilya ng mga pinatay, sa pamilya ng namatay, pamilya ng naaapi. We are not neutral, we are impartial, Remulla said.

[Translation: Were prosecutors. Can the prosecutors be neutral? Prosecutors side with the oppressed and those killed, and with their families. We are not neutral, we are impartial.]

He also clarified that investigation is still ongoing when it comes to Teves brother, former Negros Oriental Governor Pryde Henry.

Remulla said they will not act on anything for political reasons but to punish crimes based on evidence.

Authorities earlier seized multiple firearms, live ammunition, and millions' worth of cash when they raided a sugar mill allegedly owned by Pryde Henry. Several personal belongings of alleged gunmen who assassinated Degamo were also later recovered in the property.

RELATED: Ex-gov Pryde Teves claims police disabled CCTV camera during search
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Majority of Filipinos still trust the Philippine National Police (PNP), according to a recent nationwide survey by OCTA Research.

Results of the latest "Tugon ng Masa" survey found that 80% of Filipinos believe in the police force, 5% expressed a lack of trust, while 15% were undecided over the trustworthiness of the organization.

Respondents from the Visayas and Mindanao were more trusting at 89%, while those from the National Capital Region were less trusting  with just 67% saying they trust the PNP.

Trust in the police was also high among young adults aged 25 to 44 at 86%. Those aged 18 to 24 and those aged 55 to 63 showed the most distrust at 9% and 10%, respectively.

In terms of the PNP's performance, 73% of Filipinos said they were satisfied, 6% were dissatisfied, and 15% expressed uncertainty.

Meanwhile, 41% of the respondents indicated they have seen an improvement in the PNP's implementation of peace and order, 9% said it has worsened, while 48% said they saw no change.

At least 41% of the respondents also thought that the police's handling of crime improved, 8% said otherwise, while 46% said they have not noticed any change.

The nationwide poll was conducted from March 24 to 28 using face-to-face interviews with 1,200 Filipino adults.

It was carried out before the PNP was hounded by controversies such as the alleged "cover-up" of a 6.7-billion shabu haul and a supposed leak of documents and private records of police personnel and applicants.

READ: PNP chief denies cover-up in 6.7B shabu haul arrest

READ: PNP vows speedy probe into 'data leak'
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The Philippines will have to hold more dialogues with the Kuwait government as it seeks to have a long-term solution to labor issues affecting overseas Filipino workers, with the recent being the sudden suspension of visa issuances.

According to Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega, officials from Kuwait insisted that the Philippine government has violated their law.

So status quo pa rin. We will need more talks in the future, he said in a statement Thursday.

De Vega stressed that the national governments goal is to secure a long-lasting solution, admitting that this will not be possible in one sitting with their counterparts.

The alternative would be for us to immediately agree to everything they insist on, or for them to agree to everything we insist on. That is not realistic in diplomatic negotiations even with a friend and partner like Kuwait, he said.

And for us to violate our own laws mandating Philippine embassies to put up a center for Filipinos, just so that we could convince any foreign country to resume hiring our workers, would be dishonorable, the DFA official added.

A delegation from the Philippine government flew to Kuwait earlier this week to discuss the visa issuance suspension, which is seen to affect up to 3,000 skilled workers.

De Vega earlier said the suspension may have stemmed from a 2018 agreement between the two nations allowing the Philippine embassy to serve as a shelter for Filipino workers escaping from their employers.

But since the facility was getting congested, Philippine authorities decided to transfer around 160 OFWs to a hotela move that was not approved by Kuwaiti authorities.

Before the suspension, the Philippines imposed a deployment ban for first-time household workers bound for Kuwait until there are improvements in measures protecting Filipinos working there.

This came after a 35-year-old Filipino household worker was killed in Kuwait.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Authorities arrested five people for their supposed involvement in a cryptocurrency scam that defrauded both locals and foreigners.

The arrests happened in Pasig City on May 17, according to the Philippine National Police's Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG). Two Filipinos, two Israelis, and one from the United States were taken into custody.

The PNP-ACG said the scam was done through online platforms and social media, targeting those seeking help with their digital currency holdings.

"This involves the suspects coercing victims into downloading remote desktop software, such as TeamViewer, under the pretense of providing help, but instead gaining access to their passwords and transferring their cryptocurrency balances to the scammers' wallets," the PNP-ACG said.

No details were provided on how many people were victimized, or the amount of their financial losses.

The PNP-ACG said those arrested will face charges for violating the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 and Presidential Decree No. 1829 or Penalizing Obstruction Of Apprehension of Criminal Offenders.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Senator Robinhood Padilla wants Bureau of Customs officials and uniformed personnel of the government involved in agricultural smuggling to face death sentence.

"Law enforcement kayo. Pinamumugaran tayo ng smuggling. Sa tingin niyo ba masaya ako na life imprisonment kayo?" he said Thursday during the Senate hearing on the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016.

[Translation: You are part of law enforcement, but smuggling is rampant. Do you think I'm satisfied that you will only face life imprisonment?]

"Magbibigay ako ng panukalang batas na kayo diyan sa Bureau of Customs, kapag kayo ay napatunayan na involved sa smuggling, dapat kamatayan din kayo," Padilla added.

[Translation: I will file a bill for those in the Bureau of Customs, if you are involved in smuggling, you should be sentenced to death.]

The neophyte lawmaker later manifested that he wants his proposal for the return of capital punishment to include smuggling of agricultural products among crimes that can be meted the death penalty.

He noted that there could be a mafia behind the smuggling scheme.

"Nagkukwentuhan nga kami ni Senator [JV] Ejercito, parang ang dating ay may mafia na ata diyan sa loob," Padilla said.

[Translation: Senator Ejercito and I were discussing earlier that there could be an internal mafia.]

Section 4 of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act states that anyone who violates the measure shall be penalized with "life imprisonment and a fine of twice the fair value of the smuggled agricultural product and the aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided."

Padilla's proposal also covers Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police staff.

Meanwhile, BOC spokesperson Vincent Maronilla said erring officers could be those assigned in ports.

"Kung mayroon man po sa amin, magsisimula po 'yan sa mga puerto namin. Doon po kasi pinoproseso yung mga shipments na 'yan," said Maronilla.

[Translation: If there are any among us, they could be from our ports. Because the processing of shipments is being done there.]

He added that those who were found to be involved in smuggling are relieved from their posts while an investigation is ongoing.

"During the investigation, pwede siya i-recommend for suspension kaagad tapos kapag nag-desisyon po, ang usual decision namin ay kasama po yung dismissal sa service at pag-refer po ng matter sa Office of the Ombudsman para po for further execution," Maronilla added.

[Translation: During the investigation, we can immediately recommend suspension. And after a decision is made, it usually includes dismissal from service and referral of the matter to the Office of the Ombudsman for further execution.]
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  Private schools will "run out of operating cash" in less than two months if the bill prohibiting the no permit, no exam policy is enacted, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) said Wednesday.

"In the absence of lack of effective means to collect, or any compulsion to ensure prompt payment, we fear that the viability of private educational institutions will be endangered, which in turn will disrupt access to education," COCOPEA chairperson Bernard Villamor said in a statement.

He said a recent study conducted by the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU) and participated by 27 private colleges and universities showed that their financial capacity would "significantly weaken" and the collection of fees would only be able to cover two months' worth of operating expenses on average if the policy is prohibited.

Villamor also noted that educational institutions that are already at a loss or at a breakeven point will be the most financially at-risk schools if the policy is prohibited.

"In as much as taxes are the lifeblood of the government, tuition and other school fees are the lifeblood of private educational institutions. As such, its prompt payment and certain availability is an imperious need for private educational institutions who heavily rely on a steady operating cash flow for its continued day-to-day operations," he added.

While there are proposed safeguards on the bills such as non-readmission to the next semester or school year and withholding of grades, certificates and diplomas, COCOPEA argued that these would not be enough.

"These are reactionary measures that can be resorted to only after operational expenses have been incurred," the chairman said.

COCOPEA also strongly opposed the passage of Senate Bill 1359 and House Bill 7584, which prohibit educational institutions from imposing a policy that will prevent students with unsettled financial obligations from taking exams.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) has expressed support for a bill in the House of Representatives seeking to give the agency a developmental fund.

But Dominick Mariano, a central office director of the Bureau of the Treasury, told the House committee on transportation on Thursday that the fund would defeat the purpose of the government's "one-fund concept."

"Although we support the intent of the bill, noting the critical role that the CAAP plays in our aviation sector, we do note that the setup of the development fund will run contrary or will not be in harmony with our cash management practices, particularly the one-fund concept," Mariano said.

"Since this will set up a separate fund outside of the Treasury, it will minimize or at least carve out from our ability to fund the priority programs of the government as approved by Congress," he added.

House Bill 5002, filed by Rep. Michael Romero, seeks to provide a developmental fund to CAAP to "foster upgrades in regards to its standards, system, and procedures prescribed for civil aviation practices and for other purposes."

Initially, the bill seeks a 5-billion fund that will be "chargeable against funds recommended by the DBM," and thereafter, "appropriations for the CAAP shall be included in the budget proposals under the Department of Transportation (DOTr)."

It will then be included in the General Appropriations Act for continued implementation.

The bill also states that the developmental fund will be administered by the Transportation secretary.

CAAP Director General Capt. Manuel Tamayo said the proposal was "laudable."

"With a sharp decrease in passenger demand due to fear of COVID-19 and imposition of air travel restrictions, the civil aviation industry took the brunt of the pandemic. It admittedly became harder for us to focus on our developmental programs," Tamayo said.

"Thus, it would be highly beneficial for CAAP to receive additional funding for our modernization efforts," he added.

Speaking to the House panel, the DBM agreed with Mariano's comment and also said that the CAAP, an attached agency of the DOTr, has no current programs or activities under the department.

"In this regard, we defer to the DOTr as to the provision for the inclusion in their budget proposal of the developmental fund of CAAP," the DBM said.

According to a document published by the DBM on its website, the policy requires that all government income and revenues must "accrue to the General Fund" to finance priority programs.

"The one-fund concept is significant in that it serves as an avenue through which fiscal authorities may properly allocate scarce government resources in accordance with the priorities in the over-all program of economic development," the DBM said.

The agency also said that the fiscal policy provides the government with a mechanism to "control drawdowns on pooled resources."

"Regularly, the level of funds disbursed are monitored against the level of revenues generated. This way, we are able to stick to the targeted level of disbursement for a given period," the DBM explained.

CAAP has faced two incidents of air traffic troubles this year  first on New Year's Day and second on the long Labor Day weekend.

It already said in January that the countrys air traffic system needs an upgrade, with Tamayo earlier admitting that the technology behind the Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance Systems for Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) of the countrys Air Traffic Management Center is already outdated.

READ: CAAP: PH air traffic system not outdated, but needs constant upgrading

Both houses of Congress are also seeking to limit the functions of CAAP to airport regulation, instead of being both regulator and operator.

READ: Senate adopts report limiting CAAP's functions
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18)  The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) welcomed on Thursday the signing of the implementing rules and regulations of the Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials (CSAEM) Act.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Justice launched the IRR of Republic Act (RA) 11930 on Wednesday and signed it on Thursday. The measure lapsed into law last July 30, 2022.

"This marks an important step in helping implement a law that will allow children to be safer onlineIt stands as a testament to our unwavering commitment to create a safer and more secure future for every Filipino child, be it in online or offline spaces" UNICEF Philippines Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said.

The newly-signed IRR states the actions needed to be taken by the government to address OSAEC in the Philippines.

It directs relevant agencies to develop social behavior change programs to address low reporting of OSAEC and enhances the role of internet intermediaries in combating the issue.

The measure also sees the creation of a registry for both Filipinos and foreigners who violate provisions of the law. This also delineates how the country can exercise jurisdiction over OSAEC offenses committed outside of the Philippines through international legal cooperation.

UNICEF highlighted that the laws IRR was signed amid rising cases of OSAEC in the Philippines, particularly over the COVID-19 pandemic.

"According to the 2022 Disrupting Harm Study conducted by UNICEF, ECPAT International, and Interpol, 20% of Internet-using Filipino children aged 12-17 were subjected to OSAEC," it said.

"This represents an estimated two million children who have been victimized. Additionally, 23-38% of children who are victims do not tell anyone of the harm they experienced, while a very low 0-3% report to the police or to a helpline."

Mama Fatima Singhateh, UN Special Rapporteur on the Sale and Sexual Exploitation of Children, and Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said last December that the Philippines was a hotspot for child sexual exploitation.

READ: PH remains hotspot for child sexual exploitation - UN rapporteur, DOJ chief
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 19)  Former president and incumbent Pampanga 2nd District Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo denied reports linking her to an alleged ouster plot against House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

In a statement released Thursday, Arroyo refuted the allegations and affirmed her support for Romualdez, saying she no longer aspires for the speakership.

"When I learned that there were reports that I was suspected of plotting a 'coup' against Speaker Romualdez, I decided I must speak out to clarify my political position," she said.

"Indeed, some of my actions may have been misconstrued, such as my recent trip with a delegation of congressmen to Korea for some official meeting," she added.

Although Arroyo admitted that she eyed the speakership when Marcos won the presidency, she said she realized the "wisdom" in having Romualdez as speaker instead.

"When President Marcos won, I wanted to aspire for the Speakership of the House," she pointed out. "But it soon became apparent that he was most comfortable with then Congressman Martin Romualdez as Speaker. I quickly realized the wisdom embedded in that sentiment."

In a recent House session, Arroyo was replaced as senior deputy speaker by Dong Gonzales, a fellow lawmaker from Pampanga.

Arroyo initially said the move was a "prerogative of the House."

Majority Floor Leader and Zamboanga 2nd District Rep. Manuel Jose Dalipe earlier said the move was meant to ease the lawmaker of her many responsibilities.
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In a pair of highly anticipated rulings handed down Thursday, the US Supreme Court found that Google and Twitter could not be held liable under anti-terrorism laws for hosting content posted by terrorist groups. The decision was seen as a victory for the technology sector.

In Twitter, Inc. v. Taamneh, Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for a unanimous court, said that the plaintiffs in the original case  the family of a Jordanian national who died in a terrorist attack  had failed to state a claim under which relief could be provided. Thmoas wrote that the anti-terrorism law under which they sued Twitter did not provide for liability in a case where Twitter had merely provided a platform ISIS used.

Plaintiffs have failed to allege that defendants intentionally provided any substantial aid to the Reina attack or otherwise consciously participated in theattack  much less that defendants so pervasively and systemically assisted ISIS as to render them liable for every ISIS attack, Thomas wrote.

The ruling in the Twitter case focused solely on the anti-terrorism law in question  the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act  and did not touch on Section 230, a telecommunications law that bars liability against tech platform providers such as Facebook and Twitter for the content that they host.

Nor were any Section 230 questions discussed in a brief unsigned opinion issued on behalf of the court in Gonzalez v. Google. That decision essentially stated that the reasoning in the Twitter case was substantially similar enough to apply to both cases, with the same result. In that case, the question was whether Google could be held liable for hosting terrorism-related content on YouTube.

We think it sufficient to acknowledge that much (if not all) of plaintiffs complaint seems to fail under either our decision in Twitter or the Ninth Circuits unchallenged holdings below, the court wrote. We therefore decline to address the application of [Section] 230 to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief.

Section 230 has been a major point of contention; tech companies have warned that any weakening of its protections would essentially end social media, forcing Twitter, Facebook and others to shut down for fear of being sued over anything hosted on their platform, or making them abandon moderation altogether. The rulings foreclose on the possibility, for the moment, that the Supreme Court will change the legal landscape around liability for hosted content.
Hong Kong: CE meets Zhuhai mayor

Chief Executive John Lee met Zhuhai Mayor Huang Zhihao today to discuss deepening co-operation between Hong Kong and Zhuhai.

After welcoming Mr Huang and his delegation to the city, Mr Lee expressed gratitude for the strong support of the central government, the Guangdong Provincial Government and the Zhuhai Municipal Government in taking forward and implementing the Northbound Travel for Hong Kong Vehicles.

Starting July 1, approved Hong Kong private cars will be allowed to travel between Hong Kong and Guangdong via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge.

Mr Lee said he believes that the scheme will enable Hong Kong and Zhuhai to embrace the opportunities brought by the bridge and facilitate further connection between the two places.

He pointed out that the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) has been working closely with the Zhuhai Municipal Government to start collaboration over the operation and management of Zhuhai Airport since 2006.

Last November, the two sides signed the Zhuhai Municipal Government and AAHK Co-operation Memorandum of Understanding, effectively combining the strengths of the two airports in Hong Kong and Zhuhai with multiplying synergy, thereby creating new opportunities for development.

The Chief Executive also noted that Hong Kong and Zhuhai have always been close partners in areas including trade, investment and aviation.

He encouraged Zhuhai enterprises to leverage on Hong Kong's advantages in areas such as finance, commerce, logistics, management and professional services to complement the strengths of Hong Kong enterprises and explore global markets.

Mr Lee added that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government will continue to make the best use of the institutional advantages of "one country, two systems" and its highly market-oriented and international business environment underpinned by the rule of law, serving the needs of the country with the strengths of Hong Kong.

Under the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong and Zhuhai can co-operate on various fronts to achieve complementarity and mutual benefits.

This story has been published on: 2023-05-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Singapore becomes worlds largest producer of sustainable aviation fuel, with 1 million tonnes capacity at new Neste plant

The Singapore expansion of the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant set up by Neste of Finland is now complete, making Singapore the worlds largest producer of SAF. An estimated 1 million metric tonnes of SAF can now be produced from this facility, which is an expansion of the existing renewable diesel plant run in Singapore by Neste.

The Singapore refinery expansion of the Neste plant will take the Finnish companys total annual SAF production capacity to 5.5 million tonnes by early 2024. Photo courtesy: Twitter/@NesteGlobal

Announcing the project completion yesterday, Neste tweeted: Today, we celebrate the opening of our Singapore refinery expansion, and what an incredible journey it has been. Neste had first invested in Singapore in 2007, establishing a renewable diesel refinery. The new SAF plant sits next to the first refinery. Located in Tuas, Singapore, the SAF plant cost EUR1.5 billion (SGD2.2 billion).

SAF is jet fuel that has a renewable biofuel component in it. The biofuel can power aviation because its chemical nature is similar to fossil fuel, but it is sustainable because it comes from a renewable source like biomass.

According to the definition of renewable diesel provided by the US Energy Information Administration: Renewable diesel is a biomass-based diesel fuel similar to biodiesel, but with important differences. Renewable diesel is a hydrocarbon that is chemically equivalent to petroleum diesel and can be used as a drop-in biofuel and can be transported in petroleum pipelines and sold at retail stations with or without blending with petroleum diesel.

SAF is the aviation industrys answer to shrinking its carbon footprint, as the world heads full tilt towards almost irreversible climate change and heat waves sweep across every continent.

Many global and local carriers, including Singapore Airlines, have pledged to use SAF as their contribution to meeting the goals of Net Zero, a state where no new greenhouses gases are added to the atmosphere through human activity.

Singapore Airlines is among the carriers that have pledged their support for Net Zero goals. Picture courtesy: Twitter/@SingaporeAir

People will still need to travel and theyll want to travel faster, so air travel is not going away. Making air travel greener is the solution, and ramping up SAF production is the need of the hour.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in December 2022: Airlines are committed to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050 and see SAF as a key contributor. Current estimates expect SAF to account for 65 per cent of the mitigation needed for this, requiring a production capacity of 450 billion litres annually in 2050.

Neste said in a promotional video that the Singapore expansion, together with its venture in California, United States, would take its total annual SAF production capacity to 5.5 million tonnes by early 2024. It also has a venture in Rotterdam (the Netherlands).
Singapore Zoo celebrates its Golden Jubilee with ZOObilee festivities from May

Come June 27, 2023, Singapore Zoo will mark 50 monumental years of connecting people with wildlife, and its evolution as a zoological institution dedicated to animal care and conservation. The Golden ZOObilee festivities kick off in May with a lineup of activities.

(From left) The entrance of Singapore Zoo in its early years and now. The wildlife park has welcomed close to 60 million visitors over the last 50 years. Photo credit: Mandai Wildlife Group

Mike Barclay, Group CEO of Mandai Wildlife Group, which manages Singapore Zoo, said, Kinship and community are the hallmarks of this Golden ZOObilee. We pay tribute to the generations who have looked after the animals under our care, the cohorts of dedicated staff who have worked hard to sustain this world-class zoological institution, and the millions of guests as well as generous donors who have enabled Singapore Zoo to go from strength to strength over the last 50 years.

Above all, Singapore Zoo brings us all closer to wildlife, serving as the best possible platform to celebrate the wonders of the natural world, to explain the threats faced by so many animals in the wild, and to share what we can all do to allow people and wildlife to thrive together.

We would like to thank everyone for their unyielding support, and we will continue to reinvest funding and resources to improve our zoological parks, from education programmes to breeding programmes, and financing wildlife conservation work across the region.

A window to the wild

The idea of a zoo near the Upper Seletar Reservoir was conceived in 1968. Subsequently, the pioneer team started from a clean slate to create a naturalistic zoo that also takes advantage of Singapores tropical environment. Singapore Zoo opened in 1973 and is now internationally well-known for its open-concept design.

Among the immersive wildlife habitats that are most popular with guests are Fragile Forest where close to 50 species, from birds to mammals, freely roam the biodome, and the worlds first free-ranging Orangutan exhibit that opened in 2006.

The zoo also introduced glass-fronted galleries where guests can get up-close with carnivores like leopards or appreciate underwater viewing of aquatic animals like Sea Lions and Pygmy Hippos showing off their gracefulness in the watery realms.

In more recent years, RepTopia 1 was launched to bring guests into the curious world of the planets most threatened reptiles, amphibians and arthropods (animals without backbones).

Starting out with just 272 animals across 72 species five decades ago, Singapore Zoo today is home to more than 4,200 animals from over 300 species, of which 34 per cent are threatened. Animals that have made an indelible mark in the hearts and minds of Singaporeans include Ah Meng the Sumatran Orangutan, Inuka the first Polar Bear born in the tropics, and Omar the White Tiger.

In the zoos storied history, it has seen significant births such as the endangered Komodo Dragon in 2009. Singapore Zoo was the first zoo in Asia, outside of the species native home of Indonesia, to successfully breed it. Other important new additions included a pair of Crocodile Monitors in 2019, particularly special as they were the worlds very first second-generation Crocodile Monitors to hatch under human care.

Going further back in time, Singapore Zoo celebrated its first Orangutan birth in 1975, slightly more than two years after the zoo opened. It was rare for the species to have progenies under human care, and since then the zoo has had more than 44 Orangutan babies.

Wildlife Care, Conservation and Education continue to be the core tenets of Singapore Zoo. Over the past decades, Singapore Zoo has made significant strides in these fields. The zoo is an accredited member of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) and the Zoo and Aquarium Association of Australia (ZAA), as well as a member of the Southeast Asia Zoo Association (SEAZA) and the World Association of Zoos and Aquaria (WAZA).

Cinerous Vulture (Aegypius monachus) - Sherlock (An appearance like Sherlock Holmes and the thirst for seeking its next catch). Photo credit: Gaurav Seth

It currently participates in 58 internationally managed ex-situ breeding programmes for species like the Bornean and Sumatran Orangutans (whose populations are managed regionally by the zoo), Red Ruffed Lemur and Goodfellows Tree Kangaroo, contributing to the conservation of species through breeding, research and education. It is also home to five insurance colonies for threatened species, including the Burmese Roofed Turtle and Small Cigar Stick Insect. Insurance populations safeguard threatened species against extinction under human care to increase the chances of the species survival in the long term while the threats in their habitats are dealt with.

Flamingo - The frontal look (eye to eye, face to face). Photo credit: Gaurav Seth

In addition, Singapore Zoo has one of the largest ex-situ populations of Southeast Asian Chelonians (Turtles and Tortoises) as well as the largest and most successful breeding colonies for Proboscis Monkeys and Red-shanked Douc Langurs outside of their native range.

The zoo regularly engages people from all walks of life through conservation and sustainability education, such as via school programmes to inspire a love for wildlife through outdoor experiential learning. Besides partnering schools on multi-disciplinary learning journeys where Singapore Zoo serves as a living classroom, it has also made its way into story books as curriculum-recommended reading resources.

Celebrating 50 years with a zoo-per fun line-up

As one of Singapores oldest wildlife parks, Singapore Zoo has welcomed close to 60 million visitors over the last five decades, many of whom have made precious memories at the zoo. This Golden ZOObilee, join in the celebrations of this beloved national icon and discover its wildlife wonders anew.

The ART-ZOO concept was inspired by creator Jackson Tans fond childhood memories at Singapore Zoo. ART-ZOO comes to the zoo for the first time in a fitting celebration of its golden jubilee. Photo credit: Mandai Wildlife Group

ART-ZOO Happy ZOObilee runs from May 27 to August 27, 2023. Eight bespoke animal sculptures have been created especially for this commemorative edition. It will be hard to miss the larger-than-life inflatables and 2D sculptures of Jubilee the Rothschilds Giraffe, Astove the Aldabra Giant Tortoise, Komali the Asian Elephant, Minah and Bubu the Pygmy Hippos, Bunny the Linnes Two-toed Sloth, Izara the Grevys Zebra, Hoepel the White Rhino, and Ah Meng the Sumatran Orangutan. Besides snapping photos along the Instagrammable Happy ZOObilee trail, children can interact with tactile play elements to get the inside scoop on their favourite animals. End the trail at the 21-metre-long inflatable art playground, with other fringe activities, including animal interaction sessions and craft workshops.

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Pick up the pace with the Mandai Wildlife Run, which will take place on September 23-24, 2023. Previously known as the Safari Zoo Run, which started in 2009 in memory of Ah Meng, the event makes a return after a 3-year hiatus, providing the unique opportunity for participants to run in Singapore Zoo, River Wonders and Night Safari, while taking in the sights and sounds of nature. There will be something for everyone with all-new race categories for seniors, as well as health and wellness activities, sustainability-themed workshops and up-close animal interactions. Every sign-up comes with Conservation Included, where a portion of proceeds goes towards supporting conservation projects locally and in the region. Registration starts on June 27, 2023.

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Singapore Zoo will be launching Backstage Pass  Incredible Invertebrates on August 6, 2023. This new tour will take participants behind the scenes of Fragile Forest to discover the role of insects in our ecosystem. Hear all about the fascinating invertebrates, which make up 95 per cent of the animal kingdom, and get hands-on with activities such as identifying butterfly eggs and releasing newly-unfurled beauties into the Butterfly Aviary. Guests can book this Backstage Pass from July 6, 2023.

The area just outside the entrance of Singapore Zoo which first featured flamingos, and later, macaws. Photo credit: Mandai Wildlife Group

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Keep a lookout for the Zoo Adventure Tour: ZOObilee edition from June 27 to August 27, 2023. The private buggy tour will incorporate key highlights of the zoos history, on top of animal interaction and feeding sessions. Guests can explore the park with their specially curated handbook. Tour bookings open on May 27, 2023.

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Check out the 2-day Wild Explorer Camp on June 1-2 and June 8-9, 2023, for young ones aged 6-10 years. Parents can sign their children up for a fun-filled wildlife experience at Singapore Zoo and River Wonders during the holidays, where they will get to embark on guided tours and meet animal ambassadors.

Rhinoceros - Fine lining, an old beauty (that mesmerising scaly texture on rhino's skin). Photo credit: Gaurav Seth

White Tiger - The calmness before the storm. Photo credit: Gaurav Seth
Russian national, Mikhail Pavlovich Matveev, has been charged and indicted for launching ransomware attacks against thousands of victims in the US and across the world, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said in a press release.

The US Department of State has also announced an award of up to $10 million for information that leads to the arrest and/or conviction of the Russian national.

According to the indictment obtained in the District of New Jersey, from at least as early as 2020, Mikhail Pavlovich Matveev, aka Wazawaka, aka m1x, aka Boriselcin, aka Uhodiransomwar, allegedly participated in conspiracies to deploy three ransomware variants, the DOJ said in a statement.

The three variants are LockBit, Babuk, and Hive, and Matveev transmitted ransom demands in connection with each. The three ransomware groups victims include law enforcement and other government agencies, hospitals, and schools.

Matveev is charged with conspiring to transmit ransom demands, conspiring to damage protected computers, and intentionally damaging protected computers. If convicted, he faces over 20 years in prison.

$400 million demanded in ransom

Total ransom demands allegedly made by the members of these three global ransomware campaigns from their victims amount to as much as $400 million. While total victim ransom payments amount to as much as $200 million, the DOJ said.

The LockBit ransomware variant first appeared in January 2020. Threat actors behind the LockBit ransomware have executed over 1,400 attacks against victims in the US and around the world, demanding over $100 million in ransom and receiving over $75 million in ransom payments.

On or about June 25, 2020, Matveev and his LockBit coconspirators allegedly deployed LockBit ransomware against a law enforcement agency in Passaic County, New Jersey, the DOJ said.

The Babuk ransomware variant first appeared around December 2020. Babuk actors executed over 65 attacks against victims in the US and around the world, demanding over $49 million in ransom demands and receiving as much as $13 million in ransom payments.

On April 26, 2021, Matveev and his Babuk coconspirators allegedly deployed Babuk against the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC, the DOJ said.

Since June 2021, the Hive ransomware group has targeted more than 1,400 victims around the world and received as much as $120 million in ransom payments.

On or about May 27, 2022, Matveev and his Hive coconspirators allegedly deployed Hive against a nonprofit behavioral healthcare organization headquartered in Mercer County, New Jersey, the DOJ said.

The LockBit, Babuk, and Hive ransomware variants operate in the same manner. First, the ransomware actors identify and unlawfully access vulnerable computer systems, either through their own hacking or by purchasing stolen access credentials from others.

Then the threat actors would deploy the ransomware variant within the victims computer system, allowing the actors to encrypt and steal data. After this, the actors send a ransom note to the victim demanding payment in exchange for decrypting the victims data or refraining from sharing it publicly. If a victim does not pay, ransomware actors would often post that victims data on their data leak site.

Focus on Russia

Russia is a haven for ransomware actors, enabling cybercriminals like Matveev to engage openly in ransomware attacks against US organizations, according to a release by the US Department of the Treasury.

About 75% of ransomware-related incidents reported between July and December 2021 were linked to Russia, its proxies, or persons acting on its behalf, according to Treasurys Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

The United States will not tolerate ransomware attacks against our people and our institutions, Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E Nelson, said in a press note.

Ransomware actors like Matveev will be held accountable for their crimes, and we will continue to use all available authorities and tools to defend against cyber threats, Nelson added.
FX markets are susceptible to a range of factors which affect their volatility, and many traders look to tailor their strategies to capitalize on the most volatile currency pairs.

Currency volatility, often measured by calculating the standard deviation or variance of currency price movements, gives traders an idea of how much a currency might move relative to its average over a given time period. Traders can also gauge volatility by looking at a currency pairs average true range or by looking at range as percent of spot.

The higher the level of currency volatility, the higher the degree of risk, and vice versa. Volatility and risk are usually used as interchangeable terms.Different currency pairs have different levels of volatility on average.

Some traders enjoy the higher potential rewards that come with trading volatile currency pairs. Although, this increased potential reward does present a greater risk, so traders should consider reducing their position sizes when trading highly volatile currency pairs.

What are the most volatile currency pairs?

The most volatile major currency pairs are:

Other major currency pairs, like EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD and USD/CHF, are generally more liquid and less volatile as a result. That said, emerging market currency pairs, such as USD/ZAR, USD/TRY and USD/MXN, can clock some of the highest volatility readings.

MOST VOLATILE CURRENCY PAIRS

Majors - AUD/JPY, NZD/JPY, AUD/USD, CAD/JPY, GBP/AUD

Emerging Markets - USD/ZAR, USD/TRY, USD/MXN

Aside from relatively low liquidity, emerging market currencies tend to be highly volatile in particular due to inherent risk underpinning emerging market economies. The chart below gives an example of how volatile emerging market currencies can be, which shows USD/ZAR (US Dollar/South Africa Rand) exploding nearly 25% higher in just over a months time. There are several other examples of emerging market currency pairs swinging drastically like this throughout history.

What about the least volatile currency pairs?

The least volatile currency pairs tend to be the major currency pairs which are also the most liquid. Also, these economies tend to be larger and more developed. This attracts more trading volume and facilitates greater price stability in turn. To that end, considering EUR/USD, USD/CHF and EUR/GBP trade with high volumes of liquidity, it comes as little surprise they are among the lease volatile currency pairs.

Illustrated below, the average true range (ATR) on USD/CHF ranges between 45-pips and 65-pips, a low average true range compared to other pairs. The average true range of a currency is one of the many ways to measure the volatility of a currency pair. Bollinger Band width is another popular technical indicator used to measure volatility.

Correlation between two currencies can also have an impact on their volatility. The more positively two currencies are correlated to one another might lead to less volatility. Continuing with our USD/CHF example, we note that the US Dollar and Swiss Franc are both viewed as safe-haven currencies.

The US Dollar and Swiss Franc tend to strengthen against their sentiment-linked peers when the market experiences episodes of risk aversion, but the two currencies may not deviate much from each other. This contributes to relatively low volatility readings for USD/CHF.

Recommended by Rich Dvorak Get Your Free USD Forecast Get My Guide

How to trade currency pair volatility

Forex traders should take into account current readings of volatility and potential changes in volatility when trading. Market participants should also consider adjusting their position sizes with respect to how volatile a currency pair is. Trading a volatile currency pair might warrant a reduced position size.

Awareness of volatility can also help traders determine appropriate levels for stop loss and take profit limit orders. Furthermore, it is important to understand the key characteristics separating the most volatile currencies from currencies with low volatility readings. Traders should also know how to measure volatility and have an awareness of events that might create big changes in volatility.

The difference between trading currency pairs with high volatility versus low volatility

Currencies with high volatility will normally move more pips over a certain period than currencies with low volatility. This leads to increased risk when trading currency pairs with high volatility. Currencies with high volatility are more prone to slippage than currency pairs with low volatility. Due to high-volatility currency pairs making bigger moves, you should determine the correct position size to take when trading them.

There are several ways to measure volatility

To determine the correct position size, traders need to have an expectation of how volatile a currency can be. A variety of indicators can be used to measure volatility like:

Average true range (ATR).

(ATR). Donchian channels.

Moving averages (by comparing the moving average to the current price).

Traders can also look at implied volatility readings, which reflect the level of expected volatility derived from options.

Key things traders should know about volatility:

Big news events like Brexit or trade wars can have a major impact on a currencys volatility. Data releases can also influence volatility. Traders can stay ahead of data releases by using an economic calendar.

or can have a major impact on a currencys volatility. Data releases can also influence volatility. Traders can stay ahead of data releases by using an Volatile currency pairs still obey many technical aspects of trading, like support and resistance levels, trendlines and price patterns. Traders can take advantage of the volatility using technical analysis in combination with strict risk management principles .

levels, trendlines and price patterns. Traders can take advantage of the volatility using technical analysis in combination with strict . Staying up to date with the latest forex pair news , analysis and rates can help you predict possible changes in volatility. We provide comprehensive trading forecasts to help you navigate the market.

, and can help you predict possible changes in volatility. We provide comprehensive to help you navigate the market. DailyFX hosts daily webinars to answer questions and help traders prepare for volatile market conditions.

to answer questions and help traders prepare for volatile market conditions. Supplement your forex learning and strategy development with the DailyFX Education Center .
My son Ivory was born three months early, weighing less than a kilo. When I was allowed to hold him, after a few weeks, he was so small he fit into my hand.

It's a miracle we survived. I suffered eclampsia  a dangerous condition that causes high blood pressure  and my liver and kidneys failed: he spent three months in the hospital's special care unit.

Ivory is five years old now. Every day when he gets home from school we have a five-minute hug. I make the most of those moments as I know they won't last forever. My daughter, Afrika, is 14 and on her way to being a young woman.

I am incredibly proud of them both but I have to admit that when I meet women who don't have children, I have a guilty feeling of envy. Bringing up children has brought me joy  but it's also been my greatest struggle.

So I can well understand why more women that than ever are choosing not to have children, or to limit themselves to a single child.

NANA AKUA: My son Ivory was born three months early, weighing less than a kilo. When I was allowed to hold him, after a few weeks, he was so small he fit into my hand

Our birth rate is plummeting, something Jacob Rees-Mogg (pictured), a father of six, has flagged up as potentially devastating to Britain's economy

READ MORE: Some realms may want to ditch the King - but they DO know the enduring power of the Commonwealth Advertisement

Our birth rate is plummeting, something Jacob Rees-Mogg, a father of six, has flagged up as potentially devastating to Britain's economy.

And it's true. Unless we take drastic action, in just 40 years' time, there won't be enough younger workers to fund our pensions.

The 'replacement' fertility rate required to keep the population stable is 2.1 children per woman. In the UK (and many other Western countries) that is down to 1.6 and continuing to fall.

Immigration may fill some of the gap, but what we urgently need to do is to support the people we most want to have children  and that's hard-working men and women who will contribute to the public purse.

Some, like Tory MP Danny Kruger, seem to think our reluctance to have children is down to the narcissism of the 'me' generation, but the women I talk to are making practical decisions, shaped by the cost-of-living crisis, shortage of housing and student debt.

We all know bringing up children is tough. When someone tells you they're pregnant today, you might instinctively say 'Congratulations!' but you're probably also thinking 'Wow, get ready for the financial hit'

Money has always played a part in our decisions to have children. There was no way I could afford a child in my 20s. By the age of 37, I had bought two properties and sensibly saved enough money to live on, but the year I took off work with Afrika set me back more than financially: it set me back ten years in my career. I had to fight to get back into the workplace  and that was tough.

I'm still climbing out of the financial pit that childcare cast me into. I hired an au pair, which may sound like a luxury, but it was cheaper than nursery. At times, I was borrowing against one credit card to pay another.

NANA AKUA: Immigration may fill some of the gap, but what we urgently need to do is to support the people we most want to have children  and that's hard-working men and women who will contribute to the public purse (stock image)

I'm a single mother, but not by choice. My relationships with Afrika and Ivory's fathers did not work out. And with the divorce rate so high, many women find themselves coping alone like me.

For them especially  and even for many couples  the cost of childcare is ruinous. We need a complete rethink of the way women are treated by the tax system and in the workplace environment.

As Penistone and Stocksbridge MP Miriam Cates says, we incentivise the purchase of solar panels and use tax breaks to encourage businesses to invest  so why should the state remain neutral when it comes to matters of family and fertility?

As things stand, parents who work more than 16 hours a week and earn less than 100,000 are entitled to 30 hours of free childcare a week for children aged three to four. And from April next year, some free childcare provision will be provided to younger children. That's a start but we need to do much more.

We fund schools. I'd like to see education extended to a fully funded provision of nurseries. We know children thrive in these settings: they become better-socialised and faster learners.

And we know there is a benefit to the economy in having women in the workplace. So, men, it's time to step up. The rich countries with the lowest fertility rates are those where women get the least help with the household  like South Korea where the birthrate is at a perilous 0.84 and women do 4.43 times as much domestic work as their partners.

We have to find a way of relieving the pressure on parents. For the last eight years, I've been giving motivational talks to teenagers and when I ask if they see children as part of their future, fewer and fewer are saying yes. That's sad  if we want to turn it around we need to do something, fast.
March 2023: Official US accounts reveal multi-millionaire Meghan Markle says she works just ONE HOUR a week for her charity foundation Archewell.

May 2023: Meghan Markle wins the Women of Vision gong at the Ms Foundation Awards where she goes on stage in New York and invokes the late Queen by preaching to the gathered multi-millionaires about a life of 'service'.

The public deification of the Duchess of Sussex would be almost farcical if it wasn't taken seriously by the uber woke American left-wing media elite.

How can someone invoke sacrifice when they appear to have done literally the total opposite throughout their well-documented life?

As someone who has covered Meghan since she started to date Harry, the launch of Meghan 2.0 in New York this week was all taken from her carefully plotted PR playbook, albeit now somewhat overshadowed by the 'car chase' row that followed.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the Ms Foundation Women of Vision Awards on Tuesday

Livid about missing the spotlight at the King's Coronation, most likely because of very real fears she would have been booed while entering and possibly even inside Westminster Abbey, she needed her own golden moment in the spotlight.

Her exhausting one-sided rivalry with the Princess of Wales  so dignified and poised at the Coronation  will never end.

So predictably, her saccharin but soulless speech was littered with not-so-subtle digs at the Royal Family.

Yet again, she suggests she was treated so appallingly by her various servants and advisers in the Royal Family, that she realised she could 'not be afraid of saying what is true and what is just and what is right.'

But any fact check of her Oprah Winfrey moanfest about her time in the UK will confirm that 'saying what is true' is not one of Meghan's priorities.

'Her truth' is claiming she's the world's most unlikely victim  revered by millions, living in mansions or palaces, showered with free gifts, and with the sort of daily privilege and luxury for which most of us can only ever dream.

As part of the US-facing relaunch, Meghan is also trying to equate herself to the late Queen by stealing her mantra of 'daily acts of service'.

The Sussexes were joined by Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, for the event on Tuesday

Meghan arrives in a $1,850 strapless gold dress with scalloped pattern detailing on Tuesday

But, let's have some real talk for a moment, no two women could be more different.

The late Queen eschewed personal luxuries and an easy life to dedicate her time on planet earth to serving the British people and the Commonwealth, with a hard daily slog even into her twilight years.

She avoided personal dramas, lived modestly and was almost entirely focussed  aside from her love of the horses  on her subjects on a daily basis, right up until her death at 96.

Oh, and she didn't want the world to know her innermost feelings.

Sadly, amongst the woke brigade these days, embracing the scourge of victimhood is good for business, so that's what Meghan will continue to do.

By calling on people to 'be the visionary of your own life', she is, yet again, suggesting she had to break free of the confines of the Royal Family to do that.

In reality, Meghan could have achieved far more for the charity causes she claims to care about if she had stayed working within the British monarchy.

When I think about the late Princess Diana, she is immediately linked to the projects for which she devoted her time.

In such a short life, she transformed public discourse internationally on bulimia and other eating disorders, the AIDS epidemic and the plight of landmines.

A quarter of a century on from her tragic death, the impact that she made in these important social and humanitarian areas is still felt today.

It's not an exaggeration to say she changed the world.

Her daughter-in-law, by contrast, appears focussed on a blancmange woke set of radical feminist priorities not rooted in any actual practical change.

The charity honoured Meghan for her so-called 'lifelong advocacy for women and girls', describing the privileged princess as 'one of the most powerful and influential women in the world'.

But that doesn't answer the most fundamental question in all of this: What has she actually done?

Meghan 2.0 appears to be all about a ruthless dominance of the woke media narrative via spin, Hollywood glamour and money, not practical good deeds.

There is no suggestion that there is any overarching sort of mission, other than earning lots of greenback and fast, while increasing her profile through highly controlled media and personal appearances.

The Duchess held a gold clutch in her hand and sported diamond bracelets on her wrist

We were assured that, 'Meghan directs her philanthropy through their Archewell Foundation'.

But their overwhelming focus since moving to Montecito has, it seems to me, been directing their efforts into making themselves very very rich, rather than focussing on their charity endeavours where official filings for Archewell record her working just one hour per week, though this is apparently the standard amount that non-profits disclose for board participation, and is similar to disclosures made by the Obamas and Mark Zuckerberg for their charitable foundations.

The tax records for Archewell obtained by MailOnline revealed that in 2021 it gave out $3million in grants while raising $13 million from wealthy benefactors and $4,500 in public donations.

They made much more money from their deals with Netflix and Spotify, which they've used to buy a massive mansion.

There was a large degree of hypocrisy on display, as ever, as she called for 'grace' and 'fairness' during her speech.

What is graceful or fair about attacking a seriously ill father who raised you and paid for your education and highly privileged Californian upbringing while dumping on him from a great height publicly?

What is graceful or fair about maligning the lifes work of the late great Queen by making false accusations that the British Royal Family is racist and waiting until after her death before allowing your hapless husband to publicly correct the record?

What is graceful or fair about spreading constant hatred about the future king Prince William and his delightful wife Kate knowing full well their life of service means they are unable to publicly respond?

Absolutely nothing!

On stage in front of her woke brigade, Meghan urged us little people to take up a life of service and kindness, preaching: 'It's never too late to start.'

If only she'd start taking her own advice.
Catherine, the Princess of Wales helped smooth over the tense relationship between William and his father King Charles by cultivating a relationship with Camilla, according to royal author and commentator, Angela Levin

In her biography of Queen Camilla, which has recently been updated, Ms Levin says that the Princess of Wales made a real effort to spend time with both William's father and his stepmother.

And that these friendships have enabled Kate to become the family 'peacemaker'.

It is thought that friction between William and his father intensified after he married Camilla in 2005 - and that there was tension with his new stepmother, also.

Kate reportedly helped smooth the troubled relationship between William and his father King Charles by cultivating a friendship with Camilla

Friction supposedly arose between William and his father after he married Camilla in 2005, but Kate has used her love of the arts to bond with the couple, according to author Angela Levin

Prince William has now been seen supporting his stepmother during public royal appearances

But that Kate took matters into her own hands.

Ms Levin writes in her book that Kate used shared interests, such as a love of the arts, to bond with Charles and Camilla and organised private meetings with them - without William in tow.

In Camilla: from Outcast to Queen Consort, Ms Levin writes: 'Fortunately, time helped improve Camilla's relationship with senior Royals, including Prince William, largely thanks to the Princess of Wales, who is a peacemaker.

'Camilla is also a conciliator and doesn't nurse grievances. They both believe that supporting their husbands is a priority,' says Ms Levin, a journalist who has worked extensively for both The Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday.

'Catherine has a love of the arts, which William doesn't particularly share, and she often goes both privately and publicly with the Queen Consort and King Charles to see exhibitions.'

In his memoir Spare released earlier this year, Prince Harry revealed how the brothers were reluctant to accept their father's remarriage to Camilla, saying they 'begged' him not to remarry.

Charles had tried to win over his sons before asking the public to accept Camilla, the book claims. Harry then astonishingly says that meeting the future Queen Consort for the first time was like an 'injection'.

He wrote: 'I remember wondering...if she would be cruel to me; if she would be like all the wicked stepmothers in the stories.'

He later wrote that ultimately he and William approved of Camilla.

After it was announced last year that Camilla could use the title of Queen when Charles became King, one royal source described the tensions in the family saying: 'There were huge family rows in the early stages of Charles and Camilla's marriage as everyone found their feet.

'William didn't have the best relationship with his father back then.

'But he sees that Camilla had made his father happy and it is something he has come to terms with.

'His relationship with the Prince of Wales is better than it ever has been.

'He is not particularly close to his stepmother but they get on perfectly well and are quite the blended family now.'

Prince William has been seen supporting his stepmother during public royal appearances, including assisting her during King Charles' proclamation last year.

In a touching moment, Prince William offered his stepmother a guiding hand as she stepped up to sign her husband's declaration.

As they walked into the hall where they were met by the Archbishop of Canterbury and several senior government officials, the Prince of Wales kindly put his arm out as he walked behind his stepmother, the Queen Consort.

The heartwarming gesture showed the pair moving into a new phase of their relationship after years of difficult familial issues.
A woman sparked a frenzy after revealing on TikTok that she paid thousands of dollars for a tattoo sketch, only to be refused a refund from the artist when she decided not to go through with it.

Courtney Monteith, from Ontario, Canada, wanted a full sleeve tattoo on her arm of a fox surrounded by leaves and flowers. But all she got was a rough drawing that she said looked nothing like what she wanted and subsequently was out $2,600.

In the video posted on May 10, Monteith explained she had consulted with tattoo artist Lindsay Joseph of Lucid Tattoos, sent her examples and had agreed to upfront fees.

But when the sketch was nothing like she wanted, and the artist wanted more money to change it, ultimately denying her a refund, Monteith said she felt ripped off.

She then turned to TikTok to share her nightmare experience, with her first video receiving more than five million views that was later dubbed #tattoogate.

Courtney Monteith sparked a frenzy after revealing on TikTok that she paid $2,600 for a tattoo sketch, but was refused a refund from the artist when she decided not to go through with it

She wanted a full sleeve tattoo on her arm of a fox surrounded by leaves and flowers (above), but what she got was a rough drawing that she said looked nothing like what she wanted

Monteith told her followers that she sent Joseph two photos of what she wanted her tattoo to look like: A full body image of an orange fox surrounded by different plants or butterflies.

Joseph agreed and Monteith booked a consultation with her for a non-refundable fee of $180. During the consultation is when Joseph explained her other fees - which social media users said were red flags.

The first option was to pay $1,500 for a concept sketch to which she could request one change, a second option of $3,500 to have a few changes, or $6,000 for multiple sketches, reviews and changes, all plus tax.

Monteith settled on the first option, forking over $2,695, remaining 'confident' that Joseph would design a beautiful piece for her.

But things started to go wrong for Monteith when received the first sketch of the fox tattoo and it wasn't anything like what she asked for. She told her followers that she wanted the full body of the fox like in the reference images she had provided.

Monteith turned to TikTok to share her nightmare experience, with her first video receiving more than five million views that was later dubbed #tattoogate

Lindsay Joseph of Lucid Tattoos, has since made her accounts private after reportedly getting flooded with bad reviews and death threats after the ordeal

When she emailed the artist for changes, Joseph balked pointing at the price options and the fees she had agreed on.

She explained that she would have to pay the difference between option one and option two  which was an extra $2,260.

'She said it was my fault that I wasn't clear that I wanted a full fox,' Monteith said. 'I don't know how much clearer I could have been.'

The artist also reportedly emailed Monteith explaining that a tattoo of a full fox would've looked like the animal was 'scooting when they get an itchy back end.'

A disappointed Monteith gave up on her fox tattoo and asked for a refund. To her shock, Joseph refused.

'No. I'm not refunding you anything, I have given you options of moving forward, I have been kind, patient, and have fulfilled my duties to you this far,' she wrote in a screenshot Monteith shared.

'If you don't want to move forward, that is your choice, but I'm not giving you my time, expertise, and creativity for nothing.'

When Monteith posted her story on TikTok, some social media users pointed out red flags that were apparent from the beginning.

Monteith booked a consultation with Joseph for a non-refundable fee of $180 and then Joseph explained her other fees - which social media users said were red flags

Tattoo artists, including award-winning tattoo artist Matt Vaught, have reached out to Monteith offering to 'make things right' by designing and tattooing Monteith.

'I'm 70% covered in ink,' one person wrote. 'I've never had an artist charge for a concept or a consultation. RUUUUN!!'

There was also backlash against the tattoo artist as people flooded Google with bad reviews.

Joseph, who set her social media accounts to private, told Insider that she had also received death threats because of the ordeal, including messages 'telling me my children should die, my mother should get cancer, the list goes on.'

Several other people shared similar experiences across the country as part of the hashtag #tattoogate.

Tattoo artists, including award-winning tattoo artist Matt Vaught, have reached out to Monteith offering to 'make things right' by designing and tattooing Monteith.

Monteith told Insider that she knew Vaught was going to do an 'incredible job' on her tattoo.

'I'm overwhelmed by everything,' she said.

'But I'll keep posting my journey on my TikTok page so everyone who has been so supportive will get to see the amazing tattoo I had hoped for.'
Princess Marie of Denmark sizzled in a hot pink ensemble as she stepped out in Paris with her family this morning.

The Princess, 47, was a flash of colour among her husband and children who opted for more muted tones to attend the confirmation of her son Count Henrik at the Danish Church.

Marie accessorised her stunning bold outfit with a navy clutch and navy pumps and wore a leaf brooch on her blouse.Meanwhile her husband Prince Joachim and his sons, Felix, Nikolai and Henrik, were dressed in dark and navy suits, with Athena in a floral printed dress.

The event was also attended by Joachim's brother, Crown Prince Frederik, and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, as well as their four children.

In September last year, the Danish monarch announced that her grandchildren Nikolai, 23, Felix, 20, Henrik, 13, and Athena, 10, will no longer have 'His/Her Highness' titles from January 2023.

Princess Marie of Denmark, 47 (pictured) arrived at the Danish Church in Paris this morning for her son Count Henrik's confirmation

Princess Marie organised her family for photos outside the Danish Church ahead of Count Henrik's confirmation

As the princess arrived, she sizzled in a hot pink ensemble with a flowing blouse and wide-leg trousers

Marie accessorised her show-stopping outfit with a navy clutch bag and a leaf brooch on her blouse

Pictured: Princess Marie smiling with Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count Nikolai and Countess Athena

Crown Prince Frederik and his wife Crown Princess Mary also attended with their four children, from left to right: Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent, Prince Christian and Princess Josephine

At the time, the monarch insisted the move will be 'good for them in their future' and allow the children - who have maintained their positions in the line of succession - to 'shape their own lives without being limited by the special considerations and duties' that a formal affiliation with the Danish Royal Family involves.

However, Prince Joachim publicly spoke out against his mother's decision in the days that followed - claiming that his children had been 'harmed' in the process.

After peace talks within the family, as well as an unprecedented public statement issued by the Danish Palace explaining Queen Margrethe's decision in which she apologised for any hurt that had been caused, the family rift appeared to have been healed.

In April this year, both Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim came together to celebrate the Queen's 83rd birthday as all members of the family were invited onto the balcony of the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.

The family prepared to smile for the cameras outside the church - although they appeared to struggle with the sun in their eyes

Ahead of the confirmation, Princess Marie shook hands with the priest at the Danish Church

Picture perfect family! The Danish royals were all smiles as the sun came out for them on their special day

The Danish royals smiled for the camera and looked smart in all their finery ahead of the confirmation

Prince Joachim and his family (pictured) will soon move from Paris to Washington DC where he will take up a job in the Danish Embassy

Marie looked elegant in a bright pink ensemble with a a pair of trendy wide-legged trousers and blue stilettos

The royal shared a sweet hug with her daughter Comtesse Athena, who looked darling in a ditsy floral dress

Princess Mary looked elegant in a salmon dress with a floral detail, cinched at the waist. She paired it with nude heels and a matching leather handbag

The family were all smiles this afternoon, as Henrik led the way. dressed in a smart blue suit with a blue tie

Although the family appears to once again be united, it was announced earlier this year that Prince Joachim and Princess Marie are moving their family to Washington D.C in the US this autumn.

Joachim, who is sixth in line to the Danish throne, is making the move so he can take up a job as defence industry attache at the Embassy of Denmark.

His family's move to the US has parallels to when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as senior royals in Britain in 2020 to begin their new life in North America.

Announcing the move in March, Joachim said: 'I am proud that I still get the opportunity to represent Denmark internationally in the area of security and defence. Transatlantic cooperation is a high-priority area, and I am honoured that they have found me qualified for the task.'
Laura Nuttall, the fearless brain cancer campaigner who graduated from university after her terminal diagnosis and raised tens of thousands of pounds for pioneering treatment, is receiving palliative care, her mother has said.

The 23-year-old graduate, who thought her symptoms were 'freshers' flu' when she first became ill five years ago, is with her family in Lancashire as her mother Nicola says her daughter is 'as tenacious in death as she was in life'.

Laura was diagnosed with a stage 4 glioblastoma in 2018 when she was in her first year of study for an international relations degree at University College London. Despite being given just 12 months to live, the brave campaigner underwent operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy and eventually went back to university in Manchester, where she graduated with a 2:1 in politics, philosophy and economics (PPE) last summer.

Throughout her journey, Laura and her family including Nicola, her father Mark, and her sister Gracie have shared updates about her condition online, through social media and the Doing it For Laura campaign. While fundraising for her treatment, they enlisted the help of Peter Kay who was semi-retired at the time.

Over the last week, Nicola, who posts on Twitter under the handle @s**tscaredmum, has said Laura's condition is rapidly declining and that, while her daughter is still fighting, the family has told her she 'can rest whenever shes ready'.

Laura Nuttall, the fearless cancer campaigner who graduated from university four years after she was diagnosed with glioblastoma, is receiving palliative care, her mother Nicola revealed on Twitter

Brain tumours: The statistics and symptoms Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40 in the UK

Over 12,000 people are diagnosed with a brain tumour in the UK each year, with almost 5,000 people still losing their lives to the disease per year

There are over 120 different types of brain tumour, as classified by the World Health Organisation

Just 12 per cent of adults survive for five years after a brain tumour diagnosis, with the disease continuing to reduce life expectancy by 27 years on average  the highest of any cancer. Common signs of brain tumours in adults Perisistent/recurring headaches

Fatigue

Seizures or fits

Nausea/vomiting

Memory issues

Problems with vision

Cognitive changes, such as difficulty concentrating, learning, decision making, planning and problem solving.

Speech difficulties

Loss of taste and smell Source: The Brain Tumour Charity Advertisement

Posting on Twitter today, Nicola shared a photo of herself holding Laura's hand and gave an update on her daughter's condition.

It read: 'The curtains half closed but the windows open & we feel the breeze & hear the birds. Laura breathes in & breathes out.

'When the gap gets long I hold my breath but shes as tenacious in death as she was in life, despite a week without food or water. We hold hands & she squeezes.'

In other tweets from this week Nicola explained that Laura has not been able to consume much more than ice chips due to her declining health, but has said her daughter's pain is being managed well.

Since her diagnosis, Laura and her family have launched a campaign to raise money for her treatment and have teamed up with charities including Our Brain Bank and The Brain Tumour Trust to raise awareness of glioblastoma.

In 2021 semi-retired Peter Kay joined the Nuttall family's efforts, hosting a Q&A session on glioblastoma in honour of Laura.

While studying for her degree, Laura was juggling her university work with pioneering cancer treatment in Germany, which came with its own challenges.

On July 6 last year, the day of Laura's graduation, Nicola posted an update on her GoFundMe page praising her daughter's remarkable achievement.

She wrote: 'In the last 3 years [Laura has] had:

19 weeks of immunotherapy treatment in Germany

11 cycles of chemo

6 rounds of keytruda checkpoint inhibitor

4 units of blood

2 further brain surgeries

'Today she got a 2:1 in Politics, Philosophy and Economics.

'It's been so tough, working through sickness and fatigue and in little Airbnb's in Cologne with dodgy WiFi, but she did it and we could not be any prouder of her.

'Thank you so much for all your help and support in funding her treatment, I honestly don't think she'd be here without it.'

Speaking at her graduation, Laura said: 'If someone tells me I can't do something, it makes me even more determined to do it and prove them wrong  my family knows that all too well.

'So when a doctor told me that I wouldn't be able to go back to university, I thought, "we'll see about that" and it made me want to do my degree even more. Now here we are.'

Since Laura's diagnosis in 2018 she has lived out several 'bucket list' experiences, including sitting in the driving seat of a train. She has also met several influential people including the Obamas and Gillian Anderson.

Laura (pictured last July with her father Mark, sister Gracie and mother Nicola) graduated from Manchester University with a 2:1 in PPE

Since Laura's diagnosis her family has worked hard to raise money for her pioneering immunotherapy treatment in Germany

Laura has had chemotherapy, immunotherapy and radiotherapy and several operations since she was diagnosed in October 2018 (pictured after one of her operations)

She also wrote a moving letter to pupils at Barrowford Primary School, sharing with them the lessons she has learnt in life.

In March, the BBC reported that Laura was undergoing a course of electro hyperthermia after having another operation and was feeling 'hopeful' for the future.

'We had to decide on a next step and my doctor suggested maybe I go to Germany and see if I could have the treatment here,' she said.

Laura has ticked off several 'bucket list' requests since receiving her diagnosis four years ago

Laura (pictured with her father Mark) said she could not have achieved any of the incredible things she has done without the support of her family

As Nicola shares updates on Laura's declining condition, she has spoken of how the family are spending as much time together as possible in the spring sunshine.

She also said she was 'pretty sure' that Laura enjoyed watching the Eurovision Song Contest last Saturday.

This week, Nicola shared how the family were making a cast of Laura holding onto her sister Gracie's hand.

Posting a photo of the first look at the final thing, she said: 'This is just the first plaster version but I already love it.'

To learn more about Laura's campaign to raise awareness of glioblastoma, visit her website, Doing It For Laura
A high school teacher has gone viral after compiling a 'Gen Z term dictionary' based on words he has overheard in the classroom.

The California-based educator, who goes by Larry Lexicon online, shared a series of videos to TikTok about the latest popular phrases.

It included the definitions behind terms like 'baddie,' 'no cap' and 'rizz.'

Other social media users rushed to heap praise on the insight - but did you know what the terms mean?

The California-based educator, who goes by Larry Lexicon online, has gone viral after compiling a 'Gen Z term dictionary'

The high school teacher shared a series of videos to TikTok about the latest popular phrases he has overheard in the classroom

His light-hearted educational clips included the definitions behind terms like 'baddie,' 'no cap' and 'rizz'

In his first clip, Larry can be seen standing at the front of a classroom as he introduces his slideshow presentation.

He begins: 'All year long I've been listening to you and making a list, which I've compiled here for you - the Gen Z term dictionary.'

His class giggle as he continues: 'You guys can let me know if they're accurate or if I need to revise them, or maybe you can help me to use them in a sentence.'

Larry, who has garnered more than 1.8 million followers thanks to his light-hearted educational content, then launches into his list of popular new words.

He begins with the term 'bruh' which he argues is 'a staple of the generation.'

The teacher explains: 'From what I can tell it is just an alternate for "bro" or it can be used as an exclamation.'

Larry goes on to define a whole host of other terms including 'rizz,' eepy' and 'gyatt' much to the delight of other social media users.

One wrote: 'As a 27-year-old this is really helping me, thank you.'

Other social media users rushed to heap praise on the insight - and the clip was so popular that Larry posted two more videos on the topic

Another added: 'He used all of them correctly! None of my teachers were ever this cool!'

And a third simply said: 'Not me taking notes.'

The clip was so popular that he posted two more videos on the topic - one of which included Larry asserting that many of the terms actually have roots in African-American Vernacular English.

He told his students: 'I know you think you came up with a lot of these words, but you didn't, and they've been around for a long time.

'They kind of make their way into society, and into your lexicon, through pop culture and things like hip hop music and stuff. And they sneak their way into your daily vocab.'

Larry continues: 'But a lot of times these terms and the language associated with these terms is looked down upon by society as uneducated or something like that.

'But then what happens is it makes its way into like, white suburbia, and you get a middle-aged dorky white dude mislabeling it just for a whole generation as a term dictionary.

'And it ends up erasing the importance of it, and the impact that it has on culture.'

He then decides to retitle his guide as 'The AAVE-inspired Gen Z term dictionary' before concluding: 'The mistake was just simply due to ignorance on my part.

'But that's OK, because all you've got to do is learn. I just write the feedback that I got, studied a little bit and learned and now I'm not so ignorant anymore.'

'But being willfully ignorant and not doing anything about it  not so OK.'
She's the daughter of a billionaire with an estimated worth of 700m, so it's no surprise that Akshata Murthy has a luxe wardrobe to match.

Yet it seems the Prime Minister's wife, 43, is now attempting to appear slightly more accessible.

Currently in Japan - where she is accompanying her husband Rishi Sunak on a trade-boosting trip - she has been seen wearing a 95 fuchsia cashmere sweater from Chinti & Parker, plus 165 island green trousers from ME+EM.

Even the night before the Coronation she wore Self Portrait to a reception at Buckingham Palace - a brand that's the very epitome of the image she's trying to portray.

At 400 her dress was by no means cheap, but it's at the upper end of the high street and within the reach of a middle class mum splashing out for a special occasion.

Showing her prowess at so-called dopamine dressing  where you wear bright colours to radiate positivity and boost your mood  Ms Murthy wowed in a fuchsia sweatshirt and green trousers.

Designer darling: Ms Murthy has previously raised eyebrows with her high-end wardrobe. In December 2020, the IT heiress wore a box-fresh pair of 445 Gucci trainers, a REDValentino shearling and leather coat costing 1,630 and a leather skirt worth more then 1,000, for a date night with her husband in upmarket Mayfair, pictured

It marks a trend towards her choosing upmarket British brands over luxury labels.

Take, for instance, a short look back at her outfits in 2020.

For a December date night with her husband in upmarket Mayfair, the IT heiress wore a box-fresh pair of 445 Gucci trainers, a REDValentino shearling and leather coat costing 1,630 and a leather skirt worth more then 1,000.

She has also been seen on the school run wearing JW Anderson chain-detail slippers on her feet.

The slippers have chunky chain detail and strong rubber soles - but still come with the eye-watering price tag of 570.

While the photo of the slipper incident was taken quite recently - in February this year - there has defintely been a trend towards Akshata opting for more 'relatable outifts'.

Who knows - perhaps this is because her husband will soon be facing an election?

Miranda Holder, celebrity fashion stylist and royal fashion expert, says, 'Fashion can send powerful messages, as we saw with Carrie Johnson when she favoured fashion rental sites to support and promote sustainability.

'And now with Murtys case, these affordable wardrobe messages are helping position her as being far more relatable, her wardrobe more accessible.

'Its a more considered style approach and I shall be watching closely to see if this does indeed become her signature style.'

Akshata Murty has been seen in a luxurious pair of suede slippers but more recently has been pictured in some from the White Company

Akshata's expensive slippers, which have a durable rubber sole, feature chunky gold chain detail on the front

Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arriving by plane in Hiroshima after their visit to Tokyo, ahead of the G7 Summit in Japan

Akshata Murthy arriving at a Coronation reception at Buckingham Palace in London earlier this May

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and wife of Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Akshata Murthy arrive at Westminster Abbey in central Londonfor the coronation

DRESSING DOWN: Rishi Sunak's wife Akshata Murthy at the Coronation lunch outside 10 Downing Street

Family outing: Mr Sunak and Ms Murthy were joined by their children on the campaign trail. Ms Murthy paired her floral Club Monaco dress with tan heels and matching clutch bag

It is believed the change in style is largely down to the appointment of PR guru Isabel Spearman, who worked as an unofficial dresser to Samantha Cameron during her husband's tenure in Downing Street.

Miranda adds, 'This is also an effective style strategy on the part of Isabel Spearman - selecting accessible high street pieces to position Akshata Murthy as a more relatable public figure.

Murthy's Millions: Akshata's family business portfolio Combined shareholding in tech firm Infosys worth 1.7billion

Joint venture with Amazon, Cloudtail, in India worth 900m-a-year

Shareholding in UK firm which runs Jamie's Italian restaurants and burger chain Wendy's in India

Also holds shares in Koru Kids and is director of Digme Fitness

Murthy is a shareholder or director in five other UK companies, including Mayfair outfitter which makes Eton College pupils' tailcoats costing 2,500 each

Akshata is also listed as a director of the UK arm of software company, Soroco, co-founded by her brother

Investment firm Catamaran Ventures owned by father N. R. Narayana Murthy

Ms Murthy runs fashion label Akshata Designs Advertisement

'This will seemingly show her having empathy to those impacted by the pressing cost of living crisis.'

Recent more affordable items include a blue Club Monaco dress she wore last July in Grantham while campaigning with her husband.

Club Monaco is an upmarket high street label loved by famous shoppers including the Duchess of Sussex, Princess Eugenie and Jennifer Lawrence.

The knee-length dress with short sleeves and soft A-line shape cost 165 and was accessorised it with a pair of tan heels and clutch bag.

Akshata has also been pictured walking around in a 50 fur gilet from H&M paired with 42 slippers from The White Company.

Described online as 'stylish and versatile', the brand say they can be worn as 'nightwear as loungewear and daywear' and suitable for 'milder weather'.

For the King's Coronation, she wore a 495 baby blue dress from Claire Mischevani that one commentator praised as 'incredible'.

And the evening before, at a recption in Buckingham Palace, she wore a Self Portrait dress, costing 400.

She also sported an 85 blouse from Boden, a high street brand loved by the Princess of Wales, for the Coronation Big Lunch outside Downing Street.

Her outfit was described by one observer as 'a masterclass in modern soft-power style'.

Many fashionistas, including Miranda, seem to approve of the new look.

She adds, 'Head to toe lavish designer can feel unimaginative and frankly stuck in the Thatcherite 1980s.

'Mixing up high end with high street is a tried and trusted method of transforming your wardrobe from an aesthetic which could be perceived unattainable and ostentatious, even quite vulgar, to a more eclectic, interesting and ultimately stylish signature look.

'Dressing more mid-range with the likes of Boden and even H&M and then mixing things up with lesser known labels is an effective, stylish way to support smaller British brands.

'And of course, buying from independent retailers reduces the likelihood of bumping into your style twin at the local.'

Akshata, who is the daughter of Indian IT mogul Narayana Murthy, has previously sported high-street loungewear outside Downing Street.

However, the mother, who has always had an interest in fashion and launched her own label in 2011, proved today she has not totally abandoned the finer items in her wardrobe.

Mr Sunak and Ms Murthy have built up a joint fortune of 730million, the Sunday Times Rich List revealed in May, making him the first frontline politician to feature in the annual wealth rankings since its inception in 1989.

Mr Sunak made big money in the City of London before entering politics.

But the bulk of the cash is from his wife's stake in IT giant Infosys, set up by her father N. R. Narayana Murthy, one of the richest men in India who has been described as the father of the Indian IT sector and 'one of the 12 greatest businessmen of all time'.
Viewers might have tuned into Escape to the Chateau to watch Dick Strawbridge and Angel Adoree renovate their 19th Century retreat in the French countryside.

However, it's the couple's flirty dynamic that turned the show - which aired for nine seasons- into a smash hit.

Earlier this week, fans were left devastated after Channel 4 confirmed they were cutting ties with the husband and wife after an independent investigation into their conduct.

The broadcaster announced it will no longer work with Dick, 63, and Angel, 45, on any new productions 'following a review'.

Describing the duo as 'spiky and volatile', one source told MailOnline that Dick and Angel are a 'nightmare to work with'.

Dick Strawbridge and Angel Adoree pictured on their wedding day in 2015. The couple were introduced by their agent five years before

Amid the couple's 'bullying' allegations, FEMAIL takes a look back at Angel and Dick's unconventional marriage - from a 'pregnancy deadline' to issuing a 'brutal truth' about their 18-year age gap.

'Love at first sight'

Before meeting Angel, Dick was married to engineer Brigit Weiner for 28 years. The couple share their two children James, 39, and Charlotte, 37.

The TV presenter served in the British Army for 20 years and became a Lieutenant Colonel. In 2001, the then father-of-two retired from the forces and began TV work.

Dick, Bridgit and their two children shot to fame in 2006 when they starred in their own reality show It's Not Easy Being Green about their attempts to maintain a self-sufficient lifestyle while living in a 300-year-old Cornish farmhouse.

However, the couple split in 2010 and Dick met his future second wife later that year.

Speaking to The Times in 2020, Dick explained how he was introduced to Angel by their shared agent at a party in London.

He explained: 'We barely spoke that night, but we knew that there was something at first sight. And we fell in love very quickly.'

The couple purchased Chateau de la Motte-Husson in Martigne-sur-Mayenne, Northern France for 280,000 in 2015

Dick pictured with his ex-wife Brigit Strawbridge. The couple starred in the 2006 series It's Not Easy Being Green

Dick pictured with his son James, 39, from his first marriage last year. The TV presenter served in the British Army for 20 years and became a Lieutenant Colonel

At first, the couple had no choice but to embark on a long-distance relationship - as Dick was still based in Cornwall while Angel lived in London.

He previously told the Daily Mail: 'I was over 50 when I met Angel, and I didn't ask her age because that was a scary thing to do.'

Although Dick and Angel wanted to spend as much time as possible together, he eventually did ask her age and found the 18-year age gap weighed heavily on his mind.

The TV star says he urged his future wife to find someone else to start a family with - but she refused.

In 2020, Angel told Fabulous that the age gap 'didn't matter' to her and said it was 'love at first sight'

'Age is but a number, and Dicks always had a really wonderful energy and hes a doer,' she added.

Dick and Angel pictured with their two children Arthur, 10 and Dorothy, nine, in front of their Chateau

Angel has previously said she gave Dick a 'deadline' for when she wanted to fall pregnant with their first child

Pregnancy 'Deadline'

Having made peace with their age gap, Angel and Dick set their sights on having a family of their own.

16 months into their relationship, Angel says she presented Dick with a calendar with the words 'impregnate me by this date' on.

She told Fabulous: 'It was a little hint!'

What's more, Dick joked to The Times that they were 'efficient' in this department and had both their children Arthur, 10 and Dorothy, nine, ahead of their set schedule.

After welcoming their two children, the couple decided they wanted more space for their young family.

In 2015, the couple bought the Chateau de la Motte-Husson in Martigne-sur-Mayenne, Northern France for 280,000.

The couple (pictured on holiday) spent the next seven years renovating the estate into a wedding venue and their dream family home

Dick and Angel and their two children have been living in France for the past eight years. Escape to the Chateau ran for nine seasons

When they moved, the 19th Century building didn't have sewerage, electricity or any heating.

The couple spent the next seven years renovating the estate into a wedding venue and their dream family home.

Naturally, Angel says that the scale of the project has caused tension in their marriage at times.

She previously told You magazine: 'We have passionate discussions every day.

'But doesnt everybody? Because if youre madly in love, in the core, then the passionate discussions are just the fluff around the outside. Were not arguing about values  just the little details.'

Angel previously said it was 'love at first sight' when she was introduced to Dick by her agent at a party in 2015

'Brutal Truth'

Although the couple appear blissfully happy in their life in France, Dick says that he's often troubled by the idea of Angel becoming a widow.

Speaking to The Telegraph in 2021, he said: 'Angela only has so many years of me before I turn my toes up. That's a brutal fact.'

Angel then replied: 'I have asked for 30 more years!'

Elsewhere in the interview, Angel gushed about her husband's 'chivalrous' nature.

She said: 'He will always be that person opening doors, helping people, and if anyone upsets me, he will be the first person to take control of the situation. He is very protective.'

On top of this, Dick says his father 'would turn in his grave' if he didn't open a door for a woman or stand up when they entered the room - values he's determined to instill in his youngest son Arthur.

In a 2021 interview with the Mail on Sunday's You magazine, the couple opened up about their homeschooling approach - and how their son Arthur's maths skills actually improved in lockdown.

The couple (pictured shortly after they bought their Chateau) have been dropped by Channel 4 after an independent investigation into concerns over bullying

Dick and Angel vehemently denied bullying allegations that came to light two years ago. The mother-of-two described herself and Dick as 'loving and open'

'You can ask Arthur what is the square root of 49 and hell give it to you,' Dick said. Whats 25 cubed? All stuff that eight-year-olds shouldnt know.

Elsewhere, the couple also hit back at the investigation into their behaviour on set.

While Dick said 'it's not even worth investigating', Angel added: 'I would say that we are loving and open  what you see is what you get. If you come into our home  and its our home, not a TV set  and maybe treat us in a certain way, then we may reciprocate.

'We have so many people coming through, and we always like having selfies and everything like that. There is a line, though, and if you cross it end of.'

Sources claimed Two Rivers Media, the company that produces Escape To The Chateau, raised concerns about Dick and Angel and they will not be working on any new productions 'following a review'.

The latest news comes two years after the popular couple first brushed off bullying claims, which they vehemently denied at the time.

Show bosses are refusing to confirm exactly what has been alleged but their review has concluded and they are cutting ties with the couple.

The exact nature of the allegations is not known, but Deadline reported that three of their former colleagues alleged the couple have clashed with producers.

A source told the site : 'There has been a deteriorating relationship between Two Rivers and Dick and Angel's Chateau TV for various reasons and it all came to a head.'
Now, they have their sights set on traveling the world

The grandmother and grandson duo first began their quest in 2015

A 93-year-old grandmother and her grandson have completed their goal of visiting all 63 national parks in eight years.

Joy and Brad Ryan, 42, from Duncan Falls, Ohio, first began their quest to visit all the national parks in the country in 2015.

Before beginning their adventure, Grandma Joy had never even had a glimpse of the sea or mountain, now, the 93-year-old has been able to fall in love with the sights.

The duo finished their trip at the National Park of American Samoa in the South Pacific on Monday, and are now even making plans to travel the world.

Joy, 93, and Brad Ryan, 42, have completed their goal of visiting all 63 national parks in eight years (the grandma and grandson pictured at their final park)

The duo from Duncan Falls, Ohio, first began their quest to visit all the national parks in the country in 2015 (pictured at Alaskas Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve)

The duo finished their trip at the National Park of American Samoa in the South Pacific on Monday, and are now even making plans to travel the world

Although they started traveling in 2015, they began documenting their journey on their Instagram account, where they boast over 70,000 followers, in 2019.

Brian, a veterinarian, shared the news of their last adventure on their social media account, calling it the 'greatest privilege' to travel alongside his grandma.

He wrote: 'It was the greatest privilege of my life to be in the drivers seat for Grandma Joys Road Trip.

'We defied erroneous assumptions about the limitations of aging. We defied financial and logistical constraints. We even defied a pandemic. And you might have noticed that I accidentally made Grandma Joy the superstar I always knew her to be.

'We have so much to share with you from the National Park of American Samoa. But today we are soaking up every ounce of joy coming our way from around the world. Your love and support was the fuel that got us to the finish line.'

The pair told Good Morning America that their last adventure marked a 'bittersweet' one as it came just one week after Brad's dad, and Joy's eldest son passed away.

Brad noted that by reaching the final step in their journey, they showed the world that 'you are never too old to show up and live the adventures life of your dreams.'

Throughout their time at their 63rd park, Joy and Brad have spent time in the rainforest, and spent some 'one-on-one time with Mother Nature, according to their Instagram.

Although they started traveling in 2015, they began documenting their journey to their Instagram account, where they boast over 70,000 followers, in 2019 (pictured at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park)

The pair told Good Morning America that their last adventure marked a 'bittersweet' one as it came just one week after Brad's dad, and Joy's eldest son passed away

Brian, a veterinarian, shared the news of their last adventure on their social media account, calling it the 'greatest privilege' to travel alongside his grandma (pictured in American Samoa)

Although they reached their final park, their travel plans aren't over just yet.

Brad and Grandma Joy told the outlet they have got their sights set on the world.

'Now that we have visited every U.S. National Park, we have our eyes set on the world, hopefully reaching all seven continents. We are headed to Kenya for a National Geographic expedition in July.

'I wouldn't be surprised to see Grandma Joy flying through space or walking on the moon. This is what 93 should look like if we're lucky enough to live as long as she has,' Brad said.

Brad and Joy's journey first began after his grandmother revealed she wished she had traveled more, prompting the idea to be born.

He told DailyMail.com: 'My grandfather, who died two decades ago, was the breadwinner for their family, so Grandma Joy was happy to let him make all their travel plans while he was alive.

'Grandma Joy joined him on winter fishing trips to Lake Okeechobee [in Florida] after he retired, but she never saw the mountains. She never traveled west.

Although they reached their final park, their travel plans aren't over just yet, the duo revealed that they are setting their sights on the world

Brad and Joy's journey first began after his grandmother revealed she wished she had traveled more, prompting the idea to be born (pictured at the Statue of Liberty)

Their life-changing adventure has seen them climb mountains together and tackle white-water rafting, as well as sleep under the stars in stunning locations

When I processed what she told me, I remember thinking that I would never forgive myself if she died alone in Ohio without seeing the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the many iconic landscapes of America. A seed was planted.'

Their life-changing adventure has seen them climb mountains together and tackle white-water rafting, as well as sleep under the stars in stunning locations such as Joshua Tree National Park in Colorado.

All the while, perhaps most amazingly for both of them, they have become 'best friends', after reconnecting and strengthening the bond they once lost when they did not speak for 10 years- in the midst of Brad's parent's divorce.

Joy has also helped Brad to become more resilient, as she supported him through mental health struggles that he was suffering with before their first 2015 trip.

And Brad could not be more grateful for the experiences he has had with his grandmother, describing the challenge as 'magical' while seeing so much of the US and meeting new people in the process.

All the while, perhaps most amazingly for both of them, they have become 'best friends'

Joy has also helped Brad to become more resilient, as she supported him through mental health struggles that he was suffering with before their first 2015 trip (pictured at Water Gap National Recreation Area)

Meanwhile, Joy has said that the road trips they have done have been 'beyond anything' she could have imagined in her life (pictured at Saguaro National Park)

Brad said he is very grateful he has been able to inject some adventure into his grandmother's (pictured at Great Smoky Mountains) life and take her to so many amazing places across America

Meanwhile, Joy has said that the road trips they have done have been 'beyond anything' she could have imagined in her life.

The 93-year-old has been amazed by what they have witnessed along the way, explaining that both of them have been lucky enough to experience and see things that others may never see in their lifetimes.

The two are looking forward to even more travels alongside each other.

Brad said: 'I remain grateful for the opportunity to show the world that regardless of age, it is possible to make up for lost time and pack in a lifetime of adventure into a relatively short period if you have a positive attitude and the willpower to make it happen.'

He added that Grandma Joy, who has spent most of their nights away in a tent, was inspiring people her age to get out of their rocking chairs and explore.'
Crown Princess of Mary looked effortlessly elegant in a floral Zimmerman dress to attend her nephew Count Henrik's confirmation in Paris today.

The European royal, 47, who was born in Tasmania, gave a nod to her home country this afternoon by wearing a demure 2,000 dress by the Australian fashion label.

The linen gown featured a pretty pink-and-beige floral print and matching belt.

Along with voluminous sleeves, the midi dress also had a summery beaded trim around the hem, cuffs and V-neckline - which perfectly matched her coral nail manicure.

The mother-of-four accessorised her outfit with a pink leather bag by Maxmara and a Julie Sandlau necklace featuring her children's initials.

Pictured: Crown Princess Mary of Denmark donned a 2,000 midi dress by the Australian designer Zimmerman

The elegant royal finished off her ensemble with a 845 pair of pink heels by Gianvito Rossi, which is one of the Princess of Wales' favourite brands.

Mary kept her makeup minimal for the family occasion - simply opting for a nude lipstick and sweep of brown eyeliner.

The mother styled her chestnut brown hair in her signature lose waves and donned a pair of orange dangly earrings.

Meanwhile, her husband Prince Frederik, 54, was suitably dapper in a navy suit with a double-breasted jacket.

The couple and their children were out in full force today to support Count Henrik for his confirmation into the Danish Church in Paris.

While Prince Christian, 17, looked smart in an olive suit, his younger sister Princess Isabella complemented her mother in a orange blazer and white trousers.

What's more, Prince Vincent, 12, was his father's mini-me in a blue suit while his twin sister Princess Josephine looked chic in a yellow pleated dress with a navy blazer.

For her son's special day, Crown Princess Mary's sister-in-law Marie donned a hot pink suit and navy suede heels.

Crown Prince Frederik and his wife Crown Princess Mary also attended with their four children, from left to right: Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent, Prince Christian and Princess Josephine

The 2,000 linen gown featured a pretty pink-and-beige floral print and matching belt as well as beads on the cuffs

The mother-of-four accessorised her outfit with a pink leather bag by Maxmara and a Julie Sandlau necklace featuring her children's initials

Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederick pictured arriving at the Danish Church in Paris with their four children

In September last year, the Danish monarch announced that her grandchildren Nikolai, 23, Felix, 20, Henrik, 13, and Athena, 10, will no longer have 'His/Her Highness' titles from January 2023.

At the time, the monarch insisted the move will be 'good for them in their future' and allow the children - who have maintained their positions in the line of succession - to 'shape their own lives without being limited by the special considerations and duties' that a formal affiliation with the Danish Royal Family involves.

However, Prince Joachim publicly spoke out against his mother's decision in the days that followed - claiming that his children had been 'harmed' in the process.

After peace talks within the family, as well as an unprecedented public statement issued by the Danish Palace explaining Queen Margrethe's decision in which she apologised for any hurt that had been caused, the family rift appeared to have been healed.

Princess Marie of Denmark, 47 (pictured) arrived at the Danish Church in Paris this morning for her son Count Henrik's confirmation

Princess Marie organised her family for photos outside the Danish Church ahead of Count Henrik's confirmation. Centre: Count Henrik

Pictured: Princess Marie smiling with Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count Nikolai and Countess Athena

Picture perfect family! The Danish royals were all smiles as the sun came out for them on their special day

In April this year, both Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim came together to celebrate the Queen's 83rd birthday as all members of the family were invited onto the balcony of the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.

Although the family appears to once again be united, it was announced earlier this year that Prince Joachim and Princess Marie are moving their family to Washington D.C in the US this autumn.

Joachim, who is sixth in line to the Danish throne, is making the move so he can take up a job as defence industry attache at the Embassy of Denmark.

His family's move to the US has parallels to when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as senior royals in Britain in 2020 to begin their new life in North America.

Announcing the move in March, Joachim said: 'I am proud that I still get the opportunity to represent Denmark internationally in the area of security and defence. Transatlantic cooperation is a high-priority area, and I am honoured that they have found me qualified for the task.'
An X-rated accessory was discreetly styled into several designer looks at Australian Fashion Week, leaving fashionistas doing double takes from the sidelines.

On Wednesday night, the latest ready-to-wear collection from Karla Spetic graced the runway at Australian Fashion Week, and some models were either carrying or wearing tiny vibrators.

While the easy-to-miss detail is said to be a nod to Karla's sponsor, online sex shop Lovehoney, some spectators said it encouraged a healthy sex life and destigmatised self-pleasure.

The Lovehoney Dare Discreet Necklace Vibrator, priced at $97.45, looks more like a luxurious pen or long pendant rather than a sex toy.

Other models were seen holding the Luxury 12 Function Rechargeable Silicone Clitoral Vibrator and Desire Luxury Rechargeable Bullet Vibrator.

On Wednesday night the designs of Karla Spetic graced the runway at Australian Fashion Week, and some models were either carrying or wearing tiny vibrators (necklace pictured)

The subtle detail was easy to miss, but some spectators believed it encourages a healthy sex life and destigmatise self-pleasure

Poll Would you wear a vibrator necklace? Yes I would No, it's tacky Unsure Would you wear a vibrator necklace? Yes I would 70 votes

No, it's tacky 510 votes

Unsure 25 votes Now share your opinion





Sexologist Chantelle Otten attended the 7pm show in Sydney wearing the portable pleasure necklace.

She also donned the Karla Spetic Blue Lagoon dress paired with sneakers and a translucent plastic clutch filled with vibrators.

Before that, she was snapped outside Carriageworks in Redfern to show off the look.

As an advocate for a healthy and fulfilling sex life, Chantelle is no stranger to incorporating sex toys into her wardrobe.

Her daring and playful approach to fashion showcases how sex toys can be stylish, playful and functional.

The Lovehoney Dare Discreet Necklace Vibrator itself, priced at $97.45, looks more like a luxurious pen or long pendant rather than a pleasure device

Sexologist Chantelle Otten (pictured) attended the 7pm show in Sydney wearing the Karla Spetic Blue Lagoon dress paired with sneakers, a translucent plastic clutch filled with vibrators and the pleasure necklace

This is the second time Karla has partnered with Lovehoney for fashion week.

Speaking of the decision to include a spicy gadget, Karla said: 'This season I was thinking a lot about the natural world, wellness and tapping into the earth's frequency and raising higher vibrations.

'We are doing exactly that with Lovehoney this season - raising higher vibrations for our audience.'

The collection as a whole tunes into the overarching theme of grounding, with the Earth's natural frequencies.

'Everything is energy, I was thinking about reconnecting to the natural world. I wanted to get back to basics and tap into that,' Karla added.
The number of teenagers who have tried e-cigarettes has surged by 50 per cent in one year, shocking data showed today.

Some 11.6 per cent of 11-17 year olds in Britain confessed to having ever vaped. This is up on 7.7 per cent last year and twice as high as rates seen a decade ago  before the UK's kid vaping epidemic blew up.

Results also revealed the number of regular teen users is on the rise, sparking alarm among leading experts.

Politician and medics have today demanded the Government urgently cracks down on the ever-growing crisis, laid bare by Action on Smoking and Health's annual poll.

Ministers have been urged to ban predatory firms selling vapes in brightly-coloured packaging and in kid-friendly favours like bubblegum. MailOnline's damning expose last month laid bare the true scale of the problem, which saw one paediatrician say 'we are sleepwalking into an existential crisis'.

E-cigs are already illegal for under-18s to buy, yet shops have been caught flouting the rules.

The data for Great Britain shows a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds, from 7.7 per cent last year to 11.6 per cent this year. The figure has more than doubled in a decade, with just 5.6 per cent having puffed on the devices in 2014, according Action on Smoking and Health (Ash)

The brightly coloured displays are seen in shops on Oxford Street labelled as toy, sweet and gift shops

The survey of 2,656 11 to 17-year-olds, carried out by YouGov in March and April, illustrated how disposable vapes are driving the trend, with seven in 10 opting for one over an rechargeable option. Rates were almost 10-fold lower just a few years ago.

Popular 'puff bars', as they are known, include Elf Bars, Lost Mary, Elux, Geek and Crystal. They can cost as little as 5 and are sold in corner shops up and down the country.

READ MORE: Vapes are becoming the new alcopops: How ruthless firms are targeting youngsters with cartoon characters and bubble-gum flavours As well as being packaged in an array of eye-catching colours, manufacturers sell e-cigs in child-friendly names and flavours. Some even lure children in using cartoon characters, experts fear Advertisement

Nearly three-quarters of youngsters said their first vape was given to them, with two-thirds being given them by a friend.

For children who currently vape, nearly three-quarters said they usually buy their vapes, most commonly from a corner shop (26 per cent).

Youngsters also cited other shops (15 per cent), petrol stations (9.4 per cent) and online (7.6 per cent) as there go-to place for vape shopping.

Overall, the proportion of children using e-cigarettes hit 7.6 per cent in 2023  the highest figure ever recorded and up from 6.9 per cent last year.

Meanwhile, cigarette usage fell from 4.8 per cent in 2022 to 3.6 per cent in 2023.

When asked why they vape, four in 10 youngsters said they wanted to give them a try, while one in five used them because they wanted to join in with others and 14 per cent said they like the flavours.

The proportion of children exposed to promotions for vapes spiked this year, from 37 per cent last year to 53 per cent in 2023.

Online awareness has also risen (from 24 per cent to 32 per cent), while awareness via buses stood at 11 per cent.

Asked about online awareness, children who had seen vapes promoted online said they had seen them on TikTok (49 per cent), YouTube (29 per cent) Instagram (28 per cent) and Snapchat (24 per cent).

The findings will be submitted as part of the Government's call for evidence on measures to reduce the number of children accessing vaping, while ensuring e-cigarettes can still be used by adults who want to quit smoking.

When asked why they vape, four in 10 youngsters said they wanted to give them a try, while one in five used them because they wanted to join in with others and 14 per cent said they like the flavours

Overall, the proportion of children using e-cigarettes hit 7.6 per cent in 2023  the highest figure ever recorded and up from 6.9 per cent last year. Meanwhile, cigarette usage fell from 4.8 per cent in 2022 to 3.6 per cent in 2023

For children who currently vape, nearly three-quarters said they usually buy their vapes, most commonly from a corner shop (26 per cent). Youngsters also cited other shops (15 per cent), petrol stations (9.4 per cent) and online (7.6 per cent) as there go-to place for vape shopping

The survey of 2,656 11 to 17-year-olds, carried out by YouGov in March and April, revealed that disposable vapes are most popular, with seven in 10 opting for one over an rechargeable option

Asked about online awareness, children who had seen vapes promoted online said they had seen them on TikTok (49 per cent), YouTube (29 per cent) Instagram (28 per cent) and Snapchat (24 per cent)

READ MORE: Britain's vaping crisis in schools laid bare: How e-cig detectors are being set off 22 TIMES a day The VapeGuardian sensor (pictured) is the first of its kind manufactured in the UK and can detect the smallest hint of vapour Advertisement

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash, said: 'We need to stem the tide of child vape experimentation and the Government's investment in a crackdown on illegal underage sales of vapes is a vital first step.

'But enforcement on its own won't do the trick without tougher regulation to address the child-friendly promotion of these cheap and attractive products.

'The Ash youth survey demonstrates the rapid growth of instore promotion of vapes, using brightly coloured pack displays, reminiscent of cigarette displays from yesteryear.

'The evidence is clear, government needs to take strong action to prevent the marketing of vapes to children.'

Geoff Worsley, a father from Abergele, North Wales, whose change.org petition Stop Children Vaping  More Regulation Now has more than 100,000 signatures, said: 'Parents like me up and down the country are calling on government to act to protect our children from vaping as well as smoking.

'More funding for enforcement is a good first step but it's not enough. Vaping is safer and better for smokers than smoking, but it shouldn't be promoted to children.

'Regulations are needed to prevent vapes being openly sold in prominent positions within shops, in brightly coloured packaging and sweet names attractive to kids.

'We need tougher regulation to stop our children vaping and we need it now.'

Ash said, however, that fears vaping is leading to a new generation addicted to nicotine are not justified by the evidence to date.

Mr Hassett stressed his concern at children not being fully aware of the contents of e-cigarettes, with many so anxious for their next 'fix' they are begging teachers to let them vape at school

This shop of Edgware Road sells many types of e-cigarettes in pastel and bright colours

Elf bars, one of Britain's most-used vapes, could be seen filling shelves in many of the shops visited

In this shop, vape products are sold alongside water pipes used for smoking cannabis

It said the data showed that most of the 20.5 per cent of young people who have ever vaped have only vaped once or twice, or used to vape, or vape less than once a week.

Some 1.8 per cent of those polled said they vape between daily and weekly and 2 per cent every day.

Most (63 per cent) of those who have tried vaping once or twice have never smoked, the data also showed. Yet most (71 per cent) of current vapers have tried smoking.

Ann McNeill, professor of tobacco addictions at King's College London, said the data showed that too many smoking adults and children believe vaping is more than or equally harmful as smoking.

'These misperceptions are likely to encourage children to believe that they might as well smoke as vape, and discourage adults who smoke but have never vaped from taking up the Government's 'swap to stop' offer (of taking up vapes instead of cigarettes),' she said.

'A well-funded communications campaign is needed to address these growing misperceptions.'

A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman said: 'It's already illegal to sell vapes to children and we are exploring further ways to tackle youth vaping through our newly launched call for evidence, which will look at the appearance and characteristics of vapes, the marketing and promotion of vapes, and the role of social media.

'We also recently announced a new 'illicit vapes enforcement squad'  backed by 3 million  to remove illegal products from shelves and stop them from crossing our borders.'
A drunk man fell asleep with nine metal rings strangling his genitalia, doctors have revealed in an eye-watering case.

Firefighters were needed to cut through the stainless steel with an electrical saw, in order to save his penis and scrotum.

The 44-year-old, from Australia, used the heavy duty steel rings in the hope it would help him stay erect.

He then fell asleep after having sex and woke up three hours later in significant pain to find the rings still on his now-swollen genitals.

Medics tried to remove the metal rings, which were just 1cm (0.4 inches) in diameter, with ring and bolt cutters but were unsuccessful.

A drunk man fell asleep with nine metal rings strangling his penis and scrotum and needed firefighters to cut the stainless steel with an electrical saw (Pictured is a file photo of metal rings similar to those used by the patient)

They then enlisted the help of the fire brigade, who used an 'industrial style electric circular saw' to cut the rings off while the man was under general anaesthetic.

Doctors from Gold Coast University Hospital in Queensland said the man was in a lot of pain and distress when he arrived at the emergency department.

An examination showed his penis and scrotum were significantly swollen, tender and bruised, leading medics to give him an IV of opioid pain relief, according to the article published in Urology Case Reports.

During surgery to remove the rings, a tongue depressor and gauze were used as a protective barrier between the penis and saw.

The rings were also sterilised with cool saline solution to prevent a thermal injury from the power tool.

After all nine rings had been successfully removed, doctors performed a cystoscopy - a procedure to look inside the bladder using a thin camera.

The test found the patient's urethra was irritated and swollen so a catheter was fitted in place for one week.

He did not need any further surgery but reported minor erectile dysfunction over the two months that followed.

The patient told medics he hadn't taken any drugs before the incident.

Urologists reporting on the case said penile strangulation is rare and, because of that, can be a challenging medical emergency.

The authors wrote that there is no typical standard of care protocol for how to deal with penile strangulation and that emergency departments often lack the equipment or knowledge of the tools needed to cut them.

Penis strangulation over a prolonged time can cause blood flow to be cut off and obstruct the drainage of fluids, they said.

If it is not treated, it can lead to irreversible damage to the penis, which, in severe cases, needs to be amputated, the report states.

Sexual gratification, non-medical erectile dysfunction treatment and psychiatric disorders were listed as the motivations for using foreign objects on the penis.

As sex toys and erectile dysfunction medicine has become more easily accessible, the authors expect cases of penis strangulation to fall.
You may have desperately resorted to counting sheep in the hope of stopping yourself from tossing and turning at night.

Or, while snuggled under the duvet trying to unwind, you might have switched on the TV, believing it would relax you and allow you to drift off peacefully.

But these hacks are merely myths and won't help you fall asleep, according to one expert.

Sleep guru Dr Lindsay Browning, of the British Psychological Society, has said they are not the only lies we've been told for decades...

Getting too much sleep can be bad for your health and wellbeing

Counting sheep will help you fall asleep faster

Parents often tell their little ones to count sheep when they're having a hard time settling down for the night.

While it may do the trick for your two-year-old by distracting them, it probably isn't the miracle remedy for adults, according to Dr Browning, who is working with retailer And So To Bed.

There's no harm in counting sheep, she insists, but you will have a much easier time if you set yourself something more taxing.

Dr Browning said: 'Some better distraction techniques would be listing your top ten favourite movies, or counting backwards in 7s from 1000.'

Cheese before bed will give you nightmares

It's perhaps everyone's favourite snack.

But, for years, we've been told to stave off eating cheese before bed over warnings that it will cause nightmares.

In fact, it 'may help your sleep', according to Dr Browning.

She said that cheese contains tryptophan which our bodies use to make melatonin  our sleep hormone.

However, she claimed studies show that going to bed on a full stomach can result in longer periods of REM sleep, the stage where vivid dreams (and nightmares) can occur.

Yet 'this would occur with any food, not just cheese', Dr Browning said.

Consuming alcohol before bed will help you sleep better

Nightcaps aren't the miracle sleep-inducing remedy, either.

That is according to Dr Browning, who said that, although booze can make us feel sleepy, it can actually disrupt our natural REM cycle.

She said: 'As such, our bodies will wake us up throughout the night and make it more difficult to fall back to sleep.

'This means that although you may fall asleep more quickly after alcohol, the quality of your sleep will be poorer.

'To prevent insomnia, its of benefit to stop drinking alcohol at least four hours before going to bed so that the alcohol can clear your system.'

You can make up for a lack of sleep by napping

Naps may feel like the right idea when you're feeling knackered in the afternoon.

Yet, hour-long kips won't benefit you at all, Dr Browning claimed.

Only dozing for 10-20 minutes at a time will 'leave you feeling refreshed', she said.

She added: 'Sleeping longer, for around an hour, isn't as helpful... because you will wake from the deepest part of sleep, leaving you with sleep inertia and feeling sluggish.'

Sleep inertia is the temporary disorientation we all feel after waking up. Although harmless, it can have knock-on effects on our performance (especially at work).

Dr Browning, also a member of the British Sleep Society, said: 'Napping should not become a replacement for regular night time sleep as it could perpetuate your poor sleep at night.

'If you get too much sleep during the day, you may have problems sleeping at night due to being too awake.

'Much like food, if you have a snack before your dinner, you won't be hungry for your main meal  if you have a nap too near to bed time, you might find it especially hard to fall asleep at night as you won't be as sleepy.'

There is no such thing as too much sleep

Having a lot of sleep may feel very relaxing.

But if you are regularly catching more than nine hours, it can lead to a variety of health issues such as obesity and strokes, studies show.

Dr Browning said: 'Also, if someone is sleeping too much, it's often an indication that their sleep quality is very poor.

'That means that although they might be getting ten hours of sleep each night, it is not as restorative as, say, seven hours good quality sleep. Sleep apnoea is a prime example of this.'

Sleep apnoea, when your breathing stops and starts during the night, can cause loud snoring.

You can catch up on sleep with a lie-in

That Sunday morning lie-in may seem like a great idea at the time.

But, according to Dr Browning, 'this is not the answer'.

Revealed: The FIVE steps to improve your sleep quality Adopt a consistent sleep schedule (similar bed and wake time), including weekends Avoid large meals, caffeine and alcohol close to bedtime Ensure the bed and pillow are comfortable and that the room is cool, dark and quiet Establish a relaxing bedtime routine  going screen-free 30 minutes before bedtime and going to bed when sleepy Undertake exercise during the day to help fall asleep. Advertisement

She said: 'Being sleep deprived and then relying on the weekend to recover may help in the short term, but in the long run extra rest may create a false sense of recovery.

'Also, if you are struggling to fall asleep during the week, then a lie-in at the weekend may make this worse.'

Dr Browning added: 'Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule ranging from around 7-9 hours, will be of most benefit to mental and physical health.

'Try going to sleep and waking up at the same time on weekends as you do on weekdays in order to feel more refreshed and energised overall.'

Just stay in bed if you can't fall asleep

Lying in bed for hours on end, staring at the ceiling, is not the tactic you need to help you drift off.

If you haven't dozed off after 20 minutes, it will be more beneficial to get out of bed and take a break, according to Dr Browning.

She said: 'If you stay in bed, trying to force sleep to happen, it will likely have the opposite effect as you will become more and more anxious and frustrated with your inability to fall asleep.

'It's much better to take a break from trying to force sleep and failing, before trying again after that break.'

Try listening to music, reading a book and disconnecting from electronic devices to help, she advises.

Watching TV before bed is a good way to relax

Turning to Netflix in the hope of falling asleep won't help either.

Bright light emitted from new-era TVs can interfere with your brain's production of melatonin, Dr Browning said.

As a result, it has the potential to interrupt the body's internal clock  scientifically known as the circadian rhythm.

Dr Browning said: 'If your brain is more stimulated (especially by something stressful or anxiety provoking), it's likely sleep will be disrupted, which in the long run, could lead to depression and anxiety.'

Relaxing yoga or reading a book may help instead, she added.

You should sleep in a warm room for better sleep

Cold rooms will help. Warm ones won't.

Dr Browning says the ideal temperature for a bedroom is 16-19C.

'As we fall asleep, and through the night, our core body temperature drops,' she said.

Other experts have described this natural process as the brain's signal to 'get cosy in our nest'.

Dr Browning added: 'Therefore, the room needs to be cool enough to allow that to happen.

'Try opening a window for a cool breeze and see if your sleep improves.'
'Hippy crack' users are being scarred for life by frostbite, surgeons revealed today.

British burns specialists have shared shocking images of the injuries suffered over the years, warning that nitrous oxide cannisters can easily trigger the little-known complication.

The drug, also nicknamed 'laughing gas' or 'nos', is loved by teenagers. Cannisters containing it litter streets and parks across the UK.

Users release the gas from these silver cannisters into balloons, or inhale it directly from bigger dispensers in a bid to experience a temporary feeling of relaxation and euphoria.

But nitrous oxide  which gets stored as a liquid  undergoes rapid cooling to sub-freezing temperatures as low as -88.5C (-127.3F) when initially turning to gas.

This young person suffered frostbite on their thigh from holding a nos dispenser between their legs while filling up balloons with the gas to inhale

Another suffered extensive injuries to their hands from the sub-zero temperatures the gas emits as it exists its storage container

As some have learned, this can leave some unsuspecting victims to get frostbite.

Some have held the hippy crack dispensers their legs while filling balloons, with the super cold cannister leaving behind excruciating burns. Others have been injured with the cannisters held in their hands.

Teens have even been frostbitten on their mouth after inhaling directly from the cans.

Surgeons from St Andrews Centre for Plastic Surgery and Burns, part of Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford, detailed the injuries suffered by 16 patients who attended for frostbite injuries resulting from using hippy crack in 2022.

The patients, the youngest of which was 15, had an average age of 22. Seven were male, the others female.

Writing in the Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery, they said 11 of the patients had suffered injuries from holding a nitrous oxide canister between their legs.

Q+A: Everything you need to know about Nitrous Oxide What is it? Nitrous oxide, has been nicknamed 'laughing gas' due to the euphoric and relaxed feeling people who inhale it can sometimes feel. The substance - also known as 'hippy crack' - is normally bought in pressured canisters, commonly transferred to a container, e.g. a balloon, from which the gas is inhaled. Is it illegal? Although possession of laughing gas is not illegal, English law prohibits its sale to under-18s if there is a chance they will inhale it. What are the effects of nitrous oxide? Feelings of euphoria, relaxation and calmness.

Dizziness, difficulty in thinking straight and fits of giggles/laughter.

Sound distortions or even hallucinations.

In some people, a headache can be an unwanted immediate effect. What are the risks? More recently users have been inhaling the drug directly from dispensers or cartridges, which poses a high risk of severe cold burns and lung injury. Doctors have also previously warned that it also affects several brain and spinal cord networks. According to the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, regular use or prolonged exposure to nitrous oxide may result in: Memory loss

Vitamin B12 depletion (long-term depletion causes brain and nerve damage)

Ringing or buzzing in the ears

Incontinence

Numbness in the hands or feet

Limb spasms

Potential birth defects (if used during pregnancy)

Weakened immune system

Disruption to reproductive systems

Depression

Psychological dependence Advertisement

Eight of these suffered frostbite burns on both sides of their inner thigh.

Lead author of the report, surgeon Jacky Chen, said some of the injuries took nearly 100 days to heal.

And he added that the frostbite injuries often left young people scarred for life.

'Surgical management is the preferred option for these injuries, however, this injury often results in unsightly scarring for these young patients,' he said.

Four other patients suffered frostbite to their hands from nitrous oxide use, while one damaged the skin on their mouth.

The authors added that half of patients had delayed seeking help from an A&E for their frostbite by five days or more, with the longest waiting 22 days.

This was despite some of them suffering from necrosis, where tissue dies.

The authors added there was a lack of awareness about the potential of frostbite from hippy crack.

Mr Chen said: 'Another potential reason for delayed presentation is a lack of publicly available safety information regarding the risk of frostbite injury from nitrous oxide misuse.

'First aid is usually inadequate immediately after injury due to poor initial recognition.

'Rewarming of the frostbitten areas with a bath of warm water 37C (98.6F) to 39C (102.2F) for 30 minutes is recommended. This information is not widely available on drug information sites.'

Mr Chen also said there were signs such injuries were on the rise.

'In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in frostbite injuries referrals to our unit, presenting with a distinct pattern of injury, secondary to the abuse of inhaled nitrous oxide (laughing gas) from compressed metal gas canisters,' he said.

His team called for public health interventions to warn people about potential frostbite from using nitrous oxide as well as larger studies across other burns units.

Medics have become increasingly concerned about the health consequences of using laughing gas.

Heavy and regular recreational use of the substance, which has legitimate use in the food industry and as an anaesthetic, can lead to dizziness, weakness in the legs and impaired memory.

Roughly 40 per cent of users said they had suffered side effects such as anaemia, cognitive impairment and chronic headaches.

It can even cause users to faint or suffocate due to a lack of oxygen to the brain if they inhale highly concentrated forms of the gas.

Writing in the Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery , they said 11 of the patients had suffered injuries from holding a nitrous oxide canister between their legs

Nitrous oxide, also known as hippy crack or nos, is sold in distinctive silvery canisters which have become a common sight discarded on streets and parks in some parts of the UK

Here young revellers suck on balloons at a music festival, a common way people inhale nitrous oxide

However, Office for National Statistics data show only 3.9 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds in England tried nitrous oxide at least once in the year up to June. It was less than half the 8.7 per cent who said they had the drug  nicknamed 'hippy crack'  the year before and the lowest figure on record

Read more: Former Government drug tsar David Nutt slams ban on hippy crack because it 'isn't based on evidence' and misuse causes 700 TIMES fewer deaths than alcohol Professor David Nutt was fired as chairman of the Government's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) in 2009 by Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson after producing a paper for the Home Office which claimed the Class A drug ecstasy to be safer than equestrian sports Advertisement

The substance can cause memory loss, limb spasms, incontinence, and a weakened immune system.

Doctors have also previously warned that it affects several brain and spinal cord networks. Vitamin B12 depletion, triggered by nitrous oxide, can cause neurological problems including paralysis.

Part of the problem is that it is easily accessible through places like corner shops and on social media  where sellers target their audience of 16-24-year-olds directly.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently promised action on hippy crack use as part of swath of measures to tackle anti-social behaviour.

It could see anyone caught facing 'potential prison sentences' and 'unlimited fines for unlawful supply and possession'.

The measures, set to come into force before the end of the year, comes despite the Government's own independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) concluding that it would be disproportionate to bring in an outright ban.

Independent experts have also criticised the move, arguing it could lead to teens trying harder, more dangerous drugs.

However, there are signs Britain's laughing gas craze may be dying out naturally.

An Office for National Statistics (ONS) report revealed only 3.9 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds in England used nitrous oxide at least once last year.

It was less than half the 8.7 per cent who said they had the drug  nicknamed 'hippy crack'  the year before and the lowest figure on record.
Parvovirus is highly contagious and fatal if left untreated - killing 90% of dogs

Vets in New York have seen a sharp rise, with multiple cases in just 24 hours

Pet owners have been urged to look out for a virus that is spiking in some parts of the US and is lethal in dogs.

Parvovirus, often referred to as parvo  a highly-contagious disease that kills up to 90 percent of pooches  is above average levels in at least three parts of the country, New York state, DC and Missouri.

The most common symptoms are vomiting, diarrhea and loss of appetite. The virus is not tracked, so the total number of dogs to have died is not known.

Veterinarian Dr Hannah Lau told WNBC: 'Any breed of dog can become sick from parvovirus, but Rottweilers, Doberman Pinschers, American Pit Bull Terriers, English Springer Spaniels, and German Shepherds may see an increased risk'

New York health officials released an alert which said the Animal Care Centers (ACC) had diagnosed 14 dogs as of March 14, with the majority in puppies and younger dogs in Bronx and Manhattan facilities.

This far exceeded what is usually seen in a whole year.

And a shelter in Missouri has seen a sharp rise in cases in puppies, with some vets seeing two to three sick parvo-infected dogs every day, and sometimes even five or six. The uptick has been attributed to the warmer weather.

Vets at the non-profit had seen several parvo cases in just 24 hours.

ACC's senior vice president of Animal Health & Welfare, Dr Robin Brennen, said: 'We normally see a limited number of parvo cases in any given year.

'But in 2023 we have already seen so many cases and that number continues to rise.'

The Centers advised dog owners to get their pets vaccinated to curb the spread of the virus.

Parvo causes acute gastrointestinal illness and, in rare instances, myocarditis, in dogs.

It does not infect humans. In dogs, the most common symptoms are vomiting, diarrhea and loss of appetite.

Parvo spreads via contact with infected feces.

But with proper treatment, including through fluids, antiemetics, antibiotics, and nutritional support, 90 percent of dogs recover.

Any unvaccinated canine is at risk, but puppies between six and 20 weeks old are at more likely to fall ill.

Symptoms tend to appear within five to seven days of exposure. The first warning signs may be lethargy, lack of appetite and fever.

These may quickly turn into vomiting and hemorrhagic diarrhea (blood in feces), but a quarter of infected dogs might have non-hemorrhagic diarrhea.

Dogs shed the virus into their feces even before they show symptoms.

The ACC recommends that dog owners ensure their pet's parvo vaccination is up to date.

Owners should also not let their dog touch other dogs' feces.

Kansas City Pet Project in Missouri has an isolated parvo ward, since the bug spreads so easily.

Tori Fugate, the Pet Projects spokesperson, said the shelter has 12 puppies infected with parvo, which is higher than normal.

Rachel Lunsford, an urgent care tech at Pet Resource Center of Kansas City, told WDAF: 'Parvo is something you can never tell if theyre going to make it or not.'

She added: 'We see two to three parvo cases every day. Theres some days where I can see five or six.'

Veterinarian Dr Hannah Lau told WNBC: 'Young, unvaccinated dogs are at the highest risk of parvovirus.

'Any breed of dog can become sick from parvovirus, but Rottweilers, Doberman Pinschers, American Pit Bull Terriers, English Springer Spaniels, and German Shepherds may see an increased risk.'
China to promote large-scale application of 5G, industrial internet

Xinhua) 11:02, May 18, 2023

A visitor tries to remote control a vehicle supported by King Long 5G technology at an exhibition of the 6th Digital China Summit in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, April 26, 2023. (Xinhua/Wei Peiquan)

HEFEI, May 17 (Xinhua) -- China will promote the large-scale application of 5G and the industrial internet, and plan for future industries such as 6G, quantum information and brain-like intelligence, an official said on Wednesday in Hefei, capital city of east China's Anhui Province.

The innovative application of 5G and the industrial internet has unique advantages in improving the efficiency of resource allocation and facilitating economic circulation at home and abroad, Zhang Yunming, vice minister of industry and information technology, said at a meeting marking the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, celebrated every year on May 17.

The next generation of information and communication technologies has become an important engine for the country's high-quality development, he added.

"We will deepen the integration of 5G and the industrial internet to support the development of high-end, intelligent and green manufacturing industry," Zhang said.

The theme of this year's World Telecommunication and Information Society Day is "empowering the least developed countries through information and communication technologies."

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The World Health Organization has called for new Covid shots to be developed for this winter that targets mutated variants.

An advisory group for the global health agency said the current crop of shots should be updated to target the currently dominant XBB strains.

The shots currently being used in the UK and US target the original Omicron strain, to which the XBB.1.5 or XBB.1.16 variants are spinoffs.

These are more mutated than the ancestral strain, which has made the vaccine less effective at preventing infections and slightly less effective against severe disease.

It comes after the agency said in March that healthy children and teenagers probably do not need a Covid vaccine and amid falling uptake of updated shots.

The World Health Organization has recommended new Covid shots are developed this winter to target mutated variants (file image)

The recommendation was made by the WHO's Technical Advisory Group on Covid Vaccine Composition (TAG-CO-VAC).

In their release, they say: 'The [advisory group] recognizes and reiterates that currently approved Covid vaccines, including those based on the [Wuhan] virus, continue to provide substantial protection against severe disease and death.

'[But] new formulations of Covid vaccines are needed to improve protection against symptomatic disease.'

They suggested designing vaccines against the XBB variants of the virus, which are currently dominant  with XBB.1.5 making up 64 percent of US cases.

They also highlighted the XBB.1.16 variant, dubbed 'Arcturus', amid concerns that this strain is far more transmissible than others and reports from India that it can cause pink-eye in patients.

The US previously spent $4.9billion on an arsenal of 171million updated 'bivalent' boosters  that targeted the then-dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron strains  to shore up the nation's protection.

But uptake of the vaccine was low, while cases and deaths from the virus remained below levels in the worst days of the pandemic.

The updated shot was made available in late 2022 for all adults, and then everyone over five years old in October.

In December it was widened again, to allow babies as young as six months to get the updated vaccines.

But the rollout struggled to get off the ground, with just 17 percent of those eligible  or 56million people  coming forward for the vaccine.

For comparison, 70 percent of Americans  or 230million people  got both doses of the original Covid vaccine.

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-run survey found the main reasons people were not getting the bivalent booster was because of 'perceived immunity' against the virus alongside confusion over whether they were eligible.

Participants who had not got the bivalent booster were also most likely to say they were 'too busy' to get vaccinated.

The US relies on the Pfizer and Moderna Covid shots, which both use mRNA technology to trigger immunity against the virus.

They work by getting the body's own cells to manufacture antigens  a protein from the surface of the virus.

These are then detected by the immune system which launches an attack and develops Covid-fighting cells, preparing it for when the real infection comes along.

The vaccine developers say the mRNA formula can be easily tweaked to get cells to make the antigens from the XBB variant, rather than those from Omicron strains.

The above graph shows the number of Americans who have got the first two doses of the Covid vaccine

This shows the number that got the updated bivalent boosters by week

Immunity from previous vaccines and past infections is still effective against severe disease from new variants because their antigens only tend to have a few tweaks.

But they are less effective at stopping someone from developing an infection, although even the newest Covid vaccines cannot rule this out.

Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax have already said that they are developing versions of the Covid vaccine to target XBB.1.5 alongside other strains.

This June, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is scheduled to hold a meeting on the composition of shots for later this year.

It is expected that vaccine manufacturers will be advised to update their shots once the most concerning strains are selected.

WHO's advisory group, which recommends if changes are needed to the composition of future Covid shots, also said currently approved vaccines should continue to be used in accordance with the agency's recommendations.

In late March, WHO revised its Covid vaccination recommendations and suggested healthy children and adolescents might not necessarily need a shot.

The latest recommendations come about two weeks after WHO ended the global emergency status for Covid.

Experts warned in the early days of the pandemic that the world may eventually reach a point where a new tweaked Covid vaccine will be needed every year, just like with the flu shots.
Experts warned the plateau could be a 'wobble' before another rise

Drug overdoses killed the equivalent of a large plane full of Americans every other day last year, figures show.

Early data showed that more than 105,000 people died, the equivalent of over 300 per day.

Due to reporting delays, officials expect the final count to be more than 109,680, which would be a record high.

The figures represent a plateau from the previous year when 109,197 overdose deaths were recorded, which the White House heralded as a sign that the country was 'beating' the crisis.

But health scientists sounded a more skeptical note, with one warning that this could be just a 'wobble' before fentanyl and other drugs like xylazine trigger overdose deaths to rise again.

The above graph shows the number of confirmed (black line) and predicted (dotted line) overdose deaths from drugs in the United States by year. Data for 2022 is still provisional, because of the time it takes for a death to be cataloged and reported by states

This map shows how deaths from drug overdoses have shifted by state over the latest year that data is available. Most are reporting a rise.

America has been grappling with an escalating overdose crisis since the 2010s when fentanyl was first added to the illicit drug supply.

It is up to 50 times more powerful than heroin and can help drug users achieve a more intense high.

But the drug  which can also be used to knock out horses  is toxic, with as little as two milligrams able to kill an adult.

The figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were based on reports submitted to the National Vital Statistics System, which monitors births and deaths nationwide.

They showed there were 105,452 overdose deaths from drugs in 2022.

But the figure is still provisional because of the time taken for deaths to be cataloged and the cause of death to be determined  with another few thousand still expected to be reported.

Based on the provisional figures, overdose fatalities are expected to have risen 0.5 percent in 2022 compared to the previous year.

This is a lower rise than in previous years, with deaths ticking up 17 percent in 2021 and 30 percent the year beforehand  but does not represent a drop in the figures.

It is also the equivalent of all 660 passengers on a Boeing 747-400 dying every other day.

Dr Rahul Gupta, the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) heralded them as evidence that the US was 'beating' the crisis.

Broken down by state, the sharpest rises in fatalities were recorded in Wyoming, up 22 percent, and Washington, up 21 percent.

But at the other end of the scale, South Dakota, down 17 percent, and Maryland, down eight percent, saw the sharpest falls.

Revealing the figures, Dr Gupta said: 'We've expanded treatment to millions of Americans, we're improving access to Naloxone to reverse overdoses, and we're attacking the illicit fentanyl supply chain at every choke point.

'As a result, around 19,000 people are still alive and can be there at the dinner table, at birthdays, and at life's most important moments.'

He added: 'President Biden called on us to double down on our efforts to save even more lives so we can beat this crisis, and that's exactly what we're doing.'

The Biden Administration has worked to make naloxone, a drug that can reverse a fatal overdose, available nationwide to help combat overdose fatalities.

Xylazine prolongs the highs felt from heroin and other street drugs, but results in users passing out for hours at a time, while injection points ulcerate and lead to grisly wounds that spread across the body. Pictured: Homeless people on the streets of Kensington, Philadelphia

The above graph shows drug overdose deaths by which drug or drugs was involved in the fatality

They have also been tackling imports of illicit drugs, including those that are laced with fentanyl, from overseas, particularly from Mexico and China. The White House said that last year 240,000lbs of illicit drugs had been seized at the nation's borders, while 290,000lbs were also seized internally in the country.

Pamela Lynch, the executive director of Harm Reduction Management Michigan which monitors overdose deaths, told the Washington Post that the data was a 'step in the right direction'.

But other experts sounded a less positive note including Dr Donald Burke, a health scientist at the University of Pittsburgh who has modeled 40 years of data on the overdose crisis.

He said the plateau may be a 'wobble' before another increase.

'Anybody looking at this with historical trends in mind, and a bit of statistics in mind, will probably say it's not going to go down,' he said.

The roots of America's drug crisis can be traced back to the 1990s when pharmaceutical companies began aggressively marketing opioid painkillers as a safe and effective way to treat chronic pain.

The companies convinced doctors that the risk of addiction was low, prompting them to write prescriptions for millions of Americans.

When these ran out many eventually turned to the black market to keep taking the drugs because they had become addicted, with many turning to heroin as a cheaper and more accessible alternative.

This spawned today's crisis when supplies of drugs like heroin began to be laced with fentanyl by manufacturers.
A popular fertility app used by women to track their reproductive health will pay $200,000 to settle claims that it shared highly sensitive data from thousands of users to shady Chinese companies.

Premom - an Illinois-based company that purports to have about half a million users who can upload confidential information about their menstrual cycles, reproductive health conditions, and other fertility-related data.

The company was charged with giving away identifiable user health information and precise geolocation information with Google and two China-based companies known for 'suspect privacy practices.'

Easy Healthcare, Premoms developer, has pledged to stop sharing sensitive information, though it did not admit to any wrongdoing.

Last years upending of legal abortion access brought a renewed wave of concerns over health privacy as millions of American women use fertility apps to keep track of their cycles, which could potentially be used to penalize anyone seeking or considering an abortion.

More than a dozen states have restricted access to abortions following the overturning of Roe V Wade

Premom asks users to upload details about their sexual health such as ovulation and basal body temperature to receive personalized, remote analysis to help predict how to get pregnant naturally

Premom is owned by Illinois-based Easy Healthcare, a medical supplies e-commerce company. Premom allows users to upload their ovulation test strips, which Easy Healthcare also makes

DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb said: District residents who used the Premom app were entitled to have their locations and devices kept confidential, but Easy Healthcare shared that private information with third parties without notice or consent, putting users at risk.

Now more than ever, with reproductive rights under attack across the country, it is essential that the privacy of healthcare decisions is vigorously protected. My office will continue to make sure companies protect consumers personal information to protect against unlawful encroachment on access to effective reproductive healthcare.

The FTC did not disclose the names of the Chinese firms that got hold of the sensitive information, but said they had been flagged for suspect privacy practices.

The widespread concerns about sharing sensitive data regarding reproductive health hit a fever pitch in June 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned a 50 year precedent for legal abortion.

The data stored on apps like Premom is extremely telling  when a period stops or starts and when a pregnany starts and stops. And privacy experts have been on edge since then, knowing full well that data could be subpoenaed or sold to third parties.

The app launched in 2017 but enjoyed a major milestone in November 2019 with half a million downloads.

During the pandemic, business shifted to a largely remote platform across many industries. Premom began offering virtual consultations with fertility specialists in July 2020.

HIPAA, the federal health information privacy law, does not have jurisdiction over period tracking apps and in fact aspects of the law have failed to keep up with the advent of new technologies such as fitness trackers.

Easy Healthcare, for its part, said: Our agreement with the FTC is not an admission of any wrongdoing. Rather, it is a settlement to avoid the time and expense of litigation and enables us to put this matter behind us and focus on you, our users.

Rest assured that we do not, and will not, ever sell any information about users health to third parties, nor do we share it for advertising purposes Protecting users data is a high priority, which is why we have always been transparent with and cooperated fully throughout the FTCs review of our privacy program.

Under the settlement, the company has agreed to a $100,000 civil penalty for violating the Health Breach Notification Rule, according to the FTC.

It will also pay $100,000 to the state AGs.

Wednesdays settlement agreement follows FTC action taken against a similar app called Flo about three years ago. The app, used by over 100 million women, received a slap on the wrist for failing to put limits on how third-party companies such as Google and Facebook could use the health information of millions of women, which led to these companies using the private data for targeted online ads.

The investigation found that the app was sharing data all while the company repeatedly promised users that their data would be protected and not shared with others.
BOOK OF THE WEEK

Sleeping on Islands: A Life in Poetry

by Andrew Motion (Faber 20, 320pp)

It's not necessarily quite what you want to hear if you're the Poet Laureate, and especially not from your employer.

'I'm afraid I don't read much poetry,' says the Queen, when Andrew Motion has his first audience with her.

But she has a good excuse. 'I have so many of those blessed red boxes to read  my government keeps sending them.'

Meanwhile, as former laureate Ted Hughes has just died, Motion wants to make sure the Queen knows that they were friends, though he recognises that the great Hughes is an impossibly hard act to follow.

there are considerable upsides to being Poet Laureate. You get to meet almost everybody and you hang out with royalty. On the downside you have to churn out poems to order. Pictured: Andrew Motion with Camilla in 2013

He has also heard on the grapevine that the Queen Mother and Prince Charles had been very friendly with him, and it was rumoured that Hughes and the Queen Mother went fishing together.

'Oh yes,' the Queen tells him. 'I believe that Ted Hughes and my mother did see quite a bit of each other. Actually, I'd like to have a poet laureate who paid attention to me.'

Later, he and his then wife, Jan, are invited by Prince Charles for a weekend in Sandringham.

He is determined not to feel his head is turned, but after being picked up at King's Lynn station and driven very fast through the lanes of Norfolk, he senses he is 'disappearing into a different time world where the normal rules of life no longer obtained'. Who else was there? 'Luvvies and their partners,' he tells us.

There's Jeremy Irons and his wife, Sinead Cusack, Jools Holland, Robert Harris, Richard E. Grant and his (late) wife Joan Washington, Mario Testino and 'of course' Stephen Fry.

Prince Charles and Camilla (not yet the Duchess of Cornwall) affably wander round dishing out pints of gin and making everyone welcome.

Motion is very struck by the future King. 'He was more earnest: asking questions, engaged, implausibly modest and surprisingly candid'  almost immediately mentioning how unhappy he had been as a child.

After the reception they are shown up to their bedroom where their cases have been unpacked and their clothes for dinner pressed and laid out on the bed by some kindly but invisible hand.

Motion has a curiously rough-and-ready attitude to the (many) women in his life, who come and go with regularity

Downstairs the table is magnificent, 'buried by vast flower decorations, set in a silver sea of salvers, figurines, jugs, bowls, candlesticks and candelabras'.

The next day, the house party is taken to a lavish picnic in a handsome log cabin not too far away.

On the ground there are thousands of toads mating, some in couples, most in gangs. 'What do you think would happen if I kissed one?' Jan asks the future King. 'Then there would be a surfeit of princes,' he rather wittily replies.

So there are considerable upsides to being Poet Laureate. You get to meet almost everybody and you hang out with royalty. On the downside you have to churn out poems to order.

Motion is much happier when he goes off piste, wanting to make poetry part of everyday life: the foot-and-mouth outbreak, bullying, the war in Iraq, the Paddington train crash.

Now Motion, for years one of the great and the good of British letters, has written an absorbing memoir about his life, the people in it and his passion for poetry.

But it's not a bad career anyway: an award-winning biographer, notably of Philip Larkin, his hero, and John Keats; one time head of creative writing at the University of East Anglia; editor of the Poetry Review; editorial director at Chatto; founder of the Poetry Archive; head of the Campaign to Protect Rural England. You can't fault him for effort.

Obsessed with writing and writers, and in a fairly clear-eyed and ruthless drive to the top, he makes sure he meets almost everybody who matters in the post-war literary world. W. H. Auden is returning to Oxford where Motion, who is beginning to gain a reputation as a published poet, is studying.

'I'm afraid I don't read much poetry,' says the Queen, when Andrew Motion has his first audience with her. Pictured: Motion receiving his Knighthood from the Queen

Getting to know Auden would be an endorsement: 'My need for a mentor coincided with my need for approbation, the more distinguished the mentor, the more valuable the approbation.'

At dinner at Christ Church, Auden suggests Motion sits next to him. That's because no one else wants to: Auden is a confused mess, shuffling around in slippers, laying down the law, repeating himself and getting very drunk. The famous face 'as fissured as a limestone pavement'.

Auden reads Motion's poems, and proffers advice when he visits his cottage. On the wall is a David Hockney etching of a naked boy: 'What would you like?' asks Auden. Was he being propositioned? Martini, replies Motion.

At a reading in London by Hughes and Seamus Heaney, he observes the power of poetry well poets, certainly  in action. As the audience take their books up to be signed, he sees that some, especially the women, seemed to curl up against Hughes while he writes their names.

Literary figures flit eagerly through the pages: here is Kingsley Amis behaving appallingly at a lunch before Larkin's funeral, disdaining the food and asking for drinks he knows the hosts won't have.

Here's Sir Antony Sher at dinner, and even Tony Blair in his shirtsleeves breezily greeting Motion at No 10. 'Ello', he says, dropping the 'h' as if they were old pals from a rock band.

But it is Larkin, who asks Motion to act as his literary executor, who dominates the middle section of this book. Motion takes a job at Hull University, where Larkin was the librarian until his death.

But he is now an older figure, rumpled, drinking a few pints at lunchtime. 'He's the best poet alive and famous for being a recluse but here I am seeing him as though he has just got out of bed.'

Motion has a curiously rough-and-ready attitude to the (many) women in his life, who come and go with regularity. His first wife, Joanna, he meets as a student; his second is Jan, a literary editor.

That relationship ends eventually. 'I moved into a flat round the corner and five years after that Jan and I got divorced'.

He meets his latest wife at a reading in upstate New York. She is a Korean interpreter and artist called Kyeong-Soo Kim: 'Very beautiful black hair, a very beautiful concentrating face, a very cool tweed trouser suit, and very funky black boots with a rib on the toecap . . . and (her) voice surprisingly deep and commanding.'

It sounds like love and, sure enough, a year later Kyeong-Soo leaves her apartment in Brooklyn and moves to London to live with Motion.

He accepts a job teaching at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, a city with one of the highest homicide rates in the U.S. He remembers what T. S. Eliot had said: 'Old men ought to be explorers.' He was taking his advice: his decision was a vote for adventure.

And the world of American verse will be a welcome change. The British literary world he sees is like 'a walled town where everyone knew or recognised everyone else . . . a permanent battle for survival, gossiping and grudging, competing and complaining'. No wonder he chose Baltimore.
Around half of customers left dissatisfied with how a complaint was handled

The amount of time customers spend on hold waiting to speak to phone and broadband firms is on the up, new data from regulator Ofcom has revealed.

Broadband and landline customers waited two minutes and 37 seconds on average, compared to two minutes and 16 seconds in 2021, Ofcom said.

Across broadband and landline providers, BT, EE, NOW Broadband, Plusnet, TalkTalk and Vodafone all saw their average call waiting times rise in 2022.

Similar to 2021, only around half of mobile, broadband and landline customers who made a complaint to their provider last year were satisfied with how it was dealt with, Ofcom added.

Waiting on the phone: 2022 call waiting times for customers revealed by Ofcom

How are broadband providers performing?

One in five broadband customers said they had a reason to complain about their service or provider in 2022, according to Ofcom.

Shell Energy Broadband emerged as the worst offender in the broadband provider call waiting time stakes last year, coming in at over eight minutes on average.

This was almost double the waiting time at the next-poorest performing broadband provider, KCom.

A Shell Energy Broadband spokesperson told This is Money: 'Ofcom's report covers a period last year when we were migrating customers from the Post Office platform to our Shell Energy platform, which temporarily increased demand for customer support.

'Our average call waiting time this year is one of the best in the industry at 1 minute 49 seconds.'

According to Ofcom's figures, broadband customers with Vodafone are left waiting around 3.19 minutes before someone from customer services picks up the phone. This is the third-worst performance out of all the providers listed.

About 10 per cent of Vodafone callers ended the call before getting through to an adviser during the period, Ofcom added.

Although NOW Broadband saw its call waiting time creep up, it remains top of the pack, leaving callers languishing for just 51 seconds, against 31 seconds the previous year.

Plusnet customers were more likely than average to be satisfied with their service overall.

TalkTalk and Virgin Media were both below average on how complaints were handled, while Sky was above average on this measure, Ofcom said.

How are mobile contract providers doing?

In 2022, one in 10 mobile customers said they had a reason to complain about their service or provider in 2022, Ofcom's data shows.

Mobile customers spent an average of two minutes and 23 seconds in a queue waiting to get through on the phone to customer services, up from two minutes and 15 seconds the previous year, the regulator added.

EE, BT, iD Mobile and Three all saw their average call waiting times rise in 2022 compared with 2021, while O2, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone reduced theirs.

Mobile mare: Mobile contract provider average 2022 call waiting times, according to Ofcom

Three continued to be fastest on the phone lines at 47 seconds on average, although this tripled last year.

EE had the longest average call waiting times at three minutes 41 seconds, while last year's worst performer, O2, reduced theirs from four minutes to two minutes and 33 seconds.

Among mobile providers, Virgin Mobile scored lower than average for overall customer satisfaction, while Tesco Mobile and Giffgaff customers had higher-than-average satisfaction levels, at around 95 per cent.

Tesco Mobile and Giffgaff also scored above average for value for money, with EE and Vodafone scoring below average, according to Ofcom's findings.

What does Ofcom have to say?

Insiders at Ofcom said customers want to be able to get through to mobile and broadband providers quickly and have any complaints dealt with efficiently.

Ian Macrae, Ofcom's director of market intelligence, said: 'We've asked telecoms customers what frustrates them most with their providers, and the message is clear: they want to get through to the right person on the phone quickly, and have their complaints dealt with first time.

Are you satisfied? Broadband provider customer satisfaction rates for 2022

'With switching becoming simpler, providers that continue to let standards slip should expect customers to show them the door.'

He said the most popular way for customers to contact their provider is by phone, accounting for 77 per cent of mobile customer contacts and 90 per cent of landline and broadband contacts.

If you are having problems with your broadband, mobile or landline provider it's worth checking out Ofcom's website to see how you can take a complaint further.

While Ofcom does not investigate individual complaints, it provides guides about what to do if you are unhappy with a telecoms service.
Errors meant that some customers were charged above the energy price cap

Ovo Energy and Good Energy have sparked fury after overcharging 18,000 households in a move that has been deemed 'totally unacceptable' by regulator Ofgem.

Many customers have been charged for a series of extra costs in complaints seen by MailOnline.

Errors by the two suppliers mean that some customers were charged above the maximum rates allowed under either the energy price cap or the Government's Energy Price Guarantee scheme.

One MailOnline reader said: 'I was overcharged by Ovo when they took me over from SSE.

'Back in November, SSE switched me to Ovo without telling me. When I switched over they added 2000 gas units to my account, making my bill over 1,550.

Ofgem says it is 'totally unacceptable' that energy customers were being overcharged during a 'challenging and stressful time' for consumers

The average amount paid to Good Energy customers will be 109 while Ovo customers will receive an average of 181, Ofgem has said

'After several calls and three missed meter reads, my direct debit was then put up to 193 a month.

'I explained to them that I was disabled and couldn't get on the floor to read the gas meter. After making a complaint, I eventually got a meter read.

'I was told that the 2000 gas units added was wrong and given the correct read.

'Instead of adjusting my bill, they put 1,334 onto my other account. Which still meant I owed them this money.

'After a lot of stress I went to the ombudsman who then wrote to them to not only adjust the bill but pay for incorrect meter reads.'

The reader claimed Ovo was the worst company they've 'ever had to deal with', and said the 'stress and anxiety has been huge'.

Another Ovo customer told MailOnline: 'I am currently in debt to Ovo to the tune of 1,477.33 despite already paying them 776.04 since December 14.

'They are guessing at the amounts despite me sending meter readings three times since December.'

'I have been moved to Ovo as I was with SSE Energy. Since the move it's been a nightmare.

'They didnt see fit to inform me my billing was being swapped to monthly instead of quarterly and, most laughably, they sent a text in December that said I was being moved to Ovo and there was nothing I needed to do as it was all in hand.'

In a separate case, one reader disclosed that Ovo Energy had 'estimated' that she owed 34,399 in charges, which she had to fight for months to clear.

A spokesperson for Ovo said: 'We're very sorry to some of our fixed-price customers who experienced a delay in receiving the Energy Price Guarantee discount. We noticed immediately and self-reported the error to Ofgem.

'The issue has now been fixed and compensation has been paid as an apology.'

Nigel Pocklington, Good Energy's chief executive, said: 'We are very sorry that we let some of our customers down and promise to put things right.

'We have been contacting those impacted to apologise and issue their refunds and goodwill payments and will be fixing the issue so it does not happen again.'

He added that the firm has submitted a formal improvement plan including new automated processes and standards to prevent any similar mistakes in the future.

Good Energy overcharged more than 6,900 customers between January 2019 and October 2022, while Ovo overcharged nearly 11,000 customers between October 2022 and March 2023.

The affected households will receive a combined total of 2.7million from the two companies while an extra 1.25million will go to vulnerable customers in the UK under Ofgem's voluntary redress fund.

The average amount paid to Good Energy customers will be 109 while Ovo customers will receive an average of 181, Ofgem said.

Dan Norton, deputy director of retail at Ofgem, said: 'Protecting consumers is always our top priority, and we expect suppliers to ensure customers pay no more than the level of the price cap or Energy Price Guarantee - schemes put in place with the very purpose of helping people.

'It is totally unacceptable that Good Energy and Ovo Energy customers were overcharged, particularly at a time that is already so challenging and stressful for consumers across the UK.

'Energy suppliers should hear this loud and clear: we expect suppliers to act with the utmost care and integrity.

'We will continue to hold them to account if they do not meet their customer protection or reporting obligations.'

At the start of April, Ofgem dropped the energy price cap from 4,279 per year to 3,280 for the average household. However, customers are still protected by the energy price guarantee, which limits bills to 2,500.

The energy price cap is forecast to fall below this level when it is next set in July to 2,062.91 a year for average use, according to analysts at Cornwall Insight.

> Energy price cap: When are bills going to fall and by how much?
Some 43 years have passed since BT was hived off from the Royal Mail ready for a more dynamic future as an independent, private sector company.

Anyone tuning into the latest reports from BT and the Royal Mail is entitled to ask what went wrong.

Many privatisations, water is a prime example, have failed to turn out as the godparent of the policy, Margaret Thatcher, would have hoped.

Successive BT chief executives have struggled with a blancmange layer of bureaucracy which made change at the telecoms giant so formidable.

The Royal Mail is dogged by post-Thatcherite militancy from the Communication Workers Union (CWU), which has driven successive chief executives to distraction. Simon Thompson is the latest to go, after a bruising reign.

Lacking intelligence: BT, chief executive Philip Jansen wants to slash 55,000 jobs and turn to AI technology to run the telecom giant

At BT, chief executive Philip Jansen, who values his work-life balance, has decided to become Britains first artificial intelligence apostle. He is proposing to take a meat axe to the workforce, slashing 55,000 jobs, some 40 per cent of staff, by 2030.

By then, one suspects, he will have long retreated to Cornwall and a slice of the jobs being divested will be replaced by AI.

Consumers already having to deal with BTs often unhelpful, impenetrable, inflexible customer service and rapacious billing (contracts which have to be paid long after service has been removed) might find this a little scary.

Doubtless, it will be explained to those facing the scrapheap that being replaced by AI and losing their careers and livelihoods is a terrific benefit to the human race.

What has spurred Jansen into action is not clear but one suspects activist Patrick Drahi, who spent 2.2billion on acquiring an 18 per cent cent stake, may be a factor.

Certainly, steps are needed to be taken to revive a stagnant share price.

However, the 5 per cent slump in latest trading hardly signals tremendous confidence that a corner is being turned.

So, four years after taking the helm, Jansen is assuring everyone that New BT (a phrase familiar to the Labour lexicon) will be a leaner and brighter business.

How does Jansen or anyone else involved in the AI experiment know? Amid the hoopla there are known knowns.

Free cash flow at the telecoms concern was at the bottom end of the 1.3billion target. Revenues fell to 20.7billion but were above forecast.

Meanwhile, the great project to bring the UK full fibre to the door lumbers on, way behind many overseas competitors including South Korea and Spain.

That is hardly going to advance Rishi Sunaks project to make Britain the next Silicon Valley.

Spare us the corporate speak and give Britain the broadband and mobile signal which actually works in central London.

Snail mail

Which brings us to the Royal Mail. There is no doubt that dealing with the CWU and modernising the sorting and delivery services has been a decade-long nightmare which defeated the indefatigable Moya Greene and the entrepreneurial Rico Back.

Nevertheless, for the management to blame a 1billion loss, after writedowns, just on posties is a bit rich.

Proprietor International Distributions Services argues that it swung to loss due to industrial action by unionised staff. A fairer account might have highlighted management culpability.

Royal Mails clumsy negotiating sacrificed the reliability of the universal postal service.

Just 73.7 per cent of first class deliveries arrived on time in 2022-23 (20 full points below the official 93 per cent target), which triggered an Ofcom investigation.

Amid terrible industrial relations, missed targets, whopping losses and management mayhem, we are assured by chairman Keith Williams that it is on a clear path towards a more profitable Royal Mail. Sure!

Licence tussle

The reported stand-off between the Treasury and the Bank of England over giving fintech pioneer Revolut a banking licence is a proxy battle relating to Government post-Brexit ambitions.

The Bank is super-cautious about offering the pathway to a licence while its accounts are still being finalised with auditors BDO and amid concerns about financial stability after the failures of Credit Suisse, SVB and First Republic.

Jeremy Hunt and the Treasury are on a mission to relaunch Britain as a tech and financial services superpower.

Bank regulator Sam Woods, who heads the Prudential Regulatory Authority, is right to tread carefully.
Reader has reported it, but his details are still on the public register

The firm's director is based in China and seems to be involved in online selling

Reader was shocked to find a Companies House registration using his address

A person based in China has registered a business with Companies House using my home address.

I first found this out in October 2022, when I began receiving HMRC communications, bills and letters addressed to this company.

When I look it up on the Companies House website, the only information I can find is the name of the director, his date of birth and the fact that his country of residence is listed as China.

The codes used to describe the nature of the business seem to suggest it is a retailer selling products online - what kind of products, I don't know.

Shock: It was totally unexpected when our reader went online to discover his own home address listed as a company headquarters (stock image)

I am worried about suppliers or customers potentially turning up at my home, as the address is accessible to anyone online. I am also worried it could affect my credit score.

I filed forms with Companies House to try and get my address taken off these public documents, including sending them various proofs of address.

These were rejected as I did not tick a box allowing Companies House to inform the business owner that the address had been removed.

I didn't want to do this as I thought there might be repercussions  and obviously this person knows where I live  but I later relented and re-submitted the forms to try and put an end to the matter. My address is still listed, however.

How was this able to happen, and why didn't the business owner need to provide any proof of address? Anonymous

Helen Crane of This is Money replies: I'm sorry to hear about the stress this has caused you. I know you are concerned about your privacy and feel that this has been violated, so I am keeping your identity and location anonymous.

I have to admit that when your email landed in my inbox, I was intrigued. How on earth could something like this happen?

Surely, I thought, someone must prove their company is based at an address before registering it as their place of business with Companies House  an arm of His Majesty's Government?

But put simply  no, they don't.

The only rules for a registered address are that 'it must be a physical location where notices, letters and reminders can be delivered to the company,' and that it must be in the UK.

But it doesn't have to be the place where it does business, or even the director's home address.

CRANE ON THE CASE Our weekly column sees This is Money consumer expert Helen Crane tackle reader problems and shine the light on companies doing both good and bad. Want her to investigate a problem, or do you want to praise a firm for going that extra mile? Get in touch: helen.crane@thisismoney.co.uk

It could even be a PO Box, the address of a 'company formation agent', or a third party firm paid to handle mail.

In a way it makes sense, as plenty of companies are internet-based and might not have a premises.

I can also understand why company directors who work at home might not want to have their address listed on the register  but unfortunately you weren't given that choice when someone nabbed your address and entered it on a registration form to become a UK company.

We don't know why this person has used your home address to register their business, and frustratingly we probably never will.

Did they simply pluck it out of thin air? Perhaps it looked your area up on a map  or even your house? It is certainly unsettling to imagine a stranger paying such close attention to the place where you live.

As the director is listed as being based in China, and it is an internet-based company, I suspect that they do not have a physical address in the UK.

As I mentioned above, that isn't a problem as it could have used a mail forwarding company or the like  but this seems to be a small operation and perhaps they didn't know the rules, or wanted to seem more legitimate in the eyes of potential customers by using a real address.

Bombarded: The reader has been receiving bills, letters and even HMRC communications on behalf of this business

Whatever the reason, using your address is a form of fraud, and you may want to consider reporting the company in question to Action Fraud.

I dug around for the company name online, and have found a website which seems to suggest it is engaged in 'dropshipping'.

This is a controversial type of retail business which sells products to customers online without ever owning or having access to the stock.

Instead, dropshippers act as a middleman - taking the customer's order and then placing a separate order with a supplier or manufacturer to send it directly to them.

The company was registered last autumn and you started getting mail soon after. Most of it is marketing junk, but you are also receiving official HMRC communications.

You have also noticed that the company name comes up alongside your address in 'auto-fill' forms when shopping online.

The letters are annoying, but your real concern is that someone connected to this company  perhaps a disgruntled customer or supplier  could turn up at your home.

Therefore, the length of time it is taking to get Companies House to remove your address from its website and other official documents has frustrated you.

When you first complained, you were told you had to fill out forms and send evidence that this was your home - unlike the business owner who didn't need to give any.

But the forms were sent back as you didn't tick a box saying that Companies House could inform the director about the address change. It hadn't been explained to you that this was a legal requirement, so you resubmitted but didn't hear back  and then got in touch with me.

I spoke to Companies House, and it quickly agreed to remove your address from the record.

A Companies House spokesman said: 'We've accepted the application to change the company's registered office address.

'Where a company does not update its address when required, we default the registered office to Companies House, Cardiff.

'Measures to reform Companies House in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill will give the Registrar broader powers to query suspected fraudulent addresses.'

Amended: Companies House will change a company address to its own headquarters in Cardiff (pictured) if it is found to be fraudulent

It also addressed the issue around this company being named alongside your address when it is automatically entered during online shopping transactions.

While Companies House doesn't sell the data it collects, there are companies that compile publicly available information such as the company register to create databases which are used for. among other things, automated address entry on websites.

These are regularly updated, and now your address has been removed from Companies House it should stop appearing soon.

You have told me you continue to seek compensation from Companies House for the trouble this has caused you. I understand this, but it may be tricky to get a payout as it is a taxpayer-funded body and didn't break any rules when registering this firm.

You were also worried about whether this episode might affect your credit score  which is understandable. I'm happy to be able to tell you that shouldn't do, for several reasons.

First of all, credit checks are done on individuals, not on addresses. Your credit score won't be linked to someone else's purely because you have lived (or in your case, been connected to) the same address.

For your credit score to be tied to someone else's, you would need to have taken out a financial product such as a mortgage together  and I am assuming this rogue company director doesn't plan on chipping in.

Something else that may reassure you is that company finances are considered separate to personal ones for credit check purposes, even if someone is listed as a director.

Limited companies will have their own credit score, and even if the firm becomes insolvent that would be recorded on the company's credit file, not the director's.

I am glad the record has now been put right, and hope that I have been able to reassure you a little about the potential impact of this rogue registration.
The owner of jewellers Mappin & Webb said demand for engagement and wedding rings has fallen after a post-pandemic boom last year.

Watches of Switzerland chief executive Brian Duffy said demand for the accessories was still very strong, as the firm posted sales up by a quarter to 1.5billion for the year to April 30.

But he said there has been a slowdown in purchases of bridal jewellery, after couples raced to get married when Covid curbs were lifted last year.

Sales drop: The demand for engagement and wedding rings has fallen after a post-pandemic boom last year

He told the Mail: Last year there was still a catch up of people getting weddings organised and consequently buying engagement rings.

The company sells rings in the UK through its jewellery brands, Goldsmiths, Mappin & Webb, as well as Mayors and Betteridge in the US.

The retailer said it expects to post a profit of between 163million and 167million, for the year to April 30, up from 130million last year.

But yesterday shares fell 5.8 per cent, or 43p, to 697.5p after it warned it was preparing to face a more challenging trading environment in the first half of its new financial year.
One of Chinas biggest car makers has doubled its stake in Aston Martin in a vote of confidence in the UK motor industry.

Geely spent 234million raising its holding to 17 per cent, making it the third-largest shareholder in the British company behind a consortium led by Aston chairman Lawrence Stroll and Saudi Arabias Public Investment Fund, which bought Newcastle United FC in 2021.

Geely, which owns Lotus and Volvo, snapped up around 42m shares from Strolls group at 335p each and a further 28m new shares at the same price.

Aston Martin shares rose 12.5 per cent, or 28.8p, to 260p.

Stake: Geely, which owns Lotus and Volvo, spent 234m raising its holding in Aston Martin to 17%, making it the third-largest shareholder in the British company.

The agreement promises to create a long-term partnership and supply materials to the car brand, a favourite of James Bond.

The move raises 95million for Aston, which has had a bumper year as demand for luxury goods remains resilient despite economic pressures on consumers.

It said this month that revenues climbed nearly a third in the first three months of 2023 to 295million, while losses narrowed to 74.2million.

Victoria Scholar, analyst at Interactive Investor, said: This is a welcome development at a time when there are growing concerns about the Brexit trade deal for UK auto manufacturing.

Vauxhall owner Stellantis this week sounded the alarm over potential tariffs on exports of electric cars to the EU.

It warned it may have to close UK factories, costing thousands of jobs, because of rules that dictate 45 per cent of electric vehicle parts should originate in the UK or EU to qualify for free trade.

But with a shortage of batteries in Britain and on the Continent, car makers warn this is increasingly difficult.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: Its something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern.

As a result of that, we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally.

But the looming crisis has failed to dissuade Geely. Chairman Li Shufu, known as Eric Li, said: Our decision to increase our shareholding in Aston Martin reflects our confidence in the growth prospects, its technologies and management team.

Geely owns European brands including Swedens Volvo and Norfolk-based Lotus and has tried to buy Aston several times, including a rival bid to Stroll in 2020 and again last summer.

It bought a 7.6 per cent stake last September and some could perceive its latest grab as an advance towards another takeover approach.

But Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, questioned whether this would be publicly or politically palatable following other foreign takeovers.
Revolut offered to withdraw from the UK as its long-running application for a banking licence dragged on, the Mail can reveal.

With speculation mounting that the Bank of England was set to reject its two-year bid for approval, the fintech giant is understood to have asked officials if it should abandon its efforts. Revolut urged the Bank to tell the firm if it was not wanted.

But it received reassurances that the process was ongoing and its application was still being considered  even after its auditor said parts of its overdue accounts were materially mis-stated.

The revelations follow more than two months of turmoil at Revolut since executives suggested it would be granted a licence imminently, possibly within days.

The companys impatience appeared to boil over earlier this month when Revolut boss and co-founder Nik Storonsky lamented the long and tiring process, and warned Britain was an undesirable place to do business.

Mixed fortunes: Revolut, co-founded by Nik Storonsky (pictured), is understood to have asked officials if it should abandon its efforts to obtain a banking licence

But the outburst prompted criticism from observers, with one analyst warning that throwing a tantrum would not help Revolut secure a licence.

Last night, it emerged Bank of England regulators were planning to reject the application.

According to the Telegraph, the Banks Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), responsible for licences, told the Treasury in March that Revoluts initial application would be turned down within weeks because of concerns over its balance sheet.

That would be a crushing blow for the company which has been trying since 2021 to win approval from regulators so it can expand its services in Britain into taking deposits and giving loans.

Licence applications need to be approved by two regulators  the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the PRA.

HOW THIS IS MONEY CAN HELP How to choose the best (and cheapest) stocks and shares Isa and the right DIY investing account

However, this statutory warning notice has not yet been handed to Revolut, and the tech firm is now in urgent talks to rescue its hopes for a licence.

Once a statutory warning notice is handed down, a company has up to a month to challenge it.

Experience: Fund management veteran Martin Gilbert is Revoluts chairman

Beyond that, a final notice of the decision is sent.

Revolut was once the UKs tech darling, hailed as a shining success by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

It attracted City heavyweights such as fund management veteran Martin Gilbert, who is Revoluts chairman.

But fortunes have since turned and a rejection would add to the long list of injuries incurred by Revolut so far this year, including a slew of senior members of staff exiting the company.

Finance boss Mikko Salovaara stepped down earlier this month for personal reasons while its UK banking chief James Radford resigned in March and the group chief operating officer Michal Laube left in February.

Salovaaras departure came just two months after the group published its financial accounts.

These showed that the company turned a profit in 2021 but its auditor BDO issued an alert that a chunk of its revenues may have been materially mis-stated.

This included three-quarters of its 636million revenue in 2021, which BDO said it could not independently verify.

At the time, Salovaara insisted that Revolut was on course to obtain a UK banking licence any day now.

The Mail understands Revolut now hopes to produce an unqualified audit opinion from BDO in three months time.

In a statement, the company said: We have agreed with the Bank of England we wont comment on an ongoing banking licence application.

The Bank of England and the FCA declined to comment.
He was the longest-serving consort in history, a man whose watchwords were duty and dependability.

But whilst nothing could be said against Prince Philip's commitment to his wife and his country, his sisters did nothing to help boost his fledging reputation when he married the late Queen in 1947.

All of the Duke of Edinburgh's four sisters were banned from attending his wedding, in large part because three of them - Cecilie, Sophie and Margarita - had married German aristocrats who became leading members of the Nazi party.

Princess Sophie was even friends with Hermann Goering - the future head of Nazi Germany's air force - and had both Goering and Adolf Hitler round for tea.

Prince Philip's sister Princess Sophie is seen sitting opposite Adolf Hitler at the wedding of Hermann Goering

All of the Duke of Edinburgh's four sisters were banned from his wedding. From left to right, Princesses Sophie, Cecilie, Theodora and Margarita

Philip's real surname, Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksburg, signified the German blood that ran through his veins.

His father, Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, was descended from the German ducal house of the same name.

Philip's mother, Princess Alice of Battenburg, also had German heritage and spent part of her childhood in the country.

The Duke of Edinburgh assumed his mother's maternal surname - Mountbatten, an Anglicised version of the German 'Battenberg' - when he married Princess Elizabeth.

After Cecilie was killed in a plane crash in 1937, a 16-year-old Philip was famously pictured at her funeral in Germany walking alongside relatives in Nazi uniforms.

She was killed along with her newborn baby in Belgium aged just 26. The aircraft's pilot had been attempting to land in thick flog.

The depiction in The Crown of the aftermath of her death was slammed by critics for wrongly suggesting that Philip was blamed by his father for her demise.

The connections between Philip's family and the Nazis - facts that in no way called the Duke's own honour into question - were explored in a Channel 4 documentary in 2014.

It revealed the contents of a memoir written by Princess Sophie in old age, in which she told of a private lunch with Hitler and how she thought he had seemed like a 'charming and seemingly modest man'.

Prince Philip (circled) walking with relatives in Nazi uniforms at his sister Cecilie's funeral in 1937

A solemn Prince Philip (circled) standing next to Lord Louis Mountbatten at his sister's funeral

From left to right: Sophie, Margarita, Cecilie and Theodora ahead of the 1922 wedding of Louis Mountbatten and Edwina Ashley, where they were bridesmaids

Philip, second from left, as a boy with his parents and four sisters, who all married German aristocrats

She was married to Prince Christoph von Hessen, a colonel in the feared SS and chief of Hermann Goering's secret intelligence service.

In a sign of their devotion to Nazism, Sophie and her husband named their first son Karl Adolf, in honour of Hitler.

Sophie also wrote in her memoir of how she Goering and Hitler had both visited her home.

Goering came for tea in her flat near Frankfurt before the Nazis came to power in 1933.

She wrote: 'He talked a lot about the new political party which he had joined, the "Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei".

'He was very enthusiastic about it all, especially about the party leader, a man called Adolf Hitler.

'As Germany was going through hard times and there was a lot of poverty and general dissatisfaction everywhere, we were interested to hear about the great improvements his party was planning to do.'

With Goering insistent that she should meet Hitler personally, the Nazi leader then also came to her flat.

'I had been warned he was a vegetarian, and found it difficult to plan an appropriate meal,' she added.

'In those days we had a cook-housekeeper, which was just as well, as my ideas about cooking and housekeeping were fairly hazy (being only 18 at the time).

'We settled for an assortment of vegetables which turned out to be a great success.'

Sophie was careful to mention how she and her husband changed their view of Hitler 'fundamentally' later on, but said they were impressed 'by this charming and seemingly modest man, and by his plans to change and improve the situation in Germany.'

Prince Philip with his sisters Margarita, Sophie and Theodora in October 1947

Prince Philip and his sister, Princess Sophie, the funeral of the Dowager Lady Brabourne and Nicholas Knatchbull at the Church of St John the Baptist at Mersham, near Ashford, Kent, in 1979

Prince Philip greets his sister Princess Sophie of Hanover and her husband Prince George of Hanover at a riding school in Munich in 1960

Princess Sophie of Greece at the wedding of Lord Louis Mountbatten to Edwina Ashley in 1922

Princess Sophie on her wedding day, when she married Prince Christoph in 1930

Princess Sophie of Greece and her husband Prince Christoph

Princess Theodora (left) and Princess Margarita (right). Margarita died at the age of 76 in 1981, whilst Theodora was the second of Philip's sisters to pass away

Philip's oldest sister, Princess Margarita, married Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

Philip as a little boy with his mother Princess Alice of Battenburg and his father Prince Andrew of Greece

Princess Theodora of Greece and Count Berthold of Baden on their wedding day in 1931

The meetings prompted her husband to join the SS, and by 1935 he had been appointed as head of the air ministry's research bureau, according to Princess Sophie.

That year, Sophie was pictured at Goering's wedding, with Hitler seen opposite.

Eight years later, Prince Christoph was killed in a plane crash in 1943, after the Allied invasion of Sicily.

Philip's oldest sister, Princess Margarita, who was 16 years older then her brother, married Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.

He was badly wounded while fighting for Germany on the Russian front and ended up turning against Hitler.

The prince was then among the aristocratic German officers who were implicated in the 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler, which was led by Claus von Stauffenberg.

Cecilie had married George Donatus, the Grand Duke of Hesse in 1931 and they both later joined the Nazi party. The couple had four children.

The fourth, an unnamed son, is believed to have been born during the flight on which the 26-year-old Cecilie lost her life.

Donatus was killed alongside his wife and the plane's other passengers.

Princess Theodora, who was 15 when Philip was born in 1921, was the only one of her brother's sisters who was publicly opposed to Nazism.

Unlike her sisters, she and her husband were allowed to attend the the Queen's Coronation in 1953.

But all Philip's siblings were excluded from the royal wedding in 1947, in large part because it was so soon after the war had ended.

In an interview for 2006 book Royals and the Reich, Philip said his family had found Hitler's attempts to restore Germany's power and status 'attractive'.

'There was a great improvement in things like trains running on time and building,' he explained.

'There was a sense of hope after the depressing chaos of the Weimar Republic.

'I can understand people latching on to something or somebody who appeared to be appealing to their patriotism and trying to get things going. You can understand how attractive it was.'

But the Duke did insist that he had never been aware of 'anybody in the family actually expressing anti-Semitic views'.

Prince Philip is seen with his sister Princess Sophie (both centre) in Germany in March 1953

Prince Philip prays alongside his sister Princess Sophie and Greek Orthodox priests outside the tomb of his mother Princess Alice in 1994

The closest sibling in age to Philip was Sophie, who was born in June 1914 - seven years before her brother.

After her husband Christoph's death, she married Prince George William of Hanover, but the union was controversial.

With Prince George's house of Hanover having been the royal house of England's monarchy for more than two centuries until the death of Queen Victoria, the aristocrat sought permission from King George VI to go ahead with the engagement.

But because the UK was still at war, official permission was not given, although Sophie went on to tie the knot in 1946.

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, wipes his eye as he sits next to his elder sister Princess Sophie in 1994 at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial

She had three further children with her second husband and passed away aged 87 in 2001, after becoming a confidante to Philip in later life.

She stayed at Birkhall with him and the Queen in the years before the Coronation and she visited Britain regularly, becoming godmother to Prince Edward.

Paying tribute to her after her death, Philip said: 'She did so much kindness in her life that she stored up many gifts in Heaven and I hope she's enjoying them now.'

Margarita died at the age of 76 in 1981, whilst Theodora was the second of Philip's sisters to pass away. She was 63 when she died in 1969.
Much like his late mother Queen Elizabeth, King Charles has long been known to be passionate about Scotland.

His favourite mountain, Lochnagar, looms near the Royal Family's Scottish home Balmoral, to which Her Majesty decamped every summer until her death there last year.

But the Queen did not go as far as putting pen to paper to write a children's book that featured the castle and the surrounding area.

That task was left to Charles. In The Old Man of Lochnagar, published in 1980, the Prince of Wales, as he then was, told the story of a pensioner who lives in a cave on the mountain.

In an epic adventure, the old man falls into the sea and encounters underwater haggis who revolve as they swim.

In The Old Man of Lochnagar, published in 1980, Charles told the story of a bearded recluse who lives in a cave on the mountain

The King wrote the tale in 1969 when he was the 20-year-old Prince of Wale to entertain his brothers Andrew (left) and Edward (right), who were then nine and five respectively. Here the three are seen at Sandringham in the same year

The book opens with a depiction of the old man happy to hide in his cave on Lochnagar

The tale also includes accounts of farting and a toilet that plays a tune when flushed.

Charles famously told the story to millions of children in 1984, when he appeared on popular BBC teatime story show Jackanory.

The King wrote the tale while on the Royal Yacht Britannia in 1969 - when he was the 20-year-old Prince of Wales - to entertain his brothers Andrew and Edward, who were then nine and five respectively.

It features illustrations from the late Sir Hugh Casson, the distinguished architect and artist.

The book begins: 'Not all that long ago, when children were even smaller and people had especially hairy knees, there lived an old man of Lochnagar.

'He had made his house in a cave by the Loch of Lochnagar and it was a surprisingly comfortable cave.

'The door was made of deer skin and the doorknob consisted of a stag's antler which, when pressed, prodded a tame grouse and made it cry out, "Go back, go back!"

'That way the old man succeeded in remaining totally alone for years and years and years.'

His adventure begins when he falls into the loch from a great height after attempting to climb the mountain.

He lands 'with an almighty splash, so big that everyone who was living at Balmoral in those days thought it was a huge rainstorm'.

At the bottom of the loch, he encounters Lagopus Scoticus, the ruler of the underwater world.

He wields a double-handed bagpipe from which he can blow 'gaelic bubbles' that knock people down underwater.

King Charles's imagination then takes the tale in even more bizarre directions.

Haggises, Scotland's most famous culinary export, are living, self-propelling water creatures that move around in convoys.

After being invited on a 'haggis shoot', the old man hits 'twenty in one drive' and then proceeds to eat so much that he suffers 'terribly from wind.'

His adventure begins when he falls into the loch from a great height after attempting to climb the mountain. At the bottom he encounters Lagopus Scoticus, ruler of the underwater world

Haggis, Scotland's most famous culinary export, are living, self-propelling water creatures that move around in 'convoys' (above). After being invited on a 'haggis shoot', the old man hits 'twenty in one drive' and then proceeds to eat so much that he suffers 'terribly from wind'

Lochnagar, a favourite walking spot for the King and Queen, dominates the Balmoral estate

When back on land, the old man sneezes so violently that he is propelled onto the top of Lochnagar before a golden eagle scoops him up and then drops him high above Balmoral.

He then makes it back to his cave with the help of a magical toad.

Children are also treated to delightful descriptions of the old man's hand-crafted toilet, which utilises an antique pair of bagpipes to play a tune when it is flushed.

The old man's subsequent escapades with the 'little Gorm people' sees him first shrink to their tiny size, before he meets their king.

CLICK TO READ MORE: How Lochnagar became a hotspot for litter louts The Balmoral estate has previously complained of the amount of litter left on Lochnagar. In 2015, they shared an image on Facebook of piles of plastic bottles and empty cans which had been discarded at the summit of the mountain, which dominates the estate. A terse message read: 'Home to golden eagle, ptarmigan [a plump game bird], snow bunting and lots and lots of used tissues, broken glass, drink cans and banana skins . . . just some of the litter collected in and around the summit of Lochnagar yesterday!' The King is known to enjoy walking around Lochnagar with Queen Consort Camilla. He will have been less than impressed with the sight of the rubbish. Advertisement

The Gorms spend their time flying over Scottish hills and spraying them with 'purple liquid'. It is this that makes heather as 'beautiful and purple' as it is.

The final part of the book sees the old man make a trip to London.

Departing on a train from Ballater - the village near Balmoral - he gets as far as Aberdeen before a huge snow fall blocks the track.

At the station, an old lady with a hat that bore 'a distinct resemblance to a stuffed grouse' was 'positively clucking with indignation'.

The woman, whose depiction by Hugh Casson bears a resemblance to the Queen in later life, is left 'angrily prodding the station-master with her umbrella', as the old man boards a return train back to Ballater.

The book's ending reinforces Charles's love of Scotland and Lochnagar.

It reads: 'So it was that the old man failed to reach London.

'Secretly he was rather pleased, for he hated leaving his cave and his friends who lived in the hills around him.

'The stories he had heard from the picnickers were all he needed to know about London.

'He couldn't think of anywhere more special to be, than to be living at the foot of Lochnagar.

In 1984, Charles became the latest in a long line of celebrity Jackanory narrators when he read his own book out on the show.

After the show aired, five-year-old children who had been watching gave their hilarious views of their impressions of the future King, who was wearing a kilt and speaking from Balmoral.

'Look at his skirt, and that handbag hanging down' chortled five-year-old Christopher Lipka, from St Christopher's School in Hampstead, in the Daily Mail.

Another, Rhiannon Knight, said she wanted Charles to come and read her a bedtime story, but quickly decided against it, saying: 'No, he wouldn't be any good because I need someone to read to me every night.

'He couldn't do that because he's too busy with his own children and going out to dinner.'

The old man's subsequent escapades with the 'little Gorm people' sees him first shrink to their tiny size, before he meets their king

The final part of the book sees the old man make a train trip to London. Departing from Ballater - the village near Balmoral - he gets as far as Aberdeen before a huge snow fall blocks the track

The story was later turned into a ballet and an animated short film (above) that was shown on the BBC. It was narrated by Charles himself, while the old man was voiced by Robbie Coltrane

Lochnagar is near Balmoral castle, where Queen Elizabeth and her family would spend several weeks a year in the summer and autumn. It was at Balmoral that she passed away in 2022

In 2015, the Balmoral estate shared pictures of the rubbish dumped on Lochnagar

A third, Scarlet Swayne, said: 'I would much rather he read to us than some of the people they have on. He's much better looking and has a much better voice.

'And he's a Prince!'

A fourth, Fara Chanetsa, of Malorees Primary School at Bronsbury Park in north-west London, was not so sure.

He said: 'I prefer cartoons, Prince Charles is very funny but I didn't like the story much.'

The story was later turned into a ballet and an animated short film that was shown on the BBC.
A primary school head has started frantically looking for teachers after eight of her staff became pregnant or have just given birth.

Headteacher Nicky Donley, 55, is searching for maternity cover for Kirton Primary School in Boston, Lincolnshire.

Five teachers are due in the coming weeks, while three have already given birth.

The head told The Sun: 'Every time someone came into the office to ask, ''Can I have a word?'', I said, ''It's all right  I already know.''

'Then I realised it was all because of Covid. We didn't have any births for two years  none at all.

Headteacher Nicky Donley (pictured), 55, is searching for maternity cover for Kirton Primary School in Boston, Lincolnshire

A primary school head has started frantically looking for teachers after eight of her staff became pregnant or have just given birth (six of them pictured together)

'Everyone was waiting because they didn't want to go into hospital at the height of the pandemic.'

Together, the staff teach more than a quarter of the pupils.

Of the eight, the first to give birth was Chloe Roberts, 28, on August 5, last year.

Next was Alex Cairns, 27, before Natalie East, 30, gave birth.

Her husband Simon Potter, 31, said: 'I actually had no idea that so many of the teachers were pregnant.

'Natalie must have known but did not breathe a word.'

The five teachers who are currently pregnant - Hannah Gibson, Aimee Valentine, Lauren Lowe, Catherine Brine and Hannah Pye - are all 28 and expecting to give birth in the coming weeks.
This is the wild moment a naked man attacked Miami gym-goers after attempting to use the exercise equipment and then rampaged through the street.

The unidentified assailant stormed into the UFC Gym in the Midtown section of the city around 9pm Tuesday. Footage shows him attempting to use the machines before stripping off and starting brawls with other gym members.

He was manhandled off the premises by staff where he launched further attacks on people out in the road. The footage even shows him harassing a wheelchair-bound man before he is clobbered over the back of the head with a bag by another citizen.

Cops arrived and the footage shows him being tasered multiple times in the middle of fast-moving traffic at Northeast 36th Street near the Julia Tuttle Causeway.

A member of staff at the gym told DailyMail.com that he had 'no idea' why the naked man launched the assault. 'The cops don't know either, but he was definitely on something,' said the man who asked not to be named.

The unidentified assailant stormed into the UFC Gym in the Midtown section of the city around 9pm Tuesday

He was manhandled off the premises by staff where he launched further attacks on people out in the road

He was manhandled off the premises by staff where he launched further attacks on people out in the road

Police said they responded to a 'crisis intervention call', indicating the man was having a mental episode

Police said they responded to a 'crisis intervention call', indicating the man was having a mental episode.

The video, first posted by ONLYinDADE, says that the attacker was trying to get into his car when the cops showed up.

'Cops finally show up and he tries to get in his car. Gets tased twice but doesn't even flinch,' the caption reads.

'Then he takes off with taser still in him ... Finally caught him after a very slow chase.'

The footage shows the naked man darting between traffic as a wire from a taser gun still appears to be attached to his back.

Eventually he is cuffed and pinned down by the police who took him for a mental health evaluation.

A Miami Police Department report said: 'Call came in at 9.20 pm of a naked male trying to assault people on the street in the area of NE 36th St / Biscayne Blvd.

'The suspect assaulted several persons. We tasered him several times before Baker Acting him. Charges are pending the outcome of the evaluation.'

The Florida Mental Health Act, commonly referred to as the Baker Act, focuses on crisis services for individuals with mental illness, much like an emergency department is for individuals experiencing a medical emergency.

It allows cops to take a suspect to a receiving facility for involuntary examination.

After the examination is carried out, charges may or not be pressed against the individual.
Nearly 1.5 million Americans could be owed a share of unclaimed tax refunds from 2019.

The outstanding funds are worth almost $1.5 billion in total, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - with an average payout of $893.

Typically there is a three-year deadline to claim refunds before the cash becomes property of the US Treasury.

But because of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been an extension for 2019 tax returns. This means taxpayers have until July 17 to claim their money back.

According to the IRS, Texans are owed the most, with an estimated 135,000 residents in the state sitting on an average of $924 - totaling $142,235,200.

Taxpayers have until July 17 to claim their money back due to an extension from the pandemic

The state-by-state breakdown calculated by the agency shows that California has the second highest sum of possible refunds, with $141,780,000 potentially owed to 144,700 people.

Florida comes in third, with a median projected refund of $893 for 89,300 residents.

The IRS predicts 81,600 New Yorkers could be owed almost $87 million, while people living in Illinois could be sitting on $57,591,300 in unclaimed cash.

The state with the lowest sum of unclaimed tax refunds is Vermont, where 3,100 people could be eligible for just over $3 million in refunds.

However the average amount of money that could be owed is slightly over the national median at $901.

'The 2019 tax returns came due during the pandemic, and many people may have overlooked or forgotten about these refunds,' said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. 'We want taxpayers to claim these refunds, but time is running out.'

He added: 'We frequently see students, part-time workers and others with little income overlook filing a tax return and never realize they may be owed a refund.'

Experts are warning that Americans should start gathering their records and file their return soon to avoid missing out on a potential windfall.

'People get scared and think its going to be harder than it really is,' certified financial planner John Chichester Jr. told CNBC. 'And they dont realize that theyre leaving money on the table.'

The outstanding funds are worth almost $1.5 billion in total, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - with an average payout of $893

Experts warn that many people put off filing their return, which means they could miss out

Low to moderate-income workers might also not realize that they stand to lose out on more than just a missed refund.

The IRS warns that workers may be eligible for the so-called earned income tax credit, which provides a tax break even without a balance due.

For 2019, the credit was worth as much as $6,557.

If you are feeling overwhelmed about starting a tax return, experts recommend that you start gathering the necessary documents.

This can be done through the IRS online portal, or requested from your employer or other services such as loan providers.
The 30-year-old said she was burnt out after 14 hour days

A young Australian woman has spoken out about quitting her 'dream job' and revealed why she was happier living off welfare.

Alicia, aged 30, posted a video to social media earlier this month explaining she suffered 'extreme burnout' after five months in what she thought was her dream job.

Recognising the job did not align with her 'identity' and 'core values', she quit to live off welfare payments before finding a job with more flexible terms.

'I quit my dream job, I'm completely burnt out and need to re-evaluate what is going to make me happy and, importantly bring me the security I need,' she said.

'I've worked since I was 18 years of age to get to this point and to reach this job. I've decided that my values are worth more than monetary gain or a career position.

'I am also experiencing severe burnout like countless people are, where for so many years we've been managing so many roles above what our job description covered.'

Young Australia woman Alicia (pictured) has explained why she quit her dream job due to being burnt out at 30. Alicia says she now is focusing on work that aligns with her core values and beliefs

For two years, Alicia said she worked on average 14-hour days, five days a week.

'I feel like so many of us, especially when you come from marginalised collectives, we see success on the west or on the white man scale of what it means to be successful,' she said.

'Turning 30 and being in this job, I had to sit back and think this is my moment where I choose what world I wanted to work in.

'And I can't choose a job or an institution that is going to cost me my identity and, most importantly, my core values and my beliefs.'

Alicia said she previously worked for community organisations before she took on her dream role at a private company, and said that was ultimately a mistake.

'I am so drained, tired and exhausted. To have to now scale things back and reconfigure and think about what I want the next ten years to look like is not easy.

'But in saying that it is so exciting thinking about what I want to do.

'When I was on unemployment benefits or single parent benefits, I was happier than I was the entire of last year.

'Particularly for the five months where I was at that job where I have resigned from had drained me of my happiness.

Alicia said her dream job drained her of her happiness

'Having a job where you are dreading having to provide your insights for them to be knocked back is not the job that I want to live.

'I've decided to focus on having a job that provides the flexibility my life requires, especially with having a daughter with additional needs.

'Furthermore, a role that doesn't require me to compromise on my morals and obligation to my community.'

Social media users threw their support behind the mum, many saying they have experienced something similar, she explained.

'100% just did this, quit my job, now just doing me,' one person commented.

'Good on you for staying true to yourself and your community. You'll be a force for change no matter which way you head,' another said.

'I support you 100%. Colonial expectations of productivity and capitalist success are antithetical to human wellbeing,' a third wrote.

Why Gen Zs and millennials are giving up their day jobs in their droves

Many millennials and Generation-Z workers are suffering from what is being termed the 'Great Burnout', prompting them to quit their jobs despite struggling to pay their bills as a result.

Young workers claim they are overworked, underpaid and feel unable to deal with responsibilities outside their jobs.

Many complain they are sick of 'working all week and having nothing to show for it' while others complain they 'can't afford a holiday, let alone a home'.

This has led to criticism from Boomers and Gen-Xers who slam the younger generations as 'lazy' and 'entitled'.

The millennial co-hosts of the Two Broke Chicks podcast, Sally and Alex, claim the younger generations aren't the only ones feeling the pinch.

They have shared research showing 50 per cent of 'prime' Australian workers, those aged between 25 and 55, are 'exhausted'.

The millennial co-hosts of the Two Broke Chicks podcast, Sally and Alex

On top of that a third are thinking of quitting because they are overworked.

'Half of them are feeling, not tired, not a little bit overworked, exhausted,' 30-year-old Sally said in the clip which was posted on Friday.

The quick clip divided their listeners.

Many older viewers in the comments were not sympathetic and quick to take aim at young workers telling them to 'harden up'.

'Breaking news, people get tired,' one man quipped.

'That's the norm, isn't it? You just keep on keeping on, it's called living,' said a second viewer.

'That's crazy because I'm exhausted from the constant whinging!' complained a third.

Some were more sympathetic.

'I am 60 and the demands are a joke now while executives take the big money. The young ones at my work are also exhausted,' someone added

Most millennials and Generation-Z considered the research data 'accurate' with many agreeing their jobs are leaving them feeling drained.

'Companies are cutting jobs, but still expecting the same results with less staff,' one woman replied.

'We aren't working for anything worth it in return. Work all week, can't afford a house, holiday or anything that makes it worth it. Just bills,' another said.

'We are exhausted. Had enough. Working out a**es off for nothing. While the wealthy take in loads of money while they sit back and do nothing,' a third said ranted.

The mass exhaustion across Australian workplaces has been referred to as The Great Burnout.

A 2023 study from the University of Melbourne surveyed 1,400 workers and found the workers increasingly feeling unmotivated, exhausted and unable to concentrate in the post-lockdown era.

It was also revealed prime-aged workers are twice as likely to feel like they don't have enough time to complete tasks outside their jobs like life admin and housework.

Since the lockdowns, which forced many people to look for new jobs, many workers are now increasingly prepared to change jobs repeatedly until they find something suitable.

According to The Conversation, in Australia however, workers were not so much quitting their jobs but wanting to continue working from home, and being reluctant to take on unrewarded extra responsibilities.

Families had added pressures of juggling working from home while looking after kids as schools and day cares shut down resulting in poorer mental health.

More workers were also taking sick leave, putting more pressure on their co-workers to pick up the slack.

Careers expert Sue Ellson said workers are now struggling to adjust to the higher-paced lifestyle that came from the pandemic and figure out how to slow down again.
A restaurateur has told an unemployed man who can't find a job to apply for one of his 200 vacancies, saying: 'We've got plenty of opportunities for anyone who wants to pull their finger out.'

Businessman Chris Lucas - best known for running high end Sydney and Melbourne restaurant franchise Chin Chin - told Radio 2GB on Thursday he would 'like to meet' Jez Heywood and 'see what kind of character he is'.

Mr Heywood, the 47-year-old president of the Australian Unemployed Worker's Union, has been at the centre of a stoush with 2GB radio host Ben Fordham this week, after expressing anger at the Federal government's $2.85-a-day increase in JobSeeker payments in the recent Federal Budget.

Following an interview with Mr Heywood, many of Fordham's listeners dialled in this week and accused him of 'making excuses' not to work - while Mr Heywood called Fordham a 'coward' and a 'bully'.

Fordham has since campaigned to find Heywood a job - prompting Mr Lucas to call in and suggest there was a position available at his company.

'To anyone out there struggling to get a job, we've got nearly 200 vacancies at the moment and I'm not the only one.

'There's restaurants right across Australia struggling to get workers. Pick up the phone, as long as you're fair dinkum.'

Fordham said Jez Heywood (pictured) had been offered jobs through 2GB and was invited to come on air to accept them

Chris Lucas (pictured with his wife Holly) has told an unemployed man who can't find a job to apply for one of his 200 vacancies

Mr Heywood was invited to come on air to discuss and discuss job offers that have been shared with Fordham, but has so far refused.

The job seeker, who previously worked as a graphic design artist, said 'Fordham's cheap publicity stunt is deliberately sweeping the issues I advocate for - which cause so much pain - under the rug.

'All so he can boost ratings and act like the hero on his own airwaves.'

'Ben Fordham's offer to find me a job is just a distraction from the real issue I raised ... the horribly low rate of income support for unemployed people and Albanese's woefully inadequate increase to JobSeeker,' Mr Heywood wrote on Twitter.

An unemployed man has refused to go toe-to-toe with 2GB's Ben Fordham (pictured) - even though the radio host has been helping his search for work

'If Fordham genuinely wanted to help, he wouldn't be providing minute by minute updates, claiming I had been invited back on the show in the media hours before a producer got in contact, and making an ostentatious show of it.'

However, Mr Lucas said he'd like to meet Mr Heywood and that he could find him a position if he's 'got a good character, a good work ethic ... rather than being a dole bludger'.

Mr Heywood said he had 'been very upfront about my battle with my mental health, which isn't an easy thing to do - especially when you're stuck living so far below the poverty line'.

'This odious brand of welfare shaming Fordham has done for several days now, and which his shock jock predecessors have done for decades, does incredible damage to people's mental health,' he said.

But Graham Wynn of the Super People Recruitment job agency said people's mental health improves when they get a job.

'Getting back into work changes people's lives,' he said. 'For your own self-esteem, getting back into work is critical. If you're looking for work, there is work out there.'

Jez Heywood tweeted that he 'had the nerve to stand up and call (Ben Fordham) out'

Despite Mr Heywood's reluctance to go on air, Fordham also interviewed man named Ben, who said he had been in touch with the job seeker to offer work in his specialist area of graphic design.

'I've sent him through some of the high level basic requirements of what I'm looking for,' Ben said.

'He's having a look at that. I'm actually really confident that this is going to be a really good thing.'

The potential employer added that 'this whole experience with Jez has made me reflect on my own time about 25 years ago when I was forced into a similar position, where you're on unemployment benefits.

'It's quite a depressing time, it's really hard to get off (welfare) when you get on it. There's a huge stigma attached to it, which doesn't help as well,' he said.
The Tate gallery has deemed that a celebrated British artist should be referred to with the pronoun they  more than 60 years after her death.

Several works by Marlow Moss, a painter and sculptor who died in 1958, are on display at Tate St Ives, Cornwall, with a sign referring to her using gender-neutral pronouns.

Visitors are told that Mosss deliberately masculine appearance challenged both artistic and social conventions at the time and their approach to modern art and identity continues to provoke vital debate about art history, making and gender.

Moss, who is credited for helping shape abstract art in Europe in the first half of the 20th century, has been described as a radical lesbian and changed her forename from Marjorie to Marlow in 1919, as well as adopting a masculine appearance.

But the decision by the gallery to posthumously change the pronouns of the Constructivist artist has prompted accusations that it was trying to erase her sex.

Marlow Moss, a pioneer of the European abstract art movement, in the early twentieth century

A page on the Tates website explaining its thinking - which was briefly deleted before being restored yesterday - even went as far as to suggest that Moss might identify as transgender if she were still alive.

The page said: Its very interesting trying to describe people from history like Marlow, because we have tons of words to describe gender now that didnt exist in Britain back then.

Perhaps if Marlow was alive today, the artist would identify as transgender, which means that your gender is different to the one that the doctors or midwives presumed you were when you were born, or non-binary, which means that neither the word boy nor girl are a good fit for you.

One visitor, Jo Bartosch, shared a letter of complaint she had written to the Tate on social media, but claimed she had yet to receive a reply more than a week later.

Ms Bartoschs letter to the gallery said: Like many lesbians and bisexual women of the time, (and indeed some today), Moss dressed in stereotypically male clothes.

'It should not be surmised from this that she thought of herself as anything other than a woman.

This is as logical as arguing that any woman in the past who achieved recognition outside of the home was not in fact a proper woman, because in doing so she would break a traditional feminine role. It is a sexist, regressive assumption.

White, Black and Red, oil on canvas by Marlow Moss, painted in 1950

Composition Yellow Blue Black Red and White, oil on canvas by Marlow Moss, c.1956-57

A spokesman for the Tate said: Marlow Moss clearly made an active decision to subvert the gender roles of the era, which has been reflected in research and displays about the artist over the years.

'This includes a display at Tate St Ives which opened in 2021, where the curators explored using neutral pronouns to try to acknowledge this fact.
Voice to Parliament 'no' campaigner Warren Mundine is 'just as confused as everyone' about a situation in which an Indigenous man was wrongly identified as the grandson of iconic Aboriginal activist Vincent Lingiari.

The 'no' campaign website featured a picture of Stewart Lingiari and identified him as one of several prominent case studies supporting the fight against the referendum.

In the advertisements, Mr Lingiari says 'I don't want you to look at me differently. That's why I'm voting no'.

He's described as Vincent Lingiari's grandson - something later contradicted by both Vincent's true descendants and Mr Lingiari himself.

Mr Lingiari - who was given his surname by his adoptive parents and has no relation to Vincent - has since come out to condemn his involvement in the project.

The 'no' campaign website featured a picture of Stewart Lingiari and identified him as one of several prominent case studies supporting the fight against the referendum

He said he 'is not from that family' and that he had little understanding of what the Voice to Parliament was when he was asked to participate in advertising for the 'no' campaign.

And on ABC Radio National, Mr Mundine said he, too, is confused about the miscommunication.

'The only thing I did here was trust someone who introduced themselves as a certain person,' he said.

'I'm very confused - just as much as everyone else is.'

Mr Lingiari will be removed from all promotional materials within the next two days, Mr Mundine said, as the 'no' campaign works to establish what went wrong.

The Ngukurr man - some 770km (or 12 hours) from where Vincent's family live in the Northern Territory - also claimed he was given a script to read for the promotional video.

Voice to Parliament 'no' campaigner Warren Mundine is 'just as confused as everyone' about a situation in which an Indigenous man was wrongly identified as the grandson of iconic Aboriginal activist Vincent Lingiari

Mr Mundine denies this, and says he's concerned for Mr Lingiari's wellbeing on the back of the controversy.

Describing their first meeting in Canberra, Mr Mundine says he was given no reason not to trust the group.

'He was introduced to me as the grandson of Vincent Lingiari... I said ''wow, really?'' and he said ''yes'',' Mr Mundine claimed.

'I said ''it's an honour to meet you''... we had conversations over the two days that we were together.'

Mr Mundine was questioned about the rigour of his vetting process in finding spokespeople for the 'no' campaign, but he insists his only mistake was being too trusting.

He assured the public that his primary focus is to remain a source of truthful and accurate information about the Voice to Parliament referendum and community response.

In the advertisements, Mr Lingiari says 'I don't want you to look at me differently. That's why I'm voting no'

He's described as Vincent Lingiari's grandson - something later contradicted by both Vincent's true descendants and Mr Lingiari himself

'We're going to be ensuring as much as we can that we'll be checking and checking and checking before we put anything out.

'It's about truth and trust - that's what I operate on and I want to make sure everyone understands that things have to be checked.'

But he also noted this was a 'strange situation' that he'd never found himself in before.

'I've never been in a situation like this where someone introduces themselves to me as someone, and then later says they're not... We did the right thing at the time.'

Mr Lingiari is adamant he did not introduce himself as Vincent's grandson.

Despite the back and forth, Mr Mundine is confident he'll secure a 'no' majority come referendum time.

Australians will be asked whether they support the establishment of the Voice to Parliament to recognise Indigenous people in the Constitution. The government has set aside $364.6million in this Budget for the referendum.

Anthony Albanese is attempting to introduce a Voice to Parliament

The vote will need support from the majority of Australians in the majority of states to be successful.

The Voice will establish a body that can 'make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples'.

This body - comprised of Indigenous people from a range of ages and demographics - would give advice to the government.

His campaign, alongside Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, has enjoyed a surge in support in recent days, with new polling suggesting support for the Voice is faltering.

A survey shows slightly more than half of Australians still back the Voice, but the percentage of people who intend to vote 'yes' has dropped from 58 per cent to 53 per cent over the past month.

The polling, by Resolve Strategic for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers, reveals the 'no' campaign is on track to win if the trend continues.

Liberal MP Julian Leeser, who quit the Opposition front bench due to his party's negative stance on the Voice, said he would movie amendments next week to change the proposed model in the hope of boosting public support.

His proposed changes include making the Voice's role in advising government over laws affecting Aboriginal people to be legislated for, but not constitutionally enshrined as is the current proposal.

Mr Leeser said the poll showed the electoral prospects for the Voice were 'not tracking as they should' and some dilution of the proposal was needed to ensure it got approved.

'The best way to improve the prospects is to limit the arguments of the 'no' case,' he said.

'I am a supporter of the Voice, I will be voting 'yes' at the referendum, the amendments I am proposing will improve the electoral prospects of the Voice.'
A Florida woman who is accused of murdering her husband and burying his body under their backyard firepit has now claimed that their daughter carried out the killing when she was just seven years old.

Laurie Shaver, 40, is charged with murdering her husband Michael Shaver at their home in Claremont, just west of Orlando, in November 2015 with a gunshot to the back of his head.

Michael's body was not discovered until 2018, when officers were called to conduct a wellness check on the missing Disney World employee, and the case has suffered numerous delays on the way to trial, due in part to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a court filing last week, Laurie's defense team made the stunning claim that a girl, now aged 14, killed Michael when she was just seven years old, and is prepared to make a full confession.

Though the filing does not name the minor girl or state her relation to Laurie and Michael, defense attorney Jeffrey Wiggs identified her as the couple's daughter, claiming the girl shot her father to protect her mother from his abuse.

Laurie Shaver, 40, is charged with murdering her husband Michael Shaver at their home in Claremont, Florida in November 2015 with a gunshot to the back of his head

The motion also alleges the girl has repeatedly expressed 'her desire to testify,' but clamed that prosecutors and the court have tried to prevent her from giving evidence in the case.

Wiggs also told WKMG-TV that Laurie's ex-boyfriend was at home at the time of the killing and fired a second shot, striking Michael.

'The minor child does not want to see her mom go to jail for a crime that her mother did not do,' Wiggs told the CBS affiliate station.

'We went to the state. We know who committed the crime. We know how the crime was committed. We were basically just pushed out the door,' the attorney claimed.

It's unclear what charges the child might face if she makes a full confession to the fatal shooting.

In the US, there is no federally mandated minimum age of court jurisdiction, and many states do not have a minimum age of criminal culpability, including Florida.

Florida did recently pass a law prohibiting the arrest or criminal charging of children under age seven, except in cases of forcible felony, a category that includes murder and manslaughter.

Michael worked as a mechanic on Disney's monorail, and was last seen alive on November 7, 2015.

Court records revealed the couple had a domestic dispute in 2014, when Laurie is thought to have struck Michael with a gun. However, he was the one arrested, after police believed he first pulled the weapon.

Michael worked as a mechanic on Disney World's monorail, and was last seen alive on November 7, 2015

Investigators made a grim discovery in March 2018, when Michael's remains were found buried near a firepit on the five-acre property where he lived with Laurie

According to an affidavit in the case, Laurie told Michael Shaver's friends he had quit his job and left his family following his 2015 disappearance.

Those friends and co-workers found the story odd, and continued to receive text messages from Michael's number telling them 'leave me alone' or 'don't bother me,' according to the affidavit.

Detectives said these messages, along with others sent on Facebook, could be traced back to Laurie's home IP address, and investigators believe she was impersonating him online.

Neighbor Curt Ruhl told Click Orlando he used to see Michael working in the yard before he 'suddenly disappeared'. Another man moved in with Laurie shortly after that, the neighbor said.

Although the couple never divorced, other neighbors told WFTV Laurie had remarried in a ceremony near to where Michael's body was later discovered.

Over the years, police say Laurie's stories shifted constantly, and that at times she variously claimed that Michael had moved to another state, that he was in jail for non-payment of child support, and even that he was a pilot and traveled constantly for work.

Laurie was arrested in September 2020, and has been free on a $52,000 bond awaiting trial since late 2020

Police first became involved in February 2018, when a friend contacted police, who made a wellbeing check on Laurie's home in Claremont.

Officers noticed fresh concrete near a fire pit on the five-acre property, and asked permission to bring a cadaver dog.

At that point, police say the mother-of-two became uncooperative, so the officers returned with a warrant in March 2018, and recovered human remains and some clothing.

Investigators said the remains were wrapped in a tarp, fitted sheet and secured with ratchet straps.

Laurie was arrested in September 2020, and has been free on a $52,000 bond awaiting trial since late 2020.

She is charged with second-degree homicide and accessory after the fact to second-degree homicide, both as domestic felonies.
The head of Ukraine's military intelligence service, Major-General Kyrylo Budanov, has admitted that several Kremlin propagandists have been assassinated since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Budanov also said that Ukraine wanted to establish a demilitarised border zone up to 60 miles inside Russia to reduce the chances of future attacks, The Times reports.

When asked whether Ukrainian security services had killed Russian propagandists, Budanov, 37, said: 'We've already successfully targeted quite a few people. There have been well-publicised cases everyone knows about, thanks to the media coverage.'

Several prominent pro-war figures have been killed or wounded by explosives in Russia since the start of the invasion on February 24 last year.

On May 6, Pro-Kremlin ideologist Zakhar Prilepin, 47, was left with multiple injuries after a car bomb attack.

When asked whether Ukrainian security services had killed Russian propagandists, Major-General Kyrylo Budanov (pictured), 37, said: 'We've already successfully targeted quite a few people. There have been well-publicised cases everyone knows about, thanks to the media coverage'

In August last year Darya Dugina (pictured right), 29, the daughter of a close ally of Russia's President Vladimir Putin was killed by a car bomb on a road outside Moscow. It is thought that her father, the Russian philosopher Alexander Dugin (pictured left), who is known as 'Putin's brain', may have been the intended target

The Russian writer and pro-war blogger's vehicle was blown up in a village in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region. He suffered fractures but his driver was killed in the incident.

Russian investigators said that they were questioning Alexander Permyakov, whom they accused of working with Ukrainian intelligence.

Vladlen Tatarsky, 40, a military blogger with close ties to Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed by explosives concealed within a statuette handed to him at a public talk that he was giving in a St. Petersburg cafe on April 2.

Later that month, a Russian court denied bail to 26-year-old Darya Trepova. She was charged with terrorism over the bomb attack that killed Tatarsky, whose real name was Maxim Fomin.

Investigators said she was working on behalf of a pro-Ukrainian group with connections to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny - claims rejected by Navalny's associates and Kyiv.

The Russian internal affairs ministry said yesterday that an arrest warrant had been issued for Yuriy Denisov, a Ukrainian citizen they claim kept watch over Tatarsky for two months from an apartment close to his home.

It alleged that he had made his way over from Latvia under instruction from the 'Ukrainian special services'.

Vladlen Tatarsky (pictured), 40, a military blogger with close links to Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed by explosives handed to him at a public talk he was giving in a St. Petersburg cafe on April 2

Pictured: Russian police investigators inspect the 'Street bar' cafe damaged in a blast in St. Petersburg on April 2

In August last year, Darya Dugina, 29, the daughter of a close ally of Russia's President Vladimir Putin, was killed by a car bomb on a road outside Moscow.

It is thought that her father, the Russian philosopher Alexander Dugin, who is known as 'Putin's brain', may have been the intended target.

Budanov claimed that the drone strikes that hit the Kremlin on May 3, apparently with the aim of killing Putin, were a result of 'Russian aggression'.

On Different People, a Ukrainian YouTube channel, Budanov said that recent acts of sabotage inside Russian territory, including attacks on oil and gas infrastructure close to the Ukrainian border and the derailment of a cargo train, were perpetrated 'almost 100 per cent by citizens of the Russian Federation'.

In another interview with a YouTube channel called Island, Budanov said he had 'a minority of Russians' co-operating with his Ukrainian military intelligence agency, the GUR.

He said they had 'patriotic reasons' for carrying out the acts and were 'ready to change Russia'.

Budanov said that although Putin was a legitimate target, Ukraine was not trying to kill him.

He said that his agents would keep setting their sights on Russians who committed war crimes against Ukraine.

Pictured: Putin chairs a cabinet meeting via videoconference at Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on May 17, 2023

He said: 'These cases have happened and will continue.

'Such people will receive a well-deserved punishment, and the appropriate punishment can only be liquidation and I will implement it.'

Budanov blamed Moscow's increasingly vicious tactics in Ukraine on Russian propagandists, arguing that Putin's chances of survival had been put at risk.

He said: '[The Kremlin] have invested so much in this propaganda machine that it began to influence them in the end.'

Budanov added that Russia's business elite was opposed to the invasion and was seeking ways to bring it to a close.

He argued that if the Russians managed to bring Putin's reign to an end, Ukraine would still have to set up a demilitarised zone 60 miles inside Russian territory to avoid fighting in the future.

He added: 'This should be our goal. If they are not going to attack and don't decide they want revenge in a couple of years, this shouldn't be an issue.'
The head of the force which cleared Sir Keir Starmer of breaking lockdown rules is a frontrunner for the job of leading Police Scotland.

Jo Farrell, who heads Durham Constabulary, is vying to replace Sir Iain Livingstone as Chief Constable of the UKs second-largest force, alongside Sir Iains current deputy, Malcolm Graham.

Her contract was extended last June by three years, shortly before Labour leader Sir Keir and his deputy Angela Rayner were cleared of breaching lockdown regulations after being pictured drinking beer and eating a takeaway curry with party colleagues.

Sir Keir and Ms Rayner attended the event in Durham in April 2021 when strict lockdown rules were in place. Durham Police carried out a two-month investigation and concluded there had been no breach of the ban on indoor mixing as the gathering was work-related.

Ms Farrell later argued the Beergate probe was necessary to maintain public confidence in policing and the decision to investigate was taken because of the weight of material passed to the force.

The Mail has now learned Ms Farrell and Mr Graham are the only candidates for Police Scotlands top job, which has a salary of 232,000 a year.

Jo Farrell led the force that cleared Starmer of a possible lockdown rules breach in April 2021

Former Scottish Police Federation general secretary Calum Steele said the fact just two people applied was a damning indictment of the development of police leadership across the UK.

When she was made Durhams Chief Constable in June 2019, Ms Farrell became the first woman to hold the 156,958-a-year post in the 180-year history of the force.

Ms Farrell started her career as a constable in Cambridge in 1991. Last year, she said: Although I dont have any family connection with the police, I always wanted to join and was so proud when I first became an officer.

The Police Scotland job became available after Sir Iain dramatically announced he was quitting in February, two years ahead of his contract ending.

At the time, he warned his force was facing unsustainable funding pressures. Sir Iain had previously said his officers would no longer be able to investigate certain crimes due to budgetary pressures and systemic under-funding.

Last night, Mr Steele said: It is astonishing only two people have come forward for such a big role and doesnt reflect well on leadership development here.

The other issue is the intensely politicised nature of policing in England, where Police Commissioners  which we dont have in Scotland  have power over the contracts of police chiefs.

If someone in a senior position applies for a job and doesnt get it, it can be perceived as disloyalty  and the Commissioner wouldnt extend their contract, for example. So that creates an incestuous situation and isnt always conducive to people applying for big jobs outside their own force.

In Scotland, it is surprising we dont have Assistant Chief Constables (ACCs) clambering over each other for the top job.

It was determined Starmer had not breached rules as the gathering was work-related

Mr Graham, whose career began in 1995 at Lothian and Borders Police, was formerly ACC for major crime, public protection and local crime, when Police Scotland was created in 2013. He became Deputy Chief Constable in 2019.

One police source said Mr Grahams lack of experience outside Scotland may count against him.

The Scottish Police Authority  which is in charge of the recruitment process  said that it was on track to make an announcement by mid-June.
This weekend's Italian Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix has been cancelled due to the deadly floods

Desperate families have been forced to climb on to roofs of their homes in the region of Emilia-Romagna

Nine people have died and thousands have been evacuated from holiday region in northern Italy

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The death toll from the 'apocalyptic' floods in northern Italy has risen to nine with more heavy rain being forecast for this weekend.

Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in the popular holiday region of Emilia-Romagna after torrential rain on a 'biblical' scale.

The body of a 60-year-old woman, whose husband, 70, also died in the extreme weather, was found on the beach near Cesenatico after her body had been dragged 12 miles down a river.

Desperate families - including young children and the elderly - were forced to clamber on to their roofs in the tourist hotspot as they waited anxiously for rescuers to reach them in helicopters.

This weekend's Italian Grand Prix in Imola was also cancelled to allow emergency services to cope with greater pressure and to prevent crowds gathering in the flooded streets.

'The city is on its knees, devastated and in pain,' said Gian Luca Zattini, the mayor of Forli, a city near Bologna where three people were confirmed dead today. 'It's the end of the world.'

Flooded bungalows in Cesena after heavy rains caused major flooding

Vehicles in Castel Bolognese, near Imola, were submerged as a result of heavy rainfall

Firefighters brought technicians on a boat on 17 May after the flood hit northern Italy

A desperate citizen was held her dog up as she walked through a flooded street in Castel Bolognese, near Imola

Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes and pedestrians were seen walking through flooded streets

Torrential rain left damage and debris in its wake in northern Italy

A man awaits rescue by helicopter on the roof of his flooded house in the town of Faenza in the northern Italian region of Emilia Romagna today

A family is rescued by firefighters in Coccolia, near Ravenna

A cyclist rides through a flooded street in the village of Castel Bolognese, Italy, Wednesday, May 17, 2023

A man walks in a flooded street in the village of Castel Bolognese, Italy, Wednesday, May 17, 2023

A shopping centre in Cesana is flooded after the Savio river burst its banks

Damaged cars that were swept away in the floods are seen stranded in the San Rocco district

This weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix has been called off due to extreme rain in Imola

In the city of Cesena locals were forced to swim through the submerged streets, past sunken cars and floating furniture, to reach higher ground, as the mayor said the situation there is 'critical'.

A video shows one desperate mother clinging to her young daughter while frantically waving for help as the water rose up to her chest outside her home. Two men were seen racing to swim to reach the pair, with one placing the young girl above his head to stop her getting swept away in the fast-moving waters.

The girl was passed into the arms of other rescuers standing on a bank, while neighbours helped her mother to safety after the Savio river burst its banks.

The extreme weather has extended to the Balkans. In Bosnia and Croatia, residents have watched in horror as their homes were submerged by the floods. 'We have an apocalypse,' Amin Halitovic, the mayor of the Bosnian town of Bosanska Krupa said. 'We can no longer count the flooded buildings. It's never been like this.'

The devastating floods have seen nine people killed so far and 5,000 evacuated from 24 towns across the Emilia-Romagna region as the water ripped through their homes and turned streets into rivers.

A 70-year-old man died in his flooded home in the countryside outside Cesena. His wife was rescued.

Two bodies were recovered by divers this morning in Forli after the Montone river burst its banks. The town's mayor said the floods are the 'worst situation' the town has ever experienced.

Scores are missing from the region as rescuers search for those trapped in their homes after rivers swollen by days of downpours wreaked havoc across the north.

Emilia Romagna, one of Italy's richest regions, had already been hit by heavy rain just a fortnight ago, causing floods that left two dead.

This time, around 50 centimetres (20 inches) of rain fell within 36 hours in Forli, Cesena and Ravenna - around half the normal annual rainfall, a situation 'with few precedents', Italy's civil protection minister Nello Musumeci said.

The deadly floods in the popular tourist hotspot have meant this weekend's Italian Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola has been cancelled.

F1 chiefs said that because of the sheer scale of the flooding across the region they could not guarantee the safety of their fans, teams and staff, while adding it would 'not be right to put further pressure' on local authorities.

The mayor of Cesana today warned continued downpours in the Emilia-Romagna region could flood the Savio river and smaller tributaries for a second day as he urged residents to move to upper floors of their homes.

'The situation could again become critical,' Enzo Lattuca said. 'We cannot in any way lower our guard.'

Mr Museumeci said some 5,000 people had been evacuated.

But the deputy chief of the civil protection agency, Titti Postiglione, said rescue operations for those needing emergency evacuations were particularly difficult given so many roads and routes were flooded and phone service has been interrupted.

Speaking on Sky TG24, she noted that the affected flood zone covered a broad swath of four provinces which, until the heavy rains, had been parched by a prolonged drought.

Cars are partially submerged along a flooded street in the village of Castel Bolognese, Italy, Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Rescuers look for a missing person in Cesena, northern Italy, on Wednesday

A helicopter flies above the closed Motor racing-Imola paddock, as Santerno river levels rise due to heavy rain, ahead of the weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, in Imola, Italy, May 17, 2023

An aerial view on a damaged Motta bridge, which connects the Motta-Budrio with San Martino in Argine, (Bologna), 17 May

A shopping centre flooded after the Savio river overflowed in Cesena, northern Italy

A video shows one desperate mother clinging to her young daughter while frantically waving for help as the water rose up to her chest outside her home

Two men were seen racing to swim to reach the pair, with one placing the young girl above his head (centre) to stop her getting swept away in the fast-moving waters

In the city of Cesena, in the hardest-hit northern Emilia-Romagna region, locals were forced to swim through the submerged streets, past sunken cars and floating furniture, to reach higher ground

A submerged car in Cesena

The damage caused by the flooding in Cesena

The region of Emilia-Romagna has been the hardest-hit, with thousands of people evacuated from their homes

Flooding has also caused havoc in northern Croatia and northwestern Bosnia, with thousands evacuated from their homes

The flooding has wreaked havoc in Cesena, with thousands evacuated from their submerged homes on Wednesday

The F1 paddock at the Italian Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was under water today. The Grand Prix has now been cancelled

The deadly floods in the popular tourist hotspot has meant this weekend's Italian Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix has been cancelled

Regional [resident Stefano Bonaccini said Emilia-Romagna had been hit 'like an earthquake'. Rescue workers had worked through the night to save children, the elderly and the disabled from the rising waters.

'We're scared, this time we're scared,' said Simona Matassoni, the owner of the Hotel Savio in Cesena, which has so far escaped flooding.

'I was born here, I've seen lots of full rivers, but never anything like this,' she told AFP by telephone today, adding that it was still raining.

'At the moment we're crossing our fingers... but another flood is expected, so who knows.'

Elsewhere in Italy, some 3,000 people had been evacuated from their homes in Bologna, while the mayor of Ravenna said some 5,000 people were being evacuated as a precaution. Around 50,000 people were without electricity.

Twenty-one rivers in the region had broken their banks between yesterday and today, while 36 local authorities reported flooding and 48 reporting landslides.

The civil protection agency urged 'maximum caution', as mayors warned people to stay on high ground.

Meanwhile, rescue efforts across Italy are in full swing. Firefighters rescued a family with a four-month-old baby and a disabled man in the northern province of Pesaro and Urbino.

Some families were rescued from their rooftops and taken to safety, including a couple and their two young daughters.

The nearly 100,000 residents of Cesena were told to stay away from the raging waters and avoid ground floors if they live near the river.

'Use prudence, don't be curious, so disaster doesn't turn into tragedy,' Cesena mayor Enzo Lattuca said on television.

Some 900 people in flooded areas of northern Italy were evacuated by late last night, with some taking shelter in gyms or schools.

The Nuovo Bridge of Cesena and the water of the Savio river reaches its limit and threatens to burst the banks in Cesena, Italy

A home is nearly completely submerged in the flooded water in Ponte delle Grazie, near Ravenna, Italy

Rescuers take people to safety in Forli after floods hit Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region

At least four people have died and thousands have been evacuated from their homes across northern Italy today as devastating floods triggered by torrential rain tore through dozens of towns

Cars are submerged in water in Cesena after the Savio river burst its banks

Rescuers search through floodwater for missing people in Cesena

Local residents observe the aftermath of a flooding in a street in the San Rocco district of Cesena today

A man walks past fallen trees along a flooded road in Bologna, Italy, today following flooding

In the tourist town of Ravenna in north-east Italy, authorities urged residents to move to upper storeys of buildings to ride out the storm. One person died there after their car became submerged in the water.

In Riccione, a beach town on the Adriatic Sea, the mayor warned people to stay home as some took to rubber dinghies to navigate submerged streets.

In the area between Ancona, a major Adriatic port, and Pesaro and Urbino, two towns popular with tourists, firefighters attended to 80 incidents related to the flooding including fallen trees, mudslides and trapped motorists.

Meteorologists have said Italy can expect several more days of heavy rain, pummelling the north which had for weeks been suffering a shortfall of rain.

Train travel was halted on the Bologna-Ancona and the Ravenna-Faenza routes, Italian media reported.

In the Balkans, the Una river burst its banks and submerged parts of northern Croatia and northwestern Bosia, where authorities announced a state of emergency.

The mayor of the town of Bosanska Krupa in Bosnia said hundreds of homes had been flooded.

'We have an apocalypse,' Amin Halitovic told regional N1 network. 'We can no longer count the flooded buildings. It's never been like this.'

In Croatia, hundreds of soldiers and rescue teams continued bringing food and other necessities to people in flood-hit areas who have been isolated in their homes. No casualties have been reported so far.

A view of a road affected by a landslide in the aftermath of heavy rain in Fiorenzuola, Italy today

A road is blocked by a landslide caused by torrential rain in Fiorenzuola, Italy today

Flooded areas in Faenza, one of the cities most affected by the flooding of the Lamone river, in Ponte delle Grazie, near Ravenna, Italy

Residents observe the aftermath of a flooding in a street of the San Rocco district of Cesena on May 17 as more heavy rain is expected for several days

A local resident cleans the mud from his home in the aftermath of flooding in San Rocco district of Cesena

In the city of Cesena, in the hardest-hit northern Emilia-Romagna region, streets have been turned into rivers

Flooded fields in the northern Italian region of Emilia Romagna today

An elderly man wakes through a street damaged by the flooding of the San Rocco district of Cesena

A man walks through a muddy street amid heavy rain in the San Rocco district of Cesena

Elsewhere in the north of Italy, authorities in Venice are preparing to activate a mobile barrier in the lagoon the hopes of sparing the city from the rare May high-tide flooding.

The barrier system, known by its acronym Moses, and recalling the Biblical account of the Red Sea parting, will be lifted tonight for the first time in May.

It is nearly 20 years since construction began on the project, which is still not complete.

This month, a day and a half of non-stop rain caused flooding in the Emilia-Romagna region, leaving at least two people dead as riverbeds left dry by drought overflowed.

The rainfall came as Italy had been bracing for a second year of drought, which has depleted its largest river, the Po. The river supports agriculture in the vast Po River Valley before emptying into the Adriatic Sea east of Bologna.

While north-east Italy was hardest hit by the downpours, flooding also caused damage in the south.

On the island of Sicily, rescuers responded to flooding, fallen trees and other problems in the countryside between Palermo and Trapani. By yesterday morning, the weather there was improving, firefighters said.

Pedestrians walk in a flooded street of the San Rocco district of Cesena

A man with a board attempts to surf along the muddied streets of Bologna, Italy, following the flooding

A dog walks in the flooded San Rocco district of Cesena. The torrential rain has damaged homes and cars

A view of high river level due to heavy rain in Fiorenzuola, Italy. More rain is expected in the coming days

The high water level of river Una yesterday due to heavy rain in Kostajnica, Croatia

A member of civil defence wades through flooding waters in Obrovac, Croatia, yesterday after the river burst its banks

Locals laid out sand bags to try to protect their homes from the flooding in Obrovac, Croatia

Rescuers wade through floodwaters during rescue operations in Forli after floods hit Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region in the early hours of this morning
Has Liz Trusss touchpaper-lighting visit to Taiwan, antagonising China, brought forward plans for King Charles to visit Beijing? Behind the scenes, says a source, Foreign Office officials had been examining the possibility of what would be a potentially controversial royal visit to China despite the Kings lack of enthusiasm for Chinas leaders since 1997s Hong Kong handover. But despite three state visits by Chinese presidents to London (1999, 2005 and President Xi in 2015) the Queen made only one to Beijing (1986). Beijing believes it has played nicely on the diplomatic front by sending new vice-president Han Zheng to represent Xi at the Coronation. His predecessor, Wang Qishan, attended the Queens state funeral. And Xi expects King Charles to return the favours.

Has Liz Trusss touchpaper-lighting visit to Taiwan, antagonising China, brought forward plans for King Charles to visit Beijing?

Should the Kings antipathy towards China prove insurmountable, might William go instead? He made his only visit in 2015 when he saw the premiere of Paddington and lectured on the evils of the ivory trade. A slimmed-down monarchy means there are few royals of sufficient status to choose from for such a high-powered visit. Maybe Andrew could be wheeled out of retirement? When his Pitch at Palace was active, the duke was regularly feted on his annual visits to China. A source says he exercised a lot of royal soft power, something now missing in Sino-British relations. Wouldnt disgraced Andrew relish the call!

Publicity-prone Tory MP Alicia Kearns attacks Ms Trusss trip to Taiwan as performative, not substantive, the worst sort of Instagram diplomacy. Only last November Alicia spent three days in Taiwan with the Commons foreign affairs committee. She even put pictures of herself in Taiwan all over her social media accounts. Instagram diplomacy or pot and kettle faux pas?!

Dame Helen Mirren defends her promotional Cannes Film Festival fan bearing LOreals slogan Worth It, explaining: I am a LOreal ambassador, they are a sponsor of the festival... I picked up a fan because I was hot. Helen, pictured, has certainly cooled down since her 2017 outburst suggesting the beauty giants moisturiser probably does f*** all.

Helen Mirren is seen leaving the 76th annual Cannes film festival at Nice Airport

Reflecting on ITVS Schofield-Willoughby shenanigans, Nick Robinson mischievously remarks to Radio 4 Today colleague Mishal Husain: Endless coverage of Holly and Phil... Im not going to join in with this because they might start watching how were behaving towards each other, Mishal! Eyebrow-raising interjection considering Robinsons uncollegiate behaviour on the show. Cocksure Nick was accused of having sharp elbows when it came to nabbing the plum interviews.

Sky's crime aficionado Martin Brunt, currently alarming literary festival bibliophiles with tales of Fred and Rose West from his book No One Got Cracked Over the Head is tickled by the menu for the Association of Ex-CID Officers of the Metropolitan Police. Glaring misprint, he notes. It states: 1923 Spring Lunch. The crusty old tecs love to look backwards to the good old days and rail against todays woke policing methods, but even so
Australian fintech company Thriday has made waves with the introduction of an unprecedented automated business tax solution for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Leveraging the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent automation, Thriday has developed a groundbreaking platform that effortlessly files small business tax returns with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), liberating entrepreneurs from the burdensome shackles of financial administration.

Recently emerging from stealth mode, this pioneering feature is now accessible to sole traders across the entire Australian landscape.

Thriday effectively resolves the vexing problem of tiresome financial administration by integrating a business bank account with an array of value-added services like receipt scanning, invoicing, tax forecasting, BAS lodgment, and more.

Powered by AI and machine learning, the Thriday platform is ingeniously designed to operate on autopilot, enabling busy business owners to reclaim their precious time and effortlessly maintain control over their financial destinies.

One of the platform's early adopters, Olivia, a small business proprietor, enthusiastically attested to its game-changing capabilities: "The past 12 months have been an absolute whirlwind, and I barely had a moment to spare for my taxes." She continued, "Using a tool like Thriday allows me to effortlessly manage everything in one central location. This saves me invaluable time and assures me that I'm always in compliance. With Thriday, everything is automated, and tax season is a breeze."

Thriday's employment of AI delivers a unique value proposition by automating the tax return filing process, which, until now, typically relied on the business owner, a bookkeeper, or an accountant. Without Thriday, businesses are frequently mired in a complex web of disparate tools, spending an average of over six hours per week on financial administration.

In contrast to accounting software like Xero or MYOB, Thriday empowers small business owners to remain firmly in control of their tax obligations. While accounting software primarily caters to accountants and offers informational insights, Thriday employs AI to automate the arduous tasks of categorizing and reconciling income and expenses.

When conceiving the idea behind Thriday, the team recognized that AI held the key to alleviating the pain points plaguing small business owners. As customers engage in transactions and receive payments through their Thriday bank account and Visa debit card, the data is meticulously categorized and funneled into Thriday's 'categorization engine.'

Michael Nuciforo, the Chief Executive Officer of Thriday, explained, "Every small business owner is familiar with the grueling task of sifting through an extensive list of bank transactions to help their accountant and bookkeeper comprehend the intricacies of their business." He continued, "Thriday obliterates this cumbersome process and eradicates the time wasted on financial administration. We offer a single, streamlined solution to manage your business tax return."

Thriday anticipates that new technological advancements, including Chat GPT, will expedite the evolution of the current approach to filing business tax returns. Warren More, the Chief Technology Officer at Thriday, added, "In the United States, completing your business tax return takes a mere three minutes and a few clicks. Thriday will propel the Australian industry in that direction within the next few years."

Thriday is steadfastly committed to eradicating financial administration by utilizing AI to automate banking, accounting, and tax processes for small and medium-sized businesses.
Derek Chauvin on Wednesday filed an appeal against his conviction for murdering George Floyd, arguing that he was deprived of a fair trial by the decision not to move proceedings to another city.

Chauvin was convicted in April 2021 of killing Floyd in May 2020. The former Minneapolis police officer knelt on Floyd's neck during arrest, despite Floyd's pleas that he could not breathe.

The officer was sentenced to 22 and a half years in prison in June 2021, and has been behind bars in Arizona since then.

On Wednesday, Chauvin filed a case before Minnesota Supreme Court claiming that he was not given a fair trial.

The petition came a month after he lost his appeal before the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

Derek Chauvin was seen in videos recorded by horrified onlookers kneeling on the handcuffed Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes in May 2020

Chauvin is seen during his sentencing, on June 25, 2021. He was also found guilty of the federal crime of depriving Floyd of his civil rights, and is serving his sentence in federal prison

His attorney, William Mohrman, argued that the conviction was unfair for multiple reasons, including the massive pretrial publicity and the intense feeling of sympathy towards Floyd in the city of Minneapolis.

Floyd was murdered by Chauvin after he used a fake bank note in a Minneapolis bodega, and police were called

But the three-judge panel last month sided with prosecutors who said Chauvin received a fair trial and just sentence.

His latest appeal reprises several of the same arguments.

'We're very hopeful that the Minnesota Supreme Court will accept review of the case,' Mohrman said.

The Minnesota Supreme Court could agree to hear Chauvin's appeal, in which case it would ask each side for detailed briefs and later set a date for oral arguments.

Or it could decline to take the case, and let the Court of Appeals ruling stand.

Morhman wrote in the petition that the case presents the state Supreme Court with important questions on 'developing and clarifying due process requirements to transfer venue when there is unprecedented pervasive pretrial publicity coupled with community violence.'

People gather at the unveiling of artist Kenny Altidor's memorial portrait of George Floyd painted on a storefront sidewall of CTown Supermarket in Brooklyn, New York in July 2020

Chauvin was also sentenced to 21 years in federal prison last year, which he is now serving in Arizona concurrent with his state sentence. He is pictured in mugshots released by the Minnesota Department of Corrections in December 2021

He also wrote that it raises issues about rules regarding juror misconduct.

One juror participated in a civil rights event commemorating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington, D.C., a few months after Floyd's death.

Only after the trial did the juror reveal that he had been there.

The Court of Appeals declined to send the case back to the trial judge for a hearing on whether the juror's nondisclosure constituted misconduct.

Chauvin pleaded guilty to a separate federal civil rights charge and was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison, which he is now serving in Arizona concurrent with his state sentence.

'Police officers undoubtedly have a challenging, difficult, and sometimes dangerous job. However, no one is above the law,' Judge Peter Reyes wrote for the Court of Appeals last month.

'When they commit a crime, they must be held accountable just as those individuals that they lawfully apprehend.

'The law only permits police officers to use reasonable force when effecting a lawful arrest.

'Chauvin crossed that line here when he used unreasonable force on Floyd.'
He was filmed hugging his partner during arrest

A man in handcuffs has been filmed hugging his partner before he was led away by police and charged with murder.

The 48-year-old was arrested at Airds, in Sydney's south-west, at 9.35am on Wednesday morning.

He was charged with murder after a 39-year-old was allegedly stabbed to death on Robert Eggins Street in South Kempsey on March 1.

Dramatic footage of the 48-year-old man's arrest has since emerged showing the moment heavily armed police stormed into a property to arrest him.

A man in handcuffs (pictured) has been captured on police video hugging his partner before detectives took him away and charged him with murder

The officers rushed up a concrete path to the house, shouted out 'Police!' and then smashed the front door in.

A PolAir helicopter circled overhead as police searched the house.

Moments later, officers brought out a man wearing a green Brooklyn motorcycle t-shirt and cream coloured Nike tracksuit pants.

He was then seen embracing his partner who was wearing a pink dressing gown, before he was then escorted to a police vehicle.

In a subsequent search of the property, police seized items relevant to the investigation, which will undergo forensic examination.

The 48-year-old was taken to Campbelltown Police Station where he was charged with murder and ordered to face court on Thursday.

The 48-year-old was arrested in the south-western Sydney suburb of Airds on Wednesday morning and taken to Campbelltown police station. One of the officers is pictured

After being charged with murder, the man (pictured) was refused bail to appear in Campbelltown local court on Thursday

A 31-year-old woman was also arrested over the death of the 39-year-old earlier this year.

Emergency services were called to Robert Eggins Street, South Kempsey, following reports of a man suffering a stab wound at 11pm on March 1.

Paramedics treated the 39-year-old at the scene, but were unable to save him.

The 31-year-old woman was arrested on Sea Street, West Kempsey, at 11am on Wednesday.

She was charged with accessory after the fact of murder.

The woman was refused bail to appear before Kempsey Local Court on Thursday.

The huge operation involved detectives, the Bass Hill Regional Enforcement Squad, a police helicopter and the police dog unit.
Widows of military personnel who remarried will be given a one-off compensatory payment of nearly 90,000 for years of loss of income.

The initiative will address old rules which saw eligible partners forfeit their pensions if they remarried or cohabited between 1973 and 2015.

The scheme will give 87,500 to war widows whose spouses' deaths could be attributed to their military service.

In April 2015 changes were made to the pension scheme to allow those who qualified for it to receive it for life - but the changes were not applied retrospectively.

Some of the affected widows are pleased at the news but expressed disappointment as they have still lost out on large sums of money they were owed.

Widows of military personnel who remarried will be given a one-off compensatory payment of 87,500 for years of loss of income. File image

Dr Andrew Murrison, Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families, said the UK's war widows: 'Have made a great sacrifice for our country and we will continue to support them in every way we can'

Speaking to The Telegraph, Judy Shepherd, 72, and Jenny Morris, 75, whose husbands were RAF pilots that died while flying together over four decades ago in a mid-air collision near Crewe, were happy to get some payment but said it was far less than the pension would have paid.

Mrs Shepherd, of Northamptonshire, said she would receive around a quarter of the sum she is owed, she told the newspaper: 'Because of our ages I felt we were all dropping off at the end and some just wouldn't get any payment.'

Mrs Morris added: 'As far as I'm concerned it's a bonus because I never thought it would happen.'

Dr Andrew Murrison, Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families, said the UK's war widows: 'Have made a great sacrifice for our country and we will continue to support them in every way we can.

'This payment is a small but important step towards continuing to honour the commitment we have made to these brave people and we will continue to ensure they receive the recognition and support they deserve.

The MOD said applications will open later this year and remain open for two years, with support provided for applicants by the Veterans UK Call Centre.

Welfare support will also be available through the Veterans Welfare Service for those who need emotional support throughout the process.

Moira Kane, chairman of the War Widows Association, said that while the payment would be welcomed it was not what they had been campaigning for.

She told the Daily Telegraph: 'We were campaigning for the reinstatement of a pension which we haven't got. However, some of these ladies are getting quite elderly so I think the majority will be happy to receive a lump sum.'



John Glen, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said the 'payment is a token' of the Government's 'continued commitment' to Armed Forces personnel.

'The legacy of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for this country endures, and it's only right that we honour that service by doing right by their loved ones,' he added.
A teenager has been treated for head injuries after he was allegedly attacked by two boys with a hammer in broad daylight.

Police were called to Glenfield Drive, in southwest Sydney's Currans Hill, at about 4:30pm on Tuesday after reports of suspicious behaviour in the area.

Two teenagers, aged 16 and 17, are alleged to have pulled another 16-year-old-boy out of the back of a car and assaulted him.

Two teenagers, aged 16 and 17, are alleged to have pulled another 16-year-old-boy out of the back of a car and assaulted him

Police allege the two teenagers then punched him in the face before he was able able to run away.

'As he ran away, he was allegedly struck to the back of the head with a hammer,' a NSW Police spokesperson said.

The two teenagers quickly fled the scene after the boy ran away, with one of the teens appearing to have been recording the incident on his phone.

Police found the boy with head injuries after responding to the callout.

The boy was treated at the scene by NSW Paramedics and taken to Liverpool Hospital.

One local who saw the alleged attack said the teenagers appeared to be wearing masks.

'He was pretty scary, he actually had a mask on out of a movie,' they told 7News.

Another neighbour added: 'It was terrifying. We were wondering what happened, but we had no idea.'

Police allege the two teenagers then punched him in the face before he was able able to run away

Following inquiries, police visited a home in Bardia, north of Currans Hill, where they arrested two teenage boys.

They were both taken to Narellan Police Station where they were charged with reckless wounding in company.

'The older boy was also charged with breach of bail,' a NSW Police spokesperson said.

Both boys have been refused bail and are set to appear before a childrens court on Thursday.
President Biden would defeat former President Donald Trump by an even bigger margin than in 2020 if the election was held today, a new poll claims.

There were 1,571 registered voters polled between May 10-13, revealing that Biden would lead Trump 47 percent to 40 percent, according to the WPA Intelligence survey results shared with The New York Post.

WPA Intelligence CEO Chris Wilson is an advisor to the Ron DeSantis-aligned PAC Never Back Down, which is running ads ahead of his expected presidential announcement.

In 2020, Biden defeated Trump by 4.5 percent in the popular vote, but if the election were held today, Biden would win by a whopping seven percent, the poll claimed.

Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is expected to announce his presidential bid, formally challenging Trump for the GOP nomination, for now trails behind by 36 percentage points, according to the latest RealClearPolitics poll.

President Joe Biden, 80, would defeat former President Donald Trump, 76, by an even bigger margin than in 2020 if the election was held today, a new poll claims

The poll released on Wednesday also showed that Biden was backed by independent voters at 14 percentage points. This is up nine points from when he won the independents' vote in 2020.

However, the poll results also revealed that Biden would not be a clear winner for reelection next year as there are 46 percent of voters who approve of how he's doing compared to 54 percent of voters who disapprove, and 42 percent of voters who strongly disapprove.

The president had just 39 percent of registered voters who had a favorable impression of him while 54 percent had an unfavorable impression.

While Biden's approval rates were low, Trump's were even lower, the poll showed.

There were 32 percent of registered voters who had a favorable impression to Trump compared to 62 percent with unfavorable impressions.

Independents who polled the former president had just 21 percent with a favorable impression and whopping 71 percent with an unfavorable impression.

There were 1,571 registered voters polled between May 10-13, revealing that Biden would lead Trump 47 percent to 40 percent, according to the WPA Intelligence survey results

Former President Donald Trump, who announced his reelection bid last November, has already come out swinging against DeSantis - despite him not being officially in the race

'Despite Joe Biden's unpopularity, our poll found that he would win re-election in a rematch against Donald Trump by a bigger margin than the one he had in 2020,' WPA principal Amanda Iovino told The Post.

'It's clear from the data that Trump's standing with Independents has weakened considerably since the 2020 election and that he has failed to attract new voters.

This should surprise no one, as it is entirely consistent with last year's election results among Trump-backed candidates in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and other states.'

A new Reuters data poll found that in the 2024 Republican primary, Trump maintains a commanding lead over DeSantis.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a bill banning sex reassignment surgeries and medications such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for children

Some 49 percent of registered Republican respondents said they would pick the former president while just 21 percent said they would support DeSantis.

Other candidates on the list included former Vice President Mike Pence and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who both garnered less than 5 percent.

Despite the data, it would appear DeSantis is aimed solely at the moment on advancing his agenda in Florida as he continues to pass sweeping legislation.

On Wednesday, he signed into law a bill that banned sex reassignment surgeries and medications such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for children.
President Joe Biden won't apologize for the United States' use of the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II during his trip to the G7.

'No,' White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters when asked if Biden would offer an apology.

Biden will visit the Peace Memorial in Hiroshima on Friday and meet with survivors of the nuclear blast. It's estimated that around 135,000 civilians were killed in by the atomic bombs used in 1945 with another 69,000 injured.

'The President won't be making a statement at the Peace Memorial Park,' Sullivan told reporters traveling on Air Force One to the summit. 'He'll be participating with the other G7 leaders in a wreath-laying and a few other events. But this is not, from his perspective, a bilateral moment. This is him, as one of the G7 leaders, coming to pay respects.'

President Joe Biden will visit Peace Memorial in Hiroshima on Friday during G7 but will not apologize for the United States using the atomic bomb during World War II

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is hosting the gathering of world leaders, is from Hiroshima.

Sullivan said Biden's visit to the memorial is being made out of respect for Kishida, who entered Japanese politics as a member of the Japanese House of Representatives for Hiroshima's First District.

The Peace Memorial is the remains of the only building in Hiroshima to survive the nuclear blast.

The site includes memorials for the dead, the iconic bombed-out Peace Dome, and a museum on the bomb and its aftermath. The Peace Park is dedicated to the pursuit of peace and nuclear disarmament.

Kishida has made nuclear proliferation and disarmament part of his life's work. He and President Biden will hold a one-on-one meeting on Thursday evening shortly after the U.S. president arrives in Hiroshima.

When Kishida announced the G7 summit - the gathering of leaders from the United States, Canada, Japan, France, Germany and Italy - would take place in his hometown, he said he hoped the location would 'send a message to the world that mankind will never again cause the catastrophe of nuclear weapons.'

Survivors of the nuclear blast in Hiroshima in 1945; It's estimated that around 135,000 civilians were killed in by the atomic bombs with another 69,000 injured

President Biden will visit the peace memorial out of respect for Japanese prime minister

President Barack Obama hugs Mori Shigeaki, a survivor of the atomic bombing, during his May 2016 visit to Hiroshima (left); Obama lays a wreath at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima during his May 2016 visit

The world leaders are gathering at a time Russia is threatening to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine and North Korea has been conducting tests of nuclear missiles.

'We need to send out a strong message that we will note tolerate the use of force to change the status quo unilaterally as witnessed with Russia's invasion of Ukraine ... that we will protect the international order based on rule of law,' Kishida told the Japan Times in April.

'We won't allow the treat of nuclear weapons by Russia.'

Since the bombing in 1945, Hiroshima has been rebuilt to become Japan's 10th latest city.

The United States has been careful not to apologize for the use of the weapon while expressing sorrow over the destruction it caused.

Barack Obama visited Hiroshima in 2016, but did not apologize for the U.S. attacks.

Instead he spoke about the costs of war and the need for peace and nuclear disarmament.

'In the image of a mushroom cloud that rose into these skies, we are most starkly reminded of humanity's core contradiction: how the very spark that marks us as a species  our thoughts, our imagination, our language, our tool-making, our ability to set ourselves apart from nature and bend it to our will  those very things also give us the capacity for unmatched destruction,' he said.

Obama vision for a world without nuclear weapons contributed to his winning of the Nobel Peace Prize.

The only building in Hiroshima to survive the 1945 bombing is now the iconic Peace Memorial

On August 6th and August 9th 1945, the United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively.

It remains the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.

Some Japanese politicians have called for the U.S. to offer an official apology but many Americans feel to do so would undermine the war efforts.
Montana has become the first US state to enact a complete ban on TikTok, with a law that prohibits the popular Chinese-owned video sharing app from operating in the state.

'To protect Montanans' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana,' Governor Greg Gianforte said in a statement on Wednesday, soon after signing the measure into law.

The ban is set to take effect January 1, 2024, and would not punish individual TikTok users -- but would levy steep fines against Google and Apple if their platforms continue to offer the app within the state.

Apple and Google haven't said if they'll be able to ban users in one state from downloading TikTok, and people will still be able to access the site on internet browsers.

The ban seems certain to face legal challenges, and TikTok issued a statement saying the law 'infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok.'

'We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana,' the company added.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signs a law banning TikTok in the state on Wednesday. That law made Montana became the first state in the US to completely ban TikTok

The American Civil Liberties Union of Montana and NetChoice, a trade group that counts Google and TikTok as its members, also called the law unconstitutional.

Keegan Medrano, policy director for the ACLU of Montana, said the state's Legislature 'trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information and run their small business, in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment.'

Gianforte, a Republican, called the new law 'the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans' private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.'

The legislation, drafted by the state attorney general's office, easily passed through Montana's GOP-controlled Legislature.

TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, has faced growing scrutiny from US lawmakers and state officials who want to ban the app over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform.

Owned by China-based Byte-Dance, TikTok has repeatedly denied that it has ever shared data with the Chinese government and has said the company would not do so if asked.

The app has become wildly popular with teens. According to the Pew Research Center, 67 percent of US teens ages 13 to 17 use TikTok, and 16 percent of all teens say they use the app almost constantly.

TikTok has said that the 'vast majority' of its users are over the age of 18.

TikTok issued a statement saying the law 'infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana' but the company has not yet said whether it plans to sue

TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, has faced growing scrutiny over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform

In March, a congressional committee grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about whether the Chinese government could access user data or influence what Americans see on the app.

But calls to ban TikTok nationwide or give the Biden administration new powers to crack down or ban TikTok have not advanced in Congress.

An attempt by former President Donald Trump to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat through a Commerce Department order in 2020 was blocked by multiple courts and never took effect.

Montana, which has a population of just over 1 million people, said TikTok could face fines for each violation and additional fines of $10,000 per day if it violates the ban.

Apple and Google could also face fines of $10,000 per violation, per day if they violate the ban by offering TikTok in their app stores in Montana.

Some lawmakers, the FBI and officials at other agencies are concerned the video-sharing app, owned by ByteDance, could be used to allow the Chinese government to access information on U.S. citizens or push pro-Beijing misinformation that could influence the public. TikTok says none of this has ever happened .

Gianforte, a Republican, said the law will 'protect Montanans' private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party'

A former executive at ByteDance alleges the tech giant has served as a 'propaganda tool' for the Chinese government, a claim ByteDance says is baseless.

When Montana banned the app on government-owned devices in late December, Gianforte said TikTok posed a 'significant risk' to sensitive state data. More than half of US states and the federal government have a similar ban.

On Wednesday, Gianforte also announced he was prohibiting the use of all social media applications tied to foreign adversaries on state equipment and for state businesses in Montana effective on June 1.

Among the apps he listed are WeChat, whose parent company is headquartered in China; and Telegram Messenger, which was founded in Russia.
An Australian brewery has been forced into an embarrassing backdown after accusations one of its new beers showed 'total disregard for women' and could even make minors unsafe.

Sustained outrage over Blackflag Brewing's festival pale ale, Barely Legal, led the Queensland company to rename the beer and announce on Thursday that all staff would undergo 'diversity and inclusion' training.

In April the brewery released Barely Legal, a beer with an unusually high alcohol content of 18.1 per cent, intending it for a major touring festival.

The description for the beer on the Great Australasian Beer Spectapular (GABS) website said that it was 'something to tell your friends about' and noted its complexity was 'adventurous'.

The brewery then asked followers to choose from three images to go on the labels for the bar and the bottle.

Critics claimed one of the options was designed to remind drinkers of the world's most popular porn site, PornHub.

In April Blackflag Brewery released Barely Legal, a beer with an unusually high alcohol content of 18.1 per cent, intending it for a major touring festival

The combination of the beer's name, description, alcohol content and the potential label images outraged activist followers, including Clementine Ford

It was intended to be exclusively available at the traveling GABS festival, which begins in Melbourne from May 19 to 21 in the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton.

GABS is then repeated in Sydney from June 2-3 and in Brisbane on June 10.

But the combination of the beer's name, description, alcohol content and the potential images outraged activist followers, including Clementine Ford.

'What a totally interesting and funny name for a beer that doesn't in any way imply you're a bunch of creeps with a s***ty sense of humour and total disregard for women,' Ford wrote.

An Instagram account called chicksinventedbeer tagged the brewery with a screen shot of the beer's name and description, asking 'is this f*n necessary?' and that it was 'so gross' and 'beyond foul'.

In unpacking the beer's marketing, chicksinventedbeer concluded that it 'creates a culture where sexism and sexualising minors is not only accepted but celebrated'.

The brewery responded in a statement to online industry publication The Crafty Pint that its intention was to release a beer as 'a celebration' of the journey to turning 18.

It also appeared to admit the potential imagery was based on PornHub by saying one rite of passage at turning 18 was when someone searches your internet history.

In the statement the brewery offered 'apologies' adding 'no ill intentions were considered. We were just aiming at taking the p*** of turning 18.'

In unpacking the beer's marketing, Instagram account chicksinventedbeer concluded that Blackflag's festival beer 'creates a culture where sexism and sexualising minors is not only accepted but celebrated'

Outrage over Blackflag Brewing's Barely Legal ale led the company to rename the beer and announce that all staff would undergo 'diversity and inclusion' training

Chicksinventedbeer went for the jugular over part of the apology, accusing the brewery of 'gaslighting an entire community'.

'F*** you for using the 'it's just a joke line'. It was intentional and calculated'.

Concerted pressure from Ford and others eventually led to the brewery ditching the name altogether.

Descriptions of festival beers on the GABS website for all three events show the same description now applies to a release named The Beery Beer.

Blackflag eventually issued an unconditional apology, adding that it is reviewing its marketing processes to avoid 'such missteps' in future.

In response it would also 'implement a comprehensive diversity and inclusion training program for all employees.'

'Blackflag, deeply regrets any offense or distress caused by our recent marketing campaign,' the latest apology said.

'We acknowledge that a single marketing theme, which was intended to be light-hearted and engaging, unfortunately missed the mark and inadvertently conveyed unintended implications that were offensive.'
Top Democrats batted off growing concerns about ailing Senator Dianne Feinstein's health after she forgot she'd been absent from Congress for two months with shingles.

California Congressman Pete Aguilar dodged questions about 89 year-old Feinstein's health Wednesday, scoffing that he did not 'have a medical degree.'

Aguilar was seemingly reluctant to criticize one of his colleagues as he admitted House Democrats would need liberals in the Senate to have 'their backs' on upcoming votes.

Another lawmaker, Mike Levin, insisted he was glad to see Feinstein back, despite concerns about her mental and physical abilities being voiced by both liberal and conservative lawmakers.

A prominent House Democrat said that Dianne Feinstein's wellbeing doesn't concern him because 'I don't have a medical degree' as questions continue to surround the Congresswoman's health

Feinstein has been on an extended absence following a case of shingles. She returned last week in a wheelchair and said in a statement she's on doctor's orders to work a lighter schedule.

Feinstein sparked confusion during her first appearance in the Senate in close to three months by claiming she has been there the whole time.

'No, I've been here. I've been voting,' the 89-year-old told reporters on Tuesday when they asked how she was feeling and what her colleagues thought of her return. 'Please. You either know or don't know,' she bizarrely added.

In an interview upon her return, some top house Democrats said they were happy see Feinstein again and were unwilling to question her role in the Senate.

Hawaii's Rep. Ted Lieu joked that Democrats 'don't get in the way of conversations and their doctors' when asked about the octogenarian's ability to legislate.

'I don't have a medical degree, so I'm not going to comment on how she's feeling or what she looks like,' said Rep. Aguilar.

'We expect Senate Democrats to have our backs on some of these votes and discussions  I appreciate the fact that she's back working and we wish her nothing but the best.'

Congressman Ted Lieu of Hawaii, a frequent critic of former President Donald Trump, dug in further on the medical theme.

'Democrats don't get in the way of conversations between patients and their doctors,' he said.

'Sen. Feinstein came back last week and she voted, and that was very good.'

Another California official, Representative Mike Levin, also refused to speculate on Feinstein's health.

'I'm delighted that she's back and that she's voting and participating in the Judiciary Committee and I think that it says it all,' he said. 'I'm happy she's back and happy she's able to perform her duties.'

'I don't have a medical degree, so I'm not going to comment on how she's feeling or what she looks like,' said California Congressman Pete Aguilar

'Democrats don't get in the way of conversations between patients and their doctors,' Representative Ted Lieu of Hawaii said

Another California official, Representative Mike Levin, also refused to speculate on Feinstein's health

When asked this week what it felt like to be back in the Senate after her three month battle with shingles, Feinstein bizarrely said that she has been there the entire time

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania's Democrat Senator John Fetterman sparked similar concerns Tuesday over his stumbling speech at a hearing about the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. He suffered a stroke while campaigning last year, but was still elected to office.

Last month, Feinstein requested to be temporarily replaced on the Judiciary Committee.

Now, there is more concern for Feinstein, whose physical and mental capacity has deteriorated in recent years, after she appeared to forget that she had been absent the past two and a half months.

When Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal was asked if there was optimism that Feinstein could return to being a fully functioning, contributing member of the committee like her old self.

'There's one job that no one else can do for us, which is to vote,' Blumenthal said. 'And she's been doing that job in the last few days, and so far as I can tell, she's been doing well.'

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer greeted Senator Dianne Feinstein upon her return

'Hi everybody,' Feinstein said when she entered the building on Wednesday

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, however, said: 'I'm gonna leave that to the medics.'

Feinstein arrived at the Senate on Wednesday after flying in from California - where she was recovering in her San Francisco home - to Washington D.C.

'Even though I've made significant progress and was able to return to Washington, I'm still experiencing some side-effects from the shingles virus. My doctors have advised me to work a lighter schedule as I return to the Senate,' she said in a statement.

She then made her return to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday, arriving nearly 90 minutes late and after some judicial nominees had already been voted on.

She received a standing ovation from Republicans and Democrats alike on the panel when she joined them after being gone due to health issues.

Chairman Dick Durbin welcomed Senator Feinstein back

Senator Dianne Feinstein has been using a wheelchair to get around the Capitol

Feinstein takes her seat at a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill

Side-effects include lingering pain known as postherpetic neuralgia, painful eye infections that may result in vision loss, facial paralysis, or problems with hearing or balance, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Feinstein arrived in time to vote for the advancement of three of President Joe Biden's nominees. She has faced fire from members of her own party for her prolonged absence in the Senate, which held up confirmation of some judges.

Meanwhile, Feinstein has said she won't run for re-election in 2024.

The race to replace her is already competitive with several Democrats running to fill a Senate seat that hasn't been vacant for 30 years, including Reps. Barbara Lee, Adam Schiff and Katie Porter.

There are concerns that if Feinstein did resign, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom - who has to name someone to fill out her term - could upend the race to replace her by appointing someone already running for the seat.

He has said he would appoint a black woman to the job. Rep. Lee is black.

And Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna, who has led the latest round of calls for Feinstein's resignation, has endorsed Lee in the primary to replace Feinstein.

California has a jungle primary, meaning the top two winners, regardless of party, move forward to the general election. That means the heavily-Democratic state could see two Democrats running in the November 2024 election.
Former President Donald Trump may be in fresh legal danger after the National Archives informed him it will hand over records to the special counsel investigation showing he and his team knew the rules of declassification.

The archives will be sending Special Counsel Jack Smith 16 records that will apparently show Trump and his advisors knew that they couldn't flout declassification rules just because he was president.

'The 16 records in question all reflect communications involving close presidential advisers, some of them directed to you personally, concerning whether, why, and how you should declassify certain classified records,' said archivist Debra Steidel Wall in a letter to Trump.

Smith subpoenaed for the records earlier this year, looking for evidence that Trump knew how he was supposed to declassify documents but simply didn't do so.

Former President Donald Trump may be in fresh legal danger after the National Archives informed him it will hand over records to the special counsel investigation showing he and his team knew the rules of declassification

Trump's legal team has asserted that his role as president meant that he didn't have to follow any specific process in order to declassify the records, according to CNN.

They insist that removing the documents from his official presidential office automatically declassified them - but prosecutors could take a different view.

Team Trump cited a source close to the president who says he's gotten several similar letters from the National Archives since the investigation began.

'This lunatic special prosecutor named Jack Smith' is how the former president referred to the man Attorney General Merrick Garland tapped to run the investigation, in what Garland said was a move to 'protect commitment to both independence and accountability' of the Justice Department amid the race for the White House.

At a town hall last week, Trump told interviewer Kaitlan Collins 'they become automatically declassified when I took them.'

Trump has accused the special counsel of 'threatening people'  and of using squeeze tactics on witnesses by dangling relief.

'We have this Jack Smith lunatic threatening people every single day through his representatives. They're threatening jail terms. But talk about Trump and you'll go free. This is where we are as a nation. Who would have thought? They can't beat us at the ballot box, so they try and beat us through the law. That's the country in which we live.'

Trump has already been indicted in New York over hush money payments to Stormy Daniels during his 2016 campaign, but denies wrongdoing. He's back in court over that matter later this year.

Special Counsel Smith is separately investigating Trump over the potential mishandling of hundreds of classified documents at his Palm Beach, Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, as well as possible efforts to obstruct that probe.

The Justice Department special counsel leading the investigation, Jack Smith , has cast a broad net in interviews and has sought the testimony of a long list of former Trump aides

The archives will be sending Smith 16 records that show he and his advisors knew that they couldn't flout declassification rules

Trump's lawyers in that investigation called the Department of Justice investigation 'severely botched' and 'politically infected'.

They urged the House Intelligence Committee to step in by holding hearings and introducing legislation to correct classified document handling procedures in the White House and to standardize procedures for presidents and vice presidents for when they leave office.

'DOJ should be ordered to stand down, and the intelligence community should instead conduct an appropriate investigation and provide a full report to this Committee, as well as your counterparts in the Senate,' the lawyers wrote.

It is unclear when either of the special counsel's investigations will end or who, if anyone, will be charged.

Trump's claims about pressure from Smith came on a day when a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Meadows and other top aides who have been subpoenaed must testify.

Meadows provided critical advice to Trump, and traveled to Georgia on his behalf amid Trump's election overturn effort. Meadows was on Trump's infamous call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffesnperger where Trump told him: 'I just want to find 11,780 votes'  one more than he needed to win the state.

Authorities stand outside Mar-a-Lago, the residence of former president Donald Trump, amid reports of the FBI executing a search warrant as a part of a document investigation

Trump suggested he might have won the election had Hunter Biden's 'laptop from hell' come out sooner, and went after the FBI and big tech

Trump attacked Judge Juan Merchan hours after getting a warning about 'words or conduct which could jeopardize the rule of law as it applies to these proceedings in this courtroom

Trump railed against investigators in a speech at his private Mar-a-Lago club

He also went after 'the illegal and unconstitutional raid on Mar-a-Lago right here'  in reference to the FBI search for classified material under a subpoena.

Trump railed at Smith after hitting out at judge Juan Merchan, who is presiding over the Stormy Daniels case, and previously oversaw proceedings that saw longtime Trump Org. CFO Allen Weisselberg sentenced to five months in jail after pleading guilty to tax fraud.

'We recently had another trial and the same judge told the fine man who worked for me for many, many years that if you admit your guilt, you will be in jail for 90 days. But if you don't if we go through a trial and you're found guilty you're going away for 10 years and maybe longer.

Trump also attacked Merchan as a 'Trump-hating judge with a Trump-hating wife and a family whose daughter worked for Kamala Harris,' in an attack that drew groans from a packed crowd of supporters and Mar-a-Lago members.

Trump also spent time going after Hunter Biden and his infamous laptop during his remarks, which came just hours after he was arrested and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Manhattan.

He appeared to suggest he would have won the election had media companies and government agents acted differently regarding the laptop, which contains a trove of personal information about the president's son as well as emails about an array of business relationships.

A court sketch of Donald Trump in court in NYC on April 4

'And just recently the FBI and DOJ in collusion with Twitter and Facebook, in order not to say anything bad about the Hunter Biden laptop from hell, which exposes the Biden family as criminals in which according to the pollsters would have made a 17 point difference in the election result  we needed a lot less than that like about 16.9m; Trump said. 'It would have been in our favor. Not my favor, our favor because our country is going to hell.'

Trump allies obtained a copy of the laptop from a Delaware computer shop owner, who said he also gave it to the FBI. The New York Post reported on its contents weeks before the elections.

Trump's attacks on Judge Merchan came despite warnings to both sides inside the Manhattan courtroom earlier.

'Id encourage counsel for both sides to speak to your witnesses, defense counsel speak to you client and remind them to please refrain from making statements that are likely to incite violence and civil unrest,' he said.

Refrain from engaging in conduct which has the potential to incite violence or create civil unrest,' he warned.

Dont engage in words or conduct which could jeopardize the rule of law as it applies to these proceedings in this courtroom.

Trump lawyer Todd Blanche, agreed, and told the judge: Theres only so much we can do.

On the documents probe, Trump said he had done nothing wrong despite government investigators finding hundreds of documents marked 'classified.'

'As president, I have the right to declassify,' he said, whereas Joe Biden did not when he was vice president.

He said he was 'negotiating in good faith' with the National Archives and Records Administration, a group he also attacked.

'We were negotiating in very good faith, proper way, in order to return some or all of the documents that I openly and in very plain sight brought with me to Mara Lago from our beautiful White House,' he said.
The extensive search for a missing teenage girl has been 'paused' after police spent almost three weeks fruitlessly scouring a river in Tasmania's north-east.

Shyanne-Lee Tatnell, 14, was last seen near the North Esk River in Launceston on the night of April 30.

Police had been searching the river and surrounding area for two-and-a-half weeks but there has been no trace of the 14-year-old.

Tasmania Police announced on Thursday the large scale search of the area has been paused.

Tasmanian Police have paused the search for teenager Shyanne-Lee Tatnell (pictured), who has been missing

'After extensive searching in the area over two and a half weeks, there has unfortunately been no sign of Shyanne,' Inspector Craig Fox said in a statement.

'Police have continued to be in close contact with Shyanne's family, and our thoughts remain with them at this difficult time.

'While the large scale search of the area has been paused, the investigation remains active and inquiries are continuing.

'We are forensically testing further items of interest that have been located over the past fortnight.'

Police added the investigation into missing teen Shyanne-Lee Tatnell (pictured) is ongoing

Police added the investigation is ongoing.

Shyanne was last seen wearing bike shorts and a cream hoodie with dark writing across the chest and shoulder.

She is 160cm tall with a slim build and blonde hair.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers.
Bus driver Graham Stanley bravely returned to work to on Thursday, a little over a day after a bus load of his young passengers were horrifically injured in the collision with a truck.

Graham Stanley, 52, of Melton in western Melbourne, was up at the crack of dawn to return to Christians Bus company despite still coming to the terms with his ordeal.

Mr Stanley's wife Sussanne told Daily Mail Australia her husband had been deeply affected by the crash.

Bus driver Graham Stanley returns home with the aid of a crutch on Thursday

Bus driver and grandfather Graham Stanley (above, with wife Sussanne) bravely returned to work on Thursday to debrief with his bosses

Seven children remain in hospital following the horrific crash. Pictured is the bus wreckage at the intersection of Exford Road and Murphys Road in Eynesbury

'It's been very traumatic for him,' she said. 'Unfortunately the circumstances, that's what's happened, ' she said.

'He's doing okay. He's got some injuries that he's got to manage and deal with.'

Mr Stanley's children rallied to the family home on Thursday to be close to their father, who arrived home with the aid of a crutch just before 3pm.

Mrs Stanley said they were limited in what they could discuss about the crash, which is still under investigation by specialist detectives.

The pair have also limited their intake of news bulletins on the crash in an effort to protect Mr Stanley's mental wellbeing.

'We've even stayed off the TV. We haven't really been watching what's been happening. We hear little bits and pieces but that's it,' she said.

Mr Stanley refused to speak to a waiting media pack as he returned home, giving a thumbs-up to a friend who dropped him off.

A former workmate of Mr Stanley, who wished to remain anonymous, told Daily Mail Australia he was a dedicated and much liked driver.

'I talked to him every day I went in there. He's not a bad sort of character,' he said.

'I only know that he had minor cuts and abrasions and of course after having to deal with ... well, you use your imagination.'

The man ssaid Mr Stanley was presented with a scene of absolute chaos in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

'What are you going to do when you've been hit up the a**e in a bus and then you've got all these kids hung up in seatbelts,' he said.

'Now you can't undo a seatbelt when it's under load, and everyone is on their side, so then he has to deal with that.

The school bus was allegedly struck from behind by a truck and flipped on the corner of Exford and Murphys Rd at Eynesbury, 56km from Melbourne about 3.40pm on Tuesday.

On board were 45 children from Exford Primary School, some of whom were left with life-changing injuries - with one student undergoing a 'complete' amputation and others losing parts of their limbs.

Truck driver and father-of-two Jamie Robert Gleeson, 49, was released on bail on Wednesday after being charged with four counts of dangerous driving causing serious injury.

Truck operator and Gleeson's employer L & J Cartage issued a statement on Thursday.

'Our hearts go out to everyone involved, especially the children and their families,' the family-owned transport company said.

'We are deeply shocked and saddened at what has happened.'

It also confirmed Gleeson had 20 years of experience driving trucks and had been with the company for more than 15 years.

With the help of family, Mr Stanley gives a thumbs-up after being dropped off at home on Thursday

A court heard on Wednesday how truck driver Jamie Gleeson (pictured) helped pull children from the wreckage of the bus moments after the crash

Truck driver Jamie Robert Gleeson (pictured left) allegedly told police he saw the 'sun flicker' between trees in the moments before the crash

The court heard on Wednesday that Gleeson told police he saw the 'sun flicker' between trees in the moments before the smash and also that he stopped at the scene after the accident, called triple-0 and began helping pull children from the wreckage.

Gleeson was still wearing an orange high-vis shirt when he appeared in Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Wednesday afternoon.

Reading the police summary, prosecutor Ben Kerlin said Gleeson told police he was on his 'usual route home' at the time and driving about 70km per hour.

'Next thing I know the bus in front slowed,' he allegedly told police.

'I tried to take evasive action but I couldn't, and if I could have swerved around it I would have.'

Mr Kerlin said Gleeson recounted seeing 'sun flickers' from through trees which he knew could distort his vision.

'Whether that played a part in what happened... I couldn't tell you', he said, according to the documents.

A school bus carrying children from Exford Primary School in Melbourne's west was allegedly hit from behind by a truck and overturned

Gleeson allegedly told police he would usually react by slowing down in such circumstances, but on this occasion he did not.

The prosecutor told the court police would need a significant amount of time to prepare the case, requesting 16 weeks to account for the 'large number of children involved' and size of the collision.

He added Gleeson may face 'additional charges' as investigations into the crash continue.

Gleeson returned negative blood tests for both drugs and alcohol,

His lawyer successfully applied for bail saying there was 'no allegation he tried to abscond or minimise his involvement'.

As of Thursday morning, seven children remain in hospital, including one in intensive care. All are in a stable condition.

The children sustained multiple and traumatic injuries ranging from partial to complete amputations, crushed limbs and severe lacerations to their heads and bodies.

Four will require further surgery.
The assassination of Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the attempted killing of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has left the nation shaken into a more robust security state surrounding this week's G7 summit in Hiroshima.

The Japanese government has brought in 24,000 security officers for the summit and taken some potentially overzealous precautions - like unplugging vending machines.

Machines were taped up - with apology notes affixed to them - as far away as Tokyo, which is nearly 500 miles away from Hiroshima - the site of one of the two 1945 nuclear blasts that concluded World War II.

Trains into Hiroshima warned travelers that limited trash cans would be available at stations. Instead a man held a trash bag up for passengers to use before they exited through the station turnstiles. Garbage bins in public places in Japan are generally scarce.

Tourists were also warned that they would be prohibited from visiting Miyajima Island, home of the Itsukushima Shrine and its iconic 'floating' gate, from Thursday through Saturday, as leaders are expected to visit it.

A group of police officers stand guard on the street Wednesday near Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima ahead of the G7 summit

Workers place barricades around the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park ahead of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan. President Joe Biden arrives in Hiroshima late Thursday afternoon

The shrine is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In the hours before President Joe Biden's arrival Thursday afternoon, officers - wearing white raincoats and pants - were spread out about every 20 feet on the downtown streets.

There were also several planned protests ahead of the gathering, which brings in the leaders of the U.S., Japan, the U.K., France, Italy, Germany and Canada, and invited guests, including South Korea, Australia, India, Brazil, Comoros, Cook Islands, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Most security measures the Japanese implemented were to prevent the use of bombs or improvised explosive devices, as guns are hard to come by in the Asian nation.

Gun laws are extremely restrictive with only police and military members allowed to purchase a handgun or rifle.

Abe, who was shot and killed at a campaign event in July, was murdered using a homemade firearm.

Workers were photographed setting up a fence around the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park on Thursday

Protesters marched around Peace Memorial Park on Wednesday ahead of the G7 in Hiroshima, Japan

In the year before Abe's death, the country - with a population of 125 million - only had 10 gun-related criminal cases.

The 67-year-old former prime minister - who left office in September 2020 - was killed by 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, who targeted the leader not for his politics, but his family's ties to the Unification Church.

Yamagami was able to approach Abe from behind, fire off a shot - which missed - and then fire off another, which hit the leader's left arm and damaged arteries below both of his collar bones, creating massive and fatal internal bleeding.

Security had to call out for medical professionals to help Abe.

He had stopped breathing and his heart had stopped by the time he was airlifted to the nearest hospital.

The attack prompted major questions about security in Japan.

As one expert put it to the Associated Press, 'political terrorism' in Japan is extremely rare - and so top officials don't have the kind of security presence afforded to, for example, the president of the United States.

Even after U.S. presidents leave office they're still afforded Secret Service protection.

The Japanese were also shaken by a more recent near-miss as Kishida was targeted.

Last month a man hurled an explosive device at the prime minister ahead of a campaign speech in the Japanese city of Wakayama.

Kishida was unharmed, but the incident renewed calls for leaders to be provided with enhanced security.
Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging the German bank facilitated the late Jeffrey Epstein's sex-trafficking ring, according to attorneys for the plaintiffs.

The suit was filed last year in New York by a woman listed in court filings as Jane Doe 1 on behalf of herself and other accusers, alleging Deutsche Bank did business with Epstein for five years despite knowing he was engaged in sex-trafficking.

Deutsche Bank did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement, a person familiar with the matter told DailyMail.com late on Wednesday.

The plaintiffs' lawyers, from the law firms Boies Schiller Flexner and Edwards Pottinger, said they believed the $75 million settlement was the largest sex-trafficking settlement involving a banking institution.

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging the German bank facilitated the late Jeffrey Epstein's sex-trafficking ring

Deutsche Bank did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement, a person familiar with the matter told DailyMail.com late on Wednesday

'This groundbreaking settlement is the culmination of two law firms conducting more than a decade-long investigation to hold one of Epstein's financial banking partners responsible for the role it played in facilitating his trafficking organization,' the law firms said in a joint statement to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the settlement.

A Deutsche Bank spokesman declined to discuss the settlement or comment on any specifics when reached by DailyMail.com.

However, the bank pointed to a prior statement in which it acknowledged that making Epstein a client was a mistake.

'We acknowledge our error of onboarding Epstein in 2013 and the weaknesses in our processes. We have learnt from our mistakes and deeply regret our association with Epstein,' the bank said in a public statement in July 2020.

Deutsche Bank also says it has invested more than $4.3 billion to bolster its controls, processes and training, and hired more people to fight financial crime.

The settlement resolves claims in the proposed class action filed in Manhattan federal court by Epstein's accusers, and was confirmed by their lawyers. Court approval of the deal is still required.

Little St. James Island, one of the properties of financier Jeffrey Epstein, is seen in an aerial view. The island was known to locals as 'Pedophile Island' and the 'Island of Sin'

The New York City Mansion that belonged to Jeffrey Epstein is seen in a file photo

Epstein had been a Deutsche Bank client from 2013 to 2018, a period that followed his guilty plea in Florida to procuring a minor for prostitution.

David Boies, one of the accusers' lawyers, told Reuters that Epstein's abuses 'could not have happened without the collaboration and support of many powerful individuals and institutions.'

'We appreciate Deutsche Bank's willingness to take responsibility for its role,' he added.

A trial in the case had been scheduled for September 5.

It wasn't immediately clear how the settlement might affect JPMorgan Chase, which faces similar but even larger lawsuits filed by Epstein's accusers and by the US Virgin Islands, where the financier had a private island.

Epstein was a JPMorgan client from 1998 to 2013, a period when prosecutors say he trafficked many women and underage girls.

Court papers in that case outlined many claims about the bank's alleged ignoring or turning a blind eye to Epstein's activities.

Epstein's longtime associate, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison for helping him recruit and groom underage girls

The Deutsche Bank case was led by an unidentified plaintiff, known as Jane Doe 1, who said Epstein sexually abused her from 2003 to 2018.

A different Jane Doe 1, a former ballet dancer who said Epstein trafficked her from 2006 to 2013, is leading the accusers' case against JPMorgan.

Epstein died behind bars in August 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking dozens of girls as young as 14. New York City's medical examiner ruled his death a suicide.

Epstein's longtime associate, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison for helping him recruit and groom underage girls over the course of at least a decade.

Maxwell, 61, is currently serving her sentence at Florida's FCI Tallahassee prison. She has appealed her conviction.
A citywide manhunt continues for a thief who stole a car with a one-year-old baby boy strapped in the backseat in Adelaide as shocked witnesses recalled the mum's distress.

The mum had briefly ducked into a pet food store at Clearview Plaza on Hampstead Road in the city's north about 11am Thursday when she spotted a man getting into her white Mazda CX9 station wagon parked outside and reversing out.

The woman raced out to confront and fight off the thief but was dragged to the ground as the car sped off with her sleeping baby still inside.

Police were able to track the car's movements using the mother's mobile phone. The vehicle was also captured on CCTV.

The vehicle was located abandoned 20 minutes later 4.6km away in Rowe Circuit, Walkley Heights with the child still in the backseat.

The unharmed baby boy has since been reunited with his mother.

The mum had ducked into a shop at Clearview Plaza in Adelaide's north when a thief stole her car with her sleeping baby boy still in the backseat

It's believed the family have been left shaken by the traumatic ordeal.

The thief remains on the run. He was last seen running towards Stockdale Botanic Park.

The mum had ducked into Pet Food Centre while keeping a close eye on her car the entire time when she spotted the man getting into the vehicle.

'She went out there and got pushed out of the car by someone who was stealing the car,' store co-owner Tim Beaton told the Adelaide Advertiser.

'She was distraught as you would be.'

'We comforted her, we rang triple zero and got the police out.'

'It's just one of those things that happened. You don't expect that to happen.'

Other witnesses recalled how the mum desperately tried to cling onto the car as the thief sped off.

'I just saw the lady yelling and screaming, trying to hang onto the car and as it drove off yelling 'Oh they got my baby, baby's in the back,' John told Seven News.

CCTV has emerged of the stolen Mazda CX9 station wagon driving off with a baby boy sleeping in the backseat

The little boy was unharmed during the ordeal and was reunited with his mum (stock image)

Police investigations continue with a citywide manhunt now underway.

The man is described as Caucasian appearance with a scraggly beard. He was wearing faded track pants with light lines down the side, a hooded jumper which was creamy in colour with a bit of white.

Detectives urge anyone who may have noticed suspicious behaviour in Walkley Heights and a Mazda CX9 station wagon to contact Crime Stoppers.

The incident comes less than a year after another Adelaide mum experienced a similar harrowing ordeal.

In June last year, Erika Carter left the motor running with four-month-old baby son Jordan asleep in the back seat of her car as she ducked into a deli to buy a loaf of bread in Klemzig.

Seconds later, the distraught mum was captured on CCTV racing into the carpark as the alleged thief reversed out and sped off in the vehicle.

Her car was found abandoned two hours later with Jordan still inside, crying but unharmed.
Two teenage girls have been filmed in the middle of a violent brawl with another train passenger.

Footage of the incident, which took place on a busy train carriage near Regents Park in Sydney on Tuesday afternoon, was shared on social media.

Commuters watched on in horror as the three passengers were locked in a frantic fight between the rows of seats.

Two teenage girls have been filmed in the middle of a violent brawl with another train passenger on a Sydney train near Regents Park on Tuesday

The video shows the passenger throwing punches at the two 15-year-old girls before she falls to the ground and narrowly avoids banging her head on the seat's edge.

One of the teenage girls then appears to grab the passenger by the scruff of the neck before pushing her down into the seat.

At one stage the passenger appears to have fallen to the floor between two rows of seats as one of the teens stands over her and appears to kick her.

The entire video clip occurred in the minutes between Regents Park station and the next stop at Berala station.

The teenage girls reportedly fled the train once it pulled into the station.

Police allege the incident started out as an argument before the teenage girls assaulted the passenger.

Officers spoke to two 15-year-old girls and one of them was issued a youth caution.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan slammed the news media for reports that President Joe Biden's cancellation of the Australia portion of his trip was a win for Chinese President Xi Jinping.

'We believe this notion that somehow the PRC [People's Republic of China] is sitting there happy and comfortable about the situation is a convenient media narrative going into this trip, but it does not reflect reality in any way,' Sullivan, who is the president's top foreign policy adviser, told reporters traveling on Air Force One to Japan.

'It's not for me to give you advice on or to make a pitch to you on how you report things. But I think there is a degree of fairly dramatic over-cranking in saying that pushing off a visit to Australia and PNG speaks to the fundamentals of American diplomacy at this time,' he noted.

President Joe Biden, with granddaughter Maisy, at a refuel stop in Alaska in route to the G7

Biden also canceled an historic visit to Papua New Guinea, where he would have been the first U.S. president to visit in an official capacity, in order to return to the United States to deal with the debt crisis.

He was supposed to visit both countries after attending the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

Those two stops were meant to re-affirm the U.S. commitment to the Pacific as China's political, military and economic power in the region rises. Canceling them was seen as a foreign policy setback for Biden, who has put a great focus on the Pacific region and countering Jinping's influence there.

Biden called Prime Minister James Marape of Papua New Guinea from Air Force One on his way to Japan to express his regret at not being able to visit. He will send Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to Papua New Guinea on Monday in his place.

Analysts said the president's decision cast doubt to U.S. credibility in the Pacific island region, where Washington is competing with Beijing for influence.

'It will reinforce lingering doubts about U.S. staying power,' Hal Brands, a professor of global affairs at Johns Hopkins University, told The New York Times. 'And you can bet China will make hay of this  its message to countries in the region will be, 'You can't count on a country that can't even perform basic functions of governance.'

And Richard Maude of the Asia Society Policy Institute said the cancellation could be a setback for relations.

'The mantra in the region is all about turning up. Turning up is half the battle. China turns up all the time, and so the optics aren't great,' he told Reuters.

Xi has visited the region three times, including a 2018 visit to Papua New Guinea.

But the White House slammed such talk, arguing countering China would be a major topic of the G7, where the leaders of France, the United States, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan meet.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also invited the leaders of the Quad - which is made of Australia, India, the United States and Japan - to the G7. There is talk of plans for the four leaders to have a sit down on the sidelines of the G7.

'The President felt it was critical that he be at the G7 because this particular format is so central to getting alignment and convergence with key countries -- including, by the way, the countries in the Quad, because both Australia and India will be in Hiroshima, and he will have the opportunity to engage with them there,' Sullivan argued.

He also said Biden would hold a summit for the leaders of the Pacific Island nations this year and would make a visit to Australia. Biden also invited Aussie Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to make a state visit to the United States later this year.

Biden hosted a summit of Pacific Island leaders last year.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan slammed the news media for reports that President Joe Biden's cancellation of the Australia portion of his trip was a win for Chinese President Xi Jinping

The Pacific islands span 40 million square km of ocean, where vital sea lanes and submarine cables link the United States to Australia and Japan - two of its major allies in the region.

But island leaders compliain the U.S. sees them as 'fly over' countries.

And Biden's change in plans brought back memories of 2013, when then-President Barack Obama skipped a scheduled appearance at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting to deal with a government shutdown instigated by Republicans.

Xi ended up dominating the event, declaring that 'the Asia-Pacific cannot prosper without China.'

Albanese announced on Wednesday he would cancel the Quad meeting scheduled to take place in Sydney since Biden can't attend. The leaders of those four Quad nations were to discuss ways to counter China's aggression in the Indo-Pacific.

Albanese told reporters in Australia that the four leaders were attempting to get together in Japan at the G7.

'At this stage, we haven't got a time locked in for that arrangement,' he said Wednesday. 'This is a decision that's been made overnight, our time, in the United States.'

In November, Biden met with Xi during a G20 meeting in Bali but tensions between Beijing and Washington have grown since then.

There has been talk of a phone call between Biden and Xi but none has been scheduled so far.

The Biden administration has been concerned about Chinese President Xi Jinping's moves in the Indo-Pacific and relations between the two nations have gotten worse

Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) canceled the Quad meeting after President Biden (center) said he couldn't attend

Biden, during his Australia stop, also was scheduled to address to a joint sitting of the Australia Parliament. He would have been the first U.S. president to speak there since Barack Obama did nine years ago.

The president was also scheduled to stop in Papua New Guinea on the way from Japan to Australia. The decision to cancel that visit also comes as a significant blow, given Biden would have been the first sitting US President to tour the nation in an official capacity.

Biden will arrive in Hiroshima, Japan, on Thursday to meet with G7 leaders.

The G7 countries include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

In addition, Japan invited Brazil, Vietnam, Indonesia, India, South Korea, Australia, Comoros (which currently holds the African Union presidency) and the Cook Islands (current chair of the Pacific Islands Forum) to the G7 meeting.

But the U.S. debt crisis will be looming over the trip. The United States has never defaulted on its debt. If it does so, the economic devastation could be felt around the world.

The Treasury Department reiterated Monday that they still believe the day the nation could run out of funds to pay its bills could be as soon as June 1.

Biden met with the Big Four congressional leaders - House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, House Minority Leader Harkin Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell - at the White House on Tuesday to try to move negotiations along.

Crunch time: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell met in the Oval Office with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris

In announcing the change to his travel plans, he said dealing with the debt limit was simply too important.

'There was an overwhelming consensus, I think in today's meeting with congressional leaders, that defaulting on the debt is simply not an option. Our economy would fall into recession,' Biden said.

And the White House pointed out that Russia and China would love to see the U.S. default.

'There's countries like Russia and China that would love nothing more than for us to default so they could point the finger and say, 'You see, the United States is not a stable, reliable partner,' spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday.

Republicans have said they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless Democrats agree to sharp spending cuts.

Biden will now have to spend much of his time at the G7 reassuring leaders the United States is a reliable partner.

The war in the Ukraine and supporting efforts there will also be discussed as will climate change and Biden's push for clean energy.
Independent NSW MP Alex Greenwich is taking defamation action against Mark Latham after the One Nation leader failed to apologise for a homophobic tweet.

On May 1, Mr Greenwich gave Mr Latham a deadline to withdraw his remarks and say sorry, but that deadline passed at midnight on Wednesday.

Mr Greenwich received a letter from Mr Latham's lawyers late last night saying they would not accept his offer to settle the matter outside court.

The Sydney MP said he was not taking the legal proceedings 'lightly'.

'Mr Latham's homophobic, sexualised attack has exposed me to contempt, ridicule and extreme abuse, based on my sexuality, and demands actions,' he said.

Independent NSW MP Alex Greenwich is taking legal proceedings against Mark Latham (pictured front) after the One Nation leader failed to apologise for a homophobic tweet

'It's 2023 and LGBTQIA+ Australians shouldn't have to put up with abuse that targets our sexuality, character, or ability to do our jobs.'

He has also filed complaints with the NSW Police and Anti-Discrimination NSW on the grounds of vilification.

The high stakes stoush started when Mr Greenwich called Mr Latham 'a disgusting human being' after LGBT+ protesters were assaulted outside a church where Mr Latham was addressing a forum during the NSW election campaign in March.

Mr Latham responded with an inflammatory tweet.

'Disgusting? How does that compare with sticking your d*** up a bloke's a*** and covering it with s***?' he wrote.

The One Nation MP was widely condemned for his comments, including by his own party leader, Pauline Hanson, who said they were 'disgusting'.

Though he took the tweet down shortly after, he followed up with another one.

'Never apologise, never explain,' he wrote.

Mr Latham subsequently accused Mr Greenwich of 'starting' the feud by insulting him first, but admitted his words were 'too crude to stay up there'.

'If Alex Greenwich wants to say that the NSW Police have to go police words like this (his homophobic tweet) on Twitter, the police can start with his own words,' Mr Latham told radio station 2HD on May 3.

'If you want to talk about words that are offensive, calling someone "a disgusting human being" for going to a meeting in a church hall with the parish priest sitting on the stage, you can take offence at that and the police can investigate him.'

He accused Mr Greenwich of causing the costly legal battle, saying 'Don't start things that you can't finish'.

On May 1, Mr Greenwich gave Mr Latham a deadline to withdraw his remarks and say sorry, but that deadline passed at midnight last night

'This guy who started this dispute doesn't like the way I responded. I'll tell you what, he's got a glass jaw,' he said.

'I don't regret saying that as a straight man, the thought of someone holding a gun to my head saying that I've got to have anal sex with another man, I do find that disgusting.

'That's what makes me straight.'

He said he doesn't think his comments were 'an unfair thing to say given the nature of his attack on me.

'It was crudely expressed and the words had to come down and they did,' he said.

'He provoked this, he started this. Where's the apology for describing me as "a disgusting human being"?' Mr Latham said.

He added that if Mr Greenwich 'persists' in suing him 'I'll have a counterclaim. If he wants to talk slander, (what he said it) completely slanderous.'

Mr Greenwich's problems with the One Nation MP also include their opposing views on transgender issues with Mr Latham taking a more conservative stance.

The One Nation leader said he didn't think his views were controversial.

'What have I said about transgender? I've consistently said if you're an adult over the age of 18 and you want to change your gender every other day, well, that's your business,' he said.

'It's not a concern of government or anyone else. You're an adult, you can make these decisions.

'You want to be a male one day, female the next, back to being a male. If you're an adult, you do whatever you think is in your interest, but leave the kids alone.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson (pictured) called Mark Latham's homophobic tweet 'disgusting'

'That's all I've ever said. Leave the kids alone.'

Mr Latham is vehemently opposed to primary school children being taught anything about transgender issues.

'It's not hateful to say that schools have got bigger priorities in the basics of education than running classes on gender conversion,' he said.

'You pay your taxes and you send your kids to a government school so they can learn to read, write, do numbers, get good qualifications and get a job.
An Australian woman has warned other travellers of her 'horrifying' mistake during her Bali holiday after she made an embarrassing blunder regarding her visa.

The woman was at the airport to cap off her Balinese holiday when she was told to pay $2,000 to immigration an immigration officer.

Authorities explained she had mistakingly purchased an extra visa when she should have extended her original one.

She had purchased a two 30-day visas for her 40-day stay instead of extending her first visa (stock image)

She had initially purchased a 30-day visa that she knew was going to expire over her 40-day holiday.

The woman then purchased another 30-day visa believing it would keep her out of trouble.

Upon arriving at the airport to catch her flight home, an immigration officer pulled her and a fellow traveller aside.

'He said we had disrespected their laws and that if we did not pay in cash we would be 'taken away' by immigration and not allowed to leave Bali until we paid,' she told 7News.

'And that we would continue to accrue another $100 a day each. He also said that we might be banned from going to Bali again.'

The immigration minister urged the pair to pay $1,000 each in cash

The Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights Directorate General of Immigration website provides advice for tourists wishing to overstay their visa.

'Apply for a residence permit extension at the Immigration Office,' it reads.

An Australian woman has warned other travellers of her 'horrifying' visa mistake lead to her to paying $2000 for overstaying her tourists visa

She claims the immigration officer at Bali Airport (pictured) was intimidating, and pressured her to pay in cash, telling other travellers to 'be careful'

The woman said she felt intimidated by the immigration officer as he demanded she pay upfront in cash.

She described her experience as 'upsetting' and 'frightening'.

The woman said she had been given a receipt so she did not believe it was a scam.

She said her experience had put her off from travelling to Bali again in the near future.

The Australian Government's travel website Smartraveller advises tourists on what to expect if they plan to stay longer in Indonesia.

The website explains a visa 'can be extended once (for a maximum of 30 days) by applying at an immigration office within Indonesia'.

'Ensure you extend your visa within the initial 30 days to avoid an overstay fine and deportation.'
The fatal drowning occurred during a physical education class on Tuesday

Alaina Dildine, 15, drowned while swimming in her Indiana high school's pool

A 15-year-old Indiana high schooler who was swimming in her school's pool during a physical education class drowned Tuesday afternoon.

Alaina Dildine was doing laps when she suffered a 'medical emergency' in the Whiteland Community High School pool in Whiteland, just south of Indianapolis.

Superintendent Patrick Spray said the teen went under the water near the aquatic facility's bulkhead and also confirmed that there was a lifeguard on duty at the time.

The pool was shut for the remainder of the school year as friends and family mourned the loss of the teen while the community rallied to support her loved ones.

'She was a sweet girl with a heart of gold who would help anyone and now her family needs our help,' reads the description of a GoFundMe for Alaina's family.

The exact cause of the drowning remains unknown at this time but the GoFundMe, as well as Alaina's own social media pages, confirm that she had epilepsy.

Alaina Dildine was doing laps when she suffered a 'medical emergency' in the Whiteland Community High School pool in Whiteland, Indiana

This is the pool inside Whiteland Community High School where Alaina drowned on Tuesday

Officials with the Clark-Pleasant Community School Corporation had originally stated a student had suffered a 'medical emergency' in the pool.

The Johnson County Coroner later confirmed the student drowned.

'Despite the efforts of our staff and emergency responders, the student has passed away,' the school corporation said.

FOX 59 Indiana reporters asked school representatives how long the girl had been underwater before being noticed or pulled from the pool.

The officials declined to comment and said the investigation is ongoing.

'The specific cause and circumstances surrounding this tragedy are not yet known, and a thorough investigation will take place,' they said.

While speaking Wednesday, Spray offered his condolences to Alaina's family and to the entire community now mourning her loss.

'We grieve with this family as they endure the unimaginable. Our entire school community, and especially our school staff and students are heartbroken,' he said.

'We grieve with this family as they endure the unimaginable. Our entire school community, and especially our school staff and students are heartbroken,' Superintendent Patrick Spray said

On Wednesday, students put up a makeshift memorial outside of the school's pool facility

On Wednesday, students put up a makeshift memorial outside of the school's pool facility.

Flowers, cards, chalk messages and stuffed animals were left to honor Alaina.

One message written on the sidewalk read: 'Alaina we will miss you.'

'Even though I didn't know her that well, it's very heartbreaking,' student Abbigail Watson told FOX 59.

'This death has rocked this school,' student Angela Stofer said.

Some students said they were upset the death occurred while a lifeguard and a supervisor were on the pool's deck.

'I don't know the full story, but it's like disappointing in some ways,' Watson said.

The exact cause of death will take up to three weeks to determine as the local coroner conducts a thorough autopsy.

Classes were dismissed Tuesday around 1pm and canceled Wednesday following the on-campus tragedy.

Lessons will resume Thursday, officials said.

One message written on the sidewalk read: 'Alaina we will miss you'

Flowers, cards, chalk messages, and stuffed animals were left to honor Alaina

The GoFundMe for the young girl's family has raised just over $17,000 as of Wednesday

A fundraiser was started Wednesday morning by friends of the Dildine family and hopes to help her family cover the unexpected funeral expenses.

Since being launched, the GoFundMe has brought in more than $17,000.

Donations have poured in from community members, as have messages of love and support to her family.

'My heart goes out to the entire Dildine family. Its been wonderful seeing the girls grow up over the past 5 years and Alaina will be dearly missed at our Clark Pleasant Branch,' wrote one person who donated.

'Alaina meant the world to so many people! She will be truly missed and we know her light will continue to shine. Rest in peace sweet girl,' another wrote.
A Colorado cardiologist has been accused of date rape by ten different women after he was initially accused of sexually assaulting a woman he'd met on the dating apps, including Hinge and Tinder.

Stephen Matthews, 35, was initially arrested in April after accusations that he sexually assaulted a woman.

On Monday, after attending a hearing in Denver on one complaint, he was arrested on the steps of the courthouse after nine further accusers had made similar allegations

The initial accuser said that after they matched on the popular dating app, they went out, had drinks at which point she says he drugged and raped her, according to an affidavit.

Matthews has denied the charges, saying that he and the woman had consensual sex.

After the accusation became public, another woman came forward to accuse Matthews of doing the same thing after also meeting him on Hinge. They further accuse the medic of making revenge porn to blackmail them with while unconscious.

Stephen Matthews, a 35-year-old Colorado cardiologist, has been accused of date rape by ten different women after he was initially accused of sexually assaulting a woman he'd met on the dating app Hinge

The second woman said that she met Matthews at a bar before going to back to his home where she was offered a tequila and soda before going to the bathroom.

After she drank some of it she began to feel 'off balance,' also alleging that Matthews was filming her at one point.

She said she didn't remember much after that, but got sick while taking an Uber home. The woman believes that Matthews sexually assaulted her.

When the doctor was initially accused, police asked possible further victims to come forward.

Another eight women eventually accused Matthews of sexual assault, with many of the same patterns emerging over the course of the past four years. One alleged assault occurred this past January.

Many of the women reported blacking out after drinking with Matthews and several accuse him of sexual assault.

One accuser said that Matthews 'sent her photos of her naked in the hot tub' after she refused to see him again. Another said that she awoke with bite marks on her arms.

Matthews was attending a hearing involving charges from the first accuser on Monday when he was arrested outside the courtroom on further charges.

Matthews was attending a hearing involving charges from the first accuser on Monday when he was arrested outside the courtroom on further charges

Matthews was immediately put in handcuffs and taken to a Denver jail

Police executed a search warrant of Matthews' Denver home on Monday

A police officer is seen taking evidence out of Matthews' home

The cardiologist was immediately placed in handcuffs and taken to a Denver jail.

He now faces 16 felony counts in relation to the ten accusers, including charges of sexual assault on a helpless victim, sexual assault without consent, sexual assault on an incapable victim and second-degree assault involving drugging women.

Police executed a search warrant of Matthews' Denver home on Monday, with one seen carrying evidence to his car.

Douglas Cohen, an attorney for Matthews, has said his client is innocent, according to CBS News.

'He's alleged to do things,' Cohen said Monday. 'Many people are alleged to do things - I'll leave it at that.'

In an interview, one of the initial victims said that Matthews has 'very clearly been doing this for a long time, in a similar fashion and that's terrifying.'
The wife of a California radiologist accused of trying to kill his family by driving his Tesla off a cliff told cops that he declared his intention to die moments before the crash, newly unsealed court documents reveal.

'He drove off. He's depressed,' Neha Patel told a California Highway Patrol officer as she was flown away from the crash site, according to an arrest warrant affidavit unsealed on Tuesday.

'He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposely drove off,' the wife added, saying her husband Dharmesh intentionally drove off a coastal cliff in San Mateo County on January 2 in a bid to kill her and their two children, ages four and seven.

All four people in the car survived something that one official called an 'absolute miracle.'

Dharmesh Patel, 41, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder, and remains in custody without bail.

Dr. Dharmesh A. Patel declared his intention to die moments before he drove off a cliff in a car carrying his wife and young children, wife Neha Patel told cops in the aftermath

All four people in the car survived in what one official called an 'absolute miracle.' Dharmesh Patel, 41, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 12, at which time a judge will decide if there's enough evidence to move ahead with a trial.

Patel's defense attorney Josh Bentley has previously said that his wife did not want her husband prosecuted, despite her comments at the scene saying the crash was not an accident.

A Pasadena radiologist, Patel claimed he pulled off the road to check on a possibly flat tire, according to the warrant. Witness testimony does not appear to back up his account.

Patel was driving his white 2021 Tesla Model Y along the Pacific Coast Highway south of San Francisco when the car plunged several hundred feet off the cliff at Devils Slide. Firefighters had to cut the family out of the wreckage.

The warrant affidavit includes an interview with Patel while he was recovering from major lower body injuries.

In the interview, he said his wife was irritated shortly before the plunge off the cliff because she didn't want to stop at his brother's house in San Mateo County before making their drive home to the Los Angeles area.

He said he was not really depressed but that he felt down because times were bad in the world, according to the affidavit.

'Asked if he felt suicidal, he said, `You know, not like a plan, not usually,' the affidavit said.

Patel is pictured in a mugshot after he was booked in the San Mateo County's Maguire Correctional Facility, where he remains held without bail

Dharmesh Patel, left, is accused of intentionally trying to kill his wife and two young children when he drove off Devil's Slide cliff on January 2

A judge in San Mateo Court ruled that Patel can only have limited contact with his family, especially his wife, as he remains in custody without bail.

Prosecutors are expected to use traffic camera video from Lantos Tunnel as evidence that Patel, who works as a radiologist at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Pasadena, intentionally steered his Tesla Model Y off the cliff.

'There are cameras,' San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said. 'So we have video showing the movement of the car.'

That video, he said, 'clearly shows his car coming out of the tunnel, going up the hill, making a right turn off the road into a dirt area at the top. And then a sharp right turn down and over the edge and down the cliff.'

State attorneys will also likely bring up witness statements, as two people who were allegedly driving behind Patel on January 2 'who watched what occurred and were able to provide information about lack of brake lights,' Wagstaffe told People.

Troopers were dispatched at around 10am on January 2 to reports that a vehicle had veered off the cliff on Highway 1, around 20 miles south of San Francisco. The steep, rocky, winding coastal area is known as Devil's Slide.

Fire Chief Brian Pottenger told reporters: 'We go there all the time for cars over the cliff and they never live. This was an absolute miracle.'

The car was initially said to have flipped multiple times. However, experts have since raised doubts, arguing the heavy batteries located in the floor of the Tesla would have stopped it from rolling.

There was no guardrail at the spot where the sedan went off the cliff, officials said.

Patel was seen driving at speed northbound on Highway 1 and he is speculated to have performed a sharp turn before reaching the Tom Lantos Tunnel, which is where the Tesla veered off the road, first onto a dirt area and then down the cliff.

Patel and his Defense Attorney Joshua Bentley inside the courtroom during Patel's court proceeding in Redwood City in February

The wreckage of the Tesla is pictured at the bottom of the cliff

Robin Johnson, who called 911 after seeing the crash, recalled: 'Wow, he's driving extremely fast to take that exit. You're not even supposed to be going up that way.

'And I can see in my rear-view mirror this car just go over the edge and straight down.'

About 30 to 50 rescuers arrived at the scene, where it was initially assumed that anyone in the car must have been dead.

A helicopter and specialist teams were required to rappel down the cliff to the car. It was not until hours later that rescue teams discovered the four family members conscious and alert in the car.

The children were pulled out first, through a back window, and hauled up the cliff by hand in a rescue basket using a pulley.

The doctor and his wife were more seriously injured and had to be hoisted out by helicopter and were then flown directly to the hospital.

Patel was arrested after California Highway Patrol investigators 'developed probable cause to believe this incident was an intentional act,' the agency said.

In late January, he was booked into San Mateo County's Maguire Correctional Facility, where he remains held without bail.
A plus-sized businesswoman who bought two seats for herself on a Jetstar flight has hit out at the airline, saying she felt ashamed when staff still refused to let her carry extra luggage on board.

Holly Richards, who runs body positive brand AmpleFolk, revealed she had been left 'filled with shame' by the episode involving a mix-up with her carry-on luggage while boarding a flight from Sydney to Melbourne's Avalon airport on Saturday.

In a 1,157-word post on Instagram, Ms Richards - who describes herself as an Australian size 28-30 - said she had started buying two seats to prevent 'any uncomfortable looks or comments from the person sitting next to me about encroaching on their space'.

She had also purchased an extra 7kg of carry-on luggage to avoid charges from the budget airline.

'I had my handbag, a small suitcase and also my CPAP machine for my sleep apnea which I knew from previous experience is considered a medical device and therefore is not included in carry on baggage allowance,' Ms Richards explained.

But two 'incredibly rude' members of staff weighed her bags and told her she was 3kg over and was only allowed two items.

Holly Richards (pictured), founder of body positive brand AmpleFolk, said she had been left in tears by 'incredibly rude' Jetstar staff. In a 1,157-word Instagram post she railed against the 'extreme injustice' of the experience, claiming she was 'met repeatedly with bad faith, rudeness and disdain'

Jetstar has since apologised to Ms Richards and Daily Mail Australia understands the airline has refunded her the cost of the flights (stock image of Jetstar staff)

After a tense back-and-forth, Ms Richards 'reluctantly' told the Jetstar employees she had bought an extra seat so she assumed she was entitled to double the carry-on allowance.

Ms Richards (pictured) had bought two seats to prevent 'any uncomfortable looks or comments from the person sitting next to me about encroaching on their space'

'She tells me that's not the case and that I need to check the bag,' wrote Ms Richards.

'I tell her she's being very rude and unreasonable and ask to speak to a manager.

'She tells me I'm being rude and that the manager will just tell me the same thing but eventually leaves to get the manager. I immediately burst into tears.'

Upon hearing that she had an extra seat, the manager apologised immediately.

But Ms Richards said she was left sullied and ashamed by the ordeal.

'I was forced to wait in line and take my seat while very obviously crying,' she wrote.

'It's unbelievably terrifying being a larger person in this world at the absolute best of times.

'I actively avoid being out in public in situations where my body is going to be an inconvenience or the cause for any comment at all.'

Daily Mail Australia understands Jetstar has since refunded Ms Richards' flights.

In her post, Ms Richards listed the lengths she goes to to make sure her weight is not an issue, including asking restaurants if they have larger chairs, carrying a seatbelt extender and avoiding public transport in case she encroaches on someone's space.

'This is of course ignoring the fact that the world is mostly not built for diverse bodies and is excluding many, many people with differing bodies, brains and abilities, not just me and people my size or larger,' she wrote..

She decried the 'extreme injustice' of the experience, claiming she was 'met repeatedly with bad faith, rudeness and disdain'.

In a 1,157-word post on Instagram, Ms Richards - who describes herself as an Australian size 28-30 - said she 'was not treated like a human being'

'I was forced to embarrass myself further and further again while enduring air travel which is already incredibly stressful for me at the absolute best of times.

'I am always taking extra steps to avoid being a burden to the current system. But even so, I was not treated like a human being. Yes my day is ruined but the knock this will take to my already precarious mental health and self esteem is immense.

She added: 'There will of course be many, many who will say 'just lose weight'. I don't owe anyone an explanation or apology for my body.'

Her post on Instagram was met with a chorus of support and sympathy, as well as fierce criticism for the airline.

'Jetstar you should be ashamed at your lack of humanity, not to mention inability to accept, adapt, and openly welcome people with diverse needs, abilities, and bodies,' one wrote.

'Do better. Be better.'

A spokesperson for Jetstar said they had reached out to Ms Richards to apologise.

'We're really sorry to hear about Ms Richard's recent experience and appreciate it would have been an upsetting situation,' the said.

'We pride ourselves on providing great customer service and treating everyone with respect and we're looking into what happened and how we can do better.'
A mother charged with both the suffocation murder and attempted drowning of her baby son over a two-day period will remain in jail for at least another four weeks.

The woman, 30, did not appear on audio-visual link from prison when the case was mentioned in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday.

Magistrate Michael Barko said there was some confusion because the woman had apparently been charged twice for both murder and attempted murder under two different names.

The court heard records from Royal North Shore, John Hunter and Hornsby hospitals and medical centres at Mt Kuring-gai and Pennant Hills would be examined.

A mother charged with the suffocation murder and attempted drowning of her baby son over a two-day period will remain in jail for at least another four weeks. Mother and son are pictured

The woman was charged with attempted murder after she allegedly tried to drown the 10-month-old boy in a friend's backyard swimming pool on March 19 (Stock image)

Those documents have been subpoenaed as has material from budget Swiss airline Bravofly.

The woman was charged with attempted murder after she allegedly tried to drown the 10-month-old boy in a friend's backyard swimming pool in Sydney's north on March 19.

Two days later, police allege she fatally restricted his breathing at her home in a nearby suburb.

Police attended the house about 12.30pm on March 21 and found the boy unresponsive.

The next day, detectives from the Child Abuse Squad took over the case and questioned the mother at a Sydney hospital.

She was arrested and taken to Hornsby police station, where she was charged with two counts of attempted murder.

The boy died in hospital about 2pm on March 23.

The mother had faced court earlier that day on charges of attempted murder but one of the charges was subsequently upgraded to murder and she was refused bail.

The case was adjourned until June 15.
The mother of an 11-year-old boy Tasered by police says he was throwing a tantrum about not being allowed a Burger King - and was 'armed' only with a butter knife at the time at the time of his terrifying ordeal.

The primary school pupil was taken down by officers using the 50,000-volt stun gun at a holiday park in Ayr, Scotland, during a stand-off after not responding to their requests to drop his 'weapon'.

A video of the incident appeared to show police surrounding the child who was holding a phone and saying: 'I'm live on TikTok right now.'

But in new footage obtained by MailOnline the child's immaturity and fear are plainly apparent as he sounds distressed and implores the group of uniformed officers to 'stop coming at me'.

Now, speaking exclusively to MailOnline, his mother slammed the actions of the police and said: 'He was terrified and was no danger to them at all. Why on earth did they Taser him? You can see in our video how frightened he was.'

The mother-of-one revealed that her son was vulnerable and suffers from global developmental delay, a condition which causes children to take longer to reach certain developmental milestones.

The mother and the 11-year-old boy who was Tasered by police at a holiday park in Scotland

The mother-of-one's son (above) was vulnerable and suffers from global developmental delay

She accused Police Scotland of not being fit for purpose and is demanding the legal age for a person to be Tasered to be raised.

She revealed that it was she who had called the police in the first place - not because her son was a danger to anyone but because he might become distressed if he got lost in a strange place after running off.

She said: 'He had kicked off because his cousin got a Burger King and he couldn't get one because it was closed by then. And then he ran off.

'I had to phone the police because he was somewhere he doesn't know and I couldn't find him myself and I was panicking - he wouldn't feel confident to ask someone to help him find his way back.

'When the police arrived and as they were approaching, he grabbed a butter knife and just ran with it.

'The police all came at him with their Tasers. It was like something out of a film or a video game.'

She also claimed that none of the officers, at any point, did anything to reassure the boy that everything was going to be alright.

A police officer points a Taser at the boy in footage of the incident obtained by MailOnline

The child's immaturity and fear are plainly apparent in the audio of the clip of the incident

The boy sounds distressed and implores the group of uniformed officers to 'stop coming at me'

She is now demanding an apology from police and is exploring taking legal action.

'It was all just so extreme,' she said. 'It was so scary for him. They Tasered him and he hit his head on a fence and had to be taken to hospital.

'He's been left with a scar on his leg as well and his tracksuit was all ripped and he had to be taken to hospital to be checked over. It's just pure negligence on Police Scotland's part.

'My son didn't speak for about two weeks after the incident because he was so traumatised. It's just been awful for us all.

'I've had no apology from the police following the incident, I'm raging about it. They've said nothing to me. I keep getting asked for statements from people higher up, but I've had no apology or anything.

'My son was terrified. I don't understand why there were so many of them surrounding him. If there had just been one or two and they had calmly spoken to him, none of this would have happened.

'They didn't take into consideration his age, or the fact that he has learning disabilities. It's an absolute joke.

Footage obtained by the Scottish Sun showed the same incident from another angle

The clip published by the Scottish Sun showed a number of officers standing near the boy

'I want an apology off them, and I want my son to be given an apology. I'm in contact with a lawyer because I want to take this further.

'I'm just waiting to hear back to see if there's anything I can do about this.'

Footage published this week showed several officers asking the boy to put down the weapon before one of them fires their Taser.

At least four uniformed officers are in the footage and one can be heard asking the boy to put down the knife and 'do the right thing' - but the boy keeps backing away.

One officer can be heard asking him: 'What do you want do with the knife?'

The incident at the Craig Tara caravan park, near Ayr, in March, has been referred to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner for investigation.

Police Scotland said this week that the situation 'was resolved with no serious injuries'. They have been approached for comment in light of the boy's family's claims.

The incident happened at the Craig Tara caravan park near Ayr in Scotland

Police Scotland's website describes Tasers as a useful tool to protect people from violence or threats of violence where ordinary physical restraint could result in injury to the person or officers.

But using them on children is highly controversial, and the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has called for an outright ban.

The office of the Children's and Young People's Commissioner in Scotland has expressed concern over the incident.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: 'Officers attended a disturbance involving an 11-year-old boy in possession of a knife at Craig Tara Caravan Park near Ayr around 11.15pm on Wednesday, 22 March.

'The incident was resolved with no serious injuries. It was contained and there was no risk to the wider public.

'A Taser was discharged during this incident. As part of standard procedure, the circumstances of the incident were referred to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner.'
ANZ has been called out for culling more than 50 branches in regional Australia and then celebrating the move by claiming it's saving carbon emissions.

Senator Matt Canavan seized on the financial giant's Climate Active report during Thursday's Senate inquiry hearing into banking closures, calling it's galling attempt to 'green-wash' cost-cutting measures as 'outrageous'.

The report claimed the bank had reduced its 'base building emissions' with 'property consolidation'.

'It seems pretty clear that you are touting as a benefit of closing branches in small country towns, a reduction in carbon emissions,' the outspoken National Party politician said.

'This is outrageous. That people in a country town would have to suffer because you need to signal your virtue to climate-conscious shareholders.'

ANZ has been called out for culling more than 50 branches in regional Australia and then celebrating the move by claiming it's saving carbon emissions (stock image)

Climate Active is a partnering program between the federal government and business to lower carbon emissions

ANZ NSW and ACT retail general manager Michael Wake told the Senator he could not say whether reducing carbon emissions was a factor in deciding to close branches.

'Not that I'm aware of. That's not to say that we don't, but not that I'm aware of,' he told the public hearing being held in the regional Queensland town of Ingham.

Mr Wake said he would come back to the inquiry with more details at a later date but an ANZ spokesman later clarified that carbon emission reductions are not a factor used to decide branch closures.

Climate Active is a partnership program between businesses and the federal government to encourage emissions reduction.

The ANZ has properties across Australia as well as overseas and it's report did not specify which property consolidation was reducing emissions.

ANZ has shut 56 regional branches across Australia over the past two years and on Wednesday shut down four branches in regional Victoria and rural NSW.

Mr Wake admitted local communities were not consulted about the decision to close branches.

'Community members, they're not informed until after we've informed our staff,' he said.

He added that a 24-week notice period was always given before a bank shut its doors and that older customers were contacted by bank staff and assisted with the switch to online or telephone banking.

Senator Matt Canavan (pictured right) seized on the financial giant's Climate Active report during Thursday's Senate inquiry hearing into banking closures, calling it's galling attempt to 'green-wash' cost-cutting measures as 'outrageous'

However, Mr Wake 'accepted the point' put to him that some older customers might be subject to elder abuse by not being able to do their banking in person.

He noted 81 per cent of the bank's customers had not visited a branch in the past year.

Mr Wake insisted that ANZ was a 'long-term supporter of regional communities'.

He said the 'wellbeing' of staff was also at the forefront of the bank's mind when it shut branches.

'We work to secure other roles for colleagues who would like to stay with us,' he said.
A fisherman is feared to have been eaten by a bear after a human head was discovered and boots spotted dangling from the animal's mouth in Japan.

Police made the horrifying discovery at Lake Shumarinai on the country's northern Hokkaido island.

The 54-year-old fisherman, Toshihiro Nishikawa, was dropped off at a remote fishing location by the lake in Horokanaion on Monday but did not return.

The missing person was reported to police and officials were dispatched to try and locate the man.

A boat operator who provided transport to Nishikawa at the lake reportedly witnessed a bear that had fishing boots dangling from its mouth on that same day.

Officials in the town immediately launched a bear hunt operation to locate the killer animal

Police made the horrifying discovery at Lake Shumarinai on Japan's northern Hokkaido island

Following the alarming sighting, the boat operators said he tried to contact Nishikawa by phone but was unable to reach him, Japan's Kyodo News reported.

Officials in the town immediately launched a bear hunt operation to locate the killer animal. An animal was then shot on that same evening.

The search party also discovered the remains of a human head near to where the fisherman was last seen. But authorities are yet to determine whether this was the remains of Nishikawa.

The Horokanai town office issued an emergency warning following the suspected attack.

The statement read: 'Please be careful when doing farm work, forest work, or entering the mountains near the sightings.'

Officials warned that if people come into contact with a bear, they should remain calm, still, and stand their ground. You are advised not to run or make food available to them.

It is estimated that between 6,500 to 10,000 Ussuri brown bears populate Japan's main northern island of Hokkaido.

The bears can reach a fearsome height of up to 7ft 6in (2.3 meters) and can weigh more than 550 lbs (around 250kg).

Clashes between Japan's bear population and humans are not infrequent and can often occur in areas where human settlements border on wilderness.

Hokkaido officials said at least 14 people were killed or injured in bear attacks in 2021.

The Ussuri species of brown bear is also known as the Ezo or Russian grizzly bear.

Although it stands at a smaller height than its North American grizzly bear cousin, it can be just as deadly.
Bruce Lehrmann was all smiles as he visited a trendy Italian restaurant in Sydney's east just hours after the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold temporarily stepped down.

Mr Drumgold announced he was taking leave on Thursday morning as an inquiry into the handling of the rape allegations made by Brittany Higgins against the former Liberal staffer continues.

Mr Lehrmann was spotted at Bondi Trattoria at about 1.30pm, having ditched his signature dark suit and glasses in favour of jeans and a white dress shirt, as he met mate Harry Hughes.

Bruce Lehrmann ditched his trademark dark suits and glasses for jeans and a white dress shirt as he stepped out with a mate in Bondi on Thursday (pictured)

Mr Lehrmann met mate Harry Hughes, the nephew of former PM Malcolm Turnbull (pictured)

An elderly woman trying to get up the stairs using a walker was assisted by Mr Lehrmann

Hughes, the nephew of former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, chatted on his phone as Mr Lehrmann helped an elderly woman with a walker up the stairs.

The pair then settled in at a window table and looked relaxed as they laughed and chatted over coffees.

Mr Drumgold has come under pressure following questioning at the independent inquiry into how the ACT justice system handled rape allegations made against Mr Lehrmann by another ex-Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins.

An ACT government spokeswoman confirmed Mr Drumgold had asked to take leave.

Anthony Williamson, who was the deputy DPP, has been appointed by the ACT government executive to act in the role of the territory's top prosecutor until June 13.

ACT Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury told ABC Radio Mr Drumgold would be on leave for four weeks and expected him to return in mid-June.

'In terms of the overall office of the director of public prosecutions, it's business as usual,' he said.

Hours earlier the ACT's top prosecutor Shane Drumgold stepped down from his role

Mr Drumgold has been under pressure following questioning by an inquiry into the handling of rape allegations against Mr Lehrmann

The pair settled into a window table and looked relaxed as they joked and chatted

The case against Mr Lehrmann, who has denied the allegations, was dropped last year

Mr Drumgold last week told the Sofronoff inquiry his team had 'closed ranks' against police because they believed officers had lost objectivity in the matter.

He has served as DPP since January 2019 and worked in the DPP office since 2002.

The sexual assault charge against Mr Lehrmann, who had denied the allegations, was dropped last year.

The inquiry continues next week, when police are expected to give evidence.

Mr Drumgold was questioned intensely at the inquiry last week, and eventually conceded he no longer thought there was political interference in the case.

Mr Drumgold said the issues he had were with the police's ineptitude in handling the investigation, the inquiry heard.

On December 2, when the case was dropped, Mr Drumgold told reporters: 'During the investigation and trial, as a sexual assault complainant, Ms Higgins has faced a level of personal attacks that I have not seen in over 20 years of doing this work.'

'She has done so with bravery, grace and dignity, and it is my hope that this will now stop, and Ms Higgins will now be able to heal.'

Mr Drumgold (pictured) is expected to return to the role on June 13
Formula One Grand Prix was called off but Springsteen is pressing on with gig

At least 11 people have been killed in Emilia-Romagna and dozens are missing

The 'apocalyptic' floods have destroyed homes and turned streets into rivers

Rescue crews desperately tried to reach towns and villages in northern Italy still isolated by heavy rains and flooding overnight, as the death toll rose to 13 and authorities began mapping out clean-up and reconstruction plans.

The extreme weather behind this week's disaster - a prolonged drought punctuated by 36 hours of intense rainfall, two weeks after another downpour - led to two dozen rivers and tributaries bursting their banks.

The force of water sent torrents of mud tearing through entire towns in Emilia-Romagna, flooding storefronts and basements.

Local mayors warned that some remote villages were still completely cut off because landslides had made roads impassable and phone service remained severed.

It came after Bruce Springsteen courted staunch criticism on Thursday for pressing on with his concert in the disaster-hit Italian region of Emilia-Romagna.

An aerial view shows partially submerged cars at a flooded area following the overflowing of a river, in the center of Lugo, near Ravenna, Italy on Thursday

Bruce Springsteen performs a second concert at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on April 30, 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, late last month

The landslides have prevented rescue teams from reaching residents and authorities from understanding the full scope of their needs, said Mercato Seraceno mayor Monica Rossi.

'If it rains any more, the situation will be tragic,' Ms Rossi warned on Sky TG24, standing on a road with a chunk missing from a landslide.

The death toll rose to 13 after more bodies were discovered on Thursday in the hard-hit province of Ravenna, state-run RAI television reported, citing the Ravenna prefecture.

Among them were a couple in their 70s found dead in their flooded apartment in Russi after their son sounded the alarm that he had lost contact with them.

By Thursday morning, some parts of the city of Faenza were still underwater, with cars submerged and basements swamped by thick, gooey mud.

One family standing on their balcony said they did not have electricity, gas or food. Other residents took shelter at a local gymnasium, where soldiers set up cots on the basketball court for new arrivals.

'At some point they told us all to leave the area, and about one hour later we heard a loud boom,' 29-year-old Faenza resident Claudia said on Thursday, recalling the moment early Wednesday that the nearby Lamone river burst its banks. 'The water just flooded all over.'

More than 10,000 people fled their homes, some plucked from rooftops or balconies by rescue helicopters and others ferried out on dinghies. One family with a 20-day-old baby was rescued on Thursday morning, said Cesena mayor Enzo Lattuca.

An aerial view shows partially submerged cars at a flooded area following the overflowing of a river, in the center of Lugo, near Ravenna, Italy on Thursday

Volunteers at work on Thursday to free the houses and streets affected by the flooding of the Savio river from the mud

The landslides have prevented rescue teams from reaching residents and authorities from understanding the full scope of their needs, said Mercato Seraceno mayor Monica Rossim (Pictured: Volunteers at work on Thursday)

Another packed their belongings into an inflatable pool which they floated down the thigh-high river of mud that was previously a street.

But residents in other towns, such as Castel Bolognese, started cleaning up as the waters receded, with residents shovelling out mud-filled basements and storefronts.

The drought-parched region had already estimated some 1.0 billion euros (870 million) in losses from heavy rains earlier this month, but the regional president, Stefano Bonaccini, said the losses now reached multiple billions given the widespread damage to farmland, storefronts and infrastructure.

Italian farm lobby Coldiretti said more than 5,000 farms with greenhouses, nurseries and stables had been flooded, covering thousands of acres of vineyards, fruit groves, vegetables farms and grain fields.

It said the damage was 'incalculable', because not only current harvests but future ones could be affected, given the permanent damage to roots from the 'suffocating' mud of the run-off.

Mr Bonaccini has called for the national government to declare a state of emergency, something that is likely when the Cabinet meets next week following Premier Giorgia Meloni's return from the Group of Seven summit in Japan. Already, the region has said it is looking to reconstruction efforts and restoration of vital infrastructure.

'It will take gigantic work' to recover, Mr Bonaccini told a daily briefing.

The Superior Institute for Environmental Protection and Research has identified Emilia-Romagna as one of the most at-risk Italian regions for flooding, where both territory and populations face a greater danger of 'hazard scenarios' than the rest of the country.

The hardest-hit eastern part of the region, sandwiched between the Apennine mountain chain and the Adriatic Sea, was first hit by intense rain earlier in May.

The second downpour tested the ability of drought-parched soil to absorb water, the institute said, adding that high sea elevations and bora winds against the coast may have contributed to the flooding of rivers and tributaries.

Pope Francis sent a telegram of condolences to the people of Emilia-Romagna, assuring them of his prayers, the Vatican said on Thursday.

Italy was not alone in coping with heavy rainfall, as parts of Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia also reported flooding and landslides that required evacuations.

Unsettling footage shows the extent of the devastation in the popular holiday region, with streets turned into fast-moving rivers.

Houses and cars have been ruined or entirely submerged in dozens of historic towns including Luga, Ravenna, and Cesara, as rescuers desperately try and reach families trapped within their homes.

The horrendous flooding saw Sunday's Formula One Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix called off on Wednesday, with officials, drivers and teams united in recognition that all available services should be committed to rescue efforts.

But 'The Boss' Bruce Springsteen has so far refused to cancel his gig, which is set to take place tonight in the town of Ferrara roughly 30 miles from the epicentre of the catastrophe.

Up to 50,000 fans were slated to attend the concert but the widespread flooding means many are unlikely to make it.

A local councillor described Springsteen's decision to continue with the gig as an insult to the 'pain, desperation and difficulty' of those affected, while Italian TV presenter Tiziana Ferrario tweeted: 'I love Bruce Springsteen but given the victims and the towns submerged by mud, the Ferrara concert seems out of tune.

'Once [upon a time] you would go and shovel and help who was buried in mud rather than singing and dancing thoughtlessly in the same area.'

At least 11 people have been killed in the region - including a 60-year-old woman whose body was dragged 12 miles down a river - and there are fears the death toll will rise further as several people are missing amid the carnage.

A general view shows displaced people at the Palacattani sports centre after heavy rains caused flooding across Italy's northern Emilia Romagna region, on May 18, 2023

Military officers assist a person on a dinghy after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in Faenza, Italy, May 18, 2023

People are rescued in Faenza, Italy, Thursday, May 18, 2023. Exceptional rains Wednesday in a drought-struck region of northern Italy swelled rivers over their banks, killing at least 11 people

A woman holds a pet carrier as she walks in a flooded street in the town of Lugo on May 18, 2023

Rescuers evacuate residents in a dinghy across a flooded street in the town of Lugo on May 18, 2023

Houses flooded during flood in Italy

The 'apocalyptic' floods wreaking havoc across northern Italy have left entire towns submerged under water and seen roads swept away in dramatic landslides (pictured) as locals struggle to come to terms with the devastation

Pictured: Houses in the town of Cesara are submerged under water on Wednesday

Today, officials from the province of Ravenna said two people had been found dead, with media reports suggesting the pair were to farmers in their 70s in the small town of Russi.

The body of a 60-year-old woman, whose husband also died in the extreme weather, was found on the beach near Cesenatico yesterday after her body had been dragged 12 miles down a river.

Two bodies were also recovered by divers yesterday in Forli after the Montone river burst its banks. The town's mayor said the floods are the 'worst situation' the town has ever experienced.

The floods have seen thousands of Italians evacuated from their now destroyed homes, and show no signs of abating.

Authorities in the city of Ravenna issued an immediate evacuation order today for three villages threatened by floods.

Buses were being sent to help residents leave Villanova di Ravenna, Filetto and Roncalceci after the river Lamone burst its banks.

Nearly two dozen rivers and streams have flooded across the southeast of the Emilia Romagna region following downpours earlier this week, submerging entire neighbourhoods and farmland.

More than 10,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and hundreds of landslides were reported, regional officials said.

A video shows one desperate pregnant woman being rescued from her home by firefighters in a helicopter as the water rises around the building. The rescuers carefully lowered a basket down to the woman's home where she was helped by a firefighter before being lifted into the helicopter

People are rescued in Faenza, Italy, on Thursday after devastating floods turned streets into rivers

Residents remove mud and debris after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in Faenza, Italy, on Thursday

People are rescued in Faenza, Italy, on Thursday after deadly floods tore through the town

Damaged cars that were swept away in the floods are seen stranded in the San Rocco district

An aerial view taken on May 18 shows a supermarket's flooded parking lot in the town of Cesena, after heavy rains caused flooding across Italy's northern Emilia Romagna region

An aerial view taken on May 18 shows a flooded street in the town of Cesena, after heavy rains caused flooding across Italy's northern Emilia Romagna region

The streets of Cesena have been turned into mud after the nearby river burst its banks on Thursday

Residents remove debris after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in Cesena, Italy, on Thursday

An aerial view taken on Thursday shows residents clearing mud in a street of Cesena

A supermarket's flooded parking lot - where cars have been swept away by the water - is seen in Cesena on Thursday

A church is flooded with water after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in Castel Bolognese, Italy, on Thursday

A panoramic view shows the Imola racetrack on Thursday after heavy rains caused flooding across Italy's northern Emilia Romagna region. The F1 race this weekend has now been cancelled

The rain stopped mid-afternoon on Wednesday and meteorologists said they expected no significant rainfall on Thursday.

'But when we have six months of rain in 36 hours, falling where there had already been record rain two weeks ago, there is no territory that can hold out,' Stefano Bonaccini, president of the Emilia Romagna region, told La7 television channel late Wednesday.

'We had an estimated two billion (euros) of damages two weeks ago... the ground no longer absorbs anything,' Bonaccini said.

Two people died in the same region earlier this month after 48 hours of almost continuous rain.

Italy's armed forces and the coastguard have joined the emergency effort, deploying helicopters to lift desperate residents from their homes and inflatable boats to reach houses surrounded on all sides by water.

As the floods receded in some areas, residents were left cleaning homes and streets thick with mud and filled with debris.

'I've lived here since 1979, I've seen floods go by, but I've never seen anything like that,' Edoardo Amadori, a resident of the city of Cesena, said on Wednesday.

Thousands of farms in the fertile agricultural area were affected, but Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida said the water would have to subside before the government could quantify the damage.

The flooding caused the cancellation of Sunday's Formula One Emilia Romagna Grand Prix scheduled in Imola, with organisers saying they could not guarantee the safety of fans, teams and staff.

A flooded house is submerged in the water in the town of Cesena, Italy, on Thursday

Flooded buildings are submerged in the water in the town of Cesena on Thursday

A view of a waterlogged building with debris around after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in Castel Bolognese, Italy, on Thursday

Flooded bungalows in Cesena after heavy rains caused major flooding

Firefighters rescue inhabitants of the Romiti district after the flooding of the Montone river on Wednesday night

This weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix has been called off due to extreme rain in Imola

A shopping centre in Cesana is flooded after the Savio river burst its banks

Cars are partially submerged along a flooded street in the village of Castel Bolognese, Italy, Wednesday, May 17, 2023
A woman found out her supposedly male lover of two years was actually female confronted her wife about it, a court was told yesterday.

Blade Silvano, 40, from Lydham in Shropshire, denied two counts of assault by penetration after she was accused of duping the woman and using an implement to have 'intercourse' with her, Cambridge Crown Court heard.

The alleged victim said she discovered the truth when she synced her contacts for a new Facebook account and the defendant appeared with a different surname to the one she recognised.

She contacted the defendant's wife, Jan Silvano, saying she was on a 'quest to find the truth' and was told that Blade had 'always been a woman', the court heard.

The court was told the alleged victim said: 'The last two years of my life - by the looks of it most of what I know to be - is a lie. Do you know this guy?'

Silvano (pictured outside Cambridge Crown Court) has denied using the surname Mendez or discussing gender identity at any point with the woman

She described meeting Silvano on three occasions, missing Christmas together because of his work injury and 'putting my life on hold for him'.

Ms Silvano replied: 'I think you must have been catfished love. We've been married for ten years and she has been by my side since we got back from Greece.'

She added: 'You do realise Blade is female? I don't know what you want me to say.'

The complainant asked if Silvano had 'had the op' and was told: 'She is still and had always been a woman.'

The alleged victim told police: 'She denied me the right to consent. Everyone has the right to know who they are having sex with and what they are having sex with.'

In a message sent to another family member of the defendant, the alleged victim wrote: 'I have been in a relationship for nearly two years. Over this time, I have fallen in love with him.

'I have just found out it looks like his name is not Mendez and he is married or in a long-term relationship.'

Blade Silvano, pictured in a Market Times article from 2016, denies two counts of assault by penetration

The family member replied: 'Have you met this person? So, you know, it isn't a man You clearly haven't had sex  as she has a f****.'

Silvano, who was running a cafe in Powys, Wales, was allegedly first contacted by his victim after she spotted a profile on the online dating app Plenty of Fish in which the defendant stated she was a 'man looking for a woman'.

They first met in December 2016 and soon began a sexual relationship, the court heard.

Prosecutor Michael Hillman told the jury at the start of the week-long trial that the victim had fallen for a 'sophisticated deception' in which Silvano took steps to not be seen naked and even sent photos 'shaving'.

The defence have suggested the pair never met and the victim was a willing participant in 'fantasies' they concocted together.

During a police interview following her arrest, Silvano said: 'I am female. I do not have a penis.'

She said she changed her name from Lyndsay Moore to Blade Silvano in 2012 but denied ever using the surname Mendez.

Blade Silvano (pictured) from Lydham in Shropshire, denied two counts of assault by penetration after she was accused of duping the woman and using an implement to have 'intercourse' with her, Cambridge Crown Court heard

Jurors yesterday also heard some of the 5,000 messages Silvano and his alleged victim swapped during their relationship, including references to them spending time together.

In one, the complainant, who claimed her lover had left one of 'his' T-shirts at her house, said: 'I love wearing your top  the fact you never take it off makes me smile.'

Silvano replied: 'Lol I don't do naked.'

The alleged victim also wrote: 'It's been nearly a year since I've been able to touch you and kiss you.'

She also spoke of mundane activities, including putting up with each other's 'snoring' and going 'on a shopping trip to Pets At Home'.

A friend said the victim confided in her after learning her lover was actually a woman.

'She said he never took his top off when they were together. She had not seen Blade's penis as he would never have the light on when they had sex. That is what she told me,' she said.

'She said Blade was very insecure and the light must always stay off, the T-shirt must stay on and Blade must initiate it.

'She said he wanted control and she was not allowed to touch him. He dictated it, from what she described to me.'

The trial continues.
A four-year-old boy and a man whose bodies were discovered in a flat were identified today as police confirmed they were treating the child's death as murder.

Kayden Frank was found dead in the top-floor apartment in Paisley, near Glasgow, three days ago - as well as a relative named today as 38-year-old Steven Frank.

Detectives said they were investigating Kayden's death as a murder following a post-mortem examination. Mr Frank's death is being treated as non-suspicious.

Neighbours told of screams coming from the property before the discovery on Monday evening at about 8pm after Police Scotland received a report of concern.

Police have not revealed causes of death, but it is suspected to have been a murder suicide. One witness said she had heard cries of 'Help me' before officers arrived.

Kayden Frank was found dead in the property in the top-floor apartment in Paisley, Scotland

Relatives named the man found dead alongside the boy in Paisley as Steven Frank (above)

Kayden's relationship to Mr Frank has not been confirmed, and police said they have no information to suggest anyone else was involved but enquiries were still ongoing.

Forensic teams dressed in hazmat suits and police officers were in the area of the town on Tuesday, with tents also erected and the top floor of the flat cordoned off.

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, told the Daily Record: 'We heard shouting and screaming, like a domestic. We never thought anything of it.

'But then it went quiet for a bit, about half an hour. Then suddenly there were police and ambulances and a forensic tent.

'There was a private ambulance and we saw the bodies being taken out to it.'

Police are pictured outside the flat in Paisley yesterday following the discovery on Monday

Police said the deaths in Paisley on Monday are currently being treated as unexplained

A woman identifying herself as Mr Frank's daughter, Nicole Frank, wrote on Facebook last night: 'My heart aches. It feels like it's in pieces.'

Ms Frank added that 'nobody knows anything' and condemned people for posting 'made up and untrue' allegations on social media since the deaths.

Locals also expressed their shock on social media, with one writing: 'This is so sad to hear. Heartbreaking. Poor souls.'

Emergency services cordoned off the property as forensic officers spent more than 24 hours searching for clues.

Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Thomson, of the Major Investigation Team, said: 'Our thoughts are with Kayden's family and friends, along with everyone affected by this tragedy.

Police said no one else is believed to have been involved in the incident in Paisley on Monday

'We are providing his family with specialist support at this incredibly difficult time and officers are continuing enquiries to try and get some answers for them.

'Kayden's family have requested that their privacy is respected at this time.'

Police added that a report had been sent to the Procurator Fiscal.

An earlier statement by Police Scotland had said: 'We received a report of concern for a man and a child at a property in Argyle Street, Paisley, around 8pm on Monday, May 15, 2023.

'Officers attended and a man and a boy were found dead within the property.'
A British woman was reportedly raped by a hotel bartender while she was staying with friends on the Greek island of Corfu.

The woman, 21, told police that a member of hotel staff raped her last Sunday after luring her back to his apartment in the coastal town of Agios Georgios.

The suspect - identified as a 23-year-old Albanian - was reportedly speaking to the woman by the pool when he suggested that they meet up later outside the hotel, Greece's ERT news agency said.

The two met up later in the day and the bartender reportedly convinced her to follow him back to his home so he could get ready.

It was at this point that the man allegedly raped her.

The young woman, 21, told police that a member of hotel staff raped her last Sunday after luring her back to his apartment in the coastal town of Agios Georgios (file image of Corfu)

The man allegedly told her he would first take a bath before they went out for a drink together.

The British woman says she tried to defend herself and push him away as the man raped her.

The woman told police that she then left the man's apartment and returned to her hotel.

She then met up with the friends that she was staying with and told them of the attack.

It was at this point that she called the European emergency number on 112 and reported the alleged assault.

It was reported the woman was able to show officials the bartender's Instagram to help identify the alleged assailant.

The island's police are continuing to search for the man. Officials have attended his home and the hotel where he worked but are yet to track the man down.

Police have confirmed that the investigation into the alleged rape is ongoing.
Montana has become the first US state to completely ban TikTok, with a law that prohibits the popular Chinese-owned video sharing app from operating in the state.

The ban is set to come into effect from Monday 1 January 2024, but is likely to face a number of legal challenges.

Apple and Google have not said if they will be able to ban users in one state from downloading TikTok, and people will still be able to access the site on internet browsers.

But why has the state of Montana chosen to ban TikTok? Will other US states ban TikTok? Which countries have already banned the social media app?

Read on below for all you need to know about the decision by Governor Greg Gianforte to ban TikTok in Montana.

TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, has faced growing scrutiny over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform

Governor Greg Gianforte, a Republican, said the law will 'protect Montanans' private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party'

TikTok issued a statement saying the law 'infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana' but the company has not yet said whether it plans to sue

Why has Montana banned TikTok?

TikTok has over 150 million users in the United States, but has faced growing scrutiny from US lawmakers and state officials, who want to ban the app over concerns about potential Chinese government influence over the platform.

'To protect Montanans' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, I have banned TikTok in Montana,' Governor Greg Gianforte said in a statement on Wednesday, soon after signing the measure into law.

Gianforte, a Republican, called the new law 'the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans' private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.'

TikTok has come under increasing scrutiny due to its links with China, with many US government officials concerned that such links could pose a national security threat.

Owned by China-based Byte-Dance, TikTok has repeatedly denied that it has ever shared data with the Chinese government and has said the company would not do so if asked.

The app is extremely popular among adolescents. According to the Pew Research Center, 67 per cent of US teens ages 13 to 17 use TikTok, and 16 per cent of all teens say they use the app almost constantly.

Apple and Google could also face fines of $10,000 per violation, per day, should they violate the ban by offering TikTok in their app stores in Montana.

The two tech giants have not said if they will be able to ban users in one state from downloading TikTok, and people will still be able to access the site on internet browsers.

TikTok has said that the 'vast majority' of its users are over the age of 18.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signs a law banning TikTok in the state on Wednesday 17 May 2023. That law made Montana became the first state in the US to completely ban TikTok

Will TikTok be banned in the US?

Whilst Montana has become the first US state to ban TikTok for citizens, no federal employees of the US government are allowed to use the app, which has already been banned for use by state employees in 34 out of 50 states.

A number of public universities have also chosen to restrict access to TikTok on their on-campus WiFi networks.

The UK government has also expressed a desire to ban TikTok for government employees, after experts at GCHQs National Cyber Security Centre identified risks around the safety of sensitive information.

It is not yet clear if other states will follow the precedent set by Montana in banning TikTok.

Montana, which has a population of just over 1 million people, said TikTok could face fines for each violation and additional fines of $10,000 per day if it violates the ban.

Which countries have banned TikTok?

Elsewhere in the world, the European Union has banned the app for officials working in its parliament, commission, and council. It also strongly urged staff and MEPs to remove the app from their personal devices.

France has banned TikTok - as well as all recreational apps like Netflix on government devices - for its civil servants.

The Netherlands is undertaking a similar plan with the intention of only allowing pre-approved apps on official devices.

Taiwan, Demark, Canada, Belgium, and New Zealand have all undertaken similar moves for government-issued devices.

China has also placed heavy restrictions on the short-form video app. As it has previously done for the likes of YouTube, Facebook, and WhatsApp, China has created a separate version of the app named Douyin

In India, the app is blocked nationwide. Apps like WeChat have also been banned due to concerns over China.

Pakistan has placed a temporary ban on the app on four separate occasions over a belief that the app promotes immoral content. The Taliban in Afghanistan also banned the app last year due to a similar belief.

China has also placed heavy restrictions on the short-form video app. As it has previously done for the likes of YouTube, Facebook, and WhatsApp, China has created a separate version of the app named Douyin.

For users under the age of 14, the app is restricted to just 40 minutes per day between 6am and 10pm.
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Perhaps they were worn by a wealthy first-class passenger who was looking forward to enjoying yet another glass of high-class bubbly  before disaster struck.

Haunting images show a pair of shoes and unopened bottles of champagne that lie at the bottom of the North Atlantic on the wreck of the Titanic, which sank on its maiden voyage in April 1912 .

Another photograph shows the barely recognisable remains of the luxury liner's grand staircase, where fictional soulmates Jack and Rose met in James Cameron's 1997 epic about the disaster.

The pictures, released yesterday after scientists created a 3D 'digital twin' of the ill-fated ship, add a tragically human element to the disaster which has captivated experts and amateurs since the wreck was found in 1985.

Other items on board the iconic vessel included 2,500 champagne glasses, 45,000 napkins and 50,000 towels.

Haunting images show a pair of shoes that lie at the bottom of the North Atlantic on the wreck of the Titanic, which sank on its maiden voyage in April 1912

Another image captured from the wreck shows unopened bottles of champagne that would have been poured into many of the 2,500 champagne glasses on board the vessel

The pictures, released yesterday after scientists created a 3D 'digital twin' of the ill-fated luxury liner, add a tragically human element to the disaster that has captivated experts and amateurs ever since the wreck was found in 1985

When it departed from Southampton, the Titanic's stock also included 18,000 sheets, 7,500 blankets and 5,000 table cloths.

There were also 800 elderdown quilts, 12,000 knives and 12,000 forks, 19,000 spoons, 400 sugar basins, 500 cream jugs, 1,000 finger bowls, 12,000 cups and saucers and 1,200 teapots.

As well as the champagne, the drinks on board included 1,000 bottles of wine, 850 bottles of spirits and 150,000 bottles of beer.

Food included 75,000lbs of red meat, 25,000lbs of poultry, 11,000lbs of fresh fish, 40,000 eggs, 250 barrels of flour, 40 tons of potatoes, 800 bundles of asparagus and 36,000 apples.

Until now, pictures of the wreck could capture only very small areas at a time due to the darkness and harsh conditions almost 2.5 miles beneath the ocean surface.

But using deep-sea mapping, images now show the ship as if the water around it had been removed  and offer extraordinarily detailed views of its final resting place.

Experts hope the unique, full-sized digital scan will help to shed more light on some precise aspects of what happened on the night it sank in 1912, when 1,500 passengers and crew lost their lives.

There is still debate over exactly where the iceberg struck, with some historians suggesting it could have scraped along the bottom of the Titanic rather than the starboard side  as is commonly accepted.

Among the sites recreated in the scan is a hole in the boat deck where the grand staircase once stood as well as views of the captain's bridge and the wheelhouse.

In director James Cameron's film, poor artist Jack Dawson, a third-class passenger played by Leonardo DiCaprio, is seen kissing the hand of Kate Winslet's Rose DeWitt Bukater after she walks down the staircase.

Jack, wearing a dinner jacket and bow tie, initially catches the gaze of Rose's villainous fiance Caledon Hockley before the young woman, wearing a glittering jewel-lined dress, treads elegantly down the stairs.

He then kisses her hand and tells her: 'I saw that in a Nickelodeon once and always wanted to do it.'

The radio room can also be seen as well as thousands of scattered artefacts across the debris field between the two halves of the ship such as champagne bottles and items of clothing.

The White Star Line ship was the largest and most luxurious in the world when it set sail on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York on April 10, 1912.

It measured 883ft long and had 2,220 people on board. It hit the iceberg just before midnight on April 14 and sank in about two hours and 40 minutes, breaking into two parts just before its final descent. The bow and the stern now lie 2,600ft apart on the seabed.

The wreck was discovered around 370 miles south of Newfoundland, Canada, with numerous expeditions diving down to investigate the wreck since then.

Another photograph shows the barely recognisable remains of the luxury liner's grand staircase, where fictional soulmates Jack and Rose met in James Cameron's 1997 epic about the disaster

Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio as Rose and Jack in the 1997 film Titanic

In the film, Jack kisses her hand at the bottom of the staircase and tells her: 'I saw that in a Nickelodeon once and always wanted to do it'

The first class staircase leading to the a la carte restaurant on board the Titanic, which sank after striking an iceberg

But, until now, explorers have only been able to take snapshots of the decaying ship.

Specialist investigators from Magellan Ltd, a deep-sea mapping company based in Guernsey, carried out the scan last summer, along with Atlantic Productions, based in Hammersmith, west London, which is making a documentary about the project.

Remote-controlled submersibles  controlled by a team on board a ship  spent more than 200 hours surveying the wreck and took more than 700,000 images of it from every angle to create the exact 3D reconstruction.

Atlantic Productions chief executive Anthony Geffen told the BBC: 'Great explorers have been down to the Titanic... but actually they went with really low-resolution cameras and they could only speculate on what happened.

'We now have every rivet of the Titanic, every detail, we can put it back together, so for the first time we can actually see what happened and use real science to find out what happened.

'It will take a long time to go through all those details but literally week by week there are new findings.'

Parks Stephenson, a Titanic historian, said there are still 'basic questions' that need to be answered about the ship and he hoped the 3D scan might help to answer them.

'We really don't understand the character of the collision with the iceberg. We don't even know if she hit it along the starboard side, as is shown in all the movies  she might have grounded on the iceberg,' he said.

He added that the Titanic wreck site has previously been 'subject to human bias as we try to look at the scale of it', saying: 'This model is the first one based on a pure data cloud, that stitches all that imagery together with data points created by a digital scan, and with the help from a little artificial intelligence, we are seeing the first unbiased view of the wreck.'

Images show stalactites of rust on the ship's bow, the serial number on a propeller, and a hole over where the grand staircase once stood

Remote-controlled submersibles  controlled by a team on board a ship  spent more than 200 hours surveying the wreck and took more than 700,000 images of it from every angle to create the exact 3D reconstruction. Above: The Titanic's boiler

Specialist investigators from Magellan Ltd, a deep-sea mapping company based in Guernsey, carried out the scan last summer, along with Atlantic Productions, based in Hammersmith, west London, which is making a documentary about the project. Above: The mangled remains of part of the wreck

A 3D-scanned image shows the ship's wheelhouse, where the captain would have spent much of his time

The Titanic boasted a huge luxury dining hall that catered to the vessel's first class passengers, of whom there were around 325

The first class lounge on board RMS Titanic, which was built by the White Star Line. It had been headed for New York when it sank

Magellan's Gerhard Seiffert, who led the planning for the expedition, said the depth of the wreck was a 'challenge', as were the currents at the site and the fact they were not allowed to touch anything in case they damaged the wreck.

He said: 'The other challenge is that you have to map every square centimetre  even uninteresting parts, such as on the debris field you have to map mud, but you need this to fill in between all these interesting objects.'

The digital scan was shown for the first time yesterday on BBC Breakfast.

Other researchers have previously warned that salt corrosion and metal-eating bacteria have worn away parts of the Titanic's structure, resulting in a partial collapse, including an area of the hull near the officers' quarters on the starboard side.
Spain has announced plans for an app that will tell wives if their men are doing enough housework.

The new app intends to address the gender imbalance of housework and will log the hours a family member spends doing chores.

Angela Rodriguez, Spain's minister for gender equality and domestic violence, said her department was in the process of developing the free app.

The minister said it would enable men and women to log the number of hours they spend doing chores around the house.

The government hopes the app will be released in the summer and will be unveiled as part of its 'co-responsibility plan'.

Angela Rodriguez (pictured), Spain's minister for gender equality and domestic violence, said her department was in the process of developing the free app

'We women spend more time on domestic tasks than men,' Rodriguez said, as reported by The Times.

The minister was speaking at a conference in Geneva discussing discrimination against women. The minister presented a report at the convention on Spain's women's rights.

Rodriguez said nearly half of the women who took part in a survey by Spain's National Statistics Institute said they did the majority of the housework in their home.

Comparatively, less than 15 per cent of men said they did the majority of the house chores.

This disparity has even caused legal rows in Spain. In April 2017, a court in Cantabria ordered a man to pay his ex-wife over 23,000 (almost 20,000) for the housework she undertook over their six years together.

Earlier this year, a court in Velez-Malaga ordered a businessman to pay his ex-wife 204,624.86 (around 180,000) for 25 years of unpaid domestic labour, based on the minimum wage throughout their marriage.

Companies are now bidding to head up the new project in the hope it will be developed for release in the coming months.

The government has set aside a budget of 211,750 (almost 185,000) for its development, Spain's ABC newspaper reported.

Rodriguez said nearly half of the women who took part in a survey by Spain's National Statistics Institute said they did the majority of the housework in their home (file image)

It is hoped that the app with bring to light the 'invisible tasks' that are undertaken by women around the home as well as the 'mental load' - a term used to describe all the labor and thought required to run a home.

The gender equality minster used the example of cleaning a kitchen. She said women often have to undertake this task, but must also think about purchasing extra washing-up liquid or making sure there is food in the house.

It is hoped that by using the app, people will see how long each family member spends on completing tasks around the house. This will include other family members like sons and daughters, or flatmates, as well as those in relationships.
A supermarket boss has won a two-year restraining order against an infatuated colleague who hired a private detective to spy on him.

Marc Klaver, who is in his 30s, was placed under surveillance and had a tracker placed on his car after he rebuffed the advances of besotted Co-op store supervisor Laura Dolman, 33.

The father of three initially asked for a transfer to get away from his unwanted admirer and even left his job to take up a new post with rival supermarket Morrisons.

But he was bombarded with pornographic messages by Dolman and he would see her Skoda car parked up in his neighbourhood in Weston, near Crewe, Cheshire.

He subsequently learnt she had been tracking him after she accosted him in the street and admitted hiring a private eye to place the tracker device on his vehicle. Police who investigated Dolman discovered she had also been sending love letters to Mr Klaver and had messaging his ex-wife.

Laura Dolman (pictured outside Chester Magistrates' Court), 33, hired a private detective to spy on her boss at a Co-op store in Haslington, Cheshire after she became infatuated with him

Marc Klaver (pictured), who is in his 30s, was placed under surveillance and had a tracker placed on his car after he rebuffed the advances of besotted Dolman

The Co-Op supermarket in Haslington where Mr Klaver and Dolman pair both worked

At Chester Magistrates' Court Dolman, from Crewe pleaded guilty to stalking involving serious alarm or distress and was banned from contacting Mr Klaver for two years. She has since lost her job.

The court heard Dolman and Mr Klaver worked together at the Co-op in Haslington, Cheshire where he was the manager and Dolman was a team leader.

Yvonne Dobson, prosecuting, said: 'The parties had a working relationship - however, in April 2022 the victim was made aware that the defendant had feelings for him. The victim made it clear that he did not feel the same way and had no intention to start a relationship and advised the defendant that he was going to contact the area manager to facilitate a store move.

'In September 2021, the victim left the position with the Co-op and became employed elsewhere but he began to receive 100s of messages from multiple numbers. The messages were grossly offensive.'

Miss Dobson said the messages were sent as if from a third party and included suggestions Dolman had been involved in a fatal accident or that she was about to take her own life.

'Some of the messages were graphic pornographic images and images of the defendant's flat,' Miss Dobson said, 'The victim did not engage with the messages but began to believe that they were from the defendant.

'In April 2022, the victim started to notice that the defendant's vehicle, a Skoda, was in the same area that he was. The victim had moved to a new address in March 2022 and started to take a new route to work. 'He initially found it strange that he was bumping into the defendant but did not think much of it at first.

'At the new address he parks up a road and up a side street about 60 yards away from his address. On April 9, the victim was walking his dog with his son. The defendant appeared in her vehicle which he immediately recognised as the defendant's.

'The defendant stopped and confronted the victim requesting that they talk.. He asked her to go away. She advised that she had put a tracker on his vehicle. The victim believed this was to try and get him to engage with her and he walked past the defendant and went to his home address.

'Later, he received a number of voice messages from the defendant. He captured her on his mobile phone as she was crouching behind his vehicle. She appeared to be putting on or removing something from his vehicle.'

The court heard that in the messages, Dolman said that she had hired a private investigator to place the tracker on his vehicle. The following day, April 10, Mr Klaver received a handwritten letter from Dolman delivered to his home.

'The victim assumed that the defendant had watched him enter his address the day before and therefore knew where he resided,' the prosecutor said, 'There were a number of letters at his home address, between 10 April and 13 April There were also letters delivered to the victim's ex-wife.'

Miss Dobson said that Mr Klaver declined to provide a victim statement. However, in his witness statement to police, he said he had requested Dolman to stop contacting him on multiple occasions and that he ended up having to block her.

'The victim was scared for his own safety,' Miss Dobson said, 'The defendant's behaviour had a major impact on his mental health. It caused him stress and made him anxious. He would get chronic headaches if he saw her vehicle.

'He would like it to stop happening. It had an effect on him and his family.. The defendant was of previous good character having had no previous convictions.'

At Chester Magistrates' Court Dolman (left), from Crewe pleaded guilty to stalking involving serious alarm or distress and was banned from contacting Mr Klaver (right) for two years

In mitigation Dolman's lawyer Stuart Flood said: 'In these sort of cases it always difficult to know who the victim is. Police thought she may also have been the victim because both parties have received some unwanted messages.

'Quite clearly, from the outset, my client had also been the victim of some unwanted and unnecessary message of a like nature. However, it is fair to say that this lady has misread the signals in terms of Mr Klaver's intentions.

'He has sent her some messages that have been quite explicit. Some are quite racy, they are very much so. I don't know quite why he feels he has been affected so much. He is not quite as innocent as he has been portrayed.'

Mr Flood added: 'She is a lady who has not had many relationships. She had enjoyed her work though that has sadly been lost as a result of his conviction. She was suspended initially, but when her employers found out about this they dismissed her. She is really ashamed and embarrassed, there is no doubt about that.'

'She accepts that she very foolishly and stupidly put the tracker on his car or got a person to do it and remove it. She said "That was the biggest mistake in my life." There are no winners here, there are two losers.

'It is important that the court is aware that this is not all one-way traffic but she acknowledges she has overstepped the mark and done what is inappropriate. She is very keen and eager to get back on the work treadmill.

A policeman friend of Dolman submitted a character reference to the court saying: 'She is honest, reliable and trustworthy. She is also conscientiousness and caring and feels a great deal of regret about what has happened. I know she is remorseful.

'The whole thing is completely out of character. It is clear to me that she has learnt a very hard lesson.'

Dolman was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, up to 25 rehabilitation days with the probation service and pay 215 in costs and a victim surcharge.
A crackle of cockatoos have been snapped in a haunting image appearing to mourn one of their dead.

The photo, taken outside Minerva School in Sydney's south, shows a white cockatoo flattened in the middle of a suburban intersection -with a flock of its fellows evenly spaced out like mourners at funeral watching on from above while perched on electricity wires that line the street.

A Reddit user who captured the moving moment was convinced the birds were showing grief and saying goodbye.

A Reddit user has posted what appears to be cockatoo 'funeral' as dozens of the birds gather around a fallen one of their number

'Cockatoos paying respect to a fallen comrade this morning,' the user captioned the image.

While some were skeptical, bird 'funerals' are well-documented by scientists and wildlife experts - although little is understood about the phenomenon.

A 2012 University of California study into western scrub-jay 'funerals' suggested the behaviour is likely to share information about an area's possible danger.

Avian species have also been observed 'crying' after suffering loss.

'One morning we had a cockatoo absolutely screaming at the top of its lungs from like 4.30am,' one commenter said.

'Around 7am I finally went outside to see what was wrong to find it on the power lines above a dead cockatoo.'

Another wrote: 'I once stumbled into a magpie funeral with 30 magpies all looking down on their dead buddy. It made me tear up a little. Birds are cool.'
Voters in Northern Ireland are heading to polling stations today to cast their ballot in local council elections.

A total of 462 councillors are being chosen across the 11 councils in the region.

The contests, although not an election for Stormont, take place against the backdrop of a continued absence of power-sharing government in Northern Ireland.

The DUP are braced to discover whether voters will reward or punish them for boycotting Stormont institutions as they protest against post-Brexit trade rules.

Polls have suggested Michelle O'Neill's Sinn Fein could emerge as the largest party in the local elections.

Voters in Northern Ireland are heading to polling stations today to cast their ballot in local council elections

Polls have suggested Michelle O'Neill's Sinn Fein could emerge as the largest party in the local elections

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has warned unionist voters not to 'divide and splinter' by backing alternative parties

The party are hopeful they can make breakthroughs in areas where they have previously had little success.

Ms O'Neill issued a campaign video to urge voters to take the opportunity to 'endorse positive leadership at a time when we need it most'.

A year ago, in the last set of Stormont elections, Sinn Fein became the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly for the first time.

They will be looking to repeat that result in today's council elections.

Meanwhile, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has warned unionist voters not to 'divide and splinter' by backing alternative parties.

He urged them to back his party and 'strengthen our position' in their fight against the Northern Ireland Protocol and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Windsor Framework.

Sir Jeffrey said the DUP would seek to re-establish the Assembly 'on a fair and sustainable basis by finishing the job of protecting NIs place in the UK and its internal market'.

Today's local elections were pushed back by two weeks due to the coronation of King Charles on May 6.

It has been a low-key election campaign, largely overshadowed by the visit to Northern Ireland of US President Joe Biden, commemorations of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and the coronation.

Sinn Fein currently has 105 councillors, while the DUP is currently the largest party in local government with 122 councillors.

The cross-community Alliance Party made the largest gains in last years Assembly elections and will be hoping to increase the 53 councillors it currently has.

The Ulster Unionist Party currently has 75 councillors and the nationalist SDLP has 59 councillors.

The TUV has 46 candidates, the Green Party has 37, Aontu has 19 and People Before Profit has 16.

A number of smaller parties and independent candidates will also contest the elections.

Belfast City Council is the largest local government area in Northern Ireland with 60 councillors to be elected.

Voters have been reminded to bring photographic ID to the polling station to enable them to vote.

The elections use the single transferable vote system where voters rank candidates in order of preference.

Counting across 11 sites will begin on Friday morning and is expected to continue into Saturday.
As Rishi Sunak stepped off his RAF flight in Japan this morning, he was dressed somberly in his usual dark suit, white shirt and tie, the standard uniform of the politician starting an official visit abroad.

But his wife Akshata Murty was having none of this. A multi-millionaire businesswoman in her own right, there was no similarly quiet arrival from the UK's 'first lady'.

Showing her prowess at so-called dopamine dressing  where you wear bright colours to radiate positivity and boost your mood  Ms Murty wowed in a 95 fuchsia cashmere sweater from Chinti & Parker, and 165 island green trousers from ME+EM.

She didn't so much as disembark as explode off the flight in Tokyo in marked contrast to her husband and all those around them.

It was a statement arrival from the PM's wife, who has been building up her profile in support of her husband in recent months.

And it also drew a comparison with one of her predecessors: Carrie Johnson also chose pink when she accompanied Boris Johnson to the G7 in Cornwall in 2021.

Showing her prowess at so-called dopamine dressing  where you wear bright colours to radiate positivity and boost your mood  Ms Murty wowed in a fuchsia sweatshirt and green trousers.

Showing her prowess at so-called dopamine dressing  where you wear bright colours to radiate positivity and boost your mood  Ms Murty wowed in a fuchsia sweatshirt and green trousers.

Carrie Johnson also chose pink when she accompanied Boris Johnson to the G7 in Cornwall in 2021.

ME+EM is popular with celebrities including the Princess of Wales, the Duchess of Edinburgh, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Helen Mirren, Amanda Holden, and Holly Willoughby.

The 43-year-old is increasingly earning the praise of fashionistas for choosing affordable, middle-of-the-range British brands over luxury labels. And one recent visitor to No 10 could be behind those winning choices.

It seems that Ms Murty may be seeking style advice from Isabel Spearman, the PR guru who previously worked as an unofficial dresser to Samantha Cameron during her husband's tenure in Downing Street.

The brand consultant was spotted heading into No 10 just days before last weekend's Coronation, for which the Prime Minister's wife wore a 495 baby blue dress from Claire Mischevani that one commentator praised as 'incredible'.

Ms Murty also accompanied the PM as he met the bosses of major firms in Tokyo, and announced they are committing to invest nearly 18 billion in the UK.

She was dressed more somberly in a green dress as they boarded the flight taking them to the G7 in Hiroshima.

The Prime Minister's wife wore a 495 baby blue dress from Claire Mischevani to the Coronation, with one commentator praising it as 'incredible'.

Ms Murty also accompanied the PM as he met the bosses of major firms in Tokyo, and announced they are committing to invest nearly 18 billion in the UK.

The Prime Minister said the pledges are a 'massive vote of confidence' in the British economy after he painted an optimistic outlook for the national finances.

But Mr Sunak has ordered talks with the EU about automotive concerns following warnings of an 'existential threat' posed by a looming Brexit trade deal deadline.

Mr Sunak set out the investments as he prepares to host a reception of business chiefs in the Japanese capital on Thursday, seeking to foster closer ties.

He expects to meet bosses of Nissan, Toshiba and Mitsubishi Estate, as well as representatives from UK firms Octopus Energy and Mott MacDonald.

Ms Murty took time out to visit shop sin Tokyo ahead of the journey across Honshu
A 32-year-old man has finally been charged with murdering his ex-girlfriend's five-year-old son ten years ago and hiding his remains in a suitcase.

Jeremiah Oliver's body was found in the suitcase on the side of Interstate 190 in Sterling in April 2014.

Alberto Sierra Jr. - who at the time was the boyfriend of Elsa Oliver, the mother of Jeremiah, both from Fitchburg - was indicted on Wednesday by a Worcester Grand Jury.

Sierra faces charges of murder and disinterring a body according to Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.'s office.

He is due to be arraigned at 9 a.m. today in Worcester Superior Court, prosecutors have said.

Alberto Sierra Jr. - who at the time was the boyfriend of Elsa Oliver, the mother of Jeremiah, both from Fitchburg - was indicted on Wednesday by a Worcester Grand Jury

Jeremiah Oliver's remains were found in a suitcase on the side of Interstate 190 in Sterling in April 2014

Scene of the discovery of the suitcase off Interstate 190 in Sterling in April 2014

The boy - who had lived with his mother in an apartment at 276 Kimball Street - was last seen alive in September 2013 but was not reported gone until December that year. Jeremiah's sister had told authorities that he had gone missing.

The Oliver family was under state supervision and an investigation found that a social worker from the Department of Child & Family Services had missed eight monthly visits with Jeremiah, according to the Boston Globe in 2014.

The supervisor was fired and a DCF worker was disciplined for failing to conduct the checks.

The boy's body was not discovered until 18 April the following year, when authorities, acting on a tip, found him wrapped in a blanket in the suitcase.

Until Wednesday, no one had been charged with the murder - and it wasn't until February 2016 that authorities deemed the case to be a homicide.

Sierra previously pleaded guilty in 2017 to assaulting Jeremiah's mother and siblings and was sentenced to six to seven years in prison.

He also had faced charges of kidnapping and assaulting Jeremiah but prosecutors had dropped the charges so that 'double jeopardy does not attach or prevent further possible prosecution for the homicide.'

Ms. Oliver had also pleaded guilty in 2017 to abusing her two surviving children, but prosecutors - also to keep the option of prosecution of homicide open - dropped the charges.

Sierra's brother, Christian Sierra, was also charged with lying to police about the investigation, along with two others.

The boy's funeral took place in May 2014, with the boy's father, Jose Oliver, and 350 other people present in Rollstone Congregational Church in Fitchburg.

The Oliver family was under state supervision and an investigation found that a social worker had missed eight monthly visits with Jeremiah, according to the Boston Globe in 2014

Elsa Oliver (pictured), and her boyfriend, Alberto Sierra, were indicted in 2014 on assault and kidnapping charges

Alberto Sierra Jr. - who at the time was the boyfriend of Elsa Oliver, the mother of Jeremiah, both from Fitchburg - was indicted on Wednesday by a Worcester Grand Jury

The Fitchburg boy's remains were found in April 2014 on Interstate 190 in Sterling after he was missing for months
Russia is banning officials from resigning by threatening them with 'trumped up criminal charges' over fears that their departure could tip the Kremlin into chaos, the UK's Ministry of Defence claimed today.

Senior staff have become 'highly sceptical' about Russia's war in Ukraine, which has seen hundreds of thousands of Russian soldiers killed and military vehicles destroyed, the MoD said in its latest daily intelligence briefing.

But any notion the officials could resign are being thwarted by the Kremlin so as to avoid 'any impression of defeatism'.

Indeed, senior staff who want to resign over the war will likely face 'trumped up criminal charges', the MoD said.

'The Russian state is likely effectively banning senior officials from resigning from their jobs while the "Special Military Operation" continues,' the ministry said.

Russia is banning officials from resigning by threatening them with 'trumped up criminal charges' over fears that their departure could tip the Kremlin into chaos, the UK's Ministry of Defence claimed today

A Ukrainian multiple rocket launcher fires at Russian positions on the frontline near Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine, yesterday

'The measures likely extend to at least regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful presidential administration.'

It added: 'In private, many officials are likely highly sceptical about the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely enforced with strong hints that resignees will face trumped up criminal charges.

'As well as being concerned about capability gaps resignees would leave, the authorities are likely also attempting to prevent any impression of defeatism, and to bolster a sense of collective responsibility for the war.'

The ban was imposed after a number of top government officials said they wanted to resign after the beginning of the war, four sources - including a former FSB officer and a political strategist working with a governor - told Russian independent news outlet Important Stories.

'I am aware of at least two cases when governors tried to leave their posts, but in the internal policy department of the presidential administration, they were not just banned, it was also hinted at that they could face criminal prosecution,' the former FSB officer said.

'There are many who want to leave after the start of the war. If everyone leaves, control will be lost,' another source with an acquaintance within the presidential administration said.

The source added that if anyone expressed a desire to leave the presidential administration, it would be regarded as a 'betrayal' and officials have been tasked with demonstrating unity by preventing a mass exodus of civil servants.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov insisted the report was false, describing it as an unfounded rumour.

Under the mobilisation decree signed by Vladimir Putin in September last year, several FSB officers complained that they were being banned from resigning from their roles even after their contract expired.

And the Kremlin has also imposed strict restrictions on high-ranking officials travelling abroad over fears they might desert Russia amid heavy losses in the war.

'No one can go anywhere without special permission,' a high-ranking government official told the Moscow Times. The source added that some officials have had their passports confiscated and a list has been drawn up of where staff have travelled to.

Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut on Monday where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place

'Despite the ongoing conflict, sometimes Putin himself has to review all these lists and figure out who is going abroad and for what purpose,' a Kremlin official said.

Many sources have pointed to the growing anger among Russian officials over Russia's war effort.

Indeed, not only has Russia lost an estimated 197,000 soldiers since the war began, Putin has also seen thousands of Russian military vehicles including tanks and infantry transport vehicles destroyed by Kyiv's forces with the help of Western weapons.

And on the front line, Ukraine's military today said it had made new territorial gains amid heavy fighting around the eastern city of Bakhmut, despite being outgunned and outnumbered by Russian forces.

In the past week, Kyiv has said it has stepped up pressure on Moscow's troops to the north and south of Bakhmut. Russian mercenary forces say they have moved forward inside the city, where Kyiv has acknowledged they have made small advances.

'Despite the fact that our units do not have an advantage in equipment... and personnel, they have continued to advance on the [Russian] flanks, and covered a distance of 150 to 1,700 metres [165 to 1,850 yards],' military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said in televised comments.

He did not specify over what period the gains had been made. Reuters was unable to verify the battlefield situation.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before Russia's full-scale invasion nearly 15 months ago, as a stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern Donbas region.

Ukrainian officials have signalled that the advances around Bakhmut are not part of a broader counteroffensive planned by Kyiv to push back the Russian forces.
A drug addict mother of three has been jailed for over two years after flooding a quiet housing estate in Cheshire with crack and cocaine after setting up her own drugs racket.

Nadia Stanway, 40, set up her drugs empire at her 200,000 semi detached property, in the village of Eaton, Congleton, to fund her own habit.

The formerly 'quiet and safe neighbourhood,' which is popular with young aspirational families, alerted the police after becoming fed up of the swathes of drug crazed revellers coming to party until dawn at Stanway's home.

It emerged the former businesswoman whose company went bust during Covid set up a special 'graft phone' which sent out multiple text messages offering Class A drugs for sale.

Officers arrested Stanway as she got out of a taxi in Congleton town centre. They searched her handbag found 500 in cash, a small set of scales, a pepper spray disguised as lipstick and a Taser stun gun in the shape of a pen.

Stanway was arrested after stepping out of a taxi in Congleton town centre

Houses in the area were worth up to 500,000 in spring last year

When quizzed she claimed she had become hooked on drugs herself and was under pressure from others to deal crack and heroin to fund her addiction. She claimed she possessed the weapons for her own protection.

Stanway was jailed for two years and eight months at Chester Crown Court after pleading guilty to being involved in the supply of Class A drugs and the possession of a stun gun and pepper spray.

The drug dealer had previously split up with her partner, before moving into the area where properties were deemed to be worth up to 500,000 in the spring of last year.

Peter Hussey, prosecuting said: 'It was a brand-new housing estate and a quiet area and a number of neighbours were living there with their young children.

'They had found it a very safe place to be but regrettably when the defendant also moved in, the atmosphere in that particular street changed dramatically.

'One neighbour described there being a lot of comings and goings to the property. Initially, the witness was content with that, given that the defendant had just moved in, it was expected there would be a lot of coming and going.

'However, that did not die down and it got worse.

'There was partying and there were regular visits from people driving into the area, sounding their horns. It was completely different from what it had normally been like.

'The development had been caused by the defendant in the street dealing drugs from that address.

'What she has brought to that address was the misery of drug users and others coming into that street. It affected the neighbour's life to the extent that she felt compelled to call the police.

'In the meantime, police were already conducting an investigation into the use of a graft phone used to deal drugs in that area after seizing other mobile phones belonging to drug users who fielded messages from the defendant.

'In January this year the graft phone issued a number of flare messages offering drugs for sale. At around about 11am the defendant was seen to leave her address on Crawford Drive, take a taxi to Congleton town centre, and after being followed she was apprehended after getting out of the taxi.

'In her possession were a number of items which are the subject of this drugs investigation. There was a total of 500 in cash and a set of scales. She had pepper spray and a stun device, which was in the shape of a pen.

When police were looking at the Taser device, they did not particularly notice what it was until the defendant mentioned what it was. The pepper spray looked like lipstick and that too was found in her handbag. She was also in possession of the graft phone.

'At her home police found a diary which contained numerous notes typical of a drug dealer's lists plus a number of bowls containing powdered residue and sandwich bags and other plastic bags.

It was quite evident that the defendant was using that address from which to prepare drugs for sale and using the mobile phone to offer the drugs for sale.

'As the neighbour described drug users were coming to the address to purchase drugs. The neighbour does also describe that earlier on and up until the latter part of the offending period, the defendant had a car.

'That car disappeared but the defendant was in that car all times of day and night going out for about 15 minutes at a time. It would appear that the defendant was out delivering drugs in the car.'

Stanway was later bailed on the condition that she did not enter her old residence in Eaton, however she was then arrested the following month after being caught with snap bags containing crack cocaine and a black Alcatel phone she used to sell drugs.

On some days large numbers of texts were said to have been sent out to addicts from the phone.

In mitigation for Stanway, defence counsel Nicholas Roxburgh said: 'This is a sad case of a woman in an unfortunate situation. She does hold her hands up and makes no bones about her behaviour, but there was an element of exploitation and coercion through her addiction.

'She had no influence on others above her in that chain and there was no expectation of significant financial gain. The defendant maintains that she was under pressure and was only supplying because she herself was addicted to drugs.

'There are days where there are only one or two messages, or three messages, in an hour. This is indicative of someone not making a fortune, simply a woman engaging in this unfortunate course of conduct in order to fuel her own habit.

'The defendant has also shown a significant degree of remorse and she's extended the same to me. She's very sorry for what she has done.

She recognises the impact not only on the people who received the drugs but also on the others within the community.

'In terms of the weapons offences she purchased them was because she was in fear not only from those people who were pressuring her to engage in this course of conduct but also her ex-partner. She was very fearful of her ex-partner and bought those items simply to protect herself.

The defendant used to 'have her own business and was a member of the business community before sadly turning to taking drugs'

Stanway's defence council said: 'She's very sorry for what she has done, she recognises the impact not only on the people who received the drugs but also on the others within the community

'This case sadly reflects the type of case of individuals who, for whatever personal reasons, fall sadly into the use of illegal drugs and then are taken advantage of by those people who provide them and are forced to sell drugs under pressure with quite frankly frightening individuals.

'She used to have her own business and was a member of the business community before sadly turning to taking drugs. Her business went bust during the Covid pandemic. She's assured me that she won't be touching drugs in the future.'

Sentencing, the judge Mr Recorder Mark Ainsworth said: 'Class A drugs wreck lives and cause complete misery in society because people who otherwise would be happy, supportive and productive - as you were - change completely.

'Their relationships are ruined and families are torn apart. The need for class A drugs takes over their lives and in due course as we see time and time again, users become suppliers. The situation that you are in is sadly not unique. We see it all the time but in your particular case the impact on your life has been devastating.

'People who become hooked pass on the misery, not deliberately, but they think they have to deal in drugs to fund their habit and to make money. I accept that there was probably some pressure or duress whether from other people or the circumstances.

'But from what I've seen when you embarked on it you did so with a degree of efficiency and effectiveness.'
WERE YOU AT THE SHOW?

A Harry Potter show left audiences in shock after an actor admitted he had never read the books and told viewers to 'suck my balls'.

Harry Potter fan Victoria Flint and her boyfriend went to see Spontaneous Potter, an improvised comedy show based on the series, at Salisbury Arts Centre last week to celebrate her 42nd birthday.

The pair had bought cloaks and wands for the performance but said she was left 'appalled' by the content.

Victoria said the audience gasped as one of the actors admitted he had never read the Harry Potter books or seen the films, before telling them to 'suck my balls'.

The Spontaneous Players describe themselves as being a 'team of some of the UK's most critically-acclaimed comedy improvisers'.

WERE YOU AT THE SHOW? Email chris.matthews@mailonline.co.uk

Victoria Flint and her boyfriend went to see Spontaneous Potter (pictured) at Salisbury Arts Centre last week to celebrate her 42nd birthday

'The first thing that the main character said when opening the show was, ''I have never watched a single Harry Potter film or read a single Harry Potter book,''' she told The Salisbury Journal.

She said the actor then added: 'And you can suck my balls.'

Victoria said: 'I'm a bit disgusted and appalled by it really.'

The comedians described their show was 'an entirely improvised wizarding comedy play, based on an audience suggestion of a fanfiction title - with live musical accompaniment'.

The show's poster has cast members in cloaks similar to the ones worn by wizards in JK Rowling's hit franchise.

The show's poster has cast members in cloaks similar to the one worn by wizards in JK Rowling's hit franchise

However, Victoria claimed the show had little to do with Harry Potter and was simply four comedians performing improvised comedy.

She and her partner left the show early and have now asked Wiltshire Creative, which runs the Arts Centre, for refunds of their 20 tickets.

Wiltshire Creative previously said that it was 'not involved in the content performed at all,' and said any objection was 'a question for the producers of Spontaneous Potter'.

Spontaneous Potter, which also has a matinee for children, sold out for its debut 26-night run at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2018.

The same year the show won the Scottish Comedy Award for Best Variety.

The Spontaneous Players told MailOnline: 'We have performed Spontaneous Potter: The Unofficial Improvised Parody over 500 times to over 100,000 people across the UK, and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for seven years now.

'Weve headlined improv festivals, achieved a slew of five-star reviews, and won a Scottish Comedy Award for the show. It is a critically-acclaimed, unofficial Potter parody show.

'It has always been clearly labelled as a 16+ parody show, which contains adult language. This is evident from reading the marketing blurb on our website, and on all third-party sites. The 16+ age rating and adult language warning is made clear to all customers when purchasing tickets.

'We also offer a family-friendly childrens version of the show, for ages 5+.'

Wiltshire Creative declined to comment.

WERE YOU AT THE SHOW? Email chris.matthews@mailonline.co.uk
The gangster who was the intended target in the sickening murder of schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel has been freed from jail.

Joseph Nee, 36, was shot in the chest and chased into the Liverpool home of Olivia, nine, by drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman in August last year.

As Cashman fired towards Nee, Olivia was fatally shot in the chest as she stood behind her mother Cheryl in the hallway of their home.

Father-of-two Cashman, 34, is serving a 42-year prison sentence after being found guilty of the killing that appalled the nation.

Nee, who had been sentenced to 45 months in prison in 2018 for burglary and other crimes but was released early in 2020, was recalled to jail after the killing.

Olivia Pratt-Korbel was shot in her home after drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman chased gangster Joseph Nee into the house and fired at him

Joseph Nee (left), 36, was shot in the chest and chased into the Liverpool home of Olivia, nine, by drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman (right) in August 2022. Nee has now been freed from jail

The convicted drug dealer ended his prison term this month and is now a free man, The Sun has reported.

But Nee is said to have been warned to stay away from Liverpool amid fears gangsters have placed a bounty on his head.

A source told The Sun that 'dangerous people want him dead', adding: 'There is a price on his head. Hes to lay low.'

During Cashman's trial, the court was told of his intended target Nees long criminal history, his links to drug dealing and organised crime and how his family had enemies.

Police investigating Olivias murder arrested Nee, who lived near Olivia's home in the Dovecot area of Liverpool.

He was on parole when he was ambushed by Cashman who shot Olivia.

Career criminal Nee had spent time in prison throughout his life for a host of serious crimes including drug offences, burglary and theft.

MailOnline revealed in March that Nee was due to be released from prison later this year.

As Cashman fired towards Nee, Olivia, pictured, was fatally shot in the chest as she stood behind her mother Cheryl in the hallway of their home

Photographs of a topless Nee (furthest left) in HMP Kirkham, taken in 2019 and understood to have been shared on Instagram by a drug gang baron, showed him bragging about life behind bars and relaxing alongside fellow prisoners in the warm weather

On December 2, the Parole Board assessed the recall and had the option of recommending his release again if it considered he was not a danger to the public.

However the panel decided he would remain in jail for the remainder of his sentence.

Nee chose not to appeal the decision and remained in prison where he believed he was safer than on the outside, MailOnline revealed in March.

A source said: 'Nee knows he is a marked man on the outside so decided to accept the Parole Board's decision. He is safer in prison at the moment.'

MailOnline has obtained Nees Parole Board notes, which explains the chronology of his release and a timeline leading up to Olivias murder on August 22 last year.

The written summary of the Parole Board's decision is a withering indictment of Nee's criminal history and his claims that he was an 'innocent' victim of a random shooting.

Olivia was senselessly and callously murdered by Cashman in Liverpool in 2022

It states: 'On November 20, 2020, Mr Nee was released at the automatic release point in his sentence as is required by the law.

'His licence was revoked and he was recalled on the 23 August 2022 and was returned to custody on the 29 September 2022.

'The recall decision followed an incident where Mr Nee was chased by a gunman, and in effort to escape, forced his way into a private home that was not connected to him.

'Mr Nee was pursued into the property, the gunman fired several shots, injuring Mr Nee and the female occupant of the property, and, tragically, killing a nine-year-old girl.

'Mr Nee has said that he was an innocent victim in the events that led to his recall.'

The Parole Board summary states that Nee had most likely gone back to his life of organised crime upon his early release on licence.

Several police cars pictured on Kingsheath Avenue as officers hunted the gunman responsible for Olivia's death in August 2022

Olivia Pratt-Korbel, nine, was the tragic victim of suspected gang land shooting in Liverpool. She was left for dead after being gunned down in her own home. Nee had been shot before he ran into her house

It adds: 'The panel was satisfied that it was likely that Mr Nee had remained involved with organised crime on licence and that he had been the intended target of a gangland shooting.

'Given the circumstances, the panel found the decision to recall him to custody at this time had been appropriate.'

The summary continues with a stark assessment of Nee's deep involvement with drugs gangs and organised crime in and around Merseyside.

It states: 'The panel considered Mr Nee to be accurately described as a professional criminal with an involvement in organised crime.

'His involvement in serious offending, including gang related violence, is relevant to risk in this case.

'The panel considered his impulsivity, poor decision making and his difficulties in coping with problems to be further areas of risk.'

There was no support for Mr Nees release in the reports.
Rishi Sunak has urged the EU to heed calls from European carmakers for post-Brexit 'rules of origin' to be eased to protect trade.

The PM said this morning that he is in talks with Brussels about the situation, after Vauxhall's parent company warned it might have to shift production out of the UK, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

But speaking in Japan, where he is attending the G7 summit, Mr Sunak stressed that it was a problem for European manufacturers as well.

He pointed out the industry body representing groups such as BMW, Mercedes and Ford have echoed warnings that EV supply chains are not ready for the tough terms to be implemented.

Under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with Brussels, from next year 45 per cent of an EV's parts should originate in the UK or EU to qualify for tariff-free trade between the two.

Without meeting the requirements, cars made in the UK would face a 10 per cent tariff if sold in the EU  and vice versa  rendering them uncompetitive.

Stellantis, the world's third biggest car maker by sales  whose brands include Citroen, Peugeot and Fiat  employs more than 5,000 workers in the UK where it builds Vauxhall cars and vans. Pictured, the plant at Ellesmere Port

Vauxhall's parent company Stellantis voiced concern amid the spiralling cost of electric car batteries, which are mainly sourced from Asia and can be up to 50 per cent of a car's value.

Manufacturers are calling for next year's rule change to be bumped back to 2027.

Speaking to broadcasters on a visit to Tokyo today, the PM said: 'It's something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK, have raised as a concern.

'And as a result of that we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU about how we might address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing more generally.'

On concerns about UK battery-making capacity, Mr Sunak said: 'Nissan have invested a billion pounds in battery manufacturing capability in the North East.

'I'll be talking to the Nissan CEO and other Japanese business leaders later about investment into the UK.'

Stellantis, the world's third biggest car maker by sales  whose brands include Citroen, Peugeot and Fiat  employs more than 5,000 workers in the UK where it builds Vauxhall cars and vans.

Two years ago it had committed to making electric vehicles at its Ellesmere Port and Luton plants.

Without such a commitment its UK operations would eventually end, as petrol and diesel vehicles are phased out, but its European output would continue.

Speaking in Japan, where he is attending the G7 summit, Rishi Sunak (pictured with wife Akshata) stressed that it was a problem for European manufacturers as well.

Ford also called for the extension to 2027. It said tariffs next year would risk slowing the transition to electric cars. 'Tariffs will hit both UK and EU-based manufacturers, so it is vital that the UK and EU come to the table to agree a solution,' the US car maker said.

The calls were joined by VDA, the German car industy lobby group, which pushed the European Commission to also commit to the delay.

And the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) said in a statement: 'There has been massive investment in European battery supply chains.

'The capacity to meet these rules of origin will come, but just not in the next few years.

'ACEA has requested that the current phase-in period for battery rules is extended by three years.'

The UK car industry has for months been warning about the damaging impact of the 'rules of origin'. But Chancellor Jeremy Hunt yesterday offered hope when he said 'watch this space' about the prospect of a UK gigafactory.


The family of a war veteran turned antiques dealer are celebrating today after his stunning collection of Chinese artefacts sold for almost 1million.

Major Edward Coplestone Radcliffe set up an antiques business after fighting in the trenches in the First World War.

But his firm had to pause its operations in 1939 so he could serve in the Second World War, where he was among the troops evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940.

He went on to amass an impressive collection of Chinese pots, vases, bowls and statues that were stored in a dusty cabinet in the family's attic and left untouched for half a century.

Among the forgotten treasure was a 'lost' Ming dynasty cloisonne box and cover that sold for 288,000.

The family of a war veteran turned antiques dealer are celebrating today after his stunning collection of Chinese artefacts sold for almost 1million. Above: A Lanyao red monochrome bowl (left) sold for 28,000, a 'Junyao' dish sold for 20,000 (centre) and a blue-glazed 'dragon' bowl (right) sold for 6,500

Major Edward Coplestone Radcliffe set up an antiques business after fighting in the trenches in the First World War

Major Radcliffe bought the 'pomegranate' box at auction in 1946 for 19 (about 1,000 in today's money).

It was given a value of 10,000 when experts thought it was a 17th century copy.

But they soon realised it was one of five original pieces made for Xuande, the fifth emperor of the Ming Dynasty, in the 15th century.

Cloisonne is an ancient technique of decorating metal with enamel.

Of the five boxes known to exist, one is in the Palace Museum in Beijing and three are in institutions. Major Radcliffe's box is the only one in private hands.

The important piece sold for a hammer price of 230,000, which rose to 288,000 with fees.

Other pieces from his collection were a Qing Dynasty translucent jadeite dish, which Radcliffe bought in 1945 for 28. It sold for 53,480.

A pale celadon ribbed vase from the Song Dynasty of 1,000 years ago that Major Radcliffe bought for 42 in 1946, sold for 34,000.

Another piece from his collection was a Qing Dynasty translucent jadeite dish, which Radcliffe bought in 1945 for 28. It sold for 53,480

A pale celadon ribbed vase from the Song Dynasty of 1,000 years ago that Major Radcliffe bought for 42 in 1946. It sold for 34,000

Also among the forgotten treasure was a 'lost' Ming dynasty cloisonne box and cover that sold for 288,000

A Chinese Shiwan pottery figure of a hawk sold for 1,800 at the auction at Dreweatts Auctioneers in Newbury, Berkshire

A Chinese porcelain blue glazed jar sold for 1,500 at Dreweatts Auctioneers in Berkshire

A rare small Chinese 'Yaozhou' celadon 'fish' conical bowl sold for 24,000 and a Song Dunaty 'Junyao' dish fetched 22,000.

Major Radckiffe had paid 8 and 7 respectively for them in the 1940s. In total, the collection sold for 947,000.

Mark Newstead, director of Asian ceramics at Dreweatts Auctioneers of Newbury, Berkshire, said: 'We are delighted with the results, in particular the exceptionally rare Chinese cloisonne "pomegranate" box, made for of Xuande, the fifth Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

'The fact that it was discovered in a dust-filled cabinet in the attic of a family home amongst other less valuable pieces, where it had sat since its' owners death in 1967, is extraordinary and we knew it would attract world-wide attention.

'When I first inspected the piece it looked too good to be true as 99.9 per cent of Xuande marked pieces are later copies.

'I assumed it was made in the 16th or early 17th century and it was only when my colleague, Dr Yingwen Tao, was able to compare it with the example at Fenton House in London that we started to believe it could be a "lost" example of this rare group.

'The initial estimate, which was based on it being from the 17th century, was extremely modest and we thought it could achieve much more, even in its slightly damaged condition.

A pair of turquoise glazed models of storks sold for 1,100 in the stunning auction

A rare small Chinese 'Yaozhou' celadon 'fish' conical bowl sold for 24,000

he antiques were stored in a dust-filled cabinet in an attic before they came up for auction

A selection of items from Major Edward Coplestone Radcliffe's collection

The antiques were stored in a dusty cabinet in the family's attic and left untouched for half a century

'There was very strong bidding between nine telephone bidders, with a private collector in Asia finally winning out, thus showing the strength of the market and confidence of buyers hasn't dwindled.'

Major Radcliffe was born into an aristocratic family in 1898 in Derriford, Devon, and was educated at Eton.

After the outbreak of the First World War he joined the British Army's 9th Lancers, breaking with family tradition rather fortuitously, as several relatives in the Devonshires, were killed.

He earned the nickname 'Turk' among his colleagues as he took with him a Turkish shamshir with him as his personal sword.

His lungs were damaged by mustard gas in the trenches but he continued serving after the war in Ireland and then India.

He got married in 1935 to wife Mona de la Rue, the daughter of a Baron, and returned to London where he ran two antique shops.

He rejoined his old regiment at the outbreak of the Second World War.

Major Radcliffe served as a company commander with the British Expeditionary Force in France and was wounded during the withdrawal at Dunkirk, while holding the line at Calais.

Major Radcliffe got married in 1935 to wife Mona de la Rue, the daughter of a Baron, and returned to London where he ran two antique shops

Major Radcliffe was born into an aristocratic family in 1898 in Derriford, Devon, and was educated at Eton

Once he recovered he served the remainder of the war as an instructor at Sandhurst.

After the conflict ended in 1945 he had planned to run the family estate at Derriford in Devon, but it had been converted into a hospital to help the war effort.

He appealed to the House of Lords for ownership of the estate but when that failed Major Radcliffe emigrated to South Africa in 1948 and enjoyed a quiet semi-retirement as a successful artist until his death.

He collected these ceramics between 1930 and 1965, mostly bought from auctions or dealer Bluett & Sons.

There were 87 lots from his collection in the sale, with every single item selling. They made a total of 725,520, rising to 947,706 with fees.
An explosion led police to discover an alleged drug lab

An explosion at an alleged meth lab rocked a normally-quiet suburban street, leading police to arrest a man wearing a hazmat suit.

Images show officers escorting the barefoot 31-year-old outside a property at Canley Vale, in Sydney's south west, on Thursday, in handcuffs.

Fairfield City Police Area Command executed a search warrant at the home after being notified of an explosion in the area.

The man was discovered inside the house and arrested.

He was placed on a stretcher but refused to be taken to a hospital.

Police have been pictured escorting a man wearing an ill-fitted hazmat suit out of an alleged drug lab in Sydney's south west

An explosion led police to the alleged drug lab. Officers executed a search warrant at the property and came across the man inside

Officers instead marched him to the back of a police wagon, where he was taken to Fairfield Police Station for questioning.

NSW fire and rescue crews and paramedics were also at the scene.

A crime scene has been established at the property.

Specialist officers from the State Crime Command's Drug and Firearms Squad's Chemical Operations Team are investigating.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to NSW Police for comment.
A man believed to be in his 20s has been pronounced dead after falling ill on The Strand, WC2, in the early hours of the morning.

Police responded to reports of the man who had collapsed at approximately 00:50hrs.

In response to the incident, the road was closed between Duncannon street and Adam Street while officers and the London Ambulance Service attended.

Emergency services were contacted at approximately 00:50 over reports a man had collapsed on The Strand

Police cordoned off the area between Duncannon street and Adam Street

Police are not believed to be treating the incident as suspicious at this current stage

However the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

His passing is being treated as unexpected and suspicious at this stage and work is ongoing to identify the man and inform his next of kin.

The Strand was reopened to traffic in both directions after being closed to the public since around 1am this morning.
A desperate search is underway for a missing teenager who vanished after leaving from her high school.

Elle Manolas, 14, was last seen at 2pm on Thursday when she left South Sydney High School on O'Sullivan Avenue near Maroubra Beach.

Her family reported the teen missing when she failed to return home.

Police said there are concerns about Elle's welfare due to her age.

The Inner West Police Command are asking anyone to report sightings of the missing teenager and any information which could lead to her being found.

Elle Manolas, 14, was last seen at 2pm on Thursday when she left South Sydney High School on O'Sullivan Avenue near Maroubra Beach

Elle is described as slim and tall, about 160cm with long brown hair.

She has brown eyes and is of a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern appearance.

The teenager has been known to hang around Lewisham, Burwood, Liverpool and Canley Vale.

Anyone with information about her whereabouts is urged to contact police.
A gangster's moll involved in a county lines drugs racket in which three 16-year old-schoolboys were used as 'slaves' has avoided jail.

Georgia Burns, 22, repeatedly drove her drug-dealing boyfriend Jamie Upton, 25, 100 miles from Manchester to Hull, where one of the exploited youngsters was forced to live in a squalid flat.

Bolton Crown Court heard that Burns had driven her lover to Hull four times and made two trips with one of the youngsters.

When police busted the racket after placing the flat under surveillance, they found Upton in an upstairs toilet trying to flush drugs down the toilet, as well as heroin and crack worth 2,295 plus 3,162 in cash.

Burns, from Failsworth, Greater Manchester, admitted being concerned in the supply of crack and heroin between March 2020 and March 2021.

Georgia Burns, 22, repeatedly drove her boyfriend 100 miles from their homes in Manchester to Hull, a court heard

Burns was sentenced to two years jail suspended for two years and was ordered to complete 200 hours unpaid work for her involvement in a county lines racket

Her boyfriend Jamie Upton was jailed for nine years and three months at Bolton Crown Court

She was sentenced to two years jail suspended for two years and was ordered to complete 200 hours unpaid work.

Upton, from Newton Heath, Greater Manchester, pleaded guilty to the same charge and also to arrange the travel of another person with a view to exploitation under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply.

He was jailed for nine years and three months.

The three teenage boys, who cannot be named, were rescued and moved away from the Manchester area following the police operation nicknamed Marconi.

It emerged they had been dealing drugs for Upton in Oldham and Manchester over the course of up to a year.

A judge told 22-year-old Burns (pictured): 'You have escaped jail by the skin of your teeth'

Georgia Burns, 22, drove Jamie Upton to a flat where he had set up three 16-year-old boys as county lines 'slaves'

The court heard that Dublin-born fitness instructor Upton became involved in four separate drugs lines between Hull and Manchester in 2020 to make 'easy money' after moving to the British mainland.

It is thought he 'bought' the so-called Hugo drug line from another mobster known only as David before checking out the flat in Hull.

He sent his predecessor a message saying: 'I can make 3,000 a month from this, I will be able to pay you back in literally a day' before telling Burns: 'It's all settled.'

Later he booked himself and Burns into a hotel room before moving one of the 16-year-olds into the flat to run the Hugo line.

Burns pictured outside Bolton Crown Court, where she faced trial for her involvement in a drugs racket

Burns, pictured, met Upton when she was 16 and they were going out for a number of years until she ended the relationship in September 2020

He subsequently set up a second 'Snickers' drug line in Oldham run by another 16 year old lad. Upton would be ferried around by Burns in her car as he believed drugs squad police were 'less likely' to pull over a woman driver.

One of the boys he recruited had been in and out of care. At the time he was conscripted into the drugs racket he was doing well at school but his performance and attendance dropped off when he got involved with Upton.

In one text to Burns, Upton boasted: 'I've sent the kids to go and get me a pizza. They get 150 a day, it doesn't matter what I make them do.

'They are my joeys, I f***ing pay them so they know where their bread's buttered.'

Burns replied: 'True if you pay them they can't say no.'

During a callous text exchange with Upton about one of the teenagers, Burns said: 'You can tell this boy's been living in a crackhead house, he stinks.'

Upton then responded, 'Yeah he stinks don't he hahahaha.'

Maria Brannan prosecuting said: 'Upton told Burns it was going well and Burns said, 'I am glad it is going well and you're making money. Why don't you ask David for a lift down to Hull next time.'

But Upton responded: 'F*** David, he owes me 1,300. Taking the f******g piss.'

'Burns told him, 'I've put 600 miles on my car driving you,' to which he offers 200 to drive him again.'

Burns admitted to driving Upton from Hull to Manchester on a number of occasions. Pictured: Outside Bolton Crown Court

Jamie Upton, who admitted a number of drugs-related charges, was jailed for nine years and three months at Bolton Crown Court

Officers were alerted to the racket after one of the boys confided in his social worker.

he lad was said to be 'scared' and confessed: 'I'm selling his stuff because he owes people money.'

The boy also told how an enforcer acting for Upton told him: 'You've got nine sisters haven't you, which one am I going to f*** up?.'

Upton was bailed after the raid on the flat but was arrested at his home in March 2021 with officers seizing a .22 Colt rifle, 16 bullets, 10,000 worth of heroin and cocaine and 17 mobile phones.

Burns was arrested later. Both gave no comment in interview.

All three boys did not assist the prosecution.

In mitigation for Burns, defence counsel Miss Katherine Pierpoint said: 'She now appreciates what she got herself involved in was serious and knows that those who assist others help these kinds of operations take place.

Kade Joyson, 28, (pictured) of Crumpsall, Greater Manchester, was a friend of Upton, who temporarily took over running the drug line. He was jailed for eight years and three months

Pedro Begantim, 21, (pictured) of Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, was given two years jail suspended for two years and 200 hours unpaid work for his part in the drugs racket

'She knew there was a concern from Upton about being stopped which led to him wanting to get driven by a woman as they were less likely to be stopped.

'Although she never handled the drugs or dealt with any of the others accused, she did drive Upton from Hull to Manchester on two occasions.

'Although she was actively involved over that period of time it was contained to the trips.'

'She had just turned 19 at the time and she was not paid throughout those months.

'Only on one occasion was she given money for petrol. It is clear that she acted at his request throughout.

'She was not acting under duress and she should have and could have made different decisions but other messages taken from her phone show the relationship in a different light.

'One night before they both drove to Hull Upton asks her to drive him to which she is hesitant and refuses but in response he says, 'you're always driving to go to the sunbed.'

'She said, ' That's not fair, the sunbed is close' but he responded sarcastically, 'Well thanks, I really appreciate your help.'

'Then the next day he messaged her saying: 'There is something really going on with you, and if I am going out if you're up to something. If you don't see me tonight I am going to smash your car up.'

'She says: 'Why do you expect me to be friendly with you after what has happened. You threaten me all the time.'

'He responded: 'Get in your car when you come home and come to see me, you got an hour.'

'She ended up driving him but sent messages to Upton telling him how the whole situation was making her stressed and how the seemingly constant trips had taken their toll on her.

'She said, 'It's got to a point where I have just ended up feeling numb.'

'On another occasion Upton sent her three individual messages saying 'Get. Here. Now.'

Miss Pierpoint added: 'She met Upton when she was 16 and they were going out for a number of years.

'Throughout their relationship he controlled and manipulated her. This was not a girlfriend who liked the excitement of the criminal lifestyle.

'She was not emotionally strong and mature enough at the time.

'Everything, of course, was kept from her family at the time. It seems that she was under this spell of his during that time they were together.

'As of September 2020 she has cut off the relationship with him.

'She is a very different woman to the one she was back then.'

Sentencing Judge Martin Walsh said: 'Vulnerable youths or children are often used in so called county lines drug dealing because they enable others higher up the supply chain to distance themselves from the end users. They can also be easily controlled, manipulated and intimidated.

'The motivation was a selfish desire to make significant financial gain regardless of the damage done to others.'

The judge told Burns: 'You were fully aware of Upton's involvement but I am prepared to accept you were in an unhealthy relationship with him in which you felt some degree of coercive control. You have escaped jail by the skin of your teeth.'

Kade Joyson, 28, of Crumpsall, Manchester a friend of Upton who temporarily took over running the drug line was jailed for eight years and three months.

Pedro Begantim, 21, of Ashton-under-Lyne was given two years jail suspended for two years and 200 hours unpaid work whilst Edvard Volodkovic, 35, was locked up for seven days. All pleaded guilty to drugs charges.
BT is to slash up to 55,000 jobs by the end of the decade, with around 10,000 set to be replaced by artificial intelligence (AI).

Amid growing concerns about the impact of robots on the job market, boss Philip Jansen said the telecoms giant would be a 'huge beneficiary' of the technology.

He added: 'I do personally believe this is a huge leap forward in technology terms.'

While he acknowledged AI presented risks and companies needed to be 'careful', Mr Jansen said it was 'going to be as big as the internet and mobile phones' and would help create jobs.

'There will be loads of new services, applications, innovations and products that will emerge from this AI. BT will be able to participate in that,' he said.

But he stressed this would not mean machines will replace humans entirely, adding: 'We won't be in a situation where people feel like they're dealing with robots.'

BT, whose headquarters is in Aldgate, London (pictured), acknowledged that AI presents risks

The comments came days after Steve Hare, boss of accounting software firm Sage, said embracing AI could help 'turbocharge' productivity in the UK.

Speculation about the impact of AI on the workforce has swirled following the rise of software such as ChatGPT,which can create text and answer questions in a human-like fashion.

Other types of AI can be used to create images and videos simply from a text description.

The rapid development of the technology has been hailed by many businesses and tech leaders as a way to free human staff from low-skilled work so they can focus on more complicated tasks in a boost to the global economy.

But others have cautioned about the impact of machines on the labour market.

BT boss Philip Jansen said the telecoms giant would be a 'huge beneficiary' of AI technology

In March, analysts at investment bank Goldman Sachs predicted 300 million jobs could be lost or replaced by AI worldwide, particularly in areas such as administration, legal services, architecture and engineering.

Others have warned that AI's ability to create artificial images and text will make it easier for misinformation to spread.

Of particular concern are 'deepfakes', images or videos that use AI to replace the face of one person with another to create hoaxes.

Even bosses at some of the world's largest tech companies have expressed fear over the potential of AI.

Last month Google boss Sundar Pichai said the technology 'can be very harmful if deployed wrongly' and admitted the potential dangers 'keep me up at night.'

Last month Google boss Sundar Pichai said the technology 'can be very harmful if deployed wrongly' and admitted the potential dangers 'keep me up at night'

In March, Italy became the first Western country to ban ChatGPT as its regulators investigated the software's collection of user information.

The UK Government, by contrast, has said it would adopt a 'light touch' approach to regulating the technology, with Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan saying any legislation introduced now could quickly become 'out of date.'

BT's embracing of AI came as the firm outlined plans to reduce its workforce from 130,000 to between 75,000 and 90,000 by 2030.

Mr Jansen estimated around 15,000 job losses would be from staff and contractors building the company's fibre broadband internet network.

Another 10,000 reductions would be made from upgrading and turning off older networks and system  meaning fewer workers would be needed for maintenance and repairs.

Elsewhere, 10,000 jobs would be cut through increased 'automation and digitisation' of the firm's customer service and other operations and 5,000 roles would be eliminated through 'normal restructuring' of the business.
A worried family have offered a reward to find and 'detain on sight' a British teenager who went missing in Thailand's 'Sin City' Pattaya over the weekend.

Ryan White, 17, from Gateshead, arrived in the capital Bangkok on May 12, but has since lost contact with relatives.

His family believe he is now staying in the notorious party city of Pattaya some 90 miles (145km) away. The city has been dubbed the 'sex capital' of the world and a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah thanks to its round-the-clock sex industry.

Fearing for the teenager's safety, his family have taken to social media asking friends to help find him - offering 10,000 THB (around 234) as a reward.

They have also pleaded with the 17-year-old runaway to come home, telling him: 'Nothing you could do or say would ever change how loved you are.'

Ryan White (pictured), 17, from Gateshead, arrived in Bangkok, Thailand, on May 12, but has since lost contact with relatives

Ryan White's family believes he is staying in the notorious party city of Pattaya some 90 miles (145 kilometres) away from Bangkok

In a Facebook post yesterday, his aunt, Kimberley Christoforato, said: 'Reward of 10,000 THB (234 GBP) for detaining Ryan on sight and calling the police.

'Unfortunately, due to having an 18-month-old, I have had to return home to the UK. We will have family returning over ASAP though and this post will be updated as and when.

'This is my nephew, Ryan White. He is from Gateshead, UK. He has been missing since Friday 12th May 2023. He is 17 years old, so still a minor.

'He took a flight to Bangkok and we are currently aware that he is staying somewhere in the Pattaya community. His whereabouts were known until the evening of Sunday 14th, but no one has seen him or heard from him since.

'If anyone has any information, or knows someone who is holidaying or living in Pattaya who could have any information please can you get in touch.

'And Ryan, if you read this, please come home. Nothing you could do or say would ever change how loved you are, nor how worried we are for your safety and wellbeing.'

She said that the family has sought the help of the British and Thai embassies as well as local police to find the runaway.

Pattaya has been dubbed the 'sex capital' of the world and a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah thanks to its round-the-clock sex industry (file image of a street in Pattaya)

Thailand's military government has made efforts to clean up the party city of Pattaya after it was dubbed the 'sex capital' of the world (file image of people dancing in Pattaya)

The Facebook post has since been shared almost 900 times as people offered their support to the distraught family.

Thailand's current military government has made efforts to clean up Pattaya after it was dubbed the 'sex capital' of the world and a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah thanks to its round-the-clock sex industry.

A large number of British ex-pats have also set up bars in the sun-drenched resort, which has become an attractive place for pensioners to retire.
Defiant Just Stop Oil eco rebels arrested by police after causing mayhem in London yesterday were back on the streets snarling up traffic this morning in another chaotic slow-march protest.

In an online boast, the eco-mob declared some of the eight activists detained by the Metropolitan Police on Wednesday 'and held overnight' had this morning 'marched on Tower Bridge', in flagrant defiance of the authorities.

Among them was a 21-year-old activist from Melbourne, Australia, who was pictured being led away by police following a shambolic slow march through Parliament Square on Wednesday.

The woman, who previously identified herself as 'Hannah', was filmed shouting on a megaphone while queuing traffic behind her is blocked from the bridge.

'The police are trying to prevent us from our basic right to demand justice and fight in defence of our lives and liberties,' she says, as police officers attempt to remove the protesters from the road.

Pictured on Wednesday, this campaigner called Hannah, from Melbourne, Australia, was detained by police in Westminster. Today, she was back out causing mayhem, this time joining a slow march across Tower Bridge (pictured below)

The 21-year-old, who has taken part in marches on Tuesday and Wednesday, joined about 24 other Just Stop Oil activists in London on Thursday

Just Stop Oil appeared to boast about how some of those detained by police yesterday were back on the streets and protesting again

Another male protester, seemingly arrested during Wednesday's slow-march in Parliament Square, Westminster, was also filmed leading today's demonstration.

The Tower Bridge demonstration was promptly dealt with by police. But activists resumed their campaign of chaos by marching on streets in Kensington later in the morning.

The disruption triggered a furious response from motorists, with one white van man unleashing a verbal tirade at campaigners.

The irate driver was filmed screaming at the group of 24 eco-warriors as they clogged the roads.

Pointing out of the window of his van as he drove past, the angry motorist yelled 'get them c***s out of the f***ing road' before screaming 'c***s' as he drove away.

Seconds later, another frustrated driver caught in a queue of traffic behind the climate change fanatics, is filmed accelerating past them.

The incident took place in the swanky Cromwell Road, where flats can sell for 2.4million, and was the fourth day of carnage caused by Just Stop Oil in London this week.

Today's mayhem began shortly after 8am on Tower Bridge near the City of London financial hub.

Protesters are pictured marching across Tower Bridge on Thursday

The eco-warriors caused mayhem during the march this morning across Tower Bridge

In familiar scenes. the group were forced off the road about 20 minutes later by police after causing rush-hour delays.

Then, at about 10.50am, demonstrators staged their second protest by slowly marching through the streets of Kensington.

Again, police imposed a Section 12 public order banning notice on the protesters, who were forced from the road shortly after 11am.

The action this morning came after a day of chaos on Wednesday, which saw eight protesters arrested and five other kicked out of Parliament during a stunt in the House of Commons.

Among those taking action in this morning's rally was 21-year-old student Sasha Stone, from Edinburgh.

She said: 'As a student, I feel this sense of hopelessness looking into the future. How can we continue on this path?

Police were already on the scene and broke the demonstration up within minutes before it moved to Kensington

Officers were again scrambled to Cromwell Road to force the protesters out of the street

'The government has been bought by oil and gas companies and is making decisions which will inevitably lead to mass destruction, famine, and death for the many ordinary people in this country and around the world.'

'It is not an exaggeration to say that as a species we are playing with fire.'

Just Stop Oil activist Imogen Robertson, 22, a student from Stirling, added she was worried about the climate crisis

'I have two much younger siblings, and so the unpredictability of the future weighs on me heavily,' she said.

'Because of this, I cannot and will not be complacent in the face of inaction by our government.'

Almost 30 protesters descended upon Westminster on Wednesday in the eco-mob's third day of targeted mayhem in the capital this week.

Five activists were kicked out of the House of Commons after attempting to disrupt the Home Affairs committee hearing.

While in chaotic scenes outside parliament, eight activists were detained by police after allegedly refused to get off the road during their latest slow-march in Parliament Square.

Video footage showed one eco-warrior, who on Tuesday identified herself as a 21-year-old from Melbourne, Australia, being led away by two officers as she slammed the Government for 'restricting us of our basic right to protest', and saying: 'We are not the first people to march and demand liberty.

One Just Stop Oil protester is seen appearing to be led away by police, after Met officers were forced to make eight arrests following a demonstration in Parliament Square

Eight protesters were arrested by police on Wednesday morning. Pictured is one activist being detained

The action came minutes after a group of almost 30 campaigners were moved off Westminster Bridge following a slow-march there at rush-hour. Pictured is a protester being detained in Parliament Square on Wednesday morning

'This police officer doesn't want me to speak to you because they do not want the truth to be heard.

'The police, the Government, the courts are all complicit in the continued licensing of new oil and gas in the full knowledge that this is a death sentence for my generation [and] for billions of people globally.

'This is criminal and I cannot stand by and do nothing.'

A spokesman for the Met Police told MailOnline: 'Police placed a section 12 condition on the procession to move out of the road, as serious disruption was likely, and to continue protest lawfully on the pedestrian areas should they wish to do so.

'Eight people refused to move out of the road and were arrested for breaching the conditions specified.

'They have been taken into custody to a central London police station.'

The arrests came after Just Stop Oil protesters staged a stunt in Parliament as they disrupted an MP probe into Scotland Yard's crackdown on anti-royal protesters at King Charles' Coronation.

The activists, wearing white t-shirts emblazoned with the group's name, sat behind the Met's Temporary Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist as he gave evidence to the Commons Home Affairs Committee this morning.

The senior officer told MPs the force was not put under political pressure to crack down on anti-monarchists amid criticism of what has been described in some quarters as 'heavy-handed' arrests during the historic ceremony earlier this month.

However, the hearing was interrupted when the activist Dr Kush Naker, 33, stood up and shouted before the infectious diseases doctor from London was hauled out of the room.

One of the activists prepares to stand up during the group's protest in Parliament on Wednesday morning

Protesters were escorted into a police van during the drama in Westminster on Wednesday

This activist, left, was among those arrested on Wednesday. During an earlier protest on Tuesday, she identified herself as a 21-year-old called Hannah from Melbourne

A number of officers were seen surrounding some of the activists on Wednesday morning

Activists gathered in Parliament Square with orange banners during their latest demonstration

The live feed of the proceedings was abruptly cut as someone in the room was heard to interrupt MPs as they questioned Mr Matt Twist about the arrests.

Once the video footage was restored, Tory MP Tim Loughton, who was seen rolling his eyes and shaking his head, said: 'To be clear, they were Just Stop Oil protesters who tried to undermine the activities of this committee with our witnesses today.'

The mayhem in the capital began at 8.43am when activists clogged Westminster Bridge at rush-hour for their latest slow march.

But they were surrounded by police within four minutes and by 8.53am, the group had been kicked out of the road by the Met Police.

But minutes later, the group resumed their protest, marching through Parliament Square in Westminster, were officers detained eight campaigners.

The swift action came as eco-warriors from the group compared their chaotic marches to the trailblazing efforts of the suffragettes, who fought for women's rights in the early 20th century.

Graduate Hannah Taylor, 22, from Derbyshire, is part of Just Stop Oil. She said: 'Yesterday, I was asked to march on the pavement. Would the suffragettes have marched on the pavement?'

Activists ignored orders by police to stop their protest, which prompted officers to make a number of arrests, the Met said online.

A spokesperson added: 'Well continue to tackle serious disruption where it occurs.'

A large number of officers were pictured in Parliament Square, Westminster as they rounded up protesters

Police are seen searching one protester in Westminster during the latest Just Stop Oil demonstration

But the group of climate change protesters were forced off the road by police after just 10 minutes as they tried to make their way towards the Palace of Westminster

Almost 30 Just Stop Oil campaigners were involved in their latest protest in London, marching along Westminster Bridge on Wednesday morning

Taking to Twitter, Just Stop Oil - which is campaigning for the UK Government to slash its use of fossil fuels - said: 'This government has chosen to stop protests instead of stopping new fossil fuels. Who are the real criminals?'

On Tuesday, furious scene were ignited in the capital as angry motorists lashed out at the protesters.

One man was seen yelling at campaigners, telling them to 'get out the way', 'go and have a wash' and 'go and get a job and do something useful'.

He was one of a number of road users who were pushed to breaking point by the activists, including others who hit the demonstrators with a lorry, tore banners from their hands and threw water over them.

Dressed in a white hoodie and tracksuit bottoms, the dark-haired man jumped out of the car he was travelling in to tell the group: 'Get the f*** out the way now, get the f*** out the way now, you f****** c****.'

He then adds: 'Go and have a f****** wash, you c****.'

As the driver of the black Nissan he gets back into remains stuck behind the protest, he then yells at the group again from out the passenger window.

'Go get a job you f****** c***. Go and do something useful you f****** tramp.

The man was seen yelling at the eco-warriors, telling them to 'get out the way', 'go and have a wash' and 'go and get a job and do something useful

Another frustrated road user threw water over the protesters as they blocked vehicles

Protesters on Wednesday were swiftly surrounded by police as they marched along Westminster Bridge. They were forced off the road by officers within 10 minutes (pictured)

'What do you think of all these f****** cars sitting here causing f****** pollution, you silly f****** c***.

'Use your f****** brain...you know I'm making sense and all, don't you, you silly f****** old c***.'

Earlier in the day, police officers were seen chuckling with the protesters during the group's third slow march in just two days.

One man confronted the climate change fanatics by tearing banners away from protesters and pushing them as tensions flared.

Dressed in a white polo shirt and shorts, he appeared to shove protesters as they caused traffic chaos in Elephant and Castle, marching slowly in front of a lorry.

'Get out the f***ing way before you get run over,' he shouts before adding: 'Get out the f***ing way you p****s' as he apparently pushes a group of eco-zealots and then yanks an orange banner off another.
Jade Jagger has been arrested in Ibiza for allegedly assaulting a police officer when they were trying to mediate an altercation in a restaurant, according to one of Spain's biggest newspapers.

Jade, the daughter of Rolling Stones star Mick Jagger and his first wife Bianca, was dining with a male friend at a restaurant in Ibiza's old town on Wednesday night when they allegedly became aggressive and violent towards the waiting staff.

The British jewellery designer's male friend, 31, who has not been named, then allegedly started shouting, insulting and threatening staff inside the restaurant, located on Sa Creu street, before the National Police were called to the scene, reports Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

The National Police arrived at the restaurant and tried to diffuse the situation by telling Jade's friend to stop shouting. But the man allegedly launched an attack on the police officers, shoving and hitting them.

Jade, 51, then allegedly came out of the restaurant and shouted at the officers before allegedly assaulting a policewoman by pushing and scratching her.

Jade Jagger (pictured in Ibiza last week) has reportedly been arrested in Ibiza for allegedly assaulting a police officer when they were trying to mediate an altercation in a restaurant

Jade, the daughter of Rolling Stone star Sir Mick Jagger (pictured together in 2019) and his first wife Bianca, was arrested over the alleged assault, report El Mundo

The 51-year-old was reportedly restrained by police officers before being taken away in a police vehicle.

Jade and her friend are still under arrest as of 12pm local time, reports Cronica Balaer. It is understood they will appear in court later today.

Police in Ibiza confirmed to MailOnline that there was an altercation in a restaurant in Ibiza and a 31-year-old man and a woman were detained after insulting and assaulting police officers.

MailOnline has contacted Jade's representatives for comment.

A well-placed source said: 'Police arrested two people last night, a man and a woman, in Ibiza.

'Around 9pm there was a police intervention as a result of a call from a restaurant about a man they said was behaving violently with customers and workers. The man had gone by the time police arrived.

'People at the restaurant including staff and a manager and a couple of customers told officers he had been aggressive towards them and they had refused to serve him any more drinks and he left.

'A man in the street then approached the police patrol cars outside and told them there was a man threatening passers-by.

'When officers approached him he began to insult them in English with increasing aggressiveness, refusing to identify himself and being very hostile.

'They tried to calm him down several times and he ended up hurling himself at police and assaulting one of them and he had to be arrested.

'That's when a woman appeared who was very aggressive and hurled herself at a police officer, pushing him and insulting him.

'Police managed to calm her down and then call an ambulance for the man who was very aggressive and in a bad way and attacked health professionals and police again when the ambulance arrived.

'At that moment the woman enters the scene again, squaring up to an officer before pushing and punching that officer. She was then also arrested.'

The woman is understood to be aged 51 and the man, whose nationality is not known, 31.

They were held for assaulting police and resisting arrest, another well-placed source said.

They were held overnight in police cells and are expected to appear in court this afternoon or tomorrow morning.

On Friday, Jade posted a picture of herself posing on a sun lounger at the five-star Nobu Hotel in Ibiza Bay on Instagram, with the caption: 'Spring back to Ibiza with a little glamour.'

The businesswoman split from DJ Adrian Fillary in 2021, nine years after their star-studded Cotswolds wedding which was attended by guests including Kate Moss and her ex-husband Jamie Hince.

She was said to be 'devastated' by the breakdown of their relationship, with a source at the time telling the Mail on Sunday: 'This is all very sad. They thought they would be together for ever but it didn't work out quite like that.'

They said the estranged couple were '100 per cent committed' to co-parenting their son Ray, now eight, adding: 'Things remain amicable for his sake.'

And last month, Jade was pictured holding hands with a man - believed to be Barbadian Anthony Hinkson - in London. The pair were spotted walking out of a lingerie shop and enjoying a drink together, and at one point swapped jackets.

Jade Jagger was pictured with new man - believed to be Anthony Hinkson - on an outing in London last month, two years after she split from her ex-husband. There is no suggestion this is the man arrested in Ibiza

Hinkson was offering bespoke sunset dining experiences at a beach bar in Barbados last year, with Instagram videos showing him manning the BBQ for customers.

Jade has liked a string of images on his account, writing 'beautiful life on the beach living the dream' on one picture of an oil drum BBQ.

In 2021, Jade split from her husband Adrian Fillary. They share their eight-year-old son Ray.

Jade gave birth to Ray just one month after she delivered her first grandchild when her daughter Assisi Jackson, 30, went into labour.

'People are often amazed to hear that, I delivered my first granddaughter, Ezra, myself,' she told British Vogue in 2018.

'All of this might have been slightly easier to handle if I hadn't been almost nine months pregnant myself.

'But I suppose that's the sort of thing that happens when your family doesn't worry too much about convention.'

Jade has Assisi and Amba with her film producer ex-partner Piers Jackson.
An art dealer who appeared on Bear Grylls' show The Island is being sued for 1.2million in a row over 'maliciously' building a barn too close to his falcon breeder neighbours.

Barnes Thomas, 37, allegedly conducted a campaign of harassment against falcon breeders Martin and Scott Nicholas.

Legal papers lodged at the High Court in London claim he built a barn on the boundary with their land in St Just, Cornwall, during the breeding season.

It caused so much stress to the falcons that some birds died, seven pairs failed to breed, and seven eggs were lost, it is alleged.

A friend of the brothers said: 'Almost everything to do with this has been malicious. It's had a huge impact on the falcons and the brothers are devastated at the loss of life.

Barnes Thomas, an auctioneer who was earning around 100,000-a-year, featured on the show (pictured)

Brothers Scott (left) and Martin (right) accuse Mr Thomas of deliberately upsetting their birds by making too much noise with heavy machinery at anti-social hours, accusing them of homophobia, poisoning their apple trees, and made false complaints to officials

Barnes Thomas, 37, allegedly conducted a campaign of harassment against falcon breeders Martin and Scott Nicholas. Pictured: Mr Thomas's home

An art dealer who appeared on Bear Grylls The Island is being sued for 1.2million in a row over 'maliciously' building a barn (right) too close to his neighbours' falconry (centre)

'They have suffered anxiety and distress because of this but it makes it all the sadder when live animals have suffered.

'They have lived there happily for 25 years while he has been there for three but this has turned their lives upside down.'

Martin, 40, and Scott Nicholas, 31, run Raptors of Penwith, and business partner Hussain Lootah own 150 falcons, valued at 9,489,000.

Mr Thomas, who appeared on the show in 2018, became unpopular with some viewers, and his 80,000 Range Rover was vandalised soon after the first episode.

Soon after he bought the land in Cornwall, some locals told him to f*** off back to London, he told newspapers.

Now the brothers accuse Mr Thomas of deliberately upsetting their birds by making too much noise with heavy machinery at anti-social hours, accusing them of homophobia, poisoning their apple trees, and made false complaints to officials.

Martin, 40, and Scott Nicholas, 31, run Raptors of Penwith, and business partner Hussain Lootah own 150 falcons, valued at 9,489,000

Legal papers lodged at the High Court in London claim he built a barn on the boundary with their land in St Just, Cornwall, during the breeding season

Barnes Thomas (pictured far right alongside fellow contestants) appeared on Bear Grylls show The Island in 2018

In court documents, Martin Nicholas says he told his famous neighbour that excessive noise and visual disturbances during the falcons' breeding season between March and August causes fear and stress in falcons which could make them smash their eggs, abandon their young, and cause a potentially fatal disease called aspergillosis.

The brothers say three falcons died after suffering intolerable stress, including one Gyr falcon worth 150,000.

They are seeking 1,209,000 in damages, including 450,000 for ongoing breeding losses, 344,250 a year for the loss of 14 breeding pens, and an additional 30,000 each for their injured feelings after they suffered acute anxiety and distress.

Mr Thomas - who is also building a large home on the site - declined to comment when approached by MailOnline today.
An IT worker sued for sexual harassment after claiming her boss was sending her kisses when he marked an email where he wanted more information with 'xx' has been pictured.

Karina Gasparova claimed that Aleksander Goulandris's use of question marks in the 'xx' message was also code for asking her 'to engage in sexual acts'.

She said her superior was trying to 'chat her up' when talking business on a work call where he was running his hands through his hair and 'staring' at her, a London employment tribunal heard.

Ms Gasparova took her employers  paperless documents firm essDOCS  to the tribunal claiming sex harassment, discrimination and unfair dismissal. In April 2021 she submitted a detailed grievance against her boss and resigned when it was rejected twice.

But a judge-led panel has thrown out her case, ruling she has a 'skewed perception of everyday events' and regularly misinterpreted 'innocuous' interactions.

Ms Gasparova was also ordered to pay 5,000 to essDOCS for failing to comply with tribunal procedures in adequate time.

IT worker Karina Gasparova (pictured) claimed that her boss Aleksander Goulandris's use of question marks in the 'xx' message was code for asking her 'to engage in sexual acts'

Ms Gasparova told bosses she thought Aleksander Goulandris (pictured) wanted to have a sexual relationship with her, but was treating her badly because she had 'rejected his advances'

The tribunal heard she started working at essDOCS in west London as an IT project manager in November 2019 under the co-head and former chief executive, Mr Goulandris.

Ms Gasparova told bosses she thought Mr Goulandris wanted to have a sexual relationship with her, but was treating her badly because she had 'rejected his advances'.

She claimed this included shouting at her, undermining her in meetings with clients and removing key elements of work from her.

Ms Gasparova told the panel Mr Goulandris was a 'rich and powerful man', so his conduct had not been 'overt' as 'a man in his position would be too clever' to make obvious moves.

The panel ruled this meant her case 'rested on interpreting seemingly innocent interactions' between Mr Goulandris and herself and 'finding a sinister motive in them'.

Ms Gasparova claimed that in November 2019 Mr Goulandris touched her leg with his leg under the table and 'stared at her', leaving her feeling 'anxious and uncomfortable'.

The tribunal ruled the incident did occur, but it had been accidental and was 'innocuous' in nature.

In other claims which were dismissed by the panel, Ms Gasparova said Mr Goulandris touched her hand when motioning for her computer mouse and missing it.

On a work call in March 2020, she said Mr Goulandris was giving her 'leering looks' as he 'constantly ran his hand through his hair' and started staring at her in between asking her questions.

The panel heard that although he had been talking to her about business, she interpreted his behaviour 'as trying to chat her up' because he was spending so long doing it.

In May 2020, Mr Goulandris renamed a draft presentation file by adding 'ajg' in brackets - something Ms Gasparova interpreted as 'A Jumbo Genital'.

The panel heard Mr Goulandris' middle name is John and it was his habit to add his initials AJG to the names of documents he had reviewed.

It was heard that when she invited him to lunch in September 2020, 'to get some peace' from him sending 'lots of messages', he declined her offer.

Ms Gasparova told the tribunal this was because 'lunch involved romance and he only wanted sex'.

The same month, when Mr Gasparova asked her when a project would be finished, she told the tribunal he burst out shouting with an 'extremely angry voice', saying 'I need date, date, date'.

Ms Gasparova interpreted this as having been asked 'the exact date when I would finally agree on sexual contact with him'.

Mr Goulandris said Ms Gasparovav (pictured) misinterpreted his politeness for 'flirting' when he said 'have a nice evening' in what she described as an 'alluring voice'

In October she complained about receiving an invitation to the same meeting 16 times from Mr Goulandris - but the tribunal found this was not deliberate or sexual in nature.

In January 2021, Mr Goulandris said Ms Gasparovav misinterpreted his politeness for 'flirting' when he said 'have a nice evening' in what she described as an 'alluring voice'.

The panel heard later that month, Mr Goulandris emailed Ms Gasparovav asking for information on a project. To indicate the details he required her to fill in he used XX, YY and ???? in the message, written in red.

The tribunal heard she interpreted the x's as meaning kisses, the y's as sexual contact of some kind and the question marks as when she would be 'ready to engage in sexual acts'.

The panel heard Ms Gasparova tried to rally support from fellow female colleagues and asked whether Mr Goulandris had ever made sexual advances like 'leering, winking and touching'.

Nobody responded to her.

In April 2021, she submitted a detailed grievance, which saw all her sexual harassment allegations dismissed.

She appealed the decision in May 2021 but it was again rejected, so she resigned.

Employment judge Emma Burns said: 'Our primary reasons for rejecting her account of events were that we considered her perception of everyday events was skewed.

'She demonstrated a tendency to make extraordinary allegations without evidence and she contradicted herself in a way that could not be attributable to a fallible memory.

'Ms Gasparova interpreted entirely innocent work-related conduct, some of it accidental, by Mr Goulandris as having a sinister intent.'

Her claims of direct sex harassment, discrimination and unfair dismissal were rejected by the panel.
Colombias first leftist president Gustavo Petro sounded the alarms about a brewing coup plot against him. He told participants during an event in Sucre at which land was turned over to dispossessed peasants, For the first time there is a president that, instead of trying to take the land away from peasants to keep it or give it to his friends, he is trying to give the land back. And now some former colonel says that this deserves a coup detat these coups are resisted and overcome through the mobilization of citizens.

Petro was referring to statements made on May 11 by retired Army Colonel John Marulanda during a debate on La W radio. Marulanda said that the mobilization of retired members of the military is a sign that Colombia is following the steps of Peru wherein the reserve forces were successfully able to defenestrate a corrupt president. He added, Here we will do our best to defenestrate someone who was a guerrilla fighter.





On Wednesday, May 10, around 3,000 retired members of the Armed Forces mobilized in the Plaza Bolivar against Petros government. The retired members particularly take issue with Petros plan for Total Peace, in which the government has engaged in peace talks and negotiations with numerous armed groups and established several bilateral ceasefires. Retired army personnel also criticized progressive reforms promoted by Petro and members of the Historic Pact, such as the health care reform and labor reform. Many in the mobilization demanded Out Petro! and particularly opposed him for being a former member of a guerrilla group. In this context, Marulandas words have sparked concerns of a coup plot against Petro.
One claimed he thought the quiet 10-year-old boy was only aged around six because of his small frame and stature

Shocked neighbors of the Georgia parents accused of attempting to starve their ten-year-old son to death said they fear they missed signs something was wrong and thought the small, quiet child was aged just six.

Tyler and Krista Schindley were arrested after their emaciated son was found wandering around their upscale Griffin neighborhood in search of food.

He told neighbors and authorities he did not want to be sent back home. It was soon determined that the child had been intentionally starved and weighed just 36 pounds - less than that of an average four-year-old.

The Schindleys were subsequently charged with second-degree attempted homicide, first degree attempted malice murder, cruelty to children and false imprisonment.

The couple have been charged with attempted murder, in addition to several counts of child abuse

In addition to being starved, the boy had been kept locked inside a bedroom and was left alone in the house 'for extended periods of time, and on multiple occasions, with no access to lights, food, clothing or adult interaction and/or assistance', according to court affidavits.

In the Schindley's neighborhood on Wednesday, neighbors of the Schindleys said they were distraught to think they may have missed signs of abuse.

'We thought he was about six,' said Mitch Seigler. 'We didnt know how old he is. The little boy just stayed to himself. They were very quiet people. I say, very private.'

Seigler said that he and his wife, Kim, can't help but feel like they missed clues about as to what was going on.

'My wife, it just tears her up,' he said, adding that his two granddaughters often played with the boy's sister.

Kim Seigler, told Fox5 that she had previously worried about the Schindley children.

'The fact that they're my neighbors... just made me feel bad... like I should've been more observant,' she said.

Detectives in Griffin told the WSB-TV team the investigation into the Schindley home would be a long one and that new details may not be released for a while.

The 10-year-old remains in the hospital, where he is being treated for malnutrition and a low heart rate. He was also suffering from the 'dental injury and disfiguration' his parents allegedly failed to treat.

The other four children living in the Schindley house have been taken into custody by Georgia Child Services.

The Schindleys' home in Griffin, Georgia, which is worth an estimated $447,000

Police in Griffin arrested Tyler and Krista Schindley after neighbors found their emaciated son roaming through the streets on Friday. Pictured: Krista and Tyler in a photo from her social media earlier this year

Kim Seigler, a neighbor of the Schindleys, who said she often worried about the children in that house

Authorities did not share information about the conditions of the other children, all of whom were homeschooled, but said it seemed that the 10-year-old boy was the only one being starved.

In addition to attempted murder, the Schindleys are accused of committing child cruelty in the third degree by allowing their four other children to 'see and/or hear' physical abuse against the boy on multiple occasions from 2020 to 2023.

District Attorney Marie Broder said during a Tuesday news conference: 'This child was, simply put, being starved to death, and it is tragic.'

'I truly believe that if he had not gotten out of that home, this would be a very different case,' she added.

'This case is just disturbing. It's heartbreaking,' said Broder who has spent the bulk of her career prosecuting child abuse suspects.

'As a mother, I can't comprehend it. As a human being, it breaks your heart. We aren't releasing any photos of this child for obvious reasons, but I will tell you, the photos are absolutely horrible, and anybody with a human heart, who looks at them, should be shaken to their core.'
Escape to the Chateau's Dick and Angel Strawbridge have been branded 'spiky', 'volatile' and 'a nightmare to work with' after it was revealed Channel 4 has cut ties with the couple.

The broadcaster has confirmed that it will no longer work with Dick, 63, and Angel, 45, on any new productions 'following a review' into their conduct.

Sources close to the couple told MailOnline today that their behaviour on set was nothing like their 'gorgeous' on screen personas.

Insiders added that they couldn't hide their 'real characters' to crew members who spent weeks with them filming the popular show in north-west France.

It's also been mooted Channel 4's culling of the hit show was 'convenient' given the series - which has been on screen for seven years and sparked numerous spin-offs - had run its course.

Channel 4 has confirmed that it will no longer work with Dick, 63, and Angel, 45, on any new productions 'following a review'

Their show Escape to the Chateau became one of the channel's biggest hits when it started airing in 2016

A source said: 'Dick and Angel come across on screen as the most gorgeous and lovely couple, literally like butter wouldn't melt, but they're not like that off screen.

'It's a full-on show, production is with them at the chateau for weeks so they can't hide their real characters - they can't turn it on for two hours of recording and then not go back to their real persona.

'They're just spiky and volatile people and, as you can imagine, that's a nightmare to work with.'

Channel 4 launched an independent inquiry after production company Two Rivers Media raised concerns about the Strawbridges and announced it would no longer work with them.

A Channel 4 spokeswoman said: 'Following a review, we have taken the decision not to work with Dick and Angel on any new productions in the future.'

The series turned the couple into household names as 2.5million viewers regularly turned in to see the renovation of their 19th-century Chateau de la Motte-Husson in Martigne-sur-Mayenne, France.

The series was previously made by production firm Spark Media Partners, who oversaw the first four seasons from 2016 to 2018. But it also allegedly cut ties with the Strawbridges due to a feud.

Sources claim that, in the current climate, Channel 4 could no longer be associated with them.

Channel 4 has cut ties with Escape To The Chateau stars Dick and Angel Strawbridge following an independent investigation into their conduct

Sources claimed Two Rivers Media, the company that produces Escape To The Chateau, raised concerns about the presenting duo

They said: 'After the first fallout, Dick and Angel had significant leverage with Channel 4, so they were able to replace [the production company]. It was less woke times then.

'But because we now live in much more woke times, Channel 4 can't be seen to be connected to that type of behaviour. It just doesn't wash now.

'And there's a feeling, also, that the series had run out of steam anyway - there's virtually nothing left to do on that chateau, so they had a convenient end game.'

The exact nature of the allegations is not known, but Hollywood website Deadline reported that three of the Strawbridges former colleagues alleged the couple have clashed with producers.

In 2021, The Times reported that Angel branded a producer a 'f*****g c**t' after he complained about his treatment in a recording.

However, Jonathan Hales - who produced and directed the final two seasons of Escape to the Chateau - told Deadline he found the couple 'warm and welcoming.'

He said: 'Chateau de la Motte-Husson is primarily a family home, and since the day I arrived, I have treated the Strawbridges with a level of respect that has always been reciprocated.

'Although the location of much filming, the chateau is not a normal film set. Allowances must be taken into account for the fact that Dick and Angel run not only a busy events company, but have three generations of family living together.'
G7 leaders on Friday will announce a new round of tough economic sanctions on Russia in an attempt to cripple Vladimir Putin to the point where he could end the war in Ukraine.

'We're upping the economic pressure on Russia. We will continue to expand export controls to make it even harder for Russia to sustain its war machine among other things,' a senior administration official told reporters on a briefing call Thursday night from Hiroshima.

The sanctions will attempt to tighten the screws on Moscow's war effort, targeting Russia's mighty energy sector and other exports that aid Russian military.

The move comes amid reports Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is weighing an in-person appearance at the gathering of world leaders. He has addressed previous such gatherings virtually.

G7 leaders will announce tough new sanctions on Russia - above Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (right)

The senior administration official simply said Zelensky 'has always participated' in prior G7 engagements on Ukraine, adding that Zelensky 'in one, way, shape or form' would engage with leaders at this one.

The sanctions will target Russia and third-world nations receiving exports that help Putin's war effort. The United States will also add around 300 new sanctions against individuals and entities.

'This is going to be a significant effort that will that will extensively restrict Russian access to goods that matter for its battlefield capabilities,' the official said.

The action comes as Western allies hunt for new ways to tighten already restrictive sanctions on Russia, which include visa restrictions and an oil price cap.

The leaders may also look at tightening language in already existing sanctions that could make it harder for Moscow to find gaps in the sanctions regime.

The G7 consists of the United States, Japan, Italy, France, Germany, Canada and the U.K.

New sanctions would aim to cripple Russian President Vladimir Putin's war machine

US President Joe Biden (L) is greeted by Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (R) on Thursday as leaders arrive in Hiroshima for the G7

Zelensky had made the rounds with European leaders

President Joe Biden arrived in Hiroshima on Thursday evening. Russia's 15-month invasion of Ukraine is expected to top the leaders' agenda, as are ways to counter China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region.

'We stand up for the shared values including supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend their sovereign territory and holding Russia accountable for its brutal aggression,' Biden said as he met Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Thursday evening, in his first official bilateral of the summit.

As world leaders made their way to Hiroshima on Thursday to kick off Friday's summit, Russia unleashed another attack, firing 30 cruise missiles against different parts of Ukraine.

G7 leaders have reportedly been working on a document to reiterate support for Ukraine, which would be separate from the group's traditional joint statement at the end of its gathering.

Ukraine, backed by Western weapons and cash, is expected to launch major counter-offensive operations in the coming weeks to try to recapture tracts of its east and south from Russian forces.

Zelensky was in Europe this week to meet with leaders from France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany.

Fighting in Ukraine continues and has been ongoing for more than 15 months

At the last gathering of G7 leaders - in Germany of June 2022 - the gang of seven imposed a price cap on Russian oil and petroleum products.

Several G7 nations have individual sanctions on purchases of Russian oil. Crude is its top export and finances much of Putin's war effort.

However, countries like India and Turkey have helped make up for the lack of European oil purchases by upping their own.
NYC Health + Hospitals called the video 'disturbing' when announcing the woman had been placed on leave Tuesday

Justin Marino has two receipts from May 12 which were timestamped just minutes apart - including one for the bike seen in the viral video of the incident

The lawyer of a pregnant Manhattan hospital worker accused of taking a Citi Bike from a young black man claims that she paid for the bicycle moments before

A white Manhattan hospital worker and accused of taking a Citi Bike from a young black man is said to have 'paid' for the two-wheeler, her lawyer claims.

Lawyer Justin Marino, who is representing the six-months-pregnant Bellevue Hospital employee in the now-viral video of the incident, claims she was wheeling the bike away from the dock when the group pushed it back in and started filming.

The female hospital employee  donning blue scrubs emblazoned with 'NYC Health + Hospitals  could be seen screaming for help and accusing a black man of assault, even tearing up as a crowd gathered around them.

In the video a friend of the man can be heard defending him, saying the woman - branded a 'Karen' after the video - was in fact trying to steal from him.

Marino has vehemently denied these allegations on behalf of the hospital worker in a statement on his firm's website - even saying he has the receipts to prove it.

A white Manhattan hospital worker accused of taking a Citi Bike from a young black man 'paid' for the two-wheeler, her lawyer claims

Justin Marino is representing the pregnant Bellevue Hospital employee who was filmed in a now viral video which shows the incident taking place

According to Marino's statement, the first receipt allegedly shows the bike seen in the video was paid for and taken out before it was re-locked one minute later.

The second receipt allegedly shows another bike being taken out a minute later from the same docking station - the bike Marino said his client used to get home after being 'heckled and pressured to find a new bike' by the group.

Marino said that his client was placed on leave by NYC Health + Hospitals this week after the encounter was caught on tape - but added that the interaction was 'incomplete and lacking facts.'

He claims that his client had finished a 12-hour shift before getting on an available bike which 'no individuals were on or touching'. He claims she paid for this through the Citi Bike app.

'One or more individuals in that group physically pushed her bike (with her on it) back into the docking station, causing it to re-lock,' Marino said in the written statement.

This moment does not feature in the viral video.

It's been claimed that one individual then covered the bike's QR code stopping her from paying for it again, Marino said.

'In blocking the QR code, this individual's arm was touching my client's pregnant stomach, a condition of which she had made them aware,' he added.

'Throughout this time and for the remainder of the video, roughly five individuals were telling her to get off the bike and heckling her.

'The fact anyone would treat another person like this is tragic, especially a visibly pregnant woman.'

The New York lawyer then went on to defend his client's reputation saying that 'her entire life has been focused on helping others, irrespective of their background.'

DailyMail.com has contacted Marino and Bellevue Hospital for comment.

At one point, the woman accuses the man of assault saying he's 'hurting my unborn baby,' though the man says she put his hand on her stomach

The woman could even be seen crying in the video as she hopped onto the disputed bike

In the video, the unidentified Bellevue Hospital employee could be seen screaming for help

A roughly 90-second video of the incident was posted on TikTok and Twitter and shows an unidentified woman arguing with a man outside of New York City's Bellevue Hospital over the weekend near a Citi Bike rack.

One of the man's friends tells the woman that he is recording the situation as the man has his hand on the bike.

The woman then screams for help, saying: 'Help! Help me! Please help me!'

But the man's friend, offscreen, tells her: 'This is not your bike.'

The hospital employee then cries out for help again, and asks the man to 'please get off.'

She then takes off her hospital badge in an apparent effort to hide her identity, as one of the men could be heard asking her: 'You know you're not getting this bike?'

The woman only screams for help again and tries to get onto the rental bike, before swiping the man's phone.

'Why are you taking his phone?' one of the man's friends asks the woman. 'What's wrong with you?

'Do not touch his phone, do not touch his phone,' he tells the hospital employee.

She then tells the man that he's 'hurting my unborn baby,' to which the man replies: 'You put your stomach on my hand.'

The woman then turns around and starts to once again scream for help, at which point one of her coworkers approaches.

The man tries to explain: 'This is my bike, it's on my account' and tells the woman to 'please move.'

At that point, the woman can be seen apparently crying  though the man's friends say they are fake tears.

She then continues to climb onto the bike, hysterical with tears, as her coworker suggests they just 'reset the bike.'

But the man's friends continue to defend him, saying, 'It's his, it's his.'

One of the friends then again accuses the woman of 'fake crying,' telling her to stop, while the man asks her to 'stop touching me.'

The woman then steps off the bike and apparently stops crying as she pulls out her phone.

'Not a tear came down miss,' the friend says as the video ends.

Under Citi Bike's policies, anyone who keeps a bike out for longer than 45 minutes at a time will be charged $0.17 for each additional minute, and may have their account suspended.

If a customer does not return a bike within 24 hours, the account holder will be charged a lost or stolen bike fee of $1,200 plus tax.

A roughly 90 second video of the incident was posted on TikTok and Twitter and shows an unidentified woman arguing with a man outside of New York City's Bellevue Hospital (pictured) over the weekend near a Citi Bike rack

Bellevue Hospital has announced that it is investigating the incident involving its employee

A spokesperson for the New York Police Department said it did not receive any 911 calls or reports about the incident, but is aware of the video.

Meanwhile, Bellevue Hospital said in a statement it is investigating the incident.

'We have recently become aware of an incident that occurred off campus over the weekend and appears to involve one of our employees,' it said.

'We are sorry this happened, and we are reviewing the incident.'

The hospital added that it is 'committed to providing the highest quality of care to all New Yorkers with dignity, cultural sensitivity and compassion.'

The incident has been compared to Amy Cooper, dubbed the 'Central Park Karen,' who called the police on a black birdwatcher in 2020 and lost her job.

Cooper - who accused a black birdwatcher of threatening her in 2020 lost a lawsuit against her former employer for firing her after the incident in September 2022.

At the time she claimed she was illegally fired and falsely portrayed as a racist by New York investment house Franklin Templeton following the May 25, 2020, incident.

The following day, May 26, 2020, Franklin Templeton said in a tweet - which was liked 277,000 times - that it performed a legitimate investigation and 'determined indisputably' that Cooper was racist and terminated her.
Plans by BT to replace around 10,000 jobs with artificial intelligence (AI) could make it harder for Britons to get hold of a real human in customer services, it is feared.

The telecommunications giant today revealed it will slash up to 55,000 jobs in total by 2030 amid growing concerns about the impact of robots on the job market.

BT said a fifth of jobs will be cut in customer services as Britons rely more on online and app-based communication rather than call centres for things like upgrades and account servicing, but union bosses raised concerns over the impact on consumers.

A Communication Workers Union spokesman told MailOnline: 'The human aspect of this sort of work is crucial, and depriving customers and the wider community of the ability to access a person to discuss their problems would be completely wrong.'

BT insisted it would continue to have the same number of stores, and while AI would improve services, customers will not 'feel like they are dealing with robots'.

Boss Philip Jansen said: 'We are multi-channel, we are online, we have 450 stores and that's not planning on changing at all. There are plenty of opportunities for our customers to deal with people at BT... plenty of people to speak to.'

BT - whose headquarters is in Aldgate, east London - acknowledged that AI presents risks

He added that BT would be a 'huge beneficiary' of AI, saying: 'I do personally believe this is a huge leap forward in technology terms.'

BT job changes in full BT has 130,000 total employees as it stands. This includes 80,000 staff in the UK, 20,000 staff abroad and 30,000 contractors, who are mostly abroad. It plans to cut between 40,000 and 55,000 jobs by the end of the decade These include more than 15,000 cuts as BT completes building UK fibre networks; more than 10,000 as new UK networks require less maintenance; more than 10,000 from using new technology such as AI; and about 5,000 from restructuring Advertisement

While he acknowledged AI presented risks and companies needed to be 'careful', Mr Jansen said it was 'going to be as big as the internet and mobile phones' and would help create jobs.

'There will be loads of new services, applications, innovations and products that will emerge from this AI. BT will be able to participate in that,' he said.

But he stressed this would not mean machines will replace humans entirely, adding: 'We won't be in a situation where people feel like they're dealing with robots.'

The comments came days after Steve Hare, boss of accounting software firm Sage, said embracing AI could help 'turbocharge' productivity in the UK.

Speculation about the impact of AI on the workforce has swirled following the rise of software such as ChatGPT,which can create text and answer questions in a human-like fashion.

Other types of AI can be used to create images and videos simply from a text description.

The rapid development of the technology has been hailed by many businesses and tech leaders as a way to free human staff from low-skilled work so they can focus on more complicated tasks in a boost to the global economy.

But others have cautioned about the impact of machines on the labour market.

BT boss Philip Jansen said the telecoms giant would be a 'huge beneficiary' of AI technology

In March, analysts at investment bank Goldman Sachs predicted 300 million jobs could be lost or replaced by AI worldwide, particularly in areas such as administration, legal services, architecture and engineering.

READ MORE Artificial intelligence can help to 'turbocharge' UK productivity, says Sage software boss Advertisement

Others have warned that AI's ability to create artificial images and text will make it easier for misinformation to spread.

Of particular concern are 'deepfakes', images or videos that use AI to replace the face of one person with another to create hoaxes.

Even bosses at some of the world's largest tech companies have expressed fear over the potential of AI.

Last month Google boss Sundar Pichai said the technology 'can be very harmful if deployed wrongly' and admitted the potential dangers 'keep me up at night.'

In March, Italy became the first Western country to ban ChatGPT as its regulators investigated the software's collection of user information.

The UK Government, by contrast, has said it would adopt a 'light touch' approach to regulating the technology, with Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan saying any legislation introduced now could quickly become 'out of date.'

BT's embracing of AI came as the firm outlined plans to reduce its workforce from 130,000 to between 75,000 and 90,000 by 2030.

Mr Jansen estimated around 15,000 job losses would be from staff and contractors building the company's fibre broadband internet network.

The BT Group Tower in London is pictured yesterday, ahead of today's announcement

Another 10,000 reductions would be made from upgrading and turning off older networks and system  meaning fewer workers would be needed for maintenance and repairs.

Elsewhere, 10,000 jobs would be cut through increased 'automation and digitisation' of the firm's customer service and other operations and 5,000 roles would be eliminated through 'normal restructuring' of the business.

Mr Jansen said: 'By continuing to build and connect like fury, digitise the way we work and simplify our structure, by the end of the 2020s BT Group will rely on a much smaller workforce and a significantly reduced cost base.

'New BT Group will be a leaner business with a brighter future.'

He added the firm would be working with its union partners throughout the job cuts and would also rely on natural attrition - when an employee leaves the company but is not replaced.

Last month Google boss Sundar Pichai (pictured) said the technology 'can be very harmful if deployed wrongly' and admitted the potential dangers 'keep me up at night'

The move comes as the company reported a 12 per cent decline in its pre-tax profit to 1.7billion over the past year, and a slight dip in revenues.

The Communication Workers Union spokesman also said: 'BT's announcement to the City this morning that there will be a reduction from around 130,000 employees and subcontractors to around 90,000 over the next 5 to 7 years is no surprise.

'The introduction of new technologies across the company along with the completion of the fibre infrastructure build replacing the copper network was always going to result in less labour costs for the company in the coming years.

'However, we have made it categorically clear to BT that we want to retain as many direct labour jobs as possible and that any reduction should come from sub-contractors in the first instance and natural attrition.

'We have also stated that it's imperative that we should be in the room discussing and shaping the new skills required of the workforce as they move to a more digital network to ensure our members have a stable, secure career within BT well into the future; to which the company has agreed ongoing discussions with the CWU on these matters.'
A 29-year-old man has been charged with domestic violence-related murder after the death of a young mother who was stabbed in a 'horrific scene' on a public footpath.

Mother-of-four Heather Ball, was found with stab wounds on Wednesday night after emergency services were called to a unit complex on Short Street at Caboolture, north of Brisbane.

Police allege the 27-year-old woman and the man were involved in an altercation about 8.30pm before she was stabbed.

'Police were called to a unit in Caboolture to a scuffle, a woman screaming,' Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said on Thursday.

'Sadly, when the police turned up a woman had been stabbed. She was taken immediately to the hospital and sadly has passed away.'

The woman, named in media reports as mother-of-four Heather Ball, was found with stab wounds on Wednesday night

A 29-year-old man has been charged with domestic violence-related murder after the death of the young mother, who was stabbed in a 'horrific scene' on a public footpath

Queensland Police said the suspect fled the scene on foot to a vehicle before a pursuit began.

Authorities tracked a Holden Commodore travelling to the Sunshine Coast before it crashed into a police vehicle on the Bruce Highway.

Detective acting Inspector Anthony Green said police attempted to intercept the vehicle near Caboolture before it continued onto the highway.

'The man failed to stop, resulting in the deployment of-tyre deflation devices around Yandina before crashing into the rear of a police vehicle a short time later,' he said.

The Holden Commodore was allegedly travelling at high speeds and went through a red light.

Queensland Police allege the suspect fled the scene on foot to a vehicle before a pursuit began which ended (pictured, the damaged Commodore)

Police allegedly attempted to intercept the vehicle near Caboolture before it continued onto the highway (pictured, the damaged police vehicle)

Two male officers, a senior constable and a sergeant, sustained minor injuries in the crash. They have since been discharged from Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

A 29-year-old Morayfield man was arrested and taken to Sunshine Coast University Hospital for assessment.

Police later charged him with one count of domestic violence-related murder, two counts of attempted murder, two counts of dangerous driving, one count of evading police and one count of contravening a domestic violence order.

Det Insp Green said a domestic violence order was in place and the woman 'was the aggrieved'.

The commissioner said the incident was 'an absolute tragedy'.

'A horrific scene. A horrific scene, not only for police but for neighbours,' Ms Carroll said.

'They have witnessed what has taken place. It is on the footpath in front of their house, their units, and it is very, very difficult for police to deal with, let alone members of the public.'

The 29-year-old Morayfield man is expected to front Caboolture Magistrates Court via video link on Friday.

Police urged anyone with information about the incident to come forward.

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A repeat drunk driver has been charged with murder after killing a mother and seriously injuring her two children in a head-on collision, police say.

Jose Vargas was barreling down the wrong lane in his Chevrolet Tahoe when he smashed into Lisette Villasenor's Toyota Prius on the US-395 in San Bernardino at around 6pm last Thursday.

Villasenor, 36, of Victorville, was driving her daughter Ashley, 12, and six-year-old son Daniel who were 'excited' on the final day of tryouts for her cheer team, the California Allstars.

Two air ambulances rushed to the scene. Villasenor and the kids were taken to hospital but the married mother-of-three was pronounced dead after suffering catastrophic injuries. Daniel was taken to intensive care, while Ashley was moderately injured.

Vargas was uninjured and led away in cuffs. The alleged killer's extensive rap sheet for drunk driving meant the DA decided to charge the 41-year-old with murder.

Villasenor, 36, of Victorville, was driving her daughter Ashley, 12, and six-year-old son Daniel who were 'excited' on the final day of tryouts for her cheer team, the California Allstars

Vargas was uninjured and led away in cuffs. The alleged killer's extensive rap sheet for drunk driving meant the DA decided to charge the 41-year-old with murder

Vargas smashed into Lisette Villasenor's Toyota Prius on the US-395 in San Bernardino

Villasenor leaves behind her husband Humberto and their elder son Julian, as well as Ashley and Daniel.

Vargas, of Adelanto, previously signed two statements acknowledging he would face a murder charge if another DUI offense caused someone's death. He was still on probation for his latest drunk driving excursion in November.

Ashley's cheerleading team have set up a GoFundMe page for the family to cover the medical bills after their lives 'were tragically changed forever.'

'As Lisette, Daniel and Ashley excitedly drove to the final day of cheer tryouts at Cali Ontario, a reckless drunk driver took the life of our beloved Lisette and within seconds changed the lives of The California Allstars Ontario and the Villasenor family,' the page says.

'Lisette and Daniel were airlifted, while Ashley was taken by ambulance. During this time, our sweet Ash reached out to a trusted Cheer mom, Nicole Zambrano, who immediately went to the hospital to be with her. Ash also reached out to cheer sisters as she was scared that her mommy and brother were not awake.

'Ashley will never be able to hug her mom again. We will never scream, shout and cheer for Cali-O teams alongside our quiet and passionate cheer mom, Lisette, again.

'A drunk driver stole Lisette's future with her husband Humberto and three children Ashley, Julian and Daniel. I would like to ask everyone to please wrap their arms around our cheer family and spread love and light. If you are able, please donate as the family needs support.'

The GoFundMe campaign has raised over $32,000 as of Thursday morning.

Villasenor leaves behind her husband Humberto and their elder son Julian, as well as Ashley and Daniel

Vargas (pictured last Thursday being led away), of Adelanto, previously signed two statements acknowledging he would face a murder charge if another DUI offense caused someone's death. He was still on probation for his latest drunk driving excursion in November.

At the time of the May 11 crash (Vargas is pictured with cops after the crash), he was on probation for the Orange County felony DUI conviction.

Two air ambulances are seen swooping in on the scene of the crash last week

Villasenor (left and right) was rushed to hospital in an air ambulance but later pronounced dead

The DA said Vargas has previous convictions for drunk driving in San Bernardino County, Orange County, San Diego County and Los Angeles County.

At the time of the May 11 crash, he was on probation for the Orange County felony DUI conviction.

He had signed two 'Watson Advisements' after DUI offenses in San Bernardino in 2019 and the Orange County breach in 2022.

'If I continue to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, and as a result of that driving, someone is killed, I can be charged with murder', Vargas said in the signed statements.

The Watson Advisement was created after a California Supreme Court case in 1981. It means drunk drivers can be charged with murder even if they did not set out planning to crash and kill someone. Signing the advisement after a DUI means they are aware that getting behind the wheel drunk is an intentional act that threatens another's life.
The attorney for the man accused of murdering Cash App founder Bob Lee is demanding her client be released due to police relying too heavily on grainy CCTV.

In a Monday court filing, attorney Paula Canny said the narrative created by law enforcement against her client, Nima Momeni, was built on faulty foundations and does not prove he killed Lee in the early hours of April 4.

According to the San Francisco Standard, Canny argues police spent eight days after the killing creating a compilation video made up of fuzzy surveillance footage.

She said the case relies too heavily on this footage and that it is too blurry to ID either Momeni or Lee.

Lee's stabbing death on April 4 was originally thought to have been the result of random violence in the crime-ridden city of San Francisco.

But as a web of connections between Lee, Momeni, Momeni's sister and alleged attendance at underground sex and drug parties, other theories of the crime have emerged.

Footage obtained by DailyMail.com shows wounded Bob Lee staggering towards an apartment building with blood on his hands after being stabbed

At one point, Lee attempts to get a passing car's attention by desperately waving his hand to no avail

Friends of Nima Momeni have previously said his life was 'unraveling' in the weeks and months leading up to the alleged stabbing

The video referred to by Canny begins with a bloodied and dazed Lee, staggering along Main Street in the wake of the 2:30am attack.

Prior to this he appears to have an altercation with a dark figure on the other side of the road, which prosecutors believe is Momeni.

At the intersection with Harrison Street, a short walk from the iconic Embarcadero waterfront, Lee stepped in front of a car and appeared to lean over the hood pleading for assistance.

The interaction lasted mere seconds but the driver of the unidentified red vehicle drove away.

Lee then stumbled toward the Portside apartment building at 403 Main Street, but before he can hit the electronic intercom, he collapsed.

The dying man was motionless on the ground for several moments but managed to get to his knees and fumble with his phone.

When a second car drives past, he makes another attempt to wave it down, his outstretched hands covered in blood  but the motorist again drives away.

Eventually, Lee gets to his feet, his face drained of all color, and he staggered out of the picture at 2:36am, clutching his chest and leaving a trail of blood spatter on the sidewalk.

In separate CCTV, a mysterious hooded figure is seen searching flower beds in the same street where Lee was knifed, shortly after the attack.

Earlier this week it was revealed that Lee had been partying with Khazar Momeni, the 37-year-old wife of a prominent plastic surgeon and the sister of Nima Momeni.

Friends say Cash App founder Bob Lee was a regular at underground sex and drug parties with other San Francisco elites  including the sister of the man accused of killing him

Khazar Momeni is the sister of Nima Momeni, who is suspected of killing Cash App founder Bob Lee. She is pictured with her husband Dr. Dino Elyassnia

On April 4, Lee was filmed on surveillance cameras staggering into an apartment building in downtown San Francisco at 2.35am after being stabbed

Khazar and Lee were in a relationship in the weeks leading up to his death, his friends told the Wall Street Journal, and many feared he had fallen into a dangerous lifestyle, surrounding himself with the wrong group of people.

Prosecutors have previously said Momeni stabbed Lee in the heart multiple times after vowing to 'come down hard on him' and grilling him over his relationship with Khazar, with whom the Cash App founder exchanged intimate text messages.

Friends of the murdered tech mogul described how the father-of-two took drugs casually and partied regularly.

They said Lee, 43, was passionate about developing the Venmo competitor following his career as a Google programmer.

But to unwind, Lee - nicknamed 'Crazy Bob' - would allegedly take ketamine and cocaine and travel to raves across the world.

Once, Harper Reed, the CEO of General Calacic Corporation, claimed he and Lee even stripped off their pants to attend a party.

Nima Momeni, right, listens to his attorney Paula Canny, who has said what his former friends and girlfriends are describing does not match her experience with Momeni

Nima's friends have said he was dealing with a drug addiction 'that made him unable to reason and speak' and was abusive to his girlfriends

Lee, who was separated from his wife, would often sleep with multiple women at these parties, including Khazar, sources told the Wall Street Journal.

It was at one of these parties on April 3, when Nima  who sources say was a recluse at these parties, often standing in the corner  confronted Lee.

Prosecutors say Nima asked Lee if he and his sister were 'doing drugs or anything inappropriate.' Lee assured him that nothing inappropriate had happened.

A few hours later, Lee was found dead with multiple stab wounds.

Authorities now say that Nima and Lee met up again later that night at Khazar's luxury apartment in Millennium Tower.

Surveillance footage showed the two getting into Nima's white BMW at around 2am on April 4 and leaving the scene.

He is believed to have driven Lee to a secluded area several streets over, where he stabbed the Cash app founder multiple times with a kitchen knife.

Nima then allegedly left Lee to bleed out in the middle of the street.

In a statement, Khazar's attorneys seemed to deny her involvement with Lee

Police have said Khazar was texting Lee around the time he died.

'Just wanted to make sure your doing ok Cause I know nima came wayyyyyy down hard on you,' she wrote in one of these messages.

'And thank you for being such a class man handling it with class. Love you Selfish pricks.'

In a statement, Khazar's attorneys also seemed to deny her involvement with Lee.

'There are many rumors circulating around this case, many of them untrue,' attorneys Mary McNamara and Ed Swanson told the Journal.

'Ms. Momeni loves and supports her brother,' they added. 'What happened here is a tragedy, and Ms. Momeni is deeply saddened at the suffering of the Lee family as they deal with their terrible loss.'

An ensuing autopsy found he had cocaine and ketamine in his system at his death.

Nima's friends have previously told how his life was unraveling as he was dealing with a drug addiction 'that made him unable to reason and speak,' fascinated with weapons and a history of abuse accusations from an ex-girlfriend.

'This is one of those things where [we'd say], 'Nima, you're cool, we love you, but you don't make full sentences,' one long-time friend speaking on a condition of anonymity told Mission Local.

The friend said that he was extremely close to sister Khazar, to the detriment of other friendships.

Momeni is due to be arraigned in court later today.
An alleged Bosnian war criminal who served at a prison camp where Serbian detainees were systemically tortured has been arrested after living anonymously in a Boston suburb for nearly 25 years.

Kemal 'Kemo' Mrndzic, 50, was taken into custody in an early morning raid on Wednesday from his home in Swampscott, Massachusetts - about 13 miles from Boston.

He was a guard at the notorious Celebici prison camp in Bosnia-Herzegovina during the Bosnian War in the 1990s, according to the Justice Department.

Prosecutors say Mrndzic used a fake story to obtain refugee status in the United States in 1999 and evade justice for the crimes he committed during his time in the brutal prison camp.

Mrndzic, who has been charged with several counts of fraud, was reportedly identified by survivors of the prison who claim he participated in beating, starving and torturing detainees.

Alleged Bosnian war criminal Kemal 'Kemo' Mrndzic, 50, was arrested at his Swampscott, Massachusetts, home on Wednesday after living anonymously for nearly 25 years. The condo complex is pictured above

Mrndzic served alongside three guards who were convicted by the The United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Zdravko Mucic and Esad Landzo are pictured at the Hague

His neighbors described his Massachusetts condo complex as 'essentially a retirement home' filled with mostly eastern Europeans, telling the The Daily Beast they had no idea an alleged war criminal had been living among them.

They told the outlet that federal agents showed up with an armored truck and stayed for about two hours after taking Mrndzic into custody and searching his apartment.

Mrndzic and his wife landed at New York's John F. Kennedy airport as a refugee in March 1999 and took up residence in Lynn, Massachusetts, according to the criminal complaint. He became a naturalized citizen in 2009 and public records show he once worked as a supermarket manager in New England.

He was able to hide his true identity until March, 2022, when agents with the Department of Homeland Security confronted him with statements he had given to investigators with The United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Prosecutors say he then admitted he had been a guard at the prison and he lied in his refugee application, but still denied having participated or witnessing any human rights abuses. He was interviewed again a week later and once again claimed he had never harmed anyone during his time at Celebici.

On Monday, days before his arrest, Mrndzic met with DHS agents again and this time 'said he was ashamed of the manner in which he came to the United States,' according to the criminal complaint.

Guards at the camp committed system murders, rapes and engaged in torture, the ICTY found. Former guard Zdravko Mucic is pictured during his trial at The Hague

Detainees were reportedly fed animal rations and were forced to defecate in trenches behind the hanger under armed guard. Former guard Esad Landzo is pictured above

Hazim Delic is pictured during his trial at The Hague

Mrndzic also identified himself in two video recordings taken at Celebici in 1992, in which he appeared in uniform holding a rifle, per the document.

He began working at Celebici in June 1992 and served alongside three guards who were convicted by the ICTY after a trial at the Hague that saw survivors testify about the horrific conditions at the prison.

Guards at the camp committed system murders, rapes and engaged in torture and other forms of persecution of Serbian prisoners, the ICTY found.

Survivors said they were forced to sit in rows, shoulder to shoulder, on the concrete floor of a large metal hanger for months. They were reportedly fed animal rations and were forced to defecate in trenches behind the hanger under armed guard.

Some said they had their tongues burned with hot pieces of metal and their arms and legs set on fire. In at least one instance, someone said they had a lit fuse cord tied to his genitals.

More than a dozen camp survivors have attested to Mrndzic's role in systemic abuse at the camp. Six of the survivors said he participated in a notorious mass beating at the camp in August 1992. One survivor claimed Mrndzic once grabbed him by the hair after a beating and said 'no one would leave the camp alive.'

Survivors said they were forced to sit in rows, shoulder to shoulder, on the concrete floor of a large metal hanger for months

Three survivors recalled Mrndzic's use of karate to beat up prisoners and to 'practice his martial arts strikes.' One said Mrndzic was 'particularly vicious' because he beat prisoners on his own initiative rather than being order to do so, according to the federal complaint.

Prosecutors say after the Bosnian war ended, ICTY investigators interviewed Mrndzic in Sarajevo and accused him of being involved in the human rights abuses at the prison. Mrndzic then allegedly crossed the border to Croatia, where he applied to the U.S. as a refugee, claiming he had been persecuted and abused by Serbian forces.

He also allegedly claimed he had a half-brother in the U.S. who he wanted to join.

The Bosnian war was set off when a government dominated by Slavic Muslims and Croatians declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1992 and declared themselves the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It ended in late 1995 with an estimated 250,000 dead and another 1.8 million driven from their homes.

Paramilitary units and the Bosnian Serbian army expelled the non-Serbian population, destroyed their homes and separated families while forcing thousands into detention camps where many were tortured and later executed.

The alleged war criminal was released shortly after his arrest on Wednesday on a $30,000 cash bond.

He is also charged with falsifying, concealing, covering up a material fact from the U.S. government, using a fraudulently obtained U.S. passport and possessing and using a fraudulently obtained naturalization certificate, as well as a fraudulently obtained Social Security card.
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It cost half a billion dollars and has an extravagant 250ft support boat complete with a helipad  but that doesn't mean Jeff Bezos' vast new yacht is lacking a personal touch.

For the Amazon boss, the world's third richest man, that translates to a figurehead that bears a striking resemblance to his glamorous girlfriend Lauren Sanchez, 53.

Exclusive DailyMail.com photos offer a first look at the polished wooden sculpture, which sits on the prow of the Amazon boss' 416ft love boat.

It depicts a curvaceous woman carved in the style of a Roman goddess, dressed in a flowing gown and with long hair - and a face that bears more than a few similarities to that of the millionaire former TV personality.

The new pictures were obtained by DailyMail.com shortly after Bezos, 59, and the real Sanchez were photographed enjoying their inaugural vacation on the enormous vessel this week which is currently moored off the coast of Spanish island Mallorca.

Jeff Bezos' extravagant 416ft yacht has a figurehead on the prow that bears a striking resemblance to his glamorous girlfriend Lauren Sanchez, 53. The couple, who had spent the weekend at the Miami Grand Prix before jetting to Europe, have been an item since their affair was exposed in January 2019  ending both their marriages

The Koru, which underwent sea trials in February before being handed over to Bezos last month, is the second largest sailing ship in the world

Exclusive DailyMail.com photos show the polished wooden sculpture of a curvaceous woman carved in the style of a Roman goddess, dressed in a flowing gown and with long hair

Bezos and Sanchez arrived in Mallorca on a private jet on Monday and were flown out to his superyacht by helicopter

The couple, who had spent the weekend at the Miami Grand Prix before jetting to Europe, have been an item since their affair was exposed in January 2019  ending both their marriages.

Photos of Bezos with Sanchez were splashed across the National Enquirer, accompanied by a series of toe-curling text messages including one written by the Blue Origin founder that read: 'I love you, alive girl. I will show you with my body, and my lips and my eyes, very soon.'

Shortly before publication, the Albuquerque-born billionaire and then-wife Mackenzie released a statement that said they planned to divorce after 25 years while describing the split as 'amicable'.

Novelist Mackenzie, 53, walked away with a $35.6billion settlement and swiftly married again, to Seattle science teacher Dan Jewett; only to dump him just as swiftly in September 2022.

Despite that inauspicious beginning  which led to Bezos publicly accusing the Enquirer of extortion and claiming it threatened to publish racy photos of him and Sanchez  the couple appear more in love than ever.

Photos taken of the pair on the deck of the $500m superyacht this week show the duo soaking up the Spanish sunshine, with Bezos baring his trim figure in a pair of pale blue swimshorts while mom-of-two Sanchez was pretty in a hot pink bikini.

Photos taken of the pair on the deck of the $500m superyacht this week show Bezos baring his trim figure in a pair of pale blue swimshorts while mom-of-two Sanchez was pretty in a hot pink bikini

DailyMail.com photos offer a first look at the polished wooden sculpture, which sits on the prow of the Amazon boss' 416ft love boat

Their trip on the yacht, which is named the Koru after the Maori word for 'new beginnings', comes more than five years after it was commissioned

Bezos ' new yacht was constructed over a period of five-years - and is the tallest in the world, measuring over 230ft tall

Bezos has been very open about his love for Sanchez. They were pictured enjoying their inaugural vacation on the yacht this week moored off the coast of Spanish island Mallorca

Their trip on the yacht, which is named the Koru after the Maori word for 'new beginnings', comes more than five years after it was commissioned.

Known then as 'Project 721', the ship was built in the historic port of Zwijndrecht, close to Rotterham in the Netherlands, by sailboat specialists Oceanco.

Previous designs include the 350ft Black Pearl  an all-black aluminum sailing yacht designed for Russian billionaire Oleg Burlakov who died of Covid in 2021 and whose family still own the ship.

The Koru, which underwent sea trials in February before being handed over to Bezos last month, is the second largest sailing ship in the world  surpassed only by the Philippe Starcke designed Sailing Yacht A, which is owned by Russian fertilizer billionaire Andrey Melnichenko.

Last year, before Koru had even been launched, the vast size of her masts sparked an international controversy when Rotterdam announced that the middle section of the 100-year-old Koningshaven Bridge would be removed so the superyacht could make its way into the North Sea.

According to reports, Bezos had said he would pay to have the bridge dismantled and rebuilt again - but his request was refused.

Koru sails with a smaller 250ft support vessel that has been kitted out with a helipad and is stocked with a collection of speedboats and supercars for Bezos and Sanchez to enjoy. Bezos' superyacht (back) pictured near the support vessel (foreground) and a smaller vessel

Furious locals also created a petition to pelt the boat with rotten eggs on its maiden voyage - which garnered thousands of signatures.

In response to the backlash, Rotterdam's mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said no permit had been applied for, and the masts were eventually attached downstream in Rotterdam harbor.

The three-masted schooner yacht was finally delivered at the end of April and was sailed from the Netherlands to Mallorca via Gibraltar.

Along with a private submarine, Koru sails with a smaller 250ft support vessel that has been kitted out with a helipad and is stocked with a collection of speedboats and supercars for Bezos and Sanchez to enjoy.

The main ship, which is painted midnight blue and has gold accents, boasts three decks, a pool and a huge sun terrace  the same one Bezos and Sanchez were seen using earlier this week.

The interior is reportedly inspired by Eos, a 305ft yacht owned by former Fox CEO Barry Diller, and the megaboat costs $25m-a-year to maintain.
2 Bangladeshi soldiers killed in ambush

Xinhua) 11:07, May 18, 2023

DHAKA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Armed separatists Tuesday ambushed a group of Bangladeshi soldiers in the country's hilly southeastern region, killing at least two personnel, the army said Wednesday.

Two others were injured in the attack in Bandarban district, some 316 km away from the capital Dhaka, said the Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) under the defense ministry.

It said in a statement the Kuki-Chin National Army (KNA) terrorists detonated an improvised explosive device and opened fire on the military personnel who were patrolling the area.

The sudden blast and subsequent gunfire left two officers and two soldiers critically injured, it said, adding they were rushed to the hospital for urgent medical attention.

Two soldiers succumbed to their injuries during the treatment, said the ISPR statement.

The KNA is an ethnic separatist organization in Bangladesh based in the Chattogram Hill Tracts.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Over 700,000 people have been internally displaced in Sudan since April 15, when an armed conflict began between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to the UNs International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The IOM spokesperson, Paul Dillon, said at a press briefing in Geneva on May 9 that the number has doubled in the prior week after IOM had previously estimated on May 3 that 334,053 had been displaced, 72 percent of them in West Darfur and South Darfur States.





South Sudanese displaced by conflict in Sudan are seen at the reception center in Renk County, Upper Nile State, South Sudan, on April 30, 2023. (Photo by Denis Elamu/Xinhua)





In the states of South Darfur, North Darfur, and Central Darfur, clashes between the SAF and RAF began soon after they started fighting in Khartoum, killing many civilians, as Mohammed Alamaldin, a civil society activist from West Darfurs capital Genena, told Peoples Dispatch.





However, in his own state, community membersincluding youth, women, and eldershad managed to secure a local agreement between SAF and RSF to wait until the winner is determined in Khartoum.





The locally negotiated truce lasted for a little over a week before forces clashed on April 24. Amid the ensuing insecurity, the armed conflict between West Darfurs ethnic militias escalated, killing over 250 and wounding 300 civilians between April 27 and May 3, according to Alamaldin. On May 12 and May 13 alone, 280 were killed and over 160 were injured.





from the Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service
A woman-hating killer has complained that he cannot get a decent cup of tea in jail as he serves life behind bars for handcuffing his ex-partner to a bed and slitting her throat.

David Ferguson, 53, who is in HMP Wakefield with some of Britain's most notorious killers, complained the maximum security prison was 'miserable' and the showers were 'cold'.

The killer, who was jailed for life in 2000 after handcuffing Susan Kent, 33, to a bed and sexually assaulting her before slitting her throat, rattled off a series of complaints in a letter to lags' mag Inside Time.

In 1999, Maidstone Crown Court heard how sex-obsessed Ferguson stabbed the divorced mother-of-two ten times as he acted out a rape fantasy.

He then cut her throat and left her to die cuffed to the bed at her home in Gillingham, Kent.

David Ferguson, 53, was found guilty of the murder of Susan Kent - an ex-partner who he cuffed to a bed and repeatedly stabbed before slitting her throat - in 2000

Susan Kent, 33, was brutally murdered by David Ferguson who is now serving life behind bars for her death

During his trial it emerged that the depraved killer had been trying to set up a 'rape club' on the internet and described women as 'pieces of meat'.

When DNA linked him to the murder, he was handed a minimum 20-year term.

The former print worker still maintains his innocence and was due for parole recently, but it is believed to have been refused because he still denies the murder.

Writing from his cell at HMP Wakefield, Ferguson said the water boilers on each landing, used by prisoners to makes cups of tea and coffee, regularly break.

He said the prison was 'crumbling' and that the heating system was knackered, meaning either showers weren't working or were freezing cold.

He penned: 'Here at Wakefield the heating system has been broken for six years.

'On D-wing, four out of 16 showers have not worked for over five years - showers have black mould growing up the walls.'

Ferguson handcuffed Susan Kent to the bed at her home in Gillingham, Kent

He added: 'Water boilers for drinks have not been repaired for over five years. Similar failures of basic maintenance can be found on every wing.'

The murderer also whinged that prison guards 'showed off' to lags by wandering the corridors slurping barista-made frothy lattes.

He said 'Frothy coffee for you, no water for us', adding: 'We have to rely on hot water boilers on the landing in order to fill our flasks.

'These regularly break down and when they do they are often left in a state of disrepair for weeks, and sometimes for months on end.

'This leaves prisoners with no hot water for drinks.

'Despite this, HMP Wakefield's governor has spent part of the prison budget on a coffee car (a proper Baristas) for staff in the centre of the main residential unit.'

He said that before the government builds more prisons it should 'address the abysmal conditions' in current jails.

The killer wrote: 'Before existing prisons are expanded and new prisons built to warehouse yet more human misery, the government should address the abysmal conditions in currently existing jails.'

In 2015, the killer married his girlfriend Carol Nash behind bars, having proposed to her two years earlier.

The Daily Star reported the pair enjoyed a wedding complete with a buffet, flowers and wedding cake at the ceremony at HMP Wakefield.

He said that the prison management had been as 'obstructional as they possibly could be' in seeing the ceremony, which was attended by five people, go ahead.
Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna has introduced a resolution to expel California Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff from the House following the release of the Durham report, calling him a 'dishonor' to the chamber.

The Trump loyalist, who also earned backing from Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Donald Trump Jr. in 2021, filed her resolution on a day the House voted to refer to the Ethics Committee a Democratic motion to expel Rep. George Santos (D-N.Y.), who faces federal corruption and campaign finance charges in New York.

The move comes after Schiff denounced the Durham report as a 'wasted effort,' as it was revealed that the report digs into an incident where a university researcher who met with Schiff's own staff felt threatened by a request to provide analysis of a news article about the Trump Organization and Russia-owned Alfa Bank.

'Schiff lied to the American people. He used his position on House Intel to push a lie that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars. He is a dishonor to the House of Representatives,' the Floridian said.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna filed a resolution to expel Rep. Adam Schiff from Congress. She said he 'lied to the American people' and invoked the Durham report, which knocks down Russia collusion claims and calls the Russia probe 'seriously flawed.' She is pictured with Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y. - lower right) who is the subject of a Democratic expulsion resolution after being indicted on corruption and campaign finance charges

'The Durham report makes clear that the Russia collusion was a lie from day one and Schiff knowingly used his position in an attempt to divide our country,' she said.

The also tweeted out an image of the resolution.

Schiff, who led Trump's first impeachment as chair of the House Intelligence Committee and who is running for the Senate (House Republicans kicked him off the panel when they took over this year), sought to milk the attack against him.

He issued his own tweet on the matter. 'BREAKING NEWS: A MAGA Republican Member of Congress just filed a motion to expel me from the U.S. House of Representatives. I stood up to Donald Trump and held extreme MAGA forces accountable. Now they want payback. Theyll go after anyone who defends the rule of law.'

Both missives lit up the internet. Luna's got 1 million views, and Schiff's got 1.9 million views on Twitter.

Schiff Chaired the House Intelligence Committee and led the first Trump impeachment, and accused the Trump campaing of collusion with Russia

The Trump-backed Florida lawmaker tweeted out the resolution

Schiff sought to make hay out of the expulsion move by Paulina Luna, tweeting: 'BREAKING NEWS: A MAGA Republican Member of Congress just filed a motion to expel me from the U.S. House of Representatives.

Republicans on Wednesday voted to send a Santos expulsion resolution to the House Ethics Committee. Democrats had sought a vote on removal on the floor

Expelling Schiff, or any member is a long shot. Removal requires a two-thirds majority of the House, and Democrats have rallies behind Schiff, an ally of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

According to a 2016 CRS report, 'the underlying conduct deemed to have merited removal from office has historically involved either disloyalty to the United States, or the violation of a criminal law involving the abuse of ones official position, such as bribery.

Schiff infuriated Trump with his repeated claims of 'collusion' between the Trump campaign and Russia.

'I don't want to go into specifics, but I will say that there is evidence that is not circumstantial. But as I've said all along, there's plenty of evidence of collusion,' he said in one instance, on NBC's 'Meet the Press' in 2017.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy engineered Schiff's removal from the Intel committee, saying he 'lied to the American public.'

The Durham report blasts the FBI for having 'failed to uphold their mission of strict fidelity to the law' and acknowledges contacts between the Trump campaign and Russians, but says there was not evidence to justify a full-blown investigation during the 2016 presidential campaign. It calls that probe 'seriously flawed' and accuses the FBI of having 'confirmation bias.'
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A little known Australian beach has been crowned as the best in the world on a new global list.

Lucky Bay at Esperance in Western Australia was voted the world's top beach by a survey of 750 influencers, journalists and travel experts conducted by American sunscreen brand Banana Boat.

'It is without any doubt the most accurate and well researched list of beaches ever compiled,' said the organisers.

Lucky Bay (pictured) has been crowned the best beach in the world with crystal clear water, powdery white sand and kangaroos that laze along shoreline

Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays (pictured) has been named as the number four beach

Lucky Bay secured the number one spot that's to 'the friendly kangaroos' and 'some of the most pristine snow-white sand and incredible turquoise water you will ever see.'

'Stretching over 5 km guarantees you'll find a spot less crowded to simply take in all the natural beauty.'

Another Australian beach, Whitehaven in the Whitsundays, came in at number four.

'This impeccable beach has piercing white sand so fine it feels like powder under your feet. Consisting of 98.9 per cent pure silica it is renowned as some of the purest sand in the world.'

Another WA beach, Turquoise Bay near Exmouth, scored the number 17 spot.

'With its gorgeous Cape Range as a backdrop and fluffy soft sand, it truly lives up to its name with the most fantastic turquoise water.'

'Snorkeling at Turquoise Bay is one of the best experiences you'll ever have, with a healthy coral reef and lots of turtles to see.'

And the fourth Australian beach to make the list of the top 50 is Little Hellfire Bay, also near Esperance in Western Australia that is 'full of nature, peace, and paradise'.

Turquoise Bay (pictured) near Exmouth in WA came inn at number 17 thanks to it's pristine snorkelling

Little Hellfire Bay also in WA (pictured) was awarded a place in the best 50 beaches with dolphins swimming into the bay daily

'Come here to relax on the near-empty beach or dip into the clear turquoise water.'

There are also dolphins which swim into the bay daily.

'At Banana Boat, we believe in creating experiences that help you enjoy, embrace, and say 'yes' to more fun outdoors,' said Brianna Bostick, Associate Manager of PR & Brand Partnerships at Banana Boat.

'We are proud to present a list of world class beaches that help you achieve this, especially as we approach the summer months.'

'The list is uniquely defined by the firsthand experiences and careers of the industry's top professionals, making it the most trustworthy and accurate list of the world's best beaches ever created.'
An investigation was also opened in late 2014 into claims that foreign governments were trying to make illegal donations to buy influence with Hillary

Three of the probes were launched in early 2016 by FBI field offices in Arkansas, New York, and DC into 'possible criminal activity' by the Clinton Foundation

Florida Republican Matt Gaetz and former GOP congressman Jason Chaffetz are calling for criminal investigations into the Clintons to be reopened

The FBI had at least four criminal investigations into Hillary and Bill Clinton that were ultimately shut down months before the presidential election in 2016, a new Justice Department report reveals  and Republicans want to reopen those probes.

A long-awaited report by Special Counsel John Durham released on Monday shows the FBI began investigating claims in late 2014 from a 'well-placed' confidential source that two foreign governments were trying to make illegal donations to buy influence with Hillary during her presidential campaign.

Investigators were even offered documents of one alleged $2,700 illegal contribution that led to a 'substantial' further donation.

The bombshell report also reveals three different FBI field offices, in Washington, D.C., Little Rock, Arkansas, and New York, launched investigations into the Clinton Foundation in early 2016 for 'possible criminal activity.'

One of the investigations was partly based on statements made in journalist Peter Schweizer's 2015 book, Clinton Cash, claiming the Clintons' charity was taking millions in donations from foreign governments trying to change US foreign policy while Hillary was Secretary of State.

But despite making progress, all four criminal investigations were shut down by senior officials, Durham found.

The Special Counsel's report revealed that the FBI began investigating claims in late 2014 that two foreign governments were trying to make illegal donations to buy influence with Hillary during her presidential campaign

Three FBI field offices also launched probes into 'possible criminal activity' involving the Clinton Foundation in early 2016, the report shows

Former GOP congressman Jason Chaffetz and Florida Republican Matt Gaetz are now calling for the criminal investigations into the Clintons to be reopened

The new revelations are prompting calls from current and former Republicans for a renewed investigation into the alleged criminal activity involving the Clintons.

One is Florida Republican representative Matt Gaetz, who sits on the House Judiciary Committee's 'Weaponization of the Federal Government' subcommittee which has been probing claims of political bias in the FBI.

'The Clintons had a team of people at the FBI running interference for them to avoid criminal culpability,' Gaetz claimed in a statement to DailyMail.com.

'These matters absolutely warrant additional exposure and review.'

Former Republican congressman and ex House Oversight Committee chair Jason Chaffetz expressed similar sentiments saying the FBI 'didn't complete the job' and probes into the Clintons should be reopened.

'They had the scent, they were on the trail, and they were shut down by the higher ups who had an obvious political desire to see Donald Trump lose and Hillary Clinton win,' he said.

'It's disgusting really. Absolutely these investigations should be revisited,' he added.

'There's no reason why Congress can't have a series of hearings with the field agents who were pursuing the Clinton Foundation, and public interviews with them as well.'

Bombshell new information about the FBI's Clinton probes was disclosed in the special counsel's 316-page report delivered to Attorney General Merrick Garland on May 12.

The report compared the FBI and Justice Department's voracious investigation of Trump's connections with Russia, to its allegedly lackluster approach to its Clinton probes 'tippy-toeing' around the former Secretary of State.

Durham reviewed a January 2016 report on the Clinton Foundation by the Little Rock Field Office which found possible evidence that 'large monetary contributions were made to a non-profit, under both direct and indirect control of [a] federal public official, in exchange for favorable government action and/or influence.'

Special Counsel John Durham on Monday finally released his report into the origins of the Trump-Russia collusion after three years of investigations

Durham highlighted the different approaches by top FBI brass with the Clinton probe compared to the Trump campaign investigation

Durham wrote that the 'decision to provide defensive briefings to Clinton and others seems to conflict directly' with McCabe's notion that such a move could hamper the Trump campaign investigation

Durham wrote that the New York and Little Rock Field Offices had 'source reporting that identified foreign governments that had made, or offered to make, contributions to the Foundation in exchange for favorable or preferential treatment from Clinton.'

And an agent in the Washington Field Office also opened a preliminary probe into the Clintons 'because the Case Agent wanted to determine if he could develop additional information to corroborate the allegations in a recently-published book, Clinton Cash by Peter Schweizer'.

Among the Clintons' murky foreign entanglements scrutinized in Schweizer's book was a 2010 deal that gave the Russian government control over huge swathes of US uranium production including 38,000 acres in four Western states.

A Russian state-controlled company built up a 51% controlling stake in previously Canadian firm Uranium One between 2009 and 2013, in a deal approved by a powerful US government committee on which Hillary sat as Secretary of State.

Over the same period, Uranium One's chairman Ian Telfer used his family foundation to make $2.35million in donations to the Clinton Foundation, according to Canadian tax records reported by the New York Times in 2015.

The gifts were not disclosed despite an agreement Hillary signed before joining the Obama administration to identify all donors.

In June 2010, the same month Russian energy firm Rosatom struck its deal to buy 51% of Uranium One, Bill Clinton was paid $500,000 to speak at an event in Moscow, the Times reported, after an investigation based on a preview copy of Schweizer's book.

The deal was one of several cases highlighted in Schweizer's book involving rich Clinton Foundation mega-donors and foreign governments with interests in Hillary's decisions as Secretary of State.

A Wall Street Journal report from February 2015 identified the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Australia, Germany, and a Canadian government agency promoting the Keystone XL pipeline as donors to the foundation's $250million endowment campaign  though noted that Hillary stopped raising money from foreign governments after she became secretary.

One of the investigations was partly based on statements made in journalist Peter Schweizer's 2015 book, Clinton Cash, claiming the Clintons' charity was taking millions in donations from foreign governments trying to change US foreign policy

Among the Clintons' murky foreign entanglements scrutinized in Schweizer's book was a 2010 deal that gave the Russian government control over huge swathes of US uranium production

Over the same period, Uranium One's chairman used his family foundation to make $2.35million in donations to the Clinton Foundation - which were not disclosed. Pictured: The then-Secretary of State posing with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in 2009

At the time the Clintons issued strong denials of any impropriety.

'[No one] has ever produced a shred of evidence supporting the theory that Hillary Clinton ever took action as secretary of state to support the interests of donors to the Clinton Foundation,' their spokesman Brian Fallon told the Times in April 2015.

'To suggest the State Department, under then-Secretary Clinton, exerted undue influence in the U.S. government's review of the sale of Uranium One is utterly baseless.'

And on Thursday, a spokesperson for the Clinton Foundation pushed back against the claims of alleged wrongdoing requiring FBI investigation.

The spokesman said the Durham report 'emphasized what's been clear for many years  there's never been any wrongdoing by the Clinton Foundation', adding that Durham referred to Schweizer's book as 'unvetted hearsay' in his report.

'Secretary Clinton was not involved in the State Department's review of the Uranium One deal,' the spokesman said.

'The largest Clinton Foundation donor cited in these claims sold his stake in Uranium One several years before the deal.

'None of the Clintons have ever taken any money from the Clinton Foundation  in fact, the Clintons themselves are major donors to the Clinton Foundation.'

The spokesman said Schweizer's claims were 'baseless' and pointed to previous investigations by the Trump administration's Justice Department and House Republicans in 2018 which concluded with no evidence of wrongdoing.'

The first was a 2018 probe by the House Oversight Committee into allegations from financial analysts who claimed to have found evidence of financial crimes at the Clinton Foundation.

The second was a Justice Department inquiry launched in 2017, which was reported by the Washington Post to be winding down in 2020.

The Justice probe looked into allegations of alleged corruption at the Clinton Foundation and reportedly included a review of the FBI Little Rock Field Office's previous investigations into the charity, but did not result in any charges being filed.

The spokesman pointed to the charitable work done by the Clinton Foundation, including 'helping millions access lifesaving HIV/AIDS treatment' and bringing 'healthy food and exercise options to tens of millions of American kids', as well as extensive philanthropy abroad.

The Durham Report revealed that the FBI was also investigating evidence of two foreign governments attempting to influence Clinton with allegedly illegal campaign donations during the 2016 presidential run.

Agents had a 'well-placed' confidential source who told them in late 2014 that a particular foreign government, unidentified in Durham's report, was planning to make illegal donations to Clinton's campaign to influence her.

Durham wrote that the FBI gave a defensive briefing about it to Clinton and Trump.

The FBI then followed the informant into the midst of a second foreign influence attempt in 2015  which the informant claimed Clinton's campaign was aware of and even complicit in.

FBI reports reviewed by Durham said that in November 2015 their informant was asked to introduce to Hillary a person with 'foreign intelligence and criminal connections', on behalf of a second foreign government.

Durham wrote that the shady intelligence operative 'wanted to propose 'something' that [the FBI informant] understood to be campaign contributions on behalf of Foreign Government-3 in exchange for the protection of Foreign Government-3's interests should Clinton become President.'

The shady foreign operative was initially invited to a Clinton fundraising event in late November 2015, but was later disinvited 'because of the perceived negative attention a foreign national might attract', Durham's report said.

Though Durham did not identify the campaign event, regional newspaper The Tennessean reported a private Hillary fundraiser that month at the Nashville home of businessman Bill Freeman, which raised more than $500,000 for her presidential bid.

The FBI informant got permission from their Bureau handler to attend the fundraiser, but did not go, the Durham report said.

However the informant did attend another Clinton fundraiser in January 2016, where they made an alleged illegal donation on behalf of the foreign government, allegedly with the knowledge of Clinton's campaign.

According to the report, former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe was 'negative', 'annoyed' and 'angry' about the FBI's Clinton probes at the February 2016 meeting and questioned why they were being conducted

The report includes revelations about the FBI's investigations into the Clintons in 2015 and 2016 relating to allegedly illegal campaign donations and 'possible criminal activity' involving the Clinton Foundation

According to the report, during a February 2016 meeting, former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe directed the three field offices to to close their cases into the Clinton Foundation

'Without the knowledge or prior approval of the handling agent, CHS-A [the FBI informant] had made a $2700 campaign contribution (the maximum amount at the time for an individual contribution) prior to the event, which CHS-A indicated he/she 'made on [his/her] [credit] card' on behalf of Insider-1 [the foreign operative],' the report said.

'If true, the campaign contribution on behalf of a foreign national would violate Title 52 USC Section 30121 ('Contributions and donations by foreign nationals').'

The informant told the FBI Hillary's campaign 'were okay with it' and 'were fully aware from the start'.

The FBI also had evidence that the $2,700 donation 'allegedly was a precursor to the contribution of a significant sum of money by Insider-1 on behalf of Foreign Government-3'.

But Durham found the Bureau failed to pursue the alleged illegal donation scheme or document it properly, instead telling their informant to cut contact with the Clinton campaign.

Agents did not give a defensive briefing to Clinton or Trump regarding this second foreign government.

Durham wrote that one FBI field office tried to get wiretapping warrants based on some of the informant's information as early as 2014, but the Bureau HQ dragged their feet.

An unnamed FBI special agent in charge working on the probe told Durham 'everyone was super more careful' and 'scared with the big name involved'  referring to Clinton.

'They were pretty 'tippy-toeing' around [Clinton] because there was a chance she would be the next President,' the agent said.

The report also found Hillary had personally approved a plan to 'vilify' her opponent Donald Trump by claiming foreign interference in the election in 2016

Durham said it made for a 'rather startling and inexplicable failure' to incorporate what he termed the 'Clinton Plan intelligence' into the FBI's investigation

Although neither foreign government whose operatives allegedly approached the Clinton campaign were identified in the report, Schweizer told DailyMail.com that the United Arab Emirates was a potential candidate.

In 2022, convicted pedophile and American adviser to the Middle Eastern nation George Nader pleaded guilty to his role in helping funnel millions of dollars in illegal campaign contributions from the UAE to 2016 US presidential campaigns.

Prosecutors said $3.5million from the UAE government was given to Democratic political committees working to elect Clinton, via Nader.

Nader said he also met Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. several times in 2016, and was a frequent visitor to the White House during Trump's first year in office.

The Durham Report revealed that the three FBI field offices began coordinating their Clinton Foundation investigations and in February 2016 met with top FBI and Justice Department officials.

But Public Integrity Section Chief Ray Hulser, one senior DoJ official at the February 1 meeting, declined to take up the Clinton case.

According to Durham's report, Hulser said the FBI briefing was 'poorly presented' and that there was 'insufficient predication for at least one of the investigations due to its reliance on allegations contained in a book.'

An acting section chief from the FBI's Office of General Counsel who was also present at the meeting, kept anonymous by Durham, said that the Justice Department's reaction was 'hostile'.

The report detailed a second meeting three weeks later on February 22, chaired by then-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, who 'initially directed the field offices to close their cases'.

McCabe himself had recent ties to the Clintons.

His wife Jill was recruited by Clinton aide and ally, Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe, to run for state senate in March 2015, while McCabe was director of the FBI DC field office.

In August 2016, months before the presidential election, The New York office was told to 'cease and desist' their Clinton investigation by then-FBI director James Comey, the report said

Common Good VA PAC, which featured Hillary as a speaker at its fundraiser that year, gave $450,000 to Jill's campaign in October 2015.

McCabe was promoted to number 3 at the Bureau as associate deputy director in July 2015, the same month the FBI began investigating Hillary's use of a private email server for government business.

The FBI has said that McCabe did not have any 'oversight' over the email case as associate deputy director. He was promoted to deputy director in February 2016, when he began his Clinton probe oversight.

Then-Washington Field Office assistant director-in-charge Paul Abbate told Durham that McCabe was 'negative', 'annoyed' and 'angry' about the FBI's Clinton probes at the February 2016 meeting, asking 'why are we even doing this?' and telling attendees that the DoJ 'say there's nothing here'.

The New York office was also told to 'cease and desist' their Clinton investigation by executive assistant director Randy Coleman, delivering the message on behalf of then-FBI director James Comey, the report said.

Durham wrote that Coleman cited 'some undisclosed counterintelligence concern' as the reason for shutting down the probe, but the special prosecutor said he 'was not able to determine what the counterintelligence issue raised by Comey was.'

Despite the demands from bosses to close the investigation, the New York office continued to dig, and on August 1, 2016 agents were given permission to seek subpoenas from the US Attorneys' offices in the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, Durham's report said.

But both prosecutors' offices declined to issue the subpoenas to the Clintons, effectively hamstringing the agents' work.

McCabe's lawyer Michael Bromwich said references to the ex-FBI deputy director's involvement 'couldn't be more wrong' and that 'the only things new in Mr. Durham's report are factual errors.'

Durham's report said that McCabe initially told his agents to shut down their investigation, but then agreed to further review. Bromwich said the probe was not closed until 'years later'.

'Mr. McCabe was recused from any role overseeing the still-open cases in the fall of 2016,' the lawyer wrote in an email.

'The cases were then reviewed and overseen by David Bowditch [another FBI deputy director] until their closure years later. Our understanding is that those investigations were closed as unworthy of being further pursued.'

Schweizer told DailyMail.com he was surprised to learn the FBI had launched three criminal probes prompted by his book.

'I was a little surprised that there was as much activity as there was. I had no idea that much paddling was going on underneath the surface of the water,' he said.

'I got a call from somebody from the New York FBI office after the book came out,' he added.

'There was a New York Times piece on Uranium One. It was kind of confirming what we had in the book. That's what I think triggered the interest.

'With the Clinton Foundation, you have the transfer of large sums of money, you had policy positions that were affected, and you had certifiable evidence.

'I'm not a lawyer, so I can't say what was illegal. But there was definitely a there there, with all the speeches, donations and policy effects, and nobody's ever really disputed that.'
General Hospital star Haley Pullos was involved in a prior hit-and-run before she plowed head-on into a white 2020 Kia at 1.45am while traveling in the wrong lane.

The actress, 24, seriously injured a male driver in the April 29 crash, and had to be pulled from her own vehicle by jaws of life in Altadena, California.

But moments before, she was also involved in another crash with a 27-year-old woman.

The police report read: 'It was determined Haley Pullos was involved in a hit and run traffic collision that occurred in the city of Pasadena prior to entering the wrong way onto the eastbound SR-134 freeway.'

The actress, 24, seriously injured another male driver in the April 29 crash, and had to be pulled from her own vehicle by jaws of life

The front of both cars are completely destroyed, with debris from the collision spread across the freeway

Pullos had been traveling on the 134 Freeway in California just before 1.30am on April 29 and was involved in a head-on crash.

She collided with an Oldsmobile driven by a 27-year-old woman from Fontana in the westbound lane, before crossing over the median strip.

The Oldsmobile driver did not suffer serious injuries.

Cops did not reveal any more details about the first crash.

The actress swerved and ended up in the eastbound lane, colliding with an oncoming Kia moving at 60mph.

The 23-year-old male driving the Kia was left with major injuries - as was Pullos.

According to a police report, Pullos was unable to get out of her 2019 Ford.

Pasadena Fire Department had to use jaws of life to extract Pullos from her vehicle before she was taken to Huntington Hospital.

When firefighters did manage to rescue her she became aggressive, hitting one and shouting: 'This is a $400 f****** shirt.'

It is alleged that while in hospital she was aggressive and fought hospital staff, before she had to be sedated.

Haley Pullos on the set of General Hospital on September 27, 2010

Pullos has a TikTok where she talks about true crime

Pullos, pictured in August of last year, has been arrested for DUI over the incident

Pullos is seen on set of General Hospital in 2014

Following the crash, Pullos limited the comments on her Instagram page as she announced she was being temporarily replaced on the show General Hospital.

Pullos also hosts her own true crime podcast, called Criminally Insane - and shares the histories of gruesome murders, serial killers, and missing persons cases.

She posted an episode after the crash on May 10, about English murderer Shaye Groves. It's unclear if it was recorded before her double collision.

Images shared by Pasadena Fire Department show the horrific damage caused by the incident - both drivers were lucky to have lived.

The front of the cars are completely obliterated, with debris from the crash strewn across the highway.

Alongside their post, the department said: 'Arriving units found two vehicles involved, with one person trapped, after a reported head-on collision.

'Fire personnel extricated one person from a vehicle and provided patient care and hospital transport for the occupants of both vehicles.

'Always a reminder to stay within the speed limit, avoid drinking and driving and never be distracted by passengers, phones, etc.'

Last week, Pullos announced that she would not be appearing on the popular soap General Hospital as she was recovering from a crash.

Pasadena Fire Department said they had been called out in the early hours of the morning of April 29.

Pullos had played Molly Lansing-Davis on the long running show General Hospital, and has done since 2009

Haley Pullos pictured right on General Hospital in 2010, and more recently from her Instagram on the left

Haley Pullos was involved in a prior hit-and-run before she plowed head-on into the white 2020 Kia

Police say that after being rescued from her own vehicle Pullos was aggressive

The horrific collision happened in the early hours of April 29 on the 134 Freeway, California

Both Pullos and the other driver survived the collision, with the latter sustaining major injuries

Haley Pullos (left) has already been replaced in the soap opera after being arrested last month - her character will now be played by Holiday Mia Kriegel (right)

Pullos had been sidelined from her work on the ABC soap and her role has been given to actress Holiday Mia Kriegel, 23, while she recovers.

In a statement Pullos said: 'Unfortunately, I was involved in an automobile accident and I'm doing okay, but I am going to need a little time to recover. I will be back as soon as possible!'

The actress was born in San Jose, California, in 1998.

Pullos had played Molly Lansing-Davis on the long running show General Hospital, and has done since 2009.

She has been in around 500 episodes of the soap opera.

She has also appeared in an episode of medical drama House, and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2015 for her role on General Hospital.

And she starred in the pilot episode of Dollhouse, and also acted in Ghost Whisperer as young Melinda.

In 2020, she took up the role as Bella Schmerz in The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia.
A father who beat his 11-year-old 'malnourished' son to death has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 21 years and six months after waiting four hours and driving to a park with the dying boy in his van before calling 999.

Michael Harrison, 41, from Derbyshire, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of his son in December, before admitting the charge of murder in Derby Crown Court last month.

In video footage seen by the court, he can be seen driving his son Mikey from their home to a nearby park before finally stopping and calling paramedics - more than four hours after his vicious attack.

Sentencing Harrison for the murder of Mikey Harrison, Judge Shaun Smith KC said the defendant had lied about the killing and taken the victim to a park as part of an attempted cover-up.

He initially told the police that Mikey had suffered injuries as a result of falling out of a tree close to Shipley Country Park.

Michael Harrison, 41, from Derbyshire, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of his son in December, before admitting the charge of murder in court last month

Harrison drives his van (right) to a different site as the ambulance rushes Mikey to hospital

CCTV footage shows the first paramedic vehicle arriving at the scene after Harrison eventually phoned 999

Video footage released by police showed Harrison driving his injured son around several hours after the beating, before eventually pulling up near to the park and calling 999.

A paramedic car, followed by a second vehicle and an ambulance, rushed to the scene in an effort to treat Mikey and found him struggling to breathe. He then had a cardiac arrest and was tragically declared dead in hospital.

The footage then shows the moment the ambulance drove off with Mikey, while Harrison drove in the opposite direction to park his van elsewhere, before returning to speak with police.

Harrison leaned forward in his seat staring at the ground, shielding his face from the public gallery, during almost all of his two-hour sentencing hearing on Thursday.

After he was sentenced, Harrison, wearing a white T-shirt with 'FAMILY' printed on the front, gestured towards members of the media and said: 'I will always love my family no matter what you lot say. Put whatever version you like.'

In sentencing, the judge said: 'At 18 minutes past one on Saturday June 18 (2022) you embarked upon a charade solely intended to protect yourself.

'That was because you had attacked your 11-year-old son Mikey. You hit and punched him many times. At least one of those blows was so hard it lacerated his liver.

'Rather than face up to what you had done, you made a call to the ambulance service to report that Mikey had fallen out of a tree.

'What you did that morning ended the life of a little boy and emptied the lives of many others.'

Earlier that day Harrison had 'gone crazy' and launched a savage attack on son Mikey, who weighed less than four stone, at their house in Heanor, Derbyshire, while he was working on a computer as part of his home schooling.

But Derby Crown Court heard that instead of calling for an ambulance, Harrison put the youngster - who would have been in 'great pain' - in his van and drove him a mile to nearby Shipley Country Park, only dialling 999 around four hours after the assault.

Harrison told paramedics Mikey, who was sitting in a front passenger seat and struggling to breathe, had plunged from a tree while they were playing hide and seek.

He was rushed to hospital in Nottingham - but was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.

Harrison initially told the police that Mikey had suffered injuries as a result of falling out of a tree close to Shipley Country Park (pictured)

Michael Harrison, 41, has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of more than 21 years

Prosecutors said Harrrison's story was 'fiction' in order to cover up the fact he was responsible for the schoolboy's horrific injuries.

A post-mortem examination found he had suffered 'multiple blunt force trauma' and died from a lacerated liver that resulted in a catastrophic loss of blood.

Tragically, the court heard Mikey may have survived if he had received 'prompt medical treatment'.

Following the assault, the court heard, Harrison stripped the Heanor property where he and Mikey had been living 'of almost every item that you would expect to find in a home'.

Mr Joyce alleged that Harrison had also cleaned the scene of the attack to remove any prospect of any evidence being found in relation to what he had done to Mikey.

Peter Joyce KC, prosecuting, said Harrison continued to attempt to conceal what he had done in the days after Mikey's death, completely clearing out the family's bungalow and disposing of his van, which has never been found.

But he was caught out after a witness told police Harrison's version of events was false. He was charged with murder and initially denied the offence - although he did plead guilty to manslaughter.

The court heard Harrison called an ambulance from Shipley Country Park at around 1.20pm on June 18 last year, claiming Mikey - thought to have been attacked at around 9.30am that morning - had fallen from a tree.

But after paramedics arrived, he went into cardiac arrest and died at 2.39pm that day after being taken to Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre.

It was only 11 days later that police were told by a witness that Harrison's version of events were false. He was then interviewed six times in four days but continually refused to comment.

However, Harrison admitted the charge at a hearing last month. He was jailed for life and told he must serve 21 years and six months before he can be considered for release when he returned to the court for sentencing.

Ambulance crews were called to the Thorpes Road area of Heanor at around 1.15pm on Saturday, June 18, after receiving a report that Mikey was injured.

After his father was charged last summer, a different judge, Nirmal Shant KC, lifted a previous reporting restriction banning the publication of the victim's name 'in the interests of public justice'.

Vanessa Marshall KC, defending, said: 'This was a man who lost control for whatever reason, lashed out and now must live with the consequences.

'Mr Harrison is full of remorse for what he has done but knows that remorse will never bring back his beloved son. He genuinely wishes to say sorry.'
A 13-year-old boy who saved his eight-year-old sister from being kidnapped by quickly deploying his slingshot has spoken out to describe the harrowing ordeal - and said he would do it again to protect her.

His sister was out looking for mushrooms in her backyard in Alpena, Michigan, when a man appeared out of the woods.

The victim's uncle posted on Facebook that the 17-year-old male suspect had a 'black mohawk' and had covered the young girl's mouth and then tried to drag her away.

Her 13-year-old brother saw the tussle from his bedroom inside the family's home and quickly sprung into action, grabbing his slingshot and firing objects at the would-be kidnapper's head and chest.

Brother speaks out after saving little sister from suspected kidnapper. @EvaPilgrim has the story. pic.twitter.com/fIPmZVp2ZA  Good Morning America (@GMA) May 18, 2023

The 13-year-old who staved off his sister's kidnapper shows off the slingshot he used to do it

The teenager sat between his parents and explained how he reacted when he spotted a man attempting to kidnap his sister behind their house

During a Thursday morning Good Morning America appearance, the 13-year-old showed off the slingshot he used to defend his sister.

Several times, he reenacted the motion of deploying the slingshot.

He described watching the suspect attempt to kidnap his sister, and seeing his sister attempt to fight back.

He said his first instinct was to spring into action and, using the slingshot, fling a rock and then a marble at the suspect.

'He was mad. He started cussing. I hit him again, he starts running away,' explained the teenager, who showed off his weapon of choice, before concluding that: 'If it does happen again, I'll do it again.'

Lieutenant John Grimshaw, commander of the local post of the Michigan State Troopers said that the fast action and accurate aim by the teenager 'caused him (the kidnapper) to let go.

'The girl was able to struggle and get away and he shot another one, hit the suspect in the chest and then fled the scene,' he told 9 and 10 News.

Grimshaw said the suspect admitted that his intent was to severely beat the eight-year-old girl after he'd kidnapped her.

The suspect, who was also left unidentified due to his age, ran away from the two children and attempted to hide before authorities located him at a gas station nearby.

The victim's brother was credited for his heroism and making it easier for police to identify the suspect.

'What he did also helped us to identify who the suspect was, because obviously he had injuries from getting hit with a slingshot,' Grimshaw said.

Lieutenant John Grimshaw said the suspect admitted that he had the intent to severely beat the eight-year-old girl if he was successful dragging her away

The teen says he wouldn't hesitate to use the weapon again in a similar situation

An eight-year-old Michigan girl was rescued from a kidnapping attempt by a 17-year-old thanks to her brother's use of a slingshot to stop the abductor, who was going to severely beat her in the woods

Authorities said the victim and her parents were both shaken up emotionally but that the girl was uninjured.

Grimshaw offered advice for people who might be victims of attempted kidnappings in the future.

'Fight, fight, do everything you can bite the hand that's hold in your that has one hand over your mouth. If that's the case, stomp on their feet, kick them in the shin, do whatever you can to fight.'

And then if your mouth is free, scream as loud as you possibly can,' the commander added.
Four men wearing Covid masks have stolen $125,000 worth of Dior handbags from a New Jersey store.

The men stormed into the Dior store at the Short Hills Mall on Monday at 11 a.m. according to Milburn Police.

Sales associates ran into a back office room to call the police, but the unarmed robbers had already fled in a black SUV taking with them 25 stolen purses by the time cops had arrived.

In a video posted to Instagram, the robbers can be seen holding the expensive bags and running from the store, with one intruder seen jumping to reach a Dior Book bag perched on a shelf.

A shopper appeared to be stunned while walking past the store to see the four men running down the concourse with the stolen goods.

Masked men steal $125K in Dior handbags from posh New Jersey mall

The men stormed into the Dior store at the Short Hills Mall on Monday at 11 a.m. according to Milburn Police

Dior is on the upper level of the mall, near Nieman Marcus, the mall directory says.

On January, Milburn Police responded to reports of a theft at the Apple Store in Short Hills Mall.

Employees told the police that a man had been seen running away with goods.

After finding the man in his car in the mall's parking lot, officers discovered over $6,000 worth of Apple products which police confirmed were stolen.

The 41-year-old, named Giorgi Mtchedlidz, of Brooklyn, was charged with shoplifting, receiving stolen property and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Dior's most recent collection for the summer season includes a series of bags valued between $5-15,000.

The most expensive tote on the list is the Medium Lady D-Lite bag, worth $14,500, with the following, the Small Lady Dior bag, worth $14,000.

The men stormed into the Dior store at the Short Hills Mall on Monday at 11 a.m. according to Milburn Police
A Chilean tourist has died and his engineering coworker is recovering after they were allegedly drugged at a bar and then beaten and robbed after being dumped in a ditch in Rio de Janeiro.

Ronald Tejeda, 29, and his friend Andres Orellana, 29, had been in Brazil on vacation since last week and visited a bar in the town of Lapa on Saturday before they were attacked, police said.

Tejeda and Orellana were found lying next to each other in a 16-foot deep ditch on Sunday morning and rushed to Souza Aguilar Hospital, the fire department said.

Tejeda was diagnosed with a perforated lung and a head injury but died from a stroke, his brother, Jorge Tejeda, told Chilean news outlet Chilevision Noticias.

Chilean engineer Ronald Tejeda was vacationing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a friend when they were reportedly drugged at a bar Saturday night. The pair was robbed and beaten before they were dumped in a ditch and rescued alive Sunday. But Tejeda suffered a stroke and died Wednesday

Andres Orellana (pictured) survived after he was drugged, beaten and robbed while vacationing with his coworker Ronald Tejeda in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday. Orellana remains hospitalized and receiving treatment for fractures to the ribs and clavicle and a punctured lung

'It was a blow to the head, where he suffered a stroke,' Jorge Tejeda said. 'He fought, we all fought, but he lost his fight.

'Let justice be done, find those who are responsible,' he added. 'Everything is difficult. Being there is difficult.'

Jorge Tejeda said there is a suspicion that Ronald Tejeda and Orellana were drugged by people they were sharing beers with.

Orellana, who was transferred to Pro-Cardiaco Hospital, had scratches on his chest, arms and legs as well as fractures to the ribs and clavicle and a punctured lung, his friend, Patricio Rodriguez, said in an interview with 24 Horas news outlet.

Orellana thanked well-wishers with a social media post Wednesday, but stopped short of providing details of what exactly happened.

'For those of you who are asking how I'm doing, I promise to send you a message later. I'm moving to another hospital to redo other tests,' he wrote. 'At the moment, I'm stable and it will be a long recovery here in Brazil. For everyone who lived with Ronald, live each day as if it were the last.'

Brazilian investigators suggest that Ronald Tejeda and his friend may have been drugged with 'Good night, Cinderella,' a drug that debilitates a person and makes them vulnerable to being robbed, assaulted, and even raped.

Chilean nationals Andres Orellana (left) and Ronald Tejeda (right) were reportedly drugged at a bar in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday and then beaten and robbed. Orellana remains hospitalized but Tejeda died of a stroke on Wednesday

'Good night, Cinderella,' a drug that debilitates a person and makes them vulnerable to being robbed, assaulted, and even raped.

Rio de Janeiro authorities are investigating the attack on the tourists and did not reveal what was stolen.

They suggest that they were doped with the 'Good night, Cinderella,' a drug that debilitates a person and makes them vulnerable to being robbed, assaulted, and even raped.

Tejeda and Orellana ordered an Uber that picked them up at the bar and was taking them the Rio de Janeiro neighborhood of Copacabana before they lost contact with their loved ones.

'They found them by accident, they could have spent months without finding them,' Rodriguez said.

No arrests had been reported as of Thursday.
A woman watched in horror as her 16-year-old cousin was stabbed to death in broad daylight at a busy bus station in Melbourne.

The relative, who did not want to be named, said she was on a bus when she saw someone knifing her cousin, Pasawm Lyhym, at Sunshine Station bus interchange on Thursday afternoon.

She said she didn't see the assailant's face but saw the knife in their hand.

'I screamed and said that's him, that's him (her cousin),' she told The Herald Sun.

'I tried to run and get help. I didn't want to look. It was all so fast.'

Pasawm Lyhym has been remembered as a 'funny, really nice, a welcoming and kind person'

He died after he was stabbed in front of commuters at the station (pictured)

His older brother Mawn Lyhym, 24, said his brother, who was heading home, was chased down by at least one attacker.

'He was funny, really nice, a welcoming and kind person,' Mr Lyhym said of his brother.

Pasawm attended Staughton College in Melbourne and would often visit the interchange to hang out with friends after school.

Several family members gathered at the interchange on Thursday as detectives inspected the crime scene.

Emergency services were called to Station Place at about 3.45pm following reports of an injured male.

Victoria Police say the exact circumstances surrounding the incident are still to be determined and the Homicide Squad are investigating.

The area around Sunshine train station has been taped off as crime scene investigators process the area.

There have been reports of youths with knifes hanging around the bus interchange.

Trains on the Sunbury line ran non-stop through Sunshine station at the request of police for nearly an hour.

Distraught witnesses embrace at the scene of the horrific stabbing

Officers were seen interviewing bystanders at the bus interchange on Thursday afternoon

Police have asked anyone who witnessed the incident or has mobile phone, dash-cam or CCTV footage to contact police.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.

Last month, a woman was slashed across the face at a takeaway shop in nearby Sunshine North.

That incident happened on April 11 after a couple ordered food at the store on Furlong Road about 7pm.

A woman collected the food at the counter before the man with her reached over and slashed the female attendant across the face with an edged weapon.

The 49-year-old woman was taken to hospital with minor facial injuries.

A nearby resident said on Thursday she was concerned as she felt like this 'happens a lot here' .
by M. K. Bhadrakumar

It comes as no surprise that the United States and the European Union didnt have the face to commend the performance of Recep Erdogan and his party in the presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkiye on Sunday. The election results do not serve the geopolitical interests of the US and its European allies. It is apparent that the entreaties and media management in the run-up fell on deaf ears.





The western powers hoped for a weak unstable government and are instead worrying that a turbo-charged Erdogan with a commanding majority in the parliament will be presiding over a strong government and wont be a pushover.





The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi with the President of the Republic of Turkey, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, at Hyderabad House, in New Delhi on May 01, 2017. [ Photo: Office of Prime Minister of India]





Thus, pin-pricking has begun. A question mark is put on the legitimacy of Erdogans victory over his opposition rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu who is backed by the West. A real time report by the OSCE election observer missions preliminary findings have come handy, which alleged attempts to gerrymander the election results.





The report accuses Erdogan of enjoying unjustified advantage and resorting to misuse of administrative resources; and the election commission of lack of transparency and communication and independence.





In a direct attack on Erdogan, the OSCE mission report says, The president is not explicitly subject to the same restrictions in the campaign period and took undue advantage of incumbency (and) blurred the line between party and State, at odds with the 1990 Copenhagen Document (which contains specific election-related commitments.)





The report said the election administration, law enforcement bodies, and courts did not enjoy the confidence of the opposition in resolving electoral grievances impartially and effectively. The secrecy of the vote was not always guaranteed; family and group voting were frequent; and unauthorised people participated in the count, raising concerns over its integrity. During the vote count, several significant procedural errors were reported.





The US State Department has promptly urged the Turkish authorities to conduct the next phase of the presidential election in line with the countrys laws and in a manner that is consistent with its commitments to the OSCE as well as a NATO Ally.





The state departments principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said on Monday that the Biden Administration is continuing to closely monitor the countrys ongoing electoral process. He noted that broadly we congratulate the people of Turkiye for peacefully expressing their will at the ballot box, and also congratulate the newly elected parliament.





Patel repeated the stated US position that well continue to work together with whatever government is chosen by the Turkish people to deepen our cooperation and our  deepen our shared priorities.





But he also parried that the election process is still unfolding, as is the work of the OSCEs election observation mission, which, as you know, released some preliminary findings But Im not going to predict anything additional from here. Patel confirmed that there were US observers represented in the OSCE team.





Taking a cue from Patel, perhaps, the EUs foreign policy chief Josep Borrell was upfront in a statement issued in Brussels on Tuesday. He stated, We note the preliminary findings and conclusions of the International Election Observation Mission of the OSCE and the Council of Europe, and call on Turkish authorities to address the shortcomings identified.





Borrell added, The EU attaches the utmost importance to the need for transparent, inclusive and credible elections, in a level playing field. Borrell too welcomed the elections as such, and took note of the high turnout as a clear sign of the commitment of the Turkish people to exercising their democratic right to vote.





The salience of these remarks lies in the subtle hint by both Patel and Borrell that all is not lost yet and the jury is still out as regards Erdogans victory.





That said, by now, it must be sinking in that Erdogan has retained his core constituency, which has not suffered any erosion, and his charisma cannot be matched by Kilicdaroglu. In systemic terms, the Globalists cannot match Erdogans nationalistic plank, either.





Erdogan is all but certain to win the runoff. The big question is about the third candidate Sinan Ogan who secured 5.2% votes in Sundays first round and now bows out of the race. Where will his supporters go in the runoff? No doubt, that will affect the balance of power in the runoff and tilt the scales decisively.





The odds are in favour of Kilicdaroglu getting the bulk of the anti-Erdogan votes of Ogan, but will that be sufficient to win in the second round? It may not be. Put differently, Ogan will not be able to deliver his entire electorate to Kilicdaroglu.





Clearly, if Erdogan can retain his voter base exceeding 49.5% it is and goes on to attract even a quarter of the votes Ogan secured, he is going to be the victor in the runoff. The strong likelihood is that Erdogan will win.





The fact that AKP secured a comfortable majority in the parliamentary elections  against all forecasts  also creates a new momentum. The AKPs success goes to show that the Turkish voter seeks a stable government in Ankara when the external environment is becoming extremely dangerous for the country and the economic crisis demands attention. Whereas, the sort of rainbow coalition that Kilicdaroglu is heading used to be the bane of Turkish politics for many decades in the pre-Erdogan era, and a recipe for instability. Equally, it needs to be factored in that the groundswell of Turkish public opinion remains staunchly anti-western.





If he wins, this will be Erdogans final term. And it is going to be a legacy term. Erdogan will no doubt aim to transform Turkiye as a regional hub in energy, food, connectivity and transit. There is going to be breakthrough in nuclear industry, defence industry, infrastructure projects, etc. with Russian participation.





It is entirely conceivable that in the highly polarised political atmosphere in the country, there could be protests staged by the opposition if Erdogan wins in the runoff on May 28. But that wont pose a serious challenge to Erdogan.





Turkey is not ripe for a colour revolution. The point is, unlike Georgias Eduard Shevardnadze or Ukraines Viktor Yanukovich, Erdogan is a grassroots politician with a solid mass base and the politics he practises is in sync with the zeitgeist in the region.





M. K. Bhadrakumar was a career diplomat by profession. Roughly half of the 3 decades of his diplomatic career was devoted to assignments on the territories of the former Soviet Union and to Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. Other overseas postings included South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, and Turkey. He writes mainly on Indian foreign policy and the affairs of the Middle East, Eurasia, Central Asia, South Asia and the Asia-Pacific.
The ex-wife of the Georgia dad arrested for 'intentionally starving and abusing his son' claims one of her children who lived in the same house had run away two years earlier - while a second boy had been denied 'treatment' he needed.

Melissa Waynette of Ohio said the 10-year-old boy who was allegedly starved and abused by Tyler and Krista Schindley was not hers, but that two of her children she shared with Tyler had also lived in Griffin, GA with the couple until recently.

One of her sons escaped the home two years ago after tracking down Waynette through social media, while the other, she said, was returned to her two months ago.

'They [the Schindleys] just called me one day and said pick him up at the airport tonight and sent him with nothing,' said Waynette, in an interview with Atlanta News First on Wednesday. 'I dont really know why the decision was made to send him away. My older son ran away from home when he was 17 and was able to find me through social media,' she said.

Tyler and Krista Schindley were arrested after their emaciated son was found wandering around their upscale Griffin neighborhood in search of food.

Police in Griffin arrested Tyler and Krista Schindley after neighbors found their emaciated son roaming through the streets on Friday. Pictured: Krista and Tyler in a photo from her social media earlier this year

She added that her ex-husband, with whom she shares three children, never showed any signs of abuse to their kids while they were married.

'I do know that its not the character of the person I was with  with him. Definitely, not anything I saw when I was with him. But I do think this has been a slow progression over many, many years,' said Waynette.

She said Tyler and Krista Schindley moved to Georgia about a decade ago.

Waynette also shared that her second son, who was returned to her two months ago, is doing better since leaving Griffin.

Without going into detail, she said: 'They withheld a lot of treatment that he probably needed. Now hes super happy and he even said the other day he wishes he could forget life there. But hes doing very well, very happy.'

'Theres a relief. But also regret that my children have to live with this stigma and having to revisit and its a lot for them,' Waynette added.

'Its a lot for the kids right now. But there is a relief that my kids are safe. I know all the kids are safe. I hate that it had to get this far.'

Her remarks come as audio of the 911 call made by the neighbor who found the 10-year-old boy wandering in front of her home was has now been released.

During the call, which was made just before 9am last Friday morning, a woman tells the dispatcher she'd just 'had a child walk past my house, alone. A small child.'

In the recording, acquired by Atlanta News First, a neighbor said she found the 10-year-old boy on Friday morning wandering in the street.

'We went out to see if everything is okay. And hes asking us not to tell his parents. I dont know who his parents are, but hes asking to please not take him home,' she told the 911 operator.

According to the radio log, police arrived ten minutes later.

The couple have been charged with attempted murder, in addition to several counts of child abuse

The Schindleys' home in Griffin, Georgia, which is worth an estimated $447,000

A judge denied bond for both parents. They're currently being held in the Spalding County Jail.

Tyler and Krista Schindley were arrested after their emaciated son was found wandering around their upscale Griffin neighborhood in search of food.

He told neighbors and authorities he did not want to be sent back home. It was soon determined that the child had been intentionally starved and weighed just 36 pounds - less than that of an average four-year-old.

The Schindleys were subsequently charged with second-degree attempted homicide, first degree attempted malice murder, cruelty to children and false imprisonment.

In addition to being starved, the boy had been kept locked inside a bedroom and was left alone in the house 'for extended periods of time, and on multiple occasions, with no access to lights, food, clothing or adult interaction and/or assistance', according to court affidavits.

The 10-year-old remains in the hospital, where he is being treated for malnutrition and a low heart rate. He was also suffering from the 'dental injury and disfiguration' his parents allegedly failed to treat.

The other four children living in the Schindley house have been taken into custody by Georgia Child Services.

Authorities did not share information about the conditions of the other children, all of whom were homeschooled, but said it seemed that the 10-year-old boy was the only one being starved.

In addition to attempted murder, the Schindleys are accused of committing child cruelty in the third degree by allowing their four other children to 'see and/or hear' physical abuse against the boy on multiple occasions from 2020 to 2023.
A British holidaymaker left on life support in Turkey after her heart stopped minutes before she was meant to board her flight home has been declared 'clinically dead'.

Melissa 'Missy' Kinsella, 30, was due to fly back to the UK on May 15 after a family holiday.

But the mother-of-three collapsed in the airport and was taken to hospital in Antalya, Turkey as she had swelling on her brain, where she was placed on life support, unable to breathe for herself.

Thanks to funds raised by a friend for her hospital care, which totalled 1,800 a day, and a 42,000 transport, she was returned to the UK on May 24.

Her parents announced in a heartfelt tribute on social media that tests had shown that the 30-year-old mother was clinically dead.

Melissa 'Missy' Kinsella, 30, was due to fly back to the UK on May 15 after a family holiday when she collapsed in a Turkish airport

Rebecca Gath (left), a friend of Kinsella (right), said the stricken holidaymaker's family were 'beside themselves'

'Our hearts are broken forever.

'After 12 days of fighting for our beautiful daughter's life, test[s] prove she is clinically dead. We have no words to express how we feel but thank everyone who helped us in any way to bring her home.'

She said that Melissa was an organ donor and that she was in surgery for donations.

Melissa's best friend of eight years, Rebecca Gath, 35, joined tributes online.

'I can't believe I'm never going to hear your voice again (other than voice notes that I'll cherish forever).

'I'm never going to get one of those phone calls that I've prayed for the past 12 days. I am absolutely heartbroken for your family, your girls, your friends.

'I'm going to miss that dirty laugh, the disgusting stories with too much information.

'The absolute anger at any small inconvenience and the best friend that would always encourage me to fly off the handle and you'd be there to back me up.

'I'll never have a best friend like you again because you were one in a million. I love you.'

She said previously that this is the 'the most heartbreaking situation' and that her family are distraught.

'Her family are beside themselves... Her mum and dad are with her in Turkey but are only allowed to stay at her bedside for 10-15 minutes per day,' Rebecca said.

'Her partner Jay is at home with the children trying to be strong for them.

'As her friend this is the most heartbreaking situation.'

'She's such a bubbly, funny and popular person,' Rebecca said of Melissa.

'Knowing she is fighting for her life is breaking mine and all of her friends and family's hearts.'

Melissa's family do not know whether Melissa had decided to take out travel insurance prior to her trip, and were unable to ask her as she was in a coma.
A female witness says he did the right thing by protecting the fellow passengers

A woman witnessed Marine veteran Daniel Penny putting Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold has called him a 'hero' who was protecting other passengers who were 'scared for their lives' when Neely, a mentally ill homeless man, started screaming and threatening them on May 1.

Penny, 24, is facing 15 years in prison on a second degree manslaughter charge for putting Neely in the chokehold.

Despite a wave of public support and testimony from others on the train who say he acted out of bravery, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's office is pushing ahead with the prosecution.

One of the women on the train was an unidentified 66-year-old who previously spoke out in defense of Penny.

Now, another is telling her story of how Penny protected them.

Daniel Penny, 24, is facing 15 years in prison for putting Jordan Neely, 30, in a fatal chokehold

On May 1, Penny put Neely in a fatal chokehold on a NYC subway. Neely had been threatening passengers

'It was self-defense, and I believe in my heart that he saved a lot of people that day that could have gotten hurt,' she told FOX News.

The woman, also in her sixties, said she was reading her book in peace on the train when she heard Neely begin to yell.

'He said, "I dont care if I have to kill an f, I will. Ill go to jail, Ill take a bullet." Im looking at where we are in the tube, in the sardine can, and Im like, "OK, were in between stations. Theres nowhere we can go."

Penny's attorney Steve Raiser says he was acting in self-defense

'The people on that train, we were scared. We were scared for our lives.'

Penny, she says, waited until the last minute to take Neely down.

By the time the train arrived at Broadway-Lafayette station, Neely was being held down by Penny and two others.

Penny continued to hold onto him, even as bystanders warned that he risked killing him.

A video of that moment has been widely viewed and triggered protests, claims of racism and uproar in New York City.

But the witness says Penny was 'distraught' upon realizing Neely had died.

'You should have seen the way Mr. Penny looked. He was distraught. He was very, very, very visibly distressed. And he didnt go. He didnt run. He stayed.

Neely's aunt and father say he was difficult to pin down because he was homeless. Neely's criminal record included 42 arrests, including for assaulting people on the subway

'Nobody wants to kill anybody. Mr. Penny didnt want to kill that man. It took three men to hold Mr. Neely down. He was struggling,' she said.

The woman, who described herself as a 'woman of color', said race has nothing to do with what happened on the train.

'This isn't about race. This is about people of all colors who were very, very afraid and a man who stepped in to help them.

'Race is being used to divide us.'

She said New York - a city where she has lived for 50 years - was starting to look like a 'Third World Country'.

'I miss the city under the law and order of Giuliani. When it comes to exposing people or subjecting them to violent behavior, the people who are in power and supposed to protect us are not.'

Penny's attorneys have raised $2.6million through a GiveSendGo page.

They say he was simply trying to protect others on the train. Thousands of others agree.
New York City rents have surged to new record highs, with the median price of an apartment in Manhattan climbing to an eye-watering $4,241, a property survey revealed on Thursday.

Median rents on new leases in Manhattan, Brooklyn and northwest Queens broke records in April, as people flocked back to the city in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report, by appraiser Miller Samuel and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate, confirms what many New Yorkers have been complaining about on social media for weeks: that rents are 'too damn high.'

The typical Manhattan apartment is 8.1 percent more expensive than a year ago, said the report.

They're also 1.6 percent or $66 costlier than they were in March, another record-breaking month.

Median rents on new contracts in Manhattan, Brooklyn and northwest Queens broke records in April, as people flocked back to the city

New Yorkers pass a realtor's office window in Brooklyn, where rents jumped by nearly 15 percent this past year

The median Brooklyn rent of $3,500 was up almost 15 percent against last year, researchers said.

The median in the section of Queens that includes Astoria and Long Island City rose nearly 13 percent from a year earlier to $3,525.

'There's a lot of demand, and it's not just for one type of apartment,' property appraiser Jonathan Miller said in a statement.

NYC is a 'pain-maker for tenants,' says appraiser Jonathan Miller

'This is an equal-opportunity pain-maker for tenants.'

Researchers said landlords were confident they could fill empty apartments and were jacking up prices and cutting back on incentives, defying a nationwide trend of falling rents.

The Big Apple is bucking another trend. Typically, the city's rental market builds from the spring and peaks in late summer.

This year, the elevated prices have arrived early.

Prices were up from a year earlier across almost every category in those three areas.

The median luxury pads in Manhattan jumped 13 percent to $11,310.

At the same time, studios in Brooklyn went up by 8.5 percent, and the cost of three-bedroom apartments spiked by 47 percent, the report says.

After taking a look at the listings, many would-be movers choose to stay put  new leases of apartments were down a fifth from March and down 14 percent from a year ago.

More New Yorkers are staying put because good deals have dried up

Tenants and housing rights activists disrupted a meeting of the New York City rent board this month, demanding a zero percent increase in rent for city rent stabilized apartments

'The drop in new leases indicates that there is a sharp increase in lease renewals,' said Miller.

'The tenant consumer has accepted that we're not going to see any improvement in affordability in the near term. They are signing renewals instead of testing the market trying to find better opportunities.'

Still, Miller added, they could be waiting for some time.

'The only real answer to that seems to be a recession,' he said Miller.

'Economists have been calling for a recession for two years. Given the current state of the market, it doesn't seem to be anything people are expecting any time soon.'

He predicted more price hikes throughout the summer.

In the face of rising prices, New York campaigners were staging a 'rent is too damn high' protest in Brooklyn on Saturday.

'Working-class New Yorkers are hanging by a thread as rents skyrocket and evictions ravage our communities,' the local Democratic Socialists of America group posted online.
Ben Wallace has dropped his biggest hint yet that he wants to be the next head of NATO.

Mr Wallace said the post of general secretary for the military alliance was a 'job I'd like' - although he stressed that he is 'loving' being Defence Secretary.

Incumbent Jens Stoltenberg is due to stand down in September, but with 31 member states the appointment process is always highly political.

France is said to be pushing for a candidate from the EU, while others would prefer to break new ground by installing a woman.

Ben Wallace said the post of general secretary for the military alliance was a 'job I'd like' - although he stressed that he is 'loving' being Defence Secretary

Mr Wallace's latest signal came during a trip to Berlin for talks on Ukraine with counterpart Boris Pistorius.

The former soldier told German news agency DPA: 'I've always said it would be a good job. That's a job I'd like.

'But I'm also loving the job I do now. I mean, to be Defence Secretary of the British Government at a time of reform and investment, just like Boris Pistorius.'

He added that secretary general of the transatlantic alliance 'is a fantastic job and NATO is an incredibly important part of all our securities'.

'But it's not for me to decide. It's for all the other allies.'

Speculation has been mounting about Mr Wallace's intentions since he twice ducked out of running for the Tory leadership - despite polls suggesting he is the most popular member of the Cabinet with party grass roots.

NATO member states typically decide on the alliance's next chief behind the scenes.

Mr Wallace would have to overcome the opposition of those said to be pushing for a woman or someone from eastern Europe, and of France, which would reportedly prefer an EU candidate.

If the Defence Secretary did succeed, it could trigger a by-election in his Wyre and Preston North seat, although it is set to be carved up under a planned shake-up of Westminster constituencies later this year.

The appointment of Labour MP George Robertson as Nato chief in 1999 led to a by-election in his Hamilton South constituency, south west of Glasgow.
The Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Mike Gallagher is adamant that the United States must step up its artificial intelligence (AI) race against China, or else the communist country will use the emerging technology for 'dystopian' and evil uses - including genocide.

Gallagher, R-Wis., told DailyMail.com that there is a heating up 'AI race' with China and his committee is poised to take a leading role in ensuring the U.S. dominates.

The overarching goal is to give the American people confidence that 'this technology isn't going to be used for evil' and that the U.S. government is going to maintain control, while also staying ahead of the Chinese.

We need a 'unified framework on AI guardrails and AI ethics,' Gallagher told DailyMail.com during a call before his committee hearing on China's economic aggression Wednesday evening.

Rep. Gallagher, R-Wis., told DailyMail.com that there is a heating up 'AI race' with China

China's President Xi Jinping is stepping up the country's AI capabilities

I think it's absolutely critical that we do not allow [China] to win this race because they would use it for a techno-totalitarian, dystopian purpose and the free world needs to be in command of the rules of AI going forward.'

The chairman said it's important that the U.S. 'get on the same page' with allies in the Indo Pacific - particularly the Japanese and the South Koreans. He also said that also extends to non-formal allies such as Taiwan.

Showing a unified front on AI will 'make us stronger,' he continued and also 'more likely that China will not dominate this technology.'

He fears China using other technology and 'pairing it with AI to perpetrate a genocide' against millions of Uighur Muslims, while also deploying it to control every aspect of their citizens lives.

Another key provision Congress will look into is ensuring American investors, such as Sequoia, won't be able to subsidize the Chinese AI champions - including Baidu.

Gallagher said talking to experts such as Alex Wang, the CEO and founder of Scale AI, and Mike Brown, the former head of the Defense Innovation Unit, reveals that the Pentagon's AI guardrails are in pretty good shape.

If we can 'enhance' the already-established AI guardrails at the Department of Defense, and expand them - the rest of the government could adopt the same precautions.

'That's something we're exploring right now,' he continued, saying that it could 'set the standard' for commercial entities too.

One other issue on the top of the committee's agenda is to 'shore up' a loophole in export controls on graphics processing unit (GPU) chips to ensure China doesn't get access.

'I'm glad that Congress has started to exercise oversight function on this and educated itself on AI,' said Gallagher

During a hearing in the Senate Tuesday, the founder of ChatGPT - an AI chatbot developed from Open AI technology - urged Congress to start regulating the emerging technology.

ChatGPT's Sam Altman warned lawmakers: ''If this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong.'

He urged Congress to create stricter regulations regarding AI - something the House China Committee is already looking into.

'We're exploring various ideas for a potential hearing or maybe a different format for an activity that would further debate on AI,' Gallagher added.

'I'm glad that Congress has started to exercise oversight function on this and educated itself on AI.'

Gallagher noted that President Biden is going to discuss AI during the ongoing G7 meetings in Japan with world leaders.

The president arrived Thursday in Hiroshima, Japan, despite ongoing negotiations with Congress on how to stave off the debt ceiling crisis.

Biden canceled the second leg of his trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea to return home and resume negotiations.

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers led by Gallagher are heading to London Thursday to meet with top UK leaders to find ways for both nations to work together in order to effectively counter China's growing aggression on multiple fronts.

'Chinese Communist Party aggression is global, and the United States and United Kingdom face common economic, military and ideological threats posed by the CCP,' Gallagher told DailyMail.com regarding the upcoming trip.

On Friday, the China hawks will meet with the UK's Deputy National Security Adviser Beth Sizeland and Secretary of State for Defense Ben Wallace.

The lawmakers will also attend the inaugural meeting of the 'Reagan-Jackson Security Dialogue,' held over the weekend in Cambridge by the Ronald Reagan Institute and London-based Henry Jackson Society.
The mastermind of an online fraud shop used to con victims out of more than 100 million blew his ill-gotten gains on luxury cars including a 230,000 Lamborghini, a court has heard.

Tejay Fletcher, 35, was revealed as the founder and mastermind of the iSpoof.cc website when it was taken down last year in the UK's biggest fraud sting.

The site offered scammers the tools to disguise phone calls to appear to be from a trusted organisation such as a bank, so they could empty their targets' accounts.

Southwark Crown Court heard victims across the world were defrauded of at least 100 million, including a minimum of 43 million from people in the UK.

Users of the website paid hundreds of thousands of pounds a month for its features, which were marketed on a channel on the encrypted messaging app Telegram called 'iSpoof club'.

Tejay Fletcher, 35, blew his ill-gotten gains on luxury cars including a 230,000 Lamborghini, a court has heard

According to the Met Police, iSpoof was launched in December 2020 and had 59,000 active users at its peak

The website earned about 3.2 million in cryptocurrency Bitcoin, with the 'lion's share' of about 2 million ending up with Fletcher, said prosecutor John Ojakovoh.

The court heard he rented an east London apartment, which boasts views of the Royal Victoria Dock and the City skyline, and owned a 230,000 Lamborghini.

Fletcher also spent 120,000 on two Range Rovers for him and his girlfriend, while police found a money counter, jewellery and an 11,000 Rolex in his home.

Mr Ojakovoh said another Audemars Piguet watch appeared to be a fake, joking: 'You can't trust anyone these days.'

The fraud mastermind plead guilty to four charges last month, including the making or supplying an article for use in fraud, encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence, possession of criminal property and transferring criminal property, between November 30 2020 and November 8 2022.

'This is a case which concerns the facilitation of fraud on an industrial scale by iSpoof the website and its founder and leading administrator,' the prosecutor told Fletcher's sentencing hearing on Thursday.

Police offers apprehended Fletcher at his girlfriend's east London property in a global operation to bring down the platform, the UK's largest fraud sting.

According to the Met Police, iSpoof was launched in December 2020 and had 59,000 active users at its peak.

Up to 20 people per minute targeted by fraudsters at one point by callers using technology bought from the site.

One of the site's most purchased bits of technology allowed fraudsters to make phone posing as fraud department employees to lower the guard of unsuspecting recipients.

The spoof calls, along with other features offered through the site to obtain passwords and PIN codes, were all used to empty the victims' bank accounts.

Mr Ojakovoh said a 'particularly dastardly exploitation of people's busy lives' was a tool allowing users to trick victims into entering new card details by claiming the information held by a trusted organisation was out of date.

One of the platform's victims lost 3 million, while the 4,785 people who reported being targeted to Action Fraud lost an average of 10,000, police said.

Fletcher carried out 'market research' and promoted new products all while encouraging his subscribers to commit fraud.

On January 3 2022 he wished 'Happy New Year' to users on his Telegram channel adding: 'All back to work, back to getting that bag. Make this year special, stack those Satoshis (a reference to the rumoured inventor of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto).'

The site offered scammers the tools to disguise phone calls to appear to be from a trusted organisation such as a bank, so they could empty their targets' accounts

Of 10 million fraudulent calls made, 40% were in the US, 35% were in the UK and the rest were spread across other countries.

Simon Baker KC, defending, his client did not see the 'misery' being caused by the frauds at the time and was only 'forced to confront the real consequences' when he saw the victims' impact statements.

'His guilty plea reflects his genuine regret and remorse for his actions and his sincere wish to apologise to those who have suffered as a result of the frauds perpetrated against them as a result of the iSpoof website,' he said.

Mr Baker described Fletcher, who has a young son, as an 'extremely bright young man', adding: 'It is extremely unfortunate that intellect was not channeled into gainful activities.'

He worked with a youth charity and developed an anti-bullying campaign in the years before his arrest, and received an offer of a place at drama school, the barrister added.

Judge Sally Cahill KC said she would sentence Fletcher on Friday.
A 19-year-old man was found guilty of breaking into the home of an OnlyFans model to film her sleeping naked, before claiming that she 'wanted' to be stalked.

Mauricio Damian Guerrero - who travelled from his Bensalem, Pennsylvania home to the woman's house in Somersworth, New Hampshire - reportedly hid in the 24-year-old model's attic on at least four occasions last year, waiting for her to fall asleep before filming her private areas.

Investigators found several disturbing clips and pictures on his cellphone of the woman - identified only as N.R. in court documents - sleeping naked. Guerrero admitted to recording the video, with the victim saying she never gave him permission to do so, according to a detective's affidavit.

Appearing on Friday in Stafford County Superior Court in Dover, Pennsylvania, he justified his actions by saying he believed the pair were in a romantic relationship, after she allegedly told him she 'wanted to be stalked' and 'liked it'.

He was arrested on February 9 2022 after the woman said she heard someone in her house. He was found on the roof trying to escape and subsequently convicted on two counts of burglary as well as criminal trespass - entering her house through the backdoor and 'trying to use a crowbar' - and invasion of privacy.

Mauricio Guerrero, 19, leaves the witness stand for a morning break during his trial at Strafford County Superior Court in Dover

Mauricio Damian Guerrero - who travelled from his Pennsylvania home to the woman's house in Somersworth, New Hampshire - reportedly hid in the 24-year-old model's attic on at least four occasions, waiting for her to fall asleep before filming her private areas

After his arrest, he admitted to planning to install a tracking device - which had been seized by police - to the victim's car in an effort to follow her.

He and the woman began communicating on the adult website in 2021 and kept in touch via text messages and video calls.

The man reportedly made four unannounced visits to her house, including in February 2022, when he stayed in her attic for almost two days before telling her he was in town. Prosecutors noted that she refused to see him several times but conceded that they did have sex on one occasion.

During the trial last Thursday, he read out text messages in which she allegedly told him she loved him and wanted him to obsessively stalk her.

'We talked about meeting up, about me coming up. Between that we talked about having intercourse,' he said, according to WMUR.

The woman however, said she was drunk when they had chatted online so doesn't remember the conversations, but admitted they did have sex on one occasion.

'He seemed nice at first and she gave him her address because he wanted to buy her a TV and fireplace for her apartment in Dover,' a police affidavit reportedly states.

Mauricio Guerrero travelled from his Pennsylvania home to the woman's home in Somersworth, New Hampshire

Mauricio Guerrero, 19, sheds tears on the witness stand during his trial at Strafford County Superior Court in Dover

'She never really wanted to meet him, but he was very pushy,' it says.

'He is as he appeared on the witness stand  he is young, naive and was hoping someone could help him,' Defense attorney Harry Starbranch said.

Guerrero is required to wear a GPS-tracking device until his sentencing in July.

Upon his arrest in February last year, Police said: 'Officers on scene located a male suspect on the roof of the residence. After an on-scene investigation, the male was taken into custody for the charge of Burglary. The investigation was furthered, and information was obtained that the suspect was known to the victim from online social media,' the Somersworth Police Department said in a statement posted to its Facebook page.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries accused Republicans of trying to 'bury accountability' for Rep. George Santos because they 'need' his vote in the narrowly divided House.

'Extreme MAGA Republicans need George Santos' vote. He is critical to their ability to govern,' Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Thursday.

The leader tore into Republicans for denying Democrats an up or down vote on an expulsion resolution - which would have needed a two-thirds majority to pass.

Instead, Speaker Kevin McCarthy held a vote to refer the resolution back to the Ethics Committee, which is currently investigating Santos.

'The Ethics Committee has had the George Santos matter for months -months! So what are you referring to the Ethics Committee?' he questioned.

The Ethics investigation is focused on, among other things, whether Santos 'violated federal conflict of interest laws in connection with his role in a firm providing fiduciary services; and/or engaged in sexual misconduct towards an individual seeking employment in his congressional office,' the House Ethics Committee said in a statement.

Hakeem Jeffries accused Republicans of trying to 'bury accountability' for Rep. George Santos because they 'need' his vote in the narrowly divided House

'This was an effort to bury accountability,' Jeffries went on. 'Why? Perhaps it's because extreme MAGA Republicans actually need George Santos' vote. He is critical to their ability to govern. George Santos was the deciding vote in passing the Default on America Act,' he said, referring to the House GOP's debt limit bill - what they prefer to call the Limit Save Grow Act.

The bill passed 217 to 215 - and would have gone down in defeat if one member changed their vote. As one who's grown comfortable in the limelight, Santos held his vote to the end and it was the last vote that pushed the bill over the finish line.

Republicans lead the House by a slim four-vote margin, and the free-wheeling conference has a number of dissenters not afraid to defy leadership on its priority bills.

Jeffries tore into the New York Republicans who flipped seats in districts President Biden won in 2020 - the ones Democrats hoped would vote with them to expel Santos as most have already called for him to resign.

'The so-called moderates voted with the extremists as they always do, to feel and defend and coddle.'

'This is not Bob Dole's Republican Party. It's not John McCain's Republican Party. It's not Mitt Romney's Republican Party. This is George Santos' Republican Party and it's Marjorie Taylor Greene's Republican Party,' Jeffries said. He was flanked by images of Greene and Santos to make his point for the second week in a row.

Jeffries also said Republicans were 'making a mountain out of a molehill' over the findings of the report by Special Counsel John Durham earlier this week.

'This is what the extreme MAGA Republicans on the Judiciary Committee and on the Oversight Committee have been doing throughout the year - promising big blockbuster developments that turned out to be nothing.'

The FBI's opening of Crossfire Hurricane, the Trump-Russia collusion probe, was 'based on raw, unanalyzed, and uncorroborated intelligence,' Durham states in his report.

Meanwhile on debt negotiations, the leader said two weeks were not enough time to hash out budget priorities and Republicans need to get on board with a clean debt ceiling bill.

'It's not responsible for extreme MAGA Republicans to adopt the take it or leave it approach in a situation where we've got divided government,' Jeffries said.

'Extreme MAGA Republicans need George Santos' vote. He is critical to their ability to govern,' Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters

'We can have a conversation about what the appropriate degree of spending or revenue or investments that should be made to protect the health safety and economic well-being of the American people. We're in a situation now, where that has to be done over the next few weeks to avoid a catastrophic default. So in that two-week period of time, we don't have the luxury of partisan gamesmanship.'

The leader declined to comment on whether President Biden leaving the country for the G7 summit in Japan challenged negotiations, as Republicans have said. Biden canceled the second leg of his trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea to return home and resume negotiations.

Jeffries is trying to get every one of his members to sign on to a discharge petition to force a clean debt ceiling bill vote to the House floor.

McCarthy and Biden seemed more optimistic coming out of a meeting earlier this week, though McCarthy insisted the two sides were still 'far apart.'
A mother-of-two who was fatally wounded by her partner during an 'armed siege' at her home was shot in the head, an inquest heard today.

Former pub manager Hayley Burke, 36, was gunned down by cocaine addict Jacob Cloke, 29, at her home in Dartford, Kent, on the afternoon of May 6, having reportedly been held hostage.

Although firearms officers were sent to the scene with a trained negotiator, Ms Burke was shot and died two days later at King's College Hospital in London.

Cloke also suffered critical gunshot wounds in the armed stand-off with police and was left on life-support and died in hospital last Thursday.

An inquest at County Hall in Maidstone, Kent, heard how the mother-of-two's injuries were 'incompatible with life'.

Since the killing, it has emerged that scaffolder Cloke was facing a number of charges over alleged abuse of Ms Burke and had been to prison for attacking another woman. Pictured: Ms Burke

Former pub manager Hayley Burke, 36, (pictured) was gunned down by cocaine addict Jacob Cloke, 29, at her home in Dartford, Kent, on the afternoon of May 6, having reportedly been held hostage

Cloke (pictured) also suffered critical gunshot wounds in the armed stand-off with police and was left on life-support and died in hospital last Thursday

Although firearms officers were sent to the scene with a trained negotiator Ms Burke was shot and died two days later at King's College Hospital in London

The incident happened near Dartford station in Kent earlier this month. Due to an ongoing police investigation not all information was passed to the coroner's office

Assistant coroner Alan Blunsdon said: 'Police entered the Dartford home and found Hayley Burke critically wounded from a gunshot.'

Her cause of death was given as a gunshot wound to the head.

Due to an ongoing police investigation not all information was passed to the coroner's office.

The inquest was adjourned to be heard in full in October.

Since the killing, it has emerged that scaffolder Cloke was facing a number of charges over alleged abuse of Ms Burke and had been to prison for attacking another woman.

Court details revealed she felt intimidated after the addict tried to strangle her over a row about a mobile phone.

In February last year he threatened to kill Ms Burke, grabbed her by the throat and caused her to pass out.

Ms Burke awoke to find him shaking her. He denied attacking her, saying she must have fallen.

Feeling unwell days later, she went to Darent Valley Hospital and doctors found a bleed to the brain.

The couple had started going out in December 2020 and were at one time engaged but the relationship soured after he was released from prison.

On April 18, the scaffolder turned up at her home and later that night entered the bedroom.

He slammed the door and refused to let her out.

He became aggressive, wanted to snatch her puppy and threatened to break its paws . He also spat in her face.

Police officers in Dartford on May 6, earlier this year, after the mother-of-two was rushed to hospital

Police officers at the scene on Priory Road in Dartford, Kent, on May 6, this year

Cloke, who previously lived in Maidstone and later Sittingbourne, Kent, as well as Orpington, south east London, denied doing anything to her and left the house.

The following morning he returned and was later arrested after Ms Burke called the police.

This was one of many incidents of violence from Cloke, including threatening to put a baby 'in the ground'.

The pair had been in and out of a relationship for more than a year when Cloke went to the victim's home in Chatham on October 2, 2020, and went through her mobile phone.

Holding their two-month-old in her arms, she had walked towards the bedroom to settle the child, as Cloke slapped her across the face and punched her hard in the ribs.

He then allowed her to go to the shops to withdraw money for him so he could buy more drugs but made sure the child stayed behind.

He told her: 'If you call the police, I will put the baby in the ground.'

An inquest will be held into the death of Cloke at a later date but it will be a separate hearing from the about Ms Burke.
Even before Russia actually invaded Ukraine, China advised that such an operation would be unwise. Russian leader Vladimir Putin ignored that advice, which implied that Putin did not have an accurate assessment of what the Russian military was actually capable of. Chinese leader Xi Jinping was further dismayed when Putin also ignored Chinese calls for withdrawing from Ukraine and limiting the long-term damage to the partnership with China. Successful Chinese leaders tend to be more mindful of historical lessons and seek not to misinterpret them.

Russia insists that Ukraine is part of Russia and must be reunited with the motherland. China has a roughly similar situation with Taiwan. Unlike Russia, China does not consider a major attack on Taiwan a suitable solution because of the side effects and risks.

The Ukrainian experience has already persuaded most Taiwanese that they could reliably defeat or disrupt Chinese attack plans. Taiwanese also note that CCP (Chinese Communist Party) rule in China is failing, especially since Xi Jinping reversed many of the reforms the CCP implemented in the 1980s to get the Chinese economy going and curb most government efforts to disrupt that economic growth. Democracies have similar problems but, because they are democracies have an effective way to fix things by electing new officials.

China, Taiwan and the United States are all studying the Ukraine War for useful lessons and one of the few they could all agree on was that the huge quantities of artillery ammunition expended exceeded peacetime estimates. This can have an impact on a Chinese attempt to seize Taiwan by force. Taiwan has been increasing its weapons and munitions stockpiles for years as well as training more men for combat duty. While China has long planned to use over a thousand ballistic missiles and lots of airstrikes, they still have to get troops onto the island and deal with Taiwanese ground forces. At that point both sides would be depending on artillery a lot and the Ukraine War has demonstrated that a lot more artillery ammunition is needed than anyone planned for. Transporting that extra artillery ammunition ashore in Taiwan complicates Chinese logistical planning and delays its readiness to attack.

The Ukraine War also demonstrated the importance of motivation and morale. The Taiwanese identify with the Ukrainians while the Chinese note that they, like Russia, are basically police state dictatorships while Ukraine and Taiwan are democracies that are highly motivated to innovate and fight to preserve their way of life. China would also suffer much more than Russia from any economic problems an attack on Taiwan would lead to.

China, like Russia, has internal economic and population problems. Chinas working age population is shrinking and that is having an impact on the military because not enough Chinese are willing to serve. Its economic problems were amplified by large-scale covid19 related shutdowns in 2022. This triggered widespread and very open public resistance. The government backed down, unwilling to literally go to war with its people over this. Chinese leaders were then obsessed with there being no covid19 infections at all in China and so imposed the shutdowns. Most Chinese, however, paid attention to what was happening in the rest of the world, concluded that some infections and deaths were preferable to the shutdowns, and took to the streets to coerce the government into shutting down the shutdowns. The breadth and depth of their protests was unprecedented in the history of Communist China, and so threatened the power of the Chinese Communist Party that it submitted to public demands. This set a dangerous precedent for the future.

One of the economic risks associated with China attacking Taiwan is the economic backlash and damage to China. Western sea power will immediately block Chinese imports and exports for at least the duration of hostilities, and sanctions will block or greatly diminish those for longer. Worse, the ensuing worldwide financial and economic chaos will dramatically reduce Western demand for Chinese products long-term. Chinas economy is far more dependent on its exports than the West is on imports from China.

Next is the unique position of the Taiwanese electronics industry, which is the sole or primary manufacturer of several key electronic components. China and the rest of the world are very dependent on Taiwanese computer products. Destruction of Taiwanese computer products industries during an invasion would result in world-wide economic disruptions for several years before America, Japan and South Korea could replace Taiwans former production. Taiwan has made veiled threats of destroying the plants producing those unique products at the onset of any Chinese attack. This issue will become more prominent during the immediate run-up before the invasion, and cause increasingly greater anxiety and turmoil in both Western and Chinese markets as they prepare for both the loss of Taiwans unique products plus all Chinese imports and exports for an uncertain period.

Chinas economy would suffer most of all because China is as dependent on the West for Taiwanese electronics, and on Western imports of Chinas non-electronic products that would plunge due to lack of Western demand during a recession. The West would certainly not export its computer electronics to China given that China would have caused such economic chaos, and China lacks the ability to manufacture its own advanced electronics without imports of key Western components and materials.

The price of a successful Chinese invasion of Taiwan would likely be destruction of CCP rule in China. As an invasion gets closer, the risks of trying it will become more and more apparent to Chinas very risk-averse Communist Party leaders, and president Xi is just one man.

Another problem is the lack of accurate information on key aspects of the government and economy. All this is nothing new, and over thousands of years Chinese have realized that you cannot eliminate corruption but you can try to minimize the most dangerous side-effects, like a hollowed out military that looks great but cannot win at endeavors like a sudden attack on Taiwan. Chinese analysts, discussing this in public forums (mass media, professional journals and so on) conclude that one should honor the ancient advice of Sun Tzu by convincingly threatening war but not actually fighting unless there is no choice. That would mean using your forces to defend China but not to get into a war of aggression you cant win. Sun Tzu also advised ignoring advice from military leaders that the troops are ready for any contingency, including an order to attack a neighbor. Unless you have a military with recent successful military experience, any claims to military capabilities and success in a war are suspect.
A woman in her 20s has been taken to hospital after she was attacked by two dogs in the street.

Residents rushed to her aid on Hazelfield Court in St Helens at around 11pm on Monday.

She was taken to hospital where she is described as being in a stable condition.

Merseyside Police said both dogs have been detained but their breed is yet to be determined.

Detectives thanks residents who helped the woman through an 'extremely painful and traumatic experience'.

Merseyside police say they are 'now appealing for anyone who has information to come forward'

The attack happened Hazelfield Court in St Helens at around 11pm on Monday

Enquiries into the incident are ongoing to establish the circumstances.

Detective Inspector Barbara Hebden said: 'This incident has left a woman with significant injuries to her arms and it would have been an extremely painful and traumatic experience.

Residents who live on the street attempted to help the victim during the attack and I thank them for their brave actions.

'Following enquiries we have been able to locate the dogs and they have been detained for the safety of the community. We are now appealing for anyone who has information to come forward.

'We have a dedicated team who review all cases concerning dangerous dogs, and are keen to speak to the witnesses who saw the incident.

'I want to emphasize that dog owners need to be mindful of their dogs' behaviours at all times, particularly when they are in the care of others.

If owners or anyone who is looking after any dogs that are liable to be aggressive please make sure they are in a protected space and on a lead or muzzled if out in public.'

Anyone with information has been asked to contact the social media desk @MerPolCC, call 101 with reference 23000412151 or you can call or the independent charity @CrimestoppersUK anonymously, on 0800 555 111. You can also use their online form here.
Boris Johnson described French president Emmanuel Macron as 'a weirdo' and 'Putin's lickspittle' after the pair clashed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, an ex-Downing Street aide has claimed.

Guto Harri, No 10's former director of communications, said his then-boss called Mr Macron 'a four-letter word beginning with C' and threatened 'an orgy of frog-bashing' in a furious outburst caused by French criticism of the UK's handling of the Ukrainian refugee crisis.

Mr Harri said Mr Johnson and his French counterpart 'patched it up' weeks later, but that Mr Macron's initial comments at an EU summit in Versailles in the early days of the war that Ukrainians were made to feel 'unwelcome' in Britain caused Mr Johnson to 'flip'.

And he recalled intimate exchanges between Mr Johnson and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in which the pair referred to each other as a 'hero'.

It is understood Mr Johnson disputes the allegations, revealed in the latest episode of Mr Harri's Unprecedented podcast for Global Player.

Boris Johnson and Emmanuel Macron at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021

Boris Johnson and French president Emmanuel Macron pictured together at the G7 Summit in in Bavaria last year

Mr Harri said there were 'tensions' early on when Mr Macron went to Moscow to talk to Russian president Vladimir Putin  something Mr Johnson allegedly described as 'nauseating'.

He said: 'I think Macron was feeling the tension from Boris seemingly doing the running with helping Ukraine militarily.

'So, when the British press was giving the British government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly.

'And much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross, nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped and at our morning meeting, I think with a small gang of us, he just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron.

Boris Johnson and his former No 10 communication director Guto Harri pictured in 2014 at the former Prime Minister's book launch

'Basically, saying 'he's a four-letter word that begins with C, he's a weirdo, he's Putin's lickspittle. We need to go studs up on this one.

'We need an orgy of frog-bashing. I'm going to have to punch his lights out.'

'Pretty strong stuff. And I'm pleased to say weeks later, of course, they had patched it up. They got on really well.'

French media previously claimed Mr Macron described Mr Johnson as a 'clown' and a 'knucklehead' in response to the migrant crisis in the Channel.

Mr Harri also recounted Mr Johnson's relationship with Mr Zelensky, saying the two leaders 'shared gallows humour' and recalled a phone call on the night Ukraine was invaded in February 2022 in which the Ukrainian statesman was 'anxious, but very calm'.

'It was massively sobering,' said Mr Harri. 'We really could not believe that this was seriously underway. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

'The two of them had this extraordinary bond. And, dare I mention it, this kind of really dark gallows humour that was obviously a coping mechanism.'

Mr Harri claimed Ukrainian soldiers on the battlefield would sing Beatles songs and God Save The Queen, in an apparent nod to British-supplied missiles they were using.

He said Mr Zelensky was 'so sad' and 'personally disappointed' when Mr Johnson resigned as prime minister last summer.

Mr Harri said Mr Johnson told the Ukrainian president: 'You're a hero. Everybody loves you in my country, Volodymyr.'

Mr Zelensky is said to have replied: 'No, you're a hero, Boris. And everybody in my country loves you.'

Mr Harri previously claimed Mr Johnson 'squared up' to Charles, the then-Prince of Wales, last year after the royal branded the Government's Rwanda asylum scheme 'appalling', and joked about sending Rishi Sunak an extremely offensive viral clip after he quit as Chancellor without notice.

A source close to Mr Johnson said: 'Boris Johnson does not recognise the accounts in this podcast.

'Mr Johnson has had no part in this podcast or its contents.

'We would never comment on these matters and Mr Johnson deplores any attempt to do so.'

The second episode of Unprecedented is available on Global Player.
Russia's economy is 'in the sh*t' and Vladimir Putin 'has decided to settle down there,' Moscow's former minister for the economy has said.

In rare criticism from a senior Russian figure, Andrey Nechayev, 70, blamed western sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine for the crisis, which he said would plunge the the country into financial crisis next year.

He also said that while western franchises like 'McDonald's can be replaced by blini [Russian pancakes], high-tech products can't,' The Times reported.

Nechayev's comments at the Ekaterinburg financial forum this week drew nervous smiles from the audience, according to the publication. One member of the audience roundly applauded the former minister, it said.

Condemning Moscow's economic outlook, he said Russia's finances were 'in the sh*t', adding: 'And what's worse is that we've decided to settle down there.'

In rare criticism from a senior Russian figure, Andrey Nechayev (pictured in 2018, file photo), 70, blamed western sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine for the crisis, which he said would plunge the the country into a financial crisis next year

Under draconian rules brought in by Putin and the Kremlin, those who dissent against the official narrative in Russia face arrest and prison. Some have been known to have been arrested, tortured and even poisoned.

Many have been forced to flee the country, while those who questioned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and stayed have faced 15 years in prison under anti-treason laws banning any criticism of the country's military.

Nechayev was in office from 1992 to 1993, after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Addressing the audience at the forum, he pointed to Russia exceeding its budget deficit plan in the first four months of 2023 as one reason for the coming crisis.

He said there are enough reserves to finance the deficit for a year, but then the country would have to resort to borrowing money.

The economist also said that Russia is facing mass emigration, capital outflows and falling oil and gas revenues in a dire warning to officials in Moscow.

This was not the first time Nechayev has made such a comment.

Speaking in April 2022, he said he and his family would stay in Russia as long as there is no direct threat to my freedom. This came at a time when many were fleeing fearing an even more oppressive Kremlin regime and reserves being called to fight.

Speaking at the time, Nechayev said the phrase he repeated at the forum: 'I have come up with a wonderful formula for everything that is happening in Russia right now. The problem is not that we're in the sh*t, it's that we've decided to live in it.'

Under draconian rules brought in by Vladimir Putin (pictured today) and the Kremlin, those who dissent against the official narrative in Russia face arrest. Some have been known to have been arrested, tortured and even poisoned

Ukraine's western allies - including the UK, the US as well as countries in the European Union - imposed sweeping sanctions against Russia in the wake of Putin ordering his troops across the border in February 2022.

On Thursday, G7 leaders arrived in Hiroshima in Japan to weigh tighter sanctions on Russia, surrounded by reminders about the harrowing cost of war.

An EU official said the leaders meeting in Japan would discuss sanctioning Russia's billion-dollar trade in diamonds, hoping to further starve Moscow of funds for its war in Ukraine. 'We believe we need to limit exports from Russian trade in this sector.'

Other Russian sectors heavily reliant on western technology have been hit hard by the sanctions, such as airlines.

Viktor Basargi, the head of the country's transportation watchdog, said that more than 2,000 flights in Russia were conducted using planes with expired parts in 2022 alone, because they could not be replaced due to the sanctions.

He said it was 'simply impossible to import certain products'.

Meanwhile, Russian media outlets have reported that Russian airline Aeroflot have ordered staff not to report faults because they cannot fix them.

Despite the measures imposed by the west, the resilience of the Russian economy has surprised many. The country's GDP has only been slightly impacted, food is still on the shelves, and unemployment is at a 30-year low.

Observers have suggested that Moscow has used a series of 'Potemkin indicators' to disguise the full impact of the western sanctions on its finances, and to hide that the market is headed for collapse. Pictured: The Kremlin is seen through barbed wire on May 18

The country has been able to replace western products blocked from being sent to Russia with Asian alternatives, while some in the country circumvent the sanctions by shipping them through more neutral territory, such as Turkey and Asia.

Meanwhile, Russia has struck deals with other countries - such as China - to fill gaps left by the west. The pair declared a limitless friendship, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war.

However, observers have suggested that Moscow has used a series of 'Potemkin indicators' to disguise the full impact of the western sanctions on its finances, and to hide that the market is headed for collapse.

For example, Russia's employment rate is low because hundreds of thousands have either fled the country, or have been sent to their deaths in Ukraine. On top of that, more than a million workers are technically employed, but are on leave.
The president apologised after wrongly claiming the children had been rescued

The Colombian president has apologised after claiming four children had been miraculously rescued from a plane crash in the Amazon, only for the armed forces to declare they are still yet to find survivors.

President Gustavo Petro - who was accused of creating false hope of a safe return of the four children - said he was 'sorry about what happened' and that he was deleting his previous tweet announcing the news as the information given to him could not be verified.

Three adult bodies were already found after the crash, which is believed to have happened due to a mechanical failure earlier this month on May 1.

The deaths included the pilot of the plane and the mother of the four children from the Huitoto ethnic group.

The President yesterday declared that the four indigenous siblings - boys aged eleven months, four and nine and their 13-year-old sister - had all been safely rescued, in what he described as a 'joy for the country'.

Yet hours later, Colombian news outlets reported that their contacts in the armed forces said search and rescue units had still not found any survivors.

The children found include four-year-old Tien Noriel Ronoque Mucutuy, pictured here with his mother Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia, who died in the plane crash

Nine-year-old Soleiny Mucutuy, pictured, was also found alive in the jungle with his three brothers

Colombian president Gustavo Petro (pictured) declared the rescue a 'joy for the country' - only for his military and search and rescue teams to deny they had found the kids

'I have decided to delete the [tweet] because the information provided by the ICBF could not be confirmed. I'm sorry about what happened,' the president said.

'The Military Forces and the indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for. At this time there is no other priority other than moving forward with the search until you find them. Children's lives are the most important thing.'

This came after Petro shared the unverified news on Twitter, saying the children were discovered after 'arduous search efforts' by the military.

But late last night military sources added to the confusion saying the children were not in fact in their custody, and that their whereabouts still remained unknown to officials.

Some reports suggested the children may have been found in a remote location by a boatman and were yet to be reached by officials, who said the president had been 'misinformed', without clarifying.

But several Colombian news outlets, as well as Colombia's Institute of Family Welfare, reported this morning the children had not yet been found.

The news prompted an outcry on social media with several users hitting out at Pedro, calling him a liar and accusing him of giving people 'false hope'.

Others questioned how four young children could possibly have survived for 18 days in such difficult conditions.

The crash is believed to have happened due a mechanical failure on May 1. The front of the aircraft was found completely destroyed

A baby bottle and a pair of scissors were among the things giving rescuers hope of survivors as they searched the jungle for the missing children

The plane crash happened in Solano, Caqueta, and the front of the aircraft was found destroyed

More than 100 soldiers had been deployed with sniffer dogs to search for the minors who were traveling in an airplane that crashed on May 1, leaving three adults including the pilot and the children's mother dead.

Rescuers had said they believed the children were wandering through the jungle in the southern Caqueta department since the crash.

Petro did not provide any details on where the children had been rescued or how they survived alone in the jungle in his now rescinded statement.

Avianline Charters, owner of the crashed aircraft, said that one of its pilots in the search area was told the children had been found and that they 'were being transported by boat downriver and that they were all alive.'

However, the company also said that 'there has been no official confirmation' that the children were completely out of danger, and thunderstorms in the area still posed a risk to them reaching safety.

The armed forces had earlier said their search efforts intensified after rescuers came across a 'shelter built in an improvised way with sticks and branches,' leading them to believe there were survivors.

In photographs released by the military, scissors, shoes, and hair ties could be seen among branches on the jungle floor.

A baby's drinking bottle and half-eaten pieces of fruit had been spotted before the shelter's discovery.

On Monday and Tuesday, soldiers found the bodies of the pilot and two adults who had been flying from a jungle location to San Jose del Guaviare, one of the main cities in Colombia's Amazon rainforest.

One of the dead passengers, Ranoque Mucutuy, was the mother of the four children.

More than 100 soldiers with sniffer dogs walked through the jungle in the south of Columbia to find the missing children - 11-months, four, nine and 13

A half-eaten piece of fruit was another item found by rescuers before the children were found, giving them hope of survivors

A label of a headband found in the forest also suggested that people were alive

Sniffer dogs and three helicopters were deployed in search of the children, but wild animals, heavy rain and tree height have prolonged the rescue operation

Giant trees that can grow up to 40 meters tall and heavy rainfall made the 'Operation Hope' search difficult.

Three helicopters were used to help, one of which blasted out a recorded message from the children's grandmother in their native Huitoto language telling them to stop moving through the jungle.

Authorities have not indicated what caused the plane crash.

The pilot had reported problems with the engine just minutes before the airplane disappeared from radars, Colombia's disaster response body said.

It is a region with few roads and is also difficult to access by river, so airplane transport is common.

The children are from the Indigenous Huitoto community, also spelled Witoto, who are known for living in harmony with the remote jungle.

The community develops skills in hunting, fishing and gathering, which may have helped the children to survive.

Exploitation, disease and assimilation have reduced the population sharply over many decades.

Petro, who announced the rescue, is Colombia's first leftist president.

He came to power last August but has been unable to usher in the fundamental reforms in labor law, healthcare, pensions and the judiciary that he promised during his campaign.
A video shows the heart-stopping moment that arsonists set a flat alight with petrol, forcing a mother to flee with her young child.

Tori Sheehan, 26, says the family are lucky to be alive after her Caerphilly flat was attacked by a gang who poured petrol through her letterbox in the early hours of the morning on April 30.

She was awake 'by chance' and escaped by sprinting down the stairs with her five-year-old son.

Paramedics treated both for minor injuries and Ms Sheehan's son was taken to hospital as a precaution.

South Wales Police are looking to speak to two men who were spotted nearby who escaped in a dark getaway car.

The men poured petrol through the letter box before setting the flat alight, with Tori Sheehan and her young son still inside

Tori Sheehan, 26, says the family are lucky to be alive after her Caerphilly flat was attacked by a gang

Ms Sheehan said: 'At around 2.25am I was standing in my top floor flat kitchen on FaceTime to my friend. All of a sudden I just heard a loud 'oomph' noise.

'My five-year-old son was sleeping in bed so I had to grab him and run down the stairs and past the flames.

'We were very lucky to get out without any serious injuries, I just had singed hair and eyelashes.

'It was just by chance that I was awake and in the kitchen. If I was in the bathroom or living room I wouldn't have heard the noise of the fire starting.'

Ms Sheehan says she had to flee the property via an internal staircase as there is no fire exit at the flats in Gelligaer, Caerphilly.

She said: 'I just thought I need to get out of here now because there's no other way out. The door was on fire and the flames were up at least two of the bottom steps.

'It's diabolical. As a mum I've got awful visions going through my head of what could have happened. I'm imagining different scenarios even though we're out of it fine - I still can't help but think about it.

'My family could be organising a funeral right now. It's been awful, I keep getting flashbacks and having mood swings.'

Ms Sheehan said there was a large gap where her letterbox should be as her door was previously damaged on New Year's day and she was waiting for repairs.

Since the blaze on April 30, Ms Sheehan and her son have been unable to access the flat and staying with family members.

She said: 'I've checked the house by going up on a ladder. My son's room isn't too bad and my room has a layer of soot on it.

The men flee after setting alight the flat by pouring petrol through the letterbox. South Wales Police are appealing for witnesses

Ms Sheehan says she had to flee the property via an internal staircase as there is no fire exit at the flats in Gelligaer, Caerphilly

The men poured petrol through the letterbox of the flat before setting it alight, causing severe damage

The men set off on foot before escaping in a dark getaway car. The flat was badly damaged by the blaze

Ms Sheehan said there had been a large gap where her letterbox should be as her door was previously damaged on New Year's day

'The living room windows are cracked and everything is gone and the kitchen.. I'd just bought new furniture and I have to start again now. It was my son's birthday a couple of days before this happened so he is missing his toys.'

A spokesperson for South Wales Police said paramedics attended the flat and treated two people for minor injuries. A five-year-old boy later attended hospital as a precaution.

'Investigating officers would like to speak to two people who were seen in Greenhill Place at the time of the fire.

'They then reportedly left the area on foot in the direction of Hamman Place before they allegedly got into a dark coloured car and are believed to have headed in the direction of Bargoed.

'Enquires are ongoing and anyone with information, including CCTV or dashcam footage, can call 101 or send us a direct message quoting log reference 2300138393. You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 with details.'
An Open University worker who was sacked for a racist tweet about Star Wars actor John Boyega has lost a legal case after trying to claim he was discriminated against.

Far-right campaigner Alec Cave - who believes the British actor 'should not be treated as an Englishman' - tried arguing his views amounted to a 'philosophical belief' and that Open University discriminated against him by sacking him.

The project coordinator at the University, was fired after he tweeted Boyega saying 'why does a person who speaks and acts like a foreigner expect to be treated the same as an Englishman in England?'

Cave, who has been seen at far-right protests, also told a prominent British-Nigerian lawyer 'f*** off and go home', a tribunal heard.

Cave is a proud English Nationalist who does not believe in equal rights, believes black and Jewish people are 'not part of the English nation', and that a person's ancestry determines how British they are, the hearing was told.

Far-right campaigner Alec Cave tried arguing his views amounted to a 'philosophical belief' and that Open University discriminated against him by sacking him

The project coordinator at the university, was fired after he tweeted John Boyega saying 'why does a person who speaks and acts like a foreigner expect to be treated the same as an Englishman in England?'

He thinks black people should have less priority to social housing than 'British people' and thinks Islam-converts are 'less British'.

After his sacking from the university, Cave tried to sue the institution at an employment tribunal.

However, Employment Judge Isabel Manley dismissed his case and said his opinions are so extreme they are 'akin to Nazism'.

Judge Manley ruled his views cannot amount to a protected belief as they are 'incompatible with human dignity' and 'not worthy of respect'.

The tribunal in Cambridge heard Cave was in his post as a project coordinator from October 2018.

Online, he poses under the name 'Wesley Russell' and set up right-wing channel 'Renew Britannia' on Twitter and YouTube.

Until recently he also belonged to Patriotic Alternative, a right-wing movement which has been described as 'Britain's Fascist Threat'.

According to reports online he attended far-right protests and gatecrashed a meeting about refugees at a hotel.

Until recently he also belonged to Patriotic Alternative, a right-wing movement which has been described as 'Britain's Fascist Threat' - but has now joined another nationalist group - Homeland (Pictured giving a talk to Homeland supporters in April)

The tribunal heard Cave was sacked by the University in July 2020 after he tweeted Boyega when the Star Wars actor used the word 'mandem' in a post.

Cave wrote to Boyega: 'Why does a person who speaks and acts like a foreigner expect to be treated the same as an Englishman in England? The entitlement of these people.'

At the tribunal, Cave said 'he didn't consider Mr Boyega to be British because he is of African descent, has (or had) a Nigerian flag on his Twitter account and identifies with his Nigerian ancestry'.

A tribunal report said: '[Cave] took exception to Mr Boyega's use of the word 'mandem' which he stated was slang from Black immigration, specifically, the Caribbean diaspora, and that 'English people don't use that language'.

'His belief is that this slang is different from English slang as it hasn't emerged from English people.'

Cave also told Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu 'f*** off and go home' when the respected lawyer said she was 'proudly African'.

Cave said he believes 'categorisations of race are useful, for instance in political discourse and decision making'.

Cave also told Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu 'f*** off and go home' when the respected lawyer said she was 'proudly African'

He told the tribunal he is anti-egalitarian and believes mass immigration has been 'destructive and unhealthy' and there is a 'pernicious ideology' which inflicts white guilt on people of 'white European descent'.

He said: 'I believe that nations ought to be defined by shared heritage such as common language, culture, faith and ancestry.'

The tribunal report added: 'He said even those born in the UK are not necessarily British.

'It is his belief that citizenship does not count. It is ethnicity which counts rather than a passport.

'He repeated his ideas about a shrinking white population and what he stated was a 'traditional' view of nationhood, that had been in place for thousands of years.

'He stated that someone who was born in this country and converted to Islam would be less British.

'He said that Jewish people were in a distinct ethno-religious group and could not be British.

'If a person is black, he stated, they would have less claim to the land and be less British because it depended on ancestry.

'His belief has a central theme of the importance of ancestry which he asserted goes back before parents or grandparents.

The tribunal report added: 'He said even those born in the UK are not necessarily British'

'He said that the government should discriminate in favour of British people, for instance, in the provision of social housing. He said a black person would be a lower priority.

'He went on to say that he did not advocate treating others badly but his beliefs were a result of his love of nation.

'His evidence was that he regarded ethnicity and nationality as one and the same and that there are emotional, mental and spiritual differences between races.'

The University argued his views were 'racist' and were 'destructive of human dignity'.

Judge Manley dismissed his case.

Judge Manley said: 'He has not shown [his belief in English Nationalism] is worthy of respect in a democratic society. It is incompatible with human dignity and in conflict with the fundamental rights of others.

'There is a clear denial of the rights of those without the requisite ancestry to be part of the envisaged nation.

'His unequivocal belief that those who are black or Jewish are not part of the English nation, for example, patently seriously discriminates against people within those groups.

'It is, at the very least, ethno-centric... and could also arguably be described as racist and/or anti-semitic.

'Arguing that people without the ancestry as described by Cave are not part of this nation, to the extent that they should 'go home' is a destruction of their rights.

'This is not just a belief that is shocking, offensive or disturbing to others, though it may well be all those things. It is a belief that, in at least some respects, is akin to Nazism.

'I find his belief, as articulated to me, is aimed at the destruction of the rights and freedoms of those he seeks to exclude from the English nation.'
Union militants have branded attempts by banking giant Lloyds to make staff come into the office for two days a week as 'an attack on flexible working'.

Chairman of Lloyds Robin Budenberg, who also faced disruption from Extinction Rebellion at the group's AGM in Glasgow, said the post-Covid move to transition away from working from home was part of a pilot scheme and is not set in stone.

But furious union chiefs at Unite, which represents staff members across the Lloyds' 63,000-strong workforce, accused the bank of discriminating against working parents, women and carers.

'Let's be clear, this is an attack on flexible working', Unite member Rachel Boothroyd told the board, including chief executive Charlie Nunn.

She said the pilot scheme was disproportionately impacting women, carers and disabled workers at the bank, because it takes away their ability to work flexibly around caring duties.

Union militants have branded attempts by banking giant Lloyds to make staff come into work two days a week as 'an attack on flexible working'. (file image)

Unite, which represents staff members across the group's 63,000-strong workforce, accused the bank of discriminating against working parents, women and carers. Pictured: NHS workers from Unite on strike earlier this month

The policy, introduced last month, involves 4,000 workers across the business, according to Unite - the union which has also taken strike action with ambulance staff, NHS workers, Heathrow employees, bus drivers and more.

A separate union member read out a testament from an unnamed married couple who both work at the bank, which said the policy will not allow them to look after their child who has additional needs.

Mr Budenberg responded to the criticism: 'At this stage we are conducting two pilots and have asked colleagues to share their views. I would stress that no decisions have been taken.

'Any outcomes will be based on individual discussions between colleagues and their line managers.'

He said he was proud of the bank for being leaders in the field with its flexible working policy, adding: 'We want to do something that is fair for everyone.'

Protesters from Unite gathered outside the AGM, demanding Lloyds drops its compressed hours pilot.

Sharon Graham, Unite's general secretary, said in a statement of support: 'Unite members are saying clearly that Lloyds Banking Group must drop this ill-conceived pilot which grievously disadvantages women, carers and disabled staff working at the bank.

Unite chiefs said the pilot scheme was disproportionately impacting women, carers and disabled workers at the bank, because it takes away their ability to work flexibly around caring duties. Pictured: Unite union bus drivers on strike in March

The policy, introduced last month, involves 4,000 workers across the business, according to Unite. (file photo)

'At a time when progressive employers are moving towards modern ways of working, it is appears that Lloyds' management are well out of touch.'

Meanwhile, the meeting got off to a slow start after protesters from Extinction Rebellion interrupted Mr Budenburg before he could begin his opening speech.

He got as far as saying 'hello and welcome' before four protesters stood up and interrupted with speeches over the bank's contribution to financing fossil fuel projects.

The livestream of the AGM was paused for around 10 minutes before the chairman could continue.

Extinction Rebellion said Lloyds increased fossil fuel funding by 500 million US dollars (402 million) in 2022 compared with 2021.

The campaign group asked Lloyds renounce the funding of fossil fuels altogether, and accused it of greenwashing.

It follows other British banking giants including Barclays and HSBC facing more significant disruption from climate protesters at their AGMs this month.

Lloyds is set to return long-term incentives to directors which could see executive directors receive a bonus in the form of shares of up to 300 per cent of their salary from 2024.

The renewed remuneration policy was put to shareholders in a vote following the meeting. Unofficial results showed that the long-term incentive plan and the group's annual report were approved by shareholders.
Ten separate women have accused a Colorado doctor of drugging and sexually assaulting them after meeting on dating apps Hinge and Tinder.

Dr. Stephen Matthews, 35, would allegedly meet women for mid-morning dates and invite them back to his home to play Jenga while drinking mimosas in his hot tub, before they'd black out and he would assault them, according to ten different statements, recounting the unnervingly similar behavior.

The majority of the alleged victims claimed they had forgotten nearly everything that happened, despite having little to drink - before some woke up naked, covered in hickies and bite marks.

Dr. Matthews, a cardiologist in Lakewood, Colorado, was first charged with three felony sex assault counts in April 2023 over an incident from January 2023. He has since been slapped with 16 more felony counts.

Dr. Stephen Matthews, 35, would allegedly meet women for mid-morning dates, invite them back to his home to play Jenga while drinking mimosas in his hot tub, before they'd black out and he would assault them

He smiled as he greeted his friends and lawyers outside court this week - thinking he was facing three felony charges lodged by one witness

Unbeknownst to him, he was immediately served charges for nine more cases and arrested outside the courtroom, before being taken away in handcuffs and hurried into a police car

A woman he was having drinks with claimed she had lost all memory of the night and that a rape test the next day confirmed she had sexual intercourse. It was for this alleged crime that he arrived in court for a preliminary hearing on Monday.

He smiled as he greeted his friends and lawyers outside court this week.

But unbeknownst to him, he was immediately served charges for nine more cases, arrested outside the courtroom, handcuffed and hurried into a police car.

The DA confirmed the nine new cases against him. He was charged with 16 felony counts, and was taken straight to Denver Jail, reports CBS.

The number of alleged victims who were assaulted by Matthews now stands at ten.

Matthews is facing charges of sexual assault on a helpless victim, sexual assault without consent, sexual assault on an incapable victim and second-degree assault involving drugging women.

The first woman to come forward - who triggered the larger police investigation into the alleged rapist - said she did not remember having sex with Matthews when they met on January 29, 2023 after chatting on Hinge.

They met just after 10am for breakfast and mimosas, and he invited her back to his home afterwards. They played Jenga and got into his hot tub - and the woman claims he made her have a drink.

She began to feel poorly soon after and her next memory was being in her own home and talking to paramedics - with no idea how she got there. She was found in the shower in her underwear by her sister.

The alleged victim found hickies on her chest - which she said she did not have prior to blacking out. The next day, she went to University Hospital and underwent a sexual assault nurse exam.

Matthews told police he and the woman had 'consensual sex,' his arrest affidavit said.

The majority of the alleged victims claimed they had blacked out despite having little to drink - and would forget nearly everything that happened - before some woke up naked, with hickies, and bite marks

Dr. Matthews, a cardiologist in Lakewood, Colorado, was first charged with three felony sex assault counts in April 2023 over an incident from January 2023. But now nine more victims have come forward

Matthews told the women that came across his profile he was looking for someone who is 'equally passionate about life as I am, someone who is genuine, authentic, kind, humorous, adventurous, doesn't take themselves too serious, well traveled, and just plain fun'

Screenshots from his Hinge profile show him posing in his doctors uniform

One woman (pictured), who he was having drinks with, said she lost all memory of the night and then a rape test the next day confirmed she had sexual intercourse. It was for this alleged crime that he arrived in court for a preliminary hearing on Monday. Her statement triggered nine other women to come forward with stories about the same man

He was arrested on three felony counts on March 22. But five days later on March 27, police received another call from a different woman about Matthews.

The second alleged victim coming forward had a similar story. The pair chatted on Hinge and went on a date on January 25, 2023. She had one alcoholic drink, while he was having tequila shots.

They went back to his home, where she went to the restroom and returned to him already having poured her a tequila soda drink.

According to online reports, Matthews studied at New York Medical College

The alleged victim said she had part of the drink 'and was off balance.' She remembered him kissing her and recording her, and then she blacked out. She took a taxi home and was violently ill - and told police she believes he sexually assaulted her.

On April 27, 2023, a third woman came forward claiming Matthews sexually assaulted her. They went for a 10am brunch on October 30, 2019, after matching on Tinder. They had mimosas and a meal, before he invited her back to his place to use the hot tub.

Matthews made her a drink, and after that 'things became very blurry,' the affidavit states. She remembers vomiting in his apartment, but next recalls being in her own apartment with him.

She did not remember how they got there - but she went to sleep, and woke up to Matthews having sex with her, the affidavit states.

After she refused to see him again, Matthews allegedly sent her photos of her naked in the hot tub.

On April 24, 2023, a fourth woman came forward with a similar story about Matthews. She claimed she was sexually assaulted in 2020 after matching with Matthews on Hinge and going on a dog walking date.

They went back to his place to his rooftop to watch the sunset, and he went down to his apartment 'for an uncomfortably long period of time,' before returning with a drink and a Jenga game.

Dr. Matthews, a cardiologist in Lakewood, Colorado, was first charged with three felony sex assault counts in April 2023 over an incident from January 2023

The DA confirmed the nine new cases against him. He was taken straight to Denver Jail

His home was raided for evidence following the new allegations

She took a sip of the drink and said it tasted bad. She said she wanted to leave, so went down to his apartment where he asked her to stay five more minutes.

Her next memory was crawling across his bedroom floor, naked, yelling at him asking what he did.

She had a sexual assault nurse examination completed at the time of the alleged rape in 2020.

On April 19, 2023, Matthews' fifth alleged victim made a call to the police.

She said she met the doctor on Hinge between the fall of 2020 and spring of 2021. He suggested she come to the hospital so they could 'hook up.' They instead met up at his apartment - where they had consensual sex, according to the affidavit.

On a second occasion, she went to his place and Matthews gave her a drink, but she immediately blacked out and does not remember anything from the night, the document said.

On April 21, 2023, a sixth woman informed the police that she believed she was drugged by Matthews.

She went to his home to collect his keys, as she would be watching his dog while he was out of town on January 22, 2022. They went for dinner, where she believes he bought her a drink - before she became very ill.

Restaurant staff wanted to call 911 because of how incoherent she was, the affidavit states.

On April 20, 2023, the seventh alleged victim spoke to police about her experience with Matthews.

They matched on Tinder in May 2022, and went on a hike and then back to his place. She remembers having three shots of tequila and playing Jenga, but then blacked out for four hours.

He woke her up at 8pm and told her she needed to leave. She didn't remember what happened.

The woman (pictured) who was the first to lodge a police complaint against Matthews said: 'He's very clearly been doing this for a longtime, in a very similar fashion. And that's terrifying'

Texts seen between Matthews and one of his alleged victims

Police executed a search warrant of Matthews' Denver home on Monday

On April 19, 2023, an eighth woman claimed she went to his apartment after matching on Tinder, drunk alcohol with him, and then blacked out. She remembered him playing a game, and had a vague memory of him being on top of her and kissing her.

On the same day, another woman, the ninth alleged victim, called the police and said she match with Matthews on Hinge and went on a date on February 5, 2023.

He invited her to his residence, where he wanted to play Jenga, hang out in the hot tub and drink mimosas. She declined a drink that he had already made to give her, and proceeded to get 'touchy' in the tub.

She left, and soon realized he was the same person who had 'sexually assaulted her friend about three years ago,' the affidavit says.

On May 1, 2023, another woman - making her the tenth alleged victim - came forward to claim she met Matthews on Tinder in June of 2022 and went on a date at 11:30am.

They had coffee and walked their dogs nearby, before he invited her back to his to play Jenga. She took a shot of alcohol, and had part of a White Claw drink, but after that 'things got fuzzy.'

The woman did not know what happened, but ended up with bite marks on her arm.

According to online reports, Matthews studied at New York Medical College.

The first woman to come forward, who waived her anonymity in an interview with CBS, said she went on a date with him in January 2023.

After her case was popularized online, more women came forward with similar stories.

She said: 'I should have never, ever, even been able to match with him, because he shouldn't haven't been able to make another account.'

She undertook a rape test, which said she had intercourse, which she does not remember.

'If they had listened to the multitude of reports they received about this person and just banned him in the first place, I would not be sitting here today having this conversation.'

'He's very clearly been doing this for a longtime, in a very similar fashion. And that's terrifying.'

His attorney, Douglas Cohen, has maintained his innocence.

Screenshots of his profile on Hinge show that Matthews presented himself as a 35-year-old, 6'2 man from Madison in Wisconsin.

He called himself 'liberal,' and said he spoke Spanish and liked to drink.

Matthews told the women that came across his profile that he was looking for someone who is 'equally passionate about life as I am, someone who is genuine, authentic, kind, humorous, adventurous, doesn't take themselves too serious, well traveled, and just plain fun.'

A report by CBS revealed that despite Hinge saying he had been 'banned,' he still managed to maintain a profile on the app for three years after the first rape accusation.

He met and dated numerous other women afterwards.

Matthews is being held in jail without bond, pending another hearing Friday morning.
A UK tech tycoon controversially extradited to the US has told friends the ordeal is taking a tremendous toll  and warned his fate could face any British businessperson.

Mike Lynch, founder of software firm Autonomy, is awaiting trial on fraud charges related to the 9 billion sale of his company to American giant Hewlett Packard in 2011.

Lynch is the latest victim of what critics say is a really terrible one-sided treaty with the US, agreed by Tony Blairs Labour government in 2003.

Following a lengthy legal battle against extradition, he has been dispatched to San Francisco to face trial which could result in a 20-year jail term. But he insists that the battle is far from over.

British entrepreneur Mike Lynch leaves the High Court in London, Britain March 25, 2019

In a letter to friends, seen by the Mail, Lynch described how while he knew he was likely to find himself heading to the US, he couldnt have imagined the circumstances.

I was collected from my home at dawn last Thursday and driven by Met police officers to Heathrow where I was handed over to US Federal Marshals.

READ MORE: Former Shadow Home Secretary DAVID DAVIS: We MUST change the rules that allow British entrepreneurs to be extradited to the US Advertisement

Although I cant fault the politeness of the people involved, they were helpful and understanding, the reality of the situation is that from that moment, my phone and laptop were taken from me and I was put in handcuffs for the duration of the flight and transfer to the courthouse.

After Lynchs arrival in the US a week ago, stringent bail conditions  which Lynch said were tougher than he had expected  were imposed by a judge.

He spent a night in custody and was afterwards moved to temporary accommodation  unable to leave except to see lawyers locally.

Lynch said: This is the reality of extradition to the US, and one that could face any British businessperson.

Critics of the extradition treaty, signed in the wake of the 9/11 attacks with the apparent intention of snaring terrorists and other serious criminals, say it has instead disproportionately affected British white collar criminals.

David Davis, the Tory former shadow home secretary who has taken up the case, has warned that it means an entrepreneur who falls out with a US company can be seized from our shores.

He said three times as many had been sent to face trial in the US has had gone the other way.

Lynchs wife Angela Bacares and two teenage children have remained in the UK while he awaits trial.

The businessman wrote: As I wait, confined, for the next legal hearing Ive inevitably reflected on the events of the decade since HP first made its allegations.

The pressure of taking on a fight of this magnitude takes a tremendous toll on me, and on my family, and the only silver lining is the warm friendship and support you have all given us, which we are eternally grateful for.

As I leave Angela and the girls behind, I ask you to put your metaphoric arms around them. Their ordeal is no easier than mine and it is for them that I keep fighting.

Lynchs treatment stands in stark contrast to that of Anne Sacoolas, the US diplomat who killed teenager Harry Dunn in a UK road accident.

An attempt to extradite Sacoolas to Britain to be prosecuted was rebuffed and she was handed a suspended sentence via videolink to the Old Bailey while staying put in her own country.

Lynch, 57, has been fighting a near four-year legal battle against extradition, arguing that he ought to be tried in Britain.

He ran out of avenues of appeal last month.

Lynch said in his letter that before leaving the UK there had been a lengthy negotiation of bail conditions with prosecutors in San Francisco which would have allowed him the freedom to move around the city and travel to see lawyers on the East coast of the United States.

That changed when he arrived and was placed under much more stringent conditions, he said.

Court records show Judge Charles Breyer ordered Lynch to pay an 80m bond, hand over his passport and to be placed under 24-hour armed guard, paid for by himself, at in San Francisco.

The judge concluded that the businessman  whose wealth the court estimated at 360m  presented a serious and substantial risk of flight.

Once lauded as the UKs answer to Microsofts Bill Gates, Lynch was also the founding investor of cybersecurity giant Darktrace  and retains a major stake though has no role in the running of the company.

But the sale of his company Autonomy more than a decade ago soon turned sour.

Within a year, new owners Hewlett Packard wrote down the value of the business by 7 billion and later brought a civil lawsuit in London against Lynch and Autonomys former chief financial officer Sushovan Hussain.

Tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, since extradited to the US, is pictured at his Suffolk farm

A UK judge ruled in January 2022 that Lynch had defrauded HP by inflating the value of Autonomy.

Lynch had said HP did not know what it was doing with Autonomy, and was out of its depth in understanding his technology.

Meanwhile, the US had brought criminal charges against Lynch for wire fraud and securities fraud.

In 2019, Lynch's former colleague, Hussain, was convicted of fraud in the United States and sentenced to five years in prison.
Francisco Oropesa, 38, was walked into court Thursday morning after being accused of fatally shooting five of his neighbors in Texas

The Texas gunman accused of killing five neighbors, including a nine-year-old boy, in San Jacinto County was seen outside court on Thursday - where attorneys said they may consider bringing a death penalty trial.

Franicsco Oropesa, 38, who appeared shackled and in an orange and white striped jumpsuit, was flanked by deputies and the sheriff as he walked into the building completely silent. He did not say a word while inside the courthouse, where he stood before the judge for the first time.

Following a massive manhunt, Oropesa was arrested on May 2. He has been behind bars for about two weeks with his bond set at $7.5million.

He is charged with five counts of first-degree murder, one charge for each victim he is accused of gunning down during a mass shooting on his block.

The murders were allegedly the result of a growing feud between the neighbors after the defendant's dog killed some of the family's sheep and chickens, Houston Chronicle reports.

It was initially suggested he had gone on a deadly rampage after the family of ten asked him to stop shooting his AR-15 style rifle in his yard.

Francisco Oropeza, center, is escorted to the San Jacinto County courthouse by San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers, right, for a hearing Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Cold Spring, Texas. Oropeza is suspected of killing five people, including a 9-year-old boy

His attorney, Anthony Osso, believes the district attorney's office will upgrade the charges against Oropesa in the near future

Oropesa's attorney, Anthony Osso, said he fully expects the district attorney's office to upgrade charges to capital murder.

He added that some of the initial details from investigators claiming the shooting occurred because a neighbor asked Oropesa to stop shooting his weapon in the yard may not be entirely accurate.

'We're learning a lot more every day about that evening, and the initial story about asking him not to shoot his gun in the backyard because a baby was sleeping is probably not going to be proved accurate,' said Osso.

District Attorney Todd Dillon also spoke Thursday morning, acknowledging that it is a costly process to try a death penalty case, especially in a smaller county like San Jacinto.

'Deciding point is whether it serves the ends of justice, whether this is a just result,' he said.

Charges may be upgraded when the case goes before a grand jury. Elements to consider will include the number of victims and the fact that one of them was a child.

Oropesa's next scheduled court date is August 10.

Two other arrests were made after Oropesa's. Divina Lamar Nava - Oropesa's domestic partner - was charged with hindering apprehension of a felon, and according to the DA, she was at the scene when Oropesa was arrested and is accused of helping him.

One of the suspect's friends, Domingo Castilla, was also arrested on a possession of marijuana charge. He is also suspected of helping the alleged shooter flee the neighborhood.

The alleged shooter was flanked by armed law enforcement officers as he walked into the court house Thursday morning

Two of Oropesa's victims, who were living in the house next door to his

Sonia Guzman and Daniel Enrique Lazo were another two of Oropesa's victims. Daniel was just nine years old when he was killed

Diana Velasquez was another one of Oropesa's victims. All the victims were said to be from Honduras, and were living ten to the house

Oropesa was said to have been drunk at the time of the shooting

Two other arrests were made after Oropesa's - his domestic partner and his friend - both of whom are believed to have attempted to help him flee

Initial reports following the nighttime shooting painted a picture of Oropesa's neighbors - a family of ten all living together - asking him to stop firing his weapon because they were trying to get a baby to fall asleep.

Oropesa, who was known to fire his gun in his yard often, replied 'I'll do what I want in my front yard' and shot five members of the family with an AR-15 before fleeing.

When police arrived at the scene, they found two adult women dead at the front of the house, and a man lying dead in the living room.

The two women were covered in blood, according to San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers, and were lying on top of two young children who survived.

All of the victims were from Honduras, according to police.

Oropesa was said to have been drunk at the time.

Reports indicate that the alleged gunman had been deported from the US four times in the last 14 years.
Iraq is surrounded by Syria, Turkey, Iran, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, countries that are not always friendly. Iraq is oil-rich but economically poor. Corruption and government mismanagement resulted in an unemployment rate of 14 percent. Worldwide, this is surpassed only by South Africa (32 percent) and Nigeria (32 percent). Both these African countries also suffer from high levels of corruption. The most recent corruption survey has Iraq ranked 157 out of 180 nations. South Africa is at 72 and Nigeria at 150. While Iraq remains in the top twelve percent of most-corrupt countries, it is visibly climbing out of that hole. In 2020 Iraqs rank was 160 and 162 in 2019.

Transparency International measures corruption on a 1 (most corrupt) to 100 (not corrupt) scale. The nations with the worst score are currently Syria (score of 14), South Sudan (12) and Somalia (12). The least corrupt nations are currently Denmark and New Zealand, each with a score of 88. Iraq had a score of 23 in 2022, up from 21 in 2020, 20 in 2019, 17 in 2017-18 and 16 in 2013.

Since Iraq became a democracy in 2004, reducing corruption has become more and more at the center of reform efforts. Iraq has long been infamous for its high levels of corruption. Before Saddam Hussein was ousted in 2003, the corruption was somewhat controlled by Saddam and his government. Saddam used the corruption to raise money and reward friends and punish enemies. Eliminating Saddam did not eliminate the corruption but did mean you could openly protest the corruption without risking arrest or execution.

Naturally, Iraq prefers to do business with other corrupt nations. Russia (137 out of 180 in corruption) is a favorite. Russias high level of corruption often results in problems with maintaining military equipment purchased from them. For example, because of the Ukraine War related sanctions on Russia, the Russian helicopter gunships Iraq depends on for many airstrikes have been gradually grounded because no spare parts can be obtained from Russia. Iraq instead used its American F-16IQ jets to carry out most of its airstrikes. The air force received 36 American built F-16IQ jet fighters between 2015 and 2020, In late 2015 Iraqi F-16IQs carried out their first combat operation (against ISIL in Anbar province). The F-16IQ made its first flight in early 2014. F-16IQ is a custom version of the single seat Block 52 F-16C and the two-seater F-16D. Iraq ordered 36 F-16IQs seven years ago. The F-16IQ is similar to American Block 52 F-16s except they are not equipped to handle AMRAAM (radar guided air-to-air missiles) or JDAM (GPS guided bombs). The F-16IQ can handle laser guided bombs and older radar guided missiles like the AIM-7.

Iraqi F-16s too have suffered because of corruption. When the F-16s are not heavily used, maintenance soon becomes a problem because cash allocated for F-16 maintenance suddenly dwindles as air force and defense ministry officials dip into the maintenance fund because the F-16s generally dont have to fly much. For each hour an F-16 is in the air, it requires about $25,000 in operating and maintenance costs. Fuel alone accounts for over 20 percent of the cost. Pay and benefits for pilots and maintenance personnel is nearly as costly, especially if, like Iraq, you have to import expensive foreign contractors. These contract personnel become even more expensive if you want them to operate in a war zone. Replacement parts account for nearly as much as fuel. Some components, like tires and engines, wear out the more they are used. All components of an F-16 are subject to wear and tear and eventually need replacing if you want to avoid accidents or the inability to fly at all. At the moment the F-16IQs are needed and that means money allocated for operating them arrives on time and without any unexpected deductions by larcenous officials.

In addition to many American contractors, Iraq also hosts several thousand American troops. These are part of an effort to reduce growing Iranian influence in Iraq. Arabs see Iran as a major troublemaker in the region. The Turks, Americans and Israelis agree and are all doing something to keep the Iranians out. The Assads in neighboring Syria are somewhere in the middle when it comes to Iran. At the moment the Assads want closer relations with its fellow Arabs, have been able to gain re-admittance to the Arab League and are negotiating with Saudi Arabia for reconstruction assistance and commercial investments.

Keeping Iran out of Iraq is complicated by the fact that lots of pro-Iran Iraqis are already in Iraq and a growing number appear to be on the government payroll via the post-2014 deal that put all PMF (Popular Mobilization Force) militias on the army payroll. Technically this meant that the PMF units had to report to senior army commanders and obey orders issued by army generals. The PMF units took the payroll cash but refused to obey army commands or requests. Each year the PMF units demanded more money from the government. This cash was deducted from the army budget. This year PMF wants nearly $3 billion. The PMF claims that this is what it needed to about 200,000 PMF members and that number increases each year. The PMF claims that many are pro-Iran groups and will resort of violence if they are not paid. Anti-corruption groups claim that this is another form of criminal activity because the number of PMF members claimed dont exist and most of this PMF budget is being stolen via a traditional ghost soldier scam. This is when large numbers of soldiers are claimed but do not exist and whoever controls the payroll and other expenses for these non-existent troops, can just steal the money. It is suspected that some of the ghost soldier cash going to the PMF is being diverted to Iran. This would not be the first time that cash from Iraqi corruption went to Iran, which is responsible for a lot of the corruption in Iraq.

May 16, 2023: In the north (Sinjar in Nineveh province) a Turkish UAV used a missile to kill three members of a local pro-PKK (Turkish Kurd separatists) group. Turkey regularly carries out attacks like this in northern Iraq, especially around Sinjar.

May 15, 2023: In the autonomous Kurdish north (outside Kirkuk), security forces cornered two ISIL members hiding in some marshes and killed them. One soldier was wounded. There arent any organized ISIL groups left this far north and the Iraqi and Kurdish security forces want to keep it that way.

May 14, 2023: The U.S. has concluded that a March UAV attack on an American base in Syria, which killed a military contractor, was launched by an Iran-backed militia in nearby Iraq.

May 13, 2023: In the north (Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish north) Kurdish forces continue finding the hideouts of the few remaining ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) groups and trying to eliminate them. This is a tedious and frustrating process because there are enough Sunni Arabs living in the area to provide some cover and sanctuary for ISIL members. ISIL survives in Iraq by reverting to gangster mode. Kidnapping for ransom is a favorite activity and it works as long as ISIL avoids grabbing any0ne belonging to a well-armed and aggressive group that will respond with violence to ransom demands rather than paying.

May 11, 2023: North of Baghdad (Saladin province) ISIL attacked a police checkpoint but were repulsed with three of the attackers killed. One policeman died as well.

Iraq requested that Turkey allow Kurdish oil to resume using a pipeline through Turkey for exporting oil. This comes after Iraq won an International Court of arbitration ruling in March that declared it illegal for Turkey to allow 370,000 barrels of oil a day to move through a Turkish pipeline to a port where the oil can be sold to export customers and finance the autonomous Kurd government. Turkey gets a transit fee for use of the pipeline. Without the oil income the Kurds will have to surrender some of their autonomy to the Arab dominated Iraqi government. The Iraqi Arabs have never treated the Kurds well and under Saddam, the Kurds were constantly being attacked, in one case with chemical weapons. The Iraqi government and the Kurds worked out a new deal.

May 9, 2023: In the northeast (Diyala Province) an Iraqi F-16 airstrike killed two senior ISIL leaders.

Meanwhile, in the west (Anbar Province) security forces found and destroyed an ISIL hideout in remote areas of western Anbar. The hideouts are destroyed along with the munitions and equipment found.

May 8, 2023: In the northeast (Diyala Province) security forces found two ISIL hideouts that were used to store large quantities of weapons and ammunition. The hideouts and weapons were destroyed. These two locations were part of a larger ISIL network of weapons storage sites.

May 6, 2023: In the north (Kirkuk province) security forces found an ISIL hideout and killed several Islamic terrorists who were living there. Weapons and munitions were destroyed, along with the building.

April 19, 2023: In the autonomous Kurdish north, a Turkish airstrike killed six PKK (Turkish Kurd separatists) near the Turkish border. Iraq and the Kurds protest this cross border Turkish violence, which includes ground forces, because the Kurd separatists do have hideouts in Iraq and neither Arab or Kurdish Iraqis want to deal with the PKK and stand aside as the Turks attack.
The SNP was branded 'utterly shameful' last night after party leader Humza Yousaf refused to say if child sex attacker Andrew Miller should be held in a men's prison.

Scotland's new First Minister would not give his opinion on whether Miller, who dressed as a woman to kidnap and abuse a little girl, will be sent to a male or female prison  after the butcher admitted luring the child into his car before attacking her.

Miller, also known as Amy George, pleaded guilty to four charges  abduction, sexual assault, watching pornography in the presence of the child under the age of 13, and possessing 242 indecent images of children.

Responding to the case today, Rachael Hamilton, the Scottish Conservative shadow equalities spokeswoman, said: 'It is a vile example of how predatory men are able to and will abuse the system to prey on vulnerable women and girls.'

Meanwhile influencer Oli London, who spent six months living as a woman before de-transitioning, blasted Mr Yousaf for avoiding the question.

He said: 'I didn't think it was possible for anyone to sink any lower than Nicola Sturgeon but Humza Yousaf apparently has.

'As First Minister of Scotland it should be his priority to keep violent male sex offenders away from women and girls at all costs.'

Andrew Miller, also known as Amy George, lured the girl into his car while in female clothing, Edinburgh's High Court heard

He then took her back to his home in the Scottish Borders, trapped her in his bedroom and repeatedly assaulted her in a horrific 27-hour ordeal

Oli London, who spent six months living as a woman before de-transitioning, blasted Mr Yousaf for avoiding the question, he said: 'I didn't think it was possible for anyone to sink any lower than Nicola Sturgeon but Humza Yousaf apparently has'

Mr London continued: 'He should not even have to hesitate when asked this question yet instead he simply says he won't comment on it. We know there are at least 12 trans prisoners in women's prisons, the majority of them are violent and dangerous sex offenders.

'By refusing to say whether this heinous monster who horrifically abused an 11 year old girl for 27 hours will go to a women's prison or not is an utterly shameful moment.'

At the High Court in Edinburgh this morning, judge Lord Arthurson described Miller's offences as 'abhorrent crimes' of the utmost 'deviance and depravity' which were 'the realisation of every parent's worst nightmare'.

The court heard the sex predator, 53, approached the child in February this year when she was walking home to offer her a lift. Instead of taking the child to her home, Miller took her to his home in the Scottish Borders. There, he subjected her to acts of sexual assault in his bedroom over the course of the next 27 hours.

For the time the child was confined at the property, Miller was dressed as a woman, wearing a bra and women's underwear.

The following evening, the child escaped the bedroom while Miller was sleeping. She tried and failed to escape the property, before using the landline to call police and say she had been touched inappropriately, the court heard.

The trans butcher appeared via video link from HMP Edinburgh  Scotland's most notorious men's prison, where transgender rapist Isla Bryson was jailed  to plead guilty today.

Asked whether Miller should be housed in a women's prison, Mr Yousaf told media at Holyrood: 'No, in the male estate, where he currently is but of course what you're asking me to do is to make a judgment on a sentencing that is still to happen. That would be inappropriate for me to do so.

'The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has protocols in place, those have recently been updated in relation to some other very well publicised cases, and therefore I'm very confident in any risk assessment SPS makes in this regard.'

Leader of the Welsh Conservative Group Andrew RT Davies responded to Mr Yousaf, tweeting: 'This man committed a vile sexual assault on a schoolgirl.

'Obviously, he should not be sent to a women's prison.'

It comes just months after the case of Bryson  the serial sex attacker, once known as Adam Graham, who was accused of rape  sparked a public outcry.

The infamous case exposed a flaw at the heart of Nicola Sturgeon's SNP policy, which would allow anyone over 16 to 'self-identify' as the opposite sex without needing a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria.

Although Bryson  who was jailed for eight years  was later transferred from a female to a male prison for assessment, Ms Sturgeon refused to back down on her party's policy, which set the Scottish government on a collision course with Westminster.

Prosecuting at Edinburgh's High Court today, advocate depute Lorraine Glancy KC told how in February this year Miller had offered the girl a lift home because she 'looked freezing'.

Chilling footage of Miller's Jaguar prowling the streets was shown in court and released by prosecutors today.

As the car drove past the area of her home, the child reminded Miller that that was where her house was, but he insisted he needed to pop home to drop something off and he would return her home thereafter.

He took her to his address, where he subjected her to repeated sexual assaults over the next 27 hours.

The girl repeatedly asked to be allowed to go home, but Miller insisted she needed to warm up first and later told her he would return her in the morning.

She complied with his demands as she didn't want to make him 'mad', fearing each attack would get 'worse'.

Miller then told her that he intended to keep her for a week, but on another occasion told her he wouldn't let her leave as she was his 'new family'.

Miller, pictured under a blanket, is led from Selkirk Sheriff Court following an earlier hearing

The child attempted to escape from the property in the Scottish Borders the following evening, but the door was locked.

She was then able to call police on the property's landline telephone, and officers traced her location.

Police attended the property and arrested Miller, and the child was taken to a nearby hospital to be medically examined.

Ms Glancy said: 'On the second night, the accused had fallen asleep in the bed beside the child when she knocked over a glass of water to see if it would rouse him  it did not.

'She then turned on the bedroom light to see if that would disturb the accused  it did not.

'She then attempted to escape the locus but was unable to open the front door which was locked with a key which had been removed.

'She did, however, find the landline phone which she used to call 999.

'The 999 call was recorded. The child's obvious fear and distress is palpable as she describes to the operator what has happened to her and her concern to be located.

'Her relief upon hearing the police at the door to rescue her is obvious.

'She remained in the utility room until police arrived to rescue her and arrest the accused.'

Ms Glancy told the court that Miller was a butcher who had his own business locally.

She said: 'It is understood that the accused identifies as a transgender female named 'Amy George' and reports that he is in the process of transitioning to a female. At the time of his arrest, he was presenting as Amy.

The child only managed to escape and call 999 for help after Miller fell asleep, the court was told

'However, prior to interview, he confirmed he wished to be addressed as Andrew Miller using 'he' pronouns  for simplicity.'

The court heard how the little girl was walking along a road on February 5 having earlier met with friends, when Miller stopped his Jaguar car and offered her a lift. The court heard he was dressed as a female, and she considered him to be 'non-threatening' so she accepted his offer of a lift home.

Ms Glancy said: 'The 'lady' said her name was Amy George and asked if she was ok. The victim stated she was cold, 'Amy' offered her a lift and the child entered the passenger side of the car. In the car the accused asked the victim how her day had been, and they chatted.

'As the vehicle drove past the area of her home, the child reminded the accused that that was where her house was, but the accused stated that he needed to pop home to drop something off and he would return her home thereafter.'

He took her to his home where he confined in his bedroom and repeatedly sexually assaulted her.

Describing the arrest, Ms Glancy said: 'The accused was wearing tights, female pants and a bra containing one silicone breast  the other became dislodged during the struggle and was later recovered from the bedroom floor.

'The accused's fingernails and toenails were painted red.'

Ms Glancy said Miller then made a statement to the police describing what had happened.

Miller claimed that the girl was freezing when he had seen her and that he didn't abduct her. He said he had been watching rugby and he gave her a lift as it was a 'motherly thing' to do. He told police she watched Finding Nemo and King Kong during the time she was with him.

He added: 'I was trying to be nice. I put her in bed with me to warm up. I don't know why I did it, it's just one of these things. There are a hundred things I should have done. I should have phoned the police. I didn't even think of her age. I panicked and thought what the people would think about me having a child in my bed.

Miller, 53, who is currently transitioning and was addressed as a male by the court, appeared via video link to plead guilty today

'She asked to go home, and I said that was fine, but I didn't know how to handle it. I told her to have a shower and gave her wipes. I should never have gotten into this situation. I only asked if she was okay as she looked freezing. I was never inappropriate with her in any way except for maybe sleeping with her but that was in a motherly way. I did enjoy her being here though.'

The court heard that police searched computers belonging to Miller and found that he had downloaded child pornography.

Ms Glancy said: 'Other sexually explicit material was recovered showing the user not only to have a predilection for children but also stockings and feet.

'Searches recovered numerous items of female children and teenagers' underwear.'

The court heard that the little girl told police she had been sexually abused. Officers found enough evidence to corroborate her story and Miller was charged with the offences to which he pleaded guilty to.

Defence advocate Victoria Dow told Lord Arthurson today that she had nothing to say at this point in time and would make submissions at a hearing later this year.

She added: 'I will reserve my mitigation until the reports are fully prepared.'

Lord Arthurson deferred sentence on Miller to obtain reports about whether he meets the criteria for an order for lifelong restriction.

Such a sentence is an effective life sentence and offenders are released once the parole board are satisfied they no longer pose a threat to public safety.

They then spend the rest of their lives being closely monitored by the authorities.

Miller was remanded and will next appear at the High Court on August 15.
A schoolgirl accused of killing her newborn baby boy told police that she had 'cuddled him goodbye and kissed him on the head' before putting him in a bin bag, a murder trial heard today.

Paris Mayo, who is now 19 but was 15 at the time of the incident, has gone on trial accused of killing little Stanley Mayo at her parents' home in Springfield Avenue, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, on March 23, 2019.

She is alleged to have concealed both her pregnancy and the fact of her delivery of baby Stanley, which she did alone and unaided in a sitting room, claiming she was unaware she was carrying.

After allegedly killing her baby, it is claimed that she asked her brother George to take out a bin bag that felt 'unusually heavy'.

The Crown has alleged that after inflicting the fractures, possibly caused by Mayo's foot on his head, she then stuffed five pieces of cotton wool into his mouth - two of which were found deep in the throat.

Paris Mayo (pictured at court), who is now 19 but was 15 at the time of the incident, has gone on trial accused of killing her newborn Stanley Mayo

Mayo (pictured) is alleged to have 'cuddled him goodbye and kissed him on the head' before putting him in a bin bag, a murder trial heard today

Baby Stanley is thought to have lived just a little over two hours, Worcester Crown Court was previously told, although Mayo claimed in police interviews played to jurors today that the boy never showed signs of life.

In what was the first time jurors have heard an account from Mayo as to what happened on the night of the birth, her interviews with police at Hereford police station were re-read in court.

Responding to questions about how the baby ended up in a black bin bag, she said: 'I was just that exhausted and tired, that's when I got back up, went to the kitchen and that's when I got the bag to put him in.

'Like a black bag. I don't know why I just wanted it all to be over with.'

She added: 'I didn't pick him up and just chuck him in there, because that's horrible.

'I opened it up and put it on the floor, so he wouldn't fall in or hurt himself, I picked him up and I cuddled him goodbye.

'He still wasn't doing anything. I kissed him on his forehead, gently placed him in there, (and) put the placenta in next to him.

'I tied it (the bag). I picked it up from the bottom where he was, walked by the front door and put the bag there. 'I knew my mum was going to see it there, I left it there to find - on purpose.'

When asked by police how two of the cotton wool balls could have got into the baby's throat, she claimed to be 'panicking because he had all this blood coming out of his mouth', and started 'cleaning it up'. Pictured: Mayo arrives at court

Baby Stanley is thought to have lived just a little over two hours, Worcester Crown Court was previously told, although Mayo (pictured outside court) claimed in police interviews played to jurors today that the boy never showed signs of life

Mayo's responses to officers' interview questions, given on April 3, 2019, were read by prosecution barrister Chloe Ashley.

When asked by police how two of the cotton wool balls could have got into the baby's throat, she claimed to be 'panicking because he had all this blood coming out of his mouth', and started 'cleaning it up'.

Mayo said: 'My whole finger never went into his mouth. 'I could have been a bit rough or something, they could have gone down (his throat) like that.'

Later, asked why she did not ask her mother, who was upstairs asleep, for help, Mayo replied: 'I didn't want her to be ashamed of me.'

She told police how she was likely 'in denial' about her pregnancy - having been studying childcare, including the different stages of pregnancy at school at the time.

After suffering painful cramps throughout the preceding 48 hours, it was sometime around 9.30pm, after her parents had gone to bed, that she delivered her son alone, in a downstairs sitting room.

'When I was stood, I got sharp pain, I put my head on my arms and heard something make a noise - you could hear something hit the floor,' she said. 'I looked down and I saw him (baby Stanley) and I just thought 'oh God'.

'When I saw the baby, he was on the floor, I saw his umbilical cord was around his throat, he wasn't crying, making any noise, he wasn't moving, he wasn't like a normal baby colour.'

She placed the baby on a rug, and went to the kitchen, fetching water and a towel to clean up, but then saw Stanley 'had blood coming out of his mouth and I was like 'oh no'.'

Mayo said her father had left clean cotton wool balls in the room, as he was treating an ear infection, and said she reached to pick some up to 'absorb' the blood in her newborn's mouth.

'I knew I couldn't help him, knew he wasn't going to come alive, so I just wiped all this blood up and left it (the cotton wool) in there (his mouth)... so it would absorb all the blood.'

After allegedly placing the newborn in a bin bag, she went upstairs to bed and 'went straight to sleep'. Asked if she was responsible for the death of baby Stanley, she replied: 'No.'

Jurors heard previously that the next morning, at 8.23am, Mayo's allegedly sent a text message to her brother, George, which read: 'When you go outside, can you put the black bag in the bin, as it's just full of sick from last night, pls?'

Mr Mayo previously gave evidence that he picked up what turned out to be a blood-stained black plastic bin liner, finding it 'unusually heavy', watched by Mayo's unsuspecting mother.

Seeing how heavy it was, it was then his mother was prompted to look inside and - finding the dead youngster - immediately dialled 999.

Mayo, of Ruardean, Gloucestershire, denies wrongdoing and the trial, expected to last six weeks, continues.
British Gas HomeCare is facing a customer backlash after hiking its premiums by up to 83 per cent - despite being the UKs most complained about insurance provider.

New figures show more than 230,000 dissatisfied policyholders reported concerns to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in 2022 - representing almost one in five complaints within the industry.

The firm received more than double the number of complaints lodged against the second worst performer Aviva Insurance which had 116,984 during the same period.

The figures published on the FCAs website show more than 1.3 million complaints were lodged with the regulator last year covering nearly 180 firms whose products range from life and car insurance to homes, buildings and pets cover.

While firms like Aviva offer a wide range of products, British Gas HomeCare policyholders pay for insurance to cover boiler repairs and annual services.

British Gas HomeCare is facing a customer backlash after hiking its premiums by up to 83 per cent - despite being the UKs most complained about insurance provider

The policies can also protect home electrics, drains and plumbing.

It comes after parent company Centrica's reported profits last year tripled to 3.3 billion.

Centrica chief executive Chris OShea was rewarded with a 4.5 million pay package - as cash-strapped families struggle with soaring bills.

As well as contacting the regulator, policyholders have bombarded social media sites with a wave of criticisms over the companys poor service.

They range from engineers failing to show up, to maintenance appointments repeatedly cancelled, long call waiting times and shoddy workmanship.

Meanwhile, long standing customers say their renewals have nearly doubled.

On the Trust Pilot website of 153 reviews, 96 per cent give the service the lowest one star.

One dissatisfied customer whose boiler broke down wrote: British Gas HomeCare is utterly useless. Deserves no stars at all. There is no way on this earth I will renew this insurance.

On the Trust Pilot website of 153 reviews, 96 per cent give the service the lowest one star, with one user saying: 'they are useless'

Another said: Dire service. Dont waste your money. Why pay monthly for HomeCare if they dont turn up for appointments?

A third customer wrote: Increased my HomeCare agreement by over 100 per cent. Was told this was because of the age of my boiler and call outs from past year.

Boiler is less than five years old. No call outs except for service visit, which is part of the agreement. Offered to reduce payments but still a 70 per cent increase. Asked if I could have the new customer offer. Was told no.

British Gas HomeCare - the largest home emergency insurer in the UK with around three million customers - has seen complaints rocket in recent years.

Complaints about the British Gas boiler breakdown and servicing cover accounted for five per cent of complaints lodged in 2020 and just two percent in 2019.

However the firm insist its complaints performance is significantly improving.

The number of complaints for the first half of last year stood at 147,339 while there were 83,269 in the last six months.

British Gas says it does not offer like for like service with mainstream insurers.

While many insurance firms interact only with customers to deal with claims, British Gas HomeCare perform an annual service visit, investigate faults, arrange home visits and physically repair issues themselves.

They said the business is also subject to extreme seasonal demand - receiving around 100,000 claims a week during the cold spell last December.

A British Gas Spokesperson said: In 2022 our engineers completed around six million home visits to service boilers and make repairs - and during the cold spell last December, we attended over 99 per cent of vulnerable emergency breakdown jobs within 24 hours.

Our complaints figures have improved significantly and have fallen by almost 50 per cent in the second half of 2022 and continue to do so - this is less than four complaints for every 100 claims.

We are constantly looking at how we can improve and we will continue to focus on how we can deliver the best service to our three million Homecare customers and we have employed an additional 350 engineers since last year to help manage spikes in demand.

Aviva said it takes complaints about its customer service very seriously.

An Aviva spokesperson said: We are committed to providing an excellent service for all our customers.

'Where we fail to meet customers expectations, our first priority is to resolve the matter as quickly as possible and to act on the feedback we receive.

'Where a customer still has concerns, we advise them of their right to approach the Financial Ombudsman Service.

'We work closely with the Financial Ombudsman Service to resolve complaints quickly for our customers.

'The number of complaints received needs to be seen in context - were one of the UKs largest insurers.

'Although we aim for no complaints, the ones we get represent just 3.64 per 1,000 General Insurance and Health policies in the UK.'

The FCA figures do not represent the entire insurance industry as only firms with more than 1000 complaints a year are required to submit this data.
The parents of a Massachusetts student who was allegedly kicked out of his school for wearing a t-shirt with words stating that there are only two genders are suing the town and school officials.

Liam Morrison, 12, claimed his father had to pick him up from John T. Nichols Jr. Middle School, in March when he refused to change out of his t-shirt that read 'There are only two genders.'

His parents filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday against the town of Middleborough, acting school principal Heather Tucker, the Middleborough School Committee and Middleborough Public Schools superintendent Carolyn J. Lyons.

Liam said school officials told him other students were complaining that it made them feel 'unsafe' and was 'disrupting education.'

But by forcing him to change out of the shirt, he claimed the school district was stifling his First Amendment right to free speech and said officials 'took away my ability to have a different opinion'.

The parents of Liam Morrison, 12, (left) are suing the town of Middleborough and officials at John T. Nichols Jr. Middle School after he was allegedly kicked out for wearing a t-shirt with words stating that there are only two genders

Liam claimed that by forcing him to change out of the shirt, the school district was stifling his First Amendment right to free speech

Christopher Morrison and his wife Susan filed the lawsuit via attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom and the Massachusetts Family Institute.

The lawsuit, filed in the District of Massachusetts Eastern Division, asks the court to issue an injunction to ban the school from stopping their son from wearing his T-shirt or others like it.

It also demands a declaratory judgement that the school's dress code is unconstitutional, actual and nominal damages which the court deems appropriate and attorneys fees.

Liam has spoken out about the incident and said he was taken out of gym class on March 21 to meet with school officials, who told him that people were complaining about his t-shirt, saying it made them feel 'unsafe.'

'I was told that I would need to remove my shirt before I could return to class. When I nicely told them I didn't want to do that, they called my father.

'Thankfully, my dad, supportive of my decisions, came to pick me up.

'What did my shirt say?' he continued. 'Five simple words: "There are only two genders." Nothing harmful. Nothing threatening. Just a statement I believe to be a fact.'

He added that he did not go to school that day to 'hurt feelings or cause trouble.'

But school officials told him his shirt was 'targeting a protected class.'

'Who is this protected class?' Morrison asked. 'Are their feelings more important than my rights.'

'I don't complain when I see Pride flags and diversity posters hung throughout the school. Do you know why? Because others have a right to their beliefs just as I do,' he said.

Liam decided to wear the same t-shirt to John T. Nichols Jr. Middle School on May 5 with the words 'only two' taped over with the word 'censored'

He said school officials told him other students were complaining that it made them feel 'unsafe' and was 'disrupting education.'

Middleborough Public Schools Superintendent Lyons said Liam had violated the dress code, according to an email seen by Fox News Digital.

And she said the 'content of Liams shirt targeted students of a protected class; namely in the area of gender identity.'

Liam decided to wear the same t-shirt to John T. Nichols Jr. Middle School on May 5 with the words 'only two' taped over with the word 'censored.'

But he was quickly told to take it off almost as soon as the day had started.

'So what happened is very, very shortly after I arrived, I was actually a bit early, is just as the school was opening up-- it didn't really take long for someone to walk into my homeroom and [someone] to tell me, "Hey, I need you to follow me'", he told Fox News Digital.

'And knowing the shirt I was wearing and even though how different it was, I figured out that they would probably want me to come to the principal's office.

'And after I had followed them, I went to the room that they told me to, and I already took my shirt off because I knew that that's what they were going to ask me to do.'

Liam initially wanted to wear the shirt because he wanted to voice his opinion on a very popular topic before the school asked him to take it off.

Liam brought up the incident at a Middleborough Public School Council meeting on April 13

He said he wanted to bring the School Committee's attention to the issue. The School Committee is pictured here at its April 13 meeting

They completely blocked my ability or took away my ability to have a different opinion than they wanted me to have,' he told Steve Doocy during Fox & Friends on Thursday.

Tyson Langhofer, director of the Alliance Defending Freedom Center for Academic Freedom who helped the family launch the lawsuit, said: This isnt about a T-shirt; this is about a public school telling a seventh grader that he isnt allowed to hold a view that differs from the schools preferred orthodoxy.

Public school officials cant censor Liams speech by forcing him to remove a shirt that states a scientific fact. Doing so is a gross violation of the First Amendment.

He added: It's hard to tell because their student handbook actually says that public education must be available to members of both sexes, and it says that sexual harassment can't be against either gender.

So the school's own communications actually support Liam's viewpoint. But what they've told him is that he can't express that on his shirt, and we think that's wrong.
Zodiac Killer sleuths continue to turn up new evidence more than half a century since the murderer terrorized Northern California leaving at least five people dead.

A group of investigators yesterday claimed to have evidence proving a USAF veteran was behind the slayings, which primarily targeted young couples in the late 1960s.

The Case Breakers team first named Gary Francis Poste as a suspect two years ago but now say that the FBI has a partial DNA match, which could tie him to the murders.

However, Poste isn't the only suspect in the frame as the serial killer who claimed in menacing letters to newspapers in the 1970s that he had killed 37 people.

The only suspect authorities ever publicly identified is Arthur Leigh Allen, a schoolteacher who was institutionalized in 1975 for child molestation. But the cops only ever had circumstantial evidence against the pedophile who died in 1992.

The Case Breakers team first named Gary Francis Poste as a suspect two years ago but now say that the FBI has a partial DNA match which could tie him to the murders

Pictured: A photocopy of the cryptogram sent to the San Francisco Chronicle in 1969 by the Zodiac Killer

Other suspects include Lawrence Kane, who was picked out of a photo line-up by a woman who claimed she was abducted by the Zodiac; Ross Sullivan, who bore a striking resemblance to the killer's police sketch; and Richard Gaikowski, who was said to have a similar voice.

Such is the fame of the case as it has become a fixture of popular culture. Ted Cruz has even been the subject of facetious claims that he is the murderer. The Republican Senator yesterday played up to the internet meme as he retweeted DailyMail.com's article about the new suspect, saying: 'This is absolutely true'.

Here DailyMail.com looks at the Zodiac case: Who was murdered and who are the suspects...

Who was murdered?

Although the Zodiac claimed in letters to newspapers to have committed almost 40 murders, investigators agree on seven confirmed victims, five who were killed and two who survived.

Betty Lou Jensen, 16, and David Faraday, 17

On December 20, 1968, the Zodiac Killer struck for the first time, taking the lives of high school sweethearts David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen. The couple was parked in a secluded area of Benicia, California, when they were ambushed. The assailant shot Faraday in the head, killing him instantly, before turning his gun on Jensen, who was also fatally shot.

Betti Lou Jensen (left), David Faraday (center), and Darlene Ferrin (right) are three of the Zodiac killer's victims

Darlene Ferrin, 22, and Michael Mageau, 19

Around seven months later, on July 4, 1969, the Zodiac attacked again, this time at Lake Herman Road near Benicia. Darlene Ferrin and her companion, Michael Mageau, were sitting in a parked car when the killer approached and opened fire. Ferrin died instantly, succumbing to multiple gunshot wounds, while Mageau was gravely wounded but survived the attack.

Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22, and Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20

Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22, and Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20, were relaxing on a blanket at a remote location by Lake Berryessa in Napa County on September 27, 1969. Shepard was stabbed ten times while Hartnell was stabbed six times in the back. He survived the attack, while Cecelia succumbed to her injuries two days later. Hartnell told cops the killer initially struck up a conversation before tying them up and stabbing them with the 12-inch blade.

Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22, 9left) and Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20, (right) were relaxing on a blanket at a remote location by Lake Berryessa in Napa County on September 27, 1969 when attacked

Paul Stine, 29

The Zodiac's final known victim was taxi driver Paul Stine. On October 11, 1969, in the Presidio Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, Stine picked the killer up as a passenger. Shortly after entering the cab, he shot Stine in the head. This case gained significant attention due to the serial killer's brazen act of cutting a portion of Stine's shirt which he mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle two days later.

The Zodiac's final known victim was taxi driver Paul Stine (pictured). On October 11, 1969, in the Presidio Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, Stine unknowingly picked the killer up as a passenger

Who are the suspects?

Gary Francis Poste

Gary Francis Poste (b. November 8, 1937 - d. August 23, 2018), an Air Force veteran, was first named as a suspect by cold case investigators in October 2021.

An organization, including ex-FBI agents, called Case Breakers fingered Poste for the killing of co-ed Cheri Jo Bates, 18. She was stabbed 42 times and nearly decapitated on October 31, 1966, in Riverside, more than 400 miles south of San Francisco and two years before the Zodiac's first known killing.

Case Breakers say that around the time of Bates' murder, Poste was getting a check-up at a hospital located just 15 minutes away from the crime scene.

A wristwatch splattered with paint and believed to have been worn by the killer was found near Bates' body. Case Breakers note that Poste spent 40 years working as a house painter.

Additionally, a heelprint found in the dirt at the scene of the stabbing was said to have been from a 'military-style boot' consistent with the style and size of footprints found at three known Zodiac crime scene, and also of Poste.

Investigators with the group believe a scar on the Zodiac killer's forehead is similar to the one seen on 25-year-old Poste

The members of The Case Breakers believe that the Zodiac Killer was linked to the murder of Cheri Jo Bates in 1966, two years before the killing spree had began

Poste died at age 80 in Groveland, California, on August 14, 2018. He was never charged with any offenses related to the Zodiac killings.

Little is known about Poste's life beyond the fact that he was married, had a son and worked as a painter after retiring from the military.

In February 2016, The Union-Democrat reported that Poste was arrested on suspicion of inflicting corporal injury on a spouse.

A California woman who lived next door to Poste and his wife, and who had been babysat by the couple as a child in the 1970s and 80s, told Fox News she now believes her neighbor was the Zodiac killer.

The woman, who gave her name only as Gwen, Poste taught her how to shoot, sometimes going into the woods for target practice five days a week.

'In the last year of her childcare, [Gwen] witnessed his callousness and violence towards his wife  a wife that only slept on a couch,' according to the Case Breakers.

In a phone call between Gwen with Poste's widow, who is now in her late 70s and residing in an assisted living facility, the elderly woman was said to have told her former neighbor: 'I'm sorry that I didn't tell the cops about his past.'

A man named Hans Smits told the Case Breakers that over the past 10 years, he had been shielding a 'Zodiac whistleblower,' who had allegedly escaped from Poste's criminal 'posse' that was said to have been active in the High Sierra area of California for several decades.

The watch had been found splattered with paint which investigators believe was linked to Poste as he had been a house painter at the time

Police had recovered a watch, which they believed to have belonged to the Zodiac killer

'Now in his 50s and hiding in the Northwest, [the whistleblower] says he's angry and ashamed, claiming the psychopath 'groomed me into a killing machine,'' according to the investigative group.

The whistleblower also claimed to have witnessed Poste burying murder weapons.

A woman named Michelle said she was the common-law wife of Poste's son, and the mother of his grandson, who is now in his 30s.

According to Michelle, when her 10-year relationship with Poste's son ended, the house painter sent two members of his posse to break her windows, harass and assault her, ultimately driving her out of state.

Arthur Leigh Allen

Arthur Leigh Allen is one of the most significant Zodiac suspects as he was the only one ever officially named by law enforcement

Arthur Leigh Allen (b. December 18, 1933 - d. August 26, 1992) is one of the most significant Zodiac suspects as he was the only one ever officially named by law enforcement.

Allen is also the subject of David Fincher's acclaimed 2007 movie, Zodiac, starring Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. In the film, Ruffalo plays Inspector David Toschi who was convinced that Allen was the serial killer. Ruffalo once told how Toschi said to him: 'As soon as that guy walked in the door, I knew it was him.'

Allen first came under suspicion after he was reported in the vicinity of the Lake Berryessa attack against Hartnell and Shepard on September 27, 1969. He was interviewed a week later by Detective John Lynch of the Vallejo Police Department.

The Navy veteran said he had been scuba diving on the day of the attack at Salt Point - around 100 miles away on the coast.

He came to the cops' attention two years later after his friend Donald Cheney reported to police that Allen expressed a desire to kill, used the name Zodiac and obtained a flashlight attachment for a firearm.

The Vallejo Police Department uncovered that Allen had received a dishonorable discharge from the Navy in 1958 and was fired from his job as an elementary school teacher in March 1968 after allegations of sexual misconduct with students. He was reportedly 'fixated on young children and angry at women'.

Allen was interviewed by cops again in 1971 and his home was searched the following year.

In 1974, he was arrested for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old boy. He admitted the crime and served two years in prison.

Vallejo Police searched his home again in 1992. They found a Royal typewriter with an Elite type, the same brand used for a letter sent to the Riverside Police Department from someone claiming to be Cheri Jo Bates' killer.

Allen owned and wore a Zodiac brand wristwatch and lived and worked just minutes away from where another victim, Darlene Ferrin, lived.

Two days after Allen's death in 1992, the police searched his home again. But nothing conclusive was found tying him to the killings.

In 2002, the San Francisco Police Department developed a partial DNA profile from the saliva of stamps and envelopes on the Zodiac's letters. This was tested against Allen's profile but did not come up with a match.

Handwriting expert Lloyd Cunningham, who worked on the Zodiac case for decades, examined Allen's letters. Cunningham stated that 'none of his writing even came close to the Zodiac.'

Ross Sullivan

Cold case detectives have claimed Ross Sullivan (left) and Lawrence Kane (right) to be the Zodiac killer

Ross Sullivan (b. July 28th, 1941 - d. September 29th, 1977) was a library assistant at Riverside City College. He is suspected by sleuths of being the serial killer because he bears a striking resemblance to the police sketch and for his proximity to co-ed Cheri Jo Bates - who some believe was the Zodiac's sixth victim.

He was said to have made people on campus feel uneasy and peers said he wrote 'creepy' poems.

Sullivan did not show up for work after Bates' murder on Halloween, 1966. However, when he did return, he wore a different outfit than normal - this was significant because colleagues said he always wore the same clothes.

He reportedly arrived in the Riverside area months before Bates was killed and then moved to the Bay Area just weeks before the murders in Benecia, Vallejo, and Lake Berryessa.

He was supposedly living in Presidio Heights at the YMCA center at the time of the Paul Stine killing.

Sullivan later moved to New York, where a known Zodiac letter sent to the LA Times in 1974 originated, as proved by a postmark from Albany.

He died in 1977, which some believe is why the murders and letters ceased.

Richard Gaikowski

Richard Gaikowski (b. March 14, 1936 - d. April 30, 2004)

Richard Gaikowski (b. March 14, 1936 - d. April 30, 2004) moved from South Dakota to San Francisco in 1963 taking a job at the Daily Commercial News, a financial newspaper.

The following year he moved to Martinez, about 45 minutes outside the city, and less than five miles south of the Zodiac's first killings.

During that time, Gaikowski worked as managing editor for the local newspaper in Martinez, the News-Gazette.

He joined the anti-police, counterculture newspaper Good Times newspaper in 1969. He was known to smoke a lot of marijuana as well as experiment with harder drugs such as speed and LSD during this time.

The paper ran violent works of fiction which sleuths claim were similar to the Zodiac's future crimes.

Carol Stine, the sister of murdered taxi driver Paul Stine, claimed she recognized Gaikowski as having attended his funeral.

In articles he wrote in 1969, Gaikowski changed his byline occasionally to shortened spellings such as 'Gike' or 'Gaik.' The letters 'GYKE' are clearly seen in a Zodiac cypher mailed to newspapers on July 31, 1969.

On March 13, 1971 the Zodiac sent a letter to the Los Angeles. Shortly after, Gaikowski was involuntarily committed to the Napa State Hospital after 'going berserk.'

He then began treatment for a mental illness at Mount Zion Hospital in San Francisco. The Zodiac did not write again for nearly three years.

When he did start writing again in 1974, the Zodiac referenced recent film releases. Gaikowski was working a theater in the City by the Bay at the time.

One of the other key pieces of evidence cited by sleuths is that police dispatcher Nancy Slover said she recognized Gaikowski's voice as being the same as the Zodiac who she spoke with in July 1969.

The Napa County Sherriff's Department investigated Gaikowski briefly in 1986 after being urged to by Darlene Ferrin's sister.

Detective Ken Narlow carried out a background check and placed him under surveillance for a few nights but said he found nothing worth following up.

Separately, the California Department Of Justice deemed that his handwriting was not consistent with that of the Zodiac's.

Lawrence Kane

Cold case detectives previously believed Ross Sullivan (left) or Lawrence Kane (right) to be the Zodiac killer

Born Lawrence Klein on April 29, 1924, in Brooklyn, New York, the suspected Zodiac Killer went on to adopt many aliases, including Larry Kane.

He had a long rap sheet dating back to the 1940s for shoplifting, theft and 'prowling.'

Pam Huckaby, sister of Zodiac victim Darlene Ferrin, claims Kane had followed her for months before her murder.

Additionally, possible Zodiac victim Kathleen Johns, who was kidnapped on March 22, 1970, identified Kane as her abductor. Johns, 22, was taking her infant daughter to visit an ailing relative in Petaluma, California. She had pulled over as another driver had indicated she was having a problem with her wheel.

The suspect offered to help but then apparently made the mechanical issue worse. He offered to give them a ride but kidnapped Johns and her baby, driving them around for two hours on back roads and threatening to kill them.

San Francisco's major newspapers covered the incident. On July 24, 1970, Zodiac mailed a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle, appearing to take credit for the crime.

Prior to the Zodiac crimes, Kane had been in a bad car crash in 1962. Three years later, he was diagnosed by a psychologist as 'losing the ability to control self-gratification.'

He died on May 20, 2010, in Reno, Nevada.
A police officer contacted prostitutes, breached Covid-19 regulations by visiting a beautician for a wax treatment and sent a racist WhatsApp message about a rugby player being raped, a disciplinary hearing heard.

Pc Christian Fereday, 44, even drove a police car to some of his appointments, with two of the six waxing sessions taking place during the lockdowns of November 2020 and March 2021.

He also breached the Covid-19 regulations in January and February 2021 for further waxes while off duty.

The Gloucestershire Police officer also used his work phone to contact sex workers via two websites.

The grossly offensive message about a famous South Africa rugby player shocked those receiving it, including a detective constable.

Pc Christian Fereday, 44, drove a police car to some of his appointments, with two of the six waxing sessions taking place during the lockdowns of November 2020 and March 2021 (Stock image)

During the conversation in the 'Curry Boys' group, Pc Fereday wrote: 'Send him back to South Africa to be raped by the blacks.'

A disciplinary hearing was told Pc Fereday, who joined the police in 2003 but had since quit, accepted much of the case against him, but not that it amounted to misconduct or gross misconduct.

Stephen Morley, presenting the case for the Appropriate Authority, said Pc Fereday was accused of seven allegations which resulted from an investigation launched in February 2021 after concerns were raised about the use of his police mobile phone.

He had sent 'flirtatious and inappropriate' messages to a woman who he had met through his job, asking her to send him photographs of herself.

'Pc Fereday admits sending and receiving messages from her and that it was "flirtatious and unprofessional" and he says he was "flattered by the attention",' Mr Morley said.

Inquiries found the officer had used his mobile phone on duty to access the Vivastreet and Adultwork websites to contact sex workers in the Gloucester and south west of England areas, for naked massages and 'naked massages with a happy ending'.

'Pc Fereday says he did not intend to do anything, and we say it doesn't matter because he was on duty and he was looking,' Mr Morley said.

'He is at work and should be working - not contacting sex workers.'

The hearing also heard that on 12 occasions between May 2020 and March 2021 he accessed pornographic sites on his mobile phone while on duty.

Further allegations came to light after the beautician was spoken to by investigators.

She confirmed the details of the appointments and examination of data from the police vehicles confirmed some of the sessions lasted between 21 and 37 minutes.

'He admits going for waxing appointments while on duty. He said that personal appointments while on duty were not uncommon among his colleagues. He accepts breaching the Covid-19 regulations,' Mr Morley said.

'He breached the standards while on duty and at work. He should be at work and not going for beauty treatments.

'Going to see a beautician while on or off duty, breaching Covid-19 regulations, would bring the force into disrepute.'

It was further alleged Pc Fereday had used his personal mobile phone to send more than 200 emails to his work account about policing matters, which was a breach of data regulations.

The final allegation said he informed a member of the public in October 2019 that someone they knew had been arrested and was in custody.

The officer was facing being charged with breaching the Data Protection Act but received a caution for the offence.

Mr Morley said that, taken together, the allegations collectively amounted to gross misconduct.

'The purpose of these proceedings is public confidence and reassuring the public in relation to how Gloucestershire Police manages matters such as this,' he said.

Pc Fereday did not attend the hearing and was not represented.

Chief Constable Rod Hansen found the allegations proven and the breaches amounted to gross misconduct.

Had Pc Fereday still been a serving member of the police, he would have been dismissed and he will go on the barred list.

Deputy Chief Constable Shaun West said: 'Our high and exacting professional standards, values and ethics are the metal from which every police officer in this county is forged.

'The behaviours of Christian Fereday fell well below that standard.

'We police by consent and occasions like this tarnish our legitimacy and detract from the service and contributions made by so many in the constabulary.

'That's why we've made a commitment to root out all individuals who undermine our service. Action is being taken, and as we progress with this, more misconduct hearings will follow.

'I hope the outcome of this case, as well as the immediate intervention and thorough investigation by our professional standards department, demonstrates how seriously these matters are taken.'
'I never invaded her personal space I was laughing and gregarious the entire time. How is that intimidating?' Bowman said of his row with Greene

After Greene's remarks, Bowman insisted her comments were 'dangerous and reckless' and likened her to a white supremacist

'What concerns me about Jamaal Bowman is he has a history of aggression, not just towards others but towards me in particular,' Greene said

Reps. Jamaal Bowman and Marjorie Taylor Greene kept up their war of words on Thursday after a boisterous spat on the Capitol steps Wednesday evening.

Greene insists she wasn't defending George Santos and claims Bowman has put her 'life in danger' in the past after her heated skirmish with the Squad member.

Bowman, D-N.Y., meanwhile, insisted her comments after the fight were 'dangerous and reckless' and likened her to a white supremacist.

Greene and Bowman, from the far-right and far-left of their parties respectively, got into a shouting match after Bowman and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were heckling Santos to resign.

Greene, R-Ga., insisted President Biden should do the same, before the pair broke out into a screaming match.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene insists she wasn't defending George Santos and claims Rep. Jamaal Bowman has put her 'life in danger' in the past after her heated skirmish with the Squad member on the Capitol steps Wednesday night

Bowman, D-N.Y., meanwhile, insisted her comments after the fight were 'dangerous and reckless' and likened her to a white supremacist

'First off, I never defended George Santos,' Greene told DailyMail.com about the fight in a news conference. 'What concerns me about Jamaal Bowman is he has a history of aggression, not just towards others but towards me in particular.'

Greene said Bowman led a 'mob' in New York City when she was there to protest the indictment of former President Trump.

'My life was in danger. I was swarmed. It's all on video,' she said.

Bowman and Greene verbally clashed in the streets of New York in April when the New York Democrat told her: 'Do your freaking job, Marjorie Taylor Greene. You don't need to be in New York City talking that nonsense. Go back to your district.'

'You're here because you wanna be VP,' he added.

Greene said there is video of Bowman 'calling me a white supremacist - which I take great offense to.'

'That is like calling a person of color the n-word, which should never happen. Calling me a white supremacist is equal to that and that is wrong,' she went on.

Bowman told reporters Greene's comments were 'incredibly dangerous and incredibly reckless.'

'Unfortunately this country has a history of characterizing black men who are outspoken who stand their ground and who push back as being threatening or intimidating. She's not even using a dog whistle - she's using a bull horn to put a target on my back.'

'I never invaded her personal space I was laughing and gregarious the entire time. How is that intimidating?' Bowman said of his row with Greene.

'Anyone who knows me here knows I'm middle school principal energy,' the congressman went on. 'Unfortunately white supremacists, historically, that is what they do. They try to dehumanize black people.'

'I have right, a constitutional right, to defend myself,' Santos said Wednesday night, before adding 'there's a deranged member here' when Ocasio-Cortez and Bowman shouted 'resign!'

Bowman and Marjorie Taylor Greene then got into a shouting match.

'Expel him! The party's hanging by a thread!' Bowman said to Greene.

'Impeach Biden! Impeach Biden!' Greene said.

Bowman and Marjorie Taylor Greene then got into a shouting match. 'Expel him! The party's hanging by a thread!' Bowman said to Greene

'Impeach Biden! Impeach Biden!' Greene said Wednesday at the foot of the Capitol

'She's not worth it bro' AOC tells Bowman of MTG

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who heckled George Santos mid Santos-gaggle moments ago, in a tiff with MTG outside the Capitol steps.



AOC comes up at the end: She aint worth it bro pic.twitter.com/R5L20WvhFK  Ursula Perano (@UrsulaPerano) May 17, 2023

'No more QAnon! Do something about guns!' Bowman shot back. 'Right, so close the border!' Greene shouted.

AOC stepped in and said to Bowman 'she ain't worth it, bro,' referring to Greene.

Greene said of Bowman earlier: 'His physical mannerisms are aggressive, and he just recently shoved Thomas Massie just outside the House chamber. I think there's a lot of concern about Jamal Bowman, so and I am concerned about him. I feel threatened.'

Massie and Bowman got into a heated debate off the House floor at the end of March over gun control when Massie, R-Ky., suggested no mass shootings had happened at a school where teachers were armed.

Bowman said he is always 'loving and engaging and friendly - except when kids are being killed in our streets. Do not conflate my engagement with Congressman Massie and my engagement with her.'

'I am very concerned about Jamal Bowman, and he's someone that people should watch,' Greene concluded.

Greene lobbed the fresh attacks at Bowman during a news conference Thursday morning topping off her 'impeachment week,' announcing she'd introduce articles of impeachment against President Biden, in addition to Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves.

She said Mayorkas would be the 'easiest one to impeach,' and Garland was next.

Greene said she has spoken to House GOP leadership about her efforts. 'They didn't tell me not to do it. They just asked me questions about the method, the legality, and you know, things pertaining to the Constitution.'
An ailing Democratic Senator's medical condition is much worse than first feared, media reports have said.

The New York Times reported on Thursday that Dianne Feinstein, 89, has been diagnosed with vision and balance impairments and facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome.

It is a known complication from shingles.

The virus also brought on a previously unreported case of encephalitis that leaves patients with lasting memory or language problems, sleep disorders, bouts of confusion, mood disorders, headaches and difficulty walking.

She is also being aided around the U.S. upper house of Congress by the daughter of former speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Nancy Corinne Prowda, 58, has been spotted by the side of Dianne Feinstein, 89, who has just returned from a 10-week sick leave absence due to shingles.

The marketing executive has appeared with the retiring senator after the departure of several trusted aides, amid questions about her fitness for office.

Feinstein, seen earlier on Thursday, has been flanked by Nancy Pelosi's daughter in recent weeks. She is already set to retire next year

When asked last week what it felt like to be back in the Senate after her three-month battle with shingles, Feinstein bizarrely said that she has been there the entire time

A spokesman for Feinstein said Prowda was not drawing a salary for her role. Feinstein's office did not respond to a separate request regarding the senator's health diagnosis.

Feinstein, a Democrat representing California, had been set to stand down when her sixth and final term ends next year.

The lawmaker is also known to be suffering from vision and balance problems, and aides often take her around the Senate building in a wheelchair.

She had faced growing calls to resign during her months-long absence, notably from fellow California Democrats and the New York Times editorial board.

But Politico reported on Thursday that the Pelosi family is helping to take care of the long-serving lawmaker to boost the chances of Nancy Pelosi's preferred successor.

The outlet's Playbook newsletter said that ensuring Feinstein sees out her full term will help Adam Schiff, currently a member of Congress, to win the seat.

Schiff, who as chair of the House Intelligence committee probed the now-debunked conspiracy theory that Donald Trump colluded with Russia, has already raised $15 million for a possible election race.

But California Governor Gavin Newsom has vowed to appoint a female of color if Feinstein retires early.

That would leave the door open for Barbara Lee, a Congresswoman representing California, to take up the seat for the rest of the current term.

California has a jungle primary, meaning the top two winners, regardless of party, move forward to the general election.

That would see the heavily-Democratic state with two Democrats running in the November 2024 election.

Pelosi, seen here at a protest for more affordable child care, is backing Adam Schiff to take over from Dianne Feinstein in the Senate

Schiff has already raised more than $15 million and is ahead of his nearest rival, Katie Porter, in the polls

'If (Feinstein) resigns right now, there is an enormous probability that Barbara Lee gets appointed  thus, it makes it harder for Schiff,' Politico quoted one Pelosi family confidant as saying.

The source added that the relationship between Pelosi, her daughter and the senator is 'being kept under wraps and very, very closely held.'

But Pelosi's office angrily denied the claims, insisting their friendship is 'personal, not political.'

'Nancy Corinne and Senator Feinstein have been friends for decades. Nancy Corinne has been supporting her in her shingles' recovery,' the spokesman said.

Feinstein, a long-time ally of the former speaker of the House of Representatives, has been a senator for the Golden State since 1992 and is the oldest senator in the chamber.

But her cognitive abilities and health have been under question for months after she missed a series of key Senate votes.

She has also appeared confused in public, sometimes shouting at aides as she struggles to keep up with votes in the upper chamber.

Her return to work earlier this month also restored the Democrats' 51-49 majority in the Senate, boosting the chances of Dem-backed bills to get rubber stamped.

'My doctors have advised me to work a lighter schedule as I return to the Senate,' Feinstein said last month. 'I'm hopeful those issues will subside as I continue to recover.'

She sparked confusion during her first appearance in the Senate in close to three months by claiming she has been there the whole time.

'No, I've been here. I've been voting,' the 89-year-old told reporters when they asked how she was feeling and what her colleagues thought of her return. 'Please. You either know or don't know,' she bizarrely added.

She then made her return to the Senate Judiciary Committee last Thursday, arriving nearly 90 minutes late and after some judicial nominees had already been voted on.

She received a standing ovation from Republicans and Democrats alike on the panel when she joined them after being gone due to health issues.

In an interview upon her return, some top house Democrats said they were happy see Feinstein again and were unwilling to question her role in the Senate.

Hawaii's Representative Ted Lieu joked that Democrats 'don't get in the way of conversations and their doctors' when asked about the octogenarian's ability to legislate.

'I don't have a medical degree, so I'm not going to comment on how she's feeling or what she looks like,' said Represenative Pete Aguilar of California.

Feinstein's absence made it impossible to pass some of President Joe Biden's judicial nominees.

That is because Republicans both refused to support them and declined to allow Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to appoint a temporary replacement for Feinstein on the Senate's judiciary committee.

The Biden administration will need every vote it can get as the U.S. teeters on the brink of a possible default as lawmakers bicker over the size of the government's $32 trillion debt cap.

Concerns about Feinstein's deteriorating mental state were first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle in April last year.

Katie Porter, another Democrat Congresswoman from California eyeing the 89-year-old's Senate seat, told CNN on Thursday tighter rules are needed to address problems that arise from 'infirm' lawmakers.

Katie Porter, another Democrat Congresswoman, is also eyeing Feinstein's Senate seat

'I think change is overdue,' Porter said. 'This is unfortunately not the first time that we've had this situation where we had real concerns about how senators are recovering and whether they're able to come back and really do the job.'

Senator John Fetterman, whose health issues from a stroke and clinical depression have been well-documented, took two months off from work to seek treatment.

Feinstein has gradually stepped back from several senior positions in recent years.

In 2020, she said she would not serve as the top Democrat on the judiciary panel after criticism from liberals about her handling of Justice Amy Coney Barretts confirmation.

Fiercely independent, she also famously clashed with the Obama administration over her refusal to keep intelligence reports secret about the use of torture by the U.S. military.
The glamorous sister of Bob Lee's accused killer, who allegedly attended drug-fueled sex parties with him, has arrived in court to support her brother for his arraignment.

Khazar Momeni's brother Nima, 38, appeared in an orange jumpsuit and pleaded not guilty to stabbing the Cash App founder, 43, in the heart with a four-inch black blade kitchen knife.

Prosecutors believe he killed Lee after quizzing him about his alleged sexual relationship with Nima's married party-girl sister.

Khazar has supported her brother since his arrest - but she stepped into the San Francisco courtroom this morning for her brother's arraignment without her husband, plastic surgeon Dr. Dino Elyassnia, by her side.

Judge Victor Hwang denied Nima Momeni bail - and said he would stay in custody until his next hearing.

Nima's mother, Mahnaz Momeni, was also in the courtroom to hear her son plead not guilty.

Khazar Momeni arrived in court this morning in San Francisco

Khazar, known as a party girl in the city, arrived in court in an all-black outfit with sunglasses

Wearing sunglasses, the sister of the accused stepped out of court after hearing that her brother was denied bail

Nima Momeni, charged with murder in the killing of Cash App founder Bob Lee, enters the courtroom at the Hall of Justice. He pleaded not guilty on Thursday

Judge Victor Hwang denied Nima Momeni bail - and said he would stay in custody until his next hearing

Prosecutor Omid Talai had argued that Momeni should be denied bail because the stabbing was 'premeditated'.

'This wasnt done by accident, this was done violently,' Talai told the court.

The attorney claimed that Bob Lee's DNA was not found on the weapon, arguing that the attack was not in self-defense.

Nima's attorney Paula Canny said the prosecutor's version of events was 'not accurate'.

Canny said: 'My client is the one who threw the knife over to protect himself and make sure no one else had access to that knife. My client had no idea Bob Lee was mortally wounded. Everyone, including my client, is heartbroken that Bob Lee died.'

Khazar previously pictured in the San Francisco court with her husband, plastic surgeon Dr. Dino Elyassnia. He was no where to be seen this morning

She continued: 'This has never been a "whodunnit?" Its a "what happened?"

Lee and Khazar were part of a crowd of affluent San Francisco partygoers known as 'The Lifestyle' who attended debauched events where swingers and cheaters would gather for casual, drug-fueled sex, it has since emerged.

The Cash App founder was stabbed to death on April 4.

On the fateful night, at a party in San Francisco, it is believed Nima Momeni confronted Lee and asked if his sister was doing drugs or 'anything inappropriate.' According to a witness, Lee told Momeni that nothing inappropriate had happened.

Authorities say Nima and Lee met up again later that night at Khazar's luxury apartment in Millennium Tower.

Surveillance footage showed the two getting into Nima's white BMW at around 2am on April 4 and leave the scene.

He is accused of then driving Lee to a secluded area several streets over, where he stabbed the Cash app founder multiple times with a kitchen knife.

Nima then allegedly left Lee to bleed out in the middle of the street.

Defense attorney Paula Canny, representing Nima Momeni, said: 'This has never been a "whodunnit?" Its a "what happened?"

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins speaks at a news conference after Nima Momeni's arraignment

Khazar arrives for the arraignment of her brother Nima Momeni

The Cash App founder was stabbed to death on April 4. Khazar's brother is the suspect

Nima Momeni (left) vowed to 'came down way hard' on Lee hours before the stabbing. Prosecutors say it was a planned attack in which he used a kitchen knife to stab Lee in the heart

Friends of tech exec Nima Momeni have previously said his life was 'unraveling' in the weeks and months leading up to the alleged stabbing

Lee was seen stumbling and was begging for help that night before collapsing near the Bay Bridge, just 16 minutes from Khazar's apartment.

Police have said Khazar was texting Lee around the time he died.

'Just wanted to make sure your doing ok Cause I know nima came wayyyyyy down hard on you,' she wrote in one of these messages.

'And thank you for being such a class man handling it with class. Love you Selfish p****s.'

Khazar and Nima Momeni moved to the US from Iran as children.

He was known for being more recluse, whereas she married a plastic surgeon and was a glamorous party girl in San Francisco's so-called 'The Lifestyle.'

Thursday's court appearance comes after Momeni's attorney demanded her client be released due to police relying too heavily on grainy CCTV.

Friends say Cash App founder Bob Lee was a regular at underground sex and drug parties with other San Francisco elites  including the sister of the man accused of killing him

Lee was seen on surveillance footage near the apartment building clutching his wound

In a Monday court filing, attorney Paula Canny said the narrative created by law enforcement against her client, Nima Momeni, was built on faulty foundations and does not prove he killed Lee in the early hours of April 4.

According to the San Francisco Standard, Canny argues police spent eight days after the killing creating a compilation video made up of fuzzy surveillance footage.

She said the case relies too heavily on this footage and that it is too blurry to ID either Momeni or Lee.

Lee's stabbing death on April 4 was originally thought to have been the result of random violence in the crime-ridden city of San Francisco.

But as a web of connections between Lee, Momeni, Momeni's sister and alleged attendance at underground sex and drug parties, other theories of the crime have emerged.

The video referred to by Canny begins with a bloodied and dazed Lee, staggering along Main Street in the wake of the 2:30am attack.

Prior to this he appears to have an altercation with a dark figure on the other side of the road, which prosecutors believe is Momeni.

At the intersection with Harrison Street, a short walk from the iconic Embarcadero waterfront, Lee stepped in front of a car and appeared to lean over the hood pleading for assistance.

The interaction lasted mere seconds but the driver of the unidentified red vehicle drove away.

Lee then stumbled toward the Portside apartment building at 403 Main Street, but before he can hit the electronic intercom, he collapsed.

The dying man was motionless on the ground for several moments but managed to get to his knees and fumble with his phone.

When a second car drives past, he makes another attempt to wave it down, his outstretched hands covered in blood  but the motorist again drives away.

Eventually, Lee gets to his feet, his face drained of all color, and he staggered out of the picture at 2:36am, clutching his chest and leaving a trail of blood spatter on the sidewalk.

In separate CCTV, a mysterious hooded figure is seen searching flower beds in the same street where Lee was knifed, shortly after the attack.
Vice President Kamala Harris stepped in Thursday to try to build support for the administration's position in budget negotiations with President Biden in Japan, but struggled with voice problems on a zoom call with leaders.

Thursday offered the opportunity for Harris to crank up administration messaging amid high-stakes talks with Republican leaders over a budget that could pave the way for avoiding default and raising the debt ceiling.

But on a zoom call organized by the White House Office of Public Engagement, Harris could barely get out her opening lines.

'You can hear I have a bit of a frog in my throat, please forgive me,' she said as her voice cracked.

'I've been talking about this issue a lot recently,' she said, chuckling.

Vice President Kamala Harris warned of the risks of default on a call with unidentified leaders Thursday  but struggled at times to get through her remarks with a 'frog' in her throat

Harris only managed to get out a few lines of her pitch about the 'unprecedented' nature of a default.

It has never happened before, she said. It would mean if it happened it would be the first time in history that the United States government did not pay its bills.

Just as she was getting going blasting the Trump tax cuts, even while still struggling with voice problems, her audio cut out.

'Were having a bit of a technical difficulty, just give us one second, well get back live in a second,' said OPE head and former mayor of Columbia, S.C. Steve Benjamin.

Then participant Lael Brainerd, who heads Biden's National Economic Council, stepped in 'while we wait for the vice president's audio to be restored.'

She provided two guideposts for negotiators, while saying default could cost millions of American jobs.

Harris apologized for her voice on the call. She attended an Emily's List gala Tuesday and has plans to jet to California Friday while President Joe Biden is out of the country

Harris' remarks come as aides to Speaker Kevin McCarthy continue to meet with White House negotiators

President Biden is in Japan for the G7 summit. He is cutting short his trip by returning before a planned trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea

White House negotiators have been 'instructed to resist extreme attempts to take health care away from Americans or otherwise push Americans into poverty,' said Lael Brainard, director of the National Economic Council, who took part in the call and stepped in early when Harris' audio cut out

'The administration's negotiating team is fighting against extreme attempts to reverse the progress weve made' on climate change and other issues she said.

She said negotiators had been 'instructed to resist extreme attempts to take health care away from Americans or otherwise push Americans into poverty.'

That came after Biden hinted to reporters that Republican work requirements were still on the table.

The president said as he left Washington Wednesday: 'Well, I'm not going to accept any work requirements that's going to impact on medical health needs of people' taking Medicaid work requirements off the table.

'I'm not going to accept any work requirements much beyond what is already ... I voted years ago for work requirements that exist. But it's possible there could be a few others, but not anything of consequence,' he added.

That raised the possibility he would go along with some GOP changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, program.

Her voice somewhat restored, Harris said a U.S. default 'could trigger a recession,' and vowed a default 'would not be acc under any circumstances.'

Top aides to Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are continuing to hold talks.

What role Harris is playing is not entirely clear. She participated in Biden's meeting Tuesday with the 'Big Four' leaders of Congress.

But on Friday, the California native is set to jet to Los Angeles to deliver remarks on reproductive health, after taking a leading public role calling to protect abortion rights after the Dobbs decision.

It was not entirely clear who was on the call. Benjamin at one point thanked 'thousands of you who chose to join this call,' although the White House did not immediately respond to questions about the nature of those invited to join the call, which did not include a question and answer session.
One of the strangest Russian tanks to show up in Ukraine was the amphibious 18-ton 2S25M tank destroyer. Designed for the airborne forces, development began in the 1980s but production did not start until 2001. By 2009 only 24 were in service. After the Ukraine invasion began, orders for more of these tank destroyers were placed. Since the end of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the reduction of military personnel by 80 percent, the 45,000 paratroopers became the most frequently used infantry force. The paratroopers were elite and eager for any challenge. Then came the 2022 war in Ukraine, where the airborne forces were the most reliable and effective infantry Russia had available. The Ukrainians were the most formidable opposition the airborne troops had ever faced and they suffered nearly 5,000 casualties (dead, wounded, missing) during the first year of the war.

In addition, the airborne force lost most of the special armored vehicles they were issued. Most of these were the BMD airborne armored vehicles. Most of these were IFV (Infantry fighting vehicles) that were amphibious and easy to move around using military cargo aircraft, and could be delivered by parachute.

There are several variants of the basic BMD design and one of them was the 2S25M, which was a modified tracked vehicle with a turret added to a BMD that now carried a crew of three. Instead of six infantry passengers and a small turret with an autocannon, the tank destroyer carried 40 rounds of 125mm ammunition for use by the same 125mm gun found on most Russian tanks. The 2S25M used an autoloader which had 22 shells or missiles ready for use. The missile was an ATGM (anti-tank guided missile) launched from the smoothbore 125mm gun and could hit targets 4,000 meters distant. This is twice the range that anti-tank or high-explosive shells could reach with accuracy. What the 2S25M doesnt have is any protection against anti-tank weapons, including RPGs. The 2S25M armor will protect the crew from machine-gun fire and shell fragments but not any anti-tank rockets or shells.

Tank destroyers were developed during World War II and while some turretless models had armor equal to what tanks used, most did not. Russia still uses the turretless and heavily armored tank destroyers. The only exception is the 2S25M, where light weight and amphibious capability was more important. The 2S25M is fast for a tank-like vehicle, able to move at 70 kilometers an hour on roads, 45 kilometers off-road and 10 kilometers in the water. Road range on internal fuel is 500 kilometers.

In Ukraine the airborne troops tried to be stealthy with their tank destroyers but the Ukrainians used lots of scouts and UAVs to find Russian armored vehicles and usually quickly destroyed them using a large variety of weapons. That pattern led to loss of most of the Russian tanks and other armored vehicles during the first months of fighting. Now all the Russians have available are older tanks like the T-55 and T-62 as well as specialized ones like the 2S25M. Because of the Ukraine experience the airborne forces are getting more tank destroyers but not for use in Ukraine. Instead the additional tank destroyers will be for supporting airborne troops in less hostile (to armored vehicles) combat zones. Even with the new production, Russia does not plan to build more than a hundred tank destroyers, including those delivered before the Ukraine War.
The broken-hearted family of murdered schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel said tonight that they were resigned to the fact gangster Joseph Nee - the intended target of the shooting which killed the youngster - was being released.

Nee was shot in the chest and chased into the Liverpool home of Olivia, nine, by drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman in August last year.

The 36-year-old, who had been sentenced to 45 months in prison in 2018 for burglary and other crimes but was released early in 2020, was recalled to jail after the killing. The convicted drug dealer ended his prison term this month and is now a free man.

Olivia's grandmother Margery Pratt said at the family's Liverpool home earlier today: 'The police have kept us informed so we knew he was coming out.

'We were there at the court case when he was sent back to prison so we knew how long he would serve. We knew it would not to be long.'

Asked if the family were upset at Nee's release she simply shrugged her shoulders in a sign of resignation.

Olivia Pratt-Korbel was shot in her home after drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman chased gangster Joseph Nee into the house and fired at him

Joseph Nee (left), 36, was shot in the chest and chased into the Liverpool home of Olivia, nine, by drug dealing hitman Thomas Cashman (right) in August 2022. Nee has now been freed from jail

The broken-hearted family of murdered schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel said tonight that they were resigned to the fact Nee was being released. Pictured: Olivia's family members arrive at court in March

A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said Nee was released 'at the beginning of May because he had come to the end of his sentence'.

As Cashman fired towards Nee, Olivia was fatally shot in the chest as she stood behind her mother Cheryl in the hallway of their home.

Father-of-two Cashman, 34, is serving a 42-year prison sentence after being found guilty of the killing that appalled the nation.

Following his release from jail, Nee is said to have been warned to stay away from Liverpool amid fears gangsters have placed a bounty on his head.

A source told The Sun that 'dangerous people want him dead', adding: 'There is a price on his head. He's to lay low.'

During Cashman's trial, the court was told of his intended target Nee's long criminal history, his links to drug dealing and organised crime and how his family had enemies.

Police investigating Olivia's murder arrested Nee, who lived near Olivia's home in the Dovecot area of Liverpool.

He was on parole when he was ambushed by Cashman who shot Olivia.

Career criminal Nee had spent time in prison throughout his life for a host of serious crimes including drug offences, burglary and theft.

MailOnline revealed in March that Nee was due to be released from prison later this year.

As Cashman fired towards Nee, Olivia, pictured, was fatally shot in the chest as she stood behind her mother Cheryl in the hallway of their home

Photographs of a topless Nee (furthest left) in HMP Kirkham, taken in 2019 and understood to have been shared on Instagram by a drug gang baron, showed him bragging about life behind bars and relaxing alongside fellow prisoners in the warm weather

On December 2, the Parole Board assessed the recall and had the option of recommending his release again if it considered he was not a danger to the public.

However the panel decided he would remain in jail for the remainder of his sentence.

Nee chose not to appeal the decision and remained in prison where he believed he was safer than on the outside, MailOnline revealed in March.

A source said: 'Nee knows he is a marked man on the outside so decided to accept the Parole Board's decision. He is safer in prison at the moment.'

MailOnline has obtained Nee's Parole Board notes, which explains the chronology of his release and a timeline leading up to Olivia's murder on August 22 last year.

The written summary of the Parole Board's decision is a withering indictment of Nee's criminal history and his claims that he was an 'innocent' victim of a random shooting.

Olivia was senselessly and callously murdered by Cashman in Liverpool in 2022

It states: 'On November 20, 2020, Mr Nee was released at the automatic release point in his sentence as is required by the law.

'His licence was revoked and he was recalled on the 23 August 2022 and was returned to custody on the 29 September 2022.

'The recall decision followed an incident where Mr Nee was chased by a gunman, and in effort to escape, forced his way into a private home that was not connected to him.

'Mr Nee was pursued into the property, the gunman fired several shots, injuring Mr Nee and the female occupant of the property, and, tragically, killing a nine-year-old girl.

'Mr Nee has said that he was an innocent victim in the events that led to his recall.'

The Parole Board summary states that Nee had most likely gone back to his life of organised crime upon his early release on licence.

Several police cars pictured on Kingsheath Avenue as officers hunted the gunman responsible for Olivia's death in August 2022

Olivia Pratt-Korbel, nine, was the tragic victim of suspected gang land shooting in Liverpool. She was left for dead after being gunned down in her own home. Nee had been shot before he ran into her house

It adds: 'The panel was satisfied that it was likely that Mr Nee had remained involved with organised crime on licence and that he had been the intended target of a gangland shooting.

'Given the circumstances, the panel found the decision to recall him to custody at this time had been appropriate.'

The summary continues with a stark assessment of Nee's deep involvement with drugs gangs and organised crime in and around Merseyside.

It states: 'The panel considered Mr Nee to be accurately described as a professional criminal with an involvement in organised crime.

'His involvement in serious offending, including gang related violence, is relevant to risk in this case.

'The panel considered his impulsivity, poor decision making and his difficulties in coping with problems to be further areas of risk.'

There was no support for Mr Nee's release in the reports.
A woman who has battled anorexia for more than 35 years should not be force fed, a judge has ruled after a hearing in a specialist court.

Mr Justice Mostyn was asked to make decisions about what moves were in the woman's best interests by bosses at an NHS trust responsible for her care.

He described the case as 'very disturbing'.

The judge said the woman, who weighted 31.9kg in early May, had told him she had battled the condition for 36 years but could not 'continue the fight'.

He heard that she suffered from 'overpowering delusions' and her condition was 'entirely involuntary'.

Mr Justice Mostyn was asked to make decisions about what moves were in the woman's best interests and decided against mandating force feeding

The woman had in recent weeks equivocated between wanting to be 'taken to a hospice to die' and ingesting 'minimal' amounts.

She had made it 'absolutely clear' that she did not want to be force fed and found the idea 'abhorrent'.

Mr Justice Mostyn said clinicians treating her had also said they would not force feed.

The judge decided that she lacked the mental capacity to make decisions about care and treatment options in respect of her nutrition and hydration, and lacked the capacity to litigate.

But he was 'quite sure' that her 'very strong' wish not to be force fed should be respected and ruled that it would be lawful for medics not to force feed.

He made the ruling on Thursday after overseeing an online hearing in the Court of Protection, where judges consider issues about people who lack the mental capacity to make decisions.

Mr Justice Mostyn, who is based in London and also oversees hearings in the Family Division of the High Court, said the woman could not be identified in media reports of the case.

Barrister Emma Sutton KC represented the woman's interests and was instructed by staff from the office of the Official Solicitor, which provides help to vulnerable people involved in litigation.

Lawyers led by Vikram Sachdeva KC, representing the North East London NHS Foundation Trust, based in Rainham, Essex, had asked the judge to make decisions about what moves were in the woman's best interests.

'She has bravely battled this terrible condition for 36 years,' said Mr Justice Mostyn.

'She now says that she cannot continue the fight.

'She declares she no longer has the strength or other mental resources to carry on the struggle and is now ready to capitulate.'

He described the woman as 'highly intelligent' and said, if she died, the world would be 'an emptier place'.
The owner of the restaurant has agreed to close the venue for three days so that pest control can sanitize the building

An employee of the restaurant said he was shocked because nothing like this has ever happened before and the kitchen is cleaned frequently

A disgusted diner at the Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant in Clovis, California, has revealed the moment he spotted a large rat chilling out on top of a chandelier.

Alongside a video, the customer's Facebook post last week read: 'Last Sunday my family and I went to eat at the 4 Seasons Chinese restaurant in Clovis and this is what we saw.'

In the footage, viewers can clearly see a rat pottering about on top of one of the restaurant's glass chandeliers as its long tail droops through the light fixture.

Martin Santarosa, who recorded the video, can be heard saying: 'That's not on the menu huh?'

The restaurant was closed for three days so pest control could clean and sanitize the building - but Fresno County officials said there was no evidence of 'rodent nesting'.

The large rat was seen hanging out on one of the restaurant's chandeliers, to the horror of the man waiting for his order

Santarosa said he and his family had been going to the restaurant for the last five years and that most of the time the place is clean.

'I mean the food was good at that place it was just the fact that we saw the rat right there,' he told Fox26. 'I don't think were going to go back to that place anymore.'

Santarosa said he noticed the rat hanging out on the light fixture while he was waiting for his order. He immediately started recording and also informed the restaurant.

'One of the waitresses right there I called her and I told her hey look at that and she said 'oh' and saw me recording and she said 'Oh now the whole world is going to know,'' he said.

Initially, Fresno County officials said that the restaurant is 'current with their fees and permit' so there is no 'need to perform an inspection at this time.'

On Tuesday, the county updated its stance: 'The Fresno County Department of Public Health (FCDPH) is aware of the rodent that was seen in the dining area of the Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant.

'The FCDPH Environmental Health team is currently inspecting this restaurant and will evaluate if a closure is needed. We understand that this situation has caused concern for customers, and we want to assure you that the FCDPH is taking every possible step to ensure the safety of the food.'

Then on Wednesday, the county issued another statement: 'The Fresno County Department of Public Health  Environmental Health inspected the Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant and found no evidence of rodent nesting.

'However, there were cleaning and possible vermin entrance violations. The owner is closing the restaurant for three days to have pest control clean and sanitize the building.

'They will also seal any holes and install sweeps on the bottom of exterior doors. A new pest control company will be hired to provide regular scheduled servicing.'

The restaurant agreed to close for three days to allow pest control to do a sweep of the place

The casual Cantonese eatery caters to a local crowd in Clovis, California

An anonymous employee of the restaurant previously told Fox26 that he has been in the restaurant industry for more than two decades and the Four Seasons kitchen is the cleanest one he's worked in.

He further stressed that the rat incident came as a shock considering how frequently they clean and that something like this has never happened before.

Dailymail.com has reached out to Four Seasons Chinese restaurant for comment.
An Iowa police officer broke his back after he was flung from the hood of a speeding car during what began as a routine traffic stop.

Newly released body cam footage shows the shocking moment officer Patrick McCarty, clinging to the roof of the moving vehicle, was no longer able to hold on.

The incident which happened on March 5, 2021, began after he pulled over Dennis Guider Jr. and told him there was a warrant out for his arrest in Illinois.

The suspect then started to drive away prompting McCarty to step in front of the car to block him, then move onto the hood of the car. As the suspect began again to slowly drive, McCarty ordered him to stop with his gun drawn, but Guider only sped up.

Guider, 29, pleaded guilty to serious injury by vehicle this March and has been sentenced to up to five years in prison which he will serve separately from his Illinois sentence.

Iowa police officer Patrick McCarty was flung to the ground after he clung on to the roof of a fleeing car of a suspect who suddenly took off during a traffic stop

Dennis Guider Jr., 29, pleaded guilty to serious injury by vehicle this March and has been sentenced to up to five years in prison which he will serve separately from his Illinois sentence

There was an outstanding warrant for Guider's arrest for a forgery case in Illinois when he was stopped by police.

'I hate to be the one to tell you this, but it sounds like youve got a warrant out of Illinois,' officer McCarty told him at the time.

Footage shows him shouting at Guider as the car started to roll forward.

He then climbed on to the hood of the red vehicle and pointed his gun through the windshield and yelled: 'Stop the car. Stop the f****** car.'

Guider ignored the pleas and continued to drive and McCarty shouted at him to 'pull over' and 'put on the f****** brakes'

He continued to drive away at speeds of 50 miles per hour with McCarty clinging on to the roof as several police squad cars joined the chase.

Guider then turned into a gravel lot and drove through a ditch which is when the police officer lost his grip and fell to the ground.

He is seen getting thrown from the hood in another video angle taken from the dash cam of another officer.

'I need medics,' the officer is heard calling over his radio.

The incident which happened on March 5, 2021, began after he pulled over Dennis Guider Jr. and told him there was a warrant out for his arrest in Illinois

In a letter to the Carroll County clerk of court in February, Guider said: 'I feared for my life after the officer pull(ed) out his gun and jump(ed) on the hood of my car.'

McCarty, who worked for Carroll Police Department for four years before the incident, took nearly a year to recover from the injury and was off work for three months.

Guider's attorney asked the judge for leniency during sentencing and argued McCarty was not trained to step in front of the moving vehicle.

'Each situation is different,' McCarty told the hearing last week. 'It certainly didnt play out the way I intended'

But Carrol Police Department chief Brad Burke told the Iowa Capital Dispatch that McCarty 'in the heat of the moment made a lapse in judgment in an attempt to apprehend the suspect.'

He added: 'This is a training point that is used for all the officers going forward from the incident.'
A pregnant New York City nurse accused of taking a Citibike from a black man outside a hospital has been named by friends as they raise money for her legal fees.

Sarah Comrie, 36, has been identified in a GoFundMe which is calling for donations to help fund the legal bills to 'save her livelihood and reputation'.

It comes as DailyMail.com can reveal the nurse's Citibike receipt - which her lawyer claims proves the bike she was clutching in the footage was booked by her as the number on the handlebars matches the document.

Justin Marino, who is representing Comrie, says the documents show the six-month pregnant physicians assistant had booked the Citibike outside of Bellevue Hospital after finishing her shift.

The documents show that the ride was ultimately canceled, and she wasn't charged, before booking another bike minutes after the incident.

Sarah Comrie, 36, has been identified in a GoFundMe which is calling for donations to help fund the legal bills to 'save her livelihood and reputation'

It comes as DailyMail.com can reveal the nurse's Citibike receipts - which her lawyer claims proves the number on the handlebars of bike she was clutching in the footage matches her document

Speaking to DailyMail.com he said: 'The receipts show unequivocally that she got the bike first.

'But there is no animosity towards the men in the video. We frankly wish them the best in the future.

'The focus is clearing her name and going after the publications and high profile names that defamed her.'

A fundraiser for the nurse has raised over $950 so far, with her friends saying the 'much-publicized incident' painted her as a 'racist Karen' which has since proven 'is a lie, but the damage has been done.'

Comrie, who had on blue scrubs emblazoned with 'NYC Health + Hospitals, could be seen screaming for help and tearing up as a crowd gathered around them when the video first emerged.

In the clip a friend of the man can be heard defending him, saying the woman - branded a 'Karen' after the video - was in fact trying to steal from him.

Marino has vehemently denied these allegations on behalf of his client in a statement which refers to the receipts.

The first receipt shows the bike seen in the video was paid for and taken out before it was re-locked one minute later  identified by the number on the handle.

The documents show that the ride was ultimately canceled, and she wasn't charged, before booking another bike minutes after the incident

Sarah Comrie accused of taking a Citi Bike from a young black man 'paid' for the two-wheeler, her lawyer claims

A second receipt he says is proof of a second bike being taken from the same docking station, which Comrie used to ride home.

Marino said his client was forced to get a second Citi Bike after being 'heckled and pressured' to do so.

Justin Marino is representing the pregnant Bellevue Hospital employee who was filmed in a now viral video which shows the incident taking place

He says Comrie has since been put on leave by NYC Health + Hospitals after the encounter was caught on tape - but added the interaction was 'incomplete and lacking facts.'

Pregnant Comrie reportedly had just finished a 12-hour shift before getting on an available bike which 'no individuals were on or touching' and paid through the app.

His statement added: 'One or more individuals in that group physically pushed her bike (with her on it) back into the docking station, causing it to re-lock.

'In blocking the QR code, this individual's arm was touching my client's pregnant stomach, a condition of which she had made them aware.

'Throughout this time and for the remainder of the video, roughly five individuals were telling her to get off the bike and heckling her.

'The fact anyone would treat another person like this is tragic, especially a visibly pregnant woman.'

At one point Comrie accuses the man of assault saying he's 'hurting my unborn baby,' though the man says she put his hand on her stomach

Comrie could even be seen crying in the video as she hopped onto the disputed bike

The New York lawyer then went on to defend his client's reputation saying 'her entire life has been focused on helping others, irrespective of their background.'

DailyMail.com has contacted Bellevue Hospital for comment but has not recieved a response.

A roughly 90-second video of the incident was posted on TikTok and Twitter and shows Comrie arguing with the man outside of Bellevue over the weekend.

One of the man's friends tells the Comrie he is recording the situation as the man has his hand on the bike.

She then screams for help, saying: 'Help! Help me! Please help me!' But the man's friend, offscreen, tells her: 'This is not your bike.'

The hospital employee then cries out for help again, and asks the man to 'please get off.'

She then takes off her hospital badge in an apparent effort to hide her identity, as one of the men could be heard asking her: 'You know you're not getting this bike?'

In the video, Comrie could be seen screaming for help as well as warning the men that she was pregnant

A roughly 90 second video of the incident was posted on TikTok and Twitter shows Comrie arguing with a man outside of New York City's Bellevue Hospital (pictured)

Comrie screams for help again and tries to get onto the rental bike, before swiping the man's phone.

'Why are you taking his phone?' one of the man's friends asks her. 'What's wrong with you? Do not touch his phone, do not touch his phone,' he tells the hospital employee.

Comrie then tells the man that he's 'hurting my unborn baby,' to which the man replies: 'You put your stomach on my hand.'

The woman then turns around and starts to once again scream for help, at which point one of her coworkers approaches.

The man tries to explain: 'This is my bike, it's on my account' and tells the woman to 'please move.'

At that point, the woman can be seen apparently crying  though the man's friends say they are fake tears.

Bellevue Hospital has announced that it is investigating the incident involving its employee

She then continues to climb onto the bike, hysterical with tears, as her coworker suggests they just 'reset the bike.'

But the man's friends continue to defend him, saying, 'It's his, it's his.'

One of the friends then again accuses the woman of 'fake crying,' telling her to stop, while the man asks her to 'stop touching me.'

Comrie then steps off the bike and apparently stops crying as she pulls out her phone.

'Not a tear came down miss,' the friend says as the video ends.

Under Citi Bike's policies, anyone who keeps a bike out for longer than 45 minutes at a time will be charged $0.17 for each additional minute, and may have their account suspended.

If a customer does not return a bike within 24 hours, the account holder will be charged a lost or stolen bike fee of $1,200 plus tax.

A spokesperson for the New York Police Department said it did not receive any 911 calls or reports about the incident, but is aware of the video.

Meanwhile, Bellevue Hospital said in a statement it is investigating the incident.

'We have recently become aware of an incident that occurred off campus over the weekend and appears to involve one of our employees,' it said.

'We are sorry this happened, and we are reviewing the incident.'

The hospital added that it is 'committed to providing the highest quality of care to all New Yorkers with dignity, cultural sensitivity and compassion.'

The incident has been compared to Amy Cooper, dubbed the 'Central Park Karen,' who called the police on a black birdwatcher in 2020 and lost her job.

Cooper - who accused a black birdwatcher of threatening her in 2020 lost a lawsuit against her former employer for firing her after the incident in September 2022.

At the time she claimed she was illegally fired and falsely portrayed as a racist by New York investment house Franklin Templeton following the May 25, 2020, incident.

The following day, May 26, 2020, Franklin Templeton said in a tweet - which was liked 277,000 times - that it performed a legitimate investigation and 'determined indisputably' that Cooper was racist and terminated her.
Colombian authorities have launched a manhunt for an alleged Serbian drug trafficker who escaped custody at an airport.

Immigration agents were processing Antu Mrdeza for his expulsion to Italy on Wednesday when he asked if he could buy a bottle of water, El Tiempo newspaper reported.

The 47-year-old slipped past the agents and ran off, fleeing through an exit where an Audi was waiting for him outside Jose Maria Cordova International Airport in Medellin.

Multiple shots were fired by Mrdeza's accomplices and the police, but no one was injured.

The escape vehicle was located early Thursday morning in the nearby city of Guarne.

Serbian national Antun Mrdeza was arrested at Jose Maria Cordova Airport in Medellin, Colombia, on May 10 and escaped from immigration agents on Wednesday. The 47-year-old asked for permission to buy water before he ran off and fled through the terminal

Antun Mrdeza made multiple trips to Colombia to coordinate shipments of cocaine to Spain and Italy

'During a procedure for expulsion from the country, a situation arose in which he left the airport and at that moment police personnel fired shots into the air to dissuade him from escaping,' said Oswaldo Zapata, public security chief for the department of Antioquia.

Colombia Migration announced Thursday afternoon that 'an internal investigation was initiated to clarify the circumstances surrounding the escape of the foreigner, while his administrative expulsion process was being carried out.'

Mrdeza was arrested at outside Jose Maria Cordova International Airport last week after arriving on a flight from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on May 10.

Immigration agents were scanning his passport when they noticed that he had an Interpol red notice that was previously requested by Italy for his arrest on drug trafficking charges.

Colombia Migration opened an investigation following the escape of a Serbian drug trafficker at Jose Maria Cordova in Medellin on Wednesday

El Tiempo reported that while Italy had asked his extradition because he was considered a high-profile drug trafficker, the petition was never signed off on.

Colombian Migration then decided to remove him from the country.

Mrdeza, who disguised his identity with fake Italian documents that identified him as Nikolas Boros, is said to be a member of a powerful drug trafficking organization that moved cocaine, heroin and hash from South America to Europe.

The criminal organization's leader, Pietro Fotia, is among 15 people who have been arrested in recent months.

Mrdeza visited Colombia regularly to coordinate cocaine shipments to Spain and Italy before the drugs were distributed across Eastern Europe.

The network's operations caught the eyes of European authorities after police in Spain arrested a man transporting 32 kilos of cocaine in October 2020.

A search of the suspect's cellphone revealed text messages with Fotia and Mrdeza. Investigators would later connect the criminal organization to two previous cocaine trafficking busts that yielded a total of 81 kilos in Spain.
A 14-year-old boy has been arrested after two people climbed a fence and burst into a school where they stormed into a classroom and attacked a pupil and a teacher in front of terrified children.

Agnes Bailey, headteacher of Ash Manor secondary school in Surrey, today praised the 'courage' of students caught up in the incident.

Police say the 14-year-old boy faces charges of assaulting a pupil and a teacher.

The headteacher said in a letter to parents that 'two males scaled the fence' to enter the school as lessons were taking place last Wednesday.

The pair then made their way to a classroom and attacked a student.

A 14-year-old boy has been arrested after two people climbed a fence and burst into Ash Manor School in Surrey, attacking a pupil and a teacher

In what the head described as a 'serious and distressing situation', a teacher intervened to protect the student and was assaulted in the process.

Police confirmed today that officers were called to the school in Ash that afternoon, following reports of a pupil and teacher being assaulted by two boys in a classroom before leaving the school premises.

A spokesperson said a 14-year-old boy had been arrested on suspicion of actual bodily harm and malicious communications and remained in custody.

In her letter to parents, the headteacher wrote: 'This serious and distressing situation was quickly managed with consummate care and professionalism by staff at the school.

'I am pleased to note that a number of students who were directly involved also conducted themselves with distinction and courage and have shown real care and consideration for the student and member of staff who were assaulted.

'This was a distressing experience for students and staff alike and we are working to support those students who have been affected.'

She confirmed she had immediately contacted police and that the time between the attackers entering and exiting was less than three minutes.

She 'understood the temptation to speculate about events' on social media, and to want to contact the school on hearing rumours.

Headteacher Agnes Bailey praised the 'courage' of students caught up in the incident in a letter to parents

'Whilst this is a reasonable reaction, it can hinder our progress at critical times and lead to the spread of misinformation, causing greater worry and alarm for the wider community as well as for those directly involved.'

She asked parents to 'continue to trust the school's management of the situation'.

A school spokesperson added: 'We cannot comment further on individual cases or ongoing investigations.

'We can however assure you that safeguarding is always our priority and we will continue to work with the police and relevant agencies appropriately.'

Inspector Blaine Rafferty, Borough Commander for Guildford, said: 'I appreciate this incident will be concerning to pupils and parents and we are working closely with the school as part of our investigation.

'There will be a continued police presence in the area, as well as Youth Engagement Officers visiting the school to speak with pupils, whilst we continue carrying out enquiries.'

Ash Manor School has about 1,060 pupils aged eleven to sixteen.
The Walt Disney Co. and its powerful CEO took its war with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to a new level Thursday, announcing it will scrap a new $1billion planned Orlando campus that would have brought 2,000 jobs to the state.

The brash move comes after a series of skirmishes that began with Florida's so-called 'don't say gay' bill and culminated with battles over the theme park's special tax status and some creative legal attacks.

The move comes as it was revealed DeSantis plans to make his long rumored presidential campaign official next week, as he continues to absorb blows from former President Donald Trump.

The company that has become a lightning rod in the Republicans presidential primary announced that it was scrapping plans to build a new office development campus in central Florida and relocate 2,000 employees from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development.

Development officials said the average salary there would be $120,000 in a complex totaling $1 billion  the type of home-state development politicians might tout at a ribbon cutting or brandish as proof of their political juice.

The stunning decision by the company follows a year of attacks from Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida legislature, with Disney filing a First Amendment lawsuit against him and other officials last month.

The Walt Disney Co. and its powerful CEO took its war with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to a new level Thursday, announcing it will scrap a new $1billion planned Orlando campus that would have brought 2,000 jobs to the state

The company cited 'changing business conditions.'

Disney had planned to build the campus about 20 miles from the giant Walt Disney World theme park resort, but Josh DAmaro, chairman of the parks, experiences and products division, said in a memo to employees that 'new leadership and changing business conditions' prompted the company to abandon those plans.

'I remain optimistic about the direction of our Walt Disney World business,' DAmaro said. 'We have plans to invest $17 billion and create 13,000 jobs over the next ten years. I hope we're able to do so.'

The governor's office didn't immediately respond to a message seeking comment about the announcement.

Disney and DeSantis have been engaged in a tug-of-war for more than a year that has engulfed the GOP governor in criticism as he prepares to launch an expected presidential bid in the coming weeks.

The company sued DeSantis in late April, charging his actions violated its free speech rights and ability to carry out its business, in a case filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

The company has accused DeSantis of running a 'retribution campaign.'

It expanded its suit this month after the GOP-controlled state legislature voided its 30-year agreement on development around Orlando when it dissolved the Reedy Creek Improvement District.

DeSantis says no company should get special treatment, and has used his battles with the company to highlight culture war issues as he moves toward his announcement.

The company also accuses DeSantis and his allies in the legislature of improperly going after the Disney monorail and making it subject to state inspections. The monorail covers nearly 15 miles and carries 50 million passengers a year.

The latest battle comes as longtime Disney CEO Bob Iger has been getting the star treatment in newspaper profiles amid his running clash with DeSantis.

The move comes as it was revealed DeSantis plans to make his long rumored presidential campaign official next week, as he continues to absorb blows from former President Donald Trump

The announcement comes after a series of clashes between DeSantis and the company

The feud started after Disney, in the face of significant pressure, publicly opposed a state law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades, a policy critics call 'Dont Say Gay.'

As punishment, DeSantis took over Disney Worlds self-governing district through legislation passed by lawmakers and appointed a new board of supervisors. Before the new board came in, the company signed agreements with the old board stripping the new supervisors of design and construction authority.

In response, the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature passed legislation allowing the DeSantis-appointed board to repeal those agreements and made the theme park resorts monorail system subject to state inspection, when it previously had been done in-house.

Disney's suit against DeSantis alleges the governor waged a 'targeted campaign of government retaliation.' It asks a federal judge to void the takeover of the theme park district, as well as the DeSantis oversight boards actions, on the grounds that they were violations of the companys free speech rights.

The creation of Disneys self-governing district by the Florida Legislature was instrumental in the companys decision in the 1960s to build near Orlando. Disney told the state at the time that it planned to build a futuristic city that would include a transit system and urban planning innovations, so the company needed autonomy. The futuristic city never materialized, however, and instead morphed into a second theme park that opened in 1982.
Supermarket chain Asda is consulting on whether to cut the pay of 7,000 staff who have historically been paid more to offset the cost of living near London.

Changes to come in by November would affect staff at 39 stores outside the M25, reducing pay by around 5% - if they go ahead.

Nadine Houghton, GMB organiser, said: 'Cutting the pay of 7,000 low-paid retail workers during a cost of living crisis is inexcusable.'

The union warned Asda could also fire workers who refused to agree to the new terms.

A spokesperson for Asda urged that all staff had recently been given a 10% raise to help with the rising cost of living.

Illustrative image shows the front of an Asda store in Stevenage in November 2020

According to the GMB, Asda could scrap its 'location supplement' of 60p an hour and reduce its night supplement.

READ MORE: Asda launches 'driverless' grocery deliveries in London with a vehicle manned by two people in the largest trial of its kind in Europe Advertisement

Bought by the billionaire Issa brothers and private equity firm TDR Capital for 7bn in 2020, the new owners are looking to cut spending as the cost of debt climbs.

As part of this, they are reportedly looking at a merger with EG Group's UK petrol stations, also owned by the brothers.

Houghton warned that the 'slash and burn tactics' would 'only ramp up' if they deal went ahead, and said the cuts were part of preparations for the deal.

She urged the government to intervene and block the proposed merger.

An Asda spokesperson said the consultation was only to affect 'a small number of stores' where workers received the 60p location supplement on top of the 11p/h national rate.

They said: 'This supplement is out of line with the wider retail market and has created an anomaly where some Asda colleagues in stores that are close together are paid different rates'.

Asda is also discussing possible compensation for removing the 60p supplement.

The supermarket raised pay for all hourly paid shop-floor workers by 10% to a minimum of 11 an hour in April.

It has also pledged to raise pay to 11.10 an hour in July.

Picture shows EG Group founders Mohsin, right, and Zuber Issa in Blackburn Nov 13, 2019

Also last month, Asda started its trial of 'driverless' delivery vehicles, helping manage the chain's 800,000 weekly orders.

Despite the name, the vehicles are manned by two people - one to make sure it safely navigates the roads and a second to deliver to the doorstep.

A spokesperson said at the time: 'Asda has long understood the value of bringing tech innovation to the online grocery sector and we are always looking at new and innovative partnerships to improve delivery options for customers.'
South Africa is planning to roll out the red carpet for Russian despot Vladimir Putin despite an international arrest warrant against him over alleged war crimes in Ukraine.

In the latest indication of South Africa's deepening ties with Moscow, Pretoria is set to welcome the Russian president for the BRICS bloc summit in August.

It comes after the country initially asked Putin to attend the emerging economies summit, made up of Russia, South Africa, Brazil, India and China, over zoom due to legal concerns - an invitation the Kremlin rejected.

But now, The Times reports that President Cyril Ramaphosa's deputy is heading up a committee to examine international and domestic laws as well as the Rome statute which created the International Criminal Court.

It was the ICC who issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader in March - a move which Putin condemned as 'outrageous'.

South Africa are set to welcome Russian despot Vladimir Putin (pictured with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2019) despite an international warrant against him

In the latest indication of South Africa's deepening ties with Moscow, Pretoria are set to welcome the Russian president for the BRICS bloc summit in August. Pictured: Putin and Ramaphosa in 2019

The ICC called for Putin's arrest on March 17 and accused the despot of committing war crimes by abducting Ukrainian children from their homes and deporting them to Russia to be given to Russian families.

South Africa has so far refused to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while it has not shown support for sanctions imposed on Moscow.

Despite initial legal advice stating South Africa was obliged to act on Putin's arrest warrant, Zane Dangor, the country's foreign ministry director-general said: 'We have a legal opinion, but another independent legal opinion has been sought so that we make sure of the action that will be taken.'

Considered one of Moscow's closest allies on the continent, South Africa says it is impartial and has abstained from voting on U.N. resolutions on the war.

News of Putin's potential trip to South Africa comes after accusations were made from the United States that Pretoria covertly supplied weapons to Moscow - a move that would break with its professed neutrality.

Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov firmly ruled out any indication that Putin would attend the BRICS bloc summit virtually - more than 6,000 miles away.

While Pretoria continues to be friendly with Putin, the Russian dictator and Ukraine President Volodymr Zelensky have both agreed to separate meetings with a delegation of African heads of state to discuss a possible plan to end the war in Ukraine, according to President Ramaphosa.

South Africa has so far refused to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while it has not shown support for sanctions imposed on Moscow

The ICC called for Putin's arrest on March 17 and accused the despot of committing war crimes by abducting Ukrainian children from their homes and deporting them to Russia to be given to Russian families. Pictured: Rescuers remove debris and extinguish the remains of a fire at the site of a rocket strike of the residental building in Uman, Ukraine, April 28

Ramaphosa spoke with his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts by phone over the weekend, a spokesperson for his office said earlier this week. They agreed to host 'an African leaders' peace mission' in Moscow and Kyiv respectively.

The leaders of Zambia, Senegal, Congo, Uganda and Egypt plan to join Mr Ramaphosa on the mission, the president said. He added that Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky gave him the go-ahead to 'commence the preparations'.

But Ramaphosa's talks of peace come amid a visit to Moscow by Lieutenant-General Lawrence Mbatha, the chief of South Africa's army, for talks 'on combat readiness'.

Irina Filatova, professor emeritus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal and a leading expert on Pretoria-Moscow relations, told The Times that the visit was propaganda by Moscow to show they are not isolated by 'helpless western laws'.

She said that to be an ally of Russia, you have to show you do not accept the laws made by the West.

Ukraine's military today said it had made new territorial gains amid heavy fighting around the eastern city of Bakhmut, despite being outgunned and outnumbered by Russian forces.

In the past week, Kyiv has said it has stepped up pressure on Moscow's troops to the north and south of Bakhmut. Russian mercenary forces say they have moved forward inside the city, where Kyiv has acknowledged they have made small advances.

Ukrainian officials have signalled that the advances around Bakhmut are not part of a broader counteroffensive planned by Kyiv to push back the Russian forces.
by Austin Bay May 17, 2023

Threatened by North Korean nuclear weapons and communist Chinese conventional air and missile fires, South Korea has decided to spend serious money on an old but often spurned military concept: the arsenal ship.

The concept is simple. Take a very large but comparatively inexpensive civilian commercial ship. Oil supertankers and huge container carriers fit the profile perfectly -- they're inexpensive when compared to navy warships.

Now pack the ship with vertical launchers and several hundred long- and mid-range missiles capable of destroying enemy shore targets and perhaps enemy surface ships. Add short-range air and missile defense weapons and presto, enormous sea mobile firepower bang for the buck, or in South Korea's case, bang for their wons.

The arsenal ship concept has bred aerial arsenal concepts, with 747s and military transport aircraft (e.g., USAF C-5s) launching missiles a thousand miles from the target then fleeing. In some ways, the USAF's 21st-century B-52s are arsenal planes. Russian air-launched missile attacks on Ukrainian cities demonstrate that long-range standoff attack can be deadly.

South Korea's interest in arsenal ships isn't new. But in mid-April, Seoul selected a design team and indicated it will buy three "joint firepower ships," which is military lingo for arsenal ships. Instead of a commercial ship, South Korea may consider a modified destroyer hull. However, in April the Naval Market Forecast Newsletter noted that even if destroyer hulls are used, the ships will carry land attack cruise and ballistic missiles, not anti-submarine weaponry or anti-surface guns.

When they are built and deployed, South Korea's ships will tell North Korea and China that a surprise attack will not destroy its ability to retaliate. North Korea focuses on South Korean land targets. Another message: Should South Korea feel threatened by imminent attack, the ships are offensive platforms capable of precision strike. Precision means striking within a few meters of the center of the target.

This month interestingengineering.com wrote that South Korea's joint firepower ships are "similar" to the arsenal ship concept the U.S. abandoned in the 1990s.

That comment is accurate. I first encountered the arsenal ship concept in 1992 when I read an unclassified think tank paper on the concept. I was working as a consultant in strategic wargaming in the Office of Net Assessments. 1992 was Post-Desert Storm. The Soviet Union was recently kaput. 1992 was the era of The Peace Dividend. Many of us -- yours truly included -- were amazed the Cold War ended with a whimper and the bad guys lost.

I write this on memory. The paper's author argued arsenal ships are cheap and quick to acquire. A merchant ship can become an arsenal ship bearing tremendous missile firepower that could support U.S. Navy battle groups. I remember thinking, if you can use a merchant ship, could you use a barge? One summer when I was in college, I worked offshore on a derrick barge in the Gulf of Mexico. The barges are huge -- but slow and sitting ducks.

Seeking informed opinions, a naval expert told me arsenal ships are a new take on an old and worthwhile idea. But the U.S. Navy had little interest. Remember, this chat occurred in 1992 or 1993.

However, in 2002, to meet a strategic arms reduction requirement, the USN converted four "Ohio class" ballistic missile submarines into cruise missile carriers. Bye-bye, nuclear warheads. Now the Ohios carried Tomahawks with conventional munitions. Cold War "boomer" subs became a type of arsenal ship.

2023 in the Pacific: the USN confronts communist Chinese land and sea forces determined to prevent American carrier battle groups from approaching the Chinese coast. I think small, stealthy, fast attack craft armed with strike missiles foil China's strategy. But South Korean arsenal ships will give Beijing additional doubts, especially if they coordinate with small strike craft. And that's a very good idea.
An Illinois man who lured a teenager to his home with the promise of a Pocahontas Disney cup and then strangled her to death has been sentenced to 50 years behind bars.

On Monday, a judge in Illinois sentenced Arthur Jensen, 54, to five decades in prison for murdering Adara Bunn, 17, on Aug. 5, 2019. The decision ends five years of court hearings in the case.

Jurors found Jensen guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in March for strangling the teenager when she came to his home.

State attorney Michael Quinlan told PEOPLE: 'This is one of the worst murder cases I have ever seen.'

DailyMail.com reached out to Quinlan for additional details about the case and the sentence.

Prosecutors said that police were called to his home by neighbors who heard yelling and screaming on the fateful August day around 4:15pm.

Adara Bunn, 17, had gone to the house after visiting a garage sale a few days earlier

Arthur Jensen, 54, is pictured after his arrest in 2019 for the murder of Bunn

When officers arrived, prosecutors said Jensen told them: 'Theres a girl inside and I strangled her.'

Bunns body was found inside, strangled as Jensen claimed, and he was immediately arrested.

Investigators determined that Bunn had been at Jensens home the weekend before her murder during a neighborhood rummage sale.

Jensen had told her he had Disney cups she could buy, which is why she returned the following Monday.

The case was the first murder in Iroquois County, Illinois, since 2016. The county has a population of about 27,000 and is located about two hours south of Chicago.

Jensen was convicted of first-degree murder in March.

At sentencing on Monday, the judge gave him credit for three years hes already served in custody, leaving him with 47 more years to spend behind bars.

Jensen will be over 100 years old at the time of his release, if he lives to that age.

An obituary for Bunn, also known as Sissy, said: 'Sissy enjoyed reading, fishing, school amongst other things. She was an all around joy to everyone around her'

Jensen told Bunn he had Disney cups she could buy, which is why she returned

An obituary for Bunn, also known as Sissy, said: 'Sissy enjoyed reading, fishing, school amongst other things. She was an all around joy to everyone around her.'

After her death in 2019, Milford Area Public School said: 'The Milford Area Public School community is grieving after hearing of the death of one of our high school students yesterday.

'We are suffering as a staff, student body, and community for this loss.

'We would like to offer comfort and support to any interested students by providing counseling services during the upcoming days.'

Sheldon resident Ray Huff previously told WAND that Jensen seemed like an 'easygoing fellow' and that the crime stunned locals.

After Bunn's death, there was strong reactions from the small community. Lisa K. Lynch Steeples posted on Facebook: 'I would tear him from limb to limb..what a coward cruel sicko..man it just an innocent girl..could be anybodys child!!! I'm mad as hell...'

While Kristina Cook Hull added: 'The heartbreak this family is going through is unimaginable.'
Distraught couples are scrambling to save their baby shower and wedding registries after Bed Bath & Beyond sensationally shuttered last month.

Customer orders have been plunged into chaos since the retail giant filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April.

Despite the firm's initial promise that it would find an 'alternative platform' for registries, families say they are none the wiser about what is happening with their gifts.

It means many can no longer access their wishlist - and some have even lost money due to the glitch.

Mom-to-be Jessica Ferrara is celebrating her baby shower on Saturday and guests are now unable to view her registry data.

Even if they could view it, every item is out of stock or discontinued.

On top of that, Ferrara and her partner lost $1,000 on purchases they made themselves such as a crib that converts into a toddler bed and items needed to turn a dresser into a changing table.

Before the purchases arrived, the site said they were out of stock. Customer service has yet to offer her a refund.

The 36-year-old told the Philadelphia Inquirer: 'Your third trimester youre supposed to be enjoying it and nesting.

'There certainly hasnt been any nesting going on.'

Similarly, bride-to-be CC Manstrom said she has watched the majority of the 30 items on her registry become unavailable.

She is now worried that several people will buy her the same limited gifts which are available.

The retailer has also stopped honoring credits - meaning Manstrom lost out on the $60 that had been put into her account for gifts which were purchased but not available.

She hasn't been able to speak to a customer service representative on the phone.

'It is frustrating. Its a new task you have to deal with on the wedding checklist,' Manstrom told the New York Times.

Meanwhile, Amy Tamayo wrote on TikTok: 'When you find out that none of your wedding registry orders were fulfilled & BBB gave you store credit without telling you.'

After initially announcing the bankruptcy, Bed Bath & Beyond said it would partner with another platform where couples could transfer their existing data.

It said it would share the information 'within days.'

But more than two weeks on, no announcement has been made.

Mom-to-be Jessica Ferrara, pictured, is celebrating her baby shower on Saturday and guests are now unable to view her registry

Customer orders have been plunged into chaos since the retail giant filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April

A note on the retailer's website still reads: 'Customers registry data is important to us. As we work diligently to partner with a third-party that allows our registry customers to transfer their data and complete their registry, customers can continue to view and download their existing registry data.'

Do you have a consumer complaint you need help with? Please email: helena.c.kelly@dailymail.com Fact-box text Advertisement

The store told the Philadelphia Inquirer it would provide an update as soon as they can.

In the meantime, several companies are attempting to swoop in on frustrated customers.

Etsy claims thousands of shoppers have signed up to its wedding registry after launching the new service on May 10.

And Zola, an online registry, told the New York Times it had received 'several hundred emails' from couples asking to transfer their Bed Bath & beyond registries.

The chain is one of several bricks-and-mortar stores to fall victim to the so-called 'retail apocalypse.'

The store's official closing down sales began on April 26.

But dozens of customers took to TikTok to complain the sales were only offering meagre 10 percent discounts.

Some told viewers not to 'waste their time' with visiting the store.

Bed Bath & Beyond was contacted for comment.
A teenage boy has been charged after a shocking crash on a busy city street that saw three schoolchildren rushed to hospital.

Emergency services were called to the scene at the Pacific Highway near Falcon Street in Crows Nest in Sydney's north shore at about 3:30pm on Thursday.

Police were told three boys, two aged 12 and one aged 13, were knocked to the ground by the car while crossing the road to a green pedestrian signal.

Emergency services rushed to the scene after the incident. Photo: 9

All three boys sustained leg and head injuries.

They were treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics before the 12-year-olds were taken to The Children's Hospital at Westmead in a stable condition.

The 13-year-old boy was taken to Sydney Children's Hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Police were told by witnesses the vehicle allegedly drove from the scene without stopping to render assistance to the boys.

A crime scene was secured on the street, bringing peak hour traffic to a crawl, with the alleged driver arrested shortly after on Fox Street in Lane Cove.

He was taken to Chatswood Police Station and has been charged with dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, two counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct, in charge of a motor vehicle, fail to stop and assist after vehicle impact causing grievous bodily harm, fail to stop and assist after impact cause injury and proceed through red traffic light.

The teenager has been issued with a license suspension notice and was refused bail to appear at Manly Local Court on Friday.

Police have seized a Honda Accord for mechanical and forensic examination.

The incident has caused a major traffic jam in the area.

Another schoolboy who witnessed the incident said there was "a bit of a bang" followed by cars beeping.

A witness told 9 News the incident involved "absolutely crazy" scenes as ambulances and police cars lined the street in response.

"There were police directing traffic everywhere, ambulances everywhere and police accompanying the ambulances to the hospital," he said.
The biggest shake-up of the railway network in a generation has been shelved, it was claimed last night.

Great British Railways (GBR) was designed to replace the 'complicated and broken' franchising model and take over the running of 20,000 miles of track, signals and tunnels when it was announced by Boris Johnson to fix the UK's beleaguered rail industry two years ago.

The proposed body was to get additional powers to set most fares and timetables, sell tickets and issue contracts to private firms to run the trains themselves in the biggest overhaul of the industry since privatisation in the 1990s.

But officials in the Department for Transport (DfT) have now reportedly been told GBR is not a priority for the Government, and will not be brought forward in the forthcoming King's Speech, which sets out the legislative programme that the Government intends to pursue in the next parliamentary session.

It means GBR might be scrapped altogether if the Tories fail to win a majority at the General Election next year.

The proposed body was to get additional powers to set most fares and timetables, sell tickets and issue contracts to private firms to run the trains themselves (file image)

The then Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced the reforms during the 2020 pandemic (pictured in December 2020)

A source told The Times: 'Those working on it have been told it's now unlikely to get a legislative slot.

'Without it they won't be able to fully create the body, as it requires primary legislation.'

But a DfT spokesman said they 'did not recognise' the reports.

They said: 'The Government remains fully committed to reforming our railways and will introduce legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows, having already taken numerous steps towards reform.'
New satellite images have revealed the devastation of Bakhmut, where Russian and Ukrainian forces continue to battle for control of the city.

The photographs, collected last week, provide a stark illustration of the results of months of fighting and near constant bombardment.

The remains of apartment buildings, schools, the local university and a church can be seen - all now roofless ruins sitting in a muddy wasteland, but once neatly kept and set among attractive greenery.

The images were gathered by Maxar Technologies, a space technology company based in the United States.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, chief of the notorious Wagner mercenary group and an increasing thorn in the side of his Kremlin paymasters, yesterday accused regular Russian army units of fleeing the desolate location, and leaving his men dangerously unprotected.

Bakhmut school and apartment buildings on May 8, 2022. The images were gathered by Maxar Technologies

Demolished Bakhmut school and smouldering apartment buildings on May 15, 2023

He said Russian troops had fallen back 570m north of the eastern Ukrainian city, leaving his own fighters flanks exposed, in his latest complaint about his own sides conduct in the war.

Prigozhin, who has lambasted the Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu in foul-mouthed video messages, again asked the ministry to do all it could to protect Bakhmut after what he alleged was a withdrawal.

Unfortunately, units of the Russian Defence Ministry have withdrawn up to 570 metres to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks, Prigozhin said in a voice message.

In this handout image taken from a video released by Prigozhin Press Service on May 12, 2023, head of Wagner Group Yevgeny Prigozhin makes a video statement from an unknown location

I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence - publicly - because my letters are not being read.

Please do not give up the flanks, he said, addressing Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the general staff.

Wagner still claims it has taken most of the shattered city - albeit at enormous human cost. But Ukraine says its forces have retaken territory around Bakhmut in recent days.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before the war, as a potential stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern industrial Donbas region bordering Russia.

School no 12 and apartments in Bakhmut, Ukraine on May 8, 2022

School no 12 and apartments in Bakhmut, Ukraine on May 15, 2023

Overview of Bakhmut on May 8, 2022

Overview of Bakhmut on May 15, 2023

Homes and buildings in Bakhmut on May 8, 2022

Burning homes and destroyed buildings in Bakhmut on May 15, 2023

Bakhmut theatre and stores on May 8, 2022
Britain's 'FBI' is to go after the lawyers helping traffickers abuse modern slavery laws to secure asylum for migrants entering the UK, it emerged yesterday.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) has announced plans to pursue corrupt immigration solicitors in league with criminal gangs who are suspected of launching scores of bogus claims.

The development comes after an explosion in claims from Albanian migrants who made up more than half of modern slavery claims lodged by small-boat arrivals in the first half of last year.

Now investigators plan a crackdown on those in the legal profession enabling immigration crime which could involve as many as 100 solicitors, the head of the NCA's modern slavery and human trafficking unit estimated yesterday.

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dungeness, Kent, onboard an RNLI Lifeboat following a small boat incident in the Channel. Pictured: 27 August, 2022

In the past the Solicitors Regulation Authority has investigated immigration solicitors for misconduct, but only a few cases result in anyone being struck off.

Between 2017-2020 only 11 solicitors were taken to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal over misconduct in immigration.

It is thought to be the first time that the National Crime Agency has considered bringing criminal charges against lawyers.

Investigators also plan to probe other 'professional enablers' including estate agents, accountants and those in the banking industry turning a blind eye to the funding of organised criminal gangs involved in people smuggling.

Rob Richardson, the head of the NCA's modern slavery and human trafficking unit, said the agency was in 'target identification' mode.

He told the Guardian: 'One of the things that we've seen is an increase in how organised crime groups use third parties to abuse protective mechanisms.

'So it's been well reported that there are concerns that particularly Albanian organised crime groups are frustrating law enforcement efforts by claiming that they are victims of trafficking or seeking asylum, and where we are particularly interested from a NCA perspective is how does the legal industry, how do lawyers, support organised crime groups to do that.

'So we've seen some examples where individuals have got scripts. They've been told exactly what to tell policemen to get picked up. And we have concerns about how that works.'

Mr Richardson said he was aware of the difficulty of prosecuting those in the legal profession, due to the protections, known as privilege, given to communications between a lawyer and their clients.

He said the agency would work with the Solicitors Regulation Authority in an effort to discipline or strike off lawyers where prosecutions were not possible.

He added: 'We will often see individual circumstances or individual accounts, where it is believed that, you know - I'm going to be careful not to use the word 'corrupt' - a non-compliant solicitor is advising in an organised crime group.

'So, what we need to do in the first instance is demonstrate that this is a real threat. And then look at kind of building some strategies around bringing together the appropriate plans to be able to tackle it.

'We are working with our partners. We are conducting a survey at present to understand who are the high-risk agents but we haven't a sense of scale yet... It's less than 100, it may well be in the 10s, I would estimate.'

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, from the RNLI Dover Lifeboat following a small boat incident in the Channel, on 6 April 2023

Yesterday an NCA spokesman confirmed that investigators were currently 'assessing the scale of the possible threat' and no criminal investigations are yet underway.

He said 'The NCA makes regular assessments of the scale of threat posed by professional enablers in a wide range of crime areas, including people smuggling and human trafficking.

'The potential abuse of modern slavery provisions is one such area where we, alongside our partners, are making such an assessment.

'Tackling organised immigration crime is a priority for the NCA, and we will work with law enforcement and regulatory partners where appropriate to disrupt people smuggling and trafficking networks in any way we can.'
Russia's enemies were yesterday warned that the country has 'the intent and the ability' to sabotage the West's critical national infrastructure.

As he launched a new security partnership with Norway, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace made clear that Moscow had submarines and spy ships designed to attack underwater energy and communication lines.

Mr Wallace has also dropped his biggest hint to date that he wants to be the next head of Nato, saying the role due to become vacant this autumn would be 'fantastic'.

He added: 'I've always said it would be a good job. That's a job I'd like. But I'm also loving the job I do now.'

The Defence Secretary's comments on Russia came as the UK and Norway signed a partnership to counter undersea threats after last year's attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

Mr Wallace also dropped his biggest hint to date that he wants to be the next head of Nato, saying it's a job he 'would like'

'The sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines last year is a concrete reminder of what is at stake here,' said Bjorn Arild Gram, the Norwegian Defence Minister

Alongside his Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram, Mr Wallace agreed that the two nations would enhance North Atlantic security by increasing their cooperation in detecting submarines and countering mine threats.

He said: 'What we know is the Russians have a work programme, they have a specific naval programme designed to both look at and potentially sabotage or attack critical national infrastructure belonging to its adversaries.

'It has a number of submarines and other pieces of equipment and spy ships and everything else specifically designed for that purpose.'

He added: 'Russia has the intent and the capability to target the West's critical national infrastructure. We have to have the intent and the capability to defend it.'

Britain and Norway have increased security patrols in the North Atlantic since the 16billion Nord Stream pipeline was blown up in September.

'The sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines last year is a concrete reminder of what is at stake here,' said Mr Gram during a visit to the Northwood military base in London yesterday.

He and Mr Wallace signed a statement of intent to collaborate further on protecting critical energy infrastructure from sub-sea threats.
A witness for Prince Harry at the High Court admitted yesterday that he had lost count of the occasions he had been convicted of criminal offences.

Private investigator Daniel Portley-Hanks flew in from America to give testimony on behalf of the Duke of Sussex, who is suing Mirror Group Newspapers over alleged hacking which it denies.

He told the court he had been arrested around 50 times and convicted probably more [times] than I can remember.

He said it was maybe 20 [convictions] at least, leading to around eight years spent in US federal prisons  with his most recent conviction being for extortion and making threats on behalf of a criminal gang.

Mr Portley-Hanks, who is in his seventies, told the judge that over many years he had supplied phone numbers, addresses and other information about celebrities to British newspapers including those published by the Mirror, The Sun and the Mail groups.

Private investigator Daniel Portley-Hanks, a witness for Prince Harry at the High Court, admitted yesterday that he had lost count of the occasions he had been convicted of criminal offences

Prince Harry (pictured outside High Court in March) is suing Mirror Group Newspapers over alleged hacking which it denies

He agreed UK journalists had not necessarily asked him for the information he had provided. He said he had been too lazy to remove social security numbers  such as that of Harrys wife, Meghan  from records of information he had lawfully obtained as a registered American PI, which he had then passed to journalists.

He said it was so much easier not to change the [search] settings [for each individual request].

The Mirrors barrister, Andrew Green KC, asked: So if a journalist had instructed you to carry out a lawful search, and in producing your report you left in the social security number, because you were too lazy to take it out, the journalist would have received something they had not asked for?

Mr Portley-Hanks replied: Basically yes. Mr Green said: And so the journalist in that situation would be blameless.

Asked when he decided to come forward to do the right thing, Mr Portley-Hanks replied: Seven years ago my brother passed away of cancer and I started thinking about eternity.

'I thought I should do everything I could do to right the wrongs I had done before I passed.

Under questioning from Mr Green, the investigator  known as Danno  agreed he had been paid by another witness in the case, the convicted phone hacker Graham Johnson, who is also helping Prince Harry.

Mr Johnson is a former self-confessed professional liar who used to invent stories when he was a reporter for the News of the World in the 1990s and Sunday Mirror in the 2000s.

Mr Johnson insists his days as a faker who destroyed peoples lives and had no integrity at all are over, and he says he now helps victims including the duke to expose criminal behaviour at newspapers.

At the end of his evidence yesterday, Mr Johnson was asked a series of questions by trial judge Mr Justice Fancourt who wanted to know about payments he had made to witnesses in the case.

He had paid a small amount to buy an archive from Mr Portley-Hanks, he said.

And Mr Johnson had also paid retired private investigator Steve Whittamore to write a book about his work with British newspapers. Mr Whittamore gave evidence too yesterday.

The court heard that Mr Johnson had also personally agreed to fund 5,000 a month to a private investigator called Gavin Burrows, who is not a witness in the case after a falling out with Mr Johnson.

Mr Burrows has since accused him of doctoring evidence, while Mr Johnson has accused Mr Burrows of threatening him, the court heard.

In addition, Mr Johnson had struck a 16,000 deal with a private investigator named Christine Hart but they had also fallen out amid extraordinary allegations  including about actor Hugh Grant ordering a burglary of her house.

Mr Grant, the Hollywood actor and Press campaigner, is one of numerous well-known figures including Prince Harry who are suing publishers.

Yesterday the court was told Mr Johnson, along with former Lib Dem MP-turned-Press campaigner Dr Evan Harris, had wanted to buy documents from Miss Hart. But after the two men fell out with Miss Hart, Mr Johnson told the court yesterday: [She] accused me of burgling her house to find these invoices, and she accused Evan Harris.

And I think she accused Hugh Grant of ordering a burglary on her house, which of course was not true. After that, relations broke down.

Mr Johnson spoke about the burglary claims after Mr Justice Fancourt had asked him to describe the circumstances in which his agreement with Miss Hart had come to an end.

The case continues.
Vatican guards were forced to shoot at a car driven by someone with 'psychiatric problems' after he breached the gates and sped into a courtyard at the Apostolic Palace before being arrested.

Gendarmes fired a shot at the speeding car's front tires after it rushed the gate, but the vehicle managed to continue on its way, the Vatican press office said in a statement late tonight.

Once the car reached the San Damaso Courtyard of the Apostolic Palace, the driver got out and was immediately arrested by Vatican police.

The Vatican said the driver was about 40-years-old and was in a 'serious state of psychophysical alteration.'

It wasn't clear if Pope Francis was anywhere near the incident, which occurred after 8pm at the Santa Anna gate, one of the main entrances to the Vatican City State in the heart of Rome.

Once the car reached the San Damaso Courtyard (pictured) of the Apostolic Palace, the driver got out and was immediately arrested by Vatican gendarmes

It wasn't clear if Pope Francis (pictured) was anywhere near the incident but he does live on the other side of the Vatican City

The pontiff lives on the other side of Vatican City at the Santa Marta hotel, where at that hour he would normally be having dinner and retiring to his room.

The man first tried to enter the Vatican but Swiss Guards turned him away at the gate.

He then manoeuvred the vehicle to pick up speed and raced through the gate as well as a second checkpoint near the back of St. Peter's Basilica.

A policeman fired a shot and hit the car's front fender but the man kept speeding ahead, and reached the San Damaso Courtyard, where previous popes lived and where Francis still holds official meetings.

He was arrested in the courtyard and put in a cell in the Vatican's small jail, where he was examined by Vatican doctors.

The incident was a rare incursion into the city state, much of which is off limits to the general public, especially at night.

While visitors can access St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museums during business hours, and people with doctors' prescriptions can go to the Vatican pharmacy, permission is required to get into other buildings in the enclave.

The Vatican said the driver was about 40-years-old and was in a 'serious state of psychophysical alteration.'

The Apostolic Palace, which houses the papal apartments, key reception rooms and offices, is guarded around the clock by Swiss Guards and gendarmes who man various checkpoints. Pictured: New Swiss Guard recruits being sworn in at the San Damaso courtyard on May 6

The Apostolic Palace, which houses the papal apartments, key reception rooms and offices, is guarded around the clock by Swiss Guards and gendarmes who man various checkpoints.

It's not the first time that someone with apparent psychiatric problems caused a disturbance at the Vatican.

During a 2009 Christmas Eve Mass, a woman jumped the barricade of St. Peter's Basilica and tried to attack Pope Benedict XVI.

He was not harmed, though a cardinal walking in the procession broke his hip in the ruckus.
The Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with leaking highly classified military documents was repeatedly warned by superiors over his handling or viewing of classified information, prosecutors say.

Justice Department lawyers made the disclosure in court filings on Wednesday, urging a judge to keep 21-year-old Jack Teixeira behind bars while he awaits trial in the case.

Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy is expected to hear more arguments on prosecutors' request, and issue a ruling on Teixeira's pre-trial detention status at a hearing on Friday.

Teixeira is accused of sharing highly classified documents about top national security issues in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. He has not yet entered a plea in the case.

The documents, which spread widely online, unveiled US concerns about Ukraine's military capacity against invading Russian forces, and embarrassingly revealed Washington's apparent spying on allies Israel and South Korea.

Jack Teixeira, 21, was repeatedly warned by superiors over his handling or viewing of classified information, prosecutors say

Several memos disclosed by prosecutors noted that superiors were concerned by Teixeira's behavior in relation to classified information, and repeatedly warned him on the issue

Prosecutors told the judge in their filing that Teixeira continued leaking documents even after he was admonished by superiors on two separate occasions last year over 'concerning actions' he took related to classified information.

A September memo from the Air National Guard 102nd Intelligence Wing that prosecutors filed in court says Teixeira had been observed taking notes on classified intelligence information and putting the notes in his pocket.

Teixeira was instructed at the time to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, the memo says.

Another memo from late October says a superior had been made aware that Teixeira was 'potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence information' given to him the month before.

The memo says Teixeira attended a meeting and proceeded to ask 'very specific questions.' He was told again to focus on his job, not any 'deep dives' into classified intelligence information.

Still, a third memo from February says Teixeira was again observed viewing information 'that was not related to his primary duty and was related to the intelligence field.' Teixeira 'had previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and to not seek out intelligence products,' the memo said.

'The Defendant even continued to share information with his online associates, defying these admonishments and taking further efforts to conceal his unlawful conduct,' prosecutors wrote.

Prosecutors cited a video clip published by the Washington Post (above), in which Teixeira is seen spewing racist slurs before raising a semi-automatic rifle and firing repeatedly

Prosecutors shared this certificate showing that Teixeira had completed training on handling classified information, arguing he clearly knew leaking the documents was wrong

This image contained in Justice Department motion for continued pretrial detention of Jack Teixeira, shows his room at his father's home in North Dighton, Massachusetts

The revelations have raised questions about why military officials did not take further action and why Teixeira continued to have access to classified information after his superiors raised concerns.

Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh was questioned on Thursday about why Teixeiras leaders did not take action after the concerns were raised.

Singh referred to the Justice Department and Air Force investigations, and said those concerns and potential lack of response to them was one of the areas the inquiries would examine.

A judge is expected to rule on Teixeira's request for pre-trial release on Friday

Lawyers for Teixeira, who was arrested last month on charges under the Espionage Act, are urging the judge to release Teixeira to his father's home, noting that the man didn't flee when media outlets began publishing his name shortly before his April 13 arrest.

His lawyer told the judge last month that Teixeira 'will answer the charges' and 'will be judged by his fellow citizens.'

In their own court filing Wednesday, Teixeira's lawyers noted there have been many Espionage Act cases in which courts have approved release or the government did not seek to keep the person behind bars pretrial.

They have also said there is no allegation that Teixeira ever intended for documents to be distributed widely.

But prosecutors said in their filing Wednesday that one of the servers on the social media platform he posted classified information to had at least 150 users at the time the information was shared and 'now may have many more users that are actively seeking access to information.'

'Among the individuals with whom the Defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses,' prosecutors wrote.

In Discord messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to and stated that he was breaking 'a ton' of regulations, according to chat logs shared in court filings

The leaked documents like the one above, which spread widely on Twitter and Russia-based Telegram, disclosed intelligence on the Ukraine war, among other information

In messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to, writing, 'The information I give here is less than half of what's available,' prosecutors said.

He also acknowledged he wasn't supposed to be sharing the information, prosecutors said, noting in one breezy message, 'I'm breaking a ton of UD [unauthorized disclosure] regs'.

Teixeira continued: 'All of the s**t I've told you guys I'm not supposed to,' according to the Justice Department's filing.

Judge Hennessy heard arguments from lawyers over detention late last month, but has yet to issue a ruling and scheduled a second hearing on the matter for Friday following multiple continuances.

In earlier court records, prosecutors alleged that Teixeira kept 'virtual arsenal' of weapons in his father's home before his arrest, and has a history of violent and disturbing remarks.

The leaked documents appear to detail US and NATO aid to Ukraine and US intelligence assessments regarding US allies that could strain ties with those nations.

Some show real-time details from February and March of Ukraine's and Russia's battlefield positions and precise numbers of battlefield gear lost and newly flowing into Ukraine from its allies.
The Bahrain Economic Development Board (Bahrain EDB) has announced that Singapore-based Whampoa Group has selected Bahrain to be the headquarters (HQ) of its new digital bank.



With an intended launch date of end of 2023, the digital bank aims to provide secure and integrated financial solutions to serve institutions, innovators, and sophisticated investors globally, including digital banking services and the trading, custody, and asset management of digital assets; with the ultimate objective of supporting the growing adoption of digital assets worldwide.



Khalid Humaidan, Chief Executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board, said: "We are delighted that Whampoa Group intends to set up the headquarters of their new digital bank in Bahrain as they would benefit from Bahrain's pro-innovation environment and forward-looking regulatory framework. The establishment of these types of institutions are vital to further strengthen the existing digital assets industry and this milestone opportunity directly aligns with Bahrains Economic Recovery Plan, which prioritises digitisation across the financial services sector.



Shawn Chan, Group Chief Executive Officer of Whampoa Group, expressed his excitement to launch the bank in the Kingdom of Bahrain, commenting: "We were impressed by Bahrains solid reputation in the financial services sector, transparent regulatory framework, and ongoing pledge to collaborate and innovate. We are committed to providing secure and innovative digital financial solutions in line with global best practices and are confident that our digital bank will set a new benchmark for the industry. Whampoa is grateful for the support from the Bahrain EDB and the broader Team Bahrain ecosystem throughout the entire process.



Bahrain, a pioneering hub for digital asset regulation among GCC countries, was among the first to issue crypto-asset licenses in the region, cementing itself as a leading hub for crypto services and fintech innovations in the region.



The Kingdom's well-established financial services and innovation hub, fast-growing diversified economy, and strategic location at the heart of the Arabian Gulf make it an ideal destination for the new digital bank. Bahrain's financial services sector, which contributes 17.5% to the GDP, remains the highest contributor to the economy, surpassing oil and actively supporting economic diversification.  TradeArabia News Service
A suspect was arrested and charged in the motor vehicle theft and kidnapping

The baby was inside a stolen car and dumped on the side of the road

Harrowing body camera footage shows the moment a Texas police officer rescued a baby who had been kidnapped and abandoned on the side of the road near a pile of garbage.

The incident happened Monday evening in Fort Worth when a man named Elliot Reyes stole a running vehicle that had a woman's six-month-old son in the backseat, police say.

The mother had been making a stop at her brother's home to drop something off and left the child alone for several minutes in the parked vehicle.

Officer's managed to arrest Reyes around a mile-and-half away after neighbors saw him getting into the car and speeding off but the baby was nowhere to be found.

The newly released footage shows an officer sprinting toward the ravine and another pulling the child from his car seat.

'We've got the baby,' officers yelled out as they pulled the child - who has been hanging from his car seat's straps - from the ravine.

Suspect Elliot Reyes is being held on a bond of $68,000 after being charged with charged with burglary of a building, theft of property, and abandoning or endangering a child

Fort Worth Police Sergeant Ronnie Chau told reporters that after arresting Reyes, officers put him in a car and told him to direct them to where the baby way

Fort Worth police released the shocking body camera footage of the rescue Wednesday along with additional details regarding the save.

Police said officers were called for a report of a kidnapping in the 330 block of N. Pecan Street late Monday evening.

The child's mother said she had just stopped into the home to drop something off when a neighbor who witnessed the car theft notified her of the incident.

Reyes fled the scene and was later discovered with the vehicle but the baby was nowhere to be found when officers arrived.

Cops had Reyes take them to where he had dropped off the helpless child and found the baby near a ravine in an area littered with garbage and discarded furniture.

Dozens of officers were quickly dispatched to the scene and instructed to comb the neighborhood for the vehicle and the child.

Roughly a half hour after the call came in, the car was spotted about a mile and a half away from where it had been taken from.

As the suspect was taken into custody, police said officers began to panic as the child was nowhere to be found.

'We were freaking out at that moment. We had no baby,' Fort Worth Police Sergeant Ronnie Chau said in an interview with FOX 4 Dallas on Wednesday.

'We put him in a vehicle and had him direct us to where the baby was,' he continued.

'Just worried about where the baby can be. Where is the vehicle? And finding every method that we can and resources to get on top of this and get the baby back,' Sgt. Chau said.

Five minutes later, officers found the baby boy in the dangerous state.

'The baby was hanging on by the straps of the car seat. It was barely hanging on. His foot was in the dirt area,' Sgt. Chau continued.

The officers were seen sprinting toward the child in the footage and quickly comforting the child who was heard crying loudly.

'Aw, it's okay. It's okay,' Sgt. Chau can be heard saying in the footage.

The Fort Worth sergeant said he was just glad the baby was alive and safe.

'I was just elated. It was like an hour and a half of just buildup of just, where is this baby? Where could it be?' said Sergeant Chau on Wednesday.

'At that moment it is just pure emotion and just letting it go,' he said.

Medics examined the infant for injuries and he was returned to his mother.

'She was very happy. She was just crying the whole time, and basically she just smiled and happiness,' said Sgt. Chau.

Reyes was arrested and charged with kidnapping, abandoning/endangering a child and auto theft.
Elon Musk doubled down on his criticism of billionaire financier George Soros on Thursday, arguing that the progressive philanthropist was supporting elected officials whose policies harmed U.S. cities.

Musk, 51, compared Soros, 92, to X-Men supervillain Magneto - a character who manipulates the world and thinks mutants should be in charge, rather than humans.

He made the comments on Twitter on Monday, following the announcement that Soros' investment fund had dumped all of their Tesla stock.

Soros, a Hungarian-born billionaire, heads the Open Society Foundation and is a Holocaust survivor.

Musk was accused of peddling anti-Semitic tropes about Jewish people pulling strings and controlling the world, and in a bizarre interview on Tuesday with CNBC he poured fuel on the fire.

On Thursday, Musk returned to the theme, saying he had issues with Soros's philanthropy.

Elon Musk was interviewed on CNBC on Tuesday, and was asked about his remarks about George Soros, giving a bizarre rambling reply

George Soros, a Hungarian-born Billionaire, heads the Open Society Foundation and is a Holocaust survivor. His foundation backs progressive politicians

Musk responded to Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, saying that the South African-born billionaire was not anti-Semitic, but his remarks were dangerous.

'He's arguably the most influential person on the planet controlling what's essentially our public square. When he repeats conspiracy theories, that feeds the extremists,' said Greenblatt.

Musk replied: 'In fairness, I must concede that Joel has a good point and I will endeavor to be more thoughtful in the future.'

He later corrected to tweet to say 'Jonathan'.

Musk continued: 'Comic book analogies are obviously imperfect, to say the least.

'Just because George Soros can bend metal using his mind doesn't mean he's Magneto!!

'Anyway, my actual concern with Soros is that he has funded so many politicians & DAs who are soft even on violent crime, which has caused great damage to many cities imo.

'Also, while I am very much in favor of expanding legal immigration, we must have some vetting of who comes in, so that we do not allow dangerous felons to prey upon innocent Americans.'

In a statement on Tuesday, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Musk's tweet had resulted in a flood of conspiracy theories and the hashtag 'The Jews' to trend on the platform.

During his strange interview with CNBC's David Faber, Musk was asked about his Soros tweets, and responded by embarking on a bizarre tangent about the 1987 fairytale adventure, The Princess Bride.

'I'll say what I want to say and if the consequence of that is losing money so be it,' said Musk.

Musk tells Faber: 'I said he reminds me of Magneto, you know calm down people.'

Faber asks: 'When you do something like that, why share it? Why share it when people who buy Tesla's may not agree with you, advertisers on Twitter may not agree with you, why share it wide?'

Musk responds: 'Freedom of speech, I'm allowed to say what I want.'

Faber told him: 'It puts you in a middle of a partisan divide in the country, it makes you a lightning rod for criticism. Do you like that?'

Musk said that he was a 'pro-Semite', and after a lengthy awkward silence totaling 12 seconds he goes into a bizarre tirade and quotes 1987 film The Princess Bride.

'I'm reminded of a scene in The Princess Bride, where he confronts the person who kills his father.

'He says, 'Offer me money. Offer me power. I don't care'.'

Musk then says: 'I'll say what I want to say and if the consequence of that is losing money so be it.'

In response, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted: 'The phrase 'The Jews' jumped to the list of trending topics on Twitter today following an anti-Semitic tweet by none other than the owner and CEO of the social network, Elon Musk.

Musk did not explain the reasoning behind his outburst, but the tweet was posted on Monday shortly after a regulatory filing revealed that Soros' family office had dumped its entire stake in Tesla

Musk's tweet immediately resulted in a flood of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories on Twitter.

'Unfortunately Twitter does nothing to address this problem.'

David Saranga, the director of the digital diplomacy bureau at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, tweeted: 'It reminds me of Niemoller's words which are prominently featured on a wall of the Holocaust Museum in Washington.

''First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist.

''Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews

''I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew.

''Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak for me.'

'Niemoller's words serve as an indictment of passivity and indifference during the Holocaust'.

Musk did not explain the reasoning behind his outburst, but the tweet was posted shortly after a regulatory filing revealed that Soros' office had dumped its entire stake in Tesla.

Tesla shares have surged by nearly 54 percent since the start of the year, though the value of the stake that Soros had is not currently clear.

Marvel's official character description says the supervillain 'fights to help mutants replace humans as the world's dominant species'

The character, played by Ian McKellen (left) and Michael Fassbender (right) is described as 'witnessed the wort the human race had to offer' with his parents and sister dying during WWII before being sent to Auschwitz

Greenblatt tweeted: 'Soros often is held up by the far-right, using anti-Semitic tropes, as the source of the world's problems.

'To see Elon Musk, regardless of his intent, feed this segment  comparing him to a Jewish supervillain, claiming Soros 'hates humanity'  is not just distressing, it's dangerous.

'It will embolden extremists who already contrive anti-Jewish conspiracies and have tried to attack Soros and Jewish communities as a result.'

CEO of American Jewish Committee Ted Deutch told CNN: 'The tweet about this notion that Soros hates humanity, is trying to destroy civilization just plays into the classical anti-Semitic conspiracy theory about Jewish wealth and power.

'We've seen anti-Semitism surge since Musk took over at Twitter, our own survey show that two thirds of Jews have experienced anti-Semitism online, 85% of those under 30.

'It is unacceptable and dangerous.'

On Wednesday afternoon, Elon again refused to back down on his comments.

In response to his original tweet, he said: 'I'd like to apologize for this post.'

But he quickly followed up with: 'It was really unfair to Magneto.'

It comes after a study found that anti-Semitic tweets soared after Musk's takeover, a 105 percent increase following the $4 billion deal.
A 95-year-old great-grandmother who was tasered by police is receiving end of life care - as a sombre assistant police commissioner insists that she was slowly approaching officers with her walking frame while 'armed' with a steak knife.

Clare Nowland - who suffers dementia, is 157cm tall (five foot two inches) and weighs just 43 kilograms - was blasted with a taser by police at the Yallambee Lodge aged care facility near Cooma, in the NSW Snowy Mountains, about 4am on Wednesday.

According to a police account, Mrs Nowland was by herself in a treatment room with the knife at the time, having collected it from the kitchen earlier.

Officers claim Mrs Nowland was approaching police 'at a slow pace', with her frame, when she was blasted with the taser by a senior constable with 12 years' experience.

The Taser blast caused her to fall and hit her head.

Community advocate Andrew Thaler told Daily Mail Australia on Friday morning that Mrs Nowland was now receiving end of life care in hospital.

Her family is gathered around her in the expectation that she does not have long to live, Mr Thaler said.

Mr Thaler said Mrs Nowland had 'two holes in her chest' from the prongs of the Taser fired by police. However, police insist the Taser was discharged just once.

At a press conference on Friday, Assistant Police Commissioner Peter Cotter said: She was approaching police but it is fair to say at a slow pace.

'She had a walking frame. But she had a knife, he said.

Clare Nowland, who has suffered with dementia, was injured during 'an interaction' with officers at Yallambee Lodge near Cooma

Cops were called to the nursing home (pictured) after being told she had a kitchen knife. Ms Nowland was tasered while standing next to her walking frame

Sombre NSW assistant police commissioner Peter Cotter said Mrs Nowland had been wandering around the facility for a couple of hours with the knife

'She did have a knife in her hand and it is fair to say she was armed by that knife. The knife in question was a steak knife.

'Negotiations commenced with Clare to essentially drop the knife. For whatever reason, Clare did not do that.'

Mr Cotter revealed there was 'confronting' bodycam footage of the incident but insisted that it was 'not in the public interest' to release the video - despite an international uproar over the forcefulness of the police response.

Mr Cotter also suggested Mrs Nowland's case was being treated as if she could soon be deceased. He said the highest level incident investigation underway by the NSW Homicide Squad was consistent with a 'potential coronial investigation'.

She had a walking frame. But she had a knife Assistant Police Commissioner Peter Cotter

Despite the assistant commissioner's assurance that Mrs Nowland's family did not want to speak with the media, Daily Mail Australia understands that they have been instructed not to talk with reporters.

The 12-year veteran police officer who tasered Ms Nowland has been temporarily stood down during the investigation into the incident.

'I cannot say whether or not this officer .. will face criminal charges.' he said.

In the hours following the incident, which involved two police, the NSW Police Force initially only described the Taser shooting as an 'interaction' with officers.

It was unclear why an assistant commissioner, rather than Commissioner Karen Webb, fronted the media.

An independent investigation is now underway into the incident.

What we know about the incident

Mr Thaler earlier said that Mrs Nowland's family had been under the belief that their beloved oldest member could simply have been making toast in one of the kitchens beforehand.

'Her family is just incredulous (at what happened),' he said.

The family believe the facility itself was not properly staffed to care for patients with dementia.

Yallambee Lodge is a 40-bed facility designed for people who can no longer look after themselves in their own homes, according to the council's website.

Mr Thaler believed there may have been just two carers on duty at 4am for 40 patients in five houses and there was 'a lack of training and for some of these workers, English is not their first language, they may have panicked'.

He said funding for dementia care to be set up at Yallambee had not been passed on by the Snowy Monaro Regional Council, but was vitally needed.

Mr Thaler challenged NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb to travel to Cooma and sit down with Ms Nowland's family for the difficult task of watching the police bodycam of the incident.

On Thursday night, Commissioner Webb said in a statement: 'My thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.

'I understand and share the community concerns, and assure you that we are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness.'

Mrs Nowland is a pillar of the local community who worked at the local St Vincent de Paul's outlet and has been described as a 'helper who loves helping people'.

Cops were called to the nursing home early on Wednesday after being told Ms Nowland had a kitchen knife.

Police claim they tried to speak to her, but tasered her as she stood next to her walking frame.

It's believed officers had struggled to disarm her before pulling out their tasers and firing at her back and chest.

She fell over and hit her head and was taken to hospital.

Ms Nowland, who was well known in the local community and is believed to have been at the facility for about five years, collapsed and sustained critical injuries.

NSW Council for Civil Liberties president Josh Pallas said police shouldn't be using Tasers on vulnerable people experiencing dementia or a mental health crisis.

'Surely, there must be more appropriate ways to deal with non-compliant people who are suffering,' he said.

According to NSW Police guidelines, an officer can use a stun gun when violent resistance is occurring or is imminent or when an officer is in danger of being overpowered.

The Snowy Monaro Regional Council, which runs Yallambee Lodge, said staff had followed procedure.

'Council are supporting our staff, residents, and families during this difficult time,' the council said in a statement.

NSW Police have launched a critical incident investigation to examine the responding officers' actions. The investigation will be subject to independent review.

Ms Nowland, who was well known in the local community and is believed to have been at the facility for about five years, collapsed and sustained critical injuries

President of People with Disability Australia Nicole Lee said it was a 'shocking' incident.

'She's either one hell of an agile, fit, fast and intimidating 95-year-old woman, or there's a very poor lack of judgement on those police officers and there really needs to be some accountability on their side of this,' Ms Lee said.

'This woman, an older woman of 95, she needed somebody to de-escalate the situation with her and to talk to her, and to handle her with compassion and time and not tasers.'

Mr Thaler called on Commissioner Webb to personally explain to Ms Nowland's family what happened, and to apologise.

'The country is rightly outraged,' he said.
The son of a former NSW Liberal leader has been charged after he allegedly sold drugs on the dark web in exchange for cryptocurrency.

Mark Chikarovski, 37, was marched out of an apartment in Bondi Junction, in Sydney's east, by police in handcuffs on Thursday.

He is the son of Kerry Chikarovski who was the state's Liberal leader from 1999 to 2002 and regularly commentates on political issues on ABC's The Drum show.

Mark Chikarovski, 37, the son of former Liberal leader Kerry Chikarovski, has been arrested over drug allegations

Mr Chikarovski, 37, was marched out of an apartment in Bondi Junction, in Sydney 's east, by police in handcuffs on Thursday

Mr Chikarovski was taken to Waverley police station on Thursday and was on Friday morning charged with 31 offences including supplying prohibited drugs and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.

Police will allege Mr Chikarovski had received cryptocurrency in exchange for prohibited drugs on thousands of occasions since 2017.

Heavily-armed officers had raided an apartment in Bondi Junction and a home in Vaucluse as part of an investigation into the supply of prohibited drugs using dark web marketplaces.

NSW Police said during the investigation they uncovered a marketplace where cocaine, methylamphetamine and MDMA was being supplied in exchange for cryptocurrency.

During the raids, police found prohibited drugs, $30,000 in cash, computers, two Porsche SUVs and about $269,000 worth of crypto.

Mr Chikarovski was taken to Waverley police station for questioning and is expected to be charged

The 37-year-old will appear in Waverley Local Court on Friday.

Ms Chikarovski became NSW's first female opposition leader when she led the Liberal party in 1999.

She has since founded her own consultancy firm, Chikarovski & Associates, and is a board director for home delivery meal service Tender Loving Cuisine.

She also sits on the board for a number of different organisations including NSW Rugby Union, Adopt Change, and is an ambassador for Australian Indigenous Education Foundation.

She also had a weekly radio show titled Chat with Chika between 2012 and 2014.
MPs have renewed calls for the Ministry of Defence to move rape cases out of the court martial system as whistleblower evidence revealed ongoing sexual abuse within the armed services.

One servicewoman reported a rape on a base but was told her attacker would remain with his elite unit, according to written submissions provided to the Commons Defence Committee.

Another was said to have been groped and forcibly kissed by a male colleague at a Christmas party before allegedly being told by her chain of command that she should 'understand things get a little out of hand'.

Conservative MP Sarah Atherton, chairwoman of the Defence Sub-Committee on Women in the Armed Forces, said the submissions reinforce the group's view that cases of rape and sexual assault within the service should be handled by civilian courts.

The move was first proposed after a 2021 parliamentary report into the experiences of servicewomen but the MoD rejected the recommendation.

While Defence Secretary Ben Wallace suggested there had been insufficient evidence in 2021 that moving sexual assault cases out of the military courts would improve the system, on top of the other recommendations the ministry had adopted.

MPs like Conservative MP Sarah Atherton have renewed calls for the Ministry of Defence to move rape cases out of the court martial system

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace suggested there had been insufficient evidence in 2021 that moving sexual assault cases out of the military courts

The evidence was given by uniformed and civilian clinicians and administrative support staff offering care to service personnel and their commands.

They have been anonymised as have the personnel their claims relate to, the committee said.

The case studies paint a damning picture of progress made to address failures in protecting servicewomen which were first laid bare by the 2021 report.

The MoD introduced new measures after the review and said last year that its policies 'will ensure that defence continues to tackle unacceptable sexual behaviour'.

But Ms Atherton said that despite the 'willingness to effect change... serious problems persist'.

The woman who was raped was moved across the country against her will to separate her from her attacker, according to the evidence.

She was placed in transit accommodation where she would 'often hear unknown men in the corridor outside her room, and would struggle to sleep, pushing furniture in front of the door and not leaving her room for days due to fears of the men outside her door', the written submission said.

The move was presented as a way to facilitate her access to therapy for trauma from the rape, but due to issues in the system it was more than a year before that happened, staff said.

The MoD introduced new measures after the review and said last year that its policies 'will ensure that defence continues to tackle unacceptable sexual behaviour' (pictured: Bulford Military Court)

Another case study described a 'young servicewoman in training (who) awoke in her room on base to find a male member of training staff smelling her underwear; previously, she'd woken up to find him watching her sleeping'.

It added: 'She describes on another occasion him holding her against a wall and telling her that her real reason to join the service was to 'get the leg over as much as possible'.'

Few of the case studies involved women reporting incidents through an official complaints process, according to the evidence, but one who did ended up leaving the service with mental health issues while her alleged abusers 'continue to serve and thrive', the written submissions said.

Among the reforms the MoD unveiled after the initial sub-committee report was the removal of the chain of command from the complaints process.

Further measures included a review into strengthened powers to kick out those who are found to have committed sexual offences, and greater independence in the complaints process for bullying and harassment allegations.

READ MORE Revealed: Number of soldiers and sailors appearing at military court charged with sex offences rose by 70 per cent last year, as top brass bids to stamp out abuse within the ranks Advertisement

However, the MoD did not accept a recommendation to move cases of rape and sexual assault out of military courts and into the civilian system.

According to the sub-committee's 2021 findings, conviction rates in military courts were four to six times lower than in civilian courts.

Ms Atherton said: 'The cases outlined in this evidence are heartrending and demonstrate serious failings within the military justice system and chain of command.

'Sexual assault and rape are heinous crimes. As this document shows, when these crimes take place in the armed forces, servicewomen often feel they have no option but to 'put up and shut up'.

'They are often made to feel as though they must choose between justice and their career, while perpetrators of abuse seem to be protected.

'It's been nearly two years since the publication of the Defence Committee's report Women in the Armed Forces: Protecting those who protect us. The Ministry of Defence's response at the time was largely positive and demonstrated a willingness to effect change.

'However, this damning evidence shows that serious problems persist. It reinforces our view that the complaints system is not functioning as it should be, and that criminal cases of sexual assault and rape must be removed from the Service Justice System and handed over to civilian courts.

'The evidence also speaks to a wider culture of institutional misogyny: looking the other way and discouraging victims from coming forward, with senior personnel hiding behind the excuse of 'boys will be boys'. If we are to tackle these issues at a fundamental cultural level, there needs to be a considered and strategic response led by respected figures within the military.

'It takes a lot of thought and courage to speak out in these circumstances. I would like to thank the witnesses and all those who agreed to allow their stories to be told.'

Mr Wallace said on Thursday that he had not had time to read the latest evidence in full but insisted 'things are changing and getting better in the armed forces'.

'I put a huge amount of effort in adopting Sarah Atherton's recommendations,' he told a press conference in Northwood.

'The only one we differed was because there was no real evidence that after all the measures we put in place, that that would somehow make the difference.'

An MoD spokesman said: 'The experiences set out in these cases are totally unacceptable. No-one should be subjected to these incidents and any form of sexual assault, bullying, harassment, or discrimination will not be tolerated.

'We want personnel to have the confidence to report offences. Building that confidence in service justice is the reason we launched the independent Serious Crime Unit - empowered to investigate crimes anywhere in the world - and have made sure that complaints of bullying, harassment or discrimination are dealt with outside of the chain of command.

'These measures sit alongside a comprehensive improvement package, including a new victim and witness care unit and policy reforms such as our new zero tolerance approach to unacceptable sexual behaviour - which will ensure that anyone convicted of a sexual offence will be dismissed from service.'
The first government minister yesterday broke cover and backed calls to scrap the tourist tax holding back Britains economy.

Paul Scully, the technology minister, admitted his struggle to agree with the Governments stance against the campaign to bring back VAT-free shopping.

The London mayoral hopeful said hundreds of millions of pounds was being lost because shoppers were choosing to go to European cities rather than London  hitting all aspects of the economy.

Mr Scully appealed to the Treasury to undertake dynamic modelling to calculate the benefits of bringing back tax-free shopping for tourists.

He told LBC Radio that he had been campaigning within government on the issue, though as a minister was expected to abide by collective responsibility. He added: But there are a few little areas where I struggle to hold the line, shall we say, and this is one.

Paul Scully (pictured), the technology minister, admitted his struggle to agree with the Governments stance against the campaign to bring back VAT-free shopping

Mr Scully said while some people viewed the campaign as big shops getting a tax rebate, he believed it would bring in hundreds of millions pounds of lost revenue to this country.

He added: You see people going to Milan, going to Paris, rather than coming to London and then that money working its way through the system for, as you rightly say, taxi drivers and people that are working in our restaurants. So there can be so much more. What Ive asked the Treasury to do is, instead of seeing it as a cost of lost revenue, the static modelling, they just see it [as] 2billion theyre going to lose, do some dynamic modelling, see what the behaviours change as a result of restoring VAT-free shopping. What theyll find is they get more money in revenue and tax.

While Mr Scully is the first minister to publicly back the campaign, others are known to have privately taken up the case.

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch is understood to have heard complaints from businesses and has been raising their concerns with colleagues. Conservative Party chairman Greg Hands  whose Chelsea and Fulham constituency is heavily affected by the tax  is also thought to strongly back the campaign. Earlier this week, trade minister Nigel Huddleston urged hospitality and retail bosses to share new data on the impact of the tax.

Downing Street said taxation was a matter for the Chancellor.

Mr Scullys comments came as the boss of Burberry said the fashion label would keep pushing for the tourist tax to be overturned as the UK was at a competitive disadvantage for global shoppers.

Mr Scully said shoppers were choosing to go to European cities rather than London  hitting all aspects of the economy (Stock image)

More than 200 business leaders back the Mails bid to Scrap the Tourist Tax, with heavyweights including Harrods and British Airways urging the Government to restore VAT-free shopping.

Rishi Sunak is facing growing pressure to scrap the tax, especially ahead of a rebound in international travel from China this summer. Burberry chief executive Jonathan Akeroyd said he was really hoping a tax incentive could be revisited. He added: We are disappointed the Government chose to scrap the VAT retail export scheme. We think it leaves the UK at a competitive disadvantage for global shoppers.

The firms trading suggested the UK was underperforming versus the rest of continental Europe, with a much stronger performance of tourist sales in countries such as Spain, Italy and France.

It is something we are going to keep campaigning for, he said.

The chief executive said he was also concerned by a big surge in British tourists heading to mainland Europe to buy designer clothes and accessories.
Rishi Sunak last night ruled out forming a coalition after the next election, saying he was confident he could win a full second term outright.

The Prime Minister said he was focused on delivering on the publics priorities and was not interested in any deal.

Mr Sunak also moved to scotch speculation he could make a Theresa May-style agreement with the DUP if the Conservatives fall short at next years election.

After the 2017 election, Mrs May secured Unionist confidence-and-supply support for her minority government.

Downing Street had refused to rule out the possibility of another deal with the DUP, despite tensions over Brexit.

Rishi Sunak said last night he was not interested in any deal and ruled out forming a coalition after the next election

But asked directly by reporters while travelling in Japan whether he was ruling out a deal with the DUP, Mr Sunak replied I am, adding: I have been clear and I will be clear Im not interested in coalition, Im interested in delivering for the British people.

The Liberal Democrats have already ruled out a deal with the Tories. Leader Sir Ed Davey said his is now an anti-Tory party, despite years spent in coalition with David Cameron.

No10 has already said the PM would never do a deal with the SNP, leaving the Tories without any potential coalition partners.

Mr Sunaks comments put pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to come clean about his own plans if the election delivers a hung parliament.

The Labour leader has said he would not do a deal with the SNP. But the SNPs Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has claimed his party would be pulling the strings if Labour fails to get a majority.

And Sir Keir has refused to rule out a coalition with the Lib Dems, who have put abolishing Britains first-past-the-post voting system at the top of their demands.

Mr Sunak insisted the Tories could still win, despite Labours 15-point poll lead and the recent mauling in the local elections.

Asked if he was confident he would remain PM after the election, he replied Yes, adding: Im confident we can deliver for people.

The Liberal Democrats have ruled out a deal with the Tories and leader Sir Ed Davey said his is now an anti-Tory party

I know things are tough right now. But I think weve made good progress in the six months that Ive had the job. Ill just keep at it.

He added: We are interested in delivering a conservative majority at the next election.

All Im focusing on is delivering for the British people. I set out five very clear things. They know what Im about.

They know what I will try to do for them. They will be able to hold me to account for delivery for them.

That is literally my sole focus. Worrying about coalitions and future elections - thats not on my mind.
Russian diamonds will be banned from the UK as part of a new series of sanctions against the warring state, it emerged last night.

As part of the new crackdown, expected to be signed into law later this year, imports of Russian-origin copper, aluminium and nickel will also be banned.

It comes after UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Britain must show that 'violence and coercion do not reap rewards' ahead of his appearance at the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

Russia's diamond industry was worth around 3.2billion in exports in 2021, before it launched its illegal war on Ukraine in February last year.

Russian diamonds will be banned from the UK as part of a fresh series of sanctions against the warring state, it emerged last night (stock image)

A further 86 people and companies connected to dictator Vladimir Putin (pictured) will also be targeted by the new sanctions, the UK government said

A further 86 people and companies connected to dictator Vladimir Putin will also be targeted by the new sanctions, the UK government said.

More than 1,500 individuals and companies have seen assets worth more than 18bn frozen by the British authorities since the start of the Ukraine invasion.

It comes as it was revealed today that one billion pounds will be pumped into the British microchip industry to reduce the country's reliance on semiconductors from China.

The decade-long drive is also designed to bolster the UK as a technological superpower, Rishi Sunak will announce later on Friday.

The Prime Minister believes investment in semiconductors, used in electronic devices such as mobile phones and computers, will help 'build our competitive edge on the global stage'.

The decade-long drive is also designed to bolster the UK as a technological superpower, Rishi Sunak will announce today

It comes amid growing fears about the long-standing dispute between Taiwan  the world's biggest producer of computer chips  and China over the island's sovereignty.

There is increasing concern across the West that using Chinese technology in communications and surveillance networks will result in foreign data ending up with Beijing's ruling Communist Party.

'Our new strategy focuses our efforts on where our strengths lie, in areas like research and design, so we can build our competitive edge on the global stage,' the Prime Minister will say.

'By increasing the capabilities and resilience of our world-leading semiconductor industry, we will grow our economy, create new jobs and stay at the forefront of new technological breakthroughs.'
An airfield that played a large part in the D-Day operations has been put up for grabs as part of the 13.8m sale of a country estate.

Towed gliders took off from RAF Tarrant Rushton in Dorset on the night of June 5, 1944, and landed the first Allied troops on French soil on D-Day.

Soldiers who disembarked aircraft from Rushton also fought over the capture of Pegasus Bridge in the Netherlands.

Once landed, the men charged out of the aircraft and seized control of Pegasus Bridge in the Netherlands.

RAF Tarrant Rushton's role in the war didn't stop there, Special Operations Executive (SOE) agents took off from there in order to be dropped behind enemy lines throughout the conflict.

The base became home to a pioneering aviation firm for over 30 years after the end of the war in 1945.

RAF Tarrant Rushton played a pivotal part in the D-Day operation before becoming home to pioneering aviation firm Flight Refuelling after the war

Crushed concrete from the runways used to help construct by-pass roads around the nearby locations of Wimborne and Blandford Forum after it was demolished

History buffs will need deep pockets if they want to acquire the former airfield now as it is being sold as part of a 952-acre farm that has been in the same family for 85 years.

Preston Farm and Crook Farm includes a five-bedroom farmhouse, a portfolio of seven residential properties in the village, a range of modern and traditional farm buildings and the 952 acres of highly productive farmland with arable, beef and pig businesses.

The land was purchased by the Harding family from the Crichel Estate in 1938, but large parts of it was requisitioned in 1942 to create the large three-runway airfield, which was opened in May 1943.

On the night before the historic D-Day operation, which marked a turning of the tide during the war, six Halifax bombers towing Horsa gliders took off from Tarrant Rushton to begin Operation Tonga.

D Company, 2nd Airborne Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry successfully captured Pegasus Bridge and Horsa Bridge, holding them until the main British invasion forces arrived.

Between April 1944 and May 1945, Tarrant Rushton's 298 and 644 Squadrons flew 2,284 top secret missions into occupied Europe, from southern France up to Norway.

The base was eventually abandoned in December 1947, before being taken over by Flight Refuelling six months later.

The aviation research and manufacturing company remained there until 1980, when it moved to Bournemouth Airport.

During its period of operation, Tarrant Flight Refuelling carried out decisive work on in-flight refuelling and drone aircraft development.

Almost immediately after moving to Tarrant Rushton, the company was involved in the Berlin Airlift - dropping supplies to people in West Berlin where the Soviets were blocking Allied access - and carried out nearly 4,500 sorties the year-long operation.

It also set a world record in the late 1940s for the longest flight after flying a jet non-stop for 12 hours thanks to in-flight refuelling and converted jets into drones in the 1950s and 1960s.

Demolition of the airfield started just weeks after Flight Refuelling's relocation to Bournemouth Airport, with the crushed concrete from the runways used to help construct by-pass roads around the nearby locations of Wimborne and Blandford Forum.

On the night before June 6 1944, six Halifax bombers towing Horsa gliders took off from RAF Tarrant Rushton to begin Operation Tonga.

A sign at decommissioned base which reads: 'This memorial commemorates all who operated from Tarrant Rushton airfield 1943-1980'

A former hanger at which is now used as farm storage

Local historian Andrew Wright said: 'Tarrant Rushton played a terribly important part in D-Day. It wasn't just that late take off on June 5. In the early hours of June 6 30 Halifax bombers with gliders took off from that mile-long runway for Operation Tonga.

'A third lot left in the evening, it was a huge operation. People must have wondered what on earth was going on around them with 30 Halifax taking off at 30 second intervals.

'The history is incredible. The airfield was involved in the Berlin airlift, with staff working there 24 hours a day, servicing aircraft that took part.

'They converted jets into drones the 1950s and 60s and were still doing research for the government in the 1970s.

'The old perimeter is a public footpath and you can definitely feel the hand of history on your shoulder as you walk around that perimeter.

'The Harding family have made that farm incredibly productive, I can imagine what a wrench it must be for that family to leave.'

The farm is up for sale with Symonds & Sampson who said 'agricultural and residential property portfolios of this size and quality rarely come to the market'.
It is the first company to focus on animals but uses processes done on humans

Cryopets is cryogenically freezing pets to hopefully revive them in the future

What if you could be reunited with a beloved former family pet?

That is the goal of a new startup backed by billionaire Peter Thiel that will freeze dead dogs, cats and even hamsters until a cure for aging or illness can be found.

Cryopets is open to the public, with plans to preserve the first pet in one to two months, and has 500 animals currently on the waitlist.

The Utah-based company plans to set up shop in veterinarian hospitals across the US, where doctors cool the corpse to extremely low temperatures, drain the blood and administer cryoprotectants.

Kai Micah Mills founded Cryopets. He has an 11-year-old cat that he hopes to cryogenically freeze when the time comes

Cryopets uses science fiction-like tech to cool down the body, which is stored in a massive facility for future resurrections. Animals will be stored in steel tanks filled with liquid nitrogen

The frozen animals are then placed inside dewars filled with liquid nitrogen and stored in a warehouse - the location is unknown - until scientists discover cures for aging and disease.

The company's founder Kai Micah Mills told DailyMail.com that Cryopets has 500 pets on the waitlist, including a labradoodle, horse, monkey and hamster.

And pricing depends on the size - the 80-pound labradoodle is quoted at $30,000 while a cat $10,000.

Mills told DailyMail.com: '[Pricing for procedure] varies. For a cat, it will probably be around $10,000.

'We have an 80-pound labradoodle on the waitlist that we did a full quote of around $30,000.'

Mills gave an example of cryopreserving a dog dying from old age or cancer.

Euthanasia is typically a planned event, which would be given a hefty dose of seizure medication that renders them unconscious.

'As soon as this happens, we start cooling the body down immediately to avoid ischemic damage,' Mills said.

'We want to avoid any degradation of the brain's structure.'

Once completed, the dog is moved to an ice bath and given a cocktail of medications, including anesthesia, that stops the animal from being revived when chest compressions are administered.

And when the body is cooled, the animal undergoes chest surgery to keep their blood circulating.

A profusion circuit, similar to a heart-lung machine, is placed in the body to keep blood from clotting so it can be filtered out and replaced with cryoprotectant.

Mills said the animal's body is continually cooled down during this process.

'When the animal cooled to a temperate we want, we put them in what is called a cooldown box,' he said.

Nitrogen is vital to the process, which is administered as a vapor and in liquid form

Cyropets is ready to start cryogenically freezing pets thanks to the help of its investors, specifically Peter Thiel (pictured), who has long been a fan of freezing himself to be revived later

'There isn't anything like it in the world. It is essentially like a control rate freezer that is much larger because it needs to fit human-sized dogs. Like really, really big animals down to a hamster.'

In the box, the animal is introduced to a nitrogen vapor that continues the cool-down process.

Mills said Cyropets aims to make its own nitrogen eventually.

And then, the animal is transferred into liquid nitrogen inside a steal dewar.

READ MORE: Will we ever be able to bring cryogenically frozen corpses back to life? A scientist explains the risks At the cellular level, the damages are still poorly understood- but a scientist believes they can be controlled. Advertisement

The company plans to build a massive facility to house the frozen animals.

Mills said the process is similar when freezing humans, but the amount of medications administered would differ.

But Mills is not all about the money when it comes to his company, but sees it as a way to cheat death - and preserving humans is his ultimate goal.

He told DailyMail.com that he was brought up Mormon and was very religious as a child.

But the Utah native began to question his faith around 13 years old, leading him to the 2045 Initiative founded by Russian billionaire Dmitry Itskov who is working toward human mortality but in the form of cyborgs.

'In general, love that idea of getting everything I was promised the religion, but through science, you know, real tangible that we can accomplish it,' Mills said.

'That is what spurred my obsession with life extension. We will all die and there's nothing after; that is a big problem. This is the only problem, and it needs to be solved.'

And that led to the start of Cyropets.

Mills has an 11-year-old cat, which he calls 'The Cat.'

'I figured if I want to cryopreserve with my pet, there will be at least some other crazy people out there who will also want to do that,' he said.

Cyropets is ready to start cryogenically freezing pets thanks to the help of its investors, specifically Thiel, who has long been a fan of freezing himself to be revived later.

Earlier this month, Thiel, who has an estimated net worth of $8.13 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, spoke about the technology on journalist Bari Weiss's podcast.

Weiss asked: 'Is it true that you're signed up to be cryonically preserved when you die so that you might be brought back to life in the future?'

Thiel confirmed it, saying: 'Yes, but I think of it more as an ideological statement.'

He continued: 'I dont necessarily expect it to work, but I think its the sort of thing were supposed to try to do.'

Thiel's interest in cryogenics has been well documented and he first revealed his plans in The Telegraph in 2014.

He said: 'In telling you that Ive signed up for it [cryogenics], theres always this reaction that its really crazy, its disturbing.

'But my take on it is its only disturbing because it challenges our complacency.'

The company Thiel says he has signed up with, Alcor, describe their work as being the 'practice of preserving life by pausing the dying process using subfreezing temperatures with the intent of restoring good health with medical technology in the future.'

The minimum cost for being Cryopreserved by the company is priced at $200,000, they also offer the option of just having your brain frozen for $80,000.
Etihad Rail, the developer and operator of the UAE National Rail Network, concluded its participation at the 17th edition of Middle East Rail, the largest transport event in the region, today (May 17) in Abu Dhabi with the closing of seven major agreements.

Hosted by Etihad Rail for the second consecutive year, the event was held under the patronage of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, UAE Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of the Presidential Court, and in partnership with the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, the Department of Culture and Tourism, and GCC Railways Authority.

The exhibition and conference welcomed over 10,000 attendees, including eight ministers from Europe, the UK, North Africa, and the GCC, 300 exhibitors, and 600 VIPs, with 30 countries represented in total.

On the strategic deals, Etihad Rail said these were mainly aimed at driving the development of the rail freight and passenger services.

The first agreement inked was for the establishment of a joint venture company with DHL Global Forwarding - a division of Deutsche Post DHL that provides air and ocean freight forwarding services.

The deal with the Germany-based group that undertakes major logistics projects under the brand name DHL Industrial, is mainly aimed at strengthening Etihad Rail's sustainable freight offering within the UAE.

This was followed by an MoU with Italian luxury hospitality company Arsenale to establish a luxury train experience, in addition to a deal with MICCO, an integrated logistics provider and part of AD Ports Group as well as Uber.

The other big deals signed at the event were with Moroccos national railway operator ONCF as well as drone cargo specialist SkyGo; and an agreement with the Fujairah Natural Resources Corporation (FNRC), an independent government entity established to supervise and control mining facilities specialised in extracting natural resources in Fujairah.

Etihad Rail also had an active presence as part of the conference agenda, where Shadi Malak, its CEO, delivered a keynote address during the opening ceremony of the event.

"We are proud to have been the name host for Middle East Rail once again, which is aligned with the UAE leaderships vision, their recognition of the significant advantages of rail, and the importance of relying on trains for freight and passenger transportation," stated Malak.

"This years event was the largest on record, and we are delighted to build on our commitment to partnerships, participating alongside leading entities across the global railway sector," he added.

Commenting on the agreements, Malak said: "These are testament to Etihad Rails efforts to consistently identify partnerships that improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the UAE National Rail Network, as we strive to develop a country-wide network that serves the needs of the UAE and benefit customers in every sector and passengers across the country."

"The joint venture with DHL Global Forwarding reinforces the reputation of Middle East Rail, with Etihad Rail as its sponsor, as a platform for forming commercial partnerships with global companies for the benefit of the UAE. This partnership will strengthen our sustainable freight offering within the UAE, and further drive economic growth in the country," he stated.

"We will work with ONCF  operators of one of the continents oldest railways  on knowledge sharing and best practice learnings as we develop our network," he added.
It's commonplace now, with couples to be found smooching in seemingly every public place.

But French kissing may have started for the first time 4,500 years ago in the Middle East.

That is the assertion of a new article, which puts the earliest recorded romantic kissing back around 1,000 years before the date commonly given by most experts.

Researchers found evidence of kissing in clay tablets from Ancient Mesopotamia - now modern-day Iraq and Syria.

Unlike today, where kissing tends to lead to the bedroom, the earliest texts in the Sumerian language suggest kissing may have been a post-coital activity enjoyed after sex.

Humanity's earliest recorded kiss dates back to around 4,500 years ago in the ancient Middle East  1,000 years earlier than previously thought, according to researchers. Pictured: a Babylonian clay model showing a nude couple on a couch engaged in sex and kissing

Forget brushing your teeth... KISSING is just as good, claims dentist - READ MORE An orthodontist recommends that people kiss for minutes a day to improve their oral health (stock image) Advertisement

Otherwise some things haven't changed, with one text describing how a married woman was almost led astray by a kiss from another man.

The research is a collaboration between a husband and wife - Dr Troels Pank Arboll, an expert on ancient Mesopotamia from the University of Copenhagen, and biologist Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen, of the University of Oxford.

Her contribution includes a description of the theory that romantic, sexual kissing, also enjoyed by bonobos, may have evolved to work out how healthy a partner was - based on figuring out up close whether they had bad breath.

Dr Rasmussen said: 'Kissing is something we take for granted, which feels like it has always been around, but it had to start somewhere, and we think it is older than previously believed.

'The evidence from our closest relatives, the bonobos and chimpanzees, suggests we do it to create feelings of intimacy and bonding in our relationships.

'But it also could help us evaluate a potential partner, because bad breath suggests something is wrong and they may not be healthy.'

The article, published in the journal Science, sheds light on how kissing was first perceived, based on the texts from ancient Mesopotamia.

Ancient Mesopotamia is the name for the early human cultures that existed between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in present-day Iraq and Syria

Scientists said they have found literary evidence that kissing was practised in the earliest Mesopotamian societies and may even have contributed to the spread of cold sores

Public displays of affection were frowned upon then, when it came to kissing - rather like today in some cultures.

Meanwhile kissing a priestess, a person who was likely not meant to be sexually active, was believed to deprive the kisser of the ability to speak.

Kissing also existed at the time which was not romantic, but was used to express affection between parents and children, or friends.

Kissing is described in the ancient Mesopotamian texts from 2500 BCE onward, with kissing apparently common across several cultures and not originating in a specific region.

It had previously been suggested that the earliest evidence of human lip kissing came from south Asia 3,500 years ago.

Some prehistoric statues suggest kissing existed before writing, but they are not clear enough to be sure.

Dr Arboll said: 'Kissing should not be regarded as a custom that originated exclusively in any single region and spread from there, but rather appears to have been practised in multiple ancient cultures over several millennia.'

The researchers also say kissing may have had a long-lasting effect on the transmission of viruses such as herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), which causes cold sores.

A disease known as bushanu in ancient medical texts from Mesopotamia may have referred to the cold sore virus.
General Motors is recalling hundreds of thousands of SUVs due to concerns they pose lethal dangers to children.

The American carmaker issued a voluntary recall for more than 680,000 2020 to 2023 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain SUVs.

The issue is a defect with the rear-seat lower anchor bars being excessively coated with powder, preventing a car seat from strapping in properly.

Owners are advised to install child seats using the vehicle's rear seat belts until the remedy is complete.

GM has said no issues have been reported but is recalling the vehicles to ensure none happen in the future.

The recall includes certain 2020 to 2023 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain (pictured) SUVs

In 1999, NHTS issued a safety standard for child restraint anchorage systems that 'requires all new passenger vehicles to have child restraint anchorage systems meeting specified strength, configuration, marking, and other requirements,' reads the agency's website.

Called Standard No. 225, NHTS mandates that child restraint anchorage systems provide at least a minimum level of safety.

GM's supplier, Amvian Mexico, did not monitor the variation of powder coat applied to the anchorages, Jalopnik reports.

The mistake resulted in bars of 6.34 and 6.41 millimeters when the standard calls for no more than six millimeters.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicates 454,722 Chevrolet Equinox models are affected and 213,465 GMC Terrain models, all within the 2020-2023 model years.

While the recall was posted to NHTS's website, GM did so voluntarily after discovering the faulty bars.

The American carmaker is said to have issued the warning to dealers on May 11 but is set to notify specific owners on June 26 - those who have not turned in their vehicles.

This recall comes just days after news that a manufacturer of airbag components in Tennessee has refused to recall 67 million devices that could explode and hurl shrapnel at motorists during a crash.

The issue stems from excessive powder covering the rear-seat lower anchor bars, which could prevent a car seat from strapping in properly

The defective airbags are fitted in a variety of GM cars, which have caused two deaths and injured seven in the US and Canada, according to NHTSA.

ARC Automotive in Knoxville could now be heading for a legal battle with U.S. auto safety regulators after refusing to request that the potentially dangerous air bag inflators being recalled.

The recall would cover a large portion of the 284 million vehicles now on roads, but the percentage is difficult to determine. Some have ARC inflators for both the driver and the front passenger.

The 67 million airbag inflators that NHTSA wants to be recalled were all produced in the 18-year period before January 2018, when ARC installed equipment to help inspect inflators, according to the company.
Its iconic harbour, buzzing culture and pristine beaches make Sydney one of Australias most visited cities. Yet surrounded by hazy mountains, thriving rainforests and mesmerising seascapes, it also offers the perfect opportunity to hit the open road and explore Sydneys surrounds

After kayaking around the tranquil harbour and scaling its impressive steel bridge, dining out in style and exploring the citys Aboriginal culture, its time to fill the tank and head out to discover the best sites of New South Wales. From mountainous climbs to sky-high rainforest walks and picturesque ports, a world of beauty awaits.

Just a short journey time from Sydney you can experience a vast array of different natural wonders and all manner of adventures (pictured: The Sea Cliff Bridge)

Whether driving for a day or a week, Sydneys surroundings are studded by incredible viewpoints and cultural hot spots, meaning its easy to break up your journey into manageable chunks.

Perhaps youll opt for a Blue Mountains and Hunter Valley expedition after a night with the koalas at Taronga Zoo, a two-day drive peppered by vineyard tours through the Hunter Valley en route to a mountain retreat, or a coastal adventure visiting all the best beaches north or south of Sydney.

No matter where your sights are set, Sydney is the perfect place to start. In the spirit of adventure, here are three of the best road trips that you can enjoy in New South Wales.

The Legendary Pacific Coast route

This route takes you to famous Byron Bay where you can hit the surf if you fancy, or indulge in some yoga with a view

Follow this fascinating 621-mile route between Sydney and Brisbane, and immerse yourself in a diverse world of some of Australias greatest treasures. From crystalline lakes to misty mountains, roaring rivers to dense rainforests, this easy coastal journey takes you from Sydneys cosmopolitan glamour to Byron Bays bohemian shores in style.

Two hours north of Sydney, youll be spoilt by 26 golden beaches in Port Stephens, where boats head out whale watching from May to November and swimmers share the water with playful dolphins year-round.

Enjoy a quad bike adventure through the dunes, scale Mount Tomaree, and dont miss Rick Stein at Bannisters, in Port Stephens, for an exquisite seafood experience. Hit up The Wild Herring at The Anchorage Hotel for excellent dining, or the Port Stephens Koala Sanctuary for a unique overnight stay glamping among the marsupials.

Two hours north of Sydney, youll be spoilt by 26 golden beaches in Port Stephens

Port Stephens offers walks to Mt Tomaree Head summit and quad biking adventures led by Aboriginal guides

A short drive north, more furry friends await at Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, or you can opt for a whale-watching trip from Lighthouse Beach. Looking for a culinary delight? Youll find Bago Maze & Vineyard up by Herons Creek, the perfect place for wine and handmade chocolates.

At Coffs Harbour, another 100 miles further north, explore the waters of the Solitary Islands Marine Park with a snorkel, or head inland to Dorrigo National Park to climb into the rainforest canopy along the Skywalk. Follow your Aboriginal guide on a paddle boarding tour, or sunbathe among kangaroos on Emerald Beach.

Just 2.5 hours later, youll arrive at Byron Bay, ready to embrace the boho beach lifestyle, with surf lessons, sunrise mantras and independent boutiques. From kayaking with dolphins to snorkelling past sea turtles, homebrews to field-to-fork dining, here hippie chic is in.

Not ready for it to be over yet? The Tweed Region is forty minutes further north, where youll enjoy eco-cruises along Tweed River and catch a crab tours led by Aboriginal guides. Fresh produce is everything here, from macadamia nuts to mud crabs and ink gin, its an adventure for your taste buds.

Following the Grand Pacific Drive

Royal National Park is just 40 minutes from the city centre and contains over 1000 plant species

A shorter coastal drive taking you south of Sydney to Jervis Bay, where seals, dolphins and penguins play in the surf, spread this 87-mile trip across several days to give you time to soak up everything this region has to offer.

Dazzling ocean views and gourmet cuisine, abundant wildlife and cascading waterfalls, this is one trip where youll want your camera to hand throughout.

Your first stop is Royal National Park, just a 40-minute drive from the city centre. This 58-square-mile habitat is Australias oldest National Park, and the second oldest in the world. More than 1,000 plant species combine to form fragrant heathlands and woodlands, embraced by cliffs and sparkling beaches.

Huskisson Beach at Jervis Bay, where you might be able to spot dolphins and even swim with seals

Heading south, youll soon cross the majestic Sea Cliff Bridge, the perfect opportunity to get out and stretch your legs, following the scenic trail down to the coast. This area is speckled with crystal-clear rockpools teeming with marine life and expansive ocean pools perfect for a swim.

Visit the famous Kiama Blowhole, sample the Sydney rock oyster, and then its on to Jervis Bay to swim with seals, spot dolphins and even take a whale-watching tour during the humpback whale migration from May to November. This marine park is home to some of the worlds whitest beaches, and a sublime backdrop to your paddleboarding expeditions.

Extend your trip with a day or two spent in the Southern Highlands on your way back to Sydney, where rural charm, waterfalls and farmers markets rule. Admire the wildlife in Kangaroo Valley, head out foraging with Wild Food Adventures, and get educated about sustainable wine-making at Tractorless Vineyards.

Wine and wildlife en route to the Blue Mountains

Sometimes you need a route marked out, sometimes you want to go with the flow. This relaxed route takes you from coast to vineyards and soaring mountains.

Begin with a relaxed drive to the Central Coast for awesome surf, luxury lodges and wine-tasting experiences paired with Bush Tucker at Firescreek Winery. Savour a plate of pearl meat at Broken Bay Pearl Farm, before heading 1.5 hours north to Port Stephens for mountain climbing and quad biking adventures led by Aboriginal guides.

Less than two hours north-west of Sydney, wine lovers will find a home in the Hunter Valley, Australias oldest wine region, famous for its Shiraz and Semillon grapes and exquisite wine and cheese pairings. Take your pick from more than 150 cellar doors, where you can taste world-renowned wines and pair them with local cheeses and rich chocolates.

One of the incredible dishes served up at Bistro Molines which overlooks undulating vines

Just 90 minutes west of Sydney you can immerse yourself in the natural beauty of the Blue Mountains

Food gives wine a run for its money here and youll also find fabulous restaurants such as Bistro Molines, a charming French-inspired spot overlooking undulating vines, or Muse, serving delicate seasonal delights at Hungerford Hill Winery.

Providing a hazy backdrop to Sydneys vibrant scene, the Blue Mountains are home to a vast national park and your final destination on this meandering tour of coast and countryside. It will take you about three hours from the Hunter Valley.

Here you can enjoy bushwalking adventures, scale the peaks, get an abseiling adrenaline rush or send dust in your wake on an exhilarating mountain biking ride. Explore Aboriginal history, go wildlife spotting, and enjoy a luxurious spa treatment at Lilianfels Resort & Spa.

With Sydney as your base, youre in the perfect position to explore the vibrant nature and unique culture that call Australia home. After discovering this sun-drenched citys most iconic sites and buzzing neighbourhoods, its time to explore enthralling rainforests, hidden wine valleys, and miles upon miles of spectacular coast.

Find out more and book your holiday at audleytravel.com
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Could this be the world's most fashionable hotel? It's certainly going to be a top choice for the well-heeled.

Vermelho, the first-ever hotel to be created by legendary shoe designer Christian Louboutin, has opened its doors in Portugal.

Newly built, the 13-room secret getaway is nestled in the heart of Melides, a little coastal village in the countrys Alentejo region.

The name Vermelho comes from the iconic shade of red that coats the sole of the designers shoes.

Christian Louboutin, who founded his eponymous brand in Paris in 1992, says: I realised many people have the fantasy of designing or owning a hotel. I like to make my dreams a reality. That is why Vermelho is born.

Vermelho, the first-ever hotel to be designed by the legendary shoe designer Christian Louboutin, has opened its doors in Portugal

Newly built, the 13-room secret getaway is nestled in the heart of Melides, a little coastal village in Portugals Alentejo region

Christian Louboutin, who founded his eponymous brand in Paris in 1992, says: Many people have the fantasy of designing or owning a hotel.' The name Vermelho comes from the iconic shade of red that coats the sole of the designers shoes

The French fashion maven continues: This project allows me to empty my storage full of antiques and objects I have purchased over many years! Furthermore, it is an opportunity to show the excellence of many artists and artisans I admire.

The designer first passed through Melides a dozen years ago, and was quickly mesmerised by the dreamy atmosphere of the villages pine forest and the unique beauty of the sunlight on [its] lagoon.

Smitten, he restored a small fishermans shack in the village and has returned there every June since to design his winter shoe collection.

Set to bring fashion lovers around the globe to Melides, Louboutins new hotel  which welcomed its first guests in April  is said to offer a home-like experience amidst decor that offers an eclectic, maximalist aesthetic.

The retreat is filled with antiques and objects that the fashion maven has purchased 'over many years'

The hotel is said to offer a home-like experience amidst decor that offers an eclectic, maximalist aesthetic

Louboutin says that launching the hotel gave him the opportunity to 'show the excellence' of many artists and artisans that he admires

The designer first passed through Melides a dozen years ago, and was quickly mesmerised by the dreamy atmosphere of the villages pine forest and the unique beauty of the sunlight on [its] lagoon

In building Vermelho, he enlisted the help of the architect Madalena Caiado, with whom he collaborated on the design of his Lisbon home, which lies little more than an hour north of Melides.

Stroll into the lobby and youll spy a gigantic green and gold gigantic glass-blown chandelier that has been crafted by artisans in India.

The Greek painter Konstantin Kakanias embellished the walls of a suite on the second floor of the hotel, with the artist noting: The suite that I painted for Vermelho is basically inspired by the famous Villa Kerylos [an Ancient-Greek-Revival-style villa built in the early 1900s] in the south of France, but also pays tribute to 17th and 18th-century frescoed Italian villas and imaginary places that I would have liked to visit.

'Like Christian himself, it is a mosaic of memories, feelings and desires.

During a stay at the boutique retreat, guests can indulge in spa treatments and massages

Guests can sip on cocktails at the Vermelho bar (left), home to a decadent silver-leaf-covered bar counter. The hotel is said to embody 'the quintessence of the audacious spirit that so defines Christian Louboutin'

Standout decorative features in the property include the colourful tiles, which have been crafted in Portugals Azeitao region

The hotels restaurant, Xtian, is run by Chef David Abreu

Theres more exuberant artwork from the sculptor Elisabeth Lincot - her Lagrima de Loros installation in the hotel is composed of a hundred glazed ceramic bird heads.

Other standout decorative features in the property include the colourful tiles, which have been crafted in Portugals Azeitao region.

During a stay, guests can indulge in spa treatments and massages, or sip on cocktails at the Vermelho bar, home to a decadent silver-leaf-covered bar counter.

The hotels restaurant, Xtian, is said to plate up the culinary treasures of Portugal. Its run by Chef David Abreu, whose signature dishes include wild boar stew followed by drunk pears - pears cooked in a wine-based syrup - for dessert.

Summing up the ethos of the retreat, a statement says: Embodying the quintessence of the audacious spirit that so defines Christian Louboutin, Vermelho Melides is an exclusive, yet friendly hotel, open to the world while celebrating Iberian Peninsula savoir-faire and traditions.'

Rooms are priced from 452. Visit vermelhohotel.com.
Ferne McCann has revealed her plans for an 'intimate' wedding now that her 'circle is very small' and says her bridal look will be 'laid-back.'

The ITVBe star, 32, who's engaged to fiance Lorri Haines, told MailOnline that her dream wedding has 'changed over the years' and instead of a grand ceremony, she now envisages a stripped back affair.

Lorri asked Ferne to marry him in July last year after the couple had been dating for seven months and now, they're expecting their first baby together, with the former TOWIE star keen to walk down the aisle shortly after the birth of their newborn.

In recent weeks, the bride-to-be has seen Made In Chelsea stars Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo cement their vows and says she became 'obsessed' with Sofia Richie's big day, admitting while her nuptials will be small, she hopes to take inspiration from the US model.

In an exclusive interview to celebrate the launch of her new wellness app Shoorah, Ferne said: 'My vision for my wedding has definitely changed over the years.

Ferne McCann has revealed her plans for an 'intimate' wedding now that her 'circle is very small' and says her bridal look will be 'laid-back'

The star, who's engaged to Lorri Haines, told MailOnline that her dream wedding has 'changed over the years' and instead of a grand ceremony, she now envisages a stripped back affair

Lorri asked Ferne to marry him in July last year after the couple had been dating for seven months and now, they're expecting their first baby together

'I would have previously said that I want a big wedding with everyone there, but my circle is very small now and I want something intimate and beautiful, definitely abroad, friends and family.

'I know people say this all the time, but you want to look back and say everyone there are still in our lives.'

Ferne's 'circle' has decreased in recent years after she fell out with former close friends Sam and Billie Faiers.

The pregnant star, who's already a mum to five-year-old daughter Sunday, is no longer on speaking terms with her ex-TOWIE cast mates after a widely publicised scandal left their friendship in tatters.

Now, as she sees her wedding as an intimate gathering, Ferne is also fantasising over her dress and overall look for the big day.

She said: 'Recently I have been saying to Lorri that I want to get married. The wedding plans they didn't go on pause because we never started. We don't have a date.

'I want to have the baby but with Sofia Richie's wedding and Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo there was so much wedding spam, and I was getting serious FOMO, I want to get married, I really want to get married.

'I am thinking, 'what sort of bride am I going to be? What sort of wedding dress will I have?' I was obsessed with Sofia Richie's wedding!'

Ferne, who's a mum to five-year-old daughter Sunday, admits that she bonded with Lorri because they both share children of similar ages from previous relationships

The couple, who have gone into business together, today launching wellness app Shoorah, are yet to set a date for their wedding but Ferne says she is keen to walk down the aisle

The TOWIE star explained that her romance with Lorri moved quickly because she 'surrendered' herself to him, opening up for the first time in ways she hadn't done with exes

'I'm thinking no shoes because when I do wear heels, I'm taller than Lorri no shoes, no bra, that sort of really laid-back, effortless look.'

For some couples, getting engaged after seven months of dating is fast-moving, but Ferne's fiance Lorri says it was clear from the moment the pair met that they were destined to be together.

Both in their 30s, Ferne admits she bonded with Lorri, who's a dad to son Noah, over their past 'failed relationships' and that they both share children of similar ages with previous partners.

Ferne said: 'When I first met Lorri, I wasn't looking for love. I was moving into my year focussing on being a mum to Sunday and as they always say as cliche as it is love finds you when you least expect it and that's exactly what happened with us.

'I walked into the relationship and laid all my cards on the table. Everything that I had ever hid back when I went on a date or I would tailor myself to bag a second date, I was just completely surrendered.

'I was like, this is me, this is where my life is at and it was almost like warts and all, here I am, take it or leave it. Now, I'm pregnant and engaged.

'We met each other when we were both in our 30s, both have similar aged children. We have both had our fair share of failed relationships It just felt right and we wanted the same things.'

And the feeling is mutual, with Lorri explaining that he had a desire to overhaul his partying lifestyle prior to meeting Ferne, who he says became his first girlfriend that truly 'fulfilled' him.

The feeling was mutual, with Lorri explaining that he had a desire to overhaul his partying lifestyle prior to meeting Ferne, who he says became his first girlfriend that truly 'fulfilled' him

Ferne is nearing the end of her second pregnancy and the couple are yet to discover the sex of the baby, with the ITVBe star undecided on what she thinks it could be

He said: 'I was living a nice lifestyle in Dubai, and I was working hard, partying and doing anything I wanted to do.

'But when I met Ferne, it was something I was always looking for. 'I've had relationships, but I've never been fulfilled, deeply or properly and meeting Ferne changed my world.

'I got to the point where I stopped going out in Dubai and I would sit at home reading books I stopped doing a lot of things. And then I met Ferne.

'The universe prepared me to meet her because six months before that I was still partying and going to and from Dubai and the UK. I was all over the place and it wouldn't have worked but I really settled down.'

Ferne and Lorri are not only engaged to marry but today have launched their first joint business venture, a new wellness app called Shoorah.

The couple explained that after both using different platforms to improve their mental health and wellbeing, they decided to create subscription based Shoorah, which includes features such as a gratitude journal, daily affirmations, and completing a regular life 'cleanse.'

Ferne said: 'It made sense for us to start a business and we put our brains together.

'I wanted to do something that was totally aligned with where I am right now and purposeful I guess that was the birth of Shoorah.

'It is a platform that will help others and is convenient and not overwhelming. We didn't want to consume anymore of people's time because it can be difficult to maintain a habit.

'We have designed every single feature so people can use it at their own convenience and slot it into their lives.'

Over a year in the making, the couple are celebrating the launch of meditation app Shoorah on Thursday with a star-studded party, as Ferne says it is her biggest career achievement to date

Shoorah, which is available to download on the App Store and Google Play, costs 9.99 per month or if you pay annually, it works out 5 per month.

And Ferne, who has overcome several difficult periods so far in her life, says she hopes the app can help tackle the mental health epidemic, adding it is the 'ultimate self-development tool.'

She said: 'Life is unavoidable, and it knocks on everybody's door. And it's all relative to that individual stress, anxiety, trauma, heartbreak, whatever you have experienced or going through, it can be tough and all-consuming whereas we feel that with these tools, if you can do a small amount of self-development that flexes into your life then that's so much better than doing zero.

'You can tailor the app to what you want to work on personally, say if you want to work on your relationships or your sleep, there are little sound bites to refine your focuses.

'What makes us different to other wellbeing apps out there and other meditation apps is that you have the self-journal feature.

'I am someone who had so many different notepads, one for gratitude, one for my goals, and another for my manifestation and it was so confusing. It has everything in one place and is the ultimate self-development tool.

'It is such an overwhelming space if you have never done anything like that before. So, we wanted to simplify it so that anyone on their journey, there is something for everyone.'

Over a year in the making, the couple are celebrating the launch of Shoorah on Thursday with a star-studded party, as Ferne says the app is her biggest career achievement to date.

She added: 'This feels like the greatest thing that I've ever done apart from obviously having a baby. It feels really huge for me personally and us a couple.'
Rachel Weisz has detailed her experience of suffering a miscarriage in an emotional new interview with podcast, The News Agents.

The British actress, 53, who is a mother of two, spoke about losing her child while weighing in on the criticism of the portrayal of childbirth and loss in her new series, Dead Ringers, in which she plays twin gynecologists.

Rachel welcomed daughter Grace, now four in 2018 with husband Daniel Craig, 55, when she was aged 48 and he was 51. She also shares a son Henry, 16, with ex partner Darren Aronofsky, 54. The pair were together from 2001-2010.

She told hosts Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel of the reaction to the scenes, which involved women going through miscarriages and footage of live births: I think I probably was surprised because I was just telling this story about the female experience, and it didn't seem to have been like heightened or overdramatized.

'...Women have miscarriages, I've had a miscarriage, so you suddenly you see blood coming out of your body and these are just all part of a female experience of being alive.

Devastating: Rachel Weisz has detailed her experience of suffering a miscarriage in an emotional new interview with podcast, The News Agent

Series: The British actress, 53, who is a mother of two , spoke about losing her child while weighing in on the criticism of the portrayal of childbirth and loss in her new series, Dead Ringers, in which she plays twin gynecologists (pictured)

'So, we're not used to it. I think we're not used to seeing any of those things being represented cinematically or fictionally. So maybe this is breaking some new ground this show.

The star, who keeps her personal life private, did not divulge when she suffered the miscarriage.

Making very rare comments about her husband Daniel, who retired from his role as James Bond in 2021's No Time To Die, said she was 'relieved' he was no longer playing 007.

She said: It was very dangerous. I mean, he got injured a lot because he did all his own stunts. So, the danger quotient has definitely gone down It is a much less stressful time for him.

'I'm really proud of his time as Bond and I think he was really, really brilliant. But yeah, it's much less stressful now, for sure.

Elsewhere in the chat Rachel slammed hypocritical anti-abortion activists who endorse the death penalty in the USA.

She said: Both ends of life have different rules, it is very strange Children have to they have to be born but there's going to be no free health care for them. There's no free schooling for children under the age of five.

'And now every day, there seems to be more and more of a chance that you might get shot by an assault rifle at school You can take life at the end of life; the government can choose to say you deserve to die. But at the beginning of life a woman has no choice. How do you rationalize that?

Married: The star is seen with husband Daniel Craig in 2018 - the pair share a daughter Grace, four

Six-episode miniseries Dead Ringers is a gender-swapped adaptation of director David Cronenberg's 1988 psychological thriller of the same name, which starred Jeremy Irons as twin gynecologists' operating an infertility clinic.

Set in New York, Weisz plays both Elliot and Beverly Mantle, twins who share everything: drugs, lovers and an unapologetic desire to do whatever it takes.

They team up to push the boundaries of medical ethics in an effort to challenge antiquated practices and bring women's health care to the forefront.

Amazon first announced the project in August 2020, giving it a straight-to-series order, with production beginning in August 2021.

The original David Cronenberg film was adapted from the 1977 novel Twins by Bari Wood and Jack Geasland, which was loosely based on the true story of twin gynecologists Stewart and Cyril Marcus.

They were both found dead in July 1975 in separate rooms of Cyril's Manhattan apartment at just 45 years of age, with Stewart dying of a barbiturate overdose and Cyril suspected of possibly taking his own life in a suicide pact after finding his brother dead.
Joey King showed off her toned bikini body as she danced on the beach in Tel Aviv, Israel this week.

The Ramona and Beezus star, 23 - who shot a Taylor Swift video last month looked incredible - as she flaunted her honed frame while grooving with a friend and doing cartwheels.

She also showed off a new small tattoo she got on the back of her neck as well as a meal she had.

'Me?! Have the time of my life in Tel Aviv?!? Guilty. New favorite ink by the lovely @ronniwink,' she captioned the post.

Her fiance Steven Piet is also featured in several of the vacation snaps.

Beach boogie: Joey King showed off her toned bikini body as she danced on the beach in Tel Aviv, Israel this week

Shenanigans: The Kissing Booth star grooved on the sand in a skimpy black bikini

The couple met while filming The Act in 2019. Piet wrote and directed two episodes of the Hulu show.

He popped the question to his love on February, 2, 2022. The Bullet Train star took to Instagram to share the news.

'I never knew happiness could be so powerful that it can take the air from your lungs, overwhelming every part of you that you can't help but feel your eyes well from the undeniable joy,' she captioned the post.

'The date was 2/2/22 when you asked me to marry you and made me the luckiest lady alive. I love you more than an Instagram caption could ever do justice. Hanging out with you forever sounds like a real dream, so let's do it.'

King was previously involved with her Kissing Booth co-star Jacob Elordi, 25,

They dated from 2017 to 2019 and when they broke up, Joey swore off dating actors.

'No. I couldn't,' she said on the Howard Stern Show.

'I think that it's awesome to date someone in your field, who gets it, but doing the same exact thing as somebody is tough. It's really tough.'

Gymnastics: Joey and her friend also attempted to do handstands and cartwheels in the sand

Fit: The Bullet Train star showed off her fit and trim figure on vacation in Tel Aviv

New ink: The Act actress also got a new tattoo while she was in Israel

Fruity: She posed in front of a fruit stand called Fruit Kingdom

Engaged: She was also spotted with her fiance, director and producer Steven Piet
Controversial influencer Deni Todorovic claimed on Wednesday that they were 'disinvited' to 'friend' Nadia Bartel's Australian Fashion Week show in Sydney.

The non-binary star, 35, who uses all pronouns, flew to Sydney this week to attend Bartel's Henne fashion show, but was refused entry once they arrived.

'I was just refused entry to a fashion show by someone I thought was my friend. Someone who I showed my empathy to,' Deni wrote on Instagram, clearly alluding to former WAG Nadia.

And now a source has come forward to dispute Todorovic's claims, insisting that they weren't 'disinvited' to the show - because they were never on the guest list to begin with.

The source also refuted the Seafolly ambassador's claim that they were a personal friend of Bartel's, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Controversial influencer Deni Todorovic claimed on Wednesday that they were 'disinvited' to 'friend' Nadia Bartel's Australian Fashion Week show in Sydney, but now a source claims that Bartel never invited the star to begin with

Deni was spotted rocking up to Bartel's Henne fashion show in Ultimo on Wednesday, only for security to turn them away for not having an invitation.

The model was also seen holding up traffic as they stepped out of a car in the middle of Oxford Street.

Unapologetically flaunting his distinctive fashion sense, Deni confidently rocked an open black wireframe skirt and matching high heels.

'I was just refused entry to a fashion show by someone I thought was my friend. Someone who I showed my empathy to,' Deni wrote on Instagram, clearly alluding to former WAG Nadia

A source claims that Deni was never invited to Bartel's show and that the pair were never even friends. Bartel is pictured at Australian Fashion Week on Wednesday

Meanwhile, his white underpants subtly peeked through as a deliberate style statement.

A touch of urban flair was added with a grey Coca-Cola hoodie, all the while exuding a sense of dishevelled charm while navigating the lively intersection.

Unfortunately, their unique fashion sense was not enough to convince security to admit them into the venue.

The model also had a heated hour-long run-in with airport staff and police on Monday before flying from Melbourne to Sydney for AFW.

Deni was spotted rocking up to Bartel's Henne fashion show in Ultimo on Wednesday, only for security to turn them away for not having an invitation

Deni was seen having an animated conversation outside Melbourne's domestic departure terminal with two Australian Federal Police officers.

Todorovic claimed to have been subjected to 'homophobic and racist' behaviour after getting into a dispute with Jetstar staff over an additional charge for an overweight second piece of luggage at check in.

The fashionista, who was wearing a ballgown, admits to 'yelling' after being told there would be a $100 fee for the bag being 10.5kg over the limit, which resulted in police intervention which saw Deni miss their flight.
Ulrika Jonsson has slammed 'Hollywood hypocrites' for fawning over Johnny Depp at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday.

The almost-cancelled actor, 59, delighted fans while attending the premiere of the Louis XV period drama, Jeanne du Barry, his first film since winning his defamation trial against Amber Heard last year.

After both Johnny and his ex-wife, 37, accused each other of physical and verbal abuse, a civil jury awarded him $10 million in damages and $2 million to Amber.

Making a comeback to the red carpet, the Edward Scissorhands star couldn't hide his delight at being back in the showbiz fold, an unthinkable prospect at one point, after previously being dropped from several lucrative projects during the trial.

But, in her latest column for The Sun, Ulrika has lashed out at those who are supporting Johnny, reminding her readers that he was found by a judge in an English High Court case to be a domestic abuser.

'He talked about wanting to rape his wife!' Ulrika Jonsson has slammed 'Hollywood hypocrites' for fawning over Johnny Depp at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday

Beaming: The almost-cancelled actor, 59, attended the premiere of the Louis XV period drama, Jeanne du Barry, his first film since winning his defamation trial against Amber Heard last year

She wrote: 'As if winning his case of defamation against Heard, who gave countless examples of his atrocious conduct and made allegations of violent, coercive, denigrating and manipulative behaviour wasn't enough, people are now  literally  rolling out the red carpet for Depp. He's a hero.

'He hasn't even had to show any signs of rehabilitation  they just love Johnny.

'And yet, this was the man who  among other things  talked in texts about wanting to rape his wife, burn her body and drown her to make sure she was dead. He claimed they were made in jest.'

Ulrika went on to claim a woman in his position would not have been forgiven so easily as she accused society of being sexist.

While speaking to the press, Johnny addressed whether he felt 'boycotted' by Hollywood - three years comes after he was notably asked to step down from the Harry Potter spin-off franchise Fantastic Beasts.

He said: 'I don't feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I don't think about Hollywood. I don't have much further need for Hollywood, myself.

'It's a strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves, but they can't. They must fall in line with the person in front of them. If you want to live that life, I wish you the best.'

Johnny went on to address what it was like being asked to 'resign' from a film, adding: 'Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? You'd have to not have a pulse to feel like, "No. None of this is happening. It's a weird joke".

Furious: But, in her latest column for The Sun , Ulrika has lashed out at those who are supporting Johnny (pictured in January 2023)

Angry: She reminded her readers that Johnny was found by a judge in an English High Court case to be a domestic abuser (pictured in 2021)

'When you're asked to resign from a film you're doing because of something that is merely a function of vowels and consonants floating in the air, yes, you feel boycotted.'

Johnny also hit back at people who have questioned whether Cannes should have given him such a prominent platform.

'What if one day, they did not allow me to go to McDonald's for life because somewhere there'd be 39 angry people watching me eat a Big Mac on a loop?' he asked. 'Who are they? What do they care?'

The Pirates Of The Caribbean star went on to discuss why he doesn't think he has had a 'comeback', insisting he didn't go anywhere.

'I've had my 17th comeback, apparently,' he said. 'I keep wondering about the word "comeback'. I didn't go anywhere.

'As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away. Maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time. But I didn't go nowhere.'

Johnny took part in the Jeanne du Barry press conference alongside his co-star, the French actor-director Maiwenn. The film opened in French cinemas on Tuesday.

His latest comments come after Johnny received a seven-minute standing ovation at the premiere of his French film Jeanne du Barry on Tuesday.

Candid: While speaking to the press, Johnny addressed whether he felt 'boycotted' by Hollywood - three years comes after he was notably asked to step down from the Harry Potter spin-off franchise Fantastic Beasts

Court: In 2016, Amber, 37, famously accused the actor, 59, of domestic violence, which led to Depp being blacklisted by much of Hollywood resulting in loss of film roles

The actor teared up while taking in the moment with director and co-star Maiwenn by his side.

Louis XV reigned over France from 1715 to his death in 1774. He was married to Queen of France, Marie Leczinska but had a number of long-term affairs. Jeanne was his final lover before he died.

According to the synopsis, the film follows 'Jeanne Vaubernier, a young working-class woman hungry for culture and pleasure [who] uses her intelligence and allure to climb the rungs of the social ladder one by one.'

The plot continues as she 'becomes the favorite of King Louis XV, who, unaware of her status as courtesan, regains through her his appetite for life'.

'They fall madly in love,' the synopsis reads. 'Against all propriety and etiquette, Jeanne moves to Versailles, where her arrival scandalises the court.'

The film also stars Benjamin Lavernhe, Melvil Poupaud, Pierre Richard, Pascal Greggory, and India Hair.

The film is Johnny's first project since his court case against his ex-wife Amber, while Cannes marked his first red carpet appearance since the case.

In remarks to the press Monday, Cannes director Thierry Fremaux defended the choice, saying Depp is extraordinary in the film and he paid no attention to the trial.

New project: The drama, which sees Johnny play King Louis XV (pictured), is his first film since his trial against Amber, which saw a civil jury award him $10million in damages

'To tell you the truth, in my life, I only have one rule, it's the freedom of thinking, the freedom of speech and the freedom to act within a legal framework,' said Fremaux.

'If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldn't be here talking about it.'

After both Johnny and Amber accused each other of physical and verbal abuse, a civil jury awarded Johnny $10million in damages and $2million to Amber - though they later agreed on Johnny being awarded $1million to put an end to their legal battle.

In 2016, Amber famously accused the actor of domestic violence, which led to Johnny being blacklisted by much of Hollywood resulting in loss of film roles.

A jury determined that Amber's claims, which were published in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed, against Johnny were defamatory.

Johnny was ordered to pay her $2million by the same courtroom after she countersued for defamation.

Amber filed an appeal in early December, but the the former couple recently came to an agreement that Amber would pay $1million in order to settle the case instead of heading into a third trial.

Lawyers for Johnny, Benjamin Chew and Camille Vasquez, said the actor is glad the 'painful chapter' is over and confirmed he would donate the money to charity.

In an Instagram statement, Amber confirmed the settlement but refused to accept guilt and declared her life had been 'destroyed' by the jury's decision.

In 2020, a British court ruled that 12 of 14 violence incidents claimed by Amber were 'substantially true,' and Johnny was subsequently forced to resign from the 'Fantastic Beasts' franchise at the request of Warner Bros.
NRL WAG and model Tahlia Giumelli revealed she had a health scare this week, but is getting further tests and scans with doctors to keep on top of things.

Tahlia, 30, revealed on Wednesday that she is getting biopsy on a lump in her breast as doctors want to make sure she is okay.

The mother of two said doctors believe it is 'nothing of concern,' but want to double check.

Tahlia, who is married to Rabbitohs star Tom Burgess, 31, shared a lengthy post on her Instagram stories from the doctors and urged her followers 'not to be complacent when it comes to their health'.

'This is your reminder to get a health check with your gp!' Tahlia's post began.

NRL WAG and model Tahlia Giumelli revealed she had a health scare this week, but is getting further tests and scans with doctors to keep on top of things. Tahlia, 30, revealed on Wednesday that she is getting biopsy on a lump in her breast

'Having an ultrasound/biopsy on a lump in my breast, while they are 99 per cent sure it's nothing of concern they don't want to be complacent and when it comes to your health you shouldn't be.'

She added: 'I wouldn't have done a monthly check if it wasn't for my walk with The Big Three Trek for McGrath Foundation and hearing everyone's stories,' she added.

Whilst some breast lumps indicate a change in the breast tissue and are nothing to worry about, such as benign lumps, some lumps can indicate breast cancer.

Tahlia shared a lengthy post on her Instagram stories from the doctors and urged her followers 'not to be complacent when it comes to their health'

It comes after Tahlia opened up earlier this month about suffering from mental health struggles in 2022.

Tahlia shared the raw revelation to Instagram when a follower asked how she 'copes with stress'.

Sharing a throwback photo of her rapid weight loss last year, the influencer confessed she was struggling so much with stress that she sought out a psychologist at the time.

'July 2022 was a really stressful time for me and if I'm honest, I wasn't coping,' she said.

It comes after Tahlia opened up earlier this month about suffering from mental health struggles in 2022. Sharing a throwback photo of her rapid weight loss last year, the influencer confessed she was struggling so much with stress that she sought out a psychologist

'I was eating (I promise I was) but I was losing weight without trying and it was getting to a point even I thought was too much and I knew I needed help.'

The mum-of-two added that she was struggling with some 'big decisions' in her life at the time and 'ended up seeking help with a psychologist' to help develop 'coping mechanisms' to deal with it.

She ended her lengthy post with a cautionary message for her followers, warning that they only see the 'highlights' of someone's life online and not the bad parts.

'Getting help is not a bad thing and recognising you need help or asking for help is a huge step in the right direction,' she finished.
Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, has announced the commencement of its codeshare agreement with the worlds largest international airline, Emirates, as part of a strategic partnership between the two carriers.



In the initial phase Gulf Air will apply its code to a number of Emirates destinations in Europe and the Far East, thereby increasing the number of destinations for Gulf Air customers travelling from its network.



Destinations include, Denpasar Bali, Indonesia; Brazil; Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and Czech Republic.



Customers can combine ticketing, check-in and baggage transfers, and benefit from competitive fares, while premium passengers will also gain access to Emirates lounges in Dubai.



Gulf Air Chief Executive Officer, Captain Waleed Al Alawi welcomed the strategic partnership, noting that it is a major value add to passengers, given the UAE's prestigious position in the global commercial aviation sector.



He said: "Signed during the Bahrain International Airshow in November 2022, the first phase of the codeshare agreement includes destinations in line with Gulf Air's growth strategy. Providing additional travel options to passengers demonstrates our commitment to enriching the travel experience for millions of our passengers."



Entering into this partnership with another highly reputed airline allows us to virtually expand our network, enhance our offerings and provide a more seamless travel experience. With the launch of the new partnership with Emirates, Gulf Air now has codeshare agreements with 17 airline partners, he added.



The airline recently announced the operation of summer flights to Bodrum in the Republic of Turkey and an increase in the number of flights to Manchester, UK; Manila, Philippines; and Bangkok, Thailand to meet increased demand.  TradeArabia News Service
On Wednesday, Apple TV+ officially announced that the 10-episode third season of its dramedy series Physical - premiering August 2 - will, in fact, be the last.

Two-time Emmy nominee Rose Byrne executive produces and stars as San Diego housewife Sheila Rubin, who transforms her life after becoming an aerobics instructor in the 1980s.

'We are so grateful to Apple, Tomorrow Studios, and all our creative collaborators for the chance to bring Sheila to life in all her gritty glory,' the Australian 43-year-old and showrunner Annie Weisman said in a statement to Deadline.

'With this final season, Sheila's three act saga of rebellion, recovery, and redemption comes to the satisfying conclusion that she and her fans so richly deserve. We feel so proud to share this last chapter with everyone.'

Sheila is now separated from her husband Danny Rubin (Rory Scovel), who wants half of her aerobics empire, and she teams up with her lover John Breem (Paul Sparks) to 'annihilate' her enemies including a 'younger and prettier and smarter' rival.

Premiering August 2! On Wednesday, Apple TV+ officially announced that the 10-episode third season of its dramedy series Physical will, in fact, be the last

BTS snap: Two-time Emmy nominee Rose Byrne (L, pictured November 13 with co-star Dierdre Friel) executive produces and stars as San Diego housewife Sheila Rubin, who transforms her life after becoming an aerobics instructor in the 1980s

Emmy nominee Zooey Deschanel joined season three in the role of Kelly, 'a network sitcom star who decides to enter the burgeoning fitness industry.'

'Over the course of three enthralling seasons of Physical, we have been honored to work with Annie Weisman and Tomorrow Studios to bring Sheila Rubin's journey of transformation and personal empowerment to the screen through Rose Byrne's fearless, moving, and often very funny, portrayal,' Apple TV+ head of programming Matt Cherniss said.

'We are aware of just how much of an impact this character and story has had on audiences around the world and can't wait for them to join us on this final exhilarating ride that culminates in an immensely rewarding finale for this celebrated series.'

On Rotten Tomatoes, both seasons of Physical scored an 81% audience score while critics favored season two over season one.

Speaking of Apple, Rose (born Mary) and Seth Rogen tackle the 'Can cis women and men actually be friends' debate in Nick Stoller and Francesca Delbanco's 10-episode comedy series Platonic, which premieres on May 24.

In addition, Byrne will reprise her role as Renai Lambert in Patrick Wilson's feature directorial debut Insidious: The Red Door, which hits US/UK theaters July 7.

The in-demand Aussie also voices Leatherhead in Jeff Rowe's CGI superhero flick Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, which hits US/UK theaters August 4.

The Australian 43-year-old and showrunner Annie Weisman (pictured March 9) said: 'We are so grateful to Apple, Tomorrow Studios, and all our creative collaborators for the chance to bring Sheila to life in all her gritty glory'

Rose added: 'With this final season, Sheila's three act saga of rebellion, recovery, and redemption comes to the satisfying conclusion that she and her fans so richly deserve. We feel so proud to share this last chapter with everyone'

Action! Sheila is now separated from her husband Danny Rubin (L, Rory Scovel), who wants half of her aerobics empire, and she teams up with her lover John Breem (Paul Sparks) to 'annihilate' her enemies including a 'younger and prettier and smarter' rival

Welcome! Emmy nominee Zooey Deschanel joined season three in the role of Kelly, 'a network sitcom star who decides to enter the burgeoning fitness industry' (pictured April 29)
Serial Married at First Sight pest Nasser Sultan has gotten himself into another chic show at Australian Fashion Week.

The star, 56, who got escorted out of Carriageworks on Monday after pretending to be a reporter, filmed himself at the chic Karla Spetic show.

Nasser looked cheeky as he gushed over the brilliant show on Wednesday before admitting he wasn't sure if he was banned from Fashion Week or not.

'Honestly, I'm not banned I just saw an amazing show,' Nasser began, clearly in good spirits after being kicked out.

He flashed the camera a cheeky smile and joked that he probably is banned after Monday's altercation.

Serial Married At First Sight pest Nasser Sultan, 56, got into another show at Fashion Week on Wednesday, after he was kicked out of the prestigious event earlier in the week. Pictured

'I think I'm banned. I'm not sure. But I think I better go home now,' he added.

Nasser proved himself to be a magnet for mischief when he showed up to Fashion Week on Monday armed with a makeshift press pass and a cheeky grin.

The reality TV pest was seen filming interviews with guests before he reportedly attempted to walk into the St. Agni show without an invite or credentials.

An insider revealed, 'Nasser was posing as a journo, asking the silliest questions. It was clear he was out of his depth. But it was quite a laugh until security got wind of it.'

Nasser looked cheeky as he gushed over the brilliant show on Wednesday before admitting he wasn't sure if he was banned from Fashion Week or not

'Security told him that they remembered him from last year and that he was on watch. They wanted him to stay clear of shows he wasn't invited to because brands clearly didn't want him there.'

According to the spy, Nasser was caught red handed when he tried to get into the exclusive fashion show using someone else's credentials.

Despite the awkward exit, Sultan seemed undeterred, even managing to pose for photos before he was escorted off the premises.

This isn't Sultan's first brush with controversy at Fashion Week.

Nasser was escorted out of Australian Fashion Week on Monday afternoon after he was busted masquerading as a reporter

An insider revealed, 'Nasser was posing as a journo, asking the silliest questions. It was clear he was out of his depth. But it was quite a laugh until security got wind of it'

Despite the awkward exit, Sultan seemed undeterred, even managing to pose for photos before he was escorted off the premises

During the 2022 event, the fame-seeking MAFS groom was put on notice over his rowdy behaviour.

Security at Carriageworks, the Sydney venue where most of the runway shows were held, issued him with a stern warning to 'stop being a pest'.

The warning was given after Nasser was pictured harassing former NRL WAG Phoebe Burgess in the front row at the Oroton showcase.

During the 2022 event, the fame-seeking MAFS groom was put on notice over his rowdy behaviour. Security at Carriageworks, the Sydney venue where most of the runway shows were held, issued the 56-year-old with a stern warning to 'stop being a pest'

Nasser had briefly slipped into racing royalty Kate Waterhouse's seat when she moved away and tugged on Phoebe's designer coat to try to get her attention.

However, the ex-wife of retired NRL star Sam Burgess turned her back on Nasser as he repeatedly asked for a photo and tried to start a conversation.

An apologetic Nasser told Daily Mail Australia he was 'really embarrassed' about his behaviour around Phoebe, but denied gatecrashing the show or stealing anyone's seat, as had been previously reported.

'[The incident with security] really embarrassed me. I felt like a f**kwit... but I didn't take anyone's seat or sneak in,' the former music promoter said.

The warning was given after Nasser was pictured harassing former NRL WAG Phoebe Burgess (right) in the front row at the Oroton showcase

'I was invited to that show, saw Phoebe went over to say hello. Why can't you say hello to people these days?

'Security were saying I stole Kate Waterhouse's seat. I did not. I was there for a few seconds just taking a photo with Phoebe and then moved back to my seat.'

He added: 'They said I was being a pest and that the designers didn't want me at their shows... that's not true. I have been invited to many of shows.

'I have been going for years. I have no shame sitting in the back row. I am happy just to be there.'

Australian Fashion Week, running from May 15 to 19, will present 10 runway shows a day in which designers showcase their resort collections for spring/summer 2024.

Popular names like Aje, St Agni, Bondi Born, Anna Quan and Bec & Bridge are among the brands showing this year.

The week will include a wave of promising talent and fresh faces, including Asiyam, Youkhana, Erik Yvon, Iordanes Spyridon Gogos, Wackie Ju and Nicol & Ford.
Shia LaBeouf will star in an upcoming cop thriller titled Mace alongside Trevor Jackson.

The 36-year-old actor will play a veteran New Jersey police officer named Mace in the motion picture, which is currently being shopped at the Cannes Film Festival, Deadline reported on Wednesday.

The Los Angeles native will work with filmmaker Jon Amiel on the movie, which was written by David Chisholm.

LaBeouf's Mace character is described as 'dangerous and corrupt' in a synopsis from producers, while Jackson's character Virgil Woods is characterized as 'a young rookie who believes that he can change the system that fosters cops like Mace from within.'

The film, which is 'inspired by the recent racial injustice on the streets of America,' shows Woods face off against his overbearing colleague.

The latest: Shia LaBeouf, 36, will star in an upcoming cop thriller titled Mace alongside Trevor Jackson. The actor was pictured in LA in 2019

'Woods risks everything he believes to stop Mace from destroying the city when Mace unleashes a gang war to cover up his crimes,' putting those in his range in danger as he 'plays his game and tries to conceal his tracks, no matter the cost.'

Myriad Pictures exec Kirk D'Amico said filmmakers were delighted to have the Transformers star at the head of the cast of the crime drama, 'which explores the underbelly of a police precinct in contemporary New Jersey.'

Producer Lawrence Steven Meyers called the project 'an irresistible creative coup' with LaBeouf and Jackson working with Amiel off an 'amazing screenplay.'

Meyers added, 'We are really excited to have assembled such a package.'

Production is slated to commence later this year in New Jersey, the outlet reported.

The actor will play a veteran New Jersey police officer named Mace in the motion picture, which is currently being shopped at the Cannes Film Festival

Jackson's character Virgil Woods is characterized as 'a young rookie who believes that he can change the system that fosters cops like Mace from within.' Pictured earlier this month in LA

Mace is one in a number of prominent projects LaBeouf has lined up in the near future, as he's recently finished production on the biographical drama Padre Pio.

LaBeouf plays the titular role of Roman Catholic Saint Padre Pio in his younger years in the Abel Ferrara-directed film.

In addition to Ferrara, LaBeouf is working with other iconic creatives on the forthcoming films Assassination, directed by David Mamet; and Megalopolis from Francis Ford Coppola.
Matt Willis: Fighting Addiction

Rating:

11 Minutes: Americas Deadliest Mass Shooting

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When ageing boy band Busted go on tour later this year, the dressing rooms at each venue will be set up to the lads specifications, or riders.

Matt Willis expects to find protein bars, protein powder, nuts and berries, and something called MCT oil, which all boost energy. Bandmate Charlie Simpson asks for four bottles of red wine, two of white, and a few cans of pale ale.

The third member, Matts oldest friend James Bourne, requires the soft drink Um Bongo and an assortment of Dairy Milk Marvellous Creations.

What stops them from bringing their own energy bars and choccies, like ordinary human beings, we dont know. Maybe it would traumatise them, to act their age.

But as Matt detailed his struggles with drink and drugs, in Fighting Addiction (BBC1), it seemed the infantilisation of a pop stars life was doing him no favours.

He blamed his childhood, his genetics and his career for his problems. Is there a physical explanation, he pleaded, something in my head that makes me different? He went in search of evidence to support this, from researchers and therapists whose job is to help addicts find ways to offload responsibility for their relapses.

Matt Willis pictured in his new BBC documentary called Matt Willis: Fighting Addiction

Emma Willis breaks down in tears and says she kept a diary of husband Matt Willis' daily drug use

Twice he told us that the last time he lost control, it started on tour when someone offered him cocaine. Hes a 40-year-old man with a wife and three children  for the life of me, I cannot see that its helpful or healthy for him to chant tearfully, Its not my fault.

Dino-holiday of the week: On Natural History Museum: World Of Wonder (Ch5), fossil hunters Sally and Neville told how they discovered evidence of an ancient tropical sea, with urchins and starfish, in rural Wiltshire. Heres my theory . . . was Stonehenge a prehistoric beach resort? Advertisement

The documentary started with a powerful moment as Matts wife, TV presenter Emma, revealed a diary detailing his alcohol consumption. At first it seemed the programme would focus not on an addicts self-absorption, but on the devastating toll suffered by his family.

But though she joined him at one therapy session, where the daughter of an addict described the helpless grief of seeing her father spiralling to destruction, Emma was always guarded in her comments.

She hinted at worries for her children, and the need to keep Matt peaceful, but seemed to be treading on eggshells  forcing a smile that she admitted she did not feel.

Matts first thought was to acknowledge how often he had hurt her. The conversation is so often focused on the addict, he agreed, but the effect it can have on the people who love you is huge.

Still, the emphasis quickly shifted on to him. Id far rather hear how Emma and the thousands of other mums like her find ways to cope  much more useful than another round of therapists assuring addicts that theyre not responsible for their own actions.

One of the survivors on the first episode of 11 Minutes: Americas Deadliest Mass Shooting (BBC2)

All the emphasis in the first episode of 11 Minutes: Americas Deadliest Mass Shooting (BBC2) was on the survivors. The killers name wasnt even mentioned, and that is as it should be.

A picture emerged from the testimony of police and concert-goers, many clearly still suffering from shock, of the slaughter at a country music festival in Las Vegas, in October 2017.

Stories of extraordinary bravery under fire were coupled with an insight into how differently people interpreted what was happening. Fans in the crowd thought the noise of gunshots was fireworks. A musician assumed there was a fault with the sound system, while police feared a co-ordinated attack by multiple terrorists.

Mobile phone footage of the panic and confusion gave the narrative a compelling urgency. But the most incredible pictures came at the end, from police bodycams, as officers prepared to storm the hotel room where the killer was shooting from. The video was as astonishing as their courage.
Kevin Costner is excited about his upcoming movie Horizon, comparing it to his signature motion picture Dances With Wolves in a new social media post.

The Oscar-winning actor, 68, took to Instagram on Wednesday with a shot of a director's chair bearing the name of the project which he's starring in, and directing alongside Robert Legato.

'We're deep into the production of #HorizonFilm, and, I have to tell you, I haven't felt this way about a movie since we were making Dances With Wolves,' Costner said, referring to his 1990 classic.

Costner - who has been in the headlines as of late amid his split from wife Christine Baumgartner and exit from the series Yellowstone - wrapped up in saying, 'Can't wait to share it with all of you.'

Costner headlines an ensemble cast in Horizon, which documents the settlement of the American west amid expansion before and after the Civil War.

Watch the epic final instalment of Yellowstone returns this November, only on Stan.

The latest: Kevin Costner, 68, is excited about his upcoming movie Horizon, comparing it to his signature motion picture Dances With Wolves in a new social media post. Pictured in February of 2023

Other notable names in the western drama include Michael Rooker, Sienna Miller, Kathleen Quinlan, Will Patton, Giovanni Ribisi, Luke Wilson, Danny Huston and Sam Worthington.

The project marks Costner's first directorial job in two decades, as his last time directing was the 2003 western drama Open Range.

More than 170 characters will be incorporated into the series, which will be turned into movies that have special TV edits, Collider reported earlier this month.

Costner told Variety last year that he would separate Horizon into 'four different movies' to come out 'about every three months' from one another.

The project was first revealed in January of 2022, with Costner announcing he would also produce and finance the series through his production company, Territory Pictures.

'America's expansion into the west was one that was fraught with peril and intrigue from the natural elements, to the interactions with the indigenous peoples who lived on the land, and the determination and at many times ruthlessness of those who sought to settle it,' Costner told Deadline.

He added that Horizon' tells the story of that journey in an honest and forthcoming way, highlighting the points of view and consequences of the characters life and death decisions.'

The Oscar-winning actor took to Instagram on Wednesday with a shot of a director's chair bearing the name of the project which he's starring in, and directing alongside Robert Legato

Costner played the role of Lieutenant John Dunbar in the Civil War era film

Dances With Wolves remains one of the signature projects of Costner's career, as he took home Best Director, and the film won Best Picture at the 1991 Academy Awards among its seven overall wins.

Costner played the role of Lieutenant John Dunbar in the Civil War era film, alongside costars Graham Greene, Mary McDonnell, Tantoo Cardinal, Rodney A. Grant and late actors Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman, Maury Chaykin and Charles Rocket.

Costner appears to be leaning into his work amid a turbulent time, as news broke earlier this month that Baumgartner, 49, filed for divorce from him. They are parents to sons Cayden, 16, and Hayes, 14, and daughter Grace, 12.

The veteran actor is also father to daughters Annie, 38, and Lily, 36, and son Joe, 34, with his ex-wife Cindy Silva; and son Liam, 27, with ex-girlfriend Bridget Rooney.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is racking up some frequent flier miles while venturing around Europe this week.

On Wednesday, The Terminator star, 75, landed in France to mingle with fellow A-listers during the 76th Cannes Film Festival.

He was spotted at the iconic Martinez Hotel looking chic in a pair of tan chinos, an emerald green polo and a brown distressed leather blazer.

He sported salt and pepper stubble on his famous face as he arrived at the French Riviera locale.

Arnold may be halfway through his 70s, but he's showing no signs of slowing down.

The Terminator: Arnold Schwarzenegger arrived in Cannes for the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday

Conan the Barbarian: The former Governor of California looked chic in a pair of tan chinos, an emerald green polo and a brown distressed leather blazer

The Last Action Hero: He sported salt and pepper stubble on his famous face as he arrived at the French Riviera locale

On March 25, the Conan the Barbarian star makes his series television debut in the Netflix action-comedy FUBAR - which stands for F*cked up beyond all recognition.

Schwarzenegger plays Luke Brunner, a CIA operative on the verge of retirement who discovers a family secret and is forced to go back into the field for one last job.

On June 7, Arnold, a three-part documentary about his life and career drops on Netflix.

And that's not all - he's also written an upcoming self-help book called Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life.

Despite all of that, the former Governor of California told The Hollywood Reporter that he's never felt like a star.

'I never felt like a star. I felt that I'm lucky I'm one of the few to be happy in his professional life and personal life. But I never felt like I was on top of the world  even in my bodybuilding days when I was winning Mr. Olympia. I always was hungry to do more and to do better,' he told the outlet.

He also dished to THR about his influencer status. He's been engaging more with fans online lately, because, as he says, 'there's so much negativity out there.'

'The internet chat is so negative. When you give people a compliment  somebody loses 200 pounds and you say, 'Congratulations,' they say, 'Oh my God, you are the greatest guy in the world.''

'People appreciate that more than ever. I'm always trying to figure out a way of making a better world and to be useful,' he added.

New series: On March 25, Schwarzenegger makes his series television debut in the Netflix action-comedy FUBAR - which stands for F*cked up beyond all recognition

New role: Schwarzenegger plays Luke Brunner, a CIA operative on the verge of retirement who discovers a family secret and is forced to go back into the field for one last job

New documentary: On June 7, Arnold, a three-part documentary about his life and career drops on Netflix

New book: And that's not all - he's also written an upcoming self-help book called Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life

The Last Action Hero actor was also happy to share how he feels about his aging body after decades of pumping iron to achieve the perfect male form.

'My whole life I look at the mirror and see the best-built man, and all of a sudden I see a bunch of crap. It's terrible!'

'You get these wrinkles under your eyes. You get wrinkles under your pecs. You see the f**king poodle!'

'Budle,' he corrected himself. 'It's Austrian for your stomach sticking out. Where the f**k did that come from? It's not pleasurable. But you cope with it.'
Two days after announcing he had finally wrapped on the tragedy-stricken Western film Rust, Alec Baldwin has his next job lined up.

The actor, 65, will star in Kent State, a film about the tragic shootings on the campus of Kent State University back in May 1970 that left four unarmed students dead and nine others injured.

Members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire during a peace rally opposing the expanding involvement of the Vietnam War into Cambodia by the United States military forces as well as protesting the National Guard presence on campus.

Baldwin will play the role of then-president of the university Robert White, , according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The upcoming film that will mark Karen Slade's feature directorial debut, working from a script she also wrote.

New role: Alec Baldwin, 65, to star in Kent State, a film about the tragic shootings on the campus of Kent State University back in May 1970 that left four unarmed students dead and nine others injured; Baldwin seen in March

Inspired by true events of the so-called May 4 massacre, the story is told through the perspective of Will McCormack in two time periods in his life, according to a Deadline.

It asks both the question of what happened then and why these kinds of events continue to happen.

'The Kent State shooting was a dark and pivotal moment in our nation's history. This is a story that needs to be told and surprisingly never has,' producer Tom Ortenberg told the publication.

'We are looking forward to bringing it to the big screen to educate and inspire both the young and old alike.'

The outlet also revealed that Dermot Mulroney, Clancy Brown, Aksel Hennie, Christopher Backus, Christopher Ammanuel, Andrew Ortenberg and Jacqueline Emerson had been cast.

Baldwin's casting comes on the heels of him finishing the filming for Rust.

In the Western, the longtime leading man plays an infamous outlaw who comes out of hiding to stop his 13-year-old grandson from being hanged for murder.

The shoot began in New Mexico on October 6, 2021, but was put on indefinite hold two weeks later after a prop gun held by Baldwin discharged, wounding director Joel Souza and killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Baldwin would eventually be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, in New Mexico.

Eventually, Baldwin and other Rust producers settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Hutchins' widower Matthew Hutchins in October 2022.

The team also agreed to complete the movie with Matthew Hutchins as an executive producer, along with Bianca Cline completing his late wife's work as cinematographer.

Ultimately, those criminal charges against Baldwin were dropped on April 20, 2023, and he returned to the set to finish filming his scenes in Montana the very next day.

On Monday, May 15, the Oscar-nominated actor announced he was wrapping up Rust in an Instagram post.

That's a wrap: News of Baldwin lining up his next job comes two days after wrapping production on the tragedy-stricken Western film Rust

Relief: A day later, Baldwin shared how it 'felt good to shave off that beard' he grew out for the film

Tragedy on set: Baldwin had been facing two criminal charges in connection to the accidental shooting of a prop gun on the set of Rust in October 2021 that resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Those charges were eventually dropped in April 2023

Giving thanks: Baldwin has been sharing photos from the set of Rust, one which he thanked his young co-star Easton Malcolm, whom he previously called 'the next Brad Pitt'

'Last day on the set of RUST with this guy. A very talented actor and lovely young man with a bright future ahead. My love to you, @patrickscottmcdermott,' he wrote.

Later that day, Baldwin showed off a freshly shaven face, writing in the caption, 'God, it felt good to shave off that beard'

During the last rounds of filming, the New York native shared photos taken on the set, including a couple with his young co-star Easton Malcolm, whom he called 'the next Brad Pitt' in a post on April 30.

'Saying goodbye to my co-star EASTON MALCOLM wasn't easy,' Baldwin shared the next day. 'Thanks, Brett, for sharing him with us. We love you, Easton.'
Johnny Depp dressed to impress in a pinstripe suit to attend the Madame Figaro x Christian Dior dinner during the 76th Annual Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday.

The Pirates Of The Caribbean actor, 59, was brought to tears the night before after his period piece, Jeanne du Barry, received a seven-minute standing ovation on opening night of the annual event.

The star is no stranger to the world of Dior, and recently signed a $20 million three-year deal to continue to be the face of Dior Sauvage, a fragrance he has been the spokesperson for since 2015.

At the dinner, the father of two, who has opened up on whether he felt 'boycotted' by Hollywood, was dapper in a gray, striped suit and a matching waistcoat that was fully buttoned.

He added a black, dress shirt underneath and slipped into a pair of sleek, black shoes that were secured with laces.

Dapper: Johnny Depp dressed to impress in a pinstripe suit to attend the Madame Figaro x Christian Dior dinner during the 76th Annual Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday

The star is no stranger to the world of Dior, and recently signed a $20 million three-year deal to continue to be the face of Dior Sauvage, a fragrance he has been the spokesperson for since 2015

The actor threw on a black fedora hat that partially covered his locks that naturally fell down to brush his shoulders.

Johnny added an assortment of silver rings on each of his hands, as well as a dangly silver earring in his left ear. For a finishing touch, the star added a pair of blue, see-through shades.

Shortly before attending the annual Madame Figaro x Christian Dior dinner in Cannes, Depp opened up about whether he felt 'boycotted' by Hollywood during a press conference for his film, Jeanne du Barry.

'I dont feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I dont think about Hollywood,' he admitted, per Variety. 'I don't have much further need for Hollywood, myself.'

'It's a strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves, but they can't. They must fall in line with the person in front of them. If you want to live that life, I wish you the best.'

The Oscar nominee then discussed his feelings towards being asked to 'resign' from a film. He had previously been asked to step down from the Fantastic Beast franchise in 2020.

'Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? Youd have to not have a pulse to feel like, "No. None of this is happening. Its a weird joke,"' the actor explained.

He further stated during the conference, 'When youre asked to resign from a film youre doing because of something that is merely a function of vowels and consonants floating in the air, yes, you feel boycotted.'

'Boycotted': During a press conference at Cannes on Wednesday, the actor admitted, 'I dont feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I dont think about Hollywood'

Resigning: The Oscar nominee then discussed his feelings towards being asked to 'resign' from a film after he was asked to step down from the Fantastic Beast franchise in 202; seen on Wednesday in Cannes

Depp also hit back at people who have questioned whether Cannes should have given him such a prominent platform.

'What if one day, they did not allow me to go to McDonald's for life because somewhere there'd be 39 angry people watching me eat a Big Mac on a loop?' he asked. 'Who are they? What do they care?'

The Pirates Of The Caribbean star went on to discuss why he doesn't think he has had a 'comeback', insisting he didn't go anywhere.

'I've had my 17th comeback, apparently,' he said. 'I keep wondering about the word "comeback'. I didn't go anywhere. As a matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away. Maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time. But I didn't go nowhere.'

On Tuesday, Johnny had reason to celebrate when his film, Jeanne du Barry, officially premiered on opening night of the 76th Cannes Film Festival.

The project was his first leading role in three years and following his high-profile defamation trial with ex-wife, Amber Heard, that took place last year.

The star played the role of King Louis XV, and joined other cast members such as Benjamin Lavernhe and Maiwenn, who also directed the nearly two hour film.

Big night: On Tuesday, Johnny had reason to celebrate when his film, Jeanne du Barry, officially premiered on opening night of the 76th Cannes Film Festival

Positive reception: After the credits rolled, Johnny became teary-eyed upon receiving a seven-minute standing ovation from the audience

Back to the screen: He took on his first leading role in three years and following his high-profile defamation trial with ex-wife, Amber Heard, that took place last year; the former couple seen in 2015

The premise follows, 'The life of Jeanne Becu who was born as the illegitimate daughter of an impoverished seamstress in 1743 and went on to rise through the Court of Louis XV to become his last official mistress,' according to an IMDB synopsis.

After the credits rolled, Johnny became teary-eyed upon receiving a seven-minute standing ovation from the audience.

In remarks to the press Monday, Cannes director Thierry Fremaux defended the decision to have Depp to take part in the festival, saying Depp is extraordinary in the film and he paid no attention to the trial.

'If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldn't be here talking about it.'

Also in attendance at the Madame Figaro x Dior dinner was supermodel, Karlie Kloss, who was a vision in a shimmering, gold dress with a plunging, V-neck cut and was secured with a belt tied directly above her growing baby bump.

The beauty, who announced her second pregnancy at the MET Gala earlier this month, slipped into a pair of open-toed, gold strappy sandals to coincide with the color scheme of the ensemble.

Stunning! Also in attendance at the Madame Figaro x Dior dinner was supermodel, Karlie Kloss, who was a vision in a shimmering, gold dress with a V-neck cut

Keeping it casual: Before getting glammed up for the festivities, the mother of one, soon-to-be two, was spotted arriving at her hotel cutting a casual figure in a dark green blouse along with loose-fitting white pants

Baby on the way: Kloss is expecting her second child with husband, Joshua Kushner, and already share son, Levi, two

Her brunette locks were parted in the middle, and effortlessly flowed down past her shoulders in light curls.

Before getting glammed up for the festivities, the mother of one, soon-to-be two, was spotted arriving at her hotel cutting a casual figure in a dark green blouse along with loose-fitting white pants.

Her locks were slicked back and styled into a simply ponytail, and Kloss threw on a pair of black, oval-shaped sunglasses for a stylish flare.

Karlie already shares two-year-old son, Levi, with husband Joshua Kushner, whom she tied the knot with in 2018.
Ariana Madix oozed confidence while appearing on Wednesday's episode of WHHL with Andy Cohen ahead of the explosive Vanderpump Rules season finale.

The reality TV star, 37, stunned in a sheer black dress  which she called her 'slutty funeral' look  as she spoke about ex Tom Sandoval's affair with Raquel Leviss.

Madix declared that she would never forgive the pair for their betrayal and called Sandoval's apology 'laughable.'

She accused Tom Schwartz of 'actively participating in my downfall' by allegedly helping Sandoval coverup the affair.

Madix also confirmed that, after years of speculation, Sandoval had in fact slept with the now-infamous 'Miami girl' in the early days of their nine-year relationship.

Ariana Madix oozed confidence while appearing on Wednesday's episode of WHHL with Andy Cohen ahead of the explosive Vanderpump Rules season finale

Revenge dress: The reality TV star, 37, looked sensational in a sheer black dress as she spoke candidly about her ex-boyfriend Tom Sandoval's affair with Raquel Leviss

Madix told host Andy Cohen that the lengths Sandoval's inner-circle went to pull the wool over her eyes were 'cringe-worthy.'

'The fabrication of the narrative that was being formed like the entire time without my knowledge, behind my back, by not just my ex-boyfriend but his little flying monkeys as well...,' she explained.

She claimed that the main 'flying monkey' was Schwartz despite him vehemently denying any involvement.

Madix continued: I don't think it was just covering [for Sandoval], I think it was actively participating in my downfall.'

Even if she wasn't blindsided by the affair and Sandoval had come clean, Madix said that she wouldn't be any 'less angry' with him.

Andy asked her what has been the most cringe worthy part for her of watching the season back.

'The fabrication of a narrative that was being formed the entire time without my knowledge behind my back,' Ariana said. 'By not just my ex-boyfriend but his little flying monkeys as well.'

Ariana said by 'flying monkeys' she was referring to Tom Schwartz mainly.

Andy asked her if she had any idea before going through Sandoval's phone that something was off.

'When he would not come home or was out super late I would ask him things and say 'where were you and what were you doing,' Ariana said. 'He would say I was at Schwartz's and I would say 'really let me see your phone.'

Ariana said Sandoval would give her his phone and she would look at his texts.

'He was very good about concealing the double life and hiding all of the evidence,' Ariana said.

'So you were a little suspicious enough that you were looking through the phone,' Andy said.

Ariana said she wasn't suspicious about an affair but that something was clearly going on with Sandoval. Andy asked what Raquel's demeanor was like when confronted her on the phone.

'I had to beg, screaming, crying, throwing up, begging for some sort of something,' Ariana said. 'I said if you have ever given a crap about me, if you've ever cared, if you've ever just as women say, tell me, something.'

Ariana said all Raquel told her was there had been a kiss after the girl's trip.

Unforgiven: Madix declared that she would never forgive the pair for their betrayal and called Sandoval's apology 'laughable; the trio seen in 2022

'What would it take for you to forgive Tom or Raquel,' Cohen asked, to which she replied: 'That's not happening'

In on it? She accused Tom Schwartz of 'actively participating in my downfall' by allegedly helping Sandoval coverup the affair; Schwartz and Sandoval seen in 2022

Cringe: Madix told host Andy Cohen that the lengths Sandoval's inner-circle went to pull the wool over her eyes were 'cringe-worthy'

As for 'Miami girl,' Tom claimed during Wednesday's season finale that Madix 'always knew' he'd slept with the mystery woman nearly a decade ago.

And Madix admitted to Cohen that she was aware of the hookup but that it happened before they were 'exclusive.'

She 'defended' him over the years in order to protect his reputation.

'I didn't want people to think the absolute worst of the man I thought I would spend the rest of my life with,' Madix said.

'What would it take for you to forgive Tom or Raquel,' Cohen asked.

She sternly replied: 'That's not happening.'

Andy wanted to know what Ariana thought was Raquel's intention when she talked to her at Sur about her intimacy issues with Sandoval.

Ariana said she actually felt excited to have that conversation with Raquel because they were so close.

'I truly was not picking up on what she was putting down,' Ariana said.

Andy asked if she thought Sandoval was making promises to her about breaking up with Ariana and started to get frustrated which made her be so bold.

'Honestly that was something that I read online and I thought that makes a lot of sense,' Ariana said.

Double life: 'He was very good about concealing the double life and hiding all of the evidence,' Ariana said; the former couple seen in 2022

Suspicious: Ariana said she wasn't suspicious about an affair but that something was clearly going on with Sandoval

Ariana said it was also not true that Sandoval tried multiple times to break up with her. Ariana said she had an idea who was the other woman that Sandoval had a fling with but didn't want to mention her name.

Andy asked Ariana what she thought about Raquel's decision to file the restraining order against Scheana Shay.

'I thought that was pathetic,' Ariana said.

Ariana said she thought Sandoval's interview with Howie Mandel was also 'rock bottom moment.' Ariana added that while she planned to sell the house she owns with Sandoval that they were both still living in it.

'I want my money out of that house as quickly as possible and I want to move on,' Ariana said. 'We do not interact on any level.'

Andy asked if she agreed with him that Sandoval seemed more emotional with Schwartz than with her. Ariana said with her Sandoval seemed more concerned with people hearing them argue than how she felt.

Andy asked her if there was anything she wished she had said to Sandoval at the reunion.

She said she would have asked him about the lies that have been brought up. Andy asked her where she stands on the thoughts that there has been a mob mentality going after Sandoval and Raquel.

'I just see people who are affected by something that happened and have options and they have every right to voice those opinions,' Ariana said.

Andy asked if she would share details about the new man in her life.

'I'll just say that I am very happy and very satisfied,' Ariana said.

Andy wanted to know her thoughts on Sandoval singing the lyric 'Raquel is not for me' at his shows. Ariana said she thought it was weird and that Sandoval was loving the attention that this has brought him.

Ariana said she doesn't believe the rumors that Sandoval and Raquel had broken up because she was still sending letters to their house but she hasn't opened them. Ariana believed that if the affair hadn't been discovered that they had an elaborate plan to reveal their relationship but that Sandoval wanted to portray himself as a good guy on Winter House. Ariana said she also believed that Sandoval would cheat again.

'Why do you think this has resonated so much?' Andy asked.

'It's crazy,' Ariana said. 'I think because it's so layered. Cheating is not that uncommon. I think it's the best friend, it's the manipulation, it's the narcissism, it's the double life. There are so many layers to it that I think so many people have experienced one or all of those things that they can relate to.'

'It's also heartbreaking,' Andy said.

Anger: Cohen said when she spoke to her at the reunion that she was in the anger stage of grief and asked Ariana where she was now

The first episode of the three-part reunion airs on May 24 and the show's executive producer Alex Baskin teased that 'new information'  unknown to fans and much of the cast  will be revealed

Cohen said when she spoke to her at the reunion that she was in the anger stage of grief and asked Ariana where she was now.

'I feel good,' Madix said. 'I definitely feel as if my friends have put me in the best position to be able to heal and grow.

'I'm honestly just looking forward, only forward, and not looking back.'

The first episode of the three-part reunion airs on May 24 and the show's executive producer Alex Baskin teased that 'new information'  unknown to fans and much of the cast  will be revealed.

The season 10 finale aired Wednesday night and gave fans a play-by-play of Scandoval.

In the episode, Madix delivered a scathing breakup speech to Sandoval.

She wanted him to 'hear her words' as she told him that she regretted ever loving him and that he meant 'nothing' to her.

Madix also relived the moment she discovered a 'screen recording of Raquel and Tom on FaceTime' in his iPhone's camera roll.

'My stomach dropped into my f***ing a**,' she said in confessional. 'I would normally delete something like that but it had been a such a busy chaotic day,' Sandoval said. 'I quickly got us outside so everyone around us couldn't hear us talk.'

'I call Raquel and said ''if you have ever given a sh** about me, tell me when this happened'',' Ariana recalled.

Raquel had confessed to Scheana Shay before admitting to the affair to Madix.

During the tense one-on-one, Sandoval said there was 'no excuse' for his actions and that it was 'really selfish' for him to step out on their relationship.

Madix called him 'evil' and accused Leviss of 'searching for an identity in men.'

Sandoval said he and Leviss had become close friends and that he was desperately seeking a connection because he felt as though his and Madix's relationship had fizzled out.

Season finale: Madix learned of the Scandoval affair on Wednesday's season finale of Vanderpump Rules and delivered a scathing breakup speech to Sandoval

Breaking up: Sandoval was told by Ariana that he meant nothing to her and that she regretted ever loving him

Raised voice: 'I don't give a f*** about f***ing Raquel!' Ariana screamed. 'Your friendship is f***ing bullsh**!'

Getting emotional: Sandoval started crying as Ariana said he meant 'nothing' to her

'We had no sex life.' Sandoval said. 'So f*** my friend,' Ariana said.

'Once I turned 40, I was like this can't be the rest of my life,' Sandoval said.

Ariana said they could have gone to couple's therapy. Sandoval said he tried to talk to her and that two weeks ago he told her that he wanted to end things.

'But you were already f***ing Raquel,' Ariana said.

Ariana told Sandoval that she 'regret[s] loving' him and that she planned to never speak to him again.

A teary-eyed Sandoval said that he always though that he and Ariana would be 'together forever.'
New Delhi, 18 May (UNI) Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear tomorrow an appeal filed by the Gyanvapi mosque management committee against the Allahabad High Court's order allowing scientific survey of a Shivling purportedly found inside the mosque complex last year.

A bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dr Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chadrachud, agreed to hear tomorrow the appeal of Anjuman Islamia Masjid committee.

Gyanvapi mosque mgment committee, Anjuman Islamia Masjid Committee, had moved the Supreme Court challenging an Allahabad HC order allowing carbon dating of purported Shivling discovered in wuzu area during a survey last year.

Just yesterday, a Varanasi Court granted till May 19 to the Anjuman Islamia Masjid committee to file their reply/objection, if any, on an application filed by 4 Hindu women worshippers seeking a survey of the entire Gyanvapi mosque premises by ASI.

Hindu parties had also filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, saying that, if there would be any appeal filed by parties, in the case against the Allahabad High Court order directing scientific investigation to ascertain whether the object found during the survey of the Gyanvapi Mosque premises is a Shiva linga or a fountain, then it must be heard.

A caveat is a legal document filed by a party to ensue that without hearing its side, the Court cannot pass any order.

The Allahabad High Court last week in its order had held that a scientific survey can be done of the oval-shaped object found in Varanasis Gyanvapi mosque that Hindu plaintiffs claim to be a shivling.

On May 12, the High Court set aside a Varanasi district court order refusing to allow carbon dating to determine the age of the object.

The matter is related to a plea filed by five Hindu women who claim that an image of deity Shringar Gauri exists at the mosque and have sought permission to offer daily prayers there.

UNI SM GNK
Tom Cruise will touch down in Sydney on July 3 for the premiere of Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One.

The Top Gun star, 60, will step out on the red carpet Down Under alongside director Chris McQuarrie and other select cast members.

While other attendees from the film have yet to be announced, potential cast arrivals could include Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Vanessa Kirby.

The official trailer for the next Mission: Impossible installment was released early on Wednesday morning.

The heart-stopping, high-speed clip showed plenty of action scenes with the Hollywood actor, whose film Top Gun: Maverick was a massive summer 2022 hit.

Tom Cruise (pictured) will touch down in Sydney on July 3 for the premiere of Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Cruise will be seen performing some of the most daring stunts of his long and varied career.

There is an on-the-edge-of-your-seat chase scene on top of a moving train before he also rides his motorcycle off a cliff.

This is Tom's seventh MI film, and there is a talk of an eighth one on the way as well.

Mission: Impossible  Dead Reckoning Part One will be released in Australian theaters on July 14, 2023.

The Top Gun star, 60, will step out on the red carpet Down Under alongside director Chris McQuarrie and other select cast members

The official trailer for the next Mission: Impossible installment was released early on Wednesday morning

Cruise stars as special agent Ethan Hunt who works for the Impossible Missions Force (IMF).

Also returning to the sequel are his usual sidekicks - veteran Hollywood names Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Vanessa Kirby.

Henry Czerny, who appeared in the original 1996 Mission Impossible as IMF director Eugene Kittridge, is also back for more thrills with the A list star.
Great British Bake Off star Prue Leith has spoken out about the 13-year affair she had with her husband, Rayne Kruger.

Prue, 83, and author Rayne were married from 1974 to 2002 before he died at the age of 80.

But their long marriage started out as an affair, Prue has revealed in her autobiography Relish.

Speaking about the decision to speak out in her memoir, the TV star said she had no desire to be 'discreet' about her personal life, adding: 'If there are things in your life you're not exactly proud of, but they would be interesting to the reader, you should try to tackle them.'

Speaking out: Great British Bake Off star Prue Leith has revealed the 13-year affair she had with her husband, Rayne Kruger

First love: The South African cook was married to author Rayne Kruger from 1974 to 2002, and shared two children, before he died at the age of 80

Speaking to Kate Thornton on the White Wine Question Time podcast, Prue said: 'I thought, "You know, to skip it, when Rayne was the most important person in my life... how could I not tell his whole story?" So I did.'

Prue worked with Rayne while he was married to the late South African actress Nan Munro - Prue's mother's best friend.

'I never asked him to leave his wife because I was very happy,' she explained of their affair.

'I had none of the duties of life and all of the pleasures of somebody who loved me. I wasn't pressing for marriage. We did have 13 secret years and nobody ever guessed because we were discreet.'

'But it was easier in a way because he was a family friend, chairman of my company, and he'd helped me enormously and everyone knew we were great friends.'

Eventually Rayne left his wife, who was 17 years his senior, to start a life and a family with Prue. They have a son Danny and daughter, Li-Da.

The couple remained good friends with Nan who forgave them for the affair, with Prue calling her 'an extraordinary woman.'

Writing in her book about the affair in 2017, Prue recalled that she had 'hero-worshipped Rayne since the age of seven. But it wasnt until Id become an adult that we fell in love.'

Revelation: Prue, pictured at the age of 29, worked with Rayne while he was married to the late South African actress Nan Munro - Prue's mother's best friend

Family affair: Eventually Rayne left his wife to start a life, and a family, with Prue. They have a son Danny and daughter, Li-Da

She explained how in 1961, when she had left home in South Africa to study at the Sorbonne in Paris, her mother sent her to England for the summer to stay with Nan and Rayne.

'They were a fascinating, intelligent, generous and loving family,' she wrote, adding that 'Nan, a successful actress, was usually at the theatre. So I saw more of Rayne than any of the others.'

'Soon there was nothing I would rather do than be with Rayne. I told myself I was not falling in love with him, that he was out of bounds. And anyway, he loved Nan.

'Then, one evening when we were in the kitchen, he kissed me. I wish I could say I objected, but I didnt. Guilt about Nan would creep in later, but what I felt at that moment  apart from a leaping desire  was surprise and delight that he considered me kissable; a woman, not a child.'

'So began a 13-year affair. I was utterly infatuated.'

After Rayne's death, Prue, who was 62 when he died, married retired English fashion designer John Playfair in 2016.

Prue has previously spoken about her relationship with John and candidly discussed their sex life.

During a Loose Women interview, the cook shared details while discussing the recent finding that millennials are having less sex. She was asked by Saira Khan about the recent finding, and replied with a giggle: 'Try it, it's quite nice.'

Love again: After Rayne's death, Prue, who was 62 when he died, married retired English fashion designer John Playfair in 2016.

She told The Sun: 'Older people think that's rather romantic and charming. Younger people think, "Good Lord, are they really still at it?"

'It will sound a rather pompous thing to say but it's quite healthy that older women like me are not just expected to sit in a corner and knit.'

Prue started her career at the Cordon Bleu Cookery School in 1960 and went on to open her Michelin-starred restaurant Leith's nine years later.

After becoming a food columnist she began writing cookery books and novels, and now judges The Great British Bake Off.
Ashley Benson opted for a casually chic style as she stepped out for a double date night with boyfriend Brandon Davis and pals at Craig's restaurant in West Hollywood on Wednesday.

The 33-year-old performer donned an oversized black pinstripe blazer which she wore with a pair of distressed jeans.

Ashley teamed her ensemble with a simple white T-shirt and chunky black boots, finishing off her look with a black leather handbag and a silver necklace.

The Pretty Little Liars alum wore her blonde locks loose for the occasion, while highlighting her features with a light, dewy make-up palette.

Meanwhile, Brandon kept his look laidback in a black sweater, blue jeans and black trainers.

Date: Ashley Benson opted for a casually chic style as she stepped out for a double date night with boyfriend Brandon Davis and pals at Craig's restaurant in West Hollywood on Wednesday

Casual style: The 33-year-old performer donned an oversized black pinstripe blazer which she wore with a pair of distressed jeans

The Spring Breakers actress, who recently reunited with her Pretty Little Liars costars, has been linked to the oil heir ever since this past February.

The couple were in good company on the night as they enjoyed their double date with Brandon Thomas Lee and his girlfriend Lily Easton.

The son of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee and the Australian influencer cut casual figures for their night out.

A source spoke to People this past February and confirmed that Benson had started a relationship with the oil heir.

The insider added: 'They have a lot of mutual friends and are both super fun and very social people.'

The actress was previously linked to Cara Delevingne, whom she dated from 2018 until 2020.

Benson went on to begin an on-off relationship with rapper G-Eazy that initially commenced in 2020.

The performers were last spotted in each other's company during an Oscars party that took place last year.

Details: Ashley teamed her ensemble with a simple white T-shirt and chunky black boots, finishing off her look with a black leather handbag and a silver necklace

Looking good: The Pretty Little Liars alum wore her blonde locks loose for the occasion, while highlighting her features with a light, dewy make-up palette

Chilled: Meanwhile, Brandon kept his look laidback in a black sweater, blue jeans and black trainers

Here they are: The couple were in good company on the night as they enjoyed their double date with Brandon Thomas Lee and his girlfriend Lily Easton

Lets go: The two Brandons later smiles as theu climbed into a car

Davis was previously connected to Mischa Barton, from whom he split in 2005.

Benson and her boyfriend began being spotted on various public outings earlier this year.

The actress and the oil heir posed for several photos during a Los Angeles Lakers game that took place this past January.

The pair were subsequently seen in the company of Emma Roberts and her boyfriend Cody John during a double date that took place in February.

Neither the performer nor her partner have made any public comments about their relationship as of yet.

Making it known: A source spoke to People this past February and confirmed that Benson had started a relationship with the oil heir; they are seen in January

Benson previously spoke to Cosmopolitan UK and discussed why she preferred to keep her love life away from the public.

'I think it's best not to be over-exposed, and you can really protect your relationship if you're not exploiting it,' she said.

The actress went on to express dismay at the public's interest in her romantic history.

'The most annoying part is having to sit back and be quiet while everybody talks about you and you have to deal with it,' she said.
Joan Collins looked as radiant as ever as she kicked off her milestone birthday celebrations early with an intimate dinner in London on Wednesday.

The actress, who will turn 90 on May 23, appeared in good spirits as she arrived arm in arm with husband Percy Gibson, 58.

Joan looked typically chic in a leopard print midi dress, which she layered with an elegant coat, with fur lining.

She elevated her frame with brown heels and brought out her collection of gold jewels to accessorise.

The legendary actress styled her brunette locks in a curly blow dry and accentuated her natural beauty with a stunning palette of make up, including a swipe of red lipstick.

Gorgeous: Joan Collins looked as radiant as ever as she kicked off her milestone birthday celebrations early with an intimate dinner in London

Actor and producer Percy cut a dapper figure in a crisp white shirt and navy blue suit.

He went all out for the evening, adding in a pocket square which he teamed with smart black suit shoes.

Percy, the longest-lasting of Joan's husbands, is more than 30 years younger than her, a gap she dismisses in interviews with the line: 'If he dies, he dies.'

The long-standing couple celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary with a star-studded party at Claridge's last year.

Originally from Peru, Percy is a noted Hollywood producer, known primarily for producing Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

He is the last man standing in a long-lineup of lovers for Collins, all of whom have been well-documented over the years.

Now however Joan has found the right man and even joked to Jonathan Ross in 2020 that her marriage to Percy had run as long as the previous four marriages combined.

It comes after she shared a group snap from her 'fabulous' Coronation party last weekend as she celebrated with a host of famous faces.

Sweet: The English actress, who is set to turn 90 within only a matter of days, appeared in good spirits as she arrived arm in arm with husband Percy Gibson, 58

Elegant: Joan looked typically chic in a leopard print midi dress, which she layered with an elegant mink coat, with fur lining

The actress took to Instagram last week to share the snap as they all enjoyed dinner at the Wolseley with her husband Percy and pals.

Joan was joined by Christopher Biggins, former actress Yvonne Romain, entrepreneur Ivan Massow, Theo and Louise Fennell and journalist Andrew Neil.

They all looked like they were having a great time as they donned crowns to mark the day King Charles III was officially coronated.

Joan penned in the caption of her post: 'Our own fabulous #coronation #celebration at the Wolseley with a host of #greatfriends @biggins.christopher @oneneilsin @ivanmassow @fennelltheo @louise.fennell @hazelcollins8000 @alisonpapworth Andrew Pierce, Russell Tanguay, Evie Bricusse, #brother Bill and @alexsilverpr.'

It comes after Dame Joan performed a cheeky impersonation of King Charles and teased details of his alleged comments about her ahead of his Coronation.

Speaking to Kate Garraway and Ben Shephard on Good Morning Britain, she revealed: 'I'd met him a few times. In fact, he wrote about me in his book - I can't say what it is on morning TV because it's a bit naughty.'

She appeared to allude to the claims in Christopher Andersons book The King: The Life of Charles III, that the monarch once wrote in a letter that Dame Joan had an unbelievable cleavage all raised up and presented as if on a tray'.

Joan also chatted about the moment Charles gave her a Damehood and said how charming he was as she discussed the ceremony in 2015.

The star went on to mimic his voice, adding: 'He has such a deep voice. He said 'and about time too.'

The legendary actress, who played a part in the Coronation festivities, revealed she has met Charles a few times.

The Dame then shared her own hopes for the Coronation Day, saying: 'I hope we all have a wonderful time and that it doesn't rain.'

As the royal discussion continued, Ben asked Joan if she thought Charles could have followed in her acting footsteps.

Joan replied: 'I think he could have. He certainly has the looks for it and let's face it the royals certainly have to do a lot of acting.'

The screen star has been busy in other aspects of her life, speaking to Kate and Ben about writing her memoir which she released in 2022.

She admitted that it had been a very fun project to do as she looked back over her eventful life.

Dame Joan said: 'It's been hilarious I've been combing my memory for funny things that happened.

'I was talking to Biggins the other day and he reminded me about the time we got trapped on an island in Corfu with Stella and no water.'
Beyonce brought superstardom to Wales when she took to the stage in Cardiff on Thursday evening for the first date on her Renaissance world tour.

The hitmaker, 41, ensured she kicked off her UK dates with an almighty bang as she stormed the city's Principality Stadium with a slew of megahits and a host of incredible ensembles for the heaving audience of 74,000 fans.

Her full setlist boasted a host of her smash hits, including Formation, Run The World (Girls) and Love on Top, with the show opening with an atmosphere shattering mash-up of Dangerously In Love, Flaws And All and 1+1.

Her looks comprised a host of incredible numbers, including glittering catsuits and epic metallic corsets and barely-there mini dresses by a slew of designers including Alexander McQueen, Loewe and David Koma.

Proving a stage spectacular takes hard work, it has been reported that Beyonce travels with a body double who steps in during rehearsals to show the star what her dances look like from an audience perspective.

Incredible: Beyonce brought superstardom to Wales when she took to the stage in Cardiff on Thursday evening for the first date on her Renaissance world tour

Stunner: The hitmaker, 41, ensured she kicked off her UK dates with an almighty bang as she stormed the city's Principality Stadium with a slew of megahits and a host of incredible ensembles for the heaving audience of 74,000 fans

Impressive: She showed off her impeccable dance moves while belting out 40 of her greatest hits on stage

Pole position! She was working the pole in her dazzling ensemble

Following her opening medley, the superstar slipped into a version of Mary J Blige's hit I Care/I'm Goin' Down, before going on to perform I'm That Girl, Cozy and a medley of Alien Superstar/Sweet Dreams.

Amid her epic 36-song setlist, Beyonce also performed the likes of Haunted, Diva, Crazy In Love, Drunk In Love, Black Parade and Partition. She closed the jam-packed show with her popular tracks Blow and Summer Renaissance.

After fans voicing fury over her failure to release videos to accompany her Renaissance album - which was released 10 months ago - she used the opportunities to reference the lack of videos.

I'm bzzzzy: She then changed into a very different outfit as Beyonce was seen wearing a sexy bumble bee costume with a matching helmet with huge antennae

Hit: Beyonce released Renaissance, her seventh studio album containing the hit track Break My Soul, in July 2022

A voiceover in the stadium said: 'You asked for the visuals, you called for the Queen. But the Queen moves at her own pace.'

Beyonce stunned in nine incredible outfits, including a glitzy black and silver jumpsuit as she wowed the crowds in the sensational ensemble.

For one look, she slipped into a sparkling jumpsuit with hands across it with red nails to match her own gloves, giving the illusion her jumpsuit was completely sheer.

Quirky: Beyonce then changed into a bizarre colourful block costume that she struggled to walk in

Hey there! She emerged from a silk bed

Beaming: She sported a flawless makeup look while flashing a smile

She wore her honey tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a typically glowing makeup look.

She then changed into a very different outfit as Beyonce was seen wearing a sexy bumble bee costume with a matching helmet with huge antennae.

She sported a pair of heeled over the knee boots as she put on a very eye-catching display while standing in front of a desk alongside her dancers.

As well as her outfits, the show was not short of props - including a vast disco ball, a pole for dancing and a bizarre buggy.

Insiders told The Sun that the star employs a body double to show her what the concert looks like from an audience perspective in auditions.

Stunning: She flashed her curvaceous bottom in the revealing ensemble

BEYONCE'S FULL SETLIST FOR UK TOUR 1. Dangerously In Love 2. Flaws And All 3. 1+1 4. I Care / I'm Goin' Down (Mary J. Blige cover) 5. I'M THAT GIRL 6. COZY 7. ALIEN SUPERSTAR / Sweet Dreams (Medley) 8. Lift Off (from Jay-Z and Kanye West's WATCH THE THRONE) 9. 7/11 (Interlude) 10. CUFF IT / CUFF IT - WETTER REMIX 11. ENERGY (ft. Beam) 12. BREAK MY SOUL / BREAK MY SOUL - THE QUEENS REMIX (ft. Madonna) 13. No Angel 14. Haunted 15. Formation 16. Diva 17. Run The World (Girls) 18. MY POWER (from The Lion King: The Gift) 19. BLACK PARADE 20. Savage Remix (Megan Thee Stallion ft. Beyonce) 21. Partition 22. Yonce 23. CHURCH GIRL 24. Get Me Bodied / Freakum Dress 25. Before I Let Go 26. Rather Die Young 27. Love On Top 28. Crazy In Love (ft. Jay-Z) 29. PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA 30. VIRGO'S GROOVE 31. Naughty Girl 32. MOVE (ft. Grace Jones) 33. HEATED 34. THIQUE 35. ALL UP IN YOUR MIND 36. Drunk In Love 37. AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM 38. PURE/HONEY 39. Blow 40. SUMMER RENAISSANCE Advertisement

The source said: 'Beyonce is known for her attention to detail and the Renaissance tour is no different. She has a body double travelling with her to each venue so Beyonce can see how the show looks from the audience's perspective...

'Beyonce likes to sit in front of the stage and watch the show as it runs through the technical rehearsals. It is a huge production and is three hours long, so Beyonce wants to make sure everything is right...

'As she watches, Beyonce looks at anything that may need to be tweaked or moved around. She takes notes and makes sure anything that she notices is changed if it doesn't quite work.'

Following her Cardiff show, Beyonce is set to take to the stage at Edinburgh's BT Murrayfield Stadium on May 20, before heading to Sunderland on May 23 to perform at the Stadium of Light.

She will then head across to France to perform at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis on May 26, before heading back to London for a string of shows.

Beyonce will take to the state at Tottenham's Hotspur Stadium for five dates across the end of May and the start of June, before jetting back to Europe for more shows.

The star kicked off her Renaissance world tour in Stockholm, Sweden, earlier this month and proved her show was worth the wait as she nailed a spectacular concert.

Her Renaissance world tour could out-earn Taylor Swift 's phenomenally successful Eras Tour by a whopping $600million, Forbes has revealed.

The Crazy In Love hitmaker has kicked off her first solo tour in seven years, with the star set to do battle with Taylor's 52 date concert tour, which broke Ticketmaster records with single day sales of two million.

But Beyonce's 41 date tour , which ends in North America in September, could gross between $275million and $2.57billion from tickets alone - which smashes The Eras Tour's $1.9billion projection.

Billionaire Beyonce could make nearly $2.2billion from the tour, $600million more than the $1.6billion Taylor could earn.

The estimates are based on projected high numbers of fans buying tickets and high average ticket prices of around $700, the publication reports.

VIP packages for the tour range from $3757 to $5000.

Quirky: Beyonce then changed into a bizarre colourful block costume that she struggled to walk in

Hitting the streets: Beyonce's husband Jay Z was seen in the UK at the same time - yet he was in the English capital at Oswalds Members Club
Johnny Depp fans said he looked like Captain Jack Sparrow as he showed off his 'rotten' teeth while making his Hollywood comeback at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday.

The actor, 59, received a seven-minute standing ovation at the premiere of his film Jeanne du Barry after his blockbuster court trial saw his ex-wife Amber Heard ordered to pay him $8million in damages.

But fans couldn't help but pick up on the actor's smile and how his browning teeth showed visible signs of decay as he posed for photographers on the red carpet.

Johnny recently signed a $20million cologne deal with Dior, thanks to his striking looks and charm.

But unlike many Hollywood stars, the actor has shunned spending thousands on pearly white veneers or expensive composite bonding.

Johnny Depp fans said he looked like Captain Jack Sparrow as he showed off his 'rotten' teeth while making his Hollywood comeback at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday

Concern: Fans couldn't help but pick up on the actor's smile and how his browning teeth showed visible signs of decay (right pictured in Pirates Of The Caribbean with gold teeth)

Fans took to Twitter to urge Johnny to go to the dentist.

'Very, very, very inspired to brush my teeth, floss and use a tongue scraper every time I see a pic of Johnny Depp at Cannes,' one user said.

'@Dior Johnny Depp needs to see a dentist. His teeth make him look unhealthy,' another wrote.

'Johnny Depp's teeth appear to be rotting,' a third chimed.

'Johnny Depp appears to have forgotten to brush his teeth this morning,' a different Tweet read.

But a different user said: 'If Johnny Depp doesn't want fake ultra white teeth he doesn't need them. I have seen a lot worse as well.'

Johnny is known for transforming his smile depending on the roles he plays. For Pirates of the Caribbean he had extensive gold capping of his teeth.

He held onto the gold caps until filming closed on the third installment of the franchise.

Gnashers: unlike many Hollywood stars, the actor has shunned spending thousands on pearly white veneers or expensive composite bonding

'He appears to have forgotten to brush his teeth': Fans took to Twitter to urge Johnny to go to the dentist

Johnny has also been open about his battle with substance abuse and told the court during the defamation trial he'd tried 'every kind of drug known to man' by age 14.

Drug use can erode tooth enamel and expose the underlying dentine to decay-causing bacteria.

During the premiere on Tuesday, Johnny welled up with tears as he received a seven minute standing ovation for his comeback film.

The acclaimed actor - who plays King Louis XV in the period drama - teared up while taking in the moment with director and co-star Maiwenn by his side.

The film is Depp's first project since he was blackballed by Hollywood in the years following his ex-wife Amber Heard's abuse allegations in 2016.

But after a six-week trial last year, it was determined that Heard had defamed her ex-husband and she was ordered to pay him over $8million in damages  though they later agreed on $1million in order to put an end to their legal battle.

Emotional: During the premiere on Tuesday, Johnny welled up with tears as he received a seven minute standing ovation for his comeback film

The Edward Scissorhands star was greeted with applause and supported by a sea of adoring fans upon his arrival.

Depp couldn't hide his delight about being back in the Hollywood fold, after previously being dropped from several projects during the trial, including the Fantastic Beasts film franchise.

According to reports, throngs of onlookers shouted 'Johnny!' as Depp, in purple-hued sunglasses signed autographs and edged back into the spotlight.

Jeanne du Barry has been billed as Depp's comeback - though his prominent presence at Cannes has been hotly debated.

Despite earning a standing ovation, the critics had mixed reactions to Depp's performance and the film itself.
Paris and Tyson Fury have jetted off on a family holiday before welcoming their seventh child together.

The boxer, 34, and his wife, 33, are enjoying some Spanish sunshine, sharing photos from the 'Fury family vacation' on Instagram on Wednesday.

Paris proudly posted a snap with the couple's three sons (all named Prince): Prince John James, ten, Prince Tyson Fury II, five, and Prince Adonis Amaziah, three, and three daughters; Venezuela, 12, Valencia Amber, five, and Athena, 22 months.

Paris looked gorgeous in a brightly coloured print co-ord and sandals as she beamed alongside her family.

Fury family vacation! Paris and Tyson Fury have jetted off on a family holiday before welcoming their seventh child together, sharing snaps with their six children on Monday

In March Tyson announced he and Paris are set to welcome their seventh child.

The boxer, 34, took to Instagram as he shared a picture from his date night with Paris.

Smiling alongside each other, the pair could be seen enjoying a film together in the snap.

Sportsman Tyson captioned the image: 'All is not lost! I get to date night with my beautiful pregnant wife @ParisFury1. God is great!'

He added: 'What a woman. 7th incoming. Fantastic news to cheer me up!'

In August 2021, their last child, baby Athena, was born with Neonatal Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT), or an abnormally fast heart rate of around 300 BPM and nearly died as a newborn.

Afterwards Paris recalled how medical staff at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary attempted to slow down Athena's heart rate, but they had to move her to Alder Hey Children's Hospital for specialist treatment in the end.

'We went over there and they sedated her and put her on an incubation, where they put a tube down her throat to breathe,' she told Ok! Magazine.

Brood: Paris and Tyson are parents to three sons (all named Prince): Prince John James, ten, Prince Tyson Fury II, five, and Prince Adonis Amaziah, three, and three daughters; Venezuela, 12, Valencia Amber, five, and Athena, 22 months

Congratulations! In March Tyson announced he and Paris are set to welcome their seventh child, captioning an Insta snap:'What a woman. 7th incoming'

'They put her on tablets to slow her heart down and when they took her off the tube, they thought it was going to be normal.

'But I think the accumulation of sedatives, painkillers, beta blockers for her heart and everything was just too much.

She continued: 'They took her off me, put her on the table and resuscitated her. Tyson came running in. It was horrific. They managed to get her heart going and everything stabilised.'

Their new baby was then placed into a neonatal intensive care unit [NICU], where she stayed for two weeks.

The Fury family were able to welcome their sixth child home on 20th August 2021 where they were finally reunited.
Channel 4 have confirmed that they are no longer working with Escape To The Chateau stars Dick and Angel Strawbridge following an independent investigation into their conduct.

Sources claimed Two Rivers Media, the company that produces Escape To The Chateau, raised concerns about Dick, 63, and Angel, 45. and they will not be working on any new productions 'following a review'.

The latest news comes two years after the popular couple first brushed off bullying claims, which they vehemently denied at the time.

Show bosses are refusing to confirm exactly what has been alleged but their review has concluded and they are cutting ties with the couple.

Here, MailOnline looks at what caused the channel to fall out with the Strawbridges, if we will see them again on screen again and if there have been any other fall-outs...

Is the party over for these two? Why did Channel 4 cut ties with Escape To The Chateau stars Dick and Angel Strawbridge?

What caused Channel 4 to cut ties with the popular duo?

The exact nature of the allegations is not known, but Deadline reported that three of their former colleagues alleged the couple have clashed with producers.

A source told the site : 'There has been a deteriorating relationship between Two Rivers and Dick and Angel's Chateau TV for various reasons and it all came to a head.'

Were there been any other signs of conflict?

In 2021, it was reported that sources close to Spark Media had accused Dick and Angel of bullying.

Dick was accused of pushing one crew member around a room, and threatening to throw another 'out the f*****g window' while brandishing a hammer. Both were also said to have sworn at TV staff.

Meanwhile, the show apparently haemorrhaged producer directors (PDs) during the first four series, as it was claimed three out of six left prematurely following rows.

Dick and Angel categorically denied the accusations at the time.

In testimony via their representative at the time, the couple emphasised the warm atmosphere among the team, but also their long-held, high professional standards, which they say has helped bring their chateau fantasy to successful fruition.

Their representative said production members associated with the couple over many years found 'working with our clients at the chateau is a lovely experience'.

Hit show: Their show Escape to the Chateau became one of the channel's biggest hits when it started airing in 2016

They also made accusations of their own of outrageous behaviour among the Spark's production team.

At the time, Channel 4 denied all knowledge of the row: 'Channel 4 does not tolerate bullying or abusive behaviour in any of its productions.'

Dick told Daily Mail at the time: Its not even worth investigating. We dont talk about it because its not worth worrying about.

He points out that they have a very low turnover of crew, most of whom have stayed for years and were so annoyed about the gossip that they were all saying they wanted to sell their happy story, as it were, to put the truth across.

I would say that we are loving and open  what you see is what you get. If you come into our home  and its our home, not a TV set  and maybe treat us in a certain way, then we may reciprocate, added Angel, firmly (if not a little cryptically).

We have so many people coming through, and we always like having selfies and everything like that. There is a line, though, and if you cross it end of.

Will we see any new episodes of Escape To The Chateau?

The ninth and final series aired in late 2022, but spin-off travel show Escape To The Chateau: Secret France was already in the works.

The programme has reportedly wrapped and is currently being edited, but Channel 4 has not yet confirmed whether it will be broadcast.

Sharing a sneak-peek of filming for the spin-off in January, former engineer Dick and designer Angel previously wrote on Instagram: 'We are busy filming our new series for Channel 4.

'Escape to the Chateau: Secret France will be on your screens later this year  we can't wait to share our discoveries with you!'

In 2021, the couple said: Did they not consider, I wonder, with all the hard work that goes into their business, just disappearing from public view and never doing another series of the show? We consider it every year, Dick said. Its always a choice.

Ending? The ninth and final series aired in late 2022, but spin-off travel show Escape To The Chateau: Secret France was already in the works but will it air?

What's the show all about?

Escape To The Chateau became one of the channel's biggest hits when it started airing in 2016, with many tuning in to see Dick's handiwork and Angel's creativity when transforming their home.

The couple bought the run-down 45-room chateau for just 280,000 in 2015, with Channel 4 launching a popular series following the transformation in 2016.

The villa is called Chateau-de-la-Motte Husson and it is in the picturesque Loire region of North West France around 200 miles from Paris.

Dick and Angel previously worked with Spark Media Partners, which launched Escape To The Chateau back in 2016 and produced its first four series.

The series was full of arguments and tiffs over stressful renovations, precious moments with their children Arthur, nine, and Dorothy, eight and creating happy memories with newlyweds.

The chateau has since been valued at 2million but the couple have also cashed in through TV rights from Channel 4 for the series.

How long have the couple been together?

Dick and Angel had two children  Arthur (eight) and Dorothy (seven)  before marrying in 2015.

Almost immediately the pair decided to uproot their young family for a new adventure in Northwest France.

Dick has a daughter called Charlotte, 35, from his first marriage, to environmental activist Brigit Weiner  the pair wed in 1982 and divorced in 2010 after 28 years.

They also have a son  James, 37  a chef who has appeared on Escape to the Chateau.

Dick a former lieutenant colonel and engineer, met second wife Angel, 43, in 2010 at a mutual friends 40th birthday party.

Partners: Dick a former lieutenant colonel and engineer, met second wife Angel, 43, in 2010 at a mutual friends 40th birthday party

What do Dick and Angel argue about?

In 2021, the couple spoke to Daily Mail about life during the pandemic and homeschooling and Angel said: ' Im too much of a rebel.'

Angel joked that she joined her children in Dick's homeschooling class and said: Lets hope we never have to do that again, as I thought Daddys School was too strict.

Dick gleaned his strict side from a childhood in Northern Ireland and a career in the military.

And talking about their career side projects, such a book they created called Living The Chateau Dream, they were asked if they had spectacular rows.

No! This is the nice thing, Angel said.

We definitely have disagreements Dick interjected, and then Angel goes and gets an email that proves she was right! I do, laughs Angel, Theres no limit to what Ill do to prove Im right about something.






Phillip Schofield tried to 'show signals of closeness' to Holly Willoughby on today's episode of This Morning while she used 'barrier rituals' to avoid excessive proximity, body language expert Judi James said today.

Today's show opened with a brief speech by the world's most advanced robot, which described This Morning as 'the UK's number one breakfast show'.

Ms James described the moment as a 'welcome ice-breaker' for the presenting duo after an awkward week dominated by reports of their ongoing feud.

'After their awkward, toe-curling body language moments this week it was the best gag to get Holly and Phil replaced by a robot,' she told MailOnline.

'It was hilariously obvious that the robot's surreally realistic body language was a masterclass of measured, authentic calm confidence next to the tension from the desk beside it.

Judi James described the arrival of the robot as a 'welcome ice-breaker' for the presenting duo after an awkward week dominated by reports of their ongoing feud

'The robot did provide and ice-breaker for Holly and Phil, with Phil pulling a fear face and Holly even screaming and trying to clamber over the desk to get away from it.'

Despite the light-hearted opening Ms James still detected signs of tension between the pair.

'The energy was all Holly's during their intro this morning, while Phil rested on his arms with his hands clasped,' she said.

'Holly danced to the Gladiator music, raising her arms and splaying her fingers in a ritual to seek attention.

'But when they spoke to each other using eye contact the intense pressure of eye-to-eye gazing, which is always a more intimate and telling method of communication, saw Holly lean away, while Phil seems to lean forward, using the facial expressions of rapt attention as she speaks.'

Ms James also picked out a moment when Holly was describing a visit to Buckingham Palace yesterday to introduce Prince's Trust award winners to King Charles.

'At one point Phil turns to gaze fondly at Holly, she leans back away from him to talk about her lovely afternoon at Buckingham Palace.

'She suddenly holds her tablet up in a barrier gesture, perhaps aware it was a gig Phil missed out on.

The body language expert said Ms Willoughby held up a tablet as part of a 'barrier ritual'

Phil attempted to show his 'closeness' to Holly during today's show, according to Ms James

'Despite his nods of encouragement she also then raises her left hand to her chest in a self-protective barrier gesture as Phil talks to her.

'He seems to be wanting to show signals of closeness while she is avoiding proximity by leaning back and using these barrier rituals.'

An hour into the programme the pair interviewed Loose Women star Kaye Adams - a moment Ms James believes was significant.

READ MORE - Phillip Schofield is branded the 'monster of daytime TV' by This Morning relationship expert Advertisement

'During the interview he suddenly sits up on the sofa and becomes very expressive with some emphatic hand gestures suggesting strong feeling or emotions.

'''You are so honest and so open with each other'' he says of the Loose Women team. His hands spread to add to this moment, then he uses a thumb point at Kaye, scrunching his shoulders to register deep feelings.

'Holly glances at his face as he speaks then looks away at Kaye. Her smile widens slightly when he says ''honest'' but then there is a micro-dip of the corners of her lips when he says ''open''.

Today was Phil and Holly's final This Morning show of the week.

Describing their sign off, Ms James said: 'Holly did begin to finger-pick, Phil kept his hands in his pockets, bounced on his heels with a gleam in his eye and a mouth-clamp.

'He kept the lips clamped but raised his chin with the corners of his mouth pulled down for the farewell, which could be a signal of resilience.

'Holly was the one that said ''See you Monday!'' with a perky head-tilt, raising her left hand in a wave that Phil did not mirror and he just called out ''bye!''.

'As the camera pulled away their smiles looked as incongruent as the robot's. Phil stepped back away from Holly while she moved straight across to talk to the shopping expert and throw her arms out to hug her.'
PYNA brand to have a range of weed management options from seed sowing to active flowering stage.

PYNA brand logo usage by co-marketers to protect farmers from the counterfeit products

Mumbai/Nagpur, May 18:A Godrej Agrovet Limitedas (GAVL) Crop Protection Business Today announced the launch of PYNA, an umbrella brand for sustainable cotton production. A pioneer in establishing the concept of selective cotton herbicides in different markets, GAVL will be selling three of its cotton weed management products Hitweed, Hitweed Maxx, and Maxxcott under PYNA

Brand.

The cotton crops grow at a slow pace during the early stages. Additionally, due to wider spacing between the crops, weeds impact the cotton yield up to 45-50%. With PYNA brands providing abroad window of weed management options from seed sowing to active flowering stage of crop stage, farmers can now get longer duration of weed-free crop. PYNA brands minimizes the cropaweed competition and helps to establish the cotton crop in the early stages, which directly has aA Positive impact on the yield.

GAVL also announced that it will be extending PYNA brand logo to co-marketers like Bayer CropScience, Rallis India, Dhanuka Agritech, PI Industries and Indofil Industries etc. are promoting and helping the farmers grow cotton sustainably through on PYNA brands which is a symbol of Trust and Quality. Easy and safe to use, PYNA brand products aid farmers reduce dependency on manual and mechanical methods of weed control too.

Rajavelu N.K, CEO, Crop Protection Business, GAVL said, aGlobally, India has largest area under cotton cultivation 1. However, with only 10% of total cotton acreage area treated properly, it has not only impacted the productivity but also farmeras profitability. Hence in order to enable sustainable cotton production, we are happy to bring our 3-marquee offerings under PYNA brand.a

aIn order to ensure quality supply to farmers every time, we are excited to partner with co-marketers to leverage PYNA brand. The same will allow them to leverage the trust that Godrej brand has earned amongst the farmers in the last 36 years and collectively tap 90% untapped cotton acreage,a he further added.

GAVL was the first company to introduce post-emergent selective cotton herbicide, Hitweed, in 2007. Enabling cotton plants to get more space, light, and air for robust growth without impacting the soil, it was developed for usage 20-25 Days After Sowing (DAS). Witnessing the need to protect cotton crop during early post-emergent phase viz. 7-15 DAS, it launched Hitweed Maxx in 2019 which enabled farmers get superior crop safety and better efficacy. In 2023, the company launched Maxxcott a a pre-emergent herbicide to be used 0-3 DAS a which eliminates growth of major weeds in cotton, ensures good growth of cotton seedlings, and reduces further spread of major weeds.

About Godrej Agrovet:

Godrej Agrovet Limited (GAVL) is a diversified, Research & Development focused food and agri-business conglomerate, dedicated to improving the productivity of Indian farmers by innovating products and services that sustainably increase crop and livestock yields. GAVL holds leading market positions in the different businesses it operates  Animal Feed, Crop Protection, Oil Palm, Dairy, Poultry and Processed Foods. GAVL has a pan India presence with sales of over a million

COTTON SECTOR a Textile Ministry

tons annually of high-quality animal feed. Our teams have worked closely with Indian farmers to develop large Oil Palm Plantations, which is helping in bridging the demand and supply gap of edible oil in India. In the crop protection segment, the Company has strong presence in the B2B segment through its subsidiary Astec Lifesciences and through its extensive distribution, network pan-India delivers innovative agrochemical offerings catering to the entire crop life cycles. In Dairy, Poultry, and Processed Foods, the company operates through its subsidiaries Creamline Dairy Products Limited and Godrej Tyson Foods Limited. Apart from this, GAVL also has a joint venture with the ACI group of Bangladesh for animal feed business in Bangladesh.

For more information on the Company, please log on to www.godrejagrovet.com.

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Spencer Matthews has insisted there are no hard feelings between him and best friend Jamie Laing after he didn't get an invite to his wedding to Sophie Habboo.

The former Made In Chelsea star, 34, who said he is 'so proud' of his pal, is serving as MC for Jamie's scond wedding ceremony to Sophie.

Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Thursday, Spencer insisted Jamie's first wedding in Chelsea was a small, intimate affair and his second wedding in Spain will have a bigger guest list.

Asked if he was upset at not being in attendance, Spencer said: 'I wasn't ever supposed to be. I was away at the time and I think that ceremony grew in size quite late in the day, it was supposed to be a small, intimate thing.'

Good Morning Britain co-host Ben Shepherd asked: 'Did Jamie forget to invite you essentially?'

Pals: Spencer Matthews has insisted there are no hard feelings between him and best friend Jamie Laing after he didn't get an invite to his wedding to Sophie Habboo

Nuptials: Spencer insisted Jamie's first wedding in Chelsea was a small, intimate affair and his second wedding in Spain will have a bigger guest list (pictured with wife Sophie Habboo)

Spencer replied: 'I think he kind of did. He thought I was away. He didn't think it was that big of a deal. I would have come obviously but whatever, it is what it is.

'The big day is this weekend, I'm master of ceremonies. I'm looking forward to it.'

Spencer, who was part of the original cast of Made In Chelsea with Jamie, added: 'I'm very proud of Jamie, we're very close and I'm really happy for him.'

It comes after Sophie blamed Jamie for the fact Spencer was not in attendance, saying it was 'so stupid' that he forgot to invite him.

The couple originally planned for the day to be an intimate affair with close family.

But in the run-up to saying their vows, Sophie confessed that she extended the guest-list, inviting her bridesmaids and Jamie's groomsmen plus their partners to the event while Spencer and his wife Vogue Williams were holidaying in Portugal so unable to attend following the last minute change.

Sophie told MailOnline: 'Obviously Spencer will be at our Spanish wedding.

'The drama with Spencer it was so stupid of Jamie, he's just so disorganised and it all just changed last minute.

Spencer said: 'He thought I was away. He didn't think it was that big of a deal. I would have come obviously but whatever, it is what it is'

Mishap: Sophie blamed Jamie for the fact Spencer was not in attendance, saying it was 'so stupid' that he forgot to invite him

'Originally it was just close family and obviously Spencer was away. I felt so bad for both of them, and Jamie felt so awful.

'Both of us are so unorganised and it was always supposed to be a really intimate and small wedding but last minute we changed it.

'Essentially it was my bridesmaids and his best men and then two of our best friends who are pregnant and can't make the Spanish wedding, so it looked like there were a lot more people and there was.

Holiday: Spencer and his wife Vogue Williams were in Portugal at the time of Jamie and Sophie's first wedding

'It was never going to be that many people. Spencer was in Portugal when we decided last minute, and Jamie didn't even think really. Obviously, we would have loved him there and it was a silly error.'

After saying 'I do', Jamie and Sophie were the picture of happiness as they emerged from Chelsea Registry Office hand in hand wearing their designer shades, beaming with excitement as they were met with a flurry of confetti.

And Sophie said the experience was 'euphoric,' admitting all her nerves about the big day quickly evaporated and she feels a new sense of calmness as Jamie's wife.
Ola and James Jordan have hit back at trolls who claimed 'it's wrong' for them to share a bed with their three-year-old daughter Ella.

The Strictly Come Dancing Professionals, who have been married since 2003, welcomed Ella in February 2020 after a round of IVF.

Speaking to The Sun on Thursday, the couple revealed that 'so many people have questioned' them about letting their daughter sleep in their bed.

Ola, 40, has dismissed the online trolls, saying 'you just deal with it' and 'no one really knows what they're doing' when it comes to parenting.

James, 45, began: 'So many people have questioned us about the fact we let Ella sleep in our bed, that was always the biggest thing and people said how wrong it is.'

Opinions: Ola and James Jordan have hit back at trolls who claimed 'it's wrong' for them to share a bed with their three-year-old daughter Ella

Hitting back: Ola, 40, has dismissed the online trolls, saying 'you just deal with it' and 'no one really knows what they're doing' when it comes to parenting

Ola continued: 'You can never read the right book - you just deal with it and ask questions. No one is the same. We dont really know what were doing, but no one does. Everyone has their opinions.

Confirming that Ella sleeps better when sharing their bed, she added: 'You have to do what is right for you. Whether she sleeps with you or whether she doesnt. Its about doing what is right for you.'

It comes after Ola and James spoke out about the difficulty they have faced when another baby.

The former Strictly professionals who are parents to three-year-old Ella, revealed how the tot has been asking for a little brother or sister.

Speaking to OK! magazine on the red carpet of Friday night's Together for Short Lives ball, the couple admitted that it's tough for them.

James said: 'We would love to but it's not that easy for us. We would love her to have a brother or sister. She talks about it all the time too!'

Ola added: 'She is so chatty, she just turned three years old on Monday. At three she's quite switched on now, she's quite aware of what's going on.'

Speaking to The Sun about her daughter and the IVF process, Ola said: 'We are very lucky it happened for us on the first attempt, and we're extremely blessed to have Ella, she's such a little character.'

Proud parents: She added: 'You have to do what is right for you. Whether she sleeps with you or whether she doesnt. Its about doing what is right for you'

The dancing mum, who starred on the BBC show from 2006  2015 has made it clear that she would not rule out IVF treatment again, if it was needed.

Appearing on GB News last September, she said: 'I would love to have more children if it happens naturally. If it doesn't I will go for another IVF, yes.'

The Polish-born dancer went on to detail her struggle to conceive naturally, saying: 'It's really hard because you don't know who to turn to.

'Most of my friends used to get pregnant so easily. I didn't understand why I wasn't getting pregnant. I was healthy, fit, I was a professional dancer.'
Jack Whitehall has detailed his fears about becoming a father, days after announcing his girlfriend, model Roxy Horner, is pregnant with their first child.

The comedian, 34, shared the happy news on his Instagram page on Sunday, alongside shots of him and Roxy, 31, holding a baby scan.

But as well as being 'very very excited', Jack admitted he has plenty of 'growing up to do' before welcoming his little one.

Appearing on Thursday's Heart Breakfast alongside hosts Jamie Theakston and Amanda Holden, Jack also revealed how his parents reacted after sharing the happy news.

After receiving a warm congratulations from Amanda, Jack said: 'My girlfriend is pregnant. Terrified, absolutely terrified but very very excited as well and yeah I need to do some growing up! Very quickly!'

Nervous: Jack Whitehall has detailed his fears about becoming a father, days after announcing his girlfriend, model Roxy Horner , is pregnant with their first child

Expecting: The comedian, 34, and the model, 31, shared the happy news on Sunday

Amanda then asked: 'How did Hilary and Michael, your parents, react when you told them the news?'

Jack said: 'They were both delighted, but then within 5 to 10 minutes of me having told them, there was a lot of references from my father about how I was siring him with an illegitimate heir.

'And I was like wow that's going to be the next three or four months of my life', Jack replied.

Jamie quizzed: 'What's the one thing that you won't be passing on to your child that you learned from your parent?'

Jack said: 'One thing that I don't want them to inherit that I've inherited? From my father I mean gout?

'That would be the first on the list! I don't even know if that's hereditary but I certainly don't want that for them.'

In their baby reveal snaps, a delighted looking Jack held up a roll of photographs showing a scan of their unborn child.

Roxy later revealed to HELLO she was relieved to 'finally fall pregnant' after the couple tragically suffered a miscarriage last year.

Candid: Appearing on Thursday's Heart Breakfast alongside hosts Jamie Theakston and Amanda Holden, Jack also revealed how his parents reacted after sharing the happy news

Baby joy! In their baby reveal snaps, a delighted looking Jack held up a roll of photographs showing a scan of their unborn child

In the social media post the model, who was wearing a pretty white summer dress, kept a protective hand on her stomach as she looked over at her beau.

Ever the funnyman, he captioned the shots: 'And I thought I wasn't getting enough attention when the dog arrived'

Roxy also posted the same images on her own page alongside the words: 'The best news to share [white heart emoji]'.

Following the announcement she told the magazine: 'We had a miscarriage last year and so there was a part of me that was worried to open up too soon about this baby because I was so worried something would happen again and I didn't want to have to kind of tell the world.'

She went on to reveal the couple discovered they were expecting a baby during a trip with her family to sunny Australia.

Saying: 'It was really lovely because I got to tell my mum pretty much straight away and I don't get to see my parents too often, so it was a really perfect moment before he went off on tour.

'We found out the same week my nan passed away. There's a part of me that feels like my nan knew we were trying for a baby and maybe this was her gift to us.'

Jack has been dating Roxy for more than two years and they reside in a 17.5 million, five-bedroom home in Notting Hill with their pet pooch Coco.

It comes soon after Jack admitted he was unsure about his path in life after losing some friends to 'rehab' while his other pals have had children.

The comedian explained that although he has now 'settled down' with Roxy, he was still unsure about his future plans.

Appearing on Capital Breakfast with Roman Kemp recently, Jack said he has lost friends to 'rehab' and to having 'babies' as he spoke about his own path in life.

He explained: 'I've settled down, I've got a long-term partner, I've bought a house with her, we've got a dog and doing all of that stuff.

'I don't want to say [my tour] is me raging against the dying of the light [laughs] but it's giving me a sense of this man-child getting through this moment in my life, losing half my friends to rehab, half of my friends to babies and trying to find out which path I'm going to take.'

Listen to Heart Breakfast with Jamie Theakston and Amanda Holden weekdays from 06:30  10:00 and on Global Player
Katie Holmes cut a stylish figure as she posed up a storm at Film AlUla's panel event at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

The actress, 44, put on a very glamorous display as she appeared on the panel at the AlUla Creates initiative event in the resort town.

She showed off her sense of style in a pair of wide leg beige trousers, which she teamed with a matching blazer and a white turtleneck T-shirt.

Katie added some extra height to her frame with a pair of snake print heels and simply accessorised with a dainty pendant and silver earrings.

She styled her glossy brunette locks in natural curls falling loosely across her shoulders and opted for a high-glamour make-up palette.

Chic: Katie Holmes cut a stylish figure as she posed up a storm at Film AlUla's panel event at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Thursday

Stylish: The actress, 44, put on a very glamorous display as she appeared on the panel at the AlUla Creates initiative event in the resort town

The Dawson's Creek star, who is the ex-wife of Tom Cruise, took to her Instagram Stories at the event to announce her partnership with Film AlUla.

She confirmed her new mentoring role with the Saudi Arabian film agency, writing: 'It brings me great joy to be partnering with Film AlUla as a mentor to female filmmakers in the AlUla creates program.

'I believe that women from all parts of the world should be empowered to follow their ambitions.

'I can't wait to experience the creativity these female filmmakers have to offer and to share experience and perspectives from behind the camera.'

Also in attendance at the event was Eva Herzigova, who cut an elegant figure as she joined Katie on the panel.

The Czech model, 50, looked effortlessly chic in a cream long-sleeved shirt and colour coordinated knee-length shorts.

She gave herself a few extra inches with a pair of pointed white heels and kept her essentials in a small cream clutch bag.

She accessorised her understated ensemble with an array of silver pendant necklaces as she added a touch of glitz.

Eva swept her golden locks back into an up-do and accentuated her striking features with lashings of mascara.

Fashionista: She showed off her sense of style in a pair of wide leg beige trousers, which she teamed with a matching blazer and a white turtleneck T-shirt

Stunners: Katie added some extra height to her frame with a pair of snake print heels as she posed with Eva Herzigova

Smart: Czech model Eva, 50, looked effortlessly chic in a cream long-sleeved shirt and colour coordinated knee-length shorts

All smiles: She accessorised her understated ensemble with an array of silver pendant necklaces as she added a touch of glitz

Elegant: Eva swept her golden locks back into an up-do and accentuated her striking features with lashings of mascara

Speakers: Also seen on the panel were Saudi actress Mila Al Zahrani and Film AlUla's executive director Charlene Deleon-Jones

Also seen on the panel were Saudi actress Mila Al Zahrani and Film AlUla's executive director Charlene Deleon-Jones.

The Cannes red carpet is springing to life again as the 76th Film Festival got underway with the premiere of the Louis XV period drama Jeanne du Barry on Tuesday.

And on Wednesday, the Monster premiere took place at the iconic film festival with celebs such as Gemma Chan and Amy Jackson in attendance.

The films synopsis reads: 'When her young son Minato starts to behave strangely, his mother feels that there is something wrong. Discovering that a teacher is responsible, she storms into the school demanding to know whats going on.'

'But as the story unfolds through the eyes of mother, teacher and child, the truth gradually emerges.

'Palme dOr winner and internationally acclaimed director Kore-Eda Hirokazu returns with a delicate, powerfully moving story of love, duty, social conflict and secrets.'

Grinning: Eva was seen addressing the crowds at the panel event at the 76th Cannes Film festival

Glam: Saudi actress Mila Al Zahrani looked smart in a cream suit while Lebanese presenter Raya Abirached stunned in a white dress

Sophisticated: They were also joined on stage by Raya Abirached for the panel event

Exes: Katie and Tom Cruise (pictured in 2005) welcomed their daughter Suri back in April 2006 and got married later that year in November. They announced their split in 2012

The world's biggest film festival will conclude with the Closing Ceremony on May 27.

Meanwhile, an ongoing strike by screenwriters in Hollywood could have unpredictable effects on the French Riviera festival.

But with a festival lined with some much-anticipated big-budget films, including James Mangold's Indiana Jones and the Dial of the Destiny and Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon, the party is sure to go on, regardless.

The world's biggest film festival will conclude with the Closing Ceremony on May 27.
She's celebrating her 33rd birthday with a holiday in one of her favourite spots.

And Charlotte Crosby kicked off her celebrations with a wild night out at Chi Kee Wun in San Antonio Bay on Wednesday.

The Geordie Shore favourite dressed for the sun in a tiny white mini dress as she larked around with her boyfriend Jake Ankers and their pals outside the nightspot.

A camera crew followed the group as they partied into the night, with the celebrations set to air on Charlotte's BBC show Charlotte In Sunderland.

Celebrating: She's celebrating her 33rd birthday with a holiday in one of her favourite spots. And Charlotte Crosby kicked off her celebrations with a wild night out on Wednesday

Kiss me! Charlotte couldn't keep her hands off her beau Jake as the got playful outsideChi Kee Wun in San Antonio Bay

Charlotte showed off her trim figure in a white crochet dress with a skimpy bandeau top and thigh-skimming skirt.

She added nude strappy heels and added a glam face of makeup.

She cosied up to her beau Jake as the group made a rowdy exit from their dinner and drinks.

The couple were making the most of some child-free fun after welcoming their daughter Alba Jean in October.

Charlotte is focusing on her BBC show but it's been reported that the show that shot her to fame Geordie Shore has axed filming for their summer series after an illness swept the cast.

Stars of the MTV reality show had all been flown out to Cyprus to shoot the next instalment but it has been claimed many became too unwell to film.

It has been reported that some stars were so poorly that they returned to the UK as production was abandoned.

A source told The Sun: 'It was horrific - everyone got ill and couldn't film.

Birthday girl: The Geordie Shore favourite dressed for the sun in a tiny white mini dress as she larked around with her boyfriend

Party this way! Charlotte showed off her trim figure in a white crochet dress with a skimpy bandeau top and thigh-skimming skirt

Her man: The couple were making the most of some child-free fun after welcoming their daughter Alba Jean in October

Dressed to party: She added nude strappy heels and added a glam face of makeup

Lights, camera, action! A camera crew followed the group as they partied into the night, with the celebrations set to air on Charlotte's BBC show Charlotte In Sunderland

Reality star: Charlotte is focusing on her BBC show but it's been reported that the show that shot her to fame Geordie Shore has axed filming for their summer series after an illness swept the cast

Filming: Charlotte is focusing on her BBC show but it's been reported that the show that shot her to fame Geordie Shore has axed filming after an illness swept the cast

Jump on board: Charlotte hopped on a moped with a pal as they headed to their next stop

Party people: Charlotte looked delighted to be celebrating with her loved ones in Ibiza

'It ripped through the cast so in the end, bosses had to end filming early and everyone went home.'

MTV were approached for comment by MailOnline at the time.

Last year OG cast members including Charlotte, returned to screens together, 11 years after the reality show first aired in 2011.

Original Geordie Shore paved the way for the success of its American equivalent, Jersey Shore, and follows a group of young adults from Newcastle as they move into a house together.

The reunion series included a group holiday, a long-awaited wedding and a party in the Geordie Shore house.

The new series was dubbed the 'ultimate Geordie throwback' as original cast members made it their mission to organise the reunion.
Winona Ryder transformed back into her iconic Beetlejuice character while filming for the much-anticipated sequel on Thursday.

The actress, 51, once again sported Lydia Deetz' recognisable spiked black locks while filming scenes in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, as anticipation builds for the sequel.

In a first look at filming, she was seen sitting in the passenger seat of a Tesla, which was kitted out with camera equipment as she was driven out of a disused school.

She sat beside the male driver, thought to be her co-star Michael Keaton - who is reprising his role as Beetlejuice in the sequel, slated for release in 2024.

Reprising her role 35 years after the original, Winona sported Lydia's signature fringed wig and a black outfit with white stitching on the collar.

She's back! Winona Ryder transformed back into her iconic Beetlejuice character while filming for the much-anticipated sequel on Thursday

Gothic: The actress, 51, once again sported Lydia Deetz' recognisable spiked black locks while filming scenes in Hitchin, Hertfordshire

She opted for a gothic pale white make-up palette and a touch of lipstick as she looked strikingly similar to her appearance in the original Beetlejuice film.

Production for Beetlejuice 2 kicked off in London on May 10 and the cast and crew are already busy shooting scenes.

The first look at filming for comes after the release date for the hotly-anticipated sequel was revealed.

Earlier this month, it was announced that the sequel to the Tim Burton 1988 horror will hit cinemas on September 6, 2024 - 36 years after the original.

While Winona and Michael will return to their iconic roles, Jenna Ortega will also newly join Beetlejuice 2 to co-star as Deetz's daughter, Variety reported.

Justin Theroux will also star in a yet-to-be-revealed role. Production is expected to commence in London on May 10.

Brad Pitt's Plan B will produce Beetlejuice 2, while Mike Vukadinovich wrote the screenplay.

Nearly a year ago, there were also unconfirmed rumors that Johnny Depp  who recently returned to the big screen with French biographical drama Jeanne du Barry  would make his post-defamation trial comeback with the Beetlejuice sequel.

It is not yet known if the rest of the cast - including Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Jeffrey Jones, and Catherine O'Hara - will be back for the Burton-helmed sequel.

First look: Reprising her role 35 years after the original, Winona sported Lydia's signature fringed wig and a black outfit with white stitching on the collar

First look: In a first look at filming, she was seen sitting in the passenger seat of a Tesla car, which was kitted out with camera equipment while driving out of a disused school

Driving: She was driven around by a man, thought to be her co-star Michael Keaton - who is reprising his role as Beetlejuice in the sequel, slated for release in 2024

In character: She opted for a gothic pale white make-up palette and a touch of lipstick as she looked strikingly similar to her appearance in the original Beetlejuice film

Original: Winona first starred as Lydia Deetz in the original Beetlejuice movie when she was a teenager

Robert Goulet, who played Maxie Dean, tragically passed away in October 2007 at the age of 74. It is unknown if his character will be returning and, if so, who will take on the role.

The original Beetlejuice film saw married couple Barbara (Davis) and Adam Maitland (Baldwin) die in a car accident, with their ghosts haunting their former home.

In a desperate attempt to keep their home from being taken over and remodeled by the Deetzes, they call upon the titular bio-exorcist (Keaton) to scare the family away.

The mischievous Beetlejuice then wreaks havoc on Charles (Jones) and Delia Deetz (O'Hara) as well as their daughter Lydia (Ryder)  who is the only one able to see the ghosts.

Since the release of the original film, it has been over three decades of deliberations and attempts to get a sequel off the ground.

In the 1990s, the cult classic was almost received an island-set sequel titled Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian.

However, the project was eventually shelved as Tim and Michael focused their efforts in the renowned 1992 action-adventure film Batman Returns.

Serious: Winona was seen pulling a sombre facial expression during filming

On set: A lavish car was fully kitted out with camera and filming equipment for the driving scenes

Filming: Production for Beetlejuice 2 kicked off in London on May 10 and the cast and crew are already busy shooting scenes

Exciting: Earlier this month, it was announced that the sequel to the Tim Burton 1988 horror will hit cinemas on September 6, 2024, with Michael Keaton returning as Beetlejuice

Newbie! While Winona and Michael will return to their iconic roles, Jenna Ortega will also newly join Beetlejuice 2 to co-star as Deetz's daughter, according to reports

In the mid 2000s, another project almost came to fruition with Michael and Winona both expected to return for the sequel.

However, after continual delays and scheduling conflicts involving Burton, the project was inevitably lay aside once again in 2019.

Due to the critical acclaim and commercial success, Beetlejuice was adapted into an animated series that ran in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

In 2018, the horror-comedy was developed into a musical that still occasionally holds performances on Broadway to this day.
Riley Keough hopes for no more bad blood with her grandmother Priscilla Presley after their rancorous legal battle came to a close, it is claimed.

The bitter family feud between Priscilla, 77, and Riley, 33, over the multi-million dollar estate of the late Lisa Marie Presley ended this week.

Lawyers for Elvis's widow and Riley announced Tuesday at a Los Angeles probate court that the two had 'reached a settlement.'

'Riley is relieved to have settled the dispute over her mom's estate. She doesn't want any drama with her grandmother,' an insider informed People.

The granddaughter of Elvis Presley 'is still grieving her mom,' who died shockingly at the age of 54 in January after going into cardiac arrest at her Calabasas home.

Lawyers for Priscilla Presley and Riley Keough announced Tuesday at a Los Angeles probate court that the two had 'reached a settlement'

Dearly departed: The bitter family feud between Priscilla, 77, and Riley, 33, over the multi-million dollar estate of the late Lisa Marie Presley (pictured) ended this week

When the legal tussle broke out between Riley and Priscilla, the former 'was hoping they could reach a settlement quickly,' the source added.

At Lisa Marie's memorial service, Riley and her husband Ben Smith-Petersen went public with the arrival of their new baby daughter.

The People source shared that the outbreak of tension between grandmother and granddaughter 'has been very tough for' Riley.

'She wants to focus on making memories with her own daughter now,' the insider revealed to the magazine. 'This is her priority.'

'Priscilla is happy,' her attorney Ronson Shamoun told DailyMail.com when the settlement was reached. 'The families are happy and unified and together and excited for the future.'

Asked if Riley too was happy with the settlement, her attorney Justin Gold told DailyMail.com: 'She would not have agreed to the settlement if she was not happy with it.'

Only two weeks after Lisa Marie's death in January, her mother Priscilla filed a legal challenge to her daughter's will - which gives control of Lisa Marie's wealthy Promenade Trust to her daughter Riley.

Riley, who was reportedly furious when her grandmother went to court to protest the will, did not file an objection to Priscilla's challenge.

Riley, 33, was reportedly furious when her grandmother went to court to protest the will after Lisa Marie's death

And on Tuesday it became clear why: she and her grandmother had buried the hatchet and settled their differences.

It's unlikely that the terms of their settlement will become known to outsiders. After announcing to LA Superior Court Judge Lynn Scaduto that there was an agreement between the two, Gold added that he planned to file a motion to seal the details of the settlement to keep them from the public eye.

The lawyers also declared in court Tuesday that the women had reached a settlement on a second trust involving Lisa Marie's insurance policies - thought to total $35million.

Judge Scaduto scheduled a hearing August 4 for the court to give official approval of both settlements.

Riley always supported her mother during her drawn out, often nasty divorce and child custody disputes with her fourth husband, musician Michael Lockwood, 61, father of Lisa Marie's twin, 14 year-old daughters, Finley and Harper.

It's been reported that Priscilla and Lisa Marie were 'barely speaking' just before the latter's death after Priscilla sided with Lockwood over custody of the twins.

Multiple sources told People that the mother and daughter were not on speaking terms, despite appearing at multiple events together, including the premiere for the Elvis biopic starring Austin Butler.

'Riley was always on her mom's side when it came to Michael (Lockwood),' one source told the magazine. 'It bothered her that her grandmother and Michael flew to (Lisa Marie's) funeral together.'

Just days after Lisa Marie's memorial service, Priscilla filed a petition questioning the 'authenticity and validity' of her trust

Last month, a judge granted Lockwood's petition to be appointed 'guardian ad litem' of Harper and Finley

The will contains the rights to the Graceland mansion (pictured) and a 15 percent stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises

Priscilla also helped Michael get into the ceremony at Elvis's famous home, Graceland, despite her late daughter's wishes.

'Michael was not invited,' a close friend of Lisa Marie told People. 'He came to Memphis under the pretense that he had to chaperone the twins - and he forced his way in with Priscilla's help.

'The last thing Lisa Marie would have wanted was for Michael to be there.'

The rift between Riley and her grandmother began when Priscilla went to court - just days after Lisa Marie's memorial service - to dispute her daughter's decision in 2016 to change her will, remove Priscilla and her ex-manager Barry Siegel as trustees and replace them with Riley.

The will contains the rights to the Graceland mansion and a 15 percent stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises.

Lisa Marie also had two life insurance policies, one believed to be worth $25million and another one for $10million.

As well as replacing Priscilla as a trustee and cutting her out of the will, Lisa Marie's 2016 amendment also named Riley's brother Benjamin as the other trustee.

Benjamin however committed suicide in 2020, leaving Riley as sole named heir.

Riley honored her late mom on the first Mother's Day since since her passing, posting a photo of her mom and father, Danny Keough, 58, holding her as a newborn. 'Lucky to have had the best and most deeply loving mama I could ask for'

Priscilla's challenging petition to the court questioned the 'authenticity and validity' of the trust, claiming that Lisa Marie's signature was 'inconsistent,' and asked to be restored as a trustee.

The grandmother of four also claimed she was not aware Lisa Marie had changed the trust in 2016 until after her daughter passed away.

If Priscilla's petition were granted, she and Riley would be made co-trustees of Lisa Marie's estate.

Last month, Judge Scaduto granted Lockwood's petition to be appointed 'guardian ad litem' of Harper and Finley - allowing him to represent the girls over their mother's hotly-contested estate.

Harper and Finley are both beneficiaries of Lisa Marie's trust while their father Lockwood is not.

But being declared their legal guardian gives him control over his daughters' inheritance - at least until they reach adulthood at 18 - and his second chance to share in the Presley wealth after his first ended in a big fat zero in his divorce.

Lisa Marie - Elvis' only child - filed for divorce from Lockwood in 2016 after 10 years of marriage. The two spent years fighting about finances and were still negotiating over child support for the twins up until her death.

Lockwood asked the divorce court in 2018 to order Lisa Marie to pay him $263,000 a year in spousal support so that he could 'enjoy a lifestyle closer to my marital status of living' - which included lavish entertaining, expensive vacations and flying on private jets.

Michael Lockwood and Lisa Marie spent years fighting about finances and were still negotiating up until her death

And he tried to persuade the judge to tear up a post-nuptial agreement - in which he and Lisa Marie both signed away their rights to the other's property and spousal support if they divorced.

But Lockwood ended up on the losing end, not getting a penny from Lisa Marie after openly admitting that he hadn't read the post-nup and claiming his attorney at the time failed to explain it to him.

The judge upheld the post-nup and threw out Lockwood's case, telling the court: 'If Lockwood elected not to read the post-nup and accept the consequences that it would be upheld, that is his choice.'

Before her death, Lisa Marie and her ex were sharing custody of Finley and Harper and she was reportedly paying him $6,000 a month in child support.

But Lockwood - who is now re-married to hair stylist Stephanie Hobgood - was claiming $40,000 a month, insisting Lisa Marie had much more money than she revealed in court documents and saying his legal battles over the divorce and child custody had cost him more than $1 million.
The highly-anticipated first trailer for Killers Of The Flower Moon was released on Thursday as it features Leonardo DiCaprio's return to the big screen just a few weeks after a sneak peek shown at CinemaCon.

The film explores the harrowing true story of the 'reign of terror' that left two dozen Native Americans dead.

The new trailer showed Ernest Burkhart (played by DiCaprio) arriving in Oklahoma where members indigenous Osage Nation tribe reside, becoming romantically involved with Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladstone), and being interrogated by officer Tom White (Jesse Plemons).

It also features Robert De Niro as cattleman William Hale who is the uncle of Dicaprio's character Burkhart.

The film marks 48-year-old DiCaprio's first film on the big screen since 2019 Quentin Tarantino Flick Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. He also starred in 2021 film Don't Look Up which streamed on Netflix.

He's back: The highly-anticipated first trailer for Killers Of The Flower Moon was released on Thursday as it features Leonardo DiCaprio 's return to the big screen

Icon: It also features Robert De Niro as cattleman William Hale who is the uncle of Dicaprio's character Burkhart

The epic clip is narrated by Burkhart as DiCaprio puts on his best midwestern accent as he says: 'The Osage took their name from Missouri and Osage Rivers. Ni-U-Kon-Ska. Children of the Middle Waters.'

As the plot is centered around Hale convincing his weak-willed nephew Burkhart to marry Kyle in a plot to eventually murder them and inherit their wealth from oil, their courtship and romance could be seen in the early part of the trailer.

Burkhart's narration continues: 'Move, said the great white father. There are many, so many hungry wolves. Can you find the wolves in this picture?'

This is where things in the trailer take a much darker turn as there are several short scenes shown including : Burkhart could be seen comforting Kyle as a lifeless body - who is presumed to be a family member is carried, Hale giving an emphatic handshake, a stabbing, and a shot in the courtroom of Hale sitting next to his attorney W.S. Hamilton who is played by Brendan Fraser.

One of the more interesting scenes showed Burkhart being interrogated by law enforcement officer White in a very intense exchange.

The epic trailer concludes with an atmospheric shot of a room featuring several men and women including Hamilton with Burkhart once again querying: 'Can you find the wolves in this picture?'

The film is set to premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Saturday with a limited release in select cinemas on October 6.

There will later be a wider release in the US on October 20 by Paramount Pictures and will eventually have a streaming release on Apple TV+ but remains unclear when that will happen.

Interesting: The new trailer showed Ernest Burkhart (played by DiCaprio) arriving in Oklahoma where members indigenous Osage Nation tribe reside and becoming romantically involved with Mollie Kyle (Lily Gladstone)

The epic clip is narrated by Burkhart as DiCaprio puts on his best midwestern accent as he says: 'The Osage took their name from Missouri and Osage Rivers. Ni-U-Kon-Ska. Children of the Middle Waters'

As the plot is centered around Hale convincing his weak-willed nephew Burkhart to marry Kyle in a plot to eventually murder them and inherit their wealth from oil, their courtship and romance could be seen in the early part of the trailer

Burkhart's narration continues: 'Move, said the great white father. There are many, so many hungry wolves. Can you find the wolves in this picture?'

This is where things in the trailer take a much darker turn as there are several short scenes shown including : Burkhart could be seen comforting Kyle

There is a lifeless body who is presumed to be a family member of Kyle is carried

The blockbuster is based on the 2017 non-fiction book of the same name written by David Grann. It is set to debut in limited theatres on October 6, with a wide release scheduled for October 20.

Set in the 1920s, it centers on the FBI's investigation into a string of murders after several members of the Osage tribe in Oklahoma were slaughtered.

Killers of the Flower Moon focuses on a little-publicized chapter of American history involving the Osage Nation.

In the 1920s, the Osage tribe became wealthy almost overnight after oil was discovered beneath their land, earning them more than $30 million in annual revenue at the peak of the boom, according to the Oklahoma Historical Society.

Subsurface minerals within the Osage Nation Reservation were tribally owned and held in trust by the government.

Mineral leases earned royalties that were paid to the tribe as a whole - with each allottee receiving one equal share also known as a headright.

But these headrights could only legally be attained by outsiders if they married into the tribe.

It was during this time that rancher William K. Hale, a native of Greenville, Texas, encouraged his subservient nephew Ernest Burkhart to wed Osage member Mollie Kyle (later Mollie Burkhart).

It also showed Hale giving an emphatic handshake

Burkhart is shown getting amorous with Kyle

There was a shot in the courtroom of Hale sitting next to his attorney W.S. Hamilton who is played by Brendan Fraser

One of the more interesting scenes showed Burkhart being interrogated by law enforcement officer White in a very intense exchange

Burkhart did not seem too pleased to be questioned

The epic trailer concludes with an atmospheric shot of a room featuring several men and women including Hamilton with Burkhart once again querying: 'Can you find the wolves in this picture?'

Highly-anticipated: The film is set to premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Saturday with a limited release in select cinemas on October 6

There will later be a wider release in the US on October 20 by Paramount Pictures and will eventually have a streaming release on Apple TV+ but remains unclear when that will happen

Burkhart, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, and wife Mollie, played by Lily Gladstone, lived in Fairfax with Mollie's mother Lizzie Q.

Lizzie was a mother-of-four and in May 1921, the decomposed body of one of other daughters, Anna Brown, was discovered in a remote ravine in northern Oklahoma.

She was found with a bullet hole to the back of the head but, because Brown had no known enemies, the case went unsolved.

Just two months later Lizzie herself died under suspicious circumstances from suspected poisoning, although no proof was ever found.

William K. Hale, a native of Greenville, Texas, encouraged his subservient nephew Ernest Burkhart (right) to wed Osage member Mollie Kyle (left)

In May 1921, Osage native Anna Brown was found with a bullet hole to the back of the head - but her case went unsolved

Her decomposed body was found in a remote ravine (pictured) in the Osage Hills in northern Oklahoma

Then another member of the family, Lizzie's nephew Henry Roan, met a similar fate in January 1923 with Hale, played by Robert De Niro, fraudulently naming himself as the beneficiary of his $25,000 life insurance policy.

But deaths within the family did not end there.

In March 1923, another of Lizzie's daughters Rita Smith, along with Rita's husband William Smith, and their housekeeper Nettie Brookshire were all killed when their home was destroyed by an explosion.

And, following their deaths, Burkhart and Mollie inherited a fortune from her mother's and sisters' estates.

But the murders extended beyond the one family with estimates approximating that 24 Osage Indians died in violent or suspicious deaths throughout the early 1920s with newspapers at the time branding it as a 'reign of terror.'

By this time, authorities had begun to grow suspicious and an alarmed Osage Tribal Council sought the help of the US Government.

Hale's name came up early in the investigation as the mastermind behind the killings.

William Hale, played by Robert De Niro, was accused of bribing and intimidating others to do much of his dirty work on his way to achieving money and power

Members of Lizzie Q's (left) family were called in quick succession including her nephew Henry Roan (right)

The so-called 'King of the Osage Hills' was accused of bribing and intimidating others to do much of his dirty work as he sought to achieve money and power.

The killings subsided after Hale, along with accomplices including his nephew, were arrested in 1926.

Hale was formally convicted for his involvement three years later. He was paroled in 1947 after serving two decades of his sentence.

At the time, investigators also discovered that the killers had already started poisoning Mollie in what would have been the last piece of the crook's masterplan.

Fortunately, she recovered and divorced her murderous husband following the trial.

Actors involved in the production have acknowledged the gravitas of the film's true story.

In the 1920s, the Osage tribe (pictured with President Coolidge) became wealthy almost overnight after oil was discovered beneath their land

Subsurface minerals within the Osage Nation Reservation were tribally owned and held in trust by the government

Lily Gladstone previously shared a picture of Mollie Burkhart to Instagram alongside a caption that read: 'I consider it a true gift and great responsibility to be trusted with Mollie Burkhart, and will hold her preciously with both arms, close to my heart.

'My most profound thanks to Osage Nation, it is a remarkable gift to be welcomed by you, and to be able to tell this story.'

Janae Collins too, who plays Rita Smith, wrote: 'I'm so grateful to the Osage Nation for allowing us to tell their story. This is one of the most painful and heartbreaking time periods in the history of the Wazhazhe people as well as U.S. Native history and

'I take that very, very serious as an actor and as a Lakota/Dakota and Apsaalooke woman. I'm very thankful to Marty Scorsese for the truthfulness, diligence, and care he has taken in this project. He and Leonardo have truly went to bat for us (as Natives) over the years getting it to the point where we are ready to film.

'I'm so thankful/grateful for the love and support we've gotten.'
OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa has claimed a 'weirdo' tried to 'choke her' in her Perth home, forcing her to flee to Queensland.

The 23-year-old moved to Western Australia from the Gold Coast in December after splitting from boyfriend Atis Paul.

'I love Perth, and although I love you guys so much, unfortunately, many people had discovered where I lived, and I wasn't living in a gated community there (like I was in the Gold Coast). Things got scary for me,' she told her 700K followers on Instagram on Wednesday.

'But now I don't have to worry about the one weirdo that tried to choke me when I opened the door thinking it was my pizza (joke or not).

OnlyFans star Mikaela Testa (pictured) has claimed a 'weirdo' tried to 'choke her' in her Perth home, forcing her to flee to Queensland

The 23-year-old moved to Western Australia from the Gold Coast in December after splitting from boyfriend Atis Paul.

'I love and appreciate you guys so much, and you can come to me with anything but knocking on my front door is too far,' she continued.

The incident comes just one week after Testa claimed her parents have disowned her over her OnlyFans career.

During an Instagram Q&A, she claimed she doesn't have a relationship with her family, but bragged about her expensive taste, including a penchant for Cartier jewellery.

'How did your family react to OnlyFans?' one fan asked.

Mikaela responded: 'They disowned me and haven't spoken to me since.'

Testa then went on to say she loves to treat herself to jewellery from high-end jewellers Van Cleef & Arpels and Cartier, in particular the brand's popular Love bracelets, which retail for around $10,000.

'Is the Van Clef bracelets you have worth it?' another fan asked.

'I love Perth, and although I love you guys so much, unfortunately, many people had discovered where I lived, and I wasn't living in a gated community there (like I was in the Gold Coast). Things got scary for me,' she told her 700K followers on Instagram on Wednesday

'But now I don't have to worry about the one weirdo that tried to choke me when I opened the door thinking it was my pizza (joke or not),' she continued

Testa explained: 'I think the fact you have to take it off every time you go in the water is annoying.'

'They're $6700 each and I'm just a Cartier girl but I wanted something different. I have them but hate the water thing.'

Testa has made her fortune by sharing racy photos of herself to paying subscribers on the X-rated site OnlyFans.

She has more than one million subscribers on her Instagram account.

The incident comes just one week after Testa claimed her parents disowned her because of her racy career
Sir Bob Geldof and his wife Jeanne Marine opted for smart looks as they arrived at Grosvenor House for the Ivor Novello Awards on Thursday evening.

Coordinating in sharp suits, the couple joined a host of star-studded arrivals at the annual ceremony, where Sting was honoured with a fellowship.

Trudie, 69, oozed style in a grey suit with oversized lapels, which she teamed with a chic frilled blouse and a pair of cool platform heels.

She wore her auburn locks swept up into an updo and finished the outfit with a pair of quirky shades and a pair of hoop earrings.

Meanwhile, Sir Bob rocked a pinstripe double breasted jacket over a black turtleneck jumper with a pair of grey trousers and suede boots.

Prestigious ceremony: Sir Bob Geldof and his wife Jeanne Marine opted for smart looks as they arrived at Grosvenor House for the Ivor Novello Awards on Thursday evening

Sting, James, Harry Styles and Raye were among the winners at this year's Ivor Novello Awards with Amazon Music.

The former Police frontman performed a special rendition of his song Message in a Bottle at the ceremony as he was honoured with the prestigious Fellowship of The Ivors Academy, joining the likes of Sir Paul McCartney and Kate Bush.

Raye performed Escapism, and she and her co-writers 070 Shake and Mike Sabath won the award for Best Contemporary Song for the track.

An emotional Raye was reduced to tears as she was handed her gong, and she used her acceptance speech to urge major record labels to do more to help songwriters earn more for their work.

She said: 'I've really fought really hard [for this] I started my songwriting career when I was 14 years old after school at BRITs School I was like I just need to be the best I can be. I saw one of these [awards] at 15 and I was like, 'Oh my goodness.' So this is ridiculous.

'I have to take this opportunity to address all the major label representatives in this room. It would be an insult to suggest that you go to work for free, it's an insult that you think that songwriters should do the same. It's time  Songwriters are the beating heart of this industry and it's time to show songwriters respect, I had to use this opportunity to say this.

'Thank you so much to the Ivors Academy.'

Looking good: Coordinating in sharp suits, the couple joined a host of star-studded arrivals at the annual ceremony, where Sting was honoured with a fellowship

Matilda Mann also sang, treating the audience to a cover of Blondie's Heart of Glass in honour of the group's Debbie Harry and Chris Stein receiving the Special International Award.

British indie band James  comprising Tim Booth, Saul Davies, Jim Glennie, Larry Gott and Mark Hunter - scooped the PRS for Music Icon Award.

Speaking on the red carpet ahead of the ceremony, Tim quipped about the honour: 'Every day I get up and look in the mirror and go, 'There goes an icon.'

Insisting that the focus for the group is to keep making new music and not allowing themselves to become a heritage act that only plays their greatest hits on tour, he added: 'We don't look back. We never listen to our back catalogue, we're always looking forward.

Fashion: Trudie, 69, oozed style in a grey suit with oversized lapels, which she teamed with a chic frilled blouse and a pair of cool platform heels

'We think one of the best records we made was the last record and we keep being bloody-minded and we change the set at every gig and we play a lot of new songs and our audience get it and the ones that don't they don't and they don't come and we're happy with that and we've always been happy with that 

'We've always been like, 'People will catch up with great music, so just do your thing and they will come to you in the end.'

Other winners included Charli XCX, who scooped the Visionary Award with Amazon Music, Little Mix, Dua Lipa and The Saturdays' songwriter Kamille, who was honoured with the Outstanding Song Collection award, and Victoria Canal, who took home the Rising Star Award with Amazon Music.
New Delhi, May 18 (UNI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks tomorrow morning for Japan, where he will attend the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, even as a meeting of the Quad Summit is being scheduled there. He proceeds to Papua New Guinea to co-chair the Third Forum for IndiaPacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC III Summit) in Port Moresby, with Sydney being the last stop where he will participate in a bilateral with Australian PM Anthony Albanese, attend a business event and address a mega diaspora event.

Announcing Prime Minister Modis schedule at a special briefing, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said that PM Modi will hold a number of bilateral meetings in Hiroshima, while a bilateral with Japanese PM Fumio Kishida is being scheduled on the sidelines of the G7. While in Hiroshima, PM Modi will also unveil a bust of Mahatma Gandhi.

We are also planning a Quad Leaders meeting in Hiroshima, the Foreign Secretary said.

On Wednesday, Australia announced cancellation of the Quad Summit scheduled in Sydney after US President Joe Biden called off his visit due to domestic compulsions. The leaders of Quad nations, Japan, India, Australia and US are set to meet in Hiroshima instead.

Eight guest nations, including India, Brazil, Australia, Comoros, the Cook Islands, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam are attending the G7.

PM Modi will attend three formal sessions, two on May 20 and one the following day. The first session will be on food, health, development and gender equality, the second on climate, energy and environment, while on May 21, he will attend the session on Towards a Peaceful, Stable and Prosperous World, the FS said.

Indias regular participation in the G7 summits clearly points to increasing recognition that India should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges, including those of peace, security and environment preservation, FS Kwatra said.

Ahead of the summit, India has participated in G7 ministerial level meetings, on climate, energy and environment, and digital tech and finance, he added.

On the second leg of his visit, the PM will visit Papua New Guinea for co-chairing the Third Forum for IndiaPacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC III Summit) in Port Moresby, along with PNG Prime Minister James Marape on May 22. He will also hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines with several of the 14 FIPIC members as well as with New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins. This is PM Modis first visit to Papua New Guinea. The FIPIC summit is being jointly hosted by India and PNG.

He will arrive in Port Moresby on May 21 evening from Hiroshima. The following morning, PM Modi will meet PNG Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae and also hold a bilateral meeting with PM James Marape.

PM will also hold a bilateral with the PM of Fiji Sitiveni Rabuka, who came to power in December last year.

PM Modi had launched the Forum for IndiaPacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) during his visit to Fiji in 2014. The Second FIPIC summit was held in Jaipur in 2015.

FIPIC involves India and 14 Pacific Island Countries (PICs), namely, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, Vanuatu, Niue, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Palau, Nauru and Solomon Islands.

On the third leg of his tour, PM Modi will travel to Sydney from May 22-24, where he will hold a bilateral with PM Anthony Albanese. This will be their fifth meeting this year. The Australian PM was in India in March for the first annual summit. PM Modi will also call on the Governor General David Hurley, and attend a business event with leading CEOs of Australia. PM Modi will address the Indian diaspora at an event on May 23. The Australian Prime Minister is expected to join the community event, FS said.

PM Modi last visited Australia in November 2014.

UNI RN
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Harrison Ford kickstarted the emotional swansong to his on-screen hero Indiana Jones on Thursday evening as he attended the star-studded premiere for The Dial Of Destiny, his fifth and final appearance as the swashbuckling archaeologist, at the 76th annual Cannes Film Festival.

Supported by his wife Calista Flockhart, 58, the veteran actor, 80, graced the red carpet for the first glimpse of the much-anticipated film, alongside his co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

The premiere proved to be the most popular ticket for this year's Cannes Festival, with a slew of glamorous beauties, including Karlie Kloss and Gemma Chan, also in attendance.

But while the night was all about Harrison, finding an appropriate seat at the premiere of his own film was even harder to find than the Lost Ark.

It was a rare public appearance for a couple renowned for their love of privacy, but it was marred by an awkward seating gaffe inside the Palais des Festivals, where Ford's fifth and final offering as Indy was being screened.

As they made their way inside, Calista immediately noticed she had been seated behind her husband, prompting a weak smile as she mentioned the error to a stoney-faced Harrison - who could be heard murmuring 'Oh!'

The actor is set to reprise his role as the titular hero for the final time in the fifth Indiana Jones film, after first taking on the iconic character in 1981 in Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

The film, set for release on June 30, also stars Mads Mikkelsen and Antonio Banderas, and has been directed by James Mangold.

One more time! Harrison Ford kickstarted his farewell to Indiana Jones on Thursday, as he attended the star-studded premiere for The Dial Of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival

Glammed up! The veteran star was joined by his co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who stunned in an eye-catching black fishtail gown as she attended the premiere

Here they come! The premiere proved to be the most popular ticket for this year's Cannes Festival, with a slew of glamorous beauties, including Karlie Kloss (left) and Gemma Chan, also in attendance

Making a rare red carpet appearance with his spouse, Harrison cut a dapper figure as he arrived for the premiere of the newest Indiana Jones film, the first since 2008.

His wife Calista cut a glamorous figure in a plunging black tulle gown as she arrived hand-in-hand with the actor.

As the couple stopped to pose for snaps together, Calista beamed at her husband, as they lead a slew of stars in attendance for the premiere.

Harrison attended the film's premiere, as he prepares to accept an honorary Palme d'Or as a tribute to his performance as Indiana.

Phoebe, who stars in the film as Indiana's goddaughter, cut a glamorous figure in a bold black gown with a fishtail skirt as she posed with the cast of the film.

The Fleabag star teamed the look with matching gloves as she arrived solo for the occasion.

Karlie Kloss, who recently announced she was expecting her second child, showed off her growing bump in a flowing mustard yellow gown from Christian Dior as she attended the glitzy premiere.

Karlie highlighted her blossoming bump in her pretty tulle gown which boasted a one-shouldered neckline and a flowing train.

Mr and Mrs: Harrison was supported by his proud wife Calista Flockhart in a rare red carpet appearance, with the pair arriving for the premiere together hand-in-hand

Sweet: His wife Calista cut a glamorous figure in a plunging black tulle gown as she arrived hand-in-hand with the actor

Pretty! Calista slipped into a gorgeous black gown with a simple tulle skirt and criss-cross velvet straps

Happy! As the couple stopped to pose for snaps together, Calista beamed at her husband, as they lead a slew of stars in attendance for the premiere

Awkward: Calista looked crestfallen after discovering she had not been seated next to husband Harrison at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday evening

Blunder: Making their way inside, she immediately noticed she had been seated behind her husband, prompting a weak smile as she mentioned the error to Ford

What a career! Harrison attended the film's premiere, as he prepares to accept an honourary Palme d'Or as a tribute to his performance as Indiana

Stellar! After arriving at the theatre, Harrison was presented with his Palme d'or by French director of the Cannes Film Festival, Iris Knobloch

Acclaimed! Harrison took to the stage to accept the honour, paying tribute to his illustrious film career

Time to take your seat! After walking the red carpet, Calista and Harrison took their seats together for the screening

Here they are! (L-R) Producer Simon Emanuel, Shaunette Renee Wilsony, Boyd Holbrook, Mads Mikkelsen, Harrison, director James Mangold, Phoebe, Ethann Isidore, and producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall posed together

One last hurrah! Harrison is set to reprise his role as the titular hero for the final time in the fifth Indiana Jones film, after first taking on the iconic character in 1981 in Raiders Of The Lost Ark

Showstopping! Phoebe, who stars in the film as Indiana's goddaughter, cut a glamorous figure in a bold black gown with a fishtail skirt as she posed with the cast of the film

OMG: Phoebe caused onlookers to gawk and point while posing up a storm

Flawless! Phoebe showcased her stunning beauty in the black gown as she took her seat for the screening

Cute! On the red carpet, Phoebe grabbed her co-star Ethann Isidore for a quick embrace

Sensational! Phoebe oozed confidence in her bold black satin gown while posing for a slew of images on the red carpet

Star-studded: It wasn't long before she joined James Mangold, Harrison Ford and Mads Mikkelsen (L-R) for a group picture at the glitzy event

Suave! Mads Mikkelson, who stars as the villain in the fifth Indiana Jones film, was typically suited and booted for the occasion

Stunning! Karlie was among the early arrivals for the star-studded red carpet premiere, and she showed off her growing bump in a flowing yellow gown

Glowing! The model, who recently announced she was expecting her second child, showed off her growing bump in a flowing mustard yellow gown as she attended the glitzy premiere

What a vision! Gemma showed off her amazing physique in a revealing red gown with a daring cut-out to highlight her impressive abs

Incredible! Gemma slipped into a form-fitting satin scarlet gown, a stark contrast to the bridal-inspired look she'd worn the previous evening

Stunner! She looked ravishing in her eye-catching red gown at the premiere of the fifth Indiana Jones film

Gemma showed off her amazing physique in a revealing red gown with a daring cut-out to highlight her impressive abs.

The star blew a kiss for the cameras as she made her latest Cannes red carpet appearance at the premiere.

Styling her glossy raven tresses into loose waves, Gemma posed up a storm in her gorgeous red satin Louis Vuitton gown with a matching train as she arrived for the event.

Rochelle also made a surprise appearance on the red carpet, donning a jaw-dropping black fishtail gown with a plunging front.

The presenter's dress boasted a stunning pearl-studded bodice with matching choker necklaces that showcased her flawless decolletage.

Kat Graham also amped up the glamour at the star-studded event by slipping into a plunging black cinched minidress from Tony Ward Couture with a bold gold sequinned overlay.

Reality star Zara McDermott proved to be another unlikely guest at the much-anticipated premiere of the film, and she certainly didn't disappoint with her stunning look.

The former Love Island star wowed in a dramatic red layered gown with an enormous tulle skirt and train, contrasting with the form-fitting matching bodice.

Zara pulled her glossy brunette tresses into a voluminous ponytail as she ensured photographers caught all angles of her beautiful gown.

Model Adriana Lima showed off her incredible curves in a gorgeous black velvet gown with a yellow layered sash, flowing into a train.

Charlie Heaton and his sister Levi attended the star-studded premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

The Stranger Things star, 29, who is dating his co-star Natalia Dyer, cut a dapper figure in a black tuxedo.

Charlie joined his sister and fellow actress Levi on the red carpet, who put on a glamorous display in a satin black slip dress.

What an outfit! Model Adriana Lima showed off her incredible curves in a gorgeous black velvet gown with a yellow layered sash, flowing into a train

Cheeky! Clearly enjoying her trip down the red carpet, Adriana beamed as she turned to face the sea of cameras at the event

Grand entrance! Adriana's gown accentuated her eye-popping cleavage, accessorised with delicate silver drop earrings

Family affair: Charlie Heaton and his sister Levi attended the premiere together

Dashing: The Stranger Things star, 29, who is dating his co-star Natalia Dyer, cut a dapper figure in a black tuxedo

Dapper: The dashing ensemble consisted of a long coat and a crisp white shirt, teamed with a bow tie and shiny shoes

Jaw-dropping! Rochelle also made a surprise appearance on the red carpet, donning a jaw-dropping black fishtail gown with a plunging front

Gorgeous! The presenter's dress boasted a stunning pearl-studded bodice with matching choker necklaces that showcased her flawless decolletage

Edgy! Kat Graham also amped up the glamour at the star-studded red carpet event by slipping into a plunging black cinched minidress with a bold gold sequinned overlay

Sizzling! Her gown boasted a dramatic matching train and was emblazed with gold sequins as she posed up a storm on the red carpet for the latest premiere at the film festival

She's here! Reality star Zara McDermott proved to be another unlikely guest at the much-anticipated premiere of the film, and she certainly didn't disappoint with her stunning look

What an outfit! The former Love Island star wowed in a dramatic red layered gown with an enormous tulle skirt and train, contrasting with the form-fitting matching bodice

A vision! Zara pulled her glossy brunette tresses into a voluminous ponytail as she ensured photographers caught all angles of her beautiful gown

Glitzy: The TV personality topped off her glamorous look with a dusting of bronze eyeshadow and accessorised with star-shaped earrings

Legs for days! Lady Victoria Hervey put on a leggy display in an extravagant electric blue ruffled mini dress and gold sequinned heels as she arrived solo

Bringing the glamour! She styled her blonde tresses into a curled half-up, half-down style for the occasion

Stunner! Neelam Gill opted for a pale pink gown adorned with sequins and an enormous tulle skirt

Ab-tastic! Actress Sara Foster flaunted her impressive abs in a futuristic silver bralet and a matching voluminous blue skirt

What an outfit! Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan stunned in an extravagant silver hooded gown with an enormous oversized bow

Grand arrival: Also in attendance for the premiere was Indigenous leader Cacique Raoni Metuktire of the Brazilian Kayapo tribe (pictured centre)

Harrison has already moved on from the franchise, taking over the Thunderbolt Ross role from the late William Hurt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set in the year 1969, following Ford's Indiana Jones set against the backdrop of the American 'space race.'

Jones is said to be, 'uneasy' about the American government enlisting former Nazis in their race to beat the Russians to the moon.

Franchise newcomer Phoebe joins the sequel as Helena Shaw, Indy's goddaughter, along with Mads Mikkelsen as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA.

Other newcomers include Antonio Banderas as Renaldo, a friend of Indy, Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber, Toby Jones as Basil Shaw and Boyd Holbrook as Klaber.

Phoebe portrays Indiana Jones' goddaughter Helena Shaw in the movie, with filmmakers describing the character as 'slippery' and 'charming'.

'She's a mystery and a wonder,' Phoebe, who also stars alongside Antonio Banderas in the film told Empire, about her character.

'Making the film was everything I could have hoped for, with a chance to work on my own stunts and action sequences,' she added.

'If the script said throw yourself on to the back of a vehicle, I threw myself on to the back of a vehicle!'

The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie.

'This is the final film in the series, and this is the last time I'll play the character. I anticipate that it will be the last time that he appears in a film,' Harrison recently confirmed himself in an interview with Total Film.

It was reported in November that Disney Plus was in early stages of developing an Indiana Jones TV series, though Harrison insisted he was not involved with that either.

He said he will, 'not be involved in that, if it does come to fruition,' adding he's quite excited for fans to see the final Indy adventure.

'I had been ambitious to do this film for 10 years, and there finally came a time when we all committed to that,' the actor admitted.

'It was a joyous moment for me. I think it's a rare situation that I find myself in.'

'I've been able to deliver amazing films developed by Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] over a 40-year period, and to end it not with a whimper, but a bang, has been my greatest ambition for this excursion.'
Johnny Depp bragged about the dismal state of his teeth in a 1995 Premiere magazine interview that resurfaced this week.

The remarks were unearthed by Page Six after Johnny's appearance at the Cannes Film Festival this Tuesday, which prompted fans to troll him for his 'rotten' gnashers.

In the Premiere article, Johnny declared: 'Ive got loads of cavities. I had a root canal done eight years ago thats unfinished. Its like a rotten little stub.'

He insisted: 'But I like it. Its like when the Indians would make something beaded, they would always put imperfections on it.'

Johnny, who at the time of the interview was 31, indicated his uneven bottom teeth and said: 'Im proud of these.'

Flashback: Johnny Depp bragged about the dismal state of his teeth in a 1995 Premiere magazine interview that resurfaced this week; he is pictured at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival

Wow: The remarks were unearthed by Page Six after Johnny's appearance at the Cannes Film Festival this Tuesday (pictured), which prompted fans to troll him for his 'rotten' gnashers

'I've got loads of cavities': In the Premiere article, Johnny dished: 'I had a root canal done eight years ago thats unfinished,' adding: 'It's like a rotten little stub'

The Edward Scissorhands star added: 'When I see people with perfect teeth, it drives me up the wall. Id rather swallow a tick than have that!'

His interviewer marveled that he managed not to have foul-smelling breath - this in spite of his dental condition plus the cigarettes and wine he had just indulged in.

Fans said he looked like Captain Jack Sparrow as he showed off his 'rotten' smile while launching his comeback at Cannes on Tuesday.

The actor, 59, received a seven-minute standing ovation at the premiere of his film Jeanne du Barry after his blockbuster court trial saw his ex-wife Amber Heard ordered to pay him $8million in damages.

But fans couldn't help but pick up on the actor's smile and how his browning teeth showed visible signs of decay as he posed for photographers on the red carpet.

Johnny recently signed a $20million cologne deal with Dior, thanks to his striking looks and charm.

But unlike many Hollywood stars, the actor has shunned spending thousands on pearly white veneers or expensive composite bonding.

Social media commentators flocked to Twitter to urge Johnny to go to the dentist.

Fans said he looked like Captain Jack Sparrow as he showed off his 'rotten' teeth while making his Hollywood comeback at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday

Concern: Fans couldn't help but pick up on the actor's smile and how his browning teeth showed visible signs of decay (right pictured in Pirates Of The Caribbean with gold teeth)

'Very, very, very inspired to brush my teeth, floss and use a tongue scraper every time I see a pic of Johnny Depp at Cannes,' one user said.

'@Dior Johnny Depp needs to see a dentist. His teeth make him look unhealthy,' another wrote.

'Johnny Depp's teeth appear to be rotting,' a third chimed.

'Johnny Depp appears to have forgotten to brush his teeth this morning,' a different Tweet read.

But a different user said: 'If Johnny Depp doesn't want fake ultra white teeth he doesn't need them. I have seen a lot worse as well.'

Johnny is known for transforming his smile depending on the roles he plays. For Pirates of the Caribbean he had extensive gold capping of his teeth.

He held onto the gold caps until filming closed on the third installment of the franchise.

Johnny has also been open about his battle with substance abuse and told the court during the defamation trial he'd tried 'every kind of drug known to man' by age 14.

Gnashers: unlike many Hollywood stars, the actor has shunned spending thousands on pearly white veneers or expensive composite bonding

'He appears to have forgotten to brush his teeth': Fans took to Twitter to urge Johnny to go to the dentist

Drug use can erode tooth enamel and expose the underlying dentine to decay-causing bacteria.

During the premiere on Tuesday, Johnny welled up with tears as he received a seven minute standing ovation for his comeback film.

The acclaimed actor - who plays King Louis XV in the period drama - teared up while taking in the moment with director and co-star Maiwenn by his side.

The film is his first project since he was blackballed by Hollywood in the years following his ex-wife Amber Heard's abuse allegations in 2016.

But after a six-week trial last year, it was determined that Amber had defamed her ex-husband and she was ordered to pay him over $8million in damages  though they later agreed on $1million in order to put an end to their legal battle.

The Cry-Baby heartthrob was greeted with applause and supported by a sea of adoring fans upon his arrival.

Emotional: During the premiere on Tuesday, Johnny welled up with tears as he received a seven minute standing ovation for his comeback film

Johnny couldn't hide his delight about being back in the Hollywood fold, after previously being dropped from several projects during the trial, including the Fantastic Beasts film franchise.

According to reports, throngs of onlookers shouted 'Johnny!' as Depp, in purple-hued sunglasses signed autographs and edged back into the spotlight.

Jeanne du Barry has been billed as Johnny's comeback - though his prominent presence at Cannes has been hotly debated.

Despite earning a standing ovation, the critics had mixed reactions to both Johnny's performance and the film itself.
Bruce Willis' wife Emma Heming Willis is continuing to champion for those afflicted with dementia as her own husband battles the devastating illness.

On Monday, Heming, 44, attended a screening of Empty Little Boxes, a documentary by best-selling author Max Lugareve whose mother is suffering from the ailment.

She also shed light on her own experience with the disease, noting how 'options are slim' for those impacted with the ailment.

Willis posted photos with Lugareve and the movie poster as she praised the film and his efforts to raises awareness surrounding the disease.

'Last night I was lucky enough to see a screening of @maxlugavere and @chrisnewhard new documentary, Little Empty Boxes,' her caption began.

'Some wont take that lying down': Bruce Willis' wife Emma Heming Willis is continuing to champion for those afflicted with dementia as her own husband battles the devastating illness

'Max chronicles his mother Kathys battle with dementia while he educates himself on everything he can do to help her. His love for his mother is powerful. His motivation to find answers from leading health experts is inspiring and then be so gracious to share that information is a true blessing.

'It would be an absolute disservice if this documentary is not on a screen near us soon.

'Thank you Max for being so brave and vulnerable to share the journey and spotlighting the importance of brain health. When you live the world of dementia you know that options are slim.

'But some wont take that lying down which is how change is made and I got to witness the beauty in that last night. #dementiaawareness #brainhealthawareness #paintopurpose.'

Bruce withdrew from acting last year as he began his fight with aphasia, which has caused his language abilities to deteriorate. His family announced his health condition and retirement in a statement released at the time.

On February 16, 2023 Bruce's family revealed in another joint statement that his condition had progressed, and he had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

FTD occurs when nerve cells in the lobes behind the forehead die and the pathways that connect them change.

Symptoms are different from just the memory loss that is associated with Alzheimer's disease.

New film: On Monday, Heming, 44, attended a screening of Empty Little Boxes, a documentary by best-selling author Max Lugareve whose mother is suffering from the ailment

Devastating: The Hollywood icon withdrew from acting last year as he began his fight with aphasia which caused his language abilities to deteriorate

Family: Willis and his wife Emma have two daughters, Mabel, 10, and Evelyn, eight, together

These may include; personality changes, such as becoming tactless, uninterested in others and unsympathetic, repeated and compulsive movements, such as continued use of certain phrases, hoarding and obsession over timekeeping, craving unhealthy food and forgetting table manners, speaking difficulties, including slow speech, grammatical errors and asking the meaning of familiar words.

The statement, from Bruce's wife Emma, ex-wife Demi Moore and five daughters was posted on The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration's website.

It read: 'Our family wanted to start by expressing our deepest gratitude for the incredible outpouring of love, support and wonderful stories we have all received since sharing Bruce's original diagnosis.

'In the spirit of that, we wanted to give you an update about our beloved husband, father and friend since we now have a deeper understanding of what he is experiencing.

'Since we announced Bruce's diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruce's condition has progressed and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD).

'Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.

The Willis/Heming family statement in full 'As a family, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the outpouring of love and compassion for Bruce over the past ten months. Your generosity of spirit has been overwhelming, and we are tremendously grateful for it. For your kindness, and because we know you love Bruce as much as we do, we wanted to give you an update. 'Since we announced Bruces diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruces condition has progressed and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD). Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis. 'FTD is a cruel disease that many of us have never heard of and can strike anyone. For people under 60, FTD is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, FTD is likely much more prevalent than we know. Today there are no treatments for the disease, a reality that we hope can change in the years ahead. As Bruces condition advances, we hope that any media attention can be focused on shining a light on this disease that needs far more awareness and research.' Bruce always believed in using his voice in the world to help others, and to raise awareness about important issues both publicly and privately. We know in our hearts that  if he could today -- he would want to respond by bringing global attention and a connectedness with those who are also dealing with this debilitating disease and how it impacts so many individuals and their families. 'Ours is just one family with a loved one who suffers from FTD, and we encourage others facing it to seek out the wealth of information and support available through AFTD (@theaftd, theaftd.org). And for those of you who have been fortunate enough to not have any personal experience with FTD, we hope that you will take the time to learn about it, and support AFTDs mission in whatever way you can. 'Bruce has always found joy in life  and has helped everyone he knows to do the same. It has meant the world to see that sense of care echoed back to him and to all of us. We have been so moved by the love you have all shared for our dear husband, father, and friend during this difficult time. Your continued compassion, understanding, and respect will enable us to help Bruce live as full a life as possible.' -Emma, Demi, Rumer, Scout, Tallulah, Mabel, and Evelyn Advertisement

'FTD is a cruel disease that many of us have never heard of and can strike anyone. For people under 60, FTD is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, FTD is likely much more prevalent than we know.

'Today there are no treatments for the disease, a reality that we hope can change in the years ahead. As Bruce's condition advances, we hope that any media attention can be focused on shining a light on this disease that needs far more awareness and research.

'Bruce always believed in using his voice in the world to help others, and to raise awareness about important issues both publicly and privately.

'We know in our hearts that  if he could today -- he would want to respond by bringing global attention and a connectedness with those who are also dealing with this debilitating disease and how it impacts so many individuals and their families.

'Ours is just one family with a loved one who suffers from FTD, and we encourage others facing it to seek out the wealth of information and support available through AFTD (@theaftd, theaftd.org).

'And for those of you who have been fortunate enough to not have any personal experience with FTD, we hope that you will take the time to learn about it, and support AFTD's mission in whatever way you can.

'Bruce has always found joy in life  and has helped everyone he knows to do the same. It has meant the world to see that sense of care echoed back to him and to all of us.

'We have been so moved by the love you have all shared for our dear husband, father, and friend during this difficult time. Your continued compassion, understanding, and respect will enable us to help Bruce live as full a life as possible.'

The statement was signed by Emma, Demi, and his daughters Rumer, Scout, Tallulah, Mabel, and Evelyn.

Willis shares Rumer, 34, Scout, 31 and Tallulah, 29, with Moore, 60 to whom he was married from 1987 to 2000. He also has two daughters, Mabel, 11, and Evelyn, nine, with his wife Emma, 44.

Back in March 2022, Bruce's blended family issued their first joint statement on the actor's health, announcing that he was 'stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.'

The statement revealed he had 'been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities.'

The full statement read: 'To Bruce's amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities.

'As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.

'This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support. We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him.

'As Bruce always says, 'Live it up' and together we plan to do just that.'

The actor had reportedly been struggling with cognitive issues on the sets of his films for years - and even needed an earpiece to feed him lines.

Bruce was seen wearing an earpiece in a scene in his movie American Siege, which was filmed in 2020, two years before the family's announcement that he has aphasia.
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Model and entrepreneur Emily Ratajkowski always finds new ways to market her swim line from her very own company Inamorata Woman.

This week the 31-year-old Vogue model shared a peek at what her new campaign looks like.

Instead of posing on a pristine white sand beach or by a luxurious infinity pool, the New York resident has shown off her latest designs in a blue-tiled shower.

The single mother was seen wearing a red string bikini as she wore her chocolate brown hair down while getting wet in new images shared to social media on Thursday.

The pouty star - who was last seen in a mint green blazer in NYC - wrote in her Instagram caption, 'Inamorata Woman x Mirror Palais,' as she added the collection would debut on May 26.

Red-y to wash: Model and entrepreneur Emily Ratajkowski always finds new ways to market her swim line for her company Inamorata. This week the 31-year-old Vogue model shared a peek at what her new campaign looks like

All that's missing is the soap: Instead of posing on a pristine white sand beach or by a luxurious infinity pool, the New York resident has shown off her latest designs in a shower

She also linked to photographer Anafer who said, 'Such an honor to be a part of this, forever grateful xx.'

Her brand has partnered up with New York City based brand Mirror Palais.

Mirror Palais is a sustainable womenswear pre order brand founded in 2019 by Marcelo Gaia.

After working for almost a decade as a stylist, Gaia decided to create his own label - with the mission to celebrate the 'confident women who inspire him,' it says on the company's website.

Gaia's swim pieces are reflective of his Brazilian heritage - a kaleidoscopic flurry of 80s inspired neon prints contrasting with softer ditsy florals.

'His collection feels more like a nod to vintage silhouettes, updated to fit the stylistic needs of the modern woman,' the site added.

It was added, 'Every garment is designed and made in New York with the intention of bringing fair wages and craftsmanship to the forefront of the fashion conversation. When you buy Mirror Palais, you're supporting a modicum of the garment district ecosystem.'

Marcelo wrote on social media: 'Growing up in New York so far away from my family in Brasil I've always longed for a deeper connection to my culture. My mom spoke Portuguese at home, would take us to churrasco with friends in Astoria and play Chico Buarque de Holanda & Rita Lee on the weekends while we cleaned the house, but we didn't get to visit often because we couldn't afford to.

'Since starting Mirror Palais I've been fortunate to spend more time in my mother's country and connect with my family/make new friends.

'I have a deep admiration and respect for Emily and am so honored to share a piece of this beautiful culture with her, and her first caipirinha de maracuja. I hope you guys love this collection we designed together as much as we do. Thank you to both the Mirror Palais and Inamorata teams for bringing our vision to life.'

Does it work? The single mother was seen wearing a red string bikini while getting wet in a blue tiled shower in new images shared to social media on Thursday

Sexy time in a bathroom: The pouty brunette wrote in her Instagram caption, 'Inamorata Woman x Mirror Palais,' as she added the collection would debut on May 26

But does it work? She also linked to photographer Anafer who said, 'Such an honor to be a part of this, forever grateful xx.' The setting is unusual

This comes after Ratajkowski dodged admitting whether she is a member of the mile high club.

The fashion model, who is reportedly still dating Harry Styles, 29, after they were spotted kissing in Tokyo replied: 'Lol' when asked if she had ever had sex mid-flight.

When asked: 'Are you a member of the mile-high club?' in a question and answer session for the new issue of HommeGirls magazine, mum-of-one Emily responded: 'Lol,' before adding: 'That's my response to that one.'

She also replied to the question: 'Do you f**k with airplane food?' by saying: 'On this airplane, hell yes! Even Japanese airplane food is decent. They just don't miss.'

And Emily described a recent trip to Tokyo as impulsive  and admitted she had taken her two-year-old boy Sylvester along for the trip.

The 'Gone Girl' actress said when asked to describe the 'most impulsive' thing she had recently done: 'Flown to Tokyo with my two best friends and two-year-old.'

Emily conducted the chat in Tokyo, apparently at the same time she was seen kissing Harry on a Tokyo street.

Is this art? Her brand has partnered up with New York City based brand Mirror Palais. Mirror Palais is a sustainable womenswear pre order brand founded in 2019 by Marcelo Gaia.

A closer look: She was also seen in these blurry images where body parts were zoomed in on. After working for almost a decade as a stylist, Gaia decided to create his own label - with the mission to celebrate the 'confident women who inspire him,' it says on the company's website

She said in her chat with HommeGirls magazine she was in the city when chatting to them, and was getting breakfast after taking a bath with her little boy.

Emily split from husband of four years Sebastian Bear-McClard, 42, in July.

And since the break up from the film producer has also dated comedian Eric Andre, 39, DJ Orazio Rispo, 36, actor Pete Davidson, 29, artist Jack Greer, 35, and been linked to 59-year-old Brad Pitt.

Emily also recently revealed her other big passion is writing, and said she is planning on becoming a screenwriter and novelist.

A fan: Marcelo wrote on social media, 'I have a deep admiration and respect for Emily and am so honored to share a piece of this beautiful culture with her, and her first caipirinha de maracuja. I hope you guys love this collection we designed together as much as we do'

The catwalker is already a top selling writer as her 2021 essay collection 'My Body' was a New York Times bestseller.

She told Elle magazine about how she wants her next two projects to be a screenplay and work of fiction: 'I would love to try my hand at screenwriting.

'To build out the media company that I founded around the podcast.

'I definitely would like to write future books.

'To try my hand at fiction, even if it's thinly veiled, simply because I feel like the way that I exposed myself in 'My Body', I don't know that I would ever want to do that again.'
Phoebe Waller-Bridge looked gorgeous while attending the Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny premiere during the 76th Cannes Film Festival.

The actress, 37, cut an elegant figure in a black silk gown featuring a fishtail which she wore with matching opera gloves.

Phoebe, who plays Indiana's goddaughter Helena Shaw in the upcoming blockbuster, caused onlookers to gawk and point while posing up a storm.

She flashed a beaming smile towards photographers before sharing a snap with her co-star Ethann Isidore, who portrays Teddy Kumar.

It wasn't long before she joined James Mangold, Harrison Ford and Mads Mikkelsen for a group picture at the glitzy event.

Wow! Phoebe Waller-Bridge looked gorgeous while attending the Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny premiere during the 76th Cannes Film Festival

The premiere proved to be the most popular ticket for this year's Cannes Festival, with a slew of glamorous beauties, including Karlie Kloss and Gemma Chan, also in attendance.

Harrison is set to reprise his role as the titular hero for the final time in the fifth Indiana Jones film, after first taking on the iconic character in 1984 in Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

The film, set for release on June 30, also stars Mads as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA, and has been directed by James Mangold.

Harrison has already moved on from the franchise, taking over the Thunderbolt Ross role from the late William Hurt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set in the year 1969, following Ford's Indiana Jones set against the backdrop of the American 'space race.'

The protagonist is said to be, 'uneasy' about the American government enlisting former Nazis in their race to beat the Russians to the moon.

Other newcomers include Antonio Banderas as Renaldo, a friend of Indy, Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber, Toby Jones as Basil Shaw and Boyd Holbrook as Klaber.

Phoebe portrays Indiana Jones' goddaughter Helena Shaw in the movie, with filmmakers describing the character as 'slippery' and 'charming'.

OMG: Phoebe caused onlookers to gawk and point while posing up a storm

Sizzling: The actress, 37, cut an elegant figure in a black silk gown featuring a fishtail which she wore with matching opera gloves

Talented: She plays Indiana's goddaughter Helena Shaw in the upcoming blockbuster

Happy: She flashed a beaming smile towards photographers

Star-studded: It wasn't long before she joined James Mangold, Harrison Ford and Mads Mikkelsen (L-R) for a group picture at the glitzy event

'She's a mystery and a wonder,' Phoebe, who also stars alongside Antonio Banderas in the film told Empire, about her character.

'Making the film was everything I could have hoped for, with a chance to work on my own stunts and action sequences,' she added.

'If the script said throw yourself on to the back of a vehicle, I threw myself on to the back of a vehicle!'

The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie.

'This is the final film in the series, and this is the last time I'll play the character. I anticipate that it will be the last time that he appears in a film,' Harrison recently confirmed himself in an interview with Total Film.

It was reported in November that Disney Plus was in early stages of developing an Indiana Jones TV series, though Harrison insisted he was not involved with that either.

He said he will, 'not be involved in that, if it does come to fruition,' adding he's quite excited for fans to see the final Indy adventure.

'I had been ambitious to do this film for 10 years, and there finally came a time when we all committed to that,' the actor admitted.

'It was a joyous moment for me. I think it's a rare situation that I find myself in.'

'I've been able to deliver amazing films developed by Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] over a 40-year period, and to end it not with a whimper, but a bang, has been my greatest ambition for this excursion,' he continued.
Cinema's favourite treasure-hunter is finally back, and in his wake a parade of glamorous stars ventured onto the red carpet as Indiana Jones and the Dial Of Destiny kicked off day three of the 76th Cannes Film Festival.

While Harrison Ford inevitably claimed the spotlight, Gemma Chan ensured she turned heads during her second premiere in as many days.

The British actress, 40, looked stunning in an elegant red evening gown from Louis Vuitton while greeting photographers in the French resort town on Thursday evening.

The dress featured a tasteful halterneck and smark knotted detail, while a sweeping train followed her across the red carpet as she prepared for the ceremony's latest screening.

Strappy heels completed the look and a notable lack of accessories ensured her outfit took centre stage as she joined fellow guests Gemma Chan, Kat Graham, Adriana Lima and Phoebe Waller-Bridge at the event.

Looking good: Gemma Chan ensured she turned heads during her appearance at the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on Thursday evening

Stunning: The British actress caught the eye in an elegant red evening gown on Thursday evening

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set in the year 1969, following Ford's Indiana Jones set against the backdrop of the American 'space race.'

Jones is said to be, 'uneasy' about the American government enlisting former Nazis in their race to beat the Russians to the moon.

Franchise newcomer Phoebe Waller-Bridge joins the sequel as Helena Shaw, Indy's goddaughter, along with Mads Mikkelsen as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA.

Other newcomers include Antonio Banderas as Renaldo, a friend of Indy, Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber, Toby Jones as Basil Shaw and Boyd Holbrook as Klaber.

Phoebe portrays Indiana Jones' goddaughter Helena Shaw in the movie, with filmmakers describing the character as 'slippery' and 'charming'.

Chan-tastic: Gemma blew kisses to the crowd as she made her way across the red carpet

Lovely: The actress's dress featured a tasteful halterneck and smart knotted detail at the hip

High glamour: Gemma was surrounded by photographers during her latest appearance at the annual event

'She's a mystery and a wonder,' Phoebe, who also stars alongside Antonio Banderas in the film told Empire, about her character.

'Making the film was everything I could have hoped for, with a chance to work on my own stunts and action sequences,' she added.

'If the script said throw yourself on to the back of a vehicle, I threw myself on to the back of a vehicle!'

The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie.

'This is the final film in the series, and this is the last time I'll play the character. I anticipate that it will be the last time that he appears in a film,' Harrison recently confirmed himself in an interview with Total Film.

It was reported in November that Disney Plus was in early stages of developing an Indiana Jones TV series, though Harrison insisted he was not involved with that either.

Tasteful: She styled her hair with a simple centre parting and selected her make-up from a natural colour palette

Don't mind me: But Gemma was hard to miss as she made her way out of the Hotel Martinez ahead of the red carpet event on Thursday evening

We've got you covered: The British star was accompanied by security guards prior to the event

He said he will, 'not be involved in that, if it does come to fruition,' adding he's quite excited for fans to see the final Indy adventure.

'I had been ambitious to do this film for 10 years, and there finally came a time when we all committed to that,' the actor admitted.

'It was a joyous moment for me. I think it's a rare situation that I find myself in.'

'I've been able to deliver amazing films developed by Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] over a 40-year period, and to end it not with a whimper, but a bang, has been my greatest ambition for this excursion.'
Adriana Lima made sure to turn heads for the star-studded premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

The model, 41, wore an elegant bandeau gown with a large structured bow as she shared a kiss with her boyfriend Andre Lemmers on the red carpet.

The couple looked as loved-up as ever as they shared a sweet moment with Andre later holding Adriana's face in his hands.

She looked sensational in the velvet number by Tamara Ralph Couture that nipped in at the waist with a corseted bodice and featured a bright yellow train.

To complete her look Adriana slicked her brunette hair back into a chic updo and added a feline flick of black eye liner.

Elegant: Adriana Lima, 41, made sure to turn heads for the star-studded premiere of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday

Stunning: The model wore an elegant bandeau gown with a large structured bow and bright yellow train that fanned across the red carpet

Harrison Ford is set to reprise his role as the titular hero for the final time in the fifth Indiana Jones film, after first taking on the iconic character in 1984.

The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie.

'This is the final film in the series, and this is the last time I'll play the character. I anticipate that it will be the last time that he appears in a film,' Harrison recently confirmed himself in an interview with Total Film.

It was reported in November that Disney Plus was in early stages of developing an Indiana Jones TV series, though Harrison insisted he was not involved with that either.

He said he will, 'not be involved in that, if it does come to fruition,' adding he's quite excited for fans to see the final Indy adventure.

'I had been ambitious to do this film for 10 years, and there finally came a time when we all committed to that,' the actor admitted. It was a joyous moment for me. I think it's a rare situation that I find myself in.'

'I've been able to deliver amazing films developed by Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] over a 40-year period, and to end it not with a whimper, but a bang, has been my greatest ambition for this excursion,' he continued.

Beaming: She flashed a smile while posing for photos

Sophisticated: She looked sensational in the fitted number that featured a plunging, asymmetric neckline

Cute: The former Victoria's Secret Angel was joined at the event by Andre, who sweetly held her face in his hands

Cute: The couple shared a kiss on the red carpet

Loved-up: Andre looked dapper in a black suit

Event: The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie

This year's festival promises a Cote d'Azur buffet of spectacle, scandal and cinema set to be served over the next 12 days.

It's unspooling against the backdrop of labor unrest. Protests that have roiled France in recent months over changes to its pension system are planned to run during the festival, albeit at a distance from the festival's main hub.

Meanwhile, an ongoing strike by screenwriters in Hollywood could have unpredictable effects on the French Riviera festival.

But with a festival lined with some much-anticipated big-budget films, including James Mangold's Indiana Jones and the Dial of the Destiny and Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon, the party is sure to go on, regardless.

The world's biggest film festival will conclude with the Closing Ceremony on May 27.
She's been a fixture on the red carpet at this year's festivities.

And Lady Victoria Hervey put on another leggy display in a fun blue ruffled mini dress as she attended the star-studded premiere of Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

The socialite, 46, showed off her slender pins in the eye-catching piece as she posed up a storm on the red carpet.

Victoria slipped into the electric blue dress that was adorned with enorous ruffles, and boasted a plunging back.

She teamed the frock with gold strapped heels, with her blonde tresses styled into a voluminous half-up, half-down style.

Flawless! Lady Victoria Hervey put on another leggy display in a fun blue ruffled mini dress as she attended the premiere of Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival

The premiere proved to be the most popular ticket for this year's Cannes Festival, with a slew of glamorous beauties, including Karlie Kloss and Gemma Chan, also in attendance.

Harrison is set to reprise his role as the titular hero for the final time in the fifth Indiana Jones film, after first taking on the iconic character in 1984 in Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

The film, set for release on June 30, also stars Mads Mikkelson as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA, and has been directed by James Mangold.

The film, set for release on June 30, also stars Mads as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA, and has been directed by James Mangold.

Harrison has already moved on from the franchise, taking over the Thunderbolt Ross role from the late William Hurt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set in the year 1969, following Ford's Indiana Jones set against the backdrop of the American 'space race.'

The protagonist is said to be, 'uneasy' about the American government enlisting former Nazis in their race to beat the Russians to the moon.

Other newcomers include Antonio Banderas as Renaldo, a friend of Indy, Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber, Toby Jones as Basil Shaw and Boyd Holbrook as Klaber.

Bold! The socialite showed off her slender pins in the eye-catching piece as she posed up a storm on the red carpet

Hard to miss! Victoria slipped into the electric blue dress that was adorned with enorous ruffles, and boasted a plunging back

Grand arrival! She teamed the frock with gold strapped heels, with her blonde tresses styled into a voluminous half-up, half-down style

Phoebe portrays Indiana Jones' goddaughter Helena Shaw in the movie, with filmmakers describing the character as 'slippery' and 'charming'.

'She's a mystery and a wonder,' Phoebe, who also stars alongside Antonio Banderas in the film told Empire, about her character.

'Making the film was everything I could have hoped for, with a chance to work on my own stunts and action sequences,' she added.

'If the script said throw yourself on to the back of a vehicle, I threw myself on to the back of a vehicle!'
Angelina Jolie looked ready for summer on Thursday afternoon outside the Greenwich Hotel in New York City.

The 47-year-old Oscar-winning actress looked elegant in a long white sleeveless dress with a V-neck line and stitching over the bodice.

The ex-wife of Brad Pitt - who announced Atelier Jolie the day before - also wore her hair down and carried a purse as she showed off her nifty platform sandals that looked built for comfort. Aviator sunglasses added a touch of Hollywood glamour.

Holding her hand was her daughter Zahara, an 18-year-old who attends Spelman College. Zahara is Jolie and Pitt's eldest daughter whom they adopted from Ethiopia in 2005.

This sighting comes just three weeks before her 48th birthday which falls on June 4.

Scroll down for a look at her best red carpet moments...

Summer look: Angelina Jolie looked ready for summer on Thursday afternoon outside the Greenwich Hotel in New York City. Holding her hand was her daughter Zahara, an 18-year-old who attends Spelman College

The student cut a casual figure in black T-shirt with black slacks, a brown jacket, white sneakers and a bright orange purse. Her hair was worn down as she held on to her cell phone.

Angelina and Zahara were first seen in New York City on Wednesday when they landed at JFK airport.

The were also seen earlier this year in Manhattan as they went to dinner and shopped.

Together Angelina and Brad have a total of six children: the sons are Maddox, Pax and Knox and the daughters are Zahara, Shiloh and Vivienne.

This comes after the Changeling star made a big announcement on Wednesday.

The Gia actress shared she is launching Atelier Jolie which will be a space for creative types in the design field.

Hot in the city: The 47-year-old Oscar-winning actress looked elegant in a long white sleeveless dress with a V-neck line and stitching over the bodice

Simple style: The ex-wife of Brad Pitt also wore her hair down and carried a purse

The ex of Val Kilmer shared a look at her new logo over a copper background.

'Im starting something new todaya collective where everyone can create,' wrote the mother of six.

'Atelier Jolie is a place for creative people to collaborate with a skilled and diverse family of expert tailors, pattern makers and artisans from around the world,' added the Eternals actress.

And the former UN ambassador continued: 'It stems from my appreciation and deep respect for the many tailors and makers Ive worked with over the years, a desire to make use of the high-quality vintage material and deadstock fabric already available, and also to be part of a movement to cultivate more self-expression.'

Her shades are in place: Aviator sunglasses added a touch of Hollywood glamour and she showed off her nifty platform sandals that looked built for comfort

Inked for life: The daughter of Jon Voight showed off her array of tattoos on her slender arms

Deadstock fabric refers to rolls of fabric that are left unsold by a fabric mill or leftover from a brand's production run.

Jolie ended with: 'Im looking forward to growing this with you. More soon. Learn more at atelierjolie.com.'

Her pal Priyanka Chopra added a red heart and fire emoji.

On her website Jolie shared a signed note.

'Fashion is an art Ive had the opportunity to play with over the years. Ive designed clothes and learned about shapes with many of the best tailors,' wrote the Tomb Raider star.

Designers often sketch or approve designs, but it is the tailors who make the difference, she noted.

New from AJ: Jolie made a big announcement on Wednesday. The Oscar-winning actress shared she is launching Atelier Jolie which will be a space for creative types in the design field

And that is who she 'truly loves creating with,' said the daughter of Jon Voight.

Angelina added that these makers rarely receive the credit and respect they deserve.

'I am building a place for creative people to collaborate with a skilled and diverse family of expert tailors, pattern makers and artisans from around the world. A place to have fun. To create your own designs with freedom. To discover yourself,' she enthused.

She added her company will use only leftover, quality vintage material and deadstock.

'You will be able to repair or upcycle pieces from your closet you wish to revive, perfecting fit, breathing new life into what could have been thrown away, and creating quality heirloom garments with personal meaning.'

The red carpet darling then said: 'We hope to create a community of creativity and inspiration, regardless of socio-economic background.

'We will spotlight the people who play a part in each creation. We will bring together a diverse team, including apprenticeships for refugees and other talented, underappreciated groups, with positions of dignity based on skill.

She then admitted that she is 'more of an artist than a businesswoman' before ending with: 'I hope to see you there, and to be one of the many creating with you within our new creative collective.'
Late hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur will have a street in Oakland renamed after him, following an 'unanimous vote by the city council' on Tuesday.

The rapper, who first moved to the Bay Area as a teenager, got his first break in 1991 as a member of the group Digital Underground and credited his time in Marin City as the 'location where he got his game,' according to legislation, obtained by NBC.

'A stretch of MacArthur Boulevard by Lake Merritt where Shakur once lived will keep its existing name, but also receive the additional, honorary name of Tupac Shakur Way,' according to the publication.

The Tupac Shakur Foundation will be covering the costs for 'commemorative plaques and signs signaling the change.'

He was selected to 'remind people' of his 'contributions to Oakland and celebrate art and culture as a catalyst for societal change.'

In memory: Late hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur will have a street in Oakland renamed after him, following an 'unanimous vote by the city council' on Tuesday (seen in 1994)

Over the years, the city has also paid homage to other icons with street names for record producer Too Short and Black Panther Party co-founder Huey P. Newton.

Tupac died of of gunshot wounds suffered in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting in 1996, at just 25, after paramedics rushed him to the ICU at University Medical Center.

He was 'shot him four times in the chest at a stoplight' by an 'unknown gunman in a white Cadillac,' according to Britannica.

In an attempt to save his life, he was placed on life support and put under an induced coma.

Nearly 30 years later, the homicide case remains unsolved.

In 2021, the cop, Chris Carroll, who held Tupac as he took his final unaided breath revealed he was still harassed by conspiracy theorists claiming the rapper is alive.

The retired Las Vegas police officer told DailyMailTV he still regularly receives messages on social media and even through the Las Vegas Metro Police Department demanding he 'come clean' about a crackpot theory the iconic rapper secretly escaped that night.

Some extremists even write to suggest that Carroll played a role in the death of the star, famous for hits like California Love and Ghetto Gospel.

Paying homage: The rapper, who first moved to the Bay Area as a teenager, got his first break in 1991 as a member of the group Digital Underground and credited his time in Marin City as the 'location where he got his game,' according to legislation, obtained by NBC; seen in 1994

'A stretch of MacArthur Boulevard by Lake Merritt where Shakur once lived will keep its existing name, but also receive the additional, honorary name of Tupac Shakur Way,' according to the publication (seen in 1994)

No matter how many times he repeats his same story and factual description of holding lifeless Tupac in his arms after the gang shooting, people still refuse to believe him.

Carroll said he takes much of the interaction with good humor, but remains 'a little unsettled' at suggestions that he would not aid a gunshot wound victim.

On the 25th anniversary of Tupac's murder, he voiced his bewilderment and frustration at hardcore fans not believing his account of the night of September 7, 1996.

Carroll went on to recall holding a gun shot-ridden Tupac as he fought to take his last few breaths, before 'gargling, choking, falling unconscious and going limp' on the sidewalk of Las Vegas Boulevard.

Carroll remains 'in no doubt Tupac was essentially dead because the volume of blood loss and damage to his vital organs was terminal.'

'People want to hear about complex stories of cover ups and conspiracies. That is not the case - sadly some people die in very straightforward circumstances even if they are famous,' he said.

Never forgotten: The Tupac Shakur Foundation will be covering the costs for 'commemorative plaques and signs signaling the change' (seen in 1993)

In the exclusive interview, Carroll admitted: 'I never thought I would be talking about this a week after that night, let alone 25 years. Now I realize it is never going away. It is what it is and is never going to change.

'It frustrates me when I hear misinformation, lies and conspiracies and it is one of reasons I came forward in the first place after I retired to set the record straight.

'Thankfully the vast majority of people believe the truth, but the ones who don't seem to speak the loudest and they never stop talking.'

Carroll said he is staggered at the online posts and social media threads alleging various far-fetched roles by him in the case. Some cite him as a middle man for Tupac's escape and others an accomplice to his murder.

'It is just comical to say I killed him,' Carroll said. 'It is all on record how many bullets damaged key organs and when I got to him he was already pretty much passing away.

'Technically he did not officially pass until later, but that was only thanks to the skill of the trauma team who kept his heart beating, and then life support machines.

'To those others who believe I helped smuggle him to Cuba or Costa Rica, that is false too.

'He had large caliber wounds to his torso and vital organs. While I was holding him he stopped breathing, and he never regained consciousness  he was not going anywhere in that state other than the hospital.'

Jokingly he added: 'Maybe had he hit me up with a deal for a millions of dollars and a plan to smuggle him when he was alive, without the shooting, I may have taken him up on it.'

Back in 1996, then-sergeant Carroll was the first officer on the scene in the wake of Tupac and Suge's BMW crashing into the center of Las Vegas Boulevard shortly before midnight.

Seconds earlier their vehicle had been blasted with a volley of bullets from a semi-automatic weapon from men in a white Cadillac car.

Carroll approached the shot up BMW, where he noticed Tupac was slumped but moving.

After opening the passenger door, Tupac, blood pouring from four gunshot wounds, flopped out onto his left arm.

The rapper grimaced with pain, gasping for breath and slipped out of consciousness, Carroll said.

Carroll asked him who'd shot him, only for the rapper 'to take as deep as breath as possible and say, 'F*** you'.'
Kim Kardashian shared a photo with her inner circle of female friends to Instagram on Wednesday.

The 42-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians veteran showed off her abs as she wore a black crop top and skirt as she enjoyed Usher's show in Las Vegas.

She was at the center of her girl gang who clearly are her VIPs these days.

The mother of four was with Khloe Kardashian, Olivia Pierson, Natalie Halcro, Tracy Romulus, Stephanie Shepherd and Kimora Lee Simmons.

There was no sign of sister Kourtney Kardashian, whom she has been feuding with for the past year. Their drama unfolds on season three of Hulu's The Kardashians.

VIPS: Kim Kardashian shared a photo with her inner circle to Instagram on Wednesday. The 42-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians veteran showed off her abs as she wore a black crop top and skirt. She was at the center of her girl gang who clearly are her VIPs these days

Music minded: The stars were in Las Vegas for a little fun and to take in the Usher concert

After flying to Vegas in her private jet, which she calls Kim Air, the party was treated to VIP treatment at the Usher concert, where the Kim was personally serenaded.

They then met the man himself backstage, where they posed for pictures.

Kim stood out from the crowd in her ensemble which featured a crop top and skirt, which perfectly showcased her gorgeous curves.

Khloe is her 38-year-old sister whose brand is Good American. She has daughter True and son Tatum with ex Tristan Thompson.

Tracy Romulus, 43, is the chief marketing officer of Kim's beauty, fragrance and SKIMS lines.

In the past she has worked with Pamela Anderson and Nick Cannon. And Tracy has appeared on KUWTK many times.

Kim wore a crop top that showed off her abs and added a skirt

Stephanie Shepherd, 42, is Kim's former executive assistant. Her full name is Stephanie Suganami Shepherd.

She worked as Kim's assistant from 2013 until 2017, they had a brief break, and are now fast friends.

Kimora Lee Simmons is a 48-year-old former model turned fashion designer who used to be married to 65-year-old Russell Simmons.

She started modeling at age 13 for Chanel and became close friends with Karl Lagerfeld.

In 1999 she launched Baby Phat which debuted at NYFW. She also had Phat Farm, Baby Phat Girlz and Phat Farm Boys.

Simmons has built a diverse portfolio of investments in new and innovative businesses in such fields as fashion, skin care, consumer goods and technology.

Khloe is her 38-year-old sister whose brand is Good American. She has daughter True and son Tatum with ex Tristan Thompson

Natalie June Halcro, 35, is a swimwear and jewelry designer. Her friend Olivia Pierson, 33, who hails from Canada, is also a designer. Both were on the show WAGS LA and both have been on Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

In March 2022 Kim posed with many of the same ladies.

'Girls nights are good for the soul!' wrote the ex-girlfriend of SNL star Pete Davidson in her caption.

And the star, who was at her SKIMS SWIM launch in Miami, tagged each person in the group photo so her nearly 300M Instagram followers knew exactly who she trusts these days.

Tracy Romulus, 43, is the chief marketing officer of Kim's beauty, fragrance and SKIMS lines. In the past she has worked with Pamela Anderson and Nick Cannon. And Tracy has appeared on KUWTK many times

Steph Shep is Kim's former assistant; the worked together from 2013 until 2017

Kimora Lee Simmons is a 48-year-old former model turned fashion designer who used to be married to 65-year-old Russell Simmons. She started modeling at age 13 for Chanel and became close friends with Larl Lagerfeld. In 1999 she launched Baby Phat

Natalie Halcro, 35, is a swimwear and jewelry designer; she was on WAGS LA

Olivia Pierson, 33, hails from Canada and was on WAGS LA

One pal who was not there was sister Kourtney Kardashian.

The Kardashians dropped a dramatic teaser on Monday that gave fans a glimpse of the major feud between Kim and Kourtney that will serve as a focal point for season three.

Premiering on May 25th, Hulu's tentpole reality series looks like it will revolve around Kim and Kourtney's battle royale as they duke it out over a very Kardashian problem  Dolce & Gabbana.

Kicking off the trailer, big sister Kim says: 'Even through all of the craziness, I don't want to fight with family  bottom line.'

But Kourtney seems ready to rumble as she proclaims: 'There's no boundaries, there's no respect.'

The sisterly brawl threatens to drag in makeup mogul Kylie and supermodel Kendall, but both Jenners seem to be staying out of the fray.

VIPS: Kardashian shared a photo with her inner circle to Instagram in March 2022. The siren was with her girl gang who clearly are her VIP. 'Girls nights are good for the soul!' wrote the ex- girlfriend of SNL star Pete Davidson in her caption

'I don't think anyone's in the wrong,' says Kylie, playing the part of Switzerland. 'I see both sides.'

'As sisters, we have to uplift each other,' preaches Kendall as she primps in a mirror.

But Khloe spells it out for the fans: 'The tension is brewing. How did we get here?'

They got there because Kourtney accused Kim of using her May 2022 wedding to Travis Barker as a 'business opportunity' and feels as though her special day was 'stripped' from her, according to another teaser trailer that dropped last month.

Battle royale: The Kardashians dropped a dramatic teaser on Monday that gave fans a glimpse of the major feud between Kim and Kourtney that will serve as a focal point for season three

Kourtney and Travis' lavish nuptials were held at the Italian estate owned by Dolce & Gabbana designers, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, and their luxury fashion house created the Poosh founder's gown.

Shortly after the lavish D&G-themed matrimonial blowout, Kourtney learned that Kim was co-designing a collection with the brand called 'Ciao, Kim.'

The SKIMS founder was subsequently named as the new face of Dolce & Gabbana, and their collaboration debuted during Paris Fashion Week in September.

'It's all gonna come out on the show,' smirked Kim during a confessional in the new teaser. 'This is our therapy.'
Danielle Armstrong cradled her blossoming baby bump in a fitted midi dress as she joined her husband Tom Edney at the Shoorah launch in London on Thursday.

The former TOWIE star, 34, who has Orla, two, with Tom, announced they were expecting their second child in January.

Stepping out to support her friends Ferne McCann and Lorri Haines' mental health app, she was glowing as she posed for photos.

Danielle completed her outfit with a long satin coat and accessorised with a skinny tasseled scarf.

The TV personality styled her blonde hair into loose curls and elevated her height with a pair of woven heels.

Glowing: Danielle Armstrong, 34, cradled her blossoming baby bump in a fitted midi dress as she joined her husband Tom Edney at the Shoorah launch

Parents: The former TOWIE star, who has Orla, two, with Tom, announced they were expecting their second child in January

In a post shared to Instagram, Ferne detailed the new app: 'Shoorah our brand new mental health & well being app has officially launched TODAY on all App Stores.

'We have both been on a journey of self discovery and self work. And through our personal experiences we have learnt some incredible tools that have helped us to overcome the obstacles of life and to move forward.

'With it being Mental Health Awareness Week we feel incredibly proud to launch today as we know the tools featured within Shoorah will help so many of you with your mental health journey.'

The launch comes after Ferne took her followers on a trip down memory last week as she shared a series of throwback snaps with Danielle.

Penning a sweet 35th birthday tribute to her best friend, the 32-year-old reality star joked that she'd be taking their fans on a 'glow up journey' with pictures from their time in TOWIE and recent snaps.

The first picture shared was from 2016 and saw Ferne pen: 'Throwback... happy birthday to my darling friend and there's plenty more throwbacks to come post-school run.'

A second snap taken the same year showed the pair supporting co-star Jessica Wright's shoe launch, with Ferne revealing she'd stepped straight off the plane from Marbella to attend the London event.

She wrote: 'To my celebrate my girl's 35th birthday I thought I'd take you on a little glow up journey.'

All smiles: Stepping out to support her friends Ferne McCann and Lorri Haines' mental health app, she was glowing as she posed for photos

Chic: Danielle completed her outfit with a long satin coat and accessorised with a skinny tasseled scarf

Stunning: The TV personality styled her blonde hair into loose curls and elevated her height with a pair of woven heels

Stylish: She later shielded her eyes with a pair of gold framed sunglasses

Ferne added: 'I think here we had literally just stepped off a plane from Marbs & headed straight to an event... (I'm still holding my beach bag). The days where we could stay out later than 9pm.'

Up next came a shot from their time on TOWIE, which the pals joined in 2013.

She mused: 'Two opinionated Essex girls who were so similar that they had to become the best of friends.'

Ferne then opted for a recent snap of the pair on holiday as she wrote: 'And now the glow up.'

Looking back: The launch comes after Ferne took her followers on a trip down memory last week as she shared a series of throwback snaps with Danielle

A final snap of the pair was taken last year and captioned: 'I am eternally grateful to you. For our friendship, introducing me to our nutrition business and the laughter and love we have.

'Both pregnant here believe it or not with our seconds. Here's to the next chapter...'

Ferne and Danielle have been friends for years, with Ferne acting as bridesmaid at her pal's wedding, while Danielle has made regular appearances on Ferne's First Time Mum series.

The pair are also business partners, promoting weight loss products together on social media.
Bianca Gascoigne looked incredible as she attended the Take That-inspired musical Greatest Days at the Palace Theatre Manchester on Thursday night.

The TV personality, 36, flashed her pink bra beneath a plunging orange blazer suit, while showing off her slimmed-down figure just three months after giving birth.

She toted her essentials around in a black leather handbag and accessorised with a delicate necklace.

Having flawlessly applied a full face of make-up, Gazza's daughter wore her bleach blonde locks in gorgeous waves.

Featuring music from the iconic group, the extravaganza follows five teenage girls, the women they become, and the boy band they follow for 25 years.

Hot stuff: Bianca Gascoigne looked incredible as she attended the Take That-inspired musical Greatest Days at the Palace Theatre Manchester on Thursday night

It was previously titled The Band and toured around the UK between 2017 and 2019.

Back in March, Bianca revealed she has called her baby daughter Blake Sunshine.

The reality star announced the news with a gallery of sweet snaps of her cradling her first born along with the name announcement.

The snap revealed that Bianca and her partner Aaron Wright have had their daughter's name illuminated in lights on her nursery wall above Blake's cot.

The former Celebrity Big Brother star was wearing a white chiffon robe with feathery cuff sleeves, while she kept her look glam with perfect hair and make-up.

In the caption, she wrote 'Our little Blake Sunshine.'

Bianca previously shared that she had to take her newborn baby girl back to hospital for a blood spot screening.

She took to Instagram to share a video of her latest trip to hospital with her baby, revealing her concern.

Incredible: The TV personality, 36, flashed her pink bra beneath an orange blazer suit, while showing off her slimmed-down figure just three months after giving birth

Stunning: She toted her essentials around in a black leather handbag and accessorised with a delicate necklace

The influencer wrote: 'Took the little lady to hospital to have her blood spot checks today. I wanted to cry when they did it.'

Newborn blood spot screening involves taking a blood sample from a newborn's heel to find out if they have any of the nine rare health conditions.

The tests can help ensure early treatment to improve newborn health and prevent disability and death.

Later, Bianca posted a picture of her Baby's uncle Regan taking a picture of her in an adorable dinosaur costume.

Prior to this, Bianca took to Instagram on Friday to share a sweet snap of her newborn baby girl.

She gave birth to Baby B, who is her first child, at The Portland Hospital in London.

In the post, Bianca leaned over her baby's hospital crib, donning a stylish pink and black patterned jumpsuit, with her has blonde hair scraped into a bun.

She held a colourful soft toy above her sleeping baby, who is already snuggled up with a large monkey teddy.

She captioned the post: 'I can't believe you're mine.'

The TV personality's fans and friends were quick to congratulate the star.

Former Hollyoaks actress Ciara Janson Zelmerlow penned: 'You did it girl! So many congratulations'.

Geordie Shore's Chloe Ferry kept it simple writing: 'Congrats'.

Dancer Vitto Coppola equally shared his excitement writing: ' Congraaaaaaats' with three heart-eye emojis..
Thursday evening was all about Harrison Ford, but finding an appropriate seat at the premiere of his own film was even harder to find than the Lost Ark.

The veteran actor was joined by wife Calista Flockhart, better known for her former role as kooky TV lawyer Ally McBeal, as Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny kicked off day three of the 76th annual Cannes Film Festival.

It was a rare public appearance for a couple renowned for their love of privacy, but it was marred by an awkward seating gaffe inside the Palais des Festivals, where 80-year old Ford's fifth and final offering as Indy was being screened.

As they made their way inside, Flockhart, 58, immediately noticed she had been seated behind her husband, prompting a weak smile as Ford drank in the applause from those in attendance.

Eventually spotting the blunder himself, he could be heard telling the visibly unimpressed actress: 'Look! You're right behind me,' before calling after her as she sloped off to her seat: 'Well, that's the way it is.'

Awkward: Calista Flockhart looked crestfallen after discovering she had not been seated next to husband Harrison Ford at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday evening

Blunder: Making their way inside, Flockhart immediately noticed she had been seated behind her husband, prompting a weak smile as she mentioned the error to Ford

Ford has reprised his role as Indiana Jones for the final time, after first taking on the iconic character in 1984 blockbuster Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

Dial of Destiny, set for release on June 30, also stars Mads Mikkelsen and Antonio Banderas, and has been directed by James Mangold.

Making a rare red carpet appearance with his spouse, Ford looked appropriately dapper as he arrived for the premiere of the newest Indiana Jones film, the first since 2008.

His wife cut a glamorous figure in a plunging black tulle gown as she arrived hand-in-hand with the actor.

As the couple stopped to pose for snaps together, Flockhart beamed at her husband, as they lead a slew of stars in attendance for the premiere.

Ford attended the film's premiere as he prepared to accept an honorary Palme d'Or as a tribute to his performance as Indiana.

Rear view: Flockhart was forced to sit behind her husband, who received an honorary Palme D'Or at the event

Delighted: The actress beamed as guests applauded her arrival with Ford on Thursday evening

One more time! Ford kickstarted his farewell to Indiana Jones on Thursday, as he attended the star-studded premiere for The Dial Of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set in the year 1969, following Ford's Indiana Jones set against the backdrop of the American 'space race.'

Jones is said to be, 'uneasy' about the American government enlisting former Nazis in their race to beat the Russians to the moon.

Franchise newcomer Phoebe Waller-Bridge joins the sequel as Helena Shaw, Indy's goddaughter, along with Mads Mikkelsen as Jurgen Voller, an ex-Nazi who now works for NASA.

Other newcomers include Antonio Banderas as Renaldo, a friend of Indy, Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber, Toby Jones as Basil Shaw and Boyd Holbrook as Klaber.

Phoebe portrays Indiana Jones' goddaughter Helena Shaw in the movie, with filmmakers describing the character as 'slippery' and 'charming'.

'She's a mystery and a wonder,' Phoebe, who also stars alongside Antonio Banderas in the film told Empire, about her character.

'Making the film was everything I could have hoped for, with a chance to work on my own stunts and action sequences,' she added.

'If the script said throw yourself on to the back of a vehicle, I threw myself on to the back of a vehicle!'

The upcoming action film will be released June 30, and will be the final Indiana Jones movie.
Jamie Foxx's daughter Corinne and fellow family members were seen at a physical rehab center in Chicago, which specializes in treating 'the most severe, complex conditions' - as the actor recovers after suffering a mystery health scare last month.

Oscar winner Foxx, 55, born Eric Bishop, was filming the action-comedy Back In Action with Cameron Diaz in Atlanta, Georgia, in April when he was admitted to hospital, although little is known of the intricacies of the situation.

On May 12, Corrine, 29, spoke out to share an update about his condition, insisting that her father had been 'out of the hospital for weeks' and had even been 'playing pickleball'. That details of that statement were then confirmed to DailyMail.com by a spokesperson for Foxx.

However just two days later, Corrine was pictured arriving at the facility, which is touted as the top physical medicine and rehabilitation center in the country, and specializes in the treatment of severe conditions like strokes, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord injuries.

Corinne was seen embracing her partner Joseph Hooten as she left the rehab center with friends and family. Foxx's younger daughter Annalise, 13 was also seen at the center with her mom Kristin Grannis.

Recovery: Jamie Foxx's daughter Corinne and fellow family members were seen at a physical rehab center in Chicago recently - as the actor recovers after suffering a mystery health scare last month

Medical emergency: Foxx, 55, born Eric Bishop, was filming the action-comedy Back In Action with Cameron Diaz in Atlanta, Georgia, in April when he was admitted to hospital although little is known of the intricacies of the situation (pictured with Corinne in 2020)

It still remains unclear what happened to Foxx - the facility specializes in stroke recovery, traumatic brain injury rehab, spinal cord injury rehab and amputation and cancer related impairment.

Foxx is understood to have arrived at the facility in late April and is 'recovering well' after first getting treatment at a hospital in Atlanta.

Annalise was seen bringing her guitar to visit her father to no doubt pick up his spirits with the power of music

Kristin was also seen leaving the facility with flowers and a balloon for Mother's Day.

Days ago it was revealed that the A-lister has been out of hospital for weeks and has been recuperating at home, his older daughter revealed.

Corinne took to Instagram on Friday denying reports that her father was still in hospital - and even claimed the actor has been active and playing pickleball.

A spokesperson for Foxx also confirmed to DailyMail.com that the actor is out of hospital.

It is still unclear what the actor has been in hospital for, with his family reluctant to release any specific information.

Foxx's younger daughter Annalise, 13 was also seen at the center with her mom Kristin Grannis

Support: Corinne was seen leaving the facility with her partner Joseph Hooten

Loved ones: Corinne, who has updated fans on her father's condition, embraced and kissed her partner

Support: Annalise and Kristin were seen leaving the facility

Hug: Annalise was seen embracing a healthcare worker at the center

'Update from the family: Sad to see how the media runs wild,' Corinne wrote, alongside a report that claimed his loved ones had been 'preparing for the worst.'

'My Dad has been out of the hospital for weeks, recuperating. In fact, he was playing pickleball yesterday! Thanks for everyone's prayers and support!'

The shock update comes amid conflicting reports about his condition following his recent hospitalization.

Foxx had been believed to be seeking treatment in a medical facility in the state undergoing tests - however, his daughter claims he has now been released.

His daughter appeared to be taking aim at a report by the gossip site Radar that claimed his family were 'preparing for the worst.'

That report mentioned his daughter Corinne and that she had not given any specifics over his current state of health.

Recovery: Corinne and her partner left the facility together

Gift; Kristin was seen holding a Mother's Day balloon as she left with Annalise

Visit: The family members were escorted out by a member of staff

Together: Corinne wore a face mask as she left with her partner

Kristin carried a drink as she visited Foxx in the rehab center

Road to recover? Foxx is pictured above in March this year at the 2023 Miami Open

Sources claimed to the site that Foxx suffers from high blood pressure and that he was 'lucky to be alive,'

Last week, sources told Page Six that 'nothing had changed' and the actor was 'still in the same condition', after his health scare. MailOnline has contacted representatives for Jamie for comment.

In an Instagram post on Wednesday, his family posted on his profile said: 'Appreciate all the love!!! Feeling blessed' followed by praying hands, heart and fox emojis.'

It's unclear if Foxx himself made the post. At that point, no further details on his condition had been shared, leading to speculation about how serious his illness is.

The Oscar winner's account also gave a shout-out on Instagram to friend Nick Cannon who has filled in hosting duties for him on popular game show Beat Shazam.

Celebrities including AJ McLean, Ludacris and DJ Khaled had sent messages of support in response to Foxx's Instagram post.

Sources close to the comedian recently told TMZ he 'needs all the prayers and well-wishes his fans can muster'.

'He's OK, thank God,' the source said. 'He's still in the hospital and doctors are running tests but he's awake and alert. They're keeping him under observation.'

Speaking out: Corinne has taken leave from her role as a DJ on popular game show Beat Shazam (Pictured; 2022)

Grave: Fans were initially alerted about the health scare when his daughter Corinne shared a grave statement on social media on April 12

Fans were initially alerted about the health scare when his daughter Corinne shared a grave statement on social media on April 12.

The actress wrote, 'We wanted to share that, my father, Jamie Foxx, experienced a medical complication yesterday.

'Luckily, due to quick action and great care, he is already on his way to recovery,' she continued.

'We know how beloved he is and appreciate your prayers. The family asks for privacy during this time,' the statement concluded.

Since then, the family has shared limited details, and it's unclear what symptoms the comedian may have been suffering from.
Kelly Piquet looked incredible as she stepped out at the five-star Carlton Cannes Hotel during the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday.

The Brazilian model, 34, sent temperatures soaring in a plunging black AREA blazer dress while adding inches to her enviable frame with matching heels.

Max Verstappen's girlfriend wore her brunette tresses in a sleek updo and had flawlessly applied a full face of make-up to accentuate her natural beauty.

She toted her essentials around in a miniature handbag and caused onlookers to gawk and point while strutting around La Croisette.

Kelly was at the Regent Hotel to celebrate its re-opening and the start of the festival.

Hot stuff: Kelly Piquet looked incredible as she stepped out at the five-star Carlton Cannes Hotel during the 76th Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday

Wow! The Brazilian model, 34, sent temperatures soaring in a plunging black AREA blazer dress

Continuing the week's festivities, on Wednesday night the exterior of the Carlton Cannes was flooded with light and music in a show entitled Follow The Sun.

It was choreographed by famed artistic director Lionel Hun in partnership with creative teams from Image and Auditoire.

In a spectacle which drew huge attention from the passing crowds on the La Croisette, the six-minute performance illuminated the legendary facade of the Carlton Cannes depicting the evolution of the sun throughout the day, from morning through to dusk.

The light show coincided with The Official Launch Party of Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel, where over 300 guests attended a cocktail party and gala dinner to celebrate the hotel's grand reopening.

At the property's iconic Beach Club, VIPs enjoyed an evening of wonder set against the backdrop of the historic property and stunning views of the Cannes Bay as the hotels historic facade came to light with the dazzling display of light and sound.

Since 1913 and into its new era as a Regent property, the Carlton Cannes has popped champagne, forged memories, and pushed boundaries to create unforgettable moments and plans to continue to do so, starting with these inaugural events.

Kelly was born in Homburg, Germany, but spent most of her younger years in France with Dutch model mum Sylvia Tamsma and former F1 race driver Nelson Piquet.

Gorgeous: Max Verstappen's girlfriend wore her brunette tresses in a sleek updo

Looking good: She had flawlessly applied a full face of make-up to accentuate her natural beauty

She has worked at Formula E since 2015 which is when she became responsible for the social media coverage.

Kelly began dating Russian F1 driver Daniil Kvyat, who she shares daughter Penelope with, born in July 2019.

That same December, their relationship broke down and they went their separate ways.

The following January, she and Max Verstappen made their relationship public and have been putting on public displays of affection since then.

On Valentine's Day, Kelly posted a loving photo of the two kissing on a gondola in Monaco and captioned the snap with a love heart and a cupid's bow within it.
Trinny Woodall was clearly determined not to be overlooked on her first big night out since she split up with super-rich art collector Charles Saatchi.

The What Not To Wear presenter turned beauty entrepreneur, 59, looked like an astronaut in a silver sequin top by Paco Rabanne, which costs 792.

She teamed the top with a pair of 230 matching trousers by Danish brand Rotate Birger Christensen.

Trinny was attending an event honouring women in business at the Londoner Hotel in Leicester Square.

Her outing comes after she returned from a trip to New York last week and her ex-partner of 10 years was spotted having lunch with Martha.

Hard to miss! Trinny Woodall was clearly determined not to be overlooked on her first big night out since she split up with super-rich art collector Charles Saatchi

Glam! The What Not To Wear presenter turned beauty entrepreneur, 59, looked like an astronaut in a silver sequin top by Paco Rabanne, which costs 792

Charles, 79, went to Scott's with Martha, 43, a haunt where he has previously taken Trinny and his ex-wife Nigella Lawson, 63.

'He was canoodling with Martha in his usual corner table. He's still got it at 80,' an impressed fellow diner told the Daily Mail's Richard Eden.

Lady Sitwell confirmed: 'Yes, we met for lunch', telling Richard: 'Charles is a very clever, very funny man.'

The former 'face' of Royal Ascot, she takes issue with her fellow diner's use of the word 'canoodling', insisting: 'We were not "canoodling"; we were making each other laugh.'

Charles is understood to have split earlier this year from Trinny, who made her name giving style tips on the hit BBC show What Not To Wear before becoming a successful beauty entrepreneur.

The couple had been together for a decade.

Last month, Trinny fuelled speculation that the relationship was over by revealing, in an emotional post online, that she had 'moved house'.

The couple had lived together in London. Sources close to the pair claimed that the 20-year age gap was problematic, with Charles favouring quiet evenings while Trinny preferred to be more sociable.

Sparkler! She teamed the top with a pair of 230 matching trousers by Danish brand Rotate Birger Christensen

Age difference: Charles is understood to have split earlier this year from Trinny after a 10-year relationship

Nigella divorced him 10 years ago on the grounds of 'unreasonable behaviour' following an argument at Scott's, where he was seen 'tweaking' her nose and holding his hands around her throat.

The Domestic Goddess, who was his third wife, reportedly did not seek any financial settlement, merely requesting to take her cooking appliances.

Martha, the daughter of late gastronome Justin de Blank, married film-producing baronet Sir George Sitwell in 2007 and they lived at his family's 3.25 million Grade II-listed home, Weston Hall in Northamptonshire.

She held a 'divorce party' in 2017 to mark the end of their marriage.

She once described matrimony in general as 'pure misery', explaining: 'It sucks all the energy from you, sucks your youth and all the fun from your life.'

Elsewhere, make-up and beauty mogul Trinny said on Instagram last month that she was moving forward after her split from Charles.

She posted: 'It's a new day, it's a new dawn, it's a new life.' She added: 'I have been moving but now I have moved.'

An emotional sounding Trinny said: 'I have looked out at this view for the last 30 years of my life. It's the one consistent view I have ever had.'

'Recently with the big life change and moving house it was important for me to come back here with (daughter) Lyla and family just to have that moment, listen to the birds, be at one with nature. Very healing.'
Best known as unlucky-in-love 'Duckface' in the classic comedy Four Weddings and a Funeral, Anna Chancellor has received some devastating news in real life.

The actress's only child, Poppy Chancellor, is suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia at the age of 36.

'After three weeks with multiple infections in hospital, I have been diagnosed with leukaemia,' Poppy confirms. 'I am still very much processing my heartbreak.'

Leukaemia is cancer of the white blood cells. 'I am, honestly, terrified and physically exhausted  at the same time as learning to talk to my body and cells with a loving defiance,' Poppy says.

In preparation for chemotherapy, she has shaved off her trademark 'bob' hairstyle. 'Chemo ready,' she says. 'Said goodbye to the bob today  end of an era.'

Anna Chancellor's only child, Poppy Chancellor (right), is suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia at the age of 36

Poppy has spoken fondly about her 'crazy childhood' with her 'loving' mother, 58, whom she described as her 'best friend'

Her father, the East Lothian-born poet Jock Scot, died of cancer seven years ago at the age of 63. After his diagnosis in 2014, he refused chemotherapy after being given 100 days to live. However, he went on to live for another two years.

'Cancer has always been close to home for me,' Poppy says. 'I've always been interested in cancer awareness and advocating for grief awareness and now it's all starting to feel very real very quickly.'

She adds: 'Grieving for my life before diagnosis  and coming to terms with all the bruises and needles is a challenge.'

An illustrator and papercut artist, Poppy has worked with major brands including Cath Kidston and Adidas, as well as run workshops at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

After studying illustration at Kingston University, in South-West London, she attended the Royal Drawing School, established by King Charles.

She once created a papercut for a friend to present as a gift to the late Queen Elizabeth during her Diamond Jubilee in 2012. The King is said to have one of her works which she gave to him as a thank-you after she attended an artists' residency at Dumfries House, his stately home in Ayrshire. He wrote to her saying he was very 'honoured' to have her work.

She has also written a book titled 'Cut It Out!' which teaches readers how to create papercut art from a blank sheet.

Poppy has spoken fondly about her 'crazy childhood' with her 'loving' mother, 58, whom she described as her 'best friend'.

Her parents split up when she was four years old and she lived with her mother in a basement flat in Shepherd's Bush, West London. They would be seen out together on the party scene in trendy Ladbroke Grove nearby.

'I was an only child, but I never felt lonely because I was always at the party, or down the bookies with my dad, or in the pub with both of them,' she said. 'There were parties every night and great pubs where everyone would go, so that's what they did.'

David Bowie's former drummer Woody Woodmansey tells me he's yet to receive an apology from bandmates who ditched him last year for refusing to have the Covid jab. Woodmansey, 73, is the last survivor of Ziggy Stardust backing band The Spiders From Mars.

He later joined Holy Holy, which performs the pop chameleon's classics and includes Bowie producer Tony Visconti among its line-up.

'It was unfortunate  a split up on medical differences,' Woodmansey drolly informs me at the Press call for Ziggy Stardust The Motion Picture at Hammersmith Apollo in West London.

'Sad.'

Hedge fund manager Doug King must have dreamed of joining the Premier League when he became majority owner of Coventry City this season, and the club made it to the play-off final on Wednesday.

But he can't have dreamt older brother Will would ruin his big night by sharing his phone number on social media.

Watching his brother's club in a London pub, Will, who founded the men's grooming company King of Shaves, got so carried away he posted on social media his attempt to call his brother, only for Coventry fans to ring up their sporting benefactor.

'Yes I know in the excitement I tweeted a photo with DK's mobile,' Will King sheepishly confessed. 'Yes, it's deleted. Yes, I am sorry. Yes, I am embarrassed.' He later observed that he'd been 'sent to Coventry'.

Brosnan Turns 00-70!

James Bond star Pierce Brosnan celebrated turning 70 this week by taking his wife, Keely Shaye Smith, 59, and his mother, May, for a slap-up dinner at Giorgio Baldi restaurant in Santa Monica, California.

James Bond star Pierce Brosnan (left) celebrated turning 70 this week by taking his wife, Keely Shaye Smith, 59, and his mother, May, for a slap-up dinner

'At this time in life, as I adventure to my 70th year . . . I feel joy, happiness, and creation,' says the actor, who grew up in Putney, South-West London, after his mother emigrated from Ireland when he was four.

A keen artist, Brosnan, who has five children, adds: 'Art and my family have played a big part.'

Having experienced drink, drugs and debauchery with Rolling Stones star Ronnie Wood, his ex-wife, Jo, no longer recognises the man she was married to for 26 years.

'I don't really know him now when I see him around,' former Strictly star Jo, 68, tells me at the launch of her wallpaper range, JoJo & Trixie, in Mayfair.

'He used to be, 'Whee! Let's party.' He's a funny old bloke.'

Ronnie, 75, has seven-year-old twins with his third wife, Sally Humphreys, 45, but Jo says: 'I am more than happy with grandchildren.'

Penny's Privy chat with King Charles

Aside from holding aloft the 8lb Sword of State for a full 51 minutes at the Coronation, as well as the slightly lighter Jewelled Sword of Offering for well over an hour, in her role as Lord President of the Council, Penny Mordaunt was the only person with a clear view as the new monarch's head, hands and chest were anointed with holy oil.

Penny Mordaunt was the only person with a clear view as the new monarch's head, hands and chest were anointed with holy oil

But this week she had the chance to exchange a word or two with King Charles in private, shortly before the Privy Council, of which she is presiding officer, met at Buckingham Palace. Doubtless the King praised Penny's unwavering performance at Westminster Abbey.

But how did he react to the swearing-in of the Council's newest member  Scotland's First Minister, Humza Yousaf?

During his campaign to become leader of the SNP, Yousaf remarked that he had been 'very clear  I'm a republican'.

That didn't dissuade him from being, like Mordaunt, 'received in audience' by the King.

No swords in evidence, on either side, I trust.
Blur have announced that they will release their next album The Ballad Of Darren in just a matter of months.

It comes eight years after the rock stars released their last chart-topping album The Magic Whip.

The 1990s band - made up of Alex James , Damon Albarn , Graham Coxon and Dave Rowntree - went on hiatus in 2015 and then announced their reunion news last year.

The Ballad of Darren will compromise of 10 new tracks, with the first song, The Narcissist, out now.

Speaking about the upcoming songs they have created, Damon said: 'This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now.'

New: Blur have announced that they will release their next album The Ballad Of Darren in just a matter of months

Coming soon: The Ballad of Darren will compromise of 10 new tracks, with the first song, The Narcissist, out now

Graham added: 'The older and madder we get, it becomes more essential that what we play is loaded with the right emotion and intention. Sometimes just a riff doesn't do the job.'

Band member Alex said: 'For any long term relationship to last with any meaning you have to be able to surprise each other somehow and somehow we all continue to do that.'

While Dave said: 'It always feels very natural to make music together. With every record we do, the process reveals something new and we develop as a band. We don't take that for granted.'

Produced by James Ford and recorded at Studio 13, London and Devon, The Ballad of Darren is the bands ninth studio album.

The band surprised Steve Lamacq on his BBC Radio 6 Music show on Thursday and told the host they started back in the studio in January and finished up this week.

They said: 'It's totally finished, remastered, everything and it's coming out in July. The album is called The Balled of Darren.

It comes after Blur announced that they are reuniting for their 35-year anniversary and will take to the road to perform live at a string of shows around the world.

The rock stars will perform at Wembley for the first time ever and take to the stage at the likes of Japan 's long-running Summer Sonic Festival this summer.

It will be their first headline show in eight years and first ever performance at Wembley Stadium.

The Britpop legends haven't toured together since their run in support of their comeback LP The Magic Whip, seven years ago.

But they will be returning to stage and making their Wembley debut on July 8, 2023, kicking off at 7pm, followed by a second show at the stadium on July 9, 2023.

Blur will be reuniting on stage for their 35-anniversary this summer, kicking off the tour on June 1 in Spain before their final concert in Japan at the end of August.

They are performing for a total of 17 dates and are set to take to the stage at a string of festivals across Europe and Japan.

Speaking about the upcoming songs they have created, Damon said: 'This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now.'

Dates: Blur (pictured in 2015) will be reuniting on stage for their 35-anniversary this summer, kicking off the tour on June 1 in Spain before their final concert in Japan at the end of August

They are set to kick of their official tour on July 1 in Barcelona for Primavera Sound 2023.

They will then go on to perform in Madrid on June 8 and Porto on June 10 as part of Portugal's leg of the Primavera Sound festival.

On June 24, the rock band will then perform at Malahide Castle in Dublin before heading to Amsterdam for a show at the Ziggo Dome on June 27.

Three days later, Blur will appear at Roskilde Festival in Denmark before travelling to Normandy, France, for the Beauregard Festival on July 6.

Then, they will jet back to London for their hotly-anticipated Wembley debut, before returning to France for the Vieilles Charrues Festival on July 14.

Blur have packed in all the festivals and will head across to Italy on July 22 for its Lucca Summer Festival, followed by the Oya Festival in Oslo, Norway, on August 10.

The iconic band will then take to the stage at Sweden's Way Out West Festival on August 11, before performing at Finland's Flow Festival in Helsinki on August 13.

Blur will then jet across to Japan to end their jam-packed summer with two concerts at Summer Sonic 2023.

They will perform in Tokyo for the long-running music festival on August 19, before heading to Osaka for a final performance as part of Summer Sonic 2023.

At Wembley, Blur will be supported on July 8 by Self Esteem, rapper slowthai and musical duo Jockstrap.

Their second Wembley date will also feature performances from Paul Weller and ska band The Selector.

It is not known whether Blur will have any support acts at their intimate warm-up gigs, while they will appear alongside a string of talent at their festival appearances.

It will be a full reunion for the four-piece band as Damon, Graham, Alex and Dave all prepare to return to the stage as one.

Frontman Damon has shared that he is 'really excited' for the gig, with guitarist Graham agreeing that he is also 'really looking forward' to it in a new statement.

Graham shared: 'I'm really looking forward to playing with my blur brothers again and revisiting all those great songs blur live shows are always amazing for me.

Excited: Damon (left) said he is 'really excited' for the gig, with Graham (right) agreeing that he is also 'really looking forward' to it in a new statement - as Alex (right) dubbed it 'special'

Looking ahead: 'After the chaos of the last few years, it's great to get back out to play some songs together on a summer's day in London. Hope to see you there,' agreed Dave (pictured)

'A nice guitar and an amp turned right up and loads of smiling faces'.

While bassist Alex echoed: 'There's always something really special when the four of us get in a room.

'It's nice to think that on 8th July that room will be Wembley Stadium.'

'After the chaos of the last few years, it's great to get back out to play some songs together on a summer's day in London. Hope to see you there,' agreed drummer Dave.
Pregnant Ferne McCann put on a loved-up display with her fiance Lorri Haines at Shoorah Launch party at Aures Leake Street, London on Thursday evening.

The former TOWIE star, 32, who is expecting her second child, showed off her growing bump in a neon green midi dress.

Ferne, who is launching the mental health app with Lorri, boosted her height in a pair of matching heels, while styling her blonde locks up in a neat bun.

Meanwhile, Lorri looked typically stylish in a beige jacket and matching trouser co-ord, teamed with a cream top and black shoes.

Danielle Armstrong cradled her blossoming bump in a beige skin-tight maxi dress, teamed with a cream satin coat.

Couple: Pregnant Ferne McCann put on a loved-up display with her fiance Lorri Haines at Shoorah Launch party at Aures Leake Street, London on Thursday evening

Glowing: The former TOWIE star, 32, who is expecting her second child, showed off her growing bump in a neon green midi dress

Stylish: Lorri looked typically stylish in a beige jacket and matching trouser co-ord, teamed with a cream top and black shoes

The former TOWIE star, 34, who is expecting her second child with husband Tommy, styled her golden locks in loose curls.

Vicky Pattison and her fiance Ercan Ramadan were all smiles as they arrived hand-in-hand at the event.

The Geordie Shore star looked chic in a mint green waist coat and matching trousers, teamed with beige heels.

Georgia Harrison looked elegant in a cream ensemble as she arrived with pal James Argent.

Abbie Quinnen flaunted her incredible figure in a busty corset top and a wrap maxi skirt.

In a post shared to Instagram, Ferne detailed the new app: 'Shoorah our brand new mental health & well being app has officially launched TODAY on all App Stores.

'We have both been on a journey of self discovery and self work. And through our personal experiences we have learnt some incredible tools that have helped us to overcome the obstacles of life and to move forward.

'With it being Mental Health Awareness Week we feel incredibly proud to launch today as we know the tools featured within Shoorah will help so many of you with your mental health journey.'

Fans thought Ferne revealed her baby's gender in the caption of a bump snap earlier this month.

The First Time Mum star showcased her blossoming shape in a black bikini as she opened up to fans during her lavish 7,000 per night Marrakech babymoon.

Ferne wrote: 'The female body never fails to amaze me. In this second pregnancy I've gone to pick myself apart about my bump shape, my size, my boobs.

'But every time I try to catch myself. For now this body is the home for this little bubba and for that I am in awe of my body.'

In a post shared to Instagram, Ferne detailed the new app: 'Shoorah our brand new mental health & well being app has officially launched TODAY on all App Stores.'

She added: 'We have both been on a journey of self discovery and self work. And through our personal experiences we have learnt some incredible tools that have helped us to overcome the obstacles of life and to move forward.'

Pals: Ferne was all smiles as she posed alongside Vicky Pattison and Ellis Ranson

Looking good: The former TOWIE star was also joined by Safiyya Vorajee at the event

Item: Ferne and Lorri looked every inch the loved-up couple at the event

Mums to be: Danielle Armstrong and Ferne both cradled their baby bumps as they posed for a snap together

Glam: Danielle cradled her blossoming bump in a beige skin-tight maxi dress, teamed with a cream satin coat

Beauty: The former TOWIE star, 34, who is expecting her second child with husband Tommy, styled her golden locks in loose curls

Glam: She accessorised with a pair of cool shaded and a brown handbag

Loved-up: Vicky Pattison and her fiance Ercan Ramadan were all smiles as they arrived hand-in-hand at the event

Stunning: The Geordie Shore star looked chic in a mint green waist coat and matching trousers, teamed with beige heels

Chic: Abbie Quinnen flaunted her incredible figure in a busty corset top and a wrap maxi skirt

Ferne also gushed that she 'can't wait' to meet her first child with Lorri.

She wrote: 'I wonder who you are little soul. We cannot wait to meet you.'

But what drew fans' attention was the emojis she used to accompany the post - sharing some stars and a blue love heart.

Many of her followers assumed the colour of the heart meant Ferne was hinting she was having a boy.

One said: 'Is the blue heart saying your having a baby boy?'

Another agreed, writing: 'I'm saying boy 100%'.

A third echoed: 'nice to have one of each'.

While a fourth commented: 'Definitely a boy! Not sure if youve already found out by the [blue heart]. But its always different the second time around.

'All the best and take in every special moment with Sunday. Im sure she will love being a big sister'.

And a fifth penned: '100% boy Sunday will be the perfect big sister xx'.

Her beau also commented on her post, penning: 'My baby bump and my baby mum and my wife to be and my everything.'

Ferne has insisted that her and Lorri haven't yet found out the gender of the baby, as they want to keep it a surprise.

It comes after Ferne revealed her due date and said she and Lorri already have a name picked out for their unborn child.

She revealed that she is due this summer and added that had already picked out a girl's name, that they were both 'obsessed' with.

Ferne later added that all that matters is that the baby is happy and healthy but, herself and Lorri have not decided on a boy's name.

Pals: Georgia Harrison looked elegant in a cream ensemble as she arrived with pal James Argent

Beaming: Davinia Taylor put on an animated display as she posed for snaps

Gorgeous: Davinia and Fearne posed for a stunning snap together

Eye-catching: Ellis Ranson flashed her abs in a colourful crop top and maxi skirt co-ord

The TV personality and her businessman partner are filming their journey to second-time parenthood for her First Time Mum reality show on ITVBe.

Ferne has a daughter Sunday, five, from a previous relationship with jailed acid attacker ex Arthur Collins.

Lorri also has a son the same age as Sunday with his former partner.

Ferne and Lorri met during a trip to Dubai in early 2022 and he proposed during a romantic holiday to France last July.
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Priscilla Presley had asked to be buried next to her ex-husband Elvis, despite the fact that he is currently between between both his parents' graves.

The 77-year-old reportedly made the request while she was involved in a long-running dispute with her granddaughter, Riley Keough, 33, over the Graceland multi-million dollar estate of late Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis and Priscilla.

Despite being entangled in the legal battle - which ended on Tuesday in a joint settlement - Priscilla made a request to be buried next to Elvis at his legendary estate in Memphis, according to TMZ.

Sources told the publication that Priscilla's request was instantly denied, as it would involve moving his parents' gravestones, and she 'backed down'.

Priscilla told the : 'Although I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon. It is my family's and my wish for me to be laid to rest with my daughter and the love of my life when that time comes. We appreciate the love from all of the fans.'

Priscilla Presley had asked to be buried next to her ex-husband Elvis, despite the fact that his body is currently interred between both his parents' graves

Riley Keough pictured with her late mother Lisa Marie Presley

Priscilla filed the legal challenge to Lisa Marie's will only two weeks after her death in January at the age of 54.

The will gives control of Lisa Marie's wealthy Promenade Trust to her daughter Riley.

Riley, 33, who was reportedly furious when her grandmother went to court to protest the will, did not file an objection to Priscilla's challenge.

On Tuesday it became clear she and her grandmother had buried the hatchet and settled their differences.

After announcing to LA Superior Court Judge Lynn Scaduto that there was an agreement between the two, Riley's attorney Justin Gold added that he planned to file a motion to seal the details of the settlement to keep them from the public eye.

The lawyers also declared in court on Tuesday that the women had reached a settlement on a second trust involving Lisa Marie's insurance policies - thought to total $35million.

Tennessee, Memphis, Graceland. Grave site of Elvis Presley who is buried between his parents

A view of the grave of Lisa Marie Presley during her memorial on January 22, 2023 in Memphis

Fans visit the grave of Lisa Marie Presley during her memorial on January 22, 2023

Judge Scaduto scheduled a hearing August 4 for the court to give official approval of both settlements.

'Priscilla is happy,' her attorney Ronson Shamoun told DailyMail.com 'The families are happy and unified and together and excited for the future.'

Asked if Riley too was happy with the settlement, Gold told DailyMail.com, 'She would not have agreed to the settlement if she was not happy with it.'

Riley always supported her mother during her drawn out, often nasty divorce and child custody disputes with her fourth husband, musician Michael Lockwood, 61, father of Lisa Marie's twin, 14 year-old daughters, Finley and Harper.

It's been reported that Priscilla and Lisa Marie were 'barely speaking' just before the latter's death after Priscilla sided with Lockwood over custody of the twins.

Multiple sources told People that the mother and daughter were not on speaking terms, despite appearing at multiple events together, including the premiere for the Elvis biopic starring Austin Butler.

'Riley was always on her mom's side when it came to Michael (Lockwood),' one source told the magazine. 'It bothered her that her grandmother and Michael flew to (Lisa Marie's) funeral together.'

Actresses Priscilla Presley and Riley Keough attend The Humane Society of The United States' To The Rescue gala at Paramount Studios on May 07, 2016 in Hollywood, California

Riley Keough, Lisa Marie Presley and Priscilla Presley Warner Bros. Special Screening of ELVIS, Memphis, TN, USA - 11 June 2022

Priscilla also helped Michael get into the ceremony at Elvis's famous home, Graceland, despite her late daughter's wishes.

'Michael was not invited,' a close friend of Lisa Marie told People. 'He came to Memphis under the pretense that he had to chaperone the twins - and he forced his way in with Priscilla's help.

'The last thing Lisa Marie would have wanted was for Michael to be there.'

The rift between Riley and her grandmother began when Priscilla went to court - just days after Lisa Marie's memorial service - to dispute her daughter's decision in 2016 to change her will, remove Priscilla and her ex-manager Barry Siegel as trustees and replace them with Riley.

The will contains the rights to the Graceland mansion and a 15 percent stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises. Lisa Marie also had two life insurance policies, one believed to be worth $25million and another one for $10million.

Riley always supported her mother during her drawn out, often nasty divorce and child custody disputes with her fourth husband, musician Michael Lockwood, 61, father of Lisa Marie's twin, 14 year-old daughters, Finley and Harper (pictured)

Priscilla Presley speaks at the public memorial for Lisa Marie Presley at Graceland on January 22, 2023 in Memphis, Tennessee

As well as replacing Priscilla as a trustee and cutting her out of the will, Lisa Marie's 2016 amendment also named Riley's brother Benjamin as the other trustee. But Benjamin committed suicide in 2020 leaving Riley as sole named heir.

Priscilla's challenging petition to the court questioned the 'authenticity and validity' of the trust, claiming that Lisa Marie's signature was 'inconsistent,' and asked to be restored as a trustee.

The grandmother of four also claimed she was not aware Lisa Marie had changed the trust in 2016 until after her daughter passed away.

If Priscilla's petition were granted, she and Riley would be made co-trustees of Lisa Marie's estate.

Last month, Judge Scaduto granted Lockwood's petition to be appointed 'guardian ad litem' of Harper and Finley - allowing him to represent the girls over their mother's hotly-contested estate.

Harper and Finley are both beneficiaries of Lisa Marie's trust while their father Lockwood is not.

The twins, Harper and Finley alongside mother Lisa-Marie and sister Riley Keough

The will contains the rights to the Graceland mansion (pictured) and a 15 percent stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises

Riley honored her late mom on the first Mother's Day since since her passing, posting a photo of her mom and father, Danny Keough, 58, holding her as a newborn. 'Lucky to have had the best and most deeply loving mama I could ask for'

Michael Lockwood and Lisa Marie (pictured) spent years fighting about finances and were still negotiating up until her death

Lisa Marie died in January, hours after she suffered a cardiac arrest at her home in Calabasas, California.

She had been rushed to a hospital in critical condition and was said to be in a coma following a 'full cardiac arrest' shortly after she had been complaining about stomach pains.

Priscilla, who was at her daughter's side, said in a statement: 'It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us.

'She was the most passionate strong and loving woman I have ever known. We ask for privacy as we try to deal with this profound loss. Thank you for the love and prayers. At this time there will be no further comment.'

Lisa Marie's death comes just two days after she was pictured with her mother at the Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hills Hilton where Austin Butler won a Best Actor award for his portrayal of her father in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis.

Lisa Marie's life was tumultuous, with five stints in rehab for cocaine and opioid abuse, four failed marriages - including one to Michael Jackson - as well as losing her son to suicide and a fierce custody battle over her twin girls with Lockwood who she falsely accused of having child pornography.
Luxury carmaker Audi on Wednesday said it has launched an app to help customers of its e-tron range access charging points across the country.The German carmaker has introduced Charge my Audi on the myAudiConnect app, an industry first initiative that enhances convenience for customers. The application currently includes five charging partners Aargo EV Smart, Charge Zone, Relux Electric, LionCharge and Zeon Charging  and gives an access to over 750 charge points to e-tron owners.

In an interaction with PTI, Audi India Head Balbir Singh Dhillon said the company is in constant touch with the customers trying to understand ownership experience. We feel while there are multiple chargers available across the country it is a big hassle to download each app for each of the chargers, he noted.
Crackdown on illegal arms can play a major role in controlling crime in the country but the police will have to gear up to neutralise the syndicates

The last few months have witnessed a sudden spurt in violence and crime in the Delhi NCR and elsewhere in the country. Though it reflects a deteriorating law and order situation, what is more, disturbing is that in many of the reported cases, the accused were young adolescents and minors who committed crimes against other youth as well as adults. The reason for violence against other youth was generally some animosity, but, more alarmingly, reasons for most of such violence were trivial.

In one such case, some minors stabbed a classmate just because, allegedly, the victim, being a class monitor, had written the name of one of them on the class board which irked the minor; in another case, a young boy was killed by other boys in a chukka-bar under a mistaken identity. Numerous such cases involving young offenders are constantly being reported in Delhi-NCR which is indicative of rising aggression and vengeful tendencies among the youth, especially in Delhi NCR. Frequent such incidents in Delhi-NCR, contrary to the general perception, are giving the impression of the region no longer being a safer place to live.

From such incidents, it is alarmingly apparent that even on trivial issues, youth do not think of just simply hurting their adversary, rather they only think of killing. Almost all the cases reported recently point towards this direction and raise serious concerns about not only the deteriorating law and order situation but also about the direction in which our youth seems to be going.

The commission of a crime by youngsters has extremely adverse consequences not only for the victim and their families but also for the young offender and his family. Once a crime is committed, a saga of misery and agony follows. First, the offender becomes a wanted or arrested accused under the law, who is not just likely to face imprisonment and sentence but also animosity from the victim and their family members as they would probably keep a grudge and want to take revenge. Moreover, on being arrested, young offenders further fall into deep prey, as they often end up meeting hardcore criminals in jail, who trap them and push them into the crime business from which there is no return possible.

Such a situation is highly detrimental to a young offender whose single mistake sometimes can lead to lifelong agonies and miseries and can destroy the whole of their career and prospects. Moreover, the families of the offenders as well as the victims feel devastated and get trapped in a long-drawn and harassing legal battle that was unnecessary and could be avoided.

A large number of youths seem to be regularly falling prey to criminogenic tendencies and subsequent commission of crimes which is not in favour of anyone, neither the victim nor the offender, nor the society or the nation. This is no doubt true that many crimes are committed under a sudden heat of passion and due to circumstantial reasons and the offenders mostly repent later, however, it is important to find out ways to curb the rising incident of crimes, especially, involving the young offenders.

Besides many other factors responsible for the commission of crimes, one of the very pertinent reasons required to be addressed is the easy availability of illegal arms and weapons with which the crimes are committed. Almost all crimes are committed with weapons, most of which are illegally procured. There could be no doubt that the restriction on the availability of arms will surely lead to an automatic reduction in the crime rate.

The present arms law in India is contained in the Arms Act 1959 and Arms Rules 1962 which are comprehensive legislations and provide detailed provisions regarding possession of arms. The Act defines prohibited arms and ammunition and provides that the acquisition, possession, manufacture, import-export, transport and sale of prohibited arms and ammunition without a valid license is completely prohibited. Contravention of legal provisions carries punishment that may extend from 7 years imprisonment to a life sentence. Both these laws aim to curb the menace of illegally keeping weapons that could create a threat of violence that might result from possessing them.

India has the strictest arms law, especially regarding issuing gun licenses, however, it still has a high rate of deaths due to guns as illegal weapons are easily available. There is a clear lack of fear among offenders that usually results from a lack of law enforcement. It is not the severity of punishment, rather it is the certainty of punishment that matters. Ending illegal arms can play a major role in controlling crime, but for this, the police shall have to revamp their work for controlling illegal arms and their syndicates in this country.

(The writer is a Senior Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi)
Peace comes from purity, which is gained by giving up lustful desires

Yes, it does. Let us see how. Purity comes from right behaviour, which means that we should always try to obey dharma and never cross maryada (social norms). Goodness follows, which is illuminating and free from diseases on account of purity. (The Bhagavad-Geeta 14.6) Yajna (making sacrifices), charity and austerity (tapasya) purify. Purity is so important for a human being that devotees of God perform all acts by body, mind, intelligence and senses for self-purification only. (5.11) Purity endears one to God (12.16), who Himself is supremely pure. (10.12)

Becoming pure and endearing oneself to God is not that easy though, as we can imagine. A strong desire for purity will lead us to be detached in many ways. For example, unless one is detached from tasty but harmful foods, how do you ensure good health, which is critical for being peaceful? The same is true about what we see. Watching something, which excites us excessively takes away our peace without us realizing it. What about hearing nonsense, which degrades only? The same is true about what we speak. Mind is the biggest offender. One may feel that what we think is harmless. This is far from the truth. How does one lose control over ones mind? It is in plain words: giving full freedom to the mind. Once the mind is out of control, it gives more pain than one can imagine. Most mental sicknesses have origins in the mind being attached to think what is harmful to us.

Ahankar is another big enemy. We are attached to the feeling of being a doer, superior, etc. What does this do? We are distanced from others and from God. What about being attached to too many comforts? One does not even bother to walk, which is basic for good health. Are we making the best use of our special abilities? How about intelligence? Are we making the best use of this faculty? Our intelligence is at its worst when we consider sex pleasure as the topmost pleasure for which we are ready to sacrifice all that we have achieved.

If we do all that we are on our way to mind control. What else will help in mind control? Lord Krishna guides in the Geeta, It can be brought under control by practice and detachment from sense objects. (6.35) We should obey Gods instructions about detachment from sense objects, especially sex. Lord Krishna wants us to always remember God, having surrendered our mind and intelligence to Him; one will then get help from God. (8.7) Additionally, we should renounce all desires in toto caused by selfishness and regulate all the senses from all sides. We should slowly become detached from patient intelligence. (6.24-25) Then, what will happen? We would become like a yogi, who has a peaceful disposition, is fearless, and is established firmly in the vows of brahmachari (sex pleasure according to dharma only). (6.14)

Having achieved this status, we become qualified to gain peace, and we will obtain all kinds of benefits. Lord Krishna cites the example of a yogi. A yogi of peaceful mind, whose passion is at rest; who is of divine consciousness; is free from sins; he achieves real happiness. And the list goes on.

What is the conclusion? Peace comes from purity, which is gained by giving up lustful desires, i.e. not being desirous to enjoy in a wrong manner, because attachment to harmful sense objects binds. Yes, we all need enjoyment, but wise persons limit such enjoyments, which are conducive to bodily existence, and thus remain peaceful. A strong desire for purity is the starting point. This will help in getting detached from harmful sense objects, which will in turn help in mind control. Once the mind is in control, we will be peaceful, really peaceful, not momentarily.

(Bishnoi is a spiritual writer. The views expressed are personal)
In the past year, over 5 million people received relief assistance through the initiatives of the global Red Cross teams

It has been one year, two months and over three weeks since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out killing hundreds of uniformed men and civilians in both countries. Millions of people, including women, children, older people and those with disabilities, have fled, leaving everything behind. A report suggests that almost 6 million people are internally displaced in Ukraine and over 7.8 million have fled to other countries. The international armed conflict has caused displacement the scale of which Europe has not seen in decades. These families are in limbo as they try to figure out their next move  starting over in a new place or returning to uncertainty or possible danger.

During this time, the Red Cross teams have been there to answer the call  providing essential humanitarian aid to those who need it most during these challenging and uncertain times. In the past year, over 5 million people received relief assistance through the initiatives of the Global Red Cross Team which has been continuing to provide critical service to the people. With over 100,000 volunteers who are involved in the operation, the Red Cross has ensured to reach over 718,000 people providing health interventions. Not only this, $64.8 million in multipurpose cash assistance has been distributed to more than 626,000 people. Also, 66,500 people have been aided with protection, gender and inclusion activities and over 8 million people have benefitted from improved access to water. Over 367,000 people with mental health and psychosocial support have received aid. The figures (from February 2022 to September 2022) are multiplying. The effort continues beyond Ukraines borders too.

While organisations  including The World Red Cross  celebrated World Red Cross Day on May 8th, it is a global reminder of the immense humanitarian contributions made by the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Since its inception in 1863, the Red Cross has played a significant role in alleviating suffering, providing medical assistance, and promoting respect for human dignity during times of crisis.

Founded by Henry Dunant, a Swiss businessman who witnessed the horrors of war during the Battle of Solferino in 1859 and was moved by the suffering of wounded soldiers, envisioned a neutral and impartial organization that would provide care to all victims of armed conflicts, which materialized in 1863 with the establishment of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Geneva.

During World War I, the Red Cross served as a crucial humanitarian link, delivering medical supplies, establishing hospitals, and facilitating communication between separated families. Its unwavering dedication to relieving suffering and promoting respect for human life resonated deeply with people across borders.

The Red Cross's efforts further extend far beyond war zones. During natural disasters, such as earthquakes, hurricanes, and tsunamis, the Red Cross swiftly mobilizes relief operations, providing emergency medical care, food, water, shelter, and other necessities to affected communities. Their volunteers work tirelessly, often risking their own lives, to bring hope and solace to those in distress.

Amidst the pages of Red Cross history, also lies the remarkable contribution of the young Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi during the Boer War in South Africa (1899-1902), where Gandhi played a significant role in organizing a volunteer medical corps under the auspices of the British Red Cross.

World leaders from Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission to Emmanuel Macron, President of France to Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel have acknowledged the immense contribution of the Red Cross. For Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the UN, "The Red Cross is an indispensable partner in humanitarian response.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlighted the importance of the Red Cross, stating, "The Indian Red Cross Society, as part of the Global Red Cross Movement, has been at the forefront of humanitarian efforts, offering assistance, comfort, and support to those in need across our nation."

While the Red Cross continues to play a vital role in responding to crises and its volunteers and staff work tirelessly to provide emergency assistance to the most vulnerable populations and further contribute to disaster preparedness, health promotion and community resilience, helping communities around the world build a better future, this enduring impact on global humanitarianism, serves as a reminder that compassion and empathy can transcend borders and inspire positive change for peace. Beyond borders, leaders and citizens must accept this as a shared responsibility.

(The writer is Programme Executive, Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will feel compelled to approve the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India as Washington is "joined at the hip with every nation that suffers from foreign terrorism, according to a prominent Indian-American attorney.

In a major victory for India, US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US District Court of the Central District of California issued an order on Wednesday, saying 26/11 Mumbai attacks accused Rana should be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between India and the US.

"Based on the foregoing, the court concludes that Rana is extraditable for the offences for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding and hereby certifies this finding to the United States Secretary of State," the order said.

Reacting to the 62-year-old Rana's extradition order, Indian-American attorney Ravi Batra told PTI that Chooljian's "thorough and scholarly Certification of Extraditability and Order of Commitment lays out in horrifying, albeit, objective details, the cold and calculated essence of the campaign of terror that was unleashed upon India.

He said the order is transparent about our legal protocol - given our bilateral extradition treaty - that is needed to pass constitutional muster in our lofty American federal courts.

Batra noted that the decision now legally goes from a court of law to the Executive Branch's Secretary of State Blinken who will "feel compelled to approve the extradition request as 9/11 was worse than Pearl Harbor and we, the United States are joined at the hip with every nation that suffers from foreign terror.

He stressed that nations must secure public safety, even as they have the right to wage war.

"Terror, however, beyond being cheap and evil, is unlawful as non-state actors - even if supported by a state - are targeting innocent civilians (a war crime, even amongst nations at war) to cause maximum fear, death and destruction, he said.

Batra noted that Rana has received significant judicial consideration over almost two years since the hearing, and can still seek, as a right, a direct appeal to the Circuit Court.

Batra said he fully expects the Circuit Court will affirm the certification and extradition order.

Any further plea for leave to be heard by our Supreme Court, I expect will be denied, unless a legal principle gets identified along the way making it worthy for SCOTUS to hear and determine Rana's transfer to India, where he will be extradited, and receive yet more due process under India's Constitution, he said.

"When the process is concluded in India, what is painstakingly detailed as probable cause now, will have much more evidence of the horror and evil, and in so doing, show why fighting terror is a unifying force in the comity of sovereign nations and in the UN," he said.

Batra said justice takes time, and in doing so, nations juxtapose their nobility, embedded in law, with the shameful evil of terror.

The order noted that the court cannot certify Rana's extradition unless there is probable cause to believe he committed the offences for which extradition is sought.

Citing its reasoning in detail, the order states Accordingly, the court finds there is probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offences as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition Treaty between the United States and India.

In one of the most horrific terrorist attacks in the country's history, 166 people were killed and over 300 injured as 10 heavily-armed terrorists from Pakistan created mayhem in Mumbai on November 26, 2008.

Nine Pakistani terrorists were killed by the Indian security forces. Ajmal Kasab was the only terrorist who was captured alive. He was hanged four years later on November 21, 2012 after a trial.
In view of unabated terror attacks being orchestrated from across the border, the planned phased withdrawal of the Army from certain areas of the Jammu region has been shelved indefinitely.

Officials said the Government had planned to reduce the footprints of Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-insurgency force of the Army, in the Jammu region and hand over the security to the Jammu & Kashmir Police and paramilitary forces.

The Army has three Counter-Insurgent Forces (CIF) in the Jammu region  Delta Force (which looks after the Doda region), Romeo Force (looking after Rajouri and Poonch areas) and Uniform Force (looking after Udhampur and Banihal areas).

Some units of the Army had planned to gradually hand over the security and law and order management to the local police and paramilitary units in South of Pir Panjal (Jammu region), the officials said.

However, keeping the situation in mind, especially the killings by terrorists this year, it has been decided to shelve the proposal indefinitely, the officials said.

The areas in the Jammu region have seen 17 killings by terrorists, including that of 10 Army personnel.

Seven civilians were killed in Dhangri village of Rajouri on January 1 this year. Of them, five civilians were killed in a terrorist firing on January 1 evening while two minors lost their lives when an IED, left behind by the terrorists before fleeing, exploded the next day.

Five Army personnel were killed in cold blood when terrorists attacked their vehicle at Bhatta Durrian in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district on April 20.

The Army personnel were on their way to distribute Iftar material to a nearby village during Ramzan.

Five para-commandos were killed and a Major-rank officer injured when terrorists set off an IED in Kandi forest, Rajouri on May 5.

The proposal to withdraw the Army from the hinterland was under discussion for some time and a final recommendation was to be taken at the Unified Headquarters (UHQ) headed by Lt Governor of Jammu & Kashmir Manoj Sinha. The UHQ has top representatives from the Army, police and paramilitary forces.

Post abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the law and order and terror-related incidents had shown a decline with the number of stone pelting incidents reduced to zero.
Even after several rounds of discussion for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, the crisis within the Congress regarding the selection of the Chief Minister for Karnataka has continued.

After several meetings on Monday and Tuesday, including with Congress president Malliakarjun Kharge separately, Wednesday started with both former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Karnataka PCC chief DK Shivakumar meeting Rahul Gandhi separately at 10 Janpath in the morning. Shivakumar is also learnt to have talked on the phone to former party chief Sonia Gandhi, who is learnt to have told him to meet Kharge.

However, in the evening, all the Congress could inform the media was to wait for 48-78 hours for the party to announce the CM name along with full cabinet. Earlier the party had said the CM name shall be announced by Kharge in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

AICC general secretary in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said, It (the decision to name the CM) is a matter of today and tomorrow and we will have a leader of the legislature party. Within the next 48 to 72 hours, we will have a new cabinet in Karnataka and in the first cabinet meeting, we will implement the five Congress guarantees and begin the work of building grand Karnataka.

Surjewala also mentioned that all Congress leaders have been advised not to issue statements on the leadership matter. Any out of turn remarks made from here onwards will be treated as indiscipline and action taken accordingly, Surjewala said.

The Karnataka PCC chief then met Kharge again and spent a good half an hour with him for the second day in a row. Surjewala was present at Kharges residence at the time.

A section of the top Congress leadership feels Siddaramaiahs popularity among several sections, including the poor, OBCs and minorities, can get votes for the party in the Lok Sabha polls.

Surjewala said the party chief has been authorised to appoint the leader of the legislature party and that is why deliberations are underway. The Congress president believes in three principles  consensus, unanimity and unity. Mallikarjun Kharge, who has been authorised by the legislature party, will announce (the name of the leader) after holding due deliberations.

Urging the media not to resort to speculation, he said, I am here to quash multiple rumours and hearsay...That is being played on multiple news channels. Stop listening to rumours being planted by the BJP which is frustrated by the decisive defeat in Karnataka.

The Congress is committed to the welfare of each Kannadiga, the Congress is committed to fulfilling its five guarantees, and the Congress is committed to implementing its agenda. The Congress is committed to giving a clean, transparent and responsible government.
The ongoing political tug of war between Siddaramaiah and DK Shiva Kumar and delay in the announcement of a new Chief Minister by the Congress prompted caretaker Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday to say that inability to decide despite it having a clear majority in the Assembly reflects the internal situation in the Congress

People have voted for the Congress party hoping that a change of Government will bring a lot of prosperity to the State as well as the people. They are yet to finalise their CM candidate. It is their internal matter, I dont want to discuss much on that, he said in response to a question in Bengaluru.

He asked the Congress to settle the issue of Government formation soon.

The inability to choose a CM early is a reflection on the party, Bommai claimed.

Despite having a complete majority, the party is unable to decide its leader. This shows the internal situation of the party.

Congress has 135 MLAs in the 224-strong Karnataka Assembly.

Aspirations of the people are more important than politicking. They (Congress) should settle the issue of a new chief minister and Government formation as soon as possible, he added.

Responding to a question about the representation Congress may give Lingayats and Vokkaligas and other communities in the Government, Bommai said, Lets see what they do.

He alleged that the grand old party had tried to appease the Lingayat community before the May 10 polls.

Especially Congress leaders spoke so much about Lingayats and tried to appease them. Let us see what positions they give, whether they will give the office of CM, or Deputy CM or Minister. The community is also watching, he said.

Meanwhile, as the Congress is struggling to select the new Chief Minister for Karnataka two Ministers in the outgoing BJP Government sought to blame senior Siddaramaiah for the defection of a group of his partys MLAs that led to the collapse of the H D Kumaraswamy-led coalition Government in 2019 after being in power for 14 months.

K Sudhakar and ST Somashekar, who were Health and Cooperation Ministers respectively in the Basavaraj Bommai Government, raised the issue at a time when Siddaramaiah is in a stiff competition with State Congress president D K Shivakumar to become the Chief Minister, after the Congress won a convincing victory on May 13.
In a massive multi-State operation, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in coordination with Punjab Police and Haryana Police, on Wednesday raided 324 locations and seized a huge cache of arms and ammunition, besides other incriminating materials, in the notorious terrorist-gangster-drug smugglers nexus cases.

Several suspects were detained during the raids, conducted as part of Operation Dhvast in nine States, namely Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh, the NIA said in a statement.

While the NIA covered 129 premises, Punjab Police launched searches at 143 places in 17 districts and Haryana Police raided 52 locations in 10 districts simultaneously beginning at 5.30 am, it said.

The day-long searches were aimed at breaking the terror nexus of Arsh Dalla, a designated terrorist, apart from dreaded gangsters such as Lawrence Bishnoi, Chhenu Pehalwan, Deepak Teetar, Bhupi Rana, Vikash Lagarpuriya, Ashish Choudhary, Gurpreet Sekhon, Dilpreet Baba, Harsimrat Simma, and Anuradha among others.

Some of the locations where raids were conducted on Wednesday included Abohar, Moga, Fazilka , Ludhiana, Mohali, Ferozpur, Tarn Taran, Ludhiana , Faridkot, Roopnagar, Nawashahar, Ferozpur, Amritsar, Patiala, Bernala and Jalandhar districts of Punjab, Gurugram, Yamuna Nagar, Ambala, Rohtak, Sirsa, Kurukshetra and Jhajjar districts of Haryana, Sri Ganga Nagar, Churu, Bikaner and Jaipur districts of Rajasthan, Baghpat, Meerut and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh; Bhind and Barwani districts of Madhya Pradesh; besides Dwarka, North, North-east, South-east, South, Outer and Outer North districts of Delhi/NCR.

The focus of the latest round searches against the syndicate was on weapon suppliers, financiers, logistic providers and hawala operators associated with the hardcore gangs working with drug smugglers and terrorists based out of other countries like Pakistan and Canada.

The raiding parties have seized one pistol, assorted ammunition (both live and used cartridges), in addition to 60 mobile phones, five DVRs, 20 SIM cards, one hard disk, one pen drive, one dongle, one WiFi router, a digital watch, two memory cards, 75 documents and Rs 39, 60,000 in cash, the NIA said.

These searches were the sixth in the series of such crackdowns launched by the NIA following the registration of three cases since August 2022 of conspiracies related to targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits and extortion.

Notable among these cases are the sensational killing of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani and international Kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambia in Punjab last year.

The NIA investigations have revealed that the conspiracies were being hatched in jails of different States and were being executed by an organized network of operatives based abroad. The spotlight on these gangs has become sharper after reports of several prisons becoming havens of the deadly nexus and hubs of gang wars, which recently resulted in violence and murder inside Goindwal jail and Tihar jail, it said.

The NIA has further found that many criminals, who were leading the gangsters in India, had fled to countries like Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia and Australia, from where they were engaged in planning serious crimes in association with criminals lodged in jails across India. These groups were carrying out targeted killings and raising funds for their nefarious activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons, hawala and extortions.

Earlier, the NIA had conducted searches at 231 locations and seized 38 arms, including four lethal weapons, along with 1,129 rounds of ammunition.

It has so far frozen 87 bank accounts and attached 13 properties, besides seizing 331 digital devices, 418 documents and two vehicles. Two absconders have been declared as designated individual terrorists, and NBWs have been issued against 10 persons and LOCs against 14 others
Nick Maimer's send-off was like any other family event, filled with laughter and fond memories. The Army Special Forces veteran and Idaho native was heading to Spain to teach English in early 2022.

No one at the time, not even Maimer himself, knew he would end up in the thick of war in Ukraine. The retired staff sergeant, 45, was killed in the eastern city of Bakhmut, Ukraine, this week after an apparent barrage of artillery destroyed the building he was in.

Like other American veterans, he was drawn to the struggle and need there, as Ukrainians fend off an invasion of Russian forces -- a David and Goliath conflict, Western democracy against the aggressive authoritarian military might of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Read Next: Nearly 1 in 3 Female Recruits Were Injured in Army Basic Training Last Year

"He's a protector," Nate Peterson, a judge advocate general in the Idaho National Guard and Maimer's step-cousin, told Military.com on Thursday. "I know a lot of people who would die for family, a lot of people who would die for country, but I know very few people who would go somewhere else and die for someone else's freedom, somebody else's rights and liberties. And that was Nick."

In a grim twist, Maimer's death was broadcast around the world by a Russian mercenary group. In the video, the Wagner Group's chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, flashes Maimer's ID cards and stands over his body amid the ruins of the besieged city.

"So, we will pass him along to the United States of America, we will put him in a coffin, and cover him with an American flag because he didn't die in his bed an old man but died in war and most likely in a worthy way, right?" Prigozhin says in the black-and-white video.

The propaganda video "pissed off" and hurt Maimer's loved ones, according to friends, family and members of his former unit who spoke to Military.com. It was unfair in their eyes that this was how the world came to know the man they described as a big-hearted and passionate protector.

After Military.com interviewed more than half a dozen friends, family and colleagues about Maimer, a clear image of an uninhibited, come-as-you-are veteran and friend emerged.

Peterson remembered tutoring Maimer at Boise State University where they both attended and seeing him around the Idaho National Guard where they both served. Maimer was a rocket at trivia and a self-taught audiophile and, if anything bad went down, Peterson wanted him on his side.

Bill Fackler, a retired Army veteran and current civilian employee for the Idaho National Guard, knew Maimer for more than a decade. They were friends and worked together processing personnel in and out of the unit, he said.

"When he did something, he did it 150%," Fackler told Military.com on Wednesday. "And he also was the kind of guy that would give his shirt off his back to anybody.

"If you needed a room to sleep in, he would give up his place," Fackler added, recounting that Maimer offered his place to wayward members of the unit on multiple occasions.

In January 2022, when Maimer and his family were having a last celebration before he left, Eastern Europe wasn't at war and the retired staff sergeant was looking to teach English in Spain. At the same time, it was becoming increasingly clear that Putin was about to launch a full-scale invasion into Ukraine.

In late February, he did -- and Maimer wanted to help the Ukrainians in any way he could.

"I had that strong internal debate on whether I should, what I could contribute," he told NBC months before he died, though the news network had concealed his identity at the time. "Should I accept the risk? Ultimately, I decided that it was worth it to help Ukraine."

Fackler tried to talk him out of going, he said, "but I knew it was useless."

"You don't have to do this," he recounted telling Maimer. "I respect you, but that's truly dangerous."

Maimer entered the country through Poland around March, looking for an organization to join and put his Special Forces skills to use. He first tried the Mozart Group -- a now defunct, pro-Ukrainian private military company that shuttered earlier this year.

Maimer's story picked up around April 2022 when he met retired Lt. Col. Perry Blackburn, founder of the non-profit AFGFree, a group providing humanitarian aid and training in Ukraine.

The relationship between the retired staff sergeant and the organization, as described by Blackburn, consisted of periodic check-ins and a wide berth of responsibility for "partners" like Maimer.

"Nobody controls anyone's activities or operations," Blackburn, also a retired Green Beret, said of his organization. "They just go to, and then find the need, and we support that need from various places within Ukraine.

"But we have multiple folks that work within our networks and do remarkable things every day," he added. "And Nick was one of those people."

He said Maimer was a liaison between his organization and Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces. He also conducted site visits to best direct aid across the country.

Blackburn recounted a time that he and Maimer were in the basement of a besieged restaurant working on getting fuel to the front and meeting with someone for help with logistics support.

"Our eyes are all glassy from the smoke, and there's vodka being given out," he said. "And Nick didn't touch a drink the whole time. ... He kept a level head throughout the whole thing [and], at the end of it, when we came down to the brass tacks of negotiating how this was going to happen, it was Nick that put the fine print on how this was going to work."

That's what Blackburn believes Maimer was doing in Bakhmut, the current epicenter of the war and site of Ukraine's counter-offensive against Russia. He believes Maimer was there on a site visit to best provide humanitarian logistics to the area.

Blackburn said that he and Maimer spoke last about three weeks before his death when there were rumors of a big offensive that was going to occur on Ukraine's eastern front.

"We also understood that there was an opportunity that we needed to be there to help bring in supplies for Russian-occupied areas, to the civilians, because every time it happens, there's no commerce that comes in and out of that area," he said.

"So, I believe that he was there with the Territorial Defense doing an assessment to determine where the best places were that needed the most help," he added. "And unfortunately he got caught in that irregular battlefield geometry and got hit by Russian artillery."

The Wagner video, which was released Tuesday, emerged shortly after.

"Here we have a veteran, Nicholas," Prigozhin said after mumbling about "military humor" in the video.

The video showed what Fackler and Blackburn said was Maimer's body. "It was the hardest thing I've ever seen," Fackler told Military.com.

"That's not what professional soldiers do," Blackburn said. "It's just really, really upsetting to the family -- the family's seen it -- they had to know that the family was going to see it. It just shows the callousness of them."

The video traveled across the internet and, in pro-Russian circles, was used to portray Maimer as a mercenary himself.

"To think that he went over there to make a bunch of money as a mercenary and fight the Russians is inaccurate," Blackburn told Military.com. "His main emphasis was to help with humanitarian aid and help train them to facilitate that humanitarian aid where needed."

After his death was publicized in the video, friends expressed their love for Maimer over social media, consistently referring to his compassion. He was a humanitarian, as one person wrote. A group with 100 members emerged on Facebook with friends and loved ones sharing pictures and stories about Maimer.

Others, like Karl Watts, who met Maimer through the Big Brother program when he was just 12 years old, said that the former soldier had his "ups and downs" throughout his life.

"He was courageous, he pursued life with a passion, he had strength to work through and overcome a lot of the negative in his life," Watts said. "That even through all that he was not cynical or pessimistic -- he somehow carried this very positive attitude, a smile on his face through it all."

Zac Feuerborn, a cousin who grew up with Maimer since he was a toddler and reconnected with him as adults, said that a phrase that rings familiar when he thinks about Maimer is "come as you are." "He was friends with everybody, he accepted everybody for who they were and where they were at in their lives," he said. "He was a loyal friend."

Members of his Idaho National Guard unit recounted Maimer's long service to the country and his community -- one that included at least four different jobs from cavalry scout to Special Forces engineer to armor crewman and finally infantryman.

"The guy served and served his country well beyond and above what most people do," said Dustin Schenstrom, who retired from the Army after 24 years. He served with Maimer and recounted how the Special Forces NCO helped him through some of the toughest moments of his life, even while he was in the Ukrainian war zone.

"He was an honorable man." Schenstrom said. "He was a man of service; he definitely wanted to serve not only our country, but humankind."

Maimer originally joined the Army in 1996, according to the service, which provided his records to Military.com. Over the next 20 years, he rotated between the Idaho, Utah and California National Guards. He became a Green Beret in 2005 and deployed with the Utah Guard's 19th Special Forces Group in 2006 to the Philippines.

In 2018, he retired with the Idaho National Guard as a staff sergeant, taking a nonpunitive, administrative rank reduction from sergeant first class, according to Fackler -- a not unheard-of occurrence for Guard members looking for specific jobs in specific states.

"Nick was a member of the Idaho National Guard," Lt. Col. Christopher Borders, a spokesperson for the unit, told Military.com Wednesday. "So this hits close to home here and our hearts and prayers are with him, his family and his friends in the community.

"He was a valued member, he did a lot of great things for this organization. And it's sad to see one of our brothers in arms fall, regardless of the conflict or action," Borders said.

Friends and family said they are trying to get Maimer's body back to the U.S. Peterson, his step-cousin and a JAG officer, said that they hope to bury Maimer in an Idaho military cemetery.

Feuerborn, his cousin, said that Maimer would want a celebration, too. And even in death, Maimer's humor -- sometimes dark -- made Feuerborn laugh.

Maimer once said that if the worst came to pass, he would want to be cremated and his ashes flushed down the toilet "because ashes are just ashes."

"He would do anything for the people that he loved," Feuerborn said.

-- Drew F. Lawrence can be reached at drew.lawrence@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @df_lawrence.

Related: Russian Mercenary Group Claims American Veteran Killed in Ukraine Firefight
With US President Joe Biden calling off his visit to Australia for the Quad summit there next week, the high-profile event may take place in Hiroshima, Japan, this weekend. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Biden will review the situation in the Indo-Pacific against the backdrop of Chinese aggressive stance there. The Quad grouping includes India, the US, Australia, and Japan.

Prime Minister Modi will travel to Japan to attend the G-7 meet where the Quad meeting between the leaders of Australia, Japan, US and India is likely to be held on coming Saturday or Sunday.

Modi will then attend the Indo-Pacific Forum meeting in Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea followed by a visit to Australia. He will hold a bilateral meeting with Albanese besides taking part in a conference of business leaders. The Indian diaspora will hold a reception for the Prime Minister in Sydney on May 23. Biden is also expected to meet Modi on the side-lines of the G-7 summit.

Giving details of Modis three-nation tour, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said on Tuesday he will visit Hiroshima on May 19-21 for the G-7 summit. He will speak at G-7 sessions with partner countries on subjects such as peace, stability and prosperity of a sustainable planet, food, fertiliser and energy security, health, gender equality, climate change and environment, resilient infrastructure, and development cooperation.

Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with Kishida. He will also hold bilateral meetings with some of the other participating leaders on the side-lines of the Summit.

The Prime Minister will then travel to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, where he will host the 3rd Summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation jointly with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea on May 22.

Launched in 2014, FIPIC involves India and 14 Pacific Island Countries, namely, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, Vanuatu, Niue, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Palau, Nauru and Solomon Islands.

Thereafter, Modi will visit Sydney, Australia, on May22-24.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Albanese on Wednesday cancelled next weeks Quad leaders meeting in Sydney after President Biden postponed his visit to Australia to focus on crucial debt-ceiling talks to prevent a catastrophic federal default.

Speaking to the media, Albanese said it is still possible that his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi will visit Sydney next week. The Quad leaders meeting will not be going ahead in Sydney next week, Albanese said in Tweed Heads, a town in New South Wales.

Albanese said the leaders of Australia, the US, India and Japan will now meet at the G7 Summit in Japan this weekend.

We, though, will be having that discussion between Quad leaders in Japan. I thank Prime Minister (Fumio) Kishida for his invitation for me to attend the G7 and it is appropriate that we talk. The Quad is an important body and we want to make sure that it occurs at the leadership level and well be having that discussion over the weekend, Albanese said.

President Biden announced on Tuesday that he will postpone the Australia leg of his Asia trip, along with that of Papua New Guinea, given the uncertainty and intense negotiations with the opposition Republican Party to ensure that America does not default on its debt for the first time in history.

Biden has been forced to turn his attention to domestic politics, as he works to hash out a deal with Republicans to prevent the US from defaulting on its debts at the end of this month.

Because that has to be solved prior to June 1 -- otherwise there are quite drastic consequences for the US economy, which will flow on to the global economy -- he understandably has had to make that decision, Albanese said.

Albanese also said Biden was disappointed as he was unable to come to Australia and that the Quad leaders would instead try to gather on the margins of the G7 leaders meeting in Hiroshima.

All four leaders -- President Biden, Prime Minister Kishida, Prime Minister Modi and myself -- will be at the G7, held in Hiroshima on Saturday and Sunday. We are attempting to get together over that period of time [and] Ill have a bilateral discussion with President Biden, he said.

At this stage, we havent got time locked in for that arrangement. Albanese said it was still possible that Modi and Kishida would visit Sydney next week, but officials in all three countries were still trying to confirm their plans.

Prime Minister Modi had a bilateral meeting scheduled for Sydney as well. We are in discussions with the Quad leaders today. Well make further announcements about that, but Prime Minister Modi would certainly be a very welcome guest here next week, he said.

And, of course, I received the warmest of welcomes by Prime Minister Modi in India in March. Ill be attending the G20 meeting that will be held in New Delhi later this year as well. Obviously, the decision by President Biden that he has been forced to make because of the holding-up of those budget issues in the United States means that the rescheduling of other arrangements is being made and those discussions are taking place respectfully over the course of today, he said.
Victories of the candidates of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in civic polls in various states indicate that AAP will get success in the Urban Local Body elections of Uttarakhand too which are expected to be held in five months. The Punjab MLA and newly appointed state in-charge of AAP Barinder Kumar Goyal stated this during a Press conference in Dehradun on Wednesday. He was also joined by Delhi MLA Rohit Mehroliya who is the co-in charge of the party in the State. The duo stated that they arrived in the State to interact with party members and people here ahead of the upcoming civic polls. Mehroliya said that AAP supporters are consistently increasing across the country including Uttarakhand which will definitely benefit the party in upcoming elections. He said that the party has performed exceptionally well in civic polls in Delhi, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh as people understood that only AAP can work on their issues. If the party can end BJPs 15-year run in Delhi civic polls, it can certainly win the civic polls in Uttarakhand too, added Mehroliya. He said that unemployment, education and corruption at every level are among the major issues of the State and the party will focus on them too during its election campaign. On the question of why AAP has still not appointed a state head when the civic polls are only a few months away, he said that the party is working on various things and it will appoint the new head soon too.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Wednesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP chief J.P. Nadda of threatening non-BJP states with remarks about "double engine government".

Baghel told the media here these leaders tried to intimidate people of not lending financial support if they did not vote to vote for the BJP in states.

If not, they threaten saying Modiji ki kripa nahin hogi," he said.

"We have a federal structure and such statements are highly objectionable," he said. "This proves that BJP has an autocratic attitude and it tries to form a government by hook or by crook."

However, the people of Himachal and Karnataka shunned their appeal of "double engine government" and handed over power to the Congress, he said.

Baghel said Manmohan Singh was also a Prime Minister for 10 years but never used such threatening language.

He accused the Modi government of adapting a biased attitude towards non-BJP governments in states. Chhattisgarh, he said, was suffering a loss of Rs 5,000-6,000 crore per year because of not getting GST compensation.
Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), Ranchi celebrated its 106th Foundation Day on Wednesday. To grace the occasion chief guest was the Vice Chancellor of Ranchi University, Ajit Kumar Sinha and the Guest of Honour was Director, IIM, Ranchi, Deepak Srivastava along with the distinguished guests that were present on the occasion.



The programme started with the welcome address by Director, CIP, Dr Basudeb Das where he talked about the legacy of CIP and the milestones achieved and the future milestones that are to be achieved. He also announced a New OPD building with neurosurgery facilities with 500 beds. Srivastava discussed management and a holistic approach toward mental and social well-being.

On the occasion Sinha emphasized on the changing trends in student's mental health due to globalization and discussed various challenges faced by students and the importance of addressing these challenges. Other dignitaries present on the dias were Former director CIP, Dr D Ram, Administrative Officer, CIP, Dr Avinash Sharma, President of CIP Alumni, Dr Dipanjan Bhattachajee and Matron,CIP, Sawarnbala Soran who released the CIP Bulletin 2023 and the Alumni Newsletter 2023.



Various awards were given to the students and the staff members of CIP. Das, honoured the chief guest of the event and Dr D Ram honoured the guest of honor on the occasion. Vote of thanks was given by Dr Avinash Sharma.

Further, a CME was organised on the topic of "Globalisation and Mental health marching through the G20 leadership" in which Dr Sanjay K Munda covered the topic "Mental Health of Marginalised communities in the era of Globalization" discussing various challenges faced by these marginalised groups and the ways to combat it. Dr Nikhil Nayar gave a "talk on LGBTQ and mental health from global to local" where he traced the challenges faced by this community and how one can help them to become a part of mainstream society. The next topic was taken by Dr Malvika Parikh who discussed the "global trends in mother-baby mental well-being: is India prepared?" where she emphasized the various changing scenarios of motherhood in modern India. The topic Endoxifen: From cortex to clinic" was taken by Dr Pooja Sharma and Dr Chandramauli Roy. This session was chaired by Dr B Das and Dr Nishant Goyal.
Urban Development and Housing Minister Bhupendra Singh has informed that an important decision was taken by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to legalise illegal colonies of urban bodies. For the implementation of this decision, new rules were formulated by the Urban Development and Housing Department.

Under these rules, the process of legalising more than 6 thousand illegal colonies has been done. Due to the legalisation of these colonies, the residents of these places will be able to get bank loans, permission to build houses, map of houses and benefits of other government schemes. On May 23, Chief Minister Chouhan will declare the illegal colonies legal and distribute maps of houses to the residents of the legalised colonies of Bhopal at the CM's residence.
Special Secretary (Vigilance) Y Rajasekhar, who has been divested of his charge by the Delhi Government, has trashed the allegations of forgery and corruption leveled against him by officials against whom he had taken action and advised disciplinary action.

The AAP dispensation has alleged that the IAS officer faces charges of forgery and corruption, including the alleged CNG fitness scam.

The 2012-batch IAS officer is apparently facing the heat as he was overseeing various sensitive cases related to the alleged excise policy case, renovation of Chief Ministers official bungalow and razing of a heritage structure for construction of a house for then Delhi Jal Board Chief Executive Officer among others.

Rajasekhar was divested of his duties on the directive of the Delhi Services Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on May 13.

Bharadwaj had said that several written complaints against Rajasekhar have been received alleging his involvement in forgery and corruption. The Delhi Government will look into all these complaints seriously and impartially, he had said in a statement earlier this week.

Trashing all allegations against him, Rajasekhar said he has submitted a 157-page report to Delhi L-G VK Saxena with documentary evidence, including clearance from the Central Vigilance Commission and the Union Home Ministry. The Pioneer is in possession of this report.

I have come across statements in newspapers about certain allegations against the undersigned. In this context, it is to mention here that the job profile of the undersigned was always in the Enforcement and Regulatory Department. As a result, faced counter complaints from officers against whom the undersigned had taken action and recommended disciplinary action, the IAS officer said in his report.

All the allegations fall under this category and the same were already inquired and investigated by Highest Vigilance Authority of the country, that is, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), Rajasekhar stated, buttressing further that the reports have been further investigated and finally accepted by the Union Home Ministry.

On the contrary, the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) directed to assess threat perspective and directed to take action against false complainants, reads the report.

Bharadwaj had taken the step citing complaints that Rajasekhar was running an extortion racket and demanding protection money from officers.

Through a legal notice to the Delhi Government, NGO Abhinav Manch had demanded action against the officer over charges of corruption, forgery and harassment.

It claimed that Rajasekhar has been accused of planting fabricated documents during his earlier stint at the Vigilance Directorate to save accused senior officers involved in the CNG fitness scam.

In the report, the officer asserted the MHA had given a clean chit to him. He further pointed out the fact that the allegation is being levelled as if he was the author of the CNG kit scam, when in actuality, he was never posted in the transport department.

It has also been alleged that he harassed and threatened a woman officer at the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) where he was earlier posted as Director (Estates). During his tenure in NDMC, many colleagues had submitted complaints against Rajasekhar. It included over 60 complaints by one person to the CVC accusing the IAS officer of bribery and having benami properties, the notice said. In this connection, the Central Vigilance Officer in his 2018 report, pointed out that the allegations were being made to create confusion in the system to tarnish the image of YVVJ Rajasekhar.

The Delhi Government has also claimed to have received a complaint against the officer, claiming that he was deliberately brought from Goa before his tenure in the coastal State ended and planted in the Delhi Governments Services and Vigilance departments for executing specific political agenda, according to sources.
Delhi Police has arrested Rohit Singh, Assistant Professor at the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU), who had impersonated the Lt. Governor, VK Saxena and made calls on his behalf in September, 2022. He was arrested on May 15, at the IGI Airport upon his arrival from UK.

Following preliminary questioning by Police, the accused has admitted that he called the Vice-Chancellor of IP University twice over the landline phone impersonating as the LG. In the first instance, he got his leave sanctioned and in the second instance on 30th September, 2022, he called the VC impersonating as LG to get his sister selected as Faculty in the English Department of the GGSIPU.

The Delhi Police had registered an FIR and begun investigations after a complaint in this matter, which relates to a call made to Vice Chancellor of the University, Dr. Mahesh Verma on 30.09.2022, by an unidentified person impersonating as the Lt. Governor, who asked for the appointment of a particular candidate in the English Department of the University, in a since cancelled Recruitment Exercise. He was produced before the court which granted his police custody. On expiry on his police custody, he was produced before the court, which remanded him into judicial custody. A Look Out Circular was pending against him.

The Lt. Governor had taken an extremely serious view in this matter of impersonation and emphasized that it has never been his style of functioning to make calls or entertain any request whatsoever, that involved out of turn favors, benefits or unethical practices. He has also cautioned all concerned to strictly check with his Secretariat in case of any such calls/messages received by them, from someone impersonating him or using his name.

To ascertain the veracity of the call, the Vice Chancellor had contacted the LGs Secretariat, which denied having made any such call and asked for the matter to be reported to Police immediately. Accordingly, an FIR under Section 419 (IPC) for impersonation was registered at PS Dwarka, North on 02.10.2022.
Uttar Pradesh governments efforts to improve the health of the poor have shown significant progress, according to a review by Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra.

The government has implemented schemes such as Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, Antyodaya Anna Yojana, Chief Minister Jan Arogya Abhiyan, and Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board, which have benefited millions of families in the state.

The government had set a target of covering 1.16 crore families under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana in the last five financial years, and so far 68.92 lakh families have benefited from the scheme. Similarly, the government has issued Ayushman cards to about two crore poor people out of a target of 5.83 crore beneficiaries.

Under Mukhyamantri Jan Arogya Abhiyan, the government has connected 3.79 lakh families out of a target of 8.43 lakh families. In Hapur, the government has achieved a hundred per cent target of connecting poor families with the Chief Ministers Jan Arogya Abhiyan. Additionally, 26.83 lakh families out of a target of 36.34 lakh beneficiary families of Antyodaya Anna Yojana have been connected with Ayushman cards.

The Yogi government has broken its own records year after year by issuing Ayushman Bharat cards on a large scale within the stipulated time. In 2022-23, the government issued 89,06,573 Ayushman Bharat cards, keeping in mind the health needs of the poor people of the state, the chief secretary said in a statement issued here on Wednesday.
A marriage party returned without the bride after the maternal uncle of the groomwas shot for objecting to celebratory firing in Deoria on Tuesday night.

The local police registered a case in this regard and arrested the accused for opening illegal firing from his licensed pistol leading to death of one person.

Sources said that the victim was killed after he objected to the celebratory firing by the brides relatives during dwarpuja.

Reports said that the marriage of Lalji Nishads son Sandeep of Unwal locality of Gorakhpur was fixed with a girl, Tuntun, hailing from Bourdih locality of Deoria on Tuesday night.

Eyewitness claimed that the marriage procession reached the brides place on Tuesday night and the dwarpuja was taking place when suddenly some guests from the brides side started firing. Fearing that someone might be injured in the celebratory firing, Bajrangi, the maternal uncle of the groom, objected and this resulted in a scuffle. In the meantime, a youth involved in firing shot at Bajrangi from point blank range and he fell in a pool of blood and was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The police immediately reached the spot and claimed to have taken the accused youth in custody.

Incharge of the local police station, Umesh Vajpayee, claimed that senior members from both the sides held discussions for the whole night but as the groom refused for marriage, the baraat returned without the bride on Wednesday morning.

Meanwhile, half a dozen persons, three members of two families, died in a road mishap in Barabanki and Kasganj respectively. In Barabanki, a couple going to drop their daughter at her in-laws house on a motorcycle died in a road mishap on Wednesday morning. The mishap took place near Chaubisi village on the Lucknow-Sultanpur highway in Haidergarh area of Barabanki district.

Reports said that Wakil of Mukandpur village under Shivratanganj police station in Amethi district, and his wife Ashiana Bano, were coming to Kadirpur village under Asandra police station in Barabanki to drop their daughter, Shaibun Nisha, at her in-laws house also in Kadirpur. As they reached Chaubisi, a speeding truck loaded with sand hit their bike and later crushed them. All the three were killed on the spot.

A case was registered and the bodies were sent for autopsy.

In Kasganj district, a teacher and his minor sons were killed when a car rammed into a tree.

The accident took place in the Dholna police station area on Tuesday midnight. Reports said that Zafir Ahmed (35) of Nawab Jama Mohalla of the citys Kotwali area had gone to Delhi along with his wife Irmjahan, both teachers, and sons Usman age (8), Ilman (5), Izhaan (18 months). While returning home, Zafir Ahmed lost control over the vehicle and hit a roadside tree in Dholna area of Kasganj in which all were critically injured and later rushed to district hospital where doctors pronounced Zafir and his sons Usman, Izhaan dead. The condition of Irmjahan and Ilman was stated to be critical.
The governor Lieutenant General (Retd) Gurmit Singh and chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami flagged off the first group of Hemkund Sahib Pilgrims from Rishikesh on Wednesday. The duo paid their obeisance in the Gurudwara and prayed for peace and prosperity in the State. Speaking on the occasion, the Governor congratulated the pilgrims for undertaking the pious journey led by the Panj Pyaras. He said that the Yatra is the journey of faith and devotion.

The governor said that Uttarakhand is the State of rich traditions of Gurus. He said that every pilgrim undertaking the Yatra is our brand ambassador. He also expressed his happiness over the information that more than 2000 pilgrims have already registered for the Yatra.

The CM said that necessary arrangements for the Hem Kund Sahib pilgrims have been done. He appealed that every pilgrim should get the medical examination done before embarking upon the Yatra. The CM said that the Char Dham Yatra is at its peak in the state. He said that last year more than 50 lakh people came to the Char Dhams and this year more pilgrims than last year are expected in the Yatra. He said that every possible facility and arrangements have been made to ensure that the pilgrims do not face any problem in the Yatra.

Expressing his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for laying the foundation stones of Kedarnath and Hemkund Sahib ropeways, the CM said these ropeways would make the Yatra easy and more comfortable. He added that the completion of Karnprayag- Rishikesh rail project would also make Hemkund Yatra more accessible.

Cabinet Ministers Satpal Maharaj, Prem Chand Agarwal, Subodh Uniyal, former CM Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank, Rishikesh Mayor Anita Mamgain and chairman of the Hemkund Sahib Management Trust N S Bindra were present on the occasion.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that there was a time when daughters were considered a burden in Madhya Pradesh, today they have become a boon. The sisters of the state are now changing the fortune of themselves and their families and the picture of the state. This has been made possible by schemes like Ladli Lakshmi, Chief Minister Kanya-Vivah-Nikah, 50 percent reservation in local bodies, women reservation in police and teachers recruitment, livelihood mission, exemption for sisters in stamp duty and now Ladli Bahna.

Chouhan attended the Ladli Bahna Sammelan-cum-Chief Minister's residential land rights distribution ceremony at Prithvipur in Niwari district today. He inaugurated-bhoomi-pujan of development works worth Rs. 95 crore. He also distributed certificates of Chief Minister Residential Land Rights Scheme, Ladli Laxmi Yojna and Ladli Bahna Yojna.

Chief Minister Chouhan said that Ladli Bahna Yojana is a plan to change the lives of sisters. Under the scheme, from June 10 onwards, on the 10th of every month, an amount of one thousand rupees will be deposited in the accounts of the sisters. Self-help groups of women are being empowered under the Livelihood Mission. It is our endeavor that every sister should earn at least Rs. 10,000 in a month. Ladli Bahna Sena is being formed in every village, which will further the work of women's welfare. You will make your own luck with your own hands. In a small village, 11 members' and in a big village, 21members' Ladli Bahna Army will be formed.

The Chief Minister said that now no youth will remain unemployed in the state. Every hand will get work according to its ability. Mukhyamantri Sikho-Kamao Yojana is being started in the state from today for the youth. The cabinet has approved the plan today. Under the scheme, 12th pass and higher education youth will be given honorarium of Rs. 8 t0 10 thousand per month along with training in the field of their competence. After this they will get permanent employment. 700 works have been identified in the plan. Chief Minister Chouhan said that the government is making arrangements not only for their education but also for higher education in the state so that every child gets equal opportunities to study and grow. Medical and engineering education has also been started in the state in Hindi.

Chief Minister Chouhan said that the government has decided that every poor in the state will get land to live on and the government will also build houses on it. We started it on the land of Prithvipur itself. Today residential land rights pattas are being given to 2705 persons here. Chouhan said that the plan to supply tap water to every house in the state is nearing completion. There are still 11 villages left in Niwari district. The Chief Minister instructed that by the end of this month, tap water should be supplied to every household through pipe-line.

Chouhan reached the program venue from the helipad in an e-rickshaw driven by sister Mrs. Gayatri Kewat. Public Works Minister Gopal Bhargava was also with him. Rekha Ahirwar and Nirmala Kushwaha were also driving the e-rickshaw, in which other guests were sitting. Chouhan saluted the spirit of the sisters towards their work and gave them best wishes and blessings. They have received these e-rickshaws through the National Rural Livelihood Mission.

Chief Minister Chouhan got the interest waiver scheme forms filled by farmers Kashiram Ahirwar and Mathura Kevat under Chief Minister Interest Waiver Scheme-2023 at the venue. Kashiram's interest of Rs 22 thousand 404 and Mathura Kevat's interest of Rs 21 thousand 319 was waived off.
Social Development for Communities (SDC) Foundation, a city based organisation has alleged that despite the order of the Election Commission of India, the unusual increase in the number of voters in Uttarakhand has not been properly investigated yet. Notably, on the basis of the SDC Foundations report on the matter, the Election Commission of India ordered the Uttarakhand State Election Commission in January to conduct an inquiry into the unusual increase in the number of voters in the State over the last 10 years from 2012 to 2022.

The founder of SDC Foundation, Anoop Nautiyal said that strangely the investigations conducted on this matter did not find any irregularity in the unusual increase in the number of voters. It is still murky as to how the voter count increased so rapidly and how 83 lakh voters were screened so quickly at more than 11,000 polling booths in 70 Assembly seats in the State, he said, adding that SDC Foundation has written to the Election Commission of India, demanding all aspects of the increase in the number of voters be re-examined in a transparent and serious manner.

It is worth mentioning here that the SDC Foundation had released different reports regarding the electoral statistics during last years Assembly elections. One of these reports was called 'Demographic Changes, District Updates and Constituency Numbers'. It was said in this report that there has been a 30 percent increase in the number of voters in the State in the last decade from 2012 to 2022 whereas in the previous decade from 2002 to 2012, the State's voter turnout had increased by 20 percent.

Nautiyal said that the report had revealed an unprecedented increase in the number of voters in the Assembly constituencies in the plain areas during the period of 2012-2022. In Dehradun's Dharampur Assembly seat, the number of voters increased by 72 percent during this period, he said.

He contrasted this increase with the increase in the number of voters in four states- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur and Goa- where Assembly elections were held in 2022 along with Uttarakhand. Compared to a 30 per cent increase in the number of voters in Uttarakhand from 2012 to 2022, there was an increase of 21 per cent in Punjab, 19 per cent in Uttar Pradesh, 14 per cent in Manipur and 13 per cent in Goa, he said.

Terming the situation as worrisome, Nautiyal said that the huge increase in the number of voters in Uttarakhand would not just change the cultural character of the State but will worsen things in the cities which are already creaking from encroachment, concretisation, reduced greenery, increasing pollution and overall unplanned development.

He demanded the State Election Commission to provide the names, addresses and phone numbers of all members of the committees formed to investigate the matter so that independent feedback could be collected by their organisation.
In a concerning incident, Maoists rebels launched an attack on a mobile tower in the remote village of Goelkera, located in the West Singhbhum district. The incident occurred on Tuesday evening, causing significant disruptions to the region's telecommunication services and raising concerns about the security situation in the area.

The tower belonged to Airtel installed beside a government school at Patunda village which falls in the Kolhan forest division where a big number of Naxals have been anchoring since January this year.

A senior police official confirmed the incident committed by the Naxals. Whether the mobile tower was set on fire or blown up by explosives is a matter of verification. A police party accompanied by a contingent of paramilitary forces has already set out for the Patunda village.

According to sources, Patunda village is considered to be a naxal-infested village and a strategically important place. Sources said at about 6 pm on Tuesday an armed squad of Naxals arrived at the village and drove the villagers a little distance away before triggering explosives in the tower.



After the incident, the equipment of the tower caught on fire. The ultras also left a poster and left. Sources said the private telecom company had installed the tower four months ago, intending to augment the telecommunication system in the region. The tower was yet to be operational.

The poster, bearing the unmistakable insignia associated with Maoist groups, contained messages advocating for their cause, along with warnings to local residents and authorities. The presence of such propaganda material suggests a renewed effort by the Maoists to assert their presence and influence in the area.



Law enforcement agencies have taken immediate action following the recovery of the poster. Additional forces have been deployed to the region to augment security measures and intensify surveillance. The local police have initiated a thorough investigation to determine the origin of the poster and gather any pertinent information that could aid in apprehending those responsible.

Upon receiving information about the incident, a police team rushed to the site. Security forces cordoned off the area and initiated a search operation to apprehend the perpetrators behind the attack. The investigation into the incident is currently underway, with authorities working to gather evidence and identify the individuals responsible.

It may be mentioned here that a large number of Naxals have entered into Kolhan and adjoining Porahat forest divisions having planted an unspecified number of IEDs in the forest cover since January this year, leading the police and paramilitary forces to launch a concerted operation to flush them out.

The Naxal rebels, also known as Maoists, have been involved in a prolonged insurgency against the administration. They often target critical infrastructure and security personnel, aiming to disrupt governmental functions and assert their influence in these areas. Mobile towers have previously been a target of their attacks, as they view them as symbols of connectivity and modernization.
Despite the orders of the Ministry of Home Affairs, many IAS and IPS Officers of Jharkhand have not given the details of their personal movable and immovable assets under the Immovable Property Return (IPR). The Enforcement Directorate should check their movable and immovable properties, otherwise Jharkhandi Information Rights Forum will agitate widely, said Vijay Shankar Nayak, Central President of Jharkhandi Information Rights Forum, former MLA candidate cum Central Vice President of Tribal Moolvasi Jan Adhikar Manch.

He further said that there are many such IAS and IPS officers, who have not yet made public the details of their assets despite the orders of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. By asking the list of officers from the Ministry of Home Affairs, ED should check the assets of those officers so that their illegal property can be seized.

Nayak further said that since the formation of Jharkhand, the IAS and IPS officers of Jharkhand started looting the wealth and property of Jharkhand. The situation is so alarming today that if at present private movable and immovable property of all IAS and IPS Officers of the state is honestly investigated by ED, then almost 80 per cent IAS and IPS officers have assets disproportionate to their income.

He said that there is no dearth of IAS officers like Chhavi Ranjan and Pooja Singhal in Jharkhand. Time has come that all such corrupt IAS and IPS officers' private business should be investigated. Immovable properties should be investigated by ED and all their illegal private movable and immovable properties should be confiscated so that in the coming days, IAS and IPS officers in Jharkhand take a lesson and before committing corruption, they are forced to think thousands of times, not millions, before looting the wealth of Jharkhand.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanaths appeal to the masses to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Partys mayoral candidates and elect a Bharatiya Janata Party-led board was well-received by the people of Uttar Pradesh.

As a result, opposition parties have been completely excluded from certain boards while all the 17 mayoral seats have been secured by the Bharatiya Janata Party.

In both Jhansi and the recently-created Shahjahanpur Municipal Corporation, not a single candidate from the Samajwadi Party emerged victorious as the voters preferred independent candidates over SP, BSP, and Congress Party candidates. For the first time BJP will form boards on its own in 13 municipal corporations.

BSP drew a blank in Kanpur, Varanasi and Bareilly while Congress could not open its accounts in Ayodhya and Saharanpur.

The BJP councilors constitute over 50 per cent of the board in 13 of 17 municipal corporations in the state. The party won 80 and 63 councillors seats in Lucknow and Kanpur respectively. The BJP candidates also bagged 63, 66, 56 and 58 seats out of 100 seats each in Varanasi, Ghaziabad, Prayagraj and Agra respectively.

Besides, the party secured 42 out of 80 Councillor seats in Gorakhpur and 51 out of 80 Councillor seats in Bareilly.
Jamshedpur MLA Saryu Roy in a tweet to ED has demanded for safety of CA Suman Singh in Hotwar jail. According to Roy this jailed CA of Puja Singhal, from whom ED had recovered Rs19 crores cash, is being tortured by Prem Prakash and his associates now also in Hotwar jail following ED raids.

Roy, told media persons in Dhanbad that Prem Prakash had met former Ranchi DC Chhavi Ranjan in jail is involved in torture.

Roy, quoting sources said that Suman since is willing to turn government approver in the Puja Singhal cases thus he is being tortured. Suman had said to ED that the money recovered from his premises belonged to Puja Singhal. Now Prem Prakash and his associates in Hotwar jail want Suman "not" to turn approver and accept that the recovered sum belonged to him.

Roy said, it is the moral and legal responsibility of ED to protect Suman Singh in the larger public interest.

It's worth mentioning that the ED in a recent raid at Hotwar jail had confiscated CCTV footage in which Prem Prakaah was seen meeting Chabi Ranjan with a covered face. The issue of torture came up soon after.
The Uttar Pradesh government will set up RRR centres in 11 municipal corporations. The RRR  Reduce, Reuse and Recycle  centres are part of the Meri Life, Mera Swachh Shahar' campaign.

In these facilities, being hailed as Na Throw-Na Throw (a pun on Natu Natu song), waste materials such as clothes, books, toys, electrical and electronic equipment and machinery, among others, will be collected from the homes of people and distributed to people in need.

The municipal corporations where these RRR centres would come up include Lucknow, Kanpur Nagar, Varanasi, Meerut, Agra, Ghaziabad, Prayagraj, Aligarh, Bareilly, Moradabad and Saharanpur.

According to Urban Development Minister AK Sharma, a Na Throw-Na Throw chariot will be run in all the selected 11 municipal corporations.

Neha Sharma, the state Mission Director of Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), said these chariots would collect the items.

Besides, the RRR centres will be developed as banks for clothes, books, utensils, and toys. The municipal corporations will operate them through various voluntary organisations, self-help groups and other organisations.

The campaign will run from May 20 to June 5. RRR is a one-stop solution for depositing items deemed unusable or inappropriate for citizens, institutions, commercial enterprises, etc. Once collected, these items will be handed over to various stakeholders to be refurbished for reuse or converted into new products, Neha Sharma added.

She also asserted that the collection and distribution of items would be organised through volunteers at the centres. Authorities will also recycle the waste generated from the preparation of ODOP products, Sharma said.

Meanwhile, a cow dung bank will be started in Kanha Upvan in Lucknow, wherein cow dung will be collected from the surrounding areas and eco-friendly products will be prepared from it.

Similarly, a kernel bank will be set up in Lucknow Municipal Corporation, wherein fruit kernels will be collected. These will be installed on the legacy waste sites that have been cleaned in the urban bodies of the state.
All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) secretary and senior advocate Zafaryab Jilani (73) died here on Wednesday after a protracted illness.

Jilani continued to be a significant figure in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi issue as convener of the Babri Masjid Action Committee. During the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government he was appointed as additional advocate general of Uttar Pradesh.

Jilanis son Najam Zafaryab said that his father breathed his last at around 11:50 am at Nishat Hospital in Lucknow. He was ill for a long time. He is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. Zafaryab Jilani was admitted to Medanta Hospital in Lucknow in 2021 due to a severe injury on his head.

Najam said his fathers last rites were performed at Aishbagh graveyard in Lucknow on Wednesday evening.

Despite not being in politics, Jilani remained in the headlines of the country for the last three decades. In the Ayodhya dispute, Zafaryab Jilani is known for consistently speaking firmly for the restoration of the Babri masjid.

He had been fighting on behalf of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board since 1986, after the unlocking of the Babri masjid on the orders of the district and sessions judge of Faizabad in February, 1986.

While he argued the Muslim side in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi case, Jilani, at one point, also argued that the proposed mosque which was being built on the land allocated by the Supreme Court violated the Sharia law.

Mosques or mosque land cannot be bartered under the Waqf Act. The construction of the new mosque at the alternative land in Ayodhya district allotted by the UP government as per the directions of the Supreme Court violates Sharia law because the Waqf Act is based on Shariat, Jilani had said.

Imam of Aishbagh Eidgah, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali, said, Zafaryab Jilani contested the Babri Masjid case in various courts and was also the convener of the Babri Masjid Action Committee along with being the secretary of various educational institutions. I hope that Allah gives him absolution and strength to the people he has left behind.
The Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response of the Delhi Police on a plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid seeking bail in a UAPA case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the riots here in February 2020.

A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and Hima Kohli issued notice to the Delhi government and sought its response in six weeks.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Khalid, pointed out to some dates and said that on the date of incident he was not there.

The bench said it is issuing notice and granted liberty to seek listing of the matter vacation bench.

Sibal said that the matter be listed after the vacation.

The bench then posted the matter for further hearing after the summer vacation of the apex court, which is starting from May 22 and coming to end on July 2.

In his appeal, Khalid has challenged the Delhi High Court order refusing him bail in the UAPA case in which he is in custody for over two years.

On October 18, last year, the high court had rejected his bail plea saying he was in constant touch with other co-accused and allegations against him are prima facie true.

The high court also said the actions of the accused prima facie qualified as terrorist act under the anti-terror law UAPA.

Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and several others have been booked under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.

The violence had erupted during the protests against CAA and NRC.

Khalid, arrested by Delhi Police in September 2020 has sought bail on grounds that he neither had any criminal role in the violence nor any "conspiratorial connect" with any other accused in the case.

The Delhi Police, in the high court had opposed the bail plea by Khalid, saying the speech delivered by him was very calculated and brought up issues like Babri Masjid, triple talaq, Kashmir, the alleged suppression of Muslims and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Senior lawyer Ujjwal Nikam, the special public prosecutor in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks case, on Thursday said the US court's approval for extradition of the case accused Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India is a great success for the country.

On June 10, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege from the night of November 26, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of the city.

The US court has consented to the Indian request, through the US Government, for the extradition of Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

"The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

Nikam told PTI that it is a great success for India in marshalling strong evidence against Rana in the US.

Earlier the US courts were reluctant, he added.

The lawyer said Rana is one of the conspirators of the 26/11 attack.

"His role has been vividly explained by (Lashar-e-Taiba operative) David Headley, whom I had examined during his deposition (before the special court in Mumbai)," Nikam said.

From providing logistical support to being in touch with the Pakistan Army officials, Headley had explained everything, he said.

Headley, who turned an approver, had deposed before the Mumbai sessions court through a video-link from the US during the case trial.

The US court in its May 16 order said it has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the request," it said.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks.

India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) is conducting a probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in 2008. The NIA has said it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels.

Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving Pakistani gunman in the Mumbai carnage in which 166 persons were killed, was awarded death sentence by a special Mumbai court in 2010 for the mass murders and waging a war against India.

He was hanged to death at the Yerwada jail in Maharashtra's Pune city in November 2012.
Russian lawmakers on Tuesday voted unanimously to formally pull out of a key Cold War-era security deal, more than eight years after Moscow halted its participation.

The vote came less than a week after President Vladimir Putin introduced a draft bill on May 10 denouncing the Treaty of Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, which aimed to prevent Cold War rivals from massing forces at or near mutual borders.

The deal was signed in November 1990, but not fully ratified until two years later.

Russia first announced its intention to completely withdraw from the treaty in early 2015.

Since last February, Moscows military operation in Ukraine has seen hundreds of thousands of Russian troops pour into the country, which shares a border with NATO members Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary.

On Tuesday, Putins designated envoy told the State Duma that NATO countries had made it impossible for Russia to remain in the treaty by allowing for the alliances expansion into Central and Eastern Europe.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov also described the treaty as contrary to Russias security interests in an interview published Monday in Parliamentskaya Gazeta, a weekly published by the State Duma.

Ryabkovs remarks were echoed by key deputies during the parliamentary session Tuesday.

State Duma speaker Leonid Slutsky charged that the treaty had long existed only on paper, while Andrey Kartapolov, the chairman of Russias parliamentary committee, said that it had been rendered obsolete by NATOs placing of military infrastructure in Central and Eastern European member states.

Ryabkov told lawmakers that completing the withdrawal process would take about six months.
Shares of Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF (NYSEARCA:WIZ  Get Rating) were up 0.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $26.94 and last traded at $26.93. Approximately 2,077 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 3,311 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.80.

Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF Price Performance

The businesss 50 day moving average is $26.97 and its 200 day moving average is $27.76.

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Institutional Trading of Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF during the 1st quarter worth approximately $168,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF by 151.2% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 36,736 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,010,000 after purchasing an additional 22,112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in shares of Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF by 5,789.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,946 shares of the companys stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 3,879 shares in the last quarter.

About Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF

The Alpha Architect Merlyn.AI Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF (WIZ) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in target outcome asset allocation. The fund tracks a proprietary index that uses artificial intelligence to analyze momentum indicators in order to shift between aggressive or conservative ETF portfolios.

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MicroSectors FANG+ Index 2X Leveraged ETN (NYSEARCA:FNGO  Get Rating) shares traded up 4.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $28.49 and last traded at $28.49. 48,575 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 354% from the average session volume of 10,703 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.31.

MicroSectors FANG+ Index 2X Leveraged ETN Stock Up 4.3 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $23.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.18.

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Olympus Co. (OTCMKTS:OCPNY  Get Rating) crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $18.00 and traded as high as $18.00. Olympus shares last traded at $18.00, with a volume of 400 shares.

Olympus Trading Down 1.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firms fifty day moving average is $18.00 and its 200-day moving average is $18.66. The firm has a market cap of $23.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.70.

About Olympus

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Olympus Corp. engages in the manufacture and sale of precision machineries and instruments. It operates through the following segments: Medical, Scientific Solutions, Imaging, and Others. The Medical segment covers digestive, surgical, and ultrasonic endoscopy as well as endoscopic treatment tools. The Scientific Solutions segment manufactures and sells biological and industrial microscopes, industrial endoscopes, and non-destructive testing equipment.

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Pilbara Minerals Limited (OTCMKTS:PILBF  Get Rating) was up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $3.19 and last traded at $3.19. Approximately 174,712 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 34% from the average daily volume of 265,282 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group cut Pilbara Minerals from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday, January 27th.

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Pilbara Minerals Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $2.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.93.

Pilbara Minerals Company Profile

Pilbara Minerals Ltd. engages in the exploration and evaluation of mineral properties. It focuses on lithium and tantalum properties of Pilgangoora Lithium-Tantalum Project located in the Pilbara region. The company was founded on January 10, 2005 and is headquartered in West Perth, Australia.

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Revolution Bars Group plc (LON:RBG  Get Rating)s stock price passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of GBX 6.61 ($0.08) and traded as high as GBX 8.30 ($0.10). Revolution Bars Group shares last traded at GBX 8 ($0.10), with a volume of 812,099 shares changing hands.

Revolution Bars Group Price Performance

The companys 50-day moving average price is GBX 6.61 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 7.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 81.70, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of 18.40 million, a P/E ratio of -800.00 and a beta of 2.37.

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Insider Transactions at Revolution Bars Group

In related news, insider Rob Pitcher acquired 300,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 7 ($0.09) per share, with a total value of 21,000 ($26,305.90). 36.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Revolution Bars Group Company Profile

Revolution Bars Group plc operates premium bars located in towns or city center high streets across the United Kingdom. The company's bars offer food and drinks. As of July 2, 2022, it operated 69 bars, including 2 retail brands, 49 bars under the Revolution and 18 under the Revolucion de Cuba brand names.

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AngloGold Ashanti Limited (NYSE:AU  Get Rating) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $24.70, but opened at $24.05. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $24.11, with a volume of 667,120 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC cut AngloGold Ashanti from a buy rating to a reduce rating in a report on Monday, January 30th. Investec downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a buy rating to a sell rating in a report on Monday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, March 30th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $27.00.

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AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $24.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.97.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.177 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 16th.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 1st quarter worth approximately $282,000. APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the 1st quarter worth $2,163,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 395.1% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 82,383 shares of the mining companys stock worth $1,973,000 after acquiring an additional 65,743 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 51.6% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,050,334 shares of the mining companys stock valued at $48,572,000 after purchasing an additional 697,908 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 44.1% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,412,291 shares of the mining companys stock valued at $33,457,000 after purchasing an additional 432,001 shares during the period. 24.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

(Get Rating)

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. engages in the exploration, mining, and production of gold. It operates through the following business segments: Africa, Australia, and Americas. The Africa segment consists of Ghana, Guinea, the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo), and Tanzania. The Americas segment comprises of Argentina, Brazil, and projects in Colombia and the United States.

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Tredje AP fonden boosted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY  Get Rating) by 17.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 502,875 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after purchasing an additional 74,097 shares during the period. Tredje AP fondens holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $36,182,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 1st quarter valued at about $332,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 111.5% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,052 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 1,082 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 53.2% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 165,336 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $12,075,000 after buying an additional 57,444 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC purchased a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,997,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 25.1% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 338,563 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $24,725,000 after purchasing an additional 68,018 shares in the last quarter. 75.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Transactions at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In related news, EVP Rupert Vessey sold 50,385 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $3,378,818.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 47,751 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,202,182.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the companys stock.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:BMY traded down $1.32 during trading on Thursday, hitting $65.21. The companys stock had a trading volume of 4,333,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,982,777. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $68.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.29. The company has a market capitalization of $137.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.42. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a fifty-two week low of $65.18 and a fifty-two week high of $81.43.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $11.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.50 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a net margin of 15.95% and a return on equity of 51.75%. The companys quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 8.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 6th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. Bristol-Myers Squibbs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BMY has been the topic of a number of research reports. 51job reissued a maintains rating on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $66.00 to $65.00 in a report on Monday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a report on Monday, March 6th. They set a hold rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $79.43.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Bristol Myers Squibb Co engages in the discovery, development, licensing, manufacture, marketing, distribution, and sale of biopharmaceutical products. It offers chemically-synthesized drugs or small molecules and products produced from biological processes called biologics. The company was founded in August 1933 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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Century Communities, Inc. (NYSE:CCS  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $68.53 and last traded at $68.33, with a volume of 5857 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush restated an outperform rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Century Communities in a research note on Wednesday, April 12th. B. Riley lifted their price objective on shares of Century Communities from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, February 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Century Communities in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $56.50.

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Century Communities Price Performance

The firms 50-day moving average is $63.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.23. The company has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 1.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Century Communities

Century Communities ( NYSE:CCS Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The construction company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.29. Century Communities had a net margin of 9.80% and a return on equity of 20.31%. The company had revenue of $735.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $595.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.20 earnings per share. Century Communitiess quarterly revenue was down 25.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Century Communities, Inc. will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

In other Century Communities news, CFO John Scott Dixon sold 3,173 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.72, for a total transaction of $211,702.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 12.10% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of Century Communities

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Century Communities by 3.0% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,253,004 shares of the construction companys stock worth $80,082,000 after purchasing an additional 36,453 shares in the last quarter. First Sabrepoint Capital Management LP bought a new position in Century Communities in the first quarter worth about $2,749,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Century Communities by 4.3% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 276,722 shares of the construction companys stock worth $17,688,000 after purchasing an additional 11,289 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Century Communities by 3.9% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 537,727 shares of the construction companys stock worth $34,372,000 after purchasing an additional 20,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Century Communities by 3.5% in the first quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 113,950 shares of the construction companys stock worth $7,284,000 after purchasing an additional 3,900 shares in the last quarter. 88.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Century Communities Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Century Communities, Inc engages in the development, design, construction, marketing and sale of single-family attached and detached homes. It operates through the following segments: West, Mountain, Texas, Southeast, Century Complete, and Financial Services. The West segment refers to projects in California and Washington.

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Commerce Bank cut its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT  Get Rating) by 20.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 768,416 shares of the healthcare product makers stock after selling 194,233 shares during the quarter. Commerce Banks holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $84,364,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,445,815 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $158,736,000 after acquiring an additional 49,895 shares during the last quarter. Acorn Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $221,000. CI Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 111,513 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $12,243,000 after acquiring an additional 6,955 shares during the last quarter. New Hampshire Trust bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,243,000. Finally, Keeley Teton Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $243,000. 72.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.5 %

ABT traded down $0.50 on Thursday, hitting $108.32. 1,400,144 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,076,089. The stocks fifty day moving average is $104.65 and its 200-day moving average is $106.11. The company has a market cap of $188.36 billion, a PE ratio of 33.08, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.68. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $93.25 and a 12 month high of $118.23.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

Abbott Laboratories ( NYSE:ABT Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $9.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.64 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 22.36% and a net margin of 13.98%. The businesss revenue was down 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.73 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 14th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 13th. Abbott Laboratoriess payout ratio is 62.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Daniel J. Starks sold 50,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.02, for a total value of $5,551,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,825,316 shares of the companys stock, valued at $757,746,582.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Julie L. Tyler sold 260 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.24, for a total value of $26,842.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,222,103.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel J. Starks sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.02, for a total value of $5,551,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,825,316 shares of the companys stock, valued at $757,746,582.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 60,197 shares of company stock valued at $6,659,607. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ABT. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 24th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. Finally, SVB Leerink boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $90.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research report on Friday, March 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $122.37.

Abbott Laboratories Profile

(Get Rating)

Abbott Laboratories engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and sale of a broad and diversified line of health care products. It operates through the following business segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. The Established Pharmaceutical Products segment refers to the international sales of a line of branded generic pharmaceutical products.

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Cynosure Management LLC trimmed its holdings in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (NYSEARCA:IWR  Get Rating) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 15,893 shares of the companys stock after selling 695 shares during the quarter. iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF makes up approximately 1.1% of Cynosure Management LLCs portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Cynosure Management LLCs holdings in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF were worth $1,072,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in IWR. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. raised its holdings in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF by 123.3% during the 3rd quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 1,719,211 shares of the companys stock valued at $106,848,000 after buying an additional 949,200 shares during the period. Citizens Business Bank bought a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at $45,194,000. International City Management Association Retirement Corp bought a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF in the 4th quarter valued at $30,478,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 18,374,673 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,141,986,000 after acquiring an additional 450,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,466,777 shares of the companys stock valued at $571,084,000 after acquiring an additional 415,807 shares during the last quarter.

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iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF Stock Performance

iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF stock traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $68.86. The companys stock had a trading volume of 118,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,253,358. iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF has a one year low of $60.73 and a one year high of $75.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $68.52 and a 200-day moving average of $69.66. The stock has a market cap of $27.31 billion, a PE ratio of 15.16 and a beta of 1.09.

About iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF

iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares Russell Midcap Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell Midcap Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the United States equity market.

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StockNews.com cut shares of Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN  Get Rating) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Wednesday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on DVN. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Devon Energy from $79.00 to $72.00 and set a positive rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 16th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Devon Energy from $77.00 to $66.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Devon Energy from $70.00 to $59.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Raymond James raised their price target on Devon Energy from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a research note on Friday, April 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Devon Energy from $84.00 to $71.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $70.05.

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Devon Energy Price Performance

NYSE DVN traded down $0.03 on Wednesday, reaching $47.68. 2,620,185 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,439,434. Devon Energy has a 12 month low of $44.03 and a 12 month high of $79.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.81. The stock has a market cap of $31.18 billion, a PE ratio of 5.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.14 and a beta of 2.34.

Devon Energy Cuts Dividend

Devon Energy ( NYSE:DVN Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.07. Devon Energy had a net margin of 31.39% and a return on equity of 47.42%. The business had revenue of $3.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. The businesss quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Devon Energy will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.04%. Devon Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.72%.

Insider Activity at Devon Energy

In related news, CEO Richard E. Muncrief acquired 10,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $53.28 per share, for a total transaction of $532,800.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,973,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,173,494.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Devon Energy news, Director John E. Bethancourt purchased 3,765 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $53.06 per share, with a total value of $199,770.90. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 94,669 shares in the company, valued at $5,023,137.14. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard E. Muncrief purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $53.28 per share, for a total transaction of $532,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,973,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,173,494.56. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Devon Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Trustcore Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter. Trustcore Financial Services LLC now owns 1,600 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 194.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 573,342 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $34,475,000 after purchasing an additional 378,590 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 470.6% during the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 64,217 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $3,861,000 after purchasing an additional 52,963 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 111.4% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Financial LLC now owns 21,468 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $1,320,000 after purchasing an additional 11,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exos TFP Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $217,000. 78.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Devon Energy Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Devon Energy Corp. engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties. It develops and operates Delaware Basin, Eagle Ford, Heavy Oil, Barnett Shale, STACK, and Rockies Oil. The company was founded by J. Larry Nichols and John W. Nichols in 1971 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK.

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Duolingo, Inc. (NYSE:DUOL  Get Rating) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $150.46 and last traded at $149.83, with a volume of 351506 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $142.32.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Duolingo from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, May 10th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Duolingo from $115.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, May 10th. JMP Securities boosted their target price on Duolingo from $128.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Duolingo from $92.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, March 2nd. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on Duolingo from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, March 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duolingo currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $142.38.

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Duolingo Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.65, a quick ratio of 3.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of -119.94 and a beta of 0.41. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $134.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.50.

Insider Activity at Duolingo

Duolingo ( NYSE:DUOL Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.18. Duolingo had a negative net margin of 12.38% and a negative return on equity of 9.22%. The business had revenue of $115.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $112.86 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.31) EPS. Duolingos revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Duolingo, Inc. will post -0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other Duolingo news, CEO Ahn Luis Von sold 153,514 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.34, for a total transaction of $18,166,846.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Matthew Skaruppa sold 2,593 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.69, for a total value of $237,752.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 43,987 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,033,168.03. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ahn Luis Von sold 153,514 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.34, for a total transaction of $18,166,846.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 255,587 shares of company stock valued at $31,200,544. Insiders own 22.12% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of Duolingo

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DUOL. Durable Capital Partners LP boosted its stake in Duolingo by 59.8% in the first quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 3,248,046 shares of the companys stock valued at $308,922,000 after acquiring an additional 1,215,144 shares during the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its position in shares of Duolingo by 37.3% during the first quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,467,624 shares of the companys stock worth $637,039,000 after purchasing an additional 1,214,871 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Duolingo by 605.8% during the second quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,126,165 shares of the companys stock worth $98,596,000 after purchasing an additional 966,604 shares in the last quarter. Alphabet Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duolingo during the third quarter worth $67,084,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duolingo by 24.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,357,551 shares of the companys stock worth $224,510,000 after purchasing an additional 468,057 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.16% of the companys stock.

Duolingo Company Profile

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Duolingo, Inc develops a language-learning website and mobile app in the United States and China. The company offers courses in 40 different languages, including Spanish, English, French, Japanese, German, Italian, Chinese, Portuguese, and others. It also provides a digital language proficiency assessment exam.

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General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS  Get Rating) CAO Mark A. Pallot sold 4,081 shares of General Mills stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.32, for a total value of $368,595.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,121 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,185,088.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

General Mills Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GIS traded down $1.52 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $88.33. 1,821,506 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,214,549. General Mills, Inc. has a one year low of $64.94 and a one year high of $90.89. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $86.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market cap of $52.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.41, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.27.

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General Mills (NYSE:GIS  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 23rd. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.97 billion. General Mills had a return on equity of 24.51% and a net margin of 14.04%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Mills

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Clarius Group LLC boosted its position in General Mills by 1.6% during the first quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 7,437 shares of the companys stock valued at $636,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Evoke Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of General Mills by 2.0% in the first quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 5,737 shares of the companys stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors lifted its position in General Mills by 1.6% during the first quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 8,142 shares of the companys stock valued at $696,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of General Mills by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,817 shares of the companys stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Mills by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC now owns 3,159 shares of the companys stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 74.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Several brokerages recently commented on GIS. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of General Mills from $88.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, March 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on General Mills from $84.00 to $86.00 in a report on Friday, March 24th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on General Mills in a research note on Thursday. They set a buy rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on General Mills from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of General Mills in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. They issued a buy rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $84.76.

General Mills Company Profile

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General Mills, Inc engages in the manufacture and marketing of branded consumer foods sold through retail stores. The firm operates through the following segments: North America Retail, Europe & Australia, Convenience Stores & Foodservice, Pet, and Asia & Latin America. The North America Retail segment includes grocery stores, mass merchandisers, membership stores, natural food chains, drug, dollar and discount chains and e-commerce grocery providers.

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Globant (NYSE:GLOB  Get Rating) issued an update on its second quarter earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of at least $1.33 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $1.35. The company issued revenue guidance of at least $496 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $495.19 million. Globant also updated its FY23 guidance to at least $5.71 EPS.

Globant Price Performance

GLOB stock traded up $1.35 during trading on Thursday, hitting $151.66. 961,662 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 435,202. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $152.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.42. The company has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 43.19 and a beta of 1.41. Globant has a 1 year low of $135.40 and a 1 year high of $240.00.

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Globant (NYSE:GLOB  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 16th. The information technology services provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.02). Globant had a net margin of 8.36% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $490.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $489.67 million. Research analysts expect that Globant will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several research analysts have weighed in on GLOB shares. Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Globant from $207.00 to $192.00 in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $204.00 target price on shares of Globant in a report on Thursday, April 13th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Globant in a research report on Thursday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. HSBC began coverage on shares of Globant in a research report on Thursday, February 2nd. They issued a buy rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Globant from $224.00 to $221.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $227.60.

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Globant during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Globant during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in Globant by 303.2% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 375 shares of the information technology services providers stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its position in shares of Globant by 22.2% during the first quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 468 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Globant by 110.9% in the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 504 shares of the information technology services providers stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.01% of the companys stock.

Globant Company Profile

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Globant SA engages in the provision of information technology services. It includes application development, testing, infrastructure management, and application maintenance. The company was founded by Martin Migoya, Martin Gonzalo Umaran, Guibert Andres Englebienne, and Nestor Augusto Nocetti in 2003 and is headquartered in Luxembourg.

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Hess Co. (NYSE:HES  Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 17th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.4375 per share by the oil and gas producer on Friday, June 30th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%.

Hess has increased its dividend payment by an average of 14.5% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 2 consecutive years. Hess has a payout ratio of 19.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Hess to earn $10.24 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.75 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.1%.

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Hess Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $132.19 on Thursday. The firms 50-day moving average price is $135.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.11. Hess has a 1-year low of $90.34 and a 1-year high of $160.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.94 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Hess ( NYSE:HES Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 26th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.37 billion. Hess had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 25.85%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hess will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HES has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Credit Suisse Group upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $156.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Monday. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 16th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $169.13.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other Hess news, SVP Richard D. Lynch sold 33,191 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.84, for a total transaction of $4,608,238.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,622 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,279,678.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Hess news, SVP Richard D. Lynch sold 33,191 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.84, for a total transaction of $4,608,238.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,622 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,279,678.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Gregory P. Hill sold 7,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.40, for a total transaction of $993,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 116,346 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $15,404,210.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 53,721 shares of company stock worth $7,391,691 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.91% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Trust N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the 1st quarter valued at about $446,000. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Hess by 17.1% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 4,276 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 625 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Hess by 3.7% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 114,120 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $12,216,000 after buying an additional 4,027 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new position in Hess in the first quarter worth approximately $410,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,928,530 shares of the oil and gas producers stock worth $3,310,590,000 after acquiring an additional 667,979 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.06% of the companys stock.

About Hess

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Hess Corp is an exploration and production company, which engages in exploration, development, production, transportation, purchase & sale of crude oil, natural gas liquids and natural gas with production operations. It operates through the following segments: Exploration and Production and Midstream.

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Equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Hudbay Minerals (NYSE:HBM  Get Rating) (TSE:HBM) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, The Fly reports. The firm set a buy rating on the mining companys stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Hudbay Minerals from C$11.00 to C$10.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 7th. National Bank Financial increased their target price on Hudbay Minerals from C$8.50 to C$8.75 in a research report on Monday, February 13th. Credit Suisse Group increased their target price on Hudbay Minerals from C$8.50 to C$9.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hudbay Minerals in a report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $10.28.

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Hudbay Minerals Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of Hudbay Minerals stock traded down $0.11 on Thursday, hitting $4.74. 1,456,636 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,855,608. The stock has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 118.53, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firms 50-day moving average is $4.98 and its 200 day moving average is $5.20. Hudbay Minerals has a 52-week low of $3.08 and a 52-week high of $6.34.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hudbay Minerals

Hudbay Minerals ( NYSE:HBM Get Rating ) (TSE:HBM) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 24th. The mining company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $321.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $395.63 million. Hudbay Minerals had a net margin of 0.87% and a return on equity of 1.38%. The businesss quarterly revenue was down 24.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Hudbay Minerals will post 0.59 earnings per share for the current year.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HBM. Raymond James & Associates acquired a new position in shares of Hudbay Minerals in the 1st quarter valued at $131,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Hudbay Minerals by 24.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 75,817 shares of the mining companys stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 14,683 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Hudbay Minerals by 122.4% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,899 shares of the mining companys stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 4,347 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hudbay Minerals in the 1st quarter valued at $442,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hudbay Minerals by 81.5% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 95,254 shares of the mining companys stock valued at $748,000 after purchasing an additional 42,769 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.19% of the companys stock.

About Hudbay Minerals

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Hudbay Minerals, Inc operates as a mining company. The firm engages in the production of copper concentrate, molybdenum concentrate and zinc metal. It focuses on the discovery, production and marketing of base and precious metals. The company was founded on January 16, 1996 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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abrdn plc increased its holdings in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM  Get Rating) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 71,897 shares of the insurance providers stock after acquiring an additional 9,848 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.06% of Humana worth $36,825,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HUM. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Humana by 1.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,181,313 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $5,425,061,000 after purchasing an additional 147,619 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,613,554 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $2,728,012,000 after acquiring an additional 53,899 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 63.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,692,255 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $821,065,000 after acquiring an additional 654,681 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 0.5% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,126,002 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $546,388,000 after acquiring an additional 5,926 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 2.4% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,021,733 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $495,947,000 after acquiring an additional 24,003 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.38% of the companys stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Humana

In other Humana news, CFO Susan M. Diamond sold 4,156 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.28, for a total value of $2,187,219.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 3,931 shares in the company, valued at $2,068,806.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Joseph C. Ventura sold 2,048 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $507.97, for a total transaction of $1,040,322.56. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,256 shares in the company, valued at $2,161,920.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Susan M. Diamond sold 4,156 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.28, for a total transaction of $2,187,219.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 3,931 shares in the company, valued at $2,068,806.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,779 shares of company stock worth $12,117,856 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the companys stock.

Humana Stock Performance

Shares of HUM opened at $520.29 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.01 billion, a PE ratio of 21.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.72. The companys fifty day moving average price is $510.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $512.47. Humana Inc. has a one year low of $410.87 and a one year high of $571.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Humana (NYSE:HUM  Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The insurance provider reported $9.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $9.25 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $26.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $26.40 billion. Humana had a net margin of 3.26% and a return on equity of 21.04%. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.04 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Humana Inc. will post 28.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 30th will be given a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 29th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Humanas dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HUM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Credit Suisse Group reduced their target price on shares of Humana from $635.00 to $575.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 6th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Humana from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday, April 13th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Thursday. They set a strong-buy rating for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Humana in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. They issued an overweight rating and a $597.00 price target for the company. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Humana from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Humana presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $597.37.

Humana Profile

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Humana Inc engages in the provision of health insurance services. It operates through the Insurance and CenterWell segments. The Insurance segment consists of Medicare benefits, marketed to individuals or directly via group Medicare accounts, as well as contract with CMS to administer the Limited Income Newly Eligible Transition, or LI-NET, prescription drug plan program and contracts with various states to provide Medicaid, dual eligible demonstration, and Long-Term Support Services benefits, which refer to as state-based contracts.

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Ingevity Co. (NYSE:NGVT  Get Rating) shares traded down 4.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $50.90 and last traded at $50.92. 212,517 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 272,228 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.30.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Ingevity from $100.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. Loop Capital lowered Ingevity from a buy rating to a hold rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $92.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Friday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Ingevity from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Ingevity in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $74.67.

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Ingevity Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07. The business has a 50-day moving average of $68.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ingevity

Ingevity ( NYSE:NGVT Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.17). Ingevity had a net margin of 12.01% and a return on equity of 30.82%. The company had revenue of $392.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $411.22 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. The companys quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ingevity Co. will post 5.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other Ingevity news, EVP Stuart Edward Jr. Woodcock sold 4,968 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.14, for a total value of $408,071.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,180,077.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Ingevity news, EVP Stuart Edward Jr. Woodcock sold 4,968 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.14, for a total value of $408,071.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,180,077.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Richard Allen White, Jr. sold 1,439 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $116,559.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,530 shares in the company, valued at $528,930. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,254 shares of company stock worth $1,247,519. Insiders own 0.79% of the companys stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ingevity by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,657,366 shares of the companys stock valued at $298,398,000 after purchasing an additional 322,066 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Ingevity by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,512,255 shares of the companys stock worth $106,523,000 after buying an additional 433,173 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Ingevity by 46.7% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,326,693 shares of the companys stock worth $94,885,000 after buying an additional 422,156 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Ingevity by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,258,440 shares of the companys stock worth $80,628,000 after buying an additional 47,263 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in Ingevity by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,141,200 shares of the companys stock worth $81,618,000 after buying an additional 108,397 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ingevity Company Profile

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Ingevity Corp. engages in the manufacture of specialty chemicals and carbon materials. It operates through the following segments: Performance Chemicals and Performance Materials. The Performance Materials segment consists of automotive technologies and process purifications product families. Automotive technologies produces automotive carbon products used in gasoline vapor emission control systems in cars, trucks, motorcycles and boats.

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Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in shares of Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX  Get Rating) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 936,332 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after purchasing an additional 32,000 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLCs holdings in Chevron were worth $168,062,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Chevron by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 92,113 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $16,533,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Chevron by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,580 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $1,361,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. CapWealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Chevron by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 173,721 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $24,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Cypress Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Chevron by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC now owns 46,934 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $6,743,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the period. Finally, ACG Wealth boosted its holdings in Chevron by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. ACG Wealth now owns 12,339 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $1,773,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.37% of the companys stock.

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Chevron Stock Down 2.1 %

NYSE CVX traded down $3.23 on Thursday, hitting $152.48. 3,628,366 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,115,538. The company has a market cap of $288.89 billion, a PE ratio of 8.41, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.16. Chevron Co. has a 12 month low of $132.54 and a 12 month high of $189.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $162.58 and a 200-day moving average of $170.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Chevron ( NYSE:CVX Get Rating ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 28th. The oil and gas company reported $3.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.14. Chevron had a net margin of 14.74% and a return on equity of 23.15%. The business had revenue of $50.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.36 earnings per share. Chevrons revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Chevron Co. will post 14.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 25th that permits the company to buyback $75.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to purchase up to 21.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the companys board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 18th. Chevrons payout ratio is currently 32.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on CVX shares. BNP Paribas raised shares of Chevron from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 4th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Chevron from $212.00 to $208.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 14th. Mizuho reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $206.00 price target on shares of Chevron in a report on Tuesday, April 11th. Scotiabank raised shares of Chevron from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating and upped their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $200.00 in a report on Thursday, April 13th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Chevron from $193.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Monday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $193.17.

About Chevron

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Chevron Corp. engages in the provision of administrative, financial management, and technology support for energy and chemical operations. It operates through the Upstream and Downstream segments. The Upstream segment consists of the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas, the liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas, the transporting of crude oil by major international oil export pipelines, the processing, transporting, storage, and marketing of natural gas, and a gas-to-liquids plant.

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Mirador Capital Partners LP grew its position in shares of Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG  Get Rating) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 134,862 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock after purchasing an additional 6,532 shares during the quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LPs holdings in Transocean were worth $615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Transocean by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 60,315,980 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock worth $148,981,000 after acquiring an additional 5,165,717 shares during the period. Contrarius Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in Transocean by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Contrarius Investment Management Ltd now owns 31,021,009 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock worth $141,456,000 after acquiring an additional 3,322,606 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Transocean by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 16,712,990 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock worth $76,210,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,583 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Transocean by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 14,750,703 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock worth $67,413,000 after buying an additional 1,972,278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Transocean by 28.8% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 14,107,523 shares of the offshore drilling services providers stock worth $34,846,000 after buying an additional 3,152,134 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.16% of the companys stock.

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Transocean Stock Performance

RIG stock opened at $5.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a PE ratio of -4.67 and a beta of 2.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The business has a 50 day moving average of $6.18 and a 200-day moving average of $5.64. Transocean Ltd. has a 12-month low of $2.32 and a 12-month high of $7.74.

Insider Buying and Selling at Transocean

Transocean ( NYSE:RIG Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 1st. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($0.22) by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $649.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $646.29 million. Transocean had a negative return on equity of 6.80% and a negative net margin of 34.53%. Transoceans quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.28) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Transocean Ltd. will post -0.42 earnings per share for the current year.

In other Transocean news, CAO David A. Tonnel sold 12,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.53, for a total value of $78,360.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 476,802 shares in the company, valued at $3,113,517.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Transocean news, CAO David A. Tonnel sold 12,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.53, for a total transaction of $78,360.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 476,802 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,113,517.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Chad C. Deaton acquired 30,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $7.40 per share, for a total transaction of $222,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 141,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,043,400. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 13.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on RIG shares. BTIG Research increased their price target on Transocean from $8.00 to $10.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Transocean from $7.50 to $12.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, March 10th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Transocean in a report on Thursday. They set a sell rating for the company. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Transocean from $6.00 to $6.50 in a report on Monday, April 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Transocean from $5.50 to $6.50 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, March 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $6.98.

About Transocean

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Transocean Ltd. engages in the provision of offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells. It also owns and operates offshore drilling fleets such as ultra-deepwater, harsh environment, deepwater, and midwater rigs. The company was founded in 1953 and is headquartered in Steinhausen, Switzerland.

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Molson Coors Beverage (OTCMKTS:TAP-A  Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 18th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of 0.41 per share on Thursday, June 15th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. This is a boost from Molson Coors Beverages previous quarterly dividend of $0.38.

Molson Coors Beverage Price Performance

OTCMKTS TAP-A remained flat at $66.01 during trading hours on Thursday. 45 shares of the company traded hands. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $64.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.47.

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Molson Coors Beverage Company Profile

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Molson Coors Beverage Company manufactures, markets, and sells beer and other malt beverage products under various brands in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It offers flavored malt beverages, craft, and ready to drink beverages. The company was formerly known as Molson Coors Brewing Company and changed its name to Molson Coors Beverage Company in January 2020.

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New Hampshire Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK  Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 56,437 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,262,000. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.7% of New Hampshire Trusts investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Briggs Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $335,000. Blue Barn Wealth LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 5,255 shares of the companys stock valued at $583,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,511,000. Keystone Wealth Services LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Keystone Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,327 shares of the companys stock valued at $480,000 after buying an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Planning Advisors LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital Planning Advisors LLC now owns 41,229 shares of the companys stock valued at $4,574,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.89% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 11th. Atlantic Securities boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. BTIG Research lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Sunday, April 16th. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $127.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $120.75.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $0.41 during trading on Thursday, reaching $114.35. 1,088,275 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,826,550. The companys 50 day moving average is $111.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $290.16 billion, a PE ratio of 22.41, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $83.05 and a 52 week high of $119.65.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 37.92% and a net margin of 22.52%. The firm had revenue of $14.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.14 EPS. The companys revenue was down 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Rita A. Karachun sold 15,875 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,788.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,372,296.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 53,400 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.01, for a total value of $6,355,134.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,685 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,770,831.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Rita A. Karachun sold 15,875 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.53, for a total value of $1,865,788.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 45,710 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $5,372,296.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 488,258 shares of company stock worth $56,481,018 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK  Get Rating).

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Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR  Get Rating)  Equities researchers at KeyCorp decreased their Q2 2023 earnings per share estimates for Entergy in a note issued to investors on Monday, May 15th. KeyCorp analyst S. Karp now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $1.84 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.85. The consensus estimate for Entergys current full-year earnings is $6.68 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Entergys Q4 2023 earnings at $0.85 EPS, FY2023 earnings at $6.68 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $7.18 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $7.69 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $8.22 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $8.85 EPS.

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Entergy (NYSE:ETR  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.20). The business had revenue of $2.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.80 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 8.17% and a return on equity of 10.34%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.32 earnings per share.

Entergy Stock Performance

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com lowered Entergy from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, May 11th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on shares of Entergy from $128.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Entergy from $97.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Entergy in a report on Monday, April 3rd. They set a buy rating and a $116.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Entergy from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $118.23.

ETR opened at $102.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. Entergy has a 12-month low of $94.94 and a 12-month high of $122.46. The company has a market cap of $21.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.57, a PEG ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.65. The companys 50 day moving average is $106.48 and its 200 day moving average is $108.69.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 4th will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 3rd. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. Entergys payout ratio is 77.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Entergy

In other news, EVP Marcus V. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.10, for a total transaction of $1,326,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,129 shares of the companys stock, valued at $968,586.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Marcus V. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.10, for a total value of $1,326,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,129 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $968,586.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 3,890 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.42, for a total transaction of $421,753.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,656 shares of the companys stock, valued at $179,543.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 17,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,821,838 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.37% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Entergy by 2.7% during the first quarter. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,269 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $382,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Lake Street Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Entergy by 4.7% during the first quarter. Lake Street Financial LLC now owns 2,097 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in Entergy by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,830 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems lifted its stake in shares of Entergy by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 16,089 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,733,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 15.5% in the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 739 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.98% of the companys stock.

About Entergy

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Entergy Corp. is a holding company, which engages in electric power generation and distribution. It operates through the following segments: Utility and Entergy Wholesale Commodities. The Utility segment includes the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electric power and the operations of a natural gas distribution business.

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ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD  Get Rating) CEO Michael J. Farrell sold 5,675 shares of ResMed stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.10, for a total value of $1,317,167.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 436,930 shares in the company, valued at $101,411,453. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

ResMed Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE RMD opened at $223.97 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $32.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.16, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $222.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $219.94. ResMed Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.12 and a 52 week high of $247.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 3.07.

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ResMed (NYSE:RMD  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.05 billion. ResMed had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 21.49%. The companys revenue was up 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.32 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that ResMed Inc. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ResMed Dividend Announcement

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ResMed

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 10th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. ResMeds payout ratio is currently 29.98%.

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RMD. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of ResMed by 15.7% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 3,050 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $740,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its position in shares of ResMed by 13.0% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,000 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of ResMed by 14.5% in the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 8,112 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $2,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of ResMed by 7.8% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 40,740 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $9,781,000 after acquiring an additional 2,955 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of ResMed in the first quarter valued at approximately $694,000. Institutional investors own 64.73% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on RMD shares. StockNews.com started coverage on ResMed in a research note on Thursday. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Citigroup raised ResMed from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 18th. William Blair reissued an outperform rating on shares of ResMed in a research note on Tuesday, January 31st. Mizuho started coverage on ResMed in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. They issued a buy rating and a $255.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on ResMed from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $259.00.

About ResMed

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ResMed, Inc engages in providing digital health and cloud-connected medical devices. Its digital health technologies and cloud-connected medical devices transform care for people with sleep apnea, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, and other chronic diseases. The firm operates through the Sleep and Respiratory Care and Software as a Service segments.

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Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK  Get Rating)  Research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q3 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Rockwell Automation in a report issued on Monday, May 15th. Zacks Research analyst M. Das now forecasts that the industrial products company will earn $2.94 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $2.93. The consensus estimate for Rockwell Automations current full-year earnings is $12.06 per share.

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A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on ROK. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $272.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 12th. Cowen raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Monday, January 30th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday. They issued a buy rating for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $267.50.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK opened at $274.63 on Thursday. Rockwell Automation has a 12 month low of $190.08 and a 12 month high of $309.36. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $279.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $274.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a PE ratio of 24.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.42.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The industrial products company reported $3.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.41. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 42.15% and a net margin of 15.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 12th. Investors of record on Monday, May 15th will be paid a $1.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 12th. This represents a $4.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Rockwell Automations dividend payout ratio is presently 41.55%.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Isaac Woods sold 100 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.33, for a total value of $29,433.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,037.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 556 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.09, for a total value of $155,174.04. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,194,784.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 100 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.33, for a total value of $29,433.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 452 shares in the company, valued at $133,037.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,631 shares of company stock worth $765,751 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Macquarie Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 12,711 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $2,734,000 after purchasing an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,544 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 261,836 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $56,324,000 after purchasing an additional 35,222 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 70,778 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $15,225,000 after buying an additional 1,284 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 6,878 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,772,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the period. 77.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Rockwell Automation, Inc engages in the provision of industrial automation and information services. It operates through the following segments: Intelligent Devices, Software and Control, and Lifecycle Services. The Intelligent Devices segment combines a portfolio of smart products that create the foundation of an agile, resilient, and sustainable production system.

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Shinhan Financial Group (NYSE:SHG  Get Rating) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Shinhan Financial Group from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Sunday, March 5th. Bank of America cut Shinhan Financial Group from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $38.46 to $32.31 in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Shinhan Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a hold rating for the company.

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Shinhan Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SHG traded down $0.19 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.01. The stock had a trading volume of 33,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 146,603. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $26.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.76. The stock has a market cap of $13.14 billion, a PE ratio of 4.01, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.84. Shinhan Financial Group has a 1-year low of $22.98 and a 1-year high of $36.64.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Shinhan Financial Group ( NYSE:SHG Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 6th. The bank reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Shinhan Financial Group had a return on equity of 9.18% and a net margin of 17.86%. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts forecast that Shinhan Financial Group will post 6.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 376.4% during the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 786 shares of the banks stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 160.5% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,055 shares of the banks stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 113.7% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the banks stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 75.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the banks stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC lifted its holdings in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 339.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC now owns 2,039 shares of the banks stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,575 shares during the last quarter. 2.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shinhan Financial Group Company Profile

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Shinhan Financial Group Co, Ltd. engages in the provision of management and financial support services to its subsidiaries. The company was founded on September 1, 2001 and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

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Southwestern Energy (NYSE:SWN  Get Rating)s share price shot up 5.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $5.35 and last traded at $5.33. 17,756,766 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average session volume of 24,225,736 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.07.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on SWN. Raymond James cut Southwestern Energy from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note on Monday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Southwestern Energy from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and cut their price target for the stock from $6.00 to $5.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Southwestern Energy from $7.50 to $6.50 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 25th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Southwestern Energy from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Southwestern Energy from $6.00 to $5.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $7.94.

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Southwestern Energy Trading Up 7.3 %

The businesss 50-day moving average price is $4.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $5.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.31.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwestern Energy

Southwestern Energy ( NYSE:SWN Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 28th. The energy company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.04. Southwestern Energy had a net margin of 45.59% and a return on equity of 41.76%. The business had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. The companys revenue was down 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Southwestern Energy will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SWN. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Southwestern Energy by 4,550.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,735,368 shares of the energy companys stock worth $108,678,000 after acquiring an additional 21,268,002 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Southwestern Energy by 343.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 13,751,398 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $84,159,000 after purchasing an additional 10,651,998 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Southwestern Energy by 269.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,958,070 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $100,079,000 after purchasing an additional 10,175,992 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Southwestern Energy by 21.5% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 55,933,972 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $401,047,000 after purchasing an additional 9,882,224 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwestern Energy by 61.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 25,513,925 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $127,570,000 after purchasing an additional 9,729,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.26% of the companys stock.

Southwestern Energy Company Profile

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Southwestern Energy Co is a holding company, which engages in the exploration, development, and production of natural gas, oil, and natural gas liquids (NGLs). It operates through the Exploration and Production (E&P), and Marketing segments. The E&P segment includes operations in northeast Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and southwest Pennsylvania, The Marketing segment deals in the marketing and transportation of natural gas, oil and NGLs primarily produced in E&P.

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True Capital Management acquired a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 16,250 shares of the retailers stock, valued at approximately $2,304,000. Walmart comprises approximately 1.9% of True Capital Managements investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,519.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,129,341 shares of the retailers stock valued at $1,054,376,000 after buying an additional 7,627,286 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 96,570,711 shares of the retailers stock valued at $12,525,224,000 after buying an additional 2,712,886 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 130,176,496 shares of the retailers stock valued at $16,883,890,000 after buying an additional 1,832,388 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 34.2% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,258,231 shares of the retailers stock valued at $783,056,000 after buying an additional 1,340,328 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 85.3% in the 1st quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 2,399,536 shares of the retailers stock valued at $357,339,000 after buying an additional 1,104,427 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 31.27% of the companys stock.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 852,215 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.26, for a total value of $122,940,535.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 266,841,420 shares of the companys stock, valued at $38,494,543,249.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 852,215 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.26, for a total value of $122,940,535.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 266,841,420 shares of the companys stock, valued at $38,494,543,249.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 170,731 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total value of $24,194,290.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 265,630,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,642,497,021.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,044,002 shares of company stock valued at $2,981,168,308 over the last 90 days. 47.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Up 1.1 %

WMT traded up $1.62 on Thursday, hitting $151.15. 7,410,364 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,087,790. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $117.27 and a 12 month high of $154.64. The company has a market cap of $407.70 billion, a PE ratio of 34.94, a PEG ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stocks fifty day moving average is $147.43 and its 200-day moving average is $145.59.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 18th. The retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $152.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $147.91 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 20.45% and a net margin of 1.91%. The businesss revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 6.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 8th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 7th. Walmarts dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Walmart from $159.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. StockNews.com started coverage on Walmart in a research note on Thursday. They set a strong-buy rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Walmart from $150.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Friday, May 12th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a buy rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $163.00 price objective on Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $165.13.

Walmart Profile

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Walmart, Inc engages in retail and wholesale business. The company offers an assortment of merchandise and services at everyday low prices. It operates through the following business segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sams Club. The Walmart U.S. segment operates as a merchandiser of consumer products, operating under the Walmart, Wal-Mart, and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands, as well as walmart.com and other eCommerce brands.

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William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF  Get Rating) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,289,623 shares of the companys stock after selling 140,309 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned about 1.28% of GrafTech International worth $15,659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the first quarter valued at approximately $60,000. CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of GrafTech International by 855.9% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,116 shares of the companys stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 7,267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the first quarter valued at approximately $98,000. Institutional investors own 88.74% of the companys stock.

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GrafTech International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EAF opened at $4.45 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 1.36. GrafTech International Ltd. has a 52 week low of $3.75 and a 52 week high of $9.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 3.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $4.64 and a 200 day moving average of $5.07.

GrafTech International Dividend Announcement

GrafTech International ( NYSE:EAF Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 28th. The company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $138.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $123.00 million. GrafTech International had a return on equity of 87.51% and a net margin of 23.86%. The businesss quarterly revenue was down 62.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.48 EPS.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 31st will be issued a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 30th. GrafTech Internationals dividend payout ratio is currently 4.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of GrafTech International from $6.00 to $5.00 in a research note on Sunday, April 30th.

GrafTech International Company Profile

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GrafTech International Ltd. engages in the manufacture of graphite electrode products essential to the production of electric arc furnace steel and other ferrous and non-ferrous metals. The firm also produces a needle coke product which is a raw material in producing graphite electrodes. Its customers include steel producers and other ferrous and non-ferrous metal producers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Americas and Asia-Pacific, which sell its products into the automotive, construction, appliance, machinery, equipment, and transportation industries.

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It has been three long years since the guitar genius Joe Satriani flew in on his mothership from Alpha Centauri to grace the London Palladium with his virtuoso guitar licks and temporal Lydian mode mystical magic.

Joe gave guitar lessons to Steve Vai onceholy mackerelif that is not a sign of wizardry, what is? With a great band behind him of equally virtuosic musicians holding the line, the blistering torrent of musical melodic assault is astounding. In fact, your ears can barely acknowledge the depth of mastery Joe exudes from the Devils Instrument. This guy certainly has touched the pick of destiny a la Tenacious D. The wide interval jumps, the whammy bar squeals, the distinctive Satch legato and harmonics are all there, almost a seasoned chef mixing up a dish of delicious gourmet melodies and striated runs intricately administered with each note perfectly placed to compliment the next. Joe does not just smash notes out with no thought, one can easily hear the purpose in each utterance with precise anatomical brilliance even at 1,000 miles an hour. Definitely amongst the myriad changes of signature Ibanez guitars, some or all of them had sustainiacs for sure.

The only slightly negative point one can add to Joes Mephistophelian performance is that he is playing with too many pedals these days. The purity of Satch should not be needlessly encumbered with pedal effects, sure sometimes an embellishment here or there, but too many pedals overlaid with each other can detract from the initial essence of Joes intricate playing.

Other than that, fucking hell, what an experience to make your ear holes melt with pleasure. A great thank you has to go to the London Palladium staff, who were amazing as well.

These are the last of the great guitar masters still standing.
Chinese envoy calls for comprehensive cease-fire in Yemen

Xinhua) 11:24, May 18, 2023

UNITED NATIONS, May 17 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Wednesday called for efforts to strive for a comprehensive cease-fire so as to create a favorable environment for the political process in Yemen.

Relevant parties have, for some time, maintained close communication on the political settlement of the Yemeni issue and strived to end the suffering of the Yemeni people. They should maintain the current momentum, step up dialogue and consultation, set reasonable expectations and demonstrate flexibility so as to arrive at mutually acceptable solutions to outstanding issues as soon as possible, said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

"We urge all parties in Yemen to put the interests of the people first, adhere to the political solution, abandon military means, actively cooperate with the UN special envoy in order to strive for a comprehensive cease-fire promptly so that a favorable environment can be created for the political process," he told the UN Security Council.

The security situation in Yemen has eased recently. However, sporadic exchanges of fire still took place in Taiz and other places, causing civilian casualties. China expresses concern about this, he said.

The international community should increase humanitarian and development investment in Yemen to stop the deterioration of the humanitarian situation. The UN humanitarian operations in Yemen should be fully funded, and the unreasonable restrictions on humanitarian operations should be lifted immediately, said Geng.

The political settlement of the Yemeni issue is certainly not separable from the regional dynamics, he said.

There have been positive signs for regional peace and stability in the Middle East, and new favorable conditions are emerging for the improvement of the situation in Yemen, the envoy added.

China has all along been a promoter of security and stability, a partner for development and prosperity, and a facilitator of unity and self-improvement in the Middle East. China is ready to work with the international community in actively supporting regional countries' efforts to strengthen unity and cooperation and engage in dialogue and consultation for the sake of peace and tranquility in the region, he said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Published on: May 18, 2023 | Updated on: May 18, 2023

Supporters of Congress leader Siddaramaiah pour milk on his poster while demanding chief minister post for him, near his residence in Bengaluru, Wednesday. (PTI Photo)

Bengaluru: Celebrations broke out near the residence of Siddaramaiah here and at his native village in Mysuru district on Thursday morning after it emerged that he will be the next Chief Minister.

Siddaramaiah's supporters shouted slogans in his favour as the news came out that he would take oath as the CM on May 20.

The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah were, in fact, jubilant since Wednesday following reports that their leader would become the chief minister again.

The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah and distributed sweets.

His brother Sidde Gowda was confident that Siddaramaiah will be chosen for the top post.

"There's a guarantee that Siddaramaiah will become Chief Minister. He has done good for the people. He introduced 'Anna Bhagya' scheme giving free rice to the poor people," Sidde Gowda told reporters in Siddaramanahundi on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, arrangements were afoot at the Kanteerava stadium in the city where the swearing-in ceremony will take place.

Security has been stepped up near the residence of the Leader of Opposition in the outgoing Assembly here and in and around the stadium where the ceremony will take place.

Siddaramaiah will be the next Chief Minister and D K Shivakumar his deputy, Congress sources said on Thursday after the party arrived at a consensus on government formation in the state following hectic parleys.

They said Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge along with other stakeholders held parleys past midnight to hammer out a solution between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- the two chief ministerial aspirants.

"It has been decided by consensus that Siddaramaiah will be the next chief minister and Shivakumar will be the deputy chief minister," a party source said.

A Congress Legislature Party meeting has been called by Shivakumar, the party's state unit chief, here this evening. The decision will be announced there.

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief has written to all legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road at 7 pm.
Regulations in force are applicable for the lands falling in Chevella, Moinabad, Rajendranagar, Shamshabad and Shabad revenue mandals which fall under the catchment areas of the twin reservoirs. (Representational Image/DC)

Hyderabad: The state Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao here on Thursday decided to fully scrap GO 111 that so far prohibited construction activity vis-a-vis setting of industries, residential colonies, etc in 84 villages that fall in the catchment area of the Osman-sagar and Himayatsagar lakes up to a radius of 10 km.

As per a decision taken by the Cabinet, all the existing rules that are applicable in villages under HMDA limits to take up construction activity will, however, be applicable to these 84 villages.

Although the state government issued GO 69 in April 2022 scrapping the GO 111 restrictions, there were no guidelines on what steps the government will take to save the twin lakes from pollution after lifting the GO 111 restrictions.

Finance minister Harish Rao said, "There has been a long-pending demand from the people of 84 villages to cancel GO 111 since it was obstructing the development of their villages. While all the villages surrounding Hyderabad developed a lot, these 84 villages lagged behind with no construction activity due to the GO 111 restrictions."

Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao had promised to lift GO 111 restrictions earlier and he fulfilled his promise today by seeking and getting the Cabinet approval for the same, Harish Rao said.

Explaining the measures for protection of the twin lakes following the lifting of GO 111, Harish Rao said, "The Cabinet has decided to set up STPs (sewerage treatment plants) and ring main units to prevent pollution of water in the twin reservoirs. These lakes will be filled with Kaleshwaram water by diverting water from the Kondapochamma Sagar projects. Along with these twin lakes, Musi will also be filled with Kaleshwaram water as part of the efforts to cleanse the Musi."

Harish Rao said GO 111 has become 'redundant' as Hyderabad no longer depends on these twin lakes for drinking water and abundant water is available in the city due to supply of drinking water from Godavari, Krishna and Manjeera. "That's the reason why the government decided to scrap it to pave way for development of these 84 villages on par with other villages surrounding Hyderabad."

GO 111 was applicable to 1.32 lakh acres of land in 84 villages in seven mandals. These comprise six mandals in undivided Rangareddy district and one village in Kothur mandal in Mahbubnagar district close to Hyderabad. The six mandals include Shamshabad, Rajendranagar, Moinabad, Chevella, Shabad, Shankarpally.

The 84 villages fall under the 10-km catchment area of Osmansagar and HimayatSagar.

Notably, the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh government issued GO 111 in 1996 restricting major constructions and industrial activity in a 10-km radius of the full tank level of the two reservoirs  Himayatsagar and Osmansagar  that have been key sources of drinking water to the city for decades and have also been an essential part of flood control, among other environmental factors.

With an intention to protect the reservoirs, the GO 111 created a buffer zone to avoid any kind of polluting activity in the catchment areas  from industrial, commercial to heavy residential constructions in the lake area.

After the state government released GO 69 in April last year, lifting GO 111 restrictions, a PIL was filed in the Telangana High Court challenging the government's decision. In September 2022, the state government assured the High Court that the GO 111 restrictions will remain intact till a committee of bureaucrats appointed by it furnishes its report on measures that should be taken to prevent the lakes from pollution.

While releasing GO 69 in April 2022, lifting GO 111 restrictions, the state government formed a committee headed by chief secretary to frame guidelines and detailed regulations to protect the lakes from pollution. The committee had MAUD special chief secretary, finance special chief secretary, irrigation special chief secretary, HMWSSB managing director, TSPCB member secretary and HMDA director as members.

It is learnt that the committee has submitted its report framing guidelines to protect the lakes based on which the cabinet took a decision to lift GO 111 restrictions totally on Thursday.
The BJP's outreach initiatives will also include public rallies to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi covering Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and MP. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections slated for next year, the BJP leadership will be reaching out to the masses to mark the completion of nine years of the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre. Along with several mass contact programmes and other events, the BJP's outreach initiatives will also include public rallies to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi covering Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and MP; all three states are going to polls this year-end. The PM is likely to address the first rally on May 30 or 31.

As part of its outreach initiatives, the Modi government will also be releasing the performance cards of its ministries, for which the government is already compiling the data submitted by the government. And Union ministers will be holding press conferences on the achievements of the Central government.

From the "Jansampark Abhiyan" in 396 parliamentary constituencies to 51 major rallies, the party plans to reach out to prominent people, hold press conferences, intellectual meets and events. Various morchas of the ruling party will be meeting with the beneficiaries of the Modi governments schemes as part of various initiatives to mark the occasion.

The month-long celebrations, between May 30 and June 30, will also have the Prime Minister virtually address the people and cadre at 10 lakh booths across the nation on June 23, the death anniversary of the party ideologue Shyama Prasad Mookherjee.

The BJP has already set up committees for each event and these committees will be monitored by national president J.P. Nadda.

While the Modi government has been compiling the report card of each ministry to highlight various initiatives and schemes of the government in the last nine years, the ruling party will also be reaching out to its senior cadre and has lined up 51 rallies, which will be addressed by its senior leaders, including chief ministers, across the states.

The party will also be reaching out to the families of martyrs and influential people to showcase the achievements of the government. In order to establish contact with the maximum number of people, the party has asked its state units to organise events at every booth level, highlighting how the Modi governments schemes have benefited the poor and marginalised.
Siddaramaiah. (Photo :PTI)

New Delhi: After several days of hectic parleys the Congress finally announced Siddaramaiah as Karnatakas new chief minister and D.K. Shivakumar as deputy chief minister and who will also continue as the state unit president till the Parliament elections. The stalemate was broken after the direct intervention of former Congress president Sonia Gandhi after she assured Mr Shivakumar that his loyalty towards the party would not be forgotten. The deal was struck well after midnight on the intervening night of Wednesday-Thursday.

Announcing the decision taken by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge after hectic parleys ever since the party emerged victorious on May 13, AICC general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal said all leaders, including the top leadership, worked very hard to make the Karnataka victory a reality. "We have decided on Siddaramiah as the chief minister of Karnataka. D.K. Shivakumar will be the only deputy CM," he said. Mr Shivakumar will also continue as the Karnataka PCC president till the parliamentary elections are over, he said. At the same press conference, senior party leader and in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Singh Surjewala said the Congress was committed to fulfil the five promises made during the election campaign and action would follow.

The swearing-in ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 20, at 12.30 pm. Apart from the CM and deputy CM, 20 Cabinet ministers will also be sworn in. The CLP meeting on Thursday evening has already selected Siddaramaiah as its leader. Congress leader G. Parmeshwara had met governor Thawar Chand Gehlot on behalf of the Congress and staked claim. Both the CM-desgnate and the deputy CM-designate will be back in New Delhi on Friday to discuss the Cabinet probables. A big invitation list has been drawn up for the swearing-in. All the Gandhis are expected to be there, as well as the Congress chief ministers of Rajasthan, Chhattisgrah and Himachal Pradesh. Invitations have also gone to Tamil Nadu CM M.K. Stalin, Telangana CM K. Chandrashekhar Rao, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackerey, NC chief Farooq Abdullah, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren.

Dispelling rumours, deputy CM-designate Shivakumar said: "Why should I be upset? There is a long way to go. When people have given such a big mandate, we should definitely be happy and fulfil the promises. That is our main motto, agenda Everything is well and will be well."

Ever since the Karnataka Assembly results were declared on May 13, both the leaders started garnering support of MLAs close to them while mustering support for themselves.

The supporters of both, meanwhile, started building up the momentum in support of their respective leaders and a poster war had erupted. As the race for the top post heated up, Mr Kharge appointed three observers -- Sushilkumar Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria -- and the first meeting of the Congress Legislature Party was convened on May 14. Supporters of both leaders continued to raise the pitch by raising slogans in support of their leaders outside the CLP meeting venue. All Congress MLAs authorised the party chief to appoint a leader of the Congress Legislature Party, who would also be the new chief minister. Then the action shifted to Delhi and after several rounds of meetings, including with Rahul Gandhi, a solution was finally reached after three days.
Heavy air strikes pounded southern areas of Sudan's capital on Thursday as clashes flared near a military camp, witnesses said, in fighting that has displaced nearly 1 million people and left residents of Khartoum struggling to survive.

Air strikes by the army targeting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were heard across several residential neighbourhoods in southern Khartoum, including near the Taiba camp, while a police reserve force aligned with the army battled the RSF on the ground, the witnesses said.

Also Read: A month into Sudan's brutal war, no end in sight

The army has mainly used air power and heavy artillery as it tries to drive back the RSF, which spread out across large areas of Khartoum and its adjoining cities of Bahri and Omdurman across the Nile after fighting erupted on April 15.

"The bombardment and the clashes don't stop and there's no way to flee from our homes. All our money is gone," said Salah el-Din Othman, a 35-year-old resident of Khartoum.

"Even if we leave our houses again we're afraid that gangs will loot everything in the house  we are living a nightmare of fear and poverty."

Violence has also flared in Darfur in western Sudan and in North Kordofan State, and other parts of the country, but the power struggle has been focused on the capital.

Both army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, are thought to have remained in Khartoum throughout the fighting.

On Wednesday the army released a video showing Burhan dressed in army fatigues greeting troops at what appeared to be the army headquarters in central Khartoum.

Aid supplies looted

According to latest estimates, more than 840,000 people have been displaced within Sudan and over 220,000 have fled to neighbouring countries.

The UN World Food Programme said it was ramping up its operations across at least six states in Sudan to assist 4.9 million vulnerable people, as well as assisting those fleeing to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan.

"The fighting in Sudan is devastating lives and livelihoods and forcing people to flee their homes with nothing but the clothes they are wearing," WFP East Africa director Michael Dunford said in a statement.

The UN said on Wednesday that more than half of Sudan's 46 million population needed humanitarian assistance and protection, launching a $3 billion aid appeal. It also said it had received reports of "horrific gender-based violence" in Sudan.

Also Read: More than $3 bn needed for aid in Sudan, Sudanese refugees: UN

The aid effort has been hampered by the deaths of some humanitarian workers early in the conflict and repeated cases of looting.

Medical aid agency MSF said that on Tuesday armed men had broken into its warehouse in Khartoum and taken two cars filled with supplies.

Burhan and Hemedti took the top positions on Sudan's ruling council following the 2019 overthrow of strongman Omar al-Bashir in a popular uprising. They staged a coup two years later as a deadline to hand power to civilians approached and they began to mobilise their respective forces.

The latest conflict broke out after disputes over plans for the RSF to join the army and over the future chain of command under an internationally backed deal for a political transition towards civilian rule.

Talks mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia in Jeddah have so far failed to secure a ceasefire.
As BJP national president J P Nadda launched preparations for the 2024 elections in Maharashtra asking party leaders and workers to gird their loins, partys veteran leader and trouble-shooter Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday assured the top brass that it would win more seats in the 2024 elections.

While the Lok Sabha elections are scheduled in the first half of 2024, it would be followed by Vidhan Sabha polls in the second half.

The western Indian state has 48 Lok Sabha seats, while the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly comprises 288 seats.

Also read: Development stopped under MVA, says Nadda in Maharashtra

Let us assure you.we will win more seats than the previous time (2019) in both the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, Fadnavis said addressing the meeting of the revamped state executive comprising over 1,200 members.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP-Shiv Sena jointly had won 41 out of the 48 seats in Maharashtra with BJP winning 23 and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena 18.

In the Maharashtra Assembly polls held in October 2019, the BJP won 105 seats, while the Shiv Sena bagged 56 seats.

However, in June 2022, the BJP engineered a split in the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and toppled the Maha Vikas Aghadi government after which rebel Eknath Shinde became the Chief Minister and Fadnavis, former Chief Minister, chose to be the Deputy Chief Minister.

The Election Commission had legitimised Shindes faction as the real Shiv Sena and allotted the bow and arrow symbol. The Thackeray-group now is known as Shiv Sena (UBT).

On the other hand, the Supreme Court, though, said that the move of then Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari was not proper to call Thackeray for a floor test, said that the decision to call Shinde to form the next government was correct.

At the meeting, Fadnavis asserted: The government is legal, legitimate and constiutionaland the Supreme Court judgement reflects that.

Fadnavis told party workers to work selflessly. The remaining six months of 2023 and the first six months of 2024 are going to be very important for all of uswork selflessly without expecting anything, he said.
India on Thursday said it is expecting several deliverables to come out of the Quad summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima that will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden and their counterparts from Japan and Australia.

Modi will embark on a six-day visit of Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia on Friday to attend three key multilateral summits including that of the Group of Seven (G7) and the Quad.

Prime Minister Modi's three-nation tour will be a hectic one as over 40 engagements have been lined up, officials said, adding he will interact with over two dozen world leaders in summits as well as through bilateral meetings.

Also Read | Congress calls out PM Modi, Shah for 'silence' on Manipur violence

In the first leg of his trip, Modi will visit Hiroshima from May 19 to 21 primarily for the annual summit of the G7 advanced economies in which he is expected to speak on challenges facing the globe including food, fertiliser and energy security.

From Japan, Modi will travel to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea where he will host the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) on May 22 jointly with Prime Minister James Marape.

In the third and final leg of the trip, Modi will visit Australia, where he will hold talks with his counterpart Anthony Albanese and address a diaspora event on May 23.

The Quad summit was originally scheduled to be held in Sydney but it will now take place in Hiroshima as Biden postponed his visit to Australia to focus on crucial debt-ceiling talks in Washington.

"There are several deliverables which we are expecting to come out of it and I think all that would be showcased when the four leaders meet in Hiroshima," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing without elaborating.

Asked whether it will be a regular summit of the Quad at Hiroshima or just a meeting, he said "when the four Quad leaders meet, it is a Quad summit."

The foreign secretary said India's regular participation at the G7 summits clearly points to increasing recognition that it should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges including those of peace, security and development.

"This is even salient in the context of our ongoing presidency of the G20 and our particular efforts to prioritise the interests and concerns of our fellow members of the global south," he said.

Japan is hosting the G7 summit in its capacity as the current chair of the powerful grouping. Modi is travelling to that country at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

The broad agenda of the G7 summit will revolve around nuclear disarmament, economic resilience, economic security, regional issues, climate change, energy security, food and health.

Kwatra said India's participation at the summit would be structured around two formal sessions on May 20 and another one on May 21.

The first session would be on food, health, development and gender equality, the second one will be on climate, energy and environment while the third session would be on the theme 'peaceful stable and prosperous world'.

To a question on India's position on the Ukraine conflict, Kwatra referred to Modi's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that it is not an era of war during a bilateral meeting in the Uzbek city of Samarkand in September last year.

Modi clearly said this is not an era of war and the resolution of the conflict has to be through dialogue and diplomacy, Kwatra recalled.

"That is the fundamental anchor on which our political positioning and the pursuit of our economic interests and other interests is based insofar as this conflict is concerned," he said.

The foreign secretary said Modi will inaugurate a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima.

He said the prime minister will also hold bilateral meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima. He, however, said the details of the meetings are being worked out.

To a question, Kwatra indicated that the prime minister may raise incidents of attacks on Indians in Australia during his talks with his Australian counterpart.

Separately, officials said Modi will address over thousands of members of the Indian diaspora in Sydney along with Albanese.

The event will have a lot of elements from culture to commerce and diaspora to diplomacy.
Political parties and individuals fighting for the cause on Thursday wholeheartedly welcomed the Supreme Courts judgement on Tamil Nadu allowing the traditional bull-taming sport of Jallikattu, saying the verdict is a result of the legal struggle undertaken by the state government following massive protests by youngsters on the Marina Beach here.

While the AIADMK, which as the ruling party passed the Bill allowing the conduct of Jallikattu, said the judgment was a victory to the efforts taken by the party government in January 2017, the BJP said the credit goes only to Prime Minister Narendra Modi who suggested the idea of a state-specific amendment after the Supreme Court banned the sport.

Also Read | All you need to know about 'Jallikattu' issue

Referred to as eru thazhuvuthal (embracing the bull) in Sangam Literature, Jallikattu is deep-rooted in Tamil culture and a symbol of Tamil pride and valour. However, the sport was banned for a few years after animal lovers alleged bulls that participate in jallikattu are tortured by those who tame them.

A massive protest by youngsters on Marina Beach in Chennai and elsewhere in Tamil Nadu forced the then AIADMK government to bring a state-specific amendment to allow the conduct of the sport. The amendment was brought in through an ordinance with the support of the Union Government.

Chief Minister M K Stalin said the verdict which has given the green signal for the conduct of Jallikattu which signifies the valour and culture of the Tamil race should be enshrined in golden words in the history of Tamil Nadu.

This is a major victory to the legal struggle undertaken by the state government. The DMK dispensation is constructing a mega gallery for conducting Jallikattu. Let us make 2024 Jallikattu as victory celebrations of the verdict, Stalin said in a statement.

In a statement, Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami said it was the AIADMK government which ensured the conduct of Jallikattu by passing an Ordinance and replacing it with a bill in the Assembly by convening a special session.

Our former minister C Vijayabaskar had led a delegation to Union Minister impressing them on the need to conduct the sporting events. Even after the bill was passed, the AIADMK participated in the court proceedings to ensure that the bill is not struck down, he said.

TN BJP chief K Annamalai thanked Modi for his persistent efforts to ensure the ban on the cultural sport Jallikattu was lifted in its entirety. Annamalai reminded it was the UPA government which introduced a notification to ban the sport and the ban was lifted only during Modis tenure in January 2016.

However, the Supreme Court stayed the government order enabling the continuation of the ban. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, after the Stay of government order in SC, requested the State government of Tamil Nadu to pass an ordinance. The same was done after much persuasion & deliberation in January 2017, he added.

P R Rajasekaran, president, Tamil Nadu Jallikattu Peravai, who is also a litigant in the case, told DH that the Supreme Court validating the TN law is a major victory for the proponents of the sport which has been played for several centuries. It has always been an inherent part of our culture. The Supreme Court has reinforced it today. We are very happy as our long-held stand has been vindicated by the countrys highest court, he added.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said the approval of a US court for the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana, an accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, will reaffirm India's stand that Pakistan had a role in the attacks. Rana is currently in the federal lockup in Los Angeles.

As many as 166 people, including six Americans, were killed during the attacks by the Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in November 2008.

In a significant legal victory for India, a US court in California has approved the extradition of Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the horrific 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. The ruling comes just over a month before Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to the US on his first state visit at the invitation of President Joe Biden.

US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the District Court of the Central District of California released a 48-page order on Wednesday, saying 62-year-old Rana "should be extradited to India" under the extradition treaty between India and the United States.

Also Read | Tahawwur Rana was 'very relaxed' after 26/11 attack: Court document

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Fadnavis said, Everybody knew that Pakistan had a hand behind the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai. But with Rana's extradition to India, it will legally establish Pakistan's role behind the attack.

This will further benefit our country to notify/list Pakistan as a terror state as well as invoke various sanctions against Pakistan under numerous treaties of the United Nations. Earlier, David Headley's deposition turned out crucial in this case, he said.

Fadnavis said it was the Modi government and NSA that took the initiative in these cases. "We could see it results now, he added.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The US court judge ruled that Rana's extradition to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty. India has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the offences on which the United States is proceeding, the judge said. These include conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act, waging war, murder, committing a terrorist act and conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.
Talking about the changed foreign policy dynamic under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president J P Nadda on Thursday said when an earthquake strikes Nepal, the Indian government reaches out with help even before its own government does.

He was speaking at a meeting of the Maharashtra BJP's executive committee in Pune. Today when Nepal is struck by earthquake, the Indian government has reached the spot (with assistance) before Nepal's own government did. When Sri Lanka faces an economic crisis, India is ready to help it," he said.

Also Read | MVA slams J P Nadda over comment on next Mumbai mayor

Nepal was struck by a devastating earthquake in April 2015, while Sri Lanka faced a grave economic crisis last year. The BJP chief also claimed that "our government" (leaders) had not visited Nepal, Sri Lanka for as long as 20 years before Modi became PM. Earlier, the United States or Russia considered India and Pakistan to be on par and spoke about the two neighbours in the same breath, Nadda said.

"Post-2014 elections, they have started talking only about India as it has progressed further and Pakistan has languished where it was," he said.
Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI  Get Rating) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,314 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corps holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in United Natural Foods by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 19,218 shares of the companys stock valued at $661,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its holdings in United Natural Foods by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 3,694 shares of the companys stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in United Natural Foods by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,830 shares of the companys stock valued at $200,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in United Natural Foods by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 21,287 shares of the companys stock valued at $838,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in United Natural Foods by 0.7% in the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 59,273 shares of the companys stock worth $2,451,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.63% of the companys stock.

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United Natural Foods Stock Up 4.0 %

United Natural Foods stock opened at $27.54 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.86 and a beta of 1.05. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.07 and a 52 week high of $49.56. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $26.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

United Natural Foods ( NYSE:UNFI Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 8th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.60). The company had revenue of $7.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.77 billion. United Natural Foods had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 0.64%. The firms revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current year.

A number of research firms have weighed in on UNFI. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on United Natural Foods from $40.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 9th. UBS Group downgraded United Natural Foods from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $32.00 in a report on Monday, March 13th. Northcoast Research downgraded United Natural Foods from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Friday, March 10th. StockNews.com began coverage on United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a hold rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on United Natural Foods from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $35.71.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Alexander Douglas, Jr. bought 45,168 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $22.22 per share, for a total transaction of $1,003,632.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,353,797.92. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.40% of the companys stock.

United Natural Foods Profile

(Get Rating)

United Natural Foods, Inc engages in the distribution of natural, organic, and specialty foods and non-food products. The firm operates through the following segments: Wholesale and Retail. The Wholesale segment is engaged in the national distribution of natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products, and providing retail services in the United States and Canada.

Further Reading

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Derry man, Malcolm Burns, ran a Saturday Gym Challenge at his local gym, The Unit Gym and Fitness in Campsie, alongside gym owner, Gareth King, to raise money for a defibrillator in the gym.

Malcolm saw the fundraiser, which Gareth initiated, as a key opportunity to donate or sponsor the defibrillator. The company Malcolm works for EDS HV- a division of James Fisher Renewables- and their sister company Martek Lifecare, heard about his fundraiser and donated a defibrillator free of charge.

As a result of the generosity of the companies and the community, Malcolm was granted the decision as to what charity the proceeds should be donated to instead, and the 750 raised was donated to The British Heart Foundation, a charity close to Malcolm's heart.

Speaking to the Derry News, Malcolm- a high voltage specialist at James Fisher Renewables- said the new defibrillator ensures the peace of mind of his fellow gym-goers.

Malcolm explained: "Access to public defibrillators has increased over the last few years, but more can be done  particularly in gym and fitness settings, where risks can be greater.

"My father had a history of heart illness and passed away of a heart attack after multiple heart attacks. Also, one of my good friends, who played with me at City of Derry Rugby Club, died about a month after my dad.

"If we had a defibrillator, it may not have saved them, but it may have helped. On the back of that, back in 2005, I was heavily involved in fundraisers at the rugby matches.

"We raised enough money to buy a defibrillator for our rugby club and a local over 40s rugby team. It has always been something in my mind."

Malcolm explained that the gym is very aware of the importance of the defibrillator and he hopes to spread this awareness across the community.

"Gareth and the other PTs are very switched on and they know that pushing the safety aspects of the gym is so important," he continued. "I am not a spring chicken anymore, it is nice to know there is comfort in the fact that there is a life saving device there for everyone.

"As Gareth King said, it is one of those things that we're delighted to have but we hope that we never use it."

Owner of The Unit Gym and Fitness, Gareth, added: "With approximately 100 members and for enhanced customer safety, the installation of a defibrillator was viewed as an essential purchase for the business; a must have to ensure in the event of a critical emergency we were correctly positioned.

"We had a members fundraising day organised, however through the generous help of Malcolm Burns, and his employer EDS HV Group, we were kindly donated one.

"Due to this very kind donation, we were able to donate 750 that was raised on the fundraising day to the British Heart Foundation.

"We hope our De-Fib now sits and gathers dust never to be utilised, however its comforting to know we now have this vital life saving piece of kit accessible on site."
A powerful new five-part documentary series, Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland, is set to air on BBC Two, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC iPlayer on Monday 22 May.

The series combines personal accounts about The Troubles with archive footage to tell the story of the people and communities who had to live with violence on an everyday basis and are still dealing with its legacies today.

The documentary features contributions from people across the political spectrum  from the son whose mother was kidnapped by the IRA, to a man from a loyalist estate whose familys secret challenged some of his beliefs, and a woman who took a decision to plant firebombs.

The series runs chronologically from the beginning of The Troubles in the late 1960s to the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

Giving some background to the project, award-winning director James Bluemel said: Northern Ireland was always on the news when I was young - bombs, violence, murder and pain seemed to be ever present there. As an adult, I might have understood the broad politics behind the events, but after my conversations with Iraqis, I realised I had no idea how anyone in Northern Ireland really felt about what it was like living through that turbulent history.

I had been exposed to the politics of the conflict, but I had not heard the human stories from those that were there.

Just after lockdown restrictions had lifted, I found myself in Belfast, meeting the first contributors that would feature in a new documentary, Once Upon A Time In Northern Ireland.

I was concerned that I would be asking people to remember things that may have become cemented in their minds. For some, the events we would be talking about were over 50 years ago, and over time, memories can become staged in their retelling. I neednt have worried.

One of the first interviews we did was with Kate Nash, whose brother, Willie Nash was one of people shot dead by the paratroopers on 30th January 1972  on Bloody Sunday.

As we talked at length about her life growing up, I felt that memories that had been neglected began to resurface. By the time we arrived at that fateful day in 1972, Kate spoke eloquently, with genuine emotion and anger as she recalled what happened and how she felt. Any concern I had about these recollections feeling rehearsed vanished as Kate sat in front of me, processing her feelings, and conjuring up buried emotions.

James continued: Everyone we spoke to has first-hand accounts of the events they recall, and some expressed to us that now, with the passing of time, they are able to speak more openly and freely than before. While history is made up of big stories, it is understood best when we can hear the small, personal details.

Michael McConville remembering the day his mother, Jean, was taken away and murdered by the IRA felt like an important historical story to include in the series. The IRA denied murdering her for over 30 years and they only revealed the whereabouts of her body in 2006. The trauma of this event on Michael is evident, not just in the way he talks but also the way he holds himself, his body displays the pain he feels. The trauma of those years can be consuming and was present in nearly everyone I interviewed.

Later however, when Michaels 26-year-old daughter Bronagh, sat in the chair to talk about how that event, that happened over 50 years ago, has impacted her life, I discovered something that I hadnt understood before. Through Bronagh, Jean McConville stopped being a woman confined to the past, only seen staring out of the one grainy black and white photograph that exists of her.

Through her granddaughter, Jean transcended out of the confines of an historical account into the here and now, as the past collided with the present. It was a profound and powerful moment for me to see her through Bronaghs eyes.

Speaking on why he felt prople could open up now, in some cases after many years, James said: I suppose youll have to ask them. Perhaps its the staging of the interview that is conducive to this deep dive into memory; the room is dark, the lights are unobtrusive, there is an informal quality to the interview space with little distinction made between where the interview begins and ends.

RICHARD remembers the rioting and street battles with the British Army from the perspective of a schoolboy in Catholic Derry.

Time in this room runs differently to the world outside, and contributors have the space to journey back into the past at their own rate. These interviews evoke the confessional and revelatory.

I found that most of the people I was meeting were cautious, and sometimes overtly suspicious, about the idea of another documentary about Northern Ireland. Once we passed this initial sussing out phase, I discovered many people I met wanted to talk and wanted to go on record.

This doesnt mean it was easy for them. For some, opening up those boxes in which painful, traumatic or shameful memories have been locked, is always done with thought, care and caution. Raking up the past, especial a past as difficult as this, is not done flippantly.

In conculsion, James said: There is a reason our contributors decided to share their stories. It is because they feel they have something to say, some wisdom to pass on, an emotional knowledge which perhaps has been neglected in the pursuit to define what happened here. While interviewing for this series, I did not feel like I was hearing another well-worn rendition of The Troubles.

FIONA was a young child when the British Army arrives in Derry. She recalls how the soldiers are initially welcomed but are soon viewed as an oppressive force. She recalls that her republican family are regularly subjected to terrifying house searches by soldiers looking for hidden IRA weapons.

I was hearing a spectrum of human emotions, contradictory and confusing but also real and searching. This was very different to how I think most of us outside of Northern Ireland have heard or understood this conflict before.

The people that I interviewed for this series wanted to talk about their lives this way, they wanted this history to be told and they want to be heard. And I think its our job to listen.
A man who absconded after being granted compassionate bail and taunted police while on the run styling himself the Gingerbread Man has been jailed at Derry Crown Court.

James Donegan (35) of Cornshell Fields in Derry admitted a series of driving offences as well as breaching his bail.

The court heard that on October 2018 Donegan was granted compassionate bail and failed to return.

During his time on the run Judge Neil Rafferty said he 'made a number of taunting posts' on social media calling himself the Gingerbread Man.

The court heard that while on the run on January 12 2019 Donegan was seen driving a van in Ballykelly by an off duty police officer.

A high speed chase took place with the vehicle driven by the defendant going the wrong way round a traffic island, driving on the wrong side of the road and eventually ramming a police vehicle.

On July 12 2022 a van was reported stolen in Donegal and later located at a garage in Abercorn Road in Derry.

Donegan was found in the driver's seat and when police approached he said 'you didn't catch me driving'.

He then pushed a police officer before running off and was arrested at the River Foyle.

An evidential breath test revealed a reading of 57mgs.

Passing sentence Judge Rafferty said that breaching compassionate bail was 'taking advantage of the court's compassion '.

He said Donegan's life had been blighted by substance abuse but the type of offending merited a custodial sentence.

The judge said after listening to the defendant's mother he felt 'there was some degree of hope' for the defendant.

He sentenced Donegan to two years in prison with half in custody and half on licence and disqualified him from driving for 7 years.
Derry Crown Court heard today how a man who was walking home was attacked 'out of the blue' in John Street in the city leaving him with two black eyes and requiring stitches.

Darrell Shaw (31) whose address is now Entry Street in Belfast was jailed for a charge of inflicting grievous bodily harm on the victim on March 2 2021.

Judge Neil Rafferty said that the victim in this case was walking home when he was assaulted by Shaw and left bleeding on the ground with two black eyes.

The judge said Shaw's response to the attack was summed up in four words 'really, really, really drunk.'

The court heard that Shaw had 79 previous convictions and also was in breach of a suspended sentence.

Judge Rafferty said this was 'a violent, random drunken assault on a completely blameless human being.'

He said that since going into custody Shaw was free of drink and drugs and warned him if he did not seek help he was going to face 'longer and longer prison sentences'.

He sentenced Shaw to 40 months in prison with half in custody and half on licence.
Four people were arrested and suspected drugs with an estimated street value of 50,000 were seized during a proactive police operation in Derry last night, Wednesday 17th May.

The arrests and seizure of suspected Class B drugs (cannabis) were made by the Paramilitary Crime Task Taskforce (PCTF) and Police Service of Northern Ireland's Organised Crime Branch. 20,000 in cash was also seized during the operation.

Two men, both aged 36-years-old, and a 38-year-old man remain in custody at this time. A 56-year-old woman arrested has been released on police bail to allow for further police enquiries.

PCTF Detective Inspector Phelan said the searches and arrests are part on an ongoing investigation into criminality linked to the North West Irish National Liberation Army (INLA).

"Police are committed to tackling the scourge of drugs in our communities, and we will continue to proactively investigate and carry out searches linked to the drugs trade and identify those involved in this illegal activity," said Detective Inspector Phelan.

We have seen how the sale, supply and consumption of illegal drugs ruins lives, can devastate families and communities. The criminals involved dont care about the wider impact their drug dealing will have on the wider community and public services. All they care about is lining their own pockets.

"We are determined to disrupt their criminal activity and anyone involved in the drugs trade. Anyone tempted to become involved in illegal drugs should be under no illusion; we will seek to identify them, arrest them and place them before the courts."

Detective Inspector Phelan added: "We urge anyone with information about suspected drug dealing in their area to call us on 101, or call Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111."
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What was billed as the Derry and Strabanes first ever arts sector political representatives hustings has taken place in Studio 2 Arts Centre in the citys Skeoge area.

Hosted by the local Arts, Cultural and Heritage Co-Delivery Group, several members of the all-male panel took aim at Sinn Fein and the DUP for their failure to attend.

Chaired by Kevin Murphy, CEO of Derry Playhouse, the speakers at the event were: Sean Mac Cearain (Aontu), Cllr Shaun Harkin (People Before Profit), Colm Cavanagh (Alliance) and Cllr Rory Farrell (SDLP).

In terms of the Derry City and Strabane District Council area, each candidate was asked: How do you or your party value the arts sector?, How would you and your party work to redress the historical imbalance in the resources for the arts sector?, and What ambitions would you or your party have for the growth, development, and sustainability of the arts sector?

Opening what turned out to be an interesting and extremely wide ranging discussion, Rory Farrell said the arts across Derry and Strabane needed proper financial support from central government.

He added: The real trigger for me was in November 2020. The Communities Minister announced a 600,000 funding package of covid support for four organisations, all in Belfast. None for anywhere outside of Belfast and definitely none for any very, very worthy organisations that were facing the same funding pressures, across our city and district.

That was followed by the revelation that in the financial year 2020/21, the Arts Council funded 25 million to organisations across the North. 19 million went to organisations in Belfast and 1.7 million went to organisations across our city and district.

So, for every pound invested in our Council area, 11 pounds went to organisations in Belfast and thats not fair and thats not balanced. Its not in the vicinity of being fair or balanced.

Mr Farrell said that at a subsequent meeting with the Arts Council, its chief executive, Roisin McDonagh reluctantly agreed there was an issue in terms of funding, that Derry and Strabane was not getting its fair share.

He added that the Department for Communities was developing a Cultural, Arts and Heritage Strategy, which should be ready by December.

However, I dont know if this can be delivered in the absence of an Executive, as it would probably need ministerial approval, said Cllr Farrell.

Colm Cavanagh advocated the decentralisation of Arts Council funding.

He added: The arts have to find ways to self-fund as much as possible. However, the reality is, one of the things local councillors can do, apart from banging on doors as they are doing with the Arts Council, is to be of assistance to the Co-Delivery Group to help find funding elsewhere.

I dont think there is going to be any easy answer to this. I think we are facing into hard times, horrendous times, so the only thing we can do is to be creative. So, decentralise the funding for the Arts Council; find ways to raise ones own organisations money; and get local representatives, elected or not, to act as supporters and referees.

Shaun Harkin said Sinn Fein and the DUP were the two biggest parties yet they were not present to defend themselves.

I think it is an absolute insult to the sector and everybody here that they havent bothered to turn up. I think it is a disgrace, said Cllr Harkin, who continued: It sends a message that this discussion isnt actually that important.

Obviously the DUP are on permanent strike and are missing from everything but Sinn Fein managed to go to the Coronation, a grotesque event, costing 250 million. Some people call it art. I call it an event that will promote and continue wealth inequality; and allegiance to absolute nonsense.

Cllr Harkin said that the Department for Communities and the Arts Council have had to admit there is a disparity in funding a legacy, not just a one year or a two year disparity, but a legacy of decades of disparity of funding for Derry and the North West.

He added: We absolutely value art because art shouldnt be something you do now and again. Art is everywhere and I think art enhances our lives. It develops human beings and it helps to develop communities.

Art can help people with mental health issues. It can help people with well being. Every challenge we have in our societies, art has a role to play in resolving it. We want to see our arts sector absolutely flourish in Derry, said Cllr Harkin.

Gaeilgeoir Sean Mac Cearain, described himself as having been involved in the Traditional Arts for 40 or 50 years, including Irish language and music.

He added: The arts are definitely a reflection of the richness and the culture and the progression of a given society.

As regards what has been said here today, Sinn Fein is in charge of the community here. They have that portfolio at the moment. I would also say, by the way, we have had control of local government in this state or statelet for 25 years, so therefore, Nationalist and Republican governments havent increased arts funding any more than the previous Unionist incumbents. In fact, it has been a complete failure.

From my point of view, in the Irish language, for instance, not one full-time job has been devolved to this city. Jobs that can be done with a computer, where you dont need an office, you need nothing.

Not one Sinn Fein minister, not one SDLP minister, nobody has ever brought an Irish language job to Derry. That is something that annoys me and we cannot blame, all the time, other people. Nationalists and other parties fund this community, have been in charge of the finances and have let us down.

I think, as regards what we need to do about the cutbacks, for instance, there is an element of needing funding from central or devolved government but it is also important that commercial elements are tied into that as well, said Sean Mac Cearain.

The panel also answered questions and heard the views of a diverse group of the citys arts practitioners, including: Joe Campbell (artist); Cath McBride (In Your Space Circus); Andrew McNulty (Waterside Theatre); Paul Mason (Millennium Forum); Eibhlin Ni Dhochartaigh (Culturlann Ui Chanain); and Janet Hoy (Creative Village Arts).

The interesting and at times feisty discussion was concluded by an entreaty from Ollie Green, the Art s Director of Studio 2, for the members of the panel to stand up for Derry.

Mr Green welcomed the coming together of the Arts, Cultural and Heritage Co-Delivery Group.

This was actually a long drawn out process of developing a Cultural Strategy, which we now havent got the money to pay for. However, it shows you, within our own city here, there is a sharedness of purpose and common goals among our sector to try and do what is best for our city, to build on what we know is the vein of gold that runs through the heart of the city.

But, we also need a further common goal among our political representatives, to come together to stand up for Derry.
A DUP council election candidate was threatened and physically intimidated while handing out leaflets at a polling station in Co Londonderry, party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has said.

The party said Dawn Huggins, a candidate for Causeway Coast and Glens council, had the leaflets ripped from her hand and was told she was not welcome in the area on Thursday morning.

Sir Jeffrey said the man who was a bully and insisted there were no no-go areas for his candidates in Northern Ireland.

He said: One of our candidates standing in the Bann electoral area for Causeway Coast and Glens, Dawn Huggins, was handing out some leaflets outside Macosquin Primary School this morning when a very large gentleman, well over 6ft, approached her and tore the leaflets out of her hand.

There was significant physical intimidation of our candidate. She was threatened, told to get out of the area.

I want to be absolutely clear and on behalf of Dawn say this: there are no no-go areas for our candidates in Northern Ireland.

This is a democratic process, elections are free and fair in Northern Ireland and candidates are entitled to put forward their perspectives.

The DUP leader called for intimidation of politicians, particularly women, to stop.

He added: There is no place in our society for this kind of intimidatory behaviour and the DUP will not stand for it.

She (Ms Huggins) is very badly shaken up by this, very upset by what has happened, by the threats that were made against her, by the physical intimidation to which she was subjected.

This is entirely wrong. This man is just a bully picking on a woman who has decided to stand for public office. There is no courage or bravery involved in any of that on his part.

Therefore we stand with Dawn and the courage she has shown putting herself forward for public office.

Sir Jeffrey said the matter had been reported to the PSNI.

He continued: Dawn is not alone. We have seen other women from other parties and from the DUP subjected to this type of intimidatory behaviour and bullying, both online and, in this case, physically in person. It is entirely wrong.

It is difficult to attract people to stand for public office and this kind of behaviour simply doesnt help.

Dawn is a courageous woman like the other women who are standing for election, for whatever party they stand, and this intimidation will not deter any of these women or any other candidates from pursuing public office, for standing up for what they believe in and putting themselves forward before the people.

Ive just spoken with our Bann candidate, Dawn Huggins, who was the victim of physical intimidation at Macosquin polling station this morning and told she was not welcome in the area. There are no no-go areas for the DUP or any party in this election. 1/2  Gordon Lyons MLA (@gordonlyons1) May 18, 2023

Party colleague and MLA Gordon Lyons said canvassers from other parties came to Ms Huggins aid.

In a social media post, he said: Ive just spoken with our Bann candidate, Dawn Huggins, who was the victim of physical intimidation at Macosquin polling station this morning and told she was not welcome in the area.

There are no no-go areas for the DUP or any party in this election

Dawn has not been deterred. Many thanks to the canvassers from other parties who called the police to her aid.

A PSNI spokesman said a man in his 70s who was arrested following the report of an assault in the Macosquin area on Thursday afternoon has been issued with a Community Resolution Notice.
Have you ever wished to repurpose your phone as a dashcam since its there with you in the car and mostly has serviceable if not good cameras? Then, you will like this new Pixel feature. Google has announced a Dashcam capability for Pixel smartphones (first spotted by 9to5Google) that claims to shoot 24 hours continuously. It can also start automatically when you connect the Pixel to your cars Bluetooth. All that sounds cool and still, we have some concerns. Well, we shall get to that, but first, lets learn more about the feature in question.

Pixel Dashcam: How it works?

:

1. The dashcam feature is present within the Personal Safety app on Pixel and some other Android phones. So, open this app.

2. You will get a description of how the Pixel Dashcam works. You may read it and when ready, click on Get Started.

3. The camera viewfinder opens with a Record button and a gallery shortcut to view the Saved Videos.

So, you see its rather straightforward and simple to use.

However, things get even better with some of its smart capabilities.

7 Pixel Dashcam features

1. You can shoot 24 hours of continuous footage.

2. You can record the audio along with the video.

3. It can connect and disconnect automatically based on whether the phone is connected to the cars Bluetooth.

4. The videos are recorded in a compressed format that saves storage space. In Googles estimates, this should be about 30MB per minute.

5. For your privacy, Google automatically deletes all videos after 3 days unless you save them.

6. The recording can happen in the background and the screen doesnt have to be on.

7. You can also use/run other apps while the recording happens in the background.

Now, on to our concerns.

The Pixel phones have their unique strengths but also have been plagued by one or the other issues ever since the first Pixel. Some of these are related to battery drain, heating, and memory management. Even just recently, we have been hearing cases of Pixel 7 battery and heating problems. Even our smartphone reviewer Dhriti Datta's review of the Pixel 7a had her admonishing its penchant for overheating -- watch the embedded YouTube video below:

So, can Google fulfil the claim that Pixel will be able to sustain a 24-hour or long, continuous video recording? Well have to see if it manages to. These problems usually have easy fixes or are fixed by the brand. The phone also comes with AI that learns your usage or behaviour patterns over time and smartly kills inactive apps in the background. This in turn improves certain performance factors like memory utilization by apps. So, lets hope this feature works as advertised.
There have been leaks floating around the market with the information of Samsung F54 and the delay in the launch is heightening anticipation for the F series smartphone. However, the responses for the most recent leak have not been necessarily that enticing.

According to reports, sources have revealed the possible launch price of the much-awaited Samsung Galaxy F54 smartphone. For instance, the model featuring 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage is rumoured to be priced at 35,999. Remember that this model is not the entry-level or least expensive. The price of that one, which will contain 128GB of storage, is currently unknown.

When the expected India launch of Samsung Galaxy F54 didnt occur in April 2023, there was a chance that it would instead happen by the latter half of May 2023. More information regarding the phone is beginning to leak as that time draws nearer.

Also read: Motorola Edge 40 to Narzo N53: Top 5 upcoming phones of May 2023

However, the price leak hasnt necessarily created a positive buzz among the expectant customers. There have been many users on Twitter, especially, who claim the specs dont really seem to match up to the price of the product. Scroll down to know the specs and features of the Samsung Galaxy F54 known till now.

The Exynos 1380 SoC is rumoured to power the Galaxy F54, which is also said to have a 6.7-inch FHD+ AMOLED touchscreen with 120 Hz refresh rate. The smartphone will be available in the variant of 8GB of RAM depending on the storage version, a triple rear camera setup 108 MP main with OIS, 8 MP ultrawide, and a 2 MP alongside a 32 MP selfie camera. The Samsung F54 will feature a 6,000 mAh battery with support for 25W wired charging and will be operating on Android 13 along with One UI.

Also read: Forget Pixel 7a! You can get the Pixel 6a for 999 effective price on Flipkart
Tron Future Tech to test LEO satellite communication under Foxconn-initiated EV project

Tron Future Tech, a Taiwan-based startup specialized in active electronically scanned array (AESA) for drone and space applications, recently announced success in delivering the prototype of T.SpaceRouter, its automotive user terminal for low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication. In a press release, the company claimed that the T.SpaceRouter sourced 85% of components locally, marking a milestone for domestically developed automotive LEO satellite communication user terminals.

The automotive satellite communication terminal will undergo prefeasibility assessment conducted by the Foxconn-led MIH EV development platform as the later explores LEO satellite communication solutions for vehicles. T.SpaceRouter will also be featured in the Taipei Aerospace Defense Technology Exhibition in September, together with the company's LEO satellite communication payload.

According to Tron Future Tech, the AESA-based T.SpaceRouter contains a transmit and a receive antenna, each with 1024 elements, and operates in the ITU Ka-band frequency range (Downlink: 17.8 ~ 20.2 GHz, Uplink: 27.5 ~ 30 GHz). It supports up to 250MHz instantaneous bandwidth and 16APSK / QPSK / BPSK modulation (configurable). The maximum EIRP is over 36 dBW, while the total power consumption is less than 100 W. A variety of standard interfaces, including RS485, RS422, and RJ45, are provided for ease of integration with automotive connectivity solutions.

Wang Yu-Jiu, Tron Future Tech's Chairman and CEO, also chairs MIH's Global Connectivity Working Group that seeks to contribute to the standardization of various automotive communication use cases, including those used in autonomous driving. The group plans to release a white paper in second-quarter 2023 outlining a hybrid architecture that integrates satellite communication and vehicle to everything (V2X) communication for future MIH EV platforms. However, Wang previously indicated that there's no plan to connect with Starlink, and that the various protocols adopted by different satellite network operators also pose a challenge. Meanwhile, Foxconn's independently designed and manufactured cubesat is scheduled for launch in 2023.

In addition to the satellite industry, drones are another pillar of Tron Future Tech's business. Its counter-drone radar, T.Radar Pro, is already adopted by Taiwan's military, in addition to customers from South Asia and the Middle East. The company also saw its first overseas shipment in October 2022.

As the heart of the company's anti-drone solution, T. Radar Pro is a folding wing 15-kg radar based on GaN phased array technologies that can detect drones within 5 km. Tron Future Tech expects to produce 100 such radars per month in 2023 as it expands production capacity. Its anti-drone solution also includes a jammer that can simultaneously jam HF/UHF/WiFi remote control signals and multi-standard GNSS signals. Its software-defined nature allows it to adapt to new RF threats. A hardkill drone interceptor also forms a part of the anti-drone solution.

According to Tron Future Tech, its semiconductor design capability unpins its radar technology. In a previous interview with Taiwan-based Economic Daily, Tron Future Tech indicated that most of its in-house chips go into its satellite communication products, while orders of smaller volumes use third-party chips.
Micron to produce EUV DRAM memory in Japan

Micron Technology has announced that it will introduce extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology to Japan, utilizing this advanced patterning technology to produce its next generation of DRAM, the 1-gamma node.

Micron's Hiroshima fab will play a crucial role in the company's development of the 1-gamma node, said the US memory vendor. Micron plans to invest up to JPY500 billion (US$3.64 billion) in 1-gamma process technology over the next few years, with the support of the Japanese government.

The introduction of 1-gamma follows the development of Micron's 1-beta (1), the industry's most advanced DRAM node today, which Micron mass produces in its Hiroshima fab. Micron continues to make progress on its EUV integration plans and expects to ramp EUV into production on the 1-gamma node in Taiwan and Japan from 2025 onwards, according to the company.

"Micron's Hiroshima operations have been central to the development and production of several industry-leading technologies for memory over the past decade," Micron president and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said. "We are proud to be the first to use EUV in Japan and to be developing and manufacturing 1-gamma at our Hiroshima fab. Our plans reflect our continued commitment to Japan, strong relationship with the Japanese government and the exceptional talent of our Micron Hiroshima team."
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Taiwan satellite suppliers call for an Android-like ecosystem as SpaceX pursues an Apple-like strategy

The success of SpaceX's Starlink has helped Taiwan-based electronics manufacturers to tap into the international satellite market. According to Taiwan-based suppliers, SpaceX is Taiwan's largest source of satellite-related orders. However, these suppliers indicated that SpaceX's domination in the sector as well as its "Apple-like" closed ecosystem will offer limited long-term benefits for Taiwan's supply chain, denting earlier hopes that the LEO satellite industry will replicate the successes seen in the notebook and smartphone sectors.

As Starlink adapts an Apple-like strategy to develop hardware and software platforms on its own, without a competing Android-like ecosystem, the volume of orders can hardly scale up, according to Taiwan-based suppliers. Currently, satellite manufacturing and launching service together account for less than 10% of global satellite revenue, while ground equipment and satellite service respectively accounts for around 53% and 40% of the market. Taiwan-based suppliers believe that the two sectors have the greatest potential to attract more suppliers and grow, boosting adaption and giving rise to more application scenarios in the process - replicating the heydays of smartphone and notebook industries.

Currently, Starlink operates around 4,000 satellites in orbit, while its planned constellation is made up of around 42,000 satellites. OneWeb, another satellite communication network operator, has approximately 400 satellites in orbit, planning to bring the number to 648. Project Kuiper, Amazon's own satellite communication network project, aims to launch its first satellite in 2024, eventually aiming for 3,236 satellites in the constellation. While OneWeb outsourced the manufacturing of its ground equipment, both SpaceX and Amazon opted to design and produce them in house. Amazon even designed a customized ASIC known as 'Prometheus'' to be used in Project Kuiper's terminals, satellites, and base stations.

Given the latest progress in non-terrestrial network (NTN) standardization at 3GPP though, it is foreseeable that Taiwan-based suppliers will still have significant roles to play in the satellite communication industry as satellite connectivity on smartphones gains traction. Earlier this month, MediaTek just released a white paper exploring satellite and terrestrial network convergence, calling for 6G NTN to be natively considered from the beginning of the 6G physical/protocol layer design stage. In the paper, MediaTek identified four major new technology areas for 6G that can further enhance NTN: efficient waveform design, enhanced mobility, massive satellite beamforming, and cellular/satellite spectrum sharing.
An early intervention programme which will benefit hundreds of families affected by Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Louth and Meath officially launched yesterday.

The award-winning Changing Lives Initiative programme is being rolled out in Counties Louth and Meath by Community Organisation Archways with thanks to funding from HSE Mental Health Services.

The initiative is closely linked to a number of recommendations relating to ADHD support under Sharing the Vision, Irelands national mental health policy.

The Changing Lives Initiative is a community-based initiative, creating better awareness of ADHD and providing an early intervention programme for families.

The programme is targeted at families with children aged 3-7 who are demonstrating behaviours consistent with ADHD but are oftentimes too young to receive formal diagnosis of ADHD.

Potential families are identified through health, educational and community services, or can self-refer to the programme.

As well as working with families the Changing Lives Initiative provides training on ADHD for those working with young children, in particular teachers and early years professionals.

The Changing Lives Initiative Programme was initially delivered and evaluated as part of a 3.5 year EU funded project which ended in 2021.

The evaluations demonstrated the programmes ability to significantly reduce ADHD-related behaviour in young children as well as other emotional and conduct problems.

The programme is now set to benefit hundreds of families in Counties Louth and Meath, thanks to funding from the HSE.

Speaking at the Launch to mark the roll out of the Programme in Counties Louth and Meath, Jim Ryan, Head of Mental Health Operations, from the HSE said:

The Changing Lives Initiative is a hugely important programme for children and families who are impacted by ADHD. The initiative links with a number of recommendations in Irelands national mental health policy, Sharing the Vision, and provides evidence based early intervention in line with international best practice.

"This is another great example of the HSE working with service providers to bring about real change in peoples lives.

Christina Riordan, Project Manager of the Initiative said:

The Changing Lives Initiative was borne out of an identified need. Early intervention is essential for children experiencing behaviours consistent with ADHD. The programme provides an invaluable support at a crucial time.

"This programme will have a profound impact on families, in helping improve their quality of life and helping them support their children to reach their full potential. We are delighted to be able to provide the programme to families in Louth and Meath with thanks to the HSE funding.

The Changing Lives Initiative programme is now available to families in Counties Louth and Meath. Further information on how families can avail of the programme is available at www.changinglivesinitiative. com
 

Norway provides NOK 1.5 billion (about 130 million) in grants to support EBRD operations in Ukraine

Funding to reinforce energy security in the country

Strong cooperation between the EBRD and Norway

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the government of Norway are working together to support Ukraine and its people during the current war and beyond.

During the EBRD Annual Meeting and Business Forum taking place in Uzbekistan, Norway, a founding member of the EBRD and a strong strategic partner, announced it would be providing NOK 1.5 billion (about 130 million) to support the Banks operations to reinforce energy security in Ukraine.

This most recent grant follows on from the NOK 2 billion (195 million equivalent) in grants that Norway provided in November 2022 to help Ukraines state-owned energy utility Naftogaz buy critical gas to secure heating and electricity for households and businesses.

To ensure Ukrainian people and businesses continue to receive vital energy supplies, the Bank has been focusing on providing working capital and grants to Naftogaz and the other leading state-owned energy company Ukrenergo.

The EBRD strongly condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine from the start, and had an immediate and wide-ranging response, channelling finance and assistance where needed most. The Bank continued to disburse funds to clients and support trade finance, energy security, vital infrastructure and liquidity to municipalities, food security and the private sector.

Norway joins a number of donors that have responded through the EBRD to the financial and technical support needs brought about by the war on Ukraine. So far some 1.5 billion has been generously made available to keep the Ukrainian economy going.

The EBRD is supporting Ukraine and its real economy at a time when the country needs it most. The Bank has committed to providing 3 billion of financing over 2022 and 2023 in partnership with international donors to help keep Ukraines businesses and economy functioning. In 2022 the EBRD deployed 1.7 billion in support of Ukraine. It also mobilised 200 million directly from partner financial institutions. The Bank has been operating in Ukraine for more than three decades and is the largest institutional investor in the country.
The EBRD is supporting the expansion of the GS25 retail chain in Mongolia

Dozens of new convenience stores are set to open across the country

Hundreds of new jobs will be created for young people

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is helping to introduce new retail formats in Mongolia by supporting the expansion of Digital Concept, an operator of convenience stores.

Digital Concept, which runs the GS25 convenience store franchise chain, will use a Bank loan of up to US$18 million to open as many as 63 new shops by the end of 2023 and to finance the construction of a food factory and logistics centre.

The Banks financing will underpin the companys investment programme, aimed at opening more than 100 new stores a year to 2027 in the countrys capital, Ulaanbaatar, as well as in the cities of Darkhan and Erdenet.

The programme will implement a popular GS25 Korean convenience store model, introduce new food retail industry standards to the country and bring a wide range of food products, everyday items, and fresh food and drinks to Mongolian customers.

As part of the project, Digital Concept will team up with a local college to establish an inclusive training programme for the companys existing and new employees. It will provide access to certified training programmes essential to career development.

To date, the EBRD has invested almost US$ 2.19 billion in Mongolias economy through 132 projects.
EBRD extends loan of up to US$ 23 million to Meros Pharm

Loan to finance the companys working-capital needs for geographical expansion

Project to improve availability of affordable, high-quality medication in Uzbekistan

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the growth of one of Uzbekistans leading pharmaceutical distributors, Meros Pharm. The Bank is extending a loan of up to US$ 23 million to support the companys working-capital needs for geographical expansion.

Meros Pharm is one of the largest and most successful private pharmaceutical distributors in Uzbekistan, with a strong presence and reputation in the market. The loan will support the companys growth by financing the working capital needed to expand its warehouse network across the country. This will not only improve the firms operational efficiency and profitability, but will also bring a wide range of high-quality and affordable medication to underserved regions and cities such as Andijan, Nukus and Bukhara.

In addition, the Bank will support Meros Pharm in addressing critical gaps in skills and increasing employment in the regions which lack sufficient job opportunities for their growing populations. Together with the EBRDs engagement and targeted technical support, Meros Pharm will establish a new in-house training academy aligned with its existing and future needs for critical skills in logistics and warehousing. Around 150 employees and new joiners are expected to benefit from the academy every year, boosting their employability.

Meros Pharm is part of Meros Group  a leading, vertically integrated pharmaceutical group covering the entire value chain from production to wholesale distribution and retail.

The EBRD is a key institutional investor in Uzbekistan, with more than 4 billion invested in 135 projects in the country to date.
CORK County Council has announced the return of FrameWorks, a classroom-based art education project aimed at primary school children across the County.

The scheme will provide four schools with the opportunity to become temporary custodians of the Councils County Art Collection, engaging in a managed programme facilitated by a professional artist.

Cork County Council has a substantial collection of visual art. The civic collection includes works in various media including painting, drawing, print, photography, video and small-scale three-dimensional work created by emerging and established artists, many of whom are living and working in Cork County.

Mayor of Cork County, Cllr Danny Collins, commented on the programme, saying, this is an excellent opportunity for young people in Cork County to engage with contemporary visual art and to explore their own creativity in the classroom.

The Councils Art Collection is a valuable asset, and we are delighted to be able to make it available to schools through this programme. We look forward to seeing the collaborative artworks created by participating schools presented as part of next years Cruinniu na nOg celebrations.

The FrameWorks programme aims to support the curriculum and provide schools with the opportunity to engage with a visual artist. By providing an enjoyable opportunity to engage in a creative activity supported by a professional arts facilitator, the programme will support the childs development and foster their appreciation of contemporary visual art.

The programme, funded by Creative Ireland, will select a school in each of the countys administrative areas and one school from the countys two Gaeltacht areas.
Tanaiste and Minister for Defence Micheal Martin has welcomed the arrival from New Zealand of two inshore patrol vessels (IPVs) for the Naval Service, which are to commence their operational service early next year.

The ships, purchased in March 2022 from the New Zealand Government, arrived into Cork Harbour at the weekend following an epic 35-day, 10,000 nautical mile voyage from Auckland, New Zealand on a large heavy sea lift transport vessel to the Port of Cork.

They were then towed into the Naval Base at Haulbowline.

Commander Tony O'Leary, Tanaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheal Martin, Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Sean Clancy and Secretary General at the Dept of Defence, Jacqui McCrum. Photo: Gerard McCarthy

Speaking following the arrival of the ships at the base, the Tanaiste said the vessels will provide the Naval Service with an enhanced capacity to patrol the Irish Sea.

The Government has acknowledged that there are ongoing challenges in the Naval Service and these are being addressed as part of a planned approach to the regeneration of the Naval Service.

This has seen the withdrawal of three ships from service - LE Orla, LE Ciara and LE Eithne and their replacement on a phased basis.

The investment of some 26 million in these two inshore patrol vessels, will provide replacements for LE Orla and LE Ciara.

These inshore patrol vessels have a lesser crewing requirement than the ships they replace and will provide the Naval Service with an enhanced capacity to operate and undertake patrols in the Irish Sea on the East and South East Coast.

This will allow the remaining fleet to focus on operations elsewhere, he said.

Commander Tony O'Leary, Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Sean Clancy, Tanaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheal Martin, Commander Thomas Hobbins and Secretary General at the Dept of Defence, Jacqui McCrum. Photo: Gerard McCarthy

The vessels underwent an extensive regeneration project in New Zealand over the past year and will now undergo further work at the Naval Base.

Following familiarisation, crew training and preparation for operational readiness, they will both be named and commissioned into the Irish Naval Service before commencing their operational service early next year, Mr Martin said.

Flag Officer Commanding the Naval Service, Commodore Michael Malone said the IPV procurement and timely delivery is a vital part of the Naval Services HR regeneration efforts and will assist the Naval Service in returning to its mandated number of hulls.

Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sean Clancy said the new IPVs will allow the Naval Service to continue to modernise and tackle the dynamic and ever-changing maritime environment.
There were emotional scenes on the Grand Parade on Thursday evening as the Lord Mayor of Cork embraced members of the citys Ukrainian community celebrating a tradition from home.

World Vyshyvanka Day is an international holiday to celebrate and preserve the tradition of Ukrainian ethnic clothing, and this year some 250 people gathered by Corks National Monument in sorrow, defiance and optimism.

Yaroslav Muts, Irene Muts, Miraslava Zatsanska and Kira Makhnenko who were taking part in Vyshyvanka Day on Grand Parade, Cork. Picture: David Creedon

The vyshyvanka is the traditional embroidered shirt native to Ukraine, and there were many bright colours on display as Corks Ukrainian community marked what is for many their first full year in Ireland after Vladimir Putins illegal, full-scale invasion of their country.

The muted shades of an overcast mid-May Cork evening could not match the vivid blues and yellows of the Ukrainian flags, but the spatters of rain held off for the most part as traditional songs were sang and cries of Slava Ukraini (Glory to Ukraine) rang out along the Lee.

Victor Danyluk, Sveatlana Zakharova and Voyieck Bialek taking part in Vyshyvanka Day on Grand Parade, Cork. Picture: David Creedon

Cork is a city which has long embraced diversity and inclusion, the Lord Mayor of Cork, Councillor Deirdre Forde, told the crowd, and she said it was her hope that when Russias war against Ukraine is ended, many Ukrainian people would stay on in their new home.

We welcome you because you add to our culture, each country has its own culture and we celebrate that culture, we welcome you to Cork, the very brave people of Ukraine, and we will always be with you, one hundred per cent, until the job is done, Cllr Forde said.

There were hugs and tears as Cllr Forde  putting her schedule on hold - stayed and greeted members of the crowd, which was made up predominantly of young women and children.

Victoria Tymoshchuk, one of the organisers of Thursdays event, said the demonstration was the first collaboration of the Kalyna Choir, the Carrigrohane Union of Parishes, Cork Partnership Clg, and Together-Razem.

Today is important because people feel happy, they feel involved, they are introducing their culture, and the purpose of this event is to introduce to the people of Cork, who have been so kind and supportive to us, the culture of Ukraine, Ms Tymoshchuk said.

People from Cork are amazing, you are so friendly and you are very patient with us, and you make us feel at home here. Remembering those Ukrainian soldiers who had defended Mariupol from invasion and who have been imprisoned by Russia since, Olesia Zhytkova said the vyshyvanka is the traditional amulet of Ukrainian people, just as the Ukrainian army also defends them.

Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr Deirdre Forde, takes a selfie taking with Ukrainain refugees who were taking part in Vyshyvanka Day on Grand Parade, Cork. Picture: David Creedon

Voytek Bialek, CEO of Cork-based charity Together-Razem, said World Vyshyvanka Day is a very important day globally for the Ukrainian diaspora at a time of great suffering for them.

Its important for a community to come together and remember their traditions, thats what gives them their sense of belonging when you come from a different country to a new country, youre trying to find a spot for yourself and the integration process is quite lengthy, Mr Bialek, who is Polish, told The Echo.

People need to feel that they belong, its very important that people can integrate, but integrate without forgetting their own sense of identity.

According to the most recent figures available from the Central Statistics Office, as of February of this year, there were approximately 75,000 Ukrainian refugees in Ireland, with just over 7,000 Ukrainian people living in Cork.

World Vyshyvanka Day has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance since last years full-scale Russian invasion scattered millions of Ukrainian refugees all over Europe and beyond.
A Cork architect based in the UK has been jailed for two-and-a-half years for sexually assaulting a nine- or ten-year-old girl in the city when he was aged 19 or 20.

Jonathan ORegan, who is now aged 41, was sentenced to three years in prison, with the last six months suspended, at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

The defendant was convicted by a jury, on a 10-2 majority decision, after he denied the crime, which happened approximately 21 years ago in Cork city.

The injured party said in her victim impact statement: Living with this is like a cloud that is always there but other times that cloud can rain heavily or become a storm.

"Those days are days of complete struggle, hardship and misery.

Jonathan ORegan did not plead guilty and has put me through this trial. The trial has retraumatised me in ways I never thought imaginable. It has been the most challenging and painful few weeks of my life. I still feel physically unwell because of the turmoil of the trial.

It felt like an out-of-body experience where I was just barely existing and not living, and paralysed with fear.

Listening to him lie and, at times twist the truth to suit his narrative was mental torture. Along with dealing with the last 20 years of trauma he has caused me, I feel he has added a new layer of trauma and another thing to deal with.

Many times, I have felt like dropping this case because of the pain and anguish the entire process caused but somewhere I found the courage to continue and look for justice. He has done this to me and affected me as a child, teenager and an adult.

I now stand here as a survivor who has achieved justice and I am now taking the power and control back to fulfil my life with the happiness that I deserve.

The woman indicated that she wanted him to be identified in coverage of the case.

Judge Catherine Staines referred to the sexual assault carried out by the accused as consisting of asking the child to sit on the floor and take down her pants as he rubbed her vagina with his fingers when she was around 9/10 and he was 19/20.

Sergeant Dave Noonan said ORegan has been resident in the UK for a number of years with his wife and child.

Jane Hyland, senior counsel, presented character evidence from family and friends of ORegan.

Ms Hyland said he was an architect and also studied astrophysics and worked in meteorology.

Judge Staines read the many character references and said: They say that, since 2002 he has behaved in an exemplary manner towards his family and friends, who refer to his kindness and his willingness to help others.

As well as being sentenced for the sexual assault, ORegans name will go on the Sex Offenders Register.
A Cork TD has spoken about waiting overnight with his elderly father in what he described as an emergency department housed in prefabs and portable buildings.

Speaking on Wednesday in the Dail, Sinn Fein TD for Cork North Central, Thomas Gould, raised the need for a full emergency department (ED) in Corks Mercy University Hospital (MUH).

Mr Gould said he had spent hours upon hours overnight in February of this year in the MUH ED as his 81-year-old father Tony waited 14 hours to be seen.

There is real fear among people about attending emergency departments because they are looking at spending nights on trolleys and long waiting times in overcrowded emergency departments, Mr Gould said.

In 2022, more than 12,000 people waited on trolleys in Cork University Hospital. As for the Mercy University Hospital, its emergency department is in prefabs and portable buildings and has been for the past couple of years.

How can it be right that a hospital would have its accident and emergency unit in portable buildings? he asked.

I was in there in February with my own father, sitting on a plastic chair with cubicles between people.

People knew me because I am the local deputy and they asked me how it was allowed to happen that people are sitting in there.

How is it possible in this day and age? It is a complete failure by the Government and the Minister for Health, who has not tackled this issue. Speaking with The Echo yesterday, Mr Gould said his father had spent a total of 14 hours waiting to be seen in conditions the northside TD described as undignified, not respectful, and lacking privacy.

I have to say, the staff were brilliant, they were so good.

"They were under pressure, but they were so professional and decent and they were doing their best at all times, Mr Gould said.

I gave 10 hours with my dad overnight and then my sister came in in the morning with the change of clothes and a sandwich and a bottle of water for him, and she sat with him for another four hours and then they saw him, he added.

Mr Gould said his father is now in very good health and the 81-year-old Knocknaheeny man is extremely thankful to all of the staff at MUH who had shown him great kindness and professionalism.

My dad, Tony Gould, is flying now, and he is very grateful for the care he got from the staff at the time, the Sinn Fein TD added.
Funding of up to 100,000 for three consecutive years has been awarded to two Cork organisations as part of a national drug prevention and education initiative.

Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Hildegarde Naughton, announced the projects to benefit from shared funding of 1.5m, courtesy of the drug prevention and education funding scheme.

Cork Sexual Health Centres DASH mobile night-time economy project and E-SHIELD UCC were among projects selected for funding.

The latter is currently implementing the phased roll-out of the MyUSE app to six higher education institutes, promoting mindful decision-making around drug-use. It also aims to cultivate harm-reduction practices in a third-level environment and encourage alternatives to drug-use. Developed by a UCC-based research team, the app exploits specific evidence-based behaviour-change techniques delivered via a clinical algorithm.

Meanwhile, the Cork Sexual Health Centres DASH mobile night-time economy project provides a mobile health unit incorporating a group and one-to-one meeting space for the delivery of health promotion activities.

Pictured are Dr Martin Davoren, Executive Director of the Sexual Health Centre with Minister Hildegard Naughten TD and Katriona Purcell, DASH project worker at the DASH mobile unit.

Executive director at the Sexual Health Centre, Dr Martin Davoren, said he is delighted to be one of five projects selected nationally for funding.

DASH is the first of its kind in Ireland so we are very lucky to have the service, which is supporting people in the night-time economy and bringing intervention to young people at a point in time where they may be about to take a risk, he explained. This is a really new and innovative way of looking at drug, alcohol and sexual health, and supporting people in a way that is necessary.

You have to support people where they are at, he added.

There is no point expecting people to make all the changes before you go and meet them.

Young people are a big part of our night-time economy so we have to provide an infrastructure within that economy that supports them to make healthy choices so they dont need secondary or tertiary services.

What we try to do is reduce barriers to accessing services for communities, Dr Davoren explained further. Barriers could include opening hours, locations and access to transport. We are also aiming to reduce the number of people presenting at A&E while they are experiencing a challenge in relation to their drug, alcohol and sexual health. Young people need a voice that they trust who can respond to queries.

Pictured are Dr. Martin Davoren, Executive Director of the Sexual Health Centre with Minister Hildegard Naughten TD at the DASH mobile unit. Pic: Brian Lougheed

Minister Naughton described the funding announcement as a significant milestone in the provision of targeted funding towards drug prevention. Prevention is a cornerstone of the National Drugs Strategy  Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery, she said. That is why I feel it is imperative that we support evidence-based initiatives that engage with people who may be at risk of using drugs in a variety of contexts  in our schools, communities, universities, and the night-time economy, through timely preventative interventions.

"A monitoring and evaluation framework will be developed for the successful projects, and those exhibiting a positive impact will be expanded to reach additional groups.

She praised the work of the successful projects.

The successful initiatives already have strong track records in drug prevention, and Im delighted that, with our funding support over the next three years, they can continue to improve their lives.
IF you are travelling abroad this summer, here are some things you should consider before you head off.

Covid-19 rules

Some countries still have restrictions in place for travellers, warn John Beausang and Yvonne Rayner, Cork Citys Citizens Information Managers.

You should check the public health advice before you travel.

Check what documents you need to bring and check if any restrictions are in place. Each country has different entry requirements.

Some countries may need proof of vaccination for Covid-19 while others no longer need it. You can use the EU Digital Covid Certificate to show you are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 if you are travelling to the U.S, for example. To avoid disappointment, always check the entry requirements of your destination before you travel.

Travelling to China

If you are planning to travel to China, you should consult the Department of Foreign Affairs Travel Advice. Currently, Irish citizens are advised to avoid non-essential travel there. If you are travelling to China, you should wear a face mask for the full duration of your journey. You should also ensure you are up-to-date with all your Covid-19 vaccinations before you travel. There are no mRNA vaccines or other non-Chinese vaccines available in China.

Before you travel

Check travel advice and entry requirements for your destination

Check the travel advice and entry requirements for the country you are travelling to before you travel abroad.

You might need a visa, this depends on your destination. You can find out if you need a visa on the Department of Foreign Affairs website.

Is your passport in date?

Check your and your families passports are in date before you book. Passport Online is open to all applicants. Get information on how to renew your passport or how to apply for your childs first passport there, or by contacting your local Citizens Information Centre.

Travel insurance

You should get travel insurance for yourself and your family. If you have a travel insurance policy already, or travel insurance is included in your health insurance policy, you should check you are covered for hospital treatment for Covid-19. Bring your European Health Insurance Card with you if you are travelling to the EEA or Switzerland. Ensure it is in date, it must be renewed every four years and each family member needs their own. An EHIC does not replace travel insurance.

Healthcare: United Kingdom

You cannot use your EHIC in the UK. But you can still get the healthcare you need. You will need to show your Irish passport to the GP or hospital. Irish people travelling in the UK are entitled to access healthcare through the Common Travel Area.

Healthcare: Australia

Ireland and Australia have a reciprocal health agreement. This means Irish visitors to Australia will receive emergency services and assistance towards the cost of prescribed drugs and medicines on the same basis as persons ordinarily resident in Australia.

Driving abroad

If you plan to drive abroad, ensure your Irish driving licence is valid and you bring it with you. Some countries outside the European Economic Area (the member states of the European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) may require you to hold an International Driving Permit (IDP) in addition to your Irish driving licence.

Always en sure you are properly insured for driving overseas.

Get more information on driving abroad from the Road Safety Authority or by contacting your local CIC.

While abroad

John and Yvonne advise: It is worth making a note of the address, phone number and opening hours of the Irish Embassy or Consulate in the country you are visiting. If there is no Irish diplomatic or consular representation, you may seek emergency assistance from embassies or consulates of other EU countries.

The Department of Foreign Affairs website has advice on what to do to stay safe while abroad and what to do in an emergency.

Travel tips

More tips to help with your journey:

Check if you need vaccines or immunisations before you travel (at least 8 weeks in advance)

Make a note of the 24-hour emergency number of your bank so you can cancel your credit card or debit card if it is stolen.

Check your mobile data allowance with your mobile phone service provider. (For travel outside of the EEA).

Do you need to bring a special adapter to plug in your electrical devices?

Useful Websites

The Department of Foreign Affairs in Ireland provide travel advice to Irish people planning a trip overseas - www.dfa.ie

The HSE has information on preventing illness and infection while abroad - www.hse.ie

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre provides advice for travellers on how to avoid illness on its website - www.hpsc.ie

The World Health Organisation has information and advice regarding health and international travel - www.who.int .

Telephone lines at South Munster Citizens Information in Cork city are monitored from 10am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday. In addition, the Cork City Centre CIC in Cornmarket Street is open to the public from 10am to 12.30pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays, while the Blackpool CIC is open to the public daily from 10am to 1pm, Mon-Fri
PIONEERING Dublin quartet Lankum are back in Cork for their first show at the Opera House this Saturday night, armed with their soon-to-be-released fourth album, False Lankum.

The record heralds a new stage in the metamorphosis of the band into a modern day powerhouse, drawing on traditional and primitive methods to create bold and singular music that transcends its folk roots.

So popular has this quartet become that the Opera House has managed to secure a second performance next Wednesday, May 24 as well. Tickets are likely to be much in demand for both.

In between, on Tuesday next, May 23, Ben Portsmouth returns on his world tour with This is Elvis. 021 427 0022 or www.corkoperahouse.ie for all bookings.

Emma Doran is at the Everyman this week.

Banff Mountain Film Festival returns to the Everyman tonight and tomorrow with some of the best travel and adventure short films from remote corners of the globe. All you armchair travellers, this is definitely one you mustnt miss! Different films each night, so get a discounted ticket for both. Saturday night Emma Doran is here with Mad, Isnt It? the latest stand-up comedy show from this great performer.

On Sunday, Spotlight Performing Arts present Just Think, a heartwarming musical based on the works of Dr Seuss and featuring talented young performers aged three to 15. That one begins at 6.30pm. On May 22, its the Garth Brooks Ultimate Live Tribute. 7.30pm start. Then, on May 27, comedian Kenny Sebastian, brings his seventh comedy special, Professor of Tomfoolery, in which he pours his heart out on stage, with 80 minutes of non-stop laughter. Its a chance to catch him live, delivering his signature brand of humour that has made him an audience favourite. Booking for all Everyman shows on 021 450 1673 or www.everymancork.com.

The Cork International Poetry Festival is up and running at the Cork Arts Theatre, and continues until Saturday night, with different artists and exponents throughout the day and evening. Mark Pajak and Paul Tran are on this evening at 7pm, followed by Katie Harris and Ilya Kaminsky at 8.30pm, with Harry Clifton and Carolyn Forche closing out the evening at 10pm. Get all the artists for the other days of the festival on www.corkartstheatre.com.

An interesting production coming up at the Cork Arts Theatre from Tuesday next, May 23, when Bruiser Theatre arrives with Mojo Mickybo by Owen McCafferty. Mojo and his mate Mickybo are two nine-year-old boys from opposing sides of the sectarian divide in the Belfast of the Troubles, close comrades until the violence destroys their friendship in a way that they only later come to understand. Fast-paced, darkly funny, and action-packed, the play is brought to life by John Travers and Conor Quinn who effortlessly portray a kind of innocence betrayed by communal hatred. Bruiser Theatre is delighted to be bringing this award-winning production across the border, and proud to present this showcase of both Northern Irelands talent and complex history to mark the 25th anniversary of The Good Friday Agreement. Directed by Lisa May, this deeply moving play has received critical acclaim wherever it has played.

Mojo Mickybo is sadly all too relevant for todays audiences, not just in Northern Ireland but around the world, says its director. Runs May 23 to 27. 021 450 5624 or www.corkartstheatre.com for bookings.

Interested in art, design, crafts? The STAMP Festival of Creativity is on this coming weekend in the historic venue of The Counting House at the former Beamishs brewery, the very first event to take place here since its restoration. Over 50 exhibitions, workshops, demonstrations, screenings and markets - something for all interests in one place. Fri to Sun. Check out www.stampcork.ie for all the info.
The anniversary of the death of Bob Marley last week left me reflecting on the powerful impact that Jamaica has made on music worldwide.

The tiny Caribbean island is not much bigger than the county of Cork, but it has had a profound influence on all kinds of music. We obviously associate Jamaica with Bob Marley and reggae first and foremost, but this music is from a rich ecosystem that includes ska, roots, rocksteady, dub, dancehall, and more. But even a cursory look at music history will show that the Jamaican influence spreads much further, into genres as diverse as punk, hip-hop, garage, jungle, and grime. How come Jamaica has had such an impact?

Well, there are a number of reasons, really. First of all, Jamaica is a former British colony whose people, like the Irish, have gone on to emigrate all over the world. There is a huge Jamaican diaspora in the United States and Canada as well as the UK, but like us, they are all over the world. I often felt that Ireland was in a unique place when it came to its pop culture influences being heavily dominated by the US and UK, but Jamaica is another country that has soaked up influences from everywhere. Its between both South America and North America and much of its natives are of African origin, with lots of ancestry connecting Jamaica to Europe, China, India, and other places.

The original roots of reggae and ska come from the days where US radio used to beam its large signal onto the island, where Jamaicans grew up listening to the likes of Ray Charles and Fats Domino. Cover bands copied their own favourites from the US scene, but soon put their own twist on it, and Jamaicans eventually started preferring their own music to that of the Americans.

The soul and jazz roots of the music that became known as ska and reggae cannot be overestimated, and even now, 50 years on, its impossible to listen to those early Bob Marley And The Wailers records without thinking of American greats such as Curtis Mayfield And The Impressions.

The reggae which helped make the island famous musically obviously went around the world too, though Bob Marleys own global superstardom was strategically managed by Island records, who marketed him like a rock star and who made the music more accessible to white audiences by bringing more of a rock vibe to both his shows and recordings.

Other great Jamaican artists often found it hard to escape from the large shadow that Marley had over the export of this music, but most music historians will acknowledge the massive influence of greats such as Lee Scratch Perry, King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, Sly & Robbie, Burning Spear, and many many more.

Jamaica has a rich musical heritage that extends beyond the various strands of reggae into jazz and soca and calypso, while in more recent decades, dancehall reggae has had a profound influence on modern hip-hop, and indeed pop music.

Ironically, a country occupied by many African slaves has exported a huge dancehall influence on modern afrobeats too, which is one of the biggest global pop sounds of the last 10 years. Similarly, reggaeton is indebted to dancehall and other genres, and its best-known riddim was made famous first by Jamaican Shabba Ranks.

Jamaica won independence from Britain in the early 60s, but many Jamaicans helped shape the music of the UK in subsequent decades, as mass migration from the small island brought ska, dub, rocksteady, and reggae to Britain. The kids and grandkids of these initial migrants helped shape garage, drum n bass, and grime, but in truth, Jamaican sound system culture was arguably the single most important element in the creation of the music we now know as dance, hip-hop, and electronica.

DJs such as Kool Herc brought sound system culture to New York and shaped the future of music into what eventually became hip-hop. Hip-hop DJs and MCs are basically still using methods that were developed on the lawns and street corners of Kingston back in the day. Vinyl culture is similarly indebted to this small island, where dub plates kept reinventing great riddims that have lasted forever.

Nowadays Jamaica continues to export huge artists such as Sean Paul, Beenie Man, Damian Marley, Spice, and Koffee, and overall its impact has endured.

We are deeply indebted to Jamaica and its culture, which is as important as ever in 2023.
Gordon Deegan and Press Association

Minister for State for Integration Joe OBrien has told Inch residents in Co Clare that no new additional International Protection (IP) applicants will be brought to Magowna House over the next four weeks.

In Ennis on Thursday evening, Mr OBrien said he made the proposal to a residents delegation as part of a bid to have the road barricades erected by locals to and from the former Magowna House Hotel removed.

The barricades have remained in place since 33 IP applicants arrived at Magowna House on Monday evening.

It involves parking cars and tractors across the road that leads to the hotel.

Protesters said that this was to stop a second bus that is expected to bring another 30 asylum seekers to the three holiday homes on the grounds of the hotel building.

Outside the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis, Mr OBrien said his request to the residents delegation at a meeting was that the barricades are taken down and in four weeks' time I will come back down and meet with them again and during that four weeks, no additional people will come to Magowna House.

Minister OBrien said the residents representatives are going to take his proposals back to the wider community and see if they are accepted.

He said: I hope that in four weeks' time the people of Inch will see that this is a better situation for the residents and a less fearful one for them as well.

He added: It is linked to the barriers going down. The barriers need to come down and I will come back in four weeks time and we will discuss where people are then. We are not thinking beyond that at the moment. I have told them that I would like this to be a place where we can bring more people.

Mr OBrien, who also met residents at the centre, added: I have asked them to drop the barricade  that is the main reason I came down here today.

I dont feel it is an acceptable thing to do  I understand why they have done it. I dont agree with it and that is why I am here to convince them to hopefully take that barricade down.

'Reasonable assuarances'

Earlier, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he hoped answering the questions of locals in Co Clare who are protesting, and giving them reasonable assurances, will allow the blockade to be lifted.

I dont think anybody wants to say anything at the moment that might escalate the situation in Clare, the Taoiseach said.

The blockade should end, its not right for anyone to block a public road or to block access to someones accommodation.

But we also dont want to dismiss concerns local communities have and sometimes local communities have genuine concerns. And thats why well make sure theres information, theres communication, but also make it very clear that nobody has the right to veto other people coming into your community, no matter who they are.

He said further engagement is planned with locals in Co Clare.

I dont want to get into the detail of that at the moment, but there will be further engagement with the local community there, he told reporters in Dublin.

I think it is important that peoples concerns are listened to, that theyre provided information, that communication takes place, but also its very important to be clear as a government, no community, nobody, has a veto on who should or should not live in your area and we cant allow that.

Meanwhile on Thursday evening, Minister for Justice Simon Harris and Mr OGorman met with Garda representatives including Garda Commissioner Drew Harris.

The ministers thanked An Garda Siochana for their work in policing a number of incidents in recent weeks, and reassured the Commissioner of the Governments ongoing support for their work.

The ministers and Commissioner agreed that finding accommodation for currently unaccommodated IP applicants is a priority for the safety of the individuals involved.

The ongoing liaison between An Garda Siochana and the Government on the provision of accommodation was discussed and the ministers and Commissioner recommitted themselves to further develop on this, including at a local level.

Mr Harris said that a number of investigations are under way into recent incidents and that these are live and active.




Meyn America to accelerate customer parts deliveries through future South Carolina, US distribution facility





Meyn America, LLC, a leading poultry processing solutions company, announced plans on May 17 to construct an 80,000-square-foot, Green Globes-certified parts distribution facility in the economic development business park of Oconee County, South Carolina, the United States.

The facility is intended to accelerate and improve the accuracy of Meyn's growing parts business to support customers throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Latin America.

Todd Rhodes, vice president and general manager of Meyn Americas, said: "As part of our continuous improvement effort, we are always exploring opportunities to improve the customer experience. This new distribution facility will enable us to fulfill our growing customer parts orders more quickly and accurately.

"In addition, by establishing roots in South Carolina  two hours from our Georgia facility, we will diversify risk caused by any unplanned weather disruptions, allowing us to continue uninterrupted fulfillment of customer orders."

Michael Otterbach, vice president of parts operations for Meyn America, said: "When this facility becomes operational, it will harness state-of-the-art automation technology that will significantly improve our OCE (on-time, complete and error-free) shipment to customers."

Joost Weel, managing director of Meyn Food Processing Technology BV, said: "This move represents a significant milestone in our global supply chain strategy, and we expect it will have the important added benefit of helping us reduce our company's carbon footprint."

Currently, parts are shipped via air from distribution centers throughout Europe to Meyn America's customers, resulting in high CO2 emissions. Meyn's new South Carolina facility will house a robust parts inventory that will be delivered to customers over land and sea.

In addition, the distribution facility's project managers are pursuing Green Globes building certification by reducing the project's environmental impact, identifying opportunities to save energy and minimise future maintenance costs, and fostering a healthy work environment for employees.

The company is investing US$10.8 million in the construction of a warehouse, which it expects to be operational by the third quarter of 2024.

- Meyn




Negros Occidental, Philippines municipality proposes setting up multi-species marine hatchery

The municipality of EB Magalona in Negros Occidental, the Philippines, is proposing the establishment of a multi-species marine hatchery to ensure the sustainability and growth of its aquaculture products.

Mayor Marvin Malacon said the site would be selected among three coastal villages based on the assessment to be conducted by the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center-Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC-AQD) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

"We would like to construct a marine hatchery in any of the three suggested sites for the development of various species to yield high volume and reach (a) bigger market," said Malacon, who chairs the Negros 3rd District Coastal Resources Management and Development Council.

These mainly include bangus (milkfish), bulgan (Asian sea bass), inid (grouper), hito (catfish), talaba (oyster) and mud crab.

During Malacon's recent meeting with personnel of SEAFDEC-AQD, BFAR and the Office of 3rd District's Rep., Jose Francisco Benitez, they scheduled their visits to three proposed sites, barangays Tuburan, Pasil and Batea.

The mayor said in proposing the marine hatchery, he has drawn inspiration from the original plan of Benitez, who had filed House of Representatives Bill 74 for the establishment of a multi-species marine hatchery in Sitio Mambucog, Barangay Zone XVI in Talisay City, with a releasing station in EB Magalona.

In an explanatory note, the congressman said "the hatchery is intended not only for the blue crabs but also for other species so that fisherfolk will have alternative catch during the 'close season' for blue crabs."

- PNA / PN




US cattle producers contend with drought, input costs and demand issues, according to economist

Drought conditions, input costs and demand concerns are some of the issues plaguing the United States' cattle producers, an agriculture economist said.

University of Missouri's Scott Brown said the upcoming Cattle on Feed numbers will provide insight as to how the industry is responding. "We'll continue to be focused on what happens to placements and how tight they get as we look ahead," he said. "And we're kind of starting to set the stage for beef production in the second half of 2023 at the end of the day."

He told Brownfield there was a glimmer of hope for input costs in the latest Supply and Demand report from the United States Department of Agriculture. "USDA is projecting US$4.80 a bushel corn price for what we harvest this fall," he said. "That compares to what is a US$6.60 for the current year that we're in, so lower corn prices."

On the flip side, Brown said hay prices will likely be a source of pain for producers again this year. "Sitting here in mid-Missouri, where we're pretty dry right now, it all matters what happens going forward in terms of rainfall," he remarked. "More and more, we need timely rainfall during the growing season because we don't have any reserves to really keep that grass and hay growing in front of us."

Brown added that other parts of cattle country  Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma  are also still battling extreme drought conditions.

- Brownfield Ag News




US pork exports reach highest levels since May 2021, beef exports show signs of recovery

Data released by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) showed that US pork exports in March 2023 reached their highest volume since May 2021, and March also marked the largest US beef exports since October last year, Ohio Country Journal reported.

In March, pork exports totaled 260,195 metric tonnes (mt), showing a significant 17% increase compared to the previous year and ranking as the ninth largest volume on record. Export value reached US$724 million, also the ninth highest figure, demonstrating an 18% growth from the same period last year.

These results contributed to a robust first quarter for US pork exports, which reached 716,691 mt, a 14% increase year-on-year, with a total value of US$1.96 billion, marking a 15% growth.

Mexico played a leading role in driving pork exports in March, with the second-largest recorded volume. Additionally, shipments to the Dominican Republic and Malaysia reached record highs. Notable growth was also observed in exports to South Korea, Japan, China/Hong Kong, the Philippines, Australia, and Taiwan.

Meanwhile, beef exports in March reached a total of 120,495 mt, representing a 5% decrease from the previous year. Export value experienced a decline of 17% to $892.6 million.

However, both volume and value marked the highest figures in the past five months. Throughout the first quarter, beef exports showed an 8% year-on-year decrease, reaching 326,494 mt, valued at US$2.35 billion, down by 22%.

Noteworthy increases in beef exports were observed in March to Mexico, with substantial growth compared to the previous year. The Caribbean market also exhibited positive results, including a record-breaking month for the Dominican Republic.

Exports to the Philippines increased year-on-year, while demand for beef variety meat strengthened in South Africa and Peru. Although exports to South Korea in March were lower than the previous year, they still reached their highest level in 10 months. Similarly, exports to China/Hong Kong recorded the largest volume since October.

- Ohio Country Journal
New Headteacher for Scoill Phurt le Moirrey

Simon Murphy has been appointed to lead Scoill Phurt Le Moirrey from September.

Mr Murphy, who is from the Isle of Man, is an experienced school leader having worked in both the UK and further afield.

He will return to the Island to take over from the school's current head, Ange Callaghan, when she retires this summer.

Mr Murphy said: I am incredibly excited to be returning for this fantastic opportunity and Im really looking forward to sharing my experiences with everyone at the school.

I am passionate about school culture, supportive student and parental relationships and ensuring that education celebrates local culture, heritage and traditions, whilst preparing pupils to be positive contributors to society.

Julie Edge MHK, Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, said: I am delighted to welcome Simon back to the Island to take up this important head teacher role. I would like to thank Ange Callaghan for all she done at the school.

Mrs Callaghan has been in charge of the school, which currently has 168 pupils, since 2016.
Reuters | US President Joe Biden arrived in Japan to attend the three-day G7 leaders' summit in Hiroshima, which begins on Friday.
China asks Australia to step up rescue efforts to locate the missing crew on board a shipping boat that capsized in the Indian Ocean. The 39-person crew includes 17 Chinese nationals, 17 Indonesians and five from the Philippines.








Reuters | At least eight people died and thousands were evacuated from their homes as torrential rain battered Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region, triggering floods and landslides.AP | Devastation in Italy floods as rescue efforts continue.
Montana to become first US state to ban TikTok

Reuters | Montana has become the first US state to ban TikTok, with Governor Greg Gianforte saying it was an attempt to protect residents' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party.
Foreign exchange analysts at BNP Paribas suggest the Euro (EUR) is tipped to rise against the Pound Sterling (GBP) in the near-term outlook.

They believe that although UK data has been surprisingly strong recently, the underlying data strength remains subdued.

At the time of writing, the Euro to Pound (GBP/EUR) exchange rate is trading at 0.8682, around the day's opening levels.

This equates to a Pound to Euro rate of 1.15181.

"UK data have been surprisingly strong recently, but surprises tend to mean revert and underlying data strength remains subdued," says Oliver Brennan, FX Volatility Strategist at BNP Paribas.

The analyst says, "Short-GBP positioning has also been a tailwind for GBP this year. But now that the client survey component of GBP positioning  a proxy of real-money positioning  has flipped from short to long, the positioning backdrop may be clean."

Euro to Pound (EURGBP) Exchange Rate Tipped to Gain

Although UK data has shown unexpected strength, the overall vigour of the data remains low.

The analyst suggests a mean reversion tendency in the data surprises, hinting at a likely change of course.

Additionally, the shift in GBP positioning from short to long suggests a fresh slate for the currency's performance, presenting an attractive opportunity for GBP short positions.

The analyst also anticipates a singular additional hike at the Bank of England's forthcoming meeting, but sees the risk leaning more towards no change than a hawkish shift.

He notes, "We expect one further hike at the Bank of Englands next meeting, but the risk is skewed more towards no change than towards a more-hawkish shift."

However, Brennan emphasises the importance of timing in entering GBP short positions, given the positive GBP carry and the uncertainty surrounding the weakening economy's potential impact on the Bank of England's stance.

"All the above factors support re-entering short GBP positions. But the combination of positive GBP carry and uncertainty around when a weakening economy may trigger a change in BoE stance means timing the weakness is as important as identifying the opportunity," Brennan adds.

Brennan proposes a trade strategy that seeks to capitalise on this analysis by initiating a long EURGBP position via a digital call with a knockout above the recent range high.

He explains, "We structure a long EURGBP position via a digital call with knockout above the recent range high. The knockout makes the structure less than half the equivalent single digital premium. Theta is positive at inception, and the structure decays shorter-GBP delta over time."

This builds on ING's view that we reported on recently, where analysts believe the Euro is tipped to reach 0.90 by the end of 2023.

This equates to a fall in the Pound to Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate towards the 1.11 level.

Despite the current low level of implied volatility in Euro to Pound exchange rate (EURGBP), which is in line with most G10 FX pairs over the past month, Brennan cautions that it is not yet a cheap currency.
Los Angeles, CAReviews posted on Amazon of Without Redemption: Creation & Deeds of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin, His Five Accomplices & How One Who Escaped Justice show the book is appealing to wide audience. This has also been indicated by solid print and Kindle sales in the UK, France, Australia, Germany, New Zealand and Sweden.

What sets Without Redemption apart from other serial killer biographies is how much investigative material the authors had on hand. Not only did co-author Vonda Pelto's deal with Freeway Killer Bill Bonin at LA Men's Central Jail, but she was also gifted over 40 boxes of official investigative documents by a former detective. All this gave Pelto and Michael B. Butler the necessary information to create, after many years of intensive work, one of the most complete and detailed historical serial killer biographies ever written.

Below is the book trailer, a number of reviews and eight Kindle E-Gift Links ready for immediate redemption.

Without Redemption Book Trailer





All the Makings of Compelling Serial Killer Movie or Mini-Series

Without Redemption sets itself apart from other serial killer bios with the sheer volume of factual detail, one which reads like historical biographies of famous leaders. Freeway Killer Bill Bonin's whole life is laid out and this allows the authors to carefully track his 30-year journey/descent into murderous depravity. I have worked on a number of productions about serial killers and murderers, and this book has all the elements for a compelling movie, mini-series or docudrama.

First, you have Bonin's detailed diaries/written confessions which give an inside view of everything; Second, the co-author, Vonda Pelto, Ph.D., having ersatz counseling/confession sessions with three of the six Freeway Killers in jail; Third, reams of documentary evidence about Bonin's childhood, war service, years in mental hospitals and prisons followed by the months leading up to the murder spree. Next are Bonin's carefully written stories of the 22 killings all over Southern California, the journalists reporting on his activities and the detectives chasing him.

Then, after his arrest the story really gets juicy, and complex, as everyone jumps in the pool together to hash out the penultimate act. Surprises await around every corner as cases are getting built, deals negotiated and more suspects pursued. Part and parcel are scenes of political backstabbing, deception, lying and coverups, which is followed by Bonin's huge trial and the final curtain in this tragic drama.

Generous use of newspaper stories fills in the gaps and the whole book moves rapidly forward without too much lollygagging. 'Without Redemption' is as close to a complete serial killer historical biography that one might find.

M.E.

My LA Sheriff Homicide Detective Husband Would've Loved This Book

My husband was a homicide detective for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's for decades, starting up with the force shortly before Bonin started killing. He knew many of the detectives in this book and would have really liked reading it, so right up his alley I wish he could be here to check it out. Not only that we lived in Downey, a few short miles away from Bill Bonin, when all these murders happened.

He used to tell me about the bureaucratic fights between LA Sheriff and LAPD, and that comes through loud and clear in 'Without Redemption.' And all those scenes at LA Men's Central Jail would have been so familiar because he served in that madhouse for years, pretty wild stuff. Actually, it gave me a small window into the world he existed in for so long, something he always tried to shield me from.

K.G.

Paints the Whole Picture

Not much of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin's life, leading up to his first and most important conviction, is left out of this book.

An interesting section is the one after his arrest, where Bonin's jailhouse diaries are used to tell the inside story. It is fascinating because everyone, I mean everyone, is deceiving and lying to everyone elsehomicide detectives from different agencies, prosecutors, witnesses, defense attorneys, press, politicians, district attorneys and, of course, the six Freeway Killer defendants. There are also humorous jailhouse stories that serve to break up the story.

Leading up to the disaster is like descending a slow staircase, and then there is the ten-month murder spree that is chronicled from many different perspectives.

Without Redemption' definitely deserves the moniker 'detailed historical biography.'

C.S.

Co-Author Vonda Pelto is Actually a Player in This Serial Killer Bio

My surprise in this book was how the co-author, Clinical Psychologist Vonda Pelto, Ph.D., actually participated in the story told about the life of Freeway Killer Bill Boninshe dealt with Bonin and two of his accomplices while working at Los Angeles Central Jail. Pelto had numerous sessions with all three, and other horrible serial killers, and had to listen to their ghastly stories, told in some ways to see her reactions and in other ways to relive their crimes. Her disgust is evident, but she hides it during discussions with Bonin, Miley and Munro, where they all talked about murders in detail.

Aside from that Without Redemption is interesting because it is the story of one person's slow march to becoming an unfeeling monster. It was scary how the killing took over his life, kind of like Gollum in 'Lord of the Rings,' it simply swallowed him up.

The authors really packed in the factual stories of Bonin's life, from birth all the way through months and months of day-to-day events after his arrest, when the system was gearing up and he was trying to make a deal to avoid the death penalty. This part of the book is when very public events are analyzed from inside and outside, and where big surprises pop up.

A thoroughly fascinating and engaging read.

D.R.

They really tell the full story of a serial killer, from beginning to the end!

Serial killer biographers often lack access to many important documents, but that can't be said of Without Redemption, which reveals for the first time how and why someone got away with double murder! In fact, the Freeway Killer Bill Bonin is the one who covered for his accomplice. One also learns that Bonin was in police custody on numerous occasions during the murder rampage.

It's obvious the authors must have had boxes and boxes of material to write fromBonin's childhood, adult years spent in mental hospitals and prisons, well before Bill Bonin started killing, are ably reconstructed in amazing detail. You can sense the disaster to come as story slowly unfolds.

Then the killing starts and Bonin's own written words and many different interviews, with homicide detectives and the co-author Vonda Pelto, Ph.D., give the reader a front row seat in the mind of the man who murdered 22 teenage boys, with five accomplices, in a short period of time. Taking place in 1979-80 in Los Angeles, the book paints of picture of how Bonin's actions created a firestorm among police, the public and the media.

Part three is a fascinating look at what happened after Bonin's arrest and how detectives rolled up the other killers and built their case against Bonin and his friends. It was a complicated ten-months, but the authors recreate it in fascinating detail, which includes using Bonin's jailhouse diaries and see how he was manipulating events while also being unable to control his fate.

A historical biography worthy of that term.

B.B.

Here are Eight E-Gift Kindle Links for Without Redemption:

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSG5F3RWGAQTNFB

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSJ6XBH5ER86RTV

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSPHTUDHTYJES3K

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GS7N2A9CRXUF4P5

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSDUWQSEWPMGGK2

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GS4GPTFUUC4PXF2

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSMHYET45NQBEF5

https://www.amazon.com/kindle/redeem/?t=GSYLP944SHVG9SS

How a Serial Killer Gets to That Uncaring Place

Bill Bonin's 32-year journey to becoming a serial killer is laid out step by step in a way that highlights where and when his ultimate fate may have been derailed, but it was not to be. Terrific biography of the famous Freeway Killer Bill Bonin, one told from many perspectives as outside events impacted his life again and again.

Everything is placed in proper historical context as rapidly changing societal values swirled around the existence of this broken man, one who ripped a hole in so many families and communities. Authors deserve praise for getting so many small details correct, some that matter intensely.

You won't be disappointed in 'Without Redemption' at all. Can't wait for the movie!

G.A.

Thoroughly Impressive

Facts, depth and chronologically accurate is a good way to describe this serial killer book, written in a way that moves quickly but always reminds the reader about key events and stays in a constant now with the infamous Freeway Killer Bill Bonin. Without Redemption has many side story lines within the overall story of Bonin's life, which are all carefully placed in their proper historical context. For example, when describing Bonin sentence and time at Atascadero State Hospital, a mental institution, all the laws and treatment norms of 1969 are carefully explained and explored.

His crimes of murdering so many young boys are heinous, but there were many times when the ultimate tragedy might have been averted, which are pointed out by the authors. All through the book the question of nature versus nurture is ever present, quite fairly leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions. Bonin's diaries add layers of complexity to his personality and are full of fantastic info in the months after his arrest, when his five accomplices, in 11 of the 22 murders, were arrested and offered various deals for testimony. That is a great section of the book.

Solid biography that is definitely worth the price.

E.B.

Without Redemption: Creation & Deeds of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin, His Five Accomplices & How One Escaped Justice, Paperback ISBN: 979-8841931249, Hard Cover ISBN: 979-8844477775. For more info go to www.WithoutRedemption.com and purchase copies at Amazon.

Media Contact: For interviews or to request review copies contact Flotsam PR at 319-504-3788 or flotsampr@pm.me.
(The Center Square)  Will the Biden administrations latest energy regulations force Americans out of gas vehicles and into more expensive electric cars? Lawmakers in the U.S. House held a hearing Wednesday tackling that key question.

The hearing, held by the Oversight Committees Economic Growth, Energy Policy, and Regulatory Affairs Subcommittee, focused on newly proposed Environmental Protection Agency tailpipe emission rules that the federal agency itself called ambitious.

The EPA projects the proposed regulation would mean that fully electric vehicles make up two thirds of all new "light duty" and 46% of new medium-duty vehicle sales by 2032.

The EPA said in a news release that the rules would improve air quality and would avoid nearly 10 billion tons of CO2 emissions. The rule changes still faces a lengthy public comment and approval process as well as avoiding an override from Congress after it is implemented.

By proposing the most ambitious pollution standards ever for cars and trucks, we are delivering on the Biden-Harris Administrations promise to protect people and the planet, securing critical reductions in dangerous air and climate pollution and ensuring significant economic benefits like lower fuel and maintenance costs for families, EPA Administrator Michael Regan said.

The rule proposal was a focal point of scrutiny from Republicans during the hearing Wednesday.

The rules would require an incredibly rapid EV transition that industry, the grid, and consumer demand cannot keep pace with, U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, who chairs the subcommittee, said during the hearing. Further, the critical mineral supply chain is already under stress. Does EPA even know whether there is enough raw material to meet its proposed standards?

Fallon pointed out he does not oppose electric vehicles, only the federal effort to rapidly replace gas vehicles with them via government regulation. He also said EPA officials were invited to testify but declined.

We hope this hearing will sound an alarm about the costs these two rules would inflict on American consumers, American manufacturers, the American economy, and American national security, Fallon said.

Some witnesses pushed back against the EPAs claims and poked holes in the assumptions about electric vehicles.

The EPA defines EVs as zero-emission vehicles. However, EVs are not truly zero-emission vehicles, Josh Roe, CEO of the Kansas Corn Growers Association, said during his testimony. While they do not have a tailpipe, you still need to account for the emissions that come from the power grid. The U.S. power grid is currently 60% powered by coal and natural gas. Current and proposed EPA rules do not account for these upstream emissions when calculating compliance, let alone the additional emissions and toxic pollution generated by mining rare earth minerals around the world.

Roe pointed to the added cost for Americans, especially farmers and those in rural areas.

EVs are $10,000-25,000 more expensive than comparable internal combustion engine vehicles, placing them out of reach for many consumers including those in rural America where median incomes are lower than that of urban areas, he said.

Critics say the new rule is the latest in what they call the Biden administration's sustained war on American energy and fossil fuel companies. They point to Bidens discouragement of pipeline investment and oil permitting while simultaneously calling on other nations to produce more oil.

The administration is on a whole-of-government mission to address climate change, no matter the law or the choices of consumers, Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance, told The Center Square, adding that the rule changes would force everyone into electric vehicles.

The Biden administration is standing by the rules, one of several changes to implement a more progressive, green agenda at the federal level.

These ambitious standards are readily achievable thanks to President Bidens Investing in America agenda, which is already driving historic progress to build more American-made electric cars and secure Americas global competitiveness," Regan said.

Shayla Powell, a spokesperson for the EPA, told The Center Square that the relevant officials who would have testified had prior Congressional obligations.

"EPA officials declined invitation to the hearing, as the requested witnesses had previously scheduled meetings with Members of Congress and representatives of the regulated community on the hearings date, and because the proposed rules identified as the subjects of the hearing are currently open for public comment," Powell said. "EPA has had productive and collaborative engagements with the Committee  we look forward to providing the Committee with an additional letter response and documents in the coming weeks to address Chairman Comers request related to the Agencys methane proposed rule, and have offered staff briefings on each of the proposed rules."
Fairfield, MT (59436)

Today

Cloudy with periods of light rain. High 57F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Considerable clouds this evening. Some decrease in clouds late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 46F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
Have you ever thought about your daily habits and how they impact water quality both now and for future generations?

There are so many ways to waste water. One way we waste water is by using more than we need, such as leaving the water running while we brush our teeth. A running tap is pretty apparent, but water wasting is not always so obvious.

Pretty much everything we purchase has a water legacy. Massive quantities of water are used to grow food and transport it to our refrigerators. Each time we throw away food, we are wasting the water used to produce it. It takes about 1,800 gallons of water to produce a pair of jeans  thats more drinking water than you need for over five years. Buying more clothes than we need is wasting water.

Terms matter

What about the terms waste water and wastewater? Are they the same thing? Not necessarily. Both are water that has been used. The word waste is defined as a material or substance that is discarded as no longer useful or required after the completion of a process. So, waste water is water that has been used in a variety of processes (industrial, mining and materials production) that pollute water beyond what is economically feasible to reclaim.

How is that different than wastewater? Unlike waste water, wastewater can be treated to reduce the contamination to a level that natural processes can finish the job of reclaiming this water for re-use. For the most part, the term wastewater is applied to water that has gone down a drain. In homes, this includes water from sinks, showers, bathtubs, toilets, washing machines and dishwashers. It includes substances such as food scraps, oils, soaps, chemicals and human waste. And just like the livestock on our farms, humans are constantly creating their own waste.

Hu-manure: human waste

To avoid fines resulting from potential pollution abatement inspections, farmers need to know and follow the rules that dictate when and how much manure can be stock-piled and/or spread on ag fields. Cautious farmers will document these actions and have them ready just in case someone files a complaint about their operation. An Ohio farmer might be able to tell you with great accuracy when they last spread manure on a field, but I wonder how many farmers can tell you when they last had their home sewage tanks pumped?

I am not picking on farmers  there are probably even more suburbanites that would struggle to answer the same question. Having your septic tanks pumped is just one of the many ways homeowners can maintain the proper function of their home sewage treatment system (HSTS). Our hu-manure really adds up when you consider that roughly one million Ohio families have a HSTS. Just as the burden falls to farmers to properly manage manure, the burden falls to homeowners to make sure they maintain a properly functioning HSTS.

So how are Ohioans doing with maintaining their HSTSs? The Ohio Department of Health estimates that 31% of HSTS in the state are failing. If we were in school, that would be a D grade! A failing system allows insufficiently treated water to enter both surface waters and groundwater. These waterways can be contaminated with pathogens, such as E. coli, chemicals and nutrients including nitrogen and phosphorus. Pathogenic bacteria and viruses can cause serious human illness when drinking water is polluted. Excess nitrogen and phosphorus are also common contaminants associated with human waste. These nutrient loads can disrupt the life cycles of aquatic plants and animals that have critical roles in maintaining water quality.

Considering Ohios poor grade in maintaining properly functioning HSTSs, it might do well for all HSTS owners (myself included) to study up on the key elements of HSTS maintenance. It turns out that wasting water (using more than you need) is bad for HSTSs. Proper use is just as important as routine maintenance. A few water-conservation and maintenance tips are listed below:

Conserve water  Repair leaky faucets and fixtures, take shorter showers, buy water-saving appliances when replacing dishwashers and washing machines, run full loads when using and stagger water use so you are not overloading your system.

 Repair leaky faucets and fixtures, take shorter showers, buy water-saving appliances when replacing dishwashers and washing machines, run full loads when using and stagger water use so you are not overloading your system. Be careful with what goes down the drain  Switch to eco-friendly soap, cleaners and detergents. Flush only pee, poo and toilet paper. Keep accurate records: Know where your septic tank is and keep a diagram of its location. Keep a record of maintenance which will be helpful if problems occur and if you plan to sell your home.

 Switch to eco-friendly soap, cleaners and detergents. Flush only pee, poo and toilet paper. Keep accurate records: Know where your septic tank is and keep a diagram of its location. Keep a record of maintenance which will be helpful if problems occur and if you plan to sell your home. Inspect your system once a year  Check inside your septic tank to see if the solids need pumped. Periodically inspect the drain field and downslope areas for odors, wet spots or surfacing sewage.

 Check inside your septic tank to see if the solids need pumped. Periodically inspect the drain field and downslope areas for odors, wet spots or surfacing sewage. Pump out your septic tank when needed  Routine pumping can prevent failures such as clogging of the drain field and sewage backup into the home.

 Routine pumping can prevent failures such as clogging of the drain field and sewage backup into the home. Keep all runoff away from your system  Water from surfaces such as roofs, driveways, or patios should be diverted away from the septic tank and drain field area.

 Water from surfaces such as roofs, driveways, or patios should be diverted away from the septic tank and drain field area. Protect your system from damage  Do not drive over or park heavy equipment and mowers on your drain field. Keep livestock away from your HSTS area. Soil compaction is a major threat to proper HSTS function.

 Do not drive over or park heavy equipment and mowers on your drain field. Keep livestock away from your HSTS area. Soil compaction is a major threat to proper HSTS function. Make good landscaping decisions  Do not plant large tree species within 50 feet of a drain field or other HSTS equipment. Also, keep the drain field free of volunteer woody plant material.

Dirty business is not good business

If you are looking to sell your property, a failing home sewage treatment system can decrease the value of your property. Buyers and their agents are quick to ask for inspections to prove that the HSTS is functioning properly. They are even quicker to ask for reductions on the selling price if repairs or replacement is needed. Please keep in mind that proper HSTS maintenance will help protect your financial investment.

Many counties throughout Ohio have worked to receive both federal and state grant funds to assist homeowners with repairs and/or replacement of failing home sewage treatment systems. Check with your local health department to determine what services they can provide. Remember, everyone stands to benefit when homeowners choose to maintain their HSTS.
REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio  The Ohio Department of Agriculture announced May 8 that 295 acres have been added to the Farmland Preservation Program. Curtis N. Bechtel, in Knox County, and Ronald S. Rickly, in Fairfield County, become the seventh and eighth Ohio farmers to join the program this year.

In partnership with ODA, local sponsors Owl Creek Conservancy and Fairfield County Board of Commissioners respectively played significant roles in securing these agreements.

Since the Office of Farmland Preservation began in 1998, 688 farms totaling 103,915 acres have entered into agreements. Funds from the purchase of these easements are invested in the local economy by the landowners.
GIBSONIA, Pa.  Jenny Lester Moffitt knows better than most how challenging it can be to transition a farm to organic production. Her father went organic with their walnut farm in California when she was a child.

He converted to organic  by the time he got certified, he realized, Theres no one to process my walnuts and I dont have a market to bring my product to, Moffitt said, at a press conference May 12 in western Pennsylvania to announce the opening of the $75 million Organic Market Development Grant Program.

Moffitt is the undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but before that, she ran the family farm with her father for a decade. Theres a growing demand for organic agricultural products, but there are crucial steps missing between the farm field and the customer, she said.

Moffit said her father rented older processing equipment for a few years before he could afford to buy the equipment to process their organic walnuts. He had to take on these steps on his own, but he isnt alone in this journey. Its one many organic farmers take when finding a pathway to market their products, Moffitt said.

They first get into organic because theyre passionate about it, she said. Theyre learning about the production practices and then realizing, I need a market because we cant sustain our operations if we dont have a market for that.

Grant program

Thats what the Organic Market Development Grant Program aims to fix. Up to $75 million competitive grants are open to fund projects to expand and improve markets for domestically-produced organic goods.

All markets are eligible, but Moffitt said they are focusing in particular on projects that support organic grains and livestock feed, rotational crops, fibers, dairy, legumes and ingredients.

An example of a project could be developing a use and market for field crops other than corn and soybeans that are commonly used in organic rotations. Thats a barrier for some farmers to get into organic production, is rotating through a crop for which there isnt a strong market.

Sourcing domestic organic grain is a major challenge not only for livestock farmers who need feed for their animals, but also for makers of processed goods that need organic ingredients.

Applications for the program are open through July 11.

Where

The backdrop for the press conference was Chatham Universitys Eden Hall Campus, a former vacation farm for the Heinz family turned satellite campus for the Pittsburgh-based college.

The campus is home to the Falk School of Sustainability and Environment and the Center for Regional Agriculture, Food and Transformation program.

Moffitt, Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and other university partners toured some of the Eden Hall agricultural facilities, including a year-round solar greenhouse and the aquaculture lab, during their visit May 12.

The universitys farm operations  which includes an apiary, maple syrup production and mushroom cultivation  are certified organic. Food produced at the student-led farms goes to the campuss dining hall and is given to students, staff and faculty.

Why

The market development program is the third phase of USDAs plan to support farmers transitioning to organic production. The Organic Transition Initiative put $300 million towards providing farmers direct financial and technical assistance, connecting farmers with local mentors and other resources and market development.

According to a USDA release, consumer demand for organically produced goods surpassed $67 billion in 2022.

Pennsylvania, in particular, has seen significant growth in organic sales in the past several years, with Pennsylvania farms producing and selling $1.09 billion in organic commodities in 2021. Thats up from $742 million in organic sales in 2019. That puts Pennsylvania behind only California and Washington in value of organic sales. Most of that growth came from organic poultry sales.

The number of certified organic farms across the country has consistently grown since the USDA began conducting the Certified Organic Survey in 2008. At that time there were 10,903 organic farms nationwide. Now, there are 17,445. The sale of organic commodities hit $11.2 billion in 2021, an increase of 13% from $9.9 billion in 2019. The top commodities were milk, broiler chickens, eggs, apples and corn for grain.

(Reporter Rachel Wagoner can be reached at 724-201-1544 or rachel@farmanddairy.com.)
A Herefordshire farmer who was sentenced to prison after he dredged a mile-long stretch of the River Lugg has had his sentence reduced following an appeal.

Last month, Kidderminster Magistrates Court sentenced John Price to 12 months in prison following an investigation and prosecution by Natural England and the Environment Agency.

Mr Price, a mixed Herefordshire farmer, entered a guilty plea to all seven charges last year.

He was accused of 'obliterating' riverside habitats after he dredged a mile-long stretch of the River Lugg, a protected river, in December 2020.

Mr Price said at the time that he undertook the maintenance works to protect local households from flooding, which were heavily impacted by storms in 2019.

But Natural England and the Environment Agency said the banks of the River Lugg were "damaged" causing "significant and long-term ecological harm".

Now a judge at Worcester Crown Court said he accepted the impact of prison conditions on Mr Price, who is 68-years-old.

Judge Nicholas Cole said the farmer "did not pose a risk to the public but you clearly pose a risk to the environment".

Mr Price will start his prison sentence immediately, serving half of the length of time in prison before being released on licence.

The appeal comes after nearly 15,000 people signed an online petition in a show of support for the farmer.
Gender balance at senior level in the meat industry has seen an improvement, but the total number of women in the global workforce has dropped, a new report says.

The meat industry has made progress in shifting the dial of womens representation in senior leadership roles since the initial report was published in 2020.

Women now make up 23% of board-level director roles, up from 14%, 32% of high-level leadership roles, a rise from 22% and 32% of middle-manager roles, up from 29%.

The global report, which draws on data from more than 50 meat organisations employing 250,000 staff, was commissioned by Meat Business Women, a professional community for women working in the industry,

It highlights progress against priority themes, with positive shifts in how the industry is perceived, repaired rungs in the senior-leadership career ladder, moving inclusion up the agenda and greater access to role models and networks.

Despite this progress, the research shows that only 8% of CEO roles are held by women, a rise from 3% since 2020, and the number of women in the global workforce has dropped to 33.5%, down from 36%.

Women now make up only 36% of the unskilled workforce, falling from 40%, the report shows, revealing that the gap between the most inclusive and the least inclusive meat firms is widening.

Flexible working is ranked as the number one enabler of gender inclusion in the industry, and the report shows that toshift the dial, women and men need to work together to create a more inclusive future.

Meat Business Women's report sets out best practise against priority themes, while providing practical tools for businesses to adopt.

Founder of Meat Business Women, Laura Ryan said: The data tells us that inclusion is no longer a nice-to-have, but rather a necessity if the meat industry is to thrive in the years to come.

"Whilst there is greater disparity in the industry than there was in 2020, there is a huge opportunity for further pre-competitive working on best practice and key workforce policy issues.

"There has never been a more important time to remember that a rising tide lifts all boats.
The government has 'seriously underestimated' the impact of new private rented sector reforms on rural businesses and communities, campaigners have warned.

The Renters (Reform) Bill, introduced to parliament this week, will abolish section 21 no fault evictions in a move to empower renters to challenge landlords without fear of losing their home.

The new Bill also seeks to protect landlords, making it easier for them to recover properties when they need to.

Notice periods will also be reduced where tenants have been irresponsible  for example breaching their tenancy agreement or causing damage to the property.

The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) said it was 'concerned' that the government had 'seriously underestimated' the reforms' impact on rural firms, "where employers often need to provide housing for their employees".

Amid a "serious shortage" of homes in rural areas, the body said the proposals "risk making it harder to rent a home, without making it easier to buy one".

CLA president Mark Tufnell said: Everyone wants to see fairness in the private rented sector, where the rights and responsibilities of both landlords and tenants are balanced appropriately.

"In the absence of section 21 therefore, the courts must be properly resourced to ensure disputes can be resolved without undue delay."

The government will also bring forward legislation as part of the Bill to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time.

The government said the aim was to give renters "safer, higher quality homes and remove poor-quality homes in local communities".

But the CLA warned the Decent Homes Standard was an "unnecessary repetition of existing legislation  which is still not being properly enforced by local authorities".

"It is right that the rare examples of rogue landlords and anti-social tenants are held to account for their actions," Mr Tufnell added.

"But it is important that this Bill does not become a breeding ground for divisive rhetoric about private landlords, who for the most part provide quality housing to millions of people.
The UK berry sector has announced the formation of a new research and development board to advance sustainability and efficiency for growers.

British Berry Growers (BBG), which represents 95% of all the UKs commercial soft fruit growers, has announced the formation of the new board.

The body said it had a mission of ensuring "the long-term success of a thriving British berry industry, recognised internationally for leading ethical and environmental leadership".

The board will operate under the chairmanship of Dr Louise Sutherland, the director of Ceres Agri-tech at Cambridge Enterprise, the commercialisation arm of the University of Cambridge.

She holds a PhD in plant pathology and is the chair of the Raspberry Breeding Consortium, with years of experience in the soft fruit industry.

The board comprises six growers drawn from the BBG membership who represent different growing regions and grow a range of soft fruit crops.

The newly-established boards work is being funded by a voluntary levy paid by BBG members.

It has two main activities, working with Horticulture Crop Protection Ltd, a collaboration with all major crop associations, to deliver crop protection products.

This work includes provision of EAMUs (Extension Authorisations for Minor Use) and EAs (Emergency Authorisations), biological controls and biopesticides to meet the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) needs of UK growers.

It also includes commissioning research to develop new IPM solutions for key strawberry, raspberry, blackberry and blueberry pests and diseases that affect the sustainability of the UK soft fruit sector.

Dr Sutherland, BRG development chair, said it was is an "exciting development" that would generate significant benefits for the UK soft fruit industry.

"British Berry Growers is keen to work and collaborate with researchers, businesses and other groups to develop IPM solutions for soft fruit pests and diseases."
A leading Vladimir Putin mouthpiece has called for a hypersonic missile attack on Rishi Sunak.

Rishi Sunak has infuriated Vladimir Putin mouthpieces

Russian state television pundit Vladimir Solovyov hit out at the UK Prime Minister for providing Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky with missiles while a colleague called for the Irish Republican Army (IRA) to be supplied with weapons by Moscow to target the royal family.

Solovyov said: "Britain, knowing that the b****** Zelensky is planning strikes deep into Russian territory and the capture of Russian cities, specifically give him missiles.

"He directly wants to use long-range weapons to strike Russia directly - and lies to Westerners.

"So here is a Kinzhal (missile). Rishi Sunak, here is a Kinzhal... we have to use them."

The Russian tirade comes after Sunak hosted Zelensky at his Chequers residence earlier this week and made the commitment to provide Kyiv with more missiles and train Ukrainian pilots.

Vladimir Rogov, who also featured as a pundit on Rossiya 1, urged the IRA to target locations of significance in the UK.

The Putin puppet - who runs an organisation to support pro-Russians living in Ukraine - said: "Can't we somehow ensure the remaining combat wing of the Irish Republican Army, which is fighting against British occupation, has normal weapons to hit Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street, and elsewhere?"
Boris Johnson branded Emmanuel Macron as "Putin's lickspittle".

Boris Johnson called Emmanuel Macron 'Putin's lickspittle'

The former UK Prime Minister was left irate when the French president criticised his response to the refugee crisis in Ukraine, according to an ex-Downing Street official.

Former No10 communications chief Guto Harri revealed that Johnson also called Macron a "four-letter word that begins with C".

He recalled on his podcast 'Unprecedented': "When the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the front page of 'The Guardian'.

"Much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross, nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped at our morning meeting.

"He just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron. Basically saying, 'He's a four-letter word that begins with C, he's a weirdo, he's Putin lickspittle... We need an orgy of frog bashing. I'm going to have to punch his lights out.'"

Harri also discussed Johnson's relationship with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and recalled the phone call between the pair on the night that Russia launched the invasion.

He said: "It was massively sobering. We really could not believe that this was seriously underway. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

"Boris could not have been clearer that we were there to help Ukraine in whichever way we possibly could, using whatever we could possibly deploy within reason.

"The two of them had this extraordinary bond."
'Vanderpump Rules' star Ariana Madix won't film again with Tom Sandoval or Raquel Leviss.

Ariana Madix won't work with Tom Sandoval ever again

The 37-year-old star split from Tom after it was revealed that he had an affair with Raquel, and Ariana has now revealed that she has no intention of working with either them ever again.

Ariana - who started dating Tom in 2014 - told the New York Times newspaper: "I have nothing to say to either of them.

"Our show is very real and follows a real group of friends, and neither of them are in the group of friends, so, good luck."

Ariana has also accused Tom of having "no integrity".

Asked why the public has latched onto the cheating scandal, she replied: "I think our relationship was so longstanding that people, including myself, saw it as end game.

"I also think the people involved were so duplicitous and deceitful. [Tom] was also someone who was constantly preaching about integrity when it came to other people taking accountability and I think that shift in him - having no integrity - is something that shocked people.

"Plus, there are also so many people who can relate to the situation and can put themselves in my shoes."

Ariana has found it tough to deal with the interest and speculation surrounding the scandal.

The reality star also acknowledged that success in her professional life has come at a "very unexpected cost".

She reflected: "It is a lot of pressure because for any public-facing woman or any woman in general who goes through something, there are a lot of expectations around how youre supposed to handle things. It is a lot of pressure when someone puts you on a pedestal; eventually youre going to fall off.

"Im just trying to remain centred in myself and make sure that Im just being me and living life, and sometimes thats going to mean making mistakes and not doing what everybody wants me to do. But it is really incredible to have that support and I feel as though it did come at a cost, a very unexpected cost."
A Cotton Council International (CCI)-sponsored Bangladesh ministry of agriculture delegations US visit from October 30-November 5, 2022, coupled with indispensable efforts by the US Department of Agricultures (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) office in Dhaka, ultimately convinced the Bangladesh government to relax its nearly-five-decade-long fumigation requirement on US cotton imports.

This shift will remove a significant export barrier for the US cotton to Bangladesh, as well as saving Bangladeshi mills time and money as they look to the US to fill their cotton fibre import needs. Bangladeshi mills have been paying over a million dollars annually to cover unnecessary fumigation costs imposed on cotton imported from the US.

Following a CCI-sponsored visit of a Bangladesh ministry of agriculture delegation to the US and concerted efforts by the US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service, the Bangladeshi government has decided to relax its fumigation requirement on US cotton imports. This change will remove a major barrier to US cotton exports to Bangladesh.

US exporters will continue to use APHIS-generated phytosanitary certificates, but under the new regulation the certificate will have additional language confirming no live boll weevils are in US baled cotton. APHIS will issue revised instructions for exporters.

Bangladeshs agricultural and commerce ministries decision to lift the fumigation requirements on US cotton came after six members of the Bangladesh ministry of agriculture delegation joined a CCI-sponsored US cotton tour. Due to the coordination with the National Cotton Council (NCC), the Bangladesh ministry of agriculture delegation conducted cotton meetings in Tennessee, Mississippi and Texas. They met with the cotton industry representatives and visited cotton fields, gins and warehouses, and the USDA Agricultural Ginning Research Laboratory in Stoneville, the CCI said in a press release.

The delegation learned why the US cotton bales do not harbour live boll weevils, including a review of the US cotton industrys successful Boll Weevil Eradication Programme and its modern cotton harvesting and standardized ginning techniques. Additional discussion topics included the phytosanitary inspection and certification process with APHIS during Zoom calls at the NCC headquarters in Cordova and during a meeting with the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Program in Abilene, Texas.

In Mississippi, the Bangladesh ministry of agriculture delegation members met with Staplcotna US cooperative and leading exporter of US cotton to Bangladeshand toured a gin and warehouse. US cotton grower Sledge Taylor gave the group a tour of his familys cotton farm and gin operations, as well as an overview of the sustainable cotton production practices that cotton growers in the US follow.

Bangladesh presently ranks as the No. 2 global importer of cotton, according to the USDA FASs global market analysis in May 2023. Although there is some domestic cotton produced in Bangladesh, it accounts for 1 per cent or less of total demand.

Bangladesh was a top 10 export market for US cotton in 2022, with exports valued at $477.07 million.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)
Bangladesh experienced a slower growth rate of 6.03 per cent in the current fiscal, compared to 7.1 per cent in the previous year, according to the provisional projection of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). The industrial sector was the main contributor to this growth, indicating a significant impact on the overall gross domestic product (GDP) of the country. The current fiscal ends in June.

The countrys industrial sector, whose growth dropped by 1.68 percentage points to 8.18 per cent in fiscal 2022-23, has been hit by a sharp decline in the value of the taka against the US dollar and lower investment, exports and import of raw materials. The sectors growth was 9.86 per cent a year ago.

Bangladesh's GDP is estimated to have grown at a slower pace of 6.03 per cent in this fiscaldown from 7.1 per cent in the lastwith the industrial sector, whose growth dropped to 8.18 per cent in the fiscal, contributing the most. The sector has been hit by a fall in the value of the taka and lower investment, exports and raw materials import.

The industrial sector constitutes about 36 per cent of the countrys GDP.

Between July and March, the opening and settlement of letters of credit for importing industrial raw materials dropped 31 per cent and 6.68 per cent respectively compared to the same period a year ago.

Shipments were up by 5.38 per cent year on year to $45.67 billion in the first 10 months of FY23. It had surged by 34.38 per cent to a record $52.08 in fiscal 2021-22, according to a report in a domestic newspaper.

The government has projected that the investment-to-GDP ratio would be 31.25 per cent in FY23, down from 32.05 per cent in FY22. If this ratio keeps rising, entrepreneurs may not invest further, an expert noted.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Geo-political tension has impacted China's import of fibre (predominantly cotton) from Australia, but Chinese exports of apparel to Australia have remained strong in recent years despite diplomatic issues. Trade data analysis reveals a 41 per cent reduction in fibre imports from Australia over the last four years, whereas apparel exports from China increased by 44 per cent in 2022 compared to 2018.

In 2018, China imported $3.177 billion worth of fibre from Australia, but this figure fell by 41 per cent to $1.860 billion in 2022, according to Fibre2Fashion's market insight tool TexPro. There was a steep fall in imports during the pandemic, with figures dropping from $2.592 billion in 2019 to $1.441 billion in 2020. However, a slight recovery occurred in 2021 with imports valued at $1.971 billion, before declining again to $1.860 billion in 2022. In the first quarter of 2023, China imported fibre worth $374.693 million.

Despite geopolitical tensions, China's imports of fibre, mainly cotton, from Australia dropped by 41 per cent over the last 4 years. In contrast, Chinese apparel exports to Australia have consistently grown, marking a 44 per cent rise in 2022 compared to 2018. Meanwhile, the post-pandemic period saw a robust rebound in Chinese apparel exports to Australia.

In terms of volume, Chinas fibre import was 591.499 kg during 2018 which came down to 539.079 million in 2019. During Covid year 2020, the import halved to just 250.601 million kg. It further eased to 216.051 million kg and 199.652 million kg in 2021 and 2022 respectively. The import stood at 50.583 million kg in January-March 2023.

TexPro data shows a significant increase in Chinese apparel exports to Australia following the disruptions caused by COVID-19. Exports stood at $3.837 billion in 2018 and rose to $5.530 billion in 2022. Despite a downturn in 2019 and 2020, with export values recorded at $3.700 billion and $3.636 billion respectively, a recovery was observed in 2021 with exports bouncing back to $4.784 billion and then rising to $5.530 billion in 2022. The outbound shipment value was recorded at $1.526 billion in the first quarter of the current year.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
critic's rating: 3.5/5

Trailer : 8 A.M. Metro

Raj Rachakonda's 8 A.M. Metro is a homage to Gulzars poetry. Its seeped in metaphors and symbolism and revolves around a platonic companionship between two strangers. Its something Gulzar himself could have made. Indeed, the cherry on the cake is Gulzars poetry which acts as the moodboard of sorts for different situations in the film.Iravati (Saiyami Kher), a homemaker living in Nanded, is afraid of travelling by train because of a traumatic situation in the past. Her sister Riya (Nimisha Nair), who stays in Hyderabad, is nearing her term and wants her to be there to support her because of some complications. She somehow musters courage to make the journey and almost faints on the way. Upon reaching the hospital via a rickshaw from Hyderabad, her sister informs her she should have taken the metro as its both convenient and affordable. She takes the plunge but has a fainting spell again when the train arrives and is saved by a stranger, Pritam (Gulshan Devaiah). They start meeting during both mornings and evenings and become friends. They share their insecurities and dreams and have conversations about everything under the sun. The relationship is devoid of sexual frisson. Its a melding of minds who find answers to each others trouble through conversations.As said earlier, Gulzars poetry elevates the film. Iravati is a poet and has a habit of distilling her experiences into poetry. Everytime she writes something new, it correlates to the things that she has experienced. Gulzar had been especially commissioned to write on each situation and has done a wonderful job as usual. Saiyami Kher takes her time to bring gravitas to her reading. At first, shes somewhat off the mark but latches on to the emotions contained in the word as the film progresses. Its seldom that we see poetry becoming a character of sorts in a film and its good to see it being done in a current film.The film examines man-woman relationships. Both the protagonists are married and seen to be as happy as can be in their respective marriages. They open up, as we often do, to strangers and slowly find themselves drawn to each other. The film is trying to say that men and women, given the ideal set of circumstances, can be friends as well if they learn to give friendship a chance. A balance is needed in such a scenario and the two protagonists never lose their footing, keeping true to the invisible boundaries of their respective relationships.Its basically a two character film held together by the performances of Saiyami Kher and Gulshan Devaiah. Saiyami has grown as a performer with every outing and is at her finest here. The frailty, the insecurities of her character come alive in the expressions and body language. The actor makes us privy to the small joys and victories of Iravatis life and makes us root for her. Gulshan is a fine actor and while he does go a tad over-the-top near the end, he makes the role his own in the rest of the film. Theres a quiet dignity to his character. We see glimpses of the grief lurking within, even as he goes about silently suffering. The two actors are well-matched and lend able support to each other. Mention must also be made of Nimisha Nair, who plays Iravatis younger sister and of Kalpika Ganesh, who plays Gulshans wife in the film. Both are competent in their respective roles.Its not as if the film isnt without faults. The director should have kept a faster pace and trimmed it to two hours or so. At 162 minutes, it feels a bit long. Its buoyed by sterling performances by both Saiyami Kher and Gulshan Devaiah and the lyrical appeal of the narrative.
Alia Bhatt Gucci Event: Alia Bhatt was recently in Seoul, South Korea to be a part of the Gucci Cruise 2024 fashion show. She served glamour in a little black dress with structured round cut-outs.

ALIA BHATT SHARES PICTURES FROM GUCCI EVENT

Alia shared pictures from the event on her Instagram. The Gangubai Kathiawaadi actress looked beautiful in the black dress that was accentuated with silver detailing across the bodice. She completed the look with a mini transparent bag. Her pictures soon caught the attention of eagle-eyed netizens who started slamming her for sharing morphed images.

NETIZENS SLAM ALIA BHATT FOR ALLEGEDLY MORPHING HER PICTURES

Alia's pictures went viral on social media and the social media users started calling her out for allegedly "photoshopping" her face, arms, and legs in one of the pictures.

The Reddit users compared Alia's before and after images and started trolling her in the comments section. A user wrote, "Too much face refinement on the right picture. Also airbrushing as compared to the left picture."

Another social media user wrote, "There is visible distortion in the seat area and in the center-right background around her waist. There also appears to be smoothening of the legs and the neck. The problem, for me, is not that Alia's post is photoshopped. That is not uncommon amongst celebrities. The primary issue, for me, is that the photoshop is poorly done."

A third user wrote, "I noticed that she always photoshops her arms. Her face too is photoshopped to make it look longer and thinner. Her Instagram pics are always very different from real life but she tries to do it subtly so that it's not too obvious."

One more user wrote, "Editing face is understandable, but why did they Photoshop the curve of her left arm and made it flat? Haath ko patla dikha ke kya ho jayega?"

Earlier also, Alia Bhatt was trolled for sharing photoshopped images from the NMACC event held in Mumbai. Netizens has called her 'Photoshop Queen'.

DISCLAIMER: The particular article is a compilation of thoughts shared by social media users on the subject. Ideas expressed do not reflect the view of Filmibeat.
Vijay Recalls How Designers Rejected Him During Canne 2013 Photo Credit: Aviraj Singh

The prestigious 76th Cannes Film Festival has begun with a bang in the Palace of Festivals and Congresses of Cannes and everyone has their eyes on the celebs walking down the red carpet this year. Interestingly, several Bollywood celebrities were seen walking on the red carpet.

This included names like Sara Ali Khan, Manushi Chillar, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan etc. Among these, Vijay Varma also graced the inaugural session at the India Pavilion and he clearly nailed his Cannes look this year.

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While walking the Cannes red carpet has been undoubtedly a moment of pride for Vijay, this isn't his debut appearance at the prestigious event. Instead, he had made his Cannes debut in 2013 when he had accompanied the team of Monsoon Shootout.

Recalling his Cannes debut, Vijay revealed that he was rejected by designers. Talking to Film Companion, Vijay revealed that while he had bought a Zara jacket for the event, he was required to wear the whole suit for the main event red carpet. The Darlings actor recalled how he approached the designers for the outfit and was turned down by them.

"I went to people, saying, 'Can some designer come, can some stylist help me out?' And they said, 'Who's Vijay Varma? We don't want to dress anybody.'," he recalled. Later, his friend gifted him a Zara suit which he wore on the red carpet.

Vijay also revealed that somebody even stitched a tuxedo for him for the prestigious event. This isn't all. He also admitted that he didn't have the money to buy his own pics from the event. "When I saw the pictures, they came out on Getty Images and all these places, which I didn't have money to buy from," he added.

However, the Dahaad actor admitted that he was 'enchanted' by his looks from the event.

Talking about the work front, Vijay is currently basking in the success of his recent release Dahaad with Sonakshi Sinha and Gulshan Devaiah. Besides, he will be next seen in Sujoy Ghosh's directorial which is an onscreen adaptation of the book The Devotion of Suspect X. The movie also stars Kareena Kapoor Khan and Jaideeo Ahlawat in the lead.
Hrithik Roshan Vikram Vedha: One of the most critically acclaimed films of the past year, Vikram Vedha presented Hrithik Roshan in a new light showcasing his versatility. The experimental and unique performance by the actor earned him immense praise and love from critics as well as the audience, now as the film has been released digitally, the audience is yet again hailing the range of Hrithik Roshan's talent.

Revealing the process of taking up Vedha in Vikram Vedha, Hrithik Roshan shares in a recent radio interview, "It was a terrific platform for me to set myself free. You rarely get a chance where you can just get lost in the fun of the moment.

Vedha was such a character wherein you could let him loose; you could let him do whatever he wants to do. I have been skeptical of playing such characters in my life, because I don't think I was evolved enough to play someone with such composure. But when I was offered Vedha I thought I could do justice to this now because I've lived enough life to understand Vedha's mind."

Amongst the most prominent and loved parts of the film was Hrithik Roshan's banger chartbuster Alcoholia which earned him praises for his effortless and smooth dance moves. Talking about that, Hrithik Roshan shared in a recent radio interview, "I had a lot of fun in Alcoholia. Vedha to dance was a challenge and it was a wonderful challenge. This was a learning experience for me because I was skeptical or scared of that kind of expression. It happens when people compliment you for certain expressions and looks, like in Dhoom 2, Bang Bang or War. When you get compliments for those types of looks, you get scared of doing something opposite of it. However, the keeda within is stronger than the fear, so my desire to free myself for Vedha was a good opportunity for me. It was absolutely incredible. I did every expression that I would do in my own personal space, it's the person I am, this is the entirety of me, I just let everything out. I had a lot of fun and I'm really surprised, I was actually shocked when the song came out and people complimented me after watching it. I felt really good because I had myself go with this song and done things which I thought I was wrong. However, people in turn gave me such compliments. This is what it means to be an actor, to continuously keep exploring, nothing is right, nothing is wrong, it is just expression. When it comes to expressions, if you're being honest and your integrity to the character is strong then nothing is wrong, you can do whatever you want and it will be received with love."

Known for his Greek God looks, Hrithik Roshan took up the challenge to present an entirely rugged and unkempt look for Vedha, and there's no doubt he absolutely aced it. The actor has been receiving a raving response for his commitment to the character along with his intense and impactful performance.

Currently, Hrithik Roshan is gearing up for Fighter, directed by Siddharth Anand and co-starring Deepika Padukone. Touted as India's first aerial action film, Fighter is slated to release on 25th January 2024.
What you seek for yourself in a story is what you usually tend to consume on social media or television. Aside from studies, college is a place where teenagers and young adults, and even teachers can meet the love of their lives and make the best of memories.

Campus stories have always been popular with audiences because of their relatability, quirky moments, and moments of fun and laughter, or even sad events everyone experiences in their journey in life. Until the late 2010s, a lot of web shows revolved around romances on college campuses, college life, and teacher or student-centric stories.

Here is the perfect list of web shows to binge on to relive your school or college days, or to simply enjoy if you're a fan of campus drama.

Kota Factory

Kota Factory is a unique show that captured the hearts of millions of viewers across India. The show is a coming-of-age story that follows the life of Vaibhav, a young student attending Maheshwari, one of the premier training institutions in Kota starring Mayur More, Jitendra Kumar, Ranjan Raj. The show explores the pressures and challenges that students face in their quest to crack the notoriously difficult entrance exam for the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). Giving a realistic portrayal of the education system and the pressures that students face, the first two seasons became a cultural touchstone and a symbol of hope for students across the country who are struggling to navigate the competitive world of education. The show is available to stream on Netflix!

Staff Room

"Staff Room - Teacheron Ka Adda '' is a must-watch dramedy series launched by Dice Media. The show focuses on dedicated teachers, in their most organic setting - the school's staff room. Set in the fictitious Janaki Prakash Public School in Delhi, the show unfolds against the backdrop of challenges and situations faced by educators as they navigate their professional and personal lives while fulfilling their teaching responsibilities toward their students. Starring a talented ensemble cast, including Apara Mehta, Shahnawaz Pradhan, Tushar Pandey, Simran Sharma, and Srishti Dixit, the show has become an instant hit with the audience. The new series gives a true glimpse and reflection of the lives of teachers and the challenges they face on a daily basis. The show is available on Amazon mini TV to watch for free!

Flames

Flames has long been a much-loved web series franchise. While the previous two seasons focused on teenage romance and character development, Flames 3 is even more intense and delves deeper into the characters' maturation and evolution. The five-episode series revolves around the struggles of the lead characters as they juggle their relationships, prepare for their 12th-grade exams, and choose a career path. The show manages to strike a perfect balance between friendship, romance, and emotions starring stars Ritvik Sahore, Tanya Maniktala, Sunakshi Grover, Shivam Kakar, and Deepesh Sumitra Jagdish. The series is available on Amazon Prime video to enjoy!

School Days: The Backbenchers

School Days: The Backbenchers is a heart-warming journey that takes you back to the days of high school and first love. The series showcases the complexities of relationships and how they evolve over time. The plot revolves around two boys who fall in love with the same girl. The show is a perfect blend of fun, romance, and drama, with plenty of twists and turns that will keep you hooked till the very end. The web series is a nostalgic journey that will make you recall your own high school days and the excitement and confusion that came with them. Starring young talented actors Tanya Maniktala, Manan Madaan, Sahil Verma, Shreya Singh, Ankit Motghare, and Simar Singh, the comedy series is available on YouTube to watch!

Class

Based on the Spanish series Elite, Ashim Ahluwalia's crime thriller, Class, has been a sensation with the audience. The series stars youth actors Anjali Sivaraman, Gurfateh Pirzada, Piyush Khati, Madhyama Segal, Cwaayal Singh, Zeyn Shaw, and Chintan Rachchh in the lead roles. Set in a fictional elite high school, Hampton International, in Delhi, the series revolves around the relationships between three working-class students studying at the school along with their rich classmates. The show offers a novel perspective on a variety of contemporary youth-related social concerns, such as casteism, child maltreatment, corruption, homophobia, religious prejudice, and wealth disparity in India. Stream the show on Netflix to enjoy!
Urvashi Rautela Aishwarya Rai: Bollywood actress Urvashi Rautela has been making stunning appearances on the Cannes red carpet. Her striking fashion choices are becoming the talk of the town.

On the second day of the event, she graced the red carpet wearing a stunning orange gown adorned with sequins and frills, designed by the renowned Tarik Ediz. Urvashi radiated elegance and confidence as she posed for the paparazzi, captivating everyone with her radiant smile.

However, there was a goof-up by the French paparazzi and some attendees, who mistakenly referred to Urvashi as Aishwarya Rai and called her by Aishwarya's name. The incident was caught on video and has since gone viral on social media, generating diverse reactions.

FOREIGN PAPS MISTAKE URVASHI RAUTELA FOR AISHWARYA RAI

Urvashi Rautela arrived on the second day of the French Riviera wearing a beautiful frill gown. She also carried a tiny red bag with her. While she posed for the cameras on the red carpet, the French paparazzi mistook her for Aishwarya Rai and addressed her with Aish's name.

Cannes 2023 Diary Day 2: After Her Crocodile Choker, Urvashi Rautela Goes Bold In Orange At Cannes Red Carpet

Without taking any offence, Urvashi smiled and continued posing for the shutterbugs. As she greeted fans and media by blowing kisses, someone from the crowd shouted 'Aishwarya' and Urvashi turned with grace and smiled at them again. Meanwhile, the video has gone viral, and netizens have blasted the foreign media for calling her Aishwarya.

Watch the video below.

Aishwarya popularity will always be unmatched every Indian girl at global events been called Aishwarya



And that particular fandom has the audacity to compare her with their fav lol  #AishwaryaRaiBachchan #AishwariyaRai #AishwaryaRaiBachchan pic.twitter.com/vOWPe64zL5  Aishwarya Rai (@My_AishwaryaRai) May 17, 2023

NETIZENS CALL URVASHI RAUTELA COPYCAT

Reacting to the clip, many alleged that Urvashi imitated Aishwarya on the red carpet with her signature flying kiss style. One wrote, "She is following footsteps of Aishwarya so much that they are calling her Aishwarya." Another said, "Hands on waist, blowing kisses to media, heart hands. She (Urvashi) seems to be following Aishwarya religiously."

One commented, "All kinds of cringe on so many levels." Another said, "She badly needs a good stylist." A netizen said, "Why is she nodding her head as if she is Aishwarya." "Such an copy cat urvashiii," said one.

The video was shared by an Aishwarya Rai fan page on Twitter. For the uninitiated, before Urvashi, Alia Bhatt on the recently held Met Gala red carpet was mistaken for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

Urvashi Rautela Signed By Karan Johar's Dharma Productions' & Dharmatic's For Their Next Film ?

ABOUT CANNES

Aishwarya is expected to walk the coveted Cannes red carpet soon. While many Indian celebrities are making their debut this year, including Anushka Sharma, Sara Ali Khan, Esha Gupta, and Manushi Chhillar, who have already appeared at the gala.

The 76th edition of the festival is taking place in France and will conclude on May 27.

DISCLAIMER: The particular article is a compilation of thoughts shared by social media users on the subject. Ideas expressed do not reflect the view of Filmibeat.
Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir Twitter Review: Directed by Venkata Krishna Rohanth, Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir is releasing tomorrow (May 18, 2023). The film stars Vijay Sethupathi, Megha Akash, Vivek, Mohan Raja, Chinni Jayant, Magizh Thirumeni and others.

People who managed to watch the film in the premiere show started expressing their opinion on social media. Checkout this space for more interesting information and Twitter Reviews about the film Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir.

Crux Of The Story

Vijay Sethupathi's name in this film is 'Punithan'. He is a Sri Lankan refugee. He has a great passion for music. So he wants to join a band in London at an early age. But by then the Sri Lankan police arrest him. A few years later he comes out of jail and comes to India. Punithan joins Megha Akash in a band in Kodaikanal.

" Brace yourselves for an extraordinary cinematic experience! #YaadhumOoreYaavarumKelir takes you on a soul-stirring journey that celebrates the indomitable spirit of humanity. Get ready to be captivated by its gripping storytelling, stellar performances, and a message that pic.twitter.com/MErf09A3rV  N LATHIESH (@NLathiesh) May 18, 2023

On the other hand, he is applying for a concert in London. But due to many issues including nationality and identity card, he could not leave the country. In fact, he couldn't even afford a cell phone. So Punithan applies to join the refugee camp using the identity of Kirubanidhi, who disappeared from the refugee camp at a young age.

On the other hand, the police are looking for Kirubanidhi. Will Punithan attend the event in London? is the crux of the story.

AK62 Director & Chinna Kalaivaanar In Vijay Sethupathi Film

Director Magizh Thirumeni has played the role of a policeman. Chinni Jayant, Rithvika and others have played important roles. Mohan Raja and Karu Palaniappan have acted in a special appearance.

Vijay Sethupathi's love for music, Mohan Raja and Megha Akash's father daughter affection, the scenes including the church buried in the landslide are said to be mind-blowing.

Vivek has played the role of a Church Father in the film. As usual, he has done his role beautifully. Many characters in the film have separate stories and the film has portrayed everyone's story in a short and wonderful way. There are tears in some places. It deeply impresses upon the mind that this world is one for all. This film adds pride to the Kaniyan Poongundranaar's saying 'Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir'.
Fahmaan Talks About Moving On From Dharampatnii Photo Credit: Fahmaan Khan's Instagram

Fahmaan Khan is one of the most talked about actors in the telly world these days and rightfully so. The actor has been the talk of the town for his recently released song Beirada with Hiba Nawab which has opened to rave reviews from the audience and fans have been in awe of their chemistry.

Apart from his new song, Fahmaan has also been making the headlines for ongoing show Pyar Ke Saat Vachan Dharampatnii. The actor was seen playing the role of Ravi Randhawa and his style has won hearts. However, the popular family drama is set to go off air next month.

Needless to say, the reports about Pyar Ke Saat Vachan Dharampatnii going off air has come as a heartbreak to the fans. In fact, Fahmaan also opened up about the show's end and stated that he is disheartened by the same. However, he is glad to be able to present Ravi on screen.

Furthermore, Fahmaan also said that he will always carry Ravi in his heart. "I am going to miss Ravi and Ravi is going to be there in my heart somewhere deep down and I will take it to my grave," he told ETimes in an interview. The actor connected the show's end to him leaving Sumbul Touqeer Khan's Imlie and said that he is ready to embrace the change.

"I'm glad that it gave me whatever, do whatever I could do in that show, I could perform, I could bring out Ravi's emotions in the way that I could, I got myself to prove in another character again. It is disheartening to leave Ravi, it is disheartening to leave all the characters that are there in the show but I am ready to embrace it, accept it and move on. It's how I have done everything that I have done till now. This is what I said at the time of Imlie as well," Fahmaan added.

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Talking about the reason the family drama pulling its curtains down, a source told Filmibeat, "Despite the twists and turns, Dharam Patni couldn't rake in huge TRPs. The show faced stiff competition from Neil Bhatt-Ayesha Singh starrer Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin on Star Plus at the 8pm slot. PKSVD is going off air due to low TRPs. The decision was taken earlier this month".

Meanwhile, it is reported that the team of Pyar Ke Saath Vacha Dharampatnii will wrap the shoot on May 20.
Achieving the Prestigious Certification in Three Countries, GEON Marks Major Milestone by Meeting Objective to Be Globally Recognized as a Great Place To Work by 2025

WESTLAKE, OH / ACCESSWIRE / May 17, 2023 / GEON Performance Solutions, experts in performance polymer compounding and process technology, announced today it reached a milestone in its cultural and sustainability journey. GEON started its partnership with Great Place To Work (GPTW) in 2021 to baseline its culture, gather insights from all associates and forward-steer strategies to create engagement and inclusion of its teams around the world. GEON established culture and people as a foundational pillar of its Vision 2025 and sustainability strategy.

GEON logo

GEON logo

This year was the second time GEON participated in the GPTW survey. The company achieved a major milestone towards its objective of being globally recognized as a GPTW company by 2025 by obtaining the prestigious certification in Mexico, Canada and China.

Great Place To Work is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience and leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue and increased innovation. Through the certification process, GPTW captures employee feedback and details about the programs and practices that qualify a company culture as being exceptional.

"Great Place To Work companies are evaluated against the very best in the world. To achieve this certification for three countries is an incredible honor and evidence that our journey to cultural excellence is on the right track," said GEON Chief Executive Officer Tracy Garrison. "GEON is on an intentional journey to connect its core values to our culture and Environment, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) priorities. This cannot happen without the energy and commitment of our employees, and we are grateful for them and their commitment to building a great company."

"We are passionate about building a company where our people and our culture are key differentiators, both in the workplace and the marketplace. Receiving this certification in three countries energizes our drive to continuously improve," said Jerome Beguerie, Chief Human Resources Officer.

"GEON is committed to building an award-worthy culture. There is no magic trick to improve overnight, and it does not rest on only a few individuals to drive change - it takes us all to engage, to be willing to lean in, speak up, participate and help one another to get better. We are honored to be recognized this year, having made meaningful improvements amid a volatile environment as our teams continuously demonstrate and exemplify our core values to Win Together, Create Opportunities and Pay It Forward," Beguerie said.

For more information about GEON, the GPTW certification or its ESG programs, contact Wendy Herbst, GEON Chief Commercial Officer, at wendy.herbst@geon.com or 847-274-7724.

About GEON Performance Solutions

GEON Performance Solutions is a global leader in the formulation, development, and manufacture of performance polymer solutions. With a portfolio of highly adaptable vinyl and polyolefin polymer technologies as well as a full-service manufacturing business, GEON combines three powerful traditions into a single, customer-focused business. GEON Performance Solutions is a leading innovator in the development of performance material solutions for a broad range of markets including appliances, building & construction, electronics, healthcare, transportation, wire & cable and more. GEON Performance Solutions has 1,100 global associates and 12 world-class manufacturing plants, with headquarters in a western suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. Please visit us at www.geon.com to learn more. GEON Performance Solutions is a portfolio company of SK Capital Partners.

Contact Information

Wendy Herbst

Chief Commercial Officer

wendy.herbst@geon.com

847-274-772

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GEON logo Cleveland Thrive Team

Pictured here is the GEON THRIVE team hosting a beach clean-up event in Cleveland, Ohio.

SOURCE: GEON Performance Solutions

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WASHINGTON, D.C. / ACCESSWIRE / May 17, 2023 / The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) published a new analysis piece by MEMRI Executive Director Steven Stalinsky, Ph.D. on violent extremists' use of AI. The piece stresses that this is ongoing as the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and The Law hosted a hearing on May 16 about oversight of AI.

The analysis, titled "As AI Developers Try To Sell Senate Hearing On The Technology's Safety, Violent Extremists Are Planning To 'Wreak Havoc' With It," reviews extensive research from the MEMRI Domestic Terrorism Threat Monitor (DTTM) on AI use by racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists (REMVE). The research will be published later this month in a major new DTTM study, titled "Neo-Nazis And White Supremacists Worldwide Look To Artificial Intelligence (AI) - A National Security Threat In The Making To Which No Government Is Paying Attention - For Purposes Such As Recruitment, Harassing Minorities, And Criminal Activity Including Hacking Banks, Overthrowing Government, Attacking Infrastructure, Promoting Guerilla Warfare, And Using WMDs."

Dr. Stalinsky writes: "Neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and antigovernment groups - racially/ethnically motivated violent extremists, aka REMVE - are discussing and posting about AI use on the main social media platforms that they favor. Privately and openly, they are talking about and testing and using AI, in addition to developing their own versions and recruiting engineers and teams for special projects, including for breaking into banks."

He stresses that the most troubling examples found by the DTTM research team in its work studying this topic "involve extremists actually discussing the use of AI for planning terror attacks, including making weapons of mass destruction. One accelerationist group which seeks to bring about the total collapse of society recently conducted, in a Facebook group, a conversation about trying to trick an AI chat bot into providing details for making mustard gas and napalm. These and other examples are detailed in a new MEMRI DTTM report to be released later this month."

Dr. Stalinsky concludes: "Whether the call to halt AI development has come in time remains to be seen. But regardless, this private industry should not be operating without government oversight. It is clear is that the industry needs to follow standards and create guidelines to examine issues like this - moves that have still not been made for terrorist use of social media."

ABOUT THE DOMESTIC TERRORISM THREAT MONITOR (DTTM) PROJECT

For over three years, the MEMRI DTTM team has been monitoring and analyzing the online activity of white supremacists, neo-Nazis, accelerationists, and other domestic extremists in the U.S. and worldwide. The project's main focus is these groups' activity as reported, discussed, and documented in their online communications, including incitement, calls to action (including to violent attacks), real-world activity such as rallies and vandalism, and recruitment and outreach efforts by these groups aimed at a wide range of populations. Most importantly, we monitor violent threats against Jewish organizations and institutions; the Black, Asian, and other minority communities; the LGBTQ+ community; political and other public figures; government officials and agencies, and government in general; and the public at large.

ABOUT MEMRI

Exploring the Middle East and South Asia through their media, MEMRI bridges the language gap between the West and the Middle East and South Asia, providing timely translations of Arabic, Farsi, Urdu-Pashtu, Dari, Turkish, Russian, and Chinese media, as well as original analysis of political, ideological, intellectual, social, cultural, and religious trends.

Founded in February 1998 to inform the debate over U.S. policy in the Middle East, MEMRI is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit, 501(c)3 organization. MEMRI's main office is located in Washington, DC, with branch offices in various world capitals. MEMRI research is translated into English, French, Polish, Japanese, Spanish, and Hebrew.

MEMRI - Middle East Media Research Institute: www.memri.org

MEMRI TV - www.memri.org/tv

Jihad & Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) - www.memri.org/jttm

Cyber & Jihad Lab (CJL) - www.memri.org/cjlab

MEMRI Twitter: https://twitter.com/memrireports/

MEMRI YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC59Cpk70K2TwdmApJOTuW9g/videos

MEMRI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/memrireports/

Contact Information:

MEMRI

media@memri.org

202-955-9070

www.memri.org

SOURCE: Middle East Media Research Institute

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Registration is open for MWC Shanghai press passes

LONDON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The GSMA will host MWC Shanghai 2023 from 28 - 30 June 2023, at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC).





We invite members of the media and industry analysts to apply for a complimentary pass to attend MWC Shanghai by clicking here to find the event registration web page. All attendees can register for the event by following this link.

The GSMA will celebrate the 10th anniversary of MWC Shanghai this year and looks forward to convening representatives of the mobile, technology and adjacent vertical industries across China and Asia as well as global companies looking to market their products innovations and services to the region. With an impressive list of exhibitors and key industry players, attendees can expect an unparalleled experience at this year's show, which focuses on the themes of '5G Transformation', 'Digital Everything', and 'Reality+'.

Asia Pacific has grown to be one of the most vibrant and advanced markets for mobile and digital technologies. In 2022, mobile technologies and services generated 5.5% of GDP in China - a contribution that amounted to $1.1 trillion of economic value added. China will be the first market in the world with 1 billion 5G connections, reaching the milestone by 2025. 5G connections in China will reach 1.6 billion by 2030, accounting for nearly a third of the global total.

China and the wider Asia Pacific region also house a comprehensive mobile ecosystem that is activating the development of advanced technologies including 5G and 6G as well as the technological capabilities driving the metaverse such as AI and XR.

MWC Shanghai provides a unique opportunity to network with industry leaders, attend keynote speeches, participate in panel discussions, and gain insights into the latest trends and technologies shaping the industry. Industry leadership will take the stage with nearly 350 speakers from around the globe, almost 100 hours of thought leadership content and nearly 60% senior-level participation. For more information follow our updates on the MWC Shanghai press zone and visit www.mwcshanghai.com.

Media Contacts

GSMA Press Office

pressoffice@gsma.com

About GSMA

The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive. Representing mobile operators and organisations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for its members across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, tackling today's biggest societal challenges, underpinning the technology and interoperability that make mobile work, and providing the world's largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.

We invite you to find out more at gsma.com.

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BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - German real estate company Vonovia SE (VONOY) said that its Annual General Meeting 2023 approved all agenda items with large majority.



Vonovia's shareholders resolved to distribute a dividend of 0.85 euros per share for the fiscal year 2022, thus following the proposal of the Supervisory Board and Management Board to combine dividend continuity and capital discipline. Shareholders will again be able to choose between a scrip dividend and a classic cash dividend.



The election of eight Supervisory Board members was also on the agenda. Daniela Gerd tom Markotten was newly elected to the body. The Supervisory Board was reduced from twelve to ten members. In addition, the members will be elected in staggered intervals in the future and the maximum term of mandate will be reduced to four years.



In the constituent meeting of the Supervisory Board following the Annual General Meeting, Clara Streit was elected Chair of the Supervisory Board.



All current and former members of the Management Board and Supervisory Board were discharged in each case with a large majority. The remuneration report of the Management Board and Supervisory Board was approved by the Annual General Meeting with 79.94%.



PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftspr?fungsgesellschaft, Frankfurt am Main, was appointed as auditor for the current fiscal year.



At the time of voting, the presence of shareholders was 68.08% compared to 72.48% in 2022.



Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved



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Kostenloser Report: +40% Gewinn nur mit Aktien! +39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz. Hier klicken
BEIJING, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Chinese machinery equipment maker Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology (Zoomlion, 000157.SZ) launched a technology exhibition at the Zoomlion Smart Industry City in Changsha, capital of central China'sHunan Province from May 11 to 14, showcasing its technological achievements and results in the field of intelligent manufacturing.





Themed "Technology Salute to the New Era," the event attracted many guests from home and abroad, including over 500 overseas customers from more than 40 countries and regions, such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indonesia, Singapore, Turkiye, Brazil, the United States, and the Netherlands.

Zoomlion Smart Industrial City's Earthmoving Machinery Smart Park, as the first park to open in the industrial city, is an intelligent manufacturing factory that covers the full process of excavator manufacturing, including material preparation, welding, machining, painting, assembly and commissioning.

During the event, Zoomlion showcased over 500 advanced products and key components at more than ten exhibition areas in its headquarters building, Earthmoving Machinery Smart Park, Aerial Work Machinery Intelligent Manufacturing Park, Concrete Pumping Machinery Park, and Engineering Crane Machinery Park.

In recent years, Zoomlion has continuously deepened its development in overseas markets. In 2022, the company achieved a year-on-year sales growth of over 100 percent in markets of the Belt and Road countries and regions such as Indonesia, India, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye. In the first quarter of 2023, the company realized 123 percent of year-on-year growth in overseas revenue.

Zhan Chunxin, CEO of Zoomlion holds that Zoomlion will continue to lead the new revolution of technology, reaching new heights and broadening the company's horizons to drive innovation and transformation in the construction machinery industry.

See the original link: https://en.imsilkroad.com/p/334071.html

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2079931/Xinhua_Zoomlion.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/xinhua-silk-road-chinas-zoomlion-exhibits-intelligent-products-and-digitalization-achievements-to-showcase-technological-progress-301828011.html
YORKSHIRE, England, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sungrow, the global leading inverter and energy storage system solution supplier, announced that it signed a contract to supply its liquid cooled energy storage system (ESS), the PowerTitan, to a 150MW/300MWh project in Ferrybridge, West Yorkshire, the United Kingdom. The project is expected to increase total grid stability and bolster the country's energy transition.





The 150MW/300MWh project, located at the redundant Ferrybridge coal power station, is the latest in SSE Solar and Battery's growing pipeline of projects located across the UK. The project, with construction due to start in May 2023, has the grid connection confirmed for June 2024 and is set to be operational by October 2024.

Sungrow will provide the project with its liquid cooled ESS PowerTitan, which is an embodiment of Sungrow's advanced technologies and years-long experience in the fields of power electronics, electrochemistry, and grid forming. Tailored for utility-scale energy storage demand, Sungrow's PowerTitan adopts advanced liquid-cooled thermal management and AI monitoring of the battery cells so as to safeguard the system's safety and ensure a superior lifespan. Meanwhile, the DC-DC controller can charge and discharge battery racks individually; thus, increasing the overall system performance.

The PowerTitan enables the project a favorable return on investment through peak shaving -- charging the batteries when electricity rates are at their lowest and discharging to avoid paying peak prices during the expensive times of the day.

Richard Cave-Bigley, SSE Solar and Battery Director, said: "To be constructing this project on the site of a previous coal-powered station really shows the strides we are making in developing clean low-carbon energy and it's the latest in what is an extremely healthy project pipeline for our business."

Lewis Li, President of Sungrow Europe, said: "Sungrow is proud to supply our liquid cooled energy storage system, the PowerTitan, to this landmark project. We are excited for what is to come with our partnership with SSE as we work towards maximizing the profitability for the project with cutting-edge products and services."

About Sungrow

Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd. ("Sungrow") is the world's most bankable inverter brand with over 340 GW installed worldwide as of December 2022. Founded in 1997 by University Professor Cao Renxian, Sungrow is a leader in the research and development of solar inverters with the largest dedicated R&D team in the industry and a broad product portfolio offering PV inverter solutions and energy storage systems for utility-scale, commercial & industrial, and residential applications, as well as internationally recognised floating PV plant solutions, NEV driving solutions, EV charging solutions and renewable hydrogen production systems. With a strong 26-year track record in the PV space, Sungrow products power over 150 countries worldwide. Learn more about Sungrow by visiting: www.sungrowpower.com





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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sungrow-to-supply-a-150mw300mwh-project-in-the-uk-301828022.html




TOKYO, May 18, 2023 - (JCN Newswire) - Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE:6501) announced today that it has delivered a heavy ion therapy system to Taipei Veterans General Hospital and the system has started treatment as of May 15. This marks the first operation of heavy ion therapy system in Taiwan and Hitachi's first heavy ion therapy system outside of Japan.This system has been installed in the new Heavy Ion Therapy Center of Taipei Veterans General Hospital, consisting of two treatment rooms, each equipped with vertical and horizontal ports. It also includes real time image gating motion management, enabling it to treat tumors in motion due to respiration and advanced spot scanning technology to irradiate even tumors with complex shapes with high precision.Founded in 1958, aiming to become a world-class medical facility, Taipei Veterans General Hospital has continued to provide higher quality medical services for more than 60 years and is recognized around the world as "Taiwan's leading medical center". Recognized as an advanced type of cancer radiotherapy, this heavy ion therapy system is intended to address the unmet cancer treatment demand beyond the capacity of existing proton therapy systems in Taiwan.Hitachi's particle therapy systems can be found in leading hospitals around the world. With over 85,000 patients* treated to date, the systems have an excellent reputation for reliability. In addition to the Heavy Ion therapy solution delivered to Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Hitachi provides products and services with higher performance and added value, ranging from the dedicated compact Proton Single Room Solution to the Hybrid System combined with the capabilities of proton and carbon therapy.By promoting its healthcare business together with Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Hitachi supports patient-friendly treatment and improvement of the quality of life (QoL) for cancer patients in Taiwan. It will continue to accelerate the globalization of its particle therapy system business and contribute to the further development of minimally invasive cancer treatments.*Statistics based on data up to December 2021 published on the PTCOG's website.Overview of Particle TherapyParticle Therapy is an advanced type of cancer radiotherapy. Protons extracted from hydrogen atoms, or carbon ions are accelerated up to 70% of the speed of light. This energy is concentrated directly on the tumor while minimizing radiation dose to surrounding healthy tissue. Particle therapy improves the quality of life for cancer patients since the patient experiences no pain during treatment and the procedure has very few side effects compared to that of traditional radiotherapy. In most cases, patients can continue with their normal daily activities while undergoing treatment.About Hitachi, Ltd.Hitachi drives Social Innovation Business, creating a sustainable society through the use of data and technology. We solve customers' and society's challenges with Lumada solutions leveraging IT, OT (Operational Technology) and products. Hitachi operates under the business structure of "Digital Systems & Services" - supporting our customers' digital transformation; "Green Energy & Mobility" - contributing to a decarbonized society through energy and railway systems, and "Connective Industries" - connecting products through digital technology to provide solutions in various industries. Driven by Digital, Green, and Innovation, we aim for growth through co-creation with our customers. The company's consolidated revenues for fiscal year 2022 (ended March 31, 2023) totaled 10,881.1 billion yen, with 696 consolidated subsidiaries and approximately 320,000 employees worldwide. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at www.hitachi.com.Source: Hitachi, Ltd.Copyright 2023 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
MONAT GLOBAL UK Ltd (MONAT), a multinational distributor and social and direct seller of award-winning premium beauty products, has announced its European expansion into France. Following a successful launch in Europe in 2018, the brand's philosophies, reputation, education, and innovation, combined with its desire to support job creation and security for women, have been instrumental in its remarkable success.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005651/en/

MONAT Continues its Expansion into Europe and Launches in France (Photo: Business Wire)

MONAT is a naturally based healthy aging beauty brand, launched in the USA in 2014, with a mission to help people everywhere enjoy beautiful, healthy, fulfilling lives through exceptional, naturally based products; a fun and rewarding business opportunity; and a culture of family, service and gratitude. The range of MONAT innovative products includes its award-winning hair care and styling hair products, record-breaking selling skincare products, and its desirable wellness products.

Says Tamila Kerimova, SVP General Manager for MONAT Europe, "Our company successes within Europe have shown that social selling has quickly become a preferred way to not only buy but for people to create their own financial future. There's been a real movement in consumer demands, especially with global pandemic shifting the economy in many countries towards e-commerce businesses. MONAT success is evident through our market partners achievements to create their own businesses and destiny, their power to create conversation, and to inspire a greater network to act and help others, alongside themselves. We encourage our Market Partners to get involved and have their voices heard within the beauty economy, globally. Following the successful launch in certain Europe countries, we know the time is right to expand into France and build on the self-confidence and financial well-being business model we're becoming known for. Our extensive research has shown us that France has strong potential to both embrace our business programme and ensure another successful expansion."

MONAT will initially launch in France in May 2023 through a serious of regional roadshows and events to introduce the business model and opportunities for founding market partners. The launch momentum will progress throughout June, ready for the e-commerce launch of its award-winning beauty products in the summer months.

To become a MONAT Market Partner in the new France territory, please visit www.monatglobal.com/fr

Instagram: @monat.franceofficial Facebook: MONAT France

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005651/en/

Contacts:

For press information on MONAT, please contact Essence PR on 020 7739 2858 or essence@essencepr.com


CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The Australian dollar came under pressure against other major currencies in the Asian session on Thursday, after soft jobs data reinforced market bets of a rate pause next month.



Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that the unemployment rate of Australia rose to 3.7 percent in April. Economists expect the unemployment to be steady at 3.5 percent, same as last month.



Australia's employment fell by 4,300 in April from March, when it rebounded by a revised 61,100. Market forecasts had been for a rise of 25,000. Also, the Australia's economy lost 27,100 full-time jobs in April.



Market bets for a rate pause at the Reserve Bank of Australia's June 6th meeting.



In the Asian trading today, the Australian dollar fell to nearly a 6-month low of 0.8930 against the Canadian dollar, and a 1-week low of 1.0623 against the NZ dollar, from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.8959 and 1.0654, respectively. The aussie may test support near 0.88 against the loonie and 1.04 against the kiwi.



Against the U.S. dollar, the yen and the euro, the aussie dropped to 0.6629, 91.07 and 1.6349 from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.6659, 91.67 and 1.6268, respectively. If the aussie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 0.65 against the greenback, 88.00 against the yen and 1.66 against the euro.



Looking ahead, ECB President Christine Lagarde will attend at an official celebration of the 175th anniversary of the first German national parliamentary assembly event in Paulskirche in Frankfurt, at 5:00 am ET.



In the New york session, Canada new housing price index for April, U.S. weekly jobless claims and existing home sales for April are due to be released



At 9:05 am ET, Federal Reserve Board Governor Philip Jefferson will deliver a speech on the economic outlook before the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) International Insurance Forum, in Washington.



Twenty-Five minutes later, Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr will testify before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Semi-annual Hearing on Supervision and Regulation, in Washington.



At 10:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Lorrie Logan will deliver welcome remarks before the Technology-Enabled Disruption Conference: Uncertainty and Prospects for Disruptive Investments conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, in Richmond.



Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Kostenloser Report: +40% Gewinn nur mit Aktien! +39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz. Hier klicken
Clarity AI: 81% of Professional Investors Are Open to Switching Sustainability Analytic Capabilities or Data Service Providers to Access Higher Quality Data

44% of professional investors are now using sustainability analytic capabilities or data from multiple service providers, suggesting market participants are looking for a greater number of higher quality solutions when it comes to analyzing the sustainability of their portfolios, according to a new survey by Clarity AI.

Clarity AI, the leading sustainability tech platform, conducted a market survey of over 160 professional investors, including Asset Managers, Wealth Managers, and Asset Owners in Europe and North America, to gain insights into the investment priorities and preferences of investors with regards to sustainability.

The survey results showed that more than 60% of respondents stated that investments that will make the world a more sustainable place are a must-have for their clients or stakeholders. 44% of that same cohort are currently buying sustainability analytic capabilities or data from more than one service provider.

In addition, 81% of respondents are open to switching sustainability analytics or data vendors. Accessing higher quality data (35%) or choosing a solution that is easier to integrate into their existing workflow (14%) were the two top reasons cited for switching.

These findings highlight the increasing demand for high quality information and analytic capabilities regarding sustainable investments, as professional investors recognize the importance of environmental, social, and governance (ESG), impact and net zero factors in investment decision-making. As investors embrace the next wave of technological disruption, solutions that can be easily integrated into existing investment processes will be prioritized.

Commenting on the survey results, Chris Ciompi, Chief Marketing Officer at Clarity AI, said: "We are thrilled to see that more than 60% of professional investors now view sustainable investments as a must-have for their clients or stakeholders. The fact that 44% of those currently buy sustainability analytic capabilities or data from more than one service provider and that 81% of the market is willing to switch demonstrates that there is not only significant demand, but also that market participants are looking for more and better when it comes to sustainability data and analytics."

When asked if they could only work with one sustainability analytics or data service provider, which one would it be, respondents chose Clarity AI most often. Clarity AI was selected by 31% of respondents, with the largest legacy vendors being the next two most cited options and coming in at 30% and 15%.

About Clarity AI

Clarity AI is a sustainability technology platform that uses machine learning and big data to deliver environmental and social insights to investors, organizations, and consumers. Clarity AI's capabilities are an essential tool for end-to-end sustainability analysis related to investing, corporate research, benchmarking, consumer ecommerce, and regulatory reporting. As of May 2023, Clarity AI's platform analyzes more than 70,000 companies, 390,000 funds, 198 countries, and 199 local governments, which represents more breadth than any other player in the market. One way Clarity AI delivers on its mission to bring societal impact to markets is by ensuring its capabilities are delivered directly into clients' workflows through integrations with partners like BlackRock Aladdin, Refinitiv an LSEG business, BNP Manaos, CACEIS, and Simcorp. Additionally, Clarity AI's sustainability insights reach more than 150 million consumers across more than 400,000 merchants on the Klarna platform. Clarity AI has offices in North America, Europe, and the Middle East, and its client network manages tens of trillions in assets and includes companies like Invesco, Nordea, BlackRock, Santander, Wellington, and BNP Paribas.

Notes to editors

Survey was conducted in April 2023

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005209/en/

Contacts:

Edelman Smithfield

clarityai@edelmansmithfield.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Fjordland Exploration Inc. (TSXV: FEX) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received promising results from a scoping level metallurgical evaluation of the graphite potential at its Renzy Project located northwest of Maniwaki Quebec.

In early 2023, Fjordland engaged SGS Minerals Lakefield to test a representative graphite sample on drill core derived from its 2022 drill program. The primary objectives of the testing were to develop a preliminary understanding of the metallurgical response of the mineralization and to characterize the graphite concentrate in terms of flake size distribution and total carbon grade of different size fractions. After the third floatation test (F3), the 6th cleaner concentrate grade was 95.6% C(t) with a total carbon recovery of 94.2%. This high concentrate grade was achieved with polishing only, which suggests that the impurities are attached to the surface of the flakes rather intercalated. The flake size distributions of the sample classify the product as relatively coarse with 55% of the concentrate mass reporting to the +100 mesh size fractions. Only 5.1% of the total concentrate mass reported to the very small flake sizes of minus 325 mesh.

James Tuer, Fjordland's President commented, "I'm very encouraged by this early metallurgical testing on the graphite intercepts from our last drill program at Renzy. In order to decide whether further graphite work was warranted, we wanted to make sure that there was good potential for generating a high-grade concentrate. This now appears to be the case and we are looking at expanding the program along the 8km long geophysical signature that's coincident with the graphitic drill intercepts."

The final 2 holes of the 2022 Renzy drill program tested portions of a long surface anomaly referred to as the "S-Conductor" located 6km south-east of the old Renzy mine. The anomaly coincides with a wide zone of graphite mineralization tested by drill holes RZ-22-06 and RZ-22-07 that intersected 34m and 55m core lengths and averaged 0.9% and 0.7% carbon, respectively. Higher grades occurred within the intercepts and the head grade for the metallurgical test measured 1.57% total carbon.

Table 1: Size x Size Assays on F3 6th Cleaner Concentrate

Size Weight Assay % Distribution Fraction g % % C(t) C(t) 32 mesh 0.3 0.6 98.2 0.6 48 mesh 6.6 12.2 98.1 12.7 65 mesh 9.9 18.3 96.1 18.6 80 mesh 6.5 12.0 95.5 12.1 100 mesh 6.2 11.5 95.1 11.5 150 mesh 11.2 20.7 93.4 20.5 200 mesh 6.6 12.2 92.6 12.0 325 mesh 3.9 7.2 92.3 7.0 400 mesh 1.2 2.2 93.6 2.2 -400 mesh 1.6 3.0 91.1 2.9 Total Concentrate 54 100 94.7 100 (calculated)

SGS Lakefield reported that in order to evaluate the quality of the cleaner concentrates with regards to flake size distribution and total carbon grade of the various size fractions, the final cleaner concentrates from F2 and F3 were submitted for a size fraction analysis. The mass distribution and total carbon grades of the various concentrate size fractions from F3 are depicted in Table 1. There is a trend of higher grade flakes in the coarser fractions, reaching >98% C(t) in the +32 mesh fraction down to ~91% C(t) in the finest -400 mesh fraction. All fractions at +100 mesh or coarser (the classified mesh size for many graphite commercial processing plants) achieved >95% C(t), which is often considered an acceptable flake grade target. Approximately 55% of the concentrate mass was in the +100 mesh fractions, indicating fairly coarse flakes are present in the deposit.

Based on these preliminary results, the Company will concentrate on exploring for locations along the S-Conductor where higher grades may occur. The ultimate value of a graphite deposit is a function of grade and the coarseness of the concentrate grade. Coarser higher grade graphite material, generally referred to as Jumbo Flake, commands significantly higher prices compared with finer concentrates. With the recent announcements regarding the introduction of Electric Vehicle battery manufacturing facilities being built in Becancour, Quebec. Fjordland believes it is a good position participate in this growth should an economic deposit be developed.

Quality assurance/quality control

Fjordland's 2022 Renzy drill program was managed by Equity Exploration Consultants Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C., which provided qualified Quebec-registered geoscience professionals. For graphite samples, graphitic C was determined by digesting sample in 50 per cent HCl to evolve carbonate as carbon dioxide. Residue is filtered, washed, dried and then roasted at 425 C. The roasted residue is analyzed for carbon by oxidation, induction furnace and infrared spectroscopy (C-IR18). ALS Minerals' analytical laboratory in North Vancouver completed the analysis. Full QA/QC statements can be found in press release dated October 24, 2022. Metallurgical work reported herein was completed by SGS Lakefield in Lakefield Ontario.

About Fjordland Exploration Inc.

Fjordland Exploration Inc. is a mineral exploration company that is focused on the discovery of large-scale economic metal deposits in Canada.

In collaboration with Commander Resources Ltd., Fjordland is exploring the SVB "Pants Lake Intrusive" target which is in a geologic setting analogous to the nearby nickel-cobalt-copper Voisey's Bay deposit. Fjordland has earned a 75% interest in the project.

Fjordland, owns a 100% interest in the Renzy nickel-project located near Maniwaki, Quebec. The project encompasses the former Renzy Mine where, during the period from 1969 to 1972, 716,000 short tons were mined with average grades of 0.70% nickel and 0.72% copper. Fjordland has staked additional claims to increase the size of the project to 530 sq. km.

As well, Fjordland has two copper-gold properties in the Quesnel Trough of central British Columbia, The West Milligan copper-gold project is a joint venture with Northwest Copper Corp. located within 4 km of Centerra's Mount Milligan copper-gold mine. The 103 sq. km. Witch copper-gold project is located another 35 km west of the Milligan mine.

Robert Cameron, PGeo, is a qualified person within the context of National Instrument 43-101 and has read and takes responsibility for the technical aspects of this release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"James Tuer"

James Tuer, CEO

For further information:

James Tuer

Ph: 604-688-3415

tuer@fjordlandex.com

www.fjordlandex.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain forward-looking statements or information. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this news release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the private placement, and other future plans and objectives of the Company are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's plans or expectations include market prices, general economic, market or business conditions, regulatory changes, timeliness of government or regulatory approvals and other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulators. The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166522
TOKYO, May 18, 2023 - (JCN Newswire) - Kawasaki Motors, Ltd. (hereinafter "Kawasaki Motors"), Suzuki Motor Corporation (hereinafter "Suzuki") , Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Honda") , and Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Yamaha Motor") jointly announced today that they have received approval from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to form a technological research association called HySE (Hydrogen Small mobility & Engine technology) for developing hydrogen-powered engines for small mobility.*To realize a decarbonized society, a multi-pathway strategy to address various issues in the mobility sector is necessary, rather than focusing on a single energy source. Against this backdrop, research and development targeted at commercialization of mobility with engines powered by hydrogen - deemed a next-generation energy source - is gaining momentum.However, the use of hydrogen poses technical challenges, including fast flame speed and a large region of ignition, which often result in unstable combustion, and the limited fuel tank capacity in case of use in small mobility vehicles. In addressing these issues, the members of HySE are committed to conducting fundamental research, capitalizing on their wealth of expertise and technologies in developing gasoline-powered engines, and aim to work together with the joint mission of establishing a design standard for small mobility's hydrogen-powered engine, and of advancing the fundamental research endeavors in this area.The members of HySE will continue to deepen their collaborative relations in order to provide a variety of small mobility options to users and meet their diverse needs, thereby contributing to the realization of a decarbonized society.Kenji Komatsu, Chairman nominee of HySE and Executive Officer of Technical Research & Development Center, Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd., comments, "We are extremely pleased to announce the planned formation of the association. There are many challenges in the development of hydrogen-powered engines, but we hope to see the association's activities advance the fundamental research in order to meet those challenges. We are committed to this endeavor with a sense of mission to preserve the use of internal combustion engines, which epitomize the long-time efforts that our predecessors have invested."Main research and development areas, and the role of each company:1. Research on hydrogen-powered enginesResearch on the model-based development of hydrogen-powered engines (Honda)Element study on functionality, performance, and reliability of the hydrogen-powered engines (Suzuki)Hands-on research using real hydrogen-powered engines on their functionality, performance, and reliability (Yamaha Motor, Kawasaki Motors)2. Study on hydrogen refueling systemStudying the requirements for a hydrogen refueling system and hydrogen tanks for small mobility (Yamaha)3. Study on fuel supply systemStudying the auxiliary equipment required for a fuel supply system and tanks, and the equipment installed between the fuel tank and the injector (Kawasaki Motors)In addition to the full members (the four aforementioned motorcycle manufacturers), Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (hereinafter "Kawasaki Heavy Industries") and Toyota Motor Corporation (hereinafter "Toyota") support the association as special members. Kawasaki Heavy Industries, being one of the main organizers of the "CO2-free Hydrogen Energy Supply-chain Technology Research Association" (hereinafter "HySTRA"), will drive forward HySE's activities, based on the knowledge gained from its activities for HySTRA. Toyota, on the other hand, will assume the role of leveraging HySE's research results to the maximum benefit for the development of hydrogen-powered engines, utilizing its know-how on experiments, analyses, and the designing of large hydrogen-fueled power units for four-wheel vehicles.Overview of HySE (Details, including members, are still in the planning stage)Name: Hydrogen Small mobility & Engine technology (HySE)Address: Yaesu Central Tower 2-2-1 Yaesu, Chuo-ku, TokyoChairman: Kenji Komatsu(Executive Officer, Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd.)Members: Regular Members:Kawasaki Motors, Suzuki, Honda, and Yamaha MotorSpecial Members: Kawasaki Heavy Industries and ToyotaEstablishment: Establishment procedures in progress*Small mobility: motorcycles, Japan-originated mini-vehicles, small marine vessels, construction equipment, drones, etc.Source: Honda Motor Co, LtdCopyright 2023 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
+39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz.

BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks advanced on Thursday after U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy underscored their determination to reach a deal soon. This helped ease fears of a potential U.S. debt default as a June 1 deadline loomed. Meanwhile, traders await Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey's testimony to the U.K. parliament Treasury Select Committee, where he will outline to MPs how the MPC sees the prospects for the U.K. economy. The pan European STOXX 600 rose 0.6 percent to 466.58 after declining 0.2 percent on Wednesday. The German DAX rallied 1.5 percent, France's CAC 40 added 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.6 percent. Trading volumes were thin as several markets, including those in the Nordics and Switzerland, remain closed for Ascension Day. Volkswagen jumped 2.3 percent after the German automaker announced plans to overhaul its core brand to increase efficiency and returns. Deutsche Bank AG climbed 3.5 percent after reports that the lender will pay $75 million to settle litigation alleging the bank financially benefited from supporting Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking scheme. British luxury fashion brand Burberry soared 5.2 percent after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales. EasyJet gained about 1 percent after narrowing its first-half pre-tax loss. Premier Foods soared 4.5 percent after posting a strong annual profit and raising its dividend payout. Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved 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.
+39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz.

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.


CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar strengthened against its major counterparts in the European session on Thursday, on hopes that lawmakers will reach a deal for raising the debt limit.



On Wednesday, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to negotiate directly on a deal to lift the government's borrowing limit.



'The leaders (of Congress) have all agreed: We will not default. Every leader has said that,' US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday.



McCarthy said it is 'possible' to get a deal by the end of the week and the country would not default on its debts.



U.S. jobless claims data is due later in the day. Economists expect jobless claims to fall to 254,000 in the week ended May 13 from 264,000 in the previous week.



The greenback climbed to 1.2438 against the pound and 0.9010 against the franc, off its early lows of 1.2492 and 0.8975, respectively. The greenback is likely to find resistance around 1.21 against the pound and 0.92 against the franc.



The greenback edged up to 0.6629 against the aussie, 0.6234 against the kiwi and 1.3480 against the loonie, from its early lows of 0.6667, 0.6269 and 1.3442, respectively. The greenback is poised to find resistance around 0.63 against the aussie, 0.60 against the kiwi and 1.38 against the loonie.



The greenback firmed to a 5-month high of 137.93 against the yen and a 1-1/2-month high of 1.0809 against the euro, up from its prior lows of 137.28 and 1.0848, respectively. Next near term resistance for the greenback is likely seen around 139.00 against the yen and 1.06 against the euro.



Looking ahead, Canada new housing price index for April, U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended May 13 and existing home sales for April are due to be released in the New York session.



Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved



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Kostenloser Report: +40% Gewinn nur mit Aktien! +39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz. Hier klicken
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - good natured Products Inc. (TSXV: GDNP) (OTCQX: GDNPF) (the "Company" or "good natured"), a North American leader in plant-based products, today announced that it has signed a commercial contract with a regional US snack food producer that distributes across several prominent Texas retailers. The contract outlines a two-year agreement whereby good natured will supply packaging based on the Company's proprietary GoodGuardTM tamper-evident design. The packaging will be produced at the Company's Houston, Texas facility using a customized Bio-PET formulation that is curbside recyclable alongside traditional petroleum-based PET, rPET or PCR packaging. Revenue of approximately USD $1.2 million is anticipated in the first year, with the first shipment to the customer expected in Q3 2023.

"This project combines many elements of why we believe good natured is unique in the market and what's possible with the increased scale of our engineering and biomanufacturing capabilities," said Paul Antoniadis, CEO of good natured. "We collaborated closely with this purpose-driven organization in the local community of our Houston facility to build on our Canadian-made GoodGuardTM tamper-evident innovation and custom-fit a package design uniquely for their business needs. It's a testament to the robust value proposition we're taking to market, as well as the resilient demand for sustainable packaging despite volatile macroeconomic conditions being faced in more commoditized markets."

The good natured corporate profile can be found at: investor.goodnaturedproducts.com

About good natured Products Inc.

good natured is passionately pursuing its goal of becoming North America's leading earth-friendly product company by offering the broadest assortment of plant-based products made from rapidly renewable resources instead of fossil fuels. The Company is focused on making it easy and affordable for business owners and consumers to shift away from petroleum to better everyday products that use more renewable materials, less fossil fuel, and no chemicals of concern.

good natured offers over 400 products and services through wholesale, direct to business, and retail channels. From plant-based home organization products to certified compostable food containers, bio-based industrial supplies and medical packaging, the Company is focused on making plant-based products more readily accessible to people as a means to create meaningful environmental and social impact.

For more information: goodnaturedproducts.com

On behalf of the Company:

Paul Antoniadis - Executive Chair & CEO

Contact: 1-604-566-8466

Investor Contact:

Spencer Churchill

Investor Relations

1-877-286-0617 ext. 113

invest@goodnaturedproducts.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibilities for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Information regarding the multi-year contract contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of securities laws. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statement.

When relying on the Company's forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company has assumed that the material factors referred to herein will not cause such forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors.

Other than as required under securities laws, we do not undertake to update this information at any particular time.

Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on our current estimates, expectations and projections, which we believe are reasonable as of the current date. The reader should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. All forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166502
COEUR D'ALENE, ID / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Idaho Strategic Resources (NYSE American:IDR) ("IDR" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the recent completion of surface mining of the high-grade Jumbo Vein and plans for exploration of the Jumbo Vein by drifting along the vein from the pit bottom. Surface mining of the Jumbo Vein resulted in 4,000 tonnes of ore at a grade of 17.3 grams per tonne (gpt) gold.

IDR Vice President Grant Brackebusch commented, "Following completion of surface mining, we plan to advance an underground drift to the south along the vein towards a high-grade drill intercept from 2011 (GC 11-41T: 0.9 meters (m) true thickness at 137 gpt gold) which is at about the same elevation as the bottom bench - 1069 m (see Figure 1). As previously mentioned, it is worth noting that the sample from the Jumbo Vein where it enters the pit wall was 0.6 meters (m) wide (true thickness) and assayed 152 gpt gold."

Figure 1 - Generalized Geologic Map of Jumbo Pit (view to southeast)

The Jumbo Vein consists of a banded quartz vein that typically occurs 10 to 20 m in the hanging wall of the Idaho Fault. It is known to occur in the central part of the Golden Chest mine property and had minor production in the late 1890's to early 1900's.

The recent surface mining consisted of a small pit on a near-surface section of the vein, following it down from the 1115 m elevation to the 1069 m elevation. On each mined bench, the Jumbo Vein was typically exposed for 22-26 m along strike with a width of 0.3 to 1.0 m. The average vein strike was N18oE and average dip was 53o NW. The vein was well-oxidized with abundant iron-oxides and minor amounts of pyrite, arsenopyrite, and chalcopyrite. Visible gold was often seen in hand samples.

As the Jumbo Pit was mined, blast hole drill cuttings were sampled and assayed to direct ore control. An average weighted grade for the ore polygons, based on the blast hole samples, was 13 gpt gold. However, more selective mining occurred along the vein in practice and composite samples of mined truckloads showed a higher weighted average of 17.3 gpt gold.

Three vein chip samples were taken across the vein exposed in the southeast pit wall as mining progressed down in the Jumbo Pit and the results are displayed below (lengths of sample are in true thickness).

Sample Elevation (m) True Thickness Vein (m) Gold Grades (gpt Au) 1084 0.25 83.0 1078 0.20 83.2 1072 0.60 152

Exploration drilling was completed in the vicinity of the Jumbo Pit during 2011 and indicates continuity of the Jumbo vein along strike and vertically below the existing pit bottom. A selection of those drill intercepts through the Jumbo Vein is presented in the following table (lengths reported are drilled thickness).

Drillhole Drilled Thickness (m) Gold Grade (gpt Au) Elevation GC 07-04 1.4 14.8 1017 GC 11-41T 0.9 137 1069 GC 11-49 1.4 5.67 1028 GC 11-53 2.9 13.7 1056 GC 11-54 1.8 8.40 1033 GC 11-56 2.2 24.7 978 GC 11-62 3.4 5.66 1045

Mr. Brackebusch concluded, "The horizontal distance between the portal site and the GC 11-41T drill intercept is approximately 90 m and the purpose of the drifting will be to establish the continuity of the vein and gold grade between these two points. We will sample each round (about 50 tonnes) during the mining cycle which will be stockpiled on the surface near the portal pending assay results. Rounds above cutoff will be routed to the mill for processing which should help offset the cost of the drifting allowing for a low-cost method of exploration of this very high-grade vein. If this drifting is successful, the next step would be to portal in at a lower elevation and drift on the vein to establish the vertical continuity of the Jumbo Vein. The drifting project is anticipated to start in the second quarter of 2023."

Qualified person

IDR's Vice President , Grant A. Brackebusch, P.E. is a qualified person as such term is defined under S-K 1300 and has reviewed and approved the technical information and data included in this press release. All reported assays are 30-gram fire assays with a gravimetric finish completed by American Analytical, Inc. of Osburn, Idaho. A Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/AC) program includes a series of blank, standard, and duplicate sample assays for verification and quality control.

About Idaho Strategic Resources, Inc.

Domiciled in Idaho and headquartered in the Panhandle of northern Idaho, Idaho Strategic Resources (IDR) is one of the few resource-based companies (public or private) possessing the combination of officially recognized U.S. domestic rare earth elements properties (in Idaho), the largest known concentration of thorium resources in the U.S., and Idaho-based gold production located in an established mining community.

Idaho Strategic Resources produces gold at the Golden Chest Mine located in the Murray Gold Belt (MGB) area of the world-class Coeur d'Alene Mining District, north of the prolific Silver Valley. With over 7,300 acres of patented and unpatented land, the Company has the largest private land position in the area following its consolidation of the Murray Gold Belt for the first time in over 100-years.

In addition to gold and gold production, the Company maintains an important strategic presence in the U.S. Critical Minerals sector, specifically focused on the more "at-risk" Rare Earth Elements (REEs) with an overall land position of approximately 18,030 acres in Idaho's REE-Th Belt. The Company's Diamond Creek, Roberts, and Lemhi Pass REE properties are included the U.S. national REE inventory as listed in USGS, IGS and DOE publications. IDR's Lemhi Pass REE-Thorium Project is also recognized by the USGS and IGS as containing the largest concentration of thorium resources in the country. All three projects are located in central Idaho and participating in the USGS Earth MRI program.

With an impressive mix of experience and dedication, the folks at IDR maintain a long-standing "We Live Here" approach to corporate culture, land management, and historic preservation. Furthermore, it is our belief that successful operations begin with the heightened responsibility that only local oversight and a community mindset can provide. Its "everyone goes home at night" policy would not be possible without the multi-generational base of local exploration, drilling, mining, milling, and business professionals that reside in and near the communities of the Silver Valley and North Idaho.

For more information on Idaho Strategic Resources click here for our corporate presentation, go to www.idahostrategic.com or call:

Travis Swallow, Investor Relations & Corporate Development

Email: tswallow@idahostrategic.com

Phone: (208) 625-9001

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "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 that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created by such sections. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by forward-looking words such as "intends", "potential", "believe", "plans", "expects", "may", "goal', "assume", "estimate", "anticipate", and "will" or similar words suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, assumptions, intentions, or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information includes, but are not limited to, Idaho Strategic Resources targeted production rates and results, the expected market prices of gold, individual rare earth elements, and/or thorium, as well as the related costs, expenses and capital expenditures, the potential advancement of the Company's projects, the potential development of the Jumbo Vein, the economics of the Jumbo Vein, and the potential for the Jumbo Vein to be a reliable source of gold production in the future. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of Idaho Strategic Resources as of the date such information is provided and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements of IDR to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. The forward-looking statement information above, and those following are applicable to both this press release, as well as the links contained within this press release. With respect to the business of Idaho Strategic Resources, these risks and uncertainties include risks relating to widespread epidemics or pandemic outbreaks, if they occur, including our ability to access goods and supplies, the ability to transport our products and impacts on employee productivity, the risks in connection with the operations, cash flow and results of the Company relating to the unknown duration and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; interpretations or reinterpretations of geologic information; the accuracy of historic estimates; unfavorable exploration results; inability to obtain permits required for future exploration, development or production; general economic conditions and conditions affecting the industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory requirements and approvals; fluctuating mineral and commodity prices; the ability to obtain necessary future financing on acceptable terms; the ability to operate the Company's projects; and risks associated with the mining industry such as economic factors (including future commodity prices, and energy prices), ground conditions, failure of plant, equipment, processes and transportation services to operate as anticipated, environmental risks, government regulation, actual results of current exploration and production activities, possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates, permitting timelines, capital and construction expenditures, reclamation activities. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such information. Additional information regarding the factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from this forward-looking information is available in Idaho Strategic Resources filings with the SEC on EDGAR. IDR does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or other such factors which affect this information, except as required by law.

SOURCE: Idaho Strategic Resources, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755738/Idaho-Strategic-Completes-Surface-Mining-of-High-Grade-Jumbo-Vein--Portal-and-Underground-Exploration-Planned
Boston Pharmaceuticals today announced that new results from its ongoing Phase 2a study evaluating BOS-580 for the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) were accepted as a late-breaking poster presentation at the European Association for the Study of the Liver International Liver Congress, June 21-24 in Vienna, Austria. BOS-580 is a genetically engineered variant of human fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), administered via a monthly subcutaneous injection, that is designed to reduce liver fat, liver injury, and fibrosis in patients with NASH and improve other metabolic biomarkers.

Additional details of the late-breaker presentation are as follows:

Title: Twelve-week treatment with BOS-580, a novel, long-acting Fc-FGF-21 fusion protein, leads to a reduction in liver steatosis, liver injury, and fibrosis in patients with phenotypic NASH: A randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled Phase 2A trial

Presenter: Dr. Rohit Loomba, M.D., MHSc, Director at NAFLD Research Center, Director of Hepatology, Professor of Medicine and Vice Chief of the Division of Gastroenterology at University of California at San Diego

Abstract Number: 4080

Date: Wednesday 21 June 2023

Time: 08:00 CET

Location: Vienna, Austria

About BOS-580

BOS-580 is a monthly subcutaneous injectable of a genetically engineered variant of human fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) that regulates various metabolic pathways to decrease liver fat and ameliorate liver inflammation and damage in patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). BOS-580 has the potential to be a best-in-class FGF21 analog.

About Boston Pharmaceuticals

Boston Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company that leverages an experienced drug development team to advance a portfolio of highly differentiated therapies that may address important unmet medical needs in serious liver diseases, with NASH as the focus of its lead asset. The Company acquired promising drug development candidates through partnerships with proven innovative biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Boston Pharmaceuticals applies rigorous decision making to advance programs to deliver differentiated medicines to patients in need of new options, while creating value for all parties involved in the journey.

For more information, please visit www.bostonpharmaceuticals.com or follow on Twitter @BosPharma and LinkedIn.

About B-Flexion

Boston Pharmaceuticals is a portfolio company of B-Flexion, a private entrepreneurial investment firm that partners with sophisticated capital to deliver exceptional value over the generations, while also contributing positively to society. Chaired by Ernesto Bertarelli and with offices across Europe and the United States, B-Flexion seeds, acquires and builds investment partnerships, principally in the fields of Private Equity, Venture Growth Capital, Real Assets, Hedge Funds, Credit, and Public Securities. As well as these partnerships, B-Flexion makes principal investments in operating businesses in transformative industries with a focus on Healthcare, Planet, Consumer and Technology.

For more information, please visit www.bflexion.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005269/en/

Contacts:

Media Contact:

Amelia Marosek

amelia@healthandcommerce.com
MARKHAM, ON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Enghouse Networks, a leading global telecommunications technology provider, today announced the beginning of an exciting partnership to deliver the next generation of messaging services in Southeast Europe. United Group, a dynamic telecommunication, and media company with an extensive presence across the region, has chosen Enghouse as their preferred mobile messaging partner across the entire group including Greece and Slovenia.

A Partnership Built on Trust & Delivery

In 2022, United Group issued a proposal for Slovenia and Greece, from vendors who could meet their messaging and call completion needs. Selecting Enghouse as their preferred vendor builds on existing work with companies within the group and the region.

Enghouse initially began working with United Group companies in Bulgaria. Vivacom was looking for a messaging solution that could consolidate and simplify the network while reducing recurring costs. Enghouse, which was already operating in the region, was able to successfully meet those needs. After the successful deployment of the Vivacom project, Enghouse also partnered with United Group Telemach Croatia to complete another successful deployment.

United Group is an active, dynamic, and growing group across the telco sector. They are driven by speed, efficiency, and quality of services for their subscriber base - demonstrable qualities they were looking for in their choice of messaging partner.

"United Group is a fast, efficient, quality-driven telecommunications service provider and we want to select partners who can assist us in achieving our business objectives swiftly and effectively and are aligned with our sustainability standards. We believe that Enghouse provides quality and economic benefits to help us achieve our aims", states Marko Miletic, Executive Director of Core Networks at the United Group.

"Enghouse Networks has been chosen as the preferred vendor to meet the business mobile messaging needs for United Group due to our track record of technical excellence, reliability, and timely delivery," says John Ryan, VP of Sales - EMEAA at Enghouse Networks. "United Group regards Enghouse as being highly trustworthy, knowledgeable, and experienced, and we're looking forward to deepening our partnership to deliver modern messaging services across the region."

Consolidate, Simplify & Modernize

Enghouse's mobile messaging platform provides a unified platform for all mobile messaging and call completion requirements. It allows network architecture to be modernized and simplified while reducing operating costs. It gives operators a set of real advantages allowing for quick, orderly deployment and next-generation service delivery.

About Enghouse Networks

Enghouse Networks is a reliable global telecommunications technology and solutions provider. Our commitment is to successfully deliver solutions that can enable digital transformation, ultimately building a connected global community. From edge to cloud, our applications reliably enable next-generation communications and media companies, defense, public safety agencies, and utilities to plan, design, engineer, monitor, protect and simplify network complexity, in a vendor-agnostic 5G, IoT, Cloud, AI, NFV, and SDN ecosystem. The Enghouse Networks technology portfolio spans Network Infrastructure, Business Support Systems (BSS), Operations Support Systems (OSS), and Digital Transformation solutions. For further information, visit www.enghousenetworks.com.

About United Group

Dutch-based United Group is the leading telecommunications and media operator in South-East Europe. Active in eight countries, the company has more than 15 million users and nearly 15,000 employees. It generates almost 2.7 billion in annual revenues. United Group has the widest network coverage in the region and offers users the most attractive selection of TV content from around the world. Significant investments in digital infrastructure, content and technology ensure the excellence of the products and services it provides to customers. United Group has been majority owned by BC Partners, one of the largest global investment companies, since March 2019.

Enghouse Networks contact: Balvinder Sandhu, Director, Demand Generation, Tel: +44 (0)1628 641 789, Email: balvinder.sandhu@enghouse.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/united-group-select-enghouse-networks-as-their-preferred-partner-to-deliver-mobile-messaging-services-across-the-group-301828346.html
Real-time intelligence on key experts helps drive timely, relevant engagement

BARCELONA, Spain, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Veeva Systems (NYSE: VEEV) today announced Veeva Link MedTech, a data application developed for medtech companies to identify scientific experts, personalize engagement, and map activities across the healthcare ecosystem. Built on the same platform as Veeva Link Key People, Link MedTech combines automation and human curation for an accurate, in-depth view of expert profiles in medical devices and diagnostics globally.





Link MedTech equips medical affairs and commercial teams with real-time data to effectively engage with customers and key opinion leaders (KOLs). With access to validated data on key experts, teams can drive precise and relevant engagement from the start.

"We are breaking new ground in how we use data to help the industry improve performance by empowering field teams with timely, accurate information about their most important customers," said Juliane Ray, vice president of commercial strategy for Veeva MedTech. "We're proud to help medtech companies build relationships with the industry's most influential KOLs to improve patient journeys."

Link MedTech is now available globally. Learn how companies can lead more relevant scientific engagement with experts leveraging Link MedTech at Veeva MedTech Summit, 30 May to 1 June in Chicago. Medtech professionals can register here.

Additional Information

For more on Veeva Link MedTech, visit: veeva.com/LinkMedTech Connect with Veeva on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/veeva-medtech

About Veeva Systems

Veeva is the global leader in cloud software for the life sciences industry. Committed to innovation, product excellence, and customer success, Veeva serves more than 1,000 customers, ranging from the world's largest biopharmaceutical companies to emerging biotechs. As a Public Benefit Corporation, Veeva is committed to balancing the interests of all stakeholders, including customers, employees, shareholders, and the industries it serves. For more information, visit veeva.com/eu.

Veeva Forward-looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements regarding Veeva's products and services and the expected results or benefits from use of our products and services. These statements are based on our current expectations. Actual results could differ materially from those provided in this release and we have no obligation to update such statements. There are numerous risks that have the potential to negatively impact our results, including the risks and uncertainties disclosed in our filing on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2023, which you can find here (a summary of risks which may impact our business can be found on pages 9 and 10), and in our subsequent SEC filings, which you can access at sec.gov.

Contact









Jeremy Whittaker

Veeva Systems

+49-695-095-5486

jeremy.whittaker@veeva.com



Alison Borris

Veeva Systems

925-226-8821

alison.borris@veeva.com

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1488285/Veeva_Systems_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/new-veeva-link-medtech-provides-real-time-data-to-optimize-scientific-engagement-301828063.html
EQS-News: 4finance S.A. / Key word(s): Quarterly / Interim Statement

4FINANCE HOLDING S.A. REPORTS RESULTS FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING 31 MARCH 2023 (news with additional features)



18.05.2023 / 13:23 CET/CEST

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





4FINANCE HOLDING S.A. REPORTS RESULTS FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDING 31 MARCH 2023 Net profit of 5.6 million and Adjusted EBITDA of 28.0 million Strong start to the year at TBI Bank 18 May 2023. 4finance Holding S.A. (the 'Group' or '4finance'), one of Europe's largest digital consumer lending groups, today announces unaudited consolidated results for the three months ending 31 March 2023 (the 'Period'). Operational Highlights Online loan issuance volume of 137.0 million in the Period compared with 92.6 million in Q1 2022 and maintaining volumes from Q4. Demand for credit remains strong in most markets, with yearly issuance growth driven by Czech Republic, Latvia, Sweden and Philippines. Near-prime portfolio development aligned with ability to sold those loans to TBI Bank. Over 12 million of Lithuanian near-prime loan principal was sold to TBI Bank from January to April 2023. TBI Bank loan issuance volume during the Period grew by 39% year-on-year to 206.4 million from 148.3 million in the prior year period, with increased issuance in all products. Financial Highlights Interest income from continuing operations up 39% year-on-year to 91.7 million in the Period compared with 65.8 million in the prior year period. For the prior period figures, the Polish business is reflected separately in the income statement as a 'discontinued operation'. Cost to income ratio for Q1 2023 was 46.0%, a significant improvement from 53.9% in Q1 2022 (excluding Poland and Philippines), despite the increase in total operating costs year-on-year. Adjusted EBITDA was 28.0 million for the Period, up 8% year-on-year (compared to the proforma EBITDA excluding Poland and including Philippines) delivering a 31% adjusted EBITDA margin. The interest coverage ratio as of the date of this report, including proforma effect of acquisitions and disposals, is 2.4x. Post-provision operating profit from continuing operations for the Period was 13.6 million, benefiting from the 40% year-on-year increase in operating income (revenue), with profit after tax of 5.6 million. Fundamental asset quality indicators at product level remain broadly stable. Net impairment charges of 33.5 million reflect the larger portfolio, different product mix in online and reduced debt sales activity. Cost of risk at 13.7% vs 8.7% in the prior year period. Net receivables totaled 906.2 million as of 31 March 2023, up 7% from 31 December 2022, with growth in online and TBI Bank. Overall gross NPL ratio at 9.8% as of 31 March 2023 (10.0% for online), compared with 8.8% as of 31 December 2022 (9.0% for online). TBI NPL ratio has increased to 9.8% as of 31 March 2023, compared with 8.7% as of 31 December 2022. Liquidity and funding Strong liquidity position, with 44.0 million of cash in the online business at the end of the Period. Cash flows relating to last year's acquisitions and disposals occurred in April 2023 as expected (received 6 million Poland first instalment payment, made 8 million Philippines earn-out payment). Solid capital position at TBI Bank (23.3% capital adequacy ratio) despite continued growth in risk weighted assets with additional net 5 million of MREL eligible instruments issued in Q1. Kieran Donnelly, CEO of 4finance, commented: "4finance continues to demonstrate its resilience, with revenue up and an improvement in cost to income ratio from 53.9% in Q1 2022 to 46.0% in Q1 2023, in spite of the economic uncertainties associated with the war on Ukraine. "The volume of online loans issued is up significantly to 137 million in the period from 92.6 million in the prior year period. TBI Bank is making a strong contribution with loan issuance growing by 39% year-on-year. "Through international expansion, partnership and acquisition we are enjoying growth in Greece, the UK and the Philippines. We have strong liquidity in our online business and TBI Bank remains well capitalised."

Contacts Contact: James Etherington, Group Chief Financial Officer Email: james.etherington@4finance.com / investorrelations@4finance.com Website: www.4finance.com



Additional features:



File: 4finance report on 3M 2023 results





18.05.2023 CET/CEST Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

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The Funding Will Drive the Next Phase of Course5's Growth through Targeted Acquisitions and IP-Based Innovation in its AI Labs

LONDON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Analytics & AI solutions company, Course5 Intelligence, announced today that they are raising a round of funding of USD 55 million. The company has taken a first close with 360 ONE Asset Management Limited's (formerly known as IIFL Asset Management Limited) Tech Fund which focuses on growth-oriented technology companies. 360 ONE Asset has led the round by investing USD 28 million in Course5. The company will be closing the balance with other premier investors shortly. Course5 has been experiencing rapid growth and has delivered consistent financial performance.





Course5's analytics and insights solutions are backed by continuous innovation in Course5's AI Labs and also leverage global open research in AI technology. The company's enterprise analytics platforms are already integrated with Open AI's GPT models for Generative AI and offer enterprises the capability to rapidly leverage the latest technology innovations to derive business impact from data.

Course5 plans to use investor funds to supplement its strong organic growth with inorganic growth as well as synergistic acquisitions, and also ramp up its investments in innovation and advanced AI technology in areas such as deep learning, computer vision, natural language and generative AI. The company is in talks with several M&A prospects that would add strategic capabilities or IP to complement its existing bouquet of solutions. Course5 Intelligence is on track to cross USD 100 million revenue in the next fiscal and plans to launch its IPO in the next 18 months.

Ashwin Mittal, Chairman and CEO of Course5 Intelligence, said, "Course5 has been organically built on its own cash flows to date. We have always believed in being capital efficient and think that this is the right time to raise external capital given our trajectory and the tailwinds in our industry. We have been experiencing strong demand for our analytics and AI solutions with current and new clients. Analyst recognitions for our IP-based products and solutions have also been pouring in and testify to the kind of value we are creating for our clients. Course5's growth and client wins are largely due to our focus on building a world-class talent pool, driving innovation through our AI Labs, and creating business impact through the work we do. This funding will enable us to continue to invest in augmenting our value proposition for our clients. We are thrilled to have found a strong partner in 360 ONE Asset. They have a strong understanding of the technology landscape and have made many successful bets."

Chetan Naik, Fund Manager and Senior EVP at 360 ONE Asset, said, "Data Analytics is expected to see strong secular growth over the next decade with companies leveraging AI and Advanced Analytics to accelerate digital transformation. Course5 has emerged as a leading Data Analytics and Insights player with strong IP-led solutions and deep domain knowledge across Technology, Media & Telecom, Life Sciences, Consumer Packaged Goods and Retail. Course5 is amongst the few scaled, profitable, and highly capital efficient pure-play Data Analytics players out of India. Ashwin Mittal has built a highly respected and market-leading company, and we are excited to partner with Ashwin on the next journey of growth and value creation."

The funding will be targeted at expanding Course5's footprint in the current industries it serves, while also entering new sectors that are relevant to its business.

As Course5 continues to enhance its analytics and insights offerings with AI capabilities across machine learning, computer vision, natural language and generative AI, growing investor confidence in the company indicates that this is the way forward in the organizational growth and customer service excellence journey.

About Course5 Intelligence Limited

Course5 Intelligence Limited ("Course5") focuses on helping organizations drive digital transformation using artificial intelligence ("AI"), advanced analytics, and insights. Course5's AI-driven products and solutions and IP-led solutions are supported by industry-specific domain experience and the latest technologies and aim at enabling organizations to solve complex issues relating to their customers, markets, and supply chain at speed and scale. Course5 combines a multi-disciplinary approach to data integration across structured and unstructured data sources to help businesses grow through informed decision-making.

Course5 caters to some of the world's largest enterprises, including many Fortune 500 companies. The company's clients span Technology, Media, and Telecom (TMT), Pharma & Lifesciences, CPG, Retail, and other sectors. Course5 Intelligence has been recognized by leading industry analysts like Gartner and Forrester for its Analytics and AI capabilities and proprietary AI-based platforms.

About 360 ONE Asset Management Limited

360 ONE Asset Management Ltd, earlier known as IIFL Asset Management Limited, is one of India's leading alternates-focused and public markets-focused firm, offering products across multiple asset classes. With deep-domain knowledge, a strong understanding of the Indian markets and a highly experienced investment team, 360 ONE Asset is focused on creating the right risk-adjusted alpha for investors.

360 ONE Asset manages a total AUM of more than INR 58,000 crores* across all its businesses. The sizeable and growing asset management business is the market leader in alternatives and an important pillar of the 360 ONE group, growing independently but also synergistically. 360 ONE Asset's differentiated product suite includes alternative investment funds (AIFs), portfolio management services (PMS) and mutual funds (MFs) spanning across asset classes of public and private equity, fixed income and real estate. 360 ONE Asset has been playing a pivotal role in the growth of the AIF industry in India.

360 ONE Asset has been active in the private equity ecosystem since late 2015. Across multiple strategies, 360 ONE's Category II AIF has early-stage to late-stage investments across Technology, Healthcare, Financial Services and Consumer spaces. The company has made investments in multiple unicorns in India and generated exits from few portfolio companies.

*As on March 31, 2023

Securities investments are subject to market risks and there is no assurance or guarantee that the objectives of the scheme/strategy will be achieved. This press release is neither a recommendation nor a research report for investing in any of these sectors/portfolio companies and these sectors/portfolio companies may or may not form part of the portfolio of the scheme(s) in the future. The views & opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s)/individuals mentioned herein and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of 360 ONE Asset Management Limited ("360 ONE AMC") (Formerly known as IIFL Asset Management Limited) / 360 ONE WAM Limited ("360 ONE WAM") (Formerly known as IIFL Wealth Management Limited) and/or its subsidiaries.

Media Contact:

Megha Chaudhry

Vice President - Global Head of Marketing

Course5 Intelligence

M: +1(925)9179139

E: megha.chaudhry@course5i.com

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Canada's largest business jet manufacturer and one of Canada's largest defense contractors join forces to collaborate as Canada's Multi-Mission Aircraft Team to deliver leading-edge airborne capability combining Bombardier's renowned Global 6500 aircraft, with General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada's fully interoperable mission system technology and sensors for the ultimate no-compromise platform of the future.

This next-generation platform leverages General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada's expertise as the world leader in submarine hunting technology and its pedigree as a global force in providing anti-submarine warfare and airborne intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR), and maritime and overland capabilities to militaries around the globe.

The platform will put Canada at the forefront of next-generation multi-mission and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) both as an operator and allied exporter.

Bombardier Defense and General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada are also joining forces to call on the Government of Canada to open a competitive, fair and transparent procurement process that will ultimately allow for Canadian innovation to thrive, while stimulating high-caliber talent and the Pan-Canadian aerospace ecosystem.

MONTREAL, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bombardier Defense and General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada are collaborating to deliver the next-generation Multi-Mission and Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) aircraft that will meet the requirements set by the Government of Canada for the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft (CMMA) program. Both long-standing Canadian-based companies are leveraging their extensive networks to prepare for success in a competitive, open, and transparent procurement process, and are joining forces as Canada's Multi-Mission Aircraft Team.



With a long and highly successful track record delivering multiple specialized aircraft across the globe, Bombardier Defense stands out among special mission aircraft providers. Bombardier's products have proven themselves as reliable and fully interoperable platforms through versatile projects for some of the world's biggest defense contractors and for governments across the world, including the United States, Germany, and more.

The foundation for the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft Team's solution is the highly efficient and agile Global 6500 aircraft, the right-sized jet for the CMMA with next-generation engines, long range, high endurance, and coupled with proven reliability and better fuel efficiency as documented in the jet's recently published Environmental Product Declaration. The Global family of aircraft is the platform of choice for over 10 different mission types across the globe, given its ability to deploy in all weather conditions with full mission payload, its ultimate combination of speed, range and endurance, and its 24/7 worldwide support infrastructure.

The aircraft will host General Dynamics' best-in-class integrated mission systems, drawing directly from Canada's investment in the newly modernized CP140 Block IV and CH-148 Cyclone. This operationally-proven Canadian design forms the basis for the iterative and low risk integration of modernized sensors and systems enabling Canada to leap even further ahead of peers and adversaries alike. This future-proof foundation will also ensure continued operational relevance, responding to Canada's emergent needs through the middle of this century.

"Canadians deserve a leading-edge fleet for their Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft program. Bombardier is eager to take on this opportunity to deliver a state-of-the-art platform. This is a generational opportunity for a Canadian company to leverage its Made-In-Canada Global 6500 aircraft, renowned for their outstanding performance and customized mission enhancers for each client. Having Bombardier work on CMMA is the right choice from an aircraft performance standpoint, and also, an opportunity for Canada to foster innovation, bolster its capabilities and support talent across Canada's aerospace industry from coast to coast to coast," said Jean-Christophe Gallagher, Executive Vice-President, Aircraft Sales and Bombardier Defense.

"For decades, General Dynamics has been proud to provide solutions to Canada's defense requirements. This new partnership unlocks a generational opportunity to couple our leading edge, trusted mission systems to ultimately provide a made-in-Canada solution that supports Canada's multi-mission airborne needs into the future, while creating a readily exportable capability that will benefit Canada in so many other ways," said Joel Houde, Vice President and General Manager, General Dynamics Mission Systems-International.

Bringing together the unparalleled expertise offered by both organizations, this platform provides the very latest in airborne mission management technology while ensuring Canada's continued leadership in the ASW and ISR domains.

With Canada's largest business jet manufacturer and one of Canada's largest defense contractor joining forces to deliver a Canadian Multi-Mission aircraft, considerable benefits to the Pan-Canadian aerospace ecosystem will result, including the creation of high caliber jobs, numerous opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), scientific communities, and educational institutions in various regions of the country. With competitive acquisition and significantly lower operating costs, cross decking of existing mission system capabilities onto a high-performance, modern Global 6500 aircraft, which represents a low-risk, evolutionary approach to achieving Canada's multi-mission aircraft needs.

General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada supports the Government of Canada (GoC) across many projects including delivering the CP140 Aurora Incremental Modernization Project (AIMP). This modernization, along with the previous Aurora Structural Life Extension Project (ASLEP), will keep the CP140 at the leading edge of ASW capabilities and extend the operational life of the CP140 Aurora into the 2030s. The published CMMA procurement timeframe was prudently designed by the Department of National Defence to permit the Government of Canada to fully engage with industry to explore options to meet Canada's multi-mission aircraft needs and to have sufficient time to evaluate options. The Canadian-based platform brought forward by Bombardier Defense and General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada, providing world leading capabilities in ASW, ISR and operational efficiencies leveraging the Global 6500 aircraft is a prime example.

More information on Canada's Multi-Mission Aircraft Team will be unveiled as part of a May 31, 2023, press conference at CANSEC in Ottawa.

About General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada

General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada is Canada's largest defense contractor, with 75 years enduring presence in Canada, and is a leader among Canada's defense technology companies with a worldwide reputation for excellence in the production of anti-submarine warfare and airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems on both crewed and uncrewed platforms. A dynamic force in the aerospace business community, General Dynamics is advancing Canada's defense and security capabilities at home while aiming to increase global exports through leading-edge R&D, partnering with innovative suppliers, growing Canada's manufacturing base, and investing in a highly talented and diverse workforce. For more information, visit gdmissionsystems.ca.

About Bombardier

Bombardier (BBD-B.TO) is a global leader in aviation, focused on designing, manufacturing, and servicing the world's most exceptional business jets. Bombardier's Challenger and Global aircraft families are renowned for their cutting-edge innovation, cabin design, performance, and reliability. Bombardier has a worldwide fleet of approximately 5,000 aircraft in service with a wide variety of multinational corporations, charter and fractional ownership providers, governments, and private individuals. Bombardier aircraft are also trusted around the world in government and military special-mission roles leveraging Bombardier Defense's proven expertise.

For corporate news and information, including Bombardier's Environmental, Social and Governance report, visit bombardier.com. Learn more about Bombardier's industry-leading products and customer service network at defense bombardier.com. Follow us on Twitter @Bombardier.

For Information

Arevig Afarian

Bombardier

+1 514 240 1078 Lorena MacKenzie

General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada

+1 514 277 4927



Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5025c4fe-8ee0-488a-836b-82b646de26c2



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1ca4ca69-556c-4c22-8697-335cd5a18370

MoU Signing

Jean-Christophe Gallagher (left), Executive Vice-President, Aircraft Sales and Bombardier Defense, a...

CMMA Rendering

Rendering of Canada's Multi-Mission Aircraft proposed by Bombardier Defense and General Dynamics Mis...
SAN DIEGO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services ("Aji Bio-Pharma"), a leading global provider of bio-pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing services, today announced leadership changes at the company's site in San Diego, effective immediately. Bert Barbosa has assumed the role of President & COO, United States and welcomes Brian Blagg and Satoshi Katayama to join the company as the Executive Vice President, Operations and Vice President, Business Transformation, respectively. Along with these additions to the site leadership team, the company has also appointed Erik Riley as Senior Vice President, Corporate Planning. These changes will bring integral expertise to the company as it continues to expand its capacity and service offerings.





Mr. Barbosa joined the Aji Bio-Pharma leadership team in May 2018 as VP of Drug Product, bringing with him over 35 years of bio-pharmaceutical production, quality assurance, and compliance leadership and management experience. He then moved into the role of Sr. VP of Corporate Strategy in 2021, followed by the Executive VP of Operations position in 2022. As President & COO of Aji Bio-Pharma US, he is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the CDMO business at the US site.

Mr. Blagg joins Aji Bio-Pharma with 34 years of experience providing cross functional operations leadership in regulated industries including 23 years in the bio-pharmaceutical field. He has served in a variety of senior leadership roles at Revance Therapeutics, PDL Biopharma, and XOMA Corporation in addition to serving as a well-respected industry consultant. As Executive Vice President, Operations, Mr. Blagg is responsible for the Drug Product, Drug Substance, Label/Packaging, and Facilities/Engineering Operations.

Mr. Katayama began his career with Ajinomoto as a process chemist for the CDMO business in 1994. He then moved into a senior researcher role until 2015, when he became General Manager of the Bio-Fine Laboratories Process Chemistry group. In 2017, Mr. Katayama moved to Ajinomoto Group headquarters in Tokyo and started working in the Bio-Pharma Services Department as the General Manager of the Planning (Strategy) Group. As Vice President, Business Transformation, he supports the business strategy and cohesion of global Aji Bio-Pharma.

Mr. Riley joined Aji Bio-Pharma in August 2017 as Director of Financial Planning and Analysis with over 25 years of experience including both business unit and corporate management experience, in global, local and start-up settings. In 2022, Mr. Riley became Vice President of Corporate Strategy and, in 2023, Senior Vice President, Corporate Planning. In this new role, he is responsible for developing strategic goals for the organization while overseeing Human Resources, Finance, and Supply Chain/Procurement.

About Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services

Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services is a fully integrated contract development and manufacturing organization with sites in Belgium, United States, Japan, and India, providing comprehensive development, cGMP manufacturing, and aseptic fill finish services for small and large molecule APIs and intermediates. Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services offers a broad range of innovative platforms and capabilities for pre-clinical and pilot programs to commercial quantities, including Corynex protein expression technology, oligonucleotide synthesis, antibody drug conjugations (ADC), high potency APIs (HPAPI), biocatalysis, continuous flow manufacturing, and more. Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services is dedicated to providing a high level of quality and service to meet its client's needs. Learn more: www.AjiBio-Pharma.com

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The world's longest-running AI show series is hosting its 40th edition in Jakarta, Indonesia. Attendees will once again bear witness to next-gen solutions like AI, IA, Robotics, and Generative AI from global leaders and explore their relevance and impact on their organization.

JAKARTA, May 18, 2023 - (ACN Newswire) - With premium sponsors and partners, an ecosystem of more than 5,000 start-ups, and more than 20,000 delegates each year, the World AI Show global series enjoys the support of the IT world's elite. Known for providing a platform for sharing ideas, insights, and trends, Trescon's World AI Show is scheduled to take place on 7th & 8th June 2023, in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The central theme of this edition is using AI to enhance digital transformation. The aim of the conference is to address industry-wide challenges using innovative AI solutions to bring about significant changes in industries that are strategically important to Indonesia.

The world's longest-running AI show series assists businesses in accessing relevant and reliable information pertaining to AI and Web3 technologies to stay ahead of a rapidly changing market for company-wide success.



The World AI Show will allow business and tech leaders from around the world to connect, share ideas, and learn from each other under one roof. The World AI Show combines the most recent technological developments with real-world applications of AI to address problems in businesses. Attendees can interact with AI researchers at the forefront of their fields and explore real-world case studies to learn about the business value of AI, owing to our unique blend of academia and industry. Tech giants, as well as leaders from governments, startups, internationally recognized universities, and investment firms, will speak at the World AI Show.

Prof. Hammam Riza, President, KORIKA

" World AI Show brings together all stakeholder in accelerating National AI Strategy (Stranas KA) in Indonesia

NSekar, Chief Technology Officer, Blibli

" Excited to be part of the Indonesian tech ecosystem and the innovations that are being launched out of Indonesia. I am looking forward to learning from what the Indonesian tech ecosystem is creating that can be adopted by other parts of the world."



Indra Hidayatullah, Data Management & Analytics Division Head, PT. Bank Tabungan Negara (Persero) Tbk

" It's a well-organized and very interesting event. We'll explore best practices and new ideas in digital transformation and improve customer journey, especially by optimizing Artificial Intelligence."

Dr. Irvan Bastian Arief, VP of Data Science and Machine Learning Engineering, tiket.com

" The 40th World AI Show is a great event to gather artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) related global leaders to share, talk and discuss the advancement of AI and ML to push the maturity of this technology. As an expert in this domain, I want to share my knowledge with a greater audience and, at the same time, learn from other experts. I hope the 40th World AI Show will be massively successful."

Antonius Tan, Chief Digital Business Officer, Sequis Life

" World AI Show has always been the most-wanted event to collaborate with like-minded professionals to exchange knowledge and expertise in the field."



Christophe Hubert, VP of Engineering, EdenFarm

" As the world continues to shift towards AI-centricity, the World AI Show provides a global forum for thought leaders and innovators within the AI industry. They come together and collaborate, share knowledge, and explore the latest cutting-edge technologies in AI."

The show will cover in-demand industry topics like:

How will Indonesia deploy AI to accelerate economy and digital transformation

Exploring AI in the Metaverse

How AI, cloud, and improved connectivity are helping organizations to be more adaptive to a fast-changing world

Reinventing Cyber Security with AI

How AI will transform businesses

Digital Transformation & AI: Is your organization ready?

Bringing the power of AI to the Internet of Things

Harmonizing Analytics, AI & Cloud in your organization

Powering the future of Banking with AI in Indonesia

Achieving Sustainable Development Goals through AI innovation

Deep dive into Generative AI

This is what leading organizations have to say about their previous experiences at World AI Show:

"We'd like to acknowledge Trescon for all the great efforts and structured organization with thorough follow-up and accommodation." - Microsoft.

"It's been exciting, and exciting, and we think there is a lot of opportunity here, which is great." - Denodo.

"Exchanging ideas at an event like this really opens our thinking and helps to think about things differently. It was a great event." - Snowflake.

Some of our notable speakers include:

Prof. Hammam Riza, President, KORIKA, Indonesia

Dr. Anto Satriyo Nugroho, Director of Research Center for AI and Cybersecurity, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN)

Bambang Dwi Angonno, Director of e-Government, Department of Communications and Informatics, KEMKOMINFO

Dr. Rudy Salahuddin, Deputy Minister for Digital Economy, Manpower and SMEs, Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia

Nani Hendiarti, Deputy for Coordination of Environment and Forestry Management, Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Investment of the Republic of Indonesia

Raine Renaldi, Chief of Economy & Digital Asset Committe, KADIN - Indonesian Chamber of commerce & Industry

Dr. Lukas, Co-founder and Chairperson, Indonesia AI Society

Juan Kanggrawan, Head of Product, Data, Tribe, National Ministry (GovTech) & Smart Cities

Dr. Irvan Bastian Arief, VP of Data Science and Machine Learning Engineering, tiket.com

Sonny Supriyadi, Head, Pricing & Data Analytics, Maybank Indonesia

N Sekar, CTO, Blibli

Edmund Situmorang, Chief Technology Officer, PT. Asian Bulk Logistics

Indra Hidayatullah, Data Management & Analytics Division Head, PT. Bank Tabungan Negara, Tbk.

Indra S. Adillah, Head of ICT, PT. Indonesia Airasia

Christophe Hubert, VP of Engineering, EdenFarm

Dr. Sankaraiah Sreeramula, Chief Data Scientist, APP Sinarmas

Antonius Tan, Chief Digital Business Officer, Sequis Life

Mr. Shitalkumar R. Sukhdeve, Senior Data Scientist, PT. Smartfren Telecom

"The power of AI is limitless. At World AI Show, we are committed to showcasing the potential of AI & RPA in transforming our world and creating a brighter future for all. Our topics are current and address questions and challenges that are faced by decision makers across the world. Our carefully curated lineup of speakers is a medium to showcase the future of AI & RPA to the world. We look forward to hosting this event with great anticipation," says Mithun Shetty, Vice Chairman, Trescon.

World AI Show is sponsored by:

Platinum Sponsor: Dataiku

Gold Sponsor: Denodo | Alibaba Cloud | Aerospike

Executive Roundtable Partner: AMD

Exhibitor: Eranyacloud and Supported by KORIKA

About Trescon

Trescon is a global business events and consulting firm that provides a wide range of business services to a diversified client base. Trescon is founded and managed by a group of specialists with more than 8 decades of combined expertise in successfully developing business events, trainings and consulting for corporates, governments, associations and high-net-worth individuals across the world. With a deep understanding of the realities and requirements of the growth markets we operate in - we strive to deliver innovative and high-quality business platforms for our clients.

For further details about the announcement, please contact:

Nupur Aswani

Head - Media, PR, and Corporate Communications, Trescon

+91 95559 15156 | media@tresconglobal.com

Source: tresconCopyright 2023 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.


The third Asia Summit on Global Health (ASGH) attracted over 2,500 participants from 40 countries

and regions



Connected through Deal-making in last Asia Summit on Global Health, representatives from Centre

for Eye and Vision Research Limited, a local university research centre, and Cloudbreak Pharma

Incorporated signed a MOU on ocular science research on the first day of the Summit, witnessed

by HKTDC Deputy Executive Director Dr Patrick Lau (2nd from left, back row)



HKTDC Hong Kong International Medical and Healthcare Fair features the latest medical and

healthcare products and technologies

HONG KONG, May 18, 2023 - (ACN Newswire) - Global healthcare sector leaders streamed into Hong Kong for the second International Healthcare Week, organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). As the flagship Healthcare Week events, the third Asia Summit on Global Health (ASGH) and the 14th Hong Kong International Medical and Healthcare Fair (Medical Fair) featured fruitful discussions on a wide range of topics including the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as an innovation powerhouse, complemented by exchanges on Chinese-Western medicine, aging and women innovators. This flagship event has confirmed Hong Kong's status as an international R&D and business healthcare platform, where university research projects have been linked with potential investors and innovative medical devices promoted to international markets.The ASGH attracted over 2,500 participants from 40 countries and regions. The Medical Fair welcomed over 10,000 visitors from 56 countries and regions. More than 300 one-on-one deal-making sessions and over 600 business-matching meetings were also arranged to help participants seize business opportunities.Dr Peter K N Lam, Chairman of the HKTDC, said: "Drawing on its strengths in scientific research, a world-class medical system, a highly skilled workforce, strong financing and fundraising capabilities and advanced logistics and transportation infrastructure, and backed by the huge market of the Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong is the preferred hub and perfect springboard into Asia for the growing healthcare market."The strong support from the healthcare industry for the Healthcare Week is overwhelming. It has created synergies for medical and healthcare industry professionals and unleashed Hong Kong's strengths in upstream and downstream healthcare industries, Hong Kong is ready to play a bigger role in the medical and healthcare fields in the region," Dr Lam added.ASGH: thematic sessions examine hot topicsASGH, co-organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the HKTDC, continued to bring together healthcare leaders, innovators and investors. The first-day Plenary Session: Reimagining the Future of Healthcare invited Sir Jonathan Symonds, CBE, Chair, GSK as one of the speakers. He said: "When COVID struck, the world didn't collaborate in the way that it should have. There will be another COVID. We cannot operate in the same way as we did. We must tackle global problems globally." Another speaker, Mr Tatsuo Yasunaga, Representative Director, Chair of the Board of Directors, Mitsui & Co., Ltd, noted: "In implementing value-based healthcare, we try to achieve both clinical outcome improvement and cost savings. We expect to achieve the first goal through new drug and medical device developments and health risk management. We are also moving towards personalised healthcare to bridge the gap between medical care and prevention."The Unleashing Opportunities in Integrative Chinese-Western Medicine session today examined research, treatment and medicine developments that transformed markets in Asia and abroad. The session showcased the potential for complementary, integrative healthcare and highlighted the business opportunities that collaboration between Chinese and Western medicine presented.Mr Abraham Chan, Founder, Chairman, CEO and Executive Director at PuraPharm said modernising Chinese medicine included standardising products by creating standardised granules from herbs. Computer programmes let practitioners diagnose conditions and dispense treatments. Big data collected by practitioners helped improve products and perform drug discovery.Noting Hong Kong's high life expectancy and increase in the elderly population, panelists at the Ageing Well: Breakthroughs and Investment Landscape in Longevity session said this presented both challenges and opportunities, such as drug discovery, research financing and monitoring gadgets.Dr Donald Li, Chairman of the Elderly Commission, said higher demand for a wide range of healthcare products and services generated opportunities. This was especially true of monitoring devices allowing the elderly to live at home safely.Medical Fair: A proven platform reaching out to global buyersThe Medical Fair, organised by the HKTDC and co-organised by the Hong Kong Medical and Healthcare Device Industries Association (HKMHDIA) ran under the HKTDC's EXHIBITION+ hybrid model. The physical fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) successfully closed today, while exhibitors and buyers from around the world can continue conducting business online via the Click2Match smart business-matching platform until 25 May.University projects showcasedIn recent years, the Hong Kong SAR Government has actively promoted collaboration between the government, industry, academia and researchers by bringing together enterprises, universities and research institutes to cooperate and promote technological innovation.At ASGH, the hybrid InnoHealth Showcase and exhibition zone featured projects and solutions from more than 140 healthcare-related innovative technology enterprises, from which 50 of the enterprises and projects are presented by five local major universities, namely CUHK, HKBU, HKU, HKUST and PolyU. The Co-founder, Director & Chief Scientific Advisor of exhibitor Gut Rhythm R&D (Hong Kong) Limited Prof John Anthony Rudd said: "The event was highly successful for us. We gained a lot of exposure and were able to attract several potential investors. We also learned a lot and are very confident we could move forward."Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) and Cyberport joined ASGH as Health Innovation Partners from which ITC showcased 16 health-related InnoHK R&D centres to demonstrate Hong Kong's strength as a global innovation powerhouse.Numerous companies in the healthcare industry as well as six local universities and various enterprises supported by the universities, which are commercialising their research and development accomplishments, joined the Medical Fair to showcase cutting-edge medical products and technologies. Among the university-affiliated companies are Sramek Insight Limited, Herbap Biotech, Agilis Robotics, Metasurgical Technology, Cellomics International and Greater Bay Biotechnology.This year's fair, the largest in its history, assembled more than 300 exhibitors to feature the latest medical technologies and equipment, healthcare products and solutions and related services, drawing many buyers and industry professionals to source both onsite and online."I am glad that I met nearly 100 representatives from various medical organisations, our main target customers. I estimate that this fair will make over 60% of our yearly sales," said Mr King-Wah Tai, a sales representative for medical facility manufacturer Janley Limited (HK). The company has participated in the Medical Fair since 2014 and has benefited greatly from this year's fair. "Taking this chance to interact with people from the sector, understand what they need and how they think is very important to our business. The fair is not just for generating sales but also the perfect place to gain insight," Mr Tai added.Mr Valentin Cipian Pantea, Manager of Neomed S.R.L. from Romania, visited the Medical Fair to look for new medical-uniform manufacturers. "I plan to order about US$200,000 worth of products and hope to build a long-term relationship with them. Besides, using the Click2Match platform, I made a valuable business connection with a manufacturer from Mainland China. The platform is very helpful in getting to know people entirely out of our usual circle."A number of content-rich events, including the highly anticipated HKMHDIA Medical Fair Forum, were held during the Medical Fair with keen participation from industry professionals. Those who missed the seminars can watch replay videos on the fair's website at https://bit.ly/3DNBBXy.Websites- International Healthcare Week: https://internationalhealthcareweek.hktdc.com/en- Asia Summit On Global Health: https://www.asiasummitglobalhealth.com/conference/asgh/en- Programme: https://www.asiasummitglobalhealth.com/conference/asgh/en/programme- Speakers: https://www.asiasummitglobalhealth.com/conference/asgh/en/speaker- Hong Kong International Medical and Healthcare Fair: https://www.hktdc.com/event/hkmedicalfair/en- Interesting product list and Activity schedule: https://bit.ly/3V9mv6S- Media Room: http://mediaroom.hktdc.com- Photo download: https://bit.ly/3pTmGI0About HKTDCThe Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 to promote, assist and develop Hong Kong's trade. With 50 offices globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a two-way global investment and business hub. The HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to create business opportunities for companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the mainland and international markets. The HKTDC also provides up-to-date market insights and product information via research reports and digital news channels. For more information, please visit: www.hktdc.com/aboutus. Follow us on Twitter @hktdc and LinkedInMedia enquiriesFor enquiries please contact:Asia Summit on Global HealthYuan Tung Financial Relations:Anson Wong, Tel: +852 3428 3413, Email: awong@yuantung.com.hkAgnes Yiu, Tel: +852 3428 5690, Email: ayiu@yuantung.com.hkHing-Fung Wong, Tel: +852 3428 3122, Email: hfwong@yuantung.com.hkHKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department:Janet Chan, Tel: +852 2584 4369, Email: janet.ch.chan@hktdc.orgAgnes Wat, Tel: +852 2584 4554, Email: agnes.ky.wat@hktdc.orgHong Kong International Medical and Healthcare FairHKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department:Frankie Leung, Tel: +852 2584 4298, Email: frankie.cy.leung@hktdc.orgSource: HKTDCCopyright 2023 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
+39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz.

MADRID (dpa-AFX) - Spain's foreign trade deficit decreased notably in March from a year ago as exports grew more rapidly than imports, preliminary data from the Economy Ministry showed on Thursday. The trade deficit dropped to EUR 0.16 billion in March from EUR 4.64 billion in the corresponding month last year. In February, there was a shortfall of EUR 2.46 billion. Data showed that the energy deficit also narrowed to EUR 2.32 billion from EUR 4.07 billion a year ago. Exports logged double-digit growth of 17.7 percent year-over-year in March to EUR 38.93 billion. Imports grew at a comparatively slower rate of 3.6 percent to EUR 39.0 billion. Shipments of capital goods grew 27.2 percent over the year, and those of chemicals advanced by 11.4 percent. On a monthly basis, exports rose only 0.1 percent in March, while imports declined by 6.8 percent. During the first quarter, the total trade deficit of the country decreased to EUR 6.6 billion in March from EUR 15.4 billion in the corresponding period a year ago, driven mostly by a 14.6 percent increase in exports. Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved 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.
SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Capewell, a global leader in custom-engineered survivability and aerial delivery solutions, announced today that they have appointed Thomas Weidley as Chief Executive Officer. Weidley who previously served as Capewell's Chief Operating Officer will succeed Capewell's interim CEO, Lane Wiggers.





"We are very excited to promote Tom to the role of CEO", said Jack Nugent, Chairman of the Board of Capewell and Partner at Argosy Private Equity. He continued, "Tom is an outstanding leader with an incredible work ethic. His ability to connect with individuals inside Capewell, and stakeholders outside of Capewell, is nothing short of impressive. We look forward to working with Tom as Capewell continues to grow in the U.S., U.K., and around the globe."

Before joining Capewell in 2021 as Chief Operating Officer, Weidley served as Major General in the United States Marine Corps with 34 years of honorable service. Tom "Wheels" Weidley began his career in the United States Marine Corps after earning his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Ohio Northern University. He was commissioned into the USMC in 1987 and spent the early part of his service as a Naval Aviator and Attack Helicopter Pilot flying AH-1s. Tom participated in multiple combat operations in the Middle East, while also completing numerous assignments and deployments ashore and afloat within the Indo-Pacific Region. While serving, Tom earned his M.A. in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He also served for 8 years as a General Officer, leading a variety of Commands both at home and overseas. Since joining Capewell, Tom has made significant contributions to the Company's culture, strategy, and leadership, which has been an accelerant for performance and opportunity growth.

"Capewell has a storied legacy of excellence and innovation supporting the military that goes back 142 years." said Capewell's new Chief Executive Officer. "As CEO, I view my purpose as one that advances that legacy through growth, integrity, best-in-class current and future solutions for the warfighter, and relentless commitment to both our customers and our exceptional Capewell employees. I am humbled by the opportunity to lead such a tremendous organization on this journey," said Weidley.

"Tom is an admirable leader," says Lane Wiggers, Capewell's interim CEO. "Capewell's success is bolstered by a universal dedication to the customer's mission and warfighter safety. Wheels' extensive experience and background bring a specialized understanding of the customer's priorities. That understanding will continue to drive Capewell's unwavering commitment to integrity, quality and consistency in service to the customer."

About Capewell

Founded in 1881, Capewell is a leading designer, manufacturer and distributor of survivability and aerial delivery products and services for the defense community. With locations in the United States and Europe, Capewell supplies the Department of Defense, Allies, and Partners around the world with the most innovative, most effective custom-engineered solutions capable of withstanding today's dangerous operating environments. The company also offers training and doctrine development as part of its mission to save lives and increase success. Capewell maintains strong relationships with large government prime contractors and is a vital part of the global supply chain.

To learn more, visit www.capewell.com.





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ROSEMONT, IL / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / The 2023 Food Safety Summit, held from May 8-11, was a highly anticipated event that brought together 2,700 industry professionals, researchers, policymakers, and experts in person and virtually from around the world to discuss the latest advancements and challenges in ensuring food safety. The Summit combined 1,200 in-person and 1,500 virtual participants who were able to learn together. The six insightful sessions that were live streamed during the Summit are now available on demand until May 2024.

"It was wonderful to bring the food safety community together to share knowledge, network, and see the latest solutions on the exhibit floor," said Stacy Atchison, Publisher, Food Safety Magazine, producers of the Summit. "We thank our Educational Advisory Board, who developed stellar content that allowed for knowledge exchange, collaboration, and the development of strategies to address critical issues impacting the global food system. We also thank our exhibitors, sponsors, speakers, and partners for their commitment and support of the Summit and the industry."

The Summit started off with the interactive, informative "Got Root Cause?" workshop. Industry and regulatory experts discussed the importance and implementation of root cause analysis, and attendees applied their learnings by collaborating with their peers to get to the bottom of a hypothetical food safety incident scenario. The panel included Deb Kane from J&J Snack Foods, Tim Jackson from FDA, Natalie Dyenson, M.P.H. from Dole Food Company, Angie Siemens from Cargill, John Butts from FoodSafetybyDesign, Tim King from Quality Matters, Brendan Niemira, Ph.D. from USDA, and Robert Prevendar from Yum! Brands. To view the workshop on demand, click here.

The Keynote Presentation focused on a conversation with modern, forward-thinking executives on the topic of balancing risks for the safety of consumers, team members, and the environment. Panelists included Michael Eckhardt from Wawa, Inc.; Randy Huffman, Ph.D. from Maple Leaf Foods; David McDonald from OSI Group; and moderator Lone Jespersen, Ph.D. from Cultivate. The panelists discussed how successful food companies manage risks that sometimes compete for investment and leadership attention, including learning how to partner with colleagues from human safety, sustainability, and animal welfare to improve food safety performance and deepen a company's food safety culture. To view the keynote on demand, click here.

On the final day of the Summit, Donald A. Prater, D.V.M., Acting Director of the Office of Food Policy and Response, U.S. Food and Drug Administration; Rob Tauxe, M.D., M.P.H., Director, DFWED, NCEZID, DDID, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Sandra Eskin, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture; and Steve Mandernach, Executive Director, Association of Food and Drug Officials, participated in the 12th annual Town Hall. Each of the panelists shared updates from their organizations and participated in a lively Q&A session with attendees. The Town Hall was moderated by Gillian Kelleher, CEO, Kelleher Consultants LLC and Chair of the Educational Advisory Board (EAB) that develops content for the Summit. To view the Town Hall on demand, click here.

On Thursday afternoon, attendees had the chance to participate in a closing workshop, "Legal Insights to Sharpen Your Food Safety Focus-and Stay Out of the Courtroom!" The riveting panel discussion, moderated by Food Safety Magazine Editorial Director, Adrienne Blume, featured five internationally recognized, expert attorneys and is now available to download. Panelists Bill Marler with Marler Clark; Shawn Stevens with Food Industry Counsel LLC; Sharon Lindan Mayl with DLA Piper; Matthew Lash with the U.S. Department of Justice, Consumer Protection Branch; and Maile Gradison with Hogan Lovells shared their legal insights on what successful food safety leadership and culture look like, as well as the "red flags" and areas for improvement they have seen during their years of practice.

During the Food Safety Summit Gives Back networking reception, the Summit presented Mitzi Baum, CEO of Stop Foodborne Illness, with a check for $6,700, which included donations from exhibitors, sponsors, and attendees. A special thank you to Ambassador sponsors: Bar Tender by Seagull Scientific, Petro-Canada Lubricants, Gojo Industries, and Share-ify; Advocate sponsors: Highland Ag Solutions, Instant Recall, Recall InfoLink, and StateFoodSafety; and Ally sponsor: ELISA Technologies. The donations will support Stop Foodborne Illness' vision of "A World Without Foodborne Illness" and its mission to be the voice of people affected by foodborne illness by collaborating with partners in academia, the food industry, and government to prevent foodborne illness. In addition, Stop Foodborne Illness attracted over 3,000 food safety professionals to their 7th webinar with the FDA on "Assessing Food Safety Culture and its Impact," which took place in front of a live audience of 300 professionals.

During the three-day Summit, hundreds of professionals visited with 125 leading vendors to learn about the latest food safety solutions including Gold Sponsor Gojo Industries, makers of Purell; Silver Sponsor InstantRecall; and Bronze Sponsors Crunchtime and RedZone. New to the Community Hub, in the center of the Exhibit Hall, was the Food Safety Magazine Food Safety Matters Podcast Theater, where attendees listened in on interviews with distinguished Summit speakers including top regulatory officials, industry leaders, and academic experts.

"The 2023 Food Safety Summit proved to be an enriching and informative event, highlighting the latest advancements, best practices, and strategies in the field of food safety. The discussions and collaborations that took place during the Summit will undoubtedly contribute to the development of effective solutions to ensure a safer and more secure global food supply," added Stacy Atchison. "Plans are already being made for the 26th Annual Food Safety Summit, which will be held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL from Monday, May 6 through Thursday, May 9, 2024."

The Food Safety Summit is owned and produced by Food Safety Magazine (www.food-safety.com) and BNP Media (www.bnpmedia.com), one of the country's leading business-to-business media companies serving industry professionals across 60+ industries through magazines, custom media, e-newsletters, webinars, events, and market research. For more information on sponsorship or exhibiting opportunities, contact Kim Hansen at hansenk@bnpmedia.com or Adam Haas at haasa@bnpmedia.com. For more information and updates for the 2024 event, visit www.foodsafetysummit.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

# # #

For further information, contact:

Amy Riemer, Media Relations

978-475-4441 (office) or 978-502-4895 (cell)

amy@riemercommunications.com

SOURCE: Food Safety Summit

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755690/Over-1200-Food-Safety-Professionals-Gather-In-Person-and-Another-1500-Online-for-The-25th-Annual-Food-Safety-Summit
Interview: Uzbekistan-China cultural cooperation carries forward millennia-old story of Silk Road, says Uzbek scholar

Xinhua) 14:06, May 18, 2023

TASHKENT, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan and China have been actively cooperating in the cultural field in recent years, continuing their millennia-old friendship and exchanges between Silk Road civilizations, said a senior scholar from Uzbekistan's Academy of Sciences.

"Uzbekistan and China have been close partners on the Silk Road throughout history and established long-standing and stable economic and trade relations," Abdullayev Masharib Saydamatovich, deputy director of the Center for Promotion of Science at Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Since establishing diplomatic relations over 30 years ago, the two countries have continued to develop their relationship and cooperation in various fields, including economy and culture, he noted, citing the joint effort to restore the ancient city of Khiva as the best example of cultural cooperation between the two countries.

As one of the ancient cities situated along the Silk Road, Khiva has been a center of education, science and culture, and served as a cradle of civilizations spanning millennia, with Ichan Kala, the inner city of the ancient oasis of Khiva, added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1990.

However, due to a long-time lack of maintenance, some of the ancient buildings suffered damage of varying degrees. In 2014, Uzbekistan and China decided to jointly preserve and restore Khiva, and completed the project in 2019.

According to Saydamatovich, the restoration work was very difficult, requiring in-depth scientific research. At the beginning of the project, Chinese experts conducted a very detailed study of the original appearance of Khiva and used this to formulate the restoration plan.

"The restoration work on Khiva fully reflected China's experience in restoring cultural relics," said Saydamatovich, adding that during the restoration process, Chinese experts and scholars lived in Khiva and directly communicated and collaborated with local experts on how to better carry out the restoration work.

Under the principle of "restoration to the original," Chinese experts managed to use local traditional materials and techniques as much as possible so as not to change the appearance of the cultural relics, said the Uzbek scholar.

"Chinese experts worked meticulously and always strived to preserve the original style of the ancient city," said Saydamatovich, commending them for restoring all the relics to the original appearance.

He stressed that the restoration work by Chinese experts has been highly recognized in Uzbekistan, and China's expertise in restoring cultural relics has also been applied to the protection of other historical sites in Uzbekistan.

"After the joint restoration project in Khiva, cultural cooperation between Uzbekistan and China will continue, and joint restoration work will become an important direction for future cooperation between the two countries," he said.

Saydamatovich pointed out that Uzbekistan and China are now actively promoting cooperation in politics, society, culture, science and other fields under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Belt and Road Initiative.

"We believe that China's achievements in development will directly help Uzbekistan to further enhance its national strength. Uzbekistan looks forward to continuing to carry out extensive exchanges of experience with China," he added.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - KWG Resources Inc. (CSE: KWG) (CSE: KWG.A) ("KWG" or the "Company") upon receipt of required approvals, will amalgamate with its wholly-owned subsidiary Canada Chrome Corporation ("CCC"). CCC's assets will be transferred to its affiliate Ring of Fire Transportation & Utilities Inc., also a wholly-owned subsidiary of KWG now.

The amalgamated company will adopt the name Canada Chrome Corporation. KWG has acquired license to the business style and word mark "Canada Chrome", for its use pending completion of the amalgamation.

About KWG:

KWG is the owner of 100% of the Black Horse chromite project (formerly part of Fancamp's "Koper Lake-McFaulds" properties) in which Bold Ventures Inc. is carried through exploration of the former Fancamp claims for 10% of the chromite project. KWG also holds other area interests including a 100% interest in the Hornby claims, a 15% vested interest in the McFaulds copper/zinc project and a vested 30% interest in the Big Daddy chromite project. KWG also owns 100% of CCC which staked mining claims between Aroland, Ontario (near Nakina) and the Ring of Fire. CCC has conducted a surveying and soil testing program to assess the prospects for the engineering and construction of a railroad along that route between the Ring of Fire and Aroland, Ontario covering the claims staked by CCC. CCC engaged Cormorant Utilities and Rail-Veyor Technologies for Engineering Proposals for the construction of a transportation and utility corridor within the route and has received those proposals. KWG has also acquired intellectual property interests, including a method for the direct reduction of chromite to metalized iron and chrome using natural gas. KWG subsidiary Muketi Metallurgical LP has acquired two chromite-refining patents in Canada and one in each of the USA, South Africa and Kazakhstan, and is prosecuting an application in Turkey.

For further information, please contact:

Bruce Hodgman, Vice-President: 416-642-3575 ~ info@kwgresources.com

Forward-Looking Statements: Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date of this document and KWG disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.

No solicitation: This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any securities that may be described herein and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such.

Disclaimer: Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166556
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Armed conflicts are pervasive across geographic regions - creating deeply challenging conditions for companies to navigate through and within. Meanwhile, businesses face growing expectations for conflict-sensitive due diligence, with transparency on their operations, activities and supply chains.

A new GRI publication, Why corporate transparency is critical during conflict, explores this topic, with advice for companies on how to integrate sustainability reporting with their due diligence obligations, including those set out in intergovernmental guidelines by the UN and OECD.

As Peter Paul van de Wijs, GRI Chief Policy Officer, explained:

"There is no 'one size fits all' approach - each company will have specific impacts to consider related to the nature of the conflict, their business model and presence of staff in the conflict area. Through stakeholder engagement and a comprehensive assessment of what's relevant in a conflict, the GRI Standards enable organizations to understand their impacts, which is the starting point for a well considered response strategy. Transparency brings accountability; it's what turns the guidelines on due diligence into powerful tools that facilitate action."

The paper identifies five essentials for corporate due diligence during conflict:

Due diligence requires continuous communication: Companies need to regularly monitor changes in risks and impacts - from the conflict itself, and through their activities and operations. Maintaining close contact with key stakeholders is essential - such as staff, business partners and local communities. Actions depend on the nature of the company and the conflict: Given that conflicts can emerge or change dynamically, businesses need to be ready to reassess decisions on mitigating measures. For example, national conflicts can go international, or areas of operations might switch from government control to armed non-state groups. That means risk assessment, including human rights due diligence, is not a one-off exercise. Information is needed from multiple external sources: The ability to carry out full, conflict-sensitive risk and impact assessments may be challenging or impossible. Input from civil society actors, such as NGOs or human rights defenders, helps build a picture of the reality on the ground, while highlighting information gaps that need addressed. Recognition that tough decisions can be required: A company may face contrasting demands from different stakeholder groups - such as employees, communities and consumers. For example, how a business balances the international reputational damage associated with their presence in an area of conflict with their responsibilities locally towards those who rely on their goods, services or employment. Exiting a conflict-affected area brings obligations: Reaching a decision to cease operations needs risk assessment that involves and engages employees, local communities and human rights defenders. For example, identifying steps to ensure local staff receive income for the duration of the crisis, or capacity-building to mitigate the loss of employment.

Bringing personal and professional insights from living with conflict in Colombia, Andrea Pradilla, Director of GRI Latin America, shared:

"When you are working in a conflict, or you're trying to build peace, it's essential to create wide-ranging, multi-stakeholder partnerships. That takes time and commitment, but it's the only way forward. In Colombia, companies began to see GRI reporting as about more than just 'a report'. It became a way to communicate with stakeholders and tell the story of how they were navigating this complex context. Reports stopped being a monologue and became a dialogue." GRI thanks the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) for their financial support for this project.

In June 2022, GRI, GlobeScan and CSR Europe hosted the webinar Corporate Transparency and Due Diligence in Conflict-Affected Areas as part of Sustainability for Ukraine (S4U), the output of which informed the development of the policy paper. A recording of this session can be accessed online.

The GRI Mining Sector Standard, currently under development, highlights 'conflict affected and high-risk areas' among the likely material topics for mining companies to report on.

International guidelines and regulations setting out obligations and expectations for companies on due diligence during conflict include: the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, and the EU Conflict Minerals Regulation.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is the independent, international organization that helps businesses and other organizations take responsibility for their impacts, by providing the global common language to report those impacts. The GRI Standards, which are provided as a free public good, are the world's most widely used standards for sustainability reporting.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from GRI on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: GRI

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/gri

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: GRI

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755819/Due-Diligence-on-Conflict-Is-a-Business-Necessity
QINGDAO, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Hisense, the consumer technology brand has announced the launch of its brand new ULED X and hero U8 TV products in the South Africa region.





In 2022, Hisense TV ranked No.2 in global TV shipments, and as of April this year, Hisense TV sales in the South African market ranked first in the industry.





First unveiled at this year's CES, Hisense's 110-inch ULED X offers advanced optical systems, extraordinary image processing, and industry-leading display technologies. Similarly, the new range of U8 TVs promises to bring an enhanced visual and audio experience to South African consumers across the country.

Hisense is also committed to investing locally by providing professional skills training for local people at the South Africa Industrial Park. This enables them to move out of impoverished neighborhoods and become skilled industrial workers. At present, Hisense has created more than 1,000 direct jobs and more than 5,000 indirect jobs for local people in South Africa.

Speaking at the press conference launch in Johannesburg, Jerry Liu Vice President of Hisense International commented: "Since entering the South African market 20 years ago, the company has been steadily growing and expanding its presence across the country. As of 2022, we have achieved 98% brand awareness in this market, increasing our brand equity from 125 to 236. This is in part helped by attaching great importance to ESG. We pursue the development of green, healthy, low energy consumption and environmental protection, ensuring that Hisense remains a caring enterprise."

He continued: "Hisense has been practicing public welfare activities in South Africa for a long time, continually advocating for social good. Hisense South Africa Industrial Park Project was selected as a demonstration case of South-South cooperation by the UNOSSC. In 2022, Hisense partnered with FIFA to organize the "Disappearing Pitch" charity event to call attention to global warming and provide practical help to the community. Our promise is to continue to aid the growth of generations to come, with the power of science and technology to improve everyone's quality of life."

About Hisense

Hisense is a leading global home appliance and consumer electronics brand. Hisense's business covers multimedia products (with a focus on Smart TVs), home appliances, and IT intelligent information. Recently, Hisense has grown rapidly and is now operating in more than 160 countries.





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Komatsu autonomous haul truck and Toyota concept ALV





TOKYO, May 18, 2023 - (JCN Newswire) - Komatsu Ltd. (hereafter "Komatsu") and Toyota Motor Corporation (hereafter "Toyota") are pleased to announce the launch of a joint project to develop an Autonomous Light Vehicle (hereafter "ALV") that will run on Komatsu's Autonomous Haulage System (hereafter "AHS"). To realize further safety and productivity improvements in mines by running autonomous haul trucks and automated ALV controlled by AHS, Komatsu and Toyota are launching an effort to jointly develop new technologies. Both companies are currently testing a concept ALV at their proving grounds, and plan to have a proof of concept at a customer site by around January 2024.Minerals and energy resources are essential in our lives and industries. Autonomy offers the opportunity to remove people from harm's way and enhance safety. It can allow our mining customers the ability to continue the hard work of providing critical minerals despite the ongoing challenge of labor shortages in the mining industry. It can also provide additional safety measures to mine sites on which multiple pieces of equipment are operated, in an effort to reduce accidents due to human error.Since the launch of the world's first commercial application of an AHS in 2008, Komatsu has established proven performance in various mine environments and has earned a reputation for safety and productivity. Currently, when AHS-enabled autonomous haul trucks and manual light vehicles used for maintenance or transport are running on haulage roads at the same time, autonomous haul trucks may decrease their speed or stop when passing light vehicles to avoid possible collisions caused by human error. On the other hand, customer demand for improved productivity in mine operations when it comes to autonomous haul truck operating efficiency remains an issue.In light of those circumstances and in an effort to solve those issues quickly, Komatsu and Toyota have joined together to accelerate autonomy in mines. Komatsu will develop a new management program for ALVs on its AHS supervisory system, and Toyota will develop ALVs running automatically under AHS control.Role of each company1. Summary of the projectPurpose- By operating Komatsu's autonomous haul trucks and Toyota's ALVs in mine sites utilizing a common AHS, the following safety and productivity improvements will be realized across the mining operation:i. ALVs operating safely along haul roads.ii. Prevent accidental contact caused by driver, as may happen with existing manual light vehicles.iii. Minimize speed reductions or brief stops of autonomous haul trucks while passing light vehicles on a haul road.- Toyota's ALV autonomous operation accelerates further improvements and adds functions that contribute to safety and productivity.i. Autonomous transfer of parts for other mining equipment working in the field.ii. .Autonomous transfer of equipment operators for other machines such as loading equipment or bulldozersRole of each company- Komatsu Develop a new ALV management program on its AHS.- Toyota Develop an ALV which runs autonomously under the control of the AHS.2. Features of AHS- Since Komatsu launched the world first commercial application of AHS in 2008, the company has deployed over 650 trucks at twenty-two (22) sites in five (5) countries. (As of May 2023)- Komatsu AHS has earned a high reputation for safety and productivity from major global resource companies.Toyota makes safety a top priority and aims for zero casualties from traffic accidents as its ultimate goal. Toyota has been developing safe and automated driving technologies as part of its vision to provide "Mobility for All." In this development collaboration with Komatsu, Toyota's automatic driving technologies will be utilized to contribute to the safety of people in their workplace.Komatsu will strive to create new values in order to take steady steps forward to the next stage for the workplace of the future and pass on a sustainable future to the next generation through the DANTOTSU Value. DANTOTSU Value is defined as customer value creation that generates a positive cycle of improvement of earnings and ESG resolutions in Komatsu's mid-term management plan, entitled "DANTOTSU Value - Together, to 'The Next' for sustainable growth".Komatsu and Toyota share a vision for developing an affluent and sustainable society to pass on the next generation. To do that, we are accelerating our efforts to realize smart and clean future mine sites, leading to higher safety and productivity for our customer and partners.Copyright 2023 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Presenting Innovative Talent Solutions

DUBAI, UAE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- TalenTeam, a leading SAP Partner, is thrilled to announce its participation as a Platinum Sponsor at the highly anticipated HR Connect Middle East 2023. The event, featuring the theme "Change Work for Good," promises to deliver an array of exciting content, including thought-provoking discussions on innovation in employee experience and the journey from change to growth.

HR Connect is more than just a technology initiative, it's a cultural shift bringing together people, data, and processes to improve the employee experience and maintain competitiveness in a digital-first world, where technology is only the enabler. HR Connect is a way of creating a sense of community and supporting a commitment to customer success by highlighting great Human Experience outcomes.

As a Platinum Sponsor, TalenTeam shares SAP SuccessFactors' vision of redefining the approach for a breakthrough employee experience. TalenTeam will deliver a special Platinum Partner session on creating outstanding digital employee experiences with the help of SAP SuccessFactors solutions and TalenTeam's award-winning applications. The session will cover innovative approaches to learning that align with workforce of the future across organisations in all industries in the Middle East.

"This event aligns perfectly with our vision of creating exceptional workplace experiences. We look forward to connecting with industry leaders, sharing our expertise, and learning from others as we collectively shape the future of work in the Middle East," said Sandeep Nahata, CEO of TalenTeam.

HR Connect Middle East 2023 is scheduled to take place on June 7th in Auditorium at the Museum of the Future, Dubai, UAE. TalenTeam encourages HR professionals, industry experts, and businesses across all sectors to attend this influential HR event, fostering a collaborative environment where organisations can evolve their employee experience strategies. Those wanting to attend can now register here.

About TalenTeam

TalenTeam, SAP Gold Partner, helps organisations in all sectors, geographies, and sizes to deliver exceptional digital solutions that simplify HR and employee experience. TalenTeam has been awarded SAP Recognised Expertise for high degree of product knowledge and strong experience of providing HXM implementation, training, and support services. TalenTeam's award-winning apps and extensions fulfil unique business requirements and enhance the SAP SuccessFactors ecosystem so that customers can remain two steps ahead of the competition.

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Seoul Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (KOSDAQ 046890), a leading global innovator of LED products and technology, announced on May 16 that the Higher Regional Court in Dusseldorf, Germany, issued a final judgement confirming a permanent injunction for infringement of Seoul's patent against multiple LED companies' LEDs.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005058/en/

Seoul Semiconductor's patent technology applied to various solutions (Graphic: Seoul Semiconductor Co., Ltd.)

The permanent injunction judgement extends to LED products from Everlight Electronics Co., Ltd., which were distributed globally through Mouser Electronics Inc., as well as LED products from LED Engin merged into Osram GmbH. The German Supreme Court also confirmed the validity of Seoul's patent in July 2022 by dismissing a patent invalidation lawsuit brought by the accused infringer.

Starting in June 2023, the Unitary Patents system will be implemented in Europe. Under this new system, patent infringement judgements from the Unified Patent Court will simultaneously take effect in 17 European countries, including Germany, France, and Italy. As a result, the deterrent effect of patent infringement judgements has significantly increased, contributing to establishing a culture that respects intellectual property rights.

As a result, Seoul and its affiliates have obtained 14 permanent injunction judgements against manufacturers and distributors of infringing products in the U.S. and Europe over the past five years. These judgements also include permanent injunctions, an order of recall and destruction against filament LED bulbs manufactured by a Phillips brand affiliate.

"While emphasizing ESG management, some large LED companies are merely buying and distributing infringing products under their brands in the market without manufacturing activities. Also, some global finished goods companies continue to purchase and use these infringing products, despite being aware of the infringement," said Myeng-Ki Hong, CEO of Seoul. "For young people and small businesses, it is necessary to establish a culture that respects intellectual property rights, and Seoul will continue to take necessary measures against infringing companies based on our principle," he added.

About Seoul Semiconductor

Seoul Semiconductor is the world's second-largest global LED manufacturer, a ranking excluding the captive market, and has more than 18,000 patents. Based on a differentiated product portfolio, Seoul offers a wide range of technologies, and mass produces innovative LED products for indoor and outdoor lighting, automotive, IT products, such as mobile phones, computer displays, and other applications, as well as the UV area. Seoul's world's first development and mass production products are becoming the LED industry standard and leading the global market with a package-free LED, WICOP; a high-voltage AC-driven LED, Acrich; an LED with 10X the output of a conventional LED, nPola; a cutting edge ultraviolet clean technology LED, Violeds; an all-direction light emitting technology, filament LED; a natural sun spectrum LED, SunLike; and more. For more information, please visit www.seoulsemicon.com/en, YouTube, LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005058/en/

Contacts:

Seoul Semiconductor Co., Ltd.

Jinseop Jung

Tel: +82-10-5472-8732

Email: jjs8732@seoulsemicon.com
Fluence LEDs selected to enable Acceleration Platform for Innovation, a program helping companies participate in research advancing medical cannabis production across EMEA

Fluence, a leading global provider of energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial cannabis and food production, announced today an extension of its research partnership with Dutch organization Innexo BV (Innexo), a specialty agricultural contract research organization (CRO) that focuses on molecular farming and medicinal plants.

Innexo is leveraging Fluence's VYPR Broad R4 LED solution to support its new Acceleration Platform for Innovation (API) program. API empowers innovative, small-scale companies adjacent to the cannabis industry to perform research in medical cannabis cultivation. API's first round of participants, which include companies like biostimulant and fertilizer producers, will conduct research trials that focus on plant health, strength and resilience beneath Fluence LEDs.

"Fluence is the natural choice for a lighting provider to support API because we share a common vision to make research accessible and drive technological innovations that unlock the future of medical cannabis cultivation," said Dominique van Gruisen, managing director of Innexo. "Fluence's science-backed product development and in-house team of horticultural experts is unique among lighting providers. The insight and guidance API participants will receive from subject matter experts at Innexo and Fluence will accelerate their ability to build intellectual property through these research trials."

Innexo and Fluence's research collaboration started in October 2022. The companies, which are both recognized as innovators in cannabis research, first came together to investigate the effects of intra-canopy lighting versus top lighting applications in medical cannabis plants.

"The milestones we're experiencing in the legalization of cannabis in Europe, such as cannabis clubs for cultivation in Germany and the Dutch coffee shop tender, demonstrate significant opportunities and demand for the expansion of cannabis cultivation knowledge," said Timo Bongartz, general manager of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Fluence. "An increase in research questions has naturally accompanied the expansion of the legal market but is not always backed by the proper resources for exploration. Partnering with a cannabis research trailblazer like Dominique provides the opportunity to facilitate important access to tools that further innovation at Innexo BV."

Fluence will continue its commitment to furthering cannabis research to help the world grow smarter at GreenTech Amsterdam 2023, one of the largest cannabis industry events in the world. Fluence's GreenTech booth will host a series of research sessions, featuring Dominique van Gruisen and Fluence experts Dr. David Hawley, principal scientist, and Sebastian Olschowski, research project manager for EMEA.

For more information on Fluence, visit www.fluence.science.

About Fluence

Fluence Bioengineering, Inc. (Fluence) creates powerful and energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial crop production and research applications. Fluence is a leading LED lighting supplier in the global cannabis market and is committed to enabling more efficient crop production with the world's top vertical farms and greenhouse produce growers. Fluence global headquarters are in Austin, Texas, with its EMEA headquarters in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Fluence operates as a business unit within Signify's Digital Solutions division. For more information about Fluence, visit www.fluence.science.

About Innexo BV

Innexo BV is a specialty agricultural contract research organization (CRO) based in the Netherlands. The focus and expertise of the company are in medicinal plants, such as cannabis and molecular farming in general. Innexo BV is part of the Botany Group of companies. To learn more about Innexo BV, visit botanygroup.nl/en/innexo.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005301/en/

Contacts:

For EMEA,

Silvia Nagyova

silvia.nagyova@fluence-led.com

+49 160 93335045



For North America,

Callie Neatherlin

callie@redfancommunications.com

512-439-9720
Company to remain active on its Apollo Gold, MAX Lithium and Silver Strike projects

MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Tarku Resources Ltd (TSXV:TKU)(FRA:7TK)(OTCQB:TRKUF) (the "Company" or "Tarku") is pleased to announce that at its Annual General and Special Meeting of Shareholders, held on May 15, 2023, Tarku shareholders re-elected Bernard Lapointe, Julien Davy, Jeff Sheppard, Kyle Appleby and David Watkinson as directors.

Nominee Votes for % For Abstentions % Abstained Votes Against % Against Julien Davy 23,295,312 99.98% 5,000 0.02% 0 0.00% Bernard Lapointe 23,259,415 99.82% 40,897 0.18% 0 0.00% Kyle Appleby 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00% Jeff Sheppard 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00% David Watkinson 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00%

The shareholders also approved maintenance of the stock option plan as described in the information circular and reappointed Davidson & Company LLP as the independent auditor of the Company.

Following the annual meeting, the Board of Directors appointed the following individuals as officers of the Company: Bernard Lapointe, Chairman of the Board, Julien Davy, President and Chief Executive Officer and Kyle Appleby, Chief Financial Officer.

Update on Tarku's 2023 Exploration Programs

The Company's exploration portfolio has 3 separate components, namely gold, lithium and silver, allowing Tarku to react quickly to changes in market conditions. The Company will remain active in 2023 on all its key projects.

In Quebec, the recent drill program on its wholly-owned Apollo Gold project confirmed the presence of a strong gold-bearing orogenic system identified over a 3-km strike length. The results (see press release dated April 4, 2023) revealed several >10 m sections of anomalous gold-bearing rock associated with very finely disseminated cubic pyrite within pervasive silicification and/or quartz stockwerk systems. Examples of assay results received were:

Hole AP-22-005 intersected 8 m at 0.98 g/t Au .

. Hole AP-22-07 intersected four gold-bearing structures over 10 metres wide, including 46.9 m at 0.33 g/t Au, 11.27 m at 0.46 g/t Au, 20.48 m at 0.23 g/t Au and 14.0 m at 0.37 g/t Au, with mineralization at the end of the hole.

Tarku is now planning a phase 2 drilling program over a 5 km section, adjacent to the east that hosts similar high-potential geophysical anomalies, which could extend the length of the gold-bearing zone to up to 8 km.

In Quebec, Tarku also owns 100% of the MAX Lithium project, located 45 km north of Val-d'Or and 4 km southwest of Sayona Mining's North American Lithium mine (proven reserves of 1.2 million tonnes grading 0.92% Li2O and probable reserves 28 million tonnes grading 0.96% Li2O (source: company press release dated May 23, 2022)). As reported previously, Tarku will conduct a ground sampling and mapping program in the coming weeks.

On its wholly-owned Silver Strike project in Arizona, Tarku conducted a geophysical survey in 2022 and is now finalizing the planning of its 2023 exploration program, which will include surface mapping over the new targets generated, and potentially a drilling program, depending on market conditions. The data from the 2022 magnetic geophysical survey was the first recent geophysical data for the area and has been used successfully in the discovery of carbonate replacement deposits (CRD), Tarku's target at Silver Strike.

Tarku is also pleased to announce that the wholly-owned subsidiary of Exla Resources Inc. (OTC PINK:EXLA) has converted CA$150,000 of a CA$500,000 principal amount of a six percent (6%) convertible unsecured subordinated debenture due in 60 months (5 years) for a conversion price of $0.10. The unsecured convertible debenture was part of a purchase agreement between Tarku and Exla, pursuant to which Tarku acquired 100% ownership of the Silver Strike Project located in Tombstone, Arizona. The acquisition was announced in a news release dated February 25, 2022.

Qualified persons

Julien Davy, P.Geo., M.Sc, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tarku and a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 on standards of disclosure for mineral projects, prepared, supervised and approved the technical information in this news release.

About Tarku

Tarku Resources Ltd. (TSXV:TKU)(FRA:7TK)(OTCBQ:TRKUF) is a mining exploration company focused on advancing the development of new discoveries by using modern techniques in favourable mining jurisdictions such as Quebec and Arizona.

In Arizona, within the famous Tombstone District, Tarku owns 100% of the 29 km2 Silver Strike project. Silver Strike has been interpreted by management to have the potential for similar Carbonate Replacement Deposits (CRD) comparable to the Hermosa project, located 80 km west in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, which South32 acquired for USD 1.8 billion in 2018.

In Quebec, Tarku owns 100% of the "Three As" exploration projects (Apollo, Admiral and Atlas) in the Matagami Greenstone Belt, interpreted by management as the eastern extension of the Detour Belt, which has seen recent exploration successes by Midland Exploration, Wallbridge Mining Company and Probe Metals. In addition, the Company owns the MAX Lithium project, located 4 km southwest of Sayona Mining's North American Lithium mine.

On behalf of Tarku Resources Ltd.

Julien Davy,

President and CEO

Tarku contact information:

Email: investors@tarkuresources.com

Website: www.tarkuresources.com

Please follow @TarkuResources on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and activities to vary materially from targeted results and planning. Such risks and uncertainties include those described in Tarku's periodic reports including the annual report or in the filings made by Tarku from time to time with securities regulatory authorities.

SOURCE: Tarku Resources ltd

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755825/Tarku-Reports-on-the-Outcome-of-its-2023-Annual-General-Meeting-of-Shareholders-and-Provides-an-Update-on-its-2023-Exploration-Programs
XUZHOU, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- XCMG Machinery ("XCMG", SHE:000425) has opened its fifth International Customers Festival (the "Festival") recently in Xuzhou, China, lining up flagship products and innovative intelligent solutions to celebrate the Group's milestone achievements with global customers, partners, industry experts, and media throughout the seven-day global event.





The first Festival was attended by more than 300 customers from 22 countries and set the highest single-day order signing record of 500 million yuan (USD 71.155 million).

This year marks the 80th anniversary of XCMG. Internationalization has always been the key strategy as it builds a world-leading enterprise of construction machinery products and solutions, following the roadmap of "high-end, intelligent, green, service-oriented, and international" development.

In the past three years, XCMG has achieved significant results in the international market, increasing the number of overseas dealers to 350 while expanding the business scope to emerging sectors, including agricultural machinery. XCMG now exports to more than 190 countries and regions worldwide, with R&D centers, manufacturing bases, and assembly plants operating in more than a dozen countries, including Germany, Brazil, the U.S., and India.

As a top three construction machinery manufacturer worldwide, the group's five pillar sectors of earthmoving, hoisting, piling, concrete, and road equipment continue to lead the industry, and it has been China's No.1 construction machinery manufacturer for 34 years consecutively.

In 2022, XCMG has grown strongly in the overseas market, with sales revenue accounting for 30 percent of the total. Its overseas revenue in the first quarter of 2023 exceeded 10.6 billion yuan (USD 1.51 billion), a record-breaking number for single-quarter performance that accounted for 45 percent of the total revenue, marking a strong start to a prosperous year.

At the same time of the Festival, XCMG had a team visiting Europe as part of Xuzhou's trade delegation and signed orders totaling 32.526 million euros (USD 35.28 million) with customers in Germany, Poland, France, the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain.

"XCMG is committed not only to exporting 'Advanced and Endurable' products but also providing the integrated services and support as part of the 'whole value chain' strategy," said Lu Chuan, president of XCMG. "We're leveraging the technologies to build more overseas training centers and spare parts facilities to deliver prompt services to our global customers."

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080383/image_1.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/hosting-its-fifth-international-customers-festival-xcmg-machinery-advances-the-roadmap-of-internationalization-and-sustainable-development-by-highlighting-intelligent-transformation-and-new-energy-products-301828583.html
RALEIGH, NC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Newswire, an industry leader in press release distribution services, including content production, strategy, and planning as well as media technology, is excited to announce it now holds the spot as number one overall for press release distribution, according to G2.

The award-winning company continues to solidify itself as the industry leader as this announcement comes on the heels of its news of earning two TrustRadius Top Rated Awards.

"For nearly 20 years and counting, Newswire has built its business on its innovative press release distribution services that continue to help companies around the globe amplify and share their news," said Jennifer Hammers, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Issuer Direct. "Our team puts in their best effort daily, and securing the top spot as the press release distribution leader by G2 is a testament to that."

G2 is the leading provider of business software and services reviews and leverages its community's knowledge to help others make the right software and service decisions for their business.

Newswire provides its customers with a comprehensive host of press release distribution services that include:

Press Release Distribution - Newswire offers its clients 10 distribution packages to choose from, including Digital, Digital Plus, State, National, Financial, Canada, United Kingdom, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Global.

Press Release Optimizer (PRO) - A full-service program that helps companies develop newsworthy content and connect with the media to create the visibility they need. There are three tiers of the PRO plan:

Content PRO is made for those who need more support with planning and crafting their messaging.

is made for those who need more support with planning and crafting their messaging. Media PRO is made for those who are looking for more visibility and outreach to the media.

is made for those who are looking for more visibility and outreach to the media. Total PRO provides both content and media support.

Media Database - A subscription to Newswire's Media Database provides access to a comprehensive repository of media contacts updated in real-time through a blend of technology and human-centered review.

Media Monitoring - Track important news, measure author sentiment, and identify industry trends with Newswire's Media Monitoring technology.

Analytics - Report campaign metrics, analyze key channels, and calculate media value with Newswire's Analytics software.

Online Media Room - Showcase your press releases, news, and social media content in a secure and customizable newsroom.

To learn more about Newswire's press release distribution services, visit newswire.com.

About Newswire

Newswire is a media technology company that provides its clients with the Press Release Optimizer, which consists of press release distribution, media databases, media monitoring, and online media rooms that power the Media Advantage: greater brand awareness through earned media, increased online visibility through content strategy and planning as well as greater SEO recognition.

Through its disruptive Press Release Optimizer, relentless commitment to customer satisfaction, and passion for customer performance, Newswire is automating media and marketing communications for large and small businesses seeking to deliver the right message to the right audience at the right time for the right purpose.

To learn more about Newswire and its Press Release Optimizer, visit Newswire.com and discover why our customers have named us #1 for Customer Satisfaction and Ease of Use for four years in a row. For more information, visit http://www.newswire.com.

Newswire is a wholly owned subsidiary of Issuer Direct, a leading communications and compliance company, providing solutions for both Public Relations and Investor Relations Professionals. For more information, please visit www.issuerdirect.com.

Contact Information

Jennifer Hammers

Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing

jennifer.hammers@issuerdirect.com

919.481.4000

SOURCE: Newswire

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755609/Newswire-Earns-Top-Spot-as-Press-Release-Distribution-Leader-According-to-G2
Oceana calls on the company to redouble efforts to meet pledge and to reduce plastic, including helping and encouraging major bottling partners to increase the sale of reusables.



WASHINGTON, D. C., May 18, 2023to increase the overall share of its products sold in reusable packaging to 25% by 2030, The Coca-Cola Company's share of products sold in reusable packaging declined in 2022. The company, in its latest sustainability report, announced that the share of its products sold in reusable containers was 14% in 2022. This is a decline of two percentage points from the 16% share disclosedwhen the company announced its pledge last year. Oceana estimates, based on the company's total reported volume of sales, that the reported two percentage point decline in share could mean Coca-Cola instead produced the equivalent of an additional 5.8 billion 500ml (16.9 US fl. oz) single-use plastic bottles and cups over the last two years in place of reusable packaging.1

The company did not highlight the decline nor explain it in its sustainability report. In response to a request for information from Oceana, Coca-Cola explained that part of this decline was attributable to changes in reporting metrics. The Coca-Cola Company - in its sustainability report - also reported that its overall use of plastic packaging and virgin plastic increased in 2022.

"This is terrible news for the oceans because it means billions more single-use plastic bottles have likely been produced, many of which will go on to pollute the world's waterways and seas," said Matt Littlejohn, Oceana Senior Vice President. "This decline, the failure of The Coca-Cola Company to proactively explain why this happened, and the concurrent decline in reusable share by some of the company's largest bottling partners significantly undermine the viability of the company's recent reusable packaging commitment."

Major Coca-Cola bottlers have also reported declines in sales of beverages in reusable packaging since Coca-Cola's announcement in February 2022. Four bottlers that Oceana estimates accounted for nearly half of Coca-Cola's current reusable sales in 2022 - Coca-Cola FEMSA, Arca Continental, Coca-Cola Andina, and Coca-Cola Hellenic - all reported shares in 2022 that were smaller than those reported in 2021.2

Coca-Cola FEMSA accounted for an estimated 26% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola worldwide in 2022. It reported that the reusable share of its total sales declined from 34% (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/KOF-IR-2021-english-FS_3.pdf) in 2021 to 31.5% (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/KOF-2022-english-abr-4-11-00.pdf) in 2022. Despite this decline, Coca-Cola FEMSA stated that it exceeded Coca-Cola's 25% commitment in 2022 (in its most recent integrated annual report (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/KOF-2022-english-abr-4-11-00.pdf)). The company has not committed to a separate, public-targeted increase in its share of reusables in support of Coca-Cola's pledge. In response to Oceana, Coca-Cola FEMSA explained that it is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to expand its returnable and refillable capacity.

accounted for an estimated 26% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola worldwide in 2022. It reported that the reusable share of its total sales declined from 34% (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/KOF-IR-2021-english-FS_3.pdf) in 2021 to 31.5% (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/KOF-2022-english-abr-4-11-00.pdf) in 2022. Despite this decline, Coca-Cola FEMSA stated that it exceeded Coca-Cola's 25% commitment in 2022 (in its most recent integrated annual report (https://coca-colafemsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/KOF-2022-english-abr-4-11-00.pdf)). The company has not committed to a separate, public-targeted increase in its share of reusables in support of Coca-Cola's pledge. In response to Oceana, Coca-Cola FEMSA explained that it is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to expand its returnable and refillable capacity. Arca Continental, which accounted for an estimated 12% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola in 2022, reported that its reusable share declined from 26% (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/381587/integratedannualreport2021.pdf) in 2021 to 24% (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/393334/integrated_annual_report_2022.pdf) in 2022. Arca has adopted a goal (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/393334/integrated_annual_report_2022.pdf), in support of the Coca-Cola pledge, of having 25% of all its sales be in reusable containers - meaning that the company has pledged by 2030 to have its reusable share - as a percent of total sales -be lower than it was in 2021.

which accounted for an estimated 12% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola in 2022, reported that its reusable share declined from 26% (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/381587/integratedannualreport2021.pdf) in 2021 to 24% (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/393334/integrated_annual_report_2022.pdf) in 2022. Arca has adopted a goal (https://www.arcacontal.com/media/393334/integrated_annual_report_2022.pdf), in support of the Coca-Cola pledge, of having 25% of all its sales be in reusable containers - meaning that the company has pledged by 2030 to have its reusable share - as a percent of total sales -be lower than it was in 2021. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (Coca-Cola HBC), which accounted for an estimated 7% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola in 2022, reported that its refillable share was 13% (https://cz.coca-colahellenic.com/content/dam/cch/us/documents/a-more-sustainable-future/world-without-waste-/Packaging%20Fact%20Sheet%202022.pdf.downloadasset.pdf) in 2021 and 12% (https://www.coca-colahellenic.com/content/dam/cch/us/documents/oar-2022/Coca-Cola-HBC-2022-IAR.pdf.downloadasset.pdf) in 2022. In response to an inquiry from Oceana, Coca-Cola HBC explained that, because of a recent acquisition and changes in reporting, the 2021 and 2022 numbers were in their view not directly comparable.

which accounted for an estimated 7% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola in 2022, reported that its refillable share was 13% (https://cz.coca-colahellenic.com/content/dam/cch/us/documents/a-more-sustainable-future/world-without-waste-/Packaging%20Fact%20Sheet%202022.pdf.downloadasset.pdf) in 2021 and 12% (https://www.coca-colahellenic.com/content/dam/cch/us/documents/oar-2022/Coca-Cola-HBC-2022-IAR.pdf.downloadasset.pdf) in 2022. In response to an inquiry from Oceana, Coca-Cola HBC explained that, because of a recent acquisition and changes in reporting, the 2021 and 2022 numbers were in their view not directly comparable. Coca-Cola Andina, which accounted for an estimated 5% of all reusable sales by Coca-Cola in 2022, reported in its recently released sustainability report that its sales of reusables declined from 31.6% (https://www.koandina.com/uploads/Memoria-Anual2021%20Ingles.pdf) to 28% (https://www.koandina.com/uploads/Coca-Cola%20Andina%20Integrated%20Annual%20Report%202022.pdf). Coca-Cola Andina has pledged to reach 42.8% (https://www.koandina.com/uploads/reportes_financieros/Coca-Cola%20Andina%20Integrated%20Annual%20Report%202022.pdf) reusable packaging by 2030. It is the only major bottler to adopt a goal substantially more ambitious than the 25% pledge made by Coca-Cola.

Other large Coca-Cola bottlers, including Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) and Swire Coca-Cola, have made no commitments to increase sales of reusables relative to other packaging formats. CCEP, which reported an increase in the share of reusables sold in Europe from 2021 to 2022, did not disclose the total share of reusables sold by the company.

Oceana estimates that if Coca-Cola meets its commitment to reach 25% reusable packaging, the company could avoid producing the cumulative equivalent of over 100 billion 500ml single-use plastic bottles and cups.3 In addition, based on global rates of aquatic plastic pollution from a recent peer-reviewed study, Oceana estimates that approximately 8.5 to 14.7 billion plastic bottles and cups could be prevented from reaching our waterways and seas.4 Coca-Cola, according to the Break Free From Plastic Brand Audit, has been the world's top plastic polluter for the last five years.

Refillable bottles, the dominant form of reusable packaging used by Coca-Cola and its bottlers, get reused as many as 25-50 times, depending on what material they are made of (plastic or glass). This means that each refillable bottle has the potential to replace 24-49 single-use plastic bottles. Coca-Cola FEMSA has reported that by using refillable bottles, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by up to 47% compared to single-use plastic bottles.

Oceana is calling on Coca-Cola to step up and provide the support and leadership needed to grow the sales of reusable containers dramatically worldwide, including aggressively marketing the plastic-reducing benefits and other advantages of reusable packaging to consumers. Additionally, each bottling company within the Coca-Cola system should demonstrate its commitment to the new goal by pledging to increase their share of reusables by at least ten percentage points above current levels. By doing so, these beverage and bottling giants can prevent billions of single-use plastic bottles and cups from entering our oceans.

Media Contacts:

Gillian Spolarich, gspolarich@oceana.org

Anna Baxter, abaxter@oceana.org

Click here for sources
Quantum computing has the potential to solve complex problems that are beyond the reach of classical computers. Industries such as finance, logistics, healthcare, materials science, cryptography, and optimization are expected to benefit from quantum computing.

PUNE, India, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Exactitude Consultancy, the market research and consulting wing of Ameliorate Digital Consultancy Private Limited has completed and published the final copy of the detailed research report on the Quantum Computing Market.





The global quantum computing market size is projected to reach USD 3947.77 million by 2029, at a CAGR of 30.5% during the forecast period 2023 to 2029.

The recently released Quantum Computing Market research content has been painstakingly created by industry professionals using in-depth data analysis and a thorough understanding of various markets. In-depth research, whitepapers, case studies, trend assessments, and industry insights from a variety of industries, including but not limited to technology, healthcare, finance, consumer goods, and manufacturing, are included in this extensive collection.

What is Quantum computing?

Quantum computing is a multidisciplinary field comprising aspects of computer science, physics, and mathematics that utilizes quantum mechanics to solve complex problems faster than on classical computers. The field of quantum computing includes hardware research and application development. Quantum computers are able to solve certain types of problems faster than classical computers by taking advantage of quantum mechanical effects, such as superposition and quantum interference. Some applications where quantum computers can provide such a speed boost include machine learning (ML), optimization, and simulation of physical systems. Eventual use cases could be portfolio optimization in finance or the simulation of chemical systems, solving problems that are currently impossible for even the most powerful supercomputers on the market.

Click & Get Free Sample Report in Minutes:

https://exactitudeconsultancy.com/reports/15766/quantum-computing-market/request-a-sample

Quantum Computing Market Drivers:

Advancements in Quantum Hardware: The development of more stable and scalable quantum hardware is a crucial driver for the quantum computing market. Progress in areas such as qubit coherence time, error correction, and qubit count enables the construction of more powerful and reliable quantum computers. Continued advancements in quantum hardware technologies drive the growth and capabilities of the quantum computing market.

Increasing Demand for Computing Power: With the explosion of data and the complexity of computational problems, there is a growing demand for more powerful computing systems. Quantum computers have the potential to solve certain problems exponentially faster than classical computers, making them attractive for applications in fields such as optimization, simulation, cryptography, machine learning, and drug discovery. The need for enhanced computing power and the pursuit of breakthrough solutions drive the demand for quantum computing.

R&D Investments and Funding: Governments, technology companies, and venture capitalists are investing significant resources into quantum computing research and development. Funding supports academic research, startup companies, and large-scale projects aimed at advancing quantum technologies. These investments are crucial in driving innovation, accelerating progress, and bringing quantum computing closer to commercial viability.

Partnerships and Collaboration: Collaboration among industry players, research institutions, and governments is a key driver for the quantum computing market. Partnerships enable the pooling of expertise, resources, and capabilities, fostering technological advancements and knowledge sharing. Collaborative efforts help address the challenges in developing quantum hardware, software, and algorithms, driving the overall progress of the quantum computing market.

Here Are Some Of The Technological Advancements In The Quantum Computing Market:

Qubit Development: Qubits, or quantum bits, are the fundamental units of information in quantum computing. Technological advancements are focused on developing more stable and scalable qubits. Different types of qubits, such as superconducting, trapped-ion, topological, and silicon-based qubits, are being explored to improve qubit coherence, reduce errors, and increase computational power.

Error Correction: Quantum computers are prone to errors due to environmental noise and imperfections in qubits. Error correction techniques, such as quantum error correction codes and fault-tolerant quantum computation, are being developed to mitigate errors and improve the reliability of quantum computations. These techniques are critical for scaling up quantum systems and achieving higher accuracy.

Quantum Algorithms: Quantum algorithms are specifically designed to leverage the unique properties of quantum computers and solve problems more efficiently than classical algorithms. Researchers are developing quantum algorithms for applications such as optimization, simulation, cryptography, machine learning, and quantum chemistry. Advancements in quantum algorithms are essential for unlocking the full potential of quantum computing and driving its adoption in various domains.

Competitive Insight

Some of the Notable Market Players Operating In The Global Quantum Computing Market Covered In This Report Are:

IBM Corporation

Telstra Corporation Limited

IonQ Inc.

Silicon Quantum Computing

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.

Alphabet Inc.

Rigetti & Co Inc.

Microsoft Corporation

D-Wave Systems Inc.

Zapata Computing Inc. Mergers and acquisitions

joint ventures

capacity expansions

Recent Developments:

Increased Funding and Investments: The quantum computing market has witnessed a surge in funding and investments. Governments, technology companies, and venture capitalists are allocating significant resources to quantum research and development. For example, the U.S. government has launched the National Quantum Initiative Act, which includes $1.2 billion in funding for quantum research over a five-year period. These investments are fueling advancements in quantum hardware, software, and algorithms.

Quantum Supremacy Achievements: In 2019, Google announced the achievement of quantum supremacy, a milestone where a quantum computer outperforms classical computers in a specific task. Google's quantum processor, called Sycamore, solved a computational problem in just 200 seconds that would take the most powerful supercomputers thousands of years to solve. This achievement showcased the potential of quantum computing and garnered significant attention in the industry.

IBM Quantum Roadmap: IBM has been actively involved in the development and promotion of quantum computing. They have released a roadmap outlining their plans for advancing quantum hardware and software over the next decade. IBM aims to build quantum computers with thousands of qubits and error rates below one percent, paving the way for more complex and practical applications of quantum computing.

Browse the full "Quantum Computing Market by Offering (Hardware, Software, Service), Deployment Type (On-Premises, Cloud-Based), Application (Optimization, Simulation and Data Problems, Sampling, Machine Learning), Technology (Quantum Dots, Trapped Ions, Quantum Annealing), End-user (Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI), Aerospace & Defense, Manufacturing, Healthcare, IT & Telecom, Energy & Utilities) and Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa) Global Trends and Forecast from 2022 to 2029" Report and TOC at: https://exactitudeconsultancy.com/reports/15766/quantum-computing-market/

Segment Overview:

Quantum Computing Market, By Offering, 2019-2029 (USD Million)

Hardware

Software

Service

Quantum Computing Market, By Deployment Type, 2019 - 2029 (USD Million)

On-Premises

Cloud-Based

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Regional Insights

North America: North America, particularly the United States, has been at the forefront of quantum computing research and development. It is home to several prominent companies, research institutions, and startups focused on quantum technologies. The U.S. government has launched initiatives such as the National Quantum Initiative Act and has made substantial investments in quantum research. Major players like IBM, Google, Microsoft, and Honeywell are actively involved in advancing quantum computing in this region.

Europe: Europe has emerged as a key player in the quantum computing market. Countries like Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland have made significant investments in quantum research and development. The European Union has launched the Quantum Flagship Program, a 1 billion Euro initiative aimed at accelerating quantum technologies. European companies and research institutions are collaborating on projects and partnerships to drive advancements in quantum hardware, software, and applications.

Asia Pacific: Asia Pacific is witnessing rapid growth and investments in the quantum computing market. China has made substantial investments in quantum research and development as part of its national strategy to become a global leader in quantum technologies. Companies like Alibaba, Huawei, and Baidu are actively involved in quantum computing research and applications. Other countries in the region, including Japan, South Korea, Australia, and Singapore, are also investing in quantum technologies and fostering collaborations.

What Are The Key Data Covered In This Quantum Computing Market Report?

Market Size and Forecast: The report would provide an analysis of the current market size for quantum computing and offer forecasts for future growth. This would include revenue projections, compound annual growth rates (CAGR), and estimations of market value.

Market Segmentation: The market report would likely segment the quantum computing market based on various factors such as hardware, software, services, applications, and end-user industries. This segmentation helps provide a detailed understanding of the different market segments and their respective growth potential.

Competitive Landscape: The report would analyze the competitive landscape of the quantum computing market, identifying key players, their market share, and strategic initiatives. It would include a comparison of different companies in terms of their offerings, partnerships, collaborations, acquisitions, and research activities in the quantum computing space.

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MIAMI, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / iTolerance, Inc. ("iTolerance" or the "Company"), an early-stage regenerative medicine company developing technologies to enable tissue, organoid or cell therapy without the need for life-long immunosuppression, today announced that it has entered into a research collaboration agreement with Israeli-based company, Kadimastem, to co-develop and commercialize a breakthrough and innovative regenerative technology to cure diabetes without the need for chronic immunosuppression.

As part of the agreement, Kadimastem will supply its advanced cell product for the treatment of diabetes called IsletRx, which is comprised of clinical-grade clusters of human pancreatic islet like cells (ILCs) with the ability to secrete insulin. IsletRx cells can detect the sugar levels in the body and produce the required amounts of insulin and glucagon, just like a healthy pancreas can, and enables the insulin dependent patient to avoid an abnormal drop in sugar level (hypoglycemia). iTolerance will provide its iTOL-100 immunomodulatory technology intended to enable the transplantation of allogeneic cells without the need for chronic immunosuppression.

Upon the signing of their agreement, the companies have received their first milestone payment of the US$1 million (NIS 3.65 million) total grant from the Binational Israel-U.S. Industrial R&D (BIRD) Foundation. The funding will be used to support the joint project that combines the aforementioned technologies towards clinical application of iTOL-102, an allogeneic cell product intended to utilize stem cells to derive pancreatic islets which allows an inexhaustible supply of insulin-producing cells that can be transplanted without the need for chronic immunosuppressive treatments.

Dr. Anthony Japour, Chief Executive Officer of iTolerance, commented "We are excited to enter this research agreement with Kadimastem to evaluate the combination of their stem cell technology with our proprietary iTOL-100 technology. We believe that this collaboration has the potential to provide a much-needed, innovative cure for the patients we work to serve and drive significant value for both companies. Additionally, we are grateful to the BIRD Foundation and their continued support and funding of the work as part of this agreement."

Kadimastem CEO Asaf Shiloni added, "We are eager to begin our collaboration with iTolerance, which has developed a unique technology for cell transplantation without the need to suppress the immune system. The combination of Kadimastem's abilities in the field of diabetes with iTolerance's may in the future enable diabetic patients to live without the need for insulin injections, subject of course to regulatory compliances, and I believe that we will soon be able to bring a joint product to the clinic, with the aim to improve the lives of millions of diabetics worldwide."

The prestigious grant was awarded by the BIRD Foundation after comprehensive due diligence and a competitive evaluation process between projects from different technology fields. Top experts in the field from both the Israel Innovation Authority and from the NIST in the US examined the combined project thoroughly, including the technology underlying the development, the regulatory pathway, and the ability and feasibility to commercialize and market the product that will be developed.

The BIRD Foundation, established in 1977, invests in collaborations between Israeli and American companies in various fields of technology, for the development of joint products. In addition to financial support for grants, the fund assists companies in locating potential strategic partners and creating connections between the American and Israeli industry.

About iTolerance, Inc.

iTolerance is an early-stage privately held regenerative medicine company developing technologies to enable tissue, organoid or cell therapy without the need for life-long immunosuppression. Leveraging its proprietary biotechnology-derived Streptavidin-FasL fusion protein/biotin-PEG microgel (SA-FasL microgel) platform technology, iTOL-100, iTolerance is advancing a pipeline of programs using both allogenic pancreatic islets and stem cells that have the potential to cure diseases. The Company's lead program, iTOL-102, leverages significant advancements in stem cells to derive pancreatic islets which allows an inexhaustible supply of insulin-producing cells. Utilizing iTOL-100 to induce local immune tolerance, iTOL-102 has the potential to be a cure for Type 1 Diabetes without the need for life-long immunosuppression. Additionally, the Company is developing iTOL-201 for the treatment of liver failure by utilizing hepatocytes and iTOL-401 as a nanoparticle formulation for large organ transplants without the need for life-long immunosuppression. For more information, please visit itolerance.com.

About Kadimastem

Kadimastem is a clinical stage cell therapy company, developing and manufacturing "off-the-shelf", allogeneic, proprietary cell products based on its technology platform for the expansion and differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells (hESCs) into functional cells. AstroRx, the company's lead product, is an astrocyte cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment for ALS and in pre-clinical studies for other neurodegenerative indications.

IsletRx is the company's treatment for diabetes. IsletRx is comprised of functional, insulin and glucagon producing and releasing pancreatic islet cells, intended to treat and potentially cure patients with insulin-dependent diabetes. Kadimastem was founded by Professor Michel Revel, CSO of the company and Professor Emeritus of Molecular Genetics at the Weizmann Institute of Science. Professor Revel received the Israel Prize for the invention and development of Rebif, a multiple sclerosis blockbuster drug sold worldwide. Kadimastem is traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE: KDST).

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe-harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used herein, words such as "anticipate", "being", "will", "plan", "may", "continue", and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements or information that refer to expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, performance or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking.

All forward-looking statements are based upon the Company's current expectations and various assumptions. The Company believes there is a reasonable basis for its expectations and beliefs, but they are inherently uncertain. The Company may not realize its expectations, and its beliefs may not prove correct. Actual results could differ materially from those described or implied by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, without limitation, anticipated levels of revenues, future national or regional economic and competitive conditions, and difficulties in developing the Company's platform technology. Consequently, forward-looking statements should be regarded solely as the Company's current plans, estimates and beliefs. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company cannot guarantee future results, events, levels of activity, performance or achievements. The Company does not undertake and specifically declines any obligation to update, republish, or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrences of unanticipated events, except as may be required by law.

Investor Contact

Jenene Thomas

Chief Executive Officer

JTC Team, LLC

T: 833.475.8247

iTolerance@jtcir.com

Media Contact

Susan Roberts

T: 202.779.0929

sr@roberts-communications.com

SOURCE: iTolerance, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755687/iTolerance-Inc-and-Kadimastem-Enter-into-Collaboration-Agreement-for-Development-of-a-Potential-Cure-for-Type-1-Diabetes-and-Receive-US-10-Million-Grant-from-the-BIRD-Foundation
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Kimberly-Clark announced the 62 recipients of its 2023 Bright Futures Scholarships. The Bright Futures program is administered by the Kimberly-Clark Foundation and awards college scholarships to children of Kimberly-Clark employees throughout North America. Recipients are selected based on academic achievement, community service, extracurricular activities, and work experience.

"This year's scholarship recipients have demonstrated an impressive commitment to academic excellence and community service, and we are inspired by their achievements," said Jenny Lewis, Vice President of the Kimberly-Clark Foundation. "We are proud to support them as they pursue their goals in higher education and look forward to all they will achieve."

Each Bright Futures scholarship is worth up to $20,000 ($5,000 per year for up to four years) for full-time students studying at accredited colleges and universities. This year, Kimberly-Clark awarded Bright Futures scholarships totaling $1,240,000 to 62 students in the U.S. and Canada. Since its inception, the program has granted more than $46 million in scholarships to more than 2,300 students for full-time study at accredited colleges and universities.

The average GPA for this year's Bright Futures scholarship class is 3.97. Awardees will attend leading colleges and universities, including Columbia University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Princeton University, and the University of California Los Angeles. Past scholarship recipients have gone on to pursue successful careers in medicine, education, the armed forces, and engineering.

Click here for more information on this year's award recipients.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Kimberly-Clark Corporation on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Kimberly-Clark Corporation

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/kimberly-clark-corporation

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Kimberly-Clark Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755853/Kimberly-Clark-Awards-Bright-Futures-College-Scholarships-to-62-Students-in-US-and-Canada
STRONGSVILLE, OH / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Foundation Software, LLC - provider of America's #1 construction accounting software - announced today that they've changed the name of their biennial conference from Foundation Software User Conference to CONVERGE.

CONVERGE is designed to bring together users of any Foundation Software product and give them the opportunity to network with one another, connect with the Foundation Software team, learn more about their specific product and gain information regarding other Foundation products.

The name change was decided on to reflect the rapid growth of the company. "We want our audience to know it's the same conference our clients have come to know and love but it has expanded to be accessible for all our users," said Mike Ode, CEO of Foundation Software. "CONVERGE represents a coming together of all our products, services, clients, partners, and vendors."

The next iteration of the event is specifically referred to as CONVERGE24 and will be held at the Omni Nashville Hotel from April 22-25, 2024, in Nashville, Tennessee. Elizabeth Ames, Events Planning Manager at Foundation Software, LLC. is already excited for the event, saying, "This is our second destination conference, and we are so excited to head to Nashville and unite for education, networking, best practices, industry knowledge and fun!"

Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in educational sessions facilitated by consultants and trainers. Included in the conference will be training sessions for all products at all user level, a keynote address, various guest speaker sessions and a vendor pavilion featuring industry thought leaders and partners. Participants will have the chance to network, engage with expert staff from all of Foundation's product lines and explore the city of Nashville.

The Foundation Software family includes Foundation Software, Payroll4Construction, McCormick Systems, Estimating Edge, HQSuite and AboutTime Technologies. CONVERGE24 will be open to users of any of these products.

For more information about the event, what to look forward to at the conference, or to sign up for exclusive event notifications, please go to events.foundationsoft.com/user-conference/.

Foundation Software, LLC

Foundation Software delivers job cost accounting, estimating and takeoff, project management, mobile applications, and payroll services, to help contractors run the business side of construction. For information, call (800) 246-0800, visit www.foundationsoft.com or email info@foundationsoft.com.

Contact Information:

Tracie Kuczkowski

VP of Marketing

tak@foundationsoft.com

(800) 246-0800

SOURCE: Foundation Software

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755845/Foundation-Software-Renames-Biennial-User-Conference-to-CONVERGE
ATHENS, GA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Plandai Biotechnology (OTC PINK:PLPL) is pleased to announce a comprehensive rebranding initiative following the successful completion of its share exchange agreement with ByoPlanet, LLC. Furthermore, Plandai is proud to state that all the contingencies required for closing have been satisfied, and as a result of the share exchange, all of ByoPlanet's assets have been rolled up into Plandai, thereby transforming Plandai into a fully operational company that is no longer a shell.

Previously recognized as a company engaged in the research, development, and manufacturing of products, including cannabis and CBD, Plandai abandoned its former classification. Today, we are thrilled to unveil Plandai's transition from the cannabis sector to the disinfectant industry, reflecting the company's shifting focus.

"Plandai is forging ahead," stated Rick O'Shea, Manager of ByoPlanet and now the CEO of Plandai. "We have embraced change and are tremendously enthusiastic about the future. This strategic shift forms an integral part of our robust plan to expand our market share in the disinfectant business."

In line with this rebranding and strategic transformation, Plandai is actively working on completing its name and trading symbol corporate action with FINRA to better align with its new business model, and with a commitment to transparency and investor engagement, Plandai is updating its website and establishing a dedicated social media account for investor relations. This account will provide investors with real-time information on the company's strategic developments and operational progress.

This rebranding represents a significant milestone in Plandai's journey, underscoring the company's resolve to make a substantial impact in the disinfectant industry. We invite all stakeholders to join us as we embark on this exciting new chapter.

About Plandai Biotechnology, Inc.

Plandai Biotechnology, Inc. (OTC: PLPL) is a biotech firm dedicated to delivering industry-leading solutions in the disinfectant sector. With its innovative approach and unwavering commitment to excellence, Plandai is pioneering new paths in the industry, catering to the needs of customers and making positive contributions to the wider community.

About ByoPlanet

ByoPlanet is a leader in disinfection solutions, offering innovative technologies and services that enhance health outcomes across various settings. ByoPlanet prioritizes the delivery of superior disinfection and infection control solutions, working closely with partners to develop customized solutions tailored to their unique requirements. Trusted by businesses and organizations worldwide, including hospitals, education, animal health, and government agencies, ByoPlanet's disinfection solutions are highly regarded.

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains forward-looking statements that are based upon current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements and the assumptions upon which they are based are reasonable, we can give no assurance or guarantee that such expectations and assumptions will prove to have been correct. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by the use of words like "may," "will," "should," "could," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "intend," or "project" or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, as these statements are subject to numerous factors and uncertainties, including but not limited to: adverse economic conditions, competition, adverse federal, state and local government regulation, international governmental regulation, inadequate capital, inability to carry out research, development and commercialization plans, loss or retirement of key executives and other specific risks. To the extent that statements in this press release are not strictly historical, including statements as to revenue projections, business strategy, outlook, objectives, future milestones, plans, intentions, goals, future financial conditions, events conditioned on stockholder or other approval, or otherwise as to future events, such statements are forward- looking and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made.

Media Contact

Adrian Fulle

Global Chief Marketing Officer

ByoPlanet

info@byoplanet.com

SOURCE: Plandai Biotechnology

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755749/Following-Completed-Share-Exchange-Agreement-with-ByoPlanet-Plandai-Announces-Material-Rebranding-to-Disinfectant-Industry-Focus
The partnership aims to elevate the growth of UAE ecommerce merchants by providing SME's with revenue-based funding facilities.

DUBAI, UAE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PayTabs, MEASA's award-winning payment solutions provider, today announced a strategic partnership with FlapKap, MENA's leading revenue-based financing platform.





The collaboration between the two firms aims to support new and existing PayTabs entrepreneurs, webpreneurs and small and medium e-commerce businesses (SMEs) based in the UAE to obtain a fast and flexible funding offer within hours.

SMEs are key players in the global landscape, especially in fast paced economic hubs like the Emirates. Because twice as many young Arabs in the GCC shop online now compared to five years ago, ecommerce is a lucrative and high potential sector for entrepreneurs wanting to launch their next big idea. In fact, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce forecasts the UAE e-commerce market is expected to reach US$9.2 billion by the end of 2026 with electronic gadgets, fashion and food leading the way for the growth of the SME sector. However, trying to raise capital to scale up an e-business or working capital to run an ecommerce enterprise is still proving to be a long, intimidating, and tedious process.

Under this landscape, PayTabs facilitates digital payment processing and offers merchants multiple payment acceptance methods including debit cards, credit cards and wallets - while FlapKap enables SME e-commerce businesses in the UAE to leverage on financing solutions via the FlapKap app. As part of the collaboration, more SME businesses will enable their e-stores to accept mobile, social, QR and online payments seamlessly and securely through the PayTabs payment gateway while availing working capital financing from FlapKap to meet their business inventory purchasing or logistic support requirements, for example.

Commenting on the partnership Neelam Keswani, PayTabs UAE General Manager said, "FlapKap is the ideal partner as they understand the challenges that small businesses face since they operate under a similar eco system. Our partnership enables more web stores to streamline their payment acceptance and digital invoicing so they can focus on obtaining necessary funding to scale their businesses to meet the surging demand for ".

Kunal Harisinghani, FlapKap's VP of Growth added: "Our partnership with PayTabs is one that will add tremendous value to the SME ecosystem. It's the first time in the region that a best-in-class Payments Solutions provider and an innovative Revenue-Based-Funding solution have come together. FlapKap and PayTabs share a similar agenda to impact the SME and Ecommerce segments; empowering them with data driven growth opportunities. With the FlapKap solutions being added as an offering for PayTabs merchants, brands can now unlock larger value creation by means of increased inventory purchasing power, marketing optimization, and regional expansion. I am extremely excited about this partnership, and we will certainly be evolving this further continuously to bring growth to our valued merchants.'

About PayTabs

The PayTabs Group is an award-winning payments solutions powerhouse founded by Saudi entrepreneur Abdulaziz Al Jouf.

Having processed the first live payment gateway transaction in 2014, today PayTabs processes transactions in multiple currencies and markets, swiftly and securely. By providing the infrastructure for B2B payment solutions, including digital invoicing for businesses, QR code, social media payments, point of sale and switching platforms, PayTabs facilitates seamless e-commerce and social commerce solutions for merchants and super merchants.

Over a decade, PayTabs has custom built and exported a full stack of game changing solutions. These include mobile applications, hospitality, governmental, education, airline, travel, transport, and biller solutions, to interlink the multi-billion-dollar enterprise market chain in the region.

In 2021, PayTabs launched PT Touch, the ?rst soft POS solution in the MENA market to transform smart phones into merchant point of sale (POS) terminals. In 2022, PayTabs made a leapfrog move to pioneer next generation payments, by launching its home owned, globally validated unified payments and transaction processing platform -PayTabs SwitchOn. PayTabs unified payment processing orchestration enables governments and large-scale originations to become independent payment platforms to serve their industries.

In 2022, the company acquired the Saudi point-of-sale company Digital Pay and Turkiye's social commerce platform Paymes to complement its existing retail portfolio. In early 2023, PayTabs received payment gateway certification from Saudi Payments.

PayTabs has dedicated offices in the GCC including the UAE & Saudi Arabia and presence in many other locales including Turkey, India, and Egypt. The company is an equal opportunities employer with a multi-cultural team. For more milestones visit https://site.paytabs.com/en/

About FlapKap

FlapKap is MENA's leading Revenue Based Financing (RBF) fintech solution that has been founded by Ahmad Coucha and Khaled Nassef in 2022.

Born in Cairo, Egypt; the young powerhouse has spread rapidly to the larger MENA region and established exponential growth with its innovative tech solution for funding ecommerce businesses.

FlapKap unlocks growth potential in ecommerce brands by providing Funding for inventory and combining it with their innovative tech. FlapKap provides ecommerce brands funding that is Fast, Flexible and Insightful. The key differentiation being flexibility wherein brands are provided funding that is Revenue Based payback modelled and is collateral Free.

FlapKap's entry into the GCC was also keeping in mind that the RBF solution is Shariaa compliant and is Equity free. Which means FlapKap doesn't take Equity like traditional VC funding.

The solution is tailored for Ecommerce brands that are able to sign up on FlapKap app by simply connecting their ecommerce store (Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento etc) and get a funding offer in 48 hours. The offer includes growth consultancy from the inhouse team of ecommerce growth experts. This combination of growth consultancy with funding is the unique success formula which hundreds of brands have leveraged across the MENA region already.

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/fintech-firms-paytabs-and-flapkap-collaborate-to-superpower-uae-ecommerce-brands-301828431.html
+39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz.

WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A report released by the Conference Board on Thursday showed a continued decrease by the group's reading on leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of April. The Conference Board said its leading economic index slid by 0.6 percent in April after tumbling by 1.2 percent in March. The decrease, which matched economist estimates, marked the thirteenth consecutive decline by the index. 'Weaknesses among underlying components were widespread-but less so than in March's reading, which resulted in a smaller decline,' said Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, Senior Manager, Business Cycle Indicators, at The Conference Board. 'Importantly, the LEI continues to warn of an economic downturn this year,' she added. 'The Conference Board forecasts a contraction of economic activity starting in Q2 leading to a mild recession by mid-2023.' The Conference Board said the coincident economic index rose by 0.3 percent in April after inching up by 0.2 percent in March. Meanwhile, the lagging economic index edged down by 0.1 percent in April after coming in unchanged in the previous month. Copyright(c) 2023 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved 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.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Metallic Minerals Corp. (TSXV:MMG)(OTCQB:MMNGF) ("Metallic Minerals" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the completion of a 9.5% strategic equity investment by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Newcrest Mining Limited ("Newcrest"). Pursuant to the placement, Metallic Minerals issued 15,838,593 units at a price of $0.40 per unit for gross proceeds of approximately $6.3 million.

Each unit was comprised of one common share and 0.75 of a common share purchase warrant. Each full warrant entitles Newcrest to purchase one additional common share for $0.55, providing approximately $6.5 million in additional funding if the warrants are exercised in full. The warrants are exercisable for three years, subject to early acceleration if Metallic Minerals' common shares trade for 20 consecutive trading days at or above $0.825 on the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued pursuant to the placement are subject to a hold period of four months and one day.

Metallic Minerals CEO and Chairman, Greg Johnson, stated, "We are pleased to welcome Newcrest as a cornerstone shareholder and look forward to collaborating with their technical team to advance the La Plata project. Preparations are underway for a first phase resource expansion drill campaign targeted to start in June focused on extending the high-grade copper and precious metals mineralization announced in February of this year."

Proceeds from the placement are intended to advance exploration on, and for acquisitions related to, Metallic Minerals' La Plata mining project located in Colorado, USA and for working capital and general corporate purposes. Metallic Minerals and Newcrest will establish a technical committee that will act in a non-binding advisory capacity to the board of directors, providing management access to Newcrest's substantial technical expertise in similar mining operations.

In connection with the placement, the parties entered into an investor rights agreement pursuant to which Newcrest is entitled to certain rights provided it meets and maintains certain minimum ownership requirements, including rights to: (i) participate in future equity offerings and other security issuances to maintain minimum ownership levels; (ii) a right of first refusal on the sale of the La Plata project or certain of Metallic Minerals' economic interests therein; and (iii) nominate a director to the Metallic Minerals' board, which right becomes effective if Newcrest acquires ownership of at least 13% of the outstanding common shares of the Company. Newcrest has agreed to certain non-solicitation, standstill and area of interest protections in favor of Metallic Minerals for a period of two years, unless its ownership percentage in Metallic Minerals falls below certain specified thresholds prior to then.

About Newcrest Mining

Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX, TSX, PNGX: NCM) is one of the world's largest gold mining companies with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia and operating mines in Australia, Canada and Papua New Guinea. Newcrest is a technical industry leader, with particular expertise in exploration, deep underground block caving and metallurgical processing. Newcrest is committed to creating a work environment where everyone can go home safe and healthy every day, and where everyone actively contributes to this outcome; operating and developing mines in line with strong environmental, social and governance practices; developing a diverse workforce; and developing and maintaining strong relationships with communities and governments.

About Metallic Minerals

Metallic Minerals Corp. is a leading exploration and development stage company focused on copper, silver, gold and other critical minerals in the La Plata mining district in Colorado, and silver and gold in the high-grade Keno Hill and Klondike districts of the Yukon. Our objective is to create shareholder value through a systematic, entrepreneurial approach to making exploration discoveries, growing resources, and advancing projects toward development.

At the Company's La Plata project in southwestern Colorado the 2022 inaugural NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate identified a significant porphyry copper-silver resource containing 889 Mlbs copper and 15 Moz of silver. Results from 2022 expansion drilling intercepted the longest and highest-grade interval ever encountered at La Plata and one of the top intersections for any North American copper project in the past several years. An updated NI 43-101 resource estimate for the La Plata project incorporating these results is expected in Q2 2023. In the 2023 Fraser Institute's Annual Survey of Mining Companies, Colorado ranked 5th globally for investment attractiveness and 2nd in the USA.

In Canada's Yukon Territory, Metallic Minerals has consolidated the second-largest land position in the historic high-grade Keno Hill silver district, directly adjacent to Hecla Mining's operations, with more than 300 Moz of high-grade silver in past production and current M&I resources. Hecla Mining Company, the largest primary silver producer in the USA and third largest in the world, completed the acquisition of Alexco Resources and their Keno Hill operations in September 2022. Hecla is targeting to start production at the Keno Hill operations by Q3 2023. Metallic is anticipating the announcement of inaugural mineral resource estimate at Keno Silver in the second half of 2023.

Metallic Minerals is also one of the largest holders of alluvial gold claims in the Yukon and is building a production royalty business by partnering with experienced mining operators, including Parker Schnabel of Little Flake Mining from the hit television show, Gold Rush, on the Discovery Channel.

All of the districts in which Metallic Minerals operates have seen significant mineral production and have existing infrastructure, including power and road access. Metallic Minerals is led by a team with a track record of discovery and exploration success on several major precious and base metal deposits in the region, as well as having large-scale development, permitting and project financing expertise. The Metallic Minerals team has been recognized for its environmental stewardship practices and is committed to responsible and sustainable resource development.

Early Warning Disclosure

Newcrest acquired ownership of 15,838,593 units under the private placement. Prior to the private placement, Newcrest did not own any securities of Metallic Minerals. After giving effect to the private placement, Newcrest beneficially owns and exercises control over a total of 15,838,593 common shares and 11,878,944 warrants. These securities represent 9.5% of Metallic Minerals' issued and outstanding common shares on a non-diluted basis upon completion of the private placement or 15.5% of Metallic Minerals' issued and outstanding common shares on a partially-diluted basis assuming the exercise by Newcrest of the warrants comprising the units only. Newcrest acquired the units for investment purposes, and in the future it may, from time to time, increase or decrease its investment in Metallic Minerals through market transactions, private agreements, treasury issuances or otherwise at any time, depending on market conditions and any other relevant factors it deems appropriate for investment purposes, subject to the terms of the investor rights agreement described above and other applicable restrictions.

Metallic Minerals' head office is located at Suite 904, 409 Granville Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6C 1T2.

Newcrest's head office is located at Level 8, 600 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia.

An early warning report will be filed by Newcrest in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws and will be available under Metallic Minerals' profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com and may also be obtained by contacting Vlada Cvijetinovic at (604) 335-9202.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Website: mmgsilver.com

Phone: 604-629-7800

Email: cackerman@mmgsilver.com

Toll Free: 1-888-570-4420

Forward-Looking Statements

Forward Looking Statements: This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts including, without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the financing, the exercise of warrants and the use of proceeds of therefrom, potential mineralization, historic production, estimation of mineral resources, the realization of mineral resource estimates, interpretation of prior exploration and potential exploration results, the timing and success of exploration activities generally, the timing and results of future resource estimates, permitting time lines, metal prices and currency exchange rates, availability of capital, government regulation of exploration operations, environmental risks, reclamation, title, trends in commodities prices and future plans and objectives of Metallic Minerals are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although Metallic Minerals believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of material factors and assumptions. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include unsuccessful exploration results, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, results of future resource estimates, future metal prices, availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms, general economic, market or business conditions, risks associated with regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of personnel, materials and equipment on a timely basis, accidents or equipment breakdowns, uninsured risks, delays in receiving government approvals, unanticipated environmental impacts on operations and costs to remedy same, and other exploration or other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by Metallic Minerals with securities regulators. Readers are cautioned that mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral exploration and development of mines is an inherently risky business. Accordingly, the actual events may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on Metallic Minerals and the risks and challenges of their businesses, investors should review their annual filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Metallic Minerals Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755859/Metallic-Minerals-Completes-Strategic-Equity-Investment-by-Newcrest-Mining
TARRYTOWN, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Historic Hudson River Towns (HHRT), a non-profit consortium of riverfront municipalities along the Hudson River, has teamed with audio tour developer TravelStorys to introduce a series of new and updated audio tours that complement existing favorite tours. Available in time for a summer season when many are eager to enjoy outdoor walks and leisurely bike rides, the tours can be downloaded free via the TravelStorys app. GPS activated walking and biking tours highlight local points of interest as visitors pass each location in villages including Piermont and Nyack in Rockland County; Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow in Westchester County; and on the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path. The tours can also be enjoyed by armchair travelers or people planning a visit to the Hudson Valley, as anyone who downloads the app can explore photos, text and audio descriptions of local landmarks without even leaving home.

Free walking or biking audio tours of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path are available at www.hudsonriver.com

Walking and Biking Tours of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Shared Use Path. A must for visitors and local residents alike, walking and biking tours are available for this stunning path that crosses over the Hudson River. The 3.6-mile path is the longest of its kind in the nation and includes a series of six scenic overlooks with sweeping river views. The tours highlight Hudson Valley history, unique features of the bridge itself, and more.

The new audio tour of Piermont, New York includes the famous flywheel on Piermont Pier

NEW for 2023! Walking Tour of Piermont, NY. This new tour highlights extraordinary points of interest in this scenic village along the Hudson, from the Piermont Pier to the historic Train Station and beyond. Produced by the Piermont Historical Society with support from the Rockland County Office of Economic Development and Tourism, the tour is narrated by Tom Chapin.

The combined Irvington, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow audio tour includes landmarks such as The Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow

Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow Walking and Biking Tours. The combined Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow tours have been updated with new features for 2023. Available for walking or biking, the tours include a playful new map, designed by local illustrator Tim Grajek, leading visitors to points of interest in each village. Additionally, Spanish language translation has been added for local highlights in Tarrytown, along with new restaurant and business listings. Is the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow, featured in Washington Irving's tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," a real place? Visitors will find out with this engaging audio tour!

The combined Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow tours have been updated with new features for 2023. Available for walking or biking, the tours include a playful new map, designed by local illustrator Tim Grajek, leading visitors to points of interest in each village. Additionally, Spanish language translation has been added for local highlights in Tarrytown, along with new restaurant and business listings. Is the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow, featured in Washington Irving's tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," a real place? Visitors will find out with this engaging audio tour! Village of Nyack and "Edward Hopper's Nyack" Walking and Biking Tours. Two tours are available in the Village of Nyack, and both can be enjoyed as walking or biking tours. These include the Nyack Tour, from the Village's charming Main Street to historic points of interest, and "Edward Hopper's Nyack," which allows visitors to explore the Village through the eyes of Edward Hopper, the iconic painter who made his home here. Visitors will see and hear about buildings and vistas in Nyack that inspired Hopper throughout his career.

Two tours are available in the Village of Nyack, and both can be enjoyed as walking or biking tours. These include the Nyack Tour, from the Village's charming Main Street to historic points of interest, and "Edward Hopper's Nyack," which allows visitors to explore the Village through the eyes of Edward Hopper, the iconic painter who made his home here. Visitors will see and hear about buildings and vistas in Nyack that inspired Hopper throughout his career. Driving Tour of 16 Rivertown Communities. Whether from a car (with hands-free audio) or at home as visitors explore remotely, this tour explores points of interest in 16 communities along both sides of the Hudson River from Yonkers to Peekskill, or from Nyack to Haverstraw and beyond.

Tours in Nyack, Irvington, Tarrytown, and Sleepy Hollow, as well as the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path and Rivertowns driving tour were created with the support of the New York Thruway Authority. The free tours are available by downloading the TravelStorys app or going to www.hudsonriver.com.

About Historic Hudson River Towns

Historic Hudson River Towns (HHRT) is a non-profit organization comprised of 17 member municipalities located along the Hudson River shoreline from Yonkers to Peekskill in Westchester County, and including Piermont, Nyack and Haverstraw in Rockland County, New York. HHRT encourages both local residents and visitors from around the country to explore all that the Rivertowns have to offer. Information on local events, dining and shopping opportunities, free audio tours and more can be found at www.hudsonriver.com.

###

Media Contact:

Burns Patterson

Executive Director

Historic Hudson River Towns

burns@hudsonriver.com

(917) 575-9155

Facebook

Instagram

SOURCE: Historic Hudson River Towns

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755878/Historic-Hudson-River-Towns-and-TravelStorys-Introduce-New-and-Updated-Free-Audio-Tours-of-Local-Communities
Monheit brings a track record of execution to the rapidly expanding AI Operations provider.

CHICAGO, IL / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / ClearCOGS announced today their addition of Matthew Monheit as its Vice President of Operations. The former Restaurant Brands International leader has spent the majority of his career in restaurant Finance, Innovation and Digital Operations across brands like Burger King and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.

Matthew Monheit Joins ClearCOGS

Picture of Matthew. ClearCOGS names Matthew Monheit of Restaurant Brands International as Vice President of Operations.

"We're in a pivotal time for restaurant-level profitability. Brands of all sizes deserve access to advancements in restaurant technology, especially as the industry enters a new era for AI as it intersects with operational decision-making." Monheit said in the release. "I'm incredibly excited to be joining the ClearCOGS team as we continue to accelerate growth, and look forward to everything we'll achieve together for restaurant operators everywhere."

"Matthew brings deep experience across the multiple aspects of the restaurant industry to our organization. As ClearCOGS enters into our latest phase of growth, Matthew's track record of flawless execution will play an important role as we continue defining the field of AI Operations in the restaurant industry," said ClearCOGS CEO Matt Wampler.

About ClearCOGS:

ClearCOGS is an Artificial Intelligence company with a focus on leveraging AI to drive operational efficiency in restaurant operations. Their cutting-edge technology stands at the forefront of the emerging field of AI Operations in the industry. By harnessing artificial intelligence, ClearCOGS empowers establishments to make real-time actionable intelligence to staff, helping optimize daily decisions and increase bottom-line profitability.

Contact Information

Matt Wampler

CEO & Co-Founder

info@clearcogs.com

SOURCE: ClearCOGS

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755893/ClearCOGS-Names-Matthew-Monheit-of-Restaurant-Brands-International-as-Vice-President-of-Operations
EQS-News: oceansix future paths Ltd. / Key word(s): Miscellaneous

oceansix future paths Ltd.: EARLY WARNING NEWS RELEASE OF SULLAM HOLDINGS L.R. LTD., TEDEA TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND AUTOMATION LTD., AND RAM.ON FINANCE GMBH



18.05.2023 / 18:33 CET/CEST

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





EARLY WARNING NEWS RELEASE OF SULLAM HOLDINGS L.R. LTD., TEDEA TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND AUTOMATION LTD., AND RAM.ON FINANCE GMBH HERZELIA, ISRAEL AND BERLIN, GERMANY, MAY 17, 2023 - Sullam Holdings L.R. Ltd. ("Sullam") a company with head offices in Herzelia, Israel, together with its joint actors (i) Tedea Technological Development and Automation Ltd. ("Tedea"), a company with head offices in Herzelia, Israel; and (ii) RAM.ON Finance GmbH, ("RAM" and together with Sullam and Tedea, the "Joint Actors"), a company with head offices in Berlin, Germany, have collectively acquired 3,201,000 ordinary shares (the "Shares") in the capital of Oceansix Future Paths Ltd. (the "Issuer") at an average price of approximately $0.034 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $109,247 (the "Acquisition"). These Shares were purchased on the open market through the facilities of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") between September 21, 2022 to May 9, 2023 and represent 2.08% of the Issuer's total issued and outstanding Shares. The Joint Actors hold their securities of the Issuer for investment purposes and may, depending on various factors including, without limitation, market and other conditions, increase or decrease their beneficial ownership, control or direction over additional securities of the Issuer, through market transactions, private agreements, treasury issuances, exercises of convertible securities or otherwise. Prior the Acquisition, Sullam had beneficial ownership and control of (i) 28,945,000 Shares, representing 18.83% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 warrants, each exercisable for the purchase of one Shares ("Warrants"). If the Warrants held by Sullam were exercised in full, Sullam would own a total of 40,888,810 Shares, or approximately 24.69% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Following the Acquisition, Sullam holds beneficial ownership and control over (i) 29,972,000 Shares representing 19.50% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Sullam were exercised in full, Sullam would own a total of 41,915,810 Shares, or approximately 25.31% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Prior to the Acquisition, Tedea had beneficial ownership and control over (i) 28,945,000 Shares representing approximately 18.83% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Tedea were exercised in full, Tedea would own a total of 40,888,810 Shares, or approximately 24.69% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Following the Acquisition, Tedea holds beneficial ownership and control over (i) 29,879,500 Shares representing approximately 19.44% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Tedea were exercised in full, Tedea would own a total of 41,823,310 Shares, or approximately 25.25% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Prior the Acquisition, RAM had beneficial ownership and control over 30,295,037 Shares representing approximately 19.71% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Following the Acquisition, RAM holds beneficial ownership and control over 31,534,537 Shares representing 20.52% of the issued and outstanding Shares. Prior to the Acquisition, the Joint Actors collectively had beneficial ownership and control over (i) 88,185,037 Shares representing 57.38% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 23,887,620 Warrants. If the Warrants held by the Joint Actors were exercised in full, the Joint Actors would own a total of 112,072,657 Shares, or approximately 63.11% of the issued and outstanding Shares. After the Acquisition, the Joint Actors collectively hold 91,386,037 Shares representing 59.46% of the issued and outstanding Shares and 23,887,620 Warrants. Upon exercise of the Warrants, the Joint Actors may acquire up to 23,887,620 Shares. As a result of the Acquisition and assuming the exercise of all Warrants, the Joint Actors would collectively hold 115,273,657 Shares, which on a partially-diluted basis represents approximately 64.91% of the issued and outstanding Shares. The Acquisition is exempt from the formal bid requirements of National Instrument 62-104 - Take Over Bids and Issuer Bids ("NI 62-104") as the Acquisition occurred in reliance on the Normal Course Purchase Exemption set out in Section 4.1 of NI 62-104. The facts supporting reliance on that exemption are that: (i) the bid was for not more than 5% of the outstanding Shares; (ii) the aggregate number of Shares acquired in reliance on this exemption by the Joint Actors within any period of 12 months, when aggregated with acquisitions otherwise made by the Joint Actors within the same 12-month period does not exceed 5% of the Shares outstanding at the beginning of the 12-month period; (iii) the Shares trade on the TSXV; and (iv) the value of the consideration paid for the acquired Shares was not in excess of the market price at the date of acquisition, as determined in accordance with Section 1.11 of NI 62-104, plus reasonable brokerage fees or commissions actually paid. This press release is issued pursuant to the early warning requirements of NI 62-104 and National Instrument 62-103 - The Early Warning System and Related Take-Over Bid and Insider Reporting Issues, which also requires reports to be filed with regulatory authorities in each of the jurisdictions containing additional information with respect to the foregoing matters (the "Early Warning Reports"). A copy of the Early Warning Reports will be available under the Issuer's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com and each Joint Actor's Early Warning Report may be obtained by contacting the respective Joint Actor at the contact information set forth below. For more information please contact: Sullam Holdings L.R. Ltd.

Lenny Recanati Director Email: Lenny@Recanati.co.il Phone: + 972-9-7882547 Address: 85 Medinat Hayehudim Street, Herzelia, Israel Tedea Technological Development and Automation Ltd.

Mordechai Gorfung CEO and Director Email: mota@Tedea.com Phone: + 972-9-9602010 Address: 89 Medinat Hayehudim Street, Herzelia Israel RAM.ON Finance GmbH

Rudiger Olschowy Shareholder Representative Email: ruediger@ram-on.de Phone: +49 174 4930 832 Address: Konstanzer Str. 55, Berlin, Germany



18.05.2023 CET/CEST Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.eqs-news.com


NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / South Pole



An aspect that frequently gets forgotten in these discussions is that carbon markets have evolved tremendously over the years. Their evolution has been a continuous effort of learning, sharing, debating, and improving by various stakeholders. We think it is timely to share some of this story with a wider audience by reflecting on the past 17 years of the South Pole history.

Since its founding by an ambitious group of social entrepreneurs in 2006, South Pole has constantly been at the forefront of improving market-based mechanisms to solve climate change. Transparency, quality, and scalability were always the main drivers of these innovations - and these same principles continue to drive the work of our +1,200 committed experts today

Our team is united in the common goal of leading a revolution of how we do business within the limits of our planet, prioritizing climate risk, and taking action to reduce our emissions - action that has tangible, measurable benefits for people and communities that have the most to lose, despite contributing the least to the problem.

It all started in a lab

South Pole started as a spin-off from ETH Zurich - one of the world's most prestigious universities in science and technology - inspired by my and Christoph Sutter's scientific research on sustainability criteria of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects.

Over the past 17 years, South Pole has innovated, pioneered, improved, and scaled various approaches to achieve its vision of genuine climate impact at scale. Some of these innovations and approaches have not worked, and have offered valuable lessons and ways to improve. Others have scaled and removed or avoided massive volumes of carbon emissions, and brought countless benefits to vulnerable communities.

We've been through a lot in nearly two decades - including the failed 2009 climate negotiations in Copenhagen, after which climate change was no longer top of mind among key policy makers. As the financial crisis hit the global economy, our team also braved the near collapse of the carbon markets, notably the collapse of the UN Kyoto Protocol that resulted in carbon credit prices slipping below US$1 per credit. This put into jeopardy our work and the future financial flows designed to give poorer countries access to green technologies.

Times have thankfully changed, with government commitments through the Paris Agreement, but through all these years we have consistently strived to advocate for higher standards and improved environmental integrity in carbon markets and climate finance.

In this article I aim to outline our team's contributions to getting carbon markets to where they are today: imperfect but effective. Armed with the experience of where we have come from, we hope that those committed to driving finance into climate action will come together to ramp up the speed of improvements in the VCM and beyond.

Improving the effectiveness of carbon markets to finance science-backed climate technologies

From the very beginning, we've been in the business of fighting climate change and engaging in results-based collaborations. The carbon market was (and still is!) a way to facilitate such collaboration: it is accountable and payments are only done based on performance

However, mainly due to the extremely slow response of governments, the private sector and the public to climate change, still today the carbon market is in its infancy. We are proud to have been there from very early on:

South Pole managed the first ever Gold Standard Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs) in the Malavalli project in 2006 . The project, located in the Mandya District in India, used low-density crop residues - sugarcane trash, coconut fronds, corn cobs - to generate cleaner power and contribute to sustainable development by assigning economic value to agricultural waste that was previously burnt or left to decay (which in turn leads to methane emissions).

. The project, located in the Mandya District in India, used low-density crop residues - sugarcane trash, coconut fronds, corn cobs - to generate cleaner power and contribute to sustainable development by assigning economic value to agricultural waste that was previously burnt or left to decay (which in turn leads to methane emissions). Our team also led the development of the first, multi-country Program of Activities (PoA) on water purification registered under the CDM. We did this because we identified that the WASH sector was woefully underfunded without anyone taking meaningful action to change that. Still today, a large number of villages benefit from water purification equipment co-financed through carbon credits.

In order to shape the market mechanism of the future, South Pole has, since 2007, consistently and vociferously made hundreds of contributions to the continuous improvement and development of methodologies through relevant industry associations, including the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA), the International Carbon Reduction and Offset Alliance (ICROA) and the Project Developer Forum. Here are some examples:

Under the Voluntary Carbon Standard (VCS), the Gold Standard, and the CDM we helped develop methodologies to reduce emissions in the chemical, construction, manufacturing, agriculture, and, most recently, the carbon dioxide removal sectors. As part of the latter, we have initiated an important debate on how to define a high quality removals, and what a functioning market for high quality removals would need (see here, here, here and here).

We continue to push the envelope on what robust principles for carbon credit use look like, drawing on rapidly evolving best practices.

Together with partners, in 2022 we launched NextGen, the world's first procurement fund for carbon removal credits, designed to help revolutionize the market for long term carbon removals and provide revenue to innovative technologies that remove and store carbon.

South Pole has co-authored, as part of a large consortium of experts, the first globally approved methodology for the utilization and application of biochar under Verra's VCS. Biochar is a soil supplement used thousands of years ago in the Amazon basin that permanently locks carbon in soils. To date, biochar projects have been limited due to high cost and scarce funding, as well as a lack of scientifically backed methodologies. Directing finance from the VCM tackles these challenges head on, allowing biochar projects to expand their operations and impact by bringing down costs associated with the technology - all while ensuring that environmental integrity is upheld.

With the award-winning SHIFT Program, South Pole is helping to deliver one of the world's first Paris Agreement Art. 6.2 transactions between the government of Thailand and the government of Switzerland on e-vehicles, and created an entirely new digital MRV concept for quality assurance.

Upholding the environmental integrity of current methodologies, and supporting the development of new methodologies to scale critical, nascent climate solutions remains central to our purpose.

South Pole staff and project co-developers after a successful workshop session at the forest protection project in Colombia, where topics included how to gather project data using GPS.

Building on lessons learnt and taking action beyond carbon markets

From the get-go, South Pole acknowledged that the VCM is not the 'silver bullet' to solving climate change. Therefore, throughout our journey, we have continuously innovated beyond carbon markets, launching solutions for decarbonisation and climate adaptation.

We started on this journey in 2013 with the creation of the subsidiary Climate Neutral Investments (CNI), launching the world's first tool to calculate carbon emissions of all listed companies in the world. This approach is widely used by asset managers, asset owners and financial industry consultants, particularly in light of Task Force for Climate Related Disclosures (TCFD) reporting requirements.

(TCFD) reporting requirements. We have been involved in launching various standards and initiatives including the W+ Standard that aims at quantifying specific benefits of carbon projects to women and girls" the Landscape Resilience Fund that provides patient capital to businesses in vulnerable communities" the Circular Economy Advisory Service, and the Guidelines for Corporate Plastic Stewardship which has helped lay the foundations for Verra's Plastic Waste Reduction Standard.

Our D-REC initiative has expanded the reach of renewable energy to off-grid communities, taking on the challenge of bridging the yawning finance gap for universal energy access, especially among millions of households in Africa and Asia.

We are also developing approaches to a future biodiversity credits market to finance desperately needed nature protection and restoration. In 2021 we began development of our first project in biodiversity credits (El Condor). The project is 51.2 ha with a focus on restoration for the compliance market in Colombia.

When it comes to investing in nature specifically, South Pole is a key contributor to global developments and discussions. To name but a few, we are a member of the Task-force for Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) forum, a solutions partner to the Natural Climate Solutions Alliance convened by the WBCSD and the World Economic Forum, a financial partner to 20*20 - a country-led effort to change the dynamics of land degradation in Latin America and the Caribbean by protecting and restoring 50 million hectares of forests - and we have joined over 1,000 other companies in calling on governments to adopt policies to reverse nature loss in this decade, today.

The future of climate action

What started as a dream of idealistic climate scientists has become South Pole. Our roots may be in Switzerland, but today, our work truly stretches from pole to pole, with passionate experts stationed in over 30 locations, from Bangkok to Bogota. To deliver global climate impact, you need a global team of climate revolutionists.

Our relentless drive to innovate, spur emission reductions, and deliver sustainable development has ultimately earned us the trust of many FT500 companies and world-class investors. South Pole is also recognised by the World Economic Forum's Schwab Foundation as a Social Innovator, and is today considered to be a global leader in climate action.

While it may be foolish to predict the future in these turbulent times, our vision to boost market-based instruments to finance climate action has led us thus far - and we will continue to follow our north star of impact and innovation. It is clear that the world is shifting gear and we are on the precipice of a total transformation of our economies and societies. Through our work, we will continue to pursue positive climate impact at a greater scale so that this transformation happens in time to avert the worst effects of a warming planet, and in a way that is equitable and improves the lives of the world's poorest.

This is what we are all about - and this is what we will continue to be about: innovating fearlessly, improving consistently, and taking action, now.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from South Pole on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: South Pole

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/south-pole

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: South Pole

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755897/South-Pole-17-Years-of-Innovating-for-Carbon-Markets-and-Climate-Finance
The breakthrough process turns sludge into odorless fertilizer with numerous benefits to farmers.

RENSSELAER, IN / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Southeast-based Phinite has developed a revolutionary technology that transforms manure into a regenerative biofertilizer. This certified organic product works better than synthetic fertilizer, helping animal farms improve profitability and eliminate complex waste disposal problems, and farms improve soil health.

Phinite and Wilson Chemical Solutions

Phinite and Wilson Chemical Solutions Partner to Bring Disruptive Biofertilizer to Market.

To bring this game-changing technology to market, Phinite is partnering with Wilson Chemical Solutions, a leading distributor of hazardous and non-hazardous industrial and agricultural chemicals and fertilizers throughout North America and Canada.

"We are thrilled to partner with Wilson Chemical Solutions to bring our breakthrough technology to farmers across the country," said Jordan Phasey, CEO of Phinite. "Our regenerative biofertilizer has the potential to transform the agricultural industry by providing a sustainable, low-cost, and high-quality source of phosphorus. We look forward to working with Wilson Chemical Solutions to help farmers improve profitability, build soil health, and create a more sustainable future."

"Wilson Chemical Solutions' partnership with Phinite has the potential to change the world, and we're honored to be part of bringing sustainability to the agricultural industry," Keegan Wilson, President, and CEO of Wilson Chemical Solutions, said.

Phinite's product solves the global problem of phosphorus depletion by creating a new source of high-quality phosphorus-one of the core elements for growing crops. This mineral is essential for crop production, and finite reserves are being depleted at an alarming rate. An inefficient global food system, growing food demand, and limited phosphorus reserves mean billions of farmers need access to renewable, efficient fertilizers.

This problem is especially acute for hog farmers, who collect and treat manure in anaerobic treatment lagoons. Phosphorus-rich solids-known in the industry as sludge- stay at the bottom. Sludge is heavy, wet, and inefficient to transport. However, environmental regulations mandate regular removal and disposal-a process that poses a logistical challenge.

Phinite's proprietary drying process uses solar energy and robotic technology to dry the sludge, creating a low-cost, low-energy product that is easily transported and blended with other materials to create a certified organic fertilizer. This product offsets greenhouse gas emissions, benefits soil content, and turns a liability (animal manure) into an asset (renewable resource fertilizer), helping farmers monetize it for a new revenue stream.

Phinite's product can help solve the phosphorus problem and simplify the fertilization process for farmers. Unlike other organic fertilizers, this product is more uniform, is easier to combine with other materials, and offers a broader spread pattern than traditional organic fertilizers-60ft compared to 15ft from conventional versions, which translates to fewer trips to the farm, resulting in lower labor costs, less fuel used to spread, and a quicker process overall.

And another benefit? Phinite's product is entirely odorless-a disruptive notion for farmers accustomed to the unpleasant smells of organic manure-based fertilizer. With an odorless product, farmers can store application equipment indoors without dealing with lingering smells and avoid complaints from adjoining property owners.

Phinite's product is designed for uncomplicated storage solutions. The odorless formula allows easier storage without the safety concerns accompanying traditional organic materials, and the material's low-moisture content allows for extended storage times without caking or clumping.

"Countries are running out of phosphorus. If we change nothing, America will run out within 20 years-reserves in Europe and Australia are already gone. It's a huge concern for farmers because phosphorus means food. We're excited to be part of the solution," Jordan Phasey, CEO and founder, said.

The product will be available in limited amounts immediately, with availability set to increase by early next year and the total capacity expected by 2029. Wilson Chemical Solutions will handle the storage, marketing, and logistics for Phinite's biofertilizer, making it more widely available to farmers nationwide.

About Phinite

Phinite is an innovator in agricultural technology, developing transformative ways to turn manure into a renewable resource and boost phosphorus availability to improve farming across the country. Led by award-winning scientist and engineer, Jordan Phasey, Phinite offers cutting-edge products to help American farmers overcome agricultural challenges and increase their bottom line. To learn more about Phinite and their revolutionary technology, visit www.phinite-us.com

About Wilson Chemical Solutions

Wilson Chemical Solutions specializes in distributing hazardous and non-hazardous industrial and agricultural chemicals to North American and Canadian clients. In addition to offering cost-effective sales and supplying premium-quality chemicals, they assist clients with supply chain and inventory management services. To learn more about Wilson Chemical Solutions, visit: www.wilsonchemicalsolutions.com

Contact Information

Doug Deno

Vice President of Sales Agricultural Nutrients Division at Wilson Chemical Solutions

doug.deno@wilsonchemicalsolutions.com

(219) 866-6900

SOURCE: Wilson Chemical Solutions

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755901/Phinite-and-Wilson-Chemical-Solutions-Partner-to-Bring-Disruptive-Biofertilizer-to-Market
ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Panel Built today announced it was named a 2023 GLOBE Award recipient by the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD). Managed by the Department's International Trade team, this state-led awards program highlights Georgia companies that expanded sales to new international markets in the previous year. This was Panel Builts's 2nd year being recognized as a GLOBE Award recipient.





Panel Built Named 2023 GLOBE Award Recipient

Panel Built Named 2023 GLOBE Award Recipient



Panel Built offers a complete line of custom modular offices, mezzanines, security booths, pre-assembled exterior buildings, and cleanrooms. All our product lines are manufactured on-site, in one of our state-of-the-art modular production facilities. We offer "A Better Way to Create Space" for all of your building projects. Panel Built has had many export opportunities since it began in 1995, including Greenland, Italy, and Japan.

"Last year, the state recorded a record-breaking $47 billion in exports, demonstrating the rising global demand for Georgia products," said Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson. "Our International Trade team continues to diligently work with Georgia businesses to refine their market entry strategies, and we are proud to have worked with 85% of this year's GLOBE Award winners for at least three years. We are also thankful to our International Representatives who support our global presence, with nearly 60% of recipients entering one of the 12 strategic markets served by an international office."

The GLOBE Awards program began in 2014 to recognize local businesses contributing to Georgia's economic growth through global trade. Since 2014, GDEcD has presented 323 GLOBE Awards to companies across 46 Georgia counties. The winners built successful market entry strategies demonstrating their commitment, determination, and willingness to leverage export resources.

"The 2023 GLOBE Awards highlight just a few of the Georgia small and medium-sized businesses that are exploring growth opportunities through international trade," said GDEcD Deputy Commissioner of International Trade Mary Waters. "These companies are putting in the time, effort, and dedication to realize the benefits of trade, and 88% of this year's recipients recently utilized the resources our team provides. These resources include anything from market research to connecting with qualified customers, to Go Global Georgia export grants. We are proud of the tenacity of our small business community, and we look forward to what they can accomplish next."

For more information on this year's awards, visit here.

About GDEcD's International Trade Team

The Georgia Department of Economic Development's nationally recognized International Trade team works to bolster Georgia exports and brand the state as a competitive source of quality products and services. The team includes International Representatives located in 12 strategic global markets and assists Georgia companies with expanding their sales worldwide. The International Trade Office provides Georgia businesses with the Global Insight and Global Connections they need to successfully diversify their international customer base.

Contact Information:

Elizabeth Satterfield

Marketing Manager

marketing@panelbuilt.com

8006363873

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SOURCE: Panel Built

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CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar appreciated against its major counterparts in the New York session on Thursday, as jobless claims came in lower than expected last week and on optimism over progress in the debt ceiling talks in Washington.



Data from the Labor Department showed that first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell more than expected in the week ended May 13.



The report said initial jobless claims slid to 242,000, a decrease of 22,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 264,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to dip to 254,000.



A separate report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia showed a continued contraction in regional manufacturing in the month of May, although the pace of contraction slowed by more than expected.



The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current activity surged to a negative 10.4 in May from a negative 31.3 in April.



President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy expressed optimism about reaching a deal for raising the debt limit.



The greenback touched 138.62 against the yen, its highest level since November 30. The pair had closed Wednesday's deals at 137.66. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 140.00 mark.



The greenback climbed to more than a 3-week high of 1.2397 against the pound and more than a 5-week high of 0.9062 against the franc, from yesterday's close of 1.2486 and 0.8980, respectively. Next key resistance for the greenback is likely seen around 1.21 against the pound and 0.92 against the franc.



The greenback firmed to near a 2-month high of 1.0771 against the euro from the previous close of 1.0838. Should the greenback strengthens further, it is likely to test resistance around the 1.05 region.



The greenback appreciated to near a 3-week high of 0.6604 against the aussie and a 3-day high of 0.6206 against the kiwi, from Wednesday's close of 0.6659 and 0.6248, respectively. The greenback is likely to face resistance around 0.63 against the aussie and 0.60 against the kiwi.



The greenback moved up to 1.3497 against the loonie from yesterday's closing value of 1.3454. Next near term resistance for the greenback is likely seen around the 1.38 level.



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Kostenloser Report: +40% Gewinn nur mit Aktien! +39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz. Hier klicken
HALIFAX, NS / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Namibia Critical Metals Inc. ("Namibia Critical Metals" or the "Company" or "NCMI") (TSXV:NMI)(OTCQB:NMREF) announces the results of the Company's Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on May 18, 2023 (the "Meeting"). Shareholders holding 58.84% of the shares were represented in person or by proxy at the Meeting. All the matters submitted to the shareholders, as set out in the Notice of Meeting and Information Circular dated April 12, 2023, were voted in favour, including: (a) Election of Directors to the Board of the Company as listed below; (b) the approval of the stock options plan, pursuant to which the Company may grant stock options up to 10% of its issued and outstanding common shares at the time of grant; and (c) the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the auditors of the Company for the ensuing year.

Messrs. Adrian Hickey, Darrin Campbell and William Price were re-elected and Mr. Steve Herlihy was newly appointed to serve as directors of the Company, with the percentage of votes cast for each director as follows:

Nominee Votes For % For Votes Withheld % Withheld Adrian T. Hickey 101,845,684 99.91% 0 0 Steve Herlihy 101,845,684 99.91% 0 0 Darrin Campbell 101,625,684 99.69% 0 0 William L. Price 101,625,439 99.69% 0 0

Appointment of Steve Herlihy to the Board of Directors

Mr. Herlihy is the CFO of Bannerman Energy Ltd. (ASX:BMN, OTCQB:BNNLF) which is the largest shareholder of the Company. Mr. Herlihy is a Chartered Accountant with over 30 years' professional experience. His extensive background in the resources sector includes several roles within BHP Limited, commencing as global Financial Controller for BHP Iron Ore before progressing to special project roles. As part of BHP's Strategy and Innovation leadership team, Mr. Herlihy led a team of analysis and improvements specialists that focused on operational and supply chain effectiveness. Prior to joining BHP, Mr. Herlihy held senior commercial, finance and business development roles within tier one global resources businesses including Newmont Corporation, Newcrest Mining, Normandy Mining, WMC Resources and Placer Dome/Barrick Gold. More recently, Mr. Herlihy was a partner of a national accounting and advisory firm that was part of a top-ten global accounting network. As leader of their Consulting and Corporate Finance Advisory Practice, he specialized in investment evaluation, strategic planning, business transformation, corporate governance, risk management and compliance advisory to a range of listed and unlisted clients. Mr. Herlihy has deep, hands-on experience in project finance and M&A activities. His broad transactional experience ranges from negotiating small joint venture agreements through to lead commercial roles on large-scale multinational transactions. Mr. Herlihy holds a Bachelor of Business (Accounting) from Curtin University, a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment from the Financial Services Institute of Australia and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from Deakin University.

Darrin Campbell, President of Namibia Critical Metals stated:

"We are delighted to have Steve Herlihy join our Board as we progress our tier-1 Lofdal Heavy rare Earth Project through feasibility. Steve's impressive experience in the mining sector will be a welcomed and valued voice on our team."

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Namibia Critical Metals Inc.

Darrin Campbell, President

About Namibia Critical Metals Inc.

NMI is developing the Tier-1 Heavy Rare Earth Project, Lofdal, a globally significant deposit of the heavy rare earth metals dysprosium and terbium. Demand for these critical metals used in permanent magnets for electric vehicles, wind turbines and other electronics is driven by innovations linked to energy and technology transformations. The geopolitical risks associated with sourcing many of these metals has become a repeated concern for manufacturers and end users. Namibia is a proven and stable mining jurisdiction.

The Lofdal Project is fully permitted with a 25-year Mining License and is under a Joint Venture Agreement with Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC).

The Company filed a robust updated PEA for "Lofdal 2B-4" on November 14, 2022, with a post-tax NPV of USD$391 million and an annual IRR of 28% with a capital expenditure of USD$207 million. The project is projected to generate a life of mine nominal cash flow of USD$698 million post-tax over a 16-year mine life.

About Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and the JV

JOGMEC is a Japanese government independent administrative agency which seeks to secure stable resource supplies for Japan. JOGMEC has a strong reputation as a long term, strategic partner in mineral projects globally. JOGMEC facilitates opportunities with Japanese private companies to secure supplies of natural resources for the benefit of the country's economic development.

Rare earths are of critical importance to Japanese industrial interests and JOGMEC has extensive experience with all aspects of the sector. JOGMEC provided Lynas with USD$250,000,000 in loans and equity in 2011 to ensure supplies of the Light Rare Earths metals suite to the Japanese industry.

Namibia Critical Metals owns a 95% interest in the Lofdal project with the remaining 5% held for the benefit of historically disadvantaged Namibians. The terms of the JOGMEC joint venture agreement with the Company stipulate that JOGMEC provides C$3,000,000 in Term 1 and C$7,000,000 in Term 2 to earn a 40% interest in the Lofdal project. Term 3 calls for a further C$10,000,000 of expenditures to earn an additional 10% interest. JOGMEC can also purchase another 1% for C$5,000,000 and has first right of refusal to fully fund the project through to commercial production and to purchase all production at market prices. The collective interests of NMI and historically disadvantaged Namibians cannot be diluted below a 26% carried working interest upon payment of C$5,000,000 to JOGMEC for the dilution protection. To date, JOGMEC has approved the budget for Term 1 and 2 totaling C$10,375,000 provided that part of this budget is subject to an approval by METI, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan.

Other exploration projects: The Company's Exclusive Prospecting Licenses ("EPLs") prospective for gold are located in the Central Namibian Gold Belt which hosts a number of significant orogenic gold deposits including the Navachab Gold Mine, the Otjikoto Gold Mine and the Twin Hills deposit. At the Erongo Gold Project, stratigraphic equivalents to the meta-sediments hosting the Osino gold discovery at Twin Hills have been identified and exploration is progressing over this highly prospective area. The Grootfontein Base Metal and Gold Project has potential for magmatic copper-nickel mineralization, Mississippi Valley-type zinc-lead-vanadium mineralization and Otjikoto-style gold mineralization. Interpretation of geophysical data and regional geochemical soil sampling have identified first gold targets.

Darrin Campbell, President, has reviewed and approved this press release.

The common shares of Namibia Critical Metals Inc. trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "NMI" and the OTCQB Market under the symbol "NMREF".

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information please contact -

Namibia Critical Metals Inc.

Darrin Campbell, President

Tel: +01 (902) 835-8760

Email: Info@NamibiaCMI.com

Web site: www.NamibiaCriticalMetals.com

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

SOURCE: Namibia Critical Metals Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755938/Namibia-Critical-Metals-Announces-Results-of-Annual-General-Meeting-of-Shareholders-and-Appointment-of-New-Director


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Extending the downward trend seen over the past several sessions, treasuries moved notably lower during trading on Thursday.



Bond prices moved to the downside early in the day and remained firmly negative throughout the session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is climbed 6.7 basis points at 3.648 percent.



With the continued increase on the day, the ten-year yield ended the session at its highest closing level in over two months.



Optimism lawmakers will eventually reach an agreement on raising the U.S. debt ceiling contributed to the continued weakness among treasuries.



Following a meeting earlier in the week, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., both expressed optimism a deal will be reached.



Remarks from Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan suggesting recent economic doesn't justify pausing interest next month also weighed on treasuries.



'After raising the target range for the federal funds rate at each of the last 10 FOMC meetings, we have made some progress,' Logan said in a speech to bankers in San Antonio. 'The data in coming weeks could yet show that it is appropriate to skip a meeting. As of today, though, we aren't there yet.'



On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by more than expected in the week ended May 13th.



The report said initial jobless claims slid to 242,000, a decrease of 22,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 264,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to dip to 254,000.



The bigger than expected drop came after jobless claims reached their highest level since the week ended October 30, 2021 in the previous week.



A separate report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia showed a continued contraction in regional manufacturing in the month of May, although the pace of contraction slowed by more than expected.



The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current activity surged to a negative 10.4 in May from a negative 31.3 in April.



While a negative reading still indicates a contraction in regional manufacturing activity, economists had expected the index to show a more modest recovery to a negative 19.8.



The bigger than expected rebound came after the Philly Fed Index dropped to its lowest level since May 2020 in the previous month.



The National Association of Realtors also released a report unexpectedly showing a steep drop in U.S. existing home sales in the month of April.



NAR said existing home sales plunged by 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 4.28 million in April after tumbling by 2.6 percent to a revised rate of 4.43 million in March.



The extended pullback surprised economists, who had expected existing home sales to inch up by 0.1 percent compared to the 2.4 percent slump originally reported for the previous month.



Remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell are likely to be in focus on Friday along with any news regarding the debt ceiling negotiations.



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Kostenloser Report: +40% Gewinn nur mit Aktien! +39,93% Rendite seit Januar  so lautet die Erfolgsbilanz der Aktie der Woche. Damit wurden sowohl der DAX als auch der S&P 500 deutlich outperformt. Wie das genau funktioniert, erklart Chefradakteur Lars Wiler in seiner Zwischenbilanz. Hier klicken
Engineer. Innovate. Educate. Change the World.

ALLEGAN, MI / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Architectural Products (A2P), an engineering company with a team of industry experts providing proven and tested best practices, is proud to announce its innovative and easy-to-use Smart Building Solutions: SMARTci Systems with GreenGirt composite metal hybrid (CMH). These solutions are designed to provide energy-efficient and structurally-sound continuous insulation for the life of a building, making A2P a grounded resource for the construction industry.

The use of metal sub-framing to connect the exterior parts of a building to its interior framing results in a thermal bridge, causing heat or cold to enter or escape a building and creating cold spots and moisture problems within the building envelope. To avoid unnecessary heating and cooling expenses, it is recommended to use materials that can eliminate thermal bridging. SMARTci continuous insulation systems are an excellent solution that addresses the limitations of other continuous insulation options.

Unlike other systems, SMARTci with GreenGirt CMH sub-framing eliminates thermal short fasteners, preventing cold spots or condensation inside walls. It also features a universal attachment design that can be used on virtually any cladding and can be installed on various surfaces, not just stud walls. SMARTci systems are designed to enhance the efficiency of buildings and provide a complete and straightforward solution to design smarter buildings. Furthermore, it is an excellent choice for earning points toward LEED certification.

The thermal efficiency of SMARTci systems makes it a worthwhile long-term investment in a building.

A2P Innovations and Best Practices

The GreenGirt CMH sub-framing product, which is also the basis of the SMARTci continuous insulation systems, is made up of a composite metal hybrid (CMH) material that is unique to any other product on the market. Unlike competitor products that include metal-only or composite-only materials, GreenGirt CMH combines the best of both materials. The benefits include the structural strength and fastener retention of metal and the thermal performance of composite. In addition, GreenGirt CMH is not susceptible to moisture, corrosion, or electrochemical reactions. GreenGirt CMH has an ASTM E84 Class A rating, a UL94 V-0 rating and complies with NFPA 285 requirements.

SMARTci continuous insulation solutions have the potential to significantly lower the expenses associated with heating and cooling a building while also meeting the requirements of ASHRAE 90.1-2013 and ASHRAE 160-2009 codes. Additionally, it can aid in obtaining LEED certification and employs green building techniques, resulting in an ecologically sound product with no Red List chemicals. SMARTci systems comprise of thermally insulated GreenGirt CMH sub-framing z-girts, insulation, universal cladding attachment features, and a structured installation process. In a nutshell, SMARTci systems enable buildings to operate more intelligently.

With thorough testing and decades of experience in the building sector, A2P has established the following best practices based on industry expert guidelines for continuous insulation systems: structural integrity, fastener retention, thermal efficiency, durability, fire resistance, environmental impact, building health, and ease of installation. As a result, A2P is the only manufacturer in the market to meet all eight best practices.

Designed By Installers for Installers

A2P favors high-performance, innovative, dynamic, and thermally efficient continuous insulation products and systems. A2P strives for excellence in everything they do, including meeting and exceeding sustainable building material code guidelines and requirements. Moral principles and ethical standards guide the company, which aims to communicate everything clearly and honestly.

A2P's smart building solutions are an innovative approach to creating energy-efficient buildings that are structurally sound and sustainable. These solutions are designed to provide continuous insulation, minimize thermal bridging, and protect the building envelope while enhancing cladding systems. A2P's products and systems offer the highest level of performance and reliability, meeting the most stringent building codes and standards.

Applications for Smart Building Solutions

A2P's smart building solutions are suitable for a wide range of applications, including commercial, institutional, and residential buildings. SMARTci systems are compatible with virtually any cladding system and can be customized to meet specific project requirements. In addition, the GreenGirt CMH sub-framing product is available in a variety of configurations, making it easy to install and use.

About Advanced Architectural Products

A2P is committed to providing innovative and sustainable building solutions to the construction industry. With decades of experience and a team of experts, A2P is dedicated to providing its clients with the highest level of service and support. A2P's smart building solutions are a testament to its commitment to excellence, and the company looks forward to continuing to provide cutting-edge solutions to the construction industry.

A2P is a well-known industry leader, having worked on projects such as Malcolm X College, Stockton University, Newark Airport, Banc of California Stadium, O'Hare International Airport, MGM, LaGuardia Airport, Harvard University, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and more across the United States.

Contact Information

Interested parties can reach out to A2P through the following:

Phone: 269-355-1818

Email: info@greengirt.com

Website: Click Here

SOURCE: Advanced Architectural Products LLC.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755957/SMARTci-Systems-and-GreenGirt-CMH-Advanced-Architectural-Products-Innovative-Easy-to-Use-and-Smart-Building-Solutions
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Cleantek Industries Inc. (TSXV: CTEK) ("Cleantek" or the "Company") is pleased to announce its record first quarter 2023 financial and operational results. Cleantek is an innovative provider of patented, clean technology solutions focused on reducing both cost and carbon intensity in the wastewater management and industrial lighting sectors across North America. All amounts are in thousands of Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated.

Cleantek Chief Executive Officer Matt Gowanlock commented, "It has been a tremendous start to 2023 for Cleantek. We are pleased to announce positive earnings and record revenues along with the launch of two new product and service offerings that will add depth to our portfolio of ESG accretive technology. In line with our growth strategy is building a strong team, and promoting an experienced individual in Chris Murray to COO will serve to accelerate our growth and capabilities as an organization."

Highlights for the First Quarter 2023

Cleantek generated revenue of $3,833 for Q1 2023, an increase of $686 or 22%, from Q1 2022. The increased revenue in 2023 is primarily due to a ramp up in rental activity and increased rental prices in both sustainable lighting solutions and ZeroE dehydration;





Cleantek's gross profit of $2,317 or 60% of revenue for Q1 2023 was in line with target and improved substantially when compared with gross profit of $1,836 and 58% of revenue for Q1 2022;





Cleantek's net income of $180 for Q1 2023 was a $914 improvement from the net loss of $734 for Q1 2022; and,





Cleantek's Adjusted EBITDA was $1,184 for Q1 2023, an increase of $24 when compared to Q1 2022 primarily due to the increased revenue.

Expansion and Outlook

Cleantek's strategy focuses on delivering innovative and cost-effective solutions that reduce the carbon intensity as well as the capital and operating costs of industrial operations. By focusing on expanding the market awareness and adoption of its sustainable lighting solutions and wastewater treatment assets, Cleantek continues to experience increased utilization of these high-margin product lines.

In Q1 2023, the Company launched two new growth initiatives, including SecureTek, Cleantek's line of remote security services, as well as the company's newest addition to the ZeroE line of wastewater treatment products, the mobile GZeroE. Both growth initiatives will utilize the Company's existing asset base and will require minimal capital investment for what the Company believes could be substantial growth opportunities in adjacent industry verticals.

SecureTek - Cleantek's line of remote security services, being offered as a stand-alone system or integrated with our sustainable lighting products, is expected to drive higher utilization of existing assets and creating an exciting new recurring revenue stream for the Company. Utilizing our existing infrastructure, SecureTek is an accretive bolt-on service offering and a great opportunity to expand our reach into the construction, mining, storage, agriculture, and other commercial markets, with minimal new capital investment.





- Cleantek's line of remote security services, being offered as a stand-alone system or integrated with our sustainable lighting products, is expected to drive higher utilization of existing assets and creating an exciting new recurring revenue stream for the Company. Utilizing our existing infrastructure, SecureTek is an accretive bolt-on service offering and a great opportunity to expand our reach into the construction, mining, storage, agriculture, and other commercial markets, with minimal new capital investment. Mobile GZeroE - Adding to the fleet of ZeroE technology is our new waste-gas powered, wastewater treatment and dehydration system, or "GZeroE". GZeroE will utilize waste-gas as its primary energy source, allowing for deployment of the ZeroE system into areas without a waste-heat source while providing substantial ESG and cost benefits. This product is currently under construction and will launch to the market in Q3 of this year to a growing backlog of interested clientele.

The Company's near-term strategy will continue to focus on:

maximize utilization rates of its current fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets;





expanding and growing the Company's fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets to satisfy increased demand in the oil and gas, midstream, mining, industrial and construction markets;





leveraging Cleantek's technology to capture additional market share through organic growth of the ZeroE wastewater treatment and vaporization services;





expanding and diversifying Cleantek's geographic focus and customer base, including exploring opportunities outside of the North American market; and,





focusing on growth, generating positive return for shareholders and improving financial position now that the patent litigation related to the HALO lighting systems in the United States is completed; and,





evaluating new technology, products and services to increase our offering to our current client base.

The Company is uniquely positioned with the prospect to capture expansion in both ZeroE wastewater vaporization and sustainable lighting markets. Cleantek expects that wastewater and vaporization opportunities in the oil and gas, municipal grey water, and industrial wastewater industries and a growing awareness regarding the disadvantages and risks of downhole injection will continue to increase the demand for Cleantek's ZeroE products.

Appointment of Chief Operating Officer

The Company is pleased to announce the promotion of Chris Murray, P.Eng. to Chief Operating Officer ("COO"), effective May 18th, 2023.

Mr. Murray brings a wealth of experience to Cleantek through his extensive career as a sales, marketing and operations executive, with over 25+ years of experience in the energy industry. Mr. Murray is recognized as a driven and highly competitive team player with extensive leadership success. He previously held positions at Total Oilfield Rentals, Patterson-UTI, Horizon Drilling as well as a previous tenure at Cleantek where he held executive roles in strategy, sales & marketing.

Operational Update

Cleantek's first quarter 2023 revenue was $3,833, an increase of $686 from same period last year.

Results of Operations

(Canadian $000's, except





Three months ended

March 31 per share amounts and percentages)







2023

2022

Change Revenue







3,833

3,147

686 Gross profit







2,317

1,837

481 Gross profit %







60

58

2% Net income (loss)







180

(734)

914 Net income (loss) per share - basic and diluted ($)





$ 0.01 $ (0.03) $ 0.04 EBITDA(1)







1,112

454

658 Adjusted EBITDA(1)







1,184

1,160

24 Capital expenditures







125

297

(172) As at: March 31,

2023

December 31,

2022

Change



Total assets







16,601

15,917

680 Working capital deficit(1)







(8,043)

(8,348)

305 Non-current debt(1,2)







2,304

2,121

(183) Total non-current liabilities







2,350

2,167

(183)

(1)Management considers EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA key metrics in analyzing operational performance and the Company's ability to generate cashflow. EBITDA is measured as net income (loss) before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is measured as EBITDA adjusted for share-based compensation and unusual items not representative of ongoing business performance such as patent litigation expense. Working capital (or also referred to as net current assets/liabilities) for Cleantek is calculated as current assets less current liabilities per the statement of financial position. These items are not defined and have no standardized meaning under IFRS. Presenting these items from period to period provides management and investors with the ability to evaluate earnings trends more readily in comparison with prior periods' results. Please see "Non-IFRS Measurements" for further discussion of these items, and where applicable, reconciliations to measures calculated in accordance with IFRS.

(2)Total non-current debt includes the non-current portions of long-term debt and lease liabilities.

Selected financial and operation information is outlined below and should be read in conjunction with Cleantek's unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A") for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About Cleantek

Cleantek is a clean energy technology company focused on ESG accretive technology solutions with operations across North America. Cleantek has developed and commercialized its patented wastewater dehydration technology, the ZeroE, which it rents to its customers for use at gas processing facilities and on drilling rigs focused on hydro-sustainability. Cleantek's ZeroE technology separates wastewater into (i) clean water which is evaporated and returned to the natural hydrological cycle and (ii) concentrated brine which is disposed of using traditional means. The ZeroE technology is powered by the waste heat generated from the engine exhaust of gas plants and drilling rigs. Complimenting Cleantek's ZeroE technology is the suit of low carbon LED lighting systems containing our patented Solar Hybrid lighting systems and HALO Crown mounted lighting systems.

NON-IFRS MEASUREMENTS

Cleantek uses certain financial measures to quantify its results that are not prescribed by IFRS. The following terms: "EBITDA", "adjusted EBITDA", "working capital" and "non-current debt" are not recognized measures under IFRS and may not be comparable to that reported by other companies. Cleantek believes that, in addition to measures prepared in accordance with IFRS, the non-IFRS measurements provide useful information to evaluate the Company's performance and ability to generate cash, profitability and meet financial commitments.

These non-IFRS measures ae intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.

EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA

Management considers EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA key metrics in analyzing operational performance and the Company's ability to generate cash flow. EBITDA is measured as net income (loss) before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization as differences in accounting treatments may distort our core business results. Adjusted EBITDA is measured as EBITDA adjusted for certain non-cash items, including share-based compensation as well as unusual items not representative of ongoing business performance such as patent litigation expense.

The following table provides a reconciliation of the non-IFRS measures, EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA, to the applicable IFRS measurements for Cleantek:





Three months ended

March 31 (Canadian $000's)









2023 2022 Net income (loss)









180 (734) Depreciation and amortization









551 924 Finance costs, net









381 264 EBITDA









1,112 454 Share-based compensation









71 148 Patent litigation expense









- 558 Adjusted EBITDA









1,184 1,160

Working capital

Working capital (or also referred to as net current assets/liabilities) for Cleantek is calculated as current assets less current liabilities per the statement of financial position. The following table provides a reconciliation of working capital, a non-IFRS measure to the applicable IFRS measurements for the Company:









March 31,

December 31,

(Canadian $000's)







2023

2022 Current assets







4,325 3,774 Current liabilities







12,368 12,122 Working capital deficit







(8,043) (8,348)

Non-current debt

Management considers non-current debt in analyzing the Company's capital structure. Cleantek's capital structure consists of working capital, non-current debt and shareholders' equity. Non-current debt measures the long-term borrowings of the Company. Non-current debt for Cleantek is calculated as the non-current portions of long-term debt and lease liabilities. The following table provides a reconciliation of non-current debt, a non-IFRS measure to the applicable IFRS measurements for the Company:









March 31,

December 31,

(Canadian $000's)









2023 2022 Long-term debt - non-current portion









1,758 1,853 Lease liabilities - non-current portion









546 268 Non-current debt









2,304 2,121

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements" including, for example, statements relating to expected revenue growth and corresponding increased in profitability, potential expansion outside North America, expansion of Cleantek's fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets, the expected deployment of Cleantek's assets, available liquidity, Cleantek's outlook for the future and near-term strategy. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown. The results or events depicted in these forward-looking statements may differ materially from actual results or events. In addition to other factors and assumptions which may be identified herein, assumptions have been made regarding and are implicit in, among other things: receipt of regulatory approvals, the state of the capital markets, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability of the Corporation to successfully manage the risks inherent in pursuing business opportunities in the oilfield services industry and outside the North American market, and the ability of the Corporation to obtain qualified staff, equipment and services in a timely and cost efficient manner to develop its business. Any forward-looking statement reflects information available to Cleantek as of the date of this news release and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Cleantek disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

Matt Gowanlock, President & Chief Executive Officer

E-mail: mgowanlock@cleantekinc.com

Orson Ross, Chief Financial Officer

E-mail: oross@cleantekinc.com

Cleantek Industries Inc.

Tel: 403-567-8700

www.cleantekinc.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166658
Finovance is transforming access to on-demand growth capital, a new vital source of financing

SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Finovance, a leading artificial intelligence "AI" and machine learning "ML" revenue-based financing "RBF" and payments fintech capital provider to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), raised an undisclosed amount in initial seed funding. Backers included Capital Management LLC, Florida Angel Investors LLC, and individual investors. Finovance will use the funds to expand operations and add additional financing offerings to empower SMBs to better manage their working capital needs as well as visualize their own financial data.

Finovance has spent over two years developing its innovative and proprietary technology stack and recently emerged from stealth mode to debut www.Finovance.com. Finovance is positioned as an alternative financing solution to traditional banks, private equity, and/or venture capital financing. By providing SMB businesses with non-dilutive, revenue-based financing for working capital or growth financing based on the company's future revenue generation with clear pricing and terms and conditions, Finovance has materially simplified the process with a highly automated experience, ensuring rapid underwriting and access to capital.

Finovance's mission is to empower SMBs and SAAS companies to propel their business forward by converting their future revenues into upfront capital today, at the click of a button.

The process is simple, no equity dilution, no personal guarantees, and no compounding interest, with capital repayment based on future revenues. Unlike legacy banks or more traditional sources of funding, Finovance's fast, data-driven AI and ML models allow businesses to access funds within hours or days.

Finovance state-of-the-art, decision algorithms, allow business owners to raise capital when they need it on a "just-in-time" basis between $50k and $5.0 million, at low monthly flat fees. Businesses can select their repayment periods ranging from 3 months to 60 months, subject to business profile. Terms and conditions are all written in plain language, ensuring transparency and fairness.

"We have created a really powerful AI-based platform, offering an efficient banking alternative experience. We want to go beyond existing fintech's or bank offerings today, and introduce a nearly 100% automated AI-based onboarding process of securing growth and working capital financing for growing companies," said co-CEO Craig Schmeizer, who with co founders Gavin Conway and Manuel Henriquez was inspired to start Finovance after encountering a challenging path to securing growth capital for a prior e-commerce startup which grew from $0 revenues to approximately $700 million in four years. "There is no reason SMBs need to be subjected to a long tedious, manual, stressful, and frustrating loan request process that can take 45-120 days. We do not want any SMB to have to experience that ever again," added Schmeizer.

"SMBs and innovative high growth SAAS companies are adopting innovative technologies, innovating, and evolving faster more rapidly than ever before, but their legacy banks are not keeping up and still take months for credit approvals in nearly all paper-based processes. We launched Finovance, to help transform how SMBs are able to access capital with quicker innovative decisioning and funding process. Legacy banks do not really understand the needs of SMBs or entrepreneurs, and their dated infrastructure is not up to the standards needed to help their business grow. It is not surprising that in our research, an overwhelming majority of business owners say they are frustrated with their existing bank's processes and offerings," Manuel Henriquez, co-founder of Finovance, added.

The Company has offices in New York, London, San Francisco, Dubai, and Orlando.

About Finovance

Finovance, founded in 2020, with offices in New York, London, San Francisco, Dubai, and Orlando, Finovance is a technology-powered FinTech capital provider, pioneering use of human-assisted artificial intelligence "AI" and machine learning "ML" technologies With its proprietary technology and suite of integrated APIs technology, Finovance enables businesses to instantly secure funding with initial pre-a. ovals nearly in real-time allowing entrepreneurs access to capital in a fast and efficient way. Companies that work with Finovance are able to secure funding that is fast, flexible, and non-dilutive.

Coming soon - Finovance Payments, and Finovance Treasury, empowering small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and the next generation of SAAS businesses with integrated corporate cards, spend-management software, visualization solutions, and FDIC-insured accounts in excess of current limits of $250,000, to better manage their businesses. Finovance is a financial technology company, not a bank. To find out more, visit: www.Finovance.com

Note: Pre-approved financing is subject qualifying data received; to final verification of received data and satisfactory terms and conditions.

Media Contact

Shawn Carrano

shawn@victoriouspr.com

7027185821

SOURCE: Finovance

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/755978/Finovance-Technologies-Inc-Announces-the-Closing-of-Initial-Funding-and-Emergence-from-Stealth-Development
Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has made a strategic investment, through Accenture Ventures, in SpiderOak, a Reston, Virginia-based leader in zero-trust cybersecurity and resiliency solutions for next generation space systems.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

Led by Dave Pearah, CEO, SpiderOak provides the OrbitSecure product suite, which brings zero trust security to zero gravity environments. The company leverages a combination of no-knowledge encryption and distributed-ledger technology in order to meet the demand of cybersecurity in space. The product suite includes a fully decentralized key management system that helps enable full availability and continued operations in space, even within disconnected or highly contested networks. This increases resiliency for multi-vendor, multi-network, mesh proliferated low-Earth orbit networks by reducing the attack surface and opportunities for adversaries to jam, disrupt, modify, or contest space communications and satellite services.

SpiderOak is the latest company to join Accenture Ventures Project Spotlight, an engagement and investment program that targets emerging technology companies that can help fill strategic innovation gaps for the Global 2000. In addition to capital investments, Accenture Ventures Project Spotlight offers access to Accentures technology domain expertise and its enterprise clients. Technology companies co-innovate with Accenture at its Innovation Hubs, Labs and Liquid Studios, working with subject matter experts to adapt their solutions to the enterprise market and scale faster and more effectively.

FinSMEs

18/05/2023
Adarga, a London, UK-based AI software company providing an information intelligence platform, raised $20M funding.

The round was led by BOKA Group.

The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its business reach.

Led by Founder and CEO Rob Bassett Cross MC, Adarga is an artificial intelligence (AI) company specializing in information intelligence. Its Knowledge Platform, underpinned by a combination of natural language processing, machine learning and network science, enables public and private sector companies to surface insight from the huge volumes of in-house and open-source information at their disposal  extracting and connecting millions of data points in context and presenting them in comprehensible formats.

This company serves customers including the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.

FinSMEs

18/05/2023
Cast: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jason Statham, Tyrese Gibson, Chris Ludacris Bridges, Jason Momoa, John Cena, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Brie Larson, Daniela Melchior, Alan Ritchson, Scott Eastwood, Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron and Rita Moreno

Director: Louis Leterrier

Language: English

Well, The Fast and The Furious franchise enjoys a humongous fanbase in India due to its high-octane stunts, breathtaking action sequences, visually enriching and exotic locales, entertaining car racing scenes, which are no less than adrenaline rush and the last and probably the best element  emotional plot revolving around the central characters, which symbolises the phrase Family is everything.

If you observe and analyse the franchise, you will say that it is a typical masala potboiler with action like Rohit Shetty films, thrilling elements like Abbas-Mustan directorials and family drama like Sooraj Barjatya movies.

The franchise has never shied away from going over-the-top and we can see that in its 10th installment, which is ridiculously entertaining with the deadly combination of swag, action and family emotions.

With all the lead and crucial characters from the previous parts reprising their roles, Jason Momoa (Dante) arrives as the newest villain in Fast X, who wants to take revenge on Dom (Vin Diesel) as the latter killed his father during a heist. Dante, a psychotic, techie and wicked villain wants Dom to know the value of suffering without having a family as he goes all out to kill his allies, friends and son.

While the plot of Fast X is predictable, director Louis Leterrier scores brownie points by bringing out some great nostalgic moments, which will leave you teary-eyed along with surprising cameos. With continuous rush on the big canvas, you cant do anything but wait for Dantes next move.

Talking about the performances, Jason Momoa steals the show with his wicked act and delivers one of his finest performances till date. The Aquaman star literally shines in every frame and one can say that he had a ball while portraying this character. Other key cast members including Vin and team had hardly anything new to offer, however, Charlize Theron & Michelle Rodriguez put up an impressive show, especially in the action sequences.

While the epic climax is a treat for F&F fans, the post-credit scene takes the film a notch higher and takes your excitement to a new level for the upcoming sequel.

Rating: 3.5 (out of 5 stars)

Fast X is releasing on 19 May in cinemas near you

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As per reports, British politician Chris Mullin has strong and negative opinions about Meghan Markle and other members of the royal family. Mullin branded the actress as a cuckoo and disapproved of her woke Californian hang-ups. Meghan Markle is a cuckoo in the royal nest and her woke Californian hang-ups will destroy her marriage to Prince Harry, a senior UK politician said.

Despite his lack of a personal relationship with the Sussexes, he claimed Prince Harry would come limping home when their relationship ends in tears. According to the Royal Observer, the author later compared his household to the Sussexes and was annoyed by Meghans discomfort with comments rooted in anti-Blackness. Mullin  whose wife is Vietnamese  claimed derogatory questions about complexion are not in the least offensive because although his daughter isnt half-Black, him being a parent to a biracial child empowered him to make his various accusations against the Duchess of Sussex.

In an outspoken attack on the couple, former Labour minister and diarist Chris Mullin suggests the Duke of Sussex will come limping home when the marriage ends in tears. He says Meghan is clearly the main mover in the couples relationship with Harry very much second fiddle.

The claims are contained in Mullins latest memoir, Didnt You Use To Be Chris Mullin?, which is being serialised exclusively in The Independent. The novelist, diarist and former MP, 75, played a key role in freeing the Birmingham Six, Irish men wrongly convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1974 pub bombings.

Meghan Markle is clearly the main mover in the couples relationship with Harry very much second fiddle, the politician said. The claims are contained in Chris Mullins latest memoir, Didnt You Use To Be Chris Mullin? which contains indiscreet accounts of meetings and conversations with royal family members, politicians and celebrities. The politician dismissed Meghan Markles complaint that an unnamed royal speculated about the skin colour of her and Harrys son, Archie.

In his 2020 memoir, the politician had revealed that Queen Elizabeth sent a man to the gallows with the words do you know, he even shot the dog?. She turned down an appeal by a man convicted of murder in Bermuda, he claimed. In the new book, the politician also claims that the former Duke of Edinburgh once said charm is a greatly overrated value, describing Prince Philip as a cantankerous old buffer.

This comes following Prince Harrys visit to the UK to attend King Charles coronation. The Duke of Sussex attended the ceremony alone without Meghan Markle. The couple had stepped down from their royal duties in 2020 and since then live in the United States.

Meghans half sister too confirms Harry & Meghans heading for separation

According to the Daily Mail report, Meghan Markles estranged half-sister has launched another blistering attack on the Duchess of Sussex by claiming that her marriage to Prince Harry will end in divorce unless they get extensive counselling. Samantha Markle suggested the Duke may already be questioning the marriage and predicted it could get nasty until he starts dissenting or pulling back from her. The 56-year-old American also called on the Sussexes to go on an apology tour after the couple made accusations of racism within the Royal Family during their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.

A royal commentator had earlier mentioned that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are breaking apart and leading separate lives. The rumors, according to royal expert Tom Bower, are coming out of London. There are many now in London who say Meghan is getting tired of Harry. There is speculation that the Duchess of Sussex, 41, will at any moment say This is enough and negotiate with King Charles III some deal to break off the marriage.

According to reports, royal commentator Jennie Bond says Meghan Markle is an absolute control freak who wants to be in control of every aspect of her life, she is not used to having to cede control in anyway whatsoever. The Duchess of Sussex has said it takes a lot of effort to forgive and hinted that she can say anything as she sat down for a wide-ranging interview in the US.

(With inputs from agencies)

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India has got a new law minister. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Rajasthan, Arjun Ram Meghwal, has replaced Kiren Rijiju to take over as the Union minister for law and justice. Rijiju, a three-term Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal Pradesh, has been moved to the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

This surprise move was announced in a press communique from the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday (18 May).

President of India, as advised by the Prime Minister, has been pleased to direct the following reallocation of portfolios among Ministers in the Union Council of Ministers:-

(i) The portfolio of Ministry of Earth Sciences be assigned to Kiren Rijiju.

(ii) Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State be assigned the independent charge as Minister of State in the Ministry of Law and Justice in addition to his existing portfolios, in place of Kiren Rijiju, the statement said.

Extended best wishes to my colleague Shri @arjunrammeghwal ji on getting new responsibility as Minister of State (Independent charge) of Law & Justice https://t.co/2ZYrhGclya pic.twitter.com/txIsa0BfAs  Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) May 18, 2023

Who is Arjun Ram Meghwal, the new law minister? Lets find out.

His myriad careers

Born on 20 December 1953, Meghwal hails from a traditional weavers family in Rajasthans Bikaner.

The 69-year-old minister has a Bachelors degree in Law from Sri Dungar College in Bikaner. As per Hindustan Times (HT), he completed his Masters in Political Science in 1979. Meghwal then went on to pursue a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the Philippines University.

Meghwal reportedly tied the knot to Pana Devi at a very young age and the couple has four children  two sons and two daughters.

He has worked as a social worker, farmer, as well as educator, as per Mint.

Meghwal cleared Rajasthan Administrative Services (RAS) examinations in 1982 and was later promoted as an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, reported Indian Express.

He has also served as the District Magistrate (Collector) in the Government of Rajasthan.

Political life

Meghwal took voluntary retirement from administrative services to make his political plunge.

In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, he was fielded by the BJP from Bikaner. He won the parliamentary seat by defeating Congress nominee Rewat Ram Panwar by almost 20,000 votes.

The next year he was appointed as the vice president of the Rajasthan BJP unit and also became BJPs National Executive.

In 2011, he became a member of the Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice.

The three-term MP from Bikaner, who is considered the BJPs Scheduled Caste (SC) face, assumed the charge of the Chief Whip of the BJP in Lok Sabha during the first term of the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre.

He was also nominated as the Chairman of the House Committee in the lower House by the Speaker, as per Indian Express.

From July 2016 to September 2017, he worked as the Union Minister of State (MoS), Ministry of Finance as well as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

He has experience as the Union MoS for Parliamentary Affairs and Culture and the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation.

As MoS of Parliamentary Affairs, Meghwal is in charge of handling floor management for the BJP in the lower House, noted Indian Express.

Along with the law ministry, he will continue to handle his other portfolios as MoS of Parliamentary Affairs and Culture.

According to PTI, the Bikaner MP is only the third leader to hold the Law and Justice portfolio as an MoS with Independent Charge. Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Partys Ramakant Khalap held the portfolio in the same rank in 1996 and Arun Jaitley did for almost two years from 2000-2002 under the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

ALSO READ: Kiren Rijiju was the law minister who took on the judiciary. Now he has been replaced

The MP who cycled to work

Donning his usual Rajasthani turban, kurta-pyjama and jacket, Meghwal used to cycle to Parliament. However, as per India Today, the ex-bureaucrat changed his mode of transportation after becoming a minister in 2016.

Controversies

In July 2020, Meghwal landed in a soup when he claimed that Bhabhaji papad could help form antibodies required to fight COVID-19. He was accused of promoting unscientific claims, as per the Indian Express report.

His remarks on Pakistan have also stirred rows. Addressing an investors meet in Jammu and Kashmir last month, he said: That is why you see such a situation in PakistanSeparatism and terrorism are not in the hearts of those living in India but come from outside, the report added.

After the Pulwama attack in 2019, he had said that India will stop the water of three eastern rivers flowing into Pakistan.

Significance of his appointment

Meghwal replacing Rijiju is significant as the latter had frequent run-ins with the judiciary during his tenure as the law minister.

#WATCH | Arjun Ram Meghwal takes independent charge as MoS Law & Justice, replaces Kiren Rijiju pic.twitter.com/uUHQzjdh79  ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2023

Speaking to NDTV, the new law minister said: The executive and the judiciary have a cordial relationship, and it will stay cordial and constitutional. The boundaries are already there. He also denied speculations that the recent reshuffle was done due to the growing friction between the Union government and the Supreme Court.

Moreover, his appointment has come ahead of the Assembly elections in Rajasthan, which are slated to be held later this year.

According to Indian Express, the move can be an attempt by the saffron party to consolidate its support base within the (SC) community. However, Meghwal has refuted that his appointment is linked to the upcoming polls in his state.

With inputs from agencies

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New York City is slowly sinking under its own weight.

A study in the journal Earths Future found the city sinking at a rate of 1 to 2 millimetres per year.

But why is this happening? And what can be done about it?

Lets take a closer look:

According to the website Interesting Engineering, this comes as a result of a phenomenon known as subsidence.

This can happen with heavy objects either settle over time or changes in the Earth make things sink into the ground.

This is essentially what happened in Uttarakhands Joshimath.

According to Phys.org, Pei-Chin Wu, Meng Wei, Steven DHondt and Tom Parsons reached the conclusion by first calculating the mass of all the buildings in New York.

The mass of over 1 million buildings came to 1.68 trillion pounds, as per Science Alert.

The authors then divided the city into a grid of 100-by-100-meter squares and converted building mass to downward pressure by factoring in the pull of gravity.

Though their model gave different subsidence rates for various parts of the city  with clay-rich soils and artificial fills more prone compared to sand deposits and bed rock the average for the entire city is 1 to 2 millimeters per year.

According to Science Alert, certain parts of the city are sinking as fast as the quickest rates observed at which tectonic plates rebound when glaciers melt.

The combination of tectonic and subsidence, sea level rise, and increasing hurricane intensity imply an accelerating problem along coastal and riverfront areas, the paper warned, as per India Today.

The study concluded that New York City has been sinking for some time and will continue to do so in the future.

New York is home to around eight million people.

Science Alert quoted Parsons, who is a geologist as saying, The point of the paper is to raise awareness that every additional high-rise building constructed at coastal, river, or lakefront settings could contribute to future flood risk.

New York is emblematic of growing coastal cities all over the world that are observed to be subsiding, meaning there is a shared global challenge of mitigation against a growing inundation hazard, the researchers concluded.

In February, researchers said China, United States and India are among the countries most vulnerable to climate change.

Another report said Mumbai, Shanghai, Dhaka, Bangkok, Jakarta, Maputo, Lagos, Cairo, London, Copenhagen, New York, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, and Santiago are among the cities most threatened by the sea level rise.

With inputs from agencies

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Theres finally a Cong-sensus. After four days of speculation, discussions and debates, it seems that the Congress has finally made its decision on who shall be the Karnataka chief minister. The Grand Old Party, led by Mallikarjun Kharge, on Thursday morning has finalised veteran Siddaramaiah as the 24th chief minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar to be his deputy.

Reports say that Shivakumar will continue as the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and will also be allocated key portfolios in addition to the deputy post. The Deccan Herald reports that Shivakumar has called a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Bengaluru this evening at 7 pm where the name of Siddaramaiah will be proposed.

Some reports add that the party has decided on a rotational tenure of two-and-a-half years for both the leaders. This means that the 75-year-old Siddaramaiah will be the chief minister for half the term and then power will be transferred to DK Shivakumar.

When asked about the Congress decision, the 61-year-old KPCC chief told News18 that he was ready to sacrifice the position for the party and the Gandhis.

The decision is in line with what many poll pundits had predicted and finally puts an end to all the wrangling that has been taking place ever since the Congress ousted the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the southern state by winning 135 seats in a 224-member Assembly.

Since the victory on 13 May, Siddaramaiah and KPCC president DK Shivakumar have been expressing their desire to be chief minister. They were even called to New Delhi by the central leadership to discuss the issue.

As preparations begin for the swearing-in ceremony, scheduled for 20 May, we take a better look at the reasons behind the Congress choosing Siddaramaiah over DK Shivakumar.

Rise and rise of Siddaramaiah

Today, considered one of the three remaining mass leaders of Karnataka along with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, 91, of the Janata Dal(Secular) and ex-CM B S Yediyurappa, 80, of the BJP, Siddaramaiah made his debut in the Assembly in 1983 after being elected from Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysore on a Lok Dal party ticket. He later joined the ruling erstwhile Janata Party.

It was only in 2006 that Siddaramaiah joined the Congress. In his political career, he has made a mark for introducing several Bhagya schemes  particularly the Anna Bhagya (free rice scheme) and also in approving a separate flag for Karnataka.

A former member of various factions of the Janata Parivar, Siddaramaiah is influenced by the Dr Ram Manohar Lohia brand of socialism and is a self-confessed agnostic. Over the years, he has crafted himself to be rustic politician in the minds of the people. He is also considered the architect of Karnatakas Ahinda (an acronym for the Kannada words Alpasankhyataru (minorities), Hindulidavaru (backward classes) and Dalitaru (Dalits).

Also read: Karnataka Results: Love over hate, women and caste factor. How Congress won the southern state

In 2013, his moment in the sun came when he was chosen as chief minister over current Congress president M Mallikarjun Kharge. He also holds the honour of being only the third Karnataka chief minister after S Nijalingappa and Devaraj Urs to complete a full term in office. He also has a record of presenting 13 state budgets as finance minister.

In the just-concluded elections, Siddaramaiah proved hes a popular leader when he won the Varuna constituency by a margin of 46,000 votes and entered the Karnataka Assembly for the ninth time as an MLA.

Sidda over DK Shivakumar

As the results came out on Saturday, all eyes turned to the Congress and the conundrum they faced over their chief ministers pick  it was either Siddaramaiah or DK Shivakumar.

As both leaders dug their heels in, the Congress was left with a difficult choice, but on Thursday had made its decision and went with Siddaramaiah. There are several reasons for this choice.

Firstly, Siddaramaiah enjoys popularity with the common man in the state. A pre-poll survey by Lokniti-CSDS had revealed that over 40 per cent respondents thought that Siddaramaiah is the best candidate for the chief ministers position  almost 20 percentage points over the outgoing Bharatiya Janata Party chief minister Basavaraj Bommai. Shivakumar was even lower in the popularity ladder.

Siddaramaiah also enjoys support from the Kuruba community  the shepherd community to which he belongs  in addition to Muslims. This makes him influential in almost 70 per centof the total 224 constituencies in the state, including Lingayat- and Vokkaliga-dominated seats.

This mass popularity also makes him an acceptable choice by the MLAs. Within the party, Siddaramaiah is widely looked upon as a veteran and from the 135 winning MLAs, he is said to enjoy the support of at least 90 of them.

The Congress choice of going with Siddaramaiah also has a lot to do with the 2024 general elections. If the party wants to put up a strong show, they will need the votes of the Kurubas and Muslims, who are spread all over Karnataka.

Also Read: Did CBI, ED cases against Shivakumar hurt his chances?

Besides this, Siddaramaiah also has administrative experience. After all, he is one of the three leaders who were able to complete a term in office in the southern state. As a leader told The Quint, Karnataka is in the worst financial position currently as the previous government had plunged the state into debts. An experienced hand is required to set the house in order.

His experience will help the Congress realise its five guarantees  which are seen to have played a major factor in its win  such as allowance of Rs 2,000 per month for women heads of households and Rs 3,000 for unemployed graduates in the state.

Furthermore, Siddaramaiah has close links with Kannada intelligentsia and is a vocal critic of the right-wing agenda and has often said that he is not anti-Hindu, but anti-Hindutva.

Sonia called in

Since Sunday, the Congress has been in a huddle to come up with a decision on the Karnataka chief ministers post. Deliberations have continued with DK Shivakumar refusing to relent, citing his work over the last four years  after Congress coalition government with JD(S) had collapsed following a mass party switch by MLAs. It is reported that in the end, the high command brought in Sonia Gandhi to sway the KPCCs mind. NDTV reports that the deal was clinched after Sonia Gandhi spoke to DK Shivakumar.

Prep for swearing-in

Now, with the decision made all eyes turn to Bengalurus Sri Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium, where the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka government is expected to be held on 20 May.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, News18 reports, will invite Opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony. The Gandhis, Congress CMs and senior Congress leaders, will also be in attendance at Bengaluru.

With inputs from agencies

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In a surprise move, Kiren Rijiju was removed as Indias law minister. He has been replaced by Arjun Ram Meghwal. Rijiju, who is one of the Narendra Modi-led governments high-profile ministers, has been assigned the charge of the fairly low-key Ministry of Earth Sciences.

According to a press communication by the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Meghwal, currently, the minister of state for parliamentary affairs and culture, will take over the important law and justice ministry. He will have an independent charge. This is the first time in recent history that the law minister is not of Cabinet rank, according to a report by NDTV.

After the announcement, Rijiju posted a message on Twitter, acknowledging Prime Minister Narendra Modis guidance and thanking Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and other judges.

The announcement to remove Rijiju comes as a surprise ahead of the upcoming 2024 general elections.

During his tenure as law minister, Rijiju grabbed headlines more than once, often taking on the judiciary and criticising the system. We take at how Rijiju got the job and how he fared.

A surprise entry and exit

Rijiju was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 2004 on a BJP ticket. However, after he was defeated in 2009, he deflected to Congress only to return to the saffron party in 2014. The BJP had its eyes set on the northeast and Rijiju became of the partys most prominent face from the region.

He started in the government as minister of state for home affairs. With his hard work, he soon entered the good books of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah and gained more prominence in the party. He then served as the junior minister with independent charge for Youth Affairs and Sports, before being picked for the plum post.

Like his exit from the law ministry, Rijijus appointment came as a surprise to many. The three-time Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal Pradesh was appointed Union Minister of Law and Justice in July 2021. His promotion to a Cabinet rank was unexpected.

While Rijiju is a law graduate from Delhi University, he did not come with the experience or the pedigree of his predecessors. Many of the BJP leaders who held the post were big names in the legal fraternity  Arun Jaitley, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Ram Jethmalani.

But it was precisely the reason he was picked for the job.

According to those in the BJP, it was his lack of familiarity in the legal circles that allowed Rijiju to express his views freely, without any apprehensions of hurting his friends, a report in The Indian Express said.

And Rjiju did speak up, often having run-ins with the judiciary.

Also read: What is the collegium system and why Centre and Supreme Court are at loggerheads over it?

Rijiju vs judiciary

The BJP leader has pushed for the governments role in the appointment of judges, has been critical of the procedure followed in the country in picking them, and called for transparency.

In January, this year, the minister wrote to CJI Chandrachud suggesting that a representative of the government should be included in the collegium that makes recommendations for the appointment of judges. Doing so would infuse transparency and public accountability, he had said.

The letter came against the backdrop of an ongoing tussle between the government and the judiciary on the appointment of judges in India.

However, this was not the first time he has been vocal about the matter.

In November last year, he called the collegium system of appointing judges opaque. The then-law minister said, I am not critical about the judiciary or the judges, but I state a fact which is the reflection of the thinking of the common people of India The Collegium system is opaque and is not accountable. Judges and lawyers too believe this.

A month before, he had spoken about how India was the only country where judges were appointed by other judges. Across the globe, judges do not appoint judges. But in India, they do so. Judges have to devote a lot of time to the entire process of recommending names. A lot of politics is involved in the process, Rijiju said in October year.

Also read: From Section 377 to Ayodhya, CJI Chandrachud has been part of landmark judgments

Rijiju also criticised the judiciary for taking long vacations even as pending cases rise every year. Responding to a question in Parliament on the pendency of cases, he said, There is a feeling among people of India that the long vacation which the courts obtain is not very convenient for justice-seekers. He said the issue will not be resolved until a new system on the appointment of judges is evolved.

The minister further angered the legal fraternity when he remarked in March that a few retired judges were part of an anti-India gang and were forcing the judiciary to play the role of an Opposition party. He warned that those working against the country will have to pay a price.

The backlash

Rijijus comments on the collegium and judiciary have gone down well with those in the legal fraternity. Of course, he faced a backlash.

The remarks against former judges were condemned by over 300 lawyers across the country. In a letter, they asked the then-law minister to withdraw the comments.

The allegations of anti-nationalism against people who have dedicated their lives to upholding the rule of law, and the naked threat of reprisals against them, marks a new low in the public discourse of our great nation, the letter read. It was signed by senior advocates like Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Kapil Sibal, Dushyant Dave, and Indira Jaising, among others.

Also read: Judicial appointments: Judiciary's independence is paramount but need to check imperium in imperio

Some have gone to court against the minister. A lawyers association had filed a PIL seeking action against Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Rijiju over their public comments showing lack of faith in the Constitution by attacking institutions, including the Supreme Court. The litigation was dismissed by the Bombay High Court but the Bombay Lawyers Association (BAL) has now moved Supreme Court against the order.

Rijiju might not be in charge of the ministry but his legal woes are likely to continue.

With inputs from agencies

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There are countries across the world that are changing their attitude towards marijuana and drug use. However, the same cant be said of Singapore. On Wednesday, the city-state hanged a man for trafficking drugs, the second such incident in a short span of three weeks.

The action comes even as international groups and activists within the country decry the strict death penalty. The United Nations, British mogul Richard Branson, have urged Singapore to halt executions for drug-related offenses as increasing evidence shows the death penalty is ineffective as a deterrent. But Singapore authorities insist that all prisoners get due process of law and that capital punishment remains part of Singapores comprehensive harm prevention strategy which targets both drug demand and supply.

Heres a look at how strict are Singapores laws on drug offences and where it stands compared to other countries.

Singapore, death penalty & drug offences

On Wednesday, Singapore hanged a 36-year-old man at Changi Prison on the islands east coast at dawn after a last-minute attempt to reopen his case was rejected by the appeal court without a hearing.

The man, whose name was not revealed, was convicted in 2019 of trafficking about 1.5 kilogrammes of cannabis, according to Kokila Annamalai of the Transformative Justice Collective that campaigns for the abolition of the death penalty in Singapore.

In a statement, the Singapore authorities said, A 36-year-old Singaporean man had his capital sentence carried out today at Changi Prison Complex. The person was accorded full due process under the law, and had access to legal counsel throughout the process.

This was the second execution carried out by Singapore in three weeks time. Earlier, on 26 April, Singapore hanged a 46-year-old Indian-origin for conspiracy to smuggle one kilo cannabis. It was found that Tangaraju Suppiah was involved in a conspiracy to traffic the cannabis from Malaysia to Singapore. The court found he was in phone communication with two other men caught trying to smuggle cannabis into Singapore.

Suppiahs family and rights groups took up his cause rejecting the governments claims of justice being accorded and detailed why they believed his death sentence conviction was unsafe. Tangarajus conviction relied mainly on statements from his police interrogation  taken without a lawyer and interpreter present  and the testimony of his two co-accused, one of which had his charges dismissed, Amnesty International said.

Leelavathy spoke of her brothers anguish and determination before his death sentence was carried out. Even from inside prison, he wanted to fight for his innocence, she told CNN. He believed that there would be a fair trial and wanted to prove his innocence  every step of the way.

Suppiahs execution attracted a lot of criticism from around the world. The UN strongly condemned the hangings in April this year, calling the number of such punishments highly alarming.

Singapores strict laws relating to drug offences have come under the spotlight recently. The city-state executed 11 people last year for drug offences after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The authorities argue that such strict laws are necessary due to its proximity to the Golden Triangle  the area comprising parts of Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam, historically known for the narcotics trade. As a key commercial and transport hub, Singapore is vulnerable to the scourge of drugs, both as a transit point and as an import market for illicit drugs, says the background document provided to TIME magazine by the Singapore government.

Countries with strictest drug laws

However, Singapore is not alone in having harsh punishments for drug-related crimes. A report by Harm Reduction International (HRI) reveals that it is one of just 35 countries that maintain the death penalty for drug offences and one of only eight in the world to regularly hand out such a sentence.

The report reveals that in 2022 there were at least 285 executions for drugs, more than double the number of the previous year, when at least 131 people were executed. The number of death sentences handed out to those found guilty of drug crimes also rose, the report said, with at least 303 people in 18 countries sentenced to death. That was 28 per cent more than in 2021. More than 3,700 people on death row around the world are now there as a result of drug offences, it added.

So, which countries join Singapore? Singapores neighbour Malaysia has similar rules when it comes to drug-related crimes. In Malaysia if you are caught with more than 15 grams of heroin, you can receive a death sentence. Additionally, authorities can also detain anyone for up to two weeks on suspicion of drug use and forcibly test them for any traces of illegal drugs in their system. Those who test positive are automatically sentenced to a minimum of one year of compulsory treatment, even if theyre not caught with any drugs on them at the time.

Indonesia is another South-east Asian nation with very strict rules. Possession, trafficking and manufacture of any illegal drugs are serious offences in Indonesia. The Indonesian authorities have a zero-tolerance policy and those caught face lengthy prison sentences or the death penalty. HRI revealed that the country had sentenced 122 people to death last year, a jump from the 89 in the preceding year.

China too has very strict laws on drugs. In accordance with Chinese drug laws, anyone caught trying to smuggle a kilo or more of heroin into the country could face the death penalty. And the same fate could befall anyone found carrying more than 50 grams of other narcotics, including cocaine, opium, and cannabis.

Japan is another Asian nation which has some of the strictest drug laws. The country also has strict controls on prescription drugs and requires travellers to declare any medication they are bringing into the country.

The small, oil-rich nation of Brunei has come under fire for using caning as a punishment for drug offences. Possession of drugs can result in long-term prison sentences and even the death penalty.

Outside of Asia, Iran, perhaps, has the strictest laws when it comes to drug offences. The HRI report revealed that the nation had executed at least 252 people last year for drug-related crimes. Despite the high rate of executions and strict laws, Iran continues to have a problem of drug addiction in the country. In 2016, the country had a reported two million addicts. Experts state that its proximity to Afghanistan where opium is grown is one of the reasons for the high rate of addiction in Iran.

In Saudi Arabia, the situation is no different. The country has a zero-tolerance policy towards drug use, and offences such as possession and trafficking are punishable by jail time, public flogging, and in some cases, the death penalty. In November last year, the Kingdom had executed two Pakistani nationals for drug-related crimes, a first since it had announced a moratorium on the use of the death penalty for drug-related crimes in January 2021. Amnesty International condemned the executions then and said, The lives of individuals on death row for drug-related crimes and other crimes are at risk. Regardless of the crimes committed, no one should suffer this cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.

The United Arab Emirates also has strict laws when it comes to drugs. The purchase, possession, consumption, and distribution of drugs are strictly prohibited. In 2022, the UAE eased some of its harsh drug laws, relaxing penalties for travellers who arrive in the country with products containing THC  the main intoxicating chemical in cannabis. The amended law stated that people found carrying food, drinks or other items containing THC would no longer face prison, but would have the substance confiscated, and will at most face a fine. The law also reduced minimum sentences from two years to three months for first-time drug offenders.

ExpertSpeak

Many drug addiction experts believe that countries with tough laws on drugs wont help the situation. As Singapores Kokila Annamalai, a cofounder of the Transformative Justice Collective, told TIME, Thousands of grams of drugs are seized every week in Singapore. There is no evidence that the supply has gone down.

The Global Commission on Drug Policy says the use of the death penalty for drug-related offences does not meet the threshold of most serious crimes  for the purposes of Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights  and therefore is in breach of international human rights law. The United Nations General Assembly, and the secretary-general, have also echoed that stance.

Richard Branson, the billionaire and founder of Virgin Group, has also spoken out on the issue. Killing people for allegedly smuggling cannabis is particularly cruel and misguided, given that more countries are now introducing sensible drug policy by decriminalising and regulating both medicinal and recreational cannabis, he said.

With inputs from agencies

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It was one of the most audacious terror attacks on Indian soil. On 26 November 2008, 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists went on a rampage in Mumbai, bombing the most prominent places in the countrys financial capital. killing 166 people and injuring 300. While nine attackers were killed, almost fifteen years on, India awaits its chance to bring the perpetrators to justice. Now a United States court has consented to the request for the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana for his involvement in the 26/11 terror attacks.

On 10 June 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of the 62-year-old Rana so that he could be extradited. The Biden administration supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India, according to a report by news agency PTI.

A 48-page court order dated May 16 approving the extradition by Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California was released on Wednesday.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in the Mumbai massacre. We take a look at how he helped in plotting the attacks, how the Indian government has been persistent in its attempt to bring him to the country and what happens next.

Who is Tahawwur Rana?

Rana, 62, studied at the Hasan Abdal Cadet School in Pakistan, following which he served as a doctor in the Pakistan Army. It has been learnt that while in school he became friends with a certain David Headley  also known as Daood Gilani  who was later convicted of planning the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Rana then moved to Canada in 1997 and was eventually granted citizenship. He went on to establish a consultancy firm called First World Immigration Services in Chicago. As per investigations, it was a branch of this business in Mumbai that provided Headley with the perfect cover to identify and survey potential targets for the LeT to carry out the attacks.

In October 2009, Rana was arrested by the American police on the charges of plotting the 26/11 attacks. Based on Headleys statement, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

What was Ranas role in the 26/11 attacks?

After his arrest, Rana admitted to knowing that the LeT was a terrorist organisation and that his childhood friend David Headley had attended training camps organised by the group in Pakistan.

As per a US document, Headley had received instructions from Lashkar in late 2005 to travel to India and conduct surveillance. The document adds that in early 2006, Headley then along with two Lashkar members discussed opening an immigration office in Mumbai as a cover for his activities.

Also read: 26/11: A reminder that counter-terrorism needs a whole of nation approach

US authorities have stated that Headley then informed Rana of the assignment and they decided that they would use Ranas First World Office as a cover.

Rana then directed an individual associated with First World to prepare documents supporting Headleys cover story and advised Headley how to obtain a visa for travel to India, according to Headleys testimony, as well as e-mails and other documents that corroborated his account, it said.

Rana also provided financial support to Headley, paying him Rs 67,605 in October 2006, $500 in November 2006, Rs 17,636 a few days later, and $1,000 in December 2006.

What do we know about Indias request for extradition?

In June 2020, Rana was re-arrested in Los Angeles on an extradition request by India for his involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks, soon after he had been released from prison on health grounds. A year on, in July, the United States administration requested a federal court in Los Angeles to extradite Pakistani-origin Canadian terrorist Tahawwur Rana to India.

This was opposed by Rana arguing that he has previously been acquitted of the offences for which his extradition is sought.

In a submission before the US District Court, Central District of California in Los Angeles, the Biden administration, however, argued that the extradition request filed by Indians has necessary evidence on each of the criminal charges for which India seeks Ranas extradition. The submissions to the court by the Biden administration said that based on the evidence submitted by India, Tahawwur Rana committed fraud against the Indian government through the creation and submission of forged documents.

Now, a US court has consented to the request for extradition.

The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request, the judge wrote.

What does Indias extradition treaty with the US say?

India has an extradition treaty with the US. According to the US-India treaty, extradition shall not be granted if the offence for which extradition is requested is a political offence.

The treaty also states that all requests for extradition shall be submitted through the diplomatic channel and be supported by required documents, statements, information describing the facts of the offence, statements of the relevant provisions of the law regarding the offence as well as the punishment, a copy of the warrant or the order of arrest, and such information as would justify the committal for trial of the person in the requested state.

In 2018, the Ministry of External Affairs said that it had been able to secure the return of 66 fugitives since 2002  nine of them from the US.

What happens next?



India has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the following offences on which the US is proceeding: (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act, the US judge said.



The foregoing charged offences constitute extraditable offences within the meaning and scope of the Treaty and over which India has jurisdiction, the judge ruled.

According to the court, there was sufficient evidence that Rana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been sought.

It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty, the judge ruled.

With inputs from agencies

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In a late-night notification, the central government, in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India, has introduced an amendment that will impose a 20 percent tax collection at source (TCS) on credit card usage outside India.

The finance ministry stated that the amendment to the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) (Amendment) Rules, 2023 will incorporate international credit card payments within the scope of the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), effective from July 1.

The notification specifically highlights the omission of rule 7 from the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules, 2000.

This change now encompasses the utilization of international credit cards for meeting expenses during visits outside India under the LRS.

With immediate effect, the notification brings credit card transactions conducted outside India under the purview of the LRS, facilitating the implementation of the higher TCS levy, as outlined in the 2022-23 Budget, commencing from July 1.

It is important to note that previously, the use of credit cards for foreign expenditures during travel was not included under the LRS. The scheme had previously covered debit cards, forex cards, and bank transfers.

In summary, starting from July 1, any expenditures made using international credit cards will be subject to a higher tax collection at source (TCS) rate of 20 percent.

This change arises from the inclusion of credit card transactions conducted outside of India under the scope of the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), resulting in an elevated TCS levy.

Until July 1, a TCS of 5 percent will be imposed on such transactions, excluding those in the medical and education sectors.

However, from July 1 onwards, all such transactions will be subject to a 20 percent TCS. It is important to note that the LRS scheme allows Indian residents to remit up to $250,000 (approximately over Rs 2 crore) per year without requiring prior approval from the Reserve Bank of India.

Previously, the use of international credit cards by Indians during foreign trips or for international online purchases was not considered when calculating the overall LRS limit of $250,000 per person in a financial year.

However, it appears that the recent notification now allows international credit card transactions to be taken into account for determining the limit of $250,000 under the LRS.

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Special Public Prosecutor during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case Ujjwal Nikam on Thursday termed the US courts approval for extradition of the case accused Tahawwur Rana as a great victory for India.

The order of the American court extraditing Tahawwur Rana (26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused) is a great victory for India. It is for the first time according to my knowledge, American govt has heavily relied upon Indian investigation agencys evidence, said the senior lawyer.

#WATCH | The order of the American court extraditing Tahawwur Rana (26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused) is a great victory for India. It is for the first time according to my knowledge, American govt has heavily relied upon Indian investigation agencys evidence: Ujjwal pic.twitter.com/R8SEvxZoO7  ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2023

Nikam said Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Ranas extradition order will help India in many way.

It is a major breakthroughextradition order of Tahawwur Rana will help us in many ways, for opening the entire gate of the criminal conspiracy, Nikam said.

On 10 June, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

The US court has consented to the Indian request, through the US Government, for the extradition of Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the case.

The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated 16 May, which was released on Wednesday.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

His role has been vividly explained by (Lashar-e-Taiba operative) David Headley, whom I had examined during his deposition (before the special court in Mumbai), Nikam said.

From providing logistical support to being in touch with the Pakistan Army officials, Headley had explained everything, Nikam added.

Headley, who turned an approver, had deposed before the Mumbai sessions court through a video-link from the US during the case trial.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks.

Indias National Investigation Agency (NIA) is conducting a probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists.

The NIA has said it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels.

Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving Pakistani gunman in the Mumbai carnage, was awarded death sentence by a special Mumbai court in 2010 for the mass murders and waging a war against India. He was hanged to death at the Yerwada jail in Maharashtras Pune city in November 2012.

A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege from the night of 26 November, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of the city.

With inputs from agencies

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In a museum, every object on display has a purpose. The artefacts placement, description, and even the room lighting are carefully planned.

All credit goes to people who ensure that a museum is not an abode of old objects but a place where artefacts tell a story. For them, a museum is not only their workplace but also a space that serves them as much as they serve it.

With growing digitisation, our museums are evolving and theres more and more need for museum professionals.

On International Museum Day, Firstpost spoke with museologists in India on why they chose this path and what all goes into making museum experiences enthralling.

Museology is not a very well-known career in the country yet it was Somya Maliks calling since childhood.

Malik told Firstpost that she inherited an interest in museums from her parents who would take her to museums across India during school vacations.

But I was unfamiliar with a career as a museologist until the final year of my graduation. A senior of mine was studying museology and I took guidance from her, Malik said.

Mix of research, cataloging, and field work

After graduating from Indraprastha College for Women, Malik completed her Masters from the National Museum Institute of History of Art, Conservation and Museology in Delhi.

Following this, she worked at the National Museum in the capital for nearly two years before enrolling at Delhi University where she is currently pursuing her PhD.

Shes also heading the Department of Archives and Museology at the Asiatic Society for Social Science Research.

Working in a museum is a mix of research, cataloging, and teamwork, Malik said.

As a museum professional, my responsibilities involved keeping track of all the objects there, organising exhibitions and preserving artefacts,

Its teamwork. We would divide our responsibilities. Someone will do the research, others would be involved in making labels, listing, photography, digitisation and maintaining records, she added.

Being a museologist also gives one an opportunity to do field work. Maliks work allowed her to travel and study objects at museums across India including the countrys oldest- the Indian Museum in Kolkata.

Telling the story of Indias partition

For Alishah Ali, a career in museology allowed her to become a part of The Partition Museum in New Delhi since its inception.

The museum opened to the public today.

Ali not only collected oral testimonies of partition survivors, but she also witnessed the restoration of the Dara Shikoh Library which hosts The Partition Museum.

My favourite part has to be collating oral history recordings and making the museum alive by getting the community involved, she said.

A history graduate, Ali received her Masters in heritage conservation from the Delhi Institute of Heritage Research & Management.

She worked at The Partition Museum from April 2021 to April 2023, and is currently the Creative Director at the upcoming Museum and Cultural Centre- Kathika in Old Delhi.

There isnt a defined job role when you are working in a museum. And thats the best part in the initial years as you get to learn a lot and then later you decide what roles work for you the best, Ali told Firstpost.

Also read: A 200-year-old heritage building in Bengaluru houses museum showcasing Indias postal history

For Malik, the best part of her job was when she was selected to work on a special exhibition.

She picked objects that had to be sent from the National Museum to another country for display.

I had to first choose a theme in line with visitors interest in that country and then list the objects. You have to select the items keeping in mind that they wont get damaged while being shipped, Malik said.

Passion over everything else

While their job entails a lot of meticulous tasks and thought processes, many people still see museums as uninteresting places.

But both Malik and Ali say that museologists are changing that perception.

Workshops, souvenir stores and museums on wheels are initiatives that have enhanced visitors experiences, Malik said.

Museums are being seen as places that have something for everyone. Curators are now looking at accessibility, digital and interactive displays to curate a better visitor experience, Ali said.

Both Malik and Ali say that a career as a museum professional is about passion over everything else.

The budgets of the museums and cultural institutions in India are still scarce but the future looks bright for the sector, Ali added.

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The suspense over the formation of a new government in Karnataka seems to be ending with various media reports cited sources confirming that Siddaramaiah will be the next chief minister of Karnataka with DK Shivakumar as his deputy.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge worked till late night Wednesday to break the political deadlock over the next CM in Karnataka and arrived at a consensus for government formation.

The party has called a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting in Bengaluru on Thursday at 7 pm. Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP Meeting.

Earlier on Wednesday, Congress Karnataka-in-charge Randeep Surjewala said that a decision on the next Karnataka chief minister will be announced today or tomorrow and a new cabinet will be in place within 72 hours.

Meanwhile, a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting has been called by the partys state unit chief D K Shivakumar here on Thursday evening.

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief has written to all the legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queens Road here at 7 pm.

Hectic parleys were held on Wednesday to break the deadlock in deciding on the Congresss chief ministerial pick in Karnataka, with both the hopefuls  Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar  presenting their cases before the top brass even as the party asserted that an outcome is likely within a day or two.

After the multiple rounds of discussions, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said a decision on the new cabinet will be in place in the next 48-72 hours.

In the May 10 elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats, while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats respectively.

With inputs from agencies.

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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for Japan on Friday to participate in the G7 meet being held at Hiroshima. India, though not a part of the influential G7 grouping, has been invited by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida as a guest country to be part of the summit, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday.

The visit to Japan will be the first leg of Prime Minister Modis three-country tour, which will also include Papua New Guinea and Australia.

This year, Japan holds the presidency of the G7 group of countries which include  Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.

The G7 summit itself this time round has chosen several key priorities for the current presidency. The summit will discuss, in particular with the invited guest countries a number of key global issues like nuclear disarmament, economic security, regional issues, climate and energy, food and health and development. Other important issues such as digitisation in science and technology will also be highlighted in the various sessions, Kwatra said.

Indias participation at the G7 summit in Tokyo would be structured around three formal sessions. Two of them will be held on 20 May, 2023 (Saturday), while the third one will take place on 21 May. The first structural session will deal with food, health and gender equality while the other will talk about climate and energy. The third session will be on the new global order and aptly called Towards peaceful, stable and prosperous world, he elaborated.

The Foreign Secretary pointed out that Indias regular participation at the G7 summits clearly shows the increasing global recognition that India should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges including those of peace, security, development and environment preservation. This recognition also helps in a successful ongoing G20 presidency for the country and its efforts to facilitate the interests of countries that are part of the global south.

Ahead of PM Modis participation in the upcoming G7 summit in Hiroshima on Saturday, India has also participated in several ministerial level meetings of the G7. The prime minister will also hold bilateral discussions with several leaders of the G7 countries on the sidelines of the summit. PM Modi will further hold bilateral meetings with his Japanese counterpart on the sidelines of the summit.

Besides India, Japan has also invited Vietnam, Australia, Brazil, the Cook Islands and Indonesia as well as a few international organisations like the United Nations.

India is also planning a Quad leaders meet in Hiroshima with the Quad member countrieswith Japanese PM Kishida, President Biden and the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in attendance.

After Japan, for the second leg of his three-country visit, PM Modi will visit Papua New Guinea and Australia.

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In a viral video from Punjabs Gurdaspur, a police official allegedly slapped a woman farmer, who was protesting against the acquisition of their land for National Highway project.

According to reports, the incident took place at Bhamari village of Gurdaspur district on Wednesday.

Sharing the video on Twitter, BJPs Jaiveer Shergill tweeted, Shameful act of slapping a women farmer by Punjab Police official in a village in Gurdaspur, Punjab area. Punjab @PunjabPoliceInd must strict action against this individual.

In the video, the police official can be seen slapping the woman farmer.

Shameful act of slapping a women farmer by Punjab Police official in a village in Gurdaspur, Punjab area. Punjab @PunjabPoliceInd must strict action against this individual. pic.twitter.com/rSmo8wv5LT  Jaiveer Shergill (@JaiveerShergill) May 18, 2023

According to PTC News, a senior police official informed that the cop has been sent to the Police Lines and a departmental inquiry was ordered against him.

(With inputs from agencies)

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A grand event has started today in the ancient Chinese city of Xian. Thats China-Central Asia Summit, where the top leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan will talk to Chinas Xi Jinping.

The Chinese surely know how to make summits grandiose and memorable. They do it with leaders of Africa or other regions, laying stress on the economy. After all, China is the top trading partner of 140 among almost 200 nations of the world. But this time, you may expect an extremely tense atmosphere in Xian, since these people will be discussing their role in a violent reset of the global economy and politics.

Before I forget it: I would not advise anyone to resurrect a stale and fake idea about China squeezing Moscow out of Central Asia. We are talking about a well-coordinated Russo-Chinese effort to make the center of Eurasia a vibrant heart of the continent. Enough is to say, the same five Central Asian leaders have attended a similar summit in Moscow on May 9, the Victory Day, where they attended the traditional parade, and then moved to the halls of Kremlin to talk with Vladimir Putin.

But before that, they had a similar meeting with the US Secretary of State. Which means that, for Central Asia, the problem is in achieving the proper balance between the warring East and West, preferably the way India is doing, if they can afford it.

Whats important, we are talking about the area going through an unprecedented trading boom. Chinas total foreign trade has grown by 5.8 per cent in the first four months of the year, but it is up by 34.7 per cent with Central Asia. While Russo-Chinese trade has grown by 41.3 per cent in the same period. Finally, the same happens with Russias trade with Central Asia, with Uzbekistan its over 40 per cent last year, and so on.

You may easily see that we are talking about the same trade flows across Eurasia, caused by the attempts of the West to strangle the Russian economy and, maybe, do the same with the economy of China a bit later. Central Asia is profiting from re-orientation of Russias trade from West to East. In fact, what we see is a return to the Golden Age of the Great Silk Route, when Central Asia was right in the middle of all caravan routes across the huge continent, buying and selling and forwarding everything thinkable.

Chinese media these days, on the eve of the summit, unleashed a veritable avalanche of data on things like the China-Kazakhstan crude oil pipeline, the China-Central Asia gas pipeline, a China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan highway, the Pengsheng Industrial Park and a China-Tajikistan-Uzbekistan highway, and the rest.

Similar information is coming from the Russian side. There was a special conference on Central Asia, convened by the prestigious Valdai discussion club in the city of Tomsk this week. We have learned, from the reports, that Russia is the biggest investor in Uzbekistan now, and other things like that.

Now, when that part of Asia has retrieved its role of the center of the continent, it would hate losing that role, especially when it has essentially become the fastest-growing trade area in the world.

But why should it lose anything? Its because, in the coming days and weeks, therell be a new surge of battle between West and East, with the nations of global South in the squeeze between the main adversaries.

There is no need to talk too much about the West losing the first round of sanctions against Russia and China. As far as Russia is concerned, we live better than before, while we were supposed to suffer from a ruined consumer market and stalled supplies for machinery. It did not happen, because dozens of the global South nations were only too glad to replace the West as customers, and also to re-export the needed Western goods to Russia. Central Asian nations may be the biggest winners from that, but then the Middle East is not far behind, with Africa or Latin America eager to follow.

So now the #1 theme of all the global policy is the absolute need for the West to drag the whole world into that hybrid Third World War, or end it somehow. There is yet another package of sanctions prepared by the European Union. And then there will be a G7 meeting in Tokyo at the end of this month. The discussion in all these cases is about the need to punish anyone who is making mockery of sanctions. That attempt to establish the Western long-arm jurisdiction on the whole world reportedly is to target the Arab nations of the Gulf, Central Asia, Brazil and Argentina you name it.

So, it goes without saying that the five leaders of Central Asian nations have arrived in Xian to estimate which course of action will bring them less problems. They did the same in Moscow earlier, and they in fact do it every day ever since, maybe, 2017, when the world began to slide into a battle for shaping some new global economy.

Here we have to refer again to the scraps of information from the Valdai conference. The people there seem to agree that nations like Kazakhstan, with its extensive ties with the West, may go on oscillating between the two sides, while others do not care much about the West. How about the rest of the world?

Here its appropriate to quote Sergei Lavrov, Russias foreign minister, from his yesterdays interview. He refers to recent conversations with some of his colleagues from Africa and Latin America. They often complain that the West is driving them nuts by its demands to join sanctions against Russia. So how is the West promising to compensate you for your losses, if you do join sanctions? And they, Lavrov concludes, lower their gaze and say: They are promising not to punish us in that case.

That seems to be a poor way to win friends and shape the world to your liking.

The author is a columnist for the Russian State agency website ria.ru, as well as for other publications. Views expressed after personal.

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High-voltage spectacle leading to the arrest of former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan by the Rangers on 9 May 2023 at the Court House in Islamabad resulted in turmoil across the country. The intensity of violence unleashed by the workers of Imrans party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was well beyond expectations. The rampage resulted in the loss of over a dozen lives and colossal damage to the property, including that of military establishments. Despite the ruthless crackdown by security forces, the environment continues to be volatile.

The explosive situation took another dramatic turn two days later when on 11 May, the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) ordered Imran Khans immediate release, calling his arrest to be illegal. While Imrans followers rejoiced, the government accused the judiciary of acting politically and favouring the former prime minister. The SC decision came as a jolt even for the army. The next very day, Islamabad High Court granted bail to Imran Khan along with two weeks reprieve from arrest in the Al-Qadir trust case. It also provided him immunity from arrest in any case filed after 9 May. Immediately on his release, Imran Khan went ballistic, squarely blaming the Army Chief General Asim Munir for destroying the nation and creating chaos.

The gravity of the prevailing situation reverberates the outrage that followed former prime minister Benazir Bhuttos assassination in 2007. Ongoing unrest probably is the worst since 1971, which ended up in the dismemberment of Pakistan. The current political calamity could not have come at the worst time when Pakistan is in the grip of a serious economic crisis, almost on the verge of bankruptcy.

In its 75 years of existence, for half the time Pakistan has been ruled by army generals. Even during the times, the civilian government was in place, the army continued to exercise effective control by proxy. For that matter, Imran Khan also wears the tag of the selected prime minister as the army played a key role in his coming to power in 2018, orchestrating the dismissal of the Nawaz Sharif government on corruption charges.

Going by the history of civil-military relations in Pakistan, no civilian government has been able to complete its full term. So was the case with Imran Khan who fell out of favour with the then Army Chief General Qamar Bajwa, his benefactor, over the appointment of DG ISI (Director General Inter Service Intelligence). While Imran Khan wanted Lt Gen Faiz Hameed to continue as the head of ISI and subsequently take over as the Chief, General Bajwa overruled the prime minister and appointed Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum as the DG.

The army ultimately got rid of Imran Khan last April, by engineering his toppling through a no confidence motion paving the way for Shehbaz Sharif to become the prime minister. After his ouster, Imran Khan vociferously took up an anti-army stance, gaining considerable public popularity in the process. He went on to level allegations against Major General Faisal Nasser, head of counter-intelligence in ISI for an attempt on his life. Imran Khan has been demanding early elections in a bid to cash in the favourable public sentiments. However, his coming to power is not in the armys interest. General Asim Munir, in fact, has a personal grudge against Imran Khan for removing him from the post of DG ISI prematurely when he reportedly initiated an investigation of corruption charges against Bushra Bibi-Imrans wife.

Unprecedented public anger is directed against the Pakistan Army (Chief) fueled by hardships faced by the common person in the wake of harsh economic conditions, given that military continues to maintain a lavish lifestyle. There are also reports about dissidence within the army, evident from a major military reshuffle wherein Lt Gen Salman Ghani commander of the Lahore-based Corps stands replaced by Lt Gen Fayyaz Shah. Reports of purges against the pro-Imran elements in the army have also surfaced.

While Pakistan Army may have a poor track record having lost all the wars it fought, however, at home it has been always victorious. Currently, Army may appear to be on the back foot but is expected to act resolutely here on, evident from the statements of the army chief. As generals handle the nations defence and foreign policies, lately even the economic affairs, Pakistan Army maintains direct channels with highest rung policymakers in China, US and Gulf nations. Therefore, as long as Rawalpindi serves the interest of Beijing and Washington, it matters little as to who is at the helm in Islamabad.

India needs to be wary of the state of affairs in Pakistan, given the probability of spillover. Pakistans military is known to escalate situations on the borders to divert public attention at home whenever there is internal upheaval. More so, painting India as an existential threat serves Pakistan Army well, both to justify its relevance and rally public support. There are already reports of Border Action Teams gearing up for hostile actions across the LoC.

The political alignments in Pakistan stand well defined. The Shehbaz Sharif government is backed by the army on one side and Imran Khans PTI with the support of SC on the opposite end. Round one has definitely gone in Imrans favour. Despite Imran Khans call for nationwide protests on 17 May to protect the nations constitution, the establishment dealt with the situation in a heavy-handed manner. Cases were registered against Imran Khan under the Army Act  Sections 59 and 60; the penalty being life imprisonment or death if found guilty.

Pakistan teetering on the edge is a cyclical phenomenon, courtesy of its self-implosion mechanism. This time around, the Islamic Republic is in for a long haul; the battlegrounds being the streets and the judicial courts. Peoples protests are expected to run out of steam in due course. Imran in all likelihood will be tried by the army court, convicted and jailed with the possible option of going into exile. Whatever the end game be, Pakistan is bound to slip deeper into the abyss, haunted by the stark reality of becoming a failed state.

The writer is a war veteran, former assistant chief, and current professor, Strategic and International Relations. Views expressed are personal.

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Case 1: It was an unusually busy and buzzy day in the otherwise sleepy village of Undhela in Gujarats Kheda district. Ten young Muslim men were brought to the chowk by police and each one held against a pillar and caned by policemen in plain clothes. As the video shows, the villagers shouted Bharat Mata ki Jai, while the caning continued. Some others were seen cheering and clapping. These 10 men were among 43 who allegedly threw stones, indulged in violence and disrupted a garba event at the same chowk the previous night.

Case 2: At a store in Citrus Springs in Florida, USA, Roy and Robert Lashley met a black man, who too was shopping there. Seeing an Afro-American man, Roy repeatedly used racial slurs. Later the two followed the victim into the parking lot. There, Robert ran to the victim and hit him several times, while Roy retrieved an axe handle from his truck, ran to the scene, and struck the victim multiple times with it. The victim sustained deep injuries to his face and legs.

There are numerous such cases in the US of targeted killings in the name of religion and colour. In one case, in January this very year, a Black man was seen screaming for his mother as US cops beat him to death, reminding one of the killing of George Floyd in 2020 that led to the nationwide Black Lives Matter movement. Statistically speaking, this year, the trend of fatal police shootings in the United States seems to be only increasing, with a total 344 civilians having been shot, 42 of whom were Black (as of 1 May 2023). In 2022, there were 1,096 fatal police shootings, of them more than one-fifth (225) were connected with Black. In 2021, there were 1,048 fatal shootings  and 233 of them came from the Black background.

When one analyses the two given cases, they appear similar in nature  of police brutality, of targeting a particular community (religious or racial). In fact, in the first case, the victim has been at least accused of throwing stones, indulging in violence and disrupting a garba event. But in the second case, there was no such provocation; it was sheer racial hatred that led to the targeting of that Black man. But the State Departments Religious Freedom Report 2022, released by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Washington on Monday, has picked out Case 1, among other isolated incidents in India, to project the image of a majoritarian state indulging in targeted attacks against members of religious minorities. As for the violence in America, they remain law and order issues.

Apart from the selected targeting of Muslims, the report also highlights how religious conversion in India is under state scrutiny. Thirteen of 28 states have laws restricting religious conversions for all faiths. Some of these states also impose penalties specifically against forced religious conversions for the purpose of marriage although historically, some state high courts have dismissed cases brought under these laws, it said.

What this report doesnt say is that the laws in these states are reactive in nature; they have been made after several cases of undue influence, coercion, and allurement came to light. As Section 3 of Uttar Pradeshs Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021 says, No person shall convert or attempt to convert another individual, directly or otherwise, by misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means. It is only in the case of violations of Section 3 that one is punished by prison terms between one and five years and a fine of at least Rs 15,000. One wonders how a law that stops undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means can be cited to paint India and its democracy in dark hues.

The Religious Freedom Report 2022, however, is not one of its kind in targeting India and its leadership. In fact, in the last one year, especially after the Ukraine war and with India heading for a parliamentary election early next year, the anti-India, anti-Modi tirade has only increased. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), for instance, had come up with its report in March this year and it too had targeted India for promulgating the anti-conversion laws. It accused the 12 Indian states of promulgating the anti-conversion laws that grossly violated the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

But it was the report of the US Holocaust Museum that took the cake. This report came out in December last year and its Early Warning Project for 2022-23 has ranked India eighth in the top 15 highest-risk countries in the world. Our statistical model estimates that there is a 7.4 percent, or approximately 1 in 14, chance of a new mass killing beginning in India in 2022 or 2023. India ranks 8th highest-risk among 162 countries, the report said. For the last six years, India has ranked in the top 15 highest-risk countries in the world. Interestingly, as per the latest report, India is just better off than Afghanistan, but worse than Sudan, Somalia, Syria and Iraq in the same ascending order. Even autocratic China, ranked 23rd in the list, is better off than democratic India!

The Western doublespeak is obvious when one realises that Black Americans make up 13 percent of the US population but are killed by police at more than twice the rate of white Americans, as the Washington Post had reported. Still, the Americans never shy off from lecturing the worlds largest democracy with a content-size population and globe-like diversity. Europeans have experienced a surge in government restrictions on religious activity over the last decade, as per a recent PEW survey, but they remain the paragon of libertarian values.

Pallavi Aiyar writes in Punjabi Parmesan: Dispatches from a Europe in Crisis, The laws passed across Europe aimed at restricting the public performance of Muslim belief are rarely in proportion to the reality of the Muslim presence. A 2009 Swiss ban on minarets was carried out despite the existence of a sum total of four minarets in the entire country; while the French interior ministry estimates that less than 1 percent of Muslim girls wore headscarves to schools before they were banned. The number of women who chose to wear burqas in the country before they were outlawed was around 350, a fourth of whom were converts.

Still, when an Indian educational institution in Karnataka  and not the Government of India  decides to enforce its dress code in the classroom, all hell breaks loose. Indian democracy, secularism and liberalism  all seem to be imperiled. But the West comes out unscathed even for the worst of crimes. This was also evident during the so-called farmers protest in India, when the West joined in chorus to go soft with the protesters, but while dealing with their own protesters, they took the most undemocratic measures available to them.

The political nature of the Religious Freedom report 2022 is obvious when it talks about the 26 April letter by, 108 former senior government officials, who wrote Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that government discrimination against religious minorities, particularly Muslims, in states like Assam, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, was undermining the countrys Constitution. But what about the open letter written by eight former judges, 97 ex-bureaucrats, and 92 former armed forces in support of the current dispensation in India?

The timing of the Religious Freedom Report 2022 is interesting, as it comes ahead of Prime Minister Modis first official state visit to the US. The US-led West wants India by its side, as has been obvious during the ongoing Ukraine crisis, but it is vehemently opposed to the idea of a strong and powerful India. It wants an ally against rising China, but more in the mould of Ukraine, whose leadership has taken the self-destructive path while pushing the Western interest in Kiev. To its misfortune, India isnt Ukraine. And Modi definitely isnt Zelenskyy. And thats where such anti-India reports become relevant: To tarnish the image of India and its political leadership, and push for a regime change in 2024  a government that it hopes will be more pliant to Western interest and prone to American pressure.

The author is Opinion Editor, Firstpost and News18. He tweets from @Utpal_Kumar1. Views expressed are personal.

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I am against the culture of banning, be it films, books, exhibitions or anything else, unless the reasons are absolutely and verifiably compelling. This is not because I approve of what is being banned. Nor do I believe that every creation that claims to be authentic is anywhere near the truth. I am quite aware that very often, mass forms of communication are used for false propaganda, and that creativity is a facade for hidden agendas, mostly political.

However, I believe that banning is counterproductive. It defeats the very purpose for which it is imposed because, in todays age of social media and cyber accessibility, nothing can be prevented from being seen. When you ban a film, for instance, you attract more attention to it, and more people want to watch it, and they can. The recent decision of the government to block the BBC documentary on Gujarat proves this point. Much fewer people would have watched it had it not been clumsily blocked. Besides, there is something undemocratic in allowing the state to decide what people should watch or read. It undermines, even insults, the innate wisdom of the common person, who usually is quite adept in knowing the difference between truth and falsehood, agenda and fact, propaganda and reality.

The above comments are, as you must have guessed, in the context of the controversy surrounding Sudipto Sens film The Kerala Story. The West Bengal government has banned it. The filmmakers have appealed against the ban in the Supreme Court, and the verdict is awaited. Other states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu have opposed it. On the other hand, the state governments of UP, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have made it tax-free. We now have a situation where some parts of India dont want people to see the film, while others want people to see it, and both these diametrically opposite decisions are made by elected representatives of the people. If this ludicrous situation does not make a film a hit, I dont know what does!

Obviously, the film serves the political purposes of the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), whose state governments have made it tax-free. The BJP, its critics say, derives its political strength from Hindu consolidation, and therefore, wants to highlight the threat posed by Muslims in general and radical Islam in particular. Their purpose is best served if more people (read Hindus) watch the film. Those opposed to the film, apprehend that it is propagandist, Islamophobic, and inaccurate, and can cause avoidable social hatred and divisiveness.

The films intention is to highlight the dangers of radical Islam, by focusing on how Hindu girls become victims of love jihad, convert to Islam, and join the dreaded ISIS. But in conveying this message, does the film cross the line between understandable messaging and deliberate hate-mongering? Having watched the film, I believe it does. There is an extremist fringe in every religion, which needs to be exposed and dealt with firmly. But when a film, whether deliberately or otherwise, has the effect of demonising an entire community, it is likely to spread hatred, and reinforce a generic stereotype which is far from the truth.

It is one thing to put the torchlight on some cases of radicalisation, and quite another to exaggerate the figure to create fear that this has become a widespread or pervasive menace. One of our domestic staff told my wife that her relatives had warned her to be especially careful about her daughters since young Muslim men everywhere are trying to convert them to Islam through love jihad to join the ISIS. The reality is that India, with the third largest number of Muslims in the world, has a minuscule number of people who have actually joined ISIS. Experts from the Observer Research Foundation note that less than 200 people from India had joined ISIS and that Kerala, having over 9 million Muslims, accounted for only a quarter of these.

The quality of the film also leaves much to be desired. Most critics have decisively panned the film, equating it with a lengthy WhatsApp forward, manufactured by those who see a fanatic in every Muslim. Others have equated it with inept propaganda, that is neither watchable nor convincing. The problem is that generalising an entire narrative from a few stray incidents has the potential of misleading people.

Suppose, for instance, an entire narrative was made about Hindus based on the hatred spewed at the so-called Dharma Sansad at Haridwar in December 2021, would it not be motivated propaganda? But, for all its faults, I am still against the banning of the film, as I am against making it tax-free. People should have the right to see it, if they wish to, on a level playing field and come to their own opinion. That is why I was against the banning of Salman Rushdies Midnights Children, and all such similar bans in the past. My views concur exactly with the brave judgement delivered by Justice Sanjay Krishna Kaul of the Supreme Court in 2016 on behalf of a five-judge bench. The case was about banning the book, Mathorubhagan by celebrated Tamil writer Perumal Murugan (translated into English as One Part Woman). There were calls by some zealots to ban the film, and Justice Kaul put a decisive lid on them. He began his judgement by quoting the famous words of Voltaire in defence of free speech: I may not agree with what you say, but will defend to death your right to say it, and concluded with the ringing words, The choice to read is with the reader. If you do not like a book, throw it awayYet, the right to write is unhindered.

The same logic applies to The Kerala Story. But we should never doubt the wisdom of the people of India to know the difference between truth and propaganda. The BJP used this film as part of its campaign in the recent elections in Karnataka. The results clearly show how much impact this had.

The author is a former diplomat, an author and a politician. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.

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When it comes to looted antiquities, it is not often that the looters and the looted gather in the same forum. The G20 is one such, and serendipitously India  one of the most looted  is the chair this year. China, another nation whose treasures repose in museums around the world, is also a member. And despite the ongoing froideur over borders and other issues, looted antiquities is one point on which they cannot but agree. Is it not time, then, for a bold new initiative?

It could be called the League of Looted Nations. And given the widespread belief that the United Nations is now just a tax-free sinecure rather than a body that makes a real difference anymore, Indias move for a consensus on repatriation of important items of cultural heritage to the countries they belong to could be just what is needed. More so as repositories of these treasures  whether publicly or privately owned  have been able to fob off single-nation efforts.

On #InternationalMuseumDay, it is time to rethink the role of museums in this. Tourists marvel at displays in museums and galleries, sparing little thought as to how they got there. Museums and universities have recently been erasing the Sackler name from galleries, libraries and halls donated by the family as their fortune came from opioids. Benefits begotten from slavery are also being rejected. Why is there no similar protest against illegal antiquities in museums abroad?

Mainly because there has been no concerted effort by looted nations to publicise the stealing of their cultural heritage  and its ramifications. The issue has so far been conveniently regarded as the domain of individual nations not a common problem that unifies many. So each looted country takes its case to the offending nation, with limited success. The public of the nations where looted cultural heritage is displayed in museums remains largely unaware of the issues.

Take the long and so far futile battle of Greece to get back the so-called Elgin Marbles  segments of the Parthenon  from the British Museum. Such has been the difficulty to get the British to budge that a move by the current BM head George Osborne to loan the priceless friezes back to Greece is being seen as a victory. No one is calling out the brazenness of the British! How can something that belongs to Greece be loaned to it by those who carted it off?

India has also been fighting for the return for antiquities, although the Kohinoor gets most of the publicity on this count. The fact is that the diamond is just the most blingy of the treasures that the British got from India via questionable means during the Raj. There are many more Indian treasures in their clutches, including huge sections of the Amaravati Stupa, Maharaja Ranjit Singhs throne, the copper Sultanganj Buddha and Tipu Sultans sword, ring and wooden tiger.

The then British Prime Minister David Cameron wasnt kidding when on a visit to India in 2010 he ruled out the return of the Kohinoor saying. If you (Britain) say yes to one, you suddenly find the British Museum would be empty. I think, I am afraid to say it is going to have to stay put. Some Indian artefacts have indeed been returned by the UK since 2010, but notably, none of those mentioned above. Clearly wider and more sustained action is needed to get results.

That is why Indias emphasis on righting wrongs in the cultural space at G20 is timely. In the 21st century there is no basis for the old canard that museums and private collections (mostly in Western nations and former colonial powers) offer more secure spaces than the countries treasures had been obtained from. As these columns have always asserted, such institutions have been committing a crime against nations by continuing to keep their cultural heritage.

The West so far has done mostly lip service on the matter of protecting and returning looted cultural artefacts. And bureaucratic red-tape has ensured that the return of antiquities is delayed. Meanwhile, priceless collections in museums that clearly have no business to be there rather than in the places of worship or other monuments they were looted from, continue to be displayed and studied by scholars. Including those from the countries they were looted from!

The Paris Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property signed in 1970 under the aegis of UNESCO (and endorsed by 143 nations so far) laid down admirably specific conditions. But antiquities of many nations including India are still in museums and collections when they could not have been procured by means acceptable by todays standards as looting no longer qualifies.

Article 2 of the convention says, Parties to this Convention recognize that the illicit import, export and transfer of ownership of cultural property is one of the main causes of the impoverishment of the cultural heritage of the countries of origin of such property and that international co-operation constitutes one of the most efficient means of protecting each countrys cultural property against all the dangers resulting there from. What has this recognition achieved?

The document also virtuously states that Parties undertake to oppose such practices with the means at their disposal, and particularly by removing their causes, putting a stop to current practices, and by helping to make the necessary reparationsThe import, export or transfer of ownership of cultural property effected contrary to the provisions adopted under this Convention by the States Parties thereto, shall be illicit. More sound and fury signifying nothing.

Obviously so, as the notorious Subhash Kapoors trade in illegal antiquities from India and elsewhere flourished abroad after 1970. He and many others cocked a snook at these toothless pronouncements, particularly Article 7 which said member states would take necessary measuresto prevent museums and similar institutions from acquiring cultural property originating in another State Party which has been illegally exported after this convention took effect.

The convention also says that at the request of an aggrieved country (via diplomatic channels and with supporting documents), the nation to which cultural property had been illegally imported should take appropriate steps to recover and return those items but with a caveat that the requesting State shall pay just compensation to an innocent purchaser or to a person who has valid title to that property. How can any title be valid if it belongs to another country?

By that logic, of course, Greece should simply pay Britain for the return of the Parthenon pieces carted off by Lord Elgin and India should do the same to get the Kohinoor back  after some solid haggling, presumably. Of course, given Britains dire economic situation at present, this may seem an attractive propositionmonetise the treasures Britons stole in centuries past, to tide over its crisis today. But there is little reason for looted nations to oblige.

As G20 has members from both sides  the looted and the looters  there is a wonderful opportunity to form an official consensus regarding fast repatriation of items of invaluable cultural significance. Pooling information and devising mechanisms that can cut red-tape would be a huge achievement. Of course then institutions like the British Museum will have to come to terms with their own past  and display non-looted alternatives in their emptied galleries.

The author is a freelance writer. Views expressed are personal.

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Tahawwur Rana, a Pakistani-origin terror convict whose extradition to India has received a green signal, was very relaxed in the days after the 26/11 attacks. He also wanted Pakistans highest military honour to be bestowed on the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who carried out the carnage in Mumbai.

In a major victory for Indias fight in bringing perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice, US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US District Court of the Central District of California issued a 48-page order Wednesday saying that Rana should be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between India and the US.

The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extractability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request, the order said.

According to the details in the Certification of Extraditability and Order of Commitment about Ranas involvement and association with a friend and LeT terrorist David Coleman Headley, on December 25, 2008, a co-conspirator who met Rana in Dubai sent Headley an email asking Hows . . . [Ranas] reaction on what all is happening, is he terrified or relaxed? Headley responded the next day that Rana is very relaxed and was trying to calm Headley down.

In a September 7, 2009 conversation, Rana told Headley that the nine Lashkar terrorists who had been killed in the Mumbai attacks should be given Nishan-e-Haider, which is Pakistans highest military honour. Rana, now 62, also asked Headley to tell one of the co-conspirators responsible for planning the Mumbai attacks that he should get a medal for top class. The document also notes that Rana was pleased to learn Headley had already conveyed the compliment based on prior statements Rana had made equating the co-conspirator to a famous general.

Rana also occasionally communicated directly with some of Headleys contacts in Pakistan, it said.

Rana was also in direct touch with the . . . handlers for [Headley] and passed on information as and when required. The order noted that the court cannot certify Ranas extradition unless there is probable cause to believe he committed the offences for which extradition is sought.

Citing its reasoning in detail, the order states Accordingly, the Court finds there is probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offences as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition Treaty between the United States and India. India filed a complaint on June 10, 2020, seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

The order also mentions that in India, Headley conducted surveillance on Chabad Houses in Delhi, Goa, and Pushkar as well as the National Defence College (NDC), which teaches courses for high-level Indian Army officers, colonels and up. He kept Rana apprised of the surveillance activities.

In the September 7, 2009 conversation, Headley and Rana discussed targeting the NDC, Rana told Headley that he was already aware that the NDC was a target, and they talked about how such an attack would kill more high-ranking Indian military officials than previous wars between India and Pakistan. Rana also set up an email account for Headley so that Headley could communicate securely with Rana, and Headley transferred a list of Chabad houses in India  including the ones he was supposed to conduct surveillance on  into the email account for security purposes.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Brazils environmental authority declined to issue a licence for a contentious offshore oil drilling project at the mouth of the Amazon River on Wednesday, causing environmentalists who had warned of the projects possible effect to rejoice.

The decision to reject Petrobras request to drill in the FZA-M-59 block was taken as a function of a group of technical inconsistencies, according to the agencys head, Rodrigo Agostinho, who emphasised environmental concerns.

With Brazils current output projected to peak in the coming years, Petrobras has attempted to acquire additional reserves off of the countrys northern coast. The area received nearly half of the companys $6 billion exploration expenditure during a five-year period.

CEO Jean-Paul Prates had said that the first well would be temporary and that the company has never recorded a leak in offshore drilling. The company failed to convince the environmental agency.

There is no doubt that Petrobras was offered every opportunity to remedy critical points of its project, but that it still presents worrisome inconsistencies for the safe operation in a new exploratory frontier with high socio-environmental vulnerability, Agostinho wrote in his decision.

The unique and biodiverse area is home to little-studied swaths of mangroves and a coral reef, and activists and experts had said the project risked leaks that could imperil the sensitive environment.

Eighty civil society and environmental organizations, including WWF Brasil and Greenpeace, had called for the license to be rejected pending an in-depth study.

Agostinho is protecting a virtually unknown ecosystem and maintains the coherence of the Lula government, which has promised in its discourse to be guided by the fight against the climate crisis, the Climate Observatory, a network of environmental non-profits, said in a statement.

During the first presidential terms of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, from 2003 to 2010, huge offshore discoveries became a means of financing health, education and welfare programs. Some members of his Workers Party continue to see oil as a means to ensure social progress.

In March, Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said that the area is the passport to the future for development in Brazils northern region. In his prior terms, Lula used the same phrase to describe offshore oil discoveries in an area known as pre-salt.

But Lula has strived to demonstrate the environmental awakening he has undergone in the years since, with the protection of the Amazon a fixture in his campaign last year to unseat Jair Bolsonaro and return to the presidency.

Activists and experts had warned that approval for the offshore oil project could threaten the natural world, but also dent Lulas newfound image as an environmental defender.

The process to obtain an environmental license for the FZA-M-59 block began in 2014, at the request of BP Energy do Brasil. Exploration rights were transferred to Petrobras in 2020.

Suely Araujo, a former head of the environment agency and now a public policy specialist with the Climate Observatory, said Agostinho made the right call not just for the specific project, but also for the nation.

The decision, in this case, gives cause for a broader debate about the role of oil in the countrys future. It is time to establish a calendar to eliminate fossil fuels and accelerate the just transition for oil exporting countries, such as Brazil, and not open a new exploration frontier, Araujo said in a statement. Those who sleep today dreaming of oil wealth tend to wake up tomorrow with a stranded asset, or an ecological disaster, or both.

Other controversial megaprojects in the Amazon that remain on the table include repaving a highway that would slice through the preserved rainforest, construction of a major railway for grain transport and renewal of a giant hydroelectric dams license.

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Chinese authorities have arrested a woman for defaming the Peoples Liberation Army after she backed a comedians joke about a Xi Jinping military slogan that sparked a nationwide uproar.

The 34-year-old woman, identified by her last name Shi, was arrested on Tuesday evening for posting inappropriate remarks about the military, according to a Bloomberg report, citing police in the northeastern city of Dalian saying in a statement on Wednesday.

The dignity of Chinese soldiers must be respected, added the statement posted to Chinas Twitter-like Weibo.

How it unfolded

It all started when popular comedian Li Haoshi, known as House, in one of his appearances likened the behavior of two wild dogs to the work ethic described by a military slogan Xi had once used at a PLA gathering.

According to Reuters, Li mentioned he had adopted two stray dogs he was watching chase a squirrel. He said the scene made him think of a phrase used by by the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) that roughly translates to Fight well, win the battle.

Audio released on Chinese social media websites show the audience laughed in response, but one audience member made a complaint, and the joke soon received criticism for being seen as disrespectful.

Li was suspended from the Xiaoguo Culture Media firm in Shanghai, which had represented him, and his account on the Chinese social media site Weibo was suspended after he posted an apology, saying he felt deeply guilty and regretful.

A subsidiary of the firm was fined $1.91 million and it would have to give up $189,000 in illegal gains from Lis performance, according to a CNN report.

Shi had questioned the suspension of the comedian.

Why should HOUSE be banned? Arent all soldier brothers just dog brothers? Bloomberg quoted Shi as writing on Weibo, citing the state-run Global Times newspaper.

However, Bloomberg said it could not verify the post, which appeared to have been removed.

China enacted a law in 2021 criminalising insults against the military, prompting authorities to take a harder line on criticism of the PLA.

Police in Beijing announced on Wednesday they were probing Li for seriously insulting the PLA.

The fallout

The backlash appeared to have a chilling effect on Chinas live performance industry on Thursday. At least two comedy club operators  Danliren Comedy and C+ Talkshow Club  cancelled some of their upcoming performances, according to the National Business Daily and a statement on the latter companys WeChat account.

Japanese band Kissaquo abruptly pulled a show in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou on Wednesday night. A statement on the bands official Weibo account said the cancellation was ordered by government agencies out of force majeure. Kissaquo did not immediately reply to a request for comment, according to a Bloomberg report.

With inputs from agencies

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Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle litigation alleging the German lender financially benefited from supporting Jeffrey Epsteins sex trafficking ring, according to a report Wednesday.

The settlement concerns an unnamed defendant who launched a proposed class-action suit in November 2022, alleging Deutsche Bank did business with Epstein while knowing he used funds in the account to support sex-trafficking activity, the Wall Street Journal said Wednesday.

The Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, said Deutsche Bank did not admit wrongdoing.

A Deutsche Bank spokesperson declined to comment. Deutsche Bank benefited financially by supporting Epsteins sex trafficking organization to successfully rape, sexually assault and coercively sex traffic Plaintiff Jane Doe 1 and the numerous other members of the Class, said the original complaint, which was filed in US court in New York.

Epstein, an American financier who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex crimes, began banking with Deutsche Bank in 2013 after JPMorgan Chase closed his accounts, the Journal reported.

An unidentified woman  apparently the same as in the Deutsche case  and the US Virgin Islands brought separate suits against JPMorgan late last year, accusing the bank of facilitating Epsteins crimes by ignoring warnings and continuing to keep him as a client until 2013.

According to court documents, subpoenas in those cases have targeted multiple well-known people whom Epstein possibly referred to JPMorgan as clients, including Elon Musk and Google co-founder Larry Page.

The bank has denied the allegations and has filed its own suit against a former executive for his ties to Epstein.

Deutsche Bank in July 2020 agreed to pay $150 million to settle allegations brought by the New York Department of Financial Services for compliance failures connected to the banks work for Epstein.

We acknowledge our error of onboarding Epstein in 2013 and the weaknesses in our processes, and have learnt from our mistakes and shortcomings, Deutsche Bank said in July 2020.

Epstein was convicted in Florida in 2008 of paying young girls for massages but served just 13 months in jail under a secret plea deal.

Later facing charges of trafficking underage girls for sex, he killed himself in a New York jail in August 2019.

With inputs from agencies.

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A Moscow-born US journalist and vice president of the board of PEN America, Masha Gessen tendered her resignation following the disinvitation of two Russian writers from a PEN event.

The decision to exclude the writers was made in response to complaints lodged by Ukrainians.

In explaining her resignation, Gessen, who contributes to The New Yorker, expressed her belief in PENs mission but felt compelled to step down from her leadership position to avoid association with what she considered an erroneous judgment.

The incident occurred as part of PENs annual World Voices Festival, where Gessen was scheduled to moderate a panel featuring Ilya Venyavkin and Anna Nemzer, both Russian writers who had left the country after Russias military intervention in Ukraine nearly a year ago.

These individuals had been labeled as dissidents in the West.

The issue arose when Ukrainian writers and active-duty soldiers, Artyom Chapay and Artyom Chekh, who were originally set to participate in a separate panel, refused to attend the festival altogether unless Russians were excluded entirely.

The organizers mistakenly interpreted their statement as pertaining solely to their own panel and not the entire festival, which consisted of over 40 events at various venues.

PEN released a statement acknowledging the error of interpretation and characterizing the situation as a misunderstanding.

Once the Ukrainians arrived in New York and learned that the Russian dissident writers were part of the festival, they informed us that they would be unable to participate, explaining that had both events proceeded, the soldiers could face an emergency situation involving significant political, legal and compliance repercussions and risks, the statement read.

The organizers expressed sincere regret to the Russian writers and expressed their willingness to reschedule the event.

In response to Masha Gessens resignation, PEN America expressed sadness regarding her decision.

PEN Ukraine, on the other hand, issued a statement asserting that it would have been morally wrong and contradictory to their values to allow Ukrainian participants to share a platform with the Russian writers.

Masha Gessen, who left Russia a decade ago, is a prominent critic of the Russian government and has consistently condemned the military intervention in Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly called for the widespread exclusion of individuals associated with Russia and Russian culture as a whole.

Recently, the Prima Vista literary festival in Tartu, Estonia canceled the participation of Russian-Israeli author and translator Linor Goralik following the withdrawal of Ukrainian poets Olena Guseynova and Anna Gruver.

Guseynova justified their decision by stating that it would be impossible to engage in discussions concerning Russian culture while the conflict between Russia and Ukraine remains unresolved.

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Say what you will about Elon Musk, but there are moments when he proves to the world, that he is an absolute savage, with very little or no personal ambition, someone who believes in his principles, whatever they may be. In a recent interview when he was asked why he attacks certain people publically and if hes ever thought about how his tweets can be controversial, Musk had a simple response  that he will tweet what wants.

During an interview with CNBCs David Faber, Elon Musk expressed his determination to persist in posting contentious tweets, even if it means incurring financial losses. Quoting the movie The Princess Bride, Musk said, I am reminded of this line  Offer me money, offer me power, I dont care.' He made this statement while defending himself against allegations of antisemitism regarding his tweets about George Soros. Musk said: Ill say what I want to say and if the consequence of that is losing money, so be it.

Earlier this week, Elon Musk was accused of antisemitism when he tweeted, that George Soros reminded him of Magneto.



The reason why Musk was accused of antisemitism is flimsy at best.

No matter how you read, thinking that Musks statements attack Soros Jewish background in any way is a bit of a stretch. Having said that Musk has still had some harsher words for Soros.



Soros, born into a Jewish family in Hungary during the 1930s, endured the Nazi occupation of his homeland and managed to survive. Meanwhile, the character Magneto, who also comes from a German Jewish family, is depicted as a concentration camp survivor.

It is worth noting that Soros frequently becomes a target of right-wing conspiracy theorists, who often employ attacks that are widely recognized as thinly veiled instances of antisemitism.

Musk further criticised Soros, when US journalist Brian Krassenstein commented that Soros is frequently targeted despite his well-meaning motives, Musk countered by stating, You presume those intentions are benevolent. They are not. He aims to undermine the fundamental essence of society. Soros harbours animosity towards humanity.

You assume they are good intentions. They are not. He wants to erode the very fabric of civilization. Soros hates humanity.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2023



When Faber brought up the accusations of antisemitism against Musk, he responded by saying, No, I am certainly not. If anything, I am a pro-semite.

Regarding his tweet about Soros and humanity, Musk affirmed that it was indeed his personal opinion.

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According to two sources familiar with the decision, Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis will formally enter the 2024 US presidential election next week, becoming Donald Trumps main competitor for the Republican nomination and shaking up a mainly one-sided fight.

According to a source, DeSantis will likely file papers announcing his candidature on 25 May to coincide with a donor gathering in Miami, with a more formal launch the week of 29 May.

According to a person familiar with the event, the invitation for the 25 May dinner suggested that contributors will be put to work, an apparent allusion to generating funds for DeSantis.

DeSantis representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Former US President Trump has in recent weeks stepped up his political attacks on the Florida governor and maintains a commanding lead in the 2024 Republican primary, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.

DeSantis insistence on staying out of the race until the Florida legislature completed its spring session earlier this month rattled some high-profile Republican donors who had wanted him to jump in sooner rather than later to rebut Trump.

Those attacks have taken a toll on DeSantis standing in national polls. But DeSantis and his advisers hoped to use the legislatures session as a springboard to a campaign announcement and have stayed true to their timetable.

Republican lawmakers gave DeSantis a bevvy of conservative victories in recent months: They expanded the states school voucher program, prohibited the use of public money in sustainable investing efforts, scrapped diversity programs at public universities, allowed for the permitless carry of concealed weapons and perhaps most notably, banned almost all abortions in the state.

DeSantis has had help in readying the ground for his candidacy. A new political action committee supporting him, Never Back Down, which can raise unlimited funds, has been hiring staff in early-voting states and running TV ads championing DeSantis and knocking Trump.

DeSantis, 44, was re-elected as governor just last year, trouncing his Democratic opponent by nearly 20 percentage points.

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Four children have miraculously been found alive in the dense Colombian Amazon after 17 days after a plane crash, President Gustavo Petro said Wednesday.

Sharing the news on Twitter, Petro said the children were discovered after arduous search efforts by the military.

The siblings, boys aged eleven months, four and nine and their 13-year-old sister, were left at the mercy of wild animals and survived by eating jungle fruits before their rescue yesterday, daily mail reported.

However, defence ministry sources have told local media they have no confirmation they have been found.

Authorities had deployed more than 100 soldiers with sniffer dogs to search for the minors who were traveling in an airplane that crashed on May 1, killing three adults.

Rescuers believe the children  who in addition to the 11-month-old included a 13, 9, and 4 year old  have been wandering through the jungle in the southern Caqueta department since the crash.

Earlier Wednesday, the armed forces said that search efforts intensified after rescuers came across a shelter built in an improvised way with sticks and branches, leading them to believe there were survivors.

In photographs released by the armed forces, scissors and a hair tie could be seen among branches on the jungle floor.

Previously, a babys drinking bottle and a half-eaten piece of fruit had been found.

On Monday and Tuesday, soldiers found the bodies of the pilot and two adults who had been flying from a jungle location to San Jose del Guaviare, one of the main cities in Colombias Amazon rainforest.

One of the dead passengers, Ranoque Mucutuy, was the mother of the four children, who are from the Huitoto ethnicity.

 Inaccessible region 

Giant trees that can grow up to 40 meters tall, wild animals and heavy rainfall made the Operation Hope search difficult.

Three helicopters have been used to help, one of which blasted out a recorded message from the childrens grandmother in the Huitoto language telling them to stop moving through the jungle.

Authorities have not indicated what caused the plane crash. The pilot had reported problems with the engine just minutes before the airplane disappeared from radars, Colombias disaster response body said.

It is a region with few roads that is also difficult to access by river, so airplane transport is common.

The Huitoto, also spelled Witoto, are known for living in harmony with the remote jungle, and for their hunting, fishing and gathering skills which may have helped the children to survive.

Exploitation, disease and assimilation have reduced the population sharply over many decades.

Petro, who announced the rescue, is Colombias first leftist president. He came to power last August but has been unable to usher in the fundamental reforms in labour law, healthcare, pensions and the judiciary that he promised during his campaign.

With inputs from agencies.

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White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has said that President Joe Biden will not apologise for the United States use of the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II when he visits Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum as part of his trip for the G7 Summit.

Biden, who is currently en route to Hiroshima for the G7 Summit, is scheduled to visit the museum on Friday along with the other six G7 leaders and meet with survivors of the nuclear blast.

Addressing the reporters aboard Air Force One, Sullivan said the event Biden is attending at the museum would not be an appropriate occasion for such a gesture.

The president wont be making a statement at the Peace Memorial Park. Hell be participating with the other G7 leaders in a wreath laying and a few other events, but this is not from his perspective, a bilateral moment, an Independent report quoted Sullivan as saying, adding, Biden will attend as one of the G7 leaders coming to pay respects.

According to the Independent, some Japanese politicians have called for the US to offer an official apology for the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. However, the White House said Barack Obama, the first US president to visit the memorial site, did not apologise for the use of nuclear weapons when he visited in 2016, and Biden will not do so either.

Sullivan said Biden would be doing so both out of respect for history and for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who entered Japanese politics as a member of the Japanese House of Representatives for Hiroshimas First District.

Its estimated that around 135,000 civilians were killed in by the atomic bombs used in 1945 with another 69,000 injured.

The Peace Memorial is the remains of the only building in Hiroshima to survive the nuclear blast.

The site includes memorials for the dead, the iconic bombed-out Peace Dome, and a museum on the bomb and its aftermath. The Peace Park is dedicated to the pursuit of peace and nuclear disarmament.

President Biden and Kishida are scheduled to hold a one-on-one meeting on Thursday evening shortly after the US president arrives in Hiroshima.

With inputs from agencies

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Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has proposed a childcare programme that is expected to cost the Japanese government roughly 3 trillion yen ($22.2 billion) per year, according to a report by Jiji news agency on Thursday. This policy is intended to help reverse the dropping birth rate.

The government announced a plan to increase child care over the next three years in March, but the problem of paying the huge expenditure package, such as tax increases or debt difficulties, remains unanswered.

According to Jiji, the administration intends to progressively increase the size of the funding beginning in fiscal 2024-25 and secure the required amount by the conclusion of the policy term.

Kishida has said the government will identify the funds for the childcare policy by June and he was not planning to hike consumer sales taxes to that end.

Government officials could not be reached for comment outside of business hours. Jiji is one of the two major domestic news agencies in Japan with a track record of scoops.

Some ruling party lawmakers have floated the idea of issuing extra bonds, with the justification that education-purposed bonds should help future generations, while the government is struggling to come up with permanent sources of secure revenue.

Kishida has announced a plan to boost childcare support, following another big spending plan to double a national military outlay. These plans would strain Japans already dire public debt, which is over twice the size of its annual economic output.

The government earmarked around 6.1 trillion yen for the last fiscal year that ended in March to arrest the decline in the number of births.

Japan is among the worlds fastest ageing societies, with the annual number of newborns falling below 800,000 for the first time, having previously peaked at 2.09 million in 1973 during the second baby boom.

The declining birth trend has been blamed for a worsening labour shortage and reduced long-term economic growth potential.

($1 = 135.0500 yen)

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Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced that a group of criminals has abducted approximately 50 migrants in northern Mexico.

Some of the migrants have been rescued, and the National Guard is currently conducting a search in the vicinity of Matehuala, a city in northern Mexico. The

president stated that a few individuals have already been found, and the authorities are hopeful for the safe rescue of the remaining migrants.

Media reports indicate that nine individuals managed to escape and were rescued, leaving approximately 40 still missing.

The migrants were traveling north towards the United States in a bus originating from the southern state of Chiapas when they were attacked.

According to reports citing authorities in Nuevo Leon, the rescued individuals were from Venezuela and Honduras.

The National Confederation of Mexican Transporters revealed that the criminal group demanded a ransom of $1,500 (1,383) for each kidnapped person.

This incident is the latest in a series of abductions in the region.

President Lopez Obrador acknowledged the unfortunate existence of gangs involved in kidnapping. The area where the authorities are conducting the search has a long history of gang and drug cartel activities.

There has been an increase in reported kidnappings in recent months, with criminal groups charging migrants for passage through Mexico and subsequently abducting them for ransom.

According to the National Institute of Migration, over 2,100 migrants were kidnapped in Mexico last year.

In a separate incident last month, approximately 35 individuals, including tourists and migrants, were abducted in the northeast region of the country. They were eventually located in a desert area.

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Montana Governor Greg Gianforte has signed a bill into law that imposes a complete ban on TikTok in the state, making it the strictest measure in the United States among efforts to restrict the usage of the popular video-sharing app. This bill also makes Montana the first state in the US to completely ban TikTok.

The law, slated to go into effect in January, will impose a $10,000 fine on any entity, including TikTok itself and app stores, that allows the downloading of the platform. The fine will increase by the same amount each day the violation persists.

Necessary to protect Montanans, Says Gov Gianforte

Governor Gianforte stated on Twitter that the law was necessary to safeguard Montanans personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party, and he anticipated potential legal challenges to arise.

Also read: Chinas data collection agent: TikToks insidious ways to collect data and share it with the CCP

TikTok, which is owned by Chinese technology company ByteDance, boasts over 100 million users in the US. Governor Gianforte emphasized that Montanas action was the most resolute among all states in protecting individuals private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.

While some US lawmakers have expressed concerns about TikTok being used by the Chinese government to collect private data on Americans and distribute harmful content, TikTok has asserted that it is implementing measures to prevent such activities.

These measures include a plan to store US data in a separate entity called Project Texas, which will be jointly supervised by US software provider Oracle. TikTok has also intensified its efforts to monitor and remove posts that promote negative behaviour such as teen suicide and political violence.

They have a team of 44,000 screeners worldwide working on this task.

TikTok calls the ban unlawful, an infringement of First Amendment rights

Following the passage of the Montana law, a TikTok spokesperson in the US released a statement describing it as a violation of First Amendment rights, which protect freedom of speech and expression. TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter criticized Governor Gianfortes signing of the bill, stating that it infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana and that it is unlawful. Oberwetter reassured Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community, while TikTok works to defend the rights of its users both inside and outside of Montana.

Also read: TikTok to cut Chinese ties? Platform considers splitting from ByteDance if negotiations with US fail

Its worth noting that concerns about TikToks potential risks have been voiced by both Republicans and Democrats. Senators Mark Warner (Democrat) and John Thune (Republican) have jointly sponsored the Restrict Act, which would grant the US Commerce Department the authority to ban TikTok and other apps that present national security vulnerabilities. The bill has gained support from 25 Senate cosponsors, with a nearly equal split between the two parties.

Governor Gianforte also announced a state ban, effective June 1, on the use of social media applications tied to foreign adversaries on state equipment and for state businesses. This includes WeChat, which has its parent company headquartered in China, and Telegram Messenger, founded in Russia.

In line with these actions, President Joe Biden issued an executive order in February to ban TikTok on federal government-issued devices. He subsequently issued another order stating that TikTok would face a ban in the US if its parent company ByteDance did not divest the app.

TikTok also has many supporters

TikTok has garnered support from various ideological corners in the US, with advocates raising concerns about free speech and expressing opposition to the ban.

Keegan Medrano, policy director at the ACLU of Montana, criticized Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature for infringing on the free speech of TikTok users in Montana. Medrano argued that the ban was driven by anti-Chinese sentiment and disregarded the rights of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small businesses.

Also read: Americans love TikTok: Despite security concerns, Chinese video app grew exponentially in the US

In March, Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky blocked a move by Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, another Republican and vocal critic of Beijing, to gain unanimous consent for a TikTok ban bill. Senator Paul cited concerns about free speech and expressed unease about the uneven treatment of social media companies.

Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from New York also opposed the move to ban TikTok. In a TikTok video posted at the same time, she described a ban as unprecedented.

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Myanmars military regime has procured over $1 billion worth of arms and raw materials for weapons production from international suppliers since it ousted a democratically-elected government in February 2021, a 10-month investigation by a United Nations-linked body has found.

According to Nikkei Asia report, citing the investigation led by Tom Andrews, UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Russia, China, Singapore, India and Thailand were top suppliers to the military.

The exports cover weapons, dual-use technology and materials used to manufacture weapons exported from the day of the coup on 1 February, 2021, to December 2022.

These weapons, and the materials to manufacture more of them, have continued to flow uninterrupted to the Myanmar military despite overwhelming evidence of its responsibility for atrocity crimes, Al Jazeera report quoted Andrews as saying in a report released on Wednesday in New York.

It identified more than 12,500 unique purchases or recorded shipments directly to the Myanmar military or known Myanmar arms dealers working on the militarys behalf.

The diversity and volume of goods provided to the Myanmar military since the coup is staggering, the report added, saying the military had taken delivery of weapons and equipment from fighter jets to drones, communications equipment and components for navy ships.

Dramatic increase in military spending

Detailed tracking of materiel purchases also highlight the dramatic increase in military spending under the regime led by the State Administration Council since its power grab on 1 February, 2021.

The government approved in April a military budget of more than 5.6 trillion kyat ($2.7 billion) for the year to 31 March, 2024, up from 3.7 trillion kyat previously.

According to the report, Russia and China remained to be the primary suppliers of cutting-edge weaponry to Myanmars military in 20222023, accounting for nearly $406 million and $267 million in such shipments, respectively, since 2021.

Singapore shipped $254 million of military-related materials from dozens of its entities to the Myanmar military between February 2021 and December 2022.

India notched up about $51 million worth of military-related exports to Myanmar since February 2021 while Thailand accounted for about $28 million worth of sales in the same period.

Some of the countries named in the report had been responsive to the investigations, said Andrews in the report.

Call for ban on weapons transfer

Andrews called for a complete ban on the sale or transfer of weapons to Myanmars military and urged UN member states to enforce existing ones.

He said these countries could do more to stop the arms flow, including by targeting the regimes key revenue sources, fully enforcing existing prohibition measures, and establishing and enforcing comprehensive sanctions on procurement networks.

He also highlighted Japan, New Zealand and South Korea as countries that had imposed harsh sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine but had not acted on Myanmar over its persistent human rights abuses.

I urge Japan to consider joining all other G-7 countries in imposing targeted economic sanctions on the Myanmar military and its key sources of revenue, just as it is doing in response to the crisis in Ukraine, Andrews was quoted as saying by Nikkei Asia.

In their response, Russia and China accused the rapporteur of going beyond his mandate and vilifying legitimate arms trade.

India, meanwhile, said the arms contracts involving state-owned companies had been signed by a previous government.

Andrews noted that he had found no information indicating that entities owned or controlled by the governments of Singapore or Thailand, or the governments themselves, had approved or transferred the arms to the Myanmar military, and that it seemed arms dealers were using the territories to carry out their business specifically the banking and shipping sectors.

As a result of the report, the Singapore government indicated it was reviewing the effectiveness of its export controls, Andrews said in the report.

With inputs from agencies

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On Thursday, authorities in New Zealand detained and accused a man of arson in connection with a hostel fire that killed at least six people in the countrys capital.

The man will appear in Wellington District Court on Friday, according to police, who added that other more serious charges are not ruled out.

The investigation is ongoing, they explained.

Police said they were not looking for anybody else in connection with the fire, which consumed the four-story, 92-room hostel early Tuesday.

Police rescued the first two remains from the burnt inside of the Loafers Lodge hostel hours before announcing the arrest.

As a white car drove the remains away from the building in central Wellington, emergency workers bowed their heads and a man and a woman chanted in a mark of respect.

Firefighters said they had located six bodies within the hostel but a collapsed roof on the top floor made it impossible to search everywhere. Police say the toll may rise.

Some survivors crawled through smoke to safety, while others were rescued from the rooftop by firefighters using ladder trucks.

The remains of at least four of those killed still lie in the charred building.

Felt like a cigarette

A police reconnaissance team has been searching for evidence and trying to locate the dead since the building was declared safe for them to enter on Wednesday.

Fire damage inside was extensive, police said earlier, with burnt debris reaching as high as one metre (three feet).

One of the survivors, Simon Hanify, told AFP he only escaped by chance.

Smoke alarms in the building often went off without reason, he said.

I wasnt even going to leave my room. But I felt like a cigarette. I thought Id go outside because I usually share them with other people, Hanify said on Wednesday.

There was smoke coming down the stairwell, on the ceiling and our hallway, he added.

Ive been through fire before so I did a quick lap of our floor, knocking on doors, saying this ones real, evacuate.

The Loafers Lodge advertised itself as a convenient and affordable accommodation, with laundry, kitchen facilities and a lock on each floor.

It was used as a cheap home by a mix of long and short-term residents, including some on lower incomes or those staying temporarily in New Zealand.

Many were shift workers, making it difficult to be sure of everyones whereabouts at the time of the blaze.

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During a parliamentary session, Russian lawmaker Fedot Tumusov put forward a highly unusual suggestion to bolster Russias military forces by utilizing aggressive stray dogs as assets.

Tumusovs proposal, reported by The Moscow Times, highlighted the presence of cynologists in the country who possess the expertise to train dogs in various skills.

He suggested that after a brief training, the strays should be deployed in Special Military Operation zones for tasks such as rescuing wounded individuals and participating in mine clearance.

According to reports, many Russian towns and cities have problems with rejected pets and street dogs that hunt in packs.

Given this, Russian parliament was giving a first reading to legislation allowing euthanasia of homeless dogs.

But senior pro-Putin MP Fedot Tumusov, 67, demanded large and aggressive strays should be trained by specialists for war work.

Dogs were deployed by the Red Army in the Second World War, he said, and strays should be mobilised.

Tumusov, an economics professor who represents the worlds coldest region, Yakutia, in the Russian parliament, has been sanctioned by many Western countries including Britain and the US for his pro-war rules.

The video of Tumusovs proposition caught the attention of Anton Gerashchenko, an advisor to the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, who shared a clip on Twitter accompanied by a comment expressing his astonishment at the perceived level of absurdity in Russia.

In case you were wondering about the level of insanity in Russia: Russian MP suggested training aggressive stray dogs and sending them to the "special military operation" zone  to de-mine and carry the wounded. pic.twitter.com/HvW0s3e0Oo  Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) May 17, 2023

While Ukrainian soldiers have not engaged stray animals for combat purposes, a report by AFP revealed that some soldiers have found solace in the companionship of these animals.

According to reports, Russia has shown previous interest in utilizing animals for military purposes. In April 2022, the Russian military employed specially trained dolphins to safeguard a naval base in the Black Sea, as reported by the United States Naval Institute.

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According to ARY News, Pakistans Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir has stated that the planned and orchestrated tragic incidents of 9 May, the day military sites were targeted, will never be repeated at any cost.

During his visit to Sialkot Garrison, the army commander stated, No one will be allowed to disrespect our martyrs and their monuments. They are a source of inspiration and pride for the rank and file of the Armed Forces, Law Enforcement Agencies, Government officials and the people of Pakistan.

According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), COAS Asim Munir paid a magnificent homage to those who gave their lives for the pride, honour, and dignity of the nation by visiting the Sialkot Garrison and laying a floral wreath at the Martyrs Monument.

Those killed have been promised the highest abode in the life hereafter and shall continue to maintain the highest levels of respect amongst the people of Pakistan, he said, according to ARY News.

COAS Munir further said that the State of Pakistan and its Armed Forces will always hold those killed for the country, and their families in very high esteem and continue to honour them and their supreme sacrifices with utmost respect and dignity.

The army chief underscored that recently planned and orchestrated tragic incidents will never be allowed again at any cost, as per ARY News.

The COAS reassured the ranks and files that all those responsible for bringing shame to the nation on Black Day of May 9 would certainly be brought to Justice.

He also appreciated under-command formations for their hard work, devotion, high morale, and professionalism.

The armed forces will not tolerate any further attempt of violating the sanctity and security of its installations or vandalism and resolved to bring to justice all the planners, abettors, instigators and executors of vandalism on the Black Day of 9th May, the army chief said.

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Space has emerged as a vital battleground in the fight against climate change, from satellites that can pinpoint the sources of industrial pollution to others that watch storm motions by the hour.

In both physical and figurative terms, the number of launches is surging, which has led to more collaboration between public and commercial space organisations.

Tracking greenhouse gas emissions is one of the most successful areas of partnership.

The strong planet-warming gas methane is periodically sampled in the atmosphere by one of the Copernicus satellites of the European Union Space Programme.

The spacecraft scans the whole planet, but its resolution is just a few kilometres, making it difficult to pinpoint the specific source.

This is where private firms may help.

One of them, the Canadian GHGSat, currently has nine small satellites in orbit, each the size of a microwave. Their mission: to fly over oil and gas sites, looking for methane leaks. By orbiting at a lower altitude, they can take a detailed look at each site.

Think of it as the wide angle lens camera, versus the telephoto lens camera, Stephane Germain, the companys founder, told AFP. The Copernicus team is in constant touch with GHGSat, telling them where to point their cameras.

GHGSat then sells its information to oil companies, such as Total, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell.

More and more companies are interested in that because theyre realizing they have to better understand their own carbon footprints, said Germain, especially since their customers are insisting on better accounting of emissions life cycles.

A common source of methane emissions is unlit flares, which are meant to burn off the gas.

GHGSat estimates it has prevented the equivalent of 10 megatons of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere, equivalent to 1.3 million homes energy use for a year.

Other companies plan to enter the sector, including Frances Absolut Sensing. Another company, Kayrros, has no satellites of its own but is analyzing Copernicus data to track down the biggest leaks.

Technological advances

The big picture shows you that there is a problem. And the small one then focuses in higher resolution and sells information to somebody. So this works very well together, European Space Agency director Josef Aschbacher said of such public-private partnerships to AFP.

But government agency constellations  comprised of mostly large, very expensive satellites  remain the backbone of the Earth observation system.

Copernicus will soon enter a new era, with new missions such as CO2M measuring the carbon dioxide released specifically by human activities. NASA has about thirty Earth observation missions.

In the last six months alone, the US space agency has launched the SWOT mission to survey the Earths surface water in unprecedented detail, TEMPO to measure pollutants in the troposphere above North America, and TROPICS, to track tropical weather systems, including hurricanes, hour by hour.

Advances in technology make it possible to measure today what was thought impossible just five or 10 years ago, said Aschbacher.

Better forecasts

In addition to these scientific missions, meteorological satellites, such as those overseen by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), play a vital role.

Their data, collected over decades, have revealed stark shifts to global climate systems: from warming sea and land temperatures to receding Antarctic ice sheets, helping feed the models climate science relies on today.

But increasingly, they can also help play a major role in adapting to a heating world. To mitigate the impact of increasingly frequent natural disasters, youve got to provide better forecasts, NOAAs chief scientist Mitch Goldberg told AFP.

The agency has been increasing its partnerships with the private sector. For example, it has teamed up with the company GeoOptics to collect information on the humidity or the temperature of the atmosphere.

According to a report by Inmarsat and Globant, if current satellite technologies were universally adopted, they could reduce carbon emissions by 5.5 gigatons  quadrupling current reductions of 1.5 gigatons enabled by the sector.

These savings could be achieved by, for example, helping the aviation and maritime sectors decarbonize through voyage optimization, weather routing and air traffic control management.

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If you are one of those people who trust ChatGPT completely and do not bother to cross-check what the AI language model comes up with, you should remember that AI language models, be it ChatGPT or BardAI, are not always reliable.

All AI models often generate imaginative content and mistakenly present it as factual information, a process which AI developers call hallucination. A college professor learnt this the hard way.

Professor falls for hallucinating AI, fails his entire class

According to a Reddit thread, an unnamed professor at the University of Texas recently made an appearance on the local news, because of an AI tool. The professor tried to use ChatGPT to check if his students had plagiarised an essay that he had assigned, or if they were honest and had handed in their original work. ChatGPT incorrectly identified the essays submitted by his students as being generated by a computer programme.

Also read: Framed by AI: ChatGPT makes up a sexual harassment scandal, names real professor as accused

While ChatGPT, which is a sophisticated chatbot developed by OpenAI has the ability to produce text, translate languages, generate creative content, and provide informative responses to inquiries, it has its limitations, which can be quite severe in certain cases.

Subsequently, after an audit and investigation, it was found that ChatGPTs assessment was false. The essays were indeed written by the students themselves and were not generated by a computer.

AI hallucinations leading to embarrassment

Recognizing his mistake, the professor had to apologise to his students and agreed to offer them a second opportunity to take the exam.

Also read: AI Chatbots like ChatGPT can be used to groom young men into terrorists, says top UK lawyer

This incident serves as a cautionary tale about the potential risks associated with relying solely on AI tools for plagiarism detection. AI tools, while promising, are not infallible and can make errors. It is crucial to exercise caution and understand the limitations of these tools.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that ChatGPT is still a work in progress. It is possible that future improvements will enhance its accuracy in detecting plagiarism.

Nothing beats human judgement at least for now

Nonetheless, it is essential to recognize that AI tools should not be viewed as a complete substitute for human judgment. Humans possess the expertise and intuition necessary for effectively identifying instances of plagiarism.

Also read: When GPT hallucinates: Doctors warn against using AI as it makes up information about cancer

If plagiarism is a concern, it is always advisable to have human reviewers assess your work. While AI tools can serve as a supplementary measure, relying solely on them is not recommended.

This incident serves as a reminder that AI is a powerful tool, but it must be used responsibly and with awareness of its limitations.

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The Ukrainian military on Thursday reported explosions in Kyiv and in central and southern Ukraine after air raid sirens sounded across the country.

Kyiv residents were asked to remain in shelters while warnings were issued for other regions, including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkasy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine.

According to preliminary information, the fall of debris was recorded in the Darnytskyi district of the capital. Data on victims and destruction are currently being verified, Serhii Popko, head of Kyivs civil and military administration, wrote on Telegram, noting that anti-aircraft defences were working.

A fire broke out at a business in the citys Darnytskyi district as a result of falling debris, and an explosion was recorded in the Desnyansky district, according to Kyivs mayor Vitali Klitschko.

The attack on the capital continues. Do not leave the shelters during the air alert! he implored on Telegram.

Vitali said there were no immediate reports of casualties.

The military also reported cruise missile attacks in the central Ukrainian region of Vinnytsia.

Thursdays explosions came after Russia launched what Ukrainian officials described as an exceptional attack that included hypersonic missiles. Ukrainian air defences largely repelled that missile attack on Tuesday.

Since late April, Russia has launched a flurry of attacks, often targeting Kyiv, after a weekslong hiatus.

The military also reported cruise missile attacks in the central Vinnytsia region, and local media reported explosions in Khmelnytskyi, about 100 kilometres further west.

An air alert has been put in effect throughout Ukraine, the military said.

With inputs from agencies

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Three prominent hypersonic scientists, Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk, and Valery Zvegintsev, who have worked extensively on Russias hypersonic weapons, have been apprehended on suspicion of high treason.

This comes after Ukraine asserted that it had successfully taken down a series of supposedly undefeatable missiles.

The arrests have triggered apprehension within Russias scientific community. Colleagues of the detained individuals released an open letter expressing their innocence and highlighting the potential risks these prosecutions pose to Russian science.

They affirmed that they know each scientist as a patriot and an honorable individual who would not be capable of the alleged actions.

The situation has reportedly forced other scientists to not just worry about their colleagues but also about their own work with the Russian Army and how to proceed with it.

Vladimir Putin has consistently boasted about Russias dominance in hypersonic missiles and proudly introduced the Kinzhal rockets in 2018, claiming they were impervious to any existing or future defense systems.

However, this claim was met with fresh embarrassment when Ukraine declared that it had destroyed six of these rockets in a single night.

According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the accusations against the scientists are serious. They were contributors to a book chapter titled Hypersonic Short-Duration Facilities for Aerodynamic Research at ITAM, Russia.

Russian Scientists fear

The open letter Russian scientists wrote ahead of the arrests, also brought attention to the case of Dmitry Kolker, a Siberian scientist who was arrested last year on suspicion of state treason, despite suffering from advanced pancreatic cancer.

Tragically, the laser specialist passed away just two days after being flown to Moscow. The letter emphasized that such incidents have a chilling effect on young Russian scientists.

According to the letter, the repercussions of these cases are already evident, as the most talented students decline opportunities to work with them, and the best young employees are leaving the field of science.

Moreover, several vital research areas crucial for advancing future aerospace technology are being forced to shut down due to employees fear of engaging in such research.

When questioned about the letter, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged its existence but assured that Russian security services are handling the matter seriously.

He stated that these are grave accusations being investigated by the authorities.

Did Ukraine really shot Kinzhals down?

Yurii Ihnat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian air force, declared that their air defenses, bolstered by systems supplied by Western nations, successfully thwarted a forceful Russian attack.

He revealed that the onslaught included six Kinzhal aero-ballistic hypersonic missiles, marking the highest number fired in a single attack during the ongoing conflict. However, all of these missiles were intercepted and shot down.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly lauded the Kinzhal missiles as a crucial strategic advantage and one of the most advanced weapons in Russias arsenal. Their hypersonic speed and manoeuvrability make them difficult to detect and intercept.

If Ukraines assertion of successfully shooting down six missiles on Tuesday is verified, it would deliver yet another setback to Putins military endeavors and demonstrate the growing efficacy of Ukraines air defense systems.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu disputed the Ukrainian claims, stating to the state-run RIA-Novosti news agency, We have not launched as many Kinzhals as they allege to shoot down every time with their statements.

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Ukraine would not accept any proposals to end the war with Russia that involved it losing territory or freezing the conflict, the foreign minister told a top Chinese envoy.

Li Hui, Chinas special representative for Eurasian affairs and former ambassador to Russia, visited Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday, and met Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, the ministry said in a statement.

The visit is the first to Kyiv by a senior envoy from China, which has burgeoning ties with Russia, since Moscows full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Kuleba briefed the special envoy of the Chinese government in detail on the principles of restoring a sustainable and just peace based on respect for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ministry said.

He stressed that Ukraine did not accept any proposals involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict, it said.

The senior Chinese officials trip to Europe is expected also to include talks in Russia, Poland, France and Germany.

Beijing has refused to criticize the invasion and used its status as one of five permanent U.N. Security Council members to deflect diplomatic attacks on Russia.

African countries are also undertaking a peace initiative over the war in Ukraine. South Africas president said Tuesday that Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had agreed to separate meetings with a delegation of leaders from six African countries to discuss a possible peace plan.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Putin and Zelenskyy agreed to host an African leaders peace mission in Moscow and Kyiv, respectively.

Ramaphosa didnt give a time frame or outline any parameters for the possible peace talks.

The Kremlin wants Kyiv to acknowledge Russias annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the Ukrainian provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia, which most nations have denounced as illegal. Ukraine has rejected the demands and ruled out any talks with Russia until its troops pull back from all occupied territories.

Zelenskyys 10-point peace plan also includes a tribunal to prosecute crimes of aggression, which would enable Russia to be held accountable for its invasion.

With inputs from agencies.

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Ukraines Western allies are concerned that the military support for Kyiv may soon peak, as the US enters a divisive presidential, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing unnamed Western officials.

Ukraines allies fear military support for its battle against Russia is nearing a peak, with senior European officials increasingly concerned about the flow of aid next year as the US enters a divisive presidential campaign, the Financial Times reported.

According to the FT, Washington has been Kyivs major source of military aid. US officials interviewed by the newspaper say the remaining funds preapproved by Congress could sustain Ukraine for about another five months. Western officials in regular contact with the US over Ukraine told the FT that Washington sees that period of time as the last real chance for Kyiv to change the situation on the ground.

We cant keep the same level of assistance forever, a European official told the British newspaper as he argued that the current level of support could be sustained for another year or possibly two years but no more.

Politico reported earlier this week that only $6 billion of the original $48 billion military aid package that the US had approved previously now remains. According to the US publication, Washingtons funds for Kyiv may be fully allocated by mid-summer.

European allies are increasingly uncertain about whether the US will come close to matching its existing $48bn package, adopted in 2022, particularly as it requires a vote in Congress this autumn against the backdrop of more partisan debate on the war, FT reported.

Recently, European leaders promised Zelenskyy an arsenal of missiles, tanks and drones during a whirlwind three-day visit to Italy, the Vatican, Germany, France and the U.K. that sought to replenish Ukraines depleted weapons supplies ahead of a long-anticipated spring offensive aimed at turning the tide of the war.

Zelenskyys energetic international diplomacy over 15 months of war has persuaded Ukraines Western allies to send ever more powerful weapons, from German Leopard tanks to U.S. Patriot missile systems and Storm Shadow cruise missiles from the U.K.

The war in Ukraine that began a year ago has killed thousands, forced millions to flee their homes, reduced entire cities to rubble and has fuelled fears the confrontation could slide into an open conflict between Russia and NATO.

With inputs from agencies.

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In a significant development, the US court has approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian businessman of Pakistani descent, to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing over 160 people, including six Americans, at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition on June 10, 2020. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request, the judge wrote.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks. Indias National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in 2008.

The NIA has said that it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels. During court hearings, US Government attorneys argued that Rana was aware that his childhood friend Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley was involved with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and that by assisting Headley and affording him cover for his activities, he was supporting the terrorist organization and its associates.

Rana knew of Headleys meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets. The US government asserted that Rana was part of the conspiracy and there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commission of a terrorist act.

Ranas attorney on the other hand opposed the extradition. A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

Because members of the conspiracy committed acts resulting in death with the intention of causing death, or at a minimum committed those acts knowing its imminent dangers, there is sufficient evidence that the elements for murder would be satisfied, federal prosecutors said.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

India, the judge said, has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the following offences on which the US is proceeding: (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

The foregoing charged offences constitute extraditable offences within the meaning and scope of the Treaty and over which India has jurisdiction, the judge ruled.

The judge said that sufficient competent evidence has been presented to establish probable cause that Rana is the individual who has been charged in India and whose extradition has been sought by India in this action, and that Rana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been sought.

It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty, the judge ruled.

With inputs from agencies.

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Two days after US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said the US will soon send additional security assistance to Taiwan through the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), China was quick to express its diplomatic discontent saying that it was a very wrong and dangerous move, according to a report.

The PDA is a valuable tool of US foreign policy in crisis situations as it allows for the speedy delivery of defense articles and services from Department of Defense stocks to foreign countries and international organisations to respond to unforeseen emergencies, according to a US government website.

It allowed the Biden administration to send arms to Ukraine without going through the Congress

Earlier this month, the White House said that it will send $500 million worth of weapons aid to Taiwan using the PDA.

Such assistance can begin arriving within days, or even hours, of approval, Asia Times quoted the US government as saying in a fact sheet on 9 May

However, China reacted sharply to the development saying that it was a very wrong and dangerous move.

China is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposes this, and has expressed diplomatic discontent against the US, Asia Times report quoted Tan Kefei, spokesman of the Ministry of National Defence, as saying in a media briefing on Tuesday.

The US has continuously strengthened its military ties with the Democratic Progress Party (DPP) authorities, enhanced military ties and substantive relations between the two sides, shaken the foundation of China-US relations and undermined peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, Tan added.

Taiwan red line in Sino-US relations

Noting that Taiwan issue is an insurmountable red line in Sino-US relations, Tan said that Washington will never be allowed to reverse the course of history.

He said the DPP, a Taiwanese nationalist and centre-left political party, and Taiwanese separatists will be headed for a dead end if they try to use support including weapons from the US to promote Taiwans independence.

According to the report, in a strong message, Tan said that the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) will continuously strengthen its military training and preparations, resolutely smash any form of Taiwan independence and external interference attempts and safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Last year, the US Congress increased the cap on the PDA from $100 million to $11 billion for fiscal year 2022 after the Ukrainian war broke out. Since last August, the Biden Administration has employed the tool 37 times to provide military assistance to Ukraine.

Taiwan likely to feature in G7 summit

The Taiwan-China tension will be among the key discussion topics in the G7 Summit, which will be held in Hiroshima between 19 and 21 May.

In an interview to Nikkei Asia on Monday, Japans Prime Minister said, Unilaterally changing the status quo with force should not be allowed anywhere in the world.

The security environment surrounding Japan is changing rapidly. And it is getting more complex, he added.

Days before the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Taiwan has begun an extensive online war-gaming exercise to review its readiness to deal with any Chinese attacks or invasion.

On its part, China carried out a 12-day circumnavigation of Japan with its naval flotilla led by a powerful destroyer in a powerful display of military power to warn Tokyo not to get involved in the ongoing crisis between Beijing and Washington over Taiwan.

As the G7 summit approaches, China has been trying to lower the temperature by highlighting the peaceful reunification of Taiwan with the Chinese mainland to ensure the possibility of a war over Taiwan does not spark tension in the Group of Seven.

The mixed signals from China over the past week might have stemmed from its assessment that a military conflict with the US and its Asian allies over Taiwan would not be in Chinas best interest.

US troops in Taiwan

Citing unnamed US officials, the Wall Street Journal reported in October 2021 that some two dozen special operations troops from the US Defense Department had been deployed to train Taiwans armed forces. On February 23 this year, the same paper reported that the US would send 100-to-200 troops to Taiwan over the next few months to help train the islands army.

This came after the US Congress last December passed the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorized up to $10 billion in security assistance and fast-tracked weapons procurement for Taiwan.

Taiwans Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said on May 4 that Taiwan had ordered 66 units of F-16V fighters from Lockheed Martin in the US but the delivery of the first batch of the jets has been delayed to the third quarter of 2024 from the last quarter of this year as production was affected by the pandemic.

With inputs from agencies

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The governor of Oklahoma has approved legislation making it a criminal to offer gender-affirming healthcare to a kid.

Indiana has passed legislation mandating schools to notify parents when pupils request to be addressed by a different name or pronoun. North Dakota has passed legislation that allows public school instructors and governmental employees to refuse to use a transgender persons preferred pronoun.

The latest such action occurred in Florida on Wednesday when Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill that prohibits gender-affirming medical care for transgender youths, such as puberty blockers or hormone therapy  a measure that adds to the states growing list of legislation that restricts the rights of LGBTQ people.

This months surge of laws, which are almost certainly going to be challenged in court, has become essential to the Republican agenda in statehouses around the country, inflaming the so-called culture war in the United States, which also includes abortion, gun rights, and school curricula.

A group of Florida parents has already filed a federal lawsuit to challenge the new legislation there.

Many political watchers see these measures as a foreshadowing of the 2024 elections, with Republicans presenting Democrats as out of touch on sex and religion issues, and Democrats labelling Republicans as radical and anti-democratic.

Republicans have introduced more than 500 bills affecting LGBTQ people in 2023, with at least 48 passing, according to the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ rights group. Those numbers are up from 315 bills introduced and 29 passed in 2022.

The majority of those bills specifically affect transgender people, touching on nearly every aspect of a transgender persons public life. Some seek to ban transgender girls from participating in girls sports. Others require transgender people to use the bathroom corresponding to their gender assigned at birth or prevent transgender people from changing their sex on identity documents.

Neal Allen, chair of the political science department at Wichita State University, said it remains unclear whether the transgender issue will help Republicans defeat Democrats in 2024, but that many Republicans are more concerned about an internal party challenge from the right.

You have to win the first election first. And the vulnerability of most Republican state legislators right now is in the primary, if at all, Allen said.

Florida is the vanguard

Among the governors at the forefront is DeSantis, who is expected next week to announce a bid for the 2024 Republican US presidential nomination. The bill he signed on Wednesday also adds obstacles for transgender adults and grants courts jurisdiction in child custody battles in some cases involving gender-affirming care.

Ive watched anti-trans legislation for four years now and I can tell you that Florida is the vanguard, said Erin Reed, an independent researcher who tracks the bills. You see it pushed in Florida, and then you see it emanate across the country.

LGBTQ rights activists are pushing back.

Florida protesters flung underwear at state House Republicans from the gallery with messages such as not your business and leave my genitals alone.

Demonstrators swarmed the Texas House, leading lawmakers to send a bill banning gender-affirming care back to committee. The bill finally passed the legislature on Wednesday.

In Montana, protests contributed to the censure of transgender state Representative Zooey Zephyr, who was banned from the state House floor by Republican legislators.

President Joe Bidens administration has entered the fray. Last month, the Justice Department sued Tennessee to challenge its Republican-backed ban on gender-affirming care for minors, one of several states where it has filed a complaint or supported lawsuits.

Some Republicans have said they have momentum.

The State Freedom Caucus Network, a coalition of conservative legislators in 11 states, has helped pass transgender-related bills in five states.

In five to 10 years, I feel like the country will look back on this and realize that it was a horrible mistake to let (gender-affirming care) occur, said Andrew Roth, president of the network. I think thats the eventual conclusion of this.

A recent Fox News poll found 57 per cent of respondents believe political attacks on families with transgender children are a major problem. A Data for Progress poll found 72 per cent of Democrats, 65 per cent of independents and 55 per cent of Republicans think too much legislation is aimed at limiting LGBTQ rights.

But a Reuters/Ipsos poll from March found 55 per cent of respondents agreed that doctors should be banned from providing transgender treatment to minors, versus 33 per cent who disagreed.

The major pediatric, endocrinology and mental health associations endorse gender-affirming care such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy when appropriate, some calling it life-saving for many transgender youths.

But many Republican supporters of the bills distrust the prevailing medical consensus, characterizing the treatments as dangerous and experimental. Some have called the measures chemical castration or child abuse.

Since 2021, at least 15 states have banned gender-affirming care for minors.

Its catastrophically bad, said Cathryn Oakley of the Human Rights Campaign. The number of young folks who are going to be losing access to medically necessary, best-practice, age-appropriate healthcare is really scary.

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Highlighting issues related to human rights violations in Pakistan, over 60 US lawmakers have written a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken to exert pressure on Shehbaz Sharif-led Pakistani government to address the issue.

The letter, co-authored by Elissa Slotkin and Brian Fitzpatrick, and signed by 65 other lawmakers, has been written after the efforts of the Pakistani-American Political Action Committee (PAKPAC), Geo News reported.

This comes amid ongoing political crisis situation in the cash-strapped country, which last week witnessed the illegal arrest of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan, who was deposed as prime minister through a no-confidence move in April last year.

Khan was arrested on May 9 amid deadly protests across the country. The former PM was detained in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, but was later released after the Supreme Court of Pakistan declared his arrest against the law.

As proponents of a strong US-Pakistan relationship, we write to express our concerns about the current situation in Pakistan and urge you to use all diplomatic tools at your disposal to pressure the Government of Pakistan towards a greater commitment to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. This should include a commitment to investigate any infringement upon freedom of speech and freedom of assembly in Pakistan, read the letter sent to Antony Blinken.

It added, Over the past several months, we have become increasingly concerned by the banket bans on demonstrations and deaths of several prominent critics of the government. We ask for your help pressuring the Government of Pakistan to ensure protestors can assert their demands in a peaceful and non-violent way, free from harassment, intimidation, and arbitrary detention. As both Democrats and Republicans who care about the bilateral relationship, we are concerned that violence and increased political tension could spiral into a deteriorating security situation in Pakistan.

Through the letter, the US lawmakers have urged Blinken to use all diplomatic tools  including calls, visits, and public statements  to demonstrate US interest and prevent the erosion of democratic institutions in Pakistan.

Supporting democracy in Pakistan is in the national interest of the United States, they said.

Meanwhile, Imran Khan has warned that Pakistan is heading towards an imminent disaster and it may face disintegration. He further accused the ruling coalition of hatching a conspiracy to pit the army against his party.

In a video-link address from his Zaman Park residence on Wednesday, the 70-year-old Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief said the only solution to end political instability was to hold elections. The PDM leaders and Nawaz Sharif, who is absconding in London, are least concerned whether the countrys constitution is desecrated, state institutions are destroyed or even Pakistan Army earns a bad name. They are looking for their vested interests of saving the looted wealth alone, he said.

I am seeing a frightening dream that the country is heading towards an imminent disaster. I appeal to the powers that be to let the elections take place and save the country, Khan said as police have surrounded his home.

Khan was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin on Thursday claimed that the Russian army battalions had retreated 570 m north of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, leaving the flanks of his own fighters exposed, according to a report.

There was no immediate comment from the defence ministry, reported Reuters adding that the agency was unable to verify his assertion.

Unfortunately, units of the Russian Defence Ministry have withdrawn up to 570 metres to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks, Reuters report quoted Prigozhin as saying in a voice message.

I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence  publicly  because my letters are not being read, Prigozhin added.

Wagner forces have been spearheading the assault on Bakhmut, one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the war, something Moscow calls a special military operation, with some support from the regular army in recent months.

Prigozhin, who has repeatedly accused Russias top military brass of not doing enough to back his men, asked the defence ministry to do all it could to protect Bakhmuts flanks after what he alleged was a withdrawal.

Please do not give up the flanks, he said, addressing Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff.

Wagner says it has taken most of the shattered city  albeit at enormous human cost. But Ukraine says its forces have retaken territory around Bakhmut in recent days.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before the war, as a potential stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern industrial Donbas region bordering Russia.

With inputs from agencies

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ChatGPT has gained significant attention since its launch, attracting people who are eager to test its capabilities through various experiments. Videos showcasing the AI chatbots remarkable abilities have flooded social media, ranging from generating business ideas to engaging in conversations with robot dogs. Australian YouTuber Jorden Tually recently conducted an intriguing experiment, documenting his experience of allowing ChatGPT to control his life for a week by planning a trip to a foreign country.

Tually begins the video by acknowledging that a majority of his audience expressed mistrust in AI. Inspired by this sentiment, he decided to entrust ChatGPT with making decisions for him, including selecting the destination and designing a detailed travel itinerary. The video showcases ChatGPTs choice of Oman as the country to visit.

He embarks on the journey, exploring various locations and savoring local cuisine, all based on the AI chatbots recommendations. He forms a friendship with a local guide who offers additional suggestions for places to visit.

Towards the end of the video, Tually reflects on the experience, admitting that despite the impressive itinerary proposed by the AI, his two favorite activities were actually the result of local recommendations. He emphasizes the role of the local people he encountered, attributing their contributions to making the adventure truly exceptional, something that the AI would not have been able to anticipate or plan for.

Sharing the video, Tually concludes, Although we may not be able to trust AI with everything, it did lead me on an exhilarating adventure!

The video received an influx of comments from viewers. Some had inquiries about the trip, while others shared their thoughts on the experiment. Many viewers praised Tually for creating the video, expressing their appreciation and encouragement for more content like this.

With inputs from agencies

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When US President Joe Biden travels to Hiroshima in Japan to attend the G7 Summit, he will not visit Nagasaki, the second Japanese city nuked and ravaged by America in 1945 towards the end of Second World War, much to the chagrin of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

According to a report by Japan Times, which cited diplomatic sources in the matter, the Biden administration has chosen to hide behind scheduling conflicts to avoid visiting Nagasaki.

Attributing to sources, Japan Times reported that PM Kishida was looking forward to making a joint trip to Nagasaki with Biden to underline his longstanding conviction of a world free of nuclear weapons. The joint message would have resonated across the world as it would have come in the context of constant threats of the Ukraine war escalating into a nuclear conflict.

While his fellow Republican Barack Obama became the first US president to visit Hiroshima in 2016 when he had attended the G7 Summit, Biden will forego the opportunity to become the first sitting American president to visit Nagasaki.

Meanwhile, Japan Times, once again citing sources, reported that Tokyo had arranged a visit by the G7 leaders, including Biden, to the atomic bomb museum in Hiroshima.

If realised, it would be the first time that the G7 heads have stopped by the museum together, the report added.

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Elon Musk has announced a change in strategy for Tesla, revealing plans to utilize traditional advertising methods for the first time.

This means that viewers may soon see Teslas Model Y crossover and upcoming Cybertruck pickup featured in television or online advertisements, and perhaps even Elon Musk himself.

Or, knowing Musk, it may be an AI-generated version or a hologram of him.

Tesla not immune to market conditions needs to experiment with advertising

During Teslas annual meeting, Musk, who recently acquired Twitter, expressed a shift in his stance on advertising. In the past, he relied on his personal reputation and the enthusiasm of Teslas customers to promote the companys electric vehicles, avoiding traditional advertising methods. However, Musk now intends to experiment with advertising and assess its effectiveness.

Following Musks announcement, Teslas shares closed 4.4 per cent higher the following day. Musk acknowledged that Tesla is not immune to macroeconomic pressures and acknowledged the need to adapt to a changing landscape with growing competition.

What will a Tesla ad look like?

Advertising industry professionals and investors anticipate that Musks approach to advertising will be unique, and unconventional, and communicate Teslas technological advantages. They expect Tesla to maintain its disruptive image and leverage Musks ability to amplify the companys brand through the media.

While details of the advertising strategy are not yet fully formed, Musk emphasized the importance of informative and aesthetically pleasing advertisements that highlight the features, safety, and affordability of Tesla vehicles. He also mentioned the need for an artistic element and a captivating viewing experience.

Musk acknowledged that relying solely on social media, such as Twitter, only reaches those already convinced about Teslas products, missing out on potential customers. In the past, Musk proudly highlighted Teslas ability to achieve a high valuation without significant advertising expenditure.

Musk to star in his own commercials?

Industry observers speculate on whether Musk may feature in the advertisements himself, although this carries the risk of polarizing opinions. Some believe that Tesla may opt for a minimalistic yet futuristic approach, with a focus on conveying the brands benefits effectively.

In terms of ad spending, Tesla allocated $151,947 for advertising in the U.S. in 2022, a modest amount compared to other automakers. For instance, Ford and Toyota spent $370 million and $1.1 billion, respectively, on U.S. ads, while General Motors collectively spent $1.35 billion. The data from advertising intelligence firm Vivvix also revealed that GM and Ford spent $4 billion and $2.2 billion globally on advertising and promotions, respectively, in the previous year.

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China's Hunan sees trade with Africa up 90.4 pct in Jan-April

Xinhua) 14:11, May 18, 2023

CHANGSHA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- In the first four months of 2023, central China's Hunan Province saw its foreign trade with African countries soar by 90.4 percent year on year to hit a record high of over 22 billion yuan (about 3.14 billion U.S. dollars), said local customs authorities on Thursday.

The growth was 40.6 percentage points higher than that of the province's overall foreign trade. During the period, the growth was greatly contributed by the province's export sector, with the export volume reaching 17.4 billion yuan, up 148.7 percent year on year, according to Changsha Customs.

Notably, the agricultural products imported from African countries by Hunan during the period increased by 16.6 times to 150 million yuan. Natural and synthetic rubber and food also posted a robust increase in terms of imports.

From January to April, the province's top three trading partners were South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt. Hunan's trade with South Africa alone accounted for more than one-fifth of its total foreign trade with African countries during the period.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. White Ship



On November 25, 1120, 17-year-old William Adelin, Henry I's only legitimate son and heir was returning to England from a trip to France, where he and his father paid homage to King Louis VI. King Henry's ship departed first. William Adelin and about 300 people from the English aristocracy followed in a second vessel, the "White Ship", which sank. Some sources say that the causes of the accident are unknown and others say that the young people started drinking and that they were accompanied by the crew and when the White Ship launched after dark, the crew rowed as fast as possible to reach the king's ship but went straight into a rock offshore. The ship began to sink and only one person survived the disaster.



The sinking of the White Ship, in addition to being a personal tragedy for the families involved, caused a political disaster as it generated the succession crisis and civil war, a period known as "The Anarchy". This fact, which occurred over 900 years ago, continues to show how one tragic event can change the course of history.

2. Sea Venture



The seventeenth-century English sailing ship the "Sea Venture" was the flagship of a seven-ship fleet (towing two additional pinnacles) destined to take settlers and supplies to Jamestown, Virginia, as part of the "Third Supply" mission, with the goal to rescue the failing settlement. The Sea Venture was specially built for the purpose, she was the largest ship in the squadron and carried a large proportion of the supplies destined for the colony. On July 28, 1609, during a storm the ship separated from the fleet and to prevent her sinking, Admiral George Somers headed the ship directly onto the reefs at Discovery Bay, eastern Bermuda. Around 150 people were saved but the ship was wrecked.



Over the next nine months, despite much disagreement, the survivors, using local wood and the ship's remains, built two pinnacles: "Deliverance" and "Patience"; these boats docked at the Jamestown settlement, Virginia, on 23rd May 1610, where they found the colony decaying. It was a period of significant disagreement and misadventure that is believed to have inspired William Shakespeare's "The Tempest". The author would have based his plot on the narratives of survivors and on the work of historian and author William Strachey (1572-1621), and eye-witness reports of Sea Venture's shipwrecking.

3. SS Sultana



The "SS Sultana" was a commercial side-wheel steamboat, launched in 1863, intended initially for the lower Mississippi cotton trade. For two years she made the regular route between St. Louis and New Orleans and was frequently chartered to carry troops during the American Civil War. When the war ended, war prisoners wanted to return to the North quickly, so the Union paid steamship operators to transport them. This practice led to corruption, neglect of transport safety, and overcrowding. The Sultana could carry 356 passengers but she left Vicksburg on April 24, 1865, with over 2,000 people, the majority consisting of soldiers released from the Confederate prisons who were on their way home.



On April 27, 1865, the Sultana was sailing on the Mississippi River north of Memphis, Tennessee, when this steamer exploded and burned. The exact death toll is unknown but according to the United States Customs 1,547 people died. Surveys reveal that about 961 people survived. Although this was the deadliest marine accident in the United States, it was overshadowed in the press due to the coverage on April 15, 1865, of President Lincoln's assassination. The "SS Sultana" was a commercial side-wheel steamboat, launched in 1863, intended initially for the lower Mississippi cotton trade. For two years she made the regular route between St. Louis and New Orleans and was frequently chartered to carry troops during the American Civil War. When the war ended, war prisoners wanted to return to the North quickly, so the Union paid steamship operators to transport them. This practice led to corruption, neglect of transport safety, and overcrowding. The Sultana could carry 356 passengers but she left Vicksburg on April 24, 1865, with over 2,000 people, the majority consisting of soldiers released from the Confederate prisons who were on their way home.On April 27, 1865, the Sultana was sailing on the Mississippi River north of Memphis, Tennessee, when this steamer exploded and burned. The exact death toll is unknown but according to the United States Customs 1,547 people died. Surveys reveal that about 961 people survived. Although this was the deadliest marine accident in the United States, it was overshadowed in the press due to the coverage on April 15, 1865, of President Lincoln's assassination.

4. SS Mont-Blanc and SS Imo



The accident that became known as the "Halifax Explosion" occurred on the morning of December 6, 1917, a sunny Saturday, in which the French cargo ship "SS Mont-Blanc" collided with the Norwegian vessel "SS Imo", in the waters of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.



The SS Imo was in the service of the "Commission for Relief in Belgium", sailing on its way to New York, transporting medical aid material. She was refueled in Halifax and was leaving port when the collision occurred. The SS Mont Blanc was under orders from the French government to carry her cargo from New York City, via Halifax, to Bordeaux, France. The boat was fully loaded with explosives (TNT and picric acid), the highly flammable fuel benzene, and guncotton. When the collision occurred, Imo's superstructure was damaged, but she was later repaired and sailed again. In the collision, the barrels, which were in the Mont Blanc, opened and the benzene quickly flowed into the ship with the fire reaching its explosive load. When the ship exploded a powerful blast wave radiated away and hit the port and the city. About 2000 people died, and more than 9,000 were injured by the explosion, fire, and debris, thousands of homes and buildings were destroyed or damaged. The accident was considered the largest man-made explosion in history up to Hiroshima.

5. MV Wilhelm Gustloff



"MV Wilhelm Gustloff", a German ocean liner, was launched in 1939 to provide recreational and cultural activities for German officials and workers, aiming to improve the image of the Third Reich. Later. When she became part of Operation Hannibal, a massive effort to evacuate civilians, military personnel, and equipment from East and West Prussia. The official list of people on board on this last trip contains the names of 6,500 people, but there were numerous people who boarded and who were not on the records.



On January 30, 1945, the Wilhelm Gustloff was hit by three torpedoes, launched by the Soviet submarine S-13, and sank in about one hour. German forces managed to save 1,239 people out of the total of around 10,000 on board. This remains the largest loss of life at sea in a single vessel.

6. USS Indianapolis



The "USS Indianapolis" was a Portland-class heavy cruiser launched in 1931, she had numerous missions, participating in several battles across the Central Pacific during World War II. In 1945, she was given a top-secret mission to head to Tinian Naval Base, Asia, with enriched uranium and parts needed to assemble the "Little Boy" atomic bomb. On July 26, 1945, she delivered her cargo and proceeded to the Philippines on training duty.



The ship was torpedoed, on July 30, 1945, by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine and sank in 12 minutes. Many crew members went down with the vessel, others did not survive dehydration or shark attacks, and only 316 of the 1,195 crewmen aboard survived. This sinking resulted in the greatest loss of life at sea in a single ship of the US Navy. If this attack had occurred when she was carrying her initial cargo, perhaps the history of World War II would have been different.

7. Atlantic Empress



On July 19, 1979, in heavy rain and thick fog, the Greek oil tanker "Atlantic Empress" collided with the fully laden Greek supertanker "Aegean Captain", in the Caribbean Sea. The Atlantic Empress and part of the Aegean Captain went up in flames. Altogether 26 sailors were killed on the Empress and one crew member died on the Aegean Captain.



The Aegean Captain managed to control the fire aboard the ship and was taken to the Port of Curacao and most of her cargo was saved. However, the Atlantic Empress burned for about 14 days, suffered several explosions, and finally sank spilling 287,000 metric tons of crude oil into the Caribbean Sea. Luckily the oil disappeared without reaching the beaches, but it is not known how much was burned and how much was dispersed.

8. MV Dona Paz



In the Philippines, a country made up of thousands of islands, maritime traffic plays a fundamental role in the lives of citizens and in the country's economy. On the morning of December 20, 1987, the passenger ferry "MV Dona Paz" left Leyte Island, Philippines, bound for Manila with about 4,300 passengers (more than double the ship's official capacity and most not listed on the official manifest), who wanted to enjoy the Christmas holidays.



On the same day at 10:30 PM, along the Tablas Strait, the Dona Paz collided with the oil tanker "MT Vector" en route from Bataan to Masbate. Vector was carrying 1,041 tons of gasoline and other petroleum products. Upon collision, Vector's cargo ignited causing a fire on the ship, spilled into the water, and spread to Dona Paz, which sank in a few hours. It is estimated 4,000 died, and only 27 people survived the accident, 25 from the MV Dona Paz, and 2 of the 13 crew members aboard Vector. This is considered the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in history. In the Philippines, a country made up of thousands of islands, maritime traffic plays a fundamental role in the lives of citizens and in the country's economy. On the morning of December 20, 1987, the passenger ferry "MV Dona Paz" left Leyte Island, Philippines, bound for Manila with about 4,300 passengers (more than double the ship's official capacity and most not listed on the official manifest), who wanted to enjoy the Christmas holidays.On the same day at 10:30 PM, along the Tablas Strait, the Dona Paz collided with the oil tanker "MT Vector" en route from Bataan to Masbate. Vector was carrying 1,041 tons of gasoline and other petroleum products. Upon collision, Vector's cargo ignited causing a fire on the ship, spilled into the water, and spread to Dona Paz, which sank in a few hours. It is estimated 4,000 died, and only 27 people survived the accident, 25 from the MV Dona Paz, and 2 of the 13 crew members aboard Vector. This is considered the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in history.

9. MV Le Joola



"MV Le Joola" was a roll-on/roll-off ferry, owned by the Senegalese government, with a capacity for 536 passengers, 44 crew, and 35 cars. Le Joola made the Ziguinchor route, located on the banks of the Casamance River, in the Casamance region en route to Dakar, the Senegalese capital. Le Joola was carrying almost two thousand passengers aboard, almost four times the ship's capacity.



Le Joola capsized and sank in rough seas on September 26, 2002, off the Zambia coast. In the accident, 1,863 people died and 64 survived. The investigations concluded that there were indeed strong winds, but that the accident was the result of overcrowding and that Le Joola was not within the safety standards in terms of navigability, and therefore should not be operating. The Le Joola accident was the second-worst civilian maritime disaster in world history.

10. Costa Concordia



The "Costa Concordia" was an Italian passenger liner that made her maiden voyage in 2006. She was the first in the Concordia Class sistering four other cruise ships. The ship was performing a seven-day cruise; she departed from Civitavecchia for a cruise up the coast to Savona, with a capacity of 3,206 passengers and 1023 crew. On the night of January 13, 2012, Costa Concordia struck her starboard side on the underwater reef near the island of Isola del Giglio, in the Tyrrhenian Sea. According to the person responsible for the Captaincy, the ship's commander maneuvered to approach the cruise to the island of Giglio (changing the original route) causing the collision with a reef and causing the ship's sinking. Witnesses say the commander intended to salute the islanders.



After the collision, the ship lost its propulsive power, and a 60-meter-long cut occurred in the ship's hull, causing the compartments to flood. The ship was tilted at an angle of 80. The ship's evacuation order took a while to be given and was issued by the first mate since the captain was one of the first to abandon ship and did not comply with the orders of the Captain of the Coast Guard, who famously told him in no uncertain terms to get back on board his ship. Thirty-two people died in the accident. The rescue of the Costa Concordia was one of the biggest in history. In addition to the rescue of around 4,200 people, there was a very delicate operation to remove 2,000 tons of fuel from the ship and finally the removal of the ship itself, which was towed to Genoa, Italy, where it was dismantled.

Source: Author masfon This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor stedman before going online.Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
Controversial Lawyer and social media influencer, Ifunanya Excel, has revealed her intentions to do music with big stars.

According to Ifunanya, she wants to take her music to another level and be one of the greatest artists in Nigeria. According to Ifunanya, she is looking forward to collaborating with industry giants like Wizkid, Davido, Tems, and Jeriq The Hustler.
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Atlantic Council Confirms Herbst Fell Ill Amid Possible Russian-Linked Poisonings

By RFE/RL May 17, 2023

The Atlantic Council has confirmed that John Herbst, one of its senior staffers and a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, experienced symptoms consistent with poisoning two years ago.

The statement by the Washington, D.C.-based think tank followed a report that Herbst was among at least four people who experienced alleged poisonings or break-ins by unknown individuals suspected of being linked to the Russian intelligence services over the past two years.

The Atlantic Council said in a statement late on May 16 that Herbst, who has served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and Uzbekistan, fell ill in April 2021 and experienced symptoms "that could have been consistent with poisoning, including elevated levels of toxins in his blood."

The statement confirmed a report earlier in the day by the news outlet Agentstvo that cited sources as saying Herbst; Natalia Arno, the U.S.-based chief of the Free Russia Foundation; and a self-exiled Russian journalist, whose identity was not disclosed, suffered similar episodes.

Agentstvo also reported that unknown intruders unlocked a hotel room of Christo Grozev, a Bulgarian investigative journalist with the Bellingcat group, in Montenegro in 2022 and stole his phone.

All of those mentioned in the Agentstvo report have been strong voices in opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and later of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022

The Atlantic Council said medical professionals treated Herbst "effectively at the time but could not definitively conclude there was poisoning involved."

Federal law enforcement was also brought in on the matter, and a blood sample from Herbst was taken, though lab results failed to detect toxic compounds.

"We were in touch with authorities immediately at the time of Ambassador Herbst's illness, but due to the results of the test we decided not to make the incident public," said Frederick Kempe, president and CEO of the Atlantic Council.

Herbst has since returned to full health, the council added.

Arno confirmed on May 16 that there were suspicions she may have been poisoned, "possibly by some nerve agent," after falling ill during a recent trip to Europe.

Arno, who previously kept silent about what she experienced during a trip to Prague in early May, wrote about the ordeal on Facebook after the Agentstvo story on the spate of critics of Putin who have fallen ill after leaving Russia.

"There is a suspicion that during my recent trip to Europe I was poisoned, possibly by some nerve agent, investigated by one (or maybe more) Western intelligence agency, I still have neuropathy symptoms but overall I feel much better," Arno wrote on Facebook.

"Russians who had to leave Putin's Russia, but who abroad continue to fight firmly and decisively against the war, against Putin's regime and for a free and democratic Russia, need to understand that they enemy has long tentacles, that there is the possibility of being exposed to danger outside of Russia, so we must always remain vigilant," Arno wrote.

Agentstvo also reported from sources that a self-exiled Russian journalist experienced possible poisoning symptoms while attending a conference of exiled Russian opposition politicians and activists in Berlin in April. The journalist confirmed experiencing the illness, but did not elaborate further, the investigative media outlet said.

Over the past two decades, a series of poisonings, inside and outside of Russia, have targeted dissidents, former intelligence agents, and opposition activists.

The Kremlin has steadfastly denied any links to the suspicious poisonings involving Putin's critics, such as opposition politicians Aleksei Navalny and Vladimir Kara-Murza -- both of whom are currently in prison.

Navalny fell violently ill on an airplane in Siberia before eventually being transported to Germany to be treated for what European labs defined as a poisoning using a Novichok nerve agent in 2020.

Kara-Murza fell deathly ill on two separate occasions in Moscow -- once in 2015 and again in 2017 -- with symptoms consistent with poisoning. Tissue samples smuggled out of Russia by his relatives were turned over to the FBI, which investigated his case as one of "intentional poisoning."

U.S. government laboratories also conducted extensive tests on the samples, but documents released by the Justice Department suggest they were unable to reach a conclusive finding.

In 2018, former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter were poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, England.

British authorities say Russia's GRU military intelligence was responsible for the chemical attack and have charged three of its agents with committing the poisoning.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/atlantic-council-herbst- poisoning-russia/32415472.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Wright-Patterson AFB to host 76th ISR Squadron

Published May 17, 2023

Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) -- Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is expected to host the 76th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Squadron after an environmental impact analysis, scheduled for completion in summer 2023.

The 76 ISRS will improve and integrate intelligence capabilities that will enable comprehensive military advantage in space.

76th ISRS primary tasks include:

Executing ISR data exploitation mission across all orbital regimes and terrestrial environments, fusing multi-intelligence data from all fielded sensors in the current and future space surveillance network to identify adversary capability, predict and define intent, and deliver enhanced threat warning to the Department of Defense, inter-agency, and civil allies and partners operating in space

Coordinating with designated space command and control nodes, orbital analysis elements, and other space operations Deltas to provide on-orbit operations with threat warning

The squadron will bring almost 90 additional personnel to Wright-Patterson AFB and is expected to reach full operational capability in 2025.

The Department of the Air Force's decision to host the 76th ISR Squadron at Wright-Patterson AFB came after conducting a site survey, which assessed the location's ability to facilitate the mission and infrastructure capacity while accounting for community support, environmental factors and cost.

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Pennsylvania Guard, Lithuania conduct partnership exchange

By Brad Rhen, Joint Force Headquarters - Pennsylvania National Guard May 16, 2023

FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. -- Pennsylvania National Guard Soldiers conducted engagements in Lithuania with their counterparts from the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

Soldiers from 1st Squadron, 104th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, participated in a reconnaissance and security operations class, while Soldiers from the Fort Indiantown Gap Training Center helped the Lithuanians develop a new training area.

"Events such as these two further strengthen the bond between Lithuania and Pennsylvania and continue to build trust between our organizations," said Lt. Col. Gordon Kinneer, commander, 1-104th Cavalry.

Kinneer said the two events were combined because he and Capt. Michael Shea, the C Troop, 1-104th Cavalry commander, work full-time at Fort Indiantown Gap and could assist with both events. Kinneer is the director of plans, operations, training and security at Fort Indiantown Gap, and Shea is the range management authority.

"I think it is very telling that the Lithuanian Land Forces came to their state partner first to seek out advisers for both the recon and security operations seminar and seek out implementation guidance as they continue to improve their military infrastructure," Kinneer said. "There are a plethora of U.S. agencies they could have gone to first, agencies that are in the region and on the continent, yet they sought out their 30-year partners, Pennsylvania, first."

The reconnaissance and security operations class occurred at the Uhlan Battalion headquarters in Alytus, Lithuania. The class was part of a series of military-to-military engagements with the Lithuanian Land Forces during the weeklong visit.

The Uhlan Battalion is one of the Lithuanian Army's premier mechanized forces. It recently fielded the Vilkas infantry fighting vehicle platform.

In addition to Kinneer and Shea, the engagement was attended by Maj. Rich Fowler, 1-104th Cavalry executive officer, and 1st Sgt. Rich Scaricaciottoli, B Troop, 1-104th Cavalry, first sergeant.

The training event was presented to Lt. Col. Aurelijus Vrubliauskas, Uhlan Battalion commander, his chief of staff and other primary staff officers, company commanders and platoon leaders.

Also during the visit, Shea, Master Sgt. Jeremy Schlegel and Sgt. 1st Class James Rudershausen, both from the Fort Indiantown Gap Training Center, participated in a military-to-military exchange assisting the Lithuanian Training and Doctrine Command.

The team assisted the Lithuanians in the development of a new training area near the village of Rudninkai. One of the features of the new Rudninkai Training Area will be a multipurpose range complex to allow Lithuanian Land Forces to conduct gunnery for the Vilkas platform.

Lithuania seeks to expand its range and training area capabilities to provide additional training opportunities for NATO partners and its military forces.

"Lithuanian TRADOC is very eager to learn best practices from Fort Indiantown Gap so they can implement them at their new training center," Shea said.

Shea said the team provided overviews of numerous facilities and training areas on Fort Indiantown Gap for use at the Rudninkai and Pabrade Training Complexes.

"I think their new training center in Rudninkai will provide great opportunities for the Lithuanian military to improve its readiness and capabilities," Shea said. "I look forward to assisting our partners in their efforts to build the premier training area in region."

The Pennsylvania National Guard and Lithuania have partnered through the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program since 1993. The two sides have taken part in over 800 security cooperation engagements, including senior leader engagements, subject matter expert exchanges, familiarization visits and cooperative training and exercises.

"We are always ready to support any ask from our partners and look forward to further assist Lithuania in their development in all realms; military, civilian and governmental," Kinneer said.

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New York Army Guard leaders plan August exercise with Brazil

By Staff Sgt. Jonathan Pietrantoni, New York National Guard May 16, 2023

FOZ DO IGUAZU, Brazil -- Two New York Army National Guard leaders visited State Partnership Program partner Brazil May 1-5 to lay the groundwork for Guard participation in a Brazilian disaster response exercise in August.

Capt. Stephanie Fernandez, a staff officer with the 53rd Troop Command, and 1st Sgt. Amanda Elfried, the top enlisted leader for the 466th Medical Company, Area Support, participated in a logistics planning conference in Foz do Iguazu.

The 466th will send 15 Soldiers to work with Brazilian medical personnel during Operation Parana Aug. 12-19.

The 53rd Troop Command will also send two Soldiers from the 138th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment to cover the training.

The New York Soldiers and Airmen have trained with Brazilian military personnel since 2019 when Brazil and the New York National Guard initialed a State Partnership Program agreement.

This will be the first time American Soldiers have joined the Brazilian disaster response exercise. Brazilian Army Lt. Col. Homem Nelson said 20 countries are expected to participate.

"It will be one of the largest humanitarian aid exercises in the Southern Hemisphere in 2023," Nelson said.

Brazil's army has extensive experience in health support during international operations, Nelson said. Brazil sent aid to Haiti when that country was hit by an earthquake in 2010. And the Brazilian military has experience conducting medical missions in some of Brazil's isolated communities.

"This opportunity to work together with another great army, the U.S. Army, represented by the New York Army National Guard, gives us the expectation of exchanging state-of-the-art knowledge and establishing friendships," Nelson said. "The fact that this operation is based in Brazil fills us with pride and will give us the opportunity to show the best of our land, our people and our army."

The 466th Medical Company is based in Queensbury, New York, and deployed to Iraq in 2006 and Kuwait in 2020.

This will be the company's first training exchange with the Brazilian Army, though members have participated in State Partnership Program exchanges with the South African National Defence Force.

Elfried said the Soldiers are looking forward to the August training mission.

"Working with our partner country is an amazing opportunity to share ideas and knowledge and practice the art of medicine," Elfried said. "We expect to find a vast number of similarities, but we hope to learn from the differences."

The unit's Soldiers will deal with simulated injuries and illnesses anticipated during a real disaster, Elfried said. The Soldiers will also be prepared to deal with health issues people experience when a disaster displaces them.

She said these could include near-drowning, hypothermia, trauma, insect bite complications and contaminated water and food.

"We are very fortunate to be involved in a multinational event. It's a great opportunity to work and train in a large-scale civil support operation," she said.

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Canadian Armed Forces donate $6.5 million in equipment to the Lebanese Armed Forces

National Defence

News release

May 16, 2023 - Ottawa - National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces

On April 26 2023, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) held a ceremony in Beirut, Lebanon, where $6.5 million in non-lethal equipment was donated to the LAF.

Equipment donated included snowshoes, trekking poles, snowmobiles, first aid kits, utility task vehicles, explosive ordnance disposal equipment and solar panels. This equipment will support the LAF and is in addition to the training that the CAF has provided throughout the year, including training in combat first aid, civil-military co-operation, and winter warfare techniques.

Since 2016, the Canadian Training and Assistance Team - Lebanon (CTAT-L) has provided specialized equipment donations to the LAF and trained over 2,000 LAF personnel as part of its enduring mission to contribute to security and stability in the region, under the mandate of Operation (Op) IMPACT.

Canadian Ambassador to the Lebanese Republic, Stefanie McCollum; Deputy Commander of Op IMPACT, Colonel Jay Lachine; LAF Deputy Chief of Staff of Operations, Brigadier-General Hassan Jounieh; as well as several other senior CAF and LAF officers and non-commissioned officers, attended the donation ceremony.

Quotes

"Canada values the strong and unique partnership it shares with Lebanon, which remains second-to-none in the region. Our collaboration stems from the understanding that only way to achieve our combined vision is to work together towards a common goal. The LAF continue to show dedication while taking on dangerous and lifesaving tasks to ensure the people of Lebanon are safe, and equipment being handed over today will support this mission." Stefanie McCollum, Canadian Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon

"This donation ceremony demonstrates the clear commitment of the CAF to contribute to security and stability in the Middle East. We will continue this support by maintaining our presence in Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait. The main goal of Op IMPACT is to build the capacity of local partner forces. This donated equipment will certainly aid the LAF to secure their borders and contribute to regional stability." Colonel Jay Lachine, Deputy Commander of Op IMPACT

"CTAT-L has various projects, notably to train LAF members in specialized fields such as combat first aid, civil-military co-operation and winter warfare techniques. Specifically, this donated equipment will be used by the Lebanese Logistics Brigade, as well as by the LAF Mountain Winter Ski School." Major David Tower, Commanding Officer of CTAT-L

Quick facts

Op IMPACT is part of Canada's whole-of-government approach to the Middle East and is the CAF mission to build the military capabilities of Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, and set the conditions for their long-term success. It began as the CAF support to the Global Coalition to degrade and ultimately defeat Daesh in Iraq and Syria. The coalition has been effective. Under the command of Brigadier-General Wade Rutland, Op IMPACT, on behalf of the CAF, is continuing to work with partners in the region to set the conditions for stability and security.

The Government of Canada has extended Op IMPACT until March 31, 2025. This extension will allow the CAF to continue to play an important role in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Kuwait alongside its Allies and partners.

The CAF has begun a planned consolidation and adjustment of its personnel footprint in the Middle East. Canada will continue to fulfill its existing commitments under the authorities granted in Op IMPACT.

As part of Op IMPACT, CTAT-L leads Canada's military capacity-building with the LAF. This enhances security and stability in the region by supporting the LAF's requests for trainers, advisors and mentors for key capabilities such as operations in winter and mountainous conditions as well as life-saving military first aid.

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State Partnership Program Adds 3 New Partner Nations in Africa

By Air Force Lt. Col. Allison Stephens, National Guard Bureau Public Affairs May 17, 2023

ARLINGTON, Va. -- The Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership program has added three new partner nations on the African continent, bringing the total number of partnerships in the 30th year of the program to 100.

Gabon, Malawi and Zambia join the existing 17 African nations in the SPP.

Established in 1993, the SPP is a security cooperation program and now involves more than 45% of the world's countries paired with the National Guard of every U.S. state and territory.

The SPP supports the security cooperation objectives of the United States and the geographic combatant commands by developing enduring relationships with partner countries and carrying out activities to build partner capacity, improve interoperability, and enhance U.S. access and influence, while increasing the readiness of U.S. and partner forces to meet emerging challenges.

The program creates strong, strategic partnerships through military-to-military engagements, exercises and key leader engagements. The relationships often lead to co-deployments and close civil, government and commerce ties.

Through the SPP, the National Guard has forged lasting partnerships with nations across the globe for 30 years while helping to build U.S. and partner capabilities to meet 21st-century security challenges. The SPP also provides National Guard members opportunities to train and learn with their foreign counterparts and become more aware of the global environment in which they operate.

The program will be refined and expanded in the coming months and years, said Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, National Guard Bureau chief.

"We don't come with preconditions," he said. "We have no hidden agenda. We're here to advance whatever is best for both America and our allies and partners, based on shared values and common interests."

The DOD program is administered by the National Guard Bureau and guided by the State Department's foreign policy goals. It is executed by the adjutants general in support of the combatant commanders, the U.S. Chief of Mission security cooperation objectives and the DOD's strategic objectives.

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Finland joins NATO Innovation Fund - Tesi invests EUR 35 million in the fund

Finnish Government

Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment

Publication date 17.5.2023

Finland's accession to NATO opens up new opportunities for Finnish early-stage startups. Finland's application to NATO's Innovation Fund has been approved, and Tesi will make a EUR 35 million investment in the fund. This also provides a new gateway to cooperation and financing opportunities for Finnish startups developing nascent technologies and for venture capital and private equity funds investing in them.

NATO's Innovation Fund will invest in Participating NATO Member Countries' early-stage deep tech startups and other venture capital funds developing nascent technologies of priority to NATO. The size of the Fund being established is one billion euros. Altogether, 22 NATO Member Countries committed to the Fund at the 2022 NATO Summit in Madrid. The NATO Innovation Fund will operationally launch this year on the margins of the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintila emphasises that it is important for Finland to become an active member in NATO's central operations and networks right from the start.

"The idea of the fund is that the knowhow for and possession of new technology and top-notch innovations remain in the hands of NATO countries. Finland has huge potential in technologies central to NATO, such as in AI and quantum technology. The fund will grant Finnish early-stage startups developing disruptive technologies a new source of growth financing," comments Mika Lintila.

"We develop international networks and we channel international capital and expertise into Finland. Tesi's investment will make NATO's Innovation Fund and its cooperation networks available to Finnish venture capital funds and startups," says Tesi's CEO Pia Santavirta.

NATO Innovation Fund's investments in venture capital funds and startups

The NATO Innovation Fund's investments will target technologies that have mainly civilian and commercial applications but that can also be used for defence and security purposes (i.e. dual-use). These include: artificial intelligence; quantum-enabled technologies; novel materials; energy; biotechnology, next generation communications and space.

"In practice, NATO's Innovation Fund focuses on financing companies in the deep tech sector. There are some 240 such companies in Finland, according to a survey conducted by Tesi. Deep tech companies typically need sizeable investments right from the outset, and their long development horizons require patient capital," adds Matias Kaila, Tesi's Director, Fund Investments.

While finalising elements of the Fund's formation, NATO's Innovation Fund will closely cooperate with NATO's Science and Technology Organization (STO) and will complement NATO's Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA). The NATO Innovation Fund will operationally launch this year on the margins of the NATO Summit in Vilnius and will aim to begin making investments soon thereafter.

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EU sanctions evasion and circumvention at the heart of the Border States' meeting in Helsinki

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland

17.5.2023

Combatting circumvention of the EU sanctions is a common mission of the EU Member States, especially of those who are at the forefront of sanctions implementation at the border with Russia. In order to facilitate co-operation further, the Border States, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and EFTA member state Norway, met in Helsinki on 15-17 May.

The EU has shown determination and unity in responding to Russia's unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine since February 2022. In the field of sanctions, the EU has made important decisions on unprecedented scale and has over the past 15 months continued to gradually increase the pressure on Russia by introducing new restrictive measures. In view of the effectiveness of sanctions, Russia has invented many ways to circumvent them.

Majority of the EU trade, including sanctioned goods leaving the EU, are transported via Border States and Russia to a third country as their final destination. Accordingly, the Border States at the EU/EFTA external border share a burden and play central role at enforcing the EU sanctions and controlling goods entering or leaving EU Member States, including also goods that arrive to the border from other EU countries. Considering the unique and challenging Border States' position, continuous deep cooperation and unified efforts between the Border States' authorities are of utmost importance to further tackle evasion and circumvention. It is notable, that strict and uniform implementation of the sanctions is crucial for them to work efficiently and appropriately.

The three-day discussions involved National Competent Authorities responsible for National Coordination of Sanctions Implementation, granting of authorisations (e.g. export licenses, financial sanctions authorisations) and Customs Officials of the Border States. Also Sweden, holding the EU Presidency, and the European Commission (OLAF) attended the meeting. The representatives discussed ways to strengthen measures targeted at disrupting circumvention of EU sanctions against Russia and Belarus.

The participants agreed to deepen co-operation on sanctions implementation, strengthen the uniform application of customs controls, work towards harmonising the granting of authorisations and increase regular exchanges of information and best practices. As a result, the parties agreed to produce a joint guidance for economic operators to detect sanctions evasion and circumvention.

The meeting ended with a dedicated discussion on export control related questions also involving experts from the US Bureau of Industry and Security.

In Helsinki, 17 May 2023

Finland

Estonia

Latvia

Lithuania

Poland

Norway

Sweden

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Biden skips two legs of trip, erodes US credibility

Global Times

By Chen Qingqing and Xie Jun Published: May 17, 2023 10:23 PM Updated: May 17, 2023 11:56 PM

The US President Joe Biden decided to curtail his upcoming trip to the Asia-Pacific by canceling a visit to Australia and Papua New Guinea due to the ongoing debt ceiling negotiations in Washington, which, some Chinese experts said reflects that Washington only treats its so-called allies and partners as chess pieces and instrument, and when its domestic issues override its political agenda, it easily turns back on its commitment.

Meanwhile, a planned summit of Quad leaders in Sydney next week has been scrapped, which will affect US' diplomatic engagement with the Asia Pacific region, some experts said. Given its outstanding debt issue, the US has been facing a continuously declining power and sending out strategic confusion signals, arousing suspicion among its allies over its leadership and reputation, they noted.

Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary, said in a statement on Tuesday that Biden spoke to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earlier Tuesday "to inform him that he will be postponing his trip to Australia." Biden's team engaged with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea's team to inform them as well. And the Biden administration looks forward to "finding other ways to engage with Australia, the Quad, Papua New Guinea and the leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in the coming year," the statement said.

In Sydney, Biden had planned to attend a meeting of the four so-called Quad nations -- the US, Japan, Australia and India, which was formed with a mind toward countering China's rising influence in the Asia-Pacific region, Reuters reported.

And in the PNG capital Port Moresby, Biden was originally due to attend a meeting of the 18-member Pacific Islands Forum, and sign security pacts with the host and with Micronesia, according to media report.

Biden is still scheduled to leave on Wednesday heading to Hiroshima, Japan, to attend a three-day G7 summit and will return to the country on Sunday. Some media reported that US Treasury Department has estimated that the US will go into a crippling default as early as June 1 if Congress does not lift the debt ceiling.

The AP described the "scuttling of two of the three legs of the overseas trip" is a foreign policy setback for an administration that has made putting a greater focus on the Pacific region central to its global outreach.

There has been palpable high expectation for Biden's trip to the two countries, especially the PNG, as some media earlier said "it would have been the first by a sitting US President to a Pacific country and comes as the two nations pursue a security pact."

"It shows that when its own domestic political demands override its international agenda, the US will turn back on its commitment with no hesitation," Chen Hong, director of the Australian Studies Center at East China Normal University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The US has been forming such small cliques to counter China's influence in the Asia-Pacific but those countries should realize that their own interests are far more important than being manipulated by the US, especially when the declining US power only makes its strategy of containing China fragile, Chen said.

After the Cold War, the US began to ignore the South Pacific, removing some island embassies, and reducing assistance to the region. Recently, the US has opened a new embassy in Tonga, another country in the Pacific region, to counter China.

After seeing that China and the Pacific region are having more reciprocal cooperation, the US felt "the crisis" and the anxiety, and began wooing Pacific island countries through official visits and exerting political influence, analysts said.

"As the US treats its diplomacy as a bandage to fix ties with some countries, sending out a strategic confusion signal," Chen said.

Eroding confidence

While the US politicians are mired in arguments about settlement of the debt ceiling which might lead to an imminent default in about two weeks, experts noted that this would bring about fluctuations on the global financial markets as well as erode global investors' confidence in US dollar assets in the long run.

According to a BBC report on Wednesday, Biden and Republican leaders have expressed cautious optimism that a deal to raise the US debt ceiling is within reach, but the report also cited House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy as saying that the two sides are still "far apart."

Liang Haiming, dean of Hainan University's Belt and Road Research Institute, told the Global Times on Wednesday that historically, US bond yields usually surge shortly before the US hits the debt ceiling.

"It's less than half a month before the US hits the debt ceiling this time. The US debt ceiling crisis will undoubtedly affect US dollar credit in the short term, lead to an increase in US bond yields and trigger global financial market turmoil," Liang said.

Liang also noted that the incident might bring a shadow to the G7 summit and weaken other members' viewpoints about the US.

"Those countries might feel that the US is a troublemaker in the international financial market instead of a leader," he said.

Dong Dengxin, director of the Finance and Securities Institute of the Wuhan University of Science and Technology, said that the impact of the incident on financial markets should be more of a long-term nature instead of short-term shockwaves.

"I think it's just a matter of time before US politicians agree on raising the debt ceiling. But such issues will definitely increase people's distrust about the US dollar and prompt them to take measures such as decreasing holdings of US assets, buying gold, renminbi or other non-dollar assets," Dong told the Global Times on Wednesday, adding that the process of "quantitative change" is already taking place, though at a slow pace.

There have been doubts over the US leadership not only in the international financial market but also on geopolitical landscape. Although the Quad leaders still plan to meet on the G7 sidelines in Japan, the canceled Quad meeting in Australia will surely affect such mechanism, especially when there have been divergences between the US and Australia over the AUKUS deal.

"It will surely affect the US' diplomatic engagement with the Asia Pacific. When the US woos its so-called allies and partners in the region, those countries would question whether the US policies have continuity or it would turn back on its commitment, doubting its leadership," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

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On 11-12 May, in Rogalin and Kornik, Poland hosted this year's meeting of Ministers for European Affairs of the Weimar Triangle with the special participation of the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for Integration with the EU and NATO

Republic of Poland - The Chancellery of the Prime Minister

17.05.2023

This meeting chaired by the Minister of European Affairs Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek, with the participation of Anna Luhrmann - Minister for Europe and Climate of the Federal Republic of Germany, Laurence Boone - Secretary of State for Europe of the French Republic and Olha Stefanishyna - Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for Integration with the EU and NATO was an opportunity for fruitful talks on leading European topics, with particular emphasis on the European Union's enlargement policy. The accession aspirations of Ukraine, the countries of the Western Balkans, Moldova and Georgia are of strategic importance for strengthening European integration and stabilizing the situation in the current geopolitical conditions in Europe.

The ministers reached a number of important conclusions aimed at advancing the enlargement process and giving it a framework that will enable it. The measurable result of the meeting of ministers is the Weimar letter to the European Commission, indicating key issues that may significantly contribute to accelerating the enlargement of the Union. In a letter to Oliver Varhelyi, the EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, the ministers of Poland, Germany and France emphasized the need to develop effective methods of admitting new Member States and rules for their assessment, strengthening the support for candidates from EU institutions and Member States, closer economic cooperation, integration in various areas, including wider participation in EU programs (such as Horizon Europe, Erasmus+). The letter highlights the expectation of the Weimar Triangle countries to return to the dynamism of the European Union's enlargement policy.



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Baltic states agree to step up support to the NATO Air Policing Mission and deepen cooperation on military training

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of National Defence

2023-05-17

International cooperation

Defence Ministers of the Baltic states agreed to increase Host Nation portion of spending in support of the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states.

Meeting in Jekabpils on May 16-17, Baltic Defence Ministers Arvydas Anusauskas, Inara Murniece and Hanno Pevkur signed an updated agreement to consolidate the commitment of all three Baltic states to increase financing of the Host Nation Support to the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission detachments.

"The NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states stands out as one of the best examples of our collective effort ensuring regional security with success. Obviously, that requires Host Nation commitments so that proper support is provided for deploying Allied military personnel. I am confident that our mutual efforts to ensure better conditions for Allied presence and training in the Baltic region will pay dividends univocally," said Minister of National Defence A. Anusauskas.

Ministers A. Anusauskas, I. Murniece and H. Pevkur also agreed to step the Baltic cooperation in the area of military training.

"Currently all the Baltic states are especially focussed on military infrastructure development and improvement for the benefit of NATO Allies and national forces alike. We have agreed to share best practices and aim for a breakthrough in military training through joined Baltic military raining capabilities," said A. Anusauskas.

Baltic Ministers of Defence also discussed at the meeting in Jekabpils the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius and support to Ukraine.

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A look at the Defence news 8 - 14 May

Netherlands Ministry of Defence

News item | 17-05-2023

HNLMS Van Amstel is specialised in anti-submarine warfare, with the crew deploying various sonar systems. Within NATO, the ship is one of the few frigates equipped with a combination of these specific systems. The ship played an important role in the anti-submarine warfare exercise Dynamic Mongoose, which was conducted between Norway and Iceland during the first week of May.

Later that week, the crew of the Van Amstel also joined search and rescue operation training in Iceland, which was conducted in arctic conditions.

Military personnel prepared for hurricane season

When natural disasters strike in the Caribbean, it is vital that adequate assistance is provided as soon as possible. That is why last week, on the island of Sint Maarten, around 300 Dutch military personnel prepared for the hurricane season, which keeps the Leeward Islands in its grip from June until November.

General Eichelsheim calls for further cooperation with France

Netherlands Chief of Defence, General Onno Eichelsheim has been appointed Commodore in the French Legion of Honour. He was awarded this honour for his contribution to French-Dutch cooperation and his efforts in terms of collective security. In his word of thanks, General Eichelsheim said that he wishes to further intensify the cooperation with France.

50 years of minehunting by NATO fleet

Last week, Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 celebrated its 50th anniversary. The Netherlands has been part of this permanent task group for minehunting since its inception. NATO commemorated this golden jubilee in the Lithuanian capital of Riga. The Royal Netherlands Navy was represented by its former commanders of the SNMCMG1 fleet.

A dozen F-35s active over Scandinavia

Last week, 12 F-35 fighter aircraft of the Royal Netherlands Air Force landed at rland Airport in Norway for a 2-week exercise with the Norwegian Air Force. This will be followed by a large international exercise above Scandinavia.

More prominent role for Woensdrecht Air Base in F-35 programme logistics

The role of Woensdrecht Air Base within the international F-35 programme is increasing. On 11 April, Netherlands and the United States signed a Status of Forces Agreement, which will also improve the position of the Dutch industry that conducts maintenance on the aircraft.

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Ethnic clashes in central Nigeria kill at least 30

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 9:35 AM

More than 30 people have been killed in ethnic clashes between herdsmen and farmers in central Nigeria's Plateau state, local officials stated.

Plateau State Information and Communications Commissioner Dan Manjang declared on Tuesday that the deadly violence on Monday erupted between herdsmen, who are mostly Muslims, and farmers, who are mostly Christians, suggesting ethnic clashes.

The region, which is located on the dividing line between the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria and the predominantly Christian south of the country, has been struggling to deal with ethnic and religious clashes for years.

Police said that violence broke out in various villages in Bwoi and in Mangu district.

Police spokesman Alfred Alabo said "a distress call was received" around noon time with a report of gunmen "shooting sporadically".

He said in a statement that security officials were deployed to the area, where they clashed with "hoodlums" - a term used in Nigeria to describe criminals.

Violence in north-west and central Nigeria has escalated from small-scale killings to wider crimes, with armed gangs reportedly attacking villages and committing mass kidnappings and looting.

"As we speak, the culprits are on the run while our officers are still on their trail with the aim to ensure that they are neutralized and if possible, arrested," Alabo added.

He further noted that the chairman of the Mangu district has imposed a 24-hour curfew "to ensure that the crisis does not escalate to other areas."

Nearly 50 people were killed last month when gunmen attacked a village in neighboring Benue state, violence that local officials blamed on herdsmen.

Benue has suffered the most amid inter-communal conflicts between farmers and herdsmen who are accused of destroying agricultural land by grazing their cattle.

President-elect Bola Tinubu, who will take over the helm of Africa's most populous country later this month, faces multiple security challenges.

The military is fighting a 14-year-old insurgency by terrorist groups in the northeast, separatist tensions in the southeast, piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, and kidnappings by armed criminals across the country.

Violence has increased in the past few weeks after a brief lull in presidential and gubernatorial elections in February and March.

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Biden cancels Papua New Guinea stopover in setback for Pacific influence

Analyst says canceled visit is fruitful material for detractors of U.S. overtures to the Pacific.

By Harlyne Joku and Stephen Wright for BenarNews 2023.05.17 -- U.S. President Joe Biden has shelved his planned visits next week to Papua New Guinea and Australia, an apparent setback for efforts to show a renewed commitment to island states in the Pacific where China has made inroads over several decades.

Citing a need to focus on negotiations to raise the U.S. government's debt limit, the White House said Biden will return to Washington on Sunday from a Group of Seven meeting in Japan instead of making a brief stopover in Papua New Guinea and then meeting the leaders of Australia, Japan and India in Sydney.

"Revitalizing and reinvigorating our alliances and advancing partnerships like the Quad remains a key priority for the president," the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said in a statement, referring to the grouping of the United States, Australia, Japan and India.

"This is vital to our ability to advance our foreign policy goals and better promote global stability and prosperity," she said. "We look forward to finding other ways to engage with Australia, the Quad, Papua New Guinea and the leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in the coming year."

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Wednesday the Quad meeting planned for next week would not go ahead without Biden, but that leaders would meet on the sidelines of the G-7 summit instead, Reuters reported.

The brinkmanship over the government's budget has become an annual ritual that highlights the partisan divide in U.S. politics. The Federal government could be forced to shutter some services and furlough employees, and faces the risk of defaulting on debt payments, if Congress doesn't agree to an increase in the borrowing ceiling.

The prospect of Biden's visit to Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby had generated feverish preparations and both excitement and skepticism in the Pacific island country of more than nine million people.

Biden also would have met leaders of other Pacific nations as many are headed to Port Moresby for an India-Pacific islands summit attended by India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"I was looking forward to seeing U.S. President Biden but it's too bad now, he has canceled his trip," said Lucas Nanai, who trims hedges and tidies backyards for a living.

He blamed the change of plans on Prime Minister James Marape's government cultivating ties with China.

"The Marape government is just thinking about getting money for now from the Chinese," he said. "When there is a war, China will not help us. America and Australia will come to help us."

Biden, leader of a country that is the world's largest economy and a nuclear-armed superpower, met Pacific island leaders in Washington in September last year.

That summit was meant to highlight renewed U.S. participation in the Pacific in response to Beijing's burgeoning influence. His Papua New Guinea stopover, only confirmed by the White House last week, was intended to underscore that commitment, analysts said.

Mihai Sora, an analyst at Australia's Lowy Institute think tank, said Biden's no-show will be a disappointment for Pacific island leaders.

"Pacific leaders gave the U.S. the benefit of the doubt last year when Washington started making overtures to the region. But this cancellation will be seen as the U.S. falling into familiar patterns and not living up to expectations it sets," said Sora, a former diplomat in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.

"And it will make fruitful material for detractors seeking to undermine U.S. influence in the region. No other way to see it."

China's influence in the Pacific has grown over several decades through a combination of increased trade, infrastructure investment and aid as it seeks to isolate Taiwan diplomatically and gain allies in international institutions. The Solomon Islands and Kiribati switched their diplomatic recognition to China from Taiwan in 2019.

Beijing signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands last year, alarming the U.S. and allies such as Australia who fear it could pave the way for a Chinese military presence in the region.

Papua New Guinea's Minister of Foreign Affairs Justin Tkatchenko - who stepped aside last week after apologizing for calling online critics of his adult daughter Savannah "primitive animals" - had said the government hoped to sign a defense cooperation agreement with the United States during Biden's visit.

Even before it was canceled, the brevity of Biden's visit - reported by Papua New Guinea's media to be three hours - had drawn unfavorable comparisons with Chinese President Xi Jinping's stay in the Pacific country in November 2018, when it hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders summit.

The U.S. sent then-Vice President Mike Pence to the APEC meetings, but he and his delegation based themselves in northern Australia rather than Port Moresby.

"China was genuine. President Xi Jinping was here on the ground," businessman Justin Parker said in the WhatsApp group for PNG ThinkTank, an online forum.

For Australia - which is part of the AUKUS pact with the U.S. and United Kingdom that will equip the Australian military with nuclear-powered submarines - the canceled visit by Biden will also be disappointing, said Sora.

"It will frustrate but won't rattle Australia broadly speaking or its commitment to the Quad," he said.

BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated news service.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Australia urges ASEAN to not 'lessen' territorial rights in sea-conduct negotiations

Foreign Minister Penny Wong says any deal with China shouldn't devalue rights of individual claimant states.

BenarNews staff 2023.05.17 -- Australia's top diplomat urged ASEAN on Wednesday to be vigilant in upholding the territorial rights of member-states that have claims in the South China Sea as the bloc negotiates with China for a maritime code of conduct.

Australia, a "middle power," is not a party to disputes in the strategic waterway but it has a stake in keeping the vital sea lanes open and peaceful, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said during a visit to Manila, according to BenarNews, an online news outlet affiliated with Radio Free Asia.

"We respect ASEAN centrality and they have, as an entity, a right to discuss these issues," Wong said of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which includes the Philippines.

"All we are saying as a party that has an interest, as many do in the South China Sea and in international law, is we would urge states not to agree to anything that lessened their rights," she said during an interview with CNN Philippines, according to transcripts released by her office.

Wong, who is making her first visit to the Philippines as foreign minister, emphasized that Australia's interests align closely with those of the Southeast Asian nation, noting that Canberra has had a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement with Manila since 2012. The agreement allows Australian troops to participate in training missions in the Philippines.

While she did not mention China by name, Wong noted that "there's a lot of competition" in the South China Sea that necessitates working with each other.

"Well, our national interest, I believe, aligns with your national interests very closely. And that is we all want a region that is stable, peaceful and prosperous - and we all want a region in which rules ameliorate the exercise of power," Wong said.

She said Australia backed the Philippines in asserting its "national interests" tied to an international arbitral tribunal's favorable ruling in 2016, after Manila took Beijing to court over occupying Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.

"We don't want a region which is dominated to an extent where other countries cannot make their own decisions. And so for us, the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea [UNCLOS] is important. It matters, and as I know it does to the Philippines, it's about safeguarding your resources, it's about safeguarding your sovereignty. And we want to work with you and others on that," she said.

Wong noted that any document impacting the rights of states under international law to exercise freedom of navigation and conduct military exercises with partners in the region "would be a cause of concern for Australia."

The code is being drawn up by China and ASEAN to serve as a more binding version of a 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

The accord is expected to help manage tensions and reduce the risk of confrontations where China has overlapping territorial claims with the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam and Malaysia. Taiwan also has claims in the waterway.

Wong plans to be in the Philippines until Friday - she is expected to meet with Filipino business leaders as well as the coast guard during her stay.

Philippines: sincere dialogue 'crucial'

The Australian foreign minister appeared in the TV interview a day after Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo told academics in Japan that Manila wanted greater cooperation with Tokyo focusing on maritime issues, particularly on domain awareness and law enforcement.

"To achieve a peaceful and UNCLOS-based regime, sincere dialogue among all claimants is crucial, both bilaterally and through discussions between ASEAN and China on a code of conduct," Manalo said Tuesday.

"The Philippines advocates for an effective and substantive code of conduct that adheres to UNCLOS and takes into account the interests of all stakeholders, even extending beyond ASEAN and China."

Manila and Tokyo are embroiled in maritime disputes with Beijing over the South China Sea and East Asia, respectively.

Manalo said that the Philippines was advocating for a code of conduct even as he stressed that "repeated infringements" on its sovereign rights also "necessitate the enhancement of our defense capabilities."

BenarNews is an online news outlet affiliated with Radio Free Asia.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Vietnam denies UN inquiries about alleged repression of Khmer Krom minority

Delta-dwelling ethnic group has faced discrimination from Vietnamese and Cambodians.

By RFA Vietnamese 2023.05.17 -- The Vietnamese government has denied allegations from United Nations experts that it represses the Khmer Krom minority living in the Mekong Delta region.

The nearly 1.3-million strong ethnic group live in a part of Vietnam that was once southeastern Cambodia, and face widespread discrimination in Vietnam and suspicion in Cambodia, where they are often perceived not as Cambodians but as Vietnamese. Scores of Khmer Krom asylum seekers reside in Thailand.

Seven special U.N. rapporteurs operating under Human Rights Council mandates sent a 16-page letter to Hanoi on Oct. 18 about information it received concerning the country's alleged failure to recognize the right to self-determination of the Khmer Krom as an indigenous people.

The experts said they had also received evidence of alleged violations of the group's freedom of expression, association and religion as well as their cultural and linguistic rights and land use rights.

Concerns were also raised about Khmer Krom men detained by police and questioned for their activism, namely Duong Khai, Thach Cuong, Danh Set, Tang Thuy and Thach Rine.

Of the five, authorities arrested and jailed Rine in October 2021 on charges of "abusing democratic freedoms" for wearing a T-shirt with the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals logo. He was released in April 2022 without having had a fair trial or access to his family and lawyer, the letter said.

"While we do not wish to prejudge the accuracy of these allegations, we are expressing our serious concern at what may constitute arbitrary arrest and ill-treatment of Khmer Krom persons with the aim of suppressing their right to freedom of expression, as well as the Khmer Krom Indigenous Peoples' cultural and linguistic rights," the letter said.

60 days to respond

The U.N. experts gave the Vietnamese government 60 days to respond to its concerns and explain measures and regulations that it has taken to ensure the protection and rights of the Khmer Krom as an indigenous people.

Vietnam's permanent mission to the U.N. office in Geneva refuted the accusations in a response dated May 10.

"The accusations stated in the Joint Communication distort the history and socioeconomic development situation with many false information about the State of Viet Nam's policies and laws towards the ethnic minority communities in guaranteeing and promoting the rights as well as taking care of the lives of ethnic minorities, including the Khmer people," the letter said.

"In addition, the accusations about the individuals mentioned in the Joint Communication are also untrue, stem from unofficial sources, bear heavy arbitrariness and lack objectivity," it said.

The letter went on to say that the concept of "indigenous peoples" is not suitable with the characteristics, history of establishment and development of Vietnam's ethnic groups.

"In other words, in Viet Nam, there is no concept of indigenous peoples," it said.

Tran Mannrinth, a member of Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation, a human rights NGO, told Radio Free Asia that many young people from the ethnic group are discouraged from learning the Khmer language because books printed in Cambodia are not permitted in Vietnam, and Khmer-language material printed in Vietnam is full of mistakes by the ethnic-majority Kinh authors.

"Vietnam finds ways to deny; however, if it does not know what indigenous people are, then how could it [endorse] the U.N. declaration?," he asked, referring to Vietnam's vote in favor of the adoption of the U.N.'s legally nonbinding Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007.

Tran Mannrith, who lived in Lai Hoa village with other ethnic Khmer Krom before permanently resettling in the United States in 1985, lamented the group's loss of agricultural land to collectivization when Vietnam was reunified in 1975 and resettlement efforts that followed

"During the time of war between Vietnam and [Cambodia's] Khmer Rouge, Khmer people living near the border in Chau Doc were forced to move to other places," he said. "After the fall of Khmer Rouge, the displaced people were allowed home, but most of their land and property was lost to other people."

Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Allies 'Don't Go To Russia,' EU's Enlargement Commissioner Says After Forum In Sarajevo

By RFE/RL's Balkan Service May 17, 2023

SARAJEVO -- The European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi on May 17 warned aspiring member Bosnia-Herzegovina that EU allies do not visit Russia, another show of disappointment in the country after Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik's trip to Moscow last year.

"Our allies don't go to Russia -- that is my message," Varhelyi said in response to a reporter's question on Dodik's visit. "Who wants to be our ally, does not go to Russia."

Bosnia, which applied to join the EU in 2016, was granted candidate status in December following concern that the war in Ukraine may destabilize the Balkan region. But it also attached a long list of conditions designed to bolster democracy in the Balkan country.

"We need Bosnia-Herzegovina to be our ally," Varhelyi told a news conference in Sarajevo after a high-level political forum outlining steps that Bosnia should take to join the EU.

It's important to send strong messages from Sarajevo to present a common front, he added.

Varhelyi praised the progress made in "record time" to form a government and draw up budgets following general elections in October.

He also said that he was encouraged to see a commitment by stakeholders to deliver on reforms agreed when it was granted candidate status and its "very clear commitment as a European ally."

But statements by Dodik, along with his trip to Moscow, which included a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, highlight the lack of unity on foreign policy in Bosnia.

Dodik had already run afoul of the bloc when in January he awarded Putin with the highest honor of the entity he leads, which sparked a similar rebuke and warning about Bosnia-Herzegovina needing to be mindful of the rule of law as it pursues EU membership.

Dodik opposes imposing sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and recognizing Kosovo as independent state. He also has been trying to separate Republika Srpska's military, police, and tax administration from the central Bosnian government, actions that contravene the 1995 Dayton accords.

Russia and Serbia tacitly support Dodik's actions.

The political forum in Sarajevo on May 17 was chaired by Varhelyi and Borjana Kristo, chairman of the Bosnian Council of Ministers. It was organized by the European Commission with the aim of monitoring the implementation of its recommendations and reporting on Bosnia's progress on the European path.

"Today we considered the activities facing the new authorities, which are clear indicators of the work. We had the opportunity to hear the readiness to work on all questions and problems," Varhelyi said.

Kristo said the European Union has expressed its readiness to help Bosnia on its way to EU membership after it fulfills the conditions.

"The EU is ready to provide all kinds of assistance, financial and professional, in this process," Kristo said, but Bosnia must first fulfill conditions.

The forum was attended by representatives of the Bosnian legislative authority, as well as the highest representatives of the executive authority in the entities of Republika Srpska and the Bosniak-Croat federation, and the administrative unit of the Brcko district of Bosnia.

As part of the enlargement package for 2023, the European Commission will report again on Bosnia's progress in the implementation of 14 key priorities on the path to EU membership.

The European Commission defined the priorities in May 2019 and divided them into four areas: democracy and functioning of institutions, the rule of law, basic rights, and public administration reform.

When Bosnia's candidate status was confirmed in December, the EU said it would start negotiations on full membership once eight conditions were fulfilled.

Bosnia joined other EU candidates -- Albania, Moldova, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, and Ukraine -- in a long process that can take many years and involve complex negotiations on adjusting local laws to match those of the EU.

With reporting by Sejla Ibrahimovic of RFE/RL's Balkan Service and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/bosnia-european-commission- enlargement-russia-dodik/32416069.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Sofia to Host 16th Balkan Countries Chiefs of Defence Conference

Saudi Press Agency

Sofia, May 17, 2023, SPA -- On May 18, Sofia is hosting the 16th Conference of the Chiefs of Defence/General Staffs of the Balkan Countries, Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) quoted the Defence Ministry as saying in a press release issued on Wednesday.

Caretaker Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov will address the participants. President Rumen Radev has been invited to attend as Commander-in-Chief of the Bulgarian Armed Forces.

Bulgarian Chief of Defence Admiral Emil Eftimov will welcome his counterparts from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkiye. Also attending will be Chairman of the EU Military Committee General Robert Brieger and Deputy Commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples Lieutenant General Stephen Kelsey. Eddy Liegeois, head of the Transport Networks unit at the European Commission's Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, will be guest lecturer at the forum.

Participants in the conference will discuss regional military connectivity and mobility as a focus in the partnership in the Balkans in search of innovative ways to integrate and cooperate. The working sessions will discuss matters of common interest for the participating countries' armed forces.

The Balkan Countries Chiefs of Defence/General Staffs Forum was launched in 2007 as an initiative aimed at promoting stability, cooperation and the well-being of the countries in that region. Regional military cooperation includes exchanging information on security topics and potential threats to the region, joint exercises, courses and trainings, and seeking opportunities to broaden the scope of common activities.

--SPA

13:36 LOCAL TIME 10:36 GMT

0017

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UK calls for secure, unimpeded humanitarian access and funding in Yemen: UK statement at the Security Council

Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on Yemen.

17 May 2023



Thank you, President.

Let me start by thanking Special Envoy Grundberg for your briefing, but also for your team's very hard work. And Ms Wosornu and Ms Al-Eryani for your briefings too.

I would like to start by welcoming the strong progress towards resolving the major threat posed by the FSO oil tanker and the risk of over a million barrels of oil leaking into the Red Sea.

In recent days, both the replacement and service vessels have arrived near the site. And crucially, following the joint UK-Dutch fundraising event earlier this month, the UN has announced it has sufficient funding to start the emergency operation to transfer oil off the vessel.

But as Ms Wosornu said, there is more work to do. I am certain that none of us want to be fundraising for the $20 billion required to clean up if we are unable to avert a catastrophic spill.

The UN requires $43 million to fully complete the operation and we all have a stake in permanently solving this ticking time bomb for the environment, for global trade, for millions of local livelihoods and the delivery of lifesaving aid in Yemen.

President, the UK welcomes the positive work by all parties to build on the truce-like conditions in Yemen over the past year. We call on all parties to continue engaging constructively and creatively and to negotiate in good faith, towards a lasting and inclusive peace for the Yemeni people.

The recent Saudi and Omani delegations to Sana'a represented valuable steps towards reaching a comprehensive ceasefire.

I urge the parties to engage constructively and in a spirit of compromise. Our focus should be on accepting that all Yemenis should have access to all sources of revenue.

An inclusive peace process under UN auspices is the only pathway to ending this dreadful war.

I am also reassured by the unity that this Council continues to demonstrate. I hope that we can continue to work together towards our common goal of finding peace in Yemen.

Finally, I echo the concerns of Ms Wosornu.

In spite of the relative peace in Yemen over the past year, 21.6 million people, or two-thirds of the population, remain in dire humanitarian need.

Although I welcome OCHA's efforts in securing unrestricted humanitarian access; we continue to see, as we've heard, impediments to the free movement of women; to independent monitoring and assessment; and to the fair selection of service providers.

The humanitarian response is already facing severe funding challenges. These impediments pose additional, and entirely avoidable, burdens on the humanitarian effort and ultimately on the people of Yemen.

Thank you, President.

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UN calls for US$3 billion to rush life-saving aid and protection to people impacted by the Sudan crisis

UNHCR - United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Joint OCHA and UNHCR press release

17 May 2023

GENEVA -- With the conflict in Sudan entering its second month, the United Nations and its partners today called for US$3 billion to help millions of people in the country and hundreds of thousands fleeing to neighbouring countries.

As the death toll mounts, humanitarian needs soar, and displacement grows, the UN is launching two response plans to provide food, health care, shelter, protection and other critical assistance.

The Humanitarian Response Plan for Sudan has been revised due to the soaring needs spurred by the current crisis. It now requires $2.56 billion, an increase of $800 million from just a few months ago, to help 18 million people until the end of this year, making it the largest appeal ever issued for Sudan.

The Sudan Regional Refugee Response Plan seeks $470.4 million to support refugees, returnees and host communities in the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan. The funds are intended to help over 1 million people, including refugees, returnees and third country nationals.

"This conflict is a cruel blow for the people of Sudan, already staggering under the weight of a desperate humanitarian situation. The desire, willingness and impatience of humanitarian agencies to deliver remains as strong as ever," said Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths.

"The signing of the Declaration of Commitment was a welcome first step towards protecting civilians and delivering aid safely. But now we need the generosity of the international community to scale up our response and reach all those in need."

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said: "More than a month into this crisis, countless people remain terrified inside Sudan, and those who have fled across the country's many borders are in need of help, often finding themselves in places where access is extremely hard and resources strained. Humanitarians are working hard to respond but we need - once again - to call on countries and individuals with the means, to step up and provide the resources so we can help people who have lost everything."

The most recent fighting has already displaced more than 840,000 people inside Sudan. Over 220,000 refugees and refugee returnees have fled the country, with many Sudanese escaping to Chad and Egypt, and South Sudanese refugees returning home in adverse conditions. Without an urgent resolution, many more will be forced to flee in search of safety and basic assistance.

The revised Humanitarian Response Plan will focus on swiftly ramping up food and water and sanitation and other lifesaving assistance. It will also increase its focus on protection, including the protection of children and the prevention of gender-based violence.

The Plan, bringing together 92 partners, envisions the expansion of operations in areas where fighting is fierce, such as the capital, Khartoum, as well as locations to which many people have fled to escape violence, including West, South and North Darfur.

Implementing the scale-up will require humanitarian agencies to have safe access to reach those in need.

The Refugee Response Plan will help host countries to coordinate the response with a "whole-of-society" approach in support of host governments and communities. It outlines the multisector strategy and financial requirements of 140 partners to provide protection and humanitarian assistance to those who have been forced to flee across borders.

The most urgent immediate needs include water and sanitation, food, shelter, health, cash assistance and core relief items. Particularly in South Sudan and the Central African Republic, movement away from the border areas is a major logistical and financial challenge. In many of the hosting countries the rainy season is approaching.

For protection assistance, a priority is to support local authorities with registration and identify those at heightened risks for specific aid. Most new arrivals are women and children, a number of whom are unaccompanied or separated. Efforts to mitigate and respond to gender-based violence will be paramount alongside addressing risks of trafficking and sexual exploitation and abuse. Support will also be provided for education, livelihoods and through cash assistance where feasible.

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UN envoy reports on progress towards Yemen peace agreement

17 May 2023 - Warring parties continue to make progress in efforts towards ending the nearly decade-long conflict in Yemen, though outstanding issues remain, the UN Security Council heard on Wednesday.

Ambassadors were briefed by UN Special Envoy Hans Grundberg, who reported on his ongoing engagement with representatives from the internationally-recognized Government, which is backed by a Saudi-led coalition, and opposing Houthi rebels, as well as regional and international actors.

Mr. Grundberg said he was encouraged by the positive and detailed discussions, noting that all interlocutors displayed willingness to constructively engage on the way forward.

Hopes for an agreement

"There is clear determination on all sides to make progress towards a deal on humanitarian and economic measures, a permanent ceasefire and the resumption of a Yemeni-led political process under UN auspices," he said.

"While progress is being made, there are still issues that require further discussion. With sustained determination from the Yemeni parties, supported by a coherent and coordinated regional and international community, I believe that the outstanding issues can be resolved and that the parties will be able to commit themselves to an agreement," he added.

Expired truce still delivers

Meanwhile, the landmark April 2022 truce that expired seven months ago continues to deliver benefits for Yemen's people, as evidenced by commercial flights to and from the capital, Sana'a, and the entry of fuel and other commercial ships via the Hudaydah port.

Mr. Grundberg said although sporadic military incidents continue to occur, hostility levels are significantly lower than before the truce.

"But the fragility of the military situation, the dire state of the economy and the daily challenges facing the Yemeni people, provide us with constant reminders of why a more comprehensive agreement between the parties is so vital," he stressed.

Violence and economic woes

He said there are continuing reports of violence across frontlines, particularly in Al Jawf, Ta'iz, Ma'rib and Sa'ada governorates, which highlight the fragility, and underscore the need for a formal ceasefire.

The envoy also expressed concern over the deteriorating economic situation in Yemen and restrictions on freedom of movement.

He said the Government is straining to meet its obligations to its own citizens, due to an inability to export oil, which accounted for more than half of all revenues last year. Additionally, inconsistent financial and economic policies in different areas of the country have hit both citizens and businesses hard.

He warned that lack of cooperation between the parties on critical monetary and financial issues means these challenges will worsen and potentially become more entrenched.

'Cautious optimism'

"Despite these profound challenges, there is room for cautious optimism," Mr. Grundberg told the Council. He pointed to recent positive steps by the parties, such as the release of hundreds of conflicted-related detainees and urged the sides to continue these efforts.

The Special Envoy was adamant that Yemen's myriad challenges cannot be addressed through partial or temporary solutions, underlining the importance of an inclusive Yemeni-led political process under UN auspices.

"Only an inclusive and comprehensive political process can sustainably forge a new political partnership and bring the promise of a secure and economically stable future, in which State institutions function effectively and Yemen returns to peaceful relations with its neighbours," he said.

Hopes for peace

The Council also received an update on the humanitarian situation in the country, where millions lack access to basic services.

"There are many hopes hinging on what is happening in Yemen. Hope that, at long last, there could be an end to this terrible war, and for a sustainable peace agreement," said Edem Wosornu, Director of the Operations and Advocacy Division at the UN's humanitarian affairs office, OCHA.

So far this year, aid workers have reached more than 11 people each month with food and other lifesaving assistance, she said. However, they continue to be hampered by access constraints and a lack of funding.

Women humanitarians affected

Ms. Wosornu reported that "chronic access impediments" primarily occur in areas controlled by the Houthi de facto authorities.

"In particular, the ongoing restrictions on the movement of Yemeni female aid workers have severely disrupted the ability of agencies to operate and to reach those in need, particularly women and girls," she said.

Regarding funding, she warned that the shortfall is increasingly threatening the ability to provide lifesaving and livelihoods assistance.

Humanitarians are seeking $4.3 billion this year to reach more than 17 million in Yemen. Despite the generosity of many donors, around 80 per cent of the appeal remains unfunded.

"Economic times are hard, but we must once again urge donors to do what they can to fund the Yemen appeal," she insisted.



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Sudan crisis: UN launches record country appeal for 18 million in need

17 May 2023 - Amid a massive increase in the number of people in Sudan impacted by more than a month of heavy fighting, the UN on Wednesday said that it needed a record near $3 billion to deliver life-saving aid to them.

In addition to a revised request from the UN aid coordination office OCHA for $2.56 billion to fund its Humanitarian Response Plan - targeting some 18 million people in Sudan - the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said that it required $472 million to assist those forced to flee across the country's borders.

The revised joint humanitarian response plan updates the response strategy launched for Sudan in December 2022 and reflects the "fundamental and widespread needs" within the country, according to OCHA.

Kickstarting aid

"Today 25 million people, more than half the population of Sudan, need humanitarian aid and protection," said Ramesh Rajasingham, Head and Representative of OCHA in Geneva.

"This is the highest number we have ever seen in the country (and) the response plan we are launching today reflects that new reality; the funding requirement of nearly $2.6 billion is also the highest for any humanitarian appeal for Sudan."

The fighting that started on 15 April between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has caused tremendous human suffering and death, exacerbating significant pre-existing humanitarian needs in Sudan.

Regional threat

There is also every sign that the crisis could evolve into a regional emergency, OCHA's Mr. Rajasingham warned, before listing a number of urgent needs, including protection from fighting, medical support, food and water, sanitation, shelter and trauma care.

Since fighting began, nearly a million people have been displaced, the number of those internally displaced has risen to 730,000 and 220,000 have fled to neighboring countries.

"We are also receiving worrying reports of increased sexual violence while the victims have little access to help. Children are especially vulnerable in this chaos that is unfolding," OCHA also reported.

Also in Geneva for the revised funding appeal, UNHCR's Raouf Mazou, UNHCR's Assistant High Commissioner for Operations, said that the conflict had caused "massive outflows" into neighboring countries, including Chad, where around 60,000 people have now crossed the border in search of safety.

To date, 220,000 refugees and returnees have fled to Chad, Sudan, Egypt, Central African Republic and Ethiopia, the UNHCR official said, adding that 150,000 of them were Sudanese refugees and asylum seekers.

Displaced South Sudanese form the largest number of non-Sudanese people in need. "Overall, we have to keep in mind that there were 1.1 million refugees living in Sudan prior to this crisis," Mr. Mazou said, before noting that the UN agency's appeal for $472 million would provide assistance to more than one million people for six months.

Famine fears

A few months ago, humanitarian needs were almost half today's requirement, said OCHA's Mr. Rajasingham.

But needs throughout the country have "expanded drastically" since the conflict erupted, leaving an increasing number of people dangerously hungry. "When you have a crisis like this and you don't have access to basic services, you don't have access to health and water, there's an enormous risk that there will be an increased risk of famine as well," he said.

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NATO Task Group demonstrates flexibility and strength in the Mediterranean Sea

US Navy

17 May 2023

From Cmdr. Fernando Estrella, NATO Allied Maritime Command

CAGLIARI, Italy -- Over the past few weeks, Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) has engaged in multiple activities throughout the Mediterranean, showcasing its reach and seamless integration with Allied navies.

While SNMG2's flagship USS James E. Williams patrolled the Eastern Mediterranean Sea conducting vigilance and surveillance activities, HMCS Fredericton (FFH 337) and ITS Thaon Di Revel (P 430) took part in Exercise Mare Aperto 23-1, hosted by the Italian Navy in the Tyrrhenian and Central Mediterranean Seas.

USS James E. Williams transitioned from surveillance to a key role in Exercise Noble Jump 23, along with ITS Alpino (F 594) in the Ionian and Adriatic Seas from 8-11 May. The exercise, sponsored by Joint Force Command Naples, was designed to test units' ability to plan and conduct a deployment to a contested area under peacetime conditions.

At the end of the exercise, SNMG2's flagship made a three-day port visit to Cagliari.

"Our ability to disaggregate the task group and fulfill multiple requirements at once speaks to the flexible and interoperable manner in which we operate," said Commander SNMG2, U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Scott Sciretta. "Our units were able to train and improve readiness for future crises, while simultaneously maintaining the security of the strategic maritime domain and projecting a constant and visible reminder of the Alliance's solidarity and cohesion afloat. That is the strength of the NATO Alliance."

As a NATO task group, SNMG2 prioritises its mandate to enhance the collective readiness, responsiveness, deployable readiness, integration and interoperability of its forces. Its focus is on deterrence and defense against all adversaries in the maritime domain, upholding freedom of navigation, securing maritime trade routes and protecting the main lines of communication.

SNMG2 is a multinational integrated task group that performs a wide range of tasks, including exercises and real-world operations in periods of crisis and conflict.

SNMG2 is one of four Standing Naval Forces that operate under NATO Allied Maritime Command, headquartered in Northwood, United Kingdom.



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HIMARS in the High North: U.S. Marines With Task Force 61/2 Conduct Exercise Formidable Shield 2023

US Navy

17 May 2023

From 1st Lt. William Reckley, Task Force 61/2 Public Affairs

ANDYA, Norway -- Hiking close to 2,000 feet above sea level through snow and ice in northern Norway, a team from Task Force 61/2's Commander, Task Group (CTG) 61/2.4 (MRC), loaded down with five days of man-packed mission-essential gear and provisions, took their positions.

Hiking close to 2,000 feet above sea level through snow and ice in northern Norway, a team from Task Force 61/2's Commander, Task Group (CTG) 61/2.4 (MRC), loaded down with five days of man-packed mission-essential gear and provisions, took their positions.

The team was charged with conducting surveillance and providing targeting data for U.S. High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and Norwegian National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) units, as they worked together to counter a simulated threat at sea. They were employed as a cueing asset for targeting, providing tracks and locations of vessels to adjacent reconnaissance forces and Task Force 61/2 of potential offshore targets.

As they watched on, their fellow Marines brought Force Design concepts to life with the simultaneous engagement of an offshore target with two HIMARS during exercise Formidable Shield 2023.

"We've proven the concept of how efficiently, and for the first time, we can employ a man-portable radar team, coming up here filling in that kill-chain for maritime domain awareness," said Sgt. Kyle Rolain, a platoon sergeant with MRC.

During Formidable Shield, Task Force 61/2 assumed tactical control of numerous units beyond their organic CTG 61/2.4 (Mobile Reconnaissance Company) and CTG 61/2.5 (Force Reconnaissance Company), incorporating elements from Marine Air Control Squadron 2, 2d Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, and 8th Communications Battalion. The Task Force integrated Allied units into their operations, as well.

"Task Force 61/2 directed and unified the efforts of the U.S. Marines, a U.S. Destroyer, a Dutch Frigate, and Norwegian NASAMS to engage both surface and airborne threats targeting the NATO task group," said Task Force 61/2 Air Officer, Maj. Christopher Herlihy. This collaboration, "ensured elements could rapidly pass tracking and targeting data and defend fleet assets in a joint environment."

Along with enabling strikes against surface targets, Formidable Shield 2023 also enhanced Task Force 61/2's ability to direct Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) systems. Inside the Tactical Air Operations Center (TAOC), all the coordination of multi-domain awareness is routed, to include fires and surveillance.

1st Lt. Caleb Johnson, an air defense control officer and Company XO, Air Defense Company A, underscored the capacity and capability this integration and training provided to the Task Force 61/2 team.

"As a weapons director in the TAOC during Formidable Shield 2023, we provide a picture and a sensor capability that we can cue shooters in the battlespace to take out targets."

Johnson, deployed in the area of operations with his unit out of Cherry Point, shares "we've had a unique experience in bringing our AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task-Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) system up here in the High North, providing sensors capabilities to Norwegian air defense units, probably one of the first times we have done this."

Launching from U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Oscar Austin (DDG 79), initial reconnaissance forces from Force Reconnaissance Company visually acquired the offshore target. Working in the TAOC, Herlihy observed that, "recon forces were the first to provide the CTG visual identification and the coordinates of a target barge using their organic small UAS systems." This information was passed from the TAOC back to Oscar Austin and out to the Spanish Frigate Blas de Lezo, initiating confirmation and joint pursuit of targets.

Meanwhile, back on land, U.S. HIMARS and Norwegian NASAMS received firing guidance from the TAOC, with information collected from the various multi-domain sensing force capabilities, allowing them to prosecute targets from the ground with HIMARS long-range precision fires and Norwegian NASAMS air-denial fires.

1st Lt. Joe Goff, a platoon commander with H Battery, 2/10, stood ready to complete the kill-chain with a HIMARS engagement. He knew his team was ready and in prime position for a successful engagement.

"Emplacing the platoon in an advantageous area that allows the communication within the platoon, local security team, higher forces at the TAOC and adjacent Norwegian Army NASAMs is crucial," said Goff. This position enabled his platoon to "execute fire missions without being sensed or picked up on radars from an adversary force."

These kinds of high-end, multinational live-fire engagements are the cornerstone of the Formidable Shield series. As nations and militaries continue to train through complex live-fire scenarios under the exercise, they improve not only their own individual tactics, techniques, and procedures, but those of their joint and combined units as well.

"The integration with the Norwegians has showed how we as a Marine Corps have progressed ourselves in support of operations with more nations and assets...providing more effectiveness against our adversaries," said Goff.

Formidable Shield 2023 provided Task Force 61/2 the perfect opportunity to prove and improve capabilities in a dynamic environment such as the High North, as well, a region that the Norwegian Armed Forces knows well. Learning from those who have experience operating in harsh conditions pays dividends not only during exercises, but in steady-state operations alongside like-minded nations as well.

"My favorite part about this exercise is to test what we have been training for all year, to have the live fire exercise, and see how everything works from start to finish", said Norwegian Army Sgt. Erling Anthonessen, NASAMS crew chief, Norwegian Air Defense Battery, "Working with our NATO partners is always exciting for our units here in the ground and allows us to check our integrated systems and better prepare for anything and together be stronger."

Herlihy echoed the importance of integration like this among Allies and partners, as Formidable Shield 2023 participants look forward to the next iteration in this series.

"Integration with our NATO partners was a great success," said Herlihy. He heartily stated that, "this sets the bar for future joint naval integration exercises with U.S. Marine forces."

TF 61/2 aligns deployed forces under the Naval Amphibious Force commander; deployed amphibious ready groups (ARG), Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU), Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team, Europe (FASTEUR), and multi-domain sensing forces. TF 61/2 is deployed in NAVEUR's area of responsibility, employed by U.S. Sixth Fleet to support U.S., allied, and partner interests.

Formidable Shield is a biennial, integrated air and missile defense (IAMD) exercise involving a series of live-fire events against subsonic and supersonic targets, incorporating multiple Allied ships, ground forces, and aviation forces working across battlespaces to deliver effects. Formidable Shield demonstrates Alliance cohesion, cutting-edge capacity and capability, and NATO Allies' combined commitment to the deterrence and defense of NATO territory.

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Readout of U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday Meeting with Chief of the French Navy Adm. Pierre Vandier

US Navy - Press Release

17 May 2023

Chief of Naval Operations Spokesperson Cmdr. Courtney Hillson provided the following readout:

Yesterday, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday met with Chief of the French Navy Adm. Pierre Vandier in London, at the First Sea Lord Sea Power Conference.

The two leaders discussed regional security and stability, their shared commitment to maritime security, and interchangeability. They also discussed continuing to strengthen bilateral ties, partnership, and shared values - particularly those laid out in the Strategic Interoperability Framework, which both navies signed in 2021. The framework delivers high-end combined naval forces to operational commanders, and focuses on enhanced interoperability and interchangeability across all maritime domains.

The U.S. Navy and French navy regularly operate together around the globe. Notably, both navies recently participated in this year's Joint Warrior exercise, and are actively participating in Formidable Shield 2023. They will continue to operate together and are scheduled to participate in other 2023 exercises like Baltic Operations and African Lion, as well as support numerous real-world joint operations.

Gilday and Vandier last met in January 2023, when Vandier hosted Gilday at the inaugural Paris Naval Conference.

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Readout of U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday Meeting with Royal Navy First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Adm. Sir Ben Key

US Navy - Press Release

17 May 2023

Chief of Naval Operations Spokesperson Cmdr. Courtney Hillson provided the following readout:

Yesterday, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday met with Royal Navy First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Adm. Sir Ben Key in London, at the First Sea Lord Sea Power Conference.

The two leaders discussed a wide range of topics including maritime security, interchangeability, technological innovation, and the defense industrial base. They both reaffirmed their shared commitment to uphold and advance the rules-based international system and also exchanged views about regional security and stability in Europe, the Indo-Pacific and Middle East. Throughout discussions, the two leaders underscored the importance of the U.S.-U.K. bilateral relationship and NATO alliance.

The U.S. and Royal Navy regularly operate together around the globe. Notably, both navies recently participated in this year's Joint Warrior exercise and are also actively participating in Formidable Shield 2023. They will continue to participate in other 2023 exercises like Baltic Operations and African Lion, as well as support numerous real-world joint operations.

Gilday and Key last met in January 2023, when they both spoke at the inaugural Paris Naval Conference.

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USAID Chief to Congress: Foreign Aid Key in Countering Chinese, Russian Influence

By Katherine Gypson May 17, 2023

A top Republican lawmaker said Wednesday the funding priorities for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) do not go far enough in addressing the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The Biden administration has requested $32 billion in foreign assistance for USAID  $3 billion more than the amount appropriated by Congress in 2023.

House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul said in a hearing with USAID administrator Samantha Power that it is not clear how the agency plans to spend the requested $400 million in the fund for countering Chinese influence.

"Our foreign aid must serve as a clear alternative to the CCP and our adversaries while also saving lives and projecting U.S. global leadership around the world," McCaul said.

Budget hearings with agency heads are an annual exercise on Capitol Hill, with funding requests serving as a starting point for negotiations.

"The People's Republic of China and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin are ready to step in  whether through opaque loans on unfavorable terms or with mercenaries in tow," Power told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "An international order that values democracy and human rights and respects international borders is not a given. Indeed, authoritarian actors are challenging and aiming to reshape it. We have to invest in the stable and more humane world that we need."

Power told lawmakers that House Republicans' budget legislation addressing the looming debt ceiling crisis would cause significant harm to USAID's worldwide mission and America's global influence. Last month, the Republican-majority House of Representatives passed legislation that has no chance of adoption in the Democratic-majority U.S. Senate. But their proposal, if passed, would increase the debt limit in return for cuts to government spending, including decreasing USAID funding by up to 22%.

"China and Russia aren't slashing their international affairs budget by nearly one-third. In fact, they are growing and expanding their foreign assistance programs as a means to advance their national interests and exert influence on the global stage. We're losing ground," Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking member on the committee, said Wednesday.

On Sunday, McCaul told ABC News "This Week" that "defaulting is not the right path to go down. ... Our adversaries look at this very closely. They look at when we're divided. ... I think they would love nothing more, particularly China, to see us default in our full faith and credit under the Constitution."

He added that Republicans have laid out a plan to avoid it.

"I think we were reasonable," McCaul said. "We're willing to raise the debt ceiling, but we want meaningful spending cuts and capping spending ... at 2022 levels."

Power said 2019 USAID funding had increased at half the rate that its programming had grown. According to public opinion polls, many Americans perceive the investment in foreign aid to be much higher than it actually is. Surveys consistently show that the public believes 25% of the U.S. budget is spent annually on foreign assistance when in fact, it is less than 1%.

"It absolutely goes without saying that nothing that I'm proposing here should come at the expense of the appropriate investments in our defense and in the competition that we are in with the PRC globally," Power told lawmakers.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press.

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UN-Blacklisted Taliban Leader Becomes Acting Afghan Prime Minister

By Ayaz Gul May 17, 2023

Afghanistan's Taliban confirmed Wednesday they had appointed a caretaker prime minister to oversee daily affairs, saying the incumbent, Mohammad Hasan Akhund, is unwell and needed time to recover.

The new head of the all-male Taliban cabinet, Abdul Kabir, is under terrorism-related United Nations sanctions, along with several other senior members of his hardline government. He was elevated from serving as the deputy prime minister for political affairs.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid announced the power shift on Twitter. He said that Akhund, 78, had been in the southern city of Kandahar for some time undergoing treatment and resting, and he will return to Kabul soon to resume his duties.

"It's a routine matter in the governance process for a caretaker to take charge to ensure the smooth running of the administrative affairs," wrote Mujahid. "No one needs to worry about it, nor should they use it for propaganda."

Mujahid was responding to reported claims that Akhund had resigned due to alleged internal Taliban rifts and would not return to the office.

The Taliban reclaimed power in August 2021, when the United States and NATO troops departed Afghanistan after two decades of involvement in the war. The Taliban subsequently established an interim government and appointed Akhund as its prime minister.

The hardline group has banned teenage girls from receiving education beyond the sixth grade and women working for the United Nations and non-governmental organizations in Afghanistan. Most female government employees have not been allowed to return to work since the Taliban took control of Kabul.

The Taliban reject international calls for reversing the restrictions on women, saying it is an "internal social matter" of Afghanistan.

Torek Farhadi, a former Afghan official, said that instead of indulging in political reshuffling, the Taliban needed to pay attention to easing restrictions on women to address domestic and foreign concerns.

"The international community is looking more to change policies from Taliban than musical chairs among them in top positions of power," Farhadi told VOA. "What is expected is to let teenage girls go back to school and let women work in government offices and NGOs," the analyst said.

Kabir was placed on the U.N. sanctions list in early 2001, when he served as the acting prime minister in the then-Taliban government shortly before it collapsed in the wake of the U.S.-led military invasion of Afghanistan.

The newly appointed Taliban prime minister was appointed as the military commander for eastern Afghanistan in 2007, when the then-insurgent group was waging attacks against U.S.-led foreign forces and their local Afghan allies.

Kabir was blamed for plotting some of the deadliest bombings and other insurgent attacks. He was allegedly collecting money from drug traffickers on behalf of the Taliban, the U.N. list showed. He was a member of the Qatar-based Taliban political office during negotiations with the United States, culminating in a deal in February 2020 and paving the ground for Washington to pull out of its longest war in history.

Reclusive Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and current Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani are among other top leaders under U.N. and U.S. terrorism-related sanctions.

The Taliban takeover led to an abrupt loss of most international aid for Afghanistan, which remains one of the worst humanitarian emergencies in the world. The U.N. says two-thirds of the country's estimated 40 million population is food insecure

Aid workers say the Taliban's restrictions on women have worsened the humanitarian situation.

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Sudan Fighting Prompts $3 Billion UN Aid Appeal

By VOA News May 17, 2023

The United Nations appealed Wednesday for $3 billion to help those affected by the conflict that erupted last month in Sudan.

The U.N. humanitarian agency said it needs $2.6 billion to help those still within Sudan, saying 25 million people in the country are in need of humanitarian aid and protection.

Ramesh Rajasingham, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva and director of the Coordination Division, said the fighting in Sudan has been a "cruel blow to the people of Sudan."

Rajasingham said the conflict has left at least 676 dead, with the true toll likely much higher.

Another $400 million of the appeal came from the U.N. refugee agency to help those who have fled to neighboring countries to escape the fighting in Sudan.

Mervat Shelbaya, chief of the interagency support branch for U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva, said at a briefing Wednesday the fighting has forced more than 950,000 people from their homes and also forced 220,000 into neighboring countries.

"If we are to scale up our response and reach all those in need, we and the people of Sudan need the generous support of the international community," Shelbaya said.

The Sudanese army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, is battling the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo.

The two generals are former allies who together orchestrated an October 2021 military coup that derailed a transition to civilian rule following the 2019 ouster of longtime leader Omar al-Bashir.

Tensions between the generals have been growing over disagreements about how the Rapid Support Forces should be integrated in the army and who should oversee that process. The restructuring of the military was part of an effort to restore the country to civilian rule and end the political crisis sparked by the 2021 military coup.

Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

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Cameroon Rebels Surrender on Western Border with Nigeria, Join DDR Centers

By Moki Edwin Kindzeka May 17, 2023

Officials in Cameroon say 18 separatists have disarmed and surrendered to authorities in the biggest defection since the conflict broke out in 2017. Authorities say the English-speaking rebels, including two self-proclaimed generals, were hiding across the border in neighboring Nigeria. Leaders of the separatists, who want to break away from French-speaking-majority Cameroon, have vowed to track down and kill the defectors.

Cameroon's military says 18 fighters, including David Dibo, alias General Baron, and Ekpe Jerome, alias General JB, surrendered and handed over their weapons in Mundemba Tuesday.

Mundemba is a town in Cameroon's English-speaking southwest region that shares a border with Nigeria.

Since 2017, separatists have been fighting to carve out an independent state called Ambazonia in Cameroon's English-speaking Northwest and Southwest regions.

The self-proclaimed General Baron says he convinced the fighters to surrender. He says Cameroon military firepower was more than they could bear and that he saw several hundred fighters killed by government troops within the past six years.

He says he is pleading with scores of fighters, who are still hiding in the bush, to drop their weapons and be pardoned by the Cameroon government. He says fighters hiding on the border with Nigeria should hand their weapons to Cameroon police or government troops as he did, without which they will be killed by either hunger, disease or in battles.

Speaking with Cameroon's state broadcaster, CRTV, on Tuesday, Baron says the fighters handed their weapons to Cameroon military and government officials in Ndian, an administrative unit where Mundemba is located.

Gilbert Guibai Baldena is the highest Cameroon government official in Ndian. He has assured the former fighters that the government will protect them.

"General Baron and all of you{fighters} ran away to Nigeria because it is difficult to continue," Baldena said. "Tell the others who are still in the bush to come out. The head of state (Cameroon's president) wants every Cameroonian to take part in the reconstruction and development of the country"

Baldena also warned that separatist fighters who refuse to surrender and drop their weapons will be killed by Cameroon government troops,

Following their surrender, the government says the former fighters will be taken to the center for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration, or DDR in Buea, capital of Cameroon's English speaking southwest region.

The government says the defections are the largest number of fighters to surrender in a single day and the first time two dreaded generals dropped their weapons and surrendered to Cameroon's military.

It is also the first time rebels operating in Cameroon and hiding across the border in Nigeria have said they are wanted in the two countries, according to the government.

The rebels say that when they attack government edifices and troops in Cameroon's Southwest region they would escape from Mundemba across the porous border, through thick forests to Nigeria's Cross River State.

In addition to Cameroon's government coming after them, they say Cross River State officials declared them wanted and ordered Nigeria's military to kill or arrest them, a claim VOA could not independently verify.

But on several occasions, Nigeria's local media reported that suspected Ambazonia secessionist militants from Cameroon attacked Cross River State border villages.

Crisis24, a Quebec-headquartered international security management group, says that in one of the attacks on Bashu, a community in the Boki Local Government Area in May 2022, rebels from Cameroon killed up to 20 civilians who had fled the separatist crisis in Cameroon's Southwest region where Mundemba is located.

Separatists on social media, including Facebook and WhatsApp, say they will attack and kill all fighters who resign and join DDR centers created by Cameroon's central government in Yaounde. The government says fighters who surrender will be pardoned, trained to create businesses and reintegrated socially.

Battles between Cameroon government troops and western separatists escalated to armed conflict in 2017. Cameroon English speaking separatists are fighting to carve out an independent English-speaking state from the French majority nation.

The International Crisis Group estimates the conflict has killed about 6,000 people and displaced more than half-a-million.

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Nigerian Security Forces Search for Attackers of US Embassy Convoy, Abductees

By Timothy Obiezu May 17, 2023

Nigerian and American authorities are investigating after armed men on Tuesday attacked a U.S. convoy in southeast Anambra state, killing two consulate staff and two policemen. Nigerian police say the attackers also abducted two police officers and a driver.

Anambra state police command spokesperson Tochukwu Ikenga said Wednesday that security forces are searching for the perpetrators and the three people they abducted.

In a separate statement late Tuesday, Ikenga said local police were unaware of the movement of the U.S. convoy until after the attack and that the area was known for separatist violence.

Police said the attackers opened fire on the motorcade, killed the officers and U.S. consulate workers and then burned their corpses along with the vehicles.

Analyst Kabiru Adamu of Beacon Security Consulting said there's no question the attackers sought out the U.S. convoy for attack.

"These vehicles had diplomatic numbers (license plates), they were protected by security escort," he said. "So, it was very clear that whoever targeted them, it was a specific targeting."

Nigerian police and White House national security official John Kirby said there were no U.S. citizens in the convoy.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but authorities suspect separatist agitators in the region.

Security forces have blamed the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) for increasing violence in the southeast.

But security expert Chidi Omeje said the attack is a sign of a general decline in security, not just Biafran separatist activity.

"It just goes to show that the security challenge in the southeast is still very much an issue," he said. "I do not want to believe that every crime committed in the southeast now is by IPOB, because there are criminals who take advantage of this situation and commit these kinds of crimes. The embassy should've known that the southeast region for now is actually challenged by insecurities."

The IPOB is seeking to break away from Nigeria's southeastern region to form an independent state called Biafra.

The movement triggered a civil war in the late 1960s in which an estimated one million Biafrans died, mostly from famine.

In recent years, the region has seen increased attacks, including many raids on offices of the independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in a bid to disrupt elections.

Adamu said the latest attack less than two weeks before the start of a new presidential administration could have implications.

"The fact that it's in a transition period, the attackers would've known the consequences of attacking a diplomatic convoy in a transition period would be far reaching, and so whether the objective is to affect the transition or not the result is the same," he said. "There were warnings by different security agencies of plans to truncate the transition process."

On Monday, the U.S. State Department announced a visa ban on Nigerian citizens who undermined the electoral process.

The department did not immediately name anyone affected by the ban.

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WFP ramps up emergency aid to people fleeing violence in Sudan

World Food Programme

17 May 2023

PORT SUDAN/ROME -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is rapidly scaling up its emergency operations in Sudan, every day reaching thousands more people whose lives have been upended by the ongoing fighting. WFP is ramping up to assist 4.9 million vulnerable people in Sudan and thousands more who have fled to neighbouring countries.

"The fighting in Sudan is devastating lives and livelihoods and forcing people to flee their homes with nothing but the clothes they are wearing. WFP is on the ground delivering life-saving assistance to thousands of people in Sudan and thousands more who have fled to neighbouring countries," says Michael Dunford, WFP's Regional Director for Eastern Africa.

"It is critical that humanitarians have the access, resources, and assurances of safety to effectively reach and support those who are depending on us for survival."

An update from Sudan and neighbouring countries where WFP is providing emergency food assistance is as follows:

Sudan

Food distributions are underway in the States of Gedaref, Kassala, White Nile, North Darfur, East Darfur and Gezira. Two weeks since the first emergency distributions started in Sudan, WFP has reached more than 300,000 people with over 6,500 metric tons of food. This is inclusive of nutrition support which is ongoing in Red Sea State.

WFP has been able to restart activities in North Darfur, where over 130,000 internally displaced people across three camps (Zamzam, Al Salam and Abu Shouk) have received emergency food rations.

Food distributions are ongoing in Gezira State, which neighbours Khartoum and is the first place many families fleeing the capital have found refuge. WFP is targeting 23,000 people with food assistance, reaching both newly displaced families, who continue to arrive each day, and the vulnerable communities hosting them.

WFP is setting up operations in Wadi Halfa in Northern State, near the Sudan-Egypt border, to provide around 8,000 people who are making the long journey to safety in Egypt with emergency food assistance and nutrition support.

WFP also plans to resume food distributions in Blue Nile and Central Darfur as soon as the security situation allows.

WFP is also part of an inter-agency assessment of needs in Port Sudan, where many families have sought refuge from the fighting.

WFP is expecting a vessel carrying over 30,000 metric tonnes of food assistance to dock in Port Sudan on 18 May. Two cargo planes carrying critical humanitarian supplies for WFP and other partners, including UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO, have so far landed in Port Sudan (9 and 16 May), supported by the WFP-managed UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS).

UNHAS has established an air connection between Port Sudan and Addis Ababa. Launched on 14 May, the service has already transported 65 frontline humanitarians. A new connection between Port Sudan and Nairobi will start on 18 May. UNHAS has also helped manage commercial airlifts from Dubai to Port Sudan, bringing in humanitarian supplies on behalf of WFP and UNICEF. Nearly US$110 million is required to support UNHAS operations for the remainder of 2023.

WFP urgently needs US$730 million for its operations in Sudan to ensure immediate assistance reaches those in desperate need.

Central African Republic

WFP plans to assist around 25,000 new arrivals who are expected to arrive in the Central African Republic.

Vakaga prefecture, which borders Sudan, is receiving most of the new arrivals. The region is already experiencing emergency levels of hunger (IPC4) and the increase in food needs is putting pressure on already limited WFP resources.

Before the crisis in Sudan, WFP's funding requirements for the next six months in Central African Republic stood at US$75.4 million. This figure is now expected to rise.

Chad

WFP's emergency food and nutrition assistance has so far reached 20,000 people in Chad with over 482 metric tons of food mobilised immediately from N'Djamena to Farchana and Gozamir near the Sudan - Chad border.

Since the start of clashes in Sudan, more than 60,000 new Sudanese refugees have crossed into Chad, in addition to 15,000 Chadian returnees from Sudan - according to the Government of Chad, UNHCR, and IOM. These new arrivals add to the more than 400,000 Sudanese refugees already sheltering in Eastern Chad after fleeing from previous conflicts.

WFP urgently needs US$162.4 million to support food insecure people in Chad, including the newly arrived, existing refugees, and vulnerable host communities.

Egypt

WFP has launched an emergency cash assistance programme in Egypt to support the most vulnerable families arriving with nothing after a long and perilous journey from Sudan.

WFP has also dispatched emergency food, including ready-to-eat food packages and 20 metric tons of fortified food items - enough for nearly 90,000 people. These are currently being distributed by the Egyptian Red Crescent (ERC) at the two entry points of Arqeen and Qustol.

So far 98,000 people have crossed into southern Egypt from Sudan, according to Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

WFP's Egypt operation urgently needs US$16.7 million to continue delivering food assistance (food and cash) for the next six months to support the new arrivals.

South Sudan

WFP is providing hot meals for new arrivals as well as nutrition screening for children and pregnant or breastfeeding women and children.

Almost 60,000 people have crossed the border into South Sudan and many of them require humanitarian assistance.

WFP is ready to scale-up and respond as needed to support families fleeing Sudan. However, US$466 million is urgently required to ensure we can support both the new arrivals and continue to support vulnerable South Sudanese families who are already reliant on WFP for survival. If the crisis in Sudan continues the funding gap will spiral and could force WFP to divert food and funds from other areas of need.

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Postponing Biden's Pacific Trip Raises Criticism

By Anita Powell, Jessica Stone May 18, 2023

Biden administration officials pushed back Wednesday against criticism over the decision to postpone a visit to Australia and a historic trip to Papua New Guinea, the first by an U.S. president.

Analysts have described the move, spurred by President Joe Biden's need to return home sooner to attend to congressional budget negotiations, as a setback for the United States and a gift to China as it flexes its muscle in the Indo-Pacific region  one of the reasons the Biden administration has been shoring up alliances in the area recently.

Biden left Wednesday for a truncated trip to Japan to attend a summit of some of the major developed economies. Originally he was to continue on to Papua New Guinea.

His brief swing through the island nation north of Australia was expected to cement a new defense pact between Washington and Port Moresby that would allow the U.S. Coast Guard to patrol its waters. He was then meant to head to Sydney for a summit with the leaders of India, Australia, and Japan. That summit has been canceled.

"I think there is a degree of fairly dramatic over-cranking in saying that pushing off a visit to Australia and PNG speaks to the fundamentals of American diplomacy at this time," national security adviser Jake Sullivan said aboard Air Force One. By the end of the year, Biden will convene leaders of the Pacific Islands for a major summit. He hosted earlier one last September.

Sullivan cited examples of deep administration engagement with the region in the last five months, pointing to recent security-focused agreements with Japan, the Philippines, South Korea and Australia, plus a recent technology initiative with India.

"The fact that he has to postpone a trip to Australia and to Papua New Guinea, when you lay that up against where we are with respect to our alliances and partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, we believe this notion that somehow (China) is sitting there happy and comfortable about the situation is a convenient media narrative going into this trip, but it does not reflect reality in any way," he said.

He said Biden spoke with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and that the two agreed on a future Biden visit to Australia, plus a White House state dinner for Albanese. He did not say when either would happen. And White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said senior White House staffers called Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape. But neither Sullivan nor Jean-Pierre said whether the administration made similar promises to Marape.

"We will certainly be moving forward with a range of different agreements with Papua New Guinea," Sullivan said. "How and when they get signed is something that we are still working through with them so that we can maximize the lift that they give. But from a substantive perspective, the rescheduling doesn't disrupt the work that we're doing in all of these areas."

Before the trip, analysts had described the visit as a big deal.

The visit, "will be demonstrating that the U.S. is a reliable, engaged, and enduring partner to the Pacific Islands," said Charles Edel, the inaugural Australia chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, in a briefing days before the trip was canceled. "... The U.S. needs to make up ground in the region. Years of strategic neglect from Washington produced a strategic vacuum that China was eager to step into. The result has been that China has been steadily increasing its influence and power in the region, which the U.S. now needs to counter."

Erin Murphy, a senior fellow at CSIS, told VOA on Wednesday that the postponement is also a big deal.

"When you think about what the U.S. is trying to do, in the Pacific Islands, to show that it's engaged, economically, militarily, diplomatically and to show that it's a strategic competitor, to provide things that the Pacific Islands need," she said. "I think this is a significant setback."

Daniel Russel of the Asia Society Policy Institute agreed.

"Obviously, it's a huge disappointment, first and foremost, to Papua New Guinea and its leader, as well as to the other Pacific Islands, including the leader of Australia," he said.

And the Sydney Morning Herald described the postponement as "a disappointment, a mess and a gift to Beijing," saying, "Biden's withdrawal matters because of the damaging message it sends to the Asia-Pacific about America's commitment to the region as it fiercely competes with China for influence."

And in Papua New Guinea, local media reported disappointment among the some 9 million residents.

Marape had declared Monday, the day of Biden's visit, a public holiday.

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Russo-Ukraine War - 17 May 2023 - Day 448

Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While GlobalSecurity.org takes utmost care to accurately report this news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" (SVO - spetsialnaya voennaya operatsiya) in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]

The UK Ministry of Defence reported that over the last week, the air battle over the Russia-Ukraine border has intensified. On 13 May 2023 alone, four Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) aircraft (two advanced combat jets and two helicopters) crashed, apparently shot down over Russia's Bryansk region.

On 03 May 2023, Ukraine achieved the first ever shoot-down of a KILLJOY air-launched ballistic missile. Subsequently, Russia has prioritised attempting to neutralise Ukraine's improved air defence capabilities, but in the process has likely lost several more KILLJOY.

The increased air threat over Russia's border region will be of exceptional concern for the VKS because it uses the area to launch air power in support of the war. The apparent vulnerability of KILLJOY is likely a surprise and an embarrassment for Russia: Russian President Vladimir Putin has touted the system as undefeatable.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that during the day, the Russian invaders launched 5x missile strikes on the cities of Bakhmut and Kherson using the S-300 air defense system. Furthermore, they carried out 32x airstrikes and launched more than 40MLRS attacks on Ukrainian troops and civilian areas. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded among the civilians, private houses and other civil and administrative infrastructure have been damaged.

The threat of missile and air strikes across Ukraine remains high.

Russia continues to concentrate its main efforts on the Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Mar'inka axes. During the day, up to 25x firefights took place on specified axes. Heavy fighting continues in the cities of Bakhmut and Mar'inka.

Volyn and Poliske axes: no significant changes detected.

Sivershchyna and Slobozhanshchyna axes: Russian forces carried out mortar and artillery attacks on the settlements of Khotiivka, Chernihiv Oblast; Novovasylivka, Komarivka, Volfyne of the Sumy Oblast, as well as Hur'yiv Kozachok, Udy, Okip, Kozacha Lopan', Hatyshche, Vovchansk, Budarky, Zybyne, Ustinivka and Zarubinka in the Kharkiv Oblast.

Kup'yans'k axis: Russia does not stop trying to improve the tactical position. During the day, Russia conducted unsuccessful offensive operations in the vicinities of Masyutivka and Novoselivskoho. Made an air strike near Pershotravnevogo. The settlements of Krasne Pershe, Figolivka, Novomlyns'k, Dvorichna, Zapadne, Masyutivka, Tabaivka, Berestovka of the Kharkiv Oblast and Stel'makhivka of the Luhansk Oblast were shelled by Russian artillery and mortar fire.

Lyman axis: during the day, Russian forces carried out offensive operations in the Nevsky district of the Luhansk Oblast. Russian forces carried out airstrikes in the areas of Bilogorivka, Verkhnokamyansky and Vesely. Makiivka, Nevs'ke, Belogorivka of the Luhansk Oblast and Torske, Dibrova, Verkhnokamianske and Spirne of the Donetsk Oblast were hit by artillery fire.

Bakhmut axis: Russia continues to conduct offensive operations. Heavy fighting continues for Bakhmut. Moreover, Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensive operations near the settlement of Ivanovske. They carried out airstrikes in the vicinities of Bakhmut, Kurdyumivka.

Vasyukivka, Zaliznyans'ke, Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Novomarkove, Hryhorivka, Bohdanivka, Bakhmut, Ivanivske, Chasiv Yar, Predtechine, Bila Gora, Severny, Shumy of the Donetsk Oblast were shelled by Russian forces.

Avdiivka axis: Russian troops did not conduct any offensive opperations. They carried out airstrikes in the vicinities of Novokalynove, Avdiivka, Novoselivka Persha and Pervomaiske settlements, and shelled Avdiivka, Pervomaiskyi, Karlivka and Nevel'skyi in the Donetsk Oblast.

Mar'inka axis: Ukrainian Armed Forces forces repelled numerous Russian attacks in the vicinities of Mar'inka. At the same time, the Russians carried out an airstrike on Krasnohorivka and shelled the settlements of Mar'inka, Paraskoviivka and Novomykhailivka in the Donetsk Oblast.

Shakhtars'k axis: during the day, the Russian forces did not conduct offensive operations. They carried out an air strike in the area of Velika Novosilka and shelled Vugledar, Prechistivka, and Novoukrayinka.

Zaporizhzhia and Kherson axes: Russian forces are on the defensive. They carried out an airstrike on the settlement of Novopil' in the Donetsk Oblast and Malia Tokmachka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. At the same time, they shelled more than 20x settlements. Among them are Vremivka, Novosilka, Zelene Pole, Novopil' of the Donetsk Oblast; Olhivs'ke, Hulyaipole, Zaliznychne, Mala Tokmachka, Shcherbaki, Stepove and Kam'ians'ke of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast; Zolota Balka, Kachkarivka, Chervonyi Mayak, Zmiivka, Berislav, Tyaginka, Antonivka, Dniprovs'ke, Kizomys, Shiroka Balka of the Kherson Oblast and the city of Kherson itself.

During the day, Ukrainian Air Force carried out 14x strikes on concentration of Russian personnel and military equipment: 5 of the strikes hit the Russian forces' anti-aircraft missile systems. In addition, Ukrainian defenders destroyed 2x reconnaissance UAVs of the "Orlan-10" type.

Ukrainian missile and artillery units hit 1x command post, 6x manpower concentration areas, 2x ammunition depots, 2x fuel and lubricant depots, 1 artillery unit in a firing position, 2x air defense facilities and 2x more important Russian targets.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation carried out a long-range sea-based high-precision weapons attack on a large ammunition depot at a ship-repair facility in Nikolayev.

The goals of the strike have been reached. The assigned target has been neutralised.



In Kupyansk direction, the attacks, launched by aviation and artillery of the Zapad Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the AFU manpower and hardware close to Novosyolovskoye (Lugansk People's Republic) Olshana, Petropavlovka and Masyutovka (Kharkov region).

The actions of six Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups have been suppressed close to Timkovka (Kharkov region), Rozovka, Stelmakhovka and Novosyolovskoye (Lugansk People's Republic).

The enemy losses were up to 115 Ukrainian servicemen, two armoured fighting vehicles, seven motor vehicles, as well as one Msta-B howitzer.

In Krasny Liman direction, the attacks, launched by Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, artillery, and heavy flamethrower systems of the Tsentr Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the AFU units close to Nevskoye, Chervonaya Dibrova (Lugansk People's Republic) and Grigorovka (Donetsk People's Republic).

The units of the 252nd Motorised Rifle Regiment have repelled two attacks by the AFU assault groups with the support of two tanks close to Chervonopopovka (Lugansk People's Republic). The enemy losses were over 30 Ukrainian servicemen and one tank.

In Krasny Liman direction, the enemy losses were over 70 Ukrainian servicemen, one tank, two armoured personnel carriers, one Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system and one D-30 howitzer.

In Donetsk direction, the assault detachments continued to conduct combat actions against the enemy in the western part of Artyomovsk. The units of the Yug Group of Forces restrained the enemy on the assault units' flanks.

The most difficult situation was in the areas of Krasnoye and Bogdanovka (Donetsk People's Republic), where Russian troops have repelled seven AFU attacks.

As a result of the Airborne Troops' offensive actions, a more favourable line of defence has been taken.

The attacks, launched by Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, as well as artillery and heavy flamethrower systems of the Yug Group of Forces, have resulted in the neutralisation of the enemy manpower and hardware close to Konstantinovka and Krasnoye (Donetsk People's Republic).

The aviation has made 7 sorties close to Artyomovsk. The Group's artillery has performed 64 firing missions.

In Donetsk direction, the enemy losses were up to 360 Ukrainian servicemen and mercenaries, four armoured personnel carriers, five armoured fighting vehicles, two motor vehicles, one British-manufactured L-119 howitzer, and one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system.

One munition depot of the AFU 110th Mechanised Brigade has been destroyed near Avdeevka (Donetsk People's Republic).

One U.S.-manufactured AN/TPQ-50 counterbattery warfare radar has been destroyed near Stupochki (Donetsk People's Republic).

In South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, aviation, as well as artillery and heavy flamethrower systems of the Vostok Group of Forces inflicted a fire damage on the enemy units near Pavlovka, Shevchenko, Chervonoye, Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk People's Republic), Novodanilovka and Malaya Tokmachka (Zaporozhye region).

The enemy losses were up to 150 Ukrainian servicemen, two armoured vehicles, six motor vehicles, and one D-30 howitzer.

In Kherson direction, the enemy losses were up to 40 servicemen, two armoured vehicles, three motor vehicles, two Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems, and one Msta-B howitzer.

Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, and Artillery of the Russian Group of Forces have engaged 83 AFU artillery units, manpower, and hardware in 112 areas during the day.

One AFU command post of Thunder tactical group has been hit close to Kherson.

One command post of the AFU 44th Artillery Brigade has been hit close to Preobrazhenka (Zaporozhye region).

One observation post of the AFU special forces has been hit near Velikiy Island (Kherson region).

Air defence facilities have intercepted nine HIMARS rocket-propelled projectiles.

Air defence facilities have shot down 19 unmanned aerial vehicles close to Chubaryovka, Inzhenernoye, Rabotino (Zaporozhye region), Velikiy Vyselok, Nezhdanovka (Kharkov region), Donetsk, Verhnetoretskoye, Staromlynovka (Donetsk People's Republic), Chervonopopovka, Novodruzhesk, Kolomiychiha (Lugansk People's Republic), as well as Novaya Kakhovka (Kherson region).

In total, 427 airplanes, 233 helicopters, 4,197 unmanned aerial vehicles, 422 air defence missile systems, 9,206 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,100 fighting vehicles equipped with MLRS, 4,837 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 10,267 special military motor vehicles have been destroyed during the special military operation.





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Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's opening remarks at talks with Foreign Minister of Belarus Sergey Aleinik, Moscow, May 17, 2023

17 May 2023 12:53

940-17-05-2023



Mr Aleinik,

Friends,

We are glad to welcome you to Moscow. This is your first visit to the Russian Federation after taking the office of Foreign Minister of the Republic of Belarus.

We know that you have a busy agenda. Yesterday you met with Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin and Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko. With them, you discussed foreign political aspects of cooperation between our ministries and parliamentary structures. This is a useful practice. We are also trying to develop our dialogue with the Parliament of Belarus.

This morning you laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, at the Minsk - Hero City and Brest Fortress memorial stone. This symbolises the closest cooperation between us to defend the truth about World War II, the Great Patriotic War and to prevent the rewriting of history. The participation of our presidents, together with the leaders of other CIS countries, in the parade on Red Square on May 9 was visible evidence of this policy. Their regular contacts constantly underline the need to preserve the continuity of generations and ensure the right approaches among the younger generation. This is important now.

Today we have a busy agenda. Our countries are working on increasing the defence capacity on the western borders of the Union State, upholding justice in international relations, and asserting the inadmissibility of double standards in approaches to ensuring security in Europe. The security architecture on the European continent is being actively destroyed by our Western neighbours. All the more important is coordination on the foreign policy front, which we carry out on the basis of two-year plans.

Today we will see how the current plan is being implemented. In our opinion, it is successful. We will discuss the preparations for the joint Board meeting, which will take place in the autumn of 2023. There, we will have to adopt the next programme of joint foreign policy actions for a two-year period.

We will discuss the roles and tasks our ministries are facing in supporting the union state building, the implementation of the 28 union programmes, the provision of foreign political stewardship of the trade and economic cooperation, our actions at the UN, OSCE, CIS, CSTO, and EAEU, as well as the strengthening of the Union State as the core of integration processes in the post-Soviet space.

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Republicans pummel top officials over China policy at Senate hearing

Conservative lawmakers use budget review to grill Blinken and Austin on the U.S. approach to China.

By Tara McKelvey for RFA 2023.05.16 -- Republicans ripped into Cabinet officials during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on efforts to enhance U.S. security measures and the nation's ability to compete with China.

Three Cabinet members defended President Joe Biden's budgetary request. The presence of Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, a rare triple act, showed the importance of China policy for the White House.

Biden administration officials have asked members of Congress for $842 billion in defense spending for the next fiscal year, in part to deter the threat of a potential military conflict with China. This year's budgetary request is 3.2% more than the one made last year, and approximately 13% higher than the year before that.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, said during the hearing that the president's budget was inadequate to counter the threat from China, however. He said the proposed budget did not include enough funding for the Navy or other branches of the military.

Overall, the budget proposal was a sign of the president's weak approach to China, said Graham. He used an expletive to describe his assessment of the president's policy: "This idea that we have a strong China policy is a bunch of [expletive]."

Another Republican member of the committee, Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, said during the hearing that he has been disappointed in the president's record on trade agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In contrast, Moran said, China has been aggressively pursuing trade agreements and gaining a competitive advantage.

Tensions between the U.S. and China have escalated in recent months, as both the witnesses at the hearing and the Republicans on the committee agreed. Austin described China's "bullying and its provocations" in the Indo-Pacific region.

U.S. military leaders are now trying to beef up their forces in order to defend Taiwan, if it becomes necessary, and to defend the island nation against the Chinese military.

"The United States will soon provide significant additional security assistance to Taiwan," he said. Earlier this month, as Reuters reported, Biden White House officials had agreed to send $500 million worth of weapons aid to Taiwan.

Competition with China

Commerce Secretary Raimondo said the president's proposed budget includes resources that are "critical for national security." She warned about the danger from Beijing, saying that, "China is doubling down on its competitiveness with the U.S."

Senate Democrats on the spending panel sought to use the threat to frame the broader budget debate in Washington, as the White House and congressional Republicans remain at an impasse in negotiations to raise the nation's debt limit.

Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican, met again Tuesday to negotiate an extension without success. According to estimates, the U.S. government could run out of money to pay its bills in two weeks.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, a Democrat for Washington state, warned that steep budget cuts of the kind House Republicans are pushing, even if they wouldn't come from the Pentagon, would hand China an edge as it tries to supplant the United States as the dominant world power.

"China is not debating whether to pay its debt or wreck its economy," Murray said.

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How to deal with China

European Commission

17.05.2023

Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the European Commission

Several Outlets - How to handle China is a major political issue for the EU, one that is more complex than dealing with Russia. Certainly, the EU's political and economic systems have profound differences with both Russia and China. Unlike Russia, China is a real systemic actor, approaching 20% of the world economy and growing while Russia represents around two percent and decreasing.

The economic, political, and financial influence of China is considerable, and its military power continues to grow. Its ambition is clearly to build a new world order, with China at the centre, becoming by the middle of the century the world's leading power.

The EU must be aware that many countries see the geopolitical influence of China as a counterweight to the West and therefore to Europe. And in a world that is becoming more fragmented and multipolar, most of the emerging countries are becoming hedgers, strengthening their room for manoeuvre without picking sides.

In this context the EU has to recalibrate its policy towards China for at least three reasons: the changes inside China with nationalism and ideology on the rise,; the hardening of US-China strategic competition; and the rise of China as a key player in regional and global issues.

This is putting growing pressure on the EU and sometimes creating uncomfortable dilemmas. Europe was built on the idea of shared prosperity and today is a power of peace. So we do not want to block the rise of emerging nations, be it China or India or others. But logically we want to ensure that it does not harm our interests, does not threaten our values nor jeopardize the international rules-based order.

Last week we discussed EU-China relations with EU Foreign Ministers and we agreed that there is no viable alternative to the triptych of treating simultaneously China as a partner, competitor and systemic rival, depending on the issue. But it is necessary to adjust the relative weights among these three items and this adjustment depends in large part on China's own behaviour and the issue concerned. EU ministers underscored that we must continue to engage with China wherever possible, and at the same time reducing strategic risks and vulnerabilities by re-calibrating our stance across three clusters of issues: values, economic security and strategic security.

On values, our differences are hardening. In all international fora, China has constructed a narrative subordinating fundamental rights to the right to development. The EU must counter this discourse and uphold the universality of human rights.

In spite those substantial differences, European and Chinese societies need to know each other better. The obstacles to the free flow of ideas and to the presence of Europeans in China must be removed. Otherwise China and Europe will become more foreign to each other.

On economic security, it is obvious that our trade relations are unbalanced. At over a400 billion a year, the EU's trade deficit is at an unacceptable level. This is not due to the EU's lack of competitiveness, but to China's deliberate choices and policies. European companies face persistent obstacles and discriminatory practices. Moreover, the EU faces a growing risk of excessive dependencies on certain products and critical raw materials.

Hence, the importance of reducing risks and building up resilience, also for reasons of national security. This will require the diversification and reconfiguration of EU value chains, a more effective export control system, the control of inbound investment and possibly outbound investment, and the smart use of the anti-coercion instrument. But our international partners can rest assured that all measures we take will remain in line with WTO rules. The multilateral system must be revitalized, not abandoned.

The third cluster concerns essentially Taiwan and China's position on Russia's war against Ukraine. On Taiwan, the EU's position remains consistent and based on its 'One China policy'. Any unilateral change of the status quo and any use of force would have massive economic, political and security consequences. The EU must prepare for all scenario's and engage with China - in maintaining the status quo and work to de-escalate tensions.

On Ukraine, our message is clear: EU-China relations have no chance of developing if China does not push Russia to withdraw from Ukraine. Faced with a conflict involving the territorial integrity and sovereignty of an independent state, any so-called neutrality amounts in reality to taking the side of the aggressor. We welcome positive moves from China aiming at finding a solution to contribute to a just peace in Ukraine.

The message of all 27 Foreign Ministers last week was clear: the best way to shape China's choices is through robust engagement and by reducing strategic risks.



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China, C.Asian nations to chart blueprints for ties at summit

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Published: May 17, 2023 10:35 PM

Leaders from five Central Asian countries are arriving in Xi'an successively from Wednesday to attend the China-Central Asia Summit, scheduled from Thursday to Friday. The summit, taking place in the capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, will witness a new chapter of cooperation between China and Central Asian countries, where all sides aim to expand areas of cooperation and strengthen ties. Experts believe traditional and new energy, commodities and digital commerce are likely to be the focus of trade cooperation during the summit.

The gathering of five leaders of Central Asian countries at the same time in one Chinese city for the summit demonstrates their willingness to elevate cooperation with China, said experts. They described some Western media's smears and hype over China's cooperation with Central Asian countries as evidence of "sour grapes" mentality, as their influence in the region pales in comparison with China's.

At China's invitation, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyzstan, President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov of Turkmenistan and President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan will be attending the summit, along with other top officials from the five nations.

Tokayev was the first Central Asian leader to arrive in Xi'an.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warmly welcomed President Tokayev to China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit. President Xi expressed his pleasure at hosting President Tokayev in Xi'an and once again wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 the same day.

Xi pointed out that President Tokayev's state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to his unique bond with China.

Xi stressed that China-Kazakhstan relations have entered the next three golden decades. The two sides should vigorously carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, pursue development and rejuvenation, and build a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, strong mutual trust and solidarity.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon also arrived in Xi'an on Wednesday, according to Xinhua.

Yu Jun, deputy director-general of the Chinese foreign ministry's Department of European-Central Asian Affairs, said at a Tuesday press briefing that at the summit, leaders will exchange their views on establishment of a cooperation mechanism and on international and regional issues of concern. Leaders of the six countries are expected to sign a slew of important political documents on trade, connectivity and economic cooperation.

The fact that they choose to gather in Xi'an demonstrates those countries' strong willingness to cooperate with China and to enhance ties, Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times.

Expand cooperation

Traditional and new energy, commodities and digital commerce are likely to be the main topics for discussion at the summit, Qian said. Amid the complicated political and energy crisis the world is facing, China and Central Asian countries' cooperation on those areas can help both sides draw on each others' strength.

Part of China's cooperation with Central Asia focuses on energy security to cope with influences from the international market and geopolitical changes, Zhang Hong, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times. He said that both China and Central Asian countries are seeking energy diversification and strengthening cooperation on low carbon initiatives and a green energy transition to secure energy supplies and exports amid the new international environment.

China's General Administration of Customs published data on Wednesday, saying that China's import and export volume with Central Asian countries amounted to 173.05 billion yuan ($24.8 billion) in the first four months, an increase of 37.3 percent compared with same period last year.

It is particularly noteworthy that China's export and import volume with the five Central Asian countries reached a combined 50.27 billion yuan in April alone, exceeding 50 billion yuan for the first time, marking a new step in trade volume.

For the first four months, China imported energy products, such as coal, crude oil and natural gas, worth of 32.45 billion yuan from the five Central Asian countries, accounting for 55 percent of the total volume.

Chinese officials said at a news conference on Wednesday that energy cooperation is a key element in China-Central Asia cooperation, but it will not be the only focus, as there is vast room for both sides to join hands.

Uzbekistan's Minister of Investments, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov said at a Wednesday conference in Xi'an that China is one of Uzbekistan's most important trade partners, but Uzbekistan is not satisfied with the current amount of trade cooperation, and he believes there is still vast space for improvement.

China is the biggest trading partner and a major investor in Uzbekistan. In 2022, bilateral trade grew 20 percent year-on-year, said the minister, hoping that the goal of $10 billion in annual trade set by both heads of state could be achieved soon.

Kudratov also expressed Uzbekistan's strong interest in cooperating with China on electric vehicles, new energy industry and digital cooperation, emphasizing that Uzbekistan is willing to cooperate with China in all fields.

Security is likely to be another major issue at the summit. In an interview with Chinese media, Turkmenistan's Ambassador to China Parahat Durdyev said he hopes the summit can be a new starting point for solving regional and international hot issues. Amid a complicated international atmosphere, the summit will demonstrate China and Central Asian countries' determination and effort in strengthening regional and international safety, and push for regional prosperity.

Asked if the Russia-Ukraine conflict will be discussed at the summit, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that leaders of the six countries will exchange opinions on major international and regional issues, and that China will publish information in time.

West's sour grapes mentality

As the summit drew closer, Western media upped its hype over China's cooperation with Central Asian countries. In a piece published on Tuesday, AFP cited experts as saying that China is more popular with elites in Central Asia than with the people, as politicians are desperate for investments that do not always garner popular support. There is also "resentment over the lack of job opportunities for locals in Chinese-funded projects."

During the Wednesday conference, Kudratov said a large number of China-Uzbekistan cooperation projects in the chemical, textile and crude oil industries helped create tens of thousands of jobs in Uzbekistan.

Qian said those reports reflect Western countries' "sour grapes mentality," as they are envious of China's close ties with Central Asia, as those Western countries, after the Ukraine crisis, have shown growing interest in energy from Central Asia. However, their influence in Central Asia pales in comparison with China and Russia's, and as a result, those countries began to smear China's investments in the region.

Deutsche Welle published an article on Tuesday, saying that China is playing bigger role in security in Central Asia. Other media also hyped that China aims for deeper engagement with Central Asian countries as "Russia's influence wanes in the region."

China's cooperation with Central Asia does not target any third party and the China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism does not aim to compete with other mechanisms, said Yu. China supports anything that is truly beneficial for the region's development, and helps the common prosperity of the region, Yu noted.

Li Yongquan, director of the Eurasian Social Development Research at the Development Research Center of the State Council, told the Global Times that "for 30 years, Central Asia has been situated in a complicated geopolitical atmosphere. One of the reasons why regional countries can thrive despite the multiple unstable factors is because China and Russia have cooperated on maintaining safety and stability in the region. China and Russia have a shared interest on this issue," Li said.

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Netizen detained for posting insulting remarks about Chinese soldiers

Global Times

By Global Times Published: May 17, 2023 10:49 PM

A female netizen was detained on Tuesday evening for posting insulting remarks about Chinese soldiers on a social media platform, said police in Dalian, Northeast China's Liaoning Province on Wednesday.

According to the police, the netizen surnamed Shi admitted that she had posted inappropriate remarks related to Chinese soldiers to vent her personal grievances. The police said the dignity of Chinese soldiers cannot be disrespected in this way and gave Shi administrative detention in accordance with the law.

Dissatisfied with the punishment of Chinese stand-up comedian HOUSE, who was barred from performing after making inappropriate links between stray dogs and the motto of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) during two public stand-up comedy shows, Shi said on her Sina Weibo account on Tuesday morning, "Why should HOUSE be banned? Aren't all soldier brothers just dog brothers?"

The police confirmed that Shi was a 34-year-old company worker, even though some netizens noted the position of a previous post of hers which was at Dalian Neusoft University of Information. The college denied on Tuesday evening that Shi was a member of staff or a student after an emergency investigation.

Xiaoguo Culture Media Co, the Chinese comedy show organizer House worked for, has been fined more than $1.9 million and ordered to suspend upcoming shows in Beijing.

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Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on May 17, 2023

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China

AFP: Former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss is visiting Taiwan today. She indicated before the trip that she would use it as an opportunity to urge the current Sunak government to treat China as a strategic threat. What is the foreign ministry's comment on the visit?a

Wang Wenbin: Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. China's position on the Taiwan question is consistent and clear. For a British political has-been, using Taiwan to grab attention isa all about serving selfish political interests. I noticed that Truss's trip drew fierce criticism across the UK, who say that this trip is "performative" and the serially irresponsible MP for South West Norfolk is doing her country another disservice. The DPP authorities are squandering Taiwan taxpayer money to ingratiate themselves with "the shortest-serving prime minister" in UK history. This is not an act of "love" for Taiwan. They are selling Taiwan away. Such attempts to pursue independence and make provocations with external forces will not succeed.

Xinhua News Agency: According to reports, the UN launched the World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2023 on May 16. The report projects global economic growth to be 2.3% and revises up China's growth forecast from 4.8% to 5.3% for 2023. What's your comment?

Wang Wenbin: We have noticed the UN report and its positive projection for China's economy. Lately, other international organizations and agencies like the World Bank and the IMF have also revised up their 2023 growth projections for China, which demonstrates their confidence in China's development prospects. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva noted that with a strong rebound, the Chinese economy is expected to contribute more than one third of global growth this year.

According to the latest data from China's National Bureau of Statistics, in April, the year-on-year growth for most production and demand indicators improved, services and consumption witnessed fast recovery, and employment and prices were generally stable. The national economy sustained the momentum of recovery with increasing positive factors.

The Chinese economy's strong resilience, ample potential and strong vitality and the fundamentals sustaining China's sound economic growth in the long run stay unchanged. Various policies continue to produce positive results. We are convinced that as the vitality and potential of China's economy is further unleashed, China will bring more confidence and strength to the world economic recovery. We welcome businesses of all countries to explore the vast Chinese market and benefit from the abundant opportunities that will lead them to a bright future.

Reuters: According to media reports, China has notified foreign embassies not to have "politicised propaganda" on their buildings, an instruction apparently aimed at missions that have displayed Ukrainian flags. Can you confirm this? Does it refer to the national flag of Ukraine?

Wang Wenbin: Based on the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and relevant international agreements, embassies of foreign countries and offices of international organizations in China have the duty to respect Chinese laws and regulations. We hope all embassies of foreign countries and offices of international organizations in China will perform their functions in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations or relevant international agreements.

TASS: The China-Central Asia Summit will be held in Xi'an on May 18 and 19. Could you tell us will the Chinese and Central Asian representatives discuss the Ukraine issue?

Wang Wenbin: During the China-Central Asia Summit, the heads of state will review the development course of China-Central Asia relations and exchange views on China-Central Asia mechanisms building, cooperation in various fields and major international and regional issues of shared interest. There will be readouts on the summit in due course. Please check back for updates.

CCTV: President Xi Jinping recently replied to the letter written by students from Central Asian countries studying at China University of Petroleum (Beijing). President Xi encourages them to take an active part in promoting friendships between China and Central Asian countries and act as envoys of friendship and bridges of cooperation. Students from Central Asian countries at the university were greatly inspired by the letter and said that they are ready to do more to contribute to and promote China-Central Asia relations. Can you share more with us what people-to-people and cultural exchanges have achieved between China and Central Asian countries?

Wang Wenbin: As President Xi Jinping stated in his reply to students from Central Asian countries at China University of Petroleum (Beijing), China and Central Asian countries are linked by mountains and rivers with profound friendships and a shared future. In the 30-plus years since the diplomatic relations were established, people in China and Central Asian countries have renewed the millennial friendship,reaped fruitful results in such areas as education, culture, health, tourism and sub-national exchange and fostered a multi-faceted framework of people-to-people exchanges.

Education has been a bright spot in such cooperation. The first Confucius Institute signed between China and foreign countries was launched in the Uzbekistan capital of Tashkent in 2005. So far, we have 13 Confucius Institutes in Central Asia, which are widely welcomed by local people. Many who have studied there have become vital components of China-Central Asia exchanges and cooperation. Last year, the Luban Workshop, an international project in vocational education, was launched in Tajikistan. The advanced equipment and rich education resources of this project provides Central Asia with a new platform for local youths to upgrade their level of education and skills. More and more students from Central Asian countries are either studying in China or hoping to get such a chance. Turkmenistan student Grigoryan Kristina, who has studied in Shanghai University, made a short animated video "The Song of New China" with her Chinese schoolmate, which went viral on the Internet.

Cultural exchange has yielded fruitful results. A movie entitled "The Composer", a China-Kazakhstan coproduction, tells the story ofa friendship between the two peoples reflected in the music of Chinese composer Xian Xinghai and Kazakh composer Bakhitzhan Baykadamov. The preservation and restoration project for historical relics of Khiva in Uzbekistan was completed successfully with the concerted efforts of Chinese and Uzbekistani experts and scholars, giving a new life to the old city. Manas, a Chinese opera, was staged in Kyrgyzstan with great success. Many Central Asian stars like Dimash Kudaibergen have brought their performance to China.

Sub-national exchange has been flourishing. There are 62 pairs of sister provinces, regions and cities between China and Central Asia. Under the China-Europe freight train service, 17 railway routes connect Xi'an with Central Asian countries. As air routes between Xi'an and Dushanbe open, Xi'an will become the only Chinese city with air routes to all the five Central Asian countries.

Tomorrow, China-Central Asia Summit will officially begin. A new chapter of friendship, cultural affinity and a shared future will be written by Chinese and Central Asian people together where the ancient Silk Road began and this millennial bond will become further strengthened.

Bloomberg: Do you have the schedule for the China-Central Asia Summit? Can you tell us when President Xi Jinping will be speaking?

Wang Wenbin: We will read out the China-Central Asia Summit in due course. Please check back for updates.

AFP: The US announced legal charges on Tuesday against several Chinese and Russian nationals accused of stealing trade secrets and violating sanctions by seeking to export sensitive technology. Does the foreign ministry have any comment on this matter?

Wang Wenbin: I do not have information on the cases you asked about. I would like to stress that, the US created the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, and has kept stretching the national security concept to abuse export control regimes and its leading technological advantage. The US has politicized, instrumentalized and weaponized tech issues, and sought to thwart other countries' technological advancement. All these are clear examples of hegemonic, high-handed, and bullying acts.a

We urge the US to discard the outdated Cold War mentality and zero-sum game mindset, stop the wanton accusation and suppression against China in the field of technology, and stop abusing judicial power to target Chinese researchers. China will do what is necessary to firmly safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese citizens.

AFP: Ambassador Li Hui, the special representative on Eurasian affairs is meant to be in Kiev yesterday and today. Can you confirm that he's actually in the Ukrainian capital? And can you tell us if he will be meeting the Ukrainian President while he's there?

Wang Wenbin: We'll read out Ambassador Li Hui's visit to Europe in due course. Please check back for updates.

Reuters: A US official told Reuters that China needs to play an official role in the common framework initiated by the Paris Club and India to advance negotiations on Sri Lanka's debt restructuring. Do you have any response?

Wang Wenbin: We have stated our position multiple times on the Sri Lanka debt issue. Let me reiterate that we support Chinese financial institutions in actively working out the debt treatment with the Sri Lankan side. We have been in close communication with the Sri Lankan side and taken concrete steps. We will continue to play a positive role in this regard. At the same time, we call on commercial and multilateral creditors to take part in Sri Lanka's debt restructuring based on fair burden-sharing.

It was learned the Sri Lankan government has explicitly noted that it will discuss the debt restructuring issue with some of its creditors, including China through bilateral channels. China and Sri Lanka are keeping communication on this.

Dragon TV: The fifth Review Conference of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) was held this week in the Netherlands. The issue of Japan's abandoned chemical weapons (ACWs) in China is one of the items high on the agenda of this conference. Could you share more details with us?

Wang Wenbin: At the fifth Review Conference of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in The Hague, the issue of Japan's abandoned chemical weapons (ACWs) in China is a key item on the conference's agenda. It is also an important part of the implementation of the CWC.

The complete and thorough destruction of ACWs in China at an early date is Japan's unshirkable historical, political and legal responsibility. The destruction process of Japanese ACWs has seriously lagged behind, and missed the deadlines for the destruction many times. China has been urging Japan to act with a stronger sense of urgency and work as intensively as possible to implement the new destruction plan fully, completely and faithfully. Japan needs to completely and thoroughly eliminate the harm of ACWs asasoonaasapossible and clear this obstacle to building "a world free of chemical weapons".

China held a special exhibition of Japanese ACWs on the site of the conference. Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Fernando Arias and representatives of more than 50 Member States and the OPCW Technical Secretariat visited the exhibition. China highly commends the efforts made by the OPCW and its Member States to advancing the destruction of Japan's ACWs, and calls on all parties to keep and intensify supervision and verification concerning Japan and push for greater and faster progress in the destruction process.

Bloomberg: The Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he would investigate the ownership situation and the security of the country's national grid operator, which is 40% owned by China's State Grid Corp. The government of the Philippines would take back control of the Entity if necessary after recent problems with the electricity supply in the Philippines. Does the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have a comment on this situation?

Wang Wenbin: The Philippines is a friendly neighbor and important partner of China. China supports Chinese companies in carrying out practical cooperation in the Philippines in accordance with laws and regulations and producing greater mutual benefits.

AFP: A Chinese fishing boat has sunk in the central Indian Ocean with a crew including 17 Chinese citizens. Can you confirm the location where the boat sank or offer any updates?

Wang Wenbin: Here's what I have on the Chinese fishing boat "Lupeng Yuanyu 028" that went missing in the Indian Ocean.

After the fishing boat "Lupeng Yuanyu 028" capsized in the early morning of May 16, Beijing time, the matter received serious attention from the CPC Central Committee. General Secretary Xi Jinping asked the Foreign Ministry and relevant diplomatic missions abroad to stay in close contact with relevant local authorities and coordinate with them on the search and rescue operation. The Foreign Ministry immediately activated the emergency mechanism for consular protection. An official of the Department of Consular Affairs spoke to the diplomatic missions of countries concerned in China, offered guidance to our diplomatic and consular missions in the neighboring countries of the waters where the accident occurred, and worked in collaboration with competent departments including those responsible for transport and fisheries and relevant local people's governments to make all-out efforts to jointly carry out the search and rescue operation.

As we speak, Chinese and foreign vessels have arrived at relevant waters and the search and rescue operation is intensively underway. More help is on the way. We will continue to work together with relevant sides to do everything possible to find those who have gone missing.

We would like to thank the Australian maritime search and rescue department for sending an aircraft and coordinating foreign vessels passing by to help with the search and rescue efforts. We hope countries nearby will continue to join our search and rescue efforts. We will not give up as long as there is still hope for saving lives.

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For Uyghurs seeking justice, UN panel confirms loved ones' rights have been violated

While not legally binding, rulings provide documentation that diplomats can bring up with Beijing

By Jilil Kashgary for RFA Uyghur 2023.05.17 -- Uyghurs seeking justice for loved ones imprisoned in China have turned to a little-known United Nations body for help.

Over the past year, the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has issued three rulings on a total of eight Uyghur detainees. In every case, it has ruled against China, saying Beijing violated their human rights by imprisoning them.

"Each case is an individual story and yet more proof of China's attempt to erase the Uyghurs as a whole," said Tumaris Yalqun, who successfully petitioned the group for a ruling on her father, writer and textbook editor Yalqun Rozi.

In March, the working group a a five-member body appointed by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights a asked China to immediately release entrepreneur Ekpar Asat, doctor Gulshan Abbas and journalist Qurban Mamut. All three have family in the United States. Mamut is the father of a Radio Free Asia employee.

In 2022, in addition to Rozi, the working group ruled that China's detention of four members of a Kashgar family was arbitrary.

The working group's decisions are not legally binding. But for family members abroad who have petitioned the group for rulings, they represent important official confirmation that China has violated their loved ones' rights.

They can also provide useful third-party documentation for foreign diplomats to cite in their exchanges with China.

"The working group's report is their acknowledgment of Chinese atrocity, which is a big step forward," said Rayhan Asat, an international lawyer who is Ekpar's sister.

Calls from Radio Free Asia to the Chinese U.N. missions in New York and Geneva rang unanswered.

The Chinese government did not reply to the working group's queries regarding Asat, Abbas, Mamut, and the Kashgar family, the Abduraeshids, the opinions say, adding that China's failure to respond contributed heavily to the adverse decisions.

The Chinese government told the working group it strictly abided by the law in adjudicating Mr. Rozi's case but it did not address other questions, the opinion stated.

Long prison sentences

No Chinese judicial filings regarding any of the detained individuals have been made public, but Chinese officials have confirmed, in piecemeal exchanges, that all but one of the detainees have been sentenced to long prison terms.

The Chinese government told the working group, in its reply, that Rozi had been sentenced to life in prison for the crime of "splitting the state or undermining unity of the country."

An official at China's consulate in Istanbul told Nursiman Abdurashid, a Turkish resident, that her father Abdurashid Tohti was sentenced to nearly 17 years in prison for the crimes of "disturbing social order and preparing to commit terrorist activity," and her mother, Tajigul Qadir, to 13 years for "preparing to commit terrorist activity."

Abdurashid later learned that her brother Muhammad Ali was sentenced to 15 years in prison, but she has not heard anything about her other brother, Emetjan.

In 2019, Abbas was sentenced to 20 years in prison on terrorism charges, her daughter Ziba Murat has said, citing "an informed source with access to sensitive information."

Asat was sentenced to 15 years in prison, the Chinese Embassy in Washington said in an email to Senator Chris Coons' office in 2020. The charges he was convicted of are unclear. Mamut was sentenced to 15 years in prison for "political crimes," according to Xinjiang officials RFA spoke to last year.

U.S. ties

The rulings reflect concerns among some family members that the detainees may have been targeted for their connections to the United States.

Mamut's son, Bahram Sintash, a digital content producer at RFA, lost contact with him in February 2017, shortly after Mamut visited the United States.

Asat disappeared three weeks after participating in a State Department leadership training program. Abbas was last heard from in September 2018, days after her sister in the United States delivered a speech alleging human rights abuses in the Uyghur Region.

"Uyghur intellectuals like my father were among the first victims of the Chinese government's crackdown on the Uyghur community," said RFA's Sintash.

"I strongly demand the Chinese government to follow the call made by the U.N. working group, release my father unconditionally, and allow him to live the remainder of his life peacefully with my mother," he said.

Violated human rights

The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention meets in Geneva three times a year, and issues around 70-90 rulings annually, according to its website. The working group said China had yet to grant a request to visit the country it made in 2015.

The working group found that China's detentions of the eight Uyghurs had variously violated Articles 2, 3, 6, 7, 8 9, 10, 11, and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. China helped draft that document, which it signed in 1948. While China continues to endorse the declaration, it is not legally binding.

Uyghur activists have long asked the United Nations to condemn China's actions in the Uyghur Region. But opposition from China and friendly countries has slowed progress.

In 2019, U.N. representatives from more than 50 nations signed an open letter to the human rights commissioner praising China's human rights record, as well as its "deradicalization" and "counterterrorism" methods in Xinjiang.

Under Chinese pressure, the U.N. human rights office did not issue a report on Xinjiang until August 2022, more than five years after mass detentions began. Published minutes before the midnight expiration of former Commissioner Michele Bachelet's term, the assessment said China's actions "may constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity."

A month after the report was published, the 47-member UN Human Rights Council narrowly rejected a proposal to hold a debate on human rights abuses in the region. In protest, 50 U.N. General Assembly members, including the U.S., signed an open letter supporting discussion of the report.

International recognition

That dysfunction makes any ruling from the U.N. at all - even from a five-member working group - deeply meaningful for Uyghurs seeking justice for their detained families.

"I know my family is innocent, but other people don't know - they might think that my family committed these crimes," Nursiman Abdurashid told RFA. "Therefore, I was delighted when an international organization released an official report saying China should free my family."

Any family or individual may submit complaints about cases of arbitrary detention to the working group, its website states. The Uyghur families interviewed in this article submitted petitions themselves, hired attorneys or worked with non-governmental organizations to file cases.

After obtaining a positive verdict, Uyghur families can struggle to find a next step in the pursuit of justice for their loved ones.

"I felt lost again [after the ruling] because we could not use this report against the Chinese government," Abdurashid said. "I couldn't find any organization or individual that could use the document to create some action against the Chinese government."

Useful documentation

However, the U.N. rulings can provide useful third-party documentation for foreign diplomats to cite in their exchanges with China, said Hanno Schedler, a genocide prevention consultant.

"It gives states cover to refer to an institution that, although not without its problems, is still really important when it comes to making sure that human rights are safeguarded," he said.

Commenting to RFA on the arbitrary detention group's most recent report, a spokesman for the U.N. human rights office, currently headed by Volker Turk, said the findings were consistent with its concerns about human rights in Xinjiang.

"We have urged the Chinese authorities to provide information on the whereabouts and status of detained persons and release people who have been arbitrarily detained or imprisoned," the spokesman, Jeremy Laurence, wrote in an email.

Gulshen's sister Rushan Abbas, executive director of the Campaign for Uyghurs, said she hoped the U.N.'s recent concern for the Uyghur region could lead to even bolder statements from the body.

"The next step they must take is to declare that China committed genocide and crimes against humanity in East Turkistan," she said, using the Uyghurs' preferred name for their homeland.

Translated by the Uyghur Service. Edited by Nadir and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Beijing police expel prominent rights attorney from city following release

Zhou Shifeng had repeatedly accused a former security chief of wrongdoing.

By Gao Feng for RFA Mandarin 2023.05.17 -- Authorities in Beijing have expelled rights attorney Zhou Shifeng from the city after holding him for months under house arrest following his release from prison, a move likely linked to his whistleblowing over now-jailed former security chief Sun Lijun.

Zhou, who headed the now-shuttered Beijing Fengrui Law Firm that was targeted in a July 2015 crackdown on human rights lawyers, was released at the end of a seven-year jail term for subversion last September, but -- like other prominent rights lawyers -- has never fully regained his personal freedom.

"There were three of them watching him in shifts and hiding in his residential community [to spy on him]," a person familiar with the matter told Radio Free Asia on Wednesday. "He had to get their approval if he wanted to travel any kind of distance, and also anyone who wanted to visit him had to get their approval, too."

Zhou has now been forced to leave the city for his birthplace of Anyang in the central province of Henan, the person said.

The person said the authorities appear to regard Zhou as a threat because he repeatedly spoke out about the actions of former vice minister of public security Sun Lijun, who was handed a suspended death sentence in September 2022 for taking bribes, manipulating the stock market and illegal possession of firearms.

The Changchun Intermediate People's Court said Sun had used his influence to seek gains for others and illegally accepted money and property worth 646 million yuan.

He had also displayed "extremely inflated political ambition" and very poor political integrity," as well as making "groundless criticisms" of the party's policies, and spreading political rumors, according to state-run news agency Xinhua.

"Sun unscrupulously cultivated personal followers and interest groups to obtain personal political gains," it said. "He also seriously undermined party unity and compromised political security."

Political retribution?

Zhou had repeatedly accused Sun and his faction of wrongdoing, the person familiar with the matter said.

"So he was criticized and persecuted by the Sun Lijun political faction," the person said, adding that Sun had always seen the 2015 crackdown on Fengrui as a form of political retaliation for his whistleblowing over Sun.

Zhou had continued to write to the ruling Communist Party's disciplinary arm following his release, as well as the State Council's complaints department and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, complaining about failure by the state to follow due legal process, the person said.

While Zhou's letter to the public prosecutor was ignored, the letter he sent to the State Council complaints department was forwarded to state security police in the northern port city of Tianjin, who were the targets of that complaint.

U.S.-based legal scholar Teng Biao said Zhou's complaints are unlikely to garner any response from Beijing.

"The Supreme Court may have promised it would process all [complaints] letters, but it actually doesn't respond to such cases," Teng said.

He said that while Sun Lijun played a major role in the nationwide arrests, detentions and travel bans imposed on around 300 rights attorneys across China in 2015, he wasn't the driving force behind it.

"The decision on the July 2015 crackdown came from the highest echelons of the Chinese Communist Party," he said.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Police probe stand-up comedian who likened Chinese soldiers to feral dogs

Stand-up artist House is targeted after being denounced for insulting the People's Liberation Army

By Gu Ting for RFA Mandarin, Yitong Wu and Chingman for RFA Cantonese 2023.05.17 -- Beijing police launched an investigation Wednesday into stand-up comedian Li Haoshi - who goes by the stage name House - after he sparked public ire with a joke that some said likened feral dogs to People's Liberation Army soldiers.

"Due to the negative social impact caused by his serious insults leveled at the People's Army in the course of a performance, the police have opened an investigation into an actor surnamed Li, male, aged 31," the Chaoyang district police department said in a statement on its official Weibo account.

The municipal department of culture and tourism has also confiscated 1.33 million yuan (US$190,000) in "illegal income" from Li's agent, Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture and Media, and banned it from putting on any shows in Beijing, the Yicai financial website reported.

The sudden escalation of the row evokes the political denunciations and "struggle sessions" of the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution as authorities in Shanghai and Wuhan also canceled Xiaoguo bookings on Wednesday.

Li had already been fired after he told an anecdote in a May 13 performance about adopting a pair of feral dogs in Shanghai.

"The first time I saw them, it was like watching a wildlife documentary, because they were shooting off to chase a squirrel as if fired by some kind of artillery," Li said. "I mean, most dogs are kind of cute. You feel as if your heart melts to look at them -- those are the kind of words that spring to mind."

"But when I saw these two dogs, the first phrase to flash into my mind was 'able to win battles.' I mean, these really were elite [troops]!" Li said, to all-round laughter from the audience.

"Able to win battles" is a reference to a 2013 speech by ruling Communist Party leader Xi Jinping to People's Liberation Army parliamentary delegates, in which he called for an army "that obeys the party and can win battles."

Normally innocuous

Li rose to fame as a popular contestant on the comedy show "Rock and Roast." His jokes on the reality contest covered much more innocuous subjects like being unable to drink while dating and working at a bank.

Following the furore over his PLA joke, clips of his gags that had been posted by Shanghai Xiaoguo appear to have been scrubbed from their Instagram account.

"It was a small incident at first, but then it escalated after Xinhua News Agency, the People's Daily and the military got involved," said Beijing-based current affairs commentator Ji Feng. "It's all about maintaining stability and eliminating different voices."

Twitter-based satirist @GFWFrog said Li had never been regarded as an edgy or remotely dissident comedian, however.

"In an age of informants, populists are vying with each other to demonstrate their loyalty through denunciations," he said. "House has been very low-key for years, but suddenly he has become this 'hostile force' who insults the people's soldiers."

"This is because, in the absence of enemies, new ones have to be created."

Li's firing wasn't apparently enough to take the heat off him or his agent.

"Stand-up comic House (also known as Li Haoshi) made an inappropriate comparison during his routine on May 13," Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media said in a public statement.

"We offer our sincere apologies to audiences and to the general public," it said, announcing that it was terminating its professional relationship with Li.

"We have issued a severe criticism to House and asked him to reflect on the matter, and we will be permanently terminating our professional relationship with him," Xiaoguo Culture said.

'Deep learning and re-education'

Li posted his own apology around the same time, in which he expressed "deep shame and regret" for his joke.

"I have withdrawn from all performances, and will engage in deep learning and re-education," he wrote.

But then the People's Daily and Xinhua both published articles on Tuesday describing Li's joke as "a serious insult to the People's Liberation Army."

Xiaoguo quickly apologized for "loopholes" in its management of artists, and expressed its willingness to accept punishment and severe criticism, terminating its contract with Li and cutting the wages of staff who managed him.

It said all of its employees and artists would undergo political education following the incident.

Germany-based poet Yang Lian said there is currently a resurgence in public denunciations in China, in a manner akin to the political "struggle sessions" of the Cultural Revolution.

"Denunciation and informing is a typical feature of Communist Party culture," Yang said. "It's a huge setback for China."

"During the Cultural Revolution, sons and daughters denounced their parents and wives denounced their husbands," he said. "The Communist Party ... has left social relations in a very dirty and ugly state."

He said Li was a victim of this culture, which still persists today.

'Glorious history'

In June 2021, China passed a law banning "defamation" or "insults" to military personnel that bans organizations or individuals from "slandering or derogating the honor of servicemen [and women], nor may they insult or slander the reputation of members of the armed forces."

The law also required schools to teach "the glorious history of the People's Liberation Army and the heroic and exemplary deeds of its soldiers.

In 2018, the ministry of culture launched a nationwide crackdown on the spoofing of communist revolutionary culture and its heroes, ordering the deletion of thousands of online videos for parodying popular "red classics and heroes."

Retired Shanghai university lecturer Gu Guoping said comedy should remain comedy, and not be politicized.

"He didn't actually intend [to poke fun at the People's Liberation Army] ... but because some people were too sensitive, there was a huge reaction," Gu said.

"I don't think the authorities should be quite so sensitive when it comes to controlling public speech," he said. "[Stand-up comedy] is a kind of leisure activity, but now they've been forced to become a tool for brainwashing people."

Veteran current affairs commentator Wang Zheng said stand-up comedy should thrive on satire.

"In overseas stand-up, there is a lot of commentary on current events and politics, including the president," Wang said. "In China ... the cultural authorities start to enforce the law."

"There are so many banned words now that everyone is very nervous when saying anything," he said.

YouTuber Wuyue Sanren said the public outcry shows how brainwashing has been largely successful.

"These people [who complain online] aren't the kind of people who can't stand stand-up comedy, and they didn't even intend to report him [to the authorities]," he said. "Yet they've all been subject to a kind of ideological indoctrination in recent years."

"There are all kinds of populist ideas about the Chinese nation that are off-limits," he said. "They won't fully accept that stand-up is actually an offensive art form."

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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China In Eurasia Briefing: Why China's Central Asia Summit Is a Big Deal

By Reid Standish May 17, 2023

Why China's Central Asia Summit Is A Big Deal

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is set to host all five of his Central Asian counterparts at a high-profile summit on May 18-19 that Chinese officials have said will mark "a new era of cooperation."

Finding Perspective: The summit, which will take place in the central Chinese city of Xi'an, is important for an array of practical and symbolic reasons, as I reported here.

The gathering will be the first-ever in-person summit for Chinese and Central Asian leaders and the decision to hold it in Xi'an also comes with its own symbolism. The city has cultural and trade connections to Central Asia that go back millennia and it was a crucial stop on the ancient Silk Road that Beijing has used as the basis for its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

China will be looking to channel that symbolism as it looks to show that its economy is reopened for business.

The focus of the summit is set to be on boosting regional infrastructure and increasing connectivity in the region.

A deal on a 30-day visa-free regime between China and Kazakhstan is expected to be signed into law after a draft bill was approved by the Kazakh parliament in April. Kyrgyzstan is pushing to ink its own visa-free arrangement, although it's unclear exactly where that stands.

The long-discussed China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is also expected to get a mention. A feasibility study for the $5 billion project is said to be complete and all parties will be looking to tout its progress after so many years of delays.

Why It Matters: At a time of major upheaval in its ties with Russia -- and long-lingering questions over Western, particularly U.S., interest in the region -- Central Asia is keen to have the red-carpet treatment from China.

It's "a clear message that China is open for business and that Central Asia is open to China," Raffaello Pantucci, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told me.

China's economic footprint in Central Asia is growing despite pandemic-caused setbacks. By the end of 2020, total Chinese investment in the region reached $40 billion, a figure that grew to $70 billion by the end of 2022.

In advance of the summit, Chinese officials have continued to give it top billing, calling it a milestone, "a top diplomatic event," and saying that an "important political document" is due to be signed that will "draw a new blueprint for China-Central Asia relations."

Expert Corner: The All-Weather Friendship Hits A Storm

Readers asked: "Islamabad's relationship with Beijing has been under strain for some time, so how does the recent unrest in Pakistan sparked by former Prime Minister Imran Khan's arrestaffect the country's ties with China?"

To find out more, I asked my colleague Abubakar Siddique, who covers Afghanistan and Pakistan at RFE/RL:

"Earlier this month, the visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told Pakistani political leaders to 'build consensus, uphold stability, and more effectively address domestic and external challenges so it can focus on growing the economy.'

"As one former Pakistani official recently told VOA, China wants Pakistan to know it will not let it fail completely, but also that it will not support mismanagement. His comments encapsulate over a decade of Beijing's frustration with Islamabad to uphold an effective economic partnership. Once billed as a 'game changer' for Pakistan's foreign-aid- and debt-dependent economy, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is largely stalled -- undermining the overall impact of President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative.

"Domestic tensions have also overlapped with the China relationship. The current ruling coalition led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and former President Asif Ali Zardari had reputedly accused Khan of derailing the CPEC by launching a monthlong sit-in protest in 2014 and then attempting to renegotiate various CPEC agreements following his election victory in 2018.

"Beijing is also disappointed by the deterioration of security in Pakistan, where Islamist and Baluch separatist militants have targeted Chinese workers. Looking at public comments from Chinese officials, they're clearly worried about mounting security, economic, and political crises in Beijing's key South Asian ally."

Three More Stories From Eurasia

1. Searching For Unity

In the latest sign of its evolving tightrope with China, the European Union's leadership is calling for new urgency to tensions with Beijing, while also pushing for continued dialogue, according to an internal document drafted by the European External Action Service seen by RFE/RL.

What You Need To Know: The document comes ahead of a June summit for EU leaders to discuss China policy and as the bloc looks to find its footing amid an intensifying global competition between Beijing and Washington.

It calls on member states to "be prepared" for a crisis over Taiwan and that Europe should be taking measures to prepare for supply-chain disruptions. It also says that the bloc should speed up plans for reducing its overdependence on China through "de-risking."

Still, the document also says that Europe should keep engagement going with China and not seal itself off from the country. "Systemic rivalry may feature in almost all areas of engagement. But this must not deter the EU from maintaining open channels of communication and seeking constructive cooperation with China," the document reads.

The approach was met with some derision by more hawkish member states who see the call for continued dialogue as naive and it highlights that there still isn't unity on how to deal with China within the EU.

But Brussels' line is evolving and the temperature is slowly being turned up on China.

A draft for the next package of EU sanctions seen by RFE/RL contains eight Chinese companies over their potential role in assisting Russia's war in Ukraine and while it's unclear if they'll make it to the final version, the prospect is already sparking warnings from Beijing.

During a recent visit to Berlin, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang cautioned his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, that Beijing would react strongly if the EU were to impose sanctions on Chinese companies.

2. Chasing Beijing

Faced with growing economic pressure over looming debt payments and a lack of foreign investment, Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik is seeking a financial lifeline from China, my colleagues Goran Katic and Milorad Milojevic from RFE/RL's Balkan Service report.

The Details: The turn to China by Republika Srpska -- Bosnia-Herzegovina's predominantly Serbian entity -- comes as Dodik grapples with a struggling financial outlook and deteriorating relations with the West over his secessionist calls.

In particular, Dodik is hoping to borrow from Chinese financial institutions and get China to accept bonds leveraged by Republika Srpska so that it can meet a series of debt payments to Western lenders that start coming due this summer.

Dodik said in late March that Chinese institutions had agreed to accept the bonds as financial guarantees that they will be repaid for any loans, but many economic analysts are still unsure about the Bosnian Serb leader's plan, which they say lacks bargaining power and could lead to unfavorable terms.

3. Banking On Budapest

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban personally greeted the president of the China Construction Bank (CCB) as it opened its first branch in Hungary amid hopes in Budapest that the institution can help bring in more investment, my colleague Tamas Wiedemann from RFE/RL's Hungarian Service reports.

What It Means: As Tamas notes, the CCB has a colorful history in Budapest, having been part of a controversial settlement program in Hungary where wealthy foreigners, particularly Chinese citizens, could purchase a resident permit in the country.

Many Chinese business owners explored this path to get a footing in the EU and used the bank to leverage the bond needed to get the permit.

Now, the bank is looking to launch large-scale projects inside Hungary. Both the CCB and the Bank of China, which already has an office in Budapest, are slated to play a role in financing the construction of a new battery factory in Debrecen for the China-based Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited.

Across The Supercontinent

'Peace Mission': Li Hui, China's special representative for Eurasian affairs and a former ambassador to Russia, has begun his first trip as Beijing's peace envoy for the war in Ukraine. In addition to Russia and Ukraine, he will also visit Poland, France, and Germany on the tour.

One China, One Central Asia: Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev said it was "absolutely clear" that Taiwan is a part of China as the Central Asian country continues to prioritize deepened ties with its eastern neighbor, RFE/RL reports.

The View From Tokyo: Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi expressed concern on May 13 about Russian and Chinese military cooperation in Asia and said the security situation in Europe could not be separated from that in the Indo-Pacific region since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

From 17 to 7: China hosted its third annual trade expo with Central and Eastern Europe. Unlike in past years, only seven countries sent representatives this year, another indicator of how far its standing has fallen across much of the region.

Partners In Arms: It took 14 months, but Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. But does it mean that China is prepared to broker peace in Ukraine?

Listen to the last episode of Talking China In Eurasia, where guest Finbarr Bermingham, Europe correspondent for the South China Morning Post, explains what it means for Beijing's relationship with Europe and the balance that it's trying to strike amid the war.

One Thing To Watch

Terry Gou, a Taiwanese billionaire who founded the tech conglomerate Foxconn, is making an early push to be the presidential nominee for the country's main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT).

Gou is presenting himself as the best option to avoid war with China and that he hopes to "resolve the crisis" through dialogue and does not espouse the pro-independence views of President Tsai Ing-wen's Democratic Progressive Party. He also has deep personal and business ties to mainland China.

Should he get the nomination for next January's vote, he'd be up against Vice President Lai Ching-te, who is considered to be even more pro-independence than his predecessor. Gou currently has a tough road ahead. Hou Yu-ih, the mayor of the northern city of New Taipei, is widely considered to be the front-runner for the KMT ticket and is seen as a more moderate choice with a better shot against Lai.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/china-central- asia-summit/32415283.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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China rolls out red carpet for Central Asian leaders ahead of milestone summit

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 08:15, May 18, 2023

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday staged hearty welcome ceremonies for Central Asian leaders attending a milestone summit that is expected to draw up new blueprints for China-Central Asia cooperation.

All is ready in the northwestern city of Xi'an, the historical starting point of the ancient Silk Road, for the China-Central Asia Summit, which is scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The summit, the first in-person gathering among heads of state of China and five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, will be chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi is expected to expound on China's position on how to build a China-Central Asia community with a shared future in the new era and put forward a series of proposals for the long-term development of cooperation among the six countries.

Xi will also announce a string of pragmatic measures and comprehensively chart the course for China-Central Asia cooperation.

The first Central Asian leader to arrive in Xi'an was Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also arrived on Wednesday.

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov will arrive on Thursday. A welcome banquet will be held for the five leaders.

The leaders who have arrived were greeted with performances of traditional Shaanxi folk dances at the airport.

The 190-member performing team included 50 performers of waist drum dance and 48 of Yangge folk dance. Both are popular forms of folk art in Shaanxi.

"We feel honored and excited to have the opportunity to show our hometown's folk art to the distinguished guests from Central Asia," said Hou Shikai, a 53-year-old Yangge performer. "May the friendship between China and the five Central Asian countries last forever."

In his talks with Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

"Your state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to your unique bond with China," Xi told the Kazakh president.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was one of the key topics during their talks.

Speaking to Tokayev, Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the BRI 10 years ago.

For his part, Tokayev lauded the BRI as a great initiative and said his country will continue taking an active part in it.

Tokayev also said that Kazakhstan will actively support the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

He vowed to work with China to jointly promote regional security, stability and development by leveraging the China-Central Asia mechanism.

In their talks, Xi hailed the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit as a summit of "milestone significance," which will usher in a new era of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Xi said China will work with Central Asian countries to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform for promoting in-depth cooperation.

The summit is seen as the latest landmark in the vibrant high-level interactions, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between China and Central Asian countries.

Leaders of the six countries are expected to sign an important political document and witness the signing of multiple cooperation documents covering areas including economy, trade, investment and connectivity, according to a press conference held before the summit.

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Defence Secretary & US Under Secretary of Defence for Policy co-chair 17th India-US Defence Policy Group meeting in Washington DC

India - Press Information Bureau

Ministry of Defence

Focus on enhancing defence industrial cooperation & co-production in India

Posted On: 17 MAY 2023 10:04PM by PIB Delhi

Defence Secretary Shri Giridhar Aramane and US Under Secretary of Defence for Policy Dr Colin Kahl co-chaired the 17th meeting of India-US Defence Policy Group (DPG) in Washington DC on May 17, 2023. The meeting was cordial and productive. The two sides reviewed the progress made in furthering defence industrial cooperation and operationalising the India-US Major Defence Partnership. Important aspects such as military-to-military cooperation, implementation of foundational defence agreements, exercises and the ongoing & future cooperative activities in the Indian Ocean Region were discussed.

Considerable focus was given on the ways and means to enhance defence industrial cooperation, including technology partnership, long-term research & development and improving supply chain security. The meeting also discussed promoting co-development and co-production in India including potential areas and projects where Indian and US defence companies could work together. They agreed to encourage both the private and government stakeholders to utilise the innovation ecosystems and promote defence start-ups.

The DPG is the apex official-level mechanism between Ministry of Defence, India and US Department of Defence. It comprehensively reviews and guides all aspects of bilateral defence cooperation with a focus on policy.

*****

SR/Savvy



(Release ID: 1925015)

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Official: Railway project to help Iran reclaim position as Asia's trade passage

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 16 May 2023 10:25 PM

The Iranian Administration's spokesman says the pending completion of a vital cross-country rail link is going to contribute considerably to national and international trade.

"With the completion of the north-south railway's [construction], Iran will be able to reclaim its historical status as Asia's trade passage," Ali Bahadori-Jahromi tweeted on Tuesday.

Upon completion, the railway would serve as a "shorter and cheaper" transit pathway for Asia and Europe's businesspeople and economic operators, the official stated.

The development would turn Iran into the region's "trade crossroads" and bring along "stable and profuse" revenues for the Islamic Republic, he concluded.

Including the part that crosses Iran, the passage serves to link Europe to the Persian Gulf's and the Indian Ocean's littoral states as well as the Southeastern Asian countries.

Transporting goods through the pathway takes 21 days. The alternative maritime route that travels across Europe's western and then southern flank before heading into the Red Sea, however, takes 45 days to complete and features an additional 30 percent expense.

Jahromi's remarks came after Mohammad Jamshidi, the Iranian president's deputy chief of staff for political affairs, announced the pending conclusion of an agreement on the construction of the final stretch of the railway inside the Iranian territory.

The final stretch links the northern Iranian cities of Rasht and Astara, and the agreement on its construction would be inked during a ceremony featuring keynote speeches by President Ebrahim Raeisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, noted the official.

"Finally, after 23 years, the north-south rail passage would be completed, linking South Asia and northern Europe," Jamshidi said.

The sustainable and remarkable revenues that would stem from transporting goods through the pathway stand to compete with the Islamic Republic's oil revenues, he concluded.

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Kanaani hails Iran Navy for successful global tour by 86th flotilla

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

May 17, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Iranian Army's Navy 86th flotilla has successfully completed its historic circumnavigation of the world for the first time in the country's history, Foreign Minority Spokesman Nasser Kanaani has announced.

"Congratulations to the great nation of Iran; the 86th flotilla of the Iranian Navy, featuring Iranian-built destroyer Dena and the Makran port ship, traveled around the world for the first time in the history of the country," Kanaani said on his Twitter on Wednesday.

He said the mission scored "another honor" for the Islamic Republic on the international stage.

The 86th flotilla is comprised of Dena, a warship equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes, and naval cannons, and Makran, a floating military base that can carry five helicopters and is employed for providing logistical support for combat warships.

It had set sail from Iran's southern port city of Bandar Abbas on September 20 last year for a global voyage that took it to the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

The mission was aimed at expanding Iran's naval presence in international waters.

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Iran to IAEA: Only JCPOA parties negotiate deal's revival

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

May 17, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami has reminded the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that only the members of the Iran nuclear deal are responsible for negotiations to revive the agreement, rather than the UN nuclear watchdog.

Eslami made the remarks days after IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the prospects of a swift return to the nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Actin (JCPOA), "are quite low at the moment."

"Probably there could be a return to the negotiating table, but if the interactions between Iran and the agency are seen or assessed as bad and the cooperation is not good, the chances are zero," he said in an interview with CBC News published on Saturday.

In response, Eslami told reporters on Wednesday, "The agency is not responsible for the negotiations, this responsibility rests with JCPOA members."

He further made clear that the IAEA is not a party to the JCPOA revival talks.

The Iranian nuclear chief also said that interactions between Iran and the IAEA are based on the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreements and the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT).

"The monitoring activities continue, and there has been no delay or disruption in them," he added.

Eslami also dismissed a recent report by the Bloomberg claiming that the number of examinations into Iran's nuclear program fell by 10% in 2022 after Tehran decided to turn off dozens of IAEA cameras at the country's nuclear sites.

"The relations between Iran and the Agency are ongoing," he said.

Asked whether an arms embargo on Iran will be lifted in October 2023, Islami said, "Yes, the arms embargo must be lifted according to the JCPOA."

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Iran, Russia sign $1.6bn contract to build Rasht-Astara railway

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

May 17, 2023

Tehran, IRNA -- Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia have signed an agreement worth $1.6 billion to build the Rasht-Astara railway, a project in northern Iran which will be key to transit of cargo through the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

The contract was signed on Wednesday in Tehran between Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash and Russia's Minister of Transport Vitaly Savelyev.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was present in the ceremony where the contract was signed while Russian President Vladimir Putin attended via a video conference link.

The 162-kilometer railway will connect the city of Rasht, near the Caspian Sea, to Astara on the border with Azerbaijan. Once completed, the rail link will allow rail freight transport from the Persian Gulf to Helsinki in Finland via Russia's Saint Petersburg.

Major development in Iran-Russia ties

During the ceremony, Raisi described the signing of the contract on Rasht-Astara railway as "a major and strategic development" in cooperation between Iran and the Russian Federation.

Raisi thanked Putin for his support for the project and said that the completion of the INSTC would benefit not only Iran and Russia, but all countries in the region.

Putin also delivered a speech in the ceremony and said that the Rasht-Astara railway will allow for a change and diversification of global transportation routes.

He said the INSTC corridor will play a major role in guaranteeing food security in Iran and countries in the Persian Gulf region.

The Russian president said relations between Russia and Iran are at their highest level, adding that Moscow pays special attention to ties with Tehran.

Putin also thanked Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei for his support for the growing ties between Iran and Russia.

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Ceremony for signing an intergovernmental agreement with Iran on cooperation in the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway line in Iran to boost transportation via the international North-South transport corridor

Vladimir Putin and President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ebrahim Raisi took part, via videoconference, in a ceremony for signing an agreement between the Government of Russia and the Government of Iran on cooperation in financing the design, construction and supply of goods and services for the Rasht-Astara railway line in Iran, aimed at boosting transportation via the International North-South Transport Corridor.

May 17, 2023

11:50

The Kremlin, Moscow

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ebrahim Raisi (retranslated): Good afternoon. In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate!

Mr President of Russia,

I would like to express my joy over the fact that Iran and Russia have finally reached an agreement on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway line.

First of all, I must thank President of Russia Vladimir Putin, his colleagues in the Government of Russia, as well as the people of the Russian Federation. There is no doubt that this agreement is a major step towards expanding cooperation with the Russian Federation, both bilateral and multilateral.

Our two countries have made great strides in developing our cooperation in various areas. This includes our everyday efforts to expand transit links between our countries as part of the North-South project, as well as at a regional scale and internationally with all other countries taking part in the INSTC project.

Actually, I believe that all the countries and states in the region will benefit from this corridor. It will serve all countries involved in this project, including in its western and its eastern sections. In fact, this corridor serves as a symbol of friendship and embodies the multi-faceted nature of cooperation between our countries. This project will give a major impetus to expanding our cooperation across the board.

This project started two decades ago, in fact. However, the agreements had to be suspended due to certain objective reasons. Nevertheless, it is thanks to the unbending will demonstrated by the two countries' leadership that we succeeded in reaching concrete understandings on this project that later translated into a specific agreement. Of course, transit links will expand across the region and all countries want this to happen.

I believe I am historically obliged to our people, and also as part of cooperation with our neighbours, to make full use of the potential our region offers by developing the infrastructure linking our two countries and enabling us to engage in a diverse mix of projects.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has great potential despite the efforts by the collective West to bypass the Iranian territories and use other transit routes.

We all understand, as the President of Russia has said on multiple occasions as a leader of a nation that is friendly to the Iranian people, and all other countries understand all too well that Iran offers the best transit routes through its territory and the most beneficial opportunities for delivering goods. There is hardly anyone who can question or overlook the advantages offered by Iran's geopolitical location, which can bridge the gap that once existed. We offer a very reliable route, which holds a lot of promise, especially considering the involvement of our Russian colleagues who have joined this project in all respects.

Once again, I would like to emphasise that this project includes three sections. The Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran form its eastern section. I must say that we have already made this route operational by working together. Several pilot deliveries have already been carried out.

The central section lies through the Caspian Sea. It has great potential. We must expand the capabilities of our ports. This effort is also underway and involves Russian companies.

The western section has yet to be built, and there is no railway to connect Rasht to Astara. By carrying out this agreement, we can bridge this gap so that we get three operating sections for transporting goods and promoting our projects.

My strong hope and real conviction is that after the implementation of this Agreement all interested parties will be aware that this route enables us to promote bilateral and multilateral cooperation. In fact, this is only one project, on which we have just been able to come to terms, but there are many similar projects.

There is also another project between Iran, Pakistan and Turkiye. We should build up the rail infrastructure between Iran and Iraq. All efforts are focused on this. Or take the route from Chabahar Port in the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea and further via the Russian Federation to Europe. These are the likely options for cooperation with such a big country as the Russian Federation. I think that all these projects will be in the trade and economic interests of our two countries. I am confident of this.

In fact, Mr President, we have great economic potential that is yet to be fully tapped. We must make every effort, use all our resources and possibilities to implement these projects.

I would like to thank you once again here for your highly serious approach to this matter, and [to thank] in particular your special aide for transit issues, who really works for the benefit of our nations. We are also grateful to him and would like this project to be implemented in full as soon as possible.

Mr President, thank you very much for making every effort to promote cooperation in this area; let me also thank your colleagues from the Russian Government.

Over to you, Mr President of Russia.

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: President Raisi, friends,

I warmly welcome all of you at the ceremony for signing a Russian-Iranian agreement that will launch the implementation of a truly large-scale project to build the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

We held many discussions on the importance of building this through railway line to connect Russian ports on the Baltic Sea and other northern seas to Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf and of the Indian Ocean. I would like to remind you that the pivotal decision on Russia-Iran cooperation in that sphere was adopted during the top-level talks held in Tehran in July 2022.

Today we are witnessing the beginning of the implementation of that idea, which was probably formulated for the first time 20 years ago. A 162-kilometre railway line will be built between the cities of Rasht and Astara in Iran. It may look like a short stretch, but its construction will allow us to create direct and uninterrupted railway transportation, which professionals describe as seamless, along the entire length of the North-South route.

Our successful cooperation within the framework of this ambitious project is evidence of the high standards and the fruitful and mutually beneficial nature of Russia-Iran relations. Both Russia and Iran are giving priority attention to the strengthening of trade, economic and other bilateral ties, which are based on the principles of neighbourliness, mutual respect and consideration for each other's interests.

In this connection, I would like to thank you, President Raisi, and, of course, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for the constant attention to cooperation with our country. I would also like to use this occasion to convey our best regards to the spiritual leader of Iran.

I would like to emphasise that the unique North-South transport artery, due to include the Rasht-Astara railway line, will help considerably diversify global transport flows. Traffic via the new corridor will possess substantial competitive advantages. For example, it will take about 10 days to deliver consignments from St Petersburg to Mumbai. I would like to note, as a comparison, that it takes 30 to 45 days to deliver them using traditional commercial routes. In effect, this makes it possible to slash delivery deadlines and costs. Freight traffic volumes will soar noticeably, our two states will consolidate their transit potential, Russian and Iranian goods will obtain more convenient and diverse access to external markets, in terms of specific routes.

I would like to note that there are plans to use the new route for delivering foodstuffs and other agro-industrial produce to consumers in Iran, Persian Gulf and African countries. Consequently, this transport corridor will make a tangible practical contribution to facilitating global food security.

This will also result in obvious economic benefits for Russia and Iran. Income, derived from freight deliveries via the North-South corridor, as well as the more intensive operation of our states' ports, will help establish related businesses and facilitate their growth. It will be necessary to develop major logistics and production clusters.

This means that jobs will be created, and the investment climate in Russian and Iranian regions (through which the new transport routes will run) will improve.

The implementation of the Rasht-Astara project is only the beginning (I agree with the President of Iran completely here) of our work to methodically expand the capacity of railway routes of the North-South transport corridor. Mr Raisi has just noted possible routes that have already started operating and that will continue to develop.

Our interaction in the context of establishing this corridor that we are discussing today is taking place in close partnership with Azerbaijan. We are expecting that a cooperation agreement on expanding the railway infrastructure and freight traffic via the North-South route will be finalised in a trilateral format involving the Azerbaijani side as soon as possible. This will make it possible to create the required legal framework for successfully coordinating the actions of our three countries in the future.

I would certainly like to thank all Russian and Iranian colleagues who, in a short period of time, have managed to reach agreement on all the key issues, including the provision of funding, specific terms for supplying goods and services, and regulations for operating the future Rasht-Astara railway. I would also like to express confidence that construction of this highly strategic section of the North-South route will proceed in the same well-coordinated and effective manner. I have no doubts on this issue.

Thank you very much for your attention. Thank you.

(A ceremony for signing the agreement.)

Ebrahim Raisi (retranslated): I would like to say that the Iranian Ambassador to Russia, who will be working in Moscow, Mr Jalali, will pay close attention to this project with the assistance of his Russian colleagues. I would like this project to materialise as quickly as possible. Mr [Deputy Prime Minister Alexander] Novak follows a hands-on approach, and I hope that he makes sure that this is also the case for this project.

Vladimir Putin: Mr President, thank you so much for contributing to this project in person. This is indeed a major endeavour for the region, for global transport infrastructure as a whole, and for our countries too. Thank you for your support.

I was very happy to see you and hope that we will maintain our contacts, both remotely and face-to-face.

All the best to you, and until next time. Thank you very much. Once again, my congratulations to everyone.

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With raft of deals, Iran, Russia pledge to expand ties

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 6:28 PM

Iran and Russia have signed scores of economic and energy deals as the two countries seek to replicate their successful security and military cooperation in efforts that could offset the impacts of Western sanctions on their economies.

Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak led a high-ranking delegation to major events and ceremonies in Tehran on Wednesday where Iranian and Russian ministers and senior officials signed contracts and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) worth billions of dollars.

The most notable of the deals was a $1.6 billion contract to finance and build the 162-kilometer Rasht-Astara railway, a key transport link in northern Iran which connects Russia and Northern Europe to Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean via railways.

President Ebrahim Raeisi watched on as the contract was signed between Iranian and Russian transportation ministers in a ceremony where Russian President Vladimir Putin also attended via a video link.

Russia's First Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin and Iran's Deputy Oil Minister Ahmad Assadzadeh signed two contracts and eight MoUs to boost scientific and technological cooperation in the oil and gas sector, according to media reports published on Wednesday.

An agreement was also signed between customs chiefs of Iran and Russia for mutual recognition of institutions of authorized economic operator, said the reports.

Novak, a former Russian energy minister, also attended Iran Oil Show, a prestigious annual event where Iranian and foreign companies show off their technological and logistical capabilities.

He said afterwards that Russia and Iran have major oil and gas projects in the works which cover cooperation on six oil and two gas fields. He said Russia's state energy company Gazprom is particularly interested in joint development projects for Kish and North Pars gas fields in the Persian Gulf.

Iran and Russia have expanded their energy and economic cooperation since February 2022 when Russia's energy sector came under Western sanctions because of the war in Ukraine.

Iran has been facing similar sanctions since 2018 when a former US government pulled out of a landmark international deal on Iran's nuclear program.

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US senator admits failure of sanctions, increase in Iran's oil revenue

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 5:49 PM

A senior US Republican senator has confirmed the rise in Iran's oil revenues in recent months, confessing to the ineffectiveness of the sanctions that have been unilaterally imposed on the country.

Lindsey Graham slammed the US administration for failing to stop Iran's oil exports while addressing a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the US-China relationship on Tuesday.

"Iranians are making more money under sanctions not less and China is the biggest reason we're not doing a damn thing about it," he said, according to a video published on his YouTube account.

The remarks come as Washington imposed harsh economic sanctions against Tehran after unilaterally withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in May 2018.

Turning to US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, Graham repeated anti-Iranian accusations before asking, "They're sanctioned to the hilt right? Do you realize that Iran's oil revenue went up 20 last month?"

"Yeah, it's gone up 20 every month. Why? because of China," added Graham after Raimondo also confirmed the fact.

He described the US policy towards China as a "bunch of crap," noting, "We're in a real world of hurt."

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Iran exported 2.65 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil to the markets in February, up 0.76% from export figures reported in January.

Oil exports from Iran in late 2022 reached levels unseen since US sanctions began almost five years ago, according to international tanker tracking services' figures in January.

The figures indicated that Iran had exported more than 1.2 million barrels of oil per day in the last months of 2022 and revealed that Iranian crude shipments had increased in early 2023 with more exports to China and Venezuela.

Despite US sanctions that prohibit any purchases of Iran's oil shipments, Iran has managed to sell more oil to private buyers in China and other markets lately.

Experts believe Iran's rising oil exports show that the US government has failed in its attempt to destroy the Iranian oil industry with its illegal and unprecedented sanctions regime.

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Iranian Navy's 86th flotilla completes mission, enters territorial waters after round-the-world voyage

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 4:01 PM

The Iranian Navy's 86th flotilla of warships has entered the country's territorial waters after a round-the-world voyage as part of the Islamic Republic's efforts to expand its naval presence in high seas.

The Iranian Navy's flotilla, comprised of domestically-manufactured Dena destroyer and Makran forward base ship, entered the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic of Iran on Wednesday, after sailing 63,000 kilometers of sea routes over eight months and a circumnavigation of the globe in 360 degrees.

The 86th naval fleet, which set sail on a mission around the world form Iran's southern port city of Bandar Abbas on September 20, 2022, had its first stop at the port of Mumbai, India, and then docked in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, after passing through the Bay of Bengal and the Strait of Malacca.

The flotilla continued its route towards the Java Sea and passed through the Strait of Makassar and the Celebes Sea, arriving in the vast Pacific Ocean for the first time in the history of Iran's military seafaring.

Crossing the greatest width of the Pacific Ocean and passing by the islands of Micronesia and Polynesia, the flotilla moved towards the Strait of Magellan in the south of the Americas and entered the South Atlantic Ocean by crossing the strait.

The 86th naval fleet, then, moved north and passed the coasts of Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, finally anchoring in the port of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, which coincided with the 120th anniversary of the establishment of relations between Iran and Brazil.

After stopping for a few days in Rio de Janeiro, the naval squadron crossed the Atlantic Ocean and anchored in the city of Cape Town, South Africa. The flotilla berthed in the port of Salalah, Oman, and after a 40-day voyage, sailed into Iran's territorial waters.

The 86th naval fleet is scheduled to dock in the port city of Bandar Abbas in two days.

FM spox congratulates flotilla's arrival

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani hailed the round-the-world voyage of the 86th naval fleet, saying the achievement marked the first one in the Iranian history by fully indigenous warships.

"Congratulations to the great nation of Iran," Kan'ani said in a Persian-language tweet.

"The Iranian Navy's 86th flotilla of warships, for the first time in the history of Iran, made a round-the-world voyage by the all-Iranian destroyer Dena and the Makran forward base ship, which included representatives from 29 provinces of the country, and marked another achievement on the international scene."

Dena is a Mowj-class destroyer that joined the Iranian Navy in June 2021. The military vessel is equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes and naval cannons.

Makran is a forward base ship weighing 121,000 tons. The warship can carry five helicopters and is employed for providing logistical support for the combat warships.

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Amir-Abdollahian visits Sistan and Baluchistan province to discuss Iran-Afghanistan water dispute

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 1:43 PM

The Iranian foreign minister is in Sistan and Baluchistan province in the southeast of the country to follow up on Iran's water rights from the Hirmand River, which has been a source of tension with neighboring Afghanistan.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said on Wednesday that the minister will have a meeting with provincial officials in the province to discuss the issue.

The spokesman said Hassan Kazemi Qomi, the Iranian president's special envoy on Afghanistan, and Rasoul Mousavi, an assistant to the minister, accompany Amir-Abdollahian during the visit.

The Hirmand River, also known as Helmand in Afghanistan, has been at the heart of a long-running water dispute between Tehran and Kabul.

Iran and Afghanistan signed a treaty in 1973, under which Iran is entitled to receive 820 million cubic meters of water from the river per annum.

But the treaty was never implemented in full and negotiations never advanced, as Afghanistan plunged into decades of instability and various governments adopted different policies toward Iran.

The current caretaker government in Afghanistan, created by the Taliban following their takeover of the country in 2021, has announced it will remain faithful to the 1973 agreement.

But Iranian officials and lawmakers have time and again complained the country is not receiving its due share of water from the river.

On Monday, Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi ordered the Foreign Ministry as well as the Energy Ministry to seriously pursue the dispute with Afghanistan over shared water resources.

Kazemi Qomi said on Tuesday that Iran received only four percent of its water share during the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20.

He said Afghan officials have promised to work to remove obstacles in the way of Iran receiving its share from the river, and expressed optimism the dispute will be settled in the current Iranian calendar year.

The Hirmand river begins in Hindu Kush mountains and flows over a thousand kilometers before feeding the Hamoun Lake, shared between Iran and Afghanistan.

The lake, designated a world biosphere reserve in 2016 by UNESCO, is of top importance for the environment and economy of the largely arid and poor regions of Iran's southeast.

Dust storms from the dried Hamoun lakes have caused a serious public health crisis in Iran. The region's economy has been gravely impacted, and thousands of villagers have moved to cities for survival.

Iran FM, Afghan acting minister discuss water share from Hirmand

A statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry said Amir-Abdollahian on Wednesday had a phone conversation with Amir Khan Muttaqi, the acting Afghan foreign minister, during which they discussed Iran's share from Hirmand and other issues of mutual concern.

The Iranian minister said Tehran seriously demands its share of the Hirmand River, as Afghanistan's failure to give Iran its share has created many problems for people in Sistan and Baluchistan province.

He expressed hope Afghan officials will adopt necessary measures to settle the problem, including the creation of a joint technical committee assessing the conditions of water resources in Afghanistan.

The Afghan official, for his part, stressed that the country respects the 1973 treaty and will work to settle technical problems in this regard.

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Iran, Russia sign deal on construction of strategic Rasht-Astara railway

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 11:04 AM

Iran and Russia have signed an agreement on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, a strategic transport corridor that connects the existing railways of the two countries and Azerbaijan.

Iranian transport minister Mehrdad Bazrpash and his Russian counterpart Vitaly Savelyev put their signatures on the deal worth $1.6 billion during a ceremony in Tehran on Wednesday.

Iran's President Ebrahim Raeisi and his Russian counterpart oversaw the event in person and via video-link.

The 162-kilometer railway will connect the Iranian city of Rasht, near the Caspian Sea, to Astara on the border with Azerbaijan.

The project, which is aimed at integrating the transport and information routes of Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran and India, is carried out within the framework of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

Addressing the ceremony, Raeisi described the agreement as "an important and strategic step in the direction of Iran-Russia cooperation," adding that it will help boost trade and economy in the region.

"Iran and Russia are cooperating in different fields. Today's [railway construction] deal is one of the manifestations of cooperation not only between the two countries, but also other states on the path of the INSTC," he said.

"The INSTC will benefit all regional states as it will establish friendship, convergence and commercial cooperation between the countries in East Asia, as well as those in the Caucasus and North Europe."

The Iranian chief executive also noted that negotiations were held 20 years ago about the deal, but its signing was postponed.

The Russian president, for his part, said the Rasht-Astara railway would help connect Russian ports on the Baltic Sea with Iranian ports in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf.

"The unique North-South transport artery, of which the Rasht-Astara railway will become a part, will help to significantly diversify global traffic flows," he added.

Putin further expressed hope for the exchange of foodstuff and other goods between the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf countries through the INSTC.

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IAEA no party to JCPOA revival talks; no disruption in inspections: Iran's nuclear chief

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 9:24 AM

Iran's nuclear chief says the parties to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, and not the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), are in charge of the negotiations to revive the agreement.

"The Agency is not responsible for the [nuclear deal revival] negotiations. This responsibility lies with the existing parties to the JCPOA," Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), told reporters on Wednesday, referring to the US-abandoned agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

He said relations between Iran and the IAEA are based on the Safeguards Agreements and the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT).

The IAEA is proceeding with monitoring Iran's peaceful nuclear program and there is no disruption in this path, he added.

Eslami's remarks came days after the IAEA chief said that it is important to keep interacting with Iran despite slim chances of the JCPOA's revival.

"Probably there could be a return to the negotiating table, but if the interactions between Iran and the agency are seen or assessed as bad and the cooperation is not good, the chances are zero," Rafael Mariano Grossi said in an interview with CBC News published on Saturday.

Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the JCPOA with six world powers. However, Washington's exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

Negotiations kicked off in the Austrian capital city of Vienna in April 2021, with the intention of removing anti-Iran sanctions and examining the United States' seriousness in rejoining the accord.

The talks, however, have been at a standstill since August 2022 due to Washington's insistence on not removing all the sanctions and its failure to offer necessary guarantees that it will not abandon the deal again.

Eslami also rejected a report by Bloomberg claiming that the number of examinations of Iran's nuclear program fell by 10% in 2022 after Tehran decided to turn off the monitoring cameras installed by the IAEA at the country's nuclear sites.

In a statement in June 2022, the AEOI announced plans to turn off some surveillance cameras of the IAEA, whose operation is deemed beyond Iran's obligations under the UN agency's Safeguards Agreement.

The Iranian nuclear chief said a month later that the IAEA monitoring cameras will remain turned off until the JCPOA is fully restored.

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IAEA chief calls more interaction with Iran 'important', urges return to negotiating table

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 6:51 AM

The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says it is important to keep interacting with Iran despite slim chances of reviving the US-abandoned nuclear deal between Tehran and major world powers.

"Probably there could be a return to the negotiating table, but if the interactions between Iran and the agency are seen or assessed as bad and the cooperation is not good, the chances are zero," Rafael Mariano Grossi said in an interview with CBC News published on Saturday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Sunday that the course of Tehran's cooperation with the IAEA within technical frameworks will soon witness great progress.

He said Tehran is exchanging messages with Washington through various channels on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal and the removal of the US sanctions.

Amir-Abdollahian noted that "a good development has taken place in the course of cooperation" between the Islamic Republic and the UN nuclear agency, noting that Iran had always been critical of IAEA chief Rafael Grossi's politically-charged approach towards the country and that he has even brought up the issue in a face-to-face meeting with him.

Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing a nuclear deal in 2015, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with six world powers. However, Washington's exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

Negotiations kicked off in the Austrian capital city of Vienna in April 2021, with the intention of removing anti-Iran sanctions and examining the United States' seriousness in rejoining the accord.

The talks, however, have been at a standstill since August 2022 due to Washington's insistence on not removing all the sanctions and its failure to offer necessary guarantees that it will not abandon the deal again.

Last week, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator said the JCPOA revival is possible if the US and the European signatories to the agreement have the will to reach that aim, warning that the opportunity will not last forever.

"The full implementation of JCPOA (with effective sanctions lifting at its core) could be resumed, should the reneging party (and EU/E3) demonstrate credible political will to that effect. No opportunity is forever!" Ali Bagheri Kani, who is also deputy foreign minister for political affairs, tweeted.

Following an anti-Iran resolution last year, Iran turned off 27 IAEA monitoring cameras that were voluntarily installed at the country's nuclear sites.

Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami said a month later that the IAEA monitoring cameras will remain turned off until the JCPOA is fully restored.

The IAEA has in response criticized the move, claiming it poses a "serious challenge" to the IAEA's ability to continue its surveillance activities in Iran.

Inspectors "were seriously affected by Iran's decision," Grossi wrote in a restricted document circulated among diplomats last week, a copy of which was seen by Bloomberg News.

"Iran has yet to clarify and resolve the outstanding safeguards issues," Grossi wrote in the 116-page annual Safeguards Implementation Report. "There is important and significant work ahead of us on this matter."

Back in March, Iran and the IAEA agreed to take steps aimed at facilitating enhanced cooperation and expediting the resolution of outstanding safeguards issues.

The two sides are currently in a dispute triggered by the agency's Israeli-influenced accusations, which were leveled against Tehran's peaceful nuclear activities. The IAEA insists to probe into what the agency claims are "uranium traces" found at "undeclared nuclear sites" in Iran.

The issue has emerged as a key sticking point in talks aimed at salvaging the 2015 nuclear deal, which remains stalled since last August. Iran has dismissed the probe as "politically motivated."

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Students Group Says Hundreds Summoned Over Hijab Issues On Tehran Campus

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda May 17, 2023

Hundreds of Iranian students are said to be facing disciplinary committees and possible suspensions at Al-Zahra University in Tehran over issues related to the mandatory wearing of hijabs on campus.

According to the Telegram channel Voice of Al-Zahra Students, since the beginning of the Persian New Year in late March, at least 35 students have been suspended from studying for one to two semesters due to issues related to the mandatory hijab and have been deprived of dormitory access until the end of their studies.

The report further states that seven of these students have already been penalized, with five students immediately expelled from the dormitory where they lived.

The report follows an announcement by Sepideh Rashno, a 28-year-old writer and student arrested last year for refusing to wear the mandatory hijab, of her suspension from the university. Rashno revealed on her Instagram account that she has been banned from studying for two semesters for "not observing the Islamic dress code."

In a report titled The Shadow Of Suppression And Suspension Over Al-Zahra University, the Voice of Al-Zahra Students group reported that amid the current wave of nationwide resistance to the mandatory hijab, "an unprecedented new chapter of case-making, harassment of students, and issuing severe sentences has begun."

It added that, in recent months, as many as 500 to 600 Al-Zahra students reportedly have received summonses to appear before the disciplinary committee.

Anger over the hijab rule, which mandates women cover their heads while in public, erupted in September 2022 when a young woman in Tehran died while in police custody for an alleged hijab violation. Since then, thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets to demand more freedoms and women's rights.

Numerous protests have been held at universities, particularly in Tehran, where many students have refused to attend classes. Protesting students have chanted "Woman, life, freedom!" and "Death to the dictator!" at the rallies. Some female students have removed and burned their head scarves.

Universities and students have long been at the forefront of the struggle for greater social and political freedoms in Iran. In 1999, students protested the closure of a reformist daily, prompting a brutal raid on the dorms of Tehran University that left one student dead.

Over the years, the authorities have arrested student activists and leaders, sentencing them to prison and banning them from studying.

The activist HRANA news agency says at least 700 university students have been arrested during the recent unrest.

Many have faced sentences such as imprisonment, flogging, and dozens of students have been expelled from universities or suspended from their studies, as security forces try to stifle widespread dissent.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-students-hijab- disciplinary-committees-rights/32415873.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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The Farda Briefing: Iran Intensifies Pressure On Independent Lawyers

By Golnaz Esfandiari May 17, 2023

The Big Issue

Dozens of independent Iranian lawyers were imprisoned during the monthslong antiestablishment protests that erupted last September. Most had represented jailed protesters or been critical of the authorities on social media.

Many of the lawyers were later freed under an amnesty announced by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February.

But in recent days, around 20 lawyers across the country have been summoned. It was not clear if they were facing new charges or had been called in for questioning.

"The amnesty gave me hope but these actions that are taking place are frustrating," lawyer Ali Mojtahedzadeh said on Twitter on May 11, adding that he did not know why he had been summoned.

"The lawyers who have been summoned are lawyers who were [defending protesters] or those who have been active on social media," said Mojtahedzadeh.

Mitra Izadifard, a lawyer from the northeastern city of Mashhad, told the reformist daily Etemad that she and several other lawyers had been called in to appear before a court in Tehran on May 22. Izadifard said she was summoned due to some of her "tweets and previous legal activities."

Why It Matters: The authorities appear to be renewing pressure on independent lawyers who have taken on sensitive political cases or criticized the clerical establishment.

Independent lawyers have been under systematic pressure and harassment for decades in the Islamic republic. Many have been forced into exile or ended up in jail, including prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh.

What's Next: It is unclear if the authorities are trying to intimidate or imprison again those lawyers who have continued to criticize the clerical regime since their release.

Since the antiestablishment protests subsided, lawyers have been vocal in their criticism of the authorities, including their new attempts to enforce the hijab law.

Several lawyers, including Mohsen Borhani, have said publicly that the measures are a violation of the Islamic republic's laws.

Stories You Might Have Missed

Nearly eight months ago, 21-year-old Erfan Rezai was killed during Iran's brutal crackdown on protests. Despite threats and pressure, his mother has waged a social media campaign to demand justice. In an interview, Farzaneh Barzekar said she holds little hope that real justice will be served.

Afghan migrants in Iran are finding it difficult to carry out the most routine transactions because they cannot obtain the bank cards they need to access mobile phone services, metro tickets, and even their daily bread. They say the restrictions, which affect long-term immigrants and undocumented arrivals alike, are making life increasingly difficult.

What We're Watching

Azerbaijan said on May 16 that it arrested at least seven men who were allegedly recruited by Iran to destabilize the Caucasus nation.

In a statement, Baku said the men were plotting a "violent overthrow of the government and the assassinations of prominent personalities and senior officials."

The arrests were the latest in a series of detentions of people the Azerbaijani government says were working for Iran.

Why It Matters: Relations between the two neighbors have become increasingly strained in recent months, particularly since an attack on the Azerbaijani Embassy in Tehran.

In January, a lone gunman stormed the embassy, killing one person. Azerbaijan blamed Tehran for the incident, which it described as a terrorist attack. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said the gunman had personal motives.

Tensions were further heightened in March following a failed assassination attempt in Baku on a parliamentarian in Azerbaijan who has been critical of Iran.

Last month, Azerbaijan expelled four Iranian diplomats in Baku. In response, Iran expelled the Azerbaijani ambassador in Tehran.

Baku has accused Iran of backing Armenia in a long-standing conflict over Azerbaijan's breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region. Iran has long blamed Azerbaijan for fueling separatist sentiments among its sizeable ethnic Azeri minority. Tehran has also been critical of Baku's deepening relations with Israel, Iran's archenemy.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/farda-briefing-iran- pressure-lawyers-azerbaijan/32415629.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Putin, Raisi Sign Agreement on Construction of $1.6Bln Rasht-Astara Railway

Sputnik News

20230517

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The launch of the Rasht-Astara railway in Iran will allow diversifying global traffic flows, and such transportation will have competitive advantages, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

Putin is taking part in the ceremony of signing an agreement on the construction of the railway, which is a part of the International North-South Transport Corridor, via a video link together with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

"I would like to emphasize that the unique North-South transport corridor, of which the Rasht-Astara railway will become a part, will help to significantly diversify global traffic flows. Transportation along the new corridor will have significant competitive advantages," Putin said at the ceremony.

Moscow hopes that the agreement between Russia, Iran and Azerbaijan on cooperation in the development of railway and cargo transportation will be signed promptly, Putin added.

A Sputnik

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President Xi Jinping Holds Talks withaPresident Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China

2023-05-17 19:52

On 17 May, President Xi Jinping held talks in Xi'an with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

President Xi warmly welcomed President Tokayev to China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit. President Xi expressed his pleasure at hosting President Tokayev in Xi'an and once again wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day. President Xi pointed out that President Tokayev's state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to his unique bond with China.

President Xi stressed that China-Kazakhstan relations have entered the next three golden decades. The two sides should vigorously carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, pursue development and rejuvenation, and build a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, strong mutual trust and solidarity.



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Myanmar's oldest ethnic armed group rejects junta's offer for peace talks

Election of new Karen National Union leaders will likely to lead to more fighting, experts say.

By RFA Burmese 2023.05.17 -- The Karen National Union, Myanmar's oldest ethnic armed group that has allied itself with the anti-junta People Defense Forces and the shadow government made up of junta opponents, has rejected peace talks offered by Myanmar's military regime that rules the country.

The junta made the proposal on May 9 after a leadership reshuffle during the 17th Congress of the Karen group, which has been engaged in an armed struggle for a federal democracy against the Myanmar military for more than 70 years.

The KNU held the conference online on April 24-May 4 at its headquarters on the Thai-Myanmar border in mountainous Kayin state. The group and its armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army, operates mostly in Kayin and Mon states and the Bago and Tanintharyi regions.

KNU leaders decided that the organization and its armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army, would join forces with other armed groups that have revolted against the junta and work towards the establishment of a federal democratic system in the country.

During the conference, the KNU named several newly elected officials to the organization's leadership, including Padoh Saw Kwe Htoo Win, who served as vice president in the last term, as its new chair.

He was deeply involved in former peace talks between the KNU and successive Myanmar regimes, but after the February 2021 coup that brought the military to power, he was closely associated with and supported the armed resistance, according to KNU sources.

As the first ethnic armed group to publicly denounce the coup, the KNU paid dearly for its action, suffering heavy airstrikes and ground offensives after the KNLA captured a Myanmar military base and a later escalation of fighting when junta troops bombarded a site for internally displaced persons.

The KNLA also increased attacks on junta troops, sheltered protesters and trained local anti-coup forces.

Six members of the central executive committee were not re-elected, including KNU President General Saw Mutu Say Poe, who opposed armed resistance against the coup and called for a dialogue.

Rejects cease-fire

The KNU said it would fight against the military dictatorship and cooperate with other ethnic armed organizations, democratic forces and people who have been struggling for the establishment of a federal democratic union and for democracy, equality and autonomy.

KNU Central Committee member Padoh Saw Thamein Tun told RFA that it was impossible to talk with the Military Administration Council, the formal name of the junta regime, in accordance with the nationwide cease-fire agreement, or NCA.

The KNU was one of eight armed ethnic groups that signed the NCA with the national military in 2015, but its legitimacy wavered because of Myanmar military incursions into KNU-controlled areas.

"Now we can't work under the NCA," he told Radio Free Asia.

"What is happening now is that [ethnic-majority Bamar] chauvinism and military dictatorship prevail," he said. "We will fight these and then establish a federal democracy."

After the congress, the junta's National Solidarity and Peacemaking Negotiation Committee issued a statement criticizing the KNU's decision, saying it went against the terms of the NCA and would lead to confrontation. The committee also said holding talks would be the best way to work towards a solution for long-term peace.

KNU spokesman Padoh Saw Kler Say told local media outlets that the union did not accept the military council's peace offer. RFA could not reach him by phone for comment.

The shadow National Unity Government said it hoped to cooperate with the new KNU leaders to speed up armed resistance to the junta this year, according to Kyaw Zaw, spokesman for the president's office.

"We hope to work together with all the ethnic armed groups, including the KNU, to attack the common enemy, the military dictatorship, right away, and accelerate cooperation between us to topple the military dictatorship," he said.

More fierce fighting likely

Political and military analysts said the KNU's rejection of talks could intensify military offensives in areas it controls.

Thein Tun Oo, executive director of the Thayninga Strategic Studies Institute, a group of former Burmese military officers, believes that war will come about because the new KNU leaders are hardliners who have supported armed resistance against the national military.

"They prioritize the armed struggle rather than holding a dialogue," he said. "If the other side chooses the hard way, the military side will respond the same way."

Political analyst Ye Tun agreed that new KNU leaders are more inclined to fight than previous ones.

"Now, we have to say that the path of armed struggle has gained the upper hand," he said.

Translated by Htin Aung Kyaw for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Death toll seen rising in Myanmar's Rakhine state in aftermath of Cyclone Mocha

"A gigantic wave washed away my family," said one survivor.

By RFA Burmese 2023.05.17 -- Cyclone Mocha killed about 460 Rohingya villagers in Myanmar's Rakhine - deaths that humanitarian workers said could have been prevented if so many people hadn't been living in restricted camps near the seashore.

Most villagers weren't properly informed of the coming storm, which hit the coast on Sunday with sustained winds reaching over 220 kilometers per hour (137 mph), and many others weren't allowed to evacuate ahead of time, activists and aid workers told Radio Free Asia.

The number of dead "could increase significantly as many people are missing," the UK-based Burmese Rohingya Organization, or BROUK, said in a statement on Wednesday.

Communication services are down in large parts of Rakhine, in western Myanmar, and no humanitarian aid has reached affected areas in and around the state capital of Sittwe, the group said.

"All shelters have been destroyed in the camps, and people have witnessed many family members being carried away by flash floods caused by the cyclone," it said.

Other people in the area were killed by wind-blown tree branches and zinc roof sheets.

Some 130,000 Rohingya have lived for more than a decade in internally displaced persons camps in the Sittwe area. BROUK likened the camps "to open air prisons."

A Rohingya survivor from Thet Kae Pyin camp said bodies belonging to 110 Rohingya villagers were buried on Monday and Tuesday.

Another survivor, a 25-year-old, told RFA that the Rakhine State military council had warned them of the storm several days before it struck. However, all emergency shelter centers were already overcrowded with people.

"The government and NGOs warned us in advance, but there wasn't enough space for us to evacuate. That's why we just continued staying in our camp," the 25-year-old said, asking not to be identified for security reasons.

"As our camp is in close proximity to the sea, the children and elderly were washed away and died in the flood during the cyclone."

Sudden rise in sea level

During the storm, the sea level suddenly rose nearly 10 meters (30 feet) and almost all the huts in one camp were washed away, said Nay San Lwin, co-founder of the Free Rohingya Coalition.

There are nearly 380 houses in the Bay Dar camp, located on an island on the coast of the Bay of Bengal. But after the storm, only six remained and hundreds of people were missing, he said.

RFA is still working to determine the exact number of Rohingya deaths in Rakhine.

Two Rohingya villagers contacted by RFA said that it has been difficult to collect every dead body that was washed into the sea.

Maung Sein, a Bay Dar resident, told RFA that his 5-month-pregnant wife, his son, his mother-in-law and brother-in-law were killed by the storm, and his son's body was missing. He said he was with his family when the storm hit, and survived because he knew how to swim.

"I have never seen waves that big in my entire life," he said. "A gigantic wave washed away my family."

No 'effective help yet'

Newspapers published on Tuesday reported that junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing visited Sittwe on Monday and gave 70 billion Kyat (US$24.5 million) worth of supplies.

But a Rohingya resident in Sittwe told RFA that he hasn't received any aid.

"I haven't seen any effective help yet. Nor have I heard of any," he said. "Those whose houses were completely destroyed were found to be living on the side of the road under tarpaulins. They are in desperate need of food and shelters."

In a flash update on Wednesday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance said that "widescale destruction of homes and public infrastructure" was seen throughout Rakhine.

"Urgent needs include shelter, clean water, food assistance and health care services," UNOCHA said. "There are rising concerns in flooded areas about the spread of waterborne disease and the movement of landmines."

RFA called the junta spokesman for Rakhine state, Hla Thein, on Wednesday but his phone rang unanswered.

Conditions in other Rohingya villages and camps in Rakhine - in Ponnagyun, Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships - were still unknown. RFA tried to contact six Rohingya residents of Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships on Wednesday, but their telephone connections were out of service.

Translated by Myo Min Aung. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Cyclone Mocha destroys camp housing 700 in Myanmar's Magway region

Torrential rains caused a creek to overflow, destroying all the tents on its banks.

By RFA Burmese 2023.05.17 -- As news slowly emerges about the extent of damage caused by Sunday's cyclone, residents of a township in Myanmar's Magway region told RFA Wednesday that Mocha destroyed a displaced persons camp housing more than 700 people.

The cyclone brought torrential rains, causing a local creek to burst its banks and flood the camp in Tilin township's Htan Pin Kone village on Sunday, according to one resident, who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons.

He said it destroyed all the 200 tents in the camp, set up on the banks of the creek.

People were forced to move to the camp because junta troops repeatedly carried out maneuvers near Htan Pin Kone village, which has around 250 houses, the resident told RFA Wednesday.

"The troop pass near Htan Pin Kone village whenever they conduct offensives on the western part of Tilin township, so the village is quite insecure. That's why the whole village moved to a safer place, so there are a lot of displaced people," he said.

According to the latest report from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) 2,462 people were relocated from their homes in two Magway townships before the cyclone hit.

It said 3,676 houses in 98 villages in the region were damaged by heavy rains and flash floods.

Cyclone Mocha hit Myanmar's coast Sunday with winds reaching over 220 kilometers per hour (137 mph).

Preliminary figures compiled exclusively by RFA confirmed at least 31 deaths due to the cyclone in Rakhine and Chin states, and Ayeyarwady, Magway and Sagaing regions.

On Tuesday, the National Unity Government updated its estimated death toll to 435 across the country, with an unspecified number still missing.

The United Nations said Tuesday that 16 million people were potentially exposed to Mocha, including more than 1.2 million who were already internally displaced.

Its Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said early estimates indicated nearly 3.2 million people in Rakhine state and Myanmar's northwest were the most vulnerable and considered likely to have humanitarian needs in the wake of the cyclone.

The International Rescue Committee said Wednesday is deeply concerned about the communities, especially those living in displaced persons camps.

It said it is responding to the needs of communities affected by Cyclone Mocha in Bangladesh and Myanmar and appealed for more funding for humanitarian work in Myanmar.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn.

Copyright 1998-2023, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Pakistani Gov Promises 'No Arrests' at Khan's Residence Before 24-Hour Surrender Deadline

Sputnik News

20230517

Fantine GHardinier

A spokesperson for the Punjabi state government pushed back on claims made by former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday, telling reporters there would be "no arrests" at Khan's Lahore mansion before Thursday afternoon.

Speaking to Pakistani media, Punjab Caretaker Information Minister Amir Mir said the leadership of Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had until 2 p.m. on Thursday to surrender "30 to 40 terrorists," referring to party members who allegedly took part in attacks on military sites in recent days. The government issued a 24-hour deadline on Wednesday afternoon for their surrender.

Mir also rejected "Imran Khan's claim that a decision has been taken to arrest him," referring to a claim on social media by the ousted head of government.

"Probably my last tweet before my next arrest," Khan tweeted on Wednesday. "Police has surrounded my house."

Media reports confirmed Punjabi police had cordoned off streets surrounding Khan's mansion in the Zaman Park neighborhood of Lahore, Punjab's capital and Pakistan's second-largest city. As a result, PTI supporters began rallying outside.

Mir told the media that security agencies confirmed the presence of "30 to 40 terrorists who attacked Army installations including Jinnah House" in the Zaman Park area using geo-fencing, or the tracking of one's cellphone location.

"PTI is starting to behave like a non-state actor," Mir stated.

The incidents in question occurred in the aftermath of Khan's arrest last week, when he was also charged with terrorism in connection with a March clash between police and his supporters. Khan's supporters took to the streets in protest, and hundreds were detained, including high-ranking members of PTI.

Khan's arrest was ordered by the office of the High Court in Islamabad, but overturned by the country's supreme court, which ordered his release.

On the day of Khan's release, Dr. Hasan Askari Rizvi, a prominent independent political and defense analyst based in Lahore, told Sputnik it was highly anticipated Khan would be re-arrested within 48 hours.

"I think the confrontation between the present government and Imran Khan has been going on for the last 2-3 years, and this has peaked now when they arrested Imran Khan," Rizvi said. "We think that this confrontation will go on because the government doesn't appear to be interested in elections and they want to move him aside from the political domain so that he does not become a threat in the elections."

Khan became prime minister in 2018 but was removed from office by Parliament in April 2022 following a vote of no confidence, a move widely seen as orchestrated by Washington in retaliation for Khan's refusal to condemn Russia's special military operation in Ukraine and join the anti-Russia sanctions regime.

The ousted official was later charged with terrorism in August 2022 after criticizing the new government, and that November survived an assassination attempt in which he was wounded by gunfire. The charges were later dropped.

A Sputnik

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Trudeau says Canada ready to partner with S Korea against North

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 9:09 AM

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has pledged his country's military commitment to South Korea's hostile campaign against North Korea, joining the US-led alliance of surging assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region.

"Canada is committed to increase not just our trade, but also our military engagement as a means of mitigating threats to regional security," Trudeau declared Wednesday while addressing the South Korean parliament during his first formal visit to the country.

He added that Canada is committed to supporting the Republic of Korea's efforts towards a denuclearized, peaceful and prosperous Korean peninsula, in following Washington's official line against Pyongyang's efforts to ward off persisting US-led war games in the region targeting the North.

"We will continue to call on North Korea to return to dialogue and diplomacy," Trudeau further claimed.

He went on to insist that stability in the Indo Pacific and the North Pacific is essential to global security, but only called on North Korea to abandon its weapons programs and reopen denuclearization talks, while not addressing massive US-South Korea military campaigns in the region that Pyongyang regard as rehearsals to invade its territories.

North Korea has come under harsh US-led sanctions for years over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, but the measures have not prevented it from expanding its nuclear and missile capabilities as a deterrent against hostile efforts by a Western alliance.

Seoul, which has faced formidable measures by North Korea, including the test firing of various missiles and other weapons systems, to guard against surging war games in the region by the US, South Korea, Japan and others, is now trying to further expand its military alliance and cooperation with Washington and its allies.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Trudeau said Canada is ready to strengthen its partnership with South Korea "on everything from critical minerals to high-tech innovation to clean energy solutions."

He said the issues will be discussed during a meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol set for later in the day.

According to a South Korean government official, the two presidents are expected to sign an agreement on key mineral supply chains, clean energy conversion and energy security cooperation.

Trudeau arrived in Seoul on Tuesday in the first visit in nine years by a Canadian leader as the two countries seek to deepen cooperation in supply chains, especially for critical minerals used in electric vehicle batteries.

Ottawa and Seoul further plan to explore ways to expand military ties, including intelligence sharing.

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Meeting with Amur Region Governor Vasily Orlov

The President held a videoconference working meeting with Governor of the Amur Region Vasily Orlov.

May 16, 2023

17:40

The Kremlin, Moscow

Vasily Orlov reported on the region's economic performance: in 2022, positive results were achieved in terms of key indicators; the gross regional product has been growing steadily year in and year out over the past five years. In 2022, the GRP stood at 588 billion rubles, which is 80 percent higher than in 2018. Investment is growing every year with last year showing a record high of 464 billion rubles. In a matter of five years, the volume of investment amounted to 1.8 trillion rubles, of which large gas projects accounted for 1.2 trillion rubles. The industrial production index grew by 102 percent in 2022. Unemployment fell to 1.1 percent, which is an all-time low for the region. As of this report, unemployment is under 1 percent. Last year, records were set in power generation, agriculture, housing and road construction. The volume of agricultural output will double over the next five years. A balanced state policy, renewal of the machine and tractor fleet, wider use of fertiliser together and efforts to improve the quality of the seeds have yielded results. The Governor stressed that these results were achieved without the use of labour from other countries.

The discussion also touched upon housing construction, relocation from dilapidated housing and road construction. The opening of the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe international highway bridge across the Amur River came as an important event in 2022. On the instruction of the President, the construction of another motor bridge across the Zeya River in Blagoveshchensk will be completed this year, and two overbridges are being built to pass through the Trans-Siberian Railway in Novobureisky and Seryshevo. There is an acute need for two more overpasses in Zavitinsk and Vozzhayevka. The Governor asked the President to instruct the Ministry of Transport to allocate funding for this construction in 2024-2026. The Russian-Chinese Dzhalinda-Mohe railway bridge across the Amur River is another important international state project to be used primarily for transporting coal from Yakutia's southern deposits. The Governor asked the President to instruct the Government to make this project part of the plan for developing key areas of Russian-Chinese economic cooperation to 2030.

Russian-Chinese trade and economic relations are developing dynamically. In conjunction with China, the region has been hosting AmurExpoForum for 20 years now. The next one will take place on May 25-27 as a platform for the Eastern Economic Forum. According to the Governor, there is a plan to build an Expocentre in Blagoveshchensk under the Far Eastern concession for a permanent display of goods made by Russian and Chinese manufacturers.

Vasily Orlov also reported on the construction of a second runway at Blagoveshchensk Airport, designed to receive any type of aircraft, and of a passenger terminal slated to open in 2025. The region has partnered with Russian Railways to prepare for the 50th anniversary of the Baikal-Amur Mainline, which will be marked in July 2024.

Also discussed were issues pertaining to gasification and social partnership with Gazprom: in particular, 30 sporting facilities were built or upgraded under the Gazprom For Children programme. Implementation of 12 national projects, which include 120 events worth a total of 11.6 billion rubles, was also discussed.

The Governor talked about the assistance the region is rendering to the Amvrosiyevsky district in the Donetsk People's Republic, an area under their patronage, including the signing of a three-year agreement. Repair of social facilities, roads, housing and utilities infrastructure facilities is underway; assistance is provided to local teachers in terms of arranging advanced training for them; a childhood development centre has been opened.

Vasily Orlov also touched on the issue of the special military operation, saying that men from the Amur Region have been fulfilling the tasks given to them with honour and dignity. The regional authorities are maintaining direct communication with unit commanders and are providing assistance to army units. Special attention is being given to the families of the mobilised. In all, 30 measures of support are being provided at the regional level.

The Governor emphasised the important role that the Rokossovsky Far Eastern Higher Military Command School is playing in training the mobilised personnel. Since 1940, the school has prepared 28,000 officers, of which 52 were awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union or Hero of the Russian Federation. During the special military operation alone, 11 graduates of the Rokossovsky Far Eastern Higher School received this highest decoration. This military school trains officers from 40 countries and is one of the best of its kind in Russia, a point of pride and a symbol of the Amur Region and the city of Blagoveshchensk. Mr Orlov asked the President to grant the school the honorary Guards designation.

Also, the Governor noted that, according to the Defence Ministry, the region ranks third in the country in terms of patriotic education. Over 500 divisions of patriotic education clubs and young army cadet squads are working in the region, with 17 percent of young people being involved in their activities. In early May, the Avangard Youth Centre opened in Blagoveshchensk. A stadium, a drill ground and obstacle courses are up and running. There are plans to build a teaching block and a dormitory.

Vasily Orlov also asked the President for support in creating in the region a comprehensive system of social and medical assistance for the fighters returning from the special military operation. A rehabilitation centre has to be created for this purpose.

Vladimir Putin suggested discussing a number of other issues, in part, those related to large investment projects and priority development territory. He recalled that the Amur Region is implementing three federal projects directly linked with the President's decisions, including the expansion of the Baikal-Amur Mainline and the Trans-Siberian Railway - the Eastern Operating Domain, the gas cluster - Gazprom's gas processing plant and the SIBUR petrochemical complex, plus the Vostochny Cosmodrome. The Governor reported that the biggest projects are being carried out on schedule. There are some difficulties due to the sanctions but no big deviations from the plans set forth by the President five years ago.

The President and the Governor also discussed the risks of floods and wildfires that are typical for the region. Vasily Orlov confirmed that there were eight floods in ten years, three of which were quite large. The Governor expressed confidence that the region would be prepared for the flood period as it has been in past years. As for fires, the region has already passed the peak of the dangerous spring period. The main achievement in the past few years was preventing fires from reaching residential areas. There were no casualties.

Vladimir Putin promised that all the documents submitted by the Governor would be reviewed.

Vasily Orlov asked the President to support his nomination for governor in the upcoming autumn election as his five-year term expires soon. Mr Orlov said he has a good, effective team that knows how the region should develop.

The President noted that the region has done much, and he hopes that it will do even more in the future. He advised the Governor to share the results of his work with the region's residents and tell the public what is planned for the near future. He said he believes the people will support Vasily Orlov and wished him success.

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Meeting with Novosibirsk Region Governor Andrei Travnikov

Vladimir Putin held a working meeting with Novosibirsk Region Governor Andrei Travnikov via videoconference.

May 16, 2023

17:10

The Kremlin, Moscow

Andrei Travnikov noted that he reported on the region's key 2022 performance results in January and spoke about changes in the first quarter of 2023. The region's economy remains stable. Industries that have picked up a good pace continue to expand. In particular, the manufacturing industry grew by over 5 percent. The agro-industrial complex performed well and remains Siberia's second largest industry in terms of output and first in terms of exports. Infrastructure development programmes are underway. The Clean Water project will be completed within two years and by late 2024 almost all urban residents in the region and over 90 percent of rural residents will have access to clean drinking water from centralised water distribution systems. Much effort will go into developing gas infrastructure in the region. Gazprom's share of investment has increased ninefold. The construction of residential housing and social facilities is proceeding at a fast pace.

According to the Governor, assistance for the sponsored Belovodsky District in the Lugansk People's Republic is being provided under a separate programme. In addition to repairs, it includes the constant presence of Novosibirsk doctors, teachers, and utilities workers in that district.

Andrei Travnikov noted that supporting military personnel who perform their duty as part of the special military operation and their families is a top priority compared to other major challenges and programmes. A regional project has been launched to provide comprehensive rehabilitation to those wounded in the special military operation. The project includes social adaptation with 34 free training programmes for new professions and assistance in finding employment.

Plans are in place to build a rehabilitation centre. A parcel of land with utility connections has been allocated in a resort area. In this regard, the Governor asked the President to support the implementation of this project.

The President asked about the priority socioeconomic development territories in the region. Andrei Travnikov said the socioeconomic situation was favourable with zero unemployment and no decline in individual income. There are two such territories in the region, the Linyovo and the Gorny. Linyovo is home to an electrode plant and Gorny has a plant that makes railway equipment.

Andrei Travnikov also answered the President's question about the Tolmachevo Airport. Last year, 7.6 million passengers were served, and a wide-scale investment programme is underway. He noted that in February the President took part in the ceremony for opening a new terminal. The investor plans to continue working on this project with the second and third phases coming soon. The second part of this major effort includes renovating runways to accommodate the growing capacity. A new contract was signed recently with a Novosibirsk contractor to continue work on the second runway.

Vladimir Putin raised an issue about the Siberian Circular Photon Source shared research facility (SRF "SKIF"). According to the Governor, the erection of the foundation blocks for the synchrotron under construction will soon be completed. This is a unique piece of equipment that is unmatched anywhere in the world. All of it was manufactured by the Russian enterprises with the bulk of the work performed by a pilot production facility operated by the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, but the cooperation is broad and includes Novosibirsk-based companies and other machine-building enterprises and electronic industry enterprises. The beam should be ready to go in 2024.

The President noted the region's effective financial policy as evidenced by the regional budget surplus and the Governor's focus on social issues, including dilapidated housing. However, he brought the Governor's attention to the fact that ambulance crews and vehicles were in short supply and schools and kindergartens were unable to meet the demand in full.

According to the President, the Governor's written requests will be reviewed and submitted to the Government.

Andrei Travnikov said his term of office as the Novosibirsk Region Governor was coming to an end that year and said that he considered himself a member of a large national team and was ready to take on any challenge, therefore he would like to take part in this year's election campaign in order for the Novosibirsk residents to cast a vote on his performance, and he hoped to have their support.

The President said that, overall, the Governor and his team were successful in fulfilling the goals assigned to them, made good calls determining the main areas of growth and achieved good results in critical areas, identified challenges and dealt with them. The President also wished Andrei Travnikov every success in his work.

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Saudi Chief of General Staff and U.S. Central Command Chief Discuss Mutual Cooperation

Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, May 18, 2023, SPA -- The Saudi Chief of General Staff, Lt. Gen. Fayyad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili, received in Riyadh on Wednesday the commander of U.S. Central Command, Lieutenant General Michael Eric Corella, currently on an official visit to the Kingdom.

Lt. Gen. Al-Ruwaili and Lieutenant General Corella discussed aspects of joint cooperation and coordination in the defense and military fields within the framework of the strategic relations that unite the two friendly countries.

During the meeting, the two sides also discussed several issues and topics of common interest.

--SPA

03:16 LOCAL TIME 00:16 GMT

0006

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Syrian FM, Saudi counterpart meet ahead of Arab summit in Jeddah

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 6:36 PM

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad and his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, have met on the sidelines of preparatory meetings for the Arab League summit in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, discussing the reopening of their countries' embassies among other issues.

The two top diplomats met and conversed on Wednesday, following the third consecutive day of the Arab Economic and Social Council meetings held ahead of the Arab summit in Jeddah on May 19.

"The leaders of Syria and Saudi Arabia have decided to move forward and there's no step backwards," Mekdad was quoted as saying by Syria's official news agency SANA.

"We have discussed all issues, among which the preparations for the Arab summit as we are satisfied with all the work achieved so far on this matter," he added.

The Syrian foreign minister stressed that upon the directives of the two countries' leadership, the bilateral relations will be promoted to a level that serves the interests of Riyadh and Damascus.

"We also discussed the issue of opening the two embassies in both countries, and Syria and Saudi Arabia will provide all the necessary facilities for the opening of the two embassies," Mekdad said.

The meetings of the Arab Economic and Social Council are discussing ways to enhance joint Arab action to achieve sustainable development, and address other social and economic issues of concern to Arab countries.

Arab government representatives in Cairo voted on May 7 to return Syria to the Arab League after a 12-year suspension, with all 13 of the 22 member states attending the session endorsing the decision.

The Arab League had suspended the membership of Syria, one of its founding members, in November 2011, at the start of foreign-backed militancy in the country. Syria denounced the move as "illegal and a violation of the organization's charter."

Riyadh and Damascus agreed in March to resume diplomatic relations and re-open embassies after more than a decade, prompting other Arab countries to race for the re-establishment of ties with Syria.

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Foreign Minister Meets with Syrian Foreign Minister

Saudi Press Agency

Jeddah, May 17, 2023, SPA -- Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, met in Jeddah today with Dr. Fayssal Mikdad, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic, on the sidelines of the Preparatory Ministerial Meeting of the Arab League Council at the Summit Level in its 32nd session.

During the meeting, they discussed the latest developments in the Syrian arena and the region, exchanging views on matters of common concern.

Additionally, the two sides exchanged perspectives on the agenda items of the Preparatory Ministerial Meeting of the Arab League Council at the Summit Level in its 32nd session.

--SPA

18:28 LOCAL TIME 15:28 GMT

0034

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TPP formally nominates Ko as its presidential candidate

ROC Central News Agency

05/17/2023 03:33 PM

Taipei, May 17 (CNA) The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) made its nomination of party founder and chairman Ko Wen-je () as its 2024 presidential candidate official Wednesday, setting up a three-way race for the Republic of China (Taiwan) presidency.

Ko was the only TPP member seeking the party's nomination, and his candidacy had been a foregone conclusion for months.

His registration information was reviewed by the TPP Central Committee, which approved it during a meeting Wednesday.

Ko did not schedule any public appearances for Wednesday, but he is expected to give a platform presentation centered on "harmony, reconciliation, and peace" in New Taipei on May 20.

On May 8, Ko was asked by reporters whom he would choose to be his running mate, to which he replied that the TPP welcomed anyone who fit the bill to sign on.

The former Taipei mayor said at the time, however, that Huang Shan-shan (), one of his deputy mayors during his second mayoral term, would be a "fine candidate."

There has been media speculation that Ko might try to form a partnership with Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. founder Terry Gou (), who was spurned by the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) for its presidential nomination.

During a radio interview with former New Power Party lawmaker Huang Kuo-chang () on Tuesday, however, Ko said Gou was apparently not interested in partnering with him.

"He [Gou] has ruled out the possibility" by saying that he would support New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih () if he lost to Hou in securing the KMT's nomination, Ko said.

"At that time I thought, 'I don't seem to have anything to do with this,'" Ko said.

Gou followed through on his pledge by expressing his support for Hou and his willingness to help Hou win in a Facebook post Wednesday, when Hou was nominated as the KMT's presidential candidate at a meeting of the party's Central Standing Committee.

Hou and Ko will be part of a three-way race that also includes the current frontrunner according to polls, Vice President Lai Ching-te () of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party.

Previous polls have shown Ko to have the support of 20-25 percent of all eligible voters.

As the TPP's main support base is made up of both pan-blue and pan-green voters, Ko's entry into the presidential race has added greater unpredictability to the outcome.

The pan-blue alliance generally favors friendlier relations with China, while the pan-green camp has generally adopted a more adversarial stance toward Beijing.

(By Sean Lin and Kuo Chien-shen)

Enditem/ls

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New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih named as KMT presidential nominee

ROC Central News Agency

05/17/2023 02:24 PM

Taipei, May 17 (CNA) New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih () was nominated Wednesday as the opposition Kuomintang's (KMT) presidential candidate, while the other main contender, business tycoon Terry Gou (), vowed to support Hou's candidacy and help him win in January 2024.

KMT Chairman Eric Chu () announced the nomination of Hou at a meeting of the party's Central Standing Committee, which in March gave Chu a mandate to choose anyone with the best chance to defeat the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

After considering "scientific data and the opinions of local government heads and lawmakers...I solemnly declare that our party has drafted Hou Yu-ih to run in the Republic of China's 2024 presidential election," Chu said.

The 65-year-old Hou was widely billed as the KMT's preferred candidate in the race, but he has been very coy about his candidacy, presumably because he did not want to seem too eager to pursue the nomination so soon after being reelected as New Taipei mayor on Nov. 26, 2022.

Recently, however, Hou has started to express opinions on relations with China, seen as a way to establish his credentials on major issues before accepting the presidential nomination.

In April, Hou drew an analogy between the "Republic of China (ROC) and Taiwan" as "glass and water," urging people in Taiwan to reach a consensus on the "inseparable" relationship and urging the international community to recognize the ROC's existence.

Gou, founder of the Hon Hai Technology Group, or Foxconn, the world's biggest contract manufacturing company, began competing for the KMT's presidential nomination in early April.

During his campaign, the 72-year-old has advocated accepting "one China, with different interpretations" -- Taiwan and China hold different interpretation of what China means -- in order to resume talks with Beijing and maintain cross-Taiwan Strait peace.

An hour before the KMT committee meeting on Wednesday, Gou voiced his support for Hou in a Facebook post, congratulating the mayor for being nominated as the KMT's presidential candidate.

"Mayor Hou has the most solid foundation of public support within the KMT, so it is only natural for him to assume greater responsibility. He is also the best candidate in the KMT," Gou wrote.

"I will keep my promise and do everything I can to support Mayor Hou to win the 2024 general election and get rid of the incompetent government," he wrote.

(By Shih Hsiu-chuan)

Enditem/ls

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KMT presidential nominee Hou Yu-ih vows to return party to power

ROC Central News Agency

05/17/2023 05:06 PM

Taipei, May 17 (CNA) New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih () said on Wednesday that he will unite supporters and lead the Kuomintang (KMT) to a return to power in the 2024 presidential election, after the opposition party nominated him as its candidate in the race.

"We must be determined to engage in disruptive change if we want there to be another shift in power," Hou said, after his nomination was announced by KMT Chairman Eric Chu () at a meeting of the Central Standing Committee Wednesday.

At a time when the nation is facing fierce challenges internationally and internal divisions that have left many things still to be done, and young generations see no future for themselves, only when the KMT returns to power "can we save the nation and save Taiwan," Hou said.

Safeguarding the Republic of China (ROC), the formal name of Taiwan, while loving the people and the land of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matzu islands is his "lifelong" belief, he said, referring to the territory under the jurisdiction of the ROC.

The KMT's Central Standing Committee in March gave Chu a mandate to "draft" anyone with the best chance to defeat the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the election in January 2024, at a time when no one in the party had declared their candidacy.

After considering "scientific data and the opinions of local government heads and lawmakers...I solemnly declare that our party has drafted Hou Yu-ih to run in the Republic of China's 2024 presidential election," Chu told the meeting, which was open to the media.

Hou was widely billed as the KMT's preferred candidate in the race, but he has been very coy about his candidacy, presumably because he did not want to seem too eager to pursue the nomination so soon after being reelected as New Taipei mayor on Nov. 26, 2022.

By contrast, Terry Gou (), the founder of Hon Hai Technology Group, had aggressively campaigned for the nomination since early April.

Throughout the campaign, Gou has held seminars and rallies to solicit public support while unveiling policy platforms on issues ranging from relations with China to subsidies for childcare.

Many had wondered how Gou would react to not winning the nomination, especially because he immediately quit the party in a fit of pique in 2019 after losing its poll-based presidential primary to then Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu ().

This time, an hour before the KMT committee meeting, Gou voiced his support for Hou in a Facebook post, congratulating the mayor for being nominated as the KMT's presidential candidate.

"Mayor Hou has the most solid foundation of public support within the KMT, so it is only natural for him to assume greater responsibility. He is also the best candidate in the KMT," Gou wrote.

"I will keep my promise and do everything I can to support Mayor Hou to win the 2024 general election and get rid of the incompetent government," he wrote.

Both Chu and Hou thanked Gou for the business tycoon's "show of solidarity" ahead of the three-way race that will feature Vice President Lai Ching-te () of the DPP and former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je () of the Taiwan People's Party.

Chu praised Gou as the most important leader of the pan-blue camp and partner the KMT must work with to score election victory, defend the ROC, and secure cross-strait peace.

During Gou's campaign, he voiced his support for the "1992 consensus," proposing that the idea of "one China, different interpretations" can serve as a basis for the two sides to resume negotiations and ensure peace and stability.

According to the KMT, the "1992 consensus" refers to a tacit understanding reached in 1992 between the then-KMT government and its Chinese counterpart that both sides recognize there is only "one China," with each having its own interpretation of what China means.

The term "1992 consensus" was not coined until 2000 by former Mainland Affairs Council head Su Chi ().

The consensus was used as the formula to underpin closer ties between Taiwan and China when the KMT's Ma Ying-jeou () was president of the ROC from 2008 to 2016.

The DPP has rejected the so-called consensus, arguing that it is tantamount to accepting Beijing's "one China principle," which insists that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of China.

Unlike Gou and most KMT politicians who strongly back the "1992 consensus," however, Hou has not endorsed that concept.

Hou has said little about international relations during his time as New Taipei mayor, but had begun voicing opinions on relations with China recently when fielding questions from his KMT colleagues at New Taipei City Council meetings, possibly to establish his credentials on major issues before the nomination.

On some occasions, Hou has said he opposed the "one country, two systems" formula proposed by Beijing for Taiwan to promote unification and he was against pursuing "Taiwan independence" because it "has no legal basis."

When asked about his position on the "1992 consensus" recently, Hou has replied by emphasizing the importance of safeguarding the ROC and its free and democratic system.

"The ROC is our country and Taiwan is our home. We have to take good care of our home and country," Hou said on May 9, in response to such questions.

Recently, Hou also drew an analogy between the "ROC and Taiwan" as "glass and water," urging people in Taiwan to reach a consensus on the "inseparable" relationship and the international community to recognize the ROC's existence.

Born to a family whose father was a veteran and a pork vendor in Chiayi County, the 65-year-old Hou began his police career in 1980 after graduating from Central Police University.

He worked his way up to serve as National Police Agency (NPA) chief before reaching the age of 50, becoming the youngest person ever to assume the top NPA post.

Hou rose to national prominence in the 1990s because of his involvement in investigating several high-profile kidnapping and fraud cases and murders and shootings that made national headlines, and he was promoted to NPA head during the previous DPP government.

After the KMT came to power in 2008, Hou was made president of Central Police University before stepping into politics two years later to serve as then New Taipei Mayor Eric Chu's deputy from 2010 to 2018.

During that time, he served as acting mayor for three months in 2015 when Chu took time off to make an unsuccessful run for president.

Hou first ran for office in 2018 and won the most votes ever for a New Taipei mayoral candidate with 1.16 million votes to defeat DPP rival Su Tseng-chang ().

At the time, Hou faced criticism over his role in leading a raid that preceded the death of Freedom Era Weekly magazine publisher Nylon Cheng () on April 7, 1989.

Cheng set himself on fire after 71 days of self-imposed isolation in the magazine's office to reject arrest by police on charges of sedition for publishing a draft "Taiwan Republic Constitution" in the magazine.

In an interview in 2018, Hou said that as chief of the criminal investigation division at the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongshan Precinct, he was following orders to execute the warranted arrest and was also trying to save lives.

Hou set another record for a New Taipei mayoral election in 2022 for winning by the biggest margin when he defeated DPP candidate Lin Chia-lung () by over 450,000 votes to secure reelection.

(By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Sunrise Huang)

Enditem/ls

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U.S. not allowed to turn back wheel of history on Taiwan question: Chinese defense spokesperson

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 08:18, May 17, 2023

BEIJING, May 16 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese defense spokesperson Tuesday said that attempts of the U.S. side to turn back the wheel of history on the Taiwan question are intolerable.

Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense, made the remarks in response to media reports that the U.S. government plans to provide weapons aid to Taiwan through the Presidential Drawdown Authority and that the U.S. military has recently sent its service members to Taiwan to help train local troops.

Commenting on the U.S. moves, Tan said that for some time, the United States has stepped up its military collusion with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities by strengthening military contacts and upgrading substantive relations between the two sides, which has shaken the foundation of China-U.S. relations and undermined the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

"China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposed to these wrong and dangerous moves and has lodged solemn representations with the U.S. side," he added.

The Taiwan question is at the very core of China's core interests and remains the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations, Tan noted.

The "Three Principles," namely, severing so-called "diplomatic relations," abrogating the "mutual defense treaty" with the Taiwan authorities, and withdrawing U.S. military forces from Taiwan, are the preconditions for the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, he said.

"We sternly warn the U.S. side to earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-U.S. joint communiques, fulfill its commitment of not supporting 'Taiwan independence,' and stop any forms of military collusion with Taiwan," the spokesperson said.

"We sternly warn the DPP authorities and the 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces that any attempt to seek independence by soliciting U.S. support or by force would lead nowhere," he added.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army will continue to strengthen military training and combat readiness, decisively crush "Taiwan independence" attempts and external interference in any form, and resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Tan said.

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Chinese Embassy Slams Truss' Visit to Taiwan as 'Political Show'

Sputnik News

20230517

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Chinese Embassy in London on Tuesday opposed the visit of former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss to Taiwan and called it a "political show."

"British politician Liz Truss's recent visit to Taiwan is a dangerous political show which will do nothing but harm to the UK," the embassy said on the website. "This provocative move has caused strong indignation among the Chinese people and will be firmly rejected by people with conscience from all walks of life."

The embassy added that "the greatest threat to peace across the Taiwan Strait now is 'Taiwan independence' activities and foreign forces' connivance at and support for them."

"By playing the 'Taiwan card' and engaging in political shows, Truss and the like are colluding with the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces to provoke confrontation and escalate tensions across the Taiwan Strait. What they did has fully revealed their sinister intentions," the statement read.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Taiwanese media reported Truss arrived at Taoyuan International Airport and was welcomed by Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu. She is expected to give a speech early Wednesday in Taipei dubbed "Taiwan: On the Frontline of Freedom and Democracy."

Truss announced her visit last week.

Last week, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the UK parliament's lower house, harshly criticized Truss's decision to visit Taiwan and called the trip "perfomative" and "the worst kind" of diplomacy for Instagram (banned in Russia over extremism), warning that it might cause a serious escalation in the region, as happened after the visit of then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan in August 2022, as quoted by The Guardian.

Taiwan, which has been governed independently from mainland China since 1949, is viewed by Beijing as its province, while Taipei a a territory with its own elected government a maintains it is an autonomous country but stops short of declaring independence.

Beijing opposes any official contacts of foreign states with Taipei and considers Chinese sovereignty over the island indisputable.

A Sputnik

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Chinese mainland calls Taiwan's DPP authorities "real threat" to cross-Strait peace

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 10:49, May 18, 2023

BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday said that Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities pose a real threat to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

The DPP authorities have adhered to their "Taiwan independence" agenda and colluded with external forces to provoke the mainland and create tension across the Strait, Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said at a press conference.

He made the comment in response to Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen's claim that the mainland had stepped up its "threats" against Taiwan with military drills and undermined regional peace and stability.

Ma said that relevant military exercises conducted by the People's Liberation Army were justified acts that responded to provocations, defended national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and protected peace, stability and the interests of people on both sides of the Strait.

The best way for the DPP authorities to avoid wars is to abandon their separatist "Taiwan independence" stance and turn to a path of peaceful development for cross-Strait relations, he said.

The consequence of creating confrontation across the Strait and acting as a pawn that foreign forces use to contain China is gradually dragging Taiwan into war, Ma warned.

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Mainland calls on DPP authorities to scrap cross-Strait flight restrictions

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 10:47, May 18, 2023

BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday called on Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities to scrap unreasonable restrictions on fully restoring direct cross-Strait passenger flights as soon as possible.

Ma Xiaoguang, the spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks at a press conference, noting that the DPP authorities, out of their own interests, do not scruple to conduct political manipulations to the detriment of the immediate interests of Taiwan compatriots on the mainland.

He urged the DPP authorities to listen to the people's opinions and remove the unreasonable restrictions on the destinations of direct cross-Strait flights as soon as possible to facilitate cross-Strait personnel exchanges and ensure smooth home-coming travel for Taiwan compatriots on the mainland.

He also called on the DPP authorities to stop citing various excuses to hinder the restoration of cross-Strait tourism.

The spokesperson pointed out that since May 2016, the DPP authorities, refusing to accept the one-China principle, have been distorting and denying the 1992 Consensus and entrenching themselves in the secessionist position of "Taiwan independence." He criticized the DPP authorities for colluding with external forces, making provocations to seek "Taiwan independence," and creating confrontations between the two sides of the Strait, undermining cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation and causing tensions between the two sides.

He noted that aspiration for peace, development, exchanges, and cooperation is the common will of people on the two sides of the Strait in line with the interests of compatriots on both sides.

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Millions of children still facing dire conditions 100 days after TArkiye-Syria quakes: UNICEF

17 May 2023 - More than six million boys and girls in TArkiye and Syria are still struggling to cope 100 days after the deadly earthquakes that hit both countries, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported on Wednesday.

In total, 2.5 million children in TArkiye, and another 3.7 million in neighbouring Syria, need continued humanitarian assistance, the UN agency said, appealing for greater support for affected families.

The earthquakes which struck on 6 February, followed by thousands of aftershocks, have pushed families to the brink and left children homeless and without access to water, education, medical care, and other essential services.

'Lives turned upside down'

"In the aftermath of the earthquakes, children in both countries have experienced unimaginable loss and grief," said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, who visited both countries just weeks after the double disaster.

"The earthquakes struck areas where many families were already incredibly vulnerable. Children have lost family and loved ones, and seen their homes, schools and communities devastated and their entire lives turned upside down," she added.

Even before the earthquakes, many families in affected areas were struggling, according to the UN agency.

Young lives in danger

In the regions of TArkiye impacted, approximately 40 per cent of households were already living below the poverty line, compared to around 32 per cent nationwide, and estimates indicate the figure could rise to more than 50 per cent.

Vulnerable children in hard-hit areas are exposed to threats including violence, forced marriage, forced labour, and dropping out of school. The education of nearly four million children, who were enrolled in school, was also disrupted. This number includes more than 350,000 young refugees and migrants.

UNICEF warned that although TArkiye has made strides in reducing these risks in recent years, the impact of the earthquakes could reverse that progress.

Syrian war impact

Meanwhile, children in Syria were already struggling after 12 years of war, which has had an impact on all infrastructure and public services - a situation that was exacerbated by the earthquakes.

The severe damage to water and sewage infrastructure has put 6.5 million people at an elevated risk of waterborne diseases, including cholera.

UNICEF estimated that 51,000 children under the age of five are likely to suffer from moderate and severe acute malnutrition, and 76,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women need treatment for acute malnutrition.

Additionally, it is estimated that nearly two million children have had their education disrupted, with many schools still being used as shelters.

Exploitation and abuse risks

Many of these boys and girls are still living in incredibly difficult situations. They also face heightened stress due to the additional uncertainty of not knowing when they need to move from one shelter to another.

"The long-term impacts of the disaster, including soaring food and energy prices combined with loss of livelihoods and access to services will push hundreds of thousands of children deeper into poverty," Ms. Russell said, underscoring the need for continued support to families.

"Unless financial assistance and essential services are prioritized for these children and families as part of the immediate and long-term recovery plan, then children will remain at greater risk of exploitation and abuse."

Focus on children

UNICEF urged the international community to prioritize what it called "a child-focused early recovery", while also highlighting the need to build back better.

The agency also called for continued investment in key areas, including financial assistance for families, access to quality education, and access to psychosocial support.

Furthermore, continued funding is needed for health, nutrition and water, sanitation and hygiene programmes, including to reduce the risks of disease outbreaks.

UNICEF is appealing for $172.7 million to meet the lifesaving needs of nearly three million earthquake-affected children in Syria. Some $78.1 million has been received to date, with the areas of nutrition, health and education remaining significantly underfunded.

Across the border, UNICEF still requires more than $85 million of a $196 million appeal to provide required services to children in TArkiye.

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PM remarks at the opening session of the Council of Europe

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's remarks at the opening session of the Council of Europe in Reykjavik.

16 May 2023



Addressing a huge crowd on the streets of Strasbourg in 1949 Winston Churchill, one of the founding fathers of this Council spoke about "le gAnie de l'Europe." [the genius of Europe]

He was talking about what makes our continent so successful, the values of freedom, democracy and the rule of law.

The same spirit we've seen again and again that led Vaclav Havel to broadcast his messages of freedom during the suppression of the Prague Spring, that brought down the Berlin Wall and that leads Ukraine to defend its sovereignty with such valour, inspiring us to stand with them all.

The Council of Europe has nurtured that spirit for three quarters of a century.

And it must do so again now.

Because today, we are facing the greatest threat to democracy and the rule of law on our continent since before the Treaty of London was signed.

With Russia waging a war of aggression on European soil, and China growing in assertiveness the world is becoming more contested and more volatile.

The challenge to our values is growing.

And the moment to push back is now.

Democracies like ours must build resilience so that we can out-cooperate and out-compete those who drive instability.

That's why we're working so closely with our friends across Europe through the G7, NATO, the Joint Expeditionary Force, the European Political Community and with a welcome new tone in our relations with the European Union.

Friends, the UK may have left the EU, but we have not left Europe.

We remain a proud European nation.

And we must work together to defend the values we all hold so dear.

The Council of Europe, with its huge reach, has such a vital role to play.

And we need to think about how this Council should react to the realities of today.

We showed great purpose in expelling Russia last year - acting decisively together within days of the invasion.

Let's bring that dynamism to the issues before us now. And let's send a message from this hall, loud and clear that we will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes.

We will hold Russia accountable for the horrendous war crimes that have been committed.

And we must also learn the lesson of this war - by being prepared to confront threats to our societies before they become too big to deal with.

That includes acting on cyber security and AI and it means tackling illegal migration.

The moral case for action is clear.

We can't just sit back and watch as criminal gangs profiteer on people's misery.

Illegal migration exploits the most vulnerable. It risks crowding out those with a genuine case for asylum. And it strains the trust that our citizens have - not just in our domestic borders, but in the international system.

That's why so many of us are already acting at the national level. And why we need to do more to cooperate across borders and across jurisdictions and to end illegal migration and stop the boats.

The Council already plays a vital role but I urge leaders to consider how we can go further.

Because we know what we can achieve together. Just look at this Council's extraordinary legacy: protecting human rights, abolishing the death penalty in Europe, supporting media freedom and championing democracy across Central and Eastern Europe after the Cold War.

So let's take heart from that, and keep rising to the many challenges before us, true to our enduring values and certain that, as Churchill went on tell the Strasbourg crowd, the dangers before us are great... but great too is our strength.

Thank you.

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PM meeting with Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte

The Prime Minister met Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte at the Council of Europe Summit in Iceland.

16 May 2023



The Prime Minister met Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte at the Council of Europe Summit in Iceland today.

The leaders reflected on the closeness of our two countries and on the importance of working together to tackle shared challenges such as illegal migration and the threat posed by Russia.

The Prime Minister updated Prime Minister Rutte on President Zelenskyy's visit to the UK yesterday and discussions on how the international community can support Ukraine at this pivotal moment in the resistance to Putin's invasion.

The Prime Minister and Prime Minister Rutte agreed they would work to build international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting with everything from training to procuring F16 jets.

The Prime Minister reiterated his belief that Ukraine's rightful place is in NATO and the leaders agreed on the importance of allies providing long-term security assistance to Ukraine to guarantee they can deter against future attacks.

The leaders agreed to continue working together both bilaterally and through forums such as the European Political Community to tackle the scourge of people trafficking on our continent.

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The President: Russia must pay for the damage caused to Ukraine by the war

President of the Republic of Lithuania

May 16, 2023

President Gitanas NausAda is currently in Reykjavik for the Fourth Council of Europe Summit. Tuesday evening, he took part in the roundtable "Supporting Ukraine - Solidarity and Accountability".

Addressing the participants in the discussion, the President underlined that in the context of Russia's war in Ukraine, Europe has demonstrated unity and political will, and has consistently supported and continues to support Ukraine with all means in its fight against the aggressor. According to Gitanas NausAda, it is necessary to step up military assistance to Ukraine until victory is achieved and the aggressor is defeated. The President underscored the importance of maintaining the spirit of support for Ukraine among European citizens and not letting war fatigue set in.

Gitanas NausAda pointed out that it is critical to ensure that Russia is held accountable for the crimes of war and aggression committed in Ukraine. According to the President, the creation of a Special Tribunal would be the most effective way to bring those responsible for war crimes to account. Therefore, it is necessary to continue building an international coalition and to work towards putting this idea into effect. Gitanas NausAda stressed that accountability is crucial as avoiding it will encourage Russia to commit crimes of aggression again and again.

The President welcomed the Council of Europe's decision on the Register of Damage to document the consequences of Russia's war in Ukraine.

"For more than a year now, Russia has been ruthlessly destroying and ravaging Ukraine. I am confident that Ukraine will prevail, but once victory is achieved, Russia will have to take responsibility for its actions. We must ensure that the aggressor pays for the damage caused to Ukraine and its people by the war. The aggressor inevitably will have to take full responsibility for the atrocities committed in Ukraine," the President said.

The Fourth Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik has gathered the leaders of 46 member states as well as representatives of observer states and international organizations from around the world.

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We are Europeans, so we act at one hundred percent of our strength when it comes to protecting our way of life - speech by the President of Ukraine at the opening of the Fourth Summit of the Council of Europe

President of Ukraine

16 May 2023 - 23:14

Thank you so much!

Prime Minister JakobsdAttir, dear Katrin, thank you for invitation to participate in the Summit of our Council of Europe and for your sincere desire to help Ukraine.

Dear leaders of Europe!

Today, Ukraine went through a difficult challenge - an intense Russian missile attack. Such challenges are what we all have to pay attention to now.

At three o'clock in the morning, our people woke up to explosions... Eighteen Russian missiles of different types were in our sky - in particular, ballistic ones, which the terrorist state has boasted about. We were told such missiles would bring a guaranteed death, because they are supposedly impossible to shoot down.

Russia used ballistics, cruise missiles, drones at the same time - to make it especially difficult for our air defence to save lives. But all lives were protected - all missiles were shot down, including ballistic ones. One hundred percent! This is a historical result. Thank you all!

Russia is trying very hard to improve its ability to kill. We are trying very hard to improve the protection of our people. And I thank all the countries and leaders who help us to improve our air defence! All together we are showing what our one hundred percent mean, and what the power of the free world means.

And of course I thank every our soldier who makes this job done - in our skies and on our land, and especially I thank each and every one who trains our warriors in different train missions which are all similar in one point - in success. Thanks to all of them! Thanks to all of you!

A year ago, we were not able to shoot down most of the terrorists' missiles, especially ballistic ones. And I am asking one thing now: if we're able to do this, is there anything we can't do when we're united and determined to protect lives? The answer is that we, in unity, will give one hundred percent in any field - when we have a goal to protect our people and our Europe.

Of course, there is still much to be done. Ukraine's territory is big, and to make air defence results like last night's the rule throughout the country, we need additional air defence systems and missiles. We also need modern fighter jets, without which no air defence system will be perfect. And I am sure we will get there.

One hundred percent should be our benchmark. We must leave zero percent to the aggressor!

One hundred percent of success of defence operations is guaranteed by weapons and training of our soldiers. I thank everyone who strengthens our defense!

One hundred percent of success of sanctions is guaranteed by honesty in every state policy. I am grateful to all those who treat the fight against terror in this way - honestly!

One hundred percent of success of our Peace Formula is guaranteed by diplomacy. I thank everyone who helps us unite the world to implement the Peace Formula, the only realistic peace plan!

And of course one hundred percent of justice, as there will be no reliable peace without justice.

I thank the Council of Europe - each and every of you personally! - for the decision on the Register of Damages caused by Russia's aggression. This brings closer the creation of a full-fledged Compensation Mechanism that will show the world that aggression is not worth even thinking about.

There should also be a Special Tribunal for the crime of aggression - so that those, whose heads this terror was born in, are brought to responsibility. I am sure that we will provide this result for one hundred percent.

Europe has been waiting for such times - times when leaders would act in one hundred percent unity and with one hundred percent results for the sake of protecting Europe, for the sake of our common values.

And finally this is what we are achieving now! Ukraine, all of Europe, and everyone who is currently at this Summit and who helps us.

We are Europeans, so we are free. We are Europeans, so we value peace. We are Europeans, so we act at one hundred percent of our strength when it comes to protecting our way of life. Let these be forever the rules of our continent!

Thank you for support!

C NNN!

Glory to all Europe!

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Together with Ukraine's partners, we will make the defense against terror as strong as possible - address by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

President of Ukraine

16 May 2023 - 22:26

Good health to you, fellow Ukrainians!

First of all, I want to thank all the defenders of our skies. Thank you, heroes!

Eighteen of the eighteen missiles were shot down. That's why we are constantly working on visits that will bring more opportunities, more Patriot, IRIS-T, Crotale, Hawk, NASAMS systems. Again and again, I thank all our partners in the world who have helped our country with the appropriate air defense systems!

Yesterday, we also agreed in Britain with Rishi, with Mr. Prime Minister, that we would work on a coalition of fighter jets - training, aircraft, results. Yesterday, this was also supported by French President Macron, and today it was supported by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. A good start for the coalition! Thank you all!

However, it is important to say one more thing.

We also have to remember how much effort it takes to get such weapons for Ukraine. How much time, energy, arguments, meetings and information work allowed us to build such an air defense system. This is a tremendous job... And I thank each and every one who is involved! At all levels! Day after day, month after month, our team has been working to ensure that we have protection of the sky. We used to hear that Patriots were supposedly unrealistic... And now here they are, Patriots.

And that's not all we will provide for Ukraine! Together with Ukraine's partners, we will make the defense against terror as strong as possible.

This morning, the first thing I did after returning from my foreign visits was holding a meeting of the Staff. There were reports from the commanders of operational directions, the Commander-in-Chief, government officials responsible for defense and intelligence.

General Syrskyi's report on the situation in the Bakhmut sector was very important. I thank all our warriors there, every soldier, sergeant and officer who are doing superhuman things in this area. Well done to all of them! And I would like to especially mention the 5th separate assault brigade, the paratroopers of the "Eightieth" and the warriors of the 57th separate motorized infantry brigade... Your courage, your determination and your success in destroying the enemy is extremely important! Thank you!

Tavria direction... "Seventy-ninth" - the glorious 79th separate air assault brigade, artillerymen of the 55th separate artillery brigade, 74th separate reconnaissance battalion, 116th separate territorial defense brigade, 128th separate mountain assault Zakarpattia brigade... Thank you! Your steadfastness and precision are exemplary.

I took part online in the Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik today. All the countries of free Europe, the strong leaders of our Europe... I thanked them for their support of our country and urged them to continue to work together one hundred percent so that we are protected - all of Ukraine, all of Europe, the entire free world - one hundred percent. No terrorist missile, no terrorist cannon and no terrorist blackmail should threaten freedom!

I held several meetings today on international events - we are doing everything to give our warriors even more opportunities to make the end of this war with our victory even closer.

We are preparing more news for Ukraine!

Glory to each of our warriors!

Glory to everyone who helps!

Glory to Ukraine!

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Canada joins Register of Damage for Ukraine

Global Affairs Canada

News release

May 17, 2023 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

Canada is working alongside its international partners to hold Russia to account as it continues to attack Ukraine's territorial integrity and the rules-based international order.

Today, the Honourable MAlanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced that Canada is joining the Council of Europe's (COE's) Register of Damage Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation Against Ukraine as a founding associate member. The Register is a legal mechanism that will serve as an important first step toward ensuring justice for Ukraine, including compensation for the considerable damage it has sustained as a result of Russia's aggression.

Canada joined the Register today at the Summit of the Council of Europe, in Reykjavik, Iceland, where Canada was represented by StAphane Dion, the Prime Minister's Special Envoy to the European Union and Europe.

The Register will serve to record evidence and claims regarding damage, loss or injury caused by Russia's illegal and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as well as to promote and coordinate evidence gathering. This repository of evidence will help support the establishment of a compensation mechanism at a later stage that will enable the people of Ukraine to rebuild their country and their lives.

Quotes

"Russia's ongoing indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure continue to cause immense human suffering and loss of life. While we cannot reverse the harm and pain experienced by the Ukrainian people, we can and we must do whatever it takes to secure justice for them." - MAlanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs

Quick facts

Established in 1949, the COE is an intergovernmental organization that brings together 46 member states, including all 27 members of the EU. Its objective is to promote human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe and beyond.

Canada obtained the status of COE observer state in 1996. However, the Government of Canada and Canadian parliamentarians have participated in COE activities for more than 50 years.

Since 2019, Canada has been a full and active member of the Venice Commission, a COE constitutional advisory body that provides the COE with legal advice on democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

On November 14, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution, co-led by Canada, Guatemala and the Netherlands, recommending the creation of a register of damage caused by Russia's aggression.

Since Russia's illegal occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea in 2014, Canada has imposed sanctions on more than 2,400 individuals and entities in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Many of these sanctions have been undertaken in coordination with Canada's allies and partners.

Since January 2022, Canada has committed more than $8 billion in funding for financial, military, humanitarian, development and immigration assistance to Ukraine.

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Heads of State and Government agree to strengthen Council of Europe, ensure accountability for Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, and support victims

Council of Europe

Council of Europe Summit

Reykjavik

17 May 2023

At the Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, Heads of State and Government of the organisation's 46 member states have decided to establish a Register of damage caused by the Russian Federation's aggression as a first step towards an international compensation mechanism. The leaders agreed to strengthen the Council of Europe and its work in the field of human rights, democracy and the rule of law by adopting a declaration on democracy principles, recommitting to the European Convention on Human Rights and developing tools to tackle emerging challenges in the area of technology and the environment.

Agreement on the Register of Damage for Ukraine

Council of Europe member states, as well as several non-member countries, including Canada, Japan and the United States, and the European Union (*) have agreed to set up a Register of damage caused by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. Intended as a first component of a future compensation mechanism, the Register will serve as a record of evidence and claims information on damage, loss or injury caused since 24 February 2022 to all affected natural and legal persons, as well as to the State of Ukraine. The Heads of State and Government expressed their willingness to engage in international initiatives to further developing such a mechanism, which may include a claims commission and compensation fund, stressing the Russian Federation's obligation to pay for the damage caused by its war of aggression.

The leaders also welcomed progress towards the establishment of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression and offered the Council of Europe's support to the process. They called on the Russian Federation to immediately release all civilians forcibly transferred or unlawfully deported to its territory or to temporarily controlled or occupied areas, in particular children. The Russian Federation should comply with its international obligations and withdraw its forces from Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova. Ukraine's reconstruction efforts will be supported through the Council's action plan for Ukraine "Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction" and the Council of Europe Development Bank.

Declaration on the situation of the children of Ukraine

Member states adopted a Declaration dedicated to the situation of the children, calling for support to Ukrainian authorities to ensure the immediate return of children unlawfully transferred and deported by Russian forces. All perpetrators of such crimes committed against children should be brought to justice. Assistance should also be provided to member states temporarily hosting Ukrainian children.

Reykjavik Principles for Democracy

Warning against democratic backsliding, Council of Europe leaders adopted the "Reykjavik Principles for Democracy", a range of principles to be respected by democratic states, such as freedom of expression, assembly and association, independent institutions, impartial and effective judiciaries, the fight against corruption and democratic participation of civil society and of young people.

Recommitting to the Convention System as the cornerstone of the Council of Europe's protection of human rights

The leaders of the 46 member states reaffirmed their deep and abiding commitment to the European Convention on Human Rights, their unwavering commitment to the Convention system as a mechanism to promote peace and stability in Europe and their unconditional obligation to abide by the final judgments of the Court.

The Council of Europe and the environment

Regarding the environment, the leaders affirmed that human rights and the environment are intertwined and that a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is key to the full enjoyment of human rights. The Council of Europe's work in this area should be based on the political recognition of the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment as a human right and on the extensive case law developed by the European Court of Human Rights.

Other major challenges

Finally, the Summit endorsed a number of other priorities of the Council of Europe: The significance of the European Union's accession to the European Convention on Human Rights; new standards to safeguard human rights in the digital era online and offline, in particular regarding artificial intelligence; the promotion of social rights in Europe through the Social Charter; continued co-operation with Belarusian democratic opposition forces as well as with Belarussian and Russian human rights defenders, free media and independent civil society.

(*) Forty one countries have joined the Enlarged Partial Agreement on the Register set up within the Council of Europe : Albania, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and United Kingdom; as well as Canada, Japan, Mexico and the USA. The European Union has also joined, while three other countries (Andorra, Bulgaria and Switzerland) have expressed their intention to join.

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The President at the Council of Europe Summit: Long-lasting and united European support and solidarity with Ukraine is the only right path

President of the Republic of Lithuania

May 17, 2023

President Gitanas NausAda is attending the Fourth Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik. Tuesday evening, the Lithuanian leader spoke at the "United for Ukraine" debate.

The President said that the brutal war launched by Russia in Ukraine has united Europe and that it has joined forces to defend freedom and democracy. He underlined that in the context of Russia's aggression and war crimes, Europe's long-lasting and united support and solidarity with Ukraine is the only right path.

The President stressed that, in addition to military support for Ukraine, the issue of reconstruction must also be addressed.

"The reconstruction of Ukraine cannot be put off until the end of the war. Reconstructing and rebuilding the country is a key factor for Ukraine's faster integration into the European Union. We need to see it as a coherent process. The start of accession negotiations this year would be a strong impetus for progress," the President said.

Speaking about the prospects for peace talks, Gitanas NausAda pointed out that they can be held only under conditions acceptable to Ukraine and based on Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"Peace on terms unacceptable to Ukraine would mean victory for the aggressor. Any proposals by third countries to give up territories in exchange for negotiations are irresponsible and inadmissible. Russia has invaded a sovereign state and started a bloody war. The aggressor must be brought to justice in an international court and must compensate Ukraine for damages," the President said.

Gitanas NausAda underlined that Russia's actions indicate that it plans to continue violating international law, disregard the international rules-based order and seek confrontation with democracies. It is, therefore, necessary to increase pressure on the aggressor: continue the sanctions and prevent their unwarranted exemptions and circumvention.

The President pointed out that next year Lithuania will take over the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and that its priorities will be focused on Ukraine and the development of freedom and democracy.

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EU urges significant increase in military aid for Ukraine

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 11:25 PM

The European Union has urged the injection of 3.5 billion euros ($3.85 billion) into the fund that is used by the bloc to provide military aid for Ukraine.

The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell made the appeal to European governments to boost the reservoir, which is known as "the European Peace Facility (EPF)," European sources told Reuters on Wednesday.

Already, as much as 4.6 billion euros ($4.9 billion) has been drawn from the fund to finance Ukraine's war machine, which has been facing off a Russian "special military operation" since last year.

Russia says it has launched the operation to defend the pro-Russia population in the eastern Ukrainian regions of Luhansk and Donetsk against persecution by Kiev.

The United States and its European allies have been flowing huge chunks of cash as well as remarkably advanced military equipment towards Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian operation.

Moscow says the sustained and generous financial and arms support for the Ukrainian military would only prolong the warfare.

Borrell's proposal requires the approval of the EU's national governments.

They agreed last December that, "in case of need," such an increase could be justified.

The fund, established in 2021, was originally conceived for the EU to help developing countries buy military equipment.

EU countries contribute to the fund according to the size of their economies.

Borrell's proposal came two days after Politico, an American news and analysis website, reported that the United States had problems providing funds for the weapons and munitions that it heads to Ukraine.

"The end of Ukraine aid is rapidly approaching and reupping it won't be easy," Politico reported on Monday, citing an unnamed source.

The report revealed that of the $48 billion aid package that had been approved in December last year, only $6 billion was left, which would run up by midsummer.

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Russia agrees to extend grain deal with Ukraine by 2 months, says Turkey's Erdogan

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 6:54 PM

Russia has extended a grain deal with Ukraine for another two months in a bid to boost global food security, says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Back on July 22, Moscow and Kiev reached an agreement in Istanbul, mediated by the United Nations and Turkey, to resume grain exports from three of Ukraine's Black Sea ports, aiming to put an end to a standoff that had exposed millions to the risk of starvation.

The deal, due to expire on Thursday, allowed Ukraine to resume grain shipments, which had stopped after Russia imposed a blockade on Ukraine's southern ports following the invasion of the country on February 24.

"I want to give a good news. With the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends and the contribution of our Ukrainian friends, the Black Sea Grain Initiative has been extended by another two months," said Erdogan on Wednesday.

"We will continue our efforts to ensure that all the conditions of the agreement are fulfilled so that it continues in the next period," he added.

The extension of the deal is considered a win for countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia that are dependent on Ukrainian wheat, barley, vegetable oil and other affordable food products, particularly as drought takes a toll.

Ukraine, which is a major exporter of corn, barley, sunflower oil, and rapeseed oil, used to export most of its crop yields through its main ports on the Black and Azov Seas, but since the start of the Russian offensive, it has been forced to export by train or via its small Danube River ports.

Moscow opposed the 120 days for extension outlined in the agreement and decided to renew the deal for just 60 days.

The grain deal came with a separate agreement to facilitate shipments of Russian food and fertilizer that Moscow insists has not yet been applied. The Kremlin had initially threatened to abandon the deal if its concerns were not addressed by Thursday.

Separately on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova confirmed the extension, stressing that problems would need to be resolved "at the technical level."

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said last week that the grain deal "should be extended for a longer period of time and expanded" to "give predictability and confidence" to markets.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative has allowed over 30 million metric tons of Ukrainian grain to be shipped out, with over half that going to the developing nations.

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US says Israeli-made Iron Dome ready to ship out to Ukraine

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 5:19 PM

The United States says one of the two Israeli-made Iron Dome anti-missile systems is ready for deployment to Ukraine pending a request from Kiev.

In a US Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces session about missile-defense issues on Thursday, US Army Space and Missile Defense Commanding General Daniel Karbler told the Senate one of the US-funded batteries is ready to be deployed to Ukraine, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.

Karbler was responding to Sen. Angus King's question about the reason for Kiev not receiving the system.

"We sent something like $3 billion to Israel to develop it... Wouldn't this be a very important resource for the Ukrainians since their principal problem right now is missile defense?" King asked.

Karbler in response said the US currently has two Iron Dome batteries, one has completed new equipment fielding and is ready for deployment, and the other is not.

"So the army does have one (Iron Dome battery) available for deployment if we get a request" from Ukraine, the general said.

Israel has been reluctant to provide Ukraine with weapons, including the Iron Dome. The regime's foreign ministry was even denounced by Kiev lately for sending two senior diplomats to Russia earlier this month on a rare visit, with the Ukrainian government saying, "Neutrality is not an option."

But in February, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv would consider the possibility of providing Ukraine with arms and even providing Kiev with the Iron Dome.

"The issue of arms supplies was considered and rejected by the previous Israeli" cabinet. "I will study this issue and answer this matter in the most adequate manner," he said in an interview with France's LCI TV during his visit to France.

When asked whether "Israel" was considering providing Kiev with Iron Dome, Netanyahu said, "Yes, I'm thinking about it. That's all I can say. I can't make any promises. We have to see what options are available and also take into account Israel's interests in the region."

In April, the Israeli prime minister said the regime had not made any decisions regarding the supply of lethal weapons to Kiev and continued to provide only what he called humanitarian aid.

"As for the reports about lethal weapons for Ukraine, I do not know what these reports are based on. We decided to help them in humanitarian matters, in civil defense matters with Tzeva Adom [Israeli missile attack warning system] ... but not the previous" cabinet, nor my cabinet, "have made decisions about lethal weapons," Netanyahu told reporters.

Washington will need Tel Aviv's permission to send an Iron Dome system to a third country since Israel is considered the main producer of it, although the highly-publicized system has been co-developed by the American company Raytheon and Israeli firm Rafael.

Washington has also contributed nearly $2.6 billion since the project was launched in 2011.

The Iron Dome is claimed to be capable of detecting, assessing and intercepting a variety of shorter-range targets such as rockets, artillery and mortars.

The anti-missile project was originally developed to counter small rockets that Palestine's Hamas resistance movement and other Palestinian resistance groups fired into the occupied territories in retaliation for Israel's crimes against the Palestinians.

Each battery consists of radar and command and control modules and three launchers, the latter armed with 20 Tamir interceptor missiles apiece.

Israel is equipped with about 12 Iron Dome systems in its arsenal, but the system has proven largely ineffective in serving its purpose, with one study of its use against Hamas rockets during the May 2021 Israeli war against Gaza revealing that the system had been partially overwhelmed by the Palestinian resistance group's mass firing of rockets.

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Russia rejects Kiev's claim of downing hypersonic missiles

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 17 May 2023 7:48 AM

Russian defense minister has dismissed Ukraine's claim of shooting down six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, saying Russia had not fired such number of missiles that were in fact used to crush a US-supplied Patriot air system.

"Russia has not launched as many Kinzhals as [Kiev] says it has shot down," Sergei Shoigu insisted on Tuesday in an interview with the local Ria Novosti news agency, pointing out that the number of Ukrainian missile intercepted by Russia is generally "three times greater than the number we launch."

"And they get the type of missiles wrong all the time. That's why they don't hit them," the Russian defense chief added, ridiculing the claim made by Ukraine's top military commander that Kiev forces had shot down an entire volley of multiple Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night.

Shoigu went on to emphasize that one of the Kinzhal missiles had indeed destroyed a Patriot air defense system that was eventually delivered to Kiev after repeated pleas, saying, "A high-precision strike by the hypersonic Kinzhal missile hit a US-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile system in the city of Kiev."

However, the Russian defense ministry said one of its Kinzhal missiles had destroyed the US-made Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system, which was eventually deployed to Ukraine after numerous and repeated requests by Kiev and much delay by the West.

US officials have also confirmed that Russian missiles had struck a Patriot system deployed in Ukraine, with one official further adding that the US was in the process of transferring the missile system out of Kiev for a complete overhaul of the damaged system in another, unspecified location.

The development came after a number of top Ukrainian officials claimed an incredible success of the country's military forces against Russia in an apparent publicity campaign to highlight the effectiveness of West-supplied weaponry in confronting Moscow.

Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Valeriy Zaluzhnyi claimed earlier on Tuesday that his troops had intercepted six Kinzhal missiles launched from Russian aircraft.

"Another incredible success for the Ukrainian air force," added Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov in published remarks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyalso claimed before the Council of Europe via videoconference that "100 percent" of Russian missiles fired at Ukrainian territory overnight Monday to Tuesday had been intercepted.

Ukraine had earlier claimed that it had also shot down a Russian missile for the first time in early May, using the US-made Patriot anti-aircraft system delivered to Kiev back in April.

The Kinzhal (Dagger) missile is one of the weapons described as "invincible" by Russian President Vladimir Putin, as their speed allows them to defy most air defense systems.

The missile is capable of carrying conventional or nuclear warheads up to 2,000 kilometers. It was used for the first time by Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

The West has supplied Ukraine with tens of billions of dollars worth of various weaponry since the onset of the Russian military campaign in February 2022 as a security measure against persisting eastern advance of the US-led NATO military alliance and the protection of Russian-speaking population in eastern Ukraine from abusive treatment by Kiev forces.

Weapons supplied to Ukraine by the West include rocket systems, drones, armored vehicles, tanks, and communication systems.

Russian officials have repeatedly warned against flooding Ukraine with weapons, insisting the massive shipments of armaments to Kiev will only prolong the bloody conflict.

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Chinese Envoy Arrives In Kyiv As Heavy Fighting Under Way In Bakhmut

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service May 17, 2023

China's special envoy Li Hui has arrived in Kyiv for talks with senior Ukrainian officials, in what is the highest-level visit by a Beijing representative to the country since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February last year.

Beijing, which has not condemned Russia's aggression against its neighbor, said Li's trip on May 17 is aimed at discussing a "political settlement" to the Ukraine crisis.

Western countries earlier this year dismissed a 12-point Chinese proposal calling for a de-escalation and eventual cease-fire in Ukraine -- mainly because it echoed Russia's main talking points.

Li, a former ambassador to Russia, will also visit Poland, France, and Germany on his trip, China's Foreign Ministry has said, without providing a detailed schedule.

The visit comes as EU states are discussing a fresh package of Russia sanctions that would also take aim at Chinese and Iranian firms that support Moscow and allow export curbs on third countries that violate existing trade restrictions.

A senior adviser in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office told Reuters last month that Ukraine has been finding a growing number of components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine amid a squeeze in Western supplies caused by sanctions.

It was not clear whether Zelenskiy would meet with Li during the trip.

On the battlefield, Russia kept up the pressure on the eastern city of Bakhmut over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian military said on May 17, as Moscow's artillery pounded civilian objectives in the south a day after one of its heaviest wave of air attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

Russian forces launched 55 attacks on Ukrainian positions on Bakhmut over the past day, the General Staff said in its daily bulletin, adding that the heaviest fighting continues on the Bakhmut-Avdiyivka-Maryinka front line -- the epicenter of Russia's military push in eastern Ukraine.

Russia targeted both Ukrainian military positions and civilian objectives with 57 air strikes and launched 96 salvoes from rocket systems over the same period of time, the military said, adding that Ukrainian air defenses shot down 10 Iranian-made attack drones and six reconnaissance drones.

Russian forces shelled the southern city of Mykolayiv, wounding one person, Mayor Oleksandr Syenkevych said on May 17. A woman was wounded by shrapnel, while civilian and industrial objectives were damaged, Syenkevych said.

Amid talk of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar on May 17 said the Russian Army over the past month increased the intensity of shelling of the border areas in the Chernihiv and Sumy regions to put extra pressure on the Ukrainian military and prevent it from advancing in other directions.

On May 16, Malyar said Ukraine had recaptured some 20 square kilometers from Russian forces on the flanks of Bakhmut but had ceded more ground in the center of the city.

"At the same time, the enemy is advancing to some degree inside Bakhmut itself and is utterly destroying the city with artillery," Malyar said on social media.

Malyar's claims could not be independently verified.

Separately, Ukraine on May 17 denied a Russian claim that one of its Kinzhal hypersonic missiles had destroyed a U.S.-supplied Patriot defense missile in Kyiv during an extremely intense wave of air strikes the previous day.

"Do not worry about the fate of the Patriot," Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat told state television.

"It's impossible to destroy the system with some kind of Kinzhal [missile].... Everything they say there should stay in their propaganda archive,"

Ihnat added.

Earlier, two U.S. officials confirmed to Reuters that it was likely a Patriot system suffered some damage, but it had not been destroyed, and U.S. and Ukrainian officials were looking into ways to repair the damage.

With reporting by Reuters and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-bakhmut- shelling-/32415127.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Ukraine, Russia Agree To Two-Month Extension Of Black Sea Grain Deal

By RFE/RL May 17, 2023

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced a two-month extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative allowing for the export of Ukrainian grain through the country's Black Sea ports.

"With the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends, the contribution of our Ukrainian friends, it was decided to prolong the Black Sea grain deal for two more months," Erdogan announced on May 17, one day before the deal was due to expire.

Russia agreed not to block ships from leaving two Ukrainian harbors, Erdogan said, expressing his hope that the deal would be "beneficial for all the parties."

Erdogan's announcement came amid threats from Russia to quit the pact over obstacles to its grain and fertilizer exports.

The pact, which allows for the safe export via the Black Sea of Ukrainian grain, was brokered by Turkey and the UN and has been extended twice. Moscow said in March when the last extension was agreed that it would be only for 60 days, until May 18, unless a list of demands regarding its own agricultural exports was met.

Ukraine welcomed the extension announced on May 17 but said it must work effectively.

"The Black Sea Grain Initiative has been unblocked [and] continues to be valid" until July 18, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Twitter.

Kyiv is "grateful to our partners" for their efforts in "strengthening food security," Kubrakov said in a separate statement, adding that the main challenge now is to make it work effectively.

"It is necessary to eliminate the problems that Russia has been creating for several months," he said.

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan echoed that sentiment, saying that the world needs more certainty from Russia about the crucial food supply chain.

"It's a good thing that it has been extended," Sullivan said of the agreement. "Unfortunately, Russia continues even in a moment of extension to rhetorically hold it hostage in various ways, to suggest its days are numbered."

Russia has claimed that obstacles remain to its food exports and repeatedly threatened to withdraw from the agreement, which was originally reached in July to allow Ukrainian grain exports amid fears of a global food crisis when major Ukrainian ports were blocked by Moscow's warships. A parallel memorandum on unhindered Russian food and fertilizer exports was signed at the same time.

The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed that it agreed to the extension but said "disparities" needed to be fixed in the implementation of the deal.

"Our main assessment of the 2022 Istanbul agreements have not changed. Disparities in their implementation should be corrected as quickly as possible," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Russia's ambassador to the UN said Moscow still hopes obstacles to its own grain and fertilizer exports can be overcome.

"We still do not lose hope that the problems that we are raising will be sorted out," Vasily Nebenzia told reporters. "The sooner the better."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the agreement on the extension but stressed the need for a more comprehensive, longer-term deal.

"These agreements matter for global food security; Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world," Guterres said. "Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilizers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably."

With reporting by Anadolu, Reuters, AFP, and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia- grain-deal-expiring/32415102.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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European Diplomats Look Ahead To Further Reconstruction Efforts In Ukraine

By RFE/RL May 17, 2023

WASHINGTON -- The ambassadors of Poland, Germany, and Britain and the former foreign ministers of Spain and Georgia on May 17 said that reconstruction efforts in Ukraine are already under way, even with the war far from over and with formal plans for reconstruction still in the formative stage.

The diplomats, who spoke during an online panel discussion at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, said plans for reconstruction are under discussion, but that for now Ukraine is repairing infrastructure damaged by Russian attacks while at the same time it takes steps toward long-term reconstruction expected to begin in the coming months.

EU Ambassador to the U.S. Stavros Lambrinidis emphasized the critical role private investment efforts are playing in the reconstruction strategy.

"Already, there are discussions ongoing in the United States and Europe with private industry about what opportunities will be there and what needs will be there for real, profitable investments," he said.

Eka Tkeshelashvili, the former foreign minister of Georgia, echoed Lambrinidis on the evidence of progress on reconstruction, saying that bridges and roads as well as badly damaged communities such as Bucha are already being rebuilt.

"You see how much is being accomplished in a matter of days," she said.

The panel also discussed Ukraine's focus on the continuing process of political reform in light of Ukraine's goal of becoming a member of the European Union and NATO.

Ukraine was granted candidate status in June to join the EU, four months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

After the official start of negotiations, which can take years, the European Commission will have to assess whether Kyiv meets the criteria for EU membership in terms of good governance, corruption eradication, democratic freedoms, and the rule of law.

Lambrinidis noted that Ukraine is "rapidly making progress towards these needed reforms" even as they fight "the bloodiest war in recent history."

All panelists agreed that economic stabilization is a high priority security category.

British Ambassador to the U.S. Karen Pierce emphasized the importance of private investment, pointing to the Ukraine Recovery Conference scheduled to take place in June in Britain.

The conference will seek to encourage private investment in the areas of Ukraine most affected by bombing, and Pierce called for all of Ukraine's allies to come together in support of this effort.

Tkeshelashvili, who recently served as head of the European Anti-Corruption Initiative to Ukraine, touched on the drive of Ukrainian citizens to rid the country of corruption.

"We are engaged on a daily basis with partners in different institutions on setting up compliance mechanisms [and] structural reforms that are geared towards the conditionalities of the requirements for the membership of the EU," she said.

Ukraine is ready to embrace political reforms, she said, noting that every public opinion poll has shown that good governance, rule of law, and anti-corruption remain high on the agenda.

All the diplomats agreed that the reconstruction of Ukraine is already a top priority of Ukraine's European neighbors.

Polish Ambassador to the U.S. Marek Magierowski said a prosperous Ukraine is Russian President Vladimir Putin's worst nightmare, and the progress thus far again shows that whenever Moscow opposes a nation, "that nation turned out a stronger country after the rubble has cleared."

With reporting by Shelby Rayer in Washington, D.C.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-reconstruction- efforts-russia-war/32416174.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Kinzhal Missile Strike Destroyed Five Patriot Launchers in Kiev - Russia

Sputnik News

20230517

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - While Kiev claimed it had intercepted six Kinzhals, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told Sputnik in an interview that Ukrainian reports are mistaken in every regard, noting that only a couple of Russian missiles were enough to penetrate Kiev's defenses.

"According to verified information, as a result of a strike by the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system in the city of Kiev a multifunctional radar station, as well as five launchers of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system manufactured by the United States were hit and completely destroyed on May 16, 2023," the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The Kinzhal (lit. "Dagger") is one of new strategic weapons unveiled by Russian President Vladimir Putin in March 2018. It first entered combat duty in December 2017, seeing extensive flight and combat testing. The nuclear-capable weapon was the first hypersonic missile system to be fielded by any country.

The Kinzhal has a range of more than 2,000 km (1,200 miles). It is capable of reaching a speed of up to Mach 10 (12,250 km/h or 7,612 mph) while also performing evasive maneuvers, which helps the Kinzhal to be virtually invulnerable to enemy air missile defense systems.

A Sputnik

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Moscow Confirms Grain Deal Extension for Two Months

Sputnik News

20230517

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Over the past weeks, tensions around the accord have been rising, with Russia stressing that crucial parts of the deal are ignored by the West.

Moscow greenlighted the extension of the Black Sea grain initiative for two months, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

"We confirm the announcement made by the Turkish President of a two-month extension of the Black Sea grain initiative. This gives us a chance not in words, but in actions to help ensure global food security," Zakharova told a briefing.

Earlier in the day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the extension of the Black Sea grain deal for another two months.

Russia believes that discrepancies in the implementation of the deal should be corrected as soon as possible, the spokeswoman added.

"Our principled assessments of the Istanbul agreements of 2022 have not changed, and the discrepancies in the implementation should be corrected as quickly as possible," Zakharova said.

Addressing the extension, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzya stressed that Moscow expects its demands regading the agreement to be met.

"Because we still do not lose hope that the problems that we are raising will be sorted out. The sooner the better," Nebenzya told reporters.

The deal was reached by Russia, Ukraine, Turkiye and the UN on July 22, 2022 to provide a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships carrying food and fertilizer exports from Ukrainian Black Sea ports.

The accord envisions the unblocking of Russian exports of food and fertilizers, the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to SWIFT, the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, spare parts and services, the restoration of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline and a number of other measures. Moscow, however, repeatedly noted this part of the package agreement has not been implemented yet and demanded the other side to keep their part of the deal

A Sputnik

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Lavrov Slams West's Regrets Over Peace Talks as Ukraine Refuses to Negotiate

Sputnik News

20230517

Kiev has adopted a special law that prevents any peace talks with the Kremlin, whilst carrying out terror attacks on Russian territory and sacrificing countless lives of Ukrainians. Yet Western political rhetoric alleges that it is Moscow which is avoiding diplomacy.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that he is tired of addressing Washington's remarks that Moscow does not want to hold dialogue with Kiev.

Commenting on recent reports that Latin American and African states have prepared a peace plan for Ukraine, Lavrov stressed that Russia has not recieved any initiatives yet during a joint presser with his Belarusian counterpart Sergei Aleinik.

"We responded to an appeal to us from Latin American and African friends that we are ready to consider any of their proposals [on the crisis in Ukraine], which are dictated by a sincere desire to help stabilize the world order, but so far, we have not seen anything on paper either from the Brazilians or from the Africans, unlike from our Chinese neighbors," Russian top diplomat stated.

The minister also denounced the recent statement from French President Emmanuel Macron about Russia's "dependence" on China. In an interview, the French president claimed that Russia suffered a "geopolitical defeat" and is becoming dependent on Beijing, thus "raising doubts" among its historical allies.

"As for Macron's statements about the vassal-master, you know it is Freudian: 'What hurts, that is what he talks about'," Lavrov alleged.

The French leader is known for proclaiming the course of strategic autonomy of the European Union for a number of years, but it is clear to everybody that the US will not allow the bloc to have any strategic or any kind of autonomy at all, the minister added.

Lavrov also stressed that the expansion of NATO undermines perspectives of dialogue on European security.

"The reckless expansion of NATO not only eastward, but also northward and in other geographic directions undermines the very prospect of any further normal conversation about European security," Lavrov concluded.

A Sputnik

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Poland Not Ready to Supply F-16 to Ukraine

Sputnik News

20230517

WARSAW (Sputnik) - Poland has handed over all of its MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine, President Andrzej Duda told reporters on Wednesday.

"We handed over to Ukraine almost all of our MiG-29s, which Ukraine asked us to do," Duda said, adding that Poland is not ready to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets.

Since Russia started special military operation to protect the people of Donbass over $70 billion in security assistance has been delivered to Kiev. Western countries are supplying sophisticated weaponry, including Leopard and Challenger 2 tanks and ammo for HIMARS. While US is a top supplier of weapons to Kiev regime, Poland also actively participates in proxy conflict against Russia and is in Top-5 list of providers military aid to Ukrainian militants.

A Sputnik

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"It has been decided to extend the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement for another two months"

Presidency Of The Republic Of Turkey

17.05.2023

Speaking at a gathering with AK Party provincial heads, President ErdoAYan said: "It has been decided to extend the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement for another two months with the efforts of our country, our Russian friends' support and our Ukrainian friends' contributions."

President and Justice and Development (AK) Party Chairman Recep Tayyip ErdoAYan addressed via video conference a gathering of the party's provincial heads, MPs, mayors, and candidates for MPs.

Touching upon the Russia-Ukraine war and the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement in his speech, President ErdoAYan said: "The agreement -- signed in Istanbul on July 22, 2022 as a result of TArkiye's initiative, the constructive roles of Russia and Ukraine, and the facilitating role of the United Nations -- had already been extended for several times. The last extension was about to expire. Yet, it has been decided to extend the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement for another two months with the efforts of our country, our Russian friends' support and our Ukrainian friends' contributions. I hope that this decision, which is of vital importance in terms of ensuring that global food supply chains function uninterruptedly and countries in need have easier access to grains, may be auspicious for all sides. We will continue our efforts to make sure all terms of the agreement are fulfilled and the agreement holds in the upcoming period as well."

"In addition, our Russian friends stated that they will not prevent the exit of Turkish ships from Mykolaiv and Olvia ports. We are grateful to them for this," the President stressed, and added: "We hope that we will see the days when the war between Russia and Ukraine ends, first with a permanent ceasefire and then with peace."

Thanking President Vladimir Putin of Russia for his sincere contributions and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine for his constructive cooperation in prolonging the deal, President ErdoAYan also offered his gratitude to UN Secretary-General AntAnio Guterres for his efforts.

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Russia's attacks on the Ukrainian people will not compensate for its failings on the battlefield: UK statement to the OSCE

UK military advisor, Ian Stubbs, says the success of Ukraine's air defence in protecting its citizens should not distract from the horrific tactics of the Kremlin

17 May 2023

Thank you, Madam Chair. Over the past week, Russia has continued to launch large-scale missile and drone strikes on towns and cities across Ukraine. Yesterday, Kyiv endured a particularly intense attack. Thankfully, reports indicate that most of the missiles and drones were intercepted by Ukrainian air defence, significantly reducing the potential scale of civilian casualties. A sober demonstration that air defence systems gifted, by international partners of Ukraine, are saving lives.

However, the success of Ukraine's air defences in protecting its citizens and civilian infrastructure should not distract from the calculated and callous actions of Russia's military leadership. Actions that aim to bring terror and suffering to Ukrainian people - all because they have demonstrated unwavering courage and resolve to stand up to a brutal and barbaric invader. Russia must know that these horrific tactics have not and will not work; they will not compensate for its failings on the battlefield.

Madam Chair, Russia's invasion is stalling. In Bakhmut, despite months of attempts and thousands of casualties, Russia still has not managed to achieve tactical success. Over the last five days, reports indicate that elements of Russia's 72nd Separate Motor Rifle Brigade withdrew in bad order from their positions to the south of the city. Ukrainian assaults have also forced back the Russian frontline to the north-west. In total, Ukrainian forces are assessed to have re-taken nearly 20 square km around Bakhmut over the last two weeks.

This has come at great cost to Russia. Since summer 2022, Wagner and regular Russian forces have likely suffered well over 30,000 personnel killed and wounded in the Popasna-Bakhmut sector alone.

Russian disorder on the battlefield is seemingly fuelling further dysfunction in the already fraught relationship between Wagner and the Russian Ministry of Defence. On 11 May 2023, Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin criticised the Russian armed forces for fleeing during the Ukrainian advances on the Bakhmut flanks. He said that gains made with "blood and lives" were being thrown away. He called Russia's so-called "Special Military Operation" a "stupid war" and speculated over what will happen when soldiers realise they have been set up by those "sitting in mahogany offices".

Madam Chair, more widely, if we look at the state of Russia's invasion force in Ukraine there is a similarly telling situation. The current Russian Combined Grouping of Forces (CGF) looks similar in size and composition to the invasion force of 24 February last year, but it is not. Back then, the force consisted of professional soldiers; was largely equipped with reasonably modern vehicles; and had been regularly exercised, aspiring to conduct complex, joint operations. But the professional force failed to achieve the strategic and operational goals it was set.

Now the CGF consists mostly of poorly trained mobilised reservists and is increasingly reliant on antiquated equipment, with many of its units severely under-strength. The CGF now routinely only conducts simple, infantry-based operations. Russia has failed to command air superiority over Ukraine; a theatre of war which Russia created, and which Russia chose to fight. Recent reports of four Russian military aircraft lost over Russia's Bryansk region indicates Russia's ability to operate safely in its own airspace is now compromised.

How can the Russian military leadership possibly think that a force of largely amateur soldiers will succeed where Russia's professional army has already failed? Russia must realise that it can never win in Ukraine. If it keeps fighting, it will keep losing.

Madam Chair, the UK and its international partners are steadfast in our support for Ukraine as demonstrated by the continued provision of military assistance. On Monday, our Prime Minster met with President Zelenskyy and announced the UK's further gifting of hundreds of air defence missiles and unmanned aerial systems including new long-range attack drones with a range of over 200km. This package of military assistance was in addition to provision of Storm Shadow precision missiles announced last week.

Madam Chair, Ukraine has regained territory and liberated thousands of Ukrainian people thanks to the awe-inspiring bravery of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the resilience of the Ukrainian people and overwhelming international support. Together, the UK and partners are ensuring that Ukraine will win. Our united approach of providing Ukraine with the support it needs to defend itself and push Russia out of Ukraine's sovereign territory is the swiftest, and only, path to a just and lasting peace. Thank you.

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Allies pledge continued support for Ukraine as UK Defence Secretary visits Berlin

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace met with his counterpart Defence Minister Boris Pistorius in Berlin today, days after announcing that the UK will be the first nation to provide Ukraine with long range strike capabilities as part of continuing support to ensure Ukraine can defend themselves against Russia's illegal invasion.

17 May 2023

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace in Berlin for meetings with German defence and security leaders

Allied support to Ukraine unwavering as President Zelenskyy concludes visits to UK Prime Minister and Germany

UK committed to Euro-Atlantic security and stability through NATO and international partnerships

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace met with his counterpart Defence Minister Boris Pistorius in Berlin today, days after announcing that the UK will be the first nation to provide Ukraine with long range strike capabilities as part of continuing support to ensure Ukraine can defend themselves against Russia's illegal invasion.

This weapon system will add to the list of capabilities that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are able to deploy thanks to the support of many NATO allies and partners around the world.

The UK and Germany have demonstrated the steadfast commitment of NATO allies and the international community to support Ukraine in recent days, with big pledges for further military aid and training.

The UK continues to work with partners including Germany in NATO, the G7 and beyond, to provide Ukraine with the assurances and capabilities it needs to secure and strengthen its long-term security beyond the end of the war - putting Ukraine in the strongest possible position to seek a just and enduring peace which respects Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, and defends the UN Charter.

This is being done by bolstering military aid and training with economic support, sanctions against Putin's regime and long-term security assurances which ensure Ukraine's sovereignty can never be breached in this way again.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

It has been a great pleasure to meet again with my German counterpart, Minister Pistorius. Germany and the UK stand side-by-side in our continued aid for Ukraine. Both nations are determined to stand strongly behind Ukraine's efforts to defend itself against Russian aggression. In Sudan we are both committed to lasting peace and security - and as NATO allies and European partners, we will continue to defend the rights and freedoms enjoyed in democracies in Europe and across the world.

During President Zelenskyy's visit to the UK on Monday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that hundreds more air defence missiles will be provided to Ukraine in the coming months, in addition to investment in strategic UAS systems and hundreds of world-leading long range attack drones.

An extension to the UK-led Ukrainian recruit training programme - support by Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Norway, Netherlands, New Zealand and Sweden - was also announced, as well as plans to train a new generation of Ukrainian pilots.

Germany have recently promised further aid to Ukraine, including Leopard 1 tanks, Gepard anti-aircraft system, reconnaissance drones, anti-aircraft systems, and artillery ammunition.

In Berlin today, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace also met with the Head of the Federal Chancellery and Federal Minister for Special Tasks, Wolfgang Schmidt. The pair discussed continued support for Ukraine, the strength of the UK and Germany's relationship as NATO allies, and Defence industry cooperation.

The UK and Germany are among the leading European contributors to the NATO alliance, and both nations look forward to the Vilnius Summit in Lithuania in July, where all alliance members will meet to take stock and discuss the future of the alliance, the unprecedented security challenges, support to Ukraine, and members' continued steadfast commitment to Euro-Atlantic security.

Demonstrating both nations' commitment to NATO and European security, Typhoon aircraft from the Royal Air Force have been conducting joint NATO air policing missions with the German Air Force in Estonia this year. The joint sorties saw an RAF and German Typhoon launch to intercept a Russian aircraft flying close to Estonian airspace in March.

The recent evacuation from Sudan - an international effort - was also covered in the Defence Secretary's meetings in Berlin, particularly the successful cooperation between the UK and allies including Germany and France.

The UK is committed to working with Germany and NATO allies to tackle shared challenges, capitalise on opportunities, and enhance security and stability in Europe and globally.

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We need more consolidation of the world to put pressure on Russia, more strength for our warriors - address by the President of Ukraine

President of Ukraine

17 May 2023 - 22:30

Dear Ukrainians!

Today, the Russian shelling of our Kherson region claimed the life of another child. A boy. His name was Vsevolod. He would have turned six years old in July. My condolences to the family and friends!

It was another artillery attack by terrorists. People were just on the street near an ordinary store.

Regular shelling of Sumy, Chernihiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia regions and Donbas proves again and again that we need even more consolidation of the world to put pressure on Russia, even more strength for our warriors to destroy every position of terrorists, and even more support for our people to save lives and return security to our cities and villages.

Today I held several preparatory meetings on new steps to strengthen our defense and our international positions.

A Ukrainian delegation visited the Republic of Korea, and it was a pretty successful visit. Government officials, the First Lady of Ukraine. There were meetings, negotiations at various levels, and Olena's address to the people of Korea and all the nations of the region at the important Asian Leadership Forum. I thank Mr. President of the Republic of Korea for his clear condemnation of Russian aggression and support of global efforts for peace.

There is an important decision of the Council of Europe: the final resolution of the summit held in Iceland supports the Ukrainian Peace Formula. It is important that Europe is so united for the sake of a fair peace plan. I thank all the leaders of our Europe and every member state of the Council of Europe for this.

Based on this consolidation, we will continue to limit the ability of the terrorist state to continue this aggression and will further increase our ability to bring justice, liberate our land, and save our people.

I would like to thank the parliamentarians of the two European countries.

Today, the French Senate voted to recognize the Holodomor of 1932-33 as genocide of the Ukrainian people. I am grateful to everyone who supported this decision. Strengthening historical truth is the mission of the strong.

The Estonian Parliament has adopted a statement in support of our aspiration to become a full member of NATO and called on the Alliance to support this decision. I thank all the Estonian people and the entire Estonian political class for such clear support for our common Euro-Atlantic security.

Thank you to everyone who helps us protect our people, our Ukraine and life in general!

Glory to all our warriors who are now in combat, on combat missions and at combat posts! Glory to each and every one who is now in the epicenter of the fighting in the east of our country and is making extraordinary efforts to prevent the enemy from advancing. I thank you, warriors!

Glory to Ukraine!

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Secretary-General's remarks to the press on the Black Sea Initiative

United Nations Secretary-General

17 May 2023

Good afternoon,

We have some positive and significant developments a confirmation by the Russian Federation to continue its participation in the Black Sea Initiative for another 60 days.

I welcome this decision. The continuation is good news for the world.

Outstanding issues remain.

But representatives of Russia, Ukraine, TArkiye and the United Nations will keep discussing them.

I hope we will reach a comprehensive agreement to improve, expand and extend the Initiative - as I proposed in a recent letter to the Presidents of the three countries.

I want to convey my appreciation to all those taking part in the negotiations in a spirit of constructive engagement.

I once again express my gratitude to President ErdoAYan and the Government of TArkiye for their efforts - working in permanent coordination with the United Nations.

The importance of the Black Sea Initiative - and the parallel Memorandum of Understanding between the UN and the Russian Federation - is clear.

These agreements matter for global food security. Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world.

Under the Black Sea Initiative, more than [30] million tons of food have been exported.

Vital food supplies are reaching some of the world's most vulnerable people and places - including 30,000 tons of wheat that just left Ukraine aboard a WFP-chartered ship to feed hungry people in Sudan.

They matter because we are still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis.

Over the last year, markets have stabilized, volatility has been reduced and we have seen global food prices fall by 20 per cent.

And they matter because they demonstrate that, even in the darkest hours, there is always a beacon of hope and an opportunity to find solutions that benefit everyone.

Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilizers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably - as foreseen in both the Black Sea Initiative and the Memorandum of Understanding on Russian food and fertilizer exports - the implementation of which the United Nations is fully committed to support.

Thank you.



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Latest in Ukraine: Russia, Ukraine Agree to 60-Day Extension to Black Sea Grain Shipments

By VOA News May 17, 2023

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has said a delegation of African leaders plans to travel to Russia and Ukraine to present a peace plan.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tells European leaders Ukraine needs more air defense systems and missiles, as well as modern fighter jets

Russia and Ukraine agreed Wednesday to a two-month extension until July 18 of their pact allowing grain shipments from Ukrainian ports through the Russian-controlled Black Sea to global markets to ease world food shortages.

The extension had been in question until an 11th hour agreement was brokered in Istanbul by Turkey and the United Nations. Turkey and the U.N. both have played key roles in earlier agreements that have allowed more than 30 million tons of corn, wheat and other produce to be shipped since last year despite nearly 15 months of fighting after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hailed the agreement, saying, "The importance of the Black Sea Initiative a and the parallel Memorandum of Understanding between the U.N. and the Russian Federation a is clear. These agreements matter for global food security. Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world."

He said that "vital food supplies are reaching some of the world's most vulnerable people and places a including 30,000 tons of wheat that just left Ukraine aboard a [World Food Program]-chartered ship to feed hungry people in Sudan."

He said the shipments "matter because we are still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis," while acknowledging that global food "markets have stabilized, volatility has been reduced and we have seen global food prices fall by 20%."

Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said he was grateful to the U.N. and Turkey "for efforts in strengthening food security. Main challenge now is to make [the grain shipments] efficient by cancellation [of] artificial barriers," which he did not spell out.

Several times over the past year, Russia has threatened to withdraw from the grain shipment pact, or has briefly done so, arguing that provisions allowing its own agricultural products and fertilizers to be shipped to world markets are not being fulfilled.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has complained that Russia has stalled the deal by preventing required inspections of shipments and refusing to approve the use of more vessels.

Russian confirmed the two-month extension of the pact, but a Russia Foreign Ministry spokeswoman suggested that Russia's complaints about the deal had still not been addressed. "The distortions in the implementation of the deal should be corrected as quickly as possible," she said.

Kyiv air defense

Ukraine's military on Wednesday dismissed concerns about Russia's claims that a Russian hypersonic missile had destroyed a U.S.-supplied Patriot missile battery during a series of airstrikes on Kyiv.

Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat told Ukrainian television and Agence France-Presse "do not worry" about the fate of the Patriot battery.

"The Patriot is in service," Ihnat said, according to AFP.

Reuters and CNN cited U.S. officials saying the battery was likely damaged during the Russian attack on Tuesday.

Ukrainian officials said air defense systems shot down all 18 missiles Russia fired on Kyiv.

Ukraine's Western allies have supplied sophisticated air defense systems, including the U.S.-made Patriot missiles, and they have helped spare Kyiv from the kind of widespread destruction seen elsewhere in the country.

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters

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UN chief welcomes Russian decision to extend Black Sea grain deal

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 09:03, May 18, 2023

UNITED NATIONS, May 17 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday welcomed Russia's decision that would allow the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allows the export of Ukrainian grain and other agricultural products from Black Sea ports.

"We have some positive and significant developments: confirmation by the Russian Federation to continue its participation in the Black Sea Initiative for another 60 days. I welcome this decision," said Guterres. "The continuation is good news for the world."

Outstanding issues remain, but representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Trkiye and the United Nations will keep discussing them, he told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York. "I hope we will reach a comprehensive agreement to improve, expand and extend the initiative, as I proposed in a recent letter to the presidents of the three countries."

The importance of the Black Sea Grain Initiative -- and the parallel memorandum of understanding between the United Nations and Russia on the facilitation of exports of Russian food and fertilizer -- is clear. These agreements matter for global food security. Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world, said Guterres.

Under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, more than 30 million tons of food have been exported. Vital food supplies are reaching some of the world's most vulnerable people and places, including 30,000 tons of wheat that just left Ukraine to feed hungry people in Sudan, said the UN chief.

The agreements matter because the world is still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis. And they matter because they demonstrate that, even in the darkest hours, there is always a beacon of hope and an opportunity to find solutions that benefit everyone, he said.

Guterres noted that over the last year, global food markets have stabilized, volatility has been reduced and global food prices fell by 20 percent.

"Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilizers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably -- as foreseen in both the Black Sea Initiative and the memorandum of understanding on Russian food and fertilizer exports, the implementation of which the United Nations is fully committed to support," he said.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative was signed separately by Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul with Trkiye and the United Nations on July 22, 2022. The deal, initially in effect for 120 days, was extended in mid-November 2022 for another 120 days till March 18, 2023. At that point, Russia only agreed to extend the deal for a further 60 days, till May 18, 2023.

As a parallel agreement, Russia and the United Nations signed the memorandum of understanding on the facilitation of exports of Russian food and fertilizer. But the parallel agreement has not made much progress.

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Dublin, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "5G and Customer Experience Strategies in Asia-Pacific" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed market trends, with digital and self-service now the norms. Meanwhile, companies are still implementing plans decided before the pandemic.

Many of these plans include new retail store openings and using new marketing technology for retail stores to improve sales, customer experience, and operational efficiency. Suppose companies disregard the lower consumer spending power and the fact that consumers no longer want to visit stores as much as they used to before the pandemic. In this case, it can result in poor resource allocation and use.

Companies need to reassess their channel strategy to see if they must make adjustments to support the preferred channel better. While the retail store concept is undergoing redefinition, the online channel grows stronger by the day.

Companies need to ask if the physical store remains the only place to offer a personalized experience and if they should divert some resources to developing solutions to provide a customized online experience. Constraints due to limited budgets are increasing, with some companies neglecting to update their websites while concentrating on mobile applications.

Digital customer experience is the way forward. The good news is that there is an intention to lead with a customer experience-first strategy in 2023. The wild card is how much companies are willing to spend to address it.

Although technology will be vital in enabling the necessary customer experience improvements, it often cannot recognize emotions, lack common sense, and fail to consider empathy in decision-making. Another challenge lies with controlling the experience at every touch point.

Employing 5G can address these gaps by humanizing technology and monitoring across channels in real-time using artificial intelligence and automation. Not only can 5G enhance customer experience and business performance, but the resulting improvements in customer experience can also enable 5G monetization. However, the lack of personnel with the necessary skill sets means that 5G's effect on customer experience and 5G monetization will likely remain limited over the next 3-5 years.

The future of customer experience is an exciting space to watch, with rapid developments expected in the next 2-3 years. This offers market participants boundless opportunities to capitalize on customer experience in some way.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Strategic Imperatives

Why is it Increasingly Difficult to Grow?

The Strategic Imperative

The Impact of the Top 3 Strategic Imperatives on the 5G Industry

Growth Opportunities Fuel the Growth Pipeline Engine

2. Growth Opportunity Analysis - Industry Trends and Future Implications

5G Industry Trends - Growth Drivers

5G Industry Trends - Growth Restraints

5G Industry Trends - The Strategic Imperative and Growth Environment

5G Industry Trends - Opportunities

Future Implications

3. Growth Opportunity Analysis - Channel and Approach

Demand for Physical Service Channels (Mobile Operator Stores)

Demand for Physical Service Channels (Mobile Operator Stores) Analysis

Online Channel Priority (Application versus Website)

Online Channel Priority (Application versus Website) Analysis

Approach Strategies for Customer Experience Improvements

Approach Strategies Analysis for Customer Experience Improvements

Channel and Approach - Discussion

Survey Respondents by Region

4. Growth Opportunity Universe

Growth Opportunity 1: Customer Experience for the Consumer Segment

Growth Opportunity 2: Customer Experience for the Enterprise Segment

Growth Opportunity 3: 5G Technology for Customer Experience

5. The Last Word

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/34065o

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.
Dublin, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "The State of the Cloud: The Importance of Hybrid and Multicloud Environments for Business Success" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

According to respondents to the 2022 Global Cloud User survey, cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) represent the most critical aspect of digital transformation. As such, companies continue to build their hybrid, multicloud environments to support strategic business goals, such as revenue growth, improved customer experience, and operational efficiency.

In the 11th annual survey of IT decision-makers responsible for cloud implementations, respondents representing a range of industries, company sizes, and world regions share their perceptions, plans, and behaviors related to cloud infrastructure, choice of a public cloud provider, data growth, and managed services.

Notable findings include:

Businesses view hybrid and multicloud environments as critical to business success. 74% of respondents said that a successful, competitive business requires a strategic, seamless hybrid or multicloud environment.

While businesses still keep some apps on-premises due to security, resiliency, or sustainability concerns, legacy infrastructure usage dipped slightly for the first time in several years, with both on-premises data center usage and colocation usage declining by about 5%.

The survey results offer enterprises and IT service providers a glimpse of the near future of the cloud market.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Key Findings

2. Research Objectives and Methodology

Respondent Profile

3. Cloud Remains the Foundation for Digital Transformation

Business Priorities Require New Technologies

IT Department Drives Tech Decisions, but Lines of Business and C-Suite are Influencers

Deploying a Hybrid Environment is Necessary but Comes with Significant Challenges

4. Hybrid and Multicloud Environments Critical for Business Success

Hybrid Cloud and Multicloud Remain Essential to Success

Legacy Applications Continue to Migrate to the Cloud

Legacy Infrastructure Usage Decreases

Security, Control, and Sustainability Keeping Some Applications On-premises

Businesses Modernize Applications for Cloud Using Various Methods

Businesses Move Applications Among Multiple Clouds

5. Businesses Realize Tangible Benefits by Engaging MSPs

Third-party Partners Support Enterprise Digitalization Strategies

MSPs Offer Planning and Migration Assistance

Benefits of Engaging a Managed Cloud Services Provider

6. Appendix

Growth Opportunities Fuel the Growth Pipeline EngineT

Why is it Increasingly Difficult to Grow?

The Strategic Imperative

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/1ins9h

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.
Pune, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global Crash Simulation Systems Market Report 2023-2029 is a comprehensive analysis of the market, providing detailed insights into the industry's growth opportunities, challenges, and trends across all geographical regions. The report covers the latest technological advancements, SWOT and PESTLE analysis, and insightful analysis related to market size, share, growth factors, and key players profiling.

It also provides a detailed supply-demand scope and a holistic overview of industry revenue, demand status, competitive landscape, and regional segments of the global industry by Type (Side Impact Simulation, Vehicle Pitch Simulation), and Applications (Passenger Cars, Commercial Vehicles). The report serves as a valuable addition to a company's future strategies and path forward by providing a clear understanding of the Crash Simulation Systems market and its potential growth opportunities.

Get a sample PDF of the report at - https://www.absolutereports.com/enquiry/request-sample/20215770

Major Key Players Covered in the Global Crash Simulation Systems Market Are:

LSTC

Instron

Ansys

Humanetics Innovative Solutions

Autoliv

HYGE

Humanetics

AOS Technologies

TASS International

Altair Engineering

Dassault Systemes

Escribano

HORIBA MIRA

ESI Group

Cray

Virtual CRASH

TECOSIM

What is the Scope of Crash Simulation Systems Market?

The market study provides a detailed analysis of the global and regional market, including an in-depth evaluation of growth prospects. It also presents a comprehensive competitive landscape of the global market, highlighting the leading companies and their successful marketing strategies. The report offers a dashboard overview of these companies, including their market contribution and recent developments, both in historic and present contexts. This information is valuable for businesses and organizations looking to make informed decisions regarding their marketing and growth strategies, as it provides insight into the competitive landscape of the market and the strategies employed by leading companies to achieve success.

Crash Simulation Systems Market Dynamics: 

Drivers: (Developing regions and growing markets)

Limitations: (Regional, Key Player facing Issues, Future Barriers for growth)

Opportunities: (Regional, Growth Rate, Competitive, Consumption)

Get a sample PDF of the Crash Simulation Systems Market Report

Crash Simulation Systems Market Segment by Types:

Side Impact Simulation

Vehicle Pitch Simulation

Crash Simulation Systems Market Segment by Applications:

Passenger Cars

Commercial Vehicles

Global Crash Simulation Systems market report provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market. The Crash Simulation Systems industry trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally, the feasibility of new investment projects is assessed and overall research conclusions offered.

Geographically, the report includes the research on production, consumption, revenue, market share and growth rate, and forecast (2017 -2029) of the following regions:

United States

Europe (Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Poland)

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam)

Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Colombia)

Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria)

Other Regions

To Understand How Covid-19 Impact Is Covered in This Report - https://absolutereports.com/enquiry/request-covid19/20215770

Crash Simulation Systems Market Report Highlights:

Comprehensive pricing analysis on the basis of product, application, and regional segments

The detailed assessment of the vendor landscape and leading companies to help understand the level of competition in the Crash Simulation Systems market

Deep insights about regulatory and investment scenarios of the Crash Simulation Systems market

Analysis of market effect factors and their impact on the forecast and outlook of the Crash Simulation Systems market

A roadmap of growth opportunities available in the Crash Simulation Systems market with the identification of key factors

The exhaustive analysis of various trends of the Crash Simulation Systems market to help identify market developments

Some of the key questions answered in this report:

What will the Crash Simulation Systems market size and the growth rate be in 2029?

What are the key factors driving the global Crash Simulation Systems market forecast?

What are the Crash Simulation Systems market trends impacting the growth of the global Crash Simulation Systems market?

What are the challenges to market growth?

Who are the key vendors in the global Crash Simulation Systems market?

What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the vendors in the global Crash Simulation Systems market?

Trending factors influencing the Crash Simulation Systems market shares of the relevant regions.

What are the key outcomes of the five forces analysis of the global Crash Simulation Systems market?

Inquire or Share Your Questions If Any Before the Purchasing This Report - https://www.absolutereports.com/enquiry/pre-order-enquiry/20215770

Following Chapter Covered in the Crash Simulation Systems Market Research:

Chapter 1 provides an overview of Crash Simulation Systems market, containing global revenue and CAGR. The forecast and analysis of Crash Simulation Systems market by type, application, and region are also presented in this chapter.

Chapter 2 is about the market landscape and major players. It provides competitive situation and market concentration status along with the basic information of these players.

Chapter 3 introduces the industrial chain of Crash Simulation Systems. Industrial chain analysis, raw material (suppliers, price, supply and demand, market concentration rate) and downstream buyers are analyzed in this chapter.

Chapter 4 concentrates on manufacturing analysis, including cost structure analysis and process analysis, making up a comprehensive analysis of manufacturing cost.

Chapter 5 provides clear insights into market dynamics, the influence of COVID-19 in Crash Simulation Systems industry, consumer behavior analysis.

Chapter 6 provides a full-scale analysis of major players in Crash Simulation Systems industry. The basic information, as well as the profiles, applications and specifications of products market performance along with Business Overview are offered.

Chapter 7 pays attention to the sales, revenue, price and gross margin of Crash Simulation Systems in markets of different regions. The analysis on sales, revenue, price and gross margin of the global market is covered in this part.

Chapter 8 gives a worldwide view of Crash Simulation Systems market. It includes sales, revenue, price, market share and the growth rate by type.

Chapter 9 focuses on the application of Crash Simulation Systems, by analyzing the consumption and its growth rate of each application.

Chapter 10 prospects the whole Crash Simulation Systems market, including the global sales and revenue forecast, regional forecast. It also foresees the Crash Simulation Systems market by type and application.

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Detailed TOC of Crash Simulation Systems Market Forecast Report 2022-2029:

1 Crash Simulation Systems Market Overview

1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Crash Simulation Systems

1.2 Segment by Type

1.3 Global Segment by Application

1.4 Global Market, Region Wise (2017-2022)

1.5 Global Market Size of Crash Simulation Systems (2017-2029)

2 Global Crash Simulation Systems Market Landscape by Player

2.1 Global Crash Simulation Systems Sales and Share by Player (2017-2022)

2.2 Global Revenue and Market Share by Player (2017-2022)

2.3 Global Average Price by Player (2017-2022)

2.4 Global Gross Margin by Player (2017-2022)

2.5 Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type by Player

2.6 Market Competitive Situation and Trends

3 Crash Simulation Systems Upstream and Downstream Analysis

3.1 Industrial Chain Analysis

3.2 Key Raw Materials Suppliers and Price Analysis

3.3 Key Raw Materials Supply and Demand Analysis

3.4 Manufacturing Process Analysis

3.5 Market Concentration Rate of Raw Materials

3.6 Downstream Buyers

3.7 Value Chain Status Under COVID-19

4 Crash Simulation Systems Manufacturing Cost Analysis

4.1 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis

4.2 Crash Simulation Systems Key Raw Materials Cost Analysis

4.3 Labor Cost Analysis

4.4 Energy Costs Analysis

4.5 R&D Costs Analysis

5 Market Dynamics

5.1 Drivers

5.2 Restraints and Challenges

5.3 Opportunities

5.3.1 Advances in Innovation and Technology for Crash Simulation Systems

5.3.2 Increased Demand in Emerging Markets

5.4 Crash Simulation Systems Industry Development Trends under COVID-19 Outbreak

5.4.1 Global COVID-19 Status Overview

5.4.2 Influence of COVID-19 Outbreak on Crash Simulation Systems Industry Development

5.5 Consumer Behavior Analysis

6 Players Profiles

6.1 Company A

6.1.1 Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Competitors

6.1.2 Crash Simulation Systems Product Profiles, Application and Specification

6.1.3 Crash Simulation Systems Market Performance (2017-2022)

6.1.4 Business Overview

6.2 Company B

6.2.1 Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Competitors

6.2.2 Crash Simulation Systems Product Profiles, Application and Specification

6.2.3 Crash Simulation Systems Market Performance (2017-2022)

6.2.4 Business Overview

7 Global Crash Simulation Systems Sales and Revenue Region Wise (2017-2022)

7.1 Global Sales and Market Share, Region Wise (2017-2022)

7.2 Global Revenue (Revenue) and Market Share, Region Wise (2017-2022)

7.3 Global Sales, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2017-2022)

8 Global Crash Simulation Systems Sales, Revenue (Revenue), Price Trend by Type

8.1 Global Sales and Market Share by Type (2017-2022)

8.2 Global Revenue and Market Share by Type (2017-2022)

8.3 Global Price by Type (2017-2022)

8.4 Global Sales Growth Rate by Type (2017-2022)

9 Global Crash Simulation Systems Market Analysis by Application

9.1 Global Consumption and Market Share by Application (2017-2022)

9.2 Global Consumption Growth Rate by Application (2017-2022)

10 Global Crash Simulation Systems Market Forecast (2022-2029)

10.1 Global Sales, Revenue Forecast (2022-2029)

10.2 Global Sales and Revenue Forecast, Region Wise (2022-2029)

10.3 Global Sales, Revenue and Price Forecast by Type (2022-2029)

10.4 Global Consumption Forecast by Application (2022-2029)

10.5 Crash Simulation Systems Market Forecast Under COVID-19

11 Research Findings and Conclusion

12 Appendix

12.1 Methodology

12.2 Research Data Source

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Pune, India, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global gaskets and seals market size is expected to gain momentum owing to the rising demand for the automotive sector is predicted to bolster the growth of the market during the forecast period. states Fortune Business Insights, in a report, titled the enormous demand for hybrid lightweight vehicles is likely to enable speedy expansion of the Market. The use of advanced materials in manufacturing gaskets and seals for critical applications including aircraft manufacturing, medical equipment, and chemical processing is expected to drive the market growth over the forecast period.

Gaskets and seals are designed to help ensure performance efficiency and to support manufacturers to comply with stringent specifications and standards. Over the medium term, the major factors driving the growth of the gaskets and seals market are the increase in the use of gaskets and seals in the oil and gas industry and increasing demand from the chemical and petrochemical sectors.

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The list of Companies Covered in the Gaskets and Seals Market are:

Flowserve Corporation

Smiths Group PLC

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies Gmbh & Co. Kg

Armacell

Federal-Mogul Holdings Corporation

Datwyler Holding Inc.

SKF

Parker-Hannifin

Cooper Standard

Dana Holding Corporation

Technetics Group, Flexitallic

Report Highlights:

Report Attribute Details Base Year 2022 Historical Year 2019-2021 Forecast Year 2023-2030 Segments Covered By Type

By Application Forecast Units Value (USD Billion), and Volume (Units) Quantitative Units Revenue in USD million/billion and CAGR from 2023 to 2030 Geographies Regions Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Latin America and Rest of World Countries Covered Unites States, Canada, Mexico, Unites Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, China, India, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, Argentina, GCC Countries, and South Africa, among others

Browse Detailed Summary of Research Report with TOC:

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Market Driver :

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, an eminent pioneer and supplier of an extensive range of sealing technologies, has recently unveiled its latest breakthrough: conductive seals. These innovative seals have been meticulously engineered to establish an enduring electrical connection between housings and shafts, while simultaneously acting as a protective shield against potential bearing damage. By harmonizing these two critical functions, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies ensures not only seamless electrical connectivity but also safeguards the integrity of the bearings.

Furthermore, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies astounded the aerospace industry with a remarkable array of novel materials and sealing innovations. This visionary initiative aimed to elevate the safety and performance standards within the industry to unprecedented heights. By integrating state-of-the-art advancements, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies contributes to fortifying safety protocols and enhancing operational efficiency in the aerospace domain.

Segment

Segmented the global gaskets and seals market report based on Type, application, and region:

By Type

Gaskets

Seals

By Application

Automotive

Electrical & Electronics

Aerospace

Marine & rail

Regional Analysis :

The gaskets and seals market is geographically segmented into North America, South Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East & Africa. During the forecast period, Asia-Pacific is projected to seize the largest market share. This dominance can be attributed to the substantial demand stemming from the automotive sector. The quest for non-metallic or composite gaskets, especially in the production of lightweight vehicles, is expected to fuel robust market growth in the region.



Meanwhile, Europe is anticipated to capture the second-largest market share globally, primarily driven by the flourishing aerospace, marine, and rail industries within the region. The chemical manufacturing sector's heightened demand for gaskets and seals is also expected to contribute to market expansion in the coming years.

North and Latin America present promising prospects for the market due to the escalating demand for commercial vehicles. This trend opens up lucrative opportunities for gaskets and seals manufacturers, positioning these regions as significant growth hubs.

Lastly, the Middle East & Africa region is poised to exhibit a rapid growth rate, propelled by the increasing demand for gaskets and seals. The region's expanding industrial sectors, coupled with infrastructure development initiatives, contribute to the heightened market demand.

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Industry End-user Insights

The development of advanced proprietary materials to withstand extreme operating conditions is expected to drive the market growth of gaskets and seals. The marine industry OEM requires more than fluid or water resistance properties through their cushioning and gasketing system to withstand physical shocks, weather vibrations, intense temperature fluctuations, and more to protect industrial duty applications.

Gaskets and seals are important components in Maintenance, Repair, and Operations (MRO) operations as they play a critical role in fluid and gas leakage handling and are removed after a single use. These products are replaced each time the gases and fluids are changed in the system

Detailed Table of Content:

Introduction Research Context Research Methodology Definitions and Assumptions

Executive Summary Report Overview Key Findings and Recommendations

Market Dynamics Market Drivers Market Restraints Market Opportunities

COVID-19 Impact Analysis Supply Chain Challenges Steps taken by companies to overcome the COVID-19 impact Potential Opportunities due to COVID-19 impact

Methodology Research Plan Methods of Data Collection Sampling Methods Data Analysis Methods

Overview of the Market Market Defined and Segmented Market Size and Development Market Drivers and Trends Market Difficulties and Opportunities

Competitive Environment Market Share Evaluation Important Players and Their Strategies Key Players SWOT Analysis Competitive Intelligence



TOC Continued!

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Check out more Related Insights

With 5.0% CAGR, Global Adhesives and Sealants Market Size Worth USD 92.29 Billion by 2029 | Fortune Business Insights

With 2.7% CAGR, Technical Textiles Market Size Hit USD 195.36 Billion by 2026

About Us:

Fortune Business Insights delivers accurate data and innovative corporate analysis, helping organizations of all sizes make appropriate decisions. We tailor novel solutions for our clients, assisting them to address various challenges distinct to their businesses. Our aim is to empower them with holistic market intelligence, providing a granular overview of the market they are operating in.

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Maharashtra, India.

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Pune, India, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fortune Business Insights said the global US Sleep Disorder Clinics Market size was valued at USD 8.62 billion in 2020 and is projected to grow from USD 9.20 billion in 2021 to USD 15.92 billion by 2028, exhibiting a CAGR of 8.2% during the forecast period. The market's expansion during the projected period will be driven by various factors, including the growing prevalence of heart diseases and nerve disorders and the heightened awareness among the general population. Fortune Business Insights presents this information in its report titled US Sleep Disorder Clinics Market Forecast, 2021-2028.

Key Industry Development:

Marshall Medical Centers announced a partnership with Mayo Medical Laboratories for expanding its patient base by increasing access toward laboratory tests of Mayo Clinics.





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Key Takeaways:

Over 80 various disorders, such as insomnia, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, and others, have been documented worldwide.

A 2020 study conducted by the American Sleep Association found that approximately 50 to 70 million adults in the United States were affected by multiple disorders.

The market share is divided among different types of ownership, including independent, hospital-owned, and others.

In 2020, SleepMed and Graymark Healthcare, Inc., were prominent players who held a significant market share.





Discover the Leading Players Featured in the Report:

Companies leading the US Sleep Disorder Clinics Market are SleepMed (Columbia, US), Koala (Kansas City, US), Marshall Medical Centers (Boaz, US), UAB Health System (Birmingham, US), The Health Care Authority of the City of Anniston (Alabama, US), Grand View Health Clinics (Pennsylvania, US), AU Health (Georgia, US), Graymark Healthcare, Inc. (Oklahoma, US), Clark Memorial Health (Indiana, US)





Report Scope & Segmentation

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 2021 to 2028 Forecast Period 2021 to 2028 CAGR 8.2% 2028 Value Projection USD 15.92 billion Base Year 2020 Market Size in 2021 USD 9.20 billion Historical Data 2017-2019 No. of Pages 73 Segments covered By Ownership, Application, and Payor





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Driving factor:

The market share of the US sleep disorder clinics market is expected to increase during the forecast period due to the rising prevalence of sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and insomnia among patients. This growth is attributed to the increasing economic burden caused by sleep disorders, prompting the government to enhance awareness about these conditions. Favorable government policies and a higher influx of patients in the US will contribute to further market growth.

However, the limited availability of sleep physicians will serve as a constraint, limiting the expansion of the market share of US sleep disorder clinics throughout the forecast period.

Segmentation:

By Ownership

Independent

Hospital-owned

Others (Physician-owned)

By Application

Consultations

Sleep Testing

CPAP Therapy

Others

By Payor

Public Health Insurance

Private Health Insurance/Out-of-pocket





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Competitive Landscape

Prominent players in the US sleep disorder clinics market industry are expected to strengthen their market share through a diversified product portfolio and expanded services. The industry is characterized by the presence of numerous clinics, varying in size, that offer a range of services. To maintain a strong consumer base, dominant players are actively incorporating the latest generation of products into their portfolios. For instance, in September 2019, SleepMed and NovaSom partnered to combine BioSerenity's technology and cloud platform, providing precise diagnostic services for various obstructive sleep apnea cases in the US Other players are employing strategies such as mergers and acquisitions, enhanced product launches, and increased research and development activities. Furthermore, these players are focused on expanding the number of laboratories in each region to ensure readily available access to their products and services.





FAQs:

How big is the US Sleep Disorder Clinics Market?

In 2020, the market size of the US sleep disorder clinics was recorded at USD 8.62 billion. It is estimated to witness growth from USD 9.20 billion in 2021 to USD 15.92 billion in 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.2% during the period from 2021 to 2028.

How many sleep clinics are there in the United States?

SleepMed owns around 120 labs and has a strong direct presence across 13 states in the US, Whereas Graymark Healthcare, Inc. has a robust operating network across eight states in the US





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Related Links:

Sleep Apnea Devices Market Size, Share, Growth Industry Report

Sleep Apnea Treatment Devices Market Share, Size, Demand, and Forecast

Clinical Trials Market Share, Size, Demand, and Forecast



About Us:

Fortune Business Insights delivers accurate data and innovative corporate analysis, helping organizations of all sizes make appropriate decisions. We tailor novel solutions for our clients, assisting them to address various challenges distinct to their businesses. Our aim is to empower them with holistic market intelligence, providing a granular overview of the market they are operating in.

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CALGARY, Alberta, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CE Brands Inc. (TSXV: CEBI; CEBI.WT) (CE Brands, we, our, or the Company), a strategic brand partner of Motorola Mobility, announced today that they entered into strategic distribution agreements (the Distribution Agreements) with Bluechipworld Sales & Marketing Limited (Bluechipworld), a subsidiary of Fonua (Fonua) in Ireland, to further expand the Companys sales and distribution capabilities in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.



The Distributors will initially be granted distribution rights to CE Brands smartwatches including the recently launched moto watch 70 and moto watch 100 (www.motowatch.com).

The expansion of our distribution network with industry leading companies is at the forefront of the Companys sales strategy and were delighted to be partnering with Bluechipworld and Fonua to expand our product line into the UK and Ireland, said Kalvie Legat, Interim CEO of CE Brands.

In each of the Distribution Agreements, the Distributor will be appointed as an exclusive authorized distributor of certain CE Brands products, within their respective designated territories for a period of 2 years with potential for future extensions.

Simon Hassell, Managing Director of Bluechipworld commented, We are excited about the potential for the Moto Watch range in the UK & Ireland. The Motorola brand is a trusted and respected marque that our retail partners and their customers will want to engage with, and the products are an excellent addition to our broad range of innovative technology lines.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities of the Company in the United States nor shall there be any sale of securities of the Company in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities described herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the securities laws of any state of the United States. Accordingly, any of the securities described herein may not be offered or sold in the United States or to U.S. persons unless an exemption from registration is available.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information, please visit www.cebrands.ca .

To be added to the CE Brands distribution list please register at www.cebrands.ca/investors .

About CE Brands

CE Brands Inc. specializes in developing products that transform the way people connect and live, working with brands they trust. By identifying key market opportunities and partnering with leading manufacturers and solution partners CE Brands is driving growth and innovation globally, with sales in over 70 countries.

About Motorola Strategic Brand Partnerships

For over 90 years, the Motorola brand has been known around the world for high quality, innovative and trusted products. Motorolas Strategic Brand Partnership program seeks to leverage the power of this iconic brand by teaming up with dynamic companies who offer unique, high-quality products that enrich consumers lives. Strategic brand partners work closely with Motorola engineers, while developing and manufacturing their products, ensuring that their products meet the exacting safety, quality, and reliability standards that consumers have come to expect from Motorola.

To learn more about Motorola strategic brand partnerships, follow us @ShopMotorola

MOTOROLA, the Stylized Motorola Logo and the Stylized M Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Motorola Trademark Holdings, LLC, and are used under license. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.  2023 Motorola Mobility LLC.

Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. In general, forward-looking information refers to disclosure about future conditions, courses of action, and events. The use of any of the words anticipates, believes, expects, intends, plans, will, would, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information. More particularly and without limitation, this press release includes forward-looking information with respect to the anticipated availability, performance and appeal of the moto watch 70 and the Companys expectations related thereto.

The forward-looking information is based on certain key expectations and assumptions, including the timing of the resumption of manufacturing operations at the Companys partner factories in Asia and the timing of product shipments and deliveries.

Although CE Brands believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because CE Brands cannot give any assurance that they will prove to be accurate. By its nature, forward-looking information is subject to various risks and uncertainties, which could cause the actual results and expectations to differ materially from the anticipated results or expectations expressed in this press release. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Companys business, operations and sales; reliance on third party manufacturers and suppliers; the Companys ability to stabilize its business and secure sufficient capital; the Companys available liquidity being insufficient to operate its business and meet its financial commitments, which could result in the Company having to refinance or restructure its debt, sell assets or seek to raise additional capital, which may be on unfavorable terms; the inability to implement the Companys objectives and priorities for 2023 and beyond, which could result in financial strain on the Company and continued pressure on the Companys business; risks associated with developing and launching new products, including the moto watch 70; increased indebtedness and leverage; the fact that historical and projected financial information may not be representative of the Companys future results; the inability to position the Company for long-term growth; risks associated with issuing new equity including the possible dilution of the Companys outstanding common shares; the value of existing equity following the completion of any financing transaction; the Company defaulting on its obligations, which could result in the Company having to file for bankruptcy or undertake a restructuring proceeding; the Company being put into a bankruptcy or restructuring proceeding; and the risk factors included in CE Brands continuous disclosure documents available on www.sedar.com . Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is given as of the date of this press release, and to not use such forward-looking information other than for its intended purpose. CE Brands undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.

Further Information

For media inquiries, please contact media@motowatch.com

For full information and specifications of the moto watch, visit MotoWatch.com .

For further information, please contact:

Raissa Verpalen

Head of Marketing

855-770-2324

ir@cebrands.ca




Dublin, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Tool Storage Products Market Research Report: Forecast (2023-2028)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The analyst's most recent study of the Anti-Drone Market offers the reader a thorough analysis of the current market trends growth drivers, growth drivers, and restrictions. The study provides a thorough value market analysis of the projected years 2022-2027.

The report's primary goal is to evaluate the changes in the market's growth market post-crisis that has been caused by Covid-19. The report also includes projections of the market's growth for the future. an established period of time and an in-depth analysis of important market dynamics as well as segmental performance. The report also provides a comprehensive analysis of supply and demand and the manufacturing scenario.



Major Key Highlight of this Study Report

Market share estimates for Anti-Drone Industry for the regional and country segments

The significant aspect of combative landscape planning is the common patterns

Anti-Drone Market trends that include technology and product analysis as well as constraints and drivers

The provision of advice is based on the most important business segments, based on market estimates

An intentional guideline for newcomers

The market for Anti-Drone prophesies the hinted subsects, segments and the regional market

Markey Key Segment Study



The report is a thorough research study on the growth of Anti-Drone Market across each segmentation and geographic location, to help the key stakeholders and the top players devise innovative strategies and advertisements to support the enormous production and revenues that will be generated in the next year. The study within the sub-division covers changes, trends, supply chain, demand and the pricing of services and products as well as other elements in the report. These are the different segments that are covered in the report on research

By System

By Detection System

Acoustic

Imaging (EO/IR)

Radar

Radio Frequency (RF)

By Disruption System

Electronic System

Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP)

RF/GNSS Jamming

Laser System

Kinetic System

Interceptor Drones

Projectiles/Shooting Nets/Water Cannons

By Platform

Ground-Based

Hand-Held

UAV-Based

By End Users

Military & Defence

Commercial

Government

Others (Critical Infrastructure, Public Venues, etc.)

Geographical Landscape

Region data covered in this report are

North America

South America

Europe

The Middle East & Africa

Asia Pacific

Growth Opportunity in Market: Development of New Products with Advanced Technology

In recent years, the growing demand for illicit drone recognition systems has fueled the growth of Anti-Drone systems. Furthermore, the demand for small-sized drones has grown significantly over the years. Given this, companies are working to develop compact anti-drone systems with broad ranges in order to meet countries' growing demand for effective anti-drone technologies.

Furthermore, rising R&D activities in regions such as North America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East & Africa, and others have encouraged companies to develop more advanced anti-drone systems, including technologies such as anti-jamming, directed energy weapon systems, artificial intelligence, and others, to limit the entry of unwanted drones into their airspace. These developments may pave the way for increased demand for anti-drone systems in the future.



Competitive Landscape



The report's authors thoroughly analyze major companies that operate in the Anti-Drone Market and discuss their strategies, the latest developments expansion plans, portfolio of products and services, mergers and acquisitions, as well as opportunities to increase profit margins as well as other strategies used by players to stay their presence in the market. The most prominent companies summarized in the report are

Accipiter Radar

Northrop Grumman

Lockheed Martin

Moog Inc.

Hensoldt

Dedrone

Thales Group

Raytheon Technologies Corporation

SAAB AB

Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd

Skylock

BlueHalo (Citadel Defense)

Zen Technologies Limited

DroneShield Ltd

DeTect Inc.

DRDO

Others

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis spreads across the globe We are constantly monitoring the market trends and the behavior of industry people around the world. We also provide estimates of the most current market trends and forecasts are based on the potential impact of this epidemic.



Some Latest Developments in the Market

In 2021, Israel Aerospace Industries, in collaboration with Edge, the UAE announced to develop a counter-drone system in order to reduce the threat of unmanned air vehicles to the UAE & the Middle East region.

In 2019, Thales Group launched a new integrated drone countermeasure solution EagleSHIELD to protect & secure sensitive sites & large-scale events in Urban areas. It is a multi-sensor solution that detects drones flying at a low altitude up to the range of 7 km.

Key Topics Covered:



1. Market Segmentation



2. Introduction

2.1. Product Definition

2.2. Research Process

2.3. Assumptions



3. Executive Summary



4. Global Tool Storage Products Market Porters Five Forces Analysis



5. Global Tool Storage Products Market Trends & Insights



6. Global Tool Storage Products Market Dynamics

6.1. Drivers

6.2. Challenges



7. Global Tool Storage Products Market Growth Opportunities & Hotspots



8. Global Tool Storage Products Imports Exports Statistics



9. Global Tool Storage Products Market Policy & Regulations



10. Global Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F

10.1. Market Size & Outlook

10.1.1. Revenues (USD Million)

10.1.2. Units Sold

10.2. Market Share & Outlook

10.2.1. By Product Type

10.2.1.1. Tool Boxes

10.2.1.2. Jobsite Boxes

10.2.1.3. Tool Push Carts/Trolleys

10.2.1.4. Tool Bags

10.2.1.5. Belts & Pouches

10.2.1.6. Tool Cabinets & Chests

10.2.1.7. Others (Hooks & Wall Hangers, etc.)

10.2.2. By Material

10.2.2.1. Wood

10.2.2.2. Plastic

10.2.2.3. Metal

10.2.3. By Sales Channel

10.2.3.1. Online

10.2.3.2. Offline

10.2.4. By End-User

10.2.4.1. Residential

10.2.4.2. Commercial

10.2.4.3. Industrial

10.2.5. By Region

10.2.5.1. North America

10.2.5.2. South America

10.2.5.3. Europe

10.2.5.4. Asia-Pacific

10.2.5.5. Middle East & Africa



11. North America Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F



12. South America Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F



13. Europe Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F



14. The Middle East & Africa Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F



15. Asia-Pacific Tool Storage Products Market Analysis, 2018-2028F



16. Global Tool Storage Products Market Key Strategic Imperatives for Success & Growth



17. Competitive Benchmarking



18. Disclaimer



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/6aoxy2

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.
VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PulseIR, (the "Company" or "PulseIR"), an industry leader in driving real-time shareholder communication and engagement with its technology and wallet pass platforms, is pleased to announce the official launch of its PulseIR platform with ParcelPal Logistics, a courier and logistics company that specializes in providing last-mile delivery and logistics solutions across various industries, including pharmacy and health, meal kit deliveries, retail, and groceries. ParcelPal customers include many top B2C and B2B brands, including Amazon, FedEx, London Drugs, GoodFood, and Electronic Arts.



The PulseIR technology will enable ParcelPal to deliver a personalized, automated, and data-driven mobile IR solution that will unlock a real-time shareholder communications channel, improve their IR results, and drive investor engagement.

PULSEIR PLATFORM TO PROVIDE ENHANCED MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL TAILORED FOR PARCELPAL

PulseIR is a platform-as-a-service (PaaS) that delivers an automated activation and communications channel for investor relations directly through the mobile wallet. PulseIR simplifies and enhances the way businesses can grow, diversify, engage, and retain their investor base by enabling personalized engagement through mobile lock screen communication. Using the PulseIR platform, companies can send business updates, volume alerts, price action, and more in real-time, directly to investors smartphones right as they happen, not just at the end of the day or week. The mobile IR solution brings a businesss IR needs right into the hands of todays digital-first investors, improving the user experience by consolidating company-wide IR assets into one touchpoint with customized branding, segmentation, and analytics.

The implementation of ParcelPals PulseIR platform will enable:

Two-way, direct-to-lock screen messaging between the company and its investors

Automated, real-time communication through SMS or push notifications that can be sent immediately or scheduled

Segmentation of communication to specific shareholders or groups, or to the companys entire database of investors

Ability to search for specific investors and access contact information such as phone numbers and email addresses

Detailed insights and analytics that highlight metrics such as the total number of passes created or downloaded (which can also be segmented by specific investors to see if they downloaded the wallet pass or not)

Functionality as a CRM database with CSV import and export capabilities

Rich Wheeless, CEO of ParcelPal Logistics, states: In a time where consumers of content want real-time communication, the PulseIR technology platform solves just that. It will allow us to gain some new eyes on the Company and also help us tell our story to a broader audience in a simple way. This is the first of multiple partnerships for us with Fobi AI and we look forward to launching other exciting platforms together.

Rob Anson, CEO, states: Theres no denying that the world is now entirely digital. At our core, PulseIR is about providing public issuers with a mobile strategy and automated communications channel that connects them directly to their shareholders. The official launch of PulseIR with ParcelPal is a prime example that demonstrates how we make it easy for early-stage companies to create established mobile IR strategies that deliver next-level experiences for their investors.

This press release is available on the PulseIR website .

To get enhanced access to investor information about ParcelPal Logistics, please visit the download page to get your ParcelPal Investor Experience Wallet Pass today.

About ParcelPal Logistics

ParcelPal is a Vancouver, British Columbia-based company that specializes in last-mile delivery service and logistics solutions. We are a customer-driven, courier and logistics company connecting people and businesses through our network of couriers in major Canadian cities including Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto, as well as in the western region of the United States. Some of our verticals include pharmacy & health, meal kit deliveries, retail, groceries and more. For more information on ParcelPal, please visit www.parcelpal.com .

About PulseIR

PulseIR is a mobile investor relations and communications technology platform that provides public companies with the automated tools to deliver a personalized, automated, and data-driven engagement channel for IR. We make it easier than ever for businesses to grow, diversify, engage, and retain their investor base through real-time, mobile lock screen communication that brings IR right into the hands of todays new age investors. For more information on PulseIR, click here .

For more information on PulseIR, please visit https://www.pulseir.com/ .

info@pulseir.com




DUBROVNIK, Croatia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TSplus, a leading provider of secure remote access and application delivery solutions, recently hosted its highly anticipated International Meeting 2023 in Dubrovnik, marking a remarkable return to in-person gatherings after two years of Covid-19 restrictions. The event brought together representatives from TSplus' 10 major regions, celebrating their outstanding achievements and unveiling a roadmap for the future.



Last month, TSplus hosted its first post-pandemic International Meeting in Dubrovnik. With the majestic President Valamar Hotel as the backdrop, TSplus rewarded the hard work and dedication of its regional partners by inviting them and their families for a luxurious stay. Over the course of a week, approximately 80 attendees enjoyed a unique blend of knowledge sharing, camaraderie, and unforgettable experiences in the beautiful country of Croatia.

The International Meeting served as a platform for exchanging valuable insights and success stories, reinforcing TSplus' commitment to excellence in the field of remote access solutions. Attendees engaged in a series of activities, including a thrilling zipline adventure over the stunning Adriatic Sea, an exhilarating jeep safari, a captivating island cruise, and indulgent tastings of local delicacies such as oysters and fine wines.

TSplus Unveils a Vision for Success and Innovative Growth

The event highlighted TSplus' exceptional achievements in 2022 and unveiled an exciting roadmap for 2023. During the meetings, participants gained invaluable insights into the company's strategic plans, innovative product developments, and future expansion goals. This includes targeting Southeast Europe, French-speaking African countries, and potential opportunities in Northern Europe and China.

TSplus' founder and CEO, Dominique Benoit, emphasized the vision of TSplus as the ultimate solution for IT Administrators, providing state-of-the-art cybersecurity, affordable remote support, and centralized network monitoring.

"We are thrilled to have finally reunited in person and celebrate the successes of our dedicated regional partners," said Dominique Benoit. "The International Meeting has energized us with fresh ideas and perspectives that will shape TSplus' future growth and further strengthen our position as a global leader in remote access solutions."

For example, TSplus announced plans to introduce seamless connectivity for Android devices, expanding the versatility of its remote support solution. Additionally, the development of Mac OS compatibility for Remote Support was showcased, allowing users to control PCs using Mac devices.

TSplus is extending an invitation to IT professionals worldwide to join its esteemed network of partners. Becoming an official TSplus Partner offers a unique opportunity to benefit from cutting-edge technology, comprehensive support, and lucrative business opportunities. Interested individuals and organizations are encouraged to contact sales@tsplus.net or visit the official TSplus Partners page at https://tsplus.net/partner-program/ for more information.

About TSplus : TSplus is a leading provider of secure remote access and application delivery solutions. With a strong focus on innovation, TSplus delivers powerful yet easy-to-use solutions that enable businesses to enhance productivity, improve cybersecurity, and streamline IT operations. Trusted by organizations of all sizes and industries, TSplus provides secure remote access, seamless application delivery, and robust network management tools, empowering businesses to thrive in the modern digital landscape.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a348c3ad-f2a6-46ed-9138-a91613c18a2f
Pune, India, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Insight Partners published latest research report on " Nurse Call Systems Market Share Report, Size, Trends, Growth & Forecast to 2027 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Equipment; Technology; Application; End User and Geography, the global market size is projected to reach USD 3,243.34 million by 2027 which was valued at USD 1,342.70 million in 2019; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.5% from 2020 to 2027.





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Growth Strategies by the Key Players Operating in the Nurse Call Systems Market:

2019 - Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Voalte, Inc., a pioneer and leader in real-time, mobile healthcare communications . The acquisition of Voalte accelerates Hill-Rom's leadership in care communications and advances the company's digital and clinical communications platform and capabilities.

2019 - The company announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Sphere3 Consulting. Combined company to deliver an integrated leading-edge patient communication and experience management platform.

2018 - AMETEK, Inc. completed the acquisition of SoundCom Corporation, a leader in the design, integration, installation, and support of clinical workflow and communication systems for healthcare facilities, educational institutions and corporations.

The nurse call systems market is extremely competitive in nature, with a large number of players having a high degree of overall revenue consolidation. Most of the companies operating in the nurse call systems industry are globally present and have a broad distribution and sales network through alliances or registered dealers.





Directly Purchase Premium Copy of Nurse Call Systems Market Growth Report (2020-2027) at: https://www.theinsightpartners.com/buy/TIPHC00002562





Global Nurse Call Systems Market Share Report, Segmentations, Regional & Country Scope:

Report Coverage Details Market Size Value in USD 1,342.70 Million in 2019 Market Size Value by USD 3,243.34 Million by 2027 Growth rate CAGR of 11.5% from 2020-2027 Forecast Period 2020-2027 Base Year 2020 No. of Pages 201 No. of Tables 111 No. of Charts & Figures 78 Historical data available Yes Segments covered Equipment; Technology; Application; End User and Geography Regional scope North America; Europe; Asia Pacific; Latin America; MEA Country scope US, UK, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Australia, Russia, China, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Argentina Report coverage Revenue forecast, company ranking, competitive landscape, growth factors, and trends Companies Covered Ascom Holding AG, Siemens, Honeywell International Inc., STANLEY Healthcare, Austco Healthcare Limited, Hill Rom Services Inc., Intercall Systems, Schrack Seconet AG, Critical Alert Systems, Rauland





Browse key market insights spread across 201 pages with 111 list of tables & 78 list of figures from the report, "Nurse Call Systems Market Forecast to 2027 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Equipment (Integrated Communication Systems, Button Systems, Mobile Systems, and Intercom Systems); Technology (Wired Systems and Wireless Systems); Application (Emergency Medical Alarms, Wanderer Control, Workflow Support, and Others); End User (Hospitals, Nursing Homes & Assisted Living Centers, Clinics, and Others) and Geography" in detail along with the table of contents: https://www.theinsightpartners.com/reports/nurse-call-systems-market/





Technological advances have led to upgrade the nurse call systems from basic versions that use red lights for emergency warning and few coded buttons and bells to advanced systemssuch as the use of mobile and real-time technology, which has increased connectivity gaps and resulted in effective patient monitoring . Advances in streamlining, customizing contact between patients, nursing staff and caregivers have made it possible to enhance patient satisfaction and increase the quality of care.

Growing need for healthcare services and increasing influx of COVID-19 cases have expanded healthcare infrastructure and increased the demand for better communication systemssuch as nurse call systemsfor improved communication between physicians, nurses, and patients. The nurse call systems market is anticipated to show strong growth in the US as it is among the worst affected countries. Moreover, the proportion of geriatrics is phenomenally high; thus, accelerating the need for enhanced care. Furthermore, the fatality rate due to the virus is exceptionally high amongst the elderly. As COVID-19 is continuing to spread worldwide, researchers are looking into numerous options for possible treatment, including existing possibilities. For instance, in May 2020, the Food and Drug Administration approved the emergency use of Eko electrocardiogram Low Ejection Fraction Tool and Ascom telecare IP Nurse Call System. This remote call system helps in minimizing the interaction with COVID-19 patients in insulation rooms and the screening device assesses potential underlying cardiac problems in suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients.

The market players are focused on technological advancements and innovative steps to improve the quality and efficacy of nurse call systems. For instance, in January 2019, Rauland launched truly next generation enterprise-wide framework for the Intelligent Nurse Call Solution Responder providing a stable, scalable, and highly accessible solution that generates streamlined clinical workflows enabling hospitals to maximize their patient outcomes.

Driving factors, such as increase in incidence of Alzheimers cases, rise in number of assisted living centers, and technological developments in the nurse call systems, are likely to boost the market growth over the years. However, high cost of installation is likely to hinder the market growth.

Major primary and secondary sources for nurse call systems included in the report are Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Research Council Canada, World Health Organization, Book on German Social Code, National Health Insurance Fund Administration, and Food and Drug Administration.





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Nurse Call Systems  Market Segmentation

By Equipment

Integrated Communication Systems

Button Systems

Mobile Systems

Intercom Systems

By Technology

Wired Systems

Wireless Systems

By Application

Emergency Medical Alarms

Wanderer Control

Workflow Support

Others

By End User

Hospitals

Nursing Homes & Assisted Living Centers

Clinics

Others

By Geography

North America US Canada Mexico

Europe France Germany UK Italy Spain Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC) China Japan India Australia South Korea Rest of Asia Pacific

Middle East & Africa (MEA) Saudi Arabia South Africa UAE Rest of Middle East & Africa

South America (SCAM) Brazil Argentina Rest of South & Central America



Company Profiles:

Ascom Holding AG

Siemens

Honeywell International Inc.

STANLEY Healthcare

Austco Healthcare Limited

Hill Rom Services Inc.

Intercall Systems

Schrack Seconet AG

Critical Alert Systems

Rauland









Go through further research published by The Insight Partners: (Purchase with 10% Instant Discount):

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Market Forecast to 2028 - Covid-19 Impact and Global Analysis

Emergency Medical Software Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis

Medical And Nursing Simulator Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis









About Us:

The Insight Partners is a one stop industry research provider of actionable intelligence. We help our clients in getting solutions to their research requirements through our syndicated and consulting research services. We specialize in industries such as Semiconductor and Electronics, Aerospace and Defense, Automotive and Transportation, Biotechnology, Healthcare IT, Manufacturing and Construction, Medical Device, Technology, Media and Telecommunications, Chemicals and Materials.

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Washington, D.C., May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A Center for Immigration Studies analysis of the recently released CBP statistics on Border Patrol apprehensions and CBP overall encounters at the Southwest border for the month of April show both surged last month even while Title 42 expulsions dropped. That does not bode well for the administration with Title 42 having some ended on May 11 just as travel season at the U.S.-Mexico line gears up. Expect some drop-off in apprehensions when the May numbers come out next month as illegal migrants  and more importantly their smugglers  are still trying to figure out all the loopholes in Bidens latest border regime.

In April, Border Patrol agents at the Southwest border apprehended more than 182,000 illegal migrants. This represents a 12 percent increase in apprehensions over March, and a 40 percent increase over February  the month Biden lauded his immigration efforts at the State of the Union address.

Would-be migrants were enticed in part by the fact that Border Patrol apparently began ramping down Title 42 expulsions in April even before the CDC orders that guided that policy expired. Fewer than 72,000 apprehended migrants were expelled under Title 42 last month, 39.4 percent of the total; while more than 89,000 illegal entrants (55 percent of that months total) were expelled in March.

CBP encounters are the total of Border Patrol apprehensions and aliens deemed inadmissible at the ports of entry by CBP officers in the agencys Office of Field Operations (OFO). In April, CBP officers and agents encountered more than 211,000 aliens at the Southwest border, the eighth-highest monthly total under the Biden administration, 29,000 of whom were deemed inadmissible at the ports.

The administrations latest scheme to hide the ramifications of its border policies is to funnel would-be illegal migrants through the ports of entry by allowing them to schedule interviews with CBP officers using the CBP One app (which was originally designed to expedite lawful travel).

Recent reports have indicated that more than 99 percent of all the migrants who have received such interviews have been allowed to enter the United States  despite that fact, again, that (1) those migrants are inadmissible to the United States and (2) should therefore, by law, be detained.

Looking forward, keep an eye on the CBP OFO port encounter numbers, and expect them to jump to even higher levels. Some state attorney general will likely catch onto the CBP One app appointment and release scheme and sue to block it.

Dont be surprised if monthly Border Patrol apprehension numbers either remain steady or decline slightly in May. The end of Title 42 has brought with it a great deal of uncertainty, and until the migrants  and the smugglers  figure out all the loopholes around Bidens latest border regime, illegal entrants will be leery.
New York, USA, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Overview

According to a Comprehensive Research Report by Market Research Future (MRFR),  Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Information by Component, Application, Technology, End User, and Region - Forecast till 2030, the Market Size is expected to reach USD 12.22 Billion by 2030 at of 51.9% CAGR during the forecast period 2022-2030.

Market Scope

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an advanced technology that involves the use of algorithms and machine learning to mimic human cognitive functions such as learning, reasoning, and decision-making. In the healthcare industry, AI is used to analyze and interpret large amounts of data quickly and accurately, leading to better diagnosis, treatment, and patient care.

The applications of AI in healthcare are diverse and significant. AI-powered systems can assist healthcare professionals in tasks such as medical image analysis, drug discovery, and personalized treatment plans. AI also plays a vital role in managing patient data, reducing medical errors, and improving patient outcomes.

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Report Scope:

Report Attribute Details Market Size in 2030 USD 12.22 Billion CAGR 51.9% Base Year 2022 Forecast Period 2022-2030 Historical Data 2021 Forecast Units Value (USD Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered By Component, Application, Technology and End User Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World (RoW) Key Market Drivers Rising Value of Big Data in Healthcare to Fuel Market Growth Increasing investments by pharmaceutical and Medtech companies in artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Competitive Landscape:

The affluent companies in the Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare industry include

DEEP GENOMICS

Next IT Corp

General Vision

Google

NVIDIA Corporation

IBM Watson Health

Intel Corporation

Koninklijke Philips N.V

GENERAL ELECTRIC

Stryker

Microsoft Corporation

CloudMedx Inc

Microsoft announced its partnership with St. Luke's University Health Network to develop an AI-powered clinical research program aimed at improving the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer. The program will leverage Microsoft's cloud computing capabilities and AI algorithms to analyze large amounts of patient data and develop personalized treatment plans.



Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Trends:

Market Drivers:

The demand for improved patient care is one of the major driving factors for the growth of AI in healthcare. AI-powered solutions have the potential to improve patient outcomes by enabling faster and more accurate diagnoses, personalized treatment plans, and more efficient monitoring of patient health. For example, AI algorithms can help physicians analyze large amounts of patient data, including medical histories, lab results, and imaging data, to identify potential health issues and develop targeted treatment plans.

Market Restraints:

The high cost of implementing AI in healthcare, the lack of skilled professionals, and data privacy concerns are significant restraints for the market. The slow adoption rate of AI in healthcare due to regulatory and ethical issues is also a hindrance to market growth.

COVID 19 Analysis

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the healthcare industry, leading to an increased demand for advanced technologies to address the challenges faced by healthcare providers. Artificial intelligence has emerged as a vital tool in the fight against the pandemic, helping healthcare professionals to improve patient outcomes and respond to the crisis more effectively. The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of AI in healthcare, leading to an increase in demand for AI-powered solutions for remote patient monitoring, drug discovery, and medical research.

Browse In-depth Market Research Report (144 Pages) on Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/healthcare-artificial-intelligence-market-5681

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Segmentation

By Component

The Component in the market includes Hardware, Software, Services

By Application

The Application in the market includes Robot-Assisted Surgery, Virtual Nursing Assistant, Dosage Error Reduction, Clinical Trial, Preliminary Diagnosis, Automated Image Diagnosis

By Technology

The Application in the market includes Machine Learning, Querying Method, and Natural Language Processing.

By End-user

The Application in the market includes Hospital & Diagnostic Centers, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies Academic & Research Laboratories.

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Market Regional Insights

North America is a major market for AI in healthcare due to several factors. Firstly, the region is home to some of the world's leading players in the healthcare industry, such as IBM Watson Health, GE Healthcare, and Johnson & Johnson. These companies have invested heavily in AI technology and are driving the adoption of advanced AI solutions across the healthcare industry.

In Europe, the market for AI in healthcare is also significant, driven by the increasing demand for AI-powered medical imaging solutions and the growing trend of precision medicine. Medical imaging is an area where AI has the potential to revolutionize the way that doctors diagnose and treat patients. AI-powered solutions can help doctors to analyze medical images more accurately and efficiently, leading to faster and more accurate diagnoses. Additionally, the growing trend of precision medicine, which involves tailoring treatment plans to the specific needs of individual patients, is also driving the adoption of AI in healthcare in Europe.

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The Asia-Pacific region is expected to witness significant growth in the AI in healthcare market, driven by the rising need for efficient disease diagnosis and personalized treatment plans. The region has a large and rapidly aging population, which is putting pressure on healthcare systems to deliver more efficient and effective care. AI-powered solutions have the potential to help address these challenges by enabling more accurate diagnoses and more personalized treatment plans. Additionally, the region is home to some of the world's fastest-growing economies, which are investing heavily in healthcare infrastructure and innovation, creating a fertile ground for the growth of the AI in healthcare market.

Discover more research Reports on Healthcare Industry by Market Research Future:

Telemedicine Market Research Report Information By Component (Product {Software and Hardware} and Services {Tele-Consulting, Tele-Monitoring, Tele-Education, and Others}), By Type (Tele-Nursing, Tele-Pharmacy, Tele-Radiology, Tele-Dermatology, Tele-Oncology and Others), By Deployment (On-Premise and Cloud-Based), By End User (Hospitals and Clinics, Home Care and Others), By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, And Rest Of The World) - Forecast Till 2030.

Computer Vision in Healthcare Market Research Report: By Product & Service (Software, Hardware, Services), By Application (Medical Imaging and Diagnostics, Surgeries, Others) and By End User (Healthcare providers, Diagnostic centers, Others)  Forecast to 2030

Precision Medicine Market Research Report Information By Ecosystem Players (Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology Companies, Diagnostic Companies, Healthcare IT Specialists/Big Data Companies, and Clinical Laboratories), By Sub-Markets (Biomarker-Based Test, Companion Diagnostics, Targeted Therapeutics, Pharmacogenomics (PGX), and Molecular Diagnostics), By Therapeutics (Cancer/Oncology, Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), Central Nervous System, and Infectious Diseases), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, And Rest Of The World)  Forecast to 2030

About Market Research Future:

Market Research Future (MRFR) is a global market research company that takes pride in its services, offering a complete and accurate analysis with regard to diverse markets and consumers worldwide. Market Research Future has the distinguished objective of providing the optimal quality research and granular research to clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help answer your most important questions.
Greenville, South Carolina, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ARCpoint Inc. (TSXV: ARC) (the Company or ARCpoint) a leading US-based franchise system providing drug testing, alcohol screening, DNA and clinical lab testing services announces that it will host a conference call on Tuesday, May 23, 2023 at 3:15 pm Eastern time to review the Companys 2023 Q1 financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, and provide an operational update.



The dial-in number for the conference call is as follows:

Canada / USA Toll Free 1-800-319-4610

International Toll 1-604-638-5340

Callers should dial in 5  10 min prior to the scheduled start time and ask to join the ARCpoint call:

ARCpoints President and CEO, John Constantine commented We are pleased to report that on a quarter over quarter basis, we increased revenues and narrowed losses. In particular, we are encouraged that over half of our franchise locations increased their B2B revenue versus the previous quarter.

Bob Mann, who was recently appointed as the new President of the ARCpoint Franchise Group LLC, (AFG) a wholly owned US-subsidiary of the Company that operates ARCpoints franchise business, added With a goal to further build on these gains, we are focused on executing the rollout of our Total Reporting and MyARCpointLabs systems along with the implementation of new business development strategies and partnerships to drive sales at the franchisee level. These initiatives include the introduction of new field marketing resources and a national sales program to create new B2B leads for our franchisees.

The Company has now largely completed its new, integrated technology platform, which includes Total Reporting, the Companys B2B portal. Total Reporting allows ARCpoints franchisees to market more services through an efficient, integrated platform that is much easier for B2B customers to use. With Total Reporting employers can login to one platform and manage all their drug testing and background check needs, regardless of what type of organization they are. Many companies login to multiple systems to try to manage their employment needs today. The proprietary system is owned by ARCpoint allowing for flexibility and future development. Currently, about one-third of the AFG network has signed up and trained on the Total Reporting system.

As at March 31, 2023, the Company had total cash on hand of approximately US$5.4 million, comprised of US$4.6 million in unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and US$800 thousand in Brand Fund restricted cash. Use of Brand Fund restricted cash is at the Companys discretion and is used to increase sales and the brand presence of the Companys entities and franchisees.

Summary of 2023 Q1 Financial Results

All results below are reported under International Financial Reporting Standards and in US dollars.

Total revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $1.7 million compared to $5.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and $1.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2022. During Q1 2022, high complexity PCR testing and low complexity rapid tests volumes were significantly higher due to the COVID pandemic.

Net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $2.1 million compared to net income of $684 thousand for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and negative $6.1 million for the three months ended December 31, 2022.

Operating cash flow for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was negative $1.2 million compared to positive $1.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and negative $0.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2022.

EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was negative $1.8 million compared to positive $1.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and negative $5.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2022.

Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was negative $1.1 million compared to positive $1.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and negative $ 1.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2022.





DEFINITION AND RECONCILIATION OF NON-IFRS FINANCIAL MEASURES

The Company reports certain non-IFRS measures that are used to evaluate the performance of its businesses and the performance of their respective segments. Securities regulators require such measures to be clearly defined and reconciled with their most comparable IFRS measures.

As non-IFRS measures generally do not have a standardized meaning, they may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Rather, these are provided as additional information to complement those IFRS measures by providing further understanding of the results of the operations of the Company from managements perspective. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation, nor as a substitute for analysis of the Companys financial information reported under IFRS. Non-IFRS measures used to analyze the performance of the Companys businesses include EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA.

The Company believes that these non-IFRS financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information regarding the Companys performances and may be useful to investors because they allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in its financial and operational decision-making. These financial measures are intended to provide investors with supplemental measures of the Companys operating performances and thus highlight trends in the Companys core businesses that may not otherwise be apparent when solely relying on the IFRS measures. These non-IFRS measures are calculated as follows:

EBITDA is comprised as income (loss) less interest, income tax and depreciation and amortization. Management believes that EBITDA is a useful indicator for investors, and is used by management, in evaluating the operating performance of the Company. See Unaudited Interim Condensed Consolidated EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation appended to this press release for a quantitative reconciliation of EBITDA to the most directly comparable financial measure.

Adjusted EBITDA is comprised as income (loss) less interest, income tax, depreciation, amortization, share-based compensation, Brand Fund revenue and expense timing difference, change in fair value of warrant liability, foreign exchange gain (loss) and other income / expenses not attributable to the operations of the Company. Management believes that EBITDA is a useful indicator for investors, and is used by management, in evaluating the operating performance of the Company. See Unaudited Interim Condensed Consolidated EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation appended to this press release for a quantitative reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to the most directly comparable financial measure.

A reconciliation of how the Company calculates EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA is provide in the table appended to this press release.

For more information, please see the interim financial statements (the Financial Statements) and the interim Management Discussion & Analysis of the Company for the three-month period ended March 31, 2023 under the Companys profile at www.sedar.com.

About ARCpoint Inc.

ARCpoint is a leading US-based franchise system providing drug testing, alcohol screening, DNA and clinical lab testing, corporate wellness programs, and employment and background screening, among other services. The Company is based in Greenville, South Carolina, USA. ARCpoint Franchise Group LLC, formed under the laws of the state of South Carolina in February 2005, is the franchisor of ARCpoint Labs and supports over 130 independently owned locations. ARCpoint sells franchises to individuals throughout the United States and provides support in the form of marketing, technology and training to new franchisees. ARCpoint Corporate Labs LLC develops corporate-owned labs committed to providing accurate, cost-effective solutions for customers, businesses and physicians. AFG Services LLC serves as the innovation center of the ARCpoint group of companies as it builds a proprietary technology platform and a physician network to equip all ARCpoint labs with best-in-class tools and solutions to better serve their customers. The platform also digitalizes and streamlines administrative functions such as materials purchasing, compliance, billing and physician services for ARCpoint franchise labs and other clients.

For more information, please contact:

ARCpoint Inc.

Jason Tong, Chief Financial Officer

Phone: (604) 889-7827

E-mail: invest@arcpointlabs.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this Press release.

ARCpoint Inc.

Unaudited Interim Condensed Consolidated EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation

(Expressed in United States Dollars)

(a) Finance expense comprised of interest on bank loans, notes payable and lease liabilities (see Financial Statements).

(b) Share-based compensation expense comprised of non-cash compensation (see Financial Statements).

(c) Other income (expenses) comprised of government assistance benefit received pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic and interest on notes receivable (see Financial Statements, note 6).

(d) One-time legal and professional fees refer to expenses and other transactional costs incurred for financings and restructuring completed in 2022 and 2023 (see Financial Statements).

(e) The Group operates a Brand Fund established to collect and administer funds contributed for use in advertising and promotional programs designed to increase sales and enhance the reputation of the Group and its franchisees. The Group reports contributions and expenditures on a gross basis on the Groups statement of profit and loss. Brand Fund contributions are recognized as revenue when invoiced, as the Group has full discretion on how and when the Brand Fund revenues are spent. Brand Fund revenue received may not equal advertising expenditures for the period due to timing of promotions and this difference is recognized to earnings. This adjustment is made to normalize for the timing difference of the Brand Fund revenues and Brand Fund expenditures.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE: PAC; BMV: GAP) (the Company or GAP) announces that today the Company made the payment of the first installment of Ps.3.71 (THREE PESOS 71/100 M.N.) per each outstanding share, corresponding to the dividend payment approved at the Annual General Ordinary Shareholders Meeting held on April 13th, 2023. This payment corresponds to the thirty-four such payment.

COMPANY DESCRIPTION

Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico, S.A.B. de C.V. (GAP) operates 12 airports throughout Mexicos Pacific region, including the major cities of Guadalajara and Tijuana, the four tourist destinations of Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, La Paz, and Manzanillo, and six other mid-sized cities: Hermosillo, Guanajuato, Morelia, Aguascalientes, Mexicali and Los Mochis. In February 2006, GAPs shares were listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PAC and on the Mexican Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol GAP. In April 2015, GAP acquired 100% of Desarrollo de Concessioner Aeroportuarias, S.L., which owns a majority stake in MBJ Airports Limited, a company operating Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, Jamaica. In October 2018, GAP entered into a concession agreement for the Norman Manley International Airport operation in Kingston, Jamaica, and took control of the operation in October 2019.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are statements that are not historical facts and are based on managements current view and estimates of future economic circumstances, industry conditions, company performance, and financial results. The words anticipates, believes, estimates, expects, plans and similar expressions, as they relate to the company, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Statements regarding the declaration or payment of dividends, the implementation of principal operating and financing strategies and capital expenditure plans, the direction of future operations, and the factors or trends affecting financial condition, liquidity, or results of operations are examples of forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of management and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. There is no guarantee that the expected events, trends, or results will actually occur. The statements are based on many assumptions and factors, including general economic and market conditions, industry conditions, and operating factors. Any changes in such assumptions or factors could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

In accordance with Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and Article 42 of the Ley del Mercado de Valores, GAP has implemented a whistleblower program, which allows complainants to anonymously and confidentially report suspected activities that involve criminal conduct or violations. The telephone number in Mexico, facilitated by a third party responsible for collecting these complaints, is 01 800 563 00 47. The website is www.lineadedenuncia.com/gap. GAPs Audit Committee will be notified of all complaints for immediate investigation.
VANCOUVER, May 17, 2023 - Candelaria Mining Corp. (TSX-V: CAND, OTC PINK: CDELF) (the "Company") announces that effective May 16, 2023, Neil O'Brien has resigned as a director of the Company and as Chairman of the Board of Directors (the "Board"). The Company would like to thank Mr. O'Brien for his service to the Company and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.



The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Manuel Gomez as the new Chairman of the Board, effective May 16, 2023. Mr. Gomez was appointed as a director of the Board on December 15, 2022.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Mike Struthers

CEO

+1 604 349 5992

For further information, please contact:



Candelaria Mining Corp.

Investor Relations

+1 604 349 5992 | info@candelariamining.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Interview: Mutual appreciation of civilizations helps strengthen global youth connection, says British educator

Xinhua) 14:35, May 18, 2023

LONDON, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The pathway to a globally-connected future lies in language education, cultural exchange and a shared commitment to mutual understanding and respect among civilizations, a British educator has said.

These principles can bring young people from around the world closer together, not only as friends but also as future leaders from diverse backgrounds, Joan Deslandes, head teacher of Kingsford Community School in east London, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"In the context of our ever-globalizing world, it's crucially important that we not only acknowledge but celebrate our cultural differences," she said, adding that "these shouldn't be perceived as remote aspects of a specific curriculum but as integral components of our daily lives."

Noting that nations can bring tangible benefits to one another by appreciating and understanding diverse cultures, she said that the key to addressing the world's pressing challenges lies in promoting mutual understanding and learning among different civilizations.

Kingsford Community School became the first school in the United Kingdom to make Mandarin a compulsory part of its curriculum in 2000. In 2007, it became home to London's first Confucius Classroom.

Deslandes told Xinhua that Kingsford regularly organized exchange programs with Chinese middle schools before the COVID-19 pandemic. Students are now eagerly anticipating the resumption of these programs.

"The students at my school are incessantly inquiring about when they can return to China. The stories told by older students about their enriching experiences, the friendships formed and the deep cultural immersion have instilled in them a desire to participate in these exchanges," she added.

She said Kingsford students are both willing and genuinely enthusiastic about promoting mutual understanding and learning among civilizations.

On China's recent proposal of the Global Civilization Initiative, Deslandes sees it as attractive and necessary for the world's young population.

She said misunderstanding, misinformation and a lack of trust among nations are barriers to global cooperation.

"I'm excited about the future of this initiative," Deslandes said, "and its potential to expand and reinforce the inter-connectedness of the world's civilizations."

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
VANCOUVER, May 18, 2023 - Archer Exploration Corp. (CSE: RCHR) (the "Company" or "Archer") is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. John Townend as Senior Manager Technical Services and Exploration.

Tom Meyer, President and CEO, said: "I am delighted to welcome John to Archer Exploration. His previous experience with both Vale and Hudbay Minerals offers us an opportunity to draw from his unique geological perspective. Having worked extensively in the Sudbury basin for more than 30 years, John's addition to our team adds formidable core strength to our exploration and development programs. With his expertise in base metals in diverse geological settings, he brings a key skill set to our organization."

John Townend

Mr. Townend is a Professional Geologist (P. Geo) with more than 35 years of experience working in mineral exploration, mines geology and engineering. He most recently worked as Chief Geologist at Hudbay Mineral's subsidiary, Rosemont Copper, in Arizona. Prior to Rosemont, John held progressively senior roles at Vale over a 32-year period, primarily across their operations in Sudbury. Mr. Townend has worked across a variety of locations and roles in both base metals and gold mining and mineral exploration in a variety of geological environments and has a thorough understanding of exploration, underground mining, and mining methods. Mr. Townend holds a BSc. Geology from Laurentian University in Sudbury.

About Archer

Archer Exploration is a Canadian Ni-Cu-Co-PGE focused exploration and development company with an extensive portfolio of assets in Quebec and Ontario, Canada. The Company's flagship asset is the Grasset Project, located within the Abitibi Greenstone Belt, with an Indicated Resource of 5.5Mt @ 1.53% NiEq. In addition, the Company holds a strategically significant portfolio of 37 properties and over 300 km2 in the world-class mining district of Sudbury, Ontario.

The Company's growth strategy is focused on the exploration and development of its nickel sulphide properties within its portfolio. Archer's vision is to be a responsible nickel sulphide developer in stable pro-mining jurisdictions. Archer is committed to socially responsible exploration and development, working safely, ethically, and with integrity.

Neither the CSE nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Archer Exploration Corp.
TORONTO, May 18, 2023 - Goliath Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: GOT) (OTCQB: GOTRF) (Frankfurt: B4IF) (the "Company" or "Goliath") is pleased to announce the closing of its previously announced "best-efforts" upsized private placement (the "Offering") for gross proceeds of C$9,650,000, which includes the full exercise of the Agent's Option for gross proceeds of C$1,150,000. Under the Offering, the Company sold 9,650,000 flow-through units to charitable purchasers (each, a "Charity FT Unit") at a price of C$1.00 per Charity FT Unit (the "Offering Price"). Red Cloud Securities Inc. (the "Agent") acted as sole agent and bookrunner under the Offering.



Each Charity FT Unit consists of one common share of the Company (each, a "Common Share") issued as a "flow-through share" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (each, a "FT Share") and one half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant shall entitle the holder to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.92 at any time on or before May 18, 2025.

Proceeds from the sale of FT Shares will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" as defined in subsection 66.1 (6) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) and "flow through mining expenditures" as defined in subsection 127(9) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Qualifying Expenditures"). Such proceeds will be renounced to the subscribers of Charity FT Units with an effective date not later than December 31, 2023, in the aggregate amount of not less than the total amount of gross proceeds raised from the issue of FT Shares.

The Company intends to use most of the proceeds from the Offering for Qualifying Expenditures for exploration and drilling at its new Surebet discovery at its 100% controlled Golddigger property located in the Golden Triangle, British Columbia.

6,150,000 Charity FT Units were sold pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption under Part 5A of NI 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions (the "Listed Issuer Financing Exemption"). Pursuant to applicable Canadian securities laws, the Common Shares issuable from these 6,150,000 Charity FT Units will be immediately freely tradeable under the Listed Issuer Financing Exemption for Canadian purchasers. The remaining 3,500,000 Charity FT Units sold under the Offering will be subject to a four-month restricted period in Canada ending on September 19, 2023.

In connection with the Offering, the Company paid to the Agent a cash commission totaling C$437,250 and issued to the Agent 437,250 warrants of the Company (each, a "Compensation Warrant"). Each Compensation Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.75 at any time on or before May 18, 2025. In addition, the Company paid to a Finder a cash commission totaling $90,000 and issued to the Finder 90,000 Warrants (each, a "Finders Warrant"). Each Finders Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.75 at any time on or before May 18, 2025.

The securities described herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act, or any state securities laws, and accordingly may not be offered or sold within the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities requirements or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.

About Goliath Resources Limited

Goliath Resources Ltd. is an explorer of precious metals in the prolific Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia and Abitibi Greenstone Belt of Quebec. All its projects are in world class geological settings and geopolitical safe jurisdictions amenable to mining in Canada. The new high-grade gold-silver Surebet discovery at its 100% controlled Golddigger Property located in the Golden Triangle, British Columbia is its flagship project.

For more information please contact:

Goliath Resources Ltd.

Mr. Roger Rosmus

Founder and CEO

Tel: +1-416-488-2887

roger@goliathresources.com

www.goliathresourcesltd.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), nor the OTCQB Venture Market accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on Goliath's current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the ability of Company to conduct drilling to expand the footprint of its new Surebet discovery and its ability to build value for its shareholders as it develops its mining properties. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information. Those assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to Goliath. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the proposed transactions will occur, or that if the proposed transactions do occur, will be completed on the terms described above.

The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and Goliath is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

This announcement does not constitute an offer, invitation, or recommendation to subscribe for or purchase any securities and neither this announcement nor anything contained in it shall form the basis of any contract or commitment. In particular, this announcement does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, securities in the United States, or in any other jurisdiction in which such an offer would be illegal.

The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to or for the account or benefit of a U.S. person (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.



NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN
Vancouver, May 18, 2023 - Manning Ventures Inc. (the "Company" or "Manning") (CSE:MANN) (Frankfurt:1H5) (OTC:MANVF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an Option Agreement (the "Option Agreement") with Gravel Ridge Resources Ltd. and Perry Vern English (collectively, the "Owners") who are the legal and beneficial holders of 44 mineral claims located in the Province of Ontario (the "Property") whereby the Owners have granted the Company the right to acquire a 100% interest in the Property.

The Kaba Project is an approximately 2,600-hectare Copper-Lithium exploration property located 50km northeast of the town of Nipigon, the junction of the Trans-Canada Highways 11 and 17, in northwestern Ontario, Canada. Logging roads provide excellent access.

Two copper occurrences on the property are intimately associated with the northwest trending Eastborne Hall Lake Fault, a product of late-stage Mid Continental Rifting (Figure 2). The occurrences are contained within copper-rich breccia's and veins, with chalcopyrite, bornite and pyrite associated with quartz breccia hosted within biotite granite and diabase.

The Company also targeted the project for it's Lithium potential. The Property is situated approximately 15kms east of the Barbara Lake Pegmatite field, where numerous discoveries of Li-bearing pegmatites have recently occurred. Currently there are multiple companies both developing and exploring for lithium in the immediate area (Figure 1).

Ground and magnetic surveys were completed on the Kaba ground in 1968 by Anglo-American. Two anomalies, 275m and 180m long, were outlined by magnetics. The EM survey indicated mineralization extended for 1200m. Drilling by Anglo highlighted 26.5m grading 1% Cu and 17.3m grading 0.54% Cu (MDI42E04NE00007). There were no analyses for gold.

Most copper assays were whited out in the assessment report. Other intervals include 2.02% Cu over 4.27m and 1.26% Cu over 3.65m. Chip samples in 1979 by Stinson reported 0.32% Cu over 9.14m (AFRI 42E04NE8355).

Very little systematic exploration and drilling has been completed along the copper-bearing structure with the last drill program completed in 1980 (3 holes for 172m). No assays are available.



Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 1: Kaba Cu-Li Project location, NW Ontario, Canada



Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 2: Late rift stage hydrothermal deposits related to the Mid Continental Rift

The Barbara Lake area includes, among others, Imagine Lithium, which recently drilled 21m of 1.16% Li2O, and 5m of 1.12% Li20 (Imagine Lithium, News Release, October 19, 2022) and Rock Tech Lithium's Georgia Lake Project, where the Northern Spodumene Pegmatite Area has a Measured resource of 2.31mt at 1.04% Li2O and an Indicated resource of 4.31mt at 0.99% Li2O (Rock Tech 43-101 PEA, March 15, 2021).

"When this project came to our attention we weren't necessarily looking to add to our portfolio, however once we completed due diligence we felt it is a compelling exploration target worth pursuing," said CEO, Alex Klenman. "The historical copper numbers are excellent and the prospectivity appears evident, but the geology, location, and recent lithium exploration success in the immediate area also make the project highly prospective for lithium-bearing pegmatites, which fits firmly within our current exploration focus. We're going to get active on the property in near term and we're looking forward to getting on the ground," continued Mr. Klenman.

The Company is currently planning an initial expoloration program for Kaba to be conducted in the coming weeks and will announce details shortly.

Terms

Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Option Agreement and in order to acquire a 100% interest in and to the Property, the Company must:

pay the Owners an aggregate of $90,600 in cash, over a three-year period following the excuection of the Option Agreement (the date of execution being referred to herein as the Effective Date"); issue the Owners an aggregate of 500,000 common shares in the capital of the Company Manning within five (5) business days of the Effective Date; incur an aggregate of at least $20,000 in exploration expenditures on the Propertyby the one (1) year anniversary of the Effective Date; and grant the Owners a royalty equal to one and one-half percent (1.5%) of net smelter returns from the Property, which may be reduced at any time from one and one-half percent (1.5%) of net smelter returns to one percent (1.0%) of net smelter returns by the Company paying to the Owners an aggregate of $600,000.

All securities issued in connection with the Option Agreement will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Qualified Person

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Company. The QP and the Company has not completed sufficient work to verify the historic information on the properties comprising the Kaba Property, particularly regarding historical exploration, neighbouring companies, and government geological work.

About Manning

Manning is a broad-based mineral exploration and development company with a focus in Canada. Manning holds a 100% interest in the Bounty Lithium Project, located in Quebec, and the Dipole Lithium Project, in Newfoundland. The Company also retains interest in six Iron Ore properties located in the Province of Quebec, and portfolio of polymetallic projects in Newfoundland.

For further information contact:

Manning Ventures Inc.

Alex Klenman - CEO

Email: info@manning-ventures.com

Telephone: (604) 681-0084

www.manning-ventures.com

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS:

The Canadian Securities Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to sell any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold within the United States, or to or for the account or benefit of any U.S. person or any person in the United States, unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. "United States" and "U.S. Person" are as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act.

Some of the statements contained in this news release are forward-looking statements and information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of words such as "anticipates", "plans", "expects", "intends", "is expected", "potential", "suggests" or variations of such words or phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are not historical facts and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.

Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
VANCOUVER, May 18, 2023 - A collaborative cross-Canadian partnership between infection control researchers, transit authorities and private industry has demonstrated the effectiveness of antimicrobial copper to reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses in public spaces. The results of a successfully completed, one-year study, led by the medical microbiology research team at Vancouver Coastal Health and hosted by TransLink and Toronto Transit Commission, found that select copper products on public transit can eliminate up to 99.9% of bacteria.



This groundbreaking study was the first of its kind in North America and was fully funded by Teck as part of its Copper & Health program. The study evaluated the efficacy of three copper-based solutions for reducing the transmission of bacteria and viruses on high-touch surfaces on public transportation. The solutions tested included thermal coated copper surface layers, copper alloys, and copper decals; both in-situ for bacterial testing and in-lab for virus testing. Test results showed that select copper products can eliminate up to 99.9% of bacteria on public transit and 99.9% of viruses in a laboratory setting within two hours of contact.

The medical microbiology team from Vancouver Coastal Health, supported by Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, conducted tests every two months over the course of a year, analyzing samples from both copper and non-copper surfaces on public transit. This phase of the study was critical in determining the long-term viability of copper as a material for high-touch surfaces on public transportation, with particular emphasis on its antimicrobial properties and potential for infection control in public settings.

Led by the Vancouver Coastal Health medical microbiology team, researchers tested for virus-killing capabilities, including surrogates for COVID-19 and Noroviruses. This testing is crucial, as it demonstrates the potential for copper surfaces to reduce the risk of transmission of viruses in addition to bacteria. Results of the in-laboratory studies showed consistent viral load reduction for surrogates of COVID-19 and Noroviruses, as well as the bacterial testing, across all copper products compared to no reduction in the stainless steel comparison.

Research Details:

This trial tested three types of registered products including thermal coated copper surface layers, copper alloys, and copper decals on handles and exit doors on buses, streetcars and trains.

Samples were analyzed every two months, from copper surfaces as well as non-copper surfaces on transit by Vancouver Coastal Health's medical microbiology team, supported by Mount Sinai Hospital/University Health Network in Toronto and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Researchers from the University of British Columbia tested and analyzed the durability of the three products as they aged over the course of the year.

In-lab virus and bacterial testing simulated a year's worth of use, including disinfectant cleaning and human touch (sweat). The copper products showed consistent and sustained antimicrobial activity through the course of the testing, showing that cleaners and human use did not affect the efficacy of the copper in killing surface bacteria and viruses.

This trial was fully funded by Teck's Copper & Health program. The findings have significant implications for public health, especially during pandemics and outbreaks, and highlight the importance of interdisciplinary collaborations between health care providers, academic researchers, and industry partners in improving infection control measures. The success of this pilot project demonstrates the efficacy of copper surfaces in reducing the spread of bacteria and viruses in shared public spaces.



The project is the result of a partnership between Teck Resources Ltd., Toronto Transit Commission, TransLink, Vancouver Coastal Health, Mount Sinai Hospital/University Health Network, the Coalition for Community and Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction (CHAIR), UBC Department of Materials Engineering, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, and Westech Cleaning Audit Systems. The trial follows preceding studies conducted by the Infection Prevention and Control team at Vancouver Coastal Health that have shown copper to be highly durable and effective at killing bacteria in laboratory and healthcare settings.

QUOTES

Jonathan Price, CEO, Teck -

"Copper's unique antimicrobial properties make it ideal for use in busy public spaces such as transit systems. Teck is proud to partner with leading researchers on this study, which continues to demonstrate that copper is a critical tool to help stop the spread of infection and make our communities safer."

Kevin Quinn, TransLink CEO -

"TransLink is proud to be the first transit agency in North America to welcome healthcare providers and academic researchers onto our system to test copper on transit vehicles. We hope this innovative partnership will help to broaden the scientific community's understanding of copper and its use in public spaces."

Dr. Marthe Charles, Medical Microbiologist, Vancouver Coastal Health -

"This study provides another proof point that copper, alongside hand washing, vaccination programs and other infection prevention measures, is an added layer that can help reduce the risk of transmission of pathogens. We're excited that we have been able to contribute to the global understanding of the antibacterial and antiviral properties of copper and that was made possible through this partnership."

Angela Chapman, President & CEO, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation -

"Microbes that are dangerous to human health and well-being will continue to evolve, including COVID-19. VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation has played a vital role in funding innovation through medical research that has produced new technologies, and changed practice and protocols that have saved lives here in BC and globally. The latest groundbreaking study on the use of copper to reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses in public spaces is another step in our mission to inspire philanthropy, transform health care and save lives. We are grateful for the partnership of Teck and our colleagues across Canada whose innovative approach to health care in public spaces is bettering our health across the country."

About Teck

As one of Canada's leading mining companies, Teck is committed to responsible mining and mineral development with major business units focused on copper, zinc, and steelmaking coal. Copper, zinc and high-quality steelmaking coal are required for the transition to a low-carbon world. Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, Teck's shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols TECK.A and TECK.B and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TECK. Learn more about Teck at www.teck.com or follow @TeckResources.

About Teck's Copper & Health Program

Through its Copper & Health program, Teck has funded numerous initiatives across a range of industries and public facilities to help improve health and safety in high-traffic, high-touch areas through the installation of antimicrobial copper. Teck's Copper & Health program has installed copper surfaces in a number of healthcare facilities, including Vancouver General Hospital and St. Paul's Hospital, on public transit in partnership with TransLink and Toronto Transit Commission, throughout the terminal at Vancouver International Airport, in major attractions including Royal Ontario Museum and Science World, and in schools through partnerships with BCIT, SFU and UBC. Teck is a proud member of CHAIR Canada, the Coalition for Community and Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction (chaircanada.org).

About VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation

VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation is Vancouver Coastal Health's primary philanthropic partner, raising funds for specialized adult health care services and research for all British Columbians. VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation partners with donors to raise essential funds for Vancouver Coastal Health, supporting VGH, UBC Hospital, GF Strong Rehab Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, and Community Health Services.

Media downloads:



Video

MORE INFORMATION:

Copperstopsthespread.ca

Teck Media Contact

Chris Stannell

Public Relations Manager

604.699.4368

chris.stannell@teck.com

Vancouver Coastal Health Media Contact:

April Penney

604.290.7482

media@vch.ca
VANCOUVER, May 18, 2023 - Candente Copper Corp. (TSX: DNT; OTCQB: DNCUF; BVL: DNT) ("Candente Copper" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed the previously announced non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") with Whittle Equity Pty Ltd. ("Whittle") and Nascent Exploration Pty Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. ("Fortescue Metals").



A total of 4,761,777 common shares of the Company (the "Shares") were issued at Cdn$0.18 per Share, reflecting a plus 38% premium to market for gross proceeds of Cdn$867,120. The Shares are subject to a statutory four-month hold period. The proceeds of the Private Placement will be allocated to working capital and to an updated optimized NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") currently underway and targeted for publication by Q3 2023.

"We are very excited about the upcoming introduction of Alta Copper Corp., an emerging copper developer advancing with the global shift toward electrification and decarbonization and an updated PEA on Canariaco where several opportunities to further improve already robust project economics have been identified as well as carbon neutralization and further Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG") benefits," commented Joanne Freeze, President and CEO of Candente Copper.

The Private Placement is subject to Candente Copper's completion of its final filings with the Toronto Stock Exchange.

About Candente Copper

Candente Copper is focused on the development of its 100% owned Canariaco advanced staged copper project. Canariaco comprises 97 square kilometers of highly prospective land located 150 kilometers northeast of the City of Chiclayo, Peru, which include the Canariaco Norte deposit, Canariaco Sur deposit and Quebrada Verde prospect, all within a 4km NE-SW trend in northern Peru's prolific mining district. Canariaco is one of the largest copper deposits in the Americas not held by a major.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, plans, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements with respect to the effective date of the consolidation and name change of the Company. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release. Although the Company believes the forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations and assumptions in such statements will prove to be correct. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors which could cause events or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. 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, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We are under no obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable securities laws.

On behalf of the Board of Candente Copper Corp.

"Joanne C. Freeze" P.Geo., President, CEO and Director

For further information please contact:

Joanne C. Freeze, President, CEO and Director

jfreeze@candente.com +1 604 512 3359

or

Giulio T. Bonifacio, Executive Chair and Director

gtbonifacio@candente.com +1 604 318 6760

info@candentecopper.com

www.candentecopper.com
CALGARY, May 18, 2023 - MEG Energy Corp. ("MEG" or the "Company") (TSX: MEG) today announced that it made a $100,000 contribution to the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal and its efforts to support Albertans affected by wildfires. The fund supports the thousands of people who have been impacted by the wildfires in multiple regions across the province.

"Our donation provides immediate support to the people and communities impacted by the ongoing wildfires," said Derek Evans, President and CEO of MEG Energy. "We thank the Canadian Red Cross for its work in providing relief and recovery efforts to those who have been displaced. We also want to extend our thanks to the many local volunteers, firefighting crews and other first responders who are working tirelessly to respond to the fires and keep communities safe."

MEG's contribution will be matched by both the Government of Canada and the Government of Alberta, to a total value of $300,000. In addition, MEG will also match employee contributions to the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal through its MEG Match employee donation matching program.

The company's Christina Lake Project, located south of Fort McMurray, has not been impacted by the wildfires and remains operational at the current time.

More information about the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal is available online here.



About MEG

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A water pollution lawsuit that pit Iowas capital city against the states iconic farmers made the thorny issue one for lawmakers to address. But the legislature wrapped up its session last week without taking action.That leaves Des Moines Water Works, the utility that filed the lawsuit, and farmers in almost exactly the same place they were before they went to court: The utility faces bigger bills to remove farming-related chemicals from the Raccoon River, its source of drinking water, and the farmers still aren't required to reduce pollution from their farms.The courts ruling noted that this policy issue is left up to the Iowa legislature to resolve, but it didnt happen this year, so were disappointed in that, says Laura Sarcone, a spokeswoman for the Des Moines Water Works. Water quality in Iowa, especially for central Iowa, will continue to be serious and escalating. The lawsuit was an attempt to protect our ratepayers [and improve] public health and quality of life.Now the water utility, which serves half a million people in Des Moines and its suburbs, must build a new $80 million facility that can double its capacity to filter out nitrates from the river water.The federal government requires utilities to filter out nitrates because, in extreme cases, nitrate-rich water can be fatally toxic for babies, depriving them of oxygen. In waterways, nitrates can cause algal blooms and "dead zones" for marine life.Nitrates are a colorless, odorless and tasteless form of nitrogen that dissolve in water and are often found in fertilizers. In Iowa, 92 percent of them are found in rivers and lakes and came from agriculture and other unregulated sources. That's why the Des Moines utility took farmers to court: in hopes of regulating farms and the runoff that they create.Agricultural runoff is exempt from the federal Clean Water Act, but the utility argued that that exemption doesnt apply in this case. Most of the farms in the Raccoon River watershed are actually drained wetlands, and that drainage, according to the utility, converted agricultural runoff into point-source pollution, whichregulated by the Clean Water Act. Point-source pollution is essentially pollution that can be traced to a single source, such as a drain or a pipe.Their argument is one of several reasons the lawsuit was so novel -- as Governing previously explored -- but the Iowa Supreme Court struck it down and ruled that the tiny government agencies the utility sued are shielded from lawsuits.The utility decided to drop the case rather than pursue an appeal, but at the time, it was fighting for its survival in the legislature. Senators had advanced a bill that wouldve broken up Des Moines Water Works and given its assets to municipalities in the area. That proposal lost steam after the lawsuit ended.While the legislature did not break up the utility, it also did not develop a long-term strategy for reducing water pollution.A state-developed plan calls for a 45 percent reduction in agricultural pollution, but it relies on farmers to voluntarily make that happen. Iowa wont meet the goal without mandatory participation, says Sarcone of Water Works.The legislature also passed measures to shut down a 30-year-old research center on sustainable agriculture at Iowa State University. The schools Leopold Center helped develop many of the practices that the state is relying on to reduce water pollution, says Carol Brown, a communications specialist at the center. It will close in July unless the governor line-item vetoes those provisions in the budget.No one in the legislature has claimed responsibility for the provision, and the Leopold Center previously hadn't drawn any major criticism.Meanwhile, the two Republican-controlled chambers of the legislature couldnt agree on how to improve water quality, even though it was a top priority for outgoing Gov. Terry Branstad, who is expected to resign shortly to become the U.S. ambassador to China. The House and Senate disagreed over the size of the overall package, whether to authorize bonding for water quality projects and how to distribute the new funds.Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, who will succeed Branstad, said water quality will continue to be a priority of mine in next years legislative session.Kirk Leeds, CEO of the Iowa Soybean Association, opposed the utilitys decision to file a lawsuit, calling it a "major distraction," but he also says the legislatures inaction this year was another missed opportunity to do something more significant in water quality.While Leeds recognizes that farmers and the state have taken steps to address the pollution problem, he says, "sooner or later, the Iowa legislature is going to have to find and dedicate long-term funding. There are investments that need to be made because farmers dont benefit directly from edge-of-field improvements." Bioreactors, essentially underground pits filled with wood chips that use natural processes to break down nitrogen, can cost as much as $15,000 a piece, he notes.But any new money, Leeds says, should be targeted to specific "hot spots" and based on what local actions are needed. Otherwise, limited resources will be spread too thinly.The soybean association and the Des Moines Water Works do agree on at least one thing: the need for more data on water quality to be collected and published. Sarcone, from the utility, says the public should be able to see whether different approaches -- like the installation of biodigesters or the planting of cover crops during the winter -- have a measurable impact on the pollution levels of rivers and streams.The utility, of course, is keeping close tabs on the level of nitrates in the Raccoon River. Its nitrate removal system was designed to be used on rare occasions, but in 2015, the pollution levels were so high, it had to run the system on 177 days.Things have been better in the last two years. Heavy rains have diluted the nitrates, and Des Moines only used its nitrate-removal system 65 days last year. This year? Zero.But that isnt necessarily good news all around.Even if the concentration is lower, the increased water flow that results could increase the total volume of nitrates flowing downstream to the Gulf of Mexico. In May 2016, the level of nitrogen in the Gulf of Mexico was 12 percent higher than the average over the previous 25 years. The "dead zone," where low oxygen levels prevent most organisms from living, was approximately the size of Connecticut.
The Formula 1 world might struggle to get from Imola to Monaco in time for next weekend's grand prix.

That is the warning of the director of operations of the F1 support series Formula 2, Marco Codello, following the decision to cancel this weekend's rounds at Imola due to local flooding.

Earlier, Alpine engineer Karel Loos told the Sporza news agency that while the Formula 1 paddock at Imola is not under water, the F2 and F3 support paddock is knee-deep in parts.

"At the moment, our trucks cannot leave," he said. "Our people on site are also stuck.

"Now have to wait until we can get back to the track to pack everything up and ship it to Monaco for the next race."

Codello, F2's director of operations, said that with just days separating the scheduled Imola and Monaco rounds, and more heavy rain scheduled in the Emilia-Romagna region, logistics may now be a major problem.

"Formula 2 and Formula 3 need two days to prepare, Formula 1 needs a little longer," he said.

"I hope the situation will improve and we will be able to leave Imola on Thursday, but there is no exact plan yet. Perhaps we will stay here and go straight to Monaco, where we should be on Monday evening.

"I imagine that Bologna airport will not only be flooded with water, but also filled with people who want to go home. But there aren't many flights, so the only thing we can do right now is to stay calm," Codello added.

"The emergency applies to everyone."

(GMM)
This weekend's grand prix at Imola has been cancelled.

After Formula 1 team personnel were evacuated from the paddock on Tuesday amid flooding around the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, they were then asked not to return on Wednesday.

That was because parts of the circuit itself began to quite seriously flood.

"Our paddock is not under water," Alpine engineer Karel Loos told the Belgian news agency Sporza, "but the Formula 2 and Formula 3 paddock is.

"At the moment, our trucks cannot leave," he added. "Our people on site are also stuck.

"Now have to wait until we can get back to the track to pack everything up and ship it to Monaco for the next race."

Imola mayor Marco Panieri told Italy's Sky Sport 24: "It's a very tough situation.

"There is now a danger of landslides on the hilly areas. Formula 1 has understood this difficult moment.

"We were already far ahead in being able to start the race weekend, but safety, logistics and communication determined this painful decision."

Matteo Salvini, Italy's deputy prime minister and minister of infrastructure, added: "Not only does this emergency have priority now, we also have to prevent unnecessary traffic from coming to this hard-hit region."

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, who was at the circuit on Wednesday, told the same Italian broadcaster: "It was clear when I arrived on Tuesday evening that there were no other alternatives.

"The complexity of an event like a grand prix involves people, logistics and services. The track would have been ready, but there was a higher priority.

"I informed all the teams and no one had anything (bad) to say."

(GMM)
Formula 1's 23-race calendar is "insane", according to Red Bull team boss Christian Horner.

Actually, this year's schedule was originally supposed to be 24 grands prix - but due to China's handling of the covid situation, the Shanghai round was once again cancelled.

Now, the calendar has shrunk again to 22 races with the cancellation of this weekend's event at Imola due to local flooding.

But it is clear that the trend is more and more races, with rumours Africa is the next on Formula 1's list.

"You get to the point where you wonder if it's getting too much," Horner told FT.

"23 races is an insane number and so is the mileage we have to cover in a season. For me, it would be better to have better competition on the tracks we already have than to keep adding new ones.

"You eventually get to a breaking point and I feel like we're not far from that," he added.

When Horner entered F1 to become the new Red Bull team's boss in 2005, there were 19 grands prix - and he thinks that number was around about right.

"About 18," he said when asked how many races there should be now.

"The problem is that Stefano (Domenicali) comes in with the same trick over and over," Horner smiled. "He says 'Oh, maybe we can't get to Silverstone then' or 'Monza looks a bit wobbly'.

"And so he says 'Look, we can't lose Monaco, Monza and Silverstone'. Then he'll say 'What about Las Vegas?' Ok, alright, we'll go to Vegas.

"'What about Miami?' Alright, we'll go there too. And they just keep coming up with great venues and great races and it's difficult to say no," said Horner.

"But you get to where 23 Sundays a year for people to take two hours out of their day is a big commitment to follow a whole season."

(GMM)
The 2023 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, scheduled for this weekend at Imola, has been cancelled due to severe flooding in the Italian region.

The decision, involving F1, the FIA, and race organisers, follows the deaths of at least two people and significant displacement due to the weather conditions. The F1 community is focusing on ensuring safety and not adding burden to the local authorities dealing with the disaster.

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali expressed sympathy for the victims and commended the emergency services. The extensive flooding has made the circuit unsafe, and ongoing risk to the community and strain on emergency services have led to the decision to cancel the race. Given the full calendar, it is unlikely the race will be rescheduled this year. The next race is the Monaco GP, slated for the weekend of May 26-28.
Absa Bank, Mastercard offer support to SMEs

Maclean Kwofi Business News May - 18 - 2023 , 08:41

The Absa Bank Ghana has partnered the Mastercard Foundation to introduce a new support programme to help elevate Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and propel their growth.

The initiative, among other things seeks to build the capacities of more than 5,000 small businesses and groom them to be investor ready in the next two years.

It also offers a loan scheme which creates an opportunity for women-owned businesses, young entrepreneurs, agribusinesses and fintechs in the country to borrow up to GH1 million at a low rate of 10 per cent without collateral.

The timing for the new loan scheme could not be better as the average commercial borrowing rates in Ghana have soared above 25 per cent, making it harder for businesses to thrive and achieve their full potential.

Absas commitment

The Managing Director (MD) of the Absa Bank Ghana, Abena Osei-Poku, at the launch of the programme in Accra observed that the support programme was an exciting development that reflected the bank's unwavering commitment to empowering and partnering SMEs as they navigate the challenges of today's marketplace.

She described the support programme as a groundbreaking moment in the bank's journey to transform the landscape of Ghanaian businesses.

"We are not just a bank  we are a partner in the countrys real sector growth.

We are committed to making an impact within our communities, to supporting the dreams and aspirations of SMEs as they contribute to the total transformation of the Ghanaian economy," she said.

According to her, the programme is one of the most compelling stories of hope and possibility in a world that is grappling with uncertainty and volatility.

Capacity support

The MD explained that the Mastercard Foundation was offering capacity support and guidance for the programme, while the Absa Bank will take care of the lending aspect of the initiative.

She said this development was a beacon of hope for SMEs in Ghana, as it presents a unique opportunity to access capital at an incredibly low rate, empowering them to create jobs, drive economic growth and unlock their full potential.

It is an investment in the country's future and the Absa Bank Ghana is leading the charge to transform the economy by supporting and partnering these businesses, one story at a time, she said.

She added that the bank had always been committed to the growth and success of small and medium-sized businesses, recognising their power to transform the economy of the country.

Strong SME sector

The Country Director of Mastercard Foundation, Rosy Fynn, noted that a strong SMEs sector was important for the growth of every economy, advanced or developing.

She said in search of viable solutions to support SMEs, the Mastercard Foundation partnered the bank to support the growth of small businesses in the country.

As a result, she said a five-year partnership agreement between the two parties had been reached to build the capacities of 5,000 SMEs to ensure their sustainability.

Through this initiative, we also plan to create 50,000 dignifying and sustainable jobs for Ghanaian youth.

We also expected that within the five years period, about 20 fintech startups would be supported with a grant of $250,000 to scale up their businesses, he said.

Productive sector

The Second Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Elsie Addo Awadzi, stated that the programme would help boost productive sectors of the economy.

She said the initiative was exciting as it sought to help SMEs to maintain and put their businesses on the path of growth at this challenging time.

This initiative could not have come at a better time to support SMEs who have been affected by the recent economic challenges in Ghana and across the world, she said.
Entrepreneurs urged to consider franchising to expand

Charles Benoni Okine Business News May - 18 - 2023 , 09:32

Entrepreneurs have been urged to desist from spreading their businesses too thin if they do not have the financial wherewithal, experience and knowledge to do so effectively.

Instead, they should consider, where necessary, franchising as a way of expanding their branch network and visibility in other areas where they are not present but see a potential.

The President of the US-Ghana Chamber of Commerce, Florence Torsonhart, gave the advice when answering questions during one of the breakout sessions at a two-day Global Womens Professional & Business Conference at the Accra International Conference Centre.

Franchising

Franchising is a business relationship between two entities wherein one party allows another to sell its products and intellectual property.

For example, several fast food chains such as KFC and Dominos operate in Ghana through franchising.

Mrs Torsonhart said many entrepreneurs are often tempted to spend money to open new outlets of branches in areas where they do not have much knowledge about or the financial strength and noted that, instead of going through that ordeal, it would be better to sell a franchise to another person or business interested in dealing in your products or service to do so while you sit back to take the royalties.

She said franchising demanded a lot from the owner of the franchise to make it attractive and these include quality products, effective and efficient customer service and strong selling proposition.

Taking insurance

In the area of ensuring business continuity when one was no more, she stressed the need for entrepreneurs to contact credible insurance companies which have products that can help the business to continue even in the owners absence through death or accident that makes one incapable of working.

Mrs Torsonhart said taking such an insurance helped to protect the owner and its employees from risks and liabilities.

She said taking the right insurance coverage could give the entrepreneur peace of mind and safeguard ones financial future.

It can also provide additional benefits such as tax deductions, help with legal issues and access to additional capital.

Escaping corporate

Mrs Torsonhart also asked the participants to consider what she described as the Foundations or the Trusty Tripod.

She said the first of the tripod was about Narrow Target Market noting that, right from the beginning of the business, one should be able to narrow their focus to be able to do things better to achieve their objectives.

Using Facebook, Harvard, Amazon among other greats as an example, she said spreading one self too thin was dangerous and could affect the beginning for a startup or slow down the progress of an existing business.

The second point was about Exciting Value Proposition saying as a business, there should be one or a few things that should differentiate a business from competition.

She said much as one may have a product or service that is common in the market place, yours must have a unique distinct character that draws the crowd to you at all times.

According to her, often times, many businesses do not have that exciting value proposition and that makes their products or service just another one.

Mrs Torsonhart on the third point explained that the entrepreneur must be able to have a Scalable Marketing Plan.

She said that was crucial because the entrepreneur should be able to have a strategy that allows them to grow their startup without sacrificing their budget, quality or customer satisfaction.

Difficult start

Mrs Torsonhart said starting a business can be tough but noted that with the right focus, ambition and tapping into the knowledge of how others made it, it could set one on a positive trajectory to succeed.
Ghana, China deepen trade partnership

Daily Graphic Business News May - 18 - 2023 , 08:22

Ghana and China have deepen economic and bilateral trade relations ahead of the third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo (CAETE), slated for June 29, 2023 would be held in Changsha, Hunan of China.

Representatives from China and Ghana, converged at the China (Shaoyang) and Ghana Economic and Trade Matchmaking conference on Monday in Accra to strengthen collaboration and trade partnership.

Speaking at the programme, Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Michael Okyere Baafi said, Ghana will continue to strengthen the bilateral and trade relationship with China. Adding that, China has been a major trading partner for Ghana over the years.

According to him, the partnership, has yielded fruitful results for both sides, and a win-win situation for both parties.

He said, Ghana is determine to forge stronger ties with China to be able to gain more from China in the area of business.

Mr. Baafi said, Ghana would actively take part in the up-coming Expo in China to seek investment, particularly, into the auto sector.

We cannot trade without China now.

Africas only hope in terms of civilisation and trade and industrialisation depend on China and that is how the country has a specific foreign policy with China to build this relationship together for both countries to benefit, Mr. Baafi, said.

He urged Chinese companies to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) initiative and establish their presence in Ghana.

We are now at the beginning state of the concept so this is the time companies from China should be interested in coming to Ghana to set up companies, so they take advantage of the huge market the compact presents, he said.

Mr Baafi indicated that, AfCFTA presented a market of 1.2 billion people with combined gross domestic product of $3.4 trillion.

This clearly shows that anybody that sets up in Ghana now has a bright future.

Because you are going to benefit from a bigger market, you may not only be dealing with Ghana, but other markets in the African region, Mr. Baafi, disclosed.

He also woos more Chinese companies to relocate to Ghana and Ghanaian businesses also try their best to set up businesses in China in order to benefit both.

"We are working on encouraging more local businesses to establishing or venturing into other sectors in China to building the business relationship", he said.

Getting closer to clients

Kwame Asante Nsiah, Director of Enclaves, Zones and Applications of Ghana Free ZonesAuthority, noted, that out of 226 companies in the Free Zone Enclaves, only twelve are Chinese firms.

He urged Hunan Province to make Ghana their hub, beat the shipping cost and get closer to their clients here in Ghana by manufacturing their products here.

Mr. Edward Ashong-Lartey, Director of Investor Services Division of Ghana Investment Promotion Centre(GIPC), who represented the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GIPC, Stressed that, Ghana being the industrail hub of West Africa takes investment seriously.

He commended Hunan for the progress made so far, and want to see more of their investment in areas such as telecommunication, tourism, agriculture, and others in Ghana soon.

About 3rd China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo

The third China and Africa Economic and Trade Expo, is themed " Common Development for a share future", is meant to promote trade between China and the rest of the world.

The programme would be jointly organised by the Department of Commerce of Hunan Province Trade Development Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce, Foreign Affairs Office of Hunan Province, China Council for the Promotion of International Hunan Sub-Council and Peoples Government of Changsha under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Commerce of the Peoples Republic of China and Peoples Government of Hunan Province.

The four-day programme would be held under the auspices of the Shaoyang Municipal Peoples Government, it was organised by the Shaoyang Municipal Bureau of Commerce.

The Deputy Mayor of the Shaoyang Municipal Peoples Government, Yan Lijn, in her remarks said the expo was expected to receive participants from a lot of African countries to showcase their products and services and also see what China offers.

She said the programme would also provide opportunity for businesses and investors to seal business deals and contracts.

The Deputy Director of Shaoyang Municipal Bureau of Commerce, said the 3rd China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo would bring new opportunities and inject new momentum for practical economic and trade cooperation and win-win partnership between Ghana and China.

Yan Lijn said, China is working to attract more Chinese companies to establish in Ghana particularly in the area of Free Zones enclave.
Ghana seeking $10.5bn in savings from debt restructuring

Emmanuel Bruce Business News May - 18 - 2023 , 19:35

The government will use the IMF bailout window to renegotiate debts towards saving about $10.5 billion.

The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta is looking forward to a fruitful engagement with Ghanas bilateral and private creditors in the days ahead.



The external creditors include bilateral and commercial creditors.

The government announced a suspension of debt service on external commercial obligations on December 19, 2022 and has since been engaging with them on a debt restructuring.

The government is seeking to restructure debts totalling $14 billion, out of which $13 billion are in bonds with its external commercial creditors.

Following the formation of the Creditor Committee of the Paris Club backed by China, the government is also expected to begin debt restructuring negotiations with its bilateral creditors in the coming days in a bid to restructure debts of about $5.4 billion.

At a press conference Thursday afternoon by the IMF in the United States capital, Washington DC, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the government was looking forward to a fruitful engagement with its bilateral and private creditors in the days ahead, as the country worked towards achieving debt sustainability that would anchor economic stability.

Under the IMF programme, Ghana is expected to reduce its debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP)-ratio from the current 93.5 per cent to 55 per cent.




Internet subscription hits 22.8 million "Govt seeks private partnership for expansion"

Kester Korankye Aburam & Diana Mensah Business News May - 18 - 2023 , 08:32

Ghanas internet subscription has reached 22.8 million this year, an increase from the 16.99 million subscribers recorded in January last year.

This means the countrys internet penetration rate rose from 53.0 per cent to 71.94 per cent within a year.

The rise of internet connectivity has influenced online business transactions, with a large percentage of the population conducting businesses online and paying for goods and services using mobile money platforms, ushering in a cash-lite system envisaged by the government.

Ama Pomaa Boateng (3rd from right), Deputy Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, with Prince Ofosu Sefah (2nd from right), Administrator, GIFEC, Isaac Emmil Osei Bonsu Jnr (4th from left), Board Chairman, NCA, Abdourahamane Diallo (3rd from left), UNESCO Country representative, and Prof. Ezer Osei Yeboah-Boateng (2nd from left), Deputy Director-General in charge of Technical Operations, NCA. With them are other dignitaries and participants. Picture: ERNEST KODZI

The Director-General of the National Communications Authority (NCA), Joe Anokye, who made this known, said the leap was a major boost in internet connectivity compared to previous years.

Mr Anokye was speaking at a ceremony to mark World Telecommunications and Information Society Day (WTISD) 2023 in Accra today (Wednesday).

It was held on the theme Public -Private Partnership to improve connectivity.

The WTISD was set aside by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in 1969 and is marked annually by the global telecommunications industry.

This years celebration is focused on empowering the least developed countries through information and communication technologies.

Present at the ceremony were the Deputy Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, Ama Pomaa Boateng, the Board Chairman of the NCA, Isaac Emmil Osei -Bonsu and the Chief Executive Officer of MTN, Selorm Adadevoh.

Also present were the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AirtelTigo, Leo Skarlatos, the Country Representative of UNESCO, Abdourahamane Diallo and the Head of the International Affairs Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation, Kwame Baah-Acheamfour.

While the increase in internet connectivity is an indicator of progress in the telecommunication sector, Mr Anokye said there was still room for improvement and called on the private sector to partner with the government to invest in the communications sector to achieve a digitally robust and secure economy.

He said the government recognised the need for such partnership and had, therefore, created an enabling environment for investment and for the private sector to thrive.

Key to the governments intervention, he said, was the passage of the PPP Act 2020, Act 1039, which provided development through collaboration among public authorities and private parties for the provision of infrastructure and services.

The government has over the years been pushing the digital agenda which aims at bridging the digital divide and improving digital literacy and access to connectivity, he said.

Ama Pomaa Boateng - Deputy Minister of Communications and Digitalisation

Infrastructure expansion

To help position the sector for accelerated development, Ms Boateng said the government was making significant investments to connect the entire country to both voice and data service.

She said from 2020 to 2022, 1008 rural sites had been constructed for voice and data nationwide and that many communities had already benefited from the sites.

The government, she said, was optimistic that out of the 1008 remaining sites to be completed, 560 rural sites would be completed by the end of this year.

She explained that the provision of connectivity had an accompaniment of usage; hence, a need to expand connectivity to rope, every one, into the digital world.

We must not lose sight of the fact that we need to close the technology usage gap, there is the need for more investments to ensure that everyone has access to Information Communication Technology tools.

Citizens must have access devices to be able to interact meaningfully and also transact public and private services online without any barriers, she said.

Investments

Ms Boateng said the government would not relent on its promise to ensure that no one was left behind in getting access to voice and data services.

Already, she said the government had committed $ 2.6 million to establish innovation centres and was training about 3,000 people by 2024 while the ministry also had an agreement with the Smart Africa Alliance through the Smart Africa Digital Academy to train up to 22,000 people by 2023.

Beyond that, she said the Universal Access Fund Administration operated over 220 community ICT centres across rural communities in the country that were used for capacity building, skills training and business advisory services.
MUSIGA election wont be free and fair says Ras Caleb

Gifty Owusu-Amoah Showbiz News May - 18 - 2023 , 11:43

RAS Caleb Appiah-Levi, one of the three aspirants for the post of President in the upcoming general election of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), says he doesnt trust the election scheduled for Tuesday, August 8 to select a new MUSIGA President will be free and fair.

His contention is that the acting MUSIGA President, Bessa Simons, is also an aspirant and such a situation cannot be trusted to bring about an impartial election.

All the same, he doesnt intend to fight for the right things to be done when those he describes as at the helm of affairs have turned a blind eye to measures that can create an equal playing field for all aspirants.

Speaking with Graphic Showbiz on Tuesday, May 16, Ras Caleb said he had been in favour of the establishment of an interim management committee to handle affairs for the upcoming election but his efforts had not yielded any results.

I have been saying at committee meetings that we need an independent body to handle the election and its processes. I have been requesting an Interim Management Committee because the Electoral Commission of Ghana doesnt contest elections. They only conduct elections.

They also dont compile the voters register. That is why I think Bessa Simons, who is the acting MUSIGA president, should not be a referee and a contestant at the same time. Per his role, he will supervise the compilation of the voters register to be given to the election committee set up by MUSIGA and that is where the conflict of interest arises.

He has an interest and if I were him, I would have stepped down for an interim management committee, comprising the arbitration committee and people from the creative arts to run the union.

Once we are affiliated with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, they can bring us somebody from the National Commission on Culture or other entities to support the election, he stated.

Ras Caleb said though he had been fighting for the right things to be done, he had rather been peddled as the black sheep of MUSIGA, stalling the groups growth.

Im tired of being seen as the bad one because Im fighting for the right things to be done. Besides, God has told me to let it go and allow them do what they want to do.

It is up to the members to see the light and say that okay, even though these people are trying to manipulate things, we will vote as our hearts tell us, he said.

Ras Caleb pointed out that he would start an official campaign tour in July but he was also doing his underground work to secure him the needed votes.

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Operationalise Sawua Hospital!

Percy Amoah Opinion May - 18 - 2023 , 07:36

In a country where V8s wheel state officials across town under the protection of siren-blowing police escorts, it is difficult to conceive that critical projects such as the construction and completion of health infrastructure have been shelved.

While the Agenda 111 hospital projects appeared audacious but exciting at the time of their conception in the heat of the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, they now look fanciful, given the struggle by the state to open and operationalise already completed health facilities.

One of these is the Ashanti Regional Hospital at Sawua, one of the gang of nine hospital projects awarded to Egyptian investment company, Euroget De-Invest, for construction across the country.

Just last week, the Ashanti Regional Health Director, Dr Emmanuel Kwadwo Tenkorang, commenting on the state of the project, admitted that it was wholly completed and furnished with all facilities and infrastructure within the scope of the contractors work.

What was left, he said, were the two-kilometre access road and the supply of utility connections to the 250-bed facility so that it could be made operational.

A health budget, like that of security, can hardly be compromised unless under extreme emergency circumstances.

It is even more difficult to accept that work of the scope of connecting the hospital to the national grid and providing it with a reliable water source could delay the opening of the facility to serve the people.

Under the present situation, the emergency here is the emergence of new health conditions such as monkeypox and new variants of COVID-19 even if the World Health Organisation (WHO) no longer considers the latter as a pandemic.

Ghanas weak health system was exposed when COVID-19 emerged, with both personnel and facilities becoming stretched.

It was heartwarming that the Ga East Municipal

Hospital at Kwabenya in the Greater Accra Region, one of the functional hospitals among the gang of nine Euroget hospitals, became a major tendon in the spine of Ghanas COVID-19 fight.

It is in this vein that the delay in the opening of the Ashanti Regional Hospital can be seen as a loss to the people of the region.

The government, through the Ministry of Health, has to step up and honour its commitment to the people of Ashanti and Ghanaians in general.

It is a moral and political imperative as we head towards elections in 2024.

It is almost inconceivable that a hospital that has been fully completed and supplied with state-of-the-art equipment will lay idle for the past one-and-a-half years because of an access road, power and water, which form the governments part of the construction of the Sewua Hospital project.

It is well known how the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital is breaking at its seams with patient numbers.

At this rate, it is right to demand that state officials in charge of the project are made to stay on it all day, all week to ensure that they complete it in good time, and not to activate minor construction during the 2024 elections campaign period.

Euroget De-Invest deserves commendation for delivering six of the hospitals so far.

The governments inadequacies should not tamper with the companys efforts.

The writer is a health worker in a private facility in the Ashanti Region.
Rachel Apusiyene: Combining law, fashion

Gloria Apprey Life May - 17 - 2023 , 17:35

At age 25, Miss Rachel Apusiyene is a lawyer and an entrepreneur . The law is her passion and keeps her very busy, but she finds time to pay attention to her other interestfashion.

Rachel graduated from the law faculty of the University of Ghana, Legon (UG), Accra with a Second-Class Upper Division (Honours) in 2020, continued to the Ghana School of Law and was called to the bar in 2022.

Before this, she had been running a business called Bonnet Haven, a stylish and functional hair bonnet brand that protects and maintains moisture in virgin and relaxed hair.

Miss Apusiyene with her dad, Mr Abraham Apusiyene at her graduation ceremony

In a chat in Accra with The Mirror last Tuesday, Miss Apusiyene said in January, 2019, while at UG, she embarked on the sale of the accessory to her course mates and acted as a middle-woman for a manufacturer.

By June that year, she had launched Bonnet Haven and for four years now has been a supplier to major beauty salons within and outside the country. Her business has been featured on international media platforms such as Voice of America.

Currently, Bonnet Haven manufactures on wholesale basis and at a point, received a bulk order of 1000 pieces from the beauty brand Dark and Lovely. Her brand has also once secured 500 pieces bulk order from a client in the United States of America.

Miss Apusiyene said she also dreams of partnering with non-governmental agencies (NGOs) to make shower caps from pure water bags. I did that some time back and it proved very useful and durable. The only problem was getting the bags in bulk, she explained.

According to her, being a lawyer is very demanding and having a side hustle at the age of 25 was a blessing.

The goal is to gain multiple streams of income while helping protect the crown of my girlies, she said.

Miss Apusiyene is currently a junior associate with a law firm at Adabraka, Accra. Read more about her schooling, passion, achievements and future plans.

Miss Apusiyene (far right) with some colleagues at her Call to the Bar

The Mirror (TM): Tell us about your upbringing?



Rachel Apusiyene (RA): Thanks to my parents, Chief Superintendent Abraham Apusiyene,who is from the Upper East Region, Bolgatanga and Chief Inspector Martha Nkrumah, from the Central Region, Agona Swedru, both police officers, I had a very comfortable childhood.

I am the first of three children, a product of Dolly Memorial School at Labone, Accra and a proud Wey Gey Hey, ( Wesley Girls High School) . I live at Labone Barracks in Accra with my family.



TM: How did law come about?



RA: Well, I am one of the few people who pursued law only because of convenience but later grew to love the profession.

Being a strong believer in capitalising on ones strengths, I only wanted to pursue a course related to English and the options were Law, Business Administration or Journalism.

So after high school and with my background in General Arts, I applied in 2015 to UG to pursue law and gained admission.



Miss Apusiyenes family

TM: How was the studies?



RA: Reading law has never been easy for anyone because some of the courses can be challenging, especially if the love for studying was absent. One of the challenges I faced was being able to write what I was thinking effectively to make sense to a reader.

However, I worked hard on that weakness and with constant support and encouragement from family and friends, I sailed through.

I am proud to say that, I was the head of the academic committee and it was during my tenure that I influenced the installation of a software called braille on the computers in the school library that aided visually impaired students to identify and read texts better.

Miss Apusiyene says her products are stylish and functional

Birth of hair bonnets

TM: What drove your passion and how did you start?



RA: Ermm, I developed the love for business and fashion from my mother and grandmother both of whom have been pillars in my life. My mom sold almost everything she laid her hands on, panties, jewellery, etc.

When I branched out on my own in 2019, during the Corona Virus lockdown period, bonnets were in vogue and so I quickly used some GH800 cash gift I had to start.

Part of the money went into the creation of a business logo, purchase of paper bags, silk, satin and print fabrics for the making of the bonnets. In addition, I paid for a photoshoot session with a couple of my friends as models and also paid the seamstress who made the products.

Products of Bonnet Haven on display at a fair

I was able to make only 20 pieces and I sold one for GH20. From there, I expanded gradually and was even able to buy a stand for sales at the telecommunications network, MTN, sponsored fair.

Glory be to God that my business is thriving, we were also featured on TV3 and Voice of America.

Our bonnets are machine-made and we use silk fabric, as this helps the hair maintain moisture. It also comes in different styles and designs and currently sells at GH35 to GH60 for one.



The work station of Bonnet Haven

TM: Tell me about the wholesale business.



RA: We do what is called white labelling, this is a branding service where the logo of a particular company is tagged on the product.



TM: How do you manage law and being an entrepreneur?



RA: Hmm, it is not the easiest task but currently, I have a permanent staff of three. My sister, a Business Administration student of UG, Annabel Apusiyene, does the day-to-day management with assistance from me. Also, when the orders are too many, I hire extra help.



Miss Rachel Apusiyene (right) at a friends wedding

TM: Do you sew yourselves?

RA: Oh yes, I do but I barely practice so I have become rusty but I plan on polishing it.

TM: What is the five-year plan for your professional and business life?



RA: Well, I am not the type to overly dream but with God on my side, I hope to rise to the level of a senior associate then to a partner in my profession. Business wise, I hope to accelerate the brand to the international level and even have shops or representatives in other countries.
422 Students undergo leadership training

Daily Graphic Education May - 18 - 2023 , 10:00

Four hundred and twenty-two student leaders have been taken through a leadership training programme to equip them with the requisite skills and knowledge to impact others.

The students, who are from 27 private schools in the Ablekuma South and West municipalities in Accra, were sensitised to, among other things, importance of leadership and their role in nation-building.

The one-day annual Students Leadership Summit was organised by the Foundation for Generational Thinkers (FOGET), a youth development and life empowerment non-governmental organisation (NGO), in collaboration with the Ghana National Association of Private Students (GNAPS) Zone Five.

Equip

It has been set up to equip the youth to become generational leaders.

The leadership programme, which was on the theme: Leave a Footprint, was aimed to develop and equip young leaders, especially students, to positively influence their peers to facilitate the change they wanted to see.

Speaking at the event, the President of FOGET, Prosper Dan Afeti, described the programme as highly successful, adding that the overall objective was to equip students to be better leaders in their various schools and to impact their world positively

I believe leadership does not just happen and we have to be intentional about how to develop and unearth their skills.

It is very important to prepare them at tender ages for them to be well-prepared for various leadership roles wherever they find themselves, he said.

For his part, the co-Founder of Lead Afrique International, an NGO, Michael Ohene-Effah, assisted the students to understand the concept of leadership, qualities of a good leader and the need to develop leadership skills to lead others.

Virtue

He said the organisation was very much focused on virtue as well as other aspects of the lives of the students.

In separate comments, some of the students commended the organisers of the programme, saying that it had gone a long way to expose them to things they did not know.

According to them, the programme had been beneficial to a lot of them, since it had helped to clear a lot of doubts in their minds.

Taking the microphone one after the another, the students pledged to exhibit various leadership characters such as being selfless, caring, loving, confident, creative and communicate effectively.

FOGET has over the years been holding career guidance programmes for final-year junior high school (JHS) students in and outside Accra.

The event forms part of the organisations corporate social responsibility to help prepare the students for the senior high school and tertiary education.
ADB loans for agric sector hits over GH1bn  Managing Director

Daily Graphic May - 18 - 2023 , 10:43

The agricultural sector loan portfolio of the Agricultural Development Bank has hit over GH1 billion cedis, the Managing Director (MD) of the bank, Alhaji Alhassan Yakubu-Tali, has said.

The amount excludes non-funded facilities such as letters of credit and guarantees granted for the purchase of agricultural inputs, machinery, equipment and raw materials.

Huge investment over the years formed part of strategies to refocus the bank on its original mandate to provide financial intermediation to the agricultural sector.

Courtesy call

The MD disclosed this when he paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong, to congratulate him on his appointment.

He said due to challenges and the increasing level of risk in the agricultural sector, some financial institutions, including banks usually shied away from investing in the sector.

Alhaji Yakubu-Tali, however, said that for ADB, such challenges presented enormous opportunities for the bank to continue to leverage.

He said ADB had positioned itself as the Bank of Choice when it came to agricultural financing which was key in facilitating the growth of the economy.

Support

The MD further said that ADB had been a leader in providing financial support for initiatives in the agricultural sector such as Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ), Rearing for Food and Jobs (RFJ), Planting for Export and Rural Development (PERD), and One District One Factory (1D1F).

Under planting for food and jobs and 1DF1, the bank invested over GH251.83 million to support many viable projects such as the purchase of fertilisers and certified seeds, among others.

To guarantee food security, the bank, between 2018 to date, has disbursed in excess of GH460 million to NAFCO (Buffer Stock) to ensure constant food supplies under the free SHS programme, he added.

In the fishing sector, the bank, in partnership with the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development and the Coastal Development Authority, supported the importation of 1,300 Yamaha outboard motors, as well as fishing gear for fishers at a cost either under lease financing or through direct sales.

The bank also absorbed all incidental and related costs amounting to about GH7.0 million, while the tree crop sub-sector was supported with a total of over GH485 million for rubber, oil palm and mango plantations.

Strategy

Alhaji Alhassan Yakubu-Tali further said that as a strategy, ADB had partnered risk sharing incentive entities such as GIRSAL, to reduce the risk burden on the bank as it sought to further grow its investment in the agricultural sector.

According to him, the bank had since 1987 been the lead sponsor of the National Best Farmer Awards, a commitment to the sector.

The Banks association and continuous sponsorship of these events over the years is an undeniable evidence of its promise to support farmers and fishers and remain focused on its founding mandate to provide financial intermediation to the agricultural sector, he said.

The MD gave the assurance that the bank would continue to partner the government to ensure food security in the country.

Collaboration

For his part, the minister said his outfit would continue to collaborate with the bank and other stakeholders to offer more support such as inputs and credit facilities to farmers.

He said the ministry was also developing a four-year step-by-step roadmap to ensure the nation matches its production to industry.

MoFA is committed to strengthening its relationship with ADB to ensure farmers get what is needed to increase production, Mr Acheampong added.
Asantehene launches 2023 Green Ghana Day

Kwadwo Baffoe Donkor May - 18 - 2023 , 00:06

The Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has launched this years Green Ghana Day project in Kumasi and charged institutions to take responsibility for their role in the continuous degradation of the environment.

He said both the chieftaincy and government institutions could not claim innocence of activities of illegal miners within their respective jurisdictions.

Consequently, the Asantehene has pledged to deal with chiefs who allow illegal mining to fester in their traditional areas without taking any action.

He expressed concerns over the level of land degradation through illegal mining at places such as Amansie and Manso Nkwanta.

If you sit there and say that you dont know what is happening, then you are not fit to be a chief, the Asantehene added.

He urged all citizens to support the government to deal with the menace of illegal mining which was fast degrading the countrys land and forest reserves, adding that I will have to start with my chiefs while the government also deals with the others. We all have to take matters seriously to deal with the menace.

Commendation

The Asantehene commended the government for initiating the tree planting project to reclaim degraded lands, especially mining and illegal logging, including fighting climate change.

He said even before the introduction of the project in 2021, he had initiated a programme in 2019 to plant 2.5 million trees around the Bosomtwe Lake because I know the importance of trees in the protection of water bodies.

The Asantehene said aside from its health benefits, the forests also contributed significantly to the economic development of the country.

He, however, said it was unfortunate that despite several measures put in place by the government to curb the menace of land and forest degradation, illegal logging and mining continue to pose a threat to our forests.

Appeal

The Asantehene further appealed to chiefs to lead the charge by getting involved in the Green Ghana project which is on June 9, 2023, and plant trees within their communities.

According to available data, the Ashanti Region has planted the highest number of trees in the country since the project started in 2021.

Out of the 31 million seedlings planted nationwide, he said 7.8 million were planted in this region and majority of them have survived and doing well.

Rationale

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, said the project was instituted as part of measures to curb the incessant degradation of our forest which has been going on for years without any conscious effort to replace them.

He said within a spate of five years - 2010 to 2015, the country lost a total of 160, 210 hectares of forest cover as compared to 157, 300 hectares of forest cultivated between 1967 to 2016.

Thus, the country lost more forest cover within five years than it planted over the 53 years.

The minister said it had, therefore, become necessary that the government adopted aggressive measures to restore the lost forest cover.

Mr Jinapor expressed appreciation to the Asantehene for his continuous support to the programme since its inception and for leading the project in the region.
Don't interfere in chieftaincy matters - Amanfrom chief appeals to politicians

Haruna Yussif May - 18 - 2023 , 11:02

The chief of Amanfrom, a farming community in the Okere District in the Eastern Region, Nana Tete Odwokwao III, has called on politicians not to interfere in chieftaincy matters.

That, he explained, would help bring honour to chieftaincy stools, oaths sworn by chiefs, ancestors and the trust of the people.

The interference by politicians has the tendency to bring about disunity among legitimate people who are rightful people to occupy the thrones.

Nana odwokwao made the call at his coronation at Amanfrom in the Okere District in the Eastern Region last Tuesday.

Colourful event

The colourful event was attended by dignitaries such as the Okere Municipal Chief Executive (DCE), Daniel Kenneth, who represented the Minister for Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Dan Kwaku Botwe, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area.

Also present were other chiefs notably among them was the Gyantuahene of Tutu in the Akuapem Traditional Area, Nana Asante Darko, who is also the Nkosuohene of Ahenkroase.

Nana Odwokwao was enstooled last week Saturday (May 1, 2023 ) to succeed the ailing Nana Odwokwao II who could not perform the functions of a chief due to his current health condition.

Education

On education, Nana Odwokwao stated that since the global world was changing and education had become the bedrock of growth and development of every nation, he would bring on board non-governmental organisation (NGOs) and other governmental interventions to establish vocational training schools in the area to train those interested.

That, he noted would enhance the standard of living of the people which would reduce rural urban migration that had drained the area of it's youth.

Health

With regard to health, Nana Odwokwao pledged to hold periodic meetings with the healthcare management committee in the town to improve healthcare.

Touching on social vices and teenage pregnancy, the chief said he would be organising seminars and fora for young women in the town and invite distinguished ladies of experience to educate them on what to do to improve their future life or dreams.

He also asked the people to monitor young girls in the town to ensure that they did not go wayward but adequately prepared to grow and take over from the aged.

DCE speaks

The Okere District Chief Executive (DCE), Daniel Kenneth, said the people should rally behind the new chief to bring more development projects to the town and its surrounding areas.

He said the people had to respond to any call by the chief in a bid to addressing the challenges of the town either through development projects or discussions that would promote unity and well-being of the people.

Mr Kenneth assured the chief of the assembly's support as well as that of Mr Botwe to improve the lives of the youth in the area.
GH55m restitution: Court grants Ato Essien grace period

Emmanuel Ebo Hawkson May - 18 - 2023 , 08:04

The Founder of the defunct Capital Bank, William Ato Essien, has been given a grace period of up to July 4, this year by the Accra High Court to pay a GH55 million restitution to the state.

He risk possibly going to prison if he fails to pay the restitution by the said date.tre

Essien, a convict, is under obligation to pay a GH60 million restitution to the state in three instaments of GH20million, but missed the first installment deadline on April 28, this year and rather paid GH5 million on May 10.

At yesterdays hearing, the court, presided over by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, decided to show mercy to Essien by adjourning the case to July 4 instead of hearing an application by the Attorney-General (A-G) seeking the imprisonment of the convict for his failure to meet the first installment deadline on April 28.

Justice Kyei Baffour, a Justice of the Court of Appeal, sitting as a High Court judge, decided to give Essien a grace period after the convict, in his affidavit to the A-Gs application, deposed that he was expecting some money by the end of June to enable him pay the restitution.

However, Justice Kyei Baffour warned Essien that if he failed to pay the money by the next adjourned date, the court would not be inclined to be merciful again but would rather rule on the application by the A-G which is urging the court to imprison the convict.

If we come back on July 4th and you have not paid the money, I would allow the Republic to move the application, then we all know that I had been as fair as possible, Justice Kyei Baffour, said.

Selling of assets

In his affidavit in opposition to the A-Gs application, Essien deposed that his company  Essien Swiss International Holdings, had agreed to sell some of its assets to another company with the next tranche of the money said to be paid by the buying company expected by the end of June.

According to Essien, he was expecting about $300,000 from that particular payment.

A Deputy A-G, Alfred TuahYeboah, reminded the court that $300,000 amounted to about GH3.6 million, which when added to the GH5million already paid by the convict, would not be enough to offset the GH55 million owed by Essien.

Counsel for Essien, Baffour Gyewu Bonsu Ashia, who held brief for Thaddeus Sory, assured the court that apart from the sale of the assets, his client was taking other steps to get the money to pay the restitution.

In his ruling, Justice Kyei Baffour held that although he was ready to allow the prosecution to move the application and subsequently deliver his ruling on it, he decided to give the applicant a grace period due to his (Essiens) deposition that he was expecting some money by June.

According to the presiding judge, whether or not the depositions made by Essien were genuine would be known by the next adjourned date, adding, if indeed the depositions in the affidavits have been made bonafide , time will vindicate that.

Agreement

On December 13, last year, Essien pleaded guilty to 16 counts of stealing and money laundering and was accordingly convicted of stealing and dissipating over GH90 million of liquidity support given to the Capital Bank by the Bank of Ghana (BoG).

However, the convict avoided a custodial sentence after the court accepted an agreement between him and the Attorney-General (A-G) for him (Essien) to pay the GH90 million as restitution to the state.

The agreement was pursuant to Section 35 of the Courts Act, 1993 (Act 459), which allows accused persons standing trial for causing financial loss to the state to pay the money and possibly avoid a custodial sentence.

Essien paid GH30 million of the amount and per the agreement as adopted by the court, was ordered to pay the remaining GH60 million in three installments with the first instalment on or before April 28, 2023, the second on or before August 31, 2023, and the last instalment on or before December 15, 2023.

In conformity with Section 35(7) of Act 459, Justice Kyei Baffour ruled that Essien would be imprisoned if he missed any of the payment schedules.

The convict missed the April 28, deadline, a situation that necessitated the A-G to file a motion urging the court to jail him.

On May 11, this year, Justice Kyei Baffour, dismissed an application by Essien asking the court to allow him to renegotiate the terms of the GH60 million restitution to the state, as well as for the court to suspend any action that could result in his imprisonment.
National Blue Economy Summit slated for May 31

Emelia Ennin Abbey & Linda Sah May - 18 - 2023 , 11:30

Ghana is to host its first National Blue Economy Summit with the objective of reversing marine pollution and enhancing the management and restoration of the marine and coastal ecosystems of the nation.

Blue economy is a term that refers to the sustainable use of coastal and marine natural resources for economic growth and improved livelihoods and jobs.

It is linked to the exploitation and conservation of the maritime environment, while maintaining the integrity and health of the coastal and marine ecosystems.

The two-day summit, scheduled for May 31 and June 1, 2023, is expected to attract 300 participants, including policy makers, academia, development partners, and local and international champions in the fishing industry.

It will be hosted by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Advisory Unit at the Office of the President, in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI); the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Dubbed: "Our Oceans Health, Our Prosperity, Our Planet's Security", the summit will seek to mobilise collective action to raise awareness of the need to urgently address the critical challenges facing the ocean, and to highlight the opportunities that the ocean offers for the country's economic transformation.

Activities

Activities during the summit will include high-level dialogues on seven key areas relating to the ocean and addressing of policy gaps.

It will also put a spotlight on plastic pollution, piracy, illegal fishing, innovative financing models and effective partnerships.

Launching the summit in Accra yesterday, the Special Advisor to the President on the SDGs and Ocean Action, Dr Eugene Owusu, said the oceans health and productivity were declining at an alarming rate, and posed a threat to humanity.

The narrative that the ocean is too big to fail is, therefore, a misguided one.

The evidence is clear, he stated.

Overfishing, climate change and plastic pollution were some of the major challenges of the ocean, he said.

Dr Owusu said the world needed a new ocean agenda anchored on the recognition that the blue economy should be a catalyst for sustainable development.

Ocean importance

The Policy Analyst at the SDGs Advisory Unit, Dominic Opoku Manu Asante, said the ocean was important to human existence as the ocean covered 70 per cent of the earth's surface, served as a vital food source and supported significant sectors.

He said it was essential to conserve the ocean and that if no actions were taken, it would lead to the loss of jobs, depletion of biodiversity and increased vulnerabilities of communities along the ocean.

The Resident Representative of the UNDP Ghana, Dr Angela Lusigi, said: "The threat is huge.

Sea levels are rising as a result of climate change which threatens lives and livelihoods, especially for coastal cities and communities around the world".

The UNDP, Dr Lusigi said, was committed to partnerships that would spur concrete actions to sustainably utilise the vast resources and services that the ocean provided to transform Ghanas economy.

The Director, Policy Planning Monitoring and Evaluation of the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Doris Yeboah, said the ministry was partnering some agencies to work on marine debris.

When our fishermen go to the ocean nowadays, they come back with their nets filled with plastics, she said.

Ms Yeboah said the ministry would collaborate with its partners to promote sustainable practices and management of fishery resources to improve the ocean.

Ghana's marine

Ghana's marine environment encompasses some 550 kilometres of coastline on the Gulf of Guinea, with over 10 per cent of the population depending on it.

The marine area has important resources, including fisheries, oil and gas reserves and precious minerals, and is an important global reservoir of marine biodiversity, providing important migration and nesting habitats for several marine species.

In recent years, the nation's coastal wetlands are threatened by high volumes of plastic and metal waste that choke breeding habitats for fish, birds and other wildlife.

The global Ocean Health Index shows Ghana has performed above the global average in the areas of carbon storage, coastal protection, coastal livelihoods and economies, biodiversity and food provision, but that the country lags behind the global average in clean water.
Obuasi Methodist honours Ainoo-Ansah

Daily Graphic May - 18 - 2023 , 08:10

The Freeman Methodist Church at Obuasi Tutuka in Ashanti Region has organised a special church service to honour the long serving choir master/organist, Ebo Philip Ainoo-Ansah, who served the church for the past 42 years and led the choir to win many competitions and laurels.

Presenting the citation, Supt. Minister of the Methodist Church, Tutuka Circuit, Very Rev. Isaac K. Yeboah, described Mr Ainoo-Ansah as an effective leader in the choir whose dedication to duty impacted positively on formation of various Methodist Church choirs and singing bands within Tutuka circuit.

He said Mr Ainoo-Ansah was a leader-servant who, through hymns and songs, preached Gods word to win more souls and encouraged existing members of the church to continue to live by the word of God.

He became the Circuit Director of Music and the Diocesan Director of Music as well. His transformational and selfless leadership style saw the tutelage of many under your feet, he added.

Rev. Isaac K. Yeboah noted that Mr Ainoo-Ansah, who was also a founder of a leading photo studio in the Obuasi Municipality, trained many photographers some of who were operating their production establishments across the country.

The Lay Movement Council and, for that matter, the Methodist Church, Tutuka Circuit presents to you in recognition of your selfless dedication and contributions towards the growth, development and advancement of Freeman society, in terms of music the citation read.

It said Mr Ainoo-Ansah was an icon of the Freeman society and that the laity could not quantify his service and that his good work should forever be printed in the annals of the Diocese.

Freeman

He joined the Freeman Methodist Church in 1978 and was one of the founding members of the Freeman Church Choir, Choirmaster/Organist.

He became the Circuit Director of Music and the Diocesan Director of Music as well. His transformational and selfless leadership style saw the tutelage of many under your feet.

Mr Ainoo-Ansah, who was a founder of a leading photo studio in the Obuasi Municipality, has trained many photographers some of who are operating their production establishments while others are working in media houses, notable among them is the Multimedias award winning photo journalist, David Andoh.
Police officer supports alma mater with computers

Ezekiel E. Sottie May - 18 - 2023 , 11:15

THE Director-General of the Motor Traffic and Transport Directorate (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service, Commissioner of Police (COP), Francis Ebenezer Doku, has presented two laptop computers to the Science and Mathematics group of the Yilo Krobo Senior High School (YIKROSEC) in Somanya to promote effective teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics in the school.

COP Doku, who is an old boy of the school and current chairman of the schools board of directors, made the presentation, which coincided with the board meeting of the school, last Tuesday.

According to Mr Doku, even though he was an old boy, he was moved and motivated by the performance of his alma mater in the National Science and Mathematics competitions for 2021 and 2022 out of which the school performed very well to the national level.

Nobody, including me, least expected YIKROSEC, which used to be a Business school to be performing very well in Science and Mathematics-related subjects at regional and national competitions. We least thought the team, for that matter the school, would have risen to this height and I am overwhelmed, Mr Doku added.

Appreciation

He said he was proud of YIKROSEC for making him what he was now and there was, therefore, the need for him to support and show appreciation to the school in the little way he could for the school also to benefit from him.

What I have done or the presentation of these computers to the school is part of my corporate social responsibility as an old boy.

If I consider where I have gotten to know in the police service because of YIKROSEC and what I have presented, it is just a token to show appreciation, COP Doku emphasised.

He expressed his profound gratitude to both the students and the teachers who devoted their time and prepared for the competitions and raised the image of the school in the Science and Mathematics competitions.

He said the presentation of the laptops for the school was also meant to challenge his colleague old students to come on board and support the school to the appreciable level that they all wanted.

He was equally grateful to the school for its good performance in last years West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), which enabled many of the students to qualify and entered tertiary institutions.

He promised to reward the school and its team with GH50,000 if they should reach the quarter-final stage in the next National Science and Mathematics competition.

The President of the Science Students Association of YIKROSEC, Deborah Siaw, on behalf of the students and the teachers, lauded Mr Doku for his timely presentation of the computers.

She said the computers were presented at a time when they needed them the most and pledged that they were going to make good use of them.

The Headmaster of the school, Philip Narh Donkor, was full of praise for the donation as it was the challenge of the school to get such materials for the training of the Science and Mathematics group for the competitions ahead.
President Akufo-Addo not against small-scale mining  Jinapor

Biiya Mukusah Ali May - 18 - 2023 , 10:55

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has affirmed the government's commitment to fighting illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.

He said the government was not against small-scale mining but rather irresponsible mining that destroyed the natural environment.

Our efforts, which are necessary to clamp down on galamsey, have sometimes been interpreted to mean the government of President Akufo-Addo is against small-scale mining, he said.

Mr Jinapor was speaking at the opening ceremony of a two-day Transformational Dialogue on Small-Scale Mining organised by the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) at Fiapre near Sunyani in the Bono Region yesterday.

He said it was rather the commitment of President Akufo-Addo to promote responsible small-scale mining, which was demonstrated in the reduction of withholding tax on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners, which was introduced in 2015, from three per cent to 1.5 per cent.

The dialogue organised on the theme: Sustaining Environmental Security and Human Rights in Small-Scale Mining Operation in Ghana, is to create a unique platform to undertake in-depth discussions on one of the most pressing issues, not only in our country, but across the globe on the sustainable exploitation of natural resources.

It brought together representatives of the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners, Association of Women in Mining in Africa and Ghana, the Regional House of Chiefs, Large-Scale Mining companies, students and civil society organisations, among others.

Under severe stress

Mr Jinapor said in recent years, the world's natural resources had come under severe stress due to rapid population growth and urbanisation, increasing agriculture production and high demand for raw materials to meet the needs of the modern-day sophisticated lifestyle and climate change.

He explained that the demand for raw materials globally had doubled in the last 20 years, adding that the increasing demand for resources had also contributed to the climate crisis, thereby worsening the pressure on these resources, and causing a form of a vicious cycle between climate change and resources.

Mr Jinapor said governments across the world were changing measures to address the emerging changes and improve the sustainability of land and resources.

Economy

The minister said mining continued to be the backbone of the national economy, but for many years, small-scale mining remain illegal until it was formalised in 1989, through three sets of laws.

He said since the formalisation, the small-scale mining sector had increasingly contributed to the national economy, reaching over 40 per cent in 2018.

Last year, for example, the sector produced a total of 712, 405 ounces of gold; bringing in almost $1.2 billion in export receipts.

Today, all diamonds produced in the country are from small-scale mining, which in 2022 amounted to 82,251.99 carats, he stated.

Mr Jinapor said apart from their contribution to the gold and diamond output, the sector was a source of employment to thousands of people and supported the lives and livelihoods of millions of citizens.

He, however, expressed concern about the increasing illegalities associated with the sector, adding that their effect on the environment had, sadly, resulted in small-scale mining being associated with environmental destruction.

Greedy

Mr Jinapor said apart from greedy and unscrupulous nation wreckers who destroyed the environment due to their interests, the drivers of the illegalities in the small-scale mining sector included unemployment, the lack of blocked-out areas for small-scale mining, challenges with securing licences and other regulatory permits and the lack of law enforcement.

He said the government was implementing policies and measures aimed at addressing the drivers such as the National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme, alternative sources of income and livelihood to persons engaged in mining.

Mr Jinapor explained that the programme employed several youths in the production of seedlings and reclamation of degraded mined lands.

Out of poverty

For his part, the Vice-Chancellor of UENR, Professor Elvis Asare-Bediako, said the Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) subsector had the potential to lift many rural people out of poverty if properly organised, controlled and monitored with a strong sense of environmental responsibility.

He said in Ghana, the ASGM subsector alone directly employed about one million people and indirectly supports about 4.5 million.

Prof. Asare-Bediako said UENR would continue to promote the development of human resources and skills required to solve critical energy and natural resources challenges of society and undertake interdisciplinary academic research and outreach programmes.

The Bono Regional Minister, Justina Owusu-Banahene, said the government was doing its best to resource institutions, particularly universities to fight galamsey.

She said the government was sensitive to some shortfalls and had prepared plans to resource universities in the country, particularly UENR to assume their rightful duty and be able to contribute everlasting and innovative ideas.
SIM swap fraud: 4 suspects on EOCO wanted list for stealing over GH2m from bank accounts

Emelia Ennin Abbey May - 18 - 2023 , 12:37

The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has declared four persons wanted for allegedly swapping the mobile phone numbers of customers of some banks fraudulently and withdrawing money from their various bank accounts.

The four suspects are Derrick Obeng alias Chilling; Nicholas Gyekye alias Payges, Ezekiel Otoo and Frederick Anzi Quainoo, alias Kakra.

Their two accomplices, named by EOCO as Linda Abakah and Solomon Ofosu have been arrested with another suspect following a joint operation by EOCO, the Police and the Ghana Association of Bankers.

Abakah and Ofosu have since been sentenced to 12 months imprisonment for the offense of conspiracy to steal, stealing and money laundering by the High Court in Accra.

Following their conviction, the two are serving their sentences at the Nsawam Maximum Prison.

Modus operandi

EOCO in a press statement indicated that in April 2022, it received intelligence suggesting that there was a syndicate of fraudsters targeting some banks in Ghana and stealing funds from the accounts of customers.

It said investigations established that the modus operandi of the fraudsters was through fraudulent swapping of the mobile phone numbers of the customers.

The fraudulent swapping of the mobile numbers, EOCO explained, causes the customers' mobile numbers to be inactive while the same numbers are activated on the suspected fraudsters sim cards enabling them to access and control the customers bank account and steal funds from the account.

Another modus operandi of the suspected fraudsters, EOCO said, was to act as Bank officials and social engineers to get customers of the banks to divulge their phone numbers, password and pin code.

After accessing these information, the suspects allegedly take over the mobile banking application of the customers which enables them to fraudulently withdraw funds from the bank accounts of the victims.

It said after receiving information about the activities of the suspected fraudsters, EOCO worked in collaboration with the Ghana Association of Bankers and the Ghana Police Service to identify and arrest some of the perpetrators, who were mostly based in Assin Fosu, in the Central Region.

EOCO therefore urged the public to assist it with information, which led to the arrest of the convicts.
LPG elects flag bearer December 15

Samuel Duodu Politics May - 18 - 2023 , 11:45

The Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG) has set December 15, 2023, to elect the partys flag bearer for the 2024 general election.

This is in accordance with the constitution of the party which states that when the party is in opposition it will elect its flag bearer a year before the general election.

The General Secretary of the party, Jerry Owusu Appauh, disclosed this in an interview with the Daily Graphic.

With regards to flag bearer aspirants, the LPG general secretary explained that persons interested must be members of LPG and in good standing and also satisfy the 1992 Constitutions requirement for a President.

Visibility

Ahead of the partys presidential primary, the Daily Graphic has spotted the posters of the 2020 Presidential candidate and founder of the party, Kofi Akpaloo, in the median on the street from Kasoa to Mallam and the Obasanjo Highway (Dzorwulu) in Accra, among other places.

Mr Appauh explained that the poster was for the visibility campaign embarked on by the party towards winning the 2024 general election.

He stated that until the presidential primary was held for a new candidate to be elected as the flag bearer of the party, Mr Akpaloo remained the leader of the party, adding that the party, apart from the posters, also had other branded materials intended to market it for electoral victory in 2024.

Reorganisation

Mr Appauh said the party last year embarked on its reorganisation exercise, which led to the elections of the constituency and regional executives of the party across the country in readiness for the 2024 elections.

Parliamentary

The general secretary said the filing of nominations for the partys parliamentary candidates began on Monday, May 15, and was expected to close on July 31, 2023.

Mr Appauh said the nomination forms could be obtained from the Generals Secretarys Office.

Asked why the party was not decentralising the purchase of the forms, Mr Appauh explained that it was to avoid duplication of the forms.

He said the filing fee for the parliamentary candidates of the party was GH2, 000 and the form was going for GH500.

Qualification

To qualify to become a parliamentary candidate aspirant of the party, Mr Appauh said a person must first satisfy the 1992 Constitutions requirements for Members of Parliament (MPs).

He added that the individual must also be a paid-up member of the party in good standing and must not be a dual citizen or owe allegiance to any other country aside from Ghana.

Mr Appauh said the party was determined to field parliamentary candidates for all the 275 constituencies in the country for the 2024 general election.

He said the party was on course with its preparations towards the 2024 general election and called on Ghanaians to vote for the party to form the next government in 2025 to implement its human-centred, industrialisation and sound economic policies for the country.
Suzuki Motor, Daihatsu Motor, and Toyota Motor will unveil prototype mini-commercial van electric vehicles (BEVs) equipped with a jointly developed BEV system. The unveiling will take place at an exhibition event that introduces the automobile industrys efforts to achieve carbon neutrality (CN), from 18-21 May.

The three companies jointly developed a BEV system suitable for mini-commercial vehicles by combining Suzuki and Daihatsu's expertise in creating small-size cars with Toyota's electrification technology to introduce this mini-commercial van BEV.





Daihatsu will produce the vehicles, and Suzuki, Daihatsu, and Toyota will each release their own version within fiscal 2023. Commercial Japan Partnership Technologies Corporation (CJPT) also participated in the planning to achieve the optimal specifications for efficient last-mile logistics.

The cruising range per charge is expected to be approximately 200km, and development is currently underway with the aim of creating a vehicle that can fully meet the needs of customers in the delivery industry.
ROCK SPRINGS  Sweetwater County residents attended Mondays Sweetwater County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees meeting and spoke out in support of Sean and Ashley Willey, the couple suing the school district for concealing information regarding the social transition of their child.

As the meeting got started and the central administration building began to fill up with people, board of trustees chairman Carol Jelaco made a statement regarding the lawsuit, since it has been a hot topic around the state and even the national media.

We are preparing a response to that lawsuit and it will be filed with the court. We have no intention of attempting to try this suit in the court of public opinion, said Jelaco, adding that the school board will be guided by the mission to have the students be its top priority.

We also follow the law. The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights has made clear that it will enforce Title IXs prohibition on the basis of sex to include discrimination based on sexual orientation and discrimination based on gender identity.

Jelaco also said that school board members must be careful when commenting about any active litigationand protect the privacy of those involved, especially our students.

During the communications and correspondence portion of Mondays meeting, locals approached the podium to express how they felt about the current lawsuit.

Rock Springs resident James Graham spoke about parent involvement.

When important stuff comes out, you dont tell the parents and thats not right,he said.Parents are the ones that pay taxes.Theyre the ones that vote and all of you will find out come next election.

Laura Taliaferro Pearson, a mother of three and a grandmother, questioned whether parents can even trust the school district.

You think our students, parents and teachers signed up for this?Peason asked.

Teachers signed up for this profession to make a difference in childrens lives, not for this. They cant even teach without fear of disciplinary action.

We entrust our children to you, but should we?

Pearson also brought up Senate File 117, a bill proposed during the session this year thats similar to Floridas so-called Dont Say Gaylaw.

According to a Casper Star-Tribune story from May 8, the bill would have barred classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate...

It would have also required school personnel to report changes in students well-being or use of services to parents and guardians under most circumstances, and to encourage students to discuss issues related to their well-being with their parents and guardians.

Pearson admitted when she was young, growing up on a sheep ranch, she often wondered why she was born female and not male. She said she wanted to be more like her father instead of spending time in town with her mother and sisters, adding that there is a reason God made individuals the way they are.

I often still say that I have a male mind in a female body. And Im proud of that. Im strong-minded. Im willing to fight for our rights in our country, no matter what the consequences are,she said.

Try to resist falling into this misconception that there is something wrong with you and you must change to be happy with who you are. Right now, we are fighting a battle of good versus evil, and we must prevail if we are going to save humanity.

The following Sweetwater County legislators also attended Mondays meeting: Rep. J.T. Larson, R-Rock Springs; Rep.Cody Wylie, R-Rock Springs; Sen. Stacy Jones, R-Rock Springs; Sen. John Kolb, R-Rock Springs; Rep. Scott Heiner, R-Green River; and Rep. Clark Stith, R-Rock Springs.

Stith told the school board and the administration that the pendency of the lawsuit shouldnt paralyze them from taking action.

I think its common sense that parents want to be informed about material information concerning their own child, he said. I believe in local control. I think the board should be allowed to make a policy that makes common sense so that the parents can be reasonably informed of very important information about their children, and do that in a way that doesnt endanger children.

Stith said he expects parental rights bills to be introduced during the next legislative session but urged the school district to not wait for that to act.

My two cents are that just because you have litigation going on, dont be frozen, he said. You can do the right thing.You can make reasonable policy. You can change your policy without the fear that its going to affect your position.

Green River resident Laura Pavey, who is the chapter chair for Moms for Liberty in Sweetwater County, spoke out in support of the Willeys parental freedoms.

Ill fight for my rights as a parent and a citizen of Wyoming, but I will do it joyfully and with grace. Were here to protect parental rights at all levels of government. Parents should be involved in their kids lives and ask for transparency, she stated.

Lawsuit background

On April 20, 2023, Sean and Ashley Willey of Rock Springs filed a lawsuit against Sweetwater County School District No. 1, superintendent Kelly McGovern, assistant superintendent Nicole Bolton, director of student services Kayci Arnoldi and Black Butte High School principal Bryant Blake in the federal district court for the District of Wyoming.

In a press release sent to the Rocket Miner from the Willey familys attorney Ernest G. Trakas on Tuesday, May 9, the lawsuit alleges violation of the Willeys first and 14th Amendment rights of free exercise of religion, free speech, and parental rights under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 based on the school districts providing gender altering care and using a male name and pronouns with their daughter.

Trakas said that he will be traveling to Cheyenne from St. Louis, Missouri, to represent the Willeys.

This is an important issue in the nation right now, Trakas told the Rocket Miner.

District personnel also endorsed and provided counseling services promoting the gender altering care pursuant to a district wide directive, without Sean or Ashley Willeys knowledge or consent. The Willeys only discovered the school districts actions when Mrs.Willey overheard a conversation between two school district employees.

The Willeys followed the filing of their lawsuit by filing a motion for preliminary injunction on April 21, to which Takas revealed that the school district has until Monday, May 15, to respond.

Its a request for the school district not to continue their protocol in affirmation of gender without parental consent, he explained.

Trakas detailed in the press release that at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year the Willeysdaughter, then age 15, asked school officials to call her by a male name and use male pronouns.

In March 2022 Mrs. Willey first learned that teachers were referring to her daughter by a male name and with male pronouns.

Trakas stated that no one at the school district informed the Willeys of this change even though their daughter has a Sec. 504 accommodation plan in place, pursuant to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which requires parental notification for any mental health issues that arise at the school, which impact or modify an existing Sec. 504 accommodation plan.

School district administrators and teachers advised the Willeys that they were required by law not to inform parents of their actions, the press release stated.

In addition, Ashley Willey was instructed that, as a teacher employed by the school district, she would have to honor the request of students to be called by a name and pronouns that conflict with the students biological sex, based on the students gender identity. Mrs.Willey was also told that she could not inform parents about their childrens alternate identities at school, even if the parents asked her directly.

Further, SCSD1 administrators informed Mrs. Willey that she could not let her religious beliefs against using false names and lying to parents get in the way of following their directives.

Through their lawsuit, the Willeys seek the following:

a declaration that Sweetwater County School District No. 1 officials violated their parental rights;

a preliminary and permanent injunction forbidding school officials from referring to their daughter and their other children in any way other than according to their biological sex and cease having private conversations with their daughter regarding her gender identity;

and a declaration that school district officials violated their right to familial privacy, their free exercise of religion and Ashley Willeys freedom of speech.

Trakas said that he expects the court to expedite this case expeditiously.
James G. Wilcox, 87, passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family on Friday, May 5, 2023 at Deer Trail Assisted Living in Rock Springs, Wyoming. He was a resident of Green River for 60 years and former resident of Rock Springs, Wyoming.

He was born on December 10, 1935 in Rock Springs, Wyoming; the son of James Wilcox and Norma Rowley.

Mr. Wilcox attended schools in Rock Springs.

He married Judith H. Brown on May 2, 1959 in Rock Springs, Wyoming and she preceded him in death on July 25, 2020.

Mr. Wilcox served with the United States Navy during the Taiwan Conflict.

He worked for the Water Treatment plant for 35 years and retired on April 24, 1998 as a Superintendent.

He enjoyed spending time with his family; fishing; hunting; hiking; rock collecting; horse races and gambling. James was an avid joke teller and had a way of making people laugh. He always said if you make people laugh, they forget about their worries.

Survivors include three daughters, Connie Wilcox-Timar and husband Ken of Rock Springs, Wyoming; Brenda Wilcox of Green River, Wyoming; Shelley Rust and husband Pete of Green River, Wyoming; three grandchildren, Heather Larimore and husband Aiden Pearce; Ryan Rust and wife Kayli and Dylan Rust and companion Vanessa Munoz and several cousins; nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents, James and Norma Wilcox; wife, Judith Wilcox; paternal grandparents, Mark and Vera Krichbaum who helped raise James.

The family respectfully requests donations be made in James' memory to Hospice of Sweetwater County, 333 Broadway Street, Suite 220, Rock Springs, Wyoming 82901.

Cremation will take place; there will be no services held at his request.

Condolences may be left at http://www.vasefuneralhomes.com.
As students, most of us learned that the power of the purse belongs to the legislative branch. Our founders wisely believed that those in charge of spending taxpayer money should be closest to the people- that they should represent them.

If you are politically progressive or live in one of the top five most populated cities in Wyoming, you will find that you are well represented by the Wyoming House Appropriations Committee. If you are traditionally conservative or live in a place other than Cheyenne, Casper or Laramie, you may find that those holding the purse strings wouldnt agree with you on many matters of policy.

Nearly half of the House Appropriations Committee represents Cheyenne. One member represents Laramie. Another, Casper. Lawmakers from Rock Springs and Lander fill the other two slots. Not only do six of the seven members hail from county seats urban population centers for a state like ours every member votes with the Democrats over 80% of the time. That threshold increases when voting on how to spend tax dollars.

The House Appropriations Committee oversees every detail of the states budget and examines any bill that contains an appropriation, making this group of eager spenders the most powerful in the legislature. The group also had the opportunity to hear other bills of consequence during the most recent legislative session.

For example, the Appropriations Committee was sent House Bill 105, a measure to repeal gun free zones in Wyoming (despite the fact that the bill did not spend any tax dollars). The committee attempted to replace the bill with their own version- the only difference being that the committees substitute version ended up adding gun control measures to Wyoming law. Thankfully, this attempt to sneak gun control into the Wyoming statute books was unsuccessful.

The Appropriations Committee was also sent Senate File 144, a bill to ban the barbaric practice of chemical and surgical mutilation of minor children. The seven urbanites unironically mutilated the bill, stripping out prohibitions against removing healthy body parts of minors and deleting the bills enforcement mechanisms. This bill was sent to the committee even though it, like House Bill 105, did not contain an appropriation.

Also sent to the Appropriations Committee were two bills to protect Wyomings investments and key industries from the financially disastrous practices of ESG investing. After two hours of testimony on these measures, the committee unveiled its own substitute versions- again, lacking teeth and enforceability.

Important bills being sent to this powerful committee does not happen by accident. The Speaker of the House has the sole power to send bills to committees, along with the sole power to appoint members of committees. The decision to send these and other important bills to the Appropriations Committee was solely a decision of Speaker Albert Sommers.

It was also the Speakers decision to create an Appropriations Committee consisting only of socially liberal legislators from big cities, and now it appears that the President of the Senate sees some benefit in a Senate Appropriations committee loyal to the Unipartys cause as well.

In appointing a new chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, President Driskill is attempting to re-create the committee in his own image. Now, both the Senate and House Appropriations Committees are led by Cheyenne attorneys representing wealthy districts in Laramie County.

This, combined with the track record of the House Appropriations Committee, does not bode well for the rest of the state. While Wyoming citizens struggle with rising costs and taxes, the Cheyenne ruling oligarchy plans how they will spend your hard earned tax dollars.
Robyn Owens, a nurse at the Family & Occupational Medicine Clinic at MHSC, won the Nursing Leadership in the Workplace Award. Pictured are Julie Leavitt, WNA Southwest Region Treasurer; Tiffany Frey, WNA Southwest Region Secretary; Brenna Kirsch, WNA Southwest Region President; Robyn Owens, MHSC; and Patty O'Lexey, WNA Southwest Region Vice President.

Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County was honored to host the Wyoming Nurses Association Southwest Region Awards Celebration on Monday, May 8, 2023. The Award Celebration kicks off National Nurses Week and recognizes local nurses that are demonstrating leadership and excellence in healthcare in Southwest Wyoming.

The Wyoming Nurses Association (WNA) Southwest Region awarded six recipients in the following areas: Collaborative Practice, Inspiring Our Future Nurses, Excellence in the Workplace, Excellences in Leadership, Faces of our Future and Leadership in Advanced Practice Nursing. In addition, the WNA Southwest Region also awarded two scholarships to individuals looking to pursue nursing and advanced nursing degrees.

The Nursing Leadership in the Workplace was awarded to Robyn Owens, a nurse at the Family & Occupational Medicine Clinic at MHSC. This award recognizes a Registered Nurse who has developed an innovative and unique approach to nursing theory and knowledge in any practice setting. They are a role model of consistent high-quality nursing practices and have created an environment of professional autonomy and control over their nursing practice. Additional nominees were Tiffany Frey from Castle Rock Medical District, Codi Alderson from Western Wyoming Community College and MHSC and Rae Lynn Russel from MHSC.

The Nursing Leadership in Advanced Practice Nurse was awarded to an APRN who has developed an innovative and unique approach to the provision of nursing in their practice setting. They continue to provide a positive impact to patients or peers in the work setting, or for the provision of autonomous practices. This nurse is a role model for other APRNs and was awarded to Tammy Walker, CPNP-PC, PMHS-C, PMHNP-BC from MHSC Pediatric Clinic. Emily James, FNP-BC at the Obstetrics & Women's Health Clinic of MHSC was also nominated.

Julie Leavitt, from Western Wyoming Community College and MHSC, was the recipient for the Excellence in Leadership-Lighting the Way award. Leavitt has demonstrated during her career, support to the values of the Wyoming Nurses Association and the profession of nursing in the state of Wyoming. Nominees for this award also included Noreen Hove, MHSC and Barb James, from Carbon County Higher Education and Western Wyoming Community College.

The Faces of Our Future Nurses was awarded to Kaylee Laws, from MHSC for being a licensed Registered Nurse for five years or less and that has demonstrated dedication and innovation in the service or program they serve for our community. Additional nominees include Holly Blau, Maygen Stassinos and Mariah Hamblin all nurses at MHSC.

MHSC photo The Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County Informatics Team won the Collaborative Practice Award. Pictured are Patty O'Lexey, WNA Southwest Region Vice President; Megan Gilbert, Informatics Team; Amy Magana, Informatics Team; Brenna Kirsch, WNA Southwest Region President; Bethany Bettolo, Informatics Team; Jodi Corley, Informatics Team; and Tiffany Frey, WNA Southwest Region Secretary.

April Rogers, from Western Wyoming Community College and the Sublette Center, was awarded the Inspiring Our Future Nurses for being a nursing instructor that has been a positive influence on our future nurses of Wyoming. This award promotes our nurses by providing innovative teaching practices, instructional materials developed, new courses developed, major course improvement projects, grants or awards relating to teaching, and assessments of teaching by both students and peers. Shelby Williams, from Western Wyoming Community College and MHSC was also nominated.

The Collaborative Practice Award was given to Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County's Nursing Informatics Team Jodi Corley, Bethany Bettolo, Amy Magana and Megan Gilbert. This award recognizes health system or individual hospital for a collaborative project which shows an interdisciplinary approach to best practices that resulted in improved patient outcomes. Tammy Walker, CPNP-PC, PMHS-C, PMHNP-BC from MHSC Pediatric Clinic was also nominated.

The Wyoming Nurses Association Southwest Region also awarded two scholarships and the recipients are LisaBeth Magee and Brittany Ritter to continue their nursing education.
Disclaimer. We can not guarantee that the information on this page is 100% correct. Read more
Norman Analista, is the founder of Analista & Co., a Guam-based fashion brand specializing in bespoke apparel. He has designed clothing for dozens of celebrities and social media influencers in the US, Asia, and Europe. For unpublished content related to this column, follow @tastemaker671 on Instagram. For story suggestions email

nanalista@yahoo.com.
An office manager for Korean Air Lines in Guam has been charged with bank fraud, identity theft and money laundering after allegedly stealing more than $500,000 over several years.

The indictment against Sung Peel Hwang, filed in April, was unsealed this week in the District Court of Guam after Hwang was arrested in Texas earlier this month and taken into custody by U.S. Marshals.

Court documents describe Hwang as a U.S.-citizen CHamoru man born in 1984.

According to the indictment, Hwang altered legitimate Korean Air checks which were intended to pay passenger fees, rent, and other airline expense in Guam and made the checks payable to himself. The alleged crimes happened between December 2015 and December 2018, the indictment states.

The airline has a business banking account with the Bank of Guam, and Hwang allegedly changed the mailing address for his personal account at the bank to match the airlines address.

Hwang allegedly covered for the missing money by falsifying reports about the number of Korean Air passengers passing through Guams airport and the fees owed to the airport for those passengers.

The airline wired money to its Bank of Guam account based on Hwangs passenger reports to the airlines main office, but Hwang reported fewer passengers to the airport, then kept the difference for his personal use, according to the indictment.

The airline required two authorized signatures on its checks, and federal prosecutors allege Hwang, who was a signatory, forged the other signature to make the airlines checks appear legitimate.

The indictment charges Hwang with 15 counts of bank fraud in connection with 15 checks deposited to Hwangs personal checking account, totaling $551,340.05.

The single charge of aggravated identity theft is related to Hwang allegedly using the name and signature of someone identified as T.W.K.

The single money laundering charge is related to a $59,000 check, which prosecutors described as part of a monetary transaction involving criminally derived property.
The position of archbishop of Agana may not be filled for several years, according to Rev. Father Romeo Convocar during the Thursday meeting of the Rotary Club of Guam at the Hyatt Regency Guam.

Convocar was appointed on March 28 to the position of the apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana by Pope Francis.

He took the position, after previously serving as vicar general, when Michael J. Byrnes resigned as archbishop of Agana in March because of health issues.

Convocar will lead the church on Guam until a new archbishop is appointed by the Vatican.

Im not saying it will be very soon. It might take a few years, he said.

An example he gave was after Bishop Tomas Camacho in Saipan resigned in 2008 and it took four years for a new bishop to be appointed.

The church will continue to function because the administrator has the authority, he said and that there is no disruption to the daily office duties and management of the church on Guam.

However, there are some rites and duties he cannot do in his current role.

This includes an inability to ordain a priest to become a bishop and bless oils for baptism and other ceremonies.

When asked if he could fill the role of archbishop, Convocar said the decision will be up to the pope.

Despite different opinions in the community of who should be in the position, the church has its own process, he said.
Doctors and lawmakers on Wednesday questioned the need to build a large government medical campus, with physicians stating Tamuning is the best location for a stand-alone hospital to replace the current Guam Memorial Hospital.

Most hospital patients are referred by medical clinics located in Tamuning, according to Dr. Hoa Nguyen, who said the short travel distance to GMH benefits patients who might urgently need life-saving treatment at the hospital.

Sen. Frank Blas, Jr., said his wife went into shock during a Tamuning clinic visit and might have died if GMH was not so close.

The legislative land committee held a four-hour oversight hearing Wednesday evening to discuss the viability of using the 35-acre Ypao Point site, in Tamuning, as the location for a replacement GMH.

Committee Chairman Therese Terlaje said she does not have a preferred site for the hospital, but wants to see one built as soon as possible. Terlaje said she agrees that building a new hospital at the current site is not an option because of limited space for construction and ongoing hospital operations.

The speaker also said she needs more information about why building a medical campus is necessary, especially if building one limits the possible locations.

Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero has said she wants the replacement GMH to be part of a larger medical campus, to include new facilities for the Department of Public Health and Social Services, for the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, for a new federally funded Centers for Disease Control laboratory, and possibly for a new veterans clinic.

Lawmakers scheduled the public discussion about using Ypao Point after the governors proposal to lease 112 acres of military land in Mangilao for a medical campus fell through last month.

The Ypao Point property, which decades ago used to be the site of the islands public hospital, is part of the CHamoru Land Trust inventory.

Although some physicians advocated using the Ypao Point site, Land Trust Administrative Director Alice Taijeron told senators she vehemently opposes the idea of taking that property away from the Land Trust to build a hospital.

She said the Land Trust wants to issue a request for proposals for a commercial lease for the land to get money to benefit the Land Trust.

Revenue generated from a lease from Ypao Point will go toward the building of infrastructure in many of our residential and agricultural properties, Taijeron said. To take Ypao Point away would be another obstacle for the progress that CLTC is trying to make.

Sen. Joanne Brown said a new hospital is a greater priority than a hospital complex.

I really dont see the need for a hospital complex. I think thats something that the governor desires and would like to see and probably be the legacy of her administration, Brown said. But I still dont see how were going to afford it I dont know where all this moneys gonna miraculously come from.

Dr. Nguyen said there is no reason to build public health or mental health facilities near the hospital. Public health has nothing to do with the hospital, even through the pandemic, said Nguyen, who was one of the governors pandemic medical advisors.

Space-wise, we dont need them to be there, Nguyen said.

Dr. Jonathan Sidell, president of the hospitals medical staff, submitted written testimony to lawmakers, supporting using the Ypao Point site to build a standalone hospital. Most of the hospitals current medical staff lives within 10 minutes of the hospital, he stated, and quick response time is critical to saving lives.

We do not need a public health center next to the hospital, and we believe that public health centers are better served Guams population in the outskirts of the island, Sidell stated.

Hospital Administrator Lillian Perez-Posadas said a medical campus is needed to facilitate the collaboration and the continuity of care, for some patients. Having a CDC lab at the site would allow hospital doctors to get real-time results so they can treat patients, she said.
97W has been upgraded to medium for development, which means development is now likely beyond 24 hours.




Haiti - FLASH : Judge Jean Wilner Morin under a deluge of bullets





Wednesday, May 17, 2023 around noon on the Route de Freres not far from One Stop Market (commune of Petion ville), two individuals traveling on a motorcycle opened fire with automatic weapons on the armored Toyota Prado in which was the anti-corruption investigating judge Jean Wilner Morin (54) and his driver.



13 projectile impacts were noted by the scientific police on the armored vehicle, whose occupants came out safe and sound.



Police officers from the Vivy Mitchell police station arrived quickly on the scene and allowed the magistrate to leave the area safely.



Remember that Judge Wilner Morin is investigating several "sensitive" corruption cases, including that of Patrick Norame, former Director General of the Office for the Monetization of Development Aid Programs (BMPAD) under international arrest warrant https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39179-haiti-news-zapping.html , that of Romel Bell, the former Director General of the General Administration of Customs (AGD) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39236-haiti-flash-the-current-director-general-of-customs-prohibits-leaving-the-territory.html , as well as that of Edwine Tonton, Director of the Social Assistance Fund (CAS) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39396-haiti-news-zapping.html . Kesner Normil, the interim executive mayor of Petion-ville, was also to be heard that same day by Judge Morin.



The Associations of Magistrates strongly condemn this attack.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39396-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39236-haiti-flash-the-current-director-general-of-customs-prohibits-leaving-the-territory.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39179-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34410-haiti-flash-initiation-of-public-action-against-dozens-of-businessmen-officials-and-former-officials.html



SL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - 220th Flag Day : Message of reflection from Lesly Conde





As part of the celebration of the 220th anniversary of the creation of our national bicolor, Lesly Conde Ex-Consul General of Haiti in Chicago (August 2004 - May 2018), gives us as every year a message of reflection that we invite you to read and share.



Message from Lesly Conde:



"Dear compatriots and friends everywhere,



I appreciate the enormous privilege of being in your company, again this year, for the Haitian flag day. Our dear two-tone has been around for two hundred and twenty years. We know that no other flag in the world has a prouder, more eloquent and more heroic history than ours. Today, we are forced to recognize that our flag has seen better days when it flew more sovereignly in our beautiful firmament. We will therefore not speak of a celebration, but we must take this opportunity to reflect on the importance of our national emblem, the place it occupies in the history of humanity, and how it can still inspire us in this dark moment. For having inspired other peoples, and served the cause of freedom far beyond our borders, the Haitian flag makes us a proud nation. He must accompany us in all our battles.



This year, we need to focus, in a special way, on the importance of the symbolism of our two-tone. In its most difficult moments, a nation always retreats to the most glorious aspects of its past. The story of this flag is so eloquent that we would like to tell it to the whole world. There is so much symbolism in these two colors. Today, we Haitians have a duty to look proudly at this symbol of our identity, this two-tone which also belongs to the heritage of humanity. The story of the creation of the Haitian flag speaks not only of the bravery and determination of our ancestors, but also of their pragmatism. French slaveholders had skillfully exacerbated the conflicts that existed between blacks and mulattoes, slaves and freedmen. This is the kind of division that slavery thrives on. However, Jean-Jacques Dessalines and our other ancestors understood that it was necessary to unite to defeat the common enemy. The birth of our flag on May 18, 1803 in Arcahaie sealed this historic union.



Indeed, on May 18, 1803, what happened in Arcahaie, was going to alter the course of the history of the human race because, all amazed, the world was going, shortly, to witness the birth of the first black state in the Americas. It is appropriate to pay tribute to the bravery and pragmatism of our ancestors who managed to unite despite their disagreements, and by defying the wrath of the most powerful slavers of the time.



Our Nation, which was born on January 1st, 1804, less than a year after the creation of the flag, does not know its most glorious moments. It is not even necessary to list all the threats, all the derisions and all the injustices to which our country and our flag have been subjected in a downright hostile world. Even today, our setbacks continue. Quite often we even admit that we are the architects of our own misfortune while we are the eternal victims. There are also compatriots who go so far as to say that our flag was created too soon, and that our independence should have waited. The truth is, the world has never changed, and constant struggle is our manifest destiny.



If the rest of the world looks at our dear Haiti with an indifference that borders on contempt, if our neighbors and our so-called friends believe that our constant setbacks can be explained by an intrinsic incompetence or quite simply by a cruel irony of fate, so they did not capture the greatness of our ancestors, and their attachment to well-being that always accompanies freedom. The creation of this flag was a vibrant declaration of love for freedom and well-being. If our proud bicolor who put an end to the world order of slavery, also made us a solitary nation, it is because, I repeat, this world really needs freedom.



Thank you for your attention, and wish you a happy Flag Day. 



Reflection messages from Lesly Conde in 2023:

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39348-haiti-national-day-of-the-haitian-diaspora-message-of-reflection-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39261-haiti-easter-2023-message-of-reflection-by-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39222-haiti-holy-week-2023message-of-reflection-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-39124-icihaiti-social-international-day-against-racism-message-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-39116-icihaiti-international-francophonie-day-message-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39016-haiti-social-message-of-reflection-by-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-38747-haiti-black-history-month-message-of-reflection-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-38592-haiti-earthquake-2010-message-of-reflection-from-lesly-conde.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-38507-haiti-history-message-of-reflection-from-lesly-conde.html



All Lesly Conde's reflection messages in 2022 :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-38451-haiti-christmas-end-of-year-message-from-lesly-conde.html



All Messages from Lesly Conde in 2021 :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-35584-haiti-social-wishes-from-lesly-conde-on-the-occasion-of-the-new-year.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Justice : Launch of the 8th Moot Court Competition, applications open





The Human Rights Office in Haiti (BDHH) invites young lawyers from the country to participate in the 8th edition of the 2023 Human Rights Moot Court Competition.



As every year, the Competition is open to graduating law students and young graduates from the various Universities of Haiti.



"International sanctions & the fight against impunity" is the theme chosen for the written pre-selection of this 8th edition.



Written pre-selection rules:



Article 1

The Competition is open to law students who have completed at least three (3) years in one of the Universities of Haiti. either:

 students enrolled in the 4th year;

 students memorizing:

 students who have been dismissed for less than a year, excluding those already registered at the bar school and/or who have already taken the oath as a trainee lawyer.



Article 2

Students who have participated in previous editions of the Competition have the right to compete again. excluding those who participated in a final phase (semi-finalists, finalists and winner).



Article 3

The Competition takes place in two stages:



The written pre-selection and the oratorical contests. The pre-selected students will be invited to participate in the oratorical contests which will be the subject of separate regulations.



Article 4

Registrations for the written pre-selection are open until Saturday, June 10, 2023, 9:00 p.m. They must be made from the online form accessible at the address: https://forms.gle/ bWwBjBoP89SHBfUB9



Article 5

The written preselection covers the theme:



"International sanctions and the fight against impunity". The dissertations are selected by a jury on the basis of the relevance of the text, the quality of the argument. knowledge of the law and commitment to human rights.



Article 6

The dissertation should be written in size 12. new roman font. line spacing 1, in 3 pages maximum. Any overrun represents an unfavorable factor. The file must be saved in .word or .pdf format and be named "CONCOURS NAME FIRST NAME".



Article 7

A document attesting to the quality of the candidate must be attached to the file.



It can be, depending on the case:



 a certificate of achievement or a transcript of marks from the 3rd year

 a certificate of registration in the 4th year

 a certificate of achievement or a transcript of marks from the 4th year

 a defense report

 a bachelor's degree in law



Article 8

Any file that is incomplete or sent after the deadline will not be taken into account. For all questions. candidates are invited to write to concours@bdhhaiti.org or call the BDHH secretariat at 3606-8645.



Article 9

Candidates will receive an automatic acknowledgment of receipt to their email address confirming the submission of their file. The results of the preselection will be communicated by email and on the website: www.bdhhaiti.org



Deadline Saturday, June 10, 2023 9:00 p.m.: to submit your application using the online form at: https://forms.gle/bWwBjBoP89SHBfUB9



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





Live : Niagara Falls in the colors of Haiti

This Thursday, May 18, as part of the celebration of the 220th anniversary of the creation of our bicolor, the Niagara Falls will be illuminated in the colors of Haiti, blue and red To see live on www.earthcam.com/canada/niagarafalls



Cap-Haitien : Fire at the IGPNH office

Wednesday, May 17, 2023, a fire broke out at the office of the General Inspectorate of the National Police of Haiti, in the city of Cap-Haitien. A short circuit would be at the origin of this fire, indicated the National Union of Haitian Police Officers (SYNAPOHA).



DR : Seizure of 67,000 packs of cigarettes from Haiti

Members of the Specialized Body for Land Border Security (CESFRONT), arrested on Dominican territory, three men, who were carrying hidden in a truck 66,890 packs of 20 Capital brand cigarettes from Haiti.



Did you know ?

In 1821, Greeks appealed to Haiti to help Greece in its fight for independence. Lacking the means, Haiti sent tons of coffee so that they could sell them and buy weapons. Let's recall that Haiti is the first country to have recognized Greece. In 1935, Princess Marina came to thank Haiti in person.



Frantz Elbe and the High Command in Cap

Frantz Elbe, Acting Director General of the National Police of Haiti (PNH) accompanied by members of the High Command, including Chief Inspector General Fritz St-Fort, Inspector General Alain Auguste, Central Director of Police Administrative (DCPA), among others, is currently in the North Department, to participate in the celebration of the activities of the 220th anniversary of the Haitian flag.



4 detainees die for lack of care

4 detainees from Saint-Marc prison died this week following serious health problems linked to the precarious conditions of detention, confirmed Me Arnel Remy, head of the Collective of Lawyers for the Defense of Human Rights.



PAP : Increased patrols and checks in the city center

As part of targeted police operations against armed gangs, checkpoints and patrols have been significantly increased in downtown Port-au-Prince.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Published on 2023/05/17 | Source

Actor Song Duk-ho (30, real name Kim Jeong-hyeon), who is accused of trying to evade military service with false epilepsy, was sentenced to a suspended prison term.

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On the 17th, the Seoul Southern District Court's Criminal Division 9 (Judge Kim Yoon-hee) sentenced Song Duk-ho, who was put on trial for violating the Military Service Act, to one year in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered 80 hours of community service.

The court said, "We considered the fact that both the first offender and the investigative agency confessed to the crime and that he is expected to fulfill his military service obligations through re-examination".

Song Duk-ho is accused of conspiring with military service broker Koo (47) to create epilepsy symptoms and being falsely diagnosed and exempted from military service.

Song handed over 15 million won to broker Koo in April 2021 and made up epilepsy symptoms such as seizures, and was diagnosed with level 4 as a supplementary role for convulsive diseases in May last year.

Earlier, the prosecution demanded a one-year prison term for Song at a final hearing on the 14th of last month.
Published on 2023/05/17 | Source

"I will catch the boss who ordered 80 outfits for 400,000 won".

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Actor Kim Woo-bin expressed his extraordinary love for his juniors, referring to the recent broadcast of a YouTube channel. In an interview to commemorate the release of Netflix's "Black Knight" held in Sogyeok-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 17th, Kim Woo-bin stressed, "If the boss sees this article, I hope he reflects on it and recognizes the value of the models more".

In addition, Kim Woo-bin recalled meeting his juniors through the broadcast, saying, "It's a good thing to deliver know-how. I realized how old I'd gotten after meeting my juniors. The people I met at that time are people with potential". He also cheered, saying, "I hope they don't get worn out and work with happiness in their hearts".

Earlier, Kim Woo-bin said his childhood dream was to be a leader. When asked about this dream, he said, "I taught walking as a part-time job while working as a model. I had a good memory of that time. It's hard to call them a student, but one of them debuted. There's something hot that comes from there. I don't know what I'm going to do in the future, but I don't want to refuse the chance to teach someone if I have a chance", he said.

Kim Woo-bin, famous for taking good care of not only his juniors but also those around him, recently made headlines by tagging and cheering action actors of "Black Knight" on Instagram.

Kim Woo-bin said, "I wanted to express my gratitude one more time because I am grateful", adding, "I posted about it because I want people who are preparing for many works to get information".

Kim Woo-bin, who has mainly played a strong role, also expressed his desire for professional jobs. Kim Woo-bin also laughed by saying, "I want to play a professional job and a role where I can't fight", adding, "I'm always ready".
Published on 2023/05/17 | Source

The production company of "The Master of Confession" expressed its position regarding the failure of actresses Song Hye-kyo and Han So-hee appearance.

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Production H, the production company of "The Master of Confession" told Expo News on the 17th, "It is a very big project, and it was in the process of collecting various opinions. We will take time to reorganize for the time being", it said.

It also said, "That's right" about the failure of director Sim Na-yeon to join. Previously, "The Master of Confession" was to be directed by director Lee Eung-bok, "Descendants of the Sun", who then dropped out.

"The Master of Confession" depicts the blood-red chronicle of two women surrounding the murder. The cast of Song Hye-kyo and Han So-hee drew high attention.

On this day, a media outlet reported that Song Hye-kyo and Han So-hee decided not to appear in the work after long discussion, and "Beyond Evil" director Sim Na-yeon, who was supposed to be in charge of directing, also failed to join.
Admiral Pybus was an outstanding member of the United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams and a highly effective commander of these units. The SEALs are small special operations units that accomplish critical, targeted combat and intelligence gathering missions. Much of their work is top secret but Admiral Pybus was the Assault Squadron Commander of SEAL Team Six in the very high profile rescue of the ocean liner Achille Lauro after it was hijacked by Palestinian terrorists in 1985. Admiral Pybus has served with distinction in Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

The Admiral earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Rochester and a regular Navy commission through the universitys Navy ROTC program. He also earned a Master of Arts degree in strategic Studies at the Naval War College. Admiral Pybus has served in a number of important command positions including Director of Operations, J-3, U.S. Special Operations Command, Commander of Special Operations Command Pacific, Commander Naval Special Warfare Command, Commander of NATO Special Operations Headquarters and Deputy Commander U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida until his 2016 retirement.

The Admiral has received a number of decorations for his excellent work including the Defense distinguished Service Medal, the Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal (three awards), the Legion of Merit (two awards), and the Meritorious Service Medal (three awards). He has been inducted into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame. He has served as the Chairman of the Board and is currently a member of the Board of the Navy SEAL Foundation. Admiral Pybus and his wife Patty reside in Tampa, Florida, where he is a Consultant within the Defense and Security sectors of the United States and President of the Pybus Group, LLC. The Blowing Rock Memorial Day program is sponsored by Blowing Rock American Legion Post 256 with the assistance of the Blowing Rock Civic Association.

VICE ADMIRAL SEAN PYBUS, USN RETIRED, A FORMER COMMANDER OF U.S. NAVY SEALS, WILL SPEAK AT THE BLOWING ROCK, N.C. MEMORIAL DAY SERVICE, SATURDAY, MAY 27, 2023, AT 11:00 A.M. AT THE MEMORIAL PARK GAZEBO IN DOWNTOWN BLOWING ROCK

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Maria Zakharova , a spokesperson at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated yesterday that the accounts were frozen as a reciprocal countermeasure in response to restrictions imposed on Russian missions in Finland, according to YLE .

THE BANK ACCOUNTS of Finnish missions in Russia have been frozen, the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs confirmed on Wednesday.

Zakharova said the Russian missions have access to their accounts with only one bank in Finland, a situation that  she argued  violates international rules on diplomatic missions.

We posed a question about calling off the sanctions and repeatedly warned that unless the issue is resolved wed have to take countermeasures, she was quoted saying at a weekly press conference by the Finnish public broadcasting company. Finnish authorities didnt take any action on the issue, however.

Helsingin Sanomat was the first news outlet to write about the development on Wednesday. Finnish authorities, the daily revealed, were notified of the freezing of bank accounts on 27 April, resulting in an investigation by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Finland has two diplomatic missions in Russia: an embassy in Moscow and consulate general in St. Petersburg. Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto (Greens) revealed during a media availability yesterday that the missions have had to turn to their cash reserves in order to pay their bills and rents but assured that the situation has had no impact on the payment of wages.

The restrictions are not expected to have an impact on the missions operations, either.

Haavisto said Finland has sent a diplomatic note to Russia but has yet to receive an official explanation for the freezing of accounts. Russia, he estimated, may have acted out of some kind of frustration with the EU, as the 27-country bloc continues to support Ukraine and condemn the war of aggression waged by Russia.

The origin of the problem is the war of aggression started by Russia, which has been condemned internationally, said Haavisto.

Also other EU countries have encountered similar problems with their bank accounts in Russia. The Finnish missions, though, have been subjected to some of the strictest restrictions, according to Haavisto.

Reuters reported yesterday evening that Russia has also frozen the accounts of Danish missions.

President Sauli Niinisto on Wednesday described the freezing of bank accounts as an overstated measure that clearly exceeds the restrictions imposed on financial transactions by the Russian Embassy in Helsinki by Finland.

The Russian claim is that this was a reciprocal measure, he said to STT in Iceland. However, this clearly exceeds the restrictions Finland has implemented to restrict financial transactions by Russias Helsinki embassy. So this is an overstated response to it.

Niinisto told that Russia has complained that the bank connections of its embassy are poor.

This is a result not so much of the sanctions, but rather of the fact that banks in the international banking system are very careful and interpret the sanctions with a bit of care. But now Russia has moved to a completely new dimension than the restrictions targeted at [its diplomatic missions], he commented.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
South Africa: Families called to build strong foundation to combat social ills

KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC, Nonhlanhla Khoza, has urged families to actively contribute to building solid family foundations to combat social-ills and crime within their communities.

It is unacceptable for families to have children involved in or associated with criminal activities, including drug peddling. It is within the power of community members to unite and create a safe environment for all citizens, particularly women and children, Khoza said.

Khoza made the call during Operation Sigalelekile, where MECs, various departments, and agencies share ideas with members of the community on ways to deal with poverty.

Khoza led the operation after the community appealed for government intervention in Ward 1 of Umzumbe Local Municipality.

This follows Khozas recent visit to the area, where senior citizens pleaded with her to address the extent of abuse they are enduring.

Addressing the community at KwaDweshula Sportsground, Khoza stressed the importance of prioritising family values and cultivating a culture that upholds them.

As part of a comprehensive government outreach programme, several departments, including Home Affairs, Social Development, Agriculture, Human Settlements, Health, the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), the National Development Agency and SAPS, are collaborating to address the residents' needs.

Khoza also handed over gifts, including blankets and dignity packs, to centenarian Dumazile Mkhungo, who had appealed to government for assistance in building her home.

"We promised that her house will be constructed soon and the Department of Human Settlements has already begun working on it. As a caring government, we have responded promptly to the request of our senior citizens," Khoza said.

Mkhungo, who is 102 years old and bed confined, currently resides in a dilapidated mud rondavel, and relies on her grandchildren for support, as her eyesight has deteriorated.

Her old age pension grant sustains more than five family members since no one is employed.

The Department of Human Settlements has committed to build a safe home for Mkhungo, with completion expected within two months.

"We are a government that fulfils its commitments. With regard to Human Settlements, we are diligently working to overcome obstacles and accelerate service delivery in this area.

Our intervention aims to improve living conditions within communities. When we make promises to the people, we ensure they are transformed into action through effective project management and tracking," the MEC said.

Ugu District Municipality Mayor, Mandla Chiya, assured the community that the municipality will address the challenges related to water provision.

He said the municipality is working around the clock ensuring residents has access to clean running water.

"We are actively resolving the water-related challenges faced by the community in this area. Our goal is to eliminate the need for community members to travel long distances to access water," Chiya said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-05-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
The National Coalition remains the most popular party in the country with an approval rating of 21.4 per cent, an improvement of 0.6 percentage points from its vote share in the elections.

THREE of the four political parties in talks over the formation of a right-wing ruling coalition have seen their popularity increase after the parliamentary elections held in Finland on 2 April, reveals an opinion poll commissioned by Helsingin Sanomat.

Support for the Finns Party has increased by 0.9 points to 21.0 per cent and support for the Swedish Peoples Party by 0.2 points to 4.5 per cent. The Christian Democratic Party is the only one of the four parties engaged in the coalition formation negotiations to see its popularity slip from the elections, by 0.1 points to 4.1 per cent.

The Social Democratic Party has seen its popularity decrease by 0.9 points to 19.9 per cent, as it looks bound for the opposition provided that the four aforementioned parties can reach an agreement on the next government programme. The Centre Party is polling at 10.1 per cent, 1.2 points lower than its vote share in the elections.

Both the Green League and Left Alliance have gained 0.7 points after the elections, the former climbing to 7.7 and the latter to 7.8 per cent.

Sakari Nurmela, the research director at Kantar Public, told Helsingin Sanomat that the Finns Party and National Coalitions gains were expected as parties that perform well in elections tend to ride the momentum beyond the elections.

At least recently, the parties thatve got some positive momentum in elections have seen it continue after the elections, he said.

Such boosts may be explained by media coverage of the coalition formation negotiations that are underway at the House of the Estates in Helsinki. Nurmela added to the newspaper that, as long as a ruling coalition is formed without any major drama, he does not expect to see major swings in polls until after the summer holiday.

But it isnt impossible that theres some movement before that. If an issue starts to cause friction at the House of the Estates, he told.

Changes in the Green League, Left Alliance and Social Democrats popularity, meanwhile, may be attributable to tactical voting  the phenomenon of voters casting their vote for a party that is not their primary choice in an attempt to ensure or prevent the forming of a certain kind of ruling coalition. Surveys by Kantar Public suggest that the Social Democrats benefited and the Greens and Left Alliance struggled due to the phenomenon in the elections.

Maybe some of the voters have now come back and thats visible as a slight dip in support for the Social Democrats and a slight up-tick in support for the two parties, commented Nurmela.

Kantar Public interviewed 2,860 people for the poll between 3 April and 12 May.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
Festival announces this year's Apple Ambassador

Jackie Hernandez

Jackie Hernandez, a rising senior at Hendersonville High School, has been named Apple Ambassador for the 2023 North Carolina Apple Festival, the festival board announced Tuesday.

The Apple Ambassador program provides two scholarships each year and is open to all rising seniors in Henderson County. Hernandez will attend all four days of the festival and will also represent the festival at the NC Mountain State Fair as well as other events across the state throughout her senior year.

This year we had 20 applicants for the Apple Ambassador scholarship, and it was difficult to pare it down to 10. We are excited to announce Jackie as this years Ambassador," board President Mark Shepherd said. "She, as well as all the applicants, will make great additions to our all-volunteer led team and we look forward to embracing their input and participation in the 2023 NC Apple Festival,

Hernandez is the daughter of Josefina N. Ades. She will be awarded a $2,000 college scholarship upon graduation from high school in June 2024.

I am so honored to receive this scholarship and be chosen as the 2023 Apple Ambassador," she responded when told she had been chosen. "I look forward to serving the community that has given me so much."

The runner-up is Destiny Simotics, a rising senior at East Henderson High School. Simotics is the granddaughter of Mike and Laura OConnor. She will be awarded a $1,000 college scholarship.

In addition to Hernandez and Simotics, this years finalists included Dakota Corn and Madison Corn from East Henderson; LaShea Morlu and Emily Rhodes from West Henderson; Ramsey Ross from Hendersonville; Elizabeth Graham and Leiann Marshall from North Henderson; and Maggie McCall from Mountain Gems Academy.

Applicants for the scholarship are required to submit transcripts, list of activities, provide letters of recommendation and write an essay on the Apple Festival and the importance of the apple industry to this area. The Apple Ambassador is selected based on this information and through an interview process. The scholarship is named for and honors Evelyn Lutz Hill, who served as the Secretary of the North Carolina Apple Growers for many years. She was serving as president of the Apple Festival when she passed away in 2004.

The Apple Festival is held every year over Labor Day weekend. This year it will be Sept. 1-4 in downtown Hendersonville.
A NEW Premier Inn at Henley station would not harm the surrounding conservation area, a planning inquiry heard.

Blockwork wants to build a five-storey hotel on part of the station car park but South Oxfordshire District Council, the planning authority, rejected the application in August.

It said that the design was not in keeping with the area or aesthetically pleasing, in particular the visual bulk, massing, scale, roof form, height and materials.

The company, a partnership between landowner Network Rail and developer Bloc Group, of London, appealed and a hearing was held at Henley Rugby Club on Wednesday last week.

Much of the discussion focused on the character of the area, particularly the Victorian and Edwardian architecture.

Nicola Smith, a planning officer at the district council, said the new building would harm the conservation area while the developer argued it would be 80m outside and would hardly be seen.

The company claimed that nearby properties such as the Imperial Hotel, which has not been operational for years, would not be impacted if a Premier Inn was built.

Bob Edwards, on behalf of the appellants, said: We have to understand the setting. The setting is where you experience the heritage asset. From all of Station Road, you cannot see the appeal site. You get a glimpse of the site from the entrance of the station approach to Station Road.

Ms Smith said the hotel would be higher than the Imperial and it would negatively impact the area.

Mr Edwards replied: The question is whether just being able to see a building from a conservation area can damage the area. I dont believe that it would actually harm the significance of the area itself.

The need to follow the conservation character, how far do you extend this? When you look at town centres, they can change abruptly to something completely different, one does not have to follow in a smooth transition, it can quickly change. When you look at this area, over to the east you have Regatta Villas  modern blocky, horizontal timber cladding and such like. They dont follow the character of the conservation area.

On the west side, there are Seventies blocks of flats, so the character of the area isnt derived from the character of the conservation area.

Mr Edwards argued that the development would not cause overlooking, overshadowing, or noise and smells and that the proposed level of parking would be sufficient and not cause overspill on to nearby roads.

This comment prompted groans from the audience of more than 30 including some former Henley mayors and members of the Henley Society and Greener Henley.

Planning inspector Hollie Nicholls, who chaired the hearing responded: Im hearing a lot of noise from the back and I'd just like to point out that there will be points during the agenda when I ask for your point of view but during the proceedings please can we be respectful to the people who are speaking and allow them to be heard otherwise I will have to ask people to exit?

Julian Brookes, vice-chairman of the Henley Society, said: I just want to be clear that you will be able to see the proposed hotel from Station Road.

Samantha Allen, heritage conservation officer at the district council, said: The proposed development, by virtue of its scale, would detract from the ability of the Imperial Hotel to be known as a prominent landmark within this part of Henley owing to the fact that it would appear considerably larger than the hotel and detract from its landmark quality as a Grade II listed building that was designed to be viewed as the largest structure in this part of town.

Mr Edwards replied: We have no issue with the listing of the building, it is certainly of listable quality due to its architectural merit and historical factors.

While it is a very attractive building, the question of how much of a landmark is questionable. In terms of its landmark status being eroded, I disagree with that. Our building is sufficiently far away.

Mr Brookes said there was no justification for the new hotel and he was speaking on behalf of the 600 members of the Henley Society.

Our objective is an appropriate balance between housing, a vibrant town centre and the provision of employment and leisure, he said.

However, what is more important is the impact of development on the existing economy of the town.

Regarding hotel rooms, the town council put forward a baseline report six or seven years after the initial neighbourhood plan in which was the justification for removing the need for further hotel accommodation in Henley.

I did an Airbnb search on Henley and there were 80 available and many were at a similar price point to the Premier Inn, so not expensive places.

Moving on to the economy, we have to understand the appeal of Henley to its visitors. It is a historic town and we want to make sure we can maintain and hopefully grow its attractiveness to visitors.

Our view is the hotel would significantly damage the attractiveness of Henley to the visitors who are an important part of our economy.

Ken Arlett, who represents Henley on the district council, said: I have been on the town council for 22 years and district council for 16 years, the majority of this time on planning committees. I have been a local builder for 50 years and I am fairly good at reading plans.

It seems to me that there are some major issues. One is the scale, size and the bulk and the overlooking of the conservation area and the use of substandard materials in such an area.

Henley Town Councils planning committee met with representatives of Premier Inn to discuss these plans pre the application being deposited and I can say it was disappointing to see that no changes were made.

What I am also concerned about is that there is absolutely no thought for the neighbours of Wyndale Close, which this five-floor hotel would overlook, which I think is very sad.

The joint Henley and Harpsden neighbourhood plan stated, Development proposals should respond positively to the setting of the surrounding area.

They should demonstrate high qualities of sustainable and inclusive design and architecture that respects the conservation area. Madam, this does none of those.

The policy mentions materials that should respect the area. Do coloured aluminium cladding panels, grey PVC and aluminium-coated material?

No care or attention has been paid by the applicants to its neighbours. One would have to question if the local plan and the neighbourhood plan had even been referred to. I think this is a very sad application and so does the town council.

Councillor Arlett was applauded by members of the audience before Ms Nicholls again asked for quiet.

The inspector will announce her decision later.
FORMER Prime Minister Theresa May will appear at this years Henley Literary Festival.

The MP for Maidenhead, who lives in Sonning, will be discussing her first book The Abuse of Power on Saturday, September 30.

Mrs May, who first appeared at the festival in 2019, is among various government figures from both sides of the Atlantic who will feature in the 17th annual festival which will run until Sunday, October 8.

There will be more than 100 events for adults and children, held in-person and online, featuring local authors, leading historians and comedians.

Former US Army general David Petreaus, who served under President Obama as CIA director and commander of US forces in Afghanistan, will join historian Andrew Roberts to look at how warfare has changed over the last 80 years.

Writer Michael Smith, who lives in Henley, will look at how UK and US politicians and secret services work together in The Real Special Relationship, alongside Sir John Scarlett, former MI6 chief.

Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee will examine the true state of class in Britain via the prism of her own family.

Events for younger readers will include Dame Jacqueline Wilson, creator of characters such as Tracy Beaker and Hetty Feather, and a special all-ages Black History for Every Day of the Year talk by historian and broadcaster David Olusoga and his sister Dr Yinka Olusoga.

Comedians Viv Groskop and Shaparak Khorsandi

will appear together to talk about their forthcoming books on ADHD, confidence and making sense of your life.

Other speakers will include Beth OLeary, author of The Flatshare and The Wake Up Call, and broadcaster and barrister Rob Rinder with his debut thriller, The Trial.

Tickets will be on general sale from July 17. Call (01491) 575948 or visit www.henleyliteraryfestival.co.uk
Albert Einstein (Tom Conti) in a scene from the trailer for the film "Oppenheimer," about the creation of the atomic bomb.

(JTA)  "Oppenheimer," the hotly-anticipated Christopher Nolan biopic about the Jewish nuclear physicist who developed the atomic bomb, will include another familiar Jewish face when it opens this summer: Albert Einstein.

A new trailer for the drama, released last week, includes a brief glimpse of the scientist's unmistakeable visage, as rendered by the Oscar-nominated Scottish character actor Tom Conti. Underscoring the gravity of the bomb's development, this Einstein has foregone his usual cheery demeanor and is instead wearing a grave frown.

It seems appropriate for the film, which tracks J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) as he and the other members of the Manhattan Project race to develop the bomb by constructing the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico in the mid-1940s. Oppenheimer and his team of scientists tested the weapon there before it was eventually dropped on the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the waning days of World War II, killing more than 110,000 people.

As the legend goes, the scientist initially heralded the bomb's successful test run by quoting from the Hindu text Bhagavad Gita: "I am become Death, destroyer of worlds." He would eventually come to regret his creation, telling President Harry Truman he had blood on his hands.

Einstein's role in the bomb's development is often overstated, yet still notable. According to the American Museum of Natural History, when the physicist and Jewish refugee of Nazi Germany learned that German scientists had succeeded in splitting the uranium atom in 1938, he urged then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to speed up development of nuclear weapons in the United States. His fear was that the Nazis might develop the bomb first, in part building on his own scientific equations. Einstein was later barred from participating in the actual Manhattan Project as his left-leaning politics were enough to deem him a security risk.

As soon as the bomb was dropped on Japan, Einstein reportedly was devastated and came to regret even his small role in pushing Roosevelt to develop it.

Several other Jewish figures from the atomic age will make appearances in the historical drama, including onetime U.S. Atomic Energy Commission chair Lewis Strauss (played by Robert Downey Jr.), Manhattan Project physicist Richard Feynman (Jack Quaid), hydrogen bomb developer Edward Teller (Benny Safdie) and nuclear physicist Isidor Isaac Rabi (David Krumholtz).

"Oppenheimer" will open in theaters on July 21. Nolan, a filmmaker known for his grandiose style in blockbusters like "The Dark Knight" and "Inception," shot the entire film in large-format IMAX cameras to add to its epic scale. It will be his second WWII history, after 2017's "Dunkirk."
(JNS)  Many see the creation of the modern-day State of Israel as part of a historical narrative, in which Israeli independence was a reaction to the Holocaust. The catastrophe which recently befell the Jewish peoplethe massacre of millions of Jews in Europewas another clear demonstration of the urgency of solving the problem of its homelessness by re-establishing in Eretz-Israel the Jewish State, the provisional government of Israel declared on May 14, 1948.

But when JNS interviewed nearly 30 veterans of the 1948 War of Independence in Israel from October 2022 to January 2023, all of the octogenarians, nonagenarians and centenarians said that 3,000 years of Jewish historyand not the Shoahdrove them to help reclaim the Jewish historic homeland.

JNS found the interviewees by visiting nursing homes, kibbutzim and other sites in Israel and abroad, often asking to speak with the oldest people present. The roughly 30 who agreed to talk about their experiences spoke with JNSthe majority in English with some Yiddishfor more than 60 hours collectively.

The veterans spanned Israeli-born sabras who were active in the Jewish militias Irgun, Lehi and the Haganah, as well as foreign fighters who came to assist what would become the Israel Defense Forces in Machal units. Both sabras and foreign volunteers knew a great deal about the Holocaust, and many had lost relatives and friends. They met survivors who recounted their experiences. But invariably, the veterans told JNS that they were motivated in their service by a long cultural and historical memory rather than World War II itself.

Ahead of Yom HaatzmautIsraels Independence Day, which begins on the evening of April 25 and continues through the following dayJNS shares a few of those stories.

Haganah messenger

JNS spent some eight hours at kibbutz Gan Shmuel with Itzik Mizrachi, 90, who shared his story, gave a tour of the kibbutz where he lives and invited JNS to lunch at its dining hall. The Jerusalem-born Mizrachi said he was a messenger in Haganahs youth wing, Gadna.

During the outbreak of the war in May 1948, Itzik and his family were in the Mount Scopus area, and Arabs blocked them from taking roads to other safe areas. A mob mobilized to try to kill them, he said, but the patriarch of an Arab family, Abu Mustafa, who shared their home stood guard at the door and told the mob it would have to kill him first.

Soon thereafter, Haganah members came in an armored truck and told the family it had half an hour to gather its things and come to safety.

Mizrachi, who remains in good health, and walks and drives on his own, told JNS that he is the seventh generation in his family to live in Israel, after his ancestors, Sephardic Jews, left Spain during the expulsion.

As a Haganah message runner, he studied KAPAPan acronym for krav panim el panim, or close-quarter fightingwhich Haganah used to disguise its weapons training. Mizrachi later studied with Imi Lichtenfeld, founder of krav maga, and his son Rhon Mizrachi is now one of the recognized experts in that area.

Mizrachi told JNS that the Holocaust was only one chapter in Jewish history. Why would we allow that moment alone to define us as Jews? he said. Long before the Holocaust, we said, Next year in Jerusalem every year during the Passover seder.

The Holocaust was a motivator, but not the main one. For generations, we yearned for our independence. There were many pogroms, massacres and expulsions in our history. We never let any of these define us either, he said.

South African Zionism

The South African Jewish community was very Zionist long before the Holocaust, Ruth Stern, 97, a South African nurse who now lives in Jerusalem, told JNS.

The 800 South African volunteers in 1948 paled in number only to Americans (1,000). Due to the representation from these two nations in particular, English became the most spoken language among machalniks, and most foreign volunteers, who were likelier to know Yiddish than Hebrew, first spoke in Yiddish with Israelis.

Stern, who went to Israel to volunteer over her parents objectionsWhy cant you be like your sisters and not go?said that she and her peers knew about the Holocaust and that many South African Jews of Lithuanian heritage lost relatives back home.

The Holocaust wasnt why I volunteered or why most other Jews did, she insisted.

In 1948, she treated many patients who had survived the Holocaust before their injuries in the war. They experienced trauma on top of trauma, she said.

She accounted for her choice to go to Israel despite pressure from her parents with her spirit of adventurousness. Its not every 2,000 that one can see the Jewish state rebuilt, she said. She didnt want to wait another two millennia.

High-flying graphic designer

Asked whether the Holocaust motivated him, the late Alex Zilony, who died at age 107 on March 3, replied: No. What a question!

Zilony, who was born in Poland and grew up in Israel, studied in the United Kingdom before becoming a Haganah pilot. He was one of the founders of the Israeli Air Force, and speaking from his home in Tel Aviv, he told JNS that he designed the IAF emblem, which remains in use today.

We have wanted a state for over 3,000 years, he said. Maybe the possibility of building a state was higher after the Holocaust because we got many new immigrants and war veterans, but Jews had been migrating since the 1920s and even before this, he said.

Zilonys daughter, Ruth, who was present during the interview, was as surprised as JNS was at her fathers response. This was not the answer I expected, she said, highlighting generational differences in Israel today.

Despite the tendency of American South African and British volunteer pilots to pride themselves on the proclamation that they helped solidify a victory in 1948, Zilony was adamant that Israel would have prevailed without that help.

Stay alive!

They say three Jews, five opinions, the late Tom Tugend told JNS in a phone call from his California home late last year. This time, it was half a million of us, one opinionstay alive! Pretty much the whole Diaspora or every Jew who could hold a gun sent someone to represent their community.

Despite having fled Nazi Germany to the United States and later returned to Europe as a U.S. soldier, Tugend insisted that his desire to help create a Jewish state was a more significant motivator than the Holocaust.

Jews came from a variety of backgrounds, noted Tugend, from Jewish IRA (Irish Republican Army) arms smugglers to Indian Jews. Some, like Tugend, had served in the U.S. military, or in the British or French armies in World War II. Some were officers, while others lacked any military experience, he said, and a few even came from Kenya.

The South Africans were among the most dedicated fighters, he pointed out. There was a Jewish Texan cowboy with a Southern accent. There was a Jew with a Scottish accent, and I recall one from Yorkshire whom nobody could understand! They all wanted to defend the new nation of Israel.
WASHINGTON (JTA)  After being thwarted by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Rep. Rashida Tlaib succeeded in spotlighting Palestinian perspectives on Israels founding in an event on Capitol Hill  with help from one of Congress most powerful Jewish members, Sen. Bernie Sanders.

The Palestinian-American Democrat from Detroit also introduced a congressional resolution calling on the suspension of some aid to Israel.

Tlaibs event on Wednesday, called Nakba 75 & the Palestinian People, featured the Arabic word for catastrophe that Palestinians use to describe the dispersion and expulsion of Palestinians during Israels 1948 war for independence. The event included cosponsors that have endorsed the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel, such as Jewish Voice for Peace and Americans for Justice in Palestine Action.

Tlaib had originally reserved a room in the Capitol Visitors Center for the event, but McCarthy canceled it, exercising a rarely used prerogative of his office.

This event in the US Capitol is canceled, he wrote on Twitter on Tuesday, sharing an article from the Washington Free Beacon, a right-wing news website that called Tlaibs event antisemitic. Instead, I will host a bipartisan discussion to honor the 75th anniversary of the US-Israel relationship. (Whether that event took place is not clear; McCarthys office did not respond to a request for comment.)

That decision earned McCarthy praise from an array of centrist and right-wing pro-Israel groups, which objected to the event, citing the participation of anti-Zionist groups.

We commend Speaker McCarthys decision to shift the focus towards a civil, bipartisan discussion on Israel-US relations, said a statement from the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the foreign policy umbrella for a number of national Jewish groups. This approach fosters mutual understanding and constructive engagement, laying the foundation for progress towards a more peaceful future.

Tlaib then turned to the Senate, where Democrats are in the majority and where the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is chaired by Vermonts Sanders. The progressive leader, who campaigned for her and whom she calls amo, or uncle, provided the room.

The meeting went ahead as planned, Jewish Insider reported, with the participation of Tlaib and Rep. Cori Bush, a Missouri Democrat who like Tlaib is an outspoken critic of Israel. Sanders office confirmed to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that the senator signed off on the event, though he did not attend.

Everyone needs an amo in the Senate, Jewish Insider quoted Tlaib as telling the room. On Twitter, she was triumphant, writing: Let the headlines read McCarthy tries to erase Palestine but fails.

Centrist pro-Israel groups condemned Sanders for allowing the event to take place.

It is disgraceful that @SenSanders allowed this event by @RepRashida to be held in our nations Capitol, Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League who has called anti-Zionism antisemitic, wrote on Twitter. Real conversations are needed around a path to peace, but not with groups & individuals who espouse antisemitism. We call on the Senate to condemn this event.

On Wednesday, Tlaib also introduced a resolution marking the Nakba. It cited JVP and other anti-Zionist groups as endorsers and was cosponsored by a number of Democratic representatives who have joined Tlaib in vocally criticizing Israel, including Bush, Jamaal Bowman of New York, Betty McCollum of Minnesota, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.

The resolution calls for the suspension of some forms of defense assistance to Israel. It calls on the United States to reject efforts to enlist, engage, or otherwise associate the United States Government with denial of the Nakba and to scrutinize Israels actions according to the provisions of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018, which is named after the famed late Holocaust survivor.

Tlaibs event and resolution came amid a series of congressional actions celebrating Israels 75th birthday, which the country marked in late April. Last month, a bipartisan resolution congratulating Israel passed overwhelmingly in the House and a similar one is under consideration in the Senate. Additionally, the leaders of both parties in the House  Democrat Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the minority leader, and McCarthy, a California Republican  visited Israel to join in the commemorations and festivities.
The Tenth Annual Commemoration of the largest mass arrest of rabbis in U.S. history will take place outdoors at the Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront, 32 Avenida Menendez, St. Augustine, at noon, Sunday, June 18. This 30-minute event sponsored by the St. Augustine Jewish Historical Society, is free and all are welcome.

On June 18, 1964, 16 rabbis and a Reform Jewish administrator, in St. Augustine at the request of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., were arrested and held in the St. Johns County Jail. Overnight, they wrote a letter titled Why We Went to St. Augustine that will be read as part of the commemoration.

All are welcome, there is no charge. For further information contact SAJHS at www.sajhs.com, sajhs1565@gmail.com or 804-914-4460.
(JNS)  Ahead of a visit to Israel by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the Sunshine States chief financial officer told JNS that Norway is out of line in considering divesting from the Jewish state.

Jimmy Patronis, the Florida CFO, sent a letter late last month to Heidi Olufsen, Norways consul general in New York, to express serious concerns regarding reports that Norways Sovereign Wealth Fund is reviewing recommendations by your nations ethics committee to add Israel to its excluded funds list.

Among the worlds largest investors, Norways Government Pension Fund Global is reportedly approaching a decision whether to pull its funds from Israeli banks and potentially cease further investment in the Jewish state.

We have taken a series of steps over the past years whenever we have seen anti-Israel, BDS stuff taking place. So we have a familiarity when people pick fights with our friends in Israel, Patronis told JNS.

I think its unfortunate and short-sighted that the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund is making this type of a position or change in their investment strategy, added Patronis. I think its important to call them out.

The Norwegian fund, which manages assets worth $1.3 trillion in 70 countries and about 9,400 companies worldwide, is examining some of the policies and processes by which Israeli banks grant credit and loans to companies that operate beyond the so-called Green Line.

The fund compiled the list of banks it is investigating based on a controversial 2020 blacklist released by the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Late last year, it announced that it would stop investing in Israeli investigative analytics software company Cognyte due to an unacceptable risk of human-rights violations.

Patronis wrote to Olufsen that singling Israel out and the funds increasing reliance on socially conscious environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings of companies are a recipe for disaster. The ESG movement has come under fire for shifting investment priorities to what are often politically charged factors.

Relying on bad metrics, and ESG, for divestment decisions could create immense problems for both of our nations, Patronis wrote. A divestment from Israeli banks, of this scale, may have devastating effects on the entire Israeli economy and stability within the Middle East.

Markets are already sensitive following the collapse of Silicon Valley Banks, he wrote. Additionally, Israeli banks should not be singled out, as opposed to other international financial institutions.

When the issue was recently brought to his attention, Patronis was particularly appalled, he told JNS. The sovereign wealth fund, which was created off of profits from Norways vast North Sea oil and natural-gas reserves and which invests heavily in areas like China, wants to use ESG-focused issues to batter Israels economy, he said.

I look at Israel as a friend of the state of Florida, Patronis told JNS. I see the sovereign wealth fund making investments in China, where theres little respect for human rights and no care for carbon emissions. But then theyll want to divest from places that are playing a better role of treating humankind and the environment.

Its a very disturbing development

A prominent member of Norways Jewish community, who also works in Middle East business affairs, told JNS Norways actions with regards to Israel are of concern to him both of the outcome in terms of stability in Israel and also in terms of encouraging antisemitic attitudes in Norway.

Those who are already labeling Jewish products from Judea in shops today would later start labeling the Jewish state and Jews and the streets. Its a very disturbing development, On Elpeleg, a founding member of the city of Bergens Jewish association and a Middle East commercial attache for Somalia, told JNS. (He spoke in his personal capacity, not on behalf of the citys Jewish community or Somalia.)

Elpeleg said the funds actions reward Norwegian extremists, at the same time going against the countrys mission to support peace in the region.

It is a matter of fact that the far-left and far-right extremists in Norway are the strongest supporters of employing BDS warfare against Israel, Onpeleg told JNS. Norway, the country of the Nobel Peace Prize, should support the struggle for democracy and peace in the Middle East with constructiverather than destructivewarfare measures against the only democracy in that region.

Conrad Myrland, the CEO of the Norwegian nonprofit For Peace with Israel (Med Israel for fred or MIFF), told JNS that the MIFF appreciates that a Florida official penned the letter to the Norwegian consul general in New York.

A divestment from Israeli banks will be of great damage to the Israeli-Norwegian relations, and we cannot see any way the wealth fund can do this without breaking Norwegian anti-discriminations laws, he told JNS.

Myrland cited a December letter, which UK Lawyers for Israel sent to several wealth fund officials, which noted in part that the fund holds several investments in companies active in Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara, where the Moroccan authorities have encouraged extensive settlement by Moroccan nationals.

The letter also noted that of the nine companies the fund has publicly placed on its excluded list for alleged serious violations of individuals rights in situations of war or conflict, six are Israeli companies, which provide services that may assist Israeli residents beyond the Green Line.

The other three companies excluded to date on this basis have been excluded for supporting actors, who have carried out mass murders in South Sudan and Myanmar, the letter stated. No other companies have been excluded for providing civilian services in disputed territories.

Patronis, who encouraged Olufsen to deliver his message to her government, told JNS he has received no immediate reply. JNS inquiries to Norways New York consulate and ministries of foreign affairs and finance remain unanswered.

DeSantis is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at Jerusalems Museum of Tolerance on April 27 as part of a larger trade delegation to the country.
(JTA)  Floridas state education department rejected two new Holocaust-focused textbooks for classroom use, while forcing at least one other textbook to alter a passage about the Hebrew Bible in order to meet state approval.

The books were rejected as part of a broader review of new K-12 social studies material. According to documents provided by the state, the education department did not approve any new texts on the Holocaust this year. Reached by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, a spokesperson at the departments press office was unable to confirm whether there are older Holocaust textbooks already in use that can still be taught in the state.

Under Gov. Ron DeSantis, the state has made an effort to clamp down on what he calls woke indoctrination, mostly regarding race and gender. The textbooks rejection is the latest example of how that drive is affecting Jewish topics as well.

One of this years rejected Holocaust textbooks was called Modern Genocides, and the other was an online learning course titled History of the Holocaust. Both were intended for high school students.

Modern Genocides was rejected in part for its discussion of special topics prohibited by the state. The list of such topics includes terms such as social justice and critical race theory, a phrase that traditionally concerns a method of legal analysis but that has been used pejoratively to refer to discussion of systemic racism in the United States. The department did not clarify which prohibited special topics the book included.

Both of the rejected works also received low scores from the states educational review committee, which determines whether a book meets state requirements for instruction on its topic.

The company eDynamic Learning, which publishes History of the Holocaust, told JTA it had spoken with the Florida Department of Education and would appeal the states rejection of its content.

In conversations with the DOE, it is clear that the DOE sees the benefit of this curriculum for students but wants to ensure that all state standards for the curriculum have been addressed, Lisa Rahn, director of strategy and design at eDynamic Learning, wrote in a statement. The publisher of Modern Genocides did not return multiple JTA requests for comment.

Meanwhile, another social studies textbook intended for grades 6-8 was forced by the department to alter a reference to the Hebrew Bible in order to meet state standards. According to state documents, the books original version included a question for students reading, What social justice issues are included in the Hebrew Bible?

That was altered to an approved version that replaced the phrase social justice issues with the term key principles. The states rationale for the change was that the original phrasing used Politically charged language when referencing the Hebrew Bible.

DeSantis has advanced Holocaust education while also enabling parents to effectively remove Holocaust literature they dont like from school libraries. Florida requires Holocaust education in grades K-12, and in 2020, DeSantis signed a law requiring public schools to certify that they teach about the Holocaust. But a law passed last year allows parents to challenge instructional materials and books in public school libraries, and parents in the state have filed challenges that have led to the temporary or permanent removal of Holocaust literature on the grounds that they are inappropriate for children.

Another law, called the Stop WOKE Act, bans educators from making students feel guilt or shame in relation to historical events. The state education department also forbids the instruction of critical race theory.

In addition, a bill has been passed that would forbid state-funded higher education institutions from teaching critical theory  a change that scholars say could threaten the teaching of Jewish studies. DeSantis has yet to sign that bill into law.

To uphold our exceptional standards, we must ensure our students and teachers have the highest quality materials available  materials that focus on historical facts and are free from inaccuracies or ideological rhetoric, Manny Diaz, Jr., Floridas education commissioner, said in a press release.

The states education department announced Tuesday that it had approved 66 out of 101 submissions of new social studies textbooks under its new rubric  some only after the publishers agreed to extensive changes to the text. It rejected the other 35 textbooks that were submitted. Florida last reviewed social studies materials in 2017; state documents do not indicate the percentage of books accepted and rejected that year.

Florida, by virtue of its large population of school-age children, is one of the biggest textbook markets in the nation, and some social studies textbook publishers this year preemptively erased some language about race and segregation in their books in order to gain entry into the market.

The state did not elaborate on how the Holocaust books failed to adequately teach their subjects. The education departments Bureau of Standards and Instructional Support, which oversees reviews of classroom materials, referred JTAs request for comment to its press office, which did not respond to questions by deadline.
As of Monday, May 15, this was the status of the onslaught by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza against Israel. Let's hope it holds as Heritage goes to press.

(JTA) - Fighting between Israel and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza ended after five days, as a ceasefire took effect and appeared to hold late Saturday night.

Over the course of the fighting, 33 Palestinians were killed in Gaza, including civilians and combatants. Two civilians were killed in Israel - a woman in the central Israeli city of Rehovot and a Gaza resident who was working in a town on the Israeli side of the border.

Islamic Jihad shot more than 1,000 rockets at Israel during the conflict; many that were aimed at populated areas were intercepted by Israel's missile defense systems, and some fell short in Gaza. Israel conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Gaza, killing six Islamic Jihad leaders.

This round of fighting began on Tuesday as Israel assassinated senior leaders of Islamic Jihad, which is designated by the United States and European Union as a terror group. Those assassinations followed a day of heavy conflict between the two sides one week earlier, after a senior member of Islamic Jihad died of a hunger strike in Israeli prison. Tuesday's airstrikes also came after far-right figures in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition pushed for a harsher response to the Gaza rockets.

Egypt mediated Saturday's ceasefire, and a statement from Netanyahu's office "thanked Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and expressed the appreciation of the State of Israel for Egypt's intensive efforts to secure a ceasefire." The statement added that Israel would refrain from further airstrikes as long as rocket attacks from Gaza ceased.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised "Operation Shield and Arrow" on the first full day of the ceasefire.

"The execution was perfect. With a continuous initiative, we thwarted the entire top of the organization and damaged combat equipment that endangered Israel's security," the premier remarked at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem.

"We destroyed 17 jihadist headquarters, eliminated dozens of terrorists, hit rocket and missile depots, thwarted anti-tank squads and more. I would like to thank the members of the security establishment and the citizens of Israel, and especially the residents of the ['Gaza Envelope'], for the firm stand that allowed us to succeed in the operation. We changed the equation," Netanyahu said.

The Israel Defense Forces began to ease restrictions on "Gaza Envelope" communities on Sunday following the truce that went into effect at 10 p.m. on Saturday, although terrorists continued to fire rockets at Israel and the IDF pounded terrorist targets in the Strip in response for a couple of hours after the ceasefire was supposed to start.

Roadblocks were removed from Israeli communities close to Gaza on Sunday and the Kerem Shalom and Erez crossings to the Strip reopened among other measures that marked the beginning of a return to normal life as the tenuous ceasefire took hold.

Netanyahu also had a warning for Israel's enemies.

"Today, the enemies of Israel and far beyond Gaza know that even if they try to hide, we can and we are willing to reach them at any time. This recognition grew significantly stronger in Operation Shield and Arrow. We changed the equation," he said.

The Jewish News Service contributed to this article.
(JNS)  Last month, Germanys Federal Justice Office began the process of fining Twitter, under the countrys Network Enforcement Act, for failing to remove hate speech. The German law requires social-media sites to remove illegal content within seven days, and for the most egregious material, within 24 hours.

The German office stated publicly that hateful material was published on Twitter, which the authority considers illegal and, despite user complaints, was not deleted or blocked by the provider within the legally stipulated periods.

Reportedly, Twitter faces a fine as high as 50 (nearly $55 million) in Germany. An email to a Twitter press account auto-replied with an excrement emoji, as Twitter owner Elon Musk has tweeted it would, and it wasnt immediately clear how to otherwise reach a spokesperson.

In January, a German activist group sued Twitter for hosting content denying the Holocaust, which is a crime in Germany.

One of Musks first publicized decisions after buying the company was to decrease the content moderation division. Many saw that as welcoming hateful speech, while others had long believed that division was driven by partisan politics.

Europe has stricter laws about free speech than the United States does, and Musk had told the European Union he would comply with those rules.

Since Musk took over Twitter, there have been reports that antisemitism has increased on the platform, as well as on other social networks.
A bomb shelter donated by the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is unloaded in Ashkelon, May 10, 2023.

(JNS) - On Wednesday, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews placed five bomb shelters in areas of Ashkelon identified by local authorities as lacking ample protection.

The locations included residential neighborhoods where homes had no shelters as well as commercial zones where people had no safe place to go when incoming Gazan rockets are detected.

The latest installation comes in addition to numerous other safety projects made possible by the IFCJ across Ashkelon, including a mobile command center donated earlier this year, which allows the municipal leadership to manage the city through these types of crises.

The IFCJ also purchased four protected vehicles that are used by local security officers to arrive quickly and safely to the scene of rocket attacks.

The newly placed shelters are part of an ongoing effort by the IFCJ, in coordination with the IDF Home Front Command, to ensure that the Israeli public is properly protected in the face of a growing array of threats.

In recent years, IFCJ has donated more than 400 such shelters throughout Israel at a cost of over $6.2 million. An additional $16.2 million has been allocated towards the renovation and equipping of 2,500 existing shelters.

The IFCJ has invested more than $69 million directly in homefront defense projects in areas of the country, primarily near the southern and northern borders, that face an ongoing threat from rocket and missile attacks.

"Strengthening our nation's homefront defenses, particularly in these times of security crisis, has long been one of the primary objectives of the Fellowship. We see it as a central part of our mandate to be able to ensure that the people of Israel are provided the physical protection they need," IFCJ President Yael Eckstein said.

"These shelters not only protect people in time of need but are a critical reflection of the spirit of solidarity that enables our donor community of hundreds of thousands around the world to know that they are partners in caring for the people of Israel. We are deeply appreciative of their support in allowing us to quickly and effectively implement life-saving solutions in these times of need," she said.
(JNS)  Israel on Wednesday continued making preparations for rocket attacks and the threat of a wider conflict following the air forces targeted killing of three top Palestinian Islamic Jihad leaders in strikes across the Gaza Strip.

The IDF identified the targets of the operation as Khalil Bahitini, PIJs commander in northern Gaza; Jahed Ahnam, a senior member of the terror groups military council; and Tarek Azaldin, who directs its activities in Judea and Samaria.

Israel also struck 10 sites in Gaza belonging to PIJ, including weapons manufacturing facilities and depots.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a situational assessment with senior security and military leaders and the Security Cabinet convened on Tuesday evening.

The IDF Home Front Command issued guidance for southern Israel that is in effect until at least Thursday.

Residents within 40 km. (25 miles) of the Gaza Strip (this includes the cities of Ashkelon, Ashdod and Beersheva) were asked to stay near areas protected from rocket fire. The guidance also includes limiting public gatherings to up to 10 people outdoors and up to 100 people indoors, for educational institutions to hold remote classes, for people to work remotely if their workplace doesnt have access to a bomb shelter and closing beaches to the public.

Municipalities in the South and Center of the country announced that they were opening bomb shelters. Cities opening shelters include Herzliya, Raanana, Kfar Saba, Rishon Letzion, Yavneh, Bat Yam, Ashkelon and Beersheva.

Hospitals were moving patients to protected areas.

Israel Railways announced the partial suspension of service in the South.

The Shaar HaNegev Regional Council announced that dozens of families had left for host towns in areas of Israel away from the Gaza border with more than 200 families expected to temporarily relocate.

The council is prepared to assist all residents who have special needs, including mobility problems and more, the council said.

Gallant approved the call-up of a limited number of reserve troops for Operation Shield and Arrow.

The State of Israel seeks stability in the region, while the Iranian-funded [PIJ] terror group launches attacks. At the same time, it harms its own peoplethe Palestinian residents of Gaza, said Gallant on Tuesday afternoon.

The State of Israel will not tolerate rocket fire, terrorism or any threats to the sovereignty of our state and security of our citizens. We must be prepared for every scenariothe IDF and security forces are prepared to defend every front, he added.

In a phone conversation with the mayors of southern Israeli communities, Gallant warned of a possible prolonged conflagration.

The Otzma Yehudit Party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir announced that it was ending its boycott of Knesset votes in light of the security situation.

Due to our position being accepted and the move from containment to attacking via targeted assassinations of senior Islamic Jihad [members], we will return to vote with the government. The hope is that the offensive continues over time, the party said.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen announced on Tuesday that he will be returning early from his trip to India due to the escalating security situation.
(JNS)  Israel is prepared for a multi-front conflict against Iran and its terrorist proxies, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday after the Jewish state launched Operation Shield and Arrow against Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

Its clear that 95 percent of Israels security problems come from Iran, the prime minister said in a Zoom address to a conference organized by the Israel Defense and Security Forum.

We are dealing with an attempt by Iran to start a multi-front campaign against us. I instructed the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] and security forces to be prepared for this fight.  If we need to, we will, he added.

Netanyahu convened an expanded situational assessment session in the early evening whose participants included Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, Mossad Director David Barnea, Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) chief Ronen Bar and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.

Shortly thereafter, the Security Cabinet held a meeting at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv.

Our principle is clear: Whoever harms us, we will strike at them and with great force. Our long arm will reach every terrorist at a time and place of our choosing, Netanyahu told the ministers at the beginning of the Security Cabinet session.

We are in the midst of a campaign. We are prepared for all possibilities. I suggest that our enemies not test us, he said.

The Israel Air Force on Tuesday morning killed three top Palestinian Islamic Jihad leaders in strikes across the Gaza Strip, following a month of intermittent confrontations with terrorists in the enclave.

The IDF identified the targets of the operation as Khalil Bahitini, PIJs commander in northern Gaza; Jahed Ahnam, a senior member of the terror groups military council; and Tarek Azaldin, who directed its activities in Judea and Samaria.

Israel also struck 10 sites belonging to PIJ, including weapons manufacturing facilities and depots.

The military dubbed the campaign Operation Shield and Arrow.

Israelis residing within 40 kilometers (25 miles) of the Gaza border have been instructed to enter or remain near bomb shelters amid fears of rocket attacks.

Bomb shelters were opened in the southern cities of Ashkelon and Beersheva, as well as the central area cities of Rishon Letzion, Herzliya, Raanana, Kfar Saba, Yavneh and Bat Yam.

Gallant hailed the killing of the three PIJ leaders and warned of a possible protracted campaign.

The State of Israel seeks stability in the region, while the Iranian-funded [PIJ] terror group launches attacks. At the same time, it harms its own peoplethe Palestinian residents of Gaza, he said.

The State of Israel will not tolerate rocket fire, terrorism or any threats to the sovereignty of our state and security of our citizens. We must be prepared for every scenario  the IDF and security forces are prepared to defend every front, Gallant said.

In a phone conversation with the mayors of southern Israeli communities, Gallant warned of a possible prolonged conflagration.

The defense establishment will provide whatever assistance is required. I instructed professionals to be in continuous contact with you and take care of everything required for the needs of the residents. You have our full support, he told the officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issues a statement to the media while Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant looks on, May 10, 2023.

(JNS) - Israeli forces are "fiercely attacking the Gaza Strip and exacting a heavy price from the terrorist organizations," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an address on Wednesday night in Israel.

"I would like to reiterate: Whoever harms us, whoever sends terrorists against us, will pay the price," he stated.

Netanyahu said that developments in Israeli technological abilities, coupled with new operational tactics, have created "a new equation" seen in "Operation Shield and Arrow."

Israel has dealt Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza "the hardest blow in its history," said Netanyahu. "Within mere seconds, two seconds, in the middle of the night, at three separate locations, we simultaneously eliminated the terrorist organization's leaders. We hit its anti-tank units, its arsenals and its rocket-production facilities."

Of the rockets launched by the terrorist group at Israeli civilian populations, between a quarter and a third fell in the coastal enclave itself, and the majority of those that reached further to Israel were intercepted by missile-defense systems, added Netanyahu. "I would also like to commend the Defense Ministry and the security establishment for also developing the new systems that were successfully brought into action today," he said, apparently of David's Sling.

"Fortunately, as of now, no Israeli citizen has been wounded," he said. "We entered this together. We will get through this together, and we will win together."

To Israel's enemies, he said pointedly: "We see you everywhere. You cannot hide. We will choose the time and place to attack you."
Heritage Florida Jewish News is accepting nominations for the 2023 Heritage Human Service Award, which will be presented at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando this summer.

For more than 30 years, individuals who have made major, voluntary contributions of their talent, time, energy and effort to the Central Florida community have been honored with the selection and presentation of this award, said Jeff Gaeser, editor and publisher of the Heritage. Last years recipient was Dr. Edward Zissman. Former recipients have included Sarah Stern (2017), Loren London (2014), and Roz Fuchs (2018).

According to Gaeser, Each recipient chose their own path, but made considerable and long-lasting contributions to the Jewish community. Nominees for the 2023 award are individuals who do not look for recognition, but perform tikkun olam  repairing the world  out of internal motivation.

Nominations should be emailed to news@orlandoheritage.com with the subject Human Service Award or typed on 8 1/2 x 11 paper and sent by mail to Heritage Florida Jewish News, Human Service Award, 207 OBrien Road, Suite 101, Fern Park, FL 32730. Included should be the name and phone number of the nominee, a documented list of his or her accomplishments, and the name and phone number of the nominator(s).

The Heritage is accepting nominations until Friday, June 9.
(New York Jewish Week)  New York Republican Rep. George Santos, who spread a series of falsehoods about being Jewish and other parts of his life story, was arrested Wednesday on federal criminal charges on Long Island.

The indictment said that Santos  who has also gone by other names, including the last name Devolder  used donations to a fraudulent political fund for personal expenses, such as buying designer clothes and paying off his credit cards.

He was also accused of lying about his finances on congressional disclosure forms and receiving $24,000 in pandemic-era unemployment benefits while still employed at an investment firm. According to a financial disclosure form, Santos reported earning $750,000 a year from a family company, the Devolder Organization, but the charges unsealed on Wednesday allege that Santos never received that sum, nor the other millions in dividends he said came from the firm.

In total, Santos was charged with 13 counts, including wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making materially false statements to the House of Representatives.

Breon Peace, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement that this indictment seeks to hold Santos accountable for various alleged fraudulent schemes and brazen misrepresentation.

Taken together, the allegations in the indictment charge Santos with relying on repeated dishonesty and deception to ascend to the halls of Congress and enrich himself, Peace said. He used political contributions to line his pockets, unlawfully applied for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who had lost their jobs due to the pandemic and lied to the House of Representatives.

Santos is expected to make a court appearance Wednesday. He also faces an inquiry by the House Ethics Committee as well as charges in Brazil.

After being elected to Congress in a Republican sweep of Long Island last November, Santos has drawn attention for allegedly lying about large parts of his education, resume and family history. Exposes about Santos cast doubt on a range of his claims, regarding everything from his purported career on Wall Street to his management of an animal welfare charity.

On the campaign trail, Santos repeatedly claimed to be Jewish. But reporting by a number of outlets, including the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, uncovered evidence that he has no Jewish ancestry. In response, Santos falsely said that he never claimed to be Jewish, calling himself Jew-ish.

Some Republican members of Congress, in New York and elsewhere, have called on Santos to resign, as have local Republican leaders in his district. But House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, signaled on Wednesday that Santos would be allowed to continue serving.

Anna Kaplan, a Jewish former Democratic state senator from Santos district, recently announced that she will run for his seat in next years election.
(JTA) - Tom Nides, the gregarious U.S. ambassador to Israel, is resigning this summer, at a time of unresolved tensions in the U.S.-Israel relationship he strove to uphold.

An administration official confirmed to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that Nides would be gone by this summer. The report first appeared in Axios on Tuesday morning. Axios quoted Secretary of State Antony Blinken as saying that Nides wanted to spend more time with his family.

"Tom has worked with characteristic energy and skill to further strengthen the special bond between the United States and Israel, and to advance U.S. diplomatic, economic, and security interests," Blinken told the online political news site. "We will all miss having him represent us in Israel, but I know he is looking forward to some well-deserved time with his family."

Nides, a former executive at Morgan Stanley who was a senior State Department official in the Obama administration and who had deep Democratic Party ties, brought an easygoing sensibility to the role, especially to ties between Israel and the U.S. Jewish community.

Nides' efforts to advance an impression of a conflict-free relationship were undercut by tensions stoked after the election last year of the most far-right government in Israel's history, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The ambassador was at the center of one expression of the tensions when he said in March that he expected President Joe Biden to invite Netanyahu to the White House sometime after Passover. Biden, who sees Netanyahu's planned weakening of Israel's judiciary as a threat to Israel's democracy, immediately poured cold water on that prediction.

"No," Biden said when asked about a potential invitation to Netanyahu, although Israeli prime ministers routinely visit Washington within months of their election. "Not in the near term."

In addition to concerns about Netanyahu's commitment to democracy, the Biden administration is also chafing at the makeup of Israel's coalition, which includes ministers with a record of anti-Palestinian activism, and at proposals to advance settlement in the West Bank.

Nides endeavored to keep his public communications positive. A native of the tiny Jewish community in Duluth, Minnesota, he routinely posted short videos and photos on his feed of his meetings with U.S. Jewish delegations on his Twitter feed.

"No way I could pass up the chance yesterday to hang out with some fellow 'frozen chosen' from Minnesota," read a typical tweet last month. "It was great to connect with the Minneapolis Jewish Federation on their visit to Israel, love you guys!"

He also strove to remain above the political fray, posting friendly encounters with his Trump administration predecessor, David Friedman, on social media. The two ambassadors joined last month to lead the annual March of the Living at Auschwitz, commemorating the Holocaust.
(JNS)  We know its coming. We can write the script in advance. Yet it never fails to sicken and to shock.

Israel was once again forced to take military action to defend itself against increasingly deadly attacks. As ever, Western media presented this as if Israel wakes up in the morning and decides to bomb Gaza through some insatiable lust for violence.

Once again, such media outlets omitted or downplayed the crucial context for this military action. Once again, questions asked by some interviewers were framed through a maliciously distorted prism.

The most notable element of Israels Gaza strikes has been their pinpoint accuracy and limited collateral civilian deaths.

Targeted Israeli air raids killed three senior members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in simultaneous strikes on their apartments.

Hundreds of rockets were subsequently fired from Gaza at southern Israel.

Israeli bombers then targeted PIJ rocket and mortar launch sites. Another strike killed the head of the PIJ rocket launching force in his apartment, along with two other PIJ operatives. Later in the day, a further strike killed his deputy.

As The Spectator noted, the BBC World Service Newsday show omitted crucial context. On Wednesday morning, it reported Palestinian officials saying, Two young men have been killed during an overnight Israeli army raid near Jenin  hours after Israel carried out air strikes on Gaza, targeting militant commanders. Fifteen people were killed, including 10 civilians. Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Palestinian militants that any retaliation would be met with a crushing response.

As Israeli journalist Lahav Harkov pointed out to the Newsday presenter, the report failed to say that the operation in Jenin followed the start of the rocket barrage from Gaza and that the two young men had been shooting at Israeli soldiers.

Worse, however, was to follow. If the operation was to target PIJ and 10 civilians were now dead, said the presenter, did this reveal where the thought process of Mr. Netanyahu and the coalition government and the leadership is at the moment?

From that question, we could see this presenters assumption that Israels prime minister and his coalition partners were motivated by a lust for killing innocent Palestinian Arab civilians. This was not only a malevolent and twisted prejudicefrom a supposedly objective BBC journalistbut directly contradicted by the remarkable precision of the Israeli air strikes.

While the apartments of the targeted terrorists were destroyed, the buildings remained largely intact, with damage limited to adjoining apartments.

At time of writing, some 25 Gazans have been killed, of whom at least 10 were civilians, some of them family members of the targeted terrorists and others who lived next door or downstairs.

The killing of any civilian is to be regretted. However, while PIJ and Hamas deliberately place their civilians in harms way, Israel makes every effort to avoid killing them. No other country in the world goes to such lengths to do so.

On Twitter, the IDF published video footage showing an IAF pilot aborting a strike on a PIJ target when two children were spotted nearby.

Yet rather than note the technological marvel and moral example of such unique military precision, journalists implied that Israel was engaged in reckless slaughter.

The Gaza rocket attacks are a double war crime. They target Israeli civilians while using Gazas population as hostages and human shields. More than 100 rockets have reportedly fallen short and landed inside Gaza, with Israel claiming that they killed four people, including three children.

Yet one CNN interviewer suggested that Israel has an obligation to work around the Gazan civilians used as human shields and claimed that Israel targeted civilians.

In their coverage of Israel, many Western journalists behave like sheep following the dominant Western narrative.

This narrative holds that Israel is a rogue state that rides roughshod over international law, is drunk on military power and behaves with reckless lack of concern for Palestinian life.

The media therefore starts from a prior position of lies, distortion and malevolence.

As a result, it fails to ask the really important question of whether such limited, pinpoint operations are adequate for the situation in which Israel finds itself.

Israels strategy is to mow the lawnto deal with terrorist upticks when they occur and then repeat the exercise over and over again. This may no longer be appropriate.

Nothing happens in Gaza without Hamass permission. This week, however, Hamas stayed out of the fray while tacitly permitting PIJ to launch its rocket barrages.

Hamas reportedly has a new strategy. This is to avoid Israel mowing the lawn in Gaza while the terror group exports its apparatus of war to the disputed territories of Judea and Samaria.

This would shift the target area from the communities of southern Israel to its geographical heart. With the same aim, one of the PIJ commanders killed by Israel had been creating a cell building rocket launchers in the disputed territories.

Behind all this is Iran, which seeks to trap Israel through a pincer movement that would target it simultaneously from Lebanon, Gaza and the disputed territories. A nerve center has been established in Beirut bringing together Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hezbollah, PIJ and Hamaswhich last month fired 34 rockets into Israel from southern Lebanon.

Fueling Irans ability to advance its infernal aims is Americas incomprehensibly incoherent Middle East strategy. Last month, the U.S. deployed a guided missile submarine to the Middle East as a warning to Iran. Yet the U.S. has persistently refused to take appropriate measures in response to Iranian aggression.

Worse, the U.S. is even now hoping to cut a deal with Tehran over its nuclear weapons program, which would facilitate an Iranian nuclear weapon after at best a limited delay and channel billions in sanctions relief into the regimes coffers.

Meanwhile, the rest of the West seems indifferent to the Iranian threat. Although the regime has been at war with the West since it came to power in 1979, there seems to be a pervasive belief that the only target in Irans sights is Israel.

This largely meets with Western indifference. So, as many have long wondered, why is the West so hostile to Israels very existence?

One answer is the new antisemitism, with irrational hatred of Jews replicated exactly in irrational hatred of the collective Jew in Israel.

Another reason is that Israel is regarded as fundamentally illegitimate by those who are profoundly ignorant of both Jewish and Middle Eastern history.

However, if this hostility towards Israel is put alongside the refusal to acknowledge the dire threat that Iran poses to the West, a yet more baleful explanation suggests itself.

Consciously or unconsciously, the West expects Israel to do its dirty work for it. It assumes that Israel will deal with Iran by itself because thats the kind of thing Israel does.

Israels feats of military derring-do are indeed legendary. But theres good reason to think it cant take out the Iranian threat by itself.

Most importantly, any strike against Iran carries the very real risk of simultaneous and devastating attacks on Israel from the 150,000 rocket batteries in Lebanon targeting the whole country, missiles from Gaza and the infrastructure of mass murder in the disputed territories.

And heres the most terrible thought of all. The prospect of widespread carnage in Israel doesnt concern the West because, to its way of thinking, the historic role of Jews is to die in large numbers.

Then the West will eulogize them, weep crocodile tears over them and sentimentalize their memory. While the West refuses to tolerate the idea of Jewish powerand so will always demonize Israel for using it to defend Israeli liveswhat it loves is dead Jews.

Harsh? Certainly. But harsher and more terrifying by far for Israel.

Melanie Phillips, a British journalist, broadcaster and author, writes a weekly column for JNS. Currently a columnist for The Times of London, her personal and political memoir Guardian Angel has been published by Bombardier, which also published her first novel, The Legacy. Go to melaniephillips.substack.com to access her work.
(JNS)  In addition to the West Bank and Gaza Strip, many Palestinians live in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. Roughly 98 percent of Palestinians in the disputed territories are ruled by the Palestinian Authority and Hamas. Palestinian human-rights advocates, NGOs, international bodies, the media and campus activists focus on Israeli policies. The principal abusers of Palestinians, however, are their fellow Palestinians and other Arabs.

For example, Bassam Tawil noted in just the last week, the media widely reported on the death of a senior member of the Iranian-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organization who essentially committed suicide by starving himself to death in an Israeli prison but paid no attention to two men who recently died in Hamas custody. No one cares about the two men who died in Hamas custody, apparently because Israel is not associated with their deaths, Tawil observed. Had Al-Sufi and Al-Louh died in an Israeli prison, they would have made headlines in The New York Times, the BBC and CNN.

The U.S. State Department Human Rights report on Israel was quoted in the press, but did you hear anything about what it said about Palestinian behavior in the disputed territories?

Heres a summary of what it found in the Palestinian Authority and Gaza that had nothing to do with Israel:

Credible reports of unlawful or arbitrary killings by Palestinian Authority officials and Hamas personnel; torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishments by Palestinian Authority officials and Hamas personnel; arbitrary arrest or detention; political prisoners and detainees; significant problems with the independence of the judiciary; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media, including violence, threats of violence, unjustified detentions and prosecutions of journalists, and censorship; serious restrictions on Internet freedom; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association, including harassment of nongovernmental organizations; serious and unreasonable restrictions on political participation, including no national elections since 2006; serious government corruption; lack of investigation of and accountability for gender-based violence; crimes, violence and threats of violence motivated by antisemitism; crimes involving violence and threats of violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or intersex persons; and reports of the worst forms of child labor. In Gaza, the designated terrorist organization Hamas utilized its military wing to crack down on internal dissent and there were reports that members of Hamas security forces committed numerous abuses.

Similarly, Amnesty Internationals reports on Israel receive banner headlines in the press and are parroted unquestioningly. Because it is obsessed with Israel, many people may not realize it also has information on the non-existent state of Palestine. It is also skewed to focus on Israel. Still, it mentions that Palestinian armed groups in the Gaza Strip committed apparent war crimes during three days of military confrontations with Israel in August, using unguided rockets in populated civilian areas. It also states that errant rockets killed seven Palestinians, including four children. The report acknowledges that attacks by armed Palestinian individuals killed 18 people in cities and towns across Israel.

In addition, authorities restrict freedom of expression, association, and assembly, at times using excessive force to disperse peaceful gatherings, and a brutal crackdown on peaceful protests by Hamas effectively deterred dissent, often leading to self-censorship. Hundreds of Palestinians were arbitrarily detained, and torture and other ill-treatment remained rife in detention and interrogation centers.

Twenty-nine women were killed by their family members in apparent cases of domestic violence, and authorities failed to prevent and investigate homophobic and transphobic threats and attacks. Authorities also failed to investigate unlawful killings and attacks, including against Israeli civilians.

Human Rights Watch also regularly pillories Israel and devotes scant attention to the abuses by Palestinians. It did report that Hamas authorities executed five Palestinians, including two men accused of collaboration with Israel, following trials marred by due process violations. HRW noted that no one has been held accountable for the 2021 murder by P.A. security forces of Abbas critic Nizar Banat. It also mentions discrimination against women and the P.A.s failure to prevent abuse and protect survivors.

Thats about it from the two best-known human-rights organizations. Not a word about terrorism.

Neither Amnesty nor HRW mentioned the treatment of Palestinians in their profiles of Lebanon and Syria.

The State Department report on Lebanon does mention that nonstate armed groups, including Hizballah and Palestinian militias, operated with relative impunity, using intimidation, harassment and occasionally violence against perceived critics and opponents. Palestinian refugees cannot obtain Lebanese citizenship, are prohibited from purchasing or inheriting property, and are barred from working in 39 skilled professions, including medicine, law and engineering. It does not elaborate on how Palestinians are treated as second-class residents, such as being denied free treatment at hospitals and barred from most public schools. Al Jazeera headlined a story on the situation: Palestinians in Lebanon: Its like living in a prison. 

States report on Syria said that regime and opposition forces reportedly besieged, shelled and otherwise made inaccessible some Palestinian refugee camps, neighborhoods and sites, which resulted in severe malnutrition, lack of access to medical care and humanitarian assistance, and civilian deaths. It said that the Action Group of Palestinians of Syria reported that regime forces tortured 638 Palestinians, including children. It does not mention the hundreds of Palestinians detained by Assads security forces, tortured in regime prisons or killed while incarcerated.

Yes, it is possible to be pro-Israel and want to see an end to human-rights abuses against Palestinians. It is more common, however, that people concerned with these abuses are anti-Israel and not interested in any abuse they cannot blame, accurately or not, on Israel.

Mitchell Bard is a foreign-policy analyst and an authority on U.S.-Israel relations who has written and edited 22 books, including The Arab Lobby, Death to the Infidels: Radical Islams War Against the Jews and After Anatevka: Tevye in Palestine.
(JTA)  With the conclusion of Passover last month, we now find ourselves in the period of the Jewish calendar known as the Omer, the 49-day span between the Exodus from Egypt marked on Passover and the giving of the Torah celebrated on Shavuot, which begins this year on Thursday evening, May 25. Jewish tradition considers these two holidays inextricably linked, the seven weeks between them seen as an incremental process of purification from the defilement of slavery to a state in which the Israelites were able to receive the Torah. In this sense, Passover and Shavuot are bookends, each representing a stage in the process of freedom.

But what if Passover and Shavuot are actually opposites  not compatible but in tension with one another? This is what Rabbi Shimon Gershon Rosenberg, known as Rav Shagar, argues in his homily In the Name of the Father. Rav Shagar was a student of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook and a widely read spiritual leader in the religious Zionist movement focusing on postmodernism and traditional Judaism. He died in 2007 at the age of 57.

Shagars essay is built on the work of French philosopher Alain Badiou, and specifically his notion of the event  an occurrence so unprecedented and revolutionary it changes everything. Shagar wants to contrast the event that is the giving of the Torah with the mere enlightenment (hearah) of Passover. The enlightenment that is the Exodus might be extraordinary. It might even be miraculous. But it is not unique. Nothing new came into the world with the Exodus; it merely rearranged what already existed.

Revelation, however, is an event. The giving of the Torah introduces something that has never before existed, and thus shakes the very foundations of existence.

For Shagar, the event of revelation introduces the universal into the particular. Passover is about the particular  the formation of ethnos, or the Jewish family. This is why the Passover seder is framed around the relationship between parent and child. Shavuot is categorically different  it is not about the experience of a particular people emerging from slavery but about the encounter of that people with the divine.

As I understand Shagar, he is suggesting that revelation changes everything. But while Badiou suggested that the event changes everything by destroying what came before, Shagar suggests that what existed before the event is not destroyed but transformed by it. Put another way, Passover can survive Shavuot. But for that to happen, Passover must incorporate the universal into the particularity of the Jewish story of freedom from slavery. For Shagar, failing to do that would be a failure of the Jewish covenant with God. If all Jews bring to the world is that they are a distinct people, they have introduced nothing new.

In some ways, this is the perennial challenge of Judaism: how to incorporate the universal nature of Gods revelation at Sinai within the particularity of the Jewish story. Judaism, according to Shagar, must embrace the universality of the event by absorbing it into the past. But the past will always be reluctant to comply. The familial home where the story of the Exodus is annually retold is comforting. The event of revelation is discomfiting. It rips the familial from its roots and demands more than retelling the story of a people. It demands moving beyond the ethnos.

This is only possible with the introduction of something that is totally new. This may be what the Midrash meant when it taught that the ultimate purpose of Sinai is not the giving of the Torah, but the subsequent giving of a new Torah. That is how the sages understand the prophetic view of redemption.

Thus, Shavuot is not (only) the culmination of Passover, but (also) its subversion. The danger (or perhaps hazard) of Passover is remaining mired in the ethnos, in the familial comfort of the Exodus, without the event in which God enters the world and introduces that which is utterly new. This is the moment where everything changes irrevocably, where the tradition is both introduced and overcome: That is matan Torah  the giving of the Torah.

A version of this essay appeared in My Jewish Learnings Recharge Shabbat newsletter.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.
New resources and proposed regulations from U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services advance Administrations commitment to expanding health care access and fighting youth mental health crisis

Today, on the Mental Health Awareness Day of Action, the Biden-Harris Administration is taking bold action to make it easier for schools to provide critical health care services, especially mental health services, for millions of students across the nation. These three significant actions support President Bidens comprehensive national mental health strategy and deliver on his commitment to tackle the nations mental health crisis as part of his Unity Agenda. Through a series of new announcements from the U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Health and Human Services (HHS), the Administration is continuing to take a whole-of-government approach to meet families where they are and ensure that children have access to the health care they need  especially mental health services.

Specifically, ED is proposing a new rule that would streamline Medicaid billing permissions for students with disabilities. ED predicts of the 500,000 new students who are found eligible under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B each year, nearly 300,000 are likely to be eligible for Medicaid and impacted by this rule. HHS is issuing new guidance to make it easier for schools to bill Medicaid. HHS also is approving requests from New Mexico and Oregon to expand health care services that schools can deliver to Medicaid enrolled students.

Students are six times more likely to access mental health when these services are offered in school, and thats one important reason why making it easier for schools to provide health care is at the heart of the Biden-Harris Administrations efforts to address the youth mental health crisis and raise the bar for learning conditions in our schools, said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. These new resources and proposed rules will help schools live up to the promise that all students, including those with disabilities, receive a free, appropriate public education. We need to continue breaking down barriers that have long undermined state and local efforts to provide health care services to students, including those covered by Medicaid. Ultimately, more children and youth will gain access to the physical and mental health services they need to succeed in school and in life as a result of the actions the Biden-Harris Administration is taking today.

"We are taking bold actions to strengthen school-based health care services through our Medicaid program so that children in every community have the support they need, said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. President Biden has made clear that strengthening youth mental health is a top priority of this Administration. We are working across the federal government, as well as with all states, territories and tribes, to meet families where they are and provide students with the services and supports they need to be healthy and thrive.

IDEA Act Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

ED is releasing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking under IDEA that would streamline consent provisions when billing for Medicaid services provided through a students individualized education program (IEP). This would result in a uniform process applicable to all Medicaid enrolled children, regardless of disability.

Many children with disabilities receiving services under the IDEA are also enrolled in Medicaid either due to their disability status and/or based on their family income. Children with disabilities and are more likely to have low income, and those covered by Medicaid are more likely to have greater health care needs than those who are covered by private insurance. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic reduced access to critical services for children with disabilities and other vulnerable populations. To meet the Administrations goal of increasing access to health and mental health services, and in fulfillment of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) provision of expanding access to crucial school-based services for mental health and other care needs, it is crucial to remove barriers for schools so they can more easily provide Medicaid covered services to their students enrolled in Medicaid.

Importantly, the proposed changes announced today do not alter any of the critical parental consent provisions required by IDEA nor do they impact the parental consent obligations under the Family Educational Records and Privacy Act (FERPA). Additionally, the proposed rule does not alter the requirement that IEP services must be delivered at no cost to the childs family, the requirement that IEP services cannot diminish other Medicaid-reimbursable services, nor Medicaids position as payor of first resort for IEP and Individualized Family Service Plan services. Rather, this regulatory change would help cut unnecessary red tape that schools and districts face in billing Medicaid and meet their obligations to ensure students with disabilities receive a free, appropriate public education in accordance with their IEP.

Guide to Expand School-Based Services for Millions of Students

Today, HHS, through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is releasing a comprehensive guide for Medicaid school-based services to make it easier for schools to deliver and receive payment for health care services to millions of eligible students. Developed in consultation with ED, the Comprehensive Guide to Medicaid Services and Administrative Claiming represents an important part of the Biden-Harris Administrations implementation of the BSCA.

In addition to providing billions in funding for school-based mental health personnel and supports to create safe and welcoming school environments, BSCA charged ED and HHS to expand access to school-based health and behavioral health services. The guide released today outlines flexibilities states can adopt to make it easier for schools to get paid for these critical health services delivered to children enrolled in Medicaid and the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which together provide health coverage to more than half of all children in the United States.

With this guide, we are helping states and schools bring health care to kids where they are, rather than the other way around, said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. Children spend most of their waking hours in school. We also know that children have suffered serious declines in access to mental and behavioral health care services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Were making it easier for states and schools to maximize Medicaid coverage to grow connections to care.

Medicaid and CHIP cover more than half of all children in this country. Thats more than 41 million children spending over 30 hours weekly in school during most of the year. This comprehensive policy guide helps states and schools leverage Medicaid and CHIP and offers a roadmap of how they can build a bridge between education and health care, including mental health care, to support children enrolled in these programs and help them thrive.

The guide clarifies, consolidates, and expands on a wealth of CMS guidance on how schools can receive payment for providing care for Medicaid- and CHIP-enrolled students, and how states can ease the administrative burden on school-based health providers to promote their participation in Medicaid and CHIP while meeting federal statutory and regulatory requirements. This includes helping states and schools operationalize:

How payments can be made for school-based services under Medicaid and CHIP;

How states can simplify billing for school-based services, including in rural and small or under-resourced communities, where care may be particularly challenging.

Examples of approved methods that state agencies have used to pay for covered services; and

How to enroll qualified health care providers to participate in Medicaid and furnish services within school settings.

In the months to come, CMS plans to release more resources to help ensure states can optimize childrens access to school-based services. As outlined by BSCA, these resources include $50 million in grant opportunities and a school-based services technical assistance center, in partnership with ED. For more information on the guide, visit Medicaid.gov.

New Mexico and Oregon School-based Services Expansion Approval

HHS, through CMS, also approved state plan amendments (SPAs) for both New Mexico and Oregon that will allow Medicaid to pay for health care services schools delivered to more of their Medicaid-enrolled students. Specifically, these SPAs will allow New Mexico and Oregon to receive Medicaid funding for services provided to all children covered by Medicaid, rather than only those children with an IEP. These approvals expand access to school-based health services, a key priority for the Biden-Harris Administration, that will strengthen Medicaid and help provide resources to combat the youth mental health crisis. New Mexico and Oregon join 12 other states that have already expanded Medicaid payment for school-based health care services under their state plans. These states include: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, and North Carolina.

These announcements collectively are part of the Biden-Harris Administrations commitment to addressing the nations mental health crisis by providing more school-based resources and supports to help address students mental health needs. Todays announcement comes on the heels of EDs announcement earlier this week on the latest tranche of awards to train school-based mental health professionals through the Mental Health Service Professionals demonstration program, which provided another nearly $100 million in awards as part of an overall appropriation of $1 billion in BSCA for school-based mental health services and supports.

Collectively, these announcements build on actions HHS, CMS and ED have taken over the last year to expand access to school-based health care and trauma informed services. Last summer, CMS released guidance for states on to strengthen the delivery of Medicaid and Children Health Insurance Program (CHIP) youth behavioral health services and school-based services. Last fall, ED announced the Stronger Connections Grant program, which provided awards totaling $1 billion to 56 states and territories through BSCA to help schools in high-need districts provide students with safe, welcoming, and supportive learning opportunities and environments that are critical for their success. Last winter, HHS also awarded nearly $245 million to expand trauma informed services and supports for students and their families, including grants to State and Local Education Activities to bolster school-based services.

And at the beginning of the 2022  2023 school year, Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona and Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra sent a letter to governors across the country to highlight federal resources available to states and schools to invest in mental health services for students. ED also awarded $122 billion in American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds to help schools reopen and recover, and experts indicate more than $2 billion has been directed to hire more school psychologists, counselors, and other mental health professionals in K-12 schools. With the help of these funds, as of March 2023, compared with the pre-pandemic period, the number of school social workers is up 48%, the number of school nurses is up 42%, and the numbers of school counselors and school psychologists are each up 10%.
Last Summer, the United States faced an unprecedented outbreak of mpox with limited resources. The White House and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched an urgent, whole of government response to address the outbreak, which resulted in the deployment of tests, vaccines, and investigational treatments nationwide through HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR).

Working in lock step with the LGBTQI+ community, this response resulted in significant declines in cases and the end of the mpox Public Health Emergency on January 31, 2023. As a result, today, the average daily case rate in the United States is 1 or fewer  over a 99% decline in daily case counts since the outbreak's peak in August 2022.

As we head into the Summer, the Biden-Harris Administration is focused on increasing vaccine uptake to mitigate the risks of mpox and keep communities safe.

The United States stands in a strong position to prevent the expansion of this outbreak as we head into Spring and Summer 2023.

For months, the Biden-Harris Administration has been working closely with jurisdictions and partners to monitor trends, increase vaccine uptake, and improve vaccination rates in communities over-represented in the outbreak to keep them safe.

Since the earliest days of the mpox outbreak, we have not taken our foot off the gas in the fight against mpox and providing resources, education, and outreach to increase equitable access to vaccination, testing, and investigational treatments in communities that could benefit.

The mpox outbreak continues to be a public health priority for HHS and the Administration. For months, both have maintained outreach and education efforts and increased outreach in late winter 2022 and early Spring 2023 to motivate actions to prevent expansion of the current outbreak as festival and event seasons approach. Collectively, the Administrations efforts aim to expand vaccination for individuals at risk and make testing more convenient for health care providers and patients across the country.

The Biden-Harris Administration remains committed to working with urgency to detect more cases, protect those at risk, and respond rapidly to new cases. As we head into the summer months, heres important information and resources:

What We Know About the Virus:

Mpox is a disease that can cause flu-like symptoms and a rash. Based on currently available data, the vast majority of mpox cases in this outbreak have been associated with close skin-to-skin contact associated with sex between men.

Chicago has recently reported a new cluster of mpox cases after nearly three months with almost no mpox cases reported. Some of the cases are in people who have been vaccinated for mpox, and all are mild. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is aware of these new cases and is working closely with Howard Brown Health, the Chicago Department of Health, and the local community to investigate these new cases and limit the size of this cluster.

How to Keep Yourself Safe:

Make sure that you receive two doses of the mpox vaccine if you are considered to be at-risk for mpox. If you only got one shot, its never too late to get the second dose.

If you are at risk for mpox but haven't received your two-dose vaccine yet, temporarily changing some parts of your sex life might reduce the risk of exposure to the virus. Maintain those changes between your first and second shots of the vaccine since it takes two weeks after the second shot to achieve the highest protection. Knowing how mpox is transmitted allows you to make informed decisions about your sex life to further reduce your risk of exposure.

Seek health care and get tested if you have a rash, even if you have been previously vaccinated or had the infection. For more information on where to find testing, vaccines, or treatment, visit CDCs mpox website.

What We Are Doing to Prevent Outbreaks:

Our recommendation ahead of the summer months is  Get Healthy and Ready for Summer 2023 - by including mpox vaccination as part of a package of sexual health services that includes HIV and STI testing, treatment, and prevention.

A new mpox outbreak's chances increase when fewer people are fully vaccinated. We encourage gay, men who have sex with men, and bisexual and transgender people who may be at risk for mpox exposure to get vaccinated or get their second dose if not fully vaccinated. It's also important to remember that it is never too late to get the second dose. For information on where to find an mpox vaccine site near you, visit CDCs mpox vaccine locator.

The mpox outbreak continues to be a public health priority for HHS and the Administration, and we will continue working to increase vaccine uptake to keep the outbreak under control.

Ensuring local health departments have the tools and resources they need to combat mpox and protect communities. The CDC, HHS, and White House are closely working with state, tribal, local, territorial public health departments, and other community partners to distribute vaccines where they are needed most.

For more information on the Administrations equity-related outreach to communities nationwide, visit CDCs mpox resources page.

Sharing data available on current mpox cases. Anyone, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, who has been in close, personal contact with someone who has mpox is at risk. Take steps to prevent getting mpox. If you have any symptoms of mpox, talk to a health care provider.

For the latest information on current outbreak cases and data, visit CDCs mpox Page .

For the latest mpox digital resources - including posters, cards, stickers, and event organizer letters  visit CDCs mpox Digital Resources Page .

For the latest mpox communication toolkits  including toolkits specific to large gatherings, workplaces, and education programs  visit CDCs mpox Community, Work & School Toolkits page.

Working with members of the LGBTQI+ community to prepare for summer Pride events. The White House and HHS have continued to engage with an extensive list of organizations and advocates. Early Spring 2023 outreach to prepare for festival season, beyond the routine weekly meetings used to inform public health leaders about mpox, has included the following organizations:
On May 17, 2023, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra visited Brussels, Belgium, to meet with European Unions (EU) health leadership to discuss the U.S. governments and the EUs global health priorities, including ongoing efforts to end cancer, prepare for future global health threats, and strengthen the global health architecture.

Secretary Becerra met with the Ambassador of the U.S. to the EU, Mark Gitenstein, to discuss global health priorities for the U.S. government in 2023, including our nations work to prevent and prepare for the next pandemic.

Secretary Becerra also met with EU Commissioner of Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides and her team to discuss joint efforts in ending cancer as we know it, addressing current and preparing for future health threats, and strengthening the global health architecture, including through targeted amendments to International Health Regulations, negotiations on a pandemic agreement, and strengthening and reforming the World Health Organization (WHO) to make it fit for purpose. Secretary Becerra and Commissioner Kyriakides announced the launch of the EU-U.S. Health Task Force which will advance bilateral collaboration on mutual global health priorities of the EU and the United States in a dedicated and sustained way moving forward. They also reiterated the importance of cooperation in advancing womens rights worldwide, with specific emphasis on sexual and reproductive health and rights.

During his visit, Secretary Becerra stressed the U.S. governments ongoing commitment to a strong partnership with the EU. Finally, he shared the U.S. commitment to global collaboration in the fight against cancer through President Bidens reignited Cancer Moonshot.
This week, the festival of Shani Jayanti will be celebrated in different parts of India, while the New Moon Day will also be witnessed. While no major planetary transits will take place, there are auspicious muhuratas available this week for marriage, griha pravesh (housewarming), as well as purchase of property and vehicles. Let's explore the essential Panchanga details for New Delhi, NCT, India, for the week. Get weekly Panchang to determine auspicious and inauspicious time for performing day-to-day tasks based on the prevailing planetary position.

Shubh Muhurat This Week

According to Vedic Astrology, the odds of accomplishing a task successfully are significantly enhanced if they are carried out during an auspicious muhurata. An auspicious muhurata provides us with the best outcome possible according to our destiny if we execute the work in harmony with the cosmic timeline. That is why it is essential to take muhurata into account while commencing any auspicious work. This weeks Shubh Muhurat for various activities are as follows:

Vivah Muhurat: Auspicious muhuratas for marriage this week are available on May 20 (05:18 PM to 05:27 AM, May 21), May 21 (05:27 AM to 05:27 AM, May 22) and May 22 (05:27 AM to 10:37 AM)

Griha Pravesh Muhurat: Auspicious muhuratas for griha pravesh are available this week on May 20 (09:30 PM to 05:27 AM, May 21) and May 22 (05:27 AM to 10:37 AM)

Property Purchase Muhurat: Auspicious muhurata for purchasing property is available this week on May 25 (05:54 PM to 05:25 AM, May 26)

Vehicle Purchase Muhurat: Auspicious muhurata for purchasing vehicle this week is available on May 22 (05:27 AM to 10:37 AM), May 24 (05:26 AM to 05:26 AM, May 25) and May 25 (05:26 AM to 05:54 PM)

Upcoming Planetary Transits This Week

In Vedic astrology, planetary transits are particularly crucial since they are the principal way of anticipating the changes and advances in life. Planets move on a daily basis and go through several nakshatras and rashis in the process. It assists in comprehending us the nature and characteristic of events as they occur. Here are the upcoming transits this week:

Jupiter transits Ashwini pada on May 20, Saturday, at 5:21 PM

Venus enters in Punarvasu nakshatra on May 21, Sunday, at 12:51 AM

Mercury enters Bharani nakshatra on May 22, Monday, at 12:33 AM

Sun enters Rohini nakshatra on May 25, Thursday, at 9:12 PM

Upcoming Festivals This Week

Darsha Amavasya (May 19, Thursday): Darsha Amavasya is a Hindu festival that is celebrated on the new moon day of the month of Jyeshtha. It is a day to remember and honour one's ancestors. It is believed that on this day, the gates of heaven are open and the ancestors can come down to earth to visit their loved ones.

Darsha Amavasya is a Hindu festival that is celebrated on the new moon day of the month of Jyeshtha. It is a day to remember and honour one's ancestors. It is believed that on this day, the gates of heaven are open and the ancestors can come down to earth to visit their loved ones. Shani Jayanti (Friday, May 19, 2023): It is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Shani, the Hindu god of justice. It is celebrated on the Amavasya (new moon) day of the Jyeshtha month in the Hindu lunar calendar. On this day, Hindus will typically visit the temple and offer prayers to Shani. They will also fast and avoid eating sour foods. In some parts of India, people will also take a holy dip in a river or a pond.

It is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Shani, the Hindu god of justice. It is celebrated on the Amavasya (new moon) day of the Jyeshtha month in the Hindu lunar calendar. On this day, Hindus will typically visit the temple and offer prayers to Shani. They will also fast and avoid eating sour foods. In some parts of India, people will also take a holy dip in a river or a pond. Vinayaka Chaturthi (May 23, Tuesday): The Chaturthi after Amavasya or new moon during Shukla Paksha is known as Vinayaka Chaturthi. It is believed that lord Ganesha blesses devotees with wisdom and patience who observe fast on this day.

Inauspicious Rahu Kalam This Week

According to Vedic astrology, Rahu is an inauspicious planet. During transition of planets the time under the influence of Rahu should be avoided to do any auspicious work. Doing Puja, Hawan or Yagya to propitiate auspicious planets during this time is interfered by Rahu due to its malefic nature. It is important to consider Rahu Kaal before starting any new work. By doing so, possibility of achieving desired results is increased. Following are the timings of Rahu Kalam for this week:

May 19: 08:53 AM to 10:35 AM

May 20: 08:53 AM to 10:35 AM

08:53 AM to 10:35 AM May 21: 05:26 PM to 07:08 PM

May 22: 07:10 AM to 08:52 AM

May 23: 03:44 PM to 05:27 PM

May 24: 12:18 PM to 02:01 PM

May 25: 02:01 PM to 03:44 PM

Panchanga is a calendar used in Vedic astrology to determine the auspicious and inauspicious time for performing day-to-day tasks based on the prevailing planetary position. It comprises of five elements - Vaara, Tithi, Nakshatra, Yoga and Karana. The essence of the Panchanga is the inter-relationship between Sun (our soul) and Moon (mind) on a daily basis. Panchanga is used for different branches of Vedic astrology such as natal, election, prashna (horary), religious calendars and to understand the energy of the day. The day of our birth panchanga depicts our emotions, temperament, and nature. It can provide more insight into who we are and how we feel. It can amplify the effect of the planets and endow us with additional characteristics that we may not understand only based on our natal chart. Panchanga is the life force energy that nourishes the birth chart.

----------------------

Neeraj Dhankher

(Vedic Astrologer, Founder - Astro Zindagi)

Email: info@astrozindagi.in, neeraj@astrozindagi.in

Url: www.astrozindagi.in

Contact: Noida: +919910094779
Georgi Gospodinov, who is widely regarded as a leading voice in European literature today, has made it to the shortlist of the 2023 International Booker Prize with his newest novel Time Shelter. Translated into English by Angela Rodel, it features a mysterious flaneur named Gaustine, who builds a clinic in Zurich, Switzerland, that promises to heal Alzheimers sufferers by reproducing a decade in minute detail thus taking patients back in time. The story is told by an unnamed narrator who has been entrusted with collecting historical flotsam such as 1960s furniture, 1940s shirt buttons, odours and even afternoon light. As the chambers become increasingly convincing, a rising number of healthy individuals seek out the clinic as a time shelter, trying to escape the horrors of the present. This leads to the unanticipated quandary of the past entering the present. PREMIUM The pull of the past (Shutterstock)

Gospodinovs writing is unique, and his humour is masterful. This is not just a simple story with a beginning, middle, and end; its an interactive experience that engages the reader on multiple levels. The narrator is intelligent and witty, constantly challenging you to think deeper about the themes of time and memory. Its easy for the reader to see themselves in the protagonists shoes as they question their own past and how it has shaped who they are today. The writing often induces you to laugh out loud and is both entertaining and thought-provoking. The time is coming when more and more people will want to hide in the cave of the past, to turn back. And not for happy reasons, by the way. We need to be ready with the bomb shelter of the past. Call it the time shelter, if you will

Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov 296pp, 665 (Weidenfeld and Nicolson)

Unlike Gaustine, the narrator is a realist who understands that travelling back in time might have a variety of negative effects. Sure enough, the narrative takes a terrifying turn when the idea of a time clinic and the allure of nostalgia catches with the entire continent of Europe expressing an interest in travelling back in time by choosing a specific period of the past, such as the 1950s or the 1970s. They want to turn the present into the past by means of a referendum. For some nations such as Norway and Switzerland with a more anodyne history, this time selection of a specific era is a simple business. For others. such as Germany and Romania, things are much more fraught.

The masterful story has an amazing structure  every experiment is supported by examples, and none of them appear impossible. In one section, the narrator returns to his native Bulgaria after a long absence and reminisces about his own past. Simultaneously, he witnesses how the referendum appears to work from the ground up, eventually realising how the horrors of the past seem to be returning to the present through this process. Given the state of the world with the ongoing Ukrainian War and other looming crises, it all feels eerily like a prediction thats about to come true. We are constantly producing the past. We are factories for the past. Living past-machines, what else? We eat time and produce the past. Even death doesnt put a stop to this. A person might be gone, but his past remains. Where do all those heaps of personal past go? Does someone buy them, collect them, throw them away? Or does it drift like an old newspaper, blown away by the wind along the street?

Author Georgi Gospodinov (Phelia Baru/Columbia Harriman Institute)

Time Shelter asks important questions at the personal and political levels: What use do histories and recollections of the past serve? Is it necessary to continuously have these memories in mind when thinking about the present, or are they mostly to blame for wreaking unanticipated devastation. Not unpredictably, the plot builds up to a catastrophic conclusion.

The histories of contemporary nations across the world seem constantly entangled in the past. The nostalgia for a lost golden age, when populations were supposedly more culturally and ethnically homogenous, has both inspired great creativity and led to violent upheavals and ethnic cleansing. The past is a different country that continues to seduce with its sepia tones and lost pleasures. Indeed, it is true that memory can influence individuals and the collective in unfathomable ways. In the end, what makes Georgi Gospodinovs Time Shelter especially arresting is that it leads the reader down mental pathways inducing them to behold the seductions of nostalgia even as they grow aware of its poisoned kiss. Hritik Verma is an independent reviewer. He blogs at allayingart.wordpress.com. He is @Hritik38233434 on Twitter and @allayingart on Instagram.

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Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud computing division of Amazon.com Inc, said on Thursday it plans to invest 1.06 trillion rupees ($13 billion) in India by 2030, doubling down on its past investments to cater to an ever-growing demand. AWS' total planned investment in India adds up to about $16.4 billion by 2030, the company said in a statement.(REUTERS)

The latest investment will be used to build its cloud infrastructure in India and it will support over 100,000 full-time jobs annually, AWS said.

The company runs two data centers in the Indian subcontinent - one in Mumbai which was launched in 2016, and another in Hyderabad, which started in 2022.

AWS' total planned investment in India adds up to about $16.4 billion by 2030, the company said in a statement.

The cloud platform offers more than 200 services, including storage, robotics and artificial intelligence.

The proposed investment comes as India steps up efforts to attract more big-ticket investments.

US networking equipment maker Cisco Systems earlier this month said it would start manufacturing from India to diversify its global supply chain, while Apple Inc supplier Foxconn will invest $500 million to set up plants in the southern Indian state of Telangana.

Separately, India's government has been nudging foreign tech companies to store more of their data locally, a move seen as New Delhi's attempt to gain stricter oversight of Big Tech firms. The country is currently in the process of drafting a cloud and data center policy to oversee the sector.

A host of global companies, including Microsoft Corp and Alphabet Inc's Google are ramping up cloud investments in India, betting on the rising digital consumption in one of the fastest-growing markets.
A 76-year-old man in Thrissur district of Kerala narrowly escaped from suffering burn injuries after his mobile phone, kept in his shirt pocket, burst and caught fire spontaneously on Thursday morning. Mobile phone exploded in the pocket of the man while he was having tea at a tea shop.(Twitter/@jayapluschannel)

This is the third such incident in the state in less than a month, of a mobile phone exploding suddenly and it occurred while the man was having tea at a tea shop in Marottichal area here.

Visuals of the incident went viral and were also shown on TV channels wherein the man can be seen casually sitting at a table in the shop having tea and eating something when the phone in his shirt pocket bursts with a sound and catches fire.

The elderly man immediately jumps up, knocking over his tea glass, and frantically tries to pull out the phone from his pocket. His frenetic attempts save him as the phone falls down from his pocket onto the floor and he manages to walk away from the place unhurt.

An officer of Ollur police station, under whose jurisdiction the incident occurred in the district, told PTI that the septuagenarian was unhurt.

The officer said that on receiving information regarding the incident he had called up the elderly man to find out what happened.

The man told police that he had bought the mobile for 1,000 a year ago and that it was a feature phone. Till now, there were no problems with the device, the man told police according to the officer.

Last week, a similar incident happened in Kozhikode city where a man suffered burns when a mobile phone kept in his trouser pocket had exploded.

Prior to that, on April 24, an eight-year-old girl hailing from Thrissur died after a mobile phone she was using exploded.

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Bengaluru: Party leadership says no power sharing formula was offered to diffuse the stand-off (ANI)

Even though the party leadership has denied that no power-sharing formula was offered to diffuse the stand-off between Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar, Congress legislative party is abuzz with discussion on the deal. Legislators in the Congress party said that there could be a split of the chief ministers post and during his term as the deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar would get important portfolios.

When asked about the power-sharing formula, DK Shivakumar didnt deny it but instead said that he cant share the partys confidential details. On the question of the possibility of him being the chief minister, Shivakumar said: The party will take a decision on that at the right time.

During the official announcement of the two big posts in New Delhi, when pushed on a possible power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and AICC general secretary KC Venugopal however said: Power sharing means sharing power with the people of Karnataka that is all.

While Congress remains tight-lipped on the factors that ended the standoff, in Bengaluru discussions are underway over the cabinet breaths. In his address in New Delhi, Venugopal said that along with the CM and DyCM a group of ministers will be sworn in. We have not received any word on the names of the ministers. The decision will be made by the AICC in consultation with the KPCC. We expect that the prominent communities will find representation and they will swear in as cabinet ministers. The portfolios will be decided later, said a senior legislator from north Karnataka.

Satish Jarkiholi who played a role in ensuring the partys victory in the Belagavi district, which has the second-largest number of constituencies after Bengaluru, said the decision on the cabinet berths is to be decided. A letter has to go from the CLP on how many ministers should be made and who should be made etc. When that letter goes, I expect a call would come. I dont have any expectations but a ministry where I can work for people, I will be more than happy, said Jarkiholi.

Even as there are demands for more deputy chief minister posts, the party is unlikely to make any changes to current announcements. According to a leader, since the appointment of another deputy chief minister would dilute the importance of the position given to DK Shivakumar, no further changes would be made.

The party wants to acknowledge Shivakumars loyalty to Congress. His loyalty is not only to the party as a whole but also towards the Gandhi family. Shivakumar has remained a staunch Congress supporter throughout his political career, even though he got offers from the BJP, added the leader.

He also added that the position given to him is also a testament to Shivakumars commitment to the party is his financial contribution. He personally funded the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Karnataka. More than anything, he is a proven crisis manager for the party. His ability to handle such critical situations underlines his aptitude for leadership, a quality that could be vital for Congress in the 2024 polls, he added.

However, Siddaramaiah staked a claim to the big post riding on his popularity. According to party sources, close to 90 of the 135 new Congress MLAs in Karnataka expressed support for Siddaramaiah to the partys central observers. Even though DK Shivakumar is a crisis manager, Sidaramaiah continues to be the mass leader of the state. Even though dominant communities like Vokkaligas and Lingayats have supported the Congress in this election, the wider support from the base amongst the Muslims and OBCs remains the strong reason of the Congresss victory.

It is becoming clear that the perceived political strength of Lingayats and Vokkaliga is exaggerated and Siddaramaiah is able to unite other castes. His rustic nature and perception of him being someone who speaks his mind have made him a mass leader among the rural voters who consider him someone who can stand up to the leader from the dominant classes. This perceived concern for social justice has strengthened the optics, said political analyst A Narayana.

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As CM designate Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar returned to Bengaluru from New Delhi, hectic lobbying has started for the 34- member council of ministers, even as there was no clarity on the power sharing between the two leaders. Lobbying for ministerial posts starts as CM, DyCM names announced (PTI)

Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar on Thursday refused to comment on the power sharing between him and chief minister candidate Siddaramaiah saying he cannot disclose partys confidential details. Replying to a question on the issue, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said: Power sharing means sharing power with the people of Karnataka that is all. When asked when he would be CM, Shivakumar said: The party will take a decision at the right time.

In Bengaluru, the issue of power sharing deal took a back-seat as intense lobbying for the positions in the council started. The Congress has 135 law-makers and in the first go, the party may not induct more than 30 ministers, senior party leaders said.

The reason for the lobbying was the announcement made by Congress general secretary KC Venugopal in New Delhi that along with CM and his deputy, some ministers will also take oath on May 20.

The senior party leaders said that Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar would be meeting senior party leaders from the state during the course of next 24 hours to arrive at a consensus on the ministers. They (Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar) would return to Delhi on Friday to discuss the formation of the council of ministers with the party high command, said a senior party leader KJ George.

They have been told that all regions should get representation and special care should be taken of the communities which have supported the party in big way, another senior Congress leader said, pointing at the support given by Lingayat, BJP traditional vote-bank, Dalits and Muslims in the Congress victory.

Another legislator said the decision on ministers will be made by the high command in consultation with the state unit. We expect that the prominent communities will find representation and they will swear in as cabinet ministers, he said.

Satish Jarkiholi who played a role in ensuring the partys victory in the Belagavi district having second-largest number of constituencies after Bengaluru, said the issue will be discussed among the senior leaders. When that letter (of the council of ministers) goes, I expect a call, he said. Jarkiholi is considered close to Siddaramaiah and rival of Shivakumar.

There was a heavy rush of leaders and their supporters at the homes of both Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar to lobby for the cabinet positions. Leaders also said there was no clarity on how many ministers will be inducted with the two on Saturday.

On the other hand, the party leaders said that designating Shivakumar as the only deputy chief minister clearly shows that high commands willingness to reward him for being loyal to the party.

His loyalty is not only to the party as a whole but also towards the Gandhi family. Shivakumar has remained a staunch Congress supporter throughout his political career, even though he got offers from the BJP, a Congress leader said. He added that Shivakumar had provided funds for Rahul Gandhis Bharat Jodo Yatra in Karnataka.

The leaders also said that Siddaramaiah staked a claim to the big post riding on his popularity. According to party sources, close to 90 of the 135 Congress MLAs in Karnataka expressed support for Siddaramaiah to the partys central observers.

It is becoming clear that the perceived political strength of Lingayats and Vokkaliga is exaggerated and Siddaramaiah is able to unite other castes. his rustic nature and perception of him being someone who speaks his mind have made him a mass leader among the rural voters who consider him someone who can stand up to the leader from the dominant classes. This perceived concern for social justice has strengthened these optics, said political analyst A Narayana.

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After five days of a tense impasse, Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar returned to Bengaluru as chief minister and deputy chief minister designate respectively, and supporters finally seemed to exhale, lining the streets in welcome, shouting slogans, and setting off firecrackers in celebratory mood. Supporters celebrate as Siddaramaiah declared as new CM and Shivakumar his deputy (PTI)

Both leaders that have been in the middle of hectic parleys in Delhi landed at the HAL airport on the same aircraft, with supporters lining the streets till the Congress state headquarters on Queens Road. All along the road, Congress festoons hung from every available inch of space, with posters and massive cutouts adorning the roads. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office glistened with celebratory lights, with party workers shouting slogans for both. Mundina mukhya mantri Siddaramaiahge jai, DK Shivakumarge jai (All hail the next chief minister Siddaramaiah, All hail DK Shivakumar), they chanted, even as the police personnel attempted to control both traffic and the raucous crowds.

Among those who were at the Congress office were representatives of the SC/ST contractors association, who had leveled charges of corruption against the Basavraj Bommai led BJP government, giving rise to the 40% sarkaara tag that became one of the motifs of the Congress campaign.

At Siddaramaiahs native village of Siddaramanahundi, 20 kilometres from the Mysuru, celebrations began early on Thursday, after news filtered in that their favourite son would indeed become Chief Minister of Karnataka for the second time. Villagers had begun celebrations earlier in the week too, but the atmosphere had grown muted on Tuesday and Wednesday with no clear announcement emerging. Everyone was saying that he will become the Chief Minister. Today, he has become one and everyone is happy. His appointment will help the poor in the state. All the guarantees that the Congress has promised in the manifesto including 10 kilograms of rice and 200 units of electricity are geared towards that goal, Siddaramaiahs brother Siddegowda said.

Siddaramaiahs overjoyed nephew Raghu also said that the Congress must now ensure that the poll promises made must be fulfilled. He should make sure that all the five guarantees reach the people of the state. More importantly, Id like to thank the people of Varuna for their unparalleled support. As the chief minister, I hope he does good work for the people of the state, Raghu said.

In Bengaluru, celebrations in front of Siddaramaiahs Kumara Krupa road residence saw supporters carry his pictures, slogans praising him, and wishing him good luck by pouring milk over life size cutouts- meant to bring good luck.

At Shivakumars residence, there were celebrations too, but they were considerably more muted, with most supporters still recovering from the disappointment that the Chief Ministers chair had eluded their leader. Here too however, slogans were raised praising Shivakumar, and supporters broke coconuts in the middle of the road, a custom that marks the beginning of an auspicious event. In his home district of Ramnagara, Congress workers who had blocked traffic on the Mysuru-Bengaluru highway demanding he be made CM on Wednesday, stopped the protest and observed silence on the day the party made the official announcement. However, supporters did offer special prayers at the Kengal Anjaneya Swamy temple in Channapatna.

Meanwhile, government and police officials swarmed the Shree Kanteerava stadium again, trucks setting up tents and workers unloading materials, a day after they had first started preparations in the morning, and then stopped by the afternoon. The stadium, in the heart of Bengaluru city, will see the swearing in of Siddaramaiah at 12:30 pm on Saturday with the Congress central leadership and its Chief Ministers are expected to be in attendance. Opposition leaders from across the country such as Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, former Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, NC chief Farooq Abdullah and Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik have also been sent invitations.
Chandigarh/Moga The arrest was made during massive country-wide raids against the terrorist-gangster-narcotics smuggler nexus by the central agency under Operation Dhvast. (Representational Photo (Getty Images) )

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday said it has arrested a resident of Moga district, Jassa Singh, who was allegedly working at the behest of Canada-based designated terrorist Arsh Dalla.

The arrest was made during massive country-wide raids against the terrorist-gangster-narcotics smuggler nexus by the central agency under Operation Dhvast.

The role of Jassa Singh, the NIA said, has been established in the Khalistan terror conspiracy and he had delivered a pistol at the instance of Arsh Dalla.

The NIA in coordination with Punjab Police on Wednesday raided 324 locations and seized a huge cache of arms and ammunition, cash, besides other incriminating material.

During the operation, the agency recovered 39 lakh from the house of Harsimrandeep Singh, alias Sema, once the most-wanted gangster of Faridkot district, from Behbal Kalan village. Faridkot senior superintendent of police Harjeet Singh said the amount recovered by NIA from Semas house was handed over to the income tax department officials on Thursday. Sema is presently lodged in jail.

Moga senior superintendent of police J Elanchezian said there no case registered against Jassa and he has no previous criminal record. He was a drug addict and also belong to native village of Dala, he added.

While the NIA knocked 129 doors, Punjab Police launched searches at 143 places in 17 districts, according to an official release.

The day-long searches were aimed at breaking the terror nexus of Arsh Dalla, a Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) operative, apart from dreaded gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi, Chhenu Pehalwan, Deepak Teetar, Bhupi Rana, Vikash Lagarpuriya, Ashish Choudhary, Gurpreet Sekhon, Dilpreet Baba, Harsimrat Simma, Anuradha among others, said officials.

The raiding parties have seized a pistol, assorted ammunition (both live and used cartridges), besides 60 mobile phones, five DVRs, 20 SIM cards, a hard disk, a pen drive, a dongle, a WiFi router, a digital watch, two memory cards, 75 documents and 39.60 in cash, according to a NIA release.

These were the sixth in the series of such crackdowns launched by the NIA following the registration of three cases since August 2022 of conspiracies related to targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits, extortion etc.

Notable among these cases are the sensational killing of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani and international kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambia in Punjab last year.

NIA investigations have revealed that the conspiracies were being hatched in jails of different states and were being executed by an organized network of operatives based abroad. The spotlight on these gangs has become sharper after reports of several prisons becoming havens of the deadly nexus and hubs of gang wars, which recently resulted in violence and murder inside Goindwal Jail and Tihar Jail.

In Punjab, raids that continued till Thursday morning were conducted at Abohar, Moga, Fazilka, Ludhiana, Mohali, Ferozepur, Tarn Taran, Ludhiana, Faridkot, Rupnagar, Nawanshahr, Amritsar, Patiala, Barnala and Jalandhar districts.

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The Punjab government on Thursday submitted a sealed cover report from Intelligence Bureau (IB), sought on the threat perception to former Punjab Congress president, Navjot Singh Sidhu. Sidhu is seeking upgrade of his security cover claiming threat to his life and liberty. (PTI File Photo)

The report was submitted in proceedings wherein the former state Congress chief has challenged Punjab governments decision of his security downgrade from Z+ category to Y category. Sidhu is seeking upgrade of his security cover claiming threat to his life and liberty.

The court has deferred hearing on the plea till May 22, observing that since report is in a sealed cover, it needed to be perused by the court.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has sought the central governments approval to appoint Praveen Kumar Gupta as the new chief secretary of Delhi, a government official aware of the development said. 1989 batch IAS officer Praveen Kumar Gupta (HT Photo/Sourced)

Through the lieutenant governor of Delhi, CM Arvind Kejriwal has requested the nod of the Centre for the appointment of PK Gupta as the new chief secretary. Gupta will replace Naresh Kumar if the Centre considers the request, the Delhi government official quoted above said. Kumar, a 1987 batch IAS officer, serving as the chief secretary of Delhi since April 2022, is due to retire later this year.

The move comes days after the Delhi government was given executive power in services matters, including transfer and posting of officers, in an important verdict by the Supreme Court.

Also read: Delhis civil services board clears transfers; files sent for LGs stamp

Gupta, a 1989 batch IAS officer of Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram, and Union Territories (AGMUT) Cadre, is currently posted as the additional chief secretary of the general administration department of the Delhi government. He has also served as the commissioner of the erstwhile North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC).

Gupta, if appointed, will replace Naresh Kumar of the 1987 batch, serving as the chief secretary of Delhi since April 2022. Kumar is due to retire later this year.

Speaking to HT, senior IAS officers said that the appointment of Delhis chief secretary is the prerogative of the central government as Delhi does not have its own cadre of IAS officers.

The IAS officers serving in the Delhi government are drawn from the AGMUT cadre which is controlled by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and their posting to the Delhi government is decided by the Union home ministry.

The central government is not bound to consider the request of the Delhi chief minister with regards to the chief secretarys appointment, said one of the officers.

Meanwhile, the Civil Services Board (CSB) on Wednesday cleared the transfer of the Delhi governments secretary of the services department Ashish More, and the appointment of AK Singh as his replacement, officials said on Wednesday.

More was removed by the Delhi government last week within hours of the Supreme Court ruling. On Monday, he was also issued a show cause notice by the Delhi government for not complying with its direction to replace him with a new officer.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that the elected government in Delhi has legislative and executive powers over services department matters, barring those related to land, police and public order that still come under the jurisdiction of the lieutenant governor.

Earlier, the transfers and postings of all Delhi government officers were decided by the lieutenant governor.
A Delhi court has ordered filing of a first information report (FIR) against a woman and her father for filing false charges of gangrape, cruelty and wrongful confinement against her husband and his family members. The court also noted that the woman and her father showed scant regard to their duty to depose truth. (Representative file image)

Rape is a heinous crime which is required to be dealt strictly but simultaneously false allegations qua rape are also required to be dealt firmly since these allegations cause huge humiliation to the accused and have potential to isolate the concerned, including his family and near ones, from society, said additional sessions judge Aanchal in a recent order.

The court by its order passed on May 9 acquitted the husband, charged under sections 498A (cruelty by husband or relative of husband), 342 (wrongful confinement), 323 (hurt), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) along with the father-in-law and sister-in-law who were additionally charged under section 376D (gang rape) of IPC.

Concerned SHO PS Janakpuri is hereby directed to register FIR U/s 211 (false charge of offence made with intent to injure) IPC against the woman and her father within 24 hours of receipt of the present judgment, ordered the court.

Also Read: False rape case: Extortion, corruption charges framed against Panchkula DSP, 2 ASIs

It further directed the police to file a detailed report of the investigation before the metropolitan magistrate preferably within three months.

Acquitting the man and his family members, the court noted that the prosecution miserably failed to prove the commission of alleged offences.

It added that the complaint filed, by the father of the woman, against the three accused presented distorted and imaginary facts to make the accused persons agree to her terms.

Thereafter when further matrimonial discord arose, she owned the false facts and deposed falsely.

The entire system worked believing the woman the most and valuing her statement at par that of injured witness, but the woman and her father seem to have exploited even the liberal interpretation and evaluation of evidence, the court lamented.

The court also noted that the woman, who was a law student and had graduated by the time trial took place, and her father, who was an advocate by profession, showed scant regard to their duty to depose truth and kept on making stories.

Their act is not what could be called simpliciter exaggeration but the same is what will definitely fall within the purview of an illegal act and is an offence of making false charge of offence punishable with imprisonment extending to life, court further added.

The order was passed by the court in a case where FIR was filed in 2014 based on a complaint made by the father of the woman alleging that the accused husband along with the father-in-law and sister-in-law demanded dowry and used to beat and torture her for it.

The woman had also levelled allegations of gang rape against the father-in-law and sister-in-law.
Gurugram: Notorious gangster Ajay Jaildars wife and one of his associates were arrested for allegedly threatening a city-based liquor businessman, Gurugram police said on Thursday. Two, including gangsters wife held for threatening liquor baron in Ggm

The suspects asked the businessman not to take part in the upcoming tendering process for allotment of new liquor vends as per the Haryana governments new excise policy, police added.

Investigators said the victim, Sanjay Kumar, a resident of Sector 81, who is into liquor business, had received two threat calls over WhatsApp within 10 minutes on Wednesday afternoon. They said the callers had asked him to stay away from the tendering process scheduled to take place on Saturday for setting up liquor vends in Pataudi and Jamalpur. The suspects had also demanded 50 lakh extortion money, they added.

Kumar was immediately provided with two armed police personnel for security, police said.

Police said Sujeet Thakran (50), and his younger brother Paramjeet (42), a former councillor of ward number 14, who owned several liquor shops and had a strong presence in the National Capital Region (NCR), including Gurugram, were shot dead by a dozen suspects at their village in Khor, Pataudi, on February 25 last year, police said.

Gangster Jaildar alias Ajay Thakran (38), a close associate of dreaded gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who was also into liquor business, was allegedly the prime suspect in the two murders and was later arrested. He is presently lodged in Bhondsi jail, police said.

Inspector Ajay Kumar, station house officer (SHO) of Kherki Daula police station, said that it was on the gangster Jaildars direction that the threat call was made to the businessman.

Jaildars wife Preeti was arrested on Wednesday and the associate Naveen was arrested on Thursday from Pataudi. The phone used by Preeti in making one of the two threat calls has been recovered. The second call was made from Naveens phone, which is yet to be traced, the SHO said.

SHO Kumar said that at least two to three more close associates of Jaildar, including his nephew, are yet to be arrested in the case. His name will be added in the case, he said.

As per police, Kumar holds many liquor shop licences and was preparing to take part in the tendering process for opening more outlets.

Investigators said the businessman had allegedly received the first WhatsApp call at about 12.19pm on Wednesday in which the caller identified herself to be gangster Jaildars wife. She threatened him to stay away from the tendering process.

Police said he disconnected the call but within 10 minutes, he received another call on the instant messaging app, where the caller identified himself as the nephew of Jaildar and threatened him again and asked him to pay extortion money.

A senior police officer said Kumar recorded the conversation of the second call. He has provided the recording to the police as evidence, he added.

As per police, gangster Bishnoi is also a suspect in the murder case of Thakran brothers and he might be brought to Gurugram in future on a production warrant for interrogation to ascertain if on his behest Jaildar had murdered them to establish supremacy in the liquor business, police said.

On businessman Kumars complaint, an FIR was registered against the suspects under Section 34 (common intention), 386 (committing extortion by putting any person in fear of death) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Kherki Daula police station on Wednesday evening, said police.

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The Calcutta high court on Thursday allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to question Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP and general secretary Abhishek Banerjee in the multi-crore bribe-for-job scam in West Bengal schools. Trinamool Congress (TMC) National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee during his "Jono Sanjog Yatra" in Murshidabad, (PTI)

The single bench of justice Amrita Sinha dismissed a petition by Abhishek Banerjee, seeking recall of an earlier order of the same court that allowed CBI and ED to question him.

The court also allowed the questioning of arrested youth TMC leader Kuntal Ghosh on his allegation of the central agencies putting pressure on him. Ghosh has been accused of extorting money from job seekers by promising them employment opportunities.

Also Read: WB school recruitment scam: 350 crore and counting, ED tells court

Justice Sinha read out the operative part of the order in the courtroom. The bench has dismissed the applications of Abhishek Banerjee and Kuntal Ghosh. The court has also imposed a penalty of 25 lakh each on them, Firdaus Shamim, high court advocate, told reporters.

The two agencies are probing the multi-crore school recruitment scam in West Bengal since 2022. Several TMC leaders, including two legislators, have already been arrested for their alleged involvement.

Banerjee, his wife and his sister-in-law have already been questioned by federal agencies in the coal smuggling scam.

Earlier on April 13, the bench of justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had allowed the federal agencies to question Banerjee following which he moved the Supreme Court.

Justice Gangopadhyay was hearing a written complaint filed by Ghosh, who is also a prime accused in the scam, alleging that officers of the two federal agencies were pressuring him to name Banerjee in his statement.

Banerjee had earlier moved the Supreme Court which took exception to justice Gangopadhyays interview to a television channel wherein he spoke against the TMC MP.

Central agencies are now free to summon Abhishek Banerjee for questioning. The Supreme Court had temporarily stayed the order of justice Gangopadhyays bench. Later, on April 28, the Apex court sent the matter back to the Calcutta high court but didnt interfere with the single bench order. From that day onwards, the agencies were free to question the TMC leader, Sabyasachi Chatterjee, high court advocate, told media persons.

On the top courts orders on April 28, the Calcutta high court reassigned the cases related to the recruitment scam to justice Amrita Sinhas bench.

Earlier this month justice Sinha directed Banerjee to stop being extra apprehensive and cooperate with the investigators.

Why cant you cooperate? What is troubling you? The court has merely ordered a probe and no one is above an investigation. Let me know what is troubling you. What is the difficulty? the bench of justice Amrita Sinha had said on May 8.

Soon after Thursdays order, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stepped up its attack against the ruling TMC.

This order was anticipated. Investigative agencies can question anybody in connection with a case. Citizens must cooperate with the agencies. But the TMC created a controversy, Samik Bhattacharya, BJP spokesperson told the media.

Responding to this, TMC MP Shantanu Sen calling the judiciary bia said that the name of BJP leaders have also come up in different scams but they were never questioned.

It is a court order and I wouldnt comment on it. But one question is making rounds in the minds of people. Sudipta Sen, kingpin of the Sarada scam had named several political leaders who took money from him and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikaris name is there in the Sarada scam first information report, but they are not being questioned. Questions are now being raised on whether the judiciary is unbiased, Sen told the media.

Also Read: Why cant you cooperate: Calcutta high court to TMCs Abhishek Banerjee

ED had in March claimed that the volume of the school recruitment scam in West Bengal, in which multiple TMC leaders have been arrested, may run up to 350 crores.

In May 2022, the Calcutta high court ordered CBI to probe the illegal appointment of non-teaching staff (Group C and D) and teaching staff by the West Bengal Central School Service Commission and the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. The appointees allegedly paid bribes in the range of 5  15 lakh to get jobs after failing the selection tests.

ED is running a parallel probe into the cases related to money laundering.

So far, ED has arrested education minister Partha Chatterjee and his close aide Arpita Mukherjee, TMC legislator and former president of the state primary education board, Manik Bhattacharya, former TMC youth leader Kuntal Ghosh, and TMC youth leader Santanu Banerjee.
The West Bengal police on Thursday traced East Midnapores illegal firecracker factory blast prime accused Krishnapada Bag to a hospital in Odishas Cuttack and have detained his son and nephew, officials said. At least nine were killed in a blast at firecracker factory in West Bengals East Midnapore on Tuesday (File Photo)

Bag has been traced. He is in a hospital at Cuttack where he undergoing treatment after sustaining injuries in the blast. He cant be shifted. We are requesting Odisha police to keep a watch, said a police officer.

According to police, Bag alias Bhanu is the owner of the firecracker factory where an explosion on Tuesday killed at least nine people and injured seven others.

According to the people familiar with the matter, Bag was also present at the time of the blast and received burn injuries. He had escaped to Odisha after the blast on Tuesday.

Also Read: WB: Crude bombs were made at firecracker unit that exploded, claim villagers

Hours after the blast, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee handed over the probe to the criminal investigation department (CID) and promised strict action against the accused.

Villagers, including those who lost their family members in the explosion, have alleged that crude bombs were made at the factory in the garb of fireworks.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has alleged that Bag wielded power in the area as he was associated with the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Lucknow: The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) will launch its campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections with a call for change of political power at the centre. The party will organize meetings at the village level to motivate the people to opt for change for a better future, to get rid of poverty and to free Uttar Pradesh of the tag of backwardness. Mayawati told the party leaders to start preparations for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. (Pic for representation)

The tested slogan- vote hamara raaj tumhara (our vote your rule) will be raised in the meetings to stimulate the core vote base of the party- dalits and OBCs and to send a message to the people who want change. The BSP will project itself as an alternative for change of political power in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Earlier, BSP chief Mayawati had already announced that her party would go solo in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

A meeting of the BSP office-bearers, division and district unit presidents was held under the chairmanship of Mayawati in the state unit office on Thursday to review the preparation for the Lok Sabha elections and analyse the reasons for defeat in the recently concluded civic polls. The division and district units office-bearers submitted reports regarding the performance of the party. The BSP chief directed the party leaders to complete the constitution of the various committees at division, district, Vidhan Sabha and booth level by August.

Addressing party leaders and office-bearers, Mayawati said the misuse of government machinery by the ruling BJP, use of various tricks to win the elections, suppression of the workers of opposition parties and irregularities in the voters lists led to the victory of the BJP in the urban local bodies elections.. The civic poll results were not the true reflection of the mood of the people who were harassed due to the wrong policies of the BJP government, price rise, unemployment and poverty, she said.

Mayawati told the party leaders to start preparations for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. To gear up the cadre, the party will make changes in the organization and focus on voter awareness and increased peoples participation.

Mayawati said the BSP would raise the demand for check on misuse of government machinery in the elections and use of religion in politics with the Election Commission of India.

The missionary party workers working at the ground level would be promoted in the organization. The focus would be on strengthening the organization and check on groupism and differences that reflected in the party during the civic elections.

Mayawati said the BJP managed to secure victory in the Mayoral elections but in the Nagar Palika Parishads and Nagar Panchayats, its performance was not good. The BJP hatched a conspiracy to defeat the BSP candidate on Agra and Saharanpur Mayoral seats. If ballot papers had been used in the Mayoral elections, the result would have been different, she said.

The BSP chief called upon the party leaders and workers to donate in the party coffers for running the party office and organization in various states, as well as for election expenses. The BSP did take donations from businessmen but was dependent on the donations of party workers to run the organization, she said.
A middle aged couple made an immolation bid outside Lok Bhawan under Hazratganj police station here on Thursday, alleging harassment by police and tehsil officials at the behest of a village pradhan. The couple, however, was rescued due to timely intervention of police and security staff deployed there to avert such incidents and taken to Hazratganj police station. The couple was identified as Manohar Lal, and his wife Urmilla Devi of Bhagwanpur village under Nigoha area. (For Representation)

According to inspector, Hazratganj police station, Akhilesh Mishra, the couple was identified as Manohar Lal, and his wife Urmilla Devi of Bhagwanpur village under Nigoha area on the outskirts of Lucknow. He said the couple reached the VVIP zone on Ashok Marg at around 10.30 am and made an immolation bid by pouring kerosene on themselves. They said the cops rushed to them and averted their bid.

He said senior police officers had been informed of the couples allegations and a report had been sought over it. Circle officer, Mohanlalganj, Naveen Kumar Singh under whose jurisdiction Nigoha police station falls, said, Manohar Lal is a village guard and his allegations were found incorrect when cross-checked.

He said it came to fore that the couple was constructing a house on a land mentioned as government land in documents following which the tehsil officials issued it a notice.

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Minister of state for secondary education (independent charge) Gulab Devi virtually inaugurated a two-day workshop of the State Resource Group (SRG), in Lucknow, on Thursday. For representation only (HT File Photo)

The workshop has been organised by the State Council of Educational Research and Training at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan, Lucknow. In the workshop, experts from prestigious educational institutions across the country are training teachers.

The SRG is a group of secondary education teachers of Mathematics, English and Science who will train teachers to teach these subjects in an interesting manner.

U.P. Board students find these subjects most difficult to understand and hence the need was felt to train teachers to put the subject matter across to them more interestingly.

On the first day of this two-day workshop, she advised teachers to make better use of technology. She also asked the teachers to work fearlessly. It is my responsibility that the teachers do not face mental problems, the minister said.

GS Naveen, special secretary, secondary education, said that toppers of schools should be tracked and they should be helped in getting admission in good colleges for higher education.

Vijay Kiran Anand, director-general, school education, said that to improve school education, classroom activities have to be made interesting and educational activities engaging due to which the interest and enthusiasm of children towards school education will increase. He said that with the help of science expert Manish Jain, there will be two online sections every month in which the SRG will learn how to develop scientific temper in children.

Anjana Goyal, director, State Educational Research and Training Council, said that through this workshop teachers will get an opportunity to enhance their efficiency. It is through them that the benefits of the experiences and skills of the experts can be passed on to the students.

Bhagwati Singh, joint education director (camp), discussed the purpose, functioning of the SRG and its role in educational uplift. He said that SRG is the pivot of educational excellence.

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LUCKNOW The state health department is planning to relax rules for re-employed doctors, both in MBBS and specialist categories, to ease the burden on OPDs across all government hospitals in Uttar Pradesh. This is being done in wake of vacant positions in some districts and requirement of doctors in others. The current strength of doctors in the government sector in Uttar Pradesh is over 14,000 against the 19,000 sanctioned posts. (Pic for representation)

Re-employment positions are full in cities such as Prayagraj, Lucknow, Agra and Meerut but vacant in districts such as Bahraich and Basti. Hence it is being planned to shift the positions from districts with vacancy and post doctors to districts that have the requirement despite their own re-employment segment full, said a senior health official.

Uttar Pradesh has 500 vacancies for MBBS and 500 for specialist (retired) doctors and each district was allotted seats, according to the patient inflow (in the respective district).

Majority of those seeking re-employment want to be near big cities and they do not apply for far-off districts. As a result, seats in several districts remain vacant, an issue which is being addressed in the proposed amended re-employment policy for doctors in the health department, said the official.

The amendment will be sent to the state government for approval. If we take the example of Lucknow, we have maximum inflow of patients from other districts and adjoining areas also. This keeps patients waiting and OPDs running till late. The load will be shared if more doctors join the OPDs, he added.

Besides, the restriction of specialists applying only for specialists position will be relaxed. If a specialist who wants to work in a particular district against a vacant position of MBBS doctor, he/she can do so. At present, a doctor with MBBS degree can apply only against a vacant post for MBBS and a specialist for a post of a specialist.

The current strength of doctors in the government sector in Uttar Pradesh is over 14,000 against the 19,000 sanctioned posts. The re-employment segment was introduced to maintain the strength of doctors as 250 doctors retire from government services annually on an average. The state has 167 district level hospitals.

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Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday emphasised the need for developing integrated divisional office complexes at divisional headquarters in Uttar Pradesh. He said the integrated divisional office complexes should be like government-run secretariats enhancing administrative efficiency and providing convenience to people. The UP CM was reviewing progress of integrated divisional office complexes in Varanasi and Gorakhpur at a high-level meeting. (HT file)

Yogi was reviewing the progress of integrated divisional office complexes in Varanasi and Gorakhpur at a high-level meeting. He provided necessary guidelines at the meeting. He said in the initial phase, the state government had decided to develop model integrated divisional office complexes in Gorakhpur and Varanasi.

The CM asked the respective development authorities of Varanasi and Gorakhpur to take necessary action promptly and expedite the progress of these projects. Yogi said integrated offices at the divisional level should be equipped with modern facilities such as an auditorium, video conferencing room, parking, and promote paperless working.

Yogi said the people will no longer have to face the inconvenience of commuting to different offices for their respective tasks. Additionally, the integrated office premises will facilitate better coordination and collaboration among different offices, he said.

It was proposed that the construction of the integrated divisional office complexes in Varanasi and Gorakhpur should be undertaken by the Varanasi Development Authority and Gorakhpur Development Authority respectively.

The cost of the project would be the responsibility of the respective development authorities. Once the integrated buildings become operational, the government offices that are relocated to these complexes should vacate their previous buildings allowing the authority to utilise the land and buildings accordingly. A proposal for the state government providing partial financial support for the project was also discussed at the meeting.
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) on Thursday discharged Kailash Gidwani and Jawahar Jagiasi from the Adarsh housing society scam. The trial court dropped some of the charges levelled by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Kailash, the son of the prime accused in the case, Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, and Jagiasi. HT Image

The high court recently dropped the remaining charges against them for offences punishable under sections 8 (taking gratification by corrupt or illegal means to influence public servants) and 9 (taking gratification to exercise personal influence with public servants) of the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act.

Adarsh housing society, a 31-storey upscale residential complex in Colaba, should have originally housed war heroes and war widows who lost their spouses during the 1999 Kargil War. But the occupants of the apartment complex built on defence land ended up being bureaucrats and relatives of politicians who were in no way connected with the war.

Scrutiny over the high-profile list of owners of the society prompted the Army and CBI to launch separate probes in 2010.

During investigation of the Adarsh scam, it was revealed that Jawahar Jagiasi, an advocate and tax consultant, had taken 1.25 crore from Kailash and Kanhaiyalal Gidwani to influence some CBI officials by corrupt and illegal means and passed on part of the amount to the CBI counsel after which Gidwani father-son duo, Jagiasi and Goswami were booked in the corruption case.

Kailash Gidwani and Jawahar Jagiasi had filed a revision application challenging the February 2020 order of the special CBI judge, who had refused to discharge under the said sections.

The special judge had partly allowed their pleas for discharge and discharged the duo from the offence punishable under sections 7, 12 and 13 (2) and 13(1)(d) of the PC Act but refused to discharge them from offences punishable under sections 8 and 9 of the PC Act.

The duo claimed that though the prosecution had failed to establish that they had paid gratification to a public servant for a particular purpose to be achieved, the special judge had relied upon the statements of witnesses to arrive at the conclusion that money paid by them was gratification.

The HC while allowing the revision application, held that as there was no sufficient material to proceed against the two, the special court order denying them discharge suffered from non-application of mind and hence deserved to be quashed and set aside.

The single judge bench of justice Bharati Dangre while hearing the application of Gidwani and Jagiasi was informed by senior advocates Satish Maneshinde and Girish Kulkarni that the HC had discharged an accused, Mandar Goswami, from sections 8 and 9 of the PC Act based on the finding that there was no evidence to prove that he had accepted gratification from late Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, the chief promoter of Adarsh Society with regards to the case.

The bench was informed that the prosecution only proceeded on the presumption that the transactions alleged in the charge-sheet were in relation to exercising personal influence in relation to Adarsh case, however, nothing had come forward through the entire chargesheet to establish a link of the alleged recovery of diaries to the Adarsh case. Their specific submission was that the material compiled in the charge-sheet was insufficient to frame charges against the applicants.

The bench was further informed that Goswami was discharged by HC on September 5, 2018, holding that there existed no public servant who was influenced, as per the allegation of the prosecution, and hence nothing remained to substantiate the charge either u/s. 8 or 9 of the PC Act.

Advocates Sandesh Patil, Chintan Shah and Aayush Kedia opposed the revision application on behalf of CBI and submitted that the amount was accepted for some unknown CBI officials and the material in the charge-sheet was sufficient to establish the charge under section 8 of the PC Act. Patil submitted that the amount was taken as gratification to influence the public servant and the said offence was clearly made out and there was sufficient material in the form of statements of employees of the applicants to establish that the amount was given in cash.

After hearing the submissions, justice Dangre noted that the statements of the witnesses were the only material compiled in the charge sheet which failed to establish the necessary ingredient of Section 8. The court added that merely because the term used in section 8 is whoever accepts, in absence of the ingredients of the section being fulfilled, the material cannot be termed sufficient to proceed against the two applicants. The bench said the special judge had erred in not taking the said position into account.
Mumbai: Sessions court on Thursday waived off police escort charges of Nikita Yadav, a 21-year-old TYBCom student, who is in Byculla jail and wants to appear for her exams. Court waives off police escort charges of TYBcom student in jail

On Wednesday, she was unable to take her exam, as she could not pay 8,000 per day and 32,000 in total for the police escort required to go from jail to the exam centre. HT reported about the same on May 18.

Earlier this month, Nikita had tried to stop the revenue officials from demolishing her house, and as per the complaint filed by the officer on this basis, she was arrested.

Nikita is a student of M D Shah Mahila College, affiliated to SNDT Womens University. With the final-year exams beginning on May 17, an application was filed seeking permission for her to appear for the TY BCom exam.

While hearing it on Tuesday, Judge S M Taklikar allowed Nikita to appear for the exam in police custody but also ordered the family to pay the settlement amount.

On Thursday after hearing her fathers prayer about being unable to pay the escort fees to the jail authority, the judge said, In order to avoid educational loss for the applicant, it would be just and proper to waive the escort charges. Hence, escort charges are hereby waived. The superintendent of Byculla jail has directed the applicant to take her to the exanimation centre on May 19 and May 22 without fail.

Nikitas lawyer, Nikhil Kamble, said, Now, her father will be requesting SNDT University to conduct her missed exam on May 17, and we are also planning to appeal at Bombay High Court for the same.

On May 3, on the orders of the deputy collector (Mumbai suburban), revenue officials conducted an anti-encroachment operation at Saicharan Chawl, Dingeshwar Lake, Jalaram Mandir, Charkop Village, in which 27 houses were demolished.

When this action was being taken, Yadav, her mother Kiran, and brother Alok opposed the action, following which an FIR was registered against them at Charkop police station for obstructing government work. Accordingly, Alok was arrested on May 3 while Nikita and her mother were arrested on May 13.
A third-year student at a university in Greater Noida allegedly shot himself dead after killing his female friend at the campus on Thursday, said police officials. Polcie said both the deceased, aged 21, were third year students at Shiv Nadar University in Greater Noida. (Representative file image)

Both the deceased, aged 21, were students of BA Sociology, third year at Shiv Nadar University, said police.

At around 1:30pm on Thursday, the administrative officials of Shiv Nadar University informed that a female student was shot dead by a male student outside the dining hall in the university campus. The female student was immediately rushed to Yatharth Hospital in Greater Noida where she was declared brought dead, said SM Khan, deputy commissioner of police, Greater Noida.

The female student was a native of Kanpur who was currently residing in the girls hostel at the university while the male student is a native of Amroha who was also staying in the boys hostel.

Also Read: Accused dies by suicide inside Pune jail bathroom

A country-made pistol was recovered from the spot. The student had died on spot. During preliminary inquiry, it has been found that the students were in a relationship for a long time but recently their relations had turned sour, he added.

The police informed the families of both students and the bodies have been sent for post-mortem.

The university had gone on summer break from May 17, but both the students had stayed back in their hostels as their convocation was due. The students sessions had come to a close and they were going to graduate from the university, said an official part of the investigation.

He added that the incident was captured in the CCTV cameras of the dining hall.

The dining hall was locked but it has glass doors. Both the students met right outside it around 1pm. The girls and boys hostel are located on either side of the hall. In the CCTV footage, it can be seen that the students exchange words and the male student had brought something to handover to the woman, presumably a gift. However, the girl refused to accept it following which she was shot in the abdomen by the student. She tried to fight the boy, but she was shot again following which she collapsed. The boy then leaves towards the boys hostel, said the officer.

The university released an official statement on the incident.

A spokesperson from Shiv Nadar University said, We are deeply saddened and pained at the unfortunate loss of lives of two students at the University today. The matter is currently under investigation by the authorities, and we are closely monitoring the situation. All other residents of the campus are safe. Our utmost priority is the safety and well-being of our students, employees, and the entire community. We are fully cooperating with the authorities in their investigation. Our deep and heartfelt condolences go out to the affected families, and we are supporting them in every way possible at this difficult time.

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,

Roshni Foundation (Secunderabad) Contact Nos:

040-66202001, 040-66202000,

ONE LIFE: Contact No: 78930 78930, SEVA: Contact No: 09441778290

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The 46-year-old wife of a health official allegedly shot herself dead with a licensed revolver in Khalilabad town of Sant Kabir Nagar district on Thursday morning, police said. Health officials wife shoots self in U.P.s Sant Kabir Nagar (Pic for representation)

Circle officer Deepanshu Rathore and Khalilabad Kotwali in-charge Sarvesh Rai rushed to the spot after being informed. The police later sent the body for a post-mortem examination.

Confirming the incident, superintendent of police (SP), Sant Kabir Nagar, Satyajeet Gupta said prima facie it seemed to be a case of suicide. The police had started initial probe into the incident and further action will follow after the post-mortem report came, he added.

As per reports, the health officials wife, who had been living in the state capital with her two sons, had come to Khalilabad only a few days back. Preliminary probe suggested that some family dispute could be the reason for the incident, said cops.
Meghalaya and Assam will likely hold the second phase of border talks on May 24 with a focus on an amicable and lasting solution to resolve the remaining six areas of difference between the two states. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma (right) and Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K Sangma (left) (File Photo)

On Wednesday, Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K Sangma said that he would meet Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma next week in Guwahati for the second round of border talks.

The chief minister of Assam and myself and committee members are expected to meet on the 24th of this month so that will be the first meeting in Guwahati. We are still waiting for full confirmation but tentatively both have agreed. The logistics are being worked out and if everything falls into place, we are expected to meet on the 24th of this month, Sangma told media persons on Wednesday.

Sangma said that the meeting will be followed by a joint visit to Block I and Block II at the inter-state border by both the CMs to send a message of confidence and a message of peace besides a message of restraint from both sides including the administration.

Also Read: Explained: Assam-Meghalaya border dispute and todays historic agreement

Blocks I and II are one of 12 areas of dispute near the border area.

Referring to the recent clash at Khanduli village in West Jaintia Hills, Sangma said, We are very concerned about the incidents that took place. We appeal for peace and harmony in these areas but ultimately in order to ensure that we can find permanent peace, the solution to this border issue is the only way forward.

On May 12, a clash broke out between two communities at Kahnduli village along the inter-state border. According to people familiar with the matter, the clash broke out after the Dorbar Shnong of Khanduli restricted Karbi people from passing through the village. The clashes also resulted in stone-pelting and arson.

Sangma said that many incidents have taken place in the past and actions from either side do not go well. He said that the reason these talks are important is so that such incidents do not take place in future.

Going to the disputed areas will build confidence and will send a positive message to the people, he added.

Meghalaya was carved out of Assam as a separate state in 1972 but the new state challenged the Assam Reorganisation Act, 1971, leading to disputes in 12 locations in the border areas.

In March last year, Assam and Meghalaya governments signed an agreement to resolve their 50-year-old border dispute in six of the 12 locations, with Union home minister Amit Shah calling it a historic day for the northeast.

The 12 locations, include Upper Tarabari, Gazang reserve forest, Hahim, Langpih, Borduar, Boklapara, Nongwah, Matamur, Khanapara-Pilangkata, Deshdemoreah Block I and Block II, Khanduli and Retacherra.

The two sides decided to resolve the areas of dispute in a phased manner.

Out of the 12 points of dispute, the six areas with relatively less critical differences were taken up in the first phase. In the first phase in March last year, the two governments decided to resolve the dispute in Gizang, Tarabari, Boklapara, Khanapara-Pilingkata, Ratacherra and Hahim.

The governments ultimately agreed that Assam would retain 18.51 sq km of the total 36.79 sq km of disputed land in the disputed areas.

In the second phase, the two sides are looking forward to resolving differences in Langpih, Borduar, Deshdoonreah, Block-I-II, Pisar-Khanduli and Nongwah-Mawtamur (Garbhanga) areas.

The two sides have held 32 meetings since 1971.

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PATNA: Thirty-six children of class 1 to class 5 in Bihars Chapra district fell sick after eating mid-day meal at the school on Thursday, officials said. School principal Suman Kumari said that the mid-day meal was being distributed by NGOs. (Picture for representation/ HT Photo)

According to officials, the incident took place at the Utkarit Girls Middle School Rasulpur Tikulia Tola Dumri area in the district.

Five students are said to be serious and have been shifted to ICU, officials said.

Akash Kumar, a class 5 student in the school said that they found a dead lizard in their food. School authority was soon informed and the distribution of food was immediately stopped. Soon, the health of the children deteriorated and they started vomiting, he said.

School principal Suman Kumari said that the mid-day meal was being distributed by NGOs. The distribution of food was stopped as soon as we got information. All the sick children were sent to the Sadar hospital for treatment, she said.

The food inspector has been called and instructed to take food samples. A detailed inquiry will be conducted into the matter and those found guilty will not be spared, said sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Sanjay Rai.

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The Pune city police on Thursday arrested two persons, including a journalist, for allegedly extorting a prominent businessman of 5 crore. According to police officials, the journalist would send fake news and videos to the businessman who works at Eon IT Park on WhatsApp to malign is image. In return he asked the businessman to give  5 crore ransom. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO)

The accused have been identified as Mahesh Saudagar Hanme a journalist from Solapur and his aide Dinesh Hanme.

According to police officials, the journalist would send fake news and videos to the businessman who works at Eon IT Park on WhatsApp to malign is image. In return he asked the businessman to give 5 crore ransom. Accused also threatened the businessman that he would register fake cases against him at the police station.

Till date the businessman gave 3.80 lakh to the accused. However, on Thursday, the accused demanded 50 lakh. The businessman then approached the police to register a case, said officials.

Immediately, a team under senior police inspector Pratap Mankar headed towards Mohol in Solapur district and laid a trap to nab the accused.

However, the accused suspected police movement at Patas Toll Plaza and tried to run over their vehicle on the police . At that time police sub-inspector Shrikant Chavan fired two rounds aiming at the tyres of the vehicle and arrested the accused successfully, said officials.

Additional commissioner of police (crime) Ramnath Pokle said, Yes during chase, the accused tried to run over our police personnels and at that time our cop fired two rounds on the tyres. Further investigation is underway.
PUNE A Pune court on Thursday sought a transcript of the speech made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and a copy of Majhi Janmathep to verify a plea by Satyaki Savarkar, grand-nephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. Pune court seeks transcript of speech made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (in pic) and a copy of Majhi Janmathep to verify a plea by Satyaki Savarkar, grand-nephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. (HT)

Satyaki had filed a criminal defamation application against Gandhi before the court of Judicial Magistrate First Class Akshi Jain for allegedly making defamatory claims about Savarkar during an event in London.

Savarkars lawyer Aniruddha Ganu, said, The court has issued oral order and asked for submission of speech transcript and a copy of the biography.

Satyaki, in his plea, stated, The accused has been repeatedly defaming and abusing late Vinayak Damodar Savarkar on various occasions for over many years. Under the facts and circumstances, the accused, while addressing a gathering of the Overseas Congress in the United Kingdom, which was uploaded by the official channel of the accused on YouTube on March 5, 2023, with the title Indians abroad are shining examples of our culture of respect|Interaction with Diaspora in London of duration 17.47 min, has intentionally made false, malicious and wild allegations against Savarkar, fully knowing the said allegations to be untrue, with the specific objective of harming the reputation and to defame the surname Savarkar and to hurt the feelings of the family of Late Savarkar.

In view of the above, Satyaki said that Gandhi be summoned and tried in accordance with the law; maximum punishment, as contemplated u/s. 500 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, may be imposed on him, maximum compensation may kindly be awarded imposed upon the accused according to Section 357 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the complainant be permitted to alter, amend the complaint if needed and also liberty be granted to lead additional evidence during the commencement of the trial stage.

The complaint has been filed under sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) 1860.
BSE Odisha 10th Result: Board of Secondary Education Odisha will announce Class 10 or Matric or HSC exam results today, May 17. As informed by BSE President Ramashis Hazra, results of the HSC exam will be declared at 10 am. Once declared officially, students can visit the official website of the board, bseodisha.nic.in and check their marks online. Odisha Matric result will also be hosted on orissaresults.nic.in. BSE Odisha HSC Matric result 2023 live updates. BSE Odisha 10th Result 2023: HSC or Matric result today on orrissaresults.nic.in(HT File)

To check Odisha 10th result, students will have to login to the board website using roll number and date of birth.

How to check Odisha Matric result 2023

Go to the board exam result portal, orrisaresults.nic.in. Open the link to check BSE Odisha HSC result 2023. Now, enter your roll number, date of birth and the text/numbers from the displayed image. Submit the details and check your result. Download/take printout of the result page for future uses.

BSE Odisha Class 10 board exam was held from March 10 to 17, 2023. For more details, students can check the official website of the board.
The Cannes Film Festival is underway at the beautiful French Riviera for its 76th edition. In attendance this year from India are Aishwarya Rai, Sara Ali Khan, Manushi Chillar, Urvashi Rautela, Vijay Varma and many others. Check out all the details about stars walking the red carpet, posing for paparazzi or championing their films at the fest:

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Guneet Monga walked the red carpet of the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in a golden sari. Taking to her Instagram, the Oscar-winning producer expressed her gratitude to the Indian Government delegation and shared a couple of pictures from the red carpet. She is at Cannes as part of the Indian delegation. (Also read: Guneet Monga reveals airport officials only want to take pics with her Oscar: Nikaal ke dikhaao, dekhna hai) Kangabam Tomba, Dr L Murugan and Guneet Monga attended the red carpet at Cannes.

The Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. L Murugan, who is leading the Indian delegation at the Cannes film festival, and Manipuri actor Kangabam Tomba were also seen on the red carpet accompanying the filmmaker. Guneet penned a detailed note in the caption for the post where she thanked the delegation for providing her with the opportunity to represent the country at the global stage. In the pictures, she channeled a traditional look in a golden sari and paired it with minimal accessories.

In the caption for her post, Guneet wrote, "So delighted to be at the Cannes Film Festival 2023 as a part of the Indian government delegation. India is now on the global stage in world cinema, and it's an honour to be a part of this momentous occasion.

"I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to the Indian government and FICCI for providing me with this incredible opportunity to represent our country on this global stage.

"It's great to be back home at Cannes. I love the energy of the festival and just walking up and down the street, meeting friends from the fraternity and celebrating cinema.

"It makes my heart swell with pride to see Indian cinema being cherished on a global stage at a prestigious film festival such as Cannes. To be able to celebrate the power of Indian cinema and witness its ability to bring people together is no less than a spectacle. #IndiaAtCannes"

Guneet Monga and director Kartiki Gonsalves won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short for The Elephant Whisperers at the 95th Academy Awards. The 41-minute-long documentary movie revolves around the bond between an orphaned baby elephant (named Raghu) and his caretakers - mahout couple Bomman and Bellie.

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Actor Parineeti Chopra and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha got engaged on Saturday in the presence of family and friends at Delhi's Kapurthala House. The couple was twinning in white ethnic outfits for the dreamy ceremony. Now, Parineeti has shared some more photos from their special day along with a heartfelt note about their intimate ceremony, which took place as per Sikh customs. Also read: Raghav Chadha kisses Parineeti Chopra at engagement Parineeti Chopra and Raghav Chadha at their engagement in Delhi.

Parineeti had her hair covered with a lace dupatta in the candid pictures that gave a glimpse inside the couple's traditional engagement ceremony. In the first picture she posted, Parineeti's face was not visible as she joined her hands and greeted a religious leader officiating the ceremony. Raghav was all smiles as he met him with folded hands. His hair was also covered for the ceremony as per Sikh tradition.

The next few photos showed the happy couple at the engagement ceremony, which was held inside a spacious hall with white walls and green, yellow and blue glass windows. Pawan Chopra, Parineeti's father, was seen crying in the background in one of the pictures; he sat behind the couple. Parineeti and Raghav, who sat in front of dozens of family, friends and other guests, prayed with folded hands in a picture; Raghav's eyes were closed in one such picture, while Parineeti prayed with closed eyes in another.

Sharing the pictures, Parineeti wrote in her caption, "Felt surreal to be blessed by the Jathedar of the Akal Takht Sahib, Singh Sahib Giani Harpreet Singh Ji. His sacred presence at our engagement meant everything to us (folded hands emoji)." The actor's brother Shivang Chopra commented, 'A casual papa tearing up in the background is the highlight."

For the engagement, the actor wore a white kurta paired with a matching dupatta, which was designed by Manish Malhotra, while the AAP leader wore an achkan from Delhi-based designer and his uncle, Pawan Sachdev. After their engagement, Parineeti and Raghav had also stepped out to greet the paparazzi and pose for photos as they made their first public appearance as a newly-engaged couple. Parineeti's cousin, actor Priyanka Chopra, who had landed in Delhi on Saturday morning, was also pictured at the engagement. She happily posed for the paparazzi and also shared a series of photos from the celebration on Instagram.

On Saturday, Parineeti Chopra and Raghav Chadha announced the news of their engagement by sharing identical posts featuring their romantic photos. "Everything I prayed for... I said yes. Waaheguru ji meher karan (Be kind to us God)," wrote Parineeti on Instagram. "Everything I prayed for... she said yes. Waaheguru ji meher karan," read Raghav Chadha's tweet.

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Priyanka Chopra is back in US after a short work trip to Venice. The super-busy star missed daughter Malti Marie Chopra Jonas during her travels and couldn't wait to be back wit her again. On Wednesday, she shared an adorable photo as the two were finally reunited. (Also read: Priyanka Chopra, Nick Jonas bring Malti Marie to India for the first time, share a kiss at airport. Watch) Priyanka Chopra with daughter Malti Marie in her play pen. The actor was reunited with her daughter after she attended an event in Italy and attended Parineeti Chopra's engagement in India.

The photo shows Priyanka and Malti in latter's playpen. Priyanka is holding a cardboard box while dressed in a simple grey lounge set. Like all desi kids, Malti is more interested in the cardboard box rather than her toys.

Sharing the photo, Priyanka wrote, Reunited What do we have here MM (Malti Marie)? Malti was staying with Priyanka's mother Dr Madhu Chopra while the actor attended a Bulgari event in Venice, Italy with Anne Hathaway and Zendaya on Tuesday night.

Priyanka Chopra is back at home with daughter Malti Marie.

In a recent interview with Grazia, Priyanka spoke about her daughter's whereabouts. Right now, my daughter's in New York with my mom, probably eating ice-cream for dinner, having the time of her life, she said.

Priyanka's Mother's Day post

Priyanka recently also celebrated Mother's Day with a post dedicated to Malti, her mother Madhu and mother-in-law Denise. Priyanka wrote in the caption, "I am so lucky to have always known the love of a mother. My mother is the strongest woman I know. And her mother was too. I come from a lineage of women who are warriors and I was blessed to be raised by many of them. My Mum, my aunts, my grand mothers. Thank you Ma, youre the greatest gift in my life. I could not be more grateful youre mine!

"To all the moms out there the ones I have a privilege of knowing and working with and the ones I dont you are superheroes. As a new mum I have so much respect for all the nurtures who devote themselves to the next generation. My gratitude. Also thank you Denise for raising an exceptional son and for all the love you bestow upon our family. Im so blessed.

And I love you Malti Marie. Thank you for making me a mama. It's the greatest honour of my life that you chose me, she added.

Priyanka and Nick Jonas married in 2018 in India. They welcomed Malti Marie last year. She was born premature and turned one in January.

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Hours after the Supreme Court stayed the West Bengal Government's ban on The Kerala Story, the director and film producer reacted to the developments. Vipul Amrutlal Shah, who backed the film and was also its creative director, urged Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to watch the film with the team. On the other hand, director Sudipto Sen called the ban illegal and praised the Supreme Court for their verdict. Also read: Mamata Banerjee announces ban on The Kerala Story in West Bengal, film producer reacts The Kerala Story producer Vipul Shah requests Mamata Banerjee to watch the film.

Talking to the news agency ANI, Vipul said, With folded hands, I would like to tell Mamata Didi to watch this film with us and discuss with us if she finds anything as such. We would like to listen to all her valid criticisms and present our point of view...This is democracy that we get to talk about. We can agree to disagree. We can discuss our difference. This is my request and we will be waiting.

No state can ban a film after it is passed by the Censor Board. This ban was illegal. Supreme Court proved once again that everyone has the right to watch the film, you may or may not like it but you can't stop someone forcefully. We always trusted the Supreme CourtThank you to everyone who supported us, including the people of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu who reached out to me. They can watch the film tomorrow, added Sudipto Sen.

On May 8, Mamata Banerjee announced a ban on The Kerala Story in the state. She said, "West Bengal govt has decided to ban the movie The Kerala Story. This is to avoid any incident of hatred and violence, and to maintain peace in the state. The film was pulled down from theatres in Tamil Nadu.

On Thursday, Supreme Court stayed its ban in West Bengal and asked its producer to put a disclaimer that the movie was a "fictionalised version" and there was no authentic data to the claim that 32,000 Hindu and Christian girls converted to Islam. The film will now be screened in the theatres of West Bengal. The court also asked Tamil Nadu to ensure all security arrangements for moviegoers.

The Kerala Story stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani and Sonia Balani in the lead roles. Helmed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, the film triggered a massive political row with many calling it a propaganda film since the release of its trailer.

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A video of French media addressing Urvashi Rautela as Aishwarya Rai at Cannes Film Festival 2023 has surfaced online. While some took offence to the actor being mistaken for Aishwarya, who is a Cannes Film Festival veteran, Urvashi seemed unfazed by the paparazzi's mistake. Also read: Cannes Film Festival live updates Urvashi Rautela was mistaken as Aishwarya Rai at Cannes 2023.

In the video that has been widely shared on Twitter and Instagram, Urvashi Rautela was dressed in a bright orange ruffled gown as she walked the red carpet at the screening of the film Kaibutsu (Monster) during the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday. This was her second red carpet appearance at the festival this year. As she greeted fans and media and blew kisses, someone from the crowd shouted 'Aishwarya' and Urvashi turned around and smiled.

Urvashi's video was shared by Brut India on Instagram, and attracted all kids of reactions. Some said she was copying Aishwarya, others seemed to mind that the French media did not know who Urvashi was, and mistook her for Aishwarya.

An Instagram user wrote, "Aishwaryaaaaaa (crying emoji)." Another one wrote, "I wonder who called her Aishwarya, clearly these foreign photographers don't know what they are talking about." A comment also read, "They called her Aishwarya! I can't deal!" A person also wrote, "There's no way she looks like Aishwarya. The paparazzi need to do some homework. Not all Indians at Cannes are Aishwarya! Whats wrong with her (Urvashi's) hairstyle though (laughing emoji)."

Many others accused Urvashi of imitating Aishwarya on the red carpet. A person said, "She is following footsteps of Aishwarya so much that they are calling her Aishwarya (laughing emoji)." One commented, "Hands on waist, blowing kisses to media, heart hands. She (Urvashi) seems to be following Aishwarya religiously." One more said, "All kinds of cringe on so many levels." Another commented, "She badly needs a good stylist."

Urvashi's red carpet video was also shared on Twitter by an Aishwarya Rai fan, who said, Aishwarya's popularity will always be unmatched. Every Indian girl at global events is called Aishwarya

Aishwarya is expected to walk the Cannes 2023 red carpet soon. She recently left for France with daughter Aaradhya Bachchan. This year, many Indian celebs are making their debut at Cannes Film Festival. While actor Anushka Sharma will be attending the prestigious festival in the coming days, Sara Ali Khan and Manushi Chhillar, have already made their mark at the gala.

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Vijay Varma is reflecting back at clocking a decade in films at the Cannes Film Festival. The actor was present at the prestigious festival in 2013 when his debut film Monsoon Shootout was premiered, and is now back this year as part of the Indian delegation. Vijay said that during his red carpet debut at Cannes, none of the stylists wanted to dress him because he was not a well-known figure in the industry. (Also read: Vijay Varma denies making his Cannes debut this year: Not my first time') Vijay Varma says stylists refused to dress him up for the Cannes red carpet in 2013.

Vijay Varma recently received a lot of acclaim for his performance in Prime Video's Dahaad. Vijay also attended the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year in January where the series premiered at the Berlinale series section. The actor rose to prominence with Zoya Akhtar's Gully Boy, where he starred as the supporting character Moeen.

In a recent interview with Film Companion at Cannes, the Darlings actor admitted how he was rejected by stylists during his red-carpet debut in 2013. He said, When I came here, I bought one jacket from Zara, which I could afford. But for the main event, for two events, they said you have to wear the whole suit. And I went to people, saying, Can some designer come, can some stylist help me out? And they said, Whos Vijay Varma? We dont want to dress anybody.'

Vijay also added how he somehow got a tuxedo for the event at the last minute. So, a friend of mine gifted me a Zara suit, which I wore for the morning photo call. And somebody stitched me a tuxedo for the red carpet. That's how I went. When I saw the pictures, they came out on Getty Images and all these places, which I didnt have money to buy from," he said. Vijay then went on to say that he thought he looked fine as he had never been part of such an event before. He said that now when he looks at those pictures again, it gives the resemblance of a Marwari Johnny Depp.

Apart from Vijay, actors Esha Gupta, and Kangabam Tomba; and Oscar winning filmmaker Guneet Monga will be walking the red carpet as part of the Indian delegation at Cannes Film Festival this year.

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Fast X's release date in India is only a day away. Vin Diesel's Fast X, which premiered at The Space Cinema Roma Moderno in Rome on May 12, was released first in parts of Europe on May 17, and will be out in the United States and India on May 19. Following the release in some places, many of critics have shared their impressions of the film. Fast X received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for Jason Momoa's performance. Also read: A recap of the Fast and Furious movies ahead of Fast X Jason Momoa and Vin Diesel in Fast X.

On Thursday, several critics took to Twitter to share their thoughts about the film. While, the latest installment in the Fast and Furious universe is, once again, all about the family, the most outstanding performance came from the villian, Jason Momao, as per most critics.

Variety's Fast X review said that with a new director (Louis Leterrier) in the driver's seat, this first part of a vaguely defined finale spins its wheels, while Vin Diesel and company try to decide where the franchise is going. Peter Debruge, associated with the publication, wrote in his review, Two more movies to finish off this franchise? Thats too much. Its bad enough that Fast X is half a story: an elaborate reunion of all the A-list characters the previous nine movies introduced (yes, all of them), that starts-and-stalls its way toward a cliffhanger...

Johnny Oleksinski called Fast X another idiotic Fast and Furious sequel in his review for the New York Post. He wrote, "Paradoxically, everything and nothing happens in Fast X, directed by Louis Leterrier. Characters from previous films return to the series expecting entrance applause, while we stretch to remember who they even are. Old events are dredged up as if anybody can actually recall them. The plot is both highly intricate and totally inane. Oscar winners Helen Mirren and Charlize Theron return in their pointless criminal roles of Queenie and Cipher. Theyre joined by another Best Actress victor, Brie Larson, as Tess, who helps Letty when shes trapped in Antarctica."

Discussing Film tweeted on Thursday, "In an odd way, the narrative of Fast X echoes Avengers: Infinity War of all things." In his review for the website, James Preston Poole wrote, "Vin Diesels Dom Toretto holds Fast X together in our A-plot that introduces one of the movies greatest assets: Jason Momoa as new foe Dante Reyes. The comparisons to the Joker are very much warranted, as Dante is a gleeful psychopath  a flamboyant lone wolf who wants not simply to kill the family, but to make them suffer. His reckless commitment to the most despicable acts possible brings a manic energy to the movie that courses through its veins even when hes not on screen."

Many critics praised Jason. Collider's Ross Bonaime wrote, "The biggest, wildest, and most brilliant addition to Fast X is the new antagonist Dante (Jason Momoa), the son of Fast Fives drug lord Hernan Reyes. Since Dom brought an end to Hernan in that films climactic chase, Dante wants revenge and to make Dom suffer. And since Dom literally cant go more than ten minutes without mentioning how much family means to him, Dante knows exactly where to hit to hurt Dom the most. With tech stolen from Cipher (Charlize Theron), a deep need for vengeance, and the desire to destroy Doms family, Dante might be the most intimidating villain that the F&F franchise has seen so far."

Fast and Furious 10, called Fast X, is directed by Louis Leterrier. The film follows Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) as he attempts to protect his family from Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa). The Universal film also stars Jason Statham, John Cena, Brie Larson, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Scott Eastwood, Michael Rooker, Daniela Melchior, Alan Ritchson, Helen Mirren and Cardi B.

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Paul Verhoevens 1992 Basic Instinct with Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone seemed so scandalous then. Today, it would hardly raise an eyebrow, yes even the highly provocative scene in which she keeps crossing her legs. The movie premiered at Cannes, and one remembers the stampede it caused when it was screened a couple of years later at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which was held in Calcutta (now Kolkata). IFFI used to travel from city to city then. (Also read: Cannes Film Festival opens with Johnny Depp's comeback film, Jeanne du Barry) Michael Douglas said watching Basic Instinct in Cannes on the big screen was overwhelming.

During a conversation on May 17 at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival, Douglas  who received an honorary Palme d'Or for career achievement at the opening ceremony on May 16  said it was unique, even for France."

Seeing a lot of those sex scenes on the Grand Palais huge screen, it was a little overwhelming for a lot of people. We had a very quiet dinner afterwards, everyone was sort of digesting it, he remembered (the cast included Sharon Stone and Jeanne Tripplehorn).

Basic Instinct follows a tired-of-life detective (Douglas) probing a highly successful crime writer (Stone) suspected to be murdering people with an ice pick.

Apart from Basic Instinct, Douglas has brought several movies to Cannes that included an impressive list: The China Syndrome co-starring Jane Fonda; Joel Schumachers Falling Down; and his award-winning Liberace project Behind the Candelabra.

Douglas, son of the legendary Kirk Douglas, has won the Academy Award twice: the first as a producer for Best Picture (Jack Nicholsons One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, 1976) and the second as the best actor in Wall Street. The film is often seen as Douglas's most definitive work.

Earlier in the day, Johnny Depp, who arrived at the press conference following the screening of the opening film, Jeanne du Barry, said with a swagger that he did not care about Hollywood. But he did admit that he felt somewhat slighted when he was asked to resign from a movie youre in [Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore] because of something that is merely a bunch of vowels and consonants floating in the air.

Do I feel boycotted now? Not at all, but I dont feel boycotted by Hollywood because I dont think about Hollywood. I dont have much further need for Hollywood myself.

Its a very strange, funny time, he added, where everybody would love to be themselves but they cant because they must fall in line with the person in front of them, You want to live that kind of life, I wish you the best, Ill be on the other side somewhere.

The opening work in French is seen as some sort of comeback work for Depp following his two high-profile court cases in 2022 (one he lost, one he won) and director Maiwenn recently admitting to attacking a French journalist in Paris earlier in the year.

Asked why she chose Depp to play the French King Louis XV, she said, I wanted an actor who was sexy because I knew I had to kiss him (in the movie)." Frank to the core!

Jeanne du Barry was financed by the Red Sea Film Fund. The world is getting truly global. Imagine a French work being financed by Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, online ticketing woes continue to trouble the Festival. On May 17, a large number of ticket holders were turned away from Pedro Almodovars short film, Strange Way of Life.

Long queues formed outside the theatre for the 31-minute short, which was followed by a conversation session with Almodovar. The queue stretched for miles. And just before the movie began, many with confirmed tickets were asked to go away.

Is a repeat screening of the Almodovar work on the cards?
Tamil cinema is slowly heading in the right direction in the OTT space, which has allowed filmmakers like Balaji Sakthivel, who has returned to direction after a decade, to truly make something that defines them. Modern Love Chennai  the six-part anthology film from Prime Video, which is adapted from the Modern Love series in The New York Times  isnt entirely groundbreaking. It has stories that are flat, but at the same time we get some truly exceptional work from filmmakers whove enjoyed the freedom to truly make what they want. Also read: Modern Love Mumbai review Modern Love Chennai began streaming from May 18.

Rajumurugans Lalagunda Bommaigal is an interesting take on modern-day love which asks the most important question which a lot of us tend to ignore. Is modern love all about attraction, getting physical (which also includes abortion) and moving on? Centered on a young girl coping from the pain caused by heartbreak, the shorts premise is built on a very common line  dont judge a book by its cover. In the opening shot, we meet Shoba (a terrific Sri Gouri Priya) in a hospital and shes just undergone an abortion. A few shots later, we feel shes moved on with great difficulty.

However, life isnt the same as shes so scarred by the incident that shes perennially angry. A local pani-puri vendor, an immigrant from the north, starts to show interest in her. Every time she comes to eat pani-puri, her friends notice that the guy actually places six puris on her plate instead of the usual four. Even before she starts to show interest, the guy turns out to be like most men and this breaks Shobas heart once again. Eventually, when Shoba finds a partner in a local godman turned fruit seller and finds happiness, she truly understands the essence of the proverb  never judge a book by its cover.

Returning to direct after a decade, Balaji Sakthivels Imaigal has to be one of the best shorts of the anthology. Its so moving and impactful at the same time. This is a story about a young girl named Devi with a rare eye condition which will leave her completely blind in a decade or so. The short opens with the scene where Devi (TJ Bhanu) tells her boyfriend Nithya (Ashok Selvan) about her condition. She warns him that life with her isnt going to be a bed of roses.

When they eventually get married and a few years pass by with the arrival of their daughter, the issues kick in with respect to Devis eye condition and its a challenge for her to do the simplest of tasks without messing up. The beauty of the short lies in some of the most tender moments between Devi and Nithya. This is truly a class of a comeback for Balaji Sakthivel, who gives us a story to find someone who can embrace us the way we are (including the troubles that come with us) and encourage us to become who we want.

Krishnakumar Ramakumar's Kaadhal Enbadhu Kannula Heart Irukkara Emoji is cut from the same cloth as Gautham Menons idea of love and romance. Everything about this short, which has to be the weakest of the lot, makes us realise that theres no fairytale love in real life and that nobody can escape heartbreaks. Centered on a cinema-obsessed young girl who keeps waiting for her prince charming but is broken every time reality hits her. Ritu Varma is aptly cast but the short fizzles out midway and leaves you scratching you head by the end. It wants to really feel light-hearted vis-a-vis the other shorts that are more dramatic, but its too sweet and frothy to be likable.

Akshay Sundhers Margazhi offers a fresh twist on the idea of modern-day love. It is centered on Jasmine (Sanjula Sarathy) and her friends, schoolgirls, openly talking about sex and it isnt there to make any point. Its there because girls too are interested in discussing these things as much as boys. Heres a girl whose parents are recently separated, and how she views love when she starts to fall for a boy, played by Chu Khoy Sheng.

Veteran Bharathirajas Paravai Kootil Vaazhum Maangal is a sweet throwback to the kind of love stories the auteur was popular for making in his heydays. A fresh take on a love triangle, this short offers deep insight into how society can get judgmental. At the same time, heres a short that treats the whole concept of a love triangle with a lot of maturity.

The last short of the anthology, Ninaivo Oru Paravai, from director Thiagarajan Kumararaja has to be both weird and unimaginably original. Centered on a young filmmaker K (PB) and his girlfriend Sam (an amazing Wamiqa Gabbi), the short lays its importance on physical love in a modern-day relationship. In terms of the Chennai set up, this short truly goes beyond what we usually used to associate the city with, and thats absolutely commendable.
Punjab has been in the news of late for, among other things, the issue of stubble burning after harvesting. A combination of a third harvesting cycle coinciding with a thick winter fog has led to one of the biggest environmental and health challenges in India today. The issue has become political too. Not only has it been one of the critical points of discussion in Parliament, but the Punjab chief secretary has now raised stakes by ambitiously announcing that the state will reduce the stubble burning instances by 50% in comparison to 2022. Stubble burning

The government is also imposing penalties and regulations which unfortunately are difficult to implement and have a negligible impact. However, a spate of recent projects collecting and converting agri residue to biomass to be used as fuel, has shown immense potential to not just solve the problem of crop burning but to create a brand new ecosystem and a parallel economy of waste to wealth.

After the kharif harvest of rice, farmers in the northern belt burn the residue left behind to reduce the turnaround time for the preparation of the upcoming rabi sowing season of wheat. Approximately 5,00,000 kg of stubble is generated each year in India. A one-kilo bale of paddy straw is sold on average for only 8. The economics of baling and selling is so low that its cheaper to burn a quarter of the stubble immediately after harvest. This is problematic on many levels. Apart from the obvious and immediate impact on soil fertility, stubble burning also releases harmful, toxic gases and particulates into the air, causing air pollution and poor air quality in the neighbouring region. Most important, if not most obviously, burning stubble is a loss of the immense potential it has as a biomass fuel.

In 2015, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had banned crop residue burning in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab. Burning crop residue is a penal crime under the Air and Pollution Control Act, 1981. Despite this, stubble burning continues. In Punjab alone, 20 metric tonnes (MT) of rice stubble is produced every year, 80% of which is burned. Penalising farmers who are already working on small incomes is not the solution.

The government has promoted technology like the Pusa decomposer and Happy seeder, which help farmers manage and convert crop residue without burning it.

However, these are predominantly in situ methods. It would be pragmatic to also venture into ex-situ crop residue management (CRM) methods. It is also where the corporate sector can work alongside the government to absorb and procure the crop residue for further processing. Based on the principles of circularity, this approach fosters innovation, industrial growth and a potential employment market.

Instead of burning of the stubble, it can be utilised to yield economically and environmentally valuable materials like compost, biochar, alternative fuels for industry - the options are limitless. However, most farmers are unaware of the options for repurposing the stubble and the economic value it holds. This necessitates that the government and civic groups work closely with the farmers to educate and train them to reuse the stubble.

A start-up in Thailand is converting paddy/wheat straw into bio degradable containers, food packaging plates and bowls. An Indian start-up is converting stubble to fibre to avoid farmers burning it. Similar such initiatives and solutions that are ecologically and economically viable need to be promoted.

The combine harvesters currently in use leave behind several feet long chaff which is then burned down. It is pertinent that alternative methods of harvesting are tested that do not leave behind feet long stacks of straw. Dealing with stubble in innovative ways can reap economic benefits for the farmers and the state.

Our teams leading corporate social responsibility at Godrej initiated a pilot crop residue management project with a mandate to reduce stubble burning with its negative impact on air pollution levels in the National Capital Region. As of this year, stubble burning across 2549.68 hectares of farmland was avoided covering 15 villages reaching 3,956 farmer families. The agriculture department has emerged as a key stakeholder in implementing the project at district and block level. This has been possible through continuous farmer mobilisation and engagement, and it is evident that with the right support, farmers are ready to do their bit to contribute.

This article is authored by Ramnath Vaidyanathan, AVP and head of environmental sustainability, Godrej Industries Limited and Associate Companies.
GUWAHATI: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said he was ready to hand over the probe into the death of 30-year-old sub-inspector Junmoni Rabha to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) if her family wasnt satisfied with the CID probe. Sub-inspector Junmoni Rabha, who was posted at the Morikolong outpost in the Nagaon district, was found dead in her vehicle at Sarubhagia in Kaliabor at about 2am on Tuesday (Twitter/anmul_hq)

The CID team will be in touch with Rabhas family. Theres no question of sparing anyone if found guilty, he said in Guwahati following demands by the Congress. In a letter to Sarma, Congress leader Debabrata Saikia said that apart from a probe by a central agency, there should be a separate probe by a sitting judge and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into the allegations of extortion and other charges against the deceased officer.

Amid the back-and-forth between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress over the death, the state police on Thursday said that a mini-commercial vehicle driver Pranab Das, who claimed to have witnessed the death of the police officer early on Tuesday. The driver of the truck involved in the accident also surrendered on Thursday evening. Police identified him as Sumit Kumar.

Sub-inspector Junmoni Rabha, who was posted at the Morikolong outpost in the Nagaon district, was found dead in her vehicle at Sarubhagia in Kaliabor at about 2am on Tuesday, apparently after her cars head-on collision with a truck coming from the opposite direction.

Pranab Das, however, told journalists on Wednesday that he saw the incident and claimed that Rabhas private vehicle was stationary when it was hit by a speeding truck coming from the opposite direction. Das, a resident of Bokakhat, also claimed that a person exited Rabhas vehicle around 10 minutes prior to the accident, suggesting that the officer may have been killed.

He was taken into custody by the police from Guwahati when he was giving an interview to a private TV channel.

Incidentally, police in Lakhimpur district lodged a case against Rabha on May 15, a day prior to her death, on charges of criminal conspiracy, dacoity, wrongful confinement and extortion.

The Assam police ordered a CID probe on Tuesday into both the accident and the case lodged against the deceased policewoman after Rabhas mother alleged foul play in the death of her daughter and alleged that senior district police officials raided her house on the night of the accident,

We lost a police officer under unfortunate circumstances. Since it involved two districts, I ordered an inquiry immediately. CID teams are conducting investigations both in Nagaon and Lakhimpur districts. We will wait for their report before taking any further action, DGP Gyanendra Pratap Singh said on Wednesday.

Singh refused to comment on claims made by Pranab Das and stressed that everything will be clear after CID, which has been given a free hand, completes its investigation.

On Thursday, an audio clip of a telephone conversation in which one person claimed that Rabha was murdered before the truck hit her vehicle also went viral. Police refused to comment on this.

On Thursday, the Nagaon district police also transferred 148 police personnel (mostly constables) mentioning the move was in the interest of public service.

Rabha was arrested last year on charges of corruption and financial irregularities following the arrest of her fiancee in May. He was accused of cheating. Rabha was later granted bail and she resumed regular duties.

The police officer was in the news in January last year when she alleged that a ruling BJP MLA Amiya Kumar Bhuyan had threatened her over the phonean audio clip of the conversation had got leaked and went viral on social media.

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Union environment, forest and climate change minister Bhupender Yadav on Thursday said India has contributed only about 4 per cent of global cumulative greenhouse gas emissions between 1850 and 2019, underlining how Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured India cut down emissions at all levels  from industry to individual. Union environment, forest and climate change minister Bhupender Yadav at HT G20 Agenda on Thursday.

Speaking at HT G20 Agenda in New Delhi, Yadav said, The global community together today is emitting over 1.5 trillion tons of CO2 annually... The mindless consumption pattern is largely responsible for an alarming level of emission.

At the conclave, top policymakers and experts shared their perspectives on green development, climate finance, and life, to secure a better future  one of Indias key agenda items as chair of the G20.

With more than 17 per cent of the global population, India has contributed only about 4 per cent of global cumulative greenhouse gas emissions between 1850 and 2019, the Union minister added.

Yadav also reminded that Africa, with 54 countries, accounts for only about 3 per cent of global emissions. Against this, 60 per cent of emissions have been contributed by developed nations.

As per the UN environment programme, if 1 billion people adopt environment-friendly behaviour in their daily lives, global carbon emissions could drop by about 20 per cent, Yadav said.

Claiming that climate action will find it difficult to move ahead without adequate climate finance, the minister said, India considers the creation of a dedicated fund, a remarkably important development. But India is also concerned over the future of this fund.

India walking the talk

Yadav said when it comes to India's commitment to net zero-emission by 2070, we are walking the talk. At the COP26, PM Modi declared Panchamrita - a five-fold strategy to achieve this feat, the Union minister said.

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After the mini-reshuffling of the Cabinet, Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday expressed his gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud along with the entire judiciary after his portfolio has been revised from Union law ministry to Union earth sciences ministry. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju(PTI)

It has been been a privelege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law & Justice under the guidance of Honble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. I thank honble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, all Judges of Supreme Court, Chief Justices and Judges of High Courts, Lower Judiciary & entire Law officers for the huge support in ensuring delivering ease of Justice and providing legal services for our citizens, Rijiju said in a tweet.

The Narendra Modi government has effected a mini-reshuffle of the Cabinet, shifting Kiren Rijiju from the law ministry and replacing him with Arjun Ram Meghwal. Soon after the rejig, Rijiju changed his Twitter bio to his newly appointed portfolio.

Rijiju has recently been at crossroads with the judiciary for his contentious remarks over the last year. He questioned the collegium system of appointing judges and the division of powers between the executive and judiciary.

At various public platforms, Rijiju termed the collegium system opaque, alien to the Constitution and the only system in the world where judges appoint people known to them.

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Getting each of the claimants to the top post in the state to see each others strengths, focusing on the big picture of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, a firm, but secret power-sharing deal, a call from Sonia Gandhi, and clear and consistent messaging from party president Mallikarjun Kharge may have helped the Congress party break the impasse over the selection of Karnataka next chief minister, several leaders familiar with the matter said. PREMIUM Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge (centre) with senior party leaders Siddaramaiah (R) and DK Shivakumar in New Delhi. (PTI)

According to the leaders, who asked not to be named, only Kharge and the three observers appointed by the party, Sushil Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria, know the number of legislators who wanted Siddaramaiah as chief minister, how many preferred DK Shivakumar, and those that picked a third candidate or left it to the high command.

And all through, the leaders said, Kharge was clear that this number would be a starting point, with other factors also mattering in the final choice.

In the end, Kharge chose Siddaramiah as chief minister. HT tried to put together a blow-by-blow account of how the decision came about -- and how Shivakumar who seemed to have dug his heels in, may have been made to agree.

The numbers

We only have an estimate that about 27 of us left the decision to the Congress President, said one of the Congresss victorious candidates in the state, adding that he believed there wasnt much of a difference between the two leaders. After the legislature party meeting on Sunday, the observers sat with each of the 135 MLAs and noted their choice. Some MLAs took under a minute, while others expressed their concerns over several minutes. That meeting continued well into the night.

But even then, Kharge had already made it clear to everyone concerned that he preferred a consensus, said a second leader. So, when Siddaramaiah said on TV that most MLAs were behind him on Monday, he was told off .

After the Sunday meeting in Bengaluru, the activity shifted to Kharges residence at 10, Rajaji Marg. It helped that the Congress president knows the state, and helped even more that he was a chief ministerial candidate in 1992, 1999 and 2013, making way for Siddaramiah in the last. And, with the scale of the victory in mind, Kharge, the leaders cited in the first instance said, decided they would simply not allow groups pitching for a Dalit (he is one himself) or a Lingayat (the party has 35 Lingayat MLAs-in-waiting) have their say. The choice according to him, the leaders added, was between Siddaramiah, whose appeal cut across social groups, and Shivakumar, who is widely credited with having built the party organisation in the state for the last three years.

The pitches

In all, the leaders said, Kharge met with each of the claimants five times. Over the five meetings,they added, the two pitched their claims in a calm, methodical manner. Siddaramaiah said that he wanted to deliver the best possible result for the party in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and that this was his last chance to do that as chief minister. He said that since Sonia Gandhi had picked him, an outsider from the JD(S) (he joined the Congress in 2006) as CM in 2013, he felt he could give back much more to the party with a decisive mandate he got this time. He also pointed out that Shivakumar at 61, had age on his side (Siddaramiah is 75). But Kharge and even Rahul Gandhi , the leaders said, told Siddaramiah that Shivakumar had built the party and fought for it, something the latter also emphasised in his pitch.

Power sharing

When the proposal of making him deputy chief minister was first aired, Shivakumar wasnt moved. Indeed, power sharing did not work out for the Congress in either Rajasthan or Chattisgarh. The leaders cited in the first instance said Shivakumar insisted on a switch in two years; Siddaramaiah wanted one after three years. The final arrangement , according to two other Congress leaders is to have Shivakumar take over after 2.5 years, but with the condition that neither aspirant would talk about the deal outside. KC Venugopal is believed to have told both leaders that if they talked about it openly, it would undermine the CM. Officially, all that Venugopal said at the press conference was: We will share the power with the people of Karnataka. Only that is there. Nothing else. Actually, there is.

The final push

On Wednesday evening, it looked as if the negotiations would carry on for a few more days. Kharge wanted to wrap it up as soon as possible but Shivakumars brother, DK Suresh, an MP, and Shivakumars supporters were insistent on all or nothing. Kharge called a meeting with him at 11.30pm where Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala were present. Kharge reminded Shivakumar that he is CM in waiting, hailed his organisational capabilities and loyalty to the party, explained the rationale behind appointing Siddaramaiah, assured him that there would be no other deputy CM, and promised that the power sharing agreement, while not being made public, would be adhered to.

That, the leaders cited in the first instance said, made Shivakumar amenable, but it took a call from Sonia Gandhi to finally convince him. Kharge himself had been in touch with Sonia Gandhi, who is in Himachal Pradesh, since Monday, and she had left the final decision to him.

Shivakumar agreed around 1 am on Thursday.

On Thursday morning, both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar called on Kharge before going to Bengaluru. There was a much-awaited photo op but the three leaders also discussed the government formation and discussed some ministries, said a leader.

The arrangement

There are loose ends to be tied up, the people admitted: whose supporters get maximum cabinet berths, who gets the key portfolios, and how two men with very different styles will get along. After all, things seemed resolved in Rajasthan and Chattissgarh -- till suddenly, they werent.

According to the leaders, the two men have clearly been told that their focus should be on the Lok Sabha elections. Karnataka sends 28 members to the Lok Sabha, and last time, the Congress won one. Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah have been told that if the party doesnt do well, both will be held accountable, they added.
The Congress has called a meeting of its legislative party on Thursday ahead of the expected announcement of Siddaramaiah as the Karnataka chief minister and DK Shivakumar as his deputy. Congress leader Siddaramaiahs supporters celebrate outside his residence in Bengaluru. (PTI)

Shivakumar, who is the Congresss state chief, issued a letter convening the meeting at 7pm in Bengaluru. A Congress functionary, who did not want to be named, said some important portfolios were also to be discussed at the meeting.

The meeting was called after chief ministerial contenders Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar agreed to a compromise formula late on Wednesday. Siddaramaiah is set to get the states top elected post while Shivakumar will be his deputy and remain the state party chief as the Congress resolved a stalemate over the matter after three days of negotiations.

The formula was agreed upon after a meeting with former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi.

A Congress lawmaker said the final details will be announced after the legislative party meeting. ...there is a power-sharing formula that both parties have agreed upon. Most importantly, there is no rift in the party.

Shivakumar said the Congress has a commitment to the people of Karnataka. He cited the 2024 national polls and said he agreed to the power-sharing formula in the larger interest of the party. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a committed to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver, said Shivakumar

There was no clarity on whether there will be a rotation period for the chief ministerial post. People close to Shivakumar claim there will be, with both leaders getting 2.5 years each but there is no confirmation on this. HT learns that a discussion on this may have been deferred till after the 2024 national polls. Shivakumars people are expected to get key posts even as portfolios are yet to be decided.

But while the details will emerge soon, what is clear right now is that a deal has been reached.

Preparations were separately underway in Bengaluru for the new governments oath-taking ceremony, which is expected to take place on Saturday.

The Congress won its biggest victory in Karnataka since 1989 on Saturday, trouncing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on its way to securing 135 seats in the 224-member assembly.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were the partys main campaigners and took care to project a united front on the election trail. But since Sunday evening, when the Congress legislature party passed a one-line resolution empowering the high command to pick the next chief minister, their clashing ambitions have spilled out in the open, creating a logjam.

The party pointed out that such protracted talks were common in Indian politics.

Siddaramaiah, 75, is seen as the partys most popular leader in the state, the architect of its successful Ahinda strategy of building a coalition of backward groups, Dalits, and Muslims. He commands the support of a majority of the elected lawmakers. He comes from the Kuruba community and is a key other backward class (OBC) face.

Shivakumar, 60, does not have as big a mass base but is a key organisation and resource man. He is also the partys chief troubleshooter, having saved Congress governments and safeguarded legislators in the past. He hails from the dominant Vokkaliga community, which was critical to the partys superlative performance in the southern parts of the state, and has the backing of some influential mutts.

Congress leaders earlier shuffled in and out of meetings that ran late into Wednesday night as the party attempted to strike a united front. They scotched rumours of a rift in the party and asked leaders to not make out-of-turn statements to the media, saying that the government will be formed within the next 48-72 hours.

The Congress sought to resolve the impasse without public acrimony as the party wants to carry the momentum from its victory in Karnataka over to assembly elections scheduled later this year, and the 2024 polls.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have camped in Delhi for negotiations. Siddaramaiahmet Rahul Gandhi at Sonia Gandhis residence at 11.30am on Wednesday. Shivakumar met Rahul Gandhi an hour later. Later in the day, Shivakumar met Kharge, his second meeting with the senior leader in as many days.

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Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Thursday Sudipto Sen's controversial movie 'The Kerala Story' had been tax-free in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh because those states are governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party as part of an agenda of 'divisive politics'. "'The Kerala Story' is tax-free in MP and UP because those states are governed by BJP. They won't show films related to revolutionary personalities of India. They will only showcase 'The Kerala Story' and 'The Kashmir Files' free of cost because then they will be able to do divisive politics," the Congress leader said. West Bengal Pradesh Congress President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury addresses a press conference, at the party office in Kolkata, Thursday, May 18, 2023. (PTI)

Chowdhury's comments came shortly after the Supreme Court stayed the Bengal government's ban on the public screening of 'The Kerala Story', ruling the order passed by chief minister Mamata Banerjee's government was not based on any material produced before the top court.

A bench led by chief justice DY Chandrachud also said it was the duty of the elected state government to maintain law and order as the film has been cleared by the censor board.

Reacting to the court's order, Bengal's women and social welfare minister Shashi Panja said, "Supreme Court has given its observation. Following this, what action CM will take is something which she will say... but her intent was that no community be hurt and, in case any community feels hurt and reacts, if there is any law and order situation disturbance - for this she took the call."

The BJP's Amit Malviya - who ripped into Mamata Banerjee after she announced the ban, accusing her of 'stand(ing) with radical elements and not with our daughters - welcomed the Supreme Court verdict. "It is now incumbent on Mamata Banerjee, as home minister of Bengal, to ensure the movie is screened without any disruption. Her constant dog-whistles, like this one, (are) steeped in appeasement politics, and on several occasions, have undermined free speech in Bengal."

Mamata Banerjee had said: "West Bengal government has decided to ban the movie 'The Kerala Story'. This is to avoid any incident of hatred and violence, and to maintain peace in the state What is 'The Kashmir Files'? It was to humiliate one section. What is 'The Kerala Story'?... It is distorted."

'The Kerala Story' - which claims to depict the 'forced recruitment and conversion of young girls and women by the Islamic State' - triggered a furious political row even before it was released; the movie's trailer claimed 32,000 girls from Kerala went missing, were radicalised and joined the terror group.

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After days of uncertainty, Congress has come to a decision on who would be the Karnataka's next chief minister. Siddaramaiah will hold the state's top position and Shivakumar will be the second-in-command. Karnataka Congress President D.K. Shivakumar.(PTI)

The tallest Vokkaliga leader and a trusted lieutenant of the Gandhi family, Shivakumar is considered a troubleshooter for Congress. Along with deputy chief minister post, reports suggest that he has also been offered six other portfolios. However, there has been no decision on the offer yet, sources familiar with the development said.

Here are top points on DK Shivakumar:

The staunch Congressman was born on May 15, 1962, in Kanakapura to Doddalahalli Kempe Gowda and Gauramma. He started his political career as a student leader in the 1980s. DK Shivakumar belongs to the Vokkaliga community, the second-most dominant community after Lingayats in Karnataka. An eight-time MLA, Shivakumar was at the thick of things in Maharashtra in 2002 as the then Vilas Rao Deshmukh government won no-confidence motion. He was also behind the victory of late Ahmad Patel in the Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat 2017 as he huddled the Congress MLAs in the western state in a resort. Several cases have been registered against him after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2018 booked him along with others in a money laundering case which alleged him of tax evasion and hawala dealings. Later, a series of raids by Income Tax department followed. In 2019, he was arrested by ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after an intense interrogation. He got bail on October 23, 2019. He was also booked under the anti-money laundering law in 2022. Notably, he is the third richest among other candidates who registered their candidature for the 2023 Karnataka assembly election. He contested his maiden election from Sathanur assembly seat when he was just 27 and after over three decades, he continued his winning streak in Kanakapura seat where he defeated six-time MLA from BJP R Ashoka.

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For five days, DK Shivakumar held his ground, refusing to back down. In front of an opponent with considerable heft and a pan-Karnataka appeal, he argued his case passionately, both in Bengaluru and Delhi. On Thursday, he did give in, acceding to the idea that he would not be the states next chief minister but the only deputy to Siddaramaiah. This could well mean more battles ahead, both with the BJP in 2024, and for his own space the Karnataka Congress, of which he will continue to be president. But if the 40-year-long political career of DK Shivakumar -- as troubleshooter, businessman, strongman, loyalist -- is anything to go by, he will be up for the fight, and for the next job at hand. PREMIUM Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar. (PTI)

Born in Kanakpura, a small village on the outskirts of Bengaluru to a family of agriculturalists, Shivakumar joined politics when he was studyingat RC College in Bengaluru. By the age of 21, the powerful orator who carried a sense of destiny was elected the general secretary of the Karnataka State Youth Congress.

In 1985, still in his twenties, Shivakumar made his first big political move, and went up against the Janata Party heavyweight HD Deve Gowda in the assembly elections in Sathanur. He lost but performed creditably, making waves for the fight he put up, winning 38.8% of the vote. Four years later, in 1989, when Deve Gowda did not contest, Shivakumar returned to Sathanur and entered the state assembly for the first time.

Troubleshooter par excellence

Soon, Shivakumar started forging his broader national identity as the man for a crisis. In 1991, when Veerendra Patil was unable to continue as chief minister because of failing health, Shivakumar helped steady an unstable party, and contributed to S Bangarappa being appointed the CM. He eventually served as the minister for state for prisons & home guards, his first administrative experience.

It helped that parallel to his burgeoning political career, Shivakumar grew as a businessman, with interests in hotels, educational institutions, agricultural land, and real estate in Mysuru, Mumbai, Kanakpura, Delhi and Bengaluru. In 2023, he was the third richest candidate in the state to contest, with assets of 1,413 crore.

In 2002, when the Vilasrao Deshmukh Congress government in Maharashtra was on a precipice, facing a no-confidence motion, Shivakumar was in the thick of the action. Deshmukh got in touch with Shivakumar. Already a trouble shooter, Shivakumar huddled the Maharashtra MLAs in his resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The move saved the Deshmukh government, a Congress leader, who did not want to be named, recounted.

Fifteen years later, Shivakumar was on the job again, instrumental in ensuring the dramatic victory of Ahmad Patel for his Rajya Sabha seat, shifting 44 dithering MLAs to Bengaluru.

It was a role he mastered, and party called on him to play it repeatedly.

In 2018, despite the Congress being the second largest party, Shivakumar helped engineer the formation of the government with the JD(S). And when that government collapsed under the weight of its own contradictions, Shivakumar fought the hardest, following the truant MLAs to Mumbai, sitting there in the rain, refusing to move until they met and returned with him.

Shivakumar made many friends, has always had one lodestar: Sonia Gandhi. In 2004, when Sonia Gandhi declined the chance to be Prime Minister, he led a protest outside her home in Delhi, beseeching her to reconsider. In his office in Bengaluru is a photograph of him and Sonia Gandhi -- one that referred to repeatedly this past week. This is from the chintan shivir in Udaipur. She told me I had to deliver Karnataka, and I have done it, he said.

From loyalist to leader

But as the target on his back has grown, allegations of corruption have followed. His latest election affidavit lists 19 cases against him, and in 2019, he spent 50 days in jail, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case. True to form, he turned this imprisonment into a political opportunity, with Sonia Gandhi visiting him, and exiting prison to a grand welcome by his supporters in Bengaluru in October 2019.

Party functionaries close to Shivakumar said that over the years, conscious of an image that bordered on brash, he looked to course-correct. He got training in how to speak to the media, what he should wear, even his beard, a party leader close to him said. He began tweeting both in English and Kannada, and there was a team of photographers that followed him everywhere.

He took over as Karnatakta Congress president in 2020 and traversed the state, putting out any dissidence in the state unit, fractured by leaders often jumping ship from one party to another. He targeted the BJP for corruption, including social media campaigns designed to push the labels of PayCM and 40% sarkara that stuck with the people. And he engineered one defection from the BJP after another.

Shivakumar has walked the line between leveraging his identity as a Vokkaliga, the second largest community in Karnataka, and being a pan-Karnataka leader. In the run up to the 2023 elections, he frequented Old Mysuru, the Vokkaliga heartland and Deve Gowdas bastion. But, compared to other leaders, in public, he didnt just project himself as a Vokkaliga leader, and tried to create a pan-state image as well, one Karnataka Congress leader said.

He was characteristically belligerent on the campaign trail, certain that the party would win 141 seats. Many, even within, had thought that number was an overestimation, and it was -- but only by six seats. He may not have become chief minister yet, but his supporters know Shivakumar has always been a fighter, and say that his time will come. Siddaramaiah is a good orator and a mass leader. But Shivakumar revived the party. He should have become chief minister but has given it up for the party, his old friend S Ravi said.

And his next assignment, the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, is just a year away.
PM Narendra Modi inaugurates international museum expo Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inaugurated the international museum expo at the national Capital. He also unveiled the plan for one of the worlds largest museums, Yuge Yugeen Bharat, which will capture 5,000 years of Indias history and replace the existing one. Read Here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates International Museum Expo 2023 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi on Thursday. Union Ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal, G. Kishan Reddy and Meenakshi Lekhi are also seen. (ANI)

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The G20 summit will play a crucial role for future climate discussions and help shore up action required from both developed and developing countries, experts said on Thursday as they stressed on the key issues of climate finance and loss and damage fund during the HT G20 Agenda on green development; climate finance and LiFE (lifestyle for environment). PREMIUM From left: Ambassador of the delegation of EU to India Ugo Astuto; director general at the Centre for Science and Environment Sunita Narain; CEO of CEEW Dr Arunabha Ghosh; and CEO of ReNew Sumant Sinha, at the HT G20 Agenda in New Delhi on Thursday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT)

Stressing on the need for swift action against the climate crisis, the experts cited the latest World Meteorological Organization (WMO) report that has warned against a likely breach of the 1.5C temperature threshold, at least temporarily, within the next five years.

Also read: PM Modis participation in G7 Summit to boost synergy with G20: Japan envoy

Its a very important time for us  for the Indian Government to make sure that the issue of climate action is given the highest priority for the future. G20 is the opportunity to put forward a very clear statement that we take the issue of climate change and mitigation very seriously, at a time when countries appear to be missing their 2030 targets, said Sunita Narain, director general (DG) at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), who was a panellist at the G20 Agenda discussion.

Across the world, she added, countries are still reliant on oil and gas, and fossil fuels. I think its important for G20, under the leadership of India, to make sure that there are very clear statements about both the need for action, the need for equity and climate justice, without which one will not get an effective climate agreement for the future.

Another panellist, Arunabha Ghosh, CEO at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), said it was important for the G20 to recognise that the climate crisis is not just an environmental issue.

It is at the heart of a far bigger existential problem that will impact our economic prospects, human development, the resilience of our natural ecosystems and the prospects for future generations, he said.

The loss and damage fund, a key proposal during COP27 climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh last year, aims to compensate the most vulnerable countries facing the adverse effects of climate change. It also featured in Thursdays discussion.

Experts also raised the need to have a clearly defined mechanism for the distribution of funds and eligibility of countries that can be compensated for the losses.

Apart from the G20, there is also a financing summit that president (Emmanuel) Macron is hosting next month. India is co-chairing the steering committee and one of the things we are exploring is how we can explore innovative financing mechanisms that can raise a lot more capital particularly to address the vulnerability issue. While mitigation financing gets a lot more investment from the private sector, adaptation and particularly resilience will require a lot more innovative thinking, Ghosh said.

On whether India, as a developing nation, contributed to this loss and damage fund, Narain said that the Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992, was quite clear on this. It was a rule-based system.

The biggest question out there is, who should pay for the loss and damage fund? Should India pay for it? Now our position has been absolutely no and this is where we go back to the root of the problem of climate negotiations. In the 1992 framework, it was said that there are a group of countries which have created the problem and they need to reduce emissions. The remaining world will also add to emissions as they grow and they need the right to develop, but they must develop differently, and for that, they need finance and technology. India has not contributed to the stock of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, either in the past or even up to 2030 and it should not be part of the conversation... Narain added, asserting that it was simply a distraction to delay framing this global negotiation.

Ugo Astuto, ambassador of the delegation of European Union (EU) to India, who was also part of the discussion, clarified that the EU was already demonstrating its commitment in respect of the last edition of the COP summit.

In the last few days, there was the controversy whether a loss and damage fund be created or not, but then the EU clearly came out in favour of its creation and together, we are working with India for a positive conclusion. The EU today is already the largest provider of public funds when it comes to climate change and the largest provider worldwide of development aid. In the EU, we also have a target now of cutting carbon emissions by 55% by 2030. This is enshrined in law and not a vague aspiration, meaning all EU member states will have to follow this. he said, stating that the G20 summit can be instrumental, as collectively, the G20 countries were a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, the countries have a particular responsibility too. It is a forum where collective decisions can be taken and agenda can be shaped, he added.

The issue of a transition to renewable energy was also brought up during the discussion, with experts calling for a smooth transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, without impacting developing countries significantly. Sumant Sinha, founder, CEO and chairman of ReNew, said the country was on course to meet its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement of meeting 50% of its energy requirements by non-fossil fuels by 2030.

In terms of meeting this target, I think we will be able to achieve it, because we are already at 40% right now. Getting to 50% means that if we just add the next 50-60 GW in renewable energy, we will be there and that will happen in the next three to four years.

Also read: China, Turkey likely to skip G20 meet in Kashmir

However, he said there were also roadblocks, which were making the process slow. Adding capacity for renewables is not that simple, as there are certain execution issues which we are dealing with and that is preventing us from going at a certain pace. We have to plan this transition very carefully, because if we phase out fossil fuels too rapidly and the renewables are not able to phase in fast enough then it will have a fundamental problem.

Narain added that while coal had been phased out by countries which have currently contributed the most to greenhouse gas emissions, now the onus suddenly lies upon the remaining 70% of the world to do the same, which she believes is unfair.

Essentially, this means that 70 per cent of the world which has not contributed to the stock of greenhouse gases -- which is least capable of moving out of its current energy security, which is based on coal, the onus of change is put on them. One needs to move towards looking at gas and coal together. Delhi has banned coal within a 100km radius, due to high pollution levels. We want industries to move towards gas, but the gas prices are so high today, largely because of the fact that today, all the gas in the world is going towards countries willing to pay more. she said.
If one were to count the recent Karnataka elections, 400 out of Indias 543 parliamentary constituencies (PCs) have voted in state elections after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. This number does not include 49 PCs in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim, where assembly elections are held along with the Lok Sabha elections, and another 11 PCs located in Union territories which do not have assembly elections in any case. Can an extrapolation-based analysis of these results tell us anything about possible implications for the 2024 elections? Here are four charts which try to answer this question. PREMIUM Can an extrapolation-based analysis of these results tell us anything about possible implications for the 2024 elections?(PTI)

First a caveat: 2019 Lok Sabha results show extrapolation of state polls could be misleading An extrapolation of state election results between 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections would give the BJP just 222 of the 489 PCs which went to polls (Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh were not Union territories without legislature in that period) in that period. In 2019, the BJP won 291 of these PCs. This serves as a caution against reading too much into state election results to understand what they could be in 2024. Having said this, here is what an analysis shows. An extrapolation of state election results between 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections would give the BJP just 222 of the 489 PCs which went to polls (Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh were not Union territories without legislature in that period) in that period. In 2019, the BJP won 291 of these PCs. This serves as a caution against reading too much into state election results to understand what they could be in 2024. Having said this, here is what an analysis shows.

BJPs seat share shows a sharp fall in post-2019 assembly elections and the Congress is not the beneficiary

Of the 400 PCs which have gone to polls in assembly elections after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 223 in the 2019 elections. In an extrapolation of state results, this number stands at just 177. The Congress, which won 44 out of these 400 PCs, will see an increase to 46 as a result of the extrapolation. As is obvious, the biggest gainers from the extrapolation are regional parties, with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leading the rankings. To be sure, it is important to point out that some of the changes in these numbers could be on account of changes in the number of seats contested on account of change in alliance as well. Also, because state-level alliances can lead to sharing of ACs within a PC, all AC-wise wins need not translate into PC-wise wins.

BJP has lost most PCs in state elections of Karnataka, West Bengal, Delhi, and Bihar

In terms of absolute number of PCs lost for the BJP, Karnataka tops this list (loss of 17 PCs), followed by West Bengal, Delhi, and Bihar, where the party has lost eight, seven, and seven PCs. Karnataka and Delhi  states where the BJP had big victories in the national elections and lost badly in the following state election  are also at the top of the list in proportional loss of PCs compared to 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Congress would also have lost PCs if not for Karnataka

To be sure, the Congress would also have a net loss of PCs if not for Karnataka. Before the Karnataka elections, it was 15 PCs behind its 2019 tally in the 372 PCs where state elections had been held, despite its already small tally in the Lok Sabha polls. The only states where Congress has gained PCs in state elections (compared to the Lok Sabha elections) are Karnataka, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana.

State poll performances could matter in alliance negotiations for 2024

While it is risky to extrapolate state election results to national elections, they could matter for alliance negotiations before 2024. For instance, while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won 10 PCs in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, when it was in an alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP), it did not win even one AC in the 2022 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. This will drastically reduce its importance in any alliance negotiation for the 2024 elections. Similarly, if the results of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh elections are on the lines of what they were in 2013, the Congresss extrapolated PC tally will be just 55 before the 2024 elections, which will not be significantly large compared to that of the Trinamool Congress (32), a party which has been pushing the Congress to cede more ground in any larger opposition alliance in 2024. However, if it were to even replicate its 2018 performance in these three states, its extrapolated PC tally would reach 80, placing the Congress in a better position for negotiations with other opposition parties.

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Here are todays top news, analysis, and opinion from Hindustan Times newspaper. The meeting will be held during May 22-24. (AFP)

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The Hyderabad polices special investigation team probing the Telangana Public Service Commission question paper leak case on Wednesday announced the arrest of four more persons in connection with the case that came to fore in March, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The Hyderabad polices special investigation team is probing the Telangana Public Service Commission question paper leak case. (PTI)

The officials identified the arrested accused as Atla Suchitra, wife of Atla Rajasekhar Reddy who is accused no. 2 (A-2) and had worked as in-charge of TSPSCs networking wing on outsourcing basis and Lavudya Shanti, wife of L Rajeshwar Naik who is accused no. 5 (A-5), besides candidates Ramavath Dattu and Rahul Kumar, who had bought the question papers paying huge amounts.

With the latest arrests, the total number of people arrested in the TSPSC question paper leak case has touched 35, a police official familiar with the development said on anonymity.

While Sucharita and Shanti were found to have taken the divisional accounts officer recruitment test after obtaining the question papers from their husbands, Rahul and Dattu had written assistant engineer (AE) recruitment examination after buying the question papers from the other accused in the case, L Renuka and L Dhakya Nayak, who are presently in the judicial remand.

The latest arrests were made based on the call data obtained from the mobile phones of the accused and other technical evidence. All the four arrested have been remanded to judicial custody for two weeks, the police official quoted above said.

On March 13, the Hyderabad police had announced the TSPSC paper leal case with the arrest of nine people. Subsequently, the TSPSC cancelled the examinations for Group-I, assistant engineers, veterinary assistant surgeons, divisional accounts officer etc, after the case was entrusted to the SIT.

As the investigation progressed, the SIT authorities arrested many others connected with the case. They also questioned TSPSC chairman B Janardhan Reddy, senior IAS officer-cum-TSPSC secretary Anitha Ramachandran and others including members of the commission.

Cases were booked against the accused under Sections 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code, besides Section 66 (b) (c) and 70 of the Information Technology Act and Section 8 of Prevention of Examinations Malpractices Act.

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India is in touch with the US authorities for speedy extradition of Tahawwur Rana, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday in the wake of an American court approving the extradition to India of the Canadian-Pakistani national convicted for his role in the Mumbai attacks of 26/11. Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra (L) and 26/11 Mumbai attacks accused Tahawwur Rana (R) (File Photo)

On May 16, magistrate judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US district court of the central district of California issued a 48-page order stating Rana should be extradited to India.

The ruling is being seen as a major step forward in Indias efforts to bring perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.

Also Read: India in touch with US on Tahawwur Ranas early extradition: Foreign secy Vinay Kwatra

Insofar as the question of Tahawwur Rana is concerned, we are in very regular touch with the US authorities to ensure that there is speedy and early extradition of Tahawwur Rana, Kwatra told a news briefing.

We have all seen the judgement which was given by the local US court. That conversation of ours with the US side is continuing, he said.

Kwatra was responding to a question on whether prime minister Narendra Modi will take up the issue of Ranas extradition if there is a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

Kwatra didnt confirm whether a bilateral meeting would be held. He, however, said, The bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the G7 Summit are still being firmed up. So I am not going to make any assumptions about which meeting will happen and which will not.

Modi will leave for Hiroshima on Friday to attend outreach sessions at the G7 summit.

The ruling on Ranas extradition came just over a month before PM Modi makes his first state to the US at the invitation of Biden.

Rana, currently in a federal lockup in downtown Los Angeles, can appeal against the California courts order in a circuit court.

India and the US have an extradition treaty. The US judge ruled Ranas extradition to India would be fully within the jurisdiction of this treaty.

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The Indian Navy on Wednesday responded to a request from the Chinese Navy and offered assistance in the ongoing search for a Chinese fishing vessel that sank in the Indian Ocean. The vessel had reportedly 39 people onboard, including 17 Chinese crew members, 17 Indonesians, and five Filipinos. China sought help from several multiple countries, including India, for the rescue operation of the capsized vessel, located in the central region of the Indian Ocean since Tuesday. P8I aircraft carried out multiple searches despite adverse weather, the Indian Navy said.(Indian Navy/Twitter)

In a statement on Thursday, the Indian Navy said it deployed its Air MR assets in the Southern Indian Ocean Region to rescue the sinking Chinese fishing vessel.

"P8I aircraft have carried out multiple & extensive searches despite adverse weather & located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel. As an immediate response, SAR equipment was deployed at the scene by the Indian aircraft on request of PLA(N) ships closing the area," the Indian Navy spokesperson tweeted.

In a display of Indias obligations as a #credible & #responsible partner for ensuring #safety at sea, the #IndianNavy units also coordinated #SAR efforts with other units in the area & guided #PLA(N) warships transiting to the scene of incident," it added.

Two bodies found in Chinese vessel

On Thursday, two bodies were found in the search for the missing crew members, China's state media reported. The ongoing search operation following the capsizing of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 found and salvaged the remains of two victims, Xinhua news agency reported.

No details were given on the nationalities of the two bodies found on Thursday.

The boat capsized within Australia's vast search-and-rescue region, Beijing's ambassador to Canberra said on Thursday, noting it was 5,000 kilometres to the west of Perth, the state capital of Western Australia.

Countries are responsible for ensuring search and rescue in determined areas of the world's oceans under an international maritime convention.

Australia has sent three aeroplanes and four ships to help in the international search-and-rescue efforts, ambassador Xiao Qian said earlier, urging Canberra to send more aircraft, ships and personnel to find the vessel.

Australian maritime identifies large area in Indian Ocean

A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told Xinhua that based on drift modelling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the media on Wednesday that the Chinese and foreign vessels have arrived at relevant waters to conduct a search and rescue operation after the fishing vessel Lupeng Yuanyu 028 capsized.

More help is on the way. "We will continue to work together with relevant sides to do everything possible to find those who have gone missing," he said.

The AMSA said it is also working with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew, and it is enhancing its coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday condoled the passing away of Ambala MP Rattan Lal Kataria saying that the demise is an irreparable loss to politics. **EDS: FILE PHOTO** New Delhi: In this Friday, May 31, 2019, file photo, then union minister Rattan Lal Kataria, in New Delhi. Kataria passed away on Thursday, May 18, 2023. (PTI Photo/Vijay Verma)(PTI05_18_2023_000002A)(PTI)

"I am deeply saddened by the demise of former Union Minister of State and MP from Ambala Mr. Ratan Lal Kataria. He always raised his voice in the Parliament for the welfare of the society and the progress of the people of Haryana. His departure is an irreparable loss to politics. May God give place to the departed soul in his holy feet and give strength to the family in this difficult time. Om Shanti!" CM Khattar said in a tweet.

Ambala MP and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rattan Lal Kataria passed away at a government hospital in Chandigarh, his wife Banto Kataria said on Thursday.

The three times parliamentarian was admitted to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh. He had been under critical condition for the past few days.

Earlier on Wednesday evening, former Tripura Chief Minister and BJP, in-charge Haryana Biplab Kumar Deb had reached Chandigarh PGI to inquire about the well-being of the 72-year-old and wished him a speedy recovery.

Condoling the demise, the former Tripura CM took to Twitter and said, "The demise of former Union MoS and Ambala MP Mr Rattan lal Kataria is very sad. Last night itself I met Kataria ji at PGI Chandigarh, his willpower was very strong even in her last moments. My deepest condolences to his family in this hour of grief. May God give peace to the holy soul of Kataria ji and give strength to the bereaved family members to bear this loss."

The last rites will be held today at 12 noon at the cremation ground in Manimajra, Chandigarh.
NEW DELHI: Japan wants to achieve more synergy between its development cooperation in Indias northeastern states and neighbouring Bangladesh, including using the Matarbari sea port to create a new industrial value chain, Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki said on Thursday. Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki said he thinks he has succeeded in taking the first step towards sharing Prime Minister Kishidas vision. (Photo courtesy: Embassy of Japan)

Japan is the largest foreign development partner for both the northeastern states and Bangladesh, and it is playing a key role in the construction of the Matarbari deep seaport in Coxs Bazar district. In March, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) extended three infrastructure construction loans worth $1.2 billion for the port project.

Also read: Why PM Kishida invited PM Modi to G7 Summit in Hiroshima? Japans envoy explains

What Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida wants to achieve is to have more synergy between what Japan is doing in terms of development cooperation in northeast India and what Japan is doing in Bangladesh and harness the Matarbari deep seaport to create a new industrial value chain, Suzuki said in an interview to HT.

Japans efforts in this region will replicate its achievements with the Southern Economic Corridor (SEC), which links Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, though the work is expected to be completed in a much shorter time than the nearly three decades it took to create the Southeast Asian corridor. The SEC led to not just connectivity but a new industrial value chain emanating from Bangkok and going through Phnom Phen and Ho Chi Minh City, Suzuki said.

We want to achieve a similar story by harnessing the Matarbari deep seaport. JICA is now working very hard in Bangladesh to develop this deep seaport [which] can be a game changer. Big container ships can come here and from Matarbari, you can export anywhere in the world, Suzuki said.

PM Kishida first unveiled his vision for a Bay of Bengal-Northeast India industrial value chain concept during a key policy speech delivered in New Delhi on March 20.

JICAs work to build roads and bridges in Indias northeast and in Bangladesh has proceeded so far on separate tracks. What Prime Minister Kishida wants to do is to connect these two so that Indias northeast can become a natural destination for prospective future investment, Suzuki said.

The Matabari seaport is expected to become commercially operational in 2027, and this will also drive investments in the region. Kishida wants to create a new industrial value chain to use these connectivities to the fullest extent possible. Suzuki recently travelled to Tripura to convene a Track 1.5 conference that was attended by Union minister for development of northeastern region G Kishan Reddy, Bangladeshs maritime transport minister, deputy foreign ministers of both countries and top businesspersons.

Also read: PM Modis participation in G7 Summit to boost synergy with G20: Japan envoy

I think I succeeded in making the first step towards sharing Prime Minister Kishidas vision...Now, JICA has applied to implement a study on cross-border connectivity and traffic covering Indias northeast and JICA will also conduct similar studies on the Bangladesh side, Suzuki said.

Japan will encourage business leaders to take a fresh look at Indias northeast, to fully harness its potential, though this process cannot be completed overnight, he said. Suzuki said he wants to shorten the time for the connectivity initiatives in Indias northeast. Japan cannot do this alone. We need all the help we can get from our friends in India and Bangladesh, he said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rezaul H Laskar Rezaul H Laskar is the Foreign Affairs Editor at Hindustan Times. His interests include movies and music. ...view detail
Japan believes Prime Minister Narendra Modis participation in the G7 Summit will build synergy between the G7 and G20 processes, especially to address the issues of the Global South, Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki said on Thursday. Japan will be the first stop on PM Narendra Modis three-nation tour beginning on Friday (HT file image)

India is among eight countries invited to participate in outreach sessions of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima during May 19-21, and Modi can speak with legitimacy for developing countries after having heard concerns of more than 100 of these nations during the Voice of Global South Summit in January, Suzuki said in an interview.

We would be very grateful if Prime Minister Modi can share his vision of how [he is] going to set the G20 agenda based on the outcome of the G7 Summit, because that way we [can] have more synergy, Suzuki said.

Also Read:Biden off to Japan for G-7 Summit, says work to do on global stage

Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida believes close coordination between G20 and G7 is critically important to forge unity in an increasing polarised world to address challenges faced by developing countries, including rising food and energy prices, energy security, climate change, sustainable development and health, he said.

These are all important challenges and saying we have sympathy towards the Global South, we need to collaborate with the Global South  words alone cannot deliver. We need concrete action and thats what Prime Minister Kishida hopes to move forward, Suzuki said.

Japan will be the first stop on Modis three-nation tour beginning on Friday, and a meeting between the Indian and Japanese premiers on the margins of the G7 Summit will be an opportunity to take stock of progress in bilateral ties since Kishidas visit to New Delhi in March.

The two leaders will have an opportunity to meet again on the margins of the G20 Summit in September. This would be a very good midway point [for] the two leaders [to] take stock of the progress and give political impetus for further progress to be made going into the G20 Summit, Suzuki said.

For Japan, two key themes for the G7 Summit are upholding rule of law, especially in the context of Russias invasion of Ukraine, and engagement with the global community, particularly the Global South, Suzuki said.

We cannot afford to go back to the law of the jungle. With the Russian aggression of Ukraine, Russia is destroying the core values of the international community enshrined in the UN Charter, such as sovereignty, respect for territorial integrity and the rule of law, he said, adding a big country bullying a smaller neighbourhood and getting away with it could inspire similar actions in other parts of the world.

Prime Minister Kishidas point is this kind of unilateral attempt to change the status quo must not be allowed anywhere in the world, period...By emphasizing the importance of upholding the rule of law, sovereignty, territorial integrity, we want the rule of law to prevail all over the world, including the Indo-Pacific, East China Sea, South China Sea, he said.

On the bilateral front, Suzuki said Japans new National Security Strategy opens new avenues for cooperation with India in the realm of defence, including the Indian side benefiting from a new category of assistance known as Official Security Assistance.

The new National Security Strategy is a historic step forward and it has a specific mention of India. With this new strategy, the Japanese government is going to create a new framework of assistance called Official Security Assistance [whereby] the Japanese government, for the first time, will be able to extend assistance directly to the department of defence and armed forces of foreign countries, he said.

Japans National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy and Defense Buildup Program were unveiled last December, and the government is now fleshing out details. Of course, we envisage India among the countries to which Japan would like to extend this new Official Security Assistance...It will give another dimension to defence cooperation between Japan and India, he added.

Suzuki said security cooperation between Japan and India has made major progress in recent years and the two sides now have joint exercises for all three services. The two sides also decided at their 2+2 ministerial meeting last September to hold joint staff talks, and the first such talks will be held in the coming months.

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NEW DELHI: Japan believes Prime Minister Narendra Modis participation in the G7 Summit will build synergy between the G7 and G20 processes, especially to address the issues of the Global South, Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki said on Thursday. Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki said he hoped that the India-Japan bilateral summit on the occasion of the G7 Summit will be sort of taking stock of the progress made from March (Embassy of Japan: Photo courtesy)

In an exclusive interview, Suzuki also spoke of Japans plans to achieve greater synergy between its development cooperation projects in Indias northeastern states and neighbouring Bangladesh, including using the Matarbari deep seaport to create a new industrial value chain. Edited excerpts:

What is Japan hoping that India will bring to the table through Prime Minister Narendra Modis participation in outreach sessions of the G7 Summit? In terms of the bilateral relationship, what are the immediate priorities with India?

Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida hopes that by inviting Prime Minister Modi, other G7 leaders and key leaders of the invited countries can share first-hand Prime Minister Modis vision going from Hiroshima [G7 Summit] to the G20 Summit. Prime Minister Modi can speak with legitimacy, with authenticity [as] the voice of the Global South because he heard from more than 100 countries in January at the Global South Summit. Prime Minister Kishida believes its critically important for G7 to collaborate with the Global South and take meaningful actions to address key challenges, like the food crisis, energy security, climate change, health and sustainable development. These are all important challenges and saying we have sympathy towards the Global South, we need to collaborate with the Global South  words alone cannot deliver. We need concrete action and thats what Prime Minister Kishida hopes to move forward. Because in order to address global challenges, we need more unity in the world. Because united we can be more effective. So thats what Prime Minister Kishida hopes [to achieve] by inviting Prime Minister Modi.

On the bilateral front, the G7 Summit and engagement dialogues are very important. The bilateral summit on the occasion this G7 Summit naturally tends to be limited in terms of time allowed, but Prime Minister Kishida, when he visited Delhi in March, at the top of his agenda was this G7-G20 collaboration. But they spent a substantial amount of time on bilateral relations. I hope this India-Japan bilateral summit on the occasion of the G7 Summit will be sort of taking stock of the progress made from March, and then the two leaders will have an opportunity to meet again on the margins of the G20 Summit in September. This would be a very good midway point from March, going to September. The two leaders will take stock of the progress and give political impetus for further progress to be made going into the G20 Summit in September.

Prime Minister Kishida, in his policy speech during his visit to India in March, outlined a very interesting initiative - the Bay of Bengal-Northeast India industrial value chain. What are the concrete ways that you have made progress on this initiative?

What Prime Minister Kishida wants to achieve is to have more synergy between what Japan is doing in terms of development cooperation in northeast India and what Japan is doing in Bangladesh and harness the Matarbari deep seaport to create a new industrial value chain. The kind of endeavours that Japan has been doing in the last 30 years in the Mekong area, you see what is called the Southern Economic Corridor, going from Bangkok through Phnom Phen leading to Ho Chi Minh City. It took 30 years. In the first place, we had so many Japanese companies in Bangkok but no Japanese companies were investing in Phnom Phen. Around the turn of the century, one listed company invested in Phnom Phen, this was a game changer. This brought a whole range of new investments into Phnom Phen, which finally led to Ho Chi Minh City.

Now we can see not just connectivity but a new industrial value chain emanating from Bangkok through Phnom Phen leading to Ho Chi Minh. We want to achieve a similar story by harnessing the Matarbari deep seaport. JICA is now working very hard in Bangladesh to develop this deep seaport and since its a deep seaport, it can be a game changer. Big container ships can come here and from Matarbari, you can export anywhere in the world. Japan is building roads and bridges in Indias northeast and also building roads and bridges in Bangladesh. Until now this has been separate. JICA is implementing those projects, but so far theyre independent.

What Prime Minister Kishida wants to do is to connect these two so that Indias northeast can become a natural destination for prospective future investment. The Matarbari deep seaport will become commercially operational in 2027. So, if you are a top business sitting in Dhaka, you look around and what would be a natural place to invest in next? In four years time, this deep seaport will become operational, can be a game changer and JICA is building so many roads and bridges to enhance connectivity. Prime Minister Kishida wants to create a new industrial value chain to utilize these connectivities to the fullest extent possible. Thats why I went to Tripura to convene a Track 1.5 conference. It was very well attended, the Union minister in-charge of northeastern development was kind enough to attend, we had the Bangladesh minister in-charge of maritime transport, also the state ministers from both the Indian MEA and Bangladesh foreign ministry attended and we had attendance of top businessmen from Delhi and also people from academia.

I think I succeeded in making the first step towards sharing Prime Minister Kishidas vision. People there were all enthusiastic to learn the details of this vision. Now, JICA has applied to implement a study on cross-border connectivity and traffic covering Indias northeast and JICA will conduct similar studies on the Bangladesh side. We plan to encourage business leaders to take a fresh look at Indias northeast, to fully harness its potential, and I know it cannot be done overnight.

In Mekong, with the Southern Economic Corridor, it took 30 years. I want to shorten the time. In four years time, Matarbari port will become commercially operational. So for five years, 10 years, hopefully in 15 years time, we can see what we see now in the Southern Economic Corridor in Indias northeast, Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal area. Thats Prime Minister Kishidas vision and I want to share his vision with as many Indian and Bangladesh friends. So that you know, Japan cannot do this alone. We need all the help we can get from our friends in India and Bangladesh.

Prime Minister Kishidas speech in India mentioned the Ukraine crisis very prominently. On the Indian side, the response to this crisis has been also shaped by the traditional relationship with Russia. Does Japan worry that the rule of jungle will come to a place like the East China Sea or Taiwan Strait?

Prime Minister Kishida sees the war in Ukraine not just as a European war. It has global implications. Thats why Prime Minister Kishida and the Japanese government have been vocal in criticising Russia, because Russia is destroying the fundamental values enshrined in the UN Charter, which came to be clearly stipulated in the Charter as the result of the horrors that we experienced during World War 2. Prime Minister Kishidas point is this kind of unilateral attempt to change the status quo must not be allowed anywhere in the world, period. You mentioned South China Sea, East China Sea, so of course by emphasizing the importance of upholding the rule of law, sovereignty, territorial integrity, we want the rule of law to prevail all over the world, including the Indo-Pacific, East China Sea, South China Sea. Thats what Prime Minister Kishida is driving.

Japans new National Security Strategy and the new defence build-up programme are groundbreaking. As you start implementing these strategies, is there room for greater collaboration with India, in terms of joint exercises and joint development of military hardware?

The new National Security Strategy is a historic step forward and it has a specific mention of India. With this new strategy, the Japanese government is going to create a new framework of assistance called the Official Security Assistance. This is the first step. For the last many decades, Japan has been providing official development assistance (ODA) but essentially, the ODA projects have been confined to non-defence areas. With the creation of a new framework, Official Security Assistance, the Japanese government, for the first time, will be able to extend assistance directly to the department of defence and armed forces of foreign countries. Of course, we envisage India among the countries to which Japan would like to extend the new Official Security Assistance. Since this National Security Strategy was decided by a cabinet decision only in December last year, experts in the government are still working very hard to flesh out details of this new assistance. But since it will allow assistance to be provided directly to armed forces, I hope this will break new ground, start a new chapter in the collaboration between Japan and India. The security cooperation between the two countries has made major progress over the last several years. We are now having joint military exercises for all three services. In the 2+2 ministerial meeting in September last year, the ministers agreed to hold joint staff talks. I hope we will be able to have the first joint staff talks in the coming months. On top of that, when the Official Security Assistance becomes a reality, it will give another dimension to defence cooperation between Japan and India.

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Days after hectic parleys in the national capital post Congress' big win in the southern state, Siddaramaiah has been named as the next chief minister of Karnataka on Thursday, with DK Shivakumar as his deputy. HT learned that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge arrived at the consensus for government formation shortly after midnight. The swearing-in ceremony of the two leaders will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

Siddaramaiah. (HTfile)
The Congress on Thursday named Siddaramaiah as the new chief minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar as his deputy, bringing an end to nearly a week of speculation following the party's statement win in the 2023 Assembly election. Shivakumar - who had refused to walk back his claim to the chief ministership till late last night, when Sonia Gandhi spoke to him - will remain the Congress' Karnataka unit boss till the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar hugs former Karnataka CM and Siddaramaiah in Davangere. (PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak)

Pushed on a possible power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar - seen as an option to resolve the stand-off - the Congress said: "Power sharing means sharing power with the people of Karnataka that is all."

Split terms - 2.5 years for each person - was an option, multiple media reports said this week. However, that option was scrapped because reportedly neither Siddaramaiah nor Shivakumar wanted to go second in the line-up.

READ | Siddaramaiah is K'taka CM, Shivakumar deputy and PCC chief: Cong

The two will now be sworn in on Saturday with a (unspecified) number of ministers, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal told reporters.

What did Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar say?

Shivakumar then tweeted: "Karnataka's secure future and our people's welfare is our top priority and we (the Congress) are united in guaranteeing that."

Siddaramaiah said he had nothing more to add to the party's statement.

Days earlier Shivakumar spoke about having 'sacrificed for the party' and also said he would not 'backstab' - a comment seen as ruling out a rebellion.

READ | 'Sometimes ice should break': Shivakumar on why he accepted dy CM

On Wednesday Shivakumar's office told Hindustan Times he had received an offer of deputy chief minister and six portfolios of his choice, indicating the Congress wanted to appoint Siddaramaiah as chief minister.

READ | DKS gets 'deputy+6 portfolios' offer, Cong warns against speculation

Why the delay in naming CM? Cong says

Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala confirmed the appointments and said discussions between Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar and other state leaders, including other claimants to the top job, were conducted in a transparent manner, reflecting the party's commitment to the democratic process.

On the delay in naming a chief minister the Congress said it was due to extensive deliberations and discussions. The party stressed that both claimants were top-notch senior leaders and each 'deserved to become chief minister'.

"We are a democratic party and consulted Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar are capable of becoming chief minister," Surjewala and Venugopal told reporters.

"We believe in consensus, not dictatorship," the leaders said.

The rebuttal comes after outgoing Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai criticised the Congress Wednesday for not having named a chief minister till then.

Bommai said the failure to do so 'shows the internal situation' in the Congress and warned the party, "Aspirations of people more important than politicking."

READ | 'People's aspirations more important': Bommai's swipe at Congress

What happened after election results?

Frantic discussions have been held since the election results were declared and it became clear that neither Shivakumar nor Siddaramaiah were ready to play second fiddle, forcing the Congress into resolving a problem that threatened to steal focus from the importance of the win in Karnataka.

Both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have camped out in Delhi meeting senior party figures, including Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, who is also from Karnataka.

The resolution of the Karnataka conundrum will come as welcome relief to a Congress party eager to build on the momentum of this election win. This year and the next are crucial for the party (and the opposition) as it seeks to oust prime minister Narendra Modi and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

The resolution also helps the Congress contain the spectre of civil war (for now) and focus on a tense situation in Rajasthan, where an election is due amid bickering between chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his ex-deputy Sachin Pilot.

READ | 'Kharge to decide on Pilot-Gehlot in Rajasthan after K'taka'

Mizoram and Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh also vote later this year, as does BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, where chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao and his Bharat Rashtra Samithi are plotting a run at the Lok Sabha election.

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Karnataka chief ministerial contenders have agreed to a compromise formula with Siddaramaiah set to get the states top elected post while DK Shivakumar will be his deputy and remain the state party chief as the Congress resolved a stalemate over the matter after three days of negotiations. The formula was agreed upon late on Wednesday after a meeting with former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi. Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar in New Delhi on Wednesday. (PTI)

There is no clarity on whether there will be a rotation period for the chief ministerial post. People close to Shivakumar claim there will be, with both leaders getting 2.5 years each but there is no confirmation on this. HT learns that a discussion on this may have been deferred till after the 2024 national polls. Shivakumars people are expected to get key posts even as portfolios are yet to be decided.

But while the details will emerge soon, what is clear right now is that a deal has been reached.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar wanted to meet Sonia Gandhi, who is not in Delhi before finalising the power-sharing arrangement. But she spoke to them.

Congress leaders earlier shuffled in and out of meetings that ran late into Wednesday night as the party attempted to strike a united front. They scotched rumours of a rift in the party and asked leaders to not make out-of-turn statements to the media, saying that the government will be formed within the next 48-72 hours.

The Congress sought to resolve the impasse without public acrimony as the party wants to carry the momentum from its victory in Karnataka over to assembly elections scheduled later this year, and the 2024 polls.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have camped in Delhi for negotiations. Siddaramaiahmet Rahul Gandhi at Sonia Gandhis residence at 10, Janpath at 11.30am on Wednesday. Shivakumar met Rahul Gandhi an hour later. Later in the day, Shivakumar met Kharge, his second meeting with the senior leader in as many days.
Ending the stalemate over the next Karnataka chief minister, the Congress on Thursday assigned the top post to veteran leader Siddaramaiah and the number two position to troubleshooter DK Shivakumar. Considered a strong contender for the chief ministers post after the partys huge win in the state assembly elections, Shivakumar revealed that he was not dismayed about settling for the deputy CM position after days of negotiations. Counting the partys success in the polls as a reason to be happy, the state unit chief asserted that their primary agenda is to deliver on all the promises. Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar ahead of the party's release of the manifesto for the Karnataka Assembly elections,(PTI)

Speaking to news agency ANI, the deputy CM-designate said, Why should I be upset? There is a long way to go. When people have given such a big mandate, we should definitely be happy and fulfil the promises. That is our main motto, agenda.

After nearly a week of speculations, Shivakumar, who will be the partys Karnataka unit boss till the 2024 Lok Sabha election, reportedly agreed to the deal after discussions with Sonia Gandhi.

Earlier in the day, Shivakumar said he had agreed to become deputy CM in the larger interests of the Congress.

"The Congress party has a commitment before the people of Karnataka. Parliament elections are ahead. So, I have to bow to the AICC president and the Gandhi family. In the larger interest of the party (I have agreed to the formula) and why not, because sometimes the ice should break. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a commitment to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver, the 61-year-old Vokkaliga leader said. He assured that the party leaders are united in ensuring a secure future and peoples welfare in the state.

Shivakumar's brother DK Suresh, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the compromise and said, "I am not fully happy but in the interest of Karnataka we wanted to fulfil our commitment...That is why DK Shivakumar had to accept....I wish it (CM post for DK Shivakumar) to happen, but it didnt. We will wait and see".

The new CM and deputy CM, along with a few other ministers, will be sworn in at Bengaluru's Kanteerava stadium on Saturday at 12:30pm.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inaugurated the international museum expo at the national Capital. The PM underlined the loss of Indias heritage during the period of slavery which lasted for hundreds of years. (Meenakashi Lekhi | Twitter)

He also unveiled the plan for one of the worlds largest museums, Yuge Yugeen Bharat, which will capture 5,000 years of Indias history and replace the existing one.

When we enter a museum, we engage with the past and the museum presents fact and evidence-based reality and it provides inspiration from the past and also gives a sense of duty towards the future, PM Modi said at the event, adding that the theme of the expo sustainability and wellbeing highlights the priorities of present circumstances.

The PM underlined the loss of Indias heritage during the period of slavery which lasted for hundreds of years.

Also Read:PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate international museum expo tomorrow

He said that many ancient manuscripts and libraries were burnt to the ground at the time.

This is not just a loss for India, but for the world, PM Modi said.

The PM added that for the first time, the museum will also commemorate tribal freedom fighters.

He highlighted the contributions of Mahatma Gandhi, BR Ambedkar and Vallabhbhai Patel.

The redevelopment of Mahaparinirvana Sthal of Dr BR Ambedkar into a national memorial at 5, Alipore Road in Delhi (is underway) along with the development of Panch Teerth related to his life, in Mhow where he was born, in London where he lived, in Nagpur where he took initiation, and the Chaitya Bhoomi in Mumbai where his Samadhi exists today, he said.

He also cited examples of museums at Patels Statue of Unity, Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab, Govind Singhs memorial in Gujarat, the Man Mahal Museum in Varanasi and the Museum of Christian Art in Goa.

It is only when a country embraces its legacy that new opportunities to connect with likeminded cultures across the world emerge, PM Modi said.

The holy relics of Lord Buddha, which were conserved over the generations, are now uniting followers of Lord Buddha all over the world. We also sent four holy relics to Mongolia on the last Buddha Poornima and received holy relics from Sri Lanka in Kushinagar. Similarly, the legacy of St. Ketevan of Goa is safe with India and generated immense remembered the enthusiasm in Georgia when the relics were sent there. Our heritage can become the harbinger of world unity, he said.

The PM added that the museums will also offer a gastronomic experience, capturing years of Indias history of Ayurveda and millets that are now turning into a global movement.

Museums should become active participants in conserving the resources for the coming generations, PM Modi said.

PM Modi also stressed that in the last nine years, the government had recovered nearly 240 artifacts that belonged to India, whereas the earlier governments managed to recover only 20.

We have to be grounded in the past but work for the future, he said.

We have to honour our legacy, as we work to create a better and brighter future, he said.

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Hundreds of activists of farmers' outfit Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMC) on Thursday squatted on a railway track and blocked rail traffic at Devidaspura village here over alleged inadequate compensation for the land acquired for the Bharatmala project. Farmers protest at Devidas Pura in Amritsar (HT Photo)

Railway officials said incoming and outgoing trains running between Amritsar and Delhi were affected after 12.30 pm in the wake of the farmers' protest.

They said all trains on this particular section here are being diverted.

KMC spokesperson Gurbachan Singh Chabba said the farmers are protesting on the compensation issue in connection with the acquisition of land for the Bharatmala project.

He said that government was acquiring the land but not paying adequate compensation as desired by farmers.

The protest at Devidaspura, around 20 kilometres from here, was led by KMC leader Sarwan Singh Pandher.

Chabba also alleged that a woman farmer was slapped by a policeman in Gurdaspur district, accusing police of using force against protesting farmers.

"The highhanded attitude of the government and its police which applied force to uproot the farmers from their agriculture land is condemnable," he said.

Chabba alleged that police cane charged farmers who were protesting peacefully against the government for acquiring their farmlands for the expansion/construction of the Delhi-Katra national highway.

He said the incident occurred at Cheema Khudi village in Gurdaspur.

When asked for how long the farmers will continue to block the railway traffic, Chabba said a series of meetings between the farmers' outfit and the administration were going on and the final decision would be taken by evening.
Radiocarbon dating has revolutionised the science of estimating the age of objects, but it has some limitations. It works only on organic samples from the past, or something that was once alive and is now dead. That puts certain materials  such as rock  beyond its scope. PREMIUM Radiocarbon dating is currently under the spotlight with the Allahabad high court last week setting aside a Varanasi court order that had rejected a request for carbon dating of a structure found on the Gyanvapi mosque complex (PTI)

Radiocarbon dating can also be done on paint, which contains a mix of organic and inorganic pigments. But if a rock artefact has not been painted on, it will require an art analyst to examine the sculpting or chiselling and put a date to it, based on existing samples from the same period.

The science of such a survey, if undertaken, would depend on what the structure is made of. If it contains cement or mortar, radiocarbon dating may be possible on any organic material trapped inside it. If the structure is made of rock, radiometric dating of various isotopes can determine the rocks geological age  but not when it was sculpted, carved, or otherwise worked on by human hands.

Radiocarbon dating is currently under the spotlight with the Allahabad high court last week setting aside a Varanasi court order that had rejected a request for carbon dating of a structure found on the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The high court has now ordered a scientific survey to determine the age of the structure. The Supreme Court will now hear an appeal against this on Friday.

The science of carbon dating

Radiocarbon dating is a technique developed in the late 1940s by University of Chicago professor Willard Libby, who would go on to win the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1960. It is based on the amount of radioactive carbon and non-radioactive carbon measured in an organic sample.

These amounts exist in a fixed ratio in all living organisms, but the ratio changes over time after death. Plants absorb carbon from the atmosphere as part of carbon dioxide, and pass it on to other organisms across the food chain. The proportion between radioactive and non-radioactive carbon in all these organisms, therefore, is the same as their proportion in the atmosphere.

This does not change throughout an organisms lifetime. Although radioactive carbon decays over time, it gets replenished continuously as the organism regenerates tissue. After the organism dies, however, radioactive carbon decays without being replenished.

For dating an organic sample, researchers measure both radioactive carbon (called C14) and the commonest form of non-radioactive carbon (C12). They calculate the ratio between the two amounts, and compare this with the known ratio in living organisms. This tells them how much C14 has decayed.

The rate at which C14 decays is already known. Having worked out how much has decayed in the sample, researchers can calculate the time it would have taken for that amount of decay  in effect, the age of the sample.

Radiocarbon dating does not, however, work with samples older than 55,000 years. By then, so much C14 would have decayed that it would no longer be possible to measure whatever remains.

Dating various materials

Radiocarbon dating can estimate the age of a sample taken from an animal, a human or a plant. It also works on objects made of organic matter, such as paper, leather or wood. Bricks and mortar, terracotta or ceramic objects, stucco, plaster and paint, too, can contain organic matter.

Although cement and mortar are not organic, radiocarbon dating of objects made of such materials has been the subject of several studies. This method is based on measuring the decay in organic material that has been deposited in cracks and trapped after the cement or mortar hardened. There is a rider here: this method will put a date to when cement or mortar was added to the structure, but the structure itself may have been shaped by human hands much earlier.

Because radiocarbon dating relies on the relative amounts of radioactive and non-radioactive carbon, which changes with time after the death of the organism, it does not work on something that was never alive in the first place.

For objects such as rock, there are other techniques. Under the broad umbrella of radiometric dating, which includes radiocarbon dating, various processes look at the decay of various isotopes. These include uranium (U238 and U240), potassium-40, and rubidium-87. As with C14 dating, the amount of decayed material is measured, the ratio between original and decayed material is calculated, and the samples age follows.

Radiometric dating, however, will only determine the geological age of the rock. One of the limitations of this method is that it cannot date a sculpture, said Sharada Srinivasan, an archaeologist with IIScs National Institute of Advanced Sciences, and a Padma Shri.

Dating on the basis of a rocks geochemistry would make sense only if the rocks chemical profile was altered measurably at very high temperatures. Such processes were not generally practised in pre-modern times, Srinivasan said, while stressing that she was not familiar with the structure in Gyanvapi.

If you chip on a rock, its just a mechanical thing, and does not alter its chemical profile. As it is not a pyrotechnological process, there are no geochemical markers of the event of working on stone to be able to calibrate to construct a relative chronology on that basis alone, she said.

Dating a stone artefact

Sarada Natarjan, an art historian with Azim Premji University, works in the field of dating artefacts, including those made of stone, based on a stylistic analysis. While describing these processes, she too said that she was not familiar with the object found on the Gyanvapi complex.

We art historians usually deploy a combination of formal-stylistic analysis of the artefact or architectural site, the geographical, local and immediate physical context of the object, literary references to the site and inscriptions in the vicinity if we are lucky, some hints from the rendering of stone, our prior knowledge of cultic practices and iconographical trends, and other extraneous elements to arrive at the dating of stone artefacts, Natarjan said.

To date metal objects, she said, chemical analysis and spectrometry can be used, provided we have some background information on metallurgical practices of different periods.
Taxpayers and experts sharply criticised the governments decision from earlier this week to bring credit card transactions in a foreign currency under what is known as the liberalised remittance scheme (LRS), which will now involve a 20% levy as tax collected at source (TCS) for most such payments, as a move that will hit peoples foreign travel budgets, constrain cash flows, and possibly nudge them to go back to cash for forex. If the concern was tracking these transactions, they said, even a nominal tax would have sufficed, and if the concern was that there was too much forex outgo, then simply reducing the LRS limit -- $250,000 a year at present -- would have done the job. credit card(Representative image)

The government notified the new Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules on Tuesday, deleting a section that exempted credit card payments from the LRS, a mechanism that lays down rules and compliances in case Indian residents want to spend, invest, or send, money abroad.

The government said the decision was taken in order to deter people who breach the LRS limit by routing large spends through credit cards, and reiterated that expenses on education, health and business visits of employees and card payments for services such as Netflix and Uber are outside its purview. To be sure, credit card spends overseas were previously never part of the LRS limit so there can be no question of credit card spends causing the limit to be exceeded, requiring action from the government.

At least a dozen tax experts, professionals, and exporters, who asked not to be named, said the governments decision imposes 20% TCS on almost all transactions and would discourage people from using online payments and push them to buy foreign exchange such as dollars from the market. Some of these people did not rule out that the problem could even spur the use of illegal hawala routes.

The Union finance ministry justified it through a frequently asked questions (FAQs) document on Thursday. It said the decision was taken in order to bring international credit cards at par with debit cards in the interest of uniformity and equity in the treatment of modes of drawal of foreign exchange and for capturing total expenditures under LRS [Liberalised Remittance Scheme] for prudent foreign exchange management and to prevent by-passing of LRS limits.

The LRS scheme, introduced in February, 2004, allows Indian residents to freely remit up to $250,000 per financial year for any permissible current or capital account transaction or a combination of both. Any person crossing this limit will require prior approval of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The new regime will affect almost everyone at a time when business as well as personal expenses are done on personal credit cards, then reimbursed. It emanates from a protectionist mindset that India has long shed, and is out of step with an otherwise vibrant economy.

Not only will the change lead to more headaches for the citizen, it will likely reverse gains made in cashless transactions. LRS was meant to promote trade and investment, check money laundering and facilitate seamless capital flows in and out of the country. It was a strong step towards convertibility but change threatens to defeat these aims in a single stroke. It must be rolled back.

Payments by debit cards etc have been treated as LRS even earlier. Due to the exemption under erstwhile Rule 7, expenditures through credit cards were not accounted for under the specified LRS limit, which has led to some individuals exceeding the LRS limits, the finance ministry said, citing RBIs hand behind the decision.

This is combined with a decision announced in the Union Budget this year to raise TCS -- an advanced tax deposit that can be offset against a persons tax liability -- to create a 20% additional burden over such spends. Cost of money in India is high compared to developed nations. Even though the TCS amount would be refunded and it may not matter much for big firms, this would be difficult for small businesses as they often suffer from liquidity crunch. It is an additional burden, contrary to the governments claim of promoting ease of doing business, a trade expert said.

It is a general perception that once money is gone to the governments coffer, any refund is a herculean task. Why to burden people with 20% TCS? Besides, chances of litigations increase, a tax expert said.

Abhishek A Rastogi, author and constitutional expert, said the government must rethink and reduce the levy from 20%. Certainly, the government isnt considering this as another revenue stream as credit is eligible. If the purpose is to track international credit card transactions, it could be done by keeping a nominal levy. Hope the endeavour is not to discourage outflow of money. If that is the case, then people may take alternate route, he said.

Experts said the move will not have much impact on big corporate houses because they can have appropriate policies to reimburse TCS components to their executives, but employees of small firms would not spend money from their own credit cards.

The governments specific FAQ on the question  Does LRS cover business visits of employees  said: No. When an employee is being deputed by an entity for any of the above, and the expenses are borne by the latter, such expenses shall be treated as residual current account transactions outside LRS and may be permitted by the AD [authorised dealers] without any limit, subject to verifying the bona fide of the transaction. Experts, however, said the governments directive on this matter needs more clarity.

Kunal Savani, partner at law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas said: In many past instances, persons remitting the funds overseas (mainly for travel purpose) would accept 5% TCS as additional cost and not file their Indian income tax returns. The higher TCS rate (20%) makes its almost mandatory for individuals remitting funds overseas to file their Indian income tax returns and claim the TCS paid either as refund or adjust it against their tax liability.

The new tax will also be applicable on transactions in foreign currency made from India, and also result in more paperwork.

According to Russell Gaitonde, partner at Deloitte India, These forex payments will cover credit card transactions undertaken by the individual not only while travelling abroad, but also while being physically present in India and making forex purchases, such as online purchases. Issuers of international credit cards in India (i.e. Banks / NBFCs) will need to ensure that their credit card customers are in compliance with the aforesaid rules/limits, and the Banks/NBFCs will need to upgrade and update their systems. Additionally, starting July 1, 2023, Banks / NBFCs will need to start collecting TCS at the enhanced rate of 20% from their credit card customers on their forex spends done using their credit cards.
The term Ahinda may have been coined by the late Devaraj Urs, Karnatakas first chief minister, in the 1970s, but Siddaramaiah, who will be sworn in as the states new chief minister later this week has given his own spin to the term derived from the Kannada acronym for Alpasankhyataru or minorities, Hindulidavaru or backward classes, and Dalitaru or Dalits. PREMIUM Congress leader Siddaramaiah arrives for a meeting in New Delhi. (PTI)

The rainbow grouping helped Urs, who hailed from a backward class, defeat the states dominant communities, the Lingayats and the Vokkaligas, and it has helped Siddaramaiah do the same. Back in the 1980s, as a member of the Janata Party, he was already organising Ahinda rallies to consolidate his position. In 2013, sensing an opportunity after the BJP and its tallest leader in the state BS Yediyurappa, a Lingayat, parted ways, he broadened his coalition by adding them to it.

In the recently concluded elections, with Yediyurappa, who returned to the BJPs fold in 2018, once again being sidelined, Siddaramaiah helped the Congress win 135 of the 224 assembly seats in the state, with partys Lingayat candidates boasting the second-best strike rate after Scheduled Tribe candidates. His outreach also helped to consolidate Muslim and Dalit voters for the party.

If this focus on backward classes makes Siddaramaiah sound like an old-world socialist, it is because he is. And his concept of Ahinda isnt borrowed from Urs but inspired by the original socialist, Ram Manohar Lohia. To understand Siddaramaiahs ideological background, one has to study Lohia, said Mohan Kumar Kondajji, a member of the Karnataka legislative assembly, and a close associate .

Kondajji was 24 when he first met Siddaramaiah on the sets of the Kannada film Ellindalo Bandavaru in 1979. Siddaramaiah made his debut in movies before entering electoral politics, said Kondajji. The film was directed by P Lankesh, a journalist turned film-maker and father of Gauri Lankesh. Siddaramaiah used to visit the film set to talk to us about political developments because we shared similar ideologies, and he ended up playing a role in the movie, recollected Kondajji.

And now, of course, he has emerged the hero of a story he himself scripted (at least in part).

The socialist with big dreams

Born on August 3, 1947, Siddaramaiah was the second of five siblings born to Siddarame Gowda and Boramma, in the then remote village of Siddaramana Hundi, 20km from Mysuru. The first of his family to gain higher education, he carved his own path and studied law at Mysuru University, the city where he would later practise. But in college, the seeds of his political career had already been sown.

In 1971, I joined the Samajwadi Yuvajana Samiti of Lohia. Professor Najunadawamy, who was a professor of law, who I met in my first year of law, was the primary reason behind that. He taught me politics, and when I was in college, the professor organised a movement against the policies of then-chief minister Veerendra Patil. That is where my politics began, Siddaramaiah said in a speech in August 2022.

Indeed, his first foray into mainstream electoral politics in 1983 was backed by the Bharatiya Lok Dal, a party staunchly opposed to Indira Gandhi, and led by former prime minister Charan Singh, a close associate of Ram Manohar Lohia. He fought the 1983 elections on a BLD ticket from Chamundeshwari in the Congress pocket-borough of Old Mysuru, and won. Midterm elections came around in two years, and by this time Siddaramaiah had joined the ruling Janata Party under Ramkrishna Hegde. He won again, and became the minister for animal husbandry and veterinary services, and also served as the first president of the Kannada Kavalu Samiti (Kannada Watchdog Committee) that sought to implement Kannada as the official language of the state.

Over time, even though he did suffer personal electoral losses, like in 1989, Siddaramaiahs stock grew and grew. Politically, he leveraged his identity as a Kuruba, one of Karnatakas most significant backward classes. Administratively, he was known as thorough and diligent. He grew ever closer to one of the states primary political poles in HD Deve Gowda, rising to the post of secretary general under him. In 1994, he returned to the state assembly, and was made the finance minister.

The mid-90s were a time of great churn in Indian politics, and in Karnataka. In 1996, a motley crew of 13 political parties led by the Janata Dal formed a national coalition in Delhi, and Deve Gowda rose to become prime minister. In Karnataka, JH Patel was the chief minister, but Siddaramaiah was his deputy. By 1999, the United Front government fell, the Janata Dal split, Siddaramaiah was sacked, and Gowda broke away to form the Janata Dal (Secular).

In the 1999 elections, the first foray of the JD(S), the party only won 10 seats and Siddaramaiah lost as a Karnataka tired of political instability threw its weight behind SM Krishnas Congress, giving them 132 of the 224 seats.

Five years later, Siddaramaiah won from Chamundeshwari, and as the JD(S) entered an alliance with the Congress, he was again deputy chief minister to the Congresss Dharam Singh.

But the ambitious Siddaramaiah was disappointed with the role. He was close to Gowda, but the stature of HD Kumaraswamy was rising, and it was becoming clear that Deve Gowda would only relinquish control of the party to his own family. Siddaramaiah holds a grudge that despite being such a big leader, he missed the opportunity to become Chief Minister because of Gowdas actions. His anger grew because he believed that Gowda never lobbied for him with then Congress president Sonia Gandhi for him, said a JD(S) leader who requested anonymity.

The leader who finds a way

By this time though, Siddaramaiah had become a leader in his own right. His role as JD(S) general secretary and multiple terms as deputy chief minister had meant he had toured the length and breadth of the state, growing increasingly popular as the one leader that was not Lingayat or Vokkaliga, the two largest communities in Karnataka, and the fundamental premise of the construction of Ahinda. Siddaramaiahs Ahinda went even further than Urs, and he used his learnings from Lohia. Even within that framework, Urs focused on Muslims and influential Dalits. Siddaramaiah reached out to even more of the marginalised, Kondajji said.

Siddaramaiah began touring the state, holding massive Ahinda conventions, much to the ire of the ruling JD(S) and Deve Gowda. By September 2005, the relationship had grown untenable. He was sacked first as deputy CM, suspended, and finally exited the JD(S). Even as deputy CM, he was attending Ahinda rallies. His involvement in these was influenced in his strong belief in this as a strategy, but also his political ambition to be chief minister, said BL Shankar, a Congress leader and political author. His involvement in the movement was influenced by his strong faith in the ideology and his political ambition (to become the CM), he added.

Shorn of a party, Siddaramaiah contemplated a return to law, but eventually decided to revive the little-known All India Progressive Janata Dal, created in 2002, but by then defunct. The party contested some local elections and had little impact, said the JD(S) leader quoted above.

His relationship with the JD(S) at an end, there were only two parties in Karnataka that could cater to Siddaramaiahs chief ministerial ambitions. Minorities were one of the key elements of Ahinda, and the right wing BJP was out of the question. The Congress was looking for a backward class leader. It was a perfect fit.

In 2006, he contested the Chamundeshwari bypoll on a Congress ticket, and won by just 257 votes. Since then, there has been no looking back. Siddaramaiahs entry to Congress definitely shook equations within the party. It is not a secret anymore in the party that (Mallikarjun) Kharge who was an aspirant for the chief ministers post was sent to central politics on Siddaramaiahs insistence, said a senior Congress leader, who didnt want to be named.

In 2013, Siddaramaiah led the party to a clear majority winning 122 seats. It was an elections full of caveats. The BJPs mass leader Yediyurappa had broken away and floated his own Karnatakla Janata Paksha, taking the Lingayats with him. But Siddaramaiah was finally chief minister, and as an administrator, looked to consolidate his position among his constructed constituency. There was the Ksheera Bhagya scheme that gave free milk to schoolchildren; the Krishi Bhagya scheme to give subsidies to farmers to build ponds; the Runmukta Bhagya scheme to waive loans of members of the SC, ST, OBC and minority communitiis, and a scheme to waive loans taken by farmers from cooperative bodies.

There were other political moves that were unsuccessful in the short term. He pushed for a separate religion for Lingayats, and a separate state flag, pushing regionalism hard. On the issue of Lingayats, he said in 2018, It is not our idea. The demand came from within the community. We have just forwarded it to the Centre.

By 2018, Yediyurappa had returned to the BJP, and in a state where political fortunes swing wildly, the Congress won 79 seats, and the BJP 104. The Congress and JD(S) did form an ill-fated one-year government with Kumaraswamy at the head, but inevitably the BJP returned to power.

Four years later, however, Siddaramaiahs moves have paid off. The Lingayats may not have moved en masse, but a combination of the perceived disrespect to Yeddiyurappa by the BJP, and the overtures the Congress has made over the years saw a shift in votes. Siddaramaiah has leveraged this, plus his traditional Ahinda vote, and will now be Chief Minister. There will be challenges ahead; a resurgent BJP; a 2024 campaign in which Prime Minister Narendra Modis popularity will be more significant than in a state election; and even a challenge from within, perhaps from deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar. But it would be futile to bet against Siddaramaiah. Those close to him insist that the socialist lawyer with big political dreams somehow finds a way.
Siddaramaiah will take oath as the next chief minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar will be sworn in as his deputy at a ceremony on Saturday afternoon, the states governor announced, hours after the Congress broke the deadlock over the top job after frenetic negotiations that often seemed intractable. The Congress party on Thursday formally announced at a party briefing that Siddaramaiah will be the next chief minister of Karnataka, while DK Shivakumar will be the sole deputy CM.(PTI)

After days of tense talks in Delhi that saw various compromise formulae tossed around and both sides digging in their heels, the two Karnataka stalwarts reached an agreement in the early hours of Thursday after party chief Mallikarjun Kharge called a midnight meeting and spoke to senior leader Sonia Gandhi.

Also read: Karnataka CM swearing-in ceremony to be Oppn's show of strength. Mamata, Pawar, Nitish invited: Guests list

Once the deal was struck  Siddaramaiah as CM, Shivakumar as his only deputy with some key portfolios, but no public confirmation of an offer of rotational chief ministership  both leaders flew back to Bengaluru, where they were greeted by thousands of supporters at the airport and showered with flowers. In the evening, the Congress legislative party formally elected the 74-year-old Siddaramaiah as its leader, and then both leaders drove to Raj Bhavan to formally stake claim to form the government.

I invite you to take oath as chief minister of Karnataka and Shri DK Shivakumar to take oath as deputy chief minister of Karnataka, along with team members. The oath ceremony will take place at 1230pm on 20.05.2023 as Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru, said the letter signed by Gehlot to Siddaramaiah.

The Congress, which won its biggest mandate in the state since 1989, is keen to make the oath-taking ceremony a grand spectacle of Opposition unity; CMs from Jharkhand, Bihar and Tamil Nadu  where the Congress is a part of the ruling coalition  are likely to attend the event, along with the three Congress CMs, said people aware of the matter.

The developments cap four frenzied days of action that began on Monday when both leaders flew into the Capital.

The Congress may have passed the first hurdle in breaking the leadership impasse, but it needs to respect the impressive assembly election mandate by now focussing on governance. The party has promised key guarantees  which includes allowances for young people and women, free bus rides for women, 200 units of free electricity and free grain. Politics will have to take the back seat to governance to fulfil the aspirations of the people of Karnataka.

The performance of the government will be crucial if the party wants to carry the momentum from its impressive assembly election victory in the run up to the 2024 general elections and win a sizeable chunk of the 28 Lok Sabha seats on offer from the state. And while the party has managed to break the logjam, loose ends persist, including cabinet berths and key portfolios to be divided, and the rivalling ambitions of the two men. Performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha pols may emerge as a key inflection point.

(The) Congress president took a decision on Karnataka He decided to make Siddaramaiah as the CM. DK Shivakumar will be the only one deputy CM. He will continue as PCC president till the Parliament election is over, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal announced, flanked by Randeep Surjewala, party general secretary in charge of Karnataka.

When asked about the speculation of a power-sharing agreement, Venugopal said, Power sharing formula is to share the power with the people of Karnataka, thats all and added that both leaders deserved to be the CM.

The Congress trounced the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on its way to securing 135 seats in the 224-member assembly on Saturday. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were the partys main campaigners and took care to project a united front on the election trail. But since Sunday evening, when the Congress legislature party passed a one-line resolution empowering the high command to pick the next CM, their clashing ambitions spilled out in the open.

Between Monday and deep into Wednesday night, both sides refused to cede ground on negotiations as Congress leaders shuffled in and out of meetings. Both leaders met Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi as Venugopal and Surjewala attempted to thrash out a compromise formula. Siddaramaiah  the popular face of the party with a mass base and a welfarist outreach  insisted he had the backing of the majority of lawmakers but Shivakumar  a key organisation man who also helped win over the influential Vokkaliga community  pointed out that he had rebuilt the party after defections brought down a coalition government in 2019.

The first glimpses of a breakthrough came in the dying hours of Wednesday as Kharge pushed for a consensus even as both camps held out, said people aware of developments.

Kharge called a meeting with Shivakumar at 11.30pm where Venugopal and Surjewala were present and reminded the state unit chief that he was CM in waiting, hailed his organisational capabilities and loyalty to the party, explained the rationale behind appointing Siddaramaiah, assured him that there would be no other deputy CM, and promised that the power sharing agreement, while not being made public, will be adhered to, said the people cited above.

That, the people cited in the first instance said, made Shivakumar amenable, but it took a call from Sonia Gandhi to finally convince him. Kharge was in touch with Sonia Gandhi, who is in Himachal Pradesh since Monday.

Shivakumar agreed around 1am on Thursday. The meeting ended half-an-hour later.

We have a commitment before the people of Karnataka. Parliament elections are ahead. So, I have to bow to the AICC president and the Gandhi family. In the larger interest of the party.and why not, because sometimes the ice should break. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a commitment to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver, he said.

On Thursday afternoon, Siddaramaiah tweeted, We will always join our hands to protect the interests of Kannadigas. The Congress party will work as a family to provide transparent and corruption-free governance, and to implement our guarantees.

At Siddaramaiahs village of Siddaramanahundi, 20km from Mysuru, celebrations began early on Thursday. In Bengaluru, celebrations in front of Siddaramaiahs Kumara Krupa Road residence saw supporters carry his pictures, slogans praising him, and wishing him good luck by pouring milk over life size cutouts- meant to bring good luck.

Also read: 'Karnataka's secure futureour top priority': Deputy CM designate DK Shivakumar

At Shivakumars Bengaluru home, there were celebrations too, but they were considerably more muted, with most supporters still recovering from the disappointment that the CMs chair had eluded their leader. Here too, however, slogans were raised praising Shivakumar, and supporters broke coconuts in the middle of the road, a custom that marks the beginning of an auspicious event. Supporters offered special prayers at the Kengal Anjaneya Swamy temple in Channapatna.

The Congress is likely to induct up to 20 ministers, three senior Congress leaders said, and the two leaders may make their way back to Delhi for a second round of negotiations. As many as 34 ministers, including the CM, can be inducted in the Karnataka cabinet.

Shivakumars brother, Congress MP DK Suresh, told journalists that they were not too happy with this decision. It is not clear what is the formula for power sharing but I have been told that they (the Congress central leadership) have proposed a two-and-a-half years term-sharing, he added.

Surjewala and Venugopal underlined the extensive consultations in the party that finally broke the impasse. The Congress president had a serious consultation with senior leaders and one-on-one discussions with Siddaramaiah Ji and DK Shivakumar. We are all the part of that discussion and he took the opinion of Madam Sonia Gandhi, Shri Rahul Gandhi, and Smt. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra Ji and senior leaders, said Venugopal.

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Siddaramaiah has been named as the next chief minister of Karnataka while DK Shivakumar will be his deputy, HT has learnt. The Congress has decided on a rotational tenure of two-and-a-half years for both the leaders. The decision ends days of uncertainty after the grand old party had registered an emphatic victory in the southern state. The swearing-in of the new chief minister will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.



HT has learnt that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge arrived at the consensus for government formation shortly after midnight, this after hectic parleys held in the national capital over the past three days. Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar were the main architects of the Congress victory in Karnataka.

A Congress legislative party meeting has also been convened for May 20, setting stage for the 75-year-old Kuruba leader to become the CM for the second time. In the run-up to the big announcement, both Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar had been holding their ground before the high command making it a tedious task to make the decision.



There is nothing to tell...we have left it to the high command...High command will take the call. I'm going for rest, Shivakumar, 61, the tallest Vokkaliga leader of the party in Karnataka, had said.



Earlier on Wednesday, HT had reported that Shivakumar had been offered the deputy chief minister along with six portfolios. However, Congress Karnataka in-charge Randeep Surjewala had rejected the reports and urged the media against speculation.



Siddaramaiah, a grassroots leader who started his political career with the Janata Parivar, joined the Congress in 2006 after being ousted from HD Deve Gowda's Janata Dal (Secular). He is only the second chief minister after Devraj Urs to have completed a full term of five years.



The anointment of the lawyer-turned-politician as the CM pick might not surprise many as he apparently had the support of 85 MLAs as per a report sent by the three Congress observers to the party high command.

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Siddaramaiahs elevation was a done deal for anyone who read right the sociopolitical import of the May 13 poll outcome in Karnataka. The state was delivered to the Congress by the Ahinda caste alliance, the architect of which was the Kuruba strongman who will hold the chief ministers office for the second time after his 2013-18 stint. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge (centre) with senior party leaders Siddaramaiah (R) and DK Shivakumar in New Delhi. (PTI)

Popular among his supporters as Ahinda Nayaka, Siddaramaiah had entered the contest as the states most popular, electorally active leader. He stood taller among his peers as his former boss, the Janata Dal (Secular)s HD Deve Gowda, and the Bharatiya Janata Partys Lingayat headman, BS Yediyurappa, were restricted by their advancing years; the former at 89 and the latter 80. Little surprise therefore that the electorate flocked around the relatively younger yet 76-year-old former CM fighting, by his own admission, his last poll battle.

The brinkmanship for the CMs office in the Congress began soon after the results were out. The protracted tussle threatened to vitiate the atmospherics required for putting the new regime in place. Reason prevailed eventually over emotion and ambition when DK Shivakumar, a quintessential apparatchik who led the partys state unit to victory could be persuaded to be Siddaramaiah deputy by his fellow Kannadiga, Mallikarjun Kharge. As much of a clincher was a late night call Sonia Gandhi made to DK.

Now the Congresss national president, Kharge had similarly ceded the legislature party leadership to Siddaramaiah in 2013 despite his strong claim as party old-guard and state unit chief from the Dalit community. A lateral 2006 entry to the Congress from the JD(S), the CM-designate romped home also for his administrative experience in successive Janata Party/Janata Dal/Congress regimes, not to speak of his perceived value in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as the amulet of the formidable SC/ST/OBC/Muslim social combine called Ahinda.

Also read: Is DK Shivakumar upset about Karnataka deputy CM post? Here's what he said

That did not, by any stretch of imagination, mean that DK lacked the curriculum vitae for the CMs office. The pending CBI/ED/IT cases against him were a deterrent. But, at 61, he had age on his side besides the equity he could legitimately claim in the partys wholesome victory. Credit doubtless went to him for his Vokkaliga communitys vote shift to the Congress that reduced the JD(S) to a rump in southern Karnataka. But for the disciplined tango he danced with Siddaramaiah, his bete noire of sorts, in the run-up to the May 10 polling, the Congress wouldnt have logged the pan-Karnataka presence which forever eluded the BJP.

For these very reasons, DK knew perhaps that by not budging from his first claim to be the CM (in an agreed but not publicly announced 2.5-year-each rotational arrangement) hed be cutting the nose to spite the face. As one with a relatively longer career ahead, he understood well that to keep power in Karnataka, the Congress has to keep intact the social alliance thats the work of his teamsmanship with Siddaramaiah. If the latter-- after his failed effort in the 2018 elections which threw up a hung house -- could secure an Ahinda-Linga (SC, ST, OBC, Muslim, Lingayat) tie-up, DK brought to the grass-roots coalition the Vokkaliga vote held captive for decades by the Gowda family.

The rare social engineering stonewalled the BJPs late Hindutva pitch spearheaded by its national leadership. Its decision to scrap the four per cent Muslim quota and the Bajrang Bali spin it gave to the Congresss promise of reining in the often volatile Bajrang Dal, harmed rather than help the saffron party. On the back of a reversely polarised minority vote, the Congress made huge gains at the JD(S)s cost in the Mysuru region. That at once earned DK the mass appeal he needed to divest the Gowda clan of their pre-eminence in the Vokkaliga community.

A pointer to his enhanced organisational heft is the Congress high commands decision to let him continue as the partys state unit president besides being its sole deputy CM in Karnataka. By similar token, the rotational chief ministership hasnt been formally announced in order not to dilute Siddaramaiahs authority as the first among the equals in the new regime. The understanding reportedly is to review the arrangement after the 2024 parliamentary polls.

The informal compact hasnt worked out in Chattisgarh. Its anybodys guess whether itll pan out any differently in Karnataka. For the present: Alls well that ends well!

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Expressing concern over recent deaths of three cheetahs in Madhya Pradeshs Kuno National Park, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Union government to consider developing more habitat for the wild animal in other states as well without bringing politics in this matter. Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Union government to consider developing more habitat for cheetahs. (PTI)

The apex court also questioned the rationale behind Centres decision to keep all 20 cheetahs  of which 17 are currently alive  relocated from two African countries in one state, Madhya Pradesh.

An expert committee constituted by this court had said Kuno is not historically suitable for keeping cheetahs. Consider having them elsewhere, in Rajasthan, a bench of justices BR Gavai and Sanjay Karol said, asking, Why only in Madhya Pradesh?

The bench gave Centre time till July to find a solution in this regard.

The courts concern stemmed from the fact that despite an action plan in place by the Centre on scientific introduction of cheetahs and a task force constituted to monitor their health, behaviour and upkeep, three cheetahs died in the wild in the past three months.

We are not saying deaths happened because of your (Centre) neglect we have only expressed our concern, the bench said.

Additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the ministry of environment, forests, and climate change (MoEF&CC), said the deaths were not uncommon.

The idea is to bring more cheetahs over the years. There are few places under our consideration, she said.

Even the action plan of the Centre indicated that Kuno could sustain up to 21 cheetahs and is the first among many sites being developed for introducing cheetahs in the wild, the ASG added.

To this the court replied, We are not doubting your intentions. But do something. If you have 3-4 sanctuaries for them the more the better.

The court also wondered why the Centre was not exploring sanctuaries outside Madhya Pradesh. Rajasthan has many such places. It is necessary to take everyone on board. Do not bring politics in this matter, it said.

In the first inter-continental translocation project, eight cheetahs were brought to Kuno National Park from Namibia on September 17 last year, after a decades-long effort to restore a species that was declared extinct from the country in 1952. Another 12 cheetahs were translocated from South Africa on February 18. Of the 20 cheetahs, three named Sasha, Uday and Daksha died on March 27, April 23 and May 10, respectively.

In March, the apex court had asked the government if its task force had any experts on cheetahs. The Centre filed an affidavit indicating the composition of the nine-member task force comprising forest officers, administrative officers and scientists having vast experience in forestry and wildlife management.

The ASG told the court that since cheetahs went extinct from India decades ago, there are no cheetah experts in India. However, for the successful implementation of Project Cheetah, officials of the task force were sent for training and exposure visits to Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania to get a first-hand experience on management of cheetahs and other wildlife.

The court pointed out that the expert committee constituted by it in January 2020 to assist the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) on the aspect of cheetah introduction had three members, including noted wildlife expert MK Ranjitsinh, who has had significant expertise on cheetahs.

In an application in March, the Centre said it no longer required the assistance of the MK Ranjitsinh committee and urged the court to allow NTCA to proceed with the work on Project Cheetah by taking the help of the expert committee, as and when needed.

It was while considering this application, senior advocate Prashanto Chandra Sen, assisting the committee, informed the court that none of the members of government-constituted task force had expertise in management of cheetahs.
The Supreme Court on Thursday turned down the Bihar governments plea to stay the Patna high court order which put on hold the caste-based survey in the state after questioning the Nitish Kumar-led governments legislative competence to carry out such an exercise and flagging issues over data integrity and security. A bench of justices AS Oka and Rajesh Bindal noted that the May 4 high court order was an interim directive, based on prima facie findings against the caste-based survey (HT Photo)

A bench of justices AS Oka and Rajesh Bindal noted that the May 4 high court order was an interim directive, based on prima facie findings against the caste-based survey and various other issues surrounding the exercise.

Also read: Bihar to see heavy rain, heat wave at the same time

We have to see if it is a census in a garb of survey like high court order says...Today, we are not inclined to grant a stay as the matter requires hearing. The high court has recorded prima facie findings. So, we find it difficult to stay, the bench told senior counsel Shyam Divan, who represented the state in its appeal against the Patna high court order.

The courts refusal to stay the high court order deals a major blow to Bihars plans of successfully counting the castes of all 104 million people in the state for the first time since Independence, and is also a political setback to the states ruling coalition.

The call for a caste survey in the state erupted last year and was supported by all parties, though the ruling Janata Dal (United) and Rashtriya Janata Dal led the demand. Over the past few months, a number of Opposition parties, including the Congress, have picked up the appeal across India, hoping that an enumeration of castes will be a game-changer in reversing the BJPs deep inroads into the backward groups, and countering religious polarisation. The high courts order deals a jolt for those electoral plans.

Reacting to the development, Bihar finance minister and senior JD (U) leader Vijay Kumar Chaudhary said we were hopeful of a favourable order. Now we will explore our options as to how to proceed legally.

Meanwhile, former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi blamed the state government for not being able to put their point in high court. He also demanded from the government to immediately convene an all-party meeting and take everyone into confidence.

The government lobbied weakly before the high court, due to which the (caste) survey was temporarily banned. The decision to conduct the caste census was taken by the NDA government in June last year. Why was there a delay of seven months in starting work on this, he said.

During Thursdays proceedings, while Divan pressed that the state has the legislative competence to conduct the survey which was a completely different exercise from a census, the bench remained firm that there is no case made out to stay the high court order at this juncture when there are prima facie observations against the caste-based survey and the matter is pending final adjudication by the high court.

All that we are saying is there are prima facie findings recorded by the high court. All these aspects require to be gone into...the high court has found faults with so many things. Why we should interfere especially when the high court is hearing it, it asked Divan while adding that the state should rather argue before the high court where the matter is listed for a hearing on July 3.

As Divan urged the bench to keep the state governments appeal pending in the top court to await the outcome of the proceedings before the high court on July 3, the bench accepted the senior counsels request and fixed July 14 as the next date of hearing.

The impugned order is an interim one and the high court has posted the main writ for a hearing on July 3. In fact, the state government, on May 9, 2023, moved applications before the high court that were disposed of. The contention of the state advocate general was specifically rejected that final opinions were expressed. In fact, the high court has observed that the court was open to other contentions when taken up for hearing, recorded the bench.

The order added: Learned counsel for the petitioner states that the petition may be listed one week after July 3. He submits that if the high court does not conduct the final hearing, this court may consider the matter on merits. We accordingly direct that this petition be listed on July 14 if for any reason hearing before the high court does not commence.

During the proceedings on Thursday, the bench repeatedly told Divan that the Bihar government will have to satisfy the legal requirement that the caste-based survey was not in fact a census that can be carried out only the central government. Looking at the nature of the exercise, we have to decide whether its a survey or a census, it told the state.

The Bihar cabinet, on June 2 last year, decided to conduct the caste-based survey in the state months after the Union government ruled out such an exercise at the national level. The normal decadal census counts religious groups and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes separately.

House-listing was conducted in the first leg of the survey before data collection including the financial status of people in the second phase began for a budget tailored for the welfare of weaker sections of society and better implementation of schemes. The second phase of the survey began on April 15 and was to continue till May 15.

Youth for Equality, one of the petitioners, challenged the survey before the high court, contending that this was not meant to be a sample survey but a census which only Centre can conduct under Section 3 of the Census Act, 1948 and the accompanying Census Rules. Adding that such a survey had no legal backing and was conducted on an executive order issued by the state, the organisation also claimed that the survey violated the right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Also read: Bihar to conserve over one crore historical paper documents at State Archives

On April 28, the Supreme Court told the Patna high court to immediately take a call on the petitions seeking a stay of the caste-based survey, deciding the matter preferably within three days, as the top court took note that the survey was expected to conclude by May 15.

Before the high court, the state government defended the survey on the grounds that the state has the authority to conduct such an exercise and that there was no law prohibiting it from knowing about its population to devise welfare schemes to rid the society of inequalities and for targeted delivery of services.

But the high court on May 4 stayed the survey, saying prima facie the state government has no power to carry it out and the manner in which it has been fashioned would amount to a census and impinge upon Parliaments legislative power.

A division bench of chief justice K Vinod Chandran and justice Madhuresh Prasad also directed the state authorities to secure the data collected as part of a two-phased enumeration exercise, adding the data will not be shared with any authority until final orders are passed. At that time, the high court also expressed concern over the governments intention to share data from the survey with the leaders of parties in the state assembly.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the West Bengal government's order banning the public screening of movie The Kerala Story. The court said the May 8 order suffers from overbreadth and is not based on any material produced before Court. People ride past a poster of a Hindi movie titled "The Kerala Story", outside a cinema in Mumbai. (REUTERS File)

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud also directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure all security arrangements be made to ensure the film's screening and the safety of moviegoers.

The petitions seeking the ban on the film have been posted in July. The court indicated that it might have to watch the film as the Madras high court has already dismissed a petition challenging the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) certification.

The producers said they will add additional disclaimers saying: There is no authentic data to back up the suggestion that the figure of converted people is 32,000 or any other figure; and the film represents a fictionalised version of the subject matter.

The bench said it is the duty of the state government to maintain law and order as the film has been granted certification by the CBFC.

Bad films bomb at the box office, the bench said.

The legal provision cannot be used to put a premium on public intolerance. Otherwise, all films will find themselves in this spot, the bench, also comprising justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala, said during the hearing which is still on, news agency PTI reported.

The states cannot sit in appeal over the grant of certification to the movie, said senior advocate Harish Salve appearing for the producer of the movie.

The bench indicated that it may stay the West Bengal government order banning the film.

Salve said nobody has filed any statutory appeal against the grant of certification to the film and referred judgements to buttress his submissions that it was held that the Supreme Court cannot sit in appeal over the CBFC certification.

The apex court is hearing cross-pleas with the producer of the film challenging the ban on its screening in West Bengal and the decision by theatre owners in Tamil Nadu to not show the movie in the state while journalist Qurban Ali has challenged the Kerala high court order refusing to stay the release of the film.

The Kerala Story, starring Adah Sharma, was released in cinemas on May 5. Directed by Sudipto Sen, the film claims women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State or ISIS.

(With inputs from PTI)

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The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the West Bengal governments order banning the screening of the film The Kerala Story and directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure the safety of moviegoers after theatre owners decided to stop screening the film due to security concerns. The order came on a petition filed by the movie producers  M/s Sunshine Pictures Private Limited and Vipul Shah. (Adah Sharma | Twitter)

A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud also directed the producer to put a disclaimer in the movie by 5pm on May 20 on the claim that 32,000 Hindu and Christian women were converted to Islam.

The Court also agreed to examine the petitions challenging orders passed by the Kerala high court and Madras high court declining stay on the films release indicating that to lay down parameters what is permitted to be shown and what is not, it will have to watch the film.

Prima facie we are of the view that the prohibition imposed by West Bengal suffers from overbreadth and such a prohibition is not made out from the material disclosed in the states affidavit, the bench stated.

Also Read: The Kerala Story contains hate speech, distorts facts, Bengal tells SC

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for the state had relied on intelligence inputs based on surveillance conducted on May 5 on the day when the movie released to show accounts by 13 persons who indicated potential breach of peace due to the screening of the film.

The bench remarked, If you get any 13 persons, they will say to ban any movie unless you are showing them cartoons. Section 6 (of WB Act) cannot be chosen to put a premium on public intolerance otherwise every film you will find suffering this fate... You cannot subject fundamental right to free speech and expression on the public display of emotions. If you dont like a film, dont watch it.

Singhvi told the Court that West Bengal had a different demographic profile and keeping this in mind, the state took a precautionary measure to prevent any violence as witnessed in Maharashtras Akola district.

The Court reminded the state, You cannot assume the same demographic profile exists all over the state. Exercise of power must be proportional. If there is problem in one area, you cannot ban it across the state.

The order came on a petition filed by the movie producers  M/s Sunshine Pictures Private Limited and Vipul Shah.

Besides the ban by WB government, the petition also questioned the ban in Tamil Nadu imposed by the states theatre and multiplex owners association.

The state in its affidavit denied there was any ban imposed on the film by the TN government and said that the theatre owners chose to pull down the film due to the low public response that it received.

The Court directed the state to provide adequate security to every cinema hall and make all requisite arrangements to ensure safety of movie goers. In addition, the Court added, No step, tacit or explicit, formal or informal, shall be taken by the state and its officials to prevent the screening of the film.

The Court also heard petitions seeking a ban on the film filed by journalist Qurban Ali and BR Aravindakshan.

They challenged two separate orders passed by the Madras HC on May 4 dismissing a petition questioning the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) nod to the film along with an interim order passed by the Kerala high court a day later declining to stay the release of the film and its teaser.

Senior advocate Harish Salve appearing for the film producers told the Court that a disclaimer has been put out at the end of the movie that the film is fictionalised and based on dramatised events.

The bench told Salve, We certainly will protect freedom of speech, but you cannot vilify a community. 32,000 is a distortion of facts.

As Salve agreed to carry an additional disclaimer, the bench directed that the same should specifically state that there is no authentic data to back up the suggestion that the figure of conversion is 32,000 or any other established figure.

The bench further insisted that the film makers clarify that the movie represents fictional account of events depicted in the film.

Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Huzefa Ahmadi said that even though they were in favour of freedom of speech, one has to see the hate being generated in society due to such propaganda films.

They read out transcripts from the movie referring to the figure of 32,000 girls being converted that is not dropped.

Further, there are statements vilifying a particular community.

They even demanded that the Court watch the movie over the weekend as after vacation when the movie has run its course, the damage would have occurred by then.

The suggestion was opposed by solicitor general Tushar Mehta who appeared for the union government.

He said, Societal realities are generally projected in a film. This movie is running across the country. As regards to films, the Court has adopted the principle, if you do not like a film, do not watch it. Staying the release will set a wrong precedent.

The bench, while posting the matter to July 18, assured the petitioners, We will consider the challenge to the Madras high court order on the reopening as we have to first see the film. There are wider issues which arise as the contours of what is permissible have to be defined. We will look at the film and then decide.

The Kerala Story was released in cinemas on May 5.
Andhra Pradesh High Court Chief Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and senior advocate KV Viswanathan will be taking oath as Supreme Court judges on Friday. The Supreme Court Collegium on May 16 recommended Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and KV Viswanathan to be elevated as judges of the apex court and the Centre on Thursday cleared their names. The Supreme Court. (HT Archive)

They will be sworn in as judges at 10.30 am on May 19.

The Collegium presided by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices SK Kaul, KM Joseph, Ajay Rastogi and Sanjiv Khanna, took the decision to recommend the name of Justice Mishra and Viswanathan for appointment as judges of the top court.

Born on May 26, 1966, Viswanathan on his appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court would serve in that capacity until May 25, 2031.

On the retirement of Justice JB Pardiwala on August 11, 2030, Viswanathan will be in line to assume Chief Justice of India's office till his retirement on May 25, 2031.

Viswanathan has become the tenth name in the list of lawyers to be appointed to the Supreme Court directly from the Bar. He will also be the fourth such person to become the Chief Justice of India, following Justices SM Sikri, UU Lalit, and PS Narasimha.

Viswanathan completed the five-year integrated law degree from Coimbatore Law College, Bharathiyar University and enrolled with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu in 1988. After practising before the Supreme Court for over two decades, he was designated as a senior advocate in 2009.

Viswanathan, a former Additional Solicitor General, has appeared in a wide range of cases on diverse subjects including Constitutional law, criminal law, commercial law, the law of Insolvency, and Arbitration. His stature as an eminent member of the Bar has been recognised by the Supreme Court in numerous cases where he was appointed to assist the court as amicus curiae.

Justice Mishra was appointed as a judge of the High Court of Chhattisgarh on December 10, 2009. He was appointed as the Chief Justice of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh on October 13, 2021.

In its resolution, the Collegium noted that there is no representation of the High Court of Chhattisgarh in the present composition of the Supreme Court of India.

Justice Mishra has served as a judge of the High Court for over thirteen years and ranks at serial number 21 in the All-India Seniority List of judges of the High Courts, the resolution stated.

The apex court currently has a sanctioned strength of 34 judges and is presently functioning with 32. Four more vacancies are going to arise by the second week of July.
The Supreme Court will hear on Friday an appeal by the Gyanvapi Mosque Management Committee against Allahabad high courts order last week for a scientific survey to determine the age of a structure inside the mosque complex that Hindus say is a Shivling, and Muslims insist is part of a fountain. The Supreme Court. (REUTERS)

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud agreed to urgently list the matter after senior counsel Huzefa Ahmedi, appearing for the committee, mentioned the appeal.

Also read: 3 pleas seek ASI survey of entire Gyanvapi mosque

The high court has passed an order last week, pending the final judgment. An application was made for carbon dating and that has been allowed, Ahmedi said.

When the CJI responded that it could be listed on May 22, Ahmedi pointed out that the scientific study by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is scheduled to begin on that day. The CJI then agreed to list the matter for a hearing on Friday.

On May 12, the high court set aside a Varanasi district court order rejecting a demand for carbon dating of the structure found inside the Gyanvapi Masjid complex. The high court asked the district judge to proceed in accordance with law on the application by Hindu worshippers for conducting a scientific probe of the structure found during a survey last year.

It allowed the revision petition filed by Laxmi Devi and three others challenging the Varanasi court order that rejected the demand for carbon dating in October 2022.

Carbon dating is a method of calculating the age of very old objects by measuring the amount of different forms of carbon in them.

The Gyanvapi dispute dates back decades. In August 2021, five women filed a petition in a local court demanding the right of unhindered worship at the Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal located inside the complex that houses idols of Hindu gods.

In April 2022, the local court ordered a controversial survey of the complex, which triggered protests. The survey was finally completed in May, but not before the Hindu side claimed that a Shivling was found in the final hours of the exercise. The court clamped security on the entire complex even as the Muslim side argued that the structure found was a ceremonial ablution fountain.

The case reached the Supreme Court, which on May 20, 2022, transferred the suit from the Varanasi civil judge to the district judge and protected the site. In September, the district court ruled that the pleas by the Hindu women were maintainable.

Also read: Supreme Court stays Bengal govt ban on The Kerala Story, asks Tamil Nadu to give theatre security

Four of the five women filed a plea seeking carbon dating or scientific investigation of the structure, the complex walls and the Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal. The plea was opposed not only by the mosque committee but also one of the Hindu petitioners, Rakhi Singh, who called the plea a publicity stunt and said that carbon dating of the shivling would be an act of sacrilege.

On October 14, the district court rejected the plea, citing Supreme Court directives to keep the premises sealed.

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The ruling DMK and opposition AIADMK took credit for the verdict of the Supreme Courts constitution bench on Thursday, which affirmed Tamil Nadus state law allowing the bull-taming sport, Jallikattu, while it was the expelled AIADMK leader, O Panneerselvam, who brought in the ordinance. Following massive protests in 2017 against the Supreme Court ban on Jallikattu, the Tamil Nadu government enacted a law to override the ban. (AFP)

The legal battle waged by the Tamil Nadu government to ensure that the ordinance brought by the state will be approved, is a huge success, said chief minister M K Stalin. He added that they are building a Jallikattu stadium in Alanganallur in Madurai district, where this victory will be celebrated mostly by next January, when Jallikattu events are conducted during the 3-day Pongal harvest festival.

Tamil Nadu law minister S Reghupathy told reporters in Delhi that the verdict is a victory for the DMKs legal battle. We won because of the good lawyers engaged by our government and the representation they made, the minister said. In Jallikattu, there is no cruelty to animals. They (participants) will only touch the bulls hump.

AIADMK MLAs and former ministers met party general secretary and leader of opposition Edappadi Palaniswami at his official residence in Chennai to celebrate the verdict. Former AIADMK minister C Vijayabhaskar reacted to the apex courts verdict saying, its a victory for his party which enacted the legislation.

Expelled AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam said it was his party that upheld the cultural values of Tamil Nadu, since he brought in the ordinance when he was chief minister in 2017. He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whom he had met in Delhi at that time, in relation to the matter.

Jallikattu had been banned in Tamil Nadu from 2014 to 2016 due to a Supreme Court order. Following massive protests against the ban in 2017, Tamil Nadu enacted the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act of 2017 and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Conduct of Jallikattu) Rules of 2017 to override the ban. I consider it the greatest privilege in my lifetime that this law was brought by me during my tenure as chief minister, said Panneerselvam in a statement.

Political parties and sections of people in the state have contended that Jallikattu is part of Tamil Nadus tradition and culture and it should continue. Since the pandemic began in March 2020, the state government has permitted Jallikattu while following the Covid-19 protocols, which includes all participants undergoing a test at a government laboratory, to produce a negative certificate, 48-hours prior to the event.

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Hyderabad Telangana PCC chief appealed to leaders who defected to the BJP to join the Congress, if they were keen on building up a strong force to defeat the BRS led by chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao. (ANI)

After the resounding victory of the Congress in the assembly elections in Karnataka, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president and Malkajgiri MP A Revanth Reddy on Thursday called upon all those leaders who had defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party to return to the Congress fold.

Speaking to reporters, Revanth Reddy said some senior leaders like former MPs G Vivek, Konda Vishweshwar Reddy and Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy had quit the Congress in the past out of their own political compulsions. So was the case with former minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader Eatala Rajender.

Actually, these leaders had joined the BJP not because they had any faith in the saffron ideology, but due to their own reasons. They might have thought they would have better future if they joined the BJP, he said.

The PCC chief appealed to such leaders to join the Congress party, if they were keen on building up a strong force to defeat the BRS led by chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao. He said some of the leaders might have some issues with the PCC leadership.

If they think they will have a problem with me in future, I am ready to come down not just one step, but 10 steps, to welcome them into the party. There is no need for any apprehension about me, as I am not the party boss. Only Sonia Gandhi and Mallikharjun Kharge are the real bosses of the party, he clarified.

While Vivek, Vishweshwar Reddy and Rajender had not immediately reacted to Revanths call, Rajagopal Reddy rejected the invitation. He denied the reports that appeared in a section of reports that he was contemplating quitting the BJP and returning to the Congress. I cannot work under Revanth Reddys leadership, he asserted.

He, however, admitted that some friends, after the Karnataka elections, had advised him to return to the Congress. But I wont do that. Just because the Congress won in Karnataka, there is no guarantee that it will win in Telangana as well, he said.

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AIZWAL: Several tribal groups of Manipur and the 10 tribal legislators, who last week sought a separate administration for tribal areas, have decided against holding negotiations with the present Manipur government. Central security forces patrol the streets of Churachandpur in Manipur after violence broke out in Manipur in early May. (AFP File Photo)

The assertion was made in a statement issued by the delegates after a meeting in Mizoram capital Aizwal on Wednesday, a follow-up to the demand of 10 Manipur MLAs from the Kuki tribe (including seven from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party) who sought a separate administration under the Constitution for areas where the Kuki, Hmar and Zomi communities reside.

The meeting resolved to stand unitedly to face the present communal crisis and not to engage in any dialogue or talk with the present Manipur government, a statement issued by the delegates late on Wednesday evening said.

The delegates also decided to hold consultations on a wider scale at the earliest so as to arrive on a logistic common political agenda with other groups, it said.

Apart from the tribal MLAs, leaders of the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), Zomi Council, Hmar Inpui (HI) and other civil society organisations (CSOs) from Manipur participated in the meeting.

They also thanked the Mizoram government, churches and NGOs for taking care of thousands of people who were displaced due to the ethnic violence in Manipur and are sheltered in Mizoram. Over 6,600 people from Manipur are in camps in six Mizoram districts.

Manipur witnessed intense ethnic violence between May 3 and 5, with at least 73 people killed in clashes between the Meitei and the Kuki, sparked by a protest march by the Kuki against a Manipur high court order that asked the state government to recommend to the Union government that the Meitei be granted scheduled tribe status. The Supreme Court on Wednesday took a grim view of the high courts directive, saying that it was a completely wrong order.

To be sure, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh, who discussed the situation in Manipur at his meeting with Union home minister Amit Shah on May 15 (Monday), announced that the Union government has assured him that there is no question of splitting the state and that there can be no compromise on its unity and integrity.

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Union minister Kiren Rijiju has been divested of the law and justice portfolio and assigned that of the earth sciences ministry, Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a communique on Thursday. Union minister Kiren Rijiju. (HT PHOTO)

Arjun Ram Meghwal has been assigned the independent charge as minister of state in the ministry of law and justice in addition to his existing portfolios in place of Rijiju.

Meghwal, who is from poll-bound Rajasthan, is also of minister of state for parliamentary affairs and culture. He is a former bureaucrat and a prominent Scheduled Caste face of the BJP in Congress-ruled Rajasthan, where polls are due to be held later this year. A three-time Member of Parliament from Bikaner, he is known for championing the cause of the environment. He is often seen cycling to Parliament.

Minister of state for law and justice SP Singh Baghel was moved to the health ministry. A lawmaker from Agra, Baghel was with the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party before joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The changes came against the backdrop of Rijijus openly confrontational approach towards the judiciary. He repeatedly termed the collegium system of appointing judges opaque, alien to the Constitution and the only system in the world where judges appoint people known to them.

He maintained there was no confrontation between the judiciary and the executive but also emphasised that judges cannot be appointed through judicial orders and that it has to be done by the government.

He stressed that judicial appointments are not a function of the judiciary and that its primary role is to decide cases.

While his utterances received wide coverage, it is not clear whether they served any material purpose. To be sure, it is not known whether his approach had anything to do with the change in his portfolio.

Interestingly, the apex court and the Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud have refused to be drawn into the debate.

A ruling BJP leader, who did not wish to be named, said Rijijus transfer could be explained by the standoff with the judiciary over a host of reasons including the collegium system of appointing judges.

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a plea demanding action against Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Rijiju for their contentious remarks on the judiciary and the collegium system.

The apex court was hearing an appeal filed by the Bombay Lawyers Association (BLA) against a Bombay high court order. In its plea before the high court, the lawyers body alleged that Rijiju and Dhankhar disqualified themselves to hold the constitutional posts by showing a lack of faith in the Constitution through their conduct and utterances made in public against the Supreme Court and the collegium.

The Association referred to a raft of statements made by Rijiju and Dhankhar over the last year, marking an ongoing confrontation between the executive and the judiciary over the judges selection mechanism and the division of powers between the two.

Dhankhar has also questioned the collegium system. The top court responded with reminders to the government that the collegium system is the law of the land that must be followed by the government to a T.

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A US court has consented to the Indian request, through the US Government, for the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Tahawwur Rana(PTI)

On June 10, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

"The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request, the judge wrote.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks.

India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in 2008. The NIA has said that it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels.

During court hearings, US Government attorneys argued that Rana was aware that his childhood friend Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley was involved with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and that by assisting Headley and affording him cover for his activities, he was supporting the terrorist organization and its associates.

Rana knew of Headley's meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets. The US government asserted that Rana was part of the conspiracy and there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commission of a terrorist act.

Ranas attorney on the other hand opposed the extradition.

A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

Because members of the conspiracy committed acts resulting in death with the intention of causing death, or at a minimum committed those acts knowing its imminent dangers, there is sufficient evidence that the elements for murder would be satisfied, federal prosecutors said.

There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.

India, the judge said, has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the following offences on which the US is proceeding: (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

"The foregoing charged offences constitute extraditable offences within the meaning and scope of the Treaty and over which India has jurisdiction, the judge ruled.

The judge said that sufficient competent evidence has been presented to establish probable cause that Rana is the individual who has been charged in India and whose extradition has been sought by India in this action, and that Rana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been sought.

"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty, the judge ruled.
If the US secretary of state so chooses, the administration can extradite 26/11 accused and David Headley accomplice, Tahawwur Rana, to India, a US has court ruled this week. The US court has approved the extradition of a Canadian businessman of Pakistani descent Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. (ANI Photo)(LawBeatInd twitter)

Outlining how the case met the parameters for extradition, US magistrate judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US district court of the central district of California said that the court had jurisdiction over the subject matter and over Rana; the India-US extradition treaty was in full force; and India had issued an arrest warrant against Rana for multiple crimes, including the conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act, waging war, murder, and committing a terrorist act.

Sufficient competent evidencehas been presented to establish probable cause thatRana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been soughtThe Court concludes that Rana is extraditable for the offences for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding and hereby certifies this finding to the United States secretary of state, the order read.

The order was based on a request by the Government of India, channelled through the US government, under the provisions of the India-US extradition treaty. It was delivered on Tuesday and made public on Wednesday. A significant step in the quest for justice for the Mumbai attacks of 2008, the India-US collaboration in getting the request through the American judicial system marked one more instance of counterterror cooperation between the two countries, even as doubts persist about in the Indian security establishment about the links of American intelligence to Headley.

India is in touch with US authorities for the speedy extradition of Rana, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday.

We are in very regular touch with the US authorities to ensure that there is speedy and early extradition of Tahawwur Rana, Kwatra told a news briefing.

We have all seen the judgement which was given by the local US court. That conversation of ours with the US side is continuing, he said.

Kwatra was responding to a question on whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take up the issue of Ranas extradition if there is a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

Kwatra didnt confirm whether a bilateral meeting would be held but said: The bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the G7 Summit are still being firmed up. So I am not going to make any assumptions about which meeting will happen and which will not.

Rana had assisted Headley, who scouted and surveilled the locations for the 26/11 attacks and is currently serving a 35-year prison term in the US for his involvement in the terror attacks.

The Rana-Headley connection

The US courts order refers to the Mumbai terror attacks which killed 166 people, injured 239 people and resulted in property damage worth over $1.5 billion. In 2018, the US court said, a special court of the National Investigations Agency issued a warrant for Ranas arrest and India presented evidence in support of its request to extradite Rana for the charges, including Headleys testimony.

Laying out this evidence, the order says that Rana and Headley met when they were in a military school in Pakistan. Rana subsequently became a doctor, serving as a captain, in the Pakistan Army. He later became a Canadian citizen and moved to Chicago where he set up the Immigration Law Centre, among other businesses. In 1997, when Headley was arrested for importing heroin into the US, Rana posted his house as a collateral for his friends bond.

In August 2005, Headley told Rana about his association with Lashkar-e-Taiba including that he had received, among other things, weapons training, ambush, raids, [and] military training and informed him that Laskhar was sending him to India for surveillance or an attack. A year later, Rana helped Headley by agreeing to open a Mumbai branch of his immigration centre as a cover for Headleys surveillance activities and enable his business visa for India. Headley used this cover provided by Rana to expand his activities in Mumbai. In July 2007, Headley once again met Rana and informed him of his surveillance activities, including videos he had taken of the Taj Hotel. Rana once again helped Headley apply for a new visa to India.

In May 2008, Headley met with Rana in Chicago over a period of several days and told Rana about his extensive surveillance in Mumbai, his meetings with co-conspirators in Pakistan, the styrofoam mock-up he had been shown, the landing ideas (including specifically where a team of attackers would land in front of the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel), his boat trips in and around the harbour and use of the GPS device, and the delay of the attack plans, in part to await calmer waters, the US court order states.

In July 2008, Headley and Rana worked together again in closing the office based on instructions given by Headleys handlers in Pakistan. In the fall, through a co-conspirator, Headley warned Rana who was in Dubai not to travel to India because the attacks were imminent. After the attacks, they met again in December 2008 when Headley told him that he was now even with the Indians, and Rana told him that the Indians deserved it. The following year, Rana told Headley that the Lashkar terrorists killed in Mumbai should be awarded Pakistans highest military honour. They also discussed attacking the National Defence College in India.

The legal story

US authorities finally arrested Headley on October 3, 2009, and 15 days later, they arrested Rana. The US charged Rana with conspiring to provide material support and resources, namely personnel, tangible property, expert advice and assistance, money, and false documentation and identification that were used in connection with the conspiracies to bomb, murder and maim individuals in India.

In 2013, a jury acquitted Rana of the charge of conspiring to provide material support for terrorism in India, while convicting him of providing material support to Lashkar but finding that death had not resulted from the conduct charged and of conspiracy to provide material support for terrorism in Denmark. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison. On June 9, 2020, a district judge said Rana was eligible for compassionate release, reduced his sentence to time served and ordered his release.

But a day later, on June 10, 2020, the US government filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view towards extradition. This is the case which was up for hearing and led to the judgment this week.

Judge Chooljian focused on two issues during the trial  whether, as Rana claimed, he was ineligible for extradition because he had already served time for similar charges, and whether, as Rana again claimed, the government had failed to establish probable cause to believe that Rana committed the offences since it relied on Headleys uncorroborated testimony.

On the first, the US district court disagreed with Ranas claims. It returned to the explanation of the extradition treaty provided by the State and Justice Departments to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which stated that extradition is not precluded in situations in which the fugitive is charged with different offences in both countries arising out of the same basic transaction, and adopted an expansive definition of the word offence to incorporate different elements.

On the second claim, the judge said that, besides Headleys testimony, the government had submitted an affidavit from the Superintendent of Police in charge of the investigation in India summarizing the evidence supporting Indias extradition request; documentary evidence, including witness statements, copies of leases and related documents, and emails between Rana, Headley and other co-conspirators; and recordings of discussions between Rana and Headley. The court, therefore, found that there was probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offences as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition Treaty between the United States and India.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prashant Jha Prashant Jha is the Washington DC-based US correspondent of Hindustan Times. He is also the editor of HT Premium. Jha has earlier served as editor-views and national political editor/bureau chief of the paper. He is the author of How the BJP Wins: Inside India's Greatest Election Machine and Battles of the New Republic: A Contemporary History of Nepal. ...view detail
A leather-bound, handwritten Hebrew Bible believed to be around 1,100 years old sold for $38.1 million (35.1 million) in New York, auction house Sotheby's said on Wednesday. The Codex Sassoon's price surpasses the $30.8 million paid in 1994 for Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Leicester manuscript but is below the world-record $43.2 million paid in 2021 for a first edition of the US Constitution. (Also read: The US artist who went from prison cell to Paris show) The document offers a critical link bridging Jewish oral tradition to the modern Hebrew Bible(John Angelillo/UPI/IMAGO)

Its price tag "reflects the profound power, influence, and significance of the Hebrew Bible, which is an indispensable pillar of humanity," said Sotheby's Judaica specialist Sharon Liberman Mintz.

Codex Sassoon to go to ANU Museum

Mintz said she was "absolutely delighted by today's monumental result and that Codex Sassoon will shortly be making its grand and permanent return to Israel, on display for the world to see."

Former US ambassador and president of the American Jewish Committee Alfred H. Moses bought the codex on behalf of the non-profit American Friends of ANU. It will be donated to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv, Israel.

"The Hebrew Bible is the most influential book in history and constitutes the bedrock of Western civilization. I rejoice in knowing that it belongs to the Jewish People," said Moses.

Before the auction, which Sotheby's said lasted for 4 minutes and was between two buyers, the manuscript was exhibited at the ANU Museum in March as part of a worldwide tour.

Who owned the Codex Sassoon before?

The codex, which was named after its previous owner David Solomon Sassoon, is believed to have been written between 880 and 960.

Sassoon, who assembled a private collection of ancient Jewish texts, acquired it in 1929. After his death, Sassoon's estate was broken up, and Sotheby's sold the codex in 1978 to the British Rail Pension Fund for around $320,000, or $1.4 million in today's dollars.

In 1989, the pension fund sold it for $3.19 million ($7.7 million in today's dollars) to banker and art collector Jacqui Safra, who sold it on Wednesday.

According to Sotheby's, Safra had recently had the manuscript carbon dated to confirm it was older than the Aleppo Codex and the Leningrad Codex, two other major early Hebrew Bibles.
Actor Alia Bhatt is back in Mumbai after taking over Seoul at the Gucci Cruise 2024 show at the Gyeongbokgung Palace. Alia landed in the bay last night and was captured by the paparazzi leaving the airport. The star was in South Korea to attend the Italian Luxury fashion house's fashion show as their first Indian Global Ambassador. Alia stuck to her signature comfy-stylish sartorial vibe in a monochrome ensemble for her airport look. Scroll through to check out her snippets at the airport. Alia Bhatt rocks no makeup and monochrome outfit at airport. (HT Photo/Varinder Chawla)

Alia Bhatt returns home after taking over Seoul

On Wednesday, Alia Bhatt arrived in Mumbai after attending the Gucci Cruise 2024 show in Seoul. The paparazzi videos show her exiting the airport dressed in a monochrome outfit. The star posed for the media, smiled at her fans and then entered her car to leave the airport with her staff. Her stylish yet comfy jet-set look proved again that the star always roots for minimal styling while picking her personal wardrobe. If you are looking for a summer fit for travelling, don't forget to steal styling tips from Alia.

Alia Bhatt returns home after attending Gucci event in Seoul. (HT Photo/Varinder Chawla)

Alia wore a tank top, a baggy slip-on blouse, and flared pants to land in Mumbai. While the white top features a round neckline, racerback detail, contrasting black lining on the trims, and a fitted silhouette, the matching white slip-on blouse comes with a baggy silhouette, a drooping shoulder detail, pulled-back long sleeves, a ribbed design, asymmetric hem, and side slits.

Alia styled the blouse with black pants featuring a flared hem, a fitted design over the knees, and a high-rise waist. She completed the outfit with a large black tote bag, matching chunky Chelsea boots, and rings. Lastly, Alia chose a no-makeup look, including feathered brows, rouged cheekbones, rosy lips, and a dewy base. A slicked-back braided ponytail gave the finishing touch to the airport ensemble.
Actor Viola Davis was among a host of celebrities who attended the premiere of Monster at the 76th International Festival de Cannes. The actor arrived on the red carpet accompanied by her husband, Julius Tennon. The star looked divine in a pristine white gown and a stunning floor-sweeping cape jacket as she walked the carpet at the star-studded premiere. The ensemble is from the Italian luxury fashion house Valentino, specially designed for her by Creative Director Pierpaolo Piccioli. And like us, Kareena Kapoor is also floored by her red carpet look. Kareena Kapoor is in love with Viola Davis' Cannes 2023 red carpet look. (Reuters, Instagram)

Kareena Kapoor is in love with Viola Davis' Cannes red carpet look

Viola Davis attended the Monster premiere at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival with Julius Tennon. Her stylist Elizabeth Stewart shared snippets of her look on Instagram, featuring a video of the actor walking towards the red carpet and smiling beautifully as the wind ruffled her cape jacket and hair. Kareena reposted the clip on her Instagram stories and captioned it, "Viola Davis, I [love] you." Scroll through to see Kareena's story and read our download on Viola Davis' Cannes look.

Kareena Kapoor is in love with Viola Davis' Cannes 2023 look. (Instagram)

Viola Davis wore a white one-shoulder Valentino gown to attend the Monster premiere. The sleeveless ensemble features an embellished floral-shaped brooch on the shoulder, a figure-hugging silhouette accentuating her frame, and a floor-grazing hem length.

Viola wore the gown with a cape-styled jacket embroidered with ostrich feathers. It comes with exaggerated sleeves and a floor-sweeping train.

Viola Davis attends the Monster Premiere at Cannes Film Festival 2023. (AP, Reuters)

In the end, a crown of natural curls, Chopard jewels, smoky eye shadow, bold eyeliner, glossy nude lips, feathered brows, heavy mascara on the lashes, rouged cheeks, and beaming highlighter completed her look.

Meanwhile, the star's husband, Julius Tennon, complemented her in a black Valentino tuxedo featuring the Valentino notch-lapel blazer, matching pants, a crisp white button-down shirt, a black bow tie, layered bracelets, and dress shoes.
Letter writing is a beautiful and personal form of communication that can convey thoughts, emotions and sentiments in a heartfelt manner as writing a letter requires focus and concentration, bringing you into the present moment hence, it can be a form of mindfulness practice that promotes relaxation and reduces stress. Additionally, research suggests that expressive writing can have physical health benefits such as boosting the immune system and improving sleep. Letter writing can help boost mental, emotional wellbeing of students. Here's how

Writing a letter allows you to express and release pent-up emotions, provides a safe and private space to pour out your thoughts, fears, frustrations or joys where by putting your emotions into words, you can gain clarity, understanding and a sense of relief. Letter writing serves as a tool for processing and coping with intense emotions as when you write about your experiences, you can gain a new perspective, find meaning and develop strategies for dealing with challenging situations hence, it can be therapeutic, helping you navigate through difficult emotions and find inner peace.

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Partha Biswas, Chief Sales and Marketing at JK Paper Ltd, shared, A letter is a means of expressing oneself and communicating one's thoughts that are personal, authentic, and effective for building connections. In a digital age where much of our communication is impersonal and rapid, the art of writing a letter allows students to take a step back and reflect on their thoughts and emotions. It enables them to develop their written communication skills and think more deeply about what they want to say. Letter writing has a therapeutic effect, reduces stress levels, and induces relaxation because it allows students to take a deep breath and reflect in a fast-paced world.

He added, It is also a creative outlet for students, enabling them to explore their emotions, express themselves more authentically and feel more connected to the world around them. Not just writing but receiving a handwritten letter can also be a powerful experience, which has become rare in todays world, making students feel valued and appreciated like no other medium of expression. It indirectly helps young minds with their emotional quotient. Writing letters helps students develop a well-rounded skill set and lead a balanced lifestyle.

Shivani Mehta, Co-Founder and Organiser of Daakroom, revealed, Letter writing, an age-old practice, has the potential to enhance the mental and emotional wellbeing of students. In our experience of organising events that promote handwritten communication, we observed that letter writing fosters introspection, self-expression, and a deeper connection with the recipient. Students, often overwhelmed by digital distractions, can benefit from the slower pace and thoughtfulness that letter writing brings. It helps them process their emotions, gain clarity on complex issues, and cultivate empathy by considering the recipient's perspective. This reflective practice contributes to enhanced emotional intelligence and mental health.

Asserting that handwritten letters carry a sense of warmth, sincerity and authenticity as the writer invests time and effort into crafting their message, she said, Receiving a heartfelt letter can boost self-esteem, instil a sense of belonging, and reinforce supportive relationships, further improving emotional wellbeing. Letter writing offers students a respite from the fast-paced digital world and allows them to foster meaningful connections with others. As a result, this practice can play a vital role in boosting students' mental and emotional wellbeing, ultimately contributing to their overall happiness and personal development.

According to Hardeep Kaur, Principal of Cambridge School in Delhi's Indirapuram, letter writing is an outlet for students to express their feelings and emotions. She highlighted, It also helps relieve stress by sharing their thoughts amongst their close friends and family members so as to get mental, emotional and social support. Letter writing also fosters emotional bonding as the personal touch of a handwritten letter conveys a sense of warmth and care even though you may be far apart. Adding to this, writing letters also make a child a better learner. Unlike sending short text messages or quick emails, sitting down to write by hand requires much more concentration and focus. The result is that it teaches the child to process information better. As compared to typing on a smartphone or computer, where words can easily be erased or rephrased, writing on paper is permanent.

She gushed, This encourages the students to think and pre-plan before actually writing the words and putting their thoughts on paper which eventually inspires creativity and sharpens cognitive skills. It is indeed very beneficial for students to use letter writing to share, confide, and vent out emotions to their friends and acquaintances and receiving letters of reassurance in return from them. This can make them feel more optimistic about getting through challenging times and boost their mental and emotional wellbeing. I hope we can revive the lost art of letter-writing! Incorporating letter writing into your routine can be a valuable addition to your mental and emotional self-care practices. Whether it's writing to yourself, a loved one or even an unsent letter to release emotions, it provides a therapeutic outlet that nurtures your well-being.
The classical digital world is poised for disruption. It will change fundamentally with quantum computing (QC), which enables much faster computing than what todays supercomputers can accomplish. What could take an advanced supercomputer thousands of years can be solved by QC in minutes. PREMIUM QC research in India, so far, has been government-funded and carried out mainly by government-owned research labs. (PIXBAY)

India is the worlds largest destination for outsourcing in the classical information technology (IT) world. Thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modis Digital India programme, India has emerged as a global leader in many e-governance applications. However, Indias leadership cant be taken for granted in the new era. This is why the Cabinets recent decision to approve the Indian National Quantum Mission (INQM) is a proactive, visionary decision, which puts India in the elite club of seven nations to have a dedicated quantum mission. INQM aims to make India a leading nation in quantum technologies and applications. This is aspirational because we are not close to it. The number of patents filed in QC worldwide jumped from 200 to 1,500 between 2008 to 2018; the United States, China and Europe accounted for the lions share, and India is nowhere close.

QC research in India, so far, has been government-funded and carried out mainly by government-owned research labs. Some startups have entered this sector, but the absence of big corporations is conspicuous. The world over, the growth of QC is the result of research and development by industry and startups. Google, IBM, Microsoft and Amazon are developing QC hardware and software. It was Google that first announced 128-qubit (quantum bit) QC in 2018, a milestone in the development of large-scale QCs.

Cybersecurity is likely to get disrupted by QC, which can easily break powerful cryptography techniques. Startups such as Isara and Post Quantum have developed Post Quantum cryptography (PQC) algorithms, which are gaining acceptance. Blockchains and blockchain-based cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, are facing a threat from QC. According to a Deloitte analysis, 25% of Bitcoins (worth approximately $173 billion) are at risk of being stolen. Applications such as asset trading, supply chains, identity management and others, all blockchain-based applications could be hit.

QC will transform sectors such as pharma, health care, finance, logistics, aeronautics and space. Recognising the potential of QC risk assessment in an uncertain environment, several big financial institutions such as RBS, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, among others, have invested in QC startups.

Indian startups, too, have started to make some impact in QC. Atomberg Technologies is developing hardware for QC; QuNu Labs is developing quantum-based random number generators for secure communication; Kriya Labs is developing software for QC. Policy interventions are needed to create an enabling ecosystem for industry-led QC research. The government could provide complex real-life problems as challenges, which require startups to build QC solutions.

The government could share development costs and assure procurement of solutions so developed. QC hardware requires specialised equipment and materials, such as superconducting materials and cryogenic systems, which are expensive.

The government could make these available to industry and startups, set up a high-level mechanism, such as the one set up for semiconductor fab for involving industry partners in developing superconducting materials and superconducting qubits.

The IT industry could get into developing software for QCs. Development of QC-related standards is yet another important area where the government could involve the industry. Engineering institutes could provide high-end resources. India is the reigning champion of IT. To retain our crown jewel in the QC world, the time to involve the industry and startups is now.

Ajay Kumar is former defence secretary and distinguished visiting professor, IIT KanpurThe views expressed are personal
Apple enthusiasts, who have been speculating about the 2023 World Developers Conference (WWDC), finally have a confirmed schedule from the tech giant. The annual programme, one of Apples most anticipated events, includes an exciting Special Evening Activity on this years schedule. The 2023 event is set to take place in the Steve Jobs Theatre in Apple Park, California, on June 5. (Apple)

Every year, Apple introduces a variety of hardware and software innovations at WWDC.

Schedule

The 2023 event is set to take place in the Steve Jobs Theatre in Apple Park, California, on June 5 at 10.30 pm IST with a keynote address, most likely to be hosted by CEO Tim Cook. During this event, the company releases the much-awaited software updates and hardware products, which will be available for interested people to try out later in the day. After lunch, the 2023 Platforms State of the Union presentation provides developers an opportunity to gain more insights into Apples technology and features to look forward to.

Since the event will be held for five days till June 9, Apple is expected to make other interesting announcements, too.

Expected announcements

iOS 17: On the software front, Apple may release the highly anticipated iOS 17. According to leaked reports, iOS 17 will feature more UI and customization options, a mood tracker, a dedicated journal app, a redesigned Control Centre, improved functionality for Dynamic Island, upgraded Apple Music, and more.

As per HT's sister publication HT Tech, some reports suggested that users in the EU may also enjoy the app sideloading feature.

watchOS 10: According to Bloomberg analyst Mark Gurman, watchOS 10 is likely to get some major updates, including a new widget system to check information without opening the app, a customizable Digital Crown, a revamped home screen and more. The updated watchOS 10 could be the largest upgrade to the Apple Watch in years.

Mixed reality headset: The biggest news at WWDC this year will undoubtedly be Apple's mixed-reality headset, reportedly named Reality One or Reality Pro, which was developed by incorporating both virtual reality and augmented reality. The headset is rumoured to be fitted with the most advanced technology such as dual 4K micro-OLED displays, dozens of cameras to monitor the surroundings, analyse facial expressions, hand gestures, iris scanning for authentication, and more.

Macbook air: A bigger 15.5-inch macbook air powered by Apple's M2 processor with 8-core and 10-core GPU variations is expected to be released. It is not likely to get the M3 chipset for now.

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The United States on Tuesday announced charges in five cases involving alleged efforts to steal technology to benefit China, Russia and Iran including a former Apple Inc engineer accused of targeting the company's technology on autonomous systems, including self-driving cars, and then fleeing to China. After his last day at Apple, Weibao Wang had accessed large amounts of proprietary data in the days before his departure.(AP)

The cases detailed at a Justice Department press conference centered on allegations concerning the theft of trade secrets and other technology. Two of the cases involved what U.S. officials called procurement networks created to help Russia's military and intelligence services obtain sensitive technology.

The five cases were the first announced by a U.S. "strike force" formed in February in part to protect sensitive technologies, though the investigations began before it was created.

"We stand vigilant in enforcing U.S. laws to stop the flow of sensitive technologies to our foreign adversaries," Matt Olsen, the head of the Justice Department's National Security Division, told reporters. "We are committed to doing all we can to prevent these advanced tools from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries."

The former Apple engineer, identified as 35-year-old Weibao Wang, formerly resided in Mountain View, California, and was hired by Apple in 2016, according to an April indictment unsealed on Tuesday.

In 2017, he accepted a U.S.-based job with a Chinese company working to develop self-driving cars before resigning from Apple, but waited about four months before informing Apple of his new job, according to the indictment.

After his last day at Apple, the company discovered that he had accessed large amounts of proprietary data in the days before his departure, the Justice Department said. Federal agents searched his home in June 2018 and found "large quantities" of data from Apple, it added. Shortly after the search, he boarded a plane to China, the department said.

Apple's automotive efforts, known as Project Titan, have proceeded unevenly since 2014, when the company started to design a vehicle from scratch. A December report said Apple had postponed the car's planned launch to 2026. Reports filed with the state of California show Apple is testing vehicles on the state's roads.

Apple declined to comment on the case.

In a second case related to China, U.S. prosecutors announced charges against Liming Li, 64, of Rancho Cucamonga, California, for allegedly stealing trade secrets from his California-based employers to build his own competing business in China.

Prosecutors in New York charged Nikolaos "Nikos" Bogonikolos, 49, of Greece with smuggling U.S.-origin military technologies to Russia while he was operating as a defense contractor for NATO.

Russian nationals Oleg Sergeyevich Patsulya and Vasilii Sergeyevich Besedin were each charged in Arizona for allegedly using their Florida-based company to send aircraft parts to Russian airline companies, while the Commerce Department in a parallel action suspended their export privileges.

In addition, prosecutors in New York announced charges against Xiangjiang Qiao, also known as Joe Hansen, 39, for allegedly using a Chinese company that is the target of American sanctions to provide materials used in the production of weapons of mass destruction to Iran.

Qiao and Wang remain at large in China, while the other four defendants were arrested, U.S. officials said.

Attorneys for Patsulya and Besedin, who were arrested on May 11, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An attorney for Li did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not determine who is representing Bogonikolos.

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Montana has become the first US state to ban Chinese-owned short videos app TikTiok. As per the decision, the US state makes it illegal for Google and Apple app stores to offer TikTok to users within the state. The ban is a part of efforts by the US to crackdown on the Bytedance-run app citing security concerns. US is not the only country which has banned or is mulling to ban TikTok.(AP)



In March this year, Congress members had alleged that the Xi Jinping regime has a golden share in TikTok's parent company Bytedance. The Federal Bureau of Investigation's director Chris Wray in November had claimed that TikTok poses a national security risk, adding that the Chinese companies are required to do whatever the Chinese regime wants them in terms of sharing information.



But the US is not the only country which has banned or is mulling to ban TikTok. In the past two-three years, several countries have banned the Chinese app over security concerns.



India: In 2020, the Narendra Modi government had banned 59 apps, mostly Chinese, including TikTok citing concerns that these are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order. The ban was imposed days after Indian and Chinese troops had clashed in Galwan Valley.



Pakistan: The Pakistani government has temporarily banned TikTok at least four times since October 2020, citing immoral content being promoted on the app.



Canada: On February 28, the Canadian government announced it was banning TikTok on all government-issued mobile devices. I suspect that as government takes the significant step of telling all federal employees that they can no longer use TikTok on their work phones many Canadians from business to private individuals will reflect on the security of their own data and perhaps make choices, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau had said.



United Kingdom: On March 16, the British government banned the Chinese-owned app from government mobile phones on security grounds. Cabinet office minister Oliver Dowden said that the ban applied with immediate effect to to work phones and other devices used by government ministers and civil servants. He described the ban as a precautionary move, and said it does not apply to personal phones and devices.

Australia: On April 4, Australia banned TikTok from its government devices. The country's attorney general Mark Dreyfus had said that the ban would come into effect.



European Union: In February this year, the European Union said it has temporarily banned TikTok from phones used by its employees as a cybersecurity measure. The Corporate Management Board suspended the use of TikTok on devices issued to staff or personal devices that staff use for work.

France: The French government in March announced a ban on the recreational use of TikTok, Twitter, Instagram and other apps on government employees' phones due to concern about insufficient data security measures. French Minister for Transformation and Public Administration, Stanislas Guerini, said in a statement that recreational apps arent secure enough to be used in state administrative services and could present a risk for the protection of data.

Netherlands: In March, the Dutch government moved to stop central government employees having apps including TikTok installed on their work phones. For civil servants employed by the national government, it is immediately discouraged to have apps from countries with an offensive cyber program against the Netherlands and/or Dutch interests installed and used on their mobile work devices, the government said in a statement.



Denmark: The Danish government banned its staffers from having the Chinese app on their work phones, ordering them to remove it from their devices as soon as possible. The defence ministry cited weighty security considerations and very limited work-related need to use the app.



New Zealand: The lawmakers and staff at the island nation's Parliament on March 17 were barred from having TikTok on their work phones following advice from government cybersecurity experts.

Norway: The country's parliament on March 23 banned TikTok on work devices following the justice ministry's warning which asked that the app should not be installed on phones issued to government employees.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR HT News Desk Follow the latest breaking news and developments from India and around the world with Hindustan Times' newsdesk. From politics and policies to the economy and the environment, from local issues to national events and global affairs, we've got you covered. ...view detail
A researcher in the US recently broke the record for living underwater for over 74 days. Joseph Dituri, however, is not done with his experiment yet. Despite making the record, he is still continuing living underwater at the bottom of a lagoon in Key Largo, Florida. The image shows the man who created record by living underwater.(Instagram/@drdeepsea)

Dituri, who goes by Dr Deep Sea on social media, regularly shares videos of his underwater adventure on Instagram. After breaking the record too, he posted a video to share about his experience and future plans. The clip captures his living conditions below the surface of the water.

What Dituri has to say about creating the record?

Today is record breaking day 73 living underwater. Im humbled that my curiosity for discovery has led me here. My goal from day 1 has been to inspire  not only for generations to come  but for scientists around the globe who study life undersea and how the human body functions when in extreme environments. And while breaking the world record is an exciting milestone, my mission doesnt end here. I have 23 more days undersea to conduct research, engage with learners of all ages, and continue my journey of discovery, he wrote while sharing the video.

What's it like to live underwater?

The video opens to show Dituri explaining when and how he started his experiment. It then shows the habitat below the water where he is staying. As the video progresses, people also get to see incredible underwater creatures swimming around the habitat.

Watch the video:

The videos comments section got flooded with numerous replies from people across the world. While some were curious about Dituri's daily routine, others wished him good luck for the future.

Heres how Instagram users reacted:

Congrats, how did you sleep or use the bathroom cause 73 days? asked an Instagram user. We are in a dry habitat with a restroom and a bed, Dituri replied. Congratulations for beating the world record. We are so excited for you and all the changes youll be making in the world!! expressed another. Wow. How are you feeling, posted a third. Amazing, Dituri replied. So while youre living down there do you watch movies or what do you do in your free time when you arent doing research/work? wondered a fourth. Little free time... When I do, I write the sequel to my Novel... Which was called secrets in depth, wrote Dituri in reply.

The video was posted a few days ago. Since being shared, it has received close to 2,100 likes. The clip is also being re-shared by netizens across different social media platforms.
Air raid alerts were declared throughout the territory of Ukraine early on Thursday and the military warned of possible Russian missile strikes in areas of central Ukraine. Russia-Ukraine War: Explosion of a missile is seen in the sky over the Kyiv during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv.(Reuters)

The Armed Forces of Ukraine Telegram channel issued warnings for four regions: Vinnytsya, Kirovohrad, Cherkassy and Dnipropetrovsk.

Other Telegram channels warned of possible strikes in the central region of Poltava and further south in Mykolaiv region.
Washington: A day after US President Joe Biden cancelled the Australia and Papua New Guinea (PNG) leg of his visit, the US system got into damage control mode with Biden speaking to PNGs prime minister and national security adviser (NSA) Jake Sullivan reiterating that the visits rescheduling must not be read as a dilution of the US commitment to the Indo-Pacific. Sullivan also said that dealing with Chinese economic coercion will be a top priority at the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan from May 19-21. US President Joe Biden (left) reacts as he meets with Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Hiroshima, Japan, on Thursday, ahead of the start of the G7 Summit. (AP)

According to a White House statement, Biden called PNGs PM James Marape to personally convey he would be unable to travel to meet Pacific Island Forum leaders due to the need to return to Washington DC to meet the Congressional leadership on the debt ceiling crisis.

The President emphasised continued US commitment to the renewed partnership with the Pacific Islands and conveyed that Secretary Blinken would represent him at the US-Pacific Islands Forum meeting in Port Moresby, the statement read. It added that Biden had invited all Pacific Island leaders to DC for a second summit (he had hosted them last year for the first time).

Separately, during an interaction with reporters on board Air Force One, NSA Sullivan claimed that Bidens visit to Japan was happening in the backdrop of one of the most effective and impactful strings of American diplomacy in the Indo-Pacific in an incredibly long time. To substantiate the claim, he pointed to US hosting Japans PM in January and supporting Tokyos defence modernisation plans; the unveiling of the initiative on critical and emerging technologies with India; the announcement of an enhanced defence cooperation agreement with Philippines; progress on AUKUS (the nuclear submarine deal between Australia, the US and United Kingdom) in March; the visit of South Koreas President Yoon Suk-yeol to Washington DC in April.

Sullivan said that when Bidens decision to postpone his visit was juxtaposed with where the US was with respect to alliances and partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, this notion that somehow the PRC is sitting there happy and comfortable about the situation is a convenient media narrative going into this trip, but it does not reflect reality in any way.

He added that Biden felt it was critical to be at the G7 because the format was central to getting alignment and convergence with key countries  including, by the way, the countries in the Quad, because both Australia and India will be in Hiroshima, and he will have the opportunity to engage with them there.

When asked if the visits postponement was a reflection of the US not showing up, which was essential by the administrations own admission to counter China, Sullivan said, There is a kind of remarkable extrapolation from not going to two countries on a particular date to the United States is not showing up in the region. And its, I think, completely belied by the actual delivery, both in presidential time of visits, of hosting of major leaders in Washington.

Sullivan said that the G7 summit will also see a discussion on the common concerns and issues associated with the policies and practices China. I think you will see, coming out of this summit, alignment and convergence around the fundamental principles of our approach to the Peoples Republic of China.

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Donald Trump has already claimed interference in the 2024 presidential election, nearly 18 months before US goes to vote. On his Truth Social platform, the former US president made the claims following special counsel John Durham's report. Former US President Donald Trump(AFP)

The 300-page report said, the FBI had no information in its holdings indicating that at any time during the campaign anyone in the Trump campaign had been in contact with any Russian intelligence officials.

Trump had openly requested Russian aid for his campaign, infamously saying, Russia, if you're listeningI hope you are able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press. Let's see if that happens.

On his social media platform, Donald Trump wrote in an all-caps post, "I WAS BEING FRAMED BY THE FBI AND THE DOJ. NOW IT CONTINUES WITH THE BOXES HOAX, THE 'PERFECT' PHONE CALL IN ATLANTA, THE MANHATTAN D.A., AND THE NEW YORK STATE A.G. SCAM. WHAT A GROUP, BUT ALL REPORT TO THE DOJ IN WASHINGTON. IT'S JAMES COMEY AND THE SLEAZEBAGS ALL OVER AGAIN."

THEY ARE PLAYING ELECTION INTERFERENCE IN 2024 THROUGH ILLEGAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST REPUBLICANS, IN PARTICULAR YOUR FAVORITE PRESIDENT, ME. THESE ARE CHEATING LOWLIFES, BUT WE WILL WIN. OUR COUNTRY IS GOING TO HELL!," he added.

While Durham's report stated that the FBI failed to adhere to "raw, unanalyzed and uncorroborated intelligence" and proceeded to investigate Trump-Russia ties without "actual evidence," it did not find any evidence that any FBI official or employee knowingly and intentionally participated in some type of conspiracy with others to...cause the FBI to open an investigation.

Steve Bannon, who served as a White House adviser during the Trump administration, called Durham 's report an "epic failure" saying, Where are the charges? [Special Counsel Robert Durham] had all access.

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A military joke made by a comedian resulted in a 14.7 million yuan ($2.13 million) penalty against a famous comedy company in China. The joke made on China's military drew strong public criticism. Chinese President Xi Jinping

Beijing arm of Chinas ministry of culture and tourism bureau said it would fine Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media Co. 13.35 million yuan and confiscate 1.35 million yuan in illegal gains from the company over a recent show by Li Haoshi.

Li Haoshi went viral on Chinese social media earlier this week after an audience member posted a description of the joke online. Li had made the joke at a live stand-up set in Beijing describing it as demeaning to Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA).

Li recounted seeing two stray dogs he had adopted chase a squirrel and said it had reminded him of the phrase have a good work style, be able to fight and win battles. The slogan has been used by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to praise the PLAs work ethic.

We will never allow any company or individual use the Chinese capital as a stage to wantonly slander the glorious image of the PLA, the cultural bureau said. Xiaoguo Culture would be barred from staging any future shows in Beijing, it added.

Xiaoguo Culture blamed the incident on major loopholes in management and said it had terminated the comedian's contract. The company was founded in Shanghai in 2015 and their artists have faced action before as well. In July 2021, the company was fined 200,000 yuan for publishing advertisements that featured a comedian endorsing a lingerie brand.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed a "new era" of ties with Central Asia on Thursday, kicking off a summit Beijing hopes will deepen relations with the strategically vital region. Chinese President Xi Jinping(AFP)

Also Read | Sydney Quad Summit called off over US crisis

Held in the ancient Chinese city of Xi'an, the historic eastern end of the Silk Road that linked China to Europe through Central Asia, Beijing has said this week's meeting is of "milestone significance".

And in a speech to the region's leaders at a welcoming banquet Thursday evening, Xi said strengthening ties was a "strategic choice".

"I am confident that with our joint efforts, tomorrow's summit will be a full success and will herald a new era of China-Central Asia relations," Xi was quoted as saying in a readout of the speech seen by AFP.

"Join us in opening up a bright future of China-Central Asia cooperation," he said.

Also Read | Xi Jinping on a global roll, China eyes ports on West Africa and Argentina

This week's meeting is the first of its kind since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago.

Beijing says trade with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan reached $70 billion in 2022 and expanded 22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023.

Central Asia has also become key to China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, a defining geopolitical project for Xi, with Beijing keen to restart cooperation and fill the vacuum left in former Soviet states by Russia's war in Ukraine.

China, the world's second-largest energy consumer, has invested billions of dollars to tap natural gas reserves in Central Asia, while rail links connecting China to Europe criss-cross the region.

Analysts told AFP this week's summit is likely to see efforts to reach agreements to further expand that vast network, including a long-stalled $6 billion China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and an expansion of the Central Asia-to-China gas pipeline.

- 'Global economic leadership' -

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hailed the "unique scope" of that project at a meeting with Xi ahead of the summit.

Xi also told Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in talks on Thursday that China was "willing to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a community of good neighborliness, friendship, shared prosperity, and a shared future".

He then met with the leaders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, lauding the close ties between them and pledging to expand economic and cultural exchanges.

"Your policies will ensure the development and further prosperity of a modern socialist state, the strengthening of the authority and the global economic leadership of the country in the nearest future," Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev told Xi.

Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan greeted the heads of state at a grand welcoming ceremony in the evening, posing for a group photo in front of an old-style Chinese building lit by red lanterns.

Dozens of dancers then performed a musical show inspired by the Tang Dynasty, when relations between China and Central Asia were considered very strong.

A media event will be held on Friday morning, expected to be attended by all six presidents, at which a joint statement is likely to be released.

- Growing influence -

This week's summit also comes as Beijing works to replace Russia as Central Asian nations' preferred partner -- and as Xi positions himself as a global statesman keen to expand China's reach far beyond its borders.

"Xi will position himself as a leader that can promote global development and peace," Zhiqun Zhu, a Professor of International Relations and Political Science at Bucknell University, told AFP.

The summit also coincides with a meeting of the G7 in Hiroshima that will likely focus on efforts to "push back China's growing influence around the world", Zhu said.

"The diplomatic and strategic significance cannot be underestimated," he said.

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A Chinese envoy asked Australian authorities Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in an Indian Ocean search for 39 missing from a capsized Chinese fishing boat. China's Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian speaks to media at the Embassy of China in Canberra. Xiao asked Australian authorities Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in an Indian Ocean search for 39 missing from a capsized Chinese fishing boat.(AP)

Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian said the Australian authority had already sent four airplanes and three ships to the search area, which is in the center of the Indian Ocean.

No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

Xiao said China wanted to coordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, on the search and rescue effort following the capsizing Tuesday. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority, the search coordinator, said the upturned hull was spotted Tuesday from a cargo ship 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, Xiao told reporters, referring to Australian authorities. We wish that our Australian colleagues would coordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible."

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines have also expressed their willingness to join in the search, and merchant and fishing vessels in the area searched for survivors Wednesday.

The search authority did not immediately respond to a request Thursday for an update on the search and rescue operation.

Transport Minister Catherine King, who is responsible for the search authority, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

No word was given on the cause of the capsizing.

The capsized boat, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong, operated by the Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd., according to reports. Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, is operating near to the upturned hull and has been asked to conduct a grid search for survivors, according to Indonesian authorities.
The United States and the rest of the "Group of Seven" major economies will unveil new sanctions and export controls targeting Russia over its war against Ukraine, a U.S. official said ahead of a G7 summit in Japan. G7 nations (REUTERS FILE PHOTO)

G7 leaders are gathering in Hiroshima on Friday with the invasion of Ukraine, now in its second year, high on the agenda. The U.S. has spearheaded tough sanctions on Russian companies, banks and individuals, and the coming announcement is designed to reaffirm world powers' resolve to support Ukraine and squeeze Moscow.

A U.S. official, speaking to reporters on Thursday ahead of the gathering, said the G7's latest efforts were aimed at disrupting Russia's ability to get materials it needs for the battlefield, close loopholes used to evade sanctions, further reduce international reliance on Russian energy, and narrow Moscow's access to the international financial system.

"Our commitment to continue tightening the screws on Russia remains as strong as it was last year," the official said.

The United States and its allies, including the European Union and Britain, have continued to ratchet up sanctions and export-control pressure on Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Thousands of targets hit with sanctions by Washington so far have included Russian President Vladimir Putin, the financial sector and oligarchs.

Washington over the past few months has cracked down on sanctions evasion with a heavy focus on dual-use items - those which have both commercial and military applications.

The latest U.S. sanctions package will include "extensively restricting categories of goods key to the battlefield" as well as preventing some 70 entities from Russia and third countries from receiving U.S. exports by adding them to the U.S. Commerce Department's blacklist.

In addition, the United States will announce some 300 new sanctions against individuals, entities, vessels and aircraft targeting "financial facilitators", Russia's future energy extracting capabilities, and others across Europe, the Middle East and Asia helping to support the war.

U.S. sanctions authorities would also be expanded to more sectors of the Russian economy.

The U.S. official said Washington would take significant steps to align its actions closely with the EU and Britain to ensure that the G7 remained as coordinated as possible in response to "Russia's brutal actions".
Pakistan is heading towards an imminent disaster and the country may face disintegration, former prime minister Imran Khan warned, accusing the Shehbaz Sharif government of hatching a conspiracy to pit the army against his party. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief asserted that the only solution to end political instability was to hold elections. Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan(AP)

"The PDM leaders and Nawaz Sharif, who is absconding in London, are least concerned whether the countrys constitution is desecrated, state institutions are destroyed or even Pakistan Army earns a bad name. They are looking for their vested interests of saving the looted wealth alone, he said.

"I am seeing a frightening dream that the country is heading towards an imminent disaster. I appeal to the powers that be to let the elections take place and save the country, Imran Khan added.

On the unrest that followed his arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises on May 9, Imran Khan said that it was a pure conspiracy.

This is high time that the powers that be should sensibly rethink otherwise the country might face an East Pakistan-like situation, he said.

Defending his criticism of Pakistan's army, Imran Khan said: When I reprimand the army, it is like I am criticising my kids. I have repeatedly stated that I do not interfere in state institutions internal matters. I did not interfere when I had confirmed reports that the former army chief was conspiring against me."

The former premier also cited a recent survey which showed that Pakistans 70 per cent population was standing with his party.

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Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is facing corruption charges, said on Thursday he would not join an investigation by the powerful anti-graft agency while he was out on bail. Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan(AFP)

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which has in the past investigated, put on trial and jailed all those who have served as prime minister since 2008, had earlier summoned Khan for investigation into the graft charges, a spokesman said.

Khan was arrested on the charges, which he denies, on May 9 and later set free on court-ordered bail that was extended to May 31.

In a statement addressed to the NAB's deputy director, and shown to Reuters by one of Khan's lawyers, the former prime minister called the allegations against him "absolutely false, frivolous and concocted".

He said he was in the process of applying for, and obtaining, bail in a number of other legal cases and would not be available before his protective bail expired on May 22.

Also Read | A look at the Imran Khan versus army contest

Khan's arrest triggered a wave of violence that deepened political instability in the South Asian nation of 220 million. Pakistan has also been facing its worst ever economic crisis, with critical IMF funding needed to avert a balance of payment crisis delayed for months.

His wife Bushra Khan, commonly known as Bushra Bibi, is also on bail until May 23.

On Wednesday, Khan said that police had surrounded his house in Lahore, in Punjab province, and that he expected to be re-arrested soon, after the government warned him to hand over supporters who it blamed for attacks on the army.

Punjab's information minister Amir Mir said the government did not have any plans to arrest Khan as he had been given bail by court. "All we want him to hand over the terrorists hiding at his home," he said.

Khan has said authorities could search his home but only with legal warrants from a court, and has denied sheltering anyone involved in the violence.

On Thursday, Khan's aide Iftikhr Durrani allowed journalists into some areas of Khan's Lahore home to "look for terrorists".
Deutsche Bank AG agreed to pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit in which victims of Jeffrey Epsteins sexual abuse accused the bank of facilitating his sex-trafficking operation, according to attorneys for the plaintiffs. Jeffrey Epstein appears in a photograph taken for the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' sex offender registry March 28, 2017.(REUTERS)

Deutsche Bank agreed to settle after US District Judge Jed Rakoff ruled in March that the lawsuit filed by a victim identified only as Jane Doe may proceed against it, as well as a separate but nearly identical suit filed by another Jane Doe against JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The settlement will allow dozens of survivors of Jeffrey Epstein to finally attempt to restore their faith in our system knowing that all individuals and entities who facilitated Epsteins sex-trafficking operation are finally being held accountable, lawyers at Edwards Pottinger, one of the firms that brought the suit, said in a statement.

The suits were allowed to move ahead under the federal Trafficking Victim Protection Act because the plaintiffs sufficiently alleged the banks participated in a commercial sex-trafficking venture; knew or disregarded that force, fraud or coercion would be used; and benefited from their participation, the judge explained in a May 1 opinion that elaborated on his initial ruling.

JPMorgan is still fighting the suit against it, and opposing the womans request to be allowed to represent other victims in a class-action lawsuit.

Deutsche Bank hasnt admitted to any wrongdoing, a person with knowledge of the agreement said. The bank said it has bolstered its controls.

In recent years Deutsche Bank has made considerable progress in remedying a number of past issues, including investing more than 4 billion euros to bolster our controls as well as training and operational processes, Dylan Riddle, a spokesman for the bank, said in a statement. Further, weve increased the size of our anti-financial crime team to 1,900 employees.

In their lawsuits, the women alleged Epstein had access to large amounts of cash to fuel his operation and avoided cash withdrawals that would raise red flags. Epstein was a client at JPMorgan from 1998 to 2013. After the bank cut ties with him, he moved his accounts to Deutsche Bank until 2018.

Epstein was charged with sex trafficking in 2019 and found dead in his prison cell weeks later, in what was ruled a suicide.

Both banks were accused by the victims or ignoring red flags in order to profit from Epsteins business.

The high-profile litigation has cast new light on the internal discussions at JPMorgan about keeping Epstein as a client in the face of mounting allegations of sex abuse. Epsteins relationship with Jes Staley has become the cornerstone of the litigation, with Doe alleging the former JPMorgan executive knew about Epsteins crimes. Staley has denied the accusation.

The US Virgin Islands is suing JPMorgan for facilitating similar activity, some of which took place on Epsteins private island there. That suit was filed after the two Jane Doe lawsuits.

The cases are Jane Doe 1 v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, 22-cv-10019; Jane Doe 1 v. Deutsche Bank, 22-cv-10018, and USVI v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, 22-cv-10904-UA, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).
The overseas travel ban imposed on former Sri Lanka prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has been lifted, ANI reported quoting news organization News First. The ban had been put in place following May 9, 2022 clashes. The travel ban against MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena, minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and ex-provincial council member Kanchana Jayaratne has also been lifted. File photo of Sri Lanka's former leader Mahinda Rajapaksa.(REUTERS)

The ban came after investigations into the alleged involvement of Rajapaksa and others in the deadly attack on peaceful anti-government protesters in Colombo.

Mahinda Rajapaksa's lawyer asked the court to relax the travel restrictions citing the fact that none of them had been listed as suspects in the investigation, News First reported.

The court issued an order lifting the travel ban and designated the Controller General of Immigration and Emigration as the recipient of the stated order. The Sri Lankan Supreme Court had earlier issued an order that prevented them from leaving the country without the court's permission.

The clashes came as Sri Lankans experienced extreme shortages of essentials including food and fuel. The demonstrations led then-prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa to resign. His brother, president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, fled the country and resigned later. Wickremasinghe then became acting president, and parliament elected him as the new president on July 20 last year.

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Montana on Wednesday became the first US state to ban TikTok, with the law set to take effect next year as debate escalates over the impact and security of the popular video app. The icon for the video sharing TikTok app is seen on a smartphone.(AP)

The prohibition signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte will serve as a legal test for a national ban of the Chinese-owned platform, something that lawmakers in Washington are increasingly calling for.

"TikTok may not operate within the territorial jurisdiction of Montana," said a copy of the freshly-minted law at the state website.

The ban makes it a violation each time "a user accesses TikTok, is offered the ability to access TikTok, or is offered the ability to download TikTok."

Each violation is punishable by a $10,000 fine every day it takes place.

Under the law, Apple and Google will have to remove TikTok from their app stores and companies will face possible daily fines.

The move almost certainly will be challenged by lawsuits.

State political leaders have "trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment," said ACLU Montana policy director Keegan Medrano.

The ban will take effect in 2024, but be voided if TikTok is acquired by a company incorporated in a country not designated by the United States as a foreign adversary, the law read.

"Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok," a spokeswoman for the company told AFP.

"We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

TikTok has gone on record saying that the ban's constitutionality will ultimately be decided by the courts.

The law is the latest skirmish in duels between TikTok and many western governments, with the app already banned on government devices in the United States, Canada and several countries in Europe.

The app is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance and is accused by a wide swathe of US politicians of being under the tutelage of the Chinese government and a tool of espionage by Beijing, something the company furiously denies.

Gianforte himself said on Twitter that he signed the ban in order to "protect Montanans' personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party."

Despite its immense popularity, TikTok faces an ultimatum by the White House that it split from its Chinese owners or stop operating in America.

Montana's clampdown on TikTok comes as the app faces proposals of national legislation -- including one bill that could give the White House massive new powers to oversee Chinese tech companies.
Prince William's wife Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales was "angry" with Camilla at the time of the coronation owing to which she did not curtsy to the new Queen, a royal expert claimed. Royal author Tom Bower said that Kate's lack of a curtsy showed signs of tension with her step mother-in-law. Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince William and Kate Middleton, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte leave after the coronation ceremony of Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey.(Reuters)

If you look at the Coronation footage, as the King and Queen leave the thrones and head for the exit of Westminster Abbey, youll see that everyone bows and curtsies to the King and no one moves a limb, a muscle, when Camilla passes. And thats because they were angry with her. No one moves, Tom Bower said.

He continued: Kate and William were angry too. That anger went right through that small part of the congregation by the throne, at the centre of Westminster Abbey. And in that moment it was absolutely noticeable to those people who had been excluded that nobody  let alone Kate  curtsied to Queen Camilla."

The royal author alleged that Camilla "brought twenty Parker Bowles' to the coronation and there were four Middleton's".

And what was even more noticeable was at the Windsor concert the following day William makes no reference to Queen Camilla. So there is a tension there," he said.

The author said that the tensions put King Charles in a dangerous position, suggesting that, this was why Camilla "disappeared" from the public eye.

Kate, Prince William and their two younger children- Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - sat on the front row at the Abbey while their eldest child Prince George, acted as one of the King's four Pages of Honour.

Three of Camilla's grandsons also all shared George's role.

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Mick Jagger's daughter Jade Jagger was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly assaulting cops in Ibiza, Spain. As per reports, while in a drunken state, she got involved in an alleged altercation at a restaurant and behaved aggressively with police officers who tried to resolve the matter. Mick and Jade Jagger(Twitter)

As per a report by Page Six, Jade was with a companion and both were under the influence of alcohol or some type of substance. The report suggests that during the altercation at the restaurant, her friend allegedly threatened and insulted the staff. Jade is alleged to have called the police "stupid".

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Reportedly, Jade's friend had to be taken to the hospital for being under the influence of substances he allegedly took. The man's identity was not revealed.

Jade is the daughter of Mick who is one of the founding members of rock band The Rolling Stones. She was earlier involved in Jewellery business but in March, she announced that she had stopped working.

Today is the first day I decided to stop working well at jewllery I think it will bring new light new love and new opportunities thank u to all that supported me, she wrote while sharing a photo on Instagram.
Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir has said that "planned and orchestrated tragic incidents" of May 9, the day military installations were attacked, will never be allowed again at any cost, ARY News reported. Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir.(AP)

The army chief during his visit to Sialkot Garrison said: "No one will be allowed to disrespect our martyrs and their monuments. They are a source of inspiration and pride for the rank and file of the Armed Forces, Law Enforcement Agencies, Government officials and the people of Pakistan."

According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), COAS Asim Munir visited Sialkot Garrison and laid a floral wreath at Martyrs' Monument while paying rich tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for the pride, honor and dignity of the nation.

Those killed "have been promised the highest abode in the life hereafter and shall continue to maintain the highest levels of respect amongst the people of Pakistan," he said, according to ARY News.

COAS Munir further said that the State of Pakistan and its Armed Forces will always hold those killed for the country, their families in very high esteem and continue to honour them and their supreme sacrifices with utmost respect and dignity.

The army chief underscored that recently planned and orchestrated tragic incidents will never be allowed again at any cost, as per ARY News.

The COAS reassured the ranks and files that all those responsible for bringing shame to the nation on "Black Day of May 9" would certainly be brought to Justice.

He also appreciated under-command formations for their hard work, devotion, high morale, and professionalism.

"The armed forces will not tolerate any further attempt of violating the sanctity and security of its installations or vandalism and resolved to bring to justice all the planners, abettors, instigators and "executors of vandalism on the Black Day of 9th May," the army chief said.
The Quad summit in Sydney has been cancelled but the powerful navies of US, India, Australia, and Japan will take part in advanced Malabar 2023 exercises off the east coast of down under nation from August 11 to 22 this year practicing interoperability, sea deterrence, sea denial towards ensuring freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific. The complex exercises will include both sea and harbor phases with top commanders of Quad navies discussing the Indo-Pacific. File photo of Malabar 2022 naval exercises off the coast of Japan

With India having a logistics agreement with all the other three QUAD partners, the Indian Navy will participate with its top-of-the-line destroyers, P 8 I anti-submarine warfare aircraft and a submarine at the Malabar 2023, which started as a Indo-US bilateral exercise way back in 1992. Japan was made a permanent partner in 2015 and Australia joined in 2020 to complete the Quad.

According to officials, the basic focus of the naval exercise will be anti-submarine warfare operations with the PLA Navy getting belligerent in the Indo-Pacific after laying claims on the entire South China much to the chagrin of ASEAN countries like Philippines and Indonesia in particular. With the PLA Navy rapidly expanding its nuclear powered conventional armed submarines, Beijing's strategic ambition is to dominate the far Pacific with its warships and submarines crossing the first and second chain of islands off its eastern seaboard. The PLA has also built conventional DF-21 missile parks on its eastern coast to deter the powerful US Navy from operating in South China Sea and threatens to use DF-26 missiles to target the US naval and military bases at Guam.

The India-US military exercise schedule was also reviewed at the 17th meeting of the bilateral defence policy group on Wednesday with both sides reinforcing their commitment to strengthening cooperation and interoperability between the two forces to work together in all domains and all the services. The DPG was c-chaired by Indian Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and US Under Secretary for Policy at Pentagon Dr Colin Kahl. It is understood that the officials exchanged views about shared priorities in the Indian Ocean Region and aligning the bilateral partnership with other like-minded partnerships to sustain a free and open Indo-Pacific. The DPG advanced an ambitious agenda including industrial cooperation, maritime security, and technological collaboration, reflecting the robust and comprehensive ties between the two natural allies.

While India, Australia and the US are clear about their Quad agenda in the Indo-Pacific, the focus is on Tokyo, which is still to shed its pacifist mindset and make up its mind on Beijing given the nature of huge investment by Japanese companies in China. Although both Japan and China are under the nuclear umbrella of the US, Tokyo will be the first to face military emergency if President Xi Jinping orders the PLA to occupy Taiwan. India on its part is still to resolve the friction points on the East Ladakh LAC with the PLA still to de-escalate and disengage from the western and the eastern sector with additional combined armed brigades deployed in these two sensitive sectors. Even though the Quad meeting is now scheduled in Hiroshima, the first city to be targeted with a nuclear bomb, the grouping is expected to expand and further consolidate in the anti-war city in south Japan.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Shishir Gupta Author of Indian Mujahideen: The Enemy Within (2011, Hachette) and Himalayan Face-off: Chinese Assertion and Indian Riposte (2014, Hachette). Awarded K Subrahmanyam Prize for Strategic Studies in 2015 by Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) and the 2011 Ben Gurion Prize by Israel. ...view detail
Two women in New York were diagnosed as the first US cases of a highly contagious, drug-resistant fungal infection- ringworm- as per a case study released by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The infection has never been detected before in the United States but according to federal medical professionals more cases are being looked into. Ringworm In US: More cases are being looked into.(Representational)

"Tinea is a common, highly contagious, superficial infection of the skin, hair, or nails caused by dermatophyte molds," the CDC report said, adding that during the past decade, cases of severe, antifungal-resistant tinea have emerged in South Asia. It has reached epidemic proportions in the region, it stated.

The report revealed that the two patients, who were 28 and 47 years old respectively, had lesions on their thighs, buttocks, necks, and belly.

The first patient developed a widespread pruritic eruption in 2021 and had her first dermatologic evaluation at a time when she was in her third trimester of pregnancy. "She had no other underlying medical conditions, no known exposures to a person with a similar rash, and no recent international travel history," the report stated.

The second patient also had no major medical conditions and developed a widespread eruption in summer 2022 while she was in Bangladesh. She received treatment with topical antifungal and steroid combination creams and some of her family members were also experiencing similar eruptions.

The skin infection has not responded to the normal treatment suggested by dermatologists. The CDC has advised people to be cautious of any circumstance that could lead to a skin illness.

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A man suspected of stalking Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle was arrested outside the couples home in Santa Barbara County, California, a report claimed. Although, it is not known whether the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, or their children Prince Archie or Princess Lilibet were at home at the time of the incident. Prince Harry and Meghan are seen.(Reuters)

Kevin Garcia Valdovinos, 29, was allegedly seen lurking outside the couple's mansion in Montecito at around 2am, TMZ reported. He has been booked on misdemeanor stalking charges after police attended the scene, the report said, but was later released on $2,500 bail.

Just hours after reports of the alleged stalker emerged, a spokesperson for the couple said that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry had been involved in a near-catastrophic car chase involving paparazzi. Meghans mother was also in the car. The couple were in New York City to attend a Ms Foundation gala, where Meghan Markle received the 2023 Women of Vision Award for her advocacy work.

Prince Harry and Meghan have lived at the residence since 2020 after they stepped down from their royal duties. It was then reported that they acquired the 18,000 square foot home which rests on 5.4 acres for $14.7 million.

Chat show hosts Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres are among their neighbours. The couple had previously suffered an intruder on the property back in December 2020. Then a man was caught tresspassing on Christmas Eve and handed a warning.

The incident comes at a time when Prince Harry argued in a London court that he should be allowed to challenge a UK government decision that denied him the right to pay for police protection when he visits his home country.

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A New York City cab driver- Sukhcharn Singh- drove Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle for about 10 minutes soon after the couple were chased by paparazzi. The couple were clearly nervous during the short journey, the Indian-origin driver told BBC. New York City cab driver Sukhcharn Singh poses for a photo with his taxi in the Queens borough of New York.(AP)

He picked them up at a local police precinct in Midtown Manhattan and was witness to only some part of the drama. Not calling his drive a dangerous chase by photographers, he said, I was on 67th Street and then the security guard hailed me. Next thing you know, Prince Harry and his wife were hopping into my cab.

We got blocked by a garbage truck, and all of a sudden paparazzi came and started taking pictures. They looked nervous, I think they were being chased the whole day or something, he said, adding, They were pretty nervous, but the security guard, he was on it.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's spokesperson said in a statement that the couple endured a "relentless pursuit" that lasted for more than two hours. The couple were pursued by photographers after attending the Ms Foundation Women of Vision Awards. Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, was also with them.

For at least the few minutes they were in Sukhcharn Singh's car, he did not believe they were in danger.

"I don't think that's true, I think that's all exaggerated and stuff like that. Don't read too much into that," he said. He later added "that must have happened before" they got in his taxi.

New York City's the safest place to be. There's police stations, cops on every corner, there's no reason to be afraid in New York, he added.

The paparazzi were not being aggressive during his drive, he asserted, saying, "They were behind us. I mean, they stayed on top of us, that was pretty much it, it was nothing more. They kept their distance."

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Despite strong and fierce opposition from Democrats and widespread protests at the Capitol, the Texas Legislature has approved a bill that bans hormone and puberty-blocking treatments, as well as surgeries and medical supports, for transgender children. If signed into law, Texas will become the largest state to prohibit transition medical care for minors. Rep. John Bryant, D-Dallas, expresses opposition to Senate Bill 14 before it's put to a vote in the Texas House of Representatives Friday, May 12, 2023, in Austin, Texas. SB14 would ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender children. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman via AP)(AP)

The final bill does include a limited exemption for transgender children who were already undergoing medical treatment prior to its passage. But, these individuals will be required to gradually discontinue their medications over an unspecified period.

Under this legislation, doctors would be strictly prohibited from performing mastectomies or surgeries that result in sterilization or the removal of healthy tissue or body parts. They would also be prohibited from prescribing drugs and medical consultations that induce temporary or permanent infertility.

The controversial bill now awaits the governor's signature to be enforceable as the law.

This measure is just one of several proposals introduced by the Republican-dominated Legislature targeting transgender individuals. On the same day, the State House advanced another bill that would require athletes in high school and colleges to compete based on the sex listed on their birth certificate.

The contentious Senate Bill 14 has been the subject of intense debate and protests at the Capitol, with Texas law enforcement even arresting two individuals during the discussions in the State House.

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Procedural delays caused opponents in the House to twice postpone voting on the bill before it was eventually passed and returned to the Senate. The Senate concurred with the House version and sent it to the governor for approval.

Even before this bill's passage, Texas officials had been taking measures to restrict transgender children's access to medical transition care. Last year, Governor Greg Abbott instructed the state's child protective agency to investigate parents for child abuse if their children underwent such treatments. As a result, many Texas families chose to leave the state.

Why the bill matters so much

Texas is poised to become the largest state to enact a ban on medical treatments for transgender children, joining at least 14 other states that have implemented similar restrictions.

It is estimated that nearly 30,000 transgender children aged between 13 to 17 reside in the state, comprising approximately 1 percent of individuals in that age group, according to the Williams Institute (A research center focusing on L.G.B.T.Q. demographics).

These bans are part of a well-fledged nationwide effort by Republican leaders to limit medical care for transgender children, as well as discussions surrounding gender in schools and drag performances.

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Ron DeSantis, Governor of Florida recently signed a bill that prohibits hormone treatments and gender-transition care for minors, imposing penalties of up to five years in prison for doctors who violate the law.

Proponents of the Texas legislation have described the treatments as "mutilation," while oppositions argue that the measure represents a pre-planned politicized attack on the transgender community, impeding individuals from receiving vital care to address gender dysphoria. It is worth noting that these treatments are recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Whats coming next

The scandalous bill has reached the desk of the Texas governor, who has not provided any comment on the legislation at this time. If signed into law, the bill is set to take effect on September 1.

Under the provisions of the bill, minors who are currently undergoing prescribed medical treatment would have the opportunity to gradually discontinue the medication "over a period of time and in a manner that is safe and medically appropriate."

But things to keep in mind is that, it remains uncertain whether doctors would feel comfortable continuing to offer such care. The bill grants enforcement authority to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who has already initiated investigations into potentially illegal activities related to gender transition treatments by at least one medical provider.

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Following the inquiry by Mr. Paxton into Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin, the center announced that doctors who provide care to transgender children would no longer be associated with their facility.

The repercussions of this legislation and the investigations have raised concerns about the future availability of medical services for transgender minors in Texas.
The Tibetan community in Canada staged a protest in Toronto on the anniversary of the incarceration of the Panchen Lama by Chinese authorities, even as an MP raised the issue in the House of Commons. Tibetan activists protesting outside the Chinese Consulate in Toronto on Wednesday to mark the anniversary of the date when the current Panchen Lama was taken into custody. (RTYC Toronto)

On March 17, 1995, the 11th Panchen Lama, the second highest rank for a Buddhist monk in the Tibetan culture, Gedhun Chokye Nyima, was taken into custody, along with his family by Chinese police in the Lhari county of Tibet.

That action came just three days after the Dalai Lama had recognised the then six-year-old as the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama.

The protest in Toronto was held in front of the Chinese Consulate by activists from the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of Toronto or RTYC Toronto and Tibetan Womens Association of Ontario.

Sunny Sonam, president of RTYC Toronto and the principal organizer of the protest, said, Today is a day we should not forget. This was the date on which the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) kidnapped the Panchen Lama and his family. Google the worlds youngest political prisoner and his name will come up.

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, an MP from the Bloc Quebecois, addressed the House of Commons on this anniversary in solidarity with the Tibetans. His remarks, made in French, he said, were necessary as the Panchen Lama was a symbol of great importance for the Tibetan community currently deprived of its traditions.

He pointed out that at the time he was arrested by Beijing, the Panchen Lama was above all, a child.

The Canada Tibet Committee thanked the MP on Twitter for his speech marking the anniversary of the day when the Panchen Lama was forcibly abducted along with his family at the age of six.

As the issue of Chinese interference in the Federal elections in Canada in 2019 and 2021 has dominated headlines in recent months, Sonam said Canadians were showing more compassion, trying to understand the Tibetan cause.

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Two young international students from India have been identified as the victims of a traffic accident that occurred near the Canadian capital of Ottawa last week. HT Image

The mishap took place on May 12 in a single car crash at around 5.30 am on Friday morning, according to the Ontario Provincial Police.

Based on information from fellow students and Indo-Canadian community members, the victims were identified by the network Prime Asia as 21-year-old Balwinder Singh and 22-year-old Sachin Chugh, both from Punjab. They were both residents of the town of Brampton in the Greater Toronto Area or GTA and were traveling to Ottawa when the tragic accident on Highway 417 claimed their lives.

Chugh was a student at Canadore College, while Singh was at Alpha College.

Their funerals will be held in Brampton on Thursday and their remains are expected to be transported back to India on Friday. A family friend set up an online fundraiser for Chugh for returning the remains to India.

According to a report in the outlet CTV News on the day of the mishap, Ottawa Fire Services said the vehicle the young students were travelling in was found upended about 120 metres away from the road on a neighbouring field.

The two occupants trapped in the vehicle were extricated by fire department personnel but were subsequently declared dead at the spot by paramedics attending at the scene.

This isnt the first accident in Canada to claim multiple lives of students from India. In March last year, a fatal accident in southern Ontario claimed the lives of five international students from India.

There were a total of eight occupants of the van involved in that tragedy; the five deceased, two who were injured and treated at a nearby hospital and another person who was outside the vehicle and was unharmed. Most of the students, seven of whom were from Punjab and one from Haryana, were students in Montreal but residents in the Greater Toronto Area township of Brampton.

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Ukrainian deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said in a Telegram post that Kyiv's forces had repelled day-long attacks by Russia in the embattled city of Bakhmut on Wednesday. Members of the 225th Kharkiv Battalion are seen during an operation in the location given as near Bakhmut, Ukraine.(via REUTERS)

"The enemy gathered most of its reserves to Bakhmut and significantly strengthened the group," she said. "Today the enemy attacked Bakhmut for the entire day. All attacks were repelled."
A Russian lawmaker proposed training "large" and "aggressive" stray dogs for the battlefield in Ukraine, Newsweek reported citing a clip shared on a Russian Telegram channel from the country's parliamentary television broadcast. In the video, State Duma deputy Fedot Tumusov suggested that homeless dogs should be trained for combat use, during a discussion on possible amendments to a law that gives regions in Russia the right to euthanize stray dogs. Russia-Ukraine War: A Ukrainian serviceman stands amid destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine.(AP)

The proposal comes as Kyiv's military claimed that its research showed that Russia has suffered more than 200,000 troop deaths in Ukraine since February last year.

We have a lot of cynologists in our country who can teach dogs all sorts of different skills. Cynologists would train large and aggressive dogs and send them to the [war] zone. Let them help pull out the wounded, participate in demining, Fedot Tumusov- who has been sanctioned by the US and the UK-said.

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, shared the clip on Twitter, saying, "In case you were wondering about the level of insanity in Russia.

This comes as Russia has stepped up air strikes in recent weeks as Ukraine prepares to launch a counteroffensive to try to take back occupied territory. Earlier on Thursday, Ukraine shot down 29 of 30 missiles launched by Russia in overnight air strikes but one person was killed in an attack on the southern city of Odesa, the military said.

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On Thursday, in a rhetorical tweet, controversial social media influencer and former kickboxer, Andrew Tate expressed his indifference towards the news of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's alleged close encounter with a potential accident. Andrew Tate's rhetorical Tweet sparks debate (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)(AP)

Tatestweet not only questioned the relevance of the BUMBARASS story but also raised concerns about the couple's desire for privacy while engaging with the media.

So Harry and Megan ALMOST crashed and I ALMOST gave a fuck. I ALMOST flew to the moon and became a fucking alien. What kinda BUMBARASS story is this? Thought they wanted to be left alone and out of public eye for privacy. But they go to the papers every time something almost happens? the controversial businessman expressed.

Top Gs tweet encapsulated his apathy towards the news, using rhetorical terms to emphasize his lack of interest. It also echoed sentiments expressed by others who question the media scrutiny of Harry and Meghan's lives. Many argue that the couple often finds themselves in the spotlight, despite their stated desire for privacy.

Harry and Megan almost had an accident and they wanted to keep it private, but they told the newspapers about it, one Twitter user expressed.

Notably, Harry and Meghan have expressed their desire for privacy, they have also been open about their advocacy work and their intention to use the platform for positive change. This presents a paradox, as maintaining a level of public visibility is necessary for their initiatives to have an impact across the horizon. Amid celeb-hood finding the balance between public engagement and personal privacy becomes a complex challenge.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex face constant public and media scrutiny, with their every move captured and dissected by the media. This intense scrutiny can have a profound impact on their well-being and mental health, as they strive to carve out a sense of normalcy for themselves and their family.

The Royal couple's desire to protect their privacy is understandable. They have been vocal about the invasive tactics employed by certain sections of the media and the toll it has taken on their lives. Their decision to step back from their roles as senior members of the British Royal Family was, in part, driven by a desire to regain control over their personal lives and shield themselves from the excessive public eye.

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The media industry thrives on capturing the attention of its audience, often leading to the amplification of stories, both significant and trivial. News of even a near accident involving high-profile individuals like Harry and Meghan can quickly become the headline of the day.

It is also worth considering that public personalities often find themselves in a Catch-22 situation. While they truly want to maintain a certain level of privacy, their actions, opinions, and philanthropic endeavors have the potential to influence and inspire a broader audience.
New York Mayor Eric Adams said that it is reckless and irresponsible for anyone to chase people in vehicles in the densely populated city following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's statement on being involved in a near catastrophic pursuit by paparazzi. Prince Harry-Meghan Markle: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex are seen.(AP)

Saying that he did receive a full briefing about the incident but was concerned about reports, the mayor said, Its clear that the press, the paparazzi, they want to get the right shot. But public safety must always be at the forefront.

Mayor Adams said two of our officers could have been injured while he found it hard to believe that there was a two-hour high-speed chase. Even an incident lasting 10 minutes could have been extremely dangerous, he said.

New York City is different from a small town somewhere. You shouldnt be speeding anywhere but this is a densely populated city, he added, saying, It would be horrific to lose an innocent bystander during a chase like this and for something to have happened to them as well.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle said that they were involved in a near catastrophic car chase involving highly aggressive paparazzi that lasted over two hours and could have been fatal. Meghans mother Doria Ragland was with them at the time.

The couple said in a statement that they were followed after attending a charity awards ceremony by the Ms Foundation for Women, where Meghan was honoured for her work.

The police said, On [Tuesday] evening, May 16, the NYPD assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests in regard.

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This week Yevgeny Prigozhin stepped out of the shadows. The close ally of Russias president, Vladimir Putin, admitted for the first time that he is the founder of Wagner , a group of mercenaries that do Russias dirty work. I cleaned the old weapons myself, sorted out the bulletproof vests myself, said Mr Prigozhin, referring to the early days of the Wagner Group. He called his private soldiers heroes. His admission came after a video, circulated on September 13th, appeared to show him recruiting convicts to boost Russias manpower in Ukraine. He promised them freedom in exchange for six months of combat (if they survive that long). Who is Mr Prigozhin, and why does his growing prominence matter? PREMIUM Who is Mr Prigozhin, and why does his growing prominence matter?(AP)

Little is known about Mr Prigozhins childhood. He spent most of his 20s in prison, serving nine years for robbery, fraud and involving teenagers in crime. After his release, he set up a hot-dog stand in St Petersburg in the 1990s. He soon expanded into chic eaterieshis New Island floating restaurant was a favourite of Mr Putin, a former deputy mayor of the city. His good relations with Russias elite brought in lucrative catering contracts for schools, hospitals and the army. But it was his operations outside the kitchen that cemented his nickname, Putins Chef. These included the Internet Research Agency, which a grand jury in America termed a troll farm used to meddle in the 2016 presidential elections. In 2014 he founded Wagner, the first and largest state-linked business of private military contractors operating in Ukraine, where they bolstered the ranks of Russias unmarked soldiers who annexed Crimea and stayed to support pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Donbas region.

The shady network of mercenariesreportedly named after Hitlers favourite composer and co-founded by Dmitry Utkin, a former Russian soldier with multiple Nazi tattooshas operated almost wherever Russia has an interest, including in Syria, Libya, the Central African Republic (CAR) and Mali. Journalists have reported allegations of torture, rape and extrajudicial killings in its wake. Deploying mercenaries instead of its own troops has allowed Russia plausible deniability. Since the outbreak of war in Ukraine the group is believed to have played a key role in the capture of several eastern cities. It made up for initial shortages of soldiers and allowed Russia to play down casualties. Mark Galeotti, of Mayak Intelligence, a consultancy that focuses on Russia, estimates that at its peak it provided 10,000 men. As Russia brings in new conscripts of dubious quality and morale, Wagner troops may be used to provide resolve and experience.

For many years Mr Prigozhin has vehemently denied any involvement. He has even sued journalists for suggesting he had links to the group. But he is believed to have profited handsomely from the bloody operations by seizing control of oil fields in Syria and diamond mines in CAR. Now hes putting his name to it. One reason may be that Russias tattered relationship with the West means that there is no longer a point in maintaining the open secret. He may also be reminding the Kremlin of his value. But, says Mr Galeotti, Mr Prigozhin is unlikely to step much further into the limelight. He can break the rules when the Kremlin needs him to, he says. He argues that Mr Prigozhin is strongest when operating on the fringes of politics; greater scrutiny could make the thuggish operator a liability to the Kremlin.

As Mr Putin faces painful reversals in Ukraine, the members of his syndicate are asserting themselves. Leonid Volkov, chief of staff to Alexei Navalny, a jailed opposition leader, calls Mr Prigozhin the most dangerous criminal in Putins entourage. The oligarchs growing prominence illustrates the debasement of the state in Russian politics. Private armies erode its monopoly on firepower. The battlefield blunders also sharpen the debate between advocates of greater mobilisation and those in favour of retaining some semblance of democratic politics and a market economy. Mr Prigozhins rising voice bolsters the hawks.

 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com
A World Health Organization (WHO) advisory group on Thursday recommended that this year's COVID-19 booster shots be updated to target one of the currently dominant XBB variants. COVID-19 vaccine makers like Pfizer/BioNtech , Moderna Inc and Novavax Inc are already developing versions of their respective vaccines targeting XBB.1.5. (Representative Photo)

New formulations should aim to produce antibody responses to the XBB.1.5 or XBB.1.16 variants, the advisory group said, adding that other formulations or platforms that achieve neutralizing antibody responses against XBB lineages could also be considered.

Also Read | Use of oxygen therapy enhances cardiac function in patients with COVID-19: Study

The group suggested no longer including the original COVID-19 strain in future vaccines, based on data that the original virus no longer circulates in human beings and shots targeting the strain produce "undetectable or very low levels of neutralizing antibodies" against currently circulating variants.

COVID-19 vaccine makers like Pfizer/BioNtech , Moderna Inc and Novavax Inc are already developing versions of their respective vaccines targeting XBB.1.5 and other currently circulating strains.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also set to hold a meeting of outside experts in June to discuss the strain compositions of COVID-19 shots for later this year; vaccine manufacturers will be expected to update their shots once the strains are selected.

The bivalent booster shots developed and distributed last year targeted two different strains - the Omicron variant as well as the original virus.

WHO's advisory group, which recommends if changes are needed to the composition of future COVID-19 shots, said currently approved vaccines should continue to be used in accordance with the agency's recommendations.

In late March, WHO had revised its COVID vaccination recommendations and suggested healthy children and adolescents might not necessarily need a shot, but older and high-risk groups should get a booster between six and 12 months after their last vaccine. The latest recommendations come about two weeks after WHO ended the global emergency status for COVID-19.
The Main Street looked sad. Along both sides of it, many storefronts were empty. On the stre
Guitar brands from small town strive to go global

Xinhua) 17:04, May 18, 2023

JINAN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- After working in the guitar industry for more than a decade, Li Qingsheng, a former farmer, has honed the skill to distinguish the desired timbre and tune more than 300 electric guitars a day.

Li works at the Changyunda musical instrument company in Tangwu, a small town in east China's Shandong Province which has been the manufacturing hub of musical instruments, especially guitars, for decades. At present, about 2 million musical instruments are produced in the town every year, with an annual output value of 1 billion yuan (about 142.92 million U.S. dollars).

According to Zhang Longgang, general manager of the Changyunda musical instrument company, the process of guitar making involves seven crucial stages that include molding, sanding, painting and drying. He explained that each process consists of around 10 to 20 steps, of which 80 percent need to be done manually, and therefore, the core competitiveness of the industry lies in craftsmanship.

More than 8,000 people are involved in the entire production chain of the guitar industry in Tangwu, accounting for over 10 percent of the town's population, with some workers earning a monthly income of nearly 10,000 yuan.

Previously, guitar factories in Tangwu were mostly small and the production standard of the guitars was not clear. The young generation of industry leaders, such as Zhang, continued to refine the production process and quality standards in order to gain market recognition.

After 11 years of development, Zhang's factory has the advantages of scale and standardization. The number of workers has increased from the initial 10 to more than 80, while the annual output of its musical instruments such as electric guitars and bass guitars exceeds 100,000, which are exported overseas.

In Tangwu, the number of musical instrument production and accessories processing enterprises has grown to more than 80. The products cover nearly 400 varieties under eight series, such as electric guitars, acoustic guitars, ukuleles, banjos and mandolins, which are exported to more than 30 countries and regions including the Republic of Korea, Japan and the United States.

According to Meng Hong, the Party chief of Tangwu Town, to ensure the high-quality development of local musical instrument companies, the government actively organizes them to participate in international exhibitions and has increased investment in innovation, promoting the transformation of the musical instrument industry from OEM production to independent research and development.

"We have to build our own brands," said Zhao Weiguo, general manager of Eart Music Co., Ltd.

In over a decade, the company forged cooperations with the Sichuan Conservatory of Music, Tianjin Conservatory of Music and other universities to establish its own art college, and developed more than 500 "guitar classrooms" across the country to train guitar teachers and students. It also held music festivals and summits to expand its brand influence. As a result, a number of national-level performers as well as guitarists from well-known bands have been included in the customer list of Eart Music Co., Ltd.

Thanks to years of efforts, Tangwu has cultivated nearly 40 local brands such as Krait and Eart. Liu Di, who had been engaged in arranging and recording in Beijing, is optimistic about the development prospect of Tangwu's musical instrument industry and set up the Disheng musical instrument company there a few years ago.

Through cross-border e-commerce sites, Liu sells more than 6,000 electric guitars a month abroad. "I want guitarists all over the world to know Tangwu," he said.

"In the near future, we will promote 'Tangwu guitar' as a regional brand, and combine the development model of industry, culture and tourism to make Tangwu a guitar town with international influence," Meng said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The agreement marks IHG's first partnership with AXA Life Insurance Company in Japan. InterContinental Sapporo will be the first international luxury hotel in Sapporo City

IHG Hotels & Resorts announced an agreement with AXA Life Insurance Company to open InterContinental Sapporo in late 2025. InterContinental Sapporo will be IHG's fifth hotel in Hokkaido, its first luxury hotel In Sapporo and its eleventh InterContinental-branded hotel in Japan.

InterContinental Sapporo will debut on the upper floors (9th to 14th floors) of a new building in the "AXA Sapporo Nakajima Park Project", which was announced today by AXA. Alongside the hotel's two dining venues, lounge, bar, function room, indoor pool and gym, the hotel will feature 149 spacious guest rooms that range from a spacious 42 square metre lead-in room all the way up to a 159 square metre suite.

The hotel will feature a high-end, residence-like offering, with color coordination reminiscent of the nature of Hokkaido. With floor-to-ceiling windows that afford views of Nakajima Park and Toyohira River, guests will experience the rich nature of Sapporo from the comfort of their room.

The hotel's public space will include areas that bring different natural expressions to life: the front lobby with a water feature, the library lounge with a fireplace, and the lounge area surrounded by lush greenery.

Its food and beverage offering includes an all-day dining space that overlooks the Toyohira River, a show kitchen filled with vibrant ambience, and a kappo-style Japanese restaurant with counter seats where guests can enjoy some culinary theatre by the chefs. At the heart of the space is a comfortable lounge and bar where guests can enjoy tea time or evening cocktails, in a space that provides an authentic experiences through its forest theme and contemporary art.

Sapporo is a popular tourist destination that balances Hokkaido's rich nature with the charm of the city. It is renowned for its beautiful seasonal scenery, food experiences, fresh seafood, and abundant events such as the "Sapporo Snow Festival". InterContinental Sapporo will be the first international luxury hotel in Sapporo City, and it is expected that the power of the world's largest luxury hotel brand will attract guests from Japan and overseas.

IHG Hotels & Resorts Japan & Micronesia Managing Director and CEO of IHG ANA Hotels Group Japan, Abhijay Sandilya said, "I am honored that AXA Life Insurance Company will introduce IHG's flagship InterContinental brand to Hokkaido with the opening of InterContinental Sapporo. As the world's largest luxury hotel brand, and one with a strong presence and heritage in Japan, we are confident that the InterContinental brand will attract both domestic and international tourists as it debuts in Sapporo as the first international luxury hotel in Sapporo City. Its prime location in Nakajima Park area, we expect it to quickly become a favourite destination for business, leisure and MICE tourists to the city."

Seiji Yasubuchi , President and CEO of AXA Life Insurance Company said, "I am very happy that IHG Hotels & Resorts has partnered with us to operate its luxury hotel brand in the AXA Sapporo Nakajima Park Project, which will create the future of Sapporo City, Hokkaido, by introducing "InterContinental Sapporo" to debut as the first international luxury brand in Sapporo. We strongly hope that Nakajima Park with rich in nature and depth history will play a role in the development of the city by working together as a new landmark of Sapporo that brings bustle, hospitality, and well-being. "

In Japan, IHG Hotels & Resorts operates 44 hotels under six brands: InterContinental, Kimpton, ANA Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, and Hotel Indigo. Eight more hotels are scheduled to open in the future, including Regent Hotels & Resorts, Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spa, voco Hotels and the Vignette Collection. IHG will continue to focus on business development in Japan and aim to further expand its portfolio.
Key Takeaways

For the first time ever, K-Pop powerhouse ENHYPEN are opening the doors to an overnight stay at the iconic Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul

Located in Seouls most fashionable district, guests will steal the spotlight with an overnight stay ON the runway the night before Seoul Fashion Week in September 2023

Get your light sticks ready! ENHYPEN is set to kick off Seoul Fashion Week in September 2023 with the worlds first overnight stay at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), the soul of style in Seoul.

Following their appearances at Milan Fashion Week, K-Pops ENHYPEN are becoming Airbnb Hosts and inviting two lucky guests to preview Seoul Fashion Week with an overnight stay at DDP. Designed by renowned architect Zaha Hadid, DDP is a major landmark in South Koreas capital city, and hub to a thriving design, art and fashion scene.

The top floor loft space has been transformed in celebration of Fashion Week, with guests getting the chance to stay ON the runway, and gain a first look the night before collections are revealed and Seoul Fashion Week begins. A backstage dressing room offers designer clothes for guests to try on from K-fashions most innovative up-and-coming designers. To top it off, guests will receive exclusive passes to Seoul Fashion Week (including front row seats with some of the biggest names in K-Fashion!).

We are honored to partner with Airbnb and DDP to bring guests behind the scenes of Seoul Fashion Week like never before. Its so exciting to be part of the K-Wave movement, and share the magic of Korean music and fashion with the world. Jungwon, ENHYPENs leader

I am thrilled that Airbnb has joined forces with ENHYPEN, Seoul Design Foundation and Seoul Metropolitan Government to create a truly unprecedented experience in the cultural heart of Seoul. Airbnbs unique offerings in South Korea, from traditional hanoks to contemporary structures such as DDP, provide distinctive spaces from which to explore the fascinating culture of this dynamic market. Nathan Blecharczyk, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Airbnb

Source: Airbnb

About the stay

Two guests will have the opportunity to stay overnight1 on September 4, 2023 for just $142  a nod to 14 years ago when construction first broke ground  during which theyll get to channel their inner fashion model or K-Pop star with:

Exclusive passes to Seoul Fashion Week, including front row seats with some of the biggest names in K-fashion

Access to a personal fashion runway, a perfect backdrop to take a Polaroid selfie

A personalized video welcome from ENHYPEN

A curated stay filled with snacks, drinks, and books all personally selected by ENHYPEN members

A giveaway of two special autographed Polaroids of ENHYPEN at DDP

Their very own capsule wardrobe, complete with K-fashions up-and-coming designers  and pieces to take home!

An adventurous stroll on DDPs undulating rooftop with a guide, overlooking the expansive views of fashionable Dongdaemun and its bustling thoroughfares

Source: Airbnb

How to book

Fans with a passion for fashion can request to book this stay beginning Wednesday, May 24 at 8:00 AM KST (Tuesday, May 23 at 7:00 PM EDT) at airbnb.com/ddp. Guests are responsible for their own travel to and from Seoul.

On-site staff will comply with local rules and guidelines while on-site, and will abide by our five-step enhanced cleaning process.

Interested in becoming an Airbnb Host? Learn more at airbnb.com/host.

Airbnb is closely monitoring Korean COVID-19 infection rates and government policies and will offer booking guests a refund of the booking fee ($14) and $1,000 Airbnb travel credit if Airbnb determines it is necessary to cancel the stay.

1. This one-night stay is available for one participant and their fellow guest and is not a contest. 2. Plus taxes and fees

About Airbnb

Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 4 million Hosts who have welcomed more than 1 billion guest arrivals across over 220 countries and regions. Travel on Airbnb keeps more of the financial benefits of tourism with the people and places that make it happen. Airbnb has generated billions of dollars in earnings for Hosts, most of whom are individuals listing the homes in which they live. Among Hosts who report their gender, more than half are women, and one in five employed Hosts are either teachers or healthcare workers. Travel on Airbnb also has generated more than $4 billion in tax revenue around the world. Airbnb has helped advance more than 1,000 regulatory frameworks for short-term rentals, including in 80% of our top 200 geographies. In late 2020, to support our continued expansion and diversification, we launched the City Portal to provide governments with a one-stop shop that supports data sharing and compliance with local registration rules. We continue to invest in innovations and tools to support our ongoing work with governments around the world to advance travel that best serves communities.

About Airbnb.org

Airbnb.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating temporary stays for people in times of crisis around the world. Airbnb.org operates independently and leverages Airbnb, Inc."s technology, services, and other resources at no charge to carry out Airbnb.org"s charitable purpose. The inspiration for Airbnb.org began in 2012 with a single host named Shell who opened up her home to people impacted by Hurricane Sandy. This sparked a movement and marked the beginning of a program that allows Hosts on Airbnb to provide stays for people in times of need. Since then, the program has evolved to focus on emergency response and to help provide stays to evacuees, relief workers, refugees, asylum seekers, and frontline workers fighting the spread of COVID-19. Since then, Hosts have offered to open up their homes and helped provide accommodations to 100,000 people in times of need. Airbnb.org is a separate and independent entity from Airbnb, Inc. Airbnb, Inc. does not charge service fees for Airbnb.org supported stays on its platform.

Airbnb Press

Airbnb Press Office

Airbnb

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With more 5-star reviews on external review sites than any hotel brand, Hampton by Hilton is a beloved hotel brand for a variety of reasons. And now, Hampton is adding one more reason to book an upcoming getaway to any of its U.S. and Canadian properties this summer. Its red. Its sweet. And its in season!

This summer, nearly 1,800 Hampton hotels in the U.S. and Canada are celebrating strawberry season with the launch of its limited-time strawberry-flavored waffles. Hamptons free fresh-baked waffles are renowned for being crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, and between May 15 through July 31, guests can enjoy these iconic breakfast treats with a strawberry twist. Patriotic guests will also find complimentary red, white and blue sprinkles and whipped cream to top their breakfast waffles as a nod to the Memorial Day and Fourth of July holidays.

Craving even more strawberry flavor this summer? Guests can discover other ways to savor summer and strawberries across Hiltons 19 brands, with specialty cocktails and dishes created by Hilton bartenders and chefs.

For example, The Ray Hotel Delray Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton in Florida offers a sumptuous yet healthy strawberry smoothie at its Stingers Coffee Shop. Stingers combines strawberries, a banana and almond milk with real local Delray Beach honey, also available for take-home in 2- and 16-ounce bottles so you can replicate the recipe back home.

In Oxnard, California, home to the nations largest-producing strawberry fields, nearby Zachari Dunes on Mandalay Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton pairs locally grown strawberries with California citrus to create a perfect house-made lemonade that greets guests upon arrival. Featuring the ripe berries in a variety of dishes, the hotels oceanfront Ox & Ocean tops its organic green salad in strawberry vinaigrette, creates a savory strawberry salsa for a seasonal swordfish dish and offers a mouthwatering strawberry hand pie for dessert.

And, for a sweet end to a meal at Hotel del Coronado, Curio Collection by Hilton, try the Strawberry Pavlova. The vanilla bean meringue is served with strawberry sorbet, strawberry consomme, honey and goat cheese foam and is served at the hotels Sheerwater seaside restaurant, featuring fresh ocean breezes and iconic sunsets.

Whether indulging in strawberry-flavored waffles, sipping on strawberry-infused beverages or sampling strawberry desserts, it matters where you stay, and Hilton hotels focus on seasonal foods and beverages will be sure to sweeten your summer.

Strawberry Smoothie from The Ray Hotel Delray Beach

Serves one

Ingredients

1 cup frozen strawberries

1 banana, cut into chunks and frozen

1 cup almond milk

1 tbsp. local Delray Honey

Directions

In a blender, combine the strawberries, banana, almond milk, and honey. Blend the ingredients until very smooth. Serve immediately.

Strawberry Vinaigrette from Zachari Dunes on Mandalay Beach

Serves one

Ingredients

2 tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar

4 tbsp. Canola Oil

1 tsp water

 tsp. honey

 tsp. Dijon Mustard

2 large strawberries

Directions

Combine ingredients in a blender, except for oil. Blend ingredients, then slowly add oil. Salt to taste. If the mixture is too thick, add water until you reach desired consistency.

Strawberry Pavlova from Hotel del Coronado

Serves 12

Ingredients

For the pavlova meringue:

50 grams egg white

50 grams granulated sugar

50 grams powdered sugar, sifted

 vanilla bean

For the strawberry consomme:

2 pints strawberries, washed and hulled

50 grams sugar

1 tsp. lemon juice

 vanilla bean, split

For the strawberry sorbet:

500 grams fresh strawberry puree

230 grams water

115 grams granulated sugar

50 grams glucose

For the strawberry compote:

1 pint strawberries, washed and hulled

1 tbsp. granulated sugar

For the honey goat cheese foam:

150 grams goat cheese

225 grams whole milk

75 grams heavy cream

45 grams honey

Directions

For the pavlova meringue cups and shard decor: Preheat oven to 180F. Scrape the  vanilla bean into the egg whites, whip the whites to soft peaks and add the granulated sugar slowly. Continue whipping to firm peaks. Fold the sifted powdered sugar by hand. With a piping bag fitted with a large round piping tip, pipe the meringue over an upside down 70 mm diameter demisphere flexipan mold to make 12 pavlova cups. Evenly spread any remaining pavlova meringue on a Silpat baking sheet to the thickness of 2 mm. Bake and dry the meringues for 1 hour. Release the pavlova cups and check to see that they are completely dry. If not, return to the oven to dry completely. Remove cups and thin shard decor and keep them in an airtight container or dehydrator. For the strawberry consomme: Place the whole strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla bean in a stainless-steel bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place the bowl over a simmering pot of water and let steep for 2 hours, occasionally and gently swirling the strawberries. Gently pour the simmered strawberries and clear liquid into a fine mesh strainer over a container to catch the consomme. Do not agitate or push through, let the liquid drain for about 10 minutes. Chill the consomme and reserve. For the strawberry sorbet: Bring the water, sugar and glucose to a boil. Add the strawberry puree and bring to 185F for 8 seconds to pasteurize. Cool in an ice bath. Process in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturers instructions. Keep frozen. For the honey goat cheese foam: Combine the goat cheese, whole milk, heavy cream and honey in blender. Place the mixture into an iSi whipped cream dispenser and charge 2 times with iSi cream chargers. For the strawberry compote: Dice the strawberries. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp. sugar. Set aside for 15 minutes. To plate the strawberry pavlova: In a serving bowl, pool  cup strawberry consomme. Place the pavlova meringue cup and fill with about 2 tbsp. of the strawberry compote. iSi pipe the honey goat cheese foam, covering one-half the top of the strawberry compote. Place a quenelle of strawberry sorbet on the other half of the compote. Garnish with abstract broken shards of the pavlova meringue and edible flowers such as corvette rose petals.

Cooks Note: Pro tip for strawberry sorbet: if time allows, mature the mixture for at least 3 hours in the refrigerator or overnight.

About Hilton

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 18 world-class brands comprising more than 6,800 properties and more than 1 million rooms, in 122 countries and territories. Dedicated to fulfilling its founding vision to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality, Hilton has welcomed more than 3 billion guests in its more than 100-year history, earned a top spot on the 2021 World's Best Workplaces list and been recognized as a global leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for five consecutive years. In 2021, in addition to opening more than one hotel a day, Hilton introduced several industry-leading technology enhancements to improve the guest experience, including Digital Key Share, automated complimentary room upgrades and the ability to book confirmed connecting rooms. Through the award-winning guest loyalty program Hilton Honors, the nearly 128 million members who book directly with Hilton can earn Points for hotel stays and experiences money can't buy. With the free Hilton Honors app, guests can book their stay, select their room, check in, unlock their door with a Digital Key and check out, all from their smartphone. Visit newsroom.hilton.com for more information, and connect with Hilton on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) has just announced that exhibit space for the 2023 Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC) is sold out, and a waiting list for interested companies has been started. The status is a signifier of the continued interest in the 50+ year annual event, selling out even with a 5 percent booth space expansion from the successful HITEC 2022 in Orlando.

We've seen increased popularity for HITEC Toronto this year for a variety of reasons, said HFTP CEO Frank Wolfe, CAE. But a major reason is that the industry can count on HFTP to deliver on its promise to help change the industry for the better, rather than just producing the event to make money. As a nonprofit organization, HFTP works to make our stakeholders jobs and professions better; and the money generated goes right back into the industry through our research, certifications, chapters and knowledge sharing.

Companies exhibiting at HITEC represent a variety of technology solutions specifically designed for hospitality operations. Visitors will find offerings for cloud computing, AI/Chatbots, guest management/CRM, booking software, data security, digital displays, payment systems, in-room controls, robotics, mobile apps, sustainability solutions, and more. View a complete list of 2023 exhibitors.

HITEC is well-regarded by solution providers as an important event to showcase your company to an audience of decision-makers, so it is a calendar priority for many, said Debra Cukjati-Lineberry, HFTP Sr. Staff VP, Global Development. I am impressed that we are sold-out a few weeks earlier than we typically do, and I greatly appreciate the support of long-time exhibitors; as well as am thrilled to welcome the newcomers and up-and-coming companies who are joining this year.

Available promotional opportunities remain a way for exhibitors to make an impact on the 6,000+ attendees. Sponsorship of the Women in Hospitality Technology Reception is one of several marketing opportunities that has been created. This new event will recognize some of the women stalwarts of the hospitality technology profession that have served the industry. The event, held on Wednesday, June 28, will occur following the end of the day education program.

In addition, to accommodate the companies who are not able to reserve booth space but would still like to have a presence at the show, HFTP offers a HITEC Supporters Package. Contact [email protected] for more information.

HITEC 2023 will be held June 26-29 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto. In addition to the exhibits, HITEC also offers an exceptional education program with presentations from experts representing all segments of the industry. Attendee registration and hotel reservations are available on the HITEC website.

About HFTP

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP), established in 1952, is a hospitality nonprofit association headquartered in Austin, Texas USA with offices in the EU and Middle East. HFTP is recognized as the spokes group for the finance and technology segments of the hospitality industry with an international network of members and stakeholders. HFTP uniquely understands the industry's pressing issues, and assists its stakeholders in finding solutions to their challenges more efficiently than any organization. HFTP offers expert networks, educational resources, career development programs, research, leadership opportunities and conferences and events. HFTP produces international events throughout the year, including the world's largest hospitality technology tradeshow and conference brand: HITEC. In addition, it oversees the hospitality-specific Pineapplesearch.com and the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI). For more information about HFTP, visit www.hftp.org. For the latest news, visit the HFTP News page at news.hftp.org and the HFTP Connect blog at blog.hftp.org.

Eliza Selig

Staff VP, Marketing and Communications

+1 512 220 4026

HFTP
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP), producers of Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC), has announced the nine outstanding startups participating in Entrepreneur 20X (E20X) Dubai held on May 23, 2023 at HITEC Dubai, co-located with The Hotel Show Dubai.

As the premier hospitality technology pitch competition for nearly a decade, Entrepreneur 20X is a unique opportunity for startups to gain visibility and credibility in the industry and network with fellow solution providers and influential industry professionals. Participants will have four minutes each to present their innovative products or services to a panel of judges with backgrounds in entrepreneurship and a live audience of HITEC attendees. Each pitch will be followed by another four minutes for Q&A between the judges and presenters.

The participating 2023 E20X Dubai startups are:

The winning startup will receive a grand prize of $2,500 USD as the Judges Choice Award selection. Judges Choice Semi-Finalist and Peoples Choice Award winners will also be recognized with the latter selected by the audience in real time during the presentation and deliberation periods. All startups will receive exposure to potential investors, customers, and partners in the hospitality technology industry through their participation in the competition.

The E20X competition was a great opportunity to explore new startup ideas and connect with like-minded entrepreneurs aiming to make the hospitality industry more efficient, sustainable and, maybe first and foremost, digitized, said Dominika Duziak, former HFTP Research Center scholar and presenter for Dubai 2022 participant appeti.me. E20X was a fantastic experience and a chance to meet great people who are eager to share their knowledge and exchange ideas on how to make the hotel sector more innovative.

This years judging panel includes:

Amit Nayak, Vice President and board member of HAMA MEA

Frank Wolfe, CEO of HFTP

Hassan Awada, Associate Managing Director at Kroll

Marc Descrozaille, Chief of Staff to Chief Executive Officer - Premium, Midscale & Economy at Accor

Naim Maadad, Chief Executive and Founder of Gates Hospitality

Willem Both, Executive Vice President of IT for Kerzner International

HFTP is also set to hold an E20X competition at HITEC Toronto 2023 on June 28 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. View the press release announcing this years participants.

HITEC is the worlds largest and longest-running hospitality technology conference. HITEC Dubai, co-located at The Hotel Show Dubai will be held May 23-25, 2023 at the Dubai World Trade Centre in Dubai, UAE. This is the third year that HFTP co-produces HITEC with dmg events. Register to attend.

For more information regarding E20X, email [email protected].

About HFTP

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP), established in 1952, is a hospitality nonprofit association headquartered in Austin, Texas USA with offices in the EU and Middle East. HFTP is recognized as the spokes group for the finance and technology segments of the hospitality industry with an international network of members and stakeholders. HFTP uniquely understands the industry's pressing issues, and assists its stakeholders in finding solutions to their challenges more efficiently than any organization. HFTP offers expert networks, educational resources, career development programs, research, leadership opportunities and conferences and events. HFTP produces international events throughout the year, including the world's largest hospitality technology tradeshow and conference brand: HITEC. In addition, it oversees the hospitality-specific Pineapplesearch.com and the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI). For more information about HFTP, visit www.hftp.org. For the latest news, visit the HFTP News page at news.hftp.org and the HFTP Connect blog at blog.hftp.org.

Kaylee Sciacca

Marketing and Communications Coordinator

+1 (737) 400-4418

HFTP
IHG to Open 12 Holiday Inn Express Hotels Across Saudi Arabia Under MDA with Tashyid for Hotel Operations

IHG Hotels & Resorts has signed a Master Development Agreement (MDA) with Tashyid for Hotel Operations, which will see the development of 12 hotels and 2,500 keys under the Holiday Inn Express brand across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. With Ministry of Tourism encouraging such investments in the Kingdom, the signing took place in the presence Mr. Mahmoud Abdulhadi, Deputy Minister for Destination Enablement.

The agreement will allow IHG to expand and diversify its mainstream offering across Saudi Arabia, in line with the demand being created by initiatives under Saudi Vision 2030.

Holiday Inn Express champions simple, smart travel by providing a launch pad for guests to make their connection and is highly suitable and well-positioned for new-age smart travellers visiting Saudi Arabia across business, leisure, and meetings segments, including Saudis biggest and growing demographic of millennials and Generation Z travellers.

As part of the agreement, IHG has also signed the first Holiday Inn Express hotel with Tashyid for Hotels Operations Limited which will debut the brand in Jeddah by June 2025. Marking a key milestone for the brand in the Kingdom, the 300-room hotel will be located on Al Madinah Road, one of the busiest areas in the city. Providing a best-in-class experience, guest rooms at Holiday Inn Express Jeddah will feature amenities such as high-speed WiFi, smart TVs, premium bedding, and pillow options to ensure guests have a restful stay. The hotel will also offer signature complimentary Express Start Breakfast, speedy check-in, and power showers to ensure guests are recharged for the day.

Known for its success in the upper-midscale segment and understanding of the Next Gen Smart traveller, Holiday Inn Express hotels in Saudi Arabia will debut reimagined public spaces and guest rooms that blend trendy and efficient design with local aesthetic. Modelled on market specific research focused on the Millennial and Gen Z Saudi traveller, the hotels will offer guest experience reflecting their lifestyle and needs. The public spaces will serve as lively and engaging spaces featuring a revamped F&B offering, while the guest rooms will offer a balance of home comforts with smart design giving guests flexibility to better support their routine. Haitham Mattar, Managing Director, India, Middle East & Africa, IHG Hotels & Resorts said: "As we continue to expand our presence and diversify our offering, in line with Saudi Arabias tourism strategy, we are delighted to announce a partnership with Tashyid for Hotel Operations to further grow our Holiday Inn Express offering in the Kingdom for domestic and international travellers alike.

He added: Saudi Vision 2030 has created tremendous opportunities for the tourism and hospitality industry, and we see an increasing demand for our brands across segments. Holiday Inn Express is a great offering for smart travellers who seek a hassle free and efficient stay experience, and we are looking forward to providing this experience to guests across a country, in the coming years.

Falih Motasim Hajaj, Chief Executive Officer of Tashyid added:  We are delighted to partner with IHG Hotels & Resorts to enable our rapid expansion within Saudi Arabia, in line with Saudis Vision 2030. With the Kingdom marking its presence on a global tourism map, working with leading industry partners such as IHG is key to helping set new standards of hospitality, embrace innovation and ultimately achieve a diversified economy.

Holiday Inn Express is IHGs fastest growing brand with currently over 3000 operating hotels, globally.

IHG Hotels & Resorts currently operates 39 hotels across five brands in Saudi Arabia, including: InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites, and voco, with 30 hotels in the development pipeline set to open within the next three to five years.
GBTA Showcases Business Travel Outlook for Canada and Future Industry Trends During Its Annual Regional Conference

Business travel in Canada is poised for a strong, evolving future, according to the takeaways from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) Canada Conference 2023 held in Toronto from May 15-17.

GBTA welcomed Canadian business travel professionals and companies to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre for its annual regional event. Over 685 registered business travel buyers, suppliers and other attendees and 58 exhibiting companies came together for main stage presentations, panel discussions, and education sessions along with Canada volunteer recognition and the conferences signature Big Night Out networking event.

Bringing together GBTAs business travel community for insights, learning, and face-to-face connection time are all key to navigating and growing the sector in Canada. This event engages industry professionals and organizations in better understanding and preparing for the future of business travel while also enabling them to engage and learn in an incredible peer-to-peer environment, said Nancy Tudorache, Regional Vice President-Americas, GBTA.

Conference topics focused on critical priorities and opportunities in the Canadian business travel sector including: travel manager needs of the future; traveler evolution and the passenger journey; insights on the roll-out of New Distribution Capability (NDC); sustainability in business travel; and rebuilding the industry workforce. The event also included numerous buyer and supplier sessions, networking opportunities, and a special welcome event for new and returning industry professionals.

Strong forecast and outlook for business travel In Canada

Suzanne Neufang, CEO, GBTA, presented Canada-specific forecasts from GBTAs Business Travel Index (BTI) Outlook report as well as overall insights and trends ahead for the industry.

With most global business travel on the rebound post-pandemic, based on the last GBTA BTI, in 2022 Canada was projected to have year-on-year growth of 47%.

At that pace, Canada is among the top 15 markets worldwide for business travel spending with $15.2 billion USD for 2022.

In 2023, the forecast for spending growth is 32%, or a total of $20.1 billion USD.

Based on current forecasts, Canada is expected to be back at pre-pandemic levels in 2025 with an annual business travel spend of $26.1 billion USD, or over $35 billion CAD.

A panel of experts took the stage from the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC), National Airline Council of Canada (NACC), Association of Canadian Travel Associates (ACTA), and Meetings Mean Business Canada (MMBC) to discuss the current state of the Canadian travel business industry from each associations perspective.

Jeffery Latimer, CEO, Canadas Walk of Fame, presented the session keynote, Proudly Canadian, No Apology Necessary, highlighting some of the greatest Canadians and their achievements with video and stories.

Renato Grandmont, Chief Investment Officer, Link Capital Advisors, LLC, outlined on the main stage the issues and trends impacting Canadian businesses from the view of a global economic lens.

Richard Bartrem, President, 13 Stories Marketing, Inc., delivered the closing keynote about the importance of trust when it comes to companies, their brands, and the customer experience.



The association also announced Shelly Lewchuk as this years winner of the GBTA Volunteer Inspiration Award, and also recognized Jodi Francks and Marayka Wilson as the Business Travel Service Award (BTSA) winners for Canada.



GBTA Canada Regional Direct Board member steps down, joins GBTA as new Regional Director for Canada

GBTA also announced today at the event that Sharlene Ketwaroo-Nanoo has stepped down from the GBTA Board of Directors and will now join the association as its Regional Director for Canada. Ketwaroo-Nanoos new role is effective immediately. The Canada Regional Direct Board member position will remain vacant until the 2023 GBTA Elections in August. This is aligned with GBTA bylaws as this position ran uncontested in the previous election.



Sharlene has been an active and valued GBTA Board member. We are excited that she has now joined the association to execute on an excellent strategy. With her deep knowledge and involvement in Canada, the region is in a strong position to continue to grow and thrive under her association leadership, said Denise Truso, GBTA Board President. And with heartfelt appreciation, on behalf of the GBTA leadership and team, wed like to recognize and thank John Pease for his contributions and expertise serving as our interim leader for the region over the past months.
Hotel Montera Madrid, Curio Collection by Hilton - Pool - mariaprimo

Hotel Montera Madrid, Curio Collection by Hilton has opened its doors to guests. The hotel is located on the popular city center Calle de la Montera.

We are delighted to welcome the impressive Hotel Montera Madrid, Curio Collection by Hilton, to our expanding European portfolio, said David Kelly, senior vice president, Continental Europe, Hilton. This spectacular property offers guests an authentic experience in the heart of Spains bustling capital city, with elegant rooms, a stylish restaurant and rooftop bar with stunning views. Hotel Montera Madrid will be popular with both locals and international visitors alike, and is another standout Hilton property in one of the worlds most celebrated cities, where we are serving a wide variety of traveller needs at our six hotels under six distinctive brands.

A short walk from many of Madrids shopping areas and attractions, including the expansive Plaza Mayor and the Golden Triangle of Art, led by El Prado Museum, the hotel has an ideal location for travelers wanting to immerse themselves in the citys cultural offerings. Set in a historic, centrally located building with a beautifully renovated interior, Hotel Montera Madrid, Curio Collection By Hilton brings a unique experience where guests can embrace the Madrid lifestyle before taking in the sights of the captivating city.

Interior designer Lazaro Rosa-Violan designed the hotel inspired by the eclectic character of the area, fusing elegant and contemporary styles with a relaxed, welcoming ambience, all within a completely remodeled neoclassical building, dating back to 1924. Located on a street named Montera, a reference to the hat worn in traditional Spanish costume, this handcrafted item is the main inspiration for the hotels design. Evoking a bespoke story, it is a reoccurring theme throughout the property in artwork featured in corridors and public areas, in the iconic valet stand found in each room, door handles, the trimmings of the bed's headboards and team member uniforms.

The rooms at Hotel Montera Madrid provide guests with a tranquil space, combining traditional Castilian design with a modern twist. The neutral tones throughout the decor, the rounded mirror and picture frames, and the delicate trimmings on the headboards allude to old Spanish decorative style. The guest rooms have also been designed to ensure the property is sustainably efficient, including controlled LED lighting, energy saving window fittings which avoid heat and cold loss and reusable water bottles in the room to avoid plastic waste.

In addition to its 93 rooms, including 8 exclusive suites, the hotel includes two exciting, world-class food and beverage concepts:
St. Regis Chicago

St. Regis Hotels & Resorts today announced the opening of The St. Regis Chicago in the heart of downtown Chicago. Developed by Magellan Development Group and designed by Studio Gang, the architecture and urban design practice led by Jeanne Gang, the 101-story tower is the tallest building in the world designed by a female architect.

The debut of The St. Regis Chicago signals a significant milestone for the St. Regis brand as we grow our footprint in the United States and celebrate our first property in the American Midwest, said George Fleck, Vice President and Global Brand Leader, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts. We are proud to open our doors in Chicago, an energetic and dynamic city that, like the St. Regis brand, is known for its rich history and pioneering design. Through The St. Regis Chicago we will debut a new icon within the city, sharing with our guests and local luminaries an architectural masterpiece that also represents the pinnacle of luxury hospitality today.

Located in the idyllic Lakeshore East neighborhood, The St. Regis Chicago offers easy access to the Chicago River and is a short walk from the citys leading luxury retailers, dining destinations, and notable cultural landmarks such as Millennium Park, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the famed Magnificent Mile. Making its own mark on the citys cultural landscape, The St. Regis Chicago features a unique and distinctive design composed of an interconnected series of stacked, frustum-shapes that move rhythmically in and out of plane and extend to various heights. The towers crystalline form was inspired by nature with its facets of a shimmering gem and its gradient of green-blue glass that reflects the colors of Lake Michigan and the Chicago River.

KTGY Simeone Deary Design Group led the interiors for multiple public-facing areas of the hotel, along with the Presidential Suite and The St. Regis Spa, drawing inspiration from Chicagos rich architectural history. Throughout the hotels public areas, spa, and Presidential Suite, metallic materials and colors, such as copper and rust, are interwoven with geometric, angular lines, offering a nod to The Great Chicago Fire and the citys geographic interconnectivity of waterways, buildings, and green spaces.

The St. Regis Chicago features 159 luxurious guestrooms and 33 exquisite suites across 11 floors. Meticulously conceived by Gensler, the guestrooms offer a place of respite and rejuvenation. A thoughtfully curated palette of natural stone and wood finishes create a connection to nature, juxtaposing its minimalistic beauty with a one-of-kind urban backdrop of skyline views. All guests of the hotel will also enjoy the signature St. Regis Butler Service, a hallmark of the brand for more than a century, which presents personalized offerings like garment pressing and packing services, ensuring that each guests preferences are understood and anticipated at every turn.

Chicago-based restaurant group, Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants will debut two dining experiences at The St. Regis Chicago for guests and locals alike to enjoy. At Miru, an all-day dining venue on the 11th floor, the menu, from Chef Hisanobu Osaka, highlights Japanese small plates, sushi, and sashimi complemented by a selection of steak and seafood. An extensive wine and sake program pairs perfectly with the menu while the desserts and pastries are led by Pastry Chef Juan Gutierrez, winner of Netflixs School of Chocolate. Designed by globally renowned architecture and design firm Rockwell Group, Miru, which means "view" in Japanese, celebrates its address and location at the convergence of two bodies of water. Oriented toward the lakeside in its approach, the restaurants design is grounded in Chicago Modernism and is residentially-minded in scale. The venue offers a variety of indoor and outdoor seating, in addition to private and semi-private dining spaces, and features two stunning terraces offering spectacular views of Lake Michigan, Navy Pier, and the Chicago River. The Coffee Bar on Eleven is also open daily serving a selection of grab-and-go breakfast items and handmade pastries, among other delights. Slated to debut in Fall 2023, the Tuscan steakhouse, Tre Dita, from award-winning Chef Evan Funke, will feature fresh, handmade pasta, and classic Italian steaks like bistecca Fiorentina cooked at an open-hearth wood fired grill. The restaurant, Chef Funke's first outside of Los Angeles, will be designed by David Collins Studio.

Throughout the food and beverage spaces  including The Drawing Room and Library lounge areas  guests will experience three signature St. Regis brand rituals, including Afternoon Tea, evening Champagne Sabrage, and the hotel's unique Chicago-inspired twist on the brands signature libation, the Bloody Mary. Created by Beverage Director Diane Corcoran, The 1871 is served in a smoking glass, paying tribute to one of the most impactful events in the citys history, The Great Chicago Fire, and features a local Rye Whiskey from FEW Spirits and a rim of smoked salt.

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The St. Regis Spa, commands 12,000 square-feet of the expansive Wellness Floor, evoking an urban oasis of calming sensory experiences. Guests can sip the finest champagne at the Celebration Bar, then transcend and connect in the Iridium Lounge, all before indulging in a rejuvenating spa treatment. The featured St. Regis Spa Suite offers a bespoke gathering space for VIPs, couples, families, and friends to enjoy treatment time together. Overlooking the Chicago River with sprawling views of Navy Pier & Lake Michigan, The St. Regis Chicagos fully attended fitness center features state-of-the-art fitness equipment, outdoor sundeck, yoga studio and two private fitness rooms. A palatial, heated indoor pool offers stunning views of the city and Lake Michigan.

With more than 1,000 square-feet of premier event spaces, the hotel makes the perfect venue for cherished celebrations, gatherings, and meetings. The coveted 4,721 square-foot Astor Ballroom can host receptions for up to 500 guests and the third floor Executive Function Spaces will house four executive meeting rooms plus pre-function space over 3,000 square-feet. We are excited to offer guests exquisite experiences that complement the citys rich history all within the walls of the skyline-defining St. Regis, adds Oliver Gibbons, General Manager, The St. Regis Chicago. We look forward to bringing the brands celebrated traditions and rituals to life and to continuing the brands commitment to excellence across all sectors in hospitality.

The St. Regis Chicago hotel is adjacent to the Residences at The St. Regis Chicago, which consists of 393 condominiums, offering residents the ultimate luxury living experience and access to all of the hotel amenities in addition to its own resident-only amenity floor.
Chicago, IL (60637)

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North Adams Committee Submits Preliminary School Project Plans

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  The School Building Committee on Tuesday approved the preliminary design program submission for the Greylock/Brayton school project.

The elements of the design plan have been reviewed over a number of meetings; Tuesday's unanimous vote means the entire package can now be submitted to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

Tim Alix of Colliers International, the owner's project manager, reminded the committee that the program was the review of both school sites and potential development of those sites.

"We have the two school sites, whether they're new buildings or add-ons or renos, to determine if your program for how you want to deliver education in North Adams would be able to be done on those particular sites," he said. "So that the building, or the plan, is going to be matching your [educational] program versus the other way around and trying to shoehorn your your program into your existing buildings."

The PDP will demonstrate to the MSBA that it's feasible to construct or renovate one of the schools, Alix continued, and that the committee will now spend the next few months "really zeroing in on what's the preferred option."

Matthew Sturz of Colliers said the MSBA has give 12 weeks of flexibility in the feasibility phase for the committee to work through options and that it could get up to another six months at the discretion of the executive director. This reflects the city's need to revamp its project scope after the MSBA recommended that Brayton School be considered along with Greylock School in light of dropping enrollment.

Julia McFadden of TSKP Studio led the presentation on the PDP package that includes the educational plan, site plan options, architectural objectives, capital budget statements, design enrollment certification letters, directory and schedule as well as documentation from the education visioning process and meeting minutes.

Also included are the building analysis of both sites including mechanical and electrical, structural, size, current conditions and a traffic study. Each site had options to address only building code deficiencies and repairs; an addition/renovation for both a prekindergarten-2 and preK-6 school and a new school each for a preK-2 and preK-6. The committee is still reviewing a possible grade reconfiguration

"So these were all done at a very, very kind of high level to kind of set the outer perimeter of what you might expect in terms of projects," McFadden said. "In the next phase, we might be working with you to hone in on which ones of these are the most feasible to continue forward, perhaps three of them to continue into more in-depth development."

Committee member David Moresi asked if the program took into account the cost estimates revealed at a prior meeting that ranged from $55 million to $90 million

Mayor Jennifer Macksey said she'd asked the consultants "to go and sharpen their pencils."

"My heart is still a little bit different from last meeting. But we're looking at the numbers and we don't want to water down the project but at the same time, we have to be realistic to what we can support as a community," she said. "A $90 million school kind of set me off my chair as I'm sure some of you could tell. But we did have a discussion with our consultants and we are looking at what does this mean, what does it look like in terms with the cost of construction."

The consultants said the program package being submitted did not take into account these early estimates.

"But what we can do now in this next phase, as I mentioned, in the preferred schematic is to hone in probably on three options, or possibly more, to really refine kind of the scope of the project in ways that will meet budget and meet your highest priorities," McFadden said. "That probably means there might be some compromises on some aspects of the project."

Member Bill Chapman asked if the PDP would lock the committee into anything and questioned going with just updating the building to code.

TSKP's Randall Luther said building codes are not retroactive so the schools meet code because they are existing buildings.

"If we wanted to meet current code, then that becomes a much bigger animal, because, for example, the energy code  when you have to go back to insulate walls that aren't insulated we need to replace all the mechanical systems and to replace mechanical systems you gotta replace the ceilings, you gotta replace the floors because I'm going to destroy them in the process of doing so," he said. "It's the mechanical upgrades and in chasing that through that really drives most of the cost.

"When you see those big numbers to bring the buildings up to code, it's because meeting current energy code just requires so much related work because you have to just make a mess of everything."

Just doing the bare minimum to update the accessibility issues are in themselves pretty extensive, Luther said.

The next meeting was tentatively set for June 20 at 4:30 p.m.
Condemned North Adams Apartment Building Burns to the Ground



An image from the city's property database shows what the front of the building looked like Update (05182023 at 10 a.m.): Firefighters were on the scene Thursday morning monitoring the wreckage. "Nothing new right now, obviously the fire is knocked down and we should be out of here shortly," Deputy Fire Chief Robert Patenaude said. "The fire marshal is here this morning." An excavator was on the scene flipping through the wreckage so firefighters could make sure the fire is still out. "We are just keeping it under control today. Right now we are just spreading it out to make sure it is completely out," he said. "The problem we had, why we had to bring in the excavator, four stories came down and you can't get down under the fire. So we have to come in, separate it all, and wet it down." _________________________________________ NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  An unoccupied four-story apartment building burned to the ground Wednesday night. Fire officials are calling the fire suspicious at the moment.

Firefighters responded to 28 Morgan Ave. a little before 11 p.m. to find the condemned building fully engulfed. Flames could be seen throughout the downtown.

Deputy Fire Chief Robert Patenaude said he could see flames going through the roof and extensions of the fire running up behind the house and down the front. He immediately called for mutual aid from Adams and Clarksburg.

"It's going to be a 'surround and drown,'" he said. "No interior fire attempt was made as the fire was too well involved before we got here." The building had been condemned by the city and marked with red Xs "so we would not even have made an attempt at entering," Patenaude said. Firefighters pulled hoses up Morgan Avenue to reach the blaze and maneuvered the ladder truck under the electrical wires on State Street to reach over the trees and pour water onto the building. Morgan Avenue is a steep narrow street and the lot below the vacant structure heavily wooded. Firefighters also worked to contain any fire from spreading into the surrounding wooded area. Patenaude said there was some trouble in with water flow because all the hoses were pulling from the same water main. "But once we got it set up, we knocked it down and kept going anywhere," he said. "Other than that, no injuries. Everyone did a great job." Mayor Jennifer Macksey was at the scene, as was interim Police Chief Mark Bailey, Commissioner of Public Services Timothy Lescarbeau and Building Inspector William Meranti. Northern Berkshire EMS was also called and National Grid temporarily disconnected power to the area.

Firefighters were able to get the blaze under control around 12:30 a.m. State Street was closed from the Hadley Overpass south. Patenaude said around 1 a.m. that it would still be a couple hours before the street could fully open. Residents were evacuated from an apartment building at the corner of State and Morgan for about two hours; they were let back in once their power was turned back on. "It was an abandoned house. There was power for the house," said Patenaude. "I would label it suspicious at this time."

The 48-room building, which was built in 1880, is owned by Brandon Navom of North Adams.
Brushwood Farm Housing Project To Receive State Assistance

LENOX, Mass.  Healey-Driscoll Administration awarded $246 million in direct subsidies and state and federal housing tax credits to build and preserve nearly 1,600 affordable homes throughout Massachusetts.

Included in this list is Brushwood Farms, a new construction project for families to be built in Lenox.

Permitted through Chapter?40B, the project is sponsored by Pennrose LLC. The sponsor has worked with the town on the project, which will result in 65?new rental units in a region with need for more affordable housing.

DHCD will support the project with federal and state low-income housing tax credits, subsidy funds, and ARPA funds. The town of Lenox is providing funds of its own to the project.

When completed, 50 of the 65 units will be restricted for households earning less than 60 percent?of AMI, with nine units further restricted for households earning less than 30 percent of AMI. The project has been designed to meet Passive House certification standards.

The governor made the annoucment along side Housing and Community Development Secretary Appointee Ed Augustus, and Undersecretary Jennifer Maddox. They joined Lowell City Manager Thomas Golden to announce the awards to 27 projects in 20 cities and towns.

"Today's awards set in motion 27 innovative, mixed-use projects that will build and preserve nearly 1,600 affordable units across every region of our state," said Governor Healey. "These are the types of projects that our Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities will be driving in close collaboration with local, federal and private sector partners to address our housing crisis."

The awards leverage state and federal resources, with $105 million in direct subsidies, $60 million from federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, and $81 million in state and federal tax credits.

Awarded projects will provide new housing options in every region, serving a diverse array of communities. Nearly all of the 1,597 units will be reserved for low-income households, including more than 300 units for extremely low-income households and families or individuals facing housing instability. Four projects will rehabilitate existing affordable housing, ensuring quality housing and long-term affordability.

"We are thrilled to see projects in communities across Massachusetts, from Pittsfield to Provincetown, that have strong local support and will bring much needed new housing to our neighborhoods," said Lieutenant Governor Driscoll. "Our housing needs are great, and we are excited to move forward with a new, cabinet-level secretariat to create more homes and lower housing costs for residents."

The awards will fund innovative models for development with a priority placed on projects with green and sustainable building practices, projects which feature housing for extremely low-income residents, and family and senior developments. Awardees include three projects in Boston which combine affordable rental units along with market-rate and affordable condominiums, four projects will be geared towards seniors, and more than half of the projects will be built to energy efficient "Passive House" certification standards.
BlockchainSpace, the leading Web3 community enabler in Southeast Asia, has recently announced in a press conference its partnership with Smart Communications, the leading telecommunications provider in the Philippines, to explore Web3-powered solutions that connect communities, unlock new opportunities, and drive growth for all stakeholders.

The panel consisting of Dexter Chan, Smart AVP for Content Business Development; Peter Ing, BlockchainSpace founder and CEO; Lloyd Manaloto, Smart FVP and Head of Prepaid and Content; and Aspen Sanez, BlockchainSpace global head of marketing, answer questions from the media.

The partnership marks a major milestone for Web3 adoption in the Philippines and beyond, according to Peter Ing, CEO of BlockchainSpace. He further described the collaboration as an indication of continued growth in enterprise interest in contributing to a Web3-enabled future.

Filipinos have been at the forefront of utilizing Web3 since the peak of the pandemic. With millions already owning crypto wallets and participating in GameFi, the Philippines has consistently been one of the leaders of Web3 adoption in Southeast Asia. Through this partnership, BlockchainSpace and Smart will continue to build on that foundation by enabling more communities to connect in a truly open, meaningful and secure manner, Ing said.

This partnership aligns with Smarts mission to empower FIlipinos with the latest digital innovations so they can live more today, said Lloyd Manaloto, First Vice President and Head of Prepaid and Content at Smart. He added that the company has always been an early adopter of the latest technology and is constantly on the lookout for programs that appeal to the passions of its subscribers, which it can turn into more immersive experiences.

By leveraging the Philippines fastest and best mobile network, as recognized by Ookla, and the countrys widest 5G network, we believe that Smart is in the best position to unlock the value of Web3 in tandem with BlockchainSpace to benefit more Filipinos through accessibility and connectivity, Manaloto said.

Empowering communities

BlockchainSpace traces its roots to the city of Makati in 2018 when its founder and CEO successfully organized over a hundred in-person gatherings of various Web3 investors and founders to help grow the crypto industry in the region. The company has since evolved into a Web3 solutions provider that powers Southeast Asias communities with more than just blockchain technology.

Since 2020, BlockchainSpace has empowered over 100 communities and raised $20 million from top investors, including Animoca Brands, Spartan Group, and Crypto.com Capital. To further enable communities to thrive in the space, BlockchainSpace provides guild leaders, gamers, creators, and everyone in between with blockchain solutions as well as trademark community programs such as the Guild Partner Program and Creator Circle.

The Creator Circle, which will soon be publicly launched for creators in tandem with Smart, already has more than 150 creator sign ups regionallyamounting to an aggregate following of more than 20M across all social networks despite only being in closed beta. This program was introduced to empower those within the creator economy, an emerging type of market which connects creators to their fans and brands and allows the creator to monetize their content, output, or skills all while building a community.

DICT Director Emmy Lou Delfin (middle) and Project Development Officer III Carlos Albornoz (fifth from left) join the executives of BlockchainSpace and Smart during the press conference announcing the partnership.

The Creator Circle is a natural progression for BlockchainSpace as it enables the company to utilize its successes and lessons from supporting gaming guilds and extend similar tools, support, and opportunities to creators, artists, and influencers, explained Aspen Sanez, Global Head of Marketing at BlockchainSpace. By teaming up with Smart, which has an established network and history of impactful engagements with artists and their fan groups, BlockchainSpace will be able to maximize the capabilities of and establish a solid roster in Creator Circle.

BlockchainSpace is thrilled to have Smart on board for the roll out of the Creator Circle in the Philippines as we eventually branch out the program in the Southeast Asia region. Were very excited to share this with creators and brands to help them derive the best value with their respective communities, using Web3 technology, Sanez said.

We could not have found a better partner in venturing into a Web3-enabled creator economy than BlockchainSpace, which has the expertise and experience when it comes to Web3 gaming and supporting guilds. With our concerted efforts, we are confident on translating things positively in the Creator Circle, added Dexter Chan, Assistant Vice President for Content Business Development at Smart.

Aside from the Creator Circle, Filipinos can look forward to more initiatives from BlockchainSpace and Smart that will help unlock the full potential of Web3 for all. The two companies are working closely together to deliver exciting new programs and innovative solutions that would continue to empower communities to scale sustainably and benefit from Web3. Stay tuned for announcements and updates via their social media pages and websites: blockchainspace.asia and smart.com.ph.
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Jane Fonda has alleged that French director Rene Clement asked to sleep with her while they were filming his 1964 thriller Joy House.

The 85-year-old actor and activist made the revelation during a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.

During the show, Cohen asked Fonda to name one man in Hollywood that tried to pick you up once that you turned down. The Oscar-winner replied: The French director Rene Clement.

She explained: Well, he wanted to go to bed with me because he said the character had to have an orgasm in the movie and he needed to see what my orgasms were like. He said it in French and I pretended I didnt understand.

I have stories for you, kid, [but] we dont have time, Fonda added.

Clement died in 1996 aged 82 and is remembered as one of Frances most influential filmmakers, winning five prizes at the Cannes Film Festival.

Jane Fonda (Getty Images)

In Joy House, Fonda plays Melinda, the niece of a wealthy widow (Lola Albright), who falls for a petty criminal (Alain Delon). Clement was 51 and Fonda was 27 at the time of production.

Elsewhere on the episode, Fonda recalled skinny dipping with Michael Jackson.

Fonda currently stars in Book Club: The Next Chapter, which sees her, Candice Bergen, Mary Steenburgen and Diane Keaton take their book club to Italy to make up for a girls trip they never had. While there, things swiftly unravel turning their relaxing vacation into a once-in-a-lifetime cross-country adventure.

Book Club: The Next Chapter is out in cinemas now. Read The Independents two-star review of the movie here.
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Inigo Montoya star Mandy Patinkin shared a brilliant rebuttal to Elon Musk quoting The Princess Bride.

In an interview with CNBCs David Faber that frequently went off the rails, the Twitter owner was asked about what impact his tweeting had on potential investors.

Theres a scene in The Princess Bride  great movie  where he [Montoya] confronts the person who killed his father. And he says, Offer me money. Offer me power. I dont care, Musk, 51, said.

Ill say what I want to say, the tech mogul added, and if the consequence of that is losing money, then so be it.

In the 1987 classic, Patinkin plays the Spanish fencing master Montoya, who seeks revenge against a six-fingered man who murdered his father.

On Twitter, the 70-year-old actor retweeted a clip of Musk botching the quote alongside the caption: I do not think it means what you think it means.

Patinkins caption refers to another of his characters quotes from the movie, which has become a frequently shared meme over the years.

Throughout the film, Sicilian boss Vizzini (Wallace Shawn) repeatedly describes things as inconceivable. Montoya eventually tells him: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Elon Musk (left) and Mandy Patinkin (Getty Images)

Back in 2021, Patinkin opened up about the heartbreaking backstory behind one of the films most famous scenes.

Elsewhere in the CNBC interview, Musk argued that people who worked from home were morally wrong because it was unfair to those who could not work remotely.

He also doubled down on a conspiracy theory suggesting the gunman in the Allen, Texas, mass shooting was not a white supremacist, despite his Nazi tattoos and other damning evidence.
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Netflixs latest No 1 film, The Mother, has arrived at a disappointing milestone on review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes.

Despite this, The Mother  which stars Jennifer Lopez as a retired assassin who comes out of hiding to save her estranged daughter (Lucy Paez)  has enjoyed the biggest opening weekend of 2023 so far for any Netflix film.

While Lopez has received praise for her performance in the film, The Mother has been middlingly received by critics and audiences alike, securing a critical score of just 45 per cent positive on Rotten Tomatoes.

The audience score, voted for by members of the public, is higher, sitting at a fresh 71 per cent.

However, the films rotten critical score represents an all-time low for The Mothers director, acclaimed Kiwi filmmaker Niki Caro.

Caros previous films include the celebrated 2002 drama Whale Rider, 2015s McFarland, USA, and the 2020 live-action adaptation of Mulan.

Other than two films which have not been given critical scores on Rotten Tomatoes (1998s Memory & Desire and 2009s The Vintners Luck), all seven of her other feature films had received fresh ratings.

Jennifer Lopez as The Mother in 'The Mother (Eric Milner/Netflix)

Earlier this week, it was announced that The Mother had chalked up a cumulative 83.71 million hours viewed in the first three days of its release, ranking as No 1 in 82 countries. The figure constituted the biggest opening weekend for any Netflix original film so far this year, beating releases such as Murder Mystery 2.

The Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston-starring sequel wasnt the only film to be outperformed by The Mother when it came to one key metric.

The Mother is available to stream on Netflix now.
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The Myanmar military imported at least $1bn worth of weapons, mostly from Russia and China, since its February 2021 coup that unseated a democratically elected government, the United Nations (UN) said in a new report.

The South Asian country has been gripped by a bloody civil war since the junta led by General Min Aung Hlaing wrested power by overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and arresting democratic leaders.

According to the report, $406m in weapons and materials that went to the Myanmar military were from Russia, while $267m were from China, $254m from Singapore, $51m from India and $28m from Thailand.

The military has been increasingly using airstrikes and heavy weapons to counter a widespread armed struggle against its rule.

The weapons have been flowing to the junta despite overwhelming evidence of its responsibility for the atrocities, including war crimes and crimes against humanity, said Tom Andrews, the UN independent investigator on human rights in Myanmar.

Russian-made Mi-35 helicopters, MiG-29 fighter jets, Yak-130 jets, and Chinese K-8 jets have been used to conduct airstrikes in civilian areas that targetted schools, medical facilities, and homes, the report said.

Mr Andrews noted that on 11 April, the junta used Yak-130 jets on a ceremony attended by some 300 opponents of army rule, which was quickly followed by an attack by Mi-35 helicopters on those who came to help.

At least 160 people, including several children, were killed in northwest Myanmar in one of the deadliest incidents of the civil war so far. The military said it targetted insurgents, adding that any civilians killed were probably supporters of opponents and "terrorists".

In addition, the machine guns and bombs used in the attacks included parts and materials from companies located in Singapore, China, and Thailand, Mr Andrews said.

The junta takeover plunged the country into an economic as well as security crisis, derailing decades of progressive reforms and inviting fresh international sanctions.

This photo provided by the Kyunhla Activists Group shows aftermath of an airstrike in Pazigyi village in Sagaing Region's Kanbalu Township, Myanmar (Kyunhla Activists Group)

At least 3,500 civilians have been killed by the military and nearly 1.5 million people have been internally displaced in Myanmar, while over 70,000 have left the country in the two years since the coup, the UN estimates.

The report documents over 12,500 purchases that were shipped directly to the Myanmar military or known Myanmar arms dealers working for the junta since the coup till December 2022, Mr Andrews said at a news conference.

He said the volume and diversity of equipment the military received was "staggering", ranging from fighter jets and attack helicopters and drones to advanced missile systems, tank upgrades, sophisticated communications equipment, radar complexes and components for naval ships.

Since the coup, the report said, 28 Russian private and state-owned companies have transferred fighter jets and their spare parts, advanced missile systems, reconnaissance and attack drones, attack helicopters and other systems to the junta.

At least 41 private and state-owned companies registered in China and Hong Kong supplied the junta with an extensive array of arms, equipment and raw materials between October 2021 and December 2022.

It included advanced trainer jets, light attack aircraft, tank upgrades and repairs for Chinese fighter jets, which make up the Myanmar Air Force fleet, the report said.

a member of ethnic rebel group Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) takes part in a training exercise at his base camp in the forest in Myanmar (AFP via Getty Images)

They also supplied aluminum, copper, steel, rubber and lubricants for use in Myanmar's domestic weapons manufacturing, it said.

Mr Andrews, a former Democratic congressman from Maine, said that the highly credible and detailed information on major networks and companies involved in the arms trade was received from confidential sources.

He said that there has been no information indicating that the governments of Singapore or Thailand approved or transferred arms to the Myanmar military. Singapore has a policy prohibiting the transfer of arms to Myanmar, he added.

However, Mr Andrews said, companies in Singapore are of importance to the junta, having supplied spare parts, raw materials and manufacturing equipment, especially for Myanmars KaPaSa weapons factories.

Thai companies have done the same.

Twelve Thai companies were established after the coup, many by sanctioned arms networks already operating in Singapore, which suggests arms dealers may be looking at Thailand as an alternative route to avoid scrutiny, the report said.

According to the investigator, if the Singapore government stopped all arms shipments to the Myanmar military, it would significantly impact the juntas ability to manufacture arms. Mr Andrews said China and Russia both criticised the report, saying it went beyond his human rights mandate, and accused him of vilifying legitimate arms trade.

India responded saying these involved contracts with the previous civilian government. The report found that 22 state-owned and private Indian firms shipped a coastal surveillance system, a remote-controlled weapons system, components from an ammunition and missile manufacturer, and 122 mm howitzer barrels.

General Hlaing earlier in January thanked Myanmars neighbouring countries, including India, for positively cooperating with us.

With inputs from agencies
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The Bank of England will not return its balance sheet to levels from before the financial crisis, the central banks Governor has told MPs.

The bank started a programme of quantitative easing following the 2008 financial crisis, where it purchased government bonds.

Its balance sheet swelled to around 1 trillion after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, as the institution increased asset purchases to 895 million in an effort to support the economy.

However, it has since contracted to 880 million after quantitative tightening, meaning the bank has reduced its stock of government bonds.

Mr Bailey told MPs at a Treasury Committee session that the bank will hold on to more bonds than it did before 2008 despite recent sales to provide it with sufficient headroom.

He said: Its about being able to use the balance sheet should we need to do so. Having the scope to act is very important.

I do not envisage the balance sheet returning to what it was before quantitative easing started during the financial crisis.

However, the banks deputy governor revealed it was likely to increase its pace of quantitative tightening in the future.

Sir Dave Ramsden told the committee: Theres the potential for it to go up a little bit.

I dont see it going down, given the experience of the first year.

It came as Mr Bailey also denied there was a link between recent quantitative tightening and pressures in the wider banking sector.

He said: I dont think there is any connection between quantitative tightening effects and the events in the banking system that we have seen in recent months, not least because the UK banking system has not experienced stress in recent months.

As we discussed, the Silicon Valley Bank UK failure was a very idiosyncratic issue in that it was a subsidiary of a bank that failed in the US.
Sadiq Khan has been urged to take action over the rising number of private flights from London to Paris  with the short journey now being made up to 10 times per day.

The mayor of London, Saqiq Khan, was pressed on the issue during a London Assembly Q&A on Thursday and accepted the environmental damage they cause but stopped short of backing a ban.

Greenpeace found that 90,256 private flights were made in total in the UK in 2022, a 75 per cent rise on the year, to emit half a million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2)  more than in any other European country.
Rishi Sunak is in Tokyo to announce a new defence partnership with Japan and support 18bn of private business deals. He will then join in with the wider G7 talks with other leaders, from Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United States. Theyll be focusing on strategy towards Russia and China, with an obvious focus on the war in Ukraine.

Mr Sunak hosted a business reception in Tokyo with his counterpart, Fumio Kishida, before travelling to Hiroshima, where he will sit down with allies including Joe Biden to discuss support for Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion.

On Friday, Mr Sunak will visit the A-bomb Dome to reflect on the nuclear devastation at the end of the Second World War.
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Johnny Depp has made his red carpet return at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, less than one year since his highly publicised defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard reached a verdict. While he was met with uproarious applause from fans on the red carpet, it appears some have not yet forgotten about his allegations of abuse.

On Tuesday 16 May, the 59-year-old actor walked the red carpet ahead of the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Jeanne du Barry. The film, which opened the 76th annual event, marked Depps first lead role since he won last years defamation case against Heard.

In videos shared to social media, Depp was seen arriving at the French film festival with his co-star and the films director, Maiwenn. He stopped to take photos and sign autographs for fans, as festival-goers were reportedly heard shouting Johnny! at the actor. Its so good to see him back!!! said one person on Twitter, while another fan tweeted: So deserved.

Following the premiere of the French-language film, Depp was seen getting visibly emotional as he received a seven-minute standing ovation.

While Depp has made his so-called comeback, legions of Amber Heard supporters took to social media to protest the Pirates of the Caribbean stars slow return to the spotlight  and the festival thats supporting him.

Prior to the Cannes Film Festival opening, fans of Heard launched an online campaign with the hashtag #CannesYouNot to call out both the festival and Depp, whom Heard accused of verbally and physically abusing her throughout their marriage.

Eve Barlow, journalist and friend of Heard, initially shared the #CannesYouNot hashtag to Instagram earlier this week, with a post condemning the film festival for supporting Depps film, Jeanne du Barry.

The #CannesYouNot campaign has also spread throughout Twitter, as Heard supporter and owner of the @LeaveHeardAlone Twitter account told Variety: The Depp v Heard trial became the vehicle through which the backlash against the #MeToo movement went viral. Hollywood industries seem to be riding that backlash to return to the status quo.

To open your festival with Johnny Depp? To be frank, it feels like a slap in the face.

In response to the growing outrage from #CannesYouNot, film festival chief Thierry Fremaux heavily rejected claims made by Barlow  and French actor Adele Haenel, who recently denounced the festival for its alleged complacency toward sexual aggressors  and defended the decision to have Depps movie Jeanne Du Barry open the festival.

If you thought that its a festival for rapists, you wouldnt be here listening to me, you would not be complaining that you cant get tickets to get into screenings, he said during a press conference on Monday.

I dont know about the image of Johnny Depp in the US. To tell you the truth, in my life, I only have one rule, its the freedom of thinking, and the freedom of speech and acting within a legal framework, Fremaux added. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldnt be here talking about it. So we saw Maiwenn film and it could have been in competition. She would have been the eighth female director.

Also on Tuesday, actor Brie Larson was singled out by a member of the press to share her thoughts on Depps film opening the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. When the Captain Marvel star  who is a juror for this years festival in France  was asked how she felt about Depps film opening the festival and if she planned on seeing it, she hinted towards her conflicted feelings about the film.

Taken aback, the Marvel actor responded: Youre asking me that? Im sorry, I dont understand the correlation or why me specifically.

The journalist acknowledged Larsons support for the Times Up movement, a non-profit organisation formed to support victims of sexual harassment and amplify female voices in the film and TV industry.

Understood, Larson said. Well, youll see, I guess, if I see it, and I dont know how Ill feel about it if I do.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard were married from 2015 to 2017. Last June, the Edward Scissorhands actor sued his ex-wife for $50 million over a 2018 op-ed she wrote in the Washington Post that implied she was a victim of domestic abuse. Though she did not name Depp, he claimed her allegations have made it difficult for the actor to land movie roles.

The jury ultimately determined Heard defamed Depp on all three counts and awarded him $10m (8.2m) in compensatory damages and $5m (4.1m) in punitive damages. The Aquaman star was awarded $2m (1.6m) in compensatory damages. Throughout the six-week trial, Heard was subjected to intense social media scrutiny from Depp fans.

Heard then filed a notice of appeal one month after the initial verdict, with her attorney citing errors made by the court. However, she decided to withdraw the appeal last December, calling the decision to settle with Depp very difficult, and something that had required a great deal of deliberation.

The Independent has contacted Cannes Film Festival for comment.
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Rachel Weisz has revealed that she suffered a miscarriage in the past, while speaking about her new series Dead Ringers.

The actor, 53, discussed the negative reaction to scenes of childbirth and baby loss in the show. Weisz plays twin gynaecologists in the series, which is gender-reversed remake of the 1988 horror of the same title.

Speaking to Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel of The News Agents podcast, Weisz, who is married to fellow actor Daniel Craig, said she was surprised by the reaction, adding: I was just telling this story about the female experience and it didnt seem to have been like heightened or overdramatised.

Women had miscarriages, Ive had a miscarriage, so you suddenly see blood coming out of your body and these are just all part of a female experience of being alive.

Weisz, a mother-of-two who prefers to keep her personal life out of the public eye, did not offer further details about when her miscarriage occurred.

She continued: I think were not used to seeing any of those things being represented cinematically or fictionally. So maybe this is breaking some new ground, this show.

The Favourite star also gave her thoughts on US anti-abortion activists who believe in the death penalty.

Both ends of life have different rules, it is very strange, she said. Children have to be born but theres going to be no free healthcare for them. Theres no free schooling for children under the age of five.

And now every day, there seems to be more and more of a chance that you might get shot by an assault rifle at school. You can take life at the end of life; the government can choose to say you deserve to die. But at the beginning of life, a woman has no choice. How do you rationalise that?

(Getty Images)

Last month, the actor addressed the graphic birthing scenes in the first episode of Dead Ringers, describing them as beautiful.

Speaking on BBCs Womans Hour, she said: [Writer Alice Birch] and I were really interested in showing birth in the first episode. I think we felt like it was something we dont often see.

Were incredibly used to seeing violence and people being killed, death, blood surrounding that. Were almost immune to that at this point. For me, its a beautiful moment. Its something were really interested in showing.

Weisz shares 16-year-old son Henry with former partner Darren Aronofsky and four-year-old daughter Grace with husband Craig.

She married Craig, 55, in 2011 in an intimate ceremony in New York with just four guests in attendance. The James Bond star also has a daughter from his previous marriage to Fiona Loudon.
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Teenagers should be offered a transformative anti-obesity treatment to help them lose weight, experts have said.

Academics said that the weight loss injection semaglutide could help adolescents with obesity to shed pounds after a new study found an average weight loss of 40 pounds (18 kilos).

Teens living with obesity were offered the semaglutide drug for more than a year in a new clinical trial.

The study, published at the European Congress on Obesity in Dublin and the journal Obesity, found that 45 per cent of teens using the appetite suppressant drug were no longer classed as obese 68 weeks after starting treatment.

This is compared to 12 per cent in a group who were taking dummy drugs  also known as placebos.

Some 19.5 per cent dropped down into the overweight category and a quarter (25.4 per cent) were able to reduce their BMI into the normal weight category, the conference heard.

The average reduction in body weight with semaglutide  sold under the brand name Wegovy  compared to placebo was about 40 pounds (18 kilos), researchers said.

Many do very well with this medication though, and it can be life-changing for them Dr Aaron Kelly, University of Minnesota

The authors of the paper conclude that semaglutide represents an efficacious treatment option for adolescents with obesity.

But presenting the study, Dr Aaron Kelly, from the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, USA, said that it should be taken as part of a package of measures to help teens living with the condition.

He said that the earlier the treatment starts the better to prevent further weight gain.

But he said that treatment should be taken long-term, as would be expected with other chronic conditions.

Dr Kelly told reporters that there were side effects  mostly of nausea and vomiting  but these were transient and most dissipated over time.

If you engage in treatment thats effective, youll see an effect but if you take that treatment away  its like a rubber band, its going to come right back to where it started Dr Aaron Kelly

Theres a whole spectrum of outcomes when you use anti-obesity medications  some do really really well, some dont do as well, he said.

Many do very well with this medication though, and it can be life-changing for them.

Being a research scientist nothing brings me more pleasure than hearing the stories from the adolescents who have been struggling their entire life to manage their weight and havent been able to  its not about trying hard or not, they all try hard  this gives them a tool to help take control of their weight.

And thats transformational for many teenagers.

He added: I believe that health care providers should offer that as part of the comprehensive treatment approach  its not just one thing, its lifestyle therapy  which was included in this trial; its the use of anti-obesity medications and, for some, metabolic and bariatric surgery.

A question I get asked a lot is, Is this going to solve the obesity problem? Should we just give it to everybody? No, its not going to solve the obesity problem, but its an important piece to the puzzle at helping to solve it especially for those who already have obesity.

Dr Kelly said that coming off the drugs would lead to weight coming back, adding: Lets use high blood pressure as an example, medications are commonly used and prescribed to treat high blood pressure.

And when they have prescribed, the intent of the health care provider  if (the drug is) tolerated and continues to be effective  effectively that person would stay on that medication, probably for the rest of their life. Obesity is exactly the same thing.

If you engage in treatment thats effective, youll see an effect but if you take that treatment away  its like a rubber band, its going to come right back to where it started.

On when treatment should commence among teens, he added: If obesity surfaces in childhood, it probably represents one of the most aggressive forms of obesity that we know of.

If you are a child or adolescent with obesity, you are highly likely to carry that obesity and excess adiposity into adulthood. You dont just snap out of it.

My centre comes of the approach that the earlier the better.

And, and if medically eligible, the use of medications early is probably going to (give) the best outcomes over time because if you allow the disease to progress and the pounds to to add on over time, it gets harder and harder to draw that back.

And so conceptually, I think it makes sense to intervene early and not allow that to happen, and that probably gives the child the best shot at living a long, healthy, happy life.

Meanwhile, another study presented at the conference found that people who have shed weight may be at risk of psychological scarring.

The paper, led by academics at the University of Liverpool, found that people who have had obesity, even if they have lost weight, could be at risk.
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Fans cant get over how similar Pierce Brosnan is to his mother in his recent Mothers Day tribute on social media.

The James Bond star, 70, took to Instagram on Sunday 14 May to wish his mother, Mary May Smith, a happy Mothers Day. Happy Mothers Day, the Irish actor captioned his post, alongside a green shamrock and red heart emoji. I love you Mum!

His Instagram post featured several smiling photos of the mother and son duo, as fans couldnt help but notice their striking resemblance. In one image, the two were posing on a beach, while another showed the father of five hugging his mother.

The third selfie showed the pairs noticeable similarities, from their eyes to their same smiles.

Now I know where you got the smile from, commented one fan under Brosnans post, while another said: Ohhhh both of you have the same smiling and the eyes!!!!

You got your good looks from your adorable mom! a third fan wrote.

Pierce Brosnan was born in County Louth but raised in County Meath by his grandparents for 12 years, while his mother lived in London working as a nurse. When his grandparents died, the Mamma Mia actor lived with an aunt and uncle before he was subsequently sent to live in a boarding house.

He previously described his childhood as solitary, Roman Catholic upbringing. My father took off for the hills and, for my mother, it was a very difficult time in the 50s to be a single parent. So, in many respects, I created my own self, he told The Guardian in 2020.

Im very grateful that I didnt have the shackles of parenting, so to speak, and really cleaved my own path in life. When, as a young teenager, I told my mother that I wanted to be an actor, she was extremely supportive of that. She wholeheartedly said: Follow your dreams.

In 1980, Brosnan married Australian actor Cassandra Harris and they welcomed son Sean three years later. He also adopted Harris children, Charlotte and Chris, from her previous marriage and they each took on his last name. His wife was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and died in December 1991 at age 43. His adopted daughter Charlotte also died of ovarian cancer in June 2013.

He met American journalist Keely Shaye Smith in 1994 and they were married in Ireland in 2001. They have two sons together  Dylan Brosnan, 26, and Paris Brosnan, 22.

Last November, the Tomorrow Never Dies star celebrated becoming a grandfather for the fourth time after his son Sean welcomed his second child, a boy named Jaxxon Elijah Brosnan, with wife Sanja Banic.

In an Instagram post, the actor shared two close-up photos of the newborn and congratulated his son, daughter-in-law, and their seven-year-old daughter, Marley May on the newest addition. Jaxxon Elijah Brosnan, born 3:06pm 11/12/22, he wrote.

All good blessings to you my dearest grandson, welcome. Congratulations my darling Sean, Sanja and Marley. Peace be with you.

Brosnan also has two older grandchildren, Isabella and Lucas, from his late adopted daughter, Charlotte.
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College programs that leave graduates underpaid or buried in loans would be cut off from federal money under a proposal issued Wednesday by the Biden administration, but the rules would apply only to for-profit colleges and a tiny fraction of programs at traditional universities.

The Education Department is calling it a significant step toward accountability for the nation's colleges. With more students questioning the value of a degree, the measure aims to weed out low-performing programs and assure students the cost of tuition will pay off in the long run.

Investing in a college degree or career certificate is supposed to pay off  instead, too many students are getting ripped off every single year, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a call with reporters.

Opponents, however, say the scope is too narrow to help most students.

Known as gainful employment, it revives an Obama-era policy that was dismantled by the Trump administration before it took full effect. It was enacted amid a federal crackdown on for-profit colleges that contributed to the closure of several chains accused of fraud, including Corinthian Colleges and ITT Technical Institute.

Like the Obama rule, the new proposal would apply to all programs at for-profit colleges, but only to certificate programs at traditional universities. Opponents say it creates a double standard, with the potential to kill off hundreds of programs at for-profit colleges while leaving other programs unscathed even if they leave students buried in debt.

The rule unfairly targets programs at proprietary institutions and fails to account for the unique challenges facing students and communities that career-oriented programs serve," said Jason Altmire, president and CEO of Career Education Colleges and Universities, an industry trade group.

The proposal would put college programs through two tests to determine whether they're serving students well.

The first test would check whether a program's graduates carry heavy student debt compared to their earnings. Programs would pass if their graduates have annual loan payments averaging no more than 8% of their total income, or 20% of their discretionary income.

A second test would check whether at least half of a program's graduates earn more than working adults in their state with only a high school diploma.

Programs that fail at least one test would need to warn students that they're at risk of losing federal money. Those that fail the same test twice in any three-year period would be cut off from federal aid. That amounts to a death sentence for most programs, especially at for-profit colleges that rely heavily on students who use federal financial aid to pay for tuition.

The Education Department says the rule would help an estimated 700,000 students who would otherwise enroll at one of nearly 1,800 low-performing colleges.

Cardona said the agency can't keep sending taxpayer money to programs that cost students an arm and a leg and then leave them in a ditch, unable to climb the economic ladder. Its not right and its not sustainable.

A separate part of the proposal would release new information showing students the true cost of programs across all types of colleges. The Education Department would publish data detailing the amount students pay for individual programs  including, tuition, fees and books  along with their student debt levels and earnings after graduation.

We need to equip students and families with the facts before they take on a mountain of debt," Cardona said.

The rule is expected to put many for-profit college programs in jeopardy. At nonprofit colleges, it would have no effect beyond certificate programs, which often focus on career training. It would not apply, for example, to bachelor's degrees or most graduate programs.

Supporters say the policy targets the riskiest programs. Students who attend for-profit colleges typically borrow more and default on their loans at higher rates. It deals a heavy blow to the for-profit college industry, which had said it would support the measure if it applied evenly to all schools.

Before the rule can be finalized, the federal government must collect and review public comment. It's sure to draw outrage from Republicans in Congress, who have called the policy an attack on the entire for-profit college industry.

The proposal comes at a time of flagging faith in higher education. Fewer young Americans have been going to college, a shift that experts attribute to rising tuition costs, a strong job market and the shortcomings of pandemic schooling.

Hoping to restore public trust, the Education Department has been exploring how to hold colleges accountable for the outcomes of their graduates.

The agency is separately working on a list that would identify low-value programs across all colleges. It would publicize the list as a resource for students, but without the threat of a financial penalty.

___

The Associated Press education team receives support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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Academics have called for a change in the way men are tested for prostate cancer, warning the current test by request policies can drive health inequalities and lead to cases of overdiagnosis.

Experts said that many high income countries, including the UK, do not have a national screening programme for prostate cancer.

Instead men without symptoms can, if they wish, get a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test after consulting a doctor.

Screening for prostate cancer has been heavily debated in medical circles due to potential harms including side effects from biopsies and unnecessary testing for those with no clinically significant cancer.

Writing in The BMJ, a group of international experts, including Professor James Catto from the University of Sheffield, said these sorts of requests have led to high rates of PSA testing, especially among men over the age of 70 who are particularly prone to overdiagnosis but do not benefit from screening.

In the UK, men aged 80-89 are twice as likely to get a PSA test as men in their 50s, they said.

A large proportion of people with prostate cancer would have lived out their natural lives without a prostate cancer diagnosis, they said.

This is because some people with the condition can simply live with prostate cancer without even knowing it is there.

The paper highlights how in the UK there are around 52,000 cases a year.

Men who are overdiagnosed thus often experience treatment harms without receiving any benefit The paper's authors

But the authors added: Around 25-50% of men who have prostate cancer detected after PSA testing would have lived out their natural lives without a prostate cancer diagnosis, suggesting that overdiagnosis occurs in about 10,000 men in the UK every year.

In current routine care  and despite guidelines to the contrary  most men with an abnormal PSA result have prostate biopsy, even though only a minority will have aggressive prostate cancer, they wrote.

Furthermore, most men with biopsy detected cancers have either surgery or radiotherapy even if they have low risk tumours that are unlikely to cause cancer related morbidity or mortality.

Surgery and treatment can also carry the risk of long term urinary, erectile, and bowel dysfunction as well as fatigue and loss of libido during treatment.

Men who are overdiagnosed thus often experience treatment harms without receiving any benefit, they added.

Meanwhile, the shared decision making approach to prostate cancer testing has led to an uneven distribution, with higher rates of PSA testing among those who are wealthier and more educated, the authors added.

There is an urgent need for a more equitable and targeted screening strategy, which could help address existing health disparities Professor Nick James

They concluded that countries should introduce a comprehensive, risk based, prostate cancer detection programme that is carefully designed to reduce overdiagnosis and overtreatment would reduce harm and could possibly consider restricting PSA testing to people referred to specialists due to symptoms.

Commenting on the paper, Nick James, professor of prostate and bladder cancer research at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and consultant oncologist at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, said: I agree with the authors and strongly support the implementation of a risk-based approach to PSA testing at a national level.

There is an urgent need for a more equitable and targeted screening strategy, which could help address existing health disparities.

Currently, individuals from economically disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to undergo PSA testing. Men in their 50s or younger, who may stand to benefit more from these tests, are also less likely to receive PSA tests compared to older men who benefit less.

Linked to better diagnostic pathways with MRI, already standard in the UK, potential harms from overdiagnosis and overtreatment can be mitigated.

By adopting a risk-based approach, we can tailor screening efforts to those at higher risk of developing aggressive forms of prostate cancer that requires and benefits from treatment, while reducing unnecessary testing for those at lower risk of harm, minimising the potential damage associated with overdiagnosis and overtreatment.

This report adds to evidence that the balance has now tipped in favour of an organised screening programme  particularly for those at highest risk Chiara De Biase, Prostate Cancer UK

Chiara De Biase, director of support and influencing at Prostate Cancer UK, said: Its clear that the current system which requires men to request a PSA blood test for prostate cancer is flawed  but without a national screening programme, its the best we have.

Thats why Prostate Cancer UK has developed a risk checker to help men make an informed choice as to whether to get tested.

This is essential, because early prostate cancer doesnt usually have symptoms, and stopping men getting tested unless they have symptoms would lead to more men being diagnosed too late to be cured.

This report adds to evidence that the balance has now tipped in favour of an organised screening programme  particularly for those at highest risk, which includes black men and men with a family history, who are at double the risk from the disease.

Thats why we are so pleased that the National Screening Committee is going to review the evidence and we hope this will lead to a targeted screening programme for these men in the near future.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: The UK National Screening Committee is considering a variety of proposals related to screening for prostate cancer.

It will explore these further and consider how best to take them forward.

 Prostate Cancer UKs 30 second risk checker can be found at prostatecanceruk.org/riskcheck
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The government has been accused of turning its back on the people of Afghanistan after an official watchdog said UK aid to the nation has more than halved.

The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) said the UK is expected to provide 100 million in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in 2023-24, compared with 246 million in the previous year.

The watchdogs latest review of UK funding since the Taliban takeover in 2021 said the sharp fall followed successive cuts to Britains aid budget and the use of a substantial amount of it on housing refugees in the UK.

The ICAI noted the UK had been an active and significant donor to Afghanistan, promising 286 million in aid per year for 2021-22 and 2022-23.

The UK is turning its back on the people of Afghanistan, who are facing a worsening humanitarian crisis Stephanie Draper, Bond chief executive

But the allocation for 2022-23 was later slashed to 246 million, which the watchdog said resulted in programmes for polio vaccinations and the clearance of landmines and improvised explosive devices being halted or delayed.

ICAI commissioner Sir Hugh Bayley, who led the report, said: As the humanitarian situation continues to worsen in Afghanistan, and women and girls hard-won rights are being lost, we felt it was important to look again at how the UK is supporting the people of Afghanistan through the aid programme.

While the UK has played an important role in the international aid response since the Taliban takeover, our information note shows that the reduction in UK aid funding has led to programmes that directly benefited Afghan people being stopped or postponed.

It also highlights the lack of a UK diplomatic presence in Afghanistan which might undermine the effective management of the UKs contribution to the international aid response.

Stephanie Draper, chief executive at Bond, the UK network for NGOs, said: The UK is turning its back on the people of Afghanistan, who are facing a worsening humanitarian crisis.

Cuts to programmes in the country mean the Government has abandoned women and girls at a time when their rights are deteriorating.

Today famine looms over the country, while millions of women are denied their basic rights Preet Kaur Gill, Labour

Reallocating such a huge proportion of UK aid to cover in-country refugee costs has meant the UK is less able to respond and allocate funding to humanitarian crises, which undermines the purpose of UK aid and puts our global credibility on UK aid at risk.

The Government must deliver on its commitment to the Afghan people by reversing cuts to programmes in the country.

Preet Kaur Gill, Labours shadow cabinet minister for international development, said: This report paints a stark vision for the future for Afghanistans people, and Britains waning influence in the world.

Today famine looms over the country, while millions of women are denied their basic rights.

It is farcical and a betrayal of the Afghans who supported the allied mission that this Government is cutting lifesaving support for them in order to prop up its failing asylum system.
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Northern Irelands political leaders have cast their ballots in the local government elections.

Voters are electing 462 councillors across the 11 councils in Northern Ireland.

It is the first electoral test for the parties since last years Assembly elections and takes place against the backdrop of the Stormont stalemate, with the powersharing institutions not operating as part of a DUP protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements.

Among those who voted early was Sinn Fein vice-president Michelle ONeill, who filled out her ballot paper at St Patricks primary school in her home village of Clonoe, Co Tyrone.

After voting, Ms ONeill spoke to some of her partys candidates in the area.

Naomi Long, leader of the Alliance Party, voted in east Belfast.

Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie voted in Craigavon and SDLP leader Colum Eastwood was accompanied by his two young daughters when he voted at a school in Londonderry.

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson was last of the leaders of the larger parties to vote, casting his ballot in the afternoon at Dromore Central Primary School in Co Down.

Despite a dry and sunny start, early anecdotal evidence from count centres suggested a slow but steady stream of voters.

Mr Beattie said he thought more people would turn out to vote later in the day when they had finished work.

Among the voters at St Patricks Primary School in Clonoe were a part of a wedding party.

Blaine, Nicole, Johnny, Kevin and Pat Campbell arrived dressed for Pats nuptials to allow him to cast his vote just before his wedding.

The poll was pushed back by two weeks due to the coronation of the King on May 6.

It has been a low-key election campaign, largely overshadowed by the visit to Northern Ireland of US President Joe Biden, commemorations of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and the coronation.

The 11 local councils are responsible for a number of services, including waste collection, street cleaning, local planning, leisure services and parks.

However, the elections may come to be seen as a measure of public feeling on larger political issues such as the ongoing suspension of powersharing and a budget crisis facing Stormont departments.

Sinn Fein, which currently has 105 councillors, is hoping to emulate last Mays Assembly election result and emerge as the largest party.

The republican party is fielding 162 candidates and has predicted it could make gains in areas where it has not previously had an elected representative.

The DUP is currently the largest party in local government with 122 councillors.

The unionist party is running 152 candidates this time.

Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has pledged that his party will stand firm over any return to Stormont until political and trading concerns around the Windsor Framework are addressed.

The cross-community Alliance Party made the largest gains in last years Assembly elections and will be hoping to increase the 53 councillors it currently has.

Alliance is running 110 candidates across the 11 council areas.

The Ulster Unionist Party is running 101 candidates. It suffered losses in both the last Assembly and local government elections. It currently has 75 councillors.

The nationalist SDLP has similarly seen its vote squeezed in recent elections. It has 59 councillors and is running 86 candidates.

The TUV has 46 candidates, the Green Party has 37, Aontu has 19 and People Before Profit has 16.

A number of smaller parties and independent candidates will also contest the election.

Belfast City Council is the largest local government area in Northern Ireland with 60 councillors to be elected.

No party has overall control but Sinn Fein is currently the largest party in Belfast City Hall.

Voters have been reminded to bring photographic ID to the polling station to enable them to vote.

The elections use the single transferable vote system where voters rank candidates in order of preference.

Counting across 11 sites will begin on Friday and is expected to continue into Saturday.
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A Scottish Government minister has criticised Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, furthering a spat over the countrys diplomatic missions.

Mr Cleverly wrote to UK officials last month, urging them to take a strengthened approach to visits from devolved ministers abroad and to ensure Westminster representatives attend any meetings with foreign governments.

The move angered Scottish External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson, prompting a scathing letter in which he accused Mr Cleverly of making misleading statements and calling for the guidance to be withdrawn.

The row escalated on Thursday, with Mr Robertson claiming he has not received a reply.

He said on Twitter: I wrote to the Foreign Secretary @JamesCleverly more than 2 weeks ago asking him to withdraw his guidance to UK missions abroad to obstruct Scotlands international work.

I have yet to receive a reply.

Zero common courtesy. Typical disrespect for Scotland.

Responding to Mr Robertsons letter in the House of Commons, Mr Cleverly  accused of implementing draconian rules on foreign visits by SNP MPs  said: The competences of the Scottish Government and the reserved position of the UK Government are clear. They are absolutely clear.

I would say to him and the House that Scotland has an excellent advocate overseas: its me.

A spokesman for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: Any suggestion that the UK Government is supressing Scotlands voice from being heard internationally is absurd.

The 800 staff based at FCDOs joint HQ in East Kilbride are at the very heart of shaping and delivering UK foreign policy.

The Scottish Governments Constitution and External Affairs Secretary, Angus Robertson, recently praised the FCDO at the Scottish Affairs Committee for its strong record of supporting the devolved governments. Promoting every area of the UK is part of our DNA.

The Foreign Secretarys guidance will not change the UK Governments commitment to working collaboratively with each of the devolved governments and their ministers in the delivery of devolved policy objectives, while ensuring reserved competences are fully respected.
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Ukrainian forces have used UK-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles against Russian targets, Ben Wallace confirmed.

The Defence Secretary declined to give further details about the use of the long-range cruise missile.

The UK confirmed it would supply the weapons to Ukraine earlier this month.

Ukraines leader Volodymyr Zelensky has lobbied Western leaders to supply Nato fighter jets to his nation, particularly F-16s which the UK does not possess.

Mr Wallace suggested the Storm Shadow missiles could help provide some of the same capabilities to strike at Russian positions behind the front line.

At a press conference at the UKs Permanent Joint HQ in Northwood with his Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram, Mr Wallace said: It is my understanding that it (Storm Shadow) has been used since we announced its deployment to Ukraine.

He said the missiles gave the Ukrainians the ability to strike Russian command and control centres which had been moved further behind the front line to keep them out of range of the rocket artillery systems the West had supplied to Kyiv.

He added: Its also one of the mitigations that, if you cant supply fighter aircraft, can you help provide one of the things that fighter aircraft deliver, which is deep strike?

And yes, we can, we can do that with Storm Shadow.

The Defence Secretary warned that Vladimir Putin seemed determined to prolong the war in Ukraine no matter what the cost to the Russian people.

Mr Wallace said: Hes on the receiving end of over 250,000 dead or injured of his own troops, over 10,000 armoured vehicles destroyed or capture, hes low on his stocks, his international reputation is pretty much trashed on the rocks, and he is still pressing on.

So Im afraid to say at the moment Russia still seems determined, no matter what the cost to their own people.

And thats why its important that Ukraine is not only given the tools to defend itself, but also to go to the next step of expelling Russia from its borders.

Im not going to speculate when they will do that. We are on the right trajectory of their capability, their training their weapons systems.
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The Big Issue Group has reported an increase in the number of vendors selling its magazine as well as more people engaging with its products.

The group said it was moving towards its goal of 11 million people becoming customers of its services and products by 2026.

The organisation said there had been a 10% increase in the number of vendors selling the magazine in the past year while their collective earnings rose by 38% to 3.76 million.

Right now our work is needed more than ever with spiralling living costs, and continuing increases in poverty and hardship Lord Bird, founder of the Big Issue

There has been a 50% growth in the number of people reading the magazine.

The organisations investment arm made 132 investments into social enterprises and charities in 2022, supporting 2.1 million people in the UK.

The report revealed that demand for food and fuel support from vendors had increased sevenfold in the past year.

Lord Bird, founder of the Big Issue, said: There are currently over 14 million people trapped in poverty. Right now our work is needed more than ever with spiralling living costs, and continuing increases in poverty and hardship.

In 2022, the number of Big Issue vendors increased by 10% because more people need an income or an additional source of income.

We are fighting fires on all fronts and our report demonstrates that we are needed more than ever.

Paul Cheal, Big Issue Group chief executive said: As increasing numbers of people are turning to us for support and to find out how they can help those most in need, we are continuing to innovate and develop new services, to bring about new economic opportunities for those people who are most marginalised in our society.

We want to be there for as many people as possible in these uncertain times and we are proud that, in 2022, we have managed to more than double our reach.
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A former Metropolitan Police officer who allegedly missed an opportunity to properly investigate Wayne Couzens over two incidents of flashing hours before he kidnapped Sarah Everard has admitted she made some errors but said nothing she could have done would have changed the tragic outcome.

Former constable Samantha Lee is said to have failed to make the correct investigative inquiries over two incidents when Couzens exposed himself to female members of staff at a McDonalds restaurant in Swanley, Kent, on February 14 and 27 2021, a police disciplinary hearing was told.

On both occasions, Couzens was seen by female members of staff to have his pants open and his penis on display.

Ms Lee attended the restaurant on March 3 and interviewed manager Sam Taylor, hours before Sarah Everard was kidnapped by Couzens in Clapham, south-west London.

The former officer is alleged to have lied about her actions when later questioned about the interview, as she claimed she believed that CCTV at the restaurant was deleted automatically so there would be no footage of Couzens or the offence.

Throughout her evidence Ms Lee maintained Mr Taylor told her he did not have any CCTV of the incident.

She told the tribunal that Mr Taylor explained that a photo is taken of the driver when a car pulls up to the order box of the drive-thru, but it is deleted after the driver collects their order.

In his evidence, Mr Taylor said he had shown Ms Lee the footage and told her it could be downloaded on to a USB stick.

On Thursday, Ms Lee said: I accept now that there was CCTV and that I should have asked more questions about it.

However, she told the tribunal there was nothing she could have done that would have stopped Couzens from kidnapping and murdering Ms Everard.

I accept that I could have done more around CCTV and evidence gathering, that was errors on my part and I accept that, she said.

And as much as I have thought it over and over, I dont believe that anything I could have done would have changed the tragic outcome of what happened later that day.

Ms Lee is alleged to have breached the forces standards on duties and responsibilities as well as honesty and integrity.

If she is found to have committed gross misconduct, she could be banned from serving in the force again.

She denies the allegations.

The misconduct hearing is being held at Palestra House in Southwark, south London.
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There has been a 50% rise in the last year in the proportion of children trying vaping, new figures show.

The data for Great Britain shows a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds, from 7.7% last year to 11.6% this year.

Children were asked if they had ever tried vaping once or twice, with the proportion roughly doubling in nine years, from 5.6% in 2014 to 11.6% this year.

Asked what they used, disposable vapes appear to be the e-cigarette of choice among youngsters, while purchases of vapes are mostly made from corner shops.

It is illegal to sell vapes to under-18s but social media carries posts from teenagers showing vapes and discussing flavours such as pink lemonade, strawberry, banana and mango.

Experts have warned previously how the new generation of disposable vapes known as puff bars  which contain nicotine  have flooded the market.

This is borne out by the latest survey, with Elf Bar being the most popular brand of disposable among children who vape, followed by Lost Mary, Elux, Geek Bar and Crystal.

In 2021, current child vapers were least likely to vape disposables (7.7%) but in 2022 they became the most used (52%) and this has continued to grow to 69% in 2023.

The latest survey of 2,656 youngsters was carried out by YouGov in March and April for Action on Smoking and Health (Ash).

It will be submitted as part of the Governments call for evidence on measures to reduce the number of children accessing vaping, while ensuring e-cigarettes can still be used by adults who want to quit smoking.

The new data showed there has been no significant change since last year in the proportion of children currently smoking (4.8% in 2022 and 3.6% in 2023) or who say they currently vape (6.9% in 2022 and 7.6% in 2023).

When asked why they vape, 40% of youngsters said they just wanted to give them a try, while 19% used them because they wanted to join in with others, and 14% said they like the flavours.

Nearly three-quarters (73%) of youngsters said their first vape was given to them, two-thirds by a friend, but for children who currently vape, nearly three-quarters (72%) said they usually buy their vapes, most commonly from a corner shop (26%).

Other places where vapes are bought by children include petrol stations or petrol station shops (9.4%) and online (7.6%).

When it comes to awareness of vapes being on sale, children were most aware of promotions in shops, up from 37% last year to 53% in 2023.

Online awareness has also risen (from 24% to 32%), while awareness via buses stood at 11%.

Asked about online awareness, children who had seen vapes promoted online said they had seen them on TikTok (49%), YouTube (29%), Instagram (28%) and Snapchat (24%).

The evidence is clear, government needs to take strong action to prevent the marketing of vapes to children Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash, said: We need to stem the tide of child vape experimentation and the Governments investment in a crackdown on illegal underage sales of vapes is a vital first step.

But enforcement on its own wont do the trick without tougher regulation to address the child-friendly promotion of these cheap and attractive products.

The Ash youth survey demonstrates the rapid growth of instore promotion of vapes, using brightly coloured pack displays, reminiscent of cigarette displays from yesteryear.

The evidence is clear, government needs to take strong action to prevent the marketing of vapes to children.

Geoff Worsley, a father from Abergele, North Wales, whose change.org petition Stop Children Vaping  More Regulation Now has more than 100,000 signatures, said: Parents like me up and down the country are calling on government to act to protect our children from vaping as well as smoking.

Regulations are needed to prevent vapes being openly sold in prominent positions within shops, in brightly coloured packaging and sweet names attractive to kids Campaigner and parent Geoff Worsley

More funding for enforcement is a good first step but its not enough. Vaping is safer and better for smokers than smoking, but it shouldnt be promoted to children.

Regulations are needed to prevent vapes being openly sold in prominent positions within shops, in brightly coloured packaging and sweet names attractive to kids.

We need tougher regulation to stop our children vaping and we need it now.

Ash said, however, that fears vaping is leading to a new generation addicted to nicotine are not justified by the evidence to date.

It said the data showed that most of the 20.5% of young people who have ever vaped have only vaped once or twice, or used to vape, or vape less than once a week.

Some 1.8% of those polled said they vape between daily and weekly and 2% every day.

Most (63%) of those who have tried vaping once or twice have never smoked, the data also showed. Yet most (71%) of current vapers have tried smoking.

Ann McNeill, professor of tobacco addictions at Kings College London, said the data showed that too many smoking adults and children believe vaping is more than or equally harmful as smoking.

These misperceptions are likely to encourage children to believe that they might as well smoke as vape, and discourage adults who smoke but have never vaped from taking up the Governments swap to stop offer (of taking up vapes instead of cigarettes), she said.

A well-funded communications campaign is needed to address these growing misperceptions.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman said: Its already illegal to sell vapes to children and we are exploring further ways to tackle youth vaping through our newly launched call for evidence, which will look at the appearance and characteristics of vapes, the marketing and promotion of vapes, and the role of social media.

We also recently announced a new illicit vapes enforcement squad  backed by 3 million  to remove illegal products from shelves and stop them from crossing our borders.

Liberal Democrat health spokeswoman Daisy Cooper said: Vapes are a great aid to quitting smoking but efforts to market them to children are cynical and damaging to young people.

We need tougher regulation on vapes, such as age warnings on packets, an end to toy-like advertising targeted at children, and a ban on the sale of single use vapes and free samples.
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The Croydon tram disaster driver told rescuers I must have blacked out as he came around after the fatal crash, a court has heard.

Alfred Dorris, 49, is on trial at the Old Bailey over the fatal incident at Sandilands in south London on November 9 2016.

Giving evidence on Thursday, fellow driver Keith Crump recalled how he had been coming back from Elmers End around to Sandiland when he saw Dorriss tram.

He told jurors: On the right-hand side was Alfs tram. He was going to New Addington. We exchanged waves and that was it. He was always pleasant.

Later, the power went off and he found out there had been an accident.

He agreed with Dorriss barrister that he was always friendly and gave an exaggerated wave.

Mr Crump added that he was a special guy.

He also agreed that Dorris was always smartly turned out, immaculate, pleasant and professional.

He said he had never heard of any concerns about his driving before the crash and was totally shocked to learn Dorris was the driver.

Mr Crump told jurors the conditions that day had been awful.

He said: I was going a lot more slowly and a lot more cautious because the rain was very heavy. It was very dark. Sometimes it can cause distractions. You are just extra careful.

The court has heard Dorris was going more than three times the speed limit when he attempted to negotiate a sharp turn out of a tunnel at more than 70kmh before the tram derailed.

Passenger Joseph McKoy boarded Dorriss tram at New Addington, sat down and put head phones on to read or listen to the news before disaster struck.

He said: I used the phone as a torch to see what was going on in the drivers cabin. I decided to have a look to see the state of the driver.

I could not see too much. I could make out the driver was not responsive. I started shouting to get the attention of the driver. I remember kicking the glass.

Mr McKoy said that when the driver came round, he said: What happened. I must have blacked out.

Georgina Reeves had got the tram towards New Addington to secure a place on the return journey towards Croydon.

Asked what she was doing before the crash, she said: I was probably half asleep. I remember texting a friend because I was meeting her at Croydon but that was about it.

I was sitting behind the driver before the accident, the seat directly behind the cabin.

Ms Reeves said that after the tram derailed, she stood up to call 999 and noticed someone was shining a light into the drivers cabin before Dorris opened his eyes and opened the door.

She told jurors the driver said: I must have passed out.

He then asked if anyone was hurt, someone replied look around you, and Dorris said oh s***, the witness said.

The prosecution alleged Dorris may have had a micro-sleep at the time of the crash or became disorientated.

Dorris, from Beckenham, south London, denies failing to take reasonable care of the health and safety of himself and his 69 passengers on Tram 2551 on that day.

The Old Bailey trial continues.
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A schoolboy is among seven people arrested over an anti-migrant riot outside a hotel housing asylum-seekers in February, police have said.

Seven males aged between 13 and 25 were detained during morning raids carried out on Thursday as part of an investigation into the disorder outside a hotel in Knowsley on 10 February, Merseyside Police said.

They were arrested at properties in Kirkby and Croxteth on suspicion of violent disorder, and would be taken to police stations for questioning, according to the force.

A further 15 people were previously arrested on the night of the protest, during which missiles were thrown at officers and police vehicles damaged, the force said, following reports that a van was set alight.

One person, Jared Skeete was charged with violent disorder and sentenced last month to three years detention, after a court heard that the 19-year-old snorted ketamine in front of the line of riot police, at whom he hurled lit fireworks and verbal abuse, at one point wrestling an officer for his shield.

At around 6.30pm on Friday 10 February, officers were facilitating an initially peaceful protest and counter protest outside the [hotel], the force said.

During the evening, missiles were thrown towards officers and damage caused to police vehicles. One officer was injured and taken to hospital.

Knowsley MP Sir George Howarth said at the time that the demonstration had been triggered by an alleged incident on social media, as he criticised misinformation claiming refugees were feather-bedded inside.

Police stood outside the Suites Hotel the day after the disorder (Peter Powell/PA Wire)

Superintendent Karl Baldwin said he hoped Thursdays arrests show our commitment to make sure there is no repeat of the scenes we saw in February.

If you have any information about such crime in your area please contact us, he said. There is no excuse for resorting to violence and criminality and we are determined to bring anyone who perpetrates such crimes to justice.

For those that would commit crime, seek to intimidate or target particular communities, they should be in no doubt that we will do all we can to identify them and bring them to justice.

The force has analysed 157 pieces of body-worn video footage, scores of social media clips and four hours of drone footage since the disorder in February, said Detective Chief Inspector John Fitzgerald.

We will always respect the right to protest when these are peaceful but such violence that caused damage to police vehicles totalling more than 83,000 is disgraceful especially when they could have been used to prevent crime and save lives.

We have arrested a further seven suspects, in addition to the 15 who were arrested on the evening of the disorder, and will continue to take action to ensure the safety of residents in our community.

Separately, Merseyside Police said in April that they were investigating 15 crimes related to the hotel since 10 February, allegedly including assaults, malicious communications and verbal abuse towards residents, staff and people wrongly assumed to be connected to the premises.

Asylum-seekers told The Independent last month of being fearful to leave the hotel after suffering physical attacks in the streets outside, as several residents prepared to challenge Home Office decisions to refuse their requests to be moved elsewhere.
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A driver who killed a beautician when he lost control of his Range Rover while showing off at speeds of up to 110 mph has been jailed for more than seven years.

Yagmur Ozden, 33, died of her injuries after she and driver Rida Kazem, 24, were thrown from the vehicle as it ploughed through a Tesla dealership, ending up on a west London railway track.

Another passenger Zamarod Arif, who was 26 at the time, was the only one wearing a seatbelt and was left with serious injuries including a broken arm and leg.

Kazem, whose left leg was amputated below the knee following the crash, had been driving the two women home from a night out in the early hours of August 22 2022.

There were gasps and sobs from members of Ms Ozdens family as CCTV footage, which captured the collision, was played at Isleworth Crown Court, west London, on Wednesday.

Kazems black Range Rover Sport SVR, valued at 180,000, could be seen hitting a top speed of 110mph on the 40mph-limit A40 westbound near Ealing, Greater London, before he lost control.

Ozden, 33, left behind a young daughter (LinkedIn)

The vehicle hit a stationary Tesla, occupied by a taxi driver who was charging the car, before the wreckage ended up on the tracks at Park Royal tube station.

Judge Martin Edmunds KC jailed Kazem, from Greenford, west London, for a total of seven-and-a-half years after he previously pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

He will serve at least two-thirds of the sentence and was also banned from driving for more than 12 years.

Rida Kazem, 23, who has been jailed at Isleworth Crown Court (PA)

The speed and violence of this unfolding crash is simply horrific, and the Range Rover was reduced to a mangled heap of metal, the judge said.

I have no doubt you were showing off to your passengers  both showing off your powerful car but also what you thought of as your superior driving skills.

What is all too clear is your skills were all too inadequate.

Maya Kodsi, 37, (left) sister of Yagmur Ozden, 33, and her daughter Melek Ozden, 13 outside Isleworth Crown Court (PA)

Kazem, wearing dark tracksuit bottoms and a white T-shirt, entered the dock on crutches in front of a court packed with members of his own family as well as the victims relatives.

He smiled to the public gallery after he was sentenced and left without using his crutches.

Prosecutor Nicholas Hearn said he has previous speeding convictions, including one offence for driving 95mph in a 50mph zone and was banned from driving for six months in November 2020.

Kazem sat staring straight ahead as the prosecutor read out victim impact statements, including one from the 13-year-old daughter of Baghdad-born Ms Ozden, of Finchley Road, north-west London.

Every time I see a Range Rover I remember the accident so I can't get away from it Melek Ozden

Im still on shock, said Melek Ozden, who now lives with her grandmother.

Sometimes I feel alone even though I have someone else with me.

It will never be the same. I miss my mum and its very sad I cant change what happened.

I miss her and that I can no longer hang out with her.

She was my best friend and I will miss the simple things like cooking pasta with her.

Police outside Park Royal underground station (PA)

She continued: Every time I see a Range Rover I remember the accident so I cant get away from it.

I know my mum always wanted one and she ended up passing away in one.

I have a constant daydream of my mum passing away. It happens every day and sometimes more than once a day.

I blame the driver for taking my mum away. I believe hes acting like it never happened.

Ms Ozdens sister-in-law Kirsty Kelly described her as the rock of our family, adding: Yagmur had so many plans but sadly her plans got cut short.

As a family we feel sick. It is unbelievably heart-breaking what we have been going through, she said.

Ms Arif told how her life has completely changed after the crash which has left her permanently scarred both physically and mentally.

The court heard Kazem had suggested to the author of a pre-sentence report and his psychologist that he had not been driving the Range Rover and the judge said he had found no evidence of real remorse.

But David Rhodes, defending, said Kazem, who worked for a family jewellery business and had been accepted onto a university law course, accepts through his guilty pleas that he was the driver.

He knows he has taken a life in Yagmur Ozden and left a young girl without a mother and he knows he very nearly killed himself in that accident, he added.

Speaking outside court after the sentencing Melek said: Im not really happy with the sentence today but I really did feel sorry for him.

When we left the court he did say something really offensive and it just doesnt give my mum any justice.

Its really offensive and it didnt show he was sorry and there was no respect, and the outcome was horrible and I dont really like the sentence.

Hopefully my mum does get justice some day.

Ms Ozdens sister Maya Kodsi, 37, added: We left the court in so much pain.

They took the decision, its not enough and its not fair. Theres no punishment in this country.
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David Beckham said he was very excited to meet the King at a prestigious fashion award ceremony in London, claiming he is a huge royalist.

The former England captain presented Charles with a jar of honey, made in his own beehive, claiming it would be rude not to at the event hosted by the British Fashion Council.

He added that he had been a secret fan of fashion for years and always tried to dress different as a youngster.

The King visited the 180 Studios art gallery in the Strand to present the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design.

Before meeting him, Beckham, ambassadorial president at the BFC, said: Obviously its been a big few weeks for His Majesty and the family but we are all very excited about being here today.

It will be a pleasure to meet our King today. I have always been a huge royalist and I was brought up to love the royal family.

Fashion secretly has been a part of my life for many years  even when I was a young boy I always liked to dress in things that were different and different hair styles as youve seen over the years.

He added that it was a huge honour to encourage and inspire young designers who benefit from the BFCs scholarships.

Being part of the BFC over the years has been a huge honour for me to help encourage, inspire and inform these incredible creatives, especially over the last couple of years, he said.

Its been so challenging for them in their industry, so to see them adapt proves how inspired they are.

After the event, Beckham embraced the awards recipient, Sierra Leone designer Foday Dumbuya, in his design workshop, saying he had made his first Unicef trip to the country in 2008 as it really needs a spotlight.

Mr Dumbuya, who moved to London at the age of 12, said he shared a common ground with Beckham as he hoped to inspire a generation of boys from Sierra Leone after the country was torn apart by war in the late 90s.

He said: As a kid, I remember him coming to Sierra Leone, the way that ignited kids who loved David Beckham.

It put Sierra Leone on the map, so we do have a common ground in a way.

As a global ambassador he inspires people to think they can do anything. For that young kid watching him on TV, he gets to connect to him and believe he can achieve whatever hes achieved.

It is telling stories about London, Sierra Leone, West Africa  for me its about how we bring those stories to life.

In a tearful speech after receiving his award, Mr Dumbuya said: Things like this dont happen to people where Im from.

This award is for all young British and Sierra Leone kids who continue to dream  please dont stop dreaming.
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One of the last few remaining residents of a derelict estate dubbed Britains Chernobyl says he wont leave despite it being earmarked for demolition.

Marshal Craig, 70, still lives in Clune Park, which has been virtually empty for years and looks like something from a post-apocalyptic film.

Built in 1905, it is made up of 430 flats in rotting tenement buildings as well as a rundown church, all covered in graffiti and litter.

Abandoned in 1997, its now a ghost town and has been the target of arson attacks with some of the cheapest properties in Britain. In 2020 one flat sold for 6,000.

The estate in Port Glasgow, Inverclyde ,was privately owned but Inverclyde Council has bought more than half the properties and wants to demolish the lot.

Marshal says he is one of just five people left there but has no plans to leave, claiming it is idyllic.

The retired forestry worker said: Ive lived here for 20 years all in all and four years in this particular house.

Quite frankly, I dont want to move and Im quite happy here.

I know its rough sometimes and people come in and smash stuff but Im perfectly happy here and I dont want to leave.

In some ways its quite idyllic. My house is built like a castle. The walls are thick and sturdy, theres a nice view and no dampness.

The only thing the view from my kitchen window is missing is a few palm trees!

(Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)

(Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)

The estate was largely abandoned in the late 1990s after the majority of the shipyard workers employed nearby moved out.

Marshal says the remaining five residents all stay in the same area of one block.

He said: When I first moved here there was a lot more people, but now its pretty much empty.

Now, out of the 480 families that would be able to stay here, theres only five of us left holding down the fort.

Theyre great neighbours. I think Ill be tying myself to the radiator if they make me move out.

Although Marshal loves his home the estate has become renowned for smashed windows, litter and fires.

Urban explorers regularly visit the site to see the abandoned flats covered in graffiti.

Inverclyde Council confirmed they they will be pursuing a compulsory purchase order in January to demolish the estate entirely and build 100-120 new homes.

(Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)

(Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)

Marshal said: These are good solid buildings. Why not just do this place up and house people in them that need them.

There is some anti-social behaviour usually late at night. The fire damage and broken windows are the worst thing.

I probably call the fire brigade more than anyone else and when I hear a fire engine now I dont even get up to see whats going on anymore.

Its just part of the background now.

That all happens in the other three blocks though. Where we are at the end of the fourth block is absolutely fine.

Im really happy here, its my home and Ive lived here for 20 years so I dont want to go.

The semi-derelict estate has been dubbed Scotlands Chernobyl.

(Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)

The majority of the flats are small, with 69 bedsits, 310 one-bedroom flats and 51 two-bedroom flats.

Inverclyde Council has already acquired over 50 per cent of the housing on the estate and are attempting to purchase remaining properties.

A spokesperson for Inverclyde Council said: It remains our ambition to acquire properties at Clune Park to allow for the delivery of long term regeneration of the area.

While progress has been frustratingly slow and costly, the ambition still remains and discussions are continuing to achieve this aim at the earliest possible opportunity.

No formal decision has been taken by the council in respect of the CPO.

But Clune Park has been identified in the Inverclyde Strategic Housing Investment Plan 2023-28 for approximately 100-120 units.
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This story contains an image some readers may find distressing

The family of a grandmother whose finger was bitten off in a dog attack has accused police of failing to take the matter seriously after they told her the animal was friendly.

Birmingham resident Annette Tonyin, 61, was attacked while walking her own dog on 30 April which resulted in the loss of part of her left index finger.

Ms Tonyin claimed she had tried to avoid the aggressive dog by crossing the road but it proceeded to attack her, while its owner did nothing.

Two weeks on and her family claim they have had to chase police for updates and officers have not visited Ms Tonyin to obtain a statement about the attack.

The family also claims that police told them the attacking dog had been assessed and was found to have a friendly disposition.

Ms Tonyins daughter, Folake Adoti-Ryan, criticised the polices negligent response to the incident.

The guidelines are clear on what should happen if a dog is not controlled and attacked, Ms Adoti-Ryan, 39, told The Independent. Theres been no effective response from the police, just silence. I have a mother whos traumatised; shes lost her finger. Its not going to grow back.

Ms Tonyins family say they are worried the case is not being taken seriously because shes Black and felt that the attacker dogs owner, a white woman, was not being held accountable due to her ethnicity. West Midlands Police did not respond to The Independents questions about this.

Folake Adoti-Ryan says she and her family are worried the dog will attack someone else (Foluke)

The family said they were alarmed to learn that one of the police officers involved claimed to have tried to take a statement from Ms Tonyin during a brief phone interaction on Friday 5 May but said she was unsuccessful because she couldnt understand what Ms Tonyin was saying due to her thick Nigerian accent.

The family disputes that such an attempt took place and clarified that Ms Tonyin, who has lived in the UK for 30 years, has had multiple customer-facing job roles across decades and had never experienced issues communicating with others in English.

If this happened to an older, middle-class, white English woman, I think the police would be taking it a lot more seriously, her worried daughter added.

Ms Tonyin lost her index finger in the dog attack (Supplied)

Moreover, if the owner of the dog had been a Black or brown man, Im sure charges would be pressed by now. These are pressable charges and the owner of a dog who mounts an attack like this can go to prison for six months.

The negligence has been astounding.

The victims family said they have gone out of their way to prompt the police to investigate and have called most days for updates. They have now complained to their local MP Steve McCabe.

Black people have significantly lower than average rates of confidence in their police force, according to official statistics by 64 per cent compared with an average of 74 per cent overall. West Midlands Polices former chief has previously apologised to Black people for the forces failings on race.

Despite there being multiple witnesses to the incident, including an off-duty police officer, the dogs owner has not been arrested or questioned over the attack, the family says. They are now concerned that the dog could harm someone else.

Mum has gone from being someone who goes for walks with the dog every day to becoming more reclusive; she didnt leave the house for two weeks after the attack, Ms Tonyins daughter added.

There have been times when Ive gone to her room and found her crying. The fact that the police havent come to see her, the dog is still around, and the owner didnt apologise or care about the attack on her - just whether or not their dog was okay - has only added to her pain.

Seeing a stub where her finger used to be has been messed up and it will take a lot of getting used to.

West Midlands Police told The Independent that officers from the dangerous dogs unit assessed the dog after the incident.

Following the assessment, the dogs, who are not a banned breed, have been allowed to stay with their owners with strict conditions, a spokesperson said.

A lone dog launched the attack and the police have been asked which dogs theyre referring to.

Following enquiries from The Independent, West Midlands Police said officers were investigating the matter and have now contacted Ms Tonyin to arrange to take a statement in person.

Police are also appealing to any witnesses or anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident to contact them with information by calling 101 and quoting crime number 20/390247/23.

The number of dog attacks recorded in the West Midlands has risen by 66 per cent from 2018 to 2022, recent figures show.
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Martin Lewis has issued a 24-hour warning to pensioners who could miss out on a 301 payment from the government.

The money-saving expert said up to a million eligible pensioners who have not claimed the Pension Credit benefit from the Department for Work and Pensions should do so before the deadline on Friday.

Mr Lewis said single pensioners with income under 220 a week or pensioner couples with income under 320 a week could be entitled to the Pension Credit.

He warned pensioners on the lowest income to check if they are eligible and claim the payment so they do not miss out.

If youre eligible for pension credit and youre missing out you need to check now, today, or tomorrow or Friday at the latest, because if you are eligible then you get that extra 301, Mr Lewis told ITVs Good Morning Britain viewers.

Warning that up to a million eligible pensioners could miss out on the payment, Mr Lewis explained there are loads of reasons people have not checked if they can claim the payment. People dont know about it, he said.

However, Mr Lewis said the government are trying to push people to claim the Pension Credit benefit.

Mr Lewis also said some pensioners have not claimed the payment because they think they will only receive a small amount. However, the money-saving expert explained the benefit is a gateway to so many more entitlements.

Even if pension credit itself is trivial, everything else it opens the door to is massive, Mr Lewis said, explaining that claiming the payment could mean you are entitled to a larger cost-of-living payment from the government of 900, council tax benefit, housing benefit, or help with your dental and optical costs.

Over 75s who are eligible for the payment could also be entitled to a free TV license, Mr Lewis said. He added: Let us together as a nation work to try and get those million pensioners on the lowest incomes who are missing out to claim what they have paid into the system for years that they are entitled to.

The warning comes as more than seven million households across the UK will have received a 301 cost-of-living payment by the end of Wednesday, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has said.

The payments are part of a package of wider government support announced to tackle the cost of living in 2023-24, including a further 300 payment for eligible families in autumn 2023, with a payment of 299 in spring 2024.

Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride said the payment underlines the governments commitment to ensure those on the lowest income are protected from the worst of rising prices and give them peace of mind.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: We know the impact that rising prices are having on families, which is why we are providing significant support to millions through these direct cash payments.

People will be eligible for the 301 cost-of-living payment if they have been entitled to a payment for certain benefits between 16 January and 15 February 2023, including, for example, universal credit, pension credit and child tax credit.
 Close Sky Mobile suffers mass outages as investigation underway

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Sky Mobile has said it is still working to resolve issues with its service after thousands of customers reported outages.

Online outage monitor Downdetector registered thousands of user reports about issues with Sky and O2 services on Tuesday afternoon.

The issue appeared to begin just after 2pm, with both mobile networks going down simultaneously.

Customers took to Twitter and other social media platforms to complain about the problems.

Hundreds of O2 customers were reporting outages, but the network has now confirmed that was linked to users not being able to reach Sky Mobile customers.

Posting to Twitter on Tuesday afternoon, the Sky Help Team said it was investigating the issue.

Services appeared to be back up and running for the majority on Wednesday morning although Downdetector received 152 report reports at 6.30am.

In a message posted to Twitter on Wednesday morning, Sky Help said it was aware of issues with its mobile service that teams were working to resolve as soon as possible.
No new licences will be issued for animal testing of chemicals used exclusively as cosmetics ingredients, the Government has said.

Home secretary Suella Braverman announced the ban on Wednesday, after it recently emerged the UK has been granting licences for animal testing since 2019 in certain circumstances in line with EU chemicals regulations, despite leaving the bloc.

Animal rights campaigners have been calling for an end to the practice as they accused the Government of weakening a 25-year ban.
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An IT worker sued her rich and powerful boss for sexual harassment after mistaking xx in his email as code for wanting kisses and his initials for A Jumbo Genital.

Project manager Karina Gasparova also interpreted Aleksander Goulandriss use of yy as sexual contact, and question marks as when she would be ready to engage in sexual acts.

An employment tribunal at London Central Court also heard that Ms Gasparova thought her superiors renaming a file with his initials AJG was actually an acronym for A Jumbo Genital.

A judge threw out her case, ruling that she had a skewed perception of everyday events of her time at her paperless document firm, essDOCS where she had been working since November 2019.

The panel also heard Ms Gasparova told bosses that she thought Mr Goulandris wanted to have a sexual relationship with her, but was treating her badly because she had rejected his advances.

She claimed this included shouting at her, undermining her in meetings with clients and removing key elements of work from her.

The court was also told of an incident in November 2019, where Ms Gasparova claimed that Mr Goulandris touched her leg with his leg under the table and stared at her, leaving her feeling anxious and uncomfortable.

The tribunal ruled the incident did occur, but it had been accidental and was innocuous in nature.

In a string of other claims, which were dismissed by the panel, Ms Gasparova said Mr Goulandris touched her hand when motioning for her computer mouse and missing it.

It was heard when she invited him to a lunch in September 2020, to get some peace from him sending lots of messages - he declined her offer.

Ms Gasparova told the tribunal this was because lunch involved romance and he only wanted sex.

The same month, when Mr Gasparova asked her when a project would be finished, she told the tribunal he burst out shouting with an extremely angry voice, saying I need date, date, date.

Ms Gasparova interpreted this as having been asked the exact date when I would finally agree on sexual contact with him.

In October she complained about receiving an invitation to the same meeting 16 times from Mr Goulandris - but the tribunal found this was not deliberate or sexual in nature.

In April 2021, she submitted a detailed grievance, which saw all her sexual harassment allegations dismissed.

She appealed the decision in May 2021 but it was again rejected, so she resigned.

Employment Judge Emma Burns said: Our primary reasons for rejecting her account of events were that we considered her perception of everyday events was skewed.

She demonstrated a tendency to make extraordinary allegations without evidence and she contradicted herself in a way that could not be attributable to a fallible memory.

Ms Gasparova interpreted entirely innocent work-related conduct, some of it accidental, by Mr Goulandris as having a sinister intent.

The panel threw out her claims of direct sex harassment, discrimination and unfair dismissal were dismissed.

Ms Gasparova was also ordered to pay 5,000 to essDOCS in costs following her failure to comply in time with parts of the tribunal procedures.
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Ben Wallace has expressed an interest in running Nato, saying the top job which is set to become vacant this autumn would be fantastic.

The Defence Secretary has previously positioned himself as a candidate as the military alliances current secretary general Jens Stoltenbergs term is expiring in September.

Mr Wallace again indicated he would be keen to succeed Mr Stoltenberg, during a trip to Berlin for talks on Ukraine with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.

It's not for me to decide. It's for all the other allies Ben Wallace

Mr Wallace told German news agency dpa: Ive always said it would be a good job. Thats a job Id like.

But Im also loving the job I do now. I mean, to be Defence Secretary of the British Government at a time of reform and investment, just like Boris Pistorius.

He added that secretary general of the transatlantic alliance is a fantastic job and Nato is an incredibly important part of all our securities.

But its not for me to decide. Its for all the other allies.

The race for the top job has been heating up, with Mr Stoltenberg indicating he will not seek a further extension after nearly a decade in the role.

Nato member states typically decide on the alliances next chief behind the scenes.

Mr Wallace would have to overcome the opposition of those said to be pushing for a woman or someone from eastern Europe, and of France, which would reportedly prefer an EU candidate.

If the Defence Secretary did succeed, it could trigger a by-election in his Wyre and Preston North seat, although it is set to be carved up under a planned shake-up of Westminster constituencies later this year.

The appointment of Labour MP George Robertson as Nato chief in 1999 led to a by-election in his Hamilton South constituency, south west of Glasgow.
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Dramatic footage of an e-scooter explosion in a kitchen has been released to highlight the risks around charging batteries.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) published the video showing the moment an e-scooter catches fire while plugged in at a house in Brent, north-west London on Saturday.

It takes just seconds for the room to be filled with flames and smoke.

Security guard Dell Williams, 37, was charging the e-scooter that he bought a fortnight earlier after seeing a listing on online marketplace Gumtree.

Neither he nor the other tenants living in the property were near the kitchen when the fire occurred.

I just want to thank the Lord that we managed to get out of there in one piece, he said. I am so grateful to be alive.

I spent eight hours in hospital due to inhaling smoke from the fire.

When I went back to the house it was such an eye-opener.

I was shocked, I am shocked now. I am so grateful that no-one else was hurt. I cheated death.

He added: Dont have e-scooters in the house. Charge outside.

LFB deputy commissioner Dom Ellis said this type of fire is becoming more common.

He said: As the video shows, once a battery starts to go into thermal runaway a fire develops very quickly and can block escape routes.

Thermal runaway can lead to the destruction of the battery and a ferocious fire.

We know prior to ignition, thermal runaway can lead to the ejection of a range of gases. The white and grey coloured smoke is not harmless, and the speed at which these incidents develop shouldnt be ignored.

I was shocked, I am shocked now. I am so grateful that no-one else was hurt. I cheated death. Dell Williams

Users of e-scooters and e-bikes are advised to allow their batteries to cool down before recharging them, and to buy chargers and batteries from reputable sellers.

LFB also urged people to fit smoke alarms in areas where charging happens indoors.

The brigade has been called to 48 e-bike fires and 12 e-scooter fires in the capital so far this year.

Private e-scooters cannot be legally ridden on roads or pavements in the UK but have become a common sight, particularly in urban areas.

Trials of rental e-scooters on roads in dozens of towns and cities across England are ongoing.

On Wednesday, transport minister Jesse Norman told the Commons Transport Select Committee that e-scooter and e-bike fires are an issue of serious concern and the Government is working hard on it.

He said: Weve had very few fires on the (e-scooter) trials, but we have had some.

There are obviously wider reports and theres now a scare going on at the moment about e-bikes.
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The KS2 year 6 reading paper has been released early after complaints from parents and teachers over the difficulty of the questions.

Due to be published on Monday, the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) made the exam available due to public interest in the tests.

James Bowen, assistant general secretary at the school leaders union the NAHT, said: We are pleased that the Government will be looking at what happened with the reading test this year.

It is essential that test papers are accessible for the large majority of pupils. We need to remember that these are 10 and 11-year-olds and the last thing we need are papers that leave them feeling demotivated and dejected James Bowen, NAHT assistant general secretary

We have had clear feedback from school leaders that this years paper was not pitched appropriately for a large proportion of pupils and even highly proficient readers struggled with it.

It is essential that test papers are accessible for the large majority of pupils. We need to remember that these are 10 and 11-year-olds and the last thing we need are papers that leave them feeling demotivated and dejected.

Sats, or Standard Assessment Tests, are used to measure childrens English and maths skills in year 2 and year 6, and consist of six papers which last between 30 minutes and an hour.

Last week, the NAHT expressed concerns over the Sats reading paper, saying it planned to raise the issue with exams regulator Ofqual and the STA.

In the test, children had one hour to answer 38 questions about three set texts.

The first was an extract from a story about friends who believed they had come across sheep rustlers  a word used in the text, which means someone who steals animals from farms.

The second was an interview with a bat expert about a bat colony in Texas, adapted from a 2016 New York Times article.

The final passage was taken from a book called The Rise Of Wolves, where a young boy called Innis hears a wolf in the remote rural area he lives in.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: Key Stage 2 assessments are an important way of identifying pupils strengths and where they may have fallen behind as they head to secondary school.

The Standards and Testing Agency (STA) independently develop these tests, with questions rigorously trialled with year 6 pupils and reviewed by education and inclusion experts to ensure appropriateness. Ofqual regulate all national curriculum assessments, which includes observing STAs processes.

The STA will continue to work with schools, children and parents to understand the views on this years papers.

Outlined below are some of the more unclear or harder questions from the paper.

 Question 2 asked why the main character in the story, Priya, was surprised to hear two vehicles drive by at nighttime. But the mark scheme specified pupils should not be rewarded for giving the midnight setting as the response  even though this would be a logical inference.

Question: Why did Priya find it surprising to hear two vehicles drive by?

Relevant extract: Priya was surprised, and now she was completely awake. They had only seen a couple of cars all day, and now two had come past together.

Answer: Because they hadnt heard that many cars drive by.

Mark scheme note: Do not accept reference only to it being late at night/very early in the morning, eg because it was the middle of the night.

 Question 8 asked pupils to choose the correct meaning of wriggled in the same passage.

Question: She wriggled back inside the tent. What does this tell you about how Priya got inside the tent? Tick one.

She ran quickly inside/She jumped through the flap/She had to squeeze in/She crept in quietly.

Answer: She had to squeeze in.

But online thesauruses by Merriam-Webster and Collins list creep as a synonym for wriggle, among others.

 Question 30 asks why Innis, the main character in the third story who has just heard a wolf, found it hard to trust his own senses.

But the passage does not actually suggest Innis distrusts his own senses. Rather the boy understands straight away there is a wolf, and tries to convince himself the wolf does not exist. He walks quickly to leave the area which is becoming dark.

Question: What two things made it hard for Innis to trust his own senses when he was looking for the wolf? Tick two.

Relevant extract: The howl pierced the darkening sky and made Innis Munro stop dead in his tracks. He pulled his hood down, listened intently. The only sound was his beating heart. That was a wolf, he thought. But it couldnt have been. There were no wolves on the island of Nin, no wolves in Scotland any more, not for almost 300 years. It was just a trick of the wind. He pressed on but kept his hood down. The afternoon light of early March was fading fast, snow was falling, and he was still a good half-mile from home. Innis walked faster, told himself it was not the howl that made him hurry but the gloomy sky and gathering snow.

The choices: How flat the land was/the fading light/how tired he felt/the weather/how fast he was walking

Answer: The fading light, the weather.
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Many of Thursdays papers feature news from the US of an alleged car chase of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex by numerous photographers which lasted two hours and described as near catastrophic.

The i and Metro lead with reports Harry and Meghan were subjected to a relentless pursuit after an awards ceremony in New York at 10pm on Tuesday.

Elsewhere, the Daily Express says the Prime Minister has raised hopes for a pre-election tax cut.

While The Guardian says Rishi Sunak has been accused of being out of touch over the cost-of-living crisis.

The Daily Mail takes aim at the opposition leader, saying Sir Keir Starmer wants to reopen Brexit talks.

Water companies have apologised for pumping sewage into the nations rivers and promised the greatest infrastructure modernisation since the Victorian era, according to The Times.

Obese patients cost the NHS twice as much as those of healthy weight, The Daily Telegraph reports, citing landmark research.

The Financial Times writes that German carmakers are lobbying the European Commission to delay post-Brexit rules that threaten the industry.

The Daily Mirror features an exclusive interview with the 12-year-old son of fusilier Lee Rigby ahead of the 10-year anniversary of his fathers murder outside his barracks in Woolwich, South East London.

And the Daily Star says one in 10 people dip their sausage rolls in cups of tea.
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A minister has been urged to correct the record on the number of Afghans seeking safety in the UK, after he incorrectly claimed that hundreds of thousands of applications had been made.

In the Commons this week, defence minister James Heappey refused to give a lifeline to an Afghan air force veteran who served alongside British forces and is facing deportation to Rwanda after arriving in the UK by small boat. When he was grilled by MPs on the scandal raised by The Independent, Mr Heappey said that the vast majority of those who had applied to the Afghan relocations and assistance policy (Arap) scheme would not be eligible because they had not worked in direct support of the British military.

We have had hundreds of thousands of applications, the vast majority of which have come from people who either served in the Afghan national forces  while their effort was heroic, they were never who Arap was aimed at  or never had anything to do with the UK armed forces at all, the armed forces minister said.

However, rather than hundreds of thousands of applications, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) told The Independent that 138,000 applications to the Arap scheme had been received to date  well below the figure stated by the minister.

Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran MP urged Mr Heappey to correct the record. The Conservatives handling of the Afghanistan crisis has been catastrophic from the very start, she said. Now ministers cant even seem to get the figures right. Its important that James Heappey corrects the record as soon as possible.

The senior MP added: Getting the facts right is surely the very least that we owe to those brave Afghans who supported our efforts in Afghanistan  and have been so badly let down by the Conservative government.

The Independent understands that the MoD has judged that Mr Heappey does not need to correct the record in parliament  despite the mistake being discussed by his officials.

The former Afghan air force pilot outside Westminster and (inset) in his plane (The Independent)

The ministry revealed that the latest figures show that only 15,420 Afghans  comprising applicants and their family members  have been identified as eligible for help under the Arap scheme. Some 12,200 of them have already been relocated to the UK.

Guidance on the governments website says that the Arap scheme is for Afghan citizens who worked for or with the UK government in Afghanistan in exposed or meaningful roles. However, The Independent understands that its remit is in fact far more narrow than this suggests.

The scheme is only accepting those who were directly employed by the British forces, or those who held a role that materially contributed to a specific British effort in Afghanistan.

The Afghan pilot being threatened with removal to Rwanda has said he feels forgotten by the government.

Dozens of military chiefs, politicians, and celebrities including Sting, Guy Ritchie and Piers Morgan, have backed The Independents campaign demanding that the pilots case be reconsidered under the Arap scheme.

Asked about the pilots case on Monday, Mr Heappey said his department was looking at whether or not there are any special circumstances under which the application could be approved.

But despite the former airman having flown dozens of missions against the Taliban, Mr Heappey added that in principle, as a member of the Afghan national security forces rather than somebody who worked alongside the British armed forces, [the pilot] would not automatically be in scope.

An MoD spokesperson said: We owe a debt of gratitude to those interpreters and other staff eligible under the Arap scheme, who worked for, or with, UK forces in Afghanistan. Thats why we have committed to relocating all eligible Afghans and their families to the UK under the Arap scheme  a commitment we will honour.

Our absolute priority is supporting the movement of eligible people out of Afghanistan, and to date we have relocated over 12,200 individuals to the UK under Arap.
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Rishi Sunaks wife Akshata Murty has stepped out of the shadows following a series of high-profile scandals to join him on her first international trip as the prime ministers spouse.

The multimillionaire daughter of one of Indias richest businessmen stood out as she stepped off an RAF plane dressed in bright green ME+EM trousers with a pink Chinti & Parker knit jumper. The prime minister kept it simple with a dark suit, white shirt and red tie.

Ms Murty, 43, has been embroiled in controversy since The Independent revealed last year that she had been avoiding tax by claiming non-dom status. She has since agreed to pay UK tax on her overseas income.

She and her husband also came under fire over her stake in Koru Kids after Mr Sunak failed to declare her involvement in the childcare agency that benefited from the Budget. He is now under investigation by parliaments sleaze watchdog over the non-disclosure.

Ms Murty also has a stake in the education tech company Study Hall, which was given 349,976 of public funds through Innovate UK.

The controversy engulfing the prime ministers wife is not just linked to her investments. Her choice of fashion has raised eyebrows in the past, including when she wore a pair of Gucci shoes costing 645 on the campaign trail in the run-up to the local elections.

Rishi Sunak and Akshata Murty at the coronation (PA)

And Ms Murty and Mr Sunak were in March reminded of the rules by the Metropolitan Police about keeping dogs on a lead when in major parks. A video appeared to show the prime minister and his family allowing their dog, Nova, to roam freely in a Royal Park.

Mr Sunak and Ms Murty were greeted off the plane in Tokyo on Thursday ahead of the G7 summit in Hiroshima this weekend. They were met by the British ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom.

Ms Murty is expected to follow a programme of activities with other world leaders partners, who could include US first lady Jill Biden and Brigitte Macron, French president Emmanuel Macrons wife.

Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty (PA)

It is the latest in a series of recent high-profile public appearances by Ms Murty, following a coronation lunch in Downing Street for volunteers, youth groups and Ukrainian refugees in the UK.

Ms Murty also met Ms Biden ahead of the coronation of King Charles III, spending an afternoon exploring veterans affairs and education.

Akshata Murty and Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska read to Ukrainian children during a visit to the British Library in central London (AFP)
Boris Johnson dismissed Emmanuel Macron as Putins lickspittle after the French president criticised the then-prime ministers response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis, according to a former leading No 10 official.

Mr Johnson also called Mr Macron a four-letter word that begins with c, former Downing Street director of communication Guto Harri said in his podcast Unprecedented.

When the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the front page of The Guardian, he recalled.
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When Suella Braverman delivered a half-hour-long speech railing against identity politics and radical gender ideology on Monday, it was the first time most people had heard of the National Conservatism Conference.

But for three days it filled a large Westminster venue directly across the road from the Home Office, attracting an array of ministers, Conservative MPs and high-profile political figures.

The conference was run by an American group that professes to be concerned for Western civilization in the face of supposed enemies, including radical forms of sexual licence and the loss of traditional family, where relationships should be between men and women.

It is the project of a think tank called the Edmund Burke Foundation, which declares its aim to be strengthening the principles of national conservatism in Western countries. It also has links to an Israel-based Zionist research organisation.

The foundations website states that it was founded in 2019, but it was registered as a private limited company in the UK through Companies House in March, by Cambridge University theology professor Dr James Orr.

Dr Orr served as chair of this weeks conference, and proclaimed the values of faith, family, flag to the crowd before claiming that the cargo cult of transgenderism is triggering a social contagion that is inflicting irreversible physical harms on the young and the vulnerable.

In a series of other speeches this week, communities secretary Michael Gove held forth on biological reality, Conservative MP Miriam Cates claimed birth rates were the one overarching threat to the whole of Western society, fellow Tory MP Danny Kruger praised the normative family, and Jacob Rees-Mogg was interrupted by a demonstrator warning of the characteristics of fascism.

Conservative Party deputy chair Lee Anderson brought the curtain down on the three-day event on Wednesday afternoon, undeterred by the outrage generated by a previous speaker who had described the Holocaust as the Germans mucking up.

Joe Mulhall, director of research at the counterextremism group Hope Not Hate, said the topics discussed at the conference dripped with far-right and populist conspiracy theories.

The Conservative Party has always had a fringe in it that has flirted with far-right politics, but what is worrying here is that in 2023, when much of society has become more socially liberal, this rhetoric is coming from senior figures, he told The Independent.

Some speakers went beyond patriotism and embraced nationalism, while talk of demographic change, anti-immigration rhetoric and [discussion of] the incompatibility of migrants with British society, the notion of Western civilisation being in decline, the rejection of non-typical family units, referencing the cultural Marxism conspiracy theory, and open transphobia are all beliefs typical of the contemporary radical and far right.

Protester storms stage during Jacob Rees-Moggs National Conservatism Conference speech

Downing Street confirmed that ministers had attended the National Conservatism Conference in a government capacity, but said the prime minister was not endorsing the organisers values or the content of all of the speeches.

It was a far cry from the official response when Conservative MP Daniel Kawczynski attended an earlier conference held in Rome in 2020.

Following calls for him to be booted out of his party for appearing at the event, which was also attended by Hungarys nationalist prime minister Viktor Orban, he was forced to apologise.

In a statement issued at the time, a spokesperson for the Conservative Party said: Daniel Kawczynski has been formally warned that his attendance at this event was not acceptable, particularly in light of the views of some of those in attendance, which we utterly condemn, and that he is expected to hold himself to higher standards.

Three years and two prime ministers later, no such censure has been applied to the ministers who saw fit to attend, and the themes of the National Conservatism Conference remain unchanged.

The groups website proclaims: We are citizens of Western nations who have watched with alarm as the traditional beliefs, institutions, and liberties underpinning life in the countries we love have been progressively undermined and overthrown.

It calls for the restoration of a proper public orientation toward patriotism and courage, honour and loyalty, religion and wisdom, congregation and family, man and woman, while decrying what it calls universalist ideologies.

The National Conservatism groups published statement of principles is heavily focused on Christianity, along with ideas of Western identity and heritage and traditional family.

The traditional family, built around a lifelong bond between a man and a woman, and on a lifelong bond between parents and children, is the foundation of all other achievements of our civilization, one passage reads.

Conservative MP and former minister Jacob Rees-Mogg was also among the speakers (Getty)

The disintegration of the family, including a marked decline in marriage and childbirth, gravely threatens the wellbeing and sustainability of democratic nations. Among the causes are an unconstrained individualism that regards children as a burden, while encouraging ever more radical forms of sexual licence and experimentation as an alternative to the responsibilities of family and congregational life.

Hailing the Bible as the surest guide ... to the political traditions of the nation, the statement calls for public life in the UK and the US to be rooted in Christianity.

Signed by leading members of the National Conservatism group, it claims that unassimilated immigration is a source of weakness and instability and demands restrictions that could amount to an unspecified moratorium on immigration.

But the statement insists that nationalism can offer a sound basis for conciliation and unity between people of different races, and respects the unique needs of particular minority communities.

The Independent understands that no MPs were paid to appear at the conference, although several spokespeople did not answer questions on how the MPs concerned had come to be invited to speak  or why they had agreed to do so.

When asked why the Conservative Partys position on the conference had changed since Mr Kawczynski was censured in 2020, a spokesperson at the partys headquarters only pointed to previous comments from Downing Street.

During a press conference on Tuesday, Rishi Sunaks official spokesperson told reporters that, despite the content of MPs speeches and the conference organisers stance on gay marriage, there was no change to government policy.

He said the prime minister did not agree with Mr Krugers statement that the normative family with a mother and a father is the only basis for a functioning society, and was not personally endorsing the gathering.
Rishi Sunak refused to recommit to a Tory manifesto pledge made by Boris Johnson to bring down overall immigration levels.

The prime minister said he does want the net migration figure to fall, but would not stick to the pledge made by the Conservatives at the last election.

Instead Mr Sunak said on Wednesday he had inherited some numbers on migration and insisted voters were focused on tackling illegal migration, such as small boat crossings.
A senior Tory MP has said swimming in sewage in Britain used to be regarded as acceptable  recalling his own childhood days paddling in wastewater.

Damian Green claimed attitudes towards sewage dumping have changed in recent years, as water companies apologised for polluting Englands rivers and beaches and promised change.

I remember as a child in south Wales swimming in sewage, he told ITVs Peston. Jacksons Bay in Barry used to be a sewage outlet where we all paddled and swam.
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Rishi Sunak has said European car manufacturers have backed his call for the EU to delay implementing a post-Brexit tariff on car parts for electric vehicles.

Stellantis, which owns Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroen, and Fiat, said the changescould force it and others to quit the UK, the prime minister said the concerns were not just in Britain.

Under new rules, tariffs will be imposed from January on how much of an electric car much be made in the UK or EU. The tax will apply when less than 45 per cent of the value of an EV, and less than 60 per cent of its battery, is made within the bloc.

Mr Sunak said there is not currently sufficient battery-making potential in the UK or the EU for these figures to be reached by January.

Mr Sunak told ITV on Thursday: Its something car manufacturers across Europe, and not just in the UK, have raised as a concern.

As a result of that we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU as to how we might address those concerns.

The prime minister did not disclose which European manufacturers had expressed concern.

Stellantis said on Wednesday it would be unable to meet these rules of origin especially when increased raw material and energy costs are factored in.

Rishi Sunak did not say which EU car makers were joining his call (Getty/PA/The Independent)

Kemi Badenoch, the business secretary, raised the issue with her Brussels counterpart and held a pre-arranged meeting with Stellantis chiefs on Wednesday.

She raised the motor industrys concerns about the TCA with chancellor Jeremy Hunt and foreign secretary James Cleverly, according to Whitehall sources.

Mr Sunak added that he would be meeting with the chief executive of Nissan, as well as other Japanese firms while on his G7 visit to the country, after the manufacturer committed to making cars in the northeast of England.

I am pleased that we are announcing 18 billion of new investment into the UK, the prime minister continued.

That is going to create jobs at home and Japan is a significant investor in the UK and I know that will continue.

Kemi Badenoch has also been looking into the issue (PA Wire)

The meeting follows Nissans former chief Andy Palmer saying it was impossible to meet local content rules unless you source your battery within the UK or EU but the supply chain at the moment isnt there in Britain.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said in response to the car firms complaints that we need a better Brexit deal with the EU to ensure firms can continue to operate in the UK.

Of course, we want a closer trading relationship, we absolutely do, he said. We want to ensure that Vauxhall and many others not just survive in this country but thrive  so yes we need a better Brexit deal. We will make Brexit work.

No 10 said problems relating to the British car industry over a Brexit deal deadline can be resolved within the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA), rather than open up a renegotiation.

We continue to want to work closely with the EU to find a solution to this problem, said a spokesman for Rishi Sunak. We think it can be resolved within the TCA, and we want to continue to take that work forward.
The government has been accused of turning its back on the people of Afghanistan after an official watchdog said UK aid to the nation has more than halved.

The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) said the UK is expected to provide 100 million in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in 2023-24, compared with 246 million in the previous year.

The watchdogs latest review of UK funding since the Taliban takeover in 2021 said the sharp fall followed successive cuts to Britains aid budget and the use of a substantial amount of it on housing refugees in the UK.
Their mission has been to eat a lot of weeds and sheep responded to their call of duty with enthusiasm.

Since 2019 the so-called wooly warriors have been on the front line of Scotlands fight against highly invasive hoghweed, which has been infesting rivers and quickly spreading.

Wildlife organisation NatureScot received lottery funding to deploy the sheep to sections of the River Deveron, in the north east of the country, as part of the Scottish Invasive Species Initiative.
Mothers with their children have been photographed from the epicentre of the crippling drought in Southern Somalia, with one explaining how her young family has been forced to survive on tea with some sugar in it as their main meal of the day.

The powerful series has been newly released by The Independent to illustrate the devastating impact of the crisis as World Hunger Day approaches and Oxfam calls on the G7 to take life-saving action over famine in East Africa ahead of the summit on Friday.

The award-winning photographer Fredrik Lerneryd has captured mothers with their children, suffering from extreme hunger and malnutrition-induced sickness, after five consecutive failed rainy seasons have put food out of reach for millions of people.
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Seventeen days after a small aircraft crashed in the Colombian Amazon rainforest, the country is holding its breath over confusing reports that four children have survived the ordeal.

The siblings - 13-year-old Lesly Jacobombaire Mucutuy, nine-year-old Soleiny Jacobombaire Mucutuy, four-year-old Tien Noriel Ronoque Mucutuy and 11-month-old Cristin Neriman Ranoque Mucutuy - were travelling in a Cessna 206 plane when it crashed on 1 May near the Guaviare province.

Their mother Magdalena Mucutuy, the planes pilot, and another passenger died in the accident but the minors were nowhere to be found, the Colombian Air Force said in a statement.

Efforts to find the children escalated in recent days after rescue crews found evidence of their survival in the vast Amazon jungle, including hair ties, childrens scissors and a baby bottle.

On Wednesday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced that the minors had been located and were in good health. But hours later, he walked back that assertion, clarifying that the Air Force and indigenous communities had established contact with the children, but their location remains unknown.

With a massive search underway and as the country hopes for good news, this is everything we know about the crash and the childrens miracle survival:

A trip meant to reunite a family

Mucutuy was travelling with her children to Bogota to meet her husband Manuel Ranoque and start a new life together.

According to El Tiempo, Mr Ranoque, who is related to a local political leader, previously lived in the indigenous reserve of Puerto Sabalo with his family.

He had to flee the community on foot after receiving threats from crime groups operating in the area. Mr Ranoque completed his odyssey through the jungle and eventually arrived in Bogota.

He reportedly found a job and saved money for a month and a half to afford his familys transport from their remote community to the Colombian capital.

But dreams to reunite were shattered when the small aircraft Mr Ranoques wife and children were travelling in crashed. The plane had been on a route between Araracuara in Amazonas province and San Jose del Guaviare for the first leg of the trip when it disappeared in the early hours of 1 May.

(Aeronautica Civil de Colombia )

The aircraft was reported missing the same day but was not found until 15 May, due to adverse weather conditions that delayed search operations.

Mucutuys mother Fatima told El Tiempo she was combing parts of the jungle herself with other members of indigenous communities.

Im waiting for them to return [my daughters] body. She had been living in the jungle for so long. Im waiting for her, Fatima said. God is good and I know the children will be found alive.

Magdalena mucutuy died in the crash. Her four children are believed to have survived (OPIAC Amazonia/Twitter)

Evidence of survival

Civil aviation authorities, who coordinated the rescue operations, believe the children escaped the plane after the crash and set off into the rainforest to find help.

Efforts to find them were stepped up after rescue teams, including search dogs, found discarded fruit the children ate to survive and improvised shelters made with jungle vegetation. Hair ties, childrens scissors and a nursing bottle were also found.

Authorities said rescue efforts involved three helicopters, including one which blasted out a recorded message from the childrens grandmother in the Huitoto language telling them to stop moving through the jungle.

Efforts to find them were stepped up after rescue teams, including search dogs, found discarded fruit the children ate to survive and improvised shelters made with jungle vegetation. (Aeronautica Civil de Colombia)

Hair ties, childrens scissors and a nursing bottle were also found (Aeronautica Civil de Colombia)

Colombian Air Force continues searching for four missing children in Amazon rainforest

Confusion over childrens whereabouts

On Wednesday, Mr Petro claimed in a statement on Twitter that the children had been found after a search by more than 100 members of the military, firefighters and civil aviation authority officials in the dense jungle of Colombias Caqueta province.

After arduous searching by our military, we have found alive the four children who went missing after a plane crash in Guaviare. A joy for the country, he said.

Mr Petro deleted his previous tweet, issuing an apology on Thursday: I have decided to delete the tweet because the information provided by [the governments child welfare agency, ICBF] could not be confirmed. I apologise for the confusion.

The Military Forces and the indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for. At this time there is no other priority other than moving forward with the search until you find them. Childrens lives are the most important thing.

Government officials very confident children will soon be found

The ICFB has said it received information from the field that the children had been found in good health. However, defence ministry sources told local media they have no confirmation they have been found.

Information was received from the area assuring contact was made with the four children who were part of the group transported on the aircraft. This report stated that they had been found alive and in good health, said a statement from the ICBF. However, the military forces have not yet been able to establish official contact due to adverse weather conditions and difficult terrain, the statement added. Authorities have not been able to corroborate the information received by the ICBF from various sources.

The Colombian Air Force has escalated searche efforrs (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana )

ICBF director Astrid Caceres told Caracol Radio on Thursday that the children are safe but officials lost communication via satellite with them. However, Ms Caceres said they had sent teams to three key areas where the children are believed to be, and she is very confident they will soon be found.

According to Noticias Caracol correspondent Sneyder Rico, indigenous communities in the area have said that the children are travelling in a speedboat but have no means of communication. Theyre reportedly expected to arrive in the rural area of Cachiporro.
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A young girl who was abducted by her mother in Illinois has finally been found safe six years after she vanished, when a North Carolina store owner recognised her from a Netflix show.

Kayla Unbehaun was nine years old when she disappeared without a trace while in the care of her mother Heather Unbehaun.

It was 4 July 2017, and Kayla had gone for a visit with her mother, who had visitation rights but not full custody of her daughter.

The next day, Kaylas father  who had full custody  went to pick her up from her mothers house in Wheaton, Illinois, to find his daughter and her mother were missing.

A search was launched to track down the abducted child but, for years, the trail went cold.

However, Kaylas story wasnt forgotten and the case was featured on an episode of Netflixs Unsolved Mysteries series, titled Abducted by a Parent.

Last month, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) released an age-progression photo to show how Kayla may look now, aged 15.

Almost six years after she vanished, a chance sighting more than 600 miles away in North Carolina has finally led to authorities locating the missing child.

Kayla Unbehaun and her father Ryan before her disappearance (NCMEC)

Kayla Unbehaun and her father Ryan before her disappearance (NCMEC)

An unidentified owner of a store in Asheville spotted Kayla, now aged 15, in a local shopping centre and recognised her from the Netflix show, reported WSOC.

The Good Samaritan called police, who found Kayla and took her into protective custody.

Ms Unbehaun was arrested and charged with one count of child abduction, according to the Kane County States Attorneys Office.

She is being held on $250,000 bond and further charges are also possible.

The NCMEC  which had posted alerts to try to find Kayla over the past five-plus years  shared a message from Kaylas father celebrating the news that his daughter had been found safe.

Im overjoyed that Kayla is home safe. I want to thank the South Elgin Police Department, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case, he said.

Kayla and her father before her abduction (NCMEC)

We ask for privacy as we get to know each other again and navigate this new beginning.

Over the years, Kaylas father Ryan had continued to promote his daughters case on the Facebook page Bring Kayla Home.

On 6 January, he posted a birthday message to his missing daughter and spoke of his hopes that they would be reunited soon.

Happy 15th birthday, Kayla. I love you and miss you so much. I cant wait for the day that I get to see you again, hoping each day I wake up will be the day, he said.

It could never come soon enough. I think of you every day hoping and praying that you are safe, happy and that you will come back into my life soon.
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The father of slain University of Idaho student Kaylee Goncalves has expressed his support for the young women who survived the attack in which his daughter was killed.

Dylan Mortensen and Brittany Funke were inside their off-campus home in Moscow when roommates Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kernodles boyfriend Ethan Chapin were stabbed to death in the early morning hours of 13 November.

According to an affidavit released earlier this year, Ms Mortensen told investigators that on the night of the murders, she saw a figure clad in black clothing and a mask that covered the persons mouth and nose walking towards her.

Ms Mortensen and Ms Funke faced online harassment as speculation grew and questions were raised over the eight hours that passed between the attack and the time police were called. They were never considered suspects and authorities have described them as survivors since the early stages of the probe.

In an interview with NewsNations Ashleigh Banfield aired on Wednesday, Goncalves father Steve Goncalves thanked Ms Funke and Ms Mortensen for their cooperation with the investigation, which he called critical to build a strong case against suspect Bryan Kohberger.

Theyre going through a lot; I appreciate what theyve done for the case and all the information that theyve provided, Mr Goncalves said. I wish they wouldnt have to go through it but its critical, its absolutely going to make the case so I commend them for their courage and to go through this and to know I cant fix it for them.

The grieving father said he has spoken with one of the surviving roommates and hopes he can support them in any capacity to make the process easier.

Ive been able to talk to one of them. They know where we stand. These girls... If I saw them, Id give them a hug, Mr Goncalves said. Im there to let them know that we really appreciate it and, all the parents, were vulnerable so we need those girls to come forward and provide those details and they have done that, and we really appreciate it.

Mr Goncalves also said that at least two other families will attend Mr Kohbergers arraignment on Monday following his indictment on one burglary and four murder counts by a grand jury. The bombshell indictment on Tuesday effectively rerouted the case directly to the states felony court level and allowed prosecutors to skip the preliminary hearing process, the Associated Press reported.

I know on Monday, I wont be the only parent down there. Therell be other families there. And, I think its a moment of solidarity that were getting were getting more and more people active, and you got to give people time to figure out how they want to respond and how theyre going to just wake up and deal with an everyday situation, Mr Goncalves said.

Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21 (Instagram)

He said that his family and other victims parents have been planning the route theyll take to the courthouse on Monday.

But theyre all starting to get their power and their strength and theyre all ready to go to court and I think that courtrooms gonna get more and more crowded, he added.

Mr Kohberger said through a public defender earlier this year that he was eager to be exonerated. He was linked to the crimes by DNA evidence, cellphone data and surveillance video of what prosecutors believe is his white Hyundai Elantra leaving the scene, according to the arrest affidavit.

Another roommate, who survived the attack, was also able to partially describe the killer to investigators after she came face-to-face with him. The murder weapon, a fixed-blade knife, was not recovered during searches and remains missing.

Two warrants obtained by The Independent show that investigators collected a Glock .40 calibre gun, empty gun magazines, a knife, a pocket knife, black face masks, black gloves, electronic devices, and clothing items from the home of Mr Kohbergers parents in Pennsylvania where he was arrested.

The family home was raided on 30 December, the same day that a search was also carried out at Mr Kohbergers apartment in Pullman, Washington a 15-minute drive from the crime scene in Moscow. He was arrested in Pennsylvania that day and later extradited to Idaho.

The Washington warrant revealed that investigators seized a collection of dark red spotting and a pillow with a reddish/brown stain at Mr Kohbergers apartment. At least two items seized from that search tested positive for blood.
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An alternate juror on the Lori Vallow trial has spoken out to share her belief that the convicted killers husband Chad Daybell and brother Alex Cox are equally guilty in the murders.

Juror Tiffany, who was not on the final panel of 12 who deliberated but served as an alternate and was presented with all of the evidence over the course of the six-week trial, spoke with Jesse Weber of Law & Crime about her experience and what she felt led to the guilty verdict.

On Friday 12 May, Vallow was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy and grand theft over the deaths of her daughter Tylee Ryan, 16, son Joshua JJ Vallow, seven, and of conspiracy to murder Tammy Daybell, 49, her new husband Mr Daybells first wife, at Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho.

Tylee and JJ were last seen in September 2019. In June 2020, their remains were found buried in shallow graves on the Daybell property. Tammy died one month after their disappearance in October 2019 and her death was later ruled a homicide by asphyxiation.

Prosecutors argued that Vallow conspired with Mr Daybell and her brother Mr Cox to kill the three victims, motivated by greed and their doomsday cult beliefs.

Asked about the motive, Tiffany said she believes it was a whirlwind of things that just collided in October 2018 when Vallow and Mr Daybell met.

Tiffany said she was surprised that there was no defence case to argue that Vallow had been manipulated by Mr Daybell and felt that the closing argument was too little too late.

She added that it was part religious beliefs and part money behind what happened and noted that there appeared to be multiple people who would have taken the children off Vallow to care for them should she have needed that.

Were Cox and Mr Daybell on trial as well, Tiffany said she would have convicted them too based on the evidence presented: Being manipulated by somebody doesnt get you off the hook. So I do believe honestly that all three of them would be found guilty.

Mr Daybell is set to face his own trial next year, while Cox died in December 2019.

During jury selection, Tiffany felt she could be impartial based on her experience in the military as a neutral person who does not judge people right away.

She also admitted to not knowing anything about the case going in but was wary of the fact it was centred around the murder of children, being a mother herself. Key to her was watching Vallows reaction as the evidence came out  at critical moments, Tiffany said she felt Vallow was unemotional.

Tiffany said she would have definitely voted to convict Vallow but added that she would have needed more time to deliberate on Vallows involvement in the conspiracy to murder Tammy Daybell.

(Madison County Sheriffs Office)

I felt pretty solid on the other charges but the one on Tammy Daybell I did not feel solid on. I didnt feel there was solid evidence for her charge as opposed to the other charges, she said explaining that the evidence was there but she needed time to talk it over.

Asked if she felt Mr Daybell had killed his wife as prosecutors were suggesting, she replied: I feel he definitely had a heavier hand in it, I do.

On the murder of the children, Tiffany said the prosecutions argument about the money motive  Vallow switched social security payments due to the children to her accounts  was key as they demonstrated she had learned a lesson from the earlier death of her husband Charles Vallow when she had not been the beneficiary of his life insurance. It showed she had prepped for the death of Tylee in particular.

Asked if she believed it was Cox who had actually killed the children, Tiffany said she did, noting his finger and palm prints were found on the plastic bag wrapped around JJ, and his cell phone records placed him at the site where the bodies were buried and led the police to find the graves.

Tiffany added she was sure that Vallow encouraged her Cox to commit crimes but is not sure she knew exactly what happened to the children though was aware they were dead as people searched for them and she remained silent.

Reflecting on two of the most powerful pieces of evidence, Vallows jailhouse phone calls with her surviving son Colby Ryan and sister Summer Shiflet, Tiffany says they were tough to hear as there was so much emotion from them but none from Vallow.

(AP)

For her, the most difficult day of the trial was finding out the manner in which the children died and seeing the autopsy photos of seven-year-old JJ, still wearing his red pyjamas, bound by duct tape.

I would just come home to my teenage daughter and cry and she would hold me and give me a hug, Tiffany said, her voice choked with emotion as she recalled seeing a young child in the grocery store wearing pyjamas before coming home and breaking down.

Those kids need justice for what happened to them because they can no longer speak for themselves  Lori needed to be held responsible for it, she said.
 Close Lori Vallow trial: Cult mom convicted of murders of children and Chad Daybells wife

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The lone holdout juror in Lori Vallows murder trial has revealed why he changed his mind to convict the mother last week.

Saul Hernandez sat down with Good Morning America on Tuesday, four days after Vallow was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy and grand theft over the deaths of her daughter Tylee Ryan, 16, son Joshua JJ Vallow, seven, and of conspiracy to murder Tammy Daybell, 49, her new husband Chad Daybells first wife, at Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho.

Mr Hernandez said when the jury began deliberating, he was the only one unconvinced that the prosecution had proved its case.

But over the course of just seven hours of deliberation, Mr Hernandez said it became clear to him that Vallow is guilty.

During the trial, he said he found it hard to look at Vallow as more and more gruelling evidence emerged.

Growing up, were taught good and bad, God and evil, and I think for the first time in my life, I put a face to evil, he said.

Mr Hernandez said he was disgusted by photos of Vallow and Mr Daybell smiling through their beach wedding just weeks after the kids were killed.
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A California doctor, accused of driving his family off a cliff, has blamed his Tesla car for malfunctioning even though his wife claimed his move was deliberate, according to an affidavit.

Warrant affidavit documents unsealed on Wednesday showed Dharmesh Patel, 41, told investigators he pulled off the road to check on a possible flat tyre after the sensor on his Model Y electric car indicated low tyre pressure.

Mr Patel, a radiologist from Pasadena, was driving his white 2021 Tesla Model Y along the Pacific Coast Highway south of San Francisco when the car plunged several hundred feet off the cliff at the Devils Slide.

Firefighters had to cut the family out of the wreckage.

Despite the crash, Mr Patel, his wife Neha, their nine-year-old son and four-year-old daughter miraculously survived and were pulled off a craggy outcrop.

However, Mr Patels claims were refuted by his wife, who told a California Highway Patrol officer that her husband was "depressed".

"Hes a doctor. He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposely drove off," Ms Patel said, according to documents obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle.

California Highway Patrol officer Aaron Sapien wrote that Ms Patel, while being rescued from the car, said something to the effect that the driver, her husband Dharmesh Patel, did it on purpose".

"She then told him that her husband needs a psych evaluation."

The warrant affidavit included an interview with Mr Patel while he was recovering from major lower body injuries.

Emergency personnel respond to a vehicle over the side of Highway 1 (San Mateo County Sheriff's Office)

He said his wife was irritated shortly before the plunge off the cliff because she didn't want to stop at his brother's house in San Mateo County before making their drive home to Los Angeles.

He said he was not really depressed but that he felt down because times were bad in the world, the Chronicle reported.

"Asked if he felt suicidal, he said, 'You know, not like a plan, not usually,'" the affidavit said.

Mr Patel has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder and is in custody without bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 12 June, at which time a judge will decide if there's enough evidence to move ahead with a trial.
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A team of independent investigators that has been on the hunt for the true identity of the Zodiac Killer claimed that the FBI secretly listed a suspect since 2016.

Thomas Colbert, an investigative journalist and a leader of the non-profit volunteer group Case Breakers, said an FBI whistleblower confirmed that Air Force veteran Gary Francis Poste was still listed as a suspect in FBI records.

The team of 40 ex-police officers, forensic experts, federal agents and private investigators has also accused government agencies of mishandling the case. They had claimed in 2021 to have finally unmasked the notorious serious killer and asserted that it was Poste.

The identity of the serial killer has been the source of numerous speculations for nearly half a century, ever since the murderer terrorised Californias San Francisco Bay Area before disappearing without a trace.

Mr Colbert said in a press release that the Air Force veteran has been secretly listed as the suspect in the case since 2016, with his partial DNA stored at the FBIs Quantico, Virginia lab.

The felon has been secretly listed as the Zodiac suspect in headquarters computers since 2016  with his partial DNA safely secured at the feds Quantico, Virginia lab, the group said.

Poste died in 2018 and the FBI continued to reject the groups reports and conclusions, saying, as recently as October 2021, that the cold case remained open.

The group, however, claimed they have tied Poste to each Zodiac murder between 1968 and 1969.

They have also claimed there to be a sixth Zodiac victim, identified as Cheri Jo Bates from 1966. But the FBI has denied any connection to the serial killer.

A volunteer investigative group believes that Gary Poste may be the Zodiac Killer based on apparent scars on Postes forehead (The Case Breakers)

The group said law enforcement has ignored evidence and accused them of mishandling the case.

Like cops, federal agents are dealing with huge caseloads, constant training, odd rules and bureaucracy, said the Case Breakerss whistleblower in a statement.

But when someone wearing a badge or uniform works with others to avoid or hide materials, sidestep difficult procedures, or lie about evidence, theyre hurting our volunteers and the thousands of families waiting for answers.

They said law enforcement agencies ignored state laws by succumbing to apathy, egos and fear of humiliation, reported Fox News.

The purported Zodiac Killer sent letters to the San Francisco Chronicle (AP)

Mr Colbert said the families of the victims deserve an answer.

Sadly, the team has documented over two dozen examples of law enforcement unprofessionalism in the field, the release said.

From 1968-69, at least five people died at the hands of an unknown serial killer in the San Francisco Bay Area. The murderer taunted police with coded messages, calling himself (or herself) the Zodiac.

The murders were never solved and have been the subject of several films and documentaries, including David Finchers 2007 film Zodiac.

Before Poste died, the group said he began giving away his collection of guns and ammunition to people in his town. The Case Breakers said they have now gathered it all up with the help of some useful tips.
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A group of hikers stranded in Southern California used the iPhones Emergency SOS feature to alert responders to their location, according to police.

The Ventura County Sheriffs Office was alerted to the missing group of 10 around 8pm on Friday evening.

Family members also contacted the police when the group failed to show up at the trailhead where the group embarked towards the Last Chance area of the Los Padres National Forests Santa Paula Canyon.

These hikers were able to contact Ventura County Sheriffs Dispatch through the Apple Emergency SOS feature and provided valuable information such as a possible location and if immediate medical aid was needed, police wrote in a press release.

A team of volunteers from the Upper Ojai Search and Rescue unit hiked four miles at night in treacherous, low-visibility conditions and made contact with the missing hikers around 11.15pm.

Most of the hikers were not prepared for the hike and were provided with food, drinking water and lighting equipment as they were led out to the Santa Paula Canyon Trailhead, police wrote.

The party was returned to safety by 2.40am the following day.

None were injured or required medical attention.

In 2022, Apple debuted a version of the Emergency SOS feature that allows customers to use satellite connectivity to reach authorities even if they dont have mobile reception.

Emergency SOS can be activated by holding the side button and one of the volume buttons on an iPhone.
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Speaking from her hospital bed  missing hair, skin, ears and fingers after suffering burns to more than 90 per cent of her body  Judy Malinowski raises a deformed right hand and stares down a video camera. The word frail doesnt even come close to describing the appearance of the young mother. Its hard to believe she is even alive.

Judys voice is steely, belying an unfathomable strength and determination from a body on the verge of giving up. The arson victim is talking through the live feed to her lawyer and then to the attorney representing Michael Slager, the boyfriend whod tried to kill her.

Within months of giving the deposition, Judy would be dead. Those videotaped conversations would prompt a historic development within the Ohio court system  allowing a murder victim to testify at their own trial.

Thats exactly what Judy did, as she personally addressed the judge and jurors from the grave. Slager was sentenced to life without parole.

The tragic case is chronicled in The Fire That Took Her, a documentary that will be released on Paramount+ on 23 May.

New documentary The Fire That Took Her opened for limited theatrical release on 21 October and will be available to stream in 2023

Judy not only made history with her posthumous testimony. Her story and advocacy also helped push through a state law that adds up to six years to sentences for offenders who attack and disfigure victims with accelerants such as gasoline.

Legislators unanimously passed Judys Law and it was signed by the governor, Judys two daughters at his side, the same week as her funeral.

This woman contributed to American legal precedent, director Patricia Gillespie, who first read about the story in a newspaper piece that didnt even make the front page, tells The Independent. Its a wild story. Everybody should know about this woman.

Judy grew up in suburban Ohio, where she doted on her sister and brother and enjoyed a happy childhood, even winning beauty pageants and being crowned homecoming queen. Her idyllic life was thrown into chaos, however, when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer as a young adult; she beat it once but was told in 2006 that the cancer had returned.

Doctors performed a full hysterectomy on Judy, but she became addicted to opiates during recovery at a time when the drug epidemic was exploding across the United States. When Judys insurance ran out and she could no longer access prescriptions, she turned to the streets for heroin. Judy herself says this in the documentary, which utilises video footage filmed by family and detectives.

Relatives helped care for Judys two young daughters as she worked thorugh her addiction and tried to get back on her feet; she seemed to be making great progress until she began dating Michael Slager.

The documentary says that Slager contacted Judy on social media, and the pair became inseparable from their first date onwards. Unbeknownst to her family, neck-tattooed Slager had a lengthy record with offenses ranging from theft and stalking to child endangerment and domestic assault.

Judys mother, sister and daughters recall Judys spirit in the documentary, still heartbroken at the horrific manner in which Slager cut her life short (MTV Documentary Films)

During her relationship with Slager, Judy fell back into addiction. He would buy her drugs, according to the film, despite not using them himself. It created a toxic cycle leaving her controlled by and dependent upon him. The pair fought often; it was one of those fights, while Judy was on her way back to rehab in 2015, that would ultimately turn deadly.

During the altercation by a gas station on 2 August of that year, Judy threw a soda at Slager; he responded by dousing her with gasoline. Surveillance footage from an ATM across the street shows Slager head back to his black truck, only to return in half a minute with a lighter.

Seconds later, Judys entire body was engulfed in flames as Slager looked on.

A frantic 911 caller alerted authorities. Slager began attempting to pass off the attack as an accident. Judy was whisked to the hospital, where she was not expected to survive.

In the burn world, we have an equation for mortality, which is based on the patients age, and percent burn, Stacy Best, one of Judys nurses, says in The Fire That Took Her. And in Judys case, she was 31 at the time of the burn, I believe, and approximately 80-plus percent burnt. So that made her like 110 percent mortality.

As Judy fought for her life, detectives were investigating what had really happened outside that gas station. It was the ATM surveillance footage - in addition to eyewitness statements - that almost immediately tore to shreds Slagers account.

It looked like a movie scene, Lead Detective Chad Cohagen says in the film, adding that the footage was clearly showing that they were arguing, and then Michael dumped gas over her. So we knew right away that Michaels story ... he had lied to us. For me, that scene has played out in dreams more times than I can count.

As determined authorities worked on building a case, Judy lay in a coma for months, her life hanging by a thread.

Mother-of-two Judy Malinowski was just 31 when her then-boyfriend, Michael Slager, set her alight in 2015; she died two years later from her severe injuries (MTV Documentary Films)

I could probably prosecute prosecute for another 20 years and not get a case that is so right for the death penalty, Assistant Prosector Warren Edwards says in The Fire That Took Her. And really, for the first several months of this case, we were we were playing the delay game. It sounds terrible, but we were basically waiting for Judy to die so that we could charge Mr Slager with the homicide. And we got a call one day that she was awake, which is a call I never expected to get.

The prosecutor said that it was the first homicide case Ive handled where I got to meet the victim.

Judys explanation of her attack is chilling as she strains to speak after miraculously emerging from her coma.

I dont think words can describe what it feels like to have your whole body set on fire, she says in the film. I thought for sure I was dying. I just prayed to Jesus to please forgive me for my sins and to take care of my children, and that was it. I blacked out. I dont remember anything until I woke up in the hospital.

Mr Cohagen recalls how he had never seen trauma like that to a human body that wasnt deceased.

I remember leaning in to talk to her, and she doesnt have any ears to hear, he says in the film. So I dont even know if she can hear me.

Judy would undergo more than 50 surgeries, code seven times and suffer excuciating procedures and skin grafts, many of them failed.

Slager, meanwhile, was charged with aggravated arson and felonious assault. He pleaded no contest when the possibility was raised of Judy testifiying via video link, which would unquestionably make jurors hate him, his lawyer says he told his client in the film.

The judge sentenced Slager to the maximum penalty allowed under the law - 11 years - and lamented that she could not keep him behind bars for longer.

Against all odds, Judy survived for 23 months after her attack, underwent more than 50 surgeries and coded at least seven times

You really do seem like one of those people that have no soul, and you need to be incarcerated, she told Slager in court. Thats all I have to say.

Judy and her family were heartbroken at the light sentence. Despite constant pain, she fought for Ohio state law to change to increase sentences for attackers who leave their victims permanently disfigured.

There was this part of her that wanted to make it and to live to fight for every other woman that had been through something like that, her sister, Danielle Gorman, says in the documentary. She definitely wanted the law to change. And she was willing to do whatever she needed to do to help change the law.

Her nurse, still clearly incredulous at Judys strength, says it was a miracle that she survived with her spirit intact and her will to help other people intact.

Judy, in support of the legislation, talks in the film about how the arson attack destroyed my life, my familys life, my kids lives ... the laws of justice are not fair.

With her help from her hospital bed, the measure passed and was signed into law just months after Judy passed away.

Before that, prosecutors who were just as irate as Judy about Slagers paltry sentence approached her about recording testimony for her own inevitable murder trial. It had never been done before, and they had to argue using similar cases, though not homicides, where victim depositions had been utilized.

Franklin County District Attorney Ron OBrien, speaking in the film, says he considered it a stroke of genius to come up with the idea of taking a deposition where she could testify from the grave at a subsequent homicide trial.

Judys condition was deteriorating nearly 18 months after her attack, but her pain medication would have to be significantly reduced to ensure her lucidity during testimony.

Nonetheless, she agreed. The film is painful to watch as Judys body strains to allow her forceful, powerful deposition.

Michael Slager pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison after Judy died from injuries incurred when he set her on fire in August 2015. (MTV Documentary Films)

After she threw a drink at him during a fight, she says, Slager ran around to the other side of his truck, and he got these cans of gasoline that he kept in the back of his truck ... he ran around me and started pouring gasoline, started at my head and worked his way down. Some got in my throat as he did that. That burnt really bad.

Calling him evil, she explains how Slager backed away from me for about 30 seconds; I kept telling him to please help me and Stop and Ill get in the truck, Ill go with you ... and he pulled a lighter out of his pocket, and he started walking towards me.

i just remember crying and begging for help, and he lit me on fire, she says. And the look in his eyes ... his eyes went black, literally. After I was set on fire and he backed away, his eyes just turned black as I screamed for his help. And he did nothing.

When Slagers attorney cross-examines her, asking about her drug history and other details, Judy more than holds her own and, at times, even talks over him. She recounts how Slager got her re-hooked on heroin, bought her the drugs and had previously threatened her life.

I called the police and told them Michael was going to kill me and I needed help, but the detective did nothing about it - so here I am, she says, before adding: You have to understand, on August 2nd, I was set on fire, thrown on the ground and burnt, 95 percent of my body. Its really hard for me to try to keep track of everything that happened in this horrible relationship.

Years before her attack, Judy - beloved daughter, sister and friend - was crowned homecoming queen at her Ohio school (Facebook)

Judy gave her deposition in early 2017; less than five months later, on 27 June, she passed away. Slager was subsequently charged with murder and her testimony admitted into the trial.

In July 2018, Slager pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison; Judy made clear that she did not want him to receive the death penalty, hoping he would find religion while in prison, according to the film.

Her obituary praises her courageous and miraculous 23 month battle for her life, outlining how Judys case inspired the change of legislation to extend sentences of criminals of felonious assault who have disfigured their victims ... She was pivotal in the passage of this law by enduring excruciating pain to be able to testify in her own case.

In spite of her extreme pain, her beautiful smile shined through her permanent scars, her disfigurement and her tears, her obituary reads.

Thats the Judy who Ms Gillespie came to know while working on The Fire That Took Her.

I didnt have the privilege of meeting Judy in real life, she tells The Independent. But the absence that she created in the lives of these people that Ive come to care about very deeply shows a tremendous amount of love, and humour, and grit - and somebody who was really ready to get her life together ... and it was cut short, because we havent figured out a way to handle these cracks in the system that she slipped through, right?

We havent figured out a way to handle the medical industrial complex and Big Pharma. We havent figured out a way to handle addiction, we havent figured out a way to, most importantly, handle domestic abusers, repeat offenders and to sentence these people properly when they do commit these crimes.

She says she feels that, in some ways, Judy is representative of a lot of us, or a role model or a figurehead for a lot of us, or women who survived domestic abuse.

She could have really been easily cast in this archetypical role of a victim, which in American society tends to be very passive, to attract a lot of pity, said Ms Gillespie. And instead of playing that role out, she completely subverted that idea and became a hero.
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A digital traffic sign in Orlando broadcast an anti-gay message of hate on Wednesday morning. The Orlando Police Department is investigating.

The sign, which was located at the intersection of Lake Nona Boulevard and Nemours Parkway to the southeast of the citys airport, read KILL ALL GAYS and was reported to Orlando police shortly before 4 am.

The Orlando Sentinel reported that police believe the sign was tampered with.

In a statement, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said that LGBTQ+ residents and respected and valued in the city and that the city wont be deterred in our efforts to ensure that our city is inclusive for all.

Hate has no place in Orlando and this disgusting display is not who we are as a community, Mr Dyer said.

Orlando was the site of the deadliest attack against LGBTQ+ people in US history in 2016 when a 29-year-old man killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in mass shooting at the gay nightclub Pulse. The attack, which traumatised the city, remains the second-deadliest mass shooting in US history.

More recently, the state of Florida as a whole has targeted members of the LGBTQ+ community with a range of laws banning gender-affirming medical care for minors and forbidding discussions of gender and sexuality in some public school classrooms.

The situation has intensified to the point that the LGBTQ+ civil rights group Equality Florida last month issued a travel advisory for LGBTQ+ travellers warning them about the risks of visiting the state.

According to an Equality Florida press release, the decision to issue the advisory came in response to a wave of safety inquiries Equality Florida has received following the passage of laws that are hostile to the LGBTQ community, restrict access to reproductive health care, repeal gun safety laws, foment racial prejudice, and attack public education by banning books and censoring curriculum.

Orlando police have requested that anyone with knowledge about the sign incident contact them.
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A Staten Island man has sued Rudy Giuliani over a June 2022 incident in which the grocery store worker was arrested for patting the former New York City mayor on the back unexpectedly.

Former ShopRite employee Daniel Gill is seeking $2m from Mr Giuliani, claiming the Trump confidante conspired with police, causing him to lose his job and be falsely imprisoned.

Rudy Giulianis lies have caused incalculable damage to this country, but his lies about Daniel Gill should cost him about $2 million, his attorney Ron Kuby told The New York Daily News.

And the Staten Island police went along with it. ... They made sure that Gill spent at least a night in jail. The cops should be careful who they do favours for while wearing body cameras.

Mr Gill was arrested and held in jail for more than a day after he touched Mr Giuliani on the back with an open hand and said, Whats up, scumbag? according to surveillance footage.

After the encounter, Mr Giuliani claimed he was hit so hard it felt like being shot or hit in the back with a boulder.

Mr Gill was initially charged with assaulting an elderly person, though prosecutors later dropped the case.

New York City mayor Eric Adams criticised Mr Giuliani following the incident.

Someone needs to remind former mayor Giuliani that falsely reporting a crime is a crime, Mr Adams said last June.

When you look at the video, the guy basically walked by and patted him on the back, he added. It was clear that he was not punched in the head. It was clear that it didnt feel like a bullet. It was clear that he wasnt about to fall to the ground.

A spokesperson for Mr Giuliani told the Daily News the suit from Mr Gill was meritless

Earlier this week, Giuliani was sued by former employee Noelle Dunphy for $10m, alleging the former New York mayor stole her wages and sexually assaulted her while they worked together.

Ms Dunphy alleges she was forced to give Mr Giuliani oral sex while he was on the phone with high-profile figures like Donald Trump.

Ted Goodman, a spokesperson and adviser to Mr Giuliani, told The Independent in an email that the former New York mayor unequivocally denies the allegations in the lawsuit.

Mayor Rudy Giuliani unequivocally denies the allegations raised by Ms Dunphy, he said.

Mayor Giulianis lifetime of public service speaks for itself and he will pursue all available remedies and counterclaims.
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Top regulators testified before the US Senate on Thursday, 18 May, on bank failures following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank earlier this year.

Those giving evidence to the Senate Banking Committee included Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision at Federal Reserve and Chair of Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) and Martin Gruenberg, chairman of the FDIC board of directors.

The testimonies come in the same week that SVB and Signature Bank executives were questioned by both Senate and House committees on the failings of the banks.

A bank run - where large numbers of customers withdraw their money over fears about a banks solvency - forced US regulators to take over SVB in March 2023.

This came just before the collapse of Signature Bank.

Earlier this week, executives were questioned on the events leading up to the banks closure.

On Thursday, the activities and decisions of federal and state regulators will be examined.

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A local television anchor in Knoxville, Tennessee, was fired allegedly for refusing to change her naturally curly hair.

Tabitha Bartoe, who was working as a weekend morning weather anchor for WATE, told Knox News that on the third day of her job her bosses pulled her away from training for a hair appointment and shopping spree to find new clothes.

After months of being criticised for her appearance, mostly because of her naturally curly hair, Bartoe said she was let go on 9 May because her style didnt align with company policy.

It doesnt even sound real, Bartoe told Knox News.

The whole thing just sounds like a joke. And I wish it was.

She said initially she thought that the company was only trying to help her in image building.

It wasnt necessarily a problem in the beginning because I was just assuming that they were just trying to help me and trying to build my professional image, Bartoe said.

I was willing to take advantage of it, but I think it was right away when they asked me if I was willing to ever get my hair relaxed.

Or, If you straighten your hair, the curl will fall out over time; thats what were looking for.

Thats just not what I was looking for.... Id like to have my natural hair.

Later, she also shared her story in a post on social media.

Everyone is beautiful and professional in their own ways, she wrote.

No matter if you have curly hair, or youre not a size two, but a size 12.

Women in the media have been subjected to sexist and often stereotypical beauty standards.

Last year, Canadian television journalist Lisa LaFlamme was allegedly fired after she stopped dyeing her hair and let her natural gray show.

In 2019, Brittany Noble-Jones, a news anchor in Mississippi, was let go after a supervisor complained about her natural hair.

The Independent has reached out to WATE for a comment.
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Rep Jamaal Bowman accused Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene of using a racial bullhorn when she characterised him as threatening during a confrontation on the steps of the US Capitol.

The two had a heated exchange on Wednesday after the House voted to refer the expulsion of Representative George Santos to the House Ethics Committee.

At a press conference on Thursday, Ms Greene criticised the New York Democrat, an outspoken progressive, for calling her a white supremacist.

That is like calling a person of colour the n-word, she said. Jamaal Bowman was down there cursing at me, telling me to get the eff out of there, right outside the vehicle I was sitting in.

Mr Bowman had confronted Ms Greene following the vote to refer the expulsion of the embattled New York Republican representative to the House Ethics Committee rather than subject his expulsion to a full vote on the House floor.

What is on video is Jamaal Bowman shouting at the top of his lungs, cursing, she said. Calling me a white supremacist, which I take great offence to. That is like calling a person of colour the N-word.

Ms Greene accused Mr Bowman of leading the mob right outside a vehicle as she was prepared to leave the Capitol. She then noted that he confronted her after the vote.

His physical mannerisms are aggressive, she said, criticising his recent interaction with Rep Thomas Massie (R - Kentucky) and accusing him of shoving Mr Massie when discussing gun violence. I am concerned. I feel threatened by him.

But Mr Bowman called Ms Greenes words incredibly dangerous and incredibly reckless.

Unfortunately, this country has a history of characterising Black men who are outspoken, who stand their ground and who push back as being threatening or intimidating, he told reporters on Capitol Hill. So shes not even using a dog whistle. Shes using a bullhorn to put a target on my back to the people she refers to as MAGA people out there who might want to cause harm.

The Daily Beasts Ursula Perano filmed the interaction as Mr Bowman admonished Ms Greene, who has promoted conspiracies such as QAnon, to fix the Republican Party.

Eventually, Mr Bowmans friend Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D - New York) stepped in to tell him of Ms Greene: She aint worth it, bro.

During their back and forth, Mr Bowman told Ms Greene of Mr Santos: Expel him. Save the party. The party is hanging by a thread.

But Ms Greene deflected, saying: We got to get rid of Biden to save the country, before she tried to start a chant of impeach Biden.

Mr Bowman then said Ms Greene needed to stop promoting conspiracy theories.

No more QAnon, he said, to which Ms Greene replied: No more CNN.

No more debt ceiling nonsense, he said. Come on, now. Save the party.

Mr Bowman also called on Ms Greene to do something about guns.

So close the border, Ms Greene, which led Mr Bowman to scoff.

The border is where Trump left it, he said.

Mr Bowman ultimately moved on following the advice of Ms Ocasio-Cortez.

The confrontation came after Mr Bowman and Ms Ocasio-Cortez heckled Mr Santos outside of the Capitol building, imploring him to resign as he spoke to reporters.

Last week, Mr Santos was indicted on 13 counts of criminal charges related to wire fraud, money laundering, making false statements to the House of Representatives and theft of public funds.

The charges come months after it was revealed that Mr Santos lied on his resume before being elected to represent New Yorks 3rd district.

Democrats have been pushing for Mr Santos to resign, citing ethical concerns- including Mr Bowman and Ms Ocasio-Cortez.
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Irans president warned Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Thursday not to violate water rights of the Iranian people over their shared Helmand River, the state-run IRNA news agency reported..

President Ebrahim Raisi said his government is determined to defend Iran's water rights.

We will not allow the rights of our people to be violated," he said and warned the Taliban to take his words seriously, emphasizing the importance of Helmand River, which flows from Afghanistan into Iran .

Raisi spoke in a Pakistani border town on Thursday, during his first official visit to the neighboring country in 10 years, to inaugurate the first of six markets along the Iran-Pakistan border.

He also urged the Afghan Taliban to allow Iranian hydrologists to check the water levels of the river, which originates in the Afghan Hindu Kush mountain range.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 after the United Sates and NATO pulled out of the country following two decades of war.

Iranian officials have always stressed the importance of the implementation of the 1973 Helmand River treaty between Iran and Afghanistan, which envisions shared water resources.

Drought has been a problem in Iran for some 30 years, but has worsened over the past decade, according to the U.N.s Food and Agriculture Organization. The Iran Meteorological Organization says that an estimated 97% of the country now faces some level of drought.
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Veteran correspondent Christiane Amanpour became the first CNN journalist to publicly criticize her network for airing last week's town hall with former President Donald Trump.

Amanpour told a group of graduating students at Columbia University's graduate school of journalism on Wednesday that she would have dropped the mic at nasty person, a reference to when Trump lobbed that insult at moderator Kaitlan Collins.

CNN was criticized for hosting Trump at a live event in New Hampshire, where the 2024 presidential candidate repeated lies about the last election before a mostly adoring audience. CNN Chairman Chris Licht has defended the town hall as newsworthy and important, and Amanpour said she had a robust discussion with him about it.

Everyone knows Trump tries to seize the stage and dominate at such events, said Amanpour, the chief international correspondent who has worked at CNN for 40 years.

No matter how much flak the moderator tries to aim at the incoming, it doesn't work, she said.

Perhaps today's journalism leaders should learn from those in the 1950s, who refused to give Sen. Joseph McCarthy attention unless his foul lies, his witch hunts and his rants reached the basic level for evidence allowed in a courtroom, she said.

Maybe less is more, she said. Maybe live is not always right.

Amanpour criticized the town hall's audience, chosen by CNN because they were Republicans or independents who plan to vote in the 2024 Republican primary.

Citing the precedents of past candidate debates or forums, CNN should have insisted that our invited guests behave themselves  no hooting, no hollering, no jeering, no cheering.

I can only hope that your trust in us might have been shaken but not shattered, that you believe that we can survive and rebuild that trust, she said.

A spokesman for Licht did not immediately return messages for comment. In an internal call with CNN staff members last week, Licht noted that people in the town hall audience represented a large swath of America.

The mistake the media made in the past is ignoring that those people exist, he said. Just like you cannot ignore that President Trump exists.
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Ron DeSantis is preparing to announce his official campaign for 2024 president today, after months of anticipation.

The Florida governor will unveil his bid on Wednesday night via a Twitter Spaces conversation with Elon Musk, moderated by David Sacks.

Mr DeSantis, 44, was first considered a potential candidate for the GOP presidential nomination in 2021 when he emerged from the pandemic as a hard-line Republican.

But after the midterm elections in November, when Mr DeSantis was re-elected Governor of Florida by a nearly 20 per cent margin, he began to be considered a possible frontrunner.

For months, the Florida governor kept coy about his possible presidential bid, giving vague answers to the press and re-directing attention to his current actions in Florida.

But that didnt stop the public and media from assuming Mr DeSantis is running.

What steps will DeSantis have to take to run?

Like every other candidate, Mr DeSantis will have to file as an official candidate with the FEC upon announcing his campaign for president.

But thanks to a bill passed by the GOP-majority Florida legislature this year, Mr DeSantis will be able to run for US president while remaining governor of Florida.

In the past, Florida required an officeholder to give up their seat to run for another public office position- commonly referred to as a resign-to-run law.

The bill, SB 7050, includes an exemption of the resign-to-run law specific to officeholders running for president or vice president of the United States.

When will DeSantis announce his campaign?

On Wednesday (24 May) Mr DeSantis is reportedly going to announce his campaign for president via Twitter Spaces.

Mr DeSantis will join Twitter owner Elon Musk on the social media platforms audio chat feature around 6pm EST for a conversation moderated by David Sacks.

Both Mr Musk and Mr Sacks have expressed support for Mr DeSantis.

According to a report from NBC News, Mr DeSantis will launch an official campaign video Wednesday evening after the interview with Mr Musk.

The Florida Governor then plans to visit early states after Memorial Day.

A report from The Wall Street Journal said that Mr DeSantis plans to file paperwork with the FEC by Thursday (25 May).

According to the report, Mr DeSantis will meet with donors between Wednesday and Friday at an event in Miami, Florida.

How has DeSantis unofficially campaigned?

A major precursor for Mr DeSantis presidential campaign has been the national book tour he embarked on this year.

Mr DeSantis has traveled around the country, meeting supporters and promoting his memoir The Courage to Be Free: Floridas Blueprint for Americas Revival.

At each stop, Mr DeSantis has promoted the values he sees important for the future of the US - promoting individual freedoms, advocating for law enforcement and criticising wokeism.

Mr DeSantis has been strategic in each stop to touch on values important to those in the area. In New York and Chicago, Mr DeSantis made sure to emphasize he is tough on crime.

At Liberty University, Mr DeSantis oozed Christian values, to evangelical students.

In Georgia, Mr DeSantis stopped by a gun store to speak with supporters.

For many, it is clear Mr DeSantis is attempting to introduce himself to the nation via his book tour. But the battle between Mr DeSantis and Disney, as well as other missteps, have cast a dark cloud around the Florida governor.

What is DeSantis record in Florida?

As governor of Florida since 2018, Mr DeSantis, 44, has proven he holds a tight-fisted conservative agenda.

Famously, the Florida governor enacted the Parental Rights in Education Bill last year, dubbed the Dont Say Gay Bill. It prevents classroom discussion or instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten through third grade and has been subject to heavy criticism.

Mr DeSantis also signed bills, banning abortions after six weeks of gestation, lowering the threshold to impose the death penalty, prohibiting gender-affirming healthcare for minors and restricting it for adults and making it easier to obtain and carry a firearm.

But Mr DeSantis tough approach to removing progressive or liberal ideas has also caused him problems - especially with Disney.

The massive corporation and the Florida governor have been embroiled in a months-long struggle as Mr DeSantis has gone after Disney for criticising or refusing Floridas legislation.

In return, Disney has mocked Mr DeSantis, and more recently, threatened to pull investments out of the state.

What does polling show?

Polling shows Mr Trump ahead of Mr DeSantis by a considerable margin.

National polls show Mr Trump polling at approximately 53 per cent while Mr DeSantis is at approximately 20 per cent among Republican candidates.

But that margin between the two was smaller in March, according to FiveThirtyEight.

A Fox News poll reflects similar numbers with Mr Trump at 53 per cent and Mr DeSantis at 21 per cent, though both candidates numbers have dropped since March.

Another poll from RealClearPolitics shows Mr Trump ahead at approximately 56 per cent and Mr DeSantis at 19 per cent.

Mr DeSantis popularity has fluctuated over the last year, often reflecting controversial legislation. When the Florida Governor signed the Individual Freedom Bill and Parental Rights in Education Bill in March and April 2022, his unfavorability increased.

Who else is running?

If the reports about Mr DeSantis launch are true, he would be the seventh person to launch a campaign for Republican president.

So far, Mr Trump, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, conservative personality Larry Elder and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott have announced their bid for president.

On the Democratic side, President Joe Biden announced he would seek re-election, and two other candidates: lawyer and anti-vaccine activist Robert F Kennedy Jr and self-help author Marianne Williamson.
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Naysa Woomer, the communications director of embattled representative George Santos, resigned and accused him of failing to take even one point of professional advice".

With respect for my colleagues, the people of New York, and most importantly, myself, I am honoured to tender my resignation, Ms Woomer said in her resignation email, according to Scripps News.

"Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given."

Ms Woomer's resignation came after she was caught on tape bashing Mr Santos as "not a good person". "I actually hope he does [get kicked out of Congress], she was recorded saying by the OKeefe Media Group.

Hes not a good person, sorry, she continued.

Ms Woomer had previously worked for GOP Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker and representatives Ryan Costello, Thomas Massie, and Tim Huelskamp.

Her departure comes amid a string of negative developments for Mr Santos, who was indicted on 13 counts, including fraud and money laundering, last week by the Department of Justice.

Mr Santos on Wednesday narrowly survived Democrats move to expel him from Congress, with the Republicans voting largely along party lines, 221-204, to the ethics panel.

The freshman member of Congress has been charged with embezzling money from his campaign, falsely receiving unemployment funds, and lying about his finances.

He has denied the charges and has pleaded not guilty.

The Long Island representative has also been facing multiple calls for his resignation after admitting to a plethora of lies on his resume, starting from his high school to college and employment.

Representative Robert Garcia introduced a resolution in February to expel Mr Santos, something the House has only done twice in recent decades. He sought to force a vote on that resolution under a process that left three options for Republicans: a vote on the resolution, a move to table, or a referral to committee.

House speaker Kevin McCarthy chose the third option, much to the chagrin of Democrats who described it as a complete copout.

Mr Santos on Wednesday compared Congress to the film Mean Girls and compared himself to Cady Heron, the protagonist portrayed by Lindsay Lohan.

Mr Santos spoke on the Macrodosing podcast and was asked what Congress was like.

Have you ever watched Mean Girls? Mr Santos asked the interviewer. Thats Congress in a nutshell. There is a mean girl there.

I dont come from a political background, Mr Santos said, despite the fact he ran for Congress in 2020 and lost before he mounted his successful campaign in the Long Island district in 2022.
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Embattled Republican Representative George Santos compared Congress to the movie Mean Girls as he faces multiple federal charges and a potential expulsion vote in the House of Representatives.

Mr Santos spoke on the Macrodosing podcast and was asked what Congress was like.

Have you ever watched Mean Girls? Mr Santos asked the interviewer. Thats Congress in a nutshell. There is a mean girl there.

Mr Santos compared himself to Cady Heron, the main protagonist in the movie portrayed by Lindsay Lohan.

I dont come from a political background, Mr Santos said, despite the fact he ran for Congress in 2020 and lost before he mounted his successful campaign in the Long Island district in 2022.

Since then, multiple news outlets reported stories about the fact Mr Santos fabricated numerous aspects of his career, from his claim that he worked for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, to his falsehood about being of Jewish heritage, to his running a fake charity.

Last week, the Justice Department announced 13 criminal charges against Mr Santos, leading to Mr Santos turning himself in and facing arrest. Specifically, the DOJ charged him with unemployment fraud and making false statements to Congress. He has since faced calls to resign even among New York Republicans and members of the House Republican Conference.

Representative Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California, filed a resolution to force an expulsion vote for Mr Santos, though it is unlikely to pass, given an expulsion requires two-thirds of the House to pass. Republicans hold a narrow majority in the House, which means they need all the GOP support they can get.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy called on the House Ethics Committee to take up the expulsion resolution and has said he would not support Mr Santos for re-election despite previously saying he would stand by the freshman Republican.

You got to have a process, Mr McCarthy said in a news conference. So I'm going to ask that Ethics look at this.
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A hearing of the House Judiciary Committee descended into chaos on Thursday morning when Ohio representative and chair Jim Jordan asserted that the Republicans on the committee do not have to turn over key evidence to their Democratic colleagues because it came from a whistleblower.

Mr Jordan convened the committee on Thursday for a hearing on the weaponisation of government, calling witnesses to testify to alleged biases in federal law enforcement agencies such as the FBI.

Shortly after the hearing began, however, Democrats began raising an issue: Mr Jordans refusal to turn over evidence, including witness testimony, to the Democrat members of the committee.

Rep Stacey Plaskett, a delegate from the US Virgin Islands, asked Mr Jordan whether he would turn over the testimony regarding the Republicans conversation with a witness. Mr Jordan said no, arguing that the witness is a whistleblower.

Right now, youre not getting the testimony, Mr Jordan responded.

His refusal to turn over testimony to the minority party, a highly unusual practice for a committee hearing, continued to rankle Democrats.

I find it incredible that evidence that one side has garnered is not going to be shared with the other side, Rep Linda Sanchez of California said. Thats not how committees work.

Ms Sanchez went on to argue that the hearing as a whole was a vehicle to legitimise the events of January 6 and the people who legitimised it as former President Donald Trump makes another run for office.

Rep Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida then argued that Mr Jordan was violating committee rules by refusing to turn over evidence.

Its my understanding that the minority, in this committee, under the rules, is entitled to the same testimony, information, documents that the majority is titled to, Ms Wasserman Schultz said. Im not aware that youre able to withhold information from the minority that we would need to use to prepare.

Mr Jordan again argued that there are different rules concerning whistleblower evidence.

When it comes to whistleblowers, youre not, Mr Jordan said. When it comes to whistleblowers, you are not.

The hearing then descended into chaos, with several members speaking over each other and Mr Jordan growing animated  particularly at Ms Wasserman Schultzs observation that the witnesses in question have not been legally classified as whistleblowers at all.

These are not whistleblowers, Ms Wasserman Schultz said. Theyve been determined by the agency not to be whistleblowers. Are you deciding that theyre whistleblowers?

Mr Jordan then accused Ms Wasserman Schultz of not listening to witness testimony as the hearing eventually continued in a contentious fashion.
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A massive accounting error by the US Defense Department could allow an extra $3bn in American-made weapons to be delivered to Ukraines defence forces in the coming months.

Two senior American officials told Reuters on Thursday that the Pentagon had overestimated the value of ammunition, missiles and other military materiel that has already been sent to Kyiv, leaving a $3bn deficit between what was believed to have been delivered and what was actually delivered to arm Ukrainian forces in their fight against Russian invaders.

Weve discovered inconsistencies in how we value the equipment that weve given, said one of the officials, who added that Congress will soon be officially notified of the bookkeeping screw-up.

One defence official also said its still possible that the amount by which the US has overvalued the aid packages it has already delivered could grow beyond the current $3bn estimate.

The Pentagon officials who spoke to Reuters said the overvaluation was introduced into the process for assigning values to weapons being shipped to Ukraine when the Defense Department erroneously calculated totals using the estimated cost to replace the weapons that were being provided from existing US stockpiles.

Instead, the Pentagon should have assigned monetary values based on the original cost of the weapons, minus value subtracted to account for depreciation in the years between the original purchase date and when they were taken out of the US inventory to be sent to Ukraine.

The updated  and presumably lower  value of the defence aid packages that have already been provided to the Ukrainian government could give the Biden administration more time before it must ask Congress to authorise additional aid for Kyiv.

To date, the Ukrainian government has benefited from approximately $21bn in American defence aid, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers, Javelin anti-tank weapons and two Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries.
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Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said theres something delicious about far-right members of Congress positioning themselves against corporations that promote diversity or progressive ideas as he believes it unites most Americans who are on the other side of the fence.

Despite what seems like an increasingly polarised political environment, Mr Buttigieg expressed hope about common ground in America, in part thanks to the GOP, while speaking with Wired.

Over the last few years, several notable right-wing members of Congress have blasted companies like Bud Light, Disney, Coca-Cola and American Express for promoting inclusivity.

Speaking specifically to the Coca-Cola Company being called woke for protesting voter suppression laws in Georgia, Mr Buttigieg said, Theres something delicious about the way that [Senator Ted Cruz] and the rest of them have positioned themselves on one side of the fence.

And Netflix, Coca-Cola, Disney and Bud Light are on the other side. Along with most of America, Mr Buttigieg added.

Recently, anti-transgender people called for a boycott against Anheuser-Busch, the parent company of Bud Light, after they included a transgender woman in their advertising.

Over the last year, Disney has been targeted by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for openly criticising his legislation suppressing LGBTQ+ rights in the state.

But many have publicly mocked Mr DeSantis for going after the massive corporation due to their conflicting beliefs.

Mr Buttigieg seemingly pointed to the backlash, similar to the kind Mr DeSantis is facing, as an example of many Americans advocating for progressive ideas.

There may in fact be a center of gravity in this country that includes both a Democratic majority of the American people, and even something of a consensus, at least among mainstream business leaders, Mr Buttigieg said.

We have certain commitments around democracy and inclusion that are really elemental to the whole system, he added.

In the interview, Mr Buttigieg said that while the two goals of the mainstream right were to prevent legal access to abortion and to sustain lower taxes for the wealthy they had to make a lot of distasteful bargains to get there.

He cited coming after the US military as an example.

Sometimes the militarythe military, of all institutionscomes under attack from the far right. On ideological grounds. Yet another front in the culture war, Mr Buttigieg said.

You can only put yourself on the wrong side of so many red, white, and blue American institutions, and the question becomes, Is this about you?
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Donald Trumps 2024 campaign wasted no time in knocking Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over the news that Disney is cancelling a $1bn plan to expand its business in Florida.

The campaign for the former president to return to the White House sent out a fundraising email on 18 May after the news broke about the shelving of the planned relocation of some thousands of staff to the Orlando area.

Headlined: President Trump is always right, the email included a Truth Social post from Mr Trump dated 18 April.

The post reads: DeSanctus is being absolutely destroyed by Disney. His original P.R. plan fizzled, so now hes going back with a new one in order to save face. Disneys next move will be the announcement that no more money will be invested in Florida because of the Governor.

He continues: In fact, they could even announce a slow withdrawal or sale of certain properties, or the whole thing. Watch! That would be a killer. In the meantime, this is all so unnecessary, a political STUNT! Ron should work on the squatter MESS!

Walt Disney has pulled the plug on a $1bn office complex in central Florida, following a warning from Disney leadership that billions of dollars in projects were on the line after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis escalated his feud with the company.

The development scheduled for construction in the Orlando area was set to bring 2,000 jobs to the region, with 1,000 employees expected to be relocated from southern California.

In an email to employees on 18 May, Disneys theme park and consumer products chair Josh DAmaro pointed to changing business conditions for the cancellation of the 60-acre Lake Nona Town Center project, according to The New York Times, which first reported the move.

I remain optimistic about the direction of our Walt Disney World business, he added, noting that the company has still planned $17bn in projects over the next decade at its Disney World campus. I hope were able to, he said.

For years, Florida legislators and the governors office enjoyed a close relationship with the states largest taxpayers, among the states largest employers, which has wielded enormous political influence while bringing in billions of dollars to the state each year.

Now, the company and DeSantis allies are suing one another, following a year-long feud over opposition to what opponents have called Floridas Dont Say Gay law that boiled over into political and legal battles that could shape the companys business in the state.

Moments after a board appointed by Mr DeSantis voted to strip the companys control of its Florida park, Disney filed a federal lawsuit against the governor and state officials alleging a targeted campaign of government retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint.

The lawsuit follows the governors state takeover of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, now the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, made up of conservative activists and DeSantis loyalists, a move that followed Florida Republicans punitive measures against the company after its public opposition to the Dont Say Gay law.

Days later, the board voted to sue Disney in state court.

In March, Disney slammed the governors anti-business approach to the company, which Mr DeSantis has accused of advancing a woke agenda while his administration targets LGBT+ people and their families with sweeping laws to control public school education, healthcare access and speech.

The governor dissolved a decades-old municipal district that allowed Disney to control its own land use, zoning rules and public services, without putting a tax burden on Florida residents. In effect, Disney taxed itself to foot the districts bill for its municipal needs.

Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not? Disney CEO Bob Iger said on a conference call with analysts last week.

A statement from Disney said the company has decided to pull out of the new campus construction given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions.

Governor DeSantiss office said in a statement: Disney announced the possibility of a Lake Nona campus nearly two years ago. Nothing ever came of the project, and the state was unsure whether it would come to fruition.

Given the companys financial straits, falling market cap and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures.

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings released his own statement reading: It is unfortunate that Disney will not be moving forward with construction of the Lake Nona campus. However, these are the consequences when there isnt an inclusive and collaborative work environment between the state of Florida and the business community.

He concluded by saying: We will continue to work closely with our valued partners at Disney.
 Close Donald Trump Jr accidentally says his father has the charisma of a mortician in bungled attack video

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Prosecutors in Mr Trumps criminal case in Manhattan have shared a recording of the former president speaking to a witness with Mr Trumps legal team, according to CBS News.

The witness hasnt been identified, a document made public by the prosecutorial office on Friday stated.

The document is known as an automatic discovery form and outlines the charges that a defendant is facing and also provides an overview of the evidence gathered against Mr Trump thats set to be put forward at trial or at a preliminary hearing.

Meanwhile, as competition builds for the Republican Partys 2024 presidential nomination, Mr Trumps other legal woes continue to mount as a maintenance worker has made a shocking claim about the handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.

The worker recalled helping to move boxes into a storage room just one day before the Department of Justice visited Mar-a-Lago seeking the papers, reported The New York Times.

The worker didnt know what the boxes contained at the time.
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In recent days, social media has been flooded with videos of truck drivers claiming they are boycotting Florida after the states governor, Ron DeSantis, signed into law a strict immigration enforcement bill.

According to the social media posts, truckers across the United States had decided en masse to cease deliveries to the Sunshine State, citing the tough immigration policies. One TikToker who made a video about his own concerns about the law, sanchezmanuel33, told The Independent that he thought thousands of truckers were participating.

However, it does not appear that such a mass demonstration has been taking place as of yet.

The Florida Trucking Association, which lobbies on behalf of the states trucking industry at the Florida statehouse, was able to shed some light on the situation. The groups president told The Independent that she was aware of the TikTok videos but as of yet was not noticing any impacts on trucking businesses operating in the state.

Im aware of the reports, but have not heard of any issues, Alix Miller said.

Other news reports indicate that there were no shortages reported at grocery stores in the state as of yet. One immigrants rights advocate who spoke to a local Florida news outlet said that she had spoken to several local organisations about pulling together a possible boycott, but those plans had not materialised so far.

A series of TikTok videos quickly spread across left-leaning accounts on Twitter, boasting of a looming boycott. One TikTok video of a man recording a line of empty store shelves at a grocery store was viewed hundreds of thousands of times as evidence of shortages supposedly cropping up in the state.

Aiding the growing story was a series of TikToks from individual truckers making bold claims about how they themselves would participate in a boycott, circulated on Twitter by an independent journalist focused on the immigration beat. His thread has been viewed more than 3 million times.

Do not enter Florida. Lets support immigrants. What theyre doing in Florida is not okay. Im going to say it again, I wont enter Florida and neither will my truck. Lets not pretend like were not all immigrants here, one driver said in Spanish on TikTok.

Look at all the truck drivers here, there are long long lines. If we stand together and say F*** it, we are not going to Florida. Lets see who is going to bring (goods) to Florida? ... Theres more being imported to Florida than being exported. If we dont bring anything to Floridians, what are they going to do? Whats the governor going to do? another driver added.

Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also appeared to voice support for a trucker boycott.

Anti-immigrant policies reap what they sow. DeSantis Florida is about to find that out, she said on Twitter, adding, No mas. Time to stop biting the hands that feed.

The issue has even received media coverage: A local newspaper, the Tallahassee Democrat, covered the TikToks and explained the basics of the immigration law, adding that we dont know for sure that (drivers) are boycotting the state.

A review of various Publix locations  Floridas largest supermarket chain  across the state indicated no service disruptions or shortages, and there was no evidence on social media of any stores with empty shelves beyond the one TikTok filmed by a user named PJs Journey.

The Independent has contacted a number of grocery chains in the state and made multiple attempts to reach Publix for comment.
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Police in New Zealand arrested a man on Thursday in connection with a fire at a hostel in Wellington this week that killed at least six people.

Early on Tuesday morning, a blaze broke out on the top floor of the Loafers Lodge in the suburb of Newtown causing major structural damage that hampered efforts to get inside.

In a statement on Facebook, the Wellington Police said: Wellington Police have this afternoon arrested a man in relation to the fire at Loafers Lodge in Newtown on Monday night.

The man has been charged with two counts of arson and is scheduled to appear in Wellington District Court on Friday 19 May, 2023.

Police said that the investigation into the fire is ongoing and they have not ruled out further, more serious charges in relation to the deaths at the scene.

Acting Wellington district commander inspector Dion Bennett said police are not seeking anyone else in relation to the fire.

Police said that as the matter is before court, no further comment can be provided.

The suspect, who has not been named by the police, is due to make his first appearance at Wellington District Court on Friday.

Mr Bennett said to reporters that officials had removed the first two victims bodies from the Loafers Lodge hostel and said they plan to remove the next two on Friday.

More victims may be found as officers continue their scene examination.

The damage on the third floor is significant, he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

The debris is piled high and there is much for them to move and search underneath.

Fire and Emergency district manager Nick Pyatt described the blaze on Tuesday as a once-in-a-decade fire.

This is a once-in-a-decade fire for Wellington. Its the worst nightmare for us, he was quoted as saying by 7News.

While police are yet to reveal a cause behind the blaze authorities said that there was a couch fire at the Loafers Lodge hostel about two hours before the deadly blaze.

Police said that the couch fire was not reported to emergency services at the time and officers were investigating to see if there was any link between the two incidents.

Loafers Lodge offered 92 basic, affordable rooms with shared lounges, kitchens and laundry facilities to people of a wide range of ages.

Officers said on Wednesday that 92 people who were in the hostel had been accounted for and had a list of fewer than 20 who remained unaccounted for.

Officers earlier said they expected the final death toll to be fewer than 10.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said to reporters on Wednesday: I have asked the minister for housing to look particularly at issues around building regulations to see whether theres anything more that we should be doing right at this point.

(Additional reporting by agencies)
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Volodymyr Zelensky told Boris Johnson I hope this is not the last time we speak at the dawn of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to the former PMs comms chief.

Those were among the first words the pair shared during a 4am interaction on the night of the advance in February 2022, Guto Harri said, describing it as a man-to-man thing between the PM and the Ukrainian president.

Former GB News presenter Mr Harri told his Unprecedented podcast on Thursday that the two leaders were on the phone within minutes of Mr Johnson being woken to be told the news.

Are you ok? Do you have good people around you? Mr Johnson asked, according to Mr Harri.

Guto Harri gave the account on a podcast (Rex Features)

I'm fine. But you never know, when Russian Special Forces are moving in on your city. I just hope this isn't the last time we speak to each other Volodymyr replies,

And then the line went dead.

Mr Harri is giving his accounts of key events of the Johnson administration on the Global Radio-run podcast.

He describes Mr Zelensky as being breathless on the phone but described events as being harrowing and sobering.

We could not believe this was seriously underway, Mr Harri said. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

Boris [Johnson] could not have been clearer that we were there to help Ukraine in any way we possibly could, using whatever we possibly deploy within reason.

But at that moment in time, I think it was a man-to-man thing where he was basically imagining himself in that bunker in his own capital city with foreign troops advancing on that city and his life at risk.

Despite lurching from crisis to crisis on the home front in 2022, Mr Johnson kept good relations with Kyiv and made a surprise visit in January of this year  months after leaving No 10. Mr Zelensky was in London earlier this week to meet current PM Rishi Sunak.

At the point of uncertainty as to who should be the next Tory leader in the autumn of last year, the Ukraine government tweeted Better call Boris Johnson before deleting the message.

Mr Harri is releasing his accounts of a fascinating and turbulent period in British politics every Thursday with the latest episode called conflict, chaos and another c***.

He has received praise for his recollection of the phone call from Kyiv but one Twitter user wrote: Fascinating piece but I wish they were more reliable narrators for us to actually know.
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Just a year ago, the image of Johnny Depp smiling and waving atop the Palais steps at the Cannes Film Festival would have been unthinkable to most  including to Depp, himself.

When you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, then you find the basement to the bottom, Depp told The Associated Press the day after Jeanne du Barry," in which he stars as King Louis XV, opened Cannes.

This time last year, Depp was immersed in a libel trial he brought against Amber Heard, his ex-wife, based on a 2018 Washington Post op-ed piece in which she referred to herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse. A British court had ruled in 2020 that a tabloid labeling Depp a wife beater were substantially true. Soon after the ruling in the U.K., Hollywood had largely cut ties with Depp, jettisoning him from both the Fantastic Beasts and Pirates of the Caribbean franchises.

When it all went down, confusion is a good word. Befuddled. Because it does almost reach the Bugs Bunny experience, Depp says now. You say to yourself: Is this my life? What happened?

Some greeted Depps feting in Cannes with similar degrees of befuddlement.

A Virginia jury eventually ruled that Heard had defamed Depp on three counts and awarded him $15 million in damages. In a countersuit, Depp was found guilty of one charge of libel and Heard was awarded $2 million. Depp may have won in court, but public opinion remains divided on the actor who was once one of the most bankable stars in movies  with many supporters of abused women and the #MeToo movement wondering if sexual assault victims would be more reticent to come forward if they might be sued for defamation.

Outside the premiere of Jeanne du Barry in Cannes, fans grasped for autographs and signs read Viva Johnny! On social media, the reception was more fraught. Supporters of Heard rallied around the hashtag #CannesYouNot, arguing that Cannes  which has been criticized for welcoming men accused of misconduct  shouldn't have invited Depp.

If you support Cannes, you support predators, posted Eve Barlow, a journalist and friend of Heard. Heard herself hasn't commented on Depp's Cannes premiere.

Depp has seldom spoken in public since the trial, but he granted an interview with the AP on Wednesday after a day of interviews with mostly French media. (Depp remains very popular in France where he has sometimes lived and where the film industry is contending with its own #MeToo reckoning.) He was eager to cast his own battles in the light of Hollywood scandals of the past.

Never boring but unpleasant, curious years. Escapades. Rumors. Accusations, Depp said. I read far too much about Fatty Arbuckle but I didnt see any (Buster) Keaton coming my way to save my ass.

One of the things that kept going in my head was Hunter, he continued, invoking longtime mentor Hunter S. Thompson. I could hear his voice: Buy the ticket, take the ride.

I dont think Marlon would have survived, Depp said, referencing Brando. I dont think he came close to going through something like this. Had he been alive to watch this happen, he would have gone sideways. He would have killed somebody.

One thing thats been unclear was if Depp had any remorse for how the trial  a bitter and often theatrical legal battle played out in front of cameras  unfolded. Depp became a hero to some right-wing critics of so-called cancel culture. Asked if he had any misgivings about the supporters he attracted, Depp responded:

I did notice that people actually opened their mouths about it. At that time, that was brave.

Not for a moment will I regret anything unless Ive done something horrible to someone, which I havent, Depp added. Im not going to regret being taken down a strange road for that period of time because I learned so much more about myself.

Jeanne du Barry, directed by the French filmmaker and actor Maiwenn, is Depps first film in three years. Maiwenn stars as Jeanne Vaubernier, a working-class woman who becomes Louis XVs mistress. Depp speaks French in the film, which doesnt yet have U.S. distribution. Maiwenn, too, is a controversial figure. She recently admitted to assaulting prominent French journalist Edwy Plenel at a cafe, yanking his hair back and spitting in his face.

Its not the only business Depp has in Cannes. He's seeking financing for Modi, a biopic of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani that he hopes to shoot this fall, with Al Pacino attached. Depp, who will perform next week at a London tribute for the late Jeff Beck, a close friend, also recently renewed his contract with Dior in a $20 million deal.

I dont know the image of Johnny Depp in the U.S., Cannes director Thierry Fremaux said Monday. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned, we wouldnt be here talking about it.

And theres been plenty of conversation generated by Depps appearance in Cannes, even in reviews havent been good. Times Stephanie Zacharek called it less a comeback than a tepid lurching into a very small spotlight. But the overall reception has been warm. Depp, who said he lives 45 minutes away, was taken aback by the thrall.

I didnt know what planet I was on, he said, smiling.

Speaking to reporters in the festival press conference, Depp mocked the idea that he has many critics, likening anyone who protested his presence in Cannes to some species, some tower of mashed potatoes, covered in the light of a computer screen, anonymous, with apparently a lot of spare time.

Sitting on a terrace overlooking the Cannes Croisette later, Depp appeared relaxed and jovial, though his thoughts remained fixed on his legal battles with Heard.

Youre not powerless but youve been postponed, he said of how he felt before the trial. At that point, I just thought: F--- it. Ive been lucky. Ive been around for a long time. Ive made a lot of films. Thats, I suppose, my legacy. Alright. I can live with that. I didnt do anything wrong. But he said after years of swimming through that horrible molasses, he came out much stronger.

Depp said in the press conference that he has no further need for Hollywood. In the interview, he said he remains intent on making more films but outside the studio system. At the same time, Depp rejected that he was ever really a movie star in the first place.

Thats the last thing to call me, he said. For 20 years they never mentioned that until Pirates 1. Oh, hes a movie star now! We like him!

Many have portrayed Depps Cannes return as an attempt to win back moviegoers after a thoroughly revealing trial. Depp says hes not trying to convince anyone of anything. To him, theres no such thing as an unsullied movie star.

You mean peoples obsession that everybody must be Doris Day? Even Doris Day wasnt Doris Day. They have to know that, Depp said. And Rock Hudson certainly wasnt Rock Hudson. I can only try to offer that I feel like might be interesting or different.
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Police divers in Spain have begun searching a harbour for the body of missing X Factor star Levi Davis.

Mossos dEsquadra, the regional force in Catalonia, released a video of its officers searching the port of Barcelona  near to where Mr Davis vanished last October.

They are also combing the Llobregat Delta wetland zones near the Catalan capital for the former Bath Rugby player.

A spokesman for the Mossos dEsquadra said: A search is taking place for the man last seen on October 29 in Barcelona port and the Llobregat Delta. Its being conducted by the Mossos Maritime Police and the Aquatic Unit.

Its an underwater search with the Maritime Police in the boats and the divers involved belonging to the aquatic unit.

The search is taking place because of the possibility this person could have fallen into the water, from information received following his disappearance, around the time he was last seen.

A local investigating judge is understood to have authorised the searches.

They come shortly after Mr Davis family revealed last month that police had told them they feared he had drowned.

Levi Davis mother has previously asked people and the press to refrain from printing conspiracy theories (ITV)

Mr Davis, who appeared on the Celebrity X-Factor in 2019, was last seen in The Old Irish Pub in Barcelona on 29 October 2022, having left the UK for Ibiza after suffering an injury.

Around the time he disappeared, four members of cruise liner MSC Bellissima said they had spotted a man in the water as the ship was docking in Barcelona.

The men said he was wearing the same light-coloured top as Mr Davis and was shouting for help in English.

A lifebuoy was thrown to him and a rescue operation was mounted.

It lasted a day before being called off after it was confirmed that no one was missing from the cruise liner and no one had been reported missing in port waters or in the sea off Barcelona.

The mystery surrounding his disappearance has prompted wild conspiracy theories, something his family have pleaded with people and the press not to share.

In a statement released in March, his family said gang involvement was not being considered or investigated at this time.

They spoke after Catalan police reportedly said there were disturbing issues with no logical explanation to his disappearance, and a specialist crime unit was said to be taking over the probe.
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Vladimir Putin has shot down concerns of his own finance minister who acknowledged a problem with Russias energy revenues, underscoring the damage done by Western sanctions to its economy.

In a televised meeting chaired by President Putin through a video link, Anton Siluanov said on Wednesday that Russias revenues from oil and gas have taken a hit, blaming deep discounts offered to countries following the Ukraine invasion.

Russias non-energy revenues are on track for growth as planned, with the potential for a small surplus by year-end, but there is a problem with energy revenues, said Mr Siluanov.

Appearing to downplay his finance ministers concerns, Mr Putin said the situation is absolutely stable and added that the lower revenues are due to voluntary cuts in oil production announced in coordination with Opec+ partners.

All our actions, including those related to voluntary production cuts, are connected with the need to support a certain price environment on global markets in contact with our partners in Opec+, Mr Putin responded.

In general, the situation is absolutely stable.

Mr Siluanov said oil revenues plummeted by more than 50 per cent in the first quarter of this year, causing a trade deficit.

As of now... we have fulfilled about 30 per cent of annual income. And we have fulfilled 39 per cent of expenditure for the year, he said during the meeting.

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the government, via a video conference (EPA)

Therefore, we still have a temporary imbalance, which should be evened out as budget execution progresses.

Russia has been forced to sell its crude oil at heavy discounts after Western sanctions to cut its revenues came into force, followed by G7-led price caps on Russian energy in December and February.

Despite the sanctions, Russia has managed to sell its oil at over pre-war levels in the first quarter of this year, with Asian allies India and China contributing to almost 90 per cent of its flows, according to Kpler.

Its energy revenue has been slashed to Rbs 2.2 trillion (21.9bn) in the first four months of 2023, according to data from the finance ministry.

There was a trade deficit of Rbs 3.4 trillion (33.9bn) so far this year as the spending rose because of a fall in energy revenues.

In April, Russia pledged to further cut its crude production by 500,000 barrels a day as Opec and its allies announced an output cut to support the market as economic projections worsened.

The Kremlin initially said the move was in retaliation to Western sanctions, including the G7 price cap.
 Close G7 summit: Zelensky and Fumio Kishida lay wreaths at Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima

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Russia is plotting a large-scale provocation at a nuclear power station it occupies in the south-east of Ukraine to disrupt a looming counteroffensive, Kyivs military intelligence has said.

A statement from the intelligence directorate of Ukraines Defence Ministry claimed Russian forces will strike the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the biggest in Europe, and report a radioactive leak in order to trigger an international probe that would pause the hostilities and give them the respite they need to regroup.

In order to make that happen, Russia disrupted the rotation of personnel of the permanent monitoring mission of the UNs International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that was scheduled for Saturday, the statement said.

It did not offer evidence to back up any of the claims, while the IAEA said it did not have any immediate comment on the allegations, and Russian officials did not immediately comment.

This comes after Dmitry Medvedev, who is Russias security council deputy chairman, alleged the West was not fully realising the threat of nuclear war.

Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelensky said at least one person was killed and 15 were injured in a Russian missile strike on a clinic in Dnipro on Friday.
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Ukrainian women who sought refuge in European Union countries are being forced to travel through dangerous conflict zones to access abortions and contraception in their native country, a study has warned.

Research found some women from Ukraine now living in Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia are having to temporarily return home as it is easier to access reproductive healthcare there, despite the stress of travelling back into the wartorn country.

The study, by the Center for Reproductive Rights and eight human rights organisations, warned refugees are being put at risk as they grapple with issues such as legal restrictions and cost barriers when trying to access the right care.

Other barriers include information shortfalls, poor quality care as well as institutional racism and substandard care, it said.

Krystyna Kacpura, of the Federa Foundation for Women and Family Planning in Poland, an NGO involved in the report, said Ukrainian women have struggled to come to terms with the fact there is no real access to abortion in Poland and that other reproductive health services, such as emergency contraception, are very limited.

Anastasiia Podorozhnia, of Martynka, a Ukrainian organisation also based in Poland, added: We were approached by a teenage girl, already of legal age, asking where to get the morning after pill in Poland, because she went to a pharmacy and they looked at her so strangely and she, as a person from Ukraine, didnt expect that.

Almost 8 million Ukrainians have been forced to leave the country since Russia launched an invasion in February last year, with women and children making up the majority of refugees.

Leah Hoctor, a senior regional director at the Center for Reproductive Rights, said: The European Union has promised to provide refugees from Ukraine with sanctuary and care.

Yet women from Ukraine who are now in Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia often experience a very different reality when they need sexual and reproductive healthcare. Instead of care and protection, they regularly face an obstacle course of restrictions, confusion, stigma and discrimination.

Ms Hoctor warned the health and wellbeing of some Ukrainian refugees are being put at risk by an inability to access time-sensitive healthcare and support services which is exacerbating the harm they have endured from Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Anna Ivanyi, of the Emma Association in Hungary, another organisation involved in the research, explained female refugees from Ukraine return to their homeland as it is easier for them to go home and get the pill or the abortion pill as medical abortions are not permitted in Hungary.

These women can travel back and forth between Ukraine and Hungary, but it doesnt mean that its peaceful or normal travel, she added. Its very stressful for them.

Yulia*, who is from Ukraine but is now living in Romania, claimed women are driving back to the western part of Ukraine from other countries to find a doctor and doing what they used to because they do not have other options.

Refugees subjected to rape and sexual assault in Ukraine linked to the conflict are also struggling to get the right support after leaving their home country, the research said.

Ms Kacpura said she has spoken to women in their 40s with families who have burst into tears as they told her they were raped.

But they said, please dont tell anybody, because I have my family, and my husband has been fighting, Ms Kacpura added. She said refugees say: Could you imagine if I add to his troubles? What if he comes from the war and sees an additional child? When I explain to them that they can obtain legal abortion in Poland if they report and get a prosecutors certificate, they say: My life, my family is the most important for me right now.

*Name changed to protect identity
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Ukraine said it had repelled a day of Russian attacks in and around the ruined eastern city of Bakhmut on Thursday, making small gains while buying time for other planned actions.

While Russia boosted its forces in the city and attacked suburbs to the north and south, Ukraine's forces advanced up to one 1km, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on her Telegram channel.

The defence of Bakhmut and its outskirts is meeting its military objectives, she said. As of now, we control the southwestern part of Bakhmut.

It came after Russia unleashed another round of overnight strikes on the capital, in the latest test of Kyivs air defences.

Ukraine claimed it managed to shoot down 29 of 30 missiles fired across the country in the early hours of Thursday. The single missile that evaded Ukraines defences  striking an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa  killed one person and injured two more, according to Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the regions military administration.

Loud explosions bellowed throughout Kyiv as Vladimir Putins forces hammered the capital for the ninth time this month, in a move marking a stark escalation after weeks of lull. Debris also fell on two Kyiv districts, starting a fire at a garage complex.

Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv (Reuters)

The missiles were launched from Russian sea, air and ground bases, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian commander-in-chief, wrote on Telegram. Several waves of missiles were aimed at areas of Ukraine between 2100 local time [GMT 1800] on Wednesday and 0530 [GMT 0230] on Thursday, he added.

Russian forces used strategic bombers from the Caspian region and apparently fired X-101 and X-55-type missiles developed during Soviet times, Kyiv authorities said. Russia then deployed reconnaissance drones over the capital.

In the last major air attack on Kyiv, on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses bolstered by complex Western-supplied systems shot down all the incoming missiles, officials said.

That attack used hypersonic missiles, which repeatedly have been touted by the Russian president as providing a key strategic advantage. The missiles, which are among the most advanced weapons in Russias arsenal, are difficult to detect and intercept because of their hypersonic speed and manoeuvrability.

An industrial building damaged after a Russian missile strike in Odesa (AFP)

In another blow to the Russian advance on Thursday, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of Russias Wagner mercenary group  often referred to as Putins private army  accused regular Russian army units of pulling back 570m north of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, leaving his own fighters flanks exposed. He said his forces has advanced about 400m.

Wagner forces have been spearheading the assault on Bakhmut, one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the war, with some support from the regular army in recent months. Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before Russias full-scale invasion nearly 15 months ago, as a stepping stone toward capturing the rest of the eastern Donbas region.

A missile explodes over Kyiv on Thursday (Reuters)

Mr Prigozhin asked Moscow to do all it could to protect its territory in Bakhmut after what he alleged was a withdrawal.

I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence  publicly  because my letters are not being read, Mr Prigozhin said in a voice message

Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut (AP)

Ukrainian officials have signalled that the advances around Bakhmut are not part of a broader counteroffensive planned by Kyiv to push back the Russian forces.

With Mr Prigozhin repeatedly accusing Russias top military brass of not doing enough to back his men, and reports of disquiet among the rest of the Russian leaders inner circle, appears to be cause for concern for the Kremlin.

A Russian cruise missile shot down by Ukrainian air defence units in Kyiv (National Police of Ukraine/AFP )

According to a recent update from the British Ministry of Defence (MoD), Russia has banned its own top officials from resigning to avoid any impression of defeatism.

Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report
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Google has announced a major update that will see thousands  potentially even millions  of accounts permanently deleted if they have not been used since 2021.

The purge will include Gmail, Drive and Photos accounts that have not been used or signed into for at least two years.

In a blog post announcing the update, Google said the new policy was primarily for security reasons, as older accounts are typically more vulnerable to threats like spam, phishing scams and hijacking.

Our internal analysis shows abandoned accounts are at least 10x less likely than active accounts to have 2-step verification set up, the post stated.

Meaning, these accounts are often vulnerable, and once an account is compromised, it can be used for anything from identity theft to a vector for unwanted or even malicious content, like spam.

The policy will only apply to personal accounts, with those associated with organisations like schools and businesses safe from being deleted.

The tech giant said the update will be in effect from this week, however no accounts will be deleted until December 2023.

We will take a phased approach, starting with accounts that were created and never used again, Google wrote.

Before deleting an account, we will send multiple notifications over the months leading up to deletion, to both the account email address and the recovery email (if one has been provided).

Users can avoid being caught up in the purge by doing as little as reading an email sent to the account, or watching a YouTube video while logged in.

Google hosts billions of user accounts, though it did not make public how many of them are inactive.

It follows similar announcements from Twitter, with chief executive and owner Elon Musk recently rolling out a similar policy that will see usernames recycled if they are associated with accounts that have not been used for several years.
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Scientists have invented a type of electronic skin that can talk directly to the brain, allowing amputees to feel a human-like sense of touch through prosthetic limbs.

The ground-breaking artificial skin is embedded with sensors for temperature, pressure and strain, which are converted into electrical signals  similar to how nerve impulses communicate with the brain.

The wearable electronic circuit, known as a monolithic e-skin, was developed by a team from Stanford University, who detailed their breakthrough in a study published in the journal Science.

Stanford Universitys Zhenan Bao, who was a senior author of the study, told The Independent that the next-generation technology could also be used to feel objects and sensations while controlling a robotic limb remotely.

Weve been working on a monolithic e-skin for some time, Professor Bao said. The hurdle was not so much finding mechanisms to mimic the remarkable sensory abilities of human touch, but bringing them together using only skin-like materials.

The electronic skin mimics the mechanoreceptors in the human skin to produce nerve-like communication with the brain (Stanford University)

Weichen Wang, a doctoral candidate in Baos lab, added: Much of that challenge came down to advancing the skin-like electronic materials so that they can be incorporated into integrated circuits with sufficient complexity to generate nerve-like pulse trains and low enough operating voltage to be used safely on the human body.

Recommended AI robots figure out how to play football in shambolic footage

A prototype of the e-skin, which is about the thickness of a piece of paper, is the first to combine all the desired electrical and mechanical features of human skin in a soft and durable form.

The team now plans to increase the scalability of the technology and develop an implantable chip to allow wireless communication through the bodys peripheral nerve.

Other recent research into electronic skin has focussed on robotics, aiming to provide robots with sensory feedback and physical self-awareness.

A team from the University of Edinburgh unveiled a device earlier this year that offered perceptive senses similar to those of people and animals.

A separate study in 2023 from engineers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) outlined a type of artificial skin capable of sensing toxic chemicals, which could allow robots to detect anything from pollution in rivers to nerve agents and biohazards.
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Less than six years after launching in the US, TikTok is now facing a reckoning. After amassing more than 150 million users in the country, lawmakers are now making moves to roll out a complete ban.

The biggest ever Chinese tech success in the US is accused of mishandling user data and holding too much influence over Americans, with Montana becoming the first state to sign a bill into law to make it illegal for TikTok to operate there from January 2024.

Fears around national security have been countered with questions about censorship, with the Electronic Frontier Foundation describing the prospect of a ban as a seed of genuine security concern wrapped in a thick layer of censorship.

The US digital liberties group has called on people to resist a governmental power to ban a popular means of communication and expression, while the FBI claims Chinese state ties to parent company ByteDance could allow the app to manipulate content in order to spread harmful propaganda.

The US is not the first major market to consider a total ban of the social media platform, with India issuing a complete TikTok ban in 2020. Other countries and areas, including the EU, have put partial bans in place.

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Various federal and state TikTok bans are already in place in the US, banning government workers and military personnel from using the app on official devices.

Recommended TikTok gains 50 million users in US as ban looms

This has done little to stem its growth in the US, with TikTok proving to be the most popular app both in America and globally last year with 672 million total downloads.

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This has helped bring the total number of TikTok users around the world to above 1.5 billion, with only Indias ban nearly three years ago slightly slowing its growth  but only temporarily.

( )

Despite the warnings surrounding TikTok, the app is viewed positively by the majority of young users, which may cause the Biden administration to hesitate on ordering an outright ban given younger demographics typically skew towards voting Democrat.

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TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew defended the app and its intentions when he appeared before Congress earlier this year.

The former Facebook intern downplayed ties to the Chinese government while trying to convince members of Congress that the app is safe for US users and poses no threat to national security.

After Montana signed a TikTok ban into law on 17 May, 2023, a TikTok spokesperson said that the company would work to defend the rights of our users in all regions.
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Montana has become the first US state to announce an outright ban of TikTok, however questions have been raised about both the legality and the practicality of the new law.

State legislators signed the bill into law on Wednesday, making it illegal for TikTok to operate in the state from January 2024. Some claim such a ban is unconstitutional, as it challenges the First Amendment right to freedom of speech and the press, while others note that it would be impossible to enforce.

Montanans are indisputably exercising their First Amendment rights when they post and consume content on TikTok, Jameel Jaffer, executive director at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, told The Independent.

Because Montana cant establish that the ban is necessary or tailored to any legitimate interest, the law is almost certain to be struck down as unconstitutional.

Montanas 200,000 TikTok users will not face any repercussions for using the app, however TikTok and other companies face a $10,000 daily fine for each time someone accesses the app or is offered the ability to download it.

Apple and Google have not spoken out against the law, but a representative for TechNet, the trade group that counts the two tech giants as its members, has said app stores dont have the ability to geofence apps in different states and it would be impossible to prevent TikTok from being downloaded in Montana.

The group has also said the responsibility should be on an app to determine where it can operate, not an app store.

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Telecoms analyst Roger Entner, of Recon Analytics, said he believes the app stores could have the capability to enforce the law, but it would be cumbersome to implement and full of loopholes.

Apple and Googles address-linked billing could be bypassed with prepaid cards and IP geolocation easily masked by using a VPN service, which can alter IP addresses and allows users to evade content restrictions, said mobile security expert Will Strafach, the founder of Guardian, which makes a privacy protection app for Apple devices.

Oded Vanunu, head of products vulnerability research at the cyber security firm Check Point, agreed it would be difficult for app stores to isolate a single state from downloading an app. He suggested it would be more feasible for TikTok to comply since it controls the software and can adjust the settings based on the geographical location or IP addresses of users.

TikTok could technically block any people from Montana using the app by tracking their location, and disable the app if they are within a certain area, however this type of restriction can be easily bypassed with VPN technology.

A legal battle is likely to follow, with TikTok hinting that a legal challenge will be launched in the coming weeks and months.

A spokesperson said: We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.

Additional reporting from agencies
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It is the rare issue on which Donald Trump, the European Commission and Joe Rogan all agree: something must be done about TikTok.

In recent months, there has been increasing discussion of either limiting or completely banning the short-form video app. Though it is one of the most popular apps ever, politiciers across the world have argued that it has a dark side, and that it is much more dangerous than it appears.

Those concerns relate largely to security and privacy. Opponents argue that TikTok is using its access to peoples phones to gather personal information on them, which could eventually prove useful to the Chinese government.

TikTok itself has always denied that users data is not being protected, or that it is a data-gathering operation on behalf of the Chinese government.

But that has not stopped organisations including the US federal government and the European Commission from banning the app. Both have forbidden employees from installing it, warning that it could be putting the data of users  and the safety of their citizens  at risk.

And now Montana became the first US state to ban the app on 17 May.

What are the concerns about TikTok?

Last year, Joe Rogan took an unusual step on his podcast: reading out, at length, the terms and conditions of an app. He noted that TikToks rules allowed it to take certainmration about the device you use to access the platform, including what phones was being used to access TikTok and where from.

The amount of data being collected was vast, as he pointed out, though almost all popular social media apps have very expansive terms and conditions that allow them to gather up data. But TikTok has come into particular criticism in part because of its ownership.

TikTok is owned by Chinese company Bytedance. That means it is a potential threat in at least two ways: that people surveilled by the Chinese government, but it also could grow larger than western competitors such as Instagram and Twitter.

It has proven difficult to tease those two things apart. While politicians have focused on the former, the latter is surely part of the worry too.

Where has the app been banned?

Recent bans have been introduced across the US and Europe. Last year, the federal government in the US banned the app from government-issue devices, and most states have followed  then, this week, the European Commission did the same.

There has also been official advice that has stopped short of a ban but has discouraged the use he app. The Dutch government reported to be advising officials not to use the app, and some British politicians have voiced the same worries.

All of them have cited security concerns. Most of the bans have been justified not by security issues that already exist, but by potential ones: the European Commission said the ban was undertaken to protect the Commission against cybersecurity threats and actions which may be exploited for cyberattacks against the corporate environment of the commission, for instance.

Montana became the first US state to ban the app on 17 May when Gov Greg Gianforte, a Republican, signed a sweeping measure.

The move is expected to be challenged legally and will serve as a testing ground for the TikTok-free America that many national lawmakers have envisioned

Could a more complete ban really happen?

At least now, in the US and Europe, any bans have only covered those who work for government and other political bodies  and they have not expanded beyond that. But they could do.

Donald Trump looked very keen on banning the app as his term drew to a close in 2020, for instance. In the end the app continued to work, and the legal proceedings were brought to a close when Donald Trump left office at the start of 2021, but the app came very near to getting outlawed.

And it has happened, for instance, in India, where the government completely banned the app in 2020. After clashes between India and China over disputed territory, the government completely banned TikTok and 58 other Chinese-created apps.

It has remained banned there ever since. And the country has found alternatives: Instagram Reels was first launched in India, and has proven very popular there, in lieu of TikTok.

What has TikTok said?

The company has repeatedly denied that it users data differently from other social media apps. And it has

When the European Commissions ban was announced, for instance, it said it was disappointed with this decision, which we believe to be misguided and based on fundamental misconceptions.

We have contacted the Commission to set the record straight and explain how we protect the data of the 125 million people across the EU who come to TikTok every month. Were continuing to enhance our approach to data security, including by establishing three data centres in Europe to store user data locally; further reducing employee access to data; and minimising data flows outside of Europe.

In a blog post published a week ago, TikToks general manager of European operations Rich Waterworth said the company would be working on keeping our European community and their data safe and secure, particularly in the context of new regulation. That would include, for instance, minimising the amount of European user data that leaves the region.

Its public response in the US has been much the same. There, too, it has suggested that it functions much the same as other social media apps and stressed that it is looking to add new restrictions that would ensure data stays local.
Italian firefighters airlifted toddlers to safety from the roof of a house as deadly floods hit the Emilia Romagna region on Thursday, 17 May.

Footage shows the young children being hauled into a helicopter as murky water surrounds a house.

As of Wednesday, at least nine people have been killed and thousands have been evacuated from their homes after torrential rain triggered flooding and landslides in the northern region.

Some areas have received half their average rainfall in just 36 hours, civil protection minister Nello Musumeci said. Click here to sign up for our newsletters.
Police in Serbia have displayed 13,500 guns and weapons collected in a nationwide disarmament campaign.

President Aleksandar Vucic visited a depot in the city of Smederevo on 14 May, where the authorities showed some of the firearms, explosives and ammunition seized or voluntarily turned in by people.

The government has promised to crack down on unregistered weaponry and tighten gun-license rules after two deadly shooting attacks earlier this month.

Mr Vucic said there will be huge punishments for anyone found with illegal weapons after the amnesty ends on 8 June.

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Dramatic footage shows the moment police found a kidnapped baby who had been abandoned by a suspect after a car theft in Fort Worth, Texas, on Monday (15 May).

Officers were called out after a woman reported that an unknown male jumped into her car and drove off with her six-month-old inside.

Authorities located the vehicle but the baby was missing.

The infant was found in a car seat nearby and was reunited with a parent, the Fort Worth Police Department said.

A suspect has been charged with kidnapping, abandoning/endangering a child, and auto theft.

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It is not exactly breaking news that Donald Trump faces an exhaustive list of legal troubles. Yet new reporting by CNN reveals that the National Archives is handing over damning documents to special counsel Jack Smith. In a letter to the twice-impeached former president, acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall claims these documents all reflect communications involving close presidential advisers, some of them directed to you personally, concerning whether, why, and how you should declassify certain classified records.

Trumps claims that he could declassify documents with his mind like some sort of malignant Professor X were always bogus. This latest news does, however, show that Trump may be in far more legal jeopardy than even he realizes, laying open the possibility that the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination may be campaigning from behind bars.

We all know of Trumps myriad of legal woes. I do not think most Americans have stopped to consider what they mean for the future of our country, though. I am not talking about the implications of (re)electing a man who, whether being found credibly liable for sexual assault by a jury of his peers or attempting to overthrow the government of the United States of America, is manifestly unfit for office. I am talking about the fact that he might not be able to serve at all.

Donald Trump is 76 years old. President Joe Biden is 80. Whether because one of them is in jail or either of them is dead  something I sincerely hope does not happen, but think is a giant elephant in the room we are not discussing  it is entirely possible that neither of the current frontrunners for the presidency ends up being the next president. I hear pundits on the Sunday shows tiptoe around this conversation or euphemistically discuss Bidens age (curiously, never Trumps, though he is only four years younger). No one, though, seems willing to discuss it with the kind of frankness I think the conversation deserves.

That is understandable. Speculating about someones potential death is socially uncouth at best, downright macabre at worst. I dont want either Donald Trump or Joe Biden to die. Aside from the disruption to our national life it would cause, both men are human beings like you and me and have family who love them. Regardless of what I think of their politics, it is important their humanity is centered as well.

Yet, to not acknowledge the chaos one or eithers inability to serve would cause to the country seems irresponsible. Even if whoever is elected survives their inauguration, there is every chance that they do not live out their entire four-year term. That makes their choice of Vice President even more important.

A poll from May 9 found Vice President Kamala Harris has a net approval rating of -12. That means more people dislike the job she has been doing than like it. A Fox News poll this month found that her approval rating with Democrats has dropped four points. And while readers may be loathed to accept the credibility of a Fox News poll, earlier this month USA Today reported that some top Democrats, speaking anonymously, expressed concern that [Harris popularity] may be beyond repair.

Meanwhile, on the Republican side, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to enter the GOP primary as early as next week. A poll from last week, however, shows DeSantis in second place but polling at only 18 percent support  more than 40 points behind Trump.

If Trump were to be indicted, voters calculus could change, which would benefit DeSantis. That seems unlikely though given just how devoted the GOP base is to Trump. If Trump were to die before the end of the primary, DeSantis would likely benefit. Even if he werent, though, Trump could unify the party by selecting DeSantis as his running mate the way Ronald Reagan did George H.W. Bush following the contentious 1980 primary.

Either way, a Ron DeSantis presidency scares the living daylights out of me, not least because of his authoritarian actions in Florida where he has banned books, taken over higher education and banned ideas he dislikes, and where he has persecuted LGBTQ people and stripped women of reproductive rights. He is every bit as bad as Donald Trump, except competent.

What scares me even more, though, is that Trump  emboldened by a third consecutive GOP nomination  selects a true believer to run alongside him. Imagine Vice President Kari Lake being sworn into the presidency following the death of President Trump. Or Vice President Marjorie Taylor Greene. Neither scenario is so far outside the realm of possibility, yet neither has been seriously considered by the American people.

Both scenarios need to be, as well as what a President Kamala Harris would mean. While I in no way believe you compare her to Lake or Greene, voters may disagree. Her approval ratings being underwater should concern any Democrat who is concerned about not only winning in 2024, but about the future of the party. There is every chance Harris could become president before 2028, which would make her not only the standard bearer of the party for several years, but the frontrunner for the next election.

Do we really want someone most Americans disapprove of in that role? Is that what is best for the party? Is it what is best for the country?

It is time we stop thinking solely of Trump and Biden and start answering these questions. We must begin to consider what the future without either of them looks like, for that future may be more imminent than we think. I hope it isnt, because Im not a ghoul who wishes ill on anyone  even my political opponents.

We cannot govern on hope alone, though, crossing our fingers and praying two old men stay healthy and alive  or even just out of jail  long enough to avoid a national crisis. Running mates always matter, but in 2024, they matter all the more because we may not just be electing one president, but two.
The Wexford native owns The Doss House and Frank Macs in The Rocks and has plans to open further venues

'The Sydney bar industry has weathered a lot over the last couple of years,' says Ciara Doran

Irish emigrants were opening bars in far-flung locations before Europeans ever reached Sydneys famous harbour, so venue owner Ciara Doran's career shouldn't be that surprising. It is though, especially given how grim the scene is back home where nightlife is floundering from a combination of dating apps, changing habits and high rents.
The Irish Strategic Investment Fund is backing a new 100m fund for Irish startups set up by financial firm Elkstone, which announced the funds final close today.

The fund has already deployed 10m and is focused on startups that qualify for tax relief under the expanded Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS). It aims to complete its initial investments by 2026.

The EIIS allows investors tax relief of up to 40pc on shares bought in new companies  those at seed and pre-Series A rounds of funding  and was expanded last year after venture capitalists said it was too restrictive.

This is the first fund launched under the amended EIIS legislation, with Elkstone estimating it is the largest pot of money available for early-stage Irish startups.

Enterprise Ireland contributed 20m to the fund from its seed and venture capital scheme.

Elkstone, a Dublin-based investment house that has provided seed funding for Irish unicorns Flipdish and LetsGetChecked, said the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (Isif) would also be providing capital to the fund.

Isif director Nick Ashmore said it is a strong supporter of indigenous Irish businesses that have ambitions to scale and target international markets.

This fund expands our reach in early-stage venture capital and gives Irish businesses a valuable new option for attracting the capital they need to grow, he said.

Our new partnership with Elkstone will fuel the success of a range of fast-growing Irish businesses and we aim to build on these success stories in the coming years.

Elkstones chief executive Alan Merriman said it expected interest in the fund despite the global tech slowdown.

Whilst the macro backdrop is undoubtedly challenging, it is a good time to be investing and we are very positive on the outlook for disruption and innovation, he said.

We are very much looking forward to continuing to play our part in enabling deserving early stage businesses to grow and bring about stellar returns for our investors and meaningful social and economic impact for the Irish economy.

Elkstones venture arm has invested in more than 50 startups, including Bluedrop Medical, MEG, Inclusio, Allsorter, Danalto and Output Sports.

I am excited about the potential for our portfolio companies to make a positive difference in the world, and I look forward to continuing to support their growth and success, whilst also delivering stellar returns for our clients, said Niall McEvoy, venture partner at Elkstone.

Isif runs a 9bn portfolio of investments.
The European Union proposed reforming its customs union with objectives that include making sure that trading platforms such as Amazon and Alibaba Group comply with the blocs regulations.

The European Commissions proposal would introduce data-driven systems, streamlining reporting requirements for traders by reducing the time needed to complete import procedures, providing a single EU interface and facilitating data re-use.

Platforms like Amazon, Alibaba or Zalando SE would have to ensure goods sold online comply with all customs obligations.

In addition, they would have to charge customs duties and Vat at the time of purchase, so consumers will no longer face hidden charges or unexpected paperwork when the parcel arrives.

This is the most ambitious and comprehensive reform since the creation of our customs union in 1968, EU Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told reporters.

The customs union, one of the EUs key features, facilitates trade with the rest of the world worth 4.3trn in 2021.

It has been facing challenges including the rise of e-commerce, while customs officials play a significant role in enforcing sanctions against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine.

The commissions proposal will reorganise and simplify the custom system for e-commerce parcels, which represent over 73pc of all customs declarations with a new hub open for e-commerce consignments in 2028. The e-commerce regime is expected to bring additional customs revenue worth 1bn per year.

The proposal will abolish the current exception under which goods valued at less than 150 are exempt from customs duty, seen as heavily exploited by fraudsters.

Up to 65pc of such parcels entering the EU are currently undervalued, so they can avoid customs duties on import, Mr Gentiloni said.

The reform would set up a new EU Customs Authority to oversee the data hub, a single online portal where importers will be able to log all the information on their products and supply chains, according to a statement from the EUs executive arm.

This hub would replace the existing customs IT infrastructure in EU member states, saving them as much as 2bn a year in operating costs. In addition, artificial intelligence will be used to predict problems before the goods are shipped to the EU.
Waterford Wedgwood went bust owing 800m in 2009

Tony OReilly controlled assets including Eircom and Independent News & Media as well as Waterford Wedgwood during his career.

The bankruptcy trustee of Tony OReilly intends to declare a final dividend to creditors by August  eight years after the former billionaire was declared bankrupt in the Bahamas.

Once Irelands richest person, Mr OReilly was the leading figure in businesses including Eircom, Independent News & Media and Waterford Wedgwood in his day.

The former Ireland rugby player, who is now 87, also owned a slate of trophy properties in Ireland and abroad.

He and his brother-in-law, Peter Goulandris, also ploughed 500m into Waterford Wedgwood between 2004 and 2008, only to see it evaporate as the firm fell into receivership in 2009 with debts of 800m. The business was sold to a US private equity firm KPS for just 107m.

Under pressure from creditors before being declared bankrupt, Mr OReilly, a former chief executive of Heinz, had already been offloading assets. He sold his beloved Castlemartin estate in Co Kildare in 2015 to US media billionaire John Malone for 28m.

Among Mr OReillys creditors is AIB, which had opposed his efforts to be declared bankrupt in the Bahamas.

The final dividend being paid to creditors by the trustee of Mr OReillys assets follows an interim distribution that was paid in 2018.

The trustee in the case is Alastair Beveridge of AlixPartners.

On This Day In History - 18th May

In a notice published on Tuesday in the official State gazette, Iris Oifigiuil, Mr Beveridge told creditors he intends to declare a final dividend within two months of the last date for proving claims, which is June 9.

Any creditor wishing to participate in the interim dividend must lodge his proof of debt with the trustee, the notice adds.

Mr Beveridge was asked for comment but did not respond.

In 2016, Mr OReillys lavish furniture from Castlemartin went up for sale at an auction held at a rural pub in Co Kilkenny. The proceeds would be used to pay creditors in his bankruptcy process.

An antique table and set of chairs at which Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela once dined with Mr OReilly sold for over 74,000 including fees.

A pair of rare 18th century gilt console tables sold for 145,000.

In 2018, the commercial court here appointed receivers to take control and sell shares in Dromoland Castle that were owned by Mr OReilly. The 6.8pc stake in the hotel was valued at about 1.9m at the time.

The appointment arose out of AIBs continued efforts to recover money on foot of a 22m High Court judgment secured against Mr OReilly and two of his investment vehicles in 2014.

I have never seen a company that was as poorly run as Waterford Wedgwood

In 2012, the managing partner of KPS, Mike Psaros, said that at that stage, he had spent 22 years immersed in turning around troubled or underperforming businesses.

And I can tell you unequivocally, he told Private Equity International, I have never seen a company that was as poorly run as Waterford Wedgwood.

He added: In many cases with a turnaround you have a marketing problem, or a strategic problem, or maybe a combination of both. This was a case where every single aspect of the business was broken.
Fast & The Furious films have always been dumb but Fast X goes above and beyond franchise requirements

The action is more outrageous than ever

Food for thought folks  the Fast & Furious franchise has been going for 20 bloody years.

Fast X (12A, 141mins)

Bush Jr was in the White House, Tony Blair in Downing Street, Bertie Ahern still easing his way into the role of Taoiseach, the Twin Towers still standing when The Fast And The Furious was released.

Its simple formula  of wronged street racers avoiding the law at high speed  may not have evolved all that much in the intervening years, but the plots and auto stunts have become ever more preposterous.

Fast X trailer: Jason Momoa and Brie Larson join the cast for tenth instalment

This, we are assured, will be the penultimate instalment, with a grand finale in 2025, after which the noise will cease, as various characters putter off into aimless spin-offs.

In other words, it will end, but never end, as is the way of things these days.

The locus of all this nonsense has always been Dominic Dom Toretto, reformed hoodlum and man of few words, played with a pout by Vin Diesel, the catatonic action star who does not so much act, as stand.

Around him has grown an extended family  Dom is all about family, he says the word family a lot  including Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), harum-scarum road racer and now Mrs Toretto, Doms sister Mia (Jordana Brewster), his brother Jakob (John Cena), old buddies Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Ludacris), and master hacker Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel).

The action is more outrageous than ever

These days, Dom just wants to settle down, rest his weary limbs, be with his family and so forth, but theres always an aggrieved party, collateral damage from some previous escapade now hellbent on revenge.

In this case, that would be Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa), son of Brazilian drug lord Hernan Reyes, who died horribly during a heist organised by Doms gang way back inFast Five(2011).

If you can remember anything that happened in that film, you deserve a prize, but I do recall it being easily the best of the Fast & Furious films, and its certainly better than this one.

Unhinged, badly dressed and carrying on like a Hawaiian frat boy, Dante does not merely want to kill Dom and co, he wants them to suffer.

Jason Momoa acts like a Hawaiian frat boy

And after a campaign of craziness is unleashed in Rome, Dom must join forces with enemies, including Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) and even the dreaded Cipher (Charlize Theron) to challenge Dantes might.

These films have always been dumb but, at best, aware of their outrageousness, crassly entertaining, in on the joke.

This thing is loud and toneless, stupid above and beyond franchise requirements, not helped by a dreadful turn from Momoa, who aims for camp comedy and misses by a country mile.
There has been an alarming increase in child poverty and there is an urgent need for a Government response to this in Budget 2024, according to child and family support organisation Treoir.

Treoir is hosting a national seminar today on the rising challenges being faced by children and will present children and families current lived experiences in Ireland.

Data from 2022 showed more than 27,000 additional children were in consistent poverty last year.

Treoir CEO Damien Peelo said very concerning current evidence and data shows that child poverty needs to be placed at the top of the political agenda.

Budget 2024 needs to be a child-focused budget. CSO statistics from 2022 show an additional 27,382 children in consistent poverty, a rise of 7.5pc. There also was a 20pc rise in children in deprivation (34,225 additional) and a 15pc rise in children at risk of poverty (19,048 additional).

We are calling for the Budget to implement a Minimum Standard of Living. This would be calculated by benchmarking the national minimum wage and social welfare payments to establish an adequate living income for everyone, Mr Peelo said.

Trinity Colleges Dr Joe Whelan will address the seminar today around the need for poverty to be much higher on the political agenda to address rising child poverty.

At the moment, poverty is not on the policy agenda in Ireland. This, along with the fact that poverty tends to be measured and thought of in economic terms prevents Ireland from meaningfully addressing poverty.

Addressing poverty begins and ends with a strong social safety net. This means strong early childhood education and care policies, coupled with social welfare rates indexed above the at risk level, Dr Whelan said.

Asked which policy changes most need to happen, Co Clare based lone-parent Theresa ODonohoe called for a universal basic income to support lone-parent families.

Regarding housing she said that a national retrofit scheme is needed to improve the quality of older poorer housing stock where those on low incomes are often forced to live. This is needed to give security to the lived experiences of those families.

Treoir said that in Ireland, lone-parent families (80pc of which involve single mothers) are over-represented in homeless figures, housing waiting lists, in the private rented accommodation sector and have low homeownership rates. It also said that fathers who are in temporary, shared, or homeless accommodation are often unable to facilitate access with their child which can have a detrimental effect on their relationship.

On top of this, becoming homeless and living in homeless, insecure or temporary accommodation can be deeply traumatic for children.

These traumatic experiences have lasting impacts and we need to intervene now and to prevent longer term problems. Children who grew up in poverty are 35pc more likely to be in adult deprivation, Mr Peelo said.

He added that the high cost of childcare is a further problem which falls most heavily on poorer lone-parent families.

Irelands childcare costs are some of the most expensive in the world and this is felt most acutely by unmarried parents, particularly lone-parent households headed by mothers.

"Ireland needs a public universal childcare model to support lone-parents returning to education and being able to access to the job market without having to spend a significant percentage of their income on childcare costs, Mr Peelo said.
A new domestic violence register promised in the wake of the murder of Jennifer Poole has been cast into serious doubt amid fresh legal concerns.

Ms Poole, a mother of two, was stabbed to death by her ex, Gavin Murphy, in 2021 when she was 24.

Her family later learned that Ms Poole had been living in fear of her abusive partner. She was unaware Murphy had a history of abusive behaviour, including a conviction for assaulting a former partner.

Since her death, her brother, Jason Poole, has been campaigning for a domestic violence register, which would allow those with concerns to ask authorities for information about a partners violent past.

'Today we can start to grieve'  Family of Jennifer Poole give statement after man sentenced for murder

In February, Mr Poole met Justice Minister Simon Harris to discuss the creation of a domestic violence disclosure scheme (DVDS)  a proposal that has become known as Jennies Law.

Mr Poole said that, as recently as two weeks ago, Mr Harris had confirmed that plans for such a register were still progressing.

But documents released under Freedom of Information show officials within the Department of Justice had flagged concerns about such a proposal, including legal advice from the Attorney General.

It said: There are a number of legal, policy and resource implications to the introduction of a DVDS scheme which require careful consideration.

It said plans for a DVDS in Ireland had been the subject of detailed consideration by the Attorney General.

Most of the legal advice issued was redacted under Freedom of Information law, but the briefing paper said plans to disclose details of a persons violent past invokes constitutional and fair procedures rights.

The same briefing note also raised concerns about the effectiveness of such a register. It noted two pieces of research in Western Australia and Victoria that had questioned the costs and benefits of similar schemes.

The briefing, drafted by officials in the Department of Justices criminal legislation function, said: It is unclear to what extent such a disclosure process actually reduces incidences of domestic abuse; in one UK study at least 45pc of recipients of disclosures went on to be victimised by the very partner they were warned about. Further careful examination of these issues is therefore warranted in advance of any legislative developments of this nature.

Mr Poole said he had not been informed there were any concerns about a DVDS scheme within the Department of Justice.

Im a little taken aback to learn that there have been concerns, he said.

He added that while there might be legal concerns about disclosing a persons violent past, the rights of women and children to be protected from violence should take precedent.

Jennifer didnt have that. Jennifer didnt know he had already been in prison for a similar offence. He would have been already on that register, if it had existed at the time, Mr Poole said.

Everybody should feel safe. And people dont feel safe in their homes. My sister wasnt safe in her home, but she didnt have anybody to go to, anybody to ask for help. And the guards rocked up time and time again and it didnt work, they didnt have the tools to be able to tell her.

This will give the guards a tool to be able to inform somebody when they arrived there that this person youre living with that has just punched you, or thrown you down the stairs, has a history of this.

Mr Poole has requested an update from the Department of Justice. I hope these challenges have been ironed out, he added.

It is understood Mr Harris is still in favour of the principle of a DVDS scheme, and that the proposal is still being considered.

A Department of Justice spokesperson said officials are currently examining a Domestic Violence Register in order to prepare policy proposals for consideration by the minister by the end of the year. The minister supports the establishment of such a register, subject to this process.
Laurence Nolan has not yet indicated to plea

A young man accused of making threats to kill or cause serious harm to a woman and damaging the front windows of her home has been sent for jury trial.
A deceased Co Galway farmer had referred to the main beneficiary of her contested will as "O'Toole the fool" and "Only fools and horses, the High Court has been told.
DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson arrives to vote in Dromore, Co Down. Photo: Liam McBurney   PA

Voters have until 10pm to cast their ballots. Photo: Liam McBurney   PA

Today Sinn Fein want to repeat their historic breakthrough of last year by becoming the biggest party in the Norths local councils. Last May they became the largest in the Stormont assembly with 27 seats compared with the Democratic Unionist Partys 25.

Sinn Fein wants to be the undisputed biggest party in the North

Population shifts delivered a first in a political entity created in 1921 to guarantee a permanent unionist majority.

Up to 10pm tonight the Norths voters can go to vote on picking 611 local councillors spread across 11 councils. As things stand the DUP have 17 more councillors than Sinn Fein. Unionists have majority control in six of the 11 councils. Four are in nationalist control, and one, Belfast, has no majority.

Apathy in a referendum on limbo

Council elections can be a hard sell at best of times. But this one is afflicted by peoples disillusionment with the deadlock of a non-functioning power-sharing system in Stormont over the Brexit deal.

The 807 candidates, two-thirds men and the rest women, are doing what they can. But many see them only succeeding in stirring up voter apathy in a referendum on political limbo currently in the North.

DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson arrives to vote in Dromore, Co Down. Photo: Liam McBurney   PA

The other parties aim to force movement

While the DUP want to see off Sinn Feins challenge, they also want to stave off a challenge from the hardline True Unionist Voice (TUV) which continues to snap at their heels. TUV continues to accuse Jeffrey Donaldsons DUP of being ready to cave-in over the latest Brexit compromise despite their ongoing opposition which deadlocks Stormont.

More moderate parties  nationalist SDLP, middle-ground Alliance, and moderate Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)  want voters to send DUP a message and get Stormont structures working. Thats a very hard one to sell amid voter disengagement.

Michelle O'Neill arrives to vote at Coalisland. Photo: Clodagh Kilcoyne   REUTERS

Any chance of this vote forcing an end to the Norths Brexit deadlock?

Signs point to things waiting until after the July-August Loyalist marching season. London government believe a strong showing for DUP would help Jeffrey Donaldson cut a final Brexit deal and make power-sharing work again. Dublin is less assured and Tanaiste Micheal Martin on Tuesday said he believed little would happen before September at best.

A quarter of a century after the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and compromise during the marching season is still a non-starter.
The Government has been accused of trying to scare families of children born through international surrogacy after leaked details emerged of plans to criminalise those who use Ukrainian agencies.

It was reported that the proposal is set to be included in upcoming regulations of international surrogacy arrangements. Plans considered by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly would ban commercial surrogacy but make Ireland one of the first countries in the world to regulate and recognise international surrogacy arrangements.

Before the war, Ukraine was one of the most popular international surrogacy destinations  although it excludes same-sex couples.

Since the Russian invasion, surrogacy campaign groups and Irish solicitors have been advising couples against travelling to the war-torn country.

The Business Post reported yesterday that families who use Ukrainian surrogacy agencies will face criminal sanctions.

Rosanna Davison on making surrogacy more accessible

The report said countries involved in military conflict would be excluded from a green list of countries to which people who want to grow their families through surrogacy can travel. But it is understood that even if the conflict were to end, Ukraine would be unlikely to make the green list due to unethical behaviour by one of its surrogacy agencies.

We are extremely concerned at the narrative that is emerging about criminal sanction for intended parents who do not adhere to the upcoming legislation guidelines. While we strongly encourage our members to follow the guidelines, criminal sanction will certainly not be in the best interests of the child born through surrogacy, Irish Families Through Surrogacy, a campaign group, told theIrish Independent.

We are firstly disappointed about the scaremongering that this leaked brief has created for our members.

Until we have official confirmation about proposed legislation, this unfairly stigmatises children already born through surrogacy in Ukraine and creates a sense of unease for intended parents who are due babies to be born there in the coming months.

The group said that while it agreed Ukraine should not be used as a surrogacy destination during the conflict, it said in peaceful times Ukraine was a highly regulated, ethical and safe option for families who had to pursue surrogacy to create their families.

Mary Seery Kearney, a Fine Gael senator, said she was astonished and horrified to learn through leaks to the media that Irish families who wanted to use Ukraine as a surrogacy destination could face criminal sanction.

I think that families deserve to hear something like that directly from the minister. And to my knowledge, nothing like that has been shared with them, she said.

Before the war, a number of Irish families had already started the surrogacy process through Ukrainian agencies.

Irish solicitors and groups such as Irish Families Through Surrogacy had advised people not to go to Ukraine, but it is understood a number of Irish babies are due to be born via Ukrainian surrogates over the summer.

We have been strong on telling people not to go to Ukraine. That said, pregnancies are under way and babies are coming and we have a duty to support them. These are Irish babies. An Irish citizen abroad has a right to be supported by the Irish Government, Ms Seery Kearney said.
Independent.ie journalists have been nominated for 10 prizes at this years Law Society of Ireland Justice Media Awards 2023.

The annual ceremony recognises outstanding journalism that contributes to the publics understanding of justice, the legal system and legal issues.

Journalists across Independent.ie titles, which are published by Mediahuis Ireland, have been nominated in a number of categories.

Irish Independent Special Correspondent Catherine Fegan and Legal Affairs Editor Shane Phelan received three nominations each.

Ms Fegan was shortlisted in the Print/Online Journalism category for her piece There is no other option - Rise in legal cases being lodged as families demand answers over deaths of loved ones in nursing homes during the pandemic.

She also received a nod in the Human Rights/Social Justice category for her piece Dark days of 1970s recalled as plans for disregard of homosexuality convictions gains momentum.

Her third nomination was in the International Justice category for her article on the Magdalene Laundries: As long as I have fight in me, I will try to get justice for my Magdalene hell.

Mr Phelan was shortlisted in the Print/Online Journalism category for his piece The Enoch Burke case explained. He also received a nod for the same story in the Court Reporting category.

He got a second nomination in the Court Reporting category for his piece Unlawful court order used to take children away from their mother in tug-of-love case.

Sunday Independent journalist Mark Tighe was nominated in the Sunday Journalism category for his piece ESB staff asked developers for backhanders.

Mr Tighe also received a nod in the Court Reporting category for his article Web of Lies: Irish judge lifts veil in $186m global fraud case.

The Indo Daily podcast was nominated in the Broadcast Journalism category for its episode The Graham Dwyer appeal - could Elaine O'Hara's killer walk free?, by Mary Carroll, Tabitha Monahan, Shane Phelan, John Smith and Fionnan Sheahan.

Irish Independentbusiness reporter Caoimhe Gordon was nominated in the Environmental Law/Climate Justice Reporting category for her piece Corporate Ireland talks about climate targets, but how do we assess their progress?

Winners across all 15 categories will be announced at this years ceremony on Thursday, June 22, at Blackhall Place in Dublin.
A pathological liar who nearly destroyed the lives of a senior garda, solicitors and social workers after making serious false allegations against them which included rape and sexual assault has been jailed for four years.

Sonya Egan (43) of The Lawn, Lios Cara, Killeens, Co Cork, was not present at Cork Circuit Criminal Court for her sentencing hearing for a dizzying number of allegations.

She is on hunger strike in Limerick Prison where she is currently serving a two-year sentence for harassment of a man and a woman. She waived her right to appear in court.

In referencing the hunger strike, Judge Catherine Staines said she refused to be manipulated by the actions of a woman capable of extreme manipulation.

Judge Staines said that the malicious, vindictive campaign of unfounded allegations made by Egan had caused untold damage to her victims.

Victim impact statements were handed in to the court by a number of the people affected by Egans lies.

Judge Staines said that one man informed her that the allegations made against him by Egan had ruined his reputation and ended his career.

She said the man had dedicated his life to child protection only to be accused by Egan of being involved in a paedophile ring.

Judge Staines said Egan had destroyed the name of the another man on social media accusing him of sexual abuse.

She said the victim impact statements submitted to her had made for harrowing reading and it was hard to imagine the extent of the devastation caused to professional people.

One victim was accused of rape and sexual abuse. A letter of complaint was sent to his employers, to An Garda Siochana and the Minister for Health.

While formal investigations were taking place he had to stand aside. His reputation was ruined.

On This Day In History - May 18th

She offered her sympathy to the affected parties and expressed the hope that the admission of Egan that her allegations were completely false would serve as some form of solace to them.

The court was told that Egan often became fixated with people who crossed her path and then subsequently accused them of heinous crimes such as rape and sexual assault. She also falsely accused a politician of physical assault.

Judge Staines heard Egan, who is a qualified social worker, had a strategy of making false reports and statements against people after complaints of harassment were made about her by certain individuals known to her.

Egan has retracted all the false allegations she made against six men and three women in Cork city over a five-year period.

Egan pleaded guilty to eight counts of making false statements and six counts of making false reports against the injured parties between 2016 and 2020. The false statements were made by Egan at garda stations in Dublin and Cork.

The court heard that she had a history of telling tall tales dating back to her teenage years with her damaging allegations against people who crossed her path becoming ever more serious in recent years.

Dt Sgt James Buckley said that Egan was in care for a few years when she was a teenager and had left home at the age of 14.

One of her allegations was made against a social worker whom she bombarded with emails. She claimed she was his half-sister. The man made a complaint to police against her.

In a statement made to gardai in July 2016 Egan said that the man had pimped her out for human trafficking in the late 1990s.

Egan also made false accusations of rape against the man dating back to when she was a teenager. She claimed that he also abused other girls.

Gardai never received other complaints about the man and teenage girls who were contacted said there were no truth to the allegations.

Dt Sgt Buckley said strategies employed by Egan included sending letters containing false allegations against professional people to the Minister for Justice, GSOC, the Garda Commissioner and RTE. She also defamed individuals on social media.

He said among her false allegations was that a man had raped and sexually assaulted her on 17 to 20 occasions between 1998 and 2000.

She also made a complaint to gardai in 2019 that two named men and a man with a tribal tattoo and black mark on his head had brought her to a hotel room with one man raping her. She claimed that another man videoed it and that the tape was with her solicitor in Belfast. The tape was never produced and the allegations were completely false.

Dt Sgt Buckley said that Egan falsely accused a politician of engaging in a verbal altercation at her home and putting a foot in her door leading her to fall and twist her leg. She falsely alleged that she was assaulted by the politician.

She went to gardai on numerous occasions between 2016 and 2020 to make false accusations about professional people. Often times she brought typed statements with her which were over 30 pages long. Dt Sgt Buckley said Egan falsely alleged sexual misconduct against a senior garda and wasted countless garda hours.

She waged a horrific campaign against a diligent and professional garda member who she targeted with vile allegations.

Dt Sgt Buckley said Egan claimed that the senior garda had threatened to kill her or to see her go to prison by whatever he means.

Egans counsel Ronan Munro SC said that the guilty plea in the case had spared the victims the upset of giving evidence in what would have been a complex and long trial.

The court heard that the offences committed were all contrary to Section 12 of the Criminal Law Act 1979 and carried a maximum penalty of five years.

Mr Munro said that he had been instructed by Egan to apologise for her actions. He said that he was entering a formal retraction on behalf of his client who accepted that there was no factual basis to her allegations.

He submitted a psychological report on Egan where she was described as being a compulsive liar. She was given a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder.

Mr Munro said his client had a huge fear of abandonment and a fragile sense of self. He added that her appallingly dysfunctional and destructive behaviour had led her to lose her liberty.

She has hit rock bottom. She needs court mandated psychotherapy (upon her release from prison).

Judge Staines jailed Egan for six years suspending the last two years of the sentence on condition that she attend psychotherapy upon her release from prison. She was also ordered not to have any contact with the injured parties in the case following her release from custody.
A screengrab of an asylum seeker encampment off Sandwith Street in Dublin after part of it was set alight

The Government and Gardai have agreed to prioritise sourcing of accommodation for asylum seekers who are being forced to sleep on the streets.

In the wake of violent protests in Dublin last weekend, Justice Minister Simon Harris and Equality Minister Roderic O'Gorman met with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, Deputy Commissioner Anne Marie McMahon, and Angela Willis, Assistant Commissioner for the Dublin Metropolitan Region on Thursday.

A spokesperson for Mr Harris said after the meeting: The Ministers thanked An Garda Siochana for their work in policing a number of incidents in recent weeks, and reassured the Commissioner of the Government's ongoing support for their work.

"The Ministers and Commissioner agreed that finding accommodation for currently unaccommodated International Protection applicants is an absolute priority for the safety of the individuals involved.

"The ongoing liaison between An Garda Siochana and the Government on the provision of accommodation was discussed.

"The Ministers and Commissioner recommitted themselves to further develop on this, including at a local level. The Commissioner told the Ministers that a number of investigations are underway into recent incidents and that these are live and active."

It came after Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said a "number of actions" are being taken to combat far-right groups travelling around the country, following recent protests around refugee accommodation.

In Dublin, makeshift camps for homeless migrants were targeted in two protests last Friday and Saturday.

Tents used by some of the migrants were later dismantled and set alight on Friday night.

Gardai have responded to 125 anti-migration protests in Dublin so far this year, according to Minister for Justice Simon Harris.

Mr Varadkar said it was "difficult" as Ireland is a democracy where people have the right to free speech and peaceful protest.

He said: "While sometimes we may not like protests, or not like what people have to say, it is better to be in a country where people have the right to protest and the right to free speech."

He added: "Probably the best thing we can do is for those of us in positions of responsibility to speak up and to explain what's happening here, to talk to communities to give them reassurance, because the best way to counter disinformation is information.

"The best way to counter hate is with facts and positive feeling and reassurance."

Elsewhere, he said the Garda Commissioner has given an assurance that gardai have operational integrity around policing or managing protests.

Mr Varadkar added: "We have the legislation that's going through now on regulating social media, which I discussed earlier with the new online Safety Commissioner and the broadcasting regulator Coimisiun na Mean.

"On top of that, we're updating our laws around incitement of hatred and hate speech. "

Mr Harris said the recent protests "went further" than past demonstrations.

He added: "We should never allow the far-right to conflate issues.

"There have been things that I would never call protests that I think, well, cross the line of what a protest is."

He said there are additional vulnerabilities when tented accommodation is involved.

Mr Harris said gardai had made arrests and prosecuted people that have organised events that he claimed go "beyond protests".

"So the gardai have taken action," he said.

"I can absolutely say this with certainty from security briefings and others that I receive that we are seeing a relatively small number of bad actors, far-right activists, call them what you wish, who do travel from location to location around the country, who do whip up fear and who do prey on vulnerability.

"And there is a world of difference between that activity and the genuine questions that people can have about their own community which is entirely appropriate.

"But I am extremely satisfied that the Garda Commissioner is taking that situation very, very seriously."
Polling stations across Northern Ireland have opened for voting in local government elections

Polling stations across Northern Ireland have opened their doors to allow for ballots in the local government elections.

Voters will choose 462 councillors across 11 councils where 807 candidates are in contention until stations close this evening at 10pm.

Polling stations open for local government elections in Northern Ireland

The 11 local councils are responsible for a number of services, including waste collection, street cleaning, local planning, leisure services and parks.

Those wishing to cast a ballot will require photographic ID, including either a passport, driving licence (provisional accepted) bus passes and travel passes, while an Irish passport card is also accepted.

Thursdays voting uses the single transferable vote (STV) method meaning the ballot will require you rank candidates in order of preference using numbers  beginning with 1 and then 2 and so on.

However you can vote for as many or as few candidates as you like.

Party leaders are set to make appearances at polling stations to cast their ballots throughout the day.

The DUP is currently the largest party in local government with 122 councillors and is running 152 candidates this time.

Sinn Fein who will be hoping replicate their assembly election results from last year are fielding 162 candidates.

Alliance is running 110 candidates across the 11 council areas while the Ulster Unionist Party is running 101 candidates.

The nationalist SDLP is running 86 candidates in this election and the TUV has 46 candidates.

The Green Party has 37, Aontu has 19 and People Before Profit has 16 while a number of smaller parties and independent candidates will also contest the election.

Counting begins on Friday morning and is expected to last into Saturday afternoon.
Taoiseach plans to contact victims family today as he condemns nasty assault video

A still from the viral video showing the attack on the boy in Navan

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has urged the parents of those involved in an attack on a teenage schoolboy in Navan to act and take responsibility for what happened.

The attack, which took place on Monday afternoon, was filmed and has gone viral on social media, in a move described as particularly nasty by the Taoiseach.

He said he planned to reach out to the family of the victim today and urged the parents of the perpetrators to act and take responsibility because those involved were easily identified.

School psychologists are supporting pupils in a school today in the wake of the attack that left the teenage boy with serious facial injuries following the assault by fellow students.

The assault did not happen on school grounds but occurred as the teenager was walking across a nearby green.

Beaufort College in Navan has confirmed it has initiated significant disciplinary procedures against a number of students in relation to the attack.

Representatives of the school patron body have also visited the housing estate where the assault took place.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) is also on the ground supporting students amid concern about the impact of incident on the schools almost 800 pupils.

Mr Varadkar said he was appalled by the incident, adding: It seems to me that a young man was targeted essentially because he was different and was subjected to a very violent assault.

"Whats worse still is that people felt the need to video it and then put it online.

It takes a particular type of person to post pictures and videos of someone with the purpose of humiliating them  a particularly nasty type of person does that type of thing  and then to see bystanders not only not trying to help but actually joining in, so it was particularly hard to watch.

"My sympathies go to the young man and his family. Im going to reach out to them myself now today  Minister Harris has already [done so].

"I think there is a real issue here of parental responsibility. Those young people are easily identified, those parents know who they are and they need to act and take responsibility for this as well.

"When it comes to social media companies, there is responsibility there too.

He said the new Coimisiun na Mean would strengthen our powers to require social media platforms to take down content like this quickly, to suspend accounts of people who disseminate it and also very strong fines that we can impose on social media companies as well. So, that is all coming. Self-regulation is at an end.

Education Minister Norma Foley, who spoke to the schools principal, Ken Flynn, by phone today described the attack as nothing short of shocking and appalling.

Speaking to journalists on a visit to Co Clare today, Ms Foley said: It is wholly unacceptable that it should have happened. It is a sad, sad day to see something like this happen.

The minister said she met young people all the time and spent many years working with them, and this is not a reflection of who they are. This not who we are as a country.

Ms Foley said she hoped the teen victims recovery would be speedy.

Ms Foley said her department would not be found wanting in relation to whatever supports he may need going forward, such as from school psychologists.

Meanwhile, speaking on behalf of Beaufort College, Brian Murphy, of Louth Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB), said it was awaiting the outcome of due process in relation to the disciplinary procedures.

It would be inappropriate to comment further at this juncture, he said.

He said LMETB representatives had also visited the housing estate where the incident occurred.

For the avoidance of doubt, the incident did not occur on school grounds but rather occurred on a green area in an adjacent housing estate, he said.

Mr Murphy said LMETB and school management had made the services of NEPS available to the school, while guidance and counselling staff employed by LMETB are also providing support and assistance on an ongoing basis

Department of Education inspectors are also liaising with LMETB and offering support in dealing with the aftermath of the attack.

Earlier, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar made an emotional appeal to those who have a hard time in school following the incident, telling them it gets better.

He said today he would have some insight into what it's like not to be the popular kid in school.

Asked whether he had a personal response to the incident, the Taoiseach said: I grew up in 1980s/1990s Ireland."

"I had a great childhood  but ultimately I was the brown guy with a funny name who a lot of people suspected might be gay.

All Id say to the young man that was in that video I really feel for him.

Mr Varadkar said he hoped those who had a hard time in school or were struggling would learn that life does get better.

You get to go to college, you get to spend time with people who are much more like you, he said.

The Taoiseach has also described the incident as horrific.

He added: I really want to send my solidarity out to the person who was harmed and injured in this way.

I would say to them that life does get better. It is very sad that people experience violence and bullying in school, but life does get better and Id say not to give up.

As gardai investigate the attack, they have requested people to refrain from sharing the viral video of the assault out of respect for the victim.

The Taoiseach told Claire Byrne on RTE Radio One that social media companies had a significant role to play in monitoring such content and cancelling the accounts of people who post and repost things like this.

Justice Minister Simon Harris also condemned the attack as unacceptable and said it should not happen to any person.

A spokesperson for Mr Harris confirmed the minister had spoken to the teenagers family last night.

"The minister shared his horror at the very brutal attack the young man endured.

"There is ongoing garda investigation under way. However, it is clear the young man suffered significant injuries from a co-ordinated attack.

"That is unacceptable and should not happen to any person.

In a statement, gardai confirmed they were investigating Mondays assault.

"A male juvenile later attended Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda where he received treatment for serious facial injuries, the Garda Press Office stated.

"An Garda Siochana is aware of a video circulating on social media of this incident and, out of respect for the victim, has requested that people refrain from sharing it.

Senators talk about shocking video of teen attack circulating on social media

Gardai are appealing to any person with information on the assault to contact Navan Garda Station at 046 9079930.

The school attended by the students, Beaufort College, Navan, can be identified by the uniform worn by those involved in the incident.

The co-educational, multi-denominational school has about 790 pupils.
Protesters have legitimate concerns, say local politicians

Integration Minister Roderic OGorman has rejected the concerns of Government backbench TDs and senators as he insisted asylum-seekers would be accommodated at a centre in Inch, Co Clare.

Local coalition politicians have refused to condemn the protest and backed the views of their constituents. Some politicians have also called for an end to the blockade.

Mr OGorman said the blockade outside the former Magowna House Hotel and reports of protesters boarding buses to count the numbers of asylum-seekers were entirely unacceptable.

I accept people and recognise absolutely that people have the right to protest. I think in terms of the blockade, that goes far beyond what I think is acceptable, it is interfering with peoples ability to be accommodated, he said.

Locals block access to accommodation provided for asylum seekers in Co Clare

Often I know people have preconceptions about international protection applicants. I think often when they meet after accommodation has been established for a while, I think those preconceptions fall away.

He said reports of protesters boarding a bus leaving the accommodation centre and counting the number of people on board were absolutely unacceptable.

Fianna Fail TD Cathal Crowe said locals had legitimate concerns that had been well expressed at meetings.

I dont agree with the approach at the road at the moment, he said.

I wouldnt call it necessarily a blockade  when I was there it wasnt a blockade. I dont think the prolongation of that is feasible. I think this thing needs to very quickly move into the realm of meetings and dialogue.

His party colleague Senator Timmy Dooley said he would not demonise anyone.

People have their concerns and fears, he said.

Its our job as politicians to allay their concerns and fears. What other people think of their concerns and fears is really not relevant, these are the people who are in the area who need engagement.

My ambition is to try and work with the local people, try to get to a situation where the protests and the blockades can be lifted.

Green Party Senator Roisin Garvey told RTE radio she could not say people in the blockade are right or wrong.

If people have genuine fears, thats what theyll do. Im not saying they are right or wrong in this instance, if people feel thats what they need to do, she said.

There is a fear of the unknown but I dont know how we can do it differently because it is such an emergency situation.

However, last night, Senator Garvey called for an end to the blockade on Twitter, saying everyone has the right to protest.

No-one should be mounting a blockade of a refugee centre, she said.

Clare-based Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway called for an immediate end to the protest.

The blockade is wrong and should be abandoned immediately. I support legitimate protest and there are ways and means of protesting, he said.

But you cannot blockade people from going to where they are living.

Ennis councillor Mary Howard told RTE she believed it would be very difficult to find a resolution to end the protests and said the accommodation was unsuitable and located too far from the nearest town.

More than 30 asylum-seekers arrived at the hotel in recent days and the Government moved to clarify they were staying in three holiday homes beside the former Magowna House Hotel.

Mr OGorman insisted that, in light of the pressure that the system is on right now, the accommodation at Magowna House must be used.

Meanwhile, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has suggested that Irelands social supports for asylum-seekers could soon be aligned with the rest of the EU so there is no pull factor for them to apply for international protection in this country.

Speaking as he left a two-day Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, he said: What were trying to do when it comes to the kind of support and offering that we have (in Ireland) is to align them with other European countries so that theyre roughly the same.
These days, entrepreneurs come in every shape and from every walk of life. People that have successful businesses arent waltzing around in high power suits and working in the city. Theyre like Joe Soap on the streets, says Simon Atkins, who sets out to prove it with Prime Videos newest business reality show.

Ready Set StartUP sees 10 early-stage entrepreneurs battle it out for a 100,000 (115,000) investment prize. Along the way, theyll be guided and mentored by industry experts and assisted in making their innovative business ideas a reality.

At the helm of the show is Simon Atkins, a 34-year-old Co Mayo native who is both its host and executive producer, and is hoping to break new ground with the shows format. When you think of business TV, the likes of Dragons Den and The Apprentice likely come to mind. The latter Atkins admits is undoubtedly popular, but its time for a new player to enter the boardroom.

The Apprentice is amazing, he says but when people go on these days, is it for the job with Alan Sugar? Or because they want to get famous? I dont know. This [show] is more about empowering young people to take control of their own lives.

The show was initially filmed in London in 2020, in the height of one of the hottest summers during the pandemic. The challenges ranged from keeping the cast and crew safe to ultimately producing a series that wouldnt be a Covid show, Atkins says, which meant somehow omitting masks and the precautions taken from view.

Another challenge for the show was that the company who make it, Pictures in Motion, was a start-up, too. Essentially, Atkins says, I was making a show about entrepreneurs while becoming an entrepreneur myself. Its been a real real labour of love.

Something that gives the show a freshness is its contestants, who are younger and more international than normally seen in the industry. Theyre young, theyre characters. Theyre ambitious, and theyre trying to find their way and find their own feet in entrepreneurship, Atkins says. Plus, they come from all over, with participants from Australia, Argentina, and of course, Ireland.

Irishman Shalom Osiadi comes bearing his innovative food delivery start-up, and without giving too much away, gets on quite well, Atkins admits. One of the judges is also Irish  businessman Eamonn Carey.

When we were casting we just wanted to make sure that it really represented not just the UK but a wide range of people from different places, Atkins says.

What he hopes for most of all, though, is that young people will relate to this series and think, you know, maybe I could actually do what theyre doing

And if the roles were to be reversed, what would Atkins himself pitch? Itd be something in the clothes arena or male grooming arena. Theres a lot of stuff out there for women but like, what about our stylish men that dont want to pay thousands of pounds for a suit? he laughs, maybe next season.

Ready Set StartUP is available to stream on Prime Video now.
Vintage Jaguar E-Types will be taking part in the run

Funky by name and funky by nature  welcome to Chinese brand Oras fabulous entry into the electric car market in Ireland.

Joining its country cousins MG and BYD (Build Your Dreams) this debutante is the latest model to join the Red revolution  namely to bring reasonable-priced EVs to the masses.

Looking like a cross between a VW Beetle and an Opel Adam, this cheeky little imp is hoping to live up to the brands name (which stands for Open, Reliable and Alternative).

Its too early to say, but judging by the reaction of the public, its halfway there already.

It certainly has the cutesy wow-factor and no matter where you pulled up to, curious crowds would approach to enquire about it. 

Its hard not to fall in love with its wide-eyed almost smiley little face.

The two-tone paint job (especially the mesmerising Aurora Green on our test car) adds to the lure as does the snazzy five-spoke alloys and the unique lightbar embedded in the rear window.

The exclamation mark logo on the bonnet adds to the intrigue as does the fact that the words Funky Cat dont appear anywhere. Open the door and youll be instantly smitten by the glorious American-style two-tone finish (ours was a sumptuous burgundy and British racing green).

A minimalist, almost button-free cockpit showcases the technology on offer

The faux leather upholstery adds a real touch of luxury as does the quilted finish in the upper doors and the suede texture on the dash.

A minimalist, almost button-free cockpit showcases the technology on offer which is channelled through a dual -screen setup packed with detail.

The instrument panel is particularly busy with several bits of info, complete with 3-D graphics, vying for your attention. Some drivers may find it a tad overwhelming and it takes a while to get used to. The displays themselves need adjusting for night driving as the daytime setting is too bright, causing reflection blindspots on poorly lit roads.

Its also nigh on impossible to make any adjustments while on the move as a camera situated in the A-Pillar monitors the drivers every move and barks pay attention every time you look down.

Great stuff as you can never have enough safety and standard kit includes active cruise control, lane keep assist, blindspot detection and traffic jam assist  earning the Cat a 5-star NCAP rating.

The model line-up is simple and consists of two offerings  the entry-level 300 Pro, which boasts a range of 310kms and the 400 Pro+ which will cover 420kms (WLTP) on a single charge.

We tested the latter which gets the bigger 63kWh battery pack (the 300 Pro comes with a 48kWh unit) and both are hooked up to a powerful electric motor on the front axle which generates 171bhp. Both units are capable of charging at up to 67kWh which will see it juice up from 15-80pc in 45 minutes while a standard street charge will take around three-and-a-half hours.

Drive-wise, the Funky Cat is remarkably refined and wafts around town in serene silence. Drop the hammer and this little machine can fairly shift  hitting 0-100kph in just over eight seconds. It proved supremely comfortable on the motorway and even at higher speeds of around 120kph there was little road noise in the cabin.

The real-life range was superb too and on several long trips we easily managed 320kms plus  not bad when you consider 80pc of that was motorway driving.

All in all the Funky Cat is a pretty impressive first offering and is decently kitted out for the price which starts at 31,995, rising to 39,995 including grants.

The DS7 SUV

Flagship DS7 SUV gets chic new look

Nothing screams style and sophistication quite like a DS and the flagship 7 is oozing it from every pour.

Launched in 2017 as the Crossback, the mid-sized SUV has been treated to a major mid-life refit and has now dropped its birth name.

Simply badged as the DS7, it is clearly taking design cues from its sibling, the DS4  especially the new front.

Sporting a gargantuan piano-black grille and slimmer headlights, they both draw attention to the stunning LED light veils that sweep down like tears to the lower bumper.

The five vertical bars bend in an arrow shape pointing to the DS logo in the centre.

At the rear its a similar affair with thinner clusters with diamond cut effect, which in turn showcase the new bootlid and fresh logos.

The new range will come in three trim levels  Performance Line, Rivoli and Opera  and are loaded with kit including 21-inch rims.

The DS7 SUV's sumptuous interior

Irish customers can choose between four powertrains, with three E-Tense plug-in hybrid versions and one diesel. Power outputs range from 225-360bhp plus the option of all-wheel drive.

All petrol plug-ins come with a 14.2 kWh battery that enables all-electric driving for up to 57 km (WLTP) and charging takes around one hour and 45 minutes from a domestic wall box.

Night vision can detect cyclists, pedestrians and animals at distances up to 100 metres in the dark.

The new DS7 is available from DS Store, Dublin now. Prices start at 50,390.

Precious metal on show in Retro Cannonball

Vintage Jaguar E-Types will be taking part in the run

Retro Cannonball will take place in the sunny south east on May 26-27, starting in Wexford and finishing in Offaly.

The classic car extravaganza which is raising money for the Jack & Jill Foundation will showcase some rare metal including several Jaguar E-Types.

Ferrari will be well represented with a number of 348 GTS. There will also be some beautiful Mercedes-Benz SL classics, a Lancia Beta, a BMW 635CSI, a Porsche 911 Carrera, a 911 Targa, an MG Midget, a Ford Escort Cosworth, an American Corvette, a classic VW Beetle, a Ford Thunderbird, a Mini Cooper and many more.

Billed as a more laid-back experience for both drivers and spectators, this two-day event will see the convoy stop at the Haven Hotel in Dunmore East, Waterford, the Radisson Blu Hotel in Little Island Cork, the Bru Boru Heritage Centre in Cashel and then up through the Hidden Heartlands for a big finish in Tullamore.

See www.cannonball.ie for details.
A stay at The Galmont in Galway leads our writer to a surprising adventure on Inis Mor...

With the tours, the duo hope to encourage more slow tourism in the island

The tour takes visitors through parts of the island where films like The Banshees of Inisherin were shot

The cows on the island are grass fed and left to roam freely

The brothers walk their clients through the history and culture of the island

Youve not really seen the Aran Islands like this before, Padraig Hernon says as we cut through the steep mountain paths of Inis Mor in two big black Jeeps.

Brothers and secondary school teachers Padraig and Aonghus Hernon know the Co Galway island like the back of their hands. Coming from a long line of jarveys, or horse cart drivers, theyve worked with their father and grandfather before him in the tourism industry since the age of 15.

Three years ago, they set up the Aran Off-Road Experience to help visitors see the island the way they see it.

Were going off the beaten track and seeing parts of the island that you wouldnt otherwise, Padraig says.

The whole aim was to go back to the idea of slow tourism  to slow down the experience for the visitor and see more than the main attractions and get into destinations where you can really see the essence of the island.

I met the brothers as part of a stay at the Galmont Hotel. Pitching itself to guests as your personal tourist office, its team can recommend and help book all kinds of insider experiences in Galway city and beyond.

The Galmont in Galway

The four-star is perched over Galway Bay just a quick walk away from Eyre Square. After arriving, we grabbed lunch at Marinas Restaurant  where dishes such as wild Atlantic salmon and slow-cooked Irish beef made with locally sourced ingredients can be paired with an extensive wine and cocktail list.

Through the hotels team, guests can book local experiences ranging from Corrib river cruises to city sightseeing  and so the next day I joined a group taking Aran Island Ferries (you can also travel to the islands from Doolin, Rossaveal, or even book a flight with Aer Arann Islands).

On Inis Mor, the Hernons have replaced the horse carts with converted Land Rover Defenders  the only tourism vehicle that can access roads of the island that are unspoilt from a century ago. We slip away from the crowds and onto roads familiar from films such as The Banshees of Inisherin  they even show us the remains of one of the little thatched cottages that the lead stars Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell walked in and out of.

The brothers walk their clients through the history and culture of the island

Were surrounded by stunning views of the smaller Aran Islands  Inis Oirr and Inis Meain  and the sea spreading around them. As we make our way, Aonghus swerves the Land Rover through a narrow bend that he jokingly calls the M1: This is our main highway. If you see any big vehicles coming the other way, breathe in and close your eyes!

Theres nothing out here but stone, he says. Before we had commercial fishing or tourism, men and women of the island spent their whole lives trying to build this land with seaweed and sand from the sea. On the south side, we have a big cliff that shelters mainland Ireland from the Atlantic. If you get hit by storms on the mainland, its twice as bad here.

The brothers jump out of the vehicle at certain locations  walking visitors through the history and culture of the Islands. We stop and trek towards Poll na bPeist, or The Wormhole. A naturally created phenomenon on the islands, this gaping hole on the edge of the cliff was made popular lately by Red Bulls World Cliff Diving Series. The brothers dont encourage swimming on their tours, however, and they request their guests to look over the cliffs as safely as possible

Azmia Riaz and a friend during the Off Road Experience

We make a stop at the renowned Dun Aonghasa. Its an amazing prehistoric Celtic fort that has stood here for more than 3,000 years  its the oldest monument that stands on these islands, Aonghus says.

The path is dotted with hazelnut bushes and miles of limestone. We see little troughs on either side that have been set up to catch the rain.

We need a lot of rainwater out here because it doesnt rain every day  it keeps the animals going. There are no dairies here, we have three old fellas who milk the cows. Each family would have seven to eight cows at most and they stay outside all year feeding on grass. Theyre all organic  there are no mad cows in Aran, they only eat what theyre supposed to, Aonghus says.

The brothers shout quick notes to each other in Irish as they guide us in groups. If their guests speak as Gaeilge, theyre more than happy to sprinkle some Irish into the guided walks.

A lot of our culture has been preserved on the islands  Irish is still the living language for most of us. More than the language  the culture, the old style of music, sean-nos singing and the traditions are what were really proud of. Both my brother and I are raising our children to speak Irish, says Padraig who teaches Irish and history to students in Inis Mor.

Enjoying the outdoor hot tub at The Galmont

Its a beautiful place to grow up. It has an atmosphere thats welcoming and you can de-stress in the amazing scenery; youll have this new sense of freedom. For all my siblings and anyone else who grew up here, the sense of freedom and being one with nature is difficult to replicate anywhere else.

After a long day of exploring the islands, I was thankful for The Galmonts Spirit One Spa. It wasnt hard to unwind  as theres a large heated pool, a sauna, jacuzzi or a hot tub to dip your toes into. If youve really worn yourself out, the spa also offers massages and targeted treatments.

There couldnt have been a better way to end a trip that took me deep inside one of our most beautiful islands.

How to do it

Marina's restaurant at The Galmont

Azmia travelled as a guest of the Galmont Hotel. thegalmont.com

Stays at the Galway four-star, including B&B, a three-course meal from the table d'hote menu in Marinas Restaurant, and access to the leisure centre with swimming pool, gym, sauna, jacuzzi and outdoor hot tub, start from 248 per room.

The hotel can make suggestions on things to do and arrange bookings for experiences such as visits to the Aran Islands or city sightseeing tours, a Corrib Princess River Cruise and more (prices extra).

For more on the Aran Off-Road Experience, see aranoffroadexperience.ie
There are over 35,700 Starbucks stores worldwide  but can the company make inroads in Italy?

The mega coffee chain opened its first location in the historical centre of the Italian capital last week - one of 25 Starbucks in the country since the Seattle-based company entered the market in 2018.

The newest Starbucks in Rome, a finely decorated two-floor store in Montecitorio near the Italian parliament, was inaugurated under an uncharacteristically rainy May sky.

As journalists and influencers roamed the floors, bartenders and waiters were still coming to terms with the challenging task of bridging the gap between hardly compatible cafe cultures.

Not unlike students before a test, baristas were asking each other questions, crucially trying to figure out how to translate Starbucks-ese into Italian.

"How am I going to explain to customers that our 'mocha' is a chocolate-infused beverage, when 'moka' is a traditional Italian caffe?" one bartender asked another.

"There's bound to be some confusion . . . like with latte, which is not the Italian caffe latte, but something else entirely."

Starbucks's new Rome location. Photo: Starbucks   Handout

Coffee culture in Italy is vastly different to that in the US, where Starbucks originated in 1971.

Cold brews are an oddity, so you can imagine how a strawberry creme frappuccino might be received by locals. Cafes rarely have bar counters, since Italians usually quickly down their morning espressos.

As then-Washington Post Rome bureau chief Chico Harlan wrote in 2019: "They tend to offer pastries in the morning - sometimes homemade, often not - and stock alcohol for the 5pm crowd.

"Without much fuss, they serve up espresso shots that are bitter and strong. They seldom have WiFi. They do not welcome laptop workers."

As of October 2 last year, according to its 2022 Annual Report, there are 35,711 Starbucks stores worldwide  18,253 are company-operated and the rest licensed stores.

The company plans to open two more locations in Rome's Termini train station by the end of the month. Last year, Starbucks opened a store in an outlet mall in the greater Rome area.

Starbucks also operates in Milan and Verona, where founder Howard Schultz first encountered Italian coffee culture in 1983, the company said in a news release.

The cafe serves cornetti, the Italian version of a croissant normally eaten in the morning, along with their caffe or cappuccino. But it mostly offers American sweets and treats, like carrot cakes, muffins and brownies.

Starbucks announced earlier this year that it was introducing a new line in an effort to attract Italians, combining two quintessential ingredients: olive oil and coffee, dubbing the drink the "oleato" - after the Italian word for oil.
ICONIC music chain HMV is set to make an Irish comeback when it opens its first store here in almost a decade this summer.

The popular music lovers retailer of the 1980s, 1990s and noughties has announced that the new flagship shop will be located at its old address at 18 Henry Street in Dublin by mid-July.

It will be the first big store to open outside the UK under new ownership.

The new owner, Canadian entrepreneur Doug Putman of Sunrise Records, promises there will be live music and signings by some of the countrys biggest artists and global stars.

In the last year, Charli XCX, Stormzy, Shania Twain, Raye and Ellie Goulding have made appearances at its UK stores.

Staff at the new 6,000 square foot Dublin premises, which will be let from Irish Life, will sell vinyl albums, CDs, music technology and pop culture merchandise and there will be performance spaces.

There may be more new outlets to come as Mr Putman hopes further shop openings will follow.

It is a major reversal in fortunes for the well-known music brand that closed with the loss of 300 jobs when it went into receivership in 2013. Thousands of consumers were left with worthless gift vouchers.

Although some stores later reopened, the business scaled back completely in 2016 to just a digital service, before pulling out of the country completely.

High rents and a freefall in CD and DVD sales due to competition from web-based retailers and digital downloads eventually left it bankrupt.

Our return to Ireland marks the culmination of the teams hard work having established a new HMV shopping experience across the UK, said Doug Putman.

We want Henry Street to become a home for a new community of fans to come together.

Managing director Phil Halliday told the Irish Independent it was a lovely coincidence that HMV is moving back to its former Henry Street premises, with an opening date tentatively set for June 30. This could stretch to early July, depending on the time it takes to refit the three-storey property.

We are raring to go. Weve been trying to get back. Dublin has been top of our list of places to get back to, he said.

We expect it to be a really high-performing store, with plenty of customers through the door. The culture of Ireland is filled with iconic, established musical acts, so there will be a lot of those localised aspects to the store. Local artists will be able to come and play well be embedding ourselves in the local creative community.

He drew a line under the retailers 2016 Irish exit, pointing to its success since it was rescued from administration in 2019 by billionaire Putmans Sunrise Records.

Putman is a vinyl record enthusiast who is known for reviving unloved brands including Canadas largest toy chain Toys R Us.

The HMV brand, famous for its dog and trumpet trademark, was founded in 1921 when its first store in Oxford Street in London was officially opened by the composer Sir Edward Elgar. In 1962, Beatles manager Brian Epstein made a demo at the stores recording studio, which marked the start of the bands massive success. Over the years, famous shoppers have included Michael Jackson and it once hosted a rooftop gig by Blur.

In November 2004, U2 fan Martin Shanahan queued for three days outside HMV Grafton Street, to be the first person in the world to buy the bands albumHow to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.
Breaching 1.5C threshold likely to bring catastrophic weather events, World Meteorological Organisation report forecasts

Escalating climate change threatens the survival of polar bears in the Arctic. Photo: Reuters   via REUTERS

It is now almost certain that the next five years will be the warmest on record  and Ireland will not be immune to the consequences.

The latest report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) forecasts a 98pc chance that 2023-2027 will bring new temperature highs.

For those concerned with climate, the health of the planet and all the life on it, that represents a whole new set of lows.

This will have far-reaching repercussions for health, food, security, water management and the environment, said WMO secretary-general, Petteri Taalas.

We are entering uncharted territory, he said. We need to be prepared.

Uncharted it may be, but not unforeseen.

Countless warnings had been given that the global temperature was rising and that it would breach the feared 1.5C threshold sooner rather than later if greenhouse gas emissions were not dramatically cut.

Now that point is rapidly approaching. The WMO says it is likely (it has been given a 66pc chance) that 1.5C will be exceeded for at least one year between now and 2027.

At 1.5C, scientists say, climate change will begin to escalate with a speed and ferocity that will make it even more difficult to rein in and roll back.

It is hoped the excess heat will be temporary, fuelled in the short-term by the transient El Nino climate pattern that comes and goes every few years, inflating temperatures during its stay.

That could mean some breathing space remains to get control of the situation, but the speed at which control has been lost is remarkable.

In 2015, when world leaders signed the Paris Agreement, vowing to do everything necessary to keep global warming to 1.5C, the chance of temporarily exceeding that point was zero.

For the years 2017-2021, the likelihood was measured at 10pc. At 66pc now, the odds have taken a giant leap in the wrong direction.

WMO is sounding the alarm that we will breach the 1.5C level on a temporary basis with increasing frequency, Prof Taalas said.

The logical outcome is that some day, the temporary breaches will join up and become permanent.

What makes these forecasts all the more alarming is that El Ninos opposite number, La Nina, dominated in recent years but despite its cooling effect, these years were the warmest on record.

Another alarming element is that the forecast is for almost the entire world, with limited exceptions. 

The Arctic region is an exception, but not in any good way. The temperature anomaly there is expected to be three times the global average.

Met Eireann climatologist Paul Moore drilled down into the forecast for more specifics relating to Ireland.

The signal for above-average temperatures is very strong pretty much everywhere, including us, he said.

The confidence in the rainfall forecast is lower, particularly in Ireland because we are so influenced by the Atlantic.

However, he found an outlook for western and northern Europe that suggests colder, wetter winters for Ireland over the next five years and warmer, drier summers.

In the winters theres definitely a signal for above-average rainfall, he said. Thats a continuation of some of the trends weve seen in recent years.

In the past five years we had about 3pc more rainfall than average and over the years 1991-2020, rainfall was 7pc higher than over the previous 30 years.

El Nino is not expected to take effect until late summer, and then there is usually a lag of three to six months before its full impact on temperatures is evident.

However, already this year, parts of the world are suffering soaring temperatures far above normal.

Areas of North America are already in heatwave before the summer has even begun.

Closer to home, drought and high temperatures are causing severe hardship for farmers, industry and communities in France and Spain.

Large swathes of Spain have been put under a severe risk of fire warning. In Catalonia, in the north-east of the country, a very extreme classification was applied. It doesnt get higher.

The search for one small positive to take away from the report led to the forecast for higher-than-average rainfall in the Horn of Africa.

Given the deadly drought that has killed millions in the region in the past three years, that sounds like good news.

La Nina definitely had a big impact there so the switch to El Nino could well bring rain, said Mr Moore.

But then it could lead to drought in other parts, such as Australia.

There is no real good news.

As the report was being digested, Environment Minister Eamon Ryan was appearing before the Oireachtas Transport Committee to discuss plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the sector.

He noted with concern the WMO report and the urgency that it placed on everyone to turn plans into action.

The risk of reaching tipping points means we have to do everything we can in every sector to play our part, he said.
The graves of hundreds of mostly unnamed civilians, killed by Russian forces, near Brovary, east of Kyiv. Photo: AP   AP

Who would have thought it  the Russian bear fought to a standstill by a country it hoped to hammer into submission? Who could have predicted a former comedian would become a great wartime leader?

But the one-time funnyman  his features these days ravaged by the blood-soaked reality of death and destruction  knows a moment of destiny is at hand.

Volodymyr Zelensky was in London earlier this week, in yet another visit to a foreign capital, as he hustles and harries for military hardware anywhere he can get it.

Zelensky and his generals know time is not on their side.

In contrast, Putin and his Kremlin power brokers have less to lose by allowing the fighting to drag on and on. For is this not the great lesson of Russian history? Let the enemy wear itself out. Did not Russias vast hinterland  its huge population and unforgiving climate  break the spirit of Napoleon and Hitler?

In the modern era, Moscow is of course facing unique challenges  such as disgruntled public opinion.

Many Russian citizens clearly see this war as pointless and unnecessary. Vladimir Putin is fully aware that an endless stream of body bags pose a risk to his regime. But as of now, all the signs are he will sit and wait  hoping an endless vista of conflict will psychologically break his enemy.

For their part, Ukrainian leaders are desperate that their long-awaited counter-offensive  expected any day now  will force a major Russian rethink on the war.

Kyivs greatest fear is that public opinion in western countries, most crucially the US, will grow tired of it all. Support for another endless Vietnam-style conflict  soaking up more and more American resources  will wane with time.

Politicians follow popular opinion. This could, in the longer term, make various governments less committed to the supply of military aid to Ukraine  the lifeline that keeps the Russian army at bay.

On This Day In History - 18th May

And so, this imminent Ukrainian counter-attack is going to be the most important phase of this war.

Its basically Zelenskys chance to take the fight to the Russians. And if it goes well, its going to be an unprecedented setback for Putin.

More importantly, success on the battlefield will boost Ukrainian credibility in countries supplying it with military hardware. This in turn will incentivise governments to keep the aid flowing. They will see light at the end of the tunnel.

In expectation of the attack, the Russians are digging in on a massive scale. They currently control almost a fifth of Ukraine. As we see nightly on our TV screens, Kremlin forces are embedded right down Ukraines eastern flank. And they also hold Crimea.

If the Ukrainians fail to make real headway this summer, pressure will increase on Zelensky to enter peace talks. That could mean conceding territory to Moscow, particularly the already-occupied and Russian-speaking areas in the east.

Its difficult to see Putin ever giving up Crimea, a place which has almost a mystical hold on the Russian imagination.

For his part, Zelensky has repeatedly stated not an inch of Ukrainian territory will be conceded. But as with all wars  unless there is outright victory by one side over the other  there must be some horse-trading to bring it to an end.

Ukraine has amassed a huge armoury in recent months, ranging from German tanks to American rocket systems. The UK is sending cruise missiles, giving Kyiv long-range strike capacity for the first time.

But the biggest weakness for the Ukrainians is that its air force remains depleted. Lack of support from the west on this front is perplexing. It adds credence to the belief that those backing the Kyiv government remain uneasy about provoking the Russians too much.

In that sense, Zelensky and the men and women fighting for their homeland are on their own.

And all the while, a recent comment by an EU diplomat hovers over the battlefield.

Time is not on Ukraines side. Russia has the upper hand if its a long haul.
Billy Keane: Thank you, Ryan, you were the keeper and governor of our central bank of kindness
Hannah Waddingham was one of the few who could freely move her features   PA

Smooth-faced Martha Stewart looks super on the latest Sports IllustratedSwimsuit edition, which is out today.

But rather than break boundaries, this magazine cover just adds to the constant messaging that looking your age is shameful.

If they had a fit 81-year-old who had not zapped all her wrinkles, then that might have redefined what old age looks like  which I presume was their aim  but to me this cover says: Why would you live with wrinkles these days?

The pressure to look unwrinkled is not just felt by those in their mid-40s like me, but also for young men and women  or at least thats the take-away I got from the Eurovision.

If last Saturday night was a gauge of the future, then wrinkles are becoming unacceptable.

One of the three female hosts, the incredible Ted Lassostar Hannah Waddingham, really stood out as one of the few on stage freely moving her features. And she looked incredible  even with frown lines.

There were few acts able to move their foreheads, male and female.

The pressure is also on for men to look fresh  and maybe in the future you wont even be able to go bald in peace, even if you are just a normal civilian.

This thought occurred to me when a male doctor friend told me how a hair-implant clinic that opened in his county a few years ago is doing a roaring trade among his medical colleagues.

You dont need to be on TV or a social media influencer to feel you should get Botox. A female tech boss told me its now rare to see another female C-suite exec in their 40s or 50s without it. Its less frequent with men, but getting more common.

Predictions are that Botox sales will double in the next seven years. Research and Markets, a US firm of analysts, estimated the global market was worth $5.6bn in 2022 and predicted it would reach $11bn by 2030.

Thats scary.

It must be bad for us, this focus on keeping wrinkles at bay. And social media intensifies this feeling  influencers go without make-up from time to time to seem relatable, but few have wrinkles.

A book published last year  The Shame Machine, by Harvard mathematician and writer Cathy ONeil  is insightful in revealing how Big Tech is making use of shame to profit from human insecurities.

Cathy told me that preserving our youthful looks is like a technology we are addicted to.

I dont blame people for being hung up in that rat race, she said. Its reinforced constantly by these shame machines like Instagram that make us compare ourselves to others  and more importantly, to compare ourselves to ourselves.

When I was growing up I only had a scattering of pictures of myself from high school in a box that I looked back at every few years. But now folks that are 20-something or 30-something have a constant accessible minute-by-minute narrative of their looks, simply by having a mobile phone, she told me.

She pointed out the fact that, in Silicon Valley, some male software engineers in their 30s prepare for job interviews by getting Botox.

Silicon Valley has a hugely ageist culture, she said.

If you look to other cultures, where elders are considered wise, there is less Botox being used  but here young people are considered the ones with all the good ideas. This is not new, but now we have the ability to fake our age.

She says its important to distinguish between taking care of your health  which will make you feel better  and trying to preserve the fantasy that we dont age, which feels like a meaningless waste of time and emotions.

Im not saying everyone who does Botox is at risk of falling under that spell, but it feels that this striving to not allow yourself to wrinkle is leaning into mental health disorders  and its something completely manufactured and encouraged and monetised, she said.

Another reason Im wary of injectables is because I think medical professionals should stay focused on helping people with their health.

In Ireland only doctors and dentists can administer botulinum toxin, the medical term for Botox. Nurses can deliver dermal filler, tissue stimulators and other procedures. To become an aesthetic nurse, you need to do a four-year nursing degree and then get some adult nursing experience.

So if demand goes up in Ireland and more clinics open, this is going to be a big loss for our health system. And its not like we have any dentists and docs going spare. This will become a big issue.

Look, I get tempted too. Like when my daughter took a pic of me scowling at my phone in Bewleys coffee shop the other day. I felt sick looking at my cross-looking resting face. But then I reminded myself that theres nothing wrong with me.

I do feel we will come to our senses. That when my daughter grows up it will not be considered OK to get Botox in your 20s and 30s.

I love that Sarah Snook, who plays Shiv Roy in Succession,has not got Botox. She looks great, and her acting is extra believable. 

Sarah, who is now 34, spoke to Vogue Australiatwo years ago, talking about how every time she starts to think she should try to look like the movie star she would hope to become, she then catches herself.

And every time, Im like: Can I really be f***ed subscribing to an unrealistic beauty standard that then perpetuates and makes more women unhappy because they feel like they cant attain something thats not actually realistic anyway?

Hear, hear, Sarah. I remain hopeful.

But the truth is that if Martha had hung on to her wrinkles, then no way would she be on a magazine cover today in her togs.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is attending a Council of Europe summit meeting in Iceland today. The plan is to create a register of damages for those who have suffered from the ongoing war in Ukraine. This is an ah but what about? letter.

Of course, a damage register should be established for all conflicts, and those responsible for such damage, and related war crimes should be fully held to account.

It begs the question, why has there been no similar meetings to establish a damage register for the wars of aggression waged by the US and its Nato and other allies in Serbia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere?

And why has there been no accountability for the very serious war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the peoples of these non-European countries?

Up to five million people have died due to war-related reasons in these conflicts, and untold infrastructural and environmental problems have been caused by these unjustifiable wars.

The Council of Europe may well argue that its focus is primarily on Europe, but surely the United Nations and other international bodies such as the International Criminal Court should have initiated and carried out such a damage register.

Edward Horgan

Newtown, Castletroy, Limerick

Peddlers of toxic ideology and a twisted vision of Ireland

The burning of a makeshift refugee camp in Dublin represents a new low in the insidious growth of racism in Ireland. But its unfortunately a logical follow-on from the gradual ratcheting up of tensions by far-right and xenophobic groups that have sought to exploit the refugee crisis for their own political ends.

The daily non-stop attempts to foment suspicion and hatred of others entering our country to dilute our culture and ethnicity were bound to result in such a sinister act of violence against the most vulnerable in our midst.

In recent months the racist agitators have at times succeeded in re-packaging their hatred and prejudice to make them look more reasonable and maybe even mainstream in their ideological stance and political manoeuvrings.

But, sadly, no matter how clever their periodic PR makeovers, they remain people who judge their fellow human beings by the colour of their skin or their countries of origin. They need to be called out whenever and wherever they seek to peddle their toxic ideology and their wilful distortion of history, as, for example, when they refer to the arrival of migrants on our shores as a conquest like the one that resulted in our colonisation, or when they preach about a new plantation.

Past conquerors, be they Vikings, Normans, or Anglo-Saxons, came to plunder and enslave. Not so these people who are victims of tyranny or severely life-threatening situations, as distinct from conquerors or enemies. And theres a world of difference between the plantations of the past and people simply asking to be let live in peace, out of harms way.

The far right is far from right in its twisted vision of the kind of country most of us want to live in.

Lets give the red card to racism, and take our flag back from the xenophobes.

John Fitzgerald

Co Kilkenny

Disappointed at behaviour of a well-educated man

Having lived in England for many years, to say that I was appalled, shocked, disappointed and horrified at the behaviour of the Taoiseachs partner  a well-educated man  during the coronation of King Charles, is an understatement.

What an embarrassment to every single Irish person.

It was totally unacceptable  particularly so while accompanying the Taoiseach and representing our country at such a high-level state occasion, with so many people around the world watching.

To add insult to injury, to behave like this in a place of worship was unforgivable.

What sort of example is being set for young people when they see this sort of behaviour?

Where have manners, respect, dignity and decorum gone  or do they not count any more?

As usual in these matters, an apology is made after such lapses of judgment  as if that will resolve everything, but the damage is done.

Mrs AM Newby

Address with the Editor

The right man for the job? Why, a talking turkey

With so many names being bandied about for The Late Late Show, its only a matter of time before Dustin the Turkey throws his cap in the ring. Go on, ya good thing!

Tom Gilsenan

Beaumont, Dublin 9
Cllr calls for upgrading of outdated pedestrian crossings and traffic lights

Cllr Ian Doyle (FF) said up to 15,000 vehicles per day pass through Charlevilles busy Main Street.

THE second death of a pedestrian in Charleville in as many weeks has once again highlighted what a local Cork County Coincillor has said was the urgent need for new traffic calming measures along the towns busy Main Street.

Local woman and mother of four Margaret Lyons (72), died after being struck by a lorry shortly before 4pm on Monday afternoon. She is understood to have been the eighth person to have lost their lives in road traffic collisions in Charleville town over the past decade.

The tragic incident occurred close to the spot, in the vicinity of the AIB bank and town library, where 82-year-old father of three Patrick (Pat) Galvin from Newtownshandrum lost his life in an almost identical incident in April 28.

Gardai have issued an appeal for anyone who may have been in the vicinity around the time of last Mondays incident and may be able to assist them in their investigation to come forward.

Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and were travelling in the Main Street area of Charleville between 3:30pm and 4:00pm are also asked to make this footage available to Gardai, said a spokesperson.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Mallow Garda Station on 022 31450, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station, they added.

Just hours before last Mondays tragedy, which he described as almost a carbon copy of the incident that led to Mr Galvins death, Cllr Ian Doyle had highlighted the needs for improved pedestrian safety measures on the towns busy Main Street at a meeting of Cork County Councils northern area committee.

Cllr Doyle said the existing five pedestrian crossings in the town were clearly ineffective given the sheer volume of traffic passing through the town each day.

He further urged the local authority and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) to expedite plans for the proposed Charleville Relief Road.

Unfortunately, I am again raising this issue on the back of yet another fatal accident in Charleville, one of seven fatalities caused by similar incidents in the town over the past 10-years, said Cllr Doyle.

He said that while traffic volumes in the town had risen to more than 15,000 vehicles per day, at least three of the pedestrian crossings on the Main Street were outdated and badly in need of upgrading.

I am asking the council and TII to urgently put in new traffic calming measures such as realigning all five pedestrian crossings, tabletop ramps to slow down traffic and updated signage, said Cllr Doyle.

In addition, there are serious issues with the traffic lights at the crossings, which are antiquated and frequently not even working. They need to be upgraded to push button traffic lights, he added.

The second part of Cllr Doyles motion called for the immediate construction of a Charleville relief road, pointing out that plans for the road had been included in successive County Development Plans.

While I appreciate the N/M20 (Cork to Limerick project) is a hot topic at the it will assume to 20-years to come to fruition. In the meantime, I am asking that a relief road project be looked at again and put in place immediately, said Cllr Doyle.

He said the relief road would serve a dual purpose.

In addition to taking HGVs and heavy traffic out of the town centre, it would also free up 40-acres of land for badly need industrial development, he added.

Cllr Doyles comments received the support of council colleagues, including Cllr John Paul OShea (FG) who said it was crucial that immediate action was taken to control traffic coming through Charleville town.

Cllr Bernard Moynihan (FF) said the current situation in Charleville was absolutely crazy.

Like Cllr Doyle, I believe it will be years before the N/M20 project comes to fruition. In the meantime, Charleville desperately needs a relief road, as does Mallow said Cllr Moynihan.

Cllr Liam Madden (FG) said the debate raised the issue of safety along the entire length of the N20.

The N/M20 project really needs to be pushed along to bypass towns like Mallow, Charleville and Buttevant and improve the safety of junctions along the existing N20 route, said Cllr Madden.

Responding to Cllr Doyles motion Padraig Barrett, the director of roads services with Cork County Council wrote the authority would write to TII requesting a review of traffic calming measures in Charleville town centre and approach, including possible alternative routes for HGVs.
Art and Soul fair will include pieces by Banksy, Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst

Broken Heart by Patrick OReilly, priced at 45,000 will be among the sculptures on display during Art and Soul.

Best Night Ever by Bob Quill, priced at 47.000, will be among the sculptures on display during Art and Soul.   Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye

Luna Caprice by Ciacinto Bosco, priced at 79,000, will be among the sculptures on display during Art and Soul.

Freedom From The Treadmill , priced at 75,000, will be among the sculptures on display during Art and Soul.

THE spectacular surroundings of the Corks Castlemartyr Resort is set to host a stunning exhibition of works, valued at more than 7 million, created by some of the biggest names in global and Irish art.

Described by its curators, Irish exhibition gallery Gormleys, as Irelands biggest international art and sculpture fair, Art and Soul will run from May 27  June 8, featuring more than 200 individual works - with entry free to the public.

The highlight of the fair will be an outdoor exhibition featuring more than 80 sculptures and installations set amid the 17th century, 220-acre estate, featuring works by international artists alongside pieces by leading Irish sculptors Patrick OReilly, Ian Pollock, Eamonn Ceannt, John Fitzgerald, Anthony Scott and Orla De Bri.

The hotels interior will feature a display of more than 100 artworks by some of the worlds most renowned artists including Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Damien Hirst, Salvador Dali and Banksy.

Art and Soul will also include exhibitions by Andy Warhol and renowned Irish artists Martin Mooney, Maser, Peter Monaghan, Gordon Harris, and Stephen Forbes.

All of the artworks on display will be for sale, with prices ranging from 1,000 to an eye-watering 450,000.

The event will also feature a series of talks by featured artists and daily guided tour of the exhibition.

The Cork Art and Soul will be the eighth major art and sculpture event organised by Gormleys, who are experts in souring important Irish and international work for collectors, through their galleries in Belfast and Dublin.

Gormleys owner, Oliver Gormley, said they were anticipating major interest in the exhibition, the first they have held in the south of the country.

Building on the success of previous events, we are delighted to expand Art and Soul to Cork. It will offer art lovers a unique opportunity to view these incredible works of art in the beautiful surroundings of the Castlemartyr resort, said Mr Gormley.

Adults and children will enjoy the event equally, and our previous events in Russborough and the Culloden Hotel attracted over 10,000 visitors, he added.

The resorts general manager, Brendan Comerford, said they have been working closely with Gormleys to bring the exhibition to Castlemartyr.

We are delighted to be bringing this incredible event to Cork and are confident that visitors will truly appreciate the incredible collection of work and indeed the entire experience.

Art and Soul will be open to the public daily from 11am7pm.
Inshore Patrol Vessels will replace LE Orla and LE Ciara, which were decommissioned last year

The two newly delivered Irish Naval Service Inshore Patrol Vessels tied up on the dockside at the Navy base on Haulbowline. Photo: Gerard McCarthy.

Tanaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheal Martin, at the helm of one of the new Irish Naval Service IPVs, accompanied Commander Tony OLeary; Lieutenant General Sean Clancy, Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Jacqui McCrum, and Secretary General at the Department of Defence. Photo: Gerard McCarthy.

The newly purchased Irish Naval Inshore Patrol Vessels on the deck of the cargo ship Happy Dynamic passing Roches Point at the mouth of Cork Harbour following their , 35-day, 10,000 nautical mile voyage from New Zealand. Photo: Michael Mac Sweeney/Provision.

FOLLOWING an epic 35-day, voyage from New Zealand, the two newest ships to join the Irish naval fleet finally arrived into the Port of Cork.

The pair of Inshore Patrols Vessels (IPVs), were delicately lifted from the deck of the Dutch registered 15,000-ton heavy sea lift cargo ship Happy Dynamic following their 10,000-nautical mile journey and towed by tug into the Naval Base at Haulbowline ahead of going into service next year.

The two 55-metre, Lake-Class IPVs, formerly the HMNZS Rotoiti and Pukaki, were commissioned into the New Zealand Navy in 2010 and were withdraw from service in 2019 after being deemed surplus to requirements.

They were purchased by the State for 26 million last year in a deal that raised some eyebrows following a report in the New Zealand Herald that the ships had been deemed not for service and had been sitting idle for 18-months.

However, a deal was struck to buy the vessels on the condition that they first be brought up to a seagoing state.

They subsequently underwent a year-long overhaul to being them up to operational seaworthiness standards and modified to meet specific Irish Naval Service requirements.

The refitting and modification of the vessels, which included a comprehensive series of upgrades, was undertaken by the New Zealand Defence Force and their contractors and overseen by the Irish Department of Defence and Naval Service.

They have fully automated control and navigation systems, powerful engines capable of reaching speeds of up to 25 knots (46 kph), modern communications & surveillance systems and active stabilisers. They are also equipped with a part of RHIBs (Rigid Hill Inflatable Boats) for boarding operations and surveillance.

The Naval Service said vessels, which have a core complement of 20 crew members and up to 16 additional personnel, will replace the LE Orla and the LE Ciara, which along with the LE Eithne were decommissioned last year and have been withdrawn from service.

Welcoming the arrival of the two IPVs to Cork, the Tanaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheal Martin, said the Government acknowledged there were ongoing challenges in the Naval Service adding these were being addressed as part of a planned approach to its regeneration. This includes the phased replacements of the three ships decommissioned last year.

There Inshore Patrol Vessels have a lesser crewing requirement than the ships they replace and will provide the Naval Service with an enhanced capacity to operate and undertake patrols in the Irish Sea on the east and south-east Coast. This will allow the remaining fleet to focus on operations elsewhere, said the Tanaiste.

He thanked all those involved in project to regenerate the vessels and transport them to Ireland that came in on-time and under budget.

The Tanaiste said the IPVs will undergo further work over the coming months and following crew training they will be commissioned and named before going into operational service early next year.

The Flag Officer in command of the Naval Service, Commodore Michael Malone, said the newly delivered vessels were a vital part of their HR regeneration efforts and would assist the service in returning to its mandated full complement of ships.

The IPVs will introduce certain new electronic warfare and intelligence gathering capabilities and enhance the patrol profile of the Naval Service, said Commodore Malone.

Defence Forces Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Sean Clancy, said the changing face of maritime security in the Irish Sea highlighted a requirement for a specialist inshore capability in order to protect Irish interests.

The new IPVs will allow the Naval Service to continue to modernise and tackle the dynamic and ever-changing maritime environment that we operate in 365 days a year, said Lt General Clancy.
The Dutch Tulip will create 50 new jobs and fulfil one man's ambition

The drive and determination of one man to realise a long held ambition has seen one of Mallow's most iconic business premises rise phoenix like from the ashes of disaster over recent weeks.

The former Roundabout Inn on the Annabella Roundabout, which was gutted in a blaze back in 2017, has been given a 1.5 million make over and, restrictions willing, is due to reopen next month with a new name - The Dutch Tulip.

The man behind the development, Liscarroll native Donal O'Brien, has spent 1.5 million on purchasing the building and developing it into a high-end restaurant, bar and bed & breakfast - and he has no intention of stopping there.

Speaking to The Corkman Donal said he chose the name for the business because he "wanted it to travel", signalling his intent to set up a chain of Dutch Tulip franchises across the country.

"I am already looking at a number of locations across the country, including in Limerick and Dublin for other Dutch Tulip franchises in the future," said Donal.

"Currently the only other hospitality chain operating in Ireland is Wetherspooons and I want to challenge that. For now though, my focus is on putting together a strong team in Mallow and making that a successful platform to build on into the future," he added.

The Dutch Tulip on the Annabella Roundabout in Mallow. Photos: Sheila Fitzgerald

The Dutch Tulip will have a workforce of up to 50 people employed across its restaurant, 'Del Monico's' wine bar and servicing its 24 single and double bedrooms.

"From the outset it has been my intention to create a modern, bespoke business serving top class food and beverages. Our food menu will consist of freshly cooked dishes from our open plan kitchen and an extensive wine and cocktail menu providing a casual but at the same time high-end experience to customers," said Donal.

"We are building a very strong team here and are very excited for the future. Mallow is at the heart of Munster and the Dutch Tulip will be at the heart of Mallow, so there is a lot to look forward to," he added.

Donal said that, although he signed the deal to buy the building on the exact day of the first lock-down last year, there has never been any doubt in his mind that the venture would be anything but successful.

He should know, having run a number of successful food related business over the years - no mean achievement for a man who left school at the age of 15.

"School was not for me. I left and qualified as a butcher and then went to Australia, where I worked in an Irish bar. I learned a lot while I was out there and the experience I gained sowed the idea of one-day owning my own business in my head," said Donal.

After returning home he set up a successful grocery/bakery in Kilmallock before setting up a chain of fast food outlets which eventually included 10 Apache Pizza franchises across Munster. After selling that off he worked in the field of finance before going back into the food industry as well as redeveloping vacant business premises.

"I used to pass Annabella Roundabout everyday when I was working as a butcher in Mallow and often thought to myself one day I want to own that bar. I am really excited to have now achieved that," said Donal.

"It is easy to think leaving school at 15 your options are very limited. But, I have proven that anything is possible if you put your mind to it," he added.
Sinn Fein councillor Daithi Doolan said locals in Bluebell are shocked by the attack

Gardai searching the scene on La Touche Road in Bluebell, Dublin this morning.(Pic Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos)   Collins Photos

Gardai at the scene on La Touche Road in Bluebell, Dublin this morning. (Pic Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos)   Collins Photos

A 17-year-old boy who was the victim of a vicious gang attack using golf clubs in Bluebell remains in a critical condition in hospital this afternoon.

It is understood the teenager had a bleed on the brain after being brought to Beaumont Hospital yesterday and required life-saving surgery overnight.

He is currently in a coma and expected to undergo a further operation today.

Suspects have been identified in the case and they are believed to be teenagers from west Dublin.

Local residents say they are in shock after the assault yesterday by a group with weapons that are believed to include golf clubs.

Councillor Daithi Doolan said locals were frightened and traumatised following the attack.

Read more

The attack last night in Bluebell was wrong, he said. It was totally unacceptable. A young man is seriously injured. A community is frightened and traumatised.

I want to wish the young man a full and speedy recovery. My thoughts are with him and his family at this difficult time.

Those involved need to face justice. I would strongly encourage anyone with information to please contact the gardai.

The local community is in shock. People are very frightened by this terrible violence. We need to all work together to make sure an attack like this doesnt happen again.

After the assault, the gang involved, believed to be made up of four males, fled the scene on motorbikes in the direction of the Naas Road.

One source said: "This was an extremely violent assault and there are serious concerns for this juvenile.

"Local gardai are following a number of lines of inquiry and persons of interest have been identified but no arrests have yet been made.

"Up to four men may have been involved in this incident and are suspected of having used weapons including golf clubs," the source added.

A garda spokesperson said: Gardai are investigating an assault that occurred in Bluebell, Dublin 12, on Wednesday, May 17.

A male teenage juvenile has been taken to Beaumont Hospital where his condition is described as serious.

The scene of the incident is currently preserved for a technical examination. No arrests have been made at this time.

Investigations are ongoing.

Read more
The storm overflow at Sandymount Beach needs 'significant work' to bring it up to standard

A storm overflow outlet discharging sewage onto Sandymount Beach in south Dublin is not up to required standards, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Uisce Eireann, formerly known as Irish Water, was investigating reports of raw sewage overflowing onto the beach last week after a spell of heavy rain.

Local residents said huge volumes of sewage, including sanitary products and condoms, were deposited onto the beach.

Irish Water notified the EPA of a storm overflow at Sandymount Beach following heavy rain on May 11, and a drainage crew carried out a full clean-up on May 12.

However, the EPA said the storm overflow outlet from Ailesbury Pumping Station, which discharges onto Sandymount Strand, does not meet the required standards.

It is the responsibility of Uisce Eireann to carry out all works necessary to resolve this issue and bring the overflow outlet up to the required standards, it said.

The EPA has advised Uisce Eireann to carry out the work needed to resolve this issue as quickly as possible.

The recent sewage discharge on Sandymount Beach after heavy rainfall

In its latest update to the EPA, Uisce Eireann indicated that significant work will be required and it is assessing the available options.

These include redirecting the overflow to a larger sewer, increasing the amount of stormwater storage available and relocating the discharge outfall.

The EPA requires Uisce Eireann to identify the best option and provide a detailed plan and timeframe to resolve this issue, the EPA said.

A spokesperson for Irish Water said the stormwater overflow at Ailesbury pumping station was built in the 1900s and predates current building practice and current standards.

The stormwater overflow at Ailesbury pumping station is a critical flood defence mechanism for the locality.

The sewer system in this area was built in the 1900s and, as was typical at the time, it carries both wastewater from homes and businesses and water that is drained off roads and pavements, roofs and patio areas of local housing.

This predates current building practice and current standards now required to meet the bathing water criteria.

Uisce Eireann is currently assessing the combined network to establish the upgrades necessary in order to meet current standards, they said.

The stormwater overflow at Sandymount Beach is designed to protect Ailesbury Gardens and St Albans Park from flooding during periods of intense rainfall, and Irish Water have said without it, internal property flooding from the combined sewer is observed.

Stormwater discharges normally do not have a lasting effect on bathing waters. Such discharges are heavily diluted with rainfall, tides and winds wash out and disperse spills, and sunlight provides natural ultraviolet disinfection, said Irish Water.

When such overflows kick in, local authority drainage crews respond as soon as they can to clear up any debris that might have been discharged onto the shoreline during the overflow.

An upgrade to Ailesbury pumping station was completed in 2021 and further works are planned for later this year, added Irish Water.

David Turner, chairman of the Sandymount and Merrion Residents Association (SAMRA), who witnessed the discharge, said it is totally unacceptable.

It was totally disgusting to see this complete disregard for the health of the local community, he said.

It is creating an acute public health risk for the hundreds of people who use the beach each day.

People are walking and dogs are in the area and are going to end up carrying the sewage home on their feet.

Its totally disgusting and it's shameful that Uisce Eireann should be allowed to do this and create health risks for people, he added.
No decision yet on use of current hospital buildings says HSE

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly chats and Minister Norma Foley pictured during a visit to residents at St. Columbanus Hospital in Killarney on Friday. Included are, in front, Julie Fitzpatrick, Eileen Lydon, Mary P O'Connor and Joan O'Donoghue. At back, are, Anne Boland, Mary Hartnett, Donal Cronin and standing are, Geraldine O'Neill, Siobhan Coffey, Breda Delves, Director of Nursing, Michelle Merritt, Eleanor McCarthy, Myra Walshe, John Cronin and Norita Earlie. The ministers also visited the site for the new Killarney Community Nursing Unit which is under construction off the Killarney Bypass. Photo: Don MacMonagle Photo from HSE

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly and Minister Norma Foley pictured during a visit to view the construction site for the new Killarney Community Nursing Unit off the Killarney Bypass on Friday. Included also are, Mayor of Killarney Niall Kelleher, Cllr Niall O'Callaghan, Breda Delves, Director of Nursing and Geraldine O'Neill, St. Columbanus's Hospital and Alan Flynn, PJ Rowe, Cieron O'Callaghan and Philip Kissane from SISK Builders who are constructing the new hospital. Photo: Don MacMonagle Photo from HSE

The HSE has said they hope to move residents into the new community hospital at the end of 2024 when construction is completed on the multi-million euro development.

Construction is progressing on the 130 bed unit on the grounds of St Finans just off the Killarney by-pass and it is hoped that it will be fully built by the end of next year.

The new Killarney Community Nursing Unit comprises four 25-bed households made up of short and long-term beds, all individual rooms en-suite and three 10-bed dementia households; providing a total of 130 beds. Full production kitchen, therapy suites, external spaces and various communal spaces for the residents are included.

The Killarney Community Nursing Unit is part of a bundle of seven sites nationally being delivered under a Public Private Partnership contract. Funding of 250 million was provided by Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale (Nord LB), Bank of Ireland and the European Investment Bank.

Following on from the completion of the construction works (Q4 2024) it is envisaged that there will be a phased transfer of residents into the new facility.

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly recently paid a visit to the site to see the progress on the health facility. He also visited residents at the current hospital.

Cork Kerry Community Healthcare said that it is hoped residents will move from the current hospital buildings as soon as possible after construction is completed.

The time frame, they said, will be dependent on many issues - namely liaising with residents, families and staff etc - therefore, it is not possible at this point in time to give an exact time of the transfer but will occur as soon as possible following the completion of the works.

The new community nursing unit will replace the current services provided in St Columbanus Home, and the District Hospital (short stay unit). There has been calls for these building and the site to be used for the benefit of the town.

The HSE have said that no decision on the current district hospital has been made yet .

"The HSE will undertake a full review of space requirements needed in the local area. Following on from same, a decision will be made with respect to the future usage of the said facilities, they said.

Kerry County Council management said they have registered their interest in the buildings.
'Who'd you fancy in the next?' David with granddaughter Saoirse on a bench dedicated to his father, Paud, at Listowel Racecourse.

David Fitzmaurice is back at the helm as Chairman of Listowel Race Company for a second time having recently taken over the role from Pat Healy.

Davids first task is to pay tribute to his colleague, who is the first person in the history of Listowel Race Company to hold office for three consecutive years.

Pat Healys tenure coincided with a difficult era when the pandemic forced racing behind closed doors and restricted crowd capacity.

David explains that Pat did an incredible job in promoting and ensuring that the reputation of Listowel Races remained strong during those challenging times.

I must complement Pat and thank him for all his work during what was a difficult time. It wasnt easy but Pat was the right man at the right time, David said.

Davids involvement in Listowel Races has generational links extending back to his grandfather, David, in the 1930s, and his father, Paud, who was involved in Listowel Races for over 50-years.

Davids daughter, Niamh, is today the fourth generation to be involved, while David assures me his granddaughter, Saoirse, will make it a fifth generation of Fitzmaurice participation at the famous North Kerry racecourse.

Its my swansong, and its an absolute honour to be chairman a second time. Ive been involved in the finance of the turnstiles and race cards for years, which my grandfather started in the 1930s. Its a nice feeling to have this family tradition going back that far. Listowel Races is about community, he said.

Davids vision for his second term is to secure additional fixtures, and to switch the Saturday meeting in June to an evening fixture by 2024. Continuing to improve the track facilities is another priority.

In 2022, a landmark High Court decision granted Listowel Race Company tax free status as a sporting organisation. Racecourses had previously been excluded from this entitlement.

Thanks to the courage of Listowel Race Company directors, it means all profits from gate receipts can now be ploughed back into improving the racecourse. This has given David and his colleagues enormous satisfaction.

From the money were now saving, we are currently resurfacing the car park which we hope to have completed for our June meeting, said David.

It should be noted that we are a voluntary organisation, and it was a brave move for us to take this case. We had lost the case twice before. So, to appeal it a third time and be successful, it took great courage, David said.

Other racecourses in Ireland didnt believe we could win the case. Our High Court win has left a legacy for them also, he added.

Lastly, David explains that an effort to broaden the use of the racecourse for additional events is in the pipeline. This would see music concerts and public gatherings take place at the track.

We need to explore all these avenues with the view to creating extra revenue, David said.

"Its about opening up the racecourse rather than just confining it to a set number of race fixtures in the year. Listowel Race Company is run by volunteers. Its about promoting ways we can benefit all of the community. There is a great team involved.
News

Memory boxes have become a comfort to bereaved families of organ donors in hospitals across the West and North West

To coincide with Organ Donation Awareness Week (20-27 May) the Saolta University Health Care Group has officially launched the Thinking of You Memory Boxes for Organ Donors an award-winning Hospice Friendly Hospitals initiative.
A public meeting in Claremorris last Monday night heard of frustration at the failure of successive Governments to tackle the issues of regional imbalance and rural decline.

The meeting, hosted by Chris MacManus MEP, in the McWilliam Park Hotel and featured contributions from Rose Conway-Walsh TD, Cllr Gerry Murray, President of the INHFA Vincent Roddy and former Western Development Commission and Ireland West Airport CEO Liam Scollan.

Speaking following the meeting, Chris MacManus MEP for the Midlands Northwest said:

It was a very productive meeting with many interesting contributions and proposals which we will be taking on board and which will inform us in our work as we seek to tackle the issues of regional imbalance and rural decline.

It was clear from the meeting that there is huge frustration about successive Governments failure to address these issues. A lack of investment in infrastructure and key public services and a failure to protect our family farmers were key themes highlighted throughout the meeting. What further adds to that frustration is the mixed messaging coming from the government parties.

"Recently on Highland Radio, my constituency colleague MEP Maria Walsh highlighted the recently published 2022 EU Regional Competitiveness Index, which found that the Northern and Western region is lagging well behind the other Irish regions and that we are suffering from an infrastructure deficit, particularly in terms of transport and connectivity.

MEP Walsh rightly pointed out that this is evidence that the West and North-West of the State are being discriminated against and that investment is needed from Government to address this issue, something I have been highlighting since becoming an MEP.

However speaking just days previously to Galway Bay FMs journalist David Nevin, Walshs Fine Gael colleague Minister Simon Coveney rubbished the very same report, stating that it was not an accurate assessment, referencing job growth within the region and claiming that the Government has invested in balanced regional development. He did not suggest that any additional measures were needed to revitalize our region.

This is a very dismissive attitude from Minister Coveney to an independent report published by the European Commission. It is one of many reports published over the last few years with similar findings that our region is in transition, lagging and stuck in a development trap.

Fine Gael appear to be all over the place on this issue, sending out mixed messages and talking out of both sides of their mouth. That they cant agree that our region is suffering and in need of positive discrimination after countless reports highlighting this issue is extremely worrying.

While I am glad MEP Walsh has finally come to this realisation, she should sit her Fine Gael colleagues down and explain to them why investment is desperately needed to bring our region back on par with the rest of the country. Her words acknowledging the extent of regional imbalance will be of little comfort to people who attended this evenings meeting and voiced their concerns."

To compound those concerns, Minister Eamon Ryan has now said that no funding will be available for the Knock-Collooney N17 project. This is a deeply concerning situation but indicative of this governments attitude to our region. In the same meeting, Minister Ryan also outlined that there will be no railway line north of Claremorris in the medium term. It appears that as far as he is concerned, there is no need whatsoever for infrastructural investment in the West of Ireland.

There is no doubt that there are huge challenges facing our communities here in the West and the current approach to regional development needs to change urgently in order to ensure that this part of the country has a sustainable future. We need investment and positive discrimination for our region to turn this around.

At a European level I will be continuing to fight for greater supports for our region through protecting our access to regional aid, restoring the region to the TEN-T Core Network so that critical infrastructure projects can benefit from EU funding, and a comprehensive investment package for the region, by utilising Cohesion funding, State Aid flexibility, the billion euro allocation of the RRF and the Brexit Fund.

This kind of investment is key for tackling these issues and delivering economic development for County Mayo and our region as a whole. Sinn Fein will continue to fight for fairness and equality for the West at local, national and European levels.
Jack delighted in our astonishment and pointed at landmarks like Trinity College and the Bank of Ireland, where there were bullet holes in the wall. Photo: Aidan Crawley/Bloomberg   Bloomberg

Somehow or another they had always been a half Dublin, half Wexford family. Their clan had been living in both places since the year dot. Now this generation were all dying off, and the younger generation was spreading afield. Sean, Jack and Nuala were the last survivors of the original family.

Then after Sean got a job managing a bar in Ballsbridge he met his wife Celine and married back into Dublin. Jack and Nuala had jobs in Dublin too, but they still came to Wexford every weekend to keep the house alive. However it was hopeless, the three story house was going down, they would have to face the facts, the old home wasnt really home any more.

It was harder for them because neither one was married, and now in their 50s, it was unlikely that they ever would be. He, an insurance salesman, and she a book keeper for a furniture outlet, neither one made an impression on the bank manager  their family status in that respect had slipped, its safe to say that they were too kind to be killers in the world of commerce.

It was their house that we moved into on the Quay, and when they and my mother Molly first met, it was respect at first sight. Leaving their contact information with Molly, they wished her the very best of luck and departed for their new home on an estate in Finglas, a two up two down in a working-class neighbourhood.

When they extended the invitation to come stay any time, there was absolutely no hesitation in their intent, none at all. Molly made sure that was the case, and offered the same in return. I suppose in the back of her head she saw it as an opportunity for a new experience, she had never stayed in Dublin before  because she was truly comfortable with this family, it seemed totally plausible.

The possibility of staying overnight in Dublin was discussed regularly in Mollys kitchen, where she held court all day long. Everyone approved of it, shur if they invited ye, why not? Mrs Connors, agreed. The blessings of the Lord Jesus Christ, no one deserves it better, Mrs Turner.

Of course, I would be brought along.

Jack met us at Westland Rowe in his green Ford Cortina, and for the first time we were actually driven through the streets of Dublin. Jack delighted in our astonishment and pointed at landmarks like Trinity College and the Bank of Ireland, where there were bullet holes in the wall. A row of stripes on the ground was a new fangled thing called a Zebra Crossing  Put one toe on there, and motorists have to screech to a halt.

The next day we took the bus into town, and traipsed all over creation in pursuit of bargain cloth that suited Molly for her new overcoat, which she would run up on the sewing machine at home. All kinds of material was introduced by gentle men with milky-white hands, they delighted in Mollys plans, and discussed patterns that might suit. But mostly she found the cloths uninteresting, and too expensive. I was near exasperation and wondering when I was getting my chips at the cafeteria, when she came across a bargain remnant of green material made from pure wool.

Molly and the man decided to ignore the superstition that green was unlucky, thank God, and we went to eat.

Back in Wexford, Molly proudly wore that green coat and challenged all superstition, I joked that she looked like a walking door, and she laughed heartily.
Paul Kelly, CEO of Failte Ireland and new chairperson of the National Council for the Blind of Ireland   Patrick Bolger Photogrraphy

The National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI) has announced the appointment of Mr. Paul Kelly, CEO of Failte Ireland, as incoming Chairperson of the NCBI Board.

The Chair of NCBI is a voluntary non-executive role and Mr. Kelly, who himself has significant visual impairment as a result of ocular albinism, will continue to serve as CEO of Failte Ireland during his tenure.

Paul Kelly will succeed current Chair Paul Ledwidge who is stepping down in June.

Commenting on his appointment Paul Kelly, a native of Wexford, said: As someone who was born with ocular albinism, I have a visual impairment. Throughout my life I have worked hard to see the world and now I am privileged to have the opportunity to work hard to help the world see the challenges that people with visual impairments and blindness face every day in their lives.

"I am proud to join NCBI and look forward to building on the excellent work of Paul Ledwidge, the Board and the dedicated staff at NCBI who are transforming the lives of children and adults with sight loss throughout Ireland. As Chair I am committed to ensuring NCBI becomes an even stronger advocate for people who are blind or vision impaired so all can have access to the same opportunities, rights and choices as anyone else in society."

Welcoming the appointment of Paul Kelly, Chief Executive of NCBI, Mr Chris White said: NCBI as the National Sight Loss Agency dedicated to supporting the 55,000 people in Ireland with Sight Loss, is delighted to welcome the appointment of Paul Kelly as our incoming Chair. NCBIs foundation is its commitment to authenticity and having a Chair of Pauls calibre and standing with his personal experience of sight loss allows NCBI to live and breathe our mission and values.

Paul Kelly has been the Chief Executive of Failte Ireland since 2017. Paul led Failte Ireland, the National Tourism Development Authority, through the deepest crisis ever for the countrys tourism industry as a result of the Covid19 pandemic.

Leading a staff of over 400 at Failte Ireland, his focus is to ensure the sector can rebuild stronger than before and reimagine a sustainable future for the sector post-pandemic. Under Pauls leadership, Failte Ireland is listed in the top 20 best large organizations to work in, the only public sector body on this list. In 2020 Paul was named Irelands Most Trusted Leader by Great Places to Work. He has also led Failte Ireland to now rank among the top 5 most reputable organizations in Ireland.

Before his appointment as CEO of Failte Ireland, Paul worked in senior management and marketing leadership roles. Beginning his career with Procter & Gamble UK he has held senior positions with Diageo Ireland, Aviva and the UCD Smurfit Business School.

Paul is a native of Wexford and married with four children. He is a first-class honours commerce graduate from University College Dublin.
After failing to secure a lucrative electricity supply contract for the Arklow Bank Wind Park II at last week's landmark offshore wind auction, SSE Renewables has reaffirmed its long-term commitment to delivering the project.

Construction of the long-mooted project, which promised substantial investment in Arklow, including 80 new local jobs, required funding of up to 3 billion, with SSE Renewables targeting first power in 2028 and completion in 2029, subject to securing a route to market and a final investment decision.

While last weeks Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (ORESS 1) auction results are provisional  as there is an appeals process  and the final results are still to be confirmed next month, the unfavourable outcome represents a huge setback for SSE Renewables.

Speaking at the Wind Energy Ireland Offshore Conference, Maria Ryan, Director of Offshore Development of SSE Renewables, commented:

The result of last weeks ORESS auction was a momentous occasion in the storybook of offshore wind in Ireland, and many years in the making. It provides certainty not only for successful projects but also the supply chain, investors and the industry.

While we are disappointed with the auction result, Arklow Bank Wind Park II is a hugely important project in our offshore pipeline, and we remain committed to its delivery.

We are now taking time to assess the outcome of this result and the options available to us to secure a route to market and we believe that Arklow Bank, as one of the most progressed offshore developments on the island, has a critical role to play in contributing to Irelands climate action targets, to Irelands homegrown energy security, and to the national and regional economy  and in particular, to the economic wellbeing of County Wicklow and North Wexford.

It is also well placed to deliver on our more immediate goals and supporting the state to secure 5GW of connected offshore by 2030.

So, we will continue to progress the Arklow Bank project and work towards the preparation of a planning application which we will submit later this year. With this in mind, setting the planning system up for success will be essential. Ensuring sufficient resources are in place across planning and consenting to support projects to go through the process, in a fair and thorough manner, but at pace.

But we also need to look beyond this first, albeit, crucial stage of offshore development, to what comes next. We have been calling for stepping-stone targets to set a path out to our 2050 target of 37GW for some time. So, while it is hugely positive to see a 20GW target for 2040 included in the recent Policy Statement, we need more granularity on the how, and what comes next.

Now we need to set out the pathway to meeting our 2040 and 2050 targets. We need clarity on Phase 2, and the enduring regime, and how these next phases will be implemented. Key to this will be maximising confidence and competition and future-proofing our policies to enable innovation.

We have the opportunity now to push ahead and set Ireland up for success so we can deliver on our long-term climate ambition. Lets not waste a moment.
The founder of Brays Coastcare, Seamus Connor, who has been organising monthly clean-ups of the towns coast, as well as Bray Head and other areas in the vicinity for the last 16 years, has been selected by Aontu to represent the party in County Wicklow.

Mr Connor, a secondary school teacher, was born in Bray and was a student at Woodbook College. Passionate about his town, its people and its environment, he is a busy volunteer in the community and has also been involved in, or fundraised for, Bray Carers Association, Bray Charities Sea Swim, Holy Redeemer Youth Centre, AWARE mental health charity and Epilepsy Ireland.

Commenting on his appointment, Mr Connor said: "I was motivated to get involved in politics back in 2019 and joined Aontu because I identify with the party's core values and believe in a society that takes care of ordinary citizens, the vulnerable and the marginalised.

"I contested the 2020 General Election for the party and secured 1,351 votes. I am delighted and I feel honoured to have been nominated and selected to be the Aontu Representative in County Wicklow once again. Aontu's positive outlook and vision and the sincerity and integrity of Peadar Toibin TD, Aontu's leader, convinced me to put my name forward once more to represent and campaign for Aontu in Wicklow.

Read more Bray Town Hall tree vandals leave local volunteer heartbroken

"Another key reason for continuing to be involved in politics is that I see so much potential to make a real and positive difference to individuals, families, and small-medium businesses in Bray and across our county, he added, and I have lots of ideas that can help to bring about positive change in Bray and beyond.

"The key issues I will be focusing on as Aontu Representative are the cost-of-living crisis, the crisis in healthcare and mental health, the rise in crime and anti-social behaviour, the housing and rental disaster and the environment and tourism potential of Bray and Wicklow.

Mr Connor has worked tirelessly to enhance the beautiful coastal areas of Bray for both the locals and the many tourists that come to the town, and one of his main objectives for residents and tourists is to get the Cliff Walk back open.

"The fact that the Cliff Walk has been closed off to the public for over two years now is unacceptable. I am of course aware that the walk must be safe before walkers can access it, but for the work to reopen this wonderful amenity to be taking years is crazy.

"This amenity is cherished by so many locals and tourists alike, and I know that walking it improves peoples mental health immeasurably. This is why I am calling for answers from our elected representatives and our town engineers as to why the reopening of the Cliff Walk is taking so long, and I am urging them to work to reopen it as a matter of urgency, especially as we enter the busy summer months."

Mr Connor also wishes to focus on the issue of dog fouling and littering, and has been advocating for wardens for some time.

"I was recently successful in bringing a proposal to Bray Municipal District (Council) asking the elected Councillors and Wicklow County Council to reinstate a Litter warden/Dog Warden for the town of Bray.

"Illegal littering of our towns and villages across Wicklow is totally unacceptable and fines for those who litter should be handed out, especially those caught fly tipping in our natural beauty spots of the Wicklow Uplands and elsewhere, he said.

Mr Connor also believes Bray should have a full-time fire service and this is something he is committed to working on as the Aontu Rep for Wicklow.
Prue Leith has opened up about why she decided to write about her 13-year affair with her mothers best friends husband, before Leith eventually married him.

In her 2012 autobiography, the Great British Bake Off judge revealed that while her late husband Rayne Kruger was still married to the late South African actor Nan Munro, they had maintained a secret romantic relationship.

Leith (83) said she was initially unsure if she should put everything in while writing her book Relish.

Speaking on a recent episode of the White Wine Question Time podcast with host Kate Thornton, the TV chef said she decided the rules should be, if its interesting it should go in, if its boring it shouldnt.

If there are things in your life youre not exactly proud of, but they would be interesting to your reader, you should try to tackle them, she said.

So I did write about the long affair I had with my husband before we married. I thought, You know, to skip it when Rayne was the most important person in my life How could I not tell his whole story? So I did.

Kruger, a property developer and author, shared three children with Munro before they separated and he married Leith in 1974. Kruger and Leith went on to have two children of their own, Danny Kruger and adopted daughter Li-Da Kruger, before he died in 2002 at the age of 80.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - May 18th

Leith said she did not ask Kruger to leave Munro while they were having their affair because she was very happy.

I had none of the duties of life and all of the pleasures of somebody who loved me, she recalled. I wasnt pressing for marriage.

We did have 13 secret years and nobody ever guessed because we were discreet.

She admitted that their affair was made easier to conduct because Kruger was a family friend and the chairman of her company.

However, they remained careful not to go out to dinner or anything that would create any kind of suspicion.

Despite everything that happened between them, Leith told the podcast that Munro forgave them both for the affair, despite being questioned for it by friends.

I remember one of her really famous actress friends said to her, How can you go and have weekends and stay with Prue and Rayne? That woman, shes a witch, she stole your husband, Leith said.

And Nan said, Are you going to have me every weekend? Shall I come to you instead? She said, They are my friends, I love them. Yes, its been hard, but Prues still Prue. She was amazingly forgiving. And an extraordinary woman.

Last year, the celebrity chef said she did not regret the affair, even though it was very painful.

While appearing on her Nothing In Moderation tour, she told an audience in Bath: I cant pretend it was right. I never regretted it as I loved him and he loved me. It all ended well, but it was very painful for a while.
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Tadhg Beirne: 'Im with Munster five years I didnt think it would be this difficult to get to where we are today' 23:14
Montana became the first state in the US to enact a complete ban on TikTok on Wednesday when Republican governor Greg Gianforte signed a measure that's more sweeping than any other state's attempts to curtail the social media app, which is owned by a Chinese tech company.
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Gunshots were heard in a village during clashes between herders and farmers in Mangu district in central Nigeria's Plateau State that killed at least 30 people.
Ahmedabad/IBNS: Adani Vidya Mandir, Ahmedabad (AVMA) is joining hands with UNICEF to roll out the UNICEF on Campus Knowledge Initiative for all the school students from June to December 2023, the institution said in a press release.

It is being implemented by the UNICEF office of Gujarat and the collaboration letters were signed this morning at the AVMA campus.

Run by the Adani Foundation, AVMA provides free education to underprivileged students, through a system that is the perfect blend of modern technology and traditional values, as well as complementary support in the form of daily nutritious meals, books, transportation facilities and uniforms, the press release stated.

The UNICEF on Campus Knowledge Initiative will create platforms and opportunities for the students to increase their awareness about child rights as articulated in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and priority areas such as climate action, life skills, body positivity and self-esteem, nutrition, anaemia, online safety, financial literacy, ending violence against children, among others, it read.

Adani Foundation Chairperson Dr Priti Adani said, Adani Vidya Mandir (Ahmedabad), managed by the Adani Foundation, is pleased to collaborate with UNICEF and curate this immersive learning experience for its students. Through the multitude of interactive sessions and speaking opportunities, our children will get great exposure to develop themselves as aware and responsible citizens.

Shilin Adani, Trustee, Adani Foundation congratulated AVMA team for being the first private school in Gujarat to collaborate with UNICEF. This collaboration will contribute to creating a unique model in Gujarat, furthering the cause of quality-cum-holistic education.

The various programmes under this initiative are set to be organized with Elixir Foundation and other partner organizations.

UNICEFs ChiefGujarat Field Office Prasanta Dash said, UNICEF is delighted to roll out the UNICEF on Campus Knowledge Initiative in the Adani Vidya Mandir (AVM), Ahmedabad a 100% cost-free school for children in most need. It is a unique model focused on the development & participation of children aligned to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child & the RTE Act guaranteeing access to quality education for all children.

This initiative aims to create platforms & opportunities for children to increase their awareness about child rights, engage them in strategic campaigns & amplify their voices. I congratulate Dr Priti Adani and Mrs Shilin Adani for their leadership, commitment and vision to ensure quality education for children in Adani Vidya Mandir, he added.

The initiative aims to engage children through innovative and strategic digital and on-ground campaigns and initiatives, capacity-building sessions as well as lecture series/talks with young leaders and influencers, according to the press release.

The goal is to identify young champions and amplify their voices through on-ground and online activations and channels, it said.

UNICEF and AVMA will analyze the impact of this collaboration at the end of the year and consequentially, may agree to extend and expand this collaboration for the coming years.
Kolkata: The Bengal, a prominent NGO, recently celebrated Rabindra Jayanti with more than 300 senior citizen members of Pronam, a joint project of Kolkata Police and the former for reaching out to the senior citizens, at the Body Guard Lines auditorium in Kolkata.

A cultural program, celebrating the philosophy and literary works of Kavi Guru Rabindranath Tagore, was organized to mark his 162nd Birth Anniversary.

At the Rabindra Jayanti cultural programme, danseuse Priti Patel, a Board member of The Bengal and an exponent of Manipuri dance, in her opening speech lauded The Bengal's ongoing efforts to assist senior citizens through Project Pronam; and their dedication to promote Bengal's literary heritage through cultural events like Rabindra Jayanti.

Ms Patel personally welcomed the senior citizen members of Pronam who attended the programme.

The Bengal constantly helps senior citizens through Pronam by organizing cultural programmes for not only promoting culture but also to create opportunities for recreation and engagement for their mental well being. One could see the success of the programme from the enthusiastic response of the audience. I think a very meaningful and noble work is being done with these senior citizens who now know they are not alone or neglected any more. I am glad I attended the programme and met so many loving Pronam members, she said.

The musical performances included Rabindra sangeet songs by the exponent, Promita Mullick, besides Debaroti Som, Swapan Som, and Pronam members Abir Chatterjee and Debashish Roy. Sitanshu Roy and Tarun Das provided instrumental accompaniment to make the evening even more enchanting.

Priti Patel delighted Pronam members with an excerpt from Rabindranath Tagore's 'Chitrangada', accompanied by a song by Promita Mullick. The senior citizens gave Priti Patel a standing ovation in appreciation of her wonderful performance. Compere Chandan Mazumdar said, "When lovers of art unite, it seems that in the words of Tagore, 'Music fills the infinite between two souls'."

During the event, Sushmita Sarkar and Rabin Mazumdar recited Kabi Guru's 'Jhorer Kheya' and 'Africa'.

The programme concluded with a performance of a final song by Anindya Narayan Biswas.
Image Credit: UNI

Bengaluru/UNI: The process of forming a new government in Karnataka has almost been drawn up with Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar shooting a letter to all MLAs to attend the Congress Legislature Party meeting here on Thursday evening.

However, the Congress party is yet to officially announce the name of the next chief minister.

The meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs is scheduled to be held at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road at 7 pm, Shivakumar told reporters in New Delhi.

The deadlock in picking the chief minister between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar seems to have been solved after a series of late Wednesday night meetings which extended to the wee hours of Thursday.

The meeting was attended by AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress General Secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala and the two Karnataka veterans.

The impasse was hammered out by Sonia Gandhi during a video conferencing with Kharge.

A formula to break the impasse was finalised during a video conference between Kharge and Sonia Gandhi. Sources said Rahul Gandhi also favoured that the leader with highest number of MLAs' support should be chosen.

The oath taking ceremony will take place in Bengaluru Kanteerava stadium on Saturday in the presence of Congress leadership, which would also include party Chief Ministers.

Both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar had been vying for chief minister's post after Congress got an absolute majority, ousting the BJP government on May 13. A CLP meeting on Sunday had authorised Kharge to choose the next chief minister.

However, both the leaders did not arrive at a consensus till Thursday morning and insisted that they should be made the sole CM.

The last four days saw intense parleys of meetings with both leaders listing out each others' strengths and weaknesses.

Siddaramaiah reportedly argued that Shivakumar as chief minister would be problematic with Karnataka Congress President facing court cases, which would smear the image of the government.

Siddaramaiah also claimed that he is the popular face and vote catcher and commands respect of Muslims and backward caste voters, who would be decisive in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

On the flip side, Shivakumar claimed that the Congress lost power after a five-year rule of Siddaramaiah and was given CLP leader's post, but he could not perform better in the Lok Sabha elections.
Image Credit: UNI

Jammu/UNI: Security forces on Thursday busted a hideout and found improvised explosive devices and other explosives in Mendhar belt of Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir.

Official sources said that acting on specific information, a joint team of police and army launched a search operation in Lower Kasbalari area of Mendhar.

"During searches by joint teams along with sniffer dogs, suspected IED and other explosive material was detected, which was later destroyed by Bomb Disposal Squad safely," they said.
Image: UNI

New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court Thursday issued notice to the Delhi Police and sought its reply on the bail plea filed by former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student and activist Umar Khalid in connection with the Delhi riots conspiracy case.

Khalid was arrested by the Delhi Police in September 2020 and charged with criminal conspiracy, rioting, and unlawful assembly as well as under several sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and has remained in jail since then.

A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice AS Bopanna and also comprising Justice Hima Kohli, issued notice to Delhi police and sought its reply on Khalid's bail plea.

Khalid had initially moved to the Karkardooma Court in March 2022, seeking bail, but it rejected his bail plea.

He had then moved the Delhi High Court challenging it, and it was also dismissed by the HC, in October 2022, forcing him to knock on the doors of the Supreme Court for relief.

Although the Supreme Court fixed the matter for further hearing after six weeks, it clarified that if the accused petitioner wanted liberty he could move the vacation bench for urgent hearing.

Khalid, a former researcher from JNU, is one of the accused in a larger conspiracy case relating to the 2020 North-East Delhi communal riots.

Khalid has been booked under Sections 13, 16, 17, and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act, 1959, and Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984.
Image Credit: Facebook/Congress

Bengaluru/IBNS: Karnataka's next Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar were given a grand welcome as they reached Bengaluru to attend the legislature meeting of the party where the formal election will take place.

Both the leaders were seen smiling and keeping up a united face after the 3 am breakthrough where it was announced that Siddaramaiah will take oath as Karnataka's next chief minister.

Later in the evening, the Congress MLAs will meet the Governor to stake claim to form the government in the state.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at 12:30 pm on May 20.

According to reports, an understanding was reached by the Congress leadership and it was decided that Shivakumar will succeed Siddaramaiah in the top post halfway through the term.

The five-day impasse over the top post was resolved after intervention by Congress's former president Sonia Gandhi.

DK Shivakumar was persuaded to accept the post of Siddaramaiah's deputy. In addition, he would also have control of the party and get his pick of six ministries.

In the May 10 elections, the Congress registered a comfortable victory over the mighty Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning 135 out of 224 seats.

The BJP lagged behind with only 66 seats leaving the rest for JDS and Independents.
Bhopal: Saurabh alias Mohammed Saleem was among the 16 people police arrested in Bhopal and Hyderabad last week on the suspicion of having connections with Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT), a radical organisation, media reports said.

The Madhya Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) took action and apprehended the accused due to their alleged participation in planning terrorist activities.

Madhya Pradesh's Home Minister, Narottam Mishra, disclosed that the arrested individuals comprise a diverse group, including a professor and a gym trainer, among others.

Preliminary investigations suggest that they were involved in activities related to "love-jihad" and religious conversions.

The authorities are now further probing their alleged involvement in these matters.

Speaking to the news agency ANI, Saurabhs father, Ashok Raj Vaidya, an ayurveda doctor by profession, said how he discovered Saurabh was lured to convert to Islam, and how he changed his name to Mohammed Saleem.

"In our family, we allow our children to choose their life partners from other faiths and do not call it 'religious conversion," Saurabh's father Ashok Raj Vaidya told ANI.

Vaidya said, "I first observed Saurabh's activities and arguments in 2011. He began distancing himself from our family functions and religious festivities. Sometime later, his wife also started wearing Islamic dresses. It was then that I tried explaining things to him."

"I asked Saurabh to leave our house," Vaidya said.

Vaidya, further, revealed that he had reported the entire incident to the police. However, the police declined to take any action saying that Saurabh had willingly converted to Islam. Saurabh's father also mentioned that during his college days, a certain man named Dr. Kamaal used to be frequently seen around Saurabh.

"Later, we came to know Dr Kamaal was an agent of controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik and was arrested. He taught my son Islamic prayers," he said.

"Saurabh used to watch speeches of Zakir Naik on his computer. I even recovered several Islamic books from his room. Watching Syrian news on TV, Saurabh used to talk about Islam and why they were attacking Syrians," Vaidya said.

According to the terror suspect's father, Saurabh had also attended numerous Islamic events organized by "big personalities".

Vaidya had gone to the extent of writing a letter to the Congress-led Centre, urging them to ban the broadcast of Zakir Naik's speeches.

When discussing his son's arrest, Vaidya expressed his belief that Saurabh was not engaged in any terrorist activities. However, he also stated that if Saurabh did not leave Islam, their family would not welcome him back into their home.

Saurabh's mother, Vasanti Jain, revealed that her grandchildren had started attending a madrasa, indicating their growing exposure to Islamic teachings.

In an interview with ANI, she spoke about Saurabh's Muslim friends, stating that they never allowed him to have peace and were always around him.

"I never confronted them as I was scared for my son's life," Saurabh's mother said.

She further disclosed that Saurabh had begun to stay with his Muslim friends in an apartment during the Covid pandemic.

"He even invited me to stay along with him, which I refused," she said.
" " Bees can spot flowers by detecting color changes at a distance. Adam Jones/Getty Images

Bees' sensory experience of the world is markedly different from ours. For example, humans see the world through the primary colors of red, green and blue. Primary colors for bees are green, blue and ultraviolet.

Bees' vision is 60 times less sharp than that of humans: A flying bee can't see the details of a flower until it is about 10 inches (25 centimeters) away. However, bees can see hidden ultraviolet floral patterns that are invisible to us, and those patterns lead the bees to flowers' nectar.

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Bees also can spot flowers by detecting color changes at a distance. When humans watch film projected at 24 frames per second, the individual images appear to blur into motion. This phenomenon, which is called the flicker-fusion frequency, indicates how capable our visual systems are at resolving moving images. Bees have a much higher flicker-fusion frequency  you would have to play the film 10 times faster for it to look like a blur to them  so they can fly over a flowering meadow and see bright spots of floral color that wouldn't stand out to humans.

From a distance, bees detect flowers by scent. A honeybee's sense of smell is 100 times more sensitive than ours. Scientists have used bees to sniff out chemicals associated with cancer and with diabetes on patients' breath and to detect the presence of high explosives.

Bees' sense of touch is also highly developed: They can feel tiny fingerprint-like ridges on the petals of some flowers. Bees are nearly deaf to most airborne sounds, unless they are very close to the source, but are sensitive if they are standing on a vibrating surface.
Image: Facebook/Karnataka Congress

Bengaluru/IBNS: Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot Thursday invited CM-designate Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM-designate DK Shivakumar to take oath along with team members.

The oath ceremony will take place at 12.30 pm on May 20 in Kanteerava Stadium.

Earlier Congress delegation, including CM-designate Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM-designate DK Shivakumar, met Gehlot at Raj Bhavan to stake claim to form the next government. He staked claim after the Congress legislature party formally elected him as its leader.

I thank all my MLA friends for electing me as the leader of Congress Legislature Party



Let us together give good governance and able administration for the benefit of our people. pic.twitter.com/EgB0QLBQLw  Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) May 18, 2023

Plans are afoot to turn the May 20 swearing-in ceremony into a show of unity of the Opposition parties ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The party has extended invitations to West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao, and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar among others from like-minded parties.

Before the Congress Legislature Party meeting, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar received a grand reception in Bengaluru as a large gathering of Congress workers played music and showered flower petals welcoming them.

The meeting which was held at Bharat Jodo Bhavan elected Siddaramaiah as its leader and Shivakumar as his deputy.

The impasse over government formation was solved after four days of intense deliberations and marathon meetings in Delhi as both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar vied for the top post.

Soon after the announcement of him taking over the top post in the state, Siddaramaiah said: "I will continue to relentlessly work to ensure justice to every Kannadiga and uphold the pride of Karnataka. We are committed to implementing our guarantees and giving the best for our state."

[With UNI inputs]
Image: Shah Mehmood Qureshi Twitter page

Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court on Thursday ruled that the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) law was illegal and ordered his release.

The directives were issued by IHCs Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb while hearing a petition challenging Shah Mahmood Qureshis arrest, Geo news reports.

The court while issuing the release orders directed the PTI leader to submit an undertaking similar to the one given by former state minister Ali Muhammad Khan.

Qureshis lawyers informed the court that they would submit the undertaking after consulting the PTI leader, according to media reports.

Qureshi was among the top PTI leaders arrested from Islamabad within 24 hours of the outbreak of violent protests by PTI workers following former prime minister Imran Khans arrest as the government tightened the noose around the party.

He was taken into custody in the early hours of May 11 after the police raided Gilgit-Baltistan House in Islamabad under Section 3 (3MPO).

The former foreign minister was arrested by the police in cases of riots and arsons in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said back then.

However, before his arrest, the PTI leader encouraged party workers to continue their struggle for "true freedom" in the country.

(With UNI inputs)
In a case of shocking cruelty, a man in Surat has been booked for allegedly raping and physically assaulting a woman with whom he was having an affair.

Representational Image

The survivor had to be admitted to hospital as the accused had stuffed chillies in her private parts, India Today reported.



Man had lied about his marital status

The accused, Nikunj Kumar Amrit Bhai Patel, concealed that he was married and that his wife was living separately in another village. On this pretext, he got into a relationship with the victim, which continued for a while until she found out his marital status.

Upon finding this, the woman fought with Patel and chose to alienate herself from him, as per the police. Enraged by her decision, Patel allegedly whipped his girlfriend with a cable wire and raped her. Thereafter, he stuffed chillies in her private parts.

The accused threatened her by saying he would reveal her intimate photos on social media. The survivor had to be hospitalised due to her severe injuries.

Representational Image

Following this, the matter was reported to the police at Olpad Police Station. The accused was taken into police custody on Tuesday, and a case was registered against him under IPC 376.

Similar heinous crimes over the years

Such heinous crimes where a woman's private parts are violated have been reported over the years. These incidents have been continually reported even after the Nirbhaya case, which sent shockwaves across the country.



BCCL

In 2021, Police in Mumbai's Saki Naka arrested a man for raping a woman and inflicting grievous injuries on her body. She had reportedly been raped and also assaulted with an iron rod in her private parts.



In 2019, a man from Madhya Pradesh was arrested by police for inserting a plastic grip of a motorbike handle inside his wife's private parts. Doctors at the Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital in Indore had removed the plastic grip after a complex surgery that took four hours.



For more on news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.


Pfizer CEO Bourla is on the list of the attendees
Alhassan Ado Doguwa, majority leader of the House of Representatives, has resigned from the speakership race for the 10th Assembly and endorsed Tajudeen Abbas, the nominated candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Recall that earlier this month Doguwa declared his speakership ambition stating that his passion for nation building fueled his desire.

READ ALSO: Passion For Nation Building Fueled My Desire  Doguwa Joins Speakership Race

However, in a swift turn of words, Doguwa led two other member aspirants, Abubakar Makki and Tunji Oluwuyi to withdraw from the race on Wednesday during a meeting organised by Joint Task Group at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.

Recall that the ruling APC who endorsed Abbas and Ben Kalu for the speaker and deputy speaker positions, made protests spring up amongst aspirants.

Doguwa who had earlier joined a coalition to challenge Abbas, in a surprise twist, has now pulled out, stating that he cannot go against the Party.
A 24-year-old man, Musa Abdullahi, of Riga Fada community in Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano State has appeared before a magistrates court for allegedly setting ablaze the family house of his ex-girlfriend who dumped him for another suitor.

Abdullahi, who was charged with threat to peace and attempt to commit murder, was also accused of setting fire on the house of the parents of his former girlfriend which led to some parts of her body being burnt.

READ ALSO: Embassy Convoy: No Citizen Was Murdered In Nigeria  U.S. Confirms

The prosecution counsel, Barrister Amal Bashir Albasu, prayed the court that the charges should be read to the defendant.

After hearing the charges, Abdullahi pleaded not guilty, and the Judge, Rabi Abdulkadir, ordered that he should be remanded in a correctional centre and adjourned the case to June 1
A High Court in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, has issued a bench warrant against Rotimi Amaechi, former Transport Minister and Tonye Cole, governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the State.

The presiding judge, Chinwendu Nwogu, also issued a bench warrant against Sahara Energy Resources Limited, Chamberlain Peterside, NG powers HPS Limited and Cenpropsaroten Management Limited over failure to appear before the court on Rivers State governments criminal charges against them.

Though counsels for the defendants unanimously informed the court of their motion on non-service of court processes, Nwogu insisted on issuing the bench warrant.

Information Nigeria reports that Rivers government had filed a fresh lawsuit on misappropriation of public funds against Amaechi during his tenure as governor of Rivers State from 2007 to 2015

READ ALSO: Rotimi Amaechi Ensured My Removal From Office Because I Didnt Give Him Birthday Gift  Ex-NPA Boss, Hadiza Bala Usman

Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, had in 2022 set up a seven-man panel to probe Amaechi over an alleged withdrawal of N96 billion from the treasury during his tenure as governor.

The panel had also investigated issues surrounding the sale of assets by the former governor.

The listed valuable assets are Omoku Gas Turbine, Afam Gas Turbine, Trans Amadi Gas Turbine, Eleme Gas Turbine, Olympia Hotel, and the contract award for the execution of the monorail project.

Though the panel submitted its report in 2015, Amaechi insists that he is not guilty of fraud.

However, the supreme court on May 27, 2022 dismissed an application by Amaechi, challenging the probe.

According to Wike, criminal charges were filed against the former governor, as well as Sahara Energy, a firm indicted in the deals.

Information Nigeria reports that Sahara Energy was co-founded by Tonye Cole.

Nonetheless, amidst their absence, Justice Nwogu, adjourned the case to July 5 for plea.
Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has described the telephone conversation between the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, and the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as demoralising and acknowledgement of a fraudulent election in Nigeria.

Recall that Bliken phoned Tinubu on Tuesday after announcing the imposition of visa restrictions on specific individuals who undermined the democratic process during the 2023 elections.

According to a statement released by the Spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, Matthew Miller, Blinken told Tinubu that the Joe Biden administration is committed to strengthening ties with Nigeria.

The US Secretary stated that the U.S.-Nigeria partnership is built on shared interests and strong people-to-people ties and that those links should continue strengthening under Tinubus tenure.

READ MORE: US Secretary Of State Calls Tinubu On Phone, Makes Crucial Demands

Miller added that Bliken and Tinubu discussed the importance of inclusive leadership that represents all Nigerians and reforms to support the economic growth of Nigeria.

Reacting in a statement via his Twitter handle on Wednesday, Atiku said Blinkens call to Tinubu contradicts the public position of the US on Nigerias election.

He said: I am in disbelief that @SecBlinken called Tinubu, a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigerias 2023 presidential election.

This is inconceivable considering that America, as the bastion of democracy, is well briefed on the sham election of February 25.

To give legitimacy to the widely acknowledged fraudulent election in Nigeria can be demoralising to citizens who have hedged their bet on democracy and the sanctity of the ballot @StateDept @POTUS @USinNigeria.
Former Big Brother Naija reality show housemate, Kate Jones, popularly known as Ka3na, has reportedly lost her ex-husband.

In a viral video on social media, the reality star was seen breaking down in tears as she bade her British husband goodbye.

The mother of one dressed in all black with her daughter and held tightly to his coffin.

READ ALSO: Reactions As BBNaija Star Ka3na Fakes Pregnancy

Recall that Ka3na had in a post on her official Instagram page in 2022, announced her divorce from her British husband days after celebrating her wedding anniversary.

She wrote: Its Been 17 days since we got the keys to our new home. @lila_bossbaby Dissolving my marriage and moving abroad so far has been the toughest decision this year without the support of family and friends. Pressing the RESTART button is the most dreaded action button when considering a divorce.

But I take a stand with Nathan W. Morris; Life Is A Masterpiece. Edit It Frequently And RUTHLESSLY. Im open to collaborating with brands in Nigeria, Uk and Globally.

Watch video below:
YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. The construction of the Kaps Reservoir in Armenias Shirak Province has commenced after a 30-year halt.

The 120,000,000 project envisages two stages  first, the construction of a reservoir with a capacity of 25 million cubic meters, and the second stage will increase the capacity to 60 million.

The Kaps Reservoir will be located 22 kilometers north of Gyumri, on the Akhuryan floodplains.

Authorities had planned its construction back in 1985 to provide irrigation water for over 30,000 hectares of land, but the project was halted in 1993 due to the worsening economic situation following the 1988 Spitak earthquake and the collapse of the USSR.

Today marks the beginning of a very important and significant event for us, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan said at the groundbreaking ceremony. After many years of halt, the construction of Kaps Reservoir is finally commencing, and commissioning it will lead to key changes in the social and economic life, he said, adding that the reservoir will become the required prerequisite for sustainable agriculture in many towns and villages.

Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures Gnel Sanosyan, foreign ambassadors and representatives of the contractors and financing organizations were also present at the event.

The first stage will allow saving 1,3 million kWh of power annually by way of switching from manual to automatic irrigation. The projected power saving will reach 11 million kWh under the second stage. Thousands of hectares of lands will be ensured with irrigation water as a result, leading to increased agricultural output.

Noting that the government attaches great importance to constructing reservoirs, Minister Sanosyan said that Kaps will save water, ensure irrigation of new areas, save electricity and also have positive impact in terms of tourism and other areas.

The project is implemented with the loan resources provided by KfW Development Bank and co-funding by the Armenian government. The contractor is the Chinese Shanxi Construction Investment Group Co.

The construction is planned to last three years.

Moreover, a new village is being built nearby because the reservoirs area will encompass parts of the Jradzor village.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has began an investigation into Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle, regarding an alleged N70 billion fraud.

The EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa addressed the matter during a press briefing on Thursday. He also urged the public not to be swayed by Matawalles recent accusations.

READ ALSO: Court Okays Forfeiture Of 324 Houses In Kano Prayed By EFCC

Recall that the governor had leveled allegations against Bawa, challenging the commission to investigate members of President Muhammadu Buharis cabinet.

In response, Bawa, speaking through EFCCs Director of Public Affairs, Osita Nwajah, explained that it was not their obligation to dignify Matawalles demands but opted to clarify the situation.

Nwajah stated, It is intriguing that Matawalle would want to assume the role of a supervisor, instructing the EFCC on whom to investigate. Is this a case of a thief insisting on impunity until other thieves are apprehended?

He further emphasized, Unfortunately, it is not within Matawalles jurisdiction to dictate whom the EFCC arrests, when, or where. The Commission detains suspects from all sectors and social classes. The criteria for securing a place in the EFCCs custody is committing a crime, regardless of whether you are a priest, imam, governor, or minister.

Nwajah pointed out that a former minister of power is presently held in EFCC custody due to allegations of corruption amounting to N22 billionan incident that conveniently escaped Matawalles attention.
The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPC) sitting in Abuja has adjourned the pre-hearing of the petition filed by the candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, against President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Recall that Obi is challenging the victory of Tinubu in the February 25, 2023 election as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The tribunal, headed by Justice Haruna Tsammani, adjourned the date to Friday, May 19, due to the failure of parties to agree on documents, among other reasons.

READ MORE: Drama In Court As LP Factions Clash Over Seats (Video)

It would be recalled that during the sitting on Wednesday, the legal team of the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi led by Livy Uzoukwu accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of failing to provide what they need to prosecute their case.

The legal team told the court at the resumed hearing of the 2023 presidential election tribunal in Abuja that INEC refused to give them 70% of the evidence which they are required to give by law.

The team said specifically in Rivers State, they were not given anything.

However, counsel for INEC, Abubakar Mahmoud, disagreed with the allegations.

He argued that the Labour Party team did not show up for the meeting as agreed, and walked out of the rescheduled meeting.

The INEC lawyer added that the documents for Rivers and Sokoto states, where indeed provided, but the Labour Party refused to pay the sum of 1.5million naira for Sokoto State, and the Form EC8A for Rivers State, have not been given to them.

He said some documents were given to the party, but they refused to collect them until it was complete.

Meanwhile in another development, during the days proceedings on Wednesday, the Labour Partys factional leaders clashed over seats at the presidential election petition court. The altercation occurred when the partys acting national chairman, Lamidi Apapa, confronted Akin Osuntokun, director-general of Peter Obis presidential campaign council, upon the formers arrival in the courtroom.

Apapa claimed that, as the rightful head of the Labour Party, he belonged in the plaintiffs gallery.
Obiageli Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to swiftly hand over power to her.

The former Minister who disclosed this via Twitter on Wednesday, described Buhari as an ineffectual Commander-in-Chief of the Nigeria Armed Forces.

Information Nigeria reports that her comment stemmed from the outcry of the Presidents supporters over his inability to secure the country and its citizens.

Ezekwesili added that she welcomed Buharis supporters vote for her.

READ ALSO: Buhari Returns To Abuja After Extended Stay In London

Lets ask the ineffectual Commander-in-Chief of the Nigeria Armed Forces @MBuhari to swiftly hand over power to me so I can satisfy his supporters cry on his ignoble failure to secure the country, citizens and residents of Nigeria. I welcome their vote of confidence in me, she tweeted.

Once I analytically surmised that demanding action on any governance issue from @MBuhari was equivalent to expecting the impossible, I stopped. We have a so-called Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces, who sorely degenerated the state of our countrys security. Ignoble legacy, Ezekwesili stated.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has expressed regret over his participation in a forum that championed the emergence of Aminu Tambuwal as Speaker of the House in the 7th National Assembly.

The Speaker made the statement in Abuja on Wednesday in a meeting of the Joint Task  10th Assembly, a coalition of members-elect of the All Progressives Congress and opposition parties in the coming 10th National Assembly.

According to The Punch, Gbajabiamila said I regret it, while recalling the previous attempts by speakership aspirants to oppose chosen candidates of their respective parties.

READ ALSO: Sokoto Assembly Approves Chairman, Perm. Sec. Nominees For Arabic, Islamic Education, Zakkat Commissions

The coalition had adopted the anointed candidates of the APC for Speaker and Deputy Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas and Benjamin Kalu, respectively, for the 10th House.

Before Gbajabiamila spoke, the candidate of the APC for President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, reportedly accompanied the Speaker into the venue, made a short remark and left.

The meeting is said to be ongoing at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.
Factional National Chairman of the Labour Party Lamidi Apapa, has revealed that he is fully behind the aspirations of the partys presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi to win his case before the tribunal.

According to Apapa, a victory for Obi which would make him the President of Nigeria would automatically lead to a better life for him as well.

Apapa made this known on Thursday during an interview with Arise TV, stressing that none of Peter Obis supporters can claim to be more obidient than him.

He added that the votes he got for the party during the election is enough evidence of where his allegiance lies.

In his words, I am fully behind Obis mandate, and Ive said it several times. None of them can tell me that they are more obidient than myself because where I voted and the votes I got is a confirmation of my wish for Peter Obi to rule Nigeria.

So none of them can tell me they are more of it than myself. So I am fully with him and on Obis mandate I am because if he wins the election and he becomes President, I think my life would be better than what it is now, there is no doubt about it.

I am an elderly person, I understand life. So, anybody that is saying something contrary, that person is just been mischievous.

I prefer him (Obi) to be there and I keep on maintaining that on Obis mandate I stand.
Governor Hope Uzodimma has been reprimanded by the Imo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for his remarks that he was elected governor of Imo State by God, and has been admonished to stop.

The PDP publicity secretary in the state, Collins Opurozor, made the disclosure in a statement saying judicial fraud not God made him governor of the state.

According to him, Uzodimmas comments during a church service that God installed him as governor amounted to blasphemy on the altar.

READ ALSO: Satanic-Driven Falsehood  Imo Govt. Debunks Attack Report On Uzodinmas Convoy

Opurozor said Uzodimma was declared governor of an election he barely participated in and came from a distant fourth position.

He said Though we know Senator Uzodinma to be sorely deficient in morality, sincerity and integrity, we had at least expected him to pretend to respect God by not spewing barefaced lies and blasphemy against the Almighty God right on His Holy Altar. But he has once again proven that leopard cannot change its spots.

He rode to power through the most satanic conspiracy enforced by the worst judicial fraud in the history of Nigeria. And wherever the forces of darkness reign, there is always blood, there is fire, there is weeping and there is misery. That is the case today in Imo State. It is the character of Satan to give with one hand and take with the other hand.

Our Party recalls that in the aftermath of Uzodinmas infamous judicial victory, Justice Nweze of the Supreme had cried out, that the decision of the Supreme Court to create and impose a governor on Imo State would continue to haunt Nigerias electoral jurisprudence forever. Till date, Imo has continued to be remembered whenever judicial travesty in Nigeria is discussed.

Justice Nweze also noted that Uzodinma, during the election tribunal, admitted that he hijacked the result sheets from the electoral umpire officials and completed the result sheets by himself. He concocted results from 388 nonexistent polling units without indicating the votes polled by other political parties nor the number of accredited votes. Nweze regretted that without evidence of meeting other constitutional provisions, the court misled itself into declaring Uzodinma as winner Uzodimma said.

According to him, the PDP was duty-bound to remind Uzodinma that the God he mocked with his statement is not an author of fraud, criminality and injustice. The fraud that brought him to power turned Imo into a killing terrace, a field of agony, and a land of lack, deprivation and hopelessness.

He cannot claim to have been installed by God when under his watch Imo has become a city of bloodshed and has plummeted in all indices of good life and good governance. This is not Gods desire for His people in Imo State. God is peace. He is also love and life. He is the ultimate giver of joy. But Imo today occupies the top positions in all the indices of social strife and misery in Nigeria.

Opurozor called on Uzodimma to stop dropping the name of God in celebration of his abominable truncation of democracy and vicious usurpation of the peoples mandate in Imo State.

Meanwhile, the PDP has expressed hopes that they will reclaim the mandate from November 11th 2023 under their gubernatorial candidate, Senator Samuel Anyanwu saying Imolites are aware that their covenant with God to reestablish a PDP-led administration in the State under Senator Samuel Anyanwu, which will wipe away tears, heal all wounds, offer succour to the masses, behead the monster of insecurity, make the land yield again, bring back those who have fled because of killings and make Imo safe again shall come to fruition on November 11, 2023. God never fails.
The suspended National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure on Thursday stormed the partys national secretariat in Abuja and resumed duties.

It was gathered that Abure returned along with some other suspended national officers to assume their various positions.

Abure while addressing a press conference at the partys secretariat on the development, justified his decision to return to the office by claiming the FCT High Courts order suspending him can no longer be enforced because the party had appealed the ruling before the Court of Appeal.

Abure claimed that the high court no longer has jurisdiction over the matter.

Also, he denied allegations by the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the party that he collected N500 million to endorse Godswill Akpabio for the seat of the 10th National Assembly Senate President.

Furthermore, he denied allegations that he is behind the attack on Apapa and his team at the Presidential Election Tribunal on Wednesday.

According to the Labour party Chairman, A cursory look at the originating summons which is pending before the High Court of the FCT, Apapa and his cohorts asking that court upon granting their reliefs in the final judgement to direct the NEC to appoint interim National officers for the party.

READ MORE: Im Fully Behind Peter Obi Than Obidients  Lamidi Apapa Slams Labour Party Supporters

Out of desperation they are not patient enough to wait for the outcome of the final judgment but employed self-help and appoint themselves as National Officers of the Party.

However, our objection to the court jurisdiction was overruled by Justice J. Muazu of FCT High Court on the 12th of May. On the same day, we filed a Notice of Appeal. Then on Wednesday 17th May, the Appeal was entered at the Court of Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CV/559/2023. Also, we have filled our Appellant Brief of Argument which has been served on the trial courts.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted and seized no fewer than 23 packages of tramadol worth N1.8 billion, imported into the country from India and Pakistan.

The Command also disclosed that it generated a total sum of N21.4 billion as revenue between January and March, 2023.

Speaking during a press conference at the Lagos airport to announce activities of the command in the first quarter, the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the command, Compt. Mohammed Yusuf, said the tramadol seized were above the threshold allowed by law to be imported into the country

He said that the drugs entered the country in 22 packets of 225mg tramadol and 12 packets of 120mg from the shed of the Nigeria Aviation Handling Company Limited and Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited.

READ ALSO: NDLEA Arrests 25 Drug Suspects In Abuja IDP Camp, Others

Yusuf added that the seized drugs will be handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further action.

He said, Through credible intelligence, the command recorded seizures of packages of pharmaceutical products that included 22 packets of 225mg of tramadol and 12 packets of 120mg of tramadol they were concealed and imported into the country through India and Pakistan.

The above seizures were recorded based on intelligence-driven operations within the airport. The total Duty Paid Value (DPV), of the seizure stood at N1.8 billion.

The Tramadol tablets in our custody have been scheduled for handing over to the commander of Narcotics, MMA, command of NDLEA in the spirit of inter-agency collaboration. This will further strengthen our collaboration in safeguarding our youths from the use of harmful substances which could endanger their lives and the environment. We shall intensify effort in making our communities a safer place for all of us to live.
The next five years is expected to be the warmest ever period, the United Nations has warned.

The UNs World Meteorological Organization issued the warning on Wednesday, as greenhouse gases and El Nino combine to send temperatures soaring.

Global temperatures are soon set to exceed the more ambitious target set out in the Paris climate accords, with a two-thirds chance that one of the next five years will do so, according to the WMO.

The hottest eight years ever recorded were all between 2015 and 2022  but temperatures are forecast to increase further as climate change accelerates.

There is a 98-per cent likelihood that at least one of the next five years, and the five-year period as a whole, will be the warmest on record, the WMO said.

The 2015 Paris Agreement saw countries agree to cap global warming at well below two degrees Celsius above average levels measured between 1850 and 1900  and 1.5C if possible.

The global mean temperature in 2022 was 1.15C above the 1850-1900 average.

The WMO said there was a 66 per cent chance that annual global surface temperatures will exceed 1.5C above pre-industrial levels for at least one of the years 2023-2027, with a range of 1.1C to 1.8C forecasted for each of those five years.

While this does not mean that the world will permanently exceed the Paris benchmark, WMO is sounding the alarm that we will breach the 1.5C level on a temporary basis with increasing frequency, said the agencys chief Petteri Taalas.

READ MORE: COVID-19: United Nations Donates Three Ambulances To Lagos Govt

A warming El Nino is expected to develop in the coming months and this will combine with human-induced climate change to push global temperatures into uncharted territory.

This will have far-reaching repercussions for health, food security, water management and the environment. We need to be prepared.

El Nino is the large-scale warming of surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. The weather phenomenon normally occurs every two to seven years.

Conditions oscillate between El Nino and its opposite La Nina, with neutral conditions in between.

The WMO said earlier this month that the chances of El Nino developing were 60 per cent by the end of July and 80 per cent by the end of September.

Typically, El Nino increases global temperatures in the year after it develops  which in this cycle would be 2024.

Despite the cooling influence of La Nina conditions over much of the past three years, the warmest eight years on record have all been from 2015 onwards, with 2016 being the hottest.

Heat gets trapped in the atmosphere by so-called greenhouse gases, which are at a record high.

The three major greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide.
A Nigerian identified as Yemi Mobolade, has been elected as the mayor of Colorado Springs, a municipality in Colorado in the United States.

It was gathered that Mobolade is the first Black man to be elected to lead the city during political instability as a result of his electoral success.

INFORMATION NIGERIA learnt that, the new mayor, a Nigerian immigrant, and a businessman won the position with no political experience.

Mobolade becomes the mayor after he defeated Wayne Williams on Tuesday night in the citys runoff contest.

Mobolades victory represents a political earthquake in Colorado Springs, long known as a conservative stronghold. Wayne Williams is a Republican while Mobolade is unaffiliated, the report added.

Mobolade had received 57% of the vote to Williams 43% as of 7:15 p.m. Tuesday. Williams conceded at about 7:30 p.m. When the second batch of results was released shortly before 9 p.m., the percentages hadnt shifted.

Mobolade will succeed Mayor John Suthers, a former federal prosecutor, and Colorado attorney general who was term-limited, to become the citys 42nd mayor.

READ MORE: US Secretary Of State Calls Tinubu On Phone, Makes Crucial Demands

Wow, an incredulous Mobolade said to kick off his victory speech. Wow. Wow. I am speechless. This is our win, Mobolade added.

We are Colorado Springs. Its a new day in our beloved city. Do you believe that? Colorado Springs will become an inclusive, culturally rich, economically prosperous, safe, and vibrant city, the Colorado Sun quoted him as saying.

A married father of three who relocated to Colorado Springs in 2010, Mobolade soon rose to the position of leadership in the local business community.

He served as the citys small business development administrator while cofounding two well-known eateries, The Wild Goose Meeting House and Good Neighbors Meeting House, in Colorados second-largest city.

Additionally, he served as the Colorado Springs Chamber and Economic Development Corporations vice president of company expansion and retention.
YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power has called for the roads into Nagorno Karabakh to be reopened.

Nagorno Karabakh shouldnt have to rely on humanitarian convoys. Prior to late last year, you had commercial traffic moving freely into the area. So its absolutely imperative that the roads into Nagorno Karabakh are reopened, Power said at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on the FY2024 Foreign Aid Budget.

Power did not answer Congressman Brad Shermans question whether the blockade of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh "meets USAID's definition of a crisis."

She mentioned that the ICRC has been delivering humanitarian supplies to the blockaded people of Nagorno Karabakh, and that the latest ICRC convoy moved in on May 17.

Congressman Chris Smith asked Power whether any U.S. aid has been delivered to Nagorno Karabakh.

Power said that access into Nagorno karabakh has been very limited due to the blockade. You asked how food is getting in, when it is getting in. It should be getting in through commercial means as it always was, but since the road is blocked and the checkpoints have been erected commercial access has not been possible, she said, adding that supplies are delivered by the ICRC and Russian peacekeepers.

She said that the USAID sent two assessment missions to the region and that the U.S. is encouraging the UN to send an interagency assessment mission as well.

Meanwhile, the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) criticized Power in a Facebook post for dodging a straightforward Congressional inquiry when asked whether the blockade of Artsakh "meets USAID's definition of a crisis."

Lachin Corridor  the only road linking Nagorno Karabakh with Armenia and the rest of the world  has been blocked by Azerbaijan since 12 December 2022. The United Nations highest court  the International Court of Justice (ICJ) - ordered Azerbaijan on 22 February 2023 to take all steps at its disposal to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions. Azerbaijan has so far ignored the order.
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has said he queried and confronted the All Progressives Congress (APC) for not presenting Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as its candidate during the February 25 presidential elections.

Obi said this on Tuesday while exchanging pleasantries with some guests at Dele Momodus 63rd birthday in London, England.

The former Anambra State governor said he was desperate to witness a working Nigeria, adding that this compelled him to ask the question.

Recall Bola Ahmed Tinubu, APC National Leader, in 2022, battled former Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi and Osinbajo to secure the APC presidential ticket in the primaries.

READ ALSO: Dont Be Late To Inauguration  Adamu Warns APC Senators-Elect On Repeat Of Saraki Coup

He later emerged president-elect defeating Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and Obi.

However, Obi has filed a petition in court challenging the outcome of the 2023 presidential polls.

Obi said, I am desperate to see Nigeria working, I cant hide it. I even confronted them if you want it, why didnt you bring Osinbajo so that we can have people who want to work for the country?

Nigeria needs a healthy person and someone like him working 24 hours. Lets have the place working for everyone, he added.
Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has condemned Tuesdays attack on the convoy of some US Consulate staff members in Anambra State that claimed about four lives.

INFORMATION NIGERIA earlier reported that four persons lost their lives in a tragic incident that occurred in Ogbaru Local Government Area on Tuesday.

Reacting to the incident in a tweet on Wednesday, Obi who is a former governor of Anambra State said, This despicable act is highly condemnable.

He sympathised with the families of the deceased, the United States Embassy and other charitable international agencies involved.

Peter Obi noted that the rising case of crime in the county is connected to unemployment and poverty rate in the country.

He said, I just got the most reprehensible news of the attack and killing of some international humanitarian workers in Anambra state, which happened on Tuesday. This despicable act is highly condemnable.

My heartfelt sympathy goes to the families of the deceased, the United States Embassy and other charitable International agencies involved. Nothing can be more deplorable than that somebody has to die while rendering a charity job for a people and a nation in need.

READ MORE: Four US Embassy Officials Shot Dead In Anambra

The rising crime rate in our community and country is not unconnected with the frightening rising poverty level and unemployment of youths in our land which is a consequence of a prolonged leadership failure over the years.

When youths in their product ages remain idle for a prolonged time the devil finds in them veritable tools to build workshops in. Our redemption remains a quick turnaround from consumption to production.

I urge the appropriate security agencies to put no stone unturned in ensuring that the perpetrators of these wicked and abominable acts are fished out and made to face the full wrath of the law
The Sokoto State House of Assembly has approved the appointment of Chairmen and Permanent Members of the State Arabic and Islamic Education Commission, as well as the Zakkat and Endowment Commission on Wednesday.

This comes after a request by Governor Aminu Tambuwal and the subsequent screening of the nominees by the House Committee on Public Service Matters.

The nominees as requested by Tambuwal include: Malam Yahaya Muhammad-Boyi, as Executive Chairma,n Arabic and Islamic Education Commission and Malam Muhammad Maidoki, as Executive Chairman, Zakkat and Endowment Commission.

READ ALSO: INEC Declares Tambuwal, Wamakko, Dasuki Winners Of Sokoto NASS Supplementary Polls

Others are: Khalifa Buhari Tambuwal, Malam Liman Gada and Malam Shehu Leman, as Permanent Members of the Arabic and Islamic Education Commission.

Delivering the report at the plenary, Abdullahi Randa, the Committees Chairman said the members were satisfied with the nominees qualifications and experiences.

Thus, the nominees are suitable for the job as they were judged to be people of proven integrity.

Therefore, the committee wishes to recommend to the House that the nominees be confirmed and approved, he said.

In another development, the assembly has passed two Executive Bills after the consideration of the House Committee on Public Service Matters and that of Higher Education reports.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the bills were: Bill to Establish the Sokoto State Public Service Institute and Bill to Provide for the Establishment and Incorporation of the State College of Basic and Remedial Studies.

After deliberations at the plenary presided by the Deputy Speaker, Alhaji Abubakar Magaji, the Bblls were unanimously passed by the lawmakers.
Outgoing Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) decided to zone the 10th Speakership and the Deputy Senate Presidency to the North West in order to compensate the region.

Gbajabiamila made this known in Abuja on Wednesday night at a meeting of the Joint Task10th Assembly, a coalition of members-elect of the All Progressives Congress and opposition parties in the coming 10th National Assembly.

He said the North West wanted the Vice Presidency but the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, chose his running mate from the North East and decided to compensate the region with the speakership position in terms of their contribution to his victory.

Gbajabiamila also denied reports that he singlehandedly zoned the Speakership and the deputy speakership positions to the North West and South East respectively.

READ MORE: I Regret Backing Tambuwal To Become Speaker  Gbajabiamila

The Speaker, however, noted that the emergence of the APC on the political scene in 2014 was basically between the South-West and the North-West.

He said: I recall that I told Abbas he would abide by only the decision of the APC, saying, But as God would have itand I will say this because a lot of people think and give me more credit and more power than it is due me. A lot of people think I zoned speakershipI handpicked and zoned. I wish I had those powers.

I said to the people who zoned, Why North-West? They said to me, Go and read your political history; that from the day Nigeria was born, the North-West being the largest of voting blocs with seven states has never ever been outside the top four of the hierarchy in Nigeria. I said I didnt know that.

Why would it be in my time or our time that the North-West will be left out of the calculation? That is why they zoned it to the North-West, amongst many other reasons, apart from the number of votes that they brought  30 per cent of our figures.

The North-West wanted the Vice-President. The President-elect decided to go to the North-East. So, the least he could do was to compensate them with speakership in terms of what they bring to the table. It is as simple as that. I did not zone it. I wish I could.
As President Muhammadu Buhari prepares to hand over power to the incoming administration of the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, veteran Nollywood actor, Saidi Balogun and all other members of the All Progressive Congress (APC) have stormed Abuja for a walk tagged Peace Walk.

It was gathered that Saidi took to his Instagram page on Thursday to share a video of himself and others including aged women in white outfits.

READ MORE: Ohanaeze Dissociates Self From Alleged Plan To Participate In Tinubus Inauguration

Saidi, while speaking during the Peace Walk, he said the inauguration of Tinubu as the president must hold that is why they are holding a solemn procession in honour and support of his swearing-in.

He captioned the video: Solemn Procession in honor and support of the 29th May swearing in of the incoming administration of His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in FCT Abuja

Recall that INFORMATION NIGERIA had earlier reported that a civil society organization asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the planned inauguration of Bola Tinubu as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The Incorporated Trustees of Advocacy for Societal Rights Advancement and Development Initiative, (ASRADI) in the suit FHC/ABJ/CS/669/2023, which was brought on Tuesday, are contending that Tinubu lied on oath by his non-disclosure of his status over his possession of a Guinean passport.

The development comes after some residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the inauguration of President-elect Bola Tinubu.

The residents represented by Anyaegbunam Ubaka Okoye, David Aondover Adzer, Jeffrey Oheobeh Ucheh, Osang Paul and Chibuke Nwachukwu, sought a court order to restrain the Chief Justice of Nigeria and any judicial officer and/or any authority or persons from swearing in any candidate in the February 25 presidential election as president or vice president.

Check video here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsYGarcAdmW/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
A truck belonging to the Dangote Cement Factory has crushed a yet-to-be-identified policeman to death at the Saiten Petrol Station end of the Abeokuta-Lagos Expressway in Ogun State.

The spokesperson for the Federal Road Safety Corps in the state, Florence Okpe, in a statement on Wednesday, said no fewer than five persons sustained varying degrees of injury in the crash that occurred late Tuesday.

She said nine vehicles, including a Dangote truck, a tipper, a yellow bus, an armoured tank, a Toyota RAV4 and three motorcycles, were involved in the crash.

READ ALSO: Three Persons Confirmed Dead In Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Accident

Noting that eight victims comprising seven male adults and one female adult were involved in the crash, Okpe said one person was killed, while two persons were rescued unhurt.

She explained that the crash happened when the driver of the Dangote truck, while driving at top speed, attempted to overtake a vehicle, adding that the driver lost control, crashed into other vehicles, and subsequently plunged into the river.

Okpe said the impact of the collision made the Toyota RAV4 car go up in flames, adding that the fire was put out with a fire extinguisher obtained from a nearby filling station.

The injured victims were taken to the General Hospital in Ota for medical attention. One person identified as a police officer, who was on duty, got injured and was also taken to the hospital by the FRSC rescue team, but he later died, the statement said.
An indigenous woman in Mexico identified as Roxana Ruiz was sentenced to six years and two months in prison for the murder of her rapist.

Roxana was jailed for excessive use of self-defence after she strangled the man who broke into her home, threatened and raped her.

According to State of Mexico court, said that while they recognized she was a victim of rape, they believed a blow on the head would have been enough to defend the 23-year-old.

It was gathered that in May 2021, the mother-of-one was arrested by police after she was spotted trying to drag a bag containing the chopped-up body parts of her attacker.

READ MORE: Rape: Ogun Govt. Empowers 200 Girls With Teargas Canisters For Self-Defence

INFORMATION NIGERIA learnt that she ended up in the terrifying situation after she saw the man stranded on the street and offered him a place to stay.

It was my life or his life, the woman said. I only wanted to defend my life from a rapist, she said, adding that she acted out of fear.

The court heard how she woke up in the night and found the man in her bed raping her.

She hit him in the face and gave him a nosebleed.

While he was distracted she grabbed a T-shirt and used it to strangle him to death.

I feel sad, disappointed in justice. If I had not defended myself, I would be dead, Ruiz told the media outside the court in the municipality of Nezahualcoyotl  one of the most dangerous to be a woman in Mexico.
File photo of empty shelves at a former Bed Bath & Beyond location in Michigan. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month and announced a winding down process for its remaining 360 Bed Bath & Beyond stores, as well as its 120 Buy Buy Baby locations. Read more

Jessica Ferrara never thought securing items from her baby shower registry would be a major source of stress at the end of her pregnancy.

But since Bed Bath & Beyond announced last month that it was going out of business, the experience has been a nightmare, one that has left her and her husband out at least $1,000, she said.

As they saw stock getting low on certain items that had been on the registry with Buy Buy Baby, which is owned by Bed Bath & Beyond, the Easton, Pa., couple began online shopping for necessities, such as a crib that converts into a toddler bed and the items needed to turn a dresser into a changing table. Then, before the purchases arrived, the site indicated they went out of stock, she said. No one from customer service has been able to help them get their money back, Ferrara said, or provide clarity on whether the items will arrive before their first child is born early this summer.

Your third trimester youre supposed to be enjoying it and nesting, said Ferrara, 36. There certainly hasnt been any nesting going on.

Ferraras baby shower is Saturday, and guests can no longer view her registry. Even if they could, she added, every item is out of stock or discontinued. At this point, she said, shes hoping people give her gift cards.

Just not to Bed Bath & Beyond or Buy Buy Baby.

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The chain, famous for its ever-redeemable 20% off coupons, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month and announced a winding down process for its remaining 360 Bed Bath & Beyond stores, as well as its 120 Buy Buy Baby locations. All stores are set to be closed by July.

Those beloved coupons are no longer accepted (though the Container Store and Boscovs will take them until the end of May). Gift cards, rewards, and merchandise credits cant be used anymore, either.

After the closing announcement last month, Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby told customers it planned to partner with another platform, to which they could transfer their existing registry data. At the time, the company said it would share more details in the coming days.

More than two weeks later, that information has not been released on their social media channels or website.

Customers registry data is important to us. As we work diligently to partner with a third-party that allows our registry customers to transfer their data and complete their registry, customers can continue to view and download their existing registry data, Bed Bath & Beyond said Wednesday in a statement. Well provide updates as they are available.

While registrants such as Ferrara have been left frustrated and in the dark, others narrowly escaped the headache by ditching their Bed Bath & Beyond registries in the months before the latest bankruptcy.

Since January, Zola, a popular wedding planning and registry site, has seen an increasing number of couples migrating their registries from Bed Bath & Beyond. Even before the bankruptcy announcement, the number of couples with upcoming weddings who linked Bed Bath & Beyond registries to their Zola accounts had fallen by half compared with couples with 2022 weddings, a decrease representing thousands of registries, according to spokesperson Emily Forrest.

Hundreds of couples have emailed Zola customer support to ask for assistance in removing Bed Bath & Beyond items from their registries. About 200 did so proactively, Forrest said, and hundreds more have asked for help since the bankruptcy announcement.

Lisa Glennon, 31, of South Philadelphia, shut down her Bed Bath & Beyond wedding registry in the days after the bankruptcy, moving everything on that list to an Amazon registry.

Only four items on the Bed Bath & Beyond registry had been purchased  she isnt sure by whom  in advance of her June bridal shower. Despite the companys initial assurances, she didnt want anyone else to purchase an item, in case it didnt come.

Its peoples money, she said. And now whoever bought the four things on the registry: Are they going to get there?

Ferrara said she would have redone her registry on another site, but she was too far along in a high-risk pregnancy to do so. Plus, right after Bed Bath & Beyonds bankruptcy announcement, she added, the company told people with registries not to worry.

Ferraras weeks have been far from worry-free since.

Weve spent most of our own money getting our own registry gifts at this point, and we havent even tipped the scale of all the things you need for the newborn, she said. Im on the phone with customer service nonstop.  No one is really willing to help at this point.
Rendering of the expanded Dizengoff. Its current door is marked with the logos, and Abe Fisher is to the right. Read more

Major changes are in store at Mike Solomonov and Steve Cooks Center City restaurants, as the group is tightening its portfolio.

The short version: Dizengoff and Goldie will expand, while Abe Fisher and Merkaz, both one-offs, will close.

To track all the moves, lets follow the falafel:

Dizengoff, the fast-casual Israeli-style hummus shop, will expand this summer from 1625 Sansom St. into the space next door that now houses Abe Fisher. Both Diz and Abe will close in July for the work, the company said in a statement.

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The expanded Dizengoff, due to open in the fall, will ramp up to a full-service bar-restaurant with 85 seats, a 10-seat bar whose drink menu will include frozen limonana, a semiprivate dining room, and extended sidewalk seating. It will be open for lunch and dinner and have an expanded menu centered on hummus bowls with house-baked pita, pita sandwiches, and mezze salads. Also on the menu are such entrees as zaatar roast chicken, and crispy falafel-battered whole fish with cabbage and amba. Dizs quick lunch to-go will remain.

The move will cap a nine-year run for Abe Fisher, a full-service bar-restaurant serving schmaltzed-up cuisine inspired by the Jewish diaspora (notably a signature Montreal-style smoked rib feast), whose opening coincided with Dizs creation in 2014.

Across town at 1218 Sansom St., Merkaz  which has served sandwiches and family dinners from the counter since late 2019  will close June 4. That spot, next to Fergies Pub, will become the fifth location of Goldie Falafel; it is due to open later this summer.

Merkaz favorites such as the lamb pita will make their way to the new Dizengoff lunch menu, the company said.

CookNSolos other holdings include its flagship, Zahav; Laser Wolf and KFar locations in Philadelphia and Brooklyn; the Federal Donuts chain; Lilah, an events space; and the new Jaffa cocktail and raw bar in Brooklyn.
Temple University Health System and partners acquired Chestnut Hill Hospital from Tower Health on Jan 1. Temple owns 60%. Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and Redeemer Health each own 20%. Read more

Outpatient surgeries at Chestnut Hill Hospital jumped in the first three months of this year compared to last year, according the financial results posted this week by Temple University Health System, which acquired Chestnut Hill on Jan 1.

The upswing in surgeries at Chestnut Hill comes as Temples overall health system faces a general decline in patient visits at a time of rising expenses and staffing shortages. Temple, which is anchored by Temple University Health System in North Philadelphia, reported an operating loss of $54 million in the nine months that ended March 31, compared to a profit of $92 million in the same period a year ago, as it fights industry headwinds.

Temple officials said its too soon to say much about the financial performance of Chestnut Hill. Its in line with expectations, they said.

We have been focusing on growth, Nick Barcellona, Temple University Health Systems chief financial officer, told municipal bond analysts on a conference call Wednesday discussing Temples latest financial results.

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Planned areas of expansion at Chestnut Hill include urology, behavioral health, cancer services, and gastrointestinal services.

Temple led a group that acquired the 148-bed Chestnut Hill from Tower Health for $28 million  plus up to an additional $4 million for services during a yearlong transition. Temples partners are Redeemer Health and the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Health cares financial headwinds

Overall, like many health systems, Temple is having trouble making ends meet financially.

Temple officials cited a 2.5% decline in emergency department visits, an 8% decline in inpatient discharges, the persistent need for high-cost contract staff to fill vacancies, higher wages overall, and jumps in drug prices as big factors in the $54 million operating loss for the nine-month period.

The staffing trend is going in the right direction, Temple Healths chief executive Michael Young said. The number of agency staff peaked at 300 and is now down to 70, mostly in narrow specialties, Young said. The quarterly cost of agency staff peaked at nearly $17 million last spring. Temple spent $7.3 million on agency staff in the three months that ended March 31, records show.

Even so, Young said in a later interview with The Inquirer, labor costs rose $100 million in the first nine months of fiscal 2023 compared to the same period the year before. Drug costs were up $50 million, he said.

Temple reported $1.94 billion in revenue in the first nine months of fiscal 2023, about the same as a year ago.

Because of the losses this year, Young and Barcellona reduced the health systems capital budget for buildings and equipment by $23.5 million, adjusting the budget to $46.5 million from $70 million, Barcellona said.

Barcellona is leaving Temple at the end of June to become chief financial officer at the larger West Virginia University Health System.

Progress at Chestnut Hill

Doctors performed 807 outpatient surgeries at Chestnut Hill Hospital in the first three months of this year. The most recent data available from Tower Health, from last spring and summer, show the hospital was performing then around 525 surgeries per quarter.

Young said Temple didnt lose any doctors who either work for Chestnut Hill or practice there. The private surgeons are still there doing the same cases they were doing before, he said.

Temples flagship hospital in North Philadelphia is also benefiting from the acquisition, picking up an average of two-and-a-half patient transfers a day from Chestnut Hill. On Tuesday, three patients were transferred for advanced care.

Prior to the merger, we would have gotten one of those, Young told The Inquirer.
YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan described the mutual recognition of territorial integrity between Armenia and Azerbaijan to be an important step in terms of establishing stability and peace in the region and finalizing the text of the peace treaty between the two countries.

The Armenian Prime Minister made the comment at the Cabinet meeting on May 18, speaking about his meeting with the Azerbaijani President on May 14 in Brussels under the mediation of the President of the European Council Charles Michel.

Pashinyan mentioned that in October 2022, during the Prague meeting together with the French President and the President of the European Council, the Azerbaijani president and him had reiterated their commitment to the UN Charter and the 1991 Almaty Declaration, stressing that they recognize each others territorial integrity and sovereignty based on these documents, and affirmed that this will be the basis for the work of the border delimitation commissions.

Basically we made another step on May 14. And as it was mentioned in the statement by the President of the European Council after the May 14 meeting, we noted that Azerbaijan recognizes Armenias 29,900 square kilometers territorial integrity and Armenia recognizes Azerbaijans 86,600 square kilometers territorial integrity. I must note that I find this to be an important step for establishing stability and peace in the region, and also in terms of finalizing the text of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan and border delimitation. But, of course, the next step must be identifying and agreeing upon specific grounds with legal force and significance for delimitation, Pashinyan said.

The Armenian Prime Minister highlighted the fact that President of the European Council Charles Michel noted in his statement the importance of Baku-Stepanakert dialogue around the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh, in cooperation with the international community. Pashinyan said that this is a process which is significant for real and comprehensive normalization of relations with Azerbaijan and establishment of lasting peace in the region.

Therefore it will greatly speed up the signing of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan. A certain positive understanding has been developed in Brussels also in terms of restoring the Armenia-Azerbaijan railway, but given the previous experience, I will refrain from specifying in this regard. I stress this again, Armenia is ready to reopen the connections envisaged under the 9 November 2020 statement clause 9 and the January 11 trilateral statement as soon as possible based on the principles of sovereignty, jurisdiction, reciprocity and equality of the parties, Pashinyan said.

He added that Michels statement also noted that certain understanding took place on future release of POWs and other detainees and clarification of the fate of missing persons. But given that this is a highly sensitive issue, I will only say that the discussions on this topic will continue during the next meetings, Pashinyan said.
Supporters of Democratic candidate for mayor Cherelle Parker hold up campaign posters during her watch party at Laborers 332 in Philadelphia on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. Read more

Philadelphia Democrats on Tuesday nominated former City Councilmember Cherelle L. Parker over a crowded field, picking a Black woman with a moderate ideology to likely be the citys first female mayor. In addition, City Council appears poised to get some brand new faces come January, meaning City Hall is in for some major change.

The Inquirer hosted an AMA (Ask Me Anything) in collaboration with the r/philadelphia subreddit to answer readers most-asked questions about the results of Philadelphias Democratic primary election.

Here is a selection of Inquirer reporter Anna Orsos answers.

Q: Cherelle Parker has, rightfully so, gotten a lot of flack for her pro stop and frisk stance. My question is: Will this policy survive public scrutiny? Is this something police officers are even willing to do? Do they want this scrutiny?

A: Parker supports stop-and-frisk or so-called Terry stops, which is when a police officer can stop and pat down a person for such things as guns and drugs. This is not different from what police currently do. Police made about 10,000 pedestrian stops last year, which is far less than during the Nutter administration, but its still not nothing. Some of Parkers opponents would like to see that number be zero. I asked Parker earlier in the campaign if that number should be higher, and she avoided directly answering.

I think the better question is: Is this something police officers are even willing to do? The answer is that it depends on the officer. Pedestrian stops are entirely discretionary, and weve talked to experts  even those who are in favor of some use of stop-and-frisk  who say turning the dial back up on the practice could be really hard. Police have been operating in an environment for several years where its been frowned upon by the citys political leaders. Going the other direction could be challenging.

Q: How likely is Cherelle Parker to include some of the losing candidates as members of her administration?

A: Hiring your political opponents is something people really want elected officials to do and something that doesnt actually happen all that often. Thats because when youre in a mindset for more than a year that you are going to be the next mayor, and then you lose, its really hard to go work for the person who beat you. It happens, but its hard. Parker has been tight-lipped about what personnel her administration would seek to hire, so at this point its just too soon to say.

Q: On Election Day, I was handed a flier by IATSE supporting Parker and Squilla with Build 76 Place on the front. With Cherelle Parker winning, how likely is it that 76 Place will be built?

A: The chances that the Sixers arena happens went up when Parker won the primary. While she wasnt explicitly pro-arena while campaigning, she was pretty in favor of it when the proposal was unveiled and she was a member of City Council. One of her top allies is Ryan Boyer, who leads the Building Trades Council, and supports the development because of the number of construction jobs it will create.

A note: Squilla took issue with those fliers, which were printed by IBEW. He has said no one should be making definitive statements about their position on the arena before the citys community impact study is completed.

Q: Turnout, as we know, was once again low. Despite a high number of mayoral and council forums, voter guides, listening sessions, and issues-oriented coverage of the races, the needle barely moved. Whats your take on why such efforts seemingly had little impact on turnout?

A: Its really hard to motivate people to vote when the city is in such a challenging place in terms of public safety. Some polling The Inquirer did found that a lot of people most affected by crime really dont have a lot of confidence that the political system is going to make that reality better. Voting doesnt feel like a priority in many ways. I also think that forums and listening sessions and voter guides are great, but they often are attended and used by people who are already engaged.

Q: Do you have any insight into the campaigns? Did [Rebecca] Rhynhart and [Helen]Gym really not see this coming?

A: I think the three women all definitely thought they had a serious shot at winning, and Rhynhart and Gym each had some late momentum in different ways. Rhynhart overperformed compared to a lot of peoples expectations, and she started to surge in mid-to-late April, which is a good time to do so. Gym had a strong finish with a huge Bernie Sanders rally and a lot of positive national media coverage.

Overcoming the fact that Parker was supported by a plurality of the citys ward leaders and building trades unions was always going to be a challenge, but I dont think Rhynhart or Gym *expected* to lose. Parker ending up being 10 points over Rhynhart in second place is a pretty commanding win. I was at Gyms election-night party on Tuesday night and people were stunned. Lots of I really thought we had this talk.

Q: Id like to hear your thoughts on our new City Council. Are there any trends you can identify across the at-large elected, or perhaps similar platforms that appear to have worked in moving the needle for the winners? Same question for judges and other elected positions, like Sheriff.

A: As for City Council, it was a pretty good night for the Democratic establishment. All three at-large incumbents appear to have won, and if Cindy Bass squeaks through in the 8th district, then all the incumbent district members will have won, too.

As for the newcomers: Rue Landau performed well and will likely take an at-large seat, and thats interesting because she is really one of the only non-incumbent candidates who was endorsed by both the Democratic Party AND left-leaning groups like Reclaim Philadelphia. Nina Ahmad will likely take an at-large seat as well. That was a bit of a surprise, though she put a lot of her own money into the race and ran television ads, so it makes sense.

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As for judges, it appears that all the elected judges were recommended by the Bar Association, which is a notable accomplishment for the bar.

Q: On a professional level as a reporter covering a major election cycle in the sixth largest city in the country, how has your experience working the Philly election coverage gone?

A: Its been a really great experience. Covering a Philly mayors race was a true dream of mine. I love this city and care a lot about its future. Getting the chance to write every day about that has been really gratifying. Im truly grateful for the opportunity and for my wonderful coworkers.

Looking for more? Read the full Reddit AMA thread here.
The former Police Headquarters at 8th and Race Streets. Read more

A former Philadelphia homicide detective  already charged with sexually assaulting a victims mother  was charged Thursday with additional crimes after prosecutors said he raped another woman he met in the course of his job.

Donald Suchinsky, 57, faces charges including rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and official oppression, said Jane Roh, a spokesperson for the District Attorneys Office.

Prosecutors said Suchinsky had sex about 10 times over five years with the sister of a man who was killed in 2017  a case he was assigned to investigate. He also used threatening language to intimidate her to stay silent, prosecutors said.

A lawyer for Suchinsky declined to provide immediate comment.

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Suchinsky spent 34 years in the Police Department but was fired earlier this year after prosecutors charged him with counts including aggravated indecent assault, official oppression, and stalking.

Those charges stemmed from accusations made by a woman whose son was killed in the fall of 2020. She told authorities that shortly after she met Suchinsky  who was assigned to investigate her sons murder  he began communicating with her in ways that were odd and unrelated to the investigation, including calling and emailing her to ask for photos of herself or suggesting that the two of them should meet up.

At one point, the woman said, she drove to the former police headquarters for an update on the case, and Suchinsky got into her car to help her look for a parking space. As they drove around, she said, Suchinsky, while in the passenger seat, began groping her and digitally penetrated her.

I was frozen, the woman said at a preliminary hearing last month. A little numb.

(The Inquirer does not identify victims of sexual assault without their permission.)

The woman reported the incident to the Police Departments Internal Affairs Division. Suchinsky was benched as police investigated.

The woman later filed a federal lawsuit over what she said was the Police Departments failure to stop a pattern of sexual misconduct by its officers. Her suit was filed just weeks after former city homicide detective Philip Nordo was sentenced to at least 24 years in prison for raping and sexually assaulting witnesses and informants in murder cases.

Prosecutors charged Suchinsky in February, leading to his dismissal from the force.

Suchinsky has not commented publicly on the allegations. He pleaded not guilty in the first case, which is pending trial.
A fire in a Maple Shade apartment complex earlier this month has claimed a second child's life. Read more

A 7-year-old girl has died from injuries she suffered in a large fire that ripped through a Maple Shade apartment complex last week  a blaze that also killed her 12-year-old brother, police said Thursday.

Hope Marles died as a result of critical injuries from the fire, Maple Shade Township police said in a statement Thursday. The girl had been hospitalized since the May 7 blaze.

Her brother, Alan John AJ Marles, died last week shortly after the fire. The childrens mother, Shannon Marles, 35, remains hospitalized in stable condition, police said.

The siblings organs and tissues were donated to the Gift of Life Donor Program, giving others the opportunity to live, police said.

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A GoFundMe page posted by a family member remembered AJ as one-of-a-kind and a hero, noting that though he is gone from this earth he will live on through the donation.

Beth Norcia, superintendent of the Maple Shade School District, which both children attended, said the siblings were loved by their teachers, their classmates, and all of the staff that they came in contact with over their years in school.

AJ and Hope were both exceptional children who brought joy, enthusiasm and genuine love for learning to our schools, Norcia said. Our hearts are with their family at this time.

 READ MORE: 12-year-old boy dead, mother and sister in critical condition following South Jersey apartment fire

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. It began just before 10:30 p.m. at the Fox Meadow Apartments on Adams Drive in the Burlington County town. Officials evacuated residents as flames and thick smoke spewed from the roof of the complex.

Three other people were hospitalized for smoke inhalation, police said. In total, the fire damaged 16 apartments and displaced 22 families, according to Red Cross New Jersey. The agency said last week that it had provided temporary lodging, food and clothing to 40 people.

Administrators in the Maple Shade School District said last week that crisis teams were available to support students and their families. Hope was in second grade, and AJ was in sixth grade, Norcia said. The school district will honor the memory of the siblings, she said, by coming together as a community and supporting one another.

Together we will find solace, strength, and resilience as we remember and celebrate the lives of two exceptional children and students, she said.

The Maple Shade Business Association is collecting money and donations for the families affected by the fire.
Kendall Stephens, a transgender activist who was assaulted in 2020, speaks at a news conference at the District Attorney's Office, where officials announced Thursday that a suspect in the beating of a transgender woman had been arrested. Read more

A man who pistol-whipped and shot at a transgender woman in Northeast Philadelphia last summer and shot and injured two others has been arrested after eluding police for months, authorities said Thursday. .

Joel Martinez, 22, of Camden, was charged with attempted murder, three counts of aggravated assault, and related crimes for attacking the 23-year-old woman and shooting and injuring two other women, ages 22 and 18, outside a Kensington nightclub last June, the District Attorneys Office said.

Martinez was taken into custody in Camden in late December and extradited to Philadelphia this week, Police Capt. James Kearney said.

He was being held on $3 million bail, said Mike Lee, chief of staff for District Attorney Larry Krasner.

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Shortly after 4:30 a.m. June 12, police responded to a double shooting on the 300 block of East Westmoreland Street. Officers found a 22-year-old woman shot once in the left arm and an 18-year-old woman with a graze wound to the back of her head, police said.

Martinez also shot at the transgender woman but she was not struck, a spokesperson for the District Attorneys Office said.

Authorities did not identify the victims of the crimes as they announced Martinezs arrest, but said the women were grateful that he had been apprehended. Kelly Burkhardt, the LGBTQ+ liaison for the District Attorneys Office, read a statement from the woman who was pistol-whipped.

I can peacefully now put my head down at night and sleep again, she said. Ive had night terrors since this happened and lots of counseling. And now I feel the peace knowing I will no longer have to walk around looking over my shoulder, wondering if someone is going to cause harm to me. I am thankful, by the grace of God.

Violent crime against the LGBTQ community has been on the rise in Philadelphia, Burkhardt said.

Crimes against the LGBTQ community, including assault and murder, are not recognized as hate crimes under Pennsylvania law. In 2014, Philadelphia passed legislation that recognizes attacks based on gender identity or sexual orientation as hate crimes.
Opioid settlement documents describe a list of approved and recommended opioid remediation uses, including medication, such as Narcan, that can reverse opioid overdoses. Read more

Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters.

Billions of dollars are expected to come to Pennsylvania to help the state respond to the opioid epidemic, but tracking how counties and other local governments plan to spend that money isnt easy.

A lot of the decisions that are happening now are really going to set the tone for: What are we prioritizing? said Alejandro Alves, who works on overdose prevention issues for the international public health nonprofit Vital Strategies.

Those decisions could have an impact for years to come because once counties start funding programs, it can be hard to eliminate or reduce them later  or switch to another initiative. Heres what you need to know about the money, the process for deciding how it will be spent, and how you can influence it.

How much money will Pennsylvania receive from opioid lawsuit settlements?

The attorney generals office has said the state is set to receive more than $2.2 billion from various investigations and cases. An office spokesperson declined to provide a detailed breakdown of how the office reached that number. There are several different sources of money, and the attorney generals office has described them as coming in waves.

Pennsylvania expects to receive up to $1.07 billion over 18 years from a national deal with Johnson & Johnson and three major drug distributors  Cardinal Health, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen. All 67 counties in Pennsylvania joined that agreement, the attorney generals office announced in January 2022.

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The state received about $130 million last year from that deal, according to Tom VanKirk, chair of the states opioid trust.

During a public meeting in late March, the state attorney generals office described a second wave of opioid settlements, saying that agreements with five companies could bring over $770 million more to Pennsylvania. The list consisted of drug manufacturers Allergan and Teva and retailers Walmart, CVS, and Walgreens.

Brett Hambright, a spokesperson for the attorney generals office, on May 12 declined to say how many counties and municipalities signed on to those second-wave settlements, writing that the deadline to do so was pushed back to May 10 and we do not have all of the figures/info in yet. That second wave did not include all opioid cases.

VanKirk told Spotlight PA and WESA in April that the trust received an additional $7 million in February from an opioid case in bankruptcy court thats separate from the first- or second-wave figures.

Whos in charge of spending opioid settlement money?

County government officials will have the most control.

The distribution plan in Pennsylvania says 15% of funds go to the state legislature to decide how to spend. Another 70% goes to county governments based on a formula that factors in opioid-related harm that occurred while also guaranteeing a minimum of $1 million for each county, and 15% goes to local governments that had initiated their own litigation. The latter includes some counties.

Separately, some opioid settlement money pays for attorney fees and expenses related to litigation, as well as management costs for the trust, according to court documents.

How can local governments spend the opioid settlement money?

Settlement documents describe a list of approved and recommended opioid remediation uses.

That list  known as Exhibit E  includes drugs that reverse opioid overdoses, medication-assisted treatment, support for pregnant and postpartum women, recovery services, prevention programs, regional planning, and media campaigns.

But that list doesnt cover every possibility, and local governments will have some discretion.

Who ensures local governments spend the opioid settlement money appropriately?

The 13-member Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust is primarily responsible for oversight of how counties and other local governments spend their money.

Local governments dont need permission from the trust before they spend money, according to the court order that created the trust and defined its powers. Once a year, counties must report to the trust on settlement expenditures, but the trust hasnt provided information on how much detail will be required.

The trust can withhold future payments if locals spend the money in a way that is not in accordance with the requirements of Exhibit E. Local governments will have up to three months to fix the misspending and still receive their full payment.

But if they dont resolve the issue, the trust can cut or withhold money going forward.

Hopefully, well never come to that, VanKirk said at the trusts first public meeting in March.

Whos serving on the trust?

The governor has the power to appoint two members: the chairperson and a secretary of a state health and human services agency. Four legislative leaders also got to each appoint a member.

The remaining seven members represent regions of the state, with Philadelphias mayor and the Allegheny County executive each getting to appoint a member. Other regional representatives are selected based on votes from county leaders. Theres a complete list of members here.

What are the best ways to spend the opioid settlement money?

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has shared a set of five principles to help guide states and local governments: spend the money to save lives, use evidence to direct spending, invest in youth prevention, focus on racial equity, and develop a fair and transparent process for deciding how to spend the funds.

Experts say the experience of a previous major public health-related settlement  a master agreement to resolve claims against tobacco companies  has shaped the opioid settlements.

It was diverted for a number of reasons to other basic needs of governance that didnt have anything to do with tobacco, said Alves of Vital Strategies. ... No one wants to repeat that experience.

But theres still wide disagreement about the best way to respond to the opioid crisis. As Spotlight PA and WESA reported in April, an early point of contention is whether counties can and should spend the money to boost drug task forces, hire more police officers, and pay for guns and vests.

What if members of the trust and local governments disagree?

The order creating the trust gives the state Commonwealth Court the power to settle disputes. And if counties want to spend money on an item of abatement not contained in Exhibit E, they can petition the Commonwealth Court to allow them to do so.

The order states the spending will be allowed if the Commonwealth Court determines it will reduce incidence or rate of opioid addiction and overdose deaths.

How can people track opioid settlement spending by local governments?

In Pennsylvania, theres currently no single resource for people to see where the money is going. Requesting information from your local government under Pennsylvanias Right-to-Know Law can help. Spotlight PA has guides on filing public records requests and tips for appealing if an agency denies your request.

Staffers with Community Education Group, an advocacy organization focused on public health issues, have been scouring meeting minutes, county government websites, and local news articles to track different discussions and plans. Tricia Christensen, director of policy for the organization, said these funding decisions are fundamentally a political process.

There are ways to influence that process. Jordan Scott, regional field organizer for the Pennsylvania Harm Reduction Network, encourages people to try to serve on local task forces, research what their communities needs are, and attend local meetings where the decisions happen.

Its much harder to dismiss a group of 20 versus one person, Scott said.

Some advocates are pushing for more community involvement in the process.

We lived it, Marianne Sinisi, whose son Shawn died from a drug overdose in 2018, told Spotlight PA and WESA. So it shouldnt be decided by government officials or somebody that just thinks they have all the answers.  It should be the victims that are at that table.

When must counties report their opioid settlement spending to the trust?

Their deadline is March 15 of each year. But the trust waived that requirement for this year. The order creating the trust does not specifically say other local governments that received money because of their role in litigation have to submit an annual report by that same deadline. But another section of the order says those other local governments can be penalized if they misspend money or dont file an annual report.

The order does not require the state legislature to submit such a report to the trust on its spending.

How can people participate in trust meetings?

The trust is scheduled to meet publicly three more times this year: May 18, Sept. 7, and Nov. 30. Each meeting will begin at 2:45 p.m. and is planned to be virtual. No physical location is listed for the public to attend. At the trusts first public meeting, members of the public did not have a chance to speak. People can submit questions through its website.

WHILE YOURE HERE... If you learned something from this story, pay it forward and become a member of Spotlight PA so someone else can in the future at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney gives his budget address in Philadelphia City Council chambers in March. Next year there will be a new mayor and several new Council members. Read more

Philadelphia City Council is poised to get some brand new faces come January.

Democratic voters nominated two newcomers and three incumbents for five at-large Council seats on Tuesday.

As for Councils 10 district races, incumbents prevailed or were leading as of Thursday morning, but at least one new lawmaker is on track to enter the mix.

Given the citys overwhelmingly Democratic electorate, this new cohort is expected to prevail easily in the November general election.

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Republican voters also selected a group of newcomers as Council candidates, and two at-large seats on Council are reserved for members from minority parties. But the GOP candidates path to victory in November is less certain, as two Working Families Party candidates are also running for the minority seats.

So buckle up and get ready for some extraordinarily high turnover in City Hall. Heres a whos-who of the new Democrats youll need to know:

Rue Landau, at-large Democratic nominee

Rue Landau is poised to become the first openly LGBTQ member of Council (Note: there were gay lawmakers in the past who were not out).

Brief bio: At 54, Landau is a well-known housing and civil rights attorney in Philadelphia. She started her career representing low-income tenants for Community Legal Services, and went on to become leader of the citys Fair Housing Commission and Human Rights Commission. Notable detail: As an LGBTQ advocate, she already made history once before: she and her wife Kerry received the first same-sex marriage certificate issued in Pennsylvania in 2014. Neighborhood: Bella Vista. On the issues: Shes a progressive Democrat focused on affordable housing and re-investing in city institutions like parks and libraries. But Landau attributed her win to the broad coalition she built between left-leaning groups, labor unions, and more moderate Democratic leaders.

 READ MORE: Weve made history: Rue Landau poised to become Phillys first openly LGBTQ City Council member

Nina Ahmad, at-large Democratic nominee

Nina Ahmad, another Democratic nominee running for an at-large seat on Council, is poised to make history as the first South Asian Council member.

Brief bio: Ahmad, 64, immigrated to the U.S. from war-torn Bangladesh and attended the University of Pennsylvania. She has worked as a scientist, womens rights advocate, government bureaucrat, and real estate developer. She served as president of the Philadelphia chapter of the National Organization for Women, and as a deputy mayor under Mayor Jim Kenney. She also co-owns a development financing firm, JNA Capital Inc., with her husband. Notable detail: This is not Ahmads first run for public office. She twice ran unsuccessfully for statewide office in 2018 and 2020, sinking more than $1 million of her own money into the campaigns. Ahmad largely self-financed her Council bid this year, too, triggering the so-called millionaires amendment in the days leading up to the primary. Neighborhood: Mount Airy. On the issues: Ahmad has called herself an outsider Democrat who doesnt fall into clear progressive or moderate camps. She positions herself as a champion for marginalized communities who also has the financial know-how to balance the citys budget and an understanding of issues like business taxes and zoning.

Jeffery Jay Young, 5th District Democratic nominee

Jeffery Young became the de facto successor to Darrell L. Clarke in the 5th Council District on Tuesday. The race to succeed Clarke, who represented the North Philly district for over 20 years, was expected to be crowded. But due to some bungled legal paperwork by other candidates, Young ended up as the only Democrat on the ballot. He will also run uncontested in the general election.

Brief bio: Young, 36, is an attorney who has either interned or worked for a number of elected officials, including Clarke. His legal practice focuses on land use issues and he has represented developers. Notable detail: Young has a history of offensive social media posts. Hes since deleted his account and chalked up the past tweets to his youth. Neighborhood: North Philadelphia. On the issues: Young hasnt published a policy platform yet. But his past involvement in public land deals  as well as his social media invectives against bike lanes and a lack of available parking spaces  suggest land use decisions will take the spotlight in his leadership of the district.

 READ MORE: How Jay Young rose from a high-school intern in City Hall to a lawyer poised to succeed Darrell Clarke on Philadelphia City Council

Three new incumbents poised for their first full terms

Three incumbent Council members who have only been in office for six months also clinched Democratic nominations this week, putting them on track for their first full terms.

Heres what you need to know about them:

Quetcy Lozada, 7th District incumbent

Quetcy Lozada is the political heir to former Councilmember Maria Quinones Sanchez, and won a special election to lead the 7th District after her former boss resigned to run for mayor last year.

Brief bio: Raised in North Philadelphia, Lozada as a teenager worked in retail at the then-Gallery mall and later segued customer service into public service. She worked as a chief of staff to Quinones Sanchez for a decade until 2018, when she moved into community engagement roles for District Attorney Larry Krasner and more recently for Latino services nonprofit Esperanza. Neighborhood: Northwood. On the issues: In her contested race against Democratic challenger Andres Celin, Lozada ran as bullish on law enforcement, advocating for more officers and improved police-community relations. She also vowed to crack down on the open-air drug market and quality-of-life issues that have plagued the troubled district, particularly in Kensington.

 READ MORE: Gentrification, housing, and the future of Kensington are at the heart of a heated Philly City Council race

Anthony Phillips, 9th District incumbent

Anthony Phillips is the political heir to former Councilmember Cherelle Parker, who led the 9th District before resigning to run for mayor.

Brief bio: Raised in Nicetown and later East Mount Airy, Anthony Phillips was an academic wunderkind who is now pursuing a doctorate on the Black church in Philadelphia. He co-founded a successful youth non-profit at a young age and also has degrees from Bates College and Yale University. Notable detail: At 34, hes Councils youngest member by five years. Neighborhood: East Mount Airy. On the issues: Phillips has signaled that he would take up Parkers torch on the issue of middle neighborhoods, prioritizing services and preventing population decline in economically stable Black neighborhoods.

 READ MORE: What you need to know about Anthony Phillips, the 33-year-old Ph.D. student in line for a City Council seat

Jimmy Harrity, at-large incumbent

City Councilmember Jimmy Harrity won the fifth Democratic at-large nomination.

Brief bio: Raised in Southwest Philadelphia, Harrity made an unusual entry into Philly politics  by running a cookie stall at a famed hangout for Philly politicos on South Broad Street. His connections there led to jobs in the City Controllers Office, former Mayor John Streets administration, and later with state Sen. Sharif Street. Notable detail: Harrity has been open about his struggle with alcoholism. With more than a dozen years sober, he said his recovery is central to his mission on Council. Neighborhood: Kensington. On the issues: In his first full term on Council, Harrity said he wants to improve treatment options for substance abuse disorder and increase youth mentorship opportunities.

 READ MORE: A bar fight, a heart attack, and 12 years of sobriety: Jimmy Harritys path to Philadelphia City Council
Daisy Ridley and John Boyega in a scene from director J.J. Abrams' blockbuster "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." The film screens as a part of 'Movies @ the Mann' this summer. Read more

From parks to cemeteries to the tops of buildings, the list of places you can catch an outdoor movie screening in Philadelphia is endless. There are several different annual series that have already been announced, including the Laurel Hill East Cinema Series, cineSpeak Under the Stars, Sunset Social Movie Nights, Schuylkill Banks Movie Nights, and Movies at the Mann.

While we wait for more screenings to be announced, we picked 10 outdoor showings to look forward to this summer.

Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes

May 26, 7 p.m., the Bowl at Clark Park (4300 Chester Ave.). Free.

The third year of the cineSpeak Under the Stars series kicks off with the Philadelphia premiere of this new documentary about drummer, composer, and activist Max Roach. CineSpeak founder Sarah Mueller described the film as exploring the ways in which his music kind of went against the system [and] influences a lot of different genres. Philadelphias own Questlove is also featured in the film, which is presented in association with WRTI & Ars Nova Workshop.

The Creature from the Black Lagoon

June 9, 8:30 p.m., Laurel Hill East (3822 Ridge Ave.), $15 general admission, $13 seniors and students, $10 for members.

The Laurel Hill East series, held in a cemetery in East Falls, presents this 1954 horror classic, about a creature called Gill-man, an allegory for everything from colonialism to scientific hubris. Presented in association with the Philadelphia Film Society.

Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro)

June 9, 9 p.m., the Bowl at Clark Park. Free.

Most of this years cineSpeak Under the Stars lineup consists of Philadelphia premieres and other newer movies. One exception is Black Orpheus, Marcel Camus 1959 musical take on the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice, set during Carnival in Brazil. The event features a meetup of the Be Reel Black Cinema Club.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

June 14, 7 p.m., Sunset Social (129 S. 30th St.). Free.

Sunset Socials Movie Nights take place on the rooftop of the Cira Centre. On June 14, the series features the Indiana Jones film from 1989, the one in which Sean Connery played Harrison Fords father. The showing is two weeks before the theatrical arrival of the brand new Indiana Jones film, The Dial of Destiny.

Ghostbusters

June 15, 8:30 p.m., Schuylkill Banks (just north of the Walnut Street Bridge on the east side of the Schuylkill). Free.

The Schuylkill Banks Movie Nights series features 10 movies over the course of the summer, and one particular highlight is Ivan Reitmans 1984 original Ghostbusters. Grab your blanket to watch the film near the river, and hope that the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man doesnt attack Center City.

Little Richard: I Am Everything

June 16, 9 p.m., the Bowl at Clark Park. Free.

The cineSpeak Under the Stars series wraps up with the acclaimed new documentary about the rock legend Little Richard, directed by Lisa Cortes. The film explores the musicians rise, and his complicated relationship with both his sexuality and with his place in rock history.

Top Gun: Maverick

June 21, 7 p.m., Sunset Social. Free.

The Sunset Social Movie Nights series continues with the return of Tom Cruises Pete Maverick Mitchell. Arriving 36 years after the original movie and, thanks to the pandemic, nearly four years after it was filmed, Top Gun: Maverick has its hero on a secret mission with Rooster (Downingtowns own Miles Teller), the son of his departed friend Goose.

Back to the Future

June 22, 8:30 p.m., Schuylkill Banks (at Grays Ferry Crescent, east side of the Schuylkill just south of the Grays Ferry Avenue Bridge). Free.

Theres a fantastic new documentary about Michael J. Fox called Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie that debuts this week on Apple TV+. You can follow that by seeing Foxs most famous movie, near the river. Robert Zemeckis 1985 movie stars Fox as a teenager traveling back in time to the 1950s, where he confronts his mom (Lea Thompson) and has to straighten the timeline to ensure his own survival.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (in concert)

June 24, 8 p.m., TD Pavilion at the Mann [5201 Parkside Ave.]. Tickets $25 to $95.

The first of this summers Movies @ the Mann series features the 2015 Star Wars sequel The Force Awakens, while the Philadelphia Orchestra plays John Williams score. Between Star Wars, E.T., Harry Potter, and Jurassic Park  also coming to the Mann, on July 22  Williams has undoubtedly been featured in more live orchestral performances of movie scores than any other composer.

Almost Famous

Aug. 3, 8:20 p.m., Schuylkill Banks (Grays Ferry Crescent). Free.

In August, the Schuylkill Banks series will feature Cameron Crowes beloved 2000 film, based on the directors adventures as a teenage rock journalist for Rolling Stone, and his crush on Band-Aid Penny Lane (Kate Hudson.)
Two rose windows from a historic West Philly church, shown here on display at Freemans Auction. Read more

Two stained-glass rose windows from a historic West Philadelphia church sold at auction today for $100,000 each. Designed by Tiffany studios in 1904, the windows were sold, bundled with other furnishings, last November for $6,000.

The sale at Freemans, the Philadelphia-based auction house, marks the end of a twisting journey for the rare windows. For more than 100 years, they sat untouched in the gable ends of the sanctuary of the colossal church at 50th Street and Baltimore Avenue. Then, in the summer of 2022, Emmanuel Christian Center purchased the building from Hickman Temple A.M.E. Church. The new pastor, William Brownlee, Sr., began to renovate to make the 15,000-square-foot Gothic space more modern.

 READ MORE: A church sold its old stained glass windows for $6,000. It turned out they were rare Tiffany glass.

In the fall, he sold the windows, along with other fixtures and furnishings, to Paul Brown, an architectural salvager based in Lancaster. Brownlee was not aware that the windows were by Tiffany; a recent historic nomination for the building did not mention it. Construction at the church, which has a crumbling bell tower, is now suspended, because the congregation ran out of money.

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Freemans auctioned the windows on behalf of Brown, the Lancaster salvager. With the buyers premium  an additional fee based on the hammer price of the item, which goes to the auction house  the final purchase price was $126,000 each.

A day before the auction, Brown and Brownlee told The Inquirer they were in discussions that would result in Emmanuel Christian Center receiving 25% of the net profits from the sale of the two windows on Thursday. After the auction, they declined to share the terms of the final agreement. The Inquirer was not able to independently verify it.

Brownlee asked his lawyer to negotiate with the architectural salvager on the churchs behalf after The Inquirer published an article about the impending sale of the windows.

A portion of the proceeds of the sale should rightfully go to the church thats focused on helping residents, said Brownlee. Im not a historian or a preservationist, and even they didnt know what we had.

Brownlee said he had driven to Freemans on the morning of the auction to say the church no longer had a dispute with Brown over the windows.

The buyer of the windows asked to remain anonymous, Freemans said.

The windows attracted national attention, and though the auction was supposed to be open to the public, Freemans announced the day before that it would be open only to active bidders, barring the media and curious spectators from seeing the sale in person. The event was live-streamed on the auction houses website.

As for the church, Brownlee has been working with the University City Districts Project Rehab to secure permits and apply for grant funding to continue construction. Project Rehab introduced him to a number of lawyers with expertise in real estate, contract law, and litigation to consult about the already-sold windows once it became clear how valuable they were.

Im hoping that the credibility of the congregation is viewed more favorably, and that a year or so from now, they are in that building, with the lights on, having their services, being the community space that Pastor Brownlee envisioned, said Ryan Spak, founder of Project Rehab.

Despite the many turns in the story of the century-old windows, their sale at Freemans was over in about two minutes.

At $100,000. Last chance, the auctioneer said before pounding his gavel on the second of the two windows. Thank you all. Sold for $100,000.

This story has been updated to reflect the buyers premium on the windows at Freemans.
Miss Case was an artist as a girl and honed her fashion design skills in college. Read more

Andrea Marcel Case, 78, formerly of Philadelphia, an entrepreneur, business owner, fashion designer, teacher, and social justice advocate, died Friday, April 28, of a heart attack at her home in Cape Coral, Fla.

Creative and energetic throughout her life, Miss Case earned a bachelors degree in art, design, and education in 1965 at Howard University and fashioned a career in Philadelphia that spanned three decades. From the 1970s through the 1990s, she owned and operated high-fashion and bridal shops, Rubys Showcase and Andrea Marcels Boutique, at several locations in Philadelphia and later at malls in Montgomery County.

She designed dresses, organized weddings and other formal affairs, and hosted fashion shows and public events at her stores and elsewhere. She specialized in wedding gowns and hats, and loved to show off her own extensive hat collection.

Her mother, Ruby, founded Rubys Showcase in Germantown, and Miss Case assumed its operation after her mother retired. Later, she opened her own boutiques.

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Miss Case closed her last store in the Cheltenham Square Mall about 2000, when her father became ill. Earlier, she honed her design skills in college by joining the Howard Players and creating costumes for the prestigious theatrical troupe.

In the late 1960s, she taught art, math, and other subjects for a few years in the School District of Philadelphia. She valued both art and education, said her brother Arthur. She enjoyed developing young peoples talents.

Inspired by her mother and aunt, both of whom were active with the civil rights movement in the 1960s, Miss Case attended rallies, meetings, and conferences regarding social justice and personal responsibility. She appreciated her employees, customers, and students, and sought ways to improve the lives of everyone she encountered.

She was civic-minded, always wanting to help the people in the community to a better life, her family said in a tribute.

She was on the board of directors of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Foundation and a member of the NAACP, Order of the Eastern Star, Howard University alumni group, and other organizations. She was friendly and compassionate, her brother said. She was down-to-earth and always looking for ways to help other people.

Andrea Marcel Case was born Sept. 2, 1944, in Philadelphia. She grew up in West Mount Airy and graduated from Germantown High School in 1961. She moved to Wyncote later and then to Florida in 2002.

Neighborhood friends called her Casey, and a junior high school classmate said in an online tribute: She was petite, soft-spoken, and one of the kindest, most unassuming girls I ever knew.

She studied art and design after high school, was active with the High Street Church of God, and sang in the James Cleveland mass choir in Philadelphia. She liked boating and enjoyed journeys to Bermuda and the Bahamas.

She doted on her dog, Carlton, and cared selflessly for both her parents for months as their health declined.

As the family organizer, she researched its lineage, arranged reunions, and ministered to others when relatives died. She was a beautiful person in stature and character, her family said. She radiated class and compassion.

In addition to her brother, Miss Case is survived by other relatives.

A viewing is to be at 10 a.m. Tuesday, May 23, at Summit Presbyterian Church, 6757 Greene St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19119. A service is to follow at 11 a.m.

Donations in her name may be made to Christ Center Church of God, 1615 W. Chelten Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19126.
Cherelle Parker arrives at her polling place Tuesday with her son, Langston Mullins, 10; former Councilmember Marion Tasco; Ishaq Samai, of the Philadelphia Anti-Drug/Anti-Violence Network; and U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans. Read more

Cherelle Parkers historic win in the Democratic primary for mayor of Philadelphia has poised her to become the 100th mayor of our city, and the first Madam Mayor. Her win sends a message that in a nation with too few female chief executives, the voters have shattered this glass ceiling. This victory reminds us that regardless of your background, through grit, hard work, and determination, you can still achieve your goals.

Parkers win also demonstrates that gun violence is the number one issue plaguing our city. In a crowded field with various qualified candidates, I believe that citizens voted for the person who they believed could not only address the problem of gun violence, but also understands the historic challenges that people of color, and more specifically African Americans, have had with criminal justice in America.

As mayor, I expect Parker to use her experience as majority leader in City Council to bring all public safety partners together to develop a unified strategy to address this crisis. And shes already started. In March 2022, as Council majority leader, Parker introduced the Neighborhood Safety and Community Policing Plan with the goal of making Philadelphia safer. Her plan includes hiring an additional 300 foot and bike patrol officers, cleaning streets, fixing broken streetlights, repairing and preserving homes, and supporting victim and witness services, among other things.

Further, I believe that Parker will use her background as a state representative to get the Biden and Shapiro administrations to support this strategy and her campaign pledge to make Philadelphia the safest, cleanest, and greenest city in America. As head of the Philadelphia delegation in Harrisburg, she was able to work across the aisle to bring additional resources back to the city when the School District was in desperate need of funds. I am confident that she will continue to convene people when there is a need, and to solve problems by bringing people together.

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As mayor, Parker cant do this job alone. It is incumbent upon all of us to come together and work hard to address the issues that plague our city, including gun violence, poverty, and education. Gun violence isnt just a problem for elected officials  its a concern for everyone, and that means that we need everyone to step up and get involved in community-centered gun violence prevention measures.

Even if you didnt vote for Parker in the primary, we still need your support. Throughout the campaign, Philadelphians showed a lot of energy and passion for various candidates who ran to become the citys 100th mayor. We now need this same love and spirit for Philadelphia to help a Parker administration to address the many issues that impact Philadelphians every day.

I know we can do it. We are Americas birthplace.

Philadelphia is known as the City of Brotherly Love, but now and forever we will also be known as the City of Sisterly Effectiveness. To have a woman likely leading the city as mayor from City Hall Room 215 is no small matter. She is the first, but she will not be the last.

For Philadelphians to see a Black woman in the highest position of leadership sets an example for people of all ages, genders, and orientations. Maybe your glass ceiling is different  say becoming president, or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. If Parker can work hard to achieve her goals and dreams, so can you.

Despite all of our challenges, I have hope for a brighter future in our city. Lets work together and support our first Madam Mayor, Cherelle Parker, to lead us forward.

Derek S. Green is a lawyer and former Council member at-large.
YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on May 18 that reciprocal withdrawal of military forces on the border line between Armenia and Azerbaijan is becoming more urgent on the backdrop of the continuing policy of escalation by Azerbaijan and the agreements reached on May 14 in Brussels.

Despite some progress in the talks, Azerbaijan continues its policy of escalation on the border with Armenia. Gunfire was heard on our borders during the last days, we have deaths. Bowing before our fallen brothers, I want to emphasize again that especially on the backdrop of the May 14 agreements, the reciprocal withdrawal of troops from the border line and demilitarization of the border line is becoming more urgent. And we will continue to emphasize this agenda, Pashinyan said at the Cabinet meeting.

He added that the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor is also a manifestation of Azerbaijans policy of escalation, which once again underscores the legitimate necessity for an international presence in Nagorno Karabakh and Lachin Corridor. Pashinyan said that Armenia is discussing this issue with all international partners.
Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland (left) and Councilmember Stafan Roots (right), rivals in the Chester Democratic mayoralty primary, are in accord at a council meeting last month honoring a group of Chester young people. Roots defeated Kirkland by nearly a 3-1 ratio in the pirmary. Read more

Democrats in bankrupt Chester, which state officials had warned might cease to exist by years end, have voted overwhelmingly to oust incumbent Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland and two of his political allies on the four-member City Council.

In unofficial results from the primary balloting, first-term Council member Stefan Roots polled 61% of the votes compared with 22% for Kirkland. City zoning board member Pat Worrell finished third with 17%.

In effect, the primary was the mayoral election: No Republican was on the ballot.

Roots, 62, author of the popular Chester Matters blog and the citys director of parks and recreation, said Wednesday it was his intent to turn the city around. Some problems need to be fixed  some relationships need to be mended  some money needs to be found.

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 READ MORE: Chester's bankruptcy was 70 years in the making.

Pennsylvanias oldest town is deep into a rare bankruptcy proceeding initiated by Michael Doweary, the receiver whom the state appointed to help Chester emerge from a fiscal crisis that was decades in the making as its powerful industrial base unraveled.

He warned that disincorporation, in which the city would lose its government and even its boundaries, was a real threat if its money woes, driven by years of missed pension payments, werent resolved by years end.

 READ MORE: The threat of 'disincorporation' is 'very real,' the state receiver said

Kirkland, who dismissed the threat as a scare tactic, said Wednesday that the receivers actions had a lot to do with his defeat. He accused Dowearys office of meddling in city politics. I expressed that to the governors office, he said, and to the Department of Community and Economic Development, to whom Doweary reports.

Doweary and Kirklands opponents insisted the disincorporation threat was real. Roots said he will continue to work with the receivers office, but that now, I will have a front seat in that relationship. He said his first mission was to appoint a transition team to prepare for taking office in January.

While about 30% more Democrats voted this time around than in 2015, the citys last contested primary, Kirkland  who was backed by the city party organization  said he was disappointed in Tuesdays turnout. I thought more people would show up, he said, but they didnt.

 READ MORE: Mayoral primary occurred against a background of 'high drama'

Kirkland, 68, a two-term mayor and 12-term member of the state House, said he plans to spend more time with his family and likely wont run for office again.

Political life, he said, has become different, brutal, more personal.
A supporter hugs Helen Gym as she concedes during her primary election watch party at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown on Tuesday. Read more

National progressives were looking for another big win in Philadelphia this week, but Cherelle Parker, a moderate Democrat born and raised in the citys Northwest section, won the historic nomination.

Progressive political celebs had lined up behind Helen Gym, hoping she might continue a wave of mayoral victories in Boston, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

Were taking this movement from the West Coast to the East Coast! U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told an amped-up Gym crowd at a rally on Sunday.

Ultimately, with 94% of votes counted, Gym came in third place in the Democratic mayoral primary, trailing Parker and former Controller Rebecca Rhynhart and frustrating progressives who hoped to propel gains in recent years into the citys biggest office.

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I think the unfair criticisms of her down the end of the road and the large amount of money that was spent hurt her, George R. Burrell, a former City Council member and mayoral candidate who endorsed Gym, said Wednesday. But you look at the enthusiasm ... I dont think thats going away.

Philadelphias race was more complicated than Chicagos, with several candidates here factoring into the outcome, and Rhynhart and Gym splitting votes. Of the five contenders, Parker was also the only Black candidate in a city which has historically voted along racial lines. And while the race was light on specific policy proposals, Parker ran with a tough-on-crime stance that supporters seemed to latch onto.

And in Gym, her opponents found a left-leaning bogeywoman to attack, for her authenticity, personal wealth and a husband who once worked at a pharmaceutical company, all of which became an obstacle to growing her support.

As Gyms race ended Tuesday, she said the movement she helped start in Philadelphia would endure.

What we have built was unimaginable eight years ago, she said. Our city has a strong and vibrant, diehard progressive bench that is ready to meet this moment. ... We have always believed that a stronger, safer, more just Philadelphia is possible. Our work is not done. We will keep pushing, fighting and organizing to build the city we all deserve.

Working-class appeal fell short

While Gym ran to help working people  she often said she was running to change the way people live  her biggest appeal wound up being with wealthier voters in the city.

Gym won 29% of the vote in precincts where people made an average of $100,000 and more and just 11% in precincts where the average income was less than $50,000 a year, an Inquirer analysis shows.

In wealthier districts, like Center City and affluent parts of the Northwest, Gym almost certainly split votes with Rhynhart, who ran an effective campaign as a budget wonk and problem solver.

Gym had a lot of progressive organizations behind her, and backers said they had the strongest ground game in the race. The results show some signs that her voters were particularly motivated. While turnout citywide was on pace with 2015  about 30% precincts that outperformed their 2015 turnout voted disproportionately for Gym. Thats in line with trends in those precincts in more recent years, though.

Gym also led in neighborhoods with a lot of newer voters, precincts with a high percentage of voters not registered there in 2013, according to Inquirer analysis.

Gyms message that she is a fighter with bold ideas to tackle big problems was embraced by her base but attacked by opponents who called her proposals unrealistic. Attack ads  largely funded by a conservative Main Line billionaire  likely had a big impact, too.

Her activist background may have soured some voters looking for someone to manage the city through several crises, argued Sam Katz, a former candidate for mayor.

I dont think it was a movement thing, Katz said. I dont think Helens candidacy clicked. A lot of folks concluded that her style of leadership did not fit with being mayor. Being an advocate and a hard-charging person is a good quality maybe for the Council or the Congress.

Katz suspected that some voters shifted from Gym to Rhynhart.

That was the case for Lisa Brown, a 34-year-old from East Kensington.

I considered Helen Gym  like three people came to my door supporting her, so she obviously has a lot of support, Brown said at her polling place. But I think she was just a little too progressive for me. I like her and she sounds fair, but Im just not sure shes right for the entire city.

Crime was the most important issue

Crime was a big issue in the Los Angeles and Chicago races, where progressive candidates facing criticism over their ability to tackle the issue won anyway.

In the mayors race, none of the candidates downplayed the severity of crime, a key issue for voters. Parker projected a particularly tough stance that hinged on hiring more police officers and supporting the controversial tactic known as stop-and-frisk. But she combined that posture with a promise to have no tolerance for misuse or abuse by police and her personal story of being a mother to a 10-year-old Black boy, which struck a balance for some voters.

When I heard her talking about it and she was talking about how she wanted to protect her son, because now little kids are getting killed, that was the most important thing to me that made me vote for her, said Stephanie Clark, 61, of Mantua, on voting for Parker.

Rhynhart and Gyms public-safety platforms were not as aggressive on law enforcement. Rhynharts was largely focused on making changes in the police department and implementing new antiviolence programs. Gyms led with investments outside policing, including a guaranteed jobs program for young people.

If you are inclined to think that more effective law enforcement is a really important part of the response, Helen was the weakest on that, said Joseph P. McLaughlin, an adviser to two former mayors.

Parker campaign spokesperson Aren Platt said he thought progressives can misread the nuanced way a lot of people feel about addressing crime.

In certain progressive circles everything is a binary thing, Platt said. It is either you are for police reform or you want Frank Rizzo to come back to life and run the Police Department, and they tried to paint Cherelle with that brush.

Parkers campaign manger, Sincere Harris, said that misunderstanding is why Parker won big in communities hardest hit by violence.

Im from one of those communities, Harris said. And its bull. The average person doesnt feel that way. The average person doesnt feel that binary.

With the exception of candidates occasionally attacking Parkers comments on stop-and-frisk, there was little public policy debate about crime, indicating the race wasnt so much about differences in tactics as leadership style and personality.

Crime is clearly the No. 1 issue on the minds of voters, said political strategist J.J. Balaban. But that doesnt make it decisive in terms of how people vote. It depends whether it becomes the center of the debate and here, it hasnt.

Progressivism is here for the long haul

Gyms loss follows several big wins for progressives in the city that reelected Larry Krasner district attorney and Working Families Party candidate Kendra Brooks to City Council in 2019. A parade of progressive state representatives have also gone to Harrisburg in recent years.

And while some progressive candidates, such as political organizer Amanda McIllmurray, looked likely to lose their City Council bids on Tuesday, others, such as Rue Landau, who had been embraced by the movement, won primaries.

And progressives didnt perform badly statewide. In Western Pennsylvania, former State Rep. Sara Innamorato, who had the backing of the Working Families Party, won the Democratic primary for Allegheny County executive.

Nicolas ORourke, who is running for City Council this fall as a member of the Working Families Party, said the movement, win or lose, we press on.

This movement is not tethered to a particular individual, he said. Regardless of what outcomes are in a single election, the work continues, because the values that we share are focused on materially improving peoples lives.

Robert Saleem Holbrook, executive director of the nonprofit Straight Ahead and a top supporter of Gyms, said the citys progressive movement may have been spoiled with winning.

But theres lessons from losing, he said, and one thing I can say about our people is were here for the long haul. Were not going to settle for what happened. ... Part of fighting is winning or getting your a kicked. This time, we came up short.

Staff writers Sean Collins Walsh, Layla Jones, Aseem Shukla, and Ximena Conde contributed to this article.
Incumbent Register of Wills Tracey Gordon trailed challenger John Sabatina by about 3,400 votes with 95% of the ballots in the 2023 Philadelphia primary election counted late Wednesday afternoon. Though Gordon hadnt conceded, Sabatina told The Inquirer he was claiming victory.

We believe Ive won it, Sabatina, an estate attorney and longtime ward leader, said. Thats what Ive been told by several people who have the experience in matching up the numbers and where theyre coming from.

Reached by text message Wednesday evening, Gordon only said: Fingers crossed!

The register of wills race remained tight on Tuesday night, with neither candidate prepared to accept victory or defeat when vote counting stalled after midnight.

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It was a tough race and I expect to win it tomorrow, Sabatina said as he was leaving his election night party at Sprinkler Fitters Local 692.

Gordon ran for elected office four times before winning register of wills in 2019, shocking the Democratic Party by beating Ron Donatucci, whod held the position for more than 40 years. Gordon was not endorsed by the party then or ahead of Tuesdays election, and has had a difficult relationship with Philadelphias Democratic machine.

In 2012, Gordon successfully sued the Philadelphia Democratic Party to retain her appointment as a committeeperson in her Southwest Philadelphia ward after the ward leader and party boss Bob Brady opposed it.

The hallmark of Gordons register of wills tenure has been her attention to tangled titles, or messy property battles that happen when someone dies without a will, sometimes leading to property sheriff sales. Gordon sounded the alarm on the issue before City Council, which resulted in a $7.6 million city investment to help families settle the disputes. She also linked the issue of tangled titles and subsequent property blight with Phillys record-breaking gun violence epidemic.

Gordon has also faced controversies in her first term. She hired and then let go of a beleaguered political consultant, and caught heat for allowing her daughter to sell Eagles merchandise ahead of the Super Bowl. Most recently, two former staffers accused Gordon of firing them because they refused to contribute to her campaign.

Sabatina is a longtime Northeast Philly ward leader, having held the position in the 56th Ward for more than 30 years. Sabatinas son, John Sabatina Jr., served as a state representative and a state senator before becoming a judge on the Court of Common Pleas.

Sabatina said he decided to run after hearing of mishandling within the office under Gordons leadership.

I thought that, hey, maybe I can go in and straighten it out and make it run right, Sabatina said prior to the election.

Sabatina held a lead of about 3,400 votes Wednesday evening, about 2% of the 171,500 votes counted. About 4% of the citys precincts had not yet returned their in-person results, and there were still a few thousand mail ballots and an unknown number of provisional ballots, along with a handful of overseas and military votes, that could still be counted. Not all of those votes will end up being counted, and not all of them will be Democratic votes or have voted in the register of wills race.

The other register of wills candidates, Elizabeth Hall Lowe and Rae K. Hall, trailed Sabatina by about 10 and 17 points, respectively.

A Democratic win is almost an absolute sure thing of winning in the fall, Sabatina said Wednesday. It was a tough fight. I had a lot of good people helping me and its good to win.

The Democratic nominee will face Republican candidate Linwood Holland, GOP leader of the 35th Ward, in the November general election. Holland ran unopposed in the GOP primary.

Staff writers Chris Brennan and Jonathan Lai contributed to this article.
Beyonce performs at Made in America festival in Philadelphia, Pa. on September 5, 2015. Read more

Summer is on its way and if youre like me, youre already dreaming of beach days, pop concerts, and outdoor fun. The best part of summer is getting out of the house for the amazing lineups of concerts, movie screenings, festivals, and more. Naturally, Philly is already buzzing with sunglasses and booming speaker energy. Whats your favorite summer activity in the city? Let me know! For music lovers, weve got a list of the 26 biggest and best summer concerts coming to Philly.

This weekend, catch Sasha Velour of RuPauls Drag Race, see the play Jane Eyre with five Janes, scope out a new series of acoustic soul concerts, and make your outdoor movie plans.

 Rosa Cartagena (@_RosaCartagena, Email me at thingstodo@inquirer.com)

If you see this  in todays newsletter, that means were highlighting our exclusive journalism. You need to be a subscriber to read these stories.

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Pop stars and rock stars coming to Philly

Youve already seen Taylor. (Or maybe you just Tayl-gated?) But Philly is hosting more major acts this summer and theres a show for everyone, even if you couldnt get Beyonce tickets. The sizzling lineup includes Springsteen, Pink, Erykah Badu, Killer Mike, Drake, and more, so you better snag those tickets soon! 

Your weekly social calendar

 Sashay away to the Kimmel: RuPauls Drag Race winner Sasha Velour performs her one-queen drag show at the Kimmel tonight, where shell also discuss her new book, The Big Reveal: An Illustrated Manifesto of Drag. The legendary drag queen will have the audience laughing and lip-syncing along.

 Date night: Catch classic movies like Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, and Indiana Jones under the stars with outdoor screenings across Philly, from parks to cemeteries to rooftops.

 The Janes: In a new version of Jane Eyre from the Philadelphia Artists Collective, there are five Jane characters. Why? Because, feminism. 

 Sounds for the soul: Black Diamond Soul is a new series of acoustic soul concerts showcasing Philly musicians and it kicks off on Friday with Black Buttafly.

 Put your hands together: A new play about Black women who are falling apart  literally. We went behind-the-scenes to learn how Theatre Horizon presents an actor losing her arm. 

 Headphones on: In the podcast Late Night with Ler & Lionel, two Black Philadelphia natives discuss sex and relationships in a refreshing context that  unlike other popular pods  pushes back against sexism and misogynoir.

 My calendar picks this week: Check out the Trans Art Market, the HBCU Festival, and the Roxborough Spring Festival.

The thing of the week

We all need to touch grass. Especially as Phillys weather warms and the sun welcomes us to experience wonderful days al fresco, youre probably thinking about what fun activities you can enjoy outside with your friends, kids, and family. The Inquirer is launching Outdoorsy, a newsletter for folks who want to explore outdoor fun in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and beyond. My colleague Paola Perez will write about all the ways to get outside in a weekly guide with hikes, water sports, picnics, camping (and glamping, for my high-maintenance readers), and shell feature wondrous stories about Pennsylvanias great outdoors from The Inquirers Jason Nark as well. Sign up here!

Your spring plans have sprung

 In our classical era: Tune into some classical music shows this summer with an LGBTQ+ pride concert, movie score performances (Star Wars, obviously, and others), as well as free neighborhood concerts. See classical music critic Peter Dobrins roundup of the shows hes most excited to attend. 

 Chilling at the beach: How weed friendly is the Jersey shore, really? Weve got answers.

 Seasons greetings: Everybody loves getting flowers (just make sure cat owners dont get lilies!) so we rounded up the best flower shops and florists in Philadelphia.

 Weird, but O.K.: I love a good breakfast sandwich but this one has me curious but hesitant. Its a bacon, egg, and cheese combined witha peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Not kidding!

 Coming soon: The Bachelor for seniors! See abuela and abuelo vie for precious roses in a forthcoming series, The Golden Bachelor.

 Snacks are back: LBIs beloved Holiday Snack Bar was almost restricted from opening, but now its back on track for all your beach snack needs.

Pop quiz

Whats the seating capacity at the Linc?

A) 14,831

B) 150,342

C) 67,594

D) 81,375

 Write me back to let me know which of the above is correct.

This week, I binged Queen Charlotte and watched Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 so yes I cried a lot because despite appearances  I thought one would be horny fun and the other would be space fun  theyre both actually depressing AF. Have a rec for something more upbeat? Send it my way, Im desperate to laugh!
YEREVAN, 18 MAY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 18 May, USD exchange rate up by 0.72 drams to 387.03 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 0.16 drams to 418.53 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.06 drams to 4.84 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 0.32 drams to 481.12 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 364.78 drams to 24568.06 drams. Silver price down by 0.69 drams to 294.72 drams.
The unusual thing about this case is that Shearwater is suing related to an insurance policy taken out by its client, Norwind, which is still using the aircraft. And instead of suing Norwind or the primary insurers, all of which are Russian and subject to sanctions, Shearwater is suing the reinsurers. Shearwater said in its filings that it has never been provided with copies of the insurance policies for the aircraft.
Mackenzie has previously issued a statement regarding the data breach, stating that it regrets the impact that the incident has had on its clients. Mackenzie takes privacy and data protection very seriously and we are committed to protecting the confidentiality of all personal information, the statement read. We greatly regret any concern or inconvenience this incident may cause to our valued clients.
Heffernan had the right to pursue any lawful employment and enterprise of his choice, which included engaging in business of the same kind as the business performed by Aon, in performing professional services for clients for whom he worked at Aon.
That allows us to go with credibility into a conversation with our mining clients and with our energy clients, said Cook. I think its incumbent upon our industry and the insurance broking community to be part of the solution to help these companies, in particular some of these mining companies, to effectively go through a considerable period of change.
Before joining Integrity, I was inundated with the administrative aspects of running the business while ensuring its continued growth, Keating said. Integrity gave me back the time to do what I love, which is meeting with clients and designing solutions for their lives. Integritys shared services offering and advanced technology have been exactly what I needed to put my agents and clients first. This partnership has reenergized our business and supported all our agents  whether they are just starting out or have decades of experience. I couldnt be happier with our decision to become an Integrity partner.
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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed gun-control measures into law on Tuesday, after lawmakers passed measures this year in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

The high courts ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen last year ended a requirement similar to a Maryland law for people to demonstrate a particular need to get a license to carry a concealed gun in public.

One of the measures Moore signed Tuesday removes the good and substantial reason language from Maryland law that the court found unconstitutional in the Bruen case. But the Maryland General Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats, also tightened gun laws to prevent someone from carrying a concealed handgun in certain areas.

Gun violence is tearing apart the fabric of our communities, not just through mass shootings but through shootings that are happening in each of our communities far too often, Moore, a Democrat, said at a bill-signing ceremony.

Moore said the measures he signed into law demonstrate that the state wont back down from the challenges of addressing gun violence plaguing the nation.

In Maryland, we refuse to say these problems are too big or too tough, Moore said. We will act, and thats exactly what today represents.

One of the bills signed by the governor generally prohibits a person from wearing, carrying or transporting a gun in an area for children or vulnerable adults, like a school or health care facility. The new law, which takes effect Oct. 1, also prohibits a person from carrying a firearm in a government or public infrastructure area, or a special purpose area, which is defined as a place licensed to sell alcohol, cannabis, a stadium, museum, racetrack or casino.

The law also prohibits a person carrying a firearm from entering someones home or property, unless the owner has given permission. There are exemptions for law enforcement, security guards and members of the military.

Gun-rights activists already are planning to challenge the legislation in court.

Mark Pennak, president of Maryland Shall Issue, said Tuesday a lawsuit is drafted and ready to go.

It goes way too far, Pennak said of the legislation.

A separate measure signed by the governor changes and expand requirements and procedures that relate to the issuance and renewal of a permit to wear, carry or transport a handgun.

Raises Age

While it repeals the good and substantial reason requirement struck down by the Supreme Court, it raises the age for qualifying for a handgun permit from 18 to 21, which has come under court challenge in other parts of the country.

It also prohibits a permit for someone who is on supervised probation for a crime punishable by up to one year or more in prison, a person convicted of driving while impaired or under the influence, and people who violate a protective order. People with a mental illness who have a history of violent behavior also would be prohibited from carrying a gun, as well as people who have been involuntarily admitted for more than 30 days to a mental health facility.

The new law also makes changes to requirements for a firearms training course. For example, it specifies that 16 hours of in-person instruction for initial applications include laws relating to self-defense, safe storage and circumstances under which a person becomes prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The law increases the fee for an initial application for a handgun permit from $75 to $125. The fee for renewal or subsequent application for a handgun permit increases from $50 to $75, and a fee for a duplicate or modified handgun permit would go from $10 to $20.

The governor also signed into law another bill that strengthens storage requirements for firearms. Under the law, a person cant store a loaded firearm in a place where the person knew or should have known that an unsupervised minor has access to a gun. Its known as Jaelynns Law. The law is named after 16-year- old Jaelynn Willey, who was killed in 2018 at Great Mills High School by a 17- year-old student who used his fathers gun.

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Gun Liability Maryland
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The operator of a limousine company who has been accused of acting recklessly and causing the deaths of 20 people, is not to blame for the 2018 upstate New York crash, because he tried his best to repair and maintain the stretch limo, his lawyer argued during closing statements Tuesday.

Special prosecutor Frederick Rench said Nauman Hussain, who ran Prestige Limousine, intentionally failed to follow the maintenance regulations for the 2001 Ford Excursion. Rench said that if Hussain had done routine state vehicle inspections, as required, it wouldve revealed brake defects and prevented the wreck in Schoharie, a village west of Albany.

Hussain is charged with criminally negligent homicide and second-degree manslaughter in connection with the 2018 wreck of the stretch SUV limousine. Jurors will be asked to decide whether Hussain is guilty of one of the charges.

Prosecutors say the brakes failed to stop the heavy limo, which was packed with birthday revelers, as it hurtled down a hill, went off the road, and hit a parked car and trees before stopping in a streambed.

Seventeen passengers, the driver and two bystanders died in the crash  one of the deadliest U.S. road wrecks of the past two decades.

Defense lawyer Lee Kindlon blamed the crash on Mavis Discount Tires, a repair shop that Hussain routinely used.

Hussain had true belief that he had repaired the brake system, that the brakes were in fine and working order, Kindlon told jurors. The people could not prove that Nauman Hussain knew or even should have known that Mavis falsified the repair maintenance and safety inspections.

Rench insisted Hussain was responsible for the deaths and the crash, and said he failed to fulfill his responsibility to maintain the vehicle, including its faulty brakes.

Family members of the crash victims wiped away tears as Rench read off the names of those killed in his closing statements.

Lawyers for Mavis, which is not on trial but is being sued by the families of the victims, deny the repair shop is at fault.

The trial comes after a judge threw out a plea deal last fall that would have spared Hussain prison time.

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Topics New York
Since February, a mysterious hacker group calling itself Anonymous Sudan has targeted dozens of Swedish airports, hospitals and banks with distributed denial-of-service attacks, ostensibly in response to the burning of a Koran in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm earlier this year.

The so-called DDoS attacks, which push websites and services offline by overwhelming them with internet traffic, disrupted online programming at Swedens national public broadcaster and knocked out the websites of Scandinavian Airlines, state-owned power company Vattenfall, and defense firm Saab AB. Extensive media coverage has made the attacks  and Anonymous Sudans claims  a matter of public debate in Sweden.

The group behind this campaign claims to consist of hacktivists from the East African nation whose aim is to go after anyone who opposes Islam. But a closer inspection of Anonymous Sudans social media records  and data from the attacks  show that the group is neither Sudanese nor Islamist, according to Mattias Wahlen, who led an investigation into the hacks for Truesec, one of Swedens biggest cybersecurity firms.

Instead, he said, Anonymous Sudan shows signs of being a well-organized unit of Russians with a nuanced knowledge of Swedish politics and social issues. Their apparent motivation is to craft attacks designed to amplify tensions with the countrys Muslim minority and pressure Turkey to stand firm in rejecting Swedens bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. If they were to succeed, it could make Sweden more vulnerable to future attacks.

Publicly available information on the groups Telegram channel contained clues about its true origins, Wahlen said. On its biography page, Anonymous Sudan listed its main language as Russian and its location as Russia, according to the Truesec report he authored. The group also aligned itself online with Killnet, a pro-Russia political hacking group thats targeted organizations and countries opposed to the war in Ukraine. Furthermore, an official account belonging to the hacking collective Anonymous has denied any connection to the group, the report showed.

Another clue is that Anonymous Sudan appears to be well-funded. Instead of using networks of infected computers to launch attacks cheaply  the usual way hacktivist attacks are carried out  the group rented 61 servers in Germany from IBM Corp.s SoftLayer division to conduct its operations, hiding them behind layers of anonymity, according to another Swedish cybersecurity firm, Baffin Bay Networks. Two weeks after the Anonymous Sudan attacks began, Baffin Bay said it worked with IBM to have the servers taken down.

IBM works with industry partners and law enforcement agencies to identify and address malicious use of the IBM Cloud platform, as happened in this instance, IBM said in a statement. We appreciate Baffin Bay Networks partnership in this matter.

Scandinavian Airlines did not return messages about its outages. SVT and Vattenfall confirmed their incidents. Saab declined to comment.

While Wahlen and his team were unable to determine whether Anonymous Sudan consisted of Russian government employees or pro-Russia hackers working independently, Katarzyna Zysk, a professor of international relations at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies in Oslo, said the timing and organization of the attacks, the hackers knowledge of religious and political friction points in Sweden, and the attacks similarities to other Russian influence operations led her to conclude that the group was controlled or guided by Russias intelligence services.

This strategy of creating chaos is one of the major means Russia has been using against Sweden to complicate its NATO application, she said. All these campaigns move in the same direction.

Anonymous Sudan, for its part, has dismissed claims that it works on behalf of Russia. We have nothing to do with Russia, the group wrote on Telegram, after Truesec published a report in February outing the group. We help them because they helped us before, and this is a way to give back.

The Anonymous Sudan attacks demonstrate that suspected Russian hackers are finding new ways to meddle in the political processes of the countrys democratic opponents, according to Wahlen and other security experts. As President Vladimir Putins war in Ukraine grinds into its second year, Russias hackers are growing increasingly active in advancing the countrys geopolitical interests, experts said.

Within just a few months, Anonymous Sudan has become one of the most prolific hacktivist groups on the internet and a vehicle for promoting a variety of Russian causes. While the group has launched attacks on countries including Denmark, France, Germany, India and Israel, experts believe its primary aim is to erode support for NATO expansion, which would strengthen northern Europes defense against Russian aggression.

After Russia invaded Ukraine last year, Sweden and close ally Finland abandoned their longstanding policy of abstaining from military alliances and decided to apply to join the organization together. All 30 existing members needed to agree, and from the beginning Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he wouldnt support the move.

Erdogans government has long been irked by the activities of a large and politically active Kurdish minority in Sweden, which includes individuals aligned with groups that Turkey considers terrorist.

Last June, Sweden, Finland and Turkey reached an agreement on measures to ensure a way forward. While Swedish leaders say they have since met all of Turkeys requests, negotiations came to a halt in January after a far-right provocateur burned the Koran, which happened less than two weeks after Kurdish activists hung an effigy of Erdogan from a lamppost near Stockholms City Hall.

The Koran burning occurred in a political context that was already very sensitive, said Diana Selck-Paulsson, a researcher with Orange Cyberdefense, a division of French telecom Orange S.A., in Malmo, Sweden. And the cyber reaction of Anonymous Sudan, when looking at the timing and the pro-Russian character, feels quite calculated.

To Wahlen, who worked 35 years as an analyst in Swedens intelligence services before joining Truesec in 2020, the Russian hacking offensive expertly exploited political vulnerabilities  namely, Swedens need to be in the good graces of Turkey and the countrys struggles with assimilating thousands of Muslim refugees  to make Swedens NATO campaign more difficult.

According to national broadcaster SVT, Russian agents also took to the streets of European capitals in the wake of the Koran burning as part of an operation aimed at sowing discord between European nations and Turkey. Documents leaked to exiled Russian opposition activist Mikhail Khodorkovskys Dossier Center showed that Russia staged fake protests in cities such as Paris, where people claiming to be Ukrainians displayed anti-Turkish banners, burned a Turkish flag and posed for pictures with their arms raised in Nazi salutes.

While its impossible to know exactly how successful these Russian efforts have been, in April, Erdogan instructed Turkeys parliament to ratify Finlands entry into NATO  leaving Sweden behind. Its prospects for joining the alliance remain uncertain.

Truesec was founded in 2005 by Marcus Murray, a former special operations ranger in the Swedish Navy, to protect Swedish organizations at a time when the biggest threats to computer networks were fast-spreading worms and viruses. But as hacking attacks evolved, Truesec grew in tandem, and the company now has 300 employees. Since Russia invaded Crimea in 2014, an act Stockholm denounced, experts say that the pace of cyberattacks, disinformation and military provocations emanating from Russia has increased dramatically. Russian operatives have used a variety of methods to try to manipulate public opinion in Sweden about Ukraine and a potential NATO bid, including publishing forgeries of Swedish government documents.

In the first week of May, as Swedens prime minister and other Nordic leaders met with Ukraines president in Finland to pledge continued support for Ukraines defense, a new round of attacks targeted Swedens police and tax agencies, as well as its financial supervisory authority. A pro-Russian group claimed responsibility for the attacks on social media.

When we take measures, they regroup and return in new formations, said the tax agencys chief information officer, Peder Sjolander. They are competent as well as persistent.

While the cyber campaigns against Sweden still pale in comparison to those levelled at Ukraine and the Baltic states, Russian efforts to shape the international narrative about the Nordic country have become more obvious in recent years. Since the 2015 refugee crisis, which saw the country take in a large number of people fleeing war and poverty, Kremlin-controlled media outlets have sought to portray Sweden as a failing state rife with suburban riots, crime and terrorism in the wake of uncontrolled migration.

There were of course real problems, said Mikael Tofvesson, operational head of the Swedish Psychological Defence Agency, which was established last year to counter influence operations targeting Sweden. We did have a refugee crisis, and the Russians didnt create the problems, but they amplified them, he noted. The general intent of the different narratives they were using was that you cant trust the government.

Photo: Truesecs CEO Marcus Murray, left, and Lead Analyst Mattias Wahlen in the command center of the companys headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 11. Photographer: Erika Gerdemark/Bloomberg

Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.

Topics Cyber Russia
A key element of the European Unions Green Deal package has been delayed after France, the blocs biggest supporter of nuclear power, said it wont back a law to scale up renewable energy.

Member-state officials had been due to endorse the Renewable Energy Directive at a meeting Wednesday, paving the way for a formal vote in the coming weeks. Yet French concerns over the role of nuclear in climate goals for industry, plus opposition from some central and east European countries worried about green-transition costs, saw the law struck from the agenda.

The wrangling is a further blow for the EUs Green Deal, with various elements thrown into doubt by countries domestic political concerns. France, which relies on nuclear for the bulk of its electricity supply, has been pushing to allow a greater role for the technology in the energy transition.

We start to see a pattern here, and not by coincidence. As Europes climate policy gathers pace, impacts will start to be felt more and more also in core countries like Germany and France  and not only in the East as it used to be, said Simone Tagliapietra, analyst at Bruegel think tank based in Brussels. If not addressed properly, this might become a dangerous spiral slowing down Europes green transition.

The RED was taken off Wednesdays agenda following objections from France and other countries, people with knowledge of the matter said. Paris may be looking for additional assurances from the European Commission on the role of nuclear in exchange for dropping its opposition, they said.

France is objecting to the small role nuclear could play in meeting 2030 targets for green hydrogen in industry amid concerns about the cost of converting ammonia plants from gas to electricity. It has previously signaled that it would also like to see nuclear included in a list of strategic clean energy technologies that the EU wants to produce domestically.

The delay echoes a last-minute hiccup that hampered EU legislation on car emissions earlier this year as Germany pushed to include so-called e-fuels in the regulation. After weeks of heated talks, the country dropped its opposition after securing assurances of a carve-out for the fuels, while the law itself was left unchanged.

Such hitches are unusual in EU lawmaking, but France is now following Germanys playbook: protesting once EU negotiators have already reached a framework deal. Back in March, member states and parliament agreed to raise the 2030 renewable target to 42.5% of total energy consumption, while providing a small role for nuclear.

Under EU rules, the text of the deal cant be changed by member states alone; it would require reopening negotiations. The French prime ministers office, Energy Transition Ministry and the countrys permanent representative to the EU didnt immediately respond to requests for comment. The European Commission declined to comment.

Nuclear Trade-Off

A further date to address the renewables directive has not yet been set by Sweden  which holds the EUs rotating presidency  according to people familiar with the situation.

The March accord on the RED allowed countries to reduce their green-hydrogen targets for industry if they mainly used nuclear power  rather than fossil fuels  to produce the rest of their hydrogen and kept renewable goals on track.

But France, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Romania all signaled they wouldnt support that agreement, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. And Markus Pieper, the center-right European Parliament lawmaker responsible for negotiating the deal, has admitted only Sweden would be able to benefit from the carve-out.

Another segment of the Green Deal  the ReFuelEU Aviation initiative, which is aimed at increasing the use of sustainable fuel in air travel  was also pulled from Wednesdays agenda, the people said.

Photo: Vapor rises from cooling tower in the Cruas Nuclear Power Plant, operated by Electricite de France SA (EDF), in Cruas, France. France President Emmanuel Macron has been making the case for energy savings and more investment in clean power and new nuclear plants to curb fossil fuel use and fight climate change. (Bloomberg)

Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.

Topics Europe
YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. On May 18, the delegation led by the President of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan took part in the Council Meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA) in Minsk, ARMENPRESS was informed from the parliament of Armenia.

Before the session, the President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko met with the heads of the delegations of the Member States. The President of Belarus spoke about the necessity of the formation of the new system of the international relations which will be based on the universally recognized norms and principles of the international law. Minsk intends to work in raising cohesion of the CSTO States. The strengthening of the organization, the ensuring of security in its zone of responsibility is possibly existing after the solutions of contradictions, he said.

After the meeting the heads of parliaments laid a wreath and flowers at the Victory Square in memory of those fallen in the Great Patriotic War.

The speech by the President of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan at the Council Meeting of the CSTO PA is fully presented:

Dear Vyacheslav Volodin,

Dear Vladimir Andreychenko,

Participants of the Collegial Meeting,

I welcome everybody at the Council Meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA).

I thank you, Vladimir Pavlovich and our Belarus colleagues for warm reception and the organization of the Assembly events.

I also welcome the new Secretary General of the organization Tasmagambetov and wish him effective work in his responsible post.

Colleagues,

I would like to mention with satisfaction that the works continue by the Parliamentary Assembly on legally supporting the activity of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, elaboration of the proposals regarding the coordination of the legislative activity of national parliaments aimed at the implementation of the goals and problems of the organization. There is no need to enumerate all elaborated proposals, the model laws and statements which refer to all poles of the CSTO activity.

It is also important to understand to what extent we are adoptive to common problems. And when we speak about the positive experience of our work, we should clearly remember that the mutual respect, the aspiration of taking into consideration each others interests, the elaboration of consensus approaches, the support of the allies in complicated situation for reaching concrete results is the basis, on which our organization is built.

Colleagues,

The Council Meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly takes place in a period, when we stand before serious threats and challenges of the security. The world is at a crossroad of hard geopolitical events and transformations, which have irreversible consequences for many countries. And the zone of responsibility of the Collective Security also is not an exception.

It is known what events happened last year, and now I would like to provide information about the situation in the South Caucasus. The situation is rather tense. Despite all agreements, Azerbaijan continues the policy of threatening the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia, heats the situation up on the border with Armenia, in Nagorno Karabakh and in the Lachin Corridor.

After the illegal false-environmental blocking of the Lachin Corridor for 5 months, at the end of April Azerbaijan already officially blockaded Nagorno Karabakh. The decision of Baku on setting up a checkpoint in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping troops in the Lachin Corridor is a gross violation of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020 and decision having legal compulsory force of the UN International Court of Justice in February of this year.

Its almost half a year that 120.000 Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh live in full blockade, in conditions of acute shortage of first necessity goods, medicine. Time and again the authorities of Azerbaijan restrict the move of the International Committee of the Red Cross vehicles and the movement of the ill people through the corridor.

In the context of the abovementioned, the real targeted statements and steps by the allies and colleagues, according to the restoration of the regime of the Lachin Corridor operation in accordance with the obligations of the trilateral statement and the principles of the international law, in the conditions of security and protection from illegal actions for regulating the life of Nagorno Karabakh are important for us.

Colleagues,

We follow the attempts of destroying the Armenian rich culture and eliminating the traces of Armenian identity by Azerbaijan. It is important to mention that the UN International Court of Justice also approved the availability of the threat of causing irreversible damage to the Armenians rights within the framework of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD).

Until now Baku rejects returning Armenian prisoners of war and the civilians being held as hostages conducting mock trials against them.

Colleagues,

I will refer to the process of regulation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

We repeatedly stated about readiness of Armenia on signing peace treaty and reciprocally recognizing the territorial integrity. However, Azerbaijan continues taking aggressive position.

A few days ago, the armed forces of Azerbaijan once again opened fire by using mortars and artillery to the direction of the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, because of which there are casualties and wounded. Such development of the situation proves that the instigated coordinated provocations are aimed at disrupting the negotiating active processes for imposing pressure on Armenia. Such thing also happened yesterday.

During last three years, as a consequence of creeping military occupation tactics and wide-scale military operations by Azerbaijan against territorial integrity of Armenia, about 150km2 of the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, which is the zone of responsibility of the CSTO was illegally occupied.

We regret that in our organization there is no common assessment to the fact of Azerbaijans aggression towards the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, and the anti-legal presence of the invaded Azerbaijani armed forces on the internationally recognized territory of Armenia. In the context of the CSTO Observation Mission on the border with Azerbaijan, it was underlined that in order to have the mission effective for the country and the whole region, it is necessary to specify the zone of responsibility of the CSTO. The ambiguity of the colleagues positions is amazing, when there are undeniable facts of violations of internationally recognized borders of Armenia.

During our previous meeting also I warned my colleagues about the destabilizing perspectives of the policy pursued by Azerbaijan. Baku shows contempt to the international colleagues, with the presence and mediation the official Baku recognized the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia and assumed obligations also on the basis of Alma-Ata declaration in demarcation between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Dear colleagues,

The establishment of peace in the region is the goal that pursues the Republic of Armenia. And the basis of stable peace, security and stable development of the region can only be the open and constructive dialogue. Since the past year Armenia and Turkey began regulation process of relations, but there are still no tangible results, and still many issues remain unsolved. We think that the regulation process should be without preconditions.

Concluding my speech, I would like once again to stress the importance of making diplomatic efforts. I call on all my colleagues who are interested in peace and stability of the present region, who have close relationship with Azerbaijan, to take practical steps on eliminating the violations of the international law and excluding the use of force. All these challenges require from all CSTO Member States to solve the existing issues through the use of the whole toolset of the organization, and the most important thing  to express clear positions on them without biased political preferences and priorities. If we are not able to do it together, tomorrow such challenges can arise for each of the CSTO Member State.

The peaceful development of the region has no alternative.

Thank you for attention.
The Ukraine Black Sea grain deal has been extended for two more months, in what U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hailed as good news for the world, a day before Russia could have quit the pact over obstacles to its grain and fertilizer exports.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced the extension in a televised speech and it was later confirmed by Russia, Ukraine and the United Nations.

The flow of ships through the corridor had been grinding to a halt during the last few days with the deal set to expire on Thursday.

The continuation is good news for the world, the U.N.s Guterres told reporters on Wednesday.

The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Black Sea deal for an initial 120 days in July last year to help tackle a global food crisis that has been aggravated by Moscows invasion of Ukraine, one of the worlds leading grain exporters.

Moscow had initially appeared unwilling to extend the pact unless a list of demands regarding its own agricultural exports was met.

This is a chance to help ensure global food security, not in words, but in deeds. First and foremost, to help the countries most in need, Russias foreign ministry said, confirming the extension.

Our principled assessment of the Istanbul agreements of July 22, 2022, has not changed and the distortions in their implementation should be corrected as soon as possible.

While Russian exports of food and fertilizer are not subject to Western sanctions imposed following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow says restrictions on payments, logistics and insurance have amounted to a barrier to shipments.

Russias UN ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, said the deal was extended because we still do not lose hope that the problems that we are raising will be sorted out.

UN chief Guterres said outstanding issues remain but that representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the United Nations would keep discussing them.

Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilizers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably, Guterres said.

The United States has rejected Russias complaints. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said last week: It is exporting grain and fertilizer at the same levels, if not higher, than before the full scale invasion.

EXTENSION WELCOMED BY UKRAINE

Ukraine also welcomed the extension but a senior official said Russia must not be allowed to sabotage the agreement and must stop using food as a weapon and blackmail.

We welcome the continuation of the Initiative, but emphasize that it must work effectively, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Facebook.

The U.S. State Department welcomed the deals extension, but deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel added: We should not need to remind Moscow every few weeks to keep their promises and to stop using peoples hunger as a weapon in their war against Ukraine.

The extension helped to drive down grain prices on Wednesday with Chicago wheat futures Wv1 and corn futures Cv1 both falling by 3.4%.

Earlier on Wednesday, the last remaining ship registered to travel through the corridor had left a Ukrainian port.

U.N. data showed that the DSM Capella had left the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk carrying 30,000 tonnes of corn and was on its way to Turkey.

Officials from Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the U.N. make up a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) in Istanbul, which implements the Black Sea export deal. They authorize and inspect ships. No new vessels have been authorized by the JCC since May 4.

Authorized ships are inspected by JCC officials near Turkey before traveling to a Ukrainian Black Sea port via a maritime humanitarian corridor to collect their cargo and return to Turkish waters for a final inspection.

In an excerpt of a letter seen by Reuters last month, Russia told its JCC counterparts that it would not approve any new vessels to take part in the Black Sea deal unless the transits would be done by May 18  the expected date of  closure.

It said this was to avoid commercial losses and prevent possible safety risks after May 18.

Some 30.3 million tonnes of grain and foodstuffs has been exported from Ukraine under the Black Sea deal, including 625,000 tonnes in World Food Programme vessels for aid operations in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Yemen.

Photo: Harvesters collect wheat in the village of Zghurivka, Ukraine. The United Nations is racing to extend a deal that has allowed for shipments of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, helping ease a global food crisis exacerbated by the war that Russia launched more than a year ago. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)

Topics Ukraine
Dublin-based Allied Risk Management has been acquired by Artex Risk Solutions Inc, a captive and alternative risk transfer solutions subsidiary of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Allied Risk provides insurance and reinsurance management services as well as actuarial services to clients globally. Frank Coyle, owner, and his team will remain in their current location under the direction of Paul Eaton, head of Artex International.

Allied Risk is a highly respected company that will enhance Artexs insurance management and actuarial capabilities, said J. Patrick Gallagher, Jr., chairman, president and CEO. I am very pleased to welcome Frank and his associates to our growing, global team.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a global insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting services firm, is headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois.

SOURCE: Arthur J. Gallagher
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Aon this week filed a lawsuit against rival Alliant Insurance Services for an alleged unlawful raid of senior leaders and other employees of Aons facultative reinsurance group.

Aon claims Alliant took 26 of its employees, reinsurance business, and confidential information as Alliant looked to get into the reinsurance market and jumpstart the launch of Alliant Re, Alliants own reinsurance division and a new Aon competitor in the facultative reinsurance broking industry.

Alliant Insurance Services announced on April 25 the launch of Alliant Re, its reinsurance brokerage division. Aon alleges the premeditated poaching of 32% of its reinsurance groups employees, including the entire team in Chicago, began on April 19. The group that headed to Alliant included Nicholas Ambriano, the former leader of Aons U.S. facultative reinsurance group.

The former employees misused their positions at Aon to, with Alliants encouragement and direction, covertly orchestrate the raiding of 26 Aon employees, Aons top U.S. facultative reinsurance clients, and Aons confidential and trade secret information to form a new competing business  Alliant Re, the suit says. Defendants did so in deliberate disregard of the former employees contractual duties and fiduciary obligations to Aon and with an intent to interfere with Aons business.

Alliant Re would not exist but for defendants theft of Aons employees, clients, and information that Aon developed over decades, according to Aon.

In a statement sent to Insurance Journal, Alliant said it will vigorously defend against Aons allegations concerning the departure of employees from Aons U.S. Facultative Reinsurance group.

This is not the first time Alliant has been sued by a competitor for allegedly stealing employees. Arthur J. Gallagher last year in a suit against Alliant said Alliant faced more than 40 lawsuits in dozens of jurisdictions from the likes of Aon, Lockton, Willis, and NFP, using its playbook for alleged employee poaching. Aons lawsuit cites many other lawsuits against Alliant from brokers.

Related: Gallagher, Alliant Agree to Settle Latest Dispute Over Alleged Poaching

In this latest suit, Aon similarly refers to Alliants playbook, adding that it now has a new chapter to acquire talent from the competition to start an entirely new line of business.

Alliant has a history, pattern, and practice of targeting Aon, specifically, according to the lawsuit. For over a decade, Alliant engaged in multiple raids on Aons officers, employees, and clients.

Aon seeks preliminary and permanent injunctions against Alliant, and the return of property.

In the statement to IJ, Alliants Peter Arkley, president, retail property & casualty of Alliant Insurance Services, said, While it may not please our competitors, Alliant is changing the way our clients approach risk management and benefits. Alliant is thrilled to welcome our new talented reinsurance professionals to Alliant Re.

Alliant said its competitors, including Aon, have sought to suppress employee mobility through the excessive use of litigation, and in the two cases between Alliant and Aon that have gone to trial, Alliant has prevailed. Both were in California Superior Court.

Alliant said it has strict rules regarding the return of property and equipment to former employers and the use or disclosure of proprietary information. Alliant instructs prospective employees to act solely on behalf of their current employer until they resign, the insurer said.

The case is Aon plc, et al v. Alliant Insurance Services, Inc., et al, 1:23-cv-03044, US District Court, Northern District of Illinois.

Topics Lawsuits Reinsurance Aon
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The US Supreme Court left in place a broad liability shield for social media companies for content posted by users, insulating Twitter Inc., Facebook Inc. and Google LLC from claims that they provided assistance to Islamic State terrorists.

Acting in a case involving Google, the court said it wouldnt rule on efforts to limit the immunity internet companies have enjoyed under a decades-old law known as Section 230. In a related case, the court tossed out a lawsuit that said social media companies bore responsibility under an anti-terrorism law for a 2017 shooting in an Istanbul nightclub.

The unanimous decisions together amount to a triumph for social media platforms, assuaging fears that the tech industry might face a new deluge of lawsuits and remove speech across their platforms. At least for the time being, the outcome means it would take an act of Congress to broadly open social media companies to lawsuits over third-party content.

The ruling in the Istanbul case put new limits on lawsuits under the US Anti-Terrorism Act. The court rejected allegations by the family of victim Nawras Alassaf that three social media companies didnt do enough to remove Islamic State videos.

Writing for the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said any connection between the companies and the nightclub attack was far removed.

The allegations plaintiffs make here are not the type of pervasive, systemic, and culpable assistance to a series of terrorist activities that could be described as aiding and abetting each terrorist act by ISIS, Thomas wrote.

The high courts Section 230 case involved Nohemi Gonzalez, a 23-year-old US citizen who was one of 130 people killed in attacks by the Islamic State group in Paris in November 2015. Her family said Alphabet Inc.s Google, through its algorithm-driven YouTube recommendations, aided the Islamic State in violation of the Antiterrorism Act.

In an unsigned opinion, the court said that lawsuit appears to state little, if any plausible claim for relief. The justices set aside a federal appeals court decision that had let the suit go forward.

Tech companies and their allies said weakening Section 230 would have had disastrous effects, forcing social media platforms, search engines and online marketplaces to radically reconfigure their businesses to protect themselves. Critics of the industry called those worries overblown, saying internet companies need to bear more responsibility for the proliferation of dangerous hate speech and disinformation.

Enacted as part of a broader 1996 law, Section 230 is widely credited with helping the internet flourish, giving platforms assurance that they wouldnt be at risk of lawsuits for things their users post.

But the provision has drawn criticism from both sides of the political aisle. Conservatives including former President Donald Trump complain Section 230 shields tech companies that censor right-wing voices, while many liberals say it lets platforms ignore hate speech and extremism.

The cases are Gonzalez v. Google, 21-1333, and Twitter v. Taamneh, 21-1496.

Photo: Photographer: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg

Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.

Topics Google
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The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited a Georgia wood-treating company and its maintenance firm for exposing workers to high levels of arsenic, actions that could result in as much as $180,000 in fines.

OSHA opened an investigation after the Georgia Poison Center found workers at the site had arsenic, an ingredient in some wood preservatives, at levels up to 20 times above the allowable exposure limit.

Both of these companies have an obligation to protect their employees from exposure to hazardous chemicals, OSHA Area Director Joshua Turner said in a statement. Sadly, neither met those obligations and needlessly exposed workers to potentially life-changing dangers.

Arch Wood Protection Inc., in Conley, was cited for:

Allowing hazardous dust to accumulate on desks, food packaging, lockers, refrigerators, and the insides of respirators.

Not requiring workers to wear respirators in some areas and not requiring them to remove facial hair to ensure a proper seal with respirators.

Not requiring contractors to change clothing and decontaminate at the end of shifts.

Allowing material to block emergency eyewash and shower stations.

Not providing adequate eye protection.

OSHA has proposed penalties of $124,780 for Arch. Mullins Mechanical & Welding, the maintenance contractor, was cited for four violations for failing to make sure employees followed decontamination procedures. Penalty: $53,574.

The companies have 15 business days to comply, request an informal conference with OSHAs area director, or contest the findings before an independent review commission.

Topics Workers' Compensation Georgia
Nevada and pharmacy chain CVS have reached a nearly $152 million settlement to be paid over the next decade to end a lawsuit over opioid claims, state Attorney General Aaron Ford announced.

CVS negotiated in good faith, Ford said at a news conference in Carson City. Their work with the state of Nevada  will help our state tackle the opioid problem.

According to an Associated Press analysis, the settlement is one of the 10 largest between a single state and a single company over opioid claims. It also puts the total money Nevada expects to receive from opioid litigation settlements since 2020 at $606 million, according to Fords office. It marks the largest sum the state has brought in opioid-related litigation by itself.

CVS was one of a number of companies that the state sued in the case filed in June 2019. A lawsuit against one company  Teva Pharmaceuticals  remains to be settled, and Ford said the state is preparing to go to trial in August.

Drugmakers, pharmacies, wholesalers and other companies have agreed to settlements of lawsuits over the opioid crisis nationwide totaling more than $50 billion. Much of the money is to be used to deal with an overdose crisis that is linked to more than 100,000 deaths a year in the U.S.

Some states have seen more from their share of multi-state or nationwide settlements. Last year, CVS agreed to pay state and local governments nearly $5 billion to settle lawsuits over the toll of opioids. But Nevada did not join in that litigation in order to pursue the single-state settlement, Ford spokesperson John Sadler said.

Nevada joined another multi-state settlement with three of the nations largest opioid manufacturers in April 2022 totaling $232 million over nearly two decades.

Ford said about $80 million of the CVS settlement will go to a coalition of Nevada county and city governments, and the state will retain nearly $70 million. A panel of experts will make recommendations for using the money to mitigate the opioid epidemic, he said.

CVS also agreed to develop an oversight program with a list of prescriptions, patients and prescriber red flags to help stop the misuse of opioids.

A CVS spokesperson, Kara Page, said in a statement that the company was pleased with the pact with Nevada. The statement noted that opioid prescriptions are written by doctors, not pharmacists. It did not elaborate on the oversight program.

With the state Legislature in session, Ford is backing one of two companion bills with Democratic Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro to enhance fentanyl trafficking penalties, starting trafficking charges at four grams of possession of the synthetic opioid. Several states across the country are taking similar steps.

Associated Press writer Geoff Mulvihill contributed reporting in Washington D.C. Stern is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms.

Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Europe is on track to install at least 95 GW of grid-scale battery energy storage systems by 2050, compared to 5GW of installed capacity today  and Ireland can be one of the best locations for it.

That is not just aspiration or ambition talking, it is the result of research from one of Europes leading energy analysts.

European battery markets are on track to attract over 70bn in investment by 2050, Aurora Energy Research said.

The five most attractive markets for battery storage in Europe are Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland and Italy, Aurora assesses, considering factors such as policy support, revenue stacking opportunities and demand for low-carbon flexible energy.

There is ample scope to increase the size and investment opportunities of European battery markets: 14 of the 24 countries assessed do not yet have a strategy or targets for energy storage deployment, Aurora finds, the firm said.

Ireland is one of the countries not to have a national strategy in place, and that is now urgent, according to industry body Energy Storage Ireland.

The bodys head, Bobby Smith, said: I would say the lack of a national strategy for energy storage has been an issue, and the Government, the Department of Environment in particular, is going to produce an energy storage policy strategy later this year.

For the last few years, although we have had some development in energy storage in Ireland, in particular battery storage, it has been a bit fractured and not all that coordinated.

Bobby Smith, of Energy Storage Ireland, with Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan at an Energy Storage Ireland conference.

That is because we don't have a national strategy. It is urgently needed to set the long-term vision objective and get the key stakeholders aligned and striving towards that. That's going to be the key.

Right now, unfortunately, we're not going to be able to deliver the energy storage that we need without proper strategy, without proper target alignment of stakeholders, he said.

Energy Storage Ireland has more than 50 member companies, Mr Smith said.

We have 55 member companies at this stage from across the energy storage supply chain, and there's a huge amount of projects, energy storage projects out there, that are in the planning system or through the planning system, and are waiting now for the government strategy, and those targets and incentives to now come, so they can start to build projects and invest in projects and get those delivered for 2030. The industry is ready and waiting, he said.

What is energy storage exactly?

It is absolutely part of climate change solutions and Ireland is not going to be able to deliver renewal targets to 2030 without it, and beyond that, he said.

Energy storage is the perfect complement to wind and solar energy. It is essentially the backup system needed, particularly in a system with lots of wind and solar generation. Even on a very windy day where a lot of our electricity is generated from wind energy, you need to have reserves in the background in case there is an issue with the power system.

For instance, if one of the transmission lines runs into a fault and has to shut down, or one of the generators runs into an issue. It doesn't happen all that often, but it does happen. You need to have your substitute reserves that can come in at a moment's notice.

Those assets can sit there charged, ready to respond at a moment's notice and find energy in the system. And then the other key solution they provide is low carbon energy, when we don't have a lot of wind or solar on the system. For non-windy days, instead of relying on more expensive fossil fuel generation, we can use energy storage that has charged from renewables to fill in the gaps.

How would it apply in a real-world setting?

According to Mr Smith, battery storage is one form of energy storage, the most common one we have in Ireland and in Europe.

It means that if there are amber alerts that the system is stressed or in danger of becoming overwhelmed, the cavalry would be there to save the day.

They were used during recent amber alerts to keep the power system stable. If there was potentially a shortfall in electricity to meet demand, battery storage can step in and meet that demand. An issue might be caused when there is an issue such as a power generator, like a large gas plant or a large wind farm, running into a problem  battery storage can step in and fill in that gap, to keep the system stable and keep the electricity flowing, essentially, Mr Smith said.

There are going to be times when there are gaps for multiple hours or even days where we don't have much wind or we don't have solar generating, where we need longer duration, stores that can provide energy over hours, or even days, according to Mr Smith.

That's where we're going to see really development in the future. There is a huge amount of interest, both nationally and internationally, about and what we can do and the potential for investment here. It's actually quite an exciting place to be for energy storage. It's almost like a test case for how countries in Europe might follow when they start to build up their renewable resources.

The vital role that batteries can play in the European power sectors decarbonisation is set to drive a surge in installations over the next few decades  installed grid-scale capacity will rise to 42GW by 2030, and at least 95GW by 2050, compared to the 5GW installed across the continent today, Aurora Energy Research forecasts.

These capacity additions represent a cumulative investment opportunity of over 70bn between 2023 and 2050. Over 40% of this capital will be deployed by the end of 2030, Aurora calculates.

The average battery duration will increase over time, due to growing demand for longer storage as renewable power generation increases. Batteries with over four hours storage capacity will account for 61% of total installed battery capacity in 2050, compared with 22% in 2025, Auroras modelling shows, the highly respected British firm said.

The five most attractive battery markets in Europe are Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland and Italy, Aurora assesses, it said.

Key drivers of market attractiveness include policy and regulatory support, such as specific battery storage targets or rollout plans; financing mechanisms, such as subsidy schemes or opportunities for participation in flexibility or capacity markets; and the outlook for renewable power generation  the higher the share of renewables in a power system, the greater the demand for batteries.

Ambitious deployment targets have boosted Greece and Italys attractiveness  Greece aims to install 6 GW of battery storage by 2030, the highest target in Europe  while good revenue stacking opportunities, where battery operators optimise between markets, supported Great Britain and Irelands rankings.

Aurora said that it considers only six of the countries assessed to have strong government commitments in place, such as Italys target to install 3 GW of long-duration batteries by 2030, or Spains plan to deploy 2.5 GW of battery storage by 2030.

Research lead for European Power Markets at Aurora Energy Research, Ryan Alexander, said: Batteries represent an attractive investment opportunity in Europe's energy sector  new projects are announced on a near-daily basis as developers seek to capitalise on the need for storage in the energy transition.

There will undoubtedly be an early mover advantage for investors: the anticipated surge in demand for batteries over the next decades creates saturation risk, causing revenues to decline as markets become overcrowded. Auroras European Battery Markets Attractiveness Report helps investors navigate entry into new markets and maximise their competitive advantage in an increasingly crowded space.

Flexibility product lead for European Power Markets, Anu Omojola, added that battery storage is a game changer for the energy transition.

However, policymakers across Europe need to take urgent action to enable capacity deployment. Key regulatory challenges around grid connection, network charges, long-term contractability and ancillary services remuneration pose significant risks to the rapid buildout of battery capacity across the continent.
A total of 13,800 applications have been made to the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme as the closing date approaches.

A collection of the latest news, views and analysis from the farming desk on the topic of Beef and Sheep.

Irish Farmers' Association livestock chairman Brendan Golden has said that while the targets in the scheme are "challenging, there is a good level of flexibility each year to ensure they can be met".

The new five-year 260m suckler scheme targets bovine emissions through enhanced use of genetics, genomics, and performance metrics.

The scheme is the successor to the Beef Data and Genomics Programme, and is co-funded by the EU under the CAP Strategic Plan.

The scheme, which is subject to final approval by the European Commission, aims to provide support to beef farmers to improve the environmental sustainability of the national beef herd.

The scheme is structured around four mandatory actions which must be undertaken by participants in each year of the scheme.

These actions relate to the replacement strategy for both dams and sires, genotyping, weighing of suckler cow/calf pairs, and data recording.

The SCEP rewards participant farmers with a payment equivalent to 150 per cow on the first 22 cows and 120 per cow on subsequent cows.

'Nothing for farmers to fear'

Mr Golden said that given the level of support available, extending to 3,000 for a 20-cow herd, it is important these monies are drawn down.

Given application levels to date being strong, "it is vital for the sector and the delivery of additional supports for suckler farmers that all farmers apply to this scheme", he said.

Mr Golden stressed that "every opportunity should be provided to maximise participation including, if necessary, extending the closing date to ensure all farmers who want to participate in the scheme are facilitated".

"There is nothing for farmers to fear in this scheme," he added, as he strongly urged all suckler farmers to make their applications.

The scheme is set to close for applications on Monday.

Co Galway currently has the highest number of applications with 1,550, followed by Co Mayo with 1,393 and Co Clare with 1,269.

BEEP-S replacement

Farmers are still awaiting the introduction of the replacement for the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme  Suckler (BEEP-S) scheme.

A Department of Agriculture spokesperson told the Irish Examiner that the proposed scheme is still subject to discussion and agreement with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, but the expectation is that it will be launched over the summer.

Mr Golden has said the scheme must deliver "critical support" of 90 per cow for all cows.

The aim of the BEEP-S was to increase the efficiency of Irelands suckler herd, by improving data that is collected about the herd.
"I'm heading to the penthouse in the Imperial Hotel to meet Paul Swoonan."

"What? Where? WHO?" says my husband, his voice an octave higher than usual.

"Paul Noonan, darling, from Bell X1, my favourite Irish band. No big deal," I thrill. "BYEEEE."

As I glide up the secret lift to the penthouse, I grudgingly take off my 'annoy my husband' hat and put on my 'professional interviewer' hat. It's not as fetching, but I only have 30 minutes, and a job to do, so I'm all business when Paul strolls over to me. I smile and shake his precious, talented hand, and we sit on a velvet sofa, inches apart. I hold his gaze for an appropriate amount of time (3.3 seconds - I looked it up) and get out my notebook. I scan his face, there is no sign of alarm, or looking over my shoulder for security. Let us begin.

The reason I'm here is because Noonan, along with his fellow Bell X1 troubadours, David Geraghty and Dominic Phillips, are gearing up for a series of gigs, beginning with Live at the Marquee on June 10. Their latest album, Merciful Hour, is released on May 28.

So let's kick off with all the exciting new things! This is the band's eighth studio album, their first since the eclectic Arms in 2016, and 'Haint Blue' is the first single (along with a mesmerising video) to be released.

'Haint Blue', Noonan explains, is a particular shade of the colour used to paint porches in southern America to ward off ghosts, or 'Haints.

"Dave and I, for this record, we're taking fragments of our lives and running with them," says Noonan. "It's an adventurous record, psychedelic at times, there's magic realism in there, exploring the unexplained. I suppose we are getting back to the magic of music and what draws us to it."

I tell him the song sounds familiar, could I have heard it before? Maybe when they last played in Cork?

"Yeah, we got to play 'Haint Blue' at Live at St Luke's, before we recorded it. That was when we toured with Dowry Strings, we retrofit strings into our existing songs, it was quite a different way of presenting our work, a real shot in the arm. So, with this new album, we wanted some songs in to feature strings quite prominently."

Did they enjoy playing to their faithful fans in an old church?

"We always get a great reception in Cork. St Luke's seems the spiritual home for the Dowry Strings shows, we recorded a live album, it had a real resonance there."

Of course, amazing as that venue is, there are other pretty cool spots to play a gig in Cork, I prompt.

"We've probably played more venues in Cork than any other county. There's no end to great places in Cork. We've played Connelly's of Leap, Levis' in Ballydehob, the Triskel; back in the day we played the Lobby Bar, The Half Moon Club. We even played Nancy Spain's as Juniper."

Ye hardly saw Nirvana in Henry's did ye? I ask.

"No but we played there, again as Juniper, a long time ago now," he smiles. "Venues like De Barra's in Clonakilty have such a rich musical heritage. The people who run these places are the guardians of the flame, they nurture art and artists, they're not first and foremost commercial entities, they are cultural entities."

Paul Noonan of Bell X1. Picture: Dan Linehan

I casually mention seeing them play in De Barra's and what an intimate space it is.

"Yeah, I love playing those intimate venues, but I love playing the Marquee too, it's a different energy and it's great to be able to present the music in different ways."

This segues nicely into Paul's other passion now. Having completed a music therapy course at University of Limerick, he was on placement at a Dublin school when lockdown hit. Now he works as a freelance therapist with a variety of clients. Is that taking him away from the band?

"Bell X1 is the mothership, for sure. It's sprung various tentacles and tangents, but we'd all have always gone out and done other things. It's really healthy for us to see other people," he laughs. I jam my 'professional writer' hat on tight and let him continue.

"The music therapy work feeds the songwriting, they're symbiotic. It's given me more of an awareness of what other people live with, parents with children with severe autism, people with dementia. It's been very satisfying to deploy my music background in those settings and help people.

"Measurable outcomes are tricky with music, it's hard to describe what music is and does but there's indicators and you can see if they've been achieved."

Speaking of indicators, am I right in saying a certain someone hits the half-century mark soon?

"Yeah, I don't care about that. I'm sure it'll hit me at the time but I'm kinda putting it off. Phones in the air at gigs, I don't understand. I mean what are you going to do with that? i don't think the internet needs any more footage of sweaty middle-aged Irishmen," he laughs.

I beg to differ but back to the idea of Haints and the otherworldliness of their new single, is Paul a believer in spooks?

"I'm a lot more open to the possibility of spirits and things we don't understand," he says. "I used to be quite a staunch atheist. I went through a period of being quite humourless about it all. Our kids went to the Educate Together school. I hope I've given them something else, like nature, but there's possibly a vacuum there. Both the kids like music and sing but have never been arsed to pick up an instrument, but they're surrounded by it, maybe it'll work by osmosis.

"Things that music speaks to, the unexplainable, the irrational - that's a real attraction for me. We're still growing in our own lives - boring as they are," he smiles.

His life, married to Dutch woman Amy Van Den Broek, with two young children, his various collaborative relationships like House Plants, a burgeoning music therapy career, a summer of live Bell X 1 gigs, and the new album ready to hit the shelves, is, I can only speculate, anything but boring. And the excitement is already building for his Cork gig.

Bell X1 play Live at the Marquee, Cork, on June 10, with support from Soda Blonde.

Tickets: https://www.ticketmaster.ie/bell-x1-live-at-the-marquee-cork-tickets/venueartist/197770/1182179

The album Merciful Hour is available to pre-order now in advance of its release on May 26
A teenage boy is in a serious condition in hospital following an assault in Dublin on Wednesday evening.

Gardai say they are investigating the incident, which occurred on La Touche Road in Bluebell, Dublin 12.
The US Department of State has released the 2022 Religious Freedom Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, which presents the level of religious freedom in various countries and the current problems.

May 18, 2023, 09:59 US State Dept.: Turkey curtails rights of its religious minorities, including Armenians

STEPANAKERT, MAY 18, ARTSAKHPRESS: The report on Turkey states that although the country's constitution prohibits religious discrimination, the government continues to curtail the rights of the countrys Muslim and non-Muslim religious minorities, especially those not recognized by the government's interpretation of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which includes only the followers of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Jews, and followers of the Greek Orthodox Church.

As per the report, the Turkish government continues to not recognize non-Muslim minority leadership or administrative structures such as the Armenian Apostolic Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Greek Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the Chief Rabbinate as legal entities, preventing them from buying or owning property or bringing claims in court.

Citing The Jerusalem Post, it is noted in the report that in January, pro-government Turkish media published an article stating that "Jewish influence" was involved in the "deportation of Armenians," referring to the Armenian Genocide after the First World War.

In March, a Turkish court acquitted three men accused of "insulting religious values" in 2021 after they were filmed dancing on the gates of an Armenian church in Istanbul and damaging a cross on them.

In April, a columnist of Agos Armenian weekly of Istanbul commented on to the swastika painted on the gate of an Armenian school in Istanbul, and noted the need to improve education about the Holocaust and other genocides throughout history.
A former second-hand car salesman and father-of-six has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison for the grooming and sexual assault of his wifes teenage goddaughter.

Michael King, 52, of Boyle, Co. Roscommon, was found guilty at Roscommon Circuit Criminal Court in March by a unanimous verdict of 12 sexual assault charges against Tara Kelly, who has waived her right to anonymity. The assaults took place at Warren View, Boyle, on dates unknown between December 2004 and May 2005, when Ms Kelly was 16 years old.

At Longford Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday, Judge Kenneth Connolly sentenced King to six-and-a-half years in total with the final year suspended, backdated to March 28, 2023 when he first went into custody.

Seven letters of support for King were either read out in court or given to Judge Connolly from Kings immediate family and friends, including an employer reference from Martin Reilly of Martin Reilly Motors, a car dealership in Sligo where King worked as a salesman up until his trial.

At the start of his sentence hearing, King read out a letter of apology to his now 34-year-old victim. I really am so sorry for the anguish that I caused you. It was never my intention to make you feel the way that you do. I am so sorry for the pain that you felt over the years, he said.

Prosecuting counsel, John Hayden, told the court that Kings apology was not accepted by Ms Kelly.

Victim impact statement

In her victim impact statement read out at an earlier hearing, Ms Kelly said she had had a very happy and loving childhood but her life changed forever at 16. He made me feel like I wasnt a good person and that I was responsible for the disgusting things he did to me. I was 16. I was an innocent child, and he took that away from me, she said.

When the abuse was happening, I had become so accustomed to the behaviour and learned to just zone out and do what he asked. It was the only way I knew how to cope with what was happening to me. At the time I didnt have the vocabulary, the knowledge or the courage to say no. To say stop.

I think the worst damage he did was to my mind. He manipulated me into thinking this was acceptable behaviour, that it was all normal.

Ms Kelly said King had assaulted her in the presence of his wife and her parents. He thought he was so clever, so creative, and he knew he would get away with it. And he continued to do so because he was getting away with it. He would be so brazen about it all.

Even when the abuse ended, she was reminded of it every time she came home. Seeing the places the abuse had happened, seeing my family who I was too scared to confide in, and even seeing him at family events. I had to greet and hug him time and time again, all with a smile on my face, trying my best to pretend everything was normal and that everything was ok.

"On the inside I was wrecked and suffocating from the pain. For family moments, like my brothers wedding, a day that should have been full of joy and love were instead overwhelmed with shame, fear and panic. It was never over, she said.

She told Judge Connolly that she felt like she was leading a double life, but had to brush it off, put on a face and act as if nothing had happened.

Ms Kelly said the effects of the sexual assaults manifested much later in her life. Then all the secrecy, the guilt, the shame and feeling dirty began to manifest within my body. I internalised it all, she said.

She developed chronic pain all over her body and suffered many unexplainable mental breakdowns. She sought help in 2018 and 2019 from rape crisis centres in the UK who helped her to deal with the process of coming forward with her story.

I feel sorry for his wife and I feel sorry for his kids. I never wanted to be the person to take a father away from his children. But I have to continuously remind myself that it isnt me doing this.

His actions have brought him here. He was the adult. And he needs to carry this pain, guilt and shame. It does not belong to me and it never should have belonged to me.

He managed to live his life with his wife, have a family and continue with his image of the perfect family man while I was silently struggling. He had a choice to take accountability for what he did but instead he made me and my family endure a horrific, lengthy court trial adding further damage and immense stress onto what has already been a traumatic period.

I have put up a long and strenuous fight to finally see the day that the system actually works for women like me. That justice will be served. I was too fearful, too weak to say anything. But Im not that child anymore and I will not be shamed into silence.

At 34 years of age, I am still learning that I have a voice, because I have been silent for so long. And that my voice matters. And that no is always an option. I hope that my coming forward and my decision to waive anonymity today will encourage other young people to come forward, to not feel shamed into silence and to know you are not alone.

He was in my life long before he touched me. I trusted him, I respected him and I looked up to him. More importantly, my parents trusted him. He portrayed himself really well; a family man and a great husband. Whatever the outcome today, I know, and now all these witnesses know, who he truly is, she concluded.

Family support for Michael King

His wife, Tracy King, who is a first cousin of the victim, took to the witness box to describe how she and King had enjoyed 24 years of a happy marriage until the day he was arrested on August 10, 2021, a day which changed my life fundamentally.

She said her husband had been an excellent father who played a hands-on role in his six childrens lives and was a great provider. I am heartbroken that we are here today. I hope she will find healing to recover from this trauma, she told the court.

Ms King went on to plead with the judge for leniency in sentencing her husband, saying that while she understood the gravity of what he had been found guilty of, King was the main breadwinner of the family. He helps keep the kids on the straight and narrow. I know if he is in prison our family will struggle financially and emotionally, she said.

One of his children, visibly upset, handed in a letter to the judge after their mother had finished.

Kings father-in-law, Mr Sparrow  an uncle of the victim - then read out his letter of support, also reiterating his childrens financial dependence on him. Kings sister, Joanne King, read out a letter to the judge from her mother, describing how King was a rock both to her and his own family. I cannot undo the pain Tara has gone through but I can apologise, she said.

Defence Counsel, Dara Foynes SC, then handed in a reference from Martin Reilly to Judge Connolly. After reading it, the judge said it was clear from Mr Reillys letter that King was a man that has been very dedicated to his work.

King wore his Martin Reilly Motors uniform throughout his 10-day trial. Mr Reilly, however, denied all knowledge of the existence of the employer reference when contacted by this newspaper after King was sentenced.

A sixth letter from a close family friend, a girl whose own father had died and who had spent a lot of time in the King household, described the part he played in her life. A final letter was also submitted from two friends of King who had grown up with him in England.
The full spectrum of options must be considered as part of a review of Irelands military neutrality, Tanaiste Micheal Martin is due to tell the Dail on Thursday.

Mr Martin is expected to tell TDs that the country can no longer rely on its geographic isolation for security nor isolate itself from world events.

Mr Martin, who is minister for foreign affairs and defence, will outline that he is convening a Consultative Forum on International Security Policy to build a deeper public and political understanding of the international security environment facing the State, and the policy options available.

It is understood the forum will provide a space to discuss what other security policy choices may exist for the country.

The forum will examine Irelands ability to pursue an independent foreign policy, but it is understood Mr Martin will re-state that no country in Europe wants a European army.

Attention has been drawn to Irelands neutrality since the war in Ukraine broke out, with the Government saying although we are militarily neutral, the State supports Ukraine politically and financially for humanitarian needs.

Mr Martin will also tell the Dail that the country's status as an island nation brings particular risks and threats. He will say that Ireland must ramp up military capacity in order to protect against sabotage of critical undersea fibre-optic cables which if attacked would have devastating consequences for Ireland and for communications between Europe and America.

The Tanaiste is expected to say that part of the solution to more effectively managing these threats and risks is increased investment in military and civilian capabilities.

He will also point to the recent ransomware attack on the HSE and will say no country acting alone can respond effectively to cyber threats that can emanate from anywhere in the world.

Irelands military neutrality must be an important part of the discussion at the forum and the State should explore the full spectrum of policy options that are available to Ireland as a sovereign state and a member of the EU, he will add.

Mr Martin is expected to say that Ireland has long viewed geographic isolation as a source of security and for much of the States history, that made sense, as the perceived threat of a conventional attack was low.

Tanaiste and Defence Minister Micheal Martin is set to convene a Consultative Forum on International Security Policy. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

However, it is understood the Tanaiste will tell the Dail that the 'highly globalised' Ireland of 2023 is different.

He will question whether Ireland can say that the Triple Lock remains fit for purpose, having previously signalled support for dropping the policy for deploying the Defence Forces overseas.

He will tell the Dail that the forum will allow an honest discussion on Irelands security policy options for the future.

This will include discussing what the States current policy of military neutrality means and whether it is fit for purpose in the current global security environment.

Mr Martin will also say that the Government is not prejudging the outcome of any discussions at the forum and there is no hidden agenda at play, but that the conversation must be based on the "reality" of the international security environment.

He will also tell TDs that Ireland is currently negotiating an updated partnership framework with Nato and that the forum will offer an opportunity to explore potential areas of mutual interest between Nato and the State, including maritime security, cyber and hybrid, climate and security, and resilience and critical infrastructure.

Meanwhile, speaking to the Irish Examiner in Iceland, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that Ireland's neutrality "is evolving".

He said that he does not propose Ireland joining Nato but said that he is comfortable with "deepening security co-operation. He said we have to change our approach as a result of potential threats to critical infrastructure.

The consultative forum will be spread across four days in three venues, starting next month in Cork, Galway, and Dublin. It will involve a range of stakeholders with participation from civilian and military experts as well as speakers from Ireland and abroad.
Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien has strongly denied any tensions between him and Integration Minister Roderic O'Gorman on accommodating people who arrive here from Ukraine and elsewhere.

It comes amid reports that both ministers clashed at this week's Cabinet meeting over the handling of the accommodation crisis after Mr O'Gorman told colleagues that they all must do more.

Integration Minister Roderic O'Gorman. Picture: Marc O'Sullivan

However, speaking to the Irish Examiner, Mr O'Brien said his department is "more than pulling its weight" when it comes to sourcing and providing housing for Ukrainians fleeing the war and others seeking protection here.

Asked about his relationship with his Green Party colleague, Mr O'Brien said: "We meet on a regular basis  he is only across the corridor, and there's no tension between us.

I read articles, they are nothing to do with me, that might be people's impression on it.

"Our challenge in relation to our friends from Ukraine that are coming here and others who are fleeing persecution from other countries  it's a Government issue, it's not just Roderic's or my own issue, we've all got to work together on it."

Mr O'Brien added that local authorities have done a "superb job in a very difficult situation" in providing thousands of spaces for people who arrive in Ireland.

'A great story to tell'

Separately, Community Development Minister Heather Humphreys said it is incumbent" on all public representatives to work with communities, including people living in Inch, Co Clare, to allay any fears around accommodating international protection applicants.

Ms Humphreys said 14,500 Ukrainians are working, with some working within her own department.

So, there's a lot happening out there, and I think we need probably need to get more of those good stories out to people and to allay those concerns and fears, she said.

Ms Humphreys, who was speaking at the announcement of 50m in funding for over 880 projects as part of the Community Recognition Fund, said a lot can be learned from rural areas that have already welcomed people.

She said she had visited Ballaghaderreen in Co Roscommon last week. That's only a very small town and they have been there taking in international protection applicants for a long period of time, she said.

Heather Humphreys pictured in Ballaghaderreen with Pat Towey of Ballaghaderreen Men's Shed and Fine Gael senator Aisling Dolan.

"They really have made themselves feel at home there and the people that are accommodating them have a great story to tell.

There's loads of those stories all over the country, and I have the pleasure of going to visit them and to hear those stories.

I think we can hold up a lot of best examples as to how people coming into your community has enriched the community."

She said the recognition fund will reward and help communities that have "stepped up to the plate and have undertaken that burden, adding that it will be kept open for communities like Inch.

And perhaps there's something needed there that can make Inch a better place for the communities to live and work and raise a family in, and we're happy to engage with them, she said.
A DUP council election candidate was threatened and physically intimidated while handing out leaflets at a polling station in Co Derry, party leader Jeffrey Donaldson has said.

The party said Dawn Huggins, a candidate for Causeway Coast and Glens council, had the leaflets ripped from her hand and was told she was not welcome in the area on Thursday morning.

Mr Donaldson said the man who was a bully and insisted there were no no-go areas for his candidates in Northern Ireland.

Elections are free and fair in Northern Ireland and candidates are entitled to put forward their perspectives

He said: One of our candidates standing in the Bann electoral area for Causeway Coast and Glens, Dawn Huggins, was handing out some leaflets outside Macosquin Primary School this morning when a very large gentleman, well over 6ft, approached her and tore the leaflets out of her hand.

There was significant physical intimidation of our candidate. She was threatened, told to get out of the area.

I want to be absolutely clear and on behalf of Dawn say this: there are no no-go areas for our candidates in Northern Ireland.

This is a democratic process, elections are free and fair in Northern Ireland and candidates are entitled to put forward their perspectives.

The DUP leader called for intimidation of politicians, particularly women, to stop.

He added: There is no place in our society for this kind of intimidatory behaviour and the DUP will not stand for it.

She (Ms Huggins) is very badly shaken up by this, very upset by what has happened, by the threats that were made against her, by the physical intimidation to which she was subjected.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson (Liam McBurney/PA)

This is entirely wrong. This man is just a bully picking on a woman who has decided to stand for public office. There is no courage or bravery involved in any of that on his part.

Therefore we stand with Dawn and the courage she has shown putting herself forward for public office.

Mr Donaldson said the matter had been reported to the PSNI.

He continued: Dawn is not alone. We have seen other women from other parties and from the DUP subjected to this type of intimidatory behaviour and bullying, both online and, in this case, physically in person. It is entirely wrong.

It is difficult to attract people to stand for public office and this kind of behaviour simply doesnt help.

Dawn is a courageous woman like the other women who are standing for election, for whatever party they stand, and this intimidation will not deter any of these women or any other candidates from pursuing public office, for standing up for what they believe in and putting themselves forward before the people.

Party colleague and MLA Gordon Lyons said canvassers from other parties came to Ms Huggins aid.

In a social media post, he said: Ive just spoken with our Bann candidate, Dawn Huggins, who was the victim of physical intimidation at Macosquin polling station this morning and told she was not welcome in the area.

There are no no-go areas for the DUP or any party in this election

Dawn has not been deterred. Many thanks to the canvassers from other parties who called the police to her aid.

A PSNI spokesman said a man in his 70s who was arrested following the report of an assault in the Macosquin area on Thursday afternoon has been issued with a Community Resolution Notice.
Primary and secondary school were probably the hardest time of my life, Lauren Lynch told the Irish Examiner.

A student at the Atlantic Technological University (ATU) in Mayo, Laurens experience of third-level education has been as different to secondary school as night and day. She does not believe much has changed since she completed her Leaving Certificate in 2018.

I had a very, very tough time in secondary school. I wasnt a good student but that wasnt because I didnt want to learn. I couldnt learn in the environment provided for me, there was no accommodation whatsoever.

Lauren was diagnosed with dyslexic tendencies in fourth class, and at the age of 17, she was diagnosed with severe dyslexia. Her assessment recommended she be given an exemption in Irish and Spanish.

My school wouldnt support [this] so I then had to drop two subjects. It also said in my report to get assistive technology. My school denied that privilege because I would distract other students.

Under the State Examinations Commissions (SEC) Reasonable Accommodations at State Examinations scheme (RACE), Lauren was granted a reader during her Leaving Cert. Extra time is not an accommodation offered to students with dyslexia, making Ireland an outlier, according to the Dyslexia Association of Ireland.

I didnt have extra time in my exams, I had a reader, but I still had to write my answers, which was just ridiculous when I was advised to use assistive technology, says Lauren.

The only reason I wasnt stressed during those exams was because I had a fantastic mother who knew I wasnt getting support.

This week, Lauren completed her last college exam as part of her degree in early childhood education. During her studies in college, Lauren had access to assistive technology, as well as extra time in exams, a spelling and grammar waiver, and extensions on assignments. Its been very good, she said.

Students who qualify for the RACE scheme may receive a spelling and grammar waiver in the language subjects or access to a reader or a scribe during their Leaving or Junior Cert exams.

They may also be granted the use of a recording device, word processor, or laptop. However, extra time is not among the options available, although it is available as standard in exams for dyslexic students at third level.

Lauren said: I hear the SEC say there doesnt need to be additional time; were dyslexic people even involved in that conversation? How did they come to that conclusion, because they wouldnt have come to that conclusion if they had been.

Dyslexia affects roughly one in ten people, occurring on a spectrum with some people more affected than others. Common features associated with dyslexia include difficulties with reading, spelling, and writing as well as related cognitive and processing difficulties.

'I'd be more of a visual learner'

In Dublin, fifth-year student Lucy Brennan is preparing for her summer exams. A movie lover, when she finishes school, shed like to study film and history. Due to the pandemic, Lucy didnt sit Junior Cert exams which were cancelled in 2020 and 2021. Ive never done a proper State exam but my summer exams are coming up.

Id be more of a visual learner, she explained. If a teacher isnt as interacting with the class, I find that quite difficult. It can take me more time to learn something and comprehend something than with other subjects so it can be difficult but every Thursday I get extra help with the subjects I do find difficult.

I personally think that extra time is something the SEC should consider, said Lucy.

For me, I wouldnt really fall down in spelling and reading, and I dont think Id be entitled to that waiver, but Id fall down in comprehension and processing while I am reading.

To have that extra time to process, and go over what Im reading would be really helpful for me and it would help to level out the playing field with my peers.

'I think extra time in exams is vital'

Keith Murphy, Kildare, discovered he has dyslexia in 2017 during the first year of a PhD in Maynooth. He

returned to education as a mature student, having found school horrendous.

In that day, you were just a messer, you werent trying like everyone else but it was more than that.

His youngest daughter, Riley, who is currently preparing for her Junior Cert exams, also has dyslexia. She still does find it tough but since her diagnosis, shes been getting support, which is a great help to her,  said Keith.

I think extra time in exams is vital, he said. I think it should be offered to every neurodiverse child. I know its stressful for everybody, but a person who has dyslexia might have to read the question ten times before theyve made sense of it.

It takes longer than a person without dyslexia to comprehend whats being asked. The extra time would just level the playing field for them, just to take away that extra stress.

It will lessen stress for them and give them a better opportunity to fulfill their potential as well."

The characteristics of dyslexia and the characteristics of an exam environment are opposite. You get the extra time when you get to level, they just need the extra time to give them a little bit more time to comprehend and work things out.

English prose questions or maths calculations, for anybody it takes time to work out whats being asked. For people with dyslexia, it takes longer to work it out.

'She tries really hard in school'

In Waterford, Monica Grant also has two daughters preparing for the Junior Cert: Twins Siofra and Blathnaid.

Siofra is entitled to a spelling and grammar waiver but wouldnt qualify for a reader or a scriber. She learned to read in fifth class. Ever since then, shes just a massive reader. She consumes books, one or two a week, every week. She loves them, said Monica.

She tries really hard in school. Typically, when she does homework, she scores 90 to 100%, not in every subject, but in a good few of them.

However, this wasnt reflected in her pre-exams earlier this year. It just wasnt enough time for her, it was a disaster. No matter how hard she studies, she couldnt get the information on the paper. Its so disheartening because she studies quite well.

Shes very interested in going to college, but she needs to get the opportunity to show how clever she is because at the moment she cant have the time to process her answers.

Call for review

The Dyslexia Association of Ireland is calling on the SEC to urgently review its reasonable accommodations policy for dyslexic students. It argues that extra time is available as a standard accommodation for students at third level, and it is well established internationally.

A spokesman for the SEC said it will be happy to listen to the views of the Dyslexia Association of Ireland on this and other issues of concern when it meets with them at a planned meeting at the end of the month.

From the 2016/17 school year, the RACE scheme underwent fundamental reform, said the spokesman. However, additional time in which to complete the written or practical examinations is not an accommodation that can be sanctioned in its own right under the scheme.

The challenge in determining the allocation of additional time for candidates with learning difficulties, including dyslexia, was recognised by the expert advisory group. Two measures were introduced in response. This included the introduction of an additional 20 minutes per examination paper for all candidates in the Leaving Cert subjects Irish, English, history, and geography.

It remains the case that the examinations in these subjects are 20 minutes longer than the time they were designed to require.

The introduction of a waiver from spelling, grammar, and punctuation in the language subjects was also specifically developed to address the time issue for candidates with learning difficulties, said the spokesman.

Monica said: The exam times are not long enough. When Siofra brought home her English pres paper, it was like a different child had done the paper. None of her brilliance showed in it.

For them to say there is time built in, there isnt. Not enough.
Clonakilty man Kieran White is SVP Europe Onshore at rsted. Hes a man whos happy in his job.

I feel fortunate, he says, given that Im working for a great company, one with a very clear mission and crucially, one that wants to do the right thing.

Describing rsted as an organisation that some time ago recognised the importance of decarbonising industry and society and whose vision is to create a world that runs entirely on green energy, he adds: As for me, I feel that whatever experience I can bring to bear, I do.

Almost two years ago, White was CEO of a business in Ireland that was owned by Brookfield Renewable. When rsted acquired Brookfield in 2021, White and his team were kept on. This speaks volumes to their credit.

Within 18 months of the acquisition the Cork team, led by White, rsted's European Onshore business grew from being virtually Irish-based, with some interests in the UK, to one with strong Irish roots still, and centres in the UK, Germany, Spain and France; all continuing to being led out of Cork.

The overseas expansion was matched by rsted growth in Cork, with 40 new, highly-skilled, roles created there since 2021.

With electrification, a core factor in tackling the rapid decarbonising task that faces humanity, much needs to be done, correctly and at speed.

White says: Were looking into a future where the consumption of and demand for electricity is going to more than double. For this, we need higher renewable generation capacity and additional wires, to get the power from where its generated to where its used.

Ireland, White says, is quite significantly behind in terms of investment in the scaling up of transmission systems.

While targets for 2030 have been set, and theyre useful pointers, come 2030 the job wont be finished. It will continue beyond that.

As a country we need to be contemplating both the connectivity we require on this island and also the connectivity from Ireland to the UK and to continental Europe, so that power can, when needed, be transmitted in either direction.

Were building connectivity to France via the Celtic Interconnector, but thats not enough. Our grid capacity requires a lot more investment to facilitate the growth of renewable electricity, says White.

Eirgrid seeks to continue to invest in its infrastructure, but we need to think bigger. We must correctly anticipate what our future society is going to look like, and the level of electricity demand that will be required.

White says the system demand for 2030 will require more pylons and more wires across the country. Wires can be buried underground, but it costs more to do that, he adds.

rsted has ambitions to grow capacity significantly over the next decade to support the Irish governments emission reduction targets. A global owner and operator of renewable assets, rsted has 19 operational wind farms across Ireland, creating 360MW of capacity, the equivalent of powering over 234,000 homes.

Would he go as far as to say there isnt any other option?

He would: There really isnt any other option. Funds are not the issue because theres plenty of capital. Its more about will. This is going to be somewhat controversial, but the consequences if we dont act, are that in parts of the country, the lights won't turn on when we want them to.

While energy infrastructure investment needs to scale, permitting times must decrease for renewable generation projects such as wind farms.

Objections and judicial reviews increase wait time and, in this context, the new Planning and Development Bill is welcome, he says. Only when legal challenges are cleared, can you apply for access to the grid.

When access is granted, what follows then is a wait to be connected. If you add all of that up, unfortunately youre currently looking at a wait time of seven years at best, right up to ten years before a project may be realised.

White passionately believes that to hit our 2050 climate targets, we need to be tying it all together better than we are.

How does he see that happening?

I think Minister [Eamon] Ryan is genuinely making an effort to do the right thing, with a very broad portfolio, he replies. What Im advocating here, is that a portfolio be established with the authority and end-to-end responsibility across the energy sector to ensure we have the plans and capability to deliver a very different energy infrastructure come 2050.

Our energy system, businesses and wider society needs to undergo huge change over the next 25 years, if we are to hit our net zero ambitions, and that should come under the umbrella of one department.

We talk then of how the journey forward will impact the public and so many institutions and bodies.

The development of a significant offshore wind industry in Ireland will have to co-exist with fisheries and the recreational use of the seas. It will also impact our ports, which require investment to upgrade them, to enable the installation of wind farms off the coast of Ireland.

For Ireland to deliver on its offshore wind ambitions, we will need to secure the services of a global supply chain including turbine manufacturers, and the enormous vessels that can then transport and install them in the seabed.

Those vessels are in demand in the US, in Asia Pacific, in the North Sea and elsewhere, says White. At this stage, virtually every country with a coastline is competing for access to these same services to deliver their offshore wind ambitions.

When considering investing in Ireland, investors want clarity on how its all tied together, so they can see themselves realising a project here. Right now it feels as though we have some parts in place, but were missing key components. This does not generate confidence.

Where precisely is Ireland falling down?

What we need is to be able to show a clear pathway, including timelines, for a project. Along the way, whether it is onshore or offshore, we must also address permitting, and grid infrastructure. Frankly, a lot hangs on those two key issues, he replies.

If you have something connected, you can dispatch it into the market and you may have a government backed contract for the price youre going to get for your power. That enables you to come up with an investable project. But its taking too long to get the first two parts in place, to reap the benefits of the third.

Offshore we are setting up a new authority for the permitting of offshore wind farms. Yet it is for Eirgrid to come through in relation to connecting those farms. How these two entities will work together will be crucially important from an investment perspective.

On a positive note, White references the renewable energy support schemes we have for onshore which are also being made available for offshore.

Theyre good schemes which have enabled the development of our existing wind farms so we now create 40% of our electricity generation from renewable sources, he says. So in this instance, Irelands doing quite well.

White is not confident that we will meet our 2030 target. As for 2050, he says: Theres a long way to go yet. But if we can resolve some of the issues discussed, I think Ireland can go a heck of a long way towards reaching that 2050 net zero goal.

https://orsted.com/en/careers
China has asked Australian authorities to step up efforts to find survivors from a capsized Chinese fishing boat which left 39 crew members missing in the Indian Ocean.

Two bodies have been recovered, Chinese media has reported.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian said.

We wish that our Australian colleagues would co-ordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible.

Mr Xiao said China wants to co-ordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, in the search and rescue effort.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff

The search co-ordinator, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, said three aircraft and seven ships including three Chinese navy ships were involved in the search in the centre of the Indian Ocean on Thursday.

A Sri Lankan navy ship was also heading for the scene, the authority said in a statement.

Two days after the capsize of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, the authority remains hopeful for a successful outcome, however the time elapsed combined with the weather conditions experienced make survival more challenging, it said.

Two bodies were pulled from the ocean on Thursday afternoon by the Chinese navy, Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported.

No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing

The upturned hull was spotted on Tuesday from a cargo ship 3,100 miles northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth, the Australian search co-ordinator said.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

The search authority said the multinational search effort continued on Thursday over an area of 4,600 square miles south of where the upturned hull was found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Chinese and international agencies remain positive about the search and rescue operation.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing, Mr Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

The capsized boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by Penglai Jinglu Fishery.

Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, was operating near the upturned hull and continued to search on Thursday, the Australian authority said.
Boris Johnson dismissed Emmanuel Macron as Putins lickspittle after the French president criticised the then-British prime ministers response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis, according to a former leading No 10 official.

Mr Johnson also called Mr Macron a four-letter word that begins with c, former Downing Street director of communication Guto Harri said in his podcast Unprecedented.

When the British press was giving the British Government a hard time over our response to the refugee crisis, Macron turbocharged it by criticising Boris pretty directly and his words were all over the front page of The Guardian, he recalled.

Much as Boris is not prone to getting really cross, nor using particularly strong language, this was one where he really flipped at our morning meeting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) meeting then-prime minister Boris Johnson in Kyiv (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/PA)

He just launched into a violent attack on Emmanuel Macron. Basically, saying Hes a four-letter word that begins with C, hes a weirdo, hes Putins lickspittle We need an orgy of frog bashing. Im going to have to punch his lights out.

Mr Harri said the two leaders had patched up their differences before a G7 summit a few weeks later.

The second episode of Unprecedented on Global Player also recounts Mr Johnsons relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying the two leaders shared gallows humour and recalling a phone call on the night Ukraine was invaded.

It was massively sobering, said Mr Harri. We really could not believe that this was seriously underway. A superpower advancing on a neighbour who had done nothing to provoke it.

Boris could not have been clearer that we were there to help the Ukraine in whichever way we possibly could, using whatever we could possibly deploy within reason.

The two of them had this extraordinary bond. And, dare I mention it, this kind of really dark gallows humour that was obviously a coping mechanism.
Early humans in Europe were making fires at least least 250,000 years ago  50,000 years earlier than previously thought, according to researchers.

Newly gathered evidence suggests the European ancestors were making and controlling fire for activities such as cooking, heating and to defend their home.

Dr Clayton Magill, an assistant professor at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, said: We have found definitive evidence of things being burnt and those remains are organised into a pattern, suggesting its humans who are making and controlling the fire.

Either they were using the fire to cook or to defend themselves.

The spatial patterning in the fire tells us that they were encircling something, like a home or sleeping area, a living room or kitchen, or an enclosure for animals.

We now have definitive, incontrovertible evidence that humans were starting and stopping fires in Europe about 50,000 years earlier than we suspected

For the study, published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports, a team of scientists analysed samples from Valdocarros II, an archaeological site near Madrid in Spain.

They used forensic chemical methods to identify molecules of incomplete burning.

The remains also shed light on the type of firewood used, which mainly had burning properties such as heat and lack of smoke.

Dr Magill said: This is important because our species is defined by our use of fire.

Being able to cook food to feed our big brains is one of the things that made us so successful in an evolutionary sense.

Fire also brings protection and fosters communication and family connection.

And we now have definitive, incontrovertible evidence that humans were starting and stopping fires in Europe about 50,000 years earlier than we suspected.

The oldest clear evidence of human-controlled fire is thought to come from east Africa and is around 1.5 million years old.

Evidence of fire has also been uncovered in Israel from about 790,000 years ago.

As part of the next steps, the research team will study stone tools found near fire hearths to identify whether these were used in the making and controlling of fire  for example, to cut meat or pulverise plants.

Dr Magill said: We want to understand whether the selective or specialised use of tools is something that should go at least theoretically hand-in-hand with fire control.
Syrian president Bashar Assad arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday to attend a regional summit, his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syrias conflict began in 2011, Syrian state media said.

Mr Assads attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts on Friday, is expected to seal Syrias return to the Arab fold following a 12-year suspension and open a new chapter of relations after more than a decade of tensions.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Mr Assad, a long-time regional pariah, back into its ranks. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

During Syrias civil war, Saudi Arabia had been a key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Mr Assad.

Saudi foreign minister Faisal bin Farhan speaks ahead of the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (Saudi Press Agency via AP)

However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syrias pre-war population.

Mr Assads troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to his main allies, Russia and Iran, that helped tip the balance of power in his favour.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Mr Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad.

The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syrias conflict. Last week, they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian foreign minister, Faisal Mekdad, visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Mr Assad.

Mr Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdoms years-long war in Yemen.

Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the countrys conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Mr Assads government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to the normalisation of relations with Mr Assad, saying a solution to Syrias conflict based on UN Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the February 6 earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including more than 6,000 in Syria.
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The Port Byron and Montezuma historical societies will partner to present a series of events over the next several weeks celebrating the bicentennial of the completion of the Erie Canal.

"Preserving Culture & Community Through the Art of the Historic Erie Canal" will include an exhibit of art and history at the Lock 52 Historical Society, 73 Pine St., Port Byron.

Now open, the exhibit will continue through 2025, which will mark 200 years since the opening of the completed canal. The middle section of the canal, between Utica and Montezuma, opened in 1819.

The historical society will be open from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays and by appointment Saturdays through Sept. 16. An open house will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 10, with muralist Dawn Jordan, the artist in residence this year. Joined by Mentz Historian Mike Riley and Montezuma Historian Cheryl Longyear, Jordan will talk about her canal murals and the history behind them.

The bicentennial celebration will also include a walking tour at Montezuma Heritage Park from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday, May 20. Riley will guide visitors to the original Lock 52, the remains of the Richmond Aqueduct built 25 years later and more. The tour will set up an event at 2 that afternoon at the Samuel Center for Canal History at 36 Rochester St. (formerly St. John's Church) in Port Byron.

There, Nassau artist Len Tantillo will unveil his latest painting, "Martin's Journey West," inspired by a towpath bridge over the Seneca River in Montezuma that allowed vessels to travel the newly opened canal. The bridge's remnants can be seen at the river's edge in Montezuma Heritage Park, the historical societies said in a news release. The painting features a packet boat that Tantillo depicted in collaboration with Seneca Lake shipwreck diver and historian Art Cohn. Cohn will join Tantillo at the event, as well as a similar one for high school art students and fourth-graders on Friday, May 19.

"Len has captured this important time in history in which he thoroughly researched the setting and added important elements to tell the story," the societies said. "During Art's long tenure in museum, historical and archaeologist interpretation, he has used artwork extensively to maximize the effectiveness of storytelling and to make it easier for people to understand the context of their efforts."

All events are free and open to the public.

The series is supported by the Statewide Community Regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, administered by Auburn Public Theater, and the Cayuga County Office of Tourism

For more information, visit portbyronhistorical.org.
The remains of a Georgia woman killed 46 years ago were identified and confirmed as a victim of Samuel Little, known as the most prolific serial killer in US history, authorities said on Thursday.

Yvonne Pless was about 20 when Little killed her in 1977, according to a news release from the Bibb County Sheriffs Office and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.

She had been dubbed Macon Jane Doe by The Telegraph newspaper in the city.

Little, who died in December 2020, confessed in 2018 to killing two Macon women, prompting Georgia investigators to travel to Texas in 2019 to interview him.

93 The number of women that Samuel Little admitted to murdering

They were able to confirm that his confessions matched the unsolved Macon cold case.

They were able to notify a remaining family member of the other woman, Fredonia Smith, who was killed in 1982.

But Ms Pless remains had not been identified, so her family was not known.

Last year, investigators used forensic, genetic, genealogy to identify the remains of Ms Pless and then identified a relative who connected them with her remaining family in Macon.

By the time of his death, Little had confessed to killing 93 people between 1970 and 2005.

Most of the slayings took place in Florida and southern California.

Georgia authorities say eight of his victims were Georgia residents, and the remains of a Tennessee woman were also found in Georgia.
US rock legend Bruce Springsteen came under criticism in Italy for going ahead with a concert in Ferrara on Thursday evening after the northern Emilia-Romagna region was battered by floods that left at least nine people dead.

Check out our Sustainability and Climate Change Hub where you will find the latest news, features, opinions and analysis on this topic from across the various Irish Examiner topic desks and their team of specialist writers and columnists.

Fans of "The Boss" took to social networks to urge him and its staff to reconsider in a sign of respect for the eleven dead and the thousands evacuated from their homes after torrential rains caused landslides and made rivers break their banks.

"@springsteen please consider to reschedule your concert today. Surrounding areas have faced devastating floods. You should because: all emergency resources should be available in the affected area; we need to avoid massive traffic; out of respect for the victims", Massimiliano Zampini tweeted.

Others were more outraged.

Cristiana Boi described the decision to go ahead with the show as "outrageous," while Laura Casadei posted: It is a scandal that they are doing Springsteen's concert in Ferrara tonight. He will sing without an audience as all the main streets are blocked in several places."

Representatives for Springsteen did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Exceptional rains Wednesday in a drought-struck region of northern Italy swelled rivers over their banks, killing at least nine people

Ferrara, one of Emilia-Romagna's main cities, has not been directly affected by the floods and Mayor Alan Fabbri defended the decision not to cancel the concert, which was expected to attract as many as 50,00 people.

"I am sorry if anyone may have thought that Ferrara was insensitive to the tragedy in Romagna just because it did not cancel the concert of The Boss," Fabbri posted on facebook.

A concert, "given its enormous complexity, cannot be postponed or cancelled" at short notice after having involved thousands of workers and tourists arriving in the city, he said.

The floods have instead led authorities to call off Sunday's Formula One Grand Prix in Imola, which is close to many of the areas worst hit by flooding, with organisers saying it was not possible to "safely hold the event".
Burma Global Indices Record Myanmars Rapid Decline Under Junta Rule

Myanmar revelers gather to take part in New Year celebrations at a public park in Yangon on December 31, 2022. / AFP

Min Aung Hlaings military regime announced two core goals when it seized power in a coup two years ago: National prosperity and food security.

Keep moving forward to achieve our goal has been the junta chiefs mantra ever since.

However, global indices measuring various aspects of development show Myanmar is actually moving backward at a rapid pace.

Asian danger zone

According to the Global Peace Index, military-ruled Myanmar is among the most dangerous countries in Asia, ranking 9th behind Afghanistan followed by Yemen, Syria, Russia, Iraq, North Korea, Pakistan, and Iran.

Myanmar is undisputedly the most dangerous country in Southeast Asia, being the only regional power in the dangerous category.

Western countries including the US and Britain have warned their citizens against traveling to Myanmar. Even the regime itself has warned its officials and military personnel to exercise caution while traveling within the country as it struggles to contain a nationwide resistance movement.

Meanwhile, Myanmar citizens live in fear of arbitrary arrest and killings by regime forces. Tourism website Travelling Lifestyle warns that Myanmar is among the most dangerous countries in Asia, citing the Global Peace Index.

The country was ranked 12th on the index under the now-ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government.

Worlds top 10 food-insecure countries

Agriculture is the mainstay of Myanmars economy. So it seems absurd to report that many people are now going hungry in the country. But this is true, all thanks to the military junta.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned early this month that Myanmar faces a worsening food crisis. Myanmar now ranks sixth on the organizations list of countries facing severe food insecurity, after DR Congo, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Yemen.

FAO says conflicts, economic chaos, and natural disasters triggered by climate change are primary drivers of acute food insecurity. Unfortunately, Myanmar is experiencing all three. The regime is also contributing by torching farms along with grain stored for cultivation in the countrys agricultural heartland of central Myanmar.

Families across the country are facing hardships as a result of armed conflicts, high fuel and food prices, and unemployment, among other factors.

Prices of basic foodstuffs and necessities have almost tripled over the past two years. This has forced residents even in towns that are relatively stable to reduce their consumption, with some surviving on one meal a day. In the largely rural conflict zones, meanwhile, huge numbers of villagers displaced by junta raids survive on food donated by other civilians.

Near-bottom of Press Freedom Index

Junta suppression of media saw Myanmar ranked 173 out of 180 countries in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index compiled by France-based Reporters Without Borders.

Myanmar is now the second-biggest jailer of journalists after China but by far the biggest in terms of population size.

By comparison, Myanmar was ranked 139th under the NLD government.

Religious freedom a cause for concern

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has listed Myanmar as a country of particular concern, in a list that also includes China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria.

Regime troops campaign of arson against villages in central Myanmar has not spared Buddhist monasteries, despite Min Aung Hlaings duplicitous attempts to promote himself as protector of Buddhism and his junta as legitimately representing the countrys Buddhist majority.

Junta soldiers could not have torched the dozens if not hundreds of Buddhist monasteries and churches in Chin and Kayah states as well as Magwe and Sagaing regions without approval from their chain of command headed by Min Aung Hlaing.

On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken marked the release of the 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom by criticizing the regimes repression of religious minorities in Myanmar and declaring Washington will support brave advocates for religious freedom.

The US religious freedom commission listed Myanmar as a country of particular concern in 2020 under the NLD government, citing the militarys crackdown on Muslim Rohingya.

One of the most corrupt countries

Myanmar ranked 157th out of 180 countries on the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) compiled by Transparency International, challenging North Korea as among the worst countries in Asia-Pacific.

In the 2020 CPI report, Myanmar under the NLD government had risen 13 points since 2012.
Burma Myanmar Junta Airstrikes Hit Three Resistance Strongholds

Saw Lon village in Bawlakhe Township on Wednesday after a junta airstrike. / Bawlakhe PDF

Myanmars junta launched airstrikes on Wednesday in Sagaing Region and Kayah and Karen states, according to resistance groups.

Two fighter jets bombed Chaung Ma village in the south of Kani Township, Sagaing Region, before ground troops raided the settlement.

A civilian suffered neck injuries and at least three houses and a school were destroyed, said a representative of Kani-based Kyauk Lone Gyi Peoples Defense Force (PDF).

Junta jets bombed the village with a lot of bombs. The troops we attacked for seven days occupied Chaung Ma after the airstrikes, he told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.

Since May 11, more than 13,000 south Kani residents have fled their homes because of raids by two junta units amid heavy rain triggered by Cyclone Mocha.

Troops reportedly killed six villagers, including five girls, and used numerous civilian detainees as human shields to deter resistance ambushes, according to residents.

Clashes have been reported since last Thursday as resistance groups, including Kyauk Lone Gyi PDF, from four townships attacked the troops raiding villages.

The Irrawaddy could not independently verify the reports.

On Sunday fighting was reported at Min Ma village when resistance groups attacked troops who had occupied the village with many junta casualties reported, including officers.

In response, the northwest command headquarters in nearby Monywa town shelled the area and a junta fighter jet dropped bombs amid heavy rain, according to resistance groups.

In a week more than 60 regime soldiers have been killed and 30 injured, according to Kyauk Lone Gyi PDF that coordinated the attacks.

Junta forces burned the bodies of fallen soldiers in civilian houses, the group said.

Three resistance fighters had been killed and eight injured, it claimed.

Junta troops cannot travel easily and raid villages freely as most of the area is in resistance control. The junta is relying on its airforce instead, said the PDF representative.

On Wednesday morning regime forces used drones to attack Pann Nyo village in Myaung Township, Sagaing Region, said Ko Nway Oo, the founder of the Civilian Defense and Security Organization of Myaung.

A house was destroyed by a junta drone but the residents were unharmed.

A junta fighter jet also bombed Saw Lon village in Bawlakhe Township, Kayah State, killing a teenage girl and injuring four other civilians, said Bawlakhe PDF.

Nine buildings, including a monastery and two medical buildings, were destroyed, it said.

The increasing dependency on airstrikes proves the junta has too few soldiers, said a Demoso PDF spokesman, adding that resistance groups lacked anti-aircraft weapons.

In Myawaddy Township, Karen State, junta forces shelled and deployed airstrikes against resistance-held territory on early Wednesday morning, said the Cobra Column resistance group.

But junta troops retreated in the face of resistance attacks and ammunition and equipment were seized, according to the group.

There were no resistance casualties in the fighting and airstrikes, the Cobra Column said.
Burma Myanmar Junta Imports $1 Billion in Weapons Since Coup: Report

Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing celebrated the 75th anniversary of the founding of Myanmars Air Force on Dec. 15 by commissioning airplanes and helicopters, including Russian SU-30s and Chinese FTC-2000 fighter jets, into service in Meiktila, Mandalay Region.

The Myanmar military junta has imported at least US$1 billion worth of weapons and related materials from Russia, China and other countries in less than two years, according to a new UN report.

Despite overwhelming evidence of the Myanmar militarys atrocity crimes against the people of Myanmar, the generals continue to have access to advanced weapons systems, spare parts for fighter jets, raw materials and manufacturing equipment for domestic weapons production, Tom Andrews, the UN independent investigator on human rights in Myanmar, said in a press release.

Launched on Wednesday, the report, The Billion Dollar Death Trade: The International Arms Networks that Enable Human Rights Violations in Myanmar, documented over 12,500 purchases that were shipped directly to the Myanmar military or known Myanmar arms dealers working for the military from Feb. 1, 2021 to December 2022.

The report identified $406 million worth of arms-related trade from entities in Russia including state-owned entities, $267 million from China including state-owned entities, $254 million from entities operating in Singapore, $51 million from entities in India including state-owned entities and $28 million from entities operating in Thailand.

Andrews said at a press conference that the diversity and volume of goods provided to the Myanmar military since the coup is staggering.

He identified transfers of fighter jets, attack helicopters, reconnaissance and attack drones, advanced missile systems, tank upgrades, radio and communication equipment, radar complexes, and components for naval ships in the report.

The deadly items were used by the junta to commit atrocities against the people of Myanmar, the UN Special Rapporteur said.

He gave examples of the juntas air attack on Pazi Gyi Village in Sagaing Region, a resistance stronghold, in which the junta used a Russian Yak-130 fighter jet followed by an attack by Russian Mi-35 helicopters. At least 160 people including 40 children were killed in the attack.

And the juntas Directorate of Defense Industries domestically manufactured bombs and machine guns, relying in part on raw materials supplied by private entities from Singapore, China and Thailand, the report stated.

Since the coup, 28 Russian entities, including state-owned entities, have transferred fighter jets, advanced missile systems, reconnaissance and attack drones, and spare parts for fighter jets, attack helicopters, and other systems, it said.

Additionally, 41 private and state-owned companies registered in China and Hong

Kong continued to supply the Myanmar military with an extensive array of arms, equipment, and raw materials between October 2021 and December 2022 including advanced trainer jets/light attack aircraft, upgrades to tanks, and overhaul and

repair work for the older Chinese fighter jets that make up the Myanmar Air Force fleet.

Chinese firms also provided essential raw materials directly to the Myanmar military for domestic weapons manufacturing, including aluminum, copper, steel, rubber, and lubricants, it said.

The report also stated that Singapore has become a major source for spare parts, raw materials, and manufacturing equipment especially for the continued operation of Myanmars KaPaSa weapons factories.

At least 138 Singapore-based firms have served as intermediaries for the Myanmar military since the coup.

Andrews requested the government of Singapore use the information in the report and enforce its own policies to the maximum extent possible.

The government of Singapore has stated that its policy is to, prohibit the transfer of arms to Myanmar and that it has decided not to authorize the transfer of dual-use items which have been assessed to have potential military application to Myanmar.

Unlike Russia, China, andto a much lesser extentIndia, Andrews said he has received no information indicating that the governments of Singapore or Thailand have approved or transferred arms to the Myanmar military.

Rather, arms dealing organizations appear to be using the jurisdictions of Thailand and Singapore, and specifically the banking and shipping sectors there, to facilitate arms transfers, he said.

The report suggest arm dealers may be seeking to use Thailand as an alternative route. It said 12 Thai companies exporting arms and related materials to the Myanmar military were established following the coup, and many were established by sanctioned arms networks already operating in Singapore.

Andrews said that the Myanmar military and its arms dealers have figured out how to game the system because sanctions are not being adequately enforced.

Those providing these weapons are able to avoid sanctions by using front companies and creating new ones while counting on lax enforcement.

The UN Special Rapporteur urged a complete ban on the sale and transfer of weapons to the military, and urged governments to enforce existing bans while coordinating sanctions on arms dealers and foreign currency sources.

The good news is that we now know who is supplying these arms and the jurisdictions in which they operate. Member states now need to step up and stop the flow of these arms, the expert said.
Burma Myanmar Junta to Close Three Mandalay Hospitals

Medical staff in Mandalay took to the streets in a pre-dawn march against the military regime in February 2021.

Myanmars junta has revoked the licenses of three private hospitals in Mandalay for employing striking medics.

Mondays leaked junta order stated that the business licenses of Kant Kaw, City and Palace hospitals have been revoked as they failed to follow Article 19(a) of licensing rules for private healthcare services.

Sources said the hospitals, which collectively employ about 800 staff, had been targeted because they hired and helped striking medics who joined the civil disobedience movement (CDM).

Hundreds of medics from Yangon and Mandalay initiated the CDM on February 3, 2021, by refusing to work under the regime, two days after the coup.

A CDM doctor in Mandalay said closing private hospitals would block income for striking medics. The junta has taken no action to care for the three hospitals patients.

Plainclothes junta personnel arrested Dr Win Khaing and two colleagues in December while he was treating patients at Palace Hospital in Chanayethazan Township.

The urology and renal surgeon joined the CDM after the coup.

In October and November, at least 30 doctors and nurses were detained in Mandalay. Among them was Daw Poe Thandar Aung, a striking nurse who was accused of sending medicines to resistance groups, who died at an interrogation center.

Following the arrests, the junta temporarily closed five private hospitals, including Kant Kaw, City and Palace, in Mandalay. The status of the other two hospitals remains unknown, according to sources.

A Mandalay resident said the junta has been frequently targeting private hospitals and schools to seize CDM participants and stop the public from relying on private healthcare and education.

People with a little disposable income use private schools and hospitals as the public hospitals no longer have enough staff, equipment and medicines since the coup, said the resident.

The civilian National Unity Governments health ministry said the junta revoked the medical practitioner licenses of 557 CDM doctors throughout Myanmar.

By late April, more than 800 healthcare staff had been detained by the junta, of whom at least 71 had died in custody.
Thursday, May 18th, 2023 (10:12 am) - Score 1,008

CityFibre has announced that theyve finally started the construction phase of their 15m project to rollout a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network to reach across nearly every home and business in the Norfolk seaside town of Great Yarmouth, which was originally due to begin last winter.

The first street works, which are being conducted by civil engineering contractor Pod-Trak, are occurring in the Southtown and Cobham areas of town. At the time of writing, its not clear why its taken so long to begin the build, after it was supposed to start last winter (here), although it may have been impacted by CityFibres job cuts and restructuring work (here).

NOTE: Cityfibre is supported by ISPs such as TalkTalk, Zen Internet, Cityfibre is supported by ISPs such as Vodafone Giganet , and others, but they arent all live or available in every location yet.

The project forms part of CityFibres wider effort to cover up to 8 million UK premises (funded by c.2.4bn in equity and c.4.9bn debt)  across over 285 cities, towns and villages (c.30% of the UK)  by the end of 2025 (here). The operator has so far covered a total of 2.6 million premises, but only 2.3 million of those are currently considered to be Ready for Service by an ISP.

Charles Kitchin, CityFibres Area Manager for Great Yarmouth, said: Its an exciting time for Great Yarmouth as the installation of our full fibre network gets underway. This upgraded infrastructure will allow homes and businesses across the town to thrive in the digital age by providing access to lightning-fast and reliable internet services. Its important to remember that any short-term disruption will pay off tremendously in the long-term as once the network is built, it will serve the communitys connectivity needs for decades to come.

However, CityFibre wont be the only gigabit-capable broadband operator in town, with Virgin Media already holding wide coverage over the area and Openreach being in the process of expanding their existing FTTP deployments.
This Week in Review

A weekly review of the best and most popular stories published in the Imperial Valley Press. Also, featured upcoming events, new movies at local theaters, the week in photos and much more.
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After 38 years with the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, including the last 10 as the agency's acting commissioner, Anthony Annucci will retirement this summer.

DOCCS confirmed Thursday that Annucci's last day is June 9 and his retirement will be official on Aug. 11.

"It has been an honor and a privilege to oversee (DOCCS) for the last 10 years," Annucci wrote to the department's staff. "Every day throughout my 38-plus years in the agency, I have learned something new and have developed nothing but the utmost respect and appreciation for this department and its incredible workforce."

Gov. Kathy Hochul can nominate Annucci's successor. In the meantime, Daniel Martuscello III, the department's executive deputy commissioner, will oversee the agency's operations.

Michael Powers, president of the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, said the union had "strong differences of opinion" with Annucci on how to run DOCCS, but added that the relationship was "based on the respect for our roles of running both DOCCS and representing our membership."

"We wish Acting Commissioner Annucci and his family the best as he moves to a new chapter in his life," Powers said.

Annucci was named acting commissioner by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2013. He remained acting commissioner for his entire decade at the helm. Hochul attempted to nominate him for the post last year, which would have lifted the acting tag from his title, but there was bipartisan opposition in the state Senate.

As acting DOCCS commissioner, Annucci was tasked with carrying out many of the prison closures that occurred during the Cuomo administration. The state has closed 24 correctional facilities since 2011 due to the declining incarcerated population.

During Annucci's tenure, there was a spike in prison violence. A record number of assaults on staff and incarcerated individuals was reported in 2022, part of a trend that began a decade ago. Annucci responded by implementing new policies and deploying equipment, such as body-worn cameras, to address the uptick in attacks.

Annucci also led the department when two inmates escaped from Clinton Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison, in 2015. The prison break and subsequent manhunt drew international attention.

Most recently, Annucci oversaw the implementation of the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act, a law that took effect in April 2022 and limits how long incarcerated individuals can be held in special housing units. DOCCS has been criticized because data shows that some incarcerated individuals have been held longer than the 15-day maximum, which is in violation of the law.

Annucci joined DOCCS as deputy counsel in 1984 and was promoted to deputy commissioner and counsel in 1989. Before being named acting commissioner, he served as executive deputy commissioner for six years. His DOCCS biography notes that he wrote several bills, including the shock incarceration law, and has advocated for sentencing reform.
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"Unprecedented."

That's the word used by U.S. Rep. Brandon Williams' office to describe the number of town hall meetings he has held or scheduled since taking office as the 22nd Congressional District's representative in January.

So far, Williams, R-Sennett, has held four town hall meetings in Madison and Oneida counties. He has scheduled three in Onondaga County, including one on Friday in Camillus.

"In his first three months representing New York's 22nd Congressional District, Rep. Williams has hosted more in-person and open forum town hall events than any representative serving central New York and the Mohawk Valley, spanning more than a decade of representation," Williams' spokesperson, Taylor Weyeneth, said in a statement.

In the Syracuse area, Williams does not have a lot of competition. Former U.S. Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle held more than 20 town hall meetings during her one term in office from January 2011 to January 2013. She also participated in town hall meetings during the 2012 campaign.

But Buerkle's successors  and Williams' predecessors  were not as prolific on the town hall front. Former U.S. Rep. Dan Maffei held at least two town hall meetings in his term from January 2013 to January 2015, according to The Citizen's archives. He opted for other public forums, including roundtable discussions on various topics and "Discuss it with Dan" events where constituents could meet with him.

Former U.S. Rep. John Katko held several public forums during his four terms in office, including one televised town hall meeting. However, his preference was to have issue-specific forums covering a range of topics, including agriculture and the opioid epidemic. He also held telephone town hall meetings with constituents in the district.

Members of Congress representing the Mohawk Valley had a mixed record on town hall meetings. U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney opted for telephone town hall meetings in place of in-person meetings. Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Brindisi pledged to hold town hall meetings in each of the district's counties and held some of these forums before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which started during his term.

Past Utica-area congressmen held various public forums, including town hall meetings. Former U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri held town hall meetings as Congress worked on what would become the Affordable Care Act. Former U.S. Rep. Richard Hanna opted for other forms of public meetings, including open door sessions where he would meet one-on-one with constituents.

Williams plans to continue holding town hall meetings during his first term as a congressman. At his first forum in Chittenango, he told attendees that "it's my job" to hold town hall meetings.

"My goal is that when you walk out of here, you may or may not agree with me," Williams said. "But I hope that you will at least have some idea of who it is that represents you in Congress."
World's largest electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla has renewed its efforts to enter the Indian EV market after its team of executives met government officials on Wednesday, May 17. According to reports, Tesla has offered to set up its electric vehicle manufacturing facility in the country in a fresh approach after previous talks ended in a deadlock over high taxes on imported cars. The latest development takes place almost a year after Tesla CEO Elon Musk had practically called off his India plans. The meeting assumes significance ahead of PM Narendra Modi's visit to the United States next month.

According to news agency PTI, Tesla's proposed India GigaFactory will be aimed to manufacture electric cars locally which will also be used for exports in Asian and other markets. However, there have been no talks on the location of the EV facility or the amount of investment Tesla is willing to put in.

Tesla's warming up to India again is seen as the EV maker's attempts to diversify beyond China, its largest market outside the US. Amid rising tension between the US and China, several carmakers, including Tesla, may be pushed to the point of finding new destination for EV business in future. Besides components, China is also key to global EV business for its battery manufacturing. India could be the alternative market where the government is eager to promote local manufacturing.

Earlier, the Centre had advised Tesla to set up a local manufacturing plant if it wanted to sell EVs in India. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had said Tesla will be welcome to India if it manufactures EVs locally and not import them from China. Elon Musk had refused to take the offer saying, "Tesla will not put a manufacturing plant in any location where we are not allowed first to sell and service cars."

After hectic lobbying until early last year, Tesla's fresh move does not include talks of reducing import duties. According to sources quoted by news agency Reuters, Tesla executives who met officials from the PMO did not raise the matter in the meeting. India imposes 100% import duty on fully imported cars with CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) value of more than $40,000 and 70 per cent on those costing less than the amount.

First Published Date:
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- U POWER, a leading Chinese skateboard chassis developer, announced the completion of its Series B funding round which raised for the company hundreds of millions of yuan.

The fresh round was led by Hefei Industry Investment Group, with continued participation from such returning shareholders as Matrix Partners China, China Creation Ventures, ZhenFund, and other investors.

U Super Board; photo credit: U POWER

The proceeds from this round will primarily be used to advance the technological innovation of the U POWERs UP Super Board and to facilitate the R&D and mass production of an electric commercial vehicle and an electric off-roader based on this chassis.

Meanwhile, U POWER has established its headquarters in Feixi county, Hefei city. In the future, it plans to build a complete R&D, production, and sales system covering commercial vehicles, passenger vehicles, and skateboard chassis with Hefei as the center.

On the UP DAY 2023 held in Mar. this year, U POWER unveiled China's first mass-produced skateboard chassis-by-wire, which allows smart EV customization at lower costs.

At the same time, two business milestones were announced: UP VAN, the first product built on UP Super Board, will be delivered to customers who have placed an order by year-end; U POWER will join hands with fblife.com, an online community of off-road enthusiasts, to create a series of electric off-road vehicles.
There have been allegations that some Swedish Embassy staff in Nairobi are anti-Somali forces

May. 18 (Jowhar.com)-It seems that the Somali governments capacity building program, which was initially funded by the Swedish government, faced a setback due to staff changes at the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi.

The incoming Head of Development Cooperation had a different mindset than the previous staff and did not heed the governments request for an extension of the program.

This led to hesitancy on the part of the Swedish Embassy staff to continue the program despite its positive outcomes.

Additionally, members from the Somali National Association in Sweden (SRFS) have learned that the Swedish Embassy is advocating for other donor communities to abandon capacity support for both the Somali and Somaliland governments.

Despite the fact that the capacity building initiative is included in both the current and planned strategies for Development Cooperation in Somalia, the Head of Development Cooperation has rejected all requests from the Federal Government, its Member States, and Somaliland.

Additionally, the Somali National Association and Somaliland Association in Sweden have tried to get clarification on the programs future from the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi, but unfortunately, their requests have been declined.

Government officials have expressed that all their efforts to convince the Swedish Embassy staff about the importance of the program have been in vain.

Furthermore, members from SRFS have discovered that funds earmarked for Somali government institution support are planned to be used for the Swedish National Day celebration on June 6th in Mogadishu.

However, this event poses a significant risk to Somali-Swedes in Mogadishu, despite the intent of the Swedish Embassy staff to term it as diaspora engagement and capacity building.

Although the travels are planned for this date, none of the diaspora invited are in funded positions by the Swedish Embassy.

The Embassy has also made it clear that they will not be bearing the cost or guaranteeing the security of any of the invitees. According to the Somali-Swedish diaspora invitees, the purpose of the in-country arrangement, which has never been held before, remains unclear.

The appreciated support of the Swedish Government by both the Somali-Swedish diaspora and the Somali government is in danger of being tarnished by the actions of the staff at the Swedish Embassy.

It would be in the interest of Somalia to take measures to contain these staff members and prevent them from damaging the relationship between the two countries.

Wrote: Abdi Mohamed

Garyaqaan77@hotmail.com
As G7 leaders arrive Thursday in Japans Hiroshima, Russias 15-month-old invasion of Ukraine will top the agenda, after a long winter of grinding warfare in Bakhmut and other frontline towns.

Ukraines foreign minister told a top Chinese envoy at talks in Kyiv on Wednesday that Kyiv would not accept any proposals to end the war with Russia that involved it losing territory or freezing the conflict. Follow our live blog for all the latest developments. All times are Paris time (GMT+1).

06:20am:One killed in Ukraines Odesa, missiles downed over KyivAt least one person was killed by a Russian missile strike on an industrial facility in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, while falling debris during an air raid triggered two fires in the eastern districts of Kyiv, officials said on Thursday.

Two more people were wounded in the Odesa attack, military administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk wrote on Telegram.

06:15am:China, Ukraine should work together, keep cooperationChina and Ukraine agreed they should work together to continue their mutual respect and keep their mutually beneficial cooperation moving forward, the Chinese foreign ministry said in statement on Thursday.

The statement comes after Chinas Special Envoy of Eurasian Affairs Li Hui met with the president of Ukraine.

China has always played a constructive role in alleviating the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capacity, the foreign ministry said.

06:00am:G7 to press Russia, weigh risk of Chinas economic coercion'There will be discussions about the state of play on the battlefield, said US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

Sullivan said leaders would focus on further deterring Russia off the battlefield  tightening a sanctions regime that, according to official statistics, caused Russias economy to contract a further 1.9 percent last quarter.

The G7 has already adopted price caps on Russian petroleum products, plunging revenues by about 43 percent, according to International Energy Agency figures.

But Sullivan indicated leaders may look to close loopholes that help President Vladimir Putin fund his struggling war effort.

Therell be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G7 will collectively commit to on enforcement, he said.

05:06am:Loud explosions heard in Kyiv, debris causes building fireLoud explosions were heard in Kyiv early Thursday morning, and the citys Military Administration said falling debris caused a fire in a non-residential building.

Mayor Vitaly Klitschko, writing on Telegram, said one fire had broken out in a garage facility in the Darnitsya region of the capital. He said there were no casualties.

The head of Kyivs military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on Telegram that a fire had broken out in non-residential premises in the Desnyansky district, just east of the capital.

He provided no information on casualties.

04:44am:Air raid alerts sound across Ukraine, military warns of strikes in central regionsUkraines army reported several explosions in Kyiv and other parts of the country early Thursday morning, urging people to stay in bomb shelters.

According to preliminary information, the fall of debris was recorded in the Darnytskyi district of the capital. Data on victims and destruction are currently being verified, Serhii Popko, head of Kyivs civil and military administration, wrote on Telegram.

Key developments from Wednesday, May 17:Russia agreed to a two-month extension of a deal that has allowed Ukraine to ship grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday, a boost to global food security after the war drove up prices.

Ukraines foreign minister told a top Chinese envoy at talks in Kyiv on Wednesday that Kyiv would not accept any proposals to end the war with Russia that involved it losing territory or freezing the conflict.

( with AFP, AP & Reuters)
According to reports on Wednesday, Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit alleging that the German bank financially benefitted from supporting Jeffrey Epsteins sex trafficking scheme.

The settlement involves an unnamed defendant who filed a proposed class-action suit in November 2022 against Deutsche Bank for doing business with Epstein, despite being aware that funds in his account were being used to support sex-trafficking activity.

The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, stated that Deutsche Bank did not admit wrongdoing.

A Deutsche Bank spokesperson refused to comment. Epstein began banking with Deutsche Bank in 2013 after JPMorgan Chase closed his accounts.

JPMorgan was also taken to court by an unidentified woman and the US Virgin Islands for facilitating Epsteins crimes by ignoring warnings and continuing to keep him as a client until 2013.

Epstein killed himself in a New York jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial for sex crimes. Elon Musk and Google co-founder Larry Page also face subpoenas as part of the ongoing investigation.
With Gasgoo Daily, we will offer daily important automotive news in China. For those we have reported, the title of the piece will include a hyperlink, which will provide detailed information.

Chengdu issues 100-million-yuan scale new energy PV purchase incentive

Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, issued an incentive on a 100-million-yuan scale for purchasing new energy passenger vehicles (PVs). From May 20 to July 20, 2023, private consumers who purchase a new energy PV under participating brands for personal use will be awarded with 8,000 yuan per person.

SGMW unveils photo of new compact SUV

SAIC-GM-Wuling officially released images of a new Wuling-branded SUV model, which is named Wuling Xingyun ("Star" in English). Positioned as a compact five-seater SUV, the Xingyun features a new design language that emphasizes on electrification. The new model is scheduled for market launch in the second half of this year.

Photo credit: SGMW

All-new Geely Binyue hits market

On May 18, the all-new Binyue sedan of Geely Auto officially hit the market. Coming with three trim levels, the facelifted Binyue is priced between 75,800 yuan and 95,800 yuan. Different from the prior version, the new Binyue offers a 1.5T four-cylinder engine.

Geely Holding announces stake increase in Aston Martin

On May 18, Geely Holding Group announced that it has further strengthened its partnership with British luxury performance carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (referred to as "Aston Martin"). As part of the collaboration, Geely Holding has completed an increase in its shareholding in Aston Martin, now owning approximately 17% of the latter's shares.

Chinas skateboard chassis company U POWER closes Series B financing

U POWER, a leading Chinese skateboard chassis developer, announced the completion of its Series B funding round which raised for the company hundreds of millions of yuan.

BMW Group to produce next-gen BEVs in China from 2026

On May 18, the day where BMW Group celebrated the 20th anniversary of BMW Brilliances foundation, the German luxury carmaker announced that it will produce its next-gen full electric vehiclesdubbed Neue Klassein Shenyang city, capital of China's Liaoning province, from 2026 onwards.

NIO, Autoliv step up cooperation to shape new mobility mode

Chinese new energy vehicle startup NIO and the global vehicle safety systems supplier Autoliv signed a strategic cooperation agreement on May 17 to jointly shape a new mobility mode, according to a post on Autolivs WeChat account.

DHL deploys four electric trucks in Shanghai for logistics transportation

DHL Global Forwarding, the freight specialist division of Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL), has deployed two new electric trucks and two new electric container tractors in Shanghai to expand its green fleet.

Baolong Automotive's joint venture puts ADAS-used corner radar into production

Baolong Automotive, the Chinese auto parts supplier, announced on May 17 that its joint venture company, Baohang Technology, has successfully entered the production phase after over a year of development since securing the contract for VinFast's corner radar project in Vietnam in 2022.

Haima Automobile sees prototype of 7X-H FCV equipped with Toyotas fuel cell stack roll off line

On May 17, Chinese automaker Haima Automobile saw the first functional prototype of the 7X-H FCV (fuel cell vehicle), which is equipped with Toyota Motors fuel cell stack system, roll off the production line at the manufacturing base of its subsidiary, Hainan Haima Automobile Co., Ltd., according to an announcement from Haima Automobile.

BYD-backed DENZA demonstrates iADC intelligent drifting control system

DENZA, the premium auto brand majority-owned by BYD, earlier this week released a drifting video of the DENZA N7 SUV as the approach where the iADC (intelligent Adaptive Drift Control) system made its worlds debut.
Hiroshima welcomes world leaders for G7 summit with Ukraine conflict at the forefront of discussions.

World leaders have arrived in Hiroshima for a Group of Seven meeting, which is expected to address Russias war in Ukraine.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with U.S. President Joe Biden, stating that the Japan-U.S. alliance is the very foundation of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region. Biden also commented that the whole world is safer when the two countries stand together.

Meanwhile, G-7 leaders will discuss the crisis in Ukraine, including the state of play on sanctions, and how to deal with Chinas growing assertiveness and the risk of military buildup, which could spark widespread conflict.

The G-7 will also debate plans to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices. The debt limit in the U.S. has threatened to overshadow the meeting, with Biden due to leave early for debt negotiations.

The G-7 comprises Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, and Italy, as well as the European Union.

Other countries, such as Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, South Korea, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, among others, have also been invited to participate.

Tight security has been deployed in Hiroshima, including the deployment of thousands of police, and Kishida hopes to highlight the risks of nuclear proliferation by visiting a memorial park commemorating the 1945 atomic bombing by the U.S.
Prince Harry and Meghan involved in a New York car chase that was deemed near catastrophic

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were reportedly involved in a dangerous car chase with paparazzi in New York City, according to a spokesperson for the couple.

However, police officials and Mayor Eric Adams denied the severity and length of the chase.

The incident occurred on Tuesday night, almost 26 years after Princess Dianas fatal car crash, which Harry blames on paparazzi. The couple attended an awards ceremony with Meghans mother before the incident.

The spokesperson for the couple alleged that they were chased for over two hours, resulting in multiple near accidents involving other drivers and pedestrians.

The NYPD confirmed that there were numerous photographers that made transportation difficult for the couple, but there were no injuries, arrests or collisions reported.

Harry has a contentious relationship with the media, blaming press intrusion for his mothers death and moving to the United States to escape media scrutiny.

The couple managed to shake off the paparazzi and safely arrive at their destination.
The initial sentence cannot be rewritten as it is misleading and incorrect.

Montana has become the first state in the US to ban TikTok, with the ban set to come into effect next year.

The security and impact of the popular video app have sparked debate, with many US politicians calling for a national ban of the Chinese-owned platform.

The law signed by Governor Greg Gianforte will serve as a legal test for a national ban. The law states that TikTok may not operate within the territorial jurisdiction of Montana. Violations of the ban will result in a $10,000 fine each day it takes place.

Apple and Google will also have to remove TikTok from their app stores, and companies will face possible daily fines.

The ban will take effect in 2024, but will be voided if TikTok is acquired by a company incorporated in a country not designated as a foreign adversary by the United States.

The move is likely to be challenged by lawsuits. TikTok has stated that the bans constitutionality will be decided by the courts.

Despite its immense popularity, TikTok faces an ultimatum from the White House to split from its Chinese owners or stop operating in America.

Montanas clampdown on TikTok comes as the app faces proposals of national legislation that could give the White House significant new powers to oversee Chinese tech companies.
With a record number of African films showcased at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, there is a growing buzz about a resurgence in filmmaking on the continent, fueled in part by a new wave of talented female directors.

This years Carrosse dOr award, which is part of the Directors Fortnight program, was fittingly presented to Souleymane Cisse of Mali, a veteran filmmaker widely acknowledged for his role in reimagining film as a distinctive African art form.

The 76th Cannes Film Festival has once again proved to be a platform for showcasing some of the finest films from around the world. But this year, there was a particular focus on African cinema, with a record number of films from the continent showcased at the festival.

The growing buzz around African cinema is not just due to the quantity of films being produced, but also the quality. In particular, there is a new wave of talented female directors who are making their mark on the industry.

One such director is Mati Diop, whose film Atlantics was screened at the festival and won the Grand Prix.

Atlantics is a hauntingly beautiful film about migration, love and loss, set in Dakar, Senegal. Diop, who is of Senegalese descent, is the first black woman director to have a film screened in competition at Cannes.

Another female director making waves in African cinema is Wanuri Kahiu from Kenya. Her film Rafiki was banned in Kenya for its portrayal of a lesbian relationship, but was screened at Cannes and received critical acclaim. Kahiu is a vocal advocate for the inclusion of LGBTQ+ stories in African cinema.

These female directors are part of a wider trend of filmmakers from Africa using cinema to tell their stories in their own unique way. One veteran filmmaker who has been at the forefront of this movement is Souleymane Cisse from Mali.

Cisse was awarded the Carrosse dOr at this years festival, an award given by the French Directors Guild to a filmmaker who has made a significant contribution to cinema.

Cisse is widely acknowledged for his role in reimagining film as a distinctive African art form. His films often explore themes of identity, tradition and modernity, and are noted for their stunning visuals and use of African mythology.

The resurgence of African cinema is a welcome trend, not just for the industry itself, but for audiences around the world.

African stories are often underrepresented in mainstream cinema, and the increasing visibility of African filmmakers is helping to change that.

As more talented directors emerge from the continent and more films are produced, the hope is that African cinema will continue to thrive and reach even wider audiences.

The 76th Cannes Film Festival has shown that African cinema is a force to be reckoned with, and one that is only going to get stronger.
From our special correspondents  Ukraines armed forces are preparing for their anticipated counteroffensive against Russia. In the Zaporizhzhia region, located near the southern frontline, an intense ground assault training program is underway.

Catherine Norris Trent, Johan Bodin, and Dmytro Kovalchuk visited and interviewed the troops who are ready to try and break through Russias defensive lines.

As time is running out, preparations are becoming more and more urgent. In Zaporizhzhias southeastern region, approximately 5,000 troops are undergoing an intensive ground assault training program, which tries to condense a two-month program into two weeks.

We have to rotate many groups of men, explains Zafar, director of the Alpha Training Centre.

The fighters in the south will have a daunting task if Ukraines counteroffensive arrives here. They will have to penetrate multiple reinforced-led defense lines and trenches, and soldiers are particularly concerned about Russias newly laid minefields.

This is what were most afraid of, because mines cause 90 percent of deaths in reconnaissance units like us, says Matvei, a soldier of the 102nd brigade of Ukraines Territorial Defense unit.

Despite the western arms deliveries, a Ukrainian offensive would hardly have any protection from aviation.

No one has ever fought back against an enemy like this, which has supremacy in the air, as well as quantities of tanks, artillery and heavy weapons, says Andrii, a commander of the 102nd Brigade.
Xi of China celebrates the beginning of a 'new era' of relationships with Central Asia.

Xi of China celebrates the beginning of a new era of relationships with Central Asia.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has opened a summit in Xian, China, on Thursday to deepen relations with Central Asia.

China considers this meeting of milestone significance on the ancient eastern end of the Silk Road that connected China to Europe via Central Asia.

Xi said strengthening relations was a strategic choice and hopes for a new era of ties between the two regions.

Since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago, trade has expanded 22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023, amounting to $70 billion in 2022, and is a key aspect of Chinas Belt and Road Initiative.

China has invested billions of dollars to exploit natural gas reserves in Central Asia, with rail links connecting China to Europe and criss-crossing the region.

This weeks summit is a chance for China to renew ties and fill the vacuum left in former Soviet states by Russias war in Ukraine.

The summit also coincides with a G7 meeting in Hiroshima that will attempt to push back Chinas growing influence.
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By Eran Kaplan, San Francisco State University | 

As Israel celebrates the 75th anniversary of its founding, and nearly a century and a half after the first Zionists came to Palestine from Europe, the core tension behind the countrys establishment  whether a Jewish state could be a democratic state, whether Zionism could accommodate pluralism  is more obvious than ever.

Israel today is a military powerhouse and one of 38 members of the influential Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, formed in 1961 to promote cooperation among democratic, free-market-oriented governments.

Such strength and economic viability would be unfamiliar to the Jews whose identity was forged in the European diaspora. There, Judaism and its practitioners shunned political and military power. They saw themselves as a minority facing discrimination, persecution and violence. Power was the domain of gentiles.

Jews, often separated from the non-Jewish world, focused instead on developing social institutions to help the poor and weak, not asserting their will as a political community.

This attitude toward the state and politics began to change for Europes Jews in the aftermath of the French Revolution, when the majority of Jews lived in Europe, especially central and Eastern Europe. As some of the traditional legal and political barriers that kept Jews outside of mainstream society began to crumble, Jews began to integrate into broader society and culture.

Expert analysis of the birth of the state of Israel and the plight of the Palestinian people.

This process also brought about, for some Jews, new attitudes toward their Jewish identity.

Many no longer defined themselves as members of a religious community. As many other groups had begun to do in Europe, they saw themselves as belonging to a national community. For some, nationalism also offered a way out of the predicament that Jews faced in Europe: hatred and discrimination, which came to be known as antisemitism.

Article continues after bonus IC video

Yahoo News: Israel protests continue as Netanyahu moves to weaken Supreme Court

This nationalism was called Zionism. And the thinking went that if the Jews are a nation, then they should have their own nation-state, preferably in Palestine, the Jews ancestral homeland. There they could assume control of their historical destiny, not to be at the mercy of non-Jewish nations and rulers.

Zionism sought to solve a particular Jewish problem, gathering Jews dispersed around the world, ending the unique Jewish historical experience of centuries of life under the rule of often hostile governments, and universalizing the Jewish experience by creating a Jewish state and society like all other nations. It was the natural right of the Jewish people to be masters of their own fate, like all other nations, in their own sovereign State, said Israels declaration of independence.

But just how universal would a Jewish state be? Could such a nation be both Jewish and democratic?

That is the central question that, more than a century later, has yet to be answered clearly and affirmatively.

Reconciling universal and particular

Theodor Herzl, an Austro-Hungarian Jew acknowledged as the father of modern Zionism, considered this tension in his 1902 utopian novel Altneuland, or The Old New Land. Herzl tried to envision what a future Jewish society in Palestine would look like.

One of the novels key plot lines involves a political campaign pitting a xenophobic rabbi who preaches the Jewish character of the community against a secular candidate who advocates inclusivity and cooperation between Jews and Arabs in this imagined Jewish society.

Herzls choice: the pluralist candidate prevailed.

But throughout the history of the Zionist movement and the state of Israel, what Herzl described has been a core source of tension. This duality was on full display in Israels declaration of independence, in many ways the quintessential manifestation of political Zionism.

On the one hand, the document offers a version of Jewish history that emphasizes the uniqueness of the Jewish experience and offers historical justification for the creation of a safe haven for the Jews.

After establishing the attachment of the Jews to their ancestral homeland, the authors of the declaration address the Holocaust, writing that, the massacre of millions of Jews in Europe  was another clear demonstration of the urgency of solving the problem of Jewish homelessness by re-establishing the Jewish state, which would open the gates of the homeland wide to every Jew.

At the same time, the document pledges that the state of Israel would be faithful to the U.N. charter, protecting the rights of all minorities: The State  will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex.

David Ben-Gurion, Israels first prime minister, suggested that once the country was created, Zionism would wither away. The nation, as a Jewish state with laws that protect minorities, would resolve the contradictions inherent in Zionist ideology.

But as long as the majority of Israelis felt a sense of existential threat  both from neighboring Arab states and dire economic conditions  Zionism continued to provide a unifying ideological umbrella to most Israelis.

After 1967, a transformation

In the aftermath of the 1967 Six-Day War, when Israel conquered the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, the West Bank from Jordan and the Golan Heights from Syria, the country emerged as a regional military and economic power.

It was a time of significant social, political and economic change.

A growing number of Israelis  especially those from the more secular, upper classes  began to question the countrys particularism, which conceived of the country as a shelter for Jews that would protect them from external threats. For these upwardly mobile Israelis, known as the post-Zionists, the founding myths of a vulnerable young state no longer seemed relevant.

They wanted Israel to become a fully normal part of the American-led global order. They believed the country should integrate into the region by resolving the conflict between Jews and Arabs. And they wanted to participate in the global economic market as the country transitioned from a state-run economy to the free market.

At the same time, religious Jews and poorer Israelis, mostly descended from Jewish communities of the Arab Middle East and North Africa, resisted this cosmopolitan liberal shift. They held tightly to their Jewish identity, rejecting what they saw as compromises driven by alien ideals like democracy and pluralism. To this group, known as neo-Zionists, the ideal was a Jewish state as protection from the rapid changes engulfing the country.

Palestinian question disappears

From the 1970s through 2000, much of the post-or-neo-Zionist divide was over the occupation of the West Bank, where 3 million Palestinians live. Could there be peace between Israelis and Palestinians?

Post-Zionists wanted peace, seeking a two-state solution that would see a Palestinian state next to Israel. Neo-Zionists rejected any territorial compromise with the Palestinians.

In the 21st century, in the aftermath of the peace process collapse and the second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, the Palestinian issue has virtually disappeared from Israels political landscape.

Instead, the countrys attention has returned to the old divisions between those advocating policies that would enhance the Jewish character of the country and those who champion universal policies more favorable to excluded minorities.

The Israeli government that came into power in late 2022 represents the nationalistic, particular camp most forcefully. Its main agenda has been a plan to diminish and restrict the Israeli Supreme Courts powers. To the ruling coalition, the court has been a hindrance in pursuing policies advancing the countrys Jewish nature.

This so-called reform has driven hundreds of thousands of protesters to the streets. Their demand is a simple one: democracy.

Israel may no longer be a fledgling state  but it has yet to overcome the basic contradiction that has defined it from the very beginning: Can it be Jewish and democratic?

Eran Kaplan, Rhoda and Richard Goldman Chair in Jewish Studies, San Francisco State University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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by Rebekah Entralgo

A slate of new bills signed by Floridas billionaire-friendly governor will make it harder for public sector unions to collect dues, worsening the states teacher shortage and public school funding.

Inequality.org )  In what Governor Ron DeSantis likes to call his freedom state of Florida, the freedom to belong to an effective union is under a ferocious attack.

DeSantis, with the school year winding down, has just appeared at a Miami charter school to sign a new slate of bills that aim to undermine quality public services. One of the bills  described preposterously by DeSantis as paycheck protection  eliminates dues check offs for teachers and other public employees.

Check-off provisions in Florida have for years given public-sector workers like educators and nurses the option to have their union dues deducted from their paychecks and remitted straight to their union.

Eliminating dues check off weakens public-sector unions. Without automatic payroll deduction, unions have a harder time collecting the dues they need to function effectively. But the legislation DeSantis signed does not extend the freedom of check-off elimination into the law enforcement sector. Law enforcement unions, not so coincidentally, have endorsed DeSantis in his gubernatorial campaigns.

The new DeSantis-signed dues legislation also includes, hidden deep in the text, a killer provision that requires public-sector unions outside law enforcement to have an arbitrary super majority of eligible employees  60 percent, not just a 50-percent-plus  if they want to keep the right to represent and bargain for public-sector workers.

Teachers in Florida feel especially targeted by the legislation DeSantis has so enthusiastically signed into law.

This will hurt working people and the middle class, says Karla Hernandez-Mats, the president of United Teachers of Dade, the largest teacher union local in the entire Southeast. This is about going after our freedom, about going after workers and their right to a fair contract.



Via Pixabay.

The increased 60-percent threshold to qualify for bargaining rights, Hernandez-Mats points out, could be particularly devastating, solidifying Florida, a right-to-work state, as a work-with-no-right state. Nearly two-thirds of all local teacher unions in Florida would fail to meet the new super-majority threshold and face decertification.

In the face of this challenge, public-sector unions across the state are working to find creative ways to collect dues through electronic banking applications. Theyre also mobilizing to help all teachers and other public employees understand the importance of becoming dues-paying union members.

We are in constant communication with teachers, and a lot of our members are stepping up and talking to their colleagues about how important this is, Hernandez-Mats notes. Theyre talking about how the state could make us at-will employees and how this bill could turn our public schools into a revolving door where no one is committed to education.

Florida currently stands 48th in the nation when it comes to teacher pay and, not surprisingly, is facing a massive teacher shortage, opening 2023 with over 5,000 vacancies. Weakening unions, Hernandez-Mats believes, will only exacerbate the crisis and speed the larger right-wing agenda to defund public education.

Another bill signed into Florida law this year advances that agenda by expanding the states charter school voucher program, a move that will allow parents to opt out of public schools and send their children to private schools on the state dime. This school choice bill will cost the state an estimated $4 billion in funding and starve local school districts. In the Tampa Bay area, for example, almost $850 million will be routed out of public schools for the 2023-2024 school year.

Florida hasnt always been a testing ground for attacks on public educators and their unions. In fact, back in 1968, educators in Florida staged the nations first successful statewide teacher strike to protest chronic school funding shortages and bargain-basement teacher pay. But today the Florida Constitution and state law bar teachers from striking and threaten hefty penalties if they do.

That reality has the current struggle against the DeSantis attack on public education and public educators going down a different lane. The statewide teacher union, the Florida Education Association, has just filed a lawsuit in federal court to prevent the implementation of the newly signed DeSantis legislation.

Governor DeSantis, says FEA president Andrew Spar, has made it clear that he is targeting educators because we exercise our constitutional right to speak out against attempts by this governor and others to stymie the freedom to learn and to stifle freedom of thought.

The governor, adds Spar, is using this legislation to retaliate against his critics, a retaliation very similar to what weve seen in the attacks on Disney.

DeSantis, a still-unannounced candidate for the GOP presidential nomination, has ample resources for continuing his offensive against unions and their support for higher taxes on the rich to fund better public services. DeSantis, as an analysis in one of Floridas top daily newspapers detailed last year, has extraordinary billionaire support.

Rebekah Entralgo is the managing editor of Inequality.org. You can follow her on Twitter at @rebekahentralgo.

Inequality.org )

Content licensed under a Creative Commons 3.0 License
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Ann Arbor (Informed Comment)  The earths atmosphere can make things wet or dry them out depending on the water vapor pressure. When there is a Vapor Pressure Deficit, it dries the earth out. VPD is defined as a measure of atmospheric water demand defined as the difference between the amount of water vapor in the air and the amount of water vapor that air would hold at saturation. If there is a lot less water vapor than the atmosphere would normally hold, all other things being equal, you have a bigger deficit. A dry atmosphere also makes the earth beneath it drier. Dry land conditions are conducive to wildfires. The dryness of the atmosphere can also be seasonal. But more than 66% of the summertime vapor pressure deficit in the West has been caused by human activity in burning fossil fuels.

Kristina Dahl et al. conclude that carbon dioxide emissions put out by 88 major carbon producers contributed 48% of the long-term rise in Vapor Pressure Deficit between 1901 and 2021. The paper is published in Environmental Research Letters. Ms. Dahl is the principal climate scientist for the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Weve seen massive wildfires in the US and Canadian West in recent years. You might think, well, there have always been wildfires. But how big an area the wildfires burn, the length of the fire season, the number of large fires each season, how high the fires climb up into the hills, and the amount of forested land that burns at high severity all vary. All of these measurements of how bad the situation is have increased in the past few decades. So not a random variation. Things have gotten very bad recently, and that needs to be explained.

Its the 88 companies? Its the 88 companies.

Some 5 years ago, Tess Riley at The Guardian blamed most of global climate change on 100 companies.

12 News: Heavy fuels, climate change create uncertainty for Arizona wildfire season

Dahl and her colleagues concluded that of the blackened earth left behind by forest fires from 1986 to 2021 in the west of the two countries, these 88 companies caused the carbon dioxide emissions that contributed to 37%, over a third, of that burn area. In California, Oregon, Washington State and Vancouver, etc. there has been a big increase in Vapor Pressure Deficit, which in turn has caused more wildfires and contributed to the prolonged Megadrought, which has lasted now for two decades and used to be a once-in-five-hundred years event.

So, no, there havent always been wildfires just like the ones we have been experiencing recently. Some 88 companies selling petroleum, coal, fossil gas and cement have made it twice as dry as it would otherwise be, two-thirds drier in summer, and have caused the wildfires to be over a third more destructive than they otherwise would be.

Even before this new study, researchers had established that carbon dioxide and methane produced by Big Oil, Big Coal and Big Cement were responsible for more that 40% of the increasing temperatures around the world, for a quarter of all the worlds sea level rise, and for half of ocean acidification.
COEUR D'ALENE, ID / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Idaho Strategic Resources (NYSE American:IDR) ("IDR" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the recent completion of surface mining of the high-grade Jumbo Vein and plans for exploration of the Jumbo Vein by drifting along the vein from the pit bottom. Surface mining of the Jumbo Vein resulted in 4,000 tonnes of ore at a grade of 17.3 grams per tonne (gpt) gold.

IDR Vice President Grant Brackebusch commented, "Following completion of surface mining, we plan to advance an underground drift to the south along the vein towards a high-grade drill intercept from 2011 (GC 11-41T: 0.9 meters (m) true thickness at 137 gpt gold) which is at about the same elevation as the bottom bench - 1069 m (see Figure 1). As previously mentioned, it is worth noting that the sample from the Jumbo Vein where it enters the pit wall was 0.6 meters (m) wide (true thickness) and assayed 152 gpt gold."

Figure 1 - Generalized Geologic Map of Jumbo Pit (view to southeast)

The Jumbo Vein consists of a banded quartz vein that typically occurs 10 to 20 m in the hanging wall of the Idaho Fault. It is known to occur in the central part of the Golden Chest mine property and had minor production in the late 1890's to early 1900's.

The recent surface mining consisted of a small pit on a near-surface section of the vein, following it down from the 1115 m elevation to the 1069 m elevation. On each mined bench, the Jumbo Vein was typically exposed for 22-26 m along strike with a width of 0.3 to 1.0 m. The average vein strike was N18oE and average dip was 53o NW. The vein was well-oxidized with abundant iron-oxides and minor amounts of pyrite, arsenopyrite, and chalcopyrite. Visible gold was often seen in hand samples.

As the Jumbo Pit was mined, blast hole drill cuttings were sampled and assayed to direct ore control. An average weighted grade for the ore polygons, based on the blast hole samples, was 13 gpt gold. However, more selective mining occurred along the vein in practice and composite samples of mined truckloads showed a higher weighted average of 17.3 gpt gold.

Three vein chip samples were taken across the vein exposed in the southeast pit wall as mining progressed down in the Jumbo Pit and the results are displayed below (lengths of sample are in true thickness).

Sample Elevation (m) True Thickness Vein (m) Gold Grades (gpt Au) 1084 0.25 83.0 1078 0.20 83.2 1072 0.60 152

Exploration drilling was completed in the vicinity of the Jumbo Pit during 2011 and indicates continuity of the Jumbo vein along strike and vertically below the existing pit bottom. A selection of those drill intercepts through the Jumbo Vein is presented in the following table (lengths reported are drilled thickness).

Drillhole Drilled Thickness (m) Gold Grade (gpt Au) Elevation GC 07-04 1.4 14.8 1017 GC 11-41T 0.9 137 1069 GC 11-49 1.4 5.67 1028 GC 11-53 2.9 13.7 1056 GC 11-54 1.8 8.40 1033 GC 11-56 2.2 24.7 978 GC 11-62 3.4 5.66 1045

Mr. Brackebusch concluded, "The horizontal distance between the portal site and the GC 11-41T drill intercept is approximately 90 m and the purpose of the drifting will be to establish the continuity of the vein and gold grade between these two points. We will sample each round (about 50 tonnes) during the mining cycle which will be stockpiled on the surface near the portal pending assay results. Rounds above cutoff will be routed to the mill for processing which should help offset the cost of the drifting allowing for a low-cost method of exploration of this very high-grade vein. If this drifting is successful, the next step would be to portal in at a lower elevation and drift on the vein to establish the vertical continuity of the Jumbo Vein. The drifting project is anticipated to start in the second quarter of 2023."

Qualified person

IDR's Vice President , Grant A. Brackebusch, P.E. is a qualified person as such term is defined under S-K 1300 and has reviewed and approved the technical information and data included in this press release. All reported assays are 30-gram fire assays with a gravimetric finish completed by American Analytical, Inc. of Osburn, Idaho. A Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/AC) program includes a series of blank, standard, and duplicate sample assays for verification and quality control.

About Idaho Strategic Resources, Inc.

Domiciled in Idaho and headquartered in the Panhandle of northern Idaho, Idaho Strategic Resources (IDR) is one of the few resource-based companies (public or private) possessing the combination of officially recognized U.S. domestic rare earth elements properties (in Idaho), the largest known concentration of thorium resources in the U.S., and Idaho-based gold production located in an established mining community.

Idaho Strategic Resources produces gold at the Golden Chest Mine located in the Murray Gold Belt (MGB) area of the world-class Coeur d'Alene Mining District, north of the prolific Silver Valley. With over 7,300 acres of patented and unpatented land, the Company has the largest private land position in the area following its consolidation of the Murray Gold Belt for the first time in over 100-years.

In addition to gold and gold production, the Company maintains an important strategic presence in the U.S. Critical Minerals sector, specifically focused on the more "at-risk" Rare Earth Elements (REEs) with an overall land position of approximately 18,030 acres in Idaho's REE-Th Belt. The Company's Diamond Creek, Roberts, and Lemhi Pass REE properties are included the U.S. national REE inventory as listed in USGS, IGS and DOE publications. IDR's Lemhi Pass REE-Thorium Project is also recognized by the USGS and IGS as containing the largest concentration of thorium resources in the country. All three projects are located in central Idaho and participating in the USGS Earth MRI program.

With an impressive mix of experience and dedication, the folks at IDR maintain a long-standing "We Live Here" approach to corporate culture, land management, and historic preservation. Furthermore, it is our belief that successful operations begin with the heightened responsibility that only local oversight and a community mindset can provide. Its "everyone goes home at night" policy would not be possible without the multi-generational base of local exploration, drilling, mining, milling, and business professionals that reside in and near the communities of the Silver Valley and North Idaho.

For more information on Idaho Strategic Resources click here for our corporate presentation, go to www.idahostrategic.com or call:

Travis Swallow, Investor Relations & Corporate Development

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Phone: (208) 625-9001

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "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 that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created by such sections. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by forward-looking words such as "intends", "potential", "believe", "plans", "expects", "may", "goal', "assume", "estimate", "anticipate", and "will" or similar words suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, assumptions, intentions, or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information includes, but are not limited to, Idaho Strategic Resources targeted production rates and results, the expected market prices of gold, individual rare earth elements, and/or thorium, as well as the related costs, expenses and capital expenditures, the potential advancement of the Company's projects, the potential development of the Jumbo Vein, the economics of the Jumbo Vein, and the potential for the Jumbo Vein to be a reliable source of gold production in the future. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of Idaho Strategic Resources as of the date such information is provided and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements of IDR to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. The forward-looking statement information above, and those following are applicable to both this press release, as well as the links contained within this press release. With respect to the business of Idaho Strategic Resources, these risks and uncertainties include risks relating to widespread epidemics or pandemic outbreaks, if they occur, including our ability to access goods and supplies, the ability to transport our products and impacts on employee productivity, the risks in connection with the operations, cash flow and results of the Company relating to the unknown duration and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; interpretations or reinterpretations of geologic information; the accuracy of historic estimates; unfavorable exploration results; inability to obtain permits required for future exploration, development or production; general economic conditions and conditions affecting the industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory requirements and approvals; fluctuating mineral and commodity prices; the ability to obtain necessary future financing on acceptable terms; the ability to operate the Company's projects; and risks associated with the mining industry such as economic factors (including future commodity prices, and energy prices), ground conditions, failure of plant, equipment, processes and transportation services to operate as anticipated, environmental risks, government regulation, actual results of current exploration and production activities, possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates, permitting timelines, capital and construction expenditures, reclamation activities. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such information. Additional information regarding the factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from this forwardlooking information is available in Idaho Strategic Resources filings with the SEC on EDGAR. IDR does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or other such factors which affect this information, except as required by law.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On May 17, Chinese automaker Haima Automobile saw the first functional prototype of the 7X-H FCV (fuel cell vehicle), which is equipped with Toyota Motors fuel cell stack system, roll off the production line at the manufacturing base of its subsidiary, Hainan Haima Automobile Co., Ltd., according to an announcement from Haima Automobile.

Following the completion of the prototype, vehicle performance coordination and calibration works will be further carried out, followed by road durability testing, said the company. In the future, Haima Automobile plans to proceed with relevant vehicle demonstrations and operations in small batches, to accelerate the promotion and industrialization of hydrogen fuel cell passenger vehicles in Hainan province.

Haima Automobile, Toyota signing agreement on Mar. 24; photo credit: Haima Automobile

The birth of the prototype signifies the latest achievement of the cooperation between Haima Automobile and Toyota Motor. The two parties signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement on Mar. 24, under which they will use Hainan Island as a large-scale testing ground for overall experience. The duo will equip Haima Motors' FCVs with mature components and systems, including Toyota's second-generation Mirai fuel cell stack, to complete the development of vehicle adaptability. Additionally, they will conduct testing by integrating the Haima Automobile's self-built hydrogen supply system and transportation network.

In addition, both parties will also fully share relevant information regarding the vehicle operation testing, laying the foundation for future cooperation. The agreement will be valid for 10 years.
High-Grade Assays Received from the First Cut on URW1 Lode

North Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Lion One Metals Limited (TSXV: LIO) (OTCQX: LOMLF) (ASX: LLO) ("Lion One" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has commenced mining on the URW1 lode at its 100% owned Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project in Fiji.

Strike driving has reached the URW1 Lode and the first underground images of the lode have been received (Figure 1). The initial intersection of the lode revealed one primary vein and numerous stockwork style veins. Visible gold was observed in multiple locations on the face of the lode and within four different fracture orientations (Figure 2). Three of these fracture orientations are sub-parallel to the grade control drill axis and would therefore be difficult to identify given their orientation relative to the grade control drilling (Figure 3). A sample line was completed perpendicular to the main vein, and a grab sample was collected from the foot of the face.

Highlights of the initial face sampling on URW1 are as follows:

51.2 g/t Au over 0.56 m

117.48 g/t Au over 0.19 m

37.99 g/t Au over 0.19 m

58.68 g/t Au (grab sample)

Figure 1. URW1 face and select samples. Face of URW1. Red lines indicate the approximate locations and widths of select chip samples collected from the sample line, dashed red circle indicates the approximate location of the grab sample, and small red circles indicate the locations of visible gold on the face. Gold grades in g/t are indicated in yellow.

Figure 2. Visible gold. A), B), C) Close-ups of visible gold highlighted in Figure 1, with gold circled in red. Width of each image is approximately 10-15cm.

Figure 3. Fracture orientations vs orientation of grade control drilling. Grade control drilling (red arrow) is oriented perpendicular to the URW1 lode (blue rectangle). Shapes A, B, C, and D represent the approximate orientations of the gold bearing fractures within the URW1 lode. Orientations B, C, and D are sub-parallel to the axis of the bulk of the grade control drilling and are therefore difficult to identify. The approximate orientations of these fractures are as follows: A) sub-parallel to the main lode, B) striking E-W and dipping steeply to the south, C) striking E-W and subvertical dip, and D) sub-horizontal with variable dip directions.

Lion One Chairman and CEO Walter Berukoff commented: "We are excited to have started mining our second lode at the Tuvatu gold mine, especially so soon after we started mining our first lode. Without the diligence and hard work performed by our geology and engineering teams in Fiji we could not have located the lode as successfully and as accurately as we did."

"We are extremely pleased with the amount of coarse-grained gold visible on the face of the lode, which is even more than was anticipated. Following our initial sampling of the face, and due to the presence of visible gold in multiple fracture orientations, we are optimistic that the overall grade of the URW1 lode could end up being even higher than what the grade control drilling has suggested. We continue to learn more about the Tuvatu system as we open the system up underground, and we are beginning to see how well-endowed the Tuvatu system truly is. Just like the discovery of the URA1 lode on our initial drive underground, the system continues to provide surprises to the upside as our underground developments progress."

Figure 4. Location of URW1 Lode within Tuvatu. Plan view of the Tuvatu Main and West Zone deposits, with the URW1 Lode highlighted in blue. Underground developments are shown in red, and the other lodes within the Tuvatu Main and West Zones are shown in grey.

About Tuvatu

The Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project is located on the island of Viti Levu in Fiji. The January 2018 mineral resource for Tuvatu as disclosed in the technical report "Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Tuvatu Gold Project, Republic of Fiji," dated September 25, 2020, and prepared by Mining Associates Pty Ltd of Brisbane Qld, comprises 1,007,000 tonnes indicated at 8.50 g/t Au (274,600 oz. Au) and 1,325,000 tonnes inferred at 9.0 g/t Au (384,000 oz. Au) at a cut-off grade of 3.0 g/t Au. The technical report is available on the Lion One website at www.liononemetals.com and on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Qualified Person

In accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43- 101"), Sergio Cattalani, P.Geo, Senior Vice President Exploration, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has reviewed and is responsible for the technical and scientific content of this news release.

QAQC Procedures

Lion One adheres to rigorous QAQC procedures above and beyond basic regulatory guidelines in conducting its sampling, drilling, testing, and analyses. The Company utilizes its own fleet of diamond drill rigs, using PQ, HQ and NQ sized drill core rods. Drill core is logged and split by Lion One personnel on site. Samples are delivered to and analyzed at the Company's geochemical and metallurgical laboratory in Fiji. Duplicates of all samples with grades above 0.5 g/t Au are both re-assayed at Lion One's lab and delivered to ALS Global Laboratories in Australia (ALS) for check assay determinations. All samples for all high-grade intercepts are sent to ALS for check assays. All samples are pulverized to 85% passing through 75 microns. Gold analysis is carried out using fire assay with an AA finish. Samples that have returned grades greater than 10.00 g/t Au are then re-analyzed by gravimetric method. For samples that return greater than 0.50 g/t Au, repeat fire assay runs are carried out and repeated until a result is obtained that is within 10% of the original fire assay run. Lion One's laboratory can also assay for a range of 71 other elements through Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES), but currently focuses on a suite of 9 important pathfinder elements. All duplicate anomalous samples are sent to ALS labs in Townsville QLD and are analyzed by the same methods (Au-AA26, and Au-GRA22 where applicable). ALS also analyses 33 pathfinder elements by HF-HNO3-HClO4 acid digestion, HCl leach and ICP-AES (method ME-ICP61).

About Lion One Metals Limited

Lion One's flagship asset is 100% owned, fully permitted high grade Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project, located on the island of Viti Levu in Fiji. Lion One envisions a low-cost high-grade underground gold mining operation at Tuvatu coupled with exciting exploration upside inside its tenements covering the entire Navilawa Caldera, an underexplored yet highly prospective 7km diameter alkaline gold system. Lion One's CEO Walter Berukoff leads an experienced team of explorers and mine builders and has owned or operated over 20 mines in 7 countries. As the founder and former CEO of Miramar Mines, Northern Orion, and La Mancha Resources, Walter is credited with building over $3 billion of value for shareholders.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Lion One Metals Limited

"Walter Berukoff", Chairman and CEO

Contact Investor Relations

Toll Free (North America) Tel: 1-855-805-1250

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.liononemetals.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release

This press release may contain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "proposed", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Lion One Metals Limited's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Lion One Metals Limited and on assumptions Lion One Metals Limited believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to, the actual results of exploration projects being equivalent to or better than estimated results in technical reports, assessment reports, and other geological reports or prior exploration results. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Lion One Metals Limited or its subsidiaries to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the stage development of Lion One Metals Limited, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the actual results of current research and development or operational activities; competition; uncertainty as to patent applications and intellectual property rights; product liability and lack of insurance; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation, affecting mining, timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; not realizing on the potential benefits of technology; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. Although Lion One Metals Limited has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Lion One Metals Limited does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Blackrock Silver Corp. (TSXV: BRC) (the "Company" or "Blackrock") is pleased to announce that Tearlach Resources Ltd. ("Tearlach") has reported assay results for three (3) new core step-out drill holes (GAB-013, 016, & 019) at the Company's Tonopah North Lithium Project ("Gabriel") in Tonopah, Nevada. These newly reported holes intersected broad lithium-mineralized zones with many intervals exceeding 1,000 ppm and grades up to 1,300 ppm. With all results received and reported from the Phase 1, 11 core drillhole program, Tearlach intersected significant grade and thickness of lithium mineralization in every drillhole. Assays show higher than expected lithium values as compared to the original discovery drilling and have established an expanded mineralized blanket covering an area 2.6 km by 2.8 km or 7.3 square kilometres. Based on Tearlach's results, the zone appears to be open to the north, south and west.

Andrew Pollard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Blackrock, commented: "With each drillhole from our partner-funded Phase-1 core program hitting broad, thick zones of mineralization across a 7.3 square kilometre area, the results signal significant tonnage potential, with a grade profile that is in line with other more advanced projects on the Tonopah Lithium belt, including the adjacent TLC deposit (owned by American Lithium Corp). The project has come a long way since the initial discovery was made less than one year ago by Blackrock, and we're excited for Tearlach to get geologic modelling of the data underway on this largely open system. With both silver and lithium to play crucial roles within the emerging green economy, the Company's landholdings in Tonopah, complete with one of the highest-grade undeveloped silver/gold resources in the world, in addition to the adjacent lithium discovery quickly being advanced, uniquely position Blackrock as a potential domestic provider of these critical metals."

The following data was reported for the Gabriel project in the May 17, 2023 news release issued by Tearlach (the "Tearlach Release"):

Highlights:

Table 1 is a compilation of all Phase-1 core drillholes. Each hole intersected a zone of lithium mineralization, at a cut-off grade of 400 parts per million (ppm). Primary intercept grades range between 535 to 802 ppm and interval lengths between 27.1 (8.4m) to 146.6 feet (44.7m). The Phase-1 program has been drilled within a general area of 8,530 feet (2.6 km) by 9,190 feet (2.8 km).

Table 1: Consolidated Lithium results for Tonopah North (Grabriel) using a 400 ppm Li cut off

Gabriel Phase 1 Consolidated Lithium Results Hole ID From (ft) To (ft) Interval (ft) From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Li (ppm) GAB-004 118.2 145.3 27.1 36.0 44.3 8.3 703 Including 142.9 145.3 2.4 43.6 44.3 0.7 1,060 GAB-005 251.4 345.6 94.2 76.6 105.3 28.7 541 Including 258.5 276.1 17.6 78.8 84.2 5.4 860 Including 274.2 276.1 1.9 83.6 84.2 0.6 1,390 GAB-006 80.5 119.4 38.9 24.5 36.4 11.9 401 GAB-006 164.1 242.0 77.9 50.0 73.8 23.7 707 Including 182.6 220.0 37.4 55.7 67.1 11.4 939 Including 191.5 217.0 25.5 58.4 66.1 7.8 1,018 Including 199.2 204.5 5.3 60.7 62.3 1.6 1,220 GAB-008 206.0 333.0 127.0 62.8 101.5 38.7 574 Including 314.2 318.5 4.3 95.8 97.1 1.3 1,310 GAB-009 24.0 170.6 146.6 7.3 52.0 44.7 662 Including 134.4 170.6 36.2 41.0 52.0 11.0 879 Including 147.4 154.4 7.0 44.9 47.1 2.1 1,030 GAB-012 184.0 315.0 131.0 56.1 96.0 39.9 658 Including 281.7 315.0 33.3 85.9 96.0 10.1 1,196 Including 287.6 296.5 8.9 87.7 90.4 2.7 1,460 GAB-013 133.2 249.1 115.9 40.6 75.9 35.3 645 Including 214.0 249.1 35.1 65.2 75.9 10.7 914 Including 221.8 228.1 6.3 67.6 69.5 1.9 1,300 GAB-016 76.0 164.0 88.0 23.2 50.0 26.8 495 Including 87.0 94.0 7.0 26.5 28.7 2.1 830 GAB-017 149.8 192.0 42.2 45.7 58.5 12.9 695 Including 171.7 173.5 1.8 52.3 52.9 0.5 1,410 GAB-018 119.8 180.2 60.4 36.5 54.9 18.4 535 GAB-018 239.0 300.0 61.0 72.8 91.4 18.6 802 Including 287.0 292.0 5.0 87.5 89.0 1.5 1,340 GAB-019 271.2 333.0 61.8 82.7 101.5 18.8 549 GAB-019 354.2 401.9 47.7 108.0 122.5 14.5 729 Including 374.3 401.9 27.6 114.1 122.5 8.4 879 Including 398.0 401.9 3.9 121.3 122.5 1.2 1,100

Lithium mineralization has consistently been intersected in the lower portion of the Siebert Formation. A second zone of mineralization has also been intersected in some holes, present in the upper portion of the Siebert. The lithium mineralization is hosted in a claystone-siltstone-sandstone-conglomerate sedimentary sequence.

Faults, with a normal sense of offset, have been mapped on the Gabriel surface. Fault-broken zones, gouge and cataclasites have also been logged in the core. The location and orientation of these structures will be assessed during the upcoming three-dimensional (3D) geologic modeling project.

Every twin core hole drilled in the Phase-1 Program returned intercept values higher (range of 36  85%) than the corresponding Blackrock Silver (BRS) TN22 reverse-circulation rotary hole. Based on Tearlach's expertise, a total of 603 TN22 drillhole pulps have been collected and submitted for lithium re-assay.

Full details of the results outlined in this news release can be seen in the Tearlach Release, inclusive of QA/QC procedures and approval by a Qualified Person (as defined by National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects).

Figure 1: Gabriel Project drillholes Map

Table 2

Gabriel Collar Data, All Drillholes To Date UTM NAD83 Hole Easting Northing Elevation, m Azimuth Dip GAB-004 476,868 4,217,803 1739.2 0 -90 GAB-005 477,646 4,217,808 1761.7 0 -90 GAB-006 477,279 4,218,601 1749.6 0 -90 GAB-008 476,848 4,218,837 1739.5 0 -90 GAB-009 478,477 4,219,723 1798.3 0 -90 GAB-012 476,822 4,219,342 1739.2 0 -90 GAB-013 476,703 4,219,784 1739.5 0 -90 GAB-016 478,116 4,220,634 1803.2 0 -90 GAB-017 477,268 4,217,813 1751.4 0 -90 GAB-018 475,854 4,218,492 1705.1 0 -90 GAB-019 478,183 4,218,256 1768.4 0 -90

Blackrock and Tearlach are parties to an option agreement dated January 10, 2023 (the "Option Agreement") wherein, among other things, Blackrock has granted Tearlach an option to acquire, in two stages, up to a 70% interest in the lithium minerals in certain unpatented mining claims forming a portion of Gabriel. Upon incurring exploration expenditures of US$5,000,000 within three years, Tearlach will have earned a 51% interest in Gabriel, and upon incurring cumulative exploration expenditures of US$15,000,000 and completion of a Feasibility study within 5 years, Tearlach will have earned a 70% interest. Pursuant to the Option Agreement, Tearlach has the exploration rights from surface to 650 feet (200 metres) below the topographic surface to explore for lithium. Blackrock retains the rights to all other minerals including gold and silver at Gabriel.

About Blackrock Silver Corp.

Backed by gold and silver ounces in the ground, Blackrock is a junior precious metal focused exploration company driven to add shareholder value via the drill bit. With 2.97 million tonnes grading 446 g/t silver equivalent1 at its Tonopah West project, and a new bonanza-grade gold discovery at Silver Cloud, the Company has a proven track record of exploration success. In addition to its gold and silver project portfolio, the Company is credited with a lithium discovery, the Tonopah North project, which is under option to a major lithium exploration group. Anchored by a seasoned Board, the Company is focused on its 100% controlled Nevada portfolio of properties consisting of low-sulphidation, epithermal gold and silver mineralization located along the established Northern Nevada Rift in north-central Nevada and the Walker Lane trend in western Nevada.

For further information, please contact:

Andrew Pollard, President & CEO

Blackrock Silver Corp.

Phone: 604 817-6044

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements concern, without limitation, the Option Agreement with Tearlach and the exercise of the options by Tearlach pursuant thereto, the entering into a joint venture between the Company and Tearlach, Tearlach's statements as to its exploration and development plans, the role of silver and lithium in the emerging green economy, the Company's strategic plans, timing and expectations for the Company's exploration and drilling programs, estimates of mineralization from drilling, geological information projected from sampling results and the potential quantities and grades of the target zones. Such forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of assumptions, which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things: conditions in general economic and financial markets; accuracy of assay results; geological interpretations from drilling results, timing and amount of capital expenditures; performance of available laboratory and other related services; future operating costs; and the historical basis for current estimates of potential quantities and grades of target zones. The actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of risk factors, including the timing and content of work programs; results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties; the interpretation and uncertainties of drilling results and other geological data; receipt, maintenance and security of permits and mineral property titles; environmental and other regulatory risks; project costs overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses; availability of funds; failure to delineate potential quantities and grades of the target zones based on historical data, and general market and industry conditions. Forward-looking statements are based on the expectations and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. The assumptions used in the preparation of such statements, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date the statements were made. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements included in this news release if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as otherwise required by applicable law.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

1 Technical information relating to the Tonopah West project is based on and derived from the NI 43-101 report prepared for Blackrock entitled "Technical Report and Estimate of Mineral Resources for the Tonopah West Silver-Gold Project, Nye and Esmeralda Counties, Nevada, USA" effective April 28, 2022 (the "Technical Report"). The Technical Report outlines 2.97million tonnes at a block diluted grade of 208 grams per tonne (g/t) silver (Ag) and 2.5g/t gold (Au) for a total inferred mineral resource of 19,902,000 ounces Ag and 238,000 ounces Au, or 446 g/t silver equivalent (AgEq) for 42.6million oz AgEq. AgEq equivalent grade is based on silver and gold prices of US$20/ounce and US$1750/ounce, respectively, and recoveries for silver and gold of 87%and 95%
Cuyes West Drilling Highlights:

CU23-25  203.0 metres grading 1.48 g/t Au Eq, including 33.0 metres grading 5.41 g/t Au Eq 33.0 metres within the newly discovered breccia pipe, adjacent to the Cuyes West structure Cuyes West interval within CU23-25 was 5.0 metres of 3.07 g/t Au Eq

CU23-26  1.0 metre grading 118.44 g/t Au Eq; the highest-grade assay ever at Cuyes

VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Luminex Resources Corp. (TSXV: LR) (OTCQX: LUMIF) (the "Company" or "Luminex") is pleased to announce drill results from four holes (CU23-23 to CU23-26) that targeted the Cuyes West structure, with hole CU23-25 also intersecting a new breccia pipe discovery underneath the existing Cuyes open pit mineral resource. The Company is now allocating more drill holes to the breccia pipe that has been displaying long mineralized intercepts, with grades increasing as Luminex drills deeper.

Hole CU23-25 intersected multiple high-grade structures in the breccia pipe, notably 3.0 metres from 223.0 metres grading 17.47 g/t gold and 46.4 g/t silver (18.02 g/t Au Eq), within a wider intercept of 203.0 metres from 134.0 metres, which graded 1.38 g/t gold and 8.4 g/t silver (1.48 g/t Au Eq).

The highest-grade drill core ever assayed at the Cuyes deposit was just intercepted in CU23-26, a 1.0 metre interval grading 115.80 g/t gold and 220.1 g/t silver (118.44 g/t Au Eq) from 290.0 metres in a structurally controlled vein. This sample is part of a broader intercept of 5.0 metres from 286.0 metres grading 24.44 g/t gold and 62.8 g/t silver (25.19 g/t Au Eq).

Hole CU23-24 intersected multiple high-grade intercepts, including 2.3 metres returning 23.14 g/t gold and 115.2 g/t silver (24.53 g/t Au Eq) from 457.4 metres, within a broader 11.7 metre zone of 5.02 g/t gold and 32.2 g/t silver (5.41 g/t Au Eq) from 449.0 metres. This hole stepped out approximately 75 metres laterally on the Cuyes West structure west of hole CU22-05, which cut 5.0 meters grading 29.43 g/t gold and 86.5 g/t silver (30.47 g/t Au Eq) from 277.0 metres. Hole CU23-23, also a step out of hole CU22-05 approximately 75 metres to the east, intersected 1.0 metres from 223.0 metres of 9.23 g/t gold and 13.2 g/t silver (9.39 g/t Au Eq).

Other high-grade intervals are present in additional structures in holes CU23-23, CU23-24, CU23-25 and CU23-26 and are detailed in Table 1.

The style of mineralization at the Cuyes West structure is identical to that at the Camp deposit, 600 metres to the west. At a property scale, these mineralized structures are interpreted to be hosted in ring and radial fractures around the Los Cuyes caldera (See Figure 1).

The newly discovered breccia pipe is hosted primarily within caldera-fill pyroclastic and volcanoclastic rocks and is flanked to the north and south by dacite porphyries that appear to focus the mineralization in the breccia pipe. The pipe was a blind discovery and comes within 100 meters of surface, but does not outcrop. Mineralization within the breccia pipe occurs mainly within hydrothermal crackle-veinlet breccias with minor shatter breccias, as well as patches, veinlets and replacements. While the geological model is evolving and more drilling is required, the Cuyes deposit may contain a higher-grade breccia pipe, similar to the Kelian deposit in Indonesia or the Rosia Montana deposit in Romania.

Table 1. Drill intercepts for Cuyes West drill holes. Asterisked intervals are shallower and belong to the diatreme at Los Cuyes (see note below).

Hole Azimuth /

Dip / Length From (m) To (m) Interval

(m) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au Eq (g/t) CU23-23 0 / - 50 /

451.10m 0.4 49.0 48.6* 1.09 8.8 1.19 Incl 6.0 21.0 15.0 3.05 15.6 3.24 And Incl 12.0 14.0 2.0 10.70 27.0 11.02 And 73.0 75.0 2.0* 0.76 10.6 0.88 And 90.0 97.0 7.0* 1.12 6.2 1.20 And 119.0 125.0 6.0* 0.39 3.5 0.43 And 154.0 172.0 18.0* 0.35 2.8 0.39 And 201.0 229.0 28.0* 0.57 3.2 0.61 Incl 223.0 229.0 6.0 1.91 5.9 1.98 And Incl 223.0 224.0 1.0 9.23 13.2 9.39 CU23-24 310 / -53 /

478.20m 50.0 81.0 31.0* 1.27 14.3 1.44 And 108.0 110.0 2.0* 0.25 2.4 0.28 And 118.0 123.0 5.0* 0.38 3.6 0.42 And 338.0 339.0 1.0 4.64 7.7 4.73 And 449.0 460.7 11.7 5.02 32.2 5.41 Incl 457.4 459.7 2.3 23.14 115.2 24.53 CU23-25 013 / -52 /

396.30m 13.7 15.0 1.3* 0.56 1.9 0.58 And 90.0 97.0 7.0* 0.39 2.8 0.42 And 118.0 121.0 3.0* 0.44 5.8 0.51 And 134.0 337.0 203.0* 1.38 8.4 1.48 Incl 214.0 247.0 33.0 5.10 25.2 5.41 And Incl 223.0 226.0 3.0 17.47 46.4 18.02 Incl 299.5 300.6 1.1 1.02 6.8 1.10 Incl 310.6 312.6 2.0 1.11 2.3 1.13 Incl 323.0 328.0 5.0 2.97 8.1 3.07 And Incl 326.0 328.0 2.0 5.73 7.2 5.82 CU23-26 355 / -60 /

477.70m 70.0 73.4 3.4* 0.22 10.2 0.34 And 77.0 79.0 2.0* 0.37 28.3 0.71 And 95.0 97.0 2.0* 0.37 1.2 0.39 And 153.2 177.0 23.8* 0.29 4.2 0.34 And 190.0 196.0 6.0* 0.44 2.5 0.46 And 240.0 241.0 1.0 1.11 1.0 1.12 And 286.0 291.0 5.0 24.44 62.8 25.19 Incl 286.0 290.0 4.0 1.60 23.5 1.88 Incl 290.0 291.0 1.0 115.80 220.1 118.44 And 400.0 401.0 1.0 1.83 66.4 2.62 And 441.0 442.0 1.0 1.36 3.9 1.40

Asterisked (*) intervals are "Shallower" intervals calculated using a lower limit of 0.20 g/t Au with a maximum inclusion of ten continuous metres below cut-off occurring within the stated intercept and the highest gold value used in the reported weighted averages is 11.55 g/t Au. Remaining intervals not marked with an asterisk are for "Deeper" intervals calculated using a lower limit of 1.0 g/t Au with a maximum inclusion of up to six continuous metres below cut-off and the highest gold value used in the reported weighted averages is 115.80 g/t Au. Au Eq values assume $1,500 gold and $18.00 silver (Au Eq= Au g/t + (Ag g/t *0.012)).

Quality Assurance

All Luminex sample assay results have been independently monitored through a quality control / quality assurance ("QA/QC") protocol which includes the insertion of blind standards, blanks as well as pulp and reject duplicate samples. Logging and sampling are completed at Luminex's core handling facility located at the Condor property. Drill core is diamond sawn on site and half drill-core samples are securely transported to ALS Laboratories' ("ALS") or Bureau Veritas Minerals' ("BMV") sample preparation facility in Quito, Ecuador. The ALS lab's sample pulps are sent to Lima, Peru for analysis where gold content is determined by fire assay of a 50-gram charge with ICP finish. The BMV lab's samples are analyzed for gold by a 50-gram charge fire assay in Quito and the remainder of the sample is sent to Lima, Peru for a 44 element - ICP finish.

Silver and other elements are also determined by ICP methods. Over-limit samples assaying greater than 10 g/t gold and 100 g/t silver are re-analyzed by both labs using fire assay with a gravimetric finish. Luminex is not aware of any drilling, sampling, recovery, or other factors that could materially affect the accuracy or reliability of the data referred to herein. ALS Laboratories and BMV are independent of Luminex.

Qualified Persons

Leo Hathaway, P. Geo, Senior Vice President Exploration of Luminex and the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed, verified and approved the scientific and technical information concerning the Condor Project in this news release and has verified the data underlying that scientific and technical information.

About Luminex Resources

Luminex Resources Corp. (TSXV:LR, OTCQX:LUMIF) is a Vancouver, Canada based precious and base metals exploration and development company focused on gold and copper projects in Ecuador. Luminex's inferred and indicated mineral resources are located at the Condor Gold-Copper project in Zamora-Chinchipe Province, southeast Ecuador. Luminex also holds a large and highly prospective land package in Ecuador, including the Pegasus and Orquideas projects, which are being co-developed with Anglo American and JOGMEC respectively.

Further details are available on the Company's website at https://luminexresources.com/.

To receive news releases please sign up at https://www.luminexresources.com/contact/contact-us/.

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LUMINEX RESOURCES CORP.

Signed: "Marshall Koval"

Marshall Koval, CEO and Director

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future drilling and work programs at Condor. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur or be achieved.

With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, the Company has made numerous assumptions including among other things, assumptions about general business and economic conditions, the prices of gold and copper, and anticipated costs and expenditures. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

Although management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; the supply and demand for labour and other project inputs; changes in commodity prices; changes in interest and currency exchange rates; risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions (including with respect to the tonnage, grade and recoverability of reserves and resources); risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); risks relating to adverse weather conditions; political risk and social unrest; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; changes in laws (including regulations respecting mining concessions); and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in the Company's continuous disclosure documents filed with Canadian securities administrators. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Highlights

Consistent Gold Values Reported from Bulk Sample Improve Grade 148 samples range between 0.8 and 3.4 g/t Au, weighted mean of 1.85 g/t Au Silver values range between 5 and 26 g/t Ag, weighted mean of 12.7 g/t Ag

Fine Fraction Samples (excluded from Heap Leach Process), Report Equal Gold and Silver Values 32 Samples range between 1.2 and 2.8 g/t Au, weighted mean of 2.02 g/t Au Silver values range between 9 and 25 g/t Au, weighted mean of 15.6 g/t Ag

Leaching Process Underway for Bulk Sample

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CALGARY, AB / ACCESSWIRE / May 16, 2023 / Tocvan Ventures Corp. (the "Company") (CSE:TOC) (OTCQB:TCVNF) (FSE:TV3), is pleased to provide an update and sampling results from a Bulk Sample being completed at its Pilar gold-silver project in Sonora, Mexico. Sampling of duplicate material collected at regular intervals during crushing/screening process from the Bulk Sample have returned consistent gold and silver values. In total, 148 samples were collected averaging 1.87 g/t Au and 13 g/t Ag (see Table 1 for full results). The first batch of 32 samples (111 samples pending) were collected from the fine fraction of screened material not included in the heap leach pile, are showing slightly higher grades of gold and silver, averaging 2.02 g/t Au and 15.6 g/t Ag (see Table 2 for full results). The fine fraction along with additional bulk sample material will be used in testing gravity recovery methods. Samples were submitted to ALS Hermosillo for fire assay and ICP analysis. Blanks and standards were submitted into the sample stream as part of the Company's robust QA/QC protocol The samples total 910.7 kg of crush reject material from the Bulk Sample collected for heap leach testing. The heap leach process is currently underway for the Bulk Sample. Over 800 tonnes of Bulk Sample material have been prepared for heap leach processing, an additional 350 tonnes of crushed material and 250 tonnes of raw-bulk sample are available for gravity recovery and later agitated leach testing as recommended by an independent report provided by LTM.

"Pilar continues to surprise with excellent gold and silver values." stated Brodie Sutherland, CEO. "The results are clearly indicating the average grade of material making up the Bulk Sample are well above our expectations for gold and silver. To see this represented in the data gives us added confidence that Pilar can be advanced towards production, especially with these impressive grades. We eagerly await the results from heap leaching and further evaluation of gravity recovery methods."

Photo 1 & 2. Bulk Sample heap leach pile during irrigation setup.

Table 1. Summary of results from Bulk Sample Duplicate Sampling.

Sample ID Weight (kg) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Sample ID Weight (kg) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Sample ID Weight (kg) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) 407154 2.89 0.81 11.2 332701 6.43 1.90 15.7 332748 6.28 1.86 11.9 407155 2.22 1.39 8.7 332702 6.58 2.05 18.8 332750 5.77 1.48 9.9 407156 3.11 1.60 6.8 332703 5.79 1.68 24.9 332751 5.62 2.16 12.6 407157 5.97 2.12 17.6 332704 5.86 1.60 15.8 332752 6.59 1.84 9.9 407158 5.38 1.36 9.0 332705 6.85 1.37 9.6 332753 6.59 1.95 10.3 407159 6.70 1.59 9.6 332706 5.79 1.50 10.2 332754 6.27 0.97 10.3 407160 5.25 2.22 15.7 332707 6.02 2.28 4.7 332755 6.38 1.54 12.5 407161 6.05 1.17 7.0 332708 5.67 1.70 11.4 332756 6.13 2.12 10.2 407162 6.09 1.08 6.3 332709 5.77 1.19 14.6 332757 6.00 1.28 13.5 407164 4.86 1.04 6.5 332710 5.62 1.95 8.1 332758 6.03 1.41 8.8 407165 5.84 2.17 25.8 332712 6.01 2.11 17.7 332760 6.75 1.98 13.0 407166 5.82 1.97 17.1 332713 6.09 2.63 11.1 332761 5.45 1.29 10.1 407167 5.37 1.26 9.7 332714 5.35 1.97 11.2 332762 5.62 1.55 12.8 407168 5.47 1.44 17.5 332715 5.25 2.13 8.8 332763 6.83 1.78 13.0 407169 5.21 1.55 8.3 332716 7.54 2.66 6.2 332764 5.81 1.50 11.0 407170 6.14 2.06 11.4 332717 6.59 3.39 8.7 332766 6.36 3.00 10.6 407171 5.27 1.73 16.8 332718 7.37 1.49 8.7 332767 5.87 1.54 13.8 407172 6.18 2.18 19.3 332719 6.05 1.52 10.8 332768 6.29 1.66 9.5 407173 6.56 1.57 23.1 332720 6.15 1.49 10.8 332769 6.08 1.32 15.6 407174 6.12 2.87 13.8 332721 6.45 1.50 10.3 332770 6.30 1.36 11.6 407175 6.59 2.43 17.8 332723 6.08 2.21 9.6 332771 5.99 3.02 13.5 407177 6.65 1.60 18.9 332724 6.28 2.77 8.1 332772 6.68 1.48 11.2 407178 6.07 1.06 14.8 332725 6.65 1.96 10.2 332773 6.45 1.59 13.2 407179 5.87 1.49 14.9 332726 6.03 1.63 11.9 332774 5.84 1.55 15.6 407181 6.62 1.95 12.4 332727 7.07 1.17 7.1 332776 5.48 1.33 11.0 407182 6.68 1.47 16.2 332728 6.01 1.07 6.7 332777 5.95 2.56 16.9 407183 5.11 1.22 10.2 332729 6.23 1.54 13.6 332778 6.39 1.63 16.3 407184 5.61 1.40 6.3 332730 6.86 1.89 11.2 332779 6.35 1.49 15.1 407185 6.52 2.80 9.5 332731 6.46 2.18 10.0 332780 6.68 1.69 15.1 407186 6.29 2.29 11.4 332732 7.29 2.13 14.4 332781 5.63 2.25 16.8 407187 6.68 2.10 11.5 332733 6.04 3.14 11.0 332782 6.39 1.72 19.1 407188 5.80 3.37 9.1 332734 6.21 1.33 13.8 332783 5.97 1.67 14.9 407189 6.67 2.58 18.9 332735 6.44 1.30 15.9 332784 6.18 1.75 13.1 407190 5.85 1.94 18.3 332737 6.19 1.53 11.8 332785 5.94 1.62 16.9 407191 5.76 2.12 13.8 332739 5.73 1.49 18.7 332787 5.77 2.33 9.7 407192 6.40 1.83 13.5 332740 6.90 1.75 15.5 332788 6.23 1.88 10.8 407193 6.63 2.76 10.5 332741 6.72 1.24 13.6 332789 6.95 2.24 13.5 407195 6.13 2.75 7.8 332742 6.00 1.76 10.4 332790 4.35 1.74 15.1 407196 6.98 2.31 9.5 332743 5.53 1.28 10.7 332791 5.37 1.96 16.2 407197 6.14 2.44 12.1 332744 6.31 1.64 15.2 332792 6.07 2.38 15.1 407198 6.01 1.76 10.8 332745 7.22 1.53 15.0 332793 6.77 1.68 9.0 407199 7.08 1.87 14.2 332746 6.90 1.35 8.8 332794 6.64 1.82 13.6 407200 5.78 1.61 6.1 332747 5.08 1.58 10.6 332795 7.26 2.84 10.7

Table 1. Summary of results from Bulk Sample Duplicate Sampling (continued).

Sample ID Weight (kg) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) 332805 6.20 1.48 12.9 332807 6.06 2.75 13.4 332808 7.81 2.01 15.9 332809 6.26 1.53 20.1 332810 7.18 2.81 18.3 332811 6.59 1.74 14.2 332812 6.34 2.06 14.7 332813 5.90 2.43 9.7 332814 5.26 1.67 15.1 332815 6.75 1.67 12.1 332816 7.21 1.93 13.3

Table 2. Summary of results from Fine Fraction Material (not included in the bulk sample heap leach pile).

Sample ID Weight (kg) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) 332818 5.25 1.83 18.1 332819 6.11 2.02 9.5 332820 6.11 1.95 11.4 332821 4.14 2.66 17.1 332822 4.42 1.15 9.3 332823 5.82 1.85 8.6 332824 4.93 2.21 11.0 332825 4.62 1.98 11.5 332826 6.23 1.44 12.3 332827 4.18 1.38 11.0 332828 6.29 1.76 20.3 332829 4.80 1.79 18.9 332830 5.36 2.56 12.1 332832 5.01 2.62 24.5 332833 3.48 2.17 10.6 332834 6.19 2.84 14.0 332835 4.20 2.19 14.0 332836 4.93 2.83 22.2 332837 5.18 2.62 22.8 332838 5.85 2.16 19.3 332839 7.00 2.63 19.7 332841 7.30 1.80 24.9 332842 5.69 1.92 23.3 332843 6.61 1.58 21.2 332844 6.67 1.34 16.9 332845 5.97 2.10 16.7 332846 6.58 1.37 14.5 332847 6.36 1.69 8.6 332848 6.88 2.08 10.5 332849 6.52 2.53 12.0 332850 5.23 1.86 11.5 332851 5.77 2.12 10.3

Diagnostic Leach Study Summary

Full results from the Diagnostic Leach Study are available on the Company's website and in the March 29th news release. A summary is provided below.

Table 3. Summary of Results from the Precious Metals Diagnostic Leach Study completed by LTM.

Sample ID Location Head Screen Assay Gravity Concentrate Assay Total Recoverable by Gravity and Agitated Cyanide Leach Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) Au (%) Ag (%) 494741 Main Zone (Surface) 6.2 23 76.2 237 95 78 494743 Main Zone (Surface) 8.2 68 117.0 1152 98 97 494745 Main Zone (Surface) 2.7 9 35.6 82 97 90 494747 4-T (Surface) 20.4 74 290.3 568 98 85 494749 Main Zone (Drill Core) 24.9 9 231.1 53 99 73

About the Pilar Property

The Pilar Gold-Silver property has recently returned some of the regions best drill results. Coupled with encouraging gold and silver recovery results from metallurgical test work, Pilar is primed to be a potential near-term producer. Pilar is interpreted as a structurally controlled low-sulphidation epithermal system hosted in andesite rocks. Three primary zones of mineralization have been identified in the north-west part of the property from historic surface work and drilling and are referred to as the Main Zone, North Hill and 4-T. The Main Zone and 4-T trends are open to the southeast and new parallel zones have been recently discovered. Structural features and zones of mineralization within the structures follow an overall NW-SE trend of mineralization. Mineralization extends along a 1.2-km trend, only half of that trend has been drill tested so far. To date, over 23,000 m of drilling has been completed.

2022 Phase III Diamond Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 116.9m @ 1.2 g/t Au, including 10.2m @ 12 g/t Au and 23 g/t Ag 108.9m @ 0.8 g/t Au, including 9.4m @ 7.6 g/t Au and 5 g/t Ag 63.4m @ 0.6 g/t Au and 11 g/t Ag, including 29.9m @ 0.9 g/t Au and 18 g/t Ag

2021 Phase II RC Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 39.7m @ 1.0 g/t Au, including 1.5m @ 14.6 g/t Au 47.7m @ 0.7 g/t Au including 3m @ 5.6 g/t Au and 22 g/t Ag 29m @ 0.7 g/t Au 35.1m @ 0.7 g/t Au

2020 Phase I RC Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 94.6m @ 1.6 g/t Au, including 9.2m @ 10.8 g/t Au and 38 g/t Ag; 41.2m @ 1.1 g/t Au, including 3.1m @ 6.0 g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag ; 24.4m @ 2.5 g/t Au and 73 g/t Ag, including 1.5m @ 33.4 g/t Au and 1,090 g/t Ag

15,000m of Historic Core & RC drilling. Highlights include: 16.5m @ 53.5 g/t Au and 53 g/t Ag 13.0m @ 9.6 g/t Au 9.0m @ 10.2 g/t Au and 46 g/t Ag

61.0m @ 0.8 g/t Au

About Tocvan Ventures Corp.

Tocvan is a well-structured exploration development company. Tocvan was created in order to take advantage of the prolonged downturn in the junior mining exploration sector, by identifying and negotiating interest in opportunities where management feels they can build upon previous success. Tocvan has approximately 39.9 million shares outstanding and is earning 100% into two exciting opportunities in Sonora, Mexico: the Pilar Gold-Silver project and the El Picacho Gold-Silver project. Management feels both projects represent tremendous opportunity to create shareholder value.

Brodie A. Sutherland, P.Geo., CEO for Tocvan Ventures Corp. and a qualified person ("QP") as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release.

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Samples were shipped for sample preparation to ALS Limited in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico and for analysis at the ALS laboratory in North Vancouver. The ALS Hermosillo and North Vancouver facilities are ISO 9001 and ISO/IEC 17025 certified. Gold was analyzed using 50-gram nominal weight fire assay with atomic absorption spectroscopy finish. Silver and other elements were analyzed using a four-acid digestion with an ICP finish. Control samples comprising certified reference samples and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Company's robust quality assurance / quality control protocol.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking information" which may include, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future. Forward-looking information in this news release includes statements regarding the use of proceeds from the Offering. Such forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words and phrases such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative 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.

These forward-looking statements, and any assumptions upon which they are based, are made in good faith and reflect our current judgment regarding the direction of our business. Management believes that these assumptions are reasonable. Forward-looking information involves 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 expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the speculative nature of the Company's business, the Company's formative stage of development and the Company's financial position. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this news release and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

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 statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

For more information, please contact:

TOCVAN VENTURES CORP.

Brodie A. Sutherland, CEO

820-1130 West Pender St.

Vancouver, BC V6E 4A4

Telephone: 1 888 772 2452

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Vancouver, British Columbia  TheNewswire - May 18, 2023 - Leocor Gold Inc. (the Company or Leocor) (CSE:LECR), (OTC:LECRF) is pleased to announce a $1.2 million exploration plan for its gold projects located in Newfoundland, Canada (Figure 1). With over 150,000 hectares within the Central Newfoundland Gold Belt, targeting and exploration plans have been finalized for all three district-area claim groups. The budget includes soil sampling, ground geophysics, prospecting and RAB drilling. RAB drilling, an effective a heli-portable, wireless remote-controlled drill rig with 100m depth potential will account for 33% of the budget.

Figure 1. Regional land positions of Leocor Gold in Newfoundland.

We are pleased to be able commit this level of exploration towards our Newfoundland assets, said CEO, Alex Klenman. We have carefully planned a very systematic approach and our technical team has provided the expertise to efficiently and cost effectively advance these projects. The amount of RAB drilling within the budget is a testament to our aggressive approach towards diamond drilling and a discovery, continued Mr. Klenman.

Dorset (Baie Verte District)

RAB drilling will continue to test and expand on the Sharpie Ridge gold occurrence with 7 RAB holes where in late 2022 RAB holes returned 2.32 g/t Au over 10.67 m and 10.2 g/t Au over 1.52m. An additional 2 RAB holes will be completed at Copper Creek target where in 2022 a RAB hole returned 0.58% % Cu over 9.12m which includes 1.095% Cu over 1.52m. Two RAB holes will be completed at the Dorset Gunshot/Braz occurrence where in 2022 RAB drilling returned 3.18 g/t Au over 4.57 m. An additional 7 RAB holes will target the Dorset Trend where a large 1 x 2 km gold-in-soil anomaly was outlined by 2022 soil sampling efforts (Figure 2). The extensive gold-in-soil anomaly is one of the most clustered and anomalous he has seen says Leocor Technical Advisor and renown gold occurrence and deposit finder, Shawn Ryan.

Figure 2. Exploration targeting for the 2023 field season at Dorset.

Startrek (Gander District)

The Startrek Property contains 50+ gold occurrences through previous trenching and grab samples. Several areas of epithermal gold mineralization have been identified on surface from 2022 rock sampling and historical data. The proposed 2023 field season will focus largely on the Stallion Trend where 2022 grab samples by Leocor reported values up to 0.92 g/t Au with coincident arsenic and antimony in quartz stockwork veining. Integrating results from ground geophysics, and detailed soil sampling a total of 4 RAB holes are designed to test geophysical contacts and conductive bodies at depth that relate to mineralization on surface. (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Exploration targeting for the 2023 field season at Startrek.

Western Exploits

The Western Exploits District land holdings include Roberts Arm, Hodges Hill and Leamington. All 3 claim groups will receive soil sampling, ground geophysics and prospecting (Figure 4). The 2023 exploration plans will focus on those areas of geological merit and positive results from 2022 reconnaissance soil sampling and prospecting. Based on the results of the above exploration plans, RAB drilling would be added to the budget for the fall.

Figure 4. Exploration targeting for the 2023 field season at Western Exploits.

RAB Drilling

The RAB drilling will be completed by GroundTruth Exploration Inc. using their GT RAB Drill, a Heli-Portable, wireless remote-controlled, rubber tracked platform with a hydraulic tilting mast assembly and rotary drill head. The GT RAB Drill is environmentally friendly with low-ground pressure and minimal surface disturbance. Individual drill holes can be up to 100m in depth and are paired with onsite XRF analysis and optical televiewer surveys, allowing rapid evaluation of the target areas.

Additional details and timelines of the programs will be provided by the Company in the coming weeks.

Qualified Person

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Company. Grab samples are selected samples and not necessarily representative of the mineralization hosted on the property.

About Leocor Gold Inc.

Leocor Gold Inc. is a British Columbia-based resource company involved in the acquisition and exploration of precious metal projects, with a current focus in Atlantic Canada. Leocor, through outright ownership and earn-in agreements, currently controls several gold-copper projects in prime exploration ground located within the prolific Baie Verte Mining District. Leocors Bae Verte portfolio includes the Dorset, Dorset Extension, Copper Creek and Five Mile Brook projects, creating a contiguous nearly 2,000-hectare exploration corridor. The Company also controls the 6,847-ha grassroots Startrek project near Gander, as well as three district scale land packages in North Central Newfoundland, known as Roberts Arm, Hodges Hill, and Leamington, (collectively Western Exploits) representing over 144,000 hectares (1,440 square kilometers) of prospective exploration.

Contact Information

Leocor Gold Inc.

Alex Klenman, Chief Executive Officer

Email : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Telephone : (604) 970-4330

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Such information includes, without limitation, information regarding the terms and conditions of the Option. Although Leocor believes that such information is reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.

Forward looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Leocor cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by Leocor is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking information as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to: the agreement of the parties to proceed with the proposed transaction on the terms set out in the Option Agreements or at all; Leocor's ability to exercise the Options; the state of the financial markets for Leocor's securities; the state of the natural resources sector in the event the Option, or any of them, are completed; recent market volatility; circumstances related to COVID-19; Leocor's ability to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; and other risks and factors that Leocor is unaware of at this time. The reader is referred to Leocor's initial public offering prospectus for a more complete discussion of applicable risk factors and their potential effects, copies of which may be accessed through Leocors issuer page on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. Leocor disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Nova Royalty Corp. ("Nova" or the "Company") has reported its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023. Nova's financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023 are available on Nova's website at www.novaroyalty.com and on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Q1 2023 and Subsequent Highlights:

Quarterly revenue: Nova recognized revenue of $591,851 from its royalty interests, primarily related to Aranzazu. This was the second highest quarterly revenue on record for Nova.





Nova recognized revenue of from its royalty interests, primarily related to Aranzazu. This was the second highest quarterly revenue on record for Nova. Increased Copper World royalty : In April 2023 , Nova increased its exposure to Hudbay Minerals' Copper World project, a Tier-1 development asset located in Arizona . Nova now owns a 0.165% NSR royalty on Copper World and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510%.





: In , Nova increased its exposure to Hudbay Minerals' Copper World project, a Tier-1 development asset located in . Nova now owns a 0.165% NSR royalty on Copper World and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510%. Progress of portfolio assets: Several key development assets on which Nova holds royalties made meaningful progress toward construction decisions. First Quantum, Lundin and Hudbay continued to progress engineering and permitting at Taca Taca, Josemaria, and Copper World, respectively. In February 2023 , Los Andes Copper announced the results of a pre-feasibility study (" PFS ") and maiden mineral reserve for the Vizcachitas project, showing an initial mine life of 26 years, average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper for the first 8 years, an IRR of 24%, and a post-tax NPV of $2.8 billion .





Several key development assets on which Nova holds royalties made meaningful progress toward construction decisions. First Quantum, Lundin and Hudbay continued to progress engineering and permitting at Taca Taca, Josemaria, and Copper World, respectively. In , Los Andes Copper announced the results of a pre-feasibility study (" ") and maiden mineral reserve for the Vizcachitas project, showing an initial mine life of 26 years, average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper for the first 8 years, an IRR of 24%, and a post-tax NPV of . Senior management changes: On May 16, 2023 , the Company announced the departure of Alex Tsukernik as CEO and President, and appointed Hashim Ahmed as Interim CEO and Bill Tsang as Interim CFO.





On , the Company announced the departure of as CEO and President, and appointed as Interim CEO and as Interim CFO. Director changes: On May 17, 2023 , the Company announced that Douglas Silver , Johanna Fipke and Andrew Greville resigned from the Board of Directors.





On , the Company announced that , and resigned from the Board of Directors. Retained PI Financial as financial advisor: On May 17, 2023 , the Company announced that it had engaged PI Financial as its financial advisor to commence a process to explore, review and evaluate all options that may be available to the Company to maximize shareholder value.

Hashim Ahmed, interim CEO of Nova commented, "Nova generated significant momentum in the first quarter of 2023. We saw excellent operational performance at Aranzazu and are encouraged by the steady progress on the core assets underlying our royalty interests as the operators continue to advance them toward construction decisions. We remain focused on building a generational copper and nickel royalty portfolio and continue to advance a full pipeline of exciting acquisition opportunities."

Asset update

Aranzazu

Aura Minerals Inc. ("Aura") disclosed that Aranzazu produced 12.3 million copper equivalent ("CuEq") pounds ("lbs") during Q1 2023. CuEq production was 3% lower than in Q1 2022 and 10% lower than in Q4 2022 as a result of mining slightly lower grade gold and copper areas, in accordance with Aranzazu mine planning(1).

Nova recognized $0.6 million in revenue during Q1 2023, compared to $0.7 million in Q1 2022 and $0.5 million in Q4 2022, attributable to the Aranzazu royalty.

Aura reported that it expects to produce between 101,000  116,000 gold equivalent ounces ("GEO") at Aranzazu during 2023. Aranzazu produced 111,531 GEO during the year ended December 31, 2022. Additionally, Aura reported that a 20,000 metre drill program is planned for 2023 to focus on the geological potential of new mineralized zones, such as Cabrestante, El Cobre, and Limestone Bridge(1).

Aura last reported proven and probable mineral reserves at Aranzazu as of December 31, 2022 of 9.6 million tonnes at 1.23% copper, 0.81 g/t gold and 17.61 g/t silver(2).

Taca Taca

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. ("First Quantum") continued to conduct pre-development and feasibility activities at Taca Taca during Q1 2023. During the second quarter of 2021, First Quantum submitted two environmental permits regarding key infrastructure at Taca Taca. The primary Environmental and Social Impact Assessment ("ESIA") for Taca Taca was submitted to the Secretariat of Mining of Salta Province in 2019 and approval of the ESIA is anticipated in 2023. In November 2022, the Salta Production Minister signed Resolution 191/2022, approving the environmental pre-feasibility for the Taca Taca 345 kilovolt power line development. The power line development still requires detailed construction permits, but the main environmental aspects of its development have been approved. First Quantum expects an additional environmental permit related to the proposed bypass and access road construction for Taca Taca to be approved in 2023. Additionally, First Quantum reported that water supply studies and pump tests to support the application for a concession for borefield water supply advanced steadily in 2022 and are expected to be completed in 2023. First Quantum expects to file water permit applications progressively in 2023(3).

First Quantum last reported proven and probable mineral reserves at Taca Taca of 1,758.5 million tonnes at 0.44% Copper, 0.09 g/t gold, and 0.012% molybdenum(4).

Copper World Complex (formerly Copper World and Rosemont)

Hudbay Minerals Inc. ("Hudbay") previously reported that on September 21, 2022, an application for an Aquifer Protection Permit was submitted to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality ("ADEQ"), and on October 21, 2022, an application for an Air Quality Permit was submitted to the ADEQ(5). Hudbay reported that it expects to receive these two remaining state permits in 2023(6).

Hudbay reported that, in March 2023, it received confirmation from the Army Corps of Engineers ("ACOE") that its previous surrender of the Section 404 Clean Water Act permit for the former Rosemont project (the "404 Permit") was formally accepted and revoked, as requested. The ACOE also reaffirmed the validity of the March 2021 approved jurisdictional determinations, whereby the ACOE determined there are no waters of the U.S. in the area submitted for analysis, which is consistent with Hudbay's internal studies that also contemplate the full Copper World Complex area. Hudbay reported that it surrendered the 404 Permit to the ACOE in April 2022, as there is no evidence of jurisdictional waters of the U.S. on the former Rosemont project site. In May 2022, Judge Soto from the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona issued a favourable ruling that affirmed Hudbay's surrender of the 404 Permit was effective and that the new Copper World Complex project is not connected to the previous federal permitting process(6).

Hudbay also reported that, in May 2023, the Arizona Corporation Commission approved an amendment to the Certificate of Environmental Compatibility ("CEC") authorizing the electric transmission line to site. The CEC was granted for the former Rosemont project in 2012 and the amendment removed the requirements for federal permits so that the CEC can be used to construct the transmission line for the Copper World Complex(6).

Hudbay reported that it is continuing to advance clearing and grading work to prepare for the development of the Copper World Complex. PFS activities for Phase I are well-advanced and Hudbay reported that it expects to release a PFS in mid-2023(6).

Upon receipt of state permits, Hudbay reported that it expects to conduct a bulk sampling program to continue to de-risk the Copper World Complex by testing grade continuity, variable cut-off effectiveness, and metallurgical strategies. Hudbay also reported that, following receipt of the state permits, Hudbay intends to initiate a minority joint venture partner process, which will allow the potential joint venture partner to participate in definitive feasibility study activities in 2024(6).

In April 2023, Nova acquired an additional 0.03% NSR on the Copper World Complex (the "Additional Copper World Royalty"). The Additional Copper World Royalty has the same characteristics as the existing royalty on the Copper World Complex acquired by Nova in 2022 and covers all metals, including copper, molybdenum, silver, and gold extracted from the majority of mining claims covering the Copper World Complex. Nova now holds a 0.165% NSR royalty on the Copper World Complex and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510% NSR royalty on the Copper World Complex.

Hudbay last reported measured and indicated resources at the Copper World Complex of 1,173 million tonnes at 0.41% copper and inferred resources at the Copper World Complex of 262 million tonnes at 0.37% copper. In the preliminary economic assessment published by Hudbay for the Copper World Complex in June 2022, Hudbay reported that, as compared to the mineral resources included in a 2017 feasibility study published by Hudbay for the former Rosemont project, contained copper in measured and indicated resources at the Copper World Complex increased by 17% and contained copper in inferred resources increased by 328%(7).

Josemaria

As of March 31, 2023, Lundin Mining Corporation ("Lundin Mining") reported that it is updating the capital cost estimate and project execution schedule for Josemaria. Plant engineering was at 39% completion as of March 31, 2023, including procurement of long-lead equipment. Early works continue onsite, including Phase 1 camp construction and internal access road construction, which were 94% and 84% complete as of March 31, 2023, respectively. A geotechnical drilling campaign began in March 2023. Lundin Mining also reported that work continues in water, drilling, permitting and supply testing, and a program to initiate studies for water & permit requirements, including water balance and hydrogeological modelling, is to be incorporated into the bi-annual environmental impact assessment update submission planned for the second quarter of 2024. Lundin Mining reported that agreements with provincial governments regarding access roads, power supply, and infrastructure funding continue to progress, while progress also continued on a project union agreement for construction(8).

Lundin Mining reported that infill drilling and assaying completed at Josemaria in 2021 and 2022 will be incorporated into future Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve estimates published by Lundin Mining(8).

Additionally, Lundin Mining reported that it intends to spend approximately US$400 million on capital expenditures at Josemaria in 2023 in support of advancing the project prior to a potential construction decision(9).

Lundin Mining last reported proven and probable reserves at Josemaria of 1,012 million tonnes at 0.30% copper, 0.22 g/t gold, and 0.94 g/t silver(10).

Vizcachitas

On February 23, 2023, LAC announced the results of a positive PFS and a maiden reserve estimate at Vizcachitas. The PFS contemplates conventional open pit mining, crushing, grinding and flotation to produce a copper-silver concentrate and molybdenum concentrate product. Over an initial 26-year mine life, average annual production is forecast to be 152,883 tonnes of copper at C1 cash costs of US$1.25/lb Cu, with average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper at C1 cash costs of US$0.93/lb Cu over the first 8 years. The PFS contemplates an after tax US$2.8 billion NPV 8 % and IRR of 24%(11).

LAC last reported proven and probable mineral reserves for Vizcachitas of 1,220 million tonnes at 0.36% copper, 136 ppm molybdenum and 1.1 g/t silver. LAC also reported measured & indicated resources at Vizcachitas of 1,541 million tonnes at 0.38% copper, 155 ppm molybdenum, and 1.1 g/t silver(11).

About Nova

Nova Royalty Corp. is a copper and nickel focused royalty company. Nova has assembled a portfolio of royalties on a significant proportion of the next generation of major copper projects located in 1st-tier jurisdictions, providing investors exposure to some of the most critical resource assets for the clean energy transition. These projects are being advanced by the world's premier mining companies, which include First Quantum, Lundin Mining, Hudbay, Anglo American and Glencore, among others. The Company is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia and is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the trading symbol "NOVR" and on the US OTCQB under the trading symbol "NOVRF".

ON BEHALF OF NOVA ROYALTY CORP.,

(signed) "Hashim Ahmed"

Interim Chief Executive Officer

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notes:

(1) Refer to Aura Minerals' Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023. (2) Refer to Aura Minerals' Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2022. (3) Refer to First Quantum Minerals Management's Discussion and Analysis for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023. (4) Refer to First Quantum Minerals' NI 43-101 Technical Report Titled "Taca Taca Project, Salta, Argentina" prepared by David Gray (QP) BSc (Geology), (MAusIMM, FAIG), Group Mine and Resource Geologist, FQM (Australia) Ltd., filed November 30, 2020, amended and restated March 30, 2021. (5) Refer to Hudbay's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022. (6) Refer to Hudbay's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023. (7) Refer to Hudbay's NI 43-101 Technical Report entitled "Preliminary Economic Assessment Copper World Complex, Pima County, Arizona USA" prepared by Olivier Tavchandjian P.Geo, Vice-President, Exploration and Technical Services, Hudbay. Effective as of May 1, 2022 and filed July 14, 2022. (8) Refer to Lundin Mining's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the quarter ended March 31, 2023. (9) Refer to Lundin Mining's press release titled "Lundin Mining Announces 2022 Production Results & Provides 2023 Guidance" on January 12, 2023. (10) Refer to Lundin Mining's NI 43-101 Technical Report titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report, Feasibility Study for the Josemaria Copper-Gold Project, San Juan Province, Argentina" prepared under the supervision of Andy Thomas, P.Eng. of SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc., dated November 5, 2020 with an effective date of September 28, 2020. (11) Refer to Los Andes Copper's NI 43-101 Technical Report Titled "Vizcachitas Project Pre-Feasibility Study, Valparaiso Region, Chile" prepared by Severino Modena, (QP) BSc, Mining Engineer, (MAusIMM, Member of Chilean Mining Commission), General Manager Sudamerica, Tetra Tech, filed April 1, 2023.



Technical and Third-Party Information

Nova has limited, if any, access to the properties on which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest. The Company may from time to time receive operating information from the owners and operators of the mining properties, which it is not permitted to disclose to the public. Nova is dependent on (i) the operators of the mining properties and their qualified persons to provide information to Nova, or (ii) publicly available information to prepare disclosure pertaining to properties and operations on the properties on which Nova holds royalty or other interests, and generally has limited or no ability to independently verify such information. Although Nova does not have any knowledge that such information may not be accurate, there can be no assurance that such third-party information is complete or accurate. Some reported public information in respect of a mining property may relate to a larger property area than the area covered by Nova's royalty or other interest. Nova's royalty or other interests may cover less than 100% of a specific mining property and sometimes may only apply to a portion of the publicly reported mineral reserves, mineral resources and or production from a mining property.

Unless otherwise indicated, the technical and scientific disclosure contained or referenced in this press release, including any references to mineral resources or mineral reserves, was prepared in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). Canadian standards for public disclosure of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects differ significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K (the "SEC Modernization Rules"). Nova is not currently subject to the SEC Modernization Rules. Accordingly, the scientific and technical information contained or referenced in this press release may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the SEC. Modernization Rules.

"Inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Historical results or feasibility models presented herein are not guarantees or expectations of future performance.

Qualified Person

Technical information contained in this press release originates in the public disclosure set out above and has been reviewed and approved by Christian Rios, AIPG Certified Professional Geologist, Advisor to Nova and a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. The forward-looking statements herein are made as of the date of this press release only, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budgets", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "projects", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to future events or future performance of Nova; the existence of future business opportunities; the expected production at Aranzazu in 2023; the planned drill program at Aranzazu for 2023; ESIA approval for Taca Taca and the expected timing thereof; approval of an additional environmental permit for Taca Taca and the timing thereof; completion of water supply studies and pump tests by First Quantum to support the application for a concession for borefield water supply and expected timing thereof; the filing of water permit applications by First Quantum and the timing thereof; obtaining of construction permits for the power development line at Taca Taca; obtaining state and local permits for Copper World and expected timing thereof; the continued advancement of pre-feasibility activities for Phase I of the Copper World Complex and timing thereof; the release of a pre-feasibility study for Phase I of the Copper World and the timing thereof, conducting a bulk sampling program and minority joint venture partner process and the expected timing thereof; the continued work at Josemaria; the incorporation into the bi-annual EIA update submission of a program to initiate studies for water and permit requirements and the timing thereof; the progress of agreements with provincial governments and of a project union agreement for construction; the incorporation of infill drilling and assaying completed in Josemaria in 2021 and 2022 into future Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates; other potential developments relating to, or achievements by the counterparties for Nova's stream and royalty agreements, and with respect to mines or other properties Nova has, or may acquire, a stream or royalty interest; estimates of future productions, costs and other financial or economic measures; disclosure regarding any payments to be paid to Nova by property owners or operators of mining projects pursuant to net smelter returns and other royalty agreements; and future expectations regarding royalties and streams of Nova.

Such forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of Nova to control or predict, that may cause Nova's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out herein, including, but not limited to, risks associated with the impact of general business and economic conditions; the absence of control over mining operations from which Nova will purchase precious metals or from which it will receive stream or royalty payments and risks related to those mining operations, including risks related to international operations, government and environmental regulation, delays in mine development, construction and operations, actual results of mining and current exploration activities, conclusions of economic evaluations and changes in project parameters as plans are refined; problems related to the ability to market precious metals or other metals; industry conditions, including commodity price fluctuations, interest and exchange rate fluctuations; interpretation by government entities of tax laws or the implementation of new tax laws; regulatory, political or economic developments in any of the countries where properties in which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest are located or through which they are held; risks related to the operators of the properties in which Nova holds a royalty or stream or other interest, including changes in the ownership and control of such operators; risks related to global pandemics, including the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) global health pandemic, and the spread of other viruses or pathogens; influence of macroeconomic developments; business opportunities that become available to, or are pursued by Nova; reduced access to debt and equity capital; litigation; title, permit or license disputes related to interests on any of the properties in which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest; the volatility of the stock market; competition; future sales or issuances of debt or equity securities; use of proceeds; dividend policy and future payment of dividends; liquidity; market for securities; enforcement of civil judgments; and the risk factors set out under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form dated March 23, 2023 and other filings available for review on the Company's profile at www.sedar.com. Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.
Vancouver, BC - TheNewswire - May 18, 2023 - Manning Ventures Inc. (the Company or Manning) (CSE:MANN) (Frankfurt:1H5) (OTC:MANVF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an Option Agreement (the Option Agreement) with Gravel Ridge Resources Ltd. and Perry Vern English (collectively, the Owners) who are the legal and beneficial holders of 44 mineral claims located in the Province of Ontario (the Property) whereby the Owners have granted the Company the right to acquire a 100% interest in the Property.

The Kaba Project is an approximately 2,600-hectare Copper-Lithium exploration property located 50km northeast of the town of Nipigon, the junction of the Trans-Canada Highways 11 and 17, in northwestern Ontario, Canada. Logging roads provide excellent access.

Two copper occurrences on the property are intimately associated with the northwest trending Eastborne Hall Lake Fault, a product of late-stage Mid Continental Rifting (Figure 2). The occurrences are contained within copper-rich breccias and veins, with chalcopyrite, bornite and pyrite associated with quartz breccia hosted within biotite granite and diabase.

The Company also targeted the project for its Lithium potential. The Property is situated approximately 15kms east of the Barbara Lake Pegmatite field, where numerous discoveries of Li-bearing pegmatites have recently occurred. Currently there are multiple companies both developing and exploring for lithium in the immediate area (Figure 1).

Ground and magnetic surveys were completed on the Kaba ground in 1968 by Anglo-American. Two anomalies, 275m and 180m long, were outlined by magnetics. The EM survey indicated mineralization extended for 1200m. Drilling by Anglo highlighted 26.5m grading 1% Cu and 17.3m grading 0.54% Cu (MDI42E04NE00007). There were no analyses for gold.

Most copper assays were whited out in the assessment report. Other intervals include 2.02% Cu over 4.27m and 1.26% Cu over 3.65m. Chip samples in 1979 by Stinson reported 0.32% Cu over 9.14m (AFRI 42E04NE8355).

Very little systematic exploration and drilling has been completed along the copper-bearing structure with the last drill program completed in 1980 (3 holes for 172m). No assays are available.



Figure 1: Kaba Cu-Li Project location, NW Ontario, Canada

Figure 2: Late rift stage hydrothermal deposits related to the Mid Continental Rift

The Barbara Lake area includes, among others, Imagine Lithium, which recently drilled 21m of 1.16% Li2O, and 5m of 1.12% Li20 (Imagine Lithium, News Release, October 19, 2022) and Rock Tech Lithiums Georgia Lake Project, where the Northern Spodumene Pegmatite Area has a Measured resource of 2.31mt at 1.04% Li2O and an Indicated resource of 4.31mt at 0.99% Li2O (Rock Tech 43-101 PEA, March 15, 2021).

When this project came to our attention we werent necessarily looking to add to our portfolio, however once we completed due diligence we felt it is a compelling exploration target worth pursuing, said CEO, Alex Klenman. The historical copper numbers are excellent and the prospectivity appears evident, but the geology, location, and recent lithium exploration success in the immediate area also make the project highly prospective for lithium-bearing pegmatites, which fits firmly within our current exploration focus. Were going to get active on the property in near term and were looking forward to getting on the ground, continued Mr. Klenman.

The Company is currently planning an initial expoloration program for Kaba to be conducted in the coming weeks and will announce details shortly.

Terms

Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Option Agreement and in order to acquire a 100% interest in and to the Property, the Company must:

pay the Owners an aggregate of $90,600 in cash, over a three-year period following the excuection of the Option Agreement (the date of execution being referred to herein as the Effective Date); issue the Owners an aggregate of 500,000 common shares in the capital of the Company Manning within five (5) business days of the Effective Date; incur an aggregate of at least $20,000 in exploration expenditures on the Propertyby the one (1) year anniversary of the Effective Date; and grant the Owners a royalty equal to one and one-half percent (1.5%) of net smelter returns from the Property, which may be reduced at any time from one and one-half percent (1.5%) of net smelter returns to one percent (1.0%) of net smelter returns by the Company paying to the Owners an aggregate of $600,000.

All securities issued in connection with the Option Agreement will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Qualified Person

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Company. The QP and the Company has not completed sufficient work to verify the historic information on the properties comprising the Kaba Property, particularly regarding historical exploration, neighbouring companies, and government geological work.

About Manning

Manning is a broad-based mineral exploration and development company with a focus in Canada. Manning holds a 100% interest in the Bounty Lithium Project, located in Quebec, and the Dipole Lithium Project, in Newfoundland. The Company also retains interest in six Iron Ore properties located in the Province of Quebec, and portfolio of polymetallic projects in Newfoundland.

For further information contact:

Manning Ventures Inc.

Alex Klenman - CEO

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Telephone: (604) 681-0084

www.manning-ventures.com

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

The Canadian Securities Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to sell any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the U.S. Securities Act) or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold within the United States, or to or for the account or benefit of any U.S. person or any person in the United States, unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. United States and U.S. Person are as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act.

Some of the statements contained in this news release are forward-looking statements and information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of words such as anticipates, plans, expects, intends, is expected, potential, suggests or variations of such words or phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results may, could, should, would, might or will be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are not historical facts and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties beyond the Companys control. Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - enCore Energy Corp. (NYSE American: EU) (TSXV: EU) (the "Company" or "enCore") today announced the South Texas Alta Mesa In Situ Recovery("ISR") Uranium Central Processing Plant upgrades and refurbishments are ahead of schedule and under budget. This follows the previously announced (EU News Release - March 15, 2023) formal production decision for the resumption of uranium production in early 2024. The Company also announces continuing positive results from the wellfield delineation drill program and a newly discovered mineralized zone at the Alta Mesa wellfield.

Presently there are 6 drill rigs working at Alta Mesa with a 7th rig to be added shortly. The wellfield drilling operations, within Production Authorization Area 7 (PAA), which commenced in March 2023, are advancing rapidly with 81 holes drilled to date with drilling delineating the roll front mineralization within PAA-7. The Middle C unit, a productive sand, essential for ISR, in PAA-3 was not previously known to be mineralized under PAA-7. The drilling program has encountered unexpected significant grade in the Middle C unit underlying PAA-7, with grade thicknesses multiplied by the thickness of the mineralization at or above the cutoff value] ranging from 0.481 to 1.888 in 4 of the holes. Further drilling along trend will continue to delineate this new mineralized sand and is likely to increase the overall mineralization within PAA-7.

Of these holes, 14 are being cased as injection wells and 14 as recovery wells while further refined delineation drilling within the PAA continues to establish the exact pattern of injection and recovery wells from which to maximize production efficiency.

Significant highlights include:

Drill Hole Mineralized Horizon1 Grade % U 3 O 8 Thickness (feet) Grade

Thickness

(GT) 67-10 Lower C-upper 1 0.197 11 2.140 61-17 Lower C-upper 1 0.363 3.0 1.271 61-18 Lower C-upper 1 Lower C-upper 2 Lower C-lower 1 0.139 0.297 0.293 3.5 4.0 3.5 0.487 1.187 1.027 74-95 Lower C-upper 2 Lower C-lower 1 0.293 0.353 4.5 8.0 1.319 2.827 73-95 Middle C 0.146 3.5 0.509 55-15 Middle C Lower C-lower 1 0.272 0.131 5.5 3.0 1.496 0.392

1- All intercepts are located in the PAA-7 at Alta Mesa, which hosts mineralization within the Goliad Formation. The Company has identified five saturated (required for ISR), mineralized sandstone horizons within the Goliad Formation lying approximately 400 to 520 feet below the surface. The water level is located approximately 120 feet below surface.

The Alta Mesa Central Processing Plant (CPP) is advancing towards a restart of production and presently completing minor scheduled renovations with equipment upgrades and refurbishments underway. A thorough equipment evaluation determined 90% of the piping and valves are operational with limited maintenance requirements. Of 40 pumps and motors evaluated, including major pumps, 30 are being rebuilt and refurbished on site mitigating some supply chain risks. Longer lead time items now ordered are not critical for initial plant production start-up.

To view the Alta Mesa project maps and enCore Energy's South Texas projects please visit: https://bit.ly/3fV9fTg.

Alta Mesa In-Situ Recovery ("ISR") Uranium Central Processing Plant ("Alta Mesa CPP") & Project

The Alta Mesa CPP and project is a fully licensed and constructed ISR uranium project and CPP currently on standby, located on 200,000+ acres of private land in the state of Texas. Alta Mesa will be enCore's second producing location following resumption of uranium production at the South Texas Rosita Uranium Processing Plant ("Rosita") scheduled for 2023.

Total operating capacity is 1.5 million lbs U 3 O 8 (uranium) per year. Alta Mesa historically produced nearly 5 million lbs of U 3 O 8 between 2005 and 2013, when full production was curtailed as a result of low uranium prices at the time.

Alta Mesa Processing Plant and Project highlights include:

The Alta Mesa CPP is enCore's third fully licensed production facility, along with Rosita and Kingsville Dome CPP's, all located in the business-friendly state of Texas . There are only 11 licensed and constructed uranium production facilities in all of the United States (US);

. There are only 11 licensed and constructed uranium production facilities in all of (US); The Alta Mesa Processing Plant can reach commercial production levels with limited required capital, from funds on hand, within an estimated 10 months of announced production decision;

Advancing the Alta Mesa CPP, in conjunction with planned production in 2023 at the Rosita CPP, will cement enCore Energy's position as the early leader in In-Situ Recovery (ISR) uranium production in the US;

Alta Mesa's operations are located on private land, with 100% of minerals privately owned, and in a supportive jurisdiction with primary regulatory authority residing with the State of Texas ;

; The Alta Mesa Processing Plant utilizes well-known ISR technology to extract uranium in a non-invasive process using natural groundwater and oxygen, coupled with a proven ion exchange process, to recover the uranium.

Alta Mesa & Mestena Grande Mineral

Resource Summary (0.30 GT cut-off)1,2 Tons ('000) Avg. Grade (% U 3 O 8 ) Pounds ('000) Total Measured Mineral Resource1 54 0.152 164 Alta Mesa Indicated Mineral Resource 1,397 0.106 2,959 Mestena Grande Indicated Mineral Resource 119 0.120 287 Total Measured & Indicated Resources 1,570 0.109 3,410 Alta Mesa Inferred Mineral Resource 1,263 0.126 3,192 Mestena Grande Inferred Mineral Resource 5,733 0.119 13,601 Total Inferred Resources 6,996 0.120 16,793

1.2 Represents that portion of the in-place mineral resource that are estimated to be recoverable within existing wellfields. Wellfield recovery factors have not been applied to indicated and inferred mineral resources. As reported in the NI-43-101 Technical Report Summary for the Alta Mesa Uranium Project, Brooks and Jim Hogg Counties, Texas, USA completed by Doug Beahm, PE, PG, of BRS Engineering. (Effective January 19, 2023).

The Company advises that it is not basing its production decisions at Alta Mesa or Rosita on a feasibility study of mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability. The production decision is based on known past In-Situ Recovery (ISR) and processing operations at these two production facilities and surrounding lands. However, the Company understands that there is increased uncertainty, and consequently a higher risk of failure, when production is undertaken in advance of a feasibility study. In addition, the mineral resource at Alta Mesa includes inferred resources which are considered too speculative geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. The Company has determined to proceed with a production decision based on past operations at Alta Mesa and Rosita, including past ISR operations in the known mineral resource areas.

Year End Financial Statements

The Company also announces that its Annual Information Form, Consolidated Annual Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities. enCore has also filed its Annual Report on Form 40-F for the year ended December 31, 2022, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these documents may be obtained via www.sedar.com, www.sec.gov (for the Form 40-F) or www.encoreuranium.com.

Shareholders may also receive a hard copy of these documents without charge upon request to enCore Energy Corp, 1200  750 W. Pender Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 2T8, or to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Stock Option Grant

The Company also announces that it has granted incentive stock options (the "Options") to certain of its directors, officers and related party consultants to purchase an aggregate of up to 2,075,000 common shares in the capital of the Company at a price of $2.79 CDNper share for a five-year period, in accordance with its Stock Option Plan. Vesting will occur over a period of twenty-four months, with an initial 25% of the Options vesting six months following the date of grant, followed by an additional 25% of the Options every six months thereafter until fully vested.

John M. Seeley, Ph.D., P.G., C.P.G., enCore's Manager of Geology and Exploration, and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure in this news release on behalf of enCore.

About enCore Energy Corp.

enCore Energy Corp. is committed to providing clean, reliable, and affordable domestic nuclear energy by becoming the next United States uranium producer in 2023. enCore solely utilizes In-Situ Recovery (ISR) for uranium extraction, a well-known and proven technology co-developed by the leaders at enCore Energy. In-Situ Recovery extracts uranium in a non-invasive process using natural groundwater and oxygen, coupled with a proven ion exchange process, to recover the uranium. Uranium production is planned at enCore's licensed and past-producing South Texas Rosita Processing Plant in 2023, and at its licensed and past-producing South Texas Alta Mesa Processing Plant in 2024. Future projects in enCore's production pipeline include the Dewey-Burdock project in South Dakota and the Gas Hills project in Wyoming, along with significant uranium resource endowments in New Mexico providing long-term opportunities. The enCore team is led by industry experts with extensive knowledge and experience in all aspects of ISR uranium operations and the nuclear fuel cycle. enCore diligently works to realize value from other owned assets, including our proprietary uranium database that includes technical information from many past producing companies, from our various non-core assets, and by leveraging our ISR expertise in researching opportunities that support the use of this technology as applied to other metals. enCore is also committed to working with local communities and indigenous governments to create positive impact from corporate developments.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information contained in this news release, including: any information relating to the Company being a leading uranium company; and any other statements regarding future expectations, beliefs, goals or prospects; may constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). All statements in this news release that are not statements of historical fact (including statements containing the words "expects", "is expected", "does not expect", "plans", "anticipates", "does not anticipate", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "scheduled", "forecast", "budget" and similar expressions or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken) should be considered forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are subject to important risk factors and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's ability to control or predict. Forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks, including, without limitation, risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry events; future legislative and regulatory developments; that results of past mining operations at the Alta Mesa and Rosita sites are indicative of the results of proposed mining activities at those sites; that a production decision will result in actual production commencing and that such production will be economically viable over time; the ability of enCore to implement its business strategies; and other risks. A number of important factors could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those indicated or implied by such forward-looking statements, including without limitation exploration and development risks, changes in commodity prices, access to skilled mining personnel, the results of exploration and development activities; production risks; uninsured risks; regulatory risks; defects in title; the availability of materials and equipment, timeliness of government approvals and unanticipated environmental impacts on operations; risks posed by the economic and political environments in which the Company operates and intends to operate; increased competition; assumptions regarding market trends and the expected demand and desires for the Company's products and proposed products; reliance on industry equipment manufacturers, suppliers and others; the failure to adequately protect intellectual property; the failure to adequately manage future growth; adverse market conditions, the failure to satisfy ongoing regulatory requirements and factors relating to forward looking statements listed above which include risks as disclosed in the companies' annual information form filings. Should one or more of these risks materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. The Company assumes no obligation to update the information in this communication, except as required by law. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in filings by the Company with the various securities commissions which are available online at www.sec.gov and www.sedar.com. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of providing information about the current expectations, beliefs and plans of management. Such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes and readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, that speak only as of the date hereof, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - TinOne Resources Inc. (TSXV: TORC) ("TinOne" or the "Company") is pleased to announce a non-brokered private placement financing of up to 7,692,308 units of the Company (the "Units") at a price of C$0.12 per Unit for gross proceeds of up to C$1,000,000 (the "Financing"). Each Unit is comprised of one common share of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole common share purchase warrant, a "Warrant") of the Company. Each Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one common share of the Company at an exercise price of C$0.25 for a period of 24 months following the closing date of the Financing.

"We are extremely encouraged by the drill results from our exploration program at the Company's Great Pyramid tin project and the unexpected lithium find at our Aberfoyle project, both of which are located in the Tier 1 mining jurisdiction of Tasmania, Australia," commented Chris Donaldson, Executive Chairman. "Additional funds raised in this placement will allow TinOne to achieve key catalysts by enabling us to update the resource for Great Pyramid and extend the exciting lithium and tin mapping and sampling program at Aberfoyle. This small financing allows new and existing shareholders of our highly prospective tin company that has critical mineral assets in a Tier 1 jurisdiction, to participate at an attractive level."

In connection with the Financing, the Company may pay finder's fees up to 6% cash and up to 6% in finder's warrants to eligible finders. Closing of the Financing is subject to receipt of all necessary approvals, including that of the Board of Directors and the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued in connection with the Financing will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance in accordance with applicable securities legislation in Canada.

The subscription by insiders pursuant to the Financing is considered to be a related party transaction subject to Multilateral Instrument 61-101. The Company intends to rely on exemptions from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements provided under sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(a) of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 on the basis that participation in the private placement by insiders will not exceed 25% of the fair market value of the Company's market capitalization.

Proceeds from the Financing will be used for exploration and working capital purposes.

About TinOne

TinOne is a TSX Venture Exchange listed Canadian public company with a high-quality portfolio of tin, tin/tungsten and lithium projects in the Tier 1 mining jurisdictions of Tasmania and New South Wales, Australia. The Company controls some of the most important tin districts in Tasmania, including Aberfoyle, Rattler Range and Great Pyramid and is focused on advancing its highly prospective portfolio. TinOne is supported by Inventa Capital Corp.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release includes certain "ForwardLooking Statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forwardlooking information" under applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "plan", "forecast", "may", "would", "could", "schedule" and similar words or expressions, identify forwardlooking statements or information. These forwardlooking statements or information relate to, among other things: the development of the Company's projects; future mineral exploration, development and production; and the release of exploration results.

Forwardlooking statements and forwardlooking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of TinOne, future growth potential for TinOne and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of gold and other metals; no escalation in the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; TinOne's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.

These statements reflect TinOne's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information and TinOne has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on early stage mineral projects; metal price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities in Australia; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; risks regarding mineral resources and reserves; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects, including the inaccuracy of reserves and resources, metallurgical recoveries and capital and operating costs of such projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of COVID-19; the economic and financial implications of COVID-19 to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities and artisanal miners; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in TinOne's management discussion and analysis. Readers are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information. Although TinOne has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. TinOne does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.
VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Vortex Metals Inc. (TSXV: VMS) (FSE: DM8) (OTC: VMSSF) ("Vortex" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the initiation of its comprehensive environmental and surface geological studies at its Zaachila Copper project. The commencement of this work marks a significant milestone in the project's advancement.

Building on the previous identification of copper mineralization (Ref:Company's NI 43-101 report filed on Sedar), Vortex Metals will begin an extensive program of environmental baseline studies and corresponding surface geological work. This undertaking is designed to deepen the understanding of the project's potential using an integrated approach in the documentation of the project's environmental state including the geologic environment.

The environmental and surface geological activities, which began on May 15th, have been made possible due to the previously announced community approval, granted following a general assembly meeting held with the local people residing at the Zaachila project. Vortex Metals is deeply committed to conducting responsible and sustainable operations, with a steadfast dedication to environmental stewardship and community engagement.

Under the expert guidance of Ambiental y Social Servicios Integrales (ASSI), a renowned Mexican environmental firm, a team of 10 environmental specialists, supported by local community field assistants, will diligently gather vital data over the course of approximately 15 days. The study will focus on land uses defined by the esteemed National Institute of Statistics Geography (INEGI) and informatics, encompassing an extensive area of 500 hectares.

The findings of the Environmental and surface geological work will serve as a crucial tool to protect the local environment, benefitting both the community and Vortex Metals. Additionally, the environmental study will form the basis of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to be submitted to the Federal Environmental Office, The Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT). Seeking approval for advanced mineral exploration activities, including drilling, the company is poised to advance its pursuit of multiple high-grade copper targets.

Vikas Ranjan, Chief Executive Officer of Vortex Metals, expressed his enthusiasm for this significant milestone, stating, "The launch of our comprehensive Environmental and surface geologic studies at the Zaachila project represents a pivotal moment for Vortex, as it brings us closer to exploring multiple high-grade copper targets previously identified in geochemical targeting analysis by VMS expert and Vortex Metals' advisor, Jim Franklin. Vortex remains fully committed to environmental sustainability, and we are grateful for the local community's support and collaboration throughout this process."

Qualified Person / Quality Control and Quality Assurance

Robert Johansing, M.Sc. Econ. Geol., P. Geo., is a qualified person ("QP") as defined by NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical content of this press release.

About Vortex Metals Inc.

Vortex Metals Inc. is the parent company of Mexican subsidiary Empresa Minera Acagold, S.A. de C.V., which is the owner of a 100% interest in two drill-ready high-potential copper volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) properties (Riqueza Marina and Zaachila) in the state of Oaxaca, and a third high-potential gold property (El Rescate) in the state of Puebla. The Oaxaca projects incorporate the most highly prospective areas of high-grade copper mineralized surface exposures ('gossans') and prominent gravity anomalies along an emerging copper VMS belt that includes Minaurum Gold's (TSXV: MGG) Santa Marta project.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward looking statements that are made as of the date hereof and are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions which involve risks and uncertainties associated with our business including permitting approvals, any private placement financings, the uncertainty as to whether further exploration will result in the target(s) being delineated as a mineral resource, capital expenditures, operating costs, mineral resources, recovery rates, grades and prices, estimated goals, expansion and growth of the business and operations, plans and references to the Company's future successes with its business and the economic environment in which the business operates. All such statements are made pursuant to the 'safe harbour' provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under, applicable Canadian securities legislation. Any statements contained herein that are statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements require us to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. We caution readers of this news release not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual results or conditions to differ materially from current expectations. Please refer to the risks set forth in the Company's most recent annual MD&A and the Company's continuous disclosure documents that can be found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The Company does not intend, and disclaims any obligation, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- DENZA, the premium auto brand majority-owned by BYD, earlier this week released a drifting video of the DENZA N7 SUV as the approach where the iADC (intelligent Adaptive Drift Control) system made its worlds debut.

Car drifting is essentially a "glorious loss of control," requiring professional driving skills to precisely control the torque and lift the car into a drift, said DENZA. The iADC system, which is installed onto the DENZA N7 first, achieves intelligent distribution of front and rear axle torque through real-time integration control of suspension damping, height, drive torque, and braking torque. Using the system, the driver does not need to have absolute precise power control, but just need to step on the accelerator and promptly counter-steer to maintain the posture, enabling continuous drifting, according to DENZAs introduction.

iADC-powered DENZA N7; photo credit: DENZA

In addition, the iADC system sets the drifting action into 10 adjustable levels based on the vehicle's posture angle, including "Novice Mode," "Player Mode," and "Master Mode," providing phased intelligent assistance to users for drifting, making drifting operations simpler and lowering the user's threshold of experience, the automaker added. If drifting goes out of control, the system will also coordinate with ESP to stabilize the vehicle and limit torque, ensuring the stability of the vehicle in extreme conditions and safeguarding driving safety while experiencing the joy of drifting.

Moreover, the DENZA N7's Super Sense interactive intelligent cockpit will also synchronize with the in-car ambiance to further enhance the joy of drifting. When the iADC intelligent drifting control system is activated with a single click, the vehicle's height automatically lowers, and the HUD, instrument cluster, and central control display inside the car will simultaneously show real-time vehicle parameters, creating an immersive drifting driving atmosphere. This allows for the visualization of dynamic vehicle parameters and quantifiable dynamic analysis, as well as recording and analysis capabilities, further enhancing the driving enjoyment of the DENZA N7.
Vancouver, BC - TheNewswire - May 18, 2023 - Carmanah Minerals Corp. (CSE:CARM), (Carmanah or the Company) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Karim Rayani as a Strategic Advisor and Arranger to the Company.

For the past 18 years, Mr. Rayani has been focused on financing both international and domestic mineral exploration and development. Currently, Mr. Rayani is a principal of R7 Capital Ventures Ltd., an investment family office firm with a diverse portfolio covering Natural Resources, Energy, Cleantech, Renewables, and Health related ventures all with a focus on Public Venture Capital. Prior to this, he worked independently as a Management Consultant and Financier. Presently, he also serves as Chief Executive Officer, Director of Falcon Gold Corp., Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Director of Power One Resources Corp., Chief Executive Officer, Director of Latamark Resources Corp., Chief Executive Officer, Director of Marvel Discovery Corp., Chairman, Director of District 1 Exploration Corp., and Chief Executive Officer, Director of Auvega Labs Inc.

The Company notes that R7 Capital Ventures Ltd., a company controlled by Mr. Rayani subscribed to the Companys most recent private placement offering as lead order, subscribing to 1,536.60 million units. The offering closed on May 04, 2023. Mr. Rayani now holds directly or indirectly, 3,563,601 Shares, 1,536,601 Warrants, and 215,000 Options, representing 18.04% of Carmanahs current issued and outstanding common shares on a non-diluted basis, or 24.71% on a partially diluted basis (assuming the exercise of the Warrants and Options).

We are honored to have Karim act as an advisor to the board and to have acquired a substantial position in Carmanah, his experience and success in mining finance and M&A ventures will be of great importance as we develop our Rare Earth and Energy projects. Stated Fraser Rieche, Carmanahs Chief Executive Officer, Director.

About Carmanah Minerals Corp.

Carmanah Minerals Corp. is a Canadian junior exploration company focused on a diversified portfolio covering Precious Metals, Energy, and Critical Elements. The Company recently signed a Joint Venture agreement with Marvel Discovery Corp. to earn a 50% interest in the Walker Claims located along the prolific Key Lake fault adjacent to Camecos Mine and Mill in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan. The Walker and KLR Properties lie within the WollastonMudjactic transition zone (WMTZ) of the eastern Athabasca basin, which is host to the highestgrade uranium mines in the world. Carmanah is also actively exploring the Loljuh gold project, located in the Omineca mining division in British Columbia.

For further information, please view the Companys filings at www.sedar.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Fraser Rieche

Chief Executive Officer, Director

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Telephone: +1 (604) 670-0019

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information:

This news release includes certain forwardlooking statements and forwardlooking information (collectively, forwardlooking statements) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding future capital expenditures, anticipated content, commencement, and cost of exploration programs in respect of the Companys projects and mineral properties, anticipated exploration program results from exploration activities, resources and/or reserves on the Companys projects and mineral properties, the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, anticipated completion of the Private Placements, including the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange for the Private Placements, are forwardlooking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Often, but not always, forward looking information can be identified by words such as pro forma, plans, expects, will, may, should, budget, scheduled, estimates, forecasts, intends, anticipates, believes, potential or variations of such words including negative variations thereof, and phrases that refer to certain actions, events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. In making the forwardlooking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation, that market fundamentals will result in sustained precious and base metals demand and prices, the receipt of any necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in connection with the future exploration of the Companys properties, that the COVID19 global pandemic will not affect the ability of the Company to conduct the exploration program on its mineral properties, the availability of financing on suitable terms, and the Companys ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws.

Forwardlooking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forwardlooking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, statements as to the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, including the Companys proposed expenditures for exploration work on its mineral projects, the ability of the Company to obtain sufficient financing to fund its business activities and plans, delays in obtaining governmental and regulatory approvals (including of the Canadian Securities Exchange), permits or financing, changes in laws, regulations and policies affecting mining operations, risks relating to epidemics or pandemics such as COVID19, as well as those factors discussed under the heading Risk Factors in the Companys prospectus dated April 4, 2022, and other filings of the Company with the Canadian Securities Authorities, copies of which can be found under the Companys profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forwardlooking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any of the forwardlooking statements in this news release except as otherwise required by law.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.




CALGARY, Alberta, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pan American Energy Corp. (the Company or Pan American) (CSE: PNRG) (OTC PINK: PAANF) (FRA: SS6) is pleased to announce the Company has received approval on the submitted Notice of Amendment (NOA) to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Tonopah Field Office for exploration drilling at its 17,334 acre Horizon Lithium Project. The NOA captures the Companys adjusted drill program design to focus drilling on the central and Eastern portion of the property. The Company is fully permitted to drill up to twenty-two (22) lithium prospecting core holes with associated access on federal surface and mineral, under the management of the BLM  Tonopah Field Office, approximately 7.4 miles west of Tonopah, Esmeralda County, Nevada. The Company recently completed an eleven (11) hole Phase One (1) drill program that led to the discovery of a lithium cluster on the Horizon Lithium Project (Horizon).

Pan Americans CEO, Jason Latkowcer, commented Our Phase One program led to the discovery of a significant lithium cluster on our property. All drillholes encountered lithium, with wide areas of mineralization and results as high as 2,040 ppm lithium. In collaboration with RESPEC, our geological and operations partner, we submitted an amended drill program to the Bureau of Land Management, which was promptly approved. The updated program reflects the lessons learned from Phase One and focuses our drilling efforts on the central and eastern parts of the property. This approach is expected to help us generate an inferred resource by the end of the year. We are actively assessing the potential for additional exploration and drilling programs for the remaining two-thirds of the property.

The Company had been previously permitted for twenty-two (22) drill holes and submitted an amendment application to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to adjust the drill pattern as seen in Figure 1. Drill targets will be continuously evaluated to focus on the highest-priority drill holes which may include twinning of holes.

Figure 1 - Drill Hole Locations

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Tabetha Stirrett, P.Geo, who is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101.

About Pan American Energy Corp.

Pan American Energy Corp. (CSE: PNRG) (OTC PINK: PAANF) (FSE: SS60) is an exploration stage company engaged principally in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties containing battery metals in North America.

The Company executed an option agreement in Canada with Magabra Resources providing for the right to acquire up to a 90% interest in the drill-ready Big Mack Lithium Project, 80 km north of Kenora, Ontario. The Company has also entered a property option agreement with Horizon Lithium LLC providing for the right to acquire a 100% interest in the Horizon Lithium Project, located within Esmeralda County  Tonopah Lithium Belt, Nevada, USA.

To register for investor updates please visit https://panam-energy.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Jason Latkowcer

CEO & Director

Contact

Phone : (587) 885-5970

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Companys current beliefs or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the Companys planned drilling and sampling program, including the date upon which the Company expects to announce its phase one plans, the amount of drilling to be contained in such program and the proposed location of the exploration undertaken as part of the program, and the potential commercialization of the Property.

Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information, including, in respect of the forward-looking information included in this press release, the assumption that: the Company will be successful in commercializing the Property and that the Company will undertake its planned drilling and sampling program on the timeline and parameters that are currently expected. Such assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to the Company.

Although forward-looking information is based on the reasonable assumptions of the Companys management, there can be no assurance that any forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks inherent in the exploration and development of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters or delays as plans continue to be redefined, that mineral exploration is inherently uncertain and that the results of mineral exploration may not be indicative of the actual geology or mineralization of a Project, and that mineral exploration may be unsuccessful or fail to achieve the results anticipated by the Company, including the establishment of a commercial mining operation. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof, and the Company not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein.
Vancouver, BC - TheNewswire - May 17, 2023 - Radius Gold Inc. (TSXV:RDU) (Radius or the Company) is pleased to report that its previously announced proposed non-brokered private placement is over-subscribed, and accordingly has been increased to 11,259,983 units at a price of $0.175 per unit, for gross proceeds of $1,970,497. Each unit will consist of one common share of the Company and one warrant which will entitle the holder to purchase one common share at a price of $0.35 for a period of 24 months following the closing of the private placement.

The Company may pay a finders fee on a portion of the units sold. The net proceeds of the private placement are intended to be used to fund drilling and exploration efforts on Radiuss Tropico project, Mexico and for general working capital. Completion of the private placement is subject to approval by the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued pursuant to the private placement will be subject to the applicable statutory four-month hold period.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities described herein in the United States or in any other jurisdiction. The securities referred to in this news release have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act and may not be offered or sold without registration under the U.S. Securities Act and all applicable state securities laws or compliance with the requirements of an exemption from such registration.

Radius Gold Inc.

Radius has a portfolio of projects located in Mexico, United States and Guatemala which it continues to advance, utilizing partnerships where appropriate in order to retain the Companys treasury. At the same time, management is seeking out additional investment and project acquisition opportunities across the globe. Radius is a member of the Gold Group of companies, led by Simon Ridgway.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Bruce Smith

President and CEO

Symbol: TSXV-RDU

Contact: Bruce Smith

200 Burrard Street, Suite 650

Vancouver, BC V6C 3L6

Tel: 604-801-5432; Toll free 1-888-627-9378; Fax: 604-662-8829

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.radiusgold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking statements

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, are forward- looking statements and include, without limitation, statements about the results of exploration work and future plans at the Companys projects, and the proposed private placement. Often, but not always, these forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as estimate, estimates, estimated, potential, open, future, assumed, projected, used, detailed, has been, gain, upgraded, offset, limited, contained, reflecting, containing, remaining, to be, periodically, or statements that events, could or should occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including negative variations.

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 results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Such uncertainties and factors include, among others, whether the planned exploration work at the Companys projects will proceed as intended; that the private placement will be completed as planned; changes in general economic conditions and financial markets; the Company or any joint venture partner not having the financial ability to meet its exploration and development goals; risks associated with the results of exploration and development activities, estimation of mineral resources and the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; unanticipated costs and expenses; and such other risks detailed from time to time in the Companys quarterly and annual filings with securities regulators and available under the Companys profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended.

Forward-looking statements contained herein are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management, including but not limited to: that the Companys stated goals and the planned exploration and development activities at its properties will be achieved; that the private placement will be completed as planned; that there will be no material adverse change affecting the Company or its properties; and such other assumptions as set out herein. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law. 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, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.




VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 05, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- VR Resources Ltd. (TSX.V:VRR) (FSE:5VR) (OTCBB:VRRCF) (the " Company " or  VR ) is pleased to announce the acquisition of new ground to further expand the size of its Junction copper-silver property located in northern Nevada. In... Read More
Several rights groups announced on Wednesday that they have filed a new complaint in France against clothing giants Uniqlo and Inditex for allegedly profiting from forced labour of the Uyghur minority in China.

Allegations made in the complaint filed on Tuesday include crimes against humanity, aggravated reduction to servitude, genocide and human trafficking.

It was filed by anticorruption association Sherpa, the Ethique sur l'etiquette (Ethics on Labels) collective, the European Uyghur Institute and a Uyghur woman who had been held in a camp in Xinjiang, China.

An investigating judge is expected to be appointed in response to the filing.

The complainants say they want to bring to light "the possible responsibilities of clothing multinationals who profit from the forced labour of Uyghurs for the production of their products", particularly cotton items.

A previous case filed to the national anti-terror prosecutor's office in Paris, which looks into purported crimes against humanity, was dropped in April because it lacks "jurisdiction to prosecute the facts contained in the complaint".

They had accused Uniqlo France, a subsidiary of Fast Retailing, along with Inditex, the Spanish owner of Zara and other brands, the French fashion group SMCP, and footwear manufacturer Skechers of marketing products that were manufactured at least in part at factories where Uyghurs are subjected to forced labour, according to rights groups.

They estimate the number of people in forced labour in China exceeds one million.

The plaintiffs also believe the companies do not have sufficient control over their subcontractors.

The plaintiffs' lawyer William Bourdon hopes the French justice system will recognise their claim "on the basis of concealing crimes against humanity."

"Textile companies must account for having knowingly enriched themselves, at the cost of the most serious international crimes", he said, which is contrary to the ethical facade they present.

At the time of the first complaint, the fashion groups denied all claims of forced labour.

In addition to the four companies, other major brands such as Nike have faced similar accusations.

In response to the recent complaint, Inditex said "these accusations are unfounded".

"The company has rigorous traceability controls to ensure the provenance of its products and a zero-tolerance policy towards any kind of forced labor," Inditex said.

SMCP also responded, telling AFP that it had "already denied with the greatest firmness these accusations".

It added it expects its name will be dropped, as it had been following previous allegations stemming from a March 2020 report by Australian NGO Strategic Policy Institute, that ultimately removed SMCP and other groups from its findings.

Washington and other countries have called the crackdown a "genocide" of Muslim Uyghurs and the UN's High Commissioner of Rights has referred to their treatment as crimes against humanity.

The accusations have been rejected by Beijing, which presents the re-education centres condemned by the West as professional training centres to combat religious extremism and ensure social stability.

gd/pa/rhl/giv/rl

GROUPE SMCP

FAST RETAILING

NIKE

INDITEX - ZARA

ADIDAS
Rights groups announced on Wednesday they had filed a new complaint in France against clothing giants including Uniqlo and Zara owner Inditex for allegedly profiting from forced labour of the Uyghur minority in China.

The complaint, filed on Tuesday, includes allegations of crimes against humanity, aggravated reduction to servitude, genocide and human trafficking.

The companies denied using forced labour in their supply chains.

The complaint was filed by anticorruption association Sherpa, the Ethique sur l'etiquette (Ethics on Labels) collective, the European Uyghur Institute and a Uyghur woman who had been held in a camp in China's far west region of Xinjiang.

An investigating judge is expected to be appointed in response to the filing.

The complainants say they want to bring to light "the possible responsibilities of clothing multinationals who profit from the forced labour of Uyghurs for the production of their products", particularly cotton items.

A previous case filed to the national anti-terror prosecutor's office in Paris, which looks into purported crimes against humanity, was dropped in April because it lacks "jurisdiction to prosecute the facts contained in the complaint".

They had accused Uniqlo France, a subsidiary of Fast Retailing, along with Inditex, the Spanish owner of Zara and other brands, the French fashion group SMCP, and footwear manufacturer Skechers of marketing products that were manufactured at least in part at factories where Uyghurs are subjected to forced labour, according to rights groups.

The plaintiffs believe the companies do not have sufficient control over their subcontractors.

- 'Zero-tolerance policy' -

The plaintiffs' lawyer William Bourdon hopes the French justice system will recognise their claim "on the basis of concealing crimes against humanity."

"Textile companies must account for having knowingly enriched themselves, at the cost of the most serious international crimes", contrary to the ethical facade they present, he said.

In addition to the four companies, other major brands such as Nike have faced similar accusations.

Rights groups say more than one million Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities have been held in re-education camps in Xinjiang, with a slew of abuses that include forced labour.

Beijing denies the accusations, describing the facilities as vocational centres designed to curb extremism.

Inditex said the latest accusations were "unfounded".

"The company has rigorous traceability controls to ensure the provenance of its products and a zero-tolerance policy towards any kind of forced labor," Inditex said.

Fast Retailing said it had no been notified by the authorities but that, if and when it happens, it "will cooperate fully with the investigation to reaffirm there is no forced labour in our supply chains".

SMCP said it had "already denied with the greatest firmness these accusations".

It added that it expected its name would be dropped, as it had been following previous allegations stemming from a March 2020 report by Australian NGO Strategic Policy Institute, which ultimately removed SMCP and other groups from its findings.

Washington and lawmakers in other Western nations have called the crackdown in Xinjiang a "genocide" of Uyghurs and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has referred to their treatment as crimes against humanity.

gd/pa/rhl/jj

GROUPE SMCP

FAST RETAILING

NIKE

INDITEX - ZARA

ADIDAS
A former Mexican mayor was sentenced Wednesday to 92 years in prison for the kidnapping of six civil society leaders in 2013, judicial sources said.

Jose Luis Abarca, 62, was also fined 920,700 pesos (about $52,000) for the abductions in the city of Iguala in the southern state of Guerrero.

The victims included an agricultural leader, Arturo Hernandez Cardona, who was later found dead.

Abarca is also accused of involvement in one of Mexico's worst human rights atrocities -- the disappearance of 43 students in 2014 when he was mayor of Iguala.

He was arrested that year and is being held in a jail in central Mexico.

The students at a teacher training college had commandeered buses to travel to a demonstration in Mexico City before they went missing.

Investigators say they were detained by corrupt police and handed over to a drug cartel, though exactly what happened to them is disputed.

One theory is that cartel members targeted the students because they had unknowingly taken a bus with drugs hidden inside.

Last year, a truth commission tasked by the government to investigate the case branded it a "state crime" involving agents of various institutions.
Between February 24 and April 5, 2022, when the full-scale invasion launched by the Russian Federation started, Andriy Domansky was at his home in the occupied town of Vorzel, near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Enemy tanks were positioned right at his gate. During the first days of the occupation, Domansky and I were delivering food to a local orphanage. We all listened to Andriy since he was a lawyer, a counsellor, says Mykhailo Neymet, Domansky's neighbour. We would get in touch, climb up to the attic, find out from his friends, journalists and human rights activists what was the current situation in Ukraine.

Domanskys grandmother, a survivor of the Holodomor [a terror-famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in 1933-1934] had taught the family to keep food supplies at home. After the occupants arrived in Vorzel, he and his family tried not to leave their house unnecessarily. Some neighbours who went to the village centre to buy food disappeared without a trace. However, the Russian soldiers would soon visit the lawyer's home.

They came to my house, told me to wait for their chief, and then five soldiers came in with the commander, the lawyer said in an interview with Zlochyn.dp.ua [Crime and punishment]. As it turned out later, neighbours said that so-called Nazis were hiding in my house, so the occupiers were searching for them. It's an unpleasant feeling when a weapon is pointed at you, when your loved ones are standing behind you. The Russian officer made sure that I didn't have a basement in my house and luckily I wasn't hiding anyone.

If the occupiers had read the Ukrainian Wikipedia, I would not be alive today. After all, although I did not hide any Nazis in my house, I have repeatedly defended in court the interests of Ukrainian patriots [including members of the far right]. I am referring, in particular, to the cases of the Maidan protesters. In addition, among my clients are Bohdan Tytskyi, a leader of the OUN Ukrainian volunteer battalions and other individuals who are declared terrorists in Russia."

Joseph Stalin's lawyer

When the Russians came to his house, he says, he introduced himself as "lawyer Domansky. Those who came in checked their files, entered his name on a tablet. They came across an article about "Stalin's defender" and asked if it was true, then referred it to their command. Domansky is convinced this is the reason why nothing serious happened to him.It impressed the occupiers, so they did not touch Domansky and his family. This case [initiated by Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol] is still ongoing. In 2020, I was involved to fulfil the tasks of the criminal process and protect the interests of the suspects. My client is J. V. Stalin. Since Ukraine is a state governed by the rule of law, we provide legal aid even to suspects of a serious crime, even in absentia or deceased, explains the Ukrainian defence lawyer. Domansky is also known to have defended in court the interests of Kirill Vyshinsky, former head of the Ukraine branch of the Russian RIA Novosti. Vyshinsky spent more than a year in a Ukrainian detention centre on suspicion of treason and was released in 2019 as part of a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine.

According to Domansky, when they came in 2022 the Russian forces were not only hunting for Nazis but were also eradicating any trace of the heritage and memory of the Ukrainian people: "What I cannot forgive is my family photo albums. The occupiers destroyed the photos that I did not digitize and that I had put aside to do it later. My grandmother was on them wearing embroidered shirts and flower wreaths. Isn't this exactly what the Soviet government used to do? Destroying memory, the genetic code.

One day I was barbecuing and a [Russian] soldier approached my fence, surprised by the quality of life in Vorzel. He did not believe that ordinary Ukrainians could be living in the houses they saw. I realized one thing: the Russian occupiers were very envious. Who allowed you to live like this? I could read it in their eyes.

Also, as a person who has been taking care of animals all his life, Domansky says he was deeply shocked by the way the occupiers treated cats and dogs. The Russian military ate them, so the frightened pets would seek refuge in the homes of Vorzel residents. Personally, I had 10 dogs and 7 cats hiding in my house. A Rottweiler, a Dane, and three cats ate from the same bowl.

Defending the rule of law

By mid-April 2022, when they withdrew, Domansky swiftly returned to legal practice. The legal field was lacking specialists, and the need for professional assistance was very high. Since then, Domansky has been representing in courts the interests of persons subject to judicial and pre-trial special investigations in absentia. Today, Domansky has about 50 "Russian" cases on his record. He defends not only the military, but also senators and even the head of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, Valery Zorkin. The vast majority of cases relate to violations of the rules of war, looting, rape and murder of civilians in the Kyiv region.

I have known Andriy for ten years - he is a man of principle. He stands for the rule of law and it doesn't matter to him who he defends, explains Viktor Ovsyannikov, a former lawyer and now an officer in the Territorial Defence Forces. But there is a negative opinion about lawyers who defend the enemy in court. Why? The main problem is that the defence lawyer is often equated with the client.

Domansky highlights that Ukraine, as a state governed by the rule of law, guarantees legal assistance to any person, which often surprises the accused. I have had occasions when some of my clients would call me and ask if I was really their defence lawyer. Unfortunately, a part of the Ukrainian society does not understand that a lawyer is the same as a doctor who should provide assistance to any person. None of the crimes will go unpunished and every suspect will be offered legal assistance - these are the principles of the rule of law. Let's remember that there were lawyers at the Nuremberg trials.

A strong Bar means a strong state

Domansky also emphasizes that the defence of individuals who committed crimes during the war is the experience of a democratic country. In the future, he says, many of these matters will be transferred to the International Criminal Court (ICC), which will allow to further repair the harm caused to Ukraine by the Russian Federation. I will quote a classic: 'Learn from others and do not be ashamed of your own'. A functioning Bar is a confirmation that laws are working in Ukraine. A strong Bar means a strong state. And the way we position ourselves will either make us a nation for which European values do matter or it won't. We need to prioritize our wish not in searching traitors, but first and foremost to win.

This report is part of our coverage of war crimes justice produced in partnership with Ukrainian journalists. A first version of this article was published on the "Zlochyn" website.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On May 18, the day where BMW Group celebrated the 20th anniversary of BMW Brilliances foundation, the German luxury carmaker announced that it will produce its next-gen full electric vehiclesdubbed Neue Klassein Shenyang city, capital of China's Liaoning province, from 2026 onwards.

At the same time, BMW Group broke ground in the city an expansion project for its six-generation power battery production, which will involve a total investment of 10 billion yuan and cover a planned area of 240,000 square meters.

Photo credit: BMW China

In Nov. last year, BMW Group announced its joint venture in China, BMW Brilliance, would invest around 10 billion yuan to expand the battery production facility at its manufacturing base in Shenyang, as part of the efforts to expedite its transition towards electrification.

The new investment agreement followed a phase of extensive upgrading at the BMW production base in Shenyang, with both the Plant Dadong Extension and 15-billion-yuan Plant Lydia opening in the first half of 2022. Together with the opening of the iFACTORY Plant Lydia, the new battery production project will further strengthen BMW's BEV production capabilities in China.

BMW Brilliance's battery production facility started operations in 2017. The facility, which was the first of its kind built by global premium carmakers, expanded in 2020 with the completion of the second phase.
The beautiful month of May offers a slew of amazing works that will debut in its third week-from romance, comedy, fantasy, dystopian, medical drama and revenge!

Brand new episodes that are long-anticipated shouldn't be missed. If you're looking for a drama that will perfectly suit your taste, then this is for you! Keep on reading!

'Black Knight'

Kim Woo Bin, Kang Yoo Seok and Esom's dystopian series "Black Knight" recently premiered on Netflix to deliver a well-written and high scale work.

Set in the future South Korea, viewers are taken to a polluted environment where survival is scarce, and people live through respiratory masks that are delivered by "knights."

The Netflix drama also opens the audience's eyes to the blatant exploitation of the government amidst a huge economical crisis. If you love dystopian action dramas, then check out "Black Knight" now.

'Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938'

Lee Dong Wook returns to the small screen with "Tale of the Nine 1938" this summer.

The nine-tailed fox played by the Hallyu superstar is taken back in time in the big year of 1938 away from his loved ones, and is forced to fight unknown forces that threaten his existence.

Kim Bum, Kim So Yeon and Ryu Kyung Soo also reprised their roles in the work, much to fans' delight. Catch "Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938" every weekend at 9:20 p.m. KST on tvN.

'Doctor Cha'

Uhm Jung Hwa's comeback drama "Doctor Cha" is undoubtedly the hottest work of 2023.

The legendary star plays Cha Jung Suk, a housewife who pursues her medical career 20 years later after she beats an unexpected crisis in her life.

"Doctor Cha" has enjoyed an all-time high streak since its premiere, thanks to its flawlessly written premise and its ensemble's unstoppable energy.

In the remaining episodes, Cha Jung Suk is set to get her revenge from the people who have caused her pain. It airs during weekends at 10:30 p.m. KST on JTBC so don't miss it.

'One Day Off'

Lee Na Young returns to the small screen this May with the brand new web series "One Day Off" (also known as "Park Ha Kyung's Travel Journal").

Set in the early 1990s, the fantasy comedy series follows a high school teacher's one-day trips every weekend to find solace and create meaningful travel memories to escape her busy life.

The series consists of a total of eight episodes and it will air for the first time on May 24 on Wavve.

'B**ch X Rich'

The coming of age thriller series "B**ch X Rich" marks Red Velvet Yeri's return to the small screen.

In the upcoming work, Red Velvet Yeri challenges herself with the suspense genre as she and Lee Eun Saem, a rookie star, become a murder witness and suspect in a cold killer case inside their prestigious high school institution.

Red Velvet Yeri and Lee Eun Saem are expected to create an impressive synergy with Lee Jong Hyuk and Yoo Jung Hoo to further deliver a flawless thriller series.

"B**ch X Rich" boasts a total of 10 episodes and it will be available on streaming platforms Netflix, Wavve and Viu starting from May 31.

KDramaStars owns this article.

Written by Elijah Mully.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- DHL Global Forwarding, the freight specialist division of Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL), has deployed two new electric trucks and two new electric container tractors in Shanghai to expand its green fleet.

Photo credit: DHL

These four vehicles will collectively drive for over 20,000 kilometers of transportation distance per month, resulting in an estimated annual reduction of over 300 tonnes of carbon emissions. This initiative represents another significant step by DHL towards reducing its transportation carbon footprint and providing sustainable logistics solutions.

The successful deployment of the electric vehicles is made possible with the strong support from WorldEx Supply Chain Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. and Ruiyi Logistics Limited. As strategic partners of DHL in China, these two companies share the same vision for green logistics and will be responsible for the last-mile collection and delivery of goods.

DPDHL Group has been committed to investing 7 billion by 2030 to achieve clean operations. By 2030, the company aims to reduce its carbon emissions to below 29 million tonnes, in line with the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi). This includes increasing the use of sustainable fuels in air and ocean transportation, as well as electrifying 60% of the delivery vehicles for the last mile.
The City of Kelowna is actively promoting the so-called Brewery District in the North End, but has made no effort to promote something similar for the cannabis sector.
Government

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Key West won't oppose Pier B lease modification

The Key West City Commission voted unanimously to not oppose the proposed lease modification for cruise port operator Pier B Development at Tuesday nights regularly scheduled meeting.

Pier B Development  owned by the Walsh family and one of the largest privately owned resort management companies in the United States  is seeking a 25-year term and a 42-foot increase in length. That modification is a 4% expansion to the existing sovereignty submerged lands lease.

The request was sent to Floridas Department of Environmental Protection in April. After the city was notified of the modification request, new City Manager Albert Childress called a special meeting for commissioners to discuss the issue, with no action item on the agenda.

Commissioners were given four options: Stay neutral; total opposition; total support; or a compromise. The compromise would have opposed the lease modification but asked that the DEP review the temporary use agreement (TUA) annually.

During public comment, the Committee for Safer Cleaner Ships reversed its decision to ask the city to oppose the lease modification. Vice President Will Benson spoke on the groups behalf.

I know this is confusing and difficult, and we have all been through a lot on all sides, said Benson. We still have a lot of differences, but there are times we have to say that we agree to disagree and not drag the whole community through the mud and relitigate this issue.

Benson said the outcome was better than the city supporting the modification.

We were faced with the real possibility of the commission supporting a 25-year lease extension with Pier B, and thats something we werent willing to watch happen, said Benson. The DEP is failing at its basic mission and needs to answer for the documented turbidity problems in our harbor and channel. The original permit and submerged land lease were intended to reduce turbidity in the harbor and certainly did not account for these ships ever-growing size and draft and the increased turbidity they generate. Our leadership believes that finding a way through this debacle is best for the community.

Local attorney Micheal Halpern spoke on behalf of Pier B.

This is a very important day, as this is the first time both sides have been able to come together in a room and begin to heal our community, said Halpern.

The vote came at a time that the city is considering asking for a modification of its temporary use agreement for Mallory Pier and also seeks to mend its relationship with the Walsh family in hopes of obtaining Admirals Cut  a key component in unifying the Historic Seaport with Truman Waterfront Park.

I think this vote went how it should have, based on the facts, City Commissioner Clayton Lopez said. I think since we may be doing the same thing regarding our bay bottom lease and, of course, the fact that we dont have any real weight on their lease.

Lopez said that it was alluded to several times during the discussion that if the city were to oppose the lease outright, it would be ignored in Tallahassee.

The best we could have done would have been to suggest the compromise, he said. There was no way that solid opposition or support would have passed, in my opinion.

City lobbyist GrayRobinson had previously advised the commission that, although the climate in Tallahassee is more favorable for Key West than it had been in the previous two legislative sessions, if they had to take a stand to choose the compromise. The firm also represents several major cruise lines, including Carnival.

Safer Cleaner Ships, in the end, asked us not to take a position, and we listened to their recommendation, said Vice Mayor Sam Kaufman. I hope this signals a better relationship for all parties involved.

In other business, commissioners discussed planning as a municipality for hurricane season, which begins June 1.

Childress informed the commission that the city would be holding a tabletop exercise in emergency management on Thursday, June 1, but was reluctant to include commissioners.

I will have to think about involving the commission, said Childress. I will provide an update following (the exercise), but I think this is just for the working group that would be involved in an emergency.

Kaufman countered that commissioners have a lot of input on planning due to their own experiences.

All of us up here were involved with Irma and other storms, and there are a lot of lessons that were learned, said Kaufman. And there are a lot of mistakes that none of us want to repeat.

Lopez concurred.

All of us are very busy whenever these emergencies pop up, said Lopez. And you cannot make an emergency declaration without the mayor present. So I believe we just need to work more closely together on this.

The Key West City Commission now moves to a reduced meeting schedule during the summer months, on the second Thursday of every month through Dec. 14. Each meeting will be split into morning and afternoon sessions beginning at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. Opportunities for public comment will be available during each session.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for June 8, with no meeting in August.

ted.lund@keysnews.com
New York Mets star Pete Alonso was hyped after saving the day with a walk-off home run on Wednesday night against the Tampa Bay Rays. So hyped that he casually dropped an f-bomb at the end of an SNY post-game interview.

It has been far from an ideal season for the Mets, who came into the year with some very high expectations. This likely led to Alonso becoming so overjoyed in the moment that he completely forgot he was on live television.

The Mets miraculously forced extra innings after going into the ninth inning with a 5-2 deficit. Tampa Bay did not go away, scoring two runs in the top of the 10th inning. Alonso went on to save the day with a three-run home run in the bottom of the 10th to secure the win for New York.

Pete Alonso crushes a walk-off 3-run homer to give the Mets an 8-7 win over the Rays! ??pic.twitter.com/bcaPfVGU7e  The Comeback (@thecomeback) May 18, 2023

Alonso then discussed the moment in an SNY interview. He later ended the interview by dropping the f-bomb in a gesture toward the home crowd.

Hey, thanks for coming out, guys! Lets ******* go Mets!

Pete Alonso with an F-bomb in the SNY postgame interview after hitting a walk-off homer.  https://t.co/wFB8d72p1i pic.twitter.com/5nHkLcFBGC  Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 18, 2023

It clearly wasnt said with any malicious intent and was more to fire up the home crowd at Citi Field. Emotions were clearly running high in what is likely the best moment of the Mets season thus far. Regardless, it was a lapse of judgment that Alonso would probably take back if he could.

[Awful Announcing on Twitter] Photo Credit: SNY
Female lawyers have warned that the new proposed marriage reforms on cohabitation will not only cause a bad precedent but will also create more problems than solutions.

I think thats a very dangerous precedent, I do not agree with it as a lawyer, we might say we are protecting women but we might be very mistaken, people stay in relationships for different reasons, the law should be in the best interest of both women and men, said Ms Pheona Wall, the former Law Society President.

The time limit on cohabitation is among a raft of proposals in a private members bill titled The Marriage Bill, 2022 that is yet to be tabled by Tororo Woman MP Sarah Opendi.

Ms. Wall says such a proposal has both legal and social implications and also infringes on peoples private lives since it is plainly forcing them to get married even when there is no intent.

Marriage is a legally recognised contract, there is an offer and acceptance. There are places where they will presume a marriage for the sake of the benefit in what you did that would show intent, she argues.

According to Wall, marriage is a legally recognised contract, and advises that its international definition is highly benchmarked before it is passed.

For cohabitation to become a marriage, there must be a couple of things that are more than just you staying together, so far courts have used their discretion to grant things like custody, and maintenance by inferring marriage from the behaviour of the parties. Leaving that definition to the courts discretion depending on how the people behaved is much safer than legislating it into being, said Ms. Wall.

She insists that any law on marriage should be in the best interest of the married couple, both men and women, and not one gender, further adding that it should protect and not break human rights guaranteed by the constitution.

We must be very careful with the laws that we come up with, yes, you might be trying to protect people who are cohabiting or force people to meet their obligations but we have to ensure that there is intent, we do not want to pass laws that are going to create legal burden on people who had no intention to meet those burden, she added.
By Priscilla Maloba | Monitor

Police at Wandegeya, Kampala are investigating a case in which a private security guard allegedly shot himself dead Thursday morning as gun violence continues to rock the country.

Rogers Atuhaire attached to SGA Security Company is alleged to have shot himself dead at around 9am at Buganda road zone, Nakasero III parish, Kampala central division.

Atuhaire Rogers, who had been deployed at the beat for the past two days, was found dead at the scene. Initial reports suggest that the deceased was discovered by Okudu David, a day guard who had arrived for duty. David reported hearing the sound of a gun being cocked, assuming it was a routine safety precaution, said Kampala Metropolitan Police deputy spokesperson, ASP Luke Owoyesigyire. Read more
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Flagstaff City Council voted to approve a first read of the specific plan and zoning map amendments for phase one of the new Flagstaff Medical Center (FMC) at its meeting Tuesday.

Council chambers were still mostly full four hours into Tuesdays meeting, as city council resumed its public hearing of the plans that would last until almost midnight.

The same two items -- a phase one specific plan and zoning map amendment -- were up for a first reading as at Councils May 2 meeting. That meeting had ended with Council moving to table a first reading of both items after over six hours of discussion and public comment on the topic.

Tuesday's item was a continuation of the previous public hearing, with another set of presentations from Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH) and city staff, questions from city council and 40 comments from members of the public who had not spoken at the previous meeting.

First readings of the items passed with one dissenting vote from Vice Mayor Austin Aslan after a motion he introduced to postpone all action on the plan for six months failed without a second.

During Councils discussion, Mayor Becky Daggett and councilmembers Lori Matthews, Deborah Harris, Jim McCarthy, Miranda Sweet and Khara House all explained why they would vote in favor of the first reading.

Matthews emphasized that the decision was based on three findings city staff had presented to city council in the earlier meeting, rather than any of the several related concerns that had been brought up in public comment.

Council was discussing whether the requirements in those three findings were met by the specific plan and zoning map amendments that had been presented.

The items needed to conform to the general regional plan and be located on a "physically suitable" site as determined by a number of factors. They also could not be detrimental to the public interest, health, safety, convenience or welfare of the City of Flagstaff and will add to the public good as described in the general plan," according to staff's May 2 presentation.

Matthews said the items met the findings.

What were tasked with tonight is a zoning question, and I think nearly everyone agrees that we do need quality healthcare, she said.

She added: "We hear all these concerns and theyre very valid. Many of them aren't in the scope of what were deciding, but that doesn't mean that we don't recognize them and we don't appreciate and hear the concerns of the community.

Daggett and McCarthy both had conditions they asked to be added to the development agreement before the second reading, including restrictions on short-term rentals in housing on the campus and a shorter timeline for solar panel installation for McCarthy, and, for Daggett, input from sustainability and housing committees, third-party certification of energy goals and a condition that the city would have final approval on the site plans for both phases of the project.

NAH leaders agreed to the items, adding that they would need to discuss details on a few of the conditions with their attorney and the city in the next two weeks.

Before beginning her remarks, Harris asked city staff and NAH employees present at the meeting who had worked on the project to stand -- about 30 in total responded -- and said that while she had looked into the project herself, she also trusted their expertise.

I trust your expertise, and I have to do that and all of us have to do that, she said. We cannot run this city by ourselves. Every staff member, every NAH member, everyone that worked on this project brings a certain level of expertise to the table.

Harris later added: "There are going to be a whole bunch of answers that we dont have right now, but does that mean that we don't move forward with this? I say no, she said. Progress requires a decision. We have to make courageous decisions. Flagstaff is going to grow, it's going to continue to grow ... . That community that's here when I'm no longer here needs to have a state-of-the-art hospital.

Aslan's argument

Aslan suggested a different approach to the project, saying he would move to postpone any action on the campus for six months while the city looked more closely at the effects of renovating the existing hospital in comparison to the proposed move and worked to secure guarantees from NAH on a number of related issues.

He listed several issues, including infrastructure, transportation, the use of the current campus and additional carbon neutrality measures.

I see a lot of progress on these fronts, [and] I hope to see a lot more, he said. It's not about the quality and character of NAH, it's about what more can we achieve together when we put a little more planning, purpose and conversation into this. ... This is Flagstaffs biggest development in decades. We should all have a lot to say about it.

Like Matthews, he noted that his decision was based on the findings, but he said they had not yet been met. He noted that he saw the need for a new hospital and was open to acting in favor of the plans if they were supported by information found during a postponement.

I'm convinced that the serious all-hands-on-deck upgrades at our medical facilities and healthcare system in Flagstaff is essential and that our community and region can benefit from them, he said.  ... What we currently offer this region, while award-winning, is inadequate and will only become more so over time."

Aslan introduced this motion after all other councilmembers had made their remarks. The motion was not seconded, and city council then moved to complete a first read of the items, with all members voting in favor except for Aslan, who voted against them.

"We need to seriously tackle our ailing health infrastructure and update or upgrade our services," he said. "What I'm not convinced of is that it's necessary for NAH to start over with a completely new campus."

The project will return to city council in two weeks, when the items will be brought for a second reading, alongside discussion of the projects development agreement.

Community comments

Despite the hour, 40 residents stayed to comment on the project, with more than half asking Council to move it forward.

Because Tuesday was a continuation of the previous discussion, those who made comment at the May 2 meeting were asked not to comment again, as their opinions were already noted in the record. Even with that restriction, public comment lasted almost two hours, with 25 asking for a "yes" vote and 15 expressing concern.

Those speaking in favor of the project were a mix of healthcare workers, residents receiving care from FMC and representatives of local organizations.

That last category included Findlay Toyota's general manager, the City of Winslows economic development director and Flagstaff Junior Academys (FJA) board president, who said the school was in talks with NAH about using part the current campus for FJAs middle school building after their lease with the Flagstaff Unified School District expires.

Flagstaff resident Taylor Wiseman spoke about her and her family's experiences receiving care at FMC, saying that although the care was excellent, she had experienced long wait times and had needed to travel to the Valley to see specialists in areas that weren't available locally.

NAH has worked diligently for many years to find a solution to meet the increased needs of healthcare in the area that benefit the community, and this plan provides a great solution, she said. The new facility at Fort Tuthill will allow them to meet these increased needs, providing new areas of specialty care, higher levels of efficiency, which will lead to shorter wait times for patients in need and many other benefits to the community."

Nurse educator Caitlin Boren said she supported the campuss move both as a resident and healthcare worker at FMC, and shared her experience as a patient worrying about being placed in a shared room. She asked those watching to consider what their expectations were when receiving care from FMC.

In the acute care setting we don't just care for patients, we care for families, she said. Having private rooms and an outdoor space will provide a better care experience for all parties and produce a more welcoming environment for children trying to visit their parents or their grandparents who are ill.

We are bursting at the seams, and I assure you a makeover is not the answer. If we don't stay ahead of this growth, it will be detrimental to our Arizona communities. For the health and well-being of our children, for my children, for our future generations please approve this. ... Please help us to help our community."

Resident Randy McGrane also supported the project, saying his position was based on his work in real estate development, including medical buildings, and that he had looked into NAHs plans through that lens.

The other thing that's exciting is that you have this amazing tract of land in the middle of the city that you get to re-imagine. Cities just don't get that opportunity very often,  he said. Where we heal matters. Space matters. I'm in the business of building space and this hospital is transformational in that regard. It will really affect lives in an important way and be an important asset.

Resident Matthew Hall was among several commenters asking city council to look further into various aspects of the project before moving forward. He said he was particularly concerned about the new hospital's carbon footprint and whether its location would lead to increased sprawl.

He asked Council to postpone its decision, not because you want to throw blocks in front of it, but because theres all these unanswered questions.

 ... I think this decision is going to impact, as other people have said, Flagstaff for decades and decades and decades and decades. Yes, it might help a lot of people in some ways, but will it really help everyone? Because we are in this together, so it really needs to help as many people as possible and so we need really firm and good answers.

Anthony Garcia was one of three online commenters. Like many expressing concern with the project, he asked for further sustainability measures from NAH, calling their current commitments the bare minimum.

Nobody on either side of this discussion is objecting to the fact that we want and need a hospital that can meet the challenges of our future. We just want to make sure that everyone is looking at said challenges holistically, he said. There are those among us that are simply advocating that all environmental, cultural, social and sustainable impacts are well thought through prior to the development.

A recording of the meeting is available online, with the public hearing on FMC's campus beginning around four hours in.
Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) has asked the government to conduct fresh registration of all firearms to curb the increasing gun violence in the country.

The call follows several incidents of late involving security personnel killing people or each other in different parts of the country with the recent one being a security guard who shot dead a colleague in Moroto district on Wednesday.

Speaking to the press at the party head offices in Kampala, UPC spokesperson, Sharon Oyat, said the government needs to also tighten conditions for gun issuance.

She also called for regional initiatives to resolve civil wars in Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of Congo which have porous borders, a recipe for arms trafficking that increase the level of insecurity.

Meanwhile, UPC also urged government and stakeholders to create maximum awareness regarding traditional or customary inheritance laws in relation to modern laws on inheritance to avoid rampant family and clan violence.
Opposition Members of Parliament have rejected Shs454 billion allocated to State House in the next financial year 2023/2024.

They have proposed that it is reduced to Shs21 billion with the remaining over Shs400 billion going towards funding priorities in the health sector.

Presenting the minority report on the annual budget estimates for next financial year, Kira municipality MP Ssemujju Nganda described the allocation as a breach of the constitution, noting that it is unfair for the president to enjoy such luxury at the expense of poor Ugandans.

This parliament will be in breach of the constitution if it passes a budget that allows the president to illegally swim in luxury at the expense of the citizens welfare, said Ssemujju.

According to Ssemujju, the presidents emoluments and benefits Act 1998 provides a salary, allowances and other benefits to the president. When budgeting for the president and his family, this law applies.

Ssemuju warns that such a budget would mean the president spends Shs1 billion, Shs47 million per hour, and Shs1.5 million every two minutes.

He also questioned the Shs350 million proposed allocation for bedding, clothes, and footwear at State House.

He notes that such an allocation means that Uganda spends Shs1 million every day on the presidents clothing.

He has also drawn to the attention of Mps Shs7.8 billion provided for agricultural supplies and Shs184 million for veterinary supplies wondering if the president turned State House into a farm.
By Ronald Kabanza

Over 100-foot pilgrims from North Kigezi diocese have set off for Namugango ahead of this years Martyrs Day celebrations.

The foot pilgrims, drawn from 13 archdeaconries and 80 parishes of the diocese, embarked on their 400km journey after receiving blessings from the North Kigezi diocesan missions co-coordinator Rev. Edison Ampiire.

Rev. Edison Ampiire, the coordinator of pilgrims and the missions co-coordinator at North Kigezi diocese urged Christians to use this years Martyr celebrations to renew their relationship with God.

He also called for cooperation among the pilgrims, saying that this walk of faith will take them 14 days to reach Kampala.

On the issue of Katonga Bridge, Rev. Ampiire said that they are in touch with traffic police but in case of failing to get a solution from the police, they have plan B of boarding a bus that will take them back to the main road in Masaka.

Eves Kamusiime, one of the foot pilgrims, says sickness is one of the reasons she is joining the walk of faith.

While Brain Kategaya, another foot pilgrim who is also disabled says he is trekking to Namugongo to thank God for giving him a second chance of living after surviving a cancer surgery.

Martyrs Day is a national annual public holiday in Uganda celebrated on June 3 in commemoration of 45 martyrs, both Catholic and Anglican, who were killed on the orders of Kabaka Mwanga II, then King of Buganda between 1885 and 1887.
Police have confirmed three people dead following a bus accident along the Mbale-Tirinyi road in Kibuku district. The accident involving a YY bus registration number UBG 400C happened at Saala Village at around 7: 30pm Wednesday night.

In a statement, Bukedi North police spokesperson, Immaculate Alaso identified the deceased as Mohammed Ntege, the bus driver, and two juveniles.

Alaso says preliminary information indicates that the driver of the bus which was from Kampala heading to Mbale lost control and went off-road and overturned, killing the three on spot and injuring several others.

She says the injured persons were evacuated and taken to Mbale Hospital. Investigations to ascertain the actual cause of the accident are ongoing.

Meanwhile, the YY general manager, Mr. Emmanuel Wabwire has eulogised the deceased driver, describing him as the best driver the bus company had.

Wabwire adds that reports from the scene indicate that the accident could have been caused by the heavy rainfall.
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Boards set up outside the storefront of Drumbeat, a Native American goods store located in Phoenix, display missing people posters of Indigenous people from tribal nations across Arizona. Reva Stewart displays the missing person posters to help raise awareness. Photo by Shondiin Silversmith | Arizona Mirror

Over the past year, tribal advocates, leaders, and community members have been raising the alarm about unmarked vans cruising the streets of tribal nations to pick up Indigenous people so they could be transported down to the Phoenix area, where they are promised shelter, food, and rehabilitation help.

The predatory tactics of individuals claiming to be legitimate healthcare providers but who were instead allegedly billing the states Medicaid system for rehabilitation services that were never provided have had an immense human cost. Many Indigenous families filed missing person reports for their loved ones, while others grappled with the death of their family member.

This scheme has resulted in what state officials are now calling a humanitarian crisis and a stunning failure of government since the issues were identified years ago and nothing was done to stop the predatory behavior.

Reva Stewart and Coleen Chatter have been at the forefront of the issue for more than a year and are the advocates behind the #StolenPeopleStolenBenefits campaign.

Stewart said the announcement was a step in the right direction, but she wishes state leaders had listened before it got as bad as it did. She wants to see accountability for all the Indigenous people who have died because of the scam and for the state to provide some more relief to the Indigenous people still being impacted across the Valley.

The steps the state is taking dont help right now, Stewart said, and through her work, she is still working with Indigenous people every day who are trying to get home.

The duo has been working together to assist the Indigenous people across the Valley who have fallen victim to the predatory tactics of these rehabilitation homes. Both of them got involved with this issue after they had family members recruited into those homes.

Stewart said through their work, they want to be a voice for the Indigenous people impacted by these homes, especially those who have lost their lives.

We worked hard, and were still working as we speak to help our relatives out because more people are reaching out to us, Stewart said. She said she averages that the pair have helped at least four people a day, but sometimes as many as 10.

Most recently, they got one individual into a motel until they found a way to get them home to Havasupai. She said they are always working to help another individual get back to Montana and another home to the Navajo Nation.

All of these efforts are funded directly by Stewart and Chatter. They do have a GoFundMe page set up to help and accept donations, but for the most part, they have borne the costs personally. They buy motel rooms and bus tickets or provide gas money to help get these individuals home, and Chatter works to reach those who want legitimate rehabilitation services to get placed in a good home.

Were really busy, Stewart said, and even though there is a sense of relief knowing that the State is making adjustments to help, she wont stop advocating for those impacted daily.

Stewart said she is hopeful and looks forward to seeing what will change from the actions the State is introducing, including the intended hotline, which she said would be helpful, but its effectiveness will depend on how accessible it is for people impacted.

I strongly believe that, if they continue to move forward and eliminate the bad actors, we may see a difference, Stewart said.

Shutting down a predatory scam

On May 16, Gov. Katie Hobbs and Attorney General Kris Mayes announced that over 100 healthcare providers for behavioral health, residential, and outpatient treatment services have been shut down after investigators found evidence that they defrauded the states Medicaid program of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Provider payment suspensions, known as Credible Allegations of Fraud (CAF) suspensions, are the first step of required action when Medicaid payment fraud is identified and the beginning of multi-agency investigations, according to Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), the states Medicaid agency.

Hobbs, Mayes and AHCCCS Director Carmen Heredia also announced their plans to address the issue impacting Arizonas tribal nations.

Indigenous people have been picked up off the street and dropped into a home in the Phoenix area where there was no treatment available, Hobbs said, and shes heard the stories of people escaping out of windows or jumping over fences in the middle of the night just to access a phone to reach the outside world.

These fraudulent healthcare providers took advantage of Indigenous people struggling with addiction, Hobbs said, by offering them food, housing, and treatment at a group living home or rehab facility.

But rather than getting the help they needed, they were allowed  and sometimes encouraged  to continue using drugs and alcohol, Hobbs said. At the same time, providers fraudulently billed AHCCCS for addiction treatment and other health care services.

My heart is broken by the pain that you have been forced to endure, Hobbs said. The state of Arizona believes you.

Hobbs instructed AHCCCS to make several operational changes, including a third-party forensic audit of all claims since 2019, an examination of Arizona Department of Health Services licensing measures, new reporting systems for claims that cause concern and additional fraud prevention measures.

Hobbs said the investigation found no reason to believe that AHCCCS members are involved in this fraud, and her office will not entertain any policies that will make it harder for people to participate in the Medicaid program.

Through these changes, Hobbs said her administration would prosecute existing bad actors, ensure that wraparound services are delivered to the people affected by provider closures and enact systemic reforms in the AHCCCS billing system to root out this fraudulent billing.

This is just the first step in the process of eradicating this abuse, Hobbs said. It will be a fight, but one that my administration and I are fully committed to.

The reality of what has transpired against Indigenous people across Arizona and the millions of dollars lost due to the exploitation of the AHCCCS program by fraudulent healthcare providers, Mayes said, is nothing short of a stunning failure of government.

There is no other way to say it, but it ends now, Mayes said, adding that her office is working with AHCCCS to investigate all credible allegations of fraud, including more than 100 current cases.

These cases are complex and require extensive investigation, prosecutorial work, and resources, Mayes said. But make no mistake, we are conducting thorough criminal investigations, and we will aggressively prosecute these cases as we move forward.

What is happening

The scheme targeted Indigenous people because there was a loophole in the AHCCCS American Indian Health Program that allowed individuals to pose as legitimate healthcare providers for behavioral health services.

This crisis is a direct result of the predatory practices of many behavioral health facilities that have targeted our tribal members that are most in need, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community President Martin Harvier said. Many of these predatorial behavioral health facilities have and continue to take advantage of populations that are at risk only to enrich themselves.

Mayes said the scheme began with providers setting up fraudulent treatment facilities that focused on recruiting Indigenous people, typically people residing within tribal nations or who were part of the urban homeless population in the Phoenix area.

Mayes said that the Indigenous people targeted may have been in crisis and were extremely vulnerable. They were lured into these fraudulent treatment homes with offers like free food, cash incentives or rent.

Once the recruited patients arrived at or were taken to the supposed treatment facilities, Mayes said, the providers obtained personal information or the individuals AHCCCS card.

If a potential patient was not enrolled in benefits, that did not stop the fraudulent behavioral health facilities. Mayes said the facilities would contact AHCCCS by phone to obtain eligibility based on the unchallenged claim that the patient was eligible for the plan simply by being Native American.

The bad actors used these people to egregiously overbill AHCCCS for treatment services, Mayes said.

In one case, Mayes said investigators discovered that AHCCCS had been billed more than 13 hours daily for alcohol rehabilitation services for a four-year-old.

This poor child was not in one of the facilities and did not need alcohol rehabilitation, Mayes said, but the childs AHCCCS ID card was used to rip off taxpayers.

Mayes estimated that hundreds of millions of dollars have been lost to these fraudulent schemes, though she conceded the total amount could be a lot higher.

But more than that, she said, is the heartbreaking human cost.

I dont think it is too much to say that this is  one of the biggest scandals in the history of the state of Arizona when it comes to our government, Mayes said, noting that there is no other state in the country where this level of Medicaid fraud occurred in an American Indian fee-for-service program.

Mayes provided a breakdown of the amount of money charged to AHCCCS since 2019, involving the American Indian fee-for-service program using the outpatient behavioral health clinic code, one of the principal codes the individual utilized to bill AHCCCS.

In 2019, Mayes said, AHCCCS was billed $53.5 million under the outpatient behavioral health clinic code. By 2020, those billings more than doubled to $132.6 million and continued to increase. By 2021, it hit $291 million; by 2022, it had skyrocketed to $668 million.

That is exponential growth in this program, she said. It is unusual, it is suspicious, and its why we indicted more than 40 people over the last three years.

A failure of government

Mayes said the administration of former Gov. Doug Ducey was aware of the fraudulent tactics targeting Indigenous communities for years but did not make meaningful or lasting efforts to address them.

The Ducey administration was, at best, negligent, Mayes said, claiming that the administration allowed scam artists and fraudsters to take advantage of the antiquated, outdated systems.

Due to what she characterized as the incompetent management of AHCCCS, and in the wake of their ineffectiveness, Mayes said some of the most vulnerable people in Arizona were harmed  and taxpayers paid for it.

This never should have been allowed to happen, she said. The previous administrations were asleep at the wheel.

For three years, Mayes said, AGs investigators, the AHCCCS Office of Inspector General and federal law enforcement partners have been investigating, indicting and pursuing financial remedies.

But it has been like a game of Whac-A-Mole, Mayes said, because of the inability and unwillingness of the prior administrations to address the structural vulnerabilities ingrained in the fee-for-service billing model of the American Indian Health plan for AHCCCS.

To date, Mayes said there have been 45 indictments, resulting in $75 million seized or recovered.

For years, these providers have allegedly defrauded the state of millions of dollars while creating a large-scale humanitarian crisis that disproportionately affects Arizonas tribal communities, Hobbs said.

The fraud we have identified has been ingrained in the system for years without proper action being taken, Hobbs said, adding that the exact scope of the problem remains unclear.

Hobbs said that the previous administration only investigated on a case-by-case basis and never implemented the systemic overhauls necessary to resolve this problem, failing to deliver proper accountability.

Unfortunately, this approach led to pro-fraudulent providers continuing to exploit tribal communities for their own financial gain, she said.

Mayes said AHCCCS leadership was told by investigators that something needed to be done to shut down the money or the issue could not be solved.

You cant prosecute your way out of this problem, Mayes said. What happened repeatedly is that one bad actor would be stopped, but they would end up opening a new LLC and start billing AHCCCS under that new LLC.

AHCCCS, for three years, refused to do anything about it, she said. This is what you get when you have a governor who doesnt care about government.

Even with the AHCCCS Office of the Inspector General raising alarms, it went nowhere, Mayes said, and the director of AHCCCS under former Gov. Ducey did nothing to stop the money flow.

There have been reports and testimonies from victims that Indigenous people have died as a result of these homes.

If they can gather evidence where individuals or individual operators of these facilities are negligent for people dying, Mayes said they would prosecute people to the fullest extent of the law.

What has happened is tragic and outrageous, Mayes said. I believe the state of Arizona owes our tribal nations an apology.

State resources available

Heredia, the current AHCCCS director, said that the activities targeting tribal communities are appalling and atrocious, and AHCCCS is taking swift action to stop the bad actors from exploiting people and abusing the Medicaid system.

This is a complex, resource-intensive issue, she said, adding that AHCCCS is working in cooperation with the AG and law enforcement.

Health care fraud is often billed as a victimless crime, but that couldnt be further from the truth in this case, said Akil Davis, special agent in charge of the FBIs Phoenix field office.

This scheme we are investigating negatively affects some of the most vulnerable in our society who rely on these services, Davis added. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively pursue all those who seek to unlawfully enrich themselves by manipulating the system with nothing but greed as their motivation.

The FBI is seeking victims who may have been recruited to live in and receive services in group homes and are asking victims to complete a form at https://forms.fbi.gov/phoenixgrouphomes/.

AHCCCS is setting up a dedicated member hotline at 211 (option 7) for members impacted by the closure of a sober living home or residential facility. They can also visit a new website dedicated to providing resources at www.211Arizona.org/MMIP. There are also mobile crisis teams ready to deploy when members need hands-on, immediate behavioral health services, transportation, or care coordination, according to the department.

Resources will be available to coordinate immediate housing, transportation, and health services related to a provider closure.

In addition to other planned operational changes, Heredia said AHCCCS is enacting a holistic system-wide strategy to find and eliminate fraudulent billing claims. This includes recommendations from the Attorney Generals Office, like moving certain provider types to high-risk categories for new applicants and re-validating providers, which requires onsite visits, fingerprinting background checks or registration fees, and additional disclosures.

Heredia said they would also conduct a comprehensive forensic audit of AHCCCS whole system going back to 2019.

We need to take a closer look at what happened and get some answers, she said, noting the agency will focus on the fee-for-service program, where these fraudulent claims have been directed as part of the American Indian Health program.

AHCCCS shut down the bill codes that allowed the abuse to continue happening, Mayes said, which means that the money supply is no longer there for these providers.

Mayes said one of her biggest concerns is that once these fraudulent providers realize they can not bill AHCCCS anymore and run out of money, theyll abandon the home, resulting in people being left in these homes.

Tribal leaders hopeful

State officials acknowledged that their work would not have come as far without Indigenous grassroots advocates and tribal leaders coming forward to raise awareness about the issue.

Mayes thanked the Indigenous advocacy groups for reporting the crimes, sending in referrals and voicing their concern until legitimate action could have been taken.

Tribal leaders applauded the states move to create change in addressing the issue and look forward to implementing ways for their communities to help with these changes.

The Navajo Nation is taking steps to address the issue. Navajo Nation Attorney General Ethel Branch said the action plan includes launching Operation Rainbow Bridge, which involves opening an onsite emergency operations center in the Phoenix area.

We anticipate large numbers of the impacted individuals are Navajo tribal members, Branch said, and opening up a local operations center allows them to help.

Well be here to receive our relatives and make sure that they are smoothly transitioned into licensed facilities where theyll actually receive the services they believe that they would be receiving when they enter these vehicles and were transported south to the valley, Branch said. Theyll also provide them the resources to return to the Navajo Nation.

On the White Mountain Apache Nation, Vice Chairman Jerome Kasey III said they have seen increased deaths within their community related to the predatory treatment centers.

Kasey said the tribe is taking action, and they launched a door-to-door campaign within their community that focuses on providing information to their Tribal citizens about what is happening with these fraudulent providers and homes.

Kasey said they visited over 3,400 homes last week, handing out information, including the 211 hotline.

Our tribal members are not for sale, and they are human beings, and theyre precious, Kasey said. Well do everything we can to see everybody come home.
A former Christian Brother has been convicted of indecently assaulting five boys almost 50 years ago at a Kilkenny school.

The 88-year-old man, who can't be named for legal reasons, was on trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in relation to over 30 charges of indecently assaulting six boys at a school in County Kilkenny on dates between August 1975 and June 1976. He had pleaded not guilty to all offences.

After deliberating for approximately five hours, the jury unanimously found the man guilty of 28 counts in relation to four of the complainants. Jurors also found the man guilty, by a majority, of two counts in relation to a fifth complainant and returned a verdict of not guilty on one count relating to the sixth complainant.

Judge Elma Sheahan today thanked the jury for its service. She remanded the man on continuing bail for a sentencing hearing on June 30. She also ordered the preparation of victim impact statements and medical reports in relation to the defendant.

In his opening address, Patrick McGrath SC, prosecuting, said these incidents are alleged to have occurred over the course of an academic year when the defendant, then a Christian Brother, was a teacher at a primary school in Kilkenny.

Mr McGrath said it was the State's case that there was inappropriate contact between the accused man and the boys, which included inappropriate touching and fondling. He told jurors they would hear evidence that the complainants, now men aged in their 50s, were pupils at the school where the man was a teacher.
The fate of Ballingarry coal mines hangs in the balance. Almost 250 miners, many with young families, must now wait and hope that their only source of employment does not disappear.

Not only are the miners unemployed - they are up to their necks in debt, as many of their pay cheques have not been honoured by the Banks.

Local traders who accepted the cheques in good faith are now almost 80,000 in the red and many are threatened with closure.

In the Commons-Ballingarry area alone 10 traders were caught for 30,000. The other 50,000 is divided between traders in New Bermingham, Killenaule, Littleton, Urlingford, Ballysloe, Fethard and Castlecomer. The amounts owed vary from 1,000 to 7,300. The average miner is at least 500 in debt.

The miners are up in arms. They want the mines kept open. The traders, also, are angry. They want their money back.

Meanwhile business in the Commons and Ballingarry, the two worst hit areas, is almost as a standstill.

If the mine closes there is no alternative employment. If the mines go so will the people. There could be massive emigration from the area. The classrooms could be bare and the traders, if they survived long enough, would have no customers.

Although there is still great uncertainty about the future of the mines many of the miners seem to have taken it for granted that Ballingarry's only industry is doomed. Many have already made plans to emigrate.

"We just cannot afford to hang around waiting to see what happens," said one miner. "We must have money to feed our families. We just cannot live on fresh air."

On Tuesday the miners gathered outside the colliery gates for an impromptu union meeting. The mine owner Mr Thomas O'Brien arrived on the scene in a blue Mercerdes Benz.

Mr O'Brien stopped the car and immediately the men gathered around his car. Sitting on the bonnet he answered the queries of the distressed and, at times, angry miners.

He told the men they would get a week's wages and after that they would get some redundancy money. Some of the men argued that they could not get redundancy money and even if they did they couldn't wait for it to come through.

The miners were anxious to know the future of the colliery. But Mr O'Brien could tell them nothing, except that efforts were being made to keep the mine going.

Afterwards he told a People reporter: "As things stand there is no chance of going back to work. We will just have to remain closed until finance is available."



IT STARTED WITH THE LATE LATE SHOW

Kilkenny's weekly late late show is causing the residents of a street considerable concern and they claim their sleep is being seriously interfered with.

In a letter to the Corporation, 24 residents of William Street request that steps be taken "to relieve us of the weekly annoyance caused by the Saturday midnight film shows in the Regent cinema."

The letter goes on: "Since these midnight shows commenced, the residents' peace and sleep have been shattered and the annoyance has become intolerable.

"Sleep is not possible from 11.30 when people commence arriving for the show. There is the continual noise of the film from the windows of the projection room all through the show, and latecomers and rowdies arriving until after 1am.

"The residents and particularly the children are awakened again at 2am with the din of cars and motorcycles revving before departing. Indeed some residents are unable to get to sleep for the remainder of the night. Added to this, there is no parking observed and the obstruction caused constitutes a grave fire hazard in the area.

"We feel that the licence granted by the Corporation to the cinema never intended that weekly midnight shows, lasting beyond 2am, be allowed, nor did it envisage the hardships and annoyance to the residents. We ask the members of the Corporation to use their powers to end this state of affairs."



DEATH OF MARQUESS

The death occurred at his home at Cantley, Berkshire on Saturday, after a brief illness, of Lord Ormonde, 6th Maquess and 24th Earl, at the age of 67.

After leaving Harrow he pursued a military career and served in the First and Second World Wars. He gained the Military Cross in the 1914-18 war.

Lord Ormonde was the 30th Chief Butler and was the senior representative of one of the oldest Irish families. He was a brother of the late Earl of Ossory who lived in Kilkenny until the middle of the 1930s.

The late Marquess maintained a close link with Kilkenny and won the admiration of the city and county when he made the grounds of Kilkenny Castle available for a natonal park at the first Butler rally in 1967.

Kilkenny Castle has also been made available to the State. A frequent visitor to Kilkenny, the Marquess was widely respected for his keen interest in Kilkenny.

A memorial service will be held in St Canice's Cathedral on May 5. Remains will be interred in Kilkenny Castle grounds cemetery.

The title will be inherited by the Honourable Charles Butler, Illinois, USA, a cousin of the late Marquess.
Funding of 250,000 has been secured for Kilkenny and Carlow ETB.

In total, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris has announced 5.3 million in funding to support educationally disadvantaged learners in accessing and participating in community education.

This funding issued under the Reach Fund to ETBs is designed to support and engage with disadvantaged learners who have the highest level of need. It can be used to assist learners with transport or education costs, funding on access to technology and devices, and expanding community access to WiFi and broadband resources.

Minister Harris TD said: The success of the Reach Fund over the past three years has been so important. Originally introduced in 2020 to support the most disadvantaged learners throughout the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, it was critical in reconnecting with the most disadvantaged learners around the country.

It continues to support community education partners make sure that these learners are not left behind. As we launch the Year of Skills, it is vital every adult has the necessary literacy, numeracy and digital literacy to engage in society and realise their potential. The Reach Fund has achieved so much, and I am excited to see what important and valuable projects it supports this year."

Around the country the projects supported by the Reach Fund helped to support online learning, connect communities and providing social supports to the most vulnerable groups. These priority cohorts include the long-term unemployed; young people; people with disabilities; members of the Traveller and Roma communities; migrants and refugees; women wishing to return to the labour market; and lone parents.

Tanya Jones, Director of Further Education and Training, Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), said: Since its launch in 2020 Reach Fund continues to support the participation of disadvantaged learners in education. ETBI welcomes the continuation of the Reach Fund which is administered by the national network of Education and Training Boards, and I encourage all community education providers to engage with their local ETB to access this fund to further support the complex needs of a diverse range of learners across our communities.

CEO of SOLAS, the Further Education and Training Authority, Andrew Brownlee said: The Reach Fund is a unique funding stream that targets those who are often hardest to engage by providing much-needed funding at a local level to directly address the barriers facing the most disadvantaged learners in Ireland.

Since 2020, over 1,600 individual projects have been funded through Reach and we are pleased to be able to offer this fund again in 2023. Last year, we saw a welcome increase in learners from this priority cohort and it is beyond doubt that the projects and programmes funding under Reach have contributed to this increase.

It is testament to the great work done around Ireland by ETBs and community partners to tackle adult literacy issues and re-engage learners with education."
Carlow trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon and champion horse Hewick are in France ahead of Saturday's French Champion Hurdle at Auteuil.

Last seasons winner of the Galway Plate, American Grand National and Oaksey Chase at Sandown, the eight-year-old will line up in the Racing TV Grande Course de Haies dAuteuil with Rachael Blackmore continuing to deputise for Jordan Gainford.

Trainer John Shark Hanlon is hopeful he will make the cut for the three-and-a-quarter-mile race.

Ahead of travelling over, he said: We are going to Auteuil. I think the race suits him. He will stay all day, so the trip wont be any problem and the fences are like the hurdles in America.

The only reason I dont run him on soft ground over fences is that the fences look so big for a small horse and it is hard to get out of the ground.

Hopefully he will get in. There are 20 entries. I should imagine well be OK, as a few might come out and they ran 13 in the race two years ago.

The pot is 390,000. Thats the reason we are going there and the reason we went to America  because of the pot.

It is lovely to have winners in Ireland and England, but when you have a horse like him, you try to make the best use of him you can.

Hewick has arrived at the stables pic.twitter.com/sPFAPf3nuB  Shark Hanlon Racing (@jhanlonracing) May 17, 2023

Having been bought by Hanlon for a bargain 850, the TJ McDonald-owned Hewick has picked up almost 440,000 in prize money, having shot to prominence when taking the bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown last April.

Though a faller when in contention for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, a return to Prestbury Park is on the cards in 2024 and Hanlon hinted a trip to Japan for the Nakayama Grand Jump is a possible target next April.

Hanlon said: Nakayama could be on the agenda for next year. You dont mind travelling because he is a very good traveller.

Sometimes you cant travel with horses because they dont like it, but he does. You could put him in your pocket and bring him with you!

We will go to Auteuil and the Galway Plate is on the cards again. Well probably go back to America, and then maybe hell get a break.

We will do something like last year, maybe give him a run at the Dublin Festival in February and then to Cheltenham in March again.

People are saying to me, are you going to give him a break?, but hes only just off a break.

While all the other horses were racing in the winter, we were on a break. He just loves his racing and he was very good at Sandown.

Blackmore, who powered Hewick to success at the Esher track, will keep the saddle warm for Gainford, who has not ridden since being unseated from the Gordon Elliott-trained Perfect Attitude in the Louis Fitzgerald Hotel Hurdle at Punchestown on April 26.

Hanlon added: I feel very sorry for Jordan, because he made the horse for me.

I have a very good sub. Rachael started with me and we have a long-term relationship. Im very lucky and delighted to be able to get her.
When it comes to womens health in Ireland we have a shameful record.

In the past women were locked up and their babies stolen from them and the women were left to grieve and carry their loss in silence.

I am in my early forties and as a teenager I remember friends getting pregnant in their late teens - it sure as hell wasnt easily even then in the Nineties to raise a child out of wedlock but fortunately the women I knew managed to do that and did a magnificient job too! Still it was a struggle and part of that was there was a bizarre stigma attached to unmarried women who had babies.

Roll on the decades and we are thankfully living in a liberal and freer society. Women finally have automony over their bodies and there is acceptance that people can live and love as they choose. However we havent come as far as we think, not by a long shot.

Last week in this newspaper I spoke with James Campbell, the father of Tracey Campbell Fitzpatrick - a 36-year woman, who went into St Lukes Hospital in March 2016 to give birth to her son and came out of the same hospital in a coffin.

David McMurray worked there at that time as a consultant obstetrician/gynaecologist and in Feburary he was found guilty by the Medical Council of professional misconduct and poor professional performance over his failure to attend to Tracey Campbell-Fitzpatrick in a sufficiently timely manner when he knew her clinical condition required his attendance at the hospital on the night her death, during a Fitness to Practice Tribunal. After three phone calls from a senior midwife David McMurray arrived 43 minutes later, even though he was living between five to eight minutes away, but it was too late and Tracey was pronounced dead just over an hour later.

Traceys family are calling for a public inquiry into the maternity services at St Lukes Hospital and they are well within their rights to do so.

Serious questions need to be answered not only in relation to the untimely death of Tracey and why there was such a delay in the doctor seeing her when she was haemorraging massively. Her family deserve to know what caused the delay and what was said between the midwife and McMurray during the three conversations prior to his arrival at the hospital, some 43 minutes after the first call.

This week St Lukes Hospital made the headlines again when the Supreme Court ruled that the HSE acted fairly and reasonably when it suspended and recommended that Professor Ray OSullivan be dismissed from his former job at St Lukes Hospital.

It had been alleged that he carried out unauthorised and unapproved actions on five female patients in September 2018.

Prof OSullivan denied any wrongdoing, and following a mediation the consultant settled his action against the HSE.

However, the HSE sought to have one issue that arose out of litigation, concerning the fairness of its decision to suspend Prof OSullivan and recommend to a Ministerial committee that he be dismissed, determined by the Supreme Court.

At the Supreme Court last Wednesday Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne said that there was significant evidence available to allow the HSE place Prof OSullivan on administrative leave. The Chief Justice said that the HSE had a bona fide view that the behaviour of Prof OSullivan gave rise to an immediate and serious risk to the health, welfare and safety of patients or staff and that he should have been suspended.

Both of these cases are worrying to say the least.

While undoubtedly the vast majority of the staff at St Lukes Hospital are and were hardworking and dedicated to the care of the patients there the actions of both of the consultants named above was deemed to be far below what is considered acceptable practice.

If a public inquiry were to take place it would allow a light to be shone on these services and would hopefully result in restoring peoples confidence in both the gynaecological and maternity services at St Lukes.

And that would be a great thing to happen for all who use and work in the service.
The Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media is urging Irish schools to observe a minute of silence on Friday, May 19 in honour of the victims of the Great Famine.

The Irish government introduced an annual National Famine Commemoration in May 2008 in memory of all those who died and emigrated during the tragedy, which caused the deaths of one million people between 1845 and 1851.

A further one million people emigrated to other countries, primarily the United States.

The famine was caused by the persistent failure of potato crops - the only substantial food affordable to the masses of Irish peasantry - due to blight, and the exportation of cattle, pork and grain.

In a letter to schools, Minister Catherine Martin stated, "There is no other event in our history that can be likened to the Great Famine either for its immediate impact or its legacy. That legacy includes a strong appreciation among Irish people of issues such as food security and a strong commitment to humanitarian aid and relief.

"I invite you to arrange for all staff and pupils at your school to observe a minute of silent reflection on Friday, 19th May in memory of all those who suffered loss during the Famine  loss of life, loss of family, loss of home and loss of country. This minute of silence should take place ideally at midday, but can take place at whatever time suits individual schools on the day.

"I would ask also during this minute of silence that your staff and pupils also remember those who are suffering famine and hunger today, particularly the children and young people living in parts of the world currently afflicted by chronic hunger, poverty and disease."

This year's official commemoration will take place in Milford, Co Donegal at 2pm on Sunday May 21 in the presence of President Michael D. Higgins.
Residents of Mooncoin Residential Care Centre in Kilkenny, have been enjoying a sing-along with musician Liam Merriman in anticipation of National Arts in Nursing Homes Day.

They have participated in If These Hands Could Sing, a project encompassing song and choir workshops exploring the stories behind residents hands. Residents stories were weaved into lyrics that encompassed the creation of song and melody created by the residents.

Residents of Mooncoin Residential Care Centre have, for successive weeks, been engaged in workshops around the theme of reminiscence, with exploration undertaken through the five senses. Song and choir workshops have explored the stories behind residents' hands, with lines from conversations weaved into lyrics that encompassed the creation of song and melody created by the residents with the support of Merriman.

The artistic, creative potential and talents of nursing home residents are being celebrated in communities across Ireland this coming Friday, May 19. National Arts in Nursing Homes Day will see performances, exhibitions and celebratory events hosted in nursing homes as part of the annual Bealtaine Festival, celebrating the arts and creativity as we age.

Age & Opportunity and Nursing Homes Ireland have again partnered for National Arts in Nursing Homes Day, with residents creative works and talents being celebrated within nursing homes to mark the event. Events lined up include art and craft exhibitions encompassing resident painting, pottery and knitting creations and performances, including a series of concerts in nursing homes across Co Louth and a resident choir recital in Cavan.

Tara Byrne, Age & Opportunity Arts Programme Manager says: One of the key aims of our work is to ensure that older people have access to the arts no matter where they live in Ireland. Our partnership with Nursing Homes Ireland for National Arts in Nursing Homes Day, therefore, is a cornerstone of our drive to support meaningful arts-making and engagement in our later lives, continuing to connect with ourselves and with other people, and remaining a vital part of the world.

Tadhg Daly, Nursing Homes Ireland CEO states: Participation in the arts occurs at all ages and fulfills a particularly important role in supporting people in nursing homes. The arts allow nursing home residents to express themselves, their creative talents to flourish, to bond, and enjoy very happy and memorable moments. National Arts in Nursing Homes Day is a national occasion when we can come together in communities across Ireland to applaud the creative talents of nursing home residents and the role the arts fulfills in supporting them.

"We are extremely proud to partner with Age and Opportunity for this very special initiative. The Bealtaine Festival is a landmark cultural celebration and nursing home residents up and down the country will be extremely proud of their unique participation within it.
XIAN, China, May 18 (Reuters) - Central Asian heads of state converged in China's historic city of Xian on Thursday for one-on-ones with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seal pledges of "enduring" friendship, paving the way for a summit expected to result in a regional pact with Beijing.

The bilaterals set the stage for a group huddle on Friday, the first in-person gathering of the six leaders, where Xi will deliver an "important" speech, according to China's foreign ministry. An "important" political document will also be signed.

Across the city of Xian, from where the ancient Silk Road linked imperial China with civilisations to its west over a millennium ago, banners, billboards and even taxi signs were set up to promote the summit.

China is intensifying its economic and political engagement with the former Soviet states as Russia channels what remaining resources it has into the war in Ukraine. Some Central Asian states are increasingly stand up to Moscow, with Kazakhstan not recognising Russian-controlled regions in eastern Ukraine to Tajikistan demanding more "respect" from the Kremlin.

The first head of state to arrive in Xian was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan - China's largest trading partner in Central Asia. When Tokayev met Xi on Wednesday, the Chinese leader greeted him warmly and wished him a happy 70th birthday.

"We have a common goal - to intensify bilateral relations," Tokayev told Xi.

"We are also united by the desire to strengthen regional and international security and cooperation."

After their meeting, Xi and Tokayev jointly declared that the two countries shall build an "enduring friendship" and share "weal and woe".

They also agreed to ensure the safe and stable operation of the Kazakh section of the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline, and also deepen oil and uranium cooperation.

On the summit's sidelines, state-owned Chinese energy giant Sinopec and Kazakhstan's KayMunayGaz (KMGZ.KZ) agreed key terms for a potential investment in a polyethylene project in Western Kazakhstan's Atryau region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called the Kazakh president on Wednesday and affirmed the ties of their countries, according to Tass news agency.

Putin was not in China, with Russia not part of the China-plus-Central Asia format.

CLOSER TO CHINA

With Kazakhstan setting the collaborative tone for other bilateral meetings, Kyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Japarov told Xi that he was keen to deepen trade, economic and investment links.

"There are no political disagreements or unresolved issues between our countries," Japarov said.

Two-way trade between China and Central Asia hit a record $70 billion last year, with Kazakhstan leading with $31 billion, as China seeks deeper economic links in its quest for greater food and energy security.

Kyrgyzstan came next with $15.5 billion, then Turkmenistan with $11.2 billion, Uzbekistan with $9.8 billion and Tajikistan with $2 billion.

"We've been supporting exactly this type of integration between China and Central Asia," said Albert Park, chief economist at the Asian Development Bank.

"Under that framework, we're trying to reduce trade barriers among the countries, harmonise trading standards to promote better integration, and just more forums where government officials can talk and try to develop standards to promote more trade," Park told Reuters in Beijing.

Xi's show of solidarity with Central Asia at the summit conspicuously coincides with a meeting of the Group of Seven leaders in Japan, where Beijing's use of "economic coercion" in its dealings abroad is expected to be on the agenda.

(This story has been refiled to remove an extraneous word in paragraph 11)
LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) came close to falling below minimum levels of cash held at the Swiss central bank days before its forced takeover by UBS (UBSG.S), a regulatory document shows.

As of mid-March 2023, Credit Suisse barely reached its internal cash limit at the Swiss National Bank. A breach indicates a risk that the bank will not be able to make payments properly, Swiss financial regulator FINMA wrote in the German-language decree, which has not previously been disclosed.

Credit Suisse was forced into a government orchestrated rescue on March 19. That day, FINMA issued an order to justify the write-down of about $17 billion of Credit Suisse's Additional Tier 1 (AT1) notes as a condition for the takeover.

Investor lawsuits in Switzerland over the decision to wipe out AT1 bondholders have forced FINMA to share the documentation with claimants, people with knowledge of the case said.

A copy of the document was posted by Antigua News on its website on May 15 and Reuters independently verified the authenticity of the decree.

FINMA and Credit Suisse declined to comment.

Credit Suisse applied to the Swiss central bank for emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) on March 15 in order to bridge an impending liquidity shortage, the decree says.

Earlier that day, Credit Suisse Chief Executive Ulrich Koerner said in an interview with CNA that "our capital, our liquidity basis is very very strong".

Credit Suisse then announced in the early hours of March 16 that it intended to borrow up to 50 billion Swiss francs from the SNB after the central bank pledged liquidity "if necessary".

Wiping out the AT1 bondholders, which upended a long-established practice of granting them priority over shareholders in a debt recovery, shocked the market and triggered lawsuits against FINMA, which has defended its decision.

FINMA stated in the decree that a viability event occurred and that Credit Suisse could therefore wipe out the instruments.

This measure would have a positive effect on Credit Suisse's liquidity and capital situation and ensure the continued existence of the bank's Swiss business, the decree said.
BEIRUT, May 18 (Reuters) - Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh al-Shami called on Thursday for Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh to resign following Frances issuing of an arrest warrant against him as part of a fraud investigation.

Salameh, his brother Raja and his assistant Marianne Hoayek are being investigated in Lebanon and at least five European countries on suspicion they may have taken more than $300 million from the central bank.

"In any country when someone is accused of such crimes, they should not remain in a position of responsibility and should recuse themselves immediately," Shami told Reuters.

"I think he should resign."

Salameh, who along with his brother denies any wrongdoing, told Saudi-owned Al-Hadath TV on Thursday that he will step down if any court ruling goes against him.

He plans to appeal against the French warrant, which he told Al-Hadath violated principles of a Lebanese-French agreement without giving more details. "The judicial pathway is unfair, but I am ready for it," he said.

A Lebanese judge overseeing a local case against Salameh has rejected his lawyers' defence arguments, clearing the way for a June 15 hearing, a senior judicial source told Reuters.

Critics had doubted the judiciary, where appointments largely depend on political support, would seriously investigate a figure of Salameh's stature given his political connections.

The Salameh brothers and Hoayek have been charged with fraud and embezzlement in two separate cases in Lebanon. Hoayek and her lawyer have not been reachable for comment.

The judicial source told Reuters a new hearing date for Raja Salameh had also been set for June 15.

French prosecutors' warrant for Riad Salameh, issued on Tuesday, was the first from any of the foreign probes into him.

Though some of his support bases in Lebanon and abroad are starting to fray, Salameh wants to end his 30-year tenure as bank head when his latest term expires in July.

His departure would mark a milestone in the financial meltdown resulting from decades of profligate spending, corruption and unsustainable policies by Lebanon's leaders.
Former British Prime Minister Truss arrived in Taiwan on the evening of May 16. The behind-the-scenes funder who invited her is Taiwan's "Vision Foundation" established by the former leader of Taiwan, Lee Teng-hui, reported the Global Times on May 16.

The trip became notorious even before it happened. On the one hand, this is because of Truss' bad personal image in the UK, and on the other hand, it reflects that the political effect of "visiting Taiwan" has been severely weakened. Such ugly shows are only attracting fewer and fewer audiences.

In fact, the British are well aware of it. Let's see what Truss' fellow Conservatives said about her: "The trip is performative, not substantive. It is the worst kind of example of Instagram diplomacy."

Criticism from some British media is even more direct: "The disgraced prime minister's clumsy meddling jeopardizes delicate relations with Beijing;" "indulging her hubris and pique, the serially irresponsible MP for South West Norfolk is doing her country another disservice;" "the last thing Taiwan's people need is 'help' from Truss."

Truss once played the card of being tough against China. She took power of 10 Downing Street but quickly resigned after only 45 days in office due to her incompetence, becoming the shortest-serving prime minister in the UK.

Truss won't bring any benefits to Taiwan, but will only make the Democratic Progressive Party authorities go further on the dangerous path of self-anesthesia and self-deception. Source: Global Times Online)
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(Kitco News) - The Montenegrin State Prosecutor's Office has appealed the decision to grant bail to Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon and chief financial officer Han Chang-Joon, according to a court statement.

Their bail proposals were accepted by the court on May 12. The case files have now been sent to the High Court in Podgorica for a decision on the appeal.

If the bail decision is upheld, both men will be released from jail and placed under house arrest in an apartment in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, on a bond of 400,000 euros ($436,000) each. Each has been charged with attempting to travel using forged documents.

The defendants told the court they have property worth several million, but the bail amount would be paid by their wives. They also promised that if they are released from custody, they will not flee before the end of the criminal proceedings, that they will regularly respond to court summons and that they will be available at the address provided by their defense attorney.

The Montenegrin prosecutor objected to the defenses bail proposal at the time, arguing that the offered amount does not guarantee the presence of the defendants and that they have no interest in staying in the territory of Montenegro.

The court decided, however, that the possibility of losing the deposited bail in the amount of EUR 400,000.00 each has a sufficiently discouraging effect on the defendants to dissuade them from any desire to escape.

The prosecution had three weekdays to appeal the decision, and they did so on Wednesday.

The court said that the public and the media will be informed of the outcome of the appeal through the Podgorica Court website. They did not offer a timeline for the decision.

Both the United States and South Korea are seeking Do Kwons extradition, but Montenegros Justice Minister Marko Kovac indicated on March 29 that crimes committed in his country will take precedence.

Primacy is given to the court proceedings led in Montenegro, Kovac told journalists through an interpreter. If they are convicted for the criminal offense of falsifying identification documents, only after they served their prison sentence is it expected that they will be extradited.

The U.S. and South Korea have also requested Kwons laptops and other devices on suspicion that they might contain evidence of crimes and cryptocurrency.

Kwon and Chang-Joon were arrested at the Podgorica airport on Mar. 23 after being caught attempting to travel to Dubai under fake Costa Rican traveling documents. The pair also had Belgian and South Korean travel documents, and Montenegrin authorities said the Belgian documents were also forged.

The pressure to capture Kwon had been mounting since he fled his native South Korea following the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in May 2022, with a South Korean court issuing an arrest warrant on Sept. 17 and Interpol issuing a Red Notice two weeks later.

The United States was the latest entity to target Kwon with criminal charges. On Feb. 17, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Do Kwon with securities fraud, writing that Kwon and Terraform orchestrated a multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud involving an algorithmic stablecoin and other crypto asset securities.

The SEC said Terraform and Kwon touted and marketed Terra USD (UST) as a yield-bearing stablecoin, which they advertised as paying as much as 20 percent interest through the Anchor Protocol, and that they repeatedly misled and deceived investors that a popular Korean mobile payment application used the Terra blockchain to settle transactions that would accrue value to LUNA.

The complaint also alleges that Kwon and others at Terraform misled investors about USTs stability before it ultimately depegged from the U.S. dollar and became nearly worthless.

On May 2, attorneys for Terraform Labs filed a motion to dismiss a U.S. class action lawsuit filed against the company, and they also took the opportunity to push back against the SECs charges.

The class action was filed by investor Nick Patterson in June 2022, claiming that Terraform Labs algorithmic stablecoin tokens UST and LUNA were actually securities, and that the company committed racketeering, mail and wire fraud.

The lawyers challenge echoed the now-familiar criticisms that crypto firms have been leveling against the SEC for years.

Lead Plaintiffs attempt to rely on the SECs allegations regarding the Terra Tokens being securities is fatal, they wrote. First off, they say Patterson cannot simply base his claim on the SECs allegations. Secondly, the SEC is wrong and [the Howey test] does not apply to digital assets. And finally, Patterson does not adequately plead that any specific Terra Token satisfies the Howey test.
By Pratima Desai

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Commodity trader Trafigura has earmarked for delivery unusually large volumes of aluminium at London Metal Exchange (LME) approved warehouses in Malaysia, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, raising exchange supply concerns. Swiss-based Trafigura recently cancelled warrants -- title documents that confer ownership -- totalling more than 132,000 tonnes of aluminium at LME warehouses in Port Klang, Malaysia, the sources said, more than 20% of available LME stocks.

Cancelling warrants indicates intention to take delivery of metal from LME warehouses. Trafigura declined to comment. Aluminium stocks in LME warehouses hit two-month highs of 573,075 tonnes in the middle of April, easing worries about availability of the metal in the LME system and weighing on prices which are down 15% since January. Benchmark aluminium prices at $2,270 a tonne have also been under pressure from worries about growth and rising demand for the metal. However, the cancellation of large amounts of aluminium warrants this week fuelled concern about LME supplies and influenced price differentials between contracts along the maturity curve, industry sources said.

The discount or contango for buying aluminium tomorrow and selling it the day after - known as tom-next -- flipped into a premium or backwardation, which hit $11 a tonne this week. It hit a session high of $8 a tonne on Thursday. Further along the maturity curve a $5 a tonne discount on Tuesday for the cash over the three-month aluminium contracts reversed into a premium, touching $14 a tonne, the highest since October last year.

"As per normal procedure, the LME Market Surveillance team has been carefully monitoring the aluminium market and engaging with all parties involved to ensure market orderliness and conduct are maintained," the LME said in response to a request for comment. Focus in the LME aluminium market this week was also on a short aluminium futures position with 20-29% of open interest - the number of outstanding contracts due to mature or be rolled over at settlement on May 17. Latest LME data shows three short aluminium positions maturing in June. One holding 10-19% of open interest and two others with 5-9%. Also attracting attention was a long aluminium position held by IXM owned by China's CMOC Group , with large amounts of LME aluminium warrants and nearby contracts , a third source with direct knowledge of the matter said.

IXM declined to comment.

(Reporting by Pratima Desai; additional reporting by Eric Onstad and Polina Devitt; editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
(Adds details on Robinson mine, quotes)

GDANSK, May 18 (Reuters) - Poland's largest ore miner KGHM Polska Miedz can verify four more viable mining pits in its flagship Sierra Gorda copper and molybdenum mine in Chile, vice president of the company's management board for international assets Miroslaw Kidon said on Thursday.

"We can verify and identify another four pits, which are of similar size to our current pit," said Kidon on a conference call. He added that the company and a team of geologists suspected the newly identified pits might be in reality "one big super-pit". Sierra Gorda, in which the Polish miner holds a majority stake, produced nearly 19 thousand tonnes of payable copper in the first quarter, 21% less than in the same quarter last year.

Kidon explained that the decline was caused by a lower content of the metal in the ore, but underlined the company's commitment to the mine. "Sierra Gorda became our flagship project, we constantly work to improve financial results and value of this company...", he said. Another foreign mining operation that sustained a drop in its output was the Robinson copper mine in Nevada, U.S. whose quarterly output declined by an annual 63% to 5.3 thousand tonnes of payable copper.

The fall was mainly due to extreme weather conditions, including record high snowfall, whose melting led to flooding of the mine's communication routes. Kidon said he did not expect the mine to hit its yearly production goal, as the unit under which the mine operates has so far achieved only about 14% of its output target. "At the moment, I can only say that we expect non-execution of budget production volume for Robinson," he said. He added, however, that it was too soon to make output predictions with certainty.

(Reporting by Mateusz Rabiega and Anna Banacka; Editing by Jan Harvey and Christina Fincher)
The Free Speech Union produced documentary Last Words' is now available free on the plainsight.nz homepage.

Last Words' (running time: 40 mins) is a co-production between the NZ Free Speech

Union and producer/ director and jewish community member Dane Giraud. It follows Danish free speech activist Jacob

Mchangama (the author of Free Speech: A History from Socrates to Social Media') on his

November 2022 visit to Aotearoa.

The documentary was shot just before our new prime minister Chris Hipkins put a halt

to proposed hate speech laws, so the film captures this moment in time and is

brimming with fantastic free speech arguments courtesy of the brilliance of Jacob. The

NZ Free Speech Union allowed cameras into some of their meetings and planning

sessions, so this fly-on-the-wall footage provides all-access insights into the often-

fraught terrain of defending this central progressive principle.

So, grab a bowl of popcorn and enjoy. And don't forget to share Last Words' with all your

friends, family, and other networks.

Available on plainsight.nz and on youtube @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63qT5i8dd7Q&t=44s

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In the unequal Treaty of Brest-Litovsk of March 3, 1918, Vladimir Lenin signed away a quarter of Russias population and industry in addition to nine-tenths of its coal mines. Why? He couldn't wait to end the war with Germany.





How could Lenin get away with it? By denial. He denied that he had betrayed Mother Russia. Somehow he convinced his fellow Bolsheviks that Germany, following Russia, would be ripe for a communist revolution. Whatever he had lost to an Imperial Germany, he promised to recover from a Communist Germany. Workers were supposed to own and share everything while respecting no borders.





Of course, it was the victorious Allied Powers politicians, not the defeated German Empires workers, who finally abrogated the Brest-Litovsk treaty in the wake of the Armistice of November 11, 1918.





Facts might be stubborn things, but they had not been stubborn enough to stop Lenin and Leninists from weaponizing denial through their CHEKA, a Soviet agency of terror, during and beyond the Russian Civil War.





by 
Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

Mostly clear. Low 52F. SE winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mostly clear. Low 52F. SE winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph.
WASHINGTON  Republicans at a U.S. House hearing aired frustration with the Department of Justice this week for what they contended is a lack of enforcement of a Clinton-era law that protects access to reproductive health care at anti-abortion pregnancy centers and abortion clinics.

GOP lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee expressed anger the FBI and U.S. attorneys dont bring more charges against people who vandalize, mark with graffiti, or burn down anti-abortion facilities, often known as crisis pregnancy centers.

Democrats on the GOP-controlled subcommittee that held the hearing contended health care clinics that provide abortion services face the greater danger and that U.S. lawmakers should condemn acts of violence regardless of whether they are aimed at anti-abortion pregnancy centers or abortion facilities.

Violence, threats and intimidation tactics should have no place in our political discourse, including in our nations ongoing debate over abortion access, said Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, the ranking member on the panel.

We must condemn all political violence and threats of violence, whatever the beliefs or motivations of those who engage in it and regardless of who the target may be, she added.

Scanlon chided her GOP colleagues during the hearing for focusing their questions and inviting witnesses based on their belief the Biden administration isnt doing all it could to prosecute people who attack anti-abortion pregnancy centers under a federal law known as the FACE Act.

By convening a hearing that inflames grievances and amplifies misinformation concerning the prevalence of violence against anti-abortion forces, this hearing does not advance our congressional duty to protect and preserve our democracy, Scanlon said.

1994 law

The FACE Act, which stands for Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances, was enacted in 1994 and made it a federal crime to injure, intimidate or interfere with someone seeking access to reproductive health care services or someone performing reproductive health care services.

Damaging or destroying a facility because it provides reproductive health care services, including abortion, also became a federal crime.

The law defined reproductive health care services broadly, meaning today it protects abortion clinics, anti-abortion pregnancy centers and regular doctors offices where patients seek any form of reproductive health care.

The FACE Act passed Congress with bipartisan support and was signed into law by then-President Bill Clinton. While it protects access to all types of reproductive health care services, the bill was introduced following a wave of violence against abortion clinics and the murder of abortion providers in Florida and Kansas in 1993.

The Justice Department details recent violence against reproductive health care centers, including FACE Act violations, on its website, though it doesnt differentiate between crimes against abortion clinics and anti-abortion pregnancy centers there.

Talcott Camp, chief legal and strategy officer at the National Abortion Federation, the professional association of abortion providers, testified during the hearing that unquestionably the vast majority of crimes are committed against reproductive health care clinics that provide abortions.

The National Abortion Federations latest report on crimes committed against reproductive health care facilities during 2022 notes that violence and disruption against abortion clinics drastically increased in states that kept access legal, following the Supreme Courts decision last summer to overturn the constitutional right to an abortion.

From 2021 to 2022, death threats or threats of harm increased from 182 to 218, stalkings increased from 28 to 92, burglaries increased by 231% and four clinics experienced arson, she testified.

Since 1977 there have been 11 murders, 26 attempted murders, 42 bombings, 200 arsons, 531 assaults, 492 clinic invasions, 375 burglaries and thousands of other criminal incidents targeting abortion patients, providers and volunteers, Camp said.

New York Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler asked Camp if people living in states where abortion access has been protected should be concerned that violence, threats and intimidation against abortion providers could effectively ban abortion in their state, regardless of what their state law provides.

Camp testified that the Supreme Courts ruling to end nationwide protection for abortion emboldened anti-abortion extremists to go specially to clinics in states that protect abortion rights.

During 2022, she testified, stalkings overall increased 230%, but they jumped up by 900% in states that have protected abortion rights.

Republicans focus on pregnancy centers

Louisiana Republican Rep. Mike Johnson, chairman of the Judiciary Committees Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government, which held the hearing, contended the Justice Department should prosecute more people for crimes against anti-abortion pregnancy centers.

The women that seek these services should be able to do so, obviously, without facing any danger, Johnson said.

Since the Supreme Courts decision to end the fundamental right to an abortion was reported by Politico in May 2022 following a leak of the draft opinion, Johnson said, there have been more than 100 attacks on crisis pregnancy centers and churches, which are also protected under the FACE Act.

Johnson didnt offer a breakdown of those numbers, or whether local or state law enforcement had brought charges in the cases. But the Catholic News Agencys tracker says 63 were against pregnancy centers.

Johnson said the incidents included vandalism, graffiti, arson and online harassment, including one case in Florida where the Department of Justice has secured indictments against four people for spray-painting threats.

Johnson said that wasnt enough, calling it a drop in the bucket.

Mark Houck, an anti-abortion advocate who was charged by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania with a FACE Act violation for shoving a 72-year-old clinic volunteer escort but found not guilty, testified he believes he was persecuted.

Houck testified he didnt want the volunteer, who helps patients get inside the building safely, standing near or talking to his 12-year-old son, whom Houck brought with him to the abortion clinic in Philadelphia.

That morning, Houck testified, he followed women leaving the clinic across the street while offering them literature.

At that time, an escort in the building decided to run over, impede my progress and get in the way of me ministering and talking to the women who had left Planned Parenthood, Houck said.

After returning to stand outside the health care clinic, Houck testified, the clinic volunteer escort stood right next to my 12-year-old-boy, who was a little intimidated and scared by this.

He begins to talk to my son and badger my son and starts telling my son how evil his father is and how his father doesnt want to help women, Houck said, adding he then asked the clinic volunteer to go back to where he normally stands.

Houck said he then escorted the volunteer to another area in front of the clinic.

I turned around to face my son and go back to pray. He turned around and began to badger my son again, Houck testified. At that point, I became a dad on the street concerned for my son. I did push the man. He did fall down.

Houck and several Republican lawmakers on the subcommittee sharply criticized law enforcement officers for arresting Houck at his home, in front of his family, while holding weapons.

Houck said he believes they arrested him at his home, instead of allowing him to turn himself in, to humiliate me, to scare my children and to instill fear in pro-life America.
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Enel Chile S.A. (NYSE:ENIC  Get Rating) announced a semi-annual dividend on Wednesday, May 17th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, January 1st will be given a dividend of 0.3076 per share by the utilities provider on Thursday, May 18th. This represents a yield of 10.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 18th. This is a positive change from Enel Chiles previous semi-annual dividend of $0.01.

Enel Chile has a payout ratio of 8.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings.

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Enel Chile Price Performance

NYSE ENIC traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $3.08. 1,605,297 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 579,463. The stock has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a PE ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.05. Enel Chile has a one year low of $0.98 and a one year high of $3.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $2.63 and a 200-day moving average of $2.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Enel Chile in the 1st quarter valued at $100,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its stake in shares of Enel Chile by 97.7% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 387,161 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 191,335 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Enel Chile by 45.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 236,674 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 74,470 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new position in shares of Enel Chile in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Enel Chile by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 68,387 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 8,659 shares in the last quarter. 2.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Enel Chile from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, May 11th.

Enel Chile Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Enel Chile SA engages in the development, operation, generation, and distribution of electricity. It operates through following segments: Generation, Transmission, and Distribution. The Generation segment supplies electricity to end customers using lines and substations that belong to transmission and distribution companies.

Further Reading

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Porto Energy Corp. (OTCMKTS:PNRXF  Get Rating)s share price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $0.00 and traded as high as $0.00. Porto Energy shares last traded at $0.00, with a volume of 0 shares trading hands.

Porto Energy Stock Performance

Porto Energy Company Profile

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Porto Energy Corp. engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas. It focuses on the Aljubarrota-3, Torres Vedras-3, Sao Pedro de Muel-2, Cabo Mondego-2, Rio Maior-2, Zambujal and Peniche oil and gas concessions in Portugal. The company was founded by Patric Monteleone in 1993 and is headquartered in The Woodlands, TX.

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Fenikso (OTCMKTS:LEKOF  Get Rating) and Sanchez Energy (OTCMKTS:SNEC  Get Rating) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Fenikso and Sanchez Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.

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Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Fenikso 0 0 0 0 N/A Sanchez Energy 0 0 0 0 N/A

Institutional & Insider Ownership

Risk and Volatility

0.6% of Sanchez Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 11.1% of Sanchez Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Fenikso has a beta of -0.76, meaning that its stock price is 176% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sanchez Energy has a beta of 1.71, meaning that its stock price is 71% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Fenikso and Sanchez Energys gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Fenikso $32.92 million N/A -$108.05 million N/A N/A Sanchez Energy $1.06 billion 0.00 $85.21 million N/A N/A

Sanchez Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Fenikso.

Profitability

This table compares Fenikso and Sanchez Energys net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Fenikso N/A N/A N/A Sanchez Energy 2.22% -18.15% 3.09%

Summary

Sanchez Energy beats Fenikso on 7 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Fenikso

(Get Rating)

Fenikso Ltd. is an investment holding company, which engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas. It operates through the following geographical segments: Nigeria, Namibia, Cayman, and Others. The company was founded by Olalekan Akinsoga Akinyanmi on December 3, 2010 and is headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria.

About Sanchez Energy

(Get Rating)

Sanchez Energy Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, focuses on the acquisition and development of onshore unconventional oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It engages in the horizontal development of resources from the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas. It also holds an undeveloped acreage position in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS) in Mississippi and Louisiana. As of December 31, 2018, the company had assembled approximately 271,000 net acres in the Eagle Ford Shale; and owned approximately 34,000 net acres in the TMS. Sanchez Energy Corporation was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

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Put a bowl of mixed nuts in front of me, and one of the first varieties thatll go missing are, you guessed it: the pecans.

Ill eat all the pecans and almonds first, work my way through the other varieties, and leave the peanuts for someone else. I like peanuts just fine, but they definitely wouldnt be a finalist in my mixed nut bracket, if that was a thing.

So, pecans. Ive enjoyed their taste and texture for all these years and got to thinkingI bet a Google search would turn up some fun facts. Sure enough, between the American and Australian pecan growers and shellers associations, here are the things Im going to bet you didnt know about pecans (I sure didnt!):

-With over 600,000 pecan trees, Albany, Georgia is considered the pecan capital of the U.S. and hosts the annual National Pecan Festival. In reading about it, the event sounds much like Wilbers Czech Festival with parades, dances, cooking contests, and more. In Albany, they even crown a Pecan Queen every year.

-Albany may be home here on Earth, but that delicious nut has taken a couple trips to space. According to records, astronauts on two separate Apollo missions snacked on pecans to the moon and back. For good reasona couple handfuls packs a nutrition punch with over 19 vitamins and minerals, and helpful amounts of protein, fiber, and energy.

-If youre like me, you probably picture a pecan tree as being something cute and small like an apple tree. Nope. Pecan trees usually range in height from 70 to 100 feet, with some trees growing as tall as 150 feet or higher. Native pecan treesthose over 150 years oldhave trunks more than 3 feet in diameter. (For reference: a standard apple tree grows to 20-30 feet tall if pruned, and up to 40 feet tall if left to grow wild.)

-Think 150 years is old? Pecan trees may live and bear edible nuts for more than twice that. There are 300-year-old trees that have been hanging out, doing their thing since well before the American Revolution.

-Back in this century, the U.S. produces about 80 percent of the worlds pecan crop, with Texas, New Mexico, and Georgia taking the top three spots of the 15 states that grow pecans commercially.

-If I told you there are over 100 varieties of pecans, would you be shocked? Well, you should be because there are actually over 1,000 varieties! Many are named for Native American tribes, including Cheyenne, Mohawk, Sioux, Choctaw, and Shawnee because of their pivotal role in discovering, cultivating, and utilizing pecans as a food source going back to the 16th century.

-The name pecan itself is a Native American word of Algonquin origin that was used to describe all nuts requiring a stone to crack.

-Is there a more polarizing dessert than pecan pie? Im guessing youve figured out what camp I fall inI love it. According to history, it was created by French people who settled in New Orleans.

-In case youre reading this while enjoying a cup of coffee, heres your reminder to practice gratitude: roasted pecan shells were often used as a substitute for coffee during the rationing of World War II.

Pecan you believe youve lived your whole life to this point without knowing these fun facts?
Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its position in Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH  Get Rating) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,710 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLCs holdings in Molina Healthcare were worth $1,555,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MOH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Molina Healthcare by 18.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,449,375 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,151,448,000 after buying an additional 1,001,372 shares in the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in Molina Healthcare during the 1st quarter valued at $214,363,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 151.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 893,693 shares of the companys stock valued at $298,128,000 after purchasing an additional 538,493 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 25.6% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,457,008 shares of the companys stock valued at $819,633,000 after purchasing an additional 501,107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 338.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 547,378 shares of the companys stock valued at $180,757,000 after purchasing an additional 422,626 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.25% of the companys stock.

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Molina Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of MOH opened at $295.46 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $281.35 and a 200 day moving average of $302.61. Molina Healthcare, Inc. has a one year low of $249.78 and a one year high of $374.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.13, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.68.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Molina Healthcare ( NYSE:MOH Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The company reported $5.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.13 by $0.68. Molina Healthcare had a return on equity of 36.20% and a net margin of 2.64%. The business had revenue of $8.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.90 earnings per share. Molina Healthcares revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Molina Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.25 EPS for the current year.

MOH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Molina Healthcare in a research note on Thursday. They set a strong-buy rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Molina Healthcare from $360.00 to $348.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. Credit Suisse Group increased their target price on Molina Healthcare from $347.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Molina Healthcare from $307.00 to $282.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Molina Healthcare from $365.00 to $335.00 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $354.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Molina Healthcare

In other news, Director Daniel Cooperman sold 5,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.77, for a total value of $1,383,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,944 shares in the company, valued at $1,368,350.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Molina Healthcare

(Get Rating)

Molina Healthcare, Inc engages in the provision of health care services. It operates through the following segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and Other. The company was founded by C. David Molina in 1980 and is headquartered in Long Beach, CA.

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Leidos (NYSE:LDOS  Get Rating) had its price objective cut by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $114.00 to $113.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, The Fly reports. Stifel Nicolaus price target indicates a potential upside of 44.34% from the companys previous close.

LDOS has been the topic of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut Leidos from a buy rating to a hold rating and lowered their price target for the company from $120.00 to $95.00 in a report on Monday, March 27th. 888 reaffirmed a maintains rating on shares of Leidos in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Leidos from $120.00 to $110.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Barclays lowered their price target on Leidos from $113.00 to $90.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Leidos from $103.00 to $87.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Leidos has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $101.75.

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Leidos Price Performance

LDOS traded down $0.26 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.29. 142,054 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 969,432. The companys 50-day moving average is $88.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.78. The company has a market cap of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Leidos has a 12-month low of $76.58 and a 12-month high of $110.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

Leidos ( NYSE:LDOS Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The aerospace company reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.65 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 21.00% and a net margin of 4.60%. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Leidos will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,618 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.71, for a total transaction of $206,062.78. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $893,515.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,618 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.71, for a total value of $206,062.78. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $893,515.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jerald S. Howe, Jr. acquired 1,200 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.25 per share, for a total transaction of $96,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,360,879.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Leidos by 1.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,087,661 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $1,629,768,000 after buying an additional 236,272 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in Leidos by 10.9% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 15,010,106 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $1,381,830,000 after buying an additional 1,475,772 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Leidos by 8.3% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,099,329 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $469,444,000 after buying an additional 390,196 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Leidos by 0.3% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,418,910 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $406,805,000 after buying an additional 14,243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its stake in Leidos by 6.6% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,389,586 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $404,419,000 after buying an additional 273,165 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.74% of the companys stock.

About Leidos

(Get Rating)

Leidos Holdings, Inc engages in the provision of services and solutions in the defense, intelligence, civil and health markets. It operates through the following three segments: Defense Solutions, Civil, and Health. The Defense Solutions segment provides services, solutions, and products focusing on digital modernization, mission systems and integration, Command, Control, Computers, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) technologies and services, maritime solutions, transformative software, analytics, intelligence analysis, mission support and logistics services, weapons systems and space systems and solutions.

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Tredje AP fonden bought a new stake in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 290,000 shares of the technology companys stock, valued at approximately $18,632,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $289,000. PGGM Investments bought a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,433,000. General Partner Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Phoenix Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $225,000. Finally, Middleton & Co. Inc. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA now owns 128,963 shares of the technology companys stock worth $8,286,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116 shares during the last quarter. 94.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FTV. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Fortive from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, February 2nd. Vertical Research raised shares of Fortive from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $74.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 27th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Fortive in a research note on Thursday. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Fortive from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Fortive from $77.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $73.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

Fortive Stock Up 0.6 %

In related news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 2,063 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.67, for a total value of $141,666.21. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,757,100.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website . In other news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 2,063 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.67, for a total transaction of $141,666.21. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,150 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,757,100.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website . Also, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 3,249 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.75, for a total transaction of $220,119.75. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,721 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,216,847.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders have sold a total of 6,648 shares of company stock worth $450,483 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the companys stock.

Shares of NYSE:FTV traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $65.51. The companys stock had a trading volume of 844,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,003,982. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $65.36 and a 200-day moving average of $66.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.43, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Fortive Co. has a 12-month low of $52.47 and a 12-month high of $69.78.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The technology company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Fortive had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 11.92%. The companys revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fortive Co. will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 26th will be paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 25th. Fortives payout ratio is 13.08%.

About Fortive

(Get Rating)

Fortive Corp. engages in the design, development, manufacturing, and marketing of professional and engineered products, software, and services for a variety of end markets. It operates through the following segments: Intelligent Operating Solutions, Precision Technologies, and Advanced Healthcare Solutions.

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XI'AN, Shaanxi/YUNCHENG, Shanxi, May 17 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has called on northwest China's Shaanxi Province to give full play to its strengths and play an exemplary role in advancing Chinese modernization in the country's western region. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Wednesday while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province. Shaanxi should prioritize the primary task of promoting high-quality development, base its work on local reality, and actively integrate into and work for the creation of a new development pattern, Xi said. Efforts are needed for breakthroughs in building self-reliance and strength in science and technology, modernizing the industrial system, boosting coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between regions, expanding high-level opening up, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection, he said. To catch up with and surpass other regions, Shaanxi must make new breakthroughs in sci-tech innovation and modernizing the industrial system, Xi noted, calling on the province to cultivate new strengths while consolidating its leading position in traditional industries. Shaanxi should speed up modernizing the industrial system that is intelligent, green and integrated, and meets the requirements of integrity, advancement and security, Xi said, demanding more efforts to strengthen its modern energy industrial clusters. The most arduous tasks in building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting common prosperity remain in the rural areas, Xi said, stressing efforts to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and build county economies with county seats as hubs and small townships as junctions. He also called for vigorously developing industries with distinctive features in light of local conditions, creating more channels for increasing farmers' incomes and ensuring that people would not slide back into poverty in large numbers. Efforts should be made to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of development patterns and enhance ecological conservation, Xi said. He stressed the need to strictly implement the Yellow River Protection Law and related plans and strengthen ecological protection and restoration of the river basin to protect the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of the Chinese nation. Xi called for promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development, facilitating the green transformation of the energy industry while actively and prudently advancing carbon peaking and neutrality. Work should be done to advocate green consumption and further promote the economical and intensive use of resources, Xi said. He urged efforts to open up wider and develop the inland province into a high ground for reform and opening up. The province should give full play to the city of Xi'an as an assembly center for China-Europe freight trains, move faster in becoming a pivotal opening-up channel for countries in Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. Speaking of the Party-wide education campaign on the study and implementation of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi called on Party organizations at all levels to advance the campaign profoundly and steadily and yield tangible results in forging inner strength, gaining wisdom, improving Party conduct and motivating actions. Xi stressed the importance of handling complex situations, pooling strength from across the society, and guarding against political risks, calling for translating the worldview and methodology of the thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods running through it, into a "master key" of problem-solving. Xi also underlined the need to work more scientifically with foresight, initiative, and creativity, and enhance the capabilities of promoting high-quality development, serving the public, preventing and diffusing risks, and being more professionally competent. Shaanxi should use its historical and cultural resources and red culture to continue advancing the education campaign and make solid progress, he said. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province, where he visited a museum and a salt lake Tuesday afternoon. Valuable cultural relics in the Yuncheng Museum, some of which are national treasures, are witnesses to the Chinese history of humanity, culture and civilization, he said. He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization to improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage. At the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which has a history of over 4,600 years of exploitation, Xi noted that the ecological values and functions of the salt lake are increasingly important, urging coordinated efforts to protect and utilize it to further protect its historical and cultural values. The ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin is a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and the Chinese civilization, Xi said. He required provinces and regions along the Yellow River to uphold ecological conservation in the Yellow River basin as the bottom line in planning development and pursuing high-quality development. Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and accompanied Xi on the inspection trip.
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The state of Montana cannot enforce a newly created ban on the only abortion procedure used in the state after 15 weeks gestational age, following an order from a district court judge Thursday.

Helena Judge Mike Menahan said in his ruling that Planned Parenthood of Montana, which brought the lawsuit, has shown that immediate and irreparable harm was presented by the instant effective date of the new law.

House Bill 721 was signed by Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte on Tuesday and later that day Planned Parenthood renewed a lawsuit it had brought to block the policy. The organization had initially filed the challenge when the bill was passed by GOP lawmakers, but a judge deemed that legal action premature.

The now-stalled law would have banned the most commonly used abortion procedure in the second trimester, known as dilation and evacuation or curettage. Planned Parenthood of Montana said the procedure is the only one used to terminate a pregnancy in Montana after 15 weeks gestational age, meaning the new law is in effect a 15-week abortion ban for the state.

The procedure is recognized by medical professionals and organizations as the safest option to terminate pregnancies in the second trimester, and those who testified against the bill said the procedure is mostly used in the case of tragic outcomes of wanted pregnancies. Less than 6% of abortions occur in the second trimester, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Whereas plaintiffs and their patients face immediate, irreparable harm, defendants will not be harmed by the issuance of a temporary restraining order that preserves the status quo, Lewis and Clark County District Court Judge Mike Menahan wrote. Finally, the public interest weighs in favor of preserving the status quo and in ensuring access to constitutionally protected health care services pending adjudication of a preliminary injunction.

A hearing in the case is set for May 23.

Abortion is legal in Montana under the state Supreme Courts 1999 Armstrong decision, which found the Montana Constitutions right to privacy guarantees a persons right to a pre-viability abortion from the qualified health care provider of their choice.

Even after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Roe decision last year and overturned the federal right to access an abortion, the procedure remained legal in Montana under the state documents long-recognized stronger right to privacy.

In an emailed statement Thursday morning, the head of Planned Parenthood of Montana welcomed the order.

  As the Legislature and governor continue to enact unconstitutional laws, Planned Parenthood of Montana remains committed to challenging them in court. Were glad the district court has once again recognized the grave harm these anti-abortion laws will have on people seeking basic health care and stepped in to grant this much-needed relief, said President and CEO Martha Fuller. Politics has no place in the exam room and we will not stand by as lawmakers race to take away access to abortion and strip us of our personal freedom.

In a statement Thursday, Gianforte's office said it strongly supports the stalled law.

"The governor is committed to protecting the lives of unborn babies and believes dismemberment abortion for nontherapeutic or elective reasons is a barbaric practice, dangerous for the mother, and demeaning to the medical profession," spokesperson Kaitlin Price wrote in an email.

"The fact that the bill hadnt even come to the governor's desk for his review and groups like Planned Parenthood were already running to court tells Montanans everything they need to know about these far-left, pro-abortion groups and their extreme tactics."

The Attorney General's Office has filed a response to the lawsuit, voicing its concerns over the procedure. Their filing also calls on the court to overturn Armstrong, saying it was "wrongly decided." Just last week in a different case the Montana Supreme Court upheld the Armstrong decision, however.

But even so, the AG's office argues, the law should stand because it does not limit all abortion access and is focused on one specific procedure the office says the Legislature has the ability to control.

With GOP support, the Legislature passed a slew of abortion legislation before adjourning in early May. Another new law is also under a temporary block from the court  a ban on abortions in Montana after a presumed fetal viability at 24 weeks' gestational age. That law was also stalled by Menahan.

Gianforte has signed other several bills, including one requiring pre-authorizations for abortions covered by Medicaid and changing the definitions for abortions that are deemed medically necessary, as well as increase reporting requirements. That bill and another new law to block Medicaid from covering abortions except in cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is at risk were also challenged in court Thursday.

An administrative rule from the state Department of Public Health and Human Services that essentially is the same as that law is also under a temporary block by the courts.

Other new laws passed this session will increase the licensure requirements for clinics that provide abortion care and give health care providers the ability to deny providing care they morally disagree with.

Gianforte also signed a bill that seeks to work around the Armstrong decision by saying in state law the constitutional right to privacy does not extend to abortion. That bill came with a potential constitutional flag on it from the Legislature's legal staff.

Finally, Gianforte also signed a so-called born alive act similar to one defeated by voters in 2022. It requires that an infant born alive following an attempted abortion in an abortion clinic, medical facility, or other facility is entitled to the same protections under the law that would arise for any newborn infant or for any person who comes to a medical facility or other facility for screening or treatment. Opponents to that law have pointed out that its already illegal to harm or kill an infant.
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 52F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
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Smoky conditions over North Dakota slowly began easing Thursday but were expected to linger into the weekend.

Wildfires this month have scorched more than 1 million acres in the western Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. A cold front that pushed into the Upper Midwest on Wednesday brought thick smoke from those fires to North Dakota, sending air quality ratings in the western half of the state into the "unhealthy" and "hazardous" areas.

Those ratings began improving Thursday afternoon, to "good" or "moderate." The rating for Bismarck during the afternoon moved from "unhealthy" to "unhealthy for sensitive groups" and then to "moderate."

"Surface smoke will diminish from north to south, but upper level smoke may keep haze in the forecast into the weekend," the National Weather Service reported.

Information on wildfires and air quality is on the state Department of Environmental Quality website, at bit.ly/3OhrD7E. The federal Environmental Protection Agency's map of fire and smoke conditions is at https://fire.airnow.gov/. The AirNow mobile phone app, and many other weather apps, also include air quality information.

Drought improves

Prolonged drought that has sparked the Canadian fires is continuing to improve in North Dakota.

Only 19% of the state is in some form of drought, compared with 40% last week, according to the weekly U.S. Drought Monitor map, released Thursday.

Abnormal dryness -- the weakest category -- disappeared from north central North Dakota, while moderate drought shrunk in the west. U.S. Department of Agriculture Meteorologist Brad Rippey attributed improvements "from eastern Colorado and northwestern Kansas into western North Dakota" to "phenomenal" recent rainfall totals.

Bismarck got nearly 2 inches of rain late last week. Other totals in central and western North Dakota were as high as 5 inches.

The wildfire danger in all but extreme southwestern North Dakota on Thursday was rated "low," according to the state Department of Emergency Services.

The U.S. Drought Monitor is a partnership of USDA, the National Drought Mitigation Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Crop report

The recent rain has further boosted soil moisture in North Dakota, according to the weekly crop report from the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Topsoil moisture statewide was rated 89% adequate to surplus, and subsoil moisture supplies were 83% in those categories. That compared with 81% and 73%, respectively, last week.

Pasture and range conditions were rated 89% fair to good. Stock water supplies were 95% adequate to surplus. Both percentages were up slightly over the week.

Spring wheat planting progressed from 10% complete to 20%, but that is still well behind the average pace. Seeding of nearly all other crops in the state also is far behind normal because of the late, wet spring.
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A tangled lawsuit involving a vehicle rented during the Dakota Access Pipeline protests, a blizzard and a detention at the U.S.-Mexico border has ended with a federal judge in Bismarck ruling against a former soldier and police officer, and using a joke from a popular comedian in his reasoning.

"As Jeff Foxworthy once said, 'My grandma's the most careful, safe driver in the world. You put her in a rental car, and she's doing doughnuts in the Kmart parking lot!'" U.S. District Judge Dan Traynor wrote.

The judge bolstered the apparent reference to misuse of rental vehicles with his own line: "The takeaway from the following events is simple: if you rent a car, return it."

Michael Wood Jr. didn't, and that is where the convoluted legal saga began.

Snowbound Suburban

Wood, of Glendale, Arizona, a former U.S. Marine and Baltimore police officer, rented a Suburban in 2016 when he came to Bismarck as part of an effort to bring hundreds of military veterans to a DAPL protest camp. Wood helped raise nearly $1.2 million for the Veterans Standing for Standing Rock effort to support the American Indian tribe's opposition to the oil pipeline being routed near its reservation and its Missouri River drinking water supply.

The vehicle became snowbound in a blizzard that hit the protest camp area that December. It's unclear what happened to it between then and Jan. 18, 2017, when the abandoned and damaged Suburban was recovered by police in Bismarck.

Wood was charged in January 2017 with felony theft. He and his wife, Jessica, were detained at the U.S. border in California when returning from a Mexico vacation in August 2019, though they were not arrested.

Prosecutors in March 2020 dropped the theft charge, but Wood and his wife sued in March 2021, alleging that Hertz Corp. officials falsely accused him of stealing the Suburban in retaliation for his social media criticism of the company's service or his support of the pipeline protest that drew thousands of people to southern North Dakota over a six-month span of 2016-17. The defendants disputed the retaliation allegation.

Traynor later in 2021 dismissed the city of Bismarck and two police officers as defendants in the civil rights lawsuit, along with two Hertz employees in Oklahoma. The Woods voluntarily dropped Hertz as a defendant after the company declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid the coronavirus pandemic.

That left Bismarck franchisee Overland West Inc. and two of its employees -- Alexandria Huber and John Kaelberer -- as the only remaining defendants in the suit that sought unspecified money damages.

Court documents in the lawsuit detail a labyrinthine tale of confusion over the whereabouts of the Suburban -- the rental paperwork and keys for which at one point turned up in Colorado -- and what agreements were made between Wood and Hertz workers, as well as disagreements over whether those workers had a right to bring police into the matter.

Wood maintained that Overland West charged his credit card about $4,700 for the Suburban rental fee and an insurance fee to cover any vehicle damages, and that his bill was paid in full because when he left the state he had made arrangements for Overland to recover the vehicle.

He acknowledged that he returned the wrong set of keys for the Suburban but called it a mistake. Hertz employees maintained that complicated the effort to recover the vehicle, and they said Wood did not pay the rental bill in full because the Suburban was still missing when the contract period ended.

Overland and the workers maintained Wood violated the terms of the rental agreement. Wood claimed the saga harmed his wife's mental health and made it impossible for him to find work in the law enforcement and security fields.

Ruling and reaction

Traynor said the Woods made inconsistent and even contradictory arguments during their legal case, and that they had "chosen selective parcels of evidence to support their argument while ignoring other key facts."

He ruled against them on all of their claims -- malicious prosecution, negligence, breach of contract, infliction of emotional distress, and negligent training and supervision.

Traynor said the couple failed to prove that the defendants did not have probable cause to make a police report, and said "The Woods have failed to prove ... that the Overland defendants breached either the written rental agreement or alleged oral contract" to recover the vehicle.

The judge said "undisputed" facts in the case were that Wood "did not physically return the Suburban to the Overland defendants" and that "there was an outstanding request for payment related to the Suburban as of Jan. 9, 2017."

He said the couple's assertions of emotional distress did not meet North Dakota's high standard for such a claim, since the defendants' conduct was not "extreme" or "outrageous."

Traynor rejected the Woods' claim for "exemplary" damages. Such damages also are known as punitive, or meant to punish a defendant rather than to compensate a plaintiff for a loss.

"None of the Woods' claims survive (review), so no damages are available to the Woods, let alone exemplary damages," he said.

Defendants' attorney Joel Flom told the Tribune, "Our only comment is that we are pleased with the ruling."

The Woods' attorney, Roberto Alejandro, said "We strongly disagree with the Court's opinion and intend to appeal.

"The court's decision basically establishes a debtor's prison system in North Dakota. The judge has ruled that if you allegedly owe a minor debt to a corporation from which you received goods or services, you are liable for theft and may be arrested at the corporation's behest. Even though you've paid $4,673.70 for the use of those same goods to date," Alejandro said.

"By this logic, if you miss a monthly payment deadline on your credit card, the credit card company can have you jailed on felony theft charges the same day. If you're one day late on a car payment, you can be jailed for felony theft. This is dangerous reasoning," the attorney concluded.

Scrutinized effort

The Veterans Standing for Standing Rock effort itself was controversial. The North Dakota Veterans Coordinating Council -- composed of the American Legion, AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Vietnam Veterans of America -- at the time publicly said it did not support the action and remained neutral on the pipeline dispute.

Many people later questioned what happened to the money raised from 26,000 donors for the effort. Wood has said the money was not misused but spent on supplies, hotel rooms and transportation. He told the High Country News in April 2018 that auditing the donations would have cost too much and would not have been a good use of the money.

But Wood also acknowledged in the lawsuit that he wasn't prepared to handle the windfall, saying "the fundraiser took off unexpectedly," and that "suddenly, what had been intended as a small effort became a great logistical challenge."
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In a few short weeks, America will celebrate an important federal holiday, Memorial Day. On Monday, May 29, many buildings and workplaces will remain closed as people celebrate a holiday, which is widely portrayed as both the joyful endcap of a three-day weekend and the unofficial start of summer. In the weeks leading up to this holiday, it feels that Memorial Day is mainly used as an adjective in advertisements for sales, barbecues or trips that one can attend during the Memorial Day Weekend. However, Memorial Day represents more than a day off from work or a chance to enjoy the warm summer weather. In fact, it holds solemn significance as a day of remembrance for all American service members who died  and for the loss sustained by their families.

There are two federal holidays that commemorate military service. The first is Veterans Day, which occurs on Nov. 11 each year and honors military veterans. The second is Memorial Day, which falls on the last Monday in May, and reveres military members who died while serving their country. On Memorial Day, we are encouraged to remember those service members who made the ultimate sacrifice. However, it is equally important for us to acknowledge the loss and sacrifice experienced by these individuals surviving family members. Because when service members give their lives, they leave behind grieving spouses, children and parents who must navigate a world without their loved ones.

Each year Memorial Day hits me both emotionally and existentially. For example, last year, my children and I sat at our kitchen table and crafted decorative Memorial Day poppy wreaths. Seemingly out of the blue, a melancholy feeling overtook me, and a series of emotions hit me one after another. I distinctly remember having to quietly excuse myself from the table to regain my composure.

I thought about my 12 months in Afghanistan, from 2011-2012, as a member of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division (Arctic Wolves). I remembered the good times and the bad, the missions and the experiences, and the feelings of pride and hardship. Most notably, I thought about the soldiers with whom I served. Some sustained physical injuries. Others suffered mental hardships. Many more received emotional scars. Everyone who came back from this deployment, came back changed.

However, not everyone in the brigade came back and I fixated on this notion. I thought about their spouses, their children and their parents. I tried to comprehend the loss and grief they must still experience, especially on days like Memorial Day. I suddenly realized that a decade had passed since I returned from Afghanistan and, during that period, I had been blessed to live a full life with my wife and children. However, those service members who died never got that chance. For their families, this same 10-year period represents a decade of lost anniversary and birthday celebrations, countless grief-stricken nights, and  for their children  an untold number of missed bedtime stories.

Memorial Day reminds me to honor those soldiers, and their family members, who lost something we often take for granted; time spent with those we love. I know that this past winter has been both long and cold. However, before we celebrate the beginning of summer, on this Memorial Day, please take time to pause, reflect, and honor those individuals  and their families  who lost that time. Honoring them will ensure that their sacrifices are never forgotten.
The married co-chefs of the trendy Hollywood restaurant Horses are in a cat fight  as in one has accused the other of killing her cats.

Elizabeth Johnson, who ran the Jewish deli Freedman's in Silver Lake before opening Horses in 2021, claims in a divorce filing that her husband and business partner, Will Aghajanian, shook their new kitten to death. (Aghajanian ironically opened up a restaurant called Catbird before Horses.)

"Will and I have had cats that mysteriously ended up dying, including one in 2017 who I took to a shelter when she became seriously wounded overnight. The shelter told me she had been seriously abused, but Will denied it," she said, explaining that, in denial herself, they then got a new kitten  which, you guessed it, did not go well.

From the LA Times:

[Johnson] claims that Aghajanian joked about feeding the kitten to coyotes and said he didn't like the cat, according to the filing. Eventually, she alleges she witnessed him hurting their cat, she wrote in the filing. "I caught Will violently shaking the cat late at night, and he died the next day," she wrote. "Will put the dead cat in the trash and insisted on keeping the corpse in the house."  A judge in the case approved the domestic violence restraining order in December and reissued it on May 1, according to court documents. In his own filing for a restraining order, Aghajanian requested custody back of the dogs Pancho and Javi, saying that Johnson "misled the Court into making orders against me."  Aghajanian claimed that he was the victim in the marriage. He claimed that Johnson threatened to kill him repeatedly and burned him at least twice with a metal spatula and a spoon she had first placed into a fryer, according to court filings.

Welp, I've never eaten at Horses and I don't live far from it, but after reading this unappetizing article, I think I'll pass.
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): Airtel Payments Bank delivered a strong performance across various metrics in the financial year 2022-23. During the financial year, it reported revenue growth of 37 per cent to Rs 1,291 crore with profits growing by 141 per cent to Rs 21.7 crore.

The customer deposits grew by 59 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1,865 crore, fueled by a healthy addition of new users, it said in a statement Thursday.

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The bank has 54.7 million monthly transacting users and a gross merchandise value (GMV) of Rs 2,015 billion.

The Bank said it recorded growth across all three core business segments - the Urban Digital Consumer, the Rural Underbanked, and Industries and Businesses. The Bank registered a strong uptake for its diversified product offerings like digital payments, money transfers, insurance, referral credit, and collection management services.

Also Read | Mexico Finds 49 Kidnapped Migrants.

"This year has been a stellar year in our growth journey. Our trusted brand and innovative products, backed by unmatched distribution reach and technology, position us well to accelerate our growth further," said Anubrata Biswas, MD and CEO of Airtel Payments Bank.

"Our strong performance is a validation of the payments bank model and its role in serving the digital and financial inclusion needs of the country." (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, May 17 (PTI) At least 300 students from universities and higher education institutes from across the country will be selected as "NEP Saarthis" to promote the new National Education Policy and collect feedback to improve its implementation, UGC Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar said.

Students can play a crucial role in this transformative process, as they are a pivotal part of the education system, Kumar said.

Also Read | Delhi Shocker: Body Parts of Slaughtered Cow Found Inside in Aman Vihar Area.

"In order to enhance students' participation and create awareness around the various reforms in the higher education system as outlined in the NEP 2020, the UGC is launching a new initiative, 'NEP Saarthi - Student Ambassador for Academic Reforms in Transforming Higher Education in India.

"Through NEP Saarthi, the UGC aims to foster an environment where students can engage meaningfully and bring students together as active participants to make effective use of provisions of the NEP 2020," Kumar said.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Bridegroom's Uncle Shot Dead After Minor Argument During Wedding Ceremony in Deoria.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked the vice chancellors, directors, and principals of HEIs to nominate three students from their institutions (enrolled in any course) to be considered as "NEP Saarthis".

The nominated students are expected to have outstanding personalities, possess excellent communication skills, organisational capabilities for conducting outreach programmes, creativity, sense of responsibility along with being a team leader.

"Each university may nominate up to three students to be considered as NEP Saarthi, along with a brief write-up justifying the nominations. Based on the nominations. UGC will select 300 NEP Saarthis from among the nominees. They will be guided to carry out their roles effectively by the UGC in a hybrid mode," Kumar said.

The NEP Saarthis will work as an ambassador to promote NEP 2020. Their role will include creating awareness and disseminating information regarding NEP 2020, promoting NEP initiatives on social media, collecting feedback from students to improve the implementation of the NEP, provide guidance to students and other stakeholders regarding policy initiatives and how they can benefit from them.

"The NEP Saarthis will organise awareness drives regarding the latest NEP initiatives; connect with student groups; establish meaningful dialogue among students, faculty members, administrators, and the UGC; prepare brief notes on each NEP initiative for display on campus; plan events, debates, discussions, competitions, quizzes, nukkads, chaupals; initiate social media activities or campaigns and set up NEP help desks at college fests," Kumar added.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The Centre has decided to recruit 20 private sector specialists as joint secretaries, directors, and deputy secretaries on contract basis in its 12 departments, an official statement issued on Thursday said.

This is the third such recruitment drive proposed to be undertaken by the Narendra Modi government.

Also Read | Karnataka: Two Police Officers Suspended for Torturing Men for Garlanding BJP Leader Nalin Kumar Kateel's Poster With Chappals.

The Department of Personnel and Training has asked the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to recruit such specialists through "lateral entry" -- that is appointment of private sector specialists in government departments.

Usually, the post of joint secretaries, directors, and deputy secretaries are manned by officers of all-India and Group A services, among others.

Also Read | BSE Odisha Announces Class 10 Results, Overall Pass Percentage at 96.19.

The proposed recruitment will be done for the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Department of Food and Public Distribution in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and the Ministry of Heavy Industries.

Select posts in the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Department of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Law and Justice, Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Department of Pharmaceutical, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers and Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education will also be filled through this lateral recruitment, according to the Personnel Ministry statement.

Four joint secretaries and 16 directors/deputy secretaries will be inducted through lateral recruitment in these ministries/departments, it said.

The detailed advertisement and instructions to the candidates will be uploaded on the Commission's website on May 20, 2023, the statement said, adding that interested candidates can apply from May 20, 2023, to June 19, 2023.

Candidates will be shortlisted for an interview on the basis of the information provided by them in their online application, it said.

"They must ensure that such information is correct," the statement said.

The Personnel Ministry had in June 2018 invited applications against 10 joint secretary-rank posts through lateral entry mode for the first time.

The recruitment for these posts was done by the UPSC.

The Commission, in October 2021, recommended 31 candidates for the appointment as joint secretaries (3), directors (19), and deputy secretaries (9) in different central government departments, as part of the second tranche of lateral entry recruitment.

Now, the process for such recruitment for the third time will be initiated by the government from May 20 onward.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Central government on the two pleas moved by the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust.

These two organisations have challenged the cancellation of their Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licence by the Central Government.

Also Read | Operation Dhvast: NIA Arrests Three After Raids in Terrorists-Gangsters Nexus Case.

Justice Jyoti Singh issued the notice to the Central Government and sought its response to the pleas.

The matter has been listed on August 23 for a final hearing.

Also Read | Karnataka: Two Police Officers Suspended for Torturing Men for Garlanding BJP Leader Nalin Kumar Kateel's Poster With Chappals.

Their licence has been cancelled over the alleged violation.

These organisations are associated with the Gandhi family. Congress leader Sonia Gandhi heads these and Rahul Gandhi is a member. Former PM Manmohan Singh and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram are members of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation.

The licences were cancelled after an investigation was carried out by an inter-ministerial committee.

The investigation was started to probe the allegations made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation received funds from the embassy of China.

After the allegation, the Central government constituted a committee to investigate the alleged violations under different laws like PMLA, FCRA and IT Act.

The pleas were filed in January 2023.

The matter kept adjourning due to one or another reason. The bench also expressed its displeasure on the fact that it took eight hearings for the issuance of notice on the plea.

The matter was taken up today. The counsel for the central government sought a pass over but the bench said it will issue a notice in the matter.

"This is a regular first appeal (RFA). It can't be dismissed in limine. Eight dates have gone by, let's be a little practical, Eight dates to do this," the bench said while expressing its displeasure.

Earlier also, adjournments were sought on four dates on the ground that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta was busy in other courts. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, May 18: Four people remained stuck inside the lift of a resto bar in Connaught Place before they were rescued by the fire department in a "tough" one-hour-long operation. According to the fire department, it got a call at 11.14 pm Wednesday that some people were stuck inside the lift of My Bar Headquarters restaurant and bar.

The department rushed one fire tender and one rescue tender immediately to the spot, it said. The firemen found that the patrons of the bar were stuck inside the lift because of a mechanical glitch which had jammed the lift's doors. The lift was coming down from the first floor to the ground floor when it suffered the glitch, the fire officials said. Delhi Shocker: Body Parts of Slaughtered Cow Found Inside in Aman Vihar Area.

Later, a mechanic was called who, along with the firemen, opened the lift and managed to rescue the four people. No one reported hurt in the incident, they said. The operation, which was headed by ADO Rajesh Shukla, was completed in one hour, the officials said. Delhi Fire Services Director Atul Garg informed about the incident in a tweet and called it a "tough" rescue operation. Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi Suspends MCDs Chief Assessor and Collector Kunal Kashyap, Orders Vigilance Probe Into Alleged House Tax Evasion Case.

"Again, Team DFS carried out a tough rescue operation & saved 4 personnel from lift in a 1 hour operation. A call was received at 23.14 from My Bar hqtrs Resutrant (sic), M block, Connaught place, 4 person trapped in lift, DFS deployed best team & saved all4 without any injuries," he tweeted. No complaint was received from the people rescued, said a senior police officer.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], May 18 (ANI): Congress leader DK Shivakumar has risen from being a member of the National Students Union of India, the student wing of the Congress to becoming the party's Karnataka president and now a deputy chief minister-designate.

Shivakumar was announced deputy chief minister by Congress after the party's emphatic win in the Karnataka Assembly elections this month.

Also Read | Mexico Finds 49 Kidnapped Migrants.

Believed to be a mass leader, Shivakumar started his political journey at the young age of 18 when he joined NSUI, the student wing of Congress, and became its President for the Bangalore district unit at an early age (1981-83).

While studying at Ram Narayan Chellaram College in Bangalore, DK Shivakumar joined the Youth Congress and was elected its General Secretary for its State Unit.

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His political career had a tough start in 1985 when he was fielded against Janata Dal's most influential leader HD Deve Gowda at Satanur Legislative Assembly Constituency.

Shivakumar gave a tough fight to Deve Gowda which the JDS leader won.

In 1987, the Congress leader was elected member of the Bengaluru Rural Zilla Panchayat from Satanur Constituency.

In 1989, he contested from the Satanur Legislative Assembly Constituency representing Indian National Congress Party. Shivakumar won the seat with a thumping majority.

Shivakumar played an important role in 1991, in bringing Sarekoppa Bangarappa Government to power and was appointed Minister for Prisons, who was then the youngest Minister in his Cabinet.

However, in the next election in 1994, his opponents were successful in denying him the party ticket. Shivakumar contested as a rebel candidate and continued his winning journey.

In 1999, when SM Krishna was elected President of the Karnataka Congress, Shivakumar supported him. The Congress Party won a resounding victory in the elections to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Shivakumar was instrumental in bringing the party to victory and in forming the Government.

When Krishna started the election campaign by blowing Panchajanya, Shivakumar had organized a historic Yatra, which brought Congress Party to power with 139 seats and helped to form Government on its own strength. Shivakumar was able to win again for the third time in a row. Krishna appointed him as a Cabinet Minister by allocating the portfolio to Cooperation. Shivakumar was given recognition for his hard work (1999-2002).

In 2002, Shivakumar served as Minister of Urban Development and the Chairman of the State Planning Board. As the Chairman of the Cabinet Sub-committee, he led the "Rajiv Yuva Shakti" organizations to organize the youth and settle them in life in the State. He was instrumental in starting Stree Shakthi the first women's empowerment organization in the world.

In 1999, the Congress Party had given a ticket to Shivakumar to contest against Deve Gowda's son HD Kumaraswamy from Satanur constituency once again.

Though Deve Gowda had the glamour of Prime Minister, Kumaraswamy lost the election. Shivakumar emerged victorious.

When the Congress-JDS Coalition Government was formed for the first time in 2004, SM Krishna was sidelined as per the dictate of the alliance partner, Dharam Singh was made Chief Minister.

But, it was Shivakumar, who persuaded the higher-ups in the party to get the gubernatorial post of the Governor of Maharashtra for Krishna.

In 2004, Shivakumar came out with flying colours at Satanur Legislative Assembly constituency for the fourth consecutive term. But, the Congress party failed to win a majority.

Due to a lack of a majority to form the Government on its own, the Congress Party had to align itself with Janata Dal (Secular) led by Deve Gowda, to prevent the Bharatiya Janata Party to garner power.

For the first time in the history of the State, the Congress-JDS alliance emerged as a coalition government. There was no place for Shivakumar in the Cabinet.

In 2013, when the Congress party returned to power and Siddaramaiah was elected Chief Minister, Shivakumar was inducted into the Siddaramaiah Government as Minister for Energy after seven months.

Shivakumar was arrested by the ED in September 2019 in an alleged money laundering case. The I-T department conducted raids on Shivakumar in August 2017.

After his return from Jail, Sonia Gandhi appointed him as KPCC President on March 11, 2020.

He led the party to an emphatic victory in the recently concluded Assembly polls, ending the BJP rule in the only southern state it ruled.

Shivakumar will be sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka on May 20. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Srinagar, May 18 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday said the G-20 meeting in the Valley next week is a historic opportunity for the Union Territory to showcase its vibrant culture, traditions and tourism potential.

He made these remarks during an interaction with the members of civil society groups, members of PRIs, representatives of various organisations.

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"G-20 meeting is a historic opportunity for J-K UT to showcase its vibrant culture, traditions and tourism potential. It belongs to all the citizens and they should come forward and be a part of this historic event," he said.

The Lt Governor also urged the civil society members to take advantage of this opportunity and encourage citizens, tourism and industry stakeholders to contribute to the event's grand success.

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Sinha expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing a powerful platform of G-20 meeting for connecting local and global aspirations.

"G-20 meeting will give a new height to J-K's growth, boost to limitless potential of tourism and hospitality sector and enhance economic prosperity to all sections of society. It is also an opportunity for handicraft sector to script a bright future," he said.

Addressing the members of the civil society groups, Sinha also talked about J-K's journey on the path of accelerated development and the remarkable progress registered in various sectors since 2019.

"Never before had infrastructure development taken place at the kind of speed witnessed in the past four years. We are marching forward with the common vision of peace, progress and prosperity. Let us all re-dedicate ourselves to make this event a memorable one with the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam," he said.

Speaking on the revival of the tourism sector, the Lt Governor said it was affected adversely due to the Covid pandemic, but is now recovering fast.

We are making several interventions to give new momentum to tourism and hospitality sector, he added.

Connectivity is the most important aspect not only for the tourism but also for the overall development. More than 1.50 lakh crore rupees worth highways and tunnel projects are being executed and the improved road and rail connectivity have brought J-K closer to the world, the Lt Governor said.

He commended the contribution and cooperation of all stakeholders, civil society groups and eminent citizens in the preparations of the upcoming G-20 event starting from May 22.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Shimla, May 18 (PTI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said the state is planning to purchase 75 e-buses, taking the total fleet to 170, according to a statement issued here on Thursday.

Tenders for the purchase of these buses, which will ply on 75 identified routes, have been issued and the letter of award (LOA) is expected by June, it said.

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The Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) has also identified routes to replace 225 diesel buses with e-buses, Sukhu said while presiding over a meeting of the transport department Wednesday evening.

The HRTC is transitioning from diesel to electric buses in a phased manner and the current fleet already includes 95 electric buses, he said.

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The government is working to develop the required infrastructure for e-buses, including charging stations, the statement added.

The chief minister said six green corridors were being built in the state, adding that Himachal Pradesh aims to become a role model in the country in the e-vehicle sector.

Reforms would be introduced to make the HRTC self-reliant and provide it with better financial resources, ensuring timely payment of salaries and pensions to its employees and pensioners, Sukhu said.

The state government will start a recruitment drive in HRTC to fill up the vacant posts of drivers and conductors, he added.

During the meeting, the CM also reviewed the construction of the proposed bus port in Hamirpur and said its construction will be completed within the next two years by the Himachal Pradesh Bus Stand Management and Development Authority.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Baramulla (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], May 18 (ANI): In a significant initiative towards augmentation of veterinary care and treatment in Baramulla district, Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Agriculture Production Department, Atal Dulloo, today visited Pattan where he inaugurated a Veterinary hospital and mega Fertility Camp held under Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP).

Deputy Commissioner Baramulla, Dr Syed Sehrish Asgar, Director General, Sheep Husbandry Department, Bashir Ahmad Khan, Director Animal Husbandry Kashmir, Purnima Mittal, Chief Executive Officer Livestock, Dr Balbir Singh, SDM Pattan and other officers were present.

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The programme was participated by progressive farmers, local farm women and other concerned stakeholders including youth.

After inaugurating the Veterinary hospital, Atal Dulloo complimented the people for the facility and asserted that the hospital will tremendously augment animal care and treatment in the area.

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"The facility coming up on modern lines at a cost of Rs 1.92 crore will house a drug store, medical facility, operation theatre besides quarters for doctors and staff," he said.

ACS informed that the hospital will have all the sophisticated and latest equipment that will focus on treating animals under the supervision of doctors and trained professionals.

During his visit, Atal Dulloo also inaugurated Mega Fertility Camp held under HADP meant to resolve the infertility problem among the cattle.

He was informed that cows and other animals will be treated free of cost for various fertility-related problems by means of hormonal treatment.

Later, the Additional Chief Secretary briefly interacted with the local progressive farmers under HADP and sought feedback regarding their achievements in the sector.

Atal Dulloo asked the officers to ensure that the benefit of all schemes related to agriculture and allied sectors should percolate to all eligible and deserving farmers across the district.

He added that increasing productivity, production and farmer income is among the top priorities of the UT administration.

Elaborating further, ACS said, "Imparting training to the budding farmers should be of pivotal importance for the district administration."

Dr Syed Sehrish, while addressing the event, said, "The hospital is expected to serve the farmers of the area rearing milch animals by providing them better services thus fulfilling the increasing demand for modern animal care and treatment."

DC also briefed that district administration is carrying out various training programmes on the "Holistic Agriculture Development Plan" during which people are being educated about multiple departmental schemes like KCC, Cattle Insurance, and Dairy Development schemes. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The NHRC on Thursday sent notices to the Jharkhand government and the state's police chief over reports that a tribal girl was allegedly assaulted and paraded in a village with shoes around her neck after shaving her head when she refused to marry a man of the choice of her kin.

The National Human Rights Commission in a statement said the alleged incident took place on the diktat of Jogidih village panchayat in Palamu district of Jharkhand.

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The NHRC has taken suo motu cognisance of media reports that the tribal girl was "physically assaulted, and paraded with shoes around her neck after shaving her head when she refused to marry a man of the choice of her kin", the statement said.

The Commission has observed that the content of the media report, if true, amount to a violation of the human rights of the victim at the behest of a village panchayat.

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"The perpetrators of such an immoral and unlawful act cannot be allowed to go scot-free in a civilised society governed by the rule of law," it said.

Accordingly, it has issued notices to the chief secretary and the director general of police of the state, seeking a detailed report within four weeks, including on the status of the FIR registered by the police, medical treatment of the victim girl and compensation if any, granted to her, the statement said.

The authorities are expected to explain in the report the status of the installment of the compensation given to the victim, who is eligible for the same according to the provisions of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the rights panel said.

They are also expected to intimate the status of any counselling provided to the victim girl, who suffered the trauma of physical pain, humiliation, and social stigma. The Commission would also like to know about the action taken against the delinquent officers, responsible for the tragedy, it added.

According to the media reports, carried on May 16, the victim had run away on the day of her marriage on April 20, and when she returned after 20 days to the village, a meeting of the panchayat was organised to punish her, the statement said.

"After torturing and parading her in the village, she was left in the jungle in the night from where the police recovered her the next day and admitted her to the hospital. Reportedly, her parents had died eight years ago and she is living with brother and two sisters," it added, quoting the reports.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Los Angeles Sheriff's Department has internal gangs, a long-running problem exacerbated by decades of mindless political and media support for law enforcement. The gangs are violent, criminal and undermine the department, yet have been tolerated and even cultivated by its leadership. After multiple media exposes and massive financial settlements paid to people targeted by the gangs, political leaders are finally trying to reign in their own law enforcers.

The demand came Friday in a letter sent by county Inspector General Max Huntsman to 35 deputies suspected of being members of either the Executioners, which operates out of the Compton station, or the Banditos, which operates out of the East L.A. station.The names of the deputies have not been released to the public, but Huntsman said they were a subset of the 41 deputies he identified as suspected gang members last year. "The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department conducted incomplete internal affairs investigations into the Banditos and Executioners, failing to identify all members," Huntsman told The Times this week. "California's new gang law addresses discrimination based on race and gender and gives inspectors general enhanced authority to collect evidence. We're using that authority to complete the investigations by directing deputies to show their tattoos and tell us who else has them."
Mumbai, May 18 (PTI) The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Thursday slammed the privatisation policy of the Narendra Modi government and accused it "auctioning" democracy, freedom of speech, social harmony and the rule of law.

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If this wasn't enough, the government was also planning to privatise some public sector banks, claimed an editorial in 'Saamana', the mouthpiece of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.

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Referring to reports in a section of media about a committee being set up to review privatisation of banks, the Marathi daily said even if the entire issue is still in process, it is "confirmed" that some banks will be privatised.

'It is being said that some government companies and public sector undertakings are suffering losses and have become white elephant for the government. There is some truth in these claims. But, the Modi government hasn't been transparent in its privatisation moves," the Marathi daily claimed.

Whatever was earned in the last seven decades was being privatised under the garb of "navsanjivani', it further claimed.

"The face of the Modi government is dangerous as it is auctioning democracy, freedom of speech, social harmony, rule of law and now banks will be added,' the editorial alleged.

The Centre in December last year said it will take a view on privatisation of public sector banks after consultation with the departments and regulator concerned.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, May 18: Almost three years after getting banned in India, Chinese online fast fashion brand Shein is re-entering here in partnership with the country's leading retailer Reliance Retail, said industry sources.

Shein was one of the apps, which was banned by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in June 2020 after tension with China escalated on the Himalayan borders. US Hits at Chinese Fast Fashion Apps Shein and Temu That Outpace Zara, H&M; Accuses of Unfair Market Pratices.

Now Shein has partnered with Reliance Retail and will operate through the retail arm of Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries to tap one of the fastest growing fash fashion markets globally. An e-mail sent to Reliance Retail over the development remained unanswered by the time of filing of the story.

Shein, which is facing scrutiny in some markets as US over sourcing would utilise the opportunities available here. It will be sourcing for Shein's global operation for the middle east and other markets, the source added.

Reliance Retail, which has a vast portfolio of fashion brands in its kitty, would also get benefitted.

As part of the agreement, Shein could use Reliance Retail's sourcing capabilities, warehousing and logistics infrastructure along with the retailer's huge portfolio of online and offline stores. Established in 2008, Shein is known for its affordable pricing and is popular among the millennials for its trendy women's wear and other apparel. Reliance Retail Collaborates With NBA To Sell Merchandise in India.

It was banned along with 59 apps by the government, which had said at the time that these platforms posed a "threat to sovereignty and integrity". However, Shein products were available in the online market through e-commerce platforms as amazon. The issues were also taken before the Delhi High Court.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Chirongui, May 18 (AP) Facing a migration quagmire on the French island territory of Mayotte, off Africa's east coast, France's government has mobilised 2,000 troops and police to carry out mass expulsions, destroy slums and eradicate violent gangs.

But the operation has raised concerns of abuse, and aggravated tensions between local residents and immigrants from the neighbouring country of Comoros.

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It is also laying bare entrenched poverty among both communities, tensions over the island's status  and deep inequalities between Mayotte and the rest of France.

While Mayotte is a part of France, Comoros  about 100 kilometres (60 miles) to the northwest across a strait in the Indian Ocean  was also once a French colony but has been independent since 1975.

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Mayotte is by far the poorest corner of France, but its average annual income of around USD 3,500 is still more than double that in Comoros. This has created a powerful pull.

How can they imagine for a second that (the operation) will make things better? asked Momo, a father of five from Comoros who has lived in Mayotte for 30 years and is opposing efforts to destroy his family home. The fight against us is not the one Mayotte needs.

He is among those who say a lack of attention from the French state is at the core of Mayotte's problems. Like most immigrants who spoke to The Associated Press, Momo fears having his full name published for fear of reprisals or expulsion.

Meanwhile, anti-migrant collectives on Mayotte, a volcanic island north of Madagascar known for its picturesque lagoon and vanilla and ylang-ylang herb plantations, are starting to take things into their own hands.

Some are blocking hospitals treating foreigners, disrupting shipments of medicines and goods to Comoros and threatening to destroy slums if the authorities don't get there first.

Youth gangs are fighting back  some, unusually for France, with guns. Military forces and police are struggling to keep Mayotte under control.

Both communities are majority Black and trace their origins to a chain of islands whose status is the source of historical dispute.

In 1841, France bought Mayotte from its self-proclaimed sultan in exchange for protection. French colonization then extended to the other main islands of the Comoros chain. As independence movements emerged after World War II, tensions arose among the populations of the different islands.

In a 1974 referendum, three islands supported independence and became the new nation of Comoros, but Mayotte voted against and remained French. Comoros still claims Mayotte as part of the same chain.

While development in Mayotte remains far behind that of the French mainland, Comoros is wracked by corruption, run by a former coup leader and struggles to provide even basic public services.

Mayotte is seen by Comorians as a land of refuge where people can at least get medical care and children can go to school.

Since 1991, the population of Mayotte has almost quadrupled to around 260,000, according to the French statistics agency Insee  and many other immigrants are believed to remain uncounted. Insee says that of the 10,600 children born on Mayotte in 2021, 46.5 per cent had two parents who weren't French.

But once they turn 18, these young people have few job or education options. It takes years to get a residence permit, and even those who have it can't travel to mainland France. Many turn to the underground economy. Crime has flourished.

That's the backdrop for Operation Wuambushu, launched on April 24 for two months.

It's expected to be extended because of setbacks suffered by the French government and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, the architect of the operation and the driving force in France's overall efforts to stem migration.

Just as police arrived from the French mainland, a court blocked expulsions, and Comoros refused to take the migrants back.

French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Comoros President Azali Assoumani last week to try to break the deadlock.

This week, a court approved the destruction of one neighborhood, and on Wednesday, around 20 Comorians were deported by sea, the first since the operation started.

French government representatives watching the departure welcomed it as a first step"; anti-migrant activists on the docks protested that the ship held too few people.

What will we do now? asked Zenabou, whose family home was razed in this week's police action in the town of Majikavo. She fled Comoros 26 years ago and settled in Mayotte, where she has seven children born on French territory.

We have lost everything, they destroyed our lives. How can our children grow up positively when living through this?

Many residents welcome the security surge. Earlier this month, more than 1,000 people demonstrated in Chirongui in southern Mayotte in support of the operation, and to express their attachment to France.

On Sunday, people in the village of nearby Tsimkoura compiled a list of foreigner settlements and sent it to the mayor, demanding that he expel the residents by the end of the week.

Otherwise, we will take care of it, said Kourati Youssouffa, a public servant with the local administration of Mayotte.

In the isolated village of Hagnoundrou, a printed message circulating this past week warned of an imminent hunt for migrants. It warned, Don't forget your children, they are part of your luggage."

There is little room for moderation or neutrality. Many Mahorais, or Mayotte residents, feel the arrivals from Comoros deprive them of potential development and of their right to live in peace.

Comorians like Momo, meanwhile, are well-anchored on Mayotte, but now live in fear of military patrols coming to mark their home with red paint to indicate that bulldozers are coming  or violence by anti-Comorian collectives.

If the police don't manage to carry out their mission, it's the collectives who will do the work, said Momo, who has submitted documents to try to obtain property rights as a longtime resident of a neighbourhood of shanties in Majikavo.

Some of his neighbours are giving up hope, and are demolishing their houses themselves to recover the materials and build elsewhere.

The French government has deported an average of 25,000 Comorians per year since 2018.

It gave Comoros 150 million euros between 2019 and 2022 to try to fight illegal migration, according to France's overseas affairs minister.

But despite the risky sea journey, thousands of those deported return from Comoros. The policy has broken up families and left thousands of children and teens unaccompanied, pushing many to join gangs.

Operation Wuambushu's supporters include Mayotte lawmaker Mansour Kamardine, who says that it's a matter of days' before the situation explodes, and is pleading for tougher police and diplomatic action.

But human rights defenders worry about the fallout.

Among critics are the UN children's agency UNICEF, which warned that a surge in arrests and expulsions would increase the risk of children being separated from their parents.

In a statement, it called on the French government to ensure housing for families expelled and mental health support for children whose homes are razed.

French refugees' rights groups CIMADE warned that the surge would aggravate the precariousness of the population and exacerbate the social tensions it's claiming to fight.

For now, security forces are acting as a buffer between gangs and anti-migrant militias, while the population, split in two, girds for new tensions as the operation unfolds. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Beijing, May 18 (PTI) China on Thursday said Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Maldives and the Philippines have extended emergency help to it in the search and rescue of a Chinese fishing vessel with 39 crew members onboard that sank in the Indian Ocean.

A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency on Thursday that based on drift modelling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel.

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A Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel Lupeng Yuanyu 028 capsized on Tuesday in the central Indian Ocean, which has so far left 39 people on board missing, including 17 Chinese mariners, 17 Indonesian mariners and five Philippine mariners. None of the crew has yet been found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the media here on Thursday that as we speak, the search and rescue operation is still underway. He said the rescue operation has drawn close attention from across the region.

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Countries such as Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Maldives and the Philippines have extended emergency assistance and sent sympathies for the Chinese boat and crew, he said, providing an update about the search operations.

The operation has been commended from various quarters in China and abroad.

The Chinese government sincerely appreciates the help from those countries, he said.

In New Delhi, the Indian Navy said it deployed a P-8I maritime patrol aircraft to help in the search and rescue of a Chinese fishing vessel.

The P8I aircraft carried out multiple and extensive searches on Wednesday despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, the Navy said.

"In a display of India's obligations as a credible and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the Indian Navy units also coordinated search and rescue efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLA Navy warships transiting to the scene of the incident," the Indian Navy said.

Meanwhile, an AMSA spokesperson said that they continued to coordinate a multinational search effort after a distress beacon signal was received by AMSA from the fishing vessel at about 5.30 am (AEST) on the morning of May 16.

AMSA requested assistance from the Australian Defence Force (ADF). An ADF P-8A Poseidon aircraft was tasked with assisting with the long-range search.

A private charter aircraft from Perth, with State Emergency Service (SES) observers on board, also assisted with the search on Wednesday and will rejoin the search on Thursday.

"A number of merchant ships and other vessels have been assisting with the search and will continue to do so today. AMSA would like to thank these vessels and their crews for their invaluable assistance," the spokesperson said on Thursday.

"Australia has been liaising with the Chinese Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), with three Chinese naval ships continuing the search in the area today," the spokesperson said.

Officials said weather conditions have calmed significantly since Tuesday. Four vessels, including two foreign ships, are undertaking on-site search work.

AMSA said it is also working with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew, and it is enhancing its coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Official media reported the transport ministry also coordinated with maritime search and rescue agencies of Australia, Maldives and Sri Lanka to send additional forces to carry out search and rescue and made no mention of whether any assistance was sought from India as the Indian Navy has a sizable presence in the Indian Ocean.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Lahore, May 18 (PTI) A senior Punjab government official on Thursday said that the Punjab police will send a delegation to search Imran Khan's house in Lahore on Friday to apprehend "terrorists" allegedly holed up in his residence after seeking permission from the former prime minister.

The delegation would be led by the commissioner of Lahore. The team will set a time with Imran and then search his house in the presence of cameras, Punjab Caretaker Information Minister Amir Mir said.

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The minister, in an interview with Geo News further stated that police contingents, of nearly 400 cops, would also accompany the delegation to arrest terrorists holed up there.

The caretaker Punjab government has said that this action is being done as the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief has failed to meet the deadline to hand over the terrorists.

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"We (the interim government) have decided that instead of a head-on collision, we will send a delegation to Khan Sahab under the supervision of the Lahore commissioner," Mir was quoted as saying by the Geo News.

The minister had given a 24-hour deadline to the PTI chief for handing over "30-40 terrorists" present inside his Zaman Park residence, which expired at 2 pm Thursday afternoon.

Mir said Punjab Caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi conducted a meeting, in which it was decided that the delegation would take an appointment from Khan's team and meet him after Friday prayers tomorrow, the report added.

"They will ask him (Khan) to allow them to conduct a search operation. A police party  comprising 400 personnel  will accompany the delegation as there is a reported presence of terrorists," he said.

Khan had also asked the law enforcers to conduct an operation at his residence but noted that they should carry valid search warrants with them.

"If he does not permit the delegation to conduct the search, then we will decide our strategy, but for now, we will want things to be conducted in a positive manner," the minister added.

On Wednesday, Mir claimed that some '30 to 40' terrorists were hiding inside Khan's Zaman Park residence and gave an ultimatum of 24 hours to the chief to hand them over or face stern action.

Meanwhile, Mir said that the authorities have apprehended eight terrorists who were fleeing from Zaman Park.

"We have arrested eight terrorists who were at Zaman Park. We are investigating them and asking them about details, including who might be hiding inside the house."

The 24-hour ultimatum helped the authorities catch these people as they began leaving Zaman Park, he said.

"The reason behind using the term terrorists for them is because they were involved in Lahore Corps Commander House."

"We have information that some people involved in the attacks are hiding at the houses adjacent to Khan's house."

On May 9, violent protests erupted after the arrest of Khan. His party workers vandalised a dozen military installations, including the Jinnah House (Lahore Corps Commander house), Mianwali airbase and the ISI building in Faisalabad. The Army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi was also attacked by the mob for the first time.

Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10 while Khan's party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel. PTI

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Washington [US], May 18 (ANI): The US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said that as the war in Kyiv continues to get intense, Russia's invasion of Ukraine will be a significant topic of conversation during the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

Responding to the media queries aboard Air Force One on Wednesday, Sullivan said, "Russia's invasion of Ukraine looms large and will be a significant topic of conversation. There will be discussions about the state of play on the battlefield."

Also Read | 2008 Mumbai Terror Attack: US Court Approves Extradition of 26/11 Attack Accused Tahawwur Rana to India.

"There will be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular, making sure that we are shutting down evasion networks, closing loopholes in the sanctions so that the impact is amplified and magnified in the -- in the months ahead," he said during the press briefing.

Regarding the US President's meeting with the QUAD leaders, who will also be present in Hiroshima for the G7 Summit, Sullivan stated, "President felt it was critical that he be at the G7 because this particular format is so central to getting alignment and convergence with key countries -- including, by the way, the countries in the Quad, because both Australia and India will be in Hiroshima, and he will have the opportunity to engage with them there -- that that was a vital part of the trip."

Also Read | Irans UN Ambassador to Chair Social Forum.

US President Joe Biden recently cancelled his planned trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea.

"President Biden will return to the United States on Sunday, following the completion of the G7 summit, in order to be back for meetings with Congressional leaders to ensure that Congress takes action by the deadline to avert default. The President spoke to Prime Minister Albanese earlier today to inform him that he will be postponing his trip to Australia. He also invited the Prime Minister for an official state visit at a time to be agreed by the teams. The President's team engaged with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea's team to inform them as well," a statement by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, read.

Meanwhile, continuing with the press briefing, the US NSA on Biden's visit to Hiroshima said that the US President would kickstart his Japan visit with a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

"The President will start his engagements in Hiroshima with a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Kishida, where they will review the really quite extraordinary progress in the alliance over the course of the past two years, building on the trip that President Kishida made to Washington in January," Sullivan said.

The President will also co-host an event on the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, where "we will review the progress from the previous year, including some announcements of new investments and new deals," Sullivan added.

He will also review a wider buildout of work with the private sector, including very senior private-sector representatives coming so that public investment is facilitating private investment to propel infrastructure development in the developing world, Sullivan added.

Earlier, John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, said that Biden would depart for Japan on Wednesday as scheduled, but a subsequent stop in Australia is being re-evaluated.

"We're working through, thinking through, the rest of the trip right now," Kirby had said, as he noted Biden would meet India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australia's Anthony Albanese at the G7 anyway in Hiroshima, Japan.

"We're re-evaluating the rest of the trip right now. We will make proper notifications if there are changes made to the rest of the trip. Given where we are right now, it's also incredibly prudent and responsible for the President to take a look at the rest of the trip and evaluate whether it makes sense going forward," said Kirby.

"We'll see where it goes...We are going to reevaluate the rest of the week after the G7, and we'll see where it goes. If the trip gets truncated or changed or modified in any way, it should be nothing more than a statement of the President putting his priorities where he believes they need to be," said Kirby. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Beijing, May 18 (PTI) Two people from the Chinese fishing vessel which sank in the central Indian Ocean were confirmed dead while China appreciated the help from a host of countries in the region including India for responding to its call for search and rescue operations for the remaining 37 missing sailors.

Two people were confirmed dead after a Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel Lupeng Yuanyu 028 capsized in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday, China's Ministry of Transport said on Thursday.

Also Read | Accenture Layoffs: Tech Firm Slashes 549 Jobs At Domain Offices in This Country.

So far 10 vessels, including three Chinese navy ships and one foreign ship, are carrying out on-site search and rescue work, and more ships will arrive, the ministry said, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The capsized vessel, Lupeng Yuanyu 028, had 39 people on board, which include 17 Chinese mariners, 17 Indonesian mariners and five Philippine mariners.

Also Read | Queen Elizabeth II's Funeral Cost UK Government USD 200 Million, Says Treasury.

Truly appreciate the timely help, the Chinese embassy in India tweeted sighting the Indian Navy's statement.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the media here on Thursday that as we speak, the search and rescue operation is still underway .

He said the rescue operation has drawn close attention from across the region.

Countries such as Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Maldives and the Philippines have extended emergency assistance and sent sympathies for the Chinese boat and crew, he said, providing an update about the search operations.

The operation has been commended from various quarters in China and abroad.

"The Chinese government sincerely appreciates the help from those countries", he said.

In New Delhi, the Indian Navy said it deployed a P-8I maritime patrol aircraft to help in the search and rescue of a Chinese fishing vessel.

The P-8I aircraft carried out multiple and extensive searches on Wednesday despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, the Navy said.

"In a display of India's obligations as a credible and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the Indian Navy units also coordinated search and rescue efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLA Navy warships transiting to the scene of the incident," the Indian Navy said.

A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told Xinhua on Thursday that based on drift modelling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel.

The spokesperson said that they continued to coordinate a multinational search effort after a distress beacon signal was received byA from the fishing vessel at about 5.30 am (AEST) on the morning of May 16.

AMSA requested assistance from the Australian Defence Force (ADF). An ADF P-8A Poseidon aircraft was tasked with assisting with the long-range search.

A private charter aircraft from Perth, with State Emergency Service (SES) observers on board, also assisted with the search on Wednesday and will rejoin the search on Thursday.

"A number of merchant ships and other vessels have been assisting with the search and will continue to do so today.A would like to thank these vessels and their crews for their invaluable assistance," the spokesperson said on Thursday.

"Australia has been liaising with the Chinese Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), with three Chinese naval ships continuing the search in the area today," the spokesperson said.

Officials said weather conditions have calmed significantly since Tuesday. Four vessels, including two foreign ships, are undertaking on-site search work.

AMSA said it is also working with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew, and it is enhancing its coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Washington [US], May 18 (ANI): Over 65 Members of the United States Congress expressed concerns about the current situation in Pakistan and urged State Secretary Anthony Blinken to pressurize the Pakistani government to improve the human rights situation in the country.

The US Congressmen sent a letter to the State Secretary where it stated, "As proponents of a strong US-Pakistan relationship, we write to express our concerns about the current situation in Pakistan and urge you to use all diplomatic tools at your disposal to pressure the Government of Pakistan towards a greater commitment to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law."

Also Read | India Builds Worlds Tallest Railway Bridge in Kashmir.

"This should include a commitment to investigate any infringement upon freedom of speech and freedom of assembly in Pakistan," the letter further read.

Imran Khan, who was deposed as prime minister through a no-confidence move in April last year, was arrested on May 9, the day when the country witnessed deadly protests. He was detained in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, but a court later declared his arrest against the law and granted him bail, The News International reported.

Also Read | Nepal: 84-Year-Old Climber Carlos Soria Rescued From Mount Dhaulagiri While Seeking Record.

The deadly protests took the lives of at least 10 people and injured several others, with the authorities not only arresting the party leaders but thousands of PTI workers as well, according to The News International.

The letter, coauthored by Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, was signed by 65 other lawmakers. It stated that over the past few months, the situation in Pakistan has become increasingly concerning with the blanket bans on demonstrations and deaths of several prominent critics of the government.

"We ask for your help pressuring the Government of Pakistan to ensure protestors can assert their demands in a peaceful and non-violent way, free from harassment, intimidation, and arbitrary detention. As both Democrats and Republicans who care about the bilateral relationship, we are concerned that violence and increased political tension could spiral into a deteriorating security situation in Pakistan," the letter read.

The letter further stated that as the supporters of a strong bilateral relationship between the two countries, the US Congressmen wished to commend the sustained focus on Pakistan and your efforts to provide humanitarian assistance following historic, devastating floods.

The US Congressmen urged to use all the diplomatic tools--including visits, and public statements--to demonstrate countries' interest and prevent the erosion of democratic institutions in Pakistan.

"Supporting democracy in Pakistan is in the national interest of the United States. In this critical moment, U.S. diplomatic leadership is necessary to prevent further erosion of democratic protections. We thank you for your work and again urge you to do all you can to address this situation. We look forward to supporting you in this effort," the letter read. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
London [UK], May 18 (ANI): UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday said he wants to show Russian President Vladimir Putin that the G7 stands with Ukraine.

He said the G7's focus has always been to promote peace, global economic security.

Also Read | 'Wasn't Like a Movie Car Chase': Indian-Origin Taxi Driver Who 'Rescued' Prince Harry, Meghan Merkle From Paparazzi in New York.

"The @G7 focus is and always has been on promoting peace & global economic security. This year will be no different, I want to seize this opportunity to: Boost economic growth, show Putin that the G7 stands by Ukraine, bolster peace and security in the Indo-Pacific," Sunak tweeted on Thursday.

Rishi Sunak recently assured support to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Also Read | France Moves To Ban Smoking in Woodlands To Combat Growing Climate-Related Risk of Mega Fires.

Zelenskyy on Monday arrived in the United Kingdom and held discussions with Rishi Sunak. The two leaders discussed how to ensure that support is not just for today but for the future.

In a tweet, UK PM's office stated, "United in action. Last year the UK provided Ukraine with more military support than any country except the US. Today, @RishiSunak and @ZelenskyyUa discussed how we ensure that support is not just here for today, but into the future as well."

Sunak has assured Zelenskyy that the UK continues to stand with Ukraine. "The United Kingdom stands side by side with Ukraine," he tweeted.

Japan's Hiroshima city is all decked up for the G7 Leaders' Summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reach Hiroshima on May 19 and attend the G7 summit on May 20-21. He is visiting Japan at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

PM Modi will speak at G7 sessions with partner countries on subjects such as peace, stability and prosperity of a sustainable planet; food, fertiliser and energy security; health; gender equality; climate change and environment; resilient infrastructure; and development cooperation. He will also hold bilateral meetings with some of the participating leaders on the sidelines of the Summit. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Patna, May 17: ATM thieves gang kingpin Sudhir Mishra alias "ATM Baba" was arrested from Bihar's Saran in a joint operation of Uttar Pradesh STF and Bihar Police early on Wednesday, officials said.

UP STF had a lead that Mishra, also known as Bulbul Mishra, was staying in his native village Mohabat Parsa village under Revelganj police station and cornered him around 12.30 a.m. 'ATM Baba' in Bihar's Chhapra 'Trains' Unemployed Youths on How To Break ATMs in 15 Minutes, Reveals UP Police Probe in ATM Thefts in Lucknow.

As per local villagers, a convoy of police reached Mohabat Parsa village, surrounded his house, and forced ATM Baba to surrender. As it was not possible for him to escape from the place, he finally surrendered before the cops. ATM Fraud: New Modus Operandi of Fraudsters Comes to Light in Mumbai, Con Caught Red-Handed Using Sunmica and Glue To Steal Cash (Watch Video).

ATM Baba was wanted in number of cases in Uttar Pradesh. He and his gang had targeted an ATM in Sushantlok City of Lucknow and taken away Rs 39 lakh. In that case, UP STF managed to arrest 6 accused. During their interrogation, the kingpin was identified as ATM Baba and added to the wanted list of the STF.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 18, 2023 08:57 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Police in Kobe City, Japan arrested a 22-year-old gentleman for allegedly sending more than a dozen threatening letters and a case of 1,500 origami cranes to a driving school he previously attended.

The letters apparently encouraged the recipient to "Die!" or, at the very least, "Quit your job now!" The cranes were just traditional origami sculptures that he made "to calm him down." He apparently told police that "folding them helped to calm him down."

From SoraNews24:

Police used surveillance video to track the suspect down and found that he was a former student of the driving school who had failed to get his truck driver's license last year. After his arrest, the man admitted to the crime and said that he had gotten "angry at their poor teaching style."

(via Fark)
Lucknow, May 18: Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati announced here on Thursday that her party would contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 general elections.

She reiterated that the BSP would not enter into any alliance and the party would contest on its own. She asked party leaders to start preparing for the polls and aggressively carry forward the slogan 'Vote hamara, raj tumhara nahi chalega'. Lok Sabha Elections 2024: BJP Expects Surge in Support From Christian Community in General Polls.

She accused the BJP of managing and manipulating the recent municipal elections and said that the people had seen through their game plan and would ensure the return of BSP. Lok Sabha Election 2024: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar Likely To Meet CMs of Odisha, Jharkhand on May 5.

She pointed out that other parties were being funded by corporate houses, but the BSP was the only party that relied on its workers for support.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 18, 2023 02:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Aurangabad, May 18: The Tulja Bhavani temple administration in Maharashtra's Osmanabad district has prohibited the entry of people wearing half pants or "indecent" clothes, a management official said on Thursday. The decision has been taken to maintain the sanctity of the religious place, he said.

A large number of devotees every year visit the famous temple of Goddess Tulja Bhavani located at Tuljapur in Osmanabad. The temple administration has put up boards in Marathi with a message that (devotees with) "uncivilised dress, indecent clothes and those displaying body parts, half pants and bermudas (shorts) will not be allowed" in the temple. Uttar Pradesh: Hanuman Temple in Aligarh Bans Entry for Muslims, Issues Guidelines for Dress Code for Hindus Devotees.

"Please keep Indian culture in mind," it said. The temple management's public relations officer Nagesh Shitole told PTI, "These boards have been displayed today. We go to a temple with devotion. Therefore, to maintain its sanctity the boards have been put up at the Tulja Bhavani temple's entry. Such rules already exist in many temples across the country." Himachal Pradesh: Coconuts Banned Inside Temple in Chintpurni During Navratri Fair.

Devotee Pratibha Mahesh Jagdale, who came from Solapur to offer prayers at the Tulja Bhavani temple, supported the decision. "This decision will help to preserve our culture. I welcome it," she told reporters when asked about the temple management's decision.
Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij has provided financial assistance to a boy who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a rare and life-threatening blood disorder, as his family could not afford the high cost of the treatment.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arrived in Japan on Thursday for the G7 Summit, on the sidelines of which he clinched a new so-called Hiroshima Accord for greater UK-Japan economic, security and technology collaboration.
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

Crystal Jones doesnt look like one of Americas most abusive parents.

Shes sitting in a booth at a Famous Amos restaurant on the north side of Jacksonville, eating butter beans and biscuits and sipping from a tall glass of sweetened tea. In a red print dress, a leopard-skin cloth coat and fresh makeup, she looks relaxed and happy.

Beside her in a plastic infant seat is her 7-week-old son, Stephen Shane Jones, and he looks contented, too, stirring only occasionally from a drowsy sleep to take formula from a bottle decorated with cartoon characters. During lunch the waitress coos over the childs pale, oval face, and on the way in and out of the restaurant other diners offer up admiring smiles as Jones and her son pass by.

At one point in a long conversation Jones says: I think Ive made a lot of mistakes. I was not a good mother. I was neglectful, didnt pay enough attention to my children. But that was in the past. I love my children. And Im a good mother now.

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Two weeks ago, Crystal Jones, 36, boarded an airplane for the first time in her life so she could travel to New York, and then to Los Angeles, where she heard herself introduced on two daytime TV talk shows as a monster mom--an ogre so unfit to be a parent that she should be prevented from ever conceiving life again.

Heres how the host of the Faith Daniels Show put it: My guest today is a bad mother, so bad a mother that some people want to sterilize her. And one of those people is her husband.

For 90 minutes, before millions of viewers and studio audiences that at times gasped in unison, Jones held Stephen Shane in her arms and listened as her husband, former neighbors and the head of a local child advocacy group recounted what one called her 14-year history of breeding children to abuse.

It wasnt pretty: The drowning death of Jones firstborn, Bobby. The burns suffered by Thomas, now 10, when as a toddler he got stuck behind the refrigerator. The near-drowning last year of 3-year-old Crystal Gayle. Pictures of the filthy, roach-infested mobile home in Middleburg, Fla., where Jones lived with Crystal Gayle and her 2-year-old son, Shawn.

The three eldest of Jones four surviving children have been taken from her and put into the custody of relatives. Now Floridas Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services wants to take the baby, too.

Some who know Crystal Jones want to go even further and have asked a Circuit Court judge to order her sterilization. Says Sondra Scitticat, a former trailer park neighbor who drew up one of two sterilization petitions and got 300 people to sign it: I am not mad at Crystal. I could take you out in (our community) and show you worse cases. But you have to start somewhere. She has a baby who needs to be out of her care, and no one is doing anything about it.

Terrance A. Jones, Crystal Jones court-appointed attorney, says the idea that his client could be sterilized against her will not only is unprecedented, its an outrage.

The right to procreate is fundamental, says the lawyer, who is no relation to Crystal Jones, and if this were allowed, it could lead to whole races or peoples being wiped out. There is no law in Florida that allows it. It is just not going to happen.

Nonetheless, the two petitions calling for sterilization have been added to Jones court file, and on Friday, Clay County Circuit Judge William A. Wilkes, hearing the states request to have Jones baby declared its ward, is to decide if the petitioners have standing. A scheduled decision on custody of Stephen has been put off until Dec. 18.

In Florida, almost 10,000 children are in foster care, and the state annually investigates thousands of complaints of cruelty and abuse involving minors. But, says Health and Rehabilitative Services spokeswoman Catherine Deans, This is the first case where sterilization has been mentioned. Weve never seen this happen before.

How did it happen? Dean Tong, who heads the local chapter of VOCAL (Valuing Our Children and Laws), a child advocacy and family rights group, insists that Crystal Jones should be institutionalized for psychiatric treatment and then sterilized.

She is turning kids out like they were on a conveyor belt, and she is nowhere near ready to care for them, contends Tong, who was asked to get involved in the case by Jones estranged husband, Norman Dale Jones. Sterilization is extreme, but what shes done to her children is extreme. Any child in her custody is in harms way.

Says Crystal Jones of sterilization: Thats a little much. Its my body, and I have right to do with it as I want to. If you can kill, you can certainly give life.

The part of Clay County called Clay Hill is a rolling, rural area of tall pines, small farms and Southern ways that lies a few miles southwest of Jacksonville. It was here that Crystal was born in 1955 to a young couple who had migrated from their native Tennessee.

The youngest of three children, Crystal said she had a normal, happy childhood, marred only by one accident. At age 8, while she was playing on a U-Haul trailer, the tongue slipped off a block and smashed her left hand. She lost a little finger.

Crystal became pregnant while in the 11th grade, dropped out of high school and gave birth to Bobby in 1973. She was 18.

She later married a high school classmate, but he was abusive, she says, and they were soon divorced.

In the late 1970s she married a merchant seaman named Bill Butts, who, when not at sea, operated the Sleepy Lagoon Fish Camp, a couple of wood-frame cabins and a few boats for rent on Black Creek, a popular spot for bass and crappie. And it was here that Crystal Jones turned her back one day and 4-year-old Bobby slipped away beneath the dark waters of the creek.

The boy had been playing outside one Saturday afternoon in 1978, with cousins barely older than he was, while 10 or more adults sat inside the house talking. Jones says she remembers her niece running in to yell, Bobbys under the water. It took Jones and her husband 20 minutes to find his body.

Bobbys death, ruled an accident, affected Crystal Jones in a way she doesnt yet understand. But months later, with her husband away, she set fire to the fish camp and burned down all the buildings. It didnt help the way she felt. She was accused of arson, a charge later reduced to criminal mischief, and placed on probation.

Four years after Bobbys death, when Crystal was pregnant with her second child, Bill Butts died of cancer. At that point, Jones says, she stopped caring.

I got depressed, she recalls. I started drinking. My whole life was buried under a cloud, and I felt like I didnt have anything to live for.

Even after Butts son, Thomas, was born in November, 1982, Jones admits she was neglectful, of herself and the boy. Her teeth went bad. When Thomas was a toddler, he got stuck behind the refrigerator coil and was severely burned on the arm.

Health and Rehabilitative Services social workers investigated and found Crystal to be incapable of caring for her son. He was placed with her 65-year-old mother, who runs a small plumbing supply business in Jacksonville.

Over the next few years Crystal Jones sank deeper into the abyss of apathy. She was arrested numerous times, for marijuana possession, petty theft, being drunk and disorderly. She had several miscarriages. She has no formal job skills and lives primarily on the $132 monthly seamans pension she receives from her marriage to Butts.

Crystal met her current husband, a 36-year-old laborer, in 1985, and she and Jones were married two years later. Their daughter, Crystal Gayle, was born in April, 1989. Fifteen months later Shawn was born.

Health and Rehabilitative Services came for those two children after Crystal Gayle wandered from Jones mobile home in August, 1991, and almost drowned in a nearby pond. Scitticat and other neighbors say Jones was inattentive, slovenly in appearance and housekeeping and would wander up and down the road in a nightgown. They said she hung out at the Jiffy Mart, soliciting men for sex.

Jones says she sometimes went to the Jiffy Mart to sell Avon products.

After Crystal Gayles close call, Crystal Jones was found guilty on a charge relating to negligence and placed on a years probation.

Her two children were put in the custody of Dale Jones mother, Thelma, who lives in Baker County, well west of Jacksonville. Crystal Jones was given twice-weekly visitation, and when she lost her drivers license after a traffic accident, she hitchhiked to keep her appointments to see the children.

As one of the conditions set by the court and Health and Rehabilitative Services under which Jones could regain custody, she was ordered to undergo drug and alcohol counseling and to attend classes in parenting and anger control. She has done that and learned, she says, to be more alert and aware.

Her attorney says she also has plans to earn a high school diploma, get her drivers license back and show her Health and Rehabilitative Services caseworker that she is taking good care of Stephen in her mothers home.

Im going to get them back, vows Jones of her other three children. I didnt watch them close enough, is what I did wrong. I didnt abuse them.

Critics say that although Jones may not have struck her children, neglect is abuse.

Im not a nosy neighbor, says Scitticat, 31. I am intervening because I was an abused child. I gave birth to my stepfathers child at age 13. People could have saved me many times but didnt. There was no voice for me, but Ill be damned if Ill stand back and let Crystals children suffer.

Terrance Jones, Crystals attorney, contends that Scitticats concern is misplaced and disingenuous. They are playing God, and these are not people we want speaking on who can have children or not, he says. Were going to see more of this, in part out of fear of where tax dollars are being spent. Thats what scares me.

During her recent appearance on the Montel Williams Show, Crystal Jones was asked by one member of the audience: Why dont you take care of those babies you have rather than making new ones?

Responded Jones: Thats a good question, isnt it?

Even though they have been separated for more than a year, and though Dale has filed for divorce and custody of Stephen, he and Crystal still see each other and occasionally sleep together. They dont practice birth control. Says Crystal: I may have been a bad mother, but I guess I was a good lover.

Dale Jones admits that he has been less than the perfect father. He also lived in a home that was charitably described as squalid. He has a spotty work history and a criminal record. In fact, as his wife was lunching last Saturday at the Famous Amos, he was in the Duval County Jail on bad-check charges.

Indeed, no one defends his parenting abilities either. I dont support her or her husband being able to take care of (Stephen Shane). My ultimate goal is to have the baby taken away from both, Tong says.

Dale Jones says he does not love his wife, but he doesnt hate her either. Although he has signed a petition urging that she be sterilized, he also has said that the procedure should be reversible to give her a chance.

Despite the humiliation of sitting beside her husband while he criticized her on national television, and despite the fact that he left her, filed for divorce and pays no child support, Crystal Jones says she still cares for Dale.

Hes the father of my children, she explains. Even though he has only held this baby once, Stephen can tell that his father is not around.

I guess I still love him. I try to hide it, but everyone can see that I do care. He gave me what I want--children. When I care for someone, it takes a lot to kill it.

Crystal Jones admits she harbors a hope that she and Dale one day will live together as one happy family--a mother, a father and four well-cared-for children. Or maybe more.

Ive got one girl named Crystal Gale, and if I ever have another girl, shell be Loretta Lynn, she says.

I want to teach my little girls to be independent and not put up with a man if he dont do right. They should have their own income. Here Crystal Jones gives a little laugh, as if, perhaps, appreciating the odds of a poor woman from Clay Hill ever reaching such a lofty goal.

But if shes like me, she adds, shell probably just want to have a lot of children.
On 17 May, over 5,000 members of El Salvadors armed forces and 500 police (PNC) officers were deployed to Nueva Concepcion municipality, Chalatenango department.

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On 17 May,, an opposition deputy in Brazils lower chamber and a former prosecutor who had a leading role in the Lava Jato corruption probe, slammed the decision by the top electoral court (TSE) the previous day to remove him from his seat in congress, accusing the authorities of vengeance against him.

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Street food in Costa Rica is an important part of the country's eating culture, showcasing a fusion of natural flavors and ingredients.

You can embark on this culinary adventure in the heart of Central America by exploring the towns of Costa Rica. These Costa Rican towns feature a delightful convergence of international influences on food that will delight your taste buds, creating a gastronomic extravaganza.

READ NEXT: Desserts in Costa Rica

5 Popular Street Food in Costa Rica

If you love snacks, many are available from street vendors in Costa Rica, with flavors ranging from sweet to savory. So, here are five delicious Costa Rican street food to satisfy whatever your craving is.

Gallos or Filled Tortillas

One delectable option that stands out when satisfying your hunger on the go in Costa Rica is the gallos. This delightful treat named after "roosters" is small corn tortillas bursting with various flavors.

You can fill the tortillas with meat, cheese, beans, vegetables, and anything you desire. Gallos can be found at restaurants and bars throughout Costa Rica, offering a tempting alternative to traditional burritos.

Among the popular fillings you can find in Costa Rica are squash, green beans, arracacha, potatoes, and, believe it or not, even fruits such as green papaya.

Gallos could be a perfect pair of barbecues, especially when stuffed with smoky chorizo. This popular Costa Rican snack can be found across the country.

Tortilla de Queso

You will quickly discover corn tortillas when you set foot in Costa Rica. These versatile delights are a foundation of the country's cuisine, gracing the table at every meal. And among the many tortilla variations, one stands out for its taste: tortillas de queso.

Making tortillas de queso involves a blend of corn flour and a lot of cheese. The magic begins as the maize flour and melted cheese are expertly rolled into a delicious dough.

Once the dough is ready, these tortillas are skillfully cooked on a comal, a round, flat griddle commonly used throughout Costa Rica to achieve that perfect texture and subtle char.

Enjoying tortillas de queso lies in its warm, melted cheese that will satisfy your taste buds. It is best to pair it with a cup of robust coffee or agua dulce, a refreshing sugar cane drink.

This mouthwatering snack is often savored as an appetizer before dinner or a delightful afternoon snack at traditional eateries nationwide. Indulge in the authentic flavors of Costa Rica with these tortillas de queso that capture the essence of the nation's rich food culture.

Empanada

Empanadas have captivated taste buds worldwide, becoming a beloved snack in numerous countries across South and Central America. In Costa Rica, these delightful fried pies hold a special place in the hearts of locals and visitors, showcasing the country's rich culinary heritage.

The corn dough is the foundation of these mouthwatering empanadas. This golden, deep-fried delight features savory flavors through succulent marinated meat, creamy cheese, and fresh vegetables.

Whether you are strolling through bustling streets or exploring the hidden gems of Costa Rica, these delectable empanadas are readily available, satisfying your cravings and delivering a taste of authentic local cuisine.

Embraced by residents and adventurous food enthusiasts, empanadas are one of Costa Rica's most cherished dishes.

Patacones

Prepare to embark on a culinary adventure with this beloved Costa Rica street food: patacones. Renowned for their irresistible crispy texture and distinctive plantain flavor, these fried delights have captured the hearts and taste buds of locals and visitors alike.

Patacones begin with unripe plantains that are skillfully mashed and transformed into delectable discs. Submerged in bubbling hot oil, they undergo a magical metamorphosis, emerging as golden and perfectly crispy treats. With each bite, you'll experience a harmonious balance of sweetness and crunch that will leave a lasting impression.

Salchipapa

Prepare to indulge in the ultimate fusion of flavors with this authentic Costa Rica street food delight: Salchipapa. This delicious snack combines the beloved duo of fried hot dogs and crispy French fries in a culinary creation that will satisfy your taste buds.

Each bite offers a delightful combination of savory meats, satisfying crunch, and the familiar comfort of classic comfort food.

READ MORE: Cuba: 4 Famous Cuban Street Food

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WATCH: COSTA RICAN STREET FOOD TOUR(How Much Does it Cost?) - From Counting Countries
Bryan Kohberger, the prime Idaho College murders suspect, has been formally indicted by a grand jury, paving the way for his upcoming hearing on Monday, where he will enter a plea.

The 28-year-old Ph.D. criminology student had previously faced charges brought by the authorities, but the grand jury indictment now moves the case to a higher court in Moscow, Idaho.

This procedural step also allows the prosecution to withhold certain evidence until the trial, per the USA Today report.

While the existing charges against Bryan Kohberger are incorporated into the grand jury indictment, additional charges could be added on Wednesday, as stated by Latah County Court Deputy Clerk Charlotte Mansil. Currently incarcerated, Kohberger remains in custody without bond.

Mansil revealed, "He was indicted on the original charges, and the preliminary hearing set for the end of June was vacated. His arraignment is now scheduled for May 22 at 9 a.m. in Courtroom 3."

The horrifying discovery of the remains of Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Xana Kernodle, 20, was made by a different roommate on November 13.

Authorities have indicated that DNA evidence collected at the crime scene directly links Kohberger to these tragic murders.

READ NEXT: How Idaho Murder Suspect Bryan Kohberger Was Eventually Caught

Idaho College Murders Suspect Faces Four Counts of First-Degree Murder in Indictment

In a detailed indictment, Bryan Kohberger, the prime suspect in the Idaho College murders case, has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one act of burglary.

The indictment alleges that Kohberger "intentionally, unlawfully, deliberately, with premeditation and with malice aforethought, kill and murder" the victims.

The grand jury proceedings, which remain confidential, included testimony from witnesses whose identities are protected. The decision to indict Kohberger suggests that the grand jury members found sufficient evidence to proceed with a trial.

Earlier this year, Bryan Kohberger, through his public defender, expressed his desire to be vindicated, stating that he was "eager to be exonerated."

However, the arrest affidavit, supported by DNA evidence, telephone records, and eyewitness accounts of a white Hyundai Elantra leaving the scene, all point to Kohberger as the perpetrator.

One of the roommates who managed to escape the attack partially identified the assailant to the police after encountering him directly.

The murder weapon-a fixed-blade knife-remains missing despite the thorough investigation.

Search warrants obtained by The Independent reveal that law enforcement officers seized various items from Kohberger's parent's house in Pennsylvania, including a Glock .40 caliber revolver, empty gun magazines, a dagger, a pocket knife, black face masks, black gloves, electronic devices, and clothing.

Interestingly, on the same day that Kohberger's apartment in Pullman, Washington, just 15 minutes from the crime site in Moscow, was searched, his family home was also subjected to a police invasion.

According to the Washington warrant, authorities retrieved a pillow with a "reddish/brown stain" and a "collection of dark red" markings from the residence of the Idaho College murders suspect.

Further analysis determined that at least two items collected during the search contained traces of blood.

Idaho College Murders

The tragic events that unfolded on the early morning of November 13 claimed the lives of four students at the nearby University of Idaho.

Among them was Chapin, who had spent the night at the residence with Kernodle, whom he was dating.

Kohberger's family publicly expressed their support in upholding his presumption of innocence in January as they cooperated with the police. However, no motive for the crime has been disclosed thus far, NBC News reported.

Authorities have not provided any information regarding the Idaho College murders suspect's relationship with the victims or shed light on why he targeted that specific residence.

The Moscow police have confirmed that the murder weapon, described as a large fixed-blade knife, has not yet been recovered.

Bryan Kohberger remains in custody without bond at the Latah County Jail while the community of Moscow continues to grapple with the aftermath of the heinous quadruple murder.

The local authorities have called the investigation "very complicated," underscoring the challenges they face in uncovering the truth behind the tragic events.

READ MORE: Bryan Kohberger's Family Home Searched

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Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: Bryan Kohberger Indicted in Idaho Student Murders Case - What's Next? - From Law&Crime Network
Roxana Ruiz, the Mexican woman who strangled and killed her rapist in 2021, has been sentenced to over six years in prison. Now, activists are decrying the ruling, which her defense team called "discriminatory." The Mexico Woman's attorneys also vowed to appeal it.

Experts and feminist groups condemned the ruling and pointed out that this speaks to how deep the gender-based violence is in the country and Mexico's poor record of bringing perpetrators of sexual violence to justice.

Ruiz's lawyer, Angel Carrera, told the media that the decision sets a bad precedent if it holds, as it basically tells women that they can only defend themselves to a point. "He raped you, but you don't have the right to do anything," he added.

Unlike other rape victims, Ruiz has chosen to be identified publicly as she has participated in public demonstrations led by activists who support her, according to the Associated Press.

Why Did a Mexico Court Sentence Her to 6 Years in Prison?

A Mexican man entered her home, threatened her, and then raped her. However, she fought back and then strangled the rapist, killing him at her home. However, a court in the State of Mexico found that she had "excessive use of self-defense," resulting in the death of the man who raped her.

According to Telegraph, the judge concluded that "a blow on the head" would have been enough to defend herself from her attacker. However, this ruling did not sit well with activists campaigning against violence against women.

READ NEXT: More Journalists Killed in 2022: Attacks in Mexico, Ukraine, Haiti Contributing to Most Deaths

"Maybe I was supposed to let my attacker do as he pleased, possibly leaving me dead," said Ruiz in a letter published to the Mexican media after the verdict was made. "I know that I will be sentenced for defending my body, for defending myself as a woman, for having punished my attacker, for not having kept quiet, and for having taken action."

Various Feminist Groups Condemn Verdict on Mexico Woman's Sentencing

A Mexican NGO that aims to combat violence against women, Nos Queremos Vivas (We Want to Stay Alive), slammed the verdict and called it "unfair and lacked a gender perspective." In a statement. it said, "No woman should be jailed for defending lives that the state does not protect."

According to the New York Post, Ruiz's supporters were seen chanting "Justice!" outside the courtroom in Mexico City. They also decried the verdict, which also made the 23-year-old single mother pay over $16,000 in restitution to the family of the man who raped her.

After the verdict was announced, Ruiz addressed her supporters and thanked them, as well as the many feminist groups who had stood by her through the judicial process that had lasted several years. As she spoke to the crowd, she stated that she was thinking of her 4-year-old son.

"My son, I hope to see him again. I hope to stay with him, to be the one who watches him grow up," she said outside the Mexico City courtroom. The decision sparked even more protests as violence against women continue to rise in the country.

READ NEXT: Jalisco New Generation Cartel's Timeshare Fraud Network Sanctioned

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WATCH: Why is femicide in Mexico on the rise? | The Stream - Al Jazeera English
Montana takes the lead as the first U.S. state to ban TikTok, with the governor signing legislation that prevents mobile app stores from offering the app within the state starting next year. Naturally, ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, is not amused, calling the ban an "infringement on the first amendment rights of the people of Montana" in a statement.

The new law slaps a hefty $10,000 daily fine on any "entity," like an app store or TikTok, offering access in the state, but users themselves will not be penalized. Critics argue it's government overreach and censorship, while others point out that savvy Montanans might just use virtual private networks to bypass the ban. Keegan Medrano of the ACLU of Montana says the legislature has "trampled on the free speech" of Montanans, while NetChoice, which includes Google and TikTok as members, calls the bill unconstitutional.

The Guardian has the full story.

The move is among the most dramatic in a series of US escalations against TikTok, which is owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance. TikTok has come under increasing scrutiny over its ties to China, amid concerns that such links could pose a national security threat. The federal government, and more than half of US states, have prohibited the app on government devices and the Biden administration has threatened a national ban unless its parent company sells its shares. More than half of US states and the federal government have a similar ban. The company has previously denied that it has ever shared data with the Chinese government and has said the company would not do so if asked.

Related: The 'Enshittification' of TikTok
Embattled Republican Congressman George Santos of New York could breathe a temporary sigh of relief after fellow Republicans directed the Democrats' effort to expel him to the House Ethics Committee.

Santos is safe for now as the House of Representatives referred the resolution proposed by California Democrat Rep. Robert Garcia to the House Ethics Committee, which means they would be the ones to decide Santos's fate as their investigation into the controversial congressman continues.

According to CBS News, Santos, who was one of the congressmen who voted for his expulsion resolution to be referred to the House Ethics Committee, released a statement saying that he looks forward to seeing the process "play out." He added, "I look forward to continuing to defend myself. Again, innocent until proven guilty."

The House Ethics Committee had already opened a formal probe into George Santos last March. It involves various investigations, from lying to Congress to various campaign finance violations, as well as other possible infractions by the embattled Republican.

The Effort to Expel George Santos Decided on Party Lines

The House of Representatives was forced into a vote over Santos's future in Congress. On Wednesday, Republicans had a dilemma on whether to stand with Santos and keep their already slim majority but get criticized for it, or expel Santos and narrow their already-slim majority even further.

It was expected that the Democrat-led resolution would not pass but force Republicans to make a difficult decision. However, the Associated Press pointed out that the GOP managed to sidestep the issue with the referral to the House Ethics Committee.

As for the vote for the referral, it was along party lines, 221-204, with Santos himself voting in favor of the referral alongside other Republicans.

READ NEXT: Paul Gosar Staffer Linked to Neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes, New Report Shows

Democrats were disappointed with the decision, which was made by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which was the third option that Republicans had in dealing with George Santos. The other two included outright having a vote to expel him, as well as the option of completely rejecting the proposal to expel him.

The vote was so partisan that even Santos's biggest critics within the Republican Party chose to go with the referral, including Republican Rep. Anthony D'Esposito of New York, who said that he found it regrettable that there were not enough votes to oust Santos.

"I believe that this individual is a stain on this institution, a stain on the state of New York, a stain on Long Island, and a stain on the beloved Nassau County," he said. He did say that the referral would "ensure a thorough and expedient investigation into this matter."

Democrats Argue With Each Other Over What To Do Next With George Santos

Just a few hours before Republicans quashed Garcia's effort to expel Santos, Politico reported that the Democrats had a tense closed-door Democratic caucus meeting.

While they all agreed that it would force some Republicans to go on record supporting a man charged with 13 felonies, more senior Democrats argued that it would set a bad precedent for years to come.

READ MORE: George Santos Denies Being a Drag Queen in Brazil

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: House Republicans stall effort to expel George Santos from Congress - MSNBC
President Joe Biden and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, have jointly expressed their dedication to promptly resolve the issue of raising the US debt ceiling, which currently stands at $31.4 trillion, per Reuters.

The two leaders agreed on Tuesday to engage in direct negotiations, effectively ending a lengthy impasse.

With the deadline of June 1 looming, a deal must be reached and passed by both chambers of Congress to ensure the federal government has the necessary funds to meet its obligations.

Biden announced on Saturday that he would be cutting short his Asia trip and returning to Washington on Sunday, allowing for ongoing staff-level discussions.

He clarified that the negotiations primarily revolve around the budget framework and do not question the United States' ability to fulfill its financial commitments.

The congressional leaders have unanimously agreed on one point: the nation will not default. This assurance aligns with the consistent stance taken by leaders in such situations.

House Republicans, who hold a narrow 222-213 majority, have been pressing Democrats for months to agree to spending cuts in exchange for raising Congress's debt limit.

Government spending consistently exceeds tax revenue, so the US debt ceiling must be raised periodically to accommodate the shortfall.

READ NEXT: Joe Biden Announces Key Nominees

What Is US Debt Ceiling?

The US debt ceiling, established by Congress, serves as the upper limit on the amount of money the federal government can borrow to fulfill its financial obligations, according to CBS News.

It is crucial in enabling the government to meet actual payments, including salaries for military personnel and Social Security benefits.

It is important to note that increasing the debt ceiling does not grant the government permission to spend additional funds.

LendingTree's senior economist, Jacob Channel, aptly compares refusing to raise the debt ceiling to dine at a restaurant.

It is like examining the menu, being aware of the prices, and then suddenly declaring an inability to pay the amount owed when presented with the bill.

This analogy highlights the potential consequences of failing to increase the debt ceiling and its challenges for fulfilling financial commitments.

What Happens If US Debt Defaults?

The prospect of the government surpassing the US debt ceiling raises significant concerns as it would effectively halt further borrowing, said BBC.

This would result in the government's inability to meet crucial financial obligations, including payroll payments to military personnel and federal employees. Millions of elderly Americans who rely on Social Security checks would be left without their vital benefits.

Congress routinely votes to raise or temporarily suspend the debt ceiling to secure additional funds. However, a default, unprecedented in US history, would severely undermine confidence in the democratic system's ability to meet financial commitments.

Economists are deeply apprehensive about the potential consequences, fearing a domino effect on the US economy, leading to a sharp downturn and a surge in unemployment.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen emphasized the destructive nature of a US default, describing it as an "economic and financial disaster" during a presentation on Tuesday.

John Kirby, the spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, highlighted the interests of countries like Russia and China, who would relish the opportunity for the US to default.

Despite the looming risks, a compromise to avert such a scenario has yet to materialize. In April, Republicans proposed a deal extending the debt ceiling suspension by $1.5 trillion or until March 31, depending on which milestone is first reached.

In exchange, they would limit spending growth to 1% annually for the next ten years and maintain spending for significant government agencies at 2022 levels in the upcoming fiscal year.

They estimated potential savings of $4.8 trillion as a result.

However, this proposal would have far-reaching implications for President Joe Biden's legislative priorities, such as student loan forgiveness, potentially derailing these ambitions.

READ MORE: Social Security Payments Could Be Disrupted

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Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: 'We will not default': Biden speaks on debt ceiling negotiations - From NBC News
A New Mexico teen killed three elderly women out on morning drives early this week after he had fired more than 100 rounds, police said.

In a press conference Wednesday, Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said Beau Adam Wilson, 18, fired over 100 rounds from his yard before leaving the scene with two guns and wearing a bulletproof vest, CNN reported.

The victims who died were identified as Gwendolyn Schofield, 98, her daughter Melody Ivie, 73, and Shirley Voita, 79. Six others, including two law enforcement officers, were also wounded.

On the other hand, the suspect was shot dead by responding police officers. This shooting incident became one of 226 mass shootings this year in the US.

These acts of violence often occur while individuals engage in ordinary daily activities, such as grocery shopping, attending school, or working.

Shedding light on the possible motive behind the shooting, Hebbe said on Wednesday that mental health issues could be a factor.

Hebbe noted that investigators were trying to determine if Wilson was taking any medication or under a doctor's supervision in the days leading up to the incident.

According to Hebbe, the shooting spree happened Monday morning when the New Mexico teen positioned himself outside his house in Farmington, New Mexico, and opened fire at passing vehicles using an AR-15-style rifle.

Captain Kevin Burns of the San Juan County Sheriff's Office said the shooter fired at least 141 bullets of .223 caliber from his property.

After shooting at people randomly, Wilson, a high school student, hid the semiautomatic rifle in the bushes near his home, which still had a round in the firing chamber and ammunition in the magazine.

READ NEXT: New Mexico Shooting Leaves 3 Civilians Dead

New Mexico Teen Did Not Know the Victims

Authorities said two of the victims died at the scene, while the third victim died at the hospital, BBC reported. Police noted that the New Mexico teen did not appear to know them.

One of the victims held a prominent role as the head of a renowned private preschool, the Ivie League Preschool, which she established in the 1980s.

Known for her kindness, Melody Ivie was a respected figure in the community, according to her friend Bonnie Kennedy. Both Ivie and her mother, Schofield, were teachers and active churchgoers.

They were supposed to pick up a grandchild from school when they were killed. Mark Duncan, a New Mexico Republican Representative married to Ivie's niece, praised Ivie for her unwavering dedication to teaching and love.

Duncan told the Albuquerque Journal that his wife immediately started calling to make sure her aunt was safe when she learned about the shooting, but only to learn she was among those killed.

Shirley Voita was also well-known among neighborhood residents for her nursing profession and active involvement in the church.

James Strickler, a friend and former state representative, described her as "simply a saint," highlighting her profound impact on those around her.

Governor, Lawmakers Pledge Stricter Gun Measures Following New Mexico Shooting

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham told Albuquerque Journal Tuesday that she will again pursue an assault weapons ban and age restrictions for buying firearms. The same ideas have already failed to reach her desk in the 60-day legislative session this year.

Democratic legislators in the state have introduced new bills to establish a 14-day waiting period, expose the sellers of illicit gun modifications to lawsuits and make a registry of individuals who already own assault weapons.

The New Mexico teen reportedly bought a gun legally after turning 18 years old. Lujan Grisham promised to keep pursuing ways to reduce gun violence in New Mexico but admitted that the issue is complex and does not have a quick and easy solution.

READ MORE: Idaho College Murders Suspect Indicted

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WATCH: Farmington, New Mexico, Shooting Victims Identified - From CBS Mornings
The US State Department has issued new travel warnings for some popular Caribbean and South American countries amid a recent uptick in crime.

According to Fox News, the State Department named Haiti, Peru, Jamaica, Chile, and Colombia, as countries of concern.

The country that received the highest level advisory was Haiti, which received a "Do Not Travel" warning from the department that said the Caribbean nation has experienced "widespread" kidnapping.

Haitian gangs reportedly often target US citizens and hold them for ransom. The department noted that Haiti has also had robberies, carjackings, and "mob killings" against suspected criminals.

Jamaica has previously pledged to send its own troops to Haiti to help the country deal with ongoing gang violence. However, Jamaica has its own crime problem. Thus, it received a "Level 3" advisory, which means to "reconsider travel."

The State Department noted that violent crimes, such as armed robberies, home invasions, sexual assaults, and homicides, are common in Jamaica.

The department warned that Jamaica had a homicide rate that ranks "among the highest in the Western Hemisphere" for several years. US government personnel had been prohibited from traveling to several areas in the country, especially at night.

Colombia has also seen violent crimes increase in recent months. The country is facing a problem with the National Liberation Army (ELN) as peace talks between the country's largest guerilla group and the government seem to break down. Drug cartels and other criminal organizations are also causing problems.

As for Chile and Peru, the State Department issued "Level 2" advisories, advising Americans to travel with "increased caution" because both countries are facing political turmoil, with massive protests periodically happening in these two South American countries.

READ NEXT: Haiti Crisis: 2 Journalists Killed as Gang Violence Worsens

US State Department Issues Travel Warnings Amid Rising of 'Vigilante Justice' in Haiti

The US State Department regularly assesses each country's health and security situations before adjusting the travel warnings from one, which suggests travelers should exercise normal precautions, to four, which warns American citizens not to travel there.

Haiti was given the highest level of travel advisory because the country has descended into utter chaos, with violent street gangs already taking over 60% of the capital, Port-au-Prince.

According to Al Jazeera, the violence has gotten so bad that average citizens have banded together and decided to take the law into their own hands.

Not only gang violence grows on the island, but also vigilantism as citizens begin to fight back and often aid the overwhelmed police force.

Several suspected gang members have already been killed and then lynched in the country, with some having their bodies hanged, doused with gasoline, and burned.

Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, has called this rise in vigilante justice "incredibly worrying."

"We're seeing a cycle of violence that's showing no sign of ending," Shamdasani told Al Jazeera.

She added that people in Haiti are now "living in a nightmarish scenario and there's very little hope, so they're taking the law into their own hands."

Protesters in Peru Facing Violent Crackdowns

In Peru, the situation seems to be worsening as well. Rights groups are already calling the Peruvian government's violent response to the protests a "massacre."

The ouster of then-President Pedro Castillo has left the country in turmoil, resulting in over 60 people being killed after protesters clashed with police and soldiers during the protests.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) said in a report that police used excessive force in their violent dispersals. However, the government continues to deny committing any abuse.

READ MORE: Haiti Gang Burns Courthouse

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Haiti Violence: More Haitians Are Joining Fight Against Gangs - From Al Jazeera
Meet Neil Shyminsky, aka "Professor Neil," Professor of English at Cambrian College in Sudbury, Ontario. In addition to university teaching, he also runs a TikTok focused on educating others (especially other cishet men) about toxic masculinity, and providing examples of healthy masculinity. Here's a great video where he's practicing trans allyship through normalizing the gender-affirming care that everyone engages in. Here's a post where he provides some examples of healthy masculinity. And here's one where he calls out "alpha males."

And here's my favorite, where he encourages progressive cishet men who think they're "one of the good guys," to be aware that there is always more to learn. In the video, he discusses "overconfidence" and "unconscious incompetence," where beginner's caution is replaced with a false sense of confidence because people aren't aware yet of what they don't know. He goes on:

Part of the journey in becoming a feminist man, a supportive partner, a good ally, is recognizing that that stage never ends. There will always be things that we can't know and we will never know everything that we can't know. Continue to exercise beginner's caution, work from a place of openness, not defensiveness.

Thanks, Professor Neil. This world needs more professors like this, and fewer professors like that.
A proposal to further expand Bethlehem Landfill is officially on hold, following a judges ruling last week that tossed the Lower Saucon Township ordinance making the expansion a possibility.

The township council met behind closed doors Wednesday night for a discussion on the matter then decided without dissension against appealing Northampton County Judge Abraham Kassis decision to throw out Ordinance 2022-02 on technical grounds.

Citing procedural problems, Kassis invalidated the measure passed 3-2 by council during a contentious Christmas week meeting Dec. 21. Wednesdays 4-0 vote was based on a motion by council President Jason Banonis; Councilman Thomas Carocci was absent.

Residents had challenged the ordinance in both Northampton County Court and before the township zoning hearing board, with the zoning board deciding not to hear the challenge. The opponents attorney, Gary Asteak, called Kassis ruling a huge victory for all of those who oppose the expansion of the Bethlehem Landfill.

The overturned ordinance permitted the landfill land use on 275.7 acres adjacent to Bethlehem Landfill, 2335 Applebutter Road. The change also allowed the landfill to expand by conditional use rather than as a special exception, putting the decision whether to permit an expansion before the township council rather than the zoning hearing board.

Council members in February hired a special officer to conduct the conditional use hearing and bring back a recommendation on approval or denial, at an hourly cost of $200. The hearing commenced Feb. 27 and was continued through May 5. Following Kassiss ruling May 8, additional hearing dates were listed as canceled on the township website.

The council on Wednesday did not indicate any further steps related to the Bethlehem Landfill Co.s request for the rezoning of the land from Rural Agriculture to Light Industrial.

Neighboring property owner Ginger Petrie during public comment at Wednesday nights meeting said the assumption is the township will go back to square one and start the process over again to permit the expansion. She vowed for a continued fight against the expansion.

Council did not comment on her statement.

A message seeking comment Wednesday night from the attorney for the landfill company, a subsidiary of Texas-based Waste Connections, was not immediately returned. The attorney, Maryanne Starr Garber, had said her clients were disappointed with Kassiss decision, noting the landfill has been a trusted neighbor in the township with integrity and the highest standards for over the past three decades.

Separately, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection on April 17 approved an expansion plan previously submitted by the landfill, which includes plans for a new 117-foot-tall earthen berm. The April 17 decision also renewed the landfills operating permit for a decade.

Wednesday nights meeting was live-streamed on Lower Saucon Townships YouTube page.

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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
Pennsylvania State Police at Fogelsville are investigating what caused a man to drive his car into a Lower Macungie Township home on Wednesday afternoon.

Police said they responded to reports around 3 p.m. about a sedan that crashed into the front of a home in the 4100 block of East Texas Road. Authorities said the vehicle also caught fire.
A new law limiting concealed carry of guns in New Jersey suffered another defeat in federal court Tuesday as a judge ordered state officials not to enforce its tight restrictions pending a flurry of legal challenges from gun rights advocates.

The ruling means New Jerseyans with proper permits are free to concealed-carry handguns at beaches, public parks, bars and restaurants  places from where Gov. Phil Murphy and his Democratic allies in the state Legislature sought to ban firearms in an effort to curb gun violence.

Following a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that found restrictive concealed carry laws on the books in states like New York and New Jersey violated the Second Amendment, Democratic leaders in the state fast-tracked a new measure that made it easier for citizens to obtain carry permits, but tightly limited where guns were allowed.

But in a 235-page ruling made public Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Renee Marie Bumb officially put its enforcement on hold.

Gun rights advocates declared victory, praising the decision as a smackdown of draconian laws.

A spokeswoman for Murphy, Tyler Jones, called the ruling a poorly reasoned decision that sends exactly the wrong message as our nation confronts another devastating wave of mass shootings that have taken the lives of many across our country, including children.

New Jerseys top law enforcement officer, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin, pledged to appeal the judges ruling to a higher court, a process that could take weeks or months.

Bumb, a President George W. Bush appointee, sharply criticized state authorities, writing that New Jersey had failed to offer any evidence that law-abiding responsible citizens who carry firearms in public for self-defense are responsible for an increase in gun violence.

Issuing a preliminary injunction against the law, she wrote that even founding father Thomas Jefferson would have warned against the law because it would disarm law-abiding citizens.

Platkin, the state attorney general, assailed the decision as bad constitutional law, writing in a statement that the court now insists that we are powerless to protect New Jersey residents, and proclaims that the Second Amendment requires allowing guns at parks and beaches, in libraries, at public gatherings, in zoos, and even in bars, among other sensitive places.

Those sensitive places are at the center of the dispute.

The law signed by Murphy in December listed an array of such locations where handguns could not be carried, prompting criticism from Second Amendment advocates that the measure included so many sensitive places that it was impossible for permit-holders to avoid violating it.

The legal challenge was brought by several concealed carry permit holders affiliated with New Jersey gun rights groups, including a man who obtained a permit after he was kidnapped and beaten in a bizarre case of mistaken identity.

The judge kept in place New Jerseys new system for obtaining a carry permit, finding the states new requirements for firearms training did not conflict with the Second Amendment, which provides for reasonable restrictions on who can carry a gun.

A requirement that permit-seekers obtain insurance for their weapon was struck down, as well as a provision prohibiting people with permits from carrying their weapon on their person inside a vehicle.

Individual property owners are also permitted to prohibit guns from their property, a portion of the decision Platkin called a silver lining for gun control advocates.

No one may carry a firearm inside someone elses home, or into a business closed to the public, without the owners express permission, Platkin said, citing Bumbs ruling that kept that provision in place.

And for everyone else  for retail establishments and other businesses open to the public  the owners can still make clear that carrying firearms is not welcome on their premises, just as homeowners can make clear guns are unwelcome on their lawns and driveways, he said.

Alexander Roubian, president of one of the plaintiff groups, the New Jersey Second Amendment Society, said the group was ecstatic Judge Bumb smacked down a majority of the discriminatory and draconian laws, claiming that restricting access to firearms disproportionately hurt women and minority permit-seekers.

He noted Platkin and Murphy, who both have State Police protection details, surround themselves with guns while seeking to limit the publics access to firearms.

State Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, said he was disappointed in the decision, adding Assembly Democrats remain committed to the belief that guns do not belong in places like hospitals, libraries and bars serving alcohol, and we will continue to take actions to ensure the safety of all New Jerseyans from gun violence.

Richard McGrath, a spokesman for state Senate President Nick Scutari, D-Union, said lawmakers passed a strong measure that emphasized the safety and security of our communities, adding we believe that the law is constitutional and support the Attorney Generals decision to appeal.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Brent Johnson contributed to this report.

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S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @spsullivan.
The Summer Racing & BBQ Evenings have grown from strength to strength over the last few years at Naas Racecourse and they have today announced what is in store for the upcoming 2023 summer season at the Kildare track.

Traditional Irish folk and ballad band, The Kilkennys, will kick off the first of three Summer Racing & BBQ dates on Wednesday evening, June 28th. The evening also features the Listed Al Shira'aa Racing Irish EBF Naas Oaks Trial, the 2020 renewal of the race was won by the Ger Lyons-trained Even So, who confirmed the calibre of the Naas trial when going on to win the Irish Oaks at The Curragh on her next start.

The second Summer Racing & BBQ meeting will take place on a Saturday afternoon, July 8th on the Naas Town Goes Racing Day. The race day aims to encourage locals to embrace their local racetrack and incorporates something for everyone including great racing, summer BBQ, family fun activities, charity mascot race and live music after racing from BAZZA - DJ, sax & drums.

The last Wednesday evening meeting will take place on July 26th which features the Listed Yeomanstown Stud Irish EBF Stakes and will once again host well-known band, After Dark, playing live after racing.

The BBQ packages start from just 30 with the BBQ Pavilion Package 55. The BBQ Pavilion is located adjacent to the parade ring and the package includes admission to the races, a race card, a full BBQ meal, reserved table in the pavilion and access to live music after racing. There are also general admission tickets available for 15 for racing and music.

Niamh Byrne, Marketing Manager at Naas Racecourse said: "The Summer Racing & BBQ meetings at Naas provide the perfect opportunity to get a group of friends, family or work colleagues together to enjoy good racing, music and delicious food. There is always a great buzz around the track on these evenings and we look forward to kicking off the Summer Season on Wednesday June 28th.

Racing on both Wednesday evenings will start at approximately 5.30pm, with the Saturday July 8th being an earlier start of 2.10pm. Admission and hospitality tickets to the races with access to live music after racing are all available online at www.naasracecourse.com.
ABOVE: Siobhan Doody King  SICAP Employment Support Worker, Mariia Malone Ukrainian Project Worker, Minister Joe OBrien, Iryna Antonova, Ukrainian Project Worker, Iryyna (Ukrainian Emergency Response)

The Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Department of Social Protection Joe OBrien T.D visited County Kildare this week to view projects supported by County Kildare LEADER Partnership in

Athy and Kildare Town.

Minister OBrien is Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development with special responsibility for Community Development and Charities and at the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth with special responsibility for Integration.

In Athy Minister OBrien met visited the Empowering Communities Programme managed by County Kildare LEADER Partnership (CKLP) and discussed progress to date of this new initiative with local residents. Since February 2023 a Community Outreach Worker has been engaged in carrying out door to door consultations with residents in five local estates.

From this process it is hoped that local resident groups will be formed or reformed to give the residents a voice in the development of their community. To date the response has been very encouraging with high levels of participation in the consultation process.

The Minister also visited the DARA Project in Athy which is a drug rehabilitation programme funded by the Department of Social Protection as a Community Employment Scheme and met the Project Coordinator Alan Gavagan and staff and participants.

The Minister travelled to Kildare Town to the new CKLP premises at the former Presentation Convent and met with staff and Board members. CKLP has developed a Community Development Centre in the premises with the assistance of funding under the Rural Development / LEADER Programme.

In Kildare Town Minister OBrien met with representatives of Kildare Public Participation Network (PPN) and Kildare Volunteer Centre before meeting staff and participants on a number of programmes run at the centre by CKLP. These included the HEADSUP Womens programme, the Enterprise Skills Programme CE Scheme, TUS, the Rural Social Scheme, Slaintecare and the Kildare Small Jobs Service.

HEADS UP is a twelve-week mental health education and training programme for men and women who are finding life stressful, and who have issues with unemployment, to build their mental fitness, boost their confidence and take

action to get their lives back on track.

This group programme aims to encourage participants to make positive changes to their lives, develop resilience and offers support to access local services and supports.

The Minister met participants on the Enterprise Skills Programme as they completed their fourteen weeks start your own business course. The participants on this course are planning to move from unemployment to become self-employed. With the assistance of the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) the participants are supported to

avail of the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance Scheme from the Department of Social Protection while they are establishing their business.

As Minister of State with special responsibility for integration the Minister was particularly interested in meeting with asylum seekers and refugees who have been supported by the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme

(SICAP). International Protection Applicants living in Newbridge met with the Minister along with Ukrainian refugees who have been living in Ireland over the last twelve months.

Im delighted to visit Co. Kildare this morning to see first-hand some of the important work being carried out by our community & voluntary groups," stated Minister OBrien.

Minister OBrien added that the work carried out by these groups is vital to helping our local communities be vibrant and inclusive places where support, opportunity and friendship is offered to those who need it. The people I have met across all the projects this morning really embody the best of what we mean when we speak of Irelands community spirit. It is great to see it so alive and well in Co. Kildare.

CEO of County Kildare LEADER Partnership Pat Leogue thanked Minister OBrien for visiting Kildare, We hope that the interaction with the people we work with has given the Minister a good sense of the work that is ongoing in the county with limited resources.

It is widely acknowledged that the perception of County Kildare as an affluent area is wide of the mark with a rapidly increasing population and calls for greater investment in many areas including addiction services, mental health,

and transport.

I would like to acknowledge the additional resources that the Minister has committed to social inclusion and integration and also emphasise that we would not be able to achieve what we do without the support and cooperation of a wide range of agencies and local service providers added Mr Leogue.
Names applied to some residential areas in the Naas area have been criticised.

Knightsbrook in Johnstown and Rathvoy Park came in for unfavourable mention at a Naas Municipal District meeting.

Cllr Fintan Brett asked that Kildare County Council bring proposed names of estates in the Naas area before the councillors for comment prior to their acceptance or otherwise by the council.

He said Knightsbrook was inappropriate and Cllr Seamie Moore said Rathvoy Park may be an amalgamation of Rathasker and Devoy - but it is a nonsense name.

Cllr Bill Clear said that more Irish names should be used instead of names of nothingness.

According to Kildare County Council the assessment of naming proposals for all residential developments is carried out as a compliance with a condition of planning permission and is a function of the council officials.

This assessment is carried out by a naming team and in accordance with an adopted policy."

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Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said a number of actions are being taken to combat far-right groups travelling around the country, following recent protests around refugee accommodation.

In Dublin, makeshift camps for homeless migrants were targeted in two protests last Friday and Saturday.

Tents used by some of the migrants were later dismantled and set alight on Friday night.

Gardai have responded to 125 anti-migration protests in Dublin so far this year, according to Minister for Justice Simon Harris.

Elsewhere, locals organised a blockade outside Magowna House Hotel in Inch, Co Clare since Monday evening, when more than 30 asylum seekers arrived by bus.

Mr Varadkar said it was a difficult as Ireland is a democracy where people have the right to free speech and peaceful protest.

He said: While sometimes we may not like protests, or not like what people have to say, it is better to be in a country where people have the right to protest and the right to free speech.

He added: Probably the best thing we can do is for those of us in positions of responsibility to speak up and to explain whats happening here, to talk to communities to give them reassurance, because the best way to counter disinformation is information.

The best way to counter hate is with facts and positive feeling and reassurance.

Elsewhere, he said the Garda Commissioner has given an assurance that gardai have operational integrity around policing or managing protests.

Mr Varadkar added: We have the legislation thats going through now on regulating social media, which I discussed earlier with the new online Safety Commissioner and the broadcasting regulator Coimisiun na Mean.

On top of that, were updating our laws around incitement of hatred and hate speech. 

Mr Harris said the recent protests went further than past demonstrations.

He added: We should never allow the far-right to conflate issues.

There have been things that I would never call protests that I think, well, cross the line of what a protest is.

He said there are additional vulnerabilities when tented accommodation is involved.

Mr Harris said gardai had made arrests and prosecuted people that have organised events that he claimed go beyond protests.

So the gardai have taken action, he said.

I can absolutely say this with certainty from security briefings and others that I receive that we are seeing a relatively small number of bad actors, far-right activists, call them what you wish, who do travel from location to location around the country, who do whip up fear and who do prey on vulnerability.

And there is a world of difference between that activity and the genuine questions that people can have about their own community which is entirely appropriate.

But I am extremely satisfied that the Garda Commissioner is taking that situation very, very seriously.
If the Supreme Court has an eye to pruning or felling Section 230, the legal rule that shields websites and other internet services from liability for for stuff posted on them by others, Gonzalez v. Google is not their weapon of choice.

In an unsigned opinion in the case known as Gonzalez v. Google, the high court said it declined to address the application of the law, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, to a "complaint that appears to state little, if any plausible claim for relief." The dispute stemmed from a lawsuit brought by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, an American college student who was among the 129 people killed in Paris by ISIS terrorists in November 2015, against Google, which owns YouTube, in 2016. The Gonzalez family alleged the tech giant aided and abetted ISIS in violation of a federal anti-terrorism statute by recommending videos posted by the terror group to users.

Good news for web publishers; this is reportedly the first time the Supreme Court considered the scope of the Section 230, and they decided not yet to consider it further.
The damage caused by the passage of Cyclone Mocha on Sunday, May 14, over the Burmese state of Rakhine looks to be much heavier than the information given by the military junta in Naypyidaw would have us believe. The official death toll is currently at least 81, but hundreds of dead and missing are feared by NGOs and independent Burmese media. The country has been plunged into a civil war since February 2021, when the army overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was thrown into prison.

In the Basara refugee camp in Sittwe, Myanmar, on May 16, 2023, after Cyclone Mocha. SAI AUNG MAIN / AFP

Mocha brought winds of up to 210 km per hour to Rakhine State, the westernmost province of Myanmar bordering Bangladesh. It caused a cyclonic storm tide (i.e. a rise in water level due to the impact of the lowered atmospheric pressure on the sea), which destroyed a large number of infrastructures in Sittwe, the capital of the state. However, Sittwe was able to reopen its port and airport on Thursday, May 18. The road linking it to Yangon has been cleared and some telephone communications are beginning to be restored. UN agencies estimate that 3.2 million people  of the 5.4 million who were in the path of the cyclone  are vulnerable and likely to need help.

This has not spared the internment camps for the Rohingya  the stateless Muslim minority of Myanmar  whom the authorities have, over the past decade, forced to abandon their villages for areas near Sittwe where they are interned. 140,000 Rohingya have IDP status in Myanmar, out of the 600,000 total in Rakhine State. Nearly a million more have become refugees in neighboring Bangladesh, where prior evacuations have limited the number of casualties. Countless makeshift homes have been destroyed, however.

Food is in short supply

In Myanmar, Rohingya communities reached by the independent website Myanmar Now say they received an evacuation order on Saturday night but had no means to evacuate nor any place to go. The big challenge now is getting aid to the camps: "No organization nor the government aid arrived to us yet because the bridges on the way to our camp are broken," the leader of a devastated camp outside Sittwe, who did not give his name, told Agence France-Presse on Wednesday. "We might be able to hold on for two days more," he estimated.

A Rohingya woman with her baby next to her destroyed house in the Basara refugee camp in Sittwe, Myanmar, on May 16, 2023. SAI AUNG MAIN / AFP

A funeral near the Basara refugee camp in Sittwe, Rakhine State, Myanmar, on May 16, 2023. SAI AUNG MAIN / AFP

Three other Burmese provinces were affected by Mocha, but all are inland: the region of Sagaing, the region of Magway and Chin State, which borders India. All three are home to centers of Burmese armed resistance to the junta. The army's punitive operations have already destroyed entire villages in the plains of Sagaing, which have often been burned down, causing thousands of displaced persons. Food is in short supply as farmers are unable to tend to their crops and aid is blocked. After a particularly scorching dry season, dozens of these villages are now facing a new scourge: catastrophic floods linked to the cyclone. Nearly 100,000 people are reportedly affected in Magway and Sagaing, according to the May 16 Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Cyclone Mocha Situation Report.

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The dual presidential and legislative elections in Turkey on May 14 have kept Europeans and Americans in suspense. The rest of the world was also anticipating the elections, but with different expectations. For many countries, a continuation of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's time in office would not be bad news. The president has a reputation as a tough man who stands firm for Turkey's interests and exerts a global influence. Whatever his NATO partners think, his preserved neutrality in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has further enhanced his credibility.

Turkey's international ambitions are very great. Its space program called for "first contact" with the moon in 2023, and here we are: in the year of the Republic's centenary, with elections being presented in France as "historic" because they were supposed to put an end to Erdogan's absolute power. Even the British magazine The Economist has come out of the woodwork, taking a rare stance and declaring itself in favor of opposition candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

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In a country plunged into mourning by the huge earthquake of February, the position of the AKP (Justice and Development Party) seemed more fragile. A certain wear and tear on power was evident, highlighting the unprecedented effort of the opposition to defend democracy and the return to a peaceful dialogue with Western partners. However, what was played out in a muted way in this election was above all the consolidation, in Turkey, of an ordinary nationalism that reassures the electorate at a particularly anxiety-inducing international moment.

A largely nationalist sensitivity

The first lesson of the election is that the alliance between the Islamists of the AKP and the ultranationalists of the MHP (Nationalist Action Party) is working well, but it's the latter party's score that's increasing. The second opposition party, the Iyi Party (The Good Party), was formed by MHP dissidents. The third presidential candidate, Sinan Ogan, who created a surprise by winning more than 5% of the vote, is also a former party member and personifies a new nationalist movement.

Nationalism again is certainly the main explanation for the massively pro-AKP vote of the Turkish diaspora  it was Erdogan who gave the right to vote to Turks abroad. This largely nationalist sensitivity permeates Turkish foreign policy, which has become tense on certain issues over the past few years: contesting maritime boundaries with Greece, legitimizing the Turkish presence in Northern Cyprus, fighting militarily against Kurdish separatism in Syria and Iraq...

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at a meeting in Kyiv, on April 20, 2023. AP

In the convoluted history of relations between Vladimir Putin's Russia and the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance members, one episode stands out: The 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest. Back then, an explosive item on the agenda monopolized the leaders' attention in the Romanian capital: The potential membership of Ukraine and Georgia.

At the end of a Homeric battle between George W. Bush, who advocated such membership, and Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, who were against it, a poor compromise was reached. The two countries were destined to become members of NATO... one day. The exact date was never specified.

Some 15 years later, the subject will be back on the table at a new NATO gathering in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11-12, in a dramatically different context. Not only have Ukraine and Georgia failed to join NATO but both have been invaded by Russia. War is raging in Ukraine. The key players have changed, except Putin, who is still in power.

The shadow of the Bucharest conference looms over the Vilnius summit. Inevitably, a haunting question pervades minds in this region of Europe: Would Putin have dared to invade Ukraine if it had been a NATO member? Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas is convinced: "Taking our country would have been easier than to attack Ukraine," she told Le Monde last week. "Russia hasn't attacked us is because we are in NATO. Ukraine joining NATO is the only way out."

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When asked the same question on May 12, during the Lennart Meri Conference in Tallinn, her Lithuanian counterpart, Ingrida Simonyte, was also persuaded: "Bucharest was one of the biggest mistakes of this century's history." Simonyte said a "repeat [of] Bucharest" in Vilnius was not an option.

Ending the 'Freedom Agenda' in style

So, what was exactly behind the Bucharest trauma? Back in 2008, Bush was nearing the end of his second term at the White House. During his first, NATO had already successfully absorbed the three Baltic states. The countries that were once part of the dissolved Warsaw Pact also joined.

From Bush's perspective, integrating Ukraine and Georgia  two former Soviet republics with strong democratic aspirations  into NATO was a way to finish off his "Freedom Agenda" in style. To achieve this, the Bucharest summit had to grant them a "MAP" (Membership Action Plan), a status created in 1999 that initiates the membership process to NATO. This decision can only be made with the unanimous agreement of the member states.

Germany and France, however, had a different vision for their continent. They feared provoking Putin who was growing increasingly vindictive about NATO's expansion. They had no favors to grant Bush following the Iraqi invasion fiasco in which they had refused to participate, drawing the wrath of Washington. Chancellor Merkel and her then-foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier were determined to oppose Bush's proposal, and arrived in Bucharest ready for the offensive. They immediately consulted with President Sarkozy.

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A BOIL water notice which impacted hundreds of people living close to the Limerick/Tipperary border has been lifted, Uisce Eireann has announced.

Since the beginning of March, households on the Glengar Public Water Supply scheme have been advised not to drink water from the local public supply following the detection of cryptosporidium.

The Boil Water Notice was put in place to protect the health of approximately 470 consumers who are supplied by the scheme scheme.

A small number of homes in County Limerick are located in the impacted area.

In a statement this Thursday evening, Uisce Eireann confirmed the notice has been lifted with immediate effect.

Colin Cunningham of Uisce Eireann said: "Uisce Eireann and Tipperary County Council wish to thank everyone for their patience, co-operation and assistance during this boil water notice and we greatly regret any inconvenience caused to homes and businesses in the community.

Uisce Eireann and the Local Authority and the Health Service Executive Water Liaison Group will continue to meet and will review ongoing process control, monitoring and testing of the drinking water supply.
AS SHE undergoes treatment for breast cancer, one Castletroy woman is preparing to embark on a fundraising journey for the Marie Keating Foundation, by walking 100km in 30 days.

Karen Dowling is due to complete her chemotherapy treatment in the first week of June, and aims to achieve her goal of walking 100km during the same month.

The initiative, known as 100K in 30 Days, will not only contribute to the breast cancer charity, but also serve as a celebration of Karen's resilience and strength.

Already a survivor of cervical cancer, Karen was diagnosed in 2010 when she was just 23 years-old. That's in the past, she said. I beat that, so it's all good.

Now at the age of 36, Karen is facing another battle with the disease, having found a lump in October 2022, followed shortly by a diagnosis of breast cancer in early December.

Having worked as a psychotherapist, Karen left her job soon after diagnosis and began chemotherapy in January.

I have weeks of chemo and then I have surgery and radiotherapy, she said. On an optimistic note, Karen adds that her outlook is positive, as it was found early.

As she stresses the importance of the self-examinations, she exclaims: I was young, fit and healthy.

The positive outlook by doctors is thanks to doing a breast check, she admits.

The idea of doing the challenge came to Karen as she utilised the foundation more so than with her first diagnosis back in 2010.

I was using a lot of the services in Limerick this time around, and I saw an ad on the event, and how they were looking for ambassadors, she explained.

I thought do you know what, this is a really good goal as I am due to celebrate finishing chemo in June.

As a way to give back, and indeed get back, Karen advocates for making the most of life.

I have highlighted this to my friends and family, she begins, they always say I am so positive, but I have to assure them that I am not positive, I am just living.

Agreeing that aspects of life do stop upon diagnosis, such as work, but Karen adds that there are good days with the bad, and there are still things you can do in spite of a diagnosis.

It's super important to actually exercise while going through cancer treatment, Karen reveals. It's scientifically proven that exercise helps your body metabolise the chemotherapy drugs.

While a great deal of strength goes into living her life the way she means, Karen admits, that bad days do befall her too.

Don't get me wrong, there are days where I don't do a tap, but it's just about getting out when you can, she candidly says.

As far as control goes, Karen adds that sometimes with a diagnosis like hers, exercise and keeping active is the only controllable. While totally dependent on her feelings that day, Karen admits that often the only way to get energy back from the common fatigue she experiences is to do any form of exercise.

Currently in menopause because of the chemotherapy, Karen reveals that she is in a position where her bones could get weaker, with risks of osteoporosis, but admits that exercise when she is feeling up to it allows her to stay strong.

Looking to those like Vicky Phelan, in the face of the disease, Karen firmly believes that cancer does not have to define a person.

Sharing her story on Instagram, she admits that she often receives praise for her inspirational outlooks, whereas she believes that life is meant to be lived, and will stop at nothing until she shares that message with all who want to listen.

With an open invitation to join her, she has created a league called Karen's Pink Army on the official website of the campaign.

Those who wish to participate in this challenge can sign up or donate to the cause.
IN A SIGNIFICANT development, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) and University Hospital Limerick (UHL) have reached an agreement that has led to the suspension of industrial action in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

The proposal, brokered through the Workplace Relations Commission, aims to address the pressing issue of staffing shortfalls and improve patient and staff safety.

Mary Fogarty, the Assistant Director of Relations at INMO, expressed her satisfaction with the temporary agreement. She stated, "the work-to-rule in the Intensive Care Unit in University Hospital Limerick has been suspended to allow a ballot to take place on an agreement reached between the INMO and hospital management through the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission."

The agreement focuses on several key measures to alleviate the strain on ICU staff. "Measures included in the agreement include a commitment to ensure that at least sixteen nurses will be rostered in for both day and night duty for the twelve bed ward, nurses who work in the ICU will be facilitated to take their annual leave and assurances have been made that additional ICU nurses will be on site in June and July," continued the assistant director.

This move aims to bolster the existing staffing complement.

Ms Fogarty emphasized the critical importance of safe staffing levels in the ICU, underscoring the "intolerable" pressure faced by nurses while striving to provide exceptional care to critically ill patients.

The agreement reflects a commitment from both INMO and UHL to address these concerns promptly.
Anglian Water customers could face an increase on their bills of 91 a year  including 12 to help pay for investment in sewerage infrastructure  the company has said.

Water companies in England have announced a 10 billion plan to reduce the number of sewage discharges into rivers and seas, while apologising for the pollution.

The industry trade body, Water UK, said the money will be paid up front by investors but then recuperated from consumers by gradually raising their bills over decades.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4s World At One programme, Anglian Waters head of public relations Regan Harris said: The initial investment will be put forward by our shareholders and the way were financed is that they put up that investment and Ofwat allows us to recover a proportion of that from bills.

1/2 We fully support WUKs apology on behalf of the wider industry. We know we all need to act faster to address storm overflows. https://t.co/i4mG10xnAp  Anglian Water (@AnglianWater) May 18, 2023

What were looking at is a fairly small increase of probably a few percent a year between now and 2030.

Asked how much the rise might mean for customers, she said: What were probably looking at is something in the order of about 1.75 a week for bills.

(That is) 10-12% as a total between now and 2030.

An increase of 1.75 per week would amount to 91 extra per year.

After the interview, Anglian Water clarified that only 12 of this relates to storm overflow upgrades.

Ofwat said water companies will submit their National Overflows Plan by October 2 which will include any bill increases for the period 2025-30.

The regulator will analyse the plans, giving a final announcement in December 2024, so any bill increases related to the storm overflows plan will not be felt until 2025.

We've outlined new measures to penalise water companies that don't fully monitor storm overflows. As well as targets to reduce the average number of spills, where there isn't working monitor we'll assume they're twice as bad as the current averagehttps://t.co/drzUWYxcre pic.twitter.com/xW9t4Y1deK  Ofwat (@Ofwat) May 9, 2023

A spokesperson said: We will scrutinise the detail of the National Overflows Plan when it is submitted to Ofwat later this year, as part of companies wider investment plans for the 2025-30 period.

These plans will set out what companies intend to deliver in each area and a timeline for completion.

Water companies must explain how their proposals will be funded, the proposed impact this will have on bills and their expected return to shareholders and lenders.

It is important that companies continue to engage clearly with the public on how this proposed investment will benefit communities and improve quality of life.

There were 301,091 sewage spills in 2022 in England which amounted to 1.75 million hours of discharge, according to Environment Agency figures, though they do not include the volume of sewage.

Monitoring stations for Welsh Water, a non-profit organisation, show the company discharged sewage for 602,987 hours in 2022, while publicly owned Scottish Water recorded 14,008 spills in 2022 amounting to 113,230 hours.

Northern Ireland is not required to produce the same data, said Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), which uses water company information to track discharges.

However, an investigation by the Belfast Telegraph in 2021 revealed that more than seven million tonnes of sewage was being dumped each year in Northern Irelands rivers and seas.

Izzy Ross, campaigns manager at SAS, said: Water companies have seemingly bared their souls and told us theyre going to change. But why should we trust them?

Theyve overseen decades of mismanagement of our sewerage network, all the while siphoning off tens of billions to shareholders and paying the fat cats at the top huge pay and bonuses.

And this new plan is no different with consumers set to foot the bill, again. We wont stand for it.

The campaigners are planning to protest on Saturday at 12 bathing locations across the UK  with a surfboard made from raw sewage at the main protest by Brightons West Pier  and are calling for an end to all sewage discharges into bathing waters by 2030.

Kate Norgrove, executive director of advocacy and campaigns at WWF, said: Todays apology from Water UK only scratches the surface of the urgent action needed to clean up our water.

UK nature is in crisis and sewage and agricultural pollution are choking the life out of our rivers and seas.

Beyond apologies and the threat of higher bills for consumers, we need better monitoring of water quality and more effective regulation from UK governments, including stronger action against water companies and others who pollute our waters with apparent impunity.
WALL TO wall celebrities is what greeted me at the launch of the luxury Anantara The Marker Dublin hotel in the capital city.

Myself and my husband Ger were delighted to be asked to attend and the event was bursting with out and out glamour.

The launch of the newly-refurbished hotel, which is one of international prestige, offers guests five star treatment - resorts and spas in the group are dotted around the world.

The rebrand debuted last Wednesday and we enjoyed a gorgeous evening of canapes and cocktails. The style on the night was showstopping, with guests invited to add a touch of gold to their outfits for the night of splendour.

Situated on the scenic docklands of Dublin city, the new Anantara ownership brings the brand into northwestern Europe for the first time, with other resorts dotted across the globe in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and the Mediterranean.

Celia poses with Dr Mary Ryan, a Limerick consultant endocrinologist and international speaker

While we chit chatted and dined, I got the chance to make the acquaintance of some famous Limerick natives in attendance on the night such as international speaker and University of Limerick lecturer Dr Mary Ryan of Bon Secours hospital and TV presenter and personality, Muireann OConnell, of Ireland AM.

Other known guests included former Late Late Show host Pat Kenny, journalist and RTE newsreader Sharon Ni Bheolain, broadcaster and content creator Lorraine Keane, as well as personality Mary Kennedy.

All those in attendance went all out in terms of style! A sea of vibrant colours and rich patterns hit me as soon as I entered the room - all very fitting for the opulence of the night, and new decor that was unveiled.

I will be back next week with more gossip for all of you lovely readers!

Xx Celia
XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday held talks in Xi'an with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit. Xi warmly welcomed Tokayev to China for the summit and the state visit. Xi expressed his pleasure at hosting Tokayev in Xi'an and once again wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day. Xi pointed out that Tokayev's state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to his unique bond with China. China and Kazakhstan are trustworthy good friends, good brothers and good partners, he said. Xi stressed that both countries are at a crucial stage of development and rejuvenation, and China-Kazakhstan relations have entered the next three golden decades. The two sides should vigorously carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, pursue development and rejuvenation, and build a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, strong mutual trust and solidarity, Xi said. An independent, stable, and prosperous Kazakhstan meets the common interests of the Chinese and Kazakh people, Xi said, noting that China firmly supports Kazakhstan in safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and in choosing its development path based on national conditions. Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the Belt and Road Initiative 10 years ago. He called for joint efforts to expand cooperation in economy, trade, investment, agriculture, automobile manufacturing and energy, deepen connectivity, and explore new cooperation areas including e-commerce, innovation and big data. China and Kazakhstan will take the signing of an agreement on mutual visa exemption as an opportunity to strengthen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, Xi said. He welcomed the launch of the Kazakhstan tourism year in China in 2024, and expressed his belief that the opening of a Kazakh consulate general in Xi'an will promote local exchanges between the two countries. Xi said the forthcoming summit is of milestone significance and will usher China-Central Asia cooperation into a new era. China is ready to work with Central Asian countries including Kazakhstan to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform to promote the in-depth cooperation of the six countries, Xi said. Tokayev extended congratulations on China's great achievements under Xi's leadership and expressed his belief that China will have an even more brilliant future. Tokayev said he totally agrees with Xi on the evaluation of bilateral relations and the suggestions on further strengthening cooperation. Stressing China's special and important position in his country's foreign policy, he said the Kazakhstan-China relations are based on strong friendship and solid mutual trust and enjoy common goals and missions. Kazakhstan is ready to work with China to further strengthen their permanent comprehensive strategic partnership and lay a solid foundation for the two countries to usher in another three golden decades, said Tokayev. He applauded the signing of the mutual visa exemption agreement and vowed to continue taking part in the Belt and Road Initiative. He said Kazakhstan actively champions the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi. Kazakhstan stands ready to work with China to fully leverage the China-Central Asia mechanism and jointly promote the regional security, stability and development, said Tokayev. After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement and witnessed the signing of a raft of bilateral documents on cooperation in areas including economy, trade, energy, transport, agriculture, connectivity, culture, and local affairs. Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang were present at the events.
Someone has uploaded the science fiction horror movie, I Married a Monster from Outer Space (1958), to the Internet Archive. I have never seen it before. From the description, it seems similar to Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1955), and I Am Legend (1954).

Created during Cold War-era McCarthyism these books/movies are entertaining in their own right, but are also allegories for ideological takeover, the kind we are seeing today with populist phenomena like Trumpism and QAnon,

In Jack Finney's Invasion of the Body Snatchers, individuals' identities are taken over by alien pods. This transformation turns them into unrecognizable, conformist versions of their former selves, reflecting the alteration of individuals under the sway of persuasive, divisive rhetoric.

Richard Matheson's I Am Legend is about the anguish of standing alone in a society that has uniformly succumbed to a dangerous ideology. It embodies the isolation, fear, and conflict that one feels when surrounded by those who have been swept up in a cultlike political movement. Critic Mathias Clasen describes it as a work born from "an anxious artistic mind working in an anxious cultural climate."

I Married a Monster from Outer Space explores personal relationships torn apart by ideological fanaticism. It encapsulates the fear and uncertainty people feel when beloved family members transform into unrecognizable zealots.

From Wikipedia:

There's more! Again, from Wikipedia:

Film scholar Harry M. Benshoff suggests that the film features a blatant subtext of male homosexuality, citing the lead character of Bill's preference to "meet other strange men in the public park" rather than stay at home with his wife.

Watch it here:
  

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Britain is close to winning a major battery plant for electric vehicles as Tata Group, the parent company of Jaguar Land Rover, leans toward choosing it over Spain.

Tata, a conglomerate involved in industries from cars to salt, is currently favoring a factory in England after the UK government offered a support package, according to people familiar with the matter.

No final decision has been made, and Tata could still decide on another location, the people said.

A decision in favor of the UK by Tata would secure the future of JLRs plants in the country and mark a major coup for the government, as Spanish authorities were battling to win the investment. The plant  to be based in Somerset, England  would make batteries for Jaguar Land Rovers planned range of fully electric models that are due from 2024.

The UK has been struggling to attract significant auto-industry investment in the aftermath of Brexit, while several manufacturers have shifted output to other countries amid the generational push toward electrification.

Stellantis NV, which is adapting its Ellesmere Port site to make electric vans, said operations in the UK could close if the cost of manufacturing became uncompetitive and unsustainable.

BMW last year said it will move production of electric Mini hatchbacks from Oxford to China. Honda Motor Co. closed its car factory in Swindon in 2021, leaving Britain with just four major manufacturers: Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan Motor Co., BMW and Toyota Motor Corp.

A spokesperson for Tata declined to comment. A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade declined to comment.
BT Group, one of the biggest telecom companies in the U.K., said it was reducing its workforce by as much as 42%, or about 55,000 workers, by the end of the decade, capping several months of corporate job cutting across Europe.
The Board of Directors of New Delhi Television Limited (NDTV), during a meeting held on May 17, granted approval for a proposal to request the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting for permission to launch nine news channels in various Indian languages.

NDTV will inform the stock exchanges about the launch dates of these channels once approval is obtained from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.

The media company reported a significant decline in net profit for the quarter ending March 2023, with a decrease of 97.5% to 59 lakhs compared to 24.16 crore in the same quarter last year. The company also experienced a decline in consolidated revenue from operations, down by 35.5% to 66.96 crore from 103.8 crore in the previous year.

NDTV has taken steps to reduce external borrowings, lowering it to 3 crore during the quarter under review, down from 9 crore the previous year. Additionally, the company's cash and cash equivalents amounted to 103.6 crore for the quarter, a decrease from 116.4 crore in 2022.

In its filing, the company noted that the EBITDA margins were impacted by 4.80 crore due to one-time expenses related to severance pay and one-time write-off provisions.

On December 30, 2022, AMG Media Networks Ltd (AMNL) acquired a 27.26% stake in NDTV through its subsidiary RRPR Holding Private Limited, granting AMNL a controlling interest of 64.71% in the media company.

Gautam Adani, the founder and chairman of the Adani Group, has expressed pride in supporting NDTV by providing top-tier personnel and infrastructure, with the vision of transforming it into a successful global news company across multiple platforms.

After a contentious dispute, the Adani Group, a conglomerate with diverse interests including ports and energy, now holds an approximate 64.7% stake in NDTV through its entities RRPR Holding and Vishvapradhan Commercial.
For decades, Srichand Hinduja served as the patriarch of a sprawling business empire behind one of the worlds biggest family fortunes with origins dating back more than a century.

His death at age 87 raises questions over wholl assume his role as de-facto head of the dynasty, whose legal battles in recent years over control of investments spanning banking, media and energy still threaten to tear apart the once tight-knit group.

Gopichand Hinduja, 83, is the British-Indian clans oldest member following Srichands death Wednesday in London. He and his two younger brothers  Prakash, 77, and Ashok, 72  fought over the past three years with the patriarch and his daughter, Vinoo, over a letter signed by the four siblings that said assets held by one of them belonged to all.

While the family called a truce on the bitter power struggle in November, it emerged last month theyre still privately haggling on related issues.

The clan, which spans at least four generations, has a collective fortune of about $14 billion, putting it among Asias 20 richest dynasties, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

This is the litmus test for the Hinduja familys recent ceasefire," David Hawkins, co-founder of family-business consulting firm Percheron Advisory, said of Srichands death.

At stake is the direction for one of the worlds biggest conglomerates that employs more than 200,000 people worldwide.

Hinduja Groups assets include major holdings in listed Indian businesses  from automaker Ashok Leyland Ltd. to Mumbai-based lender IndusInd Bank Ltd. The Hindujas are also refurbishing a hotel near 10 Downing Street in central London, where they own a set of palatial homes overlooking St Jamess Park, and have a property investment firm that has bought more than 250 acres of land in major Indian cities.

About three decades ago, Srichand  known as SP  founded a Swiss lender that became the focus of a UK legal battle between the family. The dispute spilled out into the public in 2020 over claims his three brothers were trying to take control in a power grab. SPs 32-year-old grandson, Karam, is chief executive officer of Geneva-based Hinduja Bank, while his daughter, Shanu, who turns 59 this month, is chair.

Shanu and Vinoo, 56, who led the recent legal fight for SPs branch of the family, said in a statement Wednesday that Srichand had died peacefully that morning.

We will continue to uphold SPs legacy and values," they wrote.

The four Hinduja siblings father, Parmanand, founded their namesake business in 1914 in the Sindh region of British India. SP and his brothers all joined what started out as a commodities-trading and carpeting-importing firm and rapidly diversified its investments, with early success distributing Bollywood films outside India.

Parmanand, who died in 1971, instilled in his sons a mantra they pledged to follow: Everything belongs to everyone and nothing belongs to anyone."

For decades, the brothers adhered to that policy, describing it as their guiding principle. But that unified front crumbled in the final years of SPs life, during which he suffered from a form of dementia.

The Hindujas were trying to guide themselves under a too-broad principle," said Leon Fernando Del Canto, a London-based barrister who works with wealthy individuals. In this case, the courts will determine the disputes future without clear agreements or a family constitution."

As part of last years truce, SPs daughters and his brothers agreed to effectively tear up a 2014 letter underpinning their uniting principles, raising the prospect of a breakup for their conglomerate.

Still, that truce is looking increasingly fragile. The agreement to finalize it still needs signing off, and the family had outstanding questions over governance and succession even before SPs death. Those factors may lead to future legal proceedings in the UK or in other corners of the Hindujas empire.

For the moment, the clan appears united in grieving for the loss of their patriarch.

The brothers have always been four bodies and one soul," the family said in a statement. His loss has left a huge void."
New Delhi: Airbnb, the American home and apartment rental platform, is now focusing more on its rooms portfolio in India as it enters its next phase of growth. Recognizing the substantial earnings potential in the rooms-only business, it aims to tap into this segment, especially considering the lower age demographic of its Indian customers, which includes millennials and Gen Z.

Amanpreet Bajaj, general manager for India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, said India is a key growth market for the company in an interview with Mint.

India is one of the most important geographies from a growth perspective for our company," he said, adding that the company has achieved domestic growth surpassing 2019 levels with a 110% increase in 2022, accompanied by 70% growth in nights bookings in the country.

Despite the ongoing development of the hosting ecosystem in India, he said it is actively collaborating with hosts and states to facilitate and encourage more people to join as hosts. The company has also recently established a tech hub in Bengaluru to support its product development efforts for both Indian and global operations. While the company did reduce its workforce during the pandemic, it remains committed to strengthening its core services and creating tools that make hosting easier for individuals.

A lot of people have primary and secondary homes, and many companies also now manage these homes like SaffronStays if the host cant manage it themselves. Some of those companies also listed with us to use as a distribution perspective," he said.

In 2022, its private room hosts in India collectively earned over 100 crore, showcasing financial benefits available to hosts. Additionally, the number of nights spent in private room listings experienced a notable 80% growth compared to the previous year.

The most popular booking categories included individual rooms, tropical locations, properties with amazing pools, beach areas, and national park destinations.

About 80% of private room stays in 2022 were priced under $100 per night (approximately 8,200), with the average rate for a private room in India being 2,572 per night.

Bajaj noted a surge in travel interest among Indians for international destinations. A lot of Indians want to travel abroad. Southeast Asia and Europe are the top 10 places where we are seeing a surge in searches as compared to last year. When Indians do travel overseas, they want to experience it like locals. Typically, we are seeing millennials and Gen Z leading the charge for us in India," said Bajaj.

The flexibility of remote and hybrid work arrangements, coupled with an increase in the average length of stays and spending, continues to contribute to the popularity of its bookings throughout the year. The company charges anywhere between 14-18% as commissions from customers and about 3-4% from its hosts.

But Airbnb India Private Limited saw a 32% decrease in revenue in FY22 from the year prior. However, as per the companys registrar of company filings accessed via the business intelligence platform Tofler, the company had a reduction of 32% in its total revenue at 32.16 crore versus 47.33 crore in FY21. This is where the marketing and business development entity is housed.

However, the global entity witnessed a 20% increase in its revenues in the first quarter earnings (January-March). And for 2022, it reported a net profit of $117 million versus a net loss of $19 million in 2021.

The companys global filing to the SEC in the US highlighted that while the Asia Pacific region has yet to fully recover to 2019 levels, partly due to China being locked down.

In an earnings call, its CEO Brian Chesky cautioned that the second quarter of 2023 may present unfavourable year-over-year comparisons due to the overlap of pent-up demand from 2022 following the Covid Omicron variant.

Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Airbnb remains optimistic about the growth opportunities in the Indian market and is dedicated to enhancing its services and offerings to meet the evolving needs of travellers and hosts.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Varuni Khosla Varuni Khosla is a journalist with close to 14 years of experience in writing business news stories for mainstream newspaper companies like Mint and The Economic Times. She reports and writes on luxury and lifestyle brands, hospitality and tourism news, the business of sports, the business of advertising and marketing and alcohol brands. Read more from this author
New Delhi: It is important that G20 nations work together to tap into the full potential of biofuels to create a more sustainable future, said Pankaj Jain, secretary of ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), Pankaj Jain .

Jain was delivering the keynote address at the Global Biofuel Alliance Seminar, organized by the ministry, which was held alongside the 3rd Energy Transition Working Group Meeting. He underscored the growing significance of biofuels in transitioning to cleaner energy sources, their wide-ranging applications, techno-commercial viability, and financing opportunities.

Noting biofuels contributions towards economic prosperity, energy security, and affordability, Jain called for increased collaboration among G20 countries to accelerate the development of the global biofuels market. He underlined the technological advancements that have provided diverse biofuel feedstock options such as sugarcane, corn, agricultural waste, and bamboo.

Key players from international energy organizations including the International Energy Agency (IEA), Total Energies, Shell, Lanzatech, and SHV Energy Futuria attended the seminar. Discussions centred around technologies, use cases, partnerships, and business prospects related to biofuels. Participants acknowledged the rising relevance of biofuels in various sectors, from Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and alcohol-to-jet fuel, to biodiesel, compressed biogas for ethanol production, and renewable Dimethyl Ether (DME).

The seminar succeeded in fostering dialogue and knowledge exchange among industry experts, enhancing understanding of the role of biofuels in addressing the Energy Quadrilemma.
What is this tax on foreign spending?

Tax Collected at Source or TCS is similar to tax deducted at source in the sense that it is a tax deduction by a third party on your behalf. It was introduced in Budget 2020 on payments under the LRS  i.e investments in foreign countries. However TCS is not a tax, it is just collection of tax. For example, if you spend $100 for booking a hotel stay, a TCS of $20 will be deducted by your card provider. The rupee equivalent of this TCS ( 1,648) will be available for you to adjust against any advance tax you have to pay in the course of the year. In case no such tax is due, you can claim a refund at the end of the year.

What exactly does the tax apply to?

When TCS was initially imposed in the 2020 Budget, it was limited in nature. It applied only to payments under the LRS exceeding 7 lakh per year. Credit cards were left out of the purview of the LRS. However in the 2023 Budget, the minimum threshold was abolished. Plus, a recent amendment to the LRS rule has removed the credit card exception. It will also apply whether you spend it through a debit card, forex card etc. But it may not affect purchase of foreign goods or services via a credit card while you are in India such as subscription to music etc.

View Full Image Graphic: Mint

How do I claim it back?

The TCS will reflect in Form 26 AS every quarter when the bank files the TCS returns. You can adjust it against advance tax you are liable to pay. For salaried individuals whose tax is fully deducted by their employer, there may not be any advance tax due. In such a case, you can claim a refund while filing your returns. However, you lose out on the interest you would have earned on this amount.

View Full Image Graphic: Mint

Can there be practical difficulties?

Yes. Spending on a corporate credit card for business purposes is technically spending on the current account and should not fall under LRS. Hence, TCS should not be deducted on this . The finance ministry also supported this position in a tweet on 18 May by giving the example of an employee on a business trip which would not come under LRS. However, it is not clear how banks will be able to distinguish business expenses from personal expenses made by an employee using a corporate credit card.

What about foreign education?

Remittances for education (and medical treatment) will attract a lower TCS of 5% (for education loans it is 0.5%). They also have a threshold of 7 lakh. There are doubts about expenses such as maintenance of the student (day-to-day expenses), transport and off-campus accommodation. However, the finance ministry clarified that such incidental expenses will also attract the lower TCS rate of 5%. Nonetheless proving that an expense is incidental to a bank may be a challenge.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Neil Borate Neil heads the personal finance team at Mint. A former colleague called them 'money nerds' and that's what they are. They cover topics like mutual funds, taxation and retirement, all to improve your chances of building wealth. Neil graduated with a degree in law and economics. He passed the CFA Level I exam and began his writing career at Value Research, a mutual fund research firm in 2016. He joined the personal finance team Mint in 2019. Everyday, the Mint Money Team tackles personal finance questions such as where to invest and where to borrow, through articles, charts and reader queries. They also have a daily podcast - 'Why Not Mint Money' and an annual ranking of mutual funds - the Mint 20. Read more from this author
New Delhi: Starting 1 July, a 20% tax collected at source (TCS) will be levied on overseas credit card expenses of Indians, barring such expenditure on education or medical treatment-related visits, which will be subject to a lower rate, the finance ministry clarified on amendments to the foreign exchange management rules issued earlier this week.

The credit card issuer will collect the tax when the bill is settled in rupees and can be adjusted against the cardholders tax liability when paying taxes.

While the salaried class may have to wait till the time of filing returns, professionals can use this credit to set off their advance tax liability met on a quarterly basis, experts said.

Experts also said the TCS requirement could lead to a cash flow issue for people travelling abroad. The inclusion of overseas use of credit cards within the purview of the Reserve Bank of Indias liberalized remittance scheme, which attracts TCS, is effective from 16 May. Currently, the TCS rates range from 0.5% to 5%.

The set of clarifications brought out by the ministry covers a range of issues about the enhanced TCS rates that will come into play from 1 July. According to the budget announcements, overseas remittance on the purchase of tour packages and any other foreign remittances excluding education and health spending covered under LRS will attract 20% tax from 1 July, up from 5% now. Credit card use during foreign visits is now covered under LRS, which has an annual cap of $250,000, above which RBI permission is needed. Debit card usage abroad during visits was covered under LRS even earlier.

The ministry said that it had come to light that some individuals had exceeded the limit of foreign remittance under the LRS because of the exemption given to credit card usage abroad during foreign travel.

The differential treatment between debit cards and credit cards needed to be removed in the interest of uniformity...and for capturing total expenditures under LRS for prudent foreign exchange management and to prevent by-passing of LRS limits," the ministry said. It also said that in FY23, LRS remittance was more than $24 billion, of which overseas travel accounted for more than half.

The ministrys clarification said that lower rates of TCS would apply when the foreign visit is for education or medical treatment. That is, 0.5% TCS on education-related remittance if made out of loans and 5% if not out of loans, both subject to a threshold of 7 lakh.

For TCS on remittance for travel and incidental expenses related to education and medical treatment, the rates of TCS as applicable to remittances for education and medical treatment, respectively, shall apply. A detailed clarification will be issued separately, the ministry said.

There is one relief available to employees on overseas assignmentsthe expenses during such business visits borne by the employer will be treated outside LRS.

Sudhir Kapadia, a partner for tax and regulatory services at EY, said the latest move to include credit card payments incurred abroad within LRS limits would further wean people away from the use of credit cards and explore informal avenues to obtain forex.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Gireesh Chandra Prasad Gireesh has over 22 years of experience in business journalism covering diverse aspects of the economy, including finance, taxation, energy, aviation, corporate and bankruptcy laws, accounting and auditing. Read more from this author
From an iron-steel company, a world-class educational institution, to the first hydroelectric power plant in India, the founder of the Tata Group Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata  was an exceptional visionary, entrepreneur, philanthropist and industrialist who shaped a successful business conglomerate and helped bring India on par with other industrial nations.

He was one of the biggest Indian businessmen of his time. As the nation remembers the entrepreneur on his death anniversary today, 19 May, here are some interesting facts about him:

Jamsetji, popularly known as JN Tata, was born on March 3, 1839, in the Navsari town of Gujarat. He was the only son of Nusserwanji Tata. At the age of 14, he started helping his father's business.

He had a formal Western education. But, in order to have a more modern education, he was later sent to Bombay. After graduating from the Elphinstone College Mumbai in 1858, he joined his fathers trading firm and worked there for nine years.

At the age of 29 years, he founded a new trading company in 1868, which later became The Tata Group. Very much fascinated by the textile mills, he purchased a bankrupt oil mill in Chinchpokli and converted it into a textile mill. In 1877, he established another cotton mill at Nagpur and named it Empress Mill" after Queen Victoria. Later he established some other cotton mills at Coorla (Kurla) and Bombay.

There was a ban on the entry of Indians in big hotels like the Watson Hotel in Britain. It is said that Jamsetji Tata was inspired to build big hotel after he was refused entry at one of the grandest hotels of British time, the Watson's Hotel, which was restricted to 'whites only'.

Jamsetji Tata took this as an insult to whole Indians and then decided that he would build a hotel where not only Indians but foreigners could also stay without any restrictions, and that's how India's first super-luxury hotel came into being in Mumbai. By the time the Taj Mahal Hotel was completed in 1903, it became the first hotel in the country to have German elevators, Turkish baths and American fans.

Jamset ji Tata breathed his last on 19 May 1904 in Bad Nauheim, Germany. He was on his way to a business trip in 1900 when he became seriously ill. He was buried in the Parsi burial ground in Brookwood Cemetery, England.

For his valuable contribution to the field of industry, he was fondly called the Father of Indian Industry." To him goes the credit of establishing the city of Jamshedpur. He had links with nationalist and revolutionary leaders like Ferozeshah Mehta and Dadabhai Naoroji. He considered economic freedom as the basis of political freedom. For his exceptional visionary developmental works Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru called him, 'One Man Planning Commission.'

He generously donated to education and healthcare. EdelGive Foundation and Hurun Research India named him the greatest philanthrope of the last century. He also topped the list of the world's top philanthropists of the 20th century.
When Eastern Niagara Hospital in mid-March announced that it would close June 17, earlier than expected, that set off a scramble from the state Health Department to develop a solution on how to bridge the gap between the closure date and the projected fall opening of the new Lockport Memorial Hospital.

At stake was immediate hospital access for more than 80,000 residents in eastern Niagara County. Without a plan, those residents could have been looking at roughly three months without easy access to 24/7 emergency services.

There is now a plan in place, Buffalo-based Catholic Health System announced Wednesday.

Catholic Health, which is developing Lockport Memorial and has a management agreement with Eastern Niagara, said that officials at Mount St. Mary's Hospital in Lewiston will open a 24/7, free-standing emergency department at 5875 S. Transit Road in Lockport. That is currently the site of Eastern Niagara Express Care.

Eastern Niagara Hospital to close in June, ending a century of service in Lockport The financially pinched Eastern Niagara Hospital, which filed for bankruptcy in November 2019 and would have closed two years ago if not for the management agreement with Catholic Health, said in a news release Friday that it was only able to operate this long by relying on state grants.

The full-service emergency department, Catholic Health said, will be equipped and staffed to treat and stabilize patients throughout the region.

Catholic Health will meet with elected officials and Emergency Medical Services providers to share more details, the health system said.

"The residents of Lockport and the surrounding area will now have a reliable and local emergency unit available to them in the event of a medical emergency while Lockport Memorial is completed," Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, R-North Tonawanda, said in a statement. "I'd like to thank Catholic Health and all local stakeholders I have worked with, who have listened to and conveyed the concerns of residents, for coming together to answer the needs of our community."

The plan emerged after Eastern Niagara announced its closing date, which prompted the Health Department to approach Catholic Health to develop an emergency services solution to close the gap in care until Lockport Memorial was ready. In late March, Catholic Health said the under-construction 60,000-square-foot hospital was expected to open in September, nearly two years after the health system broke ground on the $62 million facility being built on a site off South Transit Road between Shimer and Ruhlmann roads.

Catholic Health says Lockport Memorial Hospital is on pace to open in September Following the recent news that Eastern Niagara Hospital will close June 17, Catholic Health said Tuesday the under-construction 60,000-square-foot Lockport Memorial Hospital is expected to open in September.

The financially pinched Eastern Niagara Hospital, which filed for bankruptcy in November 2019 and would have closed two years ago if not for a management agreement with Catholic Health, has said it was only able to operate this long by relying on state grants. The hospital in January received $8.9 million in state Vital Access Provider Assurance Program funding, which was only enough sustain hospital operations through June 17.

The original plan was for Eastern Niagara to remain open until Lockport Memorial was ready, but funding challenges, as well as staffing limitations, made it difficult to maintain services any longer.

Eastern Niagara notified the state Labor Department in mid-March that its planned closure would affect 337 employees  280 workers at the hospital site on East Avenue and 57 employees at the Express Care location on South Transit Road.

But only a portion of them will lose their jobs. As of late March, Catholic Health had hired about 120 employees from Eastern Niagara, more than half of whom have been hired for Lockport Memorial.
New Delhi : Some of Indias leading family offices are exploring the option of setting up shop at the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) or Gift City as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tightens scrutiny of overseas direct investments (ODI). ODI is a route available for Indian non-individuals to send money overseas.

Freedom to invest across asset classes, including overseas real estate, along with low compliance costs and numerous tax benefits, are prompting family offices to look towards Gift City, market participants said. Also, family offices based in Gift City are allowed to make leveraged investments.

Family offices are investment managers set up by ultra-wealthy individuals to invest and manage personal wealth. They typically work like any asset management company or money managerthe only difference is family offices have just one individual or a family as its investors.

In the recent past, RBI raised concerns over some entities that were buying foreign real estate through ODI. Similar reservations have been expressed in the context of Indian entities buying less than 10% in foreign unlisted startups. These restrictions dont apply to entities based out of Gift City.

There are a number of Indian family offices which are expressing interest in exploring the family office route in IFSC. The ability to invest and hold overseas real estate is very attractive. Moreover, the family office fund can also take leverage in IFSC or overseas to make such investments," said Suresh Swamy, partner at Price Waterhouse & Co. LLP.

Also, under new rules issued last year, if an entity is not engaged in financial services activity in India, it can make ODIs only if it has a profitability track record of three years. Family offices, however, are not considered to be engaged in financial services activity as per the rules and hence need a three-year profit record.

Overseas Investment Rules, 2022 also make a carve-out for IFSC; hence, the three-year profitability condition does not apply. These changes have created a favourable regulatory environment for Indian residents entities to set up family offices in IFSC," Swamy added.

In recent years, Singapore has emerged as the top destination for family offices, with wealthy individuals across the Americas, Europe and Asia setting up their family offices there. The government of Singapore provides several sops for such family offices, including targeted financial incentives. Since Singapore is already a global hub for financial services, the jurisdiction also offers skilled human resources and established legal systems.

In this context, the Indian family office regime has sought to offer comparable benefits to families looking to set up family offices in Gift City in terms of regulatory and investment flexibility, taxes and cost of set-up and administration. Further, especially in respect of families having Indian roots, this regime may offer additional benefits in terms of their succession planning as it allows family offices to be set up as trusts," said Kunal Savani, partner of Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.

The IFSC Authority issued fund management regulations last year, which enable structures such as family offices to be set up in Gift City.

According to the new rules, wealthy individuals can now set up family offices as authorized fund management entities (FMEs) and utilize the corpus for investment outside India. Experts say Gift City offers an additional benefit that goes beyond Singaporelower cost.

As of now, setting up of family offices in Gift City is likely to prove more cost efficient for HNIs, as the administration cost, cost of setting up, cost of operations, etc. are likely to be much lower in comparison to comparable foreign jurisdictions," Savani of Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas said.
In a significant development, 10 MLAs from Manipur, representing the Chin-Kuki-Mizo-Zomi-Hmar communities, have expressed their loss of faith in the ruling BJP-led state government. They conveyed their concerns to Union Home Minister Amit Shah through a memorandum, indicating that their people can no longer contemplate resettling in the Valley due to the recent outbreak of violence on May 3.

During a meeting in Delhi on Monday, the 10 MLAs, including seven from the BJP, two members of the Kuki People's Alliance and an Independent, informed Shah about the prevailing unrest in Manipur. They also put forth a demand for a separate administration for their communities.

Our people have lost faith in the Manipur government and can no longer imagine resettling in the Valley where their lives are no longer safe," The Telegraph quoted the memorandum as stating.

The memorandum, spanning three pages, highlighted the dwindling trust in the Manipur government and the growing insecurities faced by their people in the Valley. It emphasised the need for a formalised separation by establishing a distinct administration for the hill regions inhabited by their communities, citing a deepening rift with the Meitei community and a lack of mutual respect. The MLAs expressed the view that coexistence was no longer viable.

There has been a noticeable absence of Central ministers visiting the state amid the ongoing unrest in Manipur that commenced on May 3 after a solidarity rally organised by 10 hill districts in opposition to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) demand of the Meitei community. The hill regions, predominantly occupied by the Kuki and Naga tribes, have been at the forefront of the demonstrations.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, in response to the unrest, earlier directed authorities to take stringent action against the instigators of violence in Manipur. He assured the state government of unwavering support from the Centre in their pursuit of sustained peace.

In a series of meetings, Shah engaged with Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, representatives of the Meitei and Kuki communities, and other stakeholders to assess the steps taken thus far to restore lasting peace in the state.

Shah's message conveyed unequivocal backing from the Central government to ensure uninterrupted peace and justice for all factions. He stressed the importance of open discussions and peaceful dialogue with the aim of reconciliation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sounak Mukhopadhyay Sounak Mukhopadhyay, who also goes by the name Sounak Mukherjee, has been producing digital news since 2012. He's worked for the International Business Times, The Inquisitr, and Moneycontrol in the past. He's also contributed to Free Press Journal and TheRichest with feature articles. He covers news for a wide range of subjects including business, finance, economy, politics and social media. Before working with digital news publications, he worked as a freelance content writer. Read more from this author
In India, securing venture capital (VC) funding has become a popular way to raise funds and grow businesses as investors have become quite selective about in which startup they invest their money. Hence, it is essential for entrepreneurs to navigate these turbulent waters and secure funding.

Attracting investors and securing funding can be a challenging process for startups. But with the right strategies, Indian startups can increase their chances of success. Livemint had a conversation with some organizations' CEO about how to attract investors and secure funding. Take a look at the strategies below,

1) Shrikant Shinde, Founder and CEO, GoGoA1

In India, startups are a growing culture that is creating a new breed of Indian entrepreneurs, hence, the strategy to attract investors and funds changes from company to company and from investor to investor, Shinde said, adding that the company needs to present a clear and sustainable business model with a strong business plan that emphasizes the unique value proposition of the organization which includes, expansion, financial projections, advantage over competition, etc.

Abiding by the rules and regulations, preparing comprehensive documentation for due diligence, including financial statements, legal agreements, intellectual property rights, and market analysis help to streamline the investor evaluation process. To bring together a skilled and experienced team with a positive track record in the industry to instill investor confidence in your startup's ability to execute and navigate the sector's challenges effectively," he suggested.

According to Shinde, one of the main strategies to follow is to continuously refine your business strategy, pitch, and approach based on feedback from investors and industry experts, adapting to market trends and investor preferences.

2) Arun Mantena, Director, Valuation and Financial Advisory, Aranca

The Aranca director recommended that Indian startups should prioritize three key elements to attract investors and secure funding  a compelling value proposition, tangible traction, and transparent communication.

By offering a unique value proposition with a strong team that differentiates them from competitors, startups can capture investor interest. Demonstrating traction through user growth, revenue generation, or strategic partnerships provides tangible proof of market validation, boosting investor confidence," Mantena said.

Additionally, having a clear business plan and maintaining open and transparent communication channels with investors is crucial for building trust and fostering long-term relationships, he said, adding that leveraging networking opportunities and government initiatives can also help startups gain visibility and access to funding opportunities, ensuring their success in the dynamic startup ecosystem of India.

3) Navneet Singh, CEO and Founder of Avsar

Singh said that there are some strategies that can help an Indian startup to attract investors and secure funding. He asserted that one of those strategies includes building a strong business plan that outlines goals, market potential, and growth strategy.

Others are developing a minimum viable product (MVP) to demonstrate feasibility and value. Network at industry events, and conferences, and build relationships with experts and influencers. Seek government supports through grants, subsidies, and tax incentives. Leverage angel investors and venture capitalists by tailoring your pitch to their expertise. Establish a strong online presence through a professional website and social media marketing," the Avsar founder suggested.

He also said that showing traction, revenue generation, and consistent growth to demonstrate market demand is also important along with participation in startup accelerators and incubators for mentorship and investor networks.

4) Balaji Jagannathan, Co-founder and Director of Paycorp.io

In order to secure investor funding, Indian startups must focus on building a business that not only solves a real problem but also demonstrates a clear path to profitability. This involves deeply understanding the market and customers and leveraging technology to drive efficiency and scale," Jagannathan said.

Additionally, startups must envision a clear path to exponential growth over a 5-year period and build trust and confidence with potential investors, while maintaining a sustainable growth trajectory, he added.
Mumbai to Goa in about 7 hours! The Vande Bharat Express train from Goa to Mumbai is likely to start operations in June which will reduce the travel time between the two cities by at least 45 minutes as compared to the Tejas Express.

The trial of the semi-high-speed Vande Bhagat Express train was conducted on the Mumbai-Goa route on Tuesday, officials said as quoted by PTI.

A Vande Bharat rake, capable of running at the top speed of 180 kmph, departed from platform number 7 of CSMT in Mumbai at 5:30 am and reached Madgaon station in Goa at 12.50 pm. The rake departed from Madaon at around 1.15 pm and reached CSMT at 8:50 pm.

Officials said that the trail was carried out using the rake of CSMT-Shirdi Vande Bharat Express which does not run on Tuesdays.

Currently, three Vande Bharat Express trains operate between the financial capital and Ahmedabad, Solapur, and Shirdi. The Vande Bharat Express is an electric multiple-unit train operated by Indian Railways.

Senior railway authorities are exploring the possibility of operating Vande Bharat Express trains on the popular Mumbai-Goa route which witness heavy rush throughout the year, officials added.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone and inaugurate several railway projects valued at more than 8,000 crores in Odisha today, Thursday via video conferencing.

He will flag off the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express on Thursday from the pilgrimage town of Odisha, a South Eastern Railway official said in Kolkata.

The train will cover the 500 km distance between Howrah and Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannath, in around six and a half hours.

(With inputs from agencies)
BENGALURU/NEW DELHI : A meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) on Thursday formally elected Siddaramaiah as its leader and chief minister of Karnataka, following which he staked his claim with the Governor, who invited him to form the government.

Ending days of suspense, the Congress central leadership earlier on Thursday announced that Siddaramaiah would be the chief minister, while state party chief D.K. Shivakumar would be his only deputy.

The meeting of newly elected Congress MLAs, MLCs and MPs, which took place at Indira Gandhi Bhavan in Bengaluru, was also attended by AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala and two other central observersformer Maharashtra chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and AICC general secretary Jitendra Singh.

According to Surjewala, Shivakumar moved a resolution to elect Siddaramaiah as the new leader of the CLP. All the members of the CLP endorsed it unanimously.

Following this, Siddaramaiah, along with Shivakumar and other Congress leaders, met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot at Raj Bhavan and staked his claim to form the government.

The Governor invited Siddaramaiah to take oath as chief minister and Shivakumar as deputy chief minister along with their team members at 12.30 pm on 20 May at Kanteerva Stadium, the Governors letter addressed to the new CLP leader said.

In the 10 May elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats, while the ruling BJP and former prime minister H. D. Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.

Congress general secretary (organization) K.C. Venugopal said Shivakumar will continue as the partys Karnataka state president till parliamentary elections are over, he said.

Senior party leader and in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said the Congress is committed to fulfilling the five promises made during the elections and action would be taken on them in the first meeting of the cabinet.

Sources said around 20 ministers will be sworn in along with the chief minister and deputy chief minister, including some from the state legislative council.

Asked about the much-talked-about power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, Venugopal said the only formula is to share the power with the people of Karnataka. Ours is a democratic party, we believe in consensus and not in dictatorship," he said on the hectic discussions held over the last few days.

Asked about the decision and why he relented after a spirited fight for the top post, Shivakumar later said, In the larger interest of the party, I have agreed. We are committed to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver. That is our responsibility."

Setting at rest any speculation on whether the government will last or the party will see a similar situation as in other states such as Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh over the leadership issue, he said, Everything is well and will be well." Shivakumar said all the new MLAs have accepted whatever the high command has decided.

He said he is not upset and has a long way to go and will concentrate on strengthening the party for the Lok Sabha elections by delivering the promises made to people. Crediting the people of the state and party leaders in Karnataka for the spectacular" victory, he said this election was a clearly a fight between the poor and the rich and the poor and middle class have stood with the Congress. He also gave credit to Kharge, and the Gandhis for the victory in the polls.
A US court has approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian businessman of Pakistani descent, to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing over 160 people, including six Americans, at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

The US court consented to the Indian request, through the US Government for his extradition.

"The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing," US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court of California, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offenses that are the subject of the Request," the Judge wrote in the order.

Tahawwur Rana has been accused by the Indian government of participating in the planning and execution of the Lashkar terrorist attacks in Mumbai by collaborating with his childhood buddy David Coleman Headley, also known as "Daood Gilani," and others.

According to the judge, India has accused Rana of the following offences and issued an arrest warrant, on which, now, the US is also proceeding: (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

Rana was convicted in Chicago in 2011 of providing material support to the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which planned the Mumbai terror attack and for supporting a never-carried-out plot to attack a Danish newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed in 2005.

He was accused of allowing David Coleman Headley to open a branch of his Chicago-based immigration law business in Mumbai as a cover story and travel as a representative of the company in Denmark.

On the other hand, the extradition was contested by Rana's lawyer. India and the United States have an extradition agreement in effect. The judge determined that Tahawwur Rana's extradition takes place under the treaty's jurisdiction.

The judge ruled that there is sufficient competent evidence to establish reasonable cause that Rana is the person accused in India. The Court concluded that Rana is extraditable for the offenses for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding.

"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty," the Judge ruled.

Mumbai had come to a standstill on November 26, 2008, when 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who entered the city via sea route from Pakistan carried out a series of coordinated shootings and bombings that injured over 300 and claimed the lives of 166 people in India's financial capital.

The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station, Cama Hospital, Nariman House business and residential complex, Leopold Cafe, Taj Hotel and Tower and the Oberoi-Trident Hotel.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.
Ezra Bailey/Getty Images

More businesses and companies could be coming to Central Texas as a result of a new development in the area. On Thursday, May 11, Scarborough Lane Development and Partners Real Estate announced plans to develop a new industrial park they are calling AXIS Logistics Park, according to a Scarborough Lane Development news release.

Once completed, the 2,000-acre park will be one of the largest planned industrial parks in the country with about 735 acres of land devoted for industrial use, according to the release. AXIS Logistics Park will act as a regional distribution hub for many retailers, suppliers, and manufacturers, said Clayton Kendall, executive vice president of Scarborough Lane Development, in the release.
Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com

Grab your girls, San Antonio. The Sorry Papi tour, a women-only music event, is coming back to San Antonio this summer. The celebration praises itself for providing a necessary experience for women to come together and have fun in a safe space.

The ultimate girls night will take place on July 14 at the 1902 Nightclub at 1174 E. Commerce St., San Antonio, TX 78205. Tickets go on sale at noon on Thursday, May 18, on sorrypapi.com.
A man went inside a home to sexually assault a woman, according to Laredo police.

Mateo Alvarez-Lopez, 30, was arrested on the charges of burglary of habitation with intent to commit a sexual offense and sexual assault. He remained behind bars as of Thursday, according to Webb County Jail records.

Laredo police officers responded to a sexual assault report at about 5:20 a.m. May 14 in the 2600 block of Juarez Avenue.

A woman stated she was in bed sleeping when she felt someone on top of her and an awkward feeling around her genital area, according to an arrest affidavit.

She awoke and pushed off Alvarez-Lopez to the ground. Asked what he was doing, Alvarez-Lopez told the woman perdon, perdon (sorry, sorry) before walking out. She then informed her husband about the incident, authorities said.

Home surveillance footage showed Alvarez-Lopez walking inside the residence where he had no permission to enter. Footage showed him entering through the front door. The woman then called her husband at about 4:30 a.m. saying that Alvarez-Lopez had raped her, court documents state.

The husband called Alvarez-Lopez asking him why he was at his residence. Alvarez-Lopez explained to the husband that he needed to use the restroom, according to the affidavit.

Officers went looking for Alvarez-Lopez at his residence. After a few attempts of knocking on the door, Alvarez-Lopez answered the door and was detained.

In an interview with police, Alvarez-Lopez claimed he was out at a party. He then got home and went straight to bed until he was woken up by police, according to court documents.

He began getting nervous during questioning. Authorities then told him they knew what had occurred. Alvarez-Lopez then stated that he never went inside the room. Police then told Alvarez-Lopez they had surveillance footage of him going inside the residence, police said.

Alvarez-Lopez claimed he had permission to go grab a few beers from inside the residence. Police arrested him after consulting with an assistant district attorney, according to court documents.
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County and federal authorities dismantled a stash house holding 28 migrants in south Laredo, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.

On May 16, agents received information that a residence in south Laredo was possibly being used to harbor migrants.
Tops Markets workers in Hamburg were unloading a 25-pound box of live lobsters Saturday when they got a surprise  a bright orange lobster packed among its mud red peers.

"They opened it up and all of a sudden they're like, 'This doesn't look right. Something's not right with this lobster,' " said Jay Knavel, manager at the South Park Avenue store.

But one worker took a look at it and knew just what they had on their hands  an exceptional creature that would not be going home to be anyone's dinner. He had heard of such crustaceans while working at Red Lobster.

Some Googling and a call to the corporate office confirmed it. Larry  that's his name now  was a rare specimen. One in 30 million to be exact. He's a lobster like any other, but the bright color is caused by a genetic mutation.

Workers dropped him into the lobster tank for safe keeping while they tried to figure out what to do with him.

Larry caused a stir.

"It brought all the kids over to look at it. It was a conversation piece," Knavel said. "Of course people want to buy him, but he's not for sale."

Tops called the Aquarium of Niagara for help, and it has agreed to take Larry in while finding the lobster a new home.

"We don't have space in an exhibit for it, but with our network we have other Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited institutions around the country, we can coordinate with others," said Rafael Calderon, the aquarium's curator of fish and invertebrates.

Despite the creatures being so rare, this is not the first time one has been discovered in a tank and rescued from a dinner plate. The Aquarium of Niagara and its network of aquariums have rescued orange  and even blue  lobsters from the tanks of grocery stores and restaurants in the past. In fact, the Niagara Falls aquarium already owns one orange lobster, who is part of its ambassador program that visits schools.

Over the summer, two orange lobsters arrived in close succession to one another at Red Lobster restaurants in Mississippi and Florida. They were named Cheddar and Biscuit after the restaurant's famous Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Ripley's Aquarium, of Ripley's Believe it or Not!, which specializes in oddities and curiosities, rescued both animals and put them on exhibit.
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A man involved in a shootout with Laredo police officers and injuring one in 2019 has been sentenced to prison, according to court documents.

Rene Salas had pleaded guilty to aggravated assault against a public servant in the 406th District Courtroom. His sentencing trial began on Monday. On Wednesday, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Assistant District Attorneys Eduardo Ramirez, Karina Rios and Francisco Mendoza prosecuted the case. The defendant was represented by Philip Del Rio.

The case occurred at about 4:35 a.m. July 20, 2019, when officers responded to a domestic disturbance at TownePlace Suites by Marriott, 6519 Arena Blvd.

Officers received information that a male armed with a handgun had possible suicidal tendencies. Salas' wife stated that Salas had assaulted her and her 11-year-old son.

Police canvassed the area and made contact with Salas by Toyota of Laredo on 6324 Bob Bullock Loop. An officer began receiving fire as he got off of his marked unit with his ballistic shield. The officer then radioed that he was shot. Two other officers returned fire, states the arrest affidavit.

Gunfire was exchanged. Salas surrendered after he ran out of ammo, court documents state.

Meanwhile, the injured officer was treated for two gunshot wounds: a bullet graze to his left inner arm and a bullet wound to his upper back area, according to an affidavit. He was later medically cleared.

In a post-arrest interview, Salas stated he had rented a room at the hotel on July 19 to spend quality time with his wife. But Salas began arguing with his wife. He decided to leave the hotel after the argument, court documents state.

"He decided to shoot the officers in order for officers to return fire and end his life," states the affidavit.

The wife stated to police that Salas racked the weapon several times and threatened to kill her. He added "he was going to kill himself, but he was not going to be taken alive," states the affidavit.
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A man and a woman from San Antonio were arrested as they were trying to cross a stolen vehicle into Mexico, according to Laredo police.

At about 10:03 p.m. May 12, officers responded to the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge for a possible stolen vehicle.
The outdoor concert series Thursday & Main returns to downtown Buffalo with an eight-week season starting June 8 featuring multitalented Canadian music artist Ron Hawkins.

The musical happy hour is held from 5 to 8 p.m. at Fountain Plaza (Main and Chippewa streets) as an homage by Buffalo Place to its long-running summer concert tradition Thursday at the Square that debuted at the same spot in 1987. It quickly outgrew the space, moving to Lafayette Square and then Canalside.

In addition to the music, Thursday & Main will have food trucks and other refreshments available for sale from such spots as Big Ditch Brewing Co., Labatt, Bijou Grille, Fat Bobs Smokehouse, Jack Rabbit and the Lunch Box.

Hawkins, who has long been a favorite in Buffalo as a member of Lowest of the Low, then as a solo artist and with his bands the Rusty Nails and the Do-Good Assassins, is having a make-up date of sorts after his 2022 concert was nearly rained out. The Whitetails open the show.

Other highlights include the return of Tragically Hip cover band the Strictly Hip (June 15); the Thursday & Main debut of Dueling Pianos 716 Band (June 22); Laura Jane Grace, a solo artist and founder of the punk band Against Me! (June 29); and the Juno-nominated Tokyo Police Club (July 13), veterans of the Thursday at the Square concert series who closed out the 2011 season at Canalside. Opening for Tokyo Police Club is Handsome Jack, who will return to Buffalo just in time for the show after a six-week European tour.

Heres the full schedule:

June 8: Ron Hawkins, Whitetails

June 15: The Strictly Hip, Johnny & the Man Kids

June 22: Dueling Pianos 716 Band, Kurt and the Loders

June 29: Laura Jane Grace, Sunday Reign

July 6: GROSH, Maria Aurigema Trio

July 13: Tokyo Police Club, Handsome Jack

July 20: Organ Fairchild, Dale Toliver Trio

July 27: Lazlo Hollyfeld, The Damone Jackson Outcome

For more info, visit buffaloplace.com.
Tickets for this year's St. Jude Dream Home are on sale now, but going fast! Catch another sneak peek of the home on Cashmere Lane.
Alabama lawmakers have advanced anti-pornography legislation that would require phones and tablets to automatically block sexually explicit content or pornography until the purchaser changes the device settings
The elections board in Georgias most populous county, a Democratic stronghold targeted by former President Donald Trump after his narrow 2020 loss in the state, will soon have new leadership
A Tennessee judge has ruled that a group parents can have their say in a lawsuit over the writings of a shooter who killed six people at their childrens school. The judge says the Covenant School parents have a right to intervene against other groups that want the writings made public. The case has consolidated multiple petitions that seek a ruling on whether the shooters writings should be released under the Tennessee Public Records Act. The parents say they are victims and their constitutional rights to be free from intimidation and harassment will be threatened if the documents are made public.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Cleveland Utilities say a recent test indicates the source of the bad taste and smell is primarily Geosim & Methylisoborneol.
A Cheektowaga teenager was accused Wednesday of trying to drown a family members dog in a bathtub in April  the latest of multiple criminal charges he faces involving separate incidents since October.

Prosecutors said Zachary A. Jackson, 18, was charged before Cheektowaga Town Court Justice David Stevens with one count of aggravated cruelty to animals, a felony under the New York State Agriculture and Markets Law. Jackson also was charged with one count of overdriving, torturing and injuring animals, and failure to provide proper sustenance, a misdemeanor under the Agriculture and Markets Law.

The incident is reported to have occurred at a Girard Avenue home April 19. The mixed-breed terrier named Sprocket received emergency veterinary treatment, according to Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn.

Jackson, who was held without bail pending the results of a forensic examination, is set to return to court on June 8 for a felony hearing.

He faces a maximum of two years in prison if he is convicted on the highest charge against him.

Jackson, in other separate pending cases, also is accused of:

 Damaging a cell door while in custody May 9 at the Cheektowaga Police Department. He was charged with third-degree criminal mischief and was scheduled to return to court in that case on June 8. He faces up to four years in prison if convicted.

 Pouring lighter fluid on a family member's pickup truck on Oct. 15 and using a blowtorch to set the vehicle on fire. He was charged with third-degree arson and second-degree criminal mischief. A bench warrant was issued for Jackson's arrest after he failed to appear for a return court date on April 26. He faces up to 15 years if he is convicted of the highest count in the arson case.

 Throwing a cart at the window of a building in the 300 block of Hudson Street on the city's Lower West Side on Dec. 22, which caused an estimated $1,500 in damage. Jackson in that case was was arraigned Jan. 19 in Buffalo City Court on one count of third-degree criminal mischief. He is scheduled to return to City Court on May 24 for a pre-trial conference and faces up to four years in prison.
Longford bakery, Panelto Foods, has secured a new multi-million euro deal with Lidl, valued at 22 million.

The new deal will bring their premium baked breads to Lidl stores across the island of Ireland and includes an export deal that will showcase their breads on Lidl shelves across more than 950 Lidl stores in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Lidl Ireland has also helped to facilitate a working relationship with Panelto Foods and the Lidl International buying team with hopes of supplying their premium Longford-baked goods to even more Lidl stores globally.

A key supplier to Lidls famous bakery, Panelto Foods opened their first bakery in Co. Longford in 2005.

In 2011, they secured their first contract with Lidl Ireland suppling panini breads and now produce a range of Lidls much sought-after speciality rolls and sandwich breads.

Since then, the 12-year partnership has evolved with the business seeing consistent growth during that time.

Garry Walsh, Commercial Director, Panelto Foods stated that the partnership with Lidl over the past 12-years has contributed to the growth of Panelto Foods, which in turn has fuelled employment opportunities for the local communities of Longford.

Lidl has been a long-standing partner since 2011, and it has given us a huge opportunity to place our products on the plates of Lidl customers across the domestic and international market. With the support from the team at Lidl we continue to invest in innovation, creating new products that Lidl customers love.

Ciara Moran, Senior Buyer, Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland said, Bringing quality premium products at affordable prices to our shoppers is at the forefront of what we do. This latest partnership with Panelto Foods amplifies the quality and success of their products with our customers here and abroad. Their commitment to product development demonstrates their passion to develop the highest quality products that our customers will love. We are delighted to be part of their journey to creating a premium product that we are thrilled to place in Lidl stores not just in Ireland but in stores across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Crime

By Chris Boyle Published: May 18 2023

Nocianie Joseph and Travis Troiano allegedly drafted and submitted falsified paperwork from the Yes We Can Community Center stating that Joseph had completed required community service after DWI plea.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Hempstead woman and an employee of the Yes We Can Community Center in North Hempstead have been arraigned on charges that they drafted and submitted paperwork to the Nassau County District Attorneys Office falsely claiming that the woman, who had pled guilty to Driving While Intoxicated in 2022, had completed her required community service.

Nocianie Joseph, 33, and Travis Troiano, 33, of Westbury, were indicted and arraigned on charges of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree (a D felony); Offering a False Instrument for Filling in the First Degree (an E felony); and Official Misconduct (an A misdemeanor). The defendants pleaded not guilty and were released on their own recognizance. If convicted, they each face a maximum of up to 7 years in prison.

Joseph was arraigned on May 12, 2023, before Judge Howard Sturim and Troiano was arraigned today before Judge Meryl Berkowitz.

Both defendants are due back in court on June 14, 2023.

Recognizing that Nocianie Joseph was a first-time DWI offender, our office offered the defendant a fair plea contract that would allow her to complete 35 hours of community service and reduce the charge against her. Instead, despite agreeing to the plea, Joseph and her friend Travis Troiano allegedly forged paperwork attempting to get Joseph credit for service she did not complete, said DA Donnelly. This indictment sends a strong message that NCDA will rigorously follow up on the satisfaction of plea conditions and take action against those who would deceitfully violate the terms of those good faith agreements.

DA Donnelly said, according to the charges, on May 17, 2022, Nocianie Joseph was arrested in Nassau County and charged with Driving While Intoxicated. NCDA offered Joseph a conditional plea contract, which she accepted. According to the terms of the agreement, Joseph was required to plead guilty to the top count and complete several conditions of the contract within four months, including 35 hours of community service. If she successfully completed the conditions, Joseph would be permitted to vacate her guilty plea to the misdemeanor and enter a plea to a lesser charge.

It is alleged that on November 20, 2022, Travis Troiano, an employee of the Town of North Hempsteads Yes We Can Community Center, and a friend of Joseph, drafted and signed a fraudulent letter stating that Joseph had successfully completed the community service at the Yes We Can Center.

The letter was submitted to the NCDA as proof that Joseph had completed the requirement of her plea contract. The letter was also submitted to Josephs attorney.

When the NCDA attempted to verify Josephs completion of the requirements of her plea agreement, the office discovered that Joseph had never volunteered at the Yes We Can Center and that the letter Troiano submitted was allegedly false. The investigation also revealed that Troiano does not have the authority to draft or sign community service completion letters for the Yes We Can Center.

Joseph was sentenced before Judge Joseph Girardi on the misdemeanor Driving While Intoxicated charge on February 24, 2023, after failing the contract. She was sentenced to 60 days incarceration and three years probation.

Joseph surrendered to NCDA Detective Investigators on May 12, 2023. Troiano surrendered to NCDA Detective Investigators today.

Senior Assistant District Attorney Michael Davidman of the NCDA Public Corruption Bureau is prosecuting the case. Joseph is represented by Christopher Graziano, Esq. Troiano is represented by Karen Johnston, Esq.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: May 18 2023

Grants to Advance Projects in Centereach-Selden, Coram and Farmingville.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and County Legislator Nick Caracappa have announced a historic $20 million award from the County's Water Infrastructure Fund to advance three separate sewer projects in Central Brookhaven.

The projects will spur economic development and water quality protection, advancing the recommendations in the following locally-adopted, community-based, land-use plans: Middle Country Sustainable Community Plan (2008), Farmingville Plan (2010), and the Coram Land Use Plan (2006).

"Investing in planning and design to get sewer projects shovel ready makes it much more likely that the County will be successful in our efforts to leverage the federal and state funding we need to build these important projects, and right now, the timing couldn't be better," said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. "With significant funding from both the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the New York State Environmental and Green Jobs Bond Act available, now is the time to do the work we need to access these major funding sources."

Legislator Nick Caracappa said: Today we introduced a $20 million dollar commitment to water quality to the residents of Suffolk County, but more specifically we introduced a commitment to the residents of the Selden, Centereach, Farmingville and Coram communities. This $20 million dollar investment in water quality preservation is not only protecting our sole source of drinking water, which is our Lloyd Aquifer thats sits right below our very feet, it is also a critical advancement to these communities by ways of economic development, business opportunities, beautification and job creation.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said: I am proud to have delivered hundreds of millions of dollars of covid relief to our counties that are now being used to build-out and upgrade Suffolk Countys wastewater infrastructure systems. I applaud County Executive Steve Bellone for committing $20 million in American Rescue Plan aid  funding that I fought hard to get to Long Island  to moving forward transformational sewer projects in Centereach, Selden, Coram, and Farmingville. These projects will help revitalize commercial corridors in central Brookhaven town, provide more economic development opportunities, and protect public health and the environment by stemming the tide of toxic nitrogen into our groundwater and waterways. These investments will help Suffolk County build back stronger post-pandemic and I will continue fighting each and every day to bring federal funds back to Long Island.

Assemblyman Ed Flood said: "I am incredibly grateful and pleased to see such a well-deserved commitment to local infrastructure secured by County Executive Steve Bellone. The surrounding towns sewer connectivity project will restore it to a much-improved condition to help ensure a longer lifespan for the community's wastewater infrastructure. On behalf of local residents, thank you Suffolk County Legislators Nick Caracappa (C-Selden) and Leslie Kennedy (R-Hauppauge) for helping to secure the funds in partnership with all involved from the County Executives office, the Legislature, Economic Development & Planning and the Deputy County Executive for recognizing the priorities of our communities.

The award of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding will complete engineering designs to make sewer projects along commercial corridors in Centereach-Selden, Coram and Farmingville "shovel ready" as part of a strategy to obtain additional federal and state funding to complete construction of the projects.

The Countys Wastewater Infrastructure fund was created as part of the 2022 Operating Budget. The Wastewater Infrastructure Fund includes $125 million in new funding to significantly advance the Countys historic Reclaim Our Water Initiative, advance the County's response to environmental hazards, and invest in projects to improve our coastal resiliency.
The gifts are not fancy. But they're called "Pearls of Wisdom" for a reason.

To honor the legacy of Pearl Young, who devoted her life to helping others before she was murdered in the racist massacre at Tops Markets on Jefferson Avenue on May 14, 2022, her daughter is working with the YWCA of Western New York to provide new residents at the Y with a laundry basket filled with the sorts of things you need when you move into a new home. Cleaning supplies. Pots and pans. A new set of utensils.

"This is like who she was," Pamela Young Pritchett said Thursday as she gestured to 10 freshly filled baskets lined up in the hallway of the YWCA at the School House Commons on Grant Street in Black Rock. "She was a person who would want to be a giver. A person who would want to help others. That was her life."

Pearl Young held an array of jobs and roles throughout her life, but they were all connected by a common thread  uplifting those in need. She worked at the old YWCA on North Street and at the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities before she became a substitute teacher in Buffalo schools. In her 30s, she went back to school and earned her bachelors degree in social sciences at the University at Buffalo, focusing on gerontology. She was also deeply connected to her church, Good Samaritan Church of God in Christ, while it was located on Leroy Avenue in Central Park, and then later after it moved to Cheektowaga. She taught Sunday School every week and worked tirelessly in the church's food pantry and soup kitchen.

Last May 14, Young attended a prayer breakfast in the city and then went to the Tops Markets on Jefferson Avenue when the attack unfolded. She was one of 10 people killed that day. She was 77.

Pearl Young was always giving away: 300 bags of food help honor Tops victims life of charity Young's family and fellow church members from Good Samaritan held a free food giveaway in her memory on a vacant lot across from the old church.

Pritchett is determined to make sure that her mother is remembered for more than being the victim of a heinous act of evil.

"I won't let two minutes and three seconds define who she was," Pritchett said.

Last month, her siblings worked with members of Good Samaritan to hold a giant food giveaway at an empty lot on Leroy Avenue. More than 300 bags of groceries were given away that day at the lot where the church pantry once stood. The family's dream is to one day build a new permanent facility where they can provide food and other essentials to the neighborhood.

The YWCA, after learning about Young's connection to the organization, reached out to Young's children about honoring their mother in some way.

They came up with the idea of welcome baskets for families and seniors moving into affordable housing apartments at the Y, said Talisa King, chief of programming at the YWCA. They'd need about 10 a year, and they'd fill it with Windex spray, Clorox wipes, dish soap, kitchen towels and a lot of other supplies.

In their grief, families of the May 14 victims ponder painful questions and look for answers Some of those families are now finding ways to try to answer those questions, to uplift their community and to honor their lost loved ones.

Pritchett liked that it wasn't a one-time thing, that the Y would gather donations once a year and that each laundry basket would come with a card that told Young's story.

"It's about the consistency," Pritchett said. "This is going to be something that's ongoing. ... When something is ongoing for the people who we're blessing, that's what they want. People need ongoing love. Ongoing commitment. Ongoing compassion. Not one time. But ongoing. That's how my mom was."

And she believes her mother would approve of how useful all the items in the basket are  even the rolling laundry basket itself.

"Think about when you move into your first apartment. These are the things you need to start on," Pritchett said.

Thursday, Pritchett and the staff at the YWCA made their first delivery  to James Russell who moved into the Grant Street building about a month and a half ago.

It turned out Russell knew Miss Pearl.

Standing in front of his apartment door, he said he used to live on Fillmore Avenue, and when times were tough, he would go to the church pantry on Leroy where Young would give him a box full of food.

"She always greeted people with a smile," he recalled.

A year after her passing, she was still helping him.

"She sure is," Russell said, looking at the basket of supplies. "I can use just about everything in this."
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: May 18 2023

What better way to celebrate the American spirit than seeing history come alive as the Rough Riders and Theodore Roosevelt visit the place he called home, said Supervisor Saladino.

Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino and the Town Board, in partnership with the Friends of Sagamore Hill, announce a major historical re-enactment will take place in Oyster Bays Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park on Saturday, June 3 from 11am to 4pm as the nation commemorates the 125th Anniversary of the formation of Colonel Theodore Roosevelts 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry.

What better way to celebrate the American spirit in advance of Independence Day than seeing history come alive as the Rough Riders and Theodore Roosevelt visit the place he called home, the hamlet of Oyster Bay, said Supervisor Saladino. This is a great opportunity for residents of all ages to step back in time and learn more about the Rough Riders, their skills and how they helped advance Americas profile around the globe.

Performed by Boots and Saddles Productions and the Island Long Riders, this historical commemoration features:

Theodore Roosevelt Reprisor and Photo Opportunities

Rough Riders on Horses

Mounted Cowboy Shooting by the Island Long Riders

Interpretive Performances and Live Music

Saber Performances by U.S. Cavalry Soldiers

Historical Encampment with Canvas Period Tents

We are so pleased to partner with the Friends of Sagamore Hill to welcome home our most famous resident, President Theodore Roosevelt, along with the Rough Riders, said Town Clerk LaMarca. Join us for this free family-fun day in Oyster Bay.
Crime

By Chris Boyle Published: May 18 2023

The crash was the deadliest transportation-related disaster in the country at the time it took place.

A jury has found Nauman Hussain - the man who had rented out an unsafe limousine that would later crash north of Schoharie, NY and kill 20 people - guilty of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide on Wednesday.

On October 6, 2018, a stretch limousine crashed at the junction of New York state routes 30 and 30A. The crash killed 20, including the driver, all 17 passengers, and two pedestrians who were in a nearby parking lot.

The limousine had failed two inspections due to mechanical problems, including issue with its brakes; in addition, limo was only certified for 10 seats but had 18 installed, and the driver held inadequate qualifications for driving a vehicle with 15 or more passengers.

The crash was the deadliest transportation-related disaster in the country at the time it took place.
SCPD: Four Arrested for Selling Vape Products to Minors

Crime

By Chris Boyle Published: May 18 2023

In response to numerous community complaints, Third Precinct Crime Section officers conducted an investigation into the sale of vape products.

Suffolk County Police have arrested four people for selling vape products to persons under 21 during compliance checks at businesses in the Third Precinct.

In response to numerous community complaints, Third Precinct Crime Section officers conducted an investigation into the sale of vape products during which eight businesses were checked for compliance with the law.

During the investigation, four businesses were found to be selling e-nicotine products to minors. The following people were arrested and charged with Unlawfully Dealing with a Child 2nd Degree:

Raza Hassan, 23, of Bay Shore, an employee of Bay Smoke Shop, located at 144 Union Blvd.

Ameen Ramsaran, 22, of Deer Park, an employee of Vape Guru Smoke Shop, located at 26 Bay Shore Road.

Lalit Chabra, 42, of West Islip, an employee of Shore Stationary & Gifts, located at 1292 Pine Aire Drive.

Gamal Al-Malaiki, 44, of Brooklyn, an employee of Mo Convinces Smoke Shop, located at 1609 5th Ave.

All four employees were released on a Field Appearance Ticket and are scheduled to appear at First District Court in Central Islip on a later date.
(Alliance News) - The following is a round-up of updates by London-listed companies, issued on Thursday and not separately reported by Alliance News:

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Eagle Eye Solutions Group PLC - London-based marketing solutions provider - Untie Nots personalised promotions business wins multi-year contract with retailer NTUC FairPrice Co-Operative Ltd, part of Singapore's FairPrice Group. "FairPrice has selected Untie Nots to deliver loyalty challenges within its existing Linkpoints loyalty programme. Introduced via Eagle Eye, this is the first win for the group in Singapore, demonstrating the benefit to Untie Nots of Eagle Eye's international marketing reach, and the speed of the sales cycle for the Untie Nots offering," Eagle Eye says. "This new contract is testimony to the benefit of Eagle Eye's investment into international expansion and the initial marketing activities being carried out with Untie Nots, which are building a promising international sales pipeline."

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EnQuest PLC - London-based energy company with assets in the UK and Malaysia - Awarded UK carbon storage licences by North Sea Transition Authority. "The successful licence offers are within application areas known as Northern North Sea 1 and Northern North Sea 2. These are some 99 miles northeast of Shetland and include fields currently operated by EnQuest, the Magnus and Thistle fields, as well as the non-operated Tern and Eider fields," EnQuest says.

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European Metals Holdings Ltd - Mineral exploration and development company focused on Cinovec lithium-tin project in Czech Republic - Czech Republic Prime Minister Petr Fiala visits Cinovec project and later on social media hails lithium as "critical and key raw material". "Cinovec is the largest European deposit of this raw material. Thanks to this, the Czech Republic has a unique opportunity to contribute to both its own and European raw material security," Fiala wrote on Twitter. Fiala adds: "I believe that this memorandum will help our cooperation on the development of the lithium deposit in Cinovec and, in the future, the creation of the entire production chain for the production of batteries for cars."

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abrdn Japan Investment Trust plc - investor in listed Japanese companies - Says terms agreed for proposed combination of assets with Nippon Active Value Fund PLC. "The proposal follows an extensive review by the board of various investment strategies in the Japan fund sector. The board believes this review demonstrated that the case for taking advantage of recent corporate governance changes in Japan remains compelling, particularly at the small cap end of the market, where NAVF has performed strongly," abrdn Japan says. Nippon notes the transaction will occur through scheme of reconstruction, resulting in voluntary liquidation of AJIT. AJIT shareholders will receive new NAVF stock, though investors will be offered cash exit for up to 25% of AJIT shares in issue. In addition, NAVF plans to move to premium listing of Main Market of London Stock Exchange. This will "improve the access of retail investors to the enlarged company and therefore its share rating and liquidity", it says. NAVF also adds that its investment policy may be altered.

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Tanfield Group PLC - investment firm - Says investee Snorkel achieves sales of USD168.8 million in 2022, rising 8.9% from USD155.0 million in 2021. However, loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation widens to USD13.8 million from USD9.6 million as margins come under pressure. In first quarter of 2023, sales rise 4.4% to USD43.5 million. Achieves Ebitda of USD200,000, swinging from loss of USD3.5 million year-on-year. Tanfield has 49% stake in aerial work platform Snorkel.

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By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor

Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2023 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
A 30-year-old Niagara Falls man was found guilty Wednesday of second-degree murder in the 2021 slaying of a Niagara Falls barber shop owner.

Antonio Carr faces 55 years to life in prison when he returns to court July 28 for sentencing by Niagara County Court Judge Caroline Wojtaszek.

Carr was also found guilty of multiple counts of illegal possession of weapons. He was charged with the Oct. 2, 2021 killing of Tracy R. Greene, 57, who was shot multiple times in his barber shop on 18th Street.

This was a cold-blooded killing. The defendant shot the victim with a small caliber rifle. When those shots werent fatal, he left, returned moments later with a 9 mm handgun, and shot him six more times. Some of those shots were fired from directly over the victim while he lay on the floor, Niagara County District Attorney Brian D. Seaman said. This verdict will ensure that this extremely dangerous individual is off the streets of Niagara Falls for good.

The case was investigated by the Niagara Falls Police Department and prosecuted by First Assistant District Attorney Doreen Hoffmann and Executive Assistant District Attorney Mary Jean Bowman.
Anyone who knows us NZers knows, we go hard for those we support, and its safe to say Beta Squad were no exception. A sea of young fans made their way down to the fields for their chance to meet and have a kick-around with the stars.
A mothers journey toward a perfect smile and bright future for her child

Mothers Day is a cherished occasion to honor and celebrate the courage, triumphs, and unconditional love of mothers. For countless moms, nothing brings greater joy than witnessing their childrens smiles and envisioning a bright future for them.

Nevertheless, for certain mothers, attaining this joy is not without challenges, as their children battle with cleft lip and palate, a congenital condition that impacts their appearance, speech, nutrition, and self-esteem. In the face of these obstacles, their steadfast love serves as the catalyst for a journey of transformation and unwavering hope.

Take the case of Lina, a mother of four from Negros Oriental, who faced this difficult reality when her youngest daughter, Mary Joy, was born with a cleft lip and palate. She was saddened when she saw her daughters condition and blamed herself, wondering what she did wrong during her pregnancy. Upon learning of her daughters diagnosis, Linas heart was filled with both love and concern, and wanted to give her the best care possible.

Lina searched for possible help and found out about Watsons and Operation Smiles initiative in their province. She contacted Operation Smile and registered Mary Joy for free surgery. She was delighted when she received the confirmation that Mary Joy was scheduled for surgery in October 2017.

Lina and Mary Joy traveled to Dumaguete City, where they met other mothers and children who were also waiting for their surgeries. They received pre-operative care and counseling from Watsons and Operation Smile medical volunteers. Lina felt supported and hopeful as she saw the compassion and expertise of the doctors and nurses.

On the day of the surgery, Lina hugged Mary Joy and kissed her goodbye temporarily. She waited nervously outside the operating room for an hour. When the door opened, she saw Mary Joy being wheeled out on a stretcher. She was still asleep, but Lina could see her new smile. She burst into tears of joy and gratitude.

Lina remains a foundation for strength as her youngest daughter, Mary Joy, receives the aid of Watsons and Operation Smiles initiative

Lina thanked Watsons and Operation Smile for giving her daughter a new chance at life. She said that this was the best gift she could ever ask for and looked forward to seeing Mary Joy grow up healthy and happy. Mary Joy is now 9 years old and thriving. She attends school, plays with her friends, and speaks confidently. She loves to sing and dreams of becoming a musician. Lina is proud of her daughter and her achievements, saying that Mary Joy is her inspiration and motivation to keep working hard and overcome any challenges.

Linas story serves as an inspiration to others, demonstrating the strength, resilience, and boundless love that all mothers possess. It stands as a testament to the power of believing in a brighter future for their children. The partnership between Watsons and Operation Smile plays a crucial role in making dreams come true by providing resources, expertise, and support to families in need.

Watsons and Operation Smile have been teaming up for a decade in helping children born with cleft conditions through free surgeries. Since then, the partnership has changed the lives of numerous children from all over the Philippines who were born with cleft lip and palate conditions through free surgeries. This noble endeavor is in line with A.S Watsons global commitment to bring 10,000 perfect smiles.

Watsons has been firm in its commitment to helping uplift the health and wellness of the community and putting a smile on customers faces. With the continuous support of Johnson & Johnson, Watsons, and Operation Smile continue to make a lasting impact, bringing hope and transformation to these children and their families.

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Vietnam on Thursday criticized both China and the Philippines, accusing the two countries of infringing on its sovereign rights following recent actions in the South China Sea, which Hanoi calls the East Sea.

Vietnams Foreign Ministry deputy spokesperson Pham Thu Hang was asked by reporters over Chinas actions at the Paracel archipelago, which Beijing calls Xisha Islands, as well the installation of navigational buoys by the Philippines in the Spratly Islands or the Kalayaan Island Group in the West Philippine Sea.

According to Voice of Vietnam, Hang said Hanoi has sufficient legal basis and historical evidence to assert its sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel archipelagos in accordance with international law.

She said relevant parties should respect Vietnams sovereignty, existing international laws, and the Declaration on Conduct of Parties, as well as create a favorable environment for the negotiation of a binding Code of Conduct in the South China Sea.

On Wednesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the Philippines and Vietnam have agreed to strengthen coordination in dealing with maritime issues, particularly in working on the COC.

Philippine diplomats traveled to Ha Long, Vietnam on Monday and Tuesday to hold talks with their Vietnamese counterparts during the 10th Philippines-Vietnam Joint Permanent Working Group on Maritime and Ocean Concerns.

In a statement, DFA said the two countries also agreed to explore a broad range of potential maritime cooperation activities to enhance their strategic partnership.

The two countries expressed serious concern over unilateral activities that undermine peace and stability in the region. They committed to work together to protect their rights and legitimate interests under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and enhance confidence-building measures between relevant agencies, the DFA added.

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LIGHT MOMENT. Australias Foreign Minister Penny Wong shares a light moment with Philippine Coast Guard commandant Admiral Artemio Abu, who thanked Canberra for all its assistance  from vessel acquisition to maritime domain awareness capability development programs.

Australia on Thursday disclosed a package of new maritime cooperation initiatives for the Philippines, including the turnover of drone equipment and other technology to strengthen the countrys maritime domain awareness, as Canberra sees Manila as a vital security partner in maintaining a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.

This came after Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong held a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo on how to elevate both countries partnership from comprehensive to strategic.

We discussed today ways in which we will enhance our cooperation (and) this includes Australia providing drone equipment, training and other technology to strengthen your Coast Guard in maritime domain awareness and protection capabilities, she said in a press conference.

Wong also disclosed that Australia would provide AU$89.9 million in official development assistance (ODA) to the Philippines to support economic, education, and Mindanao peace programs.

Mr. Marcos, for his part, said an enhanced partnership is extremely important for nations in the Asia Pacific with the current geopolitical situation.

Now we have a situation where partnerships have become extremely important and it might be the key to maintaining the peace not only in the Asia Pacific but the Indo-Pacific region, the President said during Wongs courtesy call at the Palace.

Mr. Marcos said he hopes that Wongs visit will add to those efforts when we are continuing to try and strengthen all our partnerships in terms of trade, in terms of people-to-people relationship, and in security and defense.

Manalo, for his part, said it is possible for Mr. Marcos, Jr. to have a bilateral visit to Australia on a mutually agreed date on or before March next year.

March 2024 will mark the 50th anniversary of the dialogue relations between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Australia.

We expect that high-level engagements will continue as the Philippines and Australia work harder to strengthen our cooperation in quite a number of practical areas of mutual interestA bilateral visit is also possible at a mutually agreed date, Manalo said.

Wong said the ODA she announced is on top of the existing AU$10.95 million commitment by Australia to support the Philippines in establishing a new immunization information system and a strengthened laboratory network and surveillance system to address the disruptions to routine immunization during the pandemic.

Manalo and Wong also agreed to enhance trade and investment cooperation. They also discussed how to further strengthen the two countries people-to-people connections through the Work and Holiday Visa Arrangement being negotiated.

The two would meet again to convene the 6th Philippines-Australia Ministerial Meeting (PAMM) in Australia later this year.

Wong is the fourth top Australian government official to visit Manila in 2023, after Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense Richard Marles, Minister for Trade and Tourism Don Farrell, and Special Envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore.

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Undoubtedly, only Representative Castro believes De Limas nonsense

Former Senator Leila de Lima, detained at a police camp for drug raps, must have been incarcerated for such a long time that she seems to be getting delirious enough to think people will believe the nonsense she peddles as gospel truth.

Perhaps, another reason for her behavior is her probable trauma from her failure to get re-elected in the May 2022 polls.

Last month, de Lima made a public statement the warrant for the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin recently issued by the discredited International Criminal Court (ICC) should prompt the Philippines to rejoin the ICC.

To those in the know, the ICC was created by the Rome Statute, an international treaty that took effect in July 2002.

The Philippines became a signatory to the treaty in 2011, but it formally withdrew in 2018. Its withdrawal took effect a year later.

Because the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute, the ICC can no longer exercise jurisdiction over the Philippines. Any ICC overture to that effect will be a violation of Philippine sovereignty.

The Secretary of Justice, Jesus Crispin Remulla, subscribes to that view, and says the Philippines will not allow the ICC to trample upon our nations sovereignty.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. fully supports Remullas position, and asserts the ICC has no business operating in the Philippines precisely because of its withdrawal from the Rome Statute.

De Lima said the arrest order against Putin ought to prompt the Philippine government to rejoin the Rome Statute because rejoining will be a most profound step in joining once again the overall struggle for international criminal justice.

She added the ICC issues arrest orders in the exercise of its moral institutional power to rally member states to work together against tyrants and butchers who commit irreversible assaults against humanity.

In an obvious reference to ex-President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, a staunch opponent of the detained senator, de Lima also warned that protecting our own tyrant from accountability will take the Philippines nowhere but the widening path to impunity.

Incidentally, de Lima is obviously livid at President Duterte because she was detained during his administration, which waged an all out war against drug syndicates in the Philippines.

The ex-senators current detention has been authorized by the Supreme Court.

De Lima may not be aware of it, but her statement is sheer nonsense.

First, the warrant of arrest issued by the ICC against Putin has no significance in international law because Russia has not ratified its inclusion in the Rome Statute.

How on earth then can an arrest order of the ICC be carried out against Putin?

Second, there is manifestly no connection between a legally unenforceable arrest order issued against Putin and the supposed need for the Philippines to rejoin the Rome Statute.

What de Lima said, therefore, is not only nonsense; its a clear example of non sequitur.

Third, de Lima suggests that ex-President Duterte is a tyrant, but she conveniently failed to state that Duterte was overwhelmingly elected to the presidency in 2016, and that he stepped down from office at the official end of his term in 2022.

Tyrants do not step down from power voluntarily.

During Dutertes administration, press freedom was alive and kicking; the political opposition was free to operate; and the Supreme Court and the lower courts were open and functioning.

Those fundamental freedoms would not exist during the Duterte administration if Duterte was the tyrant de Lima imagines him to be.

For the record, President Duterte is not facing any criminal charges in Philippine courts.

In contrast, its de Lima who is currently behind bars and, as I mentioned earlier, her continued detention has been upheld by the Supreme Court.

This fact already confirms that de Limas statement is pure rubbish.

As expected, only a few hopelessly die-hard anti-Duterte personalities are echoing de Limas nonsense. One of them is party-list Representative France Castro of ACT Teachers, which observers consider as sympathetic to radical elements.

Only a few misguided people listen to Castro and her kind anyway.

Even assuming that the Philippines did not withdraw from the Rome Statute, the ICC still cannot exercise jurisdiction over the Philippines because the ICC can only enter the Philippine legal scenario if the justice system in this country is a failure.

Regarding that matter, several members of the House of Representatives of Congress led by Pampanga solon Gloria Macapagal Arroyo recently filed a resolution declaring that the justice system in the country under President Marcos is functioning and independent.

This is evident from the fact that today, press freedom, free speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of worship, freedom of travel and other fundamental freedoms remain in force throughout the country, and the Supreme Court continues to operate independently.

Undoubtedly, only Representative Castro believes de Limas nonsense.

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The Seneca Nation of Indians supports the Salamanca City Central School District's use of its Native American name, the Warriors, and its logo of an Indigenous man.

The New York State Board of Regents last month approved changes in regulations that that prohibit public schools from using Indigenous names, mascots and logos by June 30, 2025.

New York State prohibits use of Native American names and logos in schools The Native American imagery must be eliminated by June 30, 2025, the New York State Board of Regents said.

But there was a provision that allows schools to do so when "culturally affiliated" with a federally recognized tribal nation within the state or a state-recognized tribal nation, if they have a written agreement.

"After lengthy internal discussion and feedback from Seneca community members, we have provided our support to the districts request to continue using the Warriors nickname and logo," Seneca President Rickey Armstrong Sr. said Wednesday in a statement.

The history of co-existence with Salamanca gave the Senecas "much to consider," he said.

The City of Salamanca sits on Allegany Territory. About 35% of district students, as well as many teachers, are Native American.

"While the regulations provide an avenue for agreements between districts and Native nations, it is our belief that any such agreements should be rare, limited, and used only in unique circumstances," Armstrong said. "We believe that Salamanca represents the most unique of circumstances and, because of that, warranted further consideration."

School district officials, who sought to be thoughtful and respectful in discussions about the logo, were pleased with the outcome.

"The Salamanca City Central School District values our relationship with the Seneca Nation of Indians and is honored to receive the endorsement of our Warrior identity and the continued use of our logo," Salamanca Superintendent Mark D. Beehler said in a statement.

"We don't have a mascot," Beehler told The Buffalo News in November. "We are the Salamanca Warriors."

Elimination of Native American names and mascots won't include district names The state Education Department is formulating regulations regarding public schools obligations, but eliminating Native American mascots, names and logos would "not include a public school building, public school or school district named after an Indigenous tribe," members of the Board of Regents learned at a meeting Monday.

The logo, an accurate representation of a male Seneca, was designed by a Seneca.

"Our position is that it accurately depicts the students and the community that we serve, and that does make it unique," Beehler said.

The district's Native American Curriculum Team will release educational resources to be used to teach the history and meaning of the logo, as well as what it means to be a Warrior in Salamanca.

"It is our hope these resources will educate and contribute to the eradication of stereotypes and misunderstandings that lead to bias and racism," the superintendent said.

There is a provision in the regulation that the tribe can withdraw the agreement to use an Indigenous logo at any time.

"It is our hope that the district will continue to cultivate a culture with which our students can identify, where they feel respected, Armstrong said, "and where they can excel as students and as individuals.
An 18-year-old who was shot in an early Sunday morning shooting near 31 Grove Street in Randolph died on Wednesday, officials said.

The investigation by Randolph and Massachusetts State Police into this shooting is now a murder investigation, Norfolk County District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey said in a statement. Randolph police discovered Isiah Andrade wounded behind the wheel of an automobile in the area where Grove Street and Randall Way intersect shortly after 3 a.m. Sunday as they responded to a noise complaint for a party in that area.

Andrade, of Brockton, suffered from a life-threatening injury, Morrissey said. Officers administered aid to Andrade on the scene until he was transported to Boston Medical Center by the Randolph Fire Department.

Detectives from Randolph and from the State Police Homicide Unit assigned to the District Attorneys Office have been investigating since that time, Morrissey said.

Both the District Attorney and Randolph Police Chief Anthony Marag said they are asking anyone with information connected to Andrades killing to contact the Randolph Police at 781-963-1212 or the Norfolk District Attorneys Office State Police unit at 781-830-4990.
SPRINGFIELD  Melina Greene, Justin Vien and Brian Starzyk, top delegates from Springfield International Charter School, took home the top three awards at the 83rd American International College Model Congress.

Greene, Vien and Starzyk were named the best delegation for demonstrating exceptional leadership and won tuition to American International College.

As a longstanding tradition at AIC, the Model Congress was founded in 1940 and is the oldest continuously running student congress in the United States.

Since its inception, the program has brought over 14,000 high school students across the region to campus to write, debate, and pass legislation in a simulated congress, AIC spokesperson Denise Vozella wrote in an email.

The 2023 event was the first one held in person since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.

Seventy Model Congress attendees were awarded a $1,000 scholarship each to attend AIC in the future.

During the event, Greene was named as the top delegate and awarded the Kathryn Mauke Scholarship in memory of Mauke, who was the top delegate at the 74th Model Congress in 2015.

Greene will receive a full four-year tuition scholarship to AIC. Vien secured the second-place award, receiving a $10,000 scholarship to AIC for four years; and Starzyk was awarded the third-place scholarship of $5,000 to AIC for four years.

Other schools that participated in this years Model Congress event include: Chatham High School in Chatham, New York, Chicopee Comprehensive High School, East Longmeadow High School, East Windsor High School, Longmeadow High School, Pope Francis High School in Springfield, Poultney High School in Poultney, Vermont, and Southwick Regional High School. Each of the 70 Model Congress attendees were awarded a $1,000 scholarship if they choose to attend AIC in the future.

Recognition is given to the team that submits the most outstanding legislation, AIC spokesperson Denise Vozella said.

Additionally, Nolan Chamberland and the Agawam High School delegation won the Best Bill award and Giovanna Capuno of Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham was awarded the Spirit Award for demonstrating the highest level of participation, enthusiasm, and team spirit.
A Cranston resident got an unexpected visitor to her neighborhood when she spotted a missing macaw from nearby Roger Williams Zoo, according to local television station WLNE.

Julia Bedard told the station the bird arrived around 2 p.m. on Wednesday. She took a video she posted to TikTok and shared with the station.

Read more: Mary the antelope found after escape from Lupa Zoo more than a month ago

Bedard called the Roger Williams Zoo, who came to pick up the bird 15 minutes later, the station reported. In the video, zoo workers can be seen coaxing the bird down from power lines and into a cage. The bird willingly flew down to the workers.

Zoo staffers told Bedard that the birds were likely blown past the spots they are used to flying over, the station reported.

WLNE reported that two more macaws are still missing from the zoo and that no further information was available about those two birds.

Massachusetts had its own missing animal excitement recently, when Mary the one-horned antelope turned up missing at the Lupa Zoo on March 31 and was spotted all over the region.

Mary was located and recaptured on May 7.
It was a heartbreaking story.

A 5-year-old Massachusetts boy goes missing. Months later, a horrible discovery as his body is found discarded in a suitcase just off an interstate where thousands of people drive by every day. Police ruled the death a homicide.

Now, nine years later, someone has been charged with his killing.

On Wednesday, Alberto Sierra, Jr., 32, was indicted on a murder charge in the death of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver, the Fitchburg boy who was first reported missing in late 2013.

Here is what we know about Jeremiah, and Alberto Sierra, the man who was indicted Wednesday on a charge of murder and disinterring a body.

Who was Jeremiah?

Jeremiah Oliver was a 5-year-old Fitchburg boy, who wanted to be a police officer when he grew up. He loved Spiderman, being outdoors, playing at the park, and souped-up cars, according to his obituary said.

His body was found in a suitcase by the side of I-190 in April of 2014. His death was ruled a homicide, according to an autopsy report released in 2016.

Alberto Sierra sits in Worcester Superior Court in 2017.

Who is Alberto Sierra?

Alberto Sierra was dating Jeremiahs mother, Elsa Oliver, and admitted to helping her dispose of the body, according to a letter entered into court evidence.

The letter, which another inmate testified he transcribed, accused Oliver of being an unfit and abusive mother.

Sierra was sentenced to serve six to seven years for abusing Jeremiahs siblings and Elsa Oliver.

In a Dec. 17, 2013 file photo, Elsa Oliver is escorted into the courtroom for her arraignment in Fitchburg District Court in regards to her missing 5-year-old son, Jeremiah Oliver. (AP Photo/Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Rick Cinclair, Pool)

Who else was involved?

Jeremiahs mother, Elsa Oliver, pleaded guilty in 2017 to child assault and battery and reckless endangerment in relation to her other two children.

Though previously characterized as a danger to herself, she was found competent to stand trial in 2015.

Alberto Sierra accused her of collecting supplemental security income checks for Jeremiah even after he was dead.

Some charges against Elsa Oliver and Alberto Sierra, related to alleged abuse of Jeremiah, were previously dismissed, a legal maneuver which left open the possibility of renewing the charges.

Alberto Sierras brother, Christian Sierra, was previously sentenced to serve 2.5 years for lying to investigators.

Two others, Cailey Thibault and Ashley Cormier, were each sentenced to probation for lying to investigators.

What about DCF?

The Massachusetts Department of Children and Families came under heavy scrutiny for failing to protect Jeremiah, according to an independent report released in 2014.

Jeremiah Oliver was under DCFs supervision, but the agency acknowledged that caseworkers failed to conduct home visits, and then lied about it, and nobody noticed the boy was missing.

Then-governor Charlie Baker addressed updates to DCF policies, including eliminating a two-track system for abuse and neglect reports, and require non-emergency abuse and neglect reports to be reviewed and screened in or out in one business day, down from three days. Emergency reports still require an immediate decision and investigatory response within two hours.
Facing the possibility that he could lose liquor licenses at a collection of iconic music clubs, Western Massachusetts businessman Eric Suher has reached an agreement with Northampton officials: sell the licenses by the end of September, or reopen the venues with specific conditions.

The settlement covers three landmark properties  the Iron Horse Music Hall, Pearl Street Nightclub and Calvin Theatre  as well as two other defunct after-dark hangouts: the Basement, a nightclub, and the Green Room, a cocktail bar.
Mohamed Fofana, a 4-year-old boy with autism described as nonspeaking, was found dead on the shoreline of Spectacle Island on Monday after being reported missing at Castle Island over the weekend. His death echoes similar cases of children with autism spectrum disorder who have either drowned or died near bodies of water after wandering off.

Children on the autism spectrum may leave a safe setting where they are supervised if they are overstimulated, said Lori McIlwain, the co-founder of the National Autism Association. In cases like these, some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may wander off to a low-sensory area, such as a body of water, to ease their nerves.

In theory, water can provide a therapeutic value for children with ASD, which has a calming effect on them, McIlwain said. But it can also be dangerous.

These kids do have a diminished sense of fear, said Dr. John E. Bischoff III, the vice president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Childrens Missing Children Division.

Nearly 85% of accidental deaths among children with ASD were attributed to drowning incidents, according to a decade-long analysis from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

In the early 2000s, the organization noticed an increase in reports of missing children with autism, Bischoff said. In collaboration with autism advocacy groups, the organization developed protocols to assist in finding these children. One protocol involved alerting callers to search near bodies of water when reporting a missing child who has autism.

Research shows that young children with autism spectrum disorder are especially prone to wandering off. One study that surveyed 1,218 children on the spectrum found that nearly half of them had wandered off at least once in their lifetimes, with 26% of respondents reporting being missing long enough to cause serious concern.

In Fofanas case, the young boy was last seen heading toward the waters on Sunday night. The Massachusetts State Police Department, which led the search for the young boy, found a blue Croc shoe  similar to the one Fofana was last wearing  in the water.

Last month, Maddelynn Wallace, a 10-year-old Maryland girl who had autism, was reported missing after she had wandered off from her home in Brandywine, NBC Washington reported. A day later, authorities found her body in a quarry near her Charles County home.

Its incredibly sad for a lot of our kids, theyre doing their best all the time, McIlwain said. The sensory volume of their world is just always on high and theyre coping with it the best that they can. And when you have that one more thing thats added on top of everything else that theyre dealing with, that fight-or-flight reaction happens quite often.

Typically the main triggers for children with ASD to wander off are noise, stressful situations or commotion, McIlwain said. Especially during the summer months, when there are more outings, its easier for children with ASD to become overstimulated and slip away to head toward water.

It is a common assumption that when a child with ASD drowns, they have accidentally fallen into water. However, in McIlwains experience, most of the time the child had entered the water willingly.

Last May, Xavier Rigney, a Kansas 4-year-old with autism spectrum disorder, jumped into a pool in an apartment complex after he snuck through a locked fence, ABC 7 Chicago reported. The child was saved by a neighbor who performed CPR on him after being in the water for a few minutes.

According to McIlwain, adults with autism spectrum disorder who wandered toward water bodies in their youth claimed they were aware of their actions, but almost couldnt stop themselves.

So theres an impulsivity here, she said. For certain individuals and other individuals, they absolutely do not have that safety awareness. So really, it does depend on the individual, but most of the time theyre going to a quiet area because they are overstimulated.

Parents of children on the autism spectrum have a genuine fear of their child wandering away. Bischoff said hes met with parents who go to extreme lengths to protect their children. Some sleep on their childs bedroom floor to prevent nighttime escapes, while others install security cameras inside their homes to ensure their child doesnt slip away unnoticed.

Its a difficult road some of these parents really walked down each and every day, said Bischoff. Theyre doing their absolute best to prepare to protect these children who have autism.

Bischoff suggests that parents enroll their children in swimming lessons at their local YMCA to keep them safe from drowning.

People just need to really educate themselves on the topic and if they have a child who has autism, to understand the possibilities that could happen and the unfortunate outcomes that could happen.
Superiors of the Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with leaking highly classified military documents had raised concerns internally on multiple occasions about his handling or viewing of classified information, according to a court filing Wednesday.

Justice Department lawyers made the disclosure in a court papers urging a magistrate judge to keep Jack Teixeira behind bars while he awaits trial in the case stemming from the most consequential intelligence leak in years. The judge is expected to hear more arguments Friday on prosecutors detention request and issue a ruling.

Teixeira is accused of sharing highly classified documents about top national security issues in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. He has not yet entered a plea.

Prosecutors told the judge in their filing that Teixeira continued leaking documents even after he was admonished by superiors on two separate occasions last year over concerning actions he took related to classified information.

A September memo from the Air National Guard 102nd Intelligence Wing that prosecutors filed in court says Teixeira had been observed taking notes on classified intelligence information and putting the notes in his pocket. Teixeira was instructed at the time to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, the memo says.

Another memo from late October says a superior had been made aware that Teixeira was potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence information given to him the month before. The memo says Teixeira attended a meeting and proceeded to ask very specific questions. He was told again to focus on his job, not any deep dives into classified intelligence information.

Still, a third memo from February says Teixeira was again observed viewing information that was not related to his primary duty and was related to the intelligence field. Teixeira had previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and to not seek out intelligence products, the memo said.

The Defendant even continued to share information with his online associates, defying these admonishments and taking further efforts to conceal his unlawful conduct, prosecutors wrote.

Lawyers for Teixeira, who was arrested last month on charges under the Espionage Act, are urging the judge to release Teixeira to his fathers home, noting that the man didnt flee when media outlets began publishing his name shortly before his April 13 arrest. His lawyer told the judge last month that Teixeira will answer the charges and will be judged by his fellow citizens.

In their own court filing Wednesday, Teixeiras lawyers noted there have been many Espionage Act cases in which courts have approved release or the government did not seek to keep the person behind bars pretrial. They have also said there is no allegation that Teixeira ever intended for documents to be distributed widely.

But prosecutors said in their filing Wednesday that one of the servers on the social media platform he posted classified information to had at least 150 users at the time the information was shared and now may have many more users that are actively seeking access to information.

Among the individuals with whom the Defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses, prosecutors wrote.

In messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to, writing, The information I give here is less than half of whats available, prosecutors said. He also acknowledged he wasnt supposed to be sharing the information, prosecutors said, writing in another message, All of the s- Ive told you guys Im not supposed to, according to the Justice Departments filing.

Magistrate Judge David Hennessy heard arguments from lawyers over detention late last month, but has yet to issue a ruling and scheduled a second hearing on the matter for Friday. In earlier court records, prosecutors revealed that Teixeira kept an arsenal of weapons before his arrest and has a history of violent and disturbing remarks.

The leaked documents appear to detail U.S. and NATO aid to Ukraine and U.S. intelligence assessments regarding U.S. allies that could strain ties with those nations. Some show real-time details from February and March of Ukraines and Russias battlefield positions and precise numbers of battlefield gear lost and newly flowing into Ukraine from its allies.
NORTHAMPTON  Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician who spoke in favor of allowing COVID-19 to spread among those least likely to die to build natural immunity, is speaking Saturday in Northampton.

Kulldorff, one of the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, will speak to Northampton Area COVID Truth and Action 11 a.m. Saturday at Northampton Christ United Methodist Church at 271 Rocky Hill Road.

His appearance comes about a week after the state lifted its modified COVID-19 public health emergency  and at a time when people are reflecting on the pandemics long presence.

Members of groups like Northampton Area COVID Truth and Action, the talks host, question pandemic-era restrictions that limited actions.

We are interested in educating ourselves and the public as well as maintaining as much freedom as we can, said spokeswoman Jen Larsen. We have some concerns, and so do our speakers about the policies enacted over the last three years.

The group has about about 80 to 100 people in its email contact list but hopes to fill the 150-person hall, said Larsen. Organizers say there are similar groups elsewhere around Western Massachusetts.

Also on Saturdays agenda is Daniel Seitz, an attorney in Great Barrington and vice president of HealthRightsMA. Seitz advocated for two bills on Beacon Hill that would ban requirements of proof of vaccination for employment and admission and one that would prohibit mandatory medical procedures, including vaccination, and ban the sharing of medical information.

When you basically shut down the function of a large part of society to protect a small minority of people who are very vulnerable to an ailment, you are likely to have a great amount of collateral harm that can exceed what you are trying to prevent, Seitz said.

Seitz said hes concerned about censorship of ideas.

The Great Barrington Declaration is named for the Berkshire County town where it was written at the free-trade-advocating American Institute for Economic Research.

The Great Barrington Declaration advocated lockdowns only for the high-risk populations.

Critics, including David H. Gorski, writing for Science Based Medicine, pointed out problems he found with the declaration. Epidemiologists doubted it would be possible to achieve herd immunity without mass vaccinations.

Also, the definitions of high risk  those over 60, those with comorbidities like weight, the very young  were broad categories covering much of the population, Gorski writes. He compares the Great Barrington Declaration to responses in the early days of AIDS or to todays climate deniers.

Public health experts also credited lockdowns and other precautions like masking with slowing the rate of the disease and keeping ill people from swamping emergency rooms and intensive care units.

Earlier this month, Dr. Mark A. Keroack, president and CEO of Baystate Health, said high vaccination rates are one reason the region sees less COVID today. He also said schools could have been reopened sooner.

Jeanne Galloway, director of public health in West Springfield, said she is still urging caution on COVID transmission, advocating basic precautions like hand washing and contact tracing.

Those of us in public health in Western Mass. are very concerned about the ease in which misinformation is distributed and believed, she said.

Resistance to COVID-era mandates may be spilling over into other public health areas. There is growing opposition, she said, to commonsense efforts to avoid mosquito bites and eliminate mosquito breeding grounds, after Eastern equine encephalitis is spotted.

Any number of things that we have been doing for decades, she said.

Kulldorff was an early opponent of COVID lockdowns. Saturdays program notes that he has been a professor of medicine at Harvard University from 2010 to 2021. Harvard said this week he has no current affiliation with the medical school.

Massachusetts on Thursday reported 774 confirmed COVID cases and six deaths in the last six days. There have been 22,623 Massachusetts deaths in total.
A shooting at a seafood restaurant in Derry, New Hampshire, has led to the arrest of a nephew accused of killing his uncle, according to officials.

New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella and Derry Police Chief George Feole announced the arrest of John Kratz, 27, of Candia, N.H.

Kratz is accused of killing his uncle, 64-year-old John Kratz Jr. of Sandown, N.H., the officials reported.

Derry police got a 911 call that there had been a shooting at Lobster Claw II, a seafood restaurant on South Main Street in Derry. When they arrived, they found the elder Kratz had been shot, officials said. He was taken to Elliot Hospital in Manchester, where he died, according to officials.

The younger Kratz is being charged with second degree murder and is expected to be arraigned at Rockingham County Superior Court on Thursday.
And, again, the stalking horses lost.

As with last year in the Hamburg Central School District, board candidates harboring right-wing political agendas largely failed in their attempts to win seats in Tuesdays elections. Voters understood the issues and the threats, opting for candidates already in office or endorsed by teachers unions.

Thats not always the best approach, but its a solid one at a time when, here and around the country, far-right candidates are seeking to worm their way into public life by winning election to school boards. Their goals include book-banning and, as one candidate wrote last year, a commitment to massive upheaval. The hard work of educating children ranked somewhere lower on that political agenda.

With multimillion-dollar budgets, high standards imposed by state government and high expectations of parents, school districts are no place to play political games. Thats true at any time, but especially in a time of national division. Schools  including their boards  should be refuges from the craziness that plays out elsewhere.

So, its good news that voters continue to see that masquerade for what it is. They also understood the risks  indeed, the pointlessness  of rejecting proposed school budgets, which were approved in all districts across Erie and Niagara counties.

Not so long ago, it was the budgets that commanded the most attention when school district voters went to the polls. But times have changed and, now, the overarching issue is whether school boards will be overrun by ideologues who are perpetually  sometimes performatively  angry about something: masking policies or library books or critical race theory or even students who stick up for gender equality. For those candidates, its about infiltrating school boards and imposing their radicalism on everyone else.

One of the early leaders of that effort acknowledged as in 2021, as The New York Times reported last year. Conservative activist Christopher Rufo was instrumental in creating a backlash against both critical race theory and the Disney Corp. for its objections to Floridas dont say gay law. His method, as he acknowledged in 2021, is misdirection, if not deceit: The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think critical race theory,  he wrote on Twitter.

Here, at least, voters have held the line against turning classrooms into petri dishes of discontent. Last year, for example, Hamburg voters turned away a slate of far right candidates whose strategy, according to a Facebook post, included massive civil disobedience and continuing to be loud, speak up, take over board of education seats this spring, and create massive upheaval. Thats an agenda of chaos, not education.

This year, voters in West Seneca turned away a candidate who had shared antisemitic and anti-gay posts on her Truth Social account. In Lancaster, they rejected a slate of candidates whose agenda included the books in the school library as well as concerns about a lack of communication. Their approach on books was less confrontational than some in other places, but what did that have to do with the fundamental issues of educating students?

In both cases, and in others, voters favored candidates with experience and those backed by teachers unions. That is to say, they opted for candidates who have shown an actual interest in educating students or at least could be fairly presumed to have that interest.

But if Tuesdays results were heartening, the political landscape offers school district voters no reason to relax. This is shaping up as a long-term fight, one that will require the vigilance of voters for years to come.

In the meantime, its long past time for New York to abolish the anachronistic policy of requiring a public vote on school district budgets. It doesnt happen in other taxing entities, so why schools? In a representative democracy, we elect people to do that work then judge their performance on election day. Why hold that cudgel over schools and the students inside? More harm than good is likely to result.

  

Whats your opinion? Send it to us at lettertoeditor@buffnews.com. Letters should be a maximum of 300 words and must convey an opinion. The column does not print poetry, announcements of community events or thank you letters. A writer or household may appear only once every 30 days. All letters are subject to fact-checking and editing.
SPRINGFIELD  Domenic J. Sarno officially announced he would seek another term as Springfields longest-running mayor, setting the stage for a municipal race where, for the first time in several years, he faces a field of seasoned political challengers.

Its a big job, Sarno said in a video posted to Facebook Wednesday announcing his reelection rally at the Greek Cultural Center. Weve come a long way, but Im hungry, and theres more to be done.

As Sarno listed off his accomplishments as mayor, around 500 supporters at the event met each achievement with screaming applause. Several dozen had to stand in the back of the room as Sarno described his goals.

He said his first priority is to continue to lead the citys war against crime.

The brave and dedicated men and women in blue have worked hard, Sarno said. Let me be clear: Criminals will not rule our streets.

Sarno said he would work with Police Superintendent Cheryl C. Clapprood, District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni and Hampden County Sheriff Nicholas Cocchi to ensure this goal is completed.

Additionally, he plans to continue to fund economic development projects in the citys downtown, improve infrastructure and build new schools.

Im going to lobby hard to get a new courthouse on North Riverfront area, Sarno said. Housing is a number one issue. Were going to continue to move on that because I believe I have the most aggressive pace of first-time homebuyers in the city of Springfield.

When Sarno first became mayor, he said the high school graduation rate was hovering around 50%, but that rate is now at 86%, a number he hopes to continue to grow.

The more you keep our kids in school, the better opportunities theyre going to continue to have, he said.

First elected in November 2007, Sarno has overseen MGM Springfields arrival to the city, the revitalization of Union Station, recovery after the 2011 tornado and the COVID-19 pandemic.

During his time in office, the resident of Forest Park neighborhood has seen his two daughters go from being in elementary school all the way up to college. Before occupying the office at 36 Court St., Sarno was a city councilor and he earned a bachelors degree in psychology from Westfield State University.

Sarnos aspirations for yet another reelection bid were no secret. In December, his campaign had approximately $173,000 in cash on hand and he said he was waiting to formalize his run with an announcement at the appropriate time. And in January 2020, weeks after starting his fifth term, he already had an eye to the event Wednesday.

I love this job and I will be running for reelection in 2023, he told a reporter at the time.

But this time around, he faces challengers who are veterans of municipal politics.

During his 2015 campaign, Sarno handily bested a field of challengers during the September preliminary election, garnering 5,088 votes. The runner-up, Salvatore Circosta, received a mere 576 votes in the election designed to winnow down field for the election in November.

In that campaign, Sarno decided he would not sit down to debate Circosta.

In 2019, Sarno ran against Yolanda Cancel, a community organizer. In that race, Sarno  running a campaign focused on job creation, economic development and public safety  won the preliminary election by a 4-1 margin.

Four years ago, Orlando Ramos, then a city councilor, opted to sit out the mayoral race saying the timing was not right. But Ramos, now a Democratic state representative for Springfield, officially challenged Sarno in mid-February.

Before Ramos announcement, five-term City Councilor Justin Hurst was the first candidate to say he was officially seeking the mayoral office in the 2023 elections, making his declaration in early December. His announcement was followed by City Council President Jesse Ledermans in February.

David F. Ciampi, a counselor and psychotherapist, has also said he is running.

Candidates in municipal elections have until June 2 to obtain nomination papers and June 6 to submit them.

All mayoral and city council candidates will campaign through the summer until the preliminary election, currently scheduled for Sept. 12.

The final election will place on Nov. 7.

Sarno currently leads the fundraising race with $242,917.62 in cash on hand, according to the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance.

Meanwhile, Ramos has $51,163.69 in his war chest, Hurst has $36,646.64, Lederman has $15,896.12 and Ciampi has $219.66.
Editors note: This story has been updated to clarify that migrants and refugees make up only one part of the population in need of emergency housing and education.

SPRINGFIELD  Officials in Springfield are preparing to accommodate an influx of unhoused people, including migrants from different parts of the world, with promised support from the state.

While the will to help exists, people are questioning whether the region can house new arrivals.

Superintendent of Schools Daniel J. Warwick says he was told by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education this month that an influx of people are expected to arrive in the state within days. It isnt clear how many people are expected.

The city of Springfield has been advised that it will be asked to provide education for school-age arrivals.

While both Warwick and Mayor Domenic J. Sarno say the city is willing to help, they question the availability of resources. Placement is contingent on the availability of affordable housing and support services, Warwick said.

Refugees may be coming from Syria, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti and Cuba. A different group of people known as humanitarian paroles could be coming from Afghanistan or Ukraine. Migrants may be coming from South, Central and Latin America.

Since the fall of 2022, the state Department of Housing and Community Development has seen a steady rise in shelter demand because of rising housing costs in every region in Massachusetts, and new arrivals to the state, said Karissa Hand, spokesperson Gov. Maura T. Healey.

While Warwick said the school system is ready to help educate arriving students, Sarno said city resources are strained.

You cannot place poverty on top of poverty, Sarno said. The district is helping to the best of its ability. We are caring, but we are also at our capacity.

Laurie Millman, executive director of the Center for New Americans, said the region is running low on housing and transportation accommodations.

The region has the will to welcome people, but there has not been much access to affordable housing, Millman said.

Warwick said the situation is viewed by the state as an emergency. Some new arrivals could be housed in hotels. Theyre checking into that at the state level, Warwick said.

As of May 11, there are approximately 652 families living in emergency shelters in Hampden County area, Hand said.

Approximately one-third of eligible families entering shelters are new arrivals to the U.S., which the DHCD defines as families without citizenship who arrived in the last 30 days, Hand said.

This influx comes after last weeks lifting of COVID-19-related asylum restrictions. Title 42 restrictions began in March 2020 and turned away migrants from countries plagued by the pandemic at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Mayors view

Sarno questioned the placement of refugees, migrants and humanitarian parolees from poverty-stricken places.

I feel sorry for the mayor of El Paso, who has seven blocks of people sleeping on the streets, Sarno said.

Sarno said that Springfield is going to do what it can to house and educate people to the best of its ability. But he said lawmakers in Washington need to produce a comprehensive immigration policy and stop playing politics.

People are coming into my office with no place to go, he said. It is a wedge issue that is hurting the gateway cities and the urban areas.

State moves

Earlier this month, the Healey-Driscoll administration awarded $1.75 million to form Immigrant Assistance Services. The IAS is designed to assist newly arrived immigrants in the state access services that address immediate needs.

Funding for IAS will support up to 800 individuals and families who are currently living in DHCD homeless shelter placements, Hand said. This centralized intake and triage process will help immigrants access services such as immediate advice and referrals, targeted and more comprehensive case management, legal services, and other support for which they may be eligible.

Organizations like the MIRA Coalition will provide case management and coordination to resources with organizations across the state, such as Catholic Charities, Ascentria Care Alliance and Jewish Family Service.

Additionally, refugee resettlement agencies will assist with state insurance, food stamp benefits, school and housing. It depends on who is coming and what they need, Millman said.

It is important to note differences in status among refugees, migrants and humanitarian parole designation, Millman said. They come with different levels of federal and state support.

A refugee is a person forced to leave their country to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster and can apply to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program which could lead to permanent residence in the country.

A humanitarian parole allows an individual otherwise ineligible for admission into the United States to be in the country for a temporary period for urgent reasons, or significant public benefit; such people do not have a pathway to citizenship.

A migrant is an individual who moves from one place to another, to find work or better living conditions.

School support

A supplemental budget Healey signed March 29 will reimburse host districts more quickly for costs associated with educating children placed in new shelters.

Otherwise, the districts would have had to wait much longer for funding for these students to be incorporated into their state education aid, Hand said.

Sarno said the Springfield district is still waiting for funding from the last influx of displaced families. That reimbursement was needed like yesterday, Sarno said.

We (Springfield Public Schools) had the biggest influx in the state from Puerto Rico with Hurricane Maria. We had more than anyone in the state, including Boston, Warwick said.

The Springfield public school system is prepared to provide transportation, English language learning services and specialized programs and translation support, Warwick said.

The truth is, we are always taking in displaced, immigrant and refugee students, Warwick said. We dont get a lot of prior notice and we just adapt to the influx we get.
Is it possible to support the Second Amendment to our Constitution while at the same time believing there must be sensible restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition?

Yes. Only someone who sees the matter as black-and-white, all-or-nothing, would feel otherwise.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday let stand, for now, an Illinois law restricting the sale of assault weapons such as the AR-15 and large-capacity magazines for those firearms. This surely beat the alternative, but it was a win with an asterisk, as the case is far from finished. The decision puts the matter into the hands of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and will likely be back before the high court soon enough.

Still, no matter how the Illinois case plays out, the larger point remains: The Second Amendment to our Constitution is not limitless. Why would it be? The other amendments in the Bill of Rights arent.

Consider the First Amendments protection of free speech. It does not allow an individual to incite violence and then endeavor to use the amendment as a shield. The government cannot stop someone from speaking, but that freedom is not unlimited. The same thinking ought to apply to the Second Amendments protection of the peoples right to keep and bear arms.

The case in question stems from an Illinois law that bans assault weapons and the high-capacity magazines that can be employed to allow one armed individual to inflict devastation. This law was challenged by the owner of an Illinois gun shop.

Too often in our era, people on different sides of an issue  regulation of firearms, for example  take an uncompromising position, dig in, and that is that. On firearms, some think that to permit even a single restriction is to open a door that could lead to a complete ban on guns for even law-abiding citizens.

This is baseless. That just wont happen in this country.

It does not make sense to allow an individual to become a killing machine by arming himself with an assault rifle and going to war against innocent people.
Traffic along Route 128 was diverted by Massachusetts State Police and Manchester-by-the-Sea police due to a vehicle fire on Thursday.

State police received multiple 911 calls at around 11 a.m. about a 2016 GMC Canyon pickup truck near exit 49, a state police spokesperson said. By around 11:06, they shut down the northbound side just before Pine Street due to heavy smoke across the road.

Troopers and officers diverted traffic from the highway onto Grapevine Road, state police said. The driver, a 63-year-old man from Norfolk, escaped the blaze with no injuries.

MassLive breaking news reporter Irene Rotondo contributed to the reporting for this story.
The alleged murder of three young children by a Duxbury mother experiencing postpartum depression and potentially postpartum psychosis has sparked huge momentum on Beacon Hill to pass legislation protecting defendants who commit crimes due to their mood disorders, according to the Senate sponsor of a newly refiled proposal.

Petitions from Rep. Jim ODay and Sen. Joan Lovely (HD 4280 / SD 2597) would provide a path for new mothers who seriously harm or kill their babies, among other crimes, to receive treatment after theyve been found incompetent to stand trial or not guilty by reason of mental illness.

The two lawmakers are the former co-chairs of the Ellen Story Commission on Postpartum Depression -- composed of elected officials, mental health and health care providers, insurance representatives and other stakeholders -- that advocates for maternal health issues.

Read more: Why race matters in murder cases

Postpartum depression is the number-one complication in pregnancy, and we know it manifests as very mild symptoms to full psychosis, where the birthing individual will either take their own life or their life and the life of their child or children, Lovely said, calling the conditions fully treatable. These birthing people deserve protection.

The Salem Democrat said she believes the protections outlined in her proposed legislation should apply to Lindsay Clancy, a labor and delivery nurse accused of strangling her children to death in January when her husband briefly left their Duxbury home to get a prescription and takeout. An attorney for Clancy -- who in February pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder, three counts of strangulation, and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon -- has said she was improperly medicated and grappling with postpartum depression or psychosis.

Its horribly tragic, so the momentums there, Lovely said of her proposal. We look forward to a full hearing with experts, with members of the (Ellen Story) Commission (on Postpartum Depression), so that we can educate our colleagues and see if we can get the bill to the governors desk this session.

About one in eight women experience symptoms of postpartum depression, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Postpartum psychosis is far rarer, occurring in one to two out of every 1,000 births, according to Postpartum Support International. Still, that could translate into about 140 Massachusetts women experiencing the condition each year, ODays office said.

Under the proposals before the Joint Committee on the Judiciary, perinatal psychiatric complications would be considered mitigating factors in cases that could lead to a life sentence without parole.

The bills, which explicitly define postpartum psychosis and postpartum depression, would require defendants facing criminal charges within one year of giving birth to be screened for perinatal psychiatric complications. For proceedings involving murder, serious bodily harm, or the threat of serious harm, people would need to be confined to a state hospital or treatment facility for at least 180 days before becoming eligible for outpatient care.

Individuals charged for past crimes while experiencing illnesses like postpartum psychosis may become eligible for resentencing under the legislation.

Unlike his Senate counterpart, ODay said hes unsure whether the latest iteration of the bill, which has been sent to study in the past two legislative sessions, is a winner or not.

I think its a really good starting place for us to have a serious, serious, serious discussion about how we treat these kinds of cases, ODay, a West Boylston Democrat, said. I think that there will be strong support from the medical community -- and that will hopefully shape how the committee views this bill -- and there will be a lot of discussion being brought forward by the district attorneys who may see differently.

Theres been no vocal opposition from district attorneys or constituents to Lovelys new and past proposals, an aide to the senator said. But Lovely welcomes feedback on the issue, the aide said.

ODay said the new proposals place a larger emphasis on prevention and education.

The Department of Public Health, for example, would need to create and maintain a digital resource center on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders after consulting with gynecologists, pediatricians, primary care providers, midwives, psychiatrists and mental health clinicians, among others. Healthcare providers and organizations would then need to provide information to perinatal individuals and families about how to access that resource, or give hard copies if needed.

Prevention is really the key to all of this, ODay said. Its supposed to be this really exciting, wonderful, great time of someones life giving birth, and we hope that no one would have any sort of complications -- but as we know, people do and it happens way too regularly. The better job we do up front, the fewer cases, hopefully, were ever going to have to worry about.

Lovely submitted her petition in early May, months after Januarys initial filing deadline and the Duxbury tragedy. ODay filed his in April.

Lawmakers said the additional time helped them consult with more experts to fine-tune language, and Lovely said multiple colleagues were very interested in the filing status. Lovely said she intends to urge Sen. Jamie Eldridge, co-chair of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary, to hold a hearing on the legislation sooner than later.
The national discussion around transgender students and what parents should be told about them returns to the New Hampshire Statehouse on Thursday.

The House is set to vote on a bill similar to those already enacted by Republican-led legislatures in multiple states. It passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines but faces an uncertain future in the 400-member House, where Republicans have a razor-thin majority.

Much of the debate has focused on whether to require school officials  when asked by parents  to disclose that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender.

Parents who ask such questions likely already suspect that their children are having problematic issues in this area, so this bill is not an effort to out such students, Republican Rep. Arlene Quartatiello wrote in remarks printed in the House calendar ahead of the vote. It is, rather, an effort to empower a partnership between parents and teachers to most effectively help vulnerable children navigate complicated situations that may involve life-altering decisions.

Opponents argue that while it may appear benign in detailing many rights already covered by existing state and federal law, the bill exposes students to the risk of abuse at home  a bad idea for young people who are already prone to stress, depression and suicidal thoughts.

This rush to inform will deny adolescents the time needed for thoughtfulness and care that is sometimes needed for a teen and their family to approach this sensitive issue, Rep. Mel Myler, a Democrat from Hopkinton, wrote in the calendar.

Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed a similar bill last year that would have required schools to automatically notify parents about students sexual or gender identity. Even with the parental request requirement, opponents say the underlying intent remains: singling out transgender students. Sununu said Wednesday he generally supports the new bill but is waiting to see if any amendments are made.

Supporters attending an outdoor rally before a public hearing last month held signs reading PRO PARENT ANTI SECRETS and Children Belong to Parents, Not Schools. Opponents  including parents of transgender children  carried signs reading Trans Rights Are Human Rights and Trans Kids Belong Here.

Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. House, such a bill was the first legislation that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally announced  fulfilling a major part of the GOP campaign platform.
A retired chef, Austin said driving for the ride-hailing services is the best job hes ever had. The Weymouth resident said he makes money based on ingenuity, time and effort while manipulating his own schedule six days each week.

My message is: Why fix whats not broken? Austin said. My opinion, if you change this, youll break it and destroy all the good things that come from it.

Austin and other app-based drivers joined the latest push from the Massachusetts Coalition for Independent Work -- funded by Uber, Lyft and Instacart -- to maintain their independent contractor status and reject labor unions efforts to install employee protections.

Its unclear if their advocacy could trigger another voter referendum. The Supreme Judicial Court last summer tossed a planned ballot question around the employment status of app-based drivers. The court said the inclusion of a liability provision reflected at least two substantively distinct policy decisions in one question, putting the proposal at odds with a constitutional requirement that initiative petitions contain only related or mutually dependent subjects.

Meanwhile, a lawsuit filed by then-Attorney General Maura Healey against Uber and Lyft over the classification of drivers -- and accusing the companies of denying basic employee benefits and protection -- is still pending.

A judge held a Wednesday afternoon conference to review the status of the nearly three-year-old case. A trial is now slated to begin in May 2024, a spokesperson for Attorney General Andrea Campbell said. That timeline would put the trial six months ahead of the election, and well into the process that initiative petition sponsors must follow to ensure ballot access.

The Massachusetts Coalition for Independent Work needs to keep its options open and keep our eyes on the possibility of filing a ballot question for 2024, said spokesman Conor Yunits. The deadline to place a possible ballot question into the mix is in early August.

App-based drivers are ambivalent about whether a ballot question or legislation helps them reach their goal, Yunits indicated.

Yet drivers at the press conference criticized proposals that would require them to obtain special operating licenses from every municipality where they work and to report to designated base locations.

App-based drivers embraced a bill from Rep. Mark Cusack (H 1848) that would preserve their ability to be independent contractors with a minimum hourly wage of $18 and benefits like paid sick time and family leave and health care stipends. They also support a bill from Rep. Daniel Cahill (H 961) to create a portable benefits framework that would allow drivers to purchase health insurance and replace lost income due to an illness or accident.

Drivers deserve to have some certainty and not to be under attack or forced into employment. Slavery is dead, if you didnt know, said Charles Clemons Muhammad, an app-based driver. There are two bills that would accomplish this. I dont care how it gets done, but securing flexibility -- again, flexibility -- and getting new benefits simply needs to get done.

Members of a separate coalition that opposes those bills and wants to help app-based drivers form a union also stood outside the State House Wednesday morning -- though they did not interrupt the Massachusetts Coalition for Independent Work press conference, unlike what an organizer had expected. The Drivers Demand Justice Coalition supports bills from Rep. Frank Moran and Sen. Jason Lewis (H 1099/ S 666) establishing collective bargaining rights for app-based drivers.

Rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft may claim they are lobbying for new state laws because they care about their drivers, yet they have built an industry that is the equivalent of a digital sweatshop, keeping drivers working long hours with little pay and almost no protection, said Roxana Rivera, vice president of 32BJ SEIU -- which is a member of the Drivers Demand Justice Coalition -- in a statement.

Those coalition members also lobbied lawmakers Wednesday about a Lewis budget amendment that would protect app-based drivers from becoming deactivated on ride-hailing platforms -- often without the ability to appeal -- by tracking the practice.

Domingo Castillo, an app-based driver and 32BJ SEIU member, said he was struck in a hit-and-run accident while driving a Lyft rental a few months ago.

Despite the police report explaining what happened, I was still deactivated by Lyft and then billed for the full rental period, even though I could no longer drive the car, Castillo said in a statement. I could never reach anyone over the phone to appeal Lyfts decision. This kind of humiliating, infuriating, and totally unfair treatment is commonplace -- and it has to stop.
BOSTON  Red Sox right fielder Alex Verdugo left Wednesdays game against the Mariners as a precaution due to left groin tightness, the team announced. The issue is minor and Red Sox manager Alex Cora believes Verdugo will be ready to play Friday, when the team begins a three-game series against the Padres at Petco Park.

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Hes doing OK, Cora said. He should be OK for Friday.

Verdugo grounded out in the first inning and doubled in the second inning before outfielder Raimel Tapia replaced him in the outfield for the top of the third. Its unclear when Verdugo aggravated his injury. The Red Sox scored nine runs in the first two innings, so theres a chance manager Alex Cora was just being careful with his leadoff man.

Verdugo has been a sparkplug for the Red Sox so far this season, hitting .305 with five homers, 15 doubles, 18 RBIs and an .877 OPS in 43 games. He has only missed one game so far this season.

The Red Sox beat the Mariners, 12-3, in the rubber game of a three-game set to improve to 24-20.
A gravel spill on Interstate 495 in Marlborough caused heavy traffic Thursday morning as crews shut down lanes to clean up the gravel.

At around 8 a.m. Thursday, a tractor-trailer carrying a load of gravel rolled over on I-495 north near exit 65 and caused a massive gravel spill that closed two lanes for several hours, according to Massachusetts state police.

The driver of the truck was rushed to a hospital will minor injuries, officials stated.

Authorities said all lanes opened back up at 10 a.m. and traffic was backed up for six miles. Crews are still on the highway cleaning up gravel.
As predicted, this years allergy season has been a prolonged and more intense one, with one health expert suggesting its the worst that its ever been.

This year and last year have been significantly worse, Dr. Trisha Ray, attending physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centers division of allergy and inflammation, told the Boston Globe. Its been a major issue for patients.
News / Agriculture

by Simbarashe Sithole in Marondera

Over 200 women in agriculture were invited to meet with various stakeholders in Mashonaland East province for a capacity building in Agribusiness in Marondera today.The workshop unpacked opportunities for funding in agribusiness. Many financial institutions that provide funding to SMEs wee present at the workshop. These include NedBank, Small, and Medium Enterprise Development Corporation, NMB Bak, Ecobank, Agriculture Finance Corporation (AFC), POSB, ZB Bank, and Women's Bank.Nomuhle Bangani, the Progamme Coordinator for Zimbabwe Women in Agribusiness said the institution supports policies crafted by policymakers and regulators and links farmers and stakeholders to get together in conferences like this one where they meet and connect."The reason is to give opportunities to women in agribusiness to understand the policies and what is expected of them in order for them to improve their businesses from small-scale to medium-scale."We are also encouraging the farmers and SMEs to register their businesses and grow from small-scale to large-scale. Once they are captured in the database, it's easier for them to access funds and opportunities in agriculture and other entities," Ms. Bangani saidAs the global world embraces the empowerment of women through the theme 'Global Innovation', Zimbabwe Women in Agribusiness in collaboration with the Ministry Of Women Affairs, Community DEVELOPMENT, and Small and Medium Enterprise and Zimbabwe National Chamber of Small to Medium Enterprise successfully conducted the workshop under the theme: INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE AND BUSINESSESSpeaking on the event Provincial Development officer from the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small, and Medium Enterprise Development for Mashonaland East Province said the sector is lacking access to information."These sectors face a lack of access to information in terms of what product to focus on, what quantities to grow or produce, and where the markets are. With this lack of information, one can start a business but the enterprise usually collapses because of lack of access to markets, poor product quality, and lack of access to finance," Mr. Nyamadzawo
An affordable housing development at the former home of the Table Talk Pie Store has been approved by the Worcester Planning Board.

Rossi Development has planned 53 apartments above the existing building at 153 Green St. along with commercial space on the ground floor. Anthony Rossi, owner of the company, told the Planning Board on Wednesday that most of the apartments would be one-bedroom units.

Rossi purchased the building earlier this month from Boston Capital Development, which had originally planned to build 15 loft-style apartments in the upper floors of the existing building.

The new plans will add two stories to the existing building. The existing interior will also be renovated and Rossi said he hoped to have a supermarket as a ground-floor tenant.

I think theres a need there for a supermarket especially with the amount of units being built, he said.

Metal paneling currently on the exterior building will be removed and the facade will be restored to be as close as possible to the original. While the building does not have any official historical status, Rossi said he recognized its significance in the community.

He also said he planned to install solar panels on the roof of the building, which would be fully electric.

Parking for the building will be in a garage behind the property which is being constructed by Quarterra Multifamily Communities as part of another phase of redevelopment of the former Table Talk Pies property.

Alex Guardiola, vice president of government affairs and public policy at the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, told the Planning Board that the Chamber was in favor of the development.

Its such a vital piece of property for that Canal District area, he said. This is the type of developer were looking for in the city of Worcester. Somebody whos actually forward-thinking, understanding of the needs of a district, the needs of a community, the needs of a neighborhood.

Rossi is also the developer of Walker Lofts, a 62-unit apartment building that opened in the Canal District last year.

The first phase of the Table Talk property redevelopment, an 83-unit affordable housing project at 120 Washington St., is currently under construction by Boston Capital. The company also owns 139 Green St., the property being developed by Quarterra, which has proposed an eight-story building with 375 market-rate apartments.
After five years of impacting lives and businesses in the country, CashToken Rewards Africa Limited, the Nigerian RewardTech company that has revolutionized reward, is looking to spread its unique, socially smart business model to other parts of Africa for the purpose of helping businesses to succeed in order to lift millions on the continent out of poverty.

The company is buoyed into going international by the fact that in the relatively short period of its existence, the pilot phase of its Universal Gamification of Sales and Consumer Rewards Program (UGSCRP) has provided consumers of goods and services with potentially life changing cash rewards for purchases made across multiple businesses. The program has boosted businesses for organizations; enhanced the individual economy of consumers and aided the economic growth of countries where it is currently in operation, thus proving to have the capacity to bring about wealth redistribution for poverty alleviation on the continent.

In just five years, CashToken Rewards Africa has, through the UGSCRP, rewarded about one million Nigerians with CashTokens worth about $10 million. It has also partnered over 2,000 Nigerian businesses during the period. A new partnership it has just entered into with the Nigerian government to establish a national reward program would enable Nigerians all over the country to receive cash rewards in all purchases they make  be it goods or services.

The companys international drive is going to be made possible by a $100 million commitment from the Global Emerging Market, which would see it covering sub-Saharan Africa. The success of the program in Ghana, Cote Divoire, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, in addition to having merchants across Africa to provide CashToken reward for consumers, is an indication of the impact it would make on the continent.

Lai Labode, Chief Executive Officer of CashToken Rewards Africa Limited, says arrangements have reached advanced stages for the company to be listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited and the New York Stock Exchange. This would inspire confidence and trust not just in consumers, but also in investors.

In addition to improving the fortunes of manufacturers and service providers and creating wealth for consumers, the company is about to position itself as a veritable investment option for potential investors.

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Africa contributes the least  less than 3%  to global warming, yet the continent is the most vulnerable to climate risks. To build resilience against climate change, the countries have outlined tangible ambitions for green growth, including plans to increase climate investment.

Amid dwindling climate finance flows to Africa, the African Development Bank has committed to helping to de-risk and remove business barriers to increase private investors (https://apo-opa.info/3MyzMDs) contribution to climate finance on the continent.

Over the past decade, the Bank has developed expertise and knowledge of financing climate-related projects. For example, the Bank launched its Africa Disaster Risks Financing Programme in 2018 in collaboration with the African Risk Capacity Group (ARC) to promote the deployment of disaster response mechanisms. Its total climate commitments increased to 45% in 2022 (https://apo-opa.info/42ZZOVl), up from only 9% in 2016. By this, the Bank has exceeded its target of having 40% of its funding reserved for climate-related projects.

During its upcoming Annual Meetings from 22 to 26 May in Sharm el Sheikh, the Bank will host a session to explore how to mobilize more private sector financing to tackle climate change in Africa, including domestic natural capital. This flagship event will bring together entrepreneurs, pension and private equity fund managers, financiers and government representatives to discuss different instruments and how to deploy them on a large scale on the continent.

The delegates will consider green financing tools such as green bonds, sustainable bonds, social bonds, sustainability loans and debt-nature or debt-climate swaps. Participants will discuss national and international levers to overcome obstacles to implementing such instruments.

With lessons from best practices in Africa and internationally, the African Development Bank hopes to foster the development of innovative financial instruments to support investment in climate and green growth while ensuring a fairer distribution of resources across Africa.

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Your Excellencies,It is good to see you all again! We gather today for the people of Zimbabwe. We gather for the future of Zimbabwe. We gather because we believe in a better future for Zimbabwes youth. We gather because we are partners of hope for a nation that desperately needs hope. We gather to bring hope to the present, to change the realities of the people of Zimbabwe.

We gather to facilitate a revived and vibrant Zimbabwe that can boost greater economic integration and prosperity for the entire Southern African Development Region.

A revived Zimbabwe is good for Africa.

A revived Zimbabwe is good for the world.

I wish to thank you, Your Excellency, President Mnangagwa for your determination to resolve well-known historical issues that led to the imposition of economic sanctions on Zimbabwe. Yes, it is the right thing to do, as two decades of sanctions have compromised the quality of life of the people of Zimbabwe.

Economic sanctions are driving Zimbabwe further into unsustainable debt. The debt itself is not as debilitating as the arrears on the debt since the country cannot access international concessional financing or other revenue or less expensive financing to pay down its debt obligations. Of the $5.7 billion of bilateral debt, 69% of this is accounted for by arrears. Similarly, of the $2.6 billion of multilateral debt, 91% is accounted for by arrears.

Arrears is now the new debt of Zimbabwe.

The past is hurting the present and the future of Zimbabwe.

As President of the African Development Bank, I am very concerned about debt, and even more concerned about debt accumulation from arrears that dont have an end in sight.

Zimbabwe cannot run up the hill of economic recovery carrying a backpack of debt on its back. It is time for a comprehensive debt arrears clearance and debt resolution for Zimbabwe.

But getting there is not a walk in the park.

We must address history, to make history.

I am honored to have been asked by you, Mr. President, to be the Champion for Zimbabwes arrears clearance and debt resolution. Together with H.E. President Chissano, the facilitator of the high-level dialogues, we have been working closely with you, the government of Zimbabwe, development partners, private sector, and civil society to find a solution path to the normalization of economic and financial engagement of Zimbabwe with the international community.

The best way to solve any problem is to dialogue.

To listen to all voices, to respect all voices, and to do so transparently and with commitment to narrow differences and divergences and reach consensus on concrete actions to be implemented. Actions that are developed from the ground up and owned by the government.

Actions that will serve the people of Zimbabwe. Actions that are measurable by all parties, so progress can be verified and comprehensively assessed. Actions that will allow the healing of the past and the reopening of a new and brighter future for Zimbabwe.

The people of Zimbabwe have suffered enough.

It is time for actions to solve the problems of the past to clear the way for the future.

After the first dialogue platform on Arrears clearance and debt resolution process for Zimbabwe, on the 1st of December 2022, we assembled here in Harare on the 23rd of February 2023 for the second high-level dialogue. We were joined by H.E. President Mnangagwa, a clear show of his strong support for the process.

Since then, two other high-level dialogues have been held on Zimbabwes plans to clear its arrears and resolve debt obligations to creditors. Over the past 18 months, we have institutionalized a platform for regular, constructive, and open dialogue that is key for trust and confidence-building among all stakeholders.

The issues are not just economic or financial. They also involve governance, rule of law, human rights, freedom of speech, political level playing field, electoral reforms that will assure free and fair elections; as well as fairness, equity and justice for the commercial farmers and other businesses who were dispossessed of their lands, for which there is a clear need for restitution and compensation.

This will also include improving the overall business environment to attract greater private investments in line with what you say Mr. President: Zimbabwe is open for business.

The three sector working groups (economic, governance; land tenure reforms, compensation under the Global Compensation Deed and the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements) have comprehensively discussed these issues over the past four high-level dialogues.

There is very strong and measurable commitment by the Government to economic and fiscal policy reforms. The IMF Article IV mission in December 2022 was successful and was approved by the Board of the IMF.

The government has taken the decision to eliminate multiple exchange rates, introduce an enhanced foreign exchange auction market, transfer outstanding debt of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to the Treasury for greater transparency and avoiding off-budget financing; and end the quasi-fiscal activities of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

It has also taken decisions to end subsidies and reform state-owned enterprises. Also, the establishment of the liquidity management committee is a proactive measure that will promote effective coordination between fiscal and monetary policies.

The decision to embark on an IMF Staff Monitored Program (SMP) is excellent and is reassuring to creditors, development partners, and multilateral and bilateral financial institutions, and will ensure that the reforms committed to are implemented.

The most difficult and more sensitive reforms are the governance reforms.

I wish to commend the Sector Working groups and the high-level dialogues for identifying six critical areas for which reforms should be implemented: judicial sector reforms; public sector transparency and accountability; combating corruption; human rights promotion; electoral reforms; and national unity, peace, and reconciliation.

I am encouraged that development partners worked closely with the government in identifying and selecting globally acceptable indicators to measure progress on governance reforms.

This again goes to show how the transparent and inclusive structured high-level dialogues are helping to build mutual trust, confidence, co-creation, and mutual accountability for progress.

On land reforms and compensation, agreements were reached in the sector working group and the high-level dialogue on the governments decision to pay $3.5 billion to former commercial farmers under the Global Compensation Deed, and to fast-track the implementation of the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (BIPPAs).

As I mentioned during the second high-level dialogue and in my discussions with H.E. President Mnangagwa, development partners and other creditors, it is important that we find a mechanism to try to fast-track and front-load the payment of these compensations.

Hope delayed makes the heart go weary.

Further delays in paying the compensations could erode trust and confidence. So, timing counts; responsiveness counts; and financial sustainability counts.

We need a greater sense of urgency on this issue.

That is why the African Development Bank is currently working with the Government of Zimbabwe to develop innovative financial instruments and structures that can be used to front-load the mobilization of the $3.5 billion for compensations. I encourage development partners to work together on this proposed structure which can help leverage capital markets to fund the compensations without additional debt for Zimbabwe.

The government has also taken the decision to make land titles available to enhance the security of commercial farmland, and these would be for 99-year leases which are also commercially viable, bankable, and transferable.

Your Excellencies, ladies, and gentlemen,

The Government of Zimbabwe is clearly and genuinely very committed.

It is committed to taking tough decisions to move this process forward.

And development partners and creditors are genuinely very committed and have been engaging very positively and proactively in these dialogues.

We know what needs to be done. The challenge now is to do them, and do them quickly, and ensure that there are measurable indicators to assess the direction and pace of progress. We must move more rapidly now into speedy implementation on the ground.

Lets turn matrices into materiality.

Lets turn resolve into results.

But actions will have effects; and we must protect the people. We therefore call for and strongly support a funded IMF Staff Monitored Program to help cushion the impacts that these tough reforms will have on the population.

The success of the efforts we have all put into this process will depend on what happens with the upcoming presidential elections. I wish to commend you, Mr. President, for your strong commitment and statements that the elections will be free and fair.

The people of Zimbabwe and the international community will be watching very closely. The full weight of re-engagement with the international community will depend on this. It will also depend not just on the election, but the entire electoral process that guarantees a credible election.

We need to ensure that there is concrete and measurable progress on the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA), which is critical for re-engagement with the United States. We must do all to fully fulfill all the conditions under ZIDERA so that verifiable progress made can be used to support advocacy for the lifting of the sanctions imposed by the US Congress under ZIDERA.

From the visit of President Chissano and I to the US last week to meet with leaders in the US Congress, Treasury Department, State Department, and other US agencies, it was very clear that there is support for this high-level dialogue, and hope that it will translate into concrete and measurable progress on the ground to inform a consideration of the lifting of the sanctions under ZIDERA.

Your Excellencies, ladies, and gentlemen,

In two decades since Zimbabwe came under sanctions, this high-level structured dialogue is the most comprehensive and action-driven process to forge a collective pathway forward for Zimbabwe. The President is involved. The ministers are involved. The whole of the government is involved. The development partners are involved. The civil society is involved. The affected farmers are involved. And the creditors are involved.

Yes, the journey may still be long; yes, there may still be some rough patches; but we are walking together and working togethergovernment, development partners, civil society, private sector, and creditors.

Broken bridges of trust are being rebuilt.

Confidence is gradually being restored.

The end is in sight, and it is one we can reach together.

This is an opportunity that must not be allowed to slip away.

What matters now is accountability.

Success on the political and electoral reforms, and a free and fair election, are crucial to clear the pathway towards arrears clearance and debt resolution for Zimbabwe.

It will bring hope to the present for Zimbabwe.

It will mark a new beginning.

A new beginning for a more peaceful, economically vibrant, and prosperous Zimbabwe.

A new beginning for a debt-free Zimbabwe.

A Zimbabwe that works for all Zimbabweans.

Zimbabwe must not fail.

And neither will we!

May God bless and help Zimbabwe.

Thank you very much.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Students drawn from the country's various tertiary institutions on Monday took to social media platforms to protest against alleged judicial capture' and weaponisation of the law against opposition members.The cited the continued incarceration of opposition CCC legislator Job Sikhala (Zengeza West). The students expressed their solidarity with Sikhala by painting graffiti at some buildings in the capital calling for his release.Zimbabwe National Students Union president Boris Muguti said they wanted to send a message to government."The primary agenda was to send a message to the regime in Harare and register our discontent against judicial capture. The message was successfully delivered," Muguti said."Students were wearing black all over the country mourning the death of democracy and the rule of law in Zimbabwe. The campaign was also a way of expressing our solidarity with the incarcerated comrades Job Sikhala and Jacob Ngarivhume."As barometers of class consciousness, we cannot afford to sit and watch while the regime continues closing the democratic space in the country."Ngarivhume was recently jailed for four years for inciting public violence. He will, however, spend three years in prison.Sikhala has been in remand prison since June last year on charges of obstructing the course of justice, inciting violence and disorderly behaviour."It's a shame that the regime has reduced the mighty Zimbabwe to a circus," Muguti said."Courts are now being used to persecute political opponents."Police said they were unaware of the protests.
News / National

by Staff reporter

FORMER Ntabazinduna chief, Felix Nhlanhlayamangwe Ndiweni, and the opposition CCC party have accused Zanu-PF of blocking attempts to have millions of Zimbabweans in the diaspora vote in general elections for fear of losing the polls."The six million in the diaspora are not' registered because the Zanu-PF government fears them. It must be scared of them (diasporans) because it was Zanu-PF which chased these people out of the country," Ndiweni, who moved to the UK after he was dethroned as chief in December 2019, posted on Twitter."The Electoral Amendment Bill is not fit for purpose and should be shredded into pieces immediately. To leave out 50% of the electorate who live in the diaspora does not make any sense."The electoral laws prohibit Zimbabweans in the diaspora from casting their votes from foreign lands.At present, it is only government employees such as diplomats who enjoy the right to vote from outside the country under postal voting.Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) diaspora focal person Patricia Chinyoka commented: "Zanu-PF is terrified of losing and they've used that as a tool to hold a grip on power."The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) is on record saying it is the duty of Parliament to make laws on electoral reforms to enable the diaspora vote.However, Chinyoka said: "The legislators have no power and those aligned to Zanu-PF will ensure the Bill doesn't go through."Zanu-PF United Kingdom chairperson Xavier Zavare, however, denied that his party was afraid of the diaspora vote."It is a very bad and dangerous assumption by Ndiweni and the opposition to assume that everyone who is out of the country is an opponent of Zanu-PF and went there running away from government. That's completely wrong and bogus," Zavare said.
Here's how rich you need to be to be among the wealthiest 1% in the US, UK, and China

You need to have a net worth of $12.4 million to be among the richest 1% of people in Monaco, according to a study by Knight Frank. Pola Damonte/Getty Images

New data from Knight Frank shows how rich you need to be to make the top 1% in 25 countries.

Monaco tops the list. You need $12.4 million to be in the European country's richest 1%.

In the US you need $5.1 million. It's $3.3 million in the UK, $1.6 million in the UAE, and $960,000 in mainland China.

You need to have a net worth of $12.4 million to be among the richest 1% of people in Monaco, according to a new study.

Data from real-estate consultancy Knight Frank's Wealth Sizing Model shows how much net wealth you need to be ranked as part of the so-called "1%" in 25 countries. Monaco, which Knight Frank says has the world's densest population of super-rich individuals, tops the list.

In second place is Switzerland, but it's a big drop from Monaco. You need $6.6 million needed to make the top 1% in the Alpine country.

Australia comes in third, at $5.5 million, followed by New Zealand at $5.2 million and the US at $5.1 million. In the UK it's $3.3 million.

The highest-ranking Asian country is Singapore, where you need $3.5 million to be in the wealthiest 1%, just ahead of Hong Kong at $3.4 million. In Japan you need $1.7 million to make the cut, whereas in mainland China it's $960,000.

In the Middle East, the UAE tops the list. You need $1.6 million to be in the country's richest 1%.

Brazil tops the list for Latin America, with citizens requiring a relatively low $430,000 to be among its top 1%.

Monaco is smaller than Central Park  but it's packed with millionaires

Monaco is only 0.78 square miles in area, making it the world's second-smallest independent state and even smaller than New York's Central Park. The European country is bordered only by France and the Mediterranean Sea. But despite its tiny size, it is densely populated  Monaco had a population of around 39,000 as of December.

Its Mediterranean climate, showcase of glamorous events, and low taxes  including a lack of income tax  have helped the country become an enclave for some of the world's richest people. In 2021 Monaco had the world's highest gross domestic produce per capita at $234,317, according to UN data, putting it ahead of Liechtenstein, at $169,260; Luxembourg, at $133,745; and Bermuda, at $112,652.

Knight Frank previously estimated that by 2026, there would be 255 people living in Monaco worth more than $30 million and close to 40,000 worth more than $1 million.

Read the original article on Business Insider
It might seem odd that a New York clothing company would decide to open its first store 3,000 miles away in San Francisco.

But the husband-and-wife team behind the Marcella clothing label said San Francisco has been a good market, and they were taken with a pedestrian-friendly Fillmore Street with lots of restaurants and other clothing retailers, including Rag & Bone and Scotch & Soda.

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When we were looking, we really saw this spot in San Francisco that appealed to us. And our catalog of apparel and accessories works really well there, said Andy Huszar, the companys chief executive and cofounder with his wife, Siyana Huszar, the creative director.

On Friday, the companys first retail outpost opens at 2029 Fillmore Street, a 900-square-foot store carrying the brands ready-to-wear, footwear and handbags. The labels designs have a minimalist attitude with an edge that is heavy in solid colors that can go from day to night.

For their first step into retail, the Huszars partnered with Leap Inc., a company that finds locations and operates stores for brands wishing to expand to physical locations. The Fillmore Street location was previously occupied by Naadam, a cashmere clothing company that also works with Leap Inc.

The Huszars plan to open a flagship closer to home in New York City once they can find the right location. Eventually, they hope to have 10 retail stores established in the next two years, they said.

A dress that can go from day to night.

Setting up retail is a big step for a brand that started out more as a hobby than a business. Siyana launched her budding clothing collection on Etsy in 2010, when she was working for a bank and a few years before she met her husband. The aspiring designer, who grew up in Bulgaria, learned her design skills from her grandmother, Marcella Papazian, a fashion designer who carved out a career in Bulgaria when women didnt have as much opportunity as they do today.

Siyanas business on Etsy grew slowly before it mushroomed. By that time, the Huszars, who met on Match.com in 2012, were still working in the financial world. But Andy saw how well his wifes side business was doing on Etsy and encouraged her to quit her job in 2014 to grow the company. Then in 2017, when Marcella became the No. 2 grossing fashion brand on the overall Etsy platform of 2 million businesses, thats when I quit my job, the CEO recalled.

Andy and Siyana Huszar

In late 2019, they launched their own e-commerce site and have been expanding ever since with production in Bulgaria, where the company works with 25 factories and has its own manufacturing facility. All fabric is sourced from nearby countries including Greece, Turkey, Italy and France. Producing in Bulgaria doesnt require large minimum orders, and shipments arrive in the United States in four to six weeks.

With efficient manufacturing and little waste, Marcellas prices are often 25 percent to 75 percent lower than its competitors. For example, a slim-fit jersey dress with batwing sleeves is available online for $98, and wide-legged pleated trousers made of poly/viscose sell for $135. Tops, which make up 30 percent of sales, are found in the $65 to $88 range.

Those prices have helped drive the companys rapid growth. In 2021, Marcella had $9 million in revenues, Andy said. That nearly doubled last year to almost $18 million. The last few years have been a wild, wild ride, Andy admitted.

Managing that growth hasnt been easy, but it helps that Siyana and Andy come from business and financial backgrounds. Siyana has an MBA from Emory University and worked at ING for nearly seven years. Andy has an MBA and a law degree from Columbia University and worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Morgan Stanley for several years.

Despite the wild ride, the Huszars maintain their mission to help women and girls have a better life. Marcella partners with the Campaign for Female Education, a non-governmental organization whose mission is to eradicate poverty in sub-Saharan Africa by educating girls and empowering young women. For every clothing item sold, Marcella supports three days of school for a marginalized girl. So far, the company has provided 730,000 school days for girls.

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Click here to read the full article.
by Tony Jarvis , Op-Ed Contributor, May 18, 2023

An Advertising Research Foundation (ARF) webinar on Tuesday was billed as A Laymans Guide to Cross Media Reach & Frequency Measurement Using Virtual IDs, but you needed some expertise to follow it.

While the ARF is developing a white paper on it, the subjects cornerstone  utilizing virtual IDs to achieve reach & frequency estimates across TV and digital media platforms  currently is stymied by a knowledge gap, remarked Association of National Advertisers (ANA) Executive Vice President Jackson Bazley.

The virtual IDs  or VIDs  are associated with various media devices and and platforms and include virtual profiles of the people they represent.

The VID database is then calibrated to a representative online panel, as well as census data.

The use of VIDs is driven by consumer privacy concerns. And as hairy is it might be, VID methodologies are still evolving, observed Sequent Partners Jim Spaeth.

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My own takeaway: The use of VIDs exudes doing very precise things with some very imprecise data, notably media consumption data.

The VID initiative is an evolution of the ANA Cross-Media Measurement Initiative (CMMI), although it is only addressing TV and digital at this time.

What are the driving forces for advertisers? Their concerns around waste related to excessive campaign frequency, plus achieving adequate target reach to achieve cost effective brand outcomes.

The goal is to understand reach and frequency and its relationship to media delivery, media content and environment, creative impact and brand outcomes, which will significantly improve planning and buying.

Improving consumer experience while respecting their privacy, offers another win-win.

Critically the ANA insists that CMMI will not serve as a media currency.

During the webinar, constant references were made to digital events, set-top boxes, automatic content recognition (ACR), and transactional data associated with virtual people via their devices. In other words, all the media consumption data is merely circulation or distribution data.

If accredited by the Media Rating Council (MRC), the output would essentially be what the council designates as viewable impressions, aka content-rendered counts.

The ad industrys burgeoning attention economy focuses on the relative value of human attention measures vs. viewable impressions, or digital event metrics.

Attention metrics offer truly meaningful insights into content appeal, creative impact, and brand campaign outcomes. Dont take my word for it, just ask attention metrics suppliers like Lumen Research, Adelaide or TVision.

Using content circulation, distribution or viewable impressions measures, even if based on accredited methodologies and independently verified, is surely media measurement from 50 years ago.

Advertisers want to reduce ad campaign waste and drive optimal brand outcomes. It can be driven by managing relevant quality throughout the entire campaign development process to understand true price/value relationships.

Without a persons eyes/ears-on  or attention  there can be no outcomes. As the MRCs George Ivie opined, you may not even have a person at the device, but the content could be viewable.

Use of Big Data, VIDs and digital device-based events are an important piece of the media/campaign measurement puzzle. However, was there an elephant in the webinar room? You decide.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, May 18, 2023

The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously ruled that terror victims can't proceed with a lawsuit claiming that social media companies aided and abetted attacks by allegedly failing to remove terrorists' posts.

In opinion issued by Justice Clarence Thomas, the court said that failing to take down posts by terrorists isn't the kind of intentional assistance that would establish liability for aiding and abetting terrorism.

There is no allegation that the platforms here do more than transmit information by billions of people, most of whom use the platforms for interactions that once took place via mail, on the phone, or in public areas, Thomas wrote. The fact that some bad actors took advantage of these platforms is insufficient to state a claim that defendants knowingly gave substantial assistance and thereby aided and abetted those wrongdoers acts.

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The ruling reversed a decision issued by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which said victims of a January 2017 Islamic State attack at the Reina nightclub in Istanbul could proceed with a claim that the companies violated the Anti-Terrorism Act.

That law enables people harmed by international terrorism to sue anyone who knowingly provides substantial assistance to foreign terrorist organizations.

The family's theory was that the social media companies assisted terrorists by failing to take down their posts and, in some cases, recommending terrorists' posts to other users.

U.S. District Court Judged Edward Chen in the Northern District of California dismissed the lawsuit on the grounds that the allegations, even if proven true, wouldn't show the companies violated the Anti-Terrorism Act.

The family appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which reinstated the claims, writing that the complaint's allegations, if true, could prove that the platforms aided and abetted terrorism.

The tech companies then appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that failing to police the use of routine services that are available to the public isn't aiding and abetting terrorism.

The Supreme Court agreed with the tech companies.

As alleged by plaintiffs, defendants designed virtual platforms and knowingly failed to do 'enough' to remove ISIS-affiliated users and ISIS-related content -- out of hundreds of millions of users worldwide and an immense ocean of content -- from their platforms, Thomas wrote. Yet, plaintiffs have failed to allege that defendants intentionally provided any substantial aid to the Reina attack or otherwise consciously participated in the Reina attack -- much less that defendants so pervasively and systemically assisted ISIS as to render them liable for every ISIS attack.

Thomas also wrote that even if the companies used algorithms to recommend terrorist videos, those recommendations didn't constitute aiding and abetting terrorism.

The algorithms appear agnostic as to the nature of the content, matching any content (including ISIS content) with any user who is more likely to view that content, he wrote. The fact that these algorithms matched some ISIS content with some users thus does not convert defendants passive assistance into active abetting.

The matter was one of two cases to come before the Supreme Court this year regarding tech companies' liability for terrorism. The other case centered on Google's potential liability for allegedly recommending videos posted by ISIS members.

That case was brought by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, a California State University student who was killed in a terror attack in Paris.

Google argued it was protected by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which shields companies from lawsuits over material posted by third parties.

The 9th Circuit sided with Google in that matter, ruling that Section 230 of the Communications Act immunizes Google from liability for users' content, as well as for recommending users' posts.

The family then appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that Section 230 shouldn't protect companies over their recommendations.

The Supreme Court dodged that question Thursday. Instead, the court sent the lawsuit back to the 9th Circuit, but indicated that the matter should be dismissed for the same reasons as the lawsuit over the Reina attack.
Sourcing Journal, Thursday, May 18, 2023 5:37 PM

H&M is fighting off a class-action lawsuit accusing it of overstating its sustainability claims (a practice also known as greenwashing), while Nike's fight over a similar complaint is just beginning. An Eastern District of Missouri judge dismissed claims against H&M under Missouris Merchandising Practices Act citing their failure to state claims against the fast-fashion giant. "Nikes own brewing class-action lawsuit, filed May 10 in the Eastern District of Missouri, treads a familiar path as H&Ms, with plaintiff Maria Guadalupe Ellis claiming that the sportswear Goliath is deceiving consumers by 'falsely and misleadingly' marketing its products as 'sustainable,' 'made with sustainable materials' and 'environmentally friendly' while supporting a 'Move to Zero,' a reference to Nikes campaign to generate zero carbon and zero waste," per Sourcing Journal.

Read the whole story at Sourcing Journal 
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Optimi Health Corp. (CSE: OPTI) (OTCQX: OPTHF) (FRA: 8BN) (Optimi or the Company), an end-to-end drug researcher and formulator licensed by Health Canada to produce and supply, for clinical research purposes and in controlled patient markets, psychedelic substances such as 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), GMP-grade psilocybin, along with natural health product formulations, is pleased to announce the completion of its harvest of Psilocybe cubensis earmarked for export to Australia.



This milestone builds off the previously announced commitment to supply both its GMP medical-grade psilocybin extract and MDMA to Mind Medicine Australia in advance of the historic rescheduling of these substances to be enacted on July 1, 2023.



investors@optimihealth.ca

www.optimihealth.ca

www.sedar.com
One of the most coveted and prestigious film festivals is happening and everyones social media feed is literally all about the Cannes Film Festival.



While most people only know that its a film fest happening in Cannes attended by the biggest names of the movie industries around the globe, theres so much more to know.

Here are some interesting facts about this years Cannes festival that you probably didnt know:

1. Pricing of the ticket

Like the Met Gala, the Cannes festival also comes with tickets ranging between $6100 and $25000,which is anywhere between Rs 5 and Rs 20.6 lakhs.

2. Prizes For Winners

Its been an inquisitive thought to wonder what do the winners of the festival actually get, or do they get anything at all. According to The Sun, the winners of the prestigious Palme d'Or Grand Prix mostly make it big with the respect and the exposure that comes with this recognition.

Talking about the monetary aspect, the Leica Cine Discovery Prize for Short Film awards is 3,500, and the Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star prize awards is 4,400 to the best actor/actress for their debut film.

3. Grand Indian Stars Debuting This Year

While Aishwarya Rai remains a regular at this festival, this year well be seeing actresses like Anushka Sharma, Sara Ali Khan, Esha Gupta and Manushi Chillar, who are making their red carpet Cannes debut.

4. Indian Chef Taking The Festival By A Storm

No event is complete without some lip smacking food, right? Talking about gastronomical diaries, Chef Prateek Sadhu is whipping some insane Indian delicacies for the Indian pavilion this year.

Amongst the dishes hell be presenting, a famous Khasi dish called Tungrymbai, which is made from fermented soya beans will be a major highlight. There will be pepper fry, Millet Thoran representing South India, accompanied by some tasty Shondesh, Mysore Pak and Chikki.

5. Indian Films Being Present At The Festival

Talking about our movies, this year we have Anurag Kashyaps Kennedy, Kanu Behls Agra, Yudhajit Basus Nehemich, and Aribam Syam Sharmas Ishanou which will be representing our cinematic world on the global stage.
By Sabine Siebold

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO will step back to the future at its Vilnius summit in July, with leaders set to approve thousands of pages of secret military plans that will detail for the first time since the Cold War how the alliance would respond to a Russian attack.

The move signifies a fundamental shift - NATO had seen no need to draw up large-scale defence plans for decades, as it fought smaller wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and felt certain post-Soviet Russia no longer posed an existential threat.

But with Europe's bloodiest war since 1945 raging just beyond its borders in Ukraine, the alliance is now warning that it must have all planning in place well before a conflict with a peer adversary such as Moscow might erupt.

"The fundamental difference between crisis management and collective defence is this: It is not we but our adversary who determines the timeline," said Admiral Rob Bauer, one of NATO's top military officials. "We have to prepare for the fact that conflict can present itself at any time."

By outlining what it calls its regional plans, NATO will also give nations guidance on how to upgrade their forces and logistics.

"Allies will know exactly what forces and capabilities are needed, including where, what and how to deploy," said NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg about the highly classified documents that will, as in the Cold War, assign certain troops to the defence of certain regions.

This formalises a process triggered by Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, which prompted Western allies for the first time to deploy combat troops to the east, with Britain, Canada and Germany each taking the lead in one of the Baltic states.

NOT A COLD WAR RE-RUN

But while many features resemble NATO's military line-up before 1990, some crucial factors have changed for an alliance that has since then expanded some 1,000 km (600 miles) to the east and grown from around a dozen to 31 members.

Finland's accession last month has alone doubled NATO's border with Russia to some 2,500 km, forcing a more flexible approach to deployments than in the past, when Germany was seen as the main battlezone.

Also, the alliance is no longer preparing to fight a large-scale nuclear war against Moscow and its allies - most of whom are now NATO members - said Ian Hope, historian at NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE).

"We don't envision the type of war that the Cold War was, where allied forces ... would be hit simultaneous with large-scale Warsaw Pact attacks," he said, pointing rather to regionalised conflicts that needed to be contained by quick force deployments.

At the same time, the internet, drones, hypersonic weapons and a rapid flow of information present new challenges.

"The good news is that we talk about the transparency of the battlefield. With all the satellites, with all the intel we're able to see a maturing crisis," said Lieutenant General Hubert Cottereau, SHAPE's Vice Chief of Staff. "For Ukraine, we had all the indicators quite in advance."

This transparency is one of the reasons why NATO, contrary to the Baltic states' demands, does not see any immediate need to ramp up troop numbers in the east.

"The more troops you are massing up on the border, it's like having a hammer. At some point, you want to find a nail," warned Cottereau. "If the Russians are massing troops on the border that will make us nervous, if we are massing troops on the border that will make them nervous."

CHALLENGES

Still, it will be a huge task to drastically improve readiness. NATO agreed in 2022 to put 300,000 troops on high alert, up from 40,000 in the past.

Shortcomings in the alliance's capacity to produce sufficient weapons and ammunition have been highlighted by the struggle to keep pace with Ukraine's demands, and NATO must also upgrade the long-neglected logistics needed to quickly deploy troops via rail or road.

The need to finance the implementation of the regional plans is one of the reasons why Stoltenberg has called upon leaders to raise the alliance's military spending target, another topic that will be discussed in Vilnius.

NATO officials estimate it will take a few years for the plans to be fully implemented, though they stress that the alliance can head into battle immediately if required.

"We are ready to fight tonight. You know, you are never sufficiently ready. Never," said Cottereau. "We have to be able to fight tonight if necessary, with what we have."

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Additional reporting by Andrew Gray; Editing by Alex Richardson)
Get thee to New Yorks museums and get thee to them now. Life in the Big Apple begins anew in springtime and arriving with it is a bounty of new exhibitions and goings-on at the citys many museums and cultural institutions. The first Monday in May heralds the start of the most anticipated of them alla new installation at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts Costume Institute, christened by the annual Met Gala extravaganza. But aside from this, the Met and its peers are just as busy with a myriad of other exhibits to cater to every type of museum-goerfind our guide below.

David Zwirner Gallery, 19th Street

Spanning three of David Zwirners gallery spaceslocated side-by-side at 519, 525, and 533 West 19th Streetand running from May 11-July 21, I Spend Each Day Embracing Flowers is one of the most ambitious gallery displays of the beloved Japanese artist Yayoi Kusamas work to date. Its also all newnew sculptures next to new paintings next to a brand new infinity mirror installation. The exhibition is free and operates on a first-come, first-served basis, and each visitors time within the Infinity Mirrored Room is clocked to ensure that everyone who shows up will get a chance to see it for themselves.

Installation view, *Yayoi Kusama: I Spend Each Day Embracing Flowers*\ **YAYOI KUSAMA/Courtesy of David Zwirner**

Senior editor Megan Spurrell checked it out: You're going to wait in a long line to get into the infinity roomit was at least 50-75-people deep when I dropped by at lunchtime on a Tuesdaythough you can subscribe to David Zwirner's email list for a chance to cut the queue. Inside, it is pretty amazingand a lot more colorful than most of her other infinity rooms. The good news: It's totally free, and you can just walk in off the street, zero wait, to the hangar-style space housing her massive flower sculptures."

Knockdown Center

If youve heard of Knockdown Center in Maspeth, Queens, its probably in its context as a music venue. Indeed, the multipurpose space will, per usual, host a bevy of exciting programming in the summer monthsWire Festival, an unofficial summer kick-off, is a celebration of international electronic music that runs from May 19-20 and brings DJs, art installations, panel discussions, and more to the Centers enormous atrium. All the while, Knockdowns sprawling industrial campus houses temporary art exhibitions that are worth checking out. Artists are encouraged, at present and on a rolling basis, to submit self-designed flags to the Philip von Zweck project Temporary Allegianceselected flags will fly for two weeks each from the 40-foot flagpole that greets visitors at Knockdown Centers entrance. In collaboration with Queens gallery Mrs., theres also the new mural Vessels by Mark Mulroney, which is on display in the East Corridor through September 4.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Following the Met Gala festivities, the Costume Institutes 2023 exhibition opens to the public on May 5. A dedicated love letter to the career of the late Karl Lagerfeldthe creative director that made Chanel, Fendi, and Chloe the brands they are todayKarl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty collages some 150 pieces of clothing from the aforementioned houses (ranging from his first creative expressions in the 1950s to his final 2019 Chanel collection) with the designers sketches and other juxtaposed multimedia footage.

Karl Lagerfeld - A Line of Beauty_Dress, House of CHANEL (French, founded 1910), Spring-Summer 2019 Haute Couture; Courtesy Patrimoine de CHANEL, Paris. Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo  Julia Hetta The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Julia Hetta

Karl Lagerfeld - A Line of Beauty_Sketch of CHANEL dress, Spring-Summer 2019 Haute Couture; Courtesy Patrimoine de CHANEL, Paris. Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The exhibition presupposes that most modern designers (read: anyone designing clothes in a post-Lagerfeld world) strive to take on Lagerfelds legacy in one way or another. His artistic pursuitsmeticulous sketching, namely, and an obsession with modernityare only part of this. Lagerfeld-as-impresariothe discerning, collecting, black-and-white uniform-donning personalitysome would say almost eclipsed his work. Each room presents contrasting lines of interest for Lagerfeld; artisanal versus mechanical, floral versus geometric, rococo versus classical. But things get interesting when they drop that approach in the final room and focus on the satiricalthis room is full of tongue-in-cheek references to Lagerfelds own celebrity as well as some unexpected acts of kitsch, camp, and whimsy (think a dress embroidered with a candlestick so that the wearers head pops out of the wick).

If you find yourself at the Met on or after May 22, youd be remiss to miss out on Van Goghs Cypresses, which will run through August 27.

Museum of the Moving Image

Astorias fabulous Museum of the Moving Image launched Cinema of Sensations: The Never-Ending Screen of Val del Omar in Marchthis is the first major stateside exhibition of Spanish photographer Jose Val del Omars immersive cinematic works. Open through October 1, this exhibit functions almost as a deconstructed filmmuseumgoers effectively step through the camera and into scenes, moving amid Val del Omars photographs, archival materials, films, and inventions. International contemporary artistseveryone from Sally Golding and Matt Spendlove to Basque filmmaking pair Duo Prismaticas (comprised of Aitziber Olaskoaga and Pilar Monsell)have supplied pieces to further augment the experience.

Elsewhere at MoMI, The Jim Henson Exhibition is an ongoing tribute to its namesakes work on shows like The Muppets, Sesame Street, The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, and more. Be sure to say hello to Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Elmo, Big Bird, and all of their friends (47 puppets are included in a collection of some 300 total artifacts).

The American Museum of Natural History

Across Central Park on the Upper West Side, a whole new building at the American Museum of Natural History makes its debut. The Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation opened May 4 and, among many other things, brings all kinds of bugs to NYC. Manhattans newest residents live in the Gilder Centers vast and impressive insectarium and vivarium, which between them account for all sorts of butterflies and some 500,000 leafcutter ants, among others. Theres also Invisible Worlds, an immersive experience that will have even skeptics of such installations (that have swept through cities the world over since Van Goghs swirls starred in an episode of Emily in Paris a few years back) darting around guiding water through root systems with their feet. The true highlight, whether or not you're a fan of architectural wizardry, is the Jeanne Gang-designed building itself. Swirling upward with no dead ends and an artfully-incorporated Collections Core, this Derinkuyu-esque beauty fills the viewer with a wonder so childlike that this writer may or may not have teared up a bit at the sheer joy of getting to walk around in it.

Sanle Sory/Tezeta/Courtesy David Hill Gallery

Brooklyn Museum

Manhattan is not the only borough with an exceptional fashion exhibition in the coming months. The Brooklyn Museum, located a few blocks east from Grand Army Plaza and the mouth of Prospect Park, is preparing to open Africa Fashion on June 23. This will be the largest-ever presentation of its kind in North America, highlighting the continents creativity and global impact from the independence eras beginning to today. With an eye towards the future, the exhibit will feature fashions from contemporary designers including Thebe Magugu (South Africa), Lafalaise Dion (Cote dIvoire), and Gouled Ahmed (Djibouti), as well as some very exciting names that have yet to be announced. If last autumns fabulous Mugler exhibit is any indication, this will be very special.

The Brooklyn Museum is also bracing for the opening of the citys buzziest Picasso retrospective (there will be more to come as part of the global Picasso celebrations to mark 50 years since the iconic painters death). Its Pablo-matic: Picasso According to Hannah Gadsby opens June 2do not let the pun of the title, nor questions around comedian Gadsby serving as curator, deter you from attending. This exhibition promises prominent Picasso pieces from the Musee Picasso, Museum of Modern Art, and the museums own as well as private collections for your viewing pleasure, along with conversation with twentieth- and twenty-first century feminist artists such as Cindy Sherman and Laurie Simmons.

Whitney Museum of American Art

Now through August, the Whitney is presenting Jaune Quick-to-See Smith: Memory Map, the first New York retrospective on the long-undersung Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation artist. On display here are Smiths drawings, prints, paintings, and sculptures, fine examples of American Pop art and Neo-Expressionism. Within the same window, the museum has Josh Kline: Project for a New American Centurya collection of moving image, science-fiction works examining the potential futures on our horizon with an eye towards the climate crisis.

Jonathan Dorado

Museum of Modern Art

The folks at MoMas main headquarters are busy as ever, with five major exhibitions on the docket for the spring and summer season. Already underway through August 12, Georgia OKeeffe: To See Takes Time showcases over 120 pieces from four decades of OKeeffes portfolioexpect works on paper and key paintings sorted by their key motifs for a better appreciation of the ideas OKeeffe would return to time and time again.

Coming soon to Midtown is The Encounter: Barbara Chase-Riboud/Alberto Giacometti (May 5-October 9), a collection inspired by the Paris meeting of two expatriate sculptors in 1962. Then, American Barbara Chase-Riboud paid the first of several visits to Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacomettis Montparsse studio. Now, their sculptures will share a gallery at MoMA in celebration of what became a shared visual language. MoMAs New Photography exhibition series also returns on May 28, this time featuring seven artists from Lagoss art community.

MoMA PS1

Over in Long Island City, MoMA PS1 has no less on offer than its sister institution. The highlight here is Standing on the Corner: Seven Prepared Pianos for the Seven African Powers (June 1October 9), where avant-garde musical ensemble Standing on the Corner will unveil an exciting audiovisual exhibition concerned with the African and Puerto Rico diasporic communities in New York City. Plan your visit around set performance dates, to be announced, for live accompaniment, but even if you wind up wandering through during off-hours, youll still be able to enjoy the installation.

Installa(on view, Sarah Sze: Timelapse, Slice, 2023, March 31September 10, 2023, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. Photo: David Heald  Solomon R. Guggenheim Founda(on, New York David Heald/Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation

Deborah Feingold

Soloman R. Guggenheim Museum

A more romantic take on Picasso can be found at the Guggenheim, where Young Picasso in Paris will open May 12 and run through August 6. With just 10 works, all created within a single year of the artists stay in the French capital, this is an intense yet lovely look at a lesser-known period of Picassos career with the Guggenheim collections own Le Moulin de la Galette (1900) as the star. Guggenheims other two exhibitions Sarah Sze: Timelapse and Gego: Measuring Infinity opened on March 31 and run through September 10the former, full of Szes site-specific interventions meditating on the digital age; the latter, a stimulating collection of sculpture and textile from one of the great twentieth-century artists.

The Morgan Library & Museum

Utterly austere and always educational, a visit to Murray Hills Morgan Library would be worthwhile even if the built-in bookshelves and paneled walls inside were totally barren. This historic site, once the private library of financier J. Pierpont Morgan, is beautiful for its architecture old and new (Renzo Piano oversaw an expansion of the site in 2006). Joining the already impressive permanent collectionan original copy of the Declaration of Independence, a handwritten Mozart score, et cetera et ceterathis summer are a bevy of temporary exhibitions. Most eye-catching is Blaise Cendrars (18871961): Poetry Is Everything, which runs May 26 through September 24 and features the poetics of the globetrotting Cendrars, who in his life called Switzerland, St. Petersburg, New York City, Sao Paulo, and Paris home. The installation fuses Cendrarss work with visual artsexpect to see juxtaposed work from Jean Cocteau, Igor Stravinsky, and more.

Originally Appeared on Conde Nast Traveler
Submitted photo/Suzanne Robinson

MANISTEE  Suzanne Robinsons ninth grade Michigan history students at Manistee Catholic Central recently completed a history project of their hometown.

Each student researched their home town and completed an I Am Manistee project board. In a news release, Robinson said the students learned about Manistees historical figures, buildings and businesses.
MANISTEE  Jake Charette's sixth grade science class at Manistee Catholic Central spent around six months raising salmon from eggs to smolt, and recently the students took a trip to the Little Manistee River Weir to release the fish into the wild.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources' Salmon in the Classroom program "helps hundreds of third through 12th grade classrooms across the state to raise, learn from and release young Chinook salmon in approved waterways," according to the DNR website.
Photos provided/Michigan State Police Seventh District

Update as of 4:23 p.m. Thursday: Dylan Dostert, 16, and Bailie Smith, 15, who goes by Zane, were located and detained in Bowling Green, Ohio, according to Michigan State Police. Arrangements are being made for the parents to pick them up.

Troopers for the Michigan State Police Cadillac Post ask for help from residents in locating two missing teenagers traveling together.
After her lawsuit to shut down the Line 5 petroleum pipeline in Michigan court was stalled, Attorney General Dana Nessel looks to get the job done in Wisconsin.

Nessel announced Wednesday she filed an amicus brief supporting the efforts of the Wisconsin-based Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians of the Bad River Reservation. Last week, the tribe asked a federal court in Wisconsin for an emergency shutdown of Line 5 after rising waters brought on by spring eroded a riverbank near the pipeline on tribal land, according to a press release.

The rising waters of the Bad River near Superior, Wisconsin, have caused extreme erosion along the banks of the river and dramatically increased the likelihood that the Line 5 pipeline will rupture, according to Nessels office in the release.

In 2022, the court concluded that the presence of Line 5 on the Bad River Reservation constitutes a trespass. But, the court did not order an immediate shutdown or rerouting of the pipeline. At the time, more than 30 feet of riverbank separated Line 5 from the waters edge.

But intense recent erosion this spring has rapidly eaten away the bank, with one location losing over 10 feet of the bank in a single week. As a result, several areas have as little as 11 feet of riverbank between Line 5 and the waters edge.

Suppose the water reaches the Line 5 pipeline. In that case, it will be vulnerable to rupture due to the force of currents, debris strikes or erosion of the ground beneath the pipeline leaving the pipeline suspended without adequate support, Nessels office wrote in the release.

A pipeline rupture would release oil and natural gas liquids into the Bad River, which flows directly into Lake Superior 16 miles downstream.

In the amicus brief filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Nessel backed the tribes efforts and asked judges to consider the People of the State of Michigan and others who will be irreparably harmed by a release of Enbridges oil into Lake Superior.

Nessel argued that the risk of a rupture outweighs any posed by a shutdown.

Lake Superior is a priceless natural and cultural resource and, like all the Great Lakes, it is vital to our way of life in Michigan, Nessel said in the Wednesday release. As Attorney General, I owe a duty to the people of Michigan to protect all of Michigans waters, not only for us today but also for future generations. I will always do everything in my power to protect the Great Lakes from the threat posed by those who care more about their bottom line than about Michigans residents and natural resources.

The owner of Line 5, Canadian oil giant Enbridge Energy, said it continues to operate normally and safely across the Bad River Reservation, according to Ryan Duffy, a spokesperson for the company.

Enbridges filing asks Judge Conley to reject the Bad River Bands request to shut down Line 5 because the pipe is not exposed, it is completely covered by multiple feet of soil; there is no pipeline safety issue, no emergency and no reason to shut down Line 5, Duffy wrote in an email.

A permanent injunction at the Bad River would effectively terminate Line 5s operations in whole, causing severe consequences for people and industries in both the U.S. and Canada, as was demonstrated by the evidence submitted during the trial in this case, Duffy continued. "Such an injunction would also violate the treaty between the U.S. and Canada designed to protect the flow of energy between the nations.

In declarations supporting Enbridges opposition to Bad Rivers motion for a preliminary injunction, Plains Midstream wrote that shutting down Line 5 would force the closure of their facilities at Rapid River and Superior and would have a devastating impact on consumers and propane prices in the region, according to Duffy.

Other refineries state they would either face the same fate or have to severely curtail operations, and consumers would face shortages and price spikes. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce predicted, thousands of jobs would be lost in both Canada and the U.S.

Enbridge has proposed numerous plans to reinforce the riverbank and stop erosion at whats known as the Meander on the Bad River, Duffy said. The company needs the Bands approval to move forward with these plans, but the Band has refused to approve any of Enbridges erosion control measures to date and has given no timeframe for when it may allow this work. As a permanent solution, Enbridge submitted federal and state permit applications in 2020 to re-route this segment of Line 5 around the Bad River Band reservation. Enbridge has acquired the necessary landowner permissions and is prepared to start the relocation project as soon as all permits are received.

Nessel filed a lawsuit in state court in June 2019 to decommission Line 5, saying it was a grave threat to Michigan and the Great Lakes.

Nessel and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer promised on the campaign trail in 2018 to close Enbridges Line 5, which starts in Wisconsin and passes through Michigans peninsulas before ending in Canada. The line, operating under a nearly 70-year state easement, has been a cause of concern among environmental advocates, who worry an oil spill from it would be catastrophic for the Great Lakes and shorelines.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinsteins office said Thursday that she is suffering from Ramsay Hunt syndrome, a complication from the shingles virus that can paralyze part of the face, and that she contracted encephalitis while recovering from the virus earlier this year.

Feinstein, 89, had not previously disclosed those medical details, though she said in a statement last week that she had suffered complications from the virus. The longtime California senator returned from a more than two-month absence on May 10 after weeks of questions about her declining health and whether she would be back in the Senate at all.

Adam Russell, a spokesman for Feinstein, said that the encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain, resolved itself shortly after she was released from the hospital in March. Feinstein continues to have complications from the Ramsay Hunt syndrome, Russell said.

Russell confirmed the two complications after the New York Times first reported them, raising questions about whether she had been hiding the extent of her illnesses. Upon her return last week, Feinstein was using a wheelchair and noticeably thinner, and has appeared confused at times when speaking to reporters or being wheeled through the halls.

The senator previously disclosed that she had several complications related to her shingles diagnosis, Russell said in the statement. As discussed in the New York Times article, those complications included Ramsay Hunt syndrome and encephalitis.

Feinsteins face has appeared partially paralyzed since she returned to the Senate, stirring some speculation about whether she had had a stroke. Ramsay Hunt syndrome is a complication that occurs when the shingles virus reaches a facial nerve near the ears. It can also cause hearing loss.

Encephalitis can also be caused by shingles. The swelling of the brain can have a number of different symptoms, including personality changes, seizures, stiffness, confusion and problems with sight or hearing, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Aides to Feinstein said last week that she is still recovering from her illness and would operate on a reduced schedule. Since she has returned, she has missed some votes where she was not needed. On Wednesday, for example, she missed the first three Senate votes of the day but appeared for the last two, in which the margin was much closer.

Feinstein has faced questions for several years about her clearly declining health and her mental acuity. In February Feinstein said she would not run for re-election in 2024.

But some Democrats have pushed for her to leave sooner. A member of the California congressional delegation, Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, called on her to resign as she stayed away from Washington for more than ten weeks, and several other House progressives have echoed his call. And Senate Democrats were increasingly anxious during Feinstein's absence as they were unable to confirm some of President Joe Bidens judicial nominees with a narrow 51-49 majority.

As Democrats worried, Feinstein made an unusual request to be temporarily replaced on the Judiciary panel while she remained out of the Senate. But Republicans last month blocked a vote, saying there was little precedent for a temporary committee replacement and that they didnt want to help Democrats confirm the most partisan judges. Others said they thought Democrats were unfairly trying to push her out of office.

Two weeks later, Democrats said that Feinstein would return to Washington.

A senator for more than three decades, Feinstein has had a groundbreaking political career and shattered gender barriers. She was the first woman to serve as president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in the 1970s and the first female mayor of San Francisco. She ascended to that post after the November 1978 assassinations of then-Mayor George Moscone and City Supervisor Harvey Milk by a former supervisor, Dan White. Feinstein found Milks body.

In the Senate, she was the first woman to head the Senate Intelligence Committee and the first woman to serve as the Judiciary Committees top Democrat.
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HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  Leaders of the world's most powerful democracies warned China and North Korea against building up their nuclear arsenals, pivoting to major northeast Asian crises ahead of the arrival later Saturday of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The focus on Asia at the Group of Seven summit comes as leaders tighten sanctions meant to punish Moscow and change the course of its 15-month invasion of Ukraine. Japan confirmed that Zelenskyy's decision to attend the G7 in person stemmed from his strong wish to participate in talks that will influence his nation's defense against Russia.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that President Joe Biden and Zelenskyy would have direct engagement at the summit, a day after Biden announced his support for training Ukrainian pilots on U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, a precursor to eventually providing those aircraft to Ukraines Air Force.

World leaders have faced a high-stakes balancing act in Hiroshima as they look to address a raft of global worries demanding urgent attention, including climate change, AI, poverty and economic instability, nuclear proliferation and, above all, the war in Ukraine.

China, the world's No. 2 economy, sits at the nexus of many of those concerns.

There is increasing anxiety in Asia that Beijing, which has been steadily building up its nuclear bomb program, could try to seize Taiwan by force, sparking a wider conflict. China claims the self-governing island as its own and regularly sends ships and warplanes near it.

The G7 leaders issued a statement warning that China's accelerating build-up of its nuclear arsenal without transparency (or) meaningful dialogue poses a concern to global and regional stability.

North Korea, which has been testing missiles at a torrid pace in an attempt to perfect a nuclear program meant to target the mainland United States, must completely abandon its nuclear bomb ambitions, the leaders said, "including any further nuclear tests or launches that use ballistic missile technology. North Korea cannot and will never have the status of a nuclear-weapon State under" international nuclear treaties, the statement said.

The green light on F-16 training is the latest shift by the Biden administration as it moves to arm Ukraine with more advanced and lethal weaponry, following earlier decisions to send rocket launcher systems and Abrams tanks. The United States has insisted that it is sending weapons to Ukraine to defend itself and has discouraged attacks by Ukraine into Russian territory.

Weve reached a moment where it is time to look down the road again to say what is Ukraine going to need as part of a future force, to be able to deter and defend against Russian aggression as we go forward, Sullivan said.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity to brief reporters on the deliberations, said Zelenskyy will take part in two separate sessions Sunday. The first session will be with G7 members only and will focus on the war in Ukraine. The second session will include the G7 as well as the other nations invited to take part in the summit, and will focus on peace and stability.

The G7 leaders also used their summit to roll out a new wave of global sanctions on Moscow as well as plans to enhance the effectiveness of existing financial penalties meant to constrain President Vladimir Putins war effort.

Our support for Ukraine will not waver, the G7 leaders said in a statement released after closed-door meetings. They vowed to stand together against Russias illegal, unjustifiable and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.

Russia started this war and can end this war, they said.

Zelenskyy has consistently called for the supply of Western fighter jets to bolster his countrys defenses against Russias invasion, but has until now faced skepticism from the United States that they would turn the tide in the war.

Now, as Ukraine has improved its air defenses with a host of Western-supplied anti-aircraft systems and prepares to launch a counteroffensive against Russia, officials believe the jets could become useful in the battle and essential to the countrys long-term security.

Biden's decisions on when, how many, and who will provide the fourth-generation F-16 fighter jets will be made in the months ahead while the training is underway, Biden told leaders.

The F-16 training is to be conducted in Europe and will likely begin in the coming weeks. Thats according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss Bidens private conversations with allies.

Zelenskyy said Friday that he had opened a visit to Saudi Arabia, where Arab leaders were holding their own summit.

The latest sanctions aimed at Russia include tighter restrictions on already-sanctioned people and firms involved in the war effort. More than 125 individuals and organizations across 20 countries have been hit with U.S. sanctions. The financial penalties have been primarily focused on sanctions evaders connected to technology procurement for the Kremlin. The Commerce Department also added 71 firms to its own list.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Friday sanctions will further tighten the vise on Putins ability to wage his barbaric invasion and will advance our global efforts to cut off Russian attempts to evade sanctions.

In addition, new reporting requirements were issued for people and firms that have any interest in Russian Central Bank assets. The purpose is to fully map holdings of Russias sovereign assets that will remain immobilized in G7 jurisdictions until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine, the U.S. Treasury Department said.

Russia is now the most-sanctioned country in the world, but there are questions about the effectiveness.

Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said going into the summit that while G7 countries deserve credit for their sanctions, Russia still maintains capacity to fight this war in the long term.

She added that war's costs are "easily manageable for Russia in the next couple of years at least, and the cumulative effect of sanctions is just not strong enough to radically alter that.

The G7 nations said in Fridays statement that they would work to keep Russia from using the international financial system to prosecute its war, and they urged other nations to stop providing Russia with support and weapons or face severe costs.

World leaders Friday visited a peace park dedicated to the tens of thousands who died in the worlds first wartime atomic bomb detonation. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in parliament, wants nuclear disarmament to be a major focus of discussions.

The peace park contains reminders of Aug. 6, 1945, when a U.S. B-29 dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, a city that has become synonymous with anti-nuclear peace efforts.

Biden, who scrapped plans to travel on to Papua New Guinea and Australia after his stay in Japan so that he can get back to debt limit talks in Washington, arranged to meet Saturday on the G-7 sidelines with leaders of the so-called Quad partnership, made up of Japan, Australia, India and the U.S.

As G7 attendees made their way to Hiroshima, Moscow unleashed yet another aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital. Loud explosions thundered through Kyiv during the early hours, marking the ninth time this month that Russian air raids have targeted the city after weeks of relative quiet.

In a bit of dueling diplomacy, Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting the leaders of the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a two-day summit in the Chinese city of Xian.

The G7 leaders are also to discuss efforts to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices that are squeezing families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

A U.S. official said the leaders on Saturday would issue a joint communique outlining new projects in the G7's global infrastructure development initiative, which is meant to offer countries an alternative to China's investment dollars.

The G7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, as well as the European Union.

__

Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Elaine Kurtenbach and Mari Yamaguchi in Hiroshima, Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Fatima Hussein in Washington contributed to this report.
CROMWELL  A lieutenant has left the town's fire department amid allegations of inappropriate activity in the firehouse, according to personnel records obtained by Hearst Connecticut Media Group.

In his resignation letter dated March 6, Brett Hallden said he was irrevocably retiring" from the Cromwell Fire Department. After nearly 18 years with the agency, the letter did not say why the 46-year-old was leaving.

Hallden, who works as a mechanic and is a member of the planning commission in Marlborough where he lives, could not be reached for comment.

His departure came three months after he learned of an investigation into his alleged inappropriate workplace conduct and was placed on paid administrative leave, according to a Dec. 5, 2022 letter to Hallden from Julius C. Neto, executive director of the Cromwell Fire District. The letter and other personnel records were obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

The letter doesnt describe the alleged misconduct, but Neto wrote in the memo that Hallden should refrain from contacting a female firefighter who also was placed on paid leave. The woman, who was hired in 2019, resigned Dec. 30, weeks after receiving the same letter.

Attorney Cindy Cieslak from Rose Kallor LLP was hired to conduct the independent investigation, which Neto said ended when Hallden retired.

In a telephone interview, Neto said the investigation has been completed, but the report is only a draft.

She has ceased and desisted her investigation, Neto said of Cieslak.

Neto referred to Cieslak when asked for the draft copy of the investigation report. However, Cieslak said the report is exempt from disclosure under state law. She said its release would constitute an invasion of privacy and/or violate attorney-client privilege.

Neto would not describe what sparked the investigation and said Hallden was not forced out.

He made his own decision, he said.

Hallden is too young to collect retirement benefits, but according to his contract, he will be paid 25 percent of his accrued, unused sick leave based on his latest annual salary of $66,059, Neto said.

'Disciplined on numerous occasions'

Around the same time Cieslak launched the investigations into Hallden and the female firefighter, the Cromwell Fire District also hired the lawyer to investigate allegations of misconduct during the town's first responder training  at least one of which happened in the presence of an underage EMT student.

According to emails obtained by Hearst Connecticut Media, the co-owner of a firefighter training company sent a complaint to Cromwell Fire Chief Jason Brade after some of his students expressed shock at the unprofessionalism displayed by certain members of the staff.

In the emails, Brian Petrucelli, co-owner of On Scene Training in Cromwell, said there were conversations about sexual topics and a dinner prepared during clinical rotations included a meatloaf shaped like a large penis.

It's unknown if Hallden was involved in the incidents. But he does have a disciplinary history, according to his personnel records.

In January 2016, Hallden was suspended for three days without pay after an independent investigator found he waited two weeks to inform a supervisor that audit binders with confidential employee information had been left in a public room in fire district offices at 1 West St. The records show another firefighter took a picture of one of the documents, which included someones Social Security number.

In June 2009, Hallden was demoted from lieutenant to firefighter for failing to attend a meeting with four chiefs of the department, the records show.

The documents show former Chief Stephen Pendl sent a memo to Hallden, stating he had been formally disciplined on numerous occasions over the last 21 months for repeatedly failing to conform your professional conduct to that which is expected of a lieutenant in the Cromwell Fire Department. Records of the previous disciplinary actions were not included in the personal records requested by Hearst Connecticut Media.

Hallden was reappointed as a lieutenant of the overnight shift on July 16, 2019.

Halldens former wife, who also used to be a Cromwell firefighter, said her ex has won awards and had been recognized for his work.

They lost a damn good firefighter, Tricia Hallden, who helped train him, said in an interview this week. The Cromwell Fire District lost an excellent firefighter. One of the best they ever had. And I spent almost 30 years in that department. Absolutely one of the best. He is very smart.

As for the investigation, she said, Id call it a headhunt. They wanted to get rid of him because he has a big mouth.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP)  The Walt Disney Co. announced Thursday that it was scrapping plans to build a new campus in central Florida and relocate 2,000 employees from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development.

The decision follows a year of attacks from Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Legislature because the company opposed a state law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades. Disney filed a First Amendment lawsuit against DeSantis and other officials last month.

Disney had planned to build the campus about 20 miles (30 kilometers) from the giant Walt Disney World theme park resort, but Josh DAmaro, chairman of the parks, experiences and products division, said in a memo to employees that new leadership and changing business conditions prompted the company to abandon those plans.

I remain optimistic about the direction of our Walt Disney World business, DAmaro said. We have plans to invest $17 billion and create 13,000 jobs over the next ten years. I hope were able to do so.

Disney and DeSantis have been engaged in a tug-of-war for more than a year that has engulfed the GOP governor in criticism as he prepares to launch an expected presidential bid in the coming weeks.

DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern said the state had been unsure whether the new Disney campus would come to fruition since it was announced nearly two years ago.

Given the companys financial straits, falling market cap and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures, Redfern said.

Florida Sen. Joe Gruters, a former chairman of the state Republican Party, called Disney's decision a huge loss.

I hope we can put this conflict behind us and get back to a more normal working relationship with a company thats been one of our best business and tourism partners that weve had over the last 50 years, Gruters said. "Two thousand jobs and a billion dollars worth of investments into our state, I would say thats a serious blow. The market is much better at dealing with companies rather than heavy-handed government.

Democratic Rep. Anna Eskamani, who represents the Orlando area in the Florida House, released a statement blaming the governor for the lost jobs.

Governor Ron DeSantis is a job killing moron who cares more about his own political ambitions and culture wars than Florida and our future," Eskamani said. "According to him, woke makes you go broke but this is another example of how its actually the complete opposite. DeSantis is not who you want for President  ever.

The feud started after Disney, in the face of significant pressure, publicly opposed the state concerning lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades that critics called Dont Say Gay.

As punishment, DeSantis took over Disney Worlds self-governing district through legislation passed by lawmakers and appointed a new board of supervisors. Before the new board came in, the company signed agreements with the old board stripping the new supervisors of design and construction authority.

In response, the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature passed legislation allowing the DeSantis-appointed board to repeal those agreements and made the theme park resorts monorail system subject to state inspection, when it previously had been done in-house.

Disney's suit against DeSantis alleges the governor waged a targeted campaign of government retaliation." It asks a federal judge to void the takeover of the theme park district, as well as the DeSantis oversight boards actions, on the grounds that they were violations of the companys free speech rights.

The creation of Disneys self-governing district by the Florida Legislature was instrumental in the companys decision in the 1960s to build near Orlando. Disney told the state at the time that it planned to build a futuristic city that would include a transit system and urban planning innovations, so the company needed autonomy. The futuristic city never materialized, however, and instead morphed into a second theme park that opened in 1982.
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RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  Late last year, with the Virginia State Police under scrutiny after authorities said a former trooper kidnapped a 15-year-old California girl and killed three members of her family, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced he had requested a full investigation by the states watchdog agency.

But due at least in part to a previously existing mutual agreement between state police and the watchdog, state police appear to have simply investigated the matter themselves, according to a policy document obtained by The Associated Press through a public records request.

A memorandum of understanding between state police and the Office of the State Inspector General, the watchdog agency tasked with investigating waste and rooting out inefficiencies in state government, says that in nearly all cases, VSP retains responsibility for the oversight and conduct of internal investigations of its personnel.

The memorandum makes an exception for allegations against the superintendent or deputy superintendent of the state police, which would be handled by OSIG.

Questions about the investigation into the Austin Lee Edwards matter have swirled after reporting from the Virginia Mercury and Richmond TV station WRIC noted that OSIG never produced an official report. Instead, when media outlets sought the findings, the watchdog agency produced only a letter written by State Police Superintendent Gary Settle to the inspector general, leading to questions about what seemed to be an inconsistency in what Youngkin asked for and what was produced.

That Settle letter, which news outlets covered in early January, said a background investigator failed to check Edwards' mental health history and missed a judge's order that would have disqualified Edwards from state police employment. The letter characterized the human error in the case as an isolated incident.

Authorities have said Edwards  who had moved on to a job with the Washington County Sheriff's Office in southwest Virginia  posed online as a 17-year-old boy while communicating with the 15-year-old girl in California, a form of deception known as catfishing.

On Nov. 25, Edwards, 28, killed the girls mother and grandparents, then set fire to their home in Riverside, a city about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of downtown Los Angeles, according to police. Edwards died by suicide during a shootout with San Bernardino sheriffs deputies the same day. The girl was rescued.

On Wednesday, surviving relatives of the family filed a notice of intent to sue with Washington County and the Commonwealth of Virginia, documents that raised additional questions about the hiring process.

In the notice filed with the state, lawyers for an aunt and sibling of the teen allege Virginia State Police were grossly negligent in hiring Edwards as a state trooper in January 2022.

On his application to become a state trooper, Edwards disclosed that he had voluntarily checked himself into a mental health facility in 2016. In response to that disclosure, state police ordered Edwards to undergo a mental health evaluation, which he failed, the attorneys allege in the notice.

The Virginia State Police deliberately buried the results of this mental health examination, did no further examination into this aspect of Edwards application, and hired him, the notice states.

The attorneys also allege that at the time he was hired by state police, Edwards did not have the legal right to own or possess a gun because under Virginia law, anyone who is held on a temporary detention order and later admitted to a treatment facility is prohibited from buying or possessing a firearm until that right is restored by a court.

The attorneys say Edwards displayed his law enforcement badge and service weapon in order to get into the Riverside home by falsely claiming he was conducting a law enforcement investigation.

They also describe in graphic detail how the girls mother and grandparents were killed, saying Edwards slit her mothers throat and asphyxiated the girls grandparents, who both were found hogtied and with bags over their heads.

A separate notice of intent to sue was filed with Washington County in late March by a Virginia firm representing the estates of the victims. The existence of the notices was first reported by the Los Angeles Times.

With regard to the Virginia investigation, state officials in recent weeks have repeatedly declined opportunities to clarify the questions that arose about the probe or the final work product.

Youngkins office, which pledged transparency when the governor first said publicly that hed asked for the probe, declined to answer questions from the Mercury, including about whether the governor did or did not formally ask for an investigation, the online outlet reported.

Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter later told AP that the governor requested OSIG to look into the matter and under their purview they deemed the proper investigatory measures.

State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller likewise did not respond to questions from AP, and OSIG officials refused to comment beyond the agency's response to AP's public records requests.

In an email earlier this year when AP first sought the Settle letter, the agency told AP that it had coordinated the investigation with Virginia State Police in accordance with the memorandum of understanding, which is mandated by state law.

The investigation was independently and appropriately conducted in accordance with OSIGs long-established procedures, Michael Westfall, the state inspector general, wrote in that email.

Settle's December letter did not address the issue of Edwards' gun rights or any kind of failed mental health evaluation. Nor did a March 2 letter by Settle to OSIG, which reiterated changes VSP says it has taken to address the problems its own review raised, including updating its policy manuals and developing written training for background investigators pertaining to mental health histories.

Geller said she could not comment on pending litigation and did not respond to questions about what was known about the status of Edwards gun rights when he was hired or whether he failed a mental health evaluation ordered by state police.
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MIDDLETOWN  Faith, prayer and devotion lie at the center of St. Sebastian Churchs three-day feast and festival that, for more than a century, has drawn hundreds of devotees of the patron saint and community members to the Washington Street church.

So says feast General Chairman Chris Serra, whose committee and parish members are putting the finishing touches on the 102nd Feast of St. Sebastian, which this year will draw people from as far away as New Jersey.

The event, which includes a carnival, will open Friday from 4 to 10 p.m. and continue Saturday and Sunday from noon to 10 p.m.

The highlight, a celebratory Mass of St. Sebastian, will begin Sunday at 11 a.m., followed by a group of runners who will converge at 155 Washington St. Several will hoist and carry the saint on a heavy platform in a slow parade around the block, accompanied by spectators and marching band.

We share the excitement and enthusiasm of our ancestors in honoring our patron saint, Serra said. We invite all our parishioners and members of our great community / area to come and join us in this wonderful and historic event.

People also will be traveling via bus from Boston and Providence to attend the festivities, Serra said.

The devotees, known as I Nuri, arrive at the church at about 12:15 p.m. Sunday from two locations, wearing white clothing, running barefoot or in white socks, carrying red and white carnations and chanting E Chiamamulu Paisanu! Primu Diu E Sammastianu!

The Sicilian phrase means, Hes one of our own! First God and then St. Sebastian. The colors are symbolic, with white for purity, and red, blood.

The weekend also will include vendors, food, games, beverages, novelties, crafts, an auction and live music, Serra said.

Middletown is sister city to Melilli, Sicily, where the original St. Sebastian Church is located. Sicily's celebration is held in August, and has continued for 602 years, Serra said.

You must attend the feast to experience this wonderful event. ... It also represents part of the history of the Middletown community, he added, saying is a tribute to the history and sacrifice of our beloved" St. Sebastian.

Serra provided some background on the saint, saying he was an undercover Christian for most of his life. He was born into nobility and joined the Imperial Roman army, only to keep his cover as a typical noble pagan.

As he moved through the ranks of the army and quickly became captain of the guard and an imperial officer, Sebastian spent most of his time mastering and converting countless prisoners of the Roman army, Serra added.

He was a gifted healer with the Sign of the Cross, and converted soldiers as well as the governor of Rome. Through his consistent faith and work, Sebastian was discovered and eventually martyred, Serra said.

But the rich story doesn't end there. Upon preaching to the Diocletian (Roman emperor), Sebastian was offered to be martyred again, and this time, he was beaten to death and then tossed in the sewers, the chairman said.

Diocletian was certainly not prepared to have Sebastian return to continue his work, he added.

"This is a huge event for our parish, the sister cities and the city of Middletown," Serra said. "The continuation of this tradition is so important for future generations, as it demonstrates the power of faith, prayer and community."

St. Sebastian Church Rev. James Thaikoottathil, Serra added, has said "so many times that 'our beautiful church, and this joyous feast are a testament to the devotion of our parishioners and friends as we persevere in the great history that surrounds our patron Saint Sebastian.'

For information, visit St. Sebastian Church CT on Facebook and st._sebastian_feast_mtown_ct on Instagram.
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MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  The executive committee of Minnesotas Democratic Farmer Labor Party gave initial approval on Thursday to bylaws that would permanently ban anyone who engages in or incites acts of violence from participating in party activities, after a weekend endorsing convention for a Minneapolis City Council seat erupted in chaos.

The executive committee also agreed Thursday that if those bylaws receive final approval from the DFL State Central Committee, the candidate whose supporters are accused of instigating the Saturday melee will be permanently disqualified from seeking and receiving the party's endorsement.

Ken Martin, chair of the state Democratic Party organization, called the melee that erupted Saturday night unacceptable." The DFL is an affiliate of the state Democratic Party.

Video circulating on social media shows that the disturbance began after supporters of incumbent Aisha Chughtai took the stage to seek delegates backing for the Ward 10 City Council seat. That sparked an uproar among backers of her challenger, Nasri Warsame. Some jumped on stage, shouting, banging on tables and waving signs. At least two people were injured and the convention broke up with no endorsement.

Martin said on Twitter that it was clear that the conflict was instigated by Warsame supporters. He continued to place the blame on some of Warsame's supporters on Thursday.

Martin said some mistakes were made, but none of those mistakes, big or small. justify a few bad actors from the Warsame campaign taking things into their own hands and inciting, encouraging and participating in violence against other DFL participants.

With unanimous votes, the executive committee approved two bylaws that would essentially ban individuals who have engaged in, incited or consciously condoned physical assault, threats of violence, or violent acts from party activities.

The first would immediately and permanently disqualify an individual from seeking the partys endorsement if they or their campaign supporters engage in such acts. The second would permanently ban an individual who carried out such acts from any elected or appointed position within the party, including serving as a delegate or alternate to a convention.

Pending final approval of those bylaws, the executive committee said Warsame would be permanently disqualified from seeking and receiving DFL endorsement or letters of support for any future office. Martin clarified that this does not mean Warsame can't run for office. But if he does, he won't get backing from the DLF Party.

Disagreements over how a convention was run is not an excuse for violence. Not understanding the convention process is not an excuse for violence, Martin said. He later added, The reality is, if we dont act, this will just embolden people in the future to use this as a tactic to essentially force conventions to adjourn.

Warsame did not immediately reply Thursday to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

Warsame and Chughtai are Democrats in an overwhelmingly Democratic city when campaigns for party backing are often heated. Warsame, a political newcomer, is a Somali immigrant.

Chughtai is a longtime activist who managed U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar's 2018 campaign. She is the daughter of Pakistani immigrants and has support from some prominent Somali American politicians, including Omar and state Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, and other Muslims, including Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.

Chughtai has endorsements from a long list of progressive and labor groups, including the Democratic Socialists of America. Warsame has campaigned on a law-and-order message.

Warsame said at a news conference Wednesday: I do not condone violence. I do not condone intimidation or harassment of any sort. Before Thursday's closed-door session, Warsame's campaign manager, Abshir Omar, told the executive committee that he supports Martin's message condemning the violence, but that he was disheartened by statements that blamed Warsame supporters, saying party officials never contacted the campaign to get their side of the story.

Samuel Doten, who chaired Saturday's convention, told the committee that the chaos unfolded due to the actions of about five to 10 people, and that it was not representative of all of Warsame's supporters. He urged the committee to avoid disenfranchising the Somali community from participating in the process.

Chughtai released a statement on Wednesday saying the video does not match the Warsame campaign's version of events.

Campaigns that are winning and have the support of the people dont violently disrupt the process, she said. "As a campaign and as a movement, were on the path to a safer, more just Minneapolis and we look forward to continuing to share that vision with the people of Ward 10.
MOSCOW (AP)  A Russian court on Thursday extended by three months the detention of a former employee of the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok on charges of cooperating with a foreign state.

The U.S. State Department has condemned the arrest of Robert Shonov, which was reported this week. He was detained in Vladivostok on the Pacific coast and brought to Moscow.

The specifics of the charges haven't been reported, including Shonov's alleged actions or what country he was suspected of cooperating with.

The U.S. State Department says Shonov is a Russian national who worked at the consulate in Vladivostok for more than 25 years. The consulate closed in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened.

In 2021, Russia ordered the dismissal of all local employees from U.S. diplomatic outposts in the country. From then on, Shonov worked at a company which held a U.S. contract to support the embassy in Moscow, the department said.

Shonov is being held in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo pretrial detention center. Also held in Lefortovo is Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Gershkovich has been in custody since his March 29 arrest by Russias security service on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government have denied.

The arrests occurred amid a sharp rise in pressure on critics within Russia since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, particularly those regarded as discrediting the armed forces.

Yevgeny Roizman, the former mayor of Yekaterinburg and one of Russia's most visible and charismatic opposition figures, is on trial for discrediting the military, a charge that could bring a prison sentence. But the prosecutor on Thursday called for him to be fined 260,000 rubles ($3250), suggesting he could avoid prison time.

News reports said that police on Thursday detained Mikhail Lobanov, a Moscow professor who has criticized the military campaign in Ukraine.

Also Thursday, the Mediazona website said that court documents showed that a case will be considered against Boris Grebenshchikov, the renowned veteran rock musician, for discrediting the army. Grebenshchikov has lived in the West since 2018.
ISLAMABAD (AP)  The top leaders of Pakistan and Iran on Thursday inaugurated the first border market as relations warm between the two countries, officials said.

Located in the remote village of Pashin in Pakistan's southwestern Baluchistan province, the marketplace is the first of six to be constructed along the Pakistan-Iran border under a 2012 agreement signed by the two sides.
The Air National Guardsman accused of leaking top secret Pentagon documents online was warned multiple times by superiors about his mishandling of classified information before he was arrested in April, according to new documents filed in court.

Federal prosecutors used the reprimands to argue in the Wednesday court filing that Jack Teixeira, the 21-year-old Guardsman, should remain in custody. They cited two incidents in September and October when Air Force superiors notified Teixeira about mishandling materials, but prosecutors claim he continued to post the documents online and brag about it after the reprimands.

"That the defendant continued posting classified information despite keen awareness that he was violating the law and even after being admonished multiple times by superiors is a clear indication that he will be undeterred by any restrictions this court places upon him and will not hesitate to circumvent those restrictions if he deems it in his interest to do so," prosecutors wrote in the filing.

Read Next: Guardsmen and Reservists Who Retire Early Could Get Cheaper Health Care Under Senate Bill

Three Air Force memorandums addressed to Teixeira, an airman 1st class with the 102nd Intelligence Wing at Otis Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts, were included in the court filings.

Teixeira joined the service in 2019, and his duty title was cyber transport systems journeyman, meaning he worked on global military communications systems, according to the Air Force.

The first memo cited by prosecutors, dated Sept. 15, detailed that a staff sergeant observed him taking notes on classified information and "observed A1C Teixeira put the note into his pocket."

Teixeira was told to "no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information."

The following month, as detailed in an Oct. 27 memo, a superior was notified that Teixeira was "potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence" despite receiving the reprimand the previous month. During a meeting a week prior to the memo, superiors raised alarm at the very specific questions he was asking in an intelligence meeting.

Teixeira was again told to follow the cease-and-desist order and to "focus on his job." He was also offered a chance to train into a different intelligence career field but declined, according to the court filing.

Another memo dated Feb. 4 detailed an occasion in January when a superior noticed Teixeira looking at intelligence information not related to his primary duties.

The Air Force declined to comment on the latest court filings when asked by Military.com.

On April 13, Teixeira was taken into custody. He was hit with federal charges and accused of unauthorized retention, removal and transmission of national defense information and classified documents.

The airman reportedly shared classified documents with a group of teenage acquaintances on Discord, a chat site popular with gamers.

He not only had a top-secret security clearance but also sensitive compartmented access, a more restrictive designation for some of the government's most closely guarded secrets, since 2021, according to an affidavit from the Justice Department.

Teixeira's leaks included photos of numerous classified defense documents pertaining to operations in the Ukraine war, as well as U.S. surveillance efforts around the world, federal officials claim.

Wednesday's filing also detailed Discord chats in which he admitted to fellow group members that "none of this is public information" and "all of the sh-- I've told you guys I'm not supposed to," according to messages shared by the FBI.

As federal investigators closed in on Teixeira, he called members of the online Discord chat group to tell them he never expected this situation to happen, according to The New York Times. He reportedly claimed the documents were not meant to be widely distributed but shared only with a close-knit group of friends in the private chat.

"Guys, it's been good -- I love you all," Teixeira said, one listener recounted to the newspaper. "I never wanted it to get like this. I prayed to God that this would never happen. And I prayed and prayed and prayed. Only God can decide what happens from now on."

Teixeira's Air Force unit is also being investigated. In April, shortly following his arrest, the 102nd Intelligence Wing's mission was "paused and divided among other units," Military.com reported.

Airmen with the wing will "continue to train and complete other administrative tasks and duties that are not specifically related to their primary mission," an Air Force official told Military.com at the time.

A detention hearing for the 21-year-old is set for Friday in Massachusetts.

-- Thomas Novelly can be reached at thomas.novelly@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomNovelly.

Related: Air National Guard Unit Where Alleged Leaker Worked Sidelined from Intelligence Work
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is poised to get a new space-focused intelligence mission and 90 new personnel in the process, the Air Force announced.

Wright-Patterson is expected to host a new unit, the 76th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Squadron, after an environmental impact analysis this summer, gaining about 90 new personnel, the Air Force said.

The squadron will improve and integrate intelligence capabilities with a focus on a "military advantage in space," the service said in a release late Wednesday.

The squadron will be expected to execute intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data across orbital regimes and terrestrial environments, fusing data from fielded sensors in a current and future space surveillance network to identify adversary capability, the Air Force said in a release.

The squadron will bring almost 90 new personnel to Wright-Patterson and is expected to reach full operational capability in 2025.

"The expected basing of the 76th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance squadron is yet another indicator of Wright-Patt's status as the flagship installation of the Air Force's and Space Force's Air and Space Intelligence capabilities," said U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, who is chairman of the House Select Permanent Committee on Intelligence. "As adversaries continue to invest in ways to challenge U.S. interests, intelligence capabilities on base are a critical component of the broader national security mission. I look forward to welcoming nearly 90 additional Air Force personnel and their families to join our Southwest Ohio community."

The next step in the basing process is for an environmental impact analysis, scheduled for completion this summer, after which a final decision will be made, said Air Force spokeswoman Sarah Fiocco. The current plan is for the squadron to use temporary facilities until a permanent facility at Wright-Patterson is determined.

The field command responsible for the squadron is Space Operations Command, which has its headquarters at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado.

Intelligence Guardians and Airmen within the squadron will provide critical, time-sensitive and actionable intelligence for joint warfighters, interagency, civil allies and partners operating in space, Fiocco told the Dayton Daily News.

"This added squadron will expand intelligence gathering, which will enhance Department of Defense and intelligence community partnerships strengthening the effectiveness of space operations and space-related activities," she said.

This is a new unit, Fiocco also told the Dayton Daily News Thursday.

Asked if the new squadron will involve a loss of personnel currently at Wright-Patterson, Fiocco said: "There currently will not be any mission losses as a result of this move or an exchange of personnel."

The move represents yet another space-focused and intelligence-focused mission at Wright-Patterson.

In 2021, the U.S. Space Force said it was standing up the National Space Intelligence Center, or NSIC, to be co-located with the National Air and Space Intelligence Center, or NASIC, at Wright-Patterson. The NSIC, also called " Space Delta 18," was officially activated in June 2022.

With some 35,000 military and civilian employees, Wright-Patterson is already the largest single-site employer in the state of Ohio.

Questions about the announcement have been sent to JobsOhio, the state's private jobs-creation arm, and the Dayton Development Coalition, as well as Joe Zeis, who advises Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on aerospace and military issues. A spokeswoman for the 88th Air Base Wing at Wright-Patterson referred questions to Air Force public affairs personnel.

Air and Space Forces magazine reported this week that as the Air Force retires aging intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft, it will look to the Space Force and the federal Intelligence community to fill gaps.

The magazine quoted Air Force Lt. Gen. Leah Lauderback on the importance of space-based ISR work.

"We're going to have incredible amounts of sensors that are coming that are space-based and thus have a certain amount of resiliency, more resiliency or more survivability, certainly, than some of the airborne capabilities that (the Air Force is retiring)," Lauderback told the magazine during a Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies event.

Lauderback is very familiar with Wright-Patterson. She is the deputy chief of staff for Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Cyber Effects Operations and a former NASIC commander at Wright-Patterson.

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(c)2023 Springfield News-Sun, Ohio

Visit Springfield News-Sun, Ohio at www.springfieldnewssun.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Yoga pants are OK, but not crop tops that don't cover the stomach. Hats are now allowed indoors, but the brim can't cover a student's face. That T-shirt advertising Grizzly tobacco or embossed with a cheeky finger to the Establishment? Still not allowed inside a Department of Defense Education Activity school.

The military school system, known as DoDEA, has announced a new "gender-neutral" student dress code that officials say standardizes the rules across the system and doesn't prohibit students from "self-expression in their style of dress or grooming, or discriminate against" them if they comply.

The dress code will go into effect at all 160 DoDEA schools in the system, including the U.S., Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Pacific and Europe, as of July 1.

Read Next: Air Force Superiors Warned Alleged Pentagon Leaker Multiple Times Before Arrest

The new rules, first reported by Stars and Stripes, require students to essentially be clothed from their shoulders to mid-thigh. They must wear tops with sleeves -- no tanks or spaghetti straps unless they are attending a school-sponsored formal event; solid clothing that is not transparent that "fully covers the top and bottom from armpit to mid-thigh;" and safe shoes, including open-toed shoes with a strap across the heel.

No longer will they need to measure the distance between their hemline or shorts and their knees. But miniskirts and short shorts still won't be allowed, given that most don't come remotely close to mid-thigh.

The new rules were designed to provide a "safe and orderly environment that promotes respect for learning and a common identity," according to the DoDEA announcement on its website.

Will Griffin, DoDEA's public affairs officer, said they provide a consistent dress code across the schools that are easily understood by students, parents, teachers and administrators.

"We have a highly mobile student population that moves from public school districts to our districts, from out of our districts to public schools, and from one DoDEA school to another, so having a dress code that is equitable for all students and consistent across our system, and is also in line with kind of what we see across the nation, just makes life easier for our students and for our parents," Griffin said.

Before the uniform dress code was published, many schools had their own versions based on a disparate set of rules. For example, at some facilities, tank tops or halters were barred while they were permissible elsewhere. Some specifically addressed what boys or girls could wear or not wear and were tailored to articles of clothing.

Now, both boys and girls can sport ripped denim and wear hats on days when their hair is "meh."

The new set of rules will accommodate style changes and personal taste while ensuring that clothing isn't a distraction, Griffin said.

"The point of a student dress code, really, is to support an educational environment that's conducive to learning," he said.

There are a few things that remain barred, according to the DoDEA. These include clothing that contains language or images that promote violence, drugs, alcohol or tobacco; curse words; illegal items or activities; or any picture, language or logo that could be construed as pornographic, obscene or derogatory to any group based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability or religion.

And bedroom slippers aren't allowed, unless authorized by school administrators for a reason or fun day.

The dress code was developed by the DoDEA's Education Policy Division, working with its Civil Rights Steering Committee, as well as diversity, equity and inclusion specialists. The group solicited input from students, parents, school leadership and teachers, drawing 467 comments that were used to revise the dress code.

The process took about a year, according to Griffin.

"There was an overwhelmingly positive response to the opportunity to provide feedback, particularly from our students," Griffin said.

Schools still may apply for exceptions by submitting a form to their district superintendents explaining the need for an exemption in their environments.

Students who violate the dress code may be subject to corrective actions, such as being removed from class and counseled, made to cover up the offending article of clothing, asked to change or subject to further disciplinary action if warranted, according to the DoDEA.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Military.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

Related: DoD Schools Get Better Marks Than Civilian Schools on 'Nation's Report Card' Following Pandemic Closures
NEW LONDON  The United States Coast Guard Academy graduated 243 students at its 142nd commencement Wednesday, preparing to send many to far-off cutters following their demanding but community-building 200-week educational journey.

Two Coast Guard helicopters flew overhead as the newly minted ensigns heard the words, "You may now divest yourselves of all symbols of cadet life" and consequently threw their cadet covers into the air.

The Class of 2023  which includes 11 people from Connecticut  is 42% women and 34% underrepresented minorities, with three cadets from other countries: the Philippines, Costa Rica and Mauritius. They and a few students with medical issues were not among the 235 ensigns commissioned Wednesday.

"You are now leaders of people and of the Coast Guard," said U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the keynote speaker. "You are also the leader of your own life. What type of life do you want for yourself? What do you want out of life? What meaning do you want your life to have? Think about it. It will help you act with purpose."

Mayorkas shared three leadership lessons he said Nathan Bovankovich, who entered the academy with the Class of 2023, wrote before his death: be a servant, under-promise and over-deliver, and deeper meaning can be found in a world without putting people into boxes.

According to the academy, Bovankovich was selected president as a third-class cadet  meaning in his second year  but chose to leave the academy before incurring a service commitment and later died by suicide.

Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan told cadets, "You'll instantly find yourself at the center of critically important work to ensure our national security."

She said they will lead boarding teams on vessels smuggling tons of narcotics, break ice and maintain aids to navigation to keep waterways open, respond to oil spills and investigate environmental crimes.

Fagan said the four-year journey she finished 38 years ago "at the time felt like an eternity to me," but the years since "have been nothing but a pleasure and a privilege, and frankly have gone by in a blink."

This was Fagan's first commencement since becoming commandant, but it was the last as academy superintendent for Rear Adm. William Kelly, who is retiring and becoming president of Christopher Newport University.

"Remain all-in to do what is right, regardless of your personal sacrifice that it may entail," Kelly said, "and if you remain all-in for your people  if you care for them, if you prepare them, and if you set incredibly high expectations for them, and if you challenge them to meet those expectations  then your unit, our Coast Guard, and the nation we love will be better for it."

This year's distinguished graduate is Christine Groves, a Texas native who is a Truman Scholar and a Fulbright Scholar. She is headed to Reykjavik University in Iceland for graduate school.

In her speech, Groves cited lessons learned from Frodo and Bilbo in the "Lord of the Rings" universe, applying them to the Coast Guard.

She also talked about inclusivity and creating a culture of acceptance, citing the work of some classmates: Taylor Young for serving as a founding member of an advisory board on women, Turner Linafelter and Hector Rivera for developing policy recommendations to be presented at the White House, and the class overall for initiating the first International Transgender Day of Visibility celebration.

"We are going from the top of the cadet chain of command to the bottom of the officer corps, but we must still make our voices heard," Groves said.

She also gave a shout-out to the graduate at the top of the class academically, Teegan Cordova.

Before presenting commissions and degrees, Provost Amy Donahue encouraged cadets not to seek success or happiness, but to instead "determine what is meaningful to you and devote your energy to those things. If you do, you'll find that success and happiness occur naturally."

For some cadets, a short journey to the academy

Allen Kruger of Noank works at the academy as waterfront director, but he was there Wednesday to celebrate the graduation of a child, for the second time. Management major Gaige Kruger is headed to the cutter James in Charleston, S.C., while 2017 grad Niki Kruger is currently serving in Alaska. The family is also celebrating the graduation of Gaige's twin brother from the University of Utah.

Speaking after the regimental review Tuesday, government major Mia Cost said growing up in Deep River and attending the Marine Science Magnet High School in Groton, she drove past the academy every day. She started seeing people she knew attend the academy and thought she could do it, too.

"Knowing these guys since Day One, to see who we are now is just such incredible growth," Cost said.

She said she doesn't come from a military background but was drawn to the Coast Guard's humanitarian mission, which she said "is unmatched anywhere else."

After graduation, she is headed to the 270-foot cutter Mohawk. The boat is homeported in Key West, Fla., which is where Aidan Arsenault of East Lyme is going to serve on the fast response cutter William Trump.

Arsenault moved to the area when his father, retired Coast Guard Capt. Alan Arsenault, became commanding officer of the Coast Guard Research and Development Center in New London in 2011.

In the summer of 2020, when many other cadets were on the training ship Eagle or at a station, Arsenault had the opportunity to go to a California-based cutter that sailed to Alaska, the Russian border and Hawaii.

It was there he met his fiancee, first-class cadet Kevilyn Frazier, who is co-locating with Arsenault in Key West.

Fitch High School graduate Andrew Kerst, who studied naval architecture and marine engineering, is headed to Seattle to serve on the cutter Healy, an icebreaker. Kerst said in high school, he couldn't see himself at a regular college, and his brother paved the way: Matt Kerst graduated from the Coast Guard Academy in 2021.

That year, the commencement speaker was President Joe Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris gave the keynote address last year. The president and vice president each rotate between giving the commencement address at the Coast Guard Academy, Air Force Academy, Naval Academy and West Point.

Editor's Note: This story corrects the number of commissioned ensigns.

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(c)2023 The Day (New London, Conn.)

Visit The Day (New London, Conn.) at www.theday.com

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In January 1954, the United States Navy launched a game-changing new weapon for the arsenal of democracy, the first operational nuclear-powered submarine, USS Nautilus. It was the fourth vessel to bear the name of the fictional submarine from Jules Verne's 19th-century science fiction classic "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas," but it was the first to live up to Verne's vision.

Since the operational abilities of Nautilus far outpaced those of diesel-electric submarines of the time, the Navy did something equally incredible with it. This new sub sailed underneath the Arctic Ocean's ice, across the North Pole, entirely underwater. Called Operation Sunshine, the mission was nearly over before it began.

Luckily for the Navy, the skipper and the crew of the Nautilus, Seattle had some auto parts stores open.

Submarines built before Nautilus ran on diesel fuel and electric batteries, which meant they not only needed to refuel, but they had to come to the surface regularly to recharge their batteries. With its nuclear-powered propulsion system, SSN-571 had to do neither of those things, meaning it could stay submerged the entire time it crossed the Arctic Ocean.

Normally, crossing an ocean wouldn't be a problem for any ship or submarine, but the Arctic Ocean (at least, at the time) was covered in vast, dense sea ice. Before climate change, the submarines of the time could neither punch through the thick ice or traverse it (punching through sea ice is still a difficult undertaking).

In the wake of the Soviet Union's Sputnik launch, President Dwight D. Eisenhower wanted to reassure the military (and potentially the American public) that a submarine-based missile deterrent would maintain the nuclear balance of power. Operation Sunshine was supposed to be a display of advanced American technology. The range of Nautilus changed the Cold War game under the Arctic Ocean, but someone had to make the first trip.

When the submarine arrived in Everett, Washington, on June 2, 1958, it was scheduled to stay the night, then head for Seattle for another night before departing on its secret mission. It arrived in Everett to a lot of fanfare from civilians and journalists, but the vessel had a problem: A condenser unit was leaking and threatened the entire mission.

You can't just send a bunch of sailors out to any old auto parts store to get materials to repair your new, game-changing nuclear submarine. Cmdr. William Anderson, Nautilus' captain, also couldn't call attention to the issue through the usual channels due to security concerns. Somewhere along the way, however, someone aboard the sub figured out they could just use Bar's Leaks, a popular automotive product for leaking radiators, on the condenser unit.

Note: the service station man is not qualified to work on a nuclear powered submarine.

To keep anyone outside the boat from getting wise to the problem, Cmdr. Anderson had his crew dress in civilian clothes and pile into taxi cabs in Seattle. They went off to auto parts stores and service stations to buy as much of Bar's Leaks as they could find. The crew returned with 140 liters of the stuff. It worked: 70 liters of Bar's Leaks fixed the condenser, and they had the other half to use later, if needed.

On June 9, 1958, Nautilus set sail, painted over its identifying numbers and headed for the Arctic Ocean. This initial mission had to be scrapped because the ocean's floor had yet to be mapped and the vessel ran into heavy ice. It successfully made the voyage later, departing from Pearl Harbor on July 23 and crossing the pole on Aug. 3, 1958.

-- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on LinkedIn.

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Padres star Manny Machado has sat out the past two games after being hit by a Brad Keller pitch on Monday. While initial x-rays came back negative, manager Bob Melvin told reporters this evening that a CT scan revealed a tiny fracture in Machados left hand (relayed by Kevin Acee and Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune).

For the moment, Machado remains day-to-day. Melvin noted theres a possibility the third baseman will be able to play through the injury. San Diego has an off day tomorrow and figures to reevaluate Machado prior to Fridays series opener with the Red Sox. Injured list stints can be retroactive up to three days, so the Friars could put backdate an IL placement to May 16 if its determined hell need a week or more to recover.

Thats obviously the outcome for which San Diego will hope, though itd be suboptimal for Machado to play through an issue that could theoretically have an adverse effect on his power. Machado has been off to a middling start even before the injury. Through 170 plate appearances, last years NL MVP runner-up is hitting .231/.282/.372 with only five home runs.

Machados lack of production has contributed to a disappointing start for the club. San Diego lost two of three against Kansas City, dropping them to 20-24. Theyre eight games back of the Dodgers in the NL West and only one win up on the last-place Rockies. The Padres entered play Wednesday 27th in the majors in runs scored and in the bottom half of the league in each of batting average, on-base percentage and slugging. Even in light of their pitcher-friendly home ballpark, thats a remarkably surprising placement for a lineup that includes Machado, Juan Soto, Xander Bogaerts and, for the past few weeks, Fernando Tatis Jr.

Over the past couple days, San Diego has kicked Ha-Seong Kim over from second to third base. Rougned Odor has picked up the stray starts at the keystone and could see additional playing time if Machado does hit the IL. The veteran infielder is hitting only .154/.254/.250 over 59 plate appearances after breaking camp out of Spring Training following an offseason minor league deal.
The Red Sox are moving right-hander Nick Pivetta into a multi-inning relief role, manager Alex Cora informed reporters after tonights win over the Mariners (relayed by Alex Speier of the Boston Globe). Itll be his first bullpen work since Boston acquired him from the Phillies during the abbreviated 2020 campaign.

Pivetta has been a durable but somewhat frustrating starter over his two and a half seasons in Boston. He topped 30 starts and 150 innings in both 2021-22, leading the team with 179 2/3 frames last year. Hes flashed decent swing-and-miss stuff but been prone to a few too many walks and plenty of hard contact. His ERA sat just north of 4.50 in both seasons.

It has been more of the same for the 30-year-old to this point in 2023. Pivetta has taken all eight turns through the rotation and logged 40 innings of 6.30 ERA ball. While his 23% strikeout rate and 10.7% swinging strike percentage are respectable, he has issued free passes at an elevated 10.4% clip. Pivetta has surrendered nine home runs and given up hard contact on a massive 51.7% of batted balls. Hes perhaps fortunate to have surrendered only a .309 batting average on balls in play in light of that contact quality.

Pivetta hasnt traditionally dealt with notable platoon splits throughout his career. Left-handed hitters have put together a .268/.361/.592 batting line in 84 trips to the plate this season though. The Red Sox arent planning to use him in a strict matchup capacity, although the relief role could afford Cora a little more flexibility in deploying him against more right-handed batters.

The organization obviously hopes Pivettas high-octane arsenal can translate more effectively in shorter bursts. He has averaged 93.8 MPH on his fastball out of the rotation. It wouldnt be a surprise if that ticked up a bit in briefer stints that allow Pivetta to max out his effort, so its not hard to envision him finding success in a relief capacity.

Pivetta saw some relief work with the Phillies four years ago. Hes otherwise worked primarily as a starter, opening 144 of his 166 MLB outings. Hes spoken on a few occasions this season of his desire to stick in the rotation. Boston has a number of starting pitching options, though, and Pivettas struggles over the past month and a half apparently leave him the odd man out. Pivetta told reporters this evening he understands the clubs decision (via Chris Cotillo of MassLive).

Boston recently activated James Paxton from the injured list. The veteran southpaw joined Chris Sale, Corey Kluber, Brayan Bello, Tanner Houck and Pivetta in the starting staff. Garrett Whitlock is on the 15-day IL and could return by the end of next week. Cora has already announced theyll keep Whitlock in the rotation, while Sale is a lock for the starting staff. The Red Sox have been reluctant to put Paxton in an unfamiliar relief role in light of his injury history. Kluber hasnt pitched well this year but hes a career-long starter who signed a $10MM free agent contract over the offseason. It seemed unlikely Boston would kick him into the bullpen or move on entirely.

That appeared to leave Houck, Bello and Pivetta jockeying for rotation spots. All three carried an ERA north of 5.00. Bello and Houck have comparable strikeout rates to Pivetta with significantly higher ground-ball rates. Theyve been more consistent strike throwers. Theyll each keep their rotation spots for now, though Whitlocks eventual reinstatement could lead to another change.

Pivetta has surpassed five years of major league service and was out of minor league options regardless. The Red Sox cant send him to the minors without his approval, leaving a bullpen transfer or DFA as the only options to bump him from the rotation. Its possible Pivetta gets another look as a starter down the line if future injuries necessitate. Hes making $5.35MM this season and will be eligible for arbitration once more next winter.
CHIPPEWA COUNTY, MI  A Michigan man has been sentenced to 50 years in prison after a jury found him guilty of several counts of first-degree child abuse, first-degree sexual assault and assault with a dangerous weapon.

Sean McInnis, 49, was found guilty following a 5-day trial in April. He was sentenced in Chippewa County on Tuesday after what Judge James Lambros called the most disturbing and terrible testimony he has ever heard.

The charges stem from abuse Mcinnis perpetrated over several years. He was charged in 2019. This is second time McInnis has been convicted of child abuse with the first coming in the 1990s.

McInnis was charged after detective Doug Mitchell conducted an extensive investigation and worked with forensic anthropologists to uncover the remains of a miscarried baby in the backyard of his home.

The jury decided that there was not sufficient evidence to find beyond a reasonable doubt that the miscarriage of the baby was caused by Mcinnis, but the chilling discovery of the babys remains corroborated the statements of the mother and other children, Stratton said.

As a result, he was found not guilty of torture, assault of a pregnant individual causing miscarriage/stillbirth and second degree criminal sexual conduct for a person under the age of 13.

It took years for the survivors to build up the courage to come forward to speak about the atrocities he committed, Chippewa County Prosecutor Robert L. Stratton said.

With help from several support agencies in Chippewa County, each victim testified in front of the man who abused them and helped secure a guilty verdict.

Children are the most vulnerable members of our society. They are completely reliant on their caregivers for not only food and shelter, but also protection. Stratton said in a statement. Bruises fade in days to weeks, but the emotional scars from being abused by the person you are supposed to rely on, the person who is supposed to protect you with their own life, those scars never heal.

I am thankful to the amazing therapist who has been dedicated throughout the entirety of this case helping the family to move forward and understand that the actions of an evil man are in no way their fault.

Stratton also thanked assistant prosecuting attorneys Jillian Sadler and Kristin Giommi, as well as Chippewa County Sheriff Michael Bitnar and law enforcement for their efforts in bringing McInnis to justice.

McInnis will be eligible for parole after serving 23 years. His 50-year sentence is the maximum permitted by law under Michigans sentencing guidelines.

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ROMULUS, MI -- Travelers in Michigan have a new option to get to Iceland as Icelandair officially launched multiple non-stop flights weekly to and from Reykjavik, Iceland starting Thursday.

Available every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, the 160-seat Boeing 737MAX departs at 8:30 p.m. each night and arrives at Keflavik International Airport at 6:30 a.m. the following day. Return flights depart at 4:55 p.m and arrive back at Detroit Metro Airport at 7:20 p.m.

Icelandair is pleased to offer Detroit a refreshing new choice when traveling to Europe. Our new flights will offer Michigans business and leisure travelers more options to Iceland and beyond said Bogi Nils Bogason, president & CEO of Icelandair Group. These new flights will open the doors for inbound and outbound travelers to make Detroit a relevant gateway in our network, boosting tourism and trade to and from the Motor City. We are excited to help bridge Motown with Europe and look forward to welcoming Detroit aboard.

The flights are currently available to be booked through October 30, 2023 and depending on the departure or arrival dates, and other options, fares can be found for as low as $350 each way.

Guests can also book travel to numerous other destinations in Europe through Icelandair where they can take advantage of the companys Stopover program. That program give travelers a free layover in Iceland for up to seven days after they arrive in the country before the traveler must depart for their destination. Travelers will still have to pay for hotels and other expenses they incur, but will not be charged any additional fees to travel from Iceland to their destination.

From Detroit Metropolitan Airport, our customers are just five and a half hours away from geothermal pools, stunning views of the northern lights, and active volcanoes, said Chad Newton, CEO of the Wayne County Airport Authority. Were ready to reintroduce the Midwest to Iceland. We believe nonstop flights to Iceland and the opportunity to connect to other cities throughout Europe are two more reasons travelers will choose DTW.

The announcement of Iceland-bound nonstop flight comes just days after Frontier Airlines began offering flights to San Juan, Puerto Rico, a move that was announced earlier this year.

For more information regarding Icelandair and flights from Detroit, visit the company website.
South Africa: Department condemns blockage of KZN hospital gate

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health has condemned the blockage of gates at the Pixley Ka-Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital in KwaMashu, north of Durban, with a truckload of rubble.

According to a statement issued by the department on Thursday, a small group of aggrieved people, who claim to represent the local community, stopped the truck driver and forced him to offload rubble in front of the hospital gate.

The department said the group was demanding that the department employ them at the hospital and that services that are outsourced be "given" to them.

The department noted that several meetings had been held with representatives of the group about their grievances, and the Head of Department, Dr Sandile Tshabalala, is dealing with the matter.

The department acknowledged that unemployment is rife and affects the entire country, including the people of Inanda, Ntuzuma, KwaMashu, where the new hospital is situated.

The department has, nevertheless, on several occasions, and through various media platforms, communicated the recruitment processes that were followed in filling posts at the facility, including the fact that it received more than 500 000 applications, whereas it had just under 1 500 available vacancies, the department said.

The department said it has finalised all the necessary steps in filling all available vacancies.

Additionally, as part of the process of employing workers at this hospital, the department ensured that the people of eThekwini received priority, particularly in the filling of labour-intensive and semi-skilled posts. The department will continue to work closely with law enforcement agencies to ensure stability at the facility, the department said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2023-05-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
A Miller Lite commercial from March is just now going viral with many drawing parallels to Bud Lights current marketing controversy.

In an ad celebrating Womens History Month, Miller Lite used comedian Ilana Glazer to announce Bad $#!T to Good $#!T, an initiative creating fertilizer made from old sexist beer advertising that will be used to grow hops for female brewers, a press release from March reads.

The idea is to amend the industrys sexist history of beer marketing and rectify the past.

Centuries later, how did the industry pay homage to the founding mothers of beer? They put us in bikinis, she said as she walked by past beer advertisements featuring bikini-clad women and throwing one in the trash. Wow. Look at this s---! Wild!

Its time beer made it up to women, so today, Miller Lite is on a mission to clean up not just their s---, but the whole beer industrys s---, she added. Miller Lite has been scouring the internet for all this s--- and buying it back.

A spokesperson Miller Lites parent company, for Molson Coors, told Fox News Digital there is nothing controversial in the ad.

This video was about two things: worm poop and saying women shouldnt be forced to mud wrestle in order to sell beer. Neither of these things should be remotely controversial and we hope beer drinkers can appreciate the humor (and ridiculousness) of this video from back in March, the statement read.

The ad campaign was met with some negative feedback by many conservatives, calling the ad woke.

Bud Light faced massive backlash after a marketing partnership with trans activist Dylan Mulvaney. The company created commemorative beer cans for Mulvaney celebrating the activists first full year of girlhood.
Ohios attorney general is warning residents that rainbow fentanyl has been confiscated in the state for the first time.

Attorney General Dave Yost said this month that 1,025 brightly colored pills were seized by the Franklin County Sheriffs Office as part of a Columbus-area drug-trafficking investigation into the rainbow fentanyl.

The pills are designed to resemble candy. Drug traffickers use to drug to drive addiction among young people, Yost said. Do not be fooled by appearances  rainbow fentanyl is death disguised as candy, Yost said. The bottom line is this: If youre taking a pill that wasnt prescribed by your doctor, you cant be certain of what you are consuming.

The pills originated in Mexico but were intercepted by Franklin County deputies before they could be distributed.

Were certainly proud of the diligent work of our Special Investigations Unit and BCIs lab, said Chief Deputy Rick Minerd of the Franklin County Sheriffs Office. The sad reality is drug traffickers continue to stoop to all-time lows, marketing their deadly products to Americans of all ages for the sole purpose of monetizing addiction.

Fentanyl has previously been identified in multiple forms, including colored powders, and in combination with other drugs, in drugs seized during investigations.

But this marks the bureaus first instance of rainbow fentanyl, which the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has warned is a deliberate effort by traffickers to mask deadly fentanyl in a form attractive to young Americans.

The deadly pills have been showing up in many states throughout the country.

In 2022, Ohio lab officials identified fentanyl in 9,151 items submitted by law enforcement, making up 22.1% of all drug analyses. Already in 2023, BCIs lab has processed 2,306 items containing fentanyl.

Additionally, lab officials in Ohio continue to see analogs of fentanyl, including para-flouorfentanyl, which was found in 6.4% of all drug analyses conducted in 2022.

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MENOMINEE COUNTY, MI  More human remains have been found in a wooded area of Michigans Upper Peninsula.

According to the Menominee County Sheriffs Office, skeletal remains that were previously unaccounted for were found by search crews on horseback on residential property near Swanson Road in Holmes Township on Tuesday.

Deputies originally found the remains, including a human skull, at 6:22 p.m. on May 10.

No foul play is suspected, deputies said.

The remains have not been scientifically identified but detectives have made a probable identification.

Michigan State Police processed the remains and released them to Anderson-Diehm Funeral Home in Stephenson until positive DNA identification can be completed.

The Marquette County Sheriffs Office also assisted at the scene.

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MENOMINEE COUNTY, MI  A Wisconsin man died following a two-vehicle crash in the Upper Peninsula.

According to the Menominee County Sheriffs Office, the crash occurred near the intersection of U.S. 2 and U.S. 41 in Powers at 11:58 a.m. on Tuesday.

Deputies say Joshua M. Hardin, 32, of Plymouth, Wisc. Was pronounced dead at the scene.

How the crash happened is under investigation and deputies are looking into video footage nearby businesses may have.

Deputies were assisted at the scene by the Hannahville Tribal Police Department, Michigan State Police, Menominee Police Department and Hermansville Rescue Squad.

Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact the Menominee Sheriffs Office at 906-863-4441 or Crime Stoppers.

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WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI -- After nearly 40 years of operating in Lodi Township, Abbotts Landscape Nursery is set to close on June 30.

The business just outside of Ann Arbor at 2781 Scio Church Road has been helping customers with their landscaping needs since 1983. However, Owner Michael Abbott said he is officially ready to retire, which only means one thing for the business.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  A neighborhood association on the citys West Side is calling for a pause on the Grand Rapids Police Departments bid to purchase drones.

In a letter submitted and read to the Grand Rapids City Commission on Tuesday, May 16, officials with the West Grand Neighborhood Organization said they support the departments proposed use of drones but want to ensure there is more public engagement and a good policy in place that provides accountability and transparency.

At this time, we would ask city leaders to pause the process of adopting (purchasing) this technology to allow for further interaction with community groups, more in keeping with the initial engagement efforts referenced when this discussion started, wrote Annette Vandenberg, executive director of West Grand.

The Board of Directors supports the use of technology that will save money and potentially save lives  however, the board of West Grand is hearing concerns of trust and transparency.

West Grand wants the city to enhance its policy around the acquisition and use of surveillance equipment before drones are purchased. According to the letter from West Grand, some items residents want to see included in the policy are:

When use will be authorized and how transparency/accountability will be administered (including discipline measures if the officer is found not to be in compliance with the policy)

Metrics of drone use being made available on a police-provided dashboard in a timely manner

A robust and easy-to-use system to file citizen complaints as they arise

The Civilian Appeals Board should work with the Office of Oversight and Public Accountability to review flight paths and types of data that are being collected and data should be made available to the public without having to go through an arduous process

This is not an exhaustive list, but a starting point for items to be addressed in the policy itself, Vandenberg states in the letter.

Grand Rapids police want to purchase and use drones in situations like dangerous and reckless driving, apprehension of a fleeing felon, accident scene reconstruction, missing persons searches, civil unrest, massive gatherings and more.

Grand Rapids police officials say drones, which many other police departments in the state have, would result in departmental efficiency, augmentation of limited staffing and increased officer and public safety.

Related: More than 2 dozen voice opposition to Grand Rapids police drones

A GRPD spokesperson said the request for a pause is premature, as public engagement is still underway and there is no timeline yet for a purchase request.

GRPD officials are currently presenting their proposal for drones to the citys various neighborhood associations, like West Grand. A larger public engagement event around the proposal is being planned.

The chief was surprised that these concerns were not raised during the (West Grand) meeting he attended, as having an open and honest dialogue about the program was the purpose of his attendance, a GRPD spokesperson said.

Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom has previously said there are concerns around overcollection of data and privacy issues associated with drones.

However, Winstrom said, those issues would be mitigated by training, policy, accountability and the additional layer of having the citys Office of Oversight and Public Accountability (OPA) audit the program.

Under the citys technology policy, people are able to submit complaints about surveillance technology to the OPA. The policy also forbids surveillance equipment being used to harass, intimidate or discriminate against any person or group.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI  Students from Grand Rapids Public Schools grabbed oars and climbed into giant nine-passenger canoes Wednesday at Riverside Park for an educational experience on the Grand River.

The school district and city of Grand Rapids are hosting nearly 1,000 students throughout this week to experience Canoemobile. Canoemobile is a floating classroom that brings students out on local waterways in 10-person canoes to learn about science, history, geography, and culture, according to Wilderness Inquiry.

The Minnesota-based nonprofit organization travels the country with the goal of bringing hands-on, water-based learning opportunities to urban students through its Canoemobile program.

Student Geneva Craft, 13, said Wednesday, May 17 was the first time she had been in a canoe and would recommend the program.

I got wet a little bit, but it was really fun, she said. We saw about six turtles!

Jessica Vander Ark, science curriculum supervisor at Grand Rapids Public Schools, said many of the kids come back energized after experiencing the river which opens up the community even more to the students.

Theres a mix of excitement and also anticipation - and even a little fear - because for many of them, it is their first time either getting on a canoe or actually paddling in one, she said.

The weeklong program, free to students, kicked off at Riverside Park, 2001 Monroe Ave. NE, on Monday and it runs through Friday, May 19. This is the fifth time the school district has participated in the program.

In addition to paddling a canoe, students also learned about the waterway, water quality testing, nature hiking and cultural history lessons.

This annual tradition is a wonderful experience for our scholars to get out of the classroom and explore! GRPS Superintendent Leadriane Roby said in a statement.

Some of our children havent yet had the opportunity to enjoy our treasured lakes and rivers. Canoemobile lets our scholars see firsthand the role the Grand River plays in what it means to be a part of the Grand Rapids community.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI  A Michigan nonprofit specializing in refugee resettlement, foster care and adoption says its preparing for the arrival of unaccompanied children from the southern border now that a federal pandemic-era border restriction has ended.

Samaritas, which has offices in Grand Rapids and Detroit, is beefing up its infrastructure to care for the children, some of whom could begin arriving this summer following the end of Title 42, said Chief Advancement and Strategy Officer Kelli Dobner.

We have been preparing for the last several weeks for Title 42 to be lifted, she said. That means building our infrastructure. Were looking to hire 40 new staff members, at least, to be able to care for youth that will be coming into our care.

Title 42 is an emergency health order implemented in March 2020 by former President Donald Trumps administration, the Associated Press reported. It allowed officials at the U.S.-Mexico border to turn away migrants on the grounds of reducing the spread of COVID-19.

Dobner said its unclear how many children could be coming to Michigan.

The agency has capacity to care for 24 children at a time at a shelter it operates in West Michigan. Typically, the children spend 30 days to 45 days at the shelter before being placed with a family member or a sponsor. So, the children will arrive on a rolling basis as space becomes available, Dobner said.

They could, potentially, number in the hundreds, she said.

We know that as soon as things get determined more specifically in term of time at the border, we could have 24 kids immediately, Dobner said. We are going through this infrastructure process as quickly as humanly possible to make sure we have staff in place for that time. Our goal is this summer to be able to do that because that vetting process takes a minute at the border as well before they reach our doors of care.

Samaritas serves about 300 migrant children annually.

The Biden administration initially sought to keep Title 42 in place but tried to end its use last year, the AP reported. Courts kept the measure in place after Republicans sued, saying it was necessary for border security. But, after that Biden administration announced earlier this year that it was ending the COVID-19 emergency response, the border restrictions have gone away, the AP reported.

Looking forward, depending on how demand for space for minors shapes up, Samaritas may ask the federal government for permission to care for more than 24 migrant children at one time, Dobner said.

We are trying to build capacity, she said. We are advocating for more, to have more capacity to serve.

Whats now Samaritas was founded in 1934 by Lutheran congregations in Detroit. In 1959, the group named itself Lutheran Social Services of Michigan, and in 2016, the organization changed its name once again, this time calling itself to Samaritas.

The change was designed to reflect the diversity of its services, donors, congregational support and community partners.

The organization provides an array of services, including foster care, adoption services, low-income housing and more.

Dobner said Samaritas is looking to hire Spanish-speaking therapists, social workers and more.

By the time kids come into our care, theyve gone through some significant trauma, and having the right social workers with that experience its critical to making sure that they are welcomed into our homes, she said.

Want more Grand Rapids-area news? Bookmark the local Grand Rapids news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Grand Rapids daily newsletter.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI  When a 7-year-old child found a handgun in a drawer next to his mothers bed, he became worried that she was going to get in trouble.

His mother told him to not tell anyone about the firearm, court records show.

The same gun was confiscated from the second-graders backpack earlier this month while at a Grand Rapids elementary school. The mother, 32-year-old Aubrey Wilson, is now facing criminal charges.

Wilson made a video appearance in court Thursday, May 18, nearly two weeks after the unloaded handgun was discovered at Cesar E. Chavez Elementary School.

RELATED: Gun found in elementary students backpack was bought on the streets, records show

Wilson faces one count of fourth-degree child abuse, a one-year misdemeanor. She pleaded not guilty, and a $5,000 personal recognizance bond was set.

Detectives spoke with Wilson and her child on May 4, one day after school officials confiscated the firearm from a backpack inside a locker. The child told investigators when he found the gun, it was the first time he ever saw it, Grand Rapids police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause.

Wilson told the child not to tell anyone about the gun, the affidavit states.

At some point, the child put the gun -- later determined to be a stolen weapon -- in his backpack and took it to school. While at school, the child told another student he had it. The student then alerted staff.

Prosecutors also this week charged Chelsea Berkley, Wilsons fiancee, with felon in possession of a firearm for her alleged role in the gun incident. Police said Berkley, 29, purchased the gun from someone off the streets for $150 about four months before she was sentenced to jail on unrelated charges.

ALSO READ: Grand Rapids school board votes to inform parents about making homes safer with secure gun storage

This academic year, Grand Rapids school leaders have encountered four separate incidents where guns were found in elementary and middle schools. The case involving Wilson and Berkley was the third reported incident.

A week after the Cesar E. Chavez incident, a loaded gun was confiscated from the backpack of a third-grade student at Stocking Elementary School. That incident is still being reviewed and charges might be filed, Kent County Prosecutor Christopher Becker said at a press conference earlier this week.

School leaders, parents and students have expressed their frustrations with guns being found in schools. Its forced administrators to implement a districtwide backpack ban for the remaining days of this school year.

Grand Rapids Public Schools is holding a school safety community forum on Saturday, May 20, to talk to parents and community members about school safety and how to keep children safe. District leaders are looking to improved safety measures to prevent gun violence in schools.

The public safety forum will run from 1-3 p.m. at GRPS University, 1400 Fuller Ave. NE.

Want more Grand Rapids-area news? Bookmark the local Grand Rapids news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Grand Rapids daily newsletter.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A man who shot through a door and wounded his now ex-girlfriend and their 1-year-old child has been sentenced to a minimum 12 years in prison.

Dandre Jeffrey Means, 24, was sentenced Wednesday, May 17 on multiple charges, including discharging a firearm in a building causing serious injury.

Means and the woman argued about 6 a.m. July 8 in an apartment on Wealthy Street SE near Eastern Avenue. They have two children together, ages 1 and 2.

Kent County Circuit Court Judge Paul Denenfeld said the woman was trying to end their relationship.

At some point, Means battered her with a firearm and then pointed it at her face before shooting through a door or barrier and striking the two.

Both the woman and child were shot in the leg. The woman had a rod placed in her leg and is still learning to walk like she once did.

Wednesday, she spoke about the emotional damage.

You shot your child, the woman said.

My baby wakes up in the middle of the night, crying, saying it hurts, she said, addressing Means in the courtroom. My kids are only 2 and 1 and they have to live without their dad and it hurts. But I hope you learn from your mistakes and try to fix yourself.

Defense attorney Norm Miller said Means recognizes that he could have killed the woman and his daughter. He said Means let his emotions take over.

Means, given a chance to speak Wednesday, apologized to his daughter and the woman. He said he hopes to have a relationship with his children after prison.

I would love to be in my childrens lives. We have a bond. Unfortunately I made a bad choice, he said.

Means was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison for discharging a firearm in a building causing serious injury and an additional two years for felony firearm.

He was credited with already serving 307 days in jail.

Want more Grand Rapids-area news? Bookmark the local Grand Rapids news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Grand Rapids daily newsletter.

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KALAMAZOO, MI -- In a part of town where harmful industrial vapors cloud the sky, parents are starting to ask questions.

Is it safe for kids to play outside?

Parents and others are wondering about the risks, in the wake of a report from Michigan Department of Health and Human Services that confirms air pollution levels around Kalamazoos Northside are hazardous.

A day care is less than 300 feet west of Graphic Packaging International, a paper mill thats one of the main offenders.

A public elementary school sits in the shadows of the smog, as well.

Staff at the Jennings Development Interplex day care had to send children home one day last month after a strong odor filled the air and made its way into the building, according to the director, Onesha Butler.

The day care called the fire department to investigate, keeping kids out until the next day.

We werent sure what was going on, Butler said. We just wanted them to go home because it could have been dangerous.

Hydrogen sulfide is spewed into the air from the Graphic Packaging, the citys wastewater treatment plant and an underground infrastructure connecting the facilities. The odorous gas can cause health issues.

Breathing in levels of hydrogen sulfide exceeding 1.4 parts per billion over a period of years can lead to health problems. Air levels in Kalamazoo over the past three years have consistently been 10 times higher or more.

Playground pollution

Lincoln International Studies School, which is part of Kalamazoo Public Schools, further illustrates the challenge state and local government officials are facing.

The schools playground is less than 1,300 feet away from where GPI rises above a neighborhood of aging, single-family homes.

Daryl Colbert, 57, waited outside of Lincoln Elementary for his granddaughter, Paradise, to come out of the doors last week.

They need to try to clean it up, Colbert said.

Hes smelled the stench his whole life. He wants it fixed for future generations.

Lincoln elementary is pictured in the front left corner of this photo from about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, March 15, 2023. The Graphic Packaging International factory is the source of the billowing industrial output in the sky.

About 93% of Lincolns 226 enrolled students are economically disadvantaged, according to state data. Nearly 60% of students are Black and more than one-third of students are English learners.

Clidia Garcia, who speaks Spanish as her first language, was among the parents who hadnt heard about the state investigation findings.

It sounds pretty bad, she said in Spanish while outside the school last week. Several other non-English speakers indicated to MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette they did not know about the hazard.

It was a bright and sunny day on Friday, May 12, as families headed home.

But the states health findings have cast an ominous shadow on being outside.

More parents are speaking out, including a growing group at Northglade Montessori Magnet, an elementary school about 3,600 feet from the factory. Emissions can be seen in the sky beyond the school.

There was such a strong smell of pollution at the playground that I got a headache, Mary Andrew told MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette about a visit to Northglade.

(foreground) Northglade Montessori Magnet School a Kalamazoo Public School in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. In the background is the Graphic Packaging International factory. (Drone image by Joel Bissell | MLive.com)

She is concerned about what her daughter is breathing when outside at recess. The district has a responsibility to make sure students have a safe environment to learn in, Andrew said.

Children having clean air to breathe in Pure Michigan should not be that hard of a request, Andrew said.

Another parent, Janice Frazier, said she wonders how it could be hurting her sons -- a kindergartner and a third grader who attend Northglade. Theyve come home with bloodshot and watery eyes, persistent coughing and runny noses.

Theres definitely something going on thats agitating the children, she said.

She suggests the school take mitigation efforts, like increased ventilation. A gas sensor at or near the school could help provide better information to act on, she said.

Northglades 273 enrolled students are about 49% white and 34% Black. About 53% are economically disadvantaged, and there are less than 10 English learners.

A group of Northglade families are forming a group to work with the school on solutions, Frazier said. The group recently named itself Kalamazoo Parents for Clean Air and started a petition to ask for protections.

Children are more likely to be at risk of harm from environmental pollutants, per the MDHHS, in part because they are more likely to play outdoors. Children also breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults, and since theyre shorter, theyre more likely to be exposed to chemicals in the air that accumulate near the ground, like hydrogen sulfide.

Childrens bodies are less able to break down and remove toxic substances compared to adults. toxic exposures that occur during critical growth stages can permanently damage developing bodies, the MDHHS report states.

Parents and residents are concerned with the states advice to just go inside.

A Kalamazoo Public Schools spokesperson said theyre looking over the health report, but did not comment further when asked. Other attempts to speak with school officials were also unsuccessful.

Children run on a path outside of Lincoln International School in Kalamazoo's northside.

Tami Rey, a Northside resident and vice chair of the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners, called some of the state recommendations not so good. She encourages people to voice concerns to state officials, and ask questions at a town hall at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Mt. Zion church.

The MDHHS report and advice was delayed for months, even though it has been apparent to independent health experts for years that its a problem.

In August 2021, with the report in progress, Graphic Packagings Kalamazoo factory received $125 million in tax-exempt bonds from the state to fund a portion of its $615 million expansion in Kalamazoo, which finished in 2022.

Graphic Packagings plans to reduce hydrogen sulfide production were submitted to the city this month. Plans call for more sensors and an oxygen injection system at the paper mill.

At the wastewater plant, the city has made more than $5 million in odor mitigation improvements.

A rotten smell from harmful gas

Prolonged exposure to hydrogen sulfide can result in painful skin irritation and burning eyes. Inhalation is the main route of exposure.

A city hydrogen sulfide sensor 3,300 feet away from Lincoln Elementary, at Gull Road and Riverview Drive, showed levels consistently 10 times or more above the 1.4 parts per billion health benchmark, through late 2022.

Chemical levels at the Gull and Riverview sensor in Kalamazoo from January 2019 through late 2022.

Residents describe the odor as a dead skunk, wet garbage, rotten cabbage or industrial waste.

Exposure to the poison may deaden a persons sense of smell, and many residents say they are used to it.

The odor has always been around, said Charles Parker, a lifetime resident. It became, you know, life.

His family realized how the gas might be impacting them, as news surfaced that toxic chemicals were being released into the air. His children, now in their 30s, developed asthma when they were younger. His granddaughter now goes to Lincoln.

Education and industry are priorities

The problem is a cross section of Kalamazoos top priorities.

The city flag bares the words education, industry and progress. City commissioners who say they want to find solutions will have to weigh those divergent interests to find a path forward.

Their next steps are crucial for some of the citys most vulnerable residents.

It is disappointing the issue isnt fixed, said Allison Hoeksema, a Western Michigan University student studying child and family development, who works at the Jennings day care on the next street over from GPI.

Id love to take the kids out in this 70 degree weather, but I dont want them getting sick, she said. It would be helpful to get more specific guidance from state health experts, she said.

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The only real long-term solution is reducing emissions and decreasing the gas in the air -- not telling people to stay inside, said University of Michigan Professor of Environmental Health Sciences Stuart Batterman.

A temporary solution: Schools could get an alert system to warn them when pollution levels are high so they can take action, Batterman said.

We need to take care to be protective of sensitive populations, Batterman said, like younger children, children with asthma and older people.

Battermans research centers on health effects from low levels of hydrogen sulfide.

The problem wont go away without fixing the source, he said.

Graphic Packaging officials said theyre working with outside experts to analyze the MDHHS report, and may make changes based on the feedback.

Addressing the odor issue is a top priority for the leadership team, GPI said, and the company is optimistic.

Graphic Packaging is also requesting clarification from the state about using the 1.4 parts per billion level, which is the basis of the MDHHS report.

Pushing for change

We need our kids at school every day, a sign in front of Lincoln Elementary says.

Parents worry health conditions from pollution could impact attendance and school performance.

MDHHS acknowledges a link between hydrogen sulfide and asthma, and the gas can make the disease worsen. It can cause lasting nasal irritation, along with headaches and other ailments.

I definitely see the smoky stuff, and I dont know if thats the toxic part or what, said Melba Parker, as she buckled her granddaughter into a car seat to take her home from Lincoln Elementary. She supports any efforts to learn more about the potential health consequences.

When you know better, you do better, Parker said.

David Benac, a Western Michigan University professor and member of a city environmental advisory board, suggested the city use a nuisance ordinance against the polluter. He hopes this report will inspire citizen organizing.

He suggested an injunction be issued for Graphic Packaging to cease production until it can operate without contaminating the air. Benac and his wife have experienced headaches from the pollution, he said.

Andrew, one of the Lincoln Elementary parents, is hoping citizen complaints will pressure officials to take action.

Our approach at this time has been to say to other parents, Do you smell that? Andrew said. If so, report it.

The MDHHS flyer for a townhall meeting on May 18. Residents can ask questions about the air quality study recently completed by the state.

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Gender Queer: A Memoir, written and illustrated by Maia Kobabe, is being removed from the Galesburg-Augusta High School library following a vote by the Kalamazoo County school district's board on Monday, May 15, 2023. (MLive file photo | Cory Morse)Cory Morse | MLive.com
KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI  It was a year ago this month that Nick Grafos officially retired from the restaurant business and shut down Nikos Express, a Comstock mainstay for decades.

A few months later, Mack Rodriguez  who worked years for Grafos as head chef  went to his former boss with a proposition: Maybe he could take over the business.

After we shut down, it made me sad because this really was like our home, Rodriguez said. A lot of the other workers would call me, and they were like, Its so sad.

It took several more months to iron out the details. But in February, much to the joy of its longtime staff as well as its customers, Nikos Express reopened. Rodriguez is leasing the restaurant for now with an option to buy the business down the line.

Were telling everyone who comes in, Welcome back and welcome home, Rodriguez said.

A classic diner in the commercial heart of Comstock, Nikos opened decades ago as Dottys. Grafos bought it in 1980; 15 years later, in 1995, he changed the name to Nikos Express.

Rodriguez is keeping the diners name and the menu is basically the same, he said. There are still five-egg omelets, homemade soups, various sandwiches and wraps, along with daily specials. Its essentially the same staff, with the addition of Rodriguezs 20-year-old daughter, Macaela, who is running the front of the house and loves it.

If it isnt broke, dont fix it, right? Rodriguez said.

The changes are very, very small, he added. Were still Nikos Express. We still have all the same specials. You have to remember that I worked for (Grafos) for 11 years, so Im the one who made all the soups. I made the lunch specials. So everything that I did before is the same.

Those specials include the Blue Goose Omelet, a five-egg omelet with ham, cheese, green pepper and onions, covered in sausage gravy. Its one of the most popular dishes at Nikos Express, Rodriguez said.

In fact, when Rodriguez reopened in February, he initially dialed back the five-egg omelets to four eggs, to the displeasure of some regulars.

We just raised them back up to five eggs, Rodriguez said. We were doing four eggs for awhile and some people were complaining. They were like, What happened to the five-egg omelets? So I was like, OK, were gonna do five eggs.

The standard menu has 12 variations on omelets, including a Hawaiian Omelet (ham, cream cheese and pineapple), Farmers Omelet (ham, potatoes, onion, cheese and tomato), Greek Farmers Omelet (gyro meat, green pepper, onions, tomato and feta cheese) and Nikos Breakfast Stew (ham, bacon, sausage, tomato, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and cheddar cheese). The omelets are $12.95 and come with American fries or hash browns and toast.

The homemade soups are another favorite of Nikos customers, Rodriguez said. He has a rotating menu, from veggie beef on Mondays to chicken noodle on Fridays. A bowl of soup is $4.50; a cup is $3.25.

We have people who say they know what day of the week (it is) just by the soup that were serving, he said. Every day is a different soup, and if we change (the rotation), it throws some people off.

Rodriguezs personal menu favorite is the Athens Salad ($12.25): A marinated chicken breast on a bed of romaine lettuce, cucumber, onion, kalamata olives and feta cheese, topped with homemade Greek dressing.

Sunday through Thursday, Nikos is open for breakfast and lunch, from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. But on Fridays and Saturdays, they stay open until 8 p.m. to serve dinner.

Fridays feature all-you-can-eat fried fish for $12.95 from 4 to 8 p.m.

People love our fish, Rodriguez said. On a Friday night, well go through 150 pounds of fish.

On Saturday nights, Rodriguez has been experimenting with a Tex-Mex menu. The menu for this Saturday, May 20: All-you-can-eat tacos, tamales, enchiladas, nachos and barbecue pork ribs. (Rodriguez knows his way around barbecue; he also operates a catering business, Monkeyshines BBQ.)

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Business has been strong since the reopening, Rodriguez said.

Comstock has been very supportive, which is nice, he said. Everybody is saying, Im so glad you guys are open again. I really missed this place.

You can just tell its bringing the community back together again.

Its that feeling of community and the love that the staff puts into their work that makes Nikos such a special place, Rodriguez said.

Im not a real religious person, he said. But I wake up every morning and the first thing I do is give thanks, right off the bat. I always tell God, I hope Im doing your will. So I feel like Im doing the right thing here. I feel Im in the right place.

Nikos Express is located at 5876 King Highway in Comstock Township. The diner is open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The phone number is 269-365-0479. The restaurant doesnt have a website, but they frequently update their Facebook page.

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BATTLE CREEK, MI -- Two people face charges after police allege they moved the body of a 24-year-old woman who died from a suspected overdose.

Battle Creek police on Thursday, May 18, said the the two people are expected to be charged with illegal carrying away of a human body.

Police said an initial investigation shows the deceased woman, of Paw Paw, was with several other people at an apartment on the northeast side of Battle Creek on Tuesday. When others in the apartment realized she had overdosed and died, they moved her body to an outside area about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The next morning, about 11:30 a.m., a person in the area of Van Buren and Poplar streets noticed a womans body in some brush at the edge of a wooded area north of the Battle Creek River.

Police initially began a homicide investigation, but now believe she died of an overdose. Autopsy results are pending.

Police advise that a 2016 law allows people to call 911 for help, if someone is overdosing, and not necessarily face charges. The law excludes people from being charged with drug possession if they are seeking medical help for an overdose victim, depending on the circumstances.

The law makes saving lives the priority during a drug overdose, not criminal prosecutions of illegal drug users, according to a Battle Creek police news release.

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SAGINAW TWP, MI  A Fashion Square Mall employee has been charged with two felonies after allegedly slicing a teen with a knife during a scuffle in the malls food court. The suspect has faced a similar accusation in the past, as he served prison time for slicing a Bay City mans neck before shooting up his house.

Brent A. Pierce Jr., 31, on Thursday, May 18, appeared in Saginaw County District Court for arraignment on single counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent. The charges are four- and five-year felonies, respectively.

About 9:30 p.m. on Monday, May 15, Saginaw Township police responded to the mall at 4865 Fashion Square Blvd. for an assault complaint. About the same time, they also responded to Covenant HealthCare, where a 16-year-old arrived seeking treatment for a wound to his arm he suffered during a fight at the mall.

Police determined the teen and Pierce, who was working in a security capacity, had a verbal argument in the food court around 9 p.m., as the mall was closing. The dispute escalated into a physical confrontation, during which Pierce allegedly pulled a knife and sliced the teens arm, Lt. Rick Herren said.

The teen and a friend left the mall and drove directly to the hospital, where staff called 911. Pierce also called 911 after the teen left the mall, Herren said.

Police took statements from Pierce, the teen, and two witnesses. They arrested Pierce and lodged him in the Saginaw County Jail early Tuesday morning. Officers also recovered the knife used in the assault, Herren said.

The teen was released from the hospital after receiving stitches to mend his wound.

MLive contacted management at Fashion Square Mall, who declined to comment on the matter or Pierces employment.

Pierce has served two stints in prison on a combined nine felony convictions. His first term spanned from June 2011 to February 2013, when he was incarcerated on a conviction of assault, resisting, or obstructing police.

In March 2016, Bay County Circuit Judge Joseph K. Sheeran sentenced Pierce to concurrent terms of 32 months to four years, 40 months to five years, and 46 months to 10 years in prison. Those stints stem from incidents that occurred in Bay City in 2015.

On May 24 of that year, Pierce cut the neck of a 62-year-old man during a dispute. Later that evening, Pierce drove a truck by his victims house and shot at it.

Police pursued the truck, only for Pierce to run from it, though officers soon caught him regardless. Before Pierce was nabbed, witnesses told police they saw him toss something in the Saginaw River.

The Bay County Sheriffs Dive Team recovered a handgun from the river the next day.

Pierce told police his victim had punched him first, at which point Pierce put the older man in a headlock and held a knife against his throat. He said he later retrieved a 9mm handgun and fired up to five times at his victims house.

Pierce later pleaded no contest to two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and carrying a concealed weapon and single counts of discharging a firearm from a vehicle, discharging a firearm at or in a building, felon in possession of a firearm, and carrying a weapon with unlawful intent.

Michigan Department of Corrections records show Pierce was discharged in June 2020.

At Pierces Thursday arraignment, the magistrate freed Pierce on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond. Pierce is to appear for a preliminary examination at 3:30 p.m. on June 6.

Want more Bay City- and Saginaw-area news? Bookmark the local Bay City and Saginaw news page or sign up for the free 3@3 daily newsletter for Bay City and Saginaw.

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Unions could more easily deduct political contributions from their members paychecks under legislation that moved to the House floor this week.

Two bills, HB 4230 and HB 4234, would allow unions to set up payroll deduction systems for political donations with their members employers. The approach had been banned a decade prior under a law enacted by the Republican-controlled state government.

When this the original act was put in place in 2012, it made an unfair distinction between labor unions of private and public sector employees, Rep. Jimmie Wilson, D-Ypsilanti, said in the House Elections Committee Tuesday. What this does is bring fairness in regards to political contributions, being made automatically through payroll deductions.

Members join the program, then have a set amount withheld from each paycheck and given to their unions political action committee, or PAC.

Unions contribute widely to the politicians that support them and are some of the largest donors to Democrats. In the last election cycle, they represented six of the 10 largest donors to Democratic legislators elected in 2022.

Read more: In right-to-work repeal, a big win for Democrats biggest donors

In a matter of weeks after taking majorities in both legislative chambers, Democrats repealed right-to-work, a longtime union goal.

This legislation would allow unions to negotiate so that their employers, both private corporations and governments, could have to front the cost to set up payroll deduction system.

Mike Huerta, president of United Auto Workers local 602, emphasized that political donations to his unions PAC are voluntary.

This isnt something that anybodys forced into. This is something that you actually have to sign your name and sign into, Huerta said. And you can just as easily say, wait a minute, I dont like whats going on. Im gonna sign out.

A law passed in the 1990s dictated union PACs must make contributions from members an opt-in system, rather than opt-out.

Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou, D-East Lansing, argued the change would restore a much-needed avenue for workers to exercise their First Amendment rights in our states politics and democracy.

Eric Doster, a campaign finance attorney with primarily Republican clients, called the bills special interest legislation and questioned what the legislation did to promote transparency.

How can they be taken seriously on campaign finance reform, when all theyre doing is benefiting the unions and throwing chips to their to their union friends? Doster said. Theyre not serious about campaign finance reform.

Proponents of the legislation in committee Tuesday insisted the fiscal impact to state and local governments for creating payroll deduction systems would be minimal, but the House Fiscal Agency, which often provides costs estimates for bills, hadnt yet provided a number for the updated legislation.

Democrats have also introduced legislation that would make the union dues members pay fully refundable from the state as a tax credit when members file their returns each year.

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This story is part of a documentary project on Gender Queer and the Culture Wars in Michigans Libraries. To watch the video, click here.

Nobody could predict a little library in Ottawa County, just southwest of Grand Rapids, would ignite a literary culture war across Michigan when it chose not to pull a handful of LGBTQ books from its shelves in 2022.

At the heart of the issue was Gender Queer: A Memoir, by Maia Kobabe, which made waves within the community serviced by Patmos Library in west Michigan. At library board meetings, whether to keep or ditch the book, and others like it was characterized as outright war  a battle of good versus evil.

The story centers on Kobabes journey coming out as a non-binary, asexual person and the internal and external struggles e faced as a result. Part of that story, though, involves Kobabe  who uses the pronouns e/em/eir  recounting sexual experiences or fantasies via illustration, leaving little to the imagination.

Its led to a divide in communities across Michigan. At public and school libraries, books like Gender Queer have sparked outrage on whether the materials should be available at all and what roles libraries play in preventing children from viewing materials on sex, gender and sexuality.

As a graphic novel, some feel the medium inherently caters to children and take offense to the sex and imagery within. Others, however, say simply because the book contains pictures does not mean it is marketed to young children, meaning those claiming the book is meant to introduce sex acts to children are doing so in bad faith.

For Kobabe, the memoir is not meant for young children, with the audience for Gender Queer considered to be high school level and above.

It would have meant the world to me to find a book like Gender Queer as a teen reader ... it would have saved me like 10 years of questioning and confusion and uncertainty about who I was, Kobabe told MLive. I could have known sooner more about who I am as a person and, because of that, moved on to different questions, different learning, different experiences earlier if I had been able to read this kind of book and have some of these questions answered.

But despite what Kobabe thinks, some parents and community members arent mollified and believe the book should be kept away from where children could have access to it.

I think theres definitely a danger in children opening the book and maybe being encouraged to do things that theyre not ready for and that they should not be responsible for, said Laura Parkes, a mother of five who is in favor of the Lapeer Library removing Gender Queer from its shelves.

I dont believe we should give that burden or responsibility to our children  to embrace so many sexualities at such a young age. They need context, they need time. ... Too much information is confusing.

Others, however, see the books as no different than any other item referencing sex or sexuality. And given many of the challenged books focus LGBTQ subjects, proponents here are quick to argue this isnt about protecting children but minimizing or erasing queer stories from public view.

I think its a slippery slope, and it sets a precedent for us to pull other books that are deemed not safe ... We start banning books like Gender Queer, then we start silencing other voices and having more of a monolith shown in our libraries, said Erin Cavanaugh, a mother of three and clinical social worker in Lapeer whos in favor of keeping the book on shelves. Its just not something we can do.

And in the middle? Libraries and their staff, who bear the brunt of this rage  and the consequences of these efforts.

A community member holds a sign in support of the library keeping the book Gender Queer at the Lapeer District Library Board meetings heated discussion on the banning of the book on Thursday, March 16, 2023, at the Lapeer Center Building. The meeting had originally been held in the basement of the Lapeer District Library weeks earlier but was rescheduled and moved to the Lapeer Center Building after mass turnout by members of the community to speak for and against banning the book.Brice Tucker | btucker@mlive.com

The challenges with challenges

Challenging library books isnt new, but it is one that has steadily gained public attention over the last several years, topping out in 2022 at 359 books challenged across Michigans libraries.

Thats compared to just eight books challenged in 2017, according to the American Library Association, a nonprofit promoting libraries and library education internationally.

Clare Membiela, library law consultant for the Library of Michigan, said libraries frequently prune their collections to best serve their communities needs.

But challenging libraries to remove a book from their system comes with a high bar, she said. Simply demanding a book be removed because of its subject matter  regardless if a person or group thinks the topic is obscene  isnt enough to warrant taking it off shelves.

A public librarys mission is to permit the exercise of the First Amendment right to information  and children also have those same rights. ... Its not up to the library to police what the children check out, Membiela said. Thats a job for their parents.

Thats especially true considering obscenity has a legal definition, with a test to determine it created by the U.S. Supreme Court as part of the 1973 ruling in Miller v. California.

A work as a whole must fail to meet contemporary community standards, describe or depict sexual conduct in a patently offensive way and lack serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value to be truly considered obscene.

Simply depicting a sex scene or containing nudity, such as in the case of Gender Queer, is not enough to warrant a book obscene.

And because Michigan recently amended its civil rights act to explicitly include protections for LGBTQ residents, Membiela said libraries are in a precarious situation when it comes to removing like-issue books from shelves.

If you have a library thats removing all of their LGBTQ-themed materials, and a library is supposed to reflect its community, then is there a discrimination issue here now? ... Theres some other facets to this that go beyond just the intellectual freedom question, she said.

Its something Kobabe echoed, saying the criticism of the work isnt personal, but removing the book completely from a library is.

I think that an attack on libraries, an attack on free speech, is an attack on every single American citizen, myself included, Kobabe said. So, I take it very personally in the sense that I feel like I am seeing the freedoms of our country being degraded. But I do not take it personally in that I think that I have written a bad book.

For Parkes, the parent who would like to see the book removed, it isnt a question of all LGBTQ narratives, but rather what to do with Gender Queer.

I dont believe that removing the book from the library is going to suppress an entire community ... I dont believe thats a valid argument, she said. I know we can get very emotional talking about these things, but were talking about one book. And I cant believe, in that community  in the LGBTQ community  that your identity lies in a single book. How can that be true?

But for parents like Cavanaugh and her wife, Lisa, keeping these types of stories available in the library means providing a safe environment for a person who sees themselves reflected in the pages of Gender Queer.

Imagine if you were that kid, and you were trying to sort through these feelings by yourself, and you didnt have any resources and all you had were maybe parents that werent supportive and telling you that you were wrong, Cavanaugh said. This books helps you to be seen, and have a light out of that darkness.

A community member holds a sign against banning the book Gender Queer at the Lapeer District Library Board meetings heated discussion on the banning of the book Gender Queer on Thursday, March 16, 2023, at the Lapeer Center Building. The meeting had originally been held in the basement of the Lapeer District Library weeks earlier but was rescheduled and moved to the Lapeer Center Building after mass turnout by members of the community to speak for and against banning the book.Brice Tucker | btucker@mlive.com

Communities at odds

The American Library Association noted 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022. Its the highest number since the association began tracking those numbers more than 20 years ago.

Of the top 10 most challenged books, Gender Queer came in at No. 1 nationwide, and seven of the 13 novels  three novels tied for 10th place as the most challenged  were specifically challenged for containing LGBTQIA+ subject matter.

In Lapeer, Library Director Amy Churchill accused the county prosecutor of publicly trying to intimidate the library into removing the book after receiving a FOIA with an official Lapeer County Prosecutors Office letterhead earlier this year.

The book is currently under review, with County Prosecutor John Miller telling Bridge Michigan in March that the memoir could rise to the level of accosting, enticing or soliciting a child for immoral purpose. In Michigan, that charge carries a felony punishment of up to four years in prison.

The story is the same at Kalamazoo Countys Galesburg-Augusta high School and Bear Creek Townships Petoskey Public Library, where complaints of the books sexual imagery has caused residents  particularly parents of school-aged children  to push back against the contents of the graphic novel.

And for Patmos, its own community defunded the library after staff made the decision not to remove Kobabes memoir from shelves. Barring new funding, the library is slated to close in mid-2024 after two operating millage proposals failed in the midst of fervor surrounding the book.

Cierra Bakovka, a former adult services librarian for the Patmos Library, said the book was kept on the shelves out of a need for patrons to have all the choices they could ever need.

For her, to hear that libraries were potentially in legal hot water over simply stocking books was frightening. To see Patmos at risk of closing over it was heartbreaking  especially considering that, to Bakovka, there was never a real question over whether to pull the book.

A lot of people like to read books that they relate to, that are about them, but its super important to know that not every community is made up of the same people, she said. Some people might have a majority, some people might have a minority in their community, but that doesnt make their experience any less valid or any less important to be represented and seen. ... You do your best to make sure everyone is represented. Not just whos the loudest.

With the library clamor growing, its garnered the attention of lawmakers in Lansing. Its whats prompted state Rep. Neil Friske, R-Charlevoix, to come up with his own solution to keep both sides happy: make an age restricted, 18-and-up section of the library.

Friske introduced a bill earlier this year which would require the governing body of a library to create and enforce a policy addressing obscene or sexually explicit matter, which could be potentially available to children.

What constitutes as obscene isnt defined under the bill, and Michigans oldest library association has already indicated that, legally, no library in-state carries obscene books.

When confronted with that statement, Friske pointed to a graphic novel on sex education hed checked out from a Michigan library and questioned how someone could defend a 10-year-old being able to pick up the book and leaf through detailed drawings of sex and genitalia.

Im not trying to remove the material, thats not what this bill is about. Its just to limit the access to it, Friske said.

For Membiela, the Michigan Library law consultant, rehoming books considered obscene to an age-restricted section of a library creates more problems than it solves, including determining what a child can and cant read, effectively overruling their own First Amendment rights.

There is also a concern for space and whether it would even be physically possible for a library to create a secluded, monitored 18+ section.

How do I delicately put this? Just from a public access standpoint ... putting all of the more adult materials in back, in a room thats sequestered, is kind of inviting some problems of another kind, Membiela said.

As Democrats oversee both the state House and Senate, theres little hope of the bill even receiving a committee hearing.

Still, Friske sees it as a matter of principal, keeping adult-level books away from children, and said arguments to the contrary  like debating what constitutes obscene materials and whether libraries have the space to enact his bill  are weak in his eyes.

Im not at all targeting LGBT community people, necessarily. Im not really targeting anybody, he said. Im just trying to protect kids.

And thats what it seems to boil down to: At the heart of the matter, those for and those against keeping books like Gender Queer on library shelves viewed themselves as having the best interest of children, and the broader community, top of mind.

The book is currently stocked at more than 100 public libraries across Michigan, with even more likely to have LGBTQ-related novels on their shelves as well. With the fervor surrounding book challenges, its unlikely the issue will simmer any time soon.

Its not something Kobabe ever thought would be an outcome when e published Gender Queer in 2019  mostly, e said, because initial reception to the graphic novel was overwhelmingly positive.

Even when pushback began to mount in 2021, and into the last two years, e admitted the positive feedback still outweighs the negative five-to-one.

When I wrote this book, I didnt know if anyone would relate to it. I also didnt know if anyone, aside from the people who knew me personally, would read it, Kobabe said. It has really been amazing to see this book find readers outside of my own sort of small circle of community.

And anyone who read it: I am in community with you. I see you, I support you, and I hope you can understand that these attacks on this book, and the attacks on other queer books, are not a reflection of your identity, or the validity of your identity.

FILE - Amanda Darrow, director of youth, family and education programs at the Utah Pride Center, poses with books that have been the subject of complaints from parents in recent weeks on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2021, in Salt Lake City. A judge in Virginia dismissed a lawsuit Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022, that sought to declare two books as obscene for children and to restrict their distribution to minors, including by booksellers and libraries. The books in question were Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)AP

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Problems with Michigans unreliable electric grid have culminated in lawmakers taking a new approach to tackle what has become a recurring issue.

The Energy Reliability, Resilience and Accountability Task Force will investigate the states power grid in response to the prolonged outages experienced by hundreds of thousands of people in back-to-back ice storms earlier this year.

Its a new day here in Michigan and a new era of accountability, said Rep. Helena Scott, D-Detroit, at a press conference announcing the task force Thursday, April 18.

Scott, chair of the House Energy, Communications and Technology Committee, will lead the nine-member, bipartisan task force of seven Democrats and two Republicans.

Creation of the task force, she said, stemmed from committee hearings in which she heard testimony from upset utility customers who lost groceries, medicine and even breast milk when they went days without power.

We are going to keep our promises to all of our residents by delivering reliable, dependable and affordable energy to our Michiganders, Scott said.

Related: Michigan reps put DTE, Consumers Energy in hot seat after ice storm outages

The task force will be charged with updating and expanding Michigans oversight to encourage a resilient energy grid infrastructure and ensure quicker reactivation times for utility customers, in addition to proper compensation for failures of service.

The task force also has a goal of making the necessary investments to upgrade the old infrastructure by 2035.

The first step in the task forces reform efforts is to hear residents concerns in a statewide listening tour. Many residents couldnt travel to Lansing for legislative hearings at the Capitol, so its important to go to where they are, Scott said.

The purpose of the (listening tour) is to talk to residents and stakeholders so that we can be successful in achieving the goals of the task force, she said. We are committed to hearing information about the storms to start taking a closer look at the utility companies and anyone who should be held accountable for the long wait on restoration times for Michigan consumers.

The first stop on the listening tour is 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, June 9, at the Anderson House Office Building room 519 in Lansing. Eight additional meetings will be planned in regions across the state until lawmakers return from summer break in the first week of September.

Related: Ice storms reorder Michigan Democrats energy and climate agenda

Legislators then plan to introduce a comprehensive package of legislation after the listening tour, although there may be individual bills introduced along the way.

Scott said shed personally like to see bills focused on fixing Michigans unreliable electric grid and raising the service charge issued to utility customers who experienced long power outages  a $35 credit for DTE customers who went without electricity for at least four days and a $25 credit for Consumers Energy customers who lost power for five or more days.

I believe one of the most important things that we can do as legislators is to listen to our citizens, Scott said. So the bottom line, the important thing for us and the priorities of our task force is to deliver solutions to Michiganders.

As more information becomes available, Scott said residents will be able to find more on the listening tour and the task force on the websites of the following representatives who will serve as its members:

Rep. Joey Andrews, D-Saint Joseph;

Rep. Jenn Hill, D-Marquette;

Rep. Cynthia Neeley, D-Flint;

Rep. Amos ONeal, D-Saginaw;

Rep. Abraham Aiyash, D-Hamtramck;

Rep. John Fitzgerald, D-Wyoming;

Rep. Pauline Wendzel, R-Watervliet;

Rep. Pat Outman, R-Six Lakes.

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LANSING, MI  The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) is splitting $15.3 million among sixteen dam removal or repair projects.

Funding is through the Dam Risk Reduction Grant Program (DRRGP), created in 2022 to reduce the risk of dam failure around Michigan after the May 2020 flooding.

The money is going to various counties, municipalities, nonprofits, property owner associations and other entities to augment existing infrastructure projects which are intended to improve floodplain connectivity and recreational opportunities, and restore severed aquatic systems.

The largest sum is going to the city of Ypsilanti for removing the decaying Peninsular Power Dam, a high hazard dam on the Huron River long eyed for removal.

Funded projects include:

The city of Ypsilanti will receive $3,781,654 to remove the poor-condition Peninsular Paper Dam and restore that section of the Huron River to a free-flowing waterway.

The River Raisin Watershed Council will receive $2,532,850 to remove the high-hazard Brooklyn Hydroelectric Dam and reconnect the River Raisin headwaters.

The Forest Lake Property Owners Association in Alger will receive $2,320,497 to rehabilitate the failed Forrest Lake Dam following May 2020 flooding.

Genesee County Parks and Recreation in Flint will receive $1.5 million to complete removal the high-hazard Hamilton Dam on the Flint River and restore the channel.

The Washtenaw County Water Resources Commission in Ypsilanti will receive $1 million to help removal the Tyler and Beyer dams on Willow Run Creek and replace a deteriorating Tyler Road crossing to Willow Run Airport.

The city of Albion will receive $1 million to design removal of the significant-hazard, poor-condition Albion Dam on the Kalamazoo River and four other unregulated dam structures.

Michigamme River Basin Authority will receive $750,000 to remove the significant-hazard, poor-condition Republic Dam and build a rock arch rapids.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Parks and Recreation Division will receive $530,000 to repair the high-hazard Heron Dam in the Holly State Recreation Area.

A. Lindberg & Sons in Marquette will receive $473,724 to remove part of the spillway and lower the reservoir 10 feet behind the high-hazard Carp River Intake Dam.

The city of Tecumseh will receive $425,000 to repair the significant-hazard Standish Dam by removing the Raceway Spillway, which EGLE calls an emergency action item.

Huron Pines will receive $300,000 for engineering, design and permitting to remove the significant-hazard Sanback Dam on Beach Creek in Rose City.

The city of White Cloud will receive $222,712 to repair the White Cloud Dam on the White River and study its future use.

The city of Saline will receive $192,000 to complete a dam removal feasibility study for the Saline River Dam.

The Conservation Resource Alliance will receive $115,000 for design and permitting to remove the significant-hazard Baldwin Fish Hatchery Dam on the Baldwin River.

The village of Clarkston will receive $106,000 for a study to determine the most effective solution and design for replacing for the high-hazard Clarkston Mill Pond Dam.

The Village of Manchester will receive $71,060 to study the high-hazard Ford Manchester Dam on the River Raisin and develop an operations and maintenance plan.

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A health system in Michigan says it has reduced its patient suicide rate by more than 70%, and that its high-risk patients have the lowest documented rate in the country.

Henry Ford Behavioral Health in Southeast Michigan made significant progress through a collaborative care model its team developed called Zero Suicide. Theyve even had some years with no patient suicides.

The model trains and calls for primary care physicians to screen all patients for risk of suicide at every visit. If the caregiver finds indicators of risk, they can assess the level of risk and come up with a pathway to treatment in partnership with behavioral health specialists.

We believe that we have an opportunity to prevent every single suicide, said Dr. Brian Ahmedani, director of research for behavioral health sciences at Henry Ford and a member of the founding team for the Zero Suicide model.

Ahmedani said 83% of people who die by suicide have a health care visit in the weeks and months leading up to their death. That provides an opportunity for caregivers to notice warning signs and intervene.

In recent months, the team behind the Zero Suicide model has teamed up with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to create a collaborative known as the Michigan Mental Health Innovation Network for Clinical Design -- or MI Mind.

The idea behind MI Mind is to train providers throughout the state, and beyond, on Zero Suicide and the techniques to assess and treat suicide risk factors.

We realized that many people who are dying by suicide dont ever get to behavioral health services, so we expanded our program to include the entire health care system, Ahmedani said.

The care model begins with screening every patient that walks in the door for suicide risk factors. Clinicians are trained to not only ask every patient if theyve had suicidal thoughts, but also to look out for warning signs that may indicate increased risk.

If there are indicators of suicide risk present, caregivers will then use a more extensive assessment and come up with a treatment pathway using interventions that have been shown to reduce rates. Some such interventions include:

Psychiatric evaluation

Advise to remove weapons and stockpiled pills.

Involving family

Promoting self-management

Community referral/support

Initiating an appropriate referral for follow-up therapy, where the timeline is based on the patients severity of risk.

What were doing is pairing several evidence-based interventions that all have been associated with reduction in suicide attempts in either clinical trials or big research studies, Ahmedani said.

We use a safety plan and people who get a safety plan are about 20% less likely to attempt suicide than people who dont get a safety plan. Its a brief, about 15-minute intervention that you can do with a patient.

In 2021, Michigan had 1,485 suicide deaths. Its 14.3 suicide deaths per capita ranked 34th nationally. Across the country, there were 48,183 such deaths, or about one every 11 minutes, according to the CDC.

Its an alarming rate, and yet those numbers could have been worse. An estimated 12.3 million adults thought about suicide, and of them 3.5 million made a plan and 1.7 million made an attempt.

Contributing factors to suicide include mental health conditions, relationship problems or losses, substance use disorder, general health problems, and housing, legal, job or financial stress.

The Zero Suicide model was developed in 2001 at Henry Ford Health and showed immediate progress. The health system measures suicide rates within one year of a patient visit, and said it began experiencing 70% to 80% declines in the years that followed.

The systems progress has continued for the better part of two decades, with typical rates for the systems high-risk patients coming in line with the general populations rates.

In its first year, MI Mind is partnering with five Michigan primary care and behavioral health practices. They include Oakland Southfield Physicians, Med Net One in Rochester, Henry Ford Medical Group in Detroit, Trinity Health IHA Medical Group in Ann Arbor, and Answer Health in Grand Rapids.

Ahmedani, who is the program director for MI MInd, said the collaborative will add another two systems this year with the end goal of including all provider organizations throughout the state.

If you or someone you know is seeking support for mental health issues, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can be reached by dialing 988 or 1-800-273-8255. A free, 24/7 and confidential crisis text line with trained listeners is also available by texting HELLO to 741741.

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Silicon Mountain Joins Idaho Manufacturing Alliance to Strengthen Tech Community and Promote Made in the USA Published: 18 May 2023 by Tyler Hanes by Tyler Hanes

NAMPA, ID  Silicon Mountain, a leading electronic manufacturing company, is proud to announce its membership in the Idaho Manufacturing Alliance (IMA). This partnership reflects Silicon Mountains commitment to promoting the growth of the tech community in Idaho and revitalizing electronic manufacturing in the United States.

As a member of the IMA, Silicon Mountain aligns itself with the core values of promoting local manufacturing, fostering economic growth, and supporting the "Made in the USA" movement. The IMA serves as a platform to connect manufacturers, suppliers and industry professionals, driving collaboration, sharing best practices, and advocating for policies that encourage domestic manufacturing.

Silicon Mountain is a pillar of the tech community in Idaho, with its advanced manufacturing capabilities and commitment to quality and innovation. By joining forces with the IMA, SMCS aims to leverage its expertise and resources to further strengthen the tech ecosystem in the state. The collaboration will not only foster economic growth but also promote job creation and provide opportunities for local businesses to thrive.

"We are proud to be a part of the Idaho Manufacturing Alliance and contribute to the growth of the tech community in Idaho," said Clint Roehr, Project Manager. "At Silicon Mountain, we believe in the power of 'Made in the USA' and are dedicated to bringing electronic manufacturing back to our shores. By partnering with the IMA, we can collectively work towards creating a robust and sustainable manufacturing industry in Idaho, while also promoting American-made products and supporting our local economy."

The IMA provides a platform for manufacturers to collaborate, share knowledge, and address industry challenges. It offers valuable networking opportunities, educational resources, and advocacy efforts to promote a favorable business environment for manufacturers in Idaho. Through its partnership with the IMA, Silicon Mountain aims to contribute to the association's initiatives and leverage its collective strength to champion the resurgence of electronic manufacturing in the United States.

Silicon Mountain provides a wide range of services, whether it is prototyping for startups or high- volume manufacturing. Regardless of the service, the company aims for high quality and quick turnaround.

For more information about Silicon Mountain, visit https://siliconmtn.net/
LANSING, MI  A Michigan law that limits state regulators from making administrative rules stricter than their federal counterparts is one step closer to being scrubbed from the law books.

The Democrat-controlled Michigan Senate voted along party lines on Wednesday to repeal a law that keeps state bureaucrats from imposing stricter rules than federal standards. It was a policy adopted during the lame duck period of former Republican Gov. Rick Snyders administration, and was targeted by Democrats in the early days of the current legislative session.

Sen. Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo, said his bill to repeal the 2018 law was about providing state regulators with every tool in our toolbox to protect the environment and public health. He argued before the vote that federal standards should be the floor, not the ceiling.

All 20 Democrats voted to approve the bill, while all 18 Republicans dissented.

Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, said the repeal of the four-year-old law would allow open season for bureaucrats to make new and burdensome rules without any checks and balances.

Its bad for Michigan, because the bureaucracy here has no terminus, they have no transparency, and they have no accountability. They dont get up and run for election, McBroom argued from the Senate floor.

After the vote, McCann said the 2018 law left a chilling effect on Michigans ability to set stronger environmental standards than federal regulators, and its repeal remains a high priority for the Democratic caucus. However, he said they dont have any stricter environmental rules already in the works.

It just gives us the flexibility to do that when and if we need to, McCann said.

Officials with Michigans environmental regulatory agency, the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, previously said they support the repeal of the no stricter than federal policy.

The 2018 law was sponsored by former Rep. Triston Cole, a Republican from Mancelona, who on Wednesday said the law doesnt completely prohibit the state from setting standards stricter than federal rules  only that there must be a clear and convincing need.

Cole said he believed Wednesdays vote in the Michigan Senate was less about governing and more about politics. He called it vindictive on the part of the Democrats.

Its just a knee jerk reaction that they can do to penalize Republicans and the previous administration, Cole said.

The law was among several passed at the end of Snyders term that weakened or limited environmental protections, such as changing the definition of protected wetlands, increasing the allowable radioactivity of waste accepted at landfills, and curbing the states ability to use up-to-date toxicology when regulating pollution cleanups.

Supporters of the law said it was meant to provide regulatory certainty for industry and enhance Michigans competitiveness in attracting business and investment.

The Michigan Chamber of Commerce championed the legislation four years ago and said it does not support turning back the clock on this law.

The 2018 statute was opposed by environmental groups, who said it would bar Michigan from enacting state-specific rules such as tougher controls on ballast water pollution and lead in drinking water, which are more stringent than federal standards.

Those within the environmental advocacy community hailed Wednesdays vote.

The health of Michigans environment and economy depend upon our ability to make standards stricter than federal laws, when necessary. Michigan needs the ability to be proactive in protecting our environment and public health, said Jennifer McKay, policy director for Petoskey-based nonprofit Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council.

Charlotte Jameson, Michigan Environmental Councils top policy officer, said Michigan cant properly protect its unique natural resources by relying on outdated federal minimums and she looked forward to enhancing our environmental safeguards and ensuring that we are doing our part to confront the global climate crisis.

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Kumasi-based musician Oseikrom Sikanii has revealed the source of his wealth in an interview on the Delay Show, which aired on TV3 on Sunday, April 14.

The self-proclaimed richest Ghanaian musician claimed that his funny traits earn him free money from fans and that he performs at musical shows, which gives him some cash.

Responding to host Deloris Frimpong Manso's question about the authenticity of his claims, Oseikrom Sikanii defended himself by stating that he performs at several shows, citing the F2 Rave at Offinso, where he received GHS20,000.

He also claimed that he has many friends who often send him money because they find him funny.

"I have so many friends, and sometimes, for a whole month, I would have made no purchases with my money. People send me money. Some people send me money on the basis that they find me funny. I dont have a specific job apart from music. I perform and get paid," Oseikrom Sikanii said.

However, the host was not convinced and accused him of misleading his fans.

She questioned whether Oseikrom Sikanii was a fraudster, to which he replied that he was a businessman who engaged in one-on-one transactions.

"Frankly, you throw dust in people's eyes. Some of you would claim to be doing music and youd be buying expensive cars, living lavishly and the moment, you are arrested for fraud. This is whats happening. Most of you are misleading the youth, and they think all is rosy, but thats not the case. Are you a fraudster?" host Deloris Frimpong Manso asked.

"No, Im not. Im a businessman. I do it one-on-one. People impersonate me," Oseikrom Sikanii replied.

The musician's claims have sparked a debate on the authenticity of the wealth of some Ghanaian musicians, particularly following the arrest of musician and social media influencer, Hajia 4Real who has been charged with a romance scam.

Watch the full interview below;


Popular Ghanaian social media influencer and forex trader Bright Kojo Onipayede, known popularly as Kojo Forex, has filed a lawsuit against self-proclaimed internet blogger Albert Nathaniel Hyde, known as 'Bongo Ideas' for defamation.

In the suit filed in Accra High Court, Kojo Forex claims Bongo Ideas published "disparaging and defamatory statements" about him on Twitter following Kojo Forex's refusal to mentor or associate with Bongo Ideas.

According to the statement of claim intercepted by Modernghana News, Kojo Forex, who is a forex trader, runs an academy providing forex trading education.

The statement says Kojo Forex has a large social media following, including over 156,000 YouTube subscribers and 78,800 Twitter followers.

Bongo Ideas approximately has 86,800 followers on Twitter, where he frequently posts controversial comments about public figures.

The statement of claim alleges that Bongo Ideas first contacted Kojo Forex in April 2022 to request mentorship on "how to make money."

However, Kojo Forex refused to respond or engage with Bongo Ideas due to the latter's notorious social media behavior.

In response, Bongo Ideas allegedly began posting "disparaging and defamatory" statements about Kojo Forex on Twitter in February 2023.

Kojo Forex claims some of the defamatory tweets from Bongo Ideas include: "I hate to give FX fraudsters like @KojoForex a bite of my so-called 'ill-gotten clout.' But a Ponzi-schemer who steals from people & comes online to proudly show off deserves some hooting. Pay the people you've defrauded first, & let's see if I could consider you for a beefing."

Another tweet allegedly said, "The FX thingy is just a small part of the secretive online business empire (I will explain later) he runs. His profits from FX, as he makes it...are from his numerous students...As for his illicit online money-making empire...that's episodes are loading!"

On the score, Kojo Forex is seeking damages, a retraction and apology from Bongo Ideas, and a court order restraining him from further defamatory comments.

The case is scheduled to be heard in the Accra High Court in the subsequent days.

In a tweet on Thursday, May 18, with the suit documents attached, the plaintiff wrote, Bongo Ideas, see you in court.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

Z-library is one of the most well-known free online libraries, offering a huge selection of ebooks on a wide range of topics. Z-Library isnt always accessible, though. It occasionally needs maintenance or is blocked in some nations. You might be wondering where else you can obtain free books online if Z-Library is unavailable.

There are over 21 Z-Library substitutes that provide comparable features and services for no-cost ebooks, audiobooks, and other content. Library Genesis is the ideal substitute. Project Gutenberg, Standard Ebooks, PDF Drive, and EPDF are websites that are comparable to Z-Library.

Numerous millions of articles and millions of ebooks are available at Z-Library. You can download ebooks for free from Z-Library rather than purchasing them from retailers like Amazon Kindle.

That is a result of Z-Library being a user-driven website. Users share their ebooks online so that others can read them as well.

Z-Library does have a number of significant drawbacks, though.

There is a daily cap on the number of free ebooks you may download, which is the first disadvantage. You can only do this if you are logged in. Download five ebooks a day; even if you are signed in, you can only download 10 books a day unless you pay for the premium membership.

While Z-Library claims it is a nonprofit, it forces users to make a donation to increase the daily download limit for 31 days, after which they will have to make another donation. Furthermore, not all books are available as PDF downloads, and the file converter feature to convert ePub files to PDF, TXT, and other file formats is reserved for premium members.

If youre looking for free audiobooks, Z-Library also isnt a good choice. While it has an amazing selection of ebooks and articles, it is lacking audiobooks. You will also have to be okay with pirated content when using Z-Library, as a lot of the content on the site isnt in the public domain, and Z-Library isnt legally allowed to offer it to you. However, if youre not okay with pirating, there are some other fully legal alternatives to Z-Library available as well.

Finally, while Z-Librarys selection is one of the largest on the web, there are some ebooks that it doesnt have, so its worth knowing about Z-Library alternatives that may have specific books that Z-Library does not. That is especially true if youre looking for academic textbooks and magazines.

Best Z-Library Alternatives For Free eBooks and Audiobooks

Library Genesis

Library Genesis, commonly called LibGen, is my #1 free alternative to Z-Library. Its also among the most popular ebook-sharing sites.

Unlike Z-Library, it doesnt impose any daily download limits, so you can download as many books as you want at once without paying anything.

You can expect to find nearly all of the ebooks and articles available on Z-Library on LibGen as well. Thats because Z-Library reportedly draws from the same sources as Library Genesis and is essentially just a different name for the exact same books, with the exception that it charges for extra daily downloads.

Ill confess that the user interface of Library Genesis isnt the best. Although the interface is a little archaic and can take some getting accustomed to, I wouldnt say its overly challenging.

You can access ebooks, research articles, graphic novels, periodicals, and more on Library Genesis. You may refine your search using the various filters, and all of the files are clean.

Try mirror sites like LibGen.rs, LibGen.st, and LibGen.li if the main LibGen.is website is down.

It will be simpler to distinguish between ebooks and articles if you use the Show Covers option when searching on LibGen.li in particular.

PDF Drive

Another fantastic Z-Library substitute that allows unlimited downloads is PDFDrive. Over 75 million ebooks are currently available on PDF Drive, which is a much larger number than Z-Librarys database, which has only 12 million ebooks, according to Wikipedia.

There is a premium membership option for PDF Drive, however, there are no download restrictions, therefore it serves no such purpose. Instead, a premium subscription entitles you to benefits like limitless cloud storage, which you can use to store your ebooks and view them online on all of your devices.

The Android app for PDF Drive is comparable to Z-Librarys. However, it can be downloaded as an APK file via the PDF Drive rather than the Google Play Store. Additionally, as the name implies, PDF Drive automatically provides PDF copies of its ebooks, so you wont need a third-party reader program like you could on Z-Library in order to read an ePub file.

Although you wont be charged extra for it, you might also be able to convert the PDF file to an ePub or MOBE file.

Project Gutenberg

Over 60,000 ebooks are available for free at Project Gutenberg. Although that is far less than the millions of ebooks available on Z-Library, Project Gutenberg operates in a fundamentally different manner.

Users of Z-Library can upload any ebook. Copyright limitations are irrelevant to it; in fact, you can find a lot of stolen ebooks on Z-Library.

The website Project Gutenberg nonetheless, is concerned with copyrights. Before putting a book on its website, it examines every submission to make sure that it is either in the public domain or otherwise free of copyright.

Because of this, the number of books is substantially fewer. Project Gutenberg is a better option if youre concerned about utilizing pirate sites and violating copyrights, though.

Each book will typically be available in plain text, as well as maybe in additional file formats including ePub, PDF, and Kindle.

Direct file uploads to DropBox, Google Drive, and Microsoft Drive are possible with Project Gutenberg.

In case you were wondering, Project Gutenberg was established in 1971, far earlier than Z-Library, which, according to the Z-Library website, was launched in 2009. footer.

In actuality, Gutenberg is the worlds oldest digital library. Its original intent was to convert physical books into digital versions that could be accessed by anybody using a computer or, more recently, a smartphone.

There are no restrictions and you can use it for as long as you like without having to register.

Standard Ebooks

Standard Ebooks is yet another fantastic Z-Library substitute. It is not only completely free but also open source, in contrast to Z-Library.

You will be able to contribute your own revisions and view every change made to ebooks. The projects website and toolkits source code are also available on GitHub.

You wont have to be concerned about copyright like with Z-Library. When using Standard Ebooks, there is infringement. Thats because it ensures that only books in the public domain or that are copyright-free are included.

Additionally, it makes the digital versions it produces available to the public, allowing you to freely distribute them among friends.

Never pay for the use of Standard Ebooks. You do not need to create an account or make donations in order to download or read an unlimited number of ebooks.

In contrast to Z-Library, it offers a built-in eReader that enables online ebook reading without the need to download any files.

The beautiful and simple-to-read typeface is used on the eReader. Additionally, you may frequently get an ePub and/or Kindle version.

EPDF

EPDF is a great substitute for Z-Library, which is completely free and has unlimited downloads. As opposed to Z-Library, it focuses primarily on PDF files, so you wont need to bother about purchasing an eReader for ePub files.

Some ebooks, however, might also be offered as.DOCX and/or.PPTX files.

EPDF allows for the upload of ebooks by anyone, however, this does not imply any legal authority. However, if files were shared without authorization, authors may issue copyright notices and ask EPDF to remove the files.

Zavo, an online program that enables you to compress PDF files before downloading them to minimize their size, is also integrated with EPDF.

Centsless Books

A lot of people use Amazon Kindle, and a lot of books are available there for free. Have you ever wished you could so you dont have to waste time looking through books that are expensive, is there a directory that lists free ebooks on Amazon Kindle?

That is what Centsless Books does. It contains a database of thousands of top-selling Kindle books in many categories, all of which are free to download.

You can always find new, intriguing ebooks to download and read on your Kindle device or by using the Kindle app on your phone because the collection of books is continuously updating.

Since the writers have made these works available for free on Kindle, you wont have to worry about breaking copyright rules either.

Sci-Hub

Sci-Hub, which was established in Kazakhstan and is used all around the world, is another well-known shadow library. There are numerous mirror sites. Sci-Hub.ru is the primary one, though.

Sci-Hub is a superior option for people performing scholarly and scientific studies because it concentrates largely on scholarly papers, whereas Z-Library focuses on both ebooks and articles.

Nearly 90 million research items, such as journal articles, book chapters, conference papers, and more, are contained there. You may discover just about any major publication on Sci-Hub, which claims that its database contains 100 TB of total files and covers over 95% of the top scientific publishers.

Starting in 1980, you can locate research articles.

Sci-Hub was developed to support academic scholars. If you routinely conduct scholarly research online, you are probably aware of the prevalence of paywalls and premium membership requirements.

If you like it In terms of transparency, youll also prefer Sci-Hub to Z-Library. Z-Library is a great website, although its a little mysterious.

On the other hand, the founder of Sci-Hub has a whole page devoted to her story, including the inspiration behind the project and private photos.

Sci-Hub is accessible in both English and Russian, and all site upkeep and legal fees are covered entirely by donations. You can make donations with crypto, and at one point, Sci-Hub even maintained a public list of all donations it received.

Hoopla Digital

If you have a library membership with a participating public library in the United States or Canada, Hoopla is a great website.

It costs nothing to join your local public library, and depending on the library, you might even be able to do it online. Otherwise, after completing a brief registration process at your neighborhood public library, you might be able to pick up a library card in person or have one mailed to you.

The way Hoopla operates differs a little from Z-Library. It functions similarly to a library membership in that you can check out a fixed number of books each month with a time limit before returning them.

The monthly restrictions are determined by you, not Hoopla. I cant give a general rule here because it depends on the local library. I can, however, confirm that the majority of ebooks and audiobooks have a three-week (21-day) loan period before being automatically returned.

However, your library can provide you with the choice to extend the loan period. If it doesnt, you can simply borrow the book again since other individuals can check it out at once.

Hoopla doesnt limit you to ebooks as Z-Library does. Additionally, its a fantastic place to get free audiobooks, something Z-Library does not do.

You can also view movies, comics, music, and other media.

Hoopla, unlike Z-Library, offers an easy-to-use mobile app that enables you to read ebooks and listen to audiobooks right from your phone. You only need to log in with your library card to gain immediate access to millions of titles.

OverDrive

You may borrow digital books from OverDrive at your neighborhood public library.

You can download ebooks and audiobooks from your librarys digital collection to your computer or mobile device using OverDrive.

The more recent OverDrive library reading software is called Libby. Within the app, your bookmarks, reading list, notes, and other information will be saved and synchronized.

For a quicker finish, you can also increase the playback speed by up to three times.

To use OverDrive, you must sign in with a working library card. You wont have to worry about late fees because the books will automatically return to the library at the conclusion of the lending period.

If youre looking for free options, OverDrive is a terrific choice. OverDrive. Within the app, your bookmarks, reading list, notes, and other information will be saved and synchronized.

For a quicker finish, you can also increase the playback speed by up to three times.

To use OverDrive, you must sign in with a working library card. You wont have to worry about late fees because the books will automatically return to the library at the conclusion of the lending period.

If youre looking for free e-books from your neighborhood library, OverDrive is a fantastic choice. However, each library will have a different selection of e-books and audiobooks.

LibriVox

What if you dont belong to a library but are seeking a Z-Library substitute for audiobooks? If so, take a look at LibriVox!

It is the best online audiobook collection with no copyright restrictions.

Volunteers read books aloud and upload the audio to the LibriVox website as audiobooks. The recordings on LibriVox are also released into the public domain, just like the books being read are in the public domain.

LibriVox welcomes volunteers to narrate books. This implies that the voice recordings werent necessarily produced by expert voice actors.

It further implies that In some novels, various chapters may be narrated by various voices.

LibriVox, on the other hand, is totally free, doesnt show any adverts, and never charges you to listen to audiobooks.

Open Library

Wayback Machine, a feature of Archive.org that is well-known, enables you to see archived websites and screenshots of historical websites, even if those websites have since been taken down. Wayback Machine is merely one of many efforts, though.

One more of Archive.orgs initiatives is its enormous library, which includes millions of digital copies of books along with hundreds of billions of web pages, millions of hours of TV and video, and a ton of audio in addition to hundreds of millions of web pages.

You can borrow books from Archive.orgs library if you are logged in, and there are books available for loan depending on how many copies of the book Archive.org owns, for an hour or 14 days. You can sign up for a waitlist if the book is currently checked out by someone and not available for borrowing.

I suggest using the more user-friendly Open Library, which is another initiative of Archive.org, with the aim of making a web page for every book that is available to create the greatest book library ever. It currently contains over 20 million books cataloged, with about 2 million of those having complete digital editions, and it is always adding new books.

Open Library offers books that can be read online or downloaded to a device. Additionally, books have audiobook editions, making Open Library another resource fantastic substitute for Z-Library in terms of audiobooks.

Contrary to Z-Library, Archive.org is a nonprofit California State Library, therefore utilizing it wont result in you breaking any copyright or piracy laws. Although all books on Archive.org are copyrighted, you are still permitted to borrow them.

The way Archive.org avoids copyright infringement is by actually owning the physical copies of every book that it digitizes and lending out the digital copies the same way any library would lend out physical copies. Because of this, only one digital copy may be checked out at once; hence, no more than one person may check out the same ebook.

The original authors of some ebooks might also upload their works.

Open Textbook Library

I said that locating textbooks on Z-Library might occasionally be challenging, however, Open Textbook Library is a terrific substitute you could find helpful. It is managed by the University of Minnesota and only focuses on textbooks.

You wont have to be concerned about breaking any copyright regulations because all of the textbooks in the Open Textbook Library are in the public domain. By subject, such as business, law, math, etc., you can look for textbooks.

The University of Minnesotas Open Education Network includes Open Textbooks. All textbooks are not only free but also typically editable in accordance with the Creative Commons license.

Moreover, the majority of textbooks undergo peer review.

Over 1,000 textbooks are already accessible on Open Textbook Library, and more are being added all the time.

FreeBookSpot

Z-Librarys competitor FreeBookSpot is an intriguing option because it doesnt upload any books by itself. Instead, it offers a search engine to assist you in locating links to ebooks published on user-uploaded, third-party hosting sites.

FreeBookSpot doesnt charge any fees, in contrast to Z-Library. However, there can be certain limitations on how many downloads you can make at the third-party file-hosting websites.

You might have the choice of a free download on other file-hosting websites, but they might charge more for a faster download. Free downloads are an option if you want to avoid paying anything.

Since every file hosting site is unique, some books might have files on multiple hosting sites.

FreeBookSpot links to other file-sharing websites but does not control the content there.

PDF Magazine

A nice alternative to Z-Library which focuses on magazines rather than ebooks is PDF Magazine. Z-Library may make it difficult to locate recent issues of magazines, but PDF Magazine has issues from publications like Country Life UK, Storica National Geographic, Elle Netherlands, and many others.

Although there are a lot of English-language releases as well, I noted that the majority of the magazines were from Europe.

You can also browse previous releases! Currently, PDF Magazine offers over 600,000 periodicals in PDF format.

You can search for magazines based on category.

The Literature Network

A literary resource for students, teachers, and book lovers online is The Literature Network. It currently has 4,400 short tales and poetry, in addition to nearly 3,500 entire novels.

The Literature Networks free use is one of its best features. There are no paywalls or subscription costs. Simple registration is required to begin reading.

Numerous articles on a wide range of topics can be found in the blog section. For instance, you may read about intriguing authors or receive advice on how to write better.

The Literature Network offers a venue where readers may interact. By signing up for a free account, you may contribute content, participate in polls, submit and discuss new ideas, chat privately with other users, and access many other special features.

BookBub

BookBub is a cutting-edge, practical platform that provides a tailored user experience for voracious readers like you.

To use BookBub, you must first sign in before adding books to your wishlist for later reading. To acquire the most recent information on any new books, you can also follow your favorite authors.

Both free and pricey books are available on BookBub. The expensive books are frequently written by well-known writers and are offered at a discount. The majority of the free novels are written by up-and-coming authors.

Smashwords

Smashwords is a major online seller and distributor of independent e-books with a sizable selection. On Smashwords, you may find books in almost every genre, including romance, mystery, and science fiction.

You can read the majority of e-books on Smashwords on your Kindle, iPad, or other e-readers because they come in a variety of formats. Additionally, Smashwords includes an audiobook section if youre seeking an electronic book to listen to.

Smashwords mostly sells electronic books, but it also has a tiny part of free e-books. Typically, these e-books are collections of short stories or snippets from longer works.

However, none of them have any restrictions and are completely free.

Ebook3000

One of the greatest websites for finding free e-books is Ebook3000, which has a sizable database with more than 3 million e-books.

Although the website is dated, it is simple to navigate. E-books can be found using a title, author, or subject search. Additionally, the website features a useful categories section where you may look through e-books by genre.

To use all of the features and collections, there is no need to register or provide any personal information. Ebook3000 connects to other websites that host the e-books rather than hosting the e-books on its own servers.

ReadAnyBook

ReadAnyBook is a terrific choice if youre seeking a great online library with a wide selection of books.

Users of ReadAnyBook can submit their own e-books and leave comments and reviews on each collection. Here, youll find books of various qualities, including those that have been manually converted from earlier printings.

It provides a huge selection of free e-books in a variety of categories. Its UI is clear and user-friendly, and its categories are well-structured.

Ebookee

Another popular website for downloading free e-books is called Ebookee, which offers a wide selection of e-books for download.

Programming, food, and design are just a few of the categories, which include over 1.5 million certified books.

It just indexes links to e-books that can be found on other websites rather than hosting any of the e-books themselves. Ebookee also makes it simpler to locate particular e-books because you may search by title, author, or genre.

On its request page, you can submit a request if you cant find the desired book and ask that it be made available.

Although Ebookee is free to use, pop-up advertisements are present. By creating an account and logging in each time you use the site, you may eliminate these advertisements.

ManyBooks

A digital bookstore called ManyBooks offers more than 50,000 free e-books. You can browse bestsellers or new releases as well as do a title, author, or category search for books.

Additionally, based on trends and the editors picks, it makes book recommendations. The books can also be filtered based on reviews or preferred languages. Readers can read more conveniently at any time and from any location thanks to the mobile app.

The books are offered in a number of formats, such as EPUB, MOBI, and PDF. Downloading books from ManyBooks doesnt require registration, although you can do so if you want to keep track of your downloads and reading progress.

Summary



Library Genesis PDF Drive Project Gutenberg Standard Ebooks EPDF Centsless Books Sci-Hub Hoopla Digital OverDrive/Libby LibriVox Archive.org/Open Library Open Textbook Library FreeBookSpot PDF Magazine The Literature Network BookBub Smashwords Ebook3000 ReadAnyBook Ebookee ManyBooks

Conclusion

There it isthe list of the top Z-Library substitutes!

A digital library called Z-Library offers free ebook downloads.
Member of Parliament for Tamale North, Alhassan Suhuyini has slammed the ruling NPP government for double standards.

He said the New Patriotic Party then in opposition berated the then Mahama's administration for going to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout.

According to him, the governing NPP is now celebrating after struggling to even secure the 3billion dollar IMF bailout.

Speaking on TV3 'New Day' morning show, he stated,  one thing I like about the NPP is how they are able to sometimes even turn defeat into celebrations, we are all in this country when they told us going to the IMF is a mark of incompetence, that just seeking an IMF bailout is a mark of incompetence, that was the verdict, today we are even struggling to qualify to get a bailout, we are not qualified, we have mismanaged the economy where to a point we are not even qualified for a bailout, they are struggling to qualify for a bailout, yet they are celebrating it and they want us to congratulate them, and they want us to believe they are better."

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva expressed confidence that the fund's Executive Board will quickly provide final approval to Ghana's bailout request in a recent press statement.

In the recent World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C., Ms. Georgieva expressed hope about the future of the nation, noting the growing support the nation was receiving from the international community, including its creditors.
17.05.2023 LISTEN

Commercial drivers in the Ashanti Region have rejected calls to reduce transport fares by 10 per cent.

The directive by the Road Transport Operators on the drivers to reduce transport fares by 10 per cent has fallen on deaf ears despite the reduction taking effect on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

Some Ghanaians who boarded commercial vehicles including shared taxi, and trotro" cried foul over the drivers refusal to reduce the transport fares as announced by authorities in the transport industry.

Some commercial drivers at the Sofoline, Atonsu and Kejetia bus terminals in an interview with reporters said the basis for transport fare reduction was inaccurate.

They argued that all inputs in the transport industry such as spare parts, income tax, road-worthy fees and engine oil, among others have increased astronomically except fuel. This they argue that reducing transport fares on the basis of a little fall in fuel prices was a bad venture.

The commercial drivers in the Ashanti Region have however opposed the directive charging the old fares with claims that they will run at a lost if they obey the calls by their authorities.

The road transport operators on Monday released a statement calling on commercial drivers for the immediate reduction in transport fares following a marginal decrease in fuel prices.

The statement noted the reduction affects shared taxis, intra-city (trotro), intercity (long distance) and haulage.

In line with the administrative arrangement on public transport fares, the road transport operators have reduced public transport fares by 10 percent to accommodate for the reduction in the price of petroleum products observed over the period, the operators announced.

Prices of petroleum products have seen a marginal decline in the second pricing window of May 2023 as a result of the decrease in the price of crude on the international market and relative stability of the Ghana cedi.
Three prominent National Democratic Congress members have come under fire for airing their post-election complaints in the media.

Sam George of Ningo Prampram, Muntaka Mubarak of Asawase, and Felix Kwakye Ofosu of the Abura Asebu-Kwamankese have been lashing out at some members of the NDC leadership for sabotaging their campaigns to get them kicked out.

In an interview with Joy News, they all accused some national executives of meddling in the recently concluded primaries rather than acting as impartial referees.

The three have therefore demanded sanctions against such national executives for meddling in their elections.

In the crucial election 2024, Mr. Kwakye Ofosu said sitting MPs who were painfully ousted would feel betrayed and may not contribute to the party's campaign.

In reaction, Mustapha Gbande, the Deputy General Secretary of the NDC indicated in an interview with Joy FM's Top Story that the three ought to have used the internal structures rather than turning to the media.

I also want to think that my senior colleagues who are complaining, understand that grievances will not be picked from the media, and so we have an internal mechanism on how grievances are channeled and how they get addressed.

This is not to say that they dont have grievances. I want to also encourage that at this time, party members will refrain from comments and actions that will disintegrate the unity of the party particularly now that we are done with the election, and also particularly that it is coming from people who have been elected or people have won, he noted.

He asserted that if the party were to punish everyone as they demand, it would begin with them for not using established party structures to address their concerns.

Generally, theres indiscipline everywhere and the leadership that we have is bold and positioned enough to confront indiscipline. Going to report internal grievances in the media is just as bad as taking the party to court or betraying the party.

And so members who are aggrieved by decisions and in the spirit of discipline must understand that those grievances ought to be channelled through internal processes. I have heard them say that leadership must hear everyone out and discipline people, if I am supposed to discipline anybody, I will first of all discipline an elected member who will run to the media to further deepen cracks, he stated.

He argues that the flag bearer and the NPP would bring everyone onboard to address issues going forward.

I think that we are done with the election, and generally, its been a very good election. Do people have an interest? Yes. Have there been issues? Yes. Our focus is to look at the larger interest. These complaints are coming from people who have survived the election. I think that is not a big issue. The bigger issue is the ones who have lost it and so the effort of the National Executive Committee is to address the concerns of elected members and how to bring up those who have lost the election so that we can move together as a family.

They should not be the ones to run to the media complaining about how unfairly theyve been treated. Theyve won the elections, theyve survived the conspiracy theory, theyve survived the vaccine, theyve survived the ganging, what is left and what is more important is for us to push them to achieve their aim, and their aim is to win the election," he emphasised.
The Bolgatanga Technical University has organized its 2022/23 graduation ceremony at its Sumburungu campus in Bolgatanga Municipality of the Upper East Region.

A total number of 578 grandaunts, made up of 274 males and 304 females graduated in the various disciplines with 98 of them obtaining first class, 11 passes and zero fail.

The 2022/23 graduation ceremony is the 11th congregation, from the humble inception of the Bolgatanga Technical University in 1999, the last Technical University to be set up in the country.

The Institution has been through many challenges from low student enrolment due to inadequate infrastructure, resulting in low Internal Generation Fund (IGF) which makes it difficult to the administration of the institute effectively.

In his address, the Vice Chancellor of BTU Professor Samuel Erasmus Alnaa said despite the challenges, they will leave no stone unturned to ensure that, BTU becomes an enviable Institution in the country. He indicated that a ten-year Strategic Plan starting from 2023 to 2032 has been put in place, and it is expected to guide the University and its activities in becoming a preferred Technical University.

Prof Alnaa stated that the attainment of this ambitious vision is incumbent on infrastructure which is a paramount pillar in the delivery of education. In this regard, he appealed to the government for a lecture theatre which has been their main request over the years and has become more precarious as 10 lecture rooms have been converted for the installation of some electrical/electronic equipment from the Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC).

The Chairman of the Governing Council, Professor Francis Atindaana Abantanga advised the students to make a conscious effort to reduce the cost of running the University by engineering novel ways of sustaining the Universitys activities. The Council Chairman indicated that Technical Universities are mandated to provide skilled entrepreneurial manpower to meet new challenges and accelerate national development.

This need he noted has become more crucial now than ever before, considering the crises in the country. Prof. Abantanga stated that, if Technical Universities are well-resourced, especially in the area of TVET, and involve in the planning and engineering of national development needs, they have the ability to change the story of mother Ghana.
As part of last Sunday's Mother's Day celebration, Gomoa West constituency Women's organizer of the NPP, Madam Hikimatu Yahaya Iddi led the Women's Wing of the party to celebrate the day with women in all the 36 electoral areas in the constituency to express her gratitude to them.

She also used the occasion to appreciate the elderly women for being supportive of the party in the constituency thus acknowledging their commitment, hard work and tremendous contribution to the NPP in the past years.

Madam Hikimatu Yahaya Iddi flanked by some Constituency Executives, polling station women's organizers and some party faithfuls received a rousing welcome and praises for what they termed as her inspirational leadership.

The Constituency Women's Organizer and her entourage visited Gomoa Famaye, Gomoa Adaa, Gomoa Ajumako Ansah and Gomoa Ankamu among others to encourage the womenfolk to continue with their positive contribution towards the growth of the NPP and Ghana as a whole.

Madam Hikimatu Yahaya Iddi presented enviable packages including an undisclosed amount of money to the women to appreciate them.

Later in an interview with newsmen at Gomoa Ankamu, the Constituency Women's organizer noted that the presentation was her widow's mite to encourage and appreciate the women for their efforts to society.

She disclosed that women in the constituency have been supportive of the NPP in particular and the nation as a whole adding that they do everything within their means to ensure full implementation of government's programmes and activities.

"I came today purposely to celebrate this special day earmarked to Women Worldwide who are the backbone of every nation. This visit could not have been any other day than today, where our mothers and sisters are being celebrated for their love and passion for mankind.

"It is a fact that a home without a mother is homeless, it is therefore worthy to say that women play an important role in society. They serve as the pillar of our homes and national development.

"The positive contribution of women are felt in our churches, traditional leadership, clubs and associations and high profile positions across the country. Women are therefore the driving force towards national development. The adage that 'what a man can do, women can do it even better' sums it all," Madam Hikimatu Yahaya Iddi stressed.

The NPP Women's Organizer encouraged women in her constituency to continue with their support for His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo led NPP Government in its quest to formulate more pro-poor policies and interventions aimed at reducing economic-related hardships to improve their standard of living.

She also called on her constituents and Ghanaians as a whole to take advantage of the Free Senior High School to enable their children attain height in the educational ladder adding that education is key to successful life and an end to poverty.
Ukraine's foreign minister met China's special envoy to Kyiv on Wednesday, insisting that the war-torn country would not accept a peace plan that relied on giving up territory after Russia's invasion.

Their meeting came as Turkey's president announced a two-month extension of a UN-backed deal to allow Ukraine grain shipments via the Black Sea, which are crucial for ensuring supplies on global grain markets.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked his "precious friend" President Vladimir Putin of Russia, his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres for their roles in extending the agreement.

In the Ukrainian capital, China's envoy Li Hui is seeking to promote Beijing-led negotiations to resolve the conflict.

China, a close ally of Moscow, has not publicly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, whose foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said that peace depended on "respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine".

In his meeting with Li, Kuleba "emphasised that Ukraine does not accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict", his ministry said.

He also underscored the importance of China's mediating role, in particular with regards to nuclear safety and the resumption of grain exports through the Black Sea.

Grain deal extension

Erdogan made the grain deal announcement a day before it had been due to expire, scoring a diplomatic coup ahead of a May 28 runoff election in Turkey, when he is hoping to extend his two-decade rule.

He said Russia had agreed not to block ships from leaving two Ukrainian ports, expressing hope that the deal would be "beneficial for all the parties".

Kyiv said it was "grateful" to the United Nations and Turkey for their efforts in "strengthening food security".

UN chief Guterres said: "These agreements matter for global food security -- Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world."

Russia has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the deal, which was meant to expire on May 18, claiming that obstacles remain to its own food exports.

The funeral for Ukrainian serviceman Volodymyr Nestor, killed in combat with Russian troops, at a cemetery in Lviv. By YURIY DYACHYSHYN (AFP)

It condemned what it called "disparities" in the deal's implementation that "should be corrected as quickly as possible".

Kyiv has meanwhile accused Russia of blocking ships by refusing to register them and conducting lengthy inspections.

"Almost 70 vessels are currently waiting in Turkish territorial waters, 90 percent of them are ready to deliver the products of our farmers to the world," said Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov.

'Compromise... will not work'

Li, the highest-ranking Chinese diplomat to visit Ukraine since Moscow invaded in February 2022, arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday, three weeks after Zelensky spoke by telephone with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

He arrived for two days of talks with authorities as part of a European tour to promote Beijing's plan to settle the conflict.

A high-ranking Ukrainian official told AFP on condition of anonymity that a meeting between Zelensky and Li was "possible in the afternoon".

On Tuesday, Kyiv had warned that Ukraine did not need "mediation for the sake of mediation".

"Ending the war with a compromise at the expense of Ukraine will not work," a senior Ukrainian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP.

Ukrainian offensive around Bakhmut, epicentre of fighting. By (AFP)

Beijing has said the aim of the tour is to "communicate with all parties on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis".

Xi, who visited Moscow in March and has aimed to position China as a neutral mediator, has been criticised for refusing to condemn the Kremlin's attack on its neighbour.

Fierce battles

On the ground in Ukraine, "fierce" battles are raging for the eastern town of Bakhmut, Ukraine's army said.

"The enemy continues to conduct offensive actions," the general staff said in its daily report.

In Kyiv, officials sought to allay fears that Russian forces destroyed a US-supplied Patriot air-defence system, saying the powerful weapon was in operation.

And in Iceland, a meeting of European leaders agreed to establish a "register of damages" to record the wartime destruction wrought by Russia in Ukraine.

Created by the 46-nation Council of Europe, it sets up an evidentiary record ahead of a possible prosecutions of Russian leaders, laying the groundwork for compensation.

Marija Pejcinovic Buric, secretary general of the Council of Europe, said that by early Wednesday 40 countries had signed onto the creation of the register, including the United States and all other G7 nations.

It was a "first, necessary, urgent step" for "justice that is centred on the victims" of the war, she said on arrival at the second day of the summit in Iceland.

In a sign of the conflict's toll on Russia's economy, the statistics agency Rosstat said Wednesday that the country's gross domestic product shrank by 1.9 percent in the first quarter of 2023.

The economy was weighed down by another wave of Western sanctions imposed over its attack on Ukraine, including a ban by the European Union on Russian petroleum products, on top of an oil price cap agreed with the G7 and Australia.
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The Nebraska State Capitol Building in Lincoln. (Rebecca S. Gratz for Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN  State senators, after an extended debate, gave final-round approval Wednesday to some non-controversial budget bills, while hard feelings persisted over the previous days debate to restrict abortion and transgender health care for minors.

Voices rose again about Tuesdays emotional and sometimes raucous debate over Legislative Bill 574, which married two of the sessions most contentious issues  restricting gender-affirming care for minors and banning abortions after 12 weeks gestational age, which critics said really amounted to a 10-week ban.

Opponents of the bill complained that legislative rules were bent or broken to allow LB 574 to be pulled back from final-round debate to add the abortion issue to the measure.

Never seen such cowardice

They also chastised supporters of the bill for using a back exit, through a construction area, to depart the legislative chamber after the emotional votes were taken Tuesday night on LB 574.

I have never seen such cowardice, said State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha, who has led a session-long series of filibusters in protest of the bill, slowing progress on legislation to a crawl.

She said backers of the bill scurried out a back door so they wouldnt have to face the hundreds of protesters in the Rotunda, whose loud chants could be heard through the chambers doors throughout the five-hour debate on LB 574.

Omaha Sen. Megan Hunt called supporters of the bill hateful and trash, and charged that Gov. Jim Pillen had used intimidation to resurrect the abortion bill after a six-week abortion ban failed three weeks ago.

Opponents of the bill said it would harm Nebraska economically, discourage companies from locating here and continue the brain drain of young, educated kids from the state.

Hunt said it would also lead to harassment of trans kids and would open the door to more extreme policies that ban gay pride parades or, as in Missouri, a tip line to report possible cases of questionable gender transitions.

The charges brought a strong rebuke from Columbus Sen. Mike Moser, who said that walking through the gantlet of protesters Tuesday night might have provoked the throng, leading to shoving and even worse. This is not the way to govern, Moser said. We cant legislate on who yells the loudest. Not the way to govern

Sen. Julie Slama blamed opponents of LB 574 for the discord in the body and said the bill likely would have failed to advance but for publicity-grabbing protests led by Cavanaugh.

At one point, the usually soft-spoken Speaker of the Legislature, La Vista Sen. John Arch, raised his voice in frustration as he defended his handling of floor debate and rules interpretations this year.

The rules have been pushed and pushed and pushed to new uses this year, he said.

Elkhorn Sen. Lou Ann Linehan also called for civility, evoking an admonition she got as a child: Cut it out.

Linehan, who is in her seventh year in the Legislature, said shed never heard as much name calling and personal attacks as shes heard this year.

She defended Speaker Arch for his management. Linehan added that when you have 33 votes for a bill, its over, referring to the votes of the previous night on LB 574, which is expected to come back for debate later this week.

Tax cuts, canal, new prison

Cloture votes to end filibusters were needed Wednesday before each of the budget bills was given final-round OK on wide margins.

Lincoln Sen. Danielle Conrad tried, but failed, to win last-minute approval of an amendment to increase aid to families for day-care expenses, which she called essential to address the states workforce shortage.

The bills passed were:

LB 813, which made adjustments to the current budget. The so-called deficit requests approved included an extra $25 million to the Department of Corrections to increase salaries and handle increased costs of food, health services and other daily expenses. Also added was nearly $160 million to the current Department of Transportations budget to provide matching funds for federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. States must provide a 25% match for the road and bridge improvement funds.

LB 815, which funded the salaries of state legislators. Senators are paid $12,000 a year, along with a $157 per diem, when the Legislature is in session, for lawmakers living more than 50 miles away from the State Capitol and $59 for those within 50 miles. The last raise for state lawmakers, which must be approved by voters, was in 1988.

LB 816, which allocates $34 million a year for the salaries of state constitutional officers, judges and other elected officials.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday vowed that the United States would hold accountable the perpetrators behind a deadly attack on a US convoy in Nigeria, which he said had been involved in a flood response.

"We condemn in the strongest terms this attack. We will work closely with our Nigerian law enforcement colleagues in seeking to bring those responsible to justice," Blinken said in a statement.

Blinken, confirming Nigerian police accounts, said that the attack Tuesday in the southeastern Anambra state killed "at least" four people.

The two-vehicle convoy was carrying nine people, all Nigerians -- five working for the US government and four police officers.

Blinken said that the convoy was traveling to prepare a visit to a US-funded flood response project.

"We do not yet know the motive for the attack, but we have no indications at this time that it was targeted against" the embassy specifically, he said.

Saluting the role of local staff, Blinken said, "We express our heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed in the attack, and pledge to do everything possible to safely recover those who remain missing."

Nigerian officials often blame attacks in the southeast on the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra movement and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network.

More than one million people were killed in Nigeria in a three-year civil war following the declaration of an independent Biafra Republic in the southeast by Igbo army officers in 1967.

Separatists still operate in the country's southeast, where they have escalated their attacks in recent years, usually targeting police or government buildings.
In a remarkable gesture of supporting the grassroots activities of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Afetsi Awoonor has donated 1,420 plastic chairs to the Ketu-North NDC.

This significant contribution aims to enhance the activities of the local branches as well improve the overall experience of visitors to the constituency office.

The benevolent act comes as part of his ongoing commitment to serving the NDC and contributing his quota in addressing the needs of the party.

Mr Awoonor revealed he was touched by the pressing needs of the party during his recent campaign tours of the 138 branches and has decided to take immediate action and make a tangible difference.

He made the donation in Penyi on May 13, 2023, during the Partys primaries ahead of the 2024 general elections, which saw John Dramani Mahama emerging as presidential candidate and leader.

Mr Awoonor was among the pool of individuals whose eyes were on the mantle to represent the people of Ketu-North on the ticket of NDC in the 2024 general election. He, however, withdrew from the race after picking his nomination forms.

He said his donation is also his little way of appreciating the great reception he received from the party executives, elders and members of the great umbrella party throughout the entire 138 branches of Ketu-North.

Mr Awoonor believes by investing in the physical space that facilitates open dialogue and community engagement, he hopes to foster an environment where party members feel valued and empowered to participate in the political process.

One of the partys executives commended Mr Awoonors gesture, stating, This donation will not only benefit the partys operations but also serve as a symbol of Afetsi Awoonors dedication to public service. It demonstrates true leadership and commitment to serving the needs of the people.

Though he has decided to withdraw from the race as our Parliamentary Candidate, remarked one delegate. Its truly heartwarming to see him go above and beyond personal interests to improve our experience as these chairs will make a significant difference, providing comfort and accessibility for party members.

As the news of this donation spreads, it is clear that Afetsi Awoonors act of generosity will leave a lasting impression on the 138 branches of the Ketu-North NDC.

The 1420 chairs will serve as a reminder of his dedication to public service and his ongoing efforts to make a positive difference, not only politically but in the socioeconomic advancement of vulnerable and poor communities, especially those in Ketu-North.

Each of the 138 local branches is to receive 10 pieces of the chairs while the Constituency office receives 40.
Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has announced his intention to summon chiefs within the Amansie areas of the Ashanti Region for questioning.

This move comes in response to the continuous destruction of lands in the region caused by the activities of illegal miners.

Expressing his dismay over reports of environmental degradation caused by illegal mining in the area, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II raised concerns about the role played by the local chiefs.

It is very sad that despite the several measures government has been putting in place to curb this menace, illegal mining and illegal logging continue to pose a threat to our forests which means the government cannot do it alone, and we must all help the government to help with these matters. My chiefs know that I have been speaking about this, and I am not happy with chiefs in Amansie areas where galamsey has taken over the land and I say to them if you sit there and say you are not aware, then I say you are not fit to be a chief.

Speaking at the launch of the 2023 edition of Green Ghana Day, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II revealed his plans to personally visit communities in the Amansie areas to witness the extent to which illegal miners have encroached.

These are matters we are going to take on again, and I dont care whose gods it is because we have to enforce it and I have to start with my chiefs first and the government will do the other one to bring these matters to a closure. I am going to drive around those areas in the Amansie to Manso Nkwanta areas to see what is happening there and if I finish with that, all the chiefs will have to tell us why that has to happen.

Source: Bloomberg
James Gyakye Quayson is not enthused with the Supreme Courts ruling, which nullified his election as the Member of Parliament for the Assin North constituency.

However, despite his disagreement with the ruling, he stated that he will not pursue further litigation.

I am, of course, disappointed by the Court's decision. I am especially surprised that the Court now says that foreign bureaucrats now determine whether natural-born Ghanaians have the right to contest parliamentary elections in Ghana or not. Thus, a country that does not allow renunciation of its citizenship can bar a natural-born Ghanaian, who has severed all relations with a country of acquired citizenship, from ever standing for MP.

Nevertheless, I have turned the page on litigating this matter in the courts of justice. I leave the matter to the court of conscience, which Ghandi reminds us, supersedes all other courts, he in a statement.

The Supreme Court , in a unanimous verdict, directed Parliament to remove James Gyakye Quayson's name from its records as a Member of Parliament representing the Assin North constituency.

This ruling was the outcome of a case brought before the Supreme Court, invoking its original jurisdiction to examine the constitutionality of James Gyakye Quayson's election.

James Gyakye Quayson had been accused of holding dual citizenship prior to the 2020 election, an allegation he vehemently denied.

Mr. Quayson explained that the Electoral Commission (EC) inspected his renunciation certificate in November 2020, before allowing him to contest in the 2020 general elections.

Read below the full statement by James Gyakye Quayson

Hon. James Gyakye Quayson writes I Remain Committed To The Development Of Assin North Constituency and Her People

This morning, the Supreme Court by a unanimous decision, ordered the Parliament of Ghana to expunge my name from its records as a Member of Parliament. The Court ruled that the Electoral Commission acted unconstitutionally in allowing me to contest the 2020 Parliamentary Elections without proof that I had denounced my Canadian citizenship at the time I filed my nomination in October 2020 to contest the parliamentary elections in the Assin North constituency.

In fact, the EC inspected my renunciation certificate in November 2020, prior to allowing me to contest the elections. Thus, I was duly qualified to run, according to the EC's regulations, which the law presumes to be regular. Yet, the Court holds that I should have offered this proof to the EC at the time of filing for my nomination and then applies the holding retrospectively to disqualify me.

It is a matter of public record that I filed for the renunciation of my Canadian citizenship in December 2019. It is also a matter of record that I left Canada in February 2020. It is also a matter of record that as soon as I applied for renunciation of my Canadian citizenship and left Canada, I lost all the rights of Canadian citizenship. It is also a matter of record that I picked up my renunciation certificate from the Canadian Embassy in Accra in November 2020.

It is also a matter of public record that Canadian law does not say I owe allegiance to Canada, even after filing for renunciation. In fact, Canadian law is unequivocal that disavowal of allegiance is subjective and can be done at any time, including immediately after swearing the oath of citizenship. Thus, under Canadian law, I owed no allegiance to Canada at all material times.

I am, of course, disappointed by the Court's decision. I am especially surprised that the Court now says that foreign bureaucrats now determine whether natural-born Ghanaians have the right to contest for parliamentary elections in Ghana or not. Thus, a country that does not allow renunciation of its citizenship can bar a natural-born Ghanaian, who has severed all relations with a country of acquired citizenship, from ever standing for MP.

Nevertheless, I have turned the page on litigating this matter in the courts of justice. I leave the matter to the court of conscience, which Ghandi reminds us, supersedes all other courts.

Helping to develop my constituency has always been, and remains, my priority. I assure my constituents that nothing has changed, and I will work even harder than before to win their support and to attain these goals.

I thank the good people of Assin-North, the leadership of the NDC, my attorneys, and the numerous Ghanaians, from all sides of the political divide, who have supported me during these turbulent times. Together, we must ensure that we build a progressive and inclusive society that does not treat any of our citizens as second-class citizens.

May God bless our homeland Ghana, and bless my beloved Assin North Constituency and her people.

Thank you.

Signed

James Gyakye Quayson

[Assin North Constituency]

-citinewsroom
The youth wing of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Akatsi North District are calling for the removal of Mr Simon Peter Kofi Ofosu, the District Chief Executive.

He is collapsing the NPP in Akatsi North, the disgruntled youth said, adding that his continuous stay in office could erode the gains the party made, especially by the current government.

It would also harm the party's chances of capturing the parliamentary seat from the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in 2024, the youth said a press conference organised on Tuesday at the party office.

The conference was addressed by Mr Zakari Nasiru, the Constituency Youth Organiser, who accused Mr Ofosu of among others, for orchestrating the rejection of two earlier nominees of the President to make room for his nomination and later, confirmation.

He said the DCE was constantly accusing his predecessor of doing nothing.

Yet, Mr Ofosu, when he came into office continued to commission projects by his predecessor without involving the party, thus, giving the NDC the chance to claim those projects for their Member of Parliament, who is seeking a re-election.

We can recall the huge gains we made as a party in the 2020 parliamentary election which got party stalwarts at the party headquarters hailing Akatsi North for a good job done.

This feat by the NPP has caused a lot of uproar in the NDC in the Constituency and they have vowed to dismantle the NPP before the 2024 elections.

He was further said to be abandoning some of the projects that were completed by his predecessor to rot.

The youth cited the cherished Ave Crocodile Resort that once won an award for the district but has been left to be engulfed by weeds.

As if that is not enough , the court complex that was completed before he came to office but has been left to be covered by weeds, while other districts are commissioning their courts. These actions of his continue to make the NPP unpopular by the day.

The youth said they feared that if Mr Ofosu was allowed to spend more days as DCE, even NPP polling station executives might not vote for the party in the 2024 general elections hence the call for his sack.

We are appealing to His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to save the party in the constituency by replacing Simon Peter Kofi Ofosu with a very competent person, who is

willing to work for the party to snatch the seat from the NDC come 2024. The earlier the better for us as a party  Simon Peter Kofi Ofosu must go!

In reaction to the allegations, Mr Ofosu told the Ghana News Agency that the demand for his removal were uncalled for.

He said the allegations against him were untrue and mere attempts to discredit his person.

He said as DCE, his focus was to deliver development projects to the people, see to the progress of government business and that of the party in Akatsi North, a course he remained committed to.

It's unfortunate some group of people to think otherwise, he said.

GNA
18.05.2023 LISTEN

I have been wanting to tell you this for some time now, you know.

I think Americans have a Stockholm Syndrome for the British particularly. Yes, yes, I know This is a nation which has managed to assert its place as the modern age leading empire, its influence spreading far and wide across the globe. A nation which has managed to, very intentionally, very painstakingly, carve out an image for itself as heaven on earth, as the very epitome of the grandness attainable by the human being. In America you can be anything you want to bea nation for the fulfilment of dreams. First on the moon; first on earth... In all things earth, first. First economically, first in science, in technological advancements, in art; a nation leading the course of our time America is great! You see how I put that in quotation marks? That is because they do not even wait for you to say it; they make sure to tell you so. This nation, suffering a Stockholm syndrome for another nation? It sounds absurd, I know.

I hear them using this word Anglophile in description of what the feeling is between them andone can saytheir past overlords, particularly Britain, a lot. But if you witness this supposed Anglophile-ness, you cant help but smell some Stockholm lurking behind itat least a tiny dose of it. Granted, it is not as dire as ours is to the West... Because for one thing their colonialism, that which planted this seed, this Syndrome in the American, was totally different from ours. It didnt proceed from an immediate past of slavery, of degradation as ours did, but a voluntary exeunt. But thats not the point of this article. We will have to look at this matter in a later article.

What I have in fact been meaning to discuss with you for some time now is the fact that during the 17th century, when the Brits, Scottish, Irish, Germans, French, the Dutch, Jews, etc. migrated to subsequently form the USA, they, in need of labour to build this new world began dabbling in slavery. And it is not the slavery you and I have been used to hearing about. This was the White folk using fellow White folks as slaves. There, these men and women were in 17th Century Europe, tired of their home nations of Britain, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, France, Denmark, etc., and seeking economic, sociological, political freedoms. And there lay this supposed new world, America, presenting prospects of a better life. These men and women desired to leave their home nations of Europe, yet for many the question remained: how? The question regards the purchasing power to do sothe exiting power, if you will.

For the rich and powerful, migrating into this new land was easyjust a ship-sail away. But after these rich folks got into this new land, there was the issue of the demand for human resource capital to till the land. These rich, powerful people needed labour. And it just so coincided with the fact that for many of the low-income earners, this desire of migration was always impeded by the how. How does one afford the ship sail? The search for answers to this question is exactly how the issue of indentured slavery came about. To find their way into this new land, these men and women had to willingly submit themselves as slaves to the rich folk, get the cost of their transportation borne by these powerful people, and in return, submit themselves as labourers, slaves to these rich folks for a stipulated durationmostly 5 to 7 yearswhen they safely arrived in America. Men, women, children, held as slaves for 5 to 7 years in exchange for the free transportation granted them into this new world.

This was a bondage distinct from that experienced by serfs in the feudal system. The rights of these slaves were limited in ways not typical of the historical serf. For one thing, these White slaves could not marry without the consent of their masters. They couldnt engage in trade outside the work that their masters subjected them to. Any attempt at escaping before the agreed upon term, and these slaves were further boundhaving their term of service under the master extended. Indeed, this indentured servitude experienced by the European was a state worse than serfdom, yet, admittedly, nowhere as gruesome as the slavery the African was made subject to.

It was indeed a good time to be a rich White capitalist in this new world.

Yet this free labour wasnt enough for the White capitalist. So, what do they do? Go out in search of more free labour. And that is when the kidnapping came in. You would be a European, minding your own businessprobably a skilled middle-to-low-income earner, probably a vagrant, a criminal, a man, woman, or child, wandering about, and the next thing you knew, you were bound in ships headed for the new worldAmerica. During this period of the 17th century, kidnapping and trafficking became the norm in Europe. In fact, in 1680, it was estimated that about 10,000 people were kidnapped from European countries to America. The usual victims were skilled carpenters, blacksmiths, weavers, etc. In one year alone (1627) about 15,000 children were shipped from these European countries into the colony of Virginia in America.

It was indeed a great time to be a rich White capitalist in this new world. With all this free labour at ones disposal, economic prosperity was only natural. To be in the position ofto put oneself in the position oftaking advantage of fellow human beings this freely and profiting so greatly, it indeed was a great time to be a rich White capitalist.

But then again, neither the indentured slave nor the kidnapped slave could prove enough to satisfy the White capitalist bent on making a great nation of this new world, Americaone that would perhaps rival their home nations in Europe, particularly, England. And that is where this very free other human capital came into the picturethe Black man and woman.

In the year 1619, the Black person was brought into Virginia to join the White slave in satisfying the capitalistic urge of increasing profitability. There are some historians who suggest that the initial plan of these White capitalists for these African slaves was only temporaryand that as more White people found their way from Europe into America, this batch of slaves would be phased out. Be this true or not, years after their introduction into the American economic system, the African found themselves being poured into this new nation in their numbers to slave awayreplacing the White slave in cheapness and availability. And the rest, they say, is history.

PART II

Someone used this term in description of our African leaders: petty bourgeoisie, and I am not particularly sure how I feel about it.

This is derived from the French term petite bourgeoisie. It is a word whose fullest essence is only derived when juxtaposed with its polar end, the haute bourgeoisie. The first signifies smallness while the other, grandness.

It is a politico-economic term coined to describe a sub-segment of this social classthe middle class of the 18th and somewhere early 19th century. They are often described as a social class which is not entirely autonomous, and one which derives its ideologiesbe it political, economic, sociological, moral, cultural, from this class higher up than itthe haute bourgeoisie. This class is a wanna-be of a sort, in that they have no strong foundations of their own. They are but copycats of the haute bourgeoisie. They seek to be like the haute bourgeoisiesit is from this class of people that they derive their sense of self.

With this explanation given, one cannot help but see why someone, seeking to personify nations in the grand scheme of things, chose to refer to African countriesparticularly African leaders by this term, the petite bourgeoisie. It is an unfortunate term, really. To be called a mere copycat. To be referred to as a person lacking a mind of your ownlacking a solid foundation, one rooted in your own essence... That is really an unfortunate situation to find oneself.

And how did this whole mess happen?

The thing is, during the centuries of slavery, beginning in the 15th century and ending in the 18th; and the colonialism that followedbeginning in the 18th century and ending somewhere mid-to-late 20th century, the White folk instituted a form of governmenta pseudo governanceover the African, one which mainly consisted of taking the money, taking the people, and running away... It wasnt governance at all. It was a selfish, self-seeking pseudo-political system instituted with the sole purpose of bleeding the African, together with their lands, dry. Natural and human resources alike were syphoned, in such large quantities from the African borders to enrich the White folks lands and bellies.

But at last, it all came to a halt in the 20th centuryit all supposedly came to a halt. African nations had attained independence from White imperialistic thievery. But heres the thing though: when care is not taken, it is mighty easy for the abused to become the abuser. Like a child learns from their parents, it is very easy for the oppressed to take note from their oppressor. It is also very easy for Stockholm syndrome to set in, and cause the abused, even after the unfortunate period of their abusing comes to a halt, to cling to the abuser still, seeking to derive their survival and their very essence from this abuser. Why? I dont know. It is a whole psychological mess. And also, it is human nature. Oftentimes when people are decrying something, it is not really the act that they are condemning, but the fact that they are not the instigator and beneficiary of that actthe fact that they are not in the shoes of the perpetrator.

So even as we, Africans, were decrying colonialism, fighting for, and working at its cessation, the people who were, years later, to become our leaders, were doing nothing but picking notes from these oppressors, envying them in their enjoyment of the fruits of thievery, learning from them, biding their time: Our time will come they seemed to have been assuring themselves. Oh, no wonder we, Ghanaians, have been famous for butchering the part of our anthem that says: Resist oppressors rule How could we sing it right when, subconsciously, we have had no true intention of actually obliterating the oppressor, together with whatever they stand for?

So then, as soon as White imperialism ended As soon as the periods where the White folk just took our natural and human resource capital and ran ended, the Black folk, now in charge of running their own affairs, came in, doing no differentdoing same, constantly taking the money and vamoosing. Pseudo-governance.

It must sting being called a pseudo or little anythingpseudo-government, pseudo-leader, little-bourgeoisie... A wannabea wannabe never actually being Never anything in the grand scheme of things; little people meaning little Inconsequential in the world of much consequence It must sting being that person and/or nation.

PART III

The subjugation of fellow human beings in the bondage of slavery and servitude, that is not a biological trait; it is not something people are born withnot the oppressor, not the oppressed. One is not born with a genetic predisposition of master-hood, while the other, servitude. We cannot blame this one on Godthe Creator has no hand in this. To survive our human ecosystem, we, humankind, since time immemorial, have engaged in the act of taking advantage of one another, whenever the chance is presented. We see how the White folk, notoriously stained with the history of Black subjugation, when the opportunity of the subjugation of their own race was afforded them, was quick to, without hesitation, subject one another to slavery, to servitude, just to meet this economic end of profitability. I know you are, at this very moment, picturing how our world would have been had the White European never stumbled upon the Black man and woman It would have easily been a 15th-20th-century of the enslavement of the White folk, wouldnt it?

That is the world we find ourselves in... We deem ourselves distinguished from animals and other living creatures, but really, at the root of our ecosystem we find this same underlying rule of the animal kingdom: the survival of the fittest, prevailing. We are constantly out in search of persons to make a fool of, to puppet around for our benefits. It is human nature; it is an economic reality; it is a jungle. You either go out in the hunt or be hunted. It is a dynamic which goes beyond our normal, individual human interactions to the interactions between nations. Countries are constantly out in search of other nations to take advantage of. When disintegrated, that is the core of diplomacy. It behoves any smart nation to guard itself against being used as puppetsserving other nations interests. It behoves great leaders to guard their nations from being used as mere playthings to the delight of other nationsside players to the West and the rest of the developed worlds position as the centre of the world, periphery characters in this globalised age. Nonentities.

It is a mighty pathetic position to find oneself in, isnt it? Mere periphery characters, meaning little in this purposeful world. Side playersa nation of people, a race of people inclined to accepting the role as side players, as game for the hunting, as puppets, periphery characters, all together inconsequential in this world of much consequence. It must sting being a leader of such a nation, no? Sitting in ones ivory towerI misspoke, ebony tower Like ones past colonial leaders, having consistently poached the moneys from the people, having obesed oneself with the gluttony, so much so that one is unable to even perform the running part well Sitting in this ivory tower of excess, yet, just like the people one has stolen from, still meaning nothing in the global, grand scheme of things. Rich with loot, yet, still inconsequential to the world around one. A mere Quisling. A pseudo-leader. A wanna-be, playing pretendnkuroin this world of real adulting. I tell you, this is enough to render one suicidal.

It is in this sense that I have always found the use of the term, petty bourgeoisie in description of the incompetent African leader, inadequate. Because proponents of this description tend to make it look like these African leaders are in cahoot with the leaders of the West and the rest of the developed world in this looting of the African continent. As though the incompetent African leader sits at the same table with these leaders of the developed world, scheming and plotting this looting. Sitting at the same table scheming and plotting? As though these incompetent leaders are respected enough to be called on to partake in a scheming! Oh, please! Lets get off our high horses already. The smartness, the savviness, required of a schemer isnt a skill the incompetent African leader has ever demonstratedlets be frank.

So, we can boldly say this much: of scheming, the incompetent African leader is blamelessalways has! They are, like usthe very people from whom they lootin the grand scheme of things, mere victims of circumstance, mere casualties A victimhood which they, with their selfish, pseudo-leaderships, have allowed upon themselves and the rest of the people whom they have been called to govern.

Such travesty.

[Published in the Business & Financial Times (B&FT) - 17th May, 2023]
Russia and Ukraine agreed Wednesday to extend a deal allowing grain exports across the Black Sea, a rare example of cooperation as the war rages and one of Kyiv's valuable Patriot anti-missile systems was confirmed to be damaged.

The grain deal was welcomed by the United Nations and United States, though both called for more certainty over the exports as Russia has threatened to end the pact, which is crucial to global food security.

The agreement came as Ukraine's foreign minister met China's special envoy in Kyiv, and insisted that the war-torn country would not accept any peace plan that relied on giving up territory.

China, a close ally of Moscow, has not publicly condemned Russia's invasion, and envoy Li Hui sought to promote Beijing-led negotiations to resolve the conflict.

In his meeting with Li, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stressed "Ukraine does not accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict", his ministry said.

Since Russia invaded, Western arms -- mostly from the United States -- have poured into Ukraine, including Patriot systems to help shield against relentless missile strikes targeting civilians and infrastructure.

One of only two Patriot systems confirmed to be in Ukraine was damaged by an unspecified projectile landing nearby, US officials confirmed Wednesday, though they said it was still functioning.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba (5thL) and China's special envoy Li Hui (4thR) attending a meeting during their talks in Kyiv. By Handout (Ukrainian Foreign Ministry press-service/AFP)

The Russian defense ministry said Tuesday that its forces had struck a Patriot system in Kyiv with a Kinzhal hypersonic missile, but the claim was not confirmed.

Ukraine's air defenses have played a key role in protecting the country from strikes and preventing Moscow's forces from gaining control of the skies.

But as Russia faced increasing setbacks on the ground, it began air attacks that have disrupted electricity, water and heat to millions of people.

Key Ukrainian ports

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, which has a central role in the grain deal, announced the two-month extension, saying Russia had agreed not to block ships from leaving two Ukrainian ports.

"These agreements matter for global food security; Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

"I hope we will reach a comprehensive agreement to improve, expand and extend the initiative."

Russia has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the deal, which was meant to expire on May 18, and again on Wednesday denounced "disparities" in how it is implemented.

Kyiv has accused Russia of effectively still blocking its ships by refusing to register them and conducting lengthy inspections.

"It's a good thing that (the deal) has been extended," said US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. "Unfortunately, Russia continues even in a moment of extension to rhetorically hold it hostage in various ways."

On the ground, fighting continued for control of the eastern town of Bakhmut.

Ukraine is seeking to take back territory occupied by Russian forces in the wake of the February 2022 invasion and also areas seized by Russia in 2014.

The battle for Bakhmut has turned into the longest standoff of the war. Ukraine is now saying it is advancing in the area, retaking Russian positions in Bakhmut's suburbs.

In a sign of the conflict's toll on Russia's economy, the statistics agency Rosstat said Wednesday that the country's gross domestic product shrank by 1.9 percent in the first quarter of 2023.

The economy was weighed down by another wave of Western sanctions, including a ban by the European Union on Russian petroleum products, on top of an oil price cap agreed with the G7 and Australia.

And in Iceland, a meeting of European leaders agreed to establish a "register of damages" to record the destruction wrought by Russia.

Created by the 46-nation Council of Europe, it sets up a record ahead of possible prosecutions of Russian leaders, laying the groundwork for potential compensation.
ING George Asiedu

18.05.2023 LISTEN

The Duplicity of Looks Art Exhibition has opened in Accra. Opening the exhibition, ING George Asiedu, Project Coordinator of GAMA said he strongly believes that fate has given him the opportunity to be a Guest of Honour and to inaugurate this exhibition.

He explained that he has two daughters and one of them has surprisingly shown so much interest in art.

The virtual exhibition featured 10 selected acrylic and oil paintings hosted by the Women Arts Museum Ghana and was curated by Mardey Ohui Ofoe. The exhibition is open from 1st May to 1 st June 2023 at the following location https://visit.virtualartgallery.com/nanafrema/

The art exhibition was made possible through an exhibition grant awarded to Nana Frema.

In a speech read on behalf of Ing George Aseidu by Ing Gabriel Engman in an opening ceremony held on Zoom, he noted that as an engineer by profession, he deeply appreciates the creative beauty of the artists labour and how much dedication she used to produce a wonderful piece of art.

ING Asiedu pointed out that "we've all heard the phrase "beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but what this show tackles is something much deeper. In the collection of works, The Duplicity of Looks, Nana Frema explored the topic in very diverse ways.

He added, "The exhibition featured several works that explore the idea of duality that can be applied to our everyday lives. The works in this exhibition aimed to make viewers think about how different looks can be interpreted in different ways.

ING Asiedu noted that the pieces are also a testament to the power of art. They show us that beauty and meaning can be found in the same image, but its up to us to decide how we interpret it. He stressed that the complicated and layered ideas of the Duplicity of Looks challenge people to think beyond what they initially see. "This challenges us to find new depths in our understanding."

ING Asiedu encouraged other invited guests to take an art piece home, saying you are not only supporting the artist to continue in this vocation, but you are also contributing your quota to the preservation of our beautiful African cultural identity being expressed through the experiences of the artist.

In her welcome address, Akwele Suma Glory, the President of wAiA said it is with immense pleasure that she warmly welcomes the invited guests to the exhibition "Duplicity of Looks," an installation of paintings by Nana Frema one of the hardworking young ladies of wAi Africa.

For us at wAi Africa, this show is extra special because it is our maiden virtual exhibition edition.

In recent times, the harsh economic conditions in the world is improving gradually. It is therefore imperative that we find solace in things like carefully created artwork like this installation of paintings. This will enable us to rejuvenate as we prepare for better economic opportunities in the world," she explained.

Madam Akwele encouraged invited guests at the exhibition to take a moment and look at the installation of works closely. You will see in each piece the artist's hopes, aspirations, and dreams. You feel her expectations. You sense her quiet but insistent demand for results, she stated.

She invited guests to patronise artists like Nana Frema to help them carry on with their good work. She praised the special guest, ING George Asiedu, for making a wise choice to open the exhibition, and for taking home a couple of paintings by the artist.

In her statement, Nana Frema, the exhibiting artist expressed her appreciation to God almighty for helping her with the project. She also thanked wAi Africa for giving her such an opportunity and her husband Frank Nartey for supporting her throughout the project.

Frema said she was also happy to have worked on herself through the canvas. Frema expressed gratitude to the exhibition grants team for their encouragement to her. The belief in me and the push to do more really challenged me to work.

Visitors can access the gallery 24 hours a day, throughout the week for free via our online platform and would be exposed to stunning visual representations.

The art exhibition also introduces the viewer to the painter's innocence, her interpretation of creativity and what it symbolizes. Given enough time and the right amount of self-presence, the paintings would reveal another reality if looked deeper into.

The paintings are an index of Fremas deeper waves of enquiry about her evolving life perspectives. Thinking beyond first impressions when evaluating her life situations has allowed her to be inclusive in her observations about what lies beneath the outer look of things.

Producing the paintings was emotionally demanding because she had to drop all her accumulated knowledge. From a place of oneness with herself, she began expressing her emotional self without duplication, just herself and the universe.

The artist applied different techniques to articulate her point of view. The exhibition is a melting pot of texture, cubes, abstract landscapes, abstract faces, and the moon. Visitors to the exhibition can also gain insight into the artist's vision and creative process.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Hon Mahama Asei Seine has said government is committed to working with the private sector players towards the achievement of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

To achieve UHC and emergency preparedness, Hon Mahama Asei Seine stated that there is a need for stronger partnerships with the private sector to strengthen Ghana's health technology and infrastructure, ensuring adequate and timely access to medicines and establishing a reliable health financing mechanism.

"Over the years, Ghana's Health Sector has been rapidly evolving from large scale investment made in the infrastructure like the expansion and building of district and regional hospitals as well as polyclinics to bring service closer to the people," he stated.

According to him, government recognized the contribution of all organizations and individuals, especially private sector players such as West Africa Pharma Healthcare which impact positively on the health of the population.

He stressed that adopting and investing in the right health equipment and devices, pharmaceutical and non-drug consumables is crucial to enchanting human life while mitigating the double burden of communicable diseases plaguing the Africa Region.

The Minister said this at the second edition of West Africa Pharma and Healthcare Exbihition commenced on 16th May 2023 at the Accra International Conference Centre, Accra-Ghana.

He, therefore urged all the players in the health sector to take advantage of the invaluable opportunity and platform provided by this exhibition to build networks and create value for their businesses.

Indian high commissioner to Ghana H.E Mr. Suganah Rajaram commended the organizers for making such a bold step in organizing the exhibition for manufacturers and distributors in Ghana.

He added that the relationship between Ghana and India cannot be over-emphasized and for that matter the event will go a long way to strengthen the good relationship between the two countries.

He said the West Africa Pharma Exhibition is crucial because the health sector is very important to the India-Ghana economy engagement.

On his part, the Turkish Ambassador in Accra, Huseyin Gungor said the embassy of Turkey is delighted to be associated with the objectives and the mission of the exhibition which aimed at building a resilient health care system in the West African sub-region using modern health technology and collaborative partnership.

The three days event (16th - 18th May) is expected to have over 100 manufacturers from India, Turkey, Nigeria, France, Ghana, Egypt, USA, UK, etc, and with 4000 visitors from Ghana and other neighboring countries.

The Expo was organized by WEGVORAUS Exhibitions Private Limited, India with support from Ministry of Health, The Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana (PHFAoG), the Pharmaceutical Importers and Wholesalers Association (PIWA), the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA, African Chamber of Youth Development and others aimed at using modern technology to build a resilient health system and create a network platform for manufacturers and importers in the health sector.
Tunisian President Kais Saied has hosted Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders following a deadly mass shooting outside a local synagogue, telling them Tunisia was a country of "tolerance and coexistence".

The May 9 attack on the resort island of Djerba killed five people and sparked panic during an annual Jewish pilgrimage at the historic Ghriba synagogue, Africa's oldest.

The interfaith meeting on Wednesday "attests to the tolerance and coexistence that have characterised Tunisia for centuries", Saied said, according to a video released by the presidency.

It included Tunisia's Grand Rabbi Haim Bittan, Mufti Hichem ben Mahmoud and Archbishop Ilario Antoniazzi.

The gunman, a police officer, killed three other officers and two worshippers, a French-Tunisian and an Israeli-Tunisian man, before being shot dead himself by police.

During the meeting, Saied said a probe was underway to determine whether the shooter had any accomplices.

Four people linked to the gunman and suspected of involvement in the attack have so far been arrested, the private Mosaique FM radio reported late Wednesday.

Tunisian President Kais Saied, seated next to the flag, meets Bishop Ilario Antoniazzi, Chief Rabbi Bitten Haiem and Mufti Hichem Ben Mahmoud at the Carthage Palace in Tunis. By - (TUNISIAN PRESIDENCY/AFP)

Tunisian officials have denounced the attack as "criminal" but refrained from referring to it as a "terrorist" operation which would imply anti-Semitic motives.

Saied told the religious leaders on Wednesday that the attack sought to "undermine Tunisia and its stability, and sow discord and division".

"You can live in peace, and we will guarantee your safety", he said, addressing the Jewish community.

Saied noted a "distinction between Judaism and Zionism", rejecting any "normalisation" with Israel and calling on the international community to "put an end to the tragedy of the Palestinian people".

Rabbi Bittan called the meeting "excellent" and said he had received "guarantees that what happened (in Djerba) would not repeat".

The pilgrimage to Ghriba is at the heart of Jewish tradition in Tunisia, where only about 1,500 members of the faith still live -- mainly on Djerba -- compared with around 100,000 before independence in 1956.

The Ghriba pilgrimage was previously targeted in a 2002 suicide truck bombing that killed 21 people and was claimed by Al-Qaeda.
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The Cumberland County District Attorneys Office this week announced two convictions after jury trials in the county Court of Common Pleas.

Jonah Williamson, 41, was found guilty of aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person, but found not guilty of attempted murder on May 11 following a four-day trial.

The charges stem from a stabbing at the Rodeway Inn in Wormleysburg on Dec. 17, 2021. The DAs office said Williamson got into a verbal argument with a woman, which turned physical and resulted in Williamson stabbing the woman multiple times in the neck, arm and hand.

The DA said this was at least the second attack against the same woman since April 2020, and that Williamson had a criminal history, including a 1996 conviction for manslaughter out of New Jersey.

Sentencing is scheduled for July 25 in front of county Judge Christylee Peck.

Child abuse case

Josiah Ron Becker, 60, of Newville, was found guilty by a jury May 12 of felony involuntary deviate sexual intercourse of a person younger than 16, corruption of minors and sexual assault, as well as misdemeanor indecent assault of a person younger than 16 following a two-day trial in front of Peck.

The DAs office said the charges stem from incidents at Beckers residence in North Newton Township between Feb. 5, 2021, through Oct. 5, 2021, in which he hugged and kissed a 14-year-old boy before bringing him to his home and showing him pornography, and at one point he performed a sex act on the child.

Beckers sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 15.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

A 45-year-old woman is in critical condition after being shot by her boyfriend, Kwame Asamoah, also known as Otwea Amokoa, over a misunderstanding about housekeeping money, otherwise known in Ghana as "chop money.

The incident happened in Breman Nkonya, near Breman Asikuma in the Asikuma Odobeng Brakwa district of the Central Region.

According to an eyewitness, Kofi Tawiah, who lives with the suspect and the victim in the same house, the deceased often complained about the chop money, but the suspect failed to increase it.

Tawiah reported to newsmen that the suspect had first threatened to kill the woman, but she thought it was a joke until the unfortunate incident.

Tawiah further revealed that the suspect is now on the run after attempting to sell the gun he used to shoot his girlfriend.

The victim was initially taken to Breman Asikuma Government Hospital but has since been referred to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital for further treatment.

The police are currently on a manhunt for the suspect, and anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to report to the nearest police station.
The Bono Regional Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), Dennis Abugri Amenga, has commended STAR Ghana Foundation for supporting Cashew Watch Ghana to intensify its advocacy work in the cashew industry in Ghana.

According to him, over the years, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have neglected the cashew sector, with no advocacy, but they have now seen the need that policy must be driven towards addressing the needs and challenges facing farmers and the entire cashew industry in Ghana is commendable.

I am happy that it is not only government and development partners that are supporting the industry but CSOs have also seen the need, because they appreciate that the industry can only grow and survive if the players of the industry have a fair share of the income or earners of the industry, he said.

Mr Abugri Amenga made the commendation at Drobo in the Jaman South Municipal Capital in Bono Region during the launching of the Amplifying the Voices of Cashew Farmers (AVFC) Project.

Advocacy

The 15-month initiative, which is being implemented by Cashew Watch Ghana and funded by STAR Ghana Foundation, aims at mobilizing and empowering civil society, especially cashew farmers to push state-actors to take meaningful actions that contribute to creating and promoting a vibrant cashew sector through advocacy, transparency and accountability.

The Regional Director for MOFA said the advocacy role Cashew Watch Ghana is bringing on board is something the government must commend them on.

The Bono Regional Director told the participants that since the commencement of Planting for Export and Rural Development in 2018, more than 46,000 hectares of new cashew plantations had been established in the region.

He said under the programme, thousands of farmers in the region were given free improved cashew seedlings and supported by the Agricultural Extension Officers (AEO) to adopt best agricultural practices to improve yield.

Mr Simon Asore, the Functional Steering Committee Chairman of the CWG, in his address explained the genesis of forming the Cashew Watch Ghana (CWG) platform in 2019 which is the initiative of Global Media Foundation and permanently hosted by the same organisation.

He said the Platform, which is made up of CSOs, Media Cashew Farmers and Local Processors, was formed to help mobilize cashew farmers and bring them together with other key actors in cashew industry to advocate for change and promote the livelihood of cashew farmers especially women in cashew.

Value chain

The cashew value chain, Mr Asore said, offers a significant potential for employment and wealth creation, therefore, the adoption of a value chain approach to promote all the actors along the cashew value chain is key to a sustainable development.

Cashew, he noted, has for the past five years been one of the top non-traditional export commodities in Ghana, saying Ghana, in the first quarter of 2021 earned 128.70 million dollars from cashew nuts exports.

However, he said, lack of proper coordination among the various actors in the sector has resulted in illegal activities like the smuggling of nuts to and fro neighboring countries and gave way for unauthorized buyers and exporters to buy directly at the farm gate at lower prices and without allowing proper drying to be done by farmers.

All these, he noted, have contributed to the price volatility of cashew, and resulted in the low level of local processing in Ghana.

He said to Cashew Watch Ghana initiated the Amplifying the Voices of Cashew Farmers project to address these challenges with the support of Star Ghana Foundation at the cost of GHS348,561.

Govt committed

The MCE for Jaman South, Andrews Kwasi Bediako, said the government is doing everything possible in creating an enabling policy environment for the cashew industry in Ghana.

According to him, this explains the setting up of the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA), which was inaugurated in September 2020 and is now the regulatory body for cashew and five other tree crops.

He said according to sections 2 and 3 of the Tree Crops Development Authority Act, 2019 (Act 1010), the TCDA is to regulate and develop the production, processing, trading, and marketing of cashew, mango, shea, coconut, rubber, and oil palm in Ghana.

Mr Bediako urged the farmers to have confidence in the government since government is working to ensure that cashew price favour farmers.

The cashew crop was introduced into Ghana about 35 years ago, with the Bono Region, becoming the leading producer of the commodity.

Statistics available from the Bono Regional Department of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture indicate that the region produced more than 48 per cent of the countrys total annual production of 170,000 metric tons (MT) of raw cashew nuts in 2021.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

The National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) of the Ahafo Region under the guidance of the Regional Director, Collins Osei Bonsu embarked on monitoring and compliance exercises in the Tano South Municipality.

The officers visited companies such as fuel stations, gas stations, sawmills, hotels and sachet water-producing facilities at Bechem, Takyimantia and Derma.

The Director of Operations for Ahafo Nadmo, Mutala Mohammed advised the various companies that, it is very imperative to put out proper safety measures to protect their firms than to let their negligence cause man-made disasters which can heavily affect the facilities beyond repairs.

"I am highly disappointed that all the sawmills we visited were not complying with the safety measures. The workers were not wearing safety boots, safety hand gloves and safety spectacles which can save them from an emergency calamity.

"The positioning of the emergency assembly point was nothing to write home about however I have tasked the respective managers to provide all the necessary safety equipment to their workers as soon as possible because we shall come back for another monitoring," Director of Operations Ahafo Nadmo stated.

The Head of the Rapid Response Unit for Ahafo Nadmo, Abdulai Bawa also stated, "NADMO's vision is to build a disaster resilient Ghana of which Ahafo region is not exempted therefore, we are poised to ensure that all safety precautions are in place to help protect lives and properties.

"We shall not relent on educating the public from preparedness to response, recovery, prevent misfortunes, create awareness in prone communities and institutions on all disaster types, especially industrial disaster."

The NADMO operations team educated the various institutions within Bechem and its environs on a professional approach to disaster management systems.
The health website Doctissimo has been fined 380,000 for breaches of personal data, the French digital rights watchdog CNIL has said.

Owned by the Reworld Media group, the website has been ordered to pay 280,000 under the European Data Protection Regulation (RGPD) for personal and health data kept without time limits and collected without consent, CNIL said in a statement.

It must also pay a fine of 100,000 for violations relating to cookies.

The sanction follows a complaint filed in June 2020 by UK body Privacy International.

The CNIL found that data relating to tests and quizzes carried out on the site were kept for too long, initially for 24 months.

No consent

It also criticised Doctissimo for having collected health data from around 5 percent of these tests without consent, even though this information is considered "particularly sensitive".

The CNIL noted a lack of security for personal data, with the use of an unencrypted communication protocol, and the storage of passwords in "an insufficiently secure format". The watchdog also noted a cookie used for advertising purposes on the terminal as soon as a user arrives on the site, and the use of two others despite the "refuse all" option on the information banner.

According to the authority, this failure to obtain consent affected every visitor to the site, or "hundreds of millions of Internet users".

(with wires)
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and the British Museum are conferring on the return of some prized Asante artefacts taken away by the British occupying force in the 19th and 20th centuries.

British Between 1823 and 1901, there were a series of conflicts between the Asante Empire of the Gold Coast (now Ghana), and the invading British Empire.

The clashes were triggered by Britain's bid to establish a strong presence in the Gold Coast, and will, therefore, do anything possible to crash the Asante resistance.

It is estimated that some five major wars were fought within this period  the first Anglo-Asante War took place between 1823 and 1831, the second in 1863, the third between 1873 and 1874, the fourth between 1895 and 1896, and the fifth and final one in 1900.

These wars left in their wake many casualties, destruction of property, exiles and the eventual suppression of the Asante Empire.

Despite its enduring and active resistance, the Empire became a British protectorate on January 01, 1902.

It is worth mentioning that the third and fifth Anglo-Asante Wars, known as the Sagrenti War and Yaa Asantewaa War, respectively, dealt a big blow to the Empire as some of its treasured artefacts were captured by the invading British forces.

Some of those artefacts and collections could now be found in museums worldwide, including the British Museum, Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum, European museums and the American Museum of Natural History.

According to 'The Art Newspaper', an international journal covering the art world, the greatest part of the V&A's Asante collection comprised 13 pieces of looted Asante court regalia.

These were sold by the British army through the London crown jeweler, Garrard, it reports.

Given the cultural, spiritual and symbolic significance of how the restitution of these ancient artefacts could have on their place of origin, the Manhyia Palace, the seat of the Asantehene, has renewed efforts at getting these precious items back to their roots.

The BBC reports that the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, on his recent visit to the United Kingdom (UK) for the commemoration of King Charles III, asked the British Museum to return gold items in its collection to his country.

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, recently met the Museums Director, Dr Hartwig Fischer, for discussions.

The Museums collection includes works taken from the Asante Palace in Kumasi during the war with the British of 1874.

The British Museum told the BBC it is exploring the possibility of lending items to Ghana.

Although international attention is now focused on the restitution of Benin bronzes to Nigeria from European and American collections, items from the Asante Kingdom are arguably of equal significance.

The Government of Ghana, in pursuance of enriching the cultural heritage of the people, has set up a Restitution Committee to look at the return of items taken from the Asante Palace which are now in collections around the world.

Nana Ofori Atta Ayim, who sits on that committee says; These objects are largely sacred ones and their return is about more than just restitution. It is also about reparation and repair, for the places they were taken from, but also those who did the taking.

In her article: The Restitution of Ancient Artefacts, Sarah Irving of the Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Warwick, examines the problems surrounding the restitution of ancient artefacts to their place of origin.

The article explores the importance of the legal framework and the ethical considerations to be taken into account in relation to repatriation and the ownership of disputed antiquities.

Legally acquired artefacts, along with looted goods and illegal exports, often find their way into private and public collections, and a vast number of artefacts are located in places where they did not originate.

This leads to unrecorded finds, the contexts of which are lost to humanity. The damage incurred from these unrecorded removals of artefacts from their original location is irreversible. Nonetheless it is important that this type of find be returned to its legitimate owner, preserved and displayed in an appropriate environment, she writes.

In recent times, the British Museum has come under intense pressure to return items in its collection to their countries of origin.

A spokeswoman for the British Museum told the BBC: Our Director and Deputy Director were pleased to welcome His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II (the Asantehene) to the museum during his visit to the UK for the Coronation of King Charles III.

She added that the British Museum is exploring the possibility of lending items from the collection to mark the 150th anniversary of the end of the third Anglo-Asante war, as well as to support celebrations for the Asantehenes Silver Jubilee next year.

In 2022, Otumfuo Osei Tutu met with Tristram Hunt, Director of the V&A, in Ghana, during which they discussed the objects taken from his predecessors that were in the museum.

The journey ostensibly seems difficult given the restrictive laws associated with the restitution of artefacts.

Some of the UKs most renowned institutions, including the British Museum, are prevented by law from making a decision regarding the restitution of ancient artefacts.

The British Museum Act of 1963, for instance, bans the Museum from the disposal of objects except in very specific circumstances.

It is however free to loan items, if it believes the items will not be damaged.

Most UK national museums are not normally able to deaccession because of restrictions incorporated in the 1983 National Heritage Act.

With next year's 40th anniversary of the Act, critics would like to see a debate over deaccessioning.

While the importance of museums is well understood, museums such as the British Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other European and North American Museums have come under scrutiny for some of their collections.

GNA
National Democratic Congresss (NDC) Chairman for the Kade Constituency in the Eastern Region, is questioning the Special Prosecutors (SP) business in the internal politics of the party.

According to Mr Godfred Bonsu, the Special Prosecutors office is a particular office that should not mingle with the internal politics of political parties.

Mr Bonsu explained that there are more serious cases of interest to the people of Ghana on the table of SP that need his attention than the internal affairs of the NDC.

The OSP recently invited a parliamentary aspirant, Juliana Kinning Wissan, of the NDC who was captured on video raining money on the delegates and supporters during the primaries at Ejura Sekyeredumase.

In a statement dated Wednesday, 17 May 2023, however, Mr Bonsu said money-sharing during elections is not unusual.

In his statement, the NDC Chairman for the Kade Constituency, said: I was exceedingly worried when I saw Juliana Kinang Wassan, a former parliamentary aspirant for Ejura Sekyeredumase constituency in the Ashanti Region, spraying money in a viral video during the parliamentary and presidential elections on May 13, 2023.

However, he argued that it is not the SPs mandate to look into such occurrences when it concerns the internal politics of a particular party. It is the duty, he argued, of the leadership of the particular political party, to deal with such matters.

The statement further commended the NDC delegates at Ejura Sekyeredumase for performing a national duty by voting against the monetisation of politics in Ghana which we must applaud.

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Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh has called on every Ghanaian to help government make life better for the citizenry.

Elated about the drop of fuel prices, the Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri is urging traders to equally reduce the prices of goods and services.

Fuel prices are dropping, fares are dropping, prices of goods and services should drop same...let's change the narrative. No complacency, let's work, work, and work, Frank Annoh-Dompreh said in a post on Twitter on Thursday, May 18.

Following the Executive Board's approval of Ghanas support programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday, things are expected to get better in the country.

Already, the Ghanaian Cedi is appreciating against the US dollar. This is expected to lead to a further drop in the price of fuel in the country.

The $3 billion IMF deal is focused on restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability as well as implementing wide-ranging reforms to build resilience and lay the foundation for stronger and more inclusive growth.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

The National Democratic Congress has pledged massive support for James Gyakye Quayson to win back the Assin North parliamentary seat when a by-election takes place.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled that Parliament should remove Mr. Gyakye Quayson's name from its records as Assin North MP for owing allegiance to Canada.

After the 2020 election, James Gyakye Quayson was charged for having dual citizenship.

Following the latest court ruling, Fifi Kwetey, the General Secretary of the NDC in a statement said, The full weight of the party, including the Minority Caucus in Parliament, will be put behind Honourable Quayson so as to ensure an even more resounding victory for him in the upcoming bye-election.

In a statement, the minority leader, Ato Forson, stated that at the time of his election, Hon. James Gyakye Quayson was not a dual citizen, neither was he a dual citizen as at the time he took the oath of office as a Member of Parliament.

He added, The intention of the framers of Ghanas constitution is not to allow a dual citizen to perform the functions of Parliament.

The NDC Caucus described the SP decision as odd and cited Honorable J.H. Mensah, Honorable Baba Jamal and Honorable Peter Amewu in a similar case where the "Supreme Court had stated that it did not have the jurisdiction to invalidate a Parliamentary election and that the High Court is where such a matter should be taken."

The party said that while there are serious questions about the legitimacy of this decision after consultation with Hon Quayson, the leadership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) wishes to state unequivocally that we are ready for the bye-election that is now the result of this decision.
The Baukinabe Ambassador to Ghana, H.E Pingrenoma Zagre, who is also the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps, called on President Akufo-Addo to bid him farewell after his duty tour of the country.

The Baukinabe Ambassador, who began his duty tour of Ghana in August 2017, had been commended for championing the advancement of cordial relations between the two countries.

President Akufo-Addo told the Baukinabe envoy that such departures are accustomed to such positions and wished him well in his endeavours.

He said Burkina Faso, which is Ghanas northern neighbour, required that the two countries have a relationship of solidarity and friendship.

And within that context, President Akufo-Addo commended the Baukinabe Ambassador for how you have advanced the ties between our two countries during your stay here.

In terms of infrastructure development that would link up the two countries, President Akufo-Addo said the construction of the railway project is so dear to his heart and wish that before his tenure, a significant portion of the project would have been completed.

He said Baukina Fasso and Ghana shares strong ties historically and culturally and that had been demonstrated through the visits President Akufo-Addo had undertaken to his country over the years.

On his part, H.E Pingrenoma Zagre thanked President Akufo-Addo for the support and cooperation extended to him during his stay in Ghana since August 2017.

He said he has witnessed major projects during his stay embarked by Ghana for the benefit of his country such as the electricity connectivity and the ongoing railway project that would link up the two countries after completion.

He commended President Akufo-Addo and his government for such huge and impactful investments and believed that subsequent governments would keep the same commitment you have to ensure its completion.
A six-member Board of Directors of the Public Services Commission was on Wednesday sworn into office by the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Jubilee House.

They are Chairperson: Prof. Victor Kwame Agyeman; Dr Agyeman Frimpong; member, Dr Prince Edward Daara; member Prof. Kwame Boafo Arthur; member, Mrs Paulina Adubea Dazowah and Mrs Cynthia Bediako.

The Public Services Commission of Ghana, which is an independent constitutionally-mandated, human resource planning institution, is tasked to manage the workforce of the Ghanaian public sector holistically.

President Akufo-Addo said he was confident that the affairs of the Commission are in safe hands.

Chairperson, you must be minded by the fact that your predecessors distinguished themselves creditably in this position and I and for that matter Ghanaians will expect nothing less than excellence on your part, he told Prof Agyeman.

To the other members, President Akufo-Addo told them he expected that they would bring their expertise and experiences on board to support the chairperson to ensure that all of us build a more resilient public service that would provide efficient service to Ghanaians.

Prof. Agyeman, on his part thanked the President for reposing his trust in them and assured him and Ghanaians of their utmost dedication to advancing the course of the Commission into a well-functional one.
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Carlisle Police (717-243-5252)

Vonnie Lea Varner, 53, of Newville, was charged with misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia after police took her into custody on an active warrant at 12:12 a.m. May 12 in the 100 block of Cherry Street. During the arrest, police discovered several baggies with what appeared to be a controlled substance, as well as drug paraphernalia. Bail on the newest charges was set at $1,500 cash and she remains in Cumberland County Prison.

Megan Elizabeth Evertts, 44, of Shermans Dale, was charged via summons with misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia after police saw her walking in the 200 block of Franklin Street at 12:37 a.m. May 12 and discovered she had active warrants for her arrest out of Dauphin County. When police took her into custody, they discovered numerous items consistent with paraphernalia.

Police said they are looking for a man who assaulted a person, pushing him through a glass window and causing serious injury about 3 p.m. May 16 in the first block of West Louther Street. The man then fled on foot.

Middlesex Township Police (717-249-7191)

Amanda Lynn Gutierrez, 42, of Carlisle, was charged with felony aggravated assault and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, as well as misdemeanor simple assault and summary harassment and disorderly conduct after a stabbing incident at a hotel in the 1200 block of the Harrisburg Pike on May 13. Police said Guiterrez stabbed a person with a butcher knife after that person asked her to leave. She was arraigned and posted $50,000 cash bail.

Newville Police (717-776-5513)

Branda Lynn Shoemaker, 27, of Newville, was arraigned May 16 on charges of felony access device fraud and misdemeanor theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property after an investigation into incidents stemming from last year. Police said they received a complaint that money was missing from a victims account, showing that $680 was spent between Kanes Korner Pizza and Brothers Pizza via the Slice pizza ordering app. With the cooperation of the two restaurants, police determined it was Shoemakers name linked to the app, and she eventually confessed to linking the victims bank account information to the app to make food and other purchases, according to police. She was released on her own recognizance after arraignment.

West Shore Regional Police (717-737-8734)

Police said residents remove their keys from their vehicles and lock them each night after reports of vehicles being entered and three vehicles being stolen from Lemoyne and Wormleysburg in the last week. Police said in all incidents of stolen vehicles, they were unlocked with the keys inside.

East Pennsboro Township Police (717-732-3633)

Jaime Lynn McDiffitt, 40, of Enola, was charged May 12, and Jodi L. Hernandez, 39, of New Cumberland, was charged April 25, each with misdemeanor obstruction in connection with an investigation into a child abuse complaint on Feb. 28 in the 100 block of Henry Road. Police said during the course of the investigation, police attempted to speak with two juvenile witnesses, but the two women did not cooperate with police. Each woman was arraigned and posted $5,000 cash bail.

New Cumberland Borough Police (717-774-0400)

Police said they are investigating an incident in which a homeowner shot a person during a burglary at 8:14 p.m. May 14 in the 300 block of Second Street. Police said the person who was shot fled and was located around 16th and Bridge streets before being transported for medical treatment. Police said the investigation is ongoing and did not release any names, but said the burglary does not appear to be a random situation.

State Police at Carlisle (717-249-2121)

Michael Scott Reed, 39, of Newville, was charged with misdemeanor terroristic threats and summary harassment after an incident on Bloserville Road in Upper Frankford Township at 7:19 p.m. May 7. Police said Reed made statements about killing a woman and shortly thereafter began loading a shotgun.

Police reported May 9 that a pedestrian was injured after a crash on Hot Point Avenue at Middle Spring Avenue in Shippensburg Township at 4:40 a.m. April 28. Police said Rasheeda Dickerson, 36, of Shippensburg, was walking east on Hot Point Avenue approaching the intersection when she was struck from behind. The vehicle did not stop and continued east on Hot Point Avenue before turning onto Middle Spring Avenue, heading south. Dickerson suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is challenging the government to come clean on the fight against illegal mining also known as galamsey.

A Deputy General Secretary of the NDC, Mr Mustapha Gbande, threw this challenge to the government in an interview on the Ghana Yensom morning show on Accra 100.5 FM hosted by Odehyeeba Kofi Essuman on Thursday, May 18, 2023.

He explained that under the current administration, what these unscrupulous people need as a license to engage in galamsey is a photo of the president and the Jubilee House's dairy.

''It is the reason when you visit most galamsey sites, you will be greeted with parked land cruisers with a dairy of the National Coat of Arms affixed on it," he said.

"Under this government, all you need to mine illegally is a dairy with the Coat of Arms," he alleged.

This, he said, represents how some appointees of the president are complicit in the fight against galamsey in the country.

He alleged that many of the cross-country vehicles that traverse galamsey sites had a photo of the president affixed on them.

He said these photos and dairies represented the authority of the illegal miners.

"So for the president to say galamsey is still a challenge means he is paying lip service to the fight against the menace," he charged.

Meanwhile, President Nana Akufo-Addo has conceded galamsey is still around and threatening the survival of Ghanaians.

At the natural resource stakeholders dialogue in Accra on Thursday, 11 May 2023, the president said: "Even though a lot has been achieved in this area between 2017 and 2021, illegal small-scale mining remains a challenge and continues to pose as a threat to our very survival."

"But," he noted, "we cannot rest while these illegalities still persist."

A few weeks ago, the presidency described as "hearsay" a 37-page galamsey report authored by Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, who served as a minister of environment, science, technology and innovation as well as the chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, in which he named government appointees and officials at the presidency, of either supporting or being involved in galamsey.

Jubilee House said the report was a collection of personal grievances of the world-renowned heart surgeon in his galamsey fight.

One of those he named, Mr Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, a relative to President Nana Akufo-Addo, has sued the former minister for defamation.

Others, such as Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah and the Director of Operations at the Jubilee House, Mr Lord Commey, have denied being involved in galamsey or frustrating the fight against it.

Meanwhile, the attorney general has also said the report only contains the views of Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng.

In Mr Godfred Dame's opinion, the former IMCIM chairman did not give the full perspective of things in the leaked report.

"I realise that even if the report made reference to Heritage Imperial  which you just brought up significantly, it omitted reference to the judgment that has been set aside and all that. I think that these are very important matters and all that," Mr Dame told Kojo Yankson in a yet-to-air interview.

"Preliminarily, I indicate or suggest that it is not the full perspective of issues that were addressed by the respected professor, and its just his view on certain matters," Mr Dame noted.

He, nonetheless indicated that "it is being put through the processes and I understand that there are some petitions at CHRAJ and Special Prosecutors office, and that is the process that we all have to subscribe to."

He insisted the report is the surgeon's view of things when asked if that description was fair.

"Yes, because even an as attorney general, when I take a matter to court, its my view on the matter, and many a time, the court does not subscribe to our view," he explained.

Mr Dame said "there were some convictions in the Eastern Region" relating to galamsey, explaining: "Two persons were sentenced to terms of, at least, 18 years.

"This morning, I confirmed with my Eastern regional head that [with] one of them, the conviction was set aside on appeal, and the convictions relating to one of them were affirmed."

"So, really, a report or a statement by the attorney general does not constitute evidence against any person. The evidence would have to be adduced before the proper forum. So, the statement set out in a report, emanating from a person respected, yes, in my view, has to be tested. There is no basis for a person to accord any sanctity to such a report," the attorney general insisted.

-Classfmonline
Mr Kwasi Amoako-Atta, Minister for Roads, and Highways, has rejected claims that the construction of Kumawu roads is intended to win votes in the impending by-election scheduled for Tuesday, May 23.

He said procurement for the construction of Kumawu internal and other roads in the constituency was made long before the demise of the former Member of Parliament (MP), Mr. Philip Atta Basoah.

Basoah's passing is only a coincidence, it is unfortunate and regrettable, but everything will be done to honour his name posthumously, the Minister told the media after inspecting the progress of work on the Kumawu roads.

He said the ongoing works were not limited to only Kumawu but also Juaben. Effiduase and Asokore which were not in the Kumawu Constituency.

Are people of Juaben, Effiduase, and Asoskore part of Kumawu Constituency or are they going to take part in the selection of the next MP for Kumawu? he asked.

He said it was laughable when because of politics, people alluded to the fact that the road construction was being executed because of the upcoming election in the constituency.

When the late MP was alive, he had on two occasions gone to the Paramount Chief to inform him about plans to commence the project, Mr Amoako-Atta revealed.

He assured the people on the Juaben-Effiduase-Askore-Kumawu-Woraso stretch that work on that road would continue even after the by-election and urged them not to fall for the propaganda that the project was meant to attract votes.

He said all roads in Ghana had been programmed for construction, but they could not be tackled simultaneously and urged Ghanaians to exercise patience as the as the government took steps to fix poor roads across the country.

About 20 kilometers of internal roads, according to the Minister, are going to be asphalted in Kumawu to give the town a massive facelift.

Other towns whose internal roads have been earmarked for construction as part of the project are Effiduase, Asokore, Woraso and Bodomase.

The Minister was impressed by the work done so far and commended the Contractors, Joshob Construction, for living up to expectation and charged them to maintain the quality of work to ensure value for money.

He said agitations for the construction of roads by the citizens were legitimate and implored Ghanaians to do so without destroying public properties.

GNA
The Constituency Communication Officer for the National Democratic Congress in Wassa Amenfi East of the Western region, Mr. Thomas Dindiego has charged the Special Prosecutor to go after serious scandals rather than wasting taxpayers' money on needless investigations.

Mr. John Dramani Mahama, the new NDC flagbearer for 2024 presidential election is under investigation by the Special Prosecutors office over allegations of Gh40 bribes to delegates.

The Special Prosecutor has also summoned Juliana Kinang-Wassan, a defeated National Democratic Congress parliamentary aspirant for Ejura Sekyedumase for 'spraying cash' on delegates during a parliamentary primary.

In reaction on Wednesday, the Constituency Communication Officer, Mr. Thomas Dindiego says it's a misplaced priority for the Special Prosecutor to investigate Mr. Mahamas Gh40 to delegates.

According to him, the outcome of the investigation will not achieve any evil agenda of the ruling NPP.

Thomas Dindiego emphasized that John Mahama funded his campaign tour through public donations from the donation App he launched.

He also described an invitation extended to the partys Parliamentary candidate hopeful in the just ended Ejura parliamentary primary as witch-hunting.

Mr. Dindiego urges the Office of the Special Prosecutor to focus on probing heaping scandals that have rocked Akufo-Addo's government and his corrupt appointees.

Mr. Dindiego told journalists that Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia must be summoned before the Special Prosecutor to answer questions about sources of funding for his new 100 branded campaign pickup vehicles meant for mere party primaries.

The NDC Amenfi East Communication Officer again urged the Special Prosecutor to act on the findings of the Auditor-Generals report on the governments corrupt COVID-19 expenditure covering the period between March 2020 and June 2022 and prosecute offenders.
As part of efforts to improve the lifestyles of people within the Nandom and Lambussie Districts through improved Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) practices, SNV Netherlands Development Organizations Healthy Future for All (HF4A) project has partnered with the Nandom Rural Bank to implement a USD100,000 WASH Credit Fund scheme to make financing accessible to micro and small scale businesses and individuals interested in improving WASH access delivery within the Nandom and Lambussie Districts.

The project intends to help WASH service businesses formalize their operations and strengthen the knowledge and capacity of WASH entrepreneurs.

In a recent interview by SNV Ghana, Savannah Alliance Ghana and Nandom Rural Bank on Nandom 101.9 FM, the Acting Micro-finance manager of the Nandom Rural Bank spelt out the details of the WASH Credit facility and the persons who are qualified to access the facility.

According to the micro-finance manager of the bank, the facility is open to individuals, households, small, medium and large-scale enterprises that are into WASH activities. The WASH businesses include soap making, plumbing, the sale of PVC pipes, pump operators, mobile toilet operators, rubbish collectors and many others. Most importantly, these people must reside in the Nandom and Lamsussie District.

To be able to access the WASH Credit facility, interested businesses have to be registered and with a constitution. Individuals or households who need the loan will also need to first open an account or have an account with the bank. Individuals will also be required to provide guarantors or sureties.

Small scale businesses can access up to Ghc100,000.00, Medium and large-scale businesses can access up to about Ghc200,000.00 while households and individuals can access an amount of Ghc50,000.00.

The interest on this loan facility is relatively cheaper. Individuals and households will pay a 10 percent interest while businesses pay a 15 percent interest over a period of 15 months.

Savannah Alliance Ghana (SAG) a partner in the implementation of the HF4A is a capacity development organization that provides tailored-made capacity building for development-related agencies. It operates mostly in the Northern part of Ghana with a special interest in the WASH sector, food security, Agric and Livelihood improvement, Education and Environmental Conservation.

Under the Health Future for All Project, SAG will be providing business development training to enterprises to be able to access the funds and set up sustainable businesses.
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has launched the 2023 edition of Green Ghana Day in Kumasi with a call on Ghanaians to support the national tree planting exercise.

He noted that Green Ghana Day, scheduled for June 9th, 2023, provides a chance for Ghanaians to showcase patriotism, demonstrate a dedication to the conservation of the nation's forest resources and demonstrate the desire to leave a richer and greener Ghana for the next generation of children.

Otumfuo commended the government for implementing the Green Ghana Project and emphasized the importance of trees in environmental conservation, climate change mitigation and planet survival.

He pledged to plant 2.5 million trees in the Ashanti Region to safeguard Lake Bosomtwe.

He bemoaned the willful loss of forests caused by unlawful mining and logging, adding that the chiefs and people cannot pretend to be unaware of those responsible for the devastation.

"The government cannot accomplish it on its own. We must all get involved and support the government in dealing with these issues," he noted.

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel A. Jinapor, stated that there has been no systematic attempt to recover the countrys lost forest cover over the years.

He said the country lost 160,210 ha of forest between 2010 and 2015. However, between 1963 and 2016, 157,300 ha of forest were planted.

Even though the government has been taking several measures to restore lost forest cover since 2017, the Minister stated that the Green Ghana Project was necessary to raise national awareness of the need for collective action to restore degraded landscapes in the country, instil values of tree planting and nurturing in citizens, particularly among the younger generation, mitigate climate change, and beautify communities and the environment.

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, Mr John Allotey, indicated that the Ashanti Region planted the most trees on Green Ghana Days over the previous two years. He stated that more than 81 per cent of the trees planted in 2021 have survived, while 72 per cent of those planted last year have survived.
In an effort to transform the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) sector in the Nandom and Lambussie districts, SNV Netherlands Development Organisations Healthy Future for All (HF4A) project has partnered with Savannah Alliance Ghana (SAG) to enhance capacity building initiatives for WASH businesses and relevant stakeholders in the Upper West Region.

Recognising the pivotal role the private sector plays in WASH services delivery, SNV Ghana and the HF4A project aim to help local WASH businesses formalise their operations and strengthen the knowledge and capacity of WASH entrepreneurs.

Through equipping entrepreneurs with the necessary skills and knowledge, SNV Ghana and SAG also seek to create a vibrant and sustainable WASH ecosystem that can effectively address water and sanitation challenges in both districts.

A recent workshop held on Saturday, 6th May 2023 brought together eighteen staff of Nandom Rural Bank from the Nandom, Hamille, Fielmo, and Wa branches, as well as management from the bank's head office.

The training session aimed to provide staff members of the bank with a comprehensive understanding of the WASH sector and its potential for growth, especially within the Nandom and Lambussie Districts and Upper West region as a whole.

During the workshop, attendees delved into the available opportunities within the sector, gaining insights on operational dynamics, and regulatory framework within which they operate.

In May 2023, SNV Ghana and the Nandom Rural Bank will be partnering to implement a USD 100,000 WASH Credit Fund scheme to make financing accessible to micro and small businesses and individuals interested in improving WASH access delivery within the Nandom and Lambussie Districts under the HF4A Project.

Savannah Alliance Ghana(SAG) a partner in the implementation of the HF4A is a capacity development organization that provides tailored-made capacity building for development-related agencies. It operates mostly in the Northern part of Ghana with special interest in the WASH sector.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

Promasidor Ghana Limited, producers of Cowbell and Onga seasoning has launched the Northern Tree Planting Project in the Tolon District of the Northern region.

The project under the Onga Impacting Lives Campaign in partnership with the Dalhu Green Foundation is an eco-friendly initiative by Promasidor Ghana and other global organizations to reclaim and restore the lost forest and vegetation cover, and equally contribute to the fight against climate change.

A ceremonial tree planting event was held at both the forecourts of the Tolon-Naas Palace and the Tolon district hospital on Wednesday, May 17, 2023 to commence the Northern tree planting project.

About 7,000 trees mainly Acacia, Mahogany and Mangoes will be planted across the district within a period of one month in areas such as Nyankpala, Tali, Warbogu and Kpendua.

Briefing the media after the event, head of public affairs at Promasidor, Gideon Kodo explained, The Onga Impacting Lives Campaign is a series of community support initiatives by PGH which have been designed to positively impact the quality of lives and the environment and address pressing societal needs of vulnerable groups in society especially in the Northern Region.

"In addition to the tree planting initiative is also the water supply system which the Onga keeps providing for underserved communities in the North, Gideon Kodo added.

Marketing Director of Promasidor Ghana, Abiodun Ayodeji further explained that his company prioritizes environmentally sustainable practices in its business operations and have thus shown strong commitment of carbon footprint in line with the UN goal of attaining a net zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050.

Abiodun Ayodeji further urged the public to plant and nurture trees in their homes and communities to protect the environment.

On his part, Chief of Tamale Zongo and the Dalhu green foundation, Maulana Sheikh Dalhu says he is motivated by nature hence the need to collaborate with the Promasidor Ghana to champion tree planting in the region.

It is compulsory to protect nature and by so doing, I encourage tree planting, he added.

Sheikh Dalhu further revealed that the Dalhu Foundation in partnership with Promasidor Ghana will replicate the project in other districts of the North.

In a speech read on his behalf, the Tolon-Naa, Naa Yab Alhaji Majore Rtd Abubakari Sulemana discloses that land isnt sold in Tolon under his reign and therefore encourage investors to take advantage and invest in the Tolon traditional area.

Land is not sold in Tolon and I encourage government and investors to take full advantage and invest in Tolon, he stated.

The Onga Impacting Lives Campaign further donated a poly tank and some products of Promasidor Ghana to the Tolon district hospital.

The entire Northern tree planting project is valued at GH100,000.
18.05.2023 LISTEN

Ghana will be better off if women are in charge in Ghana.

It's no longer a fashion to lie about everyday lives of women and what they can do to uplift the spirits and hopes of Ghanaians that have been in the doldrums--literally speaking -- for far too long.

Gone are the days when we pretended that caring for children and cooking meals were always rewarding enterprise. Gone are the days when we insisted that a real woman found it more satisfying to provide comfort for those who did great things in Ghana than do great things in Ghana herself. Given our current socioeconomic situations in Ghana, I honestly think and believe that women should be 'permitted'( I chose that word deliberately and provocatively,) to be ambitious, outspoken, strong and sure to run for the presidency of the land in this election cycle.

But, you can bet with your last cedi in your pocket that the professional male political chauvinists will not let their power go without a fight. However, they surely know damn well that a female president will do a damn better job than them.

Women are tired of being first ladies. Let them change positions with the male counterparts, so we can call their men " first gentle men".

In fact, women are very superior to men in so many respects .So they should not make a mistake to believe that they are equal to men. They are not, and they have never been. They are far, far, head of men. Do you need a proof?

Women have the ability to improve upon anything they come in contact with--including the lousy economy. Give her some sperm and she will single-handedly produce a beautiful ,bouncy baby. Give her a simple makeshift house and she will definitely turn it into a HOME ;where your soul can relax. Give her a basket full of grocery and she will produce a jaw -dropping and a mouth-watering meal.

Women have passed equality index --no debate about that ! So let's give them a chance and support to change the chromosome of politics in this nation, so as to make this nation live up to its glory and potentials .Women can definitely take us onto the socioeconomic promised land and make us laugh all the way to the bank with less sweat. We need women to turn our zillion tons of natural resources into wealth and provide real jobs by tapping the potential of the Volta lake ,so as to put a stop on Ghana's sons and daughters from being globetrotters .

When that happens we can all join hands at the Flag Star Square and sing the old Negro song,:" free at last, free at last..Thanks, God almighty, we're free at last...".

Stay tuned. Be blessed, educated and Informed.

From: Kwaku Adu-Gyamfi (Voice of reason)

* The author is a social commentator, a diehard defendant of the republic (a citizen ,not a spectator)
18.05.2023 LISTEN

Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh has rubbished reports suggesting that he is sabotaging the Presidential ambition of Assin Central Member of Parliament, Kennedy Agyapong.

This week, there have been allegations suggesting that Mr. Annoh-Dompreh is going around telling some leading members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) that Ken Agyapong is not presidential material.

Reacting to the claim in a post on social media on Thursday, May 18, the Majority Chief Whip said although he supports Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia to become the next flagbearer of the ruling party, he will never disrespect Ken Agyapong.

I respect Snr Ken. but my an alloyed & unflinching support is to DMB somplicita... this cannot undermine my respect and love for Ken, Frank Annoh-Dompreh said.

For the most part of the past year, Frank Annoh-Dompreh has openly declared his support for Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia to become the next flagbearer of the NPP.

He is confident that with the Vice President, the NPP will have a better chance of breaking the 8 when President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo finishes serving his second term.
Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources has said government will continue to combat illegal mining popularly termed galamsey in the country.

Samuel Abu Jinapor asserts that the government is introducing more interventions to aid in the fight against illegal mining in the nation.

The Minister gave a speech at the Transformational Dialogue on Small-Scale Mining organized by the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) at Fiapre near Sunyani in the Bono Region yesterday.

We are resourcing the Ghana Geological Survey to undertake more geological operations to block out areas of small-scale mining. We are doing this to ensure that small-scale mining becomes sustainable and responsible. Those who have vowed to ignore all stringent measures and continue with the illegalities, we are strengthening the law enforcement regime by increasing the punishment for convicted persons engaged in illegal mining, he cautioned.

He further stated the government was not against small-scale mining but rather irresponsible mining that destroyed the natural environment.

"Our efforts, which are necessary to clamp down on galamsey, have sometimes been interpreted to mean the government of President Akufo-Addo is against small-scale mining, he added

Speaking at the event, Professor Elvis Asare Bediako, Vice Chancellor of the University of Energy and Natural Resources, said if small-scale mining is carried out responsibly, it might help many people escape poverty.

"Over 100 million individuals receive a living through the artisanal sub-sector alone. Many rural residents may escape poverty thanks to the artisanal subsector," he stated.

The dialogue under the theme "Sustaining Environmental Security and Human Rights in Small-Scale Mining Operation in Ghana" aims to provide a distinctive forum for in-depth discussions on one of the most urgent issues, regarding the sustainable exploitation of natural resources, not only in Ghana but also around the world.

Participants included among others, members of the Regional House of Chiefs, the Association of Women in Mining in Africa and Ghana, the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners, large-scale mining firms, students and civil society organizations.
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Two separate police incidents on Thursday resulted in two different school districts to take precautionary measures in protecting their students.

South Middleton School District officials reported that they were contacted at 9 a.m. Thursday by State Police regarding an incident in Mount Holly Springs. That resulted in the district instituting a shelter-in-place order at W.G. Rice Elementary School until 9:46 a.m. when State Police issued the all-clear to the district.

State Police did not provide any details about the incident in Mount Holly Springs.

Also on Thursday, East Pennsboro Area School District put its high school, middle school and East Pennsboro Elementary School on lockdown due police activity near its main campus, ABC27 reported.

East Pennsboro Township Police Chief Mark Green told the news station that students were safe and the order was only a precaution as police searched for a resident with concerns over a mental health crisis in the area of Valley and Salt roads.

Police had also posted on Crimewatch that residents in that area should also take precautionary measures, such as locking their doors or calling police if they see anything suspicious. By 1:30 p.m., the issue was resolved and the lockdown lifted.

Posted earlier on Cumberlink:

South Middleton School District officials said W.G. Rice Elementary School briefly had a shelter-in-place order after State Police contacted the school about an incident nearby.

Officials said elementary staff and students were ordered to shelter in place between 9 a.m. and 9:46 a.m. Thursday. Under this order, students are not allowed inside, but they are allowed to move around within the building.

School officials said they lifted the order after police said the incident in Mount Holly was resolved.

No immediate information was available on what the police incident was.
The 2023 National Democratic Congress (NDC) defeated presidential aspirant, Kojo Bonsu has criticized government for what he describes as a deception to Ghanaians.

In one hand, Government announced a reduction in transport fares by 10% following a drop in fuel prices.

In another hand, government has electricity tariffs by 18.36%, blaming it on the Cedis instability.

On this score, Bonsu believes that government is simply "robbing Peter to pay Paul."

In a Facebook post on Thursday, May 18, he wrote, Gov't of Ghana supposedly reduces transportation fare by 10% and then nicodemously increases utility by a whopping 18.36%. This is robbing Peter to pay Paul.

The former Kumasi Mayor is not alone in his criticisms of the government's actions as many, especially in the opposition NDC see this as nothing but imposition of more hardship on Ghanaians.
Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, is urging President Nana Akufo-Addo to keep his promise to Ghanaians and fire his cousin, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta after sealing the $3billiion IMF deal.

It is recalled that the Majority caucus in Parliament called for Mr Ofori-Atta to be sacked but after meeting the President, the caucus in a statement dated 26th October 2022, revealed that the President asked them to stand down until Ghanas negotiations with the IMF were concluded.

On Wednesday, 17 May 2023, the executive board of the IMF approved the $3 billion bailout allowing for an immediate disbursement of about $600 million.

Following the successful conclusion of the deal, Mr Ablakwa is asking if President Nana Akufo-Addo will consider the request of his members of Parliament.

In a Facebook post, the North Tongu MP said After an embarrassing IMF U-Turn deal, Ghanaians expect President Akufo-Addo to keep his promise by firing his cousin, Ken Ofori-Atta  who is now widely regarded as Ghanas most disastrous Finance Minister.

Will the President attempt in this instance to be a man of his word? he quizzed.

Prior to this new reminder, several calls on the President from a section of Ghanaians and civil society organisations for Mr Ofori-Atta to be fired due to the difficult economic conditions fell of deaf ears.

-Classfmonline.com
University of Media, Arts and Communications has announced the opening of applications for prospective students for the 2023/2024 academic year.

The university offers a variety of undergraduate programs at the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Institute of Film and Television, and Institute of Languages.

To apply for admission, prospective students can purchase admission forms at any Prudential Bank branch or through mobile money using any network or via app.ropaygh.com.

Applicants will be given a serial number and pin, which they can use to access the online admission portal to begin their application process.

Completed application forms, along with supporting documents and a passport photograph, should be submitted by the deadline of Thursday, August 31, 2023.

The Institute of Journalism offers a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies with options in Print, Broadcast, and Online Journalism, a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies with a Public Relations option, a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations with Marketing, a Diploma in Communication Studies, and a Diploma in Public Relations.

The Institute of Film and Television offers a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism for Radio, TV, and Online, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Animation, Production Design, Film Directing, Television Production, Editing, Motion Picture Photography, Sound Production, and Multimedia Production, including Graphic Design, Web Design, Motion Graphics, Visual Effects, and 3D Modelling.

The Institute of Languages provides a Bachelor of Arts in Translation and an HND Bilingual Secretaryship program.

Prospective students are encouraged to contact the university for more information on the admissions process via its social media handles and official website.
Dr. Clement Apaak, the Member of Parliament for Builsa South is curious as to whether President Akufo-Addo will fulfil his commitment to the Majority NPP in Parliament and remove Ken Ofori-Atta as Minister of Finance after clinching the $3billion IMF deal.

On Tuesday, October 25, 2022, the Majority NPP MPs demanded the removal of Mr. Ofori-Atta due to a number of issues affecting Ghana's economy. During the round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), President Akufo-Addo meet the NPP MPs and promised to remove the Finance Minister after he has secured the deal.

In a tweet on the development, Dr. Apaak doubts President Akufo-Addo's ability to fulfil his promise.

Will Nana Akufo-Addo fire his cousin Ken Ofori-Atta as promised by the Ken Must Go MPs now that the IMF deal has been secured?

"I've long believed that Ken Ofori-Atta won't ever be fired by Nana Akufo-Addo. Maybe he'll prove me and the rest of the world wrong. We live to see!" remarked the politician.
Builsa South MP, Dr. Clement Apaak

18.05.2023 LISTEN

Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa South, Dr. Clement Apaak has reminded President Akufo-Addo of his assurance to remove Ken Ofori-Atta as Finance Minister once the deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is secured.

The Majority Caucus in Parliament last year in October demanded the removal of the Finance Minister after several complaints by Ghanaians over the high cost of living and the downward trend of the economy.

After a meeting with President Akufo-Addo, the Majority NPP Members of Parliament numbering over 80 disclosed that they have been assured their demand would be acted upon after the country secures the IMF deal.

Following the announcement by the IMF that the $3 billion Extended Credit Facility for Ghana has been approved, Clement Apaak says he wonders if President Akufo-Addo will stick to his word to the Majority MPs and finally sack Ken Ofori-Atta.

Will NADAA fire his cousin Ken Ofori-Atta as promised the "Ken Must Go MPs" now that the IMF deal has been secured? I've long maintained that NADAA will never fire Ken Ofori-Atta. Maybe he will prove me and many others wrong. We live to see, Dr. Clement Apaak shared in a post on Twitter.

The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday announced that its Executive Board has approved the $3 billion Extended Credit Facility for Ghana.

The support programme is focused on restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability as well as implementing wide-ranging reforms to build resilience and lay the foundation for stronger and more inclusive growth.

The IMF notes that capacity development and continued support by development partners would be critical for the successful implementation of Ghanas programme.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) program in Ghana will begin soon, and the Minority in Parliament has cautioned Ghanaians to prepare for tough times.

In a statement on Thursday, May 18, Minority Leader Dr. Cassiel Ato Baah Forson said: So far, since September 2022, electricity tariffs have gone up by a cumulative figure of 75.32% (27% in September 2022, 29.96% in the last quarter of 2022 and 18.36% a few days ago.

He warns, Let us brace ourselves for the full consequences of this IMF deal, which will, without doubt, bite hard on Ghanaians, especially the youth.

"This is not a counsel of despair," he noted, "but a reality that will soon dawn on all of us."

To let Ghanaians understand the true situation of the economy, the Minority Leader says the Caucus will address the nation in the coming days by making the contents of the IMF Executive Board's report available to all.

He asserted that if the administration had followed the Minority's advice to approach the IMF in 2021, the nation would have been in a more comfortable position.

Within the week, the initial $600 million first tranche of the $3billion is expected to arrive.
Mitsubishi Co. (OTCMKTS:MSBHY  Get Rating)s stock price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.23 and traded as high as $40.25. Mitsubishi shares last traded at $40.23, with a volume of 8,200 shares changing hands.

Mitsubishi Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a 50 day moving average of $40.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.89 billion and a P/E ratio of 6.29.

Mitsubishi Company Profile

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Mitsubishi Corporation operates in industrial finance, energy, metals, machinery, chemicals, and daily living essentials worldwide. The company's Global Environmental & Infrastructure Business segment conducts environmental and infrastructure projects, related trading operations, and other activities in power generation, water, transportation, and other infrastructure fields.

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Shares of Shoe Zone plc (LON:SHOE  Get Rating) passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of GBX 239.30 ($3.00) and traded as high as GBX 241.74 ($3.03). Shoe Zone shares last traded at GBX 240 ($3.01), with a volume of 74,682 shares trading hands.

Shoe Zone Trading Up 2.4 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of GBX 237.26 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 225.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 96.25. The firm has a market capitalization of 101.49 million, a P/E ratio of 913.04 and a beta of 1.21.

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Shoe Zone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 13th will be paid a dividend of GBX 2.50 ($0.03) per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 13th. This represents a yield of 1.04%. Shoe Zones payout ratio is 3,913.04%.

About Shoe Zone

Shoe Zone plc operates as a footwear retailer in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. The company offers shoes for men, women, boys, and girls. It operates 410 stores and shoezone.com, a Website. The company was incorporated in 2014 and is based in Leicester, the United Kingdom.

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Victoria PLC (LON:VCP  Get Rating)s stock price crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of GBX 511.27 ($6.40) and traded as high as GBX 538 ($6.74). Victoria shares last traded at GBX 527 ($6.60), with a volume of 18,557 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Berenberg Bank restated a buy rating and set a GBX 880 ($11.02) price target on shares of Victoria in a research note on Monday, February 20th.

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Victoria Stock Down 0.6 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of GBX 509.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 502.86. The stock has a market capitalization of 558.33 million, a PE ratio of 1,814.81 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 390.33.

Victoria Company Profile

Victoria PLC, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and distributes flooring products primarily in the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Turkey, the United States, and Australia. The company operates through four segments: UK & Europe Soft Flooring, UK & Europe Ceramic Tiles, Australia, and North America.

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Dynatrace (NYSE:DT  Get Rating) had its target price increased by stock analysts at Bank of America from $54.00 to $58.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, The Fly reports. Bank of Americas price objective suggests a potential upside of 20.88% from the stocks current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. JMP Securities reaffirmed a market outperform rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Dynatrace in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Dynatrace from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, February 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Dynatrace from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their target price on Dynatrace from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on Dynatrace in a research note on Thursday, March 23rd. They issued a buy rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $49.90.

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Dynatrace Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE DT opened at $47.98 on Thursday. Dynatrace has a 52-week low of $31.54 and a 52-week high of $48.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 470.70, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.11. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $41.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.97.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

About Dynatrace

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Dynatrace by 2,277.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,934,130 shares of the companys stock worth $293,315,000 after purchasing an additional 6,642,452 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Dynatrace by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,424,549 shares of the companys stock worth $694,758,000 after acquiring an additional 4,791,026 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Dynatrace by 55.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,202,122 shares of the companys stock worth $215,896,000 after acquiring an additional 2,218,679 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Dynatrace during the 4th quarter worth about $82,232,000. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Dynatrace during the 1st quarter worth about $84,600,000. 97.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Dynatrace, Inc engages in the development of a software intelligence platform, purpose-built for the enterprise cloud. The firms platform utilizes artificial intelligence at its core and advanced automation to provide answers, not just data, about the performance of applications, the underlying hybrid cloud infrastructure, and the experience of the customers users.

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The cold formality of the letter is seared in Debra Longs memory.

It began Dear Claimant, and said her 24-year-old son, Randy, who was fatally shot in April 2006, was not an innocent victim. Without further explanation, the agency that assists violent-crime victims and their families, known then as the New York Crime Victims Board, refused to help pay for his funeral.

Randy was a father, engaged to be married and studying to become a juvenile probation officer when his life was cut short during a visit to Brooklyn with friends. His mother, angry and bewildered by the letter, wondered: What did authorities see  or fail to see  in Randy?

It felt racial. It felt like they saw a young African American man who was shot and killed and assumed he must have been doing something wrong, Long said. But believe me when I say, not my son.

Debra Long had bumped up against a well-intentioned corner of the criminal justice system that is often perceived as unfair.

Every state has a program to reimburse victims for lost wages, medical bills, funerals and other expenses, awarding hundreds of millions in aid each year. But an Associated Press examination found that Black victims and their families are disproportionately denied compensation in many states, often for subjective reasons that experts say are rooted in racial biases.

The AP found disproportionately high denial rates in 19 out of 23 states willing to provide detailed racial data, the largest collection of such data to date. In some states, including Indiana, Georgia and South Dakota, Black applicants were nearly twice as likely as white applicants to be denied. From 2018 through 2021, the denials added up to thousands of Black families each year collectively missing out on millions of dollars in aid.

The reasons for the disparities are complex and eligibility rules vary somewhat by state, but experts  including leaders of some of the programs  point to a few common factors:

 State employees reviewing applications often base decisions on information from police reports and follow-up questionnaires that seek officers opinions of victims behavior  both of which may contain implicitly biased descriptions of events.

 Those same employees may be influenced by their own biases when reviewing events that led to victims injuries or deaths. Without realizing it, a review of the facts morphs into an assessment of victims perceived culpability.

 Many state guidelines were designed decades ago with biases that benefited victims who would make the best witnesses, disadvantaging those with criminal histories, unpaid fines or addictions, among others.

As the wider criminal justice system  from police departments to courts  reckons with institutional racism in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd, compensation programs are also beginning to scrutinize how their policies affect people of color.

We have this long history in victims services in this country of fixating on whether people are bad or good, said Elizabeth Ruebman, an expert with a national network of victims-compensation advocates and a former adviser to New Jerseys attorney general on the states program.

As a result, Black and brown applicants tend to face more scrutiny because of implicit biases, Ruebman said.

In some states examined by AP, such as New York and Nebraska, the denial rates for Black and white applicants werent too far apart. But the data revealed apparent bias in other ways: While white families were more likely to be denied for administrative reasons, such as missing deadlines or seeking aid for crimes that arent covered, Black families were more likely to be denied for subjective reasons, such as whether they may have said or done something to provoke a violent crime.

In Delaware, where Black applicants accounted for less than half of the compensation requests between 2018 and 2021 but more than 63% of denials, officials acknowledged that even the best of intentions are no match for systemic bias.

State compensation programs are downstream resources in a criminal justice system whose headwaters are inextricably commingled with the history of racial inequity in our country, Mat Marshall, a spokesman for Delawares attorney general wrote in an email. Even race-neutral policy at the programmatic level may not accomplish neutral outcomes under the shadows that race and criminal justice cast on one another.

The financial impact of a crime-related injury or death can be significant. Out of pocket expenses for things like crime scene cleanup or medical care can add up to thousands of dollars, prompting people to take out loans, drain savings or rely on family members.

After Randy was killed, Debra Long paid for his funeral with money she had saved for a down payment on her first house. Seventeen years later, she still rents an apartment in Poughkeepsie, New York.

Thousands of people are denied compensation every year for reasons having nothing to do with the crime itself. They are denied because of victims behavior before or after a crime.

Applicants can be denied if police or other officials say they failed to cooperate with an investigation. That can inadvertently harm people who are wary of retribution for talking to police, or people who dont have information. A Chicago woman who was shot in the back was denied for failing to cooperate even though she couldnt identify the shooter because she never saw the person.

And compensation can be denied merely based on circumstantial evidence or suspicions, unlike the burden of proof that is necessary in criminal investigations.

Many states deny compensation based on a vaguely defined category of behavior  often called contributory misconduct  that includes anything from using an insult during a fight to having drugs in their system. Other times people have been denied because police found drugs on the ground nearby.

In the data examined by AP, Black applicants were almost three times as likely as applicants of other races to be denied for behavior-based reasons, including contributory misconduct.

A lot of times its perception, said Chantay Love, the executive director of the Every Murder is Real Healing Center in Philadelphia.

Love rattled off recent examples: A man killed while trying to break up a fight was on parole and was denied compensation, the state reasoned, because he should have steered clear of the incident; another was stabbed to death, and the state said he contributed because he checked himself out of a mental-health treatment facility a few hours earlier against a doctors advice.

Long scoured the police account of her sons shooting. She called detectives and pleaded to know if they had said anything to the compensation program that would have implicated her son in some kind of a crime. There was nothing in the report. And detectives said they hadnt submitted any additional information.

Every chance Long got, she reminded detectives and the state officials reviewing her claim that Randy had never been in trouble with the police. She wanted them to understand the injustice was also being felt by Randys then-toddler son, who would only know his father through other peoples memories.

Long kept information about her sons case in a box near her kitchen. As more than 20 notebooks full of conversations with detectives piled up, Long tucked the states rejection letter inside a folder so she wouldnt lose it, but also so she didnt have to see it every time she searched for something.

What plays in their mind is that their loved one wasnt important, said Love of the Philadelphia-based advocacy group. It takes the power away from it being a homicide, and it creates a portion of blame for the victim.

In recent years, several states and cities have changed eligibility rules to focus less on victims behavior before or after crimes.

In Pennsylvania, a law went into effect in September that says applicants cannot be denied financial help with funerals or counseling services because of a homicide victims behavior. In Illinois, a new program director has retrained employees on ways unconscious bias can creep into their decisions. And in Newark, New Jersey, police have changed the language they use in reports to describe interactions with victims, leading to fewer denials for failure to cooperate.

Long, who now works as a victims advocate, was in a training session in 2021 when a speaker began praising New York states compensation program. Long tried to stay quiet and get through the training session, but couldnt. She told the group about her experience and the weight of the letter.

An Office of Victims Services employee approached Long after the meeting. She told Long the program had undergone an overhaul. There were no longer five board members who could make subjective decisions about claims. The program was now operating as a division, and there had been a cultural shift within the agency in the last decade including an increased focus to reach victims of color. She convinced Long to resubmit her claim.

A few weeks later, and nearly 15 years after Randy was buried, Longs application was approved and the state sent her a check for $6,000  the amount she would have received back in 2006. She used part of that money to help Randys son, who is now in college, pay for summer classes.

Its not about the monetary amount, Long said. It was the way I felt I was treated.
Blue Barn Wealth LLC cut its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM  Get Rating) by 21.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,999 shares of the companys stock after selling 817 shares during the period. Blue Barn Wealth LLCs holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $304,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 26,141 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,456,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 35.6% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,939 shares of the companys stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,296 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 24.7% during the first quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,065 shares of the companys stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 54.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 525 shares of the companys stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.7% during the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 8,987 shares of the companys stock worth $844,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.85% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the company from $86.00 to $118.00 in a report on Thursday, January 19th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. They issued a buy rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 2nd. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Philip Morris International from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $110.60.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of PM traded down $0.89 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $92.60. 1,487,259 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,313,634. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $98.70. The firm has a market cap of $143.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.68. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $82.85 and a 12-month high of $109.81.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 20th. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.80% and a negative return on equity of 128.55%. The firm had revenue of $8.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.56 earnings per share. The firms revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 23rd were issued a dividend of $1.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 22nd. This represents a $5.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.49%. Philip Morris Internationals payout ratio is presently 90.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 80,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.35, for a total transaction of $8,028,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,007,048 shares of the companys stock, valued at $101,057,266.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.35, for a total value of $8,028,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,007,048 shares of the companys stock, valued at $101,057,266.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stacey Kennedy sold 20,308 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.30, for a total value of $2,036,892.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,418 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,248,525.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 108,308 shares of company stock worth $10,851,692. Company insiders own 0.15% of the companys stock.

About Philip Morris International

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Philip Morris International, Inc is a holding company engaged in the manufacturing and sale of cigarettes, tobacco, and nicotine-containing products. Its products include cigarettes and reduced-risk products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products. The firm operates through the following geographical segments: European Union, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, South and Southeast Asia, East Asia and Australia, and Americas.

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Sagil Capital LLP boosted its position in shares of Embraer S.A. (NYSE:ERJ  Get Rating) by 165.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 474,356 shares of the aerospace companys stock after buying an additional 295,548 shares during the period. Embraer accounts for about 4.3% of Sagil Capital LLPs portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Sagil Capital LLP owned 0.26% of Embraer worth $5,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ERJ. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Embraer during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Embraer by 241.4% during the 3rd quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,404 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 3,114 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Embraer during the 1st quarter worth approximately $60,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Embraer by 23.0% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,832 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Embraer in the first quarter valued at approximately $136,000. 37.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on Embraer from $11.75 to $17.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, March 23rd. TheStreet raised Embraer from a d+ rating to a c- rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. StockNews.com raised Embraer from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Embraer from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Embraer from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $19.25.

Embraer Stock Performance

Shares of ERJ traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $14.52. 846,684 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,623,827. Embraer S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $7.91 and a fifty-two week high of $16.75. The businesss 50 day moving average is $15.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Embraer (NYSE:ERJ  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Friday, March 10th. The aerospace company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Embraer had a positive return on equity of 0.65% and a negative net margin of 0.08%. On average, analysts expect that Embraer S.A. will post 1.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Embraer Company Profile

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Embraer SA engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of aircraft and its parts for commercial, defense, and executive aviation sectors. It operates through the following segments: Commercial Aviation, Defense and Security, Executive Jet Business, Service & Support and Others. The Commercial Aviation segment is involved in the development, production, and sale of commercial jets; and the provision of support services to regional aviation and aircraft leasing.

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Evolution Petroleum Co. (NYSEAMERICAN:EPM  Get Rating)  Research analysts at Northland Capmk upped their FY2023 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Evolution Petroleum in a research note issued on Monday, May 15th. Northland Capmk analyst D. Schafer now forecasts that the energy company will earn $1.15 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $1.13. The consensus estimate for Evolution Petroleums current full-year earnings is $1.11 per share.

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Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Evolution Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a hold rating on the stock.

Evolution Petroleum Stock Performance

Evolution Petroleum Announces Dividend

NYSEAMERICAN:EPM opened at $7.49 on Tuesday. Evolution Petroleum has a 52-week low of $4.81 and a 52-week high of $8.55. The firm has a market cap of $249.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 0.96. The businesss fifty day moving average is $6.52 and its 200 day moving average is $7.05.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. Evolution Petroleums payout ratio is 32.43%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EPM. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Evolution Petroleum by 97.0% in the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 3,656 shares of the energy companys stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Evolution Petroleum by 120.5% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 21,304 shares of the energy companys stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 11,643 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Evolution Petroleum by 1.3% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 214,494 shares of the energy companys stock worth $1,456,000 after acquiring an additional 2,763 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Evolution Petroleum by 34.0% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 65,972 shares of the energy companys stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 16,729 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. bought a new stake in Evolution Petroleum during the first quarter valued at about $182,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.79% of the companys stock.

About Evolution Petroleum

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Evolution Petroleum Corp. is an oil and gas company. It holds assets through Delhi, Hamilton Dome, and Barnette Shale. The company was founded by Robert Stevens Herlin in 2003 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

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Fastly, Inc. (NYSE:FSLY  Get Rating) CFO Ronald W. Kisling sold 15,107 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.17, for a total value of $198,959.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 528,230 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,956,789.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Fastly Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FSLY traded down $0.03 on Thursday, hitting $13.24. The companys stock had a trading volume of 2,788,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,169,408. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.96. Fastly, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.15 and a 1 year high of $18.08. The company has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of -9.48 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 5.28 and a quick ratio of 5.28.

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Fastly (NYSE:FSLY  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 15th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $119.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $114.39 million. Fastly had a negative return on equity of 20.22% and a negative net margin of 38.22%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fastly, Inc. will post -1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastly

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Fastly during the 1st quarter valued at about $53,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Fastly by 886.5% during the 1st quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,200 shares of the companys stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,977 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastly by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,169,788 shares of the companys stock worth $38,535,000 after acquiring an additional 99,909 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Fastly during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,856,000. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON bought a new position in Fastly during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,155,000. 60.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Fastly from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on Fastly from $16.00 to $26.50 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 11th. Credit Suisse Group increased their price target on Fastly from $9.50 to $11.50 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, February 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Fastly from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, February 16th. Finally, William Blair reiterated a market perform rating on shares of Fastly in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $16.00.

About Fastly

(Get Rating)

Fastly, Inc provides real-time content delivery network services. It offers edge compute, edge delivery, edge security, edge applications like load balancing and image optimization, video on demand, and managed edge delivery. The company was founded by Artur Bergman, Tyler McMullen, Simon Wistow, and Gil Penchina in March 2011 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.

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Shares of Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Co. Limited (OTCMKTS:FSPKF  Get Rating) fell 2% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $16.35 and last traded at $16.35. 465 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 13% from the average session volume of 535 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Citigroup lowered Fisher & Paykel Healthcare from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Monday, January 23rd.

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Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.09.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Company Profile

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd. engages in the designing, manufacturing and marketing of medical device products and systems for use in respiratory care, acute care and the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. It operates through the following geographical segments: The New Zealand, North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

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Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. (NYSE:ASR  Get Rating) declared an annual dividend on Thursday, May 18th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of 5.6528 per share by the transportation company on Monday, June 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 26th.

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. has a dividend payout ratio of 21.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. to earn $21.25 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 21.6%.

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Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. Stock Performance

Shares of ASR traded down $2.11 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $290.98. 34,428 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 63,936. The stocks fifty day moving average is $293.52 and its 200 day moving average is $271.02. The stock has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 3.24 and a current ratio of 3.25. Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. has a 1-year low of $179.01 and a 1-year high of $314.48.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. ( NYSE:ASR Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 23rd. The transportation company reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $4.69 by ($0.35). The business had revenue of $369.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $364.55 million. Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. had a net margin of 39.70% and a return on equity of 22.41%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. will post 20.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA boosted its position in shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. by 48.3% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 559 shares of the transportation companys stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC boosted its position in shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. by 21.8% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC now owns 681 shares of the transportation companys stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. by 7.1% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 766 shares of the transportation companys stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. in the first quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Finally, RBF Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. in the first quarter valued at approximately $215,000. 15.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ASR. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. in a research note on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, March 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V. from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, March 3rd.

About Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S. A. B. de C. V.

(Get Rating)

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SA de CV is a holding company, which engages in the operation, maintenance, and development of airports It operates through the following segments: Cancun, Aerostar, Airplan, Villahermosa, Merida, Holding and Services, and Other. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Mexico City, Mexico.

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Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J  Get Rating) insider Steven J. Demetriou sold 6,666 shares of Jacobs Solutions stock in a transaction on Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.20, for a total transaction of $767,923.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 601,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,268,608. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Up 1.9 %

Jacobs Solutions stock traded up $2.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $115.70. 598,154 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 634,429. The company has a market cap of $14.68 billion, a PE ratio of 18.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.84. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $106.78 and a fifty-two week high of $140.90. The companys fifty day moving average price is $115.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $119.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

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Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 9th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a net margin of 4.96% and a return on equity of 14.78%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 7.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions Announces Dividend

Jacobs Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 25th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the companys board believes its stock is undervalued.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 26th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 25th. Jacobs Solutionss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jacobs Solutions

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 1.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,998,808 shares of the companys stock worth $1,929,175,000 after purchasing an additional 250,587 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. grew its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 4,717,432 shares of the companys stock worth $554,345,000 after acquiring an additional 529,557 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,049,450 shares of the companys stock worth $558,055,000 after acquiring an additional 304,996 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,426,952 shares of the companys stock valued at $402,701,000 after acquiring an additional 247,212 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,271,522 shares of the companys stock valued at $392,812,000 after acquiring an additional 300,725 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.96% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $165.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $150.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a report on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Finally, Credit Suisse Group decreased their price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $149.00.

Jacobs Solutions Company Profile

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Jacobs Solutions, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the designing and deployment of technology-centric solutions. It operates through the following business segments: Critical Mission Solutions, People and Places Solutions, and PA Consulting. The Critical Mission Solutions segment offer broad sectors, including U.S.

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Intu Properties plc (LON:INTU  Get Rating)s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 1.78 ($0.02) and traded as high as GBX 4.20 ($0.05). Intu Properties shares last traded at GBX 1.78 ($0.02), with a volume of 165,598,938 shares trading hands.

Intu Properties Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 271.93, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of GBX 1.78 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 1.78. The firm has a market capitalization of 24.07 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.01.

Intu Properties Company Profile

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Intu owns and manages some of the best shopping centres, in some of the strongest locations, in the UK and Spain. Our UK portfolio is made up of 17 centres, including eight of the top-20, and in Spain we own three of the country's top-10 centres, with advanced plans to build a fourth. We are passionate about creating compelling experiences, in centre and online, that make our customers smile and help our retailers flourish.

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Invesco Senior Loan ETF (NYSEARCA:BKLN  Get Rating) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 24,056 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 234% compared to the typical volume of 7,206 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Invesco Senior Loan ETF

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BKLN. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Invesco Senior Loan ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,805,000. State of Wisconsin Investment Board raised its position in Invesco Senior Loan ETF by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. State of Wisconsin Investment Board now owns 9,241,172 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $189,721,000 after purchasing an additional 2,170,172 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC raised its position in shares of Invesco Senior Loan ETF by 75.0% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC now owns 9,128,184 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $189,866,000 after acquiring an additional 3,912,291 shares in the last quarter. Wright Fund Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Invesco Senior Loan ETF in the 4th quarter worth $165,320,000. Finally, Grimes & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Invesco Senior Loan ETF by 3,084.2% in the 1st quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 7,641,955 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $158,953,000 after acquiring an additional 7,401,962 shares in the last quarter.

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Invesco Senior Loan ETF Price Performance

Shares of Invesco Senior Loan ETF stock traded down $0.02 on Thursday, reaching $20.77. The company had a trading volume of 6,573,040 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,180,509. The firms 50-day moving average price is $20.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.87. Invesco Senior Loan ETF has a 1 year low of $20.06 and a 1 year high of $21.49.

Invesco Senior Loan ETF Company Profile

The Invesco Senior Loan ETF (BKLN) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in high yield fixed income. The fund tracks a market-value-weighted index of senior loans issued by banks to corporations. BKLN was launched on Mar 3, 2011 and is managed by Invesco.

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IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima (NYSE:IRS  Get Rating)s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $5.44 and traded as high as $5.67. IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima shares last traded at $5.54, with a volume of 14,169 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima in a report on Thursday. They issued a hold rating for the company.

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IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $453.29 million, a P/E ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.01. The businesss 50 day simple moving average is $5.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima Company Profile

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima during the first quarter valued at about $77,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima in the third quarter worth about $58,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima in the first quarter worth about $135,000. Stokes Family Office LLC bought a new stake in IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima in the first quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones Sociedad Anonima in the first quarter worth about $228,000. 17.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones SA engages in the real estate business. It operates through the Operations Center in Argentina and Operations Center in Israel segments. The Operations Center in Argentina segment operates in the following segments: shopping malls, offices and others, sales and developments, hotels, international, and financial operations, corporate and others.

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In August of 2021, the Augusta County Board of Supervisors approved a rezoning for building a 1 million-square-foot warehouse in Fishersville.

Over the next few months, residents wondered what company would build there in what Augusta County Administrator Tim Fitzgerald joked Wednesday morning was the worst kept secret in town. Gov. Glenn Youngkin ultimately revealed in February 2022 the plans for an Amazon fulfillment center at 32 Trader Road.

On Wednesday afternoon, county officials and Amazon representatives officially celebrated the centers launch with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Its a great day in Augusta County, Fitzgerald said.

The center  which officially opened on April 30  is primarily responsible for picking, packing and shipping larger items such as furniture or outdoor equipment to customers.

The opening of the Fishersville operation comes at a time when Amazon has made more headlines for scaling back its real estate footprint than growing it. The e-commerce titan invested heavily in industrial space when demand was soaring at the peak of the pandemic before taking its foot off the pedal in the waning years of the global health crisis.

Amazon grew its warehouse footprint by roughly 125 million square feet in 2020 and added another 137 million square feet in 2021, according to logistics consulting firm MWPVL. Last year, the e-commerce titan grew its footprint by just 52 million square feet.

The Fishersville operation took about 18 months to get from approval to opening day, which Fitzgerald noted included setbacks such as a potential tornado going directly through the site.

There has been much excitement and build-up of anticipation for this moment, Fitzgerald said. The truth of it is that I dont think Augusta County has seen such a fast, efficient and smooth construction operation the likes of Amazon in this county.

Fishersvilles location joins 10 other Amazon fulfillment centers in the commonwealth of Virginia. The center today employs about 200 employees, but it ultimately aims to have 500 on staff.

Holly Sullivan, Amazons vice president of worldwide economic development and public policy, said the economic impact of a center such as this creating so many jobs is significant.

Out of the employees weve hired thus far, 75% of those live within a 30-mile radius, Sullivan said. Those are people that are living, shopping, buying cars, renting apartments and buying homes in the regional area.

Irfaan Hafeez, the Fishersville centers general manager of operations, said the first few weeks went smoothly at the center, as they started by getting their dayshift operations going before ramping up into the 24-hour operation they are now.

Hafeez praised the center's rapid growth and Amazons onboarding process for new employees.

You dont have to have a background in anything, Hafeez said. We come and train you. We invest multitudes of weeks of training to teach folks what they need to do to be successful here. Once you start here, the opportunities are endless.

One benefit Amazon employees enjoy is the companys Career Choice program, which presents the opportunity to obtain degrees or certificates to advance their careers. Sullivan announced Wednesday morning that James Madison University and Blue Ridge Community College have joined the program.

We reached out to JMU and Blue Ridge Community College and brought them into our program, Sullivan said. Were really excited because thats going to help not only our current employees, but it will also build a pipeline for other companies and industries in the area.

As the number of employees grows at the center, Fitzgerald said the introduction of Amazon into Augusta County represents a solid development step for the countys economic development.

As new industries are brought in, the entire community feels a ripple effect, Fitzgerald said. Not only in an increase in the local workforce but in attracting new residents to continue developing a thriving place to call home for businesses and residents alike.
Several analysts have recently updated their ratings and price targets for Mosaic (NYSE: MOS):

5/18/2023  Mosaic is now covered by analysts at StockNews.com. They set a hold rating on the stock.

5/16/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $46.00 to $42.00.

5/16/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Berenberg Bank from $47.00 to $38.00.

5/11/2023  Mosaic was downgraded by analysts at Piper Sandler from an overweight rating to a neutral rating. They now have a $42.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $62.00.

5/8/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $50.00 to $45.00. They now have a sector perform rating on the stock.

5/8/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Bank of America Co. from $69.00 to $60.00.

5/5/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $65.00 to $55.00.

5/5/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from $54.00 to $50.00.

5/5/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Mizuho from $54.00 to $50.00.

4/28/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Mizuho from $60.00 to $54.00.

4/19/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. from $78.00 to $70.00. They now have a buy rating on the stock.

4/14/2023  Mosaic was upgraded by analysts at Barclays PLC from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating. They now have a $54.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $52.00.

4/13/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $110.00 to $100.00. They now have an outperform rating on the stock.

4/12/2023  Mosaic had its price target lowered by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $55.00 to $45.00. They now have an equal weight rating on the stock.

4/6/2023  Mosaic was downgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an overweight rating to a neutral rating. They now have a $46.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $60.00.

Mosaic Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE MOS traded up $0.56 on Thursday, reaching $35.79. The company had a trading volume of 3,841,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,335,688. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.49. The companys fifty day moving average is $43.37 and its 200 day moving average is $47.06. The Mosaic Company has a 52-week low of $34.46 and a 52-week high of $64.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

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Mosaic (NYSE:MOS  Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The basic materials company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $3.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.26 billion. Mosaic had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 28.64%. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.41 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Mosaic Company will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mosaic Cuts Dividend

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 1st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. Mosaics dividend payout ratio is currently 12.39%.

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bornite Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Mosaic during the 1st quarter valued at about $13,300,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Mosaic by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 189,494 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $12,614,000 after buying an additional 12,679 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in shares of Mosaic by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 20,546 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $1,366,000 after buying an additional 1,507 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service bought a new stake in shares of Mosaic in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,360,000. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mosaic by 55.4% in the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 312,013 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $20,749,000 after buying an additional 111,236 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.00% of the companys stock.

The Mosaic Co engages in the production and marketing of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. It operates through the following segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. The Phosphates segment is involved in the ownership and operation of mines and production facilities which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients, and processing plants which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients.

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Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO  Get Rating) (NYSE:BMO) had its target price decreased by National Bankshares from C$133.00 to C$129.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. National Bankshares target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.93% from the stocks previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on BMO. Fundamental Research set a C$160.30 price target on Bank of Montreal and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 14th. TD Securities lowered their price objective on Bank of Montreal from C$145.00 to C$140.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Bank of Montreal from C$154.00 to C$151.00 in a report on Monday, March 27th. Cormark reduced their price target on Bank of Montreal from C$148.00 to C$147.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Bank of Montreal from C$149.00 to C$127.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of C$146.09.

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Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

Bank of Montreal stock traded down C$1.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching C$118.43. The companys stock had a trading volume of 515,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,386,177. The businesss 50 day simple moving average is C$119.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$126.18. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of C$113.47 and a 12 month high of C$138.85. The company has a market capitalization of C$83.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.13.

Bank of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal ( TSE:BMO Get Rating ) (NYSE:BMO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The bank reported C$3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$3.13 by C$0.09. The business had revenue of C$6.47 billion during the quarter. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 40.56% and a return on equity of 21.06%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bank of Montreal will post 13.3034091 EPS for the current year.

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Bank of Montreal engages in the provision of diversified financial services primarily in North America. The company's personal banking products and services include checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, personal loans, small business lending, cash management, and financial and investment advice services; and commercial banking products and services comprise business deposit accounts, commercial credit cards, business loans and commercial mortgages, cash management solutions, foreign exchange, specialized banking programs, treasury and payment solutions, and risk management products for small business and commercial banking customers.

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Lord Abbett & CO. LLC reduced its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC  Get Rating) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 562,106 shares of the railroad operators stock after selling 40,870 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned about 0.25% of Norfolk Southern worth $138,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CWS Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $288,000. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 9,554 shares of the railroad operators stock valued at $2,354,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 3,525 shares of the railroad operators stock valued at $869,000 after buying an additional 421 shares during the period. New Hampshire Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $1,496,000. Finally, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 34,438 shares of the railroad operators stock valued at $8,486,000 after buying an additional 5,444 shares during the period. 72.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC traded down $1.53 on Thursday, hitting $213.45. The stock had a trading volume of 1,088,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,612,982. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $196.33 and a one year high of $264.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $48.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.29. The companys 50-day moving average is $207.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $230.69.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

Norfolk Southern ( NYSE:NSC Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The railroad operator reported $3.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.40% and a return on equity of 25.76%. Norfolk Southerns quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.43 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 5th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 4th. Norfolk Southerns dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NSC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Cowen upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $256.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating for the company. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $273.00 to $226.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a conviction-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $235.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 27th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $240.04.

About Norfolk Southern

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Norfolk Southern Corp. is a transportation company, which engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods. The company also transports overseas freight through several Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports. Its services include property leases and sales, wire line or pipeline and fiber optics projects, access property, managing private crossings, promoting businesses with signboards, and natural resource management.

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Raia Drogasil S.A. (OTCMKTS:RADLY  Get Rating) shares are scheduled to split on the morning of Monday, May 22nd. The 26-25 split was announced on Monday, May 22nd. The newly issued shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Monday, May 22nd.

Raia Drogasil Price Performance

Shares of RADLY stock opened at $5.46 on Thursday. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $5.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.93. Raia Drogasil has a 12 month low of $3.50 and a 12 month high of $31.86.

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Raia Drogasil Company Profile

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Raia Drogasil SA engages in the retail sale of medicine, perfumery, personal care and beauty products, cosmetics and dermocosmetics. Its stores are supplied by distribution centers located in the states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Parana, Goias, Pernambuco, and Bahia. The company was founded on November 10, 2011 and is headquartered in Butanta, Brazil.

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Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE  Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 700 shares of the utilities providers stock, valued at approximately $109,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,199,642 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $4,228,254,000 after buying an additional 625,052 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,795,347 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $638,074,000 after purchasing an additional 24,679 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.8% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,935,160 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $440,097,000 after acquiring an additional 80,852 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 16.8% during the third quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 2,540,802 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $381,066,000 after acquiring an additional 366,259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 7.5% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,388,520 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $358,329,000 after acquiring an additional 166,839 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.75% of the companys stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Sempra Energy from $150.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Sempra Energy from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sempra Energy from $180.00 to $174.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Sempra Energy from $169.00 to $166.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $167.25.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE remained flat at $146.81 on Thursday. 131,696 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,303,035. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $151.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $155.28. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $136.54 and a fifty-two week high of $176.47. The company has a market capitalization of $46.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $6.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.04 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 14.47% and a return on equity of 10.28%. Sempra Energys revenue was up 71.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 8.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 5th will be given a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 3rd. Sempra Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.34%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other news, CFO Trevor I. Mihalik sold 2,306 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.50, for a total transaction of $342,441.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,362 shares in the company, valued at $3,172,257. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 10,413 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.99, for a total value of $1,572,258.87. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,261 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,908,218.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Trevor I. Mihalik sold 2,306 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.50, for a total transaction of $342,441.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,172,257. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,979 shares of company stock valued at $4,728,393 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.24% of the companys stock.

About Sempra Energy

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Sempra Energy is an energy-service holding company, which engages in the development and operation of energy infrastructure, and provision of electric and gas services. It operates through the following segments: San Diego Gas and Electric Company (SDG&E), Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), Sempra Texas Utilities, Sempra Mexico, and Sempra LNG.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SRE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE  Get Rating).

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The Character Group plc (LON:CCT  Get Rating) insider Carmel Warren bought 1,453 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 344 ($4.31) per share, with a total value of 4,998.32 ($6,261.21).

The Character Group Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of LON CCT opened at GBX 322 ($4.03) on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of 62.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 715.56 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average of GBX 366.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 380.33. The Character Group plc has a 1 year low of GBX 318 ($3.98) and a 1 year high of GBX 590 ($7.39).

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The Character Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 13th will be given a dividend of GBX 8 ($0.10) per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 13th. The Character Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4,000.00%.

The Character Group Company Profile

The Character Group plc designs, develops, manufactures, and distributes toys, games, and gifts in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, the Far East, and internationally. The company sells its products under the Goo Jit Zu, Jiggly Pets, Chill Factor, Peppa Pig, Shimmer n Sparkle, Mouse in the House, Weebles, and Stretch Armstrong brands.

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Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSE:TD  Get Rating) (NYSE:TD) had its target price dropped by research analysts at National Bankshares from C$98.00 to C$94.00 in a report released on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. National Bankshares price objective would suggest a potential upside of 14.72% from the stocks current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on TD. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from C$110.00 to C$95.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 4th. CSFB cut their price target on shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from C$97.00 to C$94.00 in a report on Friday, March 3rd. Barclays downgraded shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from C$101.00 to C$83.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 9th. National Bank Financial decreased their target price on shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from C$98.00 to C$94.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, March 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Toronto-Dominion Bank currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of C$96.36.

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Toronto-Dominion Bank Stock Performance

Shares of TD stock traded down C$0.33 during trading on Thursday, hitting C$81.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,098,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,801,427. Toronto-Dominion Bank has a one year low of C$76.40 and a one year high of C$97.13. The firm has a market capitalization of C$149.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.84. The stocks 50-day moving average price is C$81.12 and its 200 day moving average price is C$86.59.

Insider Transactions at Toronto-Dominion Bank

Toronto-Dominion Bank ( TSE:TD Get Rating ) (NYSE:TD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 2nd. The company reported C$2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of C$2.16 by C$0.07. The business had revenue of C$12.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$12.12 billion. Toronto-Dominion Bank had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 31.78%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Toronto-Dominion Bank will post 8.6199575 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other news, Senior Officer Riaz Ahmed sold 37,832 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$89.01, for a total transaction of C$3,367,426.32. Insiders own 0.10% of the companys stock.

Toronto-Dominion Bank Company Profile

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The Toronto-Dominion Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, U.S. Retail, Wealth Management and Insurance, and Wholesale Banking segments. The company offers personal deposits, such as checking, savings, and investment products; financing, investment, cash management, international trade, and day-to-day banking services to businesses; and financing options to customers at point of sale for automotive and recreational vehicle purchases.

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Yellow Cake plc (LON:YCA  Get Rating)s share price was down 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 398 ($4.99) and last traded at GBX 402.60 ($5.04). Approximately 355,326 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 927,701 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 403.60 ($5.06).

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Berenberg Bank reiterated a buy rating and issued a GBX 552 ($6.91) price target on shares of Yellow Cake in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th.

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Yellow Cake Stock Performance

The companys fifty day moving average is GBX 373.71 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 389.20. The company has a market capitalization of 797.55 million, a PE ratio of 789.41 and a beta of 0.38.

About Yellow Cake

Yellow Cake plc, a specialist company, operates in the uranium sector. It is involved in the purchase and holding of uranium oxide concentrates; and exploitation of other uranium-related opportunities. The company was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in Saint Helier, Jersey.

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After days of deliberations and late-night parlays, Siddaramaiah will take oath as Karnataka's new Chief Minister on May 20. The development comes after Siddaramaiah and state Congress party chief DK Shivakumar were locked in a pitched battle for the CM post after Congress swept 135 seats in the 224-member legislative assembly. Both met party leaders in New Delhi in several rounds of meetings over the past few days and a breakthrough and power-sharing formula was agreed upon in the early hours of Thursday. A mass leader with more than four decades of political experience, 75-year-old Siddaramaiah was born into the Kuruba (shepherd) community in Siddaramanahundi, a remote village in Varuna taluk of Mysore district (now Mysuru). He is the second among five siblings and holds a Bachelor of Science degree as well as one in law from Mysore University. Known for his oratory skills in his student years, Siddaramaiah was influenced by Dr Ram Manohar Lohias brand of socialism. Senior advocate and legendary farmer leader Nanjunda Swamy spotted him when he was practising as a lawyer in the district court and asked him to give politics a shot. Siddaramaiah first contested elections on a Bharatiya Lok Dal ticket from Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysore. His surprise win saw him becoming a member of the Karnataka legislative assembly in 1983. Later, he joined the ruling Janata Party. He later became minister of state for sericulture. He was the first chairman of Kannada Kavalu Samiti, a watchdog committee that had the mandate to supervise the implementation of Kannada as an official language formed during Ramakrishna Hegdes chief ministership. In 2004, the Congress and JDS formed a coalition government, with Siddaramaiah (then in JDS) named deputy chief minister. He also served as JDS state party president from 1999 to 2004. In 2006, Siddaramaiah joined the Congress after being expelled by the JDS following differences with party supremo HD Deve Gowda. Considered the architect of Karnataka's Ahinda, an acronym for the Kannada words Alpasankhyataru (minorities), Hindulidavaru (backward classes) and Dalitaru (Dalits). This term was first coined by D Devraj Urs, the states first backward-class leader. Siddaramaiah used Ahinda to consolidate his support across diverse communities in a state dominated by Lingayats, Muslims and Vokkaligas, and positioned himself as a mass leader. Before the 2013 polls, he led a march to Ballari, challenging Reddy brothersGali Janardhana Reddy and G Somashekara Reddywho were accused in a major mining scam. In 2013, he became the CM, edging out M Mallikarjun Kharge, who is now the AICC president and the then Union labour and employment minister. Siddaramaiah is the third Karnataka CM after S Nijalingappa and Devaraj Urs to complete a full term in office. He also has a record of presenting 13 state budgets as finance minister. During his CM stint (2013-2018), he implemented welfare measures such as providing Anna Bhagya (free rice scheme), Ksheera Bhagya (free milk), setting up Indira canteens, etc. His government also took the controversial decision of recommending religious minority status to Lingayats and Veerashaivas ahead of the 2018 assembly polls, a move considered to be one of the reasons for his party losing that election. His decision to celebrate 'Tipu Jayanti' was also criticised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Hes also been one of the most vociferous critics of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP/Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on various issues. He claims to be not anti-Hindu, but rather anti-Hindutva. In the 2018 polls, he contested from Badami and Chamundeshwari constituencies. He won from Badami by a narrow margin of 1,696 votes. Despite being the then sitting CM, he lost the 2018 polls in Chamundeshwari in Mysuru to JDS leader GT Devegowda by 36,042 votes. In that election, even after implementing populist Ksheera Bhagya and Anna Bhagya schemes, the Congress was defeated, with its seat tally falling from 125 to 78. In 2018, he was forced to offer the CM post to HD Kumaraswamy, whom he once opposed, even though JDS finished a poor third with 37 seats. The uneasy Congress-JDS coalition which was formed due to the fractured mandate eventually collapsed. The BJP toppled the government through 'Operation Kamala' and then formed a government with BS Yediyurappa as CM. In the 2023 assembly polls, he expressed interest in contesting from Kolar in addition to Varuna. However, the Congress high command allowed him to contest only from Varuna, where he won by more than 46,000 votes. His son Yathindra, who was the Varuna MLA, had to vacate his seat for him. During the run-up to the 2023 polls, Siddaramaiah said that it will be his last election.
After four days of suspense, the Congress high command put all speculation to rest late on May 18 and named senior party leader Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister of Karnataka. Siddaramaiah and the party's state president DK Shivakumar had been vying for the chief ministers post after the Congress won the May 10 Karnataka assembly elections. Late night on May 17, the party leadership decided to appoint 75-year-old Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister. Shivakumar, 60, will serve as his deputy with important portfolios under his command. The announcement came after both leaders held detailed discussions with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi. Sources said Shivakumar who was reluctant initially to give up chief ministerial post was finally convinced by Kharge. Read: Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra: The route to Congress' win? The new Chief Minister, deputy chief minister and cabinet ministers, will be taking the oath of office on May 20. The swearing-in ceremony will be held in Bangalore at 12:30 pm and will be attended by Congress chief ministers, members of the Gandhi family and party veterans. The process of electing the chief minister lasted nearly four days, during which both leaders expressed their desire to assume the top post in the state. Siddaramaiah will be the Chief Minister of Karnataka. DK Shivakumar will be the only deputy chief minister and he will continue to serve as president of Pradesh Congress Committee till the 2024 general elections are over, said Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal. Meanwhile, the Kantaka Congress' Legislative Party meeting will happen later today at 7pm, said Venugopal. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar played pivotal roles in the Congress party's resounding victory in the Karnataka Assembly elections. Their combined efforts contributed to the party's landslide win, leading to the removal of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from power. Following the declaration of the results on May 13, the high swift command convened a legislature party meeting in Bangalore. At the meeting, a secret ballot was conducted to find out the newly elected lawmakers opinion on the potential candidates for the position of chief minister. According to sources, out of the 135 elected MLAs, 82 cast their votes in favor of Siddaramaiah, a nine-time legislator. The veteran leader also enjoys strong support from voters belonging to the Other Backward Classes community, in addition to the support of workers in various regions of the state. Congress general secretaries Sushil Kumar Shinde, Deepak Babaria and Jitendra Singh Alwar served as observers during the Karnataka Congress legislature party meeting. Karnataka Election 2023: Results dampen BJPs southern ambitions The magnitude of the Congress's victory is unprecedented in over three decades, both in terms of seats and vote share. The party secured 135 seats, marking an increase of 55 seats compared to the 2018 elections, and obtained a substantial vote share of 42.88 percent. The closest the Congress previously came to this achievement was in 1999, when it won 132 seats with a vote share of 40.84 percent. In 1989, the party secured 178 seats with a vote share of 43.76 percent.
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A once highly-regarded Charlottesville-based biotech firm appears to have burned through at least $40 million in government money, stiffed local vendors and has declared bankruptcy. Charlottesville-based MicroGEM U.S. Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this month, a move that typically leaves unsecured creditors unlikely to get paid.

They screwed us out of $8,000, Mike Toney, owner of Blue Ridge Pack & Ship, told The Daily Progress. For a small business, thats a killer.

Toney contended that the firm strung him along for months with promises that it was on the verge of big contract.

We got emails and emails and emails, said Toney.

The firm, which formerly operated from a low-rise office building near Preston Avenue in the city, has liabilities over $50 million, but its assets are less than $10 million, according to the May 8 bankruptcy petition filed by Chief Revenue Officer Heather Williams.

In her filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia, Williams lists the corporate address as 705-D Dale Avenue. However, former landlord William Nitchmann told The Daily Progress that the firm furloughed its employees there several months ago, and he ended up selling the building. But hes still somewhat bullish on MicroGEM.

Theyve got a wonderful product with wonderful potential, Nitchmann said. They just had the wrong guy in the presidency.

Corporate records indicate that the president of MicroGEM is Jeff Chapman, a holder of advanced degrees in immunology and neuroimmunology, according to his LinkedIn profile.

The companys woes date back at least to 2021 when that years annual report warned that the firms English parent company, MicroGEM International, had just lost $11.6 million that year. The company was burning through so much cash that a material uncertainty exists that may cast significant doubt on the groups ability to continue as a going concern.

The corporate travails intensified in November when the U.S. Department of Labor filed suit against Chapman, the company and two other officers, alleging that they stopped paying employee wages after Aug. 31. That legal action, which claimed a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, was dismissed in February when the government failed to file timely paperwork.

Publicly accessible records indicate that the company received $24.4 million in 2021 and another $9.8 million in 2022 from the National Institutes of Health. One journal article put the NIH contribution under the RADx, or Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics project, at $41 million. A former vendor has asserted that MicroGEM itself once claimed additional funding on its website to suggest that the U.S. governments total payout neared $50 million.

Public money flowed because MicroGEM developed a mobile, noninvasive and yet clinical-quality test for COVID-19 that allegedly delivered results in just 27 minutes.

The MicroGEM Sal6830 SARS-CoV-2 Saliva Test has proven to be robust through the viral mutations that have occurred, the company wrote in an April 2022 press release announcing that the Food and Drug Administration had granted the system an emergency use authorization.

The company sometimes called this product Spitfire 6830 because instead of a swab in a nose it required just a bit of spit.

A little over a year before getting the emergency authorization from the FDA, the parent company bought Jump Start Manufacturing LLC, a New Hampshire company with a 14-year track record.

The acquisition allows MicroGEM to rapidly scale production of its innovative Spitfire 6830, according to a January 2021 company statement.

Today, the address on the outskirts of Nashua, New Hampshire, that Jump Start lists on its website is held by another company. The company voicemail storage was full when The Daily Progress attempted to contact the business. And text messages to Jump Starts founder were not immediately returned.

The company commercialized innovations by James P. Landers, a UVa chemistry professor. While Landers could not be immediately reached on Thursday, the University of Virginias Licensing & Ventures Group continues to laud the company for democratizing molecular diagnostics.

Even the local stiffed landlord Nitchmann has a few encouraging words for the company.

They had a lot of good people working there, Nitchmann said. It was just plain poor management.

Nitchmann said that MicroGEMs diagnostic test for cattle would have been a boon to ranchers because it facilitated an on-farm test instead of requiring a time-consuming visit from a veterinarian.

Out west, that that could be a two-hour drive, said Nitchmann. With their piece of equipment, they could do it all right at the farm in 30 minutes or less.

Nitchmann said that he hopes that MicroGEM gets resurrected because its products had value. But he says he remains stunned by the spending.

They went through millions of dollars in a short period of time, said Nitchmann. I wish somebody gave me $43 million.
The revival of Jet Airways, which has been stuck in limbo for nearly four years now, is unlikely to be completed in 2023, as the airline's air operators permit (AOP) or air operator's certificate (AOC) expires on May 19. Jet Airways was granted the AOC on May 20, 2022, by the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation, to help it start full-scale service by October. However, a year down the line, Sanjiv Kapoor, chief executive officer-designate; Mark Turner, vice-president of in-flight services; Nakul Tuteja, vice president of human resources and administration; HR Jagannath, vice president of engineering; and Ronit Baugh, head of communications, have all quit. Jet Airways does not have a management team, and its to-be owners, the Jalan Kalrock Consortium (JKC), have not yet completed the transfer of ownership, and have not yet paid lenders. JKC was recognised as the successful bidder for the bankrupt airline in October 2020. Jet Airways was India's second full-service airline apart from Air India since it began operations as an air taxi operator in 1993. It was founded by Naresh Goyal and began full-fledged operations in 1995 with international flights added in 2004. The airline went public in 2005 and in 2007, when it acquired Air Sahara. It was one of the largest airlines in India, with a 21.2 percent passenger market share in February 2016. It operated over 300 flights daily to 74 destinations worldwide. As of November 2018, Jet Airways has been reported to have a negative financial outlook due to increasing losses. In March 2019 it was reported that nearly a fourth of Jet Airways' aircraft were grounded due to unpaid lease rates Emails sent to JKC remained unanswered at the time of publishing this report. Last week, JKC informed the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) that it needs more time to repay creditors and implement the revival plan. So, will the Jet Airways livery take to the skies in 2023? "It seems very unlikely," said a source close to JKC, who was aware of the internal discussions surrounding Jet Airways. He added that JKC is rethinking its revival strategy due to concerns like aircraft delivery timings, rising competition, and in finding a new management team. "The revival of Jet Airways is through a court-approved process, which has taken more time than originally estimated by us, but needless to say, JKC is committed to the revival of Jet Airways. We are in the last leg of closing the transfer of ownership of Jet Airways to JKC, subsequent to which we will settle the outstanding amounts payable to previous creditors as per our approved resolution plan and shall, soon thereafter, recommence the commercial operations of Jet Airways as per our relaunch plans," Ankit Jalan, board member, JKC, had said in a statement last month after the exit of Sanjiv Kapoor. However, in its statement to the NCLT last week, JKC asked for an extension of 148 days from May 15 to pay off Rs 270 crore as the first tranche of payment to the lenders of Jet Airways. "Since banks took 148 days out of the specified 180 to begin the resolution process, JKC said it only had a month to implement the plan, which was neither feasible nor viable. Therefore, we are now seeking an exclusion of that period," lawyers representing JKC had said in the NCLT. JKC yet to pay lenders, hire CEO This indicates that JKC is looking to pay off the first tranche to the lenders of Jet Airways by November. "If JKC is planning to pay off lenders by November, it is unlikely that it will start substantially investing in Jet Airways before then," a senior aviation insider said. After the exit of Sanjiv Kapoor from the airline, Ankit Jalan, board member, JKC, has said that "JKC will be announcing the new CEO for Jet Airways shortly." However, industry insiders told Moneycontrol that all discussions between Jet Airways and aircraft original equipment makers have been stalled at the moment and that JKC was not 'actively' looking for a new CEO as well. "JKC has not yet interviewed anyone to be their new CEO and has not yet created a shortlist of candidates," another industry insider said. Lenders of Jet Airways are expecting Rs 270 crore from JKC in the first tranche, which includes the payment to lenders, workmen, operational creditors, and the CIRP (Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process) cost. JKC has an added responsibility of paying over Rs 200 crore as Provident Fund and gratuity to Jet employees. Another indication that Jet Airways is not likely to start operations before the winter schedule at least is that it has not started negotiations with any domestic airport in India for slots and timings. "Jet Airways is not actively discussing slots, aircraft parking, and ground handling with any airport at the moment," a senior official from an airport operator said. Similarly, a former senior pilot with Jet Airways, who was with the airline till last year, said that the airline's recruitment drive has also stalled and pilots who were earlier shortlisted by the airline have been asked to look for new jobs. Additionally, the airline has also come under pressure from vendors with whom the airline had tied up for services, including catering and call centre management, among others. The resolution plan JKC was recognised as the successful bidder for the bankrupt airline in October 2020. According to the resolution plan, the Jalan-Kalrock consortium had proposed a cash infusion of Rs 1,375 crore, including Rs 475 crore for payment to stakeholders. The remaining Rs 900 crore was to be infused for capital expenditure and working capital requirements. At Rs 380 crore, the lenders took a steep haircut on their admitted claims of over Rs 7,807.7 crore under the approved resolution plan. The lenders had agreed to the plan submitted by the airline, which was later approved by the NCLT in 2021. Lenders were to also receive a 9.5 percent stake in the airlines and a part of the payment to lenders is from the sale of property owned by Jet Airways.
American pharma major Pfizer has advised doctors in India to stop using some of its life-saving antibiotics for hospitalised patients, especially those in intensive care units (ICUs), saying some deviations were observed in the manufacturing of these drugs. The antibiotics are Magnex, Magnex Forte, Zosyn and Magnamycin. While the manufacturer is currently investigating the matter, it has requested Pfizer to suspend the distribution, supply and use of these medicines, the pharma giant said in a release on May 16. It identified the manufacturer as Astral Steritech Private Limited. Pfizer said it was taking all reasonable efforts to resolve the matter. Dr Sandeep Dewan, director and head of the department, Critical Care Medicine, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, said the matter was of serious concern as a company like Pfizer had been forced to recall its drugs, particularly standard brands like Magnex Forte and Zosyn, because of quality issues. "Traditionally, we have been very comfortable with multinational companies giving them molecules and good brands to us. But this actually puts a question mark on the overall quality of the medicines that is delivered by these companies," he added. Dewan said Magnex, Magnex Forte and Zosyn are used to treat infections in critically ill patients. "Most of our ICU patients receive these kinds of drugs. These are lifesaving drugs, somewhere down the line, it's not good that the quality standards of these drugs have come into question," he added. The All-India Organization of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) has written to its state units across the country to suspend the sale, distribution and supply of these products immediately. In a letter, AIOCD citing deviations observed at the manufacturing facility of Astral Steritech, asked for strict compliance with the directive. "In light of these observations, it is imperative that you immediately inform all trade and hospital stakeholders in your respective states and districts to temporarily suspend the sale, distribution, supply, and do not use of the aforementioned products till further notice," Rajiv Singhal, general secretary, AIOCD, said in the letter.
State Bank of India (SBI) on May 18 reported a standalone profit of Rs 16,694.51 crore for the March quarter, up 83.18 percent from Rs 9,113.53 crore in the same quarter of the previous. India's largest lender's net interest income came in at Rs 40,392.50 crore, rising 29.5 percent from Rs 31,197 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. State Bank of India was expected to post a 68 percent rise in profit over the last year, according to a Moneycontrol poll of brokerages. Whereas net interest income (NII) was expected to increase 25.8 percent. The board of the bank recommended a dividend of Rs 11.30 per equity share for FY23. It will be paid on June 14, 2023, the bank said. The lender said banks return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) for the financial year 2o23 stood at 0.96 percent and 19.43 percent, respectively. ROA at 1.23 percent for the quarter improved by 49 bps YoY. Domestic net interest margin (NIM) for Q4FY23 increased by 44 basis points YoY to 3.84 percent. SBI said its Gross NPA ratio was at 2.78 percent down by 119 bps YoY. Net NPA ratio was at 0.67 percent, down by 35 bps YoY. Provision Coverage Ratio (PCR) was at 76.39 percent, improving by 135 bps YoY. Slippage Ratio for FY23 improved by 34 bps YoY and stood at 0.65 percent, while Slippage Ratio for Q4FY23 was at 0.41 percent. As of 2.18 pm, the stock traded at Rs 581.35, down 0.88 percent on BSE.

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By Sanjay Gupta El Nino is a weather pattern that occurs when the Pacific Ocean becomes warmer than usual, causing weather changes around the world. In India, El Nino is associated with weak monsoon rainfall, heatwaves resulting in crop failures and disruptions to fisheries, among effects. Farmers in the major sowing belts of Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat are getting ready for the onset of the monsoon season which usually arrives around the second or third week of June. Typically, farmers prepare their land for sowing in late May and early June, with those having adequate irrigation facilities starting as early as May to benefit from pre-monsoon showers. However, the possibility of the El Nino effect delaying the monsoon season is a cause for concern. Erratic rainfall patterns over the past two years have caused significant problems for farmers, who have had to re-sow their crops two to three times. This year, if El-Nino comes into play, the chances of a delay in sowing are high. Cotton, groundnut, and soybean farmers are in anticipation of higher prices but the market factors are not in their favour. This might be another reason for farmers other than the effect of El-Nino to switch to other short-duration crops such as pulses, oilseeds and vegetables as these crops generally require less water to grow. Also read: Why El Nino is a concern for Indian monsoon rains? Tough to plan for the future With all these challenges looming, farmers are bracing for a tough season ahead, hoping for adequate rainfall to ensure a successful crop yield. However, unpredictable weather patterns and market dynamics pose significant challenges, making it difficult for farmers to plan for the future. The following events highlights the vulnerability of agricultural systems in India to the impacts of El Nino and underscore the importance of adapting to these changing weather patterns in order to safeguard food production and ensure food security for communities. Historical data shows that India has experienced 30 El Nino events from 1870 to 2019, with a 5:1 chance of below-average rainfall during such events. In 2019, a weak El Nino event contributed to below-average monsoon rainfall with greater impact in the north-western and central regions. However, the overall impact of the 2019 El Nino on India was less severe than the 2015-2016 event where India experienced a 14 percent deficit in monsoon rainfall while the average temperature increased by 20 Celsius. However, this time the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka were hit the hardest showing that it is difficult to predict where the impact of El Nino would be. This makes El Nino a risk that is difficult to manage. Such variations in weather have a significant impact on crop yield and therefore overall production. Further, such variation also increases pest and disease outbreaks which may either impact the yields or farmers profitability by increasing crop protection costs. Also read: Explainer: What does El Nino-Southern Oscillation mean? What can be done? Given the uncertainty of the location of impact and the near certainty that the impact will be a drop in monsoon and a rise in average temperature, the following steps can be taken to mitigate the risks: Firstly, crop diversification and the cultivation of drought-resistant crops. Secondly, the promotion of water conservation and management practices. Thirdly, provision of better weather forecasting and early warning systems and finally, improvement of access to credit and insurance options for farmers. These measures can help farmers to better manage their water resources, reduce the risk of crop failure, and recover more quickly from weather-related events. By taking the above proactive steps, India can improve the resilience of its agriculture sector and ensure food security for its population. Also read: El Nino impact in second half of monsoon, Kharif crop pattern to be unaffected: Govt Sanjay Gupta is Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at National Commodities Management Services Limited (NCML)
As crisis-laden Go First undergoes insolvency resolution proceedings due to cash crunch, Union Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on May 18 addressed the issue and said that it is "certainly something that is not a great thing for civil aviation." Speaking to reporters, Scindia noted that although Go First's financial problems encompass the civil aviation sector, each company has to manage its own issues. "As far as the Ministry is concerned, we are quite steadfast in our resolve in terms of helping airlines with whatever fundamental issues there are...," the minister added. ALSO READ: Go First insolvency, higher airfares drive demand for bus tickets on popular routes Meanwhile, facing sever issues and backlash from its lessors, the domestic carrier has extended the suspension of flight operations till May 26, citing operational reasons and expressed hope that it will be able to resume bookings shortly. Go First, which is undergoing insolvency resolution proceedings, stopped flying from May 3. Further, aviation regulator DGCA had directed the cash-strapped airline to stop bookings till further orders. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitted the airline's voluntary plea insolvency resolution proceedings on May 10. Abhilash Lal has been appointed as the Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) to manage the affairs of the carrier. It may be noted that the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) will pass its order on May 22 on petitions filed by three aircraft lessors against Go First's voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings. Some lessors have also moved the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) against the NCLT's decision. So far this month, lessors have approached the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the deregistration of 45 Go First planes. Additionally, claim management portal 'gofirstclaims.in/claims' has been launched for the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) of Go First.
India's exports of products like coffee, leather hides and paperboard worth USD 1.3 billion annually to the European Union will get impacted due to the deforestation regulation adopted by the EU earlier this week, a report by economic think tank GTRI said on Thursday. Within three weeks of introducing the carbon border tax, the European Union Council on May 16 adopted the European Union Deforestation-Free Products Regulation (EU-DR). The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that the EU-DR appears to prioritise protecting its own agricultural sector and promoting exports, making imports more difficult as it is a trade barrier disguised as a green measure. The regulation covers cattle, buffalo, the meat of bovine animals, preparations, Oil cake, soya beans, palm oil, cocoa bean, powder, chocolate, coffee, leather hide, skin, paper, paperboard, wood, wood articles, wood pulp, boards and wood furniture. The exporters now have to ensure that these products have been grown on land, which has not been deforested after December 31, 2020. The new rules will apply to large firms after 18 months and small firms after 24 months. Thus, the timeline for large firms is December 2024 and for small firms is June 2025. "EU DR will adversely affect India's exports to the EU of the value of US 1.3 billion (2022 data). The significant products affected and their export value to the EU are Coffee (USD 435.4 million), Leather hides, skin, preparations (USD 83.5 million), Oil cake (USD 174.5 million), Paper, paperboard (USD 250.2 million) and Wood furniture (USD 334.6 million)," the report said. For the products covered under the carbon tax and EU-DR, the EU's share in India's global exports is 23.6 per cent, it said, adding the regulation poses challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises, as compliance costs and due diligence requirements may exclude them from global agricultural trade. "Carbon tax would hit trade in industrial products and EUDR would hit trade in agri products. Both plan to cover all products in the near future. EU's assault on trade is near total," GTRI co-founder Ajay Srivastava said. The European Union (EU) claims it wants to reduce its contribution to global deforestation by promoting 'deforestation-free' products, but this is seen as a deceptive narrative, the report said. "The EU itself has extensively expanded agricultural land by cutting down primary forests, which now account for less than 0.7 per cent of its total forest area, compared to the global average of 33 per cent. Many other countries, facing the need to convert primary forests into cultivable land to feed growing populations, have a much larger share of primary forest," it added. The EU, however, aims to prevent others from following a similar path while having already done so in the past. The report stated that the introduction of the regulation would encourage local production and export of selected agricultural commodities by making imports more challenging. "The products targeted by the EUDR are those the EU wants to reduce imports while promoting exports. The EU is already competitive in many of these products, as evidenced by its global export value of USD 96.2 billion compared to imports of USD 91.9 billion in 2022," it said, adding the EU aims to further cut imports through the implementation of the regulation. It also said that the EU has a highly protected agricultural sector, largely dominated by large global firms. Trade in agricultural products within the EU has nearly tripled between 2002 and 2022, with exports growing at a higher rate than imports. In 2022, the EU had a surplus of USD 36.2 billion, exporting USD 247.4 billion worth of agricultural products while imports stood at USD 211.2 billion. "In addition to being seen as discriminatory, the EUDR imposes a significant compliance cost. Even exporters of high-quality products are required to invest in expensive due diligence, making it difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises to comply. This model of global agricultural trade favours large firms," the report said. The EU's purported efforts to combat deforestation and promote deforestation-free products are questioned, given its own history of forest clearance for agricultural expansion. The introduction of the EUDR appears to be driven by a desire to bolster local production and exports while reducing imports, Srivastava said. It also said that the regulation's compliance costs and discriminatory nature are concerns, as they may disadvantage smaller firms in the global agricultural trade arena. The report suggested the government take a few steps to deal with the regulation and that includes taking up the matter with the World Trade Organization (WTO) along with other affected countries as it violates MFN (most favoured nation) and national treatment principles. "India has a functioning blockchain-enabled trace and track system being implemented by the Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) for grape exports to the EU and other regions. It needs to be adopted for all covered products, and make exporters aware of the compliance requirement," he added.
The new breed of investors powering the derivatives market has pointed to a unique problem that stops them from trading on the BSE: the lack of reliable historical data to test their strategies. The BSE relaunched its Sensex and Bankex derivative contracts on May 15 as it sought to spur derivatives trading by introducing smaller lot sizes and a new expiry cycle. However, almost all high-frequency traders (HFTs), who account for over half of the trading volumes on the rival National Stock Exchange of India, said they wont trade in the Sensex and Bankex contracts until volumes are high enough for them to have consistent data over a sufficient duration to back-test strategies. The historical trading data is currently unreliable and the extremely low volumes are a deterrent, these traders told Moneycontrol. Thumbs down Derivative contracts are high risk-reward instruments that can be used to hedge bets in the equity market. Trades by HFT firms accounted for 54 percent of the total on the exchange, according to NSE data for December. The NSE handles about 99 percent of all derivative trading in India. HFT firms  or algo firms in market lingo  use complex algorithms and powerful computers to execute trades at lightning speed. They take very large positions in quick succession to make the most of market movements. This is where the BSEs Sensex and Bankex fall short. Since they have hardly any volumes, these traders, even if they want to, will not find a counterparty. Thats in addition to the absence of enough reliable data for back-testing. Also read: HFTs tighten grip, make a killing on the Street as F&O volumes explode The strategies employed by these traders are based on back-testing of data of several years. Once a strategy is developed, it is tested to see if it would have been profitable in the past, and if the result is favourable, the strategy is codified before running it in the live market. Most of the fulltime traders rely on back-testing and dont want to start trading some random asset class, said Ankush Bajaj, a Chhattisgarh-based algo trader. Ironically, the BSE was the first exchange to introduce futures and options (F&O) contracts in India in 2000, days before the NSE came out with its own F&O products. The BSE failed to make much of the early start and the NSE capitalised on its rivals failure and has never looked back. Now, in its new avatar, the BSE expects it will taste success. However, it is not likely any time soon, investors said. According to Ajay Garg, managing director of Equirus Capital, a merchant banking firm, once you achieve volumes, it becomes that much harder for someone to replace you, alluding to the NSEs dominance. "It is a chicken-and-egg situation. Brokers won't go to the BSE till there are heavy volumes and depth. And, volumes won't come if brokers don't shift," he said. The new contracts are interesting, with the new lot size and Friday expiry; this should help bring in some volumes. Its too early to comment on volumes as these contracts were introduced recently, a top honcho at a prominent broker said. Although the BSE has accepted it is too small to be called a competitor in the business and does not plan to fight it out with NSE, its ambitions are apparent. Error 404 Another reason the BSE will find it hard to build volumes, according to investors, is that Sensex and Bankex contracts are not very visible. A Kochi-based trader who was keen to trade these products did not find them with any of his three brokers. Not many brokers, even prominent ones, offer Sensex or Bankex products to clients. A top broker said it is making front and back office changes to offer the BSE products to clients. The broker did not specify when this will be ready but added that it would be very soon. Also read: We are too small to be seen as competitor in F&O segment, says BSE MD & CEO The BSE said it was working with brokers on the software and vendor fronts to bring volumes. Sundararaman Ramamurthy, the MD of the BSE, said it will happen in a few months. The BSE may need to do some convincing to get brokers excited about the new products on offer. A boutique broker said on condition of anonymity that if there were no volumes and customer requirements, theres no reason to spend money to buy a software licence or run machines. Ramamurthy told Moneycontrol that he accepted the shortcomings and the failure to make a mark despite being in the market for over two decades. He, however, clarified that the BSE was not looking to incentivise traders to trade in Sensex or Bankex contracts. The bottom line is that the BSE is not keen on wasting resources with its liquidity enhancement schemes, which were introduced to encourage investors, because they have been an utter failure. HFT firms will likely give the Sensex and the Bankex contracts a miss, given the lack of volumes and data, few traders, and the difficulty in finding these contracts. Even after the product innovation and relaunch, it appears that the BSE has a tall task to make its presence felt in the derivatives segment.
Cipla is one of the several Indian pharma companies thats struggling with delayed drug launches caused by extensive regulatory scrutiny by the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA). The delayed drugs include high-margin products like the generics of Advair (gAdvair), used to treat conditions caused by asthma, and chemotherapy drug Abraxane (gAbraxane). The delays are likely to make a hole in the company's earnings in FY24. An update by the management that these drug launches will now be delayed by around 12 months have prompted a slew of earnings downgrades for FY24. Before we go deeper into this, here's a brief recap of what happened. What's the fuss about? The drugmaker's Pithampur manufacturing facility in Indore came under US FDA scrutiny after the regulator issued Form 483 for the unit, with eight observations, in mid-February. Before this, it was the company's Goa facility that received an OAI (Official Action Indicated) classification from the drug regulator. The FDA issues a Form 483 when a facility fails to meet good manufacturing standards specified by the drug regulator. In recent times, domestic pharmaceutical companies have experienced heightened scrutiny by the US FDA as physical inspections resumed after the COVID-19 pandemic. Also Read: Cipla: US business momentum to moderate Approval by the US FDA is crucial for Indian pharmaceutical companies because a significant portion of their revenue comes from sales in the US market. These regulatory snags are a major negative for Cipla as they threaten to derail the planned launch of gAdvair and gAbraxane, applications for which were filed from these sites. As for the Pithampur unit, the company informed investors that classification was expected later this month. "The nature of observations suggests an OAI (Official Action Indicated) classification for the plant thereby delaying gAdvair launch," said Cyndrella Carvalho, pharma research analyst at JM Financial Institutional Securities. Adding to that, the management also clarified in its earnings call last week that a reinspection of the facility was likely to occur in the third quarter. If the outcome is negative, as most analysts on the Street expect it to be, the company plans to file for Advair from another foreign site, necessitating another round of inspections. Also Read: Cipla's Q4 net profit surges 45% on year to Rs 525.65 crore, lags estimate "Also, as an attempt to de-risk getting stuck in regulatory snags, Cipla will be filing major launches, from two different manufacturing sites," the management said in its earnings call. The aftermath As a consequence of the delay in drug launches, Cipla is left with no major upside triggers to its FY24 earnings. Now that is likely to weigh on the drugmaker's performance in the current fiscal year as US revenues suffer. "FY24 could be a soft year for Cipla because of regulatory issues at Indore and Goa which are pushing back both Abraxane and Advair. On Advair, the market is shrinking by ~7-8 percent annually, so any delay is negative," said Kunal Randeria, director, Nuvama Institutional Research. "Likewise, we had reduced our FY24 estimates by ~12-13 percent. This was mainly due to delays in the above-mentioned products as well as no new regulatory approvals. Also, albuterol market share loss is sharper than expected," Randeria said. Carvalho also believes an FY25 launch for gAdvair will lead to lower US growth and consequently lower margins in FY24. While she doesn't see the opportunity to be diminishing, Carvalho does believe that the delayed launch will defer margin expansion and US earnings upgrade prospects for Cipla. Also Read: Cipla reports 45% jump in Q4 net profit; what should investors do now? "Delay in gAdvair launch has driven loss of revenue in FY24 and impacts the US outlook materially in FY24. However, gRevlimid will partly offset this loss," Carvalho added. Revlimid is an oral drug that is used for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Motilal Oswal Financial Services has also cut its FY24 estimates for Cipla factoring in delays in launches, costs related to additional field force in the dosage form segment, remediation measures and adding alternative sites for critical products in the US generics segment. Adding to the caution, Morgan Stanley has also cut its FY24 Earnings-Per-Share (EPS) estimate for Cipla by 17.1 percent, attributing it to the delays in key product launches. Long-term growth story intact Despite the near-term risks, the long term growth story for the pharma company remains intact, analysts say. "Despite the delay in gAbraxane as well, we expect Cipla to post a healthy 19 percent EPS compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) over FY23-25E, making it one of our top picks within the sector. We continue to like Ciplas sharpened focus on domestic prescription medicines, US generics and strong delivery of cost efficiencies," said Purvi Shah, DVP (fundamental research) and pharma analyst, Kotak Securities. Prabhudas Lilladher also remains positive on Cipla's growth across key segments including India and the US, given the strong traction in respiratory and other portfolios, potential growth of over 10 percent in domestic formulations and sustainability of current US revenues, backed by prospective key launches over FY25. Backing the view, Morgan Stanley also has a rosy outlook for the drugmaker from FY25 on account of base business growth and visibility of several big launches from the next fiscal year. In essence, despite the roadblocks in FY24, Cipla is likely to jump right back onto a solid growth trajectory from FY25. Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment 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.
Shares of Devyani International rebounded over 5 percent in early trade on May 18 following a slump in the stock in the previous session post its weak results for Q4 . The rebound in the stock comes amid hopes that margin pressure will subside from the current quarter as inflation cools down. At 09.35 am, shares of Devyani International were trading at Rs 182.25 on the National Stock Exchange, up 4.56 percent from the previous close. The quick service restaurant chain announced its weak Q4 earnings during market hours on May 17, which triggered an over 4 percent decline in the stock. The company, which is the biggest franchisee of Yum Brands in India, posted a 21.15 percent on-year decline in its consolidated net profit at Rs 59.87 crore for the Janaury-March period. The consolidated net profit stood at Rs 75.93 crore in the year-ago quarter. The weak bottomline was a result of the pressure on operating margins, largely due to rising prices of some raw materials. The EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) margin contracted to 20.4 percent in the quarter from 23.6 percent in the year-ago period. Revenue, however, was up 27.8 percent at Rs 754.97 crore from Rs 590.74 crore in the same quarter of the previous year. Follow our live blog for all the market action Brokerages view The weak quarterly numbers have left brokerages divided. While some cautioned against weak margins, other remained optimistic of the company's long-term future prospects. CLSA has downgraded the stock to outperform with a price target of Rs 205. The brokerage said that demand took a hit for Devyani International as consumer sentiment remained weak. Despite the margin disappointment due to weak same store sales growth (SSSG), CLSA said the scale up of adjacencies augurs well for the quick service restaurant (QSR) chain. Also Read: Stock Of The Day: Devyani International | What Makes This A Great Bet in QSR Space Another global research and broking firm, Jefferies, too, downgraded the stock to hold, assigning a target price of Rs 195. While price hikes for KFC improve margin visibility, it raised demand concerns. The broking firm also cut its EBITDA forecast for Devyani International by 1-4 percent on the back of a sharp margin contraction in Q4. Also Read: Devyani International Q4 net profit down 21% to Rs 59.87 crore, revenue up 27% However, Nuvama Institutional Equities has retained its buy call for the stock, with a target price of Rs 211. "Our estimates were already factoring the current demand environment, hence no major estimate changes," Nuvama said in a report. The firm also said that Devyani International trades at the highest multiple across the QSR space which reflects its robust store addition and margin turnaround. Motilal Oswal Financial Services is also bullish on the company's prospects, led by KFC's strong brand equity and its growth opportunity, gradual turnaround in Pizza Hut, network expansion across the portfolio and healthy operating profitability in the mid-teens. Factoring the positives, the brokerage has retained its buy recommendation for the stock, with a price target of Rs 200. Disclaimer: 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.
The nights booked for international travel by Indian guests more than doubled year-on-year in January-March this year, with the UK, US and various European countries emerging as the top destinations among domestic travellers, Airbnb said on Wednesday. While international travel has gained momentum, Indians are also seeking domestic travel adventures, indulging in beach getaways, city escapades, and serene vacations in the hills, the online accommodation hosting platform said. "Goa takes the top spot among the most booked domestic destinations, followed by Bengaluru, Pune, Delhi and Kullu. Overall nights booked in India have grown by 70 per cent when comparing full-year 2022 with pre-pandemic 2019, while domestic nights in India grew by almost 110 per cent," Airbnb stated. Airbnb's General Manager for India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Amanpreet Singh Bajaj told PTI that the platform is witnessing "very strong momentum" in all three segments whether it is domestic, international or inbound. He shared that the hosting platform is present in over 120 Indian cities and is also witnessing strong demand from Indian travellers for non-urban destinations like rural homestays. "Our focus this year is primarily to make sure that we continue to innovate so that it becomes easy for new hosts to come on the platform," Bajaj said. The platform shared that overall nights booked in India have grown by 70 per cent when comparing full-year 2022 with pre-pandemic 2019 as solo and family travel top the preference of Indian guests. Airbnb has also observed continued enthusiasm among international guests to visit India and immerse themselves in the country's rich culture and heritage. The US stands out as the leading origin for Airbnb guests visiting India, along with the UK, Germany, Australia and Canada. "We're committed to working closely with the government and industry stakeholders to support and accelerate the ongoing travel recovery," Bajaj said.
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The Charlottesville teen who was arrested and charged with flashing a weapon in a University of Virginia dining hall earlier this year received a deferred disposition ruling from an Albemarle General District Court judge on Tuesday morning.

Isaiah Anderson was released from Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail on Tuesday after posting bail.

The 19-year-old Anderson was released on recognizance that he must not trespass on UVa Grounds, must only travel to probation- and work-related locations or meetings with his lawyer, and must report to Offender Aid & Restoration with Jefferson Area Community Corrections within 24 hours of his release.

The court initially granted Anderson a $5,000 bond after his arrest in February but revoked the bond after he arrived more than an hour late for a court appearance last month.

Anderson, who has been in jail since March, posted the $5,000 bail after the judge granted him bond for his charges on Tuesday.

Andersons court-appointed attorney, Peter A. Jenkins of Jenkins & Jenkins Attorneys at Law in Louisa, declined a request for comment from The Daily Progress.

UVa police arrested Anderson in February on a warrant for unlawfully carrying a concealed weapon and brandishing a firearm at the schools Runk Dining Hall.

On Feb. 17, a dining services employee called the UVa Police Department and told officers that a coworker had raised his shirt and revealed a handgun in his waistband after the two got into an argument.

Anderson was employed by Aramark, a Philadelphia-based food, facilities and uniforms company. After his arrest, Aramark suspended Anderson from working on university Grounds while Aramark Human Resources determined the next steps, according to UVa spokeswoman Bethanie Glover.

A spokeswoman for Aramark told The Daily Progress that Anderson is no longer employed with the company.
Residents of Chintels Paradiso housing complex, where a portion of tower D had collapsed in February 2022 killing two women, have demanded from the district administration time till July 31 to vacate their flats in towers E and F. They have also asked that the builder be directed to pay them at least 11 months rent along with restoration charges. The Additional District Magistrate (ADC), Gurugram, Hitesh Meena, assured the residents of full cooperation and asked them to submit their demands in writing for the administration to take a call on the matter. Please submit your conditions in writing regarding the evacuation of flats. I will also ask Chintels India to furnish a list of those residents whom they have paid rent for vacating flats, along with the information about the amount paid to them, ADC Meena said in the meeting. Also Read: One year of Chintels roof collapse in Gurugram: An uncertain future awaits residents After invoking Section 144 in towers E and F of Chintels Paradiso housing society, the Gurugram administration, on May 18, convened a meeting of residents and other stakeholders to address the issues faced by the homebuyers. The homebuyers have been demanding more time to vacate their flats and continued payment of rent by the builder to the affected families. The meeting was attended by ADC Meena, residents of the housing complex, representatives of Chintels India Private Limited, and officials from the Department of Town and Country Planning and Public Works Department. Rakesh Hooda, president of the Chintels Paradiso Residents Welfare Association (RWA), said that in the meeting the ADC asked the residents to submit, in writing, the conditions to vacate their flats. Residents have demanded that they be allowed time till July 31 and given at least 11 months rent. The residents also raised their concerns regarding their lack of trust in the builder, due to a history of backtracking on promises. To this, the ADC asked us to submit our representation in writing so that he can ask the developer to submit its response in writing, and an order can be passed to allay any chances of mistrust, he said. Also Read: Chintels Paradiso case: Section 144 imposed, residents of towers E, F asked to vacate in 15 days On the issue of settlement, he said residents raised the issue of ambiguity in options provided by the builder and also requested that the order regarding settlement options come from the administration and not from the developer. Currently, 15-16 families are still living in towers E and F of the society. On February 10, 2022, a big portion of tower D collapsed, killing two women and injuring many others. Following a report prepared by IIT Delhi, which declared towers E and F of Chintels Paradiso not safe for habitation, Deputy Commissioner Gurugram had, on November 9, 2022, ordered the demolition of the tower in question, and evacuation of neighbouring towers E and F.
ZestMoney will stop its insurance and other affiliate businesses as it looks to streamline its operations to tide over the current crisis at the company triggered by PhonePe's move to walk away from a potential buyout of the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) platform. "What ZestMoney has done in the last few months is cut off any of the non-core operations that are distracting. We are stopping doing insurance as a business line," Lizzie Chapman, co-founder and former CEO of ZestMoney told Moneycontrol, in her first public interaction after stepping down from her day-to-day role. "All kinds of ancillary businesses will be paused. We made money from affiliates, that's going to stop. We will go back to the core traditional products, which is an EMI product, not in the BNPL space," Champan said. Chapman explained how it was critical for fintech businesses to diversify and have different offerings amid rising competition in the space over the last two years. But she said that most of these companies realised that the core lending business is usually the most profitable. Chapman also said that after PhonePe called off the deal, the ZestMoney did cost-cutting initiatives such as layoffs to make sure that the company has a longer runway. In April, Sameer Nigam, co-founder and CEO of Walmart-backed PhonePe had told Moneycontrol in an interview that when PhonePe met ZestMoney to explore a merger for the first time, the BNPL platform was 'close to being bankrupt.' PhonePe also gave ZestMoney a credit line that helped the company mitigate the then-immediate liquidity crunch, Nigam had said. Earlier this week, Chapman along with her two other co-founders Priya Sharma and Ashish Anantharaman, resigned from their executive roles at the BNPL platform, raising concerns about the survival of the company and its 150 employees. The founders' move to step down came a couple of months after PhonePe called off the deal citing diligence issues. Chapman declined to comment specifically on these diligence issues and said that there were small concerns. She also said that ZestMoney currently has NPAs (non-performing assets) of under 2 percent. According to Chapman, the founders sought to entrust the company to "safe hands" as they worked to develop a plan for achieving profitability in the near future. She clarified that the decision was not prompted by any pressure from the board or investors. Chapman also said that the three founders do not plan on selling their shares in ZestMoney. Collectively, Chapman, Sharma and Anantharaman hold 18.5 percent in ZestMoney. Founded in 2016 by Chapman, Sharma and Anantharaman, ZestMoney has a total customer base of 17 million and enables loan disbursals of Rs 400 crore per month. The company has 27 lending partners and merchant partnerships with 10,000 online brands and 75,000 offline stores. ZestMoney in September 2021 had raised $50 million from Australian BNPL fintech Zip Co. This is a part of a larger Series C fundraise which will see participation from existing investors like Goldman Sachs, Quona Capital, Xiaomi and Alteria Capital among others. However, the company experienced a setback when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued guidelines on digital lending, impacting BNPL companies and making it challenging for fintech startups to offer personal credit lines through cards. Sources had previously told Moneycontrol that ZestMoney had been looking for a buyer, even before PhonePe discussions began as it has struggled to raise funding. As per RoC (Registrar of Companies) filings, ZestMoney's losses have widened 3X year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 398.8 crore during the financial year ending March 31, 2022. The firm's loss was up 216 percent from Rs 125.8 crore reported in the financial year 2020-21 (FY21). ZestMoney is now raising a "small" internal round from its existing investors, Moneycontrol reported earlier this week. "I think the business is in good standing. We did this licensing agreement with PhonePe, so that brought some cash into the business. Also, the business costs have reduced a lot in the last few weeks and months, and the business is actually on the verge of profitability," Chapman said. "And one of the great things I think that came out of the whole process of going through a merger is we really streamlined the business and got it into great shape. Very, very efficient, very close to profitability. So that the company doesn't need a lot of capital right now," Chapman added.
A day ahead of Zomatos quarterly earnings announcement, rival food tech major Swiggy declared that its food-delivery business turned profitable in the March quarter of FY23, after factoring in all corporate costs, excluding employee stock option (ESOP) costs. In a blogpost on May 18, Swiggys Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sriharsha Majety also said that the companys quick commerce segment Instamart is on track to become contribution-margin break-even in the next few weeks. This is a metric typically used by e-commerce companies to communicate the profitability of their business on a per order basis, including variable costs like logistics, but excluding fixed costs and marketing spend. For context, Gurugram-based Zomato had declared adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) break-even for the food delivery segment in the first quarter of FY23, before clarifying later that it was not so. While it achieved the milestone in the next quarter, Zomato announced earlier this year that the entire business is now profitable on adjusted EBITDA terms, excluding its quick commerce business Blinkit. Adjusted EBIDTA means a company is not accounting for certain costs, like ESOP costs in Swiggy and Zomato's case, while reporting its EBITDA results. "Swiggy has become one of the very few global food delivery platforms to achieve profitability in less than nine years since its inception," Majety said. Majety's announcement comes after Invesco and Baron Capital, investors in Swiggy, marked down the fair value of their stakes in the Bengaluru-based start-up over the past few weeks. After a double blow, Invesco last valued Swiggy at around $5.5 billion, while Baron Capital pegged Swiggy's valuation at around $7.3 billion, higher than Zomato's market capitalisation of around $6.5 billion. Swiggy was valued at $10.7 billion when it last raised $700 million in January last year. The markdowns come at a time when both Zomato and Swiggy have said the global food delivery market was slowing down. To weather the slowdown, Swiggy shut its meat marketplace, laid off 380 employees in January this year, and even revisited other indirect costs, like infrastructure. "Over the last year, under challenging macroeconomic conditions, companies around the world are adjusting to the new normal, with refreshed investment horizons and accelerated timelines for profitability. Were no exception here, and have already advanced our own timelines for profitability on food delivery and Instamart," Majety had said then. That was after Swiggy's net losses had doubled from Rs 1,616.9 crore in FY21 to Rs 3,628.9 crore in FY22. The company's revenue from operations, however jumped from Rs 2,546.9 crore to Rs 5,704.9 crore on a year-on-year (YoY) basis. "We have reached this milestone while bringing tremendous benefits to all partners in our ecosystem. Our core value  that the customer comes first  has consistently been reciprocated with deep consumer love and industry-best NPS (net promoter score), repeat and retention rates. We continue to make strides in gaining customer favour, including strong traction in Tier 2 and 3 markets." Swiggy has indeed shown an improvement in its business. Swiggy and several other SoftBank-funded start-ups have sharply reduced their cash burn and extended the cash runway by at least 12 months. The extension was because the company's monthly cash burn has come down to $20 million from about $45-50 million that it was losing each month during its peak in 2021. The reduction in cash burn was also aided by the shuttering of unprofitable divisions like Handpicked, a unit for premium groceries. "Congratulations! Nicely done," Deepinder Goyal, Co-founder and CEO, Zomato, said in response to Majety's tweet on May 18. Update on Instamart On Instamart, Swiggy's quick-commerce business, Majety said the unit was on track to turn positive on unit economics level, or contribution neutrality, with the bulk of its investments in the business already behind it. "The peak of our investments is behind us, and today, Instamart is one of the leading players in the quick commerce space globally. In addition, weve also made strong progress on the profitability of the business, and were on track to hit contribution neutrality for this three-year-old business in the next few weeks," his post added. Instamart competes with the likes of Zomato-owned Blinkit, Y Combinator-backed Zepto, Reliance-funded Dunzo, and Tata's Big Basket. "We pioneered and built this category from the grounds up, and have made disproportionate investments in Instamart given the attractiveness of the consumer proposition and its strategic importance to us," Majety concluded.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has announced the launch of a new initiative called Student Ambassador for Academic Reforms in Transforming Higher Education in India, or SAARTHI, with the goal of enhancing students participation and creating awareness around various reforms being brought in the higher education system under the National Education Policy (NEP). As part of this initiative, the UGC will request the Vice Chancellors, Directors, and Principals of HEIs to nominate three students from their institutions (enrolled in any course) to be considered as NEP SAARTHIs. The letters for the same will be sent out on May 19, UGC Chairman, M Jagadesh Kumar told Moneycontrol. ALSO READ: Students used to get bookish knowledge, NEP will change that: PM Modi The nominated students will be expected to have an outstanding personality, possess excellent communication skills, organisational capabilities for conducting outreach programmes, creativity, sense of responsibility along with being a team leader, he added. The UGC is looking at as many as 300 such students. As per a written note shared by the Chairman, each university may nominate up to three students to be considered as NEP SAARTHI, along with a brief write-up justifying the nominations. Based on the nominations, UGC will select 300 NEP SAARTHI among the nominees. Chosen students will have to go through an orientation process to carry out their roles effectively by the UGC in a hybrid mode. While exact dates have not yet been identified, the Chairman said that rough timelines have been built. The deadline for receiving nominations would be set for a date in June, the announcement of chosen students will be made a month later, soon after which the orientation process would begin, he said. Students who are chosen as NEP SAARTHIs will work as ambassadors to promote NEP by undertaking campaigns at university levels and using social media to disseminate information about the same. The students will also be charged with collecting feedback from students to improve the implementation process of measures rolled out under NEP. For this, the students will be felicitated by UGC. We will give them a certificate of recognition, mentions on UGCs official social media handles, invitation to all relevant online events organised by the UGC and an opportunity to publish an article in UGC Newsletter, the Chairman said. The UGC has been taking several steps to revamp the Indian higher education under the new policy. It recently also redesigned its website to make it more user-friendly, informative and dynamic as part of its effort to support universities and colleges to improve higher education standards into world-class.
The travel sector was hit the hardest when the world was rattled by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many individuals put off their international travel plans and opted for domestic travel instead. India is an incredibly diverse country, encompassing everything from beaches to the majestic Himalayan mountains, scorching deserts to the icy environs of Kashmir. With modern cities like Mumbai and spiritual destinations like Haridwar, India offers a wealth of experiences  beyond what one may have imagined  waiting to be explored. The potency of credit card rewards is immense as they can enable you to travel the globe at minimal cost. While it's commonly known that using airline miles can substantially reduce international travel expenses, the same holds true for domestic travel. Lets delve into the possibilities for credit card holders to redeem their reward points for free domestic travel. Co-branded credit cards There are two options for credit card users in India to avail free travel. The first is to use a co-branded credit card and the second involves converting credit card reward points into airline miles. Several co-branded credit cards are available in India, allowing users to earn specific airline miles or points on their daily expenses. These miles or points can be redeemed to purchase flight tickets. Axis Bank offers co-branded credit cards in partnership with SpiceJet and Vistara, while SBI Card has co-branded credit cards with Air India and Vistara, among others. Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank offer co-branded credit cards in association with IndiGo. By selecting a credit card based on their flying preferences, individuals can take advantage of the associated benefits. Reward points The more commonly used and preferred method to obtain free flights using credit card rewards is the second option  converting credit card reward points to airline miles. Credit cards of banks such as HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, AMEX, IndusInd Bank, AU Small Finance Bank, and HSBC provide options to convert reward points to airline miles. For travel within India, Vistara and SpiceJet are the best options. However, it's essential to keep in mind that Vistara primarily operates flights from Delhi and Mumbai, which may not be as advantageous for those living in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, or other parts of the country because of connectivity issues. Vistara provides an official award chart that outlines the number of CV points (the airmiles currency of Vistara) required to travel between two places. If you plan to fly from Delhi to Mumbai, you'll need 5,000 CV points for economy class, 8,500 CV points for premium economy, and 18,000 CV points for business class. If you wish to travel from Kolkata to Mumbai, you'll require 6,000 CV points for economy, 10,000 CV points for premium economy, and 23,000 CV points for business class. However, Vistara offers only a limited number of seats in each class that can be booked using CV points or ticket vouchers, and seat availability is a significant concern when using airmiles, not just for Vistara but for all major airlines. SpiceJet offers the option of booking revenue tickets directly with SpiceClub points, with a fixed conversion rate of 1 SC point equaling 50 paise for all redemptions. If you wish to book a flight from Kolkata to Delhi, which costs Rs 6,000, you can use 12,000 SC points to pay for the ticket instead of cash. IndiGo flight tickets can also be booked the same way using 6E Reward points, with a conversion rate of 1 reward point equaling 1 rupee. This means that if the ticket price for an Indigo flight is Rs 10,000, you can use 10,000 6E Reward points instead of cash to pay for it. However, it's important to note that 6E Rewards is not IndiGo's frequent flyer programme and is only accessible to co-branded credit card holders. Normal credit card reward points cannot be transferred to your IndiGo 6E Rewards account. Global airline alliances Another interesting option is available for booking Air India domestic flights through Miles&Smiles, the frequent flyer programme of Turkish Airlines. You can transfer your reward points from your credit card to Miles&Smiles and book economy or business class tickets within India for 7,500 miles or 12,500 miles, respectively. Both Air India and Turkish Airlines are Star Alliance partners, which allows you to book tickets on any of the alliance's airlines using another partner's airmiles. While you can also book Air India tickets using United Airlines airmiles, the miles requirement is slightly higher. Options for booking domestic flight tickets with credit card reward points are quite limited. Excluding Vistara, there isn't a very robust frequent flyer programme for domestic flights in India. The issue with Vistara is limited connectivity to cities other than Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, which may not be the preferred choices of travelers from other parts of the country. Surprisingly, India's largest domestic air carrier, IndiGo, lacks a proper frequent flyer programme, even though it has the potential to become the top choice for Indian frequent flyer programmes due to its extensive network. Its best to choose a credit card based on your needs and spending habits. Redeeming rewards for free air travel shouldn't be too complicated. Save more while spending money. Sumanta Mandal is the Founder of TechnoFino
Multilateral diplomacy can be defined as the practice of involving more than two nations or parties in achieving diplomatic solutions to supranational problems, noted veteran Singaporean diplomat and academic Kishore Mahbubani, in a celebrated essay, published a decade ago. Well, 2023 represents Indias moment of multilateral diplomacy. India will host the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit scheduled for July 3-4, where it is likely to welcome Russias Vladimir Putin and Chinas Xi Jinping, in addition to a host of important central Asian leaders. It will also host the subsequent G20 summit, slated for September 9-10, where India plans to champion the voice of the Global South throughout the year while leading the G-20 presidency. Here again  at least theoretically  it could have the Chinese leader and the Russian president as guests. Global South is a term used to refer to countries with a low level of economic development, which are mostly located to the south of industrialised nations. At the helm of the G-20 and SCO, India seeks to establish its global leadership bonafides. Anyone moving through an Indian airport or major metropolitan area today cannot avoid encounters with splashy India-G-20 posters and billboards. Observed one western diplomat: This India coming-out party on the global stage feels faintly reminiscent of the Beijing Olympics in 2008. It is also important to remember that no host country of previous SCO and G-20 summits has convened as many meetings as India has. But that, to some veteran diplomats like former Indian high commissioner to Pakistan, G Parthasarathy, is a mere coincidence. Nonetheless, India playing host to the two summits this year has boosted its regional and international profile, expanded its diplomatic space and provided opportunities to advance its interests in a sharply polarised geopolitical landscape. Why multilateral matter India is deepening cooperation with the West through minilaterals like the informal Quad leaders meeting in Hiroshima alongside the G7 (the US has pulled out of the proposed four-nation summit in Australia). New Delhi prefers to foreground global public goods initiatives on vaccines, infrastructure and supply chains, while quietly proceeding with the incremental operationalisation of existing security agreements. For instance, India and the three Quad partners hope to fully implement the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness throughout the Indo-Pacific region to fuse multiple intelligence sources to detect illicit activity at sea  a euphemism for keeping an eye on the vast and overactive Chinese navy. India is among the eight invitees to the G-7 summit in Hiroshima this week. The mix of countries invited by Japan to attend the G7 summit is seen as an attempt to help efforts of countering China's assertiveness and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In 2023, India seeks to raise its leadership profile as a bridging power between various poles of the international system, both East and West as well as North and South At present, India is in a strong position to work across global cleavages. As one of the worlds fastest-growing economies, India is courted by  and can potentially be a bridge to  all sides. India is poised to be one of the fastest-growing economies with the IMF forecasting it to grow at 6.1 percent in 2023 and 6.8 percent in 2024, wrote the United States Institute of Peace in a chapter entitled Indias Pivotal Year on the Global Stage. With India taking its anointed position as one of the biggest economies of the world, there can be little doubt that the world will have to make adjustments to adapt to this shift in power  which means multilateral diplomacy will have to do the same. Says former Indian envoy to China and Pakistan Gautam Bambawale: Every country is moving towards multilateralism. International bodies such as the UN, IMF, WB, even the UNSC, are not as effective as they were once. Hence countries favour multilateral arrangements. For instance, India has excellent bilateral relations with the US, Japan and Australia. Yet these countries prefer to operate through multilateral channels. They are part of the G7 and India is an invitee there. As a matter of fact, even with China, which does not have good bilateral relations with India, multilateral institutions such as BRICS, SCO and the G20 provide a window to work together, he told Moneycontrol. Of course, given the fractious nature of relations with Pakistan, even a multilateral summit is enough to spark bilateral hostilities. The council of foreign ministers of the SCO, which met in Goa recently, was marred by a slanging match between India and Pakistan. This can only be described as unfortunate. China dominates the SCO and Pakistan is a member, too. And while India has good relations with neither, the SCO does give New Delhi a place on the table in Eurasia, from where it can watch over its interests in Central Asia and participate in conversations on Afghanistan, where it is well invested, as well as engage with adversaries. Foreign minister S Jaishankar's meeting with his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang on the sidelines of the SCO showed that such conversations are possible even with a neighbour that has intruded into eastern Ladakh, and by New Delhis own reckoning, has destabilised the line of actual control (LAC), making ties very fragile indeed. The need for sharp minds Multilateralism, however, comes at a price. Some experts point out that the wide-ranging discussions that occur on such platforms mean that the human resource inputs have to be of very high quality and the class of international negotiators well above the ordinary. Lack of requisite talent may put the country at a disadvantage when it comes to safeguarding its vital interests, much less leveraging opportunities that could come it's way. Former Indian Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia, currently a distinguished fellow at think tank Gateway House and a leading voice on multilateral diplomacy, told Moneycontrol: While at the formal level, we have enough men to man our important global missions, the move away from classical diplomacy to areas of cooperation on complex issues like technology and economic relations etc., means we can do with more talent. Diplomacy is not just about war and peace or security issues any longer. He adds: There are new, post-Cold War institutions like BRICS, G20, SCO, which call for additional talent. There are some multilateral bodies where a great deal of documentation is undertaken, but there is no clear progress. Then there are other bodies where some forward move is visible and yet some more, which have nothing to show for themselves. All of it needs to be monitored.  In the case of India, the Modi government plans to take G20 meetings and foreign affairs to the people. No host country of previous G20 or SCO summits has convened as many meetings as India has. These have been accompanied by colourful side events in major Indian cities, both modern and ancient, showcasing Indias rich cultural heritage and its achievements. Could that be the yardstick used to judge the success of the G20 summit coming up later in the year? Explains Bhatia: There are three ways to judge the G20 summit here: one, see whether the summit can produce consensus; two, see whether it can produce additional documentation, and three, charter their implementation. Adds Parthasarathy: G20 is undoubtedly Indias prize. Unlike other experts, however, he believes that the new multilateral institutions are here to supplement old international institutions, not replace them. The answer to all conjectures and analyses lies in the womb of the not-too-distant future. The pattern of global diplomacy has, however, gone through a paradigm shift and New Delhi is spotting the opportunities fast enough.
India is at a critical juncture in its economic development path, which has the potential to lay the foundation for good and better job creation. However, it has been observed that India is facing the problem of jobless growth. The GDP growth rate so far in 2023 is 6 percent but the unemployment growth is also 8.11 percent. Thus, it becomes pertinent to prepare our people for new jobs by investing in skilling, re-skilling, and upskilling, and thus shore up our human capital. There is empirical evidence pointing to the existence of a positive correlation between firms welfare and workers welfare. This means that there are positive returns in terms of productivity and profits if a firm invests in the welfare of its workers including their upskilling. In this light, CUTS International, under the project Good and Better Jobs, supported by Ford Foundation, conducted stakeholder consultations with investors to understand their views of considering workers welfare while investing in any firm. In order to better understand the situation, we consulted with equity investors (including venture capital funds, startup funds, fully invested impact funds, and medium-scale funds) and debt investors (including debt providers, bankers, and non-banking financial companies). The S Factor of ESG From the stakeholder consultations, it sadly appears that investors do not largely consider social aspects such as workers welfare while making investment decisions. For instance, medium-scale investors, banks and NBFCs do not take into account social aspects but focus mainly on financial aspects while investing. These categories of investors who are debt investors rather believe that equity investors should consider workers welfare in decision-making. Through the perspectives of equity investors, we understand that impact investment fund investors look closely at the social aspects of the firms operations. This is because their returns are partially from financial and social aspects. Other categories of equity investors, such as venture capital funds and startup investors have also started taking into account the social aspect of workers welfare through the lens of the Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) movement. They are of the opinion that not applying the S factor of ESG by the firm might be a risk factor for the investors. Moreover, some private banks and NBFCs have also started ESG reporting and covering the social aspects. But, some of the investors believe and have said ESG is more of a western concept and for developing countries like India, a specific model needs to be evolved first. So, it is apparent that ESG is not one of their primary considerations at present, but likely to be more important five years from now. Ensuring Workers Welfare Here it is worth noting, while ESG is still developing, all investors in principle agree on one thing, which is the importance of workers welfare. They believe looking at workers as investment rather than as cost is a step in the right direction. As we have also advocated in the past and further through these stakeholder consultations, ESG has emerged as the best vehicle to ensure workers' welfare is well taken care of. But, the definition of ESG has to be clarified and its principles need to be contextualised for the Indian context. As per our assessment, venture capital funds and investors are not likely to change their perspective on workers welfare dramatically in the short run. However, the growth of ESG influence on investors can create an opportunity for investors to seriously look at the S factor. Even the government of India is taking steps and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has taken cognisance of ESG. The RBI has come out with a draft policy paper on environment but is yet to take up S part strongly. We recommend that the RBI can consider making a code of conduct/guidelines for considering all aspects of ESG while making lending decisions. This may move the banking system forward on this and promote human capital. Similarly, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has already come out with business responsibility guidelines and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has been active on ESG and has introduced Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) framework for the top 1,000 listed companies. However, more depth should be added to these frameworks, so as to cover a major part of the medium sectors. In alignment, we also believe that the ESG framework should be evolved and drafted in a simpler manner for the Indian context so that it could be easily understandable and adopted by Indian firms to attract investors. Needless to say, awareness generation programmes should also be conducted to promote the adoption of ESG by firms, especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that contribute significantly to the GDP and employment generation in the country. Once the firms/companies start attracting investments and investing in human capital to provide better working conditions and training opportunities to skill, re-skill and upskill the workforce, it will prepare them for future-ready jobs and also help to attain economic growth and employment. Pradeep S Mehta and Yatika Agrawal work for CUTS International, a global public policy research and advocacy group. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication.
A staggering 77 percent of the entire prison population is made up of undertrials  people awaiting the completion of investigation or trial, or simply too poor to secure bail or reach effective legal representation. Going by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) standards, 30 percent of our prisons are extremely overcrowded and 54 percent run above 100 percent capacity. In response to this state of affairs in 2013, the Supreme Court in Re: Inhuman Conditions in 1382 Prisons (W.P. (Civil) No. 406/2013), set up a special vehicle  Undertrial Review Committees (URTC) at the district level  to identify and recommend inmates who could be quickly released on bail. Wholl Review The Reviewers? Activated in 2015, UTRCs were to meet every quarter and limited to reviewing eligible cases under Section 436-A CrPC and those unable to furnish surety for bail. Later, this expanded to include 14 categories of prisoners. Then, during the pandemic, to hasten decongestion the review committees were required to meet once a week. A study of 19 states recorded patchy compliance of the courts orders - a phenomenon that is too common now to be remarkable or noteworthy. During the pandemic the Supreme Court also ordered the setting up of High Powered Committees tasked with quickly decongesting prisons. But since those times the prison occupancy has steadily gone up from 120 percent in 2019 to 130 percent in 2021. Contributing factors include over-enthusiasm to arrest: 2021 saw seven lakh more arrests than 2020. The other factors are: Mounting backlogs of criminal matters up from 1.35 crore in 2019 to 1.88 crore in 2022; uncertain and patchy availability of competent representation; and overall the poverty and powerlessness of most who are in conflict with the law. 65 percent of all undertrials are either illiterate or semi-literate. Undertrials Only Sparingly Released National Legal Services Authoritys (NALSA) data shows that between January and December 2021, 665 DLSAs (District Legal Services Authorities) across the country convened 10,028 Undertrial Review Committee (UTRC) meetings. In 26 states/UTs they met at least once in a quarter. Only Sikkim, with 13 meetings in a quarter, met once a week, closely followed by Himachal Pradesh (12 meetings). Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Mizoram, though, did not convene a single meeting throughout the year. Sikkim, with 452 inmates, conducted the most meetings; it recommended only two undertrials for release against which only one was released. Nationally, 42,486 prisoners were recommended for release, but only 16,743 or 39 percent were actually released, according to NALSA. Goa and Jammu & Kashmir released all those recommended for release. Thirteen states/UTs released more than 50 percent while five states released less than 20 percent. Between July and August 2022,as part of NALSAs nationwide campaign to identify undertrial prisoners eligible for release, 24,789 prisoners were released out of the nearly 48,000 recommended. Overall, 5.8 percent of the total undertrial population was released during the 2022 campaign which resulted in the reduction of the overall occupancy rates by only 5.7 percentage points (from 130 percent to 124.3 percent) in the country. Uttar Pradesh (8,409) released the highest number of prisoners followed by West Bengal (2,107), Maharashtra (1,717) and Punjab (1,531). An Inadequate Justice System But how could it be otherwise? Structural inadequacies plague each sub-system which is charged with justice delivery. Judge vacancies have stood at 29.8 percent (High Courts) and 21.7 percent (Subordinate Courts) and remain far from the 50 judges per million recommended 35 years ago. None of this absolves the system from their share of the blame. The shortfalls are well known and have hung around unaddressed for decades. Even in the absence of structural reform pathways, solutions  even if partial - do exist. They lie in obedience to the law and dispassionate use of discretion. Illustratively, the courts have repeatedly directed the police to use arrest as a last resort rather than a first knee-jerk reaction to every big or small incident. So too, the apex court has repeatedly detailed careful processes to be followed during arrest which if disobeyed will vitiate police action. Magistrates are schooled that bail not jail is the norm but too often feel compelled to remand or refuse bail and furlough at the invitation of the police. Legal aid which should be available on the instant at the very first encounter with law is too often wrapped up in the tangled skein of bureaucracy, written applications, and overtly casual representation. Neither caprice nor abuse of power nor breach of statutory duty attract instant reckoning for the wrongdoer. The consequences fall unfailingly on its victim. Repairing these dysfunctions of practice - how it may be brought about is an issue for immediate attention - could contribute significantly to lowering the burden on prisons and more importantly in protecting everyones civil liberties and the idea of rule of law. But none of it will materialise if there is no incentive to bend toward a virtuous circle or disincentive to move away from the repugnant. Maja Daruwala is Chief Editor, India Justice Report. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of the publication.
Very few politicians, policy wonks or students of history and international relations want to talk about the Palestine-Israel conflict which turns 75 this year. Palestinians mourn it as Nakba or Catastrophe when the state of Israel was formed on May 14, 1948, and hundreds and thousands of Palestinians had to flee their homes and Israel celebrates its 75 years as a nation state. It is the proverbial minefield where you cannot hold either the Palestinians or the Israelis guilty. As information seeped out of the Nazi concentration camps of Hitlers Germany at the end of the Second World War in 1945, the world was trying to make sense of the macabre Final Solution of Hitler sending six millions Jews to their death in the camps and the gas chambers. But the after-effects of that humanitarian disaster which we now know as the Holocaust or Shoah was felt directly in distant Palestine, where the European Jewish Diaspora tried to grab a piece of land, which turned out to be much of Palestine  then under the British as a mandate territory at the end the First World War and the defeat of the Ottoman Empire. It is an unending tale of a series of historical trauma for the Jews culminating in the trauma of the Palestinians in 1948, and the Palestinian tragedy and trauma is still playing out. It is a morality tale of history and politics which no Solomon can judge. The Partition Plan That Was Not To Be The United Nations set up in 1945, had proposed a partition of Palestine into two states of Palestine and Israel. The Arabs who had been working their way through a nationalism of their own, with the complicated concept of Arab nationalism spread across many Arab states, rejected outright the setting up of the state of Israel in Palestine, which the Arabs felt, and rightly too, as their own land as the people in Palestine were united by the Arab language and descent though there were Muslims, Christians and Jews among them. The UN and the victorious Allied Powers could never grasp the concept of a nation united by language and culture though belonging to different faiths. The Arab states in the neighbourhood of Palestine went to war with the newborn Israel in 1948 but they lost the war, and they tried again in 1967 and they lost again. Part of the Palestinian Catastrophe was the refusal of the Arabs in Palestine, in Egypt, Jordan, Syria to accept the UN partition plan which would have established the state of Palestine along with that of Israel in 1948. Today a majority of the Arab states and Palestinians have come round to the view of the two-state solution which they had rejected in 1948. But they face the biggest roadblock in an armed, economically powerful state of Israel which is in no mood to yield any ground to the Palestinians who tried to stand up against it for decades. Palestinian groups from Fatah led by Yasser Arafat in the 1960s and 1970s to Hamas and groups like Palestine Islamic Jihad in the last two decades have tried to fight Israel and reclaim their land but failed. The Palestinian militias were harried out of Syria and Lebanon, and Arafat had to shift base to Tunisia before the truth dawned that they cannot fight Israel from bases in other countries. The Road Ahead That there is no mercy for losers is the hard truth of history, and this awareness is now deeply etched in the hearts and minds of Palestinians. A poll by Arab News  a Saudi Arabia-based English newspaper  and YouGov, a Britain-based pollster, conducted recently showed that Palestinians are disillusioned with their own political leadership of all shades, disappointed over the support of the Arab states, and their realisation that Israel would not make peace with them, and that the Americans would not pressure Israel to make peace. The Palestinians are so desperate that some of them entertain the hope that perhaps China would be a more effective mediator between them and Israel. Palestinians are today a people without hope as there is no way they can retrace their way back to the 1947 UN partition plan for Palestine which would have given them a far better deal in terms of territory and recognition as a state, which would have made it an equal partner with Israel. But the shining fact of the harried Palestinians is that they have survived disasters internally and externally and they are taking a hard, stoic look at their future. Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr is a New Delhi-based journalist. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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On Tuesday, North Carolinas Republican-led state legislature overrode a veto by its Democratic governor of a bill to ban abortions after 12 weeks of gestation, which will make Virginia the least restrictive state in the South for abortion access.

This is a crisis moment for North Carolinians and everyone trying to access abortion care in the South, said Jamie Lockhart, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia.

The North Carolina law is set to take effect July 1. In South Carolina lawmakers are debating a measure that would bar most abortions after about six weeks.

With surrounding states banning or further restricting access to the procedure, abortion providers note that Virginia can be a destination for out-of-state patients seeking the procedure.

Abortion will be a key issue this fall as Republicans and Democrats fight for control of Virginias General Assembly. Republicans currently control the House of Delegates while Democrats control the state Senate.

The Associated Press reports that abortion is banned or severely restricted in much of the South, including bans throughout pregnancy in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. In Georgia, abortion is permitted only in the first six weeks.

After the overturn of federal protections last summer, a number of states across the country have sought further restrictions or bans, while others, such as Virginia, have maintained their level of access.

Abortion is currently legal in Virginia for any reason up to about 26 weeks of pregnancy. Abortions that occur later in pregnancy require three physicians to conclude that carrying the fetus to term threatens the health or life of the pregnant person.

In Virginias most recent legislative session, several GOP lawmakers introduced bills aimed at restricting or prohibiting most abortions, but they were defeated. Measures included a bill Gov. Glenn Youngkin backed to bar most abortions after 15 weeks with exceptions for rape, incest and when the womans life is in danger. Other unsuccessful measures that GOP lawmakers sponsored included bills to define life at conception and legislation to walk back the 26-week threshold to between 22 and 24 weeks.

Sen. Siobahn Dunnavant, a Henrico Republican, carried the 22- to 24-week bill. The senator, an OBGYN, called the bill a compromise at the time and expressed disappointment that it was defeated in a committee meeting.

I think it was a reasonable attempt to find consensus, she said. You shouldnt have an abortion when a baby can live outside the mom.

In a high-profile June 20 Democratic primary in Senate District 13, which stretches from eastern Henrico and Charles City counties through the Tri-Cities into rural Southside, former Del. Lashrecse Aird has vowed to protect abortion access in Virginia and attacked her opponent, Sen. Joe Morrissey, a Petersburg Democrat, accusing him of flip-flopping on the issue.

Morrissey, a Catholic, says he is personally opposed to abortion, but believes the decision should be made by a woman and her doctor.

I have never, ever voted to ban abortion, he said in a recent interview with The Richmond Times-Dispatch.

A recent Aird ad included clips of Morrissey talking on his radio show about being the only Democrat in the General Assembly who is pro-life  despite his statements to the media over the past year that he does support abortion access up to about 20 weeks. She has also critiqued him for not being present this latest session for a vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that would enshrine abortion protections into the states constitution.

Aird has garnered endorsements from organizations that support abortion rights, like Planned Parenthood, ReproRising and Emilys List.

The 13th District leans Democratic, which means the victor of the primary would be the favorite to win election in November.

Following redistricting, all 140 House and Senate seats have shifted in some of their demographics  and their political leanings have shifted along with them. For example, Dunnavants former district was once reliably Republican, but now she faces Del. Schuyler VanValkenburg, a Henrico Democrat, in the Democratic-leaning Senate District 16.

VanValkenburg, a teacher who has served in the House of Delegates since 2018, plans to support abortion access.

North Carolinas ban is a stark reminder of whats on the line here in Virginia this November, VanValkenburg said.

Some localities in Virginia have considered or have passed local zoning ordinances or declarations to prohibit abortion providers from establishing themselves in their cities or counties.

The Family Foundation, an anti-abortion organization that has lobbied the state legislature, has consulted on the drafting of some of the local policies.

Family Foundation president Victoria Cobb said she thinks it is important for state and local levels of government to take action to prevent Virginia from becoming an abortion tourism destination and keep the Commonwealth of Virginia one that values and protects life.
In just the past week, the coast of Myanmar has been hit by the equal-strongest cyclone ever seen in the northern Indian Ocean. A record heatwave spread across Southeast Asia, while the mercury in Beijing and Portland, Oregon, rose to the mid-30s Celsius (mid-90s Fahrenheit). With temperatures in Europe increasing twice as fast as the global average, parts of Spain are turning arid decades earlier than expected. A vast Antarctic glacier may be susceptible to collapse far sooner than anyone realized. The speed of change is head-spinning. Scientists have spent decades batting away accusations from denialists that they were exaggerating the risks of warming. Now theyre facing the opposite problem. Some of the impacts of climate change are playing out faster and with a greater magnitude than we predicted, Michael E. Mann, a climatologist at the University of Pennsylvania, told the UKs Channel 4 News during Europes summer heatwave last year. Its tempting, in the face of unexpected natural disasters, to ask why werent we warned? Though the progress of global warming is still closely tracking predictions climate scientists made decades ago, its specific effects can shock even those whove dedicated their lives to studying it. Part of the answer lies in the broadness of the techniques used to make verifiable forecasts about an uncertain future. Another part, in the way that our brains, which evolved to help primates make quick judgements, can still misinterpret statistical data. Our minds latch on to the most easily-available snippets of information, even if we lack the tools to interpret them properly. Global warming of 1.09C (where we are now), 1.5C (the level climate diplomats are targeting, likely to soon be out of reach), and 2.8C to 3.2C (where were currently headed) cant help but seem mild to people who notch their home thermostats up and down by similar amounts in the course of a day. For experts versed in the science of climate impacts, those numbers conjure up images of mounting, devastating changes to weather, ecosystems and human societies. Lay people, on the other hand, may find it almost beyond comprehension to connect such dry numbers to the real-world disasters they represent. That disconnect is made worse by the fact that its hard to foretell the sorts of short-term disasters that dominate news headlines. You will search scientific literature in vain for predictions of what, for instance, the highest-ever temperature recorded in Delhi will be by the year 2050. Here, instead, is how one 2018 paper on temperature extremes describes its methodology: The climate of our planet is simply too complex and dynamic to forecast individual events more than a few days in advance. Even moving from global models toward regional ones that give finer-grained detail has been the subject of vast controversy among climatologists, due to disagreements about the usefulness and value of such calculations. Switching from simulations with 100 square-kilometer (39 square-mile) pixels to more granular ones with 1 sq km pixels is the current state of the art, according to Julie Arblaster, a professor at Australias Monash University who researches climate extremes. Even that is pushing the limits of our processing power, scientific knowledge and academic labor force. The emerging science of weather attribution means we are now relatively confident in showing the influence of human-caused climate change on large-scale events like drought, heatwaves and extreme rainfall. Carrying out similar analyses for smaller disasters, such as cyclones, tornadoes, and storms, however, remains far more challenging. On top of that, long-range predictions tend to focus more on the increasing frequency of extreme weather, rather than the intensity of record-breaking events. Its the latter, though, which are more likely to grab the imagination of human brains that have evolved to fear abnormally bad weather as an immediate threat to life and limb. Science can't yet provide the high-resolution forecasts that would be needed to make detailed policy for specific areas, says Arblaster. That local scale of asking what it will be like in Melbourne in 2040  thats a difficult question to answer at the moment. Well have to learn to live with this. The way that climatologists interpret environmental data and the way lay people think about natural disasters are fundamentally different, and often incompatible, systems of information. That lies at the root of the challenges we face in getting the public to comprehend the momentous implications of global warming. In a world where everything seems measurable and quantifiable, scientists cant provide forecasts with the level of visceral detail that the average person needs to grasp the enormity of the changes unfolding before our eyes. Rather than dismissing the fears of climate scientists as alarmism, we should take their manifest alarm seriously. It may well be our best guide to the damage we are doing to our world. (David Fickling is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering energy and commodities.)
Dreaming of a wedding that is truly out of this world? Look no further, as Space Perspective, a space travel company, is offering couples a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to tie the knot while gazing down at Earth. Space Perspective operates on an innovative carbon-neutral balloon technology. Jane Poynter, the co-founder of Space Perspective, shared that the demand for celestial weddings has skyrocketed. "We've already had people wanting to be the first marriage in space, so we'll see who is the first," Poynter revealed in an interview with The Cool Down. For those seeking to embark on this extraordinary wedding adventure, joining the waitlist on Space Perspective's website for late 2024 is the first step. However, this extra-terrestrial experience comes with a steep price tag. Prices for a seat start at $125,000 (Rs 1.03 crore). What sets Space Perspective's spacecraft, Neptune, apart is its commitment to providing a safe and serene experience for newlyweds. With a gentle ascent of 19 kmph, the spaceflight is as safe as boarding a conventional airplane. The spacecraft is lifted into space by the eco-friendly SpaceBalloon, propelled by renewable hydrogen, completely eliminating the carbon footprint associated with traditional rocket launches. Inside Neptune's spacious capsules, couples can immerse themselves in the awe-inspiring beauty of Earth from an unparalleled vantage point. One key feature that distinguishes Spaceship Neptune from other spacecraft is the secure connection between the capsule and the SpaceBalloon throughout the entire flight. Poynter explained, "Spaceship Neptune's capsule remains secured to the SpaceBalloon the entire flight from lift-off to splashdown, creating a seamlessly safe and gentle flight." The technology used by Space Perspective has been utilized for decades by NASA and other government agencies, facilitating the transportation of research telescopes and other delicate instruments. Vincent Bachet, the lead development engineer at Space Perspective, states that Neptune's windows will be "the biggest windows flown into space" crafted from hyper-resistant materials and coated with a special anti-UV layer. Read: Want Michelin-starred cuisine at the 'edge of space' with Earth's view? It will cost you... The minds behind Space Perspective, Taber MacCallum and Jane Poynter, draw upon their expertise as former crew members of Biosphere 2, an Earth system science research facility in Arizona. This facility was initially constructed to explore closed ecological systems and their potential to sustain human life during future space missions. Inspired by their time at Biosphere 2, MacCallum and Poynter embarked on a mission to make space travel accessible to all.
A girl who was abducted by her mother at the age of nine has been discovered alive and well in North Carolina. The story unfolded when a vigilant store owner recognized the missing girl after watching her story on Netflix's popular show, Unsolved Mysteries. Kayla Unbehaun, who was taken by her non-custodial mother, Heather Unbehaun, was last seen on July 4, 2017. Her father, Ryan Iskerka, who had full custody of Kayla, went to pick her up from her mother's residence in Wheaton, South Elgin, on July 5, but to his dismay, Kayla was nowhere to be found. In an astonishing twist, Kayla was spotted by a store owner in Asheville, North Carolina, who had seen her on an episode of Netflixs Unsolved Mysteries, which chronicled her disappearance. The astute store owner promptly alerted the authorities, leading to Heather Unbehaun's arrest. Unbehaun, who only had visitation rights at the time of the abduction, is now being held on a $250,000 bond and awaits extradition. At the time of her discovery, Kayla, now 15 years old, was placed in protective custody. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which had been actively involved in her case, expressed relief upon learning of her recovery. Ryan Iskerka, Kayla's father, conveyed his overwhelming joy, expressing gratitude towards the Elgin Police Department, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and the various law enforcement agencies involved in assisting with his daughter's case. Read: How a 13-year-old US teen saved his sister from a kidnapping using only a slingshot "I'm overjoyed that Kayla is home safe. I want to thank the Elgin Police Department, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and all of the law enforcement agencies who assisted with her case," said Iskerka. He also requested privacy for their family as they reconnect and embark on a new beginning. The episode featuring Kayla's abduction, titled "Abducted by a Parent," sheds light on the issue of parental abductions, highlighting the plight faced by children and families torn apart by such incidents.
The Supreme Court on May 18 allowed Jallikattu, which originated in Tamil Nadu, to go on, upholding the states law that exempted the bull-taming sport from the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 on grounds of culture and tradition. While a constitution bench of the court said Jallikattu has been played in Tamil Nadu for a few centuries, whether it was a part of the states cultural tradition would have to be debated in Parliament and not in the court. The apex court has also upheld laws by Karnataka and Maharashtra allowing Kamabala and bullock-cart racing. Speaking to Moneycontrol, Senior Advocate and DMK Rajya Sabha MP P Wilson said "Welcome the judgement (on Jallikattu) Victory for all Tamils around the world." Case file Usually held during the Pongal festival in January, Jallikattu is said to have originated in Tamil Nadu between 400 and 100 BCE. A native breed of bull is released into a crowd and participants try to grab the hump on the bull's back with both arms and hang on to it as the animal tries to escape. The participants hold on to the hump in an attempt to bring the animal to a stop. In some cases, participants must ride long to remove the flags tied to the bull's horns. In 2014, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court declared Jallikattu illegal, saying it violated the prevention of cruelty to animals act. The court said the practice was cruel and caused the animal pain and suffering. Despite many efforts by the Tamil Nadu government, the courts ban could not be reversed. Animal rights vs tradition In 2016, the Centre passed a notification, exempting the sport from performances where bulls couldnt be used, effectively reversing the ban. The Supreme Court, however, struck down the notification, upholding the ban. In 2017, protests against the ban spread across Tamil Nadu, creating a law and order situation. The Centre then passed the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act of 2017 and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Conduct of Jallikattu) Rules of 2017, which permitted jallikattu as a part of the states culture and tradition. The act was challenged in the Supreme Court and referred to a Constitution Bench in 2018. The case was in cold storage for four and a half years before a constitution bench led by Justice KM Joseph was formed to hear the case. The case was argued in November and December 2022, where counsel for the animal rights board contended that a sport that causes harm to the animals and was in violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act could not be legalised in the name of culture and heritage. Jallikattu could be harmful to both bulls and humans, they argued. Jallikattu was both a religious and cultural phenomenon celebrated by Tamilians across the world, cutting across caste and creed, the Tamil Nadu government argued. Jallikattu was a symbol of a communitys identity. The court had reserved order in December 2022.
Despite being counted among Indias richest, Infosys founder Narayana Murthy and his wife Sudha Murty are known to lead a simple life. The billionaire couple has been spotted travelling around Bengaluru in their old Maruti Alto and eschewing chartered jets for commercial flights. In fact, one incident involving Narayana Murthy on a commercial flight came to light when a Twitter user recalled his encounter with the Infosys co-founder. Anindya Chatterjee, CEO of Saleswah CRM, said he sat next to Narayana Murthy on a flight from Singapore to Hong Kong in the early 2000s. Chatterjee said that both he and Murthy were seated in the business class section of the flight. The founder of Infosys apparently had no airs and graces about him  for the flight attendant failed to recognise him. In fact, she even acted brusquely when Murthy requested that his jacket be taken away. NM and me was on the same flight Sin-Hkg sector. I was traveling business (upgrade) and the man on the other side of the aisle was him. Early 2000s. The airhostess didn't recognize him, in fact was brusque when he requested that his jacket be taken away, Chatterjee tweeted on Wednesday. NM and me was on the same flight Sin-Hkg sector. I was traveling business (upgrade) and the man on the other side of the aisle was him. Early 2000s. The airhostess didn't recognize him, in fact was brusque when he requested that his jacket be taken away.  Anindya Chatterjee (@canindya) May 17, 2023 Another Twitter user shared a story of their encounter with Narayana Murthy in response to Chatterjees tweet. The user said that in the 1990s and early 2000s, the Infosys billionaire would fly economy class on the Pune-Bengaluru route. Can't speak about the situation now. But in the late 90s/early 2000s, NM used to commute economy class Pune-Bangalore in sarkari Indian Airlines. He was seated next to me on one flight. Very middle class uncle! Didn't recognize him! Simpler times!https://t.co/cU7JUsuYQz  Dharmaatica (@Dharmaatica) May 17, 2023 During a recent appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show, Sudha Murty recalled an instance when airport officials in the UK refused to believe she is the mother-in-law of UK PM Rishi Sunak. Narayana and Sudha Murtys daughter, Akshata Murty, is married to Sunak. Once when I had gone [to the UK], they asked me my residential address. Where are you staying in London? My elder sister was with me and I thought should I write '10 Downing Street'. My son also lives there (in UK), but I didnt remember his complete address. But I finally wrote 10 Downing Street, Murty recalled on the popular show.
KMD Brands sales grew in Q3 FY23, with total sales growth of 15.6% in the third quarter, taking year-to-date growth to 27.7%.

NZ-based retailer of outdoor, travel, and sporting clothes and equipment, KMD Brands [ASX:KMD], reported a total sales growth of 15.6% in Q3 FY2023.

The group revealed that it has found solid sales growth across all its brands in the latest quarter. Main brands include Rip Curl  delivering sales growth of 7.9%  and Kathmandu  scoring 11.3% growth. Oboz was also up a huge 120.3% in growth.

The share price for KMD had risen by 3% at lunchtime  worth $1.06 a share at the time of writing.

It has gone up by more than 10% so far in 2023, and it near tied with the S&P 200:

Source: TradingView

KMD Brands gives the run-down on sales growth in Q3

The results for KMD Brands were described as solid  particularly as Rip Curl makes up around 52% of group sales, with Kathmandu turning out about 40% of sales and Oboz around 8%.

KMD said its gross margin has remained resilient throughout the quarter. Its currently gearing up for a key Q4 where it said it will capitalise on the winter season for Kathmandu clothing and merchandise in the Southern Hemisphere. For Rip Curl and Oboz, in the Northern Hemispheres summer.

The group also said that its in a good position to benefit from the return of international travel and returning tourism as the world officially opens after COVID-19 restrictions continue to ease.

This has also caused the group to ramp up investments in the long-term international expansion of its brands, in which the group plans to roll out a dozen more stores for Kathmandu this year.

There will also be another ten stores planned for Rip Curl across a three-year expansion schedule, as well as required refurbishments for the brands image.

While the group did post some positive increases and clear growth in Q3, there were also some differences to be found in consumer spending patterns.

This was most obvious in the groups leading surf brand, Rip Curl, with its 7.9% sales increase in the quarter showing a slower movement in comparison with the 15% growth over the nine months ending in April this year.

The groups CEO and Managing Director, Mr Michael Daly, expressed his own understanding that Oboz sales could reach $150 million over the medium term  much higher than its current US$54 million result.

In the US, however, Rip Curl was said that it could alone hit NZ$200 million in sales from NZ$146 million based on current trends and with the US summer on the horizon.

Mr Daly said that it is time to go for that international push with its Kathmandu brand  now that the macro environment is shifting for the better. However, he says that the group will keep a modest medium-term turnover target of NZ$100 million for now.

Source: KMD

Australias evolving economy

The global supply chain is twisting.

Australian trade isnt what it once was.

The change is all around us, but what is it all pointing to?

Financial and geopolitical analyst Jim Rickards has pieced certain puzzle pieces together.

He says no one is talking about how this could end the Australian economy as we know it  as soon as within the next 12 months.

Learning the patterns and getting ready for change could put you ahead of the curve

If you want to know more about the biggest geoeconomic shift of our lifetime click here.

Regards,

Mahlia Stewart

For Money Morning
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Danville City Council members expressed enthusiasm over Monday's opening of the temporary casino in Schoolfield and an expectation that it  along with other industries  will drive population growth.

"The opening was magnificent," said Vice Mayor Gary Miller said at Tuesday night's meeting.

Crowds were lined up on the sidewalk along West Main Street waiting to enter the Danville Casino on Monday and large crowds were there Tuesday as well, Miller added.

"It's off to a great start," Miller said.

The Danville Casino is the 40,000-square-foot temporary gambling facility at the corner of West Main Street and Bishop Road. The building is open for customers until construction of the $650 million permanent Caesars Virginia casino project is complete in late 2024.

The inside includes more than 700 video-style slot machines and about 25 live table games like blackjack and roulette and other electronically operated machines.

Pointing to employees commuting from other areas to work at the casino, council members believe the city's population will grow as a result of industries  including the casino  locating to the Dan River Region and the city's overall revitalization.

They disputed projections from the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service that predict Danville's population will continue to drop in the coming decades down below 40,000 to about 38,000.

"The population is not dropping, it is increasing," said City Councilman Sherman Saunders. "It will increase even more."

According to a report from the center, Danville saw a slight increase in the number of new residents moving into the area from 2020-22. Though deaths exceeded births to result in a decline in population overall, more people chose to call Danville home than leave during that three-year period.

According to figures from Weldon Cooper, Danvilles population as of July 1 was 42,348  down by 242 people from the U.S. Census estimate of 42,590 people in 2020. Danville had 42,597 residents on July, 1, 2021, according to the center.

From 2020-22, Danville saw 509 more people move into the city than move out. But 751 more deaths than births led to the population decrease during those years, according to Weldon Cooper.

As for center's prediction of a population drop to 38,000, City Councilman Lee Vogler said the organization "has been wrong about us before."

"They're going to be way off by the end of this decade," Vogler said, adding that he was glad the city has doubters.

"We continue to prove the doubters wrong ... the haters wrong," he said. "We're going to keep doing it."

Vogler believes stemming the recent drop in population due to deaths exceeding births could fuel more growth in residency in the city.

"If we can learn how to stop people from dying and get more young people like me to have more kids, then we'll really be rockin' and rollin,'" he said.

As for the casino, many of its employees live in Danville, Pittsylvania County and other parts of Southside Virginia, Miller said. Some are coming to work there from areas including Browns Summit, Greensboro and Burlington in North Carolina, he added.

"People are driving to Danville to work now," said Miller, who said he took a "random poll" among casino employees.

Two employees he talked to came from California, including one woman whose father also works at the casino.

"Her mom was selling their home in California and moving to Danville," Miller said. "It's just amazing. There are going to be a lot more people living here."

Councilman Barry Mayo said of the casino opening, "To see the atmosphere inside Caesars, it touches my heart to see the citizens just enjoying themselves and continuing to come."

Councilman James Buckner had friendly words for those coming from outside the area to visit the casino.

"I want to personally welcome all the out-of-town folks that are traveling in and out of our city," Buckner said.

In other matters, council voted 8-0 to approve the city's budget for Danville Public Schools. The city has budgeted to provide about $27.2 million in local funding for the school system, with about $25.3 million to support operations and about $1.87 million for debt service.

Mayo abstained from the vote.

Council also unanimously voted 9-0 to vacate a city-held easement on Berry Hill Road in Pittsylvania County to make way for development of a Dominion Power solar farm.
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The Chickahominy Indian Tribe will receive a $500,000 federal grant to plan a way to bridge the "digital divide" and expand the availability of high-speed internet in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tribe, based in Charles City County, will use the planning grant awarded by the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program for engineering and feasibility studies to expand access to broadband telecommunications that proved essential for education and work during a three-year pandemic that put a premium on remote access to digital networks.

"Needless to say, the pandemic exacerbated the digital divide in a way that had not been experienced by the tribes," said Adam Geisler, director of the federal program and a former leader of the La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indians in California.

The Chickahominy is one of six Virginia tribes recognized by federal law in 2018; the Pamunkey tribe received administrative recognition in 2016. The federal program awarded broadband grants of $473,350 to the Upper Mattaponi tribe in 2021 and $500,000 to the Pamunkey in 2022 to expand their access to high-speed internet services.

"Ultimately, broadband access translates to health and wellness via telehealth, better educational outcomes for our citizens, increased economic security for our tribe and citizens, better community connection for our citizens, and better citizen services due to increased government efficiency and coordination," said Chickahominy Chief Stephen Adkins, whom Geisler called "a huge champion of tribal broadband."

The money comes from $3 billion Congress approved in two emergency funding programs during the pandemic: the Consolidated Appropriations Act, signed by then-President Donald Trump in late 2020, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed by President Joe Biden in late 2021.

"Access to high-speed internet is essential in today's connected society, but oftentimes our tribal communities in the commonwealth, and across the country, lack the necessary infrastructure to deploy broadband," said Democratic Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, who played a lead role in negotiating both emergency funding bills.

Fellow Virginia Democrat Sen. Tim Kaine, who helped win federal recognition of the Chickahominy and other Virginia tribes five years ago, said, "Access to high-speed internet expands opportunities and is essential for remote work, distance learning, telehealth and more."

While previous federal grants allowed the Upper Mattaponi and Pamunkey to begin expanding broadband access for tribal members, the new grant to the Chickahominy will pay for planning, engineering, feasibility and sustainability studies that will allow the tribe to seek additional aid from the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program to carry out the broadband plan.

The program awarded $5 million to the Chickahominy and nine other tribes, bringing the total to $1.77 billion given to 157 tribal entities  some of them consortiums. The program is reserving an additional $1 billion for tribes, such as the Chickahominy, which need time to develop a plan for addressing tribal broadband and internet needs in a second round of grant funding.

"They knew they had a problem, but they didn't want to just start throwing money at it," Geisler said.

The program has received more than 300 applications from 450 tribes. The federal government currently recognizes 574 Indian tribes, but the program also is open to state-recognized tribes, including three in Virginia in addition to the seven that already have federal recognition.

The tribes have been closely involved in developing the program, which is run with a staff of 15 people. "My whole team actually comes from Indian country," Geisler said.

The government does not require the tribes to spend money to match the federal grants. "The community knows how to serve themselves better than we do at the D.C. level," he said.

But Geisler, as a former tribal leader, said the program is a lifeline for tribes that have few other resources to get the services they need for their members.

"The reality is we're helping people who, if the government doesn't intervene, nobody's coming," he said.
May 18, 2023 Open (Not Ukraine) Thread 2023-118 News & views (not related to the conflict in Ukraine) ... Posted by b on May 18, 2023 at 15:59 UTC | Permalink Comments next page  next page 
May 18, 2023

Ukraine Open Thread 2023-119

Only for news & views directly related to the Ukraine conflict.

The current open thread for other issues is here.

Please stick to the topic. Contribute facts. Do not attack other commentators.

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Kayla was just nine years old when she went missing. Now, at the age of 15, shes been found in North Carolina, nearly 1000km away from her home in Illinois by a member of the public who recognised her from Unsolved Mysteries.
Kerrville, TX (78028)

Today

Cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 82F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low around 65F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
AUBERVILLIERS, France (AP)  Renowned actor Forest Whitaker, who has portrayed a dictator, a Mafia hitman and a butler, has taken on what for some may be his most inspirational role.

Whitaker officially inaugurated on Wednesday his Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative in Seine-Saint-Denis, meant to bring business, communication and conflict resolution skills to the young people of Frances poorest region. Free classes are being offered in a small space with big ideas in Aubervilliers, outside Paris.

It is the Academy Award winner's first foray into Europe, and the ninth country where his nongovernmental organization operates, all light years from the lights of Hollywood and the accolades and awards bestowed on him for his film career. His presence in Aubervilliers forms part of an arc that included his work with child soldiers in Uganda, where his NGO is present.

I would see in some of their eyes this look  a look that I knew from when I remember gang members from my neighborhood in Los Angeles, he said to a crowd of local officials and enthusiastic members of his French NGO. All eyes were glued on his large, quiet presence. I started trying to figure out how to fix that," he said. In the end, "I knew that the only way to really find peace was to work together as a society and to work together on the ground."

Returning to the here and now, he added that sometimes we have to address peace that way, to work as a team on the ground  we have to know that we can make a difference ourselves.

The learning center, located above an outlet of PNB-Paribas bank, which lent Whitaker a huge hand in his discovery of Aubervilliers, actually began offering its free classes in late April and currently has more than 70 students. The hope is to have 200 students by the end of the year. Among courses taught are entrepreneurship, communications, computer science and social mediation.

Everything is linked, said Aminata Sidibe, in charge of the school. Identifying conflict areas, working to prevent them and stopping them are skills needed within families and in businesses alike, she said. A special program, the Fighters, is reserved for women, whom Whitaker says have shown themselves important to effecting change, to provide the needed baggage to integrate and succeed.

Bringing Whitakers NGO to Seine-Saint-Denis was a process. He visited another town in 2021 before being introduced to Aubervilliers. He said he got an understanding of the place and then reviewed the data  unemployment rate of 39% and poverty at 34% plus a soaring crime rate.

Its a great opportunity for us to be able to partner in an area that people imagine is down, but actually has potential, a lot of potential, to go up, he said.

Aubervilliers Mayor Karine Franclet sees the arrival of Whitakers initiative as one more reason for optimism, like the coming of the 2024 Olympic Games. A swimming pool is under construction in Aubervilliers to be used for Olympic athletes to train. The numbers are very bad, but 30% of the population is under 30 years of age, and the town is too often unexploited. Whitaker is an example of success, she said.

There are hundreds of associations aimed at helping residents of Seine-Saint-Denis, so Whitakers is one more.

This is a dream, you know. You said you were going to build a center here, and now Im sitting in front of you and here we are, Whitaker said to the crowd.

Whitaker won the 2007 Academy Award for best actor for his starring role in The Last King of Scotland  his second such honor  plus Britain's BAFTA awards, the Golden Globe and a string of other prizes.

Whitaker was in Aubervilliers as the Cannes Film Festival was in session in southern France. He won an Honorary Palme d'Or there last year for his body of work. But he said no when asked if he would visit the Riviera venue this year.

Instead, he said he was heading off to Uganda, Rwanda and other points on the African continent.
You know the saying, a picture is worth a thousand words? Well, that doesnt even begin to describe the current gallery on display at Arts Council of Midland.

Magdalena Batog, a Krakow, Poland native, started her artistic journey in preschool with photography lessons. With a journalist for a father, Batog grew up watching him take photos throughout the second-largest Polish city. Now, a working photographic professional of five years, Batogs detailed, sentimental and stunning snapshots hang throughout the 1506 W. Illinois Ave. location right here in the Tall City.

I have always loved photography, Batog said in an email interview with the Reporter-Telegram. It calms me down and allows me to focus on something else. It is like therapy without the participation of a psychotherapist.

Portraying her countrys spirit and lifestyle, the collection  Differentia Specifica  showcases the history of Polish immigration overlayed with the destruction of cultural traditions. Scenes from long-established Polish festivals provide vibrant, exciting colors and movement throughout the gallery, while black and white depictions of loss and societal pressure create a somber tone.

However, the most impressive (and arguably most important) works on display are those Batog took at the Poland-Ukraine border while she and her husband, Piotr, worked to help refugees. Families being separated, people clearly being forced out of their homes and children trying to grasp what is going on can all be seen through Batogs incredible work.

When the war in Ukraine broke out, a great movement of people who wanted to help was created in Poland. Now in Poland we have a lot of people from Ukraine, mainly women with children. We all got used to this big family. Many of us experience their tragedy, their breakups, their loneliness, Batog admitted. Helping others is one of the greatest joys.

By having her photos on display, Batog said she not only hopes Midladners learn about and appreciate her Polish renderings but also walk away feeling united with each other and her.

We have roots in different corners of the world, we grow up in different conditions, but we all want to live in peace and love, Batog said.

Differentia Specifica will be on display through July 2. Arts Council of Midland (1506 W. Illinois Ave.) operating hours run 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Visit www.acmidland.org to learn more.
Midland ISD Superintendent Stephanie Howard said Monday that she has told her team that Midland ISD will not use long-term substitute teachers for classes with unfilled (teaching) positions during the next school year.

The comment happened during a board discussion about District of Innovation exemptions and the districts proposed 2023-24 District of Innovation plan.

A Midland ISD official said Monday that there were 115 long-term subs in the district.

We have to get away from that, Howard said Monday. Putting a long-term sub in front of kids and expecting them to teach a kindergartener or first-grader how to read when they have zero training in that -- even some of our long-term subs have told me they feel like they're at a disadvantage trying to do that.

Howard said meetings have already taken place to start the shift away from long-term substitute teachers from unfilled positions.

We are developing alternative staffing options that we feel will give principals better latitude to cover unfilled positions and think differently about staffing, Howard wrote in an email to the Reporter-Telegram this week.

Board members also had a discussion about the use of having so many uncertified teachers in classes across the district. Being a District of Innovation, Midland ISD has an exemption that allows for the hiring of teachers without certifications typically required. In some cases, those teachers will receive their certifications while teaching.

The district on Monday reported that Midland ISD had 216 DOI teachers. There wasnt information about how many were set to receive a certification or were attempting to receive one. Better tracking systems will be put in place, Howard said, and the district might have that information by the end of the week.

On Monday, Howard and board President Bryan Murry argued for flexibility that being a District of Innovation gave Midland ISD, including in the hiring of uncertified teachers. And at the end, it was stated that it was up to campus principals to determine how successful any teacher was  certified or otherwise.

Board member Brandon Hodges argued that the demands of a rebounding district required having certified teachers, especially when the districts own metrics showed less than 50% all third-graders are reading on grade level.

Hiring practices, he said, should show a benefit to the student, improve student outcomes and not be about adult inconvenience.

Murry said there were uncertified teachers making an impact in classrooms across Midland County.

Midland ISD reported this week that it has received 332 resignation/retirement notices from certified, contract or professional staff members this school year. Top reasons for separation were retirement, family obligations, other educational employment and personal, according to the district.

Midland ISD District of Innovation exemptions

Certification required (Texas Education Code 21.003)

Operation of Schools (TEC 25.081)

First Day of instruction (TEC 25.0811)

Minimum attendance for class credit or final grade (TEC 25.092)

Student/teacher ratio (TEC 25.111)

Class size (TEC 25.112)

Notice of class size (TEC 25.113)

Designation of campus behavior coordinator (TEC 37.0012)
The Midland Police Department continues to search for missing 21-year-old Madeline Molina Pantoja.

"Detectives with the Midland Police Department have been working 24 hours a day using every tool and asset available to locate Madeline and discover the facts leading to her disappearance," MPD said in a press release. MPD reported they were alerted of Pantoja's disappearance in the early morning hours of May 12.

Pantoja was last seen on May 10 at 11 p.m. at 1711 West Francis Ave. Midland police, which published a missing person alert on its Facebook on May 12, did not provide any clothing description. Pantoja's vehicle and phone were found at her apartment.

The MPD also stated they remain in contact with the family regarding the investigation.

Anyone with information about Pantoja's whereabouts is encouraged to call MPD at 432-685-7108.
CALGARY, Alberta (AP)  Canadas second largest airline, WestJet, has started to cancel flights because its talks with a pilots union are at an impasse, the carrier said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada.

Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Next Monday is Canada's Victoria Day federal holiday.

The Calgary, Alberta-based airline flies to more than 110 destinations including in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. It has a fleet of more than 180 aircraft. With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28% of Canadas domestic market, while Air Canada carries 47%, according to aviation data firm Cirium.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in the statement early Thursday that negotiations with the union were in a stalemate, leaving the company "with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage.

WestJet has begun to park the bulk of its fleet  105 narrow-body 737s and seven wide-body 787 Dreamliners  using a measured, phased and safe approach, the statement read.

As of Thursday morning, the carrier had cancelled 92 flights or 17% for that day, the aviation data firms figures show. Few flight cancellations had registered for Friday and afterward. But passengers are now unable to make online bookings for flights on major routes such as Calgary-Vancouver and Toronto-Calgary until Tuesday.

The federal labor minister and the governments head mediator as well as WestJets CEO and the pilots union leaders have all descended on a hotel near the Toronto airport to work toward a deal.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the unions WestJet contingent, says the workers issues revolve around pay, job security and scheduling, with pilots earning roughly half of what some of their U.S. counterparts make.

The company said Thursday the unions wage expectations were unreasonable and would permanently damage the financial viability of the groups future.

The airline has advised travelers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, and to visit WestJets guest updates webpage or Swoops website for more information on flight status and travel changes.
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RIO DE JANEIRO (AP)  Brazils environmental regulator has rejected a license for a controversial offshore oil drilling project near the mouth of the Amazon River that had drawn strong opposition from activists who warned of its potential for damaging the area.

The agencys president, Rodrigo Agostinho, highlighted environmental concerns in announcing the decision Wednesday evening to turn down the state-run oil company Petrobras' request to drill the FZA-M-59 block. He cited a group of technical inconsistencies" in the company's application.

With Brazil's existing production set to peak in coming years, Petrobras has sought to secure more reserves off Brazils northern coast. The company earmarked almost half its five-year, $6 billion exploration budget for the area, and in a statement Thursday said it would file an official request that the decision be reconsidered.

CEO Jean Paul Prates had said that the first well would be temporary and that the company has never recorded a leak in offshore drilling. The company failed to convince the environmental agency.

There is no doubt that Petrobras was offered every opportunity to remedy critical points of its project, but that it still presents worrisome inconsistencies for the safe operation in a new exploratory frontier with high socioenvironmental vulnerability, Agostinho wrote in his decision.

The unique and biodiverse area is home to little-studied swaths of mangroves and a coral reef, and activists and experts had said the project risked leaks that could be carried widely by tides and imperil the sensitive environment.

Eighty civil society and environmental organizations, including WWF Brasil and Greenpeace, had called for the license to be rejected pending an in-depth study.

Caetano Scannavino, coordinator of Health and Happiness, an Amazon non-profit group that supports sustainable projects in the Tapajos basin, congratulated Agostinho on Twitter for not succumbing to pressure, asking for more studies, and prioritizing science in the service of the collective.

It is a sensitive, little-studied region, and theres no way back for any mistake there, Scannavino added. Not to mention the governments promise of a decarbonized future.

The Climate Observatory, a network of environmental non-profits, also cheered the decision, saying in a statement that Agostinho is protecting a virtually unknown ecosystem and maintains the coherence of the Lula government, which has promised in its discourse to be guided by the fight against the climate crisis.

During the first presidential terms of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, from 2003 to 2010, huge offshore discoveries became a means of financing health, education and welfare programs. Some members of his Workers' Party continue to see oil as a means to ensure social progress.

Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said in March that the area is the passport to the future for development in Brazils northern region. In his prior terms, Lula used the same phrase to describe the offshore oil discoveries in an area known as pre-salt.

But Lula has strived to demonstrate the environmental awakening he has undergone in the years since, with protection of the Amazon a fixture in his campaign last year to unseat Jair Bolsonaro and return to the presidency.

Activists and experts had warned that approval for the offshore oil project could threaten the natural world, but also dent Lula's newfound image as an environmental defender.

The process to obtain an environmental license for the FZA-M-59 block began in 2014, at the request of BP Energy do Brasil. Exploration rights were transferred to Petrobras in 2020.

Suely Araujo, a former head of the environment agency and now a public policy specialist with the Climate Observatory, said Agostinho made the right call not just for the specific project, but also for the nation.

"The decision in this case gives cause for a broader debate about the role of oil in the countrys future. It is time to establish a calendar to eliminate fossil fuels and accelerate the just transition for oil exporting countries, such as Brazil, and not open a new exploration frontier, Araujo said in a statement. Those who sleep today dreaming of oil wealth tend to wake up tomorrow with a stranded asset, or an ecological disaster, or both.

Not all of Lula's allies were pleased. Sen. Randolfe Rodrigues, a member of the Sustainability Network political party and the government's leader in Congress, said the decision deprives people in his home state of Amapa from much-needed development and goes against research conducted in the state, which is closest to the proposed drilling site.

We will gather together all those who want Amapa's sustainable development, so that technically, legally and responsiibly we can fight against this decision, Rodrigues wrote on Twitter.

He announced he would leave the center-left party, of which Environment Minister Marina Silva is a leading member. She appointed Agostinho to lead the environment regulator.

In its statement, Petrobras said it believes it strictly followed all licensing requirements and highlighted that the proposed drilling, in an area known as the Equatorial Margin, was proposed for an area over 500 kilometers (over 300 miles) from the Amazon River's mouth.

The company remains committed to the development of the Brazilian Equatorial Margin, recognizing the importance of new frontiers to ensure the countrys energy security and the resources needed for a fair and sustainable energy transition," the statement said. "To supply Brazils future demand for oil, the country will have to look for new sources in addition to the pre-salt.

Other controversial megaprojects in the Amazon that remain on the table include repaving a highway that would slice through preserved rainforest, construction of a major railway for grain transport and renewal of a giant hydroelectric dams license.

___

Associated Press writer Eleonore Hughes in Rio de Janeiro contributed to this report.
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Linn County Sheriffs deputies have arrested a Lebanon man accused of sexual abuse.

Deputies arrested Jimmy Darl Sullivan, 54, on Wednesday, May 17.

Court documents allege Sullivan sexually abused a victim on Tuesday, May 16. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Linn County Circuit Court on Thursday, May 18 on charges of first-degree sexual abuse and first-degree attempted sexual abuse.

Oregons online court database shows Sullivan has a lengthy criminal history in Linn County with convictions for such crimes as assault, harassment and more.

In 1997, Sullivan was convicted of charges including kidnapping, rape and sodomy. In that case, he was sentenced to 290 months in prison, or just over 24 years. He was convicted of second-degree escape in 1998, adding onto his time in prison.

It is unclear when exactly he was released from prison, but in a letter Sullivan wrote from prison to the court in 2019, he referenced having served 22 years with 3 1/2 left. In the letter, he cited his projected release date as February 2023.
Travis Venus appeared for his arraignment hearing Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at the Northern Satellite Court in Dededo. Venus, a Department of Corrections officer, pleaded not guilty to charges related to smuggling contraband.
HAGATNA (The Guam Daily Post)  While several doctors testified in favor of building a new public hospital in Tamuning, Guam Memorial Hospital
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One-third of all Oregon senators are now ineligible for another term following the 13th day of a Republican walkout in the Senate.

Six more Republicans on Thursday, May 18 joined three Republicans and one conservative Independent in having at least 10 unexcused absences from Senate floor session roll calls.

That triggers a new state law that bars them from another term in office.

Thursday's roll call was emotional and had an air of resignation. Sen. David Brock Smith, R-Port Orford, used the "courtesies" section of the agenda  usually reserved for noting dignitaries, friends, families or others in the Senate  to praise senators who had walked out.

He called putting their political careers possibly on the line to block the abortion and transgender medical care guarantees in House Bill 2002, along with gun controls in House Bill 2005, "selfless acts." Both bills were nearing a vote in the Senate after approval by the House and would have then gone to Gov. Tina Kotek to sign into law.

Brock Smith and Sen. Dick Anderson, R-Lincoln City, were the only Republicans on the floor. Their presence was not enough to create the two-thirds quorum required by the Oregon Constitution for lawmakers to meet. Oregon is one of just four states that require more than a simple majority.

Immediately after, Sen. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro, rose and in a voice broken by tears, said she had come to work with a "lump in my throat instead of a spring in my step" and was comforted by a guard on duty.

"These people are here every day doing their jobs," she said.

A drawn-looking Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, then called for the roll of those present. There were 18, with 10 absent and two excused. For the 13th consecutive day, there was no quorum.

At the close of the session, Wagner made an impassioned speech from the president's podium.

Today is another extremely challenging day for Oregon, Wagner said. Ive never seen a situation like this. It is unique, it is beyond disappointing, it is troubling and, frankly, it is saddening.

The senators who continued the walkout were showing "disrespect for democracy," in which the will of the majority of voters take precedence over those of the minority. He said if Oregon voters truly support the Republican policies, then the party would have a majority in the Legislature.

Wagner said the walkout "must end."

"The people of Oregon desire it," he said. "Democracy demands it."

He invoked Benjamin Franklin's famous remark at the Constitutional Convention. When the vote was finished and the delegates left the hall, a bystander asked Franklin what kind of government the new country would have.

"A Republic  if you can keep it," Franklin said.

Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, who was not present on the floor, reiterated in a statement his stance that Democrats were igniting partisan tension while bills with common ground were left unfinished.

"While Democrats are laser-focused on the issues that do nothing but divide, we are focused on the real issues Oregonians care most about  homelessness, affordable housing, public safety, cost of living, job creation, and fully-funded education," Knopp said.

The biggest impact is on the six no-shows who are newly barred under law from another term or running for office in the House: Knopp and Sens. Art Robinson, R-Cave Junction, Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, Suzanne Weber, R-Tillamook, Lynn Findley, R-Vale and Bill Hansell, R-Athena.

They join Sens. Dennis Linthicum, R-Klamath Falls, Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, Cedric Hayden, R-Roseburg and Brian Boquist, I-Dallas, who had previously hit the 10-absence mark.
Zaldy Dandan is a recipient of the Best Editorial Writer Award of the Society of Professional Journalists, and the CNMI Humanities Award for Outstanding Contributions to Journalism. His four books are available on amazon.com/.

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Jacksonville Police

ARRESTS, CITATIONS

 Shakil Berry, 30, of 1611 Illinois Route 78 N. was arrested at 10:01 a.m. Tuesday in the 300 block of West State Street on a charge of violating an order of protection.

 Brandon E. Ford, 29, of 1537 Alsey Manchester Road was arrested at 8:47 a.m. Tuesday in the 1000 block of West Morton Avenue on a Morgan County warrant accusing him of failing to appear in court on a charge of possession of methamphetamine.

 Skee D. Sanders, 29, of 925 Doolin Ave. was arrested at 7:20 a.m. Tuesday on a domestic battery charge.

VANDALISM

 Tires were slashed between 7:30 p.m. Monday and 7:30 a.m. Tuesday on a vehicle in the 800 block of Doolin Avenue. Damage was estimated at $230.

 An apartment door was damaged between 1 and 5 a.m. Tuesday in the 500 block of West State Street, possibly during a break-in attempt.
The Supreme Court said Wednesday that Illinois can, for now, keep in place a new law that bars the sale of certain semiautomatic guns and large-capacity magazines.

The high court denied an emergency request from people challenging the law, which bans so-called assault weapons. The laws opponents had asked the court to put the law on hold while a court challenge continues. The court did not comment and no justice publicly dissented.

The high courts action comes at a time when gun violence has been heavily in the news. Since the beginning of the year, 115 people have died in 22 mass killings  an average of one mass killing a week, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in a partnership with Northeastern University. The database counts killings involving four or more fatalities, not including the perpetrator. Just recently, on May 6, a man armed with an AR-15 style rifle and other firearms fatally shot eight people, including three children, at a Dallas-area mall.

The case before the Supreme Court involves an Illinois state law enacted in January. The legislation bans the sale of a series of guns including the AR-15 and AK-47. The law also bars the sale of magazines that have more than 15 rounds of ammunition for handguns and more than 10 rounds of ammunition for a long gun.

People who legally owned the now-barred guns and magazines ahead of the laws enactment can continue to keep them. The guns, however, must be registered with law enforcement.

Nine other states and the District of Columbia have gun bans similar to the one in Illinois, according to the gun control group Brady, which tracks the legislation. California, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey and New York also require registration of guns purchased prior to the law while four other states  Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington -- do not.

The Illinois legislation was driven largely by the killing of seven people at a 4th of July parade last year in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park. The shooter was armed with an AR-15 rifle and 30-round magazines.

A federal trial court in February declined to put the law on hold. A federal appeals court also declined to put the law on hold while the case continues.

The case also involves a separate so-called assault weapon bans passed by the city of Naperville.

The Supreme Courts conservative majority just last year handed gun rights activists a major victory, ruling that Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense. But the decision left open whether various restrictions states might impose would be constitutional.

The Illinois Supreme Court is now deciding whether the ban violates certain provisions of the Illinois Constitution.

In March, a circuit court judge in Macon County sided with a group of plaintiffs led by state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur, and declared the law unconstitutional. The state appealed directly to the Supreme Court, which put a hold on the Macon County decision and put the case on an expedited schedule.

The court heard oral arguments Tuesday in the case. The plainiffs argued that the law is unfair because it allows certain people, but not others, to continue buying and selling a category of firearms defined as assault weapons.

Plaintiffs attorney Jerry Stocks argued that because the law allows some people to continue owning the banned weapons  law enforcement officers, certain security guards, active-duty military personnel, and people who already owned those weapons before the law took effect, among others  it violates the state constitutions equal protection clause. He also argued it violates a ban on special legislation, or legislation written for the benefit of one person or group of people.

These are criminal statutes, Stocks told the court. And we're immunizing folks that have absolutely no difference in the enjoyment of the Second Amendment or the enjoyment of Article 1, Section 22 (of the Illinois Constitution)  than anyone else.

The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Article 1, Section 22 of the Illinois Constitution both deal with the right to bear arms. But the state constitutions language is different because it says the right is subject to the police power of the state, meaning it can be regulated to protect public health and safety or law and order.

That distinction is important because in federal law, the right to bear arms is considered a fundamental right, and any limitations on it are subject to strict scrutiny. That means the government has to show there is a compelling state interest that makes limiting the right necessary and that the law is narrowly tailored to achieve that interest.

In Illinois state constitutional law, however, the right to bear arms is not a fundamental right, and the government is authorized under the state constitution to put limits on it. That means the government only needs to show the limitations have a rational basis behind them.

The purpose of this legislation is to freeze the supply of assault weapons, reduce their further proliferation throughout the state to increase public safety, Assistant Attorney General Leigh Jahnig said, arguing for a rational basis review.

But Stocks argued that in more recent case dealing with the Second Amendment, the U.S. Supreme Court has moved beyond the rational basis vs. strict scrutiny question. In a decision last summer, the U.S. Supreme Court began using a new standard that requires the state to show that a regulation is consistent with the nations historical tradition of firearm regulation.

Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis is pictured in the Illinois Supreme Court chamber during her swearing in ceremony last year. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Jerry Nowicki)

The state, however, argued that the federal standard for judging Second Amendment issues should not apply in the Illinois case because the plaintiffs did not make a Second Amendment claim in their initial suit. And Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis appeared to agree.

That's not what you brought, she told Stocks about his Second Amendment claims. You frame this in a totally different way. You could have joined the three federal cases. You chose to shape it in a different way around special legislation and an equal protection. Its a much different analysis.

On April 28, a federal judge in East St. Louis issued a temporary order blocking enforcement of the weapons ban while three cases consolidated in the Southern District of Illinois was being heard. But federal judges in the Northern District that were hearing similar challenges have declined to issue injunctions.

A week after the Southern District judges order, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals put a hold on it. The appellate court has since said it will hear a consolidated appeal in five cases dealing with the Illinois law, and it will do so on an expedited schedule.

Oral arguments before the Seventh Circuit are scheduled for June 29.

In the meantime, plaintiffs in the Southern District cases have filed an application with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett for an emergency injunction to block enforcement of the law while the appeals are being heard. Barrett has not yet ruled on that application.
Police beat for Saturday, May 27 Police, fire and other public safety reports from Jacksonville and the surrounding area.

Retired Jacksonville surgeon finds a mission in Guatemala Jacksonville's Charles Sheaff may be retired, but it doesnt mean he stopped working. Since...
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JERUSALEM (AP)  Thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded on Thursday through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city.

The marchers, who were overwhelmingly male Orthodox teens and young men, were celebrating Jerusalem Day, which marks Israels capture of the Old City 56 years ago. The Palestinians see the event as a provocation. Two years ago, the parade helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Throughout the afternoon, dozens of groups hoisting blue and white Israeli flags streamed through Damascus Gate  the entry to the areas Muslim Quarter  as they made their way across the Old City to the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray. The area is normally bustling on Thursday afternoons with Palestinians doing their errands ahead of the weekend.

The boisterous crowds danced and chanted Jewish religious songs outside Damascus Gate as scores of Israeli police stood guard. In several cases, groups chanted slogans such as Death to Arabs, Mohammed is Dead and May Your Village Burn" as they stared at Palestinian onlookers. Some of the youths wore clothing identifying themselves as members of Lehava  a far-right Jewish supremacist group that opposes assimilation or romantic relationships between Jews and Palestinians.

Israeli police, who had said that violence and incitement would not be tolerated, kept the sides apart but did little to stop the chants. Palestinian businesses were either shuttered or empty, and marchers occasionally threw water bottles at nearby journalists, eliciting cheers from the crowd. Police said two people were arrested for throwing objects.

Several lawmakers in Israel's new far-right governing coalition, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, joined the procession. Under heavy police guard, Ben-Gvir waved to the crowd as he made his way into Damascus Gate and then high-fived security forces inside. Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nation's police force, is a former far-right activist and hard-line West Bank settler who has been convicted of incitement and support for a Jewish terror group.

While there were repeated scuffles and confrontations between Jews and Palestinians, the parade appeared to pass without serious violence. By nightfall, the massive crowd had converged in the plaza in front of the Western Wall.

Jerusalem Day is meant to celebrate Israel's capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its capital, but its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

The event has been a source of friction over the years, and over 2,500 police were deployed for this year's parade, with hundreds more stationed around the city.

Israel decided to allow the marchers to take the traditional route through Damascus Gate, instead of an alternate path circumventing the Muslim Quarter, despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and heavy fighting last week between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Ahead of the march, Gazas ruling Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to oppose the event.

On Thursday, dozens of Palestinian protesters gathered along the perimeter fence separating Gaza and Israel, raising Palestinian flags, burning tires and Israeli flags, and throwing stones toward the heavily guarded frontier.

Israeli troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets toward protesters, hurting three people, according to local media reports. There was no immediate comment from Gazas health authorities.

The protest ended without further violence that could have threatened a flare-up. It comes days after an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire ended five days of fighting between Israel and the smaller, more radical Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian president in the occupied West Bank, said allowing the march to snake through Palestinian areas of the Old City will only lead to a rise in tension and could lead to an explosion.

In a test ahead of the parade, nearly 1,300 Jews visited Jerusalems most sensitive holy site earlier Thursday, about half the number of last year, according to Beyadenu, an activist group that promotes Jewish visits to the site. Police were seen escorting groups of Jewish visitors walking through the compound and five members of the far-right coalition government also arrived at the site, the group said.

Jordan, Israels neighbor which acts as a custodian of the Jerusalem shrine, condemned the Jewish visits there and the trajectory of the march. Egypt, the first Arab country to make peace with Israel, and the United Arab Emirates, which established ties with Israel as part of the 2020 Abraham Accords, also condemned the visits to the site.

The hilltop compound is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, home to the ancient Jewish Temples, and is the holiest site in Judaism. Palestinians revere it as the Noble Sanctuary, and it is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there. But an increase in such visits, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, has raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo  a charge Israel denies.

The competing claims to the site lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and often spill over into violence, including a 2021 war between Israel and Hamas.

___

AP correspondents Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, and Jack Jeffery in Cairo contributed to this report.
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP)  The death toll from an attack by dozens of gunmen in north central Nigeria's Plateau state has reached 80, local authorities said Thursday, with survivors still searching for bodies days after the incident.

The gunmen targeted several villages in the remote Mangu district of Plateau during the attack that started Monday and lasted till Tuesday, according to residents. Burials continued on Thursday in parts of Mangu located 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Jos, the state capital.

The police told The Associated Press seven suspects had been arrested. It was a situation of sporadic shooting across a vast area of different villages, said Alabo Alfred, the command spokesman.

The security crisis in the north-west and central regions of the country has stifled Nigerias development, despite its status as Africas largest economy and one of its top oil producers.

After decades of conflict, current and former pastoralists from the Fulani tribe took up arms against farmers over limited access to land and water. The attacks are sometimes reprisals and are mostly in remote areas where security forces are outnumbered and outgunned.

As of Thursday, families in Plateau's Mangu district are unable to retrieve the bodies of victims in areas that remained volatile, said Philip Pamshak, who has been assisting with the mass burials. The place is still bad, so we had to run, he said.

Quoting the local chiefs he spoke to when he visited the affected areas, Plateau Deputy Gov. Sonni Tyoden said in a statement that at least 10 villages were targeted in the attack. Local residents said it was carried out by herdsmen after a resident complained that his banana plantation had been destroyed by their cattle.

Survivors told the AP the assailants arrived in large numbers and scattered across the villages, setting houses ablaze while shooting at people.

There was tension everywhere. They macheted some and (killed) some with guns, according to Yaputat Pokyes, one of the survivors. Many residents have fled the area while the injured are being treated in different hospitals, he said.

Residents also said security forces only arrived a day after the attack began, echoing criticisms from analysts that security forces are sometimes slow to respond when violence breaks out.

Confidence MacHarry, from the Lagos-based SBM Intelligence security firm, said Nigerian security forces are not able to prevent or respond fast to such attacks because their early warning system was not effective and they lacked the firepower and personnel to prevent such attacks.

For the early warning system to work, we are supposed to have reports of the pending attack and the response mechanism to prevent the attack from taking place, said MacHarry.

Meanwhile, police investigating a separate deadly attack in the southeastern Anambra state said two suspects have been arrested. Tuesdays attack on a U.S. convoy is suspected to have been carried out by violent separatists in the region.

The death toll has also increased from four to seven, including three U.S. Embassy staffers and four police officers, said Echeng Echen, the police chief in Anambra.

The state police command and other security agencies are working round-the-clock, in concert with the Government of Anambra State, to find and rescue (two) missing officials" with the embassy, said Echeng.
In its infinite wisdom  or lack thereof  Congress recently gave the U.S. Internal Revenue Service $80 billion in new funding as part of the Inflation Reduction Act before the agency had a plan for spending it.

Its typical for Washington to do things that way  provide the funding first, figure out how to spend it second. Thats not in the American taxpayers interest but it works for the bureaucrats. Giving the IRS more money without specifying how it will be spent is akin to giving more power to a megalomaniac. The odds it will be abused are not just high, but near certainty.

IRS chief Danny Werfel, who appeared recently before the House Committee on Ways and Means, said nothing to put anyone at ease. Taxpayers fear his agency, and rightly so. It has immense power it uses ruthlessly. Ask any honest, blameless taxpayer whos gotten a dunning letter whether their first thought was to fight or pay up.

Its easier and cheaper to submit and settle. In tax court, the burden falls on the accused to prove their innocence. Putting the IRS on trial, even if youre innocent, is too expensive a proposition for most Americans to consider.

Someone somewhere probably should someday. The agencys reputation has been tarnished  insiders might think it was burnished  by recent scandals in which private taxpayer information was leaked to partisan interest groups and the press and involving senior officials who played politics with the power to grant non-profit status to organizations seeking to participate in the marketplace of ideas.

Theres probably a lot more going on behind the walls of the IRSs imposing, fortress-like Constitution Avenue headquarters than Wefel and other senior leaders would like anyone to know. Transparency is not its long suit. A few issues are festering; one involves the destruction of 30 million of what the think tank called active taxpayer paper documents it held at its Ogden, Utah facility.

No one at the IRS will tell Congress how it destroyed the documents, the groups said, chock full of sensitive, private, personal financial information that, if stacked one page on top of another would form a pile rising two miles into the air.

Its maddening, and not just because of the governments apparent malfeasance. No taxpayer in America could get away with destroying documents the IRS wanted to see  even if they didnt know any of its auditors, agents, or administrators wanted to see them.

Worse things are already in the pipeline  like using the $80 billion in new funding it gets over the next decade to hire 87,000 new agents, auditors, and other personnel. That would, as Pennsylvania GOP Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick got Wefel to confirm, make the IRS larger than the entire State Department, the entire Border Patrol, the entire Pentagon, and the entire FBI.

Think about that. Larger than the Pentagon and the Border Patrol and those other agencies? For what possible reason? It doesnt make sense unless theres a plan in the works to impose taxes that require us to account for our total worth and annual spending as well as income. Like a wealth tax or a Value Added Tax, which Americans for Tax Reform head Grover G. Norquist likes to quip Is French for money machine.

Having tax levies like that in mind might explain why the IRS was recently advertising for new hires willing to use force up to and including the use of deadly force. That level of intrusiveness would make a lot of otherwise reasonable people very mad.

Werfel assured Congress when he testified that not all the new 87,000 agents would be armed, but one wonders. Empowered by the influx of $80 billion in new funding to go after what Joe Biden and other Democrats refer to as tax cheats, its easy to see how things going forward might get heated.
In the good old days, we used to think that in a democracy, we should have a level playing field. This meant that candidates made their case to the voters and did their best to get supporters out to vote. Elections were hard fought and often nasty, but the idea was that the person who could get the most votes won.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis doesnt think this will work for him. He seems to need the power of Floridas government to help him advance his political career.

That is the story of his battle with Walt Disney Co. It is crucial to be clear about the issue here. Florida arguably has been overly generous in its subsidies to Disney, most notably ceding control over a chunk of the states territory to Disney. People who live in the area near Floridas Disney World dont vote for city or county officials; their community is governed by Disney.

This is an arrangement that dates back more than 50 years. Florida never should have offered this sort of concession to attract Disney. Arguably, it should be looking to take it back now.

But that is not the issue here. DeSantis has made it clear that he is not going after Disney because he thinks the state has been too generous with the company. He is going after Disney because it publicly disagrees with his politics.

DeSantis is saying that he has the right to use the power of Floridas government to attack Disney for political reasons. And the issue is not just Disney.

By attacking Disney, one of the most influential companies in the country, DeSantis is sending a warning. He is prepared to use the power of the states government against any company or individual that might oppose his political ambitions. Apparently, DeSantis is worried about his prospects in fair elections. He feels he needs the power of the government at his back to move ahead in politics.

Unfortunately, DeSantis is not the only prominent Republican who thinks he needs to use the power of the government to advance his political ambitions. When he was president, Donald Trump repeatedly used the power of the government to punish his political enemies.

The most visible case probably was when Trump had the Pentagon review a major contract that would be awarded to Amazons web services division to handle its cloud computing. Trump was upset at his coverage in the Washington Post, which is owned by Jeff Bezos, who was then Amazons CEO and largest stockholder.

The other significant instance where Trump used the governments power to punish a perceived enemy was when he had the Justice Department intervene to try to block AT&Ts takeover of Time Warner. Time Warner owns CNN. Trump was unhappy with CNNs coverage of his campaign and presidency, so he saw the proposed merger as an opportunity to punish its parent company. (The Justice Department lost the suit, and the merger went through.)

As with DeSantis and Disney, the issues go well beyond these specific conflicts and companies. DeSantis and Trump were trying to tell companies that there would be severe economic consequences if they did not toe their political line.

Companies care, first and foremost, about making money. If they think their bottom line will suffer if they dont obey the wishes of powerful Republican officeholders, they will try to adjust to make them happy.

That is not the way democracy is supposed to work, but as we know, Republicans have trouble even saying the word democratic. So, look to much more cheating from Republicans like DeSantis and Trump.

They cannot compete on a level playing field; they need help.
Corporations are putting their political agendas before their customers, employees and shareholders.

Political considerations aimed at pleasing the mythical stakeholder, drive some of the most significant decisions companies make.

The Claremont Institute uncovered an egregious abuse of shareholder and employee trust at the behest of the mythic stakeholder. Corporations like AT&T, for example, laid off 3,400 employees at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic while at the same time dumping $3.1 billion into racial justice programs. Boeing laid off 26,000 employees and suspended dividends while giving $15 million to racial justice programs. General Motors suspended its dividend and share buyback programs while donating $10 million to racial justice causes. Uber laid off 6,700 employees while pledging $61 million to racial equity non-profits.

Yes, some woke policies have been instigated by company employees (like in the case of Disneys public opposition to Floridas dont say gay bill). Still, I doubt those employees would be willing to sacrifice their jobs to ensure liberal groups get corporate donations from their former employers. Bed Bath & Beyond (which just announced bankruptcy) suspended its buyback program while pledging $1 million to the NAACP.

The list of companies that finance political agendas is extensive and cannot be fully covered in a single article. These contributions demonstrate how stakeholder capitalism has become the cause celebre of many corporations. Corporations that made woke donations while laying off employees confirm that they value virtue signaling above their employees.

There is little evidence that these contributions benefit consumers or shareholders. Even Chris Rock mocked how corporations virtue signal at their customers expense. The comedian joked about a car company donating $250 for every car bought. Rocks comedic response can be paraphrased as, Why not just charge me $250 less?

Over recent times, we have seen several incidents of consumers rising in anger against woke corporate policies. Nikes shares dropped starkly after their ad featuring the controversial athlete Colin Kaepernick, who famously kneeled during the national anthem. More recently, Anheuser-Buschs stock dropped by $6 billion after it decided to make trans advocate Dylan Mulvaney a spokeswoman for its blue-collar Bud Light brand.

The moniker go woke, go broke may seem sophomoric, but it reflects a real sentiment that consumers have a distaste for woke posturing.

However, it is not just our political sensibilities that are offended. Corporate woke policies harm tens of millions who depend upon stock valuations. Pensions make up 40% of the stock market. Individual retirement accounts make up an additional 47%. Every time a stock drops or a boycott takes hold, Americans of all walks of life lose equity. The principle of fiduciary responsibility is not a nice platitude drawn up in corporate boardrooms. It affects the quality of life for retirees and those planning retirement.

Corporations justify their woke donations by claiming they help under-served minorities. Yet, corporations tend to give to only the most prestigious charities. That is why in 2020, Black Lives Matter received $90 million. But when companies lose sight of why they are in business, they ignore those who directly depend upon the company as an employee, a consumer or a shareholder.

Bottom line: Pouring money into social justice programs while firing thousands of employees is the opposite of justice. The first thing corporations should consider when making financial decisions is how it will affect their employees, customers and shareholders.

Corporations can indeed manage to achieve 15 minutes of good PR while not putting their employees and shareholders on the chopping block.
Canadian airline WestJet starts to cancel flights as pilot strike looms, negotiations in stalemate View Photo

CALGARY, Alberta (AP)  Canadas second largest airline, WestJet, has started to cancel flights because its talks with a pilots union are at an impasse, the carrier said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada.

Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Next Monday is Canadas Victoria Day federal holiday.

The Calgary, Alberta-based airline flies to more than 110 destinations including in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. It has a fleet of more than 180 aircraft. With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28% of Canadas domestic market, while Air Canada carries 47%, according to aviation data firm Cirium.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in the statement early Thursday that negotiations with the union were in a stalemate, leaving the company with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage.

WestJet has begun to park the bulk of its fleet  105 narrow-body 737s and seven wide-body 787 Dreamliners  using a measured, phased and safe approach, the statement read.

As of Thursday morning, the carrier had cancelled 92 flights or 17% for that day, the aviation data firms figures show. Few flight cancellations had registered for Friday and afterward. But passengers are now unable to make online bookings for flights on major routes such as Calgary-Vancouver and Toronto-Calgary until Tuesday.

The federal labor minister and the governments head mediator as well as WestJets CEO and the pilots union leaders have all descended on a hotel near the Toronto airport to work toward a deal.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the unions WestJet contingent, says the workers issues revolve around pay, job security and scheduling, with pilots earning roughly half of what some of their U.S. counterparts make.

The company said Thursday the unions wage expectations were unreasonable and would permanently damage the financial viability of the groups future.

The airline has advised travelers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, and to visit WestJets guest updates webpage or Swoops website for more information on flight status and travel changes.
Pakistani police besiege Imran Khans home as deadline for him to hand over suspects expires View Photo

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects allegedly sheltered inside expired on Thursday.

The siege and the authorities demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khans recent detention, have angered the former prime ministers many followers and raised fears of renewed clashes between them and security forces.

Last week, Khans supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested in a graft case. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country in the days that followed. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khans release.

On Tuesday, Khan demanded a probe into the violence, but denied his supporters were behind it. Khan accused Pakistans ruling party of trying to foment trouble between his supporters and the army, without offering any evidence of his claim. He was speaking at a media conference held at his house, despite police surrounding it.

The popular opposition leader was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistans second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along with private guards. Police surrounded the residence on Wednesday, saying they want 40 suspects handed over.

The ultimatum for Khan ended at 2 p.m. local time, but there were no immediate signs of unusual movement by police. Khans party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, invited reporters to the house to witness any police raid.

Hours after the expiry of the ultimatum, Hassan Javed, a senior police official, told reporters that officers were waiting for a signal from the government to launch the raid. He said police captured at least eight suspects after they left Khans house and tried to escape via a nearby canal.

Typically between 200 to 300 of Khans supporters, holding sticks, guard his residence around the clock, but most disappeared overnight. Police have barricaded a key road leading to the house and asked residents to use an alternate route.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest, the 70-year-old popular opposition leader tweeted Wednesday, after the siege started. Police have surrounded my house.

Later, Khan addressed his supporters saying that the police can only search his house with a search warrant and not barge in, creating chaos.

According to Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, police were ready to use firearms if attacked. He told a news conference Thursday that at least 3,400 suspects linked to the clashes have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir said authorities would send police to search Khans residence on Friday, in comments that appeared to defer the threat of clashes overnight with the leaders supporters.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. Angered over the recent attacks on military installations, two lawmakers and some senior politicians have quit Khans party, saying they cannot support the man who incited people to violence.

The plan to try civilians in military court has drawn criticism from the advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

Khan was ousted by a non-confidence vote in Parliament last year. He has claimed the ouster was illegal and a Western conspiracy.

He now faces more than 100 legal cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials and defying a ban on rallies. He has been summoned by National Accountability Bureau to answer questions Thursday in connection to a graft case he faces along with his wife.

But Khan informed the agency that he could not attend because he was busy struggling to get protection from arrest in many of the cases against him. In his written reply to the agency, he said its probe against him was politically motivated.

___

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.

By BABAR DOGAR

Associated Press
China says Ukraine envoy met with Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv

China says Ukraine envoy met with Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv View Photo

BEIJING (AP)  China said Thursday its special envoy met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv earlier this week.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the meeting came amid discussions between envoy Li Hui and Ukraines foreign minister and other government officials.

There is no remedy to resolve the crisis, Wang told reporters at a daily briefing. All parties should create favorable conditions and accumulate mutual trust for the political settlement.

The visit followed an earlier phone call between Zelenskyy and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Over two days, Li and Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba discussed ways to stop Russian aggression, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Kuleba briefed Li, a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, about the principles of restoring a stable and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

According to the statement, Kuleba repeated his governments position that Ukraine wouldnt accept any proposal involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

Xis government says its neutral and wants to serve as mediator in the 15-month-long conflict, but has supported Moscow politically and economically.

China sees Moscow as a diplomatic and military partner in opposing United States domination of global affairs. Beijing has refused to criticize the invasion and used its status as one of five permanent United Nations Security Council members to deflect diplomatic attacks on Russia.

Beijing released a proposed peace plan in February, but Ukraines allies largely dismissed it, insisting that Russian President Vladimir Putin must withdraw his forces. Zelenskyys own 10-point peace plan also includes a tribunal to prosecute war crimes committed by Russia.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said Li also will visit Poland, France and Germany, but didnt give details of his schedule.

Political analysts see little hope for a peace agreement because neither Ukraine nor Russia is ready to stop fighting.

African countries are also undertaking a peace initiative over the war in Ukraine.
Car rushes Vatican gate, is fired on by gendarmes; driver apprehended after reaching courtyard View Photo

ROME (AP)  A car driven by someone with apparent psychiatric problems rushed through a Vatican gate Thursday evening and sped past Swiss Guards into a palace courtyard before the driver was apprehended by police, the Holy See said.

Vatican gendarmes fired a shot at the speeding cars front tires after it rushed the gate, but the vehicle managed to continue on its way, the Vatican press office said in a statement late Thursday.

Once the car reached the San Damaso Courtyard of the Apostolic Palace, the driver got out and was immediately arrested by Vatican gendarmes. The Vatican said the driver was about 40 years old and was in a serious state of psychophysical alteration. He was being held in the Vatican barracks.

It wasnt clear if Pope Francis was anywhere near the incident, which occurred after 8 p.m. at the Santa Anna gate, one of the main entrances to the Vatican City State in the heart of Rome.

Francis lives on the other side of Vatican City at the Santa Marta hotel, where at that hour he would normally be having dinner and retiring to his room. The Vatican statement said that as soon as the gendarmes sounded the alarm of an incursion, the main gate blocking access to the piazza in front of Francis hotel was shut.

The incident was a rare incursion into the city state, much of which is off limits to the general public, especially at night.

While visitors can access St. Peters Basilica and the Vatican Museums during business hours, and people with doctors prescriptions can go to the Vatican pharmacy, permission is required to get into other buildings in the enclave.

The Apostolic Palace, which houses the papal apartments, key reception rooms, the Vatican archives and offices, is guarded around the clock by Swiss Guards and gendarmes who man various checkpoints.

Its not the first time that someone with apparent psychiatric problems caused a disturbance at the Vatican. During a 2009 Christmas Eve Mass, a woman jumped the barricade of St. Peters Basilica and tried to attack Pope Benedict XVI. He was not harmed, though a cardinal walking in the procession broke his hip in the ruckus.
Barry Morphew is on the receiving end of a civil lawsuit which was filed just days after he filed a $15,000,000 complaint against police and prosecutors alleging wrongful arrest on murder charges in the disappearance of his wife, Suzanne.

In the latest legal twist, Morphew, 56, is the defendant in a complaint which alleges he defrauded an Indiana couple over an acre strip of land in Indiana which is described by the plaintiffs as "being sandwiched between two properties."

The dispute began at least a year before Mrs. Morphew went missing, but the complaint was filed May 8. Jeffrey and Cheryl Titus, who live in Cisneros, Indiana, said in the complaint that Morphew lied about why he wanted the slice of acre which adjoined two properties.

"Defendant made a representation to Plaintiffs that he needed the 1 acre lot to be able to sell his adjoining parcel. Said statement was false and known by Defendant to be false. Plaintiffs reasonably relied on said statement to their detriment," the lawsuit stated.

The Tituses said Morphew promised he would re-deed the land and then never gave it to them. The Tituses say Morphew also trespassed on their adjoining property and "killed the grass and planted trees" on it.

The couple is asking for damages, including treble damages, and attorney fees  but did not specify an amount.

As evidence of proof to their claim, the Tituses showed text messages which were written in May 2019, a year after the Morphews had moved from Indiana to Colorado. The couple grew up in Indiana and relocated to a mountain home near Poncha Springs, they said at the time, for a fresh start.

May 16, 2019, at 5:31 pm, Barry Morphew wrote Jeff Titus: "Hey buddy! Do you still want that acre back? Let me know," according to the lawsuit.

Nine minutes later, Morphew added: "I appreciate you selling it to me to be able to sell to Jordan. Turns out I didn't need it for the sale. Like for you to have it back but don't want to lose too much. Just let me know"

The next day, Titus answered Morphew's text: "Hey Barry, Jordan and I was (sic) talking about that acre the other day, he and I were under the impression once you got your trees off you were going to deed it back to me sense (sic) he paid you $15K per acre for 10 acres sense (sic) 10 acres was what was needed for him to get the building permit. I really didn't want to sell that acre but when you said you wanted to build your home I was doing it as a favor to you, if I would have known you were going to sell I would not have sold it."

The text continued:

"There is really no value to the acre being sandwiched between two properties plus there will be a lot of work cleaning the property because of the large wild trees that have grown up plus filling in the holes. The right thing to do is deed the property back to me and after you remove the trees you want I will clean up the property. Jeff"

Jeff and Cheryl Titus did not return a request for comment, nor did their attorney,

Earlier this month, Morphew filed a $15 million federal civil rights lawsuit which states that he was wrongfully arrested, jailed and prosecuted for the alleged murder of his wife, Suzanne, nearly two years ago, for "a crime he did not commit."

The lawsuit lists 20 defendants involved in the unsolved case, including the entire prosecution team headed up by 17th Judicial District Attorney Linda Stanley, law enforcement officials, such as Chaffee County Sheriff John Spezze, Chaffee County, and numerous investigators with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the FBI, some of whom no longer work for the organizations.

He appeared on Good Morning America Monday to profess his innocence.
Texas man pleads guilty to smuggling gun linked to deadly Mexico kidnapping View Photo

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP)  A Texas man pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to purchasing a gun for a Mexican drug cartel that was linked to the deadly kidnapping of four Americans.

Roberto Lugardo Moreno Jr., 42, of Harlingen, Texas, appeared before a federal judge in Brownsville and entered his guilty plea to charges of straw purchasing and smuggling a firearm.

Lugardo Moreno bought a multi-caliber AR-style pistol at a pawn shop in 2019 and lied on a form stating he was the buyer when he purchased it for a Gulf Cartel member in Mexico, according to a federal complaint.

All too often, firearms are trafficked into Mexico where they end up in the hands of criminals who use them to murder, rob and extort innocent people, U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani said in a statement. This case is a textbook example of the dangers involved when criminals transport weapons into Mexico.

Sentencing was scheduled for August.

A public defender appointed for Lugardo Moreno did not respond to a call and email request for comment.

The kidnapping occurred in Matamoros, Mexico, which is located just across the border from Brownsville.

The serial number of a firearm Lugardo Moreno purchased in October 2019 matched that of a gun recovered by authorities that was linked to the March 3 kidnappings, according to the federal complaint. Lugardo Moreno said he didnt apply for a license to export the firearm from the U.S. to Mexico and knew it would be illegally exported, according to the complaint.

Moreno told authorities that he received $100 for the purchase of the guns.

Four friends who were traveling to Mexico in March so one member of the party could have cosmetic surgery were caught up in a drug cartel shootout in Matamoros. After a vehicle crashed into their van, men in tactical vests with rifles arrived in another vehicle and surrounded them.

Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown appeared to have been killed immediately, and their bodies were loaded into a truck with the two survivors, Eric Williams and Latavia McGee. The bodies and the two living friends were found days later in a shack.
Rods To Rails In Jamestown View Photo

There are several events planned today, Thursday May 18th and for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

The Friends of Columbia State Historic Park are sponsoring the Diggins Tent Town 1852 recreation of a gold diggings encampment during the Gold Rush. The event spans four days and features over 150 volunteers and school tours are led today and Friday by reservation. Park visitors are welcome all four days of the event from 10 am to 4 pm, details on the cost are the Diggins Tent Town 1852 event listing here.

As detailed this morning, today is the parade and Opening Day for the Calaveras Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee as detailed here.

Tomorrow evening pickup a packet to participate in Lucs Run at Tuolumne Veterans Memorial Hall. This is the 10th annual Lucs Run with the 10k (6.2 miles) and 2 mile races begin Saturday at 8:30 am with a kids run open to paid entrants ages 10 and under starting at 8 am. The event is combined with an auction with proceeds from the race and the auction going directly towards Scholarships.

Adjacent to the run in the West Side Memorial Park will be the LGBTQ+ Rural Resource Center who is hosting a clothing exchange. Bring clothing in good condition you no longer want to trade. The event is to support sustainability, gender affirmation, and celebrating community as detailed here.

The May Day Feed and Benefit for Nancys Hope is Friday at the Sonora Elks Lodge. Details are in the event listing here.

Friday evening is the Peaceful Valley Farmers Market.

The first Sonora Farmers Market of 2023 is this Saturday morning. The Jamestown Farmers Market will open Thursday, May 25th from 4 pm to 8pm through September 28. The Tuolumne Open Air/Farmers Market opens June 7th.

This Saturday, May 20th at Woods Creek Rotary Park is a fundraising event to raise money for Aim At Melanoma. The Steps Against Melanoma walk is a walk for those who have passed away from melanoma cancer and to raise awareness.

11th Annual Rods To Rails Car Show will be held Saturday from 7 am to 3 pm in Downtown Jamestown. The event is dedicated to the memory of Mario Vanotti. Walk along Jamestowns Historic Main Street and view the beautiful custom and classic cars, with donuts and coffee courtesy of the Promotion Club of Jamestown. There will be food available as well as shops, antiques, win tasting and more. Nearby at Railtown State Historic Park to celebrate Armed Forces Day, rides on the Hero Train are free for all Veterans, Active Duty and First Responders.

Saturday afternoon is the 6th Annual Westside Tribute Band Brew Fest at the Westside Pavilion in Tuolumne. Craft brews, seltzers and ciders from more than 40 of Californias top craft breweries will be available for tasting as detailed here.

The Angels Camp Firefighters Association is hosting a Pancake Breakfast both Saturday and Sunday morning at Utica Park. Kids are welcome to meet the firefighters from the City of Angels Camp, details are here.

This weekend is also the Jamestown Rodeo, a Co-Sanctioned event between the Champion Timed Event Rodeo Association and the Professional Senior Rodeo Association (PSRA) The Rodeo with all participants over 40 will be held at the Tuolumne Countys Sheriffs Posse grounds this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

La Grange Off-Highway Vehicle Park (OHV) is hosting its Stuckfest Summer Kickoff this weekend. The event features a 44 Obstacle Course Competition. Attendees to not prepay for tickets, all fees are paid when you enter the park and go to the Parks Department. Details are here.
Tuolumne County Housing Collaborative Meeting View Photos

Sonora, CA  With growing challenges in finding workforce housing, there is a nationwide YIMBY movement, or Yes in my backyard.

The idea is to bring counterpoints against the NIMBY, not in my backyard mindset, which thwarts many housing proposals.

The Tuolumne County Housing Collaborative made up of business, government, Tribal, and non-profit leaders, held a biannual meeting this morning at the Chicken Ranch Rancheria. The keynote speaker was Jes McBride, the Chapter Operations Manager for the non-profit Yimby Action organization. The group started by advocating for housing in San Francisco, one of the most challenging locations related to cost and availability, and has expanded to many other cities and towns.

McBride pointed out that the median home price in Tuolumne County has gone up $100,000 over the past four years. The price is also going up for renters. When housing is limited, it often forces workers, noting professions like teachers, healthcare workers, and firefighters, to look at other areas for employment.

The YIMBY idea focuses on removing housing obstacles, encouraging people to tell stories about their challenges, and building community coalitions.

After the speech, there was a Table Talk portion where small groups sat together, and spoke about whether a YIMBY organization would be beneficial in Tuolumne County. Groups then reported about their conversations, and collectively agreed it would be a positive.

Toward the end of the meeting, there were also presentations about housing projects already in the pipeline in Tuolumne County. For example, Columbia College President, Dr. Lena Tran detailed a plan to build a new dormitory on open land next to the Oak Pavilion on campus. The hope is for a facility with around 100 beds that could be rented by students for around $650 per month. They are currently waiting on state funding to move the proposed project forward.

Tuolumne County Supervisor Kathleen Haff gave an overview of the Valley Dale Housing Development that is proposed by the Stanislaus Regional Housing Authority. It would be built on county-owned land on Peaceful Valley Oak Road. The 55 units would be designated as workforce housing, with income thresholds, and provide one, two and three-bedroom units. She stressed that she was speaking neutrally as an elected government official, and the presentation was informational only.

Developer Greg Popovich talked about a planned 46-lot Cuesta Heights project in the City of Sonora, in the area of Shaws Flat Road, near the entrance of the existing Cuesta Oaks. Because of delays in permitting, he is now seeking new investment funding.

Trinity Abila of Tuolumne County Habitat for Humanity highlighted plans to build the first two homes in the county that will utilize 3D printing technology. They would be in the existing Parrotts Ferry Village and be designed around the idea of aging and place and rented to older residents in the county.

The organization is also planning to develop 9.2 acres next to the Parrotts Ferry Village to become a multi-generational subdivision in partnership with Blue Zones. There will be trails and other aspects that will be announced later.

There was also a presentation by the architect designing the transformation of the Twain Harte Shopping Center, transitioning open retail space into apartments.

Other speakers throughout the morning included Tyler Newson with Adventist Health Sonora, Supervisor Jaron Brandon, and Sonora Area Foundation Executive Director Darrell Slocum.

The Housing Collaborative arose out of a conversation Supervisors Haff and Brandon had with Abila, introducing her to the Emergent 3D builders out of Redding. They suggested that they needed to do a housing symposium. Other members of the intial core team were Slocum and Tom Crosby. The goal is to bring people together and look at solutions to address the local housing crisis.
Iran warns Afghanistans Taliban rulers not to violate its water rights, over Helmand River

Iran warns Afghanistans Taliban rulers not to violate its water rights, over Helmand River View Photo

TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Irans president warned Afghanistans Taliban rulers on Thursday not to violate water rights of the Iranian people over their shared Helmand River, the state-run IRNA news agency reported..

President Ebrahim Raisi said his government is determined to defend Irans water rights.

We will not allow the rights of our people to be violated, he said and warned the Taliban to take his words seriously, emphasizing the importance of Helmand River, which flows from Afghanistan into Iran .

Raisi spoke in a Pakistani border town on Thursday, during his first official visit to the neighboring country in 10 years, to inaugurate the first of six markets along the Iran-Pakistan border.

He also urged the Afghan Taliban to allow Iranian hydrologists to check the water levels of the river, which originates in the Afghan Hindu Kush mountain range.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 after the United Sates and NATO pulled out of the country following two decades of war.

Iranian officials have always stressed the importance of the implementation of the 1973 Helmand River treaty between Iran and Afghanistan, which envisions shared water resources.

Drought has been a problem in Iran for some 30 years, but has worsened over the past decade, according to the U.N.s Food and Agriculture Organization. The Iran Meteorological Organization says that an estimated 97% of the country now faces some level of drought.
Americans urged to cancel surgeries in Mexico border city after meningitis cases, 1 death View Photo

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP)  State and federal health officials are warning U.S. residents to cancel planned surgeries in a Mexico border city after five people from Texas who got procedures there came back and developed suspected cases of fungal meningitis. One of them died, officials said.

The five people who became ill traveled to Matamoros, across the border from Brownsville, for surgical procedures that included the use of an epidural, an anesthetic injected near the spinal column, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday. Four remain hospitalized, and one of them later died.

Those who became ill range in age from 30 to 50 years old, the department said.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel advisory Tuesday for U.S. residents seeking medical care in Matamoros.

Meningitis is the swelling of the protective covering of the brain and spinal cord and should be treated urgently. Symptoms include fever, headache, a stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, confusion and sensitivity to light. Cases of meningitis can be caused by viruses, bacteria, trauma or fungi.

Fungal meningitis, like in the Texas cases, is not transmitted person to person, health officials say. It could be accidentally introduced during a medical or surgical procedure.

U.S. and Mexican authorities are attempting to find the source of the infection, whether the cases are linked and if there are other cases, the Texas health department said.

The CDC urged anyone who had an epidural injection of anesthetic in that region after Jan. 1, 2023, to watch for symptoms of meningitis symptoms and consider consulting a doctor.

Patients in the Texas cases began showing symptoms three days to six weeks after surgery in Matamoros.

People leaving the U.S. for prescription drugs, dental procedures, surgeries and other medical treatment  also known as medical tourism  is common, experts say. Besides Mexico, other common destinations include Canada, India and Thailand.
Digital divide: Jill Biden visit touts efforts to connect Alaska Native villages to outside world View Photo

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP)  For years, when the tiny Alaska Native village of Ramparts awful internet service would go down, the only way to reach the outside world was to await the small airplane that touched down daily with supplies and the occasional visitor.

We had no way of getting ahold of anybody out of Rampart other than going to the airport and telling the pilot, said tribal administrator Margaret Moses. The pilot would relay messages  including word of medical emergencies  after flying 100 miles (161 kilometers) to Fairbanks.

The Koyukon Athabascan village of about 50 people eventually upgraded to a satellite company, at a hefty price of $3,000 a month.

Its one of scores of Alaska Native villages where spotty and expensive internet coverage is the norm  if its available at all. And such service can be the only lifeline for remote communities, many of which can be reached only by boat or plane.

Now, efforts to address inequities in a longstanding digital divide are underway across the nations largest state by land area, particularly in Alaska Native villages, with funding provided by the 2021 infrastructure bill and other federal programs as part of the Biden administrations Internet for All initiative.

Overall, the bill provides $65 billion in funding to improve broadband access in the U.S. Every federally recognized tribe, including 229 in Alaska, can receive up to $500,000.

Jill Biden visited the southwest Alaska community of Bethel late Wednesday on a stopover to Japan to highlight progress being made under the program, including the award of $125 million last year for two broadband infrastructure projects in the area. In doing so, it was the the first visit by a first lady to Bethel, which is about 400 miles (644 kilometers) west of Anchorage and accessible only by air.

With high-speed internet, youll have better access to critical health care, new educational tools, and remote job opportunities, the Anchorage Daily News reported Biden told a crowd at the local high school.

It will change lives. It will save lives, said Biden, who was accompanied by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, an Alaska Democrat, and Alaska first lady Rose Dunleavy.

Dunleavy said the broadband investments in the Bethel area will help create jobs. She told the crowd: Rural Alaska has always been on the wrong side of the digital divide until today.

An additional $5 million in grants were awarded Wednesday, including $500,000 to the Hoonah Indian Association of southeast Alaska to help train people for jobs created by a tourism boom.

Nine other $500,000 grants were awarded to three tribes in California, helping increase the speed to 314 tribal households for the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians; providing equipment and training to the Seminole Tribe of Florida; and upgrading 17 households with high speed internet service in the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians (Gun Lake) in Michigan.

Other grants went to tribes in Minnesota, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

Whats been hard in administering this program is the need is just so immense when you look at the totality of Indian Country as a whole and the lack of critical infrastructure that hasnt been made available previously to most of these communities, said Adam Geisler, a division chief with the administrations National Telecommunications and Information Administration..

Three-quarters of the 574 federally recognized tribes in the U.S. applied for over $5.8 billion in funding when the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program launched. However, the program is currently funded at just short of $3 billion, most if it from the infrastructure bill. So far, nearly $1.8 billion has been awarded to 157 tribal entities to improve broadband access.

In Alaska, 21 projects have received more than $386 million.

In the Yupik subsistence community of Akiak, 30 miles (48 kilometers) north of Bethel, tribal officials provided free broadband to the villages 100 homes during the COVID-19 pandemic until grant money was exhausted.

The Akiak Native Community tribe wanted to use its $500,000 to at least subsidize that service. However, its grant was assigned to its Alaska Native regional corporation, which will have an internet provider eventually bring fiber broadband to Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta villages.

Thats left subsistence residents in Akiak, where a quarter of all families fall below the poverty line, to either pay $90 a month for their own satellite service or wait for fiber.

Kevin Hamer is general manager of the Yukon Delta Tribal Broadband Consortium, a nonprofit tribal organization made up of 18 tribal governments in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta area, including Akiak. He believes there should be flexibility in the government funding to provide immediate, affordable broadband while tribal communities wait for fiber broadband, which could take years.

Tribal communities often have expensive and terrible internet service unless they can afford to pay for their own satellite service, including shelling out $600 for the equipment. Without satellite service, there is no video classrooms for children, telehealth with medical professionals, or telecommuting.

You are excluded from all the benefits of the digital economy, Hamer said.

By MARK THIESSEN

Associated Press
Indiana Army veteran convicted in road rage killing of Muslim man View Photo

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  A suburban Indianapolis Army veteran has been convicted in the road rage shooting death of a Muslim man, after witnesses said he hurled ethnic and religious insults at the victim, including yelling, Go back to your country, before opening fire.

A Marion County jury convicted Dustin E. Passarelli, 37, of murder on Wednesday after a three-day trial over the February 2019 killing of 32-year-old Mustafa Ayoubi. Passarelli, of Plainfield, could get up to 65 years in prison when hes sentenced June 21 on the murder charge.

He was also convicted of a firearm enhancement charge that could boost his sentence by up to 20 years, the county prosecutors office said.

Defense attorney, Chris Eskew, told The Indianapolis Star that he and Passarelli were disappointed by the verdict, but he declined to comment further about the case until after the sentencing.

Passarelli shot and killed Ayoubi following a road rage incident on Interstate 465 that led to Passarelli following Ayoubi to an apartment complex on the citys northwest side, according to court documents.

Passarelli told police that Ayoubi either threw something at his car or collided with it on the highway and that after he followed Ayoubi to the apartment complex, Ayoubi broke one of Passarellis car windows with a punch.

The defense argued that Passarelli was within his rights to fire at Ayoubi because it was self-defense.

Multiple witnesses said Passarelli and Ayoubi shouted inflammatory remarks at each other in front of a townhome. They said Passarelli yelled religious and ethnic insults at the unarmed Ayoubi, including, Go back to your country, shortly before he shot him.

Passarelli claimed that post-traumatic stress disorder he developed during his time in the Army contributed to his behavior on the highway and was partially to blame for the shooting. But Passarellis mental evaluation and PTSD claims were ruled inadmissible in court.

Passarelli was not charged with a hate crime. The FBI had said it was looking into whether Ayoubis killing involved a federal civil rights violation, but no federal charges were ever filed.

Six weeks after Ayoubis killing, Indiana lawmakers passed a hate crimes bill that included a provision allowing judges to impose longer sentences for crimes motivated by bias.

Before the bill became law, Indiana was one of five states without a hate crime law.

Ayoubis sister, who had urged lawmakers to pass a hate crime law, told The Indianapolis Star that her family was originally from Afghanistan and arrived in the United States in 2001 as refugees. They later became U.S. citizens.

Zahra Ayoubi said Wednesday that the verdict can allow her family to finally begin to celebrate her younger brothers life four years after his killing.

I wish this never happened, she said. The true justice would be if we were all still together right now. However, he died. And he left a legacy.
CNNs Amanpour criticizes networks decision to hold Trump town hall View Photo

NEW YORK (AP)  Veteran correspondent Christiane Amanpour became the most prominent CNN journalist to publicly criticize her network for airing last weeks town hall with former President Donald Trump.

Amanpour told a group of graduating students at Columbia Universitys graduate school of journalism on Wednesday that she would have dropped the mic at nasty person, a reference to when Trump lobbed that insult at moderator Kaitlan Collins.

CNN was criticized for hosting Trump at a live event in New Hampshire, where the 2024 presidential candidate repeated lies about the last election before a mostly adoring audience. CNN Chairman Chris Licht has defended the town hall as newsworthy and important, and Amanpour said she had a robust discussion with him about it.

Everyone knows Trump tries to seize the stage and dominate at such events, said Amanpour, the chief international correspondent who has worked at CNN for 40 years.

No matter how much flak the moderator tries to aim at the incoming, it doesnt work, she said.

Perhaps todays journalism leaders should learn from those in the 1950s, who refused to give Sen. Joseph McCarthy attention unless his foul lies, his witch hunts and his rants reached the basic level for evidence allowed in a courtroom, she said.

Maybe less is more, she said. Maybe live is not always right.

Amanpour criticized the town halls audience, chosen by CNN because they were Republicans or independents who plan to vote in the 2024 Republican primary.

Citing the precedents of past candidate debates or forums, CNN should have insisted that our invited guests behave themselves  no hooting, no hollering, no jeering, no cheering.

I can only hope that your trust in us might have been shaken but not shattered, that you believe that we can survive and rebuild that trust, she said.

A spokesman for Licht did not immediately return messages for comment. In an internal call with CNN staff members last week, Licht noted that people in the town hall audience represented a large swath of America.

The mistake the media made in the past is ignoring that those people exist, he said. Just like you cannot ignore that President Trump exists.

By DAVID BAUDER

AP Media Writer
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  The Democrat who will almost certainly become Philadelphia's next mayor wants to hire hundreds of additional police officers to walk their beats and get to know residents. She wants to devote resources to recruiting more police and says officers should be able to stop and search pedestrians if they have a legitimate reason to do so.

Those positions, particularly the search policies that have been criticized for wrongly targeting people of color, would seem out of step in a progressive bastion like Philadelphia. But Cherelle Parker trounced her rivals in this week's mayoral primary with a message that centered on tougher law enforcement to combat rising crime and violence.

While local politics don't always align with the ideological divides that guide the national debate, Parker's victory offers a fresh case study for Democrats as they wrestle with how to approach the issue of violent crime, which increased in many U.S. cities during the pandemic and continues to be top of mind for voters across the country. The issue has divided Democrats from city halls to the White House, particularly over how much to rely on policing and incarceration to solve what many see as social problems, such as drug abuse and homelessness.

Parker, a former state legislator and city council member, argued that its a false choice to decide between investing in policing and addressing broader societal problems.

It is not either/or, the 50-year-old Parker said during the campaign.

That approach helped her defeat progressive rival Helen Gym by more than 25,000 votes. Gym, who advocated for measures including stronger police training and faster 911 response times, was backed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and appeared with the lawmakers at a rally on the eve of the election. Gym and her supporters blamed her loss, in part, on late attacks funded by wealthy donors who opposed her progressive policies.

The debate over policing intensified in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police prompted worldwide protests about policing and calls to defund police  a push that the GOP used against Democrats in 2020 elections. While Democrat Joe Biden won that year, some moderate Democrats said the party wasn't quick enough to denounce it.

In major U.S. cities that are Democratic strongholds, voters also have been divided in recent years.

New York elected Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain who vowed to invest more in public safety, and San Francisco voters recalled a progressive prosecutor amid frustration about public safety. In Chicago, progressive Brandon Johnson  who favored investing in areas like housing and youth jobs  topped a more moderate rival who had support from the police union. And progressive prosecutor Kim Foxx, who prioritized violent crimes over lower-level offenses and faced blowback for dropping charges against actor Jussie Smollett, said she will not seek reelection.

In Philadelphia, Parker was the only Black candidate among the top tier of hopefuls on Tuesday and she was backed by majority Black precincts across the city in both early and Election Day ballots. In addition to 300 more officers, her public safety plan also called for fixing broken streetlights, removing graffiti and investing in programs for at-risk youth.

Parker also defended her support for Terry stops, or for officers to use just and reasonable suspicion to stop pedestrians. She and other candidates faced criticism including a protest at City Hall last month from those opposed to stop and frisk.

The policy has riled the city in the past, with critics saying it was used disproportionately against Black and Brown pedestrians. According to ACLU Pennsylvania, Philadelphia police nearly doubled the number of pedestrian stops during Mayor Michael Nutters administration in the 2000s. Civil rights lawyers said at least half of the more than 250,000 such stops in 2009 didn't meet the legal standard, and almost none resulted in arrest. The ACLU sued to stop the practice, and monitors police use of stop and frisk under a settlement with the city.

We want to build that relationship and we also want folks to know that there will be zero tolerance for any misuse and or abuse of authority," Parker said in response to questions about her position. "But a proactive law enforcement presence is a key part of that plan, and I am unapologetic about it.

Tuesday's result suggests the salience of police reform may be subsiding from the days when people were protesting in overwhelming numbers, said Michael Sances, a political science professor at Temple University.

(Crime) has crowded out concerns about overpolicing," he said. "It doesnt mean that people have become anti-reform, that can easily be surfaced. Its just a sign of where the publics attention is, and where political leaders have moved, and thats really toward the center.

Philadelphia saw a record number of homicides in 2021, most of them gun-related. That number fell from 562 to 516 in 2022, but was still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels. On Wednesday, an 18-year-old was rearrested in Philadelphia after he escaped from a prison in the city along with another inmate. The man was being held on charges in four slayings.

But in a reminder that there's no easy trend line on the political dynamics related to crime, voters in Pittsburgh made a turn to the left in Tuesdays Democratic primary for county prosecutor. Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala, in office for nearly a quarter century, is trailing challenger Matt Dugan by double digits in unofficial returns, although Republicans launched a write-in campaign for him so the two could face off again in November.

Dugan, the countys chief public defender, ran on a range of progressive policies, including eliminating cash bail, diverting low-level and nonviolent crimes, and emphasizing mental health and substance abuse treatment.

What happens in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh could have national implications as Pennsylvania will again be a prime battleground in 2024.

Biden has walked a difficult line on crime, policing and the communities that have been disproportionately impacted by both. The president has said its possible to bring down crime and also reform criminal justice and policing at the same time, though Republicans claim crime is up because of those reforms.

Biden often says he believes police need better tools and training, calling them heroes who do a difficult job. Hes also been vocal about the need to reform how policing has worked in Black and other nonwhite communities in the wake of the deaths of Floyd and other Black people killed by police.

This week, the Senate voted to overturn a local Washington, D.C. law enacted to improve police accountability that was backed by the district's Democratic mayor. It was the second time this year that Democrats joined with Republicans to reject a D.C. measure amid high rates of crime. Earlier, Biden agreed with the GOP that some of the measures  such as lowering penalties for carjackings  went too far.

Biden was expected to veto this week's vote, which would mean upholding the D.C. law, saying that while he doesnt back all provisions in the D.C. law he does support commonsense police reforms that are part of it, such as banning chokeholds, limiting the use of deadly force and improving access to body cameras and requiring additional training.

___

Burnett reported from Chicago. Associated Press writers Colleen Long in Washington and Mark Scolforo in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.

___

Brooke Schultz is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Lifetime and current depression rates in the United States, 2015-2023. Graphic: Gallup

By Dan Witters

17 May 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Gallup)  The percentage of U.S. adults who report having been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lifetime has reached 29.0%, nearly 10 percentage points higher than in 2015. The percentage of Americans who currently have or are being treated for depression has also increased, to 17.8%, up about seven points over the same period. Both rates are the highest recorded by Gallup since it began measuring depression using the current form of data collection in 2015.

The most recent results, obtained Feb. 21-28, 2023, are based on 5,167 U.S. adults surveyed by web as part of the Gallup Panel, a probability-based panel of about 100,000 adults across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Respondents were asked, Has a doctor or nurse ever told you that you have depression? and Do you currently have or are you currently being treated for depression? Both metrics are part of the ongoing Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index.

Rates Among Women, Young Adults, Black and Hispanic Adults Rising Fastest

Over one-third of women (36.7%) now report having been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lifetime, compared with 20.4% of men, and their rate has risen at nearly twice the rate of men since 2017. Those aged 18 to 29 (34.3%) and 30 to 44 (34.9%) have significantly greater depression diagnosis rates in their lifetime than those older than 44.

Women (23.8%) and adults aged 18 to 29 (24.6%) also have the highest rates of current depression or treatment for depression. These two groups (up 6.2 and 11.6 percentage points, respectively), as well as adults aged 30 to 44, have the fastest-rising rates compared with 2017 estimates.

Lifetime depression rates are also climbing fast among Black and Hispanic adults and have now surpassed those of White respondents. (Historically, White adults have reported marginally higher rates of both lifetime and current depression.)

Lifetime and current depression rates in the United States in 2023, by Subgroup. Graphic: Gallup

Implications

Alarming rates of depression are not unique to the U.S. Globally, nearly four in 10 adults aged 15 and older either endure significant depression or anxiety themselves or have a close friend or family member who suffers from it. Other Gallup research has estimated that 22% of Northern American adults have experienced depression or anxiety so extreme that they could not continue regular daily activities for two weeks or longer, similar to a global rate of 19% and matching estimates found in Western Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.

Clinical depression had been slowly rising in the U.S. prior to the COVID-19 pandemic but has jumped notably in its wake. Social isolation, loneliness, fear of infection, psychological exhaustion (particularly among front-line responders such as healthcare workers), elevated substance abuse and disruptions in mental health services have all likely played a role. While experiences of significant daily loneliness have subsided in the past two years amid widespread vaccinations and a slow return to normalcy, elevated loneliness experiences during the pandemic likely played a substantive role in increasing the rates of the longer-term, chronic nature of depression. Currently, 17% of U.S. adults report experiencing significant loneliness yesterday, projecting to an estimated 44 million people.

Among subgroups, women have historically reported substantially higher levels of depression than men. That this gap has notably widened further since 2017 is likely explained by several COVID-related factors, including the fact that women were disproportionately likely to lose their jobs or to exit the workforce altogether due in part to the pandemic driving children home from school or day care. Women also made up 78% of workers in all healthcare occupations in 2019, exposing them to enhanced emotional and psychological risk associated with the pandemic.

Young adults, in turn, are more likely to be single and to report loneliness, particularly so during the pandemic. They also need more social time to boost their mood than older adults, something directly impacted by COVID-19. Daily experiences of sadness, worry and anger  all of which are closely related to depression  are highest for those under 30 and those with lower income levels. And, like women, young adults and people of color were disproportionately likely to lose their jobs altogether due to the pandemic.

U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs
Thousands of prisoners in Zimbabwe are preparing for freedom after President Emmerson Mnangagwa granted a presidential amnesty allowing the release of over 4,000 non-violent offenders.

The Zimbabwe Correctional and Prison Services (ZCPS) says 4,270 inmates are eligible for release, including 4,166 men and 104 women. Terminally ill female prisoners and juvenile offenders convicted of non-serious crimes are among those set to be freed.

Harare Metropolitan Province has the highest number of inmates eligible at 790, including 20 women and 770 men. The regions with the next highest numbers of eligible prisoners are:

 Bulawayo Metropolitan  688 (680 men, 8 women)

 Matabeleland North  231 (1 woman, 230 men)

 Mashonaland East  397 (39 women, 358 men)

 Mashonaland West  340 (7 women, 333 men)

The ZCPS is urging the public and families of the released inmates to accept and forgive them, to help facilitate their reintegration into society. ZCPS spokesperson Chief Superintendent Meya Khanyezi said successful reintegration requires the help of all Zimbabwean citizens. She appealed for people to forgive and embrace the released inmates.

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Yves here. Forgive me for running this very fine Juan Cole piece a bit late, since it means you may have already seen it elsewhere. It gives a solid overview of how China has economic interests in the Middle East which continued conflict could endanger, and how US mis-steps, plus things like the Saudis managing to learn from their mistakes further undercut our already self-undermined position. Its good one-stop shopping to send to friends and family who might want to catch up on how the US so wrong-footed this situation. Of course, 20 years of nation-breaking in the region didnt help either.

As Cole says, Washington is now the skunk at the diplomats party.

Mind you, I think that is entirely unfair to skunks, who by all accounts have lovely personalities and dont attack unless threatened. But the point still holds.

By Juan Cole, who teaches Middle Eastern and South Asian history at the University of Michigan. His newest book, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace Amid the Clash of Empires was published in 2020. He is also the author of The New Arabs: How the Millennial Generation Is Changing the Middle East (2015) and Napoleons Egypt: Invading the Middle East (2008). He has appeared widely on television, radio, and on op-ed pages as a commentator on Middle East affairs, and has a regular column at Salon.com. He has written, edited, or translated 14 books and has authored 60 journal articles. Originally published at TomDispatch

A photo Beijing released on March 6th of Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a seismic shock in Washington. There was the Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party standing between Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Irans National Security Council, and Saudi National Security Adviser Musaad bin Mohammed al-Aiban. They were awkwardly shaking hands on an agreement to reestablish mutual diplomatic ties. That picture should have brought to mind a 1993 photo of President Bill Clinton hosting Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chief Yasser Arafat on the White House lawn as they agreed to the Oslo Accords. And that long-gone moment was itself an after-effect of the halo of invincibility the United States had gained in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union and the overwhelming American victory in the 1991 Gulf War.

This time around, the U.S. had been cut out of the picture, a sea change reflecting not just Chinese initiatives but Washingtons incompetence, arrogance, and double-dealing in the subsequent three decades in the Middle East. An aftershock came in early May as concerns gripped Congress about the covert construction of a Chinese naval base in the United Arab Emirates, a U.S. ally hosting thousands of American troops. The Abu Dhabi facility would be an add-on to the small base at Djibouti on the east coast of Africa used by the Peoples Liberation Army-Navy for combating piracy, evacuating noncombatants from conflict zones, and perhaps regional espionage.

Chinas interest in cooling off tensions between the Iranian ayatollahs and the Saudi monarchy arose, however, not from any military ambitions in the region but because it imports significant amounts of oil from both countries. Another impetus was undoubtedly President Xis ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI, that aims to expand Eurasias overland and maritime economic infrastructure for a vast growth of regional trade  with China, of course, at its heart. That country has already invested billions in a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and in developing the Pakistani Arabian seaport of Gwadar to facilitate the transmission of Gulf oil to its northwestern provinces.

Having Iran and Saudi Arabia on a war footing endangered Chinese economic interests. Remember that, in September 2019, an Iran proxy or Iran itself launched a drone attack on the massive refinery complex at al-Abqaiq, briefly knocking out five million barrels a day of Saudi capacity. That country now exports a staggering 1.7 million barrels of petroleum daily to China and future drone strikes (or similar events) threaten those supplies. China is also believed to receive as much as 1.2 million barrels a day from Iran, though it does so surreptitiously because of U.S. sanctions. In December 2022, when nationwide protests forced the end of Xis no-Covid lockdown measures, that countrys appetite for petroleum was once again unleashed, with demand already up 22% over 2022.

So, any further instability in the Gulf is the last thing the Chinese Communist Party needs right now. Of course, China is also a global leader in the transition away from petroleum-fueled vehicles, which will eventually make the Middle East far less important to Beijing. That day, however, is still 15 to 30 years away.

Things Could Have Been Different

Chinas interest in bringing to an end the Iranian-Saudi cold war, which constantly threatened to turn hotter, is clear enough, but why did those two countries choose such a diplomatic channel? After all, the United States still styles itself the indispensable nation. If that phrase ever had much meaning, however, American indispensability is now visibly in decline, thanks to blunders like allowing Israeli right-wingers to cancel the Oslo peace process, the launching of an illegal invasion of and war in Iraq in 2003, and the grotesque Trumpian mishandling of Iran. Distant as it may be from Europe, Tehran might nonetheless have been brought into NATOs sphere of influence, something President Barack Obama spent enormous political capital trying to achieve. Instead, then-President Donald Trump pushed it directly into the arms of Vladimir Putins Russian Federation and Xis China.

Things could indeed have been different. With the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal, brokered by the Obama administration, all practical pathways for Iran to build nuclear weapons were closed off. Its also true that Irans ayatollahs have long insisted they dont want a weapon of mass destruction that, if used, would indiscriminately kill potentially vast numbers of non-combatants, something incompatible with the ethics of Islamic law.

Whether one believes that countrys clerical leaders or not, the JCPOA made the question moot, since it imposed severe restrictions on the number of centrifuges Iran could operate, the level to which it could enrich uranium for its nuclear plant at Bushehr, the amount of enriched uranium it could stockpile, and the kinds of nuclear plants it could build. According to the inspectors at the U.N.s International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran faithfully implemented its obligations through 2018 and  consider this an irony of our Trumpian times  for such compliance it would be punished by Washington.

Irans Ayatollah Ali Khamenei only permitted President Hassan Rouhani to sign that somewhat mortifying treaty with the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council in return for promised relief from Washingtons sanctions (that they never got). In early 2016, the Security Council did indeed remove its own 2006 sanctions on Iran. That, however, proved a meaningless gesture because by then Congress, deploying the Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control, had slapped unilateral American sanctions on Iran and, even in the wake of the nuclear deal, congressional Republicans refused to lift them. They even nixed a $25 billion deal that would have allowed Iran to buy civilian passenger jets from Boeing.

Worse yet, such sanctions were designed to punish third parties that contravened them. French firms like Renault and TotalEnergies were eager to jump into the Iranian market but feared reprisals. The US had, after all, fined French bank BNP $8.7 billion for skirting those sanctions and no European corporation wanted a dose of that kind of grief. In essence, congressional Republicans and the Trump administration kept Iran under such severe sanctions even though it had lived up to its side of the bargain, while Iranian entrepreneurs eagerly looked forward to doing business with Europe and the United States. In short, Tehran could have been pulled inexorably into the Western orbit via increasing dependence on North Atlantic trade deals, but it was not to be.

And keep in mind that Israeli Prime Minister (then as now) Benjamin Netanyahu had lobbied hard against the JCPOA, even going over President Obamas head in an unprecedented fashion to encourage Congress to nix the deal. That effort to play spoiler failed  until, in May 2018, President Trump simply tore up the treaty. Netanyahu was caught on tape boasting that he had convinced the gullible Trump to take that step. Although the Israeli right wing insisted that its greatest concern was an Iranian nuclear warhead, it sure didnt act that way. Sabotaging the 2015 deal actually freed that country from all constraints. Netanyahu and like-minded Israeli politicians were, it seems, upset that the JCPOA only addressed Irans civilian nuclear enrichment program and didnt mandate a rollback of Iranian influence in Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria, which they apparently believed to be the real threat.

Trump went on to impose what amounted to a financial and trade embargo on Iran. In its wake, trading with that country became an increasingly risky proposition. By May 2019, Trump had succeeded handsomely by his own standards (and those of Netanyahu). He had managed to reduce Irans oil exports from 2.5 million barrels a day to as little as 200,000 barrels a day. That countrys leadership nonetheless continued to conform to the requirements of the JCPOA until mid-2019, after which they began flaunting its provisions. Iran has now produced highly enriched uranium and is much closer to being capable of making nuclear weapons than ever before, though it still has no military nuclear program and the ayatollahs continue to deny that they want such weaponry.

In reality, Trumps maximum pressure campaign did anything but destroy Tehrans influence in the region. In fact, if anything, in Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq the power of the ayatollahs was only strengthened.

After a while, Iran also found ways to smuggle its petroleum to China, where it was sold to small private refineries that operated solely for the domestic market. Since those firms had no international presence or assets and didnt deal in dollars, the Treasury Department had no way of moving against them. In this fashion, President Trump and congressional Republicans ensured that Iran would become deeply dependent on China for its very economic survival  and so also ensured the increasing significance of that rising power in the Middle East.

The Saudi Reversal

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, oil prices spiked, benefiting the Iranian government. The Biden administration then imposed the kind of maximum-pressure sanctions on the Russian Federation that Trump had levied against Iran. Unsurprisingly, a new Axis of the Sanctioned has now formed, with Iran and Russia exploring trade and arms deals and Iran allegedly providing drones to Moscow for its war effort in Ukraine.

As for Saudi Arabia, its de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, recently seemed to get a better set of advisers. In March 2015, he had launched a ruinous and devastating war in neighboring Yemen after the Zaydi Shiite Helpers of God, or Houthi rebels, took over the populous north of that country. Since the Saudis were primarily deploying air power against a guerrilla force, their campaign was bound to fail. The Saudi leadership then blamed the rise and resilience of the Houthis on the Iranians. While Iran had indeed provided some money and smuggled some weapons to the Helpers of God, they were a local movement with a long set of grievances against the Saudis. Eight years later, the war has sputtered to a devastating stalemate.

The Saudis had also attempted to counter Iranian influence elsewhere in the Arab world, intervening in the Syrian civil war on the side of fundamentalist Salafi rebels against the government of autocrat Bashar al-Assad. In 2013, Lebanons Shiite Hezbollah militia joined the fray in support of al-Assad and, in 2015, Russia committed air power there to ensure the rebels defeat. China had also backed al-Assad (though not militarily) and played a quiet role in the post-war reconstruction of the country. As part of that recent China-brokered agreement to reduce tensions with Iran and its regional allies, Saudi Arabia just spearheaded a decision to return the al-Assad government to membership in the Arab League (from which it had been expelled in 2011 at the height of the Arab Spring revolts).

By late 2019, in the wake of that drone attack on the Abqaiq refineries, it was already clear that Bin Salman had lost his regional contest with Iran and Saudi Arabia began to seek some way out. Among other things, the Saudis reached out to the Iraqi prime minister of that moment, Adil Abdel Mahdi, asking for his help as a mediator with the Iranians. He, in turn, invited General Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Jerusalem Brigade of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, to Baghdad to consider a new relationship with the House of Saud.

As few will forget, on January 3, 2020, Soleimani flew to Iraq on a civilian airliner only to be assassinated by an American drone strike at Baghdad International Airport on the orders of President Trump who claimed he was coming to kill Americans. Did Trump want to forestall a rapprochement with the Saudis? After all, marshaling that country and other Gulf states into an anti-Iranian alliance with Israel had been at the heart of his son-in-law Jared Kushners Abraham Accords.

The Rise of China, the Fall of America

Washington is now the skunk at the diplomats party. The Iranians were never likely to trust the Americans as mediators. The Saudis must have feared telling them about their negotiations lest the equivalent of another Hellfire missile be unleashed. As 2022 ended, President Xi actually visited the Saudi capital Riyadh, where relations with Iran were evidently a topic of conversation. This February, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi traveled to Beijing by which time, according to the Chinese foreign ministry, President Xi had developed a personal commitment to mediating between the two Gulf rivals. Now, a rising China is offering to launch other Middle Eastern mediation efforts, while complaining that some large countries outside the region were causing long-term instability in the Middle East out of self-interest.

Chinas new prominence as a peacemaker may soon extend to conflicts like the ones in Yemen and Sudan. As the rising power on this planet with its eye on Eurasia, the Middle East, and Africa, Beijing is clearly eager to have any conflicts that could interfere with its Belt and Road Initiative resolved as peaceably as possible.

Although China is on the cusp of having three aircraft carrier battle groups, they continue to operate close to home and American fears about a Chinese military presence in the Middle East are, so far, without substance.

Where two sides are tired of conflict, as was true with Saudi Arabia and Iran, Beijing is clearly now ready to play the role of the honest broker. Its remarkable diplomatic feat of restoring relations between those countries, however, reflects less its position as a rising Middle Eastern power than the startling decline of American regional credibility after three decades of false promises (Oslo), debacles (Iraq) and capricious policy-making that, in retrospect, appears to have relied on nothing more substantial than a set of cynical imperial divide-and-rule ploys that are now so been-there, done-that.
Yves here. Has no one in the Beltway gotten the memo that it punishment fetish isnt working out so well? The great shock and awe sanctions against Russia are Exhibit 1, with the US only getting as a consolation prize the strip mining of Europe. And then our efforts to try again, like the oil price cap and the embarrassing attempt at sanctions ratcheting in Europe, were proofs of weakness.

Recall OPEC members saw the oil price cap as an effort to break their cartel. The resulting anger likely played into Chinas efforts to enhance its status by brokering an end to hostilities between Iran and the Saudis. Mohammed bin Salman was already hostile to Biden, but the plan to meddle in oil prices would confirm his prejudices.

The article below is cautiously skeptical. Its also noteworthy that it doesnt describe how the US proposed to hurt OPEC.

By James D. Durso, the Managing Director of Corsair LLC, a supply chain consultancy. Originally published at OilPrice

U.S. consumers are showing significantly less concern about the U.S. energy situation than they did one year ago.

The U.S. House of Representatives may once again consider a piece of legislation to pressure the OPEC oil producers group to stop making output cuts.

The bill may be retaliation against the Arab OPEC countries, and a warning to others, for normalizing ties with Iran and Syria.

In early May, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary was reportedly considering a bill to pressure the OPEC oil producers group to stop making output cuts by revoking the sovereign immunity that has protected OPEC+ members and their national oil companies from lawsuits over price collusion. (The committee previously passed the bill in 2018, 2019 and 2021.)

The OPEC Basket Price has hovered in the mid $70s, not historically high, though U.S. politicians like to talk down the price of gasoline before the summer driving season begins. (Saudi Arabia needs a price of $80.90 USD to balance its budget, and fund the diversification of its economy.)

Gasoline prices are higher than during the Trump administration, but the Gallup polling organization reported in April 2023, Americans show significantly less concern about the U.S. energy situation now than they did a year ago.

If American consumers arent up in arms over gasoline prices, and the recent OPEC production cuts have failed to stop the slump in crude oil prices, why might OPEC be a target now?

One reason may be the good news out of the Middle East: a rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia (with Chinese mediation); Egypt and Iran starting to normalize ties (with mediation by Iraq); Syria rejoining the Arab league; the United Arab Emirates and Iran in talks to promote ties, and the possibility for energy cooperation between Iraq and Iran. The bill may be retaliation against the Arab OPEC countries, and a warning to others, for normalizing ties with Iran and Syria, under the color of protecting U.S. consumers. It also avoids a discussion about the Biden administration policy of limiting oil and natural gas production, though lately the administration has approved limited drilling in federal lands.

And not to be outdone, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers just announced the Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act of 2023, that would counter foreign governments outreach to Syria and allow for additional sanctions on anyone doing business with the Assad government.

The losers? Israel which probably cant depend on the Arabs to form a bloc to back an attack on Irans nuclear research facilities; and the U.S., which is seeing its influence diminish as OPEC members in the Middle East start to normalize with the hated governments in Tehran and Damascus, and welcome Chinas mediation of negotiations between Tehran and Riyadh, and Russias facilitation of talks between Saudi Arabia and Syria, and Syria and Turkey. (The worst-case scenario for Tel Aviv and Washington is Chinese participation in talks between Israel and the Palestinians.)

Normalization of relations between the Arab OPEC states and Iran and Syria would lower tensions in the region, which is not in Washingtons interest as big customers like the Saudis and Emiratis might scale back purchases of weapons intended to counter Iran. Tensions also keep the U.S. busy in the neighborhood to ensure stability, though U.S. actions in Iraq and Libya (and its supporting role in Yemen) guaranteed the opposite. And tension in the region makes it easy for Israels Shabbos goy in the U.S. to scotch any attempts to pressure Israel and the Palestinians to get peace talks going or else, especially if the Pals invite the Chinese into the process.

The U.S. may be failing to heed that the Middle East OPEC states, most run by kings or emirs, must pay attention to public sentiment  one secret of successfully ruling without elections. Though Iran is not popular with the publics in Arab OPEC countries, closer relations might result in less tension and more people-to-people ties and economic opportunity that will promote stability, which is more important than democracy for the Arab Spring generation according to a recent region-wide poll.

The 2022 Arab Youth Survey also found, Nearly three-fourths (73%) want to see the US disengage from the region. China, Turkey and Russia are now seen as the regions strongest allies and the default position of looking to the West in times of crisis is being eroded by new allegiances to China, Russia and Turkey.

This sentiment may see other Arab states, i.e., Saudi Arabia, not rushing to join American projects such as the Abraham Accords, which Israel still hopes will be a detour around peace talks with the Palestinians, and instead favor homegrown initiatives to stabilize the region.

Thus, Washingtons attack on the economic engine of the Middle East, petroleum, and use of sanctions to halt attempts to end conflict and alienation between the OPEC Arabs and Iran and Syria. It is important that peace not break out as that would depress weapon sales, increase regional economic diversification and integration and reduce the need for Washingtons solutions, and introduce to the region new economic and political players, such as China and Turkey.

Washington has a lot of power and can force events in the short term, but it has already lost the hearts and minds of Middle Eastern youth who, since 2001, have matured with the U.S. continuously engaged in combat operations in their lands  and all for nothing. For the future, it would be wise for Washington to remember the Cold War policy that understood that civil rights and economic opportunity for all Americans was the nations best weapon in the war of ideas with Communism. It worked against the Reds then and it will work against the Islamists now and, if America wants to be part of the future of the region it should stop being an example of the worst kind.
Guyanas Public Utilities Commission expects mobile number portability to go live across the country this July.

Local outlet Demerara Waves reported Dela Britton, the chair of the multi-sector regulator, as saying that testing for MNP was almost complete, with the service slated to become available to the public in July. The PNC began the process of implementing MNP in July 2021, with PortingXS issued with a number portability and data processing licence in December 2022.

Britton noted that MNP would enable greater competition and generally forces players  to improve their service offerings. The market has been dominated since 2004 by the duopoly of US-backed GTT (Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company) and Digicel Guyana, with various disputes delayed reforms to the sectors regulation.

Modernisation aimed at introducing more competition was finally implemented in late 2020, and CommsUpdate reports that two new players are expected to enter Guyanas mobile market in the near-term. Internet service provider ENet  formerly E-Networks  is launching a VoLTE offering over its network to enter the mobile sector, while locally owned Green Gibraltar received a mobile licence in 2022 and launched a 5G offering in December that year.
Henry James once said summer afternoon are the two most beautiful words in the English language. But he didnt have to contend with Super Mario. I have three kids  ages 5, 7 and 9  and this will be the first summer I find myself not only looking for activities that suit all their interests, but also competing with a screen that is far more entertaining than I could ever be. Here are my solutions.

No kid (or grown-up) can resist the charms of a Renaissance fair. Travel back in time and dress up in your finest medieval ware with your fellow hobbits, elves, knights and maidens. Snack on turkey legs and Jester Chips. The annual event, which takes place in Arrington each weekend in May, features royal jousts, knife throwing, comedy, magic shows and more  not to mention people-watching at its prime. Kids love the spectacle (and souvenirs) of it all. Beat that, Nintendo! Tickets, schedule and more info at tnrenfest.com. May 20, 21, 27, 28 & 29 in Arrington, Tenn.

This hike presents a high-risk, high-reward situation. Your kids will either have a blast or theyll whine the whole way, so exercise your own judgment. If you choose to embark on this adventure, after a moderately easy hike, youll be greeted with some of our states most dazzling waterfalls and swimming holes. So load up on snacks, and godspeed. Open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily in Manchester, Tenn.

I come to the Brentwood Splash Park to chill. The kids run berserk through the water slides and splash stations while I set up shop on one of the lounge chairs with a stack of magazines. Admission is only $2 per kid  and make sure to bring cash for the iced lemonade cart  which makes you Parent of the Year for less than $15. The park is open daily but hours vary; see their site for details. Open daily at 920 Heritage Way

Sometimes we leave our house screens for outside screens. The Donelson Plaza Strike & Spare is one of my kids favorite arcades in town, and I love the bowling alleys old-school vibe. Zero frills, tons of fun. Plus I got to explain what an ashtray is. Who says theres no learning during the summer? Sadly, the nearby Donelson Bowl closed this month after 63 years in business to make way for an apartment complex  leaving the Strike & Spare as your only remaining old-school bowling option in this neck of the woods. Open daily at 2710 Old Lebanon Road

As soon as schools out, we always head to Kelleys Berry Farm, where the kids grab buckets and set to work picking strawberries. Quite a few of the berries end up in their mouths instead of the buckets. Its pure joy. However, the late-winter frost did a number on Tennessees strawberry crops, so make sure to call ahead for picking availability. Open 7 a.m.-6 p.m. daily in Castalian Springs, Tenn.

My prescription for dwindling attention spans  for parents and kids alike  is to spend a full day on the river. Middle Tennessee is teeming with great waterways, but my crew likes the Piney River. Pinewood Canoe & Camp allows you to rent a canoe or kayak, bring a picnic lunch, and simply meander. For an added bonus, leave your phone in the car. You can do it. I have faith in you. (Whereas I did not have faith in my family not to tip the canoe and ruin my phone.) Visit pinewoodcanoecamp.com for rental information. Open 9 a.m.-3 p.m. daily in Nunnelly, Tenn.

Heres one way to cool off during the dog days of summer: Take your crew to go hang out with some cold-blooded reptiles. The Aquatic Critter is not your average pet shop. When my 9-year-old decided he wanted a turtle for his birthday, we went here for some market research. The verdicts still out on the pet turtle, but the kids had so much fun looking at the exotic fish, and the staff is super-friendly. Open daily at 5009 Nolensville Pike

Summer Guide is presented by Black Sheep Tequila
Street View is a monthly column in which well take a close look at issues affecting different neighborhoods throughout the city.

According to the Metro Nashville Police Department, as of this writing, 154 people have been shot in Nashville in 2023. Thirty-nine of those shootings have been fatal. Since the Covenant School shooting on March 27, the city has experienced nine other fatal shooting incidents and 33 non-fatal incidents. Gun violence is happening everywhere in the city: In the past three years, every Metro Council district  of which there are 35  has seen at least one fatal shooting. The city experiences an average of roughly 11 shootings per district per year.

But this data doesnt encapsulate the whole picture of how shootings occur throughout the city. While the data suggests that shootings are widespread, they happen much more frequently in some areas. Consider District 35, which encompasses Bellevue in western Davidson County. In the past three years, that district has had one fatal and two non-fatal shootings. District 17, which encompasses Wedgewood-Houston and Eighth Avenue, has experienced 134 shootings  21 fatal and 115 non-fatal.

The two districts have slightly different populations  according to census data from the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, District 35s population is 19,133, while District 17s population is 20,138. But even accounting for the slight population difference, a person is still about 64 times more likely to be shot in District 17 than in District 35. Overall, the number of shootings in District 17 is nearly seven times the Nashville average.

District 17 isnt the only district with disproportionately high numbers of shootings. Nashville has six districts with more than 60 shootings in the past three years, all with relatively high population density and all concentrated near the citys downtown core: D2, D5, D6, D17, D19 and D21. Three of these districts (2, 17 and 21) have experienced more than 90 shootings in the past three years.

On the other end of the spectrum are five districts (D4, D8, D24, D34 and D35) with the lowest shooting numbers: eight or fewer total shootings in the past three years. Districts 4 and 24 have experienced four total shootings. District 35, Nashvilles safest in terms of gun violence, has experienced three.

While there are some overall trends, its difficult to conclusively predict where and why people will be shot. Still, Nashville follows nationwide trends suggesting that Black people are significantly more likely to be shooting victims. So far this year, the city has had 26 Black victims of fatal gun violence and 13 white victims. For non-fatal gun incidents, the numbers are 83 and 31 respectively, with one victims race listed as other on MNPDs website. There are also about three times as many male victims as female victims.

Overall, the wealth of a district often correlates with its safety from gun violence. Recent census data shows that Nashvilles median household income is $65,565 and its average per capita income is $39,509. According to the Chamber of Commerces website, four out of the five safest districts have median household incomes (the income of everyone over age 15 in a given household) of at least $90,000. District 35, the safest, has a median household income of $105,000 and an average per capita income of $53,458. District 34, which had eight shootings in the past three years, has a median household income of $144,000 and a per capita income of $99,193.

In the districts with the highest numbers of shooting incidents, the wealth demographics are mixed. Districts 6 and 19 have median household incomes and per capita incomes above the Nashville average, while Districts 2, 5, 17 and 21 do not. And looking more closely at the data reveals some striking patterns  particularly the overlap between the Chamber of Commerces map of economic disparity and the MNPDs gun violence map. In areas with higher poverty in Districts 6 and 17, for instance, more shootings occur. Overall, shootings in Nashville are widespread and not decreasing.

After the Covenant School shooting in March, students from across Tennessee rallied at the state Capitol to urge politicians to consider gun reform legislation, and the Tennessee Three used Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and Rep. Justin Pearsons (D-Memphis) expulsion (and subsequent reinstatement) from the legislature to continue to bring national attention to gun violence issues. There are other local gun reform efforts. Kelley Griggs, a local tech entrepreneur, created a grassroots, bipartisan petition from the Nashville business community urging the legislature to enact extreme risk legislation designed to keep dangerous people from obtaining firearms. (Griggs co-wrote the petition with a few others, she says, but they wish to remain anonymous.) Even Republican Gov. Bill Lee supports extreme risk legislation. The petition currently has over 260 signatures.

Griggs says the letter advocates for extreme risk protection orders because that legislation covers both gun availability and mental health issues  causes of violence discussed on both sides of the aisle. Other issues came up, she says, but these were the things that we all agreed could be first steps. Recent polling suggests that the majority of Tennesseeans support strengthened background checks and red flag laws.

After the states Republican supermajority failed to address firearm legislation during its regular session, Gov. Lee signaled his intention to call a special legislative session on Aug. 21. Despite Lees call for state leaders to consider expanding existing risk protection laws, House Republicans released a statement saying they considered such legislation a non-starter. Recent polling suggests that the majority of Tennessee parents support expanded background checks and extreme risk protections.

If it does indeed take place, Lees proposed special session will begin three months after the publication of this story. If shootings continue at their current pace, about 14 additional Nashvillians will be killed by guns before the legislature convenes.

Editors note: The data for this piece was pulled on May 10, and some numbers may have changed since.
(Natural News) The total number of registered sex offenders in the USA is climbing fast. Currently, there are more than three-quarters of a million Americans who are listed on states sex offender registries, and with the Democrats keeping the southern border wide open for illegal immigrants, expect that number to skyrocket. Plus, Democrats and most liberals push for total acceptance of gay, tranny and gender fluidity promotions (and flaunting of it all) in all daycare centers, elementary schools, middle schools, high schools and even college. Anyone who opposes pushing gender-bender surgery and hormone-therapy drugs on kids and teens is considered by these liberals as racists and bigots and aggressive people who dont tolerate differences.

According to the cancel culture movement, if a person doesnt focus on sex, sexual partners and sexual identity 24/7/365, then they are intolerant to the new norm, and so they get banned and barred from social media platforms, and some people even get fired from their jobs for opposing it. Its all propaganda that perverts the mind and scars the body, sometimes permanently, to the extent that the gender transitioning person suffers anxiety and depression, and considers suicide (and/or mass homicide).

Child abuse in America has risen to epidemic levels

Did you know that only about 1 in 10 children who are sexually abused ever let anyone know about it? While the tranny men do strip tease shows (in their thongs and fake boobs) for little kids at daycare centers and library book reading clubs (pun intended), the children are being exposed to adults who want them to be promiscuous (gay-curious) from as early as the toddler stage.

As more illegal immigrants, especially young men, cross the border into America, there will be more and more human trafficking, including of children, who mostly get abused, molested, raped, sold and sometimes killed. Many will never report it, for fear of consequences, shame and guilt, fear of not being believed, or fear of burdening the family.

Then there are the groomers. Grooming is when sex offenders and sexual predators draw children into sexual relationships and situations by developing and/or maintaining this perverted relationship in secrecy. Grooming is becoming more acceptable among Democrats and Liberals, as they bring their own children to tranny strip tease shows disguised as equal rights demonstrations or Drag Queen Story Hour.

Many of these perverts do not have any interest in religion, ethics, morals, or even the law as it applies to protecting children from sexual predators. Thats why among the gender fluid masses its common to be atheist or a worshipper of Satan. These cults are often also grooming children to be queer and perverted, thinking only of sex, sexual partners and sexuality all day, like them.

The moral fiber of this country is being decayed by this cancel culture, Satan-worshipping crowd of misfits and gender-confused zombies. They have multiple victims (usually kids they know), and they continue the abusive cycle until they are arrested, reported, imprisoned, or stopped some other way. Some serial molesters have as many as 400 victims in their lifetime, according to statistical information.

Top 7 ways the cancel culture is wrecking the moral fiber of our youth

#1. Drag Queen Story Hour

#2. Gender-bender hormones and chemical castration drugs (puberty blockers)

#3. Sex change operations that can mutilate genitals, scar the patients, wreck libido, damage organs, cause infertility, lead to depression and suicide, etc.

#4. Children exposed to perverts and a lack of moral fortitude

#5. Child and human trafficking operations around the world, at the border and across America

#6. Destroying religion while propagating worship of Satan and witchcraft

#7. Dismantling the moral fiber, ethics and family values of our country

Tune your internet dial to Gender.news for updates on cancel culture liberals further wrecking the country with twisted influence on our youth.

Sources for this article include:

NaturalNews.com 1

SummitCountyCo.gov

Raace.org

NaturalNews.com 2
(Natural News) The ongoing drought in large parts of the United States is forcing wheat farmers to abandon a portion of their crop at rates not seen in over a century.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), producers, especially in the U.S. Plains region, are expected to harvest only about 67 percent of their planted acres, the lowest harvest ratio since 1917. (Related: Food collapse incoming: Globalist war on nitrogen emissions putting entire global food supply at risk.)

The high rate of abandonment stemmed from years of freak weather patterns in the Great Plains that took their toll on American grainfields. Many wheat plants planted this winter were stunted by a lack of moisture, making many unable to produce the heads of grain that are harvested for their nutrients.

Farmers who are leaving many of their acres unharvested are filing crop insurance claims for failed acres or abandoning wheat altogether to plant something else.

Justin Gilpin, chief executive officer of the trade group Kansas Wheat, announced that his organization is about to take a tour of Kansas, the countrys top wheat-growing state, to allow analysts to take surveys of fields and make production estimates.

Well see short wheat, thin strands, some wheat that looks really good and a lot of fields that arent going to be harvested, he said.

Kansas, Texas wheat suffering greatly

All told, some 37.5 million acres were planted last fall, either with soft red or hard red winter wheat. The Agriculture Departments estimate suggests that just 25.3 million of those planted acres of wheat have grown anything worth harvesting.

Of the 67 percent of wheat that can be harvested, the USDA noted that just 28 percent of that crop has been rated to be in good-to-excellent condition.

The soft red winter wheat crop is used mainly as animal feed and for processed foods, while hard red winter wheat is used in baked goods. Hard red wheat also represents about 40 percent of total U.S. wheat production and can be grown either as a cash crop or a cover crop.

In Kansas, the top producer of hard red winter wheat, around 10 percent of the crop was abandoned. Meanwhile, in Texas, a whopping 65 percent of hard red wheat acres were abandoned.

Both abandonment rates are well above the historical averages of six percent for Kansas and 55 percent in Texas over the past 10 years. They are also well above the rate of abandonment predicted by agriculture analytics firm Gro Intelligence of eight percent in Kansas and 60 percent in Texas.

The punishing conditions the countrys hard red winter wheat have been in are underlined by the USDAs crop conditions report. In Kansas, only 11 percent of the crop is in good-to-excellent condition, far below the 38 percent five-year average. Hard red winter wheat in Texas, Nebraska and Oklahoma arent much better at 20 percent, 12 percent and seven percent, respectively.

Wheat futures rising as analysts predict more trouble for crops

The USDA warned that the high rate of abandonment will drag American wheat supplies to levels lower than analysts were expecting. Levels are expected to fall to their lowest in 16 years.

This will keep domestic prices elevated and lead to more wheat imports from rival producers in countries like Canada and Argentina.

Concerns about tight U.S. wheat supplies and ongoing troubles in the Black Sea caused by the Russian special military operation in Ukraine are causing wheat futures to rise.

Futures for hard red winter wheat, the staple variety grown in drought-stricken states like Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, surged by nearly seven percent following the release of the USDAs data. This is the biggest intraday gain for the most-active contract since October 2022.

Learn more about the threats to Americas food supply at FoodSupply.news.

Watch this episode of Brighteon Broadcast News as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, interviews Jim Gale as to how growing food can protect families against food collapse.

This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

EPA approves chlormequat chloride pesticide for wheat, barley and oat crops, putting human and mammalian reproduction at risk.

Food insecurity a growing problem in US  America turning into a third-world country.

According to the globalists, we are one crop failure away from food system meltdown  new consumables added to the shortage and/or inflation list.

Alarming new numbers show why countless Americans will starve to death in the years ahead with one retailer who cant afford to sell eggs anymore.

David DuByne warns: Forced rationing of food and fuel already happening via excess consumption programs  Brighteon.TV.

Sources include:

Finance.Yahoo.com

WSJ.com

FarmPolicyNews.Illinois.edu

FoodBusinessNews.net

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) For Breitbart News John Nolte, the report from special counsel John Durham dropped earlier this week has proven two things: First is that the FBI is a den of traitors, a branch of the Democrat party that sought a coup against a sitting president; and second is that nothing can be done about it.

Hes spot-on, of course. Whatever the FBI once was or was envisioned to be, those days are long gone. When the bureau isnt entrapping American citizens into crimes they otherwise would not have committed, they are being used as a Stasi or Gestapo agency to protect the left-wing, anti-America-as-founded deep state and keep them in power.

Nolte predicts, accurately:

No one will be punished. Instead, Jake Tapper (D-Election Meddler) will continue to shave Rep. Adam Schiffs (D-Liar) back live on CNN. Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey will continue to have a hundred-million-dollar miniseries produced to celebrate his integrity.

He then points out why the FBI continues to exist in its current form, and how its able to do so:

The godless left and its media enablers are only about one thing: obtaining and holding power, which means that anything that has to be done to meet that goal is moral. Opening the border to mass deaths, drug runners, and sex trafficking is moral. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, the CIA, FBI, and corporate media conspiring to manufacture a hoax is moral. The destruction of Americas cities is moral. Murdering a healthy baby that survived an abortion attempt is moral. Destroying children with gay porn, adult sexualization, and permanent mutilating surgeries is moral. Spying on a presidential campaign using rigged warrants is moral.

The FBI is a cancer that must be removed. Nothing will be done to hold the FBI accountable in D.C., so whatever is possible at the local level should and must be done, Nolte writes.

The FBI sought to remove a duly elected president. Never forget that; I do not want to hear about the good ones. The good ones would resign, he added.

Nolte is far from the only one who believes the FBI ought to go away in its current form.

The Russia-collusion hoax was concocted and brought to life only because the most powerful people in the U.S. intelligence and law enforcement community wanted an excuse to weaponize the federal government against Donald Trump, explained John Daniel Davidson in The Federalist. They didnt want him to be president, simple as that. It didnt matter to them what voters wanted; they thought they knew better. So they felt any abuse of power was justified in preventing Trump from winning the White House.

Davidson noted further, It means, too, that it would be better if we had no FBI at all than the corrupt agency we have now, which sees fit to traffic in actual disinformation, spread conspiracy theories, and throttle the democratic process whenever a candidate comes along who threatens the status quo. Thats the real lesson of the Durham report, and we ignore it at our peril.

The big takeaway from the report is that the Obama-era FBI launched a full investigation of the Trump campaign, codenamed Crossfire Hurricane, in the summer of 2016 despite having zero evidence of any collusion between Trump and Russia.

He added, Not only that, but officials at the highest levels of the U.S. government, including President Obama, knew that the entire false narrative that Trump was colluding with Moscow was completely made up by the Clinton campaign in an effort to weaponize the federal government against Trump and distract from Hillary Clintons own email server scandal.

The FBI has outlived its usefulness because the agency has been turned into the federal governments political enforcer by the leftist deep state.

Sources include:

TheFederalist.com

Breitbart.com
(Natural News) Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk tweeted Tuesday that the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) should drop the A from its name after it accused him of antisemitism for criticizing left-wing billionaire George Soros.

(Article by Joel B. Pollak republished from Breitbart.com)

ADL should just drop the A  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2023

Soros, one of the most important political donors on the left, is technically Jewish, though he is not active in Jewish organizations  aside from radical groups like J Street, which opposes Israeli policies.

His role is very controversial: he has funded dozens of radical prosecutors nationwide, for example, who have pursued policies of criminal justice reform that have coincided with a shocking rise in violent crime in many American cities.

Musk had been involved in a Twitter debate about Soross role in funding radical prosecutors. At one point, Musk tweeted that Soros hates humanity. He also compared him to the fictional character Magneto, a villain in the X-Men comic book series who draws on his experiences as a Holocaust survivor to motivate his hatred for humanity. (Soros survived the Holocaust as a boy; he witnessed the confiscation of Jewish property.)

Soros figured out a clever arbitrage opportunity: The many small political contests, such as DAs & judges, have much higher impact per dollar spent than the big races, so it is far easier to sway the outcome.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 18, 2023

Soros reminds me of Magneto  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2023

You assume they are good intentions. They are not. He wants to erode the very fabric of civilization. Soros hates humanity.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2023

Perfectly said. Among other things, Soros astutely identified a massive arbitrage opportunity in district attorney elections, where a relatively small amount of money has outsized influence. Soross instructions to his pet prosecutors were (essentially) to minimize prosecuting  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 17, 2023

Muskss comments triggered a wide range of responses  from antisemitic trolls who seize on Soros as the center of their Jewish conspiracy theories, to left-wing critics who accused him of fomenting antisemitism.

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt criticized Musk, as the Times of Israel notes:

Musks tweet came after ADLs CEO Jonathan Greenblatt criticized Musks remarks about Soros, marking the latest chapter in the roller-coaster relationship between the ADL and the Twitter CEO. When Musk was poised to buy the social media platform, Greenblatt praised him. But in the months since that acquisition, the ADL has been increasingly critical of Musk, accusing him of taking a lax attitude toward policing hate speech.

Another response came from an official at the Israeli foreign ministry, who faulted Musk for provoking antisemitic trolls and for doing nothing about the problem:

The Jews is trending right now on #Twitter and its filled with AntiSemitic conspiracies and hate speech targeting Jews around the world. Unfortunately Twitter does nothing to address this problem. It reminds me of Niemollers words which are prominently featured on a wall of pic.twitter.com/igT3RsrViq  David Saranga (@DavidSaranga) May 16, 2023

However, the Israeli government has itself been critical of Soros in the past. In 2018, then-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Soros of funding efforts to stop Israel from deporting illegal immigrants.

Some pro-Israel Jewish commentators came to Musks defense:

@elonmusk: #GeorgeSoros is one of Israels greatest foes on the progressive left. He funds every sort of political warfare and lawfare against Israels right to exist and to assert its sovereignty, just as he funds similar efforts in the U.S. and Europe.

To be clear, some attacks  Caroline Glick (@CarolineGlick) May 17, 2023

As Breitbart News has noted, some attacks on Soros are indeed antisemitic  but some are legitimate, and false accusations of antisemitism attempt to silence that criticism.

The ADL was formed to protect Jews against discrimination, and also to advocate for civil rights in general.

The ADL has moved to the left in the years since Jonathan Greenblatt, a former Obama administration official, has led it.

In recent years, the ADL has pushed for more censorship on social media platforms, joining a broader left-wing campaign to push Facebook and other companies to block advertising from groups that it deems to be hateful.

Musks comment is not original; conservative radio host Mark Levin, a pro-Israel Jewish lawyer and author, has made a similar comment about the ADLs recent tendency to defame people on the right.

Read more at: Breitbart.com
(Natural News) An FBI surveillance contractor infiltrated the chatrooms of two airline industry groups opposed to vaccine mandates to collect intelligence on the groups organizing activities, investigative journalist Lee Fang reported.

(Article by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D. republished from ChildrensHealthDefense.org)

The contractor, Flashpoint, which in the past infiltrated Islamic terror groups, now focuses on anti-vaccine groups and other domestic political organizations, according to Fang.

In a webinar presentation for clients last year, which Fang analyzed on his Substack, Flashpoint analyst Vlad Cuiujuclu demonstrated his companys methods for identifying and entering encrypted Telegram chat groups.

He explained how the company attempted to join chatrooms of transportation workers resisting the COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Fang described the presentation:

In this case, were searching for a closed channel of U.S. Freedom Flyers, said Cuiujuclu. Its basically a group that opposed vaccination and masks.

As he clicked through a database, Cuiujuclu showed a chat group on Telegram sponsored by Airline Professionals For Justice, another group formed by airline industry workers opposed to the mandate. The forum, he added, provided useful insights, including Zoom links for meetings of the grassroots organization.

Private chats, said Cuiujuclu, require for you to have an invite link, which he noted can often either be found by scrolling through public forums or by engag[ing] the admin of that channel.

Flashpoint also offers clients artificial intelligence and internet scraping tools.

According to Fang, the firm is a leader in the threat intelligence industry, a growing number of security and surveillance firms that create fake online identities to infiltrate Discord chats, WhatsApp groups, Reddit forums and dark web message boards to gather information for clients, including corporations and the FBI, to monitor potential threats.

Joshua Yoder, president of US Freedom Flyers, said he is aware that Flashpoint infiltrated private chat groups associated with his organization.

Yoder told The Defender:

Tradecraft and other strategies are often used to gain inside knowledge of conservative organizations with the intent to disrupt, mislead and otherwise thwart effective campaigns.

Infiltration is a tactic used by the deep state to prevent the truth from being told by attempting to destroy the advancement of the message. The team at US Freedom Flyers has been successful in recognizing these attacks and we have taken decisive actions to protect the organization and our members.

Aviation industry workers were some of the most vocal and organized against COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

They wrote an open letter to the aviation industry signed by thousands of organizations, physicians and pilots. They also organized research on the risks of vaccines for pilots, spoke publicly about the culture of fear and intimidation around the mandates in the industry, and filed multiple lawsuits in Canada, the Netherlands, and the U.S.

US Freedom Flyers brought a lawsuit against Atlas Air, one of the largest air cargo carriers in the aviation industry, in May 2022.

Fang told The Defender the targeting of American citizens resisting the vaccine mandates fits into a long history of surveillance being used to subvert democracy. He said:

There is a long sordid history of informants and surveillance contractors working to undermine democratic engagement in this country.

The push against regular citizens opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates has come in many forms: censorship, demonization and in this case, surveillance.

The growing market for spying on domestic dissent

Flashpoint advertises its surveillance success on its website, providing examples of its work undermining environmental activism, G20 protests and protests against the aviation industry.

The webpages describing these activities were taken down after Fang published his investigation, but they can be found on the Wayback Machine internet archive.

For example, Flashpoint described its capacity to monitor activists organizing against pollution and the aviation industry. The website said:

By monitoring the situation and assessing tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), Flashpoint was able to assess the impact of upcoming protests, and determine that these groups would likely continue to protest and attempt to impede airport construction and expansion projects through direct action. 

Based on this information, Flashpoint customers were able to take actions to help control the impact to business operations, and to ensure the safety of their employees and facilities as well as the safety of those protesting.

Flashpoint was founded by Evan Kohlmann, former NBC News contributor who investigated Islamic terror groups and whom The Intercept described as the U.S. governments go-to expert witness in terrorism prosecutions.

Jack Poulson of Tech Inquiry, a group that researches the surveillance industry, told Fang that Flashpoint has been selling its chatroom infiltration services to companies and governments for years.

But, he said, it has shifted its focus from surveilling Muslims after September 11 and followed the money into both the Pentagons information warfare programs and the business of monitoring domestic protest groups.

Last year, Flashpoint acquired Echosec Systems, another intelligence contractor, and last month it formalized a partnership with Google Cloud.

These acquisitions come in addition to a steady stream of contracts to Flashpoint in recent years from the FBI, the Department of Defense, Treasury Department, and Department of Homeland Security, among other agencies, Fang wrote.

Fang also spoke to Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine at Stanford University, research associate at the National Bureau of Economics Research and one of the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration.

Bhattacharya said:

This kind of domestic spying violates the implicit protection Americans have in these kinds of settings.

This isnt terrorism, this doesnt have anything to do with national security.

This is a private set of employees, workers who are trying to maintain their jobs in the face of unscientific demands for COVID vaccinations.

Read more at: ChildrensHealthDefense.org
(Natural News) Back in March 2017, President Trump tweeted about Barack Obamas illegal spying on his presidential campaign in 2016.

POTUS Trump tweeted this in March 2017.

(Article by Jim Hoft republished from TheGatewayPundit.com)

How low has President Obama gone to tap my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017

The tweet sent shockwaves across the fake news media. Hack reporters screeched in horror. They were outraged that President Trump would dare make such an accusation.

We now know that at this same time, corrupt leaders in the DOJ and criminals in the FBI were already spying on Trump.

The Gateway Pundit at the time was already reporting on early proof of the regimes spying on Trump.

Conservatives Are Looking For Ways To Boycott and Move Spending Away From Woke Corporations  Here Is One Way To Do It

Then in October 2020, just weeks before the 2020 presidential election, Lesley Stahl held an interview with President Donald Trump on 60 Minutes in a last-ditch attempt to swing the election to basement Biden.

During the interview, Lesley Stahl stopped the interview to lash out at and lecture President Trump, something the far-left hacks NEVER do to Democrats. They dont hide their visceral hatred for Trump and his voters and never have.

Stahl sneered at President Trump that there was no spying on his campaign or his administration. She did not even try to hide her disdain for the sitting President.

Now we know for certain that President Trump was telling the truth. Trump told the truth in 2017. Trump told the truth in 2020.

And this weekend we found out that Hillary and the Democrats were spying on the Trump Tower servers and later on the Trump White House servers.

And this week the John Durham Report revealed that the FBI and DOJ were spying on Trump during his first three years as President. Hillary Clinton was behind the conspiracy. Barack Obama and Joe Biden and top Democrats knew about this fraudulent conspiracy from the beginning. They all approved it.

The mainstream media happily spread the lies.

So will vicious leftist Lesley Stahl apologize? Or will 60 Minutes continue to lie to their audience?

Read more at: TheGatewayPundit.com
Further evidence of the innovation the Internet of Things (IoT) can enable comes from elevator and escalator manufacturing, installation and service company Otis Worldwide Corporation, which has announced the launch of its new Otis ONE IoT service platform in the Middle East.

The company says that the new smart solution combines its more than 30 years of remote monitoring experience with the latest in cloud technology, machine learning and IoT.

The solution provides transparent, real-time monitoring to customers and service professionals and can proactively identify and addresses potential issues to keep elevators and escalators running, and  in the event of a shutdown  resume service faster. It is now available in the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Powered by sensors installed on the elevators and escalators, the Otis ONE solution continuously monitors performance and can notify maintenance teams of their condition. Often, issues can be resolved remotely and before a breakdown.

If technicians need to be dispatched on site, they can access fault information and the parts needed for repair in advance, making it possible to quickly and effectively return the elevator to service.

The Otis ONE solution also powers an eView display on an in-car screen. In the event of a technical breakdown, the screen can turn into a video connection between the passengers in the elevator car and Otis experts at the Otisline customer centre.
(Natural News) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is planning to blow up the Druzhba oil pipeline connecting Russia and Hungary, according to leaked documents.

Angeline Tan of the New American magazine elaborated on the plot, which was revealed by leaked files from the U.S. Department of Defense. She remarked that the Ukrainian leader had plotted the pipelines destruction with top government officials behind closed doors. Doing so would have crippled Hungarian infrastructure, which mainly depends on Russian crude oil.

Zelensky made the suggestion during a February meeting with Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko. Ukraine should just blow up the pipeline and likely destroy Hungarian [Prime Minister] Viktor Orbans industry, which is based heavily on Russian oil, Zelensky said at the time.

First constructed in the 1960s, the Druzhba pipeline supplies oil from Russia to various nations in eastern, central and western Europe  including Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany. Data from Moscow noted that the pipeline supplied 4.9 million metric tons of oil to Hungary in 2022. (Related: Hungary, Serbia building pipeline for Russian oil and gas to dodge EU sanctions.)

Zoltan Kovacs, Hungarian secretary of state for public diplomacy and relations, reacted to the revelation. He tweeted whether it was possible that Ukraine is plotting against a NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] country, pertaining to Budapest. Hungary joined NATO in 1999.

Hungarian security analyst Peter Tarjanyi had strong words against Zelenskys suggestion, calling it a very unfriendly, mistaken and stupid move. He elaborated: [While] Ukraine does not like many Hungarian government actions and communications, this does not justify such a plan or idea. Hungary has helped hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees over the past 15 months, despite all the differences of opinion.

Given Hungarys NATO membership, the security analyst called on Kyiv to explain itself very quickly. He continued: The main question is: Why did [Zelensky] think that such a plan could be justified? Why did he think he could risk NATO support by launching such an attack?

Kyiv antagonizing Budapest for its level-headed approach

Since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022, Hungary has approached the issue of Russian oil in a level-headed manner. Aware of the difficulties of penalizing a major provider of energy, Budapest trudged lightly over its responses to Moscow. This incensed Kyiv, which considers Orbans rational response tantamount to collaboration with Russia.

It even came to a point where Ukraine declared the Hungarian leader an enemy of the state. In May 2022, the Rio Times reported that Orbans name is officially listed on the Myrotvorets website. Operated by the Security Services of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the website serves as an unofficial hit list of personalities that have drawn the ire of Kyiv.

The website described Orban as an accomplice of Russian war criminals and an anti-Ukrainian propagandist. It also pointed out his general cooperation with the Russian aggressor, his participation in humanitarian aggression against Ukraine and his role as an accomplice in the crimes of the Russian authorities against Ukraine and its citizens.

Myrotvorets also accused Orban of specific crimes such as his refusal to allow Ukraine-bound weapons to pass through Hungary, his refusal to reject Russian gas supplies and his willingness to pay for the latter in rubles.

Moreover, the site also referenced Orbans April 2022 statement pertaining to the forces the country has to face to remain independent. Orban enumerated these threats  namely the local opposition, the bureaucrats in Brussels, money and institutes of the [George] Soros empire, international media and the Ukrainian president.

Watch Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky forcing Hungary to choose a side to support in the Russia-Ukraine war below.

This video is from the pax hominibus bonae voluntatis channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Hungarian foreign minister warns: Rejecting energy from Russia could lead to EUs systemic collapse as winter approaches.

Austria, Hungary agree NOT to send any weapons to Ukraine (perhaps they wish to avoid being destroyed by Russia.)

Hungarian official: Pro-war EU wants Ukraine conflict to continue.

No more! European countries call for end to Ukraine funding.

Hungary says no to EUs Russian oil embargo sanction.

Sources include:

TheNewAmerican.com

RioTimesOnline.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Author Salman Rushdie is sounding off about censorship among book publishers, calling attempts to make books in the James Bond series politically correct almost comical and warning that free expression is under threat.

Speaking in a video message at the British Book Awards this week, the Booker Prize winner said that freedom of expression has never been under as big of a threat as it is facing now in Western countries, although this has long been an issue elsewhere.

Obviously, there are parts of the world where censorship has been prevalent for a long time. Quite a lot of the world: Russia, China, in some ways, India as well. But in the countries of the West, until recently, there was a fair measure of freedom in the area of publishing, he noted.

Now, I mean, sitting here in the United States, I have to look at the extraordinary attack on libraries and books for children in schools  the attack on the idea of libraries themselves, he added.

He said that publishers who change old books to protect modern readers from feeling offended are making a mistake, pointing out that readers who are overly sensitive can simply choose to read something else.

The 75-year-old Indian-born British-American author lamented the fact that publishers are seeking to bowdlerize the works of popular authors like Ian Fleming and Roald Dahl to remove language that some people might find offensive.

For example, classic childrens books like Dahls Matilda were stripped of certain terms, such as ugly and fat He said these moves are absurd censorship, and the publisher eventually agreed to print the original versions alongside the updated ones following public criticism.

Meanwhile, negative language referring to African criminals has been removed from James Bond books, and publishers are enlisting the services of sensitivity readers to flag language that could be considered problematic in books.

Rushdie noted: The idea that James Bond could be made politically correct is almost comical. I think that has to be resisted.

He maintains that books should reflect their time, stating: I think this has to be resisted. Books have to come to us from their time and be of their time, and if thats difficult for you to take, dont read them, read another book. But dont try to remake yesterdays work in the light of todays attitudes.

A report by PEN America found that public school book bans are on the rise, and nearly a third are directly related to new state laws. Some of the classic works that have been banned or challenged in recent years include Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird, John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath, and 1984 by George Orwell.

Freedom of expression has long been an important cause for Rushdie

Rushdie is no stranger to threats to freedom of expression. He has long been the subject of death threats related to one of his most famous works, The Satanic Verses, as some adherents of Islam considered its depiction of their religion blasphemous. Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for the author and his collaborators to be murdered in 1989; it remains in effect today. A $3 million bounty was also placed on his head, prompting him to go into hiding with police protection for nearly a decade after the book was published.

Last year, he needed emergency surgery after being stabbed multiple times on stage ahead of a scheduled lecture in New York; the attack left him without eyesight in one of his eyes and with nerve damage in his hand. Hadi Matar, his alleged assailant, has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and assault.

Sources for this article include:

RT.com

LATimes.com

Edition.CNN.com
(Natural News) Judicial Watch Chairman Tom Fitton joined Stuart Varney on Wednesday morning to discuss the explosive John Durham Report.

(Article by Jim Hoft republished from TheGatewayPundit.com)

Tom told Stuart Varney the Trump-Russia collusion hoax was invented by Hillary Clinton to keep her out of jail for her crimes.

Tom Fitton: The Obama administration had good reason to know that the leads they were supposedly chasing about Russia Collusion were all made up by Hillary to keep herself out of jail.

Stuart Varney: Was it an obvious hoax right from the start? Wasnt it an obvious hoax right from the start?

Tom Fitton: It was. And the Durham report reconfirms it, because we knew this already, that no matter where they looked, they couldnt find Russia collusion, and they had been spying in the early part of 2016. They couldnt find anything. The Steele Dossiers were coming in. They couldnt verify anything in the Steel Dossiers. But they never stopped targeting Trump, which shows that it was always about politics and never about national security. And we had this election intervention like weve never seen before. Richard Nixon must be shaking his head, thinking, they moved me out of the White House for much less.
(Natural News) Vice Media, the parent company of the left-wing mainstream online news outlet VICE News, has finally filed for bankruptcy after suffering years of financial difficulties. Its assets will be sold to a group of companies, including George Soros private investment firm.

This comes nearly two weeks after reports came out that Vice was considering filing for bankruptcy due to its inability to make enough profits to pay off its debtors. (Related: Parent company of left-wing news site Vice to file for BANKRUPTCY.)

The bankruptcy filing also comes weeks after Vice Media attempted cost-cutting measures to survive in a weaker market, especially for digital media companies that rely on advertising.

Vice Media, whose assets include VICE News, Vice TV, the tech and science-focused online magazine Motherboard and the women-oriented digital media platform Refinery29, agreed to sell all of its assets to a consortium that includes Fortress Investment Group, Monroe Capital and Soros Fund Management (SFM)  the private investment firm of Soros, a Hungarian-American left-wing billionaire.

SFM was founded and is currently chaired by Soros. The firm also acts as the principal asset manager of the Open Society Foundations, a grant-making organization that bankrolls liberal groups worldwide.

Vice reached an agreement to sell its assets to these firms for a paltry sum of $225 million in a credit bid as well as assuming Vice Medias significant liabilities.

Under a credit bid, creditors can pay Vice Media for its assets with their secured debts rather than in cash, meaning that Vice Media wont even get the full $225 million it was able to bargain for.

Vice Media listed both its assets and liabilities in the range of $500 million to $1 billion. It was hoping for a sale price of $1.5 billion. A significant portion of the companys international holdings was not part of Vice Medias bankruptcy filing, and their fate following the conclusion of these proceedings remains unclear.

Creditors are taking it [Vice Media] over at a steep discount and we will find out whether they can become viable with a much slimmer capital structure coming out of bankruptcy, said Thomas Hayes, chairman at investment firm Great Hill Capital.

Vice Media to continue operating with smaller budget and workforce at conclusion of deal

In a statement, Vice Media said it expects to emerge as a financially healthy and stronger company at the conclusion of the sale and the bankruptcy proceedings.

The conglomerate of investment firms taking over Vice Media will be providing Vice with over $20 million in cash, which the media outlet said will be more than sufficient to fund its operations through the sale process.

Vice Media Co-Chief Executive Officers Bruce Dixon and Hozefa Lokhandwala further claimed that, at the conclusion of the sale, what is left of the company will come out stronger and better geared for healthy long-term growth.

This accelerated court-supervised sale process will strengthen the company and position Vice for long-term growth, they said in a statement. We will have new ownership, a simplified capital structure and the ability to operate without the legacy liabilities that have been burdening our business.

In the late 2000s and early 2010s, Vice was among a group of fast-rising digital media ventures that were able to court millennial and young Gen X audiences, leading to rich valuations.

At its peak in 2017, Vice Media was valued at over $5.7 billion, as it promised to rapidly expand its audience by tapping into the media habits of a global, more internet-savvy youth audience.

This attracted the attention of media giants like Disney and Rupert Murdoch. The former even extended an offer to Vice Media to purchase it for $3 billion in 2015, which was denied. Disney wrote off its $400 million investment in Vice Media as worthless in 2019, following two years of failing to meet growth expectations.

Learn more about left-wing mainstream media outlets at NewsCartels.com.

Watch this clip from The Talking Hedge that talks about Hungarian-American left-wing billionaire George Soros plans to take over Vice Media.

This video is from the channel The Talking Hedge on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Oklahoma county officials caught on secret audio recording talking about torturing, murdering local reporters.

Three out of five Americans say corporate media to blame for spreading misinformation.

Left-wing FAKE NEWS BuzzFeed News shuts down after running out of money.

Fox News settles defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems as conservatives continue to suffer from other media outlets.

BuzzFeed has used artificial intelligence to write over 40 articles.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

Axios.com

Reuters.com

TheGuardian.com

DailyCaller.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Illegal aliens at the U.S.-Mexico border are being dissuaded from entering through verbal warnings and barbed wire set up by members of the Texas National Guard (TNG).

A group of 15 border crossers were among those discouraged from stepping into the United States. They crossed a shallow river back to Mexico after waiting for hours on the American side of the border, with the expectation that Texas guardsmen would let them in. The group was among the first ones trying to enter the U.S. illegally after the Title 42 order ended on May 11.

Please go back to Mexico, a guardsman told the group while they were at the north of the Rio Grande River that bisects El Paso in Texas and Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. Another guardsman warned immigrants that if they came closer to the U.S. border, they would be deported and banned from applying for five years.

Meanwhile, two dozen National Guard troops immediately began stretching coils of barbed wire across the cement base of the El Paso-Ciudad Juarez bridge where the migrants had been. (Related: Sheriff Benny Martinez calls for US-Mexico border to be SHUT DOWN and SECURED  Brighteon.TV.)

As the group of 15 would-be border crossers lumbered up the sandy, trash-cluttered riverbank into Mexico, a Guatemalan man said the TNG troops had been clear that its not in the migrants best interest to be here.

Under the Title 42 policy, U.S. authorities could instantly drive away immigrants without giving them an opportunity to ask for asylum. The rule first announced by former President Donald Trump permitted instant deportations on the grounds of preventing the spread of communicable diseases, in this case the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

Mayorkas, Biden unaware of the real situation at the border

But since Title 42s expiry, there were already several occasions where U.S. authorities told illegal immigrants wanting to enter that they needed to book appointments through the American governments CBP One app. These illegals included Venezuelans, Cubans, Colombians and Mexicans.

In one instance, a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer told a Colombian family of six that came at a port of entry to El Paso, Texas that they should have an appointment. There are a lot of people ahead of you; we cant have you jump the line, the officer said.

CBP said it is currently giving priority to immigrants with appointments to simplify processing in the aftermath of Title 42s expiration.

Despite these, officials at the White House are unaware of the real extent of the situation at the border. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas claimed on May 14 that the number of illegal aliens crossing the border dropped by half since the end of Title 42 compared to the days prior.

According to Mayorkas, there were 6,300 border encounters on May 12 and 4,200 on May 13. He warned, however, that it is still early and these numbers could increase as the days pass. The homeland security secretary attributed this fall to criminal penalties for illegal immigrants that continued despite Title 42s expiry.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden remarked that the border situation was much better than you all expected. He also reiterated that he has no plans to visit the border in the near future, apparently afraid of seeing firsthand the consequences of his open border policies.

Watch this clip of illegal aliens at the southern border of Mexico attempting to break through the cordons of law enforcement.

This video is from the Cynthias Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Mexico-based cartels gearing up to flood America with up to one million illegal aliens after Biden opens the border by dropping Title 42.

STAGING FOR THE INVASION: Migrants from around the world are FLYING to Americas southern border to enter illegally after Title 42 expires.

PLANNED OCCUPATION: Biden regime ensuring that illegal migrants released into American interior will never come back for asylum hearing.

El Paso mayor declares state of emergency as city braces for influx of illegal aliens once Title 42 expires.

Sources include:

Yahoo.com

TodayOnline.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) President Joe Biden, the man who claimed during his 2020 campaign that he would unite our country, once again fanned the flames of racial and political division during a highly inflammatory speech at Howard University in Washington, D.C. over the weekend, during which he falsely claimed that white supremacy is the most dangerous terrorist threat to our homeland.

The following day, Homeland Security Secretary and failed Disinformation Governance Board overlord Alejandro Mayorkas agreed with Biden, again falsely claiming that domestic violent extremism is our greatest threat right now.

It tragically is. And the terrorism context, domestic violent extremism is our greatest threat right now. Individuals are driven to violence because of ideologies of hate, anti-government sentiment, false narratives, personal grievances. Regrettably, we have seen a rise in white supremacy. The principle underlying our work is that when one community is targeted, Jonathan, when one community is targeted, we as a country are targeted, he lied.

At Howard, Biden said: But on the best days, enough of us have the guts and the hearts to st  to stand up for the best in us. To choose love over hate, unity over disunion, progress over retreat. To stand up against the poison of white supremacy, as I did in my Inaugural Address  to single it out as the most dangerous terrorist threat to our homeland is white supremacy. And Im not saying this because Im at a black HBCU. I say it wherever I go.

Black HBCU is repetitive; HBCU stands for Historically Black College or University. And for the record, it was Donald Trump who, as president, signed bipartisan legislation that permanently provided historic funding for HCBUs. In fact, he restored the funding.

Nevertheless, the Divisive Party  Democrats, the party that historically has been the most racist  continues to repeat the lie that white Americans, and particularly white conservatives, are a threat to our democracy, which demonizes them and essentially gives leftists permission to be violent toward them, in order to protect the country.

Why? Whats the end game here?

Robert Spencer, the director of Jihad Watch and a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, has an answer.

This regime aims to criminalize political dissent, and that will require demonizing and stigmatizing fully half of the electorate. It is increasingly clear that when Biden claims that white supremacists are the biggest terror threat the nation faces, he means ordinary Americans who have never broken any law but who oppose his agenda, he wrote at PJ Media this week.

If everyone who opposes him is a white supremacist terrorist, then the nation has over a hundred million of them. Arrests and prosecutions on false pretenses will follow. Thats the threat that was contained in his words at Howard, Spencer continued.

He also posted an example of a psyop the regime is using in order to further convince more Americans of the lie:

And ever so conveniently for Old Joe, no sooner had he uttered this false claim again at Howard on Saturday than a couple of hundred actual white supremacist terrorists miraculously materialized in Washington. All were young, physically fit men; not a single fat Nazi in the bunch. All wore the same blue shirt and khaki pants uniform, all with their faces covered, and once again, the feds showed no curiosity about who they are and made no attempt to determine where they came from or where they went.

This clumsy false-flag operation was widely exposed and ridiculed on Twitter, but conservative writer Chris Brunet pointed out: Whats sad about this clip is that everyone here on my side of Twitter instantly knows this is a glowie/fed operation pure theatre. But it is actually a really effective psyop, they keep doing it, because it works. Ask any normal person on the street, ask your mom, ask your sister, and they will be terrified of this clip and fall for it hook-line-and-sinker.

Sources include:

PJMedia.com

APNews.com
(Natural News) Some 3,000 farms across The Netherlands are on the governments chopping block.

As part of the Dutch governments mission to eradicate global warming and climate change, it is threatening to seize these 3,000 farms if their owners refuse to accept a proposed buyout.

In an effort to be fair, the Dutch government is offering the landowners 120 percent more fiat money than their land is worth at market prices, but many of them are not interested in cash and would prefer to keep their land.

This is not an option, though. And many farmers and their families are crying at the kitchen table every day while others contemplate suicide as they face the reality of losing their livelihoods at the hands of a rogue bureaucracy.

(Related: You can learn more about the Dutch farmer protests from our earlier coverage.)

Dutch government baited farmers into creating bigger farms only to later pull the rug on them

Many of the Dutch farmers who are being forced to sell or die were lured into buying their farms by the very government that is now taking it all away by force.

The Dutch government, in conjunction with big banks, developed a comprehensive plan to expand Dutch farms, encouraging farmers to expand and create larger farms by purchasing their neighbors properties.

They wanted the farms to scale up their businesses, one report explains. And now, suddenly the policy is to make smaller farmers. This is also the EU policy.

Then, you add nitrogen regulations. These farmers now have these huge farms, which means big debts, huge debts, because they had to invest. And now, the government comes up with the idea that they have this nitrogen problem, and farms need to close or be reduced in size.

The banks turn around and say, then your business  because a farm is really a business  is only worth 50 percent compared to yesterday. So these people have huge debts. They are captured in a system that they never asked for. They followed the rules, and now they are pushed in a direction that is really desperate for them.

What is a Dutch farmer to do under these circumstances? That is a question many of them are now asking themselves, which is why there are a lot of tears and a growing number of tragic deaths as landowners, some of whom have been passing down their farms for many generations, are running out of hope.

Chances are that most farmers will take the money rather than have their farms seized by force. This is the kind of tyranny the flourishes once globalists take over a nation or continent and intentionally drive it into the ground for their own gain.

Keep in mind that The Netherlands, despite its small size, is the worlds second-largest producer of food behind the United States. Many other countries rely on Dutch food exports, which will dwindle once the globalists have their way with Dutch farms.

The only good news in all this is that the farmer-citizen movement in The Netherlands was so strong last election that it saw a landline win. Perhaps headway can be made in fighting back against the globalists and saving The Netherlands from total destruction.

They keep the people stupid and the government makes them work, one man from The Netherlands who is fighting back against globalist tyranny wrote in an article for REMIX. Thats how the system works.

Man-made global warming is a farce that the powers that be are using as a cover story to eliminate all human freedoms and liberties. To learn more, visit GreenTyranny.news.

Sources for this article include:

RMX.news

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) In what would otherwise be impossible without American tax dollars, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been busy infiltrating private chatrooms comprised of people who oppose Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine mandates in order to disrupt their conversations and redirect the narrative.

The FBI reportedly hired a private contractor called Flashpoint to do this dirty work as part of a massive government-led effort to stop airline industry workers and others from rising up against the mandates, investigative journalist Lee Fang recently discovered.

Flashpoint analyst Vlad Cuiujuclu held a webinar presentation that Fang obtained a copy of. In it, Cuiujuclu discusses his companys methods of infiltration and redirection in private Telegram chat groups devoted to resistance against experimental covid drugs.

In this case, were searching for a closed channel of U.S. Freedom Flyers, Cuiujuclu stated during one portion of the webinar. Its basically a group that opposed vaccination and masks.

(Related: The FBI also grooms mentally unstable people to become mass shooters so the government can call for abolishing the Second Amendment as the solution.)

Covid spawned a whole new threat intelligence industry that aims to quell all online free speech

As you will recall, the airline industry was hit especially hard by covid tyranny, which forced all workers to not only mask up at all times but also get injected with experimental covid drugs in order to remain employed.

Many airline industry workers were upset about this, as you might imagine, prompting them to form support groups, if you will, for discussing strategies to overcome the egregious mandates.

Because private Telegram chats require an invite link in order to join, the FBI tasked Flashpoint with tricking the groups moderators and administrators into accepting them.

Flashpoint, Fang warns, is one of the leading companies in what has come to be known as the threat intelligence industry. This industry, he explains, works to create fake online identities for federal agents to infiltrate not only Telegram chatrooms but also Discord chats, WhatsApp groups, Reddit forums, and even so-called dark web message boards.

The intelligence collected from this infiltration is then relayed back to the mother ship, in this case is the FBI, so it can be dealt with.

Joshua Yoder, the president of U.S. Freedom Flyers, told The Defender that he is well aware of the fact that Flashpoint infiltrated his groups private chatrooms on Telegram.

Tradecraft and other strategies are often used to gain inside knowledge of conservative organizations with the intent to disrupt, mislead and otherwise thwart effective campaigns, Yoder said.

Infiltration is a tactic used by the deep state to prevent the truth from being told by attempting to destroy the advancement of the message. The team at U.S. Freedom Flyers has been successful in recognizing these attacks and we have taken decisive actions to protect the organization and our members.

Aviation industry employees, including many pilots, wrote an open letter opposing the governments covid jab mandates. That letter was signed by thousands of not just pilots but also physicians and outside organizations that support medical freedom.

This open letter, which you can read here, highlights the particular risks of covid vaccination for pilots, who have a very important job to do at really high altitudes  meaning they cannot afford to potentially have a heart attack or stroke mid-flight because of the injections.

There is a long sordid history of informants and surveillance contractors working to undermine democratic engagement in this country, Fang told The Defender about what came next for these protesting airline workers.

The push against regular citizens opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates has come in many forms: censorship, demonization and in this case, surveillance.

The latest news about the corrupt FBI can be found at FBI.news.

Sources for this article include:

ChildrensHealthDefense.org

NaturalNews.com

GaaCoalition.substack.com
(Natural News) The real insurrection against America is being run by a rogue, unelected federal government that considers We the People to be its enemies. The Patriot Front group that marches around with white masks and American flags is obviously (almost comically) just a bunch of FBI agents and recruits dressed up as patriots, thereby projecting the appearances of a militant patriot group so that the FBI can continue to justify its own pathetic (corrupt) existence.

Note that Patriot Front group members are never arrested or charged with carrying out an insurrection. They are never even unmasked.

But when true patriots tried to peacefully stand against a rigged election on January 6th, they were arrested and charged with a litany of felony crimes in one of the most outrageous abuses of prosecutorial discretion this nation has ever witnessed. Thats why I have interviewed J6 victim John Strand in todays Brighteon Broadcast News (see below), and his story of being politically persecuted is an emergency wake up call for how far America has fallen from true freedom and justice.

Your government is RUNNING the domestic terrorism

Its now clear that the energy infrastructure explosions, power grid attacks and food infrastructure sabotage are all carried out by government-run black ops groups. The domestic terrorism taking place across America right now is being inflicted upon the American people by the government itself, and they are doing it to maintain power while declaring endless emergencies to grant themselves even more dictatorial control over our lives.

The next step is going to be the engineered currency collapse, likely followed by a financial catastrophe involving banks, businesses, real estate, pensions and more.

This is their recipe for tyranny: Cause chaos and use it to shore up even more power in the hands of the corrupt, authoritarian tyrants. They are also increasingly targeting free speech with their contrived disinformation units that demand the blacklisting and deplatforming of content channels, websites or personalities that the state despises.

The total destruction of human civilization is their goal

We are living under runaway tyranny, carried out by utterly evil, nefarious individuals who barely qualify as human. And their appetite for power and destruction can never be satiated. They will destroy, mutilate, terrorize and devastate our entire society if they remain in power, and they currently control the media, the federal government, Big Tech, Big Pharma, universities, pop culture and the banks, too. If you dont bow down to their sickening agendas  which now include celebrating the medical mutilations of young children  you will be cut off from banking, speech, careers and government-run licensure of any kind.

Their next big play? CBDCs. With full surveillance and control over your money, this will be the final nail in the coffin of human freedom.

Watch the full episode below to learn more:

 Why the FEDS are running the terror campaigns in America

 FBI contractor ran fake identities to infiltrate vaccine skeptics groups

 Fake news giant WashPost wont return Pulitzer awarded on fabricated news about Trump / Russia

 Top banks linked to Jeffrey Epsteins child trafficking, but they wont allow GUN purchase charges on credit cards

 Transgenders demand you READ THEIR MINDS to determine what pronoun they pretend to be today

 French author and feminist facing CRIMINAL charges for misgendering

 Full interview with J6 prosecutorial victim John Strand

 Full interview with Human Pharming documentary creator Adam Riva

Brighteon: Brighteon.com/3a1faffd-40f8-4439-871e-aad5120e09f1

Rumble: Rumble.com/v2ohnnk-bbn-may-18-2023-the-feds-are-the-insurrectionists-trying-to-overthrow-ameri.html

Bitchute: Bitchute.com/video/9Tt75SsQK4v2/

Banned.Video: Banned.video/watch?id=646643afa9ffe2a55aaf3663

iTunes podcast: Healthrangerreport.com/brighteon-broadcast-news-may-18-2023-the-feds-are-the-insurrectionists-trying-to-overthrow-america

Discover more interviews and podcasts each day at:

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(Natural News) Jeffrey InTheMatrixxx Pedersen and Shannon ShadyGrooove Townsend discussed the history of the American public education system during the May 15 episode of The Matrixxx Grooove Show on Brighteon.TV.

Pedersen opened the show by quoting former President and Founding Father Thomas Jefferson who said: An educated citizenry is vital for the requisite for our survival as a free people. He then played a video of supposedly educated Americans being asked about what they know about the country.

The program hosts were not impressed at all by the answers of the young Americans interviewed in the video. Pedersen said he would be severely disappointed as a parent after hearing the respondents answers. Townsend agreed, adding that the interviewees were grown American adults whose answers showed absolutely no idea or connection to their country.

ShadyGrooove remarked that he doubts if the American people know the history of their educational system. In reply, InTheMatrixxx shared that the U.S. public education system began when education reformer and erstwhile Massachusetts Rep. Horace Mann followed the Prussian model of education.

The Prussian model, which was developed in Germany, provided skills needed for the early industrialized world such as reading, writing and arithmetic. It also emphasized a strict education that taught duty, discipline, respect for authority and the ability to follow orders. (Related: Brainwashing Americas children through a warped, skewed, and perverted mainstream education.)

Prussian education model squeezes out independent thinking

Pedersen played a video about the Prussian model, which explained that its true purpose was to instill loyalty to the monarchy or government and train young men for either military or civil service. Elite children destined for higher offices attended private schools. Meanwhile, the rest of the population did not have access to secondary education and were destined to join the working class.

The video further revealed that the American education system based on the Prussian model is designed for the good of the government and not for the good of the people. Public schools squeezed out independent thinking from the masses and replaced it with obedience and conformity.

Moreover, the video said the Prussian model was influenced by philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte, who had a deep influence on the rise of Adolf Hitlers Third Reich. The founding father of German nationalism was also deemed the spiritual father of modern Neo-Nazism.

Education should aim at destroying free will so that after pupils are thus schooled, they will be incapable  throughout the rest of their lives  of thinking or acting otherwise than as their school masters would have wished, Fichte said. He noted that when this technique is perfected, every government in charge of education for more than one generation will be able to control their subjects without the need for armies or police.

Townsend pointed out that it was very interesting to recognize why Americans were put into camps and indoctrinated at a young age. He continued that children being constantly taught to memorize things instead of thinking critically was meant by design. Pedersen agreed, stating that the public education system has turned schools into indoctrination centers that dumb down American children.

Follow EducationSystem.news for more about the American public educational system.

Watch the May 15 episode of The Matrixxx Grooove Show below. The Matrixxx Grooove Show with Jeff and Shady airs every weekday at 12-1 p.m. on Brighteon.TV.

More related stories:

Matrixxx Grooove with Jeff and Shady: America is the greatest nation because it gives people freedom  Brighteon.TV.

Dr. Steve Hotze blasts GROOMERS disguised as teachers in the public education system  Brighteon.TV.

University of Utah Medical School paying woke speakers tens of thousands weekly to indoctrinate students with ideology.

Connecting the Dots with Dan Happel: Education molds students to be workers, not thinkers  Brighteon.TV.

Ontario student suspended from school for vocalizing belief in biological sex ARRESTED for trespassing while trying to attend class.

Sources include:

Brighteon.com

Biography.com
A Kenyan government official has promised that the country will unveil its first locally made  and affordable  smartphones in the next two months in an attempt to increase the penetration of internet-enabled mobile phones in the country.

Eliud Owalo, the countrys ICT Cabinet Secretary (CS), made the announcement, during which he pointed out that smartphones are expensive in Kenya and that this has held back digital inclusion.

Little is being revealed about the new devices, including the company making them and whether any components will be imported. However, according to local service Capital News, they are being assembled at the Konza Technopolis in Malili, Machakos County. At somewhere around US$40 they are certainly going to more affordable than many devices, although that is a very ambitious figure.

However, this has long been the governments aim. In fact it was in November last year that Kenyan President William Ruto stated his administrations intention to manufacture Africas cheapest smartphone within the next 12 months. He noted that a low-cost device will ensure that all Kenyans have digital access to government services and business platforms.

Locally made smartphones are not a new idea in Africa. It was back in 2019 that we reported that Rwandas Mara Group had launched two smartphones, which it described as the first Made in Africa models. However, at the time the Mara Group suggested that it was targeting customers willing to pay more for quality  and of course for smartphones manufactured in Africa. The Kenyan devices will, it is hoped, be much cheaper.
(Natural News) John Bush of the Exit and Build Land Summit believes its better for Americans to exit from the totalitarian system instead of fighting it.

During his appearance on the Health Ranger Report, Bush explained to Health Ranger Mike Adams the importance of simply exiting unethical systems and building new ones that are decentralized, transparent and voluntary. He said the best time to do this is now.

Its kind of a paradox because the technology is being used for this Great Reset surveillance society, but its simultaneously being used by good people in order to opt out of their systems, said Bush.

Adams agreed, pointing out that governments backed by globalists are pushing humanity into accepting central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). He also concurred with his guests advocacy to exit the entire monetary system.

Weve seen the weaponization of banks against, for example, the Canadian truckers. You donate 25 bucks to the protesters and they seize your bank account, said the Natural News and Brighteon.com founder. Think about how much freedom that would engender if we are no longer beholden to the controls of the current banking system. (Related: The one-world digital currency is almost here  but first they have to collapse the global financial system to make way for it.)

Bush also warned that CBDCs will be intertwined with the personal carbon allowance, which the climate alarmists have already announced. He also noted the concept of 15-minute cities which would restrict peoples mobility when the area exceeds its monthly carbon allotment.

You will not even be able to purchase plane tickets, Bush noted. Ultimately, we need to start trading amongst ourselves  using alternative currencies, but also old-school stuff. Just good old barter flea-market type stuff, like silver dimes.

Bush: Be self-reliant even when global elites twist your arms

Both Bush and Adams agreed that the enemies of freedom showed their real colors when the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic happened.

One of their greatest strategies is to pressure people to make life difficult, twist their arms until they say OK, Ill go take the shot, which many people held off early on. They went, Well, youre not going to be able to work. Youre not gonna be able to fly out of the country or visit family members, a lot of people gave in, Bush said.

But if people are self-sufficient with their source of income and food and if they had their families living together in a tribal situation like an ecovillage or an intentional community, it makes it a lot easier to resist their plans and ultimately to opt-out. An intentional community is a voluntary residential community designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start.

The Health Ranger agreed, saying, The more points of control that the establishment has, the more they can leverage people into compliance, which is really self-destructive.

Bush mentioned how he encourages the public, though his company Live Free Academy, to be freer. His company urges people to take a self-assessment of areas of life where they are dependent on these systems of control.

According to Bush, his company makes sure to present a strong case to convince urbanites to exit the city. The self-reliance expert now lives on a 10-acre ranch with his family and other families that seek to establish a strong intentional community.

There are people that dont know the first thing about homesteading, Bush recounted. Honestly, the first thing about homesteading I learned is [that] as you go, experiences become the greatest teachers.

Check out LivingFree.news to learn more about self-reliant living.

Watch the full episode of the Health Ranger Report with Mike Adams featuring John Bush below.

This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Euro bank chief admits central bank digital currency will be used to control populations.

Prepping and livestock tips: 5 Animals to raise on your homestead.

Survival essentials: 9 Off-grid appliances for your homestead.

Sources include:

Brighteon.com

LiveFree.Academy
(Natural News) A federal judge in Texas has ordered the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to accelerate the release Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine trial data.

The four-page decision of District Judge Mark Pittman ordered FDA to produce the data on Modernas vaccine for adults and Pfizers vaccine for children about 10 times faster than the agency wanted, or at an average rate of at least 180,000 pages per month.

In January 2022, Pittman also forced the FDA to produce all its data on Pfizers coronavirus shots for those aged 16 and older at a rate of 55,000 pages per month, or much faster than the 75 years the agency had sought.

The recent order required the federal agency to produce all of its data on Pfizers COVID-19 injection for 12- to 15-year-olds and Modernas COVID-19 injection for adults by June 31, 2025. The FDA wanted to release the estimated 4.8 million pages at 1,000 to 16,000 pages per month, which would have taken more than 23 years. The lawsuit was filed against the agency by Aaron Siri of Siri & Glimstad, who is representing the parents of a child injured by COVID-19 vaccine.

While the judge noted in his order that the court recognizes the FDAs limited resources dedicated to freedom of information requests (FOIA), he stated that the number of resources an agency dedicates to such requests does not dictate the bounds of an individuals FOIA rights.

Instead, the Court must ensure that the fullest possible disclosure of the information sought is timely provided  as stale information is of little value,' Pittman wrote. (Related: Pfizer trial data reveal that vaccinated people are 400% more likely to die from fatal cardiac arrest.)

FDA rushed approval of COVID-19 vaccines

Meanwhile, Republicans on the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic recently announced that they were seeking answers after newly discovered emails indicate that the FDA rushed the approval of COVID-19 vaccines and boosters to accommodate vaccine mandates.

Per the correspondence, Pfizer asked the FDA in May 2021 to approve their vaccine. Regulators publicly said that the review of the Biologics License Application would likely be done by January 2022, but behind the scenes, top agency officials were pushing the Office of Vaccines Research and Review (OVRR) to quickly complete the review.

The Epoch Times reported that Dr. Marion Gruber, the head of the OVRR at the time, and her deputy Dr. Phil Krause outlined in a memorandum that the review could not be done before September 15, 2021. OVRR believes that public confidence in COVID-19 vaccines would not be served by rushing our review and evaluation of the submitted data, Gruber wrote in an email to Dr. Janet Woodcock, the acting FDA commissioner at the time, and Dr. Peter Marks, another top official at the agency.

Still, the FDA proceeded to approve Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine on August 23, 2021.

Dr. Robert Malone, the inventor of the messenger RNA (mRNA) technology that Pfizers vaccine uses, told the Epoch Times: Previously, one could infer that there was a coupling between regulatory decisions and political expediency. But with these emails, you see the smoking gun.

Check out PharmaceuticalFraud.com for more news on Big Pharmas dangerous vaccines.

Watch the video below where Dr. Naomi Wolf talks about bombshell Pfizer data and how the FDA attempted to censor it for 75 years.

This video is from PJ Glasseys channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Pfizer found to have covered up injuries and deaths of study participants in their clinical covid-19 vaccine trials.

Pfizer is terrified of discovery in Brook Jacksons legal case against the company  Pfizer lied. People died, says attorney.

Pfizer is terrified of discovery in Brook Jacksons legal case against the company  Pfizer lied. People died, says attorney.

Report: FDAs failure to adequately oversee vaccine clinical trials is endangering public health.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

FingFX.ThomsonReuters.com

SiriLLP.com

DocumentCloud.org

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) The border crisis that President Joe Biden created when on his first day in office he reversed all of President Donald Trumps enforcement policies, has taken a turn for the worse.

Last week, U.S. officials detained an Afghan national who is included on the U.S. terrorist watchlist, which leaves millions of Americans wondering just how many on the same list have gotten through undetected.

According to sources who spoke to Fox News, the Afghan national in question entered the United States by crossing the border alongside a group of migrants near Otay Mesa, California. During the regular processing conducted by Border Patrol agents, which included a fingerprint scan, it was discovered that the individual matched an entry on the Terrorist Screening Database. The worthless FBI was subsequently notified, confirmed the match, and then launched an investigation into the matter, which means nothing will happen.

The individual who was apprehended crossed the border shortly before the expiration of Title 42, a COVID-19 emergency policy that allowed border agents to turn away migrants. Since the expiration of this policy, a significant influx of migrants has been observed at the U.S.-Mexico border, with thousands attempting to enter the United States, according to Fox News.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who represents the district where the Afghan national was detained, argued that President Bidens border policies, again, which were implemented on his first day in office, have attracted terrorists. Issa and other Republicans contend that these policies have contributed to a significant surge in illegal immigration, which has reached a two-year record high.

Bidens open borders arent just a gateway to five million illegals, record human and child trafficking and the deadliest drug crisis in our history, Issa said. Bidens reckless policy is also an open invitation to even the most wanted terrorists in the world to come to America. They know theyll never have to leave.

The nation knows whats going on, and this president has only begun to be held accountable for what he has done, Issa added.

The administration had planned to implement a strategy to expedite the processing and release of migrants after the expiration of Title 42. However, this plan was temporarily halted by a federal judge just before it was set to take effect on Friday.

According to Fox News in a separate report, Judge T. Kent Wetherell II, appointed by former President Trump, issued a two-week restraining order on President Joe Bidens policy that would allow the release of migrants on parole with conditions. This order temporarily prevents the implementation of the policy.

According to a memo issued by Border Patrol, migrants can be granted entry into the United States on parole, which is typically reserved for cases involving urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. This policy, referred to as parole with conditions, is implemented in situations where Customs and Border Protection (CBP) encounters overcrowding. Under this practice, migrants are required to schedule an appointment with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or request a Notice to Appear by mail.

Under a parole release, migrants are rapidly released into the country, do not get an alien registration number and do not receive a court date, Fox News noted.

After Bidens announcement last month that he intends to seek another term, his job approval ratings have been experiencing a steady decline, which is narrowing his path to reelection. Moreover, concerns surrounding the countrys escalating debt and ongoing political debates regarding raising the debt ceiling are also starting to impact his presidency. And it doesnt help him that his border policies are creating an illegal immigration and drug-overdose nightmare.

And lets not forget his and his familys endemic corruption.

If anyone really deserved to be impeached and removed from office, its Biden.

Sources include:

ConservativeBrief.com

FoxNews.com
(Natural News) Dr. Joseph Mercola recently interviewed Michelle Stiles, the author of a book called One Idea to Rule Them All: Reverse Engineering American Propaganda, about the corporate media and its propaganda problem.

In the name of fighting misinformation and disinformation corporate media outlets everywhere are censoring the truth and lying to the public, which industry-linked public relations (PR) firms are ordering them to do in order to continue receiving advertising dollars.

Everywhere you look, media outlets and their fact checkers are presenting a false narrative that behind the scenes is the product of a vast Censorship-Industrial Complex operation to keep the public in the dark while pushing ulterior agendas.

Famous journalists Upton Sinclair and George Seldes warned about media corruption more than a century ago, revealing that Big Business with a profit agenda is what steers the news.

Honest investigative reporting was becoming a rare breed even then. And today it is all but completely extinct, save for a few brave souls with the means and platform to get the truth out there for public consideration.

For propaganda to be effective, there needs to be central coordination of narratives, and thats where public relations agencies come in, Mercola writes.

Few appreciate the power that these companies have. Two-thirds to 80 percent of the content broadcast and published by corporate media comes from public relations firms, so most of the so-called news is actually brainwashing propaganda.

(Related: Check out the book Toxic Sludge is Good for You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry, which addresses the PR industrys influence on media reporting about another important subject.)

PR firms stage fake public protests so media networks can cover them for higher ratings and more profit

One of the things Mercola and Stiles discussed during the interview, which you can watch at LifeSiteNews, is the use of staged public protests, which attract more viewership leading to higher profits for the networks that cover them.

PR firms hire their own to stage these fake protests, and the networks they work with and consult send their own reporters there right on time to cover it. This generates more viewership, and thus more money, for corporate media outlets that are driven by dollars rather than the truth.

We also face the newfound creation of groups like the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) that exist to keep a lid on the truth. A product of government agencies and their non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, these censorship entities work in tandem with the corporate media to tarnish the reputations of anyone caught spreading misinformation.

Mercola himself was added to the CCDHs disinformation dozen list, which branded him as a purveyor of information that the corporate media and its PR firm partners have decided is false.

(This) is a true testament to the credibility Ive built over the past 25 years, Mercola commented about how he wears his mis-categorization as a disinformation purveyor as a badge of honor.

They see me as a real threat to their propaganda machine, and its no small honor to be recognized as someone whos telling the truth in this age of misinformation.

Thanks in large part to the internet, more people than ever before can see what is really going on at these corporate media networks. Since truthful information is still allowed to spread online, it stands in stark contrast to the lies the corporate media is peddling.

 people are starting to catch on, Mercola says, adding that trust in mainstream media has dropped to an all-time low. Stiles covers all of this and more in her book as well.

You will find more stories about the plague of media corruption and who is behind it at Propaganda.news.

Sources for this article include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Volodymyr Zelensky, an actor-slash-president of Ukraine, has been quietly compiling a kill list of targets whom he says are promoting narratives consonant with Russian propaganda. On it are names like journalists Tucker Carlson and Glenn Greenwald; former military and intelligence figures like Scott Ritter and Col. Douglas McGregor; Roger Water of Pink Floyd; and even actor Steven Seagal.

Why does Zelensky find these people and many others to be so much of a threat that he wants to kill them? The answer is simple: They refuse to tow the globalist narrative that Zelensky is the good guy in his skirmish with Russia and its special operation in Ukraine.

Zelensky formed what is known as the Ukraine Center for Countering Disinformation, a supposedly independent watchdog group that has been collecting the names of prominent figures who are accused of spreading a pro-Russian narrative.

Mint Press News writer David Miller says his name was added to Zelenskys kill list because of how he framed the war in Ukraine, calling it NATOs proxy war with Russia (that) is taking place in Ukraine. This is, of course, the truth, but Zelensky does not seem to be all that interested in things like facts.

(Related: In case you missed it, CBS released a documentary showing that only 30 percent of the NATO weapons supposedly being sent to Ukraine are actually making it there.)

Ukraine is run by Nazi collaborators who hate to be exposed for who they really are

In Zelenskys mind, everyone with a voice should be parroting the lie that Ukraine is an innocent victim of Vladimir Putins aggression. Those who refuse to do so, acknowledging instead that Ukrainian leadership is among the most corrupt in the entire world, could find themselves in Zelenskys crosshairs.

Anyone who mentions any particular truth is derided for echoing Putins talking points,' Miller wrote in a piece for Mayadeen English called How disinformation works: Western intelligence agencies global war on the left.

 I was actually denounced as an information terrorist who might be guilty of war crimes,' Miller explained about the article in question, which you can read here.

Miller says the addition of his name to Zelenskys kill list concentrates the mind wonderfully on the forces ranged against the possibility of truth and justice in the crime-ridden West.

More than a decade ago, Miller was also accused by the same Western powers of being antisemitic simply because of the long catalog of work on the Zionist movement he produced exposing Western propaganda activities.

Of course, the defamatory attacks encourage an atmosphere where social media threats can be made, Miller wrote about how he has been a target of criminal Western leaders and regimes for many years.

But the issue of Nazism in Ukraine will be seen in retrospect as a defining issue of our era and it is important to remember that the reason I and many others are threatened by the Ukraine government and their NATO backers is because we in turn threaten to expose them for what they are: Nazi collaborators.

Like much of the rest of the Censorship-Industrial Complex, Zelenskys Center for Countering Disinformation was formed at the height of the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, around March of 2021. He also formed the Center for Strategic Communication around the same time.

As it turns out, the covert kill list website is a product of the Ukraine regime, effectively funded by the CIA (amongst others) and is hosted by NATO, Miller warns.

The deep state refuses to go down without a fight. To keep up with the latest, visit Globalism.news.

Sources for this article include:

MintPressNews.com

NaturalNews.com

Almayadeen.net
(Natural News) The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has revealed in a report that overdose of the painkiller acetaminophen is now the leading cause of liver failure in the United States.

Acetaminophen is by far the No. 1 cause of acute liver failure in the U.S., said Dr. Nima Majlesi, the director of medical toxicity at Staten Island University Hospital in New York. She cited the NIHs report that mentioned how the drug caused 500 deaths, 56,000 emergency department visits and 2,600 hospitalizations every year due to complications from its toxicity.

According to the NIH, the majority of these cases originate from unintentional chronic overdoses that often stem from the misuse of medications such as Percocet, Vicodin and Tylenol PM. Individuals unknowingly put themselves at risk by consuming multiple products containing acetaminophen without recognizing the danger of high daily doses.

While acetaminophen is effective in managing pain and fever when taken as directed, high doses can lead to potentially irreversible liver damage. When the liver is unable to keep up with the breakdown process, toxic byproducts accumulate and cause harm to liver cells.

One of the factors contributing to the general issue is the extensive availability of acetaminophen under different brand names  including paracetamol. Acetaminophen is also used as an ingredient in numerous over-the-counter and prescription medications, with Majlesi highlighting its presence in approximately 600 different products.

Acetaminophen also linked to other complications

Besides being the leading cause of liver failure, several studies show that acetaminophen may be extremely dangerous and lead to other complications, even in children.

In a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2004, Dr. Roland Walter, along with his colleagues at the University of Washington, conducted the Vitamins and Lifestyle (VITAL) study with 65,000 participants between the ages of 50 and 76. Based on the results, participants who took acetaminophen at least four days a week for four years were twice likely to develop blood cancers than people who took less or none of the drug.

We found that high use of acetaminophen, one of the most frequently used medications worldwide, was associated with an almost twofold increased risk of incident hematologic malignancies, said Walter, referring to non-Hodgkin lymphomas, plasma cell disorders, and myeloid neoplasms. Acetaminophen use on the majority of the days over many years appears to be associated with this new adverse effect.

In another study published in JAMA Pediatrics several years ago, acetaminophen and hyperkinetic disorder, a severe form of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), was linked to 64,000 children participants. Additionally, mothers who took acetaminophen while pregnant have 13 percent higher chances of having children with ADHD and 37 percent more chances of having children with hyperkinetic disorder. (Related: Behavioral issues found in children linked to mothers taking Tylenol during pregnancy.)

The epidemiologic association between acetaminophen use and asthma prevalence and severity in children and adults is well established, wrote Dr. John T. McBride in a third study published in Pediatrics back in December 2011. Until future studies document the safety of this drug, children with asthma or at risk for asthma should avoid the use of acetaminophen.

McBride doubled down on his comment about that topic in March this year. Every study shows the association between acetaminophen and asthma. It seems to me its time to tell people about this, he said.

Visit Overdose.news for more stories about the dangers of over-the-counter drug overdoses.

Watch Gabor Gabe Zolna explain how acetaminophen is linked to a higher risk of autism.

This video is from the zolnareport.com channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Taking Common Painkiller (acetaminophen) with Coffee is Extremely Toxic to the Liver.

Acetaminophen Linked to Asthma in Children and Adults.

Hundreds of Tylenol lawsuits claim that retailers, manufacturers knew taking acetaminophen during pregnancy causes autism, ADHD.

Negative effects of acetaminophen may be reduced with magnolia berry.

Study: Tylenol, acetaminophen linked to causing blood cancer.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

LATimes.com

Publications.AAP.org

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Now that the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic is over, the pharmaceutical industry and its partners at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are busily working on a universal mRNA influenza vaccine that they aim to push the public into taking annually once it is completed.

To replace the lost profits of covid injections, which are no longer in vogue, the corporate drug machine hopes a new annual mRNA flu shot ritual will get the job done, providing billions of dollars in new and steady profits well into the foreseeable future.

Trial patients are already enrolling to receive the experimental jabs, according to the NIH. The drugs are based on the mRNA technology used in both Pfizer and Modernas covid shots.

A universal flu vaccine could serve as an important line of defense against the spread of a future flu pandemic, said Dr. Hugh Auchincloss, the current acting director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which was previously led by government career criminal Tony Fauci.

(Related: In order to attend school, students will likely be forced by academic institutions to take an annual mRNA flu shot.)

They want you mRNA jabbed every year for life

Up to 50 healthy adults between the ages of 18 and 49 are expected to take part in the drug trial, which is being led by the NIH on behalf of its pharmaceutical allies and partners.

Some of the participants will receive the universal mRNA flu shots while others will receive a quadrivalent flu jab that allegedly protects against four different strains of influenza.

The universal mRNA jabs being tested were developed by NIAID researchers, while the clinical trials are taking place at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

After many decades of lies about the importance of getting a regular flu shot, Big Pharma and Big Government now say that traditional flu shots are of little effect because of changing flu strains from year to year.

A universal mRNA jab, they now claim, is the solution to this problem because it will supposedly tackle any form of flu in circulation.

The government now admits that traditional flu shots are mostly useless, providing as little as a 19 percent effectiveness rate in those who take them.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is using its usual fearmongering in anticipation of the release of this universal mRNA flu shot. The agency, which is really just a private corporation in disguise, claims that anywhere from 12,000 to 52,000 people die every year in the United States due to the flu.

The truth, of course, is that flu complications are to blame for most flu deaths, which is largely a factor of peoples health and the overall functionality of their immune systems.

If more people got out in the sun or took vitamin D supplements; ate less sugar and fewer genetically modified organisms (GMOs); and drank plenty of clean, fluoride-free water while getting plenty of rest, the flu would be no match against the robust immunity that a healthy lifestyle provides.

It is never a good idea to put mercury and aborted fetal cells directly into your body and bloodstream, wrote one commenter about the danger of taking a flu shot.

They care nothing about peoples health  its all about the money, wrote another about the true motivation behind all these injections they are calling vaccines.

They have declared war against you and your family. Do it or die: its that simple. And this is how all the news media gets paid: from pharmaceutical advertising.

The latest news about Big Pharmas plans to create and push an annual mRNA flu shot can be found at FluShot.news.

Sources for this article include:

CNBC.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) A Russian missile strike has reportedly caused damage to a U.S.-produced and supplied Patriot Anti-Missile Defense system near Kyiv by one of the fastest weapons in the world.

According to The New York Times, multiple Ukrainian officials and one American official said Ukraines air defense successfully intercepted six hypersonic Kinzhal missiles that were launched by Russia early this week. The interception serves as further proof of Ukraines capability to neutralize one of the highly advanced conventional weapons in Moscows arsenal. It also demonstrates Ukraines ability to effectively defend against sophisticated missile threats, albeit, of course, with American assistance and weaponry.

During one of the most substantial aerial attacks since early March, Russia deployed nine Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea, along with three short-range ballistic missiles from land, and multiple drones, as reported by the commander in chief of Ukraines Armed Forces. However, Ukraines military stated that all of the drones and missiles were successfully intercepted and shot down, the Times reported.

According to Russias Defense Ministry, at least one Kinzhal missile was employed in Tuesdays attack, with officials claiming that a Kinzhal had successfully targeted a Patriot air defense system.

Two U.S. officials confirmed that a Patriot system had indeed suffered damage in the attack, but they emphasized that the system remained operational and capable of countering all types of threats despite the damage inflicted.

The Times noted further:

It was not immediately clear how many Russian missiles were aimed at the capital, Kyiv, which local officials said was targeted overnight with an exceptional blitz of missiles and drones. The skies over Kyiv lit up around 3 a.m. with thunderous explosions as air defenses collided with the incoming missiles, raining debris across the city.

A statement from Ukraines Air Force about the Kinzhals came quickly. It did not specify whether an American-made Patriot air defense system was involved in shooting down the Russian missiles, but Ukraine until recently lacked the capability to intercept Kinzhals and had pressed allies for Patriot systems that it hoped would provide protection.

In an address via video link later Tuesday to the Council of Europe, the main human rights organization on the continent, President Volodymyr Zelensky said: At 3 oclock in the morning, our people woke up to explosions. Eighteen Russian missiles of different types were in our skies, in particular, ballistic ones, which the terrorist state has boasted about.

During his regular nightly address, Zelensky sounded a more defiant tone: We used to hear that Patriots were supposedly unrealistic. And now here they are, Patriots.

There has been uncertainty regarding the ability of even the Patriot system to intercept hypersonic missiles, as these missiles were believed to be too fast for traditional air-defense systems to detect and respond to in time. However, on May 4, Ukraines air force announced a significant development that took 24 hours.

Three senior U.S. officials confirmed that shoot-down and said they had received information about the strike from the Ukrainian military through classified channels. One official added that U.S. military analysts were able to verify the claim using technical means. Nevertheless, independent analysts were reluctant at the time to confirm the interception until more information was available, the Times reported, adding: Hypersonic missiles are long-range munitions capable of reaching speeds of at least Mach 5  five times the speed of sound, or more than a mile a second.

Some U.S. defense officials have been skeptical about Russias claims that its missile is hypersonic, suggesting instead it is an improved conventional weapon, or new wine in old bottles.

The early Tuesday aerial assault over Kyiv marked the eighth significant attack on the city within the span of a month. Ukrainian officials have indicated that these repeated attacks were deliberately intended to test and wear down their air defense capabilities.

Serhiy Popko, the head of Kyivs military administration, described the barrage on Tuesday as extraordinary due to the sheer number of assaults launched at the capital within a short period of time.

Sources include:

NYTimes.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) More shocking, but not surprising, revelations have come to light about why Tucker Carlson was fired suddenly by Fox News a few weeks ago.

As you might expect, the pharmaceutical industry was behind Carlsons canning as he was exposing too much truth about the dangers of Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccines on his widely viewed program. The Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit also played a role in Fox producer Sean Langilles decision to axe Carlson from the network.

None other than independent journalist James OKeefe, operating under his newly minted OKeefe Media Group (OMG), brought all this to light with yet another one of his iconic undercover investigations, the video footage of which you can watch below.

(Related: Right before the 2020 election, Carlson was one of the only mainstream journalists to call out Hunter Biden over the incriminating contents of his laptop, which are not a Russian hoax like the globalist-controlled media continues to claim.)

Fox News and many other media networks are controlled by and beholden to Big Pharma

Langille told an undercover OMG journalist that Big Pharma advertisers such as Pfizer were pulling away from Fox News prior to Carlsons firing.

Now that hes gone, Langille revealed, referring to Carlson, theyre starting to come back.

Most media networks, Langille further said, are controlled by the pharmaceutical industry, which is why nearly every commercial is promoting some new blockbuster drug.

When its corporate media, youre beholden to advertisers, Langille said, emphasizing that Pfizer tends to lead the pack, hence why many, including Langille, refer to the company as Big Pharma.

Were learning it was part of [the Dominion settlement], Langille revealed about why Fox got rid of Carlson: to keep Big Pharmas advertising dollars flowing.

According to Fox, it is categorically false that the Dominion settlement had anything to do with Carlsons termination.

OKeefe believes that Langilles insider knowledge about this could be coming from his friend, who also happens to be a powerful Joe Biden operative, Mike LaRosa. Langille finds it interesting, he revealed, that no one is talking about LaRosas career transition away from being Jill Bidens press secretary last summer.

In the comments on OKeefes undercover video of Langille speaking, someone wrote that he is praying for the reporters safety  because if anyone is going to split this all open and lay it bare for the world to see, it will be OKeefe.

Conspiracy theorists are right again, wrote another about how everything Natural News and other independent media have been reporting about how the corporate media is controlled by and beholden to Big Pharma is true.

Its a fed term used to slander those who oppose the system, responded another about the deep states denigrating use of conspiracy theorists to try to discredit those who dare to expose and tell the ugly and inconvenient truths about the corporate media.

Another warned that the deep state behind Big Pharma and Big Media is going to cause another war because thats what they do whenever they start to lose control of the narrative.

Unfortunately, the next one is going to be the second U.S. Civil War, this person contends. The number-one job of any countrys government is to keep the people out of war, but the globalists in power are hellbent on keeping America at war constantly.

They wouldnt need to silence him if they were honest about their practices, wrote another about Foxs rejection of Carlson. This really is a fascist government in control of our country.

Do you enjoy the hard-hitting, undercover reporting of OKeefe? You can find more of it at Journalism.news.

Sources for this article include:

TheNationalPulse.com

NaturalNews.com

OKeefeMediaGroup.com
(Natural News) Suppose a toxic train wreck happened and no one cared. Something like that recently happened in East Palestine, Ohio, where in February a Norfolk Southern train carrying all manner of noxious chemicals derailed. Neither Joe Biden nor Kamala Harris deemed it necessary to pay a morale-boosting visit, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg eventually put in an obligatory appearance only on the heels of the arrival in town of Donald Trump  who remains the highest-profile figure to express, in person, a level of care and concern commensurate to the catastrophe.

(Article by Peter Tonguette republished from TheAmericanConservative.com)

Numerous conservative talking heads have surmised that the Biden administrations disinterest stemmed from the political makeup of East Palestine. In the 2020 election, Columbiana County preferred Trump over Biden 72 percent to 27 percent. For the governing class in 2023, East Palestine is a throwaway place with disposable, possibly even deplorable, people.

This attitude represents a striking departure for the left, which, in earlier iterations, routinely cast itself as a movement in defense of ordinary people. Democratic presidents have gone from saying I feel your pain (Bill Clinton) to condescending to Joe the Plumber (Barack Obama).

Forty years ago, Hollywood still paid lip service to regular people and sometimes even meant it. In 1983, three proud liberals  director Mike Nichols, writer Nora Ephron, and actress Meryl Streep  turned their attention, earnestly and honestly, to a working-class woman who, much like those in East Palestine, found herself confronting the chemical horrors of our modern age.

Streep, already an Oscar-winner for Kramer vs. Kramer and Sophies Choice, stars as Karen Silkwood, a smart, sassy, assertive worker at a nuclear fuel plant in Oklahoma. After a series of mishaps expose her and her coworkers to plutonium, Karen initiates a kind of one-woman inquiry into her plants safety policies, procedures, and evident lapses. Eventually working in concert with labor union officials, Karen is poised to bring widespread attention to her workplace hazards when a car crash takes her life  a much-speculated-about episode that is presented ominously but ambiguously at the end of the film.

At the outset, Karen is shown to have a largely contented attitude toward her life. She looks to be a capable and efficient employee, sufficiently self-confident to chew bubblegum, hands-free, while working with plutonium in a glovebox. Her home life is informal: She lives with two coworkers, her goes-along-to-get-along boyfriend Drew (Kurt Russell) and their sarcastic friend Dolly (Cher), who is gay and who, in time, invites her own lover into the communal fold.

These are decent folks, not the salt of the earth, exactly, but honest, hard-working, fun-loving. They seem to enjoy the small, rundown clapboard house they share. Karen frantically rearranges her work schedule to find time to visit her young children from an earlier relationship, now living out of state with their father. When she returns home, she resumes gossiping in the locker room, casually bantering with Drew, and hastily monitoring herself (or not) for radiation exposure upon entering and exiting work. She notes with pride her choice to study science rather than home economics in school, and she contrasts her roots in Texas, whose very smell she detests, with her current life in Oklahoma  a life made possible by the plant.

Read more at: TheAmericanConservative.com
Nokia and Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (Indosat) have completed a network consolidation program to boost experience for Indosats growing subscriber base.

The program, which covers major cities in Java (Surabaya, Semarang and Yogyakarta), and the regions of Sumatera and Kalimantan, will improve Indosats network performance and capacity helping them to play a vital role in Indonesias digital transformation agenda to unlock economic growth.

Nokia is Indosats strategic partner and has helped it to optimise the total number of physical sites across its sub-brands, IM3 and Tri by 30%. Indosat has deployed sites in new regions, providing better indoor coverage and faster speeds. The combined spectrum assets from both service providers were leveraged, improving the performance for IM3 by up to 42% and up to 170% for Tri.

Nokias latest AirScale portfolio helped Indosat modernise its network, enhancing the capacity and operational efficiency which will support 5G services and accelerate time to market. Nokia also supported with the design process enabling Indosat to maximise the benefits of network consolidation.

Vikram Sinha, President Director and CEO at Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, said: "This network integration is part of our commitment to deliver a marvellous experience to all our customers. Moving forward, Indosat will continue expanding its network throughout Indonesia because we believe that inclusive internet access will unlock various untapped potentials and improve the nation's economy in the near future."
No one was hurt, and emergency declarations occurred after major flooding emerged in two rivers in Alaska, causing concerns among authorities.

Residents in Alaska affected or near the flooded areas should keep updated with the weather before returning. It is best to listen to reports from authorities.

Reports added that the warmer temperatures and rainy conditions helped to unleash flooding concerns in the region, especially in the two rivers of Kuskokwim and Yukon.

Flooding concerns and emergency declarations

In the latest reports, Associated Press (AP) said a surge of ice and water was reported after two rivers reached their peak levels, causing significant flooding in the area.

The report added that homes were also affected after the significant flooding emerged in the area.

Due to the threat of the rising waters, Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced a disaster declaration, alerting for potential dangers near the communities in the Yukon River and affected areas.

Furthermore, AccuWeather's latest forecast reported that the spring breakup in Alaska could play a significant role.

Ice could quickly melt, adding that the rainy outlook and freezing conditions could likely contribute to the flooding.

AccuWeather added that the roads in the area were also impacted, making them inaccessible to motorists.

Meanwhile, the NWS Fairbanks said a flood watch was issued in portions of the Yukon River at Tanana.

The report said that ice jam flooding could be possible. The weather advisory said residents in the affected areas or under the flood watch should stay alert for potential flooding.

In the previous reports, NWS Fairbanks also issued a flood warning in portions of the Buckland River and Fort Yukon due to the likelihood of flooding.

According to AP report and forecast, the flooding could likely continue next week.

Furthermore, the report said no one was reportedly hurt after the significant flooding in Alaska.

Also Read: Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season Set to Begin With Potential Threat of Heavy Rain, Flash Flooding.

Meanwhile, the report added that authorities were deployed to help repair the communication and generators in the area.

Staying prepared for the flooding concerns

The latest reports showed that significant flooding concerns emerged in Alaska due to the impact of significant snowmelt and ice jam.

As a result, communities in the affected areas should keep updated with the weather updates in Alaska, especially in the two rivers.

Affected residents should return homes when the flooding abates. It is also best to wait for announcements from authorities due to flooding threats.

When the floodwaters rapidly rise, evacuating to the nearest evacuation shelters or areas is best. Homeowners can also put their equipment or items on higher ground or areas.

Meanwhile, motorists with travel plans should observe the weather conditions in the affected areas before traveling.

Furthermore, homeowners and motorists should keep emergency kits inside their homes and cars, as power outages and challenging road conditions are possible.

Related Article: Memorial Day Weekend in US Likely to Face Busier Travel Conditions as Summer Comes Near

For more similar, don't forget to follow Nature World News.
A happy beach experience for a 13-year-old girl became horrific after she was attacked by a shark on a Florida beach, requiring 19 stitches due to injuries.

Recently, reports of shark attacks occurred in places in Australia and Hawaii. Shark attacks can become life-threatening or dangerous for beachgoers.

Shark attack on a Florida beach

According to reports, AccuWeather and ABC News reported that a shark attacked a 13-year-old girl as she stayed in shallow water.

The incident was unexpected as the shark approached and attacked the girl who was on the waters beach with her friend staying on a jetty.

Based on recent reports, the girl was identified as Ella Reed, who has visited beaches.

Also Read: Shark Attacks 46 Years Old School Teacher in South Australia, Leaving Wetsuit Fragments and Surfboard Remains

Meanwhile, the report added that the girl tried to punch the shark, which was believed to be a bull shark measuring about five to six feet.

However, the report noted that the shark was powerful enough to injure and attack the young girl's stomach and parts of her arm.

Furthermore, Reed told WPLG that she was shocked about the attack and, at first, felt no pain due to the adrenaline rush.

According to AccuWeather, Reed yelled to her nearby friend, immediately alerting her to leave the water.

When Reed's mother took her daughter to safety, she brought it to the nearby local Fire Department. Reed was rushed to the hospital, which required 19 stitches.

Other shark attacks

Furthermore, Nature World News (NWN) also reported other shark attacks.

Based on the CBS News and CNN reports, a shark attack happened on a beach in South Australia. Search and rescue were deployed in the area after a 46-year-old high school teacher went missing.

The high school teacher was on the coast of South Australia after the victim was attacked. Investigation showed that emergency services found pieces of wetsuit and surfboard remains that were believed to belong to the victim.

The report added that it would undergo forensics to confirm if it belonged to the missing school teacher.

On the other hand, ABC News reported that a fisherman in a kayak was attacked by a shark on Hawaii's coast.

The report revealed that a tiger shark attacked the fisherman's kayak on Oahu's coast.

Shark attacks can be dangerous. As a result, it is best that surfers and beachgoers should check the water environment or area before they go swimming.

In addition, beachgoers should go to beaches with patrolling lifeguards. Lifeguards help to monitor the beach area for possible sharks.

When a shark is around the area, staying away is essential to avoid potential dangers.

Related ArticleScalloped Hammerhead Sharks Hold Breath Underwater To Hunt Prey

For more similar, don't forget to follow Nature World News.
Floodwaters have swept through homes and roads in multiple towns in northern and central Italy due to heavy storms in recent days, resulting in the deaths of several people, according to reports.

Landslides also struck the said regions following prolonged heavy rain across the country. Some residents of the affected regions were forced to seek refuge on their homes' rooftops to avoid floodwaters.

The situation remains volatile as local authorities have warned torrential rain continues, prompting further flood risks. While emergency operations have been carried out by authorities, many people are still reportedly trapped inside their homes, based on local sources on Wednesday, May 17. Search efforts will also continue as many others remain missing.

Flooding in the northern-central parts of the European country this week was mainly a result of riverine flooding, the overflow of bodies of water like rivers above their banks.

As a result, communities near them are at heightened risk of being submerged, as seen from the recent incident. In relation to the natural disaster, Italy has been on the list of being vulnerable to climate change in recent years.

Italy Flood Casualties and Evacuations

Heavy storms pummeled through Italy's northern region of Emilia Romagna as of Wednesday, killing eight people and forcing the evacuation of thousands of others. This came after 21 rivers overflowed and submerged entire towns, The Guardian reported.

One of the victims involved a German woman whose body was found on a beach in the town of Cesenatico along the Adriatic coast. However, it is still unclear if her death was linked to the storms. In the city of Ravena, 5,000 people were evacuated from their homes.

According to authorities, over 13,000 residents are being forced to evacuate in the region as the victims died from flash flooding and mudslides, CNN reported.

In the city of Forli, three individuals died, while another was also killed in Cesenate city. A couple also died in the village of Ronta di Cesena, according to attendees during an emergency meeting led by the country's Council of Ministers on Wednesday, as cited by the U.S. media company.

Also Read: Italy Storm Kills At Least 10 People in the Central Marche Region; Widespread Rainfall and Flooding Reported

Drought Before Rain

Prior to the flooding rain, Italy experienced drought in its northern region, which reduced its capacity to store water. However, 'exceptional rains' occurred in the drought-stricken northern Italy, forcing local officials to warn that the country needs an urgent national plant to combat flooding, believed to be caused by climate change, The Associated Press reported.

Earlier in May, Emilia Romagna and some areas of the Marche regions were also struck by flooding and killed two people. In a risk assessment in 2021, it was found that 9.8% of Italy's landscape is prone to natural hazard events like flooding, as well as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, according to the United Nations' PreventionWeb site.

Related Article: France-Italy Flood Aftermath: 12 Dead, More Missing, Corpses Washed from Cemeteries
We live in strange times. There have been more than a few dystopian movies made about a post-catastrophe world, people struggling to survive, and some band of heroes looking for a cure or possibly just hoping to survive. Whatever the case, many begin with a type of news-headline montage, showing the progression of the planet deteriorating, with warnings going unheeded until something breaks.

Be it drought, extreme weather, rising sea levels, the climate is damaged beyond repair and over the course of this news montage, we see that collectively the globe did not do enough to prevent it. Well, we are creating that montage right now, and the news headlines are starting to match up with the movies more and more every day.

We are now used to seeing news stories about extreme rainfall, melting ice sheets, and even underwater "heat waves". Most people had never heard of an "atmospheric river" a year ago, and now it is in common usage in places like California (along with every other climate-driven natural disaster, from droughts to wildfires, from tornadoes to floods). We see what is happening, and while the majority of the population are very concerned about this and want to see change, not everyone does.

Somehow, there is a certain amount of the population around the globe that either does not believe that climate change is real, or they do see it but are profiting on some of the root causes.

When one is benefiting so greatly from something that harms everyone, it can create a conflict of interest and a crisis of morality. And because the effects of climate change are only now starting to hit with force, it has been easy to either ignore the data or blame the effects on something else.

The level of extreme weather continues to increase however, and not at a linear rate. The acceleration of these unusual weather events are rising exponentially, meaning the next year might contain the same amount of weather-related damage as the previous five.

In this difficult spot, however, lies a ray of hope. While the efforts to turn climate change around are enormous, we can at least work to get everyone on the same page. For those people who doubt climate change effects, we now have freely available data that anyone can pull, analyze, and see the effects of climate change for their own home city.

The other side of this are those who personally profit from activities that cause climate change. For this group, we can use this same data and show that climate change has a growing, sometimes devastating impact on businesses themselves.

The Data Is There, Wherever You Live

So now that this challenge has been cast, how do people access it and what can they do with it? For background, weather data is collected from a large number of sensors across ground sensors, weather balloons, and even satellites.

Collectively, this data gives vast amounts of raw data, which can be used to gain detailed insights on weather history patterns, and forecasts. The data is accessible through a weather API, such as the interface provided by Tomorrow.io. Services like this allow anyone to create programs that can pull as much or as little data as they like, with elements such as precipitation, wind, temperature, and even extreme weather events. Users can select the location, date ranges, and the depth of data details they need.

Once this data is pulled, users can create just about any analysis they need. In the case of looking for climate change evidence, this can be as simple as taking the various elements and setting up basic trend analysis. What they see will generally be true no matter where they live: an increase in extreme weather events; an increase in average temperatures; harsh cycles of droughts and floods; and other unusual pattern changes to the weather.

What does this tell us? It shows that our climate is indeed changing. While that by itself doesn't prove that these changes are made by humans, the human-based trends (increases in carbon release, deforestation, etc.) make for a compelling correlation. Playing the "What's more likely" game makes it very difficult at this point to refute the evidence.

For Those Who Know and Don't Care

For those who believe the facts around climate change but continue to drive their businesses with environmental abandon, simply looking at the data won't help. That said, someone in this category could pull the same API data, run the trend analysis, and see the results.

However, at this point it is critical to assess climate change not just on the fact that it's happening, but that it is negatively affecting businesses.

A great example of this is the in-depth work performed by the European Commission, showing the very real threats to businesses due to climate change. It shows how infrastructure and utilities are more often damaged today due to extreme weather; energy expenditures are higher not just because of warmer temperatures overall, but because of the higher number of extreme winter storms as well; raw materials for many products come from agriculture or forestry, both of which are at risk; and even insurance, as past data for insurance premium calculations is becoming less and less indicative of what to expect in the future.

Where We Go From Here

While it's shocking to see that in 2023 there are still parties that either deny or ignore climate change, the advances in technology, data science, and data democracy have given us an opportunity to get the raw data, see and analyze it ourselves, and make an informed decision around both climate change and what actions we can take while we still have a chance.
Coastal flooding is threatening eastern North Carolina this coming Friday, May 19, due to the potential occurrence of excessive rainfall by the end of the week.

This means that communities along the state's Atlantic coast are at risk of coastal erosion as waters from the Atlantic Ocean could reach the eastern shore. Inland or riverine flooding is also possible in North Carolina in the coming hours and days.

The forecast came after meteorologists issued a forecast about a cold front system hovering over the U.S. East Coast, where temperatures are expected to get lower in major cities, including New York City and Boston.

With this, inclement weather may cause disruption in North Carolina and potentially other states across the Eastern Seaboard.

North Carolina Weather Forecast

In their forecast, the WITN television station's weather team said Friday will be a "First Alert Weather Day' due to the potential rainfall that can surpass 1.5 inches in less than 24 hours for some parts of eastern North Carolina. In particular, the eastern part and Highway-17 corridor could experience the most flooding.

The adverse weather is expected to arrive shortly after midnight on Friday, primarily along the Crystal Coast where it will move in a northeastward pattern towards the city of Virginia Beach in Virginia. The rainy storm will continue until Friday afternoon and evening, where the heaviest rain will depart northern countries and move forward into Virginia.

Also Read: Tropical Storm Fred Brings North Carolina Town the 'Worst Flooding' in Years

North Carolina Damaging Winds

Damaging winds are also possible in North Carolina, where it could reach up to 40 miles per hour during daytime hours and sustained winds of up to 20 miles per hour for most of the time, according to the WITN.

The coastal flooding forecast coincides with the previous forecast, in addition to heavy rain and flooding. Rainfall events damaging winds and tornadoes crossed the Appalachians and mid-Atlantic.

regions on Thursday, May 18, according to Fox Weather.

Potential Disruption

North Carolina and its surrounding states across the East Coast can experience widespread power outages as the powerful winds of weather system can bring down power lines, as reported in previous weeks.

Furthermore, the unsettling situation of the sea could also threaten beachgoers and swimmers, as well as fisher, which can result in potential casualties.

2021 North Carolina Flooding

Being situated along the East Coast, North Carolina is vulnerable not only to Atlantic hurricanes but also to coastal flooding, a risk similar to many coastal states and communities. This danger has been evident in the said U.S. state in recent years.

In August 2021, a deadly flash flooding in North Carolina led to around 20 missing people and two others dead. These occurred due to the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred that year. Fred made landfall along the country's northern Gulf Coast before its remnant spread through the southern Appalachians region, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

Related Article: Flood Warning in Effect Over Carolinas Until Midweek, Roads Closed
The hottest day of the week in Florida, with temperatures in the lower 90s, will be followed by a 3-day thunderstorm in a sudden shift in weather, according to the latest forecast.

Orlando at Low 90s

In Orlando, Florida, the high today is 92 degrees, while the low tonight will be 71 degrees. Expect another scorching day in Central Florida on Wednesday. Inland, highs will be in the 90s; over at the coast, highs are in the 90s or somewhat higher. The morning sky will be sunny, but by the afternoon, clouds will be more prevalent. Rain chances start to increase after 2 PM, with the I-4 corridor and the Atlantic beaches having the maximum coverage.

Several storms with heavy rain, lightning, and brisk gusts may develop. By sunset, the coast will be clear of storms. Late tonight, the skies will clear, and temperatures in the 70s are anticipated until Thursday morning, FOX 35 News reports.

Melbourne at 92 Degrees

This afternoon in Melbourne, Florida, there is a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms, occurring mainly between 2 PM and 5 PM. Melbourne skies will be mostly sunny, with a high near 92, and wind will move at speeds of 10 to 15 mph.

Tonight, in Melbourne there will be a 10% chance of showers before 8 pm. It will be mostly clear, with a low around 70 and the West wind around 5 mph. Some areas can reach record temperatures, according to the National Weather Service.

Over Melbourne, Florida, a Hazardous Weather Outlook is in effect due to the possibility of isolated lightning storms throughout the entire east today in central Florida, with a strong westerly flow pinning the sea wind off the east coast along the coast. From Brevard to southern Florida, the greatest likelihood of storms will develop this afternoon and evening. Osceola southward anticipates collision of the sea breeze happen close to the coast.

Read Also: North Carolina at Risk of Severe Weather with Level 2 Storms, Hail

Miami

Wednesday began warmly with highs in the middle to upper 70s.

Due to the southwest wind, it will probably be the hottest day of the week, with highs reaching the low 90s. When humidity is taken into account, it will feel like the middle to upper 90s.

The afternoon will bring storms and showers, with a chance of a few very severe downpours.

It will be repeated on Thursday while the southwest wind remains in the region and the afternoon storms re-ignite.

Through the weekend, this rainy season pattern will likely persist with a chance for afternoon storms. For the remainder of the week throughout the weekend, highs are expected to be in the 90s, CBS News reports

Florida Weather Forecast

This week's weather is still warm and sunny with daily afternoon storm chances. A storm alert is in force for Thursday afternoon, according to FOX35 News. As a pocket of energy streams in overhead, a few strong to locally severe storms may be likely.

In the most powerful storms, it is possible to have large amounts of rain, lightning, significant wind gusts, and possibly tiny hail. Also appearing to be very busy are Friday and Sunday. Although the likelihood of rain will be lower generally over the next three days, daily storms with heavy rain and lightning are still possible in Central Florida.

Related Article: Kelvin Waves Roll Along Equator Ushering El Nino to South America
Much of the Northern United States is experiencing poor air quality due to the haze left over from the recent wildfire in Canada.

Haze Sweeps Through Northern US

In the middle of May 2023, raging wildfires suffused the northern United States and southern Canada with smoke. As of May 16, the fires had burned 1,800 square miles, including British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. The area is ten times the typical amount of land burned during this time of year.

On May 15, 2023, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 18 (GOES-18) captured smoke from the wildfires that were raging over southern Canada, North Dakota, Minnesota, and numerous other states.

According to 3KRTV, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality has given some areas of the state's air quality an "unhealthy" rating, which corresponds to alert level RED.

If it weren't for a concentration of increased wildfire smoke moving over West Michigan from northwestern Canada, the skies should be clear today, according to WoodTV. There is no chance of any of the smoke mixing down to the surface, so it will remain very lofty. Smoke is expected to leave West Michigan's skies by Tuesday night, but this summer, secondhand smoke might be a recurring problem.

Canada Wildfire

In Alberta, 87 wildland fires burning were reported as of May 16; 25% of these flames were classed as out of control, suggesting their size was anticipated to increase. According to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System, the majority of the 478,000 hectares burned were in Alberta, however on that day, many fires were deemed to be out of control in British Columbia and Saskatchewan.

In numerous cities, smoke from the wildfires contributed to poor air quality and decreased visibility. Wildfire smoke contains microscopic particles known as aerosols, some of which can worsen respiratory and cardiovascular health issues and lower air quality. According to Canada's Air Quality Health Index, the day of May 16 had "very high risk" air quality in some Albertan communities, which is the worst possible rating.

Also Read: North Carolina at Risk of Severe Weather with Level 2 Storms, Hail

Haze and Very High-Risk Air Quality

The Aerosols Robotic Network, or AERONET, a global network of ground sensors that consists of more than 500 precisely calibrated Sun photometers and measures aerosol optical depth (AOD) globally, also noted hazy skies. The devices measure the brightness of incoming light while pointing at the Sun. By estimating the discrepancy between the light received and what would be anticipated in cloud-free conditions, scientists may determine the number and size of aerosols present in the atmospheric column.

A totally clear blue sky would generate an extremely low AOD value, below 0.05 in visible wavelengths, according to Pawan Gupta, an atmospheric scientist and co-leader of AERONET at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Even seeing the Sun would be challenging with an AOD reading of 3.

On May 10, the smoke from the Canadian wildfires drifted down to Maryland, giving the Sun a milky appearance in the sky. On that particular day, the AERONET instrument at NASA Goddard had an average AOD value in the visible spectrum of around 1. North Dakota as well as northern Minnesota saw bad air quality and cloudy skies on May 16 as a result of smoke, NASA Earth Observatory reports.

Related Article: 37% Wildfires Caused by Greenhouse Gas from Fossil Fuel Companies, Study Shows
A pod of dolphins from Devon to Cornwall in the United Kingdom is being placed under public monitoring due to their decreasing population, according to recent reports.

Due to the threat, scientists are asking the U.K. public to observe and report any bottlenose dolphin sightings or incidents that would be detrimental to the marine animal's population in the said areas.

The urgency came after years of dolphin strandings not only in the U.K., but also in the United States, France, and other parts of the world, wherein experts estimated thousands of dolphin deaths each year.

These reported deaths are in addition to the mass dolphin killings in the Faroe Islands and Japan, wherein such practice was condemned by conservationists and other concerned groups.

Various research over the past year have attributed such strandings to be caused by vessel strikes or ship collisions, as well as offshore wind farms and even climate change-related ocean warming.

However, the most common causes of deaths have been linked to fishing gear since dolphins and other ocean dwellers can be trapped, including whales.

Pod of Dolphins in Danger

Scientists are urging the public to help them monitor coastal bottlenose dolphins, the U.K.'s smallest population of such species, to ensure their future, ITV news reported.

There are around 40 members in the pod of dolphins being monitored between the north coastal areas of Devon and Cornwall, along the England south coast to East Sussex.

The researchers involved in the monitoring aim to determine and build a pattern where the dolphins travel at a particular time of the year and to know if external factors like human activities and environmental conditions also affect their movements.

Also Read: Sea Turns Into Blood as Hundreds of Dolphins Slaughtered During the Commencement of the Taiji Dolphin Hunt in Japan

U.K. Dolphin Monitoring

Based on the report, marine researchers and conservationists are asking the public to make notes of the date, time, and location of any dolphin sightings in the open ocean.

In addition, the U.K. dolphin monitoring also urges people take pictures of a dolphin's dorsal fins since they can be identified by their markings on it.

Furthermore, scientists warned that harassing dolphins is a criminal offence.

U.K. Dolphin Population

In the U.K. waters, there are approximately 700 bottlenose dolphins that can be found in four groups, according to the U.K. government, which reported that some bottlenose dolphins live very close to the shore, exposing them to human activities and cetacean species.

According to local authorities, the main threat on these dolphins is organic pollutants and underwater noise from anthropogenic or human-caused sources like seismic surveys, shipping, military sonar, and pole driving.

The authorities also acknowledged that dolphins can also be disturbed by "wildlife-catching vessels" and can sustain injuries upon collisions with vessels.

A whale or dolphin struck by a boat, ship, or vessel is likely to die or sustain serious injuries, according to the charity organization Whale and Dolphin Conservation.

In previous investigations, the determination of a marine animal's death in connection with vessel strikes is based on their wounds.

Related Article: Dolphin Population Becomes Extinct After Last Member Got Entangled in Fishing Gear
A uncommon tropical plant has the ability to transform into a predator in specific situations.

The mechanism causing this has now been identified by a research team from the universities of Hannover and Wurzburg.

Uncommon tropical plant, hunger for meat due to deficiency

The plant Triphyophyllum peltatum is unusual.

The liana species, which is indigenous to West Africa's tropics, is of great interest for medical and pharmaceutical research because of its constituents, which in the lab have demonstrated potential medically beneficial activities against cells, such as leukemia and pancreatic cancer and also against pathogens that cause malaria and other diseases, as per Phys.org.

Triphyophyllum peltatum, the only plant species known to have the ability to turn carnivorous under specific conditions, is noteworthy from a botanical standpoint.

It adds tiny insects to its meal, which it catches via secretion drops that act as sticky traps and digests with specially-made lytic enzymes.

The plant's leaves exhibit remarkable flexibility and may be divided into three varieties based on their developmental stage.

Simple leaves first form in the juvenile phase, but later on, so-called trap leaves that carry a lot of sticky traps can form.

After serving its purpose, the plant either produces regular leaves once again or, if it has reached the liana stage, leaves that has two hooks at the tip that can be used as a climbing support.

Triphyophyllum peltatum demonstrates a great degree of plasticity in the expression of leaf identity; the developmental stages can vary in length, while the carnivorous stage may either be totally missing or made up for at a later stage.

Consequently, it appears that the plant adjusts to the local environmental factors.

The plant was also thought to be very difficult to cultivate, making it difficult to study the formation of trap leaves experimentally, a problem that has now been resolved by researchers at Leibniz Universitat Hannover and Julius-Maximilians-Universitat Wurzburg.

Also read: Weird Nature: 5 of the Most Bizarre Bug Eating Plants on the Planet

Why do plants eat meat?

Carnivorous plants have evolved a wide variety of peculiar and amazing adaptations that enable them to thrive in nutrient-deficient situations, as per the Natural History Museum.

Animals are drawn to, captured by, and consumed by carnivorous plants for their nutrients.

Because carnivory is considered a successful adaptation, it has repeatedly independently evolved in different plant groups.

Carnivory doesn't replace the requirement for photosynthesis and root systems, however it's fantastic for nutritional top-ups.

Simply said, being carnivorous aids plants in utilizing all resources to their fullest potential.

Triphyophyllum peltatum trigger due to to lack of Phosphorus

The cause of the shift to a carnivorous lifestyle has been discovered by the research team.

They subjected the plant to various stresses, such as nutritional deficits, and observed the way it responded to each.

They were only able to see traps emerge in one situation, when there was a phosphorus shortage.

Triphyophyllum peltatum may avoid the possibility of starvation by setting up traps and gaining access to the essential nutrient through digestion of its insect prey in its native environment of African tropical forests on nutrient-poor soils.

The scientists claimed that these new discoveries are a milestone since they enable upcoming molecular investigations that will aid in understanding the evolution of carnivory.

Related article: New Carnivorous Plant Species from Butterworts Genus Discovered in Ecuador
Opinion column

The light shining in the darkness

Regular contributor James Knight points out that good can come out of the pain and anguish that surround bereavement.

My father passed away a few weeks ago, and I have been reflecting on his life, his pain, and his death, in the hope of writing something meaningful and encouraging. The final chapter of my father's life saw him suffer with dementia - nature's nasty double cross, when your mind and body slowly turn from being a friend to being a foe. Throughout the pain and grief that accompanies dementia, God has spoken to me in profound ways that I'm still in the process of trying to unpack.



In the last year of his life, in particular, I've had to watch my father suffer in ways that penetrate my heart and soul beyond mere words. Even as a Christian, it is difficult to think of a gradual process in life that's more upsetting and demoralising - the slow decline of a loved one into a perpetual state of unsettled and confused torment.



But throughout the dark period, I've seen so much light, and so much to be amazed at, as God's love and comfort has been bestowed with such abundance throughout. Given the way that God has shown His presence throughout this ordeal, it gives me an even more acute awareness of how amazing He is, and what an astonishing thing it is that He cares about every part of our life, and craves an even closer relationship with each of us.



When I delivered the eulogy at my father's funeral, I also paid tribute to my dear mum, who did an absolutely incredible job looking after dad for so many years during his decline, right until the end. It's one of the most remarkable things a human can do for a loved one - to effectively forsake the majority of their own life for years, so that their loved one can be cared for, and looked after with the full protection of their own dignity, as they start to become more and more vulnerable. Giving up our life with sacrificial love is Christ-like in nature - it reflects what our Lord did for us on the cross, and it's a continuous act that has the power to speak to us through the love and devotion of our fellow humans.



Dad suffered so much with his decline in health - and while I always felt God's closeness throughout, I began to discover how my father's affliction and the love that surrounded him brought about a testimony that will continue to live on. In a way that's easier to feel than to articulate, if dad was destined to pay the price of his decline, there a sense in which the Lord has used this unwilful sacrifice to illuminate the goodness, kindness, and love of Jesus through all the good that came out of its surroundings.



My father didn't choose to spend his final years in so much torment and confusion - but in a profound way, his involuntary suffering helped create the conditions under which the power of Divine love could be exhibited through the human love and devotion that surrounded his hardship.



My father knew the Lord - and now that he's at peace with Him, I think he'll have comfort in the knowledge that God can continue to use his suffering as a testimony and a force for good in the world, as his remaining loved ones testify in spoken eulogies, and reflections in articles like this, about how we have felt God's love so profoundly during this time of pain, grief, and loss, and how God's presence has been so strong throughout.



When you are that close to the end of life with dementia, you don't know or remember much - but I believe you still sense the power of love from those with you who love you - especially the love of Christ through the Holy Spirit inside. God's love is always there, of course, it's just often felt more acutely during pain and anguish. There's a piece of spiritual wisdom from Carl Jung, who says "What you most want to be found will be found where you least want to look". That's such a deep thing to contemplate - it's one of the reasons why, I think, when we confront suffering with love, we start to see just how infinitely powerful a force love is.



The light has always been more powerful than the darkness - and it's at the darkest part where the light is brightest, and where we feel close to God, and sense our reliance upon Him, in ways we otherwise might not.

The image is courtesy of pixabay.com.



James Knight is a local government officer based in Norwich, and is a regular columnist for Christian community websites Network Norfolk and Network Ipswich. He also blogs regularly as The Philosophical Muser, and contributes articles to UK think tanks The Adam Smith Institute and The Institute of Economic Affairs, as well as the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LICC).

The views carried here are those of the author, not necessarily those of Network Norfolk, and are intended to stimulate constructive debate between website users.

j.knight423@btinternet.com
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Fort Novosels own Sgt. 1st Class Philena E. Perdue was named the Department of Defense 2023 Liz Blanc Exceptional Sexual Assault Response Coordinator of the Year for the U.S. Army in a ceremony at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, May 11, 2023.

Perdue, who serves as the 1st Aviation Brigade Sexual Assault Response Coordinator, was lauded for her efforts from January-December 2022 to create an environment where people feel more comfortable discussing Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention topics, survivors are comfortable with reporting and feel they are supported, and leaders are continuously engaged.

Maj. Gen. Michael C. McCurry, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Novosel commander, commended her hard work.

Sgt. 1st Class Perdue, thank you and congratulations. Incredible job, incredible program to prevent one of the categories of harmful behaviors, and to protect Soldiers and help us take care of them if there is a traumatic incident, said McCurry, when Perdue won at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command level back in February.

While operating at master sergeant and division levels, her proactive approach that emphasized prevention helped instill confidence in victim advocates and improved the level of care offered to victims.

Perdue played a key role in restructuring Fort Novosel SHARP training by setting up several unique rooms to house scenario-based training at the USAACE Training Center. The Knowledge Quest training event tests Soldiers and Department of the Army civilians knowledge and provides a chance to practice intervention techniques to help prevent sexual harassment and sexual assault.

We saw a need to reenergize SHARP training to where the training could be applied, said Shana Morris, Installation Lead Sexual Assault Response Coordinator at USAACE headquarters.

She commended Perdues willingness to take on such a big project and getting the collaborative efforts from everyone on the installation to take part in bringing an old building back to life, she said.

This included help from the Noncommissioned Officer Academy and Warrant Officer Candidate School, but Perdue and her husband Dana Perdue also put in a lot of their own time and energy, including painting and providing donated furniture for the scenarios  a reflection of her ethics and overall professionalism.

Perdue, who served last year as both brigade SARC and lead SARC, ensured leaders understand the training from a holistic point of view, that prevention is emphasized, and victims are supported, fostering a culture of trust, and helping to build cohesive teams.

Her care for victims truly goes way above and beyond. She meets with each victim, she makes sure that they are being cared for in every sense of the word, and making sure that theyre getting whatever services and support that they want and choose, Morris said.

The time an energy Perdue poured into standing up the training facility stems from her own experience looking out for others. As an E5, a soldier confided in her, and that motivated her.

Im a mom, Im a sister, and Im a leader, and that is what drives my passion, she said. When you have people that confide in you, you cant help but want to help them. I knew it was something I wanted to do. I wanted to help people and really make a difference.

Perdue said having command buy-in has been critical to the success of her efforts.

As SHARP professionals, we have a very difficult job to do, and we need the support of our leadership. Our soldiers need to see that SHARP is a priority, and not only the SHARP professionals make that a priority, but the leadership is as well. Im just so thankful that I am on an installation where that is in fact the case. Where leadership is taking SHARP seriously, making it a priority, and it really shows in our ability to have a stand alone training facility, Perdue said.

The facility includes a space for any personnel who, after taking the training, feel they need to talk to a SARC.

It was important to ensure that we had a quiet space set aside for those that come through the training that may have identified that, oh, what happened to me was sexual harassment, and I didnt realize it. Or, I finally have the courage to say something and I want to file a report. We have that quiet room in there where we can do a full intake if someone decides they want to file a report or a complaint, she said.

The facility provides spaces where people can sign their names and write messages to show support for victims.

It was also important to show all the support when you come through the building, with the murals that we have, the I got your back and we support you and the message to a survivor. You never know whos in your formation that has been a victim of sexual assault. So for them to be able to see hey, here on Fort Novosel you have the support of all these people, because you see they took time to sign the wall. I was so thankful that Gen. Brito signed the wall. They get to see that! Good leadership really matters and command support really matters, Perdue said.

Perdues felt it was important for the training to provide an opportunity to practice intervention skills.

Were Soldiers, we practice soldiering, we learn how to shoot our weapons, we do physical training, but theres nothing that teaches us how to intervene when we see inappropriate behaviors. Nothing that shows us how to communicate effectively. And I felt like that is something we needed to practice in order to build that skill. Intervention is a skill, she said.

When you think about everybodys upbringing, not everybody is brought up to be confrontational, not everybody is taught to stand up for themselves, so if we have those people within our formations and they dont know how to, thats another barrier to intervention. And I just wanted to find a creative way to break that barrier and teach our soldiers and civilians how to intervene and give them a safe environment to be able to practice, she said.

Perdue said she feels honored to be recognized.

I feel very honored, and an overwhelming feeling of gratitude, and I have to just keep going, said Perdue, as she focuses on developing a next-level training.
By AFP

CANNES: On-set scandal may have haunted French director Catherine Corsini's new film, but the movie was well-received by critics in Cannes for its strong acting performances.

'The Homecoming,' which premiered late Wednesday, lost some funding over an intimate scene featuring a 15-year-old actress that was ultimately cut from the final take.

It was the second movie, after Johnny Depp's comeback as French King Louis XV in "Jeanne du Barry", to cause upset at the world's leading film industry shindig, held on the French Riviera.

The coming-of-age story tells of a black mother who returns to Corsica with her two teenage daughters, years after fleeing the French island in a hurry. The trio explore a mysterious past, sexuality and drugs.

While some critics called out the film for occasional longwindedness and failing to satisfy key questions, it was largely well-received, particularly for the acting.

"Whatever else happened on-set, Corsini has delivered a wonderful film... that ever so elegantly flutters questions of race, class, guilt and opportunity through a seaside summer breeze," wrote The Wrap.

Catherine Corsini, 66, an outspoken gay activist, had a film in the running for the top award, the Palme D'Or, "The Divide," in 2021, featuring Guinean-born actress Aissatou Diallo Sagna, who also appears in this year's feature.

Corsini won the Queer Palme for the film, while Sagna won France's highest Cesar film award for her role.

Drama erupted, however, over Corsini's 'The Homecoming' which was initially left out of the official selection at the last minute, only to be added back in.

The controversy centred on a scene involving actress Esther Gohourou, who was 15 at the time, and a love interest.

Corsini told Variety magazine the moment "suggested something of a sexual nature" but remained centred on the actors' faces.

The controversial scene was eventually cut from the film, leaving in just a quick kiss between the actors.

In an interview with Le Monde, Corsini -- one of a record seven women directors in the main competition at Cannes, slammed the barrage of criticism as "a new form of patriarchy".

Responding to accusations of verbal and physical violence on set, Corsini admitted she was "intense" and "eruptive at times" when working under pressure.

The film depicts moments of intimacy between the older sister, played by 22-year-old Suzy Bemba, and her lesbian love interest.

"Not remotely out for provocation, the film handles its sexual moments, such as they are, with restraint and discretion  with little to scare the horses," wrote Screen Daily.

CANNES: On-set scandal may have haunted French director Catherine Corsini's new film, but the movie was well-received by critics in Cannes for its strong acting performances. 'The Homecoming,' which premiered late Wednesday, lost some funding over an intimate scene featuring a 15-year-old actress that was ultimately cut from the final take. It was the second movie, after Johnny Depp's comeback as French King Louis XV in "Jeanne du Barry", to cause upset at the world's leading film industry shindig, held on the French Riviera.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The coming-of-age story tells of a black mother who returns to Corsica with her two teenage daughters, years after fleeing the French island in a hurry. The trio explore a mysterious past, sexuality and drugs. While some critics called out the film for occasional longwindedness and failing to satisfy key questions, it was largely well-received, particularly for the acting. "Whatever else happened on-set, Corsini has delivered a wonderful film... that ever so elegantly flutters questions of race, class, guilt and opportunity through a seaside summer breeze," wrote The Wrap. Catherine Corsini, 66, an outspoken gay activist, had a film in the running for the top award, the Palme D'Or, "The Divide," in 2021, featuring Guinean-born actress Aissatou Diallo Sagna, who also appears in this year's feature. Corsini won the Queer Palme for the film, while Sagna won France's highest Cesar film award for her role. Drama erupted, however, over Corsini's 'The Homecoming' which was initially left out of the official selection at the last minute, only to be added back in. The controversy centred on a scene involving actress Esther Gohourou, who was 15 at the time, and a love interest. Corsini told Variety magazine the moment "suggested something of a sexual nature" but remained centred on the actors' faces. The controversial scene was eventually cut from the film, leaving in just a quick kiss between the actors. In an interview with Le Monde, Corsini -- one of a record seven women directors in the main competition at Cannes, slammed the barrage of criticism as "a new form of patriarchy". Responding to accusations of verbal and physical violence on set, Corsini admitted she was "intense" and "eruptive at times" when working under pressure. The film depicts moments of intimacy between the older sister, played by 22-year-old Suzy Bemba, and her lesbian love interest. "Not remotely out for provocation, the film handles its sexual moments, such as they are, with restraint and discretion  with little to scare the horses," wrote Screen Daily.
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Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) congratulates the following students on being named to the Winter 2023 Presidents List. The winter terms run from January to May.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the Presidents List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Honored are Elizabeth Allen and Laura Torres, both of Daleville, and Nickole Blair of Enterprise.

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private, nonprofit institution with a 90-year history of educating traditional-aged students and working adults. Now serving more than 170,000 learners worldwide, SNHU offers approximately 200 accredited undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs, available online and on its 300-acre campus in Manchester, N.H.

Recognized as one of the Most Innovative regional universities by U.S. News & World Report and one of the fastest-growing universities in the country, SNHU is committed to expanding access to high quality, affordable pathways that meet the needs of each learner. Learn more at www.snhu.edu.
Mayank Singh By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: In a swift humanitarian response, the Indian Navy deployed its Air Maritime Reconnaissance assets in the Southern Indian Ocean Region (IOR) to search for a Chinese fishing vessel which sank with 39 crew on board.

The vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, sank approximately 900 nautical miles from India with the crew including nationals from China, Indonesia and Philippines.

The Indian Navy said, P8I aircraft have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel. The P-8I aircraft is the Indian Navys long-range, multi-mission maritime patrol aircraft.

In addition, as an immediate response, Search and rescue (SAR) equipment was deployed at the scene by the Indian aircraft on request of PLA (N) ships closing the area, the Navy added.

In a display of Indias obligations as a credible and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the Indian Navy units also coordinated SAR efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLA (N) warships transiting to the scene of the incident, said the Indian Navy.

ALSO READ | Govt keen on all women R-Day parade in 2024

The Indian Navy continues to remain deployed to provide all possible assistance to the ongoing SAR efforts, it added.

The Indian Ocean Region comprises the Indian Ocean and the countries that border it including Australia, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Madagascar, Somalia, Tanzania, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

The Indian Ocean is the third largest water body in the world with vital sea lanes of communication crisscrossing it and plays an important role in running Asias largest economies. Other than the commercial fishing done in the area, around 80 per cent of the worlds seaborne oil trade passes through this ocean which is the connecting link between the east and the west.

NEW DELHI: In a swift humanitarian response, the Indian Navy deployed its Air Maritime Reconnaissance assets in the Southern Indian Ocean Region (IOR) to search for a Chinese fishing vessel which sank with 39 crew on board. The vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, sank approximately 900 nautical miles from India with the crew including nationals from China, Indonesia and Philippines. The Indian Navy said, P8I aircraft have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel. The P-8I aircraft is the Indian Navys long-range, multi-mission maritime patrol aircraft.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); In addition, as an immediate response, Search and rescue (SAR) equipment was deployed at the scene by the Indian aircraft on request of PLA (N) ships closing the area, the Navy added. In a display of Indias obligations as a credible and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the Indian Navy units also coordinated SAR efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLA (N) warships transiting to the scene of the incident, said the Indian Navy. ALSO READ | Govt keen on all women R-Day parade in 2024 The Indian Navy continues to remain deployed to provide all possible assistance to the ongoing SAR efforts, it added. The Indian Ocean Region comprises the Indian Ocean and the countries that border it including Australia, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Madagascar, Somalia, Tanzania, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The Indian Ocean is the third largest water body in the world with vital sea lanes of communication crisscrossing it and plays an important role in running Asias largest economies. Other than the commercial fishing done in the area, around 80 per cent of the worlds seaborne oil trade passes through this ocean which is the connecting link between the east and the west.
By Express News Service

RANCHI: A Journalist, associated with a vernacular daily was reportedly shot by unidentified bike-borne men in Baliapur near Dhanbad, late on Wednesday.

According to police, the incident happened at around 10 pm, when the victim, Praveen Kumar was returning home on his two-wheeler to Raghunathpur village in Baliapur.

Three bike-borne men intercepted Praveen Kumar near Rakhitpur village main road and reportedly shot him from a close range.

The assailants fled the spot right after the incident, the local police said.

He was immediately admitted to the nearby Baliapur community health centre (CHC) and taken to Shahid Nirmal Mahto Medical College and Hospital (SNMMCH) in Dhanbad, from where he was referred to Rajendra Institute of Medical Science (RIMS) Ranchi.

Dhanbad SSP Sanjiv Kumar informed that the matter is being investigated and efforts are being made to arrest the miscreants involved in it. Dhanbad Press Club has condemned the incident and demanded the immediate arrest of the assailants.

RANCHI: A Journalist, associated with a vernacular daily was reportedly shot by unidentified bike-borne men in Baliapur near Dhanbad, late on Wednesday. According to police, the incident happened at around 10 pm, when the victim, Praveen Kumar was returning home on his two-wheeler to Raghunathpur village in Baliapur. Three bike-borne men intercepted Praveen Kumar near Rakhitpur village main road and reportedly shot him from a close range. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The assailants fled the spot right after the incident, the local police said. He was immediately admitted to the nearby Baliapur community health centre (CHC) and taken to Shahid Nirmal Mahto Medical College and Hospital (SNMMCH) in Dhanbad, from where he was referred to Rajendra Institute of Medical Science (RIMS) Ranchi. Dhanbad SSP Sanjiv Kumar informed that the matter is being investigated and efforts are being made to arrest the miscreants involved in it. Dhanbad Press Club has condemned the incident and demanded the immediate arrest of the assailants.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: The National Human Rights Commission on May 17 issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh, calling for a detailed report of the incident in which 13 girl students were allegedly sexually exploited by a computer instructor in a government school in Shahjahanpur district.

The Chief Secretary and DGP have been asked to revert to the NHRC with a detailed report, including action taken against the perpetrators, and the current status of the investigation, within six weeks.

NHRC in a letter wrote, " The Commission would like to know the status of the compensation paid to the victims/ families so far and whether any counseling has been provided to the girl students who are reportedly scared and hesitant to attend the school, after the incident".

The NHRC took suo motu cognisance of media reports which stated that a computer instructor molested girls aged between 12-16 years. The matter came to light when the victims shared their ordeal with their parents.

While the perpetrator Mohammad Ali was arrested, the principal of the school and an assistant teacher has been suspended by the state education department authorities for failing to act on the case.

The commission observed that the contents of the media reports, if true, amounted to a violation of the human rights of the minor student victims.

The commission also maintains that the State government ensures proper guidelines are issued to all the schools under its jurisdiction, avoiding any delay or attempt to conceal facts in any untoward incident from the police on the part of school authorities, so that perpetrators are nabbed without delay.

LUCKNOW: The National Human Rights Commission on May 17 issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh, calling for a detailed report of the incident in which 13 girl students were allegedly sexually exploited by a computer instructor in a government school in Shahjahanpur district. The Chief Secretary and DGP have been asked to revert to the NHRC with a detailed report, including action taken against the perpetrators, and the current status of the investigation, within six weeks. NHRC in a letter wrote, " The Commission would like to know the status of the compensation paid to the victims/ families so far and whether any counseling has been provided to the girl students who are reportedly scared and hesitant to attend the school, after the incident".googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); The NHRC took suo motu cognisance of media reports which stated that a computer instructor molested girls aged between 12-16 years. The matter came to light when the victims shared their ordeal with their parents. While the perpetrator Mohammad Ali was arrested, the principal of the school and an assistant teacher has been suspended by the state education department authorities for failing to act on the case. The commission observed that the contents of the media reports, if true, amounted to a violation of the human rights of the minor student victims. The commission also maintains that the State government ensures proper guidelines are issued to all the schools under its jurisdiction, avoiding any delay or attempt to conceal facts in any untoward incident from the police on the part of school authorities, so that perpetrators are nabbed without delay.
By PTI

JAIPUR: Supporters of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his bete noire Sachin Pilot on Thursday got into a scuffle with each other ahead of a feedback meeting with the party workers in Ajmer, police said.

The meeting was scheduled at a place in Vaishali Nagar area of the city. The meeting was to be chaired by AICC's Rajasthan co-incharge Amrita Dhawan.

According to Christianganj Police Station SHO Karan Singh, supporters of both leaders had an altercation over seating arrangement, which led to a scuffle.

"It was an office bearer's meeting where supporters of Ajmer Saras Dairy Chairman Ramchandra Chaudhary and RTDC Chairman Dharmendra Rathore had come. They started shouting slogans against each other, which led to a scuffle between them," Congress city president Vijay Jain said.

SHO Karan Singh said that police present at the spot intervened and pacified the protestors.

No major injury was reported, he added.

Rift runs deep in the Rajasthan Congress with Pilot raising a dissident's banner against Gehlot over alleged corruption by the previous BJP dispensation in the state and demanding action against them.

Apart from a call for a high-level probe into corruption, Pilot recently spelled out two other demands -- disbanding the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) and its reconstitution, and compensation for those affected by the cancellation of government recruitment exams after paper leaks.

Earlier in the week, he also threatened a statewide agitation if his demands are not met.

JAIPUR: Supporters of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his bete noire Sachin Pilot on Thursday got into a scuffle with each other ahead of a feedback meeting with the party workers in Ajmer, police said. The meeting was scheduled at a place in Vaishali Nagar area of the city. The meeting was to be chaired by AICC's Rajasthan co-incharge Amrita Dhawan. According to Christianganj Police Station SHO Karan Singh, supporters of both leaders had an altercation over seating arrangement, which led to a scuffle.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); "It was an office bearer's meeting where supporters of Ajmer Saras Dairy Chairman Ramchandra Chaudhary and RTDC Chairman Dharmendra Rathore had come. They started shouting slogans against each other, which led to a scuffle between them," Congress city president Vijay Jain said. SHO Karan Singh said that police present at the spot intervened and pacified the protestors. No major injury was reported, he added. Rift runs deep in the Rajasthan Congress with Pilot raising a dissident's banner against Gehlot over alleged corruption by the previous BJP dispensation in the state and demanding action against them. Apart from a call for a high-level probe into corruption, Pilot recently spelled out two other demands -- disbanding the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) and its reconstitution, and compensation for those affected by the cancellation of government recruitment exams after paper leaks. Earlier in the week, he also threatened a statewide agitation if his demands are not met.
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FORT NOVOSEL  Nine soldiers with a combined 194 years of service retired at the Fort Novosel Quarterly Retirement Ceremony May 11 in the U.S. Army Aviation Museum.

Col. Robert J. Holcombe, Fort Novosel garrison commander, officiated and spoke at the ceremony, assisted by Command Sgt. Maj. Christopher T. Doss, garrison command sergeant major.

The following are short write-ups on each retiree.

LT. COL. SHANNON

R. BEALLBeall, U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center deputy director for G3, entered military service in the Marine Corps in 1999. He graduated Naval flight training in 2002. After a short break in service, he joined the Army National Guard as an Army aviator.

He said the highlight of his career was working with so many exceptional Marines, Soldiers and Department of the Army civilians over the past quarter century  many he now has the privilege of calling his lifelong friends.

He and his spouse, Leigh, have two children. They plan to reside in Enterprise.

MAJ. MICHAEL T. ISHIDA Ishida, Air Traffic Services Command brigade operations officer, entered military service in 2003 as an Aviation officer. He served multiple combat tours in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

He said the highlight of his career was serving as the company commander of D Co., 5th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment at Fort Campbell, Ky.

He and his spouse, Kelli, have two children and two Cocker Spaniels. They plan to reside in Dothan.

CW4 MILAM T. JEANSJeans, A Co., 1-145th Avn. Regt. Aviation Warrant Officer Intermediate Level Education Course instructor, entered military service in 1998 as an OH-58 Kiowa armament and avionics mechanic. In 2000, he entered warrant officer flight training. He served multiple combat tours in support of operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom.

He said the highlights of his career were being an instructor and mentor at Fort Novosel, and an adviser-trainer to the Afghan Special Missions Wing.

He and his spouse, Gwen, have four children. They plan to reside in Enterprise.

CW3 AARON J. HAGGARDHaggard, Flatiron U.S. Army Air Ambulance Detachment maintenance test pilot, entered military service in 2000 as a helicopter repairer. He became a warrant officer in 2010. He served multiple combat tours in support of operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom, Inherent Resolve, Freedom Sentinel and Resolute Support.

He said the highlights of his career were meeting the love of his life, seeing the world and working alongside so many great Soldiers throughout his career.

He and his spouse, Beverly, have three children. They plan to reside in Enterprise.

CW3 RICHARD E. LEWIS IIILewis, D Co., 1-14th Avn. Regt. standardization instructor pilot, entered military service in 2003 in the Marine Corps as an aviation ordnance technician. In 2007, he transitioned into the Army as an AH-64 Apache armament, avionics and electrical technician. In 2009, he was selected for warrant officer flight training. He served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan in support of operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.

He said the highlight of his career was being a U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence standardization instructor pilot instructing the next generation of instructor pilots at Fort Novosel.

He and his spouse, Lisa, have one child. They plan to reside in Enterprise.

CW3 BRANDON R. PINEROPinero, Aviation Enablers-Requirements Determination Directorate aviation logistics capabilities and requirements manager, entered military service in 2003 as an OH-58 Kiowa Warrior mechanic. In 2012, he was selected for warrant officer training. He served multiple combat tours in support of operations Iraqi Freedom and Inherent Resolve.

He said the highlight of his career was being a combined joint task force production control officer in Iraq.

He and his spouse, Elyse, have two children. They plan to reside in Orlando, Fla.

SGT. 1ST CLASS DENVER O. DORANDoran, ATSCOM air traffic control maintenance evaluator, entered military service in 2000 as an air traffic control maintainer. He served a combat tour in support of operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.

He said the highlight of his career was marrying his beautiful wife, Melanie, and having four wonderful children. They plan to reside in Dothan.

SGT. 1ST CLASS CATINA

R. BUCKALEWBuckalew, 3-315th Engineer Regt. human resources sergeant, entered military service in 2003 as a human resources specialist. She served multiple combat tours in support of operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.

She said the highlight of her career was having her wonderful, dedicated husband, Anthony, by her side supporting her every step of the way. They plan to reside in Enterprise.

SGT. 1ST CLASS DARRELL L. DAVIS JR.Davis, 1-13th Avn. Regt. Air Traffic Control Operator Course instructor, entered military service in 2003 as an air traffic control specialist. He served multiple combat tours in support of operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.

He said the highlight of his career was watching his eldest son graduate from high school. He plans to reside in Ozark.
By IANS

IMPHAL: The Congress, which had dubbed the violence in Manipur "pre-planned" and demanded immediate imposition of President's Rule in the BJP-ruled state, has constituted a three-member 'fact-finding' team to study the violence in the state, ascertain the causes of widespread hostilities, and evaluate its extent.

A Congress leader in Imphal said on Thursday that the party President Mallikarjun Kharge has constituted the three-member team, comprising party General Secretary Mukul Wasnik, in-charge for Tripura, Sikkim, and Nagaland Dr. Ajoy Kumar and party's Tripura MLA Sudip Roy Barman to visit Manipur.

The team would study the Manipur situation in coordination with the state in-charge Bhakta Charan Das, state President K. Meghachandra Singh and three-time former Chief Minister and incumbent Congress Legislator Party leader Okram Ibobi Singh.

Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K.C. Venugopal in a statement said that the 'fact-finding' team would submit its report to the Congress President at the earliest.

Das last week visited Manipur and compared the valley-based organisations Arambai Tenggol and Meitei Leepun to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bajrang Dal."The condition in Manipur is visible to the country and world and I have been working in Manipur for the last three years. There are two areas -- hill area and the valley area," Das had said and demanded immediate imposition of President's Rule in the state.

The ethnic violence in Manipur since May 3 claimed the lives of at least 73 people and injured 250 others, while 1,800 houses were destroyed besides a large number of government and private properties were also damaged.

IMPHAL: The Congress, which had dubbed the violence in Manipur "pre-planned" and demanded immediate imposition of President's Rule in the BJP-ruled state, has constituted a three-member 'fact-finding' team to study the violence in the state, ascertain the causes of widespread hostilities, and evaluate its extent. A Congress leader in Imphal said on Thursday that the party President Mallikarjun Kharge has constituted the three-member team, comprising party General Secretary Mukul Wasnik, in-charge for Tripura, Sikkim, and Nagaland Dr. Ajoy Kumar and party's Tripura MLA Sudip Roy Barman to visit Manipur. The team would study the Manipur situation in coordination with the state in-charge Bhakta Charan Das, state President K. Meghachandra Singh and three-time former Chief Minister and incumbent Congress Legislator Party leader Okram Ibobi Singh.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K.C. Venugopal in a statement said that the 'fact-finding' team would submit its report to the Congress President at the earliest. Das last week visited Manipur and compared the valley-based organisations Arambai Tenggol and Meitei Leepun to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bajrang Dal."The condition in Manipur is visible to the country and world and I have been working in Manipur for the last three years. There are two areas -- hill area and the valley area," Das had said and demanded immediate imposition of President's Rule in the state. The ethnic violence in Manipur since May 3 claimed the lives of at least 73 people and injured 250 others, while 1,800 houses were destroyed besides a large number of government and private properties were also damaged.
Rahna Mariyam By

Online Desk

On March 19, 1,500 law students were sworn in as lawyers to the Bar Council of Kerala. Among the students, the first to enroll was Padma Lakshmi, 27, a trans woman from Kochi.

She scripted history that day by becoming the first transgender lawyer in the state.

Padma Lakshmi, a physics graduate, has lived many lives before this.

In a conversation with TNIE Online, she shared the challenges she faced to reach where she is today.

A great responsibility

Lakshmi says that as a trans person, she feels proud but at the same time, she also feels she has been given a great responsibility, both as a lawyer and as a member of the transgender community. "I know I have a lot to do and I am really proud to be a trans woman and a lawyer. I am well aware of the duties I am entrusted to in both roles."

Padma's enrollment has garnered attention from various corners of society.

Law Minister of Kerala P Rajeev posted about her achievements on his social media. "Congratulations to Padma Lakshmi who overcame all the difficulties in her life and enrolled as the first transgender lawyer in Kerala. Being the first is still a tough feat in history. There are no predecessors on the way to the goal. There will be many obstacles. There will be people to silence and push back. Surviving all this, Padma Lakshmi has written her own name in legal history." he wrote.

Lakshmi's story has inspired many people.

"Recently, a man called me. He says he read my interviews. He told me that his daughter is like me and that he was confused and uncomfortable at first when he found out because he didn't know. Now, after reading my interviews, he has an idea. He says he wants his daughter to be like me, he wants her to create history one day. That made me happy. To give someone hope...a dream - that there is change" Lakshmi says.

Lakshmi is regularly contacted by college students and academicians not just to express their solidarity with the transgender community but to let them know that they are willing to help students from the community.

"For other lawyers, they are one in a million, not for me"

Lakshmi finds it easy to empathise with transgender clients who approach her with cases related to abuse. Even more so than other lawyers. "I am not saying that the other lawyers are not capable of understanding them. It's just easy for me since I am a part of that community, too," Padma Lakshmi says.

Padma Lakshmi also adds, "The transgender community has always been an exploited and abused group of people. It is easier for them to explain what they are going through to me since I have similar experiences".

Support from government, criticism from society

Coming from Kerala, a state that has been at the forefront of transgender community rights in India, Lakshmi also has her opinions about what the government has been doing for the community.

"I don't feel like we are invisible before the government. If that was the case then P Rajeev, Minister for Law, and Dr R Bindu, Minister for Social Justice, would not have been a part of my joy and congratulated me. Minister Rajeev, as the minister for Law, helped me with things related to my enrollment, all within the law. Avaru njangale kaanaan shramikkunathu kondale (All this is because they are trying to see us (transpersons)," she says.

Lakshmi pointed out cases like that of Adam Harry, the first Indian trans pilot, who secured a commercial pilot license with financial support from the Kerala government back in 2019. "As far as I know, Kudumbasree Mission and Greater Cochin Development Authority are planning to open a shelter for transgender persons," Lakshmi says.

Meanwhile, Lakshmi has a different opinion when it comes to how people behave around trans people. "People often say they are progressive but most of the time they are poisonous. I have come across such people in my life far too many times" Lakshmi tells TNIE.

Having said that, she adds, " I am not saying that everyone out there is like that. I also know people who are so welcoming and friendly. Society is mixed and complex. We can't put everyone under just one category. Recently, I have come across a group who claim that gender dysphoria is a disease and that the LGBTQIA+ community should be given therapy. These types of people will mislead society. So, we won't generalise society based on their behaviour towards the transgender and LGBTQIA+ communities."

"Job is a right, not a favour"

Lakshmi has always known that she will be discriminated for her gender. However, coming from the so-called progressive people made her realise how the legal community and others thought they were doing her a favour. "They sounded like they were doing me a favour by giving me charity. That day I said, a job is a right, not a favour. For someone like me, a job is the most important thing to do. Because people expect us to fail. I know people who are graduates, people with MBAs who fail to find any job only because they are transpersons."

Self-discovery & transformation

Lakshmi's path to finding herself was not much different from the stories of other transgender people.

"I was a reclusive kid growing up. Whenever people asked me anything, I would always answer yes or no and run away. Most people thought my parents had only my sisters, not me," she says.

"When I was a kid, I didn't know about the word 'transgender'. I just knew I am a woman. Whenever I had free time, I loved dressing up and putting on makeup". she recounts.

"When I was in Class 6, I started feeling like I shouldn't do this. Because that's what society taught me. It's the society that defines gender, and they decide what each gender should do. So, I told myself to follow those instructions. But, I couldn't put that facade up for long. It's not just society... there was this one report on this newspaper back then which said behaving the way I did... being like me ... they said it's a sexual perversion. I was sad," she says.

Lakshmi realized the real meaning of her gender identity once she could access the Internet when she was in Class 10.

"When I first got access to the Internet, I searched 'how to become a woman'. That's when I first learned the word 'transgender'. I realized I have to get surgery and hormone treatment. I knew that was just the first step. I wasn't ready to become who I am on the inside fearing what others might think. That's why I chose science in Class 11 so people would not tease me. Science is a tough stream. Students would be too busy studying to make comments about me. I did the same when it came to college but I had to face some comments there," says Lakshmi.

Throughout her college years, she had to let the snide comments pass. It was then that she realized she had to get a job to stand on her own in society.

"I became very career-oriented. I faced challenges everywhere I went. But one thing I realized during that time was that every challenge and failure is a stepping stone towards our success." she says.

Padma Lakshmi's journey became more meaningful when she met Dr Mariamma AK, a professor from Government Law College, Ernakulam.

"My only friend back there in Law College was my Mariamma Miss. Whenever I talked to her, I felt safe. She was like my safe space there," says Lakshmi.

However, Lakshmi was not bold enough to come out to her Professor in person. She sent her a message through WhatsApp revealing her gender identity.

Her professor promised her guidance and support.

Dr Mariamma's husband, advocate Anil Kumar, who is currently practising at the Supreme Court, helped Lakshmi with changing her details on documents. Lakshmi also practiced under the advocate for a while.

She also mentions her gratitude to eminent lawyer Indira Jaising who tweeted that Lakshmi was looking for a job in Kerala.

Supportive parents

Being abandoned by parents and family is not something unknown to the transgender community. However, Lakshmi's story is a different one. Even though she never told her parents about her gender-affirming treatments, they were catching on to what was going on.

"They knew everything, and I had no idea about it. My parents knew me so well. I still remember it was during my exams when my father called me by Padma Lakshmi instead of my birth name. I was shocked. He just told me to write my exams well. Later, he told me we will go for counselling. I thought maybe they will take me to some conversion therapy centres," she recounts.

All of her worries went away when her father said during the counselling session that he accepted her as she was. Lakshmi has received parental support since then.

'Voice of the unheard'

Lakshmi says her priority would not just be limited to the members of the transgender community and the problems faced by them. She wants to be the voice of everyone who is unheard.

"I want to address the cases related to the violation of constitutional rights. Like the recent lynching of the Dalit man that happened here in Kerala. I want to appear in the court for such victims. Recently, I appeared in court for an acid victim in Alappuzha. The victim got compensation. I am happy that I got to help someone even if it's a small one," Lakshmi exclaims.

On March 19, 1,500 law students were sworn in as lawyers to the Bar Council of Kerala. Among the students, the first to enroll was Padma Lakshmi, 27, a trans woman from Kochi. She scripted history that day by becoming the first transgender lawyer in the state. Padma Lakshmi, a physics graduate, has lived many lives before this.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); In a conversation with TNIE Online, she shared the challenges she faced to reach where she is today. A great responsibility Lakshmi says that as a trans person, she feels proud but at the same time, she also feels she has been given a great responsibility, both as a lawyer and as a member of the transgender community. "I know I have a lot to do and I am really proud to be a trans woman and a lawyer. I am well aware of the duties I am entrusted to in both roles." Padma's enrollment has garnered attention from various corners of society. Law Minister of Kerala P Rajeev posted about her achievements on his social media. "Congratulations to Padma Lakshmi who overcame all the difficulties in her life and enrolled as the first transgender lawyer in Kerala. Being the first is still a tough feat in history. There are no predecessors on the way to the goal. There will be many obstacles. There will be people to silence and push back. Surviving all this, Padma Lakshmi has written her own name in legal history." he wrote. Lakshmi's story has inspired many people. "Recently, a man called me. He says he read my interviews. He told me that his daughter is like me and that he was confused and uncomfortable at first when he found out because he didn't know. Now, after reading my interviews, he has an idea. He says he wants his daughter to be like me, he wants her to create history one day. That made me happy. To give someone hope...a dream - that there is change" Lakshmi says. Lakshmi is regularly contacted by college students and academicians not just to express their solidarity with the transgender community but to let them know that they are willing to help students from the community. "For other lawyers, they are one in a million, not for me" Lakshmi finds it easy to empathise with transgender clients who approach her with cases related to abuse. Even more so than other lawyers. "I am not saying that the other lawyers are not capable of understanding them. It's just easy for me since I am a part of that community, too," Padma Lakshmi says. Padma Lakshmi also adds, "The transgender community has always been an exploited and abused group of people. It is easier for them to explain what they are going through to me since I have similar experiences". Support from government, criticism from society Coming from Kerala, a state that has been at the forefront of transgender community rights in India, Lakshmi also has her opinions about what the government has been doing for the community. "I don't feel like we are invisible before the government. If that was the case then P Rajeev, Minister for Law, and Dr R Bindu, Minister for Social Justice, would not have been a part of my joy and congratulated me. Minister Rajeev, as the minister for Law, helped me with things related to my enrollment, all within the law. Avaru njangale kaanaan shramikkunathu kondale (All this is because they are trying to see us (transpersons)," she says. Lakshmi pointed out cases like that of Adam Harry, the first Indian trans pilot, who secured a commercial pilot license with financial support from the Kerala government back in 2019. "As far as I know, Kudumbasree Mission and Greater Cochin Development Authority are planning to open a shelter for transgender persons," Lakshmi says. Meanwhile, Lakshmi has a different opinion when it comes to how people behave around trans people. "People often say they are progressive but most of the time they are poisonous. I have come across such people in my life far too many times" Lakshmi tells TNIE. Having said that, she adds, " I am not saying that everyone out there is like that. I also know people who are so welcoming and friendly. Society is mixed and complex. We can't put everyone under just one category. Recently, I have come across a group who claim that gender dysphoria is a disease and that the LGBTQIA+ community should be given therapy. These types of people will mislead society. So, we won't generalise society based on their behaviour towards the transgender and LGBTQIA+ communities." "Job is a right, not a favour" Lakshmi has always known that she will be discriminated for her gender. However, coming from the so-called progressive people made her realise how the legal community and others thought they were doing her a favour. "They sounded like they were doing me a favour by giving me charity. That day I said, a job is a right, not a favour. For someone like me, a job is the most important thing to do. Because people expect us to fail. I know people who are graduates, people with MBAs who fail to find any job only because they are transpersons." Self-discovery & transformation Lakshmi's path to finding herself was not much different from the stories of other transgender people. "I was a reclusive kid growing up. Whenever people asked me anything, I would always answer yes or no and run away. Most people thought my parents had only my sisters, not me," she says. "When I was a kid, I didn't know about the word 'transgender'. I just knew I am a woman. Whenever I had free time, I loved dressing up and putting on makeup". she recounts. "When I was in Class 6, I started feeling like I shouldn't do this. Because that's what society taught me. It's the society that defines gender, and they decide what each gender should do. So, I told myself to follow those instructions. But, I couldn't put that facade up for long. It's not just society... there was this one report on this newspaper back then which said behaving the way I did... being like me ... they said it's a sexual perversion. I was sad," she says. Lakshmi realized the real meaning of her gender identity once she could access the Internet when she was in Class 10. "When I first got access to the Internet, I searched 'how to become a woman'. That's when I first learned the word 'transgender'. I realized I have to get surgery and hormone treatment. I knew that was just the first step. I wasn't ready to become who I am on the inside fearing what others might think. That's why I chose science in Class 11 so people would not tease me. Science is a tough stream. Students would be too busy studying to make comments about me. I did the same when it came to college but I had to face some comments there," says Lakshmi. Throughout her college years, she had to let the snide comments pass. It was then that she realized she had to get a job to stand on her own in society. "I became very career-oriented. I faced challenges everywhere I went. But one thing I realized during that time was that every challenge and failure is a stepping stone towards our success." she says. Padma Lakshmi's journey became more meaningful when she met Dr Mariamma AK, a professor from Government Law College, Ernakulam. "My only friend back there in Law College was my Mariamma Miss. Whenever I talked to her, I felt safe. She was like my safe space there," says Lakshmi. However, Lakshmi was not bold enough to come out to her Professor in person. She sent her a message through WhatsApp revealing her gender identity. Her professor promised her guidance and support. Dr Mariamma's husband, advocate Anil Kumar, who is currently practising at the Supreme Court, helped Lakshmi with changing her details on documents. Lakshmi also practiced under the advocate for a while. She also mentions her gratitude to eminent lawyer Indira Jaising who tweeted that Lakshmi was looking for a job in Kerala. Supportive parents Being abandoned by parents and family is not something unknown to the transgender community. However, Lakshmi's story is a different one. Even though she never told her parents about her gender-affirming treatments, they were catching on to what was going on. "They knew everything, and I had no idea about it. My parents knew me so well. I still remember it was during my exams when my father called me by Padma Lakshmi instead of my birth name. I was shocked. He just told me to write my exams well. Later, he told me we will go for counselling. I thought maybe they will take me to some conversion therapy centres," she recounts. All of her worries went away when her father said during the counselling session that he accepted her as she was. Lakshmi has received parental support since then. 'Voice of the unheard' Lakshmi says her priority would not just be limited to the members of the transgender community and the problems faced by them. She wants to be the voice of everyone who is unheard. "I want to address the cases related to the violation of constitutional rights. Like the recent lynching of the Dalit man that happened here in Kerala. I want to appear in the court for such victims. Recently, I appeared in court for an acid victim in Alappuzha. The victim got compensation. I am happy that I got to help someone even if it's a small one," Lakshmi exclaims.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Non-resident Odias abroad have sought urgent intervention of Centre to enable smooth repatriation of bodies of deceased migrants to the state as the process has been badly affected after Air India scrapped its service to Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar three months back.

Social worker and Bahrain Odia Samaj founder Arun Kumar Praharaj, who put forth the grievance before Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan in this regard recently, said earlier Air India was flying to Bhubaneswar via Delhi or Mumbai making it possible to send coffins to the state.

However, after Air India terminated its flight services to Bhubaneswar completely since the last three months, it has become extremely difficult to ensure timely handover of the body of a deceased Odia migrant to the family back home, Praharaj said.He said as per the information received from the employer companies, only Air India has the authority to carry coffin from abroad as all embassies have tie-up with the national carrier.

After suspension of the flight service to Bhubaneswar, the nearest airport to which it carries a coffin is Visakhapattnam or Kolkata. This make it extremely difficult for the poor families of the migrants as a hearse van or ambulance charges Rs 18,000 or more to transport body to anywhere in the state. Besides, it also delays transport of the coffin. This problem is faced by Odias in many middle-east countries, including Bahrain, he said.

Praharaj called for immediate steps to resume Air India services to Bhubaneswar or alternative arrangement should be done with Indigo or any other connecting airline to carry the coffin to Bhubaneswar. He also demanded that registration of employment contracts of migrant workers with respective Indian embassies should be made compulsory to empower the embassies to take necessary actions for resolving the issues faced by migrant workers.

BHUBANESWAR: Non-resident Odias abroad have sought urgent intervention of Centre to enable smooth repatriation of bodies of deceased migrants to the state as the process has been badly affected after Air India scrapped its service to Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar three months back. Social worker and Bahrain Odia Samaj founder Arun Kumar Praharaj, who put forth the grievance before Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan in this regard recently, said earlier Air India was flying to Bhubaneswar via Delhi or Mumbai making it possible to send coffins to the state. However, after Air India terminated its flight services to Bhubaneswar completely since the last three months, it has become extremely difficult to ensure timely handover of the body of a deceased Odia migrant to the family back home, Praharaj said.He said as per the information received from the employer companies, only Air India has the authority to carry coffin from abroad as all embassies have tie-up with the national carrier. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); After suspension of the flight service to Bhubaneswar, the nearest airport to which it carries a coffin is Visakhapattnam or Kolkata. This make it extremely difficult for the poor families of the migrants as a hearse van or ambulance charges Rs 18,000 or more to transport body to anywhere in the state. Besides, it also delays transport of the coffin. This problem is faced by Odias in many middle-east countries, including Bahrain, he said. Praharaj called for immediate steps to resume Air India services to Bhubaneswar or alternative arrangement should be done with Indigo or any other connecting airline to carry the coffin to Bhubaneswar. He also demanded that registration of employment contracts of migrant workers with respective Indian embassies should be made compulsory to empower the embassies to take necessary actions for resolving the issues faced by migrant workers.
By PTI

BEIJING: Australian maritime authorities have identified a large area in the Indian Ocean where they will focus the search for a capsized Chinese fishing vessel, which reportedly sank on Tuesday with 39 crew members.

A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency on Thursday that based on drift modelling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel.

A Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel capsized on Tuesday in the central Indian Ocean, which has so far left 39 people on board missing, including 17 Chinese mariners, 17 Indonesian mariners and five Philippine mariners.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told media here on Wednesday that the Chinese and foreign vessels have arrived at relevant waters to conduct a search and rescue operation after the fishing vessel "Lupeng Yuanyu 028" capsized.

More help is on the way.

"We will continue to work together with relevant sides to do everything possible to find those who have gone missing," he said.

"We would like to thank the Australian maritime search and rescue department for sending an aircraft and coordinating foreign vessels passing by to help with the search and rescue efforts. We hope countries nearby will continue to join our search and rescue efforts. We will not give up as long as there is still hope for saving lives," he said.

An AMSA spokesperson said that they continued to coordinate a multinational search effort after a distress beacon signal was received by AMSA from the fishing vessel at about 5:30 am (AEST) on the morning of May 16.

AMSA requested assistance from the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

An ADF P-8A Poseidon aircraft was tasked with assisting with the long-range search.

The ADF aircraft will rejoin the search on Thursday after overnighting in the Maldives, the Xinhua report said.

A private charter aircraft from Perth, with State Emergency Service (SES) observers on board, also assisted with the search on Wednesday and will rejoin the search on Thursday.

"A number of merchant ships and other vessels have been assisting with the search and will continue to do so today. AMSA would like to thank these vessels and their crews for their invaluable assistance," the spokesperson said on Thursday.

"Australia has been liaising with the Chinese Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), with three Chinese naval ships continuing the search in the area today," the spokesperson said.

Officials said weather conditions have calmed significantly since Tuesday.

Four vessels, including two foreign ships, are undertaking on-site search work.

AMSA said it is also working with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew, and it is enhancing its coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Official media reported the transport ministry also coordinated with maritime search and rescue agencies of Australia, Maldives and Sri Lanka to send additional forces to carry out search and rescue and made no mention of whether any assistance was sought from India as the Indian Navy has a sizeable presence in the Indian Ocean.

BEIJING: Australian maritime authorities have identified a large area in the Indian Ocean where they will focus the search for a capsized Chinese fishing vessel, which reportedly sank on Tuesday with 39 crew members. A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency on Thursday that based on drift modelling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel. A Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel capsized on Tuesday in the central Indian Ocean, which has so far left 39 people on board missing, including 17 Chinese mariners, 17 Indonesian mariners and five Philippine mariners.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told media here on Wednesday that the Chinese and foreign vessels have arrived at relevant waters to conduct a search and rescue operation after the fishing vessel "Lupeng Yuanyu 028" capsized. More help is on the way. "We will continue to work together with relevant sides to do everything possible to find those who have gone missing," he said. "We would like to thank the Australian maritime search and rescue department for sending an aircraft and coordinating foreign vessels passing by to help with the search and rescue efforts. We hope countries nearby will continue to join our search and rescue efforts. We will not give up as long as there is still hope for saving lives," he said. An AMSA spokesperson said that they continued to coordinate a multinational search effort after a distress beacon signal was received by AMSA from the fishing vessel at about 5:30 am (AEST) on the morning of May 16. AMSA requested assistance from the Australian Defence Force (ADF). An ADF P-8A Poseidon aircraft was tasked with assisting with the long-range search. The ADF aircraft will rejoin the search on Thursday after overnighting in the Maldives, the Xinhua report said. A private charter aircraft from Perth, with State Emergency Service (SES) observers on board, also assisted with the search on Wednesday and will rejoin the search on Thursday. "A number of merchant ships and other vessels have been assisting with the search and will continue to do so today. AMSA would like to thank these vessels and their crews for their invaluable assistance," the spokesperson said on Thursday. "Australia has been liaising with the Chinese Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), with three Chinese naval ships continuing the search in the area today," the spokesperson said. Officials said weather conditions have calmed significantly since Tuesday. Four vessels, including two foreign ships, are undertaking on-site search work. AMSA said it is also working with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew, and it is enhancing its coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka. Official media reported the transport ministry also coordinated with maritime search and rescue agencies of Australia, Maldives and Sri Lanka to send additional forces to carry out search and rescue and made no mention of whether any assistance was sought from India as the Indian Navy has a sizeable presence in the Indian Ocean.
By Associated Press

HIROSHIMA: President Joe Biden arrived in Japan Thursday with plans to meet privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of the larger Group of Seven summit - a sign of how the economic and national security alliance between the two countries has strengthened.

Kishida's home city of Hiroshima will play host to the gathering of major industrialised nations.

The setting of Hiroshima, where the US dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance as the US, Japan and their allies strategise on dealing with Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.

Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said the Russian invasion looms large and would be a significant conversation during the summit.

"There will be discussions about the battlefield," Sullivan said aboard Air Force One, stressing that the G-7 leaders would work to seal off any loopholes in sanctions so their effect can be maximised.

"There'll be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular."

ALSO READ: G-7 Hiroshima Summit: Who's attending, and what will be discussed?

Sullivan said the alliance between the US and Japan was at a "genuine high-water mark."

He said Biden and Kishida, in their meeting, will aim to advance a relationship that's progressed over the course of the last two years "in every dimension, whether it's the military dimension of the alliance, the economic dimension, the recently concluded agreement on clean energy, the work we're doing together on economic security." Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the US president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of nuclear-power Russia invading Ukraine in 2022, saying then, "Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow."

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war.

But the US and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also have economic matters to consider.

The US and Japan have begun to redefine global trade with an eye toward supply chain resilience and national security.

They recently signed an agreement on critical mineral supply chains.

They're also cooperating on the development of renewable energy sources and partnering on efforts to limit China's access to advanced computer chips.

Kishida hopes to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability.

China has asserted that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule.

US officials have been briefed on the possible economic damage caused by a war over Taiwan, which would disrupt the supply of advanced computer chips.

Japan is also keen to discuss ways to reinforce its three-way partnership with the US and Seoul following an April agreement between the United States and South Korea to strengthen their tools to deter the risk of a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit.

But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism.

The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta city's buildings.

But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

"Kishida is from Hiroshima, and believes deeply in the disarmament agenda," said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

"Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line. He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, and Japan's dependence on US extended deterrence -that that's more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment." There are outstanding issues between the US and China.

During a January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt.

Ridge Alkonis, a US Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official.

Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims USD 1.65 million in restitution.

His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

As much as Biden believes he has improved relations with US allies, he still faces political turmoil at home.

The president on Wednesday curtailed part of his trip across the Pacific Ocean.

He will skip Papua New Guinea and Australia in order to return to Washington in hopes of finalising a deal to raise the federal government's debt limit.

"The work that we need to do bilaterally with Australia and with the Pacific Islands is work that can be done at a later date, whereas the final stretch of negotiations over the debt limit or the budget cannot be done at a later date," Sullivan said Wednesday.

HIROSHIMA: President Joe Biden arrived in Japan Thursday with plans to meet privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of the larger Group of Seven summit - a sign of how the economic and national security alliance between the two countries has strengthened. Kishida's home city of Hiroshima will play host to the gathering of major industrialised nations. The setting of Hiroshima, where the US dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance as the US, Japan and their allies strategise on dealing with Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-8052921-2'); }); Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said the Russian invasion looms large and would be a significant conversation during the summit. "There will be discussions about the battlefield," Sullivan said aboard Air Force One, stressing that the G-7 leaders would work to seal off any loopholes in sanctions so their effect can be maximised. "There'll be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular." ALSO READ: G-7 Hiroshima Summit: Who's attending, and what will be discussed? Sullivan said the alliance between the US and Japan was at a "genuine high-water mark." He said Biden and Kishida, in their meeting, will aim to advance a relationship that's progressed over the course of the last two years "in every dimension, whether it's the military dimension of the alliance, the economic dimension, the recently concluded agreement on clean energy, the work we're doing together on economic security." Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the US president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner. Kishida was quick to call out the risks of nuclear-power Russia invading Ukraine in 2022, saying then, "Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow." China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the US and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries. Biden and Kishida also have economic matters to consider. The US and Japan have begun to redefine global trade with an eye toward supply chain resilience and national security. They recently signed an agreement on critical mineral supply chains. They're also cooperating on the development of renewable energy sources and partnering on efforts to limit China's access to advanced computer chips. Kishida hopes to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has asserted that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule. US officials have been briefed on the possible economic damage caused by a war over Taiwan, which would disrupt the supply of advanced computer chips. Japan is also keen to discuss ways to reinforce its three-way partnership with the US and Seoul following an April agreement between the United States and South Korea to strengthen their tools to deter the risk of a nuclear attack by North Korea. Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea. In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta city's buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition. "Kishida is from Hiroshima, and believes deeply in the disarmament agenda," said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. "Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line. He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, and Japan's dependence on US extended deterrence -that that's more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment." There are outstanding issues between the US and China. During a January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a US Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official. Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims USD 1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed. As much as Biden believes he has improved relations with US allies, he still faces political turmoil at home. The president on Wednesday curtailed part of his trip across the Pacific Ocean. He will skip Papua New Guinea and Australia in order to return to Washington in hopes of finalising a deal to raise the federal government's debt limit. "The work that we need to do bilaterally with Australia and with the Pacific Islands is work that can be done at a later date, whereas the final stretch of negotiations over the debt limit or the budget cannot be done at a later date," Sullivan said Wednesday.
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On Memorial Day Americans remember those who have died in military service to the United States. The National Moment of Remembrance is an annual event that asks all citizens, wherever they are at 3 p.m., to pause for a duration of one minute in silent tribute to the men and women who have honorably served in uniform and to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation.

The 4th annual Taps Across America will again honor those military members. At 3 p.m. on Memorial Day, thousands of participants will be spread out across our nation to sound the 24 notes of our most solemn bugle call  Taps.

Buglers and trumpeters, along with other instrumentalists, will sound the call from their front porch, on their apartment balcony, in the driveway, on the sidewalk, and at cemeteries and memorials to make sure this musical tribute is given to those who, as President Abraham Lincoln put it, gave the last full measure of devotion.

Musicians can register to participate at www.TapsAcrossAmerica.org.

Taps Across America is sponsored by Taps for Veterans, an organization dedicated to finding buglers for funerals and memorial services. It was founded in 2012 by Jari Villanueva, a retired United States Air Force Master Sergeant who served as a bugler at Arlington National Cemetery for 23 years. Villanueva also served the State of Maryland for 10 years as the director of Military Funeral Honors for the Maryland Military Department.

Taps Across America started in 2020 as a way to commemorate Memorial Day during the COVID pandemic with performers sounding Taps in their neighborhood during the National Moment of Remembrance.

Taps will be heard at the National World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C. at 3 p.m. EDT as part of the annual Taps Across America tribute.

The Doughboy Foundation is sponsoring buglers to sound Taps at 5 p.m. EDT on Memorial Day this year at all the major war memorials in Washington, D.C. The Doughboy Foundation sponsors the sounding of Daily Taps at 5 p.m. Eastern every day without fail at the National World War I Memorial in honor of our nations heroes.
Im thrilled PM Modi will be visiting United States for official visit: US envoy Garcetti

Mumbai, May 17: US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said that he is hrilled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to the US for an official visit. He said that this year holds great promises for India and US in terms of what the two nations can do.

I'm thrilled PM Modi will be visiting United States for official visit: US envoy Garcetti

While speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Garcetti said, "I'm thrilled that Prime Minister Modi will be visiting United States for an official state visit. It's only the third time in 75 years that an Indian prime minister has visited. It's only the third visit of any head of government from anywhere in the world with President Biden at the White House.""And we know that this is the first trip in 14 years of any prime minister to the White House at this level. We also know that this year holds great promises to be able to see what we can do. The sky is the limit in my mind for where we can take trade, to accelerate visas for students and visitors and to make sure that we can think not just about the next year or the next five years, but the next 20 and 50 years of a US-India relationship," he added.Prime Minister Modi will embark on an official state visit to the United States on June 22. During his visit, PM Modi will be hosted by US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at a state dinner at the White House, the Ministry of External Affairs informed through a press statement earlier this month.Garcetti said that Indians are the largest source of students in American universities from abroad. He said that the US is the largest trading partner to India and the militaries of the two nations train together. He said that the two nations are now protecting the Indo-Pacific."But when I think about when I first came here, it was so different. Our relationship was a one-way flow. Our defense trade was zero. And we hardly had any international economic ties together. Today, things are so different. We are now the largest trading partner of India in the United States," Garcetti said in the press conference."Indians are the largest source of students in American universities from abroad. USD 191 billion dollars in trade made us the largest trading partner to India. And our militaries now train together, more exercises with the Indian military than any other military in the world. So, we are protecting an Indo-Pacific now, so that it can be prosperous, that it can be free. And that so our nations can not only embody the values that make us strong, but that we can help ... them in this region and across the world together," he added.US envoy said that the India-US relationship is the "most important" on the face of the globe. While speaking at the press conference, he expressed his love for cricket. He spoke about his meeting with Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan. He also drew a parallel between Hollywood and Bollywood. He recalled his first visit to India as a 14-year-old boy.Responding to the question regarding the ongoing turmoil in Pakistan, he said, "The United States, India and the world share the same concern. We want stability in Pakistan. We hope that there will not be unrest in Pakistan and we stay engaged with Pakistan because of that. I think that serves both India and the United States and the world. And we hope and pray that the rule of law and peace will prevail over the border. But, that's up to the Pakistani people to decide. And I'd refer you to my counterpart on the other side of the border."ANI17 May 2023

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Anurag Thakur inaugurates Chintan Shivir on citizen-centric communication for good governance

New Delhi, May 17: Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Wednesday exhorted the officials of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Indian Information Service (IIS) to explore new frontiers in communication with the people and employ new technologies in that process.

Anurag Thakur inaugurates 'Chintan Shivir' on citizen-centric communication for good governance

Thakur inaugurated a day-long Chintan Shivir, a conclave on Citizen Centric Communication as a Tool for Good Governance in New Delhi on Wednesday.Addressing the gathering at 'Chintan Shivir', the Minister said that the media landscape was fast changing and so is the way people consume information. To that end, he added, there is a need to adapt methods of information dissemination to meet the needs of the 21st century.He said the Indian Information Service is a vital part of the government. The Minister said the Chintan Shivir has provided the officials with a unique opportunity to collaborate, self-introspect and timely course correct the work in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. He encouraged the Officers to work towards higher effectiveness through better utilization of resources, coordination of efforts, sharing of information and working as a single team.The Minister urged the officials to fix a time frame for themselves and keep on checking and updating the Ministry's priorities and deliverables.He spelt out a clear priority for the target of communication for the Ministry. He pointed out that a large part of India lives in a media shadow, bereft of facilities of television and newspapers. It is the responsibility of the officers of the Service to reach out to that section of society.Earlier, the Information and Broadcasting Secretary delved into the basic theme of the Shivir being divided into five sessions and said that all the topics carry much relevance and the Officers divided into groups will brainstorm during the day and present their ideas in the end.The day-long Chintan Shivir is being organized at National Media Center in New Delhi to brainstorm on issues relevant to government communication and prepare an Action plan and Roadmap for guiding the communication and outreach activities of the government.ANI17 May 2023

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Vietnams leading car manufacturer VinFast has planned to add mini car model to its lineup, company chairman Pham Nhat Vuong announced.

The richest man of Vietnam told the companys annual meeting on Wednesday that VinFast aims to be the market leader in electric vehicle coverage in all segments.

The battery-powered city or mini category is the only segment VinFast has yet to produce an offering in.

The new model will fill this gap, according to the chairman.

With the exception of stating that the new car "is super compact, and has a very low price," Vuong provided no information on the model, nor did he discuss its release date.

It is expected that the "super compact" model will be equivalent to the sub-compact category in foreign markets, a segment with offerings smaller than A-size cars like the Kia Morning or Hyundai i10.

VinFast only sells electric cars.

The VF 5 is the companys smallest model to date, costing VND458 million ($19,527) excluding battery, or VND538 million with battery. The VF 5 is the cheapest and smallest genuine electric car on the market now.

By the end of this year, TMT Motors will begin distributing the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV in Vietnam.

The Chinese vehicle was the best-selling mini electric car on the planet last year, thanks to being the best-selling model within the massive domestic Chinese market. Its expected to cost VND200-300 million in Vietnam.

VinFasts new model will be its only competitor in the segment on the Vietnamese market.
World Hypertension Day: Health Ministry announces 75/25 initiative for people with hypertension, diabetes

New Delhi, May 17: To mark World Hypertension Day, Union Health Ministry on Wednesday launched an ambitious initiative of screening and putting 75 million people with hypertension and diabetes on Standard Care by 2025.

World Hypertension Day: Health Ministry announces '75/25' initiative for people with hypertension, diabetes

The '75/25' initiative was announced by Dr VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog at the G20 co-branded event titled "Accelerating the Prevention and Management of Hypertension and Diabetes", organized by Union Health Ministry and World Health Organization (WHO) as part of World Hypertension Day.According to an official release, the Outcome Budget document of Union Budget 2023-2024 has for the first time introduced hypertension and diabetes treatment as output indicators reflecting the government's commitment to scale-up hypertension and diabetes coverage services.Highlighting the innovative '75/25' scheme, Dr V K Paul stated that this will be the largest expansion of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) in primary healthcare programs in the world with a community-based approach starting at the primary healthcare level. "This indicates clear resolve of the government to address NCDs by allocating resources, capacity enhancement, mobilisation and multi-sectoral collaboration", he said."Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is determined to become a developed nation in the next 25 years in the Amrit Kaal. Towards this goal, India is making efforts to achieve results in social indicators like life expectancy, maternal mortality rate, and NCDs at par with developed nations", he stressed.Dr Paul mentioned that the battle against NCDs has to be fought through the primary healthcare level and pointed out that India has created a platform to fight the menace through the creation of more than 1.5 lakh Health and Welfare Centres (HWC) and operationalization of telemedicine and digital health services.To accelerate the prevention and management of Hypertension, Dr V K Paul urged State teams to adhere to all SOPs especially the screening SOPs correctly at the grassroots since screening is the bedrock of successful management of any disease.However, he noted that only screening is not enough. Detection should lead to outcomes. He, therefore, urged all stakeholders to ensure that at least 80% of the diagnosed people are under treatment.During his speech, the need for private sector engagement in this effort and the contribution of the academic and research sectors in creating models and different building blocks for achieving the ambitious targets were also emphasized.Dr Paul also emphasized that greater effort should be put into prevention which includes lifestyle changes through eating good food, exercising and other wellness practices.He highlighted the need for Jan Andolan to make this effort more visible through community participation and the need for countries to work together and share each other's successes in the spirit of "One Earth, One Health".Congratulating India on this stupendous initiative, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General, WHO said, "Indian Government's ambitious target of reaching 75 million people with Hypertension under standard care in primary healthcare by 2025 is the largest cover of NCDs in the world for primary healthcare".In her virtual address, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Director, WHO-SEARO also congratulated the Govt of India for launching ambitious healthcare initiatives.She applauded India's commitment to primary healthcare and highlighted the operationalization of more than 1.5 lakh Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres as a significant achievement.She also urged countries in the Southeast Asia region to create a new and effective regional roadmap to accelerate NCD control.While, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan highlighted the interplay between economy, societal forces and epidemiological forces.He stated that with over 7% economic growth in the last two decades, the average life expectancy of people in India has risen significantly to around 70 today. "Lifestyle of a large section of the population has become more sedentary than before", he said.The Union Health Secretary noted that the solution to the problem of NCDs lies in a societal approach where awareness, prevention, health promotion and wellness are looked at in an integrated manner. He also stressed "on the need for inter-sectoral efforts and collaboration of public and private sectors to address the growing burden of NCDs in the country".According to an official release, in addition to the 75/25 initiative, the Shashakt Portal was launched for the training of 40,000 Primary Health Care Medical Officers on Standard Treatment Workflow for NCDs initiated to realize healthcare services closer to the community.The statement further said that the revised operational guidelines of the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD) were also released with the aim of much wider coverage."The programme is now providing services for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Asthma, Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Diseases NAFLD), ST Elevation of Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) apart from Hypertension, Diabetes and three common Cancers including Oral, Breast and Cervical", the statement read.Vishal Chauhan, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry, Dr Roderico H. Ofrin, WHO Representative to India, G-20 representatives, participants from WHO-SEARO countries, international partners working on hypertension and diabetes from WHO, UN and other organizations, senior state officials from states, national NCD partners and senior officials from the Union Government were present in the event.ANI17 May 2023

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Bhutans spiritual leader, His Holiness the Je Khenpo concludes oral transmission of his self-composed Kabum

Thimphu [Bhutan], May 17: Bhutan's spiritual leader, His Holiness the Je Khenpo has concluded the oral transmission of his self-composed Kabum, a collection of profound teachings and practices, according to The Bhutan Live.

Bhutan's spiritual leader, His Holiness the Je Khenpo concludes oral transmission of his self-composed Kabum

The event on Wednesday reached its culmination with His Holiness administering a Tsepaa Mey Wang, a sacred blessing ceremony, at Autsho Central School in Lhuentse. A colossal gathering of more than 10,000 devoted followers eagerly converged to receive the divine benediction.The atmosphere was charged with reverence and anticipation as His Holiness imparted the wisdom contained within his Kabum, a spiritual treasure he personally compiled.Over the past two weeks, devotees from far and wide flocked to Lhuentse, immersing themselves in the profound teachings, rituals, and practices transmitted by Je Khenpo himself, according to The Bhutan Live.Not only did the spiritual leader conclude the oral transmission of his Kabum, but he also undertook another momentous task.His Holiness inaugurated the revered Moelam Chenmo books in the districts of Trashigang and Trashi Yangtse. These sacred texts hold immense religious significance and are considered vital sources of wisdom for the Bhutanese people.His Holiness Je Khenpo now prepares to preside over a grand three-day Moenlam Chenmo, a prayer gathering, set to commence tomorrow at Autsho Central School. Devotees from various corners of the country are expected to attend this auspicious event to seek blessings, offer prayers, and engage in collective spiritual practices.Je Khenpo's spiritual leadership has long been a source of inspiration and guidance for Bhutanese citizens, fostering a deep sense of devotion and reverence. His teachings and practices continue to shape the religious fabric of the nation, enriching the lives of countless individuals, according to The Bhutan Live.ANI17 May 2023

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Srijan 2023: SSVAPs Annual Exhibition of Student Photography and Filmmaking

Pune, May 17: will host its annual exhibition of student photography and filmmaking from May 17-20, 2023. The exhibition, titled Srijan, will showcase the work of students from all three years of the school's visual arts and photography program. Distinguished members of the industry such as Pablo Bartholomew, Padmashree awarded Indian photojournalist, and Aseem Mishra, popular cinematographer shall be gracing the event. Founded as the celebration of the creativity and talent of SSVAP students, the exhibition is a great opportunity for the public to see the work of the next generation of visual artists and filmmakers.

Srijan 2023: SSVAP's Annual Exhibition of Student Photography and Filmmaking

The exhibition will open on May 17 with a screening of films made by SSVAP students. The films will be followed by a Q and A session with the filmmakers. On May 18, the exhibition will move to the Darpan Art Gallery, where it will remain open to the public through May 20.The first day of the photo exhibition on May 18 will showcase the work of first-year and second-year students. First-year students will be presenting their work from group projects, while second-year students will be showcasing their individual work. On May 19 and 20, the exhibition will feature the best work from third-year students' final year projects, as well as their best photos from their three years at SSVAP.On May 19, the exhibition will be officially opened by a guest photographer. The guest photographer will then walk through the exhibits with the SSVAP director to judge the best photographers from the graduating class. On May 20, the final day of the exhibition, a masterclass in photography will be held by the guest photographer. The masterclass will be followed by the announcement of the best photographers from the graduating class and a concluding speech by the SSVAP director.SSVAP offers two recognized programs approved by the UGC. The first program is a three-year BA in Visual Arts and Photography that covers the fundamentals of filmmaking, visual arts, and photography. Students will learn the necessary skills and knowledge to create visually appealing and meaningful content. The curriculum includes digital photography, composition, lighting, colour theory, and digital imaging.The second program is a one-year Diploma in Cinematography designed for those who want to specialize in cinematography. The program provides students with the technical skills and knowledge to produce compelling visual stories using cameras, lighting, and other tools. The curriculum includes camera techniques, lighting, colour grading, and post-production.The admission process requires applicants to submit a portfolio of their original work and participate in an interview with the admissions committee. This process allows the institution to assess the applicant's skills, potential, and creative vision, and understand their personal goals.To be considered for admission, applicants must have completed 10+2 with a minimum of 50% marks in aggregate. The School believes that its eligibility criteria and admission process help them identify the most talented and passionate individuals who are committed to pursuing their artistic dreams. They welcome applications from all those who share their values and want to be part of their creative community.Symbiosis School of Visual Arts and Performing Arts (SSVAP) is a premier institution of higher education in visual arts and photography in India. Established in 2011, SSVAP offers a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate programs in photography, filmmaking, graphic design, and illustration. The School's faculty are experienced professionals who are passionate about teaching. They are dedicated to helping students develop their talents and reach their full potential.SSVAP, located in Pune, is spread over 10 acres and is home to state-of-the-art facilities for teaching and learning. SSVAP is affiliated with the University of Pune and is recognized by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).Further, the School is committed to providing students with a world-class education through the programs, which are designed to prepare students for successful careers in the creative industries. SSVAP graduates have gone on to work in a variety of fields, including advertising, film, television, fashion, and publishing.For more information, please visitThis story has been provided by SRV. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/SRV)ANI17 May 2023

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Randeep Hooda gained 18 kg for Inspector Avinash

Mumbai, May 17: Actors are often required to alter their bodies to suit on-screen characters. Actor Randeep Hooda recently underwent body transformation for 'Inspector Avinash'.

Randeep Hooda gained 18 kg for 'Inspector Avinash'

He had to put on 18 kgs for his cop role in 'Inspector Avinash'."As an actor, I try and make sure that I come as close as possible to the character. Playing Avinash Mishra, was physically challenging for me not only because I had to put on 18kgs but also because I had to perform heavy action scenes. You will see my character gaining weight as the show progresses," Randeep said.Helmed by Neerraj Pathak, the show also features a talented ensemble cast that includes Urvashi Rautela, Amit Sial, Abhimanyu Singh, Shalin Bhanot, Freddy Daruwala, Rahul Mittra, and Adhyayan Suman in pivotal roles.'Inspector Avinash' takes you to the heart of Uttar Pradesh in the 90s, a world plagued by rampant crime and corruption. With the mafia and illegal arms trade reigning supreme, a brave and exceptional cop, Avinash Mishra, with his team, battle to curb the growing mafia dominance.As he fights for a crime-free state, with an unmatched network of informants called Mayajaal, the show vividly portrays the gruelling and intense scenes of how Mishra fought gangsters and the sacrifices and risks involved in fighting for justice in a corrupt system.Shot in never-seen-before locations of Uttar Pradesh, the series features a unique mix of urban and rural locations, showcasing its beauty and complexities.The action drama is all set to stream on the OTT platform Jio Cinema from May 18.ANI17 May 2023

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Johnny Depp receives 7 mins standing ovation at Cannes for Jeanne Du Barry

Mumbai, May 17: Hollywood star Johnny Depp, who hasn't appeared in public since his protracted 2022 legal battle with ex-girlfriend Amber Heard, received an ecstatic seven-minute standing ovation at the premiere of Cannes Film Festival's opening night film 'Jeanne Du Barry'.

Johnny Depp receives 7 mins standing ovation at Cannes for 'Jeanne Du Barry'

Depp held back tears as the crowd in the South of France erupted in prolonged applause for his performance, reports 'Variety'. He essays the role of King Louis XV in the film. He waved to the audience in the balcony and seemed taken aback by the response.The film's director and star Maiwenn also broke out into tears as she briefly took the mic. "I want to share this moment with my lover, with my producer, with Le Pacte," she said. "It was a production that was difficult to finance a and I want to share this moment with all my team across the theatre."As per 'Variety', Depp arrived to Cannes welcomed by thousands of supportive fans, who carried signs outside the Palais and trembled as they tried to touch their idol. Many were successful in making contact with Depp, who worked the fan line outside for five full minutes before walking the carpet.'Jeanne du Barry' stars Maiwenn as Jeanne Vaubernier, a working class woman in 18th century France who rises the social ranks and becomes King Louis XV's lover. Her working class roots makes her a social pariah in the king's court. The supporting cast includes Benjamin Lavernhe, Pierre Richard, Melvil Poupaud and Pascal Greggory.The film marks Depp's most high profile acting role since the conclusion of his 2022 legal battle against ex-wife Amber Heard.IANS18 May 2023

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Go First cancels all flights till May 26

New Delhi, May 17: Go First Airlines has cancelled all its flights till May 26, citing operational reasons.

Go First cancels all flights till May 26

Earlier, the airlines had cancelled flights till May 19."We regret to inform that due to operational reasons, Go First flights scheduled till 26th May, 2023, have been cancelled. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by flight cancellations," Go First stated.The airline said a full refund would be issued to the original mode of payment shortly."We acknowledge the flight cancellations might have disrupted your travel plans and we are committed to providing all the assistance we can," it added.The company has recently filed an application for immediate resolution under insolvency and revival of its operations."We will be able to resume bookings shortly. We thank you for your patience," the airline added.ANI18 May 2023

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G-20 Summit in Kashmir set to give massive fillip to tourism sector

Srinagar, May 17: From ensuring that 120 Smart City projects are completed on time to beefing up security, the administration in Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory (UT) is working round-the-clock to ensure that the summit in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir is a huge success and promotes Kashmir as a global tourism destination.

G-20 Summit in Kashmir set to give massive fillip to tourism sector

With sustainable and inclusive development initiatives taken by the Modi government, the citizens in Jammu and Kashmir believe that the event (G20 Tourism Working Group meeting) can serve as a power booster for the local economy and a progressive factor for the business community in the region to explore multidimensional growth opportunities.The tourism industry, which has played a crucial role in the development of UT. However, years of instability have impacted the tourism industry, leading to a decline in the number of visitors. Tourism players in Kashmir believe that the G20 Summit can attract investors and tourists from across the globe."Be it a local citizen or anyone else associated with the tourism industry, everyone here in Kashmir is excited for the grand G-20 Summit. This meeting here in Srinagar is set to boost tourism. Furthermore, this meeting will provide our Jammu and Kashmir UT a platform to showcase its beauty to the entire world," said Umar Bukhari, a local resident of Srinagar."Things are changing for the betterment of the people here in J-K. Since the last few years we have seen the LG Manoj Sinha-led administration massively investing in development which is a positive sign," he added.Locals apart, tourism players in the Valley also believe that due to the developmental projects, the footfall of tourists has increased in J-K which indirectly is helping the trader community and in return is also boosting the economy."It is the first time we are seeing such a tourist season in the Valley. Hordes of tourists from various parts of the country are travelling to the Valley as the 'Heaven on Earth' -- a sobriquet given to Kashmir -- is seeing tangible signs of a return to normalcy," Mehraj Ahmad, a tourist guide in north Kashmir's Gulmarg said, adding that the influx of foreign delegates and participants, along with showcasing the tourist destinations, can put UT on a pedestal in terms of tourism.The Government of India is also making a significant thrust to ensure better infrastructural facilities for the region's people and entice visitors. This has resulted in a fortuitous surge in tourist activities with better law and order, a promising security system, and maintenance of peace in addition to infrastructural and connectivity improvements.Stating that G-20 was purely a peoples' event, Jammu and Kashmir's Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on April 15 said the event would provide a great opportunity to push J-K's handloom, handicraft, Pashmina, and dry fruit to international markets."G-20 which is scheduled to be held from May 22 to May 24 in Srinagar will provide an opportunity to push J-K's handloom, handicraft, Pashmina, dry fruit, saffron and other products to international markets."This is a great opportunity to showcase the real potential of the Union Territory to the world. It is not administration's event but purely a people's one," the J-K LG said.The G20 tourism summit would take place at a time when Kashmir is experiencing a boom in tourism and J-K draws significant investments in the tourism sector, besides medical cities, educational institutions, and other sectors.Apart from the security situations, streets and flyovers have been painted in the G20 theme colours, while new walkways are being created throughout Srinagar city in preparation for the event.Delegates from different countries will envision the valley in terms of socio-economic development. The amalgamation of international organizations and Kashmir Valley is a golden opportunity for remote areas to foster limited tourism to large-scale tourism. The meeting will openly discuss the challenges coming in the way of tourism and development."We have seen many dark decades due to the uncertainty before 2019. After 2019 we are seeing a new world. Look at Srinagar City, it's getting a facelift. It's being developed like metropolitan cities in the country. People here are welcoming the initiatives like hosting of the G20 summit in Srinagar. They are aware that the G20 summit would put Kashmir on the global tourism map and would allow delegates from the most powerful countries in the world to promote J-K at different forums," said Ashiq Naik, a journalist based in Srinagar."People have become equal stakeholders in peace and development. They are now rejecting decades-old 'Khandani Raaj'. They want to move ahead and prosper. They are positive that there will be a positive impact on the economy due to this summit," he said.The UT Government and the Union Government have undertaken significant steps towards inclusion of women-led initiatives for balanced growth.India has rightly called for the inclusion of gender concerns into the core agenda of the G20 during its Presidency, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi noting that "we have to maintain priority on women-led development even in our G-20 agenda."The summit as per the top official is expected to bring much-needed relief to the economy of Jammu and Kashmir, which has suffered a massive setback due to prolonged turmoil in the region."Decades of instability and conflict have taken a heavy toll on the economy. The summit will inevitably inject a much-needed boost of cash into the economy, creating jobs and driving growth. It will also provide a platform for policymakers and investors to discuss and plan for the development of essential infrastructure," the official said.He said though the summit has to majorly deal with the tourism of Jammu and Kashmir but directly or indirectly the summit will have an impact on the business community too which will trickle down the economy as well."This is the first time such an international event is happening in the valley. The youth of J-K are eager to take this opportunity to showcase their talent and skills. They have shown active participation and commitment to ensuring that their voices are heard in the discussions. The G20 Summit in Kashmir marks a shift from the earlier days, where the region was viewed solely through the prism of violence," the official said.The third G20 Tourism Working Group meeting will be held at Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Center (SKICC) from May 22 to 24. The first Working Group meeting was held in February at Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. The second meeting was held from April 1 to 3 in Siliguri, West Bengal.G20 comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union. It represents 85 per cent of the global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade, and two-thirds of the world's population.Commenting on the significance of the G20 meeting, Javed Shah, editor of the local English daily Good Morning Kashmir, highlighted the potential to promote economic development in the region."I believe it will create more job opportunities for Kashmiris. Coming delegates from over 20 countries will send a positive message that Kashmir is a safe place for investment which will create new job opportunities for the valley youth," he said."Unemployment is the biggest issue here in Kashmir. These delegates from 20 countries should work as brand ambassadors for Kashmir. They should work for the promotion of tourism in their respective countries," Javed Shah said.Like tourism players, the G20 meeting has brought smiles to artisans' faces also, they believe and hope that the delegates from 20 countries may visit their handicraft stalls."We have heard that they (delegates) will visit our handicraft stalls, and we hope so. With their visit, we can also interact with them, and it may help us to reach our products to the international market," said Imitiyaz Ahmad, who is associated with craft for the last four decades.International tourist resort Gulmarg of north Kashmir's Baramulla is also set to welcome tourism delegates from the G-20 nations in the last week of May 2023.It is worth mentioning here that the grand event will have a large impact on the history of the Baramulla district and there will be no curbs anywhere while schools, colleges and markets will remain open.The traffic on all routes will ply normally and to facilitate the foreign delegates, a proper traffic advisory will be issued in advance.The welcome boards and signages were erected in Gulmarg. The road to Gulmarg from Srinagar, the Narbal-Gulmarg stretch, is being given a new look.To enhance the aesthetic value of the existing structures, footpaths and medians have been developed, traffic roads are being furnished, hoardings are installed and government buildings and commercial building walls are being painted in the district.ANI18 May 2023

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Arab FMs meet ahead of Arab League Summit in Saudi Arabia

Riyadh, May 18: Arab foreign ministers met in the Saudi city of Jeddah ahead of the annual Arab League Summit, state media reported.

Arab FMs meet ahead of Arab League Summit in Saudi Arabia

The ongoing conflict in Sudan, the readmission of Syria to the Arab bloc and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict top the agenda of the meeting and the upcoming summit, the Al Arabiya news channel reported on Wednesday.The meeting also tackled draft resolutions that will be discussed during the summit, Xinhua news agency reported.Saudi Arabia, which took over the rotating presidency of the summit from Algeria during the meeting, will host the summit on Friday that gathers Arab leaders to discuss regional and international issues.During the meeting, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud highlighted the need for unity among Arab countries to overcome challenges, while his Algerian counterpart Ahmed Attaf called for joint efforts to overcome hurdles as the summit takes place under "special" regional circumstances.IANS18 May 2023

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AAP dissolves partys state, regional committees in Maharashtra

New Delhi, May 17: Aam Admi Party on Wednesday announced that it has dissolved its present state and regional committees of Maharashtra and new committees will be announced soon in this regard.

AAP dissolves party's state, regional committees in Maharashtra

"The Party hereby dissolves the present state committee and the regional committees of the current organisation in the state of Maharashtra with immediate effect. The new committees will be announced soon," an official statement said.In this regard, AAP Mumbai President Preeti Sharma Menon said the decision taken by the party is a welcome step."Welcome step! Look forward to rebuilding Maharashtra with the guidance of the central leadership," she said.Earlier Preeti Sharma Menon had said that party will also fight for the upcoming elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in 2023."AAP will fight the BMC elections with all our strength. Party will focus on the major local issues while fighting the civic polls in the metropolis," she said.ANI18 May 2023

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Lumpy skin disease: Delhi HC expresses anguish over MCDs cattle burial procedure

New Delhi, May 17: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to file a document in regard to the scientific process of disposal and burial of cows.

Lumpy skin disease: Delhi HC expresses anguish over MCD's cattle burial procedure

The court expressed its anguish over cutting the carcasses of cattle into pieces by MCD.The court noted that earlier the respondents gave an assurance that cows succumbing to lumpy skin disease will be provided with a dignified burial.Appearing for MCD, counsel submitted that the civic body adopted the "scientific" disposal process for large animals, including cows and buffaloes, as it was not possible to bury the whole carcasses due to limited space.The bench of Justices Satish Chander Sharma and Subramonium Prasad while showing displeasure to MCD over the burial procedure said, "You mean first you will compress them and then dispose of them. That can not be done. You file a better status report and explain the scientific data behind it.""Tomorrow, it may be done with human beings also. From where does this procedure come? How you can do it?" the court asked.Meanwhile, the court also issued notice to the Delhi government, Centre, and Delhi police in an interim application seeking cow protection during Eid-al-Adha and listed the matter for further hearing on August 21.The application was filed in a pending petition seeking direction to the authorities to make available an antidote to lumpy skin disease among cows. The petitioner, Gautam, sought stray cattle to be vaccinated on priority.In a status report filed by MCD, it stated that in 2009, the MCD established a Rendering Plant in Municipal Slaughter House Complex located at Ghazipur having 20 Tons capacity for scientific disposal of large dead animals including Cows/Buffaloes.Since 2009, the large dead animals of Delhi are being disposed of scientifically in this Rendering Plant at Ghazipur Slaughter House Complex.The Rendering Plant in Municipal Slaughter House Complex at Ghazipur has been leased out to a private agency (leasee). The leasee of Ghazipur Slaughter House has engaged the dead animal contractors to remove dead animals from the entire Delhi, who after removal of the dead animals, transported them to the Rendering Plant at Ghazipur Slaughter House Complex for their scientific disposal. In view of the above, it is humbly submitted that the MCD does not burial of the dead cows.The court was hearing a PIL submitted that Lumpy Skin Disease is a contagious viral disease that spreads among cattle, Bovine ( Cow family) through mosquitoes, flies, lice, and wasps by direct contact, and also through contaminated food and water. The disease causes fever and nodules on the skin, and it can be fatal.Petitioner Ajay Gautam stated that this disease can turn into an epidemic. Therefore immediate action is needed for stopping the spread of this disease among our Holy cows.According to the petitioner, every day Cows are dying on the road for this reason, and the Helpline number issued is not responding and responding to calls/queries related to Lumpy skin virus properly. It was further stated that only one Isolation Shelter for cows has been set up by the respondents in Rewala, Khanpur South-West District for 4500 Cattle. Although there are more than 20,000 to 25,000 stray cows in the National Capital.The plea further alleges that ambulance service is available for holy cows so as to rescue or send them from other parts of Delhi to the South-west district isolation shelter and no place has been identified, allotted or proposed by respondents for the burial of infected Cows.The plea also sought a court direction to respondents to immediately constitute a team of Veterinary doctors in every zone of Delhi and direct this team to deal with and address cases of Lumpy disease. It also seeks directions to set up Lump Care Units/ Isolation Wards in all Zones/Districts of Delhi for the medical treatment of infected cows.The petition also prayed for the issuance of direction to respondents to immediately arrange an Anti-dote of the vaccine in order to stop the further spread of this disease amongst other cows and direct respondents to administer the Anti-dote of the vaccine to stray cattle on a priority basis.ANI18 May 2023

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Vietnam has deployed measures to ensure its legal rights and interests against a Chinese research vessel illegally operating in Vietnams Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the East Sea.

"Regarding cases of violations on Vietnams sea regions, sovereignty and jurisdictional rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other Vietnamese authorities are deploying appropriate measures in accordance with Vietnamese and international law to ensure our legal rights and interests," said deputy spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang at a press conference.

She was responding to inquiries regarding a Chinese research vessel operating in the East Sea in violation of Vietnams EEZ.

The Chinese research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 10, along with several other Chinese vessels, have been moving towards the Vanguard Bank, a reef located inside Vietnams EEZ, since earlier this month, South China Morning Post reported.

Vietnam has requested all relevant parties to respect Vietnams sovereignty, international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).

The ministry called upon all involved to contribute to the maintenance of peace and stability in the region in practical and positive ways, while creating a conducive environment for negotiations of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC). Vietnam calls the waters the East Sea.

China has previously sent vessels to the Vanguard Bank area in July 2019. Vietnam asked China to withdraw the vessels, which they did in October 2019.

In accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), any research and survey activities within a countrys EEZ must be approved by that country.
Actress Sima Raaj breaks barriers as the first NSD graduate to participate in Mrs. India Empress of the Nation 2023 pageant by Diva Pageants

New Delhi, May 18: The 21st century is the era of empowered women, and veteran actress Sima Raaj is a firm believer in this. The successful actress and entrepreneur recently took on a new challenge by becoming the 1st ever National School of Drama (NSD) graduate to enter a pageant show in the Mrs. India Empress of the Nation competition, presented by Diva Pageants. Sima's participation in the show serves as an opportunity to explore a fresh avenue that has always fascinated her and break out of her comfort zone. Of all the Mrs. India pageants out there, Diva pageants like Mrs. India Empress of the Nation stood out to Sima for its inclusivity and empowerment of women.

Actress Sima Raaj breaks barriers as the first NSD graduate to participate in Mrs. India Empress of the Nation 2023 pageant by Diva Pageants

"It's refreshing to see a pageant that isn't solely focused on physical appearance but instead values a woman's capabilities and individuality. We possess the power to create a peaceful and harmonious society, starting with overcoming our inner conflicts. Let us proudly declare, "I am enough," says Sima.This is evident in the show's acceptance of women of all heights, weights, and ages--a true celebration of diversity. The tagline "Empress of the Nation" is especially inspiring, as it speaks to the responsibility of a leader to create hope and happiness for all. She further adds, "I truly believe that the Diva pageant is working towards that goal, and it's a privilege to witness such a positive impact of this show on society. My message to all women is, "Prioritise your goals, love yourself, and become the leading lady of your own life."Participating in the Mrs. India Empress of the Nation 2023 by Diva Pageants has been a journey of personal growth and self-discovery for Sima, as one of the most impactful tasks is to raise funds for a noble cause. The actress states, "This cause is close to my heart, and I am very proud to be associated with the We Help Welfare Foundation, an NGO that works tirelessly for animal welfare, child education, senior citizen support, and women's welfare. I have been actively involved in designing activities that help me feel more confident, calm, energetic, and creative. Diva Pageants has given us several tasks that hold significant weight in the contest. I am determined to give my best to complete all the tasks with flying colours."Sima Raaj is an actress, multi-talented artist, singer, and business entrepreneur, born and raised in Kolkata, India. Sima's talent and hard work have led her to act in over 20 plays, both in India and abroad, working with renowned directors. Her passion for the theatre industry has also led her to appear in notable films and television shows, including "Chandni Bar," directed by Madhur Bhandarkar; "Ek Hasina Thi," with Sriram Raghavan; "Scavengers Daughter," on Zee Theatre; "Tere Sheher Mein," and "Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai," for Star Plus. Apart from her successful acting career, Sima has also co-founded a leading voice production company in India, Treasure Tower, and has conducted several voice acting workshops in various institutions, including Veda College, The Animation Society of India, and Whistling Woods. As a singer, Sima has produced and directed two music videos under her newly launched production house, The Golden Hue.Currently, Sima Raaj is the finalist for Mrs. India Empress Of The Nation 2023 by Diva Pageants, and she appeals to her fans, supporters, and people in general to vote for her to make her win this pageant and empower her to support and uplift more social issues with this title. She continues to inspire others through her work in the entertainment industry and her efforts towards child education and animal welfare. We wish Sima all the best in her pageant pursuit of becoming our country's Mrs. India Empress of the Nation in 2023.You can follow actress Sima Raaj's journey on InstagramTo vote for Sima to win at the pageant show onThis story has been provided by SRV. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/SRV)ANI18 May 2023

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Pearl Academys Delhi & Mumbai Portfolio comes alive with student-led innovation and ingenuity

New Delhi, May 18: Delhi and Mumbai campuses were abuzz with excitement as months of hard work, dedication and planning culminated into this year's 'Portfolio'. Portfolio by Pearl Academy is an annual, big-scale platform provided to the students that showcases and celebrates their ideas, innovation, and creativity.

Pearl Academy's Delhi & Mumbai 'Portfolio' comes alive with student-led innovation and ingenuity

Portfolio 2023 in Delhi and Mumbai was a kaleidoscope of individual imagination and interpretation of the theme 'Future Flashbacks'. From modern fashion accessories inspired from the ancient art and craft of Kutch to Gen-Z's take on social and cultural issues, every idea and every voice made its own impact.The students were thrilled to receive support and encouragement from important guests, including Dia Mirza (renowned UN Goodwill ambassador, activist, actor, and filmmaker), Dr. Harsh Vardhan (Member of Parliament and former Minister for Health, Family Welfare, Science, Technology, and Earth Sciences), Sunil Sethi (Chairman of FDCI), and A Subramaniam (President National Executive Council, ADI). It was a unique opportunity for students to showcase their work to influential fashion designers who inspire them, such as David Abraham, Nitin Bal Chauhan, Gaurav Jaigupta. They were joined by the academic team of Pearl Academy, including Aditi Srivastava (President), Alka Madhan (Regional Director - West, Pearl Academy Mumbai), Abhishek Singh (Regional Director - North, Pearl Academy), and Antonio Maurizio Grioli (Dean, Pearl Academy).There was also a series of captivating fashion shows that gave students a platform to showcase their collections. From personal styling, and makeup techniques to the fusion of fashion and technology, Pearl Academy's Portfolio 2023 also kept its attendees engaged with an impressive line-up of workshops around diverse themes.Thought-provoking concepts fostered dialogues on important issues like body positivity, cancel culture and sustainable fashion, which created momentum and empowered audiences, including many school students from Delhi and Mumbai who gained valuable insights and experiences. Based on such diverse and multifaceted concepts that encompassed various forms of human expression, creativity, and communication, the projects were truly an extension of each student's individuality and experience.Encapsulating the vibe of Portfolio 2023, Aditi Srivastava, President, Pearl Academy, shares, "This event stands as a testament to the students' unwavering dedication and Pearl Academy's steadfast commitment to fostering and encouraging unique creative expression. With a strong foundation in creativity and innovation, the academy's learning models have consistently nurtured these qualities, and witnessing them shine through the students' designs is a truly gratifying moment. The exhibition unequivocally demonstrated that our students possess the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive in the competitive industry of tomorrow."Pearl Academy, run under the Creative Arts Education Society (CAES), is India's leading creative education institution as per industry surveys by ASSOCHAM, India Today- MDRA, Outlook-Drshti and I-CARE, The Week- Hansa, Business of Fashion, and The Economic Times. The institute provides Design and Fashion programs at campuses in Delhi-South, Delhi-West, Jaipur, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Pearl Academy has been helping students succeed for 30 years with its Total Learning System, industry partnerships, and international connections. Their placement record of over 99 per cent year-on-year showcases their commitment of creating complete design professionals. For more information, please visit their websiteThis story has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article.ANI18 May 2023

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First single from Udhayanidhi-starrer Maamannan to be out on May 19

Mumbai, May 18: After the initial first-look poster, the makers of 'Maamannan', with Tamil Nadu Minister for Youth Affairs and actor Udhayanidhi Stalin and Vedivelu in the lead roles, will release the first single on May 19.

First single from Udhayanidhi-starrer 'Maamannan' to be out on May 19

Helmed by Mari Selvaraj, the Tamil film, billed as a political thriller, also stars Fahadh Faasil and Keerthy Suresh. A.R. Rahman has been roped in to compose the music for the film. Theni Eswar helms cinematography and Selva RK is in charge of editing.The Red Giant Movies official handle shared the first-look poster for the song and tweeted, "Get ready for the musical storm. The first song from #MAAMANNAN drops on May 19th." The film has been bankrolled by Red Giant Movies, which is Udhayanidhi Stalin's production house.Udhayanidhi, who was last seen in 'Psycho' and 'Nenjuku Needhi', has announced that 'Maamannan' will be his last film as an actor. It is, incidentally, director Mari Selvaraj's third film after 'Pariyerum Perumal' and 'Karnan'.IANS18 May 2023

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Globus Infocom Ltd. wins Most Trusted Ed-Tech Company in North India Award

Mumbai, May 18: Globus Infocom Limited, a leading Make-in-India EdTech brand has won the Most Trusted Ed-Tech Company in North India award at the Global Excellence Awards 2023 presented by Brand Empower.

Globus Infocom Ltd. wins Most Trusted Ed-Tech Company in North India Award

Brand Empower hosted the 2023 Global Excellence Awards in Mumbai, India's most prestigious corporate award event was graced by popular actress and the Padma Shree Awardee Madhuri Dixit Nene as a chief guest who felicitated Kirandeep Dham (CEO) and Ashish Dham (Managing Director), Co-founders of Globus Infocom Limited.Globus Infocom Limited provides a wide range of Smart learning and teaching solutions for schools, teachers, and learners to supplement in-classroom. The company's robust school, college and higher-education based solutions offer a seamless, integrated learning environment with comprehensive and state-of-art Digital Learning Solutions, ready-to-use curriculum-mapped repository, a language-learning platform to develop language/s as skill, unlimited practice tests, and automated classroom-related activities to increase teaching efficiency."At Globus, we strive to create impactful learning solutions creating a more holistic approach and this recognition demonstrates our team's commitment to leveraging technology to drive excellence in education. We are honored to be recognized for our contributions which encourages us to continue improving and reinforcing our conviction that we are moving in the right direction. We will remain dedicated to delivering exceptional and enriched learning experiences for students and educators making education accessible to all," said Kirandeep Dham, CEO of Globus Infocom Limited.Globus is a new-age educational technology company dedicated to making education easy, effective, and accessible to all. Founded in 2001, the company became a pioneer in the EdTech industry by taking digital education ahead. The company established itself as a leading comprehensive solution provider offering cost-efficient and affordable solutions in Education Technology.Globus has provided a complete offering for students, to help students learn, assess and study from anywhere, ensuring a flexible and accessible learning environment. Providing digital learning solutions like Digital Board, Interactive Display, Digital Language Lab, Virtual Classroom and Learning Management System and many more integrated with curriculum-mapped rich animated content and an extensive library of practice questions allows learners to learn effectively.With a formidable core team of 270+ employees comprising academicians, researchers, faculty experts, tech specialists, animators, and other young professionals, the company has established itself as one of India's leading EdTech brands effectively bridging the digital divide between rural and urban areas. Globus has empowered numerous schools, colleges and institutes wherein 15,000+ educational institutes have been transformed, 450000 teachers are empowered, 15000000 students are benefited, 10000+ businesses are digitized and 300+ partners creating 35,000+ satisfied customers in Pan India.This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article.ANI18 May 2023

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After RRR, Baahubali, Vijayendra Prasad turns to Lachit Borphukans saga

New Delhi, May 18: After being revived by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the 17th-century general Lachit Borphukan's story is being brought to life by 'RRR' screenwriter, film director and Rajya Sabha MP Vijayendra Prasad in a novel titled 'Brahmaputra: The Ahom Son Rises (Book 1)'.

After 'RRR', 'Baahubali', Vijayendra Prasad turns to Lachit Borphukan's saga

The prolific screenwriter of blockbusters, who's also S.S. Rajamouli's father, has collaborated with naval officer-turned-espionage fiction writer Kulpreet Yadav to put together the novel being released by HarperCollins Publishers India on May 30.The story, which mixes action and romance, takes off with Lachit falling in love with Princess Padmini, daughter of Swargadeo Jayadhwaj Singha, ruler of the Ahom kingdom. The king finds out about the romance and throws Lachit out of the capital, Jorhat.A few days later, the Ahom capital is attacked by Aurangzeb's forces, forcing the king to sign a peace treaty, whereby he cedes part control of his kingdom to the Mughals. For Lachit and his best friend, Prince Chakradhwaj, the terms of the treaty are humiliating.Within days their troubles multiply when a prince from a kingdom loyal to the Ahoms misleads other minor rulers and attacks Jorhat. As Lachit and Prince Chakradhwaj defend the capital, this battle has the power to change the future of the Ahom kingdom forever.Can Lachit, Prince Chakradhwaj and Princess Padmini restore the honour of the Ahoms by defeating the rebels and breaking free from the Mughal stranglehold? That is the crux of the story from the multi-award-winning writer of the two 'Baahubali' films, beside 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' and 'Manikarnika The Queen of Jhansi'.Prasad's collaborator, Kulpreet Yadav, is a product of the Naval Officers' Academy who has spent two decades as an officer in uniform and successfully commanded three ships in his career.Since his retirement from the Indian Coast Guard in 2014, he has authored books across multiple genres, such as espionage, military history and true crime. He lives in Mumbai and his latest is 'The Battle of Rezang La' (Penguin, 2021).IANS18 May 2023

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Overtime, night allowances to be paid in 2 installments to drivers, conductors of HRTC: CM Sukhu

Shimla, May 18: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday said that the state government will pay the liabilities of overtime allowance and night allowance of the Drivers and Conductors of Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) in two instalments within a period of two months.

Overtime, night allowances to be paid in 2 installments to drivers, conductors of HRTC: CM Sukhu

"Chief Minister, Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has announced to pay the liabilities of overtime allowance and night allowance of the Drivers and Conductors of HRTC to the tune of Rs. 11 crore in two instalments within a period of two months. He was presiding over a meeting of four Employees Unions including HRTC INTUC, HRTC Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, HRTC Drivers Union and HRTC Conductors Union here today," an official statement said.Speaking on the occasion CM Sukhu said, "The state Government would clear all the financial liabilities of HRTC gradually as the Government was initiating various steps to mobilize the revenue resources."During the meeting, CM Sukhu also announced to release of three per cent Dearness Allowance (DA) to the employees and pensioners of HRTC."The Chief Minister also announced to release of three per cent Dearness Allowance to the employees and pensioners of HRTC, besides clearing the medical reimbursement bills of the employees and pensioners shortly," an official statement said.CM Sukhu also mentioned that the state Government would extend full cooperation to support the HRTC to bring it out of the financial losses.MLA Rajesh Dharmani, OSD to the Chief Minister, Gopal Sharma, Managing Director HRTC, Sandeep Kumar and representatives of HRTC Employees Unions were present on the occasion.ANI18 May 2023

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Meghwal as law minister a message for ensuring Raj Assembly poll win?

Jaipur, May 18: As Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal has been appointed as the Union law minister, political circles here are discussing whether this is a big message for the state in the wake of ensuing Assembly elections.

Meghwal as law minister a message for ensuring Raj Assembly poll win?

If political sources are to be believed, the BJP's top leadership has tried to tap into the SC segment via this move. After decades, any leader from the SC category has been given the law minister portfolio.With this, the party's top leadership has tried to bring in a new face who is non-controversial, well-educated, former bureaucrat and a three-time MP. He is said to be a favourite of the Modi-Shah team, say BJP leaders.He is the man who knows how to hold his anger and has never ever given any controversial statement till date, said sources.Meanwhile, as the Assembly elections of Rajasthan are near, BJP wants to give a big message by promoting Arjun Ram Meghwal. The BJP has suffered losses on the reserved Assembly seats in Karnataka.In such a situation, the BJP is trying to strengthen its hold on the safe seats in Rajasthan. Recently, Arjun Ram Meghwal had taken full responsibility of PM Modi's programme in the state. In such a situation, one more thing is being said that this promotion of Meghwal is indicating that he can be fielded in the Assembly elections in Rajasthan.Meghwal is a third-time MP in this tenure. The first time he won was in 2009 by a 19,575 margin. After that his margin of victory has been increasing. In 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded Arjun Ram Meghwal from the Bikaner seat, where he won the election with more than three lakh votes. For the third consecutive time, Ram Meghwal won the election from Bikaner Lok Sabha seat by 2,640,00 votes.Meghwal's office confirmed to IANS that they were unaware of the development till the news came."It's just now we have come to know about this development after the news came out."Meanwhile, BJP's former state president Satish Poonia on his Twitter handle congratulated Meghwal. He said, "Hearty congratulations and best wishes to the popular MP from Bikaner, the voice of the underprivileged Shri @arjunrammeghwal ji on being made the Union Law Minister and since thanks and regards to the popular leader of the world, respected Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji from the people and workers of Rajasthan."Currently, three MPs from Rajasthan are serving as the central government ministers, namely Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who is cabinet minister for Jal Shakti ministry; Kailash Chaudhary as minister of state for agriculture, and Arjun Ram Meghwal.The opposition BJP and ruling Congress in the state are expected to be in a neck-and-neck battle. In the 2018 Assembly election, the Congress wrested power from the Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government. The BJP secured only 73 seats.IANS19 May 2023

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Killers of the Flower Moon trailer reunites Scorsese, De Niro & DiCaprio

Los Angeles, May 18: Martin Scorsese reunites with longtime muses Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro in the first trailer for 'Killers of the Flower Moon', the upcoming Western epic based on David Grann's 2017 best-selling non-fiction book 'Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI', reports 'Variety'.

'Killers of the Flower Moon' trailer reunites Scorsese, De Niro & DiCaprio

Set in 1920s Oklahoma, the drama focuses on a series of Osage Nation murders over oil rights and the newly-formed FBI's investigation into the killings. The supporting cast includes Jesse Plemons, last seen in the much-applauded 'The Power of the Dog', and 'Certain Women' breakout Lily Gladstone, 'Variety' adds.For DiCaprio and De Niro, 'Flower Moon' marks the first time the Oscar winners have worked together in a feature since Michael Caton-Jones' 1993 drama 'This Boy's Life'.Both actors, according to 'Variety', played fictionalised versions of themselves in Scorsese's short film 'The Audition'.De Niro earned Oscar nominations for best actor by starring in Scorsese's 'Taxi Driver', 'Cape Fear' and 'Raging Bull', taking home the statuette for the latter. DiCaprio was Oscar-nominated for Scorsese's 'The Aviator' and 'The Wolf of Wall Street'. 'Flower Moon' will mark the first time all three have worked together on a feature, 'Variety' notes.DiCaprio stars in 'Flower Moon' as Ernest Burkhart, nephew of a powerful local rancher (De Niro) who becomes intertwined in the Osage Nation murders. Burkhart is married to an Indigenous woman, played by Gladstone. Plemons stars as Tom White, the lead FBI agent investigating the murders, says 'Variety'.'Flower Moon' was originally conceived for DiCaprio to play the FBI agent, but the actor reconfigured the script after deciding to switch roles to the more morally ambiguous Ernest.IANS19 May 2023

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Foreign tourists take cyclo rides in Hue, May 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Vo Thanh

Two cyclo drivers in Hue who cheated two Australian tourists by charging them twice the agreed fare have been forced to return the excess amount after local authorities stepped in.

The Australian tourists were walking on Le Loi Street on Monday when the cyclo drivers offered to drive them to the Imperial Citadel for VND150,000 (US$6.40) each and they agreed, Voice of Vietnam reported.

But the cyclo drivers stopped by Thien Mu Pagoda without telling the tourists first. When the tour ended at the Imperial Citadel, the driver asked them to pay VND350,000 each.

They later revealed their experiences on social media, prompting local police to investigate.

On Wednesday, the Hue Department of Tourism returned the money to the tourists.

The drivers later apologized to them for an act that tarnished Hues reputation.

Hue was the feudal capital under the Nguyen Dynasty, Vietnam's last royal family (1802-1945) and is famed for its royal mausoleums and historic heritage.

Since Vietnam reopened after Covid-19 in March last year, a number of scams targeting foreign tourists have been reported.
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Russia fires 30 cruise missiles at Ukrainian targets; Ukraine says 29 were shot down

Ukrainian officials say Russia has fired 30 cruise missiles against various parts of the country in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defenses which shot down 29 of them
This year Dementia Awareness Week is running from Monday 15 until Sunday the 21 of May 2023. This dedicated week aims to help improving the lives of people with dementia and their families. In this context COST looks at ethical difficulties surrounding this condition.

The International Classification of Diseases defines dementia as "an acquired brain syndrome characterized by a decline from a previous level of cognitive functioning with impairment in two or more cognitive domains".

Dementia is a set of progressive neurological condition that affects cognitive function, behavior, and the ability to carry out daily activities. As the disease progresses, individuals with dementia may experience, stigma, loss of autonomy and decision-making capacity, which can raise ethical issues related to their care.

In addition, the term 'dementia 'is used to describe a person's experience. This means that each person is unique, the biography, the physical health, the social circumstances and the personality. It is, therefore, important to highlight this not just through the lens of a neurological impairment.

The World Health Organization reports that about 55 million people worldwide live with dementia, with 10 million new cases per year.

The increasing aging population of Europe means that the overall number of people with dementia is likely to continue to increase significantly. Dementia is currently the seventh leading cause of death and one of the major causes of disability and dependency among older people globally.

Still no treatment to date

Dementia is a health challenge on the rise. There is currently no effective treatment for the neurodegeneration of dementia. It is not possible to halt or reverse the cognitive decline caused by dementia. Due to these unresolved issues, care and support is the most important health intervention for people with dementia at this time.

However, profound ethical difficulties remain when taking care of people with dementia. Progressive cognitive loss makes it difficult to maintain autonomy and causes a number of ethical care dilemmas. It includes: balancing safety with freedom, deciding what is in their best interests and recognizing that the needs of the person with dementia may sometimes conflict with the needs of others who also deserve consideration.

Legal frameworks and guidelines are helpful in guiding practice and decision-making, but they need to be interpreted and applied to specific situations.

The European Union has undertaken a number of actions in support of people with dementia in recent years, emphasizing the need for ethical discussion of dilemmas in dementia care. It was taken up by the European Commission's Alzheimer's initiative. A common reflection on dementia ethics was highlighted as one of the priority areas for European collaboration.

Ethics in dementia

Ethics in dementia raises questions on how to refer to the principles and values that guide decision-making for individuals with dementia and their families, as well as the healthcare professionals who care for them.

Initiatives help raising the profile of dementia and provide practical guidance for policymakers developing and implementing strategies. The Joint Research Centre has also published a dementia overview through the Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Knowledge Gateway - a reference point for public health policy makers with reliable, independent and up-to date information on topics related to the promotion of health and well-being.

However, there is little homogeneity and uniformity within the European system of care as to how to address ethical problems in dementia care. Existing efforts in implementation of country-specific-strategies are centered in non-Central and Eastern European Countries. Woefully, in some countries no dementia plan is available yet.

Caregivers and healthcare professional lack tools and skills to further these areas on a scientific basis. Therefore, there is a noticeable need to mobilise researchers to develop new and universally applicable approaches.

Introducing EDEM COST Action: to explore new dimensions

A collaborative network of researchers has looked into this question and have created a COST Action called Ethics in Dementia (EDEM). This network is exploring ethical problems in dementia care in different European contexts, which highlights the importance of mapping principles to address these problems within an ethical framework. EDEM has put together a network of cross-national professionals across the world to open dialogue and discussion among stakeholders to explore new dimensions.

EDEM represents a significant step forward in promoting ethical and inclusive environments and care facilities, as well as dementia-friendly initiatives that can support individuals with dementia and their families in overcoming the challenges they face, This we will do by, among other things, identifying core needs and developing ethical frameworks and educational tools to address them." Dr Sigurd Mrk Rnbl Lauridsen, EDEM Action Chair

EDEM differs in scope and organization from existing networks and institutions like Alzheimer Europe, Alzheimers Disease International, Interdem, The Hastings Center, or The Nuffield Council on Bioethics. Their scope is to focus exclusively on ethical issues in dementia care and not through the lens of pharmaceutical, biomedical research or psychosocial intervention.

The EDEM network aims to reduce burnout and moral distress among caregivers and promote the dignity, autonomy, and quality of life of people with dementia. This new network will add value in relation to existing efforts by encouraging stakeholder involvement in developing an ethical framework, and recommendations. It will provide an educational toolkit available for use across Europe for formal and informal caregivers.

Dealing with ethical issues related to dementia is a challenge. It is important to have open and honest communication among healthcare professionals, family members, and the person with dementia when possible to help navigate complex ethical issues.

This Action aims to promote ethical dementia care by identifying ethical problems in dementia care in different European contexts and settings. This will foster broad knowledge exchange across the network and Europe in general.
A strong link between the extent of deprivation of local authorities in England and their numbers of children going into the care system through the family courts has been uncovered by researchers at Lancaster University.

The study, available online and due to be published in July 2023 in the journal Children & Society, found that for every one unit increase in the standardized Office for National Statistics' (ONS) English index of multiple area deprivation, the number of children in care proceedings in English family courts increased by around 70%.

The research team analyzed data from the English Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) and area deprivation data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) from 2015 up until 2019.

The study, 'Area-deprivation, social care spending and the rates of children in care proceedings in local authorities in England' was undertaken by Dr Steffi Doebler, Professor Karen Broadhurst, Dr Bachar Alrouh and Dr Linda Cusworth.

The researchers also found that government spending on prevention, such as mother and child support, youth clubs, family help and advice centers, make a difference.

Each 1000 increase in social care spend per child, year and local authority has led to a 12% decrease in the rate of children in compulsory family court proceedings.

Spending on prevention makes a real difference but the benefits are often hidden by the very large impact of deprivation. Local authorities in deprived areas are doing their best to support vulnerable families, and they spend more of their budgets on social care than in non-deprived areas. But local authorities, especially in the most deprived areas, have been severely affected by austerity cuts over the last 13 years and are scrambling to compensate and afford prevention." Dr Steffi Doebler, Lead Author

The study warns that Government funds received by local authorities are not enough to offset the 'devastating effect' deprivation has had on families and children.

"We see, in highly deprived areas, the severe long-term harms caused by a decade of austerity," adds Dr Doebler.

The authors conclude that if the UK government is serious about 'leveling up', it needs to urgently reverse its austerity measures, tackle socioeconomic deprivation in local authorities and invest much more funding in preventative social care.

The study was funded by the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory.
In an article published in the journal Science of The Total Environment, scientists discussed the utility of an artificial intelligence (AI) large language model, ChatGPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer), in biology and environmental science. Additionally, they discussed potential risks and harmful consequences associated with its use.

ChatGPT is an advanced large language model that has been trained with reinforcement learning from human feedback. The latest version of this model, ChatGPT-4, can analyze images and connect that information with text messages.

Discussion: Use of ChatGPT: What does it mean for biology and environmental science? Image Credit: Piscine26 / Shutterstock

Application of ChatGPT in biology and environmental science

ChatGPT provides a wide range of benefits that can impact many aspects of biology and environmental science, including education, research, scientific publishing, outreach, and societal translation.

ChatGPT has access to a large amount of information that can be shared with individuals and organizations to improve knowledge acquisition. The model can support research activities by helping researchers identify scientific patterns and generate new hypotheses. Moreover, it can help researchers determine potential environmental risk factors that can adversely affect health status.

ChatGPT can be used to increase public awareness about environmental hazards, including climate change, pollution, natural calamities, land use, and loss of biodiversity. By analyzing a large pool of information, this AI model can provide valuable insights and recommendations for policy changes.

Another potential application of ChatGPT is to translate complex scientific concepts into language that can be easily understood by non-experts. Similarly, it can improve communications between researchers, students, and policymakers in biology and environmental science.

ChatGPT can support scientific publishing by conducting literature reviews, summarizing research papers, identifying potential errors and inconsistencies in manuscripts, generating text descriptions of scientific tables and figures, improving clarity and readability of scientific content, promoting interdisciplinary collaborations, translating scientific papers into multiple languages, generating open access publications, and streamlining peer-review process.

ChatGPT can be used to analyze complex datasets, integrate different types of biological data, and create predictive models. ChatGPT can also validate these predictive models by generating virtual experiments through the simulation of different conditions and outcomes in silico.

ChatGPT can be used for structural and functional analysis of chemical compounds to facilitate drug discovery and safety profiling. By analyzing large datasets of patient information, ChatGPT can support the development of personalized medicines.

In genomic studies, ChatGPT plays a significant role by analyzing large amounts of genetic data produced by DNA sequencing experiments. Such analysis subsequently helps researchers identify complex genetic patterns and anomalies.

Role of ChatGPT in meeting the United Nations (UN.) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

ChatGPT can be used in various ways to meet the UN SDGs, including good health and well-being, quality education, affordable and clean energy, sustainable cities and communities, climate action, peace, justice, and strong institutions.

ChatGPT can analyze large amounts of clinical data and medical literature to facilitate disease diagnosis and treatment, which is needed for health and well-being. In addition, the model can improve education quality by analyzing data on student performance and developing personalized learning strategies.

ChatGPT can help develop and apply sustainable energy solutions by analyzing energy consumption and production data. Similarly, by analyzing transportation systems, traffic flow, energy use, and waste management, ChatGPT can help plan sustainable cities and communities.

ChatGPT can help in climate change research by analyzing weather patterns, carbon emissions, and environmental impacts. Similarly, by analyzing wind and solar energy potential, the model can help develop renewable energy approaches.

ChatGPT can analyze legal data to identify areas where reforms are needed and possible. This subsequently can support the development of more effective and efficient justice systems to combat crimes and corruption, especially for underprivileged communities.

Potential disadvantages of applying ChatGPT in scientific research and publishing

ChatGPT-derived information can have potential biases if the model is not trained by diverse and representative datasets. This can further potentiate existing biases in scientific research and strengthen inequities in the field.

Despite advanced technologies, ChatGPT can generate false information. Thus, ChatGPT-derived content should be thoroughly reviewed by experts to prevent inaccuracies in scientific publications.

The application of ChatGPT in scientific publishing raises ethical concerns about intellectual property, authorship, and plagiarism. Because of its resemblance with human writing, ChatGPT-derived content can be used to produce fraudulent scientific publications.

Excessive reliance on ChatGPT for writing can reduce the ability and skill of researchers and students to communicate their ideas effectively in writing.
Medicare coverage for at-home covid-19 tests ended last week, but the scams spawned by the temporary pandemic benefit could have lingering consequences for seniors.

Medicare advocates around the country who track fraud noticed an eleventh-hour rise in complaints from beneficiaries who received tests  sometimes by the dozen  that they never requested. It's a signal that someone may have been using, and could continue to use, seniors' Medicare information to improperly bill the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General has received complaints from around the country about unsolicited tests being billed to Medicare, said a top investigator. Earlier this year, the office posted a fraud warning on its website, urging consumers to report this and other covid-related scams.

"Unfortunately, most of these schemes are the result of bad actors receiving stolen Medicare beneficiary information," Scott Lampert, assistant inspector general for investigations, told KFF Health News.

Being targeted once can mean a person is vulnerable to future scams. A stolen Medicare number can be used repeatedly to get payment for all kinds of things or sold to other fraudsters, said Maria Alvarez, who oversees New York state's Senior Medicare Patrol. The organization helps identify and educate beneficiaries about Medicare fraud throughout the country.

"If you have someone's Medicare number, you can bill Medicare for procedures, tests, drugs, services, and durable medical equipment," Alvarez said. "On the dark web, Medicare numbers are more valuable than credit card or Social Security numbers."

One beneficiary in Indiana suspected something was amiss after receiving 32 unrequested tests over a 10-day period, said Nancy Moore, the Senior Medicare Patrol program director for Indiana. None of the people who submitted a complaint recalled giving out their Medicare number, she said.

In another variation of the problem, Medicare paid for tests for some Ohio beneficiaries who never received them, said Lisa Dalga, project manager for Ohios Senior Medicare Patrol.

"Information is the commodity of the 21st century," said Moore, who said she urges beneficiaries to guard their Medicare numbers.

It is possible that some unwanted packages were a mistake, after pharmacies or other suppliers turned a one-time request into a continuing monthly order, a switch allowed under the program's rules that beneficiaries were responsible for correcting.

Along with those from New York, Indiana, and Ohio, Senior Medicare Patrol directors in Tennessee, Texas, and Utah told KFF Health News they noted a rise in complaints about the unwanted tests as the benefit's cutoff date approached.

Alvarez said lately test suppliers had "gotten more aggressive," calling and emailing seniors  something legitimate Medicare representatives do not do  as well as running misleading internet ads.

When the covid-19 public health emergency ended on May 11, Medicare stopped paying for over-the-counter tests, though it continues to cover those provided in a clinic, doctor's office, or other health care setting and processed by a laboratory. Some private Medicare Advantage plans may continue paying for the at-home tests.

Medicare spent $900.8 billion providing health coverage to 64 million beneficiaries in 2021. But the program loses as much as $90 billion a year to fraudulent claims. Some of the more well-known scams have involved medical equipment like power wheelchairs.

Sara Lonardo, a spokesperson for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, confirmed Medicare received complaints about unwanted tests but said they came from only "a small portion" of Medicare beneficiaries who received tests.

Last year, President Joe Biden's administration offered all households a limited number of at-home tests for free, increasing access to testing as part of its effort to combat covid-19.

A few months later, in April 2022, CMS decided to pay for eight tests per month for those with Medicare Part B outpatient coverage, including tens of millions of seniors, one of the groups most susceptible to severe illness and death from the virus. It was the first time the agency agreed to cover non-prescription, over-the-counter products at no cost to beneficiaries.

In a statement last month, federal law enforcement officials said "wrongdoers allegedly sought to exploit the program by repeatedly supplying patients or, in some instances, deceased patients, with dozens of COVID-19 tests that they did not want or need."

So far, prosecutors at the Department of Justice have confirmed only one case involving the testing scam. A doctor in Florida and a test supplier in Georgia face charges after they were accused of illegally paying an unnamed Virginia marketing company approximately $85,000 to obtain beneficiary numbers "for thousands of Medicare beneficiaries throughout the United States," according to an indictment filed by the Department of Justice last month and obtained by KFF Health News.

The indictment said the pair submitted more than $8.4 million in fraudulent claims for covid tests "regardless of whether the Medicare beneficiaries had requested or needed the tests."

Lampert declined to say how many complaints the OIG had received, adding, "There may or may not be some other ongoing investigations that we just cannot discuss yet."

The details of several Medicare Summary Notices  quarterly statements of services beneficiaries received  obtained by KFF Health News show Medicare paid suppliers $94.08 for at-home covid testing using a billing code for "a single test." Most retail pharmacies sell a two-pack of tests for about $24.

Lonardo said Medicare paid up to $12 for one test and that the number of covered tests was limited to reduce "the risk of abusive billing." She declined to explain why the Medicare Summary Notices indicated a payment of $94.08.

Beneficiaries may be the best fraud detectives for preventing medical identity theft. Senior Medicare Patrol programs encourage them to look for any items on their benefits statements  like back braces and lab tests  that Medicare paid for but that they never received.

If Medicare has paid for an item once, beneficiaries may not be able to get it when they really need it  regardless of whether they actually received it.

Diane Borton, a 72-year-old from New Smyrna Beach, Fla., has thrown out some of the expired tests she received but never asked for, yet she still has 25 tests. She said she called the 1-800-MEDICARE helpline twice about the unwanted packages but was told nothing could be done to stop them.

Borton didn't pay for her supply, but that's not why she's concerned. "I dont want my government paying for something that Im not going to use and I didnt ask for," she said. "I feel like it is such a waste of money."

People with Medicare or private Medicare Advantage plans who receive medical supplies they didn't order can contact the Senior Medicare Patrol Resource Center at 1-877-808-2468.
Thought Leaders Joseph Wang Distinguished Professor University of California, San Diego

In this interview conducted at Pittcon 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, we spoke to this years recipient of the Ralph N. Adams Award in Analytical Chemistry, Professor Joseph Wang, about the versatility and future directions of biosensor technologies.

Could you introduce yourself and your current research activities?

My name is Joseph Wang, and I am a Nanoengineering Professor at UC San Diego, focusing on developing wearable sensors and microscale robots for biomedical applications.

I am currently designing wearable electrochemical sensors for all types of applications, such as point-of-care and self-testing. I am focused on a portable, smaller device for clinical diagnostics, security, wellness, etc.

How did you become involved with this research field?

When I started in the 80s, nanotechnology did not exist, and wearable sensors were not a thing.

My primary training is in analytical chemistry. I graduated from the Technion in Israel and decided to come to the States to pursue my academic career. In my research like to move in new directions, addressing emerging societal needs in medicine, security, or climate change and creating new frontiers and capabilities.

What are some disadvantages associated with classical diagnostic methods?

Classical diagnostic methods tend to be better suited for on-the-spot blood measurement. This form of method is conducted periodically, such as twice a year, and it gives you a single measurement. However, some circumstances require biochemical information to be monitored as it fluctuates, such as diabetics.

In diabetics, we have what we call CGM, Continuous Glucose Monitor, which monitors glucose fluctuation. This type of fluctuation must also be monitored for cardiac, stress, wellness, and nutrition.

Measuring blood monthly or quarterly is an insufficient method, as you are unable to get an idea of the overall picture and identify any trends. This is not only the case in medicine, but also in fitness; you want to continuously monitor your hydration or lactate  all of which fluctuate.

There are a lot of temporal variations in kidney and cardiac diseases. Thus, taking just one measurement will not provide useful information.

Image Credit: Love Employee/Shutterstock.com

Why are electrochemical sensors so exciting for these applications?

If you look at the glucose market, it is dominated by electrochemical devices. The beauty of an electrochemical sensor is that it is a small, compact, portable device that is easy to mass produce with a low power requirement, making them very attractive technologies.

For instance, the finger stick blood test, a mobile self-testing or wearable device, relies on electrochemistry because of these unique properties.

Could you give some examples of the target molecules that these sensors might be able to detect?

We are creating wearable alcohol or opioid sensors to help prevent drunk driving or drug abuse. A sensor that can monitor cortisol levels would also be highly advantageous when it comes to determining stress levels. Other useful targets would be vitamins to aid in monitoring personal nutrition.

We are also hoping to develop a sensor to help identify trace elements and minerals in food supplements. Nerve agents for monitoring the bodys surroundings  such as electrolytes, metabolites, and hormones  are other viable targets.

Are there any challenges that need to be addressed before using these sensors?

The beauty of these sensors is that they are non-invasive, as you do not need to physically take a sample of blood. However, everything needs to be validated by comparing to blood, which is the gold standard, so we must also validate without controlled conditions. Other challenges include changes in the surrounding temperature, e.g., when running around in the summer compared to in winter. Common bioreceptor, such as enzymes are not so stable in uncontrolled extreme conditions.

There is also the issue of bio-fouling. In terms of mobility, it is easy to measure your steps, calories, or ECG artery as these are physical characteristics. However, when it comes to chemical sensing, you need a bioreceptor, and you need to immobilize it to make it stable. This is why we do not have many of these except glucose.

Congratulations on receiving this years Ralph N. Adams Award in analytical chemistry. What does it mean to be the recipient of this award?

It is a great honor to have been presented with this award, especially as I knew Ralph Adam personally. Ralph Adam passed away in 2002; he was a fantastic scientist and, more importantly, a wonderful person. He had a vision and shared my idea to make receptors simple but creative.

He was the first to put electrodes in the brain of small animals and gain insight into the neurochemicals of the brain. This was back in the 70s. At present, I am now putting electrodes in the skin. The progression in this field is astounding, but it would not have been possible without great scientists like Ralph.

What are you working on right now that you are particularly excited about?

My team comprises 40 people at UC San Diego, and there are also two subgroups. One group focuses on the wearable sensor, and the other focuses on the microrobot nanomachine. The latter is a device that swims around the body to deliver drugs.

Wearable technology is relatively new in the field of chemical sensing, and we, as a team, are pioneering the lab on the skin. It is really exciting to be able to carry out chemistry on the skin, the mouth, contact lenses, and under the skin with what we call a microneedle. Any biofluid, such as sweat, saliva, tears, and interstitial fluid (IF), is applied using a microneedle platform. Some examples include a tattoo on the skin, a mouth guard in the mouth, and contact lenses in the eyes.

Why is it so important for researchers and individuals to meet in person at events like Pittcon?

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have missed out on the last two years on in-person events. Last year, I was awarded the prestigious Talanta medal, but this was a virtual event, so I missed out on the direct interaction that you can have with researchers, colleagues, and young students who were in attendance.

However, at Pittcon 2023, I was lucky enough to have been selected to present a session in person. It was fantastic to once again have the opportunity to meet with colleagues face-to-face after several long months of using Zoom.

What are you looking forward to for Pittcon San Diego next year?

Aside from its stunning surrounding, San Diego is a leader in the world of biotech and home to many big companies such as Illumina, Dexcom, and Qualcomm. Thus, this show will undoubtedly be full of countless opportunities.

About Prof. Joseph Wang

Joseph Wang is Distinguished Professor, SAIC Endowed Chair, and former Chair of the Department of Nanoengineering at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). He is also the Director of the UCSD Center of Wearable Sensors and Co-Director of the UCSD Center of Mobile Health Systems and Applications (CMSA). He served as the director of Center for Bioelectronics and Biosensors of Arizona State University (ASU) before joining UCSD. His scientific interests are concentrated in the areas of bioelectronics, wearable devices, biosensors, bionanotechnology, nanomachines and microrobots, flexible materials, and electroanalytical chemistry. Prof. Wang has published more than 1200 papers, 11 books and he holds 30 patents (H Index=194, >150,000 citations).

Wang is a member of the US National Academy of Inventors and Honorary member of the Turkish National Academy of Science. He received 2 American Chemical Society National Awards in 1999 (Instrumentation) and 2006 (Electrochemistry), ECS Sensor Achievement Award (2018), the IUPAC Analytical Chemistry Medal (2021), IEEE Sensors Achievement Award (2021), the Pittcon Ralph Adams Award for Bioanalytical Chemistry (2023), Spiers Memorial Award (2013), the Breyer and Heyrovsky Medals from Australia and Czech Republic, respectively, the Talanta Medal (Elsevier), Spiers RSC Medal (UK), and 8 Honorary Professors from Spain, Argentina, Czech Republic, Romania, China and Slovenia. Prof. Wang has been he was among the Thompson Reuters list of Highly Cited Researcher (2015-2022), served as the Founding Editor of Electroanalysis (Wiley), and is RSC, ECS and AIMBE Fellow.

He is Distinguished Professor, SAIC Endowed Chair, and former Chair of the Department of Nanoengineering at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). He is also the Director of the UCSD Center of Wearable Sensors and Co-Director of the UCSD Center of Mobile Health Systems and Applications (CMSA). He served as the director of Center for Bioelectronics and Biosensors of Arizona State University (ASU) before joining UCSD. His scientific interests are concentrated in the areas of bioelectronics, wearable devices, biosensors, bionanotechnology, nanomachines and microrobots, flexible materials, and electroanalytical chemistry. Prof. Wang has published more than 1200 papers, 11 books and he holds 30 patents (H Index=194, >150,000 citations). Wang is a member of the US National Academy of Inventors and Honorary member of the Turkish National Academy of Science.

He received 2 American Chemical Society National Awards in 1999 (Instrumentation) and 2006 (Electrochemistry), ECS Sensor Achievement Award (2018), the IUPAC Analytical Chemistry Medal (2021), IEEE Sensors Achievement Award (2021), the Pittcon Ralph Adams Award for Bioanalytical Chemistry (2023), Spiers Memorial Award (2013), the Breyer and Heyrovsky Medals from Australia and Czech Republic, respectively, the Talanta Medal (Elsevier), Spiers RSC Medal (UK), and 8 Honorary Professors from Spain, Argentina, Czech Republic, Romania, China and Slovenia. Prof. Wang has been he was among the Thompson Reuters list of Highly Cited Researcher (2015-2022), served as the Founding Editor of Electroanalysis (Wiley), and is RSC, ECS and AIMBE Fellow.

About Pittcon

Pittcon is the worlds largest annual premier conference and exposition on laboratory science. Pittcon attracts more than 16,000 attendees from industry, academia and government from over 90 countries worldwide.

Their mission is to sponsor and sustain educational and charitable activities for the advancement and benefit of scientific endeavor.

Pittcons target audience is not just analytical chemists, but all laboratory scientists  anyone who identifies, quantifies, analyzes or tests the chemical or biological properties of compounds or molecules, or who manages these laboratory scientists.

Having grown beyond its roots in analytical chemistry and spectroscopy, Pittcon has evolved into an event that now also serves a diverse constituency encompassing life sciences, pharmaceutical discovery and QA, food safety, environmental, bioterrorism and other emerging markets.
Migrants seeking asylum cross the Rio Bravo river to return to Mexico from the United States, after members of the Texas Army National Guard extend razor wire to inhibit migrants from crossing, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, May 13, 2023. Photo by Reuters/Jose Luis Gonzalez

An eight-year-old migrant girl died in U.S. custody in Texas on Wednesday, a tragedy that tempered news of a sharp drop in attempted illegal crossings of the southern US border.

The girl died in Harlingen, a Texas border city near the Gulf of Mexico.

"The child and her family were in custody at the Harlingen Station where she experienced a medical emergency," U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a statement.

"Emergency Medical Services were called to the station and transported her to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead," the statement said, adding that an investigation was opened into the death.

The agency did not give the migrant girl's identity or nationality.

A 17-year-old Honduran boy who arrived in the U.S. without a parent or guardian died last week in government custody in Safety Harbor, Florida.

Separately, new policies that came into effect last week to deal with undocumented migrants appear to have slashed U.S. entries.

The Border Patrol counted less than 4,000 "encounters" -- apprehensions and expulsions -- with people crossing without permission each of the past two days, said Blas Nunez-Neto, assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

That compared with 10,100 per day in the week before the lifting of Title 42, the Covid-19 health emergency rule used for three years to swiftly expel a wide array of migrants, he told reporters.

Replacing Title 42 was a policy package anchored on immigration law Title 8, which provides for strict penalties for those crossing who do not qualify, including five-year bans on US entry and possible criminal charges.

That was combined with an expansion of formal avenues to migrate to the United States, focused especially on refugees and asylum applicants.

The aim was to stem pressure at the border, where more than 200,000 migrant encounters occurred in most months over the last year, creating a political crisis for President Joe Biden.

Crossing numbers drop

Nunez-Neto said last week's policy change appeared to be achieving the goal of reducing illegal immigration.

The number of Mexicans encountered fell from 1,900 daily to 1,000 and Colombians from 1,400 to 510 a day.

The number of Venezuelan migrants had also plunged to 50 per day, after hitting 2,400 before the policy change.

The 4,000 a day was also lower than the average of 7,000 encounters a day in April.

In addition, there were signs that the northward movement of migrants from South and Central America to the Mexico-US frontier has slowed, said Nunez-Neto.

"We are also seeing some early promising signs that entries into the Darien jungle between Colombia and Panama have been declining in recent days," he said, referring to a particularly treacherous section of the main route for migrants heading north.

Instead, "tens of thousands" have been applying for immigration interviews with US Customs and Border Protection, and over 5,000 have been "processed" in their appointments since May 12, Nunez-Neto said.

And many Haitians, Venezuelans and Cubans are taking advantage of a special program to migrate as refugees that requires them to apply from abroad, he added.

"I want to stress once again that it is still too soon to draw any firm conclusions here about where these trends will go in the coming days and weeks," said Nunez-Neto.

"We continue to monitor the situation on our border and in Mexico and along the transit routes in real-time," he said.
Until recently, Jonathon Murray relied on Medicaid to pay for treatments for multiple health conditions, including chronic insomnia. Murray, a 20-year-old restaurant worker from the college town of Brookings, South Dakota, said that without his medication, he would stay awake for several nights in a row.

"I'd probably not be able to work that much because I'd be tired but couldn't fall asleep," he said.

Murray's mother is paying $1,548 more than usual in health insurance premiums over three months to make sure he can afford his sleeping pills, other medication, lab work, and doctors' appointments.

Murray had to scramble to find an insurance option after he was surprised to lose his Medicaid coverage on April 1  even though he will likely requalify July 1.

Due to a convoluted situation in South Dakota and North Carolina, Murray isn't the only person who will experience this whiplash in Medicaid coverage.

Medicaid is the joint federal and state health insurance program for people with low incomes or disabilities. During the national covid-19 public health emergency, states were barred from removing people from the program even if they no longer qualified.

This rule has now ended, and states can redetermine whether Medicaid participants still qualify. The federal government estimates 15 million Americans will lose coverage under Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program because they no longer qualify or because of paperwork issues.

But as South Dakota and North Carolina remove participants from Medicaid, the states also plan to add people to the program. That's because South Dakota voters and North Carolina lawmakers recently approved Medicaid expansion, which will increase the number of people eligible for the program.

"It would have been great if they would have kept people on until the expansion, so you're not kicking so many people off," said Kathy Murray, Jonathon's mother.

South Dakota could have tried to prevent participants from temporarily losing Medicaid coverage, according to several health policy experts.

State officials are "saying federal regulations mean that they have to kick people off before expansion, and thats just not right," said Joan Alker, executive director of the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. "They absolutely could be structuring this in a way that those people didn't experience a loss in coverage."

Lucy Dagneau, head of Medicaid campaigns for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, agreed. South Dakota and North Carolina "can't actually stop the process of the unwinding. However, they have flexibility in terms of how they batch the enrollees," she said.

Alker and Dagneau said states don't have to start the unwinding process right away, and when they do, they could delay reviewing enrollees who are likely to requalify under expansion.

South Dakotans and North Carolinians who want to avoid a gap in health care coverage can apply for private insurance, which could be subsidized under the Affordable Care Act. They could then reapply for Medicaid once applications for expansion coverage begin. But if they wind up uninsured during the gap period, they might avoid seeking treatment or face expensive bills.

South Dakota is one of five states that began culling April 1, the earliest date possible. Its Medicaid expansion goes into effect July 1. About 16,000 South Dakotans were disenrolled in April, but more than 1,700 of them will requalify under expansion, according to state data.

North Carolina will begin disenrolling people who are no longer eligible for Medicaid on July 1. The state has not set a timeline for Medicaid expansion, but it's expected to occur within the unwinding period, which lasts through May 2024.

Jay Ludlam, deputy secretary of North Carolina's Medicaid program, said the uncertain timing makes it difficult to avoid temporarily disenrolling people. Ludlam said about 300,000 North Carolinians are expected to be removed from Medicaid during the unwinding. He estimated one-third of them will requalify after expansion.

Kathy Murray added Jonathon to her workplace insurance plan, which will more than double her premiums over the intervening months. She said she won't be able to pay some other bills during this time, but her son can't go without health care.

She said South Dakota's approach seems inefficient, since state workers will have to disenroll and reenroll some people within a short period. "Its creating a lot of work for the state workers because theyre going to send out paperwork and requalify everybody," she said.

Matt Althoff, secretary of the South Dakota Department of Social Services, said that the agency's unwinding plan is "based on compliance with CMS rules, limitations of the technology used to support South Dakota Medicaid, and the overall impact to customers."

The agency wrote in a March document that it was working closely with the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services "to explore waivers and flexibilities during the period of the unwinding prior to expansion and will continue to do so."

Althoff did not respond when asked by KFF Health News whether the state had discussions with the federal agency about avoiding temporary disenrollments. Sara Lonardo, press secretary for CMS, said the agency could not comment on whether it had any related conversations with South Dakota or North Carolina officials.

Although South Dakota won't prevent people likely to requalify for Medicaid from temporarily losing coverage, it is taking steps to make sure they know to reapply.

The state is screening people who no longer qualify for Medicaid under the current rules to see if they would requalify after Medicaid expansion. If so, they should be sent letters encouraging them to reapply.

Since 2014, the Affordable Care Act has allowed states to offer Medicaid coverage to more people, with the federal government paying 90% of the costs. All but 10 states have opted into Medicaid expansion.

South Dakota adults currently qualify for Medicaid if they have a certified disability or have children and incomes up to 46% of the federal poverty level. That translates to $13,800 for a family of four.

Jonathon Murray qualified for Medicaid as a child. But he became an adult during the public health emergency and thus no longer qualifies.

Medicaid expansion will allow adults, with or without children, to enroll in the program if they earn up to 138% of the federal poverty level, or $20,120 for a single adult. Murray's income as a part-time restaurant cook and dishwasher should allow him to requalify and begin receiving Medicaid coverage on July 1.

Get Covered South Dakota helps people understand and apply for health care insurance. So far, everyone the organization has assisted after being disenrolled from Medicaid has qualified for subsidized private plans under the Affordable Care Act's marketplace, according to program manager Penny Kelley. For people with low incomes, the subsidies can cover most or all of their premiums.

South Dakota Voices for Peace, a nonprofit agency, is assisting people with the Medicaid unwinding and expansion process. Carla Graciano, its outreach coordinator, said many people are confused about the unwinding process after not having to worry about health coverage for more than three years during the public health emergency.

"We have heard concerns about people potentially losing their medical coverage," Graciano said. "It puts a lot of people under stress."
Scientists say tonsil removal is both clinically and cost effective for adults who get recurrent severe sore throats.

The biggest study of its kind, carried out by Newcastle University, revealed that patients who had a tonsillectomy had 50% less sore throats over two years, compared to patients who did not undergo tonsillectomy. Publishing today (17 May) in The Lancet, the study was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

Experts also found that a tonsillectomy for those aged 16 years and over was cost effective in comparison to treatment with painkillers and ad hoc antibiotics.

Tonsillectomy assurance

A tonsillectomy, cutting out the two lumps of lymphoid tissue found at either side of the back of the throat, is an operation that has been widely used to improve the quality of life for patients.

However, in recent years, less adult tonsillectomies have been reportedly carried out on NHS patients.

Tonsillectomy has been branded as an 'intervention of limited clinical value' due to a lack of studies to support the operation. Over the last 20 years, the number of tonsillectomies being performed in the UK has halved whilst hospital admissions for complicated tonsillitis have more than doubled. There has been variation across the UK in referrals from primary care for tonsillitis, with some patients having to experience three times the recommended number of episodes before being referred for a tonsillectomy. Our research should level the threshold for referral for this problem, and clinicians can now be assured that tonsillectomy is effective for those who suffer with recurrent tonsillitis." Dr James O'Hara, Clinical Senior Lecturer at Newcastle University and Consultant Ear, Nose and Throat surgeon at Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

In the study, commissioned by the NIHR, almost 500 patients were randomized to either early tonsillectomy or given treatment such as painkillers and antibiotics.

Participants were only recruited if they met the current national guidance for offering tonsillectomy - seven episodes of tonsillitis in a year, five per year for two years, or three episodes for three years.

Those in the clinical trial who underwent the operation suffered half the number of days with sore throats over the following two years, including the two weeks of sore throats following the procedure.

Cost-effective procedure

The Newcastle-led research also showed that it is more cost-effective for the NHS to offer tonsillectomy to eligible patients than to treat them by other conventional methods.

Dr O'Hara said: "Whilst we now know that tonsillectomy is effective, patients still need to weigh up the potential benefits in reducing longer-term sore throats with 14 days of pain following the operation.

"There is also a risk of one in five patients bleeding following the operation, with some having to return to hospital. Further research is needed to improve the tonsillectomy operation to make it less painful and reduce the risk of bleeding."

Professor Andrew Farmer, Director of NIHR's Health Technology Assessment Programme, said: "These new results provide important findings suggesting that tonsillectomy benefits this group of patients compared to repeated courses of antibiotics and painkillers.

"Once again, high quality independently funded research is providing evidence which could improve health and social care practice and treatments."

Newcastle University and Newcastle Hospitals are both part of Newcastle Health Innovation Partners (NHIP). NHIP is one of eight prestigious Academic Health Science Centres (AHSCs) across the UK, bringing together partners to deliver excellence in research, health education and patient care.
Tuberculosis is caused by a bacterium that has evolved to evade the bodys immune system; now, its natural enemy, a phage, is being used to detect the infection at an early stage. The UKs first Centre for Phage Research is being officially launched on 16th May and featured in the Innovate UK KTNs UK Phage Innovation Showcase will be Actiphage, a phage-based molecular diagnostic for tuberculosis.

Actiphage finds live mycobacterium tuberculosis in the blood and releases its DNA for identification with qPCR. Image Credit: PBD Biotech.

Catherine Rees, Professor of Microbiology at University of Nottingham, is a co-founder of PBD Biotech, developers of Actiphage.

I am delighted to be supporting the launch of the University of Leicesters Centre for Phage Research and to be given an opportunity to highlight our phage-based technology in the KTN UK Phage Innovation Showcase. These developments emphasise the UKs recognised strength in phage research and I look forward to the exciting new collaborations and technology developments that will arise from these important networking events. Catherine Rees, Professor of Microbiology, University of Nottingham | Co-founder, PBD Biotech | Developers of Actiphage

A quarter of the worlds population are carriers of tuberculosis but show no symptoms. It can remain hidden in the body and only progress to full disease when the immune system is weakened, perhaps by other disease or malnutrition. Tuberculosis disease is preventable but can be fatal unless treated. The challenge is how to detect the people that have active disease and treat them before they become infective  thereby breaking the cycle of infection.

The bacterium, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) has proven difficult to detect as it has a hard cell wall that prevents the release of its DNA, and it is slow to culture. Actiphage uses a phage, a virus specific to Mtb, to find live cells of Mtb in the blood.

Research at the NIHR Respiratory Biomedical Research Centre in Leicester by Clinical Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Physician, Dr Pranabashis Haldar, has shown that Mtb detected in the blood using Actiphage is an indicator of active TB disease; this is a potential breakthrough in the fight to End TB.

As we see with the Actiphage test, phages can enhance the scope and sensitivity of molecular diagnostics for bacterial infections by providing a mechanism to identify and release target genetic material for PCR based amplification. There are specific phages known to infect the vast majority of bacteria that cause infections. Phages are also versatile and may be modified to enable different approaches to the development of clinical diagnostics. Dr Pranabashis Haldar, NIHR Respiratory Biomedical Research Centre in Leicester by Clinical Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Physician

Dr Haldar has been invited to join a panel group at the event and he thinks that phages will have multiple roles in the prevention and treatment of bacterial infections.

For more information about the Centre for Phage Research visit le.ac.uk/research/centres/phage-research.

To find out more about Actiphage visit pbdbio.com.

Register for the launch event at iuk.ktn-uk.org/events/uk-phage-innovation-showcase/.
Outgoing Twitter CEO Elon Musk has teased two new electric vehicles (EVs) during its annual shareholders meeting, saying one new EV is already in the manufacturing process.

One of the new vehicles might be the $25,000 hatchback that Musk mentioned back in 2020 during the companys battery day, reports TechCrunch.

I just want to emphasise that we are actually building a new product. We are actually designing a new product. Were not sitting on our hands here," Musk told the gathering at the meeting in Austin, Texas, late on Monday.

Also Read: Tesla Executives to Meet Indian Govt Officials Tomorrow, Could Start Selling Cars Soon in India

Both the design of the products and the manufacturing techniques are head and shoulders above anything else that is present in the industry," he added.

Tesla previously teased two new models at its Investor Day in March.

Well probably make in excess of 5 million units per year of these two models combined," Musk said.

At the meeting, Teslas board clarified there was no succession plan for Musk. Musk also said he has no intention of stepping down as Tesla CEO.

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I think Teslas going to play an important role in AI and AGI and I think I need to oversee that to make sure its good," he was quoted as saying.

Shares of Tesla remained somewhat flat after the meeting, rising only about 1 per cent in after-hours trading.
After waiting for so many years, finally, the Odia community staying in the United Arab Emirates got an opportunity to rejoice as the inaugural Dubai-Bhubaneswar direct flight took off on May 15. It was flagged by the state Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

They expressed their gratitude for his assistance in launching the Dubai-Bhubaneswar direct flight. Odia community also called this direct flight very special as CM Naveen Patnaik himself got involved in it to give it a kickstart.

After arriving from Dubai to Bhubaneswar, a senior member of the Odia Community in the UAE named Priyadarshee Panigrahi, along with others, met with the states chief minister. They collectively expressed gratitude to him for commencing these direct flight operations, which had been long requested by the Odia community.

Some of them even appreciated him for keeping his promise, which he made to the community in June last year.

Amid this, the Consulate General of India in Dubai, Dr. Aman Puri also congratulated the State Government on this significant step towards enhancing Odishas global connectivity. He said the beginning of direct connectivity between the global city, Dubai, and Odisha will create unmatched opportunities for the State and connect it to the rest of the world.

Odisha CM Naveen Patnaiks reaction to direct Dubai to Bhubaneswar flight

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Glad to flag off the maiden Bhubaneswar-Dubai international flight from Biju Patnaik International Airport. Wishing students of @SDTE_Odisha a very happy journey. May the direct flight service open up new world of opportunities for our #SkilledInOdisha youths. #OdishaOnTheMove pic.twitter.com/OFTRHSLniQ Naveen Patnaik (@Naveen_Odisha) May 16, 2023

Reacting about the direct flight operations, CM Naveen Patnaik tweeted that he is glad to flag off the maiden Bhubaneswar-Dubai international flight from Biju Patnaik International Airport. Wishing students a very happy journey. May the direct flight service open up a new world of opportunities for our skilled youths, the CM of Odisha added in his tweet.
7th Pay Commission: The Tamil Nadu government has approved a 4 per cent hike in dearness allowance (DA) for state government employees. The move, which would entail an additional expenditure of Rs 2,366.82 crore annually to the exchequer, will benefit 16 lakh government employees, teachers, pensioners and those receiving family pensions.

The hike comes into effect retrospectively from the start of the financial year, April 1, 2023. The DA was increased from 38 per cent to 42 per cent, according to an official statement. Further, in the future, the state government will effect a DA increase whenever the Central government does so.

Before this, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan governments have also raised their dearness allowances.

For central government employees, the last revision in DA was done in March raising it by 4 per cent, which became effective from January 1, 2023. After the 4 per cent hike, the DA of central government employees increased to 42 per cent. Before this, the DA was hiked in September 2022 by 4 per cent, which became effective from July 2022.

Dearness allowance (DA) and dearness relief (DR) are revised twice a year, effective January 1 and July 1. According to recent media reports, the government is likely to raise the dearness allowance by another 4 per cent in July this year.

Apart from this, the government might also raise fitment factor to raise minimum salary. The minimum salary of government employees is expected to see a rise from Rs 18,000 to Rs 26,000 for central government employees after the hike in the fitment factor, according to the reports. The reports said that the government is expected to revise the fitment factor and dearness allowance (DA) soon. However, there is no official word on this.

How DA Hike is Decided?

The central government revises the DA and DR for employees based on a formula. Following is the formula:

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Dearness Allowance Percentage = ((Average of All-India Consumer Price Index (Base Year 2001=100) for the past 12 months -115.76)/115.76)x100.

For Central public sector employees: Dearness Allowance Percentage = ((Average of All-India Consumer Price Index (Base Year 2001=100) for the past 3 months -126.33)/126.33)x100.
In a significant reshuffle of the Union cabinet, Arjun Ram Meghwal, a Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Rajasthan, has been appointed as the new Union Minister for Law. This appointment bestows upon Meghwal additional responsibilities, including the charge of culture and parliamentary affairs as Minister of State, along with an independent charge of the law ministry. It is noteworthy that Meghwal, now leading the law ministry, did not previously hold a cabinet rank.

Meghwal assumed the crucial post of Union Minister for Law, succeeding Kiren Rijiju, who was reassigned to the Ministry of Earth Sciences. This transition followed Rijijus expression of criticism towards the collegium system for appointing judges.

Also Read: Celebrity Education Qualification: Krunal Pandya is a School Dropout, Know How he Made Career in Cricket

Educational Qualification

Born on December 20, 1953, in a small village located in the Thar Desert of Bikaner, Arjun Ram Meghwal possesses a commendable educational background. He completed his bachelors degree in law from Dungar College in Bikaner in 1977, followed by a post-graduation in political science in 1979. In addition, he has also earned an MBA degree, further enriching his educational profile.

Retired IAS Officer

Prior to his foray into politics, Meghwal pursued a diverse range of professions, including civil service, social work, farming, and education. Beginning his career as a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, he successfully qualified for the Rajasthan administrative services in 1982. This achievement led to his election to the Rajasthan Udhyog Seva, where he served as the District Magistrate (Collector) in the Government of Rajasthan.

With a political career spanning over a decade, Arjun Ram Meghwal has emerged as a prominent figure within the BJP. During Prime Minister Modis first term, he assumed the role of Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation. His tenure in these ministries contributed to his extensive understanding of governance and legislative processes.

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Also read: Celebrity Education: Indias Richest CM Jagan Mohan Reddy is a BCom Graduate

In 2009, Meghwal secured a seat in the Lok Sabha as a Member of Parliament from Bikaner, garnering the trust and support of the electorate. He was subsequently re-elected in the 2014 general election for the 16th Lok Sabha. Notably, during his second term as an MP, he held the prestigious position of Chief Whip of the BJP in Lok Sabha, demonstrating his adept leadership skills and ability to navigate the political landscape. Additionally, he was appointed as the Chairman of the House Committee in the lower house by the Speaker, further highlighting his influential role in parliamentary proceedings.
The Congress may have finally resolved the power tussle between Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar by handing over the Karnataka chief ministers crown to the former, there is no denying that convincing Shivakumar was not all that simple.

It not only took efforts from Sonia Gandhi  whom DKS often refers to as his mother figure  to ask him to back down and allow Siddaramaiah to take over until he clears all the pending IT and ED cases against him but the Karnataka Congress chief was also in constant touch with his political jyotishi (astrologer) Vellore Shankaranarayana Dwarakanath Guruji, popularly known as Dwarakanath Guruji.

Sources close to Shivakumars family said the now deputy CM-designate had been advised by Dwarakanath to accept the formula offered by the Congress high command as his kundalini (horoscope) did not align for him to have Raj Yog. The term loosely translates to a duration during which a person achieves fame, prosperity, wealth, reputation, and fulfilment of desires in life, much like a king. In Shivakumars case, this coveted treasure was the chief ministers chair.

Popular as the trouble-shooter and Congress trustworthy lieutenant who helped the party gain the highest number of seats in Karnatakas political history, Shivakumar hopes his lucky stars will align in his favour soon and land him the much-wanted kursi (CM chair).

As per predictions, Shivakumars planetary positions will fall in place for the post by November 2025. Incidentally, this timeframe also coincides with the 2.5 years rotational CM option offered by the Congress high command.

A close associate said the political astrologer advised DKS that by then, he would not have to fight for the seat as it would come to him automatically since he is most deserving for that post.

While Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Kharge-ji played a big role in convincing Shivakumar to accept the deputy CM post and work towards a successful Congress government in Karnataka, he also took the advice of Dwarkanath whom he holds in very high regard, said a source. It is said that Shivakumar met the astrologer for the first time during his student days in Ramnarayan Chellaram College.

DKS later tweeted that the states secure future is the Congress priority and told his team that he was committed to helping the party deliver its promises to the people who voted them back with a thumping majority.

Sources aware of the developments say the state Congress president, along with the deputy CM post, has been offered six plump ministries. However, confirmation on the same is awaited.

Shivakumar is a staunch believer in astrology, numerology, and is often seen seeking advice from Dwarakanath who is an extremely popular astrological guide and spiritual philosopher for a large number of political leaders in Karnataka and across the country.

Former chief ministers like Devaraj Urs, SM Krishna, Dharam Singh, and HD Kumaraswamy have sought his advice before making crucial decisions in their personal and political lives.

The astrologer rose to fame in political circles after he predicted that Indira Gandhi would win from the Chikkamagalur constituency in 1978 and later said Narendra Modi would not only win the 2014 elections but also become the prime minister of India twice.

Senior politicians like Sushil Kumar Shinde, Ahmed Patel, Amarinder Singh, Vilasrao Deshmukh, several bureaucrats, actors in the film industry, industrialists, and foreign diplomats are known to have consulted Dwarakanath on a regular basis.

Another instance of Shivakumars deep commitment to his religious leaders is when a day after the Congress resounding victory in Karnataka, DKS was seen offering prayers and seeking the blessings of his spiritual guru Ajjayya in Nonavinakere Kadasiddeshwara Mutt.

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Though held in high regard by those in power, Dwarakanath has also been at the centre of controversies. When former chief minister of Karnataka Devaraj Urs passed away at his home during a visit to understand his political future, the Urs family deemed it suspicious and sought a thorough investigation into the matter.

In 2017, Dwarakanath came under the IT scanner after it was alleged that a hospital worth around Rs 800 crore was bought by him in which Shivakumar had invested money. IT officials at the time stated that they had found documents that showed an agreement had been drawn up between the two. During questioning, it was stated that Shivakumar had merely voluntarily financed his guru, who was short-funded at the time.
Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumars brother, DK Suresh on Thursday said he was not completely happy over the partys decision to go ahead with Siddaramaiah for the chief ministerial post. Suresh, however, said DKS accepted the decision in the best interest of the state.

I am not fully happy but we wanted to fulfil our commitment to the people of Karnataka. That is why DK Shivakumar accepted (the partys decision)," the Congress MP said.

Ending the deadlock in the formation of the Karnataka government, the Congress party decided to go ahead with Siddaramaiah as the Chief Minister and DK Shivakumar as his Deputy. The swearing-in ceremony will take place at 12.30 pm on May 20, said top Congress sources. Follow LIVE

DK Suresh further wished for the CM post for DKS in future and said theres a long way to go. In future, we will see, there is a long way to go. I wished it (CM post for DK Shivakumar) but it didnt happen, we will wait and see," he said.

Meanwhile, DK Shivakumar also confirmed that he agreed to take the deputy chief minister post in the larger interest of the party.

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We have a commitment for Karnataka. Parliament elections are there. So in larger interest for the party I have agreed for the formula, India Today quoted Shivakumar as saying. More responsibility is on me now to serve Karnataka. We have to deliver, he added.

According to sources, the swearing-in ceremony will take place on May 20 in the state capital. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge will invite opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister. The Gandhis, Congress CMs and senior Congress leaders will attend the event in Bengaluru.
Siddaramaiah will be the next chief minister of Karnataka, while DK Shivakumar will be the deputy chief minister, top sources close to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge have told News18, seemingly ending the deadlock that had eclipsed the partys grand victory in the southern state. The option of rotational chief minister has also been put on the table, the sources said.

Sources said Shivakumar has accepted the role and told Kharge that he has sacrificed for the Gandhis and the party. A Congress Legislative Party meeting has been called in Bengaluru at 7pm on Thursday, the source quoted above said. This could finally put a lid over the crisis on who should be the Karnataka CM  a dilemma over which the Congress has held numerous meetings all week.

The swearing-in of the new chief minister and his deputy is expected at 12.30pm on May 20 in Bengaluru. Sources said the rotational system is likely to be implemented though Shivakumar was averse to the idea, given the background of what happened in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh in the past.

However, with Sonia Gandhi personally assuring Shivakumar earlier that justice would be done, the senior leader was prevailed upon, sources said. There is still no clarity on how this will work out as top sources said the details are still being smoothened out but as of now, the rotation proposal exists. The challenge, however, would be to ensure that Siddaramaiah steps down as the chief minister after his turn is over.

The Congress burnt the midnight oil to thrash out the formula and it was Kharge who ensured that the party wish was followed. Sources say he had deputed KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala to speak to the two leaders separately to bring them on board.

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After this, Kharge himself spoke and gave personal assurance that no one would be short-changed. Sources say he also told them that a good portfolio would be given, especially to Shivakumar.

The next big challenge for the party is to decide the portfolios. Rahul Gandhi has made it clear that based on the statistics, SCs , STs, women and Muslims voted for Congress and they should be reflected in the cabinet apart from implementing the five guarantees.
The full extent of the destruction Russia is visiting on Ukraine by its brutal invasion cannot yet be determined.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said in April there have been over 22,000 recorded civilian casualties so far in Ukraine, but the OHCHR believes the actual toll is significantly higher. Apartment buildings have been bombed; power stations and other critical infrastructure destroyed; hospitals and medical care facilities attacked.

At a briefing to reporters, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby raised the alarm once again over the growing military partnership that helps Russia wreak such havoc in Ukraine: Russias partnership with Iran.

In addition to artillery tank rounds, Since August, Iran has provided Russia with more than 400 UAVs primarily of the Shahed variety," said Coordinator Kirby. "Russia has expended most of these UAVs, using them to target Ukrainian critical infrastructure inside Ukraine. By providing Russia with these UAVs, Iran has been directly enabling Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine.

Now, said Coordinator Kirby, Russia is interested in acquiring more advanced versions of the drones that are more capable and more lethal.

Iran also benefits from the partnership. Russia, he noted, has been offering Iran unprecedented defense support, including through missiles, electronics, and air defense, thereby, directly enabling Irans destabilizing activities in the Middle East.

State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel also expressed concern over the deepening cooperation between Russia and Iran. It is dangerous. It is a threat to the countries in those regions, he said. It is a threat to the international community. We are talking about a security cooperation that flows both ways, from Iran to Russia and from Russia to Iran.

Since September 2022, the United States has sanctioned more than two dozen individuals and entities over the weapons transfers between Iran and Russia.

Coordinator Kirby pledged the United States will continue to work with allies and partners to hold accountable those involved in the transfer of Iranian military equipment to Russia for use in Ukraine.

The partnership that promotes a rising civilian death toll in Ukraine and further destabilization in the Middle East must be disrupted.
A new crisis seems to have cropped up for the Congress in the run up to the Rajasthan elections. A local report stated that most of the independent MLAs supporting the Congress government and the MLAs who joined the party from BSP have demanded a ticket guarantee".

According to a report in Amar Ujala, five legislators who had merged with the Congress from BSP in 2019 raised the demand in front of state party co-incharge Qazi Nizamuddin, except Rajendra Singh Gudha.

Gudha had last year told a national daily about the growing resentment and discontent among BSP MLAs whom he led into the Congress fold. Last time when we tied up with the government, three out of six MLAs became ministers and three became parliamentary secretaries. We could not get similar perks this time. The kind of attitude some ministers have towards us, it will definitely create mistrust among our MLAs," the former BSP leader told Dainik Bhaskar last year.

This time, however, Gudha has been mum so far. If the Amar Ujala report is to be believed, the leader has joined the Sachin Pilot camp and hence has not raised any issues.

ALSO READ | Sachin Pilot to Jolt Cong on Dads Death Anniversary? Speculation Rife Before Rajasthan Elections

The report stated that if the 18 supporters of the Pilot camp crack a deal with the Congress high command, and are able to have an upper hand, Gudha too will reap benefits.

Gudha himself is a strong candidate and without support from any party, can easily win Udaipurwati in Jhunjhunun district.

The Demands of Former BSP MLAs

According to the Amar Ujala report, the ticket guarantee" demand was raised by Deepchand Kheria and Sandeep Yadav. The MLAs apparently have said that they want to secure their future, and hence Congress should announce that theyll be given tickets.

Sandeep Yadav and Lakhan Singh Meena were present in the feedback programme along with MLA Wajib Ali. The report stated that they also spoke to the party on behalf of Joginder Singh Awana and Deepchand Kheria.

Three Congress co-incharges, Amrita Dhawan, Virendra Singh Rathore and Qazi Mohammad Nizamuddin, have been taking feedback regarding election preparation.

11 of the 13 Independents Have Raised Similar Demand

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Independent MLAs Sanyam Lodha from Sirohi, Babulal Nagar from Dudu, Omprakash Hudla from Mahwa, Alok Beniwal from Shahpura, Kanti Prasad from Thanagaji, Mahadev Singh Khandela from Khandela, Ramila Khadia from Kushalgarh, Rajkumar Gaur from Ganganagar, Ramkesh Meena from Gangapur, Laxman Meena from Bassi, Suresh Tank from Kishangarh have demanded ticket assurance from Congress.

The Independent MLAs have said that they have given their full support to strengthen the Congress government in five years. During the political crisis, an attempt was made to buy us too. But we did not betray the party," an Independent MLA was quoted by Amar Ujala.
As the days of suspense ended and Congress officially announced Siddaramaiah as the next Karnataka Chief Minister and DK Shivakumar as his Deputy, the state Congress is now prepping up to hold a grand swearing-in ceremony for which invitations have been sent to non-BJP Chief Ministers and other leaders from like-minded political parties from across the country.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, who were in a tight race for the Karnataka CM post, would take oath along with other ministers on May 20 at 12:30 pm.

Those who are invited for the oath-taking ceremony are:

Top Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren is likely to leave on Saturday from Ranchi to attend the ceremony and return the same day

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin received a phone call from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and CM-designate Siddaramaiah who invited him to participate in the ceremony

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar

Former chief minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his Deputy Tejashwi Yadav

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah

Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik have also been invited

Earlier in the day, the Congress announced Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka and Shivakumar as his only deputy in the soon-to-formed cabinet.

Announcing the decision taken by Kharge, General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal said all leaders, including the top leadership, worked very hard to make Karnataka victory a reality. We have decided on Siddaramaiah as the chief minister of Karnataka. Shivakumar will be the only deputy chief minister," he said, adding that Shivakumar will also continue as the partys Karnataka state president till parliamentary elections are over.

At the same press conference, senior party leader and in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said the Congress is committed to fulfil the five promises made during the elections and action would be taken on them in the first meeting of the cabinet.

As per news agency PTI sources, around 20 ministers will also be sworn in along with the chief minister and deputy chief minister, including some from the state legislative council.

Asked about the much-talked-about power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, Venugopal said the only formula is to share the power with the people of Karnataka. Ours is a democratic party, we believe in consensus and not in dictatorship," he said on the hectic discussions held over the last few days.

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In the just-concluded elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, the Congress witnessed a thumping victory by winning 135 seats, while the BJP got 66 and the JD(S) secured 19 seats.

(with inputs from PTI)
Veteran Hollywood actress Jane Fonda recently revealed a startling encounter she had with French director Rene Clement during the making of their 1964 thriller Joy House. Speaking on the popular show Watch What Happens Live, Fonda claimed that Clement had asked to sleep with her, saying that he needed to understand her characters orgasmic experiences for the sake of their film. Host Andy Cohen had prompted Fonda to recall a Hollywood member who she had turned down, to which she promptly responded with Clements name.

Recounting the incident, Fonda explained how the director justified his indecent request by claiming it was necessary to accurately portray her character on screen. However, she skilfully avoided the uncomfortable situation by feigning ignorance of the French language.

He wanted to go to bed with me because he said the character had to have an orgasm in the movie and he needed to see what my orgasms were like," Fonda shared on the show. She went on to add, He said it in French, and I pretended I didnt understand."

At the time of filming Joy House, Jane Fonda was 27 years old, while Rene Clement was 51. Clement was a prominent figure in the French film industry, having achieved recognition for his work and earning several accolades at the Cannes Film Festival. The MGM-backed Joy House starred Fonda as a woman who falls for a card shark while being pursued by American gangsters.

The actresss revelation comes amidst ongoing criticism of the French film industry for perpetuating abuse and enabling the actions of individuals accused of misconduct. Actor Adele Haenel recently published an open letter denouncing the industry and its association with alleged offenders such as Roman Polanski and Gerard Depardieu, reported Variety. The Cannes Film Festival faced scrutiny as well, with Haenel criticizing its response to the issue.

Jane Fondas candid disclosure adds to the growing conversation surrounding the treatment of women in the film industry and highlights the importance of addressing and challenging such behavior.
Actor Johnny Depp has shared his candid thoughts about feeling boycotted in Hollywood owing to his highly-publicized libel suit against The Sun and the defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. On Wednesday, the Pirates of the Caribbean fame attended the press conference of Jeanne du Barry, the opening-night film at the Cannes Film Festival. The actor admitted he felt boycotted in the industry after being asked to resign from a film merely based on unproven allegations.

Did I feel a boycott by Hollywood? Well, youd have to not have a pulse to feel at that point, None of this is happening, its just a weird joke or I have been asleep for 35 years. Of course, when youre asked to resign from a film youre doing, because of something that is merely a bunch of kind of vowels and consonants floating in the air, you feel a boycott, he said while replying to a question by Deadline.

For those unaware, Johnny Depp was referring to him stepping down from the film Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore back in 2020. He was asked to resign merely just days after he lost his libel suit against the UK newspaper The Sun, which labeled him a wife-beater. After facing several ups and downs in the showbiz world, the actor confirmed he doesnt feel boycotted now because he doesnt think about Hollywood anymore.

Do I feel a boycott now? No, not at all. I dont feel boycotted by Hollywood because I dont think about Hollywood. I dont have much further need for Hollywood myself, he defiantly added.

Jeanne du Barry is dubbed as Johnny Depps big-screen comeback after a brief absence of three years during which he fought a legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard in court. Notably, the actor won the civil lawsuit against her in the trial that was held last summer. Directed by Maiwenn, in Jeanne du Barry, Johnny Depp essays the role of Louis XV. The biographical movie centers on the life of King Louis XVs newly recruited mistress, Countess Jeanne du Barry (Played by filmmaker Maiwenn), as she uses her alluring tricks to climb up the social ladder.

The movie has been theatrically released in France and will later begin streaming on Netflix.
After Jennifer Mistry accused Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah maker Asit Kumarr Modi of sexual harassment, the producer also made counter-allegations. The shows direction team consisting of Harshad Joshi, Rushi Dave and Arman also claimed that Jennifer was not focused on her work. Project Heads Sohil Ramani and Jatin Bajaj also reacted to the allegations and claimed that Jennifers contract was terminated because of her bad behaviour and indiscipline. Now Jennifer claims that her dues for the show remains uncleared and that she feels exhausted since the last couple of days.

Speaking with Hindustan Times, the former TMKOC actress revealed that her bank account doesnt even have one lakh rupees as of now. She stated, Jab I left the show, I thought main paise bhi nahi mangungi. Mera 3.5 mahine ka paisa hai and its a big amount. Trust me, mera account mein lakh rupaye bhi nahi hai. I have seven girls in my maayka, and Im taking care of everyone. Main kyu sochu ki mere account me 80,000 hai, main kya daru. Bhagwan ne mu diya hai toh khana bhi bhagwan dega. God has always provided for me so, Im not scared.

She further expressed that none of her female colleagues have supported her and had it happened with someone else, she would have shown her solidarity, It is very sad they are not speaking up. Everyone has their own security. I was pushed, only when I came out in the open," she explained.

Jennifer Mistry also confessed to the portal that she was unsure about using the word sexual harrasment since she thought it was a big word. However, her lawyer helped her understand her situation. She stated, I got a notice from them, saying that they have incurred loss because of me, asking me to reply within seven days. I was taken aback. My lawyer (Amit Khare) asked me to write down instances of 15 years. When I wrote it down, he told me that Jennifer this is sexual harassment. I freaked out. I said, It is a big word, I cannot say that. Mere mein itni himmat nahi hai. The lawyer helped me understand. I spoke to my close friends as well."

She also added, " I never sent them any notice (initially), I only replied to Sohil (Ramani, project head, TMKOC) on WhatsApp - just my 15 years of grievances. They went mum. I thought ab ye shaant baith jayenge, now that I have sent them this sexual harassment ka draft. Mera bhi kaam khatam. Maine sirf darane ke liye draft bhej diya. Then they said Im extorting money. It is only after that when I posted the letters (about the sexual harassment) to the authorities on April 8.

Earlier this month, Jennifer Mistry, who used to play the role of Mrs Roshan Sodhi in the popular sitcom accused Modi of sexual harassment. She filed a complaint against Asit Modi, Project Head Sohail Ramani and executive producer Jatin Bajaj of alleged sexual harassment at the workplace. Asit Modi has made sexual advances towards me many times in the past. Initially, I ignored all his statements because of fear of losing out on work. But it is enough now I wont take it anymore," Jennifer told E-Times.

Later, Asit Modi reacted to Jennifers allegations and called them baseless. He also shared that he will take legal action against the actress. We will take legal action as she is trying to defame me and the show both. Since we terminated her services, she is making these baseless allegations, he said.

Mumbai Police has already started an investigation into the case and is likely to record statements of the concerned people soon.
After the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) summoned former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) zonal director Sameer Wankhede to question him in Aryan Khan drug bust case, his petition in Delhi High Court has recently claimed that he had kept his seniors in loop about the arrest of Shah Rukh Khans son.

Wankhedes petition, accessed by CNN-News18, was submitted in the Delhi High Court on Wednesday to file a cross FIR against a senior NCB officer.

The court has for now, provided interim protection to Wankhede, and has asked him to move Bombay High Court because the case pertains to its jurisdiction. This protection is till May 22.

In his petition, Wankhede has attached WhatsApp chats with his seniors, that allegedly show that they all appreciated him and were kept in the loop about the arrest of Khan.

Also Read | Sameer Wankhede Case: KP Gosavi Conspired to Extort Rs 25 Crore from Aryan Khan, Says CBI FIR

In fact, one of the chats shows the immediate boss of Wankhede allegedly told him to ensure that the senior public prosecutor presses for Aryans remand, and that these were the instructions from the DG office.

Wankhede says that he also got additional support for the probe, and was given two teams from Indore and Ahmedabad for this.

We intend to approach the court soon. Process for the same is on, it is not likely to happen today, a source told us.

As of now, on the basis of the interim protection, Wankhede did not appear before the CBI.

Read more | Drug Case Accused Alleges Sameer Wankhedes Team Stole His Rs 30-lakh Rolex Watch During Probe

A top source from CBI had on Wednesday night mentioned that the team investigating this case had left from Delhi to Mumbai to piece together evidences in this case.

What are the allegations against Wankhede?

It has been alleged that Wankhede along with his officers VV Singh and Ashish Ranjan and two more civilians, who acted as punchas in this case, tried to extort extort Rs 25 crore from Aryan Khans family.

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The deal was then finalised at Rs 18 crores and the punchas then took Rs 50 lakhs as bribe, but returned a part of the token amount.
Four persons were killed and 14 others received injuries when a speeding private bus collided head-on with a truck near Maksi town in Madhya Pradeshs Shajapur district on Thursday morning, a police official said.

The accident took place at around 5 am when the victims were on their way to Ahmedabad from Jalaun district in Uttar Pradesh to attend a marriage function, Maksi police station in-charge Gopal Singh Chouhan said.

The bus collided with a truck near Donta village in Shajapur, he said.

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Four persons were killed in the incident. The deceased included two women and a minor, the official said.

The injured persons were rushed to Ujjain for treatment, he added.
A passenger experienced a panic attack on board Air Indias Newark-Mumbai flight on Wednesday. Hours after the flight took off from Newark, the senior citizen, who was travelling business class with his wife, started shouting and yelling.

Passengers said the man abused the crew for several hours and could only be calmed down after doctors sedated him.

One of the passengers said the man was asking the crew to open the door and let him out. After failed attempts by crew members and co-passengers to pacify him for several hours, two doctors on board the flight came to his rescue and calmed him down by administering sedatives, Times of India reported.

Pravin Tonsekar, a co-passenger on board the flight said the man was verbally abusive and tried to strangle" his wife. He said the man was about 6 foot tall and appeared physically fit.

He wanted to disembark. He was screaming, telling the crew to open the door and let him out. He would scream, `stop, open the door and then at another time hurl abuse and expletives at the crew, Tonsekar told TOI.

The flight landed in Mumbai on Thursday afternoon.

In another incident related to Air India, several passengers on board the Delhi-Sydney flight on Tuesday sustained injuries due to severe turbulence mid-air, according to an ANI report.

The injured passengers received medical assistance on arrival at the Sydney airport. No passenger was admitted to the hospital.

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According to DGCA sources, seven passengers reported minor sprain after the turbulence. Air India cabin crew provided first aid to the injured passengers with assistance from a doctor and nurse travelling on the flight.

Air Indias flight AI302 of 16th May 2023, operating from Delhi to Sydney encountered turbulence mid-air leading to discomfort to the passengers on board. The flight landed safely in Sydney and three passengers availed of medical assistance on arrival, none of whom required hospitalization. This onboard incident has been reported to the relevant authorities as a standard practice," said an Air India Spokesperson
American pharma giant Pfizer has informed chemists across India to suspend the sale of four of its medicines after noting issues in their manufacturing process. On May 16, the company requested its stockists, distributors and hospitals to temporarily suspend the sale and distribution of Magnex, Zosyn, Magnamycin injections and Magnex Forte. These drugs are administered to patients suffering from severe illness or those admitted to intensive care units.

According to the company, these products  Magnex, Zosyn, and Magnamycin injections  are manufactured by Astral Steritech. Magnex Forte is an extension of the brand Magnex with slight changes in dosage. The medicines are used in the treatment of bacterial infections such as respiratory tract, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometritis, stomach infections, skin infections, pneumonia and severe uterine infections.

Pfizer places the utmost emphasis on patient safety and product quality at every step in the manufacturing and supply chain process, a company spokesperson told News18.

Out of an abundance of caution, and following a request by our local contract manufacturer, Pfizer has currently placed a voluntary stop on further sale and use of its products Magnex, Magnamycin and Zosyn in India as a result of certain technical issues brought to our attention by the contract manufacturing site in India, the spokesperson said. The matter is being investigated by the manufacturer, and Pfizer will take further action if so required.

Stop sale of all units in possession

Pfizers letter, written by quality analyst Sangeeta Nagarmath and sent to stockists, suppliers and hospitals across India, said, the manufacturer of the said products has brought to our attention on certain deviations observed at their manufacturing facility, where the said products were manufactured.

While the company said it was currently investigating the matter, Astral Steritech has asked Pfizer that as an abundant precautionary measure and as per best practices, the sale, distribution or supply of these products should be temporarily suspended.

In the meantime, you are requested not to undertake any further sale, distribution or use of the said products for all the SKUs in your possession, with immediate effect, till further notice from Pfizer, the letter mentions in bold.

Chemists lobby directs compliance

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While the company said it was taking all reasonable efforts to resolve the matter at the earliest, the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) also informed over 12 lakh chemists to stop the sale of these products.

The AIOCD is a lobby of 12.40 lakh offline pharmacists across India. In light of these observations, it is imperative that you immediately inform all trade and hospital stakeholders in your respective states and districts to temporarily suspend the sale, distribution, supply, and not use the aforementioned products till further notice, it said, adding that members should ensure strict compliance with this directive.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the newly-constructed Parliament building on May 28.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla met Modi on Thursday and extended an invitation to inaugurate the new building, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said.

The new Parliament building can comfortably seat 888 members in the Lok Sabha chamber and 300 in the Rajya Sabha chamber, it said.

In case of a joint sitting of both the Houses, a total of 1,280 members can be accommodated in the Lok Sabha chamber.

The prime minister had laid the foundation stone of the new parliament building on December 10, 2020.

The new building has been built in record time with quality construction, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said.

The present Parliament building was completed in 1927, and is now 96 years old.

Over the years, the old building was found to be inadequate for present day requirements.

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha had passed resolutions urging the government to construct a new building for Parliament. The new building, constructed by Tata Projects Ltd, will have a grand constitution hall to showcase Indias democratic heritage, a lounge for MPs, a library, multiple committee rooms, dining areas and ample parking space.

The triangular-shaped four-storey building has a built-up area of 64,500 square metres. The building has three main gates  Gyan Dwar, Shakti Dwar, and Karma Dwar.

It will have separate entrances for VIPs, MPs, and visitors.

The Congress took a swipe at the prime minister over the new Parliament building, calling it a personal vanity project".

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Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on Twitter a picture of Modi while inspecting the construction of the building and said, The sole architect, designer and worker for the new Parliament building, which he will inaugurate on May 28th." The picture tells it all - personal vanity project," Ramesh tweeted along with the picture.

The existing building served as independent Indias first Parliament and witnessed the adoption of the Constitution. Originally called the Council House, the building housed the Imperial Legislative Council. The Parliament building witnessed the addition of two floors in 1956 to address the demand for more space. In 2006, the Parliament Museum was added to showcase the 2,500 years of rich democratic heritage of India. Officials said the present building was never designed to accommodate a bicameral legislature and the seating arrangements were cramped and cumbersome, with no desks beyond the second row. The Central Hall has seating capacity only for 440 people and the need for more space was acutely felt during joint sittings of both the houses.
Twenty-five years ago, President Bill Clinton signed the International Religious Freedom Act into law. That gave the United States a range of new tools to give voice to the persecuted, to empower advocates, to promote religious freedom around the world, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the release of the 2022 International Religious Freedom Report.

The report provides a fact-based, comprehensive view of the state of religious freedom in nearly 200 countries and territories around the world, explained Secretary Blinken:



This report assesses the actions of countries that are our partners and those with whom we have disagreements, evaluating all by the same standards. Its aim is to highlight areas where freedom of religion or belief is being repressed, to promote accountability, and ultimately drive progress toward a world where freedom of religion or belief is a reality for everyone everywhere.

Over the past year there has been progress on expanding religious freedom. Belgium formally recognized its Buddhist minority. Lawmakers in Brazil codified religious freedom guarantees for Afro-Brazilians. Canada and the European Union both created offices to combat Islamophobia. And in the Central African Republic, the special criminal court continues to prosecute cases of religious-based violence and other human rights violations.

But the report also documents the rise of very troubling trends, said Secretary Blinken:

Governments in many parts of the world continue to target religious minorities using a host of methods, including torture, beatings, unlawful surveillance, and so-called re-education camps. They also continued to engage in other forms of discrimination on the basis of faith or lack of faith, like excluding religious minorities from certain professions or forcing them to work during times of religious observance.

Human rights defenders are sounding the alarm on attacks on the Catholic Church by the Ortega-Murillo regime in Nicaragua, noted Secretary Blinken:

One of those unjustly detained was Rolando Alvarez, a bishop who criticized the regimes crackdown on civil and religious liberties and was promptly labeled a traitor to the homeland and sentenced to 26 years in jail.

People across Iran continue peaceful protests demanding their human rights, including freedom of religion. And in Burma the military regime continues to repress religious minorities.

The United States will continue to stand with and support all those who bravely advocate for religious freedom.
With a tour of three countries, over forty engagements and 3 multilateral summits, Prime Minister Narendra Modis calendar for the month of May is booked with back-to-back foreign commitments.

The prime minister is set to undertake a six-day visit in which he will travel to Japan, then Papua New Guinea, and finally to Australia this month.

In this foreign tour, he is set to attend three multilateral summits including Group of Seven (G7), Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) and Quad.

PM Modi will be working round-the-clock and will interact with over two dozen world leaders in the summits, as well as through one-on-one bilateral meetings.

He is also scheduled to meet business leaders, important personalities, scholars, and members of Indian diaspora on his trip.

First destination: Japan

The trips first destination will be the G7 summit in Japans Hiroshima, and the prime minister will be there from May 19 to 21.

He will likely voice his opinions on global challenges including food, fertiliser and energy security.

G7: Japan will be hosting the G7 summit in its capacity as the current chair and PM Modi has been invited for it by Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

The broad agenda of the G7 summit will focus on nuclear disarmament, economic resilience, economic security, regional issues, climate change, energy security, food and health, news agency PTI said.

Modi will also inaugurate a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing.

Kwatra added that Indias regular participation at the G7 summits points to increasing recognition that it should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges including those of peace, security and development.

QUAD: The Quad summit, which was originally scheduled to be held in Sydney, will now take place in Hiroshima. This is as US President Joe Biden postponed his visit to Australia to focus on crucial debt-ceiling talks in Washington.

Second leg: Papua New Guinea

From Hiroshima, the prime minister will travel to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea where he will host the third summit of FIPIC on May 22, jointly with Prime Minister James Marape.

Final leg: Australia

In the third and final leg of the trip, PM Modi will visit Australia. Here, he is set to hold talks with his counterpart Anthony Albanese and also schedule to address members of the Indian community at an event on May 23.

With agency inputs
Launching the 16th Vande Bharat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Thursday (May 18) launch the express train between Odishas Puri and West Bengals Howrah. He will also lay the foundation stone of the redevelopment project of Puri and Cuttack railway stations via video conferencing.

Apart from these, PM Modi will also dedicate railway projects worth more than Rs 8,000 crore to the country. According to reports, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav will also be present in the program.

Schedule of the Vande Bharat Launch

A railway official said that the Howrah-Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will be flagged off virtually from Puri around 1 pm on Thursday. The express train will cover a distance of 500 km between Howrah and Puri in about six and a half hours.

People from West Bengal will now be able to reach Puri to worship Lord Jagannath easily with the help of the new Vande Bharat Express train.

This is the second Vande Bharat Express to be received by West Bengal after the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express.

With Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannath, being a very popular destination for tourists from Bengal and particularly Kolkata and its surroundings as both a pilgrimage and a beach resort town, the semi-high speed train is likely to be an instant hit among travellers, according to travel agents.

Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Schedule

 The new Vande Bharat Express, numbered 22895, will depart from Howrah at 6.10 am and reach Puri at 12.35 pm.

 On the opposite route, the train will be numbered 22896 and depart from Puri at 1.50 pm. It will reach Howrah at 8.30 pm.

 It will operate six days a week and will not be in transit on Thursdays.

 The seven halt stations between Howrah and Puri will be Kharagpur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur Keonjhar Road, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Khurda Road.

Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Ticket Price

The trains fare hasnt officially been announced yet. However, looking at the fares of other trains with similarly long journeys, passengers can expect the cost to be somewhere between Rs 1,590 and Rs 2,815.

The normal chair car, thus, could cost Rs 1,590, the executive class Rs 2,815 per seat. The catering charges for each would be Rs 308 and Rs 369, respectively.

More Vande Bharat Trains for India

Soon, Indians will be able to travel from Mumbai to Goa, Ranchi to Patna and Guwahati to New Jalpaiguri in just six hours, while Delhi to Dehradun will be mere four hours away as the Narendra Modi government plans to launch Vande Bharat express trains on these routes.

ALSO READ | Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat All Set for Launch; Mumbai-Goa, Guwahati, Dehradun Trains Next in Line

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So far the 16-coach semi-high-speed trains are operational on the routes of Gujarat, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Thursday slammed the privatisation policy of the Narendra Modi government and accused it auctioning" democracy, freedom of speech, social harmony and the rule of law.

If this wasnt enough, the government was also planning to privatise some public sector banks, claimed an editorial in Saamana, the mouthpiece of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.

Referring to reports in a section of the media about a committee being set up to review the privatisation of banks, the Marathi Daily said even if the entire issue is still in process, it is confirmed" that some banks will be privatised.

"It is being said that some government companies and public sector undertakings are suffering losses and have become a white elephant for the government. There is some truth in these claims. But, the Modi government hasnt been transparent in its privatisation moves," the Marathi daily claimed.

Whatever was earned in the last seven decades was being privatised under the garb of navsanjivani", it further claimed.

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The face of the Modi government is dangerous as it is auctioning democracy, freedom of speech, social harmony, rule of law and now banks will be added," the editorial alleged.

The Centre in December last year said it will take a view on the privatisation of public sector banks after consultation with the departments and regulators concerned.
A Right to Information (RTI) query has revealed that womens complaints related to crime has increased by 140% in the last five years. Data by the Maharashtra State Commission for Women (MSCW) shows pending action on 6,659 complaints in 2017-18, which increased to 16,012 in 2022-23.

The information also discloses a changing pattern in the nature of crimes against women. There has been a 139% increase in workplace harassment of women, with 396 cases in 2017-18 rising to 950 cases in 2022-23. However, there is a positive note as no dowry death complaints have been recorded in the last four years, whereas 35 such complaints were pending in 2017-18.

The data further highlights a substantial increase of 217% in complaints related to social atrocities and rape. The number of pending cases for action in 2017-18 was 1,405, whereas it had more than tripled to 4,462 in 2022-23.

The commission gave no response to the query of Mumbai-based RTI activist Jeetendra Ghadge regarding action against celebrities and public figures who have been given notice by the MSCW for using derogative remarks against women on public platforms or social media.

According to Ghadge from The Young Whistleblowers Foundation, The info clearly indicates a change in the pattern of crimes against women. However, the Commission withheld info regarding the number of cases in which women have received justice, assistance, or help. It is essential that the women commission focuses on providing justice to the complainants rather than indulging in petty politics as the number of complaints is piling up.

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The increasing number of complaints is a matter of concern and requires the government to take effective measures to curb such crimes against women.

The women commission needs to work in collaboration with law enforcement agencies to ensure swift action and justice for the victims of these crimes.
Cannes 2023: Bollywood actress Sara Ali Khan recently went to the esteemed Cannes Film Festival 2023 and expressed her pride at being an Indian on such a large international stage. She asserted that films and art have the capacity to cross barriers.

The actress had previously worn two outfits that were praised by the fashion police, but it was her third look that captured the Internets attention. At the French festival, she wore a white Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla sari. Some fans even made the comparison that the star reminded them of her grandmother, iconic performer Sharmila Tagore, who is renowned for her regal appearances in Indian attire.

A few stray hairs fell to either side of Saras face from her bun of pulled-back hair. She added a gorgeous black and white neckpiece and a pair of white pearl earrings to complete her look. Netizens found a similar looking image of Saras Nani ma, Sharmila Tagore and drew resemblance between the two images.

Sharing one such post on her Instagram story, Khan wrote, Epitome of Beauty and Grace- my lovely Badi Amma. Even the suggestion of this resemblance is beyond flattering .

Sara Ali Khan said during her speech at the India Pavilion, We should be proud and even more vocal of the culture that we have and that we should be able to bring to the rest of the world. I think cinema and art transcends language, regions and nationalities. I think we should come together and while we are here at a global stage representing our country, we should continue to not forget who we are so that we can remain organic in the content that we create because I think thats exactly what resonates with the rest of the world.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sara Ali Khan (@saraalikhan95)

Sara Ali Khan drew attention at both Cannes and the party she attended. She walked the red carpet with celebrities like Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, Uma Thurman, and Elle Fanning before the 2023 Cannes opening film, Jeanne du Barry," starring Johnny Depp.

On the work front, the actress is occupied with the promotions of her upcoming romantic comedy Zara Hatke Zara Bach Ke in collaboration with Vicky Kaushal. Apart from that, she is involved in the films Ae Watan Mere Watan, an untitled project directed by Jagan Shakti, and Homi Adjanias Murder Mubarak
Director Feroz Abbas Khans magnum opus Mughal-e-Azam: The Musical will travel to 13 cities across North America. Iconic venues like New Yorks legendary Lincoln Centre for the performing Arts will stage the show which is sure to run into a full house. Touted as Indias most expensive theatre production, the show will kick off on 26th of this month in Atlanta. We spoke to the director Feroz Abbas Khan and Deepesh Salgia, Creative and Strategic Vision for Mughal-e-Azam regarding the same.

Keeping Mughal-e-Azam relevant for the audience has been a continuous process at Shapoorji Pallonji," says Salgia, adding: In 2004, we released the film in cinema halls the world over after undertaking the restoration and full colorization. We later released the book version of the film, made multiple documentaries on its making, etc."

Salgia looks back at this collaboration with great fondness. The biggest achievement of partnership has been that it has brought the missing element to Indian theatre  Scale. The term magnum opus will no more be the monopoly of cinema. With Mughal-e-Azam knocking on the doors on Broadway, we see this partnership as well as Indian theatre entering a new phase," he says.

INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR FEROZ ABBAS KHAN
Zayed Khan rose to overnight stardom after starring in the 2004 film Main Hoon Na. His boyish charm, long hair, and chiselled physique in the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer were a hit among the masses, especially his female fans. Post the success of Main Hoon Na, he continued to feature in a string of Bollywood films. But, none of his films created much of an impact in the theatres. His failure to strike a chord with the audience made him move away from the limelight. Now the 42-year-old is ready to make a comeback into the film industry with an untitled film alongside his father Sanjay Khan.

In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Zayed opened up about one of his lowest phases in life. He revealed that after facing umpteen rejections, he stopped his self-care routine. Sometime later, when he was offered a role in his upcoming film, Zayed said that he looked like a baingan (brinjal).

Elaborating on the topic, Zayed shared that almost a year and a half earlier, he was at his lowest point in life, in terms of career. The actor was so disappointed in not getting any work that he stopped taking care of himself. I have heard so many no from people, that I almost forgot I had ever been a star, said Zayed.

Thats when one of his friends named Aseem came to meet him like a boon. He expressed his surprise to Zayed asking him why he was not getting any film offers, despite being handsome. Zayed said that he found it better not to inform his friend that he already visited several studios for auditions, but in vain. His charm failed to work out. Leaving Zayed stunned, Aseem offered the actor a film. I was confused, I was looking like a baingan, literally very lopsided, confessed the actor.

Over six years, Zayed and Aseem penned the script for the film together. It will be released on the OTT platform very soon. Zayed, who will be sharing the screen space with his father, had earlier worked in the 1990 television show The Sword of Tipu Sultan, directed by his father. Other details of Zayeds soon-to-release film are under wraps.
Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif are the ultimate power couple of Bollywood. The affable and endearing actor duo have been making headlines ever since they tied the knots in December 2021. While fans love them for their breathtaking chemistry in real life, many of them are also eager to see the two in a film together. And Vicky Kaushal might just have given a hint of a possible collaboration in future.

On Thursday, a paparazzo handle Instant Bollywood shared a video in which Vicky Kaushal was seen exiting a venue with a hustling and bustling crowd. Meanwhile, a journo asked him, We wanted you and Katrina to see you together in a film. Is there any chance for the same?" To this, Vicky Kaushal replied, I really hope that day comes soon yaar. You direct and produce the film. But seriously I hope it happens soon. When the right project comes home, itll definitely happen."

Excited fans expressed their feelings in the comment section. One of them wrote, Awesomeness!" Another one commented, Humbhi dekhna chahte hai!" Someone else said, Yes please!" Others spammed fire and heart emojis to state their feelings.

Vicky turned 35 recently on May 16. The actor began his birthday celebrations early, with a cake arranged for him on May 15, at the trailer launch of his upcoming film Zara Hatke Zara Bachke. The actor was seen cutting the cake with his co-star Sara Ali Khan and other co-stars from the film.

Speaking about the film, Zara Hatke Zara Bachke is produced by Dinesh Vijans Maddock Studios and directed by Laxman Utekar. The film is set in Indore, with Vicky playing the role of Kapil and Sara essaying the character of Soumya. The small-town story starts with the couple head-over-heels for each other. However, life takes a turn a few years later, with the couple constantly fighting. They eventually file for a divorce but there seems to be a catch. The trailer also revealed that Zara Hatke Zara Bachke will be bringing back Tum Kya Jano Mohabbat Kya Hai from Rishi Kapoors Hum Kisise Kum Naheen.
Rajeev Sen and Charu Asopa parted ways last year and have been living separately ever since. Their daughter, Ziana also stays with Charu. However, Rajeev keeps visiting her. Recently, Sushmita Sens brother got candid about his current relationship with Charu and shared that he wants to be her best friend. Rajeev also mentioned that he would be very happy to visit Charu and his daughter at their new residence.

If Charu invites me I would certainly go. I feel I can be her best friend apart from being a father to my daughter Ziana, the actor told ETimes.

Charu Asopa and Rajeev Sen tied the knot in June 2019 and welcomed their first child, a baby girl in 2021. However, in June 2022, Charu sent a notice to Rajeev seeking to part ways mutually. Following this, Rajeev also replied to her notice with another notice that accused her of hiding her first marriage. The two leveled several allegations against each other before they decided to reunite in September 2022 for their daughter. However, in just a few months, the two parted ways again and headed for divorce.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rajeev Sen (@rajeevsen9)

Earlier this year, Charu and Rajeev were seen dancing together at a wedding. The video of their dance went viral on social media and left everyone confused. Later in an interview, Charu clarified that she wants to maintain a cordial relationship with her estranged husband so that things do not get difficult for their daughter Ziana when she grows up. When Ziana grows up, she shouldnt feel like shes in a tight spot because her parents dont talk to each other. I dont want to make things difficult for her. Sometimes, things get difficult for me, but main apni beti ke liye itna toh kar hi sakti hun, the former Mere Angne Mein actress told Hindustan Times.
Legendary superstar Rajinikanth has dominated the South film industry for five decades now, and continues to win hearts with his on-screen presence and aura. However, there are occasional rumours circulating about his retirement from acting. Once again, rumours are buzzing that his upcoming 171st project will mark his final film. The last film is reportedly said to be a collaboration between Rajinikanth and filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj.

In a new interview, renowned Tamil filmmaker and actor Mysskin, who has a role in Lokesh Kanagarajs upcoming project, recently disclosed some details about Rajinikanths highly anticipated 171st film.

Mysskin revealed that Rajinikanth will join forces with the talented director Lokesh Kanagaraj for this milestone project. Interestingly, Mysskin also hinted that Thalaivar171 might serve as the grand finale to Rajinikanths illustrious career, which has spanned over five extraordinary decades. Reportedly, Rajinikanth himself approached Lokesh Kanagaraj to helm his final film. An official confirmation on the same is awaited.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Rajinikanth is currently shooting for his daughter Aishwaryaas directorial film Lal Salaam. The actor has been travelling back and forth to Mumbai for he films shoot. Lyca Productions is the banner thats bankrolling the film, which will see the Superstar in an extended cameo as Moideen Bhai.

Apart from that, the superstar has wrapped up shooting for his upcoming film Jailer. Helmed by Nelson Dilipkumar, the film also features Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar, and Jackie Shroff in key roles. It also stars Ramya Krishnan, Yogi Babu, Vasanth Ravi, Vinayakan, and others in supporting roles. The film is slated to release during Ganesh Chaturthi this year. Rajinikanth also has a film with Jai Bhim fame director TJ Gnanavel.
During the recent U.S.-Kenya Strategic Dialogue, Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised Kenya for being a security leader throughout the region and for its commitment to resolving the current crisis in Sudan. The United States has joined with Kenya and other international partners to broker a lasting peace in Sudan and a return to a civilian-led government.

Beyond peace and security, Kenya and the United States are partnering on a wide range of issues, including public health. Indeed, it is an area in which Kenya is demonstrating its potential to be a regional and global leader, said Secretary Blinken:

Kenya remains at the forefront of the global HIV response. Today thats nearly reached its 95-95-95 targets: diagnose 95 percent of all HIVpositive individuals, provide anti-retroviral therapy for 95 percent of those diagnosed, and achieve viral suppression for 95 percent of those treated. That is a tremendous milestone that is saving countless lives, and were proud to have supported this effort over two decades with PEPFAR as its been operating in Kenya. Now, were building on that success by moving to a Kenya-owned, Kenya-driven, and Kenya-funded framework that will position the country to achieve sustained HIV epidemic control by 2025.

Food security continues to be a concern for many African nations. Thats why the United States is investing in sustainable, long-term African food production. That includes our work, with the [African Union] and the UN, to invest in nutritious, climate-resilient crops and develop climate-smart agriculture, said Secretary Blinken. And it includes mobilizing the private sector in that effort.

[Kenyan] President Ruto recently announced 14 investments valued at over $150 million by private firms in Kenyas agro-industrial productivity. In total, these new partnerships will create over 20,000 Kenyan jobs, boost incomes by  for more than 1 million smallholder farmers, and increase sales and exports by over $130 million  while, of course, dramatically increasing local crop production and reducing malnutrition, he said.

Secretary Blinken expressed support for U.S. investment in Kenya  particularly in key sectors like information and communications technologies, agriculture, and renewable energy. These will help Kenya achieve its goal of reaching upper-middle income status by 2030.

The U.S. and Kenya will continue to strengthen their relationship through the Strategic Partnership, which is grounded in mutual cooperation, respect, and a common vision for sustainable development.
SS Rajamouli, the renowned filmmaker, garnered international acclaim with the film RRR, featuring Ram Charan and NTR Jr., which received widespread recognition and numerous accolades globally. Excitement among fans reached new heights when it was confirmed that Mahesh Babu would be joining forces with SS Rajamouli for his next project. Adding to it, screenwriter KV Vijayendra Prasad in a chat with a news portal recently revealed the anticipated start of production for the film. The yet-untitled movie will reportedly be a jungle adventure project and will be shot across many countries.

When questioned about the timeline, KV Vijayendra Prasad told Pinkvilla that Mahesh Babu and SS Rajamouli will start shooting for the film at the end of this year or the beginning of the next." Once Mahesh Babu wraps up his ongoing commitments, both the actor and the filmmaker will swiftly begin workshops and script readings for their collaborative venture. Additionally, the process of selecting the female lead is currently underway, and an announcement regarding the final choice will be made in the near future. The updates have further heightened the anticipation surrounding this highly anticipated project.

Mahesh Babu is presently occupied with the production of his movie with Pooja Hedge, tentatively named SSMB28. However, amidst his busy schedule, the actor took some time for himself and visited Spain. He even shared a few glimpses of his visit on Instagram, emphasizing the importance of taking a break and recharging. His caption, Pause and reset!", reflected his intention to find rejuvenation in the midst of his hectic filming commitments.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mahesh Babu (@urstrulymahesh)

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mahesh Babu (@urstrulymahesh)

During a previous interview with Pinkvilla, Mahesh Babu confirmed his participation in SS Rajamoulis project while keeping most details under wraps. Expressing his enthusiasm, he shared, Its too early to speak about the film, but its a dream come true for me. SS Rajamouli and I have been trying to work together for a long time, and its finally happening. I am really excited about the film." This collaboration between Mahesh Babu and SS Rajamouli has been highly anticipated, and the actors excitement reflects the significance of this milestone in his career. The upcoming movie, yet to be titled, will be released in Telugu and Hindi.
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the West Bengal governments May 8 order banning screening of film The Kerala Story. This means theatres in West Bengal can now screen the film.

The apex court also asked the Tamil Nadu government to ensure the safety of moviegoers after theatre owners decided to stop screening the film due to security concerns.

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, We intend to stay the order of the state of West Bengal. With respect to Tamil Nadu, we will direct them to not directly or indirectly ban it.

The bench, headed by the CJI and also comprising Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, also directed the producer to put a disclaimer in the movie by 5 pm on May 20 on the claim that 32,000 Hindu and Christian women were converted to Islam.

According to the apex court, the disclaimer should say that there is no authenticated data to back up the suggestion on figure of conversion and the film represents the fictionalised version.

The bench said it would like to watch the movie before proceeding to decide the pleas challenging the grant of CBFC certification. It said the petitions will be heard in the second week of July.

SC Asks Tamil Nadu to Provide Security to Moviegoers

The top court also took note of submissions that there was no ban on the film in Tamil Nadu and asked the state government to ensure the safety and security of moviegoers.

During the hearing, it said that statutory provisions cannot be used to put a premium on public intolerance.

The bench said it is the duty of the state government to maintain law and order as the film has been granted certification by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

Bad films bomb at the box office, the bench said.

The legal provision cannot be used to put a premium on public intolerance. Otherwise, all films will find themselves in this spot, the bench, also comprising justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, said during the hearing.

Directed by Sudipto Sen, The Kerala Story, a movie about Hindu women from Kerala who were converted to Islam and trafficked to ISIS and other Islamic war zones in 2018-2019, stirred a political storm. The opposition accused the filmmakers of promoting BJP propaganda in the film.

On May 8, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee ordered an immediate ban on the screening of The Kerala Story in the state to avoid any incident of hatred and violence".

The movie, on the other hand, was declared tax-free in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh last week. UP CM Yogi Adityanath announced on Twitter last Tuesday that The Kerala Story was given tax-free status in the state.

Adityanaths Uttarakhand counterpart, Pushkar Singh Dhami followed suit shortly after, while Madhya Pradesh was the first state to declare The Kerala Story tax-free.

The move came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned the controversial movie in his speech during a rally in Karnataka and said the film has exposed how terrorism is corroding Kerala.

(with PTI inputs)
Tamil actress Lubna Amir has filed a complaint at the Chennai Police Commissioners office, alleging that her ex-boyfriend, Masiullah Khan, who was previously arrested after her complaint and later released on bail, is now threatening her to withdraw her previous appeal. On the other hand, Masiullah Khan has also filed a series of complaints against Lubna Amir accusing her of making money by publishing pornographic videos on Indias forbidden websites.

The actress is well-known for her lead role in the film Kekkaran Meikkaran and her performances in several web series. She started her modelling career at a very young age. Lubna Amir, in her previous complaint, mentioned that she had joined a matrimonial app and met Masiullah Khan, an engineering graduate and IT employee from Chennais Vyasarpadi. Soon after, they started dating but when the actress realised that Masiullah was already married, she called it quits.

After their break up, she filed a complaint with the Tiruvallikkeni Womens Police Station, alleging that Masiullah Khan was blackmailing her with intimate images which they shot during their relationship. He was arrested on this basis but eventually released on bail.

Lubna has now filed a second complaint with the Chennai Police Commissioners Office, alleging that Masiullah Khan and his wife are threatening her to withdraw her previous complaint.

Masiullah Khan, on the other hand, has filed several complaints against Lubna at police stations in Peravallur, Vellore, and Vaniyampadi. He said that he was separated from his first wife in 2020 owing to conflicts and was in the process of getting a divorce. During this, he met Lubna on a matrimonial website and planned to marry her. However, he later discovered that she was involved in pornography. He alleges her involvement in earning money by publishing porn videos on websites which are illegal in India.

The former lover of the Tamil actress emphasised that this finding was the catalyst for their breakup, and he accused Lubna of squandering a large portion of his money during their relationship. To uncover the truth in this complex case, the police are currently investigating both sides of the tale.
When one says Spider-Man in India, there are two things that come to mind  the Marvel superhero and the viral song, Spider-Man, Spider-Man, Tune Churaya Mere Dil Ka Chain. The Bhojpuri song, a spoof of the superhero, dropped years ago and remains popular even today. So, the first chance News18 got, we asked the team at Sony Pictures India if they would ever consider featuring the song in the Indian dubbed versions of Spider-Man. Their answer was surprising.

Answering our question at the press conference of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verses Hindi and Punjabi trailer launch, Shony Panjikaran - General Manager and Head of Sony Pictures Releasing International (SPRI) India, said, To be honest, weve thought about it a lot of times over the past few years. But how do you create a spoof of a spoof? I think that is the million dollar question (laughs)."

However, sharing his personal opinion, Shony said that the desi Spider-Man team could approach the song like Spider-Man appraoched the viral Spider-Man Pointing Meme. The first trailer of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse revealed that they have given a nod to the viral meme in the mvoie. Referring to it as an example, Shony said, Who knows, maybe down the future, we have a Pavitr Prabhakar and we could have somebody associated with Pavitr Prabhakar and there could be an ode to the spoof of song. Just wait and watch." It would be hilarious to watch it happen!

Meanwhile, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is all set to release in 10 languages in India. The trailers have so far revealed that Gwen Stacy offers Miles a way out of his boring world. They travel through the multiverse and Gwen introduces him to the elite group which comprises the best Spider-people. Fascinated at first, Miles slowly learns that he has to choose between saving one person and saving the collapsing universes. But he believes he can do both. This puts him in a difficult spot and gets on the wrong side of the elite group. Will he be able to prove his point? Well only find out on June 1, 2023.

Besides giving us a glimpse of the film, the trailer also featured nods to Tom Hollands Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Doctor Strange (played by Benedict Cumberbatch). The trailer also features the Indian Spider-Man, Pavitr Prabhakar.
I am against the culture of banning, be it films, books, exhibitions or anything else, unless the reasons are absolutely and verifiably compelling. This is not because I approve of what is being banned. Nor do I believe that every creation that claims to be authentic is anywhere near the truth. I am quite aware that very often, mass forms of communication are used for false propaganda, and that creativity is a facade for hidden agendas, mostly political.

However, I believe that banning is counterproductive. It defeats the very purpose for which it is imposed because, in todays age of social media and cyber accessibility, nothing can be prevented from being seen. When you ban a film, for instance, you attract more attention to it, and more people want to watch it, and they can. The recent decision of the government to block the BBC documentary on Gujarat proves this point. Much fewer people would have watched it had it not been clumsily blocked. Besides, there is something undemocratic in allowing the state to decide what people should watch or read. It undermines, even insults, the innate wisdom of the common person, who usually is quite adept in knowing the difference between truth and falsehood, agenda and fact, propaganda and reality.

The above comments are, as you must have guessed, in the context of the controversy surrounding Sudipto Sens film The Kerala Story. The West Bengal government has banned it. The filmmakers have appealed against the ban in the Supreme Court, and the verdict is awaited. Other states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu have opposed it. On the other hand, the state governments of UP, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have made it tax-free. We now have a situation where some parts of India dont want people to see the film, while others want people to see it, and both these diametrically opposite decisions are made by elected representatives of the people. If this ludicrous situation does not make a film a hit, I dont know what does!

Obviously, the film serves the political purposes of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), whose state governments have made it tax-free. The BJP, its critics say, derives its political strength from Hindu consolidation, and therefore, wants to highlight the threat posed by Muslims in general and radical Islam in particular. Their purpose is best served if more people (read Hindus) watch the film. Those opposed to the film, apprehend that it is propagandist, Islamophobic, and inaccurate, and can cause avoidable social hatred and divisiveness.

The films intention is to highlight the dangers of radical Islam, by focusing on how Hindu girls become victims of love jihad, convert to Islam, and join the dreaded ISIS. But in conveying this message, does the film cross the line between understandable messaging and deliberate hate-mongering? Having watched the film, I believe it does. There is an extremist fringe in every religion, which needs to be exposed and dealt with firmly. But when a film, whether deliberately or otherwise, has the effect of demonising an entire community, it is likely to spread hatred, and reinforce a generic stereotype which is far from the truth.

It is one thing to put the torchlight on some cases of radicalisation, and quite another to exaggerate the figure to create fear that this has become a widespread or pervasive menace. One of our domestic staff told my wife that her relatives had warned her to be especially careful about her daughters since young Muslim men everywhere are trying to convert them to Islam through love jihad to join the ISIS. The reality is that India, with the third largest number of Muslims in the world, has a minuscule number of people who have actually joined ISIS. Experts from the Observer Research Foundation note that less than 200 people from India had joined ISIS and that Kerala, having over 9 million Muslims, accounted for only a quarter of these.

The quality of the film also leaves much to be desired. Most critics have decisively panned the film, equating it with a lengthy WhatsApp forward, manufactured by those who see a fanatic in every Muslim. Others have equated it with inept propaganda, that is neither watchable nor convincing. The problem is that generalising an entire narrative from a few stray incidents has the potential of misleading people.

Suppose, for instance, an entire narrative was made about Hindus based on the hatred spewed at the so-called Dharma Sansad at Haridwar in December 2021, would it not be motivated propaganda? But, for all its faults, I am still against the banning of the film, as I am against making it tax-free. People should have the right to see it, if they wish to, on a level playing field and come to their own opinion. That is why I was against the banning of Salman Rushdies Midnights Children, and all such similar bans in the past. My views concur exactly with the brave judgement delivered by Justice Sanjay Krishna Kaul of the Supreme Court in 2016 on behalf of a five-judge bench. The case was about banning the book, Mathorubhagan by celebrated Tamil writer Perumal Murugan (translated into English as One Part Woman). There were calls by some zealots to ban the film, and Justice Kaul put a decisive lid on them. He began his judgement by quoting the famous words of Voltaire in defence of free speech: I may not agree with what you say, but will defend to death your right to say it, and concluded with the ringing words, The choice to read is with the reader. If you do not like a book, throw it awayYet, the right to write is unhindered.

The same logic applies to The Kerala Story. But we should never doubt the wisdom of the people of India to know the difference between truth and propaganda. The BJP used this film as part of its campaign in the recent elections in Karnataka. The results clearly show how much impact this had.

The author is a former diplomat, an author and a politician. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
BJP leader Arjun Ram Meghwal was on Thursday appointed as the new Union law minister after Kiren Rijiju was moved to Earth Sciences Ministry. Rijiju was shunted out days after criticising the collegium system to appoint judges.

A statement from Rashtrapati said: The President of India, as advised by the Prime Minister, is pleased to direct the following reallocation of portfolios among Ministers in the Union Council of Ministers: (i) The portfolio of Ministry of Earth Sciences be assigned to Kiren Rijiju; (ii) Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State be assigned the independent charge as Minister of State in the Ministry of Law and Justice in addition to his existing portfolios, in place of Kiren Rijiju."

After taking charge, Arjun Ram Meghwal said, Justice should be served to all and cases pending in courts should be as less as possible."

#WATCH | Arjun Ram Meghwal takes independent charge as MoS Law & Justice, replaces Kiren Rijiju pic.twitter.com/uUHQzjdh79 ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2023

Meghwal will now have charge of culture, parliamentary affairs as Minister of State, and independent charge of the law ministry.

Who is Arjun Singh Meghwal

Meghwal completed his graduation in law in 1977, following which he did his post-graduation. In 1982, he qualified the RAS Exams and got elected for the Rajasthan Udhyog Seva.

He got elected as the Member of Parliament for the first time in 2009, representing the Bhartiya Janata Party from Bikaner constituency. He was reelected in 2014

and was made BJPs chief whip in Lok Sabha.

Why Was Kiren Rijiju Moved Out as Law Minister?

Reacting to the development, Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said that it was an unceremonious change". He was continuously questioning the judiciary," she added.

Speaking to News18, Congress leader Manickam Tagore too said that Rijiju was shunted out as the central government now wants to avoid the confrontation" between the executive and the judiciary.

Rijiju had been quite vocal about the tussle between the executive and the judiciary over the procedure of appointment of the judges. He had criticised the collegium system to appoint judges on multiple occasions, saying it is a result of the misadventure" of the Congress party.

Rijiju also said that judges are focusing more on their administrative duties rather than judicial ones. He claimed that because of the system, judges are appointing only those people who they know and not necessarily those who merit being appointed.

It has been been a privelege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law & Justice under the guidance of Honble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. I thank honble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, all Judges of Supreme Court, Chief Justices and Judges of High Courts, Lower pic.twitter.com/CSCT8Pzn1q Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) May 18, 2023

In an interview to Times Now last year, the former law minister said the collegium system is alien to the Indian constitution. You tell me under which provision the collegium system has been prescribed, he asked.

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Soon after the reshuffling, Rijijus Twitter bio changed too.
After the Supreme Court refused to stay the Patna High Court order halting a caste survey in Bihar, the BJP termed it a setback of the Nitish Kumar-led grand alliance government and demanded that it convene an all-party meeting to discuss the matter.

The ruling JD(U), however, asserted that the BJP wants to politicise the issue as the decision to carry out a caste survey was taken after holding an all-party meeting and passing a resolution in the state assembly.

The caste survey in Bihar will remain suspended as the Supreme Court on Thursday declined to stay the Patna High Courts interim order saying it will have to examine whether the state government was carrying out a census in the garb of a survey.

Its a fresh setback for the Nitish Kumar government. The Mahagathbandhan government has already complicated the matter as it did not present its side properly before the Patna High Court leading to a stay, senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi said.

The decision to conduct the caste survey was taken by the then NDA government in Bihar headed by Nitish Kumar in June last year. The JD(U) leader later dumped the BJP and formed the Mahagathbandhan government with RJD, Congress and others.

The state government must call an all-party meeting to discuss the issue. If required, a special session of the assembly should be convened. With an intention to take credit for the caste survey, Nitish Kumar neither discussed the matter with the opposition party nor called an all-party meeting before initiating the process, said Modi.

Reacting to Modis assertion, JD(U) chief spokesperson Neeraj Kumar claimed said that the BJP leader is trying to politicise the issue.

Its a well-known fact that the BJP is against reservation for the economically and socially backward people. They are against caste survey also, he said in a video statement.

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Neeraj Kumar, however, made no comment on the apex courts order.

The first round of the caste survey in Bihar was conducted between January 7 and 21. The second round started on April 15 and was supposed to continue till May 15.
There are two reasons why the Congress is strong in Karnataka  one is its organisation and the other is that it has a mass leader in Siddaramaiah," a senior BJP leader told News18 last month in the middle of the hectic Karnataka campaign. When we cited this anecdote to Siddaramaiah in a subsequent meeting, he just smiled and said, For once, the BJP is right."

Moving in the political circles in Bengaluru or the dusty villages of far-off districts of Karnataka, it was clear who the Congresss tallest leader in the state was. Some would even chide the Delhi journalists" for propping up other names and saying they dont realise why Siddaramaiah gets the crowds on the ground. From leading the Bellary Padayatra from Bengaluru that put the BJP on the back foot before the 2013 assembly elections, to the Praja Dhvani Yatra now to take the Congresss 5-point guarantee card to every door, Siddaramaiah has batted on the front foot for the chief ministers chair.

The arithmetic

There is a compelling arithmetic behind Siddaramaiah becoming the CM, which in the end was also not a matter of choice but a given eventuality. The former chief minister has a strong hold over the all-important AHINDA vote bank, which is a Kannada acronym for the minorities, backward classes, and Dalits that brought the big win for the Congress. Siddaramaiah has championed their cause since his early days as a politician as publicly on many occasions said that the AHINDA were marginalised without due opportunities and needed social justice measures both in political and administrative spheres.

With the Lok Sabha elections next year and Karnataka having a crucial 28 seats, the Congress would have risked a rout like 2019 here had it disregarded Siddaramaiahs case, as the voter bloc loyal to him would have felt orphaned. The former CM had in plain words told the Congress president that if he were not chosen as the CM, he would simply retire. The Muslim voters also associate most closely with Siddaramaiah. BJPs state vice president and union minister Shobha Karandlaje had in fact told News18 during the elections that Muslims consider Siddaramaiah as their leader and were feeling emboldened thinking he is becoming CM again.

Also, compared to his main rival in the party DK Shivakumar, Siddaramaiah does not face any major corruption cases and has a clean image. That has been buttressed by the work he did for the poor as CM in his earlier term which became his legacy  mainly the schemes of Anna Bhagya (providing food grains to the poor for free or at subsidised prices), Ksheera Bhagya (providing milk), and Vidyasiri (providing assistance for education).

Siddas journey 

Born in 1948 in Siddaramanahundi of Varuna Hobli in the Mysuru district, Siddaramaiah is a qualified lawyer who attributes his political initiation to the inspiration he took from socialist thinker Dr Ram Manohar Lohia. He may have lost his first Lok Sabha election in 1980 from Mysuru but he tasted his first electoral success from the Chamundeshwari seat in the 1983 assembly elections on a Lok Dal ticket. He first became a minister in the state after midterm elections and also served as a minister in the cabinet of SR Bommai. But Siddaramaiah lost the next two elections on a Janata Dal ticket  first of the assembly and then the 1991 Lok Sabha polls.

However, he was back in the assembly with a win in 1994 and became the finance minister in the cabinet of HD Deve Gowda. This was Siddaramaiahs big moment as he went on to present 13 budgets in his career as finance minister. His political career also soared as he became the deputy CM in 1996 and became one for the second time in 2004. A crisis then befell him, as he has cited in the past how he was expelled from the JD(S) due to altered political circumstances and lost the opportunity to become CM due to the manoeuvres of unseen hands. He then joined the Congress on July 22, 2006.

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The Congress chose him as the leader of the opposition in 2008, realising his mass appeal. In 2013, Siddaramaiahs dream to become the chief minister was finally fulfilled as the Congress won the assembly elections.

Those close to him say Siddaramaiah will now be the chief minister of Karnataka 2.0 and his top priority remains fulfilling the five guarantees. No one else ever stood a chance to deny him the CMs chair, the Siddaramaiah camp says.
The Maharashtra government on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court ruling upholding the state's amendment Act allowing bullock-cart races, and said it will provide assistance for organising these popular events.

The SC earlier in the day upheld the validity of amendment Acts of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Karnataka which allowed the bull-taming sport 'Jallikattu', bullock-cart races, and buffalo racing sport 'Kambala' in the three states, respectively.

Maharashtra Excise Minister Shambhuraj Desai welcomed the decision.

"We will provide all assistance and cooperation to hold bullock-cart races," he told reporters.

Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis noted that the amendment Act had been passed when he was chief minister.

We are extremely happy that the Act enacted by the state when I was chief minister and a report submitted to the court confirming that the bull is a racing animal have been upheld by the apex court. This paves the way for organising bullock-cart races across the state, he said.

BJP MLA Mahesh Landge and the party's Member of Legislative Council Gopichand Padalkar took special efforts to ensure the legal victory, he added.

Revenue and Animal Husbandry Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said the SC verdict was the victory of farmers.

The 12-year-old legal battle was enabled by collective efforts and the Eknath Shinde-led state government played a crucial role in it, he said in a statement.

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Bullock-cart races are a matter of sentiment in rural areas and also generate jobs, Vikhe Patil said.

The races were banned in 2011. The Maharashtra government then brought in a law to restart the races, but the Bombay High Court stayed it. The SC had refused to lift the stay while referring the matter to a larger bench, he said.
Domestic smartphone brand Lava has launched an exclusive service called Agni Mitra for its newly-launched Agni 2 smartphone. The company has promised free in-home replacement of the handset in case of any hardware issues. This means that customers will not have to take their phones to a repair shop and can instead have them replaced by a technician who comes to their homes.

While most major smartphone brands offer replacements for their devices in case of hardware issues, Lava is claiming to be the first in its segment to offer in-home replacements. With this industry-first approach, during the warranty period, the phone will be replaced in any scenario of hardware issues. Each customer will be supported with a dedicated personal Agni Mitra to resolve their issues on priority," the company said.

Our customer service initiatives are based on one core philosophy. If there is a fault in the device it is the fault of the company and not of the customer. Hence, service should be prompt and hassle free," Sunil Raina, President and Business Head of Lava International posted in a tweet.

Our customer service initiatives are based on one core philosophy. If there is a fault in the device it is the fault of the company and not of the customer. Hence, service should be prompt & hassle free.Agni Mitra, Service@Home & now Replacement@Home are steps in that direction pic.twitter.com/j4GwOtuqjW Sunil Raina (@reachraina) May 17, 2023

Lava Agni 2 Price in India

Lava Agni 2 has launched for Rs 21,999 which gets 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. However, the company is offering the phone with a flat discount of Rs 2,000 (via major credit and debit cards) which brings the final price to Rs 19,999. The phone goes on sale from May 24 in the country.

Lava Agni 2 Specifications

The Agni 2 comes with a 6.78-inch curved AMOLED panel and a 120Hz refresh rate screen. Theres a punch-hole cutout at the top that houses the front camera.

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Lava is the first brand to bring the new MediaTek Dimensity 7050 chipset to the market, coupled with 8GB RAM. You can also virtually expand the memory by up to 8GB using internal storage. It runs stock Android 13 out-of-the-box and claims to be free of any bloatware. Lava assures an upgrade to Android 14 and Android 15 with quarterly security updates for 3 years on this handset.

The phone packs a 4700mAh battery that supports 66W fast charging. On the imaging front, you have a 50MP primary sensor that is likely to be paired with an 8MP sensor and dual 2MP sensors. The phone also supports 13 bands of 5G. For security, the phone is equipped with an in-display fingerprint sensor.
The State Department announced this years World Food Prize Laureate is Heidi Kuhn, founder and CEO of the non-profit Roots of Peace. Through her efforts, she has shown more than a million people living in war-torn regions a way to restore peace and prosperity through agriculture.

Ms. Kuhn starts by working with demining organizations to clear landmines. Then she engages with farmers to replant fields with modern agriculture practices. Ms. Kuhn began by partnering with wineries in her home state of California to raise funds to remove landmines in Croatia and replant vineyards and orchards. Then she took this model to Afghanistan. After clearing land mines there, she helped farmers  including more than 5,000 women  produce high-quality crops.

At the World Food Prize Laureate announcement ceremony, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States is deeply committed to addressing food insecurity on all fronts:

Weve long been the largest single donor of global food assistance . . . Last year, we contributed $13.5 billion to these efforts  when we had the Russian aggression exacerbate the problem, we doubled down on what we were doing. We provide more than 40 percent of the World Food Programs budget every year. Were also working to sustain the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which has facilitated the delivery of more than 29 million metric tons of food from Ukraine to the global market since July.

We are also investing in sustainable, long-term food production, said Secretary Blinken:

Last May, we helped launch the Roadmap for Global Food Security, which calls on countries to fight hunger for generations to come . . . More than 100 countries have signed on and pledged to take swift, concrete steps toward building stronger, more resilient food systems, from improving access to markets for farmers to boosting the productivity of crops. Were putting a special focus on adapting agriculture to the changing environment that were all experiencing. Were helping farmers learn techniques that make their crops more resilient.

The United States expanded USAIDs Feed the Future program last year, from 12 target countries to 20, which will help farmers produce more crops, raise healthier livestock, and grow their businesses.

The United States shares the commitment of Heidi Kuhn and countless others who are working to end food insecurity.
Graduation day is a milestone for every student, marking the end of one chapter of their life and the beginning of another one. For Paula Ximena Trivio, it was a day of immense joy and gratitude, not only for herself but for her parents too. In a heartwarming gesture, Paula honoured her parents with her graduation cap and stole, signifying their shared journey. But she didnt stop there, as she handed over her hard-earned degree certificate to her overjoyed parents.

Euro.eseuro reported that the video was first posted on TikTok and that Paula earned her journalism degree from Minuto de Dios University Corporation in Colombia.

WE DID IT!  Daughter honors her parents by dressing them in her cap, and stoles during graduation weekend. (:paulaa0816) pic.twitter.com/xAOSXQe377 GoodNewsMovement (@GoodNewsMVT) May 16, 2023

Paula Ximena Trivio accompanied her heartwarming clip with an emotional message that expressed her appreciation and love towards her parents. She wrote, We did it together. Seeing their little faces makes up for everything that this long road was. Thank you for never abandoning me and thanks to life for giving me the joy of living this moment with you. I love you.

In just a few days since the clip was posted on Twitter, it has crossed over 5,000 views and garnered numerous comments. The heartwarming video of Paula honouring her parents during her graduation has touched the hearts of people around the world.

In a similar instance, passengers in an IndiGo airline were treated to an extraordinary experience when an air hostess named Nabira Samshi delivered a speech introducing her mother to the passengers. What made the moment even more special was that both Nabira and her mother were members of the same airlines cabin crew. Nabira expressed her admiration for her mother.

The airlines shared the heartwarming clip of the mother-daughter duo on social media with a touching caption that read, Happy Mothers Day to the one whos always had my back, on the ground and in the air.

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Happy Mother's Day to the one who's always had my back, on the ground and in the air. #HappyMothersDay #goIndiGo #IndiaByIndiGo pic.twitter.com/gHLZBZRmra IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) May 14, 2023

Heartwarming posts like these not only celebrate the special bond between family members but also remind us of the importance of family support in our lives. So, did the aforementioned clip make your day?
Urvashi Rautela has responded to the trolls and stated that she has sentiments attached to the Cartier necklace. The actress shared a story which read, To all members of media: I have sentiments attached with my high-jewelled crocodile masterpiece necklace." She also used a folded hands emoji.

For context, the 76th Cannes Film Festival is currently taking place at Cannes Palais des Festivals et des Congres. As a part of the event, Bollywood star Urvashi Rautela graced the red carpet. She made a sensational statement wearing a gown designed by Sima Couture. However, what stole the attention was her neckpiece featuring two intertwined alligators. The neckpiece contained sparkling diamonds and intricate designs.

It caught the eye of people on social media and then there was no coming back from this. many took to Twitter and expressed their views on this neckpiece. Urvashi Rautelas Cartier necklace is so tacky As someone with a lizard phobia, it made my skin crawl," wrote a Twitter user. Another person mentioned, One wore a crocodile necklace, other went straight from garba night to the French Riviera! Dafaq is happening at #Cannes2023," mentioned another person.

Have a look for yourself:

Urvashi Rautela's Cartier necklace is so tacky As someone with a lizard phobia, it made my skin crawl.  d (@Adi_ction) May 17, 2023

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One wore a crocodile necklace, other went straight from garba night to the French Riviera! Dafaq is happening at #Cannes2023 #CannesFilmFestival2023 #UrvashiRautela #SaraAliKhan Bhavya Sadhwani (@bhavyasadhwani2) May 17, 2023

Meanwhile, Alia Bhatt was recently trolled after she attended her first Gucci event as its India brand ambassador. She made her way to Seoul on Tuesday to attend the Gucci Cruise 2024 event but more than her attendance, her handbag became the talk of the town. In photos going viral, Alia was seen carrying a transparent handbag at the event. A few eagle-eyed social media users noticed that there was absolutely nothing in the bag. The luxurious yet empty bag left netizens confused. That purse is empty," a user pointed out. Bag is empty so why alia is carrying," asked another. Hence proved inke bags khali hote hai," joked another.
Canada called for foreign help Wednesday to combat wildfires burning out of control and spreading across vast swathes of the western half of the country.

The fires that have devastated the oil-producing Alberta province have in recent days spread to neighboring British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well as the Northwest Territories.

Some 2,500 firefighters from across Canada backed by 400 military personnel have been deployed across Alberta to try to tame the wildfires, which have already burned more than half a million hectares of forests and grasslands and destroyed many homes and businesses.

But they arent enough, officials said.

Its still a very significant and dangerous situation in Alberta," federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Blair said the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center is reaching out to foreign countries  the United States, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand Were asking them to come and help us."

Smoke from the wildfires has blanketed western Canada, leading to warnings about poor air quality posing risks to health.

In Calgary, the sky had an orange hue to it as the smoke grew thicker throughout the day.

Hundreds of kilometers (miles) to the east, residents of Regina and Saskatoon in neighboring Saskatchewan province said they woke up to a thick haze and a strong smell of smoke in the air.

Across the region, almost 180 wildfires were burning  including 48 out of control  forcing tens of thousands to flee over the past two weeks.

Evacuation orders and alerts were lifted in some parts on Tuesday and Wednesday, including hard-hit Drayton Valley west of Edmonton in Alberta and Fort St. John in British Columbia, as those fires were subdued.

Air quality indexes in several cities, however, indicated wildfire smoke that spread from the Pacific Coast to Manitoba province still poses a very high risk" to health.

In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.

This has brought floods and mudslides, forest fires that destroyed an entire town, and record-high summer temperatures that killed more than 500 people in 2021.

This springs mostly hot, dry weather has resulted in what Alberta leader Danielle Smith described as an unprecedented" crisis.

As evacuees trickled back to Drayton Valley, local fire Chief Tom Thomson urged caution.

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There are still extremely hazardous areas There are concerns about falling trees. There are concerns about ash pits," he told a news conference.

We do still have fire crews actively working on the fire," he added, warning people to remain vigilant.
Chinas special envoy Li Hui told Ukraine there is no panacea to resolve the crisis" as he repeated calls for Kyiv and Moscow to engage in talks to end the war, Beijing said on Thursday.

China, a strategic ally of Russia, has refrained from condemning Moscows invasion, and has instead sought to position itself as a neutral mediator that could help end the conflict.

Li visited Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he held talks with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and other officials.

Li is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Ukraine since Russias February 2022 invasion.

There is no panacea to resolve the crisis, and all parties need to start from themselves, build mutual trust and create conditions to stop the war and talk," said Li, Chinas special envoy for Eurasian affairs, according to a statement by Beijings foreign ministry.

Lis visit to Kyiv was part of a European tour to promote Beijings proposals to end the conflict.

Li added in his talks with Ukrainian officials including Kuleba that China would continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capabilities".

Xi Jinping met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in March.

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In April, he spoke by phone for an hour with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Western allies of Ukraine have criticised Xi for refusing to condemn the invasion and for maintaining Chinas strategic alliance with Russia even as Moscow faces deepening international isolation.
Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis will officially enter the US presidential race next week, becoming former President Donald Trumps biggest rival for the Republican nomination and shaking up a contest that largely has been one-sided.

DeSantis is expected to file his paperwork declaring his candidacy for next years election on May 25 to coincide with a donor meeting in Miami, Reuters quoted sources familiar with the matter.

The Republican Governor will then have a formal launch in the week of May 29, the report said.

The invitation for the May 25 nomination event stated that donors would be put to work, an allusion to raising money for DeSantis.

Former US President Donald Trump has stepped up his political attacks on the Florida governor in recent weeks and maintained a commanding lead in the 2024 Republican primary.

Republican lawmakers have given DeSantis a bevy of conservative victories recently, which includes expanding the states school voucher program, prohibiting the use of public money in sustainable investing efforts, scrapping diversity programs at public universities and allowing for the permitless carry of concealed weapons.

DeSantis is expected to pitch himself to voters as more electable than front-runner Trump, who has used DeSantis absence from the race to attempt to frame him as a second-rate politician who owes his success to Trumps backing when he first ran for governor.

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DeSantis will need a boost to wrest the nomination from Trump, who has maintained his grip on the Republican Party despite his 2020 election loss and his recent indictment on charges related to hush money payments to a porn star.

With the first presidential nominating contest still nine months away, political analysts say DeSantis has plenty of time to turn his fortunes around.
Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former PM to hand over suspects sheltered inside expired on Thursday afternoon. The siege and the authorities demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khans recent detention, has angered the former prime ministers supporters and is raising concerns about more clashes between them and the security forces.

Imran Khan was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along Read More
A New York City cab driver drove Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle for around 10 minutes on Tuesday as the two were chased by paparazzi said that the Royal couple were clearly nervous during the short journey.

Sukhcharn Singh said he picked the couple at a local police precinct in Midtown Manhattan as they were pursued by two vehicles.

Prince Harry, his wife Meghan and her mother were involved in a near catastrophic" car chase with press photographers after attending an awards ceremony in New York.

The incident involved a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi" in half a dozen cars with blacked out windows, driving dangerously and putting the lives of the couple and Doria Ragland in danger.

Their spokesperson said in a statement that the couple endured a relentless pursuit" that lasted for more than two hours.

However, Singh, who witnessed a part of the drama, did not characterise his drive as a dangerous chase by paparazzi.

I was on 67th Street and then the security guard hailed me. Next thing you know, Prince Harry and his wife were hopping into my cab. We got blocked by a garbage truck, and all of a sudden paparazzi came and started taking pictures," he said.

The Royal couple were about to share their destination, when the security guard made the call to return to the police precinct.

They looked nervous, I think they were being chased the whole day or something," Singh said adding the two were pretty nervous, but the security guard, he was on it.

The incident happened after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended an awards ceremony in New York on Tuesday. The couple were in the city for the Women of Vision Awards and were accompanied by Meghans mother Doria Ragland.

Pictures on social media show Harry, Meghan and her mother sitting in the back of a New York taxi which their spokesperson said showed a small glimpse at the defense and decoys required to end the harassment".

The couple  the Duke and Duchess of Sussex  were shaken by the incident but otherwise unharmed.

Sukhcharn Singh said that he didnt believe that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were in danger during the short ride they had in the cab.

I dont think thats true, I think thats all exaggerated and stuff like that. Dont read too much into that," Singh said.

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He, however, added that must have happened before" they got in his taxi.

New York Citys the safest place to be. Theres police stations, cops on every corner, theres no reason to be afraid in New York, he added.
Evgenia Kara-Murza, wife of jailed Russian opposition figure Vladimir Kara-Murza, said authorities were torturing him psychologically by denying him calls with his children while he serves a 25-year sentence on charges he says are politically motivated.

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy, Evgenia Kara-Murza said her husbands repeated requests to speak to his three children - aged 11, 14 and 17 - were denied given that they now live in the United States.

Vladimir very much misses his kids, his family, and hes devastated that he has not been able to talk to us in over a year," Evgenia Kara-Murza said on Wednesday. And the authorities know that. Theyre just using it as a psychological torture against him."

Russias Federal Penitentiary Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Convicted last month of treason and other offences for publicly condemning Russias leadership and the war in Ukraine, Vladimir Kara-Murza received the harshest sentence of its kind since the February 2022 invasion.

He was detained in April last year, hours after CNN broadcast an interview in which he said Russia was being run by a regime of murderers".

State prosecutors accused the 41-year-old of treason, among other offences, and of discrediting the Russian military by spreading knowingly false information" about its conduct in what Moscow calls its special military operation" in Ukraine.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, who holds Russian and British passports, was a close associate of Boris Nemtsov, an opposition figure assassinated near the Kremlin in 2015. He continued to speak out against President Vladimir Putin.

Had I tried to convince him to give up his fight, I would have betrayed him," Evgenia Kara-Murza said.

PERSONAL ENEMY

Evgenia Kara-Murza said her husbands successful lobbying of foreign governments and institutions to impose sanctions on Russia and individual Russians for human rights violations had made him a personal enemy" of the Kremlin.

Dictatorships all over the world are very much afraid of clear, strong voices that refuse to be intimidated. And Vladimirs voice is one such voice."

Despite not being able to speak to him, his children have grown up being acutely aware of the perils of being an opposition figure in Russia.

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They witnessed their father slip into comas after poisonings in 2015 and 2017 that left him with a serious nerve disorder called polyneuropathy. Russian authorities denied any involvement.

Their father was first poisoned when our oldest was nine," Evgenia Kara-Murza said. Shes now 17. Thats half of her life she spent knowing that her father was being targeted again and again and again."
Police arrested a man who used his car to force a gate at the Vatican City Thursday evening after having been refused entry, said officials at the Holy See.

After a medical examination doctors concluded that he was mentally ill.

The incident happened just after 8:00 pm (1800 GMT), when the man turned up at one of the Vaticans entrances.

When the Swiss Guard on patrol there turned him away because he did not have a pass, he came back driving at great speed, forcing the two checkpoints," said the statement.

A member of the Vaticans gendarme force shot out one of the tyres, but the car kept moving. Officers sounded an alert and all other access points to the Vatican were sealed off.

When the car finally came to a halt the driver got out of his own accord and was arrested, said the statement.

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He was subjected to a medical examination which determined that he suffered from a serious psychophysical" condition.

The man, whose identity has not been released, is being detained in a cell at the Vatican pending an investigation, the statement added.
Papua New Guinea will sign a security pact with the United States that gives American troops access to the Pacific nations ports and airports, its leader said Thursday, as Washington jostles for influence in the region with Beijing.

US President Joe Biden has placed more importance on the Pacific over concerns about an increasingly assertive China, which is trying to woo nations with an array of diplomatic and financial incentives in return for strategic support.

Prime Minister James Marape said two agreements focusing on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance had been agreed with Washington and would be formally signed at the earliest opportunity after parliamentary approval.

We are elevating to a specific defence cooperation agreement, something that is falling short of a treaty," he told a press conference.

We are moving ahead, we are signing with the best military on the face of planet Earth."

The agreements, which can be renewed every 15 years, will give the United States vital movement in Papua New Guineas waters near sea routes to Australia and Japan, in return for access to US satellite surveillance, he said.

It now gives us an opportune time to focus not just on maritime access but satellite access on illegal activities on the high sea," Marape said.

A leaked draft version of the defence cooperation agreement showed American forces would have broad autonomy at some of the countrys key entry points, but Marape said any access would have to be approved by his government.

The ports, the infrastructure will not in any way stand to be exclusively used by the military," he said.

They would always be asking our defence to have access to our facilities."

Biden  whose uncle died in Papua New Guinea in the Second World War  cancelled a historic first visit to the most populous South Pacific nation next week because of domestic debt ceiling crisis talks.

Marape said Secretary of State Antony Blinken would instead attend the summit with Pacific leaders in Port Moresby on Monday.

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Washington is courting Pacific nations more intensely after the Solomon Islands became the unlikely epicentre of a diplomatic tussle between the United States and China last year when it signed a security pact with Beijing.

Marape said Papua New Guineas pact with Washington would not prevent it from negotiating such deals with other nations, including China.
The project is part of Penelec's Long Term Infrastructure Improvement Plan (LTIIP II), a $200 million initiative to accelerate capital investments to the company's electric distribution system over five years and help ensure continued electric service reliability for customers.

"Over time, severe weather can take a toll on exposed electrical infrastructure, and this project allows us to proactively address equipment that has served us well for many years but was in need of an update," said Scott Wyman, president of FirstEnergy's Pennsylvania operations. "Utility poles are the backbone of the distribution system, and this work should enhance the reliability of electric service for our customers in these rural communities for years to come."

Penelec crews from Clearfield, Johnstown and Somerset are working cooperatively to rehabilitate this power line. They started the work in February, and it is expected to be completed in June.

As part of the project, crews are replacing one pole, 12 crossarms, 15 fuses and 12 devices that protect the wire from lightning strikes along a 34.5-kilovolt (kV) line that starts at an electric substation near the Grier School in Birmingham and heads northwest along Route 453 where it meets Pennington Road. Crews are working to replace 26 poles, 26 crossarms, numerous fuses and insulators along Pennington Road to Warriors Mark and then for several more miles along Ridge Road on a lower-voltage section of the line.

Additionally, crews have replaced 17 poles on a different spur of the same line running from the substation in Birmingham northwest through woods toward Ironville and continuing in the area of State Route 1015 through Sinking Valley. The remaining six poles to be set are located in fields near Elk Run and will require a track digger machine that can navigate hard-to-access spots to erect poles.

The Warriors Mark - Franklin Volunteer Fire Department allowed Penelec to stage material on its property, providing convenient access to the various work locations.

Penelec serves approximately 585,000 customers within 17,600 square miles of northern and central Pennsylvania. Follow Penelec on Twitter @Penelec and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PenelecElectric.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, 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 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com and on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.
Ukraine said Tuesday it had pushed Russian forces from the flanks of Bakhmut but conceded that Moscows forces were pushing deeper inside the embattled town.

The announcement came as European leaders meeting in Iceland agreed to create a register of damages" to record the wartime harm and destruction wrought by Russia in Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron said. It would be an initial step towards prosecution of Russian leaders in the future.

A year after kicking Russia out of the Council of Europe (CoE) over its war in Ukraine, the leaders of the 46-nation pan-continental rights body gathered in Reykjavik, with the Ukraine conflict topping the agenda.

In Kyiv, authorities were due to host a Chinese special envoy to discuss Beijings proposals for ending the conflict.

Deputy Defence Minister Ganna Malyar said Ukraine had wrested back about 20 square kilometres (7.7 square miles) of a Russian pincer movement around Bakhmut, the epicentre of fighting in Russias invasion.

At the same time, the enemy is advancing in some measure inside Bakhmut itself and is completely destroying the town with artillery," she added on social media.

The commander of Ukraines ground forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, had earlier said he visited forces near Bakhmut to hand out awards to Kyivs troops fighting in the longest battle of the invasion.

Wagners men went into Bakhmut like rats into a mousetrap," he said, referring to the Russian paramilitary group.

The British defence ministry said that over the last four days, Ukrainian forces have made tactical progress, stabilising the flanks of Bakhmut to their advantage".

Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a video shared by Russian military bloggers Tuesday that a US volunteer had died fighting alongside Ukrainian troops in the east.

He came to meet us. Citizen of the United States of America," he says, showing what he claims is the body of an American. It was not clear where or when the video was filmed.

Unbelievable success

The wave of Russian strikes overnight came just over a week after Kyiv announced it had shot down a Kinzhal nuclear-capable hypersonic missile for the first time, using US-supplied Patriot systems.

Russia denied Kyivs latest claim to have shot down six of the hypersonic missiles during an overnight barrage.

Ukraines mounting success in taking out dozens of Russian drones and missiles illustrates its bolstered air defences, after a winter in which Moscow pummelled key infrastructure.

Another unbelievable success for the Ukrainian air forces!" Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said on Twitter.

The defence ministry said Ukrainian air-defence systems had knocked out a total of 18 missiles, including types the Kremlin had touted as ideal", as well as nine drones.

Reznikov later tweeted that Ukraine has officially joined the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE). He called it another step towards common security space in Europe, which is impossible without Ukraines membership in the Alliance".

Three people were injured in Kyiv and some rocket fragments fell on the capitals zoo but neither staff nor animals were hurt, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

Russia, meanwhile, said all its targets had been hit.

Chinas special envoy, Li Hui, was expected to arrive in Kyiv for a two-day visit as part of a European tour to promote Beijing-led negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

A senior Ukrainian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Ukrainian authorities planned to further discuss Kyivs stance on the conflict and Chinas peace mission.

He told AFP Ukrainian officials would make clear to Beijing that ending the war with a compromise at the expense of Ukraine will not work".

Graft crackdown

Li will be the highest-ranking Chinese diplomat to visit the war-torn country since Moscows invasion last year, three weeks after Zelensky spoke by telephone to Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Xi, who has aimed to position China as a neutral mediator, and visited Moscow in March, has been criticised for refusing to condemn the Kremlins attack on its neighbour.

Lis visit follows President Volodymyr Zelenskys whirlwind tour of major European capitals to urge allies to increase military support.

His tour to shore up military assistance to help make his troops more battle-ready began in Italy, with weekend visits to France and Germany, followed by a stop in the UK.

But Zelensky has yet to succeed in securing Western fighter jets to seize control of the skies, though UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced preparations to open a flight school to train Ukrainian pilots.

Sunak and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, attending the CoE meeting in Iceland on Tuesday, pledged to build an international coalition" to provide fighter jet support for Ukraine.

Sunak and Rutte agreed they would work to build (an) international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting with everything from training to procuring F16 jets", a spokesman for Downing Street said in a statement.

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France has also offered to train Ukrainian fighter pilots, though Macron ruled out sending warplanes to Kyiv.

Ukraine also announced Tuesday that it had detained the head of the countrys supreme court in a $2.7 million bribery inquiry, part of anti-graft measures required for closer integration with the European Union.
A US man who didnt want his girlfriend to get an abortion shot and killed her during a confrontation in a Dallas parking lot in Texas.

The Dallas Police charged 22-year-old Harold Thompson with murder for shooting 26-year-old Gabriella Gonzalez.

Gabriella Gonzalez was with her boyfriend Harold Thompson, on Wednesday when he tried to put her in a chokehold, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. She had returned the night before from Colorado, where she had gone to get an abortion.

Texas banned abortions after roughly six weeks of pregnancy in September 2021. But nearly all abortions have been halted in Texas since Roe v. Wade was overturned last summer, except in cases of medical emergency.

It is believed that the suspect was the father of the child, the affidavit said. The suspect did not want (Gonzalez) to get an abortion.

Surveillance video from the parking lot shows Gonzalez shrugs him off, police said, and the two continue walking. Thompson then pulls out a gun and shoots Gonzalez in the head. She falls to the ground and Thompson shoots her multiple times before running away, the affidavit said.

Thompson was arrested later Wednesday and is being held in the Dallas County Jail without bond. Court records did not list an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

Gonzalezs sister was at the scene and heard the shooting, police said. Another witness saw Thompson try to choke Gonzalez but couldnt call police because she did not have her cell phone.

At the time of the shooting, Thompson had been charged with assault of a family member, who accused him of choking her in March.

The affidavit from March does not specifically name Gonzalez as the person who was assaulted. But it does say the woman told police that Thompson beat her up multiple times throughout the entirety of their relationship and that Thompson told police the woman was pregnant with his child at that time.

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The woman reiterated that she is scared of the suspect because he had made threats to harm her family and her children, according to the affidavit.

(With inputs from agencies)
US President Joe Biden landed in Japan Thursday to attend the G7 summit in Hiroshima, leaving behind tense talks with Republican opponents in Washington on averting a US debt default.

Air Force One touched down at the US Marine Corps base at Iwakuni, just south of Hiroshima, where G7 leaders will meet through Sunday. Biden will then return to Washington, skipping previously planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia so that he can deal with the debt ceiling crisis.
Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed a new era" of ties with Central Asia on Thursday, kicking off a summit Beijing hopes will deepen relations with the strategically vital region.

Held in the ancient Chinese city of Xian, the historic eastern end of the Silk Road that linked China to Europe through Central Asia, Beijing has said this weeks meeting is of milestone significance".

And in a speech to the regions leaders at a welcoming banquet Thursday evening, Xi said strengthening ties was a strategic choice".

I am confident that with our joint efforts, tomorrows summit will be a full success and will herald a new era of China-Central Asia relations," Xi was quoted as saying in a readout of the speech seen by AFP.

Join us in opening up a bright future of China-Central Asia cooperation," he said.

This weeks meeting is the first of its kind since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago.

Beijing says trade with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan reached $70 billion in 2022 and expanded 22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023.

Central Asia has also become key to Chinas trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, a defining geopolitical project for Xi, with Beijing keen to restart cooperation and fill the vacuum left in former Soviet states by Russias war in Ukraine.

China, the worlds second-largest energy consumer, has invested billions of dollars to tap natural gas reserves in Central Asia, while rail links connecting China to Europe criss-cross the region.

Analysts told AFP this weeks summit is likely to see efforts to reach agreements to further expand that vast network, including a long-stalled $6 billion China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and an expansion of the Central Asia-to-China gas pipeline.

Global economic leadership

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hailed the unique scope" of that project at a meeting with Xi ahead of the summit.

Xi also told Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in talks on Thursday that China was willing to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a community of good neighborliness, friendship, shared prosperity, and a shared future".

He then met with the leaders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, lauding the close ties between them and pledging to expand economic and cultural exchanges.

Your policies will ensure the development and further prosperity of a modern socialist state, the strengthening of the authority and the global economic leadership of the country in the nearest future," Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev told Xi.

Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan greeted the heads of state at a grand welcoming ceremony in the evening, posing for a group photo in front of an old-style Chinese building lit by red lanterns.

Dozens of dancers then performed a musical show inspired by the Tang Dynasty, when relations between China and Central Asia were considered very strong.

A media event will be held on Friday morning, expected to be attended by all six presidents, at which a joint statement is likely to be released.

Growing influence

This weeks summit also comes as Beijing works to replace Russia as Central Asian nations preferred partner  and as Xi positions himself as a global statesman keen to expand Chinas reach far beyond its borders.

Xi will position himself as a leader that can promote global development and peace," Zhiqun Zhu, a Professor of International Relations and Political Science at Bucknell University, told AFP.

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The summit also coincides with a meeting of the G7 in Hiroshima that will likely focus on efforts to push back Chinas growing influence around the world", Zhu said.

The diplomatic and strategic significance cannot be underestimated," he said.
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RENO  The Nevada Mining Association will be honoring two women from Nevadas mining industry at the upcoming Salute to Women of Achievement hosted by the Nevada Womens Fund.

Each year, this event recognizes the professional and personal achievements of Nevada women, raises funds for scholarships, and encourages more women to break barriers and achieve their dreams. The Salute to Women honors inspirational women chosen by their companies or organizations in recognition of the significant contributions made in their respective fields and communities.

This years event is scheduled for May 25 in Reno and is already sold out.

At the Salute to Women, NVMA will honor Kimberly Rivera and Annie Huhta, two women who are changing the face of mining through their work in the fields of science, education, and technology.

Annie and Kimberly are already doing great things for Nevada, particularly when it comes to pioneering roles in what were traditionally male-dominated fields, said Dana Bennett, interim president of NVMA. In the process, they are inspiring younger generations to pursue their goals with confidence, knowing that their hard work and dedication can lead to success.

Rivera is currently an autonomous drill operator at KGHM Robinson Mine near Ely. She began her career at the Robinson Mine as a haul truck driver, transitioning in 2015 to operating drills, becoming only the second female driller in Robinsons 100-plus year history. In 2020, Rivera became certified to operate an autonomous drill and is now the lead trainer for the mines autonomous drilling program.

Rivera has been a leader in the adoption of new technology at the mine site and an inspiration to women pursuing a career in drilling.

Huhta has served as the director of the Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno since 2019 after a 14-year career in the mining industry. Before joining Mackay, she was the chief geologist for Newmont Goldcorps Battle Mountain district. She earned a B.S. and M.S. in geology from the University of Idaho and an executive MBA from UNR.

Huhta is an active community volunteer and nonprofit board member and strives to be a support resource and inspiration to STEM students and women in mining.

For more information about the Nevada Womens Fund, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and the Salute to Women of Achievement event, visit their website at www.nevadawomensfund.org.
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Dr. Christina Francis, an OB-GYN from Fort Wayne, Indiana, and chair of the board of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, speaks in front of the 5th Circuit courthouse in New Orleans on May 17, 2023, following arguments on a case challenging FDA approval of the abortion pill. (Photo: Greg LaRose/Louisiana Illuminator)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

NEW ORLEANS  A federal appeals court panel quizzed lawyers during oral arguments Wednesday over a Texas judges decision that could end access to the abortion pill nationwide.

Observers see the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals as a legal way station for the case, in which anti-abortion groups sued the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, arguing its approval of mifepristone in 2000 was improper and subsequent changes to its use didnt rely on solid science.

The three-judge panels ruling, which could come anytime after oral arguments, will likely be put on hold as the case moves up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In the meantime, access to mifepristone, one of two drugs used in medication abortions, remains legal under a temporary order from the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Sarah Harrington called U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas Judge Matthew Kacsmaryks ruling to overturn mifepristones approval an unjustified attack on FDA scientific expertise.

Physicians who brought the lawsuit failed to demonstrate imminent risk of being forced to perform a medical procedure that goes against their conscience as a result of complications from mifepristone, Harrington said.

Physicians arent required to perform procedures to which they hold a religious or moral objection, under the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, Harrington said.

Jessica Ellsworth, the lawyer representing Danco Laboratories, which manufactures the name brand version of mifepristone known as Mifeprex, questioned the claims of the anti-abortion physicians who brought the suit and were referenced in court records.

The declarants offer nonspecific statements that are untethered to actual facts about what drug a patient took, Ellsworth said. They often say, The patients cant tell me what they took, so we dont know even that it was FDA-approved mifepristone.

One example Ellsworth cited involved a patient who took an unidentified abortion drug from India, which wasnt FDA-approved, and another instance where a pregnant woman took mifepristone while on blood thinners, after being told she wasnt eligible for medication abortion. Neither case supports the anti-abortion groups contention that mifepristone is an untested, riskier medication, she said.

Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Erin Morrow Hawley argued the appeal for the anti-abortion legal organization that filed the lawsuit on behalf of four medical organizations and four doctors.

Hawley rejected the notion that mifepristone should be left on the market to aid in miscarriage care, saying that not all doctors prescribe it to treat pregnancy loss and that an off-label use shouldnt be used to uphold the approval.

I dont think that that would be an appropriate basis or an appropriate consideration to uphold FDA approval here, Hawley said.

Questions for Danco lawyer

The three-judge appeals panel included Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump.

The panel had pointed questions for the appellants counsel on whether the FDAs role in health policy extended past review and approval of medication. Elrod specifically took exception with language in Dancos briefs, calling it a personal attack on Kacsmaryk, the Texas judge.

This is much more the kind of remarks towards district court that we normally dont see from learned counsel, Elrod told Ellsworth, and Im wondering if you would have had more time and not been under a rush and probably exhausted from this whole process, would those have been statements that would have been included in your brief?

I dont think that those remarks, any of them, were intended as any sort of personal attack, Ellsworth responded. They were an attack on the analysis and reasoning.

The judges asked the appellants what repercussions FDA approval  and its possible reversal  might have on telemedicine. In 2021, the agency removed the requirement for an in-person doctors visit to prescribe mifepristone and misoprostol, the second prescription used in medication abortion.

Elrod questioned how physicians could accurately confirm how far along a pregnancy is without an in-person exam. Harrington said doctors can ask specific questions that inform their decisions on prescribing the abortion drug.

Answering a similar question, Ellsworth told the judges the FDA doesnt regulate the practice of medicine, to which Elrod responded the agency does have a stake in the negative outcomes of the medication it approves.

Questions from the judges for Hawley largely involved the FDAs approval and updates for mifepristone use.

The FDA acknowledges that emergency room doctors are going to be part of the solution in cleaning up the messes left for women suffering consequences of chemical abortion, Hawley said, referencing the agencys original approval of mifepristone.

She also cited figures from an FDA medication guide published in January that say between 2.9% and 4.6% of women who take mifepristone will present to the emergency room, although Hawley acknowledged after a probe from Elrod that not all instances involve an actual emergency.

Lawsuit challenged FDA approval

Alliance Defending Freedom filed the lawsuit in November, arguing the FDA erred in how it approved mifepristone in 2000 while also contending that its not safe and effective.

The lawsuit called on the federal district court to overturn the 2000 approval, but said that if the judge didnt do that, he should revert prescribing and use pre-2016 instructions.

Changes that year increased when mifepristone could be used from seven to 10 weeks gestation, reduced the number of in-person visits from three to one and changed the dosage and timing of the two-drug regimen.

The FDA broadened who could prescribe the medications from only doctors to health care providers with the ability to prescribe pharmaceuticals.

In 2021, the FDA removed the in-person dispensing requirement allowing qualified health care providers to prescribe mifepristone and the second drug, misoprostol, via telehealth and send the medication through the mail.

Kacsmaryk agreed with the claims the anti-abortion organizations made, releasing an opinion in early April revoking the FDAs 2000 approval of mifepristone.

Mifepristone remains available under a ruling the U.S. Supreme Court issued April 21 that blocked enforcement of that ruling.

That likely means whatever action the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals takes following Wednesdays oral arguments would be paused until the nine justices on the Supreme Court decide whether to hear the case.

If the Supreme Court does take the case and issues a ruling on the approval and use of mifepristone it would apply to every state in the country, including those that have protected abortion access up to 10 weeks, the cap on the medications use.

Drugmakers file brief

Pharmaceutical companies have raised concerns about the ability of a judge to alter the use and administration of an FDA-approved medication, or overturn that decision altogether.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, or PhRMA, and others filed a 40-page brief with the appeals court arguing against overturning or altering the FDAs judgment.

They argued the federal district judge erred by replacing FDAs scientific judgments with its own views on what information should be considered and how it should be assessed.

They also wrote the ruling risks stifling pharmaceutical innovation by disrupting industrys reasonable investment-backed expectations.

And major medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, have urged the court to keep mifepristone legal.

They contend the district courts ruling disregards decades of unambiguous analysis supporting the use of mifepristone in miscarriage and abortion care.

It relies on pseudoscience and on speculation, and adopts wholesale and without appropriate judicial inquiry the assertions of a small group of declarants who are ideologically opposed to abortion care and at odds with the overwhelming majority of the medical community and the FDA, a group of 13 medical organization wrote in a brief to the appeals court.

U.S. House gets involved

Not everyone, however, agrees with leaving the medical and scientific approval process to the FDA.

U.S. House Republicans sought to change access to medication abortion Wednesday, introducing a funding bill that would nullify changes the FDA made in January.

Those changes allowed brick-and-mortar and mail-order pharmacies to apply to dispense mifepristone to patients after they received a prescription. The FDA also solidified changes made during the pandemic that ended the in-person dispensing requirement.

A summary of the agriculture appropriations bill from House Republicans says the measure includes a provision that ends mail-order chemical abortion drugs.

The legislation, one of the dozen annual appropriations bills, funds the Agriculture Department and the FDA as well as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Farm Credit Administration.

Maryland Republican Rep. Andy Harris chairs the subcommittee tasked with drafting the legislation.
A Bellevue Hospital employee is on leave after an odd bike incident was captured on video. The woman, wearing NYC Health + Hospitals scrubs, is shown trying to grab a Citi Bike from a Black man while crying out for help, the New York Post reports. The man tells her he's paid to use that bike and that it's on his account, and though he does not make any attempt to push her away from the bike in the video, she can be seen pushing him and then grabbing his phone while yelling, "Get off me, youre hurting my fetus." He responds, Im not touching you! Youre putting your stomach on my hand." After a man wearing the same scrubs arrives on the scene and suggests the woman check out a different bike, she stops crying and starts to do so, NBC New York reports.

"We are aware of the video involving a health care provider off duty and away from the hospital campus. The incident in the video is disturbing, NYC Health + Hospitals says in a statement. The provider is currently out on leave and will remain on leave pending a review." A lawyer for the woman says that her client first paid for the bike using the Citi Bike app before being approached by the man in the video and his friends, who said the bike was theirs and pushed it back into its docking station. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, however, says the woman "tried to weaponize her tears to paint this man as a threat," endangering him and his friends, and many commenters online agreed, comparing her to the so-called "Central Park Karen." (Read more viral video stories.)
Limousine service manager Nauman Hussain was convicted of manslaughter Monday in a courtroom in Albany, New York, just a few miles away from the site of a crash that killed 20 people in 2018. The jury deliberated for less than six hours before finding Hussain guilty of 20 counts of second-degree murder in the crash, which killed 17 passengers, the driver, and two pedestrians, the Albany Times Union reports. Hussain, 33, could face up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced later this month.

In a move that shocked defense attorneys last year, state Supreme Court Justice Peter Lynch rejected a plea deal that would have meant no prison time for Hussain. The trial ended up being much shorter than expected, wrapping up in six days when some had expected six weeks, the New York Times. The Times Union reports that relatives of the victims burst into tears and some applauded when the verdict was read out. The passengers, including four sisters, were on the way to a birthday party when the 2001 Ford Excursion's brakes failed, causing the country's worst transportation disaster in more than a decade.

In closing arguments, Hussain's lawyer, Lee Kindlon, said that his client had been misled by a repair shop that told him the 31-foot vehicle's brakes had been fixed, the AP reports. Prosecutors said Hussain failed to conduct required inspections on the vehicle that would have prevented the crash. "Mr. Hussain caused the deaths of the victims," prosecutor Frederick Rench said. He said Hussain had lied about the vehicle's condition and failed in his duty to ensure it was roadworthy. (Read more car crash stories.)
The man who was killed in a shootout with police after he fatally shot three people in Farmington, New Mexico Monday has been identified as Beau Wilson, an 18-year-old high school senior who was due to graduate the next day. Police say the gunman fired on cars and homes apparently at random. The Albuquerque Journal reports that all three people he killed were women over 70 who were shot in cars. Gwendolyn Schofield, 97, and her 73-year-old daughter Melody Ivie, a well-known preschool educator, died at the scene. Shirley Voita, 79, died in the hospital. Six people were injured, including two police officers.

Police say that after firing shots from his father's home, Wilson walked out wearing a bulletproof vest. He had a note in his pocket that said "If your (sic) reading this Im the end of the chapter" and "lay eyes or (dare) put a finger on my little sister I promise there will be regrets." Police said Wednesday that they're not aware of any issues with the shooter's sister and they found no other notes, the Journal reports. Police said Wilson bought the AR-15-style rifle used in the shooting legally in November, the month after he turned 18, and he bought three magazine for it two days before the shooting. The two other weapons he used belonged to a family member, police said.

Police said family members told them Wilson was "struggling with mental health issues," but there was no "significant indication" something would happen that day. Wilson was a student at Farmington High School, which went ahead with its commencement ceremony Tuesday night, NBC reports. Farmington Municipal Schools spokesperson Roberto Taboada said it was "the best way to honor our students for their accomplishments, dedication, and unwavering commitment to our community." Speakers at the ceremony talked of resilience and hope, the AP reports. (Read more mass shootings stories.)
Legislation introduced by Rep. Cori Bush calls for $14 trillion in reparations to Black Americans. The Missouri Democrat says the legacy of chattel slavery and the discriminatory policies, systems, and laws that came after continues to affect "millions of Black people" today, citing the worse health outcomes and infant mortality rates Black Americans face, as well as voter suppression and the wealth gap between Black and white Americans. "We know that we continue to live under slavery's vestiges. We know how slavery has perpetuated Jim Crow. We know how slavery's impacts live on today," Bush said, per NPR. The reparations would go to the descendants of enslaved Africans and people of African descent, the Hill reports.

Bush was joined by fellow Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee, Jamaal Bowman, and Rashida Tlaib in announcing the legislation Wednesday. Reparations have been discussed since slavery ended, but little movement has happened; NPR notes that when it comes to congressional efforts, "similar language about reparations has been introduced in every legislative session since 1989," and the Washington Post says reparations advocates have experienced "years of frustration." It wasn't until 2021 that Evanston, Illinois, became the first city to create a reparations plan for Black residents. California is currently considering a reparations plan, as are more than a dozen other states and cities, but all of the outlets point out the idea remains "broadly unpopular" in the wider population. (Read more Cori Bush stories.)
A 1,100-year-old Hebrew Bible, among the world's oldest biblical manuscripts, is now also among the world's most expensive books. The handwritten manuscript on 792 leather-bound pages of sheepskin, dubbed Codex Sassoon after a previous owner, sold for $38.1 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York on Wednesday and will head to Israel for public display. The oldest near-complete Hebrew Bible, missing only 12 leaves from its 24 books, was purchased by Alfred H. Moses, former US Ambassador to Romania, on behalf of the American Friends of ANU, who donated it to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv, per the AP. That's a relief to some who feared it would end up in private hands, per the Times of Israel.

It last sold at auction in 1989 for $3.19 million. Its new price taga little shy of the $43.2 million paid for a rare copy of the US constitution in 2021"reflects the profound power, influence, and significance of the Hebrew Bible, which is an indispensable pillar of humanity," says Sotheby's Judaica specialist Sharon Liberman Mintz, per the AP. It's "one of the rarest, unique, uniting documents that ever existed," Irina Nevzlin, chair of ANU's board of directors, tells the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. "For us to have it in the museum where it will be available for all those millions of peoplethis is something that can strengthen our roots and our identity, because its something eternal."

The purchase was made possible by a donation from Moses, per the New York Times. "It was my mission, realizing the historic significance of Codex Sassoon, to see that it resides in a place with global access to all people," he says in a statement, adding "the Hebrew Bible is the most influential book in history and constitutes the bedrock of Western civilization." This particular version is written by a single scribe on the skins "of easily more than 100 animals," meaning it would've been a pricey object at the time it was created in present-day Israel or Syria between 880 and 960, per the NY Times. Still "remarkably legible," the document includes inscriptions that trace its ownership across 200 years, beginning in the year 1000. (Read more Bible stories.)
On Tuesday, Elizabeth Holmes' bid to remain free while she appeals her fraud conviction was rebuffed. On Wednesday, the disgraced Theranos founder received the reporting date to begin her 11-year sentence: May 30, per Judge Edward Davila, who also presided over her trial. CNN Business reports that Davila agreed to the post-Memorial Day date requested in a filing Wednesday by Holmes' attorneys, who said the 39-year-old needed time to make medical arrangements and set up child care for her two young children.

It's not yet clear where Holmes will be incarcerated, but Davila had previously suggested she spend her sentence at a minimum-security federal prison in Bryan, Texas. The AP notes that Holmes became pregnant with her now 1-year-old son, William, right before her trial began in September 2021. She became pregnant with daughter Invicta, now 3 months, soon after her conviction. Holmes shares both children with partner Billy Evans. Meanwhile, Holmes' former romantic partner, ex-Theranos COO Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, appeared in a new headline with her on Tuesday, when both were ordered to pay $452 million in restitution to victims of the blood-testing firm's fraud.

Davila ruled that the pair "will be jointly and severally liable for this sum," meaning that one of the parties alone could be held responsible for the full amount, per CNN. Lawyers for both Holmes and Balwani had argued that other "intervening" events had contributed to investor losses, but Davila dismissed that argument. "The victims' losses occurred at the moment they exchanged their money for Theranos shares," Davila said, per Reuters. Balwani, who was convicted of fraud in his own trial, began his 13-year prison sentence last month. (Read more Elizabeth Holmes stories.)
UPDATE

May 20, 2023 6:30 AM CDT

The mother of an 8-year-old girl who died in Border Patrol custody said Friday that agents repeatedly ignored pleas to hospitalize her medically fragile daughter as she felt pain in her bones, struggled to breathe, and was unable to walk. Agents said her daughter's diagnosis of influenza did not require hospital care, Mabel Alvarez Benedicks said in an emotional phone interview. They knew the girl had a history of heart problems and sickle cell anemia, the AP reports. They killed my daughter, because she was nearly a day and a half without being able to breathe," the mother said. "She cried and begged for her life and they ignored her. They didnt do anything for her." The girl died Wednesday on what her mother said was the familys ninth day in Border Patrol custody.

May 18, 2023 2:00 AM CDT

An 8-year-old girl died Wednesday in Border Patrol custody, authorities said, a rare occurrence that comes as the agency struggles with overcrowding. The child and her family were being held at a station in Harlingen, Texas, in Rio Grande Valley, one of the busiest corridors for illegal crossings, US Customs and Border Protection, the Border Patrol's parent agency, said in a statement. The girl experienced a medical emergency and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died, according to the statement, which did not disclose her nationality or provide additional information about the incident, the AP reports.

Customs and Border Protection's internal affairs office will investigate, and the Homeland Security Department's inspector general and Harlingen police have been notified, Miller said. Sgt. Larry Moore, a spokesman for the Harlingen Police Department, said he had no information about the death. The Border Patrol had 28,717 people in custody on May 10, the day before pandemic-related asylum restrictions expired, which was double from two weeks earlier, according to a court filing. By Sunday, the number had dropped 23% to 22,259, still unusually high. The average time in custody on Sunday was 77 hours, five hours more than the maximum allowed under agency policy. Last week, a 17-year-old Honduran boy traveling alone died in US Health and Human Services Department custody.

(Read more US-Mexico border stories.)
Jack Teixeira's lawyer wants him released on bond as he awaits trial for allegedly sharing government secrets on the internet, arguing the 21-year-old who lives at home with his parents isn't as scary as the government is making him out to be. According to Brendan Kelley, Teixeira only meant to share information obtained through his job as an IT professional at a military base with a small group of online friends. In a new court filing, however, prosecutors say classified information was posted to "multiple" Discord servers, one of which had at least 150 users, including some admitted foreign nationals, per the Daily Beast and Washington Post. What's more, they say the leaks continued as Teixeira was repeatedly cited for viewing classified intelligence information unrelated to his job.

The Massachusetts Air National Guardsmanwho also allegedly kept an "arsenal" of weapons and wrote online about wanting to kill a "ton of people" in a mass shooting, per the Postwas "observed taking notes" on classified material in September and ordered to stop, but was found to be "potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order" just a month later, according to an Air Force memorandum. He was again found viewing intelligence content in February, per the BBC. The filing also describes chats in which Teixeira boasted of "knowing what happens more than pretty much anyone" and acknowledged that sharing his knowledge "would be the equivalent of what chelsea manning did," referring to the former US Army soldier convicted for sharing classified information with WikiLeaks.

"The damage the defendant has already caused to the US national security is immense. The damage the defendant is still capable of causing is extraordinary," prosecutors wrote in an earlier filing, advocating for continued detention. They say Teixeira destroyed evidence and may still possess classified documents, making him a potential recruitment target of foreign governments. Teixeira's attorneys counter that these claims are "little more than speculation." Kelley adds that the weapons found in Teixeira's home, described by prosecutors as rifles and "AR- and AK-style weapons," were airsoft guns. Teixeira is to appear before a judge, who will decide whether or not to release him, on Friday. Teixeira's father has vowed to keep him under video surveillance if bond is granted, per the Post. (Read more Jack Teixeira stories.)
Russia fired 30 cruise missiles against different parts of Ukraine early Thursday in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defenses, which shot down 29 of them, officials said. One person died and two were wounded by a Russian missile that got through and struck an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa, according to Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the region's military administration. Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv as the Kremlins forces targeted the capital for the ninth time this month in a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons, the AP reports.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts, starting a fire at a garage complex. There was no immediate word about any victims, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv Military Administration, said in a Telegram post. Ukraine also shot down two Russian exploding drones and two reconnaissance drones, according to authorities. The missiles were launched from Russian sea, air, and ground bases, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian commander in chief, wrote on Telegram. Russian forces used strategic bombers from the Caspian region and apparently fired X-101 and X-55-type missiles developed during Soviet times, Kyiv authorities said

In the last major air attack on Kyiv, on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses bolstered by sophisticated Western-supplied systems shot down all the incoming missiles, officials said. That attack used hypersonic missiles, which repeatedly have been touted by Russian President Vladimir Putin as providing a key strategic advantage. The missiles, which are among the most advanced weapons in Russia's arsenal, are difficult to detect and intercept because of their hypersonic speed and maneuverability.

(Read more Russia-Ukraine war stories.)
Gift this article Share this article paywall-free.

The collapse of President Bidens border policy was on full display with the end of Title 42 deportation authority on May 11.

Title 42 is the Trump-era public health order that has allowed border officials to turn away nearly 3 million migrants to prevent COVID-19.

Biden kept the policy in place for most of his first year in office, but then sought to have it rescinded. He pushed for Title 42 to end without any plan to deal with the massive influx of illegal immigrants it unleashed.

Do nothing has been the Biden migration policy since the president named Vice President Kamala Harris as border czar, recognized even then as proof certain that nothing was intended. Harris was assigned to focus on the root causes of migration in Central America.

In August 2021, the Washington Post editorial board concluded President Bidens immigration policy has been a failure and he needs a coherent strategy for the border.

Nearly two years have elapsed since with no meaningful action.

The southern border is a disaster and in chaos.

In 10 days before Title 42 ended, more than 81,000 illegal immigrants were encountered at the southern border, while an estimated 26,000 Gotaways evaded authorities.

On May 9 and 10, there were more than 11,000 illegal migrant apprehensions each day, single-day records.

Officials predict illegal crossings will double from recent averages in coming weeks, though not immediately.

An estimated 60-65,000 more migrants from all over the world are massed across the border in Mexico, waiting for the right moment to walk or swim to the U.S. Criminals and feuding drug cartels with record amounts of fentanyl are being intercepted at points of entry.

States of emergency are declared in El Paso, Yuma and other border cities, but also in Democratic-run New York state and Chicago, far from the border. Shelters and emergency-bed capacity are overwhelmed.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams reports 40,000 newly arrived asylum seekers are likely to cost his city $4.3 billion through the summer of 2024. The city may create migrant tent shelters in Central Park.

This is what failure looks like. Even Biden admitted the migrant surge was going to be chaotic with Title 42 ending.

The Biden Administration has tried to minimize the collapse of its immigration policy, hoping most Americans wouldnt notice if only Fox News was regularly reporting on the border chaos.

Its important to recall how we got here. Democrats campaigned against the Trump Administrations policies as cruel.

Biden has done everything in his power to remove deterrents to mass migration.

Upon taking office, he ended the Remain in Mexico policy implemented by President Trump, which required asylum seekers to wait in Mexico until their U.S. immigration court date.

Biden also terminated the safe third country agreements Trump negotiated with El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, which required migrants to apply for asylum in the first foreign country they crossed into.

The signal went out to migrants that the border was effectively open. If you entered the United States and claimed asylum, you would be admitted with a future date for an asylum hearing you may never have to show up for. Millions of migrants took the hint and came in record numbers.

The current surge is so great the Biden Administration began releasing migrants into the U.S. without court dates and with no way to track them. A Florida federal judge temporarily blocked that policy.

In a letter to Biden, three Nevada Democratic lawmakers, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, Jacky Rosen, and Rep. Susie Lee, slammed the Biden administration for being insufficiently prepared for the border debacle.

The only way to stop the migrant deluge now is a clear message:

If youre caught illegally at the border, you will be deported and put on a banned list for legal entry. No exceptions.
UPDATE

May 24, 2023 2:22 PM CDT

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is officially running for president. The Republican filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday, hours before a 6pm ET Twitter Spaces session with Elon Musk in which he is expected to launch his campaign, the AP reports. DeSantis enters the race behind front-runner Donald Trump in the polls but well ahead of other challengers. Today's move puts DeSantis "in direct competition" with Trump for "the heart of the Republican Party," per Politico.

May 18, 2023 9:25 AM CDT

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, long seen as a rival to former President Trump for the GOP nomination, is getting ready to make it official. Sources tell outlets including the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post that DeSantis plans to file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission next week to formally declare his candidacy. The sources say major DeSantis donors will gather at a Miami hotel next week ahead of a planned fundraising blitz. According to the Post's sources, DeSantis also plans to hold a campaign launch event in his hometown, Dunedin, after Memorial Day.

CBS reports that the governor's political operation moved to new offices in Tallahassee on Monday, triggering a federal campaign law that will require him to register as a candidate within 15 days. DeSantis is far behind Trump in the polls, though he has a large lead over other GOP challengers and analysts believe his numbers will get a boost when he officially launches his campaign. (Read more Ron DeSantis stories.)
A bounce house business owner in Australia is going to be spending years in the big house over an arson campaign against his rivals. James Balcombe, 58, pleaded guilty to 11 charges of conspiracy to commit arson and was sentenced to 11 years in prison, 9News reports. The court was told that Balcombe became obsessed with a desire to make his business the leading bounce house firm in Melbourne and paid three people to firebomb rivals in 2016 and 2017, reports the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Most of the fires caused little damage, but one business, A&A Jumping Castles, was wiped out in a fire that destroyed 110 bounce houses. The fire caused more than $900,000 in damage to the uninsured business.

The court heard that Balcombe ordered the arsonists to return to businesses repeatedly when earlier attempts failed. He was arrested three days after he ordered an arson attack on his own business in an attempt to deflect police suspicions and get an insurance payout. After he was released on bail, he fled to Perth and operated another business under a fake name until police tracked him down, the Guardian reports. Balcombe, who has been in jail for almost three years, will be eligible for parole when he has served eight years. The judge told him that while he had sought to boost his own business, his actions "impacted the lives and livelihoods of others, caused significant loss, suffering, and emotional trauma." (Read more bounce house stories.)
House Democrats' push to expel from Congress GOP freshman Rep. George Santos, recently indicted on a list of criminal charges, wasn't expected to earn the two-thirds majority needed to do so, and it didn't. The 221-204 vote Wednesday, which followed party lines, instead decided to refer a resolution on Santos to the House Ethics Committee, reports Axios. All Republicans voted for the motion; the five Democrats on the Ethics Committee voted "present," effectively abstaining. Santos has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, refused to resign, and is making moves to run for reelection. More on the thwarted expulsion:

Reactions from fellow NY Republicans: Despite their vote not to expel, several New York GOPers made their feelings clear. Rep. Nick LaLota called Santos a "sociopath scam artist" and a "terrible liar," but said he hopes the Ethics Committee will have a ruling in two months' time. "No previous vote for expulsion of a member from the House has occurred without an accompanying report from the Ethics Committee [or another panel]," Rep. Andrew Garbarino, who's on the Ethics Committee, said in a statement. "A stain on this institution, a stain on the state of New York, a stain on Long Island, and a stain on the beloved Nassau County," Rep. Anthony Esposito said of his disgraced colleague, per ABC News.

Despite their vote not to expel, several New York GOPers made their feelings clear. Rep. Nick LaLota called Santos a "sociopath scam artist" and a "terrible liar," but said he hopes the Ethics Committee will have a ruling in two months' time. "No previous vote for expulsion of a member from the House has occurred without an accompanying report from the Ethics Committee [or another panel]," Rep. Andrew Garbarino, who's on the Ethics Committee, said in a statement. "A stain on this institution, a stain on the state of New York, a stain on Long Island, and a stain on the beloved Nassau County," Rep. Anthony Esposito said of his disgraced colleague, per ABC News. Kevin McCarthy's perspective: "I think we can look at this very quickly and come to a conclusion on what George Santos did and did not do through Ethics, a safe bipartisan committee, equal number of Republicans and Democrats, and I think that's when you bring it back to Congress if it rises to the ability," the House speaker had noted at a presser on Tuesday.

Bowman-MTG battle: USA Today describes a "shouting match" that took place on the Capitol steps regarding the vote, including an interaction between Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman and GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. "He's embarrassing y'all!" Bowman told Greene, referring to Santos. "Save the party. The party is hanging by a thread!" Her reply: "Biden is embarrassing. ... We gotta get rid of Biden to save the country!" She then started chanting, "Impeach Biden! Impeach Biden!" Watch it play out here.

USA Today describes a "shouting match" that took place on the Capitol steps regarding the vote, including an interaction between Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman and GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. "He's embarrassing y'all!" Bowman told Greene, referring to Santos. "Save the party. The party is hanging by a thread!" Her reply: "Biden is embarrassing. ... We gotta get rid of Biden to save the country!" She then started chanting, "Impeach Biden! Impeach Biden!" Watch it play out here. Divergent Dems? That's according to Politico, which reports on internal wrangling on strategy among Democrats before the vote. Some Dems reportedly agreed it would be better to block McCarthy's push to send Santos' case to the Ethics Committee, while other, more senior Dems though it might set "bad precedent"illustrating "the enduring generational divide within a caucus that's growing younger and more progressive after decades of leadership by an octogenarian trio."

Santos rep ditches him: Spokeswoman Naysa Woomer stepped down from her post on Wednesday, and she didn't hold back in criticism of her now ex-boss. "Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given," she said in her resignation email, appearing to direct that comment at Santos, per Scripps News.

Spokeswoman Naysa Woomer stepped down from her post on Wednesday, and she didn't hold back in criticism of her now ex-boss. "Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given," she said in her resignation email, appearing to direct that comment at Santos, per Scripps News. Santos defender's response: Anna Paulina Luna, whom Axios calls "one of Santos' few friends in Congress," had an interesting reaction to the commotion around the Long Island congressman: She introduced a resolution to expel Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff. Luna has been called "the new George Santos" for some murky details in her own bio.

Anna Paulina Luna, whom Axios calls "one of Santos' few friends in Congress," had an interesting reaction to the commotion around the Long Island congressman: She introduced a resolution to expel Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff. Luna has been called "the new George Santos" for some murky details in her own bio. Santos' take: The beleaguered congressman himself voted for the motion to send the resolution about him to Ethics. "There's a process in this country: Everybody is innocent until proven guilty," he told reporters after the vote, per Axios. On whether he'd comply with a recommendation from the committee to step down: "Well, of course, I'm not chaining myself here. If the Ethics Committee makes that recommendation, that's a different story."

(Read more George Santos stories.)
There's a new "children's book" that recently made the rounds in DCexcept it's actually a book for lawmakers, penned by the mom of a 17-year-old Parkland victim. Joaquin's First School Shooting is written by Patricia Oliver, mother of Joaquin Oliver, who was gunned down in the 2018 massacre at Florida's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 14 students and three staff members. The book's colorful cover, showing a beaming boy with a bunch of daisies getting off the bus to head into school, doesn't offer much of a hint on the horror that lies within the inside pages, other than the ominous title and two large holes (representing bullet holes) standing in for the "O's" in "shooting."

The holes were designed to mimic the finger holes often found in children's books to help kids turn the pages, except in this case, they're found throughout the book located directly on children's bodies. The book, which Oliver was approached to collaborate on by PR firm Burson Cohn & Wolfe, depicts what happened to Oliver's son Joaquin on the day he was killed (he'd brought daisies to school for his girlfriend), with drawings showing dead children on the floor and other kids running panicked through the hallways. "The end of the day, was also my own. Bled out on the floor, and never got home," reads the accompanying text next to a drawing showing the Joaquin character fatally gunned down on the floor, with the black beanie that the real Joaquin often wore by his side.

The Washington Post talked to the book's illustrator, who said working on the project was "the hardest book I've ever had to draw," Maria Lavezzi tells the paper. "I cried and cried. It's impossible for it not to spark something within you or at least make you question: What do we have to do to put an end to this violence?" Oliver stresses the book isn't meant for kids but for lawmakers, and she traveled to Capitol Hill last week to show it to two dozen of them from both sides of the aisle. "We felt this is a new way, a unique way, to make politicians understand," she told ABC News. "What better example than our own son?" Democratic Rep. Tony Cardenas of California, who has a grandson named Joaquin, was one of the lawmakers she visited. "You made me realize that I pray that Joaquin never has his first school shooting," a tearful Cardenas told her after reading the book, per the Post. (Read more school shooting stories.)
After 89-year-old Dianne Feinstein returned to the Senate earlier this month, the San Francisco Chronicle was the first to note that Nancy Pelosi's oldest daughter has been a regular presence by her side. Feinstein and Pelosi are longtime friends, and the appearance of Nancy Corinne Prowda, Pelosi's daughter, as a helper wasn't seen as especially newsworthy. Now, however, the Politico Playbook suggests some political intrigue is involvedthat it's part of Pelosi's strategy to make sure Rep. Adam Schiff replaces Feinstein in the Senate. As Politico explains it, Pelosi has endorsed Schiff, and he seems to have a big advantage of others vying to replace Feinstein, who is not running for reelection. However, "if Feinstein were to bow to pressure and retire early, Schiffs advantage could disappear," per Politico.

That's because California Gov. Gavin Newsom has promised to appoint a Black woman to fill the seat should Feinstein retire early, and whoever he picks would get a big advantage by running as the incumbent in the next election. The idea, then, is that Pelosi has sent her daughter to help make sure Feinstein is able to serve out her term. Spokespersons for both lawmakers deny it. The two lawmakers have "been friends since long before their service in Congressand their friendship is personal, not political, says Pelosi's spokesperson. Nancy Corrine is a dear friend of Senator Feinsteins going back more than 40 years, says Feinsteins spokesperson. She has been spending time with the senator as she continues to recover from shingles.

Meanwhile, concerns about whether Feinstein is still up to the job aren't going away. Were monitoring her medical condition almost on a daily basis," said Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, who replaced Feinstein as chair of the Judiciary Committee, per CNN. "Our staff is in touch with her staff. He declined to say whether he has confidence in her ability to serve. I cant be the judge of that," he said, adding that "she has to make that decision for herself and her family as to going forward." (Reporters recounted a "concerning" exchange with Feinstein.)
President Vo Van Thuong (R) receives Secretary of the National Security Council of Mongolia Jadamba Enkhbayar. (Photo: VNA)

President Thuong highlighted the fruitful friendship between the two nations in the last nearly seven decades, saying that the bilateral relations have been continuously consolidated and developed strongly.

He highly valued the outcomes of the working session between the Mongolian delegation with the Ministry of Public Security and relevant agencies of Vietnam, stressing that on the basis of important results of the bilateral cooperation relationship, the two countries will make joint efforts to upgrade their relations and further promote comprehensive cooperation in the new context.

The Vietnamese leader suggested the two sides promote the exchange of delegations at all levels, thus strengthening mutual understanding and trust, and implement measures to create more favourable conditions for people-to-people exchanges.

He also welcomed coordination results and proposals to further enhance cooperation between the National Security Council of Mongolia and the Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam, and thanked Mongolia for supporting Vietnam to build a cavalry mobile police force.

President Thuong called on the Mongolian side to support efforts of ASEAN and Vietnam in maintaining peace, stability, cooperation and development, and freedom and safety of navigation and overflight in the East Sea.

He highlighted the importance of strengthening the Vietnam-Mongolia relations in the context of global and regional changes, saying that Vietnam stands ready to serve as a bridge to support Mongolia in expanding and strengthening ties with ASEAN for peace and prosperity in the region and the world.

Conveying his regards to Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, President Thuong said Vietnam wants to welcome the Mongolian leader to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time.

For his part, Jadamba Enkhbayar said that Vietnamese and Mongolian people have deep mutual understanding on the basis of the long-standing traditional friendship established by senior leaders of the two countries, and they often support each other in difficult times.

He informed the Vietnamese leader of the contents of cooperation between the National Security Council of Mongolia with the Ministry of Public Security and relevant agencies of Vietnam, stressing that his country wants to further expand cooperation with Vietnam, especially in transport, railways and aviation.

The two countries should closely cooperate together in ensuring security and order for the peaceful lives of their people, he said.

The Mongolian official also conveyed the invitation of Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh to President Thuong to visit Mongolia./.
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday staged hearty welcome ceremonies for Central Asian leaders attending a milestone summit that is expected to draw up new blueprints for China-Central Asia cooperation.

All is ready in the northwestern city of Xi'an, the historical starting point of the ancient Silk Road, for the China-Central Asia Summit, which is scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The summit, the first in-person gathering among heads of state of China and five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, will be chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi is expected to expound on China's position on how to build a China-Central Asia community with a shared future in the new era and put forward a series of proposals for the long-term development of cooperation among the six countries.

Xi will also announce a string of pragmatic measures and comprehensively chart the course for China-Central Asia cooperation.

The first Central Asian leader to arrive in Xi'an was Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also arrived on Wednesday.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov will arrive on Thursday. A welcome banquet will be held for the five leaders.

The leaders who have arrived were greeted with performances of traditional Shaanxi folk dances at the airport.

The 190-member performing team included 50 performers of waist drum dance and 48 of Yangge folk dance. Both are popular forms of folk art in Shaanxi.

"We feel honored and excited to have the opportunity to show our hometown's folk art to the distinguished guests from Central Asia," said Hou Shikai, a 53-year-old Yangge performer. "May the friendship between China and the five Central Asian countries last forever."

In his talks with Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

"Your state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to your unique bond with China," Xi told the Kazakh president.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was one of the key topics during their talks.

Speaking to Tokayev, Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the BRI 10 years ago.

For his part, Tokayev lauded the BRI as a great initiative and said his country will continue taking an active part in it.

Tokayev also said that Kazakhstan will actively support the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

He vowed to work with China to jointly promote regional security, stability and development by leveraging the China-Central Asia mechanism.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

In their talks, Xi hailed the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit as a summit of "milestone significance," which will usher in a new era of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Xi said China will work with Central Asian countries to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform for promoting in-depth cooperation.

The summit is seen as the latest landmark in the vibrant high-level interactions, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between China and Central Asian countries.

Leaders of the six countries are expected to sign an important political document and witness the signing of multiple cooperation documents covering areas including economy, trade, investment and connectivity, according to a press conference held before the summit.

Editor: GSY
Japanese police officials say two Nepalese men killed in a traffic accident in northeastern Japan on Tuesday may have been trying to help their bus driver fix the vehicle's engine.

A large truck crashed into the bus on an expressway in Miyagi Prefecture on Tuesday night. Three people were killed, and one person was injured. The bus was parked on the shoulder of the road, as it was having engine trouble.

The third person killed was the female Japanese bus driver. The truck driver sustained serious head injuries. He is from Aomori Prefecture.

Police officials and a representative of an employment agency say the 40 passengers on the bus were all foreign students, who attend automotive repair schools or language schools in the city of Sendai. All the students -- 39 Nepalese and one Bangladeshi -- are in their 20s.

They were heading to a factory that belongs to the housing equipment maker Lixil. The factory is located in the adjacent prefecture of Iwate. The students work there part-time. They were going to assemble window frames.

All the passengers had reportedly gotten off the bus, after it started emitting smoke and having engine trouble.

The two Nepalese men are said to have been near the rear of the bus when the accident occurred. ...continue reading
, May 18 ( News On Japan ) - Popular Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke IV has been rushed to hospital after he was found unconscious in his home in Tokyo along with his parents who have both been confirmed dead, TV Asahi reports.

According to investigative sources, shortly after 10:00 a.m. on the 18th, Ichikawa's manager found him and his parents collapsed at the home of Kabuki actor Ennosuke Ichikawa (47) in Meguro, Tokyo. He then reportedly called 911 saying, "Ichikawa was unconscious when he went to pick him up."

Ichikawa was transported to the hospital in a state of unconsciousness.

His parents were found dead in the living room on the second floor, his mother was pronounced dead at the scene, and his father was taken to the hospital in an unconscious state, where he was later pronounced dead.

A suicide note was also found in the basement of his home. The Metropolitan Police Department believes that Ichikawa attempted suicide based on the situation at the scene and is investigating in detail.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday held talks in Xi'an with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi warmly welcomed Tokayev to China for the summit and the state visit. Xi expressed his pleasure at hosting Tokayev in Xi'an and once again wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

Xi pointed out that Tokayev's state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to his unique bond with China.

China and Kazakhstan are trustworthy good friends, good brothers and good partners, he said.

Xi stressed that both countries are at a crucial stage of development and rejuvenation, and China-Kazakhstan relations have entered the next three golden decades.

The two sides should vigorously carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, pursue development and rejuvenation, and build a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, strong mutual trust and solidarity, Xi said.

An independent, stable, and prosperous Kazakhstan meets the common interests of the Chinese and Kazakh people, Xi said, noting that China firmly supports Kazakhstan in safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and in choosing its development path based on national conditions.

Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the Belt and Road Initiative 10 years ago.

He called for joint efforts to expand cooperation in economy, trade, investment, agriculture, automobile manufacturing and energy, deepen connectivity, and explore new cooperation areas including e-commerce, innovation and big data.

China and Kazakhstan will take the signing of an agreement on mutual visa exemption as an opportunity to strengthen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, Xi said.

He welcomed the launch of the Kazakhstan tourism year in China in 2024, and expressed his belief that the opening of a Kazakh consulate general in Xi'an will promote local exchanges between the two countries.

Xi said the forthcoming summit is of milestone significance and will usher China-Central Asia cooperation into a new era.

China is ready to work with Central Asian countries including Kazakhstan to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform to promote the in-depth cooperation of the six countries, Xi said.

Tokayev extended congratulations on China's great achievements under Xi's leadership and expressed his belief that China will have an even more brilliant future.

Tokayev said he totally agrees with Xi on the evaluation of bilateral relations and the suggestions on further strengthening cooperation. Stressing China's special and important position in his country's foreign policy, he said the Kazakhstan-China relations are based on strong friendship and solid mutual trust and enjoy common goals and missions.

Kazakhstan is ready to work with China to further strengthen their permanent comprehensive strategic partnership and lay a solid foundation for the two countries to usher in another three golden decades, said Tokayev.

He applauded the signing of the mutual visa exemption agreement and vowed to continue taking part in the Belt and Road Initiative.

He said Kazakhstan actively champions the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

Kazakhstan stands ready to work with China to fully leverage the China-Central Asia mechanism and jointly promote the regional security, stability and development, said Tokayev.

After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement and witnessed the signing of a raft of bilateral documents on cooperation in areas including economy, trade, energy, transport, agriculture, connectivity, culture, and local affairs.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang were present at the events.

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 17, 2023. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

Editor: GSY
TSXV: NOVR

OTCQB: NOVRF

VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Nova Royalty Corp. ("Nova" or the "Company") has reported its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023. Nova's financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023 are available on Nova's website at www.novaroyalty.com and on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Q1 2023 and Subsequent Highlights:

Quarterly revenue: Nova recognized revenue of $591,851 from its royalty interests, primarily related to Aranzazu. This was the second highest quarterly revenue on record for Nova.





Nova recognized revenue of from its royalty interests, primarily related to Aranzazu. This was the second highest quarterly revenue on record for Nova. Increased Copper World royalty : In April 2023 , Nova increased its exposure to Hudbay Minerals' Copper World project, a Tier-1 development asset located in Arizona . Nova now owns a 0.165% NSR royalty on Copper World and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510%.





: In , Nova increased its exposure to Hudbay Minerals' Copper World project, a Tier-1 development asset located in . Nova now owns a 0.165% NSR royalty on Copper World and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510%. Progress of portfolio assets: Several key development assets on which Nova holds royalties made meaningful progress toward construction decisions. First Quantum, Lundin and Hudbay continued to progress engineering and permitting at Taca Taca, Josemaria, and Copper World, respectively. In February 2023 , Los Andes Copper announced the results of a pre-feasibility study (" PFS ") and maiden mineral reserve for the Vizcachitas project, showing an initial mine life of 26 years, average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper for the first 8 years, an IRR of 24%, and a post-tax NPV of $2.8 billion .





Several key development assets on which Nova holds royalties made meaningful progress toward construction decisions. First Quantum, Lundin and Hudbay continued to progress engineering and permitting at Taca Taca, Josemaria, and Copper World, respectively. In , Los Andes Copper announced the results of a pre-feasibility study (" ") and maiden mineral reserve for the Vizcachitas project, showing an initial mine life of 26 years, average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper for the first 8 years, an IRR of 24%, and a post-tax NPV of . Senior management changes: On May 16, 2023 , the Company announced the departure of Alex Tsukernik as CEO and President, and appointed Hashim Ahmed as Interim CEO and Bill Tsang as Interim CFO.





On , the Company announced the departure of as CEO and President, and appointed as Interim CEO and as Interim CFO. Director changes: On May 17, 2023 , the Company announced that Douglas Silver , Johanna Fipke and Andrew Greville resigned from the Board of Directors.





On , the Company announced that , and resigned from the Board of Directors. Retained PI Financial as financial advisor: On May 17, 2023 , the Company announced that it had engaged PI Financial as its financial advisor to commence a process to explore, review and evaluate all options that may be available to the Company to maximize shareholder value.

Hashim Ahmed, interim CEO of Nova commented, "Nova generated significant momentum in the first quarter of 2023. We saw excellent operational performance at Aranzazu and are encouraged by the steady progress on the core assets underlying our royalty interests as the operators continue to advance them toward construction decisions. We remain focused on building a generational copper and nickel royalty portfolio and continue to advance a full pipeline of exciting acquisition opportunities."

Asset update

Aranzazu

Aura Minerals Inc. ("Aura") disclosed that Aranzazu produced 12.3 million copper equivalent ("CuEq") pounds ("lbs") during Q1 2023. CuEq production was 3% lower than in Q1 2022 and 10% lower than in Q4 2022 as a result of mining slightly lower grade gold and copper areas, in accordance with Aranzazu mine planning(1).

Nova recognized $0.6 million in revenue during Q1 2023, compared to $0.7 million in Q1 2022 and $0.5 million in Q4 2022, attributable to the Aranzazu royalty.

Aura reported that it expects to produce between 101,000  116,000 gold equivalent ounces ("GEO") at Aranzazu during 2023. Aranzazu produced 111,531 GEO during the year ended December 31, 2022. Additionally, Aura reported that a 20,000 metre drill program is planned for 2023 to focus on the geological potential of new mineralized zones, such as Cabrestante, El Cobre, and Limestone Bridge(1).

Aura last reported proven and probable mineral reserves at Aranzazu as of December 31, 2022 of 9.6 million tonnes at 1.23% copper, 0.81 g/t gold and 17.61 g/t silver(2).

Taca Taca

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. ("First Quantum") continued to conduct pre-development and feasibility activities at Taca Taca during Q1 2023. During the second quarter of 2021, First Quantum submitted two environmental permits regarding key infrastructure at Taca Taca. The primary Environmental and Social Impact Assessment ("ESIA") for Taca Taca was submitted to the Secretariat of Mining of Salta Province in 2019 and approval of the ESIA is anticipated in 2023. In November 2022, the Salta Production Minister signed Resolution 191/2022, approving the environmental pre-feasibility for the Taca Taca 345 kilovolt power line development. The power line development still requires detailed construction permits, but the main environmental aspects of its development have been approved. First Quantum expects an additional environmental permit related to the proposed bypass and access road construction for Taca Taca to be approved in 2023. Additionally, First Quantum reported that water supply studies and pump tests to support the application for a concession for borefield water supply advanced steadily in 2022 and are expected to be completed in 2023. First Quantum expects to file water permit applications progressively in 2023(3).

First Quantum last reported proven and probable mineral reserves at Taca Taca of 1,758.5 million tonnes at 0.44% Copper, 0.09 g/t gold, and 0.012% molybdenum(4).

Copper World Complex (formerly Copper World and Rosemont)

Hudbay Minerals Inc. ("Hudbay") previously reported that on September 21, 2022, an application for an Aquifer Protection Permit was submitted to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality ("ADEQ"), and on October 21, 2022, an application for an Air Quality Permit was submitted to the ADEQ(5). Hudbay reported that it expects to receive these two remaining state permits in 2023(6).

Hudbay reported that, in March 2023, it received confirmation from the Army Corps of Engineers ("ACOE") that its previous surrender of the Section 404 Clean Water Act permit for the former Rosemont project (the "404 Permit") was formally accepted and revoked, as requested. The ACOE also reaffirmed the validity of the March 2021 approved jurisdictional determinations, whereby the ACOE determined there are no waters of the U.S. in the area submitted for analysis, which is consistent with Hudbay's internal studies that also contemplate the full Copper World Complex area. Hudbay reported that it surrendered the 404 Permit to the ACOE in April 2022, as there is no evidence of jurisdictional waters of the U.S. on the former Rosemont project site. In May 2022, Judge Soto from the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona issued a favourable ruling that affirmed Hudbay's surrender of the 404 Permit was effective and that the new Copper World Complex project is not connected to the previous federal permitting process(6).

Hudbay also reported that, in May 2023, the Arizona Corporation Commission approved an amendment to the Certificate of Environmental Compatibility ("CEC") authorizing the electric transmission line to site. The CEC was granted for the former Rosemont project in 2012 and the amendment removed the requirements for federal permits so that the CEC can be used to construct the transmission line for the Copper World Complex(6).

Hudbay reported that it is continuing to advance clearing and grading work to prepare for the development of the Copper World Complex. PFS activities for Phase I are well-advanced and Hudbay reported that it expects to release a PFS in mid-2023(6).

Upon receipt of state permits, Hudbay reported that it expects to conduct a bulk sampling program to continue to de-risk the Copper World Complex by testing grade continuity, variable cut-off effectiveness, and metallurgical strategies. Hudbay also reported that, following receipt of the state permits, Hudbay intends to initiate a minority joint venture partner process, which will allow the potential joint venture partner to participate in definitive feasibility study activities in 2024(6).

In April 2023, Nova acquired an additional 0.03% NSR on the Copper World Complex (the "Additional Copper World Royalty"). The Additional Copper World Royalty has the same characteristics as the existing royalty on the Copper World Complex acquired by Nova in 2022 and covers all metals, including copper, molybdenum, silver, and gold extracted from the majority of mining claims covering the Copper World Complex. Nova now holds a 0.165% NSR royalty on the Copper World Complex and retains a right of first refusal in respect to an additional 0.510% NSR royalty on the Copper World Complex.

Hudbay last reported measured and indicated resources at the Copper World Complex of 1,173 million tonnes at 0.41% copper and inferred resources at the Copper World Complex of 262 million tonnes at 0.37% copper. In the preliminary economic assessment published by Hudbay for the Copper World Complex in June 2022, Hudbay reported that, as compared to the mineral resources included in a 2017 feasibility study published by Hudbay for the former Rosemont project, contained copper in measured and indicated resources at the Copper World Complex increased by 17% and contained copper in inferred resources increased by 328%(7).

Josemaria

As of March 31, 2023, Lundin Mining Corporation ("Lundin Mining") reported that it is updating the capital cost estimate and project execution schedule for Josemaria. Plant engineering was at 39% completion as of March 31, 2023, including procurement of long-lead equipment. Early works continue onsite, including Phase 1 camp construction and internal access road construction, which were 94% and 84% complete as of March 31, 2023, respectively. A geotechnical drilling campaign began in March 2023. Lundin Mining also reported that work continues in water, drilling, permitting and supply testing, and a program to initiate studies for water & permit requirements, including water balance and hydrogeological modelling, is to be incorporated into the bi-annual environmental impact assessment update submission planned for the second quarter of 2024. Lundin Mining reported that agreements with provincial governments regarding access roads, power supply, and infrastructure funding continue to progress, while progress also continued on a project union agreement for construction(8).

Lundin Mining reported that infill drilling and assaying completed at Josemaria in 2021 and 2022 will be incorporated into future Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve estimates published by Lundin Mining(8).

Additionally, Lundin Mining reported that it intends to spend approximately US$400 million on capital expenditures at Josemaria in 2023 in support of advancing the project prior to a potential construction decision(9).

Lundin Mining last reported proven and probable reserves at Josemaria of 1,012 million tonnes at 0.30% copper, 0.22 g/t gold, and 0.94 g/t silver(10).

Vizcachitas

On February 23, 2023, LAC announced the results of a positive PFS and a maiden reserve estimate at Vizcachitas. The PFS contemplates conventional open pit mining, crushing, grinding and flotation to produce a copper-silver concentrate and molybdenum concentrate product. Over an initial 26-year mine life, average annual production is forecast to be 152,883 tonnes of copper at C1 cash costs of US$1.25/lb Cu, with average annual production of 183,017 tonnes of copper at C1 cash costs of US$0.93/lb Cu over the first 8 years. The PFS contemplates an after tax US$2.8 billion NPV 8 % and IRR of 24%(11).

LAC last reported proven and probable mineral reserves for Vizcachitas of 1,220 million tonnes at 0.36% copper, 136 ppm molybdenum and 1.1 g/t silver. LAC also reported measured & indicated resources at Vizcachitas of 1,541 million tonnes at 0.38% copper, 155 ppm molybdenum, and 1.1 g/t silver(11).

About Nova

Nova Royalty Corp. is a copper and nickel focused royalty company. Nova has assembled a portfolio of royalties on a significant proportion of the next generation of major copper projects located in 1st-tier jurisdictions, providing investors exposure to some of the most critical resource assets for the clean energy transition. These projects are being advanced by the world's premier mining companies, which include First Quantum, Lundin Mining, Hudbay, Anglo American and Glencore, among others. The Company is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia and is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the trading symbol "NOVR" and on the US OTCQB under the trading symbol "NOVRF".

ON BEHALF OF NOVA ROYALTY CORP.,

(signed) "Hashim Ahmed"

Interim Chief Executive Officer

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notes:

(1) Refer to Aura Minerals' Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023. (2) Refer to Aura Minerals' Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2022. (3) Refer to First Quantum Minerals Management's Discussion and Analysis for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023. (4) Refer to First Quantum Minerals' NI 43-101 Technical Report Titled "Taca Taca Project, Salta, Argentina" prepared by David Gray (QP) BSc (Geology), (MAusIMM, FAIG), Group Mine and Resource Geologist, FQM (Australia) Ltd., filed November 30, 2020, amended and restated March 30, 2021. (5) Refer to Hudbay's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022. (6) Refer to Hudbay's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2023. (7) Refer to Hudbay's NI 43-101 Technical Report entitled "Preliminary Economic Assessment Copper World Complex, Pima County, Arizona USA" prepared by Olivier Tavchandjian P.Geo, Vice-President, Exploration and Technical Services, Hudbay. Effective as of May 1, 2022 and filed July 14, 2022. (8) Refer to Lundin Mining's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the quarter ended March 31, 2023. (9) Refer to Lundin Mining's press release titled "Lundin Mining Announces 2022 Production Results & Provides 2023 Guidance" on January 12, 2023. (10) Refer to Lundin Mining's NI 43-101 Technical Report titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report, Feasibility Study for the Josemaria Copper-Gold Project, San Juan Province, Argentina" prepared under the supervision of Andy Thomas, P.Eng. of SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc., dated November 5, 2020 with an effective date of September 28, 2020. (11) Refer to Los Andes Copper's NI 43-101 Technical Report Titled "Vizcachitas Project Pre-Feasibility Study, Valparaiso Region, Chile" prepared by Severino Modena, (QP) BSc, Mining Engineer, (MAusIMM, Member of Chilean Mining Commission), General Manager Sudamerica, Tetra Tech, filed April 1, 2023.

Technical and Third-Party Information

Nova has limited, if any, access to the properties on which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest. The Company may from time to time receive operating information from the owners and operators of the mining properties, which it is not permitted to disclose to the public. Nova is dependent on (i) the operators of the mining properties and their qualified persons to provide information to Nova, or (ii) publicly available information to prepare disclosure pertaining to properties and operations on the properties on which Nova holds royalty or other interests, and generally has limited or no ability to independently verify such information. Although Nova does not have any knowledge that such information may not be accurate, there can be no assurance that such third-party information is complete or accurate. Some reported public information in respect of a mining property may relate to a larger property area than the area covered by Nova's royalty or other interest. Nova's royalty or other interests may cover less than 100% of a specific mining property and sometimes may only apply to a portion of the publicly reported mineral reserves, mineral resources and or production from a mining property.

Unless otherwise indicated, the technical and scientific disclosure contained or referenced in this press release, including any references to mineral resources or mineral reserves, was prepared in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). Canadian standards for public disclosure of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects differ significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K (the "SEC Modernization Rules"). Nova is not currently subject to the SEC Modernization Rules. Accordingly, the scientific and technical information contained or referenced in this press release may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the SEC. Modernization Rules.

"Inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Historical results or feasibility models presented herein are not guarantees or expectations of future performance.

Qualified Person

Technical information contained in this press release originates in the public disclosure set out above and has been reviewed and approved by Christian Rios, AIPG Certified Professional Geologist, Advisor to Nova and a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. The forward-looking statements herein are made as of the date of this press release only, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budgets", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "projects", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to future events or future performance of Nova; the existence of future business opportunities; the expected production at Aranzazu in 2023; the planned drill program at Aranzazu for 2023; ESIA approval for Taca Taca and the expected timing thereof; approval of an additional environmental permit for Taca Taca and the timing thereof; completion of water supply studies and pump tests by First Quantum to support the application for a concession for borefield water supply and expected timing thereof; the filing of water permit applications by First Quantum and the timing thereof; obtaining of construction permits for the power development line at Taca Taca; obtaining state and local permits for Copper World and expected timing thereof; the continued advancement of pre-feasibility activities for Phase I of the Copper World Complex and timing thereof; the release of a pre-feasibility study for Phase I of the Copper World and the timing thereof, conducting a bulk sampling program and minority joint venture partner process and the expected timing thereof; the continued work at Josemaria; the incorporation into the bi-annual EIA update submission of a program to initiate studies for water and permit requirements and the timing thereof; the progress of agreements with provincial governments and of a project union agreement for construction; the incorporation of infill drilling and assaying completed in Josemaria in 2021 and 2022 into future Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates; other potential developments relating to, or achievements by the counterparties for Nova's stream and royalty agreements, and with respect to mines or other properties Nova has, or may acquire, a stream or royalty interest; estimates of future productions, costs and other financial or economic measures; disclosure regarding any payments to be paid to Nova by property owners or operators of mining projects pursuant to net smelter returns and other royalty agreements; and future expectations regarding royalties and streams of Nova.

Such forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of Nova to control or predict, that may cause Nova's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out herein, including, but not limited to, risks associated with the impact of general business and economic conditions; the absence of control over mining operations from which Nova will purchase precious metals or from which it will receive stream or royalty payments and risks related to those mining operations, including risks related to international operations, government and environmental regulation, delays in mine development, construction and operations, actual results of mining and current exploration activities, conclusions of economic evaluations and changes in project parameters as plans are refined; problems related to the ability to market precious metals or other metals; industry conditions, including commodity price fluctuations, interest and exchange rate fluctuations; interpretation by government entities of tax laws or the implementation of new tax laws; regulatory, political or economic developments in any of the countries where properties in which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest are located or through which they are held; risks related to the operators of the properties in which Nova holds a royalty or stream or other interest, including changes in the ownership and control of such operators; risks related to global pandemics, including the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) global health pandemic, and the spread of other viruses or pathogens; influence of macroeconomic developments; business opportunities that become available to, or are pursued by Nova; reduced access to debt and equity capital; litigation; title, permit or license disputes related to interests on any of the properties in which Nova holds a royalty, stream or other interest; the volatility of the stock market; competition; future sales or issuances of debt or equity securities; use of proceeds; dividend policy and future payment of dividends; liquidity; market for securities; enforcement of civil judgments; and the risk factors set out under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form dated March 23, 2023 and other filings available for review on the Company's profile at www.sedar.com . Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

SOURCE Nova Royalty Corp.

For further information: Greg DiTomaso, Vice President, Investor Relations, Phone: (416) 433-2801, Email: [email protected], Website: www.novaroyalty.com
Dubai, UAE, May 18th, 2023, Chainwire

From Binance-style super meet-ups to online contests, the crypto exchange is celebrating Bitcoins famous first purchase

Binance, the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange, is celebrating the thirteenth anniversary of Bitcoin Pizza Day, the historic day in 2010 that a purchase of two pizzas was made in return for 10,000 BTC.

To celebrate this monumental day in crypto and the revolution it marks for the industry, Binance will be hosting in-person community meet-ups around the world. The celebrations will kick off in the birthplace of pizza, Naples, Italy, on May 21 and continue with local pizzeria and pizza van takeovers in ten countries, including Brazil, Bahrain, Pakistan, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Uruguay, Mexico, Argentina, and New Zealand.

The community is also invited to celebrate Pizza Day on social media and the Binance app. Participants who share their Binance-themed pizzas using #BinancePizza or complete tasks to collect all the Pizza Flavours on the Binance app have a chance to win the crypto equivalent of a year's supply of pizza. Online celebrations will continue as Binance hosts a virtual live meet-up with the attendance of CZ on May 22 at 12:00 PM UTC, featuring discussions on the meaning of Bitcoin Pizza Day with prominent Binance Feed creators.

Bitcoin Pizza Day is a testament to the power of community and the growing acceptance of BTC as part of our daily lives, said Yi He, Binance co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer. At Binance, we believe in the importance of mass adoption, and we are committed to creating more and more use cases for crypto in everyday situations. As more people recognize the value and potential of blockchain and crypto, our community grows stronger, and we continue to build our industry.

The global Pizza Day meet-ups will offer fun activities with the chance to win swag and rewards, and of course, free pizza. Events vary by city, for example in Naples, the first 500 users to register for the event will be able to claim free Binance style pizza and drinks and take part in a pizza-making contest for Binance prizes. For more information on events near you, visit our blog.

Bitcoin Pizza Day stands as a pivotal milestone for the crypto industry, signifying its remarkable exponential growth and paving the path for widespread adoption of digital currencies over the past 13 years. As ever, Binance continues to move towards its goal of increasing the freedom of money and believes that growing crypto adoption will create even further opportunities for financial freedom. Therefore, once again this year, Binance is proud to celebrate this momentous day with our deserving and empowering community.

About Binance

Binance is the worlds leading blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider with a financial product suite that includes the largest digital asset exchange by volume. Trusted by millions worldwide, the Binance platform is dedicated to increasing the freedom of money for users, and features an unmatched portfolio of crypto products and offerings, including: trading and finance, education, data and research, social good, investment and incubation, decentralization and infrastructure solutions, and more. For more information, visit: https://www.binance.com

Contact

Marina Zibareva

pr@binance.com


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ChatGPT is now a smartphone app, which could be good news for people who like to use the artificial intelligence chatbot and bad news for all the clone apps that have tried to profit off the technology.

The free app became available on iPhones and iPads in the U.S. on Thursday and will later be coming to Android devices. Unlike the desktop web version, the mobile version on Apple's iOS operating system also enables users to speak to it using their voice.

The company that makes it, OpenAI, said it will remain ad-free but syncs your history across devices.

Were starting our rollout in the U.S. and will expand to additional countries in the coming weeks, said a blog post announcing the new app, which is described in the App Store as the official app by OpenAI.

It's been more than five months since OpenAI released ChatGPT to the public, sparking excitement and alarm at its ability to generate convincingly human-like essays, poems, form letters and conversational answers to almost any question. But the San Francisco startup never seemed to be in a hurry to get it onto phones  where most people access the internet.

Were not trying to get people to use it more and more, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told U.S. senators this week in a hearing over how to regulate AI systems such as those built by his company.

The delay in getting the product on phones helped fuel a rise of clones built on similar technology, some of which the security firm Sophos described as fleeceware in a report this week because they push unsuspecting users toward enrolling in a free trial that converts into a recurring subscription, or use intrusive advertising techniques.

Another privacy researcher, Simon Migliano, said the official ChatGPT app might eventually starve similar-sounding apps of new users, but that could take a while because many of those apps were given names deliberately intended to confuse people into thinking they already have the official app. They were also hyper-optimized to rank highly in Apple's App Store search results, said Migliano, head of research at Top10VPN.com.

"For many of those who have already downloaded a clone, its likely they will simply stick with the ChatGPT apps they already have and continue to have their personal data harvested and sold, Migliano said.

Altman told Congress this week that his company doesnt try to maximize engagement because it doesnt have an advertising-based business, and because it's costly to train and run its AI models on computer chips known as graphics processing units.

"In fact, were so short on GPUs, the less people use our products, the better, Altman said.

The new app does include an option to pay for a premium version of ChatGPT with additional features. Along with those subscriptions, the company makes money from developers and corporations that pay to integrate its AI models into their own apps and products.

Its chief partner, Microsoft, has invested billions of dollars into the startup and has integrated ChatGPT-like technology into its own products, including a chatbot for its search engine Bing.

The ChatGPT app will now compete for attention with the Bing chatbot already available on iPhones, and could eventually compete with a mobile version of rival Google's chatbot, called Bard. Versions of OpenAI's chatbot technology can also be found in other apps, such as the My AI feature on Snapchat.
Miguel Roberts/AP

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP)  State and federal health officials are warning U.S. residents to cancel planned surgeries in a Mexico border city after five people from Texas who got procedures there came back and developed suspected cases of fungal meningitis. One of them died, officials said.

The five people who became ill traveled to Matamoros, across the border from Brownsville, for surgical procedures that included the use of an epidural, an anesthetic injected near the spinal column, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday. Four remain hospitalized, and one of them later died.
Robert DAngelo Jr. is well-prepared for our interview about his great-uncle as he welcomes me into his home in Woodbridge. He sits down beside a large box of files and pulls out a faded copy of the New Haven Register, dated Nov. 8, 1964. It carries the headline New Havens Forgotten Hero  Should Bernard Early Share Alvin Yorks World War I Honors?

This is what got me started when I was nine years old, DAngelo says as he sits with his cousin Kevin Early in DAngelos living room.

Everyone in New Haven thought the same thing: Uncle Bernie participated to a much greater degree on that day, DAngelo says. He did not participate in a one-man show. How would you feel if the story went on saying, You did nothing but hide behind a tree? 

DAngelo says of the 16 soldiers, including Early, who were fighting the Germans alongside York: They almost had to speak up. And they did.

DAngelos passion is evident on this subject, this quest: gaining full recognition for Early and the 15 others who were so long ignored in the wake of

the York myth.

DAngelo has been researching this since 2006. He has walked around the legendary battlefield in northeastern France, searching for evidence. Recently his case received a significant boost with the publication of James P. Gregory Jr.s Unraveling the Myth of Sgt. Alvin York: The Other Sixteen (Texas A&M University Press, December 2022). DAngelo wrote the books epilogue.

Lisa Nichols for Hearst CT Media/Lisa Nichols/Hearst CT Media

The books back cover summarizes the events on that battlefield and the aftermath: On Oct. 8, 1918, seventeen soldiers from the 82nd Division, American Expeditionary Force, led by acting Sgt. Bernard Early, flanked a German machine gun nest that had inundated their unit with withering fire. In this sneak attack, they successfully surprised and captured more than 80 German soldiers before an unseen machine gun suddenly opened fire and killed six men.

Acting Cpl. Alvin York, a member of the patrol, received the credit for taking control of the squad and single-handedly killing 20 Germans, capturing 132 prisoners and eliminating 35 machine guns, all before leading the men back to Allied lines. For this act of bravery, York not only received the Medal of Honor and was promoted to sergeant, but he also rose to fame and glory. The 1941 movie Sergeant York, starring Gary Cooper, solidified York as a legend and one of the most well-known military figures in American history.

At the outset of his book, Gregory, a military historian, writes that DAngelo started the original search for the truth and gathered together the descendants. His initial research and thousands of hours spent gathering material and tracking down relatives provided a remarkable wealth of information.

In the epilogue, DAngelo expresses his hope the book will set the record straight and serve as a catalyst for the long-delayed recognition of the Other Sixteen and reconsideration of what happened that day.

When I ask DAngelo why he became so intent on setting the record straight, he frames it as a personal family obligation. The Earlys lived close to my family in New Haven, he recalls. Often we would visit them. [Bernard Early] was somewhat sick at that point. He was always in pain from his war wounds. But by all accounts he was a fun-loving, gregarious guy. My mother said he was very outgoing and personable, a practical joker. Everybody liked him.

Kevin Early, who had driven to DAngelos house from his home in Monroe, where he keeps his grandfathers medals, says, I do remember him. I was four when he died [in 1961]. He showed me a wound where the German machine gun strafed him. It was a big scar near his kidneys.

DAngelo again reaches into his box of artifacts and finds another New Haven Register clipping, this one from Oct. 13, 1929: Ovation Greets War Hero. This was on the occasion of Sergeant Early Day in New Haven, after Early finally received a Distinguished Service Cross. (President Herbert Hoover joked, I think the letters [DSC] stand for damn slow coming. )

They had a huge parade, DAngelo says, pointing to the page-one photo of Early, in a fedora hat, riding in an open-top car. But Early, always a modest fellow, said, Im not much on this hero stuff.

However, DAngelo, Kevin Early and others in the family have always believed Early was unfairly deprived of a Medal of Honor. DAngelo says, If York received it, Bernard Early should have received it too. (Early was awarded a Purple Heart.)

Lisa Nichols for Hearst CT Media/Lisa Nichols/Hearst CT Media

And what about the other 15 soldiers? Early often expressed regret that they had been given few official citations and little recognition for their heroism. Those 15 included Percy Beardsley, a cattle farmer from Roxbury. According to a 2008 article in the Republican-American, Beardsley rarely spoke about his experiences in the war, but in 1927 gave the newspaper an interview in which he said he was responsible for at least a few of the 25 dead.

He was also adamant that the entire platoon was critical in the victory, including the units leader, Early. According to the 1927 article, Beardsley rescued Sgt. Early under fire after the latter was shot down  He gave his own overcoat to wrap around the sergeant and with another of the detachment carried him back when the detail retired with their prisoners.

The story also noted that in 1919 Beardsley, who died in 1968, received a citation from the U.S. Army crediting him with joining others who surprised and captured a number of Germans.

DAngelo and Gregory have spent years examining how the York myth originated and was perpetuated. DAngelo notes: The takeaway, after all these years, is it seemed like the Army wanted a hero. As James book made clear, a lot of people, including high-ranking officers, were basking in the reflected glory of York. It wasnt a popular war, so this made for a great story. James did a great job describing how a lot of people made up this story for their own use, which Id always thought too.

Gregory, speaking from his home in Norman, Okla., says he sought to write a balanced account of, among other things, the part York himself played in the myth.

He had a big role in creating it, but after the initial [U.S. Army] investigation of the battle, it was out of his hands. Gregory cites other book authors who didnt do sufficient research or were biased, as well as the Saturday Evening Posts puff piece and officials from Warner Bros. Studios who oversaw the making of Sergeant York.

Cooper, shown single-handedly picking off German soldiers, then rounding up the survivors, won an Academy Award for the role. This solidified the York myth and re-opened longtime emotional wounds for the other 16 and their families.

I saw the movie when I was about five, Kevin Early recalls. I remember being excited there was an actor playing my grandfather. But I was told: Grandpa never watched that movie.  (Early was portrayed as bullying York, which DAngelo and others have long disputed.)

Gregory notes his work took him four years but DAngelos research stretched far longer. Gregory first heard about all this in 2018 when retired U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Steven C. Girard recommended Gregory watch a YouTube video showing DAngelo and other descendants of the other 16.

For DAngelo, the highlight of his research came in April 2009 when he and Dave Kornacki, grandson of another other 16 soldier, Joseph Kornacki, were invited by two like-minded researchers to join an archaeological dig at the battlefield.

We unearthed all sorts of things, including evidence of where the six Americans killed by machine-gun fire were buried, DAngelo says. It was quite something, for a kid who had cut out an article from the New Haven Register at age nine, to walk the route where my uncle came upon the Germans as they opened fire. This was a lifetime dream.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

XI'AN, Shaanxi/YUNCHENG, Shanxi, May 17 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has called on northwest China's Shaanxi Province to give full play to its strengths and play an exemplary role in advancing Chinese modernization in the country's western region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Wednesday while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province.

Shaanxi should prioritize the primary task of promoting high-quality development, base its work on local reality, and actively integrate into and work for the creation of a new development pattern, Xi said.

Efforts are needed for breakthroughs in building self-reliance and strength in science and technology, modernizing the industrial system, boosting coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between regions, expanding high-level opening up, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection, he said.

To catch up with and surpass other regions, Shaanxi must make new breakthroughs in sci-tech innovation and modernizing the industrial system, Xi noted, calling on the province to cultivate new strengths while consolidating its leading position in traditional industries.

Shaanxi should speed up modernizing the industrial system that is intelligent, green and integrated, and meets the requirements of integrity, advancement and security, Xi said, demanding more efforts to strengthen its modern energy industrial clusters.

The most arduous tasks in building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting common prosperity remain in the rural areas, Xi said, stressing efforts to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and build county economies with county seats as hubs and small townships as junctions.

He also called for vigorously developing industries with distinctive features in light of local conditions, creating more channels for increasing farmers' incomes and ensuring that people would not slide back into poverty in large numbers.

Efforts should be made to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of development patterns and enhance ecological conservation, Xi said.

He stressed the need to strictly implement the Yellow River Protection Law and related plans and strengthen ecological protection and restoration of the river basin to protect the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of the Chinese nation.

Xi called for promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development, facilitating the green transformation of the energy industry while actively and prudently advancing carbon peaking and neutrality.

Work should be done to advocate green consumption and further promote the economical and intensive use of resources, Xi said.

He urged efforts to open up wider and develop the inland province into a high ground for reform and opening up. The province should give full play to the city of Xi'an as an assembly center for China-Europe freight trains, move faster in becoming a pivotal opening-up channel for countries in Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia.

Speaking of the Party-wide education campaign on the study and implementation of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi called on Party organizations at all levels to advance the campaign profoundly and steadily and yield tangible results in forging inner strength, gaining wisdom, improving Party conduct and motivating actions.

Xi stressed the importance of handling complex situations, pooling strength from across the society, and guarding against political risks, calling for translating the worldview and methodology of the thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods running through it, into a "master key" of problem-solving.

Xi also underlined the need to work more scientifically with foresight, initiative, and creativity, and enhance the capabilities of promoting high-quality development, serving the public, preventing and diffusing risks, and being more professionally competent.

Shaanxi should use its historical and cultural resources and red culture to continue advancing the education campaign and make solid progress, he said.

On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province, where he visited a museum and a salt lake Tuesday afternoon.

Valuable cultural relics in the Yuncheng Museum, some of which are national treasures, are witnesses to the Chinese history of humanity, culture and civilization, he said.

He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization to improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage.

At the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which has a history of over 4,600 years of exploitation, Xi noted that the ecological values and functions of the salt lake are increasingly important, urging coordinated efforts to protect and utilize it to further protect its historical and cultural values.

The ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin is a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and the Chinese civilization, Xi said.

He required provinces and regions along the Yellow River to uphold ecological conservation in the Yellow River basin as the bottom line in planning development and pursuing high-quality development.

Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and accompanied Xi on the inspection trip.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Salt Lake in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the Yuncheng Museum in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on May 16, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)

Editor: GSY
Investigators looking into the collapse of a Pittsburgh bridge want transportation officials nationwide to examine more than 10,000 other bridges with similar construction to ensure they don't have the same kind of corrosion that was found on the bridge that collapsed.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a report Thursday that drainage problems on the weathered steel bridge that failed allowed the metal legs to deteriorate over time. It determined Pennsylvania neglected for years to perform the maintenance needed to clear the debris, dirt and leaves that were causing the problem, even though inspectors noted the issue.

Rust that caused the deterioration of the Pittsburgh bridge's steel legs and allowed holes to form in the structure was noted on every inspection done since 2005, including one completed just four months before the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed on Jan. 28, 2022. Work was done in 2009 to clear the debris clogging the bridge's drainage system, but that wasn't repeated in the years since even after inspectors said in every report between 2011 and 2021 that the drains had become clogged again.

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation spokeswoman Alexis Campbell said the agency is still reviewing everything the NTSB released Thursday, and the state will continue cooperating with the investigation. Last fall, the state Transportation Department issued a safety bulletin focused on the maintenance issues with these steel bridges in response to the NTSBs preliminary findings.

Safe, reliable infrastructure is a top priority of the (Gov. Josh) Shapiro administration, and we are committed to ensuring Pennsylvanians and all motorists can travel across the Commonwealth safely, Campbell said. To that end, PennDOT remains proactive in its review, analysis and maintenance of its bridges.

The Pittsburgh bridge span that fell last year dropped a bus and four cars some 100 feet (30 meters) into a ravine, injuring several people hours before President Joe Biden visited the city to promote a massive infrastructure law. The span carried Forbes Avenue over Frick Park, Fern Hollow Creek and Tranquil Trail.

A new bridge opened to traffic in December after its design and construction were fast-tracked.

The NTSB said that these kind of steel-frame bridges can last for decades if they are properly maintained. But in the Pittsburgh case, the drainage issues kept the steel from developing a protective patina that would have kept the corrosion at bay. Investigators looked at 10 similar bridges in Pennsylvania and found similar maintenance problems, although none were as severe as the Fern Hollow Bridge.

It's not clear how widespread these issues are nationwide. But the NTSB wanted to urgently call them to bridge owners' attention even though it hasn't completed its investigation of the Pittsburgh bridge collapse.

The NTSB said in its report that its critical for bridge owners, usually cities and states, to clear accumulation of water and debris on bridges with weathering steel components.

The agency wants the Federal Highway Administration to help bridge owners identify similar problems and complete the needed bridge safety work. The Federal Highway Administration said it will review the NTSB recommendations and work with bridge owners to review inspection reports and determine what needs to be done.
HAMDEN  After being in the works for five years, a plan to expand Hamden Middle School to accommodate sixth-grade students has been nixed, but the reason for the decision depends on whom you ask.

Board of Education members, including Chairwoman Melissa Kaplan, said the Legislative Councils reluctance to borrow additional funds for the project prompted the district to abandon it.

Without the expansion, it may not be possible to pursue a new proposal to racially balance the schools, Kaplan said in a May 10 letter announcing the boards intent to drop the middle school project.

Meanwhile, town officials said additional operational costs and traffic and safety concerns associated with the expansion caused school administrators to abandon the plan.

Superintendent of Schools Gary Highsmith said both town and board officials cited legitimate reasons for not going forward with the project.

"Its not a 'this story' or 'that story,' its all of that information together. That is the reason why the middle school isnt going forward," he said. "It was a perfect storm."

The expansion would have allowed the district to move sixth graders from the elementary schools to the middle school, offering them more learning opportunities and freeing up space for universal pre-K.

It originally was part of the Reimagine, Restructure, Results Initiative, a $30 million districtwide proposal approved in 2019 aimed at addressing declining enrollment and impending racial imbalances in the district.

Also known as the 3R plan, the proposal involved closing two of Hamdens eight elementary schools and establishing an intradistrict magnet program.

In the following years, however, Hamden abandoned most key components of the 3R plan. By late last year, the middle school expansion was all that remained. By then, the estimated cost of the project had gone up to approximately $22 million  double the $11 million price tag the council originally authorized. It was the second time the price had risen; in 2021, the council approved another $5.9 million to meet a new price tag of $17 million.

District officials were quick to point out that even with the increase, the state was expected to reimburse the town for 80 percent of the total cost of the project.

Looking for funds

In November, Legislative Council members said that for them to approve another $5 million for the project, the board would need to present a new redistricting plan.

Kaplan said the school board offered preliminary versions of a redistricting plan based on a sister schools model. Under the model, floated in January but never finalized, Hamden would restructure the towns elementary schools to serve three grades each, dividing its eight elementary schools into pairs of sister schools.

Still, Kaplan said town leadership seemed reluctant to support the project.

After months of meetings with the town leadership  it became clear to both the BOE and school administration that the council and the mayors office evinced skepticism in continuing the project, Kaplan wrote in a May 10 letter to the town. During these conversations, we discovered that Legislative Council leadership had concerns about having to pay the additional construction costs even though we were willing to use our resources to help offset these increases.

The board and school administration were disappointed about not being able to move forward with the project, Kaplan wrote.

In an interview, Kaplan pointed to comments Legislative Council President Dominique Baez made during a PTA-sponsored equity panel.

We have to sign off as a council and say we can pay $22 million, and the councils very leery about saying an extra $5 million is available, Baez said, according to a recording of the meeting, which was held in February.

Hamden already has one of the highest property tax rates in the state. Additionally, a 2021 state report found the town had more debt per capita than any other Connecticut municipality,

To justify bonding the extra money, we have been asking for a really whole view of what that would mean to our yearly payment for debt, for our school system and to the Wintergreen money that came into our lap, Baez said, referring to money the town obtained from the sale of Wintergreen School.

Asked about Kaplans letter, Baez issued a statement saying the council had been asking the board for a plan for the future of its school buildings  and that the board never delivered.

The board never formally requested another $5 million for the middle school project, which would have led to a vote, Baez said.

I truly felt like the (middle school) extension was an opportunity to bring jobs and subsequently dollars into residents pockets. The news they wouldnt deliver ANY ask to the council was not something I rejoiced over.

Other concerns

Mayor Lauren Garrett questioned the accuracy of Kaplans letter, contending that school administrators told the town they did not want to pursue the project for other reasons.

It became clear that the school administration did not want to continue with the project, and thats when I requested a letter from the Board of Education  reiterating that, she said. I myself did not put barriers in the way of that project moving forward.

Administrators previously have warned that moving sixth grade to the middle school would come with additional operating costs, which Garrett said was cited as one reason for discontinuing the project.

At-large Legislative Council member Cory OBrien also said the administration provided reasons for discontinuing the project unrelated to construction costs. One concern was that the expansion would exacerbate existing traffic issues at the middle school, he said.

Highsmith said multiple factors made the district decide to opt out of the project. Those included the increased operating costs and traffic problems at drop-off.

Administrators also had concerns about expanding the middle school due to pandemic-related "dysregulation," Highsmith said

We had to reflect on whether it made sense for us to add hundreds of students into that school," he said.

But Highsmith also said Kaplan's letter was correct; the town's financial position and the Legislative Council's concerns about rising construction costs were a problem, he said, especially as the district struggles to maintain its existing services.

Moving forward with the middle school did not appear "fiscally prudent" in the context of other budgetary challenges, he said.

Walter Livingston Morton IV, a board member who also is running for mayor, publicly defended Kaplans letter, calling it an accurate representation of what occurred.

Theres just been a lack of  consistent communication and a constant changing of what the goal line is and what (town leadership is) looking for, he said. I completely stand by Melissa Kaplans letter.

Morton said he was frustrated by what occurred and believes elected officials were not fulfilling their promises to support education.

OBrien took issue with that stance. At a recent budget hearing, the council agreed to give the school district an additional $700,000 over what the mayor requested for the school district budget, he said.

In the meantime, the board is going back to the drawing board to come up with a redistricting plan. It has asked the Legislative Council to release money from the Wintergreen proceeds to hire a full-time staff member in charge of overseeing racial balancing in the district, Kaplan said.

In her letter, Kaplan warned that moving the sixth grade to the middle school had been essential in freeing up space to create sister schools and establish pre-K classrooms, a model that now will be difficult, if not impossible to implement.

But the sister schools model is not yet off the table, according to Highsmith.

"The question we have to try to get answered now is whether sister schools can work without the sixth grade being moved out of the elementary schools, the superintendent said.
HAMDEN  A man wanted in connection with two separate incidents at Wintergreen School has been extradited from New York City, authorities say.

In a news release, the Hamden Police Department said Jordan Richards, 33, was charged after officers picked him up from Rikers Island Correctional Facility.

Hamden police said the New York City Police Department notified them on Feb. 12 that they had Richards in custody after working with Hamden's Major Crimes Division and using automated license plate readers to locate him. Police said Richards is the primary suspect for crimes at Wintergreen School on Jan. 31 and on Feb. 11.

On Jan. 31, police said, officers were called when Richards broke into the school around 5 a.m., promoting the school custodian to go to Wintergreen. When he got there and confronted Richards, police said, the man assaulted him, stole his keys, wallet and his vehicle.

Police said the custodian was sent to the hospital and had suffered injuries to his face and skull, which police have said would require surgery to heal. They said Richards then committed a second burglary at the Wintergreen School on Feb. 11.

In response to the incidents, Hamden Public Schools Board of Education set out to spend $570,000 on security upgrades for district buildings, although 67 percent of that would be reimbursed by the state. Officials said the district also changed the locks at Wintergreen and security protocols.

In connection with the Jan. 31 incident, police said, Richards was charged with first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary, second-degree assault, second degree larceny, third-degree larceny, interfering with an emergency call and illegal use of a credit card. Richards bond was set at $750,000. He was given a court date in May at state Superior Court in Meriden, the news release said.

Regarding the Feb. 11 incident, police said Richards was charged with third-degree burglary and third-degree criminal mischief. His bond was set at $10,000, He is also set to appear in May at Superior Court for those charges, the news release said.
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WORCESTER, Mass. (AP)  The man charged with murder in the death of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver, whose body was found in a suitcase beside a Massachusetts highway in 2014, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Thursday and was held without bail.

Alberto Sierra Jr., 32, was the former boyfriend of Jeremiah's mother and was arrested on Wednesday, according to the office of Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr.

Prosecutors did not say what led to Sierra's arrest. Messages seeking comment were left with his attorney.

Jeremiahs body was found in April 2014 along Interstate 190 in Sterling, about an hour west of Boston, and not far from his family's home in Fitchburg. But the boy was last seen alive in September 2013, and was not reported missing until December of that year.

The case has weighed heavily on the mind of Fitchburg Police Chief Ernest Martineau, who was involved in the intitial investigation.

This case rocked the conscience of the city of Fitchburg, he said outside Worcester Superior Court. At one point, we were Jeremiahs family, 45,000 residents in the city, and we are here today, beginning the process of healing.

The case reverberated across the state, with even then-Gov. Deval Patrick saying he was trying to keep my own rage in check. The boy's death also led to three employees of the state's child welfare agency getting fired, and spurred reforms at the agency.

Jeremiah's family was being supervised by the state Department of Children and Families. Even before his body was discovered, an investigation found that a social worker with the child welfare agency went months without visiting the family's home  despite reports of abuse and neglect.

The death was not ruled a homicide until February of 2016 when an autopsy by the state medical examiner said that he died of homicidal violence of undetermined causes.

Sierra was convicted in 2017 of assaulting Jeremiah's mother and siblings and sentenced to up to seven years in prison. He was not currently incarcerated when he was arrested Wednesday, the district attorney's office said.

Jeremiah's mother, Elsa Oliver, also pleaded guilty in 2017 to assault and battery and reckless endangerment in connection with her other two children and was sentenced to more than seven years in prison.

Prosecutors dropped charges against both of them in connection with Jeremiah's disappearance and alleged abuse in order to avoid possible double jeopardy claims, prosecutors said at the time.

Sierra is also charged with disinterring a body. He is scheduled back on court on May 25. The investigation into the death is ongoing, prosecutors said.
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WATERBURY  A man and a teenage boy tried to ditch a stolen car after crashing into another vehicle Thursday, according to local police.

Driver Samuel Lopez, 25, of Waterbury, was charged with larceny of a motor vehicle, interfering with an officer, reckless driving and several other motor vehicle offenses, Waterbury Police Lt. Ryan Bessette said in a news release Thursday afternoon. Lopezs passenger, a 16-year-old New Haven boy, was charged with larceny of a motor vehicle and interfering with police, Bessette said.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  A bill that would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender was defeated Thursday in the New Hampshire House.

The bill had passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines. But while Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the 400-member House, Democrats had a one-vote edge in attendance for Thursdays session.

Democrats passed several poison pill amendments to weaken the bill before it was defeated on a 195-190 vote, with two Republicans crossing party lines to oppose it. Rep. Gerri Cannon, a Democrat from Somersworth who was one of the first transgender lawmakers elected in New Hampshire, said her heart was beating faster and faster with each amendment until the final vote.

I was truly excited, she said. Ive been so upset with whats going on in this country.

Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. House, such a bill was the first legislation that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally announced  fulfilling a major part of the GOP campaign platform.

The New Hampshire version sought to establish a consistent mechanism for parents to be notified of information relating to the health, well-being, and educational progress of their minor children while those children are in the custody and control of the public schools.

Now is the time to recognize that parents, not schools, not school personnel, are the parents with all those rights and responsibilities for their minor children, said Rep. Rick Ladd, a Republican from Haverhill.

The final vote to indefinitely postpone the bill means the topic cant be revisited this session, a scenario that drew an angry response from House Majority Leader Jason Osborne.

This will send a message to parents that they must continue, until the next election when they can replace their representatives, to accept that school is a mysterious and secretive black box where they deposit their children, who knows what happens inside that box and who knows what comes out the other side, he said.

Opponents have argued that while it may appear benign in detailing many rights already covered by existing state and federal law, the bill would have exposed LGBQT+ students to the risk of abuse at home  a bad idea for young people who are already prone to stress, depression and suicidal thoughts. Rep. Linda Ryan, a Democrat from Nashua and a retired teacher, objected to a provision that would have allowed parents to sue school personnel.

If I have to keep a record and call every one of those parents every single time I see Susie and Sally hugging in the hallway, we will never have another public school teacher again," she said. "I strongly encourage you to go to your public schools and substitute for less than $100 a day and see for your very own self what this bill will do to our public schools and our teachers.

Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed a similar bill last year that would have required schools to automatically notify parents about students sexual or gender identity. Sununu said Wednesday he generally supported the new bill.
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SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  A high school student who killed three women in northwestern New Mexico with an indiscriminate spray of gunfire left a cryptic note presaging the end of the chapter" and wore a bulletproof vest that he discarded before being shot to death by police, authorities said Wednesday.

Police added new details to the profile of the lone gunman and the weaponry he used as he walked through his residential neighborhood before being confronted by officers and fatally shot outside a church. The shooter discharged more than 190 rounds during the rampage, according to authorities, most of them from the home he shared with his father.

Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said in a news conference that 18-year-old Beau Wilson was wearing what appeared to be a modified vest with steel plates and that the note was found in his pocket. Handwritten in green lettering, the message said in part, if your reading this im the end of the chapter.

Wilson began shooting with an AR-15 rifle just outside his home, from the front porch area, but quickly dropped that into some bushes even though it still held more live ammunition, police said.

The gunman continued firing with two pistols, discarding a .22-caliber gun and then depleting rounds from a 9-mm handgun in the final shootout with police, during which he let off at least 18 rounds.

Slain by the shooter were longtime Farmington residents Gwendolyn Schofield, 97, her 73-year-old daughter, Melody Ivie, and 79-year-old Shirley Voita, police said.

The women were well known in the community, in part through participation in faith-based groups. Ivie ran a preschool for four decades that was attended by several generations of residents.

Those wounded in the attack include Farmington police Sgt. Rachel Discenza and New Mexico State Police Officer Andreas Stamatiadas. The officers were treated at a local hospital and released.

Police are probing Wilson's access to weapons and concerns about his prior mental health, and efforts are underway to subpoena medical and school records that might shed light on any issues.

We have been talking with family members and trying to do more investigation into his mental health that appears to  early on  to be a factor, Hebbe said.

At the same time, Hebbe said, there did not appear to be significant indications that ... something was going to happen that day.

New Mexico enacted a so-called red flag law in 2020 that can be used to seize guns from people who pose a danger to themselves or others. Judicial records show the Farmington Police Department has petitioned successfully for the removal of guns in other instances, most recently in February.

In November, after he turned 18, Wilson legally purchased the assault-style weapon used Monday, according to police. They believe two of the three weapons he carried were owned by relatives.

Two days before the attack, Wilson purchased additional ammunition magazines, police said.

Authorities said it appears he shot indiscriminately at vehicles, and bullets struck 11 of them along with seven homes.

Additional weapons and ammunition were found at the home Wilson shared with his father, but Hebbe said he did not appear to have organized those before he left the house. The suspect had access to over 1,400 rounds of ammunition and 10 other weapons at the time of the attack.

He planned to use the three weapons he had, Hebbe said, and he went outside and he did just that.

Police say evidence shows that at least 176 rounds were fired by Wilson from an assault rifle near his house at the outset of the rampage.

A community vigil was planned for Wednesday night at the Farmington Museum, the latest in a series of gatherings to remember and mourn victims of the shooting.

Wilson was a senior at Farmington High School and had been scheduled to graduate the next day.

At the school's commencement ceremony Tuesday, speakers talked of resilience and hope.

A chair was left empty with a bouquet of white roses in memory of those we lost throughout the years, school district spokesperson Roberto Taboada said.

___

Yamat reported from Las Vegas, Nevada. Associated Press writer Robert Jablon in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
WEST HAVEN  When Christine Gallo heard the initial slogan, she thought it sent the wrong message.

Officials with the Milford Chamber of Commerce, which recently absorbed West Haven's businesses following the decline of the city's own chamber, informed the City Council about a proposed shoreline banner campaign to promote local businesses.

The banners, which Milford Chamber Director of Membership and Marketing Simon McDonald said would cost businesses $350  which is expected to cover the $153 cost of each banner as well as the costs associated with installing and maintaining the banners  were to be displayed on Captain Thomas Boulevard light towers with information about individual businesses, the city's emblem and the slogan "Summer is West Haven."

So if it's fall, winter or spring you turn around and go home, Gallo, chairwoman of the city's advisory Economic Development Commission, said at a May 8 City Council meeting when the proposal was presented.

Gallo said she felt as though the commission has been bypassed repeatedly, though tasked with helping the city with branding and marketing.

McDonald, who said he had agreed to the idea after discussions with city officials but was unaware he needed to seek City Council approval, went before the council having already sold 20 banners. McDonald apologized for not having realized he was not following the city's legislative protocols. He said the purpose behind the banner campaign would be to help local businesses that don't have advertising money for billboards at an affordable price. He said membership within the chamber is not required, and roughly half of those banners he had sold at the time of the meeting had been obtained by calling non-member businesses.

McDonald said the chamber hopes that the campaign can serve as a means of local businesses becoming acquainted with the regional chamber as a new presence in the community, but there is no barrier to entry.

He said the chamber intends on presenting the proposal at the next council meeting Monday, but with a new slogan: Miles of Shore and so much more. He said the city's seal would also be replaced on the banners with nautical-themed graphics.

Some City Council members said they would like to see more collaboration between the regional chamber and the economic development commission before they would approve the measure, then tabled the issue.
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EAST HAVEN  Police have charged a third suspect connected to an attempted home invasion last month in which a would-be robber posed as a package deliverer before pulling a handgun on a resident.

Video from the incident, which made national headlines, showed the resident shoving the assailant out of the house. The suspect then fled in a pickup truck. Police said the suspects intended to restrain the occupants of the home with zip ties before robbing them.

East Haven police last month charged two Hartford residents, 37-year-old Xavier Otero and 26-year-old Jean Carrasquillo-Torres. Investigators believe Otero posed as the package delivery worker while Carrasquillo-Torres was an accomplice.

On Thursday, police announced the arrest of Juan Rodriguez-Rivera, who was charged with conspiring to commit home invasion and conspiring to commit first-degree unlawful restraint in the April 14 incident.

Investigators believe the 31-year-old Hartford resident "coordinated the attempted home invasion with the other two suspects," East Haven police Capt. Joseph Murgo said in a news release. The group planned to "restrain and rob" the occupants of the Maple Street home.

Police believe the group also planned a similar crime in Manchester, but, Murgo said, that plot was "thwarted due to the quick actions of investigators with the help of the Hartford Police Department."

The incident is not believed to be tied to a similar crime last year in Milford, where police said the robbers dressed as Amazon delivery workers. Investigators of that incident have charged a woman who the victim told police he'd been dating but who had abruptly cut off communication with him, leading him to believe the robbery was a setup.

The tactic appears to be growing. News reports show police in New York, Florida and Indiana have all investigated incidents of people posing as delivery workers to rob homes and businesses this year.

East Haven police said that around 9:45 a.m. on April 14, Otero knocked on the door to the home and told the homeowner he had a package for him, according to the police account of the incident, which was captured on video by the home's Ring doorbell.

"He then immediately brandished a black handgun and attempted to enter the residence," Murgo said at the time. "The homeowner can be seen pushing the suspect away."

In the video, Otero appears to recoil down the home's steps, a semiautomatic handgun visible in his hand. He turns and flees down the front walk to a silver four-door truck parked on the street and jumps inside.

Police described the vehicle as a silver Dodge Ram pickup.

"After the incident, images and video of the suspect and getaway vehicle were disseminated through various media and social media platforms and several suspect identities were developed within hours," Murgo said.

Otero and Carrasquillo-Torres "were taken into custody later that evening and the following morning," he said.

Police said Rodriguez-Rivera is being held on $750,000 bond and appeared in state Superior Court in New Haven on Thursday morning.
A group of national lawmakers, led by Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, have reintroduced a proposal that would block schools nationally from secluding students in locked rooms or using certain types of physical restraints, Murphy announced Thursday.

Though the bill, called the Keeping All Students Safe Act, faces long odds in a divided Congress, it has gained supporters this year, with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, who leads the Senate committee overseeing education, now backing the proposal.

"It is absolutely unacceptable that children across this country, disproportionately students of color and students with disabilities, face dangerous seclusion and restraint practices," Sanders said in a statement. "It is our moral responsibility to ban these practices once and for all."

Similar legislation has been introduced in Congress since 2009 but has failed to pass.

In a news release announcing the proposed bill Murphy cited a year-long Hearst Newspapers investigation revealing that schools restrain and seclude special education students thousands of times a day and hundreds of thousands of times a year, sometimes resulting in serious injury or even death.

"It's hard to believe, but there are thousands of kids who are being put in solitary confinement or having their hands bound as punishment for misbehavior at school," Murphy, who was not available for an interview, said in a statement. "These practices are downright dangerous and completely ineffective ways to address behavioral issues in the classroom."

As part of the proposed bill, schools receiving federal money would not be permitted to seclude students or to restrain them unless necessary to protect student or staff safety. It would altogether ban restraint practices that restrict students' breathing, such as prone or supine restraints and would offer training "to address school-expected behavior with evidence-based, proactive strategies."

The proposal was reintroduced Thursday by a group that included Murphy, Sanders, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.). Fourteen other Senate Democrats have cosponsored the bill, including Connecticut's Richard Blumenthal, but no Republicans have signed on so far.

The proposal also has support from a wide array of disability rights advocacy groups, as well as the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and parents groups including the National PTA.

"The evidence is clear that seclusion and restraint practices are not only ineffective and dangerous, but they are also disproportionately used against students of color and students with disabilities," Denise Forte, CEO of The Education Trust, said in a statement. "Every child deserves to learn in a safe and healthy school environment, and to be protected from violent policies that threaten their physical and mental well-being."

Still, not everyone agrees that federal restrictions around restraint and seclusion in schools are needed. Some educators believe these interventions are necessary to serve students with challenging disabilities, while others believe a patchwork of state laws governing the practices are sufficient and help maintain local control of schools.

Over the last decade, the countrys largest teachers union, the National Education Association, which boasts 3 million members, has remained "neutral" on proposed federal legislation: the association didnt lobby for or against it, according to congressional aides and national advocates. The NEA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Hearst Newspapers on Thursday.

The nations second largest teachers union, the American Federation of Teachers, which has 1.7 million members, changed its position from neutral to supportive last year but has not officially endorsed the new bill. An AFT spokesperson declined to comment Thursday.

"Physical restraint should be used only when there is imminent danger of injury, and only when imposed by trained staff," President Randi Weingarten told Hearst Newspapers in a rare public statement on the issue last year. "Secluding students should never be allowed, nor should mechanical restraints."

Weingarten said teachers need funding to support professional development on the use of restraint and seclusion, emergency planning and other supports.

"Finally, we need to be sure data is collected on the number of staff injured as a result of restraining students who posed a danger to themselves or others," she said.

A congressional aide said who requested not to be named said discussions with AFT and NEA about the proposal are ongoing.

The American Association of School Administrators has opposed efforts to pass a federal law, noting that most states already have their own laws governing these practices. An AASA spokesperson said Thursday that the group's position had not changed.

Hearst Newspapers investigation found that laws regarding the use of restraint and seclusion in schools vary widely from state to state. Even in states with laws governing how these interventions can be used, "lack of oversight and accountability have resulted in egregious violations, leaving students subject to a pattern of abuse," a coalition of 17 state attorneys general wrote to Congress in 2021, urging lawmakers to pass federal legislation.

In Connecticut, where state law already restricts the use of restraint and seclusion to emergency situations and bans certain types of restraint, some lawmakers have proposed going further, requiring that a mental health professional monitors all secluded students, while further limiting the circumstances under which a student may be legally restrained.

That proposal advanced unanimously out of the Education Committee and awaits action in the State Senate.
People visit the Museum of Foochow Arsenal 1866 in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, May 16, 2023. Fujian Museum in Fujian Province will be the country's main venue for this year's International Museum Day, which falls on May 18. A number of featured exhibitions, seminars, dialogues and events will take place at museums around Fujian province. (Xinhua/Jiang Kehong)

A child has fun in front of the wall of the Xindian ancient city heritage site park in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, May 16, 2023. Fujian Museum in Fujian Province will be the country's main venue for this year's International Museum Day, which falls on May 18. A number of featured exhibitions, seminars, dialogues and events will take place at museums around Fujian province. (Xinhua/Jiang Kehong)

People visit the Yeshan heritage site museum in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, May 16, 2023. Fujian Museum in Fujian Province will be the country's main venue for this year's International Museum Day, which falls on May 18. A number of featured exhibitions, seminars, dialogues and events will take place at museums around Fujian province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan)

People walk past a promotion board of International Museum Day at the Sanfangqixiang (Three Lanes and Seven Alleys), an ancient block in downtown Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, May 16, 2023. Fujian Museum in Fujian Province will be the country's main venue for this year's International Museum Day, which falls on May 18. A number of featured exhibitions, seminars, dialogues and events will take place at museums around Fujian province. (Xinhua/Wei Peiquan)

Editor: GSY
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QUITO, Ecuador (AP)  Ecuador's Constitutional Court voted unanimously Thursday to reject multiple challenges that sought to invalidate President Guillermo Lasso's decree dissolving the opposition-led National Assembly as it tried to oust him in an impeachment trial.

With the ruling, there are no impediments for the country's electoral body to call elections for president and the legislature, which are tentatively set for August.

In challenging Lasso's dissolution of the legislature Wednesday, his adversaries tried to persuade the Constitutional Court to rule that the move was illegal on the grounds Ecuador is not facing any urgent crisis. But the court said it does not have jurisdiction to rule on the verification and motivation of the cause of serious political crisis and internal upheaval invoked" by Lasso to dissolve the assembly.

The conservative president, who sparred with the left-leaning assembly over his pro-business agenda since taking office in 2021, disbanded the chamber under a constitutional provision. Challenges to his decision were filed in the court by three opposition parties, the former president of the assembly, and two private citizens.

Lasso made the first use of a 2008 constitutional provision that allows the president to dissolve the National Assembly during times of political crisis, with the requirement that new elections be held for both lawmakers and the president.

A lawsuit filed by the assemblys former head, Virgilio Saquicela, argued that Lassos move violated the constitution because the country was not experiencing any social upheaval. Lassos detractors argued that the president chose to disband the chamber merely to avoid his own ouster.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Saquicela slammed Lassos move as a last-minute ploy to avoid his removal once it became clear that was under way.

When he saw that he didnt have the votes, he got scared, Saquicela said.

Minister of Government Henry Cucalon defended Lassos decision during a news conference Thursday, arguing that the constitution makes it clear that the legislatures dismissal is up to the presidents judgment, criteria, discretion and reason, and that it does not require approval of any other entity.

The Constitutional Court is known for acting slowly, but lawmakers had urged the panel to move quickly this time.

Medardo Oleas, a lawyer and electoral analyst, said lawmakers wanted the court to decide quickly because once an election date is set no authority may interfere in the carrying out of the process." He said that if the Constitutional Court interfered in those circumstances, its members could be dismissed.

The National Electoral Council has tentatively chosen Aug. 20 as election day. If needed, a runoff would take place Oct. 15.

The president appears to have the support of the armed forces, but faces pushback from critics including a powerful confederation of Indigenous groups that has nearly paralyzed Ecuador with protests in the past.

Lasso can now govern for up to six months by means of decrees on economic and administrative issues under the oversight of the Constitutional Court. The National Electoral Council is required to set a date for presidential and legislative elections within seven days from Lassos decision.

Those elected would finish the terms of Lasso and the lawmakers he ousted, which had been set to end in May 2025. Lasso, a former banker, can choose to run in the election.

Lawmakers seeking Lasso's removal by impeachment accused him of not having intervened to end a contract between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company. They argued Lasso knew the contract was full of irregularities and would cost the state millions in losses.

During impeachment proceedings Tuesday, Lasso noted the contract predated his administration. He also said that the state-owned company experienced losses of $6 million a year before he took office and that it has seen $180 million in profits under his watch.

Lasso had clashed from the start of his four-year term with the assembly. He accused them Wednesday of focusing on destabilizing the government. On Tuesday, he dismissively referred to their impeachment allegations against him as stretching the limits of human imagination.

Saquicela accused Lassos government of being incapable of solving the real problems of Ecuadorians, including health, transportation and security issues.

He rejected any shared responsibility for the turmoil, arguing that the assembly complied with its constitutional obligation to legislate.

I do not want to justify whether the assembly has been good or bad, what I defend is the constitutional framework, he said. However, we believe that as a political class, we fell short in our legislating and oversight duties.
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KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Russia fired 30 cruise missiles against different parts of Ukraine early Thursday in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defenses, which shot down 29 of them, officials said.

One person was killed and two were wounded by a Russian missile that got through and struck an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa, according to Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the region's military administration.

Amid the recently intensified Russian air assaults, China said its special envoy met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv earlier this week with Ukraine's chief diplomat.

Beijing's peace proposal has so far yielded no apparent breakthrough in the war. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Thursday that the warring parties needed to accumulate mutual trust for progress to be made.

Ukrainian officials sought during the talks to recruit Chinas support for Kyivs own peace plan, according to Ukraines presidential office. Zelenskyys proposal includes the restoration of his country's territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian forces and holding Russian President Vladimir Putin legally accountable for the invasion in February 2022.

Leaders of the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations gathering in Japan on Thursday were expected to denounce Russias war and vow to keep helping Ukraine fight Moscow. They were to hold discussions about the battlefield in Ukraine, according to Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser.

A Western official said Russia had built potentially formidable defensive lines on Ukrainian territory, including extensive minefields, and had more than 200,000 troops along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, though it is unlikely to possess credible reserves.

As Ukraine receives sophisticated weapons systems from its Western allies, the Kremlin has started losing warplanes in areas previously deemed as safe, the official said, while Kyiv has proven able to shoot down Russias hypersonic ballistic missiles  the most advanced weapons in Moscows arsenal.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military intelligence.

Meanwhile, Kremlin-installed authorities in occupied Crimea reported the derailment of eight train cars Thursday because of an explosion, prompting renewed suspicions about possible Ukrainian saboteur activity behind Russian lines. Russian state media reported that the train was carrying grain.

The state news agency RIA Novosti, quoting a source within the emergency services, said the incident occurred not far from the city of Simferopol. The Crimean Railway company said the derailment was caused by the interference of unauthorized persons and that there were no casualties.

Ukraine officials refuse to comment on possible acts of sabotage. Ukraines military intelligence spokesperson, Andriy Yusov, noted on Ukrainian television that Russian train lines are also used to transport weapons, ammunition, armored vehicles.

Overnight, loud explosions were heard in Kyiv as the Kremlins forces targeted the capital for the ninth time this month. It was a clear escalation after weeks of lull and before a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts, starting a fire at a garage complex. There was no immediate word about any victims, Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv military administration, said in a Telegram post.

Ukraine also shot down two Russian exploding drones and two reconnaissance drones, according to the authorities.

The missiles were launched from Russian sea, air and ground bases, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian commander in chief, wrote on Telegram.

Several waves of missiles were aimed at areas of Ukraine between 9 p.m. Wednesday and 5:30 a.m. Thursday, he said.

Russian forces used strategic bombers from the Caspian region and apparently fired X-101 and X-55-type missiles developed during Soviet times, Kyiv authorities said. Russia then deployed reconnaissance drones over the capital.

In the last major air attack on Kyiv, on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses bolstered by sophisticated Western-supplied systems shot down all the incoming missiles, officials said.

That attack used hypersonic missiles, which repeatedly have been touted by Putin as providing a key strategic advantage. The missiles, which are among the most advanced weapons in Russia's arsenal, are difficult to detect and intercept because of their hypersonic speed and maneuverability.

But sophisticated Western air defense systems, including American-made Patriot missiles, have helped spare Kyiv from the kind of destruction witnessed along the main front line in the countrys east and south.

While the ground fighting is largely deadlocked along that front line, both sides are targeting each other's territory with long-range weapons.

The most intense fighting has focused on the battle for the city of Bakhmut and the surrounding area, in Ukraines eastern Donetsk province, with a Ukrainian military official claiming Thursday that the army advanced up to 1.7 kilometers (more than a mile) there over the previous day.

At the same time, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the millionaire owner of Russias private military contractor Wagner whose troops have spearheaded the battle, claimed that Russian army units had retreated from their positions north of the city. Prigozhin is a frequent critic of the Russian military.

At least seven Ukrainian civilians were killed, including a 5-year-old boy, and 18 people were wounded over the previous 24 hours, the presidential office said.

Also, two people were wounded in a drone attack in Russias southern Kursk region, which borders Ukraine, the regional governor reported Thursday.

In a Telegram post, Roman Starovoit claimed Ukrainian forces dropped an explosive device from a drone on a sports and recreation complex.

In Russia's Belgorod region, two people were killed in Ukrainian shelling of the village of Nizhnee Berezovo, about 10 kilometers (six miles) from the border, according to Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov.

___

Jill Lawless in London and Yuras Karmanau in Tallinn, Estonia contributed to this report.

___

Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
HARTFORD  Nearly all workers in Connecticut, regardless of industry, could soon be eligible for up to one week of paid sick leave each year under legislation approved by Senate lawmakers on Thursday.

Dating back to 2012, Connecticuts Sick Leave Law already guarantees certain service workers at companies with more than 50 employees get at least 40 hours of paid sick days each year.

The bill currently before lawmakers would expand that eligibility to all private-sector workers, with the sole exception of construction workers who are covered by collective bargaining agreements. In addition it would allow covered employees to accrue sick time faster, though a provision increasing the amount of available sick time to two weeks was removed through a last-minute amendment.

We believe that this will bring us in line with other states as well as providing greater opportunities for those in our state who may need paid sick days, said state Sen. Julie Kushner, D-Danbury, who co-chairs the Labor and Public Employees Committee.

Connecticuts neighboring states all currently mandate paid sick leave for most workers. Laws in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Jersey require up to 40 hours of paid leave, while New York offers a guarantee of up to 56 hours of sick leave for workers at larger companies.

The proposal has elicited the strong support of unions, workers and physicians, who touted the health benefits of allowing workers the ease of taking time off to care for themselves and family members.

A coalition of manufacturers, small businesses and other employers, meanwhile, submitted testimony to lawmakers earlier this year, arguing that they are still attempting to accommodate the costs of Connecticut's Paid Family and Medical Leave Program, which went into effect last year.

Why are we doing this to Connecticut businesses? wrote Mary Fitzgerald, the president of Acme Wire Products Co. in Mystic.We are the backbone to our economy and workforce and put our employees at the forefront of everything we do. Connecticut already has the most generous paid family and medical leave program in the entire nation.

The bill drew opposition from Republicans in the Senate, who argued that it would saddle businesses with additional costs and interfere with private negotiations over benefits and wages.

We are limiting the ability of both the employee and the employer to be able to negotiate for what is best for them, said state Sen. Rob Sampson, R-Wolcott.

According to legislative analysts, the bill would extend paid sick leave to 1.6 million workers in Connecticut.

In his closing argument for the bill, Senate President Pro-Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, noted that most lawmakers and other high-income workers already enjoy paid sick leave, among other benefits from their jobs.

Such benefits are rarely extended to workers at the bottom end of the economic ladder, he said.

A days pay makes a huge difference to a low-income worker, Looney said. The financial hardship of [missing] even a small number of days could be virtually cataclysmic.

After roughly two hours of debate Thursday, the Senate voted 20 to 12 along party lines in favor of the legislation, sending it to the House for further consideration.

Correction: This article has been corrected to reflect that 40 hours of sick time would be made available to workers covered under the legislation.
Sarah Kaufman, managing director and curator of the NOTL Museum, with Judy Thornton, a volunteer at the NOTL Museum.



If you havent gotten a chance to view the All Along the Waterfront at the Niagara-on-the-Lake (NOTL) Museum, time is running out.

However, to help celebrate International Museum Day, held on May 18, the museum will offer free admission all day.

Sarah Kaufman, managing director and curator of the NOTL Museum, said the museum will be open on Victoria Day, May 22, adding that will be last day to catch the current exhibit.

Coming in June will be an exhibit focusing on local freedom fighter Chloe Cooley.

Kaufman noted our history here is quite significant on many, many levels and I think its very important for us to, as a museum to maintain that history, to communicate that history, and to try and engage the community in the various aspects of our history so that they can learn from the past to better inform their futures.

Judy Thornton, a volunteer at the NOTL Museum, said supporting the local museum is a bit like shopping local  you are continuing to support the community.

She has volunteered with the museum for more than 10 years  she recently received the pin to prove it  and has filled almost every role you could think of at the museum.

Were getting better each year, said Thornton. Our exhibits are changing every six months, theres always something new going on and theres always something for people to learn about in their own community.

Its a great environment and thats why I keep coming back, said Thornton.

Kaufman said museums are welcoming places that help with personal well-being as well, they are places to reflect, they are places to just enjoy some quiet time of reflection.

If you enjoy art, you could also visit Queenstons RiverBrink Art Museum.

Janet Zylstra, administrator at RiverBrink Art Museum, said RiverBrink is currently exhibiting A Family Palette.

The collection, circulated by the Ottawa Art Gallery, brings together, for the first time, the work of artists Frances-Anne Johnston, Franz Johnston and Franklin Arbuckle  three members of the same family.

The exhibition tells the story of a talented artistic family and sheds light on the ways Frances-Anne and her relatives have contributed to the development of Canadian art, noted Zylstra.

Asta McCann, programming and curatorial assistant at RiverBrink Art Museum, said museums are so important to really elevate and educate the public about our local heritage, our local history.

To have a place where the public can come together and appreciate that and celebrate that and learn more about that, McCann said. Art museums in general are just so important as a creative outlet for people.

McCann said the art museum is not just a place where people can come to look at art on a wall.

Theres so many other things going on, like artist workshops or talk series where you can really be involved in whats going on here, she said.

This year RiverBrink is celebrating its 40th anniversary and will be holding some events in June including an art show and sale on June 17 and 18 with more than 20 local artists.

The musical group the Great Lake Swimmers will also be performing.

Another way to celebrate RiverBrinks 40th is the 40 by 40 project planned. McCann said members of the community are being asked to submit a short essay on their favourite art piece in the museum.

Those selections will help inform the community-curated exhibition that is planned.

I think museums provide a wonderful gateway for culture in our areas, said McCann. I think, especially as people are getting back out of that after the pandemic, its a wonderful way to celebrate the senses and all the artistry thats out there.

I think in our communities, museums are a wonderful touchpoint to be able to elevate our everyday.

For more information on RiverBrink Art Museum, visit Riverbrink.org.

For more information on NOTL Museum, visit notlmuseum.ca.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: With May 18 being recognized as International Museum Day and May being Museum Month, reporter Nick Fearns learned more about the impact museums can have on a local community.

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A 27-year-old Grimsby man has been arrested after a Niagara Regional Police child pornography investigation.

Officers from the NRP internet child exploitation unit began an investigation in April, looking into the sexual exploitation of children that led to a home in Grimsby.

Police said a suspect was arrested Wednesday and charged with possession of child pornography and accessing child pornography.

Police encourage people to report suspicious internet activities relating to child exploitation online at www.cybertip.ca, where safety tips can also be found.

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A man wades through a flooded road after the Kupa River overflowed in Selce near Karlovac, Croatia, on May 17, 2023. Heavy rainfall from last Friday has caused widespread floods in Croatia, triggering the declaration of a state of emergency in the country's central and southeastern areas of Karlovac and Kostajnica. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall has also triggered flood warnings or caused flooding and damages across Central Europe. (Luka Stanzl/PIXSELL via Xinhua)

ZAGREB, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Heavy rainfall from last Friday has caused widespread floods in Croatia, triggering the declaration of a state of emergency in the country's central and southeastern areas of Karlovac and Kostajnica. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall has also triggered flood warnings or caused flooding and damages across Central Europe.

STATE OF EMERGENCY

Heavy rainfall has led to a sharp rise of the water levels of the Kupa River and Korana River in the Karlovac area, where a state of emergency was declared. The situation is likewise critical in the area of Kostajnica, a small town on the Croatian-Bosnian border where the heavy rain caused the River Una to overflow its banks.

Temporary flood barriers and sandbags have been installed along various rivers, including the Kupa River in Karlovac and the Una River in Kostajnica, in efforts to control the rising waters, anticipated to reach their peak levels on Wednesday, according to local media reports.

"What affects us are the heavy downpours. All forces are on the ground. They worked all night, and the pumps did not stop," Dalibor Bisca, mayor of Kostajnica, told the local radio station "In the First Network."

Meanwhile, the situation in Varazdin County in northern Croatia is also at risk as houses and roads are flooded, and some roads are closed due to the floods. In the Zadar area in western Croatia, heavy rain caused a record-high water level of the River Zrmanja on Monday, flooding towns and villages.

According to Croatia's State Hydrometeorological Institute, a total of 256.4 mm of rain fell per square meter on Monday in Gracac in Zadar County, the highest since records began in 1960.

In face of heavy damages of flooded fields, homes and closed roads, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic promised on Tuesday that the government would provide all necessary funding and aid to the floods-devastated areas.

"We must be prepared for heavy floods, urban floods. Everyone will have to contribute," Davor Bozinovic, Croatian minister of the interior told reporters as he visited the flooded parts of northern Croatia on Wednesday.

There have been no reports of human casualties so far in floods in Croatia.

ACROSS CENTRAL EUROPE

Croatia's neighbors, including Slovenia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), are also experiencing heavy rainfalls and floods.

Due to the heavy rainfall and the high level of water in Slovenian rivers, the Geological Survey of Slovenia has warned of flooding as well as the increased probability of landslides, especially in the eastern part of the country.

The floods, caused by the overflow of the rivers Krka, Pesnica and Scavnica in Slovenia, could even flood on a larger scale as heavy rain was expected to continue on Wednesday, said the Geological Survey of Slovenia.

Meanwhile, situations in Austria and BiH are similar as heavy rainfalls have caused flooding and damages.

In Italy, the recent spell of wet and stormy weather has shown no sign of letting up this week and could last until the end of the month, if not beyond, bringing heavy rain and possible floods, according to local meteorologists.

Italy has already experienced 89 storms so far in the first half of May, causing damages to crops, according to the farmer's association Coldiretti. Recent forecasts indicate that torrential rain could fall in parts of Italy and bring the risk of flash floods.

Heavy rainfall has also been forecast across parts of Central Europe through at least Wednesday and the affected area includes much of Austria, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, parts of southern Germany, and central and eastern Switzerland, as the meteorological agencies of the respective countries have issued orange rainfall warnings for these areas.

European meteorologists have warned that the impact of climate change, which brings extreme weather including heavy rainfall and flooding, will become more frequent in the future.

Aerial photo taken on May 17, 2023 shows a flooded area in Duga Resa, Croatia. Heavy rainfall from last Friday has caused widespread floods in Croatia, triggering the declaration of a state of emergency in the country's central and southeastern areas of Karlovac and Kostajnica. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall has also triggered flood warnings or caused flooding and damages across Central Europe. (Luka Stanzl/PIXSELL via Xinhua)

Aerial photo taken on May 17, 2023 shows flooded houses near the Una River in Kostajnica, Croatia. Heavy rainfall from last Friday has caused widespread floods in Croatia, triggering the declaration of a state of emergency in the country's central and southeastern areas of Karlovac and Kostajnica. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall has also triggered flood warnings or caused flooding and damages across Central Europe. (Igor Soban/PIXSELL via Xinhua)

Editor: WJH
Telus has offered voluntary severance and retirement packages to almost 2,000 customer support employees across the country and expects several hundred people to accept the offer.

The Vancouver-based telecommunications company made the offer Wednesday to employees who provide customer support for wireless and residential (internet and TV) services, the Star has learned.

Donna Hokiro, president of the United Steelworkers Local 1944, which represents about 6,400 Telus employees, confirmed that 1,992 of her members received the voluntary buyout offers.

Telus spokesperson Richard Gilhooley said the companys investment in new customer support technology is behind the decision to offer the employee packages.

Weve made significant investments in customer service technology and self-serve capabilities to provide our customers with more service options, he said in an email Wednesday evening. As a result, we recently offered a voluntary program to some team members.

Gilhooley said that based on the companys experience with past buyouts, we anticipate a small proportion of team members to choose this voluntary offer. In a subsequent email, he said the company would only allow several hundred to take it.

Its also important to stress that this is a voluntary program, and is part of routine business operations for us, he said.

Hokiro called the terms of the offers aggressive and predicted a lot of people will take it.

For employees that accept the deal, the company is offering a lump-sum payment that includes one month of severance for every year of service up to a cap of 18 months, Hokiro said. (The terms are different for cases of early retirement, which is capped at 12 months severance.)

It has also added various enhancements, including an additional lump sum of $1,000 per year of service up to a maximum of $20,000 and a $500 bonus for accepting the offer early.

Some people are looking at packages of up to $70,000, Hokiro said. We havent seen offers like this in a long time.

She said she believes the loss of these high-quality union jobs will harm communities.

Telus avoided a strike by more than 6,500 USW workers just two months ago when employees voted to approve a new contract after months of bargaining. That collective agreement runs until 2027.

Telus has told employees that if they do not accept the buyout offer, they could be redeployed to a different area of the company and that could come with the potential for schedule changes, Hokiro said.

Gilhooley did not comment on the specifics of the packages or the companys communications around the offers.

As of the end of last year, Telus had 34,700 Canadian employees.

It also employs 73,800 people outside of Canada, most of whom work for its Telus International call centre, IT and business support operation.

The buyout offer was not extended to certain customer support agents including Chinese-language employees, bilingual/French agents and tech support employees.

Telus set a deadline of June 9 for responses and told employees that departures will happen mainly in July and August with some in October. It also said that it may not accept all departures.

Correction  May 18, 2023: This story has been updated to include Telus statement that it will only allow several hundred people to take the buyout offers. A previous version said more than 5 per cent of the companys workforce could be affected.

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Along with your milk and eggs, Loblaw is hoping you might add something else to your next shopping list: a stove, fridge  perhaps even a washing machine.

The countrys largest grocery retailer is launching a pilot project that will see the company adding store-in-store kiosks selling major household appliances at a handful of Real Canadian Superstore locations across the country.

The pilot project, which officially launches Thursday with a 1,900-square-foot kiosk at the Real Canadian Superstore in Milton, will expand to other locations later this year, in partnership with Canadian Appliance Source, a Toronto-based chain.

The goal, said Loblaw executive Jonathan Carroll, is for the Superstore to become a place where customers can get their hands on, well, pretty much anything they need.

Its a one-stop shop. We have an optical department, a pharmacy, Joe Fresh, and our grocery line. To introduce this new appliance line wasnt hard  we just had to find the right partner, said Carroll, senior vice-president in charge of Loblaws Real Canadian Superstore banner, which has 119 stores across the country.

Its even less of a stretch, said Carroll, considering that Superstore locations already sell small appliances such as blenders and toasters.

Now we can provide that other option to our customers, that theyve been seeking and looking for, said Carroll. Customers will also be able to collect PC Optimum loyalty points for appliance purchases.

The pilot project makes plenty of sense, said Lisa Hutcheson, managing director at J.C. Williams Group, a retail consultancy.

Its partly, said Hutcheson, a way for Loblaw to push back against big-box rivals.

Its about one-stop shopping. Its about being able to accommodate all the needs and wants of the consumer  But its also thinking about a little bit of pushback to the Walmarts and the Costcos that are taking a piece of the grocery dollar, said Hutcheson.

The Superstore locations also have more than enough room for whats effectively a mini showroom. At anywhere from 80,000 to 164,000 square feet, they can be more than twice the size of typical Loblaw stores, Hutcheson noted.

When you think about Superstores, theyve already had BBQs and patio furniture and stuff like that, so they definitely have some space in those superstores, said Hutcheson.

As far as whether customers will actually drop a grand or two on major appliances when they were originally shopping for a family dinner? Hutcheson said its not as big a stretch as an electronics retailer moving into home appliances.

This makes a lot more sense to me than Best Buy selling stoves and dishwashers, said Hutcheson.

And no, customers wont be dealing with a grocery employee whos suddenly had to get up to speed on a whole new product line. Canadian Appliance Source employees will be staffing the kiosks, said Carroll, to make sure customers are dealing with someone who knows the appliances inside and out.

It is that expertise, said Carroll. The knowledge and the energy they have is just incredible.

In a news release, Canadian Appliance Source CEO and founder Ari Klein said his company is looking forward to the pilot project.

CAS is incredibly excited about this opportunity to work with such an iconic brand in Canada, said Klein.

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PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. - A Saskatchewan police chief says he is retiring after a report found officers who responded to a domestic violence call didnt check on the well-being of a toddler in the hours before the child was killed.

Chief Jonathan Bergen of the Prince Albert Police Service issued a statement Thursday saying the move is in the best interest of the department and the city.

Bergen said he has always held himself accountable for his decisions and been open to scrutiny.

What I did not expect from my service and the community I trust and value, is the level of aggressive personal attack and contrived character assassination of me and my leadership team, and the cruel and misdirected emotional assault on my family, orchestrated by a select few

Largely the attacks have been cowardly and anonymous. For much of the last three years, it has been very public and relentless.

The service has been criticized for several incidents in the last few years, with one of them being the killing of 13-month-old Tanner Brass.

The Public Complaints Commission report into the death of the boy, released earlier Thursday, says two officers neglected their duty in the case.

The boys father, Kaij Brass, has been charged with second-degree murder and his trial is scheduled for next year.

The circumstances on the morning of Feb. 10, 2022, amount to a tragic and potentially avoidable incident, the report found. (Tanner) was, at all relevant times, vulnerable and in danger while inside the residence with (his father).

Kyla Frenchman, the toddlers mother, has demanded the officers be fired, alleging she was racially profiled when she called for help. The report found she went willingly to a police station with the officers because womens shelters were full and there was nowhere warm for her to go.

Her son was left with his father and killed.

The report says Frenchman had called 911 early on the cold winter morning after she walked to an RCMP facility that was closed. She told 911 that her childs father was intoxicated and had assaulted her.

When asked if she was concerned about the childs safety, the report says the mother became emotional and alleged he hits him when he puts him to bed.

The two officers arrived six minutes later and spoke with the mother outside the home. She told them the father was intoxicated and had pushed her down some steps.

Frenchman told police she just wanted to get her son and her clothes and wait for a ride to come from La Ronge, more than 200 kilometres north of the city, the report says.

The officers went to the front door and the father came to the window but refused to open the door. Officers later said that they believed he didnt appear intoxicated and the mother didnt want to pursue an assault investigation.

The officers determined they had no authority to enter the home or grounds to arrest the father, the report says. They were outside the house for 13 minutes and did not attempt to check on the child.

That was a failure of protocol, the report found. The officers had the authority to enter the home and would have been justified in helping the mother retrieve her belongings and the boy.

The officers also failed to follow the forces intimate partner violence policy, which requires members ensure the immediate safety of the complainant and any children who may be present, the report says.

Five hours after the mother called for help, the report says, a man called 911 indicating he had killed his baby.

The totality of the circumstances demonstrates a series of compounded failures by (the officers) when they had a legal duty to investigate the 911 call by (the mother), the report says.

The report also notes that the officers didnt take any information regarding the fathers level of intoxication and whether it was safe for the man to be alone with the toddler.

The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, which represents 74 First Nations in Saskatchewan, has alleged the officers racially profiled Frenchman and accused her of being drunk.

FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron called for the officers to be held criminally accountable for their failure to prevent the death of Baby Tanner.

The commissions report says officers were aware the mother was sober but there was no place for her to go. They said she could spend a few hours at the detention centre and she agreed.

Videos from the police car and the detention centre show the mother was not handcuffed and she rested once she was placed in the cell, the report says.

The commission says the force doesnt have a policy for lodging sober, consenting people in cells, and that places officers in a difficult position when encountering people with nowhere to go and no safe alternatives.

Officers must either bring sober, consenting persons to cells or leave the person to fend for themselves in the harsh winter, the report says.

Michelle Ouellette, the commission chair, said the findings were submitted to the police chief to impose appropriate discipline.

Bergen said for the sake of integrity any discipline must be handled by a new police chief.

Last year, the Saskatchewan government appointed a former Edmonton police chief to conduct an independent review of the force following the childs death.

The review has been completed but Saskatchewans public safety minister has not said whether it will be publicly released.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  Anti-trans legislation is roiling the nation. Bills prohibiting drag performances are cropping up in statehouses. Violence and vitriol are turning childrens drag story hour events into headline-news protests.

San Francisco is fighting back Thursday by naming the nations first drag laureate, an ambassador-style position designed to represent the citys famous LGBTQ+ community at a time when rights are under attack.

In a city known for its support of LGBTQ+ rights, San Francisco Mayor London Breed says it was a natural step to create a position that not only embraces drag culture but puts government resources toward it. DArcy Drollinger, a well-known drag performer and nightclub owner, will receive a $55,000 stipend in her 18-month role as the citys inaugural drag laureate.

My goals are to make San Francisco sparkle. I think drag performers bring a lot of sparkle and humor and glamor and silliness to the world. I think that is part of why drag is so successful, said Drollinger, a man who uses feminine pronouns when in drag. She expects to be in drag for the entirety of her role. Im going to be in drag pretty much 24/7 for the next 18 months.

She noted San Franciscos drag community is already politically engaged and active.

Theres a lot of power for the drag community in San Francisco, she said. I feel very honored to be able to take that one more step.

West Hollywood is on the verge of appointing its own drag laureate later this month, though at a much lower salary and with limited engagements. In New York, where the Stonewall riots marked a major turning point in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, a 2021 effort to create such a position has languished in a committee, reflecting the challenges of creating such jobs even in liberal cities.

In San Francisco, Drollinger will inaugurate the role three weeks before Pride Month begins. Her duties will span from producing and participating in drag events to serving as a spokesperson for San Franciscos LGBTQ+ community to helping officials to ensuring the citys drag history is shared, honored and preserved. The job posting sought someone who will embody San Franciscos historic, diverse and inclusive drag culture, elevating the entire community on the national and international stage.

The citys mayor called Drollinger a bright star in San Francisco for her advocacy and elevation of the citys drag community.

Whether its through a tragedy or to celebrate an occasion, she really has been a leader in this community and supporter of so many others, Breed told The Associated Press.

Drollinger said she felt both nervous and honored when she was told the job was hers, given the recent violence targeting drag performers, even in the Bay Area.

I know that there are a lot of anti-drag folks out there, and they are very loud, right? But I also dont want to live my life under the shadow of fear. I dont want to have intimidation stop me from growing, she said. So, yes, I am a little nervous. But I got a lot of fabulous people and fabulousness behind me.

Members of the Proud Boys sparked a hate crimes investigation when they protested and shouted slurs outside a Bay Area library hosting Drag Story Hour, where drag queens read to kids, last June. In Oregon last year, demonstrators  some of them armed  threw rocks and smoke grenades at each other outside a drag event.

In November, a shooter at a Colorado Springs nightclub turned a drag queens birthday party into a massacre, killing five people and injuring 17 more. The suspect was charged with hate crimes and murder.

The American Civil Liberties Union is tracking 474 anti-LGBTQ+ pieces of legislation in the U.S., including Tennessees first-in-the-nation law that essentially bans drag from public property or in the presence of minors. A federal judge temporarily blocked the measure hours before it was set to go into effect in late March.

Jonathan Hamilt, executive director of Drag Story Hour, a global nonprofit event network that began in San Francisco in 2015, said he hopes other cities across the country will enact their own drag laureate programs.

Its just having that visibility and having that personal human connection  having that social story of someone from your community that looks like you or someone that you see or interact with on a regular basis, Hamilt said.

New York City Councilmember Kristin Richardson Johnson plans to keep pushing for a drag laureate in her city if the position doesnt win support this year. Jack McClatchy, the elected officials legislative and budget director, couldnt give a specific reason for why the effort has stalled, only noting that its one of more than 1,000 bills before the council.

West Hollywood, which was founded in part by LGBTQ+ activists in 1984, is expected to name its drag laurate in the coming weeks after a 2021 attempt failed over a pay dispute. Officials originally advertised the position with a $5,000 stipend, nearly double what the citys poet laureate gets. Pushback prompted the council to raise it to $15,000 annually for the two-year term that begins July 16  International Drag Day.

Drollinger owns the Oasis nightclub, which hosted  Meals on Heels  after the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, where drag performers brought food, cocktails and socially distant lip-synching performances to home-bound customers.

I hope that the drag laureate position telegraphs to the rest of the country that drag is not something to be scared of, Drollinger said. Drag is something to celebrate.

___

Dazio reported from Los Angeles.

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LAS VEGAS (AP)  Trial was delayed Thursday for a woman who has been in state psychiatric care for more than seven years after being accused of intentionally plowing a car into pedestrians, killing one, on a Las Vegas strip sidewalk in December 2015.

Paris Paradise Morton told Clark County District Court Judge Tierra Jones she wants a different court-appointed attorney to represent her on murder and 70 other felony charges. The crash killed an Arizona woman and injured dozens of other people near the Paris Las Vegas and Planet Hollywood resorts.

Morton rejected a plea bargain this week that would avoid trial, which had been scheduled to begin May 30. The judge set a closed-door hearing with Morton next Wednesday to determine if she will get a new lawyer. No new trial date was set.

Morton, now 32, has been prosecuted as Lakeisha Nicole Holloway, the name she gave to authorities following the crash a few days before Christmas 2015. Records show she legally changed her name before the crash from Holloway to Morton.

Jessica Valenzuela, 32, a tourist from Buckeye, Arizona, was killed and authorities said at least 35 people from several states, Mexico and Canada were injured.

Clark County and Las Vegas have in recent years installed rows of vehicle barriers called bollards along Las Vegas Boulevard and other sidewalk curbs with large pedestrian crowds to prevent similar crashes.

Mortons daughter, who was 3 years old at the time, was with her in the car during the crash, after which Morton drove to a casino-hotel off the Strip and asked employees to call police. Mortons court-appointed defense attorney, Scott Coffee, has said she no longer has custody of the child.

Coffee has said his client was from Portland, Oregon, and traveled through several cities in the U.S. and Canada before arriving in Las Vegas a few days before the crash.

Morton told investigators she and her daughter had been living in the car and sleeping in casino parking areas until being told by security officers to leave. Authorities said she may have been on her way to Texas to see the girls father at the time of the crash.

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VANCOUVER - In an era inundated with scams involving mysterious princes or easy fortunes  if you just hand over a few bucks in advance  youre probably right to be wary of anyone offering free money.

But Sherry MacLennan and Lindsey Moore really might have some cash for you, British Columbians. Maybe even millions.

The pair are part of a team of six running BC Unclaimed, recently rebranded from the BC Unclaimed Property Society.

Over the last 20 years, the organization has operated under a government mandate to reunite British Columbians with funds abandoned or forgotten in old bank accounts, with government departments or in the form of unclaimed court payments.

One of the challenges they face is skepticism that what they offer is real.

While the average payout is usually a few hundred dollars, later this month the society expects to finish the paperwork and hand over a record $1.98 million that the claimant did not previously know they owned.

Every year we advertise, trying to get our name out there so that people know that this service does exist in British Columbia, and that our letters (are) not just some sort of phishing scam trying to get your identification, said Moore, a co-ordinator with the society.

We really do hold your money if youve got a letter from us.

British Columbia is one of four jurisdictions in Canada that have programs to help people find unclaimed money.

In B.C., institutions like banks, credit unions, courts and government bodies are required to hand over funds if they cant find the rightful owner after a set period of time.

Its then up to the societys team to try to track down the owners, with $190 million currently unclaimed in the province.

Using a series of government databases and search engines, they hunt for those who have moved without telling their financial institutions, forgot to leave a forwarding address with an old employer, or are unaware a court is holding money for them.

Last year, the society handed over $1.7 million and since its inception has returned more than $21.5 million.

Every time I tell people what we do for work, they think, Well, I wouldnt forget about unclaimed money, but hundreds of thousands of people have, Moore said.

MacLennan, the societys executive director, said its letters informing potential beneficiaries have been met with increasing skepticism as financial scams have grown in popularity.

We send letters so that they can review them, that they can Google us, that they can do their own research and satisfy themselves that were legit, she said.

And we always tell people theres no urgency, the money will always be there for you. Because we know con artists will sometimes say Oh, youve got to decide now and you got to act fast.

The societys website includes an online database people can use to see if their name is linked to any money as well as links to the legislation that governs their work, all in an effort to promote their legitimacy.

I think when people receive those letters, oftentimes they definitely think that we are a scam, Moore said.

I do notice some people never reply, but then maybe years later they will hear about us on the news and then theyll make an inquiry through the website and claim their money then.

Privacy rules prevent Moore and MacLennan from discussing details of the record-breaking $1.98 million set to be returned except to say that the account was held by the courts related to litigation.

They say large sums can be common in legal situations like foreclosures, if money is left over after debts are paid off.

But most people, if theyve been foreclosed on, or theyve been sued for debt, chances are theyve been representing themselves, MacLennan said.

They dont have a lawyer telling them what to do, to go get that money. Its emotional, they probably never want to think about the situation again.

There is at least one more seven-figure windfall out there in B.C., a dormant account holding $1.9 million.

The vast majority of claimants do not, of course, become instant millionaires. But Moore said even a few hundred unexpected dollars can make a difference.

I think a lot of elderly people, I would say, can be the most grateful because I think even a small dollar amount can make a big difference if youre on the fixed income, she said.

Legally there is no expiry date for when money can be reclaimed, but every year, the society works with actuaries to decide how much money will likely never find its rightful owner, and instead is donated.

About $55 million of that cash has been donated to the Vancouver Foundation since 2013.

When I see the Vancouver Foundation being able to support organizations that are working with survivors of domestic violence and children whove been traumatized by domestic violence, and helping refugees, it really means a lot to me, MacLennan said.

And its a really good use of those unclaimed funds.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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OTTAWA - Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said Thursday that he has chosen not to meet with former governor general David Johnston, who is investigating allegations that China has meddled in Canadas elections and other matters, while former party staffers called for political unity over foreign interference.

In March, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau named Johnston a special rapporteur to look into possible gaps in the federal governments response to foreign interference and recommend whether a public inquiry is needed.

Poilievre said Johnston is unable to do that work independently because he used to be a member of the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, which is under scrutiny for accepting a donation reportedly linked to the Chinese government.

Poilievre told reporters Thursday that he sent a letter to Johnston asking how he can investigate the organization independently, but did not receive a response.

He is Justin Trudeaus ski buddy, his cottage neighbour, his family friend and a member of the Trudeau Foundation, which got $140,000 from Beijing, Poilievre said.

He has a fake job and hes unable to do it impartially. He needs to simply hand it over and allow an independent public inquiry into Beijings interference.

His comments came hours before two former Conservative Party staffers  who worked under the partys previous leader Erin OToole  testified at the procedure and House affairs committee that is studying foreign interference.

Tasha Michaud, OTooles former chief of staff, said Canadas strength lies in its unity, while Walied Soliman, the Conservative partys campaign co-chair in 2021, urged the committee to leave partisanship out of this.

Both had received briefings from national security officials during the last election, but felt there were some flaws in the work of the Security and Intelligence Threats To Elections Taskforce  a Liberal government initiative that aimed to monitor foreign interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.

While the elections task force was well intentioned and set up in a manner that suggested it would be operated in a robust, information-sharing fashion, it ultimately left me with a feeling of ambivalence, lack of co-ordination and authority, and a complete failure to share relevant intelligence and provide meaningful advice, Michaud told the committee.

She said national security agencies should provide better guidance to political parties during elections, because she believed several volunteers and Conservative candidates were subjected to inappropriate tactics and intimidation. Soliman agreed, though neither offered specific details.

Trudeau has said appointing Johnston was intended to take the partisan politics out of the debate, but his appointment remains a talking point for opposition leaders.

Poilievre said Canada needs to move on from the special rapporteur distraction and get on with a public inquiry to investigate allegations of Chinese foreign interference.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh did meet with Johnston alongside Vancouver-area MP Jenny Kwan, who had not yet been advised that she was a potential target of foreign interference.

We asked Jenny to attend as she has been very active hearing from the Chinese community about their concerns regarding foreign interference, the NDP said in a statement.

Much of the discussion on the issue publicly has focused on politicians and we wanted to ensure that the impact on everyday people was considered.

The party said it initiated the meeting request, and Singh used the opportunity to ask Johnston to recommend a public inquiry.

The NDP said Kwan will also have an in-person meeting with Canadas spy agency to discuss whether she could be a potential target for foreign interference.

Johnston, the author of Trust: Twenty Ways to Build a Better Country, has served on the boards of more than a dozen public companies, and was named a member of the Trudeau Foundation in 2018. His relationship with the Trudeau family is well documented.

He told CTV in 2016 that his familys friendship with the Trudeaus went back decades and they used to ski together. He also said his wife became good friends with the Trudeau family when they all lived on the grounds of Rideau Hall.

Johnston was appointed governor general on the recommendation of former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper in 2010.

In 2017, when his term ended, Trudeau called him a family friend during a speech in Parliament.

His mandate in the special rapporteur role includes looking at what Trudeau, his staff and his cabinet ministers knew about attempted foreign interference, and what they did about it. The government says he has access to classified documents to support that investigation.

He is expected to issue recommendations on whether a public inquiry is necessary by next week, but he has until the end of October to complete his review.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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OTTAWAParliaments budget watchdog estimates new regulations for cleaner fuel  a long-promised and delayed federal policy to reduce emissions causing the climate crisis  could hike the cost of gas by up to 17 cents per litre over the next eight years and hit low-income households harder than the rich.

The analysis published Thursday allowed the Conservative opposition to renew its attacks on Liberal government climate policies that it has maligned for years. Speaking outside the House of Commons, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the new regulations were yet another tax on the backs of hard-working Canadians that was layered on top of the federal carbon price which  unlike the fuel regulations  comes with quarterly rebates.

Poilievre said his party would scrap both policies and instead reduce greenhouse gas emissions  which he acknowledged cause climate change  by emphasizing unspecified incentives for green technology and making it easier to build clean energy projects.

These are common sense ideas that lower the cost of carbon-free energy rather than raising the cost of energy that Canadians continue to rely upon, he said.

Minister calls report skewed

The report marks the second time this spring that the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has challenged the government to defend one of its key climate policies, after it published a report in March on the cost of the federal carbon price. It was also the second time Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault claimed the PBOs analysis was flawed and misleading, since it didnt take into account the costs of climate change the fuel regulations are designed to help mitigate.

Outside the House of Commons, Guilbeault told reporters the PBO report was similar to its March analysis of the federal carbon pricing system, in that he said it overestimates how much federal climate policies will cost Canadians.

It is a very partial analysis, Guilbeault charged. If you have an incomplete analysis, of course your numbers and your conclusions will be skewed.

Guilbeault said the real impact on the cost of gas from the fuel regulations will be smaller than what the PBO estimates, although he did not provide an alternative figure, other than to say the immediate impact would be minimal.

Sloane Mask, a spokesperson for the PBO, told the Star by email Thursday that the budget watchdog used economic analysis from Guilbeaults own department to come up with its estimate.

Mask also said its normal for the PBO to analyze a policys costs without examining its benefits.

Over the years we have estimated the costs of many policy proposals without assessing their potential benefits, she said.

What are the governments clean fuel regulations?

First promised shortly after the Liberals took office in 2015, the incoming clean fuel regulations are set to come into force July 1 after years of delay while the government consulted broadly on how to design them. The idea is to ensure the amount of greenhouse gas emissions per unit of fuel  gasoline and diesel  is capped and then forced to go down over the coming years.

Thursdays PBO report points to Environment Canadas projection that the policy will reduce Canadas emissions by up to 26 megatonnes in 2030.

Thats almost four per cent of the countrys national total in 2021, according to the latest government data, and represents less than a tenth of the remaining reductions needed to hit Canadas goal to slash emissions to 40 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.

Time running out to fight climate change

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change  the worlds leading scientific body on the warming world  has warned that time is running out to reduce emissions globally and avoid the worst extremes of the climate crisis. Those include more frequent and extreme floods, droughts, wildfires and storms, species extinctions, rising sea levels and disappearing polar ice and permafrost  all of which could endanger people and cost huge amounts of money.

The government argues Canada  which is responsible for 1.5 per cent of global emissions in 2019, but with higher per capita emissions than the top 10 global greenhouse gas polluters, according to the federal Environment Department  must contribute to the worldwide effort to avoid those outcomes.

The clean fuel regulations are part of that contribution.

The PBOs report looked at how the estimated costs of this policy will be borne by different parts of the population. Assuming that fuel importers and producers will pass along the increased cost of following the regulations, the PBO said the price of gasoline could go by up to 17 cents per litre, and diesel by up to 16 cents per litre, when they hit their maximum scheduled stringency in 2030.

The PBO estimated this increase will cost lower-income households a larger share of their disposable earnings, since a bigger portion of their money typically gets spent on transportation and other energy-intensive goods and services.

Report says poorer households will bear greater burden

Nationally, in 2030, the average yearly cost per household would range from 0.62 per cent of disposable income (or $231) for lower-earners, to 0.35 per cent (or $1,008) for higher-earners, according to the PBO.

The estimated costs vary by region too, based on how much they rely on fossil fuels for energy. The PBO concluded the average household in Alberta, for instance, will pay an extra $1,157 per year because of the clean fuel regulations. The average home in British Columbia, meanwhile, will only see increased costs of $384 per year, the report said. In Ontario, the estimate is $495.

Poilievre argued the report is yet another added cost that the Liberals have unnecessary heaped onto Canadians as they strive to reduce Canadas greenhouse gas emissions. He pointed to the federal requirement that all provinces have a minimum carbon price, which is set to increase from the current $65 per tonne of emissions to $170 per tonne in 2030.

In March, the PBO caused a political uproar when it reported that this carbon pricing system would cause most households to see a net loss of income by 2030  even after accounting for quarterly rebates the government insists will cover the costs of the policy for most Canadians.

The Liberals have since by argued  as Guilbeault did Thursday  that the analysis ignores the increasing costs of climate change. According to a report the federal Public Safety Department published last week, climate change could cause direct economic losses in Canada of $15.3 billion annually by 2030. On top of that, the Insurance Institute of Canada predicts average annual severe weather claims payments will double over the next 10 years to $5 billion.

The government also published new figures calculating the social cost of greenhouse gas emissions  a way to measure the damage of such pollution  is $261 per tonne of carbon dioxide pollution this year, and will rise to $294 per tonne by 2030.

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If youre wondering why the Eglinton Crosstown is stalled and Metrolinx is a mess, Caroline Mulroney has the answer:

Not me. Nothing to do with me.

Shes merely the mighty minister of transportation  has been since mid-2019. Next month will mark four full years on the job for Mulroney.

That makes her the provinces longest-serving transportation czar in 33 years. Youd have to go back to 1989, when David Peterson was premier and Brian Mulroney was prime minister, to find anyone driving the train for quite so long (Ed Fulton).

Today, the Crosstown LRT  thatd be light-rail transit  is going nowhere fast.

This week, the Crosstown consortium is back to bashing Metrolinx (and the TTC) with yet another lawsuit  blaming everyone but themselves: Jaccuse.

As always, Mulroney is back to courting public opinion by blaming her predecessors  all the while refusing to say what needs to be said: Je mexcuse.

In truth, the causes are complicated  from contractual disputes to COVID-19 delays. But if you listen to Mulroneys press lines on the transit line, there is no news and no nuance:

Sympathy for shopkeepers blockaded by Eglintons construction zone for years? Empathy for the crosstown commuters still on hold? Clarity for journalists trying to make sense of the nonsense?

None of the above. The playbook is a blame game that goes back in time:

We have learned one thing, and its something that all Ontarians know, Mulroney lectured the legislature this week.

The Liberals made mistake after mistake after mistake when they were in government, and the NDP supported them when they held the balance of power. We learned from the Liberal mistakes and thats why we committed to doing things differently.

There was a time when blaming the previous party in power seemed plausible  notably in the months right after the 2018 election. But ever since last Junes election, the previous government, technically speaking, has been none other than the PC government of 2018-22.

By her logic, the five years since Doug Fords Tories first gained power somehow dont count. Which means Mulroney cannot be held to account.

Thats not to say that the minister bears all blame for the fiasco at Metrolinx, the transportation co-ordination agency she oversees. But Mulroney cannot claim to be blameless.

She had four full years to get to the bottom of the Metrolinx morass. As minister, why didnt she have Crosstown in her crosshairs, demanding accountability?

The answer is that she turned her mind to machinations and communications rather than construction and operations. Mulroneys office obsessed with muzzling Metrolinx rather than cracking the whip on Crosstown.

A confidential email trail shows the ministers top political aides vetting communications from Metrolinx to the media and opposition politicians. A typical example is this edict, emanating from Mulroney chief of staff Michael Beaton, directed at his Metrolinx counterpart:

I understand you spoke with Mike Beaton about a potential new approach for Metrolinx (Crosstown) comms (communications). Here is the new statement, which we propose comes from (Metrolinx CEO) Phil (Verster), one of Mulroneys PR aides wrote in an email revealed by Star reporter Lex Harvey.

Imagery matters to Mulroneys team. Efficiency, not so much.

Perhaps thats why she and Ford invited the media to a photo op this month with Metrolinx to announce  wait for it  two new electric GO buses. An entire transit system is being held hostage, and she hosts an announcement about two buses?

Its always awkward watching Mulroney and Ford onstage together  erstwhile rivals for the party leadership in 2018 (she finished third). When the transportation minister struggled with answering a question on Crosstown delays earlier this year, the premier stepped up to rescue her with a fuller explanation and rumination.

The budget has ballooned from an initial $8.2 billion to as much as $12.8 billion. The budgeting, like the politicking, is nothing if not frustrating.

The NDP Opposition lays the blame at the so-called P3  public-private partnership  building the Crosstown line, as if all the problems would vanish if only government agencies had sole authority. Leave Metrolinx or the Toronto Transit Commission in charge and transit would roll out at high speed.

To be sure, P3 has its pluses and minuses, but this is hardly a perfect test case. COVID-19 ensnared the Crosstown project, causing massive complications. Litigation is exasperating, but the truth is that the consortium has extracted hundreds of millions of dollars from Metrolinx after launching lawsuits in the past, so its not always wrong.

Its latest complaint is that the TTCs formal role, as operator of the LRT, is conspicuously absent from the contract language after all these years. Metrolinx and the Tories say its a delaying tactic and a distraction, but its a good question  why, after all these years (the last four under Mulroneys reign), isnt all of this spelled out?

The TTC and Metrolinx allege that Crosslinx has it all wrong  the tracks arent straight and true, and the consortium cant get its story straight. Thats a question for engineers and lawyers to sort out in due course.

But Torontonians deserve straight talk from their politicians now. After years of delay, they want answers about the LRTs pathway to an opening day in the near future, not a trip back in time to another governing era.

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The US says it will ensure that the perpetrators of the attack on its convoy are brought to justice.

On Tuesday, gunmen attacked a convoy conveying staff of the US consulate, officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), and some civilians.

Ikenga Tochukwu, Anambra police spokesperson, said two police operatives were killed alongside two staff of the consulate.

The bodies of the victims were set ablaze by the gunmen, he added.

The White House had said the state department was looking into the issue.

In a statement on Wednesday, Antony Blinken, US secretary of state, said the convoy was conveying the staff to a US-funded flood project in Anambra.

He said some members of the convoy are unaccounted for, adding that the US would collaborate with Nigerian security agencies to ensure that the attackers are brought to book.

Unknown assailants yesterday attacked a convoy of two US. government vehicles in the Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra state, Nigeria. The convoy was carrying nine Nigerian nationals: five employees of the U.S. Mission to Nigeria and four members of the Nigeria Police Force. They were travelling in advance of a planned visit by U.S. Mission personnel to a U.S.-funded flood response project in Anambra, the statement reads.

We do not yet know the motive for the attack, but we have no indications at this time that it was targeted against our Mission. The assailants killed at least four members of the convoy, and U.S. Mission personnel are working urgently with Nigerian counterparts to ascertain the location and condition of the members of the convoy who are unaccounted for.

We condemn in the strongest terms this attack. We will work closely with our Nigerian law enforcement colleagues in seeking to bring those responsible to justice.

Blinken said the US will do everything possible to safely recover those who remain missing.

The US will continue to assist Nigeria in the fight against violence and insecurity, he added.
Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979. (Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)

HOHHOT, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

They were found earlier this month in a one-hectare land in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, said Zhao Liqing, a botanist at the Inner Mongolia University.

Zhao said the discovery is of great significance to China's ecological protection and studies on the country's endangered plants.

Tulipa mongolica is a perennial herb 10-25 cm tall, featuring an ovate bulb and yellow perianth segments. It is placed under state protection in China.

Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

(Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)

Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

(Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)

Editor: WXL
The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, and the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, have agreed not to kick against all documents that emanated from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in the conduct of the February 25 presidential election.

The documents must, however, be certified as true reflection of the original copies in line with the provisions of the law guiding admissibility of documents.

These resolutions were conveyed to the 5-man panel of Justices of the Presidential Election Petition Court hearing the joint petition of Atiku and PDP challenging the declaration of Tinubu as winner of the disputed election.

Chief Chris Uche SAN, leading the legal team for Atiku conveyed the decisions of the lawyers to the Court at Thursdays proceedings.

Tinubu, represented by legal luminary, Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN and other lawyers, corroborated the position of Atiku not to object to all certified documents from the electoral body.

The senior lawyers said they jointly agreed to allow the documents to be freely scrutinized by the Court in order to arrive at just and fair conclusions in their judgment.

Leader of the legal team for the All Progressives Congress, APC, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN confirmed the same position to the Court.

He explained that they agreed to the decisions to allow the documents be tendered unhindered to make hearing of Atikus petition seamless.

The electoral body, through its counsel, Mr Abubakar Balarabe Mahmoud, said that his client would be ready to make all the required documents available at the appropriate time as a way of ensuring speedy and expeditious hearing of all the petitions challenging the presidential election.

Details later.




Manchester City delivered a relentless performance laced with outstanding quality to overpower holders Real Madrid and reach the Champions League final against Inter Milan in Istanbul.





City have lost two previous semi-finals to Real but they made no mistake here at a joyous Etihad Stadium to now stand one step away from claiming the trophy that has always stayed tantalisingly out of reach for Pep Guardiola's team.





And their display in a magical first half, in particular, will live long in the memory as the masters of this tournament were left bewildered by City's brilliance.





It maintained a seemingly unstoppable march towards a treble of Champions League, Premier League - which can be won with victory at home to Chelsea on Sunday - and the FA Cup, where they play Manchester United in the final at Wembley.





Real keeper Thibaut Courtois performed heroics to save two Erling Haaland headers early in the first half but he was powerless to stop Bernardo Silva's close-range finish after 23 minutes, the Portugal midfielder scoring a looping header for the second eight minutes before half-time.





City faced the occasional threats from Real after the break, Ederson saving well from David Alaba and Karim Benzema, but they were no match and when Manuel Akanji's header deflected in off Eder Militao 14 minutes from time the celebrations started.





Substitute Julian Alvarez then wrapped up the dominant win with a late strike after latching onto a brilliant Phil Foden pass.





City will play Inter on 10 June as they look to win the Champions League for the first time.
A high court in Port Harcourt, the Rivers capital, has issued a bench warrant against Rotimi Amaechi, former governor and Tonye Cole, governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the state.

Chinwendu Nwogu, the judge, also issued a bench warrant against Sahara Energy Resources Limited, Chamberlain Peterside, NG powers HPS Limited, and Cenpropsaroten Management Limited over failure to appear before the court on Rivers State Governments criminal charges against them.

The presiding judge adjourned the case to July 5 for the plea.

The Rivers government filed a fresh lawsuit on misappropriation of public funds against Amaechi during his tenure as governor of the state from 2007 to 2015

Nyesom Wike, Rivers state governor, had set up a seven-man panel in 2022 to probe Amaechi over an alleged withdrawal of N96 billion from the treasury during his tenure as governor.

The panel had also investigated issues surrounding the sale of assets by the former governor.

The listed valuable assets are Omoku Gas Turbine, Afam Gas Turbine, Trans Amadi Gas Turbine, Eleme Gas Turbine, Olympia Hotel, and the contract award for the execution of the monorail project.

The panel submitted its report in 2015, while Amaechi has insisted that he is not guilty of fraud.

However, on May 27, 2022, the supreme court dismissed an application by Amaechi, challenging the probe.

Wike said criminal charges were filed against the former governor, as well as Sahara Energy, a firm indicted in the deals.

Sahara Energy was co-founded by Tonye Cole.
The request for a live broadcast of the proceedings of the presidential election petition tribunal faced stiff opposition in court on Thursday.

Lateef Fagbemi, counsel to the All Progressives Congress (APC), asked the tribunal to dismiss the application by Atiku Abubakar.

Atiku, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), made the request on May 7.

The former vice-president had said televising the proceedings will enhance public confidence.

Arguing the motion, Chris Uche, counsel for Atiku and the PDP, said: There is no single legislative or statutory position against it.

He said a live broadcast doesnt necessarily mean the faces of the justices would be shown.

Opposing the application, Fagbemi said bringing cameras into the court for live streaming is no different from the Big Brother Naija reality show.

In his submission, Abubakar Mahmoud, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), said a live broadcast will only defeat the solemn atmosphere of the court.

We dont want to be put under additional pressure by having cameras in our faces, Mahmoud added.

President-elect Bola Tinubu, represented by Wole Olanipekun, said he is surprised by the application.

The court is not a stadium or a crusade ground. It is not a theatre or circus, he said

All the respondents counsel prayed the court to dismiss the application.

Meanwhile, all parties in the suit have agreed that materials certified by INEC which would be tendered during the hearing will not be objected to.

The court has adjourned the matter to Friday for continuation.
The federal government has ordered the immediate closure of Ijora-Olopa bridge in Lagos following the failure of a section of the structure.

The failure of the section of the bridge was attributed to theft by some miscreants who tampered with its major reinforcement elements.

In a statement on Wednesday, Hakeem Bello, spokesperson to Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, said the federal government was working with the state to ensure motorists freely access alternative routes.

Bello said roads leading directly to the bridge such as Costain inward Eko bridge and Carter bridge descent inward Ijora Oloye have been closed.

The federal controller of works in Lagos has also issued the following traffic advisory to ensure that motorists and other members of the commuting public are able to use alternative routes, the statement reads.

From Eko bridge motorists should take Iganmu/ Sifax to Ijora Oloye or Apapa.

From Iddo to Ijora-Oloye/ Apapa, traffic will be diverted at the intersection underpass at Ijora Olopa on contraflow, and reconnected at the U-turn to Ijora-Oloye or Apapa.

It would be recalled that the Hon. minister of works and housing has on several occasions asked illegal squatters occupying Lagos under-bridges to quit as fire incidents and other illegal activities underneath such bridges often result in extensive damage of the vital infrastructure constructed with the nations scarce resources.
The Delta State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) in the 2023 general elections, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, on Wednesday, insisted that he won the election clean and clear and vowed to retrieve his alleged stolen mandate from the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sheriff Oborevwori.

Omo-Agege is the current Deputy President of the Senate, while Oborevwori is the Speaker of the state House of Assembly.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had in the election conducted on March 18 declared Oborevwori as the winner with 360,234 votes which was over 120,000 votes above 240,229 votes reportedly scored by Omo  Agege.

But Omo-Agege while granting audience to some of his constituents from Delta Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly in Abuja, said the result declared by INEC was a ruse that cannot stand the test of litigation,

I won the Delta governorship election conducted in March this year by INEC clean and clear.

All the manipulations carried out by PDP in collaboration with some staff of INEC, have been exposed and will be used as exhibits in the court of law.

I am determined to fight it all the way because the real valid votes scored by me in the election are more than enough to declare me as governor-elect, he said.

On the visitation made to him by his constituents from Ndokwa over the facilitation of Federal University of Medical and Health Sciences in Kwale community, Omo-Agege said President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, should be thanked for the feat.

The Deputy Senate President added that he made the facilitation without any consultation or collaboration with anybody in Delta State.

He said: I didnt do it in consultation with anybody. I did it all by myself. If anybody should be thanked for the university, it should be President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu.

He, however, admonished the Hon Mercy Almona-Isei led delegation from Ndokwa/Ukwuani that compensation should not be attached to the 100 hectares of land donated for the university, saying the issue of ownership of shrine or farm should not arise from any quarters.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has asked the presidential election petition court (PEPC) to dismiss an application filed by the Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, seeking to have the proceeding televised.

Speaking with journalists after the tribunal pre-hearing session on Wednesday, Levy Ozoukwu, counsel to Obi and LP, said INEC opposed their application for a live broadcast.

Surprisingly, INEC is objecting, the senior lawyer said.

A public institution that is being funded by the government and representing the people is saying they dont want the people to enjoy live streaming. What are they hiding?

INEC sees itself as a candidate in an election that it conducted. I say with every degree of emphasis going by the conduct of INEC.

In court, no other party is complaining about not getting documents. Why is it so?

Only the petitioners who have not been provided with the required documents and I keep on asking, what is INEC hiding?

Obi and the LP filed a petition challenging the victory of Bola Tinubu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the election.

In the petition marked CA/PEPC/03/2023, LP and Obi, said Tinubu was not duly elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast at the time of the election.

Amongst other allegations, they claimed that Kashim Shettima, vice-president-elect, had a double nomination in contravention of the electoral act.

The petitioners are asking the tribunal to declare Obi as the winner of the presidential poll or alternatively, order INEC to conduct a fresh election.

The tribunal has adjourned the matter to May 19 for continuation.




The Labour Party factional chairman, Lamidi Apapa, has given grounds on which hed honour an invitation for dialogue from the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.

While responding to questions about if he will honour an invitation from Tinubu for reconciliation talks on Arise TVs Morning Show on Thursday, Apapa said he would meet with the former Lagos State governor if it was approved by the party.

Before I honour him, I will consult the executive of the party, so if they ask me to go ahead, I will do. If the executive says go ahead it becomes our position.

Its not going to be my position. If they say go and see him or we are going to see him, it becomes the position of the party not the position of Alhaji Bashiru Lamidi Apapa.

All of us will collectively go and see him. That is if we have the mandate of the house that we are going to see him, the factional chairman said.

The leadership crisis rocking the Labour Party worsened on Wednesday as the factions loyal to Apapa, and Julius Abure engaged in a fight at the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja.

The Federal High Court in Abuja had suspended Abure as the National Chairman of the LP.

But the frosty relationship between the two factions boiled over as Apapa was nearly mobbed by some aggrieved LP members on the court premises but for the quick intervention of policemen, who brought the situation under control.

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The commotion outside the court followed the battle for recognition by the two factions.

Shortly before the court convened for the resumed proceedings in the pre-hearing of the petition filed by the LP and its presidential candidate against the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, the different factions of the party engaged in a war of words over which faction was the authentic one.

Reacting after the attack by aggrieved LP members, Apapa debunked claims that he took a bribe from Tinubu.

On the allegation of bribe-taking, its not true. If you have evidence to prove, bring your evidence that I have collected money or weve collected money from anybody. Its absolutely untrue, Apapa said.

The factional chairman also said the LP presidential candidate during February 25 presidential election, Peter Obi, deserved to be exposed.

On Peter Obi taking sides, I dont want to expose him, but he deserves to be exposed. Sometime ago, in one of the interviews he (Obi) granted, he said he does not know me at all.

I have been trying to cover him, but he does not deserve it. The reasons are this: This is a man, during his primary in Asaba, I did the opening prayer. And I was not a young officer. I was the deputy national chairman of the party. I have been 21 years in this party. I have held many positions in this party to the level I am today.

Obis first campaign started in Benin. I was in Benin with him. And we used his aircraft from Benin back to Abujaa chartered plane. Not only that, but when he came to Ekiti (Afe Babalola University), I led the team that hosted him on that campus. We were there for over two hours. I led the team to the palace. And he doesnt know me?
A chieftain of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro has slammed the Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi over his stand in the crisis rocking the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation.

Isiguzoro, who is the Secretary-General of the Chidi Ibeh-led Ohanaeze Ndigbo said Obis presence during what he called illegal presentation of Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu as the new President of Ohanaeze was a clear exhibition of hypocrisy.

This was contained in a statement he made available on Thursday morning.

He said he could not understand why Obi, who is in court to reclaim his mandate over alleged illegality during the 2023 presidential election, could back illegality in the Ohanaeze crisis.

For Peter Obi to show up during the purported appointment of Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu as Ohanaeze President-General smacks of deceit.

Ohanaeze Constitution is clear on how a President-General should be replaced; however, none of the procedures was followed by the Obiozor faction; what we saw is the word appointment, which does not exist in the lexicon of Ohanaeze.

Even if we ignore others who were present during that charade, that cannot be said of Obi who claims to be against any form of illegality in choosing leaders.

But contrarily, he was conspicuously present during the Enugu event where the Ohanaeze constitution was turned upside down.

This has exposed Peter Obi as a man who is only after his personal interest and not that of Ndigbo.

He supports injustice and illegality when it suits his ego and interest but shouts blue murder when he feels even the best of the system will not serve his ambition.

Isiguzoro said his group would remain focused and would not be distracted by those who are servicing their paymasters.

Iwuanyanwu was appointed as a replacement for Prof George Obiozor who passed on after battling an ailment.

Peter Obi was at the event in Enugu where Iwuanyanwu was appointed.
The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo has criticized the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar for berating the United States, US, Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, over the conversation with the Nigerian President-elect, Bola Tinubu.

Blinken, during a call with Tinubu on Wednesday, assured the President-elect of US commitment to further strengthening the US-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration.

But, Atiku expressed disbelief, saying the call was a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigerias 2023 presidential election.

However, Keyamo said the call was not a contradiction, stressing that Atiku and Peter Obi of the Labour Party are behaving like former US President, Donald Trump.

Tweeting, Keyamo wrote: No, your Excellency, @atiku, it is not a contradiction. The United States and @SecBlinken know you and Peter Obi are behaving like Donald Trump in America: refusing to accept your obvious defeat and relying on propaganda to deceive the world.

They have your type in the US, so they understand the issues correctly. They know that whilst there were intolerable incidents during the election perpetrated by all leading parties (for instance Peter Obi got far less votes in Anambra State than was declared  I dare them to publish what is on IREV), they also have credible reports that those isolated incidents did not SUBSTANTIALLY affect the overall outcome of the elections.

They know both of you could NOT have won when, as opposition parties, you split your votes into 3 parts, with even a revolt of 5 of your Governors within your depleted party. Yes, THEY KNOW YOU LOST AND @officialABAT WON, FAIR AND SQUARE. And for those who perpetrated these irregularities during the elections, the US has applied the appropriate sanctions (and we welcome those sanctions which deepen our democracy), but that is that.

IT IS NOT A CONDEMNATION OF THE ENTIRE ELECTION AS YOU HAVE WRONGLY ASSUMED. Hence, a couple of days ago, the Charge dAffaires ad interim of the U.S Embassy in Nigeria, Mr David Greene visited the Vice-President-Elect Senator Kashim Shettima and earlier today Secretary Blinken put a call through to @officialABAT to pledge the cooperation of the US and its support for the in-coming administration.

The world has actually moved on, but you and Peter Obi are still standing on one spot. As usual, you and Peter Obi are depending on your usual bullying tactics to overwhelm the US and @SecBlinken and cow them to toe your warped line of reasoning that has NO EVIDENTIAL basis.

Unfortunately for you, these are people and institutions that cannot be overwhelmed by your mob on social media. That system handled Trump and his tantrums. They can also handle you and Peter Obi.
The modern ethnic clothing brand Yuliya Magdych since February 2022 has expanded its production capacity and increased sales by 20%, the founder of the brand, Yuliya Magdych, told Interfax-Ukraine.

"We all have the same feelings, the same thirst for victory and a vision of the future. There is a study: in 2022, the demand for embroidered shirts in the mass market quadrupled. In the luxury segment that we represent, sales have not grown so much. It is the luxury segment that sets the bar, which you always want to reach. We managed to increase production by 20%," says Magdych.

In general, according to her, despite the stressful conditions of 2022, the company managed to increase production capacity and increase the volume to more than UAH 25 million per year. The average check last year was $1,560/item.

According to her, most orders are made online. During the war, the company rebuilt logistics chains and increased delivery times.

"Before the war, the client received orders in 3-5 days. Now the delivery time is 20, 40 days," says Magdych.

"At the beginning of the war, we were forced to close production in Kyiv and decided to relocate the team to Lviv. If we had simply closed the production cycle and sold the rest, our brand would cease to exist. We managed to buy the necessary equipment and in April 2022 completely restore the production process," Magdych said.

At the same time, she emphasized that the main thing is that they managed to save the majority of the team - 40 artisans.

She did not name the total investment in the restart of production, including the rent of a three-storey building (with an area of 400 sq m.), but indicated that embroidery machines cost from $20,000 to $140,000 per unit.

The brand was created in 2013 during the Revolution of Dignity, its hallmark is a complex ethnic 3D embroidery, developed on the basis of patterns found in museums, private collections and during research trips around Ukraine. It is presented in several shopping malls in the world, including London's Selfridges.
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, has called on Nigerians to be cautious of those impersonating him.

Obi, in a Twitter thread on Thursday, said impersonators now mimic his voice to call people to cause mischief.

He said while the presidential election petition tribunal was ongoing on Wednesday, his attention was drawn to comments made by Mustapha Audu, son of a former governor of Kogi.

Obi said Audu claimed that he received a call from him.

The former Anambra governor said after the court session, he met with Audu and explained to him that he was impersonated, adding that at the time Audu said the incident happened, he wasnt in Nigeria.

My duplicates are still on the rampage, they now mimic my voice and call people. There is no limit that people cannot go to cause mischief on their target. I have been a target both locally and internationally, Obi said.

After the court proceedings, I met with Audu and he repeated the same story, adding that he was angry at me for cutting off the phone on him because he could not speak Igbo. He insisted that I was in front of his office in Abuja when I called.

I then introduced myself again to him and told him, My brother, I did not call you, and I couldnt have been in front of your office on Tuesday because I was not in Abuja, and not even in the country. At about the time you alleged that I called you, I was arriving Nice in France for a meeting.

By the evening of the same day, I flew to London for another meeting and in fact, had to breeze in to felicitate with my dear elder brother, Dele Momodu on his 63rd birthday. I only flew into the country this morning for this court session.

The young man, looking embarrassed and surprised at the same time added that the voice of the caller and everything sounded like mine. We exchanged pleasantries and took pictures.

This is just one of the many desperate efforts to run me down and tag me as what I am not, with the intention to gain some perceived political mileage against me.

Ordinarily, I am not scared or worried about competitions provided they are within the legitimate rules of engagement, but going this far is worrisome.

It is quite very worrisome because this is certainly not the right way to develop a nation that is in dire need of positive changes that will enable her to join the League of Nations that are moving forward.

I appeal to the public to beware and not easily deceived with the cheap tricks of impersonating me for whatever ulterior intentions.








The Anambra State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of two suspects linked to the attack on officials of the Consulate of the United States of America and their police escorts in the state.





The state Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, confirmed the development during a press conference on Thursday.





He explained that the suspects were arrested after joint security forces comprising police tactical teams from the command and troops of the Nigerian Army as well as the Nigerian Navy raided a camp around the Ugwuaneocha community, in the Ogbaru Local Government Area of the state.





Echeng said the camp, which he described as the hideout of the assailants suspected to be members of the Eastern Security Network and Indigenous People of Biafra, was deserted when the security operatives invaded the place.





Noting that five staff members of the US consulate office and four police officers were involved in the attack, the CP gave the names of the police officers as Inspectors Bukar Adams, Friday Morgan, Adam Andrew and Emmanuel Lupata.





Echeng said, As you are probably aware, a team of officials from the Lagos Consulate of the United States of America and their police escorts were ambushed on May 16, 2023, between 12pm and 2pm, along Atani/Osamela Road, in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, by suspected Eastern Security Network and Indigenous people of Biafra.





Information about the incident was received by Anambra State Police Command, through an official of the consulate, around 2.30pm. Consequently, a joint team of Mobile Policemen and troops of the Nigerian Navy stationed in Onitsha was immediately deployed to the area.





Upon arrival at the scene of the incident, the joint security team sighted and engaged the assailants in a shootout, but they escaped through a nearby forest. On May 17, 2023, joint security forces comprising police tactical teams from the command and troops of the Nigerian Army as well as the Nigerian Navy raided a camp in the Ugwuaneocha community of Ogbaru LGA, which was suspected to be the hideout of the assailants but discovered that it had been deserted.





Echeng said two persons of interest were arrested and had been assisting the police investigation into the attack that claimed the lives of seven persons.





He added, The criminal camp was razed down by the joint security team. The preliminary investigation conducted by the command, following the incident, revealed that five male officials of the USA consulate and four armed Mobile Police escorted from Lagos on a mission to assess the impact of erosion in Ogbaru LGA were travelling in a convoy of two vehicles when they suddenly came under attack by armed men who targeted them with gunfire and set their vehicles ablaze.





Regrettably, seven persons including three of the consulate officials and four Mobile Police escorts were murdered during the attack while two other officials of the consulate are yet to be found. Information from the USAID authority disclosed that five of their staff and four policemen involved in the attack are Jefferson Obayuwane (Retd. DSS personnel), Sunday Prince Ubong, Ekene Nweke, Hassan Etila and Avwuvie Kaye Monday





The CP said the corpses had been recovered and deposited in a morgue as the police command and other security agencies, in concert with the government of Anambra State, intensified efforts to find and rescue the missing officials.





He, therefore, urged members of the public who can provide information about the identities and locations of the culprits, to kindly assist the police with such information.





On behalf of the Anambra State Police Command, I wish to seize this opportunity to condole the families and friends of the deceased persons as well as the USA Consul over this tragic incident, Echeng said.





Also reacting, Christian Aburime, the Press Secretary to the state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, said, We assure our residents and visitors of our continued commitment to law and order. If anything, this incident has emboldened our drive, Echeng said.




Members-elect for the 10th House of Representatives, on Wednesday, failed to honour the invitation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, for the sole aim of launching a campaign for Representative Abbas Tajudeen.





Tajudeen is one of the aspirants for the position of the Speaker for the 10th Assembly.





The All Progressives Congress, APC, and the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, had adopted Tajudeen, a member representing Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, for the position of Speaker in the next Assembly.





It was learnt that zoning of the number four citizens position to the North West and the subsequent adoption of Tajudeen, was the brainchild of Gbajabiamila, who allegedly prefers to continue holding grip of the 10th House of Representatives, thereby, making it possible for Tinubu to control the incoming Assembly.





But Gbajabiamila, during a meeting organized Wednesday night by the Joint Task Force for the 10th Assembly, an umbrella body for the actualization of Tajudeens ambition as Speaker, denied ever influencing the choice of the Kaduna-born politician.





He explained: North West geopolitical zone alone contributed 30% of the total votes for APC in the last elections and if you conduct a proper research, the North West zone has not been considered for the number four position in the history of our parliament.





He was, however, shocked to see a hall filled with support groups, journalists and spectators as the target audience, members-elect, who possess the voting powers, largely boycotted the meeting.





Sensing that the little number inside the hall might not necessarily be members and members-elect, whom he has sought to address, Gbajabiamila requested for an executive session, apparently to see if he has enough numbers to make his anointed candidate Speaker; only to be bewildered that only 73 members and members-elect honoured the invitation.





The visibly angered Speaker was seen leaving the Osun Hall of Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, just two minutes after asking for an executive session.





A lawmaker who was in attendance and spoke with DAILY POST on the condition of anonymity, explained that: Gbaja was not happy seeing the number of lawmakers in attendance and I think he has sensed danger, as an experienced politician, that his preferred candidate wont fly.





Asked if he was going to support Tajudeen, the awmaker who just won his election under the Labour Party, said he was actually at the meeting, like some of his friends, who got invitation that Rep. Gbajabiamila was going to address both returning and new Members, only to see that it was a forum to sell the candidacy of Tajudeen.





Some of my colleagues understood the reason for the meeting, but innocent me, like few of my friends I interacted with in the hall, didnt get the notion behind the invitation until we got here and we decided to sit and listen to whatever they had to say. I was personally disappointed seeing just a few Members in attendance because I had thought they got all the votes since its their party that selected this man for Speaker.





But since their own Members cannot honour their party and most of them stayed off, is it we from the minorities that would support APC? Even though we are more than them in number, we would not be used to project mediocrity or support the composition of a rubber-stamped Assembly. The institution of the National Assembly is supposed to be an independent Arm of Government and not an appendage of another arm of Government.





The minority caucus has been meeting lately and we shall make our stand known soon. We shall throw our weight behind anyone we feel have the capacity and independent mind to make the 10th House work for the people of Nigeria and not for an individual. We shall support such a person, regardless of any region or State he or she comes from. About 358 Members are going to cast their votes to decide the next Speaker and I dont think, this number Im seeing here tonight can make one-quarter of the deciding votes, the member-elect added.
A 7-year-old girl critically injured in an apartment fire in Maple Shade that killed her 12-year-old brother earlier this month has also died, authorities said Thursday.

Hope Marles had been hospitalized since the May 7 fire at Fox Meadow apartments in Burlington County, Maple Shade police said.

The childrens 35-year-old mother remains in an area hospital and is in stable condition, Maple Shade police Lt. Dennis Nolan said.

The boy  identified by police as Alan John Marles  died of his injuries hours after the fire.

The childrens organs and tissues were donated to the Gift of Life donor program, according to police.

The fire at the apartment on Adams Drive damaged 16 apartments and injured six, police said.

In all, 22 families were displaced, Red Cross New Jersey said. The Red Cross provided food, clothing and temporary housing to 40 people from 12 families, the group said following the fire.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Burlington County Fire Marshalls Office, the Burlington County Prosecutors Office and Maple Shade police.

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Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.
A redevelopment agreement uptown and a recreational cannabis dispensary downtown were approved by the Hoboken City Council Wednesday night.

Also, a controversial plan to take the Poggi Press site by eminent domain was officially halted by the city council.

The city council unanimously voted to approve the redevelopment agreement between the city and Bijou Properties to develop two mixed-used residential buildings, one eight stories and another 12 stories, at Clinton and 15th streets.

The project will include a total of 382 residential units, with 38, or 10% of it, dedicated as affordable, 9,540 square feet of retail space, 183 parking spaces, and 21,110 square feet of green space that will include a linear park between the two buildings.

It will also include about 9,450 square feet of community space leased to Hoboken that the city plans to turn into a public library branch and $3.2 million in community benefits.

This property, which has sat vacant and blighted for years, will be transformed into a vibrant neighborhood that current and future Hoboken residents will reap the benefits of for years to come, said Mayor Ravi Bhalla in a statement.

The council also voted 8-1 to approve Terrapins plan to open a recreational cannabis dispensary downtown. The Colorado-based company had originally planned to open for only medical sales at 86 River St., but is now seeking to add recreational sales.

A community host agreement says that Terrapin will commit to hiring local residents, and pay either 1% of its gross sales or $50,000 to the city annually as a community impact fee. Councilwoman Jen Giattino was the lone vote against the Terrapin plan.

Terrapin will need state approval before it can begin recreational sales. Representatives from the company did not respond for comment on when it plans to open.

The more-than-year-long dispute over the Poggi Press property and the citys proposed municipal complex also ended when the council unanimously approved to rescind the eminent domain proceedings for the site.

The Poggi Press property, located at 15th and Adams streets, was the target of Bhallas administration as the site of a $192 million municipal complex, complete with new city offices and public safety departments. But the plan was vehemently opposed by the propertys owner, Charlie Poggi.

The city council took the steps last year to potentially seize the property via eminent domain. But a $40 million bond ordinance to finance the acquisition ultimately got deadlocked; it needed six of nine votes to pass, but it was first introduced, 5-4.

Following the deadlock, the Bhalla administration ultimately decided to ditch its municipal complex plans and instead set its sights on a nearby Academy Bus lot to build a new Department of Public Works garage.

It is difficult to express what the councils vote reversing the citys claim to my property means to me, said Poggi in a statement. The property  is more than an address; it represents the blood, sweat and tears of my grandfather, father, brother and myself, and our century of dedication to Hoboken.

Poggi said that he now plans to pursue redeveloping the property himself. A city spokeswoman did not respond for comment on the end of the dispute.

Lastly, the council voted 8-0-1, with Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher abstaining, to approve a settlement agreement between the city and GovPilot. The agreement stemmed from a lawsuit by GovPilot, a management software company, that alleged it was owed $266,640 in unpaid invoices as part of a five-year agreement with the city.

While no other details of the settlement are publicly available, it was reported by Hudson County View that it will total $85,000 and relates to an unauthorized deal with GovPilot.

Its been alleged that a five-year agreement with GovPilot for a dog registration platform went into effect around February 2021, but the contract was not officially approved by the administration or the city council. That led to a stoppage of services when payments to GovPilot were not processed.

City Director of Health and Human Services Leo Pellegrini abruptly resigned earlier this month without explanation. No other discussion was made by city officials on the matter during the council meeting.
A 35-year-old New Jersey man used counterfeit money to make $2,800 in purchases at multiple stores in northeastern Pennsylvania last spring, federal authorities said.

Brandon Williams, of Mercer County, was indicted by a grand jury Tuesday on five counts of passing counterfeit money, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania said Wednesday.

Williams and a woman not named by authorities used fake $20 and $50 bills to buy $1,400 in items at the Michaels store in Dickson City and $750 worth of goods at a CVS Pharmacy in Scranton on April 20, 2022, officials said.
Summers coming, so start packing.

Packing heat, that is.

Because you can now take a firearm to the beach, the mall, the movie theater, or the corner bar in New Jersey.

You can take it to Met Life, The Pru, Liberty State Park, and Turtleback Zoo.

Just dont carry your Glock into schools or hospitals, because there might be slow-moving kids or seniors in those places, and we dont want to expose them to any needless, you know, danger.

This lesson in demented logic comes courtesy of a federal district judge who followed the lead of the US Supreme Court and took a wrecking ball to our state law limiting the number of sensitive places where you might carry a firearm. Our Legislature had tried to limit the damage of the high courts Bruen decision, which protected concealed carry rights, by restricting its reach and banning the guns from a broad range of venues.

But Judge Renee Marie Bumb took a hard line, swatting down most of those restrictions. There is hope that, on appeal, the Third Circuit might take a different view, one that respects the overwhelming sentiment of people in New Jersey.

In the meantime, we can press to aggressively enforce limits that survived, like the right for private businesses and homes to deny entrance to anyone with a firearm. Six in 10 New Jerseyans believe federal gun laws are too weak, and 72% are very concerned about gun violence, so we should put our money where our mouths are, by boycotting businesses that allow guns on their property.

Our hope is that businesses adapt by posting a no-firearms sign on their front doors. And if they dont, remember to call and let them know why youre not patronizing them.

Okay, I've now finished the full op & finished the thread. It's *definitely* not the worst post-Bruen case I've seen. There's even some nuance. But it blindingly displays how incoherent Bruen's method is. Just little rhyme or reason for why some laws are enough & some aren't. https://t.co/wIrZSUbdi2  Jake Charles (@JacobDCharles) May 16, 2023

Because unlike the federal courts, New Jerseyans know there is a direct correlation between tough gun laws and the prevention of gun deaths, and the data speaks for itself.

New Jersey has the second-toughest gun laws in the nation, according to Giffords. We also have a low level of gun ownership, with about 20% of residents owning firearms compared with the estimated 30-40% nationally.

Result: Our states gun-death rate is 5.13 per 100,000 people, the third-lowest in the US.

Wed like to see it drop to zero. Perhaps states-rights folks can appreciate that we dont want to be like Mississippi, which has six times the gun-death rate (32.61 people per 100,000), the worst in the nation.

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this is such an important point. the bruen test essentially treats omissions in the historical record as dispositive for evaluating contemporary laws, which is completely bananas once you give it a moments thought https://t.co/SsgJItQQ4l  b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) May 17, 2023

Bumb wasnt troubled by things like states rights. Even when she supported restrictions in our law, she acted arbitrarily, substituting her judgment for that of our lawmakers, who, granted, did not exactly write a bulletproof bill. She upheld the prohibition on firearms in schools and college campuses because such an exemption adheres to a historical tradition and aims to keep firearms out of the hands of those who could harm the public.

It raises the question: Has the public ever avoided harm by allowing firearms in malls and theaters, in a country that is on pace to set records for mass shootings and mass killings in 2023?

Bumb also erased the requirement that drivers keep their guns unloaded and inside a locked case, because she believes that guns should be functional and accessible. That should make for some Mississippi-level interaction on the Turnpike and at the Dunkin drive-thru.

Attorney General Matt Platkin will appeal, and there are reasons to be optimistic: The Third Circuit is more ideologically balanced; and New Yorks similar law was not enjoined in the Second Circuit, which allowed it to go into effect despite a similar conservative ruling in the lower court.

Ultimately, this will likely land in the US Supreme Court. Until then, make your shopping and dining choices judiciously. And let every proprietor know what prompted your choice.

find it necessary to reiterate again and again how braindead this reasoning is. oh this regulation didnt exist in a fundamentally different society than your own so hey i guess it is unconstitutional! https://t.co/9q4aLC2ceD  b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) May 17, 2023

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Id say New York is like a foreign country to me. But having spent some time on the borders of Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico, I have to say I understand those foreign countries much better than I understand New York City.

That was my thought the other day after I visited one of the Manhattan hotels to which the city is sending the thousands of new migrants who are being bused up from the Mexican border.

The ROW-NYC hotel has been in the news lately because the administration of Eric Adams has rented the whole hotel out to provide shelter for the many people arriving at our Mexican border from countries all over the world.

When I got to the hotel, I figured Id go in and have a look around.

Nope. The doorman told me the hotel is closed. So who were all those people coming out wearing plastic IDs that identified them as hotel guests?

One nice lady told me she was from Venezuela. Another said she was from Ecuador, a South American country that seems to be the gateway for those seeking to travel overland to the Texas border.

I watched as dozens of them came and went. Meanwhile out-of-town tourists walked by, as did Broadway theater-goers dressed to the nines.

The hotel is just two blocks from Times Square, which is one of the most expensive pieces of real estate in the country. So I wondered who was footing the bill.

I emailed the Adams administration media people to ask that and several other questions, such as when they expect this crisis to come to an end. But they didnt get back to me.

Perhaps they were too busy dealing with all the New York media calling about reports that the administration was considering sending migrants to Rikers Island as a last-ditch solution.

That got this response from Murad Awawdeh of the New York Immigration Coalition.

Housing asylum seekers  who are pursuing their legal right to apply for asylum  on Rikers is simply immoral, Awawdeh said in a press release. The traumatizing effect of doing so, after people have fled violence and persecution in their home countries, will cause more injury to families who are already struggling.

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So that really was a last-ditch solution, but who dug those ditches?

I called a guy I know who actually lives on the other side of the Hudson River.

Thats Joe Clift. Hes a retired Long Island Rail Road executive who offers piercing critiques of transit policies.

Clift grew up in Texas, not far from the Mexican border. This began as a political fight between Adams, a Democrat, and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, he said.

When this first started, it was purely political, Clift said. The people here who were saying they were nicer than the people in Texas didnt think of the cumulative effect.

The effect is that there just arent enough hotel rooms to house all the new arrivals. Thats what led to that proposal to house migrants at Rikers Island and, perhaps worse, school gymnasiums.

As I was driving up, I listened to some New York talk-radio stations. There were zero callers who wanted to see the gyms in their local schools turned into migrant shelters. Adams is trying to house some in Orange County, but county officials have sued to block that move. Adams also got some heat when disabled veterans were thrown out of hotel rooms to make room for migrants in Newburgh.

There may not be enough housing for all the current arrivals, but the Adams administration plans set up a welcome center for new arrivals in a hotel near Grand Central Terminal called the Roosevelt.

I ran that by Todd Bensman, who reports from the Texas border for the Center for Immigration studies.

Bensman said the Biden administration has set up a smartphone app called CBP-1 that permits potential migrants to qualify for entry to the country. Once in, they can await asylum hearings that can be years in the future.

There will be huge flows, he said. With the CBP-1 app, they just opened the aperture wide on this thing and theyll keep coming in by the hundreds of thousands.

I have no idea how New York City will handle that. Neither does one politician on this side of the river.

You look at New York and some of the West Coast cities and you have to wonder, God what were they thinking? said state Sen. Declan OScanlon of Monmouth County. You need order. You need sensible immigration laws, you need to enforce them, and you need to communicate that to the people who want to come here.

That sounds simple enough.

But dont tell the people on the other side of the Hudson or theyll all want to move here.

(Also: At least New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has the sense to pin the blame on the Biden administration.)

More: Recent Paul Mulshine columns.

Paul Mulshine may be reached at pmulshine@starledger.com.

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A group of Seton Hall students said they won an almost two-week-long battle to preserve the schools Africana Studies Program, the oldest in the state. The demonstration began on May 3 with a march and rally and extended to students occupying the Presidents Hall building.

Among the list of initiatives that were decided in a meeting on Monday, May 15 was a commitment to expand resources for the program, begin the search process for instructors, and decouple the director and new tenure-track position. Additionally, the administration will continue to collaborate with the Council of Africana Scholars, Protect AFAM representatives and the Student Government Association to grow the program in the coming weeks and especially during the Fall 2023 semester.

A look back: Journey to success

Seton Hall students in the Protect AFAM  as in protect African American Studies  movement waged a fight for educational liberation this May just weeks before their final exams. They held a walkout, a rally and a sit-in for five days outside the university presidents office as they demanded more funding for the preservation of one of the oldest Africana Studies programs in the country. The protest comes at a time that the teaching of Black history is under attack across the nation, as evidenced by legislation in Florida, Texas and Virginia.

The students demands are a comprehensive plan to move forward with guaranteed protections for the Protect AFAM students. They asked that all participants of Protect AFAM demonstration be pardoned from any punishment proposed by Seton Hall University policy.

Then they got on to the critical business of the Africana Studies program.

They demanded the reinstatement of a fully-funded Africana Studies department by spring 2024. They asked for a cluster hire of three to four full-time professors who are experienced and recognized as Africana Studies professionals and for the hire of a full-time, tenured director for the program. They also asked to be a part of the search committee for the new director and professors with voting power on who is hired.

Additionally, they demanded both increased and truthful advertisement of the Africana Studies program so that incoming students would be provided with a description based on the current reality of what the program offers and not a description based on the past or that is aspirational.

Finally, they requested reinstatement of the Black House. A safe-haven space for Black students to gather and serve as a center for the organization of the Black Caucus.

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History: Black Studies at SHU spans generations

Africana Studies at Seton Hall, or Black Studies as it was called when the department was founded in the 1960s, came about because of student protests. The Universitys president at the time, Monsignor Fahy responded to the students demands and met with poet and political activist Amiri Baraka to come up with a plan. Significantly, the school also introduced the Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Program, the Latin American Institute, which became Latin American Studies, and the EOF program, which is now the Equal Opportunity Program.

Dr. Kelly Harris headed the Africana Studies program for three years.

The department was thriving, he said of the programs golden years in the 70s. Alex Haley received his first honorary doctorate from Seton Hall University. Betty Shabazz would come on campus. Amiri Baraka was a frequent visitor and Gil Noble taught a class in the department about mass media. So, it was a pretty electric time for the program.

Harris says the program has declined since the 1970s. In 2018 students protested and demanded more support for Africana Studies. The result of that protest led the university to do a national search for a Director of Africana Studies. Although Harris was given the position, he was not offered a tenure track. When his contract ended Harris left the University because although they offered a tenure track position moving forward, it came with a $20,000 salary reduction.

The Protest: Occupation, march and rally

The protest began after the students failed to get a definitive answer from the administration about the next steps for the Africana Studies program since Harris, the director and sole full-time faculty member, left after unsuccessful negotiations last December.

They wanted to know what classes would be available in the fall. Who would be teaching those classes? Were they hiring permanent faculty for the program? The schedule is being set now for the fall and the students needed answers.

The decision was made to stay overnight inside the hall to press the issue, said Chris Duran, who protested with a group of students who called themselves the Concerned 44 back in 2018. The students want definitive answers to the demands they made of the administration to continue the tradition of a robust Africana Studies program and to be included in the hiring of staff who will head up the department and teach the classes.

Amina Cuascut walks in front of a line of students and community supporters with a bullhorn in her hand. She is leading them in chants of If we dont get it, shut it down!

Cuascut is a freshman at Seton Hall University and one of the organizers of Protect AFAM. She is interested in studying law but also believes classes in Black History and Black issues will enhance her personally as a Black woman and professionally when she enters the legal profession.

According to Best Colleges, an African American studies major  also called Africana studies or Black studies major  provides students with a nuanced understanding of African Americans' historical, political, and cultural impact, in addition to the unique challenges they continue to face today. This field also offers the opportunity to advocate for and contribute directly to the Black community. Ande Richards |NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

It is necessary for me to have a degree in Africana studies because I want to be a civil rights attorney, Cuascut said. The only way for me to be able to properly advocate for Black people is to be well versed in Black issues taught in an academic setting. So, in taking Introduction to African American Studies with Dr. Pritchett, I learned quickly that I need this degree to accomplish my goals.

Tawanna Brown is a sophomore who is majoring in Political Science and Africana Studies, she is also one of the Protect AFAM organizers. She said the number of people represented as taking Africana Studies at SHU is under-reported. The school has to approve declarations for a major or minor and they dont include unapproved majors and minors numbers in their official reporting.

Brown says there are currently 11 declared majors in Africana Studies. This is not including undeclared majors or minors that are still waiting for approval from the university, she said. There are over 168 students enrolled in Africana Studies courses that are offered currently. Yet, there theres still no full-time professor in the program.

Students kept up with school work while staging a days-long protest for the preservation of Africana Studies at Seton Hall University. I personally worked on my final paper for English, Cuascut said. Taiyonna did her Spanish homework, someone did journals for their religion class, and another student studied for Principals of Marketing, and weve also been helping each other with our studies so you can add peer tutoring to the list. Ande Richards |NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

They were taking pictures of students sleeping at 4 a.m., Brown said about their first night at Presidential Hall. They were documenting everything and not getting permission from students who were asleep.

In an email, Laurie Pine, the universitys director of media relations, provided a statement regarding the students concerns about being surveilled and photographed.

The student demonstrators currently occupy a historic administrative building from the late 19th century, neither designed nor authorized for overnight stays, she wrote. Despite our repeated requests for the students to vacate the premises, they have chosen to remain. To ensure the students safety and well-being, we have assigned a Public Safety officer to monitor the situation around the clock, with a particular focus on evening hours.

Protect AFAM was supported by 40 organizations at SHU including the Greek organizations and the Muslim student groups who were at rallies bringing meals and linking arms with the Protect AFAM students. They also wrote formal letters of resolution in support of the movement.Ande Richards |NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Supporters: Campus groups, alumni and social justice activists

Special assistant to the Provost, Head of the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Association, and Interim Director of the Africana Studies at SHU, Rev. Dr. Forrest M. Pritchett wrote a strong statement of support.

I have served Seton Hall University with distinction for 45 years, Pritchett said. I have witnessed Black Studies at its high point during the 1970s and all the protests that have followed. At what point does the administration reflect on its errors regarding support for Africana studies? Punishing and harassing the students for speaking truth to power is not only un-American, but it goes against the very principles that Seton Hall prides itself on.

At the very beginning of the movement back in December, The Peoples Organization for Progress gave the students a platform to address their group at weekly meetings and also offered to stand with them at marches and rallies. Several POP members were among those who made donations to a fund the students had set up. Ande Richards |NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Negotiations: President Nyre meets with Protect AFAM

President Joe Nyre met with 11 Protect AFAM students on Monday, May 8, to listen to their demands and discuss potential solutions for a positive outcome. Assemblywoman Britnee Timberlake was also at the meeting. She represents Legislative District 34 (Clifton, Montclair, East Orange, and Orange.)

Timberlake is a double alum of SHU with a baccalaureate degree in political science, a minor in religious studies, and a masters degree in public administration. She says she was a few credits shy of an undergraduate minor in Africana Studies, a program that changed her life and deepened her self-assurance and awareness. Timberlake has been working behind the scenes to support the students in solidarity.

At the table, both the students a part of the Protect AFAM Collective and SHU President Nyre exemplified excellent communication and leadership skills; it was an honor to witness. I feel optimistic about the progress made toward the programs future.

NJ.com reached out to Nyre with three questions, his media relations director provided a written response including a link to a newly created site.

We reaffirm our commitment to academic freedom and civil discourse always rooted in our values and Catholic mission, a university representative wrote in an email. We are deeply committed to the critical discipline of Africana Studies for all our students, independent of their major field of study, to be able to learn about their (and other) cultures, histories, and identities. The remarkable diversity of our University community is one of our great strengths. We encourage everyone to review the steps the University has taken to support Africana Studies and more fully integrate diversity, equity and inclusion into life on our campuses.

After the meeting on Monday, Protect AFAM students agreed to remove all signs from the walls and doors of Presidents Hall and theyve limited their occupation of the building to 12-hour days, starting at 8 a.m. and ending at 8 p.m.Ande Richards |NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Fallout: Students experience backlash because of their activism

Cuascut says not all professors are granting Protect AFAM students a grace period to complete their assignments.

Because this movement didnt start last week, she said. This started in December of last year. And so weve been doing work this entire semester for Protect AFAM and now that finals are coming up weve been having a hard time trying to turn in our work while trying to advocate for future generations as well.

Cuascuts English professor is not willing to give her an incomplete grade, which would allow her to have a few weeks to submit the rest of her work. Instead, shes offered her an NSA, which means that the professor has no basis to grade on so its as if Cuascut withdrew from the course.

It costs over $4,000 for this course, Cuascut said. Im a low-income student, first generation, I dont have money to keep taking courses. And its not that I didnt want to do the work or that I cant, Im fully capable of doing it before the end of the grading period. Its just that now she doesnt want to accept it.

In addition, protect AFAM students have received threats of bodily harm via an anonymous online app.

We sacrificed our education, our livelihood, we put ourselves and our literal bodies in danger, Cuascut said. There have been people on there saying that they want to run us over  this just goes to show how much weve all sacrificed for Africana Studies.

Cuascut said that Protect AFAM is more than our protests, its a movement.

We hope that other Black students at Seton Hall and across the country can look back on us and feel inspired to advocate for their Africana Studies Programs as well, she said. Black students and Black education matters and we are entitled to learning our history and no one can take that from you so long as you use your voice.

Ande Richards wants to hear from New Jerseys communities of color, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ communities, and those who feel underserved by traditional media. She may be reached at arichards@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anderichards.

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The Board of Governors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has recognized that additional shareholder support will be needed for the bank's work on Ukraine, which has intensified since the Russian invasion in February 2022, and estimates it at EUR 3-5 billion.

"A proposal from the Board of Directors on the scope of EBRD support for Ukraine, and on a potential paid-in capital increase, will be submitted to governors for a final decision by the end of 2023," the bank said in a statement on Thursday following its annual meeting, taking place this year in Samarkand (Uzbekistan).

The EBRD's shareholders are 71 countries, as well as the EU and the European Investment Bank. The share of the United States is 10.1%, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the UK - 8.6% each, Russia - 4%, Canada and Spain - 3.4% each, the EU and the EIB - 3% each, the Netherlands - 2 .5%, Austria, Belgium, Sweden and Switzerland - 2.3% each, while the rest - from 1.3% and below. In particular, the share of Ukraine is 0.8%.

The EBRD recalled that deployed EUR 1.7 billion in Ukraine and mobilized a further EUR 200 million from partner banks in 2022. The Bank has committed to deploy EUR 3 billion there in 2022-23 and has so far mobilised EUR 1.5 billion from international donors to cover part of the risk.

The Board of Governors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has affirmed that the Bank, working in collaboration with others, must play a critical part in international efforts to support Ukraine's real economy, both in wartime and in reconstruction. The EBRD's primary focus in Ukraine in wartime is on maintaining energy and food security, restoring critical infrastructure at national and municipal level, providing trade finance and supporting the private sector.

The Board of Governors agreed that paid-in capital is the most efficient, effective and fairly shared instrument to provide such support.

"A EUR 3-5 billion paid-in capital increase would enable investment of the nature and scale outlined without the need for systematic donor risk-sharing in 2024 and beyond," the EBRD said in the report.

According to EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso, this decision reflects the commitment of our shareholders to support Ukraine and the trust our shareholders have in the EBRD to deliver that support's role in Ukraine, in both wartime and subsequent post-war reconstruction.

If approved, the capital increase will mark the third time the bank's shareholders have agreed to boost its capital base.

The EBRD was founded in 1991 with capital of 10 billion ecu. This doubled in 1996 to 20 billion ecu, then increased further in the wake of the global financial crisis to EUR 30 billion in 2010.

Minister of Finance of Ukraine Serhiy Marchenko welcomed this EBRD decision, but called for the exclusion of the Russian Federation from the shareholders of the EBRD and other international organizations.

The EBRD said that the Governors' decision on support for Ukraine was one of three key resolutions to be approved at the meeting in Samarkand. The second was to give the formal go-ahead for a limited expansion of EBRD activities to countries in sub-Saharan Africa, while including Iraq as part of the bank's "southern and eastern Mediterranean region" for the first time. The third was to modernize the framework for managing the bank's capital.

This third resolution is part of the bank's response to a report on the Capital Adequacy Frameworks of multilateral development banks. Over time, implementation of this and other applicable CAF recommendations will enhance flexibility in capital management, widen the sources of mobilization and increase EBRD impact across the full range of its activities, although in the short term the change does not create additional capacity, the EBRD said in the report.

The EBRD said that donors have extended support for Ukraine so far are the United States, Norway, France, the Netherlands, Spain, the European Union, Canada, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, Taipei China, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Ireland and Sweden.
Elon Musk said Thursday he has found a new CEO for Twitter, or X Corp. as its now called. He did not name the person but said she will be sta
But Marullo says he has had a change of heart and a new outlook on his own future. So he struck a deal to sell the property to the New Orleans-based hospitality group Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts, which runs more than two dozen restaurants in the area.

Marv Ammari, CEO of Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts, said his team is now formulating the plan for the new restaurant they will create here. It will be different from the one Marullo envisioned and different from what Andreas had been through the years.

The guiding concept right now, he said, is an approachable steakhouse with more affordable prices than the established upscale players in that market.
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Philip Morris plans to launch alternative production in Ukraine while it is not safe near Kharkiv

Philip Morris International, one of the leaders in the global and Ukrainian tobacco market, currently considers it unsafe to resume production at its factory near Kharkiv (Dokuchayevske village, Kharkiv district, Kharkiv region) and plans to launch alternative production in the country, said Philip Morris International (PMI) President for Europe Region Massimo Andolina.

"We consider it our duty to launch our own alternative production, where we could resume the production of our goods in Ukraine," he said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

Andolina explained that one of the reasons is the desire to independently produce their product in Ukraine.

"And secondly, because we want to signal our commitment to Ukraine and that even in wartime we are ready to invest in Ukraine," the PMI representative said.

He clarified that the company is currently actively looking for these alternatives.

"And I hope that we can soon announce investments in the launch of alternative production facilities until we have the opportunity to return to Kharkiv region," he said.

According to him, when the war started last February, the first thing the company did was to immediately stop production at its factory in Kharkiv region, where frequent shelling continues to this day.

"Unfortunately, this factory does not have a bomb shelter. Therefore, it would be dangerous to return our workers to the factory under these conditions ... The life of our people is an absolute priority, so the factory has been stopped for now," Andolina explained the impossibility of resuming the factory's work today.

He pointed out that after the shutdown of the factory, PMI supplied Ukraine with products from eight of the company's plants abroad for a certain period of time. However, then, in search of a solution that would allow the production in Ukraine, an agreement was signed on the production of the company's goods at the facilities of the Imperial Tobacco company in Kyiv, where they are now produced.
The Louisiana House labor committee on May 18 narrowly advanced a bill 6-5 aimed at protecting people using medical marijuana legally from being disqualified from unemployment compensation.

House Bill 351 by Rep. Mandie Landry, a New Orleans Democrat, originally said that a person who receives a recommendation from an authorized clinician to use marijuana for a therapeutic use shall not be disqualified from unemployment benefits or filing a workers compensation claim.

But the committee amended the bill to remove the workers compensation piece after hearing concerns from Wayne Fontana of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, a powerful lobbying group in the state, about how it would affect incidents where an employee does show up to work intoxicated.

Landry said that under the bill an employee who showed up to work high would still not be eligible for employment compensation, adding that she found it extremely insulting that LABI would insinuate otherwise, which she said they also did in a previous email.

Just to make it clear, I was not trying to pass a law that says you can be stoned at work because that's crazy, Landry said.

Rep. Kenny Cox, a Natchitoches Democrat, offered the amendment in hopes of helping the bill pass. Cox, a veteran, said he thought the bill would help veterans, many of whom use medical cannabis and many of whom experience housing and job insecurity.

Don't drive my guys back under the bridge, he told Fontana.

Landry promised the committee that she would work with LABI, Rep. Larry Frieman, an Abita Springs Republican and workers compensation lawyer on the committee, and other opponents on the bill before the full House votes on it.

Rep. Laurie Schlegel, a Metairie Republican, said she was only voting for the bill on that promise. Schlegel and Rep. Neil Riser of Columbia were the only two Republicans to vote for the measure, and it likely faces an uphill battle in the House.

Since medical cannabis is still illegal under federal law  despite most states legalizing it  doctors can only recommend, not prescribe it.

The committee killed another bill, this time along a party line vote that would have made it illegal for employers to ask about a candidates wage or benefits history during the hiring process.

And after facing resistance from some committee members and LABI, Rep. Ed Larvadain, an Alexandria Democrat, pulled a bill he was handling for New Orleans Democrat Aimee Adatto Freeman that would have created a statewide paid family and medical leave program in Louisiana.

Currently, federal law is that employers must provide workers with at least 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for the care of a newborn, care of a new foster care placement or adoption, for serious health conditions or to care for an immediate family member with a serious health condition, in addition to provisions for family of active-duty military.

House Bill 596 would have changed that to 12 weeks of partial paid leave tied to the states average weekly wage rate. Those making less than half of that average rate would receive almost all of their wages (90%). Those making more than half of that rate would receive that average rate.

Employers would have paid 45% of the cost of the benefit, while employees would have paid 55%. For example, that means a worker earning $50,000 a year would have contributed $230 a year, while their employer would chip in $200.

The state would have paid the employers portion for any employer with less than 25 people. The bill would have cost nearly $33 million a year, according to an analysis.

The committee heard from both small business owners, cancer patients and advocacy groups in support of the bill.

Maggie Pullen, who owns a one-woman consulting business in the New Orleans area, said she had a surgery for breast cancer in 2018 and couldnt afford to take off work the six to eight weeks her doctor recommended. She said she wound up going back to work two and a half weeks after her surgery

It had long term implications for my well-being, and it was incredibly exhausting, Pullen said.

Stacy Roussel of the Louisiana Budget Project read a statement from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society that said 40% of working cancer survivors had to make significant changes to their employment status because of their illness, including switching to part-time status or retiring early. The society said that number was higher for women and people of color.

Cancer patients in Louisiana need access to paid family and medical leave, so they don't have to choose between treating their cancer or keeping their job, Roussel read.

But once LABI came out against the bill, Larvadain said they were at an impasse with the business lobbying group and would work with them on a solution to try to bring back the bill next year.
A preliminary hearing for the Harahan woman accused of killing 6-year-old Bella Fontenelle and leaving her body in a bucket on the front lawn of the girl's mother was continued Thursday morning after new defense team took on Bunnak "Hannah" Landon's case.

Landon, 43, the girlfriend of Bella's father, has been booked with first-degree murder and obstruction of justice.

Richard Bourke, an attorney with the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center, one of the organizations that handles cases of defendants possibly facing the death penalty, appeared in Jefferson Parish Magistrate Court Thursday after picking up the case from the Jefferson Parish Public Defender's Office.
The regular shelling of Russia on the territory of Ukraine again proves that even more consolidation of peace is needed to put pressure on the aggressor state and even more weapons for Ukrainian soldiers, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

Regular shelling of Sumy, Chernihiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhia regions and Donbas proves again and again that we need even more consolidation of the world to put pressure on Russia, even more strength for our warriors to destroy every position of terrorists, and even more support for our people to save lives and return security to our cities and villages, Zelenskyy said.

In his video message, the head of state also expressed condolences to the relatives and friends of the child who died today from the Russian shelling in Kherson region.

Today, the Russian shelling of our Kherson region claimed the life of another child. A boy. His name was Vsevolod. He would have turned six years old in July. My condolences to the family and friends! It was another artillery attack by terrorists. People were just on the street near an ordinary store , the President said.
Louisiana Senate President Page Cortez, R-Lafayette, left, and House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-Gonzales, left, sing along with the national anthem before La. Gov. John Bel Edwards addressed members of the House and Senate in a joint session to kick off the 2023 regular legislative session, Monday, April 10, 2023 at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge, La. In foreground are Secretary of the Senate Yolanda Dixon, left, and Clerk of the House of Representatives Michelle Fontenot, right.
The Ukrainian Defense Forces last night destroyed 29 cruise missiles out of 30 fired by Russian troops on the territory of Ukraine from all directions, Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny said.

"From 21:00 on May 17 to 05:30 on May 18, 2023, the Russian occupiers carried out several waves of missile attacks from different directions. In total, 30 cruise missiles of sea, air and land-based were launched," Zaluzhny wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday.

According to Zaluzhny, 22 X-101/X-555 cruise missiles were fired from strategic aviation aircraft: two Tu-160 and eight Tu-95. Six Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from ships in the Black Sea, along with two Iskander-K cruise missiles from ground-based tactical missile systems.

"The forces and means of air defense of the Air Forces, in cooperation with other components of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, destroyed 29 cruise missiles," the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine informed.

According to him, two shock UAVs Shahed-136/131 and two reconnaissance UAVs were also shot down.

"We remind you once again that even with the successful operation of air defense, the fragments of missiles shot down in the sky will necessarily return to earth and pose a serious threat to people's lives. During an air raid siren, observe the safety rules. Take care of yourself and your family," Zaluzhny stressed.
The Patriot anti-aircraft missile system is working and may even have been used at night, said spokesperson of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yuriy Ihnat.

"I said yesterday that destroying Patriot with one Kinzhal is unrealistic. If there is any damage there, I think they will be repaired. The Patriot system is working. Maybe it even worked tonight," Ihnat said on the telethon broadcast on Thursday.

Earlier, the Ministry of Defense of the aggressor country stated that the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system manufactured by the United States was allegedly hit by a high-precision strike by the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system in the city of Kyiv.

Later, CNN reported that U.S. officials said that the Patriot system has minimal damage after the Russian attack on Kyiv on Tuesday.

Spokesperson of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yuriy Ihnat urged not to worry about the fate of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system, stressing that it is impossible to destroy the system with one blow of the Kinzhal missile.
The Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) signed a memorandum of cooperation, under which the funds paid by those accused of corruption offenses under the plea bargain mechanism will be directed to the Army of Drones, the press service of the Ministry of Digital Transformation reported on Thursday.

"Each drone saves the lives of our heroes. We must be more technologically advanced than the enemy. That is why the development of modern Ukrainian UAVs is our main priority I am grateful to the SAPO head for significant support for the development of the UAV sector," Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov said.

In turn, SAPO said that in less than five months, the SAPO and NABU sent UAH 650 million to the Army of Drones. Using these funds, several hundred drones were purchased for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Defense Intelligence and a batch of BMP-2 infantry combat vehicles for the brigades of the Offensive Guard.

"The war not only did not stop the fight against top corruption but also added motivation to our work. Our priorities are to bring those responsible for corruption to justice and assist the Armed Forces of Ukraine," SAPO Head Oleksandr Klymenko said.

During the full-scale war, thanks to the work of SAPO, NABU, and HACC, plea bargains, and other mechanisms, more than UAH 1.7 billion was transferred to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) has registered criminal proceedings and launched an investigation into the disclosure of data from a pretrial investigation into the case of bribery of the former head of the Supreme Court, SAPO has reported.

"A SAPO prosecutor initiated an investigation into the criminal proceedings on the fact of disclosure of data constituting the secret of the pretrial investigation in the case against the former President of the Supreme Court and his accomplice, who were exposed as receiving unlawful benefits," the prosecutor's office said in a report on its Telegram channel on Thursday.

According to SAPO, on May 18, 2023, the relevant information was registered in the unified register of pretrial investigations. The legal qualification is Part 3 of Article 387 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

"The pretrial investigation was entrusted to the Internal Control Department of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine," SAPO said.

SAPO said that the disclosure of legally protected information is illegal and can cause irreparable damage to the interests of the state.

"Persons who illegally disclosed materials protected by law relating to the competition for the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine, confiscated during undercover investigative actions in the office of the former President of the Supreme Court, must be punished provided for by Ukrainian Law," SAPO said.

At the same time, SAPO said that information and materials obtained as part of the pretrial investigation and related to the competition for the election of members of the HQCJ will be provided at the request of the High Council of Justice. The prosecutor's office reported that such a request has already been received and is being processed by SAPO.
The Class UFC Gym in Winfield will have a grand opening Saturday with top welterweight UFC title contender Belal Muhammad.

Muhammad, a Chicago-based fighter with a 23-3 record in the mixed martial arts, will do a meet-and-greet and teach a class at the grand opening, which will take place from 12 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the gym at 10660 Randolph St. in Winfield.

The high-end gym focuses on classes, specializing in boutique boxing conditioning, kickboxing and HIIT, or High Intensity Interval Training. Manager Hannah Elliott said it's more akin to an Orange Theory than the boxing or mixed martial arts gym one might expect from the name.

"We use Myzone Fit Metrics, which track your workout and connect you to an app," she said. "It's like Orange Theory where they track you the same way and you burn the most calories and sweat the most when you're in the orange."

The owners also own the Class UFC Gym on Calumet Avenue in Munster. There also was an unaffiliated UFC Gym in Merrillville that closed.

"We are an affiliated class-based gym that's mostly focused on conditioning," she said. "There's also sparring. We hold classes for boxing, kickboxing and high interval cardio and strength classes. We have circuit training and one-on-one time with coaches."

Most classes run 60 minutes per session. People can get coached by active MMA fighters or trainers who help them reach their fitness goals, whether getting in shape, losing weight or recovering.

Classes run from 5:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on weekdays.

Class UFC Gym also has open gym times between 12 and 4 p.m. during the week. People can come in and work out outside of classes, such as by punching a heavy bag, rowing, cycling, lifting weights or practicing fundamentals. It has classes like Muay Thai, cycling and a coach's choice day on the weekend.

"You can get a day pass to come in and learn techniques and fundamentals," she said. "Our coaches will push you. There's no downtime. They push you hard and you feel accomplished. It's a good workout you feel for days. It will help you get in shape again. We focus on conditioning and fundamentals."

The grand opening event will have a taco truck, an ice cream vendor, a bounce house, a bakery, an artisan jewelry maker and fitness clothing for sale. It will feature a motorcycle club, balloon animals, Jersey Mike's and Muse Med Spa.

People will be able to buy sparring gloves and have Muhammad sign them. There will be discounted memberships and giveaways.

"It's an open house where people can come in to see how we operate," she said. "The facility itself is impressive and high-end. It will be an amazing experience."

Class UFC Gym offers monthly membership and multi-class passes. It gives discounts to teachers, first responders and veterans.

For more information, call 219-252-9812 or visit www.classufcgym.com/locations/winfield/.
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A former Porter County police officer convicted last year for child neglect that left his young son severely disabled received a fair trial, according to the Indiana Court of Appeals.

Curtis Jones, 53, was sentenced to 10 years in prison after a Porter County jury convicted him of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 3 felony; and neglect of a dependent, a level 6 felony.

According to court records, Jones was taking care of his two young sons alone on July 24, 2016, when the six-month old suffered abusive head trauma caused by a sudden, forceful acceleration/deceleration movement of the head.

The incident left the infant cold and struggling for air with a bruise above his left eye, a petechial rash on his neck, retinal hemorrhages, hemorrhages to his neck, chest and lower lumbar area, additional bruising and brain swelling, records show.

The child, now 7, is unable to communicate, feed himself or see, and he is 100% bed-bound, according to court records.

Among other claims, Jones argued in his appeal that prosecutors failed to present sufficient evidence to support his convictions for neglect by endangerment and neglect by delaying medical treatment, and he said convicting him of both charges violated the constitutional prohibition on double jeopardy.

The appellate court disagreed in a 3-0 ruling penned by Appeals Judge Elizabeth Tavitas, a former Lake County jurist.

Tavitas said the jury reasonably could have concluded, based on the injuries suffered by the infant, that Jones knowingly put the child in a situation that endangered the child's life or health by physically abusing the child, which is sufficient to support Jones' conviction for neglect by endangerment resulting in serious bodily injury.

Likewise, Tavitas said the fact that Jones, then a nursing student, did not render immediate assistance to his child, and even spent time chatting up the 911 dispatcher, an acquaintance from his days as a police officer that ended in 2005, show Jones neglected his son by failing to promptly seek medical treatment.

As to Jones' final claim, Tavitas said Jones' two neglect convictions are for separate offenses that are not inherently or factually included in each other, and there's no double jeopardy violation.

"We find that Jones' arguments are without merit and, accordingly, affirm (his convictions)," Tavitas said.

Jones still can ask the Indiana Supreme Court to consider reviewing his case. Otherwise, his earliest possible release date from prison, assuming good behavior, is Nov. 8, 2029, records show.

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MICHIGAN CITY  Having responded to 183 calls this year involving shots being fired in the community, the Michigan City Police Department is taking action to end gun violence.

"There has been a life lost, there have been injuries, and there has been property damage due to gun violence," Lt. Steve Westphal said. "Michigan City is better than this."

Chief Steve Forker and others in his administration have been meeting over the past several weeks with community leaders and others in law enforcement to discuss gun violence and how to address it locally, Westphal said.

"The residents of Michigan City, along with the visitors, deserve to enjoy all the amenities Michigan City has to offer without having to hear gunshots being fired or being afraid," Westphal said.

"The leadership of area law enforcement agencies agreed to provide additional resources to achieve the goal of no more gunshots, no more injuries and no more loss of life due to gun violence. Increased proactive patrols will be taking place to specifically address those who choose to illegally possess and discharge firearms throughout Michigan City."

Region high school student booked into Porter County Jail in shooting death "Defendant is ordered to appear at all hearings dates," the judge said. "Failure to appear will result in an arrest warrant being issued."

Other agencies helping to address the problem include Indiana State Police, the LaPorte County Sheriffs Department and police from Long Beach, LaPorte and Trail Creek.

Gun violence is a problem across the nation that has resulted in 6,893 deaths since Jan. 1, Westphal said.

"May 17th is the 137th day of 2023, which means, mathematically, 50.31 people lose their lives each day in just these four categories," he said, referring to homicide, murder, unintentional and defensive use of guns.

Gallery: Recent arrests booked into LaPorte County Jail James Turner Derrien Bartmess Devin Hawkins LaJuana White Johnathon Hudson Steven Dabney Sr. Andrew Baney James Heeg Joseph Hahn Windroe Taylor Lakisha Peoples Albert Sherrod Matthew Parrott Austin Eckes Jason Mobley
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Public, private and home-school teachers can receive a grant worth up to $250 to defray the cost of an educational field trip to an Indiana state park or state reservoir, including Indiana Dunes State Park in Chesterton.

The Indiana Natural Resources Foundation is offering the grants to promote student learning about fish, forest, wildlife or natural habitats and their conservation, Indiana history and the state's cultural resources.

"This grant gives children an adventure that showcases some of Indiana's natural and cultural treasures and teaches the importance of protecting and preserving them for everyone to enjoy," said Jody Kress, foundation director.

The grant application is available online at on.in.gov/state-park-group-programs.

Teachers must submit their grant request by June 30. Potential winners will be notified Sept. 1.

Grants awarded must be spent during the 2023-24 school year.

Since the program began in 2013, a total of 174 grants have been awarded to Indiana teachers that helped fund state park visits for more than 18,000 Hoosier students.

"These trips help children understand how previous generations viewed the significance of Indiana's natural and cultural resources, and at the same time let them make great memories that they will carry into adulthood," said Ginger Murphy, deputy stewardship director for Indiana's state parks.

Individual Hoosiers and Indiana companies also can donate online to support the teacher grant program at indiananrf.org.

Gallery: Take a virtual tour of Indiana's state parks Brown County State Park Chain O' Lakes State Park Charlestown State Park Clifty Falls State Park Falls of the Ohio State Park Fort Harrison State Park Harmonie State Park Lincoln State Park McCormick's Creek State Park Mounds State Park O'Bannon Woods State Park Ouabache State Park Pokagon State Park Potato Creek State Park Prophetstown State Park Shades State Park Shakamak State Park Spring Mill State Park Summit Lake State Park Tippecanoe River State Park Turkey Run State Park Versailles State Park White River State Park Whitewater Memorial State Park
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CROWN POINT  Crown Point hopes to begin work on phase two of the Veterans Memorial Trail this fall.

The first phase of the bike trail, which was completed in 2021, travels through the Crown Point Sportsplex, stretching from East 113th Ave. to East North Street. The second phase of the trail will go from North Street to East Summit Street. The entire Veterans Memorial Trail will ultimately be 2.84 miles and will connect to both the Pennsy Greenway and the Erie Lackawana bike trails.

The trail generally follows the former Pennsylvania Railroad Corridor.

To complete phase two, the city will have to acquire 15 additional land parcels. During a Tuesday night special Common Council meeting, Assistant City Attorney Alex Kutanovski said the Crown Point has extended uniform property acquisition offers to all of the property owners. Six land owners have accepted the city's offers, two offers are still pending and seven have been either rejected or are unanswered.

The next step in the land acquisition process is condemnation proceedings, Kutanovski explained. During the Tuesday meeting, the Common Council unanimously approved a resolution directing the city's legal department to proceed with filing an eminent domain suit. Councilmembers Laura Sauerman, R-4, and Scott Evorik, R-at large, were both absent.

Kutanovski said he feels some of the unanswered/rejected offers will likely "get resolved prior to much litigation."

If everything goes well with the property acquisition, work on the trail could begin this October.

Next Level Trails

In 2021, Crown Point was awarded $2.98 million through Indiana's Next Level Trails grant program. Administered by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, the Next Level Trails program awards state funding to trail projects across Indiana. Next Level Trails will ultimately invest $180 million, the largest infusion of state trail funding in Indiana history.

Last week, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced the fourth round of Next Level Trails funding. To date, the program has awarded $150 million to 75 projects. An additional $30 million will be distributed in the fourth round of funding. The application period for the fourth round begins July 1 and ends Aug. 1; only units of government and nonprofit organizations can apply.

The goal of the Next Level program is to improve bike trail connectivity throughout the state.

Already, the Erie Lackawanna Trail stretches from Hammond to Crown Point and the Pennsy Greenway goes from Calumet City to Schererville. Eventually, the Memorial Trail will extend to Hebron.

In 2020, Hebron completed their own Veterans Memorial Trail. The .9-mile trail was also constructed using Next Level funding.

Close Roberta Woods, right, of Valparaiso, adjusts lights on her bike's wheels before the beginning of the Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Kids marvel at their bike lights before the beginning of the Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Lights don bike baskets for Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Jay Edwards, a worker with Leo's Mobile Bicycle Service, makes spot repairs for Valpo Night Ride participants before the beginning of the ride on Saturday. Valpo Night Ride participants stop for snacks at William E. Urschel Pavilion on Saturday in Valparaiso. Gallery: Valpo Night Ride Around 500 cyclists rode in the 7th annual Valpo Night Ride on Saturday in Valparaiso. Photos by Kale Wilk, digital producer. Roberta Woods, right, of Valparaiso, adjusts lights on her bike's wheels before the beginning of the Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Kids marvel at their bike lights before the beginning of the Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Lights don bike baskets for Valpo Night Ride on Saturday. Jay Edwards, a worker with Leo's Mobile Bicycle Service, makes spot repairs for Valpo Night Ride participants before the beginning of the ride on Saturday. Valpo Night Ride participants stop for snacks at William E. Urschel Pavilion on Saturday in Valparaiso.
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VALPARAISO  The Porter County Highway Department garage here is in such bad shape that walls could collapse if nothing is done, experts told the Board of Commissioners.

Correcting conditions there will be expensive, and those arent the only facility needs facing the county.

Conditions there are detailed in a 53-page study presented this week to the commissioners and County Council.

The highway garage, built in 1960, is showing its age. It is the only building in our inventory that has never been renovated, Board of Commissioners President Jim Biggs, R-North, said.

This project should have been done a decade ago, he added.

Good news for the county is that the comprehensive study of facility needs for the department found that not only can the new facility be built on the same campus but also while the department continues to operate out of there.

The countys center garage complex sits on seven acres. For comparison, Valparaiso has a 40-acre public works complex and another 40 acres to provide room to grow, Board of Commissioners Vice President Barb Regnitz, R-Center.

Regnitz got an earful from residents while campaigning last year. Its roads, roads and roads, she said.

After she was elected last year, Regnitz and Biggs toured the center garage. The study confirmed what they saw but added some additional punch to it.

Theres no fire suppression system in the buildings, which is a danger when working on vehicles. Leaving the sign shop in a hurry if theres a fire means going through two separate doors. The sign shop is a fire trap, said Jack Daniel, of Martin-Riley, an architectural and engineering firm.

A shop where the floor was excavated to allow work on larger vehicles requires steps to get in and out.

Masonry walls are moving. Theres some locations where those walls could actually begin to fail at some point because of that movement, said Andrew Waugh, of Martin-Riley.

Worse, those are load-bearing walls. If they were to fully fail, there would be a major collapse, Waugh said.

While addressing the physical condition of the buildings, the plan calls for making the facility more functional, too.

Equipment mostly sits outside because theres no building available to store vehicles in, Highway Superintendent Jim Polarek said. That includes 15 snowplows, at $300,000 each. A $250,000 payloader used in the salt dome cant be washed out to prevent rust because theres no inside facility for doing so. Washing the payloader outside in the winter could result in frostbite for the drivers, Polarek said.

This is an embarrassment for our county, Councilman Ronald Red Stone, R-1st, said.

Biggs and Regnitz hope to address needs at the center district garage first, adding as much as they can of the county jails urgent needs to the bond issue.

That bond issue would be about $20 million, replacing the $25 million bond issue for constructing the jail. The latter will expire in the next several months. The new bond wouldnt affect the property tax rate.

However, a second bond up to $25 million might be issued as soon as a year and a day later, Regnitz said, to do the rest of the work needed at the jail. Splitting the facility needs into two projects would mean borrowing money without triggering a referendum.

Whether to issue bonds for the work would be the County Councils decision.

Commissioner Laura Blaney, D-South, disagrees with addressing the center garage issues first. We need to figure out how to fund our roads before we build a new garage, she said. We definitely need one, but it needs to be more economical.

As far as the jail, I think its the priority, Blaney said.

If we are talking about bonding 50 million dollars, we need to have a comprehensive plan that includes all of these projects and how we are going to pay for them, Blaney said.

The Memorial Opera Houses urgent needs will be addressed with the $5 million already planned as part of the American Rescue Plan Act spending, Biggs said. Dropped from the plan is a connection to the 1860 sheriffs residence next door.

Regnitz plans to lease the sheriffs residence and put the proceeds into a nonreverting fund dedicated to upkeep of that historic structure.

GALLERY: The Times Photos of the Week 'Valpo has shaped us,' grads reminded 'Valpo has shaped us,' grads reminded 'Valpo has shaped us,' grads reminded 'Valpo has shaped us,' grads reminded Ivy Tech Lake graduation 2023 Ivy Tech Lake graduation 2023 Ivy Tech Porter graduation 2023 Ivy Tech Porter graduation 2023 57th Annual IU Northwest Commencement Ceremony 57th Annual IU Northwest Commencement Ceremony 57th Annual IU Northwest Commencement Ceremony 57th Annual IU Northwest Commencement Ceremony 'We fight together:' Sounds of Sarah fentanyl and addiction awareness walk 'We fight together:' Sounds of Sarah fentanyl and addiction awareness walk Free reading material? Book on it Free reading material? Book on it k-9 sophie Hoosier Theater Hoosier Theater Municipal Day Town Council meeting Municipal Day Town Council meeting Students run the show in Merrillville Health Department has new mobile clinic Health Department has new mobile clinic Gallery HTML code
The Ukrainian retailer Epicenter K has become a member of the UN Global Compact, uniting responsible business.

"The Epicenter company brings together thousands of suppliers and partners. In this difficult time, we are creating new jobs, developing the country's economy. The social mission of corporate responsibility is to support medicine, education, and sports. And as a powerful ecosystem, we are already investing in the country's future today. The UN Global Compact provides access to the platform of international initiatives, exchange of experience and business practices for the national network Epicenter and successful companies in the world. We join the team of leaders for common work and achievement of global goals," Halyna Hereha, founder and head of Epicenter K LLC, is quoted by the press service.

The company emphasizes that Epicenter, as the largest retailer in Ukraine in terms of retail space, strives to create the most efficient business ecosystem by investing not only in the retail network, but also in logistics and production, as well as supporting Ukrainian suppliers.

In addition, during the war, the company implemented the charitable initiative Saving Lives by purchasing 50 resuscitation vehicles for Ukrainian doctors. Three humanitarian hubs were also created, which processed 3,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid for hundreds of thousands of IDPs. The total amount of assistance to the country during the war is more than UAH 1 billion.

The UN Global Compact in Ukraine is a local network of the world's largest community of responsible business. This is the official representative of the UN Global Compact (United Nations Global Compact) global network in Ukraine, calling on companies to build their activities and strategies taking into account the Sustainable Development Goals and based on the Ten Principles in the field of human rights, labor protection, environmental protection and the fight against corruption.
Once a high-profile fixture of the 1960s New York avant-garde, Yayoi Kusama has long since become an icon, in the sense of a visually recognizable brand. Her polka dots, her spectacular sculptures of flowers and pumpkins, and most of all her Infinity Mirror Rooms, which regularly draw crowds willing to wait hours for as little as one minute inside  its all as familiar, and as reliably perfect, as Coca-Cola. Like Coca-Cola, it also goes with anything: A recent collaboration with Louis Vuitton even included Instagram and Snapchat filters.

The downside of being a brand might be a certain predictability. But being so well known actually provides a visual thinker as adept and inventive as Kusama with a kind of head start on shocking and delighting her audience, because she can achieve so much just by tweaking our expectations. Her latest room, a 13-foot-high white cube with a fully mirrored interior titled Dreaming of Earths Sphericity, I Would Offer My Love, is as close as pop art comes to a revelation.

Unlike most previous rooms, this one, which is currently showing at David Zwirner Gallery in Manhattan as part of the new exhibition I Spend Each Day Embracing Flowers, has windows large enough to see through from the inside  16 full, half or quarter circles colored red, yellow, green or blue. Each partial circle is hard against an edge, so that, with its reflection, it appears whole. Among other things, this means that your gaze doesnt pause at the edge, instead gliding painlessly right into the mirror world.
Prosecutors are seeking further testing on the gun that Alec Baldwin was handling on the Rust film set when it fired and killed the cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, as they work to decide whether to revive a criminal case against the actor.

Mr. Baldwin was initially charged with involuntary manslaughter, but prosecutors in New Mexico dismissed the case against him last month. They withdrew the charges after being presented with evidence suggesting that the gun Mr. Baldwin had been rehearsing with that day had been modified, which potentially made an unintentional discharge easier.

The old-fashioned revolver at the center of the case has already been examined by the F.B.I., but on Wednesday, the prosecutors, Kari T. Morrissey and Jason J. Lewis, sought court approval to have it tested by an outside ballistics expert. They wrote in court papers that they had learned during their investigation that the hammer of the gun may have been intentionally modified.

The modification appears to be related to the notches on the internal portion of the hammer for full-cock, half-cock and quarter cock positions, the prosecutors wrote in court papers. It appears that these notches may have been partially removed or ground down so that they are less prominent.
Mr. Boies and Mr. Edwards, who work at separate firms, said in a joint statement: This groundbreaking settlement is the culmination of two law firms conducting more than a decade-long investigation to hold one of Epsteins financial banking partners responsible for the role it played in facilitating his trafficking organization.

News of the settlement was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Epsteins estate established the restitution fund several months after he died by suicide while in federal custody awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.

The fund has paid out more than $125 million to his victims  many of whom were teenage girls when Mr. Epstein abused them. In addition, the estate has paid about $20 million in settlements to other victims who did not seek awards from the restitution fund.

The tentative settlement closes another chapter in Deutsche Banks relationship with Mr. Epstein, which began in 2013 and continued until late 2018. In 2020, Deutsche Bank, which is based in Frankfurt, agreed to pay $150 million to New York regulators to settle claims that the bank repeatedly overlooked suspicious transactions involving Mr. Epstein and ignored obvious red flags about his activities.

Deutsche Bank took Mr. Epstein on as a client after JPMorgan Chase, which had been his primary bank for roughly 15 years, stopped doing business with him. The lawyers for the victims have sued JPMorgan, claiming it, too, ignored warning signs about Mr. Epstein and benefited financially from his sex-trafficking operation.
Our topic for today is  whos worse, Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis?

Nonononofair! There is no way Im ever going to vote for either one of them! Why should I care?

Hey, knowledge of public affairs is always important.

DeSantis made headlines this weekend when he showed up to campaign in Iowa while Trump canceled a rally because of bad weather.

Iowa is the Florida of the Midwest, the governor of Florida claimed at one point in his burger-flipping, speech-giving trek. Now this was clearly intended as a compliment, but Iowans, do you actually want to be the Florida of the Midwest? The weather is certainly great in January, but theres plenty of downside. Do your Midwestern neighbors ever mutter, What our state needs is a heck of a lot more floods and sinkholes ?

DeSantis and his wife/political adviser, Casey, have three small children, who once starred in a gubernatorial election ad in which he demonstrated his devotion to President Donald Trump by showing one of his daughters how to build a toy wall and reading his son The Art of the Deal. (Then Mr. Trump said, Youre fired. I love that part.)
An ambitious digital imaging project has produced what researchers describe as a digital twin of the R.M.S. Titanic, showing the wreckage of the doomed ocean liner with a level of detail that has never been captured before.

The project, undertaken by Magellan Ltd., a deepwater seabed mapping company, yielded more than 16 terabytes of data, 715,000 still images and a high-resolution video. The visuals were captured over the course of a six-week expedition in the summer of 2022, nearly 2.4 miles below the surface of the North Atlantic, Atlantic Productions, which is working on a documentary about the project, said in a news release.
Nearly 110,000 people died last year of drug overdoses in the United States, according to preliminary federal data published on Wednesday, a staggering figure that nonetheless represented a plateau after two years of sharp increases.

The preliminary count of 109,680 overdose deaths was only slightly higher than the figure for 2021, when 109,179 people were estimated to have died, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overdose deaths had climbed significantly that year and the prior year, increasing by roughly 17 percent in 2021 and 30 percent in 2020.

Dr. Rahul Gupta, the director of the White Houses Office of National Drug Control Policy, said in a statement on Wednesday that the Biden administrations overdose strategies were working. Weve expanded treatment to millions of Americans, were improving access to naloxone to reverse overdoses and were attacking the illicit fentanyl supply chain at every choke point, he said.

Still, the newly released data offered the latest indication of the catastrophic effects of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is often mixed with stimulants and other drugs and can go undetected before a drug sample is ingested. Synthetic opioids contributed to about 75,000 overdose deaths last year, according to the C.D.C.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has revoked the security clearances of three agents who either took part in the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, or later expressed views about it that placed into question their allegiance to the United States, the bureau said on Wednesday in a letter to congressional investigators.

The letter, written by a top official at the F.B.I., came one day before at least two of the agents  Marcus Allen and Stephen Friend  were set to testify in front of a House Judiciary subcommittee investigating what Republicans contend is the weaponization of the federal government against conservatives.

For several months, Republican lawmakers have been courting F.B.I. agents who they believe support their contentions that the bureau and other federal agencies have been turned against former President Donald J. Trump and his supporters both before and after the Capitol attack.

Some of the agents have come forward as self-described whistle-blowers and taken steps like writing a letter to the leaders of the F.B.I. complaining about ways in which the bureau has discriminated against conservatives.
Why It Matters

If the bill is passed by the Senate, it would then head to the governors desk. His approval, if granted, would dramatically reduce abortion access for women in the state and across the region.

Most Southern states have passed abortion bans since the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade last June. But because the South Carolina legislature has not been able to agree on the terms of a ban, the state still allows abortion up until 22 weeks of pregnancy.

Abortion providers say this makes the state a crucial access point for women in other Southern states, especially since North Carolina this week passed a law banning most abortions after 12 weeks.

Abortion opponents, as well as some lawmakers who support a right to abortion, worry that the state has become a destination for the procedure.

Background

The bill will test a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling in January, which found a right to abortion in the state Constitution and struck down a previous six-week ban.

That opinion was written by the courts only female justice, who retired shortly after. The legislature replaced her with a man, who was supported by the conservative Freedom Caucus in the House.

Republicans are hoping that the new court will overturn the abortion decision, allowing a stricter ban. But the House and the Senate, despite both being controlled by Republicans, havent been able to agree on where to draw the line.

The House is more conservative and tried to pass a ban on most abortions starting at conception. The Senate considered and rejected that bill three times this year, blocked by the five women of the chamber  three Republicans, a Democrat and an independent  who call themselves the Sister Senators.

The women have suggested a ban after the first trimester, or putting the question of abortion rights to voters on a ballot initiative, but Senate leadership has rejected those measures.

Whats Next

Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican who supports a six-week ban, called the Senate into its own special session next week to debate the House version of the bill.

The Sister Senators have said that they will filibuster again, which could block a final vote on the bill.

While two of the Republicans in that group voted in favor of the six-week ban that the Senate passed in February, they have said that they cannot support the amendments that the House added in the bill.
Background: The latest action to prevent transition treatment

The legislation, known as Senate Bill 14, was among the most volatile measures of the states every-two-year legislative session, drawing protests from transgender Texans and their supporters at the Capitol this month. State police arrested two people amid protests as the bill was being discussed in the Texas House.

Opponents in the House twice delayed votes on the bill on procedural grounds before it was ultimately passed and returned to the Senate, where it first passed last month. The Senate voted to concur with the House version and send it to the governor on Wednesday.

Even before the legislation passed, Texas officials had taken steps to try to prevent transgender children from accessing medical transition care. Last year, Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, directed the states child protective agency to investigate parents for child abuse if their children received such treatment. Some Texas families fled the state as a result, even as the investigations were being challenged in court.

Why It Matters: The largest state to ban transition care for minors

At least 14 other states have enacted bans or restrictions on medical treatments for transgender children. Texas would be the largest state to do so. According to estimates from the Williams Institute, a research center that reports on the demographics of the L.G.B.T.Q. community, nearly 30,000 transgender children between 13 and 17 live in Texas, making up about 1 percent of Texans in that age group.

The bans are part of a national effort by Republican elected leaders to restrict medical care for transgender children, discussions on gender in schools, and drag performances. Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida signed a bill on Wednesday that bans hormone treatments and gender-transition care for minors, and penalizes doctors who violate the law with up to five years in prison.

Supporters of the Texas legislation have called the treatments mutilation. Opponents condemned the measure as a politicized assault on the transgender community that would prevent people from receiving care needed to address gender dysphoria. The treatments have been recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
New cases of chronic pain occur more often in the United States than those of other chronic conditions, like diabetes, depression and high blood pressure, according to a study from the National Institutes of Health. The findings offer a large-scale confirmation of what previous research has shown: Chronic pain is staggeringly common in America.

Experts have known that around one-fifth of U.S. adults have chronic pain, but the new study offers a snapshot of just how many people are newly suffering each year. Researchers analyzed data from 10,415 adults who participated in two editions of an annual survey led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; respondents reported how often they felt pain in the last three months, and whether that pain interfered with their daily lives.

Were talking about a major public health problem, said Dr. Gregory Terman, a pain medicine specialist at the University of Washington School of Medicine and a co-author of the study.

The study shows that as more people develop new cases of chronic pain, existing patients struggle to recover. Only around 10 percent of those with chronic pain in 2019 were pain-free in 2020, which underscores just how hard it is to treat.
Ukraine's Intelligence Agency on railway accident in Crimea: It's quite natural, as weapons, armored vehicles probably transported along tracks

Representative of the Main Intelligence Agency of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Andriy Yusov called the derailment of a train in the temporarily occupied Crimea "quite natural," since the occupiers were probably transporting weapons and armored vehicles along the tracks for the war against Ukraine.

"Obviously, other items are transported along the same routes, but in particular weapons, ammunition, armored vehicles and all other means that are used for the war of conquest against Ukraine, which are used to kill civilian Ukrainians and Ukrainian defenders. Therefore, it is quite natural, that these paths could not stand it, got tired and now do not function for some time," Yusov said on the air of the telethon.

The intelligence said "the infrastructure will operate absolutely normally and safely when Crimea returns to the Ukrainian internationally recognized legal field."

"As long as the terrorists are there, there will be no peace," Yusov said.

The agency said the Crimea peninsula is actively used by the invaders as a logistics hub and transport hub for the transfer of manpower and equipment to the occupied Ukrainian territories in the south.

"The occupant contingent in Ukrainian Crimea remains more or less stable, unchanged," Yusov said.

Earlier, Russian media reported that several train cars had derailed near Bakhchysaray in the temporarily occupied Crimea so-called "Crimean Railway" claims that the wagons of the freight train derailed "due to the intervention of unauthorized persons."
A performance by Gibney Company begs a question: What about this reinvented company does the dance world need? In 2023, what does it nourish? Im still not sure.

Created as a contemporary repertory company  along the lines of Nederlands Dans Theater or Ballet BC in Canada Gibney gravitates toward work in which emotions are fraught and the bodies containing them, while malleable, are nearly indistinguishable as they slither from one state to the next.

In the companys return on Wednesday to the Joyce Theater in Manhattan, part of the problem had to do with the sleepy lighting. More than watching dancers, it often felt like watching silhouettes of dancers in an all-too-common contemporary dance combination of dated and distraught.

The program started in darkness, but it ended in light. Gibney Dance, led by its founder and artistic director, Gina Gibney, along with company and rehearsal director, Gilbert T Small II, offered three works, including a commission that was decidedly in the twilight camp. In the new dance, Ghost Town, by Tiffany Tregarthen and David Raymond, who direct the Vancouver-based Out Innerspace Dance Theater, there may have been 13 dancers onstage, but with such moody lighting by James Proudfoot, there could have been 30. Or three? They were hard to pin down.
Touria El Glaoui is the founding director of the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, which is held every year in London, New York City and Marrakesh. The daughter of a Moroccan artist father and a French mother, El Glaoui was working in telecommunication sales when she founded the fair to give voice to art and artists from the continent and the diaspora, and it remains among the most important on the contemporary scene, introducing talents such as Amadou Sanogo, of Mali, and Johanna Mirabel, of Paris.

This years edition of the fair, which runs through Sunday, is mounted in Manhattanville, at 439 West 127th Street (1-54.com), with a pop-up exhibition of Caribbean artists, called Sparkling Islands, Another Postcard of the Caribbean, at High Line Nine, 507 West 27th Street, through Saturday. I recently spoke with El Glaoui about her vision and how it has grown. Here are edited excerpts from the conversation.

Why did you start with the focus on Africa?

When I started in 2013, it was about creating a platform that would represent and give visibility to artists from that particular geography  the African continent and its diaspora. We say diaspora because we realize that a lot of artists of African descent were based in Europe or the United States or the United Kingdom.

Im the daughter of an artist from Africa, Morocco, surprised that this part of the world was not covered at all and not at all present or visible in the mainstream or the international market. It was not my industry, so I didnt understand why this was happening.
An international rock bands first U.S. tour is a moment to be celebrated, a sign that years of hard work have paid off. But just a few days into their American debut, the members of Forests, an emo rock band from Singapore, endured another rite of passage for some musicians traveling the United States when they stopped for the night at a California hotel.

When they returned to their rental van a few hours later, they realized theyd been robbed.

In Singapore I kind of made a joke about it, like, oh, you know, your band is only legit if your stuff got stolen, said Darell Laser, 36, the bassist. Then it really happened.

Forests and the Oklahoma band they were touring with, Ben Quad, are hardly the first musicians to be robbed while on tour in America. (In 1999, Sonic Youth famously lost an entire trucks worth of gear to a thief, also in California.) But the experience was still a shock for a band from a country as safe as Singapore.

It was the worst luck ever, said Chris Martinez, 29, a Forests fan from San Diego who discovered the band years ago on a business trip to Singapore.
Competitors of Buy Buy Baby, which Bed Bath & Beyond owns and is also being liquidated, are seeing benefits, too. Babylist, an online registry business, said the number of registries created on its platform in the last few weeks since Bed Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy was 35 percent higher than a year ago. More than 1,200 registry accounts have been transferred to its site, Natalie Gordon, the companys chief executive, said.

Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby suppliers have been revising their strategies in recent months. Many held back inventory and devoted less resources to the retailer as it tried to work through a turnaround plan. Still, because Bed Bath & Beyond is known for its ability to carry a vast array of products, it continued to attract smaller companies trying to raise their profiles.

I do think that theres going to be some lost opportunities for some brands, said Steve Greenspon, the chairman of the International Housewares Association and chief executive of the home storage brand Honey-Can-Do, which stopped selling with Bed Bath & Beyond last year.

Christina Carbonell and Galyn Bernard, the founders of the gender-neutral clothing brand Primary, are rethinking their strategy to sell within stores as Buy Buy Baby goes out of business. Shortly after their apparel hit shelves in April last year, they felt the impact of the retailers financial troubles. In August, when Bed Bath & Beyond rolled out its turnaround plan, Buy Buy Baby cut its order with Primary, as it did with several other suppliers. Inside stores, they saw that their merchandise inventory was low.

The experience caused the founders to focus on becoming profitable without relying on the sales from the Buy Buy Baby partnership, which accounted for about 10 percent of their business, they said.
The Lake Nona campus, about 20 miles from Disney World near the Orlando International Airport, had been championed by Bob Chapek, who served as Disneys chief executive from 2020 until he was fired last year. Mr. Iger, who came out of retirement to retake Disneys reins, was much less enthusiastic about the project  even before the company became mired in its battle with Mr. DeSantis. As soon as he returned to Disney, Mr. Iger began telling lieutenants, for instance, that it made little sense to move Imagineering so far away from Disneys movie studios. As he is fond of saying, Creative teams need to be together.

Mr. Iger has been systematically reversing Mr. Chapeks decisions. In February, for instance, he announced that Disney would restructure its inner workings, ending a framework put in place by Mr. Chapek. In March, as part of wide-ranging layoffs, Mr. Iger shut down a 50-person metaverse project that Mr. Chapek had started.

Disney is also in the midst of cutting $5.5 billion in costs as it seeks to improve profitability, pay down debt and restore its dividend. Later on Thursday, for instance, Disney said it would close an underperforming luxury hotel at Disney World. The 100-room property, announced in 2017 and opened last year, simulated a two-night trip on a Star Wars spaceship. Bookings started at $6,000 for a family of four; the price limited interest. Disney spent hundreds of millions of dollars to build and market the immersive offering, which it called the Galactic Starcruiser.

Disney shares closed at about $94 on Thursday, down about 45 percent from two years ago.

Mr. DeSantis and Disney have been sparring for more than a year over a special tax district that encompasses Disney World. The fight started when the company criticized a Florida education law that opponents labeled Dont Say Gay because it limits classroom instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation  angering Mr. DeSantis, who repeatedly vowed payback.

Since then, Florida legislators, at the urging of Mr. DeSantis, have targeted Disney  the states largest taxpayer  with a variety of hostile measures. In February, they ended Disneys long-held ability to self-govern its 25,000-acre resort as if it were a county by giving Mr. DeSantis control over government services at the resort.

It was soon discovered that the previous, Disney-controlled board had approved development contracts that lock in a growth plan for the resort. An effort to void those agreements has since resulted in dueling lawsuits, with Disney suing Mr. DeSantis and his allies in federal court and the governors tax district appointees returning fire in state court.
The Latest

Elizabeth Holmes, the disgraced founder of the failed blood testing start-up Theranos, who was convicted last year on charges that she defrauded investors of more than $100 million, has lost her latest bid to stay out of prison while she appeals her conviction.

Ms. Holmes, whose case cast a harsh light on Silicon Valleys culture of hubris, must report to prison on May 30, a judge ruled after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected her attempt on Tuesday to remain free on bail.

Ms. Holmes and her top lieutenant at Theranos, Ramesh Balwani, who was found guilty of fraud in a separate trial and who began serving his prison sentence last month, were also ordered to pay $452 million in restitution to victims of the companys fraud.

Of that total, the judge, Edward J. Davila of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, who oversaw both trials, determined that Ms. Holmes and Mr. Balwani should pay $125 million to the media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who invested in Theranos. Walgreens and Safeway, which had entered into business deals with the company, were also identified as victims for the purposes of restitution.
In 2014, the venture capitalist Peter Thiel was gaining prominence as one of Silicon Valleys most successful entrepreneurs and investors. He had made billions of dollars as a co-founder of PayPal and Palantir, where he was chairman; and he sat on the board of Facebook, where he was the companys first outside investor.

That made him an ideal contact for Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender with a knack for cultivating the rich and powerful.

Mr. Thiel apparently had several meetings with Mr. Epstein that year, according to scheduling records of the disgraced financier that were reviewed by The New York Times.

The records  in the form of emails that Mr. Epsteins assistant sent to remind him of upcoming events  show that in September 2014 Mr. Thiel was scheduled to meet with Mr. Epstein on at least three occasions, either in one-on-one meetings or with others over lunch or dinner. Two other times, Mr. Thiel was listed among more than a dozen other well-known people Mr. Epstein should try to see while at his New York mansion.
NetChoice, a trade group that counts TikTok as a member and has sued in the past to block state laws targeting tech companies, also said in a statement that the ban violated the Constitution. Krista Chavez, a spokeswoman for the group, said NetChoice did not currently have plans to sue to challenge the law.

The Montana plaintiffs are five residents who create, publish, view, interact with and share videos on TikTok, their lawsuit said. Their lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The lawsuit said Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban The Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes. The users also argued that the law violated provisions of the Constitution that give the federal government exclusive power over foreign affairs and prohibit states from regulating interstate commerce.

TikTok users have been successful in blocking a ban of the app before. In 2020, a judge sided with a group of creators who challenged an attempt to ban the app by President Donald J. Trump. TikTok and ByteDance also separately sued to stop the presidents actions.

Montana passed its law after the federal government and more than two dozen states banned TikTok from government devices in recent months. Lawmakers and intelligence officials have said TikTok, because of its ownership, could put sensitive user data into the hands of the Chinese government. They have also argued that the app could be used to spread propaganda.

TikTok says it has never been asked to provide, nor has it provided, any U.S. user data to the Chinese government.

Many have hypothesized that China might demand that ByteDance, TikToks parent company, turn over Americans data or use TikTok to push disinformation in some way, but neither Montana nor the U.S. government has pointed to any evidence that China is actually doing this, Ms. Krishnan said. Thats a problem because speculative harms cant justify a total ban on a communications platform, particularly one thats used by hundreds of thousands of Montanans daily.
Nevertheless, in 2007, the Blackstone Group bought Mr. Zells firm  then known as Equity Office Properties Trust  for $39 billion. His own fortune was estimated at nearly $5 billion, and with holdings in residential properties, drug and department stores, and energy and electronics companies  a lifetime of acquisitions that made him one of the nations wealthiest men  he might have retired comfortably in his mid-60s.

But seeing yet another inefficient market, he plunged into the unfamiliar world of newspapers, winning a bidding war for one of the nations premier media companies, the 160-year-old Tribune empire. Besides the Chicago and Los Angeles newspapers, it included The Baltimore Sun, Newsday, The Hartford Courant, 23 television and radio stations, the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field.

A Deal Comes With Debt

Like many newspapers, the Tribune properties were hemorrhaging advertising revenues and readers to the internet. The company had been on the auction block for months when Mr. Zell  insisting that his interests were purely economic, not editorial  offered $34 a share in a complex transaction to take the company private under an employee stock-ownership plan.

He acquired control in December 2007 in an $8.2 billion deal whose financing required him to put up only $315 million, but that saddled the employee-owners with more than $13 billion in debt, including $5 billion in existing Tribune obligations. In that highly leveraged buyout, the debt was to be paid off almost entirely by cash generated by the companys continuing operations.

The new corporation was exempt from federal income taxes, and the debt was reduced by the sale of Newsday, the Cubs and Wrigley Field. But employees, who had no say in the deal, assumed a crushing burden and stood to gain only if the company survived, while Mr. Zell, for a relatively modest investment, became chairman and secured an option to buy 40 percent of the company for $500 million if it prospered.
Dianne Feinstein, a Democratic senator from California, has returned to the Capitol after spending more than two months recovering from shingles. The disease, often characterized by a painful rash, is triggered by the same virus that causes chickenpox, which stays in peoples bodies for life and, years later, can become reactivated.

For Ms. Feinstein, 89, the virus also brought on a previously unreported case of encephalitis, a rare but potentially debilitating complication in which the brain swells. The condition is often caused by an infection or an immune response.

What are the symptoms of encephalitis?

Post-shingles encephalitis can cause headache, fever, sensitivity to light, vomiting, confusion, a stiff neck or even seizures.

It can also leave some patients with more lasting problems. Those include memory or language trouble, sleep disorders, mood disorders, walking difficulty and other cognitive problems. Older patients tend to have the most trouble recovering.
Zelenskyy proposes to create memorial to honor victims of deportation of Crimean Tatar people in 1944

While speaking at an event to mark the 79th anniversary of the deportation of the Crimean Tatar people, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed to create a memorial to honor the deportation victims.

"History is not just events, but also places where people's hearts stop when they touch the tragic moments of history. The Crimean Tatar people deserve such a full-fledged central memorial that would remind of the crime that was committed against them, of the victims of deportation and of the strength of the people that survived," the head of state said.

He also addressed the leader of the Crimean Tatar people, Mustafa Jemilev, with the proposal to develop a concept and selection place for the monument together.

"Mr. Mustafa, I suggest that we work with you on such a proposal. To have such a place. I think the people deserved it over 80 years," Zelenskyy said.

He also emphasized that the creation of the memorial would be very important to the entire Ukraine.
Judging by my talks with a dozen somatic therapists, demand for their services is surging. Most said they were fully booked. I didnt doubt it, partly because mental-health practitioners of all types seem to have been under a mounting pressure of need since the start of the pandemic. But there is also a lurking dissatisfaction among many people whove undertaken more traditional therapies and found that probing and trying to redirect the mind hasnt accomplished nearly as much as they hoped. I heard this lament expressed in multiple ways, as I spoke with clients and as I joined 60 trainees for their first module of online S.E. training, with four full days of lectures and practice sessions.

I came from a psychoanalytic background, Maureen Gallagher, an S.E. practitioner, trainer and client, told me, recalling her doctoral education, her early practice and the 13 years of Jungian analysis she herself went through. My analysis was very, very successful. I understood myself better, I understood my upbringing. But I still had anxiety, I still had panic attacks. She sensed something missing in her treatment. I regularly asked my analyst, What about this body that I live in? And being a good analyst, he would say, Why dont you talk about it? She came to believe that because he worked in the realm of words and the intellect, he couldnt take her where she needed to go. The neocortex  the frontal area of our brains associated with complex cognition  can disconnect us from the primacy of being, Gallagher says. From S.E., she learned that her body contains harbors of calm and can manage her anxiety, that I am the space that is big enough for all of this.

The basic ideas behind somatic therapy have become most widely known, nowadays, through the psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolks book The Body Keeps the Score. After a few years in the Top 15 on The Timess paperback best-seller list, it soared to No. 1 during the pandemic and has stayed around there ever since. It has sold over three million copies globally and teaches that our trauma is encoded in the viscera. The book features van der Kolks work with capital-T trauma sufferers  combat veterans, rape victims, people severely abused in childhood  yet it seems to have caught on among readers whose trauma is lowercase and more universal: the failings of parents, the emotional batterings, the fears and feelings of isolation that life inevitably brings. In explaining our psychological troubles, van der Kolk highlights the role of what can loosely be labeled the primal regions of the brain, along with that of the body. Elaborate human responses are linked to underlying, animalistic fight-or-flight instincts. The book has a certain kind of romantic appeal; it restores us to the natural world, to the animal kingdom.

But while van der Kolks readership is vast, he is probably not the most essential figure in the somatic therapy movement. Peter Levine is the founder of Somatic Experiencing International, a training institute that, along with its affiliates, has graduated tens of thousands of practitioners, who have come from fields as diverse as addiction treatment, acupuncture and the clergy, as well as traditional therapy. Levine, who has doctorates in medical biophysics and psychology, began to develop S.E. in the late 1960s, as he pursued his biophysics Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, and as he taught at the Esalen Institute, a New Age retreat center in Big Sur. (Pat Ogden, who started out as a yoga and dance teacher, and whose sensorimotor psychotherapy technique is similar to Levines approach, also has claim to the movements formative ideas. And beyond modern credit for its concepts, somatic therapy owes a debt to timeless practices like mindfulness and meditation.) Each year, rising numbers of students complete S.E.s program. Based on first-quarter figures for this year, annual applicants for training have more than doubled since 2020. Van der Kolks best-seller-dom and Levines legion of new practitioners speak to a current yearning for the holistic.
Unfortunately, my inner life didnt match my parents steeliness. I was a moody kid, prone to melancholic jags. My mom loves to clown me about how, at 6 years old, I would put on an old Don McLean LP of hers  the American Pie album  and set the needle down on Vincent, McLeans mournful paean to Vincent van Goghs volatility. Sitting in a chair next to the record player, Id play the song over and over and over, listening tearfully. When my favorite TV characters died, Id mourn them, staying in my feelings for days at a time. When I became a teenager, I spent flat, sunny L.A. days listening to Radiohead, trying to conjure a vibe that felt closer to my baseline emotional state. Culture became a prosthesis, a way to manage and explore my psychology. If I had no idea how to develop an intimate relationship with myself, art was an acceptable way to understand feeling.

By the time I was an adult, this dissonance between how I was and how I wanted to be  or how I thought I should be  weighed on me. Things came to a head in 2015. Mentally and emotionally exhausted after passing my qualifying exams during graduate studies at Cal Berkeley, I returned all my books to the campus library and lay down in bed for a week. I ate Trader Joes cookies and binged Arrested Development before decamping back home to Los Angeles, where I crawled into bed and ate Ben & Jerrys while rewatching Mad Men for a few weeks more. What at first felt like luxuriating in success started to feel like misery, a desperation I was confused and embarrassed by. Something about the process of studying for the exams had lowered a screen between myself and the world. The obsessive, analytic frame that had been a boon in one part of my life became a burden in every other regard. It was like having a vindictive second head on my shoulder, a bummer party guest whispering clever skepticism into my ear. The anxiety over failure that characterized my year of preparation thickened instead of dissipating.

I returned to Berkeley in the fall, my tongue between my teeth, worried about what admitting my difficulties might mean for academic progress. It turned out that a few of my friends  white women, mostly  had been having similar struggles and begun making use of university-approved therapists. When they told me about how they confided in these strangers, I politely listened, and even contemplated seeking out my own therapist. But I couldnt quite shake my old reservations. I spent my days sitting in classrooms, reading in the California sun, taking notes in cafes. What did somebody like me need therapy for?

As the fall wore on, though, ballooning distress compelled me to try. When I finally sat down with a handful of therapists, I was put off by what they asked me to explore: my childhood, my parents, my feelings  oh, God. Though I probably intuited that I needed a guide to help me explore my interior life, what I wanted was someone to help me troubleshoot what I interpreted as a malfunctioning brain, not plumb emotional depths that had been heretofore blocked. Eventually I met a therapist who practiced cognitive behavioral therapy, an approach whose orientation toward problem-solving suited me. C.B.T. gave me language and strategies that were comfortable, a tool kit for conquering the knotty thicket of my emotions.

A few months into working with this therapist, I went back home and nervously told my family about my decision and what had precipitated it. Id learned to register, name and acknowledge my feelings as a way of managing them rather than being overwhelmed. Immediately I recognized the sheer fear I felt in trying to communicate all this to my brother and parents. The crestfallen look on my mothers face made me regret, briefly, telling them at all. Had she done something wrong as a parent? she asked me. As if I were undergoing treatment for an illness, she wondered how long Id see my therapist. Sadness sneaked up on me as I tried to describe my emotional life to people who I knew loved me but with whom I communicated through a haze of mutual discomfort.
From the outset, the director, Maksym Nakonechnyi, establishes a cinematic language that incorporates footage from various sources: livestream feeds, aerial drone video, broadcast news B-roll. Perhaps the films most audacious choice is to use the texture of these formats  their lags, distortion and pixelation  when conveying Lilias daily torrent of post-traumatic stress. The effect is jarring, and feels less like a window into her experience than a brash camera trick.

But Butterfly Vision distinguishes itself in its setting. The film was made before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, and its story captures an early wartime phase when attitudes toward the conflict were divided. In one scene, Lilia boards a bus and claims exemption from the fare because of her status as a veteran. Vexed and disapproving, the driver and passengers raise a ruckus until she disembarks. The film might aim to deliver an aesthetic and emotional jolt, but it is the mundane, interpersonal moments that linger.

Butterfly Vision

Not rated. In Ukrainian, English and Russian, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 47 minutes. Watch on Mubi.
Presumably Johnny Depp, a heat-seeking target for the armies of paparazzi amassed here, helps explain the movies presence. Whatever the case, on Tuesday, some 3,000 festivalgoers  and audiences who saw it simultaneously in cinemas across France  trooped into theaters to watch this bore. Directed by Maiwenn, who also stars, the movie tracks its title character from her pastoral rural childhood to her cosseted, apparently fabulous adulthood as a celebrated Parisian courtesan, fame that eventually led her directly into the bespoke bed of Louis XV.

The king is played by a powdered and bewigged Depp, who looks suitably indolent, though perhaps because hes underused. It isnt much of a part. The king is mainly there to look gaga at Jeanne, which he does a great deal, though its a tough call whether Louis lavishes as much attention on Jeanne as Maiwenn does. Among all the close-ups of Jeanne giggling, Maiwenn folds in some palace intrigue and the briefest nod at the terror to come. Yet while Maiwenn draws attention to her lovers grandson, the future, ill-fated Louis XVI, his main role is to serve as an ally to Jeanne in the viperous Versailles court.

That most of the vipers are women is an index of the movies narrow horizons and parochial attitudes. It seeks to celebrate Jeanne, portraying her as a joyously emancipated woman, never mind that her liberation is entirely contingent on pleasuring men. She wears pants, she loves sex, shes kind to the Black child Louis gives her as a gift! Yet while most everyone at court frowns upon Jeanne, Maiwenn primarily focuses on the torments that the court ladies visit on her, suggesting that the big problem at Versailles in the 18th century was the bitter jealousy of spoiled and uptight women.

Jeanne du Barry ends before the guillotine makes an appearance, unfortunately. It was an exasperating way to start this years festival given how hard women have fought to be taken seriously here. Theres some comfort that Jeanne isnt contending for the Palme dOr, which would be an embarrassment, but is being presented out of competition. Other titles out of the running include two of the hottest tickets here: Martin Scorseses Killers of the Flower Moon and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, directed by James Mangold. (Ill have more to say about both after their premieres.)
Unfolding over one fraught night, Sanctuary dances on the border between fantasy and reality. Hal, a soft-shell weakling whos nonetheless steeled by entitlement, wants to begin his new life as a person who wins. As such, he feels the services of a sex worker are surplus to requirements; and as he moves to end his relationship with Rebecca, his actions  providing a lavish dinner and the gift of an expensive watch  insultingly mimic the familiar tropes of the retirement ceremony. Hes about to find out, though, that this employee will not be pensioned off so easily.

Both actors are excellent, but Qualley is chameleonic in a role that requires her to slide seamlessly from playful to stern, cunning to confrontational, penitent to downright scary. At times, as when Hal erupts with unexpected violence, her face freezes and we can almost see her contriving ways to regain control of a suddenly dangerous situation. If shes to succeed, shell need more than a talent for debasement and humiliation.

Sexual but not sexy, Sanctuary is fantastically dynamic and emphatically theatrical. The ending feels too smoothly settled, but it at least prods Hal and Rebecca to answer the films central question: Where does role-playing end and real life begin?

Sanctuary

Rated R for nasty talk and naughty behavior. Running time: 1 hour 36 minutes. In theaters.
Police procedurals dont usually start by saying that the crime at hand will not be solved. But Dominik Molls The Night of the 12th does just that, and then watches a French investigator labor away at a murder case before reluctantly abandoning it. This is a refreshingly grounded, deceptively plain picture of crime-fighting as a grind of false leads, workplace fatigue and no closure.

Walking home late from a party, Clara, a joyful teenager (Lula Cotton Frapier), is doused in fuel by a hooded stranger and set on fire. Yohan (Bastien Bouillon), an extremely square new leader of a judicial police unit, questions a series of sketchy and dismissive guys that Clara may have been involved with, turning up no definitive answers. Claras friend offers one answer that neatly sums up the misogyny of being subject to such random brutality: it was because she was a girl.

Likely suspects emerge, then fall away; phone call audio is analyzed, to no avail. After a few years, a judge takes interest in the cold case, funding new surveillance. But even though the inexpressive Yohan does seem like one of the good guys, hes going in circles, and cant even help his burned-out partner, Marceau (Bouli Lanners).

Despite all the best intentions, cracking a case just doesnt happen sometimes, and the movie (based on a nonfiction book by Pauline Guena) matter-of-factly avoids the magical thinking weve absorbed from decades of macho crime-fighting yarns. Instead, its a matter of coping with long-term, slow-motion frustrations and failure  something sadly closer to a lot of common experience than save-the-day heroism.

The Night of the 12th

Not rated. In French with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 55 minutes. In theaters.
The title of Kavich Neangs richly observed feature, White Building, is, first of all, an exaggeration: The dilapidated apartment bloc it describes is so chipped and black with soot that its barely white; indeed, it is so falling apart that its barely a building.

But for Samnang (Piseth Chhun), the young protagonist of this sensitive and largely autobiographical coming-of-age portrayal, it is home, as the real-life White Building it is based on was for Neang.

Located in central Phnom Penh, the building is an apt symbol of the often excruciating changes Cambodia has endured over the last 60 years. It was built in the 1960s to house civil servants, then emptied during the Khmer Rouges forced relocations of the 1970s. In the 80s, it became home to working class people like Samnangs diabetic father (Sithan Hout), who, like Neangs, is a sculptor. Now its inhabitants are being pushed to take a lousy deal so it can be demolished for new development, in a city they can no longer afford.
He was very definite about his philosophy for the layouts of the apartments and how he would have the separation of the public and private spaces, said Harriet Greisser, a member of the buildings co-op board, who has lived in the building since 1987. It was the flow of the apartments. He really believed that they should have the integrity of a home.

Candela was seven years out of Columbia University when he got the commission for the Clayton, as 215 West 92nd is named. He was said to have put a velvet rope around his drafting table when he was a student to keep others from peeking at his designs and poaching them. He really was a genius, the journalist Michael Gross quoted Candelas granddaughter Jackie as saying. He was very arrogant and knew his talents.

The architectural historian Andrew Alpern wrote that the layouts in the Clayton were a testament to Candelas early ability to balance effectively the often-conflicting requirements of the developer, the citys building regulations and the ultimate tenant. Candela evidently satisfied his client, Alpern added, since he received another commission from one of the two developers almost immediately.

And by the end of 1922 he had six more, including one for his first building on the Upper East Side, at 1105 Park Avenue. Alpern wrote that it was superficially similar to the Clayton on the outside, but the very different lobby and interior planning showed how adaptable Candela could be.

Alpern described the Clayton as stolid. It is also solid. Linda Radano, who lives on the second floor and retired recently as a physician assistant, said that she did telehealth sessions in one room while her husband, David Shuler, a choral conductor, worked in another room where there is a Chickering spinet piano. It is incredibly quiet here, she said. The walls are so thick.
It would seem impossible to forget or minimize the Cultural Revolution in China, which lasted from 1966 to 1976, resulted in an estimated 1.6 million to two million deaths and scarred a generation and its descendants. The movement, which under Mao Zedongs leadership sought to purge Chinese society of all remaining non-Communist elements, upended nearly every hallowed institution and custom. Teachers and schools long held in esteem were denounced. Books were burned and banned, museums ransacked, private art collections destroyed. Intellectuals were tortured.

But in China, a country where information is often suppressed and history is constantly rewritten  witness recent government censorship of Covid research and the obscuring of Hong Kongs British colonial past in new school textbooks  the memory of the Cultural Revolution risks being forgotten, sanitized and abused, to the detriment of the nations future.

The Chinese government has never been particularly eager to preserve the memory of that sordid decade. When I spent six weeks traveling in China in 1994  a slightly more open time in the country  I encountered few public acknowledgments of the Cultural Revolution. Museum placards and catalogs often simply skipped a decade in their timelines or provided brief references in the passive voice along the lines of historical events that took place.

But in her new book, Red Memory: The Afterlives of Chinas Cultural Revolution, the journalist Tania Branigan notes that under Xi Jinping, Chinas top leader, efforts to suppress this history have intensified  with troubling implications for the political health of the country at a time when it looms larger than ever on the world stage. When youve had a collective trauma, you really need a collective response, she told me recently. I can see why the Communist Party wants to avoid the rancor and bitterness, but when you dont have that kind of acknowledgment, you can move on  but you cant really recover.
Ever since World War II ended, Japan has been passing the buck.

Sheltered by the postwar U.S. security alliance, Japan provided bases for American forces but kept its own military spending remarkably low for a country of its size and wealth, resisting American urging to share more of the burden.

China makes that no longer tenable. Its ambitions and expanding global influence threaten Japanese territory and an international order  based on democracy, free trade and respect for human rights  in which Japan plays a leading role.

Much is made of U.S. cultural and historical ties to Europe. But Japan is the linchpin of todays paramount geopolitical competition  Chinas push for regional dominance of East Asia  and it is Americas most essential ally. As leaders of Group of 7 countries meet in Hiroshima this week with China high on the agenda, Japan and its allies must recognize that Japan is critical to successfully managing the Chinese challenge and needs to finally get off the sidelines.

The Cold War centered on a geopolitical competition for the dominance of Europe. The United States and NATO mobilized massive military power to deter an invasion of West Germany by the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies. By contrast, Japan stayed in the background. Its postwar Constitution  written primarily by U.S. occupation officials  forbade maintaining land, sea and air forces. This suited leaders in Tokyo who sought to avoid divisive political debates about military spending (which was capped at 1 percent of G.D.P. for decades), and a Japanese public still traumatized by defeat in World War II. It also reassured Asian nations that Japan would not again embark on overseas aggression.
The G7 countries will continue to pursue a policy of tightening the sanctions regime against Russia and supporting Ukraine, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on the eve of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

"I intend to call on Russia to withdraw all troops and equipment from Ukraine immediately and without conditions, and I will confirm that the G7 will continue to tighten sanctions against Russia and provide strong support to Ukraine," the prime minister said in an article for The Globe and Mail.

In his opinion, the situation around Ukraine is not a European, but a global problem, and that unilateral changes in the status quo by force are unacceptable.

According to the prime minister, the agenda of the summit will include the situation in the Indo-Pacific region, including around China and North Korea, economic stability and security, nuclear disarmament and maintenance of the nuclear non-proliferation regime, food and energy security, climate change and world health.

On Wednesday, the U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the fight against Moscow's circumvention of anti-Russian sanctions will be one of the topics of discussion at the G7 summit in Hiroshima. "The U.S. will have a package of sanctions associated with the G-7 statement that will center on this enforcement issue," Sullivan said.

The G7 summit will be held in Hiroshima on May 19-21.
To the Editor:

Re I Got My Name From Connie Chung. So Did They, by Connie Wang (Opinion guest essay, May 14), about the many Asian women named after the TV journalist:

It feels strange to know that there are so many Asian Connies out there, all close in age range in our 30s and 40s. But its a good strange feeling. It feels as if I have serendipitously entered a vast sisterhood, where the profound bond among us was formed by the influence of one woman on our mothers over 30 years ago.

In my family, watching Connie Chung host CBS Evening News in the early 90s was a family event. There were barely any Asian faces on TV at the time, let alone on a major news program. Connie Chung stood out in every way.

You cant be what you cant see. When Ms. Chung came on the screen, my mom saw what was possible for the next generation right in front of her, far from the sights of Asian women working in menial jobs that defined my moms day-to-day life as a new immigrant.

So when I suggested Connie as my English name, my mother liked it right away. Keep it. Its good, its just like Connie Chung, she would say. With that choice of a name, my mom had poured all her hopes for me. Little did I know then that across the country people were being named Connie for that very same reason.
KYIV, Ukraine  This week, I was jolted awake by an air raid siren for the first time since my service in Iraq just over a decade ago. It was roughly 3 a.m. on Monday night, and I was sleeping soundly here in Ukraines capital. Im visiting with a group organized by the Renew Democracy Initiative, a pro-democracy organization founded by the Russian dissident (and chess grandmaster) Garry Kasparov, and our small band was of course warned this was likely to happen. Missile and drone attacks are common in Kyiv. But this night was different. Ukrainian officials called it exceptional.

The inbound missiles included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, among the most vaunted weapons in the Russian arsenal. Last August, the Russian defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, said the weapons were unstoppable, impossible to detect or intercept.

Well, they were detected and intercepted. I watched (and heard) it happen. The skies lit up over Kyiv as the Ukrainians launched air defenses, including what appeared to be American-made Patriot missiles. At the end of the exchange, Ukrainian and American officials claimed that Ukrainian air defenses intercepted all six of the hypersonic missiles launched by Russia, and in a meeting on Thursday, the Ukrainian defense minister Oleksii Reznikov specifically attributed the Kinzhal kills to Patriot missiles. A Patriot battery was damaged, but reportedly still operational. And yet again Russian military capabilities had proven to be exaggerated. Not toothless, certainly  it was an anxious night  but hardly invincible.

I share this story for multiple reasons. First, it highlights a fundamental reality of this conflict: Russia has been waging an unrestricted, gloves-off military campaign against Ukraine since the opening moments of the war, while the United States has continued to constrain Ukraines response. For example, while Russia attacks civilian targets across the length and breadth of Ukraine with long-range missiles and drones, weve denied Ukraine the use of the long-range (i.e., effective to about 190 miles) Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, which could be used to strike military targets deep in Crimea or across the Russian border.
In 2016, the Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson initiated the Loewe Craft Prize, an open call competition for artisans and makers to submit one-of-a-kind works in the applied arts, awarding 50,000 euros to its winner. To announce the recipient of this years prize, the Spanish fashion houses Loewe Foundation hosted a ceremony at the Noguchi Museum in Long Island City, Queens, on May 16. The jury consisted of experts in the field of design, including the ceramist Magdalene Odundo; Abraham Thomas, the curator of modern architecture, design and decorative arts at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; and last years winner, the fiber artist Dahye Jeong.

The panel narrowed its selection to 30 works representing artists from 16 countries. Among them: Dominique Zinkpe from Benin submitted an assemblage of wooden statuettes carved from an old canoe; Giorgi Danibegashvili from Georgia made a sculpture out of paper and silk fibers; and Maina Devi from India used an ancient Rajasthani carpet-making technique employing over 200,000 asymmetrical Persian knots to make a sheeps wool-and-bamboo-silk rug, which, said Thomas, looked like a digitally printed textile. Of the three works by artists from the United States, one was a basket made by the New York City- and Tucson-based studio Aranda/Lasch in collaboration with Terrol Dew Johnson, a member of the Tohono Oodham Nation, who used materials like bear grass, yucca and creosote bush gathered from Arizonas Sonoran Desert. All the entrants employed traditional techniques while making work that appears wholly contemporary. Ultimately, the top prize went to the Japanese artist Eriko Inazaki, whose Metanoia sculpture consists of hundreds of tiny ceramic pieces affixed to a clay core, creating, according to the shows organizers, a sense of bursting, radiant energy across the works surface, evoking a symphony. All 30 pieces will be on view in Isamu Noguchis studio  marking the first time that the space has been opened for a public exhibition  until June 18. craftprize.loewe.com.

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As a race to lead A.I. heats up across Silicon Valley, Meta is standing out from its rivals by taking a different approach to the technology. Driven by its founder and chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta believes that the smartest thing to do is share its underlying A.I. engines as a way to spread its influence and ultimately move faster toward the future.

Its actions contrast with those of Google and OpenAI, the two companies leading the new A.I. arms race. Worried that A.I. tools like chatbots will be used to spread disinformation, hate speech and other toxic content, those companies are becoming increasingly secretive about the methods and software that underpin their A.I. products.

Google, OpenAI and others have been critical of Meta, saying an unfettered open-source approach is dangerous. A.I.s rapid rise in recent months has raised alarm bells about the technologys risks, including how it could upend the job market if it is not properly deployed. And within days of LLaMAs release, the system leaked onto 4chan, the online message board known for spreading false and misleading information.

We want to think more carefully about giving away details or open sourcing code of A.I. technology, said Zoubin Ghahramani, a Google vice president of research who helps oversee A.I. work. Where can that lead to misuse?

Some within Google have also wondered if open-sourcing A.I. technology may pose a competitive threat. In a memo this month, which was leaked on the online publication Semianalysis.com, a Google engineer warned colleagues that the rise of open-source software like LLaMA could cause Google and OpenAI to lose their lead in A.I.
Twitter on Thursday sent a letter to Satya Nadella, Microsofts chief executive, accusing the tech giant of improperly using the social media companys data.

In the letter, which was reviewed by The New York Times, Twitter said Microsoft had violated an agreement over its data and had declined to pay for that usage. In some cases, the letter said, Microsoft had used more Twitter data than it was supposed to. Microsoft also shared the Twitter data with government agencies without permission, the letter said.

Microsoft may have been in violation of multiple provisions of the agreement for an extended period of time, Alex Spiro, the personal lawyer for Elon Musk, who owns Twitter, wrote in the letter to Mr. Nadella.

The letter may be a prelude to Twitter trying to charge Microsoft for its data. Mr. Musk, who bought Twitter last year for $44 billion, has said that it is urgent for the company to make money and that it is near bankruptcy. Twitter has since introduced new subscription products and made other moves to gain more revenue. In March, the company said it would charge more for developers to gain access to its stream of tweets.
Air Force officials caught Airman Jack Teixeira taking notes and conducting deep-dive searches for classified material months before he was charged with leaking a vast trove of government secrets, but did not remove him from his job, according to a Justice Department filing on Wednesday.

On two occasions in September and October 2022, Airman Teixeiras superiors in the Massachusetts Air National Guard admonished him after reports that he had taken concerning actions while handling classified information. Those included stuffing a note into his pocket after reviewing secret information inside his unit, according to a court filing ahead of a hearing before a federal magistrate judge in Worcester, Mass., on Friday to determine whether he should be released on bail.

Airman Teixeira  who until March shared secrets with scores of online friends from around the world on Discord, a social media platform popular with gamers  was instructed to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, lawyers with the departments national security division wrote in an 11-page memo arguing for his indefinite detention.

The airmans superiors also ordered him to cease and desist on any deep dives into classified intelligence information, although it is not clear how, or if, they enforced that directive.
A year ago, Deborah Lipstadt, newly confirmed as the U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, attended a White House reception and reintroduced herself to President Biden as he passed by.

I know who you are, Dr. Lipstadt recalled the president telling her. And you have a big job.

Mr. Biden was right, but for reasons neither of them fully imagined.

Dr. Lipstadt, whose role at the State Department for the first time carries the rank of ambassador, leads efforts to advance U.S. foreign policy to counter antisemitism throughout the world, according to her job description. But as she spreads a message of tolerance across Europe and the Middle East, an alarming rise of antisemitic attacks and rhetoric at home in the United States has changed her approach to the job.

My predecessors could go to countries and say, You have a problem, and we take this seriously, and you should take it seriously. I cant do that. I have to go and say, We have a problem.
The attack on two congressional aides this week at the Fairfax, Va., office of Representative Gerald E. Connolly has prompted members of Congress and their staffs to consider additional safety measures in their workplaces outside of Washington.

On Monday, two staff aides were injured and subsequently hospitalized after a bat-wielding man entered Mr. Connollys district office asking for the congressman and then went on a rampage. According to Mr. Connolly, one of his senior aides was hit in the head, and an intern in her first day on the job was hit in the side.

According to an affidavit, the attacker shouted, Im going to kill you and Youre going to die as he hit one staff member, and later, a witness overheard him shouting Gerry and that he wanted to talk.

It was the latest incident of violence targeting political figures to instill fear on Capitol Hill. Aides throughout the institution were reviewing their emergency plans and discussing possible changes to office policies, including cutting down on face-to-face interactions with people who drop in to district offices.
When she arrived at the Capitol last week after a more than two-month absence recovering from shingles, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, 89, appeared shockingly diminished.

Using a wheelchair, with the left side of her face frozen and one eye nearly shut, she seemed disoriented as an aide steered her through the marble corridors of the Senate, complaining audibly that something was stuck in her eye.

Ms. Feinsteins frail appearance was a result of several complications after she was hospitalized for shingles in February, some of which she has not publicly disclosed. The shingles spread to her face and neck, causing vision and balance impairments and facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome. The virus also brought on a previously unreported case of encephalitis, a rare but potentially debilitating complication of shingles that a spokesman confirmed on Thursday after The New York Times first revealed it, saying that the condition had resolved itself in March.

Characterized by swelling of the brain, post-shingles encephalitis can leave patients with lasting memory or language problems, sleep disorders, bouts of confusion, mood disorders, headaches and difficulties walking. Older patients tend to have the most trouble recovering. And even before this latest illness, Ms. Feinstein had already suffered substantial memory issues that had raised questions about her mental capacity.
Mark Gietzen, who gained prominence as one of the nations most zealous grass-roots opponents of abortion, died on Tuesday. He was 69.

The Kansas Republican Party announced his death. The Wichita Eagle reported that Mr. Gietzen died when his Cessna 172 crashed a few miles northeast of Chambers, Neb. The Holt County Sheriffs Office identified Mr. Gietzen as the pilot and said no one else was on the plane, the newspaper said.

Last August, in what would turn out to be his final large-scale political initiative, Mr. Gietzen (pronounced GEET-zin) spent nearly $120,000 to finance a recount of the decisive vote in Kansas to preserve abortion rights. That month, Mr. Gietzen told The Eagle that the expenditure would make it harder for him to renovate his Cessna, which he said he had been working on for 15 years.

The recount did not change the outcome.

Mr. Gietzen had been prominent in Kansas politics since the so-called Summer of Mercy in 1991, when thousands of people converged in Wichita to block access to abortion clinics, risking arrest.
NATO Defense Ministers will discuss the issue of a possible transfer of Western fighter jets to Ukraine at a meeting in June, which will precede the Alliance summit, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in an interview with Spiegel.

Commenting on the issue of a possible transfer of Western fighter jets to Ukraine, Stoltenberg said the supply of weapons developed as the war progressed, the European Pravda publication said.

"Initially, light anti-tank weapons were important. Then there were howitzers and anti-aircraft guns, and then tanks," he said.

"Some countries, such as Poland and Slovakia, have already delivered combat aircraft, albeit old Soviet-style MG-29s. We are constantly discussing whether modern Western fighters are needed, both in NATO and with Ukraine. I expect that this topic will also be discussed at a meeting of NATO defence ministers in June," the Secretary General said.

However, according to him, no less important than the supply of weapons platforms is ensuring their functioning. "This involves a huge amount of ammunition and spare parts, as well as round-the-clock maintenance," Stoltenberg said.
The Supreme Court handed twin victories to technology platforms on Thursday by declining in two cases to hold them liable for content posted by their users.

In a case involving Google, the court for now rejected efforts to limit the sweep of the law that frees the platforms from liability for user content, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

In a separate case involving Twitter, the court ruled unanimously that another law allowing suits for aiding terrorism did not apply to the ordinary activities of social media companies.

The rulings did not definitively resolve the question of what responsibility platforms should have for the content posted on and recommended by their sites, an issue that has grown increasingly pressing as social media has become ubiquitous in modern life. But the decision by the court to pass for now on clarifying the breadth of Section 230, which dates to 1996, was cheered by the technology industry, which has long portrayed the law as integral to the development of the internet.
Over 25 years as an F.B.I. agent, Timothy R. Thibault reeled in big names while investigating public corruption, sending two Democratic congressmen to prison and overseeing sensitive inquiries into the Clinton Foundation and the former governor of Virginia, Terry McAuliffe, another Democrat.

But now as Republicans and allies of former President Donald J. Trump work to undermine federal investigations into the former president, they have trained their sights on the little-known Mr. Thibault, who played a role in opening the Justice Departments criminal inquiry into Mr. Trumps efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss. In their casting, Mr. Thibault, who retired last year, is the face of bias and misconduct at the bureau.

Powerful Republican lawmakers, including Representative Jim Jordan and Senator Charles R. Grassley, demanded that Mr. Thibault testify before their committees. Citing an anonymous G.O.P. official, Mr. Jordans panel in a news release last year denounced Mr. Thibault as public enemy No. 1.

But his story is more complicated than Republicans have made it out to be. As an investigator working on high-profile public corruption cases and international terrorism, he was well regarded, eventually rising to one of the most senior positions in the bureaus Washington field office and winning internal awards for his professionalism.
These funds could have been used for extra supplies and weapons for the upcoming counteroffensive, instead of rationing funds to last for the remainder of the fiscal year, Representatives Michael McCaul of Texas, the chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, and Mike D. Rogers of Alabama, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said in a joint statement.

They called on the administration to make up for this precious lost time by sending long-range missile and cluster munitions to Ukraine, which it has resisted doing.

Administration officials said their mistake was one of improper valuation, explaining that they had been calculating the price of each item based on how much it would cost to replace it with new equipment, instead of its sale value, which is lower. They plan to make the same change in an assessment of their remaining authority to send Taiwan weapons from existing Pentagon stocks, according to administration and congressional officials.

This overvaluation has not constrained our support to Ukraine nor impacted our ability to flow capabilities to the battlefield, Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said in a statement.

Congressional staff members expressed incredulity that it had taken the administration 15 months of war to identify such a basic and yet pivotal accounting mistake. Some said they thought that the revision might be a way for officials to maintain supplies at a time when available funds for Ukraine were in danger of running out.
NAIROBI, Kenya  The fighting that erupted in Sudans capital one month ago surprised few, the culmination of soaring tensions between rival military leaders. But what has shocked many is the scale and ferocity of the war engulfing Africas third-largest country, a conflict that has killed about 1,000 people and prompted one million more to flee their homes.

It could soon get much worse.

As American-led efforts to broker a cease-fire have floundered in recent days, Sudan experts, including former government officials and Western diplomats, have taken to the drawing board to imagine the conflicts trajectory and how bad it may become. In interviews, they agreed on one thing: The immediate outlook is bleak.

We thought through several scenarios, said one senior European diplomat who, like others working to broker a peaceful solution, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. None of them ends well.

The immediate challenge is that the warring factions  Sudans military, led by Gen. Abdul Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan  still believe that a military victory is possible, regardless of the cost.
For more than two weeks, search-and-rescue teams in Colombia have scoured the Amazon rainforest for four children who were aboard a plane that crashed on May 1. The bodies of the three adults on board were found in the wreckage, but there was no sign of the children.

Then, on Wednesday night, Colombias president, Gustavo Petro, posted on Twitter what appeared to be remarkable news: The countrys armed forces had found the four children, the oldest of whom is 13 and the youngest a baby, alive. A joy for our country, he said.

But he may have spoken too soon. Quickly, local news reports cited military sources that said the armed forces had not made contact with the children, and the nations child-welfare agency, the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare, known by its Spanish initials I.C.B.F., then confirmed that in a statement.

Information was received from the territory assuring contact was made with the four boys and girls, the agency said late Wednesday. However, the military forces have not yet been able to establish official contact due to adverse weather conditions and difficult terrain.
Gen. Gary Prado Salmon, who as a Bolivian Army captain led the operation that captured the Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara, a critical ally of Fidel Castros in the Cuban revolution, in 1967, died on May 6 in a hospital in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. He was 84.

His son Gary Prado Arauz announced the death on Facebook but did not give a cause.

After leaving Cuba in 1965, Mr. Guevara tried and failed to stoke a Communist revolutionary movement in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. He and other guerrillas headed to Bolivia the next year, hoping to overthrow the government of President Rene Barrientos Ortuno, a general who had seized control of the country in a coup.

Captain Prado and his men  part of a C.I.A.-backed special forces unit  had been hunting the guerrillas for months when he received a tip from a farmer, an old friend from school, who said he had seen them in a deep ravine near the small village of La Higuera.

At about 1 p.m. on Oct. 8, 1967, Captain Prado heard shouting from the ravine: His soldiers had captured two guerrillas.
Chinas leader, Xi Jinping, kicked off a meeting on Thursday that the country is heralding as a historic milestone, rolling out the red carpet for the leaders of five Central Asian countries that are critical to Chinas regional ambitions.

The inaugural China-Central Asia gathering is part of Chinas broader aim to strengthen economic and political partnerships with like-minded countries, to counter what it sees as a U.S.-dominated world order that is trying to contain and suppress China.

Notably, Mr. Xis event was scheduled on the eve of the annual Group of 7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, which begins Friday and will be attended by leaders of the worlds wealthiest large democracies, including President Biden. A major topic for the G7 leaders will be how to address what the United States describes as Chinas growing assertiveness.

Mr. Xi has sought to deepen Chinas influence in Central Asia, part of his efforts to burnish his image as a global statesman. China greeted the leaders of five former Soviet republics  Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan  on the tarmac with a huge crowd of dancers and jumping children chanting: Welcome, welcome! Warmly welcome!
It is far from clear that this group of leaders  the G7 also includes Germany, Britain, France, Canada and Italy  can sustain a conversation on a technology that appeared to burst on the scene so quickly, even if it was years in the making. Past efforts to get the group to take up far more straightforward cybersecurity issues usually descended into platitudes about public-private partnerships, and there has never been serious discussion of rules to guide the use of offensive cyberweapons.

American officials say that in the case of chatbots, even a vague foundational discussion may help in establishing some shared principles: that the corporations that bring products using the large-language models will be primarily responsible for their safety, and that there must be transparency rules that make it clear what kind of data each system was trained on. That will enable lower-level aides to discuss details of what those first regulations would look like, the officials said.

But as the G7 leaders convene starting on Friday, it will be Ukraine that will dominate the conversation, at a critical moment for Mr. Zelensky, for Ukraine and for the core Western democracies now seized with an urgent mission of bringing about what Mr. Biden calls the strategic defeat of Russia in Ukraine.

Mr. Biden often says that Russia is already defeated. But the fear permeating the seven large democracies here is that unless the counteroffensive proves highly successful, Ukraine will settle into a bloody, frozen conflict in which the best hope would be an armistice, reminiscent of the one that brought a halt to fighting on the Korean Peninsula 70 years ago this summer.
Four days after Cyclone Mocha made landfall in Myanmar, killing hundreds and devastating communities in its path, aid groups seeking to deliver humanitarian assistance remained stymied by the junta on Thursday as survivors faced growing threats of hunger and illness.

Pierre Peron, a spokesman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said relief agencies were ready to deliver food, medicine and other much-needed supplies, but were awaiting the military regimes approval.

Aid groups fear that the death toll, estimated by some at more than 450, will only rise as victims of the cyclone face food shortages, disease, a lack of clean water and the loss of their homes. Survivors also face the threat of unexploded land mines that may have moved during the flooding. An estimated 5.4 million people in Myanmar were affected by the storm.

Without swift aid, humanitarian experts fear that the number of deaths could climb, as was the case after Cyclone Nargis, the catastrophic 2008 cyclone that struck Myanmar farther to the east and killed more than 135,000. The military government at the time also was criticized for its slow response.
Singapore on Wednesday hanged a man for trafficking less than 3.5 pounds of marijuana, its second execution in three weeks for a crime that carries a much lighter sentence in most of the rest of the world.

Capital punishment is part of Singapores comprehensive harm prevention strategy which targets both drug demand and supply, the countrys Central Narcotics Bureau said in a statement confirming the execution. It gave the mans age, 36, but did not identify him by name, as requested by his family, or detail his offense.

But court documents show that Muhammad Faizal Bin Mohd Shariff had been convicted and sentenced to death in 2019 for possessing about 1.6 kilograms, or 3.4 pounds, of cannabis. Last month, Singapore hanged a man who was convicted of conspiring to traffic about two pounds of cannabis.

Human rights groups condemned both punishments as grossly excessive, but Singapore has long taken a harsh stance toward drugs, showing little flexibility.
Attorney involved in bribery case of Supreme Court ex-head taken into custody with UAH 80 mln alternative bail

The High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) ruled that a preventive measure be imposed on the person involved in the case of bribery of the former head of the Supreme Court Vsevolod Kniazev, attorney-at-law Oleh Horetsky, in the form of detention with an alternative bail of UAH 80 million, HACC told Interfax-Ukraine.

"The attorney-at-law was chosen a preventive measure in the form of detention with an alternative bail of UAH 80 million," the court said.

According to the Anti-Corruption Action Center, Horetsky was taken into custody until July 13. If the bail is paid, he will be required to comply with a number of obligations, including not communicating with witnesses, surrendering passports and wearing an electronic bracelet.

The Anti-Corruption Action Center also said HACC judge Lesia Fedorak, by her decision, partially sustained the petition of NABU and SAPO. The prosecutor asked for Horetsky to be taken into custody with a bail of UAH 100 million.

A preventive measure against Kniazev himself has not yet been chosen.

As reported, on May 16, the head of the SAPO notified the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and an attorney-at-law of suspicion that they had received $2.7 million in improper benefits. The actions of these persons are qualified under Part 4 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

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With no end to the war in sight, the F-16 fighter jet has become the latest advanced weapon that Ukraine and some of its backers say it needs to stave off Russia  both in the current conflict and for years to come.

Here is a look at the F-16, why Ukraine wants it and why the Biden administration has been hesitant to supply it.

What is the F-16?

First flown in 1976, the F-16 Fighting Falcon is a supersonic fighter jet used by militaries in 25 countries for air-to-air combat and air-to-ground strikes. It has flown in American conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo, the Persian Gulf and on homeland defense missions in U.S. airspace.

The F-16 is built by the American defense contractor Lockheed Martin and manufacturers in Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway  four countries that a senior Ukrainian official says have quietly signaled they are willing to transfer some of their F-16s to Kyiv.
When Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, decamped from Britain for the United States in 2020, he portrayed it as an act of survival against a relentlessly intrusive British press. On Tuesday, after a chaotic encounter with photographers in New York City, Harry found the media glare can be just as intense in his adopted home.

With details continuing to filter out about what exactly happened to Harry, Meghan and her mother, Doria Ragland, as photographers pursued them in Midtown Manhattan, the episode underscored a basic paradox in the lives of this celebrity couple: they plead for privacy, but also seek publicity, with a Netflix documentary, a tell-all memoir by Harry and public appearances that will inevitably draw cameras.

The frenzy in New York is a reminder of the grievances that Harry has held for decades against the British press, which remains the primary market for paparazzi shots of him and Meghan. In 1997, his mother, Princess Diana, died in a car crash in Paris while fleeing photographers; Harry has blamed them for her death and expressed fears that history could repeat itself with his wife and family.

But the episode also illustrates a dilemma for Harry: Even the involvement of the New York Police Department did not spare his family being swarmed by paparazzi, who pursued them even after they took refuge in a police station.
After the local government decided to build an observation tower atop a sandy hill on Wolin, an island in the Baltic Sea, a Polish archaeologist was called in to check the site before construction and look for buried artifacts from the spots macabre past.

Hangmens Hill, a public park, had in earlier times been an execution ground, a cemetery and, some believe, a place for human sacrifices  so who knew what grisly discoveries were in store?

But what the archaeologist, Wojciech Filipowiak, found when he started digging caused more excitement than distaste: charcoaled wood indicating the remains of a 10th-century stronghold that could help solve one of the great riddles of the Viking Age.

Was a fearsome fortress mentioned in ancient texts a literary fantasy or a historical reality?

It has long been known that Nordic warriors established outposts more than a millennium ago on Polands Baltic coast, enslaving indigenous Slavic peoples to supply a booming slave trade, as well trading in salt, amber and other commodities.
Englands rivers and coastlines have long endured a foul problem  an astounding release of untreated sewage by water companies, some of it illegal, which critics say has sickened swimmers and polluted the countrys critical ecosystems.

Its disgusting when youre in the water and you see and smell sewage, said Josh Harris, a spokesman for Surfers Against Sewage, a charity that monitors pollution and is among several groups leading an intensifying public outcry against the contamination of Englands waterways.

Private water and sewage companies in England on Thursday admitted that they had not done enough to address the outpouring of sewage and announced a plan totaling 10 billion pounds, or about $12.4 billion, to modernize the countrys sewers.

Last year alone, the companies sent sewage into rivers and seas for more than 1.75 million hours, amounting to 301,091 spills overall, or an average of 825 a day, according to government data, a slight reduction compared with the previous year largely because of drier weather, not preventive action from water companies, Englands Environment Agency said.
The chief of Ukraines Supreme Court was formally arrested Thursday, as prosecutors indicated in a second day of hearings that a high-level corruption case was expanding to include a wider circle of judges.

Prosecutors also accused a lawyer of acting as an intermediary in paying a bribe to the chief justice, and said that at least three other judges of the court had been found holding thousands of dollars in currency marked by investigators.

The chief justice, Vsevolod Knyazev, was apprehended just after midnight Tuesday by officers of the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine, who searched his home and office in simultaneous raids and said they found large sums of cash in U.S. currency.
HIROSHIMA, Japan  The meeting of Group of 7 nations leaders beginning on Friday in Hiroshima, a city symbolic of the horrors of armed conflict, comes at a critical moment for President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, his country and the core Western democracies now seized with an urgent mission of bringing about what President Biden calls the strategic defeat of Russia in Ukraine.

Mr. Biden often says that Russia is already defeated. But the fear permeating the seven large democracies here is that unless Mr. Zelenskys expected counteroffensive against the Russian invaders proves highly successful, Ukraine will settle into a bloody, frozen conflict in which the best hope would be an armistice, reminiscent of the one that brought a halt to fighting on the Korean Peninsula 70 years ago this summer.

That seemed almost impossible to imagine in 1997, when President Bill Clinton and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain invited Russia to become a full member of the group, expanding it  for nearly two decades  into the G8. Russia was suspended after its annexation of Crimea in 2014, and it withdrew from the group three years later.

Now, with his troops already seeking to destroy Russian weapons depots ahead of the counteroffensive, Mr. Zelensky just completed a series of rapid-fire visits to European capitals to shore up support for continued heavy spending on armaments and aid. He is expected to address the leaders in Hiroshima virtually, but there have been behind-the-scenes conversations about whether to take the risk of bringing him personally to the other side of the world to make his case.
Thousands of Israelis marched through Jerusalem on Thursday to celebrate Israels capture of East Jerusalem in 1967, a contentious annual event, known as Jerusalem Day, that regularly stirs tensions with Palestinians, who see it as a provocation.

Large crowds of Israelis, many of them from ultranationalist groups, walked through the Old City, toward the Western Wall  a remnant of an ancient retaining structure that once surrounded the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount. The parade prompted many Palestinians, who form the overwhelming majority of Old City residents, to shut their shops, in expectation of vandalism and abuse from the marchers.

Israeli officials say the parade is a largely peaceful and festive event marred by only a small minority of participants. But several groups of marchers were filmed making threats to Arabs, and some threw sticks and bottles for several minutes at Arab journalists in full view of the police, injuring at least four journalists, according to medics.

May I be avenged on Palestine, chanted a group of roughly 40 participants, shortly before the parade was formally scheduled to start. May its name be erased.
When a devastating earthquake struck in February, President Bashar al-Assad of Syria spotted opportunity in disaster. He called for an end to international sanctions on his country and within days, some were suspended. Other Middle Eastern states sent planeloads of aid and senior officials from those countries soon followed for the first high-level visits in years.

In the three months since, Mr. al-Assad has made a remarkable comeback, going from more than a decade of near-total global isolation after a series of atrocities, to being welcomed back into the Arab fold with virtually no strings attached. And on Friday, he is expected to attend an annual summit of Arab leaders for the first time in 13 years, the most definitive sign yet that he is returning to the regions embrace.

Mr. Assad was shunned for brutally suppressing his countrys Arab Spring uprising in 2011, which morphed into a civil war that has ground to a standstill, but has still not ended. His government stands accused of widespread torture, the use of chemical weapons against its own people and forced population transfers in a conflict that left hundreds of thousands of people dead.
When Pete Wayner met Felicity McDonald on a singles app in 2020, he expected to suffer through another bad date on his post-divorce reentry into social life.

He was living in Rochester, N.Y., and thinking of moving to Mexico amid the pandemic. But after that first meeting, he scrapped the idea.

The date turned out great, and I ended up moving out of my studio apartment to live with Felicity and her daughter, Ruby, a year later, said Mr. Wayner, 34, a creative director at the Dixon Schwabl advertising agency, in Victor, N.Y.

Ms. McDonald  now Mrs. Wayner, as the couple married last August  was also divorced and attending nursing school in Rochester. She owned a two-bedroom, one-bathroom house in Geneva, a city of about 12,000 in the Finger Lakes region of central New York, 45 miles southeast of Rochester.

I bought the perfect post-divorce house for myself and my daughter: a 900-square-foot small ranch house, said Mrs. Wayner, 35, a nurse at Geneva General Dermatology, who grew up in the area. Wed made it into our family home when Pete moved in, but we knew we wanted to grow our family together and needed more space.

[Did you recently buy or rent a home? We want to hear from you. Email: thehunt@nytimes.com]

The house they needed wouldnt be easy to find. Geneva has a limited supply of new and single-level homes, so longtime owners of larger places tend to stay put rather than downsize, said Daniel Toner, an agent with Century 21 Steve Davoli Real Estate, in Geneva.

Theres still almost no inventory in our area, which saw growing demand pre-Covid because of the emergence of the local wine, craft-beer and food scenes in the Finger Lakes, Mr. Toner said. Geneva is one of the main hubs of the Finger Lakes, so when Covid hit and people were traveling locally and working remotely, we saw a big spike in demand for second and permanent homes.

This April, the median sales price in the city of Geneva (there is also a town with the same name surrounding it) was about $167,000, up from around $145,000 in 2021, Mr. Toner said, noting that some well-located homes are used as short-term rentals.

[Also in Real Estate: On Englands coast, villages are collapsing into the ocean. But not everyone is leaving.]

With up to $275,000 to spend, the Wayners hoped to find a single-family home with at least three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Mr. Wayner wanted it to be in a walkable neighborhood like the one he had enjoyed in Rochester.

Most of the homes in the city of Geneva are older, but we werent really looking for a house that needed a lot of renovation, Mrs. Wayner said. We didnt have to have a historic home, but we didnt want anything cookie-cutter either.

Among their options:
11 a.m. Stroll through a former zoo

The Palermo neighborhood already had three sprawling gardens within walking distance of one another: Jardin Japones Jardin Botanico and Parque El Rosedal . Add Ecoparque to that list. Once it was the site of a grand, and very sad, city zoo, where iron cages kept lions, tigers and chimpanzees in cruelly small spaces. The zoo closed in 2016, and since then, the new owners have been converting it into a peaceful nature preserve, where peacocks and Patagonian maras  native, fleet-footed rodents  roam free. While more exotic animals have been sent to sanctuaries abroad, some remain, including giraffes that are too large and old to transport and a puma that had been kept illegally as a pet. The zoos gorgeous, antique buildings also remain, their stateliness now an elegant contrast to the wild native plants and brush growing along footpaths. Entry is free.
Norwegian Defense Minister Bjrn Arild Gram discussed with British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace issues of cooperation, including support for Ukraine, and announced the transfer of radar stations and multiple rocket launchers to Ukraine.

"Today we are confirming the delivery of long-range artillery and radars. Norway provides three Arthur artillery location radars and up to eight long-range rocket artillery of the MLRS type. The donations are made in close collaboration with the UK. These are significant contributions to the Ukrainian defence, and show the determination of our governments to stand together in our support for the Ukrainian people," according to the text of the joint statement adopted at the end of the meeting and published on the website of the Norwegian government on Thursday.

According to the document, the increased need for close military cooperation between allies, especially at sea, as well as a common understanding and a common desire to further enhance our bilateral defence cooperation.

"The sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines last year, is a clear reminder of what is at stake here. Our signing today is therefore very important. By working together, we can improve our abilities to detect submarines, counter mine threats and to protect critical infrastructure on the seabed," according to the statement.

The ministers, during their meeting on Thursday, "also agreed to continue and to strengthen support to Ukraine."

"We are working closely together in this support, both financially, through the International Fund for Ukraine, and military, through Operation Interflex. Norway is a substantial contributor to the Fund, and we contribute to the training of Ukrainian soldiers both here in the UK, and in Norway. From this summer on, Norway will double our number of instructors in operation Interflex. We have also worked together to maximize our efforts concerning donation of weapons and ammunition," the ministers said in the statement.
A Colombian doctor has been ordered by a court of law to financially support a patients baby until it turns 18 after the patient ended up conceiving the baby despite undergoing a vasectomy.

Diego Naranjo, a doctor from Medellin, Colombia, will have to pay millions of pesos to support one of his patients baby after he assured the man that the vasectomy he had performed had been successful and he no longer needed to use other means of contraception. However, the man ended up leaving his wife pregnant and having an unplanned baby. Subsequent sperm tests showed that the vasectomy had in fact not been successful, and the parents of the baby sued the doctor, claiming that his mistake had had serious implications, both financial and emotional. A judge has now ruled that the doctor must support the baby until it turns 18 years old.

Photo: Jill Sauve/Unsplash

As a result of this unexpected conclusion, the patient was not recommended to continue using contraceptive methods to avoid the risk of pregnancy, the recent court ruling read. When it was proven that the parents did not want to procreate more children, it was concluded that there was an impact on their life projects that had repercussions in the immaterial field, especially considering the precarious economic situation of the father, who currently cannot work due to their health problems.

The babys father suffers from a debilitating condition called severe bilateral hearing loss, which prevents him from working. He experiences frequent dizziness and vomiting and must wear a hearing aid in order to hear properly. The condition prevented the man from finding employment, so the judge ruled that the doctor responsible for the conception of the baby must be held responsible.



According to the recent court ruling, Dr. Naranjo will have to pay the patients family 80 current minimum wages, or 92 million pesos ($20,300) in moral damages, 60 million pesos ($13,200) in legal fees, and 143 million pesos ($31,500) as child support.

Interestingly, the botched vasectomy was performed in 2012, and the patients baby, a girl, was born the following year. She is currently 10 years old, so the doctor only has eight more years of financial support. Its unclear why the parents took so long to take legal action against the doctor.
A Mexican court of law recently sparked outrage by sentencing a young woman to six years in prison for excessive use of legitimate defense, because she killed the man who was raping her.

The sentencing of Roxana Ruiz, a 23-year-old single mother from Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico, on Monday has been making international news headlines all week. The young woman was charged with homicide with an excess of legitimate self-defense after she strangled the man who was raping her in her own home, and is now facing six years in prison, as well as an obligation to compensate her assailants family financially. Ruiz, who has already served nine months behind bars after her initial arrest in 2021, claims that she would have most likely been killed by the man raping her if she didnt kill him first, but the judge ruled that a simple blow to the head would have been enough to incapacitate the assailant.

Photo: Roxana Ruiz Santiago/Facebook

In May of 2021, Roxana Ruiz was selling french fries in Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico State, and having a beer with a friend. Thats when she met a man that she had seen a round the neighborhood before, and after hanging out for a while, he offered to walk her home. He then asked if he could spend the night, because it was late and he was a long way from home, and she agreed to let him crash on the couch.

Ruiz says that in the middle of the night, the man crawled into her bed, and started hitting her and reaping her clothes off. She defended herself by punching the assailant in the nose, and he threatened to kill her for it, but she managed to grab a shirt and choke him to death. In a panic, Roxana put the mans body in a large bag and dragged his dead body into the street, where she was discovered by police and arrested.

I regret what I did, but if I hadnt done it I would be dead today, Roxana Ruiz told the Associated Press, adding that despite telling the police that she had been raped, a forensic exam was never taken, and one officer even said that she ha probably wanted to sleep with the assailant initially and then changed her mind.

The 23-year-old woman was charged with homicide and spent nine months in jail but was subsequently released to await her trial. On Monday, Judge Monica Osorio ruled that Ruiz was guilty of using excessive force to defend herself against the man raping her. She argued that Roxana could have given him a blow to the head to defend herself and leaving him unconscious would have been enough.



The court sentenced Ruiz to six years and even ordered her to pay $16,000 as reparation to her rapists family. The young womans lawyers called the sentence discriminatory and vowed to appeal it.

It would be a bad precedent if this sentence were to hold. Its sending the message to women that, you know what, the law says you can defend yourself, but only to a point, Angel Carrera, Roxanas defense lawyer, said. He raped you, but you dont have the right to do anything.
Thomas Mustac

Whenever something you post on social media harms your image or reputation, youve got a crisis on your hands. Sometimes, the trigger is an embarrassing photo you never thought would come to light or a post you thought was funny at the time. Anything you do on social media that compels others to question youeither who you are as an individual or your overall valuesconstitutes a social media crisis.

For companies, such a crisis can mean losing sales and customers, as the Bud Light controversy recently demonstrated. For individuals, it can mean losing friends or even getting canceled. Professional consequences may also follow. Two marketing professionals who managed the Bud Light campaign have been placed on leave, and Rolling Stone once ran an article about people who got fired due to their inappropriate social media content.

So, how can you survive a social media crisis? The best way is never to get into one in the first place.

Avoid social media crises if you can

According to an old Croatian saying, If one watches out for oneself, then God will protect him as well. The same goes for presenting yourself and your organization effectively on social media. If youre proactive and look out for your organizations best interests, then events will tend to favor you.

Toward that end, take a professional, neutral tone on social media. Double-check your posts accuracy to avoid spreading misinformation, which can hurt your credibility and that of your organization. Scrutinize every post and ask yourself if it could offend anyone. If so, dial it back or take it out of the lineup completely to avoid pushing buttons.

Finally, clean up your old social media content. You might think the post you made on your personal account as a teenager isnt that serious, but it could come back to haunt you.

This article is featured in O'Dwyer's May '23 PR Firm Rankings Magazine

(view PDF version)

Be proactive: create a strategic plan

Social media crises happen quickly, so you need to be ready to respond quickly and effectively, so its best to plan in advance for the possibility of one. To do this, consider your organizations strengths and weaknesses because these factors can help or hinder your efforts during an actual crisis situation. By keeping these in mind, you can maximize your chances of creating a strategic plan that protects the reputation of your brand while still allowing for transparency in times of crisis.

Next, conduct an inventory of your social media accounts to identify potential risks to the organization, brand, reputation, and team members. To the extent these risks can be reduced, take the necessary actions as soon as possible. For instance, delete posts or conduct staff training on best practices for social media.

After that, form a crisis communications team and assign responsibilities. Members of the team should understand their roles so that no time will be wasted in the event of an incident. In particular, someone should be designated as the voice who will speak on behalf of the company or organization. This person should be able to handle questions from both the public and the press while maintaining professionalism at all times.

That said, everyone in your organization should know what to say or do when confronted with negative comments, questions or requests for information, as well as who to contact if theres a crisis situation. Therefore, provide a detailed communications protocol that explains who is responsible for what, when, as well as the types of information that may or may not be released at different times.

In short, plan for the worst while aiming for the best. By creating a procedure for addressing problems, you and your organization will be able to react to any crisis. In the event that controversy becomes unavoidable, here are some tips for weathering it best.

Never lie

When you find yourself embroiled in a social media crisis, it might seem tempting to lie your way out of it, but if you try to cover something up, then you may get caught and look worse than ever. People hate liars, and its hard to lie on social media when the content serves as a well-kept diary in chronological order.

Hopefully, you arent guilty of doing something wrong. But if you are, then you will need to acknowledge it and act quickly to frame the discussion from your perspective. Otherwise, the public will begin to paint the story and your image in their minds without it. If you wait too long, people may no longer be willing to listen to your side at all, saying theyve already heard enough from the liar.

If you acknowledge your fault, however, people will give you at least some credit. Everyone knows its difficult to admit being wrong and that it takes courage and character to do so. Owning your mistakes will help to redeem you in other peoples eyes.

In these situations, the individual or voice of the organization should show remorse and apologize sincerely. You can pay the best PR practitioners in the world to represent you, but if youre cocky or arrogant and present yourself as someone above society, then youre asking for the worst outcomes.

Defend yourself

Sometimes, however, people may blame you for something you didnt do. For instance, someone might have made a fake profile or circulated a fake post or image. Now that Twitter requires payment for verification, this type of impersonation has become more likely. In addition, this problem grows more prevalent and challenging as AI and "deepfake" technology gain sophistication.

In these cases, its important to defend yourself, but before you do, I recommend taking a social media vacationgo Zen Mode, as I like to call it. When youve been wrongfully represented, its natural to feel angry, but speaking or posting on social media in anger can make the situation worse as you may say something you later come to regret. Take the time you need to reconsider your or your organizations recent actions and decide on a proper course of action. Its okay to stay quiet as you plan how to demonstrate innocence and gather evidence.

Aim to deploy a positive campaign that helps counter the negative coverage and amplify all the good you do in your community. Release that information to the public as soon as possible. When you do, make sure the voice of your organization is prepared to demonstrate transparency and answer questionseven the hard ones from hostile sources.

The best paths

While developing a strategic plan and vetting your communications carefully can help avoid social media crises, you or your organization may confront one at some point. If youve been the target of impersonation, then pause and take a strategic period to defend yourself as effectively as possible.

If you face a reckoning over a painful mistake, act quickly. Remember that honesty and acknowledgment of any wrongdoing offer your best path forward.

***

Thomas Mustac is OtterPRs medical and health industry PR specialist.


GA Travel Group Issues Web Design, Branding RFP Fri., May 26, 2023 An organization comprised of seven destination marketing organizations in central Georgia is looking for an agency with tourism-industry experience that can design and develop a new website based on its recently created brand identity.
Trust Relations picks up Oceanworks, a platform that helps brands take action against plastic pollution. The agency will lead Oceanworks' new public relations program, emphasizing business and consumer media relations and thought leadership initiatives. It will also support Oceanworks' IMPAC+ program, a turnkey customized solution that provides incentives for properly disposing of plastic waste that might otherwise go uncollected. "We are thrilled to be working with a disruptive, boundary-pushing PR rm like Trust Relations that is passionate about our mission and gets how important it is for us to get the word out about how Oceanworks is helping leading brands take a stand against plastic pollution, said Oceanworks founder Rob Ianelli.

Zapwater Communications is selected to lead North American media relations and marketing efforts for Singapore-based Pan Pacific Hotels Group, which includes the Pan Pacific Seattle as well as over 50 other hotels and resorts in more than 30 key cities. The agency will also work alongside its Travel Lifestyle Network partners SCOP3 Group in South-East Asia, The PC Agency in the UK and Anne Wild & Associates in Australia and New Zealand to co-ordinate PPHGs international public relations. Zapwater is focusing on curated media trips, events and other brand experience programs as part of the campaign. The agencies will be our key strategic partners in driving our brand visibility and growth presence in global markets, said PPHG chief commercial & marketing officer Cinn Tan.

5W Public Relations takes on Travel Medford, the largest destination marketing organization in southern Oregon. The agency is tasked with managing Travel Medford's media relations program, raising its brand awareness and positioning Medford as a must-visit destination. This partnership with 5WPR is an opportunity to elevate our rural community on a national scale," said Travel Medford senior VP T.J. Holmes. "The 5WPR team aligned with who we are as a destination, and we are excited for them to amplify Medford's presence in the travel industry.
Dara Busch

Effective crisis response management is critical for any organizationfrom corporations to nonprofits to government agencies. These organizations need to understand the importance of communicating quickly and efficiently and making informed decisions to mitigate a crisis, whether its a healthcare facility responding to a disease outbreak, a financial company responding to a data breach, or a nonprofit addressing recent funding cuts.

There are many ways to think about data in crisis response management. Some businesses may focus on real-time data to inform how they mitigate a crisis, while others might use historical data to help determine the best course forward. Lets examine the data that matters the most for effective crisis response management.

Geographic Data

Geographic data is critical for effective crisis response management. In the case of a public health emergency, for example, geographical data will play a key role in crisis response management. In the case of COVID-19, geographic data was critical in understanding how the pandemic spread and helping government agencies take advantage of infrastructure in that area to respond in the most effective manner possible.

By understanding and analyzing geographic data, a government agency can allocate resources to identify the most affected areas and prioritize response efforts. Geographic data can not only help uncover insights but shed light on the decisions that must be made to mitigate a particular crisis.

Demographic Data

Businesses and organizations will also want to understand how particular demographics are affected by the crisis. Demographic data will include information such as the age, gender, location, race and income of a specific consumer or individual. Suppose a company is trying to respond to a crisis affecting its employees. In that case, theyll want to know more about the actions, behaviors, and motivations of the demographic(s) of their employees.

A company may find that their recent layoffs dont affect how Gen X views them but that the Gen Z demographic is beginning to distrust or dislike the company, thanks to recent media headlines. This information can help inform how the company will tailor its messaging and communication strategy to mitigate the crisis or how it will respond on social media platforms.

Social Media Data

Theres no way to overstate social medias role in our lives, as it has evolved significantly over the past decade. With over 4.9 billion social media users worldwide, no organization is above examining and using social media data to inform their crisis response management efforts.

Social media can be a valuable compass for companies, brands and organizations. A commercial might go viral on social media for the wrong reasons, indicating it isnt resonating with the intended audience. A company might also use social media to respond to specific comments and questions to clarify the situation.

Social media can be an incredible tool during a natural disaster, as well. For example, individuals might tweet about specific areas or roads that are flooded or where gas is available during an evacuation. Social media platforms can also play a critical role in fundraising for a victim of a natural disaster, or providing much-needed support to those impacted the most.

By analyzing social media trends, organizations can help defuse a crisis before it arises, prevent long-term reputational damage, and prevent the spread of misinformation by amplifying official announcements or updates.

Historical Data

During a PR crisis, historical data plays a pivotal role in understanding the context of the crisis, making informed decisions, and mitigating potential damage. This data will offer invaluable insights into past crises, enabling organizations to identify patterns, evaluate the effectiveness of previous strategies and extract valuable lessons from both successes and failures.

Through historical data analysis, organizations can develop a profound understanding of how similar situations were managed in the past, empowering them to adopt proactive measures and strategies to navigate the current crisis with greater efficacy. Historical data also serves as a valuable tool for benchmarking performance, evaluating the impact on reputation, and identifying key stakeholders and their motivations and expectations.

By harnessing the power of historical data, organizations can make well-informed decisions, tailor their crisis response, and accordingly, maintain transparency throughout the process and actively work towards rebuilding trust and credibility with their stakeholders.

Conclusion

In times of crisis, having access to accurate and timely information is crucial for individuals and organizations to navigate challenging situations. However, obtaining essential information during the initial stages of a breaking crisis can be particularly difficult. Its also important to contextualize data rather than keeping crisis measurements in siloes that can negatively impact your crisis response management efforts.

The ability to effectively capture, analyze, and present data about the event to your leadership, stakeholders and consumers will instill confidence within your organization and enhance the capacity for leadership to manage and respond to the crisis successfully.

***

Dara Busch is co-CEO of 5WPR.
THE lack of consultation by the Office of Public Works with the people of Clonminch in Tullamore over plans for the housing of Ukrainians in the area, is causing outrage among residents.

At the monthly meeting of Tullamore Municipal District, Councillor Tony McCormack said there are plans to have 62 modular homes placed on council owned land in Clonminch.

''I don't think anyone has any problem with housing Ukrainian refugees. As a matter of fact we know it's our duty and we are delighted to do it,'' said Cllr McCormack.

''We had a presentation from the Department and from the OPW who are putting in those houses. We were guaranteed that a consultation would be had with the residents up there before any sod is turned on that site. We now have a situation where the residents are up in arms, not because the site is being used to build modular housing, but because they haven't been taken into consideration and the right planning hasn't gone in to putting it together,'' he stressed.

''At the moment it's like Guantanamo Bay, it has fencing and barbed wire which is going around existing residential units and I think it's very unfair of the Department and the OPW to treat these people with such disdain, to actually ride roughshod over them and not take into consideration their needs and recommendations into how they want to be treated as being on the side of this particular site,'' he said.



Cllr McCormack asked the council to write to the OPW to emphasise the need for the people of Clonminch to be included in the plans.

''This doesn't bode well for them (OPW) trying to do this elsewhere because the fact that we handed over this land to them in a section 183 was because of the assurances we were given. I'll tell you one thing if I thought for one second what happened was going to happen I wouldn't have signed up for it and I wouldn't have voted in favour of allowing it to go through'' said Cllr McCormack.

Agreeing, Councillor Sean O'Brien said, ''it's just not good enough. The council had no say, good bad or indifferent. We had no say with regards to the land, that land was zoned for industry and it was taken out of our hands.

So it's the Government of the day that have to stand up as well. It's easy for people locally to give out, but it's their own party's Government that are making these decisions. I think it's disgraceful the way they are being treated,'' he said.

The Cathaoirleach of Tullamore Municipal District, Councillor Neil Feighery said while there is an obligation to house Ukrainian refugees, the land at Clonminch was handed over in the belief that there would be a full round of consultation with the people of the area.

''It's beyond belief that heavy track machines and heavy construction machinery moved in on site and topsoil was removed without the residents living right beside the site having had any communication with the Department of Children, Equality Disability and Integration or the OPW. It was so heavy handed,'' he said.

''We always want to ensure there is a lot of consultation and as an Executive we have always achieved that. We had no role in that. And to add insult to injury it really has left a sour taste in residents mouths.''

Cllr Feighery said they had met with a representative of the OPW and two and a half weeks later, ''while construction work proceeds at pace we have heard nothing since,'' he added.

''The residents are very clear and they appreciate that these poor Ukrainian refugees who are fleeing war need to be housed somewhere, and they are not objecting to the principle of the development. But it certainly needs an awful lot to be desired. There are so many lessons to be learned for other projects across the country,'' said Cllr Feighery

Before the meeting ended Cllr McCormack said he had been on the the phone to Deputy Barry Cowen on the issue and some progress is being made on the matter.
A MAN who pleaded guilty to the theft of a car from a woman he knew will appeal against a jail sentence which was imposed on him at Tullamore District Court.

Judge Andrew Cody sentenced Jonathan Jennings, with an address at Scurragh, Birr to concurrent three-month prison terms after hearing he had 61 previous convictions.

Mr Jennings admitted the unauthorised taking of a vehicle belonging to Terese King at Seffin, Birr on November 13, 2021. He also pleaded guilty to entering the garage of the house at Seffin as a trespasser and stealing the keys of the same vehicle.

Sergeant James O'Sullivan said Mr Jennings was prosecuted following an investigation into a single vehicle road traffic collision at Ballivor, Banagher on November 14.

A male who did not own the vehicle was found at the side of the road and while a sample taken from him detected no alcohol, it was found that codeine, methadone and morphine were present.

Sergeant O'Sullivan said Terese King made a statement to gardai saying her vehicle had been stolen.

Judge Cody also heard a knife had been found on Mr Jennings' person and in April last year he had been sentenced to six months in prison for possession of knives.

He had also been sentenced in March 2021 and June 2019 for other offences and had been disqualified from driving for four years.

Sergeant O'Sullivan added that the accused also had a previous conviction for burglary and explained that he had been a friend of the lady who owned the car.

Defending solicitor Donal Farrelly said Mr Jennings had used the woman's car on several previous occasions.

Aged 44, he had been addicted to heroin for many years and all of the sentences imposed on him related to offences arising from his addiction.

He had been so sick from his addiction before that he went to England to go on a methadone programme and he was now on a similar programme.

He had secured a property of his own at Bolart, Moate and living there would remove him from people he had been involved with.

Mr Farrelly said his client had now stabilised his life and he hoped not to be sent to prison because that could result in him losing his new home.

Judge Cody decided to sentence Mr Jennings, saying he had been given a number of chances before by the court.

In addition to the concurrent three-month prison sentences, he disqualified Mr Jennings from driving for 10 years.

The judge also fixed recognisances for an appeal and Mr Jennings later lodged an appeal.
Offaly County Councillors have rejected any calls for the cessation of the importation of woodchips from Brazil for Edenderry Power Plant.

There was outrage across the country at the beginning of the month when reports emerged of woodchips being shipped over 7,000 kilometres from Brazil for use at Edenderry Power Station. T

here were reports in the media about a Japanese registered ship arriving in Foynes Port, Limerick, with a load of woodchips after a two week voyage from Brazil.

This was then transported by a fleet of trucks to the Bord na Mona station in Edenderry.

Offaly IFA was amongst those to condemn the news. Offaly IFA Chairman Pat Walsh said it was ridiculous to see peat production being stopped and rural communities all across the midlands being devastated while at the same time woodchips are being transported halfway across the world to keep the power plant in Edenderry running. What sort of green policy is that?

During the May monthly meeting of Offaly County Council the subject was discussed at length. Cllr Ken Smollen put forward a motion which stated that the Council was calling on the Government to put an immediate cessation to the importation of woodchips into Ireland for use in the Edenderry Power Plant or any other Power Plant in the country.

His motion was only supported by one other councillor and, after a number of councillors made their views known, Cllr Smollen decided to change his motions wording to that of calling on the Government to consider the cessation of the importation of woodchips into Ireland while discussions take place around incentivising farmers to grow crops as fuel for the plant instead.

The changed motion was seconded by Cllr Clare Claffey.

When outlining his initial motion, Cllr Smollen said Ireland was the laughing stock of other countries because of the current situation where peat harvesting has been stopped and yet we are importing woodchips from Brazil, peat from Latvia and briquettes from Germany. Well over a thousand jobs have been lost in Offaly because of the governments decarbonisation programme. Offaly is the third poorest county in Ireland. We all know that worldwide our carbon emissions must be reduced, but the governments way of doing it is not the way to do it.

Cllr Robert McDermott said he couldnt support Cllr Smollens motion.

The motion as proposed, he remarked, cannot and should not be supported in its current form because it ignores some very important facts  indeed, its somewhat fact-free. Ireland does not currently produce sufficient biomass to sustain Edenderry Power. The immediate cessation of imports would lead to the closure of the plant with serious local and national consequences. So, lets look at the factual reality and examine what needs to happen to sustain Edenderry Power.

Cllr McDermott pointed out that Edenderry power station employs 60 people directly with associated support roles in the wider community, 2 million euro direct and similar on indirect wages. He said a combination of biomass materials is needed to produce the correct fuel mix for power generation at the Power Plant.

In order to achieve the required biomass mix, Bord na Mona sources the vast majority (60 Irish suppliers) of sustainable residual material from indigenous suppliers in Ireland. This accounts for over 90% of the material needed for burning in the plant. This residual material is sourced as a by-product of other industries and the type of product used is residual material from the forestry industry including brash, Lop and Top, and sawmill residue.

Cllr McDermott pointed out that Biomass is an internationally traded fuel and for Edenderry Power to maintain security of supply it has a requirement to import additional residual material from other jurisdictions.

Edenderry Power, he remarked, is the largest renewable dispatchable generation plant on the island and if unable to operate, due to a fuel restriction, its output would be replaced with another thermal plant operating on fossil fuel. The remaining biomass required cannot be acquired locally due to volume and suitability constraints, it is supplemented with material sourced internationally as a result. The quantity of imported biomass energy used by Edenderry Power was 8% of the overall fuel consumption in 2022.

Cllr Liam Quinn strongly agreed. Both councillors pointed out that for Edenderry Power to cease imports of Biomass the Government will need to incentivise farmers to grow biomass.

The councillors said the Council should send a request to the Minister to introduce a scheme to make it profitable for Irish farmers to grow the required products for Biomass, ensuring the future of Edenderry Power while avoiding the need for such imports as the woodchips presently coming from Brazil.

Cllrs Quinn and McDermott added that the development of agricultural biomass production at the scale required wont happen overnight, therefore the import of an internationally traded commodity to supplement indigenous product and thus sustain Edenderry Power is the only way we can retain the Plant and its workforce at this moment in time. It was agreed to send a request to the Minister to introduce a scheme to make it profitable for Irish farmers to grow the required products for Biomass.

All the other councillors strongly agreed that protecting the 100 direct and indirect jobs at Edenderry Power was the most important thing. They pointed out that the power plant is also a major rate payer in Offaly.

Cllr Liam Quinn pointed out that it would be wrong for people to try and climate shame Offaly. He said Offaly has done as much heavy lifting as any county when it comes to fighting climate change.

Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick said they had to be positive about this because no one wants to see Edenderry Power going the way of Shannonbridge and Lanesboro power stations.

Cllr John Clendennen said Cllr Smollens initial motion was irresponsible. Would he have submitted such a motion if the power plant had been in Clara? We have to find a proactive way with this issue. We should write to Edenderry Power and state our strong support for them.

Cllr Smollen told the meeting that at no stage did I call for the closure of Edenderry Power. Anybody who would read that into my motion needs to go to Specsavers. All I am saying is we need a realistic alternative to the current situation where we are importing from Brazil. The Green Party tail is wagging the Fianna Fail and Fine Gael dog and quite a few mistakes are being made along the way.

Cllr John Carroll said that as things stand there is no choice but to import woodchips from Brazil.

No one wants to see it coming from Brazil but we have no other choice. We have to live with it.

A vote was then taken by the councillors concerning the two motions before the Council.

Two councillors voted for Cllr Smollens motion and 12 councillors voted for the motion put forward by Cllrs McDermott and Quinn. The latter motion was carried, which was two motions combined.

It stated: This council supports the continued generation of electricity at Edenderry Power as a plant supporting over 100 direct and indirect jobs and as a major rate payer in County Offaly. We request the Minister to introduce a scheme to make it profitable for Irish farmers to grow the required products for Biomass, ensuring the future of Edenderry Power while avoiding the need for such imports.
Pentagon makes error by $3 bln in assessing equipment supplied to Ukraine, this to allow sending more weapons to Kyiv  media

The Pentagon overestimated U.S. equipment sent to Ukraine by about $3 billion, Reuters said on Thursday, citing a Senate aide and defense official.

According to the publication, this error opens up the possibility of more weapons being sent to Kyiv for its defense against Russia.

"We've discovered inconsistencies in how we value the equipment that we've given to Ukraine," a senior defense official said on condition of anonymity.

The publication said that in its accounting, the Pentagon used replacement cost to value the weapons aid, instead of the weaponry's value when it was purchased and depreciated. Sources said Congress will be notified of the accounting adjustment on Thursday.

The defense official also said it is possible the amount of overvalued weaponry could grow as the Pentagon examines the situation more thoroughly, increasing the $3 billion.
A BIRR woman's company hosted a major conference in Killarney recently, highlighting some of the dangers of the powerful and influential transgender movement.

Stella OMalley is Director of Genspect which devotes itself to highlighting some of the potentially harmful ideas swirling around in the world of the gender debate.

During Genspect's three day conference in Killarney, Stella spoke about the threat to conventional therapy posed by badly worded conversion therapy bills that are currently under consideration around the world.

The conference took place from April 27 - 29 . It was Genspect's first annual conference and was called The Bigger Picture.

Stella said its purpose was to challenge the narrow, medicalised treatment model for gender dysphoria promoted by some organisations.

She pointed out that the no debate stance on gender ideology of these powerful organisations has stifled conversation and demonised those who dissented from a treatment model recommending puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgery for gender-distressed youth.

The Bigger Picture was a big tent event, welcoming those disenfranchised voices and giving speakers from multiple disciplines an opportunity to broaden the conversation. Beyond presenting treatment models that differ from the affirmative approach, a range of speakers described the negative impact of gender ideology on society at large.

The Keynote speaker Helen Joyce, author of the book Trans: When Reality meets Ideology, told the conference that, in her opinion, gender ideology has infringed the sex-based rights of women.

Maya Forstater, co-founder of Sex Matters, joined Joyce to discuss defending gender critical beliefs in a world dominated by intolerant ideologues.

Oxford sociologist Michael Biggs exposed the flawed evidence base for the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, followed by Prof. Ken Zucker, who considered the ethical implications of puberty blockers for minor children.

Dr Julia Mason later discussed the erosion of trust in traditional scientific authority as a result of biased and ideologically driven evidence.

Stephanie Davies-Arai of Transgender Trend described how gender ideology has infiltrated our schools and overridden traditional safeguarding practices for children. Dr. Heather Brunskell-Evans challenged the claims of Queer Theory and the social construction of the so-called transgender child.

Physician/researcher Lisa Littman revisited her studies on Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria and transition regret, drawing attention to the social contagion aspects of trans-identification.

Other speakers included the two Vice Directors of Genspect who joined panels and gave individual talks about normalising excellence in healthcare (Alasdair Gunn) and the role of sexualised shame in autogynephilia (Joseph Burgo). Malcolm Clark, one of the founding members of the LGB Alliance, joined several panels to discuss, among other issues, the transing young gays and lesbians.

Day Two of the conference concluded with a livestream of the podcast, Gender: A Wider Lens. The final afternoon included presentations by Miranda Yardley, discussing how to effect positive change in transgender issues today; writer Eliza Mondegreen describing the handling of transition doubt in online spaces, and a clinical presentation by Jungian analyst Lisa Marchiano on her work with a young woman who detransitioned.

An extensive analysis of gender in Ireland was offered with a range of different speakers. Laoise Ui Aodha de Brun, barrister-at-law and founder of The Countess, discussed the implications of Self ID in Ireland. Psychotherapist Iseult White discussed the chilling effect on dissent within her profession inflicted by the affirmative care model. On Saturday, theologian Colette Colfer analysed how gender ideology is akin to a religious identity. Estelle Birdy discussed the authoritarian streak that is underlying identity politics while a panel discussion revealed some startling insights about how gender ideology is taught as fact within the Irish education system.

The Bigger Picture also featured panels with prominent detransitioners, young men and women harmed by gender medicine whose existence has been denied or dismissed by some. Through its conference, Genspect said it was giving them a voice and uniting them with experts in medicine (Dr. Lori Regenstreif) and sexual health (Leonore Tiefer) to address their needs. Other panels brought together speakers from diverse fields to debate the enforced use of pronouns and to consider whether gender non-conforming youth have been encouraged to pursue life-altering medical treatments rather than accepting themselves as same-sex attracted. Independent journalist and documentarian Benjamin Boyce moderated several of these panels.

The Bigger Picture will be an annual event, in order to continue the conversation about gender ideology and to challenge the narrow medicalised model for gender-distressed youth promoted by now-discredited, influential organisations.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said he hopes answering the questions of locals in Co Clare who are protesting, and giving them reasonable assurances, will allow the blockade to be lifted.

Locals have organised a protest outside Magowna House Hotel in Inch since Monday evening, when more than 30 asylum seekers arrived by bus.

It involves parking cars and tractors across the road that leads to the hotel.

Protesters said that this was to stop a second bus that is expected to bring another 30 asylum seekers to the three holiday homes on the grounds of the hotel building.

I dont think anybody wants to say anything at the moment that might escalate the situation in Clare, the Taoiseach said.

The blockade should end, its not right for anyone to block a public road or to block access to someones accommodation.

But we also dont want to dismiss concerns local communities have and sometimes local communities have genuine concerns. And thats why well make sure theres information, theres communication, but also make it very clear that nobody has the right to veto other people coming into your community, no matter who they are.

He said further engagement is planned with locals in Co Clare.

I dont want to get into the detail of that at the moment, but there will be further engagement with the local community there, he told reporters in Dublin.

I think it is important that peoples concerns are listened to, that theyre provided information, that communication takes place, but also its very important to be clear as a government, no community, nobody, has a veto on who should or should not live in your area and we cant allow that.

Minister of State for Integration Joe OBrien said: We are looking at different ways of engaging with the community and with the local representatives as well, but its at a sensitive time so I dont want to divulge too much information.

On Wednesday, Minister for Integration Roderic OGorman said that hotels ending their contracts with the State to house migrants had put pressure on the system for housing migrants, and that the Government was still playing catch-up.

Reports have emerged of fractures within Cabinet over whether Mr OGorman, charged with housing the Ukrainian refugees and other asylum seekers arriving in Ireland, is receiving enough support from his ministerial colleagues.

Mr Varadkar said that all ministers were pulling their weight to respond to the challenge of housing asylum seekers.

All ministers are pulling their weight, Mr Varadkar said, adding thats often the case when it comes to any major issue that we deal with.

When it comes to the response to Ukraine and migration, that is co-ordinated by my department, I chair the Cabinet sub-committee on it, my senior officials chair the senior officials group, and every department has their role to play.

He mentioned the work done to educate more than 15,000 child refugees in Irish schools, and PPS numbers being provided for up to 100,000 people to allow them to receive welfare payments and work.

Mr Varadkar said: Everyone is working very hard here.

He said he hoped there would not be similar protests at three asylum seeker centres in Dublin as there had been in Inch.

I have to say I was really encouraged by the cross-party response from all four TDs in Dun Laoghaire, all saying that they understand that this is a crisis. And in a crisis, the perfect is the enemy of the good.

And all four TDs in Dun Laoghaire are welcoming, or at least accepting, of the fact that we need to provide accommodation for people urgently because we cant have people on the streets.

No matter what you may think of asylum seekers or immigration, everyone deserves basic shelter. And I think the four public reps in Dun Laoghaire are showing a lot of leadership in that regard.

On Thursday evening, Minister for Justice Simon Harris and Mr OGorman met with Garda representatives including Garda Commissioner Drew Harris.

The ministers thanked An Garda Siochana for their work in policing a number of incidents in recent weeks, and reassured the Commissioner of the Governments ongoing support for their work.

The ministers and Commissioner agreed that finding accommodation for currently unaccommodated International Protection applicants is a priority for the safety of the individuals involved.

The ongoing liaison between An Garda Siochana and the Government on the provision of accommodation was discussed and the ministers and Commissioner recommitted themselves to further develop on this, including at a local level.

Mr Harris said that a number of investigations are under way into recent incidents and that these are live and active.
OFFALY County Council says it is investigating the dumping of barley into a stream at Garbally, Blueball.

The stream which is used by some to provide water for cattle appears to be almost choked in one section.

One person who complained, said the barley could easily block drains and growth could occur.

Council personnel have been out to inspect the stream but up to yesterday the barley remained in the water.

A statement from the council said: ''Offaly County Council confirm an environmental complaint was received and assigned to the Environment Section for investigation.

Following investigation, Offaly County Council are working with relevant parties to address the issue within an agreed timeframe.

Offaly County Council will follow up with further investigation to ensure the matter is appropriately dealt with.'

A recent press release from waters.ie stated that, ''The Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) is working to identify the issues affecting water quality in every county in Ireland to help improve and protect our natural waters.

Where issues are identified, we collaborate with the relevant local authority, public body, and water stakeholder to find a solution. Community engagement is the driver of this approach to combine local and expert knowledge for a better understanding of whats happening in a local catchment and waterbody.

Good water quality benefits everybody. It is essential for public health and wellbeing and allows our economy to thrive. It supports growth in sectors like tourism, manufacturing and agri-foods, especially in rural areas. It is also essential for nature to flourish, and it is recognised that many of measures needed to protect and improve water quality can also deliver benefits for nature, air quality and climate change. This shows the mutual benefits of protecting our natural environment.''
OPINION: Chinas Pakistan Policy Is Economy-Focused

Feature

lekhaka-Jagdish N Singh

Communist China is secretly backing Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in his power struggle at home. Beijing seems to calculate that Sharif would be useful in accomplishing China's economic goals in Pakistan. New Delhi must remain cautious about the growing Beijing-Islamabad proximity.

The fourth round of the China-Pakistan Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue held in Beijing early this month clearly indicates that relations between Beijing and Islamabad are all set to deepen further.

Observers say that in this dialogue, Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang agreed to maintain the momentum of their high-level exchanges. They agreed to push forward the development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Pakistan reiterated its One-China policy and declared it would oppose any foreign attempt to 'contain' China. It agreed to closely cooperate with China in advancing the CPEC construction. It assured that it would crack down on terrorist organisations to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals, projects and institutions in Pakistan. Islamabad also expressed its support for China's Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative and Global Civilisation Initiative.

OPINION: Its Pakistan versus Pakistan

Communist China's Pakistan policy is mainly economy focused today. China is Pakistan's largest trade and investment partner. In the recent years, many Chinese enterprises have made a very strong presence in Pakistan. Pakistan has been one of the earliest participants of Chinese President Xi Jinping's pet project Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). China is rapidly developing the Gwadar port and Special Economic Zones in Pakistan.

In view of its economic interests in Pakistan, Beijing is secretly backing the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif government to consolidate itself in the current domestic power struggle in Islamabad. Beijing seems to calculate that the Sharif regime would be useful in accomplishing China's economic goals in Pakistan.

Beijing seems to have noted that the equation between Prime Minister Sharif and the Chinese top political leadership is fine. Last November, Prime Minister Sharif visited Beijing on the invitation of then Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang. Earlier in September, Prime Minister Sharif met Chinese President Xi in Uzbekistan. All such meetings went fine. In Beijing, Sharif declared that the second phase of the CPEC would usher in a 'new era'.

In the current domestic power struggle in Pakistan, China has apparently maintained silence. Beijing kept quiet when, in April last year, then Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was ousted from the Parliament through a no-confidence motion. It kept quiet also when, in November last year, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan encountered an assassination attempt on his life during a public rally. Beijing kept quiet the other day too when Pakistan's paramilitary Rangers dragged him from Islamabad High Court premises.

In fact, Beijing has not been pleased with Khan. Its assessment has been that Khan was not friendly to its economic projects when he was in power. It may be borne in mind that the recent arrest of former Prime Minister Khan took place nearly two weeks after Pakistani Army Chief General Asim Munir, the de facto ruler of the country today, visited China.

The observers say New Delhi must remain cautious about the growing proximity between Beijing and Islamabad. India has had a history of arguments with both China and Pakistan. New Delhi must ensure that any coalescence between Beijing and Islamabad is not detrimental to India's national interest.

Pertinently, relations between Pakistan and China have somewhat been unparalleled since long. The successive leaderships in Islamabad and Beijing have championed this special bond. They have often described this relationship as "all-weather" one.

There has been a constant increase in China's political support to Pakistan. During the 1950s, China's position on the Kashmir issue was relatively neutral. In the 1960s and 1970s, China stepped up its support for Pakistan's version of "self-determination" on India's Kashmir.

OPINION: Pak is balancing between US, China

Presently, China favours resolving the Kashmir issue on the basis of the Pakistani version of the UN resolutions and its relevant bilateral agreements with India. After the abrogation of Article 370 by India in August 2019, China has vehemently opposed it. Beijing has also tried to trigger discussions on J&K in the United Nations Security Council at the behest of Pakistan. Also, Beijing has been pushing Islamabad from behind the scene to declare Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), an integral part of India's Jammu and Kashmir, as Pakistan's fifth province.

China has been one of the key defence partners of Pakistan. It has been the main force behind Pakistan nuclear-missile armament programme. Once China supplied to Pakistan ring magnets for high-speed centrifuges for its nuclear reactors.

Today, around 47 per cent of China's military exports go to Pakistan only. It includes small arms, fighter jets, ships and submarines, advanced equipment such as the JF-17 fighter jets, the K-8 training aircraft, Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), the Al-Khalid tanks and the Babur cruise missile.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
On Friday, May 19, at 14.00, the press center of the Interfax-Ukraine News Agency will host a press conference by Analytical Center United Ukraine entitled: "Is modernization of electricity tariffs for population forced, fair or delayed?" Participants include economist, financial analyst Oleksiy Kusch; political expert, Doctor of Political Sciences Petro Oleschuk; political analyst, PhD in Philosophy Valentyn Hladkykh; lawyer, financier, PhD in political sciences, executive Director of the Association of Local Authorities International Association of Small Communities Oleksiy Buriachenko (8/5a Reitarska Street). The event will be streamed on the Interfax-Ukraine YouTube channel, https://www.facebook.com/InterfaxUkraine/live_videos/ Admission of journalists requires registration on the spot. Additional information at: https://www.united-ukraine.org.ua/ or by email: tt.united.ukraine@gmail.com
My ego isn't bigger than a job: Priyanka takes a swipe at Shah Rukh's 'why should I go to Hollywood?' comment

CBI Books Wankhede for Seeking Rs 25 Cr Bribe For Not Framing Aryan in Cordelia Case

Aryan Khan Case: Sameer Wankhede Claims His Seniors Asked to Fight for Remand of SRKs Son

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) zonal director Sameer Wankhede, summoned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for questioning in the Aryan Khan drug bust case, has filed a petition in the Delhi High Court claiming that he had informed his seniors about the arrest of Shah Rukh Khan's son.

Wankhede's petition, accessed by CNN-News18, was submitted on Wednesday in the Delhi High Court, seeking to file a cross FIR against a senior NCB officer.

The court has granted interim protection to Wankhede and directed him to approach the Bombay High Court since the case falls under its jurisdiction. This protection is valid until May 22.

In his petition, Wankhede has provided WhatsApp chats with his seniors as evidence, allegedly showing their appreciation and their awareness of Aryan Khan's arrest.

One of the chats reportedly indicates that Wankhede's immediate superior instructed him to ensure that the senior public prosecutor sought Aryan's remand, stating that these instructions came from the DG office.

Sameer Wankhede Gets CBI Summons In Aryan Khan Case

Wankhede claims that he received additional support for the investigation and was provided with two teams from Indore and Ahmedabad.

"We are planning to approach the court soon. The process is underway, but it is unlikely to happen today," sources was quoted as saying by News18.

Due to the interim protection, Wankhede did not appear before the CBI as of now.

A reliable source from the CBI mentioned on Wednesday night that the investigating team had traveled from Delhi to Mumbai to gather evidence in the case.

Allegations have been made that Wankhede, along with his officers VV Singh and Ashish Ranjan, as well as two civilians acting as witnesses in the case, attempted to extort Rs 25 crore from Aryan Khan's family. The deal was reportedly settled at Rs 18 crores, and the witnesses accepted a bribe of Rs 50 lakhs, but returned a portion of the amount.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 19:55 [IST]
12 dead, several hurt as bus falls into gorge on old Mumbai-Pune highway

Jerry Springer, Americas talk show host and former mayor of Cincinnati, dies at 79

BJP MP Rattan Lal Kataria Dies At 71

India

oi-PTI

Former Union minister and the BJP's Ambala MP Rattan Lal Kataria died on Thursday. He was 71.

Senior BJP leaders, including Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and the party's state unit chief Om Prakash Dhankar expressed their condolences.

Rattan Lal Kataria had been admitted at the PGIMER here for the past month following an illness. He died around 3.30 am, an aide told PTI.

Rattan Lal Kataria is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari Gets Death Threat Again

"I am deeply saddened by the demise of former Union Minister of State and MP from Ambala Ratan Lal Kataria," Khattar said in a tweet in Hindi.

Kataria always raised his voice in Parliament for the benefit of society and the progress of the people of Haryana, Khattar said and added, "His departure is an irreparable loss to politics."
Congress Leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Explains Why 'The Kerala Story' Is Tax Free In UP, MP

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Thursday criticised the tax-free status of Sudipto Sen's controversial film 'The Kerala Story' in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, attributing it to the Bharatiya Janata Party's divisive politics. According to Chowdhury, these states governed by the BJP refuse to showcase films related to revolutionary Indian personalities but willingly promote 'The Kerala Story' and 'The Kashmir Files' without any charges.

Chowdhury's remarks followed the Supreme Court's stay on the Bengal government's ban on public screenings of 'The Kerala Story.'

The court ruled that the ban imposed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's government lacked supporting evidence presented to the court. The bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, also emphasised that it is the responsibility of the elected state government to maintain law and order, considering that the film has received clearance from the censor board.

Responding to the court's order, Shashi Panja, Bengal's Women and Social Welfare Minister, stated that the Supreme Court had provided its observations. She added that the chief minister would determine the subsequent course of action. Panja highlighted that Mamata Banerjee's intention was to prevent harm to any community and avoid any law and order disturbances, prompting her to make the decision.

The Kerala Story Can Now Play In West Bengal As SC Lifts Stay On Ban

Amit Malviya from the BJP, who strongly criticized Mamata Banerjee when she announced the ban, accusing her of siding with radical elements instead of supporting the safety of their daughters, welcomed the Supreme Court's verdict. Malviya emphasized that it is now the responsibility of Mamata Banerjee, as the Home Minister of Bengal, to ensure the uninterrupted screening of the movie. He criticized Banerjee's frequent dog-whistles and appeasement politics, which, according to him, have undermined freedom of speech in Bengal.

Mamata Banerjee had previously announced the ban on the movie 'The Kerala Story,' stating that it was done to prevent any incidents of hatred, violence, and to maintain peace in the state. She questioned the motives behind 'The Kashmir Files' and labeled 'The Kerala Story' as distorted, suggesting that it aimed to humiliate a particular section of society.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 18:49 [IST]
5 Guarantees Will Be Fulfilled At Any Cost: New Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah In His First Press Conference

Almost All Ministers In New Karnataka Cabinet Have Pending Criminal Cases

Gandhi Family To Attend Swearing-In-Ceremony of Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

The swearing-in ceremony of the Karnataka chief minister will be attended by the Gandhi family.

Congress chief, Mallikarjun Kharge would also extend an invitation to the opposition leaders in the state to attend the event. Sources said that Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi would attend the event to be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

After much deliberation, the Congress finally came to a consensus and decided that Siddaramaiah would be the chief minister of Karnataka. It was also decided that D K Shivakumar would take oath as the deputy chief minister. The Congress said that a Cabinet would be in place in the next 72 hours.

Siddaramaiah Is Next Karnataka CM, Shivakumar His Deputy

D K Shivakumar told certain media outlets that he would be the next deputy chief minister, while Siddaramaiah would be chief minister.

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Shivakumar said that the party high command has taken a decision on him being the deputy chief minister. He also met with senior Congress leader K V Venugopal in Delhi. Prior to this Siddaramaiah had met with Venugopal in Delhi. Both leaders are likely to leave for Bengaluru today.

Siddaramaiah after attending the meeting was confronted by reporters and asked about the decision that was taken. He however refused to speak to the media.

Karnataka: Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar Likely To Share Terms As Chief Ministers

Meanwhile arrangements for the ceremony took place on Wednesday itself at the Kanteerva Stadium in Bengaluru. The police inspected the venue ahead of the key event.

Sources also said that Shivakumar apart from being given the deputy CM's post was also offered six portfolios of his choice.
5 Guarantees Will Be Fulfilled At Any Cost: New Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah In His First Press Conference

Almost All Ministers In New Karnataka Cabinet Have Pending Criminal Cases

Govt Formation In Karnataka: Congress Legislature Party Meeting At 7 PM Today

India

oi-PTI

As suspense continues over the formation of a new government in Karnataka, a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting has been called by the party's state unit chief D K Shivakumar here on Thursday evening.

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief has written to all the legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road here at 7 pm.

Hectic parleys were held on Wednesday to break the deadlock in deciding on the Congress's chief ministerial pick in Karnataka, with both the hopefuls -- Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- presenting their cases before the top brass even as the party asserted that an outcome is likely within a day or two.

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After the multiple rounds of discussions, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said a decision on the new cabinet will be in place in the next 48-72 hours.

Karnataka: Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar Likely To Share Terms As Chief Ministers

In the May 10 elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats, while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats respectively.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 8:34 [IST]
In Larger Interest of Party: DK Shivakumar Confirms Siddaramaiah As New Karnataka CM

India

oi-Deepika S

Karnataka Congress Chief D.K. Shivakumar, who has been given the post of Deputy CM on Thursday said that he accepted the decision in the larger interest of the party.

"We have a commitment before the people of Karnataka. Parliament elections are ahead. So, I have to bow to the party president and the Gandhi family. So, in the larger interest of the party, I have agreed to the formula. Because sometimes the ice should break. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a commitment to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver," Shivakumar was quoted saying by news agency ANI.

After days of hectic parleys, the Congress has named Siddaramaiah as the chief minister of Karnataka. He is likely to take oath as the 30th chief minister of Karnataka on May 20.

However, Shivakumar's brother D.K. Suresh expressed unhappiness over the Congress move to appoint Siddaramaiah as CM but said that the decision was taken in the interest of Karnataka and the party.

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Gandhi Family To Attend Swearing-In-Ceremony of Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar

"I am not fully happy but in the interest of Karnataka, we wanted to fulfil our commitment...That is why DK Shivakumar had to accept. In the future we will see, there is a long way to go. ...I wish it (CM post for DK Shivakumar) but it didn't happen, we will wait and see"," Suresh said.

D.K. Shivakumar, Known as Congress 'troubleshooter' was initially reluctant to leave the CM post during his negotiations with the party's high command. However, Sonia Gandhi played a pivotal role in convincing Shivakumar for the deputy CM post, ending days of uncertainty.
We know how that ended in UP: Malviya on on BJPs Karnataka battle

In The End Corruption Wins: BJP's Amit Malviya On Cong's Karnataka Decision

India

oi-Deepika S

The BJP on Thursday hit out at the Congress for ignoring sub-regional aspirations and prominent communities with its choice of Siddaramaiah as the new Karnataka chief minister and D.K. Shivakumar as his deputy.

BJP I-T chief Amit Malviya also claimed that for the first time, there will be no representation from the all-powerful Lingayat community or the SCs.

"For the first time, Karnataka will have a government that doesn't represent either sub-regional aspirations or for that matter prominent communities. Both CM designate Siddaramaiah and to be Deputy CM DKS come from south Karnataka. For the first time there will be no representation from the all-powerful Lingayat community or the SCs," Malviya tweeted.

"The Congress has intentionally left out MB Patil and Dr G Parameshwara, both of who could have well been made DCMs. Congress is hell-bent on humiliating both these senior leaders and their communities," he said.

What Does Power Sharing In Karnataka Mean? Congress Answers

"In the end, corruption wins. As the only DCM and money bag, DKS will run the show, control most of the ministerial appointments and reduce Karnataka to an ATM, just to please the Gandhis in Delhi. Siddaramaiah will be reduced to being a placeholder CM, whose last term, to put it mildly, was nothing short of a disaster," he added

Karnataka is in for a rough time ahead, with unfulfilled aspirations, holding up its development, he further claimed.

After nearly a week of speculations, Shivakumar, who was also contending for the role of chief minister, agreed to become Siddaramaiah's deputy. Both the leaders will take oath on May 20 at 12.30 pm in Bengaluru.

The Congress has invited leaders of all like-minded parties will be invited for the swearing-in ceremony.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav will attend the swearing-in ceremony of new Karnataka cabinet.
Indian Navy Deploys P8I Aircraft To Rescue 39 Crew On Chinese Fishing Vessel That Sank

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

In response to a request from the Chinese Navy, the Indian Navy has offered assistance in the search for a Chinese fishing vessel with 39 crew members onboard that sank in the Indian Ocean. China sought help from multiple countries, including India, to aid in the rescue operation of the capsized vessel, which has been located in the central region of the Indian Ocean since Tuesday.

The Indian Navy deployed its 'Air MR assets' in the Southern Indian Ocean Region to assist in the rescue of the sinking Chinese fishing vessel. Despite adverse weather conditions, the Indian Navy's P8I aircraft conducted multiple extensive searches and located several objects that potentially belong to the sunken vessel. In response to the request from the Chinese PLA(N) ships, the Indian aircraft deployed search and rescue equipment at the scene, as confirmed by the Indian Navy spokesperson.

In a swift humanitarian action on 17 May #IndianNavy deployed its Air MR assets in the Southern IOR approx 900 Nm from India, in response to sinking of a #Chinese Fishing Vessel Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 with 39 crew onboard. The crew incl nationals from China, Indonesia & Philippines pic.twitter.com/gbcbh8DlSc  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) May 18, 2023

On Thursday, two bodies were discovered during the ongoing search for the missing crew members, according to China's state media. The search operation, which followed the capsizing of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, successfully found and salvaged the remains of two victims, as reported by Xinhua news agency. However, no details regarding the nationalities of the bodies were provided.

In Latest Round Of India-China Military Level Talks, Some Teething Issues Resolved

The capsized boat is located within Australia's extensive search-and-rescue region, approximately 5,000 kilometers west of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, according to Beijing's ambassador to Canberra. Australia has dispatched three aircraft and four ships to assist in the international search-and-rescue efforts, and the Chinese ambassador has urged Australia to provide additional aircraft, ships, and personnel for the search.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has identified a remote 12,000 square kilometer zone in the Indian Ocean for search operations based on drift modeling. The AMSA is also collaborating with the China Meteorological Administration to predict the drift of the missing crew members and is enhancing coordination with search and rescue agencies in Australia, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka, as per their spokesperson.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin expressed that Chinese and foreign vessels have arrived at the relevant waters to conduct search and rescue operations for the capsized fishing vessel, known as "Lupeng Yuanyu 028." He assured that efforts would continue in collaboration with relevant parties to locate the missing individuals.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 17:54 [IST]
Kiren Rijiju Replaced As Law Minister, Meghwal Takes His Place

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Arjun Ram Meghwal has replaced Kiren Rijiju as the Union Law Minister.

Kiren Rijiju has been assigned the Ministry of Earth Sciences, sources tell OneIndia.

A communication by Rashtrapati Bhavan said, "the President of India, as advised by the Prime Minister has been pleased to direct the reallocation of portfolios among the Ministers in the Union Council of Ministers. The portfolio of Ministry of Earth Sciences is being assigned to Kiren Rijiju. Arjun Ram Meghwal, minister of state is being assigned the independent charge as ministry of state in the ministry of law and justice in addition to his existing portfolios in place of Kiren Rijiju."

Union Minister, Jitendra Singh was holding the charge of the ministry earth sciences.

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The development comes amidst the tussle over the Supreme Court's Collegium system. Rijiju had said that the Collegium system of appointing of judges was opaque and not transparent.

Earlier Rijiju had made remarks about some retired judges as being part of an anti-India gang. He had received a lot of flak from the opposition leaders for that comment. The opposition leader said that the minister was talking like an 'outlaw' and was propagating injustice.

IN January Rijiju had written a letter to Chief Justice of India, D Y Chandrachud, suggesting the inclusion of a government nominee in the Collegium. This turned out to be a tussle between the Supreme Court and Centre over the delay in appointment of judges to the higher judiciary.

Rijiju took charge of the law ministry in July 2021. A law graduate from Delhi University's Campus Law Centre, he is a three-time Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal Pradesh.

Meanwhile, Rijiju extended his best wishes to Meghwal on his new responsibility. Meghwal on the other hand said that justice should be served to all and the cases pending in the court should be as less as possible.
Mumbai 26/11: The Importance Of Extraditing Tahawwur Rana

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

In a major victory for India, a US court has said that Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana who is wanted for his role in the Mumbai 26/11 blast can be extradited to India.

Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of US District Court in Central District of Los Angeles in an order dated May 16 said that, based on the foregoing, the court concludes that Rana (62) can be extradited for the offences for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding.

The probe into the attack is being carried out by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The NIA had visited the US a couple of times seeking the extradition of Rana.

During a much earlier visit, the NIA had also interrogated David Headley who was helped by Rana to visit India and survey targets for the Lashkar-e-Tayiba to attack.

Rana had been arrested in the US, following a request by India. NIA officials said that it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring Rana to India through diplomatic channels.

Officials tell OneIndia that they would now start working the diplomatic channels to ensure that Rana is brought down to India. Getting him to India and interrogating him would be important as the larger picture would be known then. The probe in India had found that Rana had made the travel arrangements for Headley who had visited India several times. Headley is also learnt to have been in touch with Rana during all his visits.

US Court Allows Extradition Of 26/11 Accused Tahawwur Rana To India

The visits by Headley had gone undetected and the agencies are still trying to ascertain how he had visited India and managed to survey so many targets. The official cited above also said that Headley had made more than one visit to India. During these visits, he had visited Mumbai, Pune and Delhi, the official also said.

During the proceedings, the prosecutors argued that Rana was well aware of Headley's involvement in the attack. He had assisted Headley and afforded him cover for his activities. He was also supporting the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and its associates, it was also argued.

Rana also knew of Healy's meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets, the court was told.

The US government further said that Rana was part of the conspiracy and there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commissioning an act of terror.

The extradition was however vehemently opposed by Rana's counsel.

The Mumbai 26/11 attack was one of the most horrific terror strikes that India has witnessed. Ten terrorists had laid siege to the city and kept many hostage in various hotels before killing 166. The siege that took place in 2008 lasted nearly 60 hours before the National Security Guards gunned down the terrorists. The lone surviving terrorist, Ajmal Kasab gave out the details of the attack and the planning. He was held guilty and subsequently hanged a few years later at a jail in Pune.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 8:42 [IST]
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The International North-South Transport Corridor, often referred to as the North-South Corridor, is a well-known and widely discussed trade route in the realm of global trade. It stretches from Russia through Azerbaijan and Iran to India, encompassing a comprehensive system of railways, roads, and maritime routes. The primary aim of this corridor is to streamline and improve trade between the start and end points of this significant route.

Just yesterday, Russia and Iran have signed an agreement on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway line.

Russia has allocated a total of 1.6 billion euros for the development of the segment of the railway. This particular railway construction project is anticipated to reach completion within a timeframe of 48 months. Along the 163-kilometers Rasht-Astara railway line, nine stations are set to be constructed. Once this railway project is successfully concluded, it will significantly enhance the efficiency and functionality of the International North-South Transport Corridor. Furthermore, it will establish vital railway connections between Iran, the Caucasus countries, Russia, and Northern European countries.

Iranian officials have estimated that a total of $4.76 billion will be required to successfully complete the construction of this significant railway line.

Both Iran and Russia, facing Western sanctions, are seeking mutual support and actively working to strengthen their cooperation. However, due to the absence of a shared border, they are compelled to cooperate either through the Caspian Sea or by using Azerbaijan's territory. Thus, the most preferable pathway for transporting goods, resources, and virtually everything else would be via Azerbaijan.

Moreover, Azerbaijan enjoys well-established economic connections with the neighboring regions of both Russia and Iran. For instance, approximately 100-200 trucks cross the Astara border checkpoint between Iran and Azerbaijan on a daily basis. Simultaneously, Iran is consistently expanding its exports to Azerbaijan through the same checkpoint.

Thanks to Azerbaijan's efforts, this part of the North-South corridor passing through its territory has been completed. However, the corridor was not operating at its full potential because it was not particularly crucial for Russia, which focused on other directions, and Iran was slow in making decisions. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has developed modern road and railway infrastructure within its territory, necessary for the launch of this route.

The Western Route, spanning 1,450 kilometers, which passes through Azerbaijan, is undeniably the most utilized and well-developed section of this corridor. The statistics demonstrate its significance, as the transit volume of goods along the Western route reached an impressive 2.15 million tons from January 1 through March 28, 2023. This marks a remarkable year-on-year growth of 84.37 percent, compared to the 1.16 million tons transported in 2022. The only hindrance in operating the route at full capacity has been the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway line. However, an agreement between Iran and Russia to build this line has been successfully finalized.

Transport routes that traverse Azerbaijan are now more appealing than ever, as the country is actively facilitating safe and expedited transit. Azerbaijan boasts a modern transportation infrastructure encompassing railways, roads, and maritime facilities, which not only saves time but also reduces costs. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that the volume of transit cargo passing through Azerbaijan witnessed a remarkable year-on-year increase of over 75 percent in 2022.

While partners were waiting for some progress from Iran regarding the railway project, the Iranian side unexpectedly announced its intention to work on the Persian Gulf-Black Sea route with Armenia. It seems that Iran had counted on utilizing the Armenian railways that were operational during the Soviet era. However, due to Azerbaijan's decisive victory in the 44-day war, it is unlikely to happen anytime soon. The impracticality of such plans was apparent to all, leading the Iranian side to recognize that the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway remained their primary focus.

In today's complex and rapidly changing world, Azerbaijan, situated at the crossroads between East and West, is becoming an increasingly attractive destination. In addition to the North-South corridor, Azerbaijan has also enhanced the capacity of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, commonly known as the Middle Corridor. Essentially, Azerbaijan has provided unparalleled conditions for the fastest, most cost-effective, and convenient transportation of goods.

The extensive construction work conducted in Azerbaijan's Karabakh and Zangazur economic regions, along with the two operational international airports and the potential opening of the Zangazur Corridor, will create vast opportunities not only for Iran and Russia but also for the broader region.

Through immense efforts invested in modernizing its transport and logistics infrastructure, the country will maintain its crucial role in transportation, regardless of any regional or global geopolitical disruptions.
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PM Modi Flags Off Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express

India

oi-Deepika S

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday flagged off Odisha's first Vande Bharat Express via video conferencing.

The Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will be West Bengal's second Vande Bharat Express, following the successful introduction of the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri route.

The new semi-high-speed express train, capable of running at the top speed of 180 kmph, will cover the distance of 500 km between Howrah and Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannath, in less than seven hours.

The indigenously manufactured Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will depart Howrah at 6.10 am and reach Puri at 12.35 pm. Again the train will depart Puri at 1.50 pm and arrive at Howrah at 8.30 pm.

The present fastest train on the same route, Shatabdi Express, takes 07. 35 hours. The new Vande Bharat Express will be faster by an hour than the present fastest train on the same route.

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The Howrah Puri Vande Bharat express train will cost around Rs 1,395 for a single journey in AC Chair Car class and Rs 2,515 for Exec. Chair Car (EC).

Puri, known as the abode of Lord Jagannath attracts a huge number of tourists from Bengal, particularly Kolkata and its surrounding areas.

The semi-high-speed express will provide a faster, more comfortable, and more convenient travel experience to rail users. It is also expected to boost tourism and promote economic development in the region.
Quad Summit Cancelled: PM Modi Will Go Ahead With Bilateral Engagements in Sydney

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

With the Quad Summit not set to take place in Sydney, the same is likely to be held in Hiroshima, on the margins of the G7 summit.

US President, Joe Biden had cancelled his trop to Australia due to the crucial deb-ceiling talks in Washington. Following this Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese had announced that the Quad leaders's summit will not take place in Sydney.

However Prime Minister Narendra Modi will continue his scheduled trip to Australia as bilateral engagements have been lined up, which includes a meeting with Albanese. The PM will also be meeting with top CEOs and the Indian diaspora in Sydney.

Australia Cancels Quad Summit In Sydney After Biden Postpones Trip Over US Debt

On Wednesday, Biden had announced that he would postpone the Australia leg od his Asia trip, along with that of Papua New Guinea due to the uncertainty and intense negotiations with the opposition Republican. Party to ensure that America does not default on its debt for the first time in history.

"The Quad leaders' meeting will not be going ahead in Sydney next week," Albanese had said.

ll be having that discussion between Quad leaders in Japan. I thank Prime Minister (Fumio) Kishida for his invitation for me to attend the G7 and it is appropriate that we talk. The Quad is an important body and we want to make sure that it occurs at the leadership level and we'll be having that discussion over the weekend," he added.

He also said, " all four leaders - President Biden, Prime Minister Kishida, Prime Minister Modi and myself - will be at the G7, held in Hiroshima on Saturday and Sunday. We are attempting to get together over that period of time (and) I'll have a bilateral discussion with President Biden."

He however added that PM Modi will still travel to Australia.

"Prime Minister Modi will be here next week for a bilateral meeting with myself," Albanese told ABC Radio in Brisbane. Modi will also have business meetings and will hold a very public event at Homebush, at the Olympic Park in Sydney," the Australian PM also said.

Quad cyber group meets in New Delhi to enhance cybersecurity cooperation

The engagements of PM Modi will remain unchanged, barring the Quad Summit in Sydney.

The Ministry of External Affairs announced that PM Modi will be on a three-nation tour starting Friday, which included his visit to Australia from May 22 to 24.

In the first leg of the visit, the PM would visit Hiroshima from May 19 to 21 for the G7 annual summit. From there he would travel to Papua New Guinea where he will co-host the third summit of the forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation on May 22.
Rijijus Replacement As Law Minister Not a Pre-Cursor To Further Cabinet Reshuffles: Sources

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Kiren Rijiju was today replaced as Union Law Minister and handed over the Earth Sciences Ministry. He was replaced by Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.

This was one of the biggest changes in the Cabinet since the Narendra Modi government came back to power in 2019. However the question that is being asked if this is a pre-cursor to further reshuffles in the Union Cabinet.

Sources in the know of things tell OneIndia that there is no such precursor and this was a one-off decision. There is unlikely to be anymore change in the Union Cabinet ahead of the elections to be held in 2024, the source cited above said.

In a tweet following the decision by the government, Rijiju too to Twitter and wrote, "it has been been a privelege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law & Justice under the guidance of Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. I thank honble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, all Judges of Supreme Court, Chief Justices and Judges of High Courts, Lower Judiciary & entire Law officers for the huge support in ensuring delivering ease of Justice and providing legal services for our citizens. I look forward to fulfilling the vision of Hon'ble PM Sh @narendramodi ji in the Earth Sciences Ministry with the same zeal and vigour I have imbibed as a humble karyakarta of @BJP4India."

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It has been been a privelege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law & Justice under the guidance of Honble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. I thank honble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, all Judges of Supreme Court, Chief Justices and Judges of High Courts, Lower pic.twitter.com/CSCT8Pzn1q  Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) May 18, 2023

Rijiju had taken on the judiciary on several issues right from the appointment of judges to accountability of court vacations.

Kiren Rijiju Replaced As Law Minister, Meghwal Takes His Place

Meghwal became the Member of Parliament from the Bikaner constituency in Rajasthan in the year 2009. In the 2014 he was re-elected. During his second term as MP, he was the chief whip of the BJP in the Lok Sabha. He was also nominated as the chairman of the House Committee in the Lok Sabha by the Speaker of the House. In 2019, he became minister of state for Parliamentary Affairs and Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.
SC Refuses To Stay Patna HC Order Halting Caste Survey In Bihar

India

oi-Deepika S

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to lift Patna High Court stay order on the caste-based survey in Bihar.

The apex court, however, agreed to list the case on July 14 if the hearing before the High Court does not commence on July 3.

"The impugned order is an interim one and the court has posted the main writ for hearing on July 3. In fact, the state government on May 9 moved applications before the Court that were disposed of. The contention of Advocate General was specifically rejected and final opinions were expressed. In fact, the High Court has observed that the court was open to other contentions when taken up for hearing," Bar and Bench quoted the judge as saying.

In an appeal filed before the Supreme Court against the May 4 order of the high court, the state government said the stay will adversely affect the entire exercise.

The state government said the collection of caste-based data is a constitutional mandate under Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution.

Oppn clamour for caste census grows ahead of 2024 parliamentary polls

"The State has already completed more than 80 per cent of the survey work in some districts and less than 10 per cent of work is pending. The entire machinery is working at ground level. There shall be no harm in completing the exercise subject to final adjudication of the dispute," the state government said in its plea.

"The time gap to complete the survey would adversely affect the survey since this would not be contemporaneous data. The stay of collection of data itself would cause a huge loss to the State since, if finally the action of the State is upheld, the State would be required to put logistics in place with additional expenditure and burden on public exchequer," the plea said.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 14:58 [IST]
School Jobs Scam: TMC Leader Abhishek Moves SC Against CBI Questioning, Plea To Be Heard On May 26

SC Seeks EDs Reply on Bail Plea of Satyendar Jain in Money Laundering Case

India

oi-PTI

The Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the bail plea of former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain in a money laundering case being probed by the agency.

A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and Hima Kohli issued notice to the ED and granted liberty to Jain to move before the vacation bench for relief.

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Jain, said the former minister has lost 35 kg and virtually became a skeleton. He is also suffering from various ailments.

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the ED, said they are on caveat and opposing the plea.

The bench, which did not give any specific date, said Jain can approach the vacation bench of the top court for relief.

On April 6, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the bail plea of Jain in a money laundering case noting the witnesses' claim that he was the conceptualiser, initiator and fund provider in the alleged crime.

Tihar Jail SP Gets Notice After 2 Inmates Shifted To Satyendar Jains Cell on His Request

The high court said the senior AAP leader was an influential person having the potential to tamper with evidence.

The ED had arrested Jain in the money laundering case based on a CBI FIR registered against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

He was granted regular bail by a trial court on September 6, 2019, in the case registered by the CBI.

In 2022, the trial court had taken cognisance of the prosecution complaint (charge sheet) filed by the ED against Jain, his wife and eight others, including the four firms, in connection with the money laundering case.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 16:18 [IST]
Seems like his leader is Raje, not Sonia Gandhi: Pilot attacks Gehlot

Sachin Pilot's Ultimatum To Gehlot: Agree To Demands By Month-End Or Face State-Wide Agitation

Scuffle At Congress Meeting Between Sachin Pilot, Gehlot Supporters In Ajmer

India

oi-PTI

Supporters of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his bete noire Sachin Pilot on Thursday got into a scuffle with each other ahead of a feedback meeting with the party workers in Ajmer, police said.

The meeting was scheduled at a place in Vaishali Nagar area of the city ahead of a meeting scheduled to be chaired by AICC's Rajasthan co-incharge Amrita Dhawan.

According to Christianganj Police Station SHO Karan Singh, supporters of both leaders had an altercation over seating arrangement, which led to a scuffle.

"It was an office bearers meeting where supporters of Ajmer Saras Dairy Chairman Ramchandra Chaudhary and RTDC Chairman Dharmendra Rathore had come. They started shouting slogans against each other, which led to a scuffle between them," Congress city president Vijay Jain said.

Citing Karnataka Assembly Polls, Pilot Jabs at Gehlot Over Corruption During BJP Rule

SHO Karan Singh said that police present at the spot intervened and pacified the protestors. No major injury was reported, he added.

Rift runs deep in the Rajasthan Congress with Pilot raising a dissident's banner against Gehlot over alleged corruption by the previous BJP dispensation in the state and demanding action against them.

Apart from a call for a high-level probe into corruption, Pilot recently spelled out two other demands - disbanding the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) and its reconstitution, and compensation for those affected by the cancellation of government recruitment exams after paper leaks.

Earlier in the week, he also threatened a statewide agitation if his demands are not met.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 23:51 [IST]
Almost All Ministers In New Karnataka Cabinet Have Pending Criminal Cases

Siddaramaiah Will Be CM for 5 Years: MB Patil Gives A Twist To Power-Sharing Story

We Will Put An End To Moral Policing, Says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

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Siddaramaiah: 5 Facts About The New Karnataka Chief Minister

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

After a four-day wait, the Congress party has formally announced Siddaramaiah as the new Chief Minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar is set to be his sole deputy.

Here are 5 Interesting facts on Siddaramaiah:

Siddaramaiah was born in Siddapura village in Mysore district in 1953. He belongs to the Kuruba community, which is a Scheduled Tribe in Karnataka. The Kurubas are a peasant community and they are the largest Scheduled Tribe in Karnataka.

Siddaramaiah, aged 75, is set to become the first Chief Minister since D Devraj Urs (1972-1980) to serve a full term in office and then return for a second term. Notably, Urs's second term was relatively short, lasting less than two years. During his first term, Urs served during the Emergency period declared by Indira Gandhi.

Siddaramaiah holds the distinction of being the first Chief Minister to complete a term, lose an election, and then return to office as Chief Minister. In contrast, Urs had won his second election while serving as the incumbent Chief Minister. The last incumbent Chief Minister to secure re-election was Ramakrishna Hegde, who, after his first term (1983-85), called for mid-term polls. Hegde emerged victorious in 1985 and remained Chief Minister until 1988.

If Siddaramaiah completes his current term, he will become the only Chief Minister in Karnataka's history to serve two full terms. In comparison, the four-time Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa did not manage to complete a single term.

Having joined the Congress party in 2006 after his stint with the Janata Dal (Secular), Siddaramaiah stands as the only Congress leader to have enjoyed a five-year term as Chief Minister.
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Siddaramaiah Elected Congress Legislative Party Leader, Set For 2nd Term As CM

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

A meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) on Thursday formally elected Siddaramaiah as its leader and Chief Minister of Karnataka, following which he staked his claim with the Governor, who invited him to form the government.

Ending days of suspense, the Congress central leadership earlier on Thursday announced that Siddaramaiah would be the chief minister, while state party chief D K Shivakumar would be his only deputy.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced the decision, stating, "We have finalized Siddaramaiah as the Chief Minister of Karnataka, with DK Shivakumar as the sole Deputy Chief Minister." Additionally, Shivakumar will continue to hold the position of the party's Karnataka state president until the conclusion of the 2024 parliamentary elections.

Siddaramaiah: 5 Facts About The New Karnataka Chief Minister

The meeting of newly-elected Congress MLAs, MLCs and MPs, which took place at Indira Gandhi Bhavan, was also attended by AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala and two other central observers -- former Maharashtra Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and AICC general secretary Jitendra Singh.

According to Surjewala, Shivakumar moved a resolution to elect Siddaramaiah as the new leader of the CLP. All the members of the CLP endorsed it unanimously.

Following this, Siddaramaiah along with Shivakumar and other Congress leaders met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot at Raj Bhavan and staked his claim to form the government.

The Governor invited Siddaramaiah to take oath as Chief Minister and Shivakumar as Deputy Chief Minister along with their team members at 12.30 PM on May 20 at Kanteerva Stadium here, the Governor's letter addressed to the new CLP leader said.

The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for May 20 at 12:30 pm in Bengaluru. The event is expected to symbolize the unity of the opposition against the BJP, as Congress has extended invitations to various regional party leaders from across several states.
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Siddaramaiah Is Next Karnataka CM, Shivakumar His Deputy

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Siddaramaiah would be sworn in as the next Chief Minister of Karnataka while D K Shivakumar would be his deputy, the Congress has decided.

After much deliberation, the party took this call in Delhi and it had been decided that the swearing-in ceremony will be held on May 20.

The decision was taken after Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge arrived at a consensus with both leaders.

Both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have been in Delhi for the past couple of days during which they held discussions with senior leaders including Rahul Gandhi. Both leaders were in the race to become CM but the high command prevailed and took a final call on the matter.

Siddaramaiah to be the next chief minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar to take oath as deputy chief minister. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge arrived at a consensus for Karnataka government formation. The oath ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on 20th May. pic.twitter.com/CJ4K7hWsKM  ANI (@ANI) May 17, 2023

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Now Siddaramaiah will be elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party following which the Cabinet will be formed. The party had said on Wednesday that the Cabinet would be formed in the next 72 hours.

There is however no official word on whether the two leaders will share the term. It has been hard for the party to coax Shivakumar into agreeing to this arrangement.

Shivakumar wad offered the post of deputy and some ministries of his choice.

Meanwhile Karnataka Congress chief Shivakumar has called for a meeting of the legislature party in Bengaluru at 7 pm today.

Meanwhile preparations got underway in Bengaluru for the swearing-in ceremony. Police personnel were seen at the Kanteerva Stadium taking stock of the situation.
Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar Meet Guv, Stake Claim To Form K'taka Govt; Swearing-in on May 20

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Senior Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar along with other Karnataka unit leaders met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot at Raj Bhavan on Thursday and staked claim to form the next government in the state.

The Governor invited Siddaramaiah to take oath as Chief Minister and Shivakumar as Deputy Chief Minister along with their team members at 12.30 PM on May 20 at Kanteerva Stadium in Bengaluru, the Governor's letter addressed to the new CLP leader said.

Meanwhile, Congress MLA G Parameshwara visited Raj Bhavan as a representative of the party and met with Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot and handed him over the letter requesting him to fix the swearing-in ceremony of the new Congress government on May 20. He informed the Governor about the Congress Party's victory in 135 seats in the 2023 elections and the formation of the government.

Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar, who had been in the national capital for several days after winning the Karnataka Assembly polls, left for Bengaluru in the afternoon. A Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting is scheduled to be held in Bengaluru at 7 pm today.

Following days of deliberation, the Congress party announced on Thursday that Siddaramaiah would be the next Chief Minister of Karnataka, with DK Shivakumar as the Deputy Chief Minister.

Siddaramaiah To Be Karnataka CM, DK Shivakumar His Only Deputy

Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal made the announcement, stating that Shivakumar would continue as the state Congress chief until the Lok Sabha polls. He also mentioned that Shivakumar would be the only Deputy Chief Minister. The swearing-in ceremony for the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and a group of ministers will take place on May 20.

The decision on the Chief Minister was made after discussions and meetings among party leaders, with party chief Mallikarjun Kharge being authorized by the newly-elected MLAs to select their leader. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar both put forward their claims for the Chief Minister's position, leading to extensive deliberations before the final decision was reached.

In the May 10 elections for the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, Congress secured 135 seats, defeating the ruling BJP, which obtained 66 seats, while the Janata Dal (Secular) won 19 seats.
The first day of the GSMA Mobile 360 Eurasia event was held in Baku, Azerbaijan on May 16.

This international conference acknowledges Azerbaijans ambition to emerge as a digital power in the region, considering the country's achievements in testing new-generation networks and making use of the opportunities offered by LTE. The conference brought together renowned global and regional experts from the connectivity ecosystem to explore ways to safeguard critical infrastructure while investing in future growth and capturing value.

Each of the speakers touched on the crucial matters of modern-day telecommunication issues, cybersecurity and digital resilience.

According to Minister of Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan Rashad Nabiyev, the mobile communication sector of Azerbaijan has reached a new level of development, as this field is rapidly developing in the country.

"In Azerbaijan, we continue to invest in broadband network infrastructure and by 2024 we will cover the entire country with the internet. We are also working on a project that will connect the internet from Central Asia to Europe," Nabiyev said.

The next speaker, Zarina Zeynalova, CEO of Azercell, noted the importance of this platform for the exchange of views and opinions in the field of telecommunications and cybersecurity.

"We aim to cover Azerbaijans Karabakh with mobile communications and contribute to the social development of this region. This will also speed up the reconstruction process," she said.

An Jian, President of Carrier Network Business Group Huawei Middle East & Central Asia, taking the floor, noted the importance of the digital economy for global economic development and good connectivity infrastructure is the foundation. He noted that 5G has accomplished more than what 4G achieved in five years, with over 249 commercial 5G networks globally, serving over 1 billion users.

5G technology has reached its full potential, transforming telecommunications and benefiting users and industries. Investing in a strong 4G network is essential for the success of 5G.

He also proposed to promote energy efficiency and sustainability in network development for a greener future.

Photo of Mr. An Jian, President of Carrier Business Group Huawei Middle East & Central Asia

Moreover, during the panel discussions, David Xu, General Director of Huawei Technologies Azerbaijan LLC, said that there is still a while to go to implement new technologies as the path is quite challenging, but there are always ways to provide some solutions. He noted that by virtue of Huawei's solutions, investing in 4G today means investing in 5G tomorrow. In terms of the development of advanced communications technologies in Azerbaijan, he highlighted that the main investment area, in this case, is the country's network capacity. In conclusion, the opening day of GSMA Mobile 360 Eurasia, supported by Azercell as the host sponsor and Huawei as the industry sponsor, brought together leading experts who discussed critical topics in modern telecommunications technology. The conference provided valuable insights into the current state of 5G development, strategies to mitigate cyberattacks, and ways to enhance coverage. With the contributions of these industry leaders, the event shed light on key advancements and challenges in the connectivity ecosystem.
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Supreme Court Refuses To Ban 'Jallikattu'

India

oi-Deepika S

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Tamil Nadu law allowing 'Jallikattu', a traditional bull-taming sport in the state.

A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Justice K M Joseph, which delivered a unanimous verdict, also upheld the validity of Kambala in Karnataka and bullock-cart races in Maharashtra.

The bench comprising Justice KM Joseph, Justice Ajay Rastogi, Justice Aniruddha Bose, Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice CT Ravikumar observed that "when the Legislature has declared that Jallikattu is part of the cultural heritage of the Tamil Nadu state, Judiciary cannot take a different view. The legislature is best suited to decide that."

"We are satisfied with materials that Jallikattu has been going in Tamil Nadu for the last century. Whether this as part of an integral part of Tamil culture requires greater detail, which exercise the Judiciary cannot undertake. We do not accept the view of Nagaraja that Jallikattu is not a part of the cultural heritage of the state of Tamil Nadu. We do not think that there was sufficient material for the Court to come to that conclusion," the bench said.

'Jallikattu', also known as 'Eruthazhuvuthal', is a popular sport played in Tamil Nadu as part of the Pongal harvest festival.

A batch of petitions, including one filed by animal rights body PETA, have challenged Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra laws allowing the traditional bull-taming sport 'Jallikattu'.

In its 2014 judgement, the top court said bulls cannot be used as performing animals either for 'Jallikattu' events or bullock-cart races, and banned their use for these purposes across the country.

In 2018, the top court reffered the matter to the Constitution bench, saying the petitions challenging the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 2017, needed to be decided by a larger bench since they involved substantial questions relating to the interpretation of the Constitution.
The Kerala Story Can Now Play In West Bengal As SC Lifts Stay On Ban

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

The Supreme Court has stayed the ban imposed by the West Bengal government on the screening of The Kerala Story.

This means that the movie can be now screened in the state.

On May 8 the Bengal government had banned the film saying that it would create communal tensions.

The makers of the movie told the court that they would add to the present disclaimer that the film-maker has no authentic data to back the figure of 32,000 conversions Hindu and Christians to Islam. They also said that they would add that the content is a fictionalised account.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India, D Y Chandrachud, Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala said that they would watch the movie in July when they take up appeals against the decisions of the High Courts of Kerala and Madras which had refused to entertain pleas to ban the film in those respective states.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Bench that the movie is being screened across India and the apprehensions are fictional. He also said that those who do not want to watch the film can choose to do so.

The court then said that it will define the doctrine as to what could be permissible and impermissible in a film.

The Bench also said that it would define all parameters and contours of free speech even as advocate Hufeza Ahmadi said that the continuance of the screening of the movie will create deep divide in society even if it may not result in physical violence.
Who is Siddaramaiah, Karnataka's CM-designate?

India

oi-Deepika S

After days of hectic parleys and suspense, Congress has finally decided to go with Siddaramaiah as the next Chief Minister of Karnataka. D.K. Shivakumar, another contender for the top post, claimed that he decided to make the sacrifice and agreed to be his deputy "in the interest of the party."

Born on 12th August 1948 at Siddaramanahundi village in Mysuru district, Siddaramaiah graduated from Mysore University with a B.Sc. degree and later studied Law at the same institution and pursued it as a profession for some time.

Siddaramaiah made his electoral debut on a Bharatiya Lok Dal ticket from the Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysore. He later joined then ruling Janata Party. Known for his oratory skills, Siddaramaiah was influenced by Dr Ram Manohar Lohia's brand of socialism.

In Larger Interest of Party: DK Shivakumar Confirms Siddaramaiah As New Karnataka CM

After the fractured verdict in 2004, Congress and JDS formed a coalition government under the leadership of Congress' N. Dharam Singh. Siddaramaiah, then in JDS, was made the Deputy Chief Minister.

In 2006, Siddaramaiah joined Congress after being expelled from JDS following differences with party supremo H.D. Deve Gowda. A mass leader with more than four decades of political experience, 75-year-old Siddaramaiah was instrumental in bringing Congress to power in 2013 Assembly elections.

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Congress officially announces Siddaramaiah as Karnataka CM, Shivakumar as deputy CM | Oneindia News

Siddaramaiah is considered the architect of the ''Ahinda'' - an acronym for the Kannada words Alpasankhyataru (minorities), Hindulidavaru (backward classes) and Dalitaru (Dalits) - formula. He used Ahinda formula to consolidate his position as a mass leader in the State and catapult Congress to power in the 2013 elections.

In 2013, he became the Chief Minister overpowering his closest contestant for the post M. Mallikarjun Kharge, who is now the AICC president. Siddaramaiah was the third Karnataka CM after S Nijalingappa and Devaraj Urs to complete a full term in office.

Siddaramaiah Is Next Karnataka CM, Shivakumar His Deputy

He also has a record of presenting as many as 13 State budgets as Finance Minister. As Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaaih has launched various welfare measures such as Anna Bhagya (free rice scheme), Ksheera Bhagya (free milk), setting up Indira Canteens, etc.

However, Siddaramaiah had tasted defeat in the 1989 and 1999 Assembly elections. Despite being a popular CM, he lost the 2018 polls in Chamundeshwari in Mysuru to JDS leader G.T. Deve Gowda by 36,042 votes. Later, he managed to win from Badami, the other constituency from where he had contested then and defeated BJP's B. Sriramulu.
Why Should I Be upset? There Is A Long Way To Go, Says DK Shivakumar

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Congress leader DK Shivakumar, who was announced to be sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, on Thursday expressed his optimism and emphasized the need to fulfill the promises made after the party's significant victory in the recent assembly elections. He stated that there was nothing to be upset about and that there is a long way to go in their journey.

Shivakumar said, "Why should I be upset? There is a long way to go," when asked if he is happy on being named the Deputy CM. He further mentioned that everything is well within the party, and the Congress leadership, including Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, have emphasized the importance of working together.

Earlier in the day, Shivakumar was felicitated by Srinivas BV, the National President of the Indian Youth Congress. The Congress General Secretary, in a press conference held in the national capital, announced that Siddaramaiah would be the next Chief Minister of Karnataka, with DK Shivakumar as his sole deputy. Shivakumar will also continue as the President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee until the Lok Sabha polls.

Crediting the Congress party's victory to the people of Karnataka, the Congress General Secretary thanked the voters and acknowledged the hard work put in by leaders like Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and the Chief Ministers who campaigned extensively.

Siddaramaiah To Stake Claim Today To Form Karnataka Government; Oath Taking Event On Saturday

The Congress party recognised Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar as dynamic leaders and assets to the party. The General Secretary stated that both leaders deserved to become Chief Ministers, given their contributions. He further mentioned that Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra laid the foundation for the party's campaign in the state.

A meeting of the Congress legislature party is scheduled to be held in the evening to formally elect Siddaramaiah as the legislature party leader. Preparations are underway for the swearing-in ceremony, which is expected to take place on May 20 at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium. Leaders from opposition parties are expected to attend the ceremony.

The Congress party held several meetings over the past four days to finalize the leadership roles, considering various options before reaching a decision.
Why Pakistan Will Continue To Boil And There Is No Solution Around The Corner

Imran Khan Accuses Govt Of Trying To Score 'Technical Knockout' Against Him And Eliminate His Party

International

pti-PTI

Embattled former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday accused the PML-N-led coalition government of trying to score a 'technical knockout' against him and eliminate his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party ahead of elections.

"Efforts to eliminate PTI have been under way for over a year now. But all what they are doing is just strengthening the party," Khan told a group of journalists here at his Zaman Park residence which has been surrounded by Punjab police.

Stating that what the government is doing has never been seen before in the history of the country, 70-year-old Khan said the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government is trying to score a "technical knockout" against him to disqualify his party from contesting elections.

"My arrest  they want to eliminate me and ban the PTI  all this is a part of the London plan," Khan alleged. "Where Pakistan is standing today, except for free and fair elections, any route you take will lead to its destruction," he said.

"The only way out of this swamp are free and fair elections." Khan has been demanding early national elections since his ouster in April last year after he lost a confidence vote in Parliament.

The current term of the National Assembly will complete its five-year term in August this year. The election commission is preparing to hold general elections by October.

Khan also demanded an independent probe into May 9 riots, claiming that there was an organised conspiracy behind the violence following his arrest in a corruption case. "Everything was planned. So I demand that an independent commission is constituted. And let me tell you what will be revealed after its probe. We will give you evidence  how people were made to attack as part of a plan," he said.

On May 9, violent protests erupted after the arrest of Khan. His party workers vandalised a dozen military installations, including the Jinnah House (Lahore Corps Commander house), Mianwali airbase and the ISI building in Faisalabad.

Pakistan Police May Launch 'Grand Operation' Against 'Terrorists' Hiding In Imran Khan's Home

The Army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi was also attacked by the mob for the first time. Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10 while Khan's party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel. Khan said there is a plan formed to pit his party against the army. "Their plan is to eliminate the PTI through the army, Khan claimed.

"The PDM is behind this and it is very dangerous for the country," he said. "They cant compete with us in elections and now they want to pit us against the army." The PDM mostly comprises political parties in the ruling coalition, including the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Khan also slammed the police action at his residence in his absence, saying his wife was alone at home when an armoured personnel carrier stormed into the house with over 40 policemen.

The police in March had stormed the Zaman Park residence of Khan to arrest him but strong resistance of his party workers thwarted that plan.

Khan's remarks came as a large number of Punjab police personnel surrounded his house and may launch a security operation any time to arrest the "terrorists" allegedly holed up in his residence as the government's 24-hour deadline to hand them over expired. He was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.
Indian Origin Cab Driver Says Prince Harry, Meghan Were 'Pretty Nervous' During Paparazzi Car Chase

International

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Sukhcharn Singh, an Indian origin cab driver, who drove Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle during their 'near catastrophic car chase' with paparazzi in New York said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were pretty nervous. Singh said they were trailed in their car by photographers, said he instantly recognised his passengers.

"I was on 67th Street and then the security guard hailed me. Next thing you know, Prince Harry and his wife were hopping into my cab," he said. "We got blocked by a garbage truck, and all of a sudden paparazzi came and started taking pictures," he said.

Singh said Harry, 38, and Meghan, 41, were about to give him their location but told him to go back to the police station. "They were nice people, they looked nervous. I think they were being chased the whole day or something. They were pretty nervous," Singh told Sky News.

In a statement, Harry and Meghan's spokesperson said on Wednesday the couple had experienced a "near catastrophic car chase" on Tuesday.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) later said they assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. "There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging," it said.

The police, however, said the couple "arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests."

Harry and Meghan were in New York attending an awards ceremony - the Ms Foundation Women of Vision Awards - along with Meghan's mother Doria Ragland.

When they were chased after leaving the event, the spokesperson said, the couple tried to avoid the paparazzi by going to a Manhattan police station - which is where Singh picked them up.

Singh laughed when asked if it was a "near catastrophic car chase". "I don't think that's true, it's exaggerated. Don't read too much into that," he said, as reported by PTI.

When asked if he felt he or his passengers were in danger, he said, "No, New York City is the safest place to be", adding that there are police personnel on every corner. "So, there is no need to be afraid in New York," he added.

According to a report in The Washington Post newspaper, Singh picked up Harry, Meghan, her mother and a security guard around 11 p.m. on Tuesday outside the New York City Police Department's 19th precinct. The report quoted him as saying that he drove them for a brief period, during which they were pursued by other vehicles.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Not Injured After Car Chase in NYC

"Singh estimated that the entire journey lasted 10 minutes, and said he got the impression from the group that they had been already pursued by paparazzi before entering his car," according to the report.

Singh said they were pursued by two vehicles: a black Honda Accord and an older gray Honda CR-V. "They kept following us and were coming next to the car. They took pictures as we stopped and were filming us," he said.

Singh said the security guard was concerned about the photographers and asked him to return to the police station. The guard thought they were too exposed and didn't want their location shared more widely, he said.

Harry's mother Princess Diana and her partner Dodi Fayed, an Egyptian film producer and son of billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, were being chased relentlessly by paparazzi and died when their car crashed in an underpass in Paris in August 1997.

Harry and Meghan quit their royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States partly because of what they described as intense media harassment.

The prince has long spoken out about his anger about press intrusion which he blames for the death of his mother Princess Diana, who was killed when her limousine crashed as it sped away from chasing paparazzi in Paris in 1997.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 17:45 [IST]
Why Pakistan Will Continue To Boil And There Is No Solution Around The Corner

Pakistan Heading Towards Imminent Disaster, May Face East Pakistan-Like Situation: Imran Khan

International

oi-PTI

Pakistan is heading towards an imminent disaster and it may face disintegration, former prime minister Imran Khan has warned as he accused the ruling coalition of hatching a conspiracy to pit the army against his party.

In a video-link address from his Zaman Park residence here on Wednesday, the 70-year-old Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief said the only solution to end political instability was to hold elections.

"The PDM leaders and Nawaz Sharif, who is absconding in London, are least concerned whether the country's constitution is desecrated, state institutions are destroyed or even Pakistan Army earns a bad name. They are looking for their vested interests of saving the looted wealth alone," he said.

Probably My Last Tweet: Imran Khan Claims Police Surrounded His House

"I am seeing a frightening dream that the country is heading towards an imminent disaster. I appeal to the powers that be to let the elections take place and save the country," Khan said as police have surrounded his home. Speaking about the unrest that followed his arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises on May 9, Khan asserted that it was a "pure conspiracy" hatched and executed allegedly on behalf of the ruling coalition and the Punjab caretaker government.

"This is high time that the powers that be should sensibly rethink otherwise the country might face an East Pakistan-like situation," he was quoted as saying by Dawn newspaper. Defending his criticism of the country's army, Khan said: "When I reprimand the army, it is like I am criticising my kids."

"I have repeatedly stated that I do not interfere in state institutions' internal matters. I did not interfere when I had confirmed reports that the former army chief was conspiring against me," he said, claiming some politicians were telling the current army chief that Khan would de-notify him if voted to power.

Strongly reacting to the Punjab government's claim that some 40 terrorists are hiding at his Zaman Park residence, Khan said the government must search the house in a lawful manner after obtaining a search warrant because his own life was also in danger in the presence of terrorists.

"But don't make this an excuse to launch a crackdown on the country's largest political party PTI," he said. Khan said a recent survey revealed that Pakistan's 70 per cent population was standing with the PTI and the remaining 30 per cent people with all the parties that are part of the ruling coalition. Following his video-link address, Khan allowed the electronic and digital media representatives access to his residence to see for themselves that there were no terrorists inside Zaman Park.

The media persons, who visited the house, later reported that there were only domestic workers and some policemen inside the house. Earlier in the day, he tweeted: "Probably my last tweet before my next arrest. Police have surrounded my house". He also posted some videos showing police taking positions outside his house.

Pakistan Court Extends Bar On Imran Khan's Arrest Till May 31

The arrest of Khan on May 9 by the paramilitary Pakistan Rangers at the IHC premises triggered unrest in Pakistan. For the first time in Pakistan's history, the protesters stormed the army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and also torched a corps commander's house in Lahore. Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10 while Khan's party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel.

On Monday the top military brass vowed to bring the arsonists, who attacked the civil and military installations, to justice through trial under relevant laws of the country, including the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act. Khan was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 10:33 [IST]
Why Pakistan Will Continue To Boil And There Is No Solution Around The Corner

Pakistan Police May Launch 'Grand Operation' Against 'Terrorists' Hiding In Imran Khan's Home

International

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Pakistan's Punjab Police may initiate a security operation on Thursday to apprehend the terrorists allegedly taking refuge in former prime minister Imran Khan's residence in Lahore, as the provincial government's 24-hour deadline for their surrender has expired.

The interim government of Punjab claimed on Wednesday that approximately 30 to 40 terrorists were hiding inside Khan's Zaman Park residence and issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader to hand them over or face severe action.

All roads leading to Zaman Park have been blocked, and a substantial law enforcement presence is in the area, as reported by Geo News. According to sources, the Inspector General of Punjab Police and the Capital City Police Officer have instructed the police to remain vigilant.

In response to these developments, Khan shared a video on Wednesday, showing the scenes outside his house while he addressed the nation. The video displayed a large contingent of policemen and numerous police vehicles moving in a single direction.

During his video address from his Zaman Park residence, Khan expressed concerns that Pakistan was on the brink of a looming disaster and warned of a situation similar to what occurred in East Pakistan. He rejected the Punjab government's claim of terrorists hiding in his Lahore home, demanding that the government lawfully search the house with a search warrant, as his own life was also at risk in the presence of terrorists. He cautioned against using this as an excuse to crack down on the PTI, the country's largest political party.

Pakistan Being Run By Crooks and Duffers: Imran Khan

Khan allowed representatives from electronic and digital media to visit his residence to verify that there were no terrorists inside Zaman Park. The media personnel who visited the house later confirmed that only domestic workers and a few policemen were present.

Earlier on Wednesday, Khan tweeted that it could be his last tweet before his next arrest, mentioning that the police had surrounded his house.

Violent protests erupted on May 9 following Khan's arrest, leading to the vandalism of several military installations, including the Jinnah House, Mianwali airbase, and the ISI building in Faisalabad. It was the first time that the mob attacked the Army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi. The clashes resulted in a death toll of 10 according to the police, while the PTI claimed that 40 of its workers were killed in firing by security personnel.

In response to these incidents, Pakistan Army Chief Gen Asim Munir vowed on Wednesday to bring all those responsible for bringing shame to the nation to justice. The military brass had previously pledged to hold the arsonists accountable through trials under relevant laws, including the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.

Imran Khan was removed from power in April of the previous year after losing a no-confidence vote, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him due to his independent foreign policy decisions concerning Russia, China, and Afghanistan.

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Story first published: Thursday, May 18, 2023, 18:29 [IST]
It appears Moscow is deploying not only its most modern weapons, but also its oldest, including X-101 and X-55-type rockets developed during Soviet times.
Police have retrieved the first two bodies from the Loafers Lodge hostel which was often used to house people deported from Australia.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. PASHA Bank has provided financial support to clients operating in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan in the amount of 132 million manat ($77.6 million), Javid Guliyev, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board of the bank, said at a press conference dedicated to the results of 2022, Trend reports.

According to Guliyev, support was also provided to startup projects.

"For the first time in Azerbaijan, a financial instrument for leasing real estate has been launched. Also in 2022, special bank cards were introduced for customers in the industrial sector," he said.

Will be updated
Ukrainian officials say Russia has fired 30 cruise missiles against various parts of the country in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defenses which shot down 29 of them. Kyiv officials said defense systems also shot down two exploding drones and two reconnaissance drones early Thursday. A military spokesman said one person died and two were wounded by a Russian missile that got through and struck an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa. Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv as the Kremlins forces targeted the capital for the ninth time this month. It is a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons.
Canadas second largest airline WestJet has started to cancel flights as talks with the pilots union are at what the company says is an impasse. A potential strike is jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada. Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. The Calgary, Alberta-based airline flies to more than 110 destinations including in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28% of Canadas domestic market, while Air Canada runs 47%, according to aviation data analyst Cirium.
The Ukrainian city of Nikopol, near the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, has come under repeated bombardment from Russian troops stationed in Enerhodar. But life there goes on regardless.
The National Assembly that met in May 1848 in Frankfurt's St. Paul's Church failed in its attempt to establish a German nation-state. But on the 175th anniversary, there are calls to commemorate it as Democracy Day.
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy will be forced to wear an electronic tag after losing an appeal against his conviction for corruption.
Reports say eight people died and 17 were injured in heavy shelling in the war-torn south and east.
Air raid sirens sounded across Ukraine and explosions were reported in the capital, days after air defenses largely repelled a Russian missile attack. Follow DW for the latest.
Russia fired 30 cruise missiles against different parts of Ukraine early Thursday in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defences, which shot down 29 of them, officials said.
Rafael Nadal announced Thursday that he is pulling out of the French Open because of a lingering hip injury that has sidelined him since January.
The UK will benefit from almost 20bn of extra private investment from Japan, Downing Street has said, as Rishi Sunak visits the nation for the G7 summit.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Within the framework of the 32nd Annual Meeting of the EBRD's Board of Governors held in Samarkand, First Deputy Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan Elnur Aliyev held a meeting with Director of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) of Infrastructure- Eurasia Team Ekaterina Miroshnik, Trend reports with reference to the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan.

The successful cooperation of Azerbaijan with the bank was noted at the meeting.

Information was provided on the priorities of socio-economic development, infrastructure projects implemented in Azerbaijan, and the potential of partnership for the implementation of the tasks set was noted.

The parties discussed the directions of expanding cooperation, the bank's participation in public-private partnership projects and infrastructure projects implemented in Azerbaijan.
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Ukrainian forces shot down 29 of 30 missiles fired into the country on Wednesday, with one landing in Odesa in Russia's ninth missile attack this month.
BBC Local News: London -- Paul Scully says he would step down as London minister if picked as the Tory candidate for City Hall.

BBC Local News 18 May 2023
Arkansas GOP Senator Tom Cotton sent a letter to the U.S. comptroller general calling for a GAO analysis on the CDC's new vaccine schedule for kids and teens.
Wisconsin Republicans are "done negotiating" on a bill to increase state aid to local governments, according to state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos.
Democrats and Republicans clashed over rules during Thursday's FBI whistleblower hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, leading to minutes of bickering.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Thursday that he has sent a first bus of migrants to Denver, Colorado, which arrived downtown, according to a press release.
Sittwe, Myanmar (AFP) May 17, 2023



Residents of Myanmar's cyclone-ravaged Rakhine state capital queued for rice and drinking water on Wednesday as the United Nations negotiated with the internationally isolated junta for access to hard-hit areas. Cyclone Mocha tore through Myanmar and Bangladesh on Sunday, bringing lashing rain and winds of 195 kilometres per hour (120 mph) that collapsed buildings and turned streets into riv
A suspect has been arrested near the home of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Montecito, California and faces a prowling charge.
Ana Nakashidze, Chief Executive Officer at AzerTelecom, was named in the Power 100 list, compiled annually by the prestigious Capacity Media, featuring the most influential leaders of the telecommunications industry.

Nominated by the industry and compiled by Capacity Media, the Power 100 profiles trailblazers, innovators, and leaders driving the global digital infrastructure spaces. Published every year since 2019, the list highlights the most influential people in this field.

Ana Nakashidze led the company during the pandemic and post-pandemic transformation, as well as during the challenging times, and made important achievements in the company's operation. Under her leadership, AzerTelecom expanded its service portfolio by achieving a new level of development in its operation and now plays an essential role in the telecommunications life of the country by strengthening international connectivity services.

Ms. Nakashidze has over 20 years experience in the telecommunications industry. Before she was appointed the CEO of AzerTelecom in 2020, Ana Nakashidze worked as the Deputy CEO for Operations at AzerTelecom and served in various leadership positions in Georgia and globally in private, public, and consulting sectors.

It should also be noted that in March 2023, Capacity Media magazine released its sixth annual Women to Watch list, which featured 20 outstanding women in telecommunications and information technology and Ms. Nakashidze was also included to this annual Women to Watch power list.

Capacitys Power 100 list, featuring the top 100 people from across the wholesale telecoms space can be found here.

AzerTelecom is the leading wholesale telecommunication operator of Azerbaijan. The company is part of the NEQSOL Holding international group of companies operating in various fields and countries.
Anas Sarwar made a fresh call for bosses on NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to be sacked following a series of scandals in Scotland's biggest hospital.
The bill cleared the GOP-controlled Legislature after a final vote in the Senate over the objections of Democrats. Texas is now poised to join at least 17 other states that have enacted similar bans.
Newsy 21 May 2023

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Water companies have apologised for repeated sewage spills and pledged to invest 10bn this decade in an attempt to quell public anger over pollution in seas and rivers. The companies will triple their existing investment plans to plough funds into the biggest modernisation of sewers since the



#environmentagency #ruthkelly #yorkshirewater #thameswater #southwestwater #democrat #eddavey #davey #theresecoffey #nicolashaw
Beijings special envoy noted there was no panacea to the war in Ukraine during a visit to Kyiv earlier this week, but urged all parties to create conditions for peace talks, Chinas foreign ministry said Thursday. Special envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui visited Kyiv on Tuesday and Wednesday,



#beijing #ukraine #eurasian #lihui #volodymyrzelenskyy #poland #xijinping
North America's existential debate about the virtues and dangers of oil and gas pipelines faces a critical test today in Wisconsin. That's where a district court judge will hear arguments about whether or not to shut down Line 5, a critical cross-border energy conduit between Canada and the U.S.
Oneindia 21 May 2023

The Russian Defense Ministry has claimed that Russian troops have taken control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. It said..
Pope Francis hopes to send personal peace envoys to the Ukrainian and Russian presidents to try to broker a ceasefire in the war, a Catholic website reported on Thursday.
The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Google, Twitter and Facebook in lawsuits seeking to hold them liable for terrorist attacks. But the justices sidestepped the big issue hovering over the cases, the federal law that shields social media companies from being sued over content posted by



#supremecourt #google #turkish #islamic #section230 #annadiakun #columbiauniversity #istanbul #islamicstate #clarencethomas
China has fined one of the countrys best-known comedy companies 14.7 million yuan ($2.13 million) over a joke about the..

Upworthy 18 May 2023
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The funds of the European Union will invest 60 million euros in Azerbaijan by 2024, EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan Peter Michalko said at the event dedicated to Europe Day, Trend reports.

"The economic and investment plan can attract up to 2 billion euros of additional investments," the ambassador said.

According to him, the EU expects the implementation of various projects in important areas, such as digital technologies, which will contribute to the further development of the economy and society.

Michalko also noted that the economic and investment plan is already yielding certain results.

Previously Michalko said that there are about 400 European companies operating in Azerbaijan and the European investors are showing interest in the country's business environment.

"I would like to note that cooperation in the field of mutual investments between Azerbaijan and the EU can also serve as a reliable link between countries outside the EU. In this issue, it is worth emphasizing the role of the Middle Corridor, since this route is very relevant now, especially for Azerbaijan, and will serve as the main link in Eurasia in the future," Michalko had said.
TED 27 May 2023

Neutrality isn't an option when it comes to the fight for personal and political freedom, says world-trotting journalist Christiane..
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"Either this nation shall kill racism, or racism shall kill this nation." (S. Jonas, August, 2018)



Fred Trump in the 1980s. It's all his fault, literally and figuratively.

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I have previously characterized Donald Trump as "History's Greatest Con Man." As he begins his next quest for the Presidency of the United States, he is again running on an update of his Greatest Con: that he is somehow qualified to be President, again. Of course, it was a con the first time. Since it worked for him then (with a little help from the Russians --- see the Mueller Report, and the then FBI Director James Comey) he is running it again --- and why not?

Let's see how this has played out and will play out again in terms of policy (that is if, faced with an increasing number of criminal indictments and possible convictions, he doesn't flee the country while he is still able to do so):

1. * There's the promotion of racism, xenophobia, and white nationalism.

2. * There's the frequent name-calling in re opponents.

3. * There's the "our nation must be great again," (as is well-known now abbreviated as MAGA).

4. * He continues to reveal, everso carefully, a sly anti-Semitism.

5. * There are vague promises of a great future, without telling much about exactly how he plans to get there.

6. * There's the ample use of the Big Lie Technique (e.g. concerning the results of the 2016 election).

7. * He doesn't embarrass.

8. * Expanding oil and natural drilling, while shrinking the National Park system.

9. * Continue the appointment of Federalist Society judges to the Federal bench.

10. * Expansion of tax cuts for the rich (although he will not talk too much about that one [sic]).

So here are the Top Ten. Of the World's Greatest Con Man. Redux. "But why do you say 'redux?'" you might ask." Because this list is drawn from the first-ever column that I wrote on Trump, entitled "Hair Trump or Herr Trump?," published on October 2, 2015. Yes, the man does not change, has not changed, and never will. It is very important for both his opponents and his allies/supporters to recognize this. If Trump were ever to get back into the White House, he would bring with him nothing new in either strategy or tactics, except that if anything it would likely be worse, because he would clearly be aiming this time around to openly establish a dictatorship (see the discussion of "Schedule F" below).

How do we know this, that is that nothing has changed for Trump, for sure? Because of the "Town Hall" which was brought to us courtesy of CNN. As is well-known, there has been much criticism of CNN for giving Trump the kind of platform they gave him. I do not agree with that position. Whether or not what actually happened was CNN's intention, what actually did happen is that Trump took his political clothes off in public (which is course is an even nastier sight than it would be if he had really had taken his clothes of in public, or even a bit them as he did, according to the conclusions arrived at by the jury's verdict, in the E. Jean Carroll case). In so doing, again, he revealed that he has absolutely nothing new to offer the U.S. public. But even though he has never won the popular vote, he is running nevertheless, and will be until he is overtaken by one set of events or another (like [a] starting to lose primaries {yes, it could happen}, or [b], as mentioned, deciding to leave the country).

Now it should be pointed out that this man has major ruling class support. While some elements of that class believe that they can continue to control the levers of State Power through the so-called "democratic process," others believe that only some form of U.S. fascism will allow them to do that for the foreseeable future. Ergo, Trump, who, as noted, has made it very clear, to those who listen closely, that this time around his primary political aim would be to establish a U.S. dictatorship, with him as dictator.

A major element of this plan would be the implementation of his "Schedule F," which would in one way or another repeal the Civil Service Act of 1978 and replace it with a Federal government bureaucracy totally loyal to Trump as President. (It should be noted that this is exactly what the Nazis did when Hitler took power as Chancellor of Germany in 1933. It should also be noted that this major Trump/Repub. policy proposal was not dealt with in the Town Hall [at least in the major parts that I watched].)

Further on Trump's major campaign theme this time around, that he actually won in 2020, my suspicion is that he knows very well that he lost, in both the popular and electoral vote counts. But what History's Greatest Con Man would do with this issue for 2024 is exactly what he is doing. It should be noted that in the 2016 campaign until the very end he was claiming that that election would be stolen from him. For Trump, who, if he gets the Republican nomination for 2024 will be using it again, it is the equivalent of the "stab-in-the-back" meme (referring to how the surrender of the Prussian Empire at the end of World War I came about) that the Nazis used with great effect, both in the Weimar Republic elections, and even after they took power.

As for some other major issues/positions the man has taken:

*Trump's in-built racism goes back to his "birtherism" campaign of 2011-12. This has of course not changed, and since it is built into his bones going back to the "Central Park Five."

*He proposes to "Keep Medicare and Social Security." How he plans to do this without raising taxes on those who can afford to pay (which indeed is the only practical way to do both) he doesn't' say. He does produce to reduce Medicaid expenditures.

*Without specificity, he wants to get rid of all kinds of regulation, something he tried to do in his first term with limited success.

*As for guns, he is for generally less, not more, regulation, although from time-to-time he likes to make believe that he is for some sort of meaningful gun control.

*We will not spend much time here dealing with Trump's claim that "Jan. 6" was "Pelosi's fault." He has, of course, called it a "beautiful day," and claimed that Vice-President Pence could have sent the reported electoral votes back to [certain] states for some sorts of recounts (a procedure [supported by Sens. Cruz and Hawley, one might note] nowhere to be found in the Constitution). He has said that he would pardon the Jan. 6 the seditious conspirators convicted in a court of law. Talk about fascism (as defined below.) On his attitude towards women in general, for example: he called his CNN interviewer "nasty;" said to E. Jean Carroll's attorney that he could not possibly have sexually assaulted either Ms. Carroll (or her attorney) because "she is not his type." He implicitly admits here that he could/would assault women if they were "his type." (Of course, see the "Access Hollywood" tape.)

*On the repeal of Roe --- for which he took the major credit which in that case he dererved --- at the CNN Town Hall at least, he refused to say whether or not he would support a legislated national abortion ban. He did claim that the Roe Doctrine had allowed/promoted late-term abortions. It did not --- it focused on legal abortion and the "time of viability," generally considered to be at 2024 weeks of gestation. As for his ranting about "late term" abortions, they occurred only in certain states, under local law, and were undertaken either to save the life of the mother or to avoid a potentially difficult delivery of a fetus with no known chance of survival. But Trump does have that sense of drama (actually suited more to 19th century Italian opera that 21st century U.S. politics).

*With no evidence whatsoever, Trump holds that antifa and BLM are mass killers.

*He said in the Town Hall that he could settle the Ukraine war in 24hrs., but did not say how he would/could do it (except perhaps by handing victory to the man who would "Make the World Safe for Plutocracy". Of course, we do know that Trump was impeached for attempting to extort certain behaviors from Ukraine.

*In any of the upcoming legal processes being undertaken with him as a central figure --- Indicted? --- Convicted? --- he will have one response: "Political Witch Hunt."

*Finally let's get to "The Great Replacement Theory" which lies at the basis of Trump's Border/anti-immigration-in-general-but-especially-of-Latin-Americans policy. Numbers of political observers hold that this position/policy held not only by Trump, but also by many Republicans in general, is something new. That is that there is some plot somewhere to replace the "regular Americans" with (esp. non-"white") immigrants who will somehow "take over the country." Numbers of political analysts hold that the "theory" is something new, both to the Republican Party and for Trump.

That is hardly the case, and it is very important in fighting both Trump in particular and the Republicans in general, that one version or another of it has been part of U.S. politics at least since Irish Catholics began immigrating here in significant numbers in the 1830s (that is even before the Great Potato Famine of 1845). The formation of the "American Party" (also known as the "Know-Nothings") in the 1850s was a political response to that immigration. One of its founders, the former President Millard Fillmore, became one of the marginal founders of the Republican Party in 1856.

Over the balance of the 19th century there was primarily Republican-led opposition to the immigration of, in turn: Germans, Italians, Chinese (picked out especially by the Chinese exclusion Act of 1882), Jews, and "Eastern Europeans," eventually leading to the Immigration Act of 1924. These legislative and discriminatory initiatives were all based on one or another version of today's "Great Replacement Theory." That doesn't make it any less discriminatory, but it does place it firmly in one the U.S.'s less-attractive traditions, as well as in the basic ideology of the Republican Party.

Finally, there are the more-than-one present and possible future criminal indictments that Trump is facing. Although as noted, I think that he would leave, with as much of his money as he could take with him, he could, as the Socialist Eugene Debs did in the 1920 Presidential election, run from prison. And he could conceivably be elected (especially if the Republican election-fixing operations that are now well-underway are successful). In that case, of course his first official act would be to pardon himself. But that's another story.

THE BOTTOM LINE (literally) is this: Trump has nothing new; Trump has never won the popular vote; and unless the Repubs are REALLY good at vote-rigging, Trump cannot win in 2024. NEVERTHELESS, the hammer has to keep hitting on the anvil: what Trump's record really is, not what he and the Republican Party would like to make it out-to-be. To repeat: learn the most important lesson Trump has to teach: ALWAYS ATTACK; NEVER DEFEND.

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Post-note: What is fascism, briefly:

"There is a single, all-powerful executive branch of government, in service of a capitalist ruling class that controls, for the most part, the functions of production, distribution, finance, and exchange. There is no separation of the principal governmental powers: executive, legislative, and judicial. There are no independent media. There is a single national ideology, based on some combination of racism, misogyny, religious bigotry and authoritarianism, homophobia, and xenophobia. There is a political party supporting the movement. There is a state propaganda machine using the big and little lie techniques. There may be a full-blown dictatorship, a charismatic leader, engagement in foreign wars, and the use of the mob/private armies to enforce governmental control.
Volodymyr Zelensky completed his European tour with negotiations at Chequers, the official country residence of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The Ukrainian president begged for more military aid from London, Paris, Berlin and Rome.

Since December, Ukraine has already received over $30 billion in weapons freshly supplied by its allies. The cost of these shipments is more than any NATO member except the US buys in a year, according to Bloomberg.

Allies sent over $67 billion of weapons, peaking in December.

After all Kyiv demanded to provide long-range weapons, aviation and air defense systems. On May 11, Britain has become the first western country to provide Ukraine with the long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles that Kyiv wants to boost its chances in a much-anticipated counteroffensive.

(According to experts, this is not simply just another weapons delivery, but one that could play an important role in the upcoming operation.)

But hours after Ukraine's president said he needed more western weapons to be confident of a victory this summer.

The Ukrainian president says his armed forces need more equipment. On 9th May, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Kyiv already had everything it needed for the operation, including equipment and soldiers trained in the West, and stressed it was up to the armed forces command to draw up a plan for success. But the counter offensive is still delayed because Kyiv wants to be as sure as possible of the success of any actions. According to Zelensky, "we need a little more time."

The Armed Forces of Ukraine really still need additional supplies of equipment and weapons. AFU must be capable of conducting an counteroffensive, on which the outcome of the war theoretically depends.

Many Western political analysts have not ruled out the possibility that the failure of a Ukrainian counteroffensive could lead to a reduction in Western assistance - simply because it has almost exhausted its ability to supply equipment and gear without compromising its own security. This would put pressure on Kyiv to reach a ceasefire on the terms of the status quo.

Military activity has decreased in recent months, and outside observers are increasingly talking about a "stalemate". Zelensky's European tour had a reason. The Ukrainian leader tried to reduce tension and prepare for possible military failures. All because Ukraine has only one attempt to strike. At this time, the expectations of the announced counteroffensive are stronger than the current capabilities of the Ukrainian army.

One way or another, expectations are very, very high.
At the height of political unrest in Pakistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US representative for Afghanistan peace affairs, has said that stability will not return to this country without the resignation of General Munir Asim, the Chief of Staff of the Pakistani Army.



This came in a series of Twitter messages Khalilzad wrote on May 12.



Khalilzad said that although the decision of the Islamabad court on the temporary release of Imran Khan can prevent a disaster in Pakistan, without the resignation of Munir Asim and the holding of elections at a certain time, the economic, political and security crisis in this country will be worse.

Khalilzad's remarks came after the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and the political unrest with the violent protests including attacks on military installations. In Lahore, Military Commander's residence was set on fire.

Khalilzad says: "General Munir did his job wrongly and alienated the people. "He has also lost the support of many senior Pakistani officials."

According to Zalmi Khalilzad, Mounir Asim, the Chief of Staff of the Pakistan Army, has lost his position at the global level. He asked Asim to resign as a "patriot".

Although the government of Pakistan has not said anything about Khalilzad's new statements, in the past the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of this country said that they do not need Khalilzad's theories.

Since Pakistan's founding 75 years ago, the military has kept a steady hold on the country's politics and foreign policy, carrying out three successful coups and ruling the country directly for several decades. Even under civilian governments, military leaders have kept an iron grip on power, ushering in politicians they favored and pushing out those who stepped out of line. Few dared any open defiance.

The political crisis and protests in Pakistan in recent days, in addition to the deaths of nearly 60 protesters, have injured dozens of people and sent hundreds of others to prison.

Govt supporters call for chief justice to quit over releasing Imran Khan

Tellingly, more than 20,000 supporters of Pakistan's government converged on the country's Supreme Court on Monday, in a rare challenge to the nation's judiciary. The demonstrators demanded the resignation of the chief justice for ordering the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in a graft case.

According to the Associated Press, the Pakistan Democratic Alliance, a grouping of 13 political parties affiliated with the ruling Pakistan Muslim League, called for the protests. The alliance was behind the joint action to oust Khan in a no-confidence vote in parliament in April 2022.

Khan's dramatic detention from a courtroom in Islamabad last week sparked outrage among legions of his supporters, who set buildings and vehicles ablaze across major cities and attacked military facilities. At least 10 people died in pitched battles with police. Dozens were injured and thousands of Khan's supporters from his Tehreek-e-Insaf party were arrested.

Last week's violence subsided when the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, intervened and ordered Khan to be freed. Bandial criticized the way Khan was arrested and said that his detention was unlawful. But the government and its allies have accused the top judge of bias.
Mike Lockwood faced what he now calls a crossroads moment.

He had cooked in some top Portland-area kitchens, but was laid off from Eem at the start of the pandemic. He returned to a passion for brewing and began making small batches of beer, which he then started selling to trendy Portland restaurants.

But he also pondered returning to a previous profession and joining the electricians union  and bringing home a steady paycheck again.

It was kind of a family decision to really take it to the next level and try and open a taproom, the 39-year-old Lockwood says. The family all encouraged me to continue doing this, so I stopped going (in the other) direction.

That decision led to the opening this month of Duality Brewing in Northeast Portlands Kerns neighborhood. There, Lockwood is serving thoughtful, ingredient-driven beers incorporating components such as wine grapes, flowers and herbs for creative flavor profiles. And 31-year-old Alyssa LeCompte is executing her vision for the Duality space and aesthetic, using her previous experience in branding and photography to conceive and create an inviting but minimalist, light-filled taproom.

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The tasting room is also the new home to six-year-old Portland pop-up Astral, co-founded by the husband and wife team of John Boisse, 34, and Lauren Breneman, 33. The duo have set up a small kitchen and counter in the Duality taproom to serve their Mexican-inspired dishes.

Boisse and Breneman first met Lockwood while they were working at the modern Korean restaurant Han Oak. Soon, Lockwood was helping Boisse and Breneman launch brunch service at Toki, Han Oaks downtown sister restaurant, and Astrals tacos and tostadas had become an inseparable part of Duality pop-ups  how the fledgling brewery was first introduced to Portland.

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Our first event together was on the rooftop at (Portland hostel) Lolo Pass, Breneman said. But weve done courtyards where he has a keg and an ice bucket and we have a little grill.

Initially, Lockwood planned to take on Dualitys food menu himself during down time from brewing beer.

That was until he realized he wanted to have a life, Breneman says, so joining forces was an easy call.

We really enjoyed working with each other and have a good social relationship, Boisse said. We respect each other

... and we have similar values, Breneman adds.

... and we were doing so many events, people started recognizing us as a unit, Boisse finishes.

At Duality, Astral presents Mexican-forward dishes, including raw tuna tostadas, sizzling whole-belly pork chicharron with lime and hot sauce and a seasonal plated dessert from Breneman, an accomplished pastry chef (Beast, Coquine). Brunch brings a breakfast sandwich with a folded egg pocket, McGriddle-inspired maple sugar chips, crispy cheese, lime-dressed arugula and chile morita mayo on a house-baked concha bun.

Lockwoods time in restaurant kitchens has had a significant influence on the beer he makes. Having begun as a homebrewer hobbyist, he then got hired at Craftsman Brewing of Pasadena, California, where he brewed for a year on its 15-barrel system before he and LeCompte relocated to Oregon.

After he lost his job at Eem, Lockwood made a wild rice lager that the co-owner of Eem loved and wanted to buy  a desire that prompted Lockwood to get licensed and officially begin Duality. He found an 8 x 20-foot shipping container to lease near the St. Johns Bridge in Northwest Portland, where he cobbled together a half-barrel system and started brewing. Eem would become his first commercial customer, and other restaurants soon followed.

He describes his beers as mostly kind of all over the place, with big doses of experimentation. He doesnt want to be categorized as any particular style of brewery but agrees  somewhat hesitatingly  that his approach is inspired by culinary ingredients.

In the past two years of brewing, he has used bourbon barrels he says he grabbed from Kings County Distillery in Brooklyn, New York, where he worked. And recently he has been dialing in some beers he wants to regularly produce, such as the wild rice pilsner and fruit-forward ones made with local produce.

I like experimenting with different stuff, like everybody, but with more of a low alcohol-by-volume approach, he says.

He recently made a French saison with toasted fig leaves and a rye ale that spent two days in a Grappa barrel then five days in stainless steel tanks. And hes been pouring a Belgian table beer and a cream ale.

He plans to appeal to a variety of palates, including those who come in just looking for an IPA, but he doesnt anticipate a lineup of flagships customers can regularly expect.

I had a hoppy lager on the first weekend, and now its already gone cause I dont have that much beer production right now, he says.

Hes also brewing beers for specific restaurants, such as Pivokvas, a Kvass-inspired ale brewed for the restaurant Kachka using its baked rye bread and cracked fenugreek.

Lockwood continues to brew out of his shipping container, but a new-to-them 4-barrel brewhouse is ready to go next to the Duality taproom. The owners have been waiting on Portland General Electric to deliver power.

Boisse and Breneman have found that Astrals seasonal approach to food pairs well with Dualitys similar approach to beer, without either having to try all that hard.

I think most food can go with beer, as long as youre hitting the notes  acid, salt, fat  that make you want to wash it down with something cold and crisp, Breneman said.

When people think about beer pairings, they think about mostly European food, but these Mexican dishes really make sense, Boisse said. It doesnt just have to be a burger and thats all you get.

Meanwhile, the Duality and Astral teams are working out the usual start-up kinks. Hours for now are flexible and limited to Friday through Sunday until production can increase. And theyre finishing the touches on the tasting room, whose beige and eggshell whites are complemented with subtle splashes of color. Lockwood-built wooden benches and tables are showcased on a sleek, open-air wooden deck that greets patrons, who then pass through large industrial roll-up doors into the high-ceilinged and airy taproom.

In addition to Dualitys beers, the taproom serves a curated selection of natural wines. They also anticipate adding nonalcoholic options, such as a bitter orange chinotto, a soft drink made by Breneman. An espresso machine holds beans roasted by Parlor Coffee Roasters, friends of Lockwoods from his time in Brooklyn.

LeCompte says the goal is to attract beer lovers and non-beer lovers alike.

It can be a space where you can come and have a beer or bring your friend that maybe doesnt like beer and wants wine, she says, adding, very much like, more for everyone.

While Lockwood is locked away in his cargo-container brewhouse, LeCompte has been taking care of everything else, he says. His wife doesnt even drink that much beer, so thats not her wheelhouse, he says. But everything else has fallen to her expertise, from designing our own labels and logo and all of (the branding). All of that became kind of a fun experiment for both of us to develop.

LeCompte says Dualitys minimalist aesthetic is both by design  she worked with design consultant Robin Cornuelle  and by necessity. She and Lockwood are intent on keeping costs down  the same bootstrap approach goes for the Astral owners.

We dont have money to ever redo it, so we thought, OK, just go really minimal, LeCompte says.

Ted Wiberg of IES Interior Exterior Specialists, the developer who remade the complex where Duality is now an anchor tenant, has been a huge and generous help, as have many local breweries and owners who have lent advice, resources and time, Lockwood and LeCompte say.

All of the work and contributions have led to a place where that decision to not join the electricians union might have been the right one. That debate, and the conversations with family, went on for a month, LeCompte says.

We were feeling torn between the two things, she says. But I think weve always been people that have been more like  I guess in our family what our parents would say are risky people. Like were maybe traditional millennials in that were not afraid to jump.

I think that was the thing that ended up pushing Mike into feeling like he had to see it through and see what it could be, she says. Then I just jumped in where I could myself.

If You Go

What: Duality Brewing and food partner Astral

Where: 715 N.E. Lawrence Ave., Suite 108

When: Flexible hours Friday-Sunday; see Instagram bio for current taproom hours, beer and food offerings.

 Andre Meunier; sign up for my weekly newsletter Oregon Brews and News, and follow me on Instagram, where Im @oregonianbeerguy.
People and businesses who fail to pay significant amounts of Oregon taxes could soon see their names plastered publicly on the states website.

The Department of Revenue on July 14 will begin publishing a list of delinquent taxpayers who owe at least $50,000 in state taxes.

The department plans to begin notifying affected taxpayers next week. Those who respond by paying their balance in full or making a payment arrangement with the state will avoid having their names listed.

Affected taxpayers should contact us as soon as they receive a notice to resolve the debt, Deanna Mack, collection division administrator for the Department of Revenue, said in a statement. Publishing this list will support our efforts to collect the revenue that our state counts on.

Along with publishing the names of delinquent taxpayers and businesses, the state will also publish the name of any person held personally liable for business debt, the city and state where the taxpayer resides, the lien identification number, the type of debt and the current amount due.

The Legislature approved Senate Bill 523 in 2019, which allows the Department of Revenue to post such information online. The Department of Revenue had planned to launch the site in 2020 but held off because of the pandemic.

By coincidence, the launch is now coming after former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan resigned in the wake of news that she was moonlighting as a highly paid consultant for troubled cannabis company La Mota. As Willamette Week reported, La Mota was allowed to expand across Oregon as it racked up more than $1.5 million in unpaid state taxes, something that would have been made public on the state site had it launched sooner.

 Jamie Goldberg; jgoldberg@oregonian.com; 503-221-8228; @jamiebgoldberg

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Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes will remain free through the Memorial Day weekend before surrendering to authorities on May 30 to begin her more than 11-year prison sentence for defrauding investors in a blood-testing scam.

U.S. District Judge Edward Davila set Holmes revised prison-reporting date after her lawyers proposed it in a Wednesday filing. It came after a federal appeals court late Tuesday rejected Holmes bid to remain out of prison while she attempts to overturn her January 2022 conviction on four felony counts of fraud and conspiracy.

The punishment also includes a $452 million restitution bill that Davila ordered Holmes to pay in a separate ruling issued late Tuesday. Holmes is being held jointly liable for that amount with her former lover and top Theranos lieutenant, Ramesh Sunny Balwani, who is already in prison after being convicted on a broader range of felonies in a separate trial.

Holmes lawyers asked Davila to approve the May 30 prison reporting time to her two weeks to sort out several issues, including child care for her 1-year-old son William and 3-month-old daughter Invicta. Holmes had originally been ordered to begin her prison sentence on April 27, but won a reprieve with a last-minute legal maneuver that gave her more time with her children.

Holmes, 39, became pregnant with William shortly before the start of her high-profile trial in September 2021 and became pregnant with Invicta shortly after she was convicted of crimes that could have resulted in a prison sentence of up to 20 years.

The father of both children is William Billy Evans, whom she met after breaking up with her former romantic and business partner, Balwani, who began serving a nearly 13-year prison sentence last month in Southern California. Balwani, 57, was convicted for 12 felony counts of fraud and conspiracy committed while he was Theranos chief operating officer and living with Holmes.

In Wednesdays filing, Holmes lawyers didnt disclose the location of the prison that she has been assigned to serve her sentence. But they noted she has to prepare to travel outside of California, where she has been living in the San Diego area while free on bail. Davila has recommended that Holmes be imprisoned in Bryan, Texas.

When Holmes is finally incarcerated, it will bring down the curtain on a saga that cast a bright light on a dark chapter in Silicon Valley that brought her fame and fortune before her scandalous downfall.

After dropping out of Stanford University in 2003 to found Theranos while still a teenager, Holmes promised to revolutionize healthcare with a technology that she promised would be able to scan for hundreds of diseases and other potential problems with just a few drops of blood. The idea helped her raising nearly $1 billion from sophisticated investors that included Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who is owed $125 million under the restitution order.

But Theranos blood tests never came close to working the way Holmes had boasted with the support of Balwani, resulting in the companys collapse and a tale that has been the subject of a book, Bad Blood, an HBO documentary, The Inventor, and a Hulu mini-series, The Dropout, which won Amanda Seyfried an Emmy in the starring role.

-- The Associated Press
A fire in Northeast Portland burned an uncompleted building to the ground early Thursday morning.

Firefighters arrived on the scene near the intersection of Northeast 36th Avenue and Killingsworth Street around 2 a.m. to find the partially built, 3-story apartment building fully involved in flames, Portland Fire & Rescue reported.

Firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to neighboring buildings, dousing the flames completely within a couple hours. As firefighters finished putting out the fire, the building collapsed, the fire bureau said.

The aftermath of the fire early Thursday morning. (Portland Fire & Rescue)

It is not yet known what caused the fire.

The early-morning blaze continues a busy week for local fire departments. Some 100 firefighters from around the area on Tuesday took part in knocking down the massive fire that wrecked the May Apartments in Portlands Goose Hollow neighborhood. On Monday, Portland firefighters put out a fire that had ignited in a solvent pit at a Swan Island warehouse and later rescued a construction worker who had fallen into a 30-foot-deep hole in the Madison South neighborhood.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive; dperry@oregonian.com
A dramatic fire ripped through The May apartment building in Southwest Portland on Tuesday, May 16.

The fire displaced at least 100 people, the buildings manager said.

The fire also destroyed the possessions of those occupants and claimed the lives of an unknown number of pets, officials say.

Here are some ways members of the community can help:

The Hotel deLuxe, located near the site of the fire, has started a community donation drive to help those displaced by from the apartment building. The public is asked to bring essential items such as clothing, food, and household necessities to the hotel, according to a social media post on the hotels official Instagram account.

Drop boxes for donations are located inside the hotel. The Hotel deLuxe is located at 729 SW 15th Ave., Portland, Oregon 97205.

The drive will run from Thursday, May 18, through Sunday, May 28.

Portland Fire said a mutual-aid group delivered 45 pizzas to displaced residents on Tuesday. TriMet offered the residents free bus rides to a shelter set up by the Red Cross at the University of Portland.

Reporters Zane Sparling and Savannah Eadens contributed to this report.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Armenian Armed Forces have used combat UAVs on several positions of the Azerbaijan Army, deployed in the direction of the Kalbajar districts Yellija settlement at 07:15 (GMT +4), Trend reports via Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

According to the ministry, during the inspection of the territory, the remains of self-made shells dropped by Armenian Armed Forces using UAVs, made in a handicraft way, were found.

The divisions of the Azerbaijan Army did not suffer losses, retaliatory measures are being taken. All responsibility for the tension in the region lies with the leadership of Armenia," the ministry added.

Previously, on May 14, the Armenian Armed Forces, in the Yenikend direction of the Basarkechar region using 60 mm mortars subjected to fire the Azerbaijan Army positions stationed in the direction of the Damirchidam settlement of the Kalbajar district.
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (AP)  Four security guards blamed for the death of a man during a struggle at a Detroit-area mall in 2014 will face trial on involuntary manslaughter charges, a judge said Wednesday.

Judge Shelia Johnson said there was enough evidence to send the case to trial, a low threshold at this stage of the case.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The elections held on May 14, which came on the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Turkiye, are undoubtedly important not only for the country but also for the whole world, dean of the faculty of Turkish World of Economics (TUDIFAK) and professor of Uludag University Mehmet Yuce, told Trend.

Yuce noted that many countries of the world, including the US, EU countries, and Russia, have expectations in connection with these elections

"The Turkish people, who set a record high turnout in the elections - 90 percent, showed the whole world how committed they are to democracy. Moreover, by doing so, the Turkish people dispelled unfair accusations, crossed out slanderous campaigns, standing up for their country," he said.

According to the dean, the Turkish people categorically rejected proposals from abroad about determining their fate, demonstrating their will to the whole world.

Speaking about the relations between Turkiye and Azerbaijan, Yuce noted that the clear position and statements of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev during and after the electoral process shows the depth and scale of the path traveled in the context of the strategic union of the two countries.

The professor also pointed out that the development of these relations between the two countries will also affect the entire Turkic world.

Yuce highlighted that the Turkish people have demonstrated support for a policy that will turn Turkiye, despite all difficulties, into a global force.

"At the elections held on May 14, the foresight of the Turkish people was once again manifested, demonstrating their will to support stability, independence, and the future in the second round of elections on May 28, 2023," he added.
Midland County could receive $2 million for flood prevention and watershed protection after Congressman John Moolenaars community project funding request was included in the federal Department of Agriculture 2024 budget.

Moolenaar, a Republican, represents a district that includes five townships in western Midland County. He worked with Democratic Congressman Dan Kildee on the request. Kildee represents the rest of Midland County.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration introduced its 2024 budget on Thursday. Included were funding requests from Moolenaar) for the Midland County Snag and Debris Removal Flood Prevention and Watershed Protection Project and the Sparta Fire Department Expansion and Renovation Project.

Midland County snag and debris removal is a $2 million project from the Natural Resources Conservation Service at USDA. The funding would be used for snag and debris removal in local waterways to prevent flooding. This would help reduce the severity and frequency of flooding, improve stormwater drainage and improve the water quality of downstream rivers and Saginaw Bay.

Sparta Fire Department expansion and renovation is a $1 million project from the USDA Agency on Rural Development. Sparta is 15 miles north of Grand Rapids.

"As Michigan's only member of the House Appropriations Committee, I am proud to help bring this targeted funding to our communities, Moolenaar said. The funding for Midland County will help prevent flooding and improve stormwater drainage in a community still recovering from the catastrophic flooding of 2020. The funding for Sparta will help keep residents safe, with new improvements for first responder equipment and emergency medical response. I encourage community leaders in the Second District who are interested in funding projects for their community to reach out to my office for more information.

More information on Moolenaar's Community Project Funding requests can be found on his website.
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OSCEOLA COUNTY  The Osceola County Emergency Management Department team is equipped to assist with most nightmare situations at a moments notice.

The Emergency Management Department organizes, plans and assigns resources to prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from dangerous events or circumstances.

Director Mark Watkins said his interest in public safety started early.

I started my own emergency management in roughly 1996, Watkins said. I actually was unique in the fact that I actually trained for this position. I spent several years educating myself about other emergency services  being involved in fire departments, emergency medical services and law enforcement. Eventually, I completed my training with the Michigan State Police Emergency Management Division, and then started the program here in Osceola County, eventually taking over the director in 2001.

Watkins has received several awards from professional organizations. In 2010, the Michigan State Police's Emergency Management Homeland Security Division honored him as the Professional Emergency Manager of the Year. He has additionally been acknowledged by the Michigan Emergency Management Association (M.E.M.A.) as Coordinator of the Year (2001, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2016) and recipient of the Distinguished Service Award in 2019.

He also has served the community for 26 years through service with Hersey Township Fire and Rescue, Reed City Fire Department, Reed City Police Department (Reserve) and Osceola County EMS.

CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENTS

The Osceola County EMD has worked to find new ways to improve processes and regularly does training sessions in various situational tests and has trained for situations, including lake flooding, wildfires, active shooter preparedness and routine event safety services.

It provides 11 essential services including coordination, administration, exercise, response, training, programming, emergency planning, site planning, hazard management, outreach and resource management pertaining to emergency response situations.

Watkins said communication is key in any situation for his teams.

We work directly with local agencies, emergency services and jurisdictions involved to constantly improve their capabilities, Watkins said. Most of those systems that go into preparing for large disasters also have a rippling effect for routine types of public safety activities. For example, one of the things were charged with is making sure that all the radios are inter-operable, and talking about not just our jurisdictions, but other jurisdictions."

He said first responders use those capabilities every day.

Were very unique in the fact that were the primary emergency services coordinating entity, as well as the fact of having a hand behind the scenes in virtually almost every emergency that occurs," he said. "I firmly believe that having a collective program, specifically one designed like ours is a turbo boost to the local public safety system.

Improving efficiency is a goal for Watkins and the organization, and speed and coordination can determine the success or failure of a given assignment.

Being involved in helping local school districts with safety improvements and event security is another aspect that has recently come into more focus for emergency service organizations, according to Watkins.

The school systems are going through one of the largest injections of public safety grants that the state of Michigan has ever seen, Watkins said. We are intimately involved with that process of coordinating the school to identify what they need for those grants so that all of those schools are not only on the same platform but also theyre integrating those systems of public safety.

"If a school system invests in a camera, it is important that law enforcement knows how to utilize it. Likewise, if they invest in a radio system because that way, youre going to be able to talk to public safety because those are critical tasks. Our agencys position is very uniquely invested and capable of doing on a daily basis.

PLANNING FOR DISASTERS

The Osceola County EMDs most common activations are for addressing crucial, but relatively isolated, situations which its coordination capabilities are naturally able to address quickly and efficiently. These include wide-scale power outages, emergency sheltering, special event safety, emergency messaging, as well as numerous others.

Osceola Countys emergency services have identified 10 major hazards to which it has established pre-set Incident Action Plans. IAPs are designed to improve response. During these activations, emergency management is responsible for critical tasks such as distributing public information, deployment of specialized resources in equipment or personnel, or addressing significant planning challenges.

During major disasters, the Osceola County EMD is required by federal, state, and local legislation to coordinate all agencies and ensure they work together to provide maximum services to Osceola County. The organization activates its Emergency Operations Plan, which organizes all agencies into 12 emergency functions that provide comprehensive response and recovery to the jurisdiction.

More frequently, the team is activated to provide one or more emergency functions to other types of emergencies.

We actually facilitate a joint public safety meeting every month that allows public safety to jointly collaborate on projects, Watkins said. Our school safety program, our radio interoperability program, all of those are very well coordinated so that were all on the same team and can collaborate and thats a huge benefit for the community.

"It was just a couple of years ago, we facilitated a major grant for what we call a Rescue Task Force, which is a capability during active shooter situations, getting emergency medical teams and fire and rescue inside the building as fast as humanly possible to provide aid. We were one of the first counties in the state of Michigan to establish that capability and equipment.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

The Osceola County EMD regularly works alongside the Osceola County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), which trains emergency responders and volunteers in basic disaster response skills like fire safety, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue, and team organization and communication strategies.

It also runs an internship program designed for individuals who desire to become a career emergency management professional. It provides a full scope of professional education, training and real-world experience in a progressive comprehensive program.

Watkins said the organization is always looking for volunteers who want to help keep their community safe.

We have several programs there, including our community emergency response team, that go out and help public safety during special events and responses, he said.

Watkins plans to continue expanding the organizations services and training to improve community safety and security.

For more information on the Osceola County EMD and its programs and services visit www.osceolaemd.us/home.
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LANSING  You might see unusually tall grass in your neighborhood this month.

Thats because a few Michigan cities and various residents have adopted the No Mow May initiative, aimed at promoting a healthy habitat for pollinators like bees to thrive.

Michigan cities promoting No Mow May this year include Ann Arbor, Ferndale, Royal Oak, Jackson and East Lansing. These participating communities will suspend enforcement of grass and weed codes in May.

Muskegon Heights resident Chelsea McKinley calls herself a proud supporter of No Mow May.

She used to live in Newaygo County, where she said people with unkempt lawns were fined.

(Fines) are probably much more of a burden on the taxpayer than its worth, aside from impacting the environment and infringing on the rights of the people, McKinley said.

At her Newaygo County home, she said she received a notice that her lawn  at a height of 11 to 12 inches  exceeded the acceptable length and it needed to be cut. She tried to only mow around the wildflowers and dandelions.

While Muskegon Heights has a rule that grass cant exceed 8 inches, McKinley said she feels she can now freely participate in No Mow May because she hasnt faced any fines yet.

She said her goal is to help the ecosystem.

Even small things, like insects and rodents and things that are essential to life on Earth are greatly impacted by this loss of habitat, McKinley said. Without having tall grasses, wildflowers, things of that nature, they really struggle to survive.

Elaine Sterrett Isely, the deputy director of the West Michigan Environmental Action Council, said No Mow May can prevent stormwater runoff and challenge peoples views of a typical lawn.

She said when people cut their grass short, it doesnt absorb water as well as native plants and grasses which have deeper roots. Mowed lawns let rainwater just run off and pick up pollutants, like fertilizers, along the way.

Isely talked to her landscaper about planting clover in her lawn as an alternative grass. Her landscaper said clover is seen as weed and didnt recommend planting it.

No Mow May might also cause disagreements with neighbors who prefer a manicured lawn.

Its hard to break some of these traditional notions, but something like No Mow May helps with that and helps keep it as part of the conversation, Isely said. As more and more people do it, then maybe it will start to seem less strange to people and more people will take it up.

She said however, just avoiding mowing your lawn in May isnt going to promote pollinators as much as planting native grasses and plants.

We think about these types of (environmental initiatives) in spurts, Isely said. But every day is Earth Day. (The council) thinks about the planet every day and maybe well have less need for these specialty movements.

Dave Putt, the vice president of the Rochester Hills-based Wildflower Association of Michigan, said hes not really a fan of No Mow May for this reason.

Even if people let their grass grow in May, previous herbicide and pesticide treatments will prevent beneficial insects from living in the lawn, he said. A majority of Michigans native bees live underground.

Putt recommends that people observe No Mow April instead, because the ground needs to warm up before disturbing the insects that burrow underground.

He said alternatives to No Mow May include planting native trees and shrubs and cutting grass a little higher as protection for underground pollinators.

Not disturbing your lawn or your flower beds allows these beneficial insects to fully develop and release themselves when the time is right, Putt said.
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ISLAMABAD (AP)  Police surrounded the home of former Pakistans former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday, claiming he was sheltering dozens of people allegedly involved in violent protests over his recent detention.

The police deployment was likely to anger Khan's many followers and raised concerns about more clashes between them and the security forces. Last week, Khan supporters had attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and detained.

The popular opposition leader was released over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistan's second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region.

On Wednesday, Khan took to Twitter after 200 police officers surrounded the house, and a prison van appeared on the scene.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest," Khan tweeted.  Police have surrounded my house.

Earlier on Wednesday, Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, said Khan has 24 hours to hand over 40 suspects allegedly hiding at his home or face a police raid. Mir told a news conference that so far 3,400 suspects have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir later told Pakistan's GEO TV station that no raid would be carried out at Khan's residence before Thursday, when the 24-hour ultimatum given to him for handing over suspects to police ends. He refuted Khan's claim of imminent arrest. The situation appeared to be calm near Khan's home Wednesday night.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. The army chief, Gen. Asim Munir, said in a speech to troops Wednesday that recently planned and orchestrated tragic incidents will never be allowed again at any cost.

The advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said they were alarmed by the government's plan.

Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnestys deputy regional director for South Asia, said that trying civilians in military courts is contrary to international law.

Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

A wave of violence had engulfed Pakistan's capital and other urban areas following Khan's dramatic arrest from a courtroom. Khan supporters torched buildings and vehicles and attacked police and military personnel and facilities. Ten people were killed in the clashes, and more than 4,000 were arrested.

The Supreme Court later ordered Khans release and criticized the way he was arrested.

On Wednesday, a top court in Islamabad extended Khans bail and protection from arrest until the end of the month. However, his legal team fears he might be arrested in old cases.

Khan, 70, was ousted by a non-confidence vote in parliament last year. He is currently facing more than 100 cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials, and defying a ban on rallies. He also faces a graft case along with his wife.

In recent days, the government of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has accused Khan of sheltering suspects linked to last week's attacks.

Khan, meanwhile, alleged some of his supporters were being tortured in police custody and demanded the immediate release of female detainees. He offered no evidence to back those claims.

In a speech Wednesday, Khan said he never encouraged his supporters to engage in violence. He claimed the attacks on military installations were orchestrated by unknown elements  part of a purported conspiracy to pitch his party against the military, but did not provide evidence.

___

Associated Press writer Babar Dogar contributed to this story from Lahore, Pakistan.
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JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP)  Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived on Thursday in Saudi Arabia to attend a regional summit that is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold, marking his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syrias conflict began in 2011.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts Friday, is a major step in normalizing relations following a 12-year suspension which saw the embattled leader turn toward non-Arab allies Iran and Russia to maintain his grip on power.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, once viewed as a regional pariah, back into its ranks. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

Assad appeared relaxed and cheerful as he descended onto the tarmac, where he was greeted by Prince Badr bin Sultan, deputy governor of the shrine city Mecca, along with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit and several local officials.

It was not immediately clear if Assad will meet some of the Arab leaders attending Friday's summit. During Syria's conflict, Assad only visited Russia and Iran and over the past two years he went to Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia was formerly key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad. However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syrias pre-war population.

Assads troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to the support of Russia and Iran that helped tip the war in his favor.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad. The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syrias conflict. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad. Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdoms yearslong war in Yemen. Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assads government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalization of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syrias conflict based on U.N. Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the Feb. 6, earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.

In addition to Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt have also renewed ties with Damascus, following normalization efforts from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain years ago.

Still, Kuwait, Morocco, and Qatar, remain opposed to normalizing relations with Syria and Qatar continues to be a key backer of Syrian rebel groups fighting Assad.

___

Associated Press writer Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria, contributed to this report.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov has left for a working visit to Russia, Trend reports citing the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

According to the ministry, within the framework of the visit, the new round of negotiations on the draft peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia is scheduled for May 19.

Will be updated
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A delegation of the Italian Civil Aviation Authority on Wednesday concluded a two-day inspection of Maitigua International Airport, in the eastern suburbs of the Libyan capital, Tripoli, to assess the progress of work and determine the degree of compliance of standards recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO)
Bamako, Mali (PANA) - Human rights group, Amnesty International, has called for the trial by a competent court of perpetrators of a massacre at Moura, a village in Mali, in which some 500 people were killed
Kinshasa, DRC (PANA) - The UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) is calling for an urgent increase in funding to help tackle an escalating number of cases of sexual violence against children and women in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congos (DRC) North Kivu province, where armed groups proliferate amidst heavy fighting in recent months
Valmet to Supply Consistency Measurements to Norske Skog in France

May 18, 2023 - Valmet will supply consistency measurements to Norske Skog's Golbey mill in France. The new measurements will be implemented in the new stock preparation unit and replace the aged ones from Golbey's PM 1, which is currently being converted from the production of newsprint to the production of recycled containerboard.

"We have selected Valmet for our consistency measurements as we wanted optical transmitters that are not affected by the shade of the pulp. In addition, we appreciate Valmet's support for our instrumentation," says Thierry Dubois, Paper Line Manager at Golbey.

"We have been cooperating with Golbey for years with our consistency measurements solutions. This project is the largest one for Valmet's measurements negotiated in France for more than 20 years. With the latest measurement technology we supply, the order complements Valmet's winder delivery for the Golbey Box project," says Christian Guerry, Sales Manager, Automations Systems business line, Valmet.

Valmet's delivery includes five Valmet Microwave Consistency Measurements (Valmet MCA G4), two Valmet Blade Consistency Measurements and 16 Valmet Optical Consistency Measurements from the latest generation to measure total consistency as well as ash content.

Measuring all solid particles in the process, the Valmet MCA enables better control for more efficient production, improved quality and economic savings with fewer process upsets. This will help the mill to reach its high-performance targets. After the conversion, Golbey PM 1 will produce recycled fluting and testliner grades with a design basis weight from 70 to 135 g/m2.

About Norske Skog Golbey

Located in the Vosges area in France, Norske Skog Golbey is one of the five business units of Norske Skog. Following the conversion of PM 1 to production of recycled containerboard, the Golbey mill will produce 550,000 tons of recycled containerboard (PM 1) and 330,000 tons of standard and improved newsprint (PM 2).

Valmet is a leading global developer and supplier of process technologies, automation and services for the pulp, paper and energy industries.

SOURCE: Valmet
Photo: (Photo : RDNE Stock project from Pexels)

Owing to the rapid advancement and increased demand within the social work sector, many professional opportunities are available to individuals seeking to affect society positively. With expanding employment horizons, recent graduates and practicing professionals can capitalize on these developments by exploring the breadth of areas requiring their skillset. In this article, we analyze several noteworthy positions that fall under the umbrella of social work, accompanied by relevant statistics, job titles, and median earnings. By reviewing this content, readers will understand the varied occupational choices accessible within this industry.

1. Clinical Social Worker

Median Salary: $57,630

Clinical social workers play integral roles in analyzing, diagnosing, and treating psychological afflictions patients face. They work in nursing homes, independent offices, and community-based organizations. Due to increasing awareness around mental health, opportunities for clinical social workers are poised to swell in coming decades - a promising outlook for aspiring postgraduates with Master of Social Work degrees.

2. Child Welfare Social Worker

Median Salary: $48,430



Child welfare social workers focus primarily on assisting children and families in need. They operate in various settings, including state agencies, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations. Child welfare social workers engage in daily activities aimed at supporting young clients facing challenges related to abandonment, mistreatment, destitution, and misfortune. Mental healthcare experts, instructors, and government employees, child welfare social workers endeavor to alleviate hardships, ensure security, and source much-needed services. While the nature of this line of work can be emotionally taxing, it remains deeply rewarding due to the direct positive contributions made to struggling populations.

For aspiring social workers who may have concerns about the rigorous admission requirements of traditional graduate programs, online programs offer a flexible and accessible alternative. Some institutions, like MSW, even offer online postgraduate programs that don't require a GRE. To learn more, just look up online MSW programs no GRE. These programs allow students to earn their Master of Social Work degree without the added pressure of taking the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), providing them with the necessary skills and knowledge to excel in the field.

3. Hospice and Palliative Care Social Worker

Median Salary: $53,020

Hospice and Palliative Care Social Workers play a crucial role in assisting those who face terminal conditions and their family members. By guiding them through the intricacies surrounding care at the end of one's existence, these professionals ensure no person ever feels alone on their last journey. Due to growing demographics, the need for these types of services has become paramount, creating countless opportunities for new practitioners. For anyone interested in a gratifying occupation that improves lives, consider pursuing such pathways where compassion meets expertise.

4. School Social Worker

Median Salary: $49,760

School social workers address the emotional, behavioral, and social needs of students within educational settings. They collaborate with teachers, administrators, and parents to create supportive environments conducive to academic success. As awareness of the importance of mental health in educational outcomes grows, the demand for school social workers is expected to increase.

5. Substance Abuse Social Worker

Median Salary: $47,830

Substance abuse social workers aid individuals and families affected by drug and alcohol addiction. They operate in diverse environments, including rehabilitation centers, hospitals, and community agencies. As society progressively recognizes the importance of comprehensive addiction treatment and recovery services, it is anticipated that this field will see substantial growth, creating a persuasive case for professionals considering a career in substance abuse social work.

6. Medical Social Worker

Median Salary: $56,750

Medical social workers offer support to patients and their families in healthcare settings, addressing the emotional challenges that come with illness and injury. They work closely with medical professionals to develop care plans, provide emotional assistance, and connect patients to valuable resources. The rising demand for healthcare services, particularly for the aging population, renders this career a reliable and gratifying choice for social work graduates.

7. Military Social Worker

Median Salary: $52,420

Military social workers deliver support and counseling services to active-duty military members, veterans, and their families. They tackle issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), family-related stress, and the difficulties of transitioning to civilian life. The evolving needs of military personnel and their families will drive the demand for proficient military social workers to grow.

8. Community Health Worker

Median Salary: $42,000

Focusing on enhancing public health in underprivileged communities, community health workers collaborate with individuals, families, and groups to develop and execute health promotion programs. They connect people with healthcare services and champion community health needs. The increasing awareness of public health and the necessity for accessible healthcare services will lead to more job opportunities in this sector.

9. Social Work Policy Analyst

Median Salary: $58,560

Social work policy analysts are committed to assessing and influencing public policies concerning social issues. They undertake research and analysis while working for governmental organizations, nonprofits, and academic institutions to help guide policy decisions. Addressing structural problems and promoting change, this function equips social workers to have a greater impact on the profession.

10. Nonprofit Organization Director

Median Salary: $63,760

Nonprofit organization directors manage the operations, programs, and fundraising efforts of nonprofit entities that focus on various social concerns. They are responsible for developing and implementing plans that will help their organization achieve its goals. The need for qualified and seasoned executives in this field will rise as nonprofit organizations' importance in providing communities with important services grows.

11. Employee Assistance Program Counselor

Median Salary: $49,950

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) counselors provide support and counseling services to employees dealing with personal and work-related issues. They work within organizations or as part of external EAP providers, assisting employees in areas such as stress management, mental health, and work-life balance. As organizations increasingly recognize the importance of employee well-being, the demand for EAP counselors is expected to grow.

Conclusion

The diverse range of careers in social work offers numerous opportunities for those passionate about making a positive impact on the lives of others. As the demand for skilled professionals in this field grows, graduates can expect to find rewarding employment opportunities in various sectors. By understanding the different career paths available, social work graduates can make informed decisions about their professional future and contribute to the ongoing growth and development of the social work sector.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Armenia is trying to prevent peace talks by using combat UAVs on several positions of the Azerbaijani army in the direction of Yellija settlement of Azerbaijans Kalbajar region, military expert Azay Karimov told Trend.

He noted that France and Iran are transferring UAVs to Armenia.

"Negotiations on a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia were held in Brussels a few days ago. But Armenia continues to commit provocations in order to disrupt the negotiation process," Karimov said.

"Armenia first goes to negotiations, and then tries to destabilize the situation in the region and hinder peace negotiations with the support of foreign forces," Karimov said.

The Armenian armed forces used combat UAVs on several positions of the Azerbaijani army deployed in the direction of Yellija settlement of Azerbaijans Kalbajar region on May 18, at approximately 07:15 (GMT+4).

During the inspection of the area, the remnants of projectiles made in a handicraft manner and thrown by Armenians by the use of UAVs were detected.
Photo: (Photo : STEFANI REYNOLDS / Getty Images)

The prolonged pause on federal student loan payments, which has been in effect for more than three years, is set to come to an end later this year, as confirmed by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.

Repayments are scheduled to resume within 60 days of the Supreme Court issuing its ruling or by June 30, 2023, whichever comes first.

This development follows a series of extensions to the payment pause, even after the Biden administration declared the most recent extension final.

The Timeline and Ties to the Supreme Court Decision

The current timeline for the resumption of student loan repayments is closely linked to ongoing litigation concerning the Biden administration's separate, one-time student loan forgiveness program.

The Supreme Court has taken up the case, and a ruling is expected to be delivered in late June or early July, though it could come sooner.

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona reaffirmed during a House Committee on Education and the Workforce hearing that loan repayments will commence within 60 days of the Supreme Court's decision.

This crucial timeline hinges on the court's ruling and is poised to impact millions of borrowers awaiting clarity on their financial obligations.

Should the Biden administration be allowed to proceed with its loan forgiveness program, eligible low- and middle-income borrowers could receive up to $20,000 in debt relief before repayment resumes.

In February, the administration faced legal challenges as it defended the program in front of the Supreme Court, according to The Hill.

Two lawsuits were brought forth: one by six Republican attorneys general concerned about the potential negative impact on state tax revenue, and another by student borrowers claiming a lack of opportunity for public comment on the program.

The outcome of these legal proceedings will shape the fate of the loan forgiveness program and impact borrowers' financial burdens.

The resumption is also fueled and backed by recent SoFi cases. SoFi is suing to force faster repayment of student loans, having previously poached customers from the federal loan system.

As per Nerd Wallet, in April, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and the New Civil Liberties Alliance filed a lawsuit calling the pause in loan payments an enormous expense to taxpayers and are now seeking a preliminary injunction to force an immediate payment restart.

Read Also: Rescue Team Reunites 8-Year-Old Boy with Family After Two-Day Disappearance in Michigan Wilderness

Challenges and Preparations for Repayment Restart

With the imminent conclusion of the federal student loan payment pause, many borrowers are grappling with uncertainties regarding their outstanding balances, payment schedules, and the transitioning process. Several factors add complexity to the situation.

As mentioned by CNN, firstly, millions of borrowers will have had different loan servicers since their last payment, leading to potential confusion.

Secondly, missing payments can result in monetary penalties, adding financial pressure to borrowers.

Moreover, the Federal Student Aid Office received approximately $800 million less in appropriations than requested by the Biden administration, raising concerns about the office's ability to handle the increased workload effectively.

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona acknowledged these challenges and expressed the commitment of the Federal Student Aid Office to provide the necessary support and ensure a smooth transition to repayment.

Amidst concerns surrounding servicing changes, penalties for missed payments, and potential challenges associated with the repayment restart, borrowers seek clarity and support from the Federal Student Aid office.

As the timeline progresses and the Supreme Court ruling approaches, borrowers are encouraged to stay informed, prepare for the upcoming changes, and explore available resources to navigate the post-pause repayment phase effectively.

Related Article: Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Finally Implemented Effectively Under Biden Administration, Approves $42 Billion
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In March, Patently Apple posted a report titled "While Apple's initial XR Headset displays will be supplied by LG & Sony, Samsung is developing a new OLEDoS display." In new supply chain news today, OLED firm eMagin announced late yesterday that it will be merging with Samsung Display and secure RGB OLED on silicon (OLEDoS) technology for expanded reality devices through the merger. This fits well with Samsung Displays plan to develop RGB OLEDoS in the long term to supply to key customer Apple.

For RGB OLEDoS, the challenge is to deposit the subpixels densely together, which is very difficult. The US-based eMagin previously stated that its RGB OLEDoS was superior in efficiency and lifespan to W-OLED and color filter technology.

It called its technology direct patterning technology (dPd), because it doesnt use a color filter. The company also said it has its own silicon backplane technology.

Lastly, The Elec reports that Samsung Display is planning to develop both W-OLED and color filter method as well as RGB OLEDoS. It will be supplying the former to parent company Samsung Electronics and the latter to Apple.




Analog Devices invests 630 Million in next-generation semiconductor R&D and manufacturing facility in Limerick

Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI) has invested 630 million at its European regional headquarters in the Raheen Business Park in Limerick, Ireland. The investment enables the construction of a new, state-of-the-art, 45,000 sq ft Research & Development and manufacturing facility.





The new facility will support ADIs development of next-generation signal processing innovations designed to accelerate the digital transformation of industrial, automotive, healthcare, and other sectors. It is expected to triple ADIs European wafer production capacity, and aligns with the companys goal of doubling its internal manufacturing capacity to enhance the resiliency of its global supply chain and better serve customer needs. This investment is expected to grow ADIs employment footprint in the mid-west region of Ireland by 600 new positions, a significant increase to ADIs current 1,500 employees in Ireland and 3,100 employees in Europe as a whole.

The announcement comes a year after ADI announced a separate investment of 100 million in ADI Catalyst, its 100,000 sq ft custom-built facility for innovation and collaboration at its Limerick campus. Ireland is also home to ADIs main European Research and Development Center, which has generated more than 1,000 patents since its inception and has seeded ADI R&D sites throughout Europe in Spain, Italy, UK, Romania, and Germany.

Since 1976, Ireland has been a critical innovation centre for ADI, thanks to its strong academic and research organisations, business ecosystem, and progressive government leadership, said ADI CEO and Chair Vincent Roche. This next-generation semiconductor manufacturing facility and expanded R&D team will further extend ADI Limericks global influence. Through organic R&D and close collaboration with our customers and ecosystem partners, we are striving to solve some of the worlds greatest challenges and enable a more efficient, safer, and sustainable future.

Vincent Roche, CEO and Chair, ADI

The new investment is planned as part of a collaboration within the European Unions Important Projects of Common European Interest on Microelectronics and Communication Technologies (IPCEI ME/CT) initiative, and will support cross-border collaborative research. ADIs IPCEI application  Irelands first since the inception of the Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) initiative  is subject to final approval from the European Commission, and is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar TD said, This is a really significant announcement for Limerick and the Mid-West region, which marks a new chapter in the longstanding relationship between ADI and Ireland. This massive 630 million investment is great news for local employment with lots of jobs being created during the construction phase, and 600 high-end graduate jobs. It means a significant expansion in the size and scale of ADIs research, innovation, and development, leading to new, highly innovative products. This investment is further evidence of the Governments commitment to bringing jobs to the Mid-West. Most IDA jobs created in recent years have been outside of Dublin, and Limerick has done particularly well with its deep talent pool, universities, airport, and infrastructure. This investment will also mean lots of spin-off jobs and contracts for local SMEs and Irish-owned businesses. ADIs investment is part of Irelands commitment to develop Important Projects of Common European Interest, IPCEIs, and will contribute to Europes broader microelectronics sector. The future is digital. There can be no such future without microchips and its great that Ireland is such an important player in the supply chain.

Minister for Enterprise Trade & Employment Simon Coveney said, This is a much welcome announcement from Analog Devices and a great vote of confidence in Limerick and the Mid-West. Its also noteworthy that its the latest in a series of major job announcements outside of Dublin. Im struck not only by the scale of the investment, but also the high quality positions that will result. Ill be visiting Analog Devices in Boston during a trade mission this week where well be looking forward to many more years of doing business in Ireland.

IDA Ireland CEO Michael Lohan said, The technology that ADI will develop at this facility in Limerick is at the very forefront of innovation and has the potential to revolutionise the lives of billions of people across the world. This investment by ADI is intended to strengthen our supply chain resilience for advanced semiconductor processes. We wish continued success to ADI and look forward to our continued partnership. This is a transformational investment for the Limerick site, for the Mid-West region, and for the semiconductor industry in Ireland. IDA Ireland is committed to supporting investments of scale that impact positively on Europes semiconductor industry.

More on Analog Devices, Inc. here.

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Farewell, simple CPUs. AMD is moving toward a future where generic CPU cores will be replaced with performance cores, efficiency cores, and accelerators, much like Intel.

Toms Hardware cornered AMD chief technical officer Mark Papermaster at a Belgium supercomputing conference, where Papermaster agreed to answer questions on a number of subjects. But it was Papermasters admission that AMD is moving to a hybrid architecture that most piqued our interest.

What youll also see is more variations of the cores themselves, youll see high-performance cores mixed with power-efficient cores mixed with acceleration, Papermaster replied to a question from Toms deputy managing editor Paul Alcorn. So where, Paul, were moving to now is not just variations in core density, but variations in the type of core, and how you configure the cores.

Hybrid architectures have been around for years, though theyve only recently made their way into the X86 architecture used by both AMD and Intel. Arm was the first company to popularize the hybrid of performance and efficiency cores, the latter used for background tasks. (Arms latest chips use a three-tiered hierarchy.) In 2021, Intel ushered in the 12th-generation Alder Lake family, the first to mix and match Intels own P- and E-cores.

AMD, however, has historically declined to follow suit. The companys latest Ryzen processors are all based on a single type of core architecture, all equally optimized for performance and power savings.

Papermasters second point, that AMD is moving toward acceleration, follows an earlier PCWorld interview with AMDs corporate vice president for the client channel, David McAfee. In addition to CPUs and GPUs, McAfee said that AMD is adding Inference Processing Units, or IPUs. AMD plans to integrate IPUs into the microprocessor, much like AMD does today with integrated GPUs. Its first attempt is the Ryzen Mobile 7040.

I think one of the nuances that comes along with the way that were looking at at IPUs, and IPUs for the future, is more along the lines of that combination of a very specialized engine that does a certain type of compute, but does it in a very power-efficient way, McAfee said in an interview last week and published Monday. And in a way thats really integrated with the memory subsystem and the rest of the processor, because our expectation is as time goes on, these workloads that run on the GPU will not be sort of one-time events, but therell be more of a.Im not going to say a constantly running set of workstreams, but it will be a more frequent type of compute that happens on your platform.

Papermaster also said that AMD is taking advantage of AI, actively beginning to research how it could be used in the development of future AMD chips. AI does an amazing job of having an infinite appetite to iterate, iterate, and iterate until you have a truly optimal solution, Papermaster told Alcorn. But its not just iterating; we could do that before. Its iterating and learning.

The full interview has more detail about whether AMD thinks AI could actually build chips. (Spoiler: Yes, but with some important caveats.)

McAfee told PCWorld that were on the cusp of some important announcements about AMDs future plans. We havent heard anything official (Computex, maybe?) but perhaps were not too far away from AMD outlining what it has in store for the next few years. Intel certainly hasnt been shy about its own roadmap.
The first tranche of International Monetary Fund (IMF) cash to support the countrys balance of payment is expected to hit the Bank of Ghanas account this week.

The IMF Board will approve the cash disbursement as soon as it considers a request for Ghanas Programme this Wednesday, May 17, 2023.



Part of the first tranche will come in by Friday March 19, 2023, while the remaining should be disbursed by June 2023.



Details of disbursement



The transfers, Joy Business, understands would be done in two instalments; the first one coming in by Friday May 19, 2023 or Monday, May 22, 2023. Another disbursement is expected to be done in June 2023. This will be followed by a visit by an IMF Mission to Ghana in June 2023 to review Ghanas programme considerations.



Another review is expected just before the end of 2023, possibly in December 2023, before the final disbursement. All the funds will be paid directly into the Bank of Ghanas account to support Ghanas balance of payments needs. Ghana is expected to get about $3 billion spread over a period of three years under the IMF programme.



Ghanas IMF Progrmme



Ghana secured the required financing assurance from Ghanas Creditors Committee under the G20 Common Framework last week, which includes China. This came after the Managing Director of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, indicated that Ghana will secure the financing assurance under the G20 Common Framework. She noted that the decision would help Ghana to unlock the much-needed financing from Ghanas development partners. I also strongly endorse the call by the Official Creditor Committee for private creditors and other official bilateral creditors to commit to comparable debt treatments, the IMF boss added.





Source: Joy Business









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In a move expected to provide much-needed financial relief, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has granted approval for a US$3 billion, three-year extended credit facility for Ghana.



The Fund in a note on its website indicated that its Executive Board had on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, approved a Special Drawing Rights of 2.242 billion equivalent to US$3 billion.



The IMF Executive Board approved, on May 17th, an SDR 2.242 billion (about US$3 billion) 36-month Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement for Ghana. This decision enabled an immediate disbursement equivalent to SDR 451.4 million (about US$600 million). The rest is expected to be disbursed in tranches every six months, following program reviews approved by the IMF Executive Board, statement read in part.



The move comes five days after the formal announcement of an Official Creditors Committee (OCC) instituted by the Paris Club and headed by China and France. The formation of this committee paved the way for the IMFs blessings.



The loan agreement, which was reached at the staff level in December, has attained Board-level approval in record time.



In comparison to Zambia, experts anticipate that Ghanas debt restructuring process will likely proceed more swiftly and smoothly. This optimism stems from the fact that China, the largest bilateral creditor of Zambia, holds a smaller proportion of Ghanas debt. China has faced accusations of causing delays in Zambias debt restructuring, allegations that it vehemently denies.



The time elapsed between securing a staff-level agreement on the $3 billion loan and obtaining IMF board approval for Ghana amounts to 156 days. In contrast, Zambia faced a lengthier timeline of 271 days, primarily due to the extended period required to secure bilateral creditor participation in the process.



This, however, comes as official data reveals that approximately US$5.4 billion of debt owed to official creditors has been identified for restructuring.



Furthermore, the nations debt to private overseas creditors amounts to US$14.6 billion, which is also earmarked for restructuring, leading some analysts to suggest that debt restructuring talks could remain lengthy.



Nevertheless, analysts expect the markets to respond favourably to the announcement.



As Ghana now moves forward with its IMF-approved loan, the nation seeks to implement comprehensive measures to address its debt burden and stabilize its economy.



The success of its debt restructuring talks will play a vital role in determining Ghanas path toward financial recovery and sustainable growth.

Source: B&FT









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To act as a catalyst in the transformation of the manufacturing sector across Africa, the international exhibition company, Afrocet Montgomery, a division of a global exhibition group brings together professionals from across the entire packaging supply chain, is set to hold the largest packaging, printing, plastics, and food processing portfolio exhibition in Accra.



Having organized similar shows in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa, Propak Ghana, scheduled to take place from 6th  8th June at the Grand Arena within the Accra International Conference Centre, is expected to attract over 2,500 visitors and more than 100 brands, both local and international.



Speaking at a press briefing in Accra, George Pearson, Regional Director  West Africa, at Afrocet Montgomery said Propak Ghana has been designed to support companies and individuals involved across the manufacturing spectrum, by creating an environment where business partnerships can develop and trade exchanges can take place

Visitors to the event will be able to explore the latest innovations and products from leading suppliers from the local region as well as international companies from all corners of the globe who will be showcasing the newest advances in industry innovation and products that are collectively supporting the local manufacturing industry, he said.



The General Manager (GM), Sales & Marketing, Manufacturing Business at Polytank Ghana Ltd (subsidiary of Mohinani Group), Thevar Joseph commended Propak Ghana for the timely entrance into the Ghanaian packaging ecosystem.

"This collaboration allows Polytank Ghana and Sonnex, Nigeria a platform to exhibit over 50 years of expertise, technical and industrial know-how in addressing the most complex packaging needs and requirements in Ghana and Africa."



Our reason for being is to ensure that global quality is delivered in a local context; through the Packaging & Storage industry. Locals have a right to receive global quality and standard and we make sure that happens said Mr. Thevar.

On his part, Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA), Mr. Albert Kassim Diwura, implored Ghanaian companies to utilize Propak Ghana as a vital marketplace for finding cutting-edge packaging options.



Packaging is important for product display, preservation, and marketability. Packaging today represents a brand's identity, values, and dedication to quality; it is much more than just a simple protective covering. Exposure to prospective partnerships and collaborations is another important benefit of taking part in Propak Ghana.



I implore Ghanaian companies to utilize Propak Ghana as a vital marketplace for finding cutting-edge packaging options. Through this partnership, we can increase Ghanas export capacity, strengthen competitiveness, and take advantage of the enormous prospects the larger African market has to offer. Let's collaborate to build a world in which Ghanaian goods are lauded for their excellence, sustainability, and exquisite packaging on shelves in both Africa and outside, he urged.



Afua Ntiriwa Tekyi-Mills, Head of Corporate Affairs at Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) said Propak Ghana will serve as a vital platform for local manufacturers, international companies, investors and industry stakeholders to connect, collaborate and explore opportunities for growth and partnerships



Alongside the 3-day exhibition booths and product showcases, there will be an industry leading conference program that will provide insight, explanations and thoughts on the trends and relevant topics faced by the industry today. These include sessions on circular economy, sustainability and financing options for SME and Multi nationals among others. In total, more than 40 speakers are expected over the three-day program. The full program is available on the event website, which is PropakGhana.com, where visitors can also pre-register free of charge.



Propak Ghana is organized by Afrocet Montgomery, a branch of the Montgomery Group, which is one of the UKs oldest exhibitions and events companies, originally founded in 1895.

Source: Peacefmonline com









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The President of the United States of America, President Joe Biden, has reiterated the call by H. E. Amb. Prof Dean Robers Jr; the incoming High Commissioner and Continental Vice President to the United States of America by the United Nations International Peace and Governance Council (UNIPGC TEXAS) for world leaders to discourage wars, discuss immediate disarmament, end the manufacturing and stockpiling of weapons of mass destruction, eradicate terrorism and promote peace and economic sustainability for the benefit of the next generations.



President Joe Biden made the announcement, barely twenty-four hours after H. E. Amb. Prof. Dean Roberts Jrs lamentation, that his country is ready and committed to eliminating stockpiles of chemical weapons by fall 2023.



The President said this was an important disarmament step that needs the highest standards of transparency and public safety.



President Biden assured that his country will support all efforts to prevent the accumulation, production and use of chemical weapons in the world.



He reinstated and said the use of chemical weapons is unacceptable and America will lead by example by continuing to fight that impunity.



The announcement by President Biden is in line with strong signals that H. E. Amb. Prof. Dean Roberts Jr., who is also the newly appointed Professor of Criminology at the American University of Peace and Governance, sent to the world Leaders in his recent call for Total Peace on Earth.



H. E. Amb Prof Dean Roberts Jr. American and Criminologist, Engineering Scientist, Renowned Internationally Recognized Security Expert, Philanthropist, Investor in oil and gas industry, International Missionary and Ordained Minister of the Gospel said his objective can only be achieved by unconditional eradication of wars and disarmament among other deadly acts.



The US Presidents call came as a response to H. E. Amb Prof. Roberts Jrs call earlier in the week for an immediate cessation of violence, disarmament and end to the manufacturing of weapons of mass destruction and to use the abundant resources in the Continent and the world at large to promote youth education, employment and youth equality in governance.



The Minister of the gospel and also an International Missionary with The Missionary Church International (TMCI) , North Carolina, USA as well as a renowned and globally respected Peace and Conflict Mediator, the high profile Diplomat, H. E. Amb. Prof Roberts Jr. implored religious organisations all over the world to unite and preach Peace, stability, and political and religious tolerance among all the Nations of the World.



He called on the Teachers of the Word of God from the various religious entities around the World, to use their God-given wisdom and divine blessings from God, to transmit and promote peace in the world.



He said he is happy the American President is setting the example, and that this is the right time to prevail on the other superpowers and organizations in all the Nations around the world to encourage the youth globally, to practical peace-building efforts and mediation processes in all sincerity for a peaceful world.

Source: Peacefmonline com









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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) hopes for the early signing of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization Imangali Tasmagambetov told repoters, Trend reports via BelTA.

"Both Azerbaijan and Armenia practically recognize the borders between the two countries according to the Alma-Ata Declaration of 1991," the CSTO Secretary General said.

"We hope that these negotiations will lead to the signing of a peace treaty. And the countries will proceed to the delimitation of the border in the future," he added.

In January 2021, during a meeting in Moscow, the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan made a decision to create a working group at the level of the deputy prime ministers of the three countries that would focus on establishing transport and economic links in Nagorno-Karabakh, following the end of the second Karabakh war in 2020.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev held a meeting with President of the European Council Charles Michel and Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan in Brussels in May 2023. Next meeting with the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Brussels is scheduled for July, Charles Michel said at the time.
Our overheating world is likely to break a key temperature limit for the first time over the next few years, scientists predict.



Researchers say there's now a 66% chance we will pass the 1.5C global warming threshold between now and 2027.



The chances are rising due to emissions from human activities and a likely El Nino weather pattern later this year.



If the world passes the limit, scientists stress the breach, while worrying, will likely be temporary.



Hitting the threshold would mean the world is 1.5C warmer than it was during the second half of the 19th Century, before fossil fuel emissions from industrialisation really began to ramp up.



And breaking the limit even for just one year is a worrying sign that warming is accelerating and not slowing down.



The 1.5C figure has become a symbol of global climate change negotiations. Countries agreed to "pursue efforts" to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C under the 2015 Paris agreement.



Going over 1.5C every year for a decade or two would see far greater impacts of warming, such as longer heatwaves, more intense storms and wildfires.



But passing the level in one of the next few years would not mean that the Paris limit had been broken. Scientists say there is still time to restrict global warming by cutting emissions sharply.

Source: BBC









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An Accra Circuit Court has remanded into police custody a 40-year-old tile setter for insulting President Nana Akuffo-Addo.



Raphael Okoe Ankrah, also known as Okoe Killer was arrested after police saw a video posted to social showing the accused using very unsavoury words on the President.



He has since pleaded not guilty to offensive conduct conducive to breaches of the peace.



The Court presided over by Mr Samuel Bright Acquah, ordered that Ankrah be brought back on May 30, 2023.



Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Maxwell Oppong told the Court that Ankrah lived in Jamestown.



He said on May 15, 2023, the Police saw a viral video in which the Ankrah was seen insulting the President.



ASP Oppong said the police had to arrest Ankrah because the video was not only vile but had annoyed and agitated the public.



The Polices Intelligence Directorate tracked Ankrah and arrested him at his hideout at James Town in Accra.



The prosecution said Ankrah admitted the offence in his investigation cautioned statement and was accordingly charged.



Mr Yaw Dankwa, Ankrahs Defense Counsel who prayed for bail for the accused, said the charge did not support the facts, which he said was political, because his client denied the offence upon his arrest.



He suggested that the said video could have been manipulated and until it was presented and scrutinized in court, his client was innocent of the charges.



Mr Dankwa said Ankrah, a responsible father with a wife who had a two-week baby, was not a flight risk.



He said Ankrah had people of substance ready to stand surety for him.



The prosecution, opposing the bail, pleaded with the Court to send the accused to the psychiatric hospital as he told police he was not in his right frame of mind.



ASP Oppong said that based on Ankrahs utterances in the video, he would be safer in police custody because his life was in danger in his community.



On him not being a flight risk, the prosecution said Ankrah was a squatter living in an uncompleted building with no fixed place of abode, but his lawyer said there were no uncompleted buildings in James Town.

Source: GNA









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Two Males have been apprehended for, allegedly, stealing an amount of GH21,000 from a fire scene.



Suspects Emmanuel Akolobila and Yazeed Abubakar, allegedly, stole the money from a house, which was on fire.



The incident happened at Daaban New Site, in Kumasi on Sunday, May 14, 2023.



According to a police report, the fire started from a wooden structure behind the main building around 11am.



The wooden structure, which served as a warehouse and contained assorted clothes, got burnt into ashes.



Reports indicated that the personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) rushed to the scene to douse the fire.



The two suspects, who also feigned to be helping to douse the fire, took advantage of the situation to steal an amount of GH 21,000.



The victim of the theft, one Justice Amoako, personally reported the case to the police.



According to Mr. Amoako, he was at church when he received a distressed call of fire burning his house around 11am.



The complainant said when he reached home he realised that the suspects had entered his living room to steal the cash.



A police statement, sighted by the paper, disclosed that both Akolobila and Yazeed Abubakar are in police custody.



That the burnt structure served as a warehouse for the complainant, part the police statement pointed out.



It was disclosed that the complainant was called from church and informed that his warehouse was on fire.



That when he reached home suspects Emmanuel Akolobila and Yazeed Abubakar had entered his living room and stole cash of GH21,000, which was in a bag and kept in his bedroom.



With the assistance of the patrol team, the report said, the suspects were arrested and detained for investigations, adding, Emmanuel Akolobila and Yazeed Abubakar are in custody.





Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









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The leadership and delegates of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have been commended for exhibiting a high sense of political maturity in the just-ended presidential and parliamentary primaries of the Party.



Mensah, a former organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the then Brong-Ahafo Region gave the commendation in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Monday at Odumase in the Sunyani West Constituency.



As the largest opposition Party, he said the credible, peaceful, and responsible manner the NDC conducted its primaries were indications the Party has understood internal democracy which an index is to measure the countrys democratic gains.

Mensah, therefore, suggested the need for the leadership of the NPP to emulate by ensuring that parliamentary candidates were not imposed on the Party members.



Instead, the NPP must conduct credible parliamentary primaries for the delegates to make informed decisions and vote for competent candidates to contest the parliamentary seats in the Election 2024, he added.



The NDC successfully conducted its presidential and parliamentary primaries over the weekend and overwhelmingly endorsed former President John Dramani Mahama as the Partys 2024 flagbearer and elected other parliamentary candidates.



Though the Party could not conduct the parliamentary primaries in some constituencies due to pertinent internal challenges including Court injunctions placed on them, the primaries in general had received applause from critics and political pundits.



The NPP must learn lessons and ensure that a fair playing field would be given to particularly all aspirants contesting in impending NPP presidential and parliamentary primaries.



In fact, the NDC has proven critics wrong, and the Partys successful primary elections are an indication that they are yearning to regain political power in the next general election.



This is telling us as NPP that if we are not careful and repeat the unpardonable mistakes in the election 2020 by forcibly imposing parliamentary candidates on our people, then we are heading for political doom, Mensah stated.



The former NPP organizer indicated the choice of the Party people remained paramount if the NPP could recapture lost parliamentary seats and maintain the incumbent seats in the next general election, saying We must also do our homework well.



As a strong Party under a great elephant which cherishes internal democracy, the NPP leadership must ensure that every qualified parliamentary aspirant is given the opportunity to contest in the Party primaries devoid of bias, skirmishes, and unhealthy political considerations, he stated.



We cannot afford to allow some few people in the Party to decide our fate in the Election 2024 because that would be politically suicidal for us. We must strive hard and get the simple majority in parliament and if we do our homework well, we can regain many of the parliamentary seats, particularly our traditional seats we lost in 2020, Mensah added.



As a government in power, he said the NPP was strong enough not only to break the eight, but also win a majority of the parliamentary seats, saying, We need to do a lot, make the NPP more attractive for the masses to make informed decisions and vote for us in 2024.



Mensah said perceived political complacency and voter apathy threatened the fortunes of the Partys victory in the election of 2024.



He, therefore, made an urgent call to the leadership of the Party to ensure that various committees set up to investigate pertinent challenges pertaining to some constituencies would accelerate their work for the progress of the Party.



Certain internal challenges which emanated during the last parliamentary elections in the Sunyani East, Jaman South, Berekum East, Sunyani West, and Wenchi constituencies remained unresolved. The Party is going through other similar challenges in some constituencies nationwide and the leadership must be proactive enough to tackle those challenges before it is too late, he added.



That notwithstanding, Mensah appealed to disgruntled members and supporters of the Party to give peace a chance to prevail, saying Despite our differences, we must remember we are fighting a common enemy, the NDC on the political space in the Election 2024.





Source: GNA









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Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia has expressed optimism that the NDC flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, will match the late President Jerry John Rawlings record of being the only head of state to have been sworn into office three times.



Speaking at a ceremony at the University of Development Studies (UDS) where Mr. Mahama delivered his post-election acceptance speech after he was elected flagbearer of the NDC, Mr. Nketia said Mr. Mahama will win the 2024 election.



Comparing Rawlings era to today, the NDC chairman noted that Just as Rawlings was destined to rescue the country some 44 years ago, Mahama is also destined to rescue the country now from the hands of the incompetent Akufo-Addo and NPP-led administration.



Mr Nketia said President Rawlings swore to the nation three times  First as the chairman of Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), second, as chairman of Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) and third, as elected President of Ghana under NDC. We never chose this day, May 15, consciously, it just happened that today, we are repeating history in another form.



Mr. Nketia noted that President Mahama is going to be the second President to swear to this nation for the third time before he leaves. He has already been sworn in twice  he swore in as president after the unfortunate demise of President Atta Mills, the second term was when he was elected as president of the Republic, and on January 7th, 2025, he is going to conclude the history-making of this country, for he is going to swear with the state sword for the third time as the President of the Republic of Ghana.



This tells you that the man comes with divine guidance. Rawlings was chosen at a time the nation was considered to be at the lowest end and we hadnt seen the works of Akufo-Addo yet, so at that time we thought that was the worst this country could come to. But today, those who can compare will realize that we were joking in those days and that the real bad times of Ghana, the worst time of Ghana is today.



So, if divine providence had chosen President Rawlings to rescue the country in those days, today, President John Dramani Mahama is being chosen to do the work that has been left uncompleted by President Rawlings, the NDC chairman added amidst applause from NDC executives and former appointees as well as some supporters gathered at the auditorium.





Source: ghanaweb.com









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Unsuccessful NDC flag bearer aspirant Kojo Bonsu has said the landslide victory of former President John Mahama in the party's recently-held internal polls, is clear warning to the governing New Patriotic Party that change is coming.



Mr Mahama has won the flag bearer race held on Saturday, 13 May 2023, with 297,603 votes representing 98.9% of the total valid votes cast.



His only contender, Mr Bonsu, polled 3,181 votes representing 1.1%.



Some 4,353 ballots were rejected.



Mr Mahama, thus, become the flag bearer of the NDC for the 2024 general elections.



A third aspirant, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, pulled out of the race at the last hour, citing "blatant irregularities".



In a statement after the polls, Mr Bonsu said Mr Mahamas "landslide victory is a resounding and clear warning to the government that the NDC, together with millions of disappointed floating voters, shall cause change at the polls in December 2024".



The former Kumasi mayor also urged Dr Duffuor, whom he described as "my senior comrade", "to consider the great value he adds and join forces with the party for us all to wrest power from the nation-wrecking NPP".



He said "regardless of the circumstances surrounding the electioneering process and the outcome of the election itself, we must, now, all join the rescue mission of liberating our mother Ghana from the modern-day imperialism and colonialism practised in a benevolent democracy under this NPP government".



"What is ahead of us is far bigger than any spilled milk", Mr Bonsu noted, adding: "We cannot afford to lose any single effort going into the 2024 general elections and we must be relentless in our united pursuit of victory. Together, we shall be invincible".





Source: class fm









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.

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Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has described the main opposition National Democratic Congress flag bearer, John Dramani Mahamas victory and acceptance speech as a patriotic pledge.



Mr Mahama delivering an acceptance speech following his victory in the NDCs Primaries at the University for Development Studies (UDS), Monday, 15 May 2023, pledged his commitment to run a government with fewer officials and appointees as compared to the current Akufo-Addo-led administration.



I am committed to operating an effective government with not more than sixty (60) ministers. These Ministers together with other appointees of the government will not be entitled to ex-gratia payments after their tenure, as they will commit to that undertaking even before the necessary constitutional amendments, including a review of the controversial Article 71, Mr Mahama stated.



Reacting to NDC flag bearers speech, in a Facebook post on Tuesday, 16 May 2023, the North Tongu MP who went unopposed in the just-ended Primaries, indicated that Mr Mahama would be saving the taxpayer GH350 million if he fulfills his pledge.



John Mahamas inspiring & patriotic pledge to appoint not more than 60 Ministers & Deputies, and to prevent all his appointees from receiving ex-gratia payments, will at current conditions of service potentially save the Ghanaian taxpayer an impressive GH350million in four years, Mr Ablakwa posted on the social media platform.





Source: class fm









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.

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Bernard Allotey Jacobs has commended the Member of Parliament (MP) for Asawase Constituency and former Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak over his re-election.



Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak was re-elected during the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential and parliamentary primaries on Saturday, May 13, 2023.



Allotey Jacobs, making his submissions on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo' show, described Hon. Muntaka Mubarak as a "fighter" as his victory in the elections was not so assured.



The Asawase seat was one of the contentious seats during the primaries.



Allotey Jacobs explained that Hon. Muntaka Mubarak was least expected to win the seat again but his victory is testament of his strength.



"Muntaka has shown that he is a fighter and a strong man. And these elections, I will respect him for it," he said, adding "God bless him. He's shown that he is a man. He is a man of principles. His enemies must understand it; he is a man of principles".





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.

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Member of Parliament for Assin North has expressed his disappointment in the Supreme Court's ruling to get his records expunged as a Member of Parliament.



A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court ordered Parliament to expunge the name of the NDC MP.



In the ruling, the apex court barred Mr. Quayson from holding himself as an MP for Assin North.



Gyaye Quayson reacting to this in a letter said: I am, of course, disappointed by the Courts decision. I am especially surprised that the Court now says that foreign bureaucrats now determine whether natural born Ghanaians have the right to contest for parliamentary elections in Ghana or not. Thus, a country that does not allow renunciation of its citizenship can bar a natural born Ghanaian, who has severed all relations with a country of acquired citizenship, from ever standing for MP.



According to him, he has "turned the page on litigating this matter in the courts of justice. I leave the matter to the court of conscience, which Ghandi reminds us, supersedes all other courts".





Read his full statement here:



I Remain Committed To The Development Of Assin North Constituency and Her People



This morning, the Supreme Court by a unanimous decision, ordered the Parliament of Ghana to expunge my name from its records as a Member of Parliament. The Court ruled that the Electoral Commission acted unconstitutionally in allowing me to contest the 2020 Parliamentary Elections without proof that I had denounced my Canadian citizenship at the time I filed my nomination in October, 2020 to contest the parliamentary elections in the Assin-North constituency.



In fact, the EC inspected my renunciation certificate in November 2020, prior to allowing me to contest the elections. Thus, I was duly qualified to run, according to the ECs regulations, which the law presumes to be regular. Yet, the Court holds that I should have offered this proof to the EC at the time of filing for my nomination and then applies the holding retrospectively to disqualify me.



It is a matter of public record that I filed for the renunciation of my Canadian citizenship in December, 2019. It is also a matter of record that I left Canada in February, 2020. It is also a matter of record that as soon as I applied for renunciation of my Canadian citizenship and left Canada, I lost all the rights of Canadian citizenship. It is also a matter of record that I picked up my renunciation certificate from the Canadian Embassy in Accra in November, 2020.



It is also a matter of public record that Canadian law does not say I owe allegiance to Canada, even after filing for renunciation. In fact, Canadian law is unequivocal that disavowal of allegiance is subjective and can be done at any time, including immediately after swearing the oath of citizenship. Thus, under Canadian law, I owed no allegiance to Canada at all material times.



I am, of course, disappointed by the Courts decision. I am especially surprised that the Court now says that foreign bureaucrats now determine whether natural born Ghanaians have the right to contest for parliamentary elections in Ghana or not. Thus, a country that does not allow renunciation of its citizenship can bar a natural born Ghanaian, who has severed all relations with a country of acquired citizenship, from ever standing for MP.



Nevertheless, I have turned the page on litigating this matter in the courts of justice. I leave the matter to the court of conscience, which Ghandi reminds us, supersedes all other courts.



Helping to develop my constituency has always been, and remains, my priority. I assure my constituents that nothing has changed, and I will work even harder than before to win their support and to attain these goals.



I thank the good people of Assin-North, the leadership of the NDC, my attorneys, and the numerous Ghanaians, from all sides of the political divide, who have supported me during these turbulent times. Together, we must ensure that we build a progressive and inclusive society that does not treat any of our citizens as second-class citizens.



May God bless our homeland Ghana, and bless my beloved Assin North Constituency and her people.



Thank you.



signed

James Gyakye Quayson

[Assin North Constituency]

Background

The State had on February 12, last year, charged James Gyakye Quayson with five counts being; deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.



As the trial continued on July 2022, his lawyers led by Lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata questioned the competency of the Prosecutions First Witness, Richard Takyi-Mensah, a teacher and his subsequent tendering of his witness statements.



But, his objection was overruled by the trial Judge Justice Mary Maame Ekue Yanzu on the grounds that the witness was competent and duly admitted the witness statements and paragraphs.



Dissatisfied with the High Courts ruling, Mr. Quayson and his lawyers filed a motion at the Supreme Court seeking to quash the decision of the trial judge and order of Prohibition against the judge.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Dr. Benjamin Otchere-Ankrah, a lecturer at the Central University, has called for the exit of Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, from his office now that the IMF deal is settled.



The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) executive board has approved the long-awaited $3 billion bailout for Ghana in hopes of combating the countrys economic crisis.



The arrangement will allow for the immediate release of $600 million with the remaining funds to be made available over the course of the next three years, the IMF said in a statement Wednesday.



"Congratulations to President @NAkufoAddo & his team on the $3 billion IMF-supported program approved by our Executive Board. We stand with Ghana as it implements reforms to address the current economic and financial crisis and help build a better future for all Ghanaians," the IMF Boss, Kristalina Georgieva, tweeted on Wednesday, May 17.



Dr. Otchere-Ankrah is therefore asking the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to fulfil his promise to let the Finance Minister go after the end of the IMF deal.



"Long ago, we heard some MPs saying the Finance Minister should resign and the President pleaded that we should wait for him to finish with the budget arrangements and IMF deal and when he is done, he will allow him to go. So, if he has finished, we are waiting for the President to know whether he will let him go or he will exit by himself," he reminded the President.



He called for a send-off to be organized for Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta and offered himself to be the Master of Ceremony (MC) for the event.



"By God's grace, we are done with the IMF, Ken is tired. He should go and rest . . . we should organize a send-off for him. I will attend it; in fact I will be the MC for his send-off," he told Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo' show.





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.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on the "On approval of the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the establishment of the Azerbaijani-Uzbek Investment Fund", Trend reports.

According to the decree, the agreement signed between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the establishment of the Azerbaijani-Uzbek Investment Fund on February 24, 2023, in Tashkent, has been approved.
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) on Monday, May 15, 2023, announced the indictment of Ghanaian socialite Mona Faiz Montrage popularly known as Mona4Reall on fraud related criminal charges.



The announcement followed months of speculations about her supposed arrest by authoritie in the United Kingdom.



GhanaWeb highlights five facts about Monas arrest and her unsealed indictment charges as contained in the DoJs release below:



Arrest and extradition



According to the DoJ, Mona was arrested in the United Kingdom on November 10, 2022, in connection with a series of romance schemes and money laundering between 2013 and 2019.



Montrage was arrested in the United Kingdom on November 10, 2022, and was extradited from the United Kingdom on May 12, 2023, the DoJ stated in the release posted on its website on Monday.



Details of offense and indictment



As contained in the unsealed indictment charges of jury, Mona is facing six counts: one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of wire fraud, one count of money laundering conspiracy, and one count of money laundering. She is also charged with one count of receipt of stolen money and one count of conspiracy to receive stolen money.



A US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damien Wililiams is quoted as saying that Hajia4Reall and the members of a criminal enterprise based in West Africa targeted older Americans through romance and ended up receiving over $2million through the activities of the enterprise.



We alleged today that Ms. Montrage participated in multiple romance scams  often targeting elderly victims  resulting in more than $2 million in fraudulent funds under her control. Romance scams  especially those that target older individuals  are of major concern. The FBI will be tireless in our efforts to hold fraudsters accountable in the criminal justice system, Damien Williams is quoted by the DoJ.



Alleged tricks



The unsealed indictment said Hajia4Reall in pursuit of her alleged scam activities committed offenses including opening multiple bank accounts in the US for the receipt of payments from her victims.



On or about September 15, 2016, Mona Faiz Montrage, the defendant opened a business bank account in the name of 4Reall Desigsn in the Bronx. New York (Account-1).



On or about November 1, 2018, Montrage received into Account-1 two check deposits from a romance scam victim (Victim-2) totalling at least approximately $195,000, the Grand Jury indictment said.



Trial



Mona4Reall following her extradition to the US was expected to be put before US District Court Judge Paul A. Crotty on Monday, May 15, 2023.



Possible jail term



If found guilty, she faces up to 75 years jail term if shes found guilty of all the charges levelled against her in the fraud.



The sentence duration of 95 years is subject to her receiving the maximum sentence for each of the six charges she is facing.



More often than not, sentences are handed down to run concurrently which means she could get a maximum of 20 years in jail.







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.

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NEW YORK  Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, were trailed in their car by photographers as they left a New York City charity event Tuesday night, briefly taking refuge at a police station before being whisked away in a yellow taxicab.

The pursuit and media frenzy evoked memories of the 1997 car chase through Paris that killed Harrys mother, Princess Diana  though in this case, police said, no one was hurt.
Almost exactly a year ago, Brandon Basom was the victim of a hit-and-run while riding his bicycle in Harrisburg, an incident that he said put him briefly in the hospital with broken ribs and lacerations that had to be stapled closed.

The next month, he heard that a woman had been killed while on her bicycle after being hit by a van on Market Street in the city. A few days after that, he learned that the woman was his friend, Leyla Monroy.

We do this every year, Basom said of Wednesdays Ride of Silence memorial event in Harrisburg. But this year was the most personal.

Monroy was one of two cyclists killed in the city last year, along with Chantel Worley, who died in December when she was struck by a truck on Cameron Street. A total of 15 cyclists were killed in crashes last year in Pennsylvania, according to PennDOT.

On Wednesday evening, roughly 100 cyclists rode to the Capitol steps, where 15 white ghost bikes had been placed to commemorate those Pennsylvanians killed, along with a red bike representing those with serious injuries.

The procession was part of the Ride of Silence movement, which was first held in Texas in 2003 and has since expanded to events around the world  all of which recognize cyclists killed in traffic and call for better bike safety. The event has been held in Harrisburg for over a decade, according to organizers.

It doesnt just take their lives, it takes their loved ones lives, too, Patricia Worley, Chantels mother, said of the victims of bicycle collisions.

It was very moving just watching the bicycles come up the road, Worley said of Wednesdays event, an encouraging sign that so many in the Harrisburg region take the issue so seriously.

If her death is going to stand for anything, I hope it stands for change, Worley said.

PennDOT also hosted an event in York on Wednesday to promote bicycle safety, citing preliminary 2022 numbers showing the 15 deaths, out of 798 total crashes in Pennsylvania involving bicycles last year. This is down from 24 cyclist deaths in 2021, which was one of the deadliest years on record, according to PennDOT data.

Wed like to keep that going lower until we reach Vision Zero, said Ross Willard, one of the Harrisburg Ride of Silence organizers and the head of the nonprofit Recycle Bicycle.

But Willard and many others involved with Wednesdays event dont want to be overly optimistic. Cyclist fatalities nationwide increased 11% last year, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. CDC numbers crunched by the National Safety Council show total bicycle collision injuries decreasing 39% between 2011 and 2020  but fatalities increasing a whopping 44% over the decade, suggesting that bicycle-involved crashes are becoming far more deadly even as total numbers decline.

Basom cited two possible reasons for the recent spike. First, motorists who got used to lower traffic volumes during the COVID-19 pandemic seem to have continued to drive recklessly, as if there is no one around them; secondly, vehicles are getting bigger, with studies by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and others showing a link between this and increasing pedestrian and cyclist deaths.

Fatality data also naturally understates the impact on those who suffer serious injuries  such as Annie Bradley, whose twin sister, Deanna Slamans, was in attendance Wednesday.

Bradley spent 76 days in the hospital  including a month on life support  after being hit by a truck in December 2021, Slamans said. Bradley was riding her bicycle near 13th and Hanover streets in Harrisburg when she was struck.

Just the awareness of how bad a bicycle accident can be might help make a difference in the public consciousness, Slamans said. The sisters just celebrated their 50th birthday, and despite the fact that Bradley suffers from lingering cognitive disabilities after the crash, we had a big party and just celebrated her life and that she made it, Slamans said.

Many of those in attendance Wednesday are involved in advocating local governments and state agencies for better bike transit  such as the installation of bike lines, bike-specific traffic signals, and other innovations  although unfortunately were disappointed a lot of times, Willard said.

Harrisburg can be seen as a microcosm of the issue, not only in its spike in cyclist deaths but in the ups and downs of attempts to create safer streets for cyclists.

The city had made significant progress - such as the addition of bike lanes in the reconfiguration of Second Street, or the bike infrastructure that was built out behind the PHEAA building - Basom noted, and when you see that, it shows you that the city values you on your bike just as much as someone in their Escalade.

But a plan to make the eastern portion of State Street more bike-friendly was complicated after PennDOT said it would not permit the elimination of a motor vehicle lane, meaning the city would have to eliminate some street parking to add a bike lane.

Former Mayor Eric Papenfuse had secured funding to do so, and work had started early last year when Mayor Wanda Williams announced that it would be stopped, citing concerns about elderly and handicapped residents in the corridor losing their parking.

We arent happy campers about State Street, Willard said, although he was enthused that Williams recently hosted a bike event for children, a possible step forward more than a year after the city said it would go back to the drawing board on State Street.

Basom also stressed that the bicycle-related improvements being sought arent for the stereotypical spandex-clad recreational rider, but for working-class people who are simply trying to get to work affordably  such as Monroy, who was killed coming home from her job.

With the State Street project waylaid, cyclists have no safe path through Allison Hill right now, Basom said, a serious problem for one of the areas most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

In the meantime, Recycle Cycle and the Harrisburg Bicycle Club offer safety training and do outreach to increase awareness of state laws  such as the statute requiring motorists to allow at least four feet of space when passing a cyclist.

The more and more people that are biking, the more important that it is to get the message out that we must share the road and we must both take responsibility, said Diane Dankman-Riley, an organizer with the Harrisburg Bicycle Club.

More:

Dont use these bicycle helmets sold online at Walmart, federal safety agency says

Primary Election 2023: Results from school board races in Dauphin, Cumberland, Perry, Lebanon, Lancaster, York counties
A man was shot while using an ATM in Philadelphia during a possible robbery Wednesday, according to news sources.

The shooting took place around 9 p.m. along the 6400 block of Roosevelt Boulevard in the citys Mayfair section. When authorities arrived, they found a man on the ground near an ATM, suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest, according to reports from NBC10 and 6ABC.

Police said the 49-year-old victim was using the ATM when he was shot once in the chest. He was able to make it to his Mercedes, leaving a trail of blood from the bank machine to the vehicle. Thats where authorities came across him.

The man, who lives a few blocks away, was transported to the hospital where he was listed in critical condition, according to reports.

So far, it is believed the motive for the shooting was robbery, but no arrests have been made.

Police are hoping surveillance footage from the ATM will provide them with a lead to track down the shooter, according to NBC10.

Read More:
South Korea finds itself embroiled in an all-out gender war  and it keeps getting worse.

The animosity between Korean men and women has reached a point where some women are outright refusing to date, marry and have kids with men  a phenomenon known as the 4B movement.

As a Korean feminist scholar living in the U.S., Ive followed this gender war from afar as I conducted research on contemporary Korean gender politics.

However, I also became embroiled in it myself after my research on Korean masculinity was published by CNN.

The article described foreign women who traveled to Korea after becoming enamored of the idea of dating Korean men from watching Korean television dramas. I pointed out that since the tourists fantasies were based on fictional characters, some of them ended up disappointed with the Korean men they dated in real life.

The article was about racial politics and the masculine ideals. But some Korean readers thought that I was simply criticizing Korean men for not being romantic and handsome enough. One enraged Korean man commented that I was an ugly feminist.

But this was tame in comparison to what women living in South Korea have endured in recent years.

Extreme misogyny and a feminist backlash

Over the past couple of decades, there have been flash points in this gender war.

In 2010, Ilbe, a right-wing website that traffics in misogyny, started attracting users who peppered the forums with vulgar posts about women.

Then in 2015, an online extremist feminist group named Megalia arose. Its goal was to fight back by demeaning Korean men in ways that mirrored the rhetoric on sites like Ilbe.

A year later, a man who had professed his hatred of women murdered a random woman in a public bathroom near a Seoul subway station. He was eventually sentenced to decades in prison, but the lines were quickly drawn. On one side were feminists, who saw misogyny as the underlying motive. On the other side were men who claimed that it was merely the isolated actions of a mentally ill man. The two groups violently clashed during competing protests at the site of the murder.

A backdrop of digital sex crimes

However, none of these events have elicited as much public controversy as the steep rise in digital sex crimes. These are newer forms of sexual violence facilitated by technology: revenge porn; upskirting, which refers to surreptitiously snapping photos under womens skirts in public; and the use of hidden cameras to film women having sex or undressing.

In 2018, there were 2,289 reported cases of digital sex crimes; in 2021, the number snowballed to 10,353.

In 2019, there were two major incidents that involved digital sex crimes.

In one, a number of male K-pop stars were indicted for filming and circulating videos of women in group chatrooms without their consent.

A few months later, Koreans were shocked to learn about what became known as the Nth Room Incident, during which hundreds of perpetrators  mostly men  committed digital sex crimes on dozens of women and minors.

They tended to target poorer women  sex workers, or women who wanted to make a few bucks by sharing anonymous nude photos of themselves. The perpetrators either hacked into their social media accounts or approached these women and offered them money, but asked for their personal information so they could transmit the funds. Once they obtained this information, they blackmailed the women by threatening to reveal their sex work and their nudes to their friends and family.

Since sex work and posting nude images of yourself online are illegal in Korea, the women, fearing arrest or being ostracized by friends and family, complied with the perpetrators demands to send even more compromising images of themselves. The men would then swap these images in chatrooms.

And yet a 2019 survey conducted by the Korean government found that large swaths of the population blamed women for these sex crimes: 52% said that they believed sexual violence occurs because women wear revealing clothes, while 37% thought if women experienced sexual assault while drunk, they are partly to blame for their victimization.

In other words, a significant percentage of the Korean population believes that female sexuality is the problem  not the sexual violence.

Government policy lays the groundwork

Digital sex crimes are too widespread to lay the blame at the feet of a handful of bad actors.

To me, part of the problem stems from the long history of gendered citizenship.

Korean feminist scholar Seungsook Moon has written about the ways in which the government created one track for men and another for women as the country sought to modernize in the second half of the 20th century:

Men were mobilized for mandatory military service and then, as conscripts, utilized as workers and researchers in the industrializing economy. Women were consigned to lesser factory jobs, and their roles as members of the modern nation were defined largely in terms of biological reproduction and household management.

Although these policies are no longer officially carried out, the underlying attitudes about gender roles remain embedded in Korean life and culture. Women who veer from being mothers and housewives expose themselves to public and private backlash.

The government has created gender quotas in certain industries to try to unravel this system of gendered citizenship.

For instance, some government jobs have minimum gender quotas for new hires, and the government encourages the private sector to implement similar policies. In historically male-dominant industries, such as construction, there are quotas for female hires, while in historically female-dominant industries, such as education, there are male quotas.

In some ways, this has only made things worse. Each gender feels as if the other is receiving special treatment due to these affirmative action policies. Resentment festers.

The generation that has given up

Today, the sense of competition between young men and women is exacerbated by the soaring cost of living and rampant unemployment.

Called the N-Po Generation, which roughly translates as the generation that has given up, many young South Koreans dont think they can achieve certain milestones that previous generations took for granted: marriage, having kids, finding a job, owning a home and even friendships.

Although all genders find themselves discouraged, the act of giving up has caused more problems for women. Men see women who forgo marriage and having kids as selfish. And when they then try to compete against men for jobs, some men become incensed.

Many of the men who have become radicalized commit digital sex crimes to take revenge on women who, in their view, have abandoned their duties.

Ultimately, the competitive dynamic created by the Korean governments embrace of gendered citizenship has stoked the virulent gender war between Korean men and women, with digital sex crimes used as ammunition.

The 4B movement, whereby Korean women forego heterosexual dating, marriage, and childbirth, represents a radical escalation of the gender war by seeking to create an online and offline world devoid of men. Rather than engaging in altercations, these women are refusing to interact with men, period.

Digital sex crimes are a global problem

To be sure, digital sex crimes are not unique to Korea.

When I teach my college class on digital sex crimes in the U.S., Im surprised by how many of my students admit that theyve been victims of digital sex crimes, or knew of it happening at their high schools. And at the National Womens Studies Associations annual conference in 2022, I watched feminist activists and scholars from all over the world present their findings about digital sex crimes back home.

Since each country has its own cultural context for the rise in digital sex crimes, there isnt a single solution to solve the problems. But in South Korea, continuing to unravel the system of gendered citizenship could be part of the solution.

Min Joo Lee, Postdoctoral Fellow, Indiana University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
The federal government says it has finalized agreements with Visa and Mastercard that will see small businesses pay lower credit card transaction fees. Credit cards are shown on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
The Alaska House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill that would allow the state to set up a system for using state land to sell carbon-offset credits. The House action amounted to final passage of the bill, which was approved the previous day by the state Senate.

The measure, Senate Bill 48, authorizes the Alaska Department of Natural Resources to lease out state land for up to 55 years for the purpose of preserving its powers to absorb atmospheric carbon.

The bill has been a high priority for Gov. Mike Dunleavy. The Republican governor responded immediately after the House vote with a brief message on Twitter: Thank you to the House for passing SB 48! We are changing the conversation for Alaska concerning new revenue.

A follow-up news release by the governors office said that once the bill is signed into law, the Alaska Department of Natural Resources will begin to develop regulations for the program, and that there will be a robust public input process as those rules are created.

Today marks an exciting new chapter for natural resources in Alaska with the passage of Governor Mike Dunleavys carbon offset bill, John Boyle, commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources, said in the governors release. He credited work by his department and by the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.

Im grateful our DNR experts and AOGCC partners were able to work with the legislature to deliver a bill giving Alaska a new revenue stream that complements our current resource development industries and Alaskans use of State land, Boyle said. Im particularly excited about the opportunities to more actively manage and invest in our forests.

Most of the comments made on the House floor leading up to the vote touted the bills potential for generating state revenue from national and global demand for carbon offsets, which are seen as tools to combat climate change. Because of its focus on the states forested land, the measure has been dubbed the tree bill.

But at least one legislator, Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, described it as good for the Alaska environment, aside from its resource-development qualities.

In fact, its supposed to, it must, its compelled to have no net loss on biomass. We heard that testimony. So this is, in that respect, a conservation bill from an Alaskan lens, he said during a Tuesday afternoon House Finance Committee hearing that preceded the floor vote.

Unlike the Senate vote on Monday, Tuesdays House vote was not unanimous. There were two votes against the bill  from Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, who called it climate communism, and Rep. Sarah Vance, R-Homer.

A separate but related bill introduced by Dunleavy would establish a system for using old oil and gas wells to sequester carbon gases produced through petroleum operations and other industrial activities. That proposal, in Senate Bill 49 and House Bill 50 and nicknamed the hole bill, did not move as quickly as the carbon-offsets bill. However, one element of the hole bill was transferred to Senate Bill 48: a provision authorizing AOGCC to gain primary enforcement authority over the injection wells that would be used to store the carbon. Currently, the federal Environmental Protection Agency has enforcement authority over those wells in Alaska.

The Alaska Beacon is an independent, donor-funded news organization. Alaskabeacon.com.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Calling on Azerbaijan and Armenia for peace, the mediators continue to ignore the destructive actions of Armenia, which is trying in every way to damage the normalization process, as well as Armenia's armed formations in Karabakh.

Units of the Armenian Armed Forces on the evening of May 10, from positions in the Zod direction of Basarkechar district subjected the positions of the Azerbaijani army to intense shelling from various types of small arms, deliberately committing a provocation.

Despite the warnings, since the morning of May 11, the Armenian armed forces, further escalating the situation, shelled the positions of the Azerbaijani army from the mentioned positions.

Immediately after, another unsuccessful similar attempt by Armenia took place. Units of the Armenian armed forces on May 14, at 20:30 (GMT+4) from positions in the direction of the Yenikend settlement of Basarkechar district shelled the positions of the Azerbaijani army stationed in the direction of Damirchidam settlement of the Kalbajar region with 60 mm mortars.

Thus, Armenia is not interested in peace and continues to demonstrate it at every opportunity.

This provocation was evidenced on the eve of the meeting scheduled for May 14 between President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Brussels with the mediation of President of the European Council Charles Michel.

In a statement by Charles Michel following the meeting, it was noted that the main attention was paid to the process of normalization of relations between the two countries.

"After the recent negotiations on a peace treaty held in the US, this momentum should be maintained, and decisive steps should be taken to sign a comprehensive peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia," the statement said.

Meanwhile, the Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan continues to miss chances on normalizing relations between two countries.

In turn, Azerbaijan, by promoting peace agenda, is achieving its goals step by step.
Major education policy changes for Alaska got close to the finish line but fell short in the final hours of this legislative session.

A bill to increase broadband access in rural schools and a major school funding bill were combined in the final days of the session, likely leaving neither in a position to pass.

The Senate handily passed SB 140, a bill that would increase internet speeds in schools, and it went to the House Finance Committee for consideration before it could move it to the House floor.

The bill would use state money and a federal match to increase the minimum internet speed in state schools from 25 to 100 megabits per second. Education advocates say the bill is really about education equity for rural schools, where the internet is expensive and slow.

Twenty-five megabits is 1970s speeds, quipped Lisa Parady, who said she wrote the idea for the first internet in schools bill on the back of a napkin in a North Slope bar years ago. Parady is the executive director of the Alaska Council of School Administrators, an umbrella organization for associations of school leaders.

On Monday evening, the committee loaded the internet in schools bill with two other pieces of education policythe pupil transportation component and the contentious base student allocation, the amount the state pays schools per student.

Rep. Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, championed the internet bill, and said he supported each addition on its own merits, but he expressed dismay that they were all lumped together.

Im gonna support it, he said, but my concern is the amendments will weigh down the underlying bill.

The chief concern of skeptics on the finance committee was the cost of the proposed legislation without more analysis.

The passing of this bill is basically a blank check, said Rep. Frank Tomaszewski, R-Fairbanks, referring to its volatile fiscal note. I know these are good programs. But we cannot pass legislation because we know its good. We need to pass legislation because here in the finance committee we are looking at the numbers and we need to know the numbers add up.

But most committee members supported the bill.

It is where Alaska expects us to go, said Rep. Alyse Galvin, I-Anchorage, referring to the addition of the base student allocation.

She noted that the actual dollar amount of the education funding increase included in the bill had already been discussed and included in the Houses version of the budget.

It is the top ask of Alaska that we have adequate, predictable funding, she said.

The House Finance Committee moved the heavy bill through to the floor for a House vote, but thats where its stuck.

The House Rules Committee decides which bills to schedule on the floor, and Chair Rep. Craig Johnson, R-Anchorage, said this one is unlikely to get there.

My guess is no, based on time, he said on Tuesday afternoon, noting that it had become a complicated piece of legislation.

Senate Bill 48, the governors carbon offset bill, left the House Finance Committee at the same time and was scheduled, heard, and passed by the full House that afternoon.

The Alaska Beacon is an independent, donor-funded news organization. Alaskabeacon.com.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Some issues should be clarified, as the information in the regular annual report of the US State Department is biased and doesnt reflect reality, the Azerbaijani Ombudsmans Office told Trend.

"Statements, proposals, and complaints of detained or arrested persons sent to the Ombudsman are sent in a timely manner and without any censorship, in full compliance with the legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The Ombudsman always keeps this issue in the spotlight," said the statement.

"Appeals of all persons to the Ombudsman are considered without any differences, answers to each appeal are given. Moreover, the Ombudsman's call center "916" functions as a successful and effective mechanism for the immediate and effective examination of complaints both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic," said the statement.

Moreover, the appeals of detainees to their lawyers and their family members are free of charge and available around the clock. Scheduled and unscheduled inspections are carried out by the Ombudsman and members of the National Preventive Group in almost 250 institutions, meetings with detainees are held without prior notice.

"Visits are carried out on the basis of the Ombudsman's flexible response to requests from the detainees themselves, their defenders or family members, as well as information in the media and social networks. The persons against whom the relevant court decisions were made and about whom information was disseminated in the media were also repeatedly accepted by the Ombudsman and members of his National Preventive Group. Their appeals were raised in the relevant bodies and found a solution. These persons expressed gratitude to the Ombudsman for the assistance provided and concern for their rights," said the statement.

The comments contained in the report of the US Department of State on the activities of the Ombudsman are unfounded and do not serve to solve any problems," the statement said.
So I broke my leg. Seemed like a mellow slide-out until I slid into a rock. It broke my tibial plateau and I had it plated back together. On the mend now. Got a cool scar. Looking forward to being healthy again and grateful this seems to be a straightforward injury. Resting now, rehabbing soon. Thanks for reading.  Cam McCaul
One year, two continents, and four full seasons - the Status has seen a serious amount of riding.

Upgrades

A skid plate was added to protect the chain and ring. The upper portion of the guide has disappeared though.

Maintenance

Dents are part of the game with aluminum wheels. Keeping those spokes evenly tensioned will prolong the life of the wheel.

'Chip' happens. After a year, the paint is starting to chip easily and has lost some of its luster.

Technical Report

Ride Impressions

The Status is fun on smooth flow trails in the bike park and is playful and fun on jumps. I felt it helped me gain confidence on jumps and gaps, but felt a bit long and was hard to stay on top of as I picked up speed around long berms. The mullet setup makes steeper descents easier for sure, but it feels like riding a spaceship when encountering steep, tight corners. The slack head tube angle also means it doesn't have much get up and go, and makes the Status feel pretty sluggish on the flats.



The geometry and the mullet setup unfortunately also make it a poor uphill companion. Locking the shock makes a night and day difference to climbing toowithout lockout the pedal efficiency reduces massively due to pedal bob. Even though the build comes with a wide-range 12-speed, drivetrain, I found that with its geometry it is significantly more challenging to pedal on the climbs than my previous bike, the Trek Remedy 27.5.



It's not going to take hard DH trails in its stride, but its fun and playful for everyday trail riding, loves to jump and has a great suspension for its price.

When we heard that a local female rider and friend of Pinkbike was left bike-less due to Covid supply chain issues, we proposed that she borrow the $3,000 USD Status (which we reviewed back in February 2022) on a long-term deal. The trade was for a simple report: what parts broke, was maintenance costly, and how did she feel about the overall performance?The test period was plenty thorough as the bike ventured to the Southern Hemisphere during the Canadian winter, and it was also used for bike park laps, pedally days, and everything in between.Entry-level components are not always the most durable. 12-speed drivetrains require precise alignment to shift well, and the SRAM NX derailleur on the Status didnt last long. A Shimano XT derailleur and stronger North Shore Billet hanger replaced the soft stock part.Shortly after that, the Code R brakes began to show their drawbacks. Although the Status is spec'd with two 200mm rotors, the master cylinders fell victim to a case of sticky pistons. The brakes were swapped out for Magura MT7s with their light action lever and increased power - an improvement from the stock brakes in terms of modulation and response.The Status comes with a guide to direct the chain onto the ring, which is refreshing to see, but adding a skid plate was a useful upgrade to protect the chainring.As far as maintenance goes, the usual service intervals were made for the suspension. Both the fork and shock saw routine rebuilds. Fresh brake pads, chains, and shift housing were added when necessary. It's worth noting that there was mention of the stock SRAM NX chain wearing at a higher rate than expected. That's something I've experienced as well - higher priced chains seem to wear at a slower rate than the cheaper price point options.After absorbing a few too many dents, the rear wheel was replaced altogether with a faster-engaging hub and stronger rim.We didn't expect to hear any linkage issues, since all of the pivots use oversize cartridge bearings and beefy hardware with extra sealing. The original bearings still felt to be rolling smoothly.Specialized has increased their tire game massively. In my eyes, they make the best valued tires out there, but our incognito testers opinion wasn't as much of a fan. She said, "Personally, I quite like the Butchers tacky T9 rubber (as do several of my colleagues), although I agree that the mid-weight casing can roll and burp easily compared to the equivalent Maxxis offering.Heres what our guest editor had to say about their overall experience on the Status:
Another Paris fashion week rolls around and up pops up another viral celebrity outfit. There are the understatedand the outlandish. Think Kylie Jenners lion and Doja Cats literal head-to-toe Swarovski look...but that's sooo yesterday's news.

While the Schiaparelli couture show was newsworthy on its own, both Doja and Kylie are making headlines for their looks du jour. Kylie choose the controversial route and went with Givenchy's gasp-worthy, noose necklace. Yes, you read that right. A noose necklace.









Meanwhile, on Planet Doja Cat, she attended the Viktor & Rolf show sporting faux eyebrows, mustache, and goatee fabricated from false eyelashes. The false eyelashes were intentional, as Doja had heard that her fans were upset that her red Swarovski getup hadn't included eyelashes...so Mz. Cat gave them eyelashes.









The one thing we do have to respect about Doja is that she is committed. Theres not a fashion week that struts by where Doja isnt decked out in an outrageous, avant-garde outfit. Shes notorious for having her face and entire body painted in the name of red-carpet- fashion. The Paris Schiaparelli Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2023 show featured 30,000 red Swarovski crystals covering every inch of Dojas fabulous skin.

Doja Cat Laurent VU/SIPA/Shutterstock

And lets not forget newly single Kylie Jenner  who just announced her sons name as Aire (dont get me started)  wearing Schiaparellis latest couture: a dress with a gigantic fake lion head. Whats even more fascinating is that Irina Shayk sported this very same look on the same runwaywhere Kylie sat front row.



But dont fret! Kylies borderline terrifying look was PETA-approved! Sleep better at night knowing this nightmare celebrates a lions beauty and may be a statement against trophy hunting according to PETA. Personal favorites include Anya Taylor-Joy, who attended the Dior Haute Couture show in a cropped cream blazer with black applique detailing and matching corset.

Anya Taylor-Joy By: Laurent VU/SIPA/Shutterstock
At the Bulgari jewelry show in Venice, Italy on Tuesday, May 16, 2023, nobody was looking at the accessories. After all, what good are jewels when the girls are the girling?



All eyes were on the parade of party guests, pulling out all the stops in custom designer gowns. I dont know what it was about this jewelry launch, but the crowd of celeb guests was dressed to the nines. Some of these looks rivaled the Met Gala 2023 looks  which is why they instantly went viral.

Case in point: Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, and Priyanka Chopra.

As Bulgari brand ambassadors, the trio brought their best  posing for a flurry of now-viral photos while they were at it.

The photos were giving peak Hollywood glamor  no subdued Sofia Richie style in sight. Bold cuts and bright colors were paired with big Bulgari statement pieces. They are the moment. They are the It Girls.

Anne, who is still sending her major fashion renaissance and prepping for a film with Michaela Coel, continued her streak of custom Versace looks. She donned a Donatella Versace design, just like she did at the Karl Lagerfeld-inspired Met Ball. In contrast to the white tweed of two weeks ago, this look was metallic gold and silver with a boho-inspired hood.

Priyanka Chopra  whose latest role is a sexy spy thriller Citadel, starring her and Richard Madden  wore her signature red lip with a deep pinkish, almost-red gown.

In contrast, Zendaya wore a black, sleek look inspired by old Hollywood glamor. Zendayas elegant custom Richard Quinn gown made us anticipate the Dune press tour even more  if thats possible.

Also dressed in bold black, Lalisa Manobal (aka Lisa from Blackpink), who is another Bulgari jewelry ambassador.

All this to say  mothers are mothering. And if this is what red carpet summer looks have in store for us, I cant wait.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The information about the alleged mortar shelling of units of the Armenian Armed Forces by units of the Azerbaijani Army, spread by the Armenian side, is false, Trend reports via the statement of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense.

"We categorically deny this information," the ministry said.

Armenian armed forces have been heavily shelling Azerbaijani positions in May.

For example, on May 14, the Armenian Armed Forces, in the Yenikend direction of the Basarkechar region using 60 mm mortars subjected to fire the Azerbaijan Army positions stationed in the direction of the Damirchidam settlement of the Kalbajar district.

Azerbaijani Minister of Defense, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov recently said that the increase of Armenia's provocations in Azerbaijan's Kalbajar direction has been prevented.
Residents are looking for answer after they a sign to the Creekside subdivision keeps on getting hit. Read moreCreekside residents want answers after subdivision sign keeps getting hit by drivers
Having more community involvement from the residents is one concern residents of Crosland Park have as they work to change the neighborhood's reputation.

"We would definitely like to see more community participation," said Gary Yount, who serves as president of the Crosland Park Neighborhood Cooperative.

The Crosland Park Neighborhood Cooperative held a meeting Tuesday at its community resource center to discuss public safety, local schools, how to get more people involved and addressing needs in the neighborhood.

Yount also provided updates on the community clean-up that was held in early May.

Our neighborhood wasnt as messy as I have seen it, Yount said.

Aiken County Public School District Superintendent King Laurence discussed the modified school calendar, teacher recruitment and retention initiatives like a $1,000 sign-on bonus, the introduction of block schedules and a new auditorium at Aiken High School.

Laurence said the block schedules will allow students to take eight classes a year or four classes per semester.

"We are one of seven school districts in South Carolina that did not have block scheduling," Laurence said.

Aiken Department of Public Safety Officer G. Fune updated residents on crime numbers in the area. Fune said from April 1 to May 15 the department responded to two assaults and two domestic situations, 11 first-responder calls which included a call for someone having trouble breathing, headache or bleeding; four calls to report larcenies, six calls for shot fired were someone heard a noise, and one call for a breaking and entering incident.

Yount said he wanted to see more community participation.

Its really kind of sad when you have six people from the city and we only got five people here," Yount said.

Yount said the neighborhood plans to hold clean-ups twice a year, with the next one scheduled for Nov. 3. He said those who participate in the next clean-up will have the opportunity win a Thanksgiving dinner.

Yount also expressed his concern over the lack membership in the cooperative. Currently, there are four board members and three members at large. He said there must be at least 10 members in order for the cooperative to continue.

He said membership is open to residents in Crosland Park and those who own property in the neighborhood. Members also have to also pay an annual fee of $20.

Yount said since a lot of the current members are older, more younger people should join the cooperative.

We need some people to come on board and work with us, Yount said.

Emerson said new people have moved in on his street and he suggested others Crosland Park residents should welcome their new neighbors.

"Everyone needs to be aware of their surroundings, take them a cake, welcome them to the neighborhood and by the way I need you," Emerson said.

Those interested in joining the cooperative or attending meeting can visit Crosland Park Neighborhood Cooperative Facebook page.
Dozens of local residents and a variety of businesses pooled their resources May 17 to offer thanks, a round of applause and a hearty meal to a variety of teenagers who have hitched their futures to the U.S. military, and a couple of the Army's most prominent figures offered a few words of wisdom in the bargain.

Our Community Salutes, a national program dedicated to honoring and supporting our nations newest and youngest service members, held its annual enlistee recognition gala at USC Aiken Convocation Center, and this year's young guests of honor included 31 teens mostly representing schools around Aiken, Edgefield and Barnwell counties.

It was "an amazing event  to celebrate those that are stepping forward to serve our nation," in the words of Lt. Gen. Maria Gervais, a Lander University graduate now serving as deputy commanding general and chief of staff of the Army Training and Doctrine Command.

Also addressing the gathering was Medal of Honor recipient Ryan M. Pitts, who served in the Army and received the militarys highest commendation for his valor in Afghanistan on July 13, 2008, when he was a sergeant and showed extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty, as described in the medal citation. Pitts, a Massachusetts native, was described as one of 66 living Medal of Honor recipients.

He enlisted in 2003 and "met some of the most highly intelligent, committed, dedicated people that came from all different backgrounds, all different corners of the military  and we became a family," he recalled.

The fundamentals that are instilled in basic training are important, he said, citing such examples as learning how to handle an M-16 and how to use grenades to clear an enemy bunker. Coming later were the chances to learn how to jump  relatively safely  from an airplane and to "join a family that put themselves last, and you care more about the people around you than you care about yourself."

+41 Patriotic Pony for a Fallen Aiken Hero The memory and family of the late Matthew V. Dillon, a Marine corporal from Aiken who was killed while serving in Iraq in 2006, were honored i

His listeners included students on the verge of completing their studies at Midland Valley, North Augusta, Fox Creek, Aiken, Barnwell, Blackville-Hilda, South Aiken and Ridge Spring-Monetta high schools, along with Aiken Scholars Academy. Two enlistees from Georgia were also part of the gathering, as were military recruiters based in a variety of locations.

Gervais also shared from her decades of Army involvement, dating back to 1987, when she received her Army commission. "I wasn't from here," she said, recalling plenty of traveling in her early years.

"My dad retired in South Carolina, because when my mother and father were stationed at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and they were raising nine kids, my mom fell in love with South Carolina, and so there was no other option for my dad to retire but to South Carolina, and we call Greenwood home, and I still call South Carolina home, even thought the Army has taken me away from the state that I love so much, so it's great to be back here, right now."

Gervais described herself as humbled and honored to be in such a gathering. Addressing Pitts, she said, "You're the picture of commitment, bravery and also the essence of service to our nation."

Focusing on her younger listeners, she added, "I ask that you learn from your leaders and your learn from your peers. As you grow into leaders yourself, be examples for all those around you, and still know that you're going to have even more to learn, even more to grow and even more to give."

Gervais also recalled a decades-old Army recruiting theme, with "be all you can be" as the central concept. "As I look back on my career, standing up here right now, if you ask me, 'General, were you all you could be?,' I would tell you, 'Yes, I was all I could be, but I was more than I ever imagined I could be, and so could you.'"

The local OCS board of directors includes such individuals as Linda Caldwell, Tom Briatico, Duncan Huyler, Dale Haas, Sondra Thomas, Robert Murphy, Mike Graham, Dara Glass, Jim Foley, Sara Lombardi and King Laurence. Woodside-Aiken Realty, Westinghouse, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, Centerra, Savannah River Mission Completion, Longenecker and Associates were among the event's major sponsors.
Every single Chubby Fish ingredient is sourced with thoughtful precision  one of the reasons the downtown Charleston restaurant earned a rave review from The Post and Courier's contributing restaurant critic Robert F. Moss.

That includes Chubby Fishs bread, which arrives at the restaurant courtesy of Brandon McDaniel of Johns Island and his small-batch bakery Brandons Bread.

The South Carolina native started making the restaurant rounds a decade ago after graduating culinary school. He worked at High Cotton, Peninsula Grill, Edmunds Oast, Rodney Scotts BBQ, Le Farfalle and, when he returned to Charleston from a brief stint in Las Vegas, Chubby Fish.

Aware that McDaniel had been making bread as a hobby for years, Chubby Fish chef and owner James London tapped him to lead their small, curated bread program.

I did that solely at his restaurant for a little over a year, McDaniel recalled. And then I broke away from the restaurant at the end of 2022.

The split was purely so McDaniel could start his own business, and he didnt depart Chubby Fish completely. McDaniel supplies bread to the restaurant. His wife Kate still works there.

Chubby Fish was McDaniels first restaurant client, and two other local establishments have followed: The Tippling House and Bar George. Though he would like to grow this part of his business, the majority of sales for Brandons Bread take place on Saturdays at the Sea Island Farmers Market on Johns Island.

Southern grains from Carolina Ground Flour play a big role in his bread roster, which includes pumpernickel, sourdough, seeded rye, benne seed and specialty loaves like grit bread or fruit and nut.

Naturally leavened breads are made by hand and baked off in a Chandley Oven, equipped with steam injection capabilities that help create a firm crust. In order to get 80 loaves ready for each Saturday market, McDaniel bakes nearly nonstop for 30 to 40 hours on Thursdays and Fridays.

Im definitely maxing out my capacity right now, McDaniel said.

McDaniel says his bread works well when toasted and paired with your favorite toppings or a pat of butter. London uses the toast technique at Chubby Fish, though his composed plates are far more advanced than I can accomplish in my home kitchen.

In early May, London paired black bass ceviche with a thin rectangle of McDaniels focaccia. Soft but weighty enough to hold a mix of fish, diced asparagus, avocado and radish, the buttery bread acts as more than just a vessel for the citrusy ceviche.

In another toast-adjacent preparation, McDaniels standard sourdough serves as the bed for cubed tuna belly with parsnips. Using two types of whole wheat gives the bread more complexity and flavor from the grain itself, adding depth and propping up the melt-in-your-mouth tuna.

McDaniel has constructed a baking area in a shipping container behind his home, meaning he abides by the regulations for the cottage food industry. He plans to grow out of this setup sooner rather than later, with the goal of adding more farmers markets and restaurant clients to bolster his business.

Eventually, McDaniel would like to open his own bakery.

For now, Charlestonians can find him at the Sea Island Farmers Market (2024 Academy Road on Johns Island) from 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, visit brandonsbread.com.
PORT ROYAL  On an otherwise quiet morning in August 2022, residents in the center of town awoke to the sound of chainsaws buzzing through the hot, still air.

As temperatures were rising, crews were preparing to take down a landmark live oak that occupied a lot on the north side of 12th Street between Paris and Madrid avenues.

The Town of Port Royal had issued a construction permit to the developer of the 12th Street property, CHS Coastal Homes and Sunrooms, and the removal of the live oak was proceeding in accordance with the town's regulations.

But one resident rushed to the town hall to appeal the issuance of the construction permit.

Later, the South Coast director for the Coastal Conservation League, Jessie White, said, "It's the tree canopy that defines Port Royal. So many residents expressed that these trees are part of the town's identity."

Work on the tree was halted. The tree's branches had mostly been removed by that time, but its canopy remained, leaving it looking like a 60-foot-tall asparagus stalk.

Although the town's 2018 tree ordinance was designed to preserve and protect the trees, on that day in August, neighbors and others recognized that the ordinance wasn't working as well as intended.

"It seemed like the previous ordinance was strong, but in application, it wasn't as strong as we thought," White said.

Over the next eight months, town staff members, along with a newly formed technical committee, convened to revisit the tree ordinance. As a result, the "Trees" chapter in the town's Code of Ordinances was almost completely rewritten.

That process ended on April 12 with the Town Council unanimously adopting some of the most stringent tree-protection guidelines in the state.

Under the old ordinance, the fee to remove the 43-inch live oak on 12th Street would have been $4,300. Under the new ordinance, that fee increases to $32,500.

Throughout the public meetings, which began in November, residential developers have expressed their own concerns about the impact the revised tree ordinance will have on residential development in the town.

A tale of two trees

It was the size of the tree at the center of the burgeoning controversy that earned it a landmark tree designation. Its 43-inch diameter easily exceeded the 24-inch standard for such as moniker. The oak was estimated to be between 150 and 200 years old.

The property on which the tree stood had previously been subdivided into five lots, and a home was planned for each lot. CHS Coastal Homes had received permits to begin construction on three of those homes. The appeal, which was filed by Port Royal resident Elizabeth Bergmann, applied only to Lot B on which the tree grew.

However, a larger, and arguably more grand, live oak grew on the two lots for which construction permits had not been issued. Its diameter measured 60 inches at the tree's base. There was concern that it would suffer the same fate as its smaller neighbor. Negotiations between the developer and the town allowed it to avoid the chainsaws.

"There was an agreement in place to allow the smaller tree to be removed, and the homes would be redesigned to save the big tree," Port Royal Mayor Joe DeVito told The Post and Courier.

A new ordinance and new reservations

The incident with the 12th Street trees served as the impetus to revise the town's ordinance.

"We thought we were going to knock it out in a few meetings," said Master Arborist Michael Murphy, who served on the technical committee. "It took the better part of a year."

White said the new language is intended to motivate developers to seriously explore all options before simply clearing a lot prior to construction.

"The new language is designed to say, 'Do everything you can, and as a last result, you can pay a fee,'" White said. "It's a steep fee in order to incentivize more effort to be made to retain trees."

Murphy added that many developers prefer to work with a "clean palette." The new ordinance will, he said, impress upon developers the value that the town places on trees and provide an incentive to seek design alternatives that preserve trees in the environment.

Much of that incentive will come through a dramatic increase in mitigation fees if a developer determines that the best available option is to remove a tree. The 2018 ordinance fee schedule called for a fee equal to $100 per caliper inch of the tree's diameter for a landmark tree, and $50 per caliper inch of a specimen tree.

The new ordinance increases those fees to $750 and $500, respectively.

While he voted with the Town Council to approve the adoption of the ordinance, DeVito still has reservations.

"I believe it's too high," he said. "I believe we've swung the pendulum too far."

In addition to the increased mitigation fees, the new ordinance expanded the list of protected tree varieties to include pines and water oaks, a tree that has a reputation for falling suddenly and causing damage.

"They can be extremely dangerous trees when they get very large," DeVito added. "Nobody knows they're rotting, and all of the sudden they crack and fall."

DeVito noted that the fees paid by commercial developers will not increase, stating that attracting commercial endeavors to the town is critical to its growth.

Speaking during the April 12 council meeting, Ian Scott, president of the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce, worried that the increased fees would also suppress the development of affordable housing, which is perpetually in short supply in the county.

He concluded his comments by asking the Town Council to review the impact of the new ordinance on housing and development within six months.

"Make sure we're not adding undue burden to the cost of delivering new housing into the market with the fees that are currently set," Scott said.

DeVito concurred with Scott's concerns and said he has directed the town's staff to prepare an analysis of the ordinance's impact after six months.

Upon its passage, White said the committee aimed to create as strong an ordinance as possible. She feels they met that objective and hopes that the municipalities in the county will look to the new ordinance as a model.

Councilman Kevin Phillips said the reaction from his constituents has been universally positive.

"I was proud of Port Royal for coming up, doing something bold and putting our name on it," Phillips said. "We'll see how it plays out. We live in very interesting and fast-moving times. Sometimes you've got to take bold measures."
With two specially held meetings, Summerville and Dorchester County officials are moving the pieces of the city's Midtown Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District to ensure continued funding for the Maple Street Extension project. But, if finalized, the shifts could also change the fate of the Read moreMoving pieces of TIF may change historic building's fate
Mount Pleasant, SC (29464)

Today

A few showers early becoming a steady rain overnight. Low 62F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavier rainfall possible..

Tonight

A few showers early becoming a steady rain overnight. Low 62F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavier rainfall possible.
NORTH MYRTLE BEACH  Cha House recently opened its first South Carolina franchise in North Myrtle Beach, just as the Asian-inspired tea and snack bar plans to grow farther outside of its Raleigh roots.

The Cha House opened in the Coastal North Town Center at 1516 U.S. 17 North in a 1,603-square-foot space near Publix that formerly housed Ellas Ice Cream, which closed last September after opening in the northern Grand Strand shopping center in 2019.

Cha House was founded in the Tar Heel state in 2016 by Taiwan natives Ya Wen Lulu Adkisson and her sister Ya Huei Julia Chiu on a recommendation by Adkissons husband, after spending their childhood in their parents restaurant in the Xinyi District of Taipei.

The founders of the company said the Mandarin character for cha  or tea  comes together to form the shape of a home, hence the name.

Current locations are in Raleigh and nearby Cary. However, the companys website says more shops are coming soon to North Carolina in Greenville and Wake Forest. They also plan to expand along the East Coast with stores in Miami and Washington, D.C.

Local franchise owner Heather Hyatt Zanfardino, a Dillon native who moved to North Myrtle Beach in 2003, said it has always been a goal to be a business owner after previously working in the dental industry.

Zanfardino said a love for coffee and food plus a tip from one of her business partners eight months ago resulted in her achieving her dream.

My partner actually found the Cha House in Raleigh so at that point, he came back and was like, We need to open one of these here because we dont have one, said Zanfardino, who runs the day-day business of the franchise and can be found most days behind the counter. He asked me if I wanted to be a partner. So, he, my dad and I are all in this together.

As the first South Carolina franchise, Zanfardino gets first dibs on any future statewide expansion from the Cha Houses founders.

Next we would like to be near Myrtle Beach, or even towards Mount Pleasant because there are a couple of boba shops there but I feel like ours is different than most, she said. Most of them are Vietnamese restaurants with boba options or boba shops with no food.

The stores menu is highlighted by numerous boba tea options  ingredients imported from selected farmers throughout Asia by the companys owners  matcha teas, milk teas, specialty drinks, lattes, milkshakes and a snack bar featuring authentic foods from the streets of Taipei.

Many of the optional toppings for the drinks are made in-house, including milk and cheese foam, and mango and strawberry syrups.

A popular specialty drink is the Pink Lady, which features house-made limeade and strawberry puree and the most requested food item is the Thai Chili Chicken.

Everything thing is from Lulu, the owner of the company, Zanfardino said. All of this is her familys recipes from Taiwan.

But as a Cha House franchise owner, Zanfardino said she is allowed to expand the stores menu and the location as long as it is within reason.

The other (Cha House) locations have more of an Asian vibe, whereas this one I feel is a little beachier, she said. Trying to cater to the Grand Strand, I told them when we opened that North Myrtle Beach is so different than Raleigh and Cary.

Zanfardino also sources out locally including coffee beans from Benjamins Bakery in Surfside Beach, doughnuts from Calabash, N.C.-based Blondiez Donuts and various desserts from Little River-based Lexis Sweets and Treats.

Although Cha House North Myrtle Beach currently serves ice cream on its menu, Zanfardino said she plans to introduce soft-serve options in the near future after hearing from residents that they prefer it to traditional spoon-fed ice cream.

Additionally, Zanfardino  whose teenage son Rivers works in the store after school  plans to open earlier after noticing that many North Myrtle Beach High School students make a run for breakfast and coffee in the mornings before making the trek to the school off of Sea Mountain Highway.

Current hours are from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week, but Zanfardino said she foresees opening as early as 7 a.m. in the future to cater to the early risers.

Zanfardino said the store caters for weddings, and birthday parties are available at the North Myrtle Beach store or the customers location.
COLUMBIA  It took 24 hours, but Republicans in the South Carolina House of Representatives disposed of nearly 1,000 amendments from Democrats to put a six-week abortion ban on the verge of becoming law again.

The bill approved 82-33 on May 17 along party lines makes abortions illegal once an ultrasound detects cardiac activity, which can happen roughly six weeks into a pregnancy. Two Democrats voted for it, and one Republican voted against.

It provides limited exceptions for rape or incest victims, the mother's lifelong health or fatal fetal anomalies.

The Senate will take it up next week. If the Senate's GOP majority agrees to House changes, the measure will head to Gov. Henry McMaster, who signed the state's last "fetal heartbeat" ban two years ago.

Approval by the House's supermajority of Republicans was a foregone conclusion before floor debate ever started. But Democrats refused to make it easy, filing about 950 suggested changes before Republicans voted to limit discussion, then using every procedural maneuver in their playbook to prolong getting through them.

"We are going to make it hurt if they're going to force this on us," Rep. Beth Bernstein, D-Columbia, told reporters while surrounded by fellow Democrats and supporters carrying signs that read "bans off our bodies" and "abortion is health care."

Typically, large stacks of amendments are used as a negotiation tactic and sponsors ultimately end up withdrawing many, if not most, of them. But that was never a consideration for this fight. It wasn't until the bitter end that Democrats pulled any amendment, and then only two.

"We're not interested in going along to get along," Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, said just before the House gaveled into special session May 16.

She criticized Republicans as wasting taxpayers' money by going into overtime to once again debate taking away women's freedom to make medical decisions best for their unique and difficult situations.

"Do you think its worth it to the taxpayers of South Carolina that its going to cost us almost $60,000 a day to come back here and talk about banning abortion when we could just as easily have done this in January?" asked Cobb-Hunter, who's fought anti-abortion bills throughout her three decades in the House.

Legislators are each paid $260 daily throughout the special session called by McMaster, in addition to mileage reimbursement for one round trip weekly and daily subsistence pay for meals and lodging. That totaled about $60,000 for the 117 legislators in the chamber May 16 alone, confirmed Judiciary Chairman Weston Newton while he temporarily presided as speaker.

At least two of the Democrats' rejected amendments proposed sending money to every tax filer should the state ultimately again lose a court challenge to the ban.

"If we can afford $60,000 a day to do this, we can afford $100 per citizen because weve wasted their tax dollars" on both the debate and court costs, said Rep. Deon Tedder, D-North Charleston, to explain one proposal. A later amendment suggested a $1,000 rebate.

Rep. Josiah Magnuson countered that the cost of saving a human life is priceless.

"We have to save lives," said the Spartanburg County Republican. "We have to save children. Thats what matters right now."

The bill is similar to the "fetal heartbeat" law signed in 2021, which temporarily took effect last summer after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and left the legality of abortion up to state lawmakers.

The state Supreme Court suspended it last August and threw it out altogether in January, ruling the law violated privacy rights guaranteed in the state constitution.

Legislators hope changes in the legislation and the court itself will flip justices' 3-2 decision. (The ruling's female author retired and was replaced by a male justice in February.)

Should the latest effort to ban most abortions get signed into law, another lawsuit is expected.

The justices' ruling left in place South Carolina's 22-week ban, the second-least restrictive in the entire Southeast. The recent rise of abortions, as women come here from other states, prompted GOP legislators to work toward breaking a stalemate between the chambers since last fall.

Democrats pointed to the state's existing health care disparities, which they said an abortion ban would only exacerbate.

For example, Rep. Spencer Wetmore, D-Folly Beach, proposed making the state pay the funeral or medical costs of any woman or her fetus who dies or has health complications after she's denied an abortion.

"In our rush to ban abortions" and save the unborn, she said, the Legislature is ignoring the state's abysmal statistics and what can be done to save the born.

The latest data from the state's public health agency shows dramatic increases in both infant and maternal mortality rates in South Carolina: 416 infants died in 2021, and a three-year review completed last year showed 22 women died directly from pregnancy complications. That compares to about 50 abortions past the first trimester in 2021 that were performed in hospitals, which Democrats called gut-wrenching decisions for wanted pregnancies gone horribly wrong.

Several rejected amendments would have expanded the definition of diagnosed fetal anomalies that qualify as an exception to the ban.

Hundreds of the amendments were ruled out of order as "dilatory," meaning they're so similar they're obvious attempts to delay debate. That included roughly 200 the presiding speaker said protected abortion services and varied only by the location, some naming cities that don't exist.

Nearly 100 more were thrown out by House Speaker Murrell Smith as "frivolous and absurd."

Examples the Sumter Republican gave included requiring women to report their menstrual cycles to the state's health agency, requiring every citizen to read "The Handmaid's Tale," and adding to the state's roadside welcome signs, "South Carolina does not support women's rights."

The only changes approved on the floor were those advanced by the House Judiciary Committee. Those include making the biological father responsible for half of the mother's pregnancy expenses, extending his child support obligations back to conception and requiring health insurance companies to cover contraceptives.

The House's GOP majority did not let a single other amendment pass, including the lone change sponsored by a Republican.

Rep. Rob Harris, R-Wellford, attempted to extend "equal protection of the laws" to a fetus from the moment of conception, making abortion at any point of pregnancy legally akin to murder. It was the second time this year the freshman's proposal was rejected.

It was a step too far for even Rep. John McCravy, the Greenwood Republican who has led the House effort for a near-total ban.

"The problem is it would allow prosecution of women for murder who commit abortion," he told his colleagues. "God is a God of mercy as well as a God of justice."

Speaker Smith warned the chamber last week the debate would continue nonstop for as long as it took to reach a final vote. But a computer glitch ended up giving legislators an eight-hour break.

About 1:15 a.m. May 17, the House reading clerks computer stopped working, paralyzing the chamber.

House staff contacted the Legislatures technology staff and a national contractor, but neither could quickly get the computer back online, said House Majority Leader Davey Hiott, R-Pickens.

After a half hour, Ways and Means Chairman Bruce Bannister, who was presiding at the time as acting speaker, declared the House in recess. Debate resumed at 10 a.m.

Its deus ex machina, Wetmore exclaimed moments after the House receded, using the Latin phrase for divine intervention that literally translates to God from the machine.
Ready, set, reach.

Each year, Spoleto Festival USA gathers artists and arts lovers from around the world to chart new cultural terrain, to entertain new notions and to push their perspectives in new and meaningful ways.

The 2023 program, the second under the leadership of General Director and CEO Mena Mark Hanna, is true to form, with works coming from far reaches of the world and closer to home, too.

And its renown as a cultural rainmaker was recently affirmed by a 2023 Pulitzer Prize awarded to Omar by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels for distinguished musical composition by an American that had its first performance in the U.S. When it comes to American narratives and how they are artistically interpreted, Spoleto has placed Charleston as a crucial cultural hub.

Thats a considerable feather in the cap for Hanna, who joined former General Director Nigel Redden in shaping the production with the artists. When this years festival was announced, he emphasized to me the international scope of the offerings. Many also offer a global vantage on classic works, revisiting everyone from Homer to Stravinsky to Arthur Miller through a contemporary lens.

To wit: Its sole opera offering, Vanessa, joins the work of American composer Samuel Barber with a libretto by Italian native and festival founder Gian Carlo Menotti in an acclaimed production directed by Paris-born, London-based Rodula Gaitanou and conducted by American Timothy Myers.

Theater takes us to ancient Troy with Denis OHare in a solo performance of An Iliad. We then travel to Rwanda of the 1990s, by way of The Book of Life, a collaborative work of Odile Gakire Katese and Ross Manson that features music performed by Ingoma Nshya, The Women Drummers of Rwanda.

In dance, we journey to South Africa through choreographer Dada Masilos The Sacrifice, a reimagining of the seminal, once-scandalous The Rite of Spring that here offers an inroad to examine ritual and sacrifice. We land squarely in New York City through dancer Ayodele Casels transfixing tap shoes, then to the Salem of Arthur Millers The Crucible, courtesy of Scottish Ballet.

Music similarly spans the globe, from Maestra Mei-Ann Chen leading the Spoleto Festival Orchestra in Dvoraks New World Symphony to Charleston native Jonathon Heyward doing the same for Berliozs Symphonie Fantastique and through Jamez McCorkles vocal-and-piano performance of Robert Schumanns Dichterliebe, A Poets Love. At Cistern Yard, we veer from the sounds of South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim to notes of Japan via American indie rocker Kishi Bashi.

In my role as overview critic, where the festival travels, Ill travel there, too. For the coming weeks, Ill devote my weekly column to this far-reaching, high-flying gathering of artists, assessing, reacting, observing and processing in order to consider the world of culture that has come to our doorstep.

Ill glean emergent themes, as time and again at this festival I have observed the uncanny knack that artists the world over have of homing in on the same motifs. Ill consider the intentions of the artists and works, and how successfully they were realized as live performance. Ill examine the ways in which the festival is engaging with the community by considering its audiences and any local connections in the programming, and its role in Charlestons cultural scene.

Ill do so with an open mind, and open heart, too, rooting for all to tap into the power that they may well possess to lend greater meaning to our lives, to better connect us, to provoke thought, to raise questions, to unleash joy.

And I will never take for granted the hard-won boon that we are home to this ambitious, seasoned, rigorous, lavish platform for international, contemporary performance.

Yes, its a sprawling world of art to choose from. When Hanna and I explored this years festival, he encouraged an omnivorous approach to selecting works to see (as a good general director should).

What I would charge you with doing is picking two things you know, that youre excited about, that you really want to see, and two things that you have no idea what it is and it might push and press your comfort zone.

Spoleto recently announced a pay as you will offer for select performances, which will make the pocket reach a little easier, too, and could also broaden community reach.

In short, now would be a perfect time to reach, to relish the cultural richness set to roll out through our city with all its potential strangeness, significance and surprise.
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ACCRA, GHANA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Africa Data Centres ( www.AfricaDataCentres.com) , the largest network of interconnected, carrier-and cloud-neutral data centre facilities on the continent, announces that it will shortly start construction on its newly acquired land in the Central Business District of Accra, Ghana. The new facility has been designed for an initial 10 MW, which can expand to 30MW depending on demand. It will be the largest facility in West Africa todate, outside of Nigeria.Data centres are the foundation of digitally led economic growth around the world; developing sustainable and self-sufficient ICT ecosystems is impossible without them. The new facility will be built on a part of the former Trade Fair showgrounds site, one of the key central locations in the city. The first phase is scheduled to be completed within 12 months.This new facility is part of Africa Data Centres' continental expansion plans spanning 10 of Africa's major economic hubs, including South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda, Egypt, Morocco, Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Angola. This unrivalled expansion, partly funded by the United States government's U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), is a significant initiative to accelerate private sector-led digital infrastructure and services in Africa."We continue to bring internationally recognised services and products through Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Africa Data Centres. Liquid already has the largest cross-border fibre network in Africa, and our data centres footprint expansion compliments this, enabling faster digital transformation on the continent," says Hardy Pemhiwa, Group CEO for Liquid Intelligent Technologies.Mr. Scott Nathan, CEO of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC)said,"DFC is proud to support African Data Centres. This new facility in Accra will be an investment in critical infrastructure helping to better link the rapidly growing African population and market to global opportunities. DFC's commitment to strengthen ICT Infrastructure in West Africa is in keeping with the commitments President Biden made to mobilize private capital for the kind of high quality global infrastructure investments that improve peoples' lives. This new data centre will help accomplish that in Ghana and for the region, creating jobs by improving existing business conditions while at the same time attracting data-dependent companies looking to invest and expand their operations." The US Government's Senior Advisor Mr. Amos Hochstein said, "This investment exemplifies the U.S. Government's commitment under the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) to unlock public and private capital for sustainable infrastructure investment. Alongside the data centres in South Africa and Kenya, the Ghana data centre is laying the groundwork for a digital revolution on the continent.Welcoming the new investment, Hon. Nana Akufo-Addo, The President of Ghana said, "The establishment of Africa Data Centre's new 10MW data centre, in the heart of Accra, is a significant step towards bridging the infrastructure gap, and developing further our digital economy. This investment and the Government's drive at digitising all sectors of the economy will enable us increase our capacity to access digital services, and help even more to attract foreign direct investment into our economy." "Our new data centre in Ghana is a significant step towards Africa Data Centres' goal of narrowing the digital divide in the West Africa region. Hyper-scale data centres, preferred by major US tech companies, multinational corporations, banks and other local enterprises, are the speciality of Africa Data Centres. Additionally, our data centres are supported with independent solar and battery storage power, enabling us to bring digital technologies whilst mitigating our environmental impact," concluded Tesh Durvasula, CEO of Africa Data Centres.Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Data Centres.Media Contact:Liquid Intelligent Technologies:Africa Data Centres:Social Media Platforms:Twitter: https://apo-opa.info/3JAsPzY LinkedIn: https://apo-opa.info/3mRVsjd Facebook: https://apo-opa.info/3YYwmwN YouTube: https://apo-opa.info/3JADTNv About Liquid Intelligent Technologies:Liquid Intelligent Technologies is a business of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group. Headquartered in London. Cassava Technologies has presence in 31 countries in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the United States of America. Liquid has firmly established itself as the leading provider of pan-African digital infrastructure with a 100,000 km-long fibre broadband network and satellite connectivity that provides high-speed access to the Internet anywhere in Africa. Liquid is also leveraging its digital network to provide Cloud and Cyber Security solutions through strategic partnerships with leading global players. Liquid is a comprehensive technology solutions group that provides customised digital solutions to public and private sector enterprises and SMEs across the continent. www.Liquid.tech About Africa Data Centres:Africa Data Centres is your trusted partner for rapid and secure data centre services and interconnections across the African continent.Africa Data Centres is Africa's largest network of interconnected, carrier, and cloud-neutral data centre facilities. Bringing international experts to the pan-African market. We are your trusted partner for rapid and secure data centre services and interconnections across the African continent. Strategically located, our world-class facilities provide a home for all your business-critical data. Proudly African, we are dedicated to being the heart that beats your business.Africa Data Centres' aim is to unveil various business opportunities and to develop a strategic network of partnerships. This will further strengthen Africa Data Centres' superiority in providing our customers with the highest standard of interconnected, carrier and cloud-neutral data centre facilities throughout Africa. www.AfricaDataCentres.com A data centre is a physical location where a data centre provider stores computing machines and associated hardware equipment. The hardware contained within a centre ranges from the infrastructure that IT systems require, including servers, data storage drives, and network equipment. In the data centre industry, the primary measure of capacity is electricity consumption, specifically kilowatts (kW) and megawatts (MW). Africa D
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Blue Lagoon Resources Inc. (the "Company") (CSE:BLLG)(FSE:7BL)(OTCQB:BLAGF) is pleased to announce that it has signed an amending agreement with its toll milling partner, Nicola Mining Inc ("Nicola"). The amended agreement extends the toll milling agreement to March 31, 2027.Starting June 2021, Blue Lagoon successfully shipped approximately 5,000 plus tonnes of underground stockpiled material to Nicola for testing and processing. Since that campaign, Blue Lagoon has been focused on exploration and receiving final permitting approval to commence mining at its Dome Mountain Mine project.For further information, please contact:Rana VigPresident and Chief Executive OfficerTelephone: 604-218-4766Email: rana@ ranavig.com The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information: This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Blue Lagoon Resources Inc. (the "Company") expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include results of exploration activities may not show quality and quantity necessary for further exploration and exploitation of minerals deposits, market prices, and continued availability of capital and financing, permitting and other approvals, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.SOURCE: Blue Lagoon Resources Inc.
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Brigadier Gold Limited (the "Company", or "Brigadier") (TSXV:BRG)(FSE:B7LM)(OTC PINK:BGADF) is pleased to announce the closing of the first tranche of its private placement of units (the "Private Placement").Pursuant to the first closing of the Private Placement, the Company issued 9,574,513 units ("Units") for a price of $0.07 per Unit, for gross proceeds of $670,215. Each Unit is comprised of one Common Share and one Common Share purchase warrant (each, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional Common Share of Brigadier at an exercise price of $0.15 for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of issuance.In connection with the Private Placement, the Company paid cash commissions to qualified non-related parties in the aggregate amount of $35,169 and issued an aggregate of 502,415 compensation warrants entitling the holders to acquire one Common Share at a price of $0.07 per share for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of issuance.The proceeds from the Private Placement will be used to fund exploration at the Company's Nemaska2 Project, for corporate marketing campaigns, and for general working capital purposes. All Common Shares, Warrants and compensation warrants issued in connection with the Private Placement, and any Common Shares issued in connection with the exercise of Warrants or compensation warrants, will be subject to a four month hold period in accordance with applicable securities laws and the policies of the Exchange.The Company expects to complete a second and final closing for gross proceeds of approximately $110,000.About Nemaska2 Lithium ProjectThe Nemaska2 Project consists of 162 map-designated mining titles (Nemaska2 and Nemaska2 Extension) covering a total area of 8,300 hectares and is located in northern Quebec, approximately 160 kms east of James Bay, near the community of Nemaska. Neighbouring Brigadier's Nemaska2 Project are claims held by Li-Ft Power, Brunswick Exploration, Dios Exploration, Critical Elements Lithium, and ~23 kilometres to the east lies Nemaska Lithium's Whabouchi Project.For further information, please contact:Brigadier Gold LimitedRobert Birmingham, Chief Executive Officerrob@ brigadiergold.ca (604) 4248131Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.Forward-Looking Information Cautionary StatementThis release includes certain statements and information that may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect the expectations or beliefs of management of the Company regarding future events, including, without limitation, statements with respect to the anticipated second closing of the Private Placement, and statements relating to the intended use of proceeds from the Private Placement. Generally, forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "intends" or "anticipates", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "should", "would" or "occur". The Company cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: the inability of the Company to complete a second or subsequent closing under the Private Placement, risks and uncertainties relating to the actual results of current exploration activities; the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with adjacent properties and the Company's expectations; operational risks and hazards inherent with the business of mining (including environmental accidents and hazards, industrial accidents, equipment breakdown, unusual or unexpected geological or structural formations, cave-ins, flooding and severe weather); environmental and regulatory requirements; availability of permits, possibility of equipment breakdowns and delays, exploration cost overruns, availability of capital and financing, general economic, political risks, market or business conditions, regulatory changes, timeliness of government or regulatory approvals and other risks involved in the mineral exploration industry, and those risks set out in the filings on SEDAR made by the Company with securities regulators. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by applicable securities legislation.This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of thesecurities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.SOURCE: Brigadier Gold Limited
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AUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Web3 payment platform CornerMarket recently took center stage at Consensus 2023, one of the world's most influential crypto and blockchain industry conferences. The event was a magnet for over 15,000 attendees, 220 sponsors, and 410 speakers, showcasing the continued interest US-based and international organizations have in integrating Web3 technology into their business models.During the conference CornerMarket made significant strides, bringing a wave of fresh merchants into the fold, and solidifying partnerships with powerhouses like Circle, Coinbase, and Alchemy Pay. They also hosted a three-day live activation, inviting conference goers to "step into the future" and experience for themselves how Web3 is reshaping the interaction between consumers and small businesses. CornerMarket's moves attracted the outreach of CoinDesk Korea, who took a keen interest, shining a spotlight on them in an exclusive interview.Photo: From left to right D'Narius Lewis (CMO), Moira Noiseux (CEO), Graham Patterson (COO)A Glimpse of CornerMarket's Presence at Consensus 2023Conference attendees got a taste of the possibilities which CornerMarket and Web3 unlock, wandering the city streets and purchasing a variety of items and experiences from more than 20 local Austin merchants. Several of these businesses were also highlighted at a unique brand activation at the Texas Selfie Museum. These included food trucks, art and candle makers, and even a lemonade stand where a 6 and 8 year old brother and sister sold homemade cupcakes and lemonade through the CornerMarket app. Attendees to the event received $5 to use at participating merchants, and were introduced to the ease of paying with crypto. The father of the young entrepreneurs, Alvis, stated that "it's so easy, even my kids can do it." The map below shows the onboarded merchants in Austin, Texas, which is one of four cities where CornerMarket has a rapidly growing presence.Photo: Map of CornerMarket onboarded merchants in Austin, TexasEmpowering Small Businesses With Web3 Payment SolutionsCornerMarket empowers small businesses by enabling them to conduct in-real-life purchases without worrying about the associated fees charged by legacy transaction companies, such as credit cards. The platform uses blockchain technology to help local communities easily use cryptocurrency and eliminate high transaction fees, giving small businesses utilizing Web3 a competitive edge.Photo: D'Narius Lewis (CMO) with CornerMarket merchant & Mike, Owner of Barton Springs Tiny BarbershopRapid Expansion and Community InvolvementSince launching on both the iOS and Android app stores in Q2 of 2023, CornerMarket has rapidly expanded its network, recruiting more than 50 partners in four states, including Washington, California, Colorado, and Texas and seeing user signup top 1000 users.While being interviewed by CoinDesk Korea, CornerMarket CEO Moira Noiseux talked about the importance of scale and usability, and why blockchain infrastructure has now progressed to the point where crypto adoption in-real-life is not only possible, but has the potential to out-compete Web2.Photo: From Moira Noiseux (CEO) interviewed by CoinDesk KoreaLooking AheadIn a world increasingly influenced by Web3 technologies, CornerMarket is at the forefront of integrating these advancements into everyday commerce. The potential for transformative impact on local economic development is immense. With the introduction of a decentralized, blockchain-based payment platform, small businesses and local merchants gain access to a new customer base and lower fees, promoting economic growth and prosperity within communities.CornerMarket is not just facilitating these transformations, but is also actively promoting them. The company's commitment to community prosperity places them in the forefront of startups which are not only be a part of the Web3 revolution, but who are also actively working to ensure that it is a revolution that benefits all participants, even the smallest vendor.About CornerMarketCornerMarket is a Web3 marketplace dedicated to connecting customers with local merchants while empowering business owners to save money on fees and utilize exciting new loyalty and peer-to-peer lending functionality. Its mission is to make local commerce more accessible, efficient, and cost-effective, while also enabling small businesses to harness the power of Web3 technology and analytics.For more information, contact D'Narius Lewis at contact@ cornermarket.com SOURCE: Corner Market
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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Armed conflicts are pervasive across geographic regions - creating deeply challenging conditions for companies to navigate through and within. Meanwhile, businesses face growing expectations for conflict-sensitive due diligence, with transparency on their operations, activities and supply chains.A new GRI publication, Why corporate transparency is critical during conflict, explores this topic, with advice for companies on how to integrate sustainability reporting with their due diligence obligations, including those set out in intergovernmental guidelines by the UN and OECD.As Peter Paul van de Wijs, GRI Chief Policy Officer, explained:"There is no one size fits all' approach - each company will have specific impacts to consider related to the nature of the conflict, their business model and presence of staff in the conflict area.Through stakeholder engagement and a comprehensive assessment of what's relevant in a conflict, the GRI Standards enable organizations to understand their impacts, which is the starting point for a well considered response strategy. Transparency brings accountability; it's what turns the guidelines on due diligence into powerful tools that facilitate action." The paper identifies five essentials for corporate due diligence during conflict:Due diligence requires continuous communication: Companies need to regularly monitor changes in risks and impacts - from the conflict itself, and through their activities and operations. Maintaining close contact with key stakeholders is essential - such as staff, business partners and local communities. Actions depend on the nature of the company and the conflict: Given that conflicts can emerge or change dynamically, businesses need to be ready to reassess decisions on mitigating measures. For example, national conflicts can go international, or areas of operations might switch from government control to armed non-state groups. That means risk assessment, including human rights due diligence, is not a one-off exercise. Information is needed from multiple external sources: The ability to carry out full, conflict-sensitive risk and impact assessments may be challenging or impossible. Input from civil society actors, such as NGOs or human rights defenders, helps build a picture of the reality on the ground, while highlighting information gaps that need addressed. Recognition that tough decisions can be required: A company may face contrasting demands from different stakeholder groups - such as employees, communities and consumers. For example, how a business balances the international reputational damage associated with their presence in an area of conflict with their responsibilities locally towards those who rely on their goods, services or employment. Exiting a conflict-affected area brings obligations: Reaching a decision to cease operations needs risk assessment that involves and engages employees, local communities and human rights defenders. For example, identifying steps to ensure local staff receive income for the duration of the crisis, or capacity-building to mitigate the loss of employment.Bringing personal and professional insights from living with conflict in Colombia, Andrea Pradilla, Director of GRI Latin America, shared:"When you are working in a conflict, or you're trying to build peace, it's essential to create wide-ranging, multi-stakeholder partnerships. That takes time and commitment, but it's the only way forward.In Colombia, companies began to see GRI reporting as about more than just a report'. It became a way to communicate with stakeholders and tell the story of how they were navigating this complex context. Reports stopped being a monologue and became a dialogue." GRI thanks the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) for their financial support for this project.In June 2022, GRI, GlobeScan and CSR Europe hosted the webinar Corporate Transparency and Due Diligence in Conflict-Affected Areas as part of Sustainability for Ukraine (S4U), the output of which informed the development of the policy paper. A recording of this session can be accessed online.The GRI Mining Sector Standard, currently under development, highlights conflict affected and high-risk areas' among the likely material topics for mining companies to report on.International guidelines and regulations setting out obligations and expectations for companies on due diligence during conflict include: the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, and the EU Conflict Minerals Regulation.Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is the independent, international organization that helps businesses and other organizations take responsibility for their impacts, by providing the global common language to report those impacts. The GRI Standards, which are provided as a free public good, are the world's most widely used standards for sustainability reporting.View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from GRI on 3 blmedia.com Contact Info:Spokesperson: GRIWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/gri Email: info@3 blmedia.com SOURCE: GRI
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 17:01:41

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Marketing Automation platform announces integration with ChatGPT to aid content creation and enhance campaign efficiency.KANSAS CITY, MO / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / emfluence, a leading digital marketing automation platform, today announced its integration with ChatGPT.emfluence's integration with the AI chatbot will enhance marketers' opportunities to create and re-appropriate marketing content for deployment across a range of channels and campaign strategies, including email, SMS, social media, and content marketing using the emfluence marketing automation platform.Enhanced Marketing EfficiencyAccording to David Cacioppo, emfluence's President and CEO, the ChatGPT integration will make the process of sending the right message to the right person at the right time much more efficient."Successful marketing is, and always will be, about making human connections with your target audience," says Cacioppo. "ChatGPT will not fundamentally change the rules of marketing. However, it does have the potential to enhance much of what we do as human marketing professionals." emfluence's integration with ChatGPT will help marketers accelerate their marketing decisions and react to marketing opportunities in a more timely fashion. Instead of spending hours brainstorming email subject lines, blog post headlines, or keyword research, ChatGPT will present ideas that content producers can then fine-tune and make brand-appropriate.Similarly, draft social media posts can be generated automatically from your blog content, dry content can be rewritten to appear more engaging, and first drafts created to inspire new campaigns.This technology isn't about replacing marketing expertise and resources. Instead, it's about creating opportunities and maximizing marketing output and quality with existing expertise and resources. The ChatGPT integration will do 80% of the heavy lifting, but marketers will still need to add their individual flair to make their campaigns stand out and succeed.Boosting Marketing ConfidenceMonica Hoyer, emfluence's Marketing Director, highlights how the ChatGPT integration will enhance emfluence's marketing platform's users' ability to create compelling marketing campaigns with greater efficiency."By integrating ChatGPT with the emfluence marketing platform, we are giving businesses the tools to confidently create, deploy, and track strategic marketing campaigns," says Hoyer. "Campaigns that showcase marketers' expertise to the highest possible standards." emfluence's integration with ChatGPT is just one example of the marketing platform's recent evolution. This includes an integration with Google Reviews, enabling marketers to monitor and react to customer feedback directly from the emfluence dashboard.Google Reviews are a vital component of local SEO and reputation management. Therefore, emfluence's integration with Google Reviews enhances a marketer's ability to optimize their ability to communicate with their audience at their initial point of engagement, potentially bringing more customers into the marketing funnel at the earliest possible stage.Learn MoreTo learn more about how emfluence's marketing platform's integration with ChatGPT and Google Reviews can help marketers deliver more efficient and confident marketing campaigns, or to request a demo of the new service, contact the marketing automation team at expert@ emfluence.com About emfluenceemfluence is a full-service digital marketing agency and marketing automation platform based in Kansas City, MO. emfluence works with clients to develop and execute ROI-driven digital strategies across Search Engine Marketing, Paid and Social Media, Creative and Content Development, Branding Services, Website Development, and a suite of in-house Marketing Automation Tools. Every service we provide for our clients is focused on driving quantifiable results.Contact: David CacioppoEmail: press@ emfluence.com Phone: +1 (816) 472-4455 x102SOURCE: emfluence
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SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 17, 2023 / Hagens Berman urges Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPR) investors who suffered $500k or more in losses submit your losses now.Class Period: Apr. 8, 2020 - Apr. 13, 2023Lead Plaintiff Deadline: July 5, 2023Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/SPR Contact An Attorney Now: SPR@ hbsslaw.com 844-916-0895Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. (SPR) Securities Fraud Class Action:The litigation focuses on Spirit AeroSystem's past statements concerning its operational performance and quality controls, particularly with respect to supplying its largest customer (Boeing).According to the complaint, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) Spirit lacked adequate production quality controls; (2) Spirit incorrectly installed fittings designed to join the aft fuselage to the vertical tail for some Boeing 737 MAX airplanes; (3) Spirit would have to develop an inspection and repair procedure for the affected fuselages; and (4) the foregoing would negatively impact Spirit's financial results.Investors began to learn the truth on Apr. 13, 2023, when the financial press reported that Spirit notified Boeing of a quality problem that could stretch back to 2019. Reuters reported that "[t]he issue will likely affect a significant' number of undelivered 737 MAX airplanes both in production and in storage, and could result in lowered 737 MAX deliveries in the near term" and "[t]he problem, which affects a portion of the 737 MAX family [] involves the installation of two fittings that join the aft fuselage made by Spirit to the vertical tail, which were not attached correctly before it was sent to Boeing." Most recently, on May 3, 2023, Spirit announced that fuselage repair costs would negatively impact 2023 gross profit by $31 million and said that additional costs are expected.These events have driven the price of Spirit shares sharply lower."We're focused on investors' losses and proving Spirit knew it embarked on a cost cutting program that adversely affected quality control," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.If you invested in Spirit and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firm's investigation, click here to discuss your legal rights with Hagens Berman.Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding Spirit should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email SPR@ hbsslaw.com # # #About Hagens BermanHagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation law firm focusing on corporate accountability through class-action law. The firm is home to a robust securities litigation practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com . Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.Contact:Reed Kathrein, 844-916-0895SOURCE: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
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HONG KONG, May 18, 2023 - (ACN Newswire) - Global healthcare sector leaders streamed into Hong Kong for the second International Healthcare Week, organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). As the flagship Healthcare Week events, the third Asia Summit on Global Health (ASGH) and the 14th Hong Kong International Medical and Healthcare Fair (Medical Fair) featured fruitful discussions on a wide range of topics including the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as an innovation powerhouse, complemented by exchanges on Chinese-Western medicine, aging and women innovators. This flagship event has confirmed Hong Kong's status as an international R&D and business healthcare platform, where university research projects have been linked with potential investors and innovative medical devices promoted to international markets.The ASGH attracted over 2,500 participants from 40 countries and regions. The Medical Fair welcomed over 10,000 visitors from 56 countries and regions. More than 300 one-on-one deal-making sessions and over 600 business-matching meetings were also arranged to help participants seize business opportunities.Dr Peter K N Lam, Chairman of the HKTDC, said: "Drawing on its strengths in scientific research, a world-class medical system, a highly skilled workforce, strong financing and fundraising capabilities and advanced logistics and transportation infrastructure, and backed by the huge market of the Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong is the preferred hub and perfect springboard into Asia for the growing healthcare market."The strong support from the healthcare industry for the Healthcare Week is overwhelming. It has created synergies for medical and healthcare industry professionals and unleashed Hong Kong's strengths in upstream and downstream healthcare industries, Hong Kong is ready to play a bigger role in the medical and healthcare fields in the region," Dr Lam added.ASGH: thematic sessions examine hot topicsASGH, co-organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the HKTDC, continued to bring together healthcare leaders, innovators and investors. The first-day Plenary Session: Reimagining the Future of Healthcare invited Sir Jonathan Symonds, CBE, Chair, GSK as one of the speakers. He said: "When COVID struck, the world didn't collaborate in the way that it should have. There will be another COVID. We cannot operate in the same way as we did. We must tackle global problems globally." Another speaker, Mr Tatsuo Yasunaga, Representative Director, Chair of the Board of Directors, Mitsui & Co., Ltd, noted: "In implementing value-based healthcare, we try to achieve both clinical outcome improvement and cost savings. We expect to achieve the first goal through new drug and medical device developments and health risk management. We are also moving towards personalised healthcare to bridge the gap between medical care and prevention." The Unleashing Opportunities in Integrative Chinese-Western Medicine session today examined research, treatment and medicine developments that transformed markets in Asia and abroad. The session showcased the potential for complementary, integrative healthcare and highlighted the business opportunities that collaboration between Chinese and Western medicine presented.Mr Abraham Chan, Founder, Chairman, CEO and Executive Director at PuraPharm said modernising Chinese medicine included standardising products by creating standardised granules from herbs. Computer programmes let practitioners diagnose conditions and dispense treatments. Big data collected by practitioners helped improve products and perform drug discovery.Noting Hong Kong's high life expectancy and increase in the elderly population, panelists at the Ageing Well: Breakthroughs and Investment Landscape in Longevity session said this presented both challenges and opportunities, such as drug discovery, research financing and monitoring gadgets.Dr Donald Li, Chairman of the Elderly Commission, said higher demand for a wide range of healthcare products and services generated opportunities. This was especially true of monitoring devices allowing the elderly to live at home safely.Medical Fair: A proven platform reaching out to global buyersThe Medical Fair, organised by the HKTDC and co-organised by the Hong Kong Medical and Healthcare Device Industries Association (HKMHDIA) ran under the HKTDC's EXHIBITION+ hybrid model. The physical fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) successfully closed today, while exhibitors and buyers from around the world can continue conducting business online via the Click2Match smart business-matching platform until 25 May.University projects showcasedIn recent years, the Hong Kong SAR Government has actively promoted collaboration between the government, industry, academia and researchers by bringing together enterprises, universities and research institutes to cooperate and promote technological innovation.At ASGH, the hybrid InnoHealth Showcase and exhibition zone featured projects and solutions from more than 140 healthcare-related innovative technology enterprises, from which 50 of the enterprises and projects are presented by five local major universities, namely CUHK, HKBU, HKU, HKUST and PolyU. The Co-founder, Director & Chief Scientific Advisor of exhibitor Gut Rhythm R&D (Hong Kong) Limited Prof John Anthony Rudd said: "The event was highly successful for us. We gained a lot of exposure and were able to attract several potential investors. We also learned a lot and are very confident we could move forward." Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) and Cyberport joined ASGH as Health Innovation Partners from which ITC showcased 16 health-related InnoHK R&D centres to demonstrate Hong Kong's strength as a global innovation powerhouse.Click here https://www.acnnewswire.com/press-release/english/84013/
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Multilateral relations between Azerbaijan and the EU are developing rapidly, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan Mukhtar Babayev said during the event dedicated to Europe Day in Baku, Trend reports.

He noted that European companies and the EU actively support Azerbaijan in restoration of Karabakh.

According to Babayev, there are great prospects for the development of relations between the European Union and Azerbaijan in the fields of science, education, medicine, natural resources and other spheres.

"Azerbaijan ensures the energy security of Europe within the framework of the energy memorandum signed last summer. The Southern Gas Corridor plays an important role in the field of supply diversification. Moreover, the memorandum on the construction of infrastructure on the bottom of the Black Sea for the transportation of green energy is very important," he said.

The minister also noted that the EU is one of the largest partners of Azerbaijan in foreign trade operations.

"We also successfully cooperate in the field of combating climate change and protecting the environment. Azerbaijan has committed itself in this direction. We aim to bring carbon monoxide emissions to zero and use clean energy in Karabakh by 2050," he said.
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TARRYTOWN, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Historic Hudson River Towns (HHRT), a non-profit consortium of riverfront municipalities along the Hudson River, has teamed with audio tour developer TravelStorys to introduce a series of new and updated audio tours that complement existing favorite tours. Available in time for a summer season when many are eager to enjoy outdoor walks and leisurely bike rides, the tours can be downloaded free via the TravelStorys app. GPS activated walking and biking tours highlight local points of interest as visitors pass each location in villages including Piermont and Nyack in Rockland County; Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow in Westchester County; and on the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path. The tours can also be enjoyed by armchair travelers or people planning a visit to the Hudson Valley, as anyone who downloads the app can explore photos, text and audio descriptions of local landmarks without even leaving home.Free walking or biking audio tours of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path are available at www.hudsonriver.com Walking and Biking Tours of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Shared Use Path. A must for visitors and local residents alike, walking and biking tours are available for this stunning path that crosses over the Hudson River. The 3.6-mile path is the longest of its kind in the nation and includes a series of six scenic overlooks with sweeping river views. The tours highlight Hudson Valley history, unique features of the bridge itself, and more.The new audio tour of Piermont, New York includes the famous flywheel on Piermont Pier NEW for 2023! Walking Tour of Piermont, NY. This new tour highlights extraordinary points of interest in this scenic village along the Hudson, from the Piermont Pier to the historic Train Station and beyond. Produced by the Piermont Historical Society with support from the Rockland County Office of Economic Development and Tourism, the tour is narrated by Tom Chapin.The combined Irvington, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow audio tour includes landmarks such as The Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow Walking and Biking Tours. The combined Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow tours have been updated with new features for 2023. Available for walking or biking, the tours include a playful new map, designed by local illustrator Tim Grajek, leading visitors to points of interest in each village. Additionally, Spanish language translation has been added for local highlights in Tarrytown, along with new restaurant and business listings. Is the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow, featured in Washington Irving's tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," a real place? Visitors will find out with this engaging audio tour!Village of Nyack and "Edward Hopper's Nyack" Walking and Biking Tours. Two tours are available in the Village of Nyack, and both can be enjoyed as walking or biking tours. These include the Nyack Tour, from the Village's charming Main Street to historic points of interest, and "Edward Hopper's Nyack," which allows visitors to explore the Village through the eyes of Edward Hopper, the iconic painter who made his home here. Visitors will see and hear about buildings and vistas in Nyack that inspired Hopper throughout his career.Driving Tour of 16 Rivertown Communities. Whether from a car (with hands-free audio) or at home as visitors explore remotely, this tour explores points of interest in 16 communities along both sides of the Hudson River from Yonkers to Peekskill, or from Nyack to Haverstraw and beyond.Tours in Nyack, Irvington, Tarrytown, and Sleepy Hollow, as well as the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path and Rivertowns driving tour were created with the support of the New York Thruway Authority. The free tours are available by downloading the TravelStorys app or going to www.hudsonriver.com About Historic Hudson River TownsHistoric Hudson River Towns (HHRT) is a non-profit organization comprised of 17 member municipalities located along the Hudson River shoreline from Yonkers to Peekskill in Westchester County, and including Piermont, Nyack and Haverstraw in Rockland County, New York. HHRT encourages both local residents and visitors from around the country to explore all that the Rivertowns have to offer. Information on local events, dining and shopping opportunities, free audio tours and more can be found at www.hudsonriver.com ###Media Contact:Burns PattersonExecutive DirectorHistoric Hudson River Townsburns@ hudsonriver.com (917) 575-9155FacebookInstagramSOURCE: Historic Hudson River Towns
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 19:39:03

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WHITE PLAINS, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors Inc. (HGAR) is pleased to announce that Dorothy Botsoe, Anthony Domathoti and Richard Haggerty have been inducted into the National Association of Realtors' Political Action Committee (RPAC) Hall of Fame. The induction recognizes dedicated members for their financial support and commitment to promote the election of pro-Realtor candidates across the U.S.Botsoe, an HGAR past president and broker-owner of Dorothy Jensen Realty, Inc. of White Plains was recognized for her contributions of $100,000."It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this group of Realtors advocating for homeownership in the purchasing, selling and renting of real property at the local, state and national levels," said Botsoe. "It takes all of us to make homeownership a reality and we must each do our part. I am happy to be a cog in the wheel." HGAR's immediate past president, Domathoti, broker-owner of EXIT Realty Premium in the Bronx, was cited for his $25,000 contribution."I am honored to be inducted into the NAR RPAC Hall of Fame," Domathoti said. "I'm committed to RPAC because I see the great difference it makes in our industry, for our clients, and in delivering the dream of homeownership. You can see the results of RPAC investments every day. There is nothing we do that hasn't been influenced or established without RPAC and advocacy by the Realtor organizations at the local, state and national levels." Haggerty, CEO of OneKey MLS, the largest multiple listing service in New York, was recognized for his contributions of $75,000."I have been an enthusiastic RPAC supporter for many years during my career as a real estate industry executive leader and was first inducted into the RPAC Hall of Fame in 2015 when my voluntary contributions reached the first $25,000 mark," said Haggerty."RPAC is vital to our success. It's the key to protecting homeownership and our industry's interests," Haggerty said. "It brings me great satisfaction to be recognized by my colleagues and the Realtor community for my contribution to RPAC knowing it helps to make our industry stronger." Haggerty, Botsoe and Domathoti were inducted into RPAC's Hall of Fame May 8 at NAR's annual Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.Botsoe sits on the National Association of Realtors Diversity Committee and the Board of Directors as a voting member, is a director for the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR) and NAR, chairs the NYSAR Fair Housing and Cultural Diversity Committee, and is an RPAC trustee. She was named the NYSAR Realtor of the Year in 2020, and received the Lawrence B. Caldwell RPAC Award in 2020.Domathoti served as the 2022 president of HGAR and sits on the NYSAR Board of Directors and 2023 NAR Leadership Academy. He is the co-chair of RPAC and a member of RPAC President's Circle.Haggerty took the reins of OneKey MLS on Jan. 1, 2023, after serving as its President and Chief Strategic Growth Officer. He is the former CEO of HGAR, a position he held since 2012. Under Haggerty's leadership, HGAR grew its geographic reach significantly throughout the northern suburbs and into the Bronx. Haggerty also was at the forefront of promoting DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) at HGAR, and he also stepped up global initiatives for the association, which became a principal member of FIABCI-USA, the International Real Estate Federation in 2022.About Hudson Gateway Association of RealtorsThe Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors ( www.hgar.com) is a not-for-profit trade association representing more than 14,000 real estate professionals in Manhattan, the Bronx, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland and Orange counties. It is the second-largest Realtor association in New York, and one of the largest in the U.S.###PHOTO CAPTION: Inducted into the National Association of Realtors Political Action Committee Hall of Fame May 8, 2023 in Washington were, from left: HGAR's immediate past president, Anthony Domathoti, broker-owner of EXIT Realty Premium in the Bronx; Dorothy Botsoe, an HGAR past president and broker-owner of Dorothy Jensen Realty in White Plains; and HGAR's former CEO Richard Haggerty, CEO of OneKey MLS, the multiple listing service for New York.MEDIA CONTACT:Caryn McBrideCo-Communications Inc.cmcbride@ cocommunications.com SOURCE: Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Metallic Minerals Corp. (TSXV:MMG)(OTCQB:MMNGF) ("Metallic Minerals" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the completion of a 9.5% strategic equity investment by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Newcrest Mining Limited ("Newcrest"). Pursuant to the placement, Metallic Minerals issued 15,838,593 units at a price of $0.40 per unit for gross proceeds of approximately $6.3 million.Each unit was comprised of one common share and 0.75 of a common share purchase warrant. Each full warrant entitles Newcrest to purchase one additional common share for $0.55, providing approximately $6.5 million in additional funding if the warrants are exercised in full. The warrants are exercisable for three years, subject to early acceleration if Metallic Minerals' common shares trade for 20 consecutive trading days at or above $0.825 on the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued pursuant to the placement are subject to a hold period of four months and one day.Metallic Minerals CEO and Chairman, Greg Johnson, stated, "We are pleased to welcome Newcrest as a cornerstone shareholder and look forward to collaborating with their technical team to advance the La Plata project. Preparations are underway for a first phase resource expansion drill campaign targeted to start in June focused on extending the high-grade copper and precious metals mineralization announced in February of this year." Proceeds from the placement are intended to advance exploration on, and for acquisitions related to, Metallic Minerals' La Plata mining project located in Colorado, USA and for working capital and general corporate purposes. Metallic Minerals and Newcrest will establish a technical committee that will act in a non-binding advisory capacity to the board of directors, providing management access to Newcrest's substantial technical expertise in similar mining operations.In connection with the placement, the parties entered into an investor rights agreement pursuant to which Newcrest is entitled to certain rights provided it meets and maintains certain minimum ownership requirements, including rights to: (i) participate in future equity offerings and other security issuances to maintain minimum ownership levels; (ii) a right of first refusal on the sale of the La Plata project or certain of Metallic Minerals' economic interests therein; and (iii) nominate a director to the Metallic Minerals' board, which right becomes effective if Newcrest acquires ownership of at least 13% of the outstanding common shares of the Company. Newcrest has agreed to certain non-solicitation, standstill and area of interest protections in favor of Metallic Minerals for a period of two years, unless its ownership percentage in Metallic Minerals falls below certain specified thresholds prior to then.About Newcrest MiningNewcrest Mining Limited (ASX, TSX, PNGX: NCM) is one of the world's largest gold mining companies with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia and operating mines in Australia, Canada and Papua New Guinea. Newcrest is a technical industry leader, with particular expertise in exploration, deep underground block caving and metallurgical processing. Newcrest is committed to creating a work environment where everyone can go home safe and healthy every day, and where everyone actively contributes to this outcome; operating and developing mines in line with strong environmental, social and governance practices; developing a diverse workforce; and developing and maintaining strong relationships with communities and governments.About Metallic MineralsMetallic Minerals Corp. is a leading exploration and development stage company focused on copper, silver, gold and other critical minerals in the La Plata mining district in Colorado, and silver and gold in the high-grade Keno Hill and Klondike districts of the Yukon. Our objective is to create shareholder value through a systematic, entrepreneurial approach to making exploration discoveries, growing resources, and advancing projects toward development.At the Company's La Plata project in southwestern Colorado the 2022 inaugural NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate identified a significant porphyry copper-silver resource containing 889 Mlbs copper and 15 Moz of silver. Results from 2022 expansion drilling intercepted the longest and highest-grade interval ever encountered at La Plata and one of the top intersections for any North American copper project in the past several years. An updated NI 43-101 resource estimate for the La Plata project incorporating these results is expected in Q2 2023. In the 2023 Fraser Institute's Annual Survey of Mining Companies, Colorado ranked 5th globally for investment attractiveness and 2nd in the USA.In Canada's Yukon Territory, Metallic Minerals has consolidated the second-largest land position in the historic high-grade Keno Hill silver district, directly adjacent to Hecla Mining's operations, with more than 300 Moz of high-grade silver in past production and current M&I resources. Hecla Mining Company, the largest primary silver producer in the USA and third largest in the world, completed the acquisition of Alexco Resources and their Keno Hill operations in September 2022. Hecla is targeting to start production at the Keno Hill operations by Q3 2023. Metallic is anticipating the announcement of inaugural mineral resource estimate at Keno Silver in the second half of 2023.Metallic Minerals is also one of the largest holders of alluvial gold claims in the Yukon and is building a production royalty business by partnering with experienced mining operators, including Parker Schnabel of Little Flake Mining from the hit television show, Gold Rush, on the Discovery Channel.All of the districts in which Metallic Minerals operates have seen significant mineral production and have existing infrastructure, including power and road access. Metallic Minerals is led by a team with a track record of discovery and exploration success on several major precious and base metal deposits in the region, as well as having large-scale development, permitting and project financing expertise. The Metallic Minerals team has been recognized for its environmental stewardship practices and is committed to responsible and sustainable resource development.Early Warning DisclosureNewcrest acquired ownership of 15,838,593 units under the private placement. Prior to the private placement, Newcrest did not own any securities of Metallic Minerals. After giving effect to the private placement, Newcrest beneficially owns and exercises control over a total of 15,838,593 common shares and 11,878,944 warrants. These securities represent 9.5% of Metallic Minerals' is
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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / (via IBN) NetworkNewsWire ("NNW"), a multifaceted financial news and publishing company part of IBN ("InvestorBrandNetwork"), today announces that it will once again serve as the official newswire of FinovateSpring. Produced by London-based Informa, an international events, digital services and academic knowledge group, FinovateSpring will be held on May 23-25, 2023, at the Marriot Marquis San Francisco in California.The event focuses on introducing knowledgeable attendees to cutting-edge technologies in the world of global finance and presenting a detailed roadmap for building a competitive edge in this rapidly changing space.The event features more than 100 renowned speakers who will each share their unique perspectives in a variety of formats, including keynotes, general sessions, panel discussions and fireside chats.More than 1,200 participants are expected to be in attendance, including C-suite executives and senior leadership from marquee financial institutions, disruptive innovators, fintech pioneers, media representatives and civil servants.Industry veterans will engage with attendees on a variety of issues such as:Lasting changes in financial institutions and the nature of moneyCapitalizing on competitive advantagesThe role of the Metaverse in bankingDriving institutional competitivenessFacilitating financial inclusionIn the upcoming event, Finovate has introduced several new features, including themed demo sessions, interactive executive briefings, a digitalization war game, a fintech fight club, an expanded startup booster and dedicated content for community banks and credit unions.In its capacity as the official newswire for the event, NNW will combine traditional wire-grade dissemination, article syndication and multi-brand social media distribution to generate wider and deeper interest across target markets. Other brand management strategies deployed will include content curation to heighten visibility among investors, journalists, consumers and the general public.IBN will leverage its array of state-of-the-art solutions to heighten recognition and drive the outreach of invited speakers, startup founders, exhibitors and the overall event through a network of digital channels and best-in-class communications strategies. Today, IBN's coverage extends to 5,000+ syndication partners as well as 60+ IBN brands that collectively amplify reach to a network of 2+ million likes, followers and subscribers."We are always pleased to collaborate with IBN and NNW. They have consistently helped make Finovate's events a greater success and extend the influence of each conference far beyond the on-site venues," said Greg Palmer, VP of Finovate. "Through their social media coverage and outreach capabilities, IBN positions us well to reach larger online audiences as we drive meaningful relationships among our growing number of attendees and exhibitors." "IBN is honored to drive increased recognition for Finovate on an ongoing basis as we continue to work with their amazing team on all of their events," said Jonathan Keim, director of communications of IBN. "It is the premier conference series in the space and well suited for anyone interested in the latest fintech innovations taking place." About IBNIBN(InvestorBrandNetwork) consists of financial brands introduced to the investment public over the course of 17+ years. With IBN, we have amassed a collective audience of millions of social media followers. These distinctive investor brands aim to fulfill the unique needs of a growing base of client-partners. IBN will continue to expand our branded network of highly influential properties, leveraging the knowledge and energy of specialized teams of experts to serve our increasingly diversified list of clients.Through NetworkNewsWire ("NNW") and its affiliate brands, IBN provides: (1) access to a network of wire solutions via InvestorWire ("IW") to reach all target markets, industries and demographics in the most effective manner possible; (2) article and editorial syndication to 5,000+ news outlets; (3) enhanced press release solutions to ensure maximum impact; (4) full-scale distribution to a growing social media audience; (5) a full array of corporate communications solutions; and (6) a total news coverage solution.For more information, please visit https://www.InvestorBrandNetwork.com Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the InvestorBrandNetwork website applicable to all content provided by IBN, wherever published or re-published: http://IBN.fm/Disclaimer Corporate Communications:IBN (InvestorBrandNetwork)Los Angeles, California310.299.1717 OfficeEditor@ InvestorBrandNetwork.com SOURCE: IBN (InvestorBrandNetwork)
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NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISEMMINATION IN THE UNITED STATESTORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / NOA Lithium Brines Inc. (TSXV:NOAL) ("NOA" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has completed a non-brokered private placement ("Private Placement") for the sale of 17,633,741 units (the "Units") at a price of $0.40 per Unit for gross proceeds of $7,053,496. All amounts expressed are in Canadian dollars.Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one-half of one common share purchase warrant of the Company (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant is exercisable into one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.60 for a period of 36 months from the date of issuance.Taj Singh, President and CEO states, "In just a couple of months since going public we have made rapid progress. Our drill program at our flagship Rio Grande project resulted in the discovery of multiple brine horizons of significant thickness in the alluvial fans surrounding the salar in our first drill hole, with full assay results expected to be received shortly. Also at Rio Grande, we have strategically acquired claims to strengthen our position, both on the surface salar and in the alluvials. Most recently, we made an important acquisition at the Arizaro salar, materially increasing our land holdings here and acquiring a drill-permitted, high potential project on the surface salar. With the closing of this upsized financing, we are very well-positioned for long-term success." The Company primarily plans to use the proceeds of the Private Placement for exploration of its properties, including accelerating the current drill program at its flagship Rio Grande project. The Private Placement is subject to a statutory 4-month and one day hold period from the date of issuance. The Private Placement remains subject to final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities regulatory authorities.In connection with the Private Placement, an aggregate of $206,725 was paid in cash as finder's fees to Zaphiros S.A., Patricio Milic, Gustavo Kagel, Ignacio Marseillan, Ruben Jabib, and Stephen Avenue Securities Inc.This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.About NOA Lithium Brines Inc.NOA is a lithium exploration and development company formed to acquire assets with significant resource potential. All NOA's projects are in the heart of the prolific Lithium Triangle, in the mining-friendly province of Salta, Argentina, near a multitude of projects and operations owned by industry leaders. NOA has rapidly consolidated one of the largest lithium brine claim portfolios in this region that is not owned by a producing company, with key positions on three prospective salars (Rio Grande, Arizaro, Salinas Grandes) and a total portfolio of over 100,000 hectares.On Behalf of the Board of Directors,Taj Singh, M.Eng, P.Eng, CPAPresident & CEO, DirectorFor Further InformationWebsite: www.noalithium.com Email: info@ noalithium.com Telephone: 416-568-1027Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsThis news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. All statements within this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements including, but not limited to NOA's future plans and objectives regarding its projects, which constitute forward looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although NOA believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements include fluctuations in market prices, including metal prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. NOA does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable laws.Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: NOA Lithium Brines Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 18:45:43

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HERZELIA, ISRAEL and BERLIN, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Sullam Holdings L.R. Ltd. ("Sullam") a company with head offices in Herzelia, Israel, together with its joint actors (i) Tedea Technological Development and Automation Ltd. ("Tedea"), a company with head offices in Herzelia, Israel; and (ii) RAM.ON Finance GmbH, ("RAM" and together with Sullam and Tedea, the "Joint Actors"), a company with head offices in Berlin, Germany, have collectively acquired 3,201,000 ordinary shares (the "Shares") in the capital of Oceansix Future Paths Ltd. (the "Issuer") at an average price of approximately $0.034 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $109,247 (the "Acquisition"). These Shares were purchased on the open market through the facilities of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") between September 21, 2022 to May 9, 2023 and represent 2.08% of the Issuer's total issued and outstanding Shares.The Joint Actors hold their securities of the Issuer for investment purposes and may, depending on various factors including, without limitation, market and other conditions, increase or decrease their beneficial ownership, control or direction over additional securities of the Issuer, through market transactions, private agreements, treasury issuances, exercises of convertible securities or otherwise.Prior the Acquisition, Sullam had beneficial ownership and control of (i) 28,945,000 Shares, representing 18.83% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 warrants, each exercisable for the purchase of one Shares ("Warrants"). If the Warrants held by Sullam were exercised in full, Sullam would own a total of 40,888,810 Shares, or approximately 24.69% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Following the Acquisition, Sullam holds beneficial ownership and control over (i) 29,972,000 Shares representing 19.50% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Sullam were exercised in full, Sullam would own a total of 41,915,810 Shares, or approximately 25.31% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Prior to the Acquisition, Tedea had beneficial ownership and control over (i) 28,945,000 Shares representing approximately 18.83% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Tedea were exercised in full, Tedea would own a total of 40,888,810 Shares, or approximately 24.69% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Following the Acquisition, Tedea holds beneficial ownership and control over (i) 29,879,500 Shares representing approximately 19.44% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 11,943,810 Warrants. If the Warrants held by Tedea were exercised in full, Tedea would own a total of 41,823,310 Shares, or approximately 25.25% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Prior the Acquisition, RAM had beneficial ownership and control over 30,295,037 Shares representing approximately 19.71% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Following the Acquisition, RAM holds beneficial ownership and control over 31,534,537 Shares representing 20.52% of the issued and outstanding Shares.Prior to the Acquisition, the Joint Actors collectively had beneficial ownership and control over (i) 88,185,037 Shares representing 57.38% of the issued and outstanding Shares, and (ii) 23,887,620 Warrants. If the Warrants held by the Joint Actors were exercised in full, the Joint Actors would own a total of 112,072,657 Shares, or approximately 63.11% of the issued and outstanding Shares. After the Acquisition, the Joint Actors collectively hold 91,386,037 Shares representing 59.46% of the issued and outstanding Shares and 23,887,620 Warrants. Upon exercise of the Warrants, the Joint Actors may acquire up to 23,887,620 Shares. As a result of the Acquisition and assuming the exercise of all Warrants, the Joint Actors would collectively hold 115,273,657 Shares, which on a partially-diluted basis represents approximately 64.91% of the issued and outstanding Shares.The Acquisition is exempt from the formal bid requirements of National Instrument 62-104 - Take Over Bids and Issuer Bids ("NI 62-104") as the Acquisition occurred in reliance on the Normal Course Purchase Exemption set out in Section 4.1 of NI 62-104. The facts supporting reliance on that exemption are that: (i) the bid was for not more than 5% of the outstanding Shares; (ii) the aggregate number of Shares acquired in reliance on this exemption by the Joint Actors within any period of 12 months, when aggregated with acquisitions otherwise made by the Joint Actors within the same 12-month period does not exceed 5% of the Shares outstanding at the beginning of the 12-month period; (iii) the Shares trade on the TSXV; and (iv) the value of the consideration paid for the acquired Shares was not in excess of the market price at the date of acquisition, as determined in accordance with Section 1.11 of NI 62-104, plus reasonable brokerage fees or commissions actually paid.This press release is issued pursuant to the early warning requirements of NI 62-104 and National Instrument 62-103 - The Early Warning System and Related Take-Over Bid and Insider Reporting Issues, which also requires reports to be filed with regulatory authorities in each of the jurisdictions containing additional information with respect to the foregoing matters (the "Early Warning Reports"). A copy of the Early Warning Reports will be available under the Issuer's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com and each Joint Actor's Early Warning Report may be obtained by contacting the respective Joint Actor at the contact information set forth below.For more information please contact:Sullam Holdings L.R. Ltd.Lenny Recanati Director Email: Lenny@ Recanati.co.il Phone: + 972-9-7882547Address: 85 Medinat Hayehudim Street, Herzelia, IsraelTedea Technological Development and Automation Ltd.Mordechai Gorfung CEO and DirectorEmail: mota@ Tedea.com Phone: + 972-9-9602010Address: 89 Medinat Hayehudim Street, Herzelia Israel RAM.ON Finance GmbHRudiger Olschowy Shareholder RepresentativeEmail: ruediger@ ram-on.de Phone: +49 174 4930 832Address: Konstanzer Str. 55, Berlin, GermanySOURCE: oceansix future paths Ltd.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 17:31:31

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EARLWOOD, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / In today's ever-changing and highly fragmented marketplace, digital marketing has become the single most vital part of a brand's success. At pointdot, they understand this better than most.Pointdot is a full-service performance marketing agency built around their clients. The amazing team behind the agency believes that every business has the potential to win and achieve their growth goals. That's because technology has created endless possibilities for brands to connect with their customers. It's just a matter of learning to harness that power.The Marketing Agency That Plays to WinFounded by Dimitri Galanis, pointdot has worked in the highest levels of Australian media for News Corp Australia. After achieving success as the #1 top salesperson for several years running and winning the PANPA Sales Person of the Year in 2017, Dimitri founded this marketing agency in 2016. His vision was to support small businesses that don't have the budget or resources to work with large independent agencies or large corporate media organisations.So far, they have serviced more than 500 small businesses across Australia, and they have an office in Sydney with a 12-person team of local marketers. In other words, pointdot is fully Australian-owned and operated. With 110+ Google reviews, they've earned a 4.9-star average rating and they're known for going all in for their clients.The ApproachAt pointdot, they work hand-in-hand with clients to create customised digital marketing strategies designed to perform and win. The team brings together the right combination of services needed to succeed and a deep understanding of what strategies and channels it takes to connect consumers to brands. And they don't stop until they deliver results.In other words, they are accountable for their results and this is one of the factors that set this marketing agency apart from the competition. They offer clients a unique promise-if they don't see results within the first 90 days of working together, the pointdot team will work with them for free until they deliver on that promise.The pointdot team is held accountable by KPIs and targets that are agreed upon prior to the start of the working relationship. Few agencies operate in this manner because it is a high-risk business model for agencies that do not believe in their abilities. This approach to business speaks volumes about their commitment to delivering truly valuable services set clients up for success and growth.Why Choose pointdot?Partnering with a marketing agency can be a game-changer for Australian businesses. It can help you navigate the ever-changing landscape of digital marketing and deliver results that you may not have been able to achieve otherwise. But, it's essential to keep your marketing agency honest and work closely with them.Now, choosing the right marketing agency for your business is key. We recommend considering factors such as expertise, experience, strategy, and transparency. pointdot checks all these boxes. Whether they're the right cultural fit for your business is for you to decide, but we believe they are.In conclusion, pointdot is a marketing agency that goes all-in and plays to win. They exist to help Australian businesses achieve their growth ambitions and reach their full potential. So if you're looking for a marketing agency that is accountable, results-driven, and passionate about what they do, you are looking in the right place.If you want to learn more about pointdot, visit their website or connect with them on Instagram. Alternatively, you can skip the queue and book a digital marketing strategy session for free by clicking here.CONTACT:contact@ pointdot.com.au SOURCE: pointdot
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 19:10:15

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Hagens Berman urges Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE:RAD) investors who suffered substantial losses to submit your losses now.Class Period: Apr. 26, 2018 - Mar. 13, 2023Lead Plaintiff Deadline: May 19, 2023Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/RAD Contact An Attorney Now: RAD@ hbsslaw.com 844-916-0895Rite Aid Corporation (RAD) Securities Fraud Class Action:The litigation focuses on Rite Aid's compliance with federal regulations concerning its pharmacies' prescriptions practices and its federal healthcare program reimbursement billing.According to the complaint, Defendants made false and misleading statements or failed to disclose that Rite Aid: (1) filled hundreds of thousands of unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances that lacked a legitimate medical purpose until June 2019; (2) ignored evidence that its stores were dispensing unlawful prescriptions and intentionally deleted internal notes about suspicious prescribers written by concerned pharmacists; (4) violated the Controlled Substances Act by knowingly filling unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances; and (5) violated the False Claims Act when it sought reimbursement from federal healthcare programs.Investors began to learn the truth on Mar. 13, 2023, when the US Department of Justice announced it filed a lawsuit against Rite Aid alleging that the company knowingly filled hundreds of thousands of unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances and knowingly submitted false or fraudulent reimbursement claims for such prescriptions to federal healthcare programs. The DOJ alleges these activities violate the Controlled Substances Act and the False Claims Act and states, in part, "[w]hile making millions of dollars [Rite Aid] opened the floodgates for millions of pills of opioids and other controlled substances to flow illegally out of [its] stores." This news sent the price of Rite Aid shares sharply lower."We're focused on investors' losses and proving Rite Aid's decision to put profits ahead of safety enabled it to record illegally-generated revenues," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.If you invested in Rite Aid and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firm's investigation, click here to discuss your legal rights with Hagens Berman.Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding Rite Aid should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email RAD@ hbsslaw.com # # #About Hagens BermanHagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation law firm focusing on corporate accountability through class-action law. The firm is home to a robust securities litigation practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com . Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.Contact:Reed Kathrein, 844-916-0895SOURCE: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
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The AllSecure650 Product Debuted in Australia to High PraisesLOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Swann, the leader in smart security for more than three decades, releases the AllSecure650 2K Wireless Security System in the United States. The AllSecure650 2K Wireless Security was first released for the Australian market and has become a go-to security system for consumers in Oz.The AllSecure650 Security Kit cameras are equipped with SwannNet, which ensures the strongest available Wi-Fi connection to each camera from the Wi-Fi NVR or internet router. Consumers can watch live or play back video on their smartphone from anywhere in the world with the Swann Security app that is available for Apple and Android. The Swann Security app sends smart notifications to users' smartphones when True Detect senses heat from large objects like people and cars for more reliable monitoring and fewer false alarms. The app features a digital zoom, allowing users to see footage such as number plates and faces in more clarity.The footage can also be seen and accessed on a smart TV via Hey Google and Alexa devices. For users looking for an offline option, footage is also accessible locally on TV or monitor via HDMI cable and can record video without the need for the internet.This system is a security solution for those worldwide that does not rely on Wi-Fi so whether someone has a family or is a digital nomad, they can secure their home, family and belongings.The AllSecure650 system is compatible with Swann's full line of products so everything works together seamlessly."We are overjoyed to debut the AllSecure650 in the United States," says Mike Lucas, CEO of Swann. "The team at Swann hopes that Americans become fans of our latest security kit, too." The AllSecure650 Security Kit contains four wire-free cameras with wall mounts to blend the reliability of a wired setup and ease of wireless for a quick installation.Included in the AllSecure650 is a powerful Wi-Fi NVR Power Hub, which can store up to two years of footage to its local 1TB hard drive and backup clips to the cloud. There's a charging bay at the rear of the power hub for easy recharging and a spare battery is included so that users can always have a charged battery ready to swap in and out. Unlike other wireless systems, there is not a security down time while waiting for a camera to charge.There is a spare battery in the Power Hub that provides a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) for five hours of power to the hub in the event of a power outage. The Power Hub also combines video clips together for fast and easy playback, which is good for law enforcement or instances when proof is needed.The wire-free camera features include 105 wide viewing angle with 2K Quad HD resolution, True Detect heat & motion detection, sensor spotlights & sirens, person detection, 2-way audio, loud sirens, and powerful night vision up to 30m and Night2Day color night vision up to 10m. IP66 weatherproof design rating on the cameras also makes the kit a durable option for users looking for a flexible in/out home security package all year round.The AllSecure650 Security Kit is available for purchase on Amazon and Swann's website.ABOUT SWANN:Swann is a staple in the smart home and business security industry that has been in business for over 35 years. As the worldwide leader of wired, DIY security solutions, Swann helps its customers protect their homes, businesses, and garages no matter where life takes them. Founded in Melbourne, Australia, Swann creates innovative DIY security solutions.Swann is the only brand that offers a complete lineup of inter-connectable wired and wireless security solutions, all controllable via the Swann Security app, and wholly integrated with Hey Google and Alexa. Follow Swann for the most up-to-date product and company news on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok.Contact InformationJennifer BuonantonyPR for Swann USAjennifer@ presspassla.com 323-496-1976SOURCE: Swann Security
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 17:46:22

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ROCK HILL, SC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Throughout each tax year, businesses and financial institutions make payments in the course of operations. Whether that is paying independent contractors, acting as the trustee of financial accounts, or providing loans to borrowers, all of this information must be reported accurately to the IRS.This is done by filing forms in the 1099 Series, all of these forms are used to report specific types of payments that businesses and financial institutions make. TaxBandits, an IRS-authorized e-file provider, supports the filing of 1099 forms, and they have added two more of these forms to their line-up.TaxBandits now supports Form 1099-A, Acquisition or Abandonment of Secured Property, and Form 1099-LTC, Long-term Care and Accelerated Death Benefits.Simplified Federal and State E-filingTaxBandits clients can easily file their 1099 forms with the IRS and state as needed. They can also take advantage of great features that simplify the e-filing process. This includes:Built-in error checks using the IRS Business RulesBulk Upload optionsVolume-based pricingSolutions for Furnishing Recipient CopiesBy law, payers must provide their recipients with a paper copy of the 1099, unless the recipient specifically gives their consent to receive an electronic copy.With TaxBandits, employers have the option to distribute both a paper form copy and an electronic form copy.Postal Mailing ServicesWhen employers file their federal and state forms with and select Postal Mailing, TaxBandits prints, and mails copies on their behalf. USPS Validations are used to verify that all copies are being sent to the correct addresses.All 1099 Forms are printed and mailed from a SOC-2 Certified facility, and personal information is masked for heightened security.Secure Online Tax Form AccessWhen choosing Online Access, recipients are able to view and download the forms online. Once the recipient is granted Online Access, they will be prompted by email to provide their consent and view the electronic copies of their forms. Recipients will continue to have access to their tax forms indefinitely once they have signed into the portal.When asked about the addition of Forms 1099-A and 1099-LTC, Agie Sundaram, the CEO and Co-founder of SPAN Enterprises, responded by stating, "The team at TaxBandits is excited to expand upon the seamless e-file solution that we offer our clients. Our team is committed to growing TaxBandits to meet the needs of every business, tax professional, and service provider, adding forms is one of the many ways we achieve this." To begin e-filing Forms 1099-A, 1099-LTC, and more, create a free account today at www.taxbandits.com To simplify the 1099 e-filing process further, TaxBandits has enhanced their W-9 Manager. Allowing their clients to request and maintain all their vendor information in one secure location. Learn more about W-9 Form.About TaxBanditsThe 1099 and W-2 experts! TaxBandits is a SOC 2 Certified, IRS-authorized e-file provider of 1099 Form, Form W2, 1095-B, 1095-C, 940, 941, and Form W-9, serving businesses, service providers, and tax professionals of every shape and size.About SPAN EnterprisesBased in Rock Hill, South Carolina, SPAN Enterprises has been developing industry-leading software solutions for IRS e-filing and business management tools for over a decade.The SPAN Enterprises portfolio of products includes TaxBandits, Tax990, ACAwise, ExpressExtension, 123PayStubs, and TruckLogics.For any media inquiries, please reach out to Stephanie Glanville, Content Writer at stephanie@ spanenterprises.com SOURCE: TaxBandits
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Direct talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia are of utmost importance, said Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the US State Department Vedant Patel during a briefing, Trend reports.

We continue to provide full support and engagement of the US, as these two countries work to secure a durable and dignified peace. We welcome the reports that the parties are going to continue to engage in these discussions and we reiterate our conviction that peace is within reach and direct dialogue is key to resolving issues. Our view is that direct talks between the parties are of utmost importance. We are glad to to see that happen, whether they take place in Arlington, Brussels, Moscow our support to these efforts will continue to endure, he said.
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 15:01:09

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Red Dot: A Prestigious International Design AwardNEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Reed - a new exclusive vase collection by Monica Forster for Orrefors - has been awarded the prestigious international design award Red Dot Award for Product Design.Reed has won the Red Dot AwardReed to the left and the Red Dot logo to the right. Red Dot Award - based in Germany - was first introduced in 1955 and is recognized as one of the leading design awards globally. Leading products showcasing exceptional design and form are selected by an international jury across multiple categories.With Orrefors' long experience and leading expertise in glass, Forster has created a collection of vases inspired by the shapes and expressions of nature in a tribute to Scandinavian Design. By emphasizing the lines of the mold instead of hiding them, Forster provides Reed with a strong character. When the design was transferred to glass, these distinct lines took on a sense of organic movement as a gentle sway in the glass.Reed is molded in clear and moss-green glass and the collection comes in three different sizes: a large vase for branches and big flowers, a medium vase for wildflowers, and a low vase, perfect for tulips."The Red Dot Award is a fantastic international recognition for Reed as a design object and Orrefors' product expertise in interior design. It's absolutely vital that Swedish design continues to make headway internationally and this award provides Reed with a great development platform going forward," says Monica Forster, recently named Architektur & Wohnens 'AW Designer of the Year 2023'.High-resolution images are available on:About Monica ForsterMonica Forster studied at Beckmans College of Design and University Arts, Crafts & Design in Stockholm and is well known for her multidisciplinary work where she combines industrial, furniture, and product design with design strategy. A work that always seeks the answer to the question: "Why?". Since 1995, Forster has run her studio, Monica Forster Design Studio, in Stockholm, and collaborates as a designer and creative advisor for several international brands. Monica Forster received the prestigious Architektur & Wohnen 'AW Designer of the Year 2023' award earlier this year. Other awards include the Good Design Award in the USA, the Best Domestic Design Wallpaper* Design Awards in the UK, and several other international recognitions.The Reed collection is Monica Forster's first collaboration with Orrefors.About OrreforsOrrefors is a world-renowned crystal brand with a heritage dating back to 1898. The design is characterized by timeless Swedish aesthetics, functionality, sustainable quality, and craftsmanship. Since the early 1900s, Orrefors has contributed a significant part to the movement and style of Scandinavian Design. The high-quality glass has been the main focus since the beginning, and products by Orrefors are still, to this day, requested for prestigious events, such as the Nobel Banquet. The brand is presented at some of the most exclusive department stores and galleries all over the world.Contact InformationEmma RosMarketing Coordinatoremma@ orrefors.us (609)-682-4063Emon MaashoCEOemon@ orrefors.us (856)-296-0472SOURCE: Orrefors
PR-Inside.com: 2023-05-18 19:00:38

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Top Marketing Agency, a leading provider of comprehensive marketing solutions, is thrilled to announce its rapid growth and expansion into a new office located in Flower Mound, Texas. This strategic move marks a significant milestone for the company, reinforcing its commitment to delivering exceptional marketing services to clients across the region.FLOWER MOUND, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Top Marketing Agency Inc., a leading provider of comprehensive & data-driven digital marketing solutions, is thrilled to announce its rapid growth and expansion into a new office located at 2904 Corporate Cir Suite #8, Flower Mound, TX 75028. This strategic move marks a significant milestone for the company, reinforcing its commitment to delivering exceptional marketing services to clients across the DFW and surrounding region.Top Marketing Agency Inc.Top Marketing Agency Inc. The decision to establish a presence in Flower Mound was driven by Top Marketing Agency's strong dedication to serving its expanding customer base in Flower Mound, TX, and beyond. Specializing in plumbing and home services marketing, the new office will allow the marketing agency to better accommodate the increasing demand for its innovative marketing strategies and strengthen relationships with local businesses in the area for all industries.Situated in a prime location, the Top Marketing Agency Inc. Flower Mound office will provide Top Marketing Agency with an excellent opportunity to tap into the vibrant business community and leverage the area's thriving economic environment. The expansion will not only allow the digital marketing agency to enhance its local presence & help more businesses throughout the DFW area but also create new employment opportunities, contributing to the region's economic growth.Top Marketing Agency's CEO, Jeffrey Sherman, expressed enthusiasm about the company's expansion. "Opening a new office in Flower Mound is a significant achievement for Top Marketing Agency. It demonstrates our unwavering commitment to meeting the evolving needs of our clients and our dedication to fostering long-lasting partnerships in the Flower Mound and the greater DFW community. We are excited to embark on this new chapter and look forward to serving businesses in the region with our top-notch marketing solutions." With its team of highly skilled professionals and a proven track record of success, Top Marketing Agency Inc. continues to revolutionize the marketing industry. The agency specializes in a wide range of services, including digital marketing, website design, social media marketing, SEO optimization, lead generation, and data analytics. By leveraging cutting-edge technologies and innovative strategies, the agency empowers businesses to achieve their marketing objectives, enhance online visibility, drive targeted traffic, and maximize conversions in today's competitive landscape.The Flower Mound office is scheduled to begin operation in May 2023. To celebrate this milestone, Top Marketing Agency will provide an open forum & free marketing consultation, inviting local businesses and community members to learn more about their services and network with industry professionals.Founded in 2010, Marketing Agency is a leading provider of comprehensive marketing solutions, empowering businesses to achieve remarkable results in the digital era. With a team of experienced professionals and a customer-centric approach, the agency offers a wide range of services, including digital marketing, website design, social media management, search engine optimization, and more. By combining innovative strategies with cutting-edge technologies, Top Marketing Agency drives growth and delivers exceptional marketing outcomes for clients throughout Texas and the USA.For inquiries or to learn more about Top Marketing Agency's services in Flower Mound call (972) 838-1129, contact info@ topmarketingagency.com or visit the company's website at www.topmarketingagency.com or follow them on Twitter @tmatopmarketing.Contact InformationLacey LingenfelterPR Managerlacey@ topmarketingagency.com (972) 838-1129Related VideoSOURCE: Top Marketing Agency, Inc.
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EDINA, MN / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Wilson Learning Worldwide is pleased to announce that it has been included in Selling Power's Top Sales Training Companies 2023 list https://bit.ly/3oZqk2r . The list will appear in the May/June 2023 issue of Selling Power magazine. For over 55 years, Wilson Learning has equipped salespeople, sales leaders, and sales enablement and support professionals with strategies, tools, and approaches to advance sales performance and achieve business results.Wilson LearningWilson Learning Logo According to Selling Power publisher and founder Gerhard Gschwandtner, quality sales training is more important than ever. "As the economy continues to slow, accelerating sales becomes increasingly critical to a company's success. The right sales training delivered at the right time can be the secret ingredient to a company not only surviving in this economy but also thriving." The main criteria used when comparing applicants and selecting the companies to include on this year's list were:Depth and breadth of training offeredInnovative offerings (specific training courses, methodology, or delivery methods)Contributions to the sales training marketStrength of client satisfaction and overall client feedbackSelling Power magazine editors say CROs, sales VPs, and sales enablement leaders can leverage this list to find the right sales training partner to help salespeople succeed during social distancing and remote working. See the Selling Power Top Sales Training Companies 2023 list at https://bit.ly/3oZqk2r "We are extremely honored to be recognized by Selling Power as a Top Sales Training Company for the eleventh consecutive year," said Ed Emde, President of Wilson Learning Corporation. "This award validates our approach to customer intimacy and flexibility. It is evidence of our commitment to ensure our clients' sales organizations are consistently empowered to adapt to today's hybrid selling environment, strengthening their customer relationships, and achieving their growth goals." To learn more, contact Wilson Learning at www.WilsonLearning.com or 800.328.7937.About Wilson Learning-Improving Performance Through PeopleFor over 55 years, Wilson Learning has equipped sales organizations with the capability, tools, and knowledge to increase win rates and grow revenue, profits, and market share. Our holistic approach combines proven learning content, consulting expertise, learning services, and an award-winning extended learning system that ensures reinforcement and application. Wilson Learning Worldwide is a global leader in human performance improvement solutions with operations in over 50 countries worldwide, including Japan and the United States, incorporating over 30 languages. For more information, visit www.WilsonLearning.com or call 800.328.7937.About Selling PowerIn addition to Selling Power, the leading digital magazine for sales managers and sales VPs since 1981, Personal Selling Power, Inc., produces the Sales Management Digest and Daily Boost of Positivity online newsletters ( https://bit.ly/3nUpek7) , as well as videos featuring interviews with top executives. Selling Power is a regular media sponsor of the Sales 3.0 Conference, which is attended by a total of over 4,500 sales leaders each year. https://www.sales30conf.com Contact InformationAakanksha PareekSenior Global Copywriter, Wilson Learningaakanksha_pareek@ wilsonlearning.com +91-704-212-4921Julie GottschalkSales Lead and Marketing Coordinatorjulie_gottschalk@ wilsonlearning.com 952.828.8830SOURCE: Wilson Learning
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The company plans to leverage its platform technology to improve access and quality to medical EEG testing and to enable and improve adjacent biomedical research and clinical trials.SANTA CLARA, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Zeto, Inc., an innovative EEG brain monitoring company, announced its participation in the upcoming Vision Sciences Society (VSS) annual meeting in St. Pete Beach, Florida, from May 19-24.Clinical grade EEG for research by ZetoThe Vision Sciences Society (VSS) Annual Meeting is a premier gathering that covers the broad scope of vision science. The meeting brings together experts from various disciplines, including visual psychophysics, visual neuroscience, computational vision, and visual cognition. As part of this event, Zeto, Inc. will showcase its latest product features tailored for EEG in clinical research applications.Originally developed for the rapid acquisition of clinical EEGs in hospitals and clinical practices, Zeto is responding to an increasing number of requests from researchers and clinical research organizations (CROs) who share a common need for high-quality EEGs recorded more efficiently compared to traditional technologies.The research features introduced by Zeto include the ability to record timing-precise event-related potentials (ERPs) through its unified cloud platform. Users can now benefit from the ease and security of Zeto's cloud interface yet maintaining sub-millisecond precision on input and output event markers which are crucial for high-end ERP data acquisition. This cloud platform is particularly relevant for CROs and large-scale multi-site research projects, providing a central place for data access and management.With advanced API features, state-of-the-art encryption and user management, researchers can conveniently interact with EEG and synchronized video data using commonly available scripting languages such as Python, MATLAB or most other programming languages. This significantly speeds up the ability to process large multi-site datasets and fosters collaboration and synergies among multi-center stakeholders."Zeto has been providing tremendous value for our clinical customers in hospitals and private practices, but we are particularly excited to now offer the convenience of Zeto EEG to CROs and cutting-edge researchers," says Florian Strelzyk, Chief Sales Officer at Zeto. "The ease of use, comfort, and refined feel of our products will open up a wide range of new opportunities to bring EEG out of the lab and into research environments that are closely related to the topics they study. Imagine the possibilities ahead with a platform that is quick to apply and easy to work with. Successful research frequently relies on large teams extracting clinical findings efficiently, and Zeto can provide this multi-user experience like no other tool currently available." About ZetoZeto, Inc. is an award-winning, privately held medical technology company located in Santa Clara, California, focused on transforming the way electroencephalography is done in clinical and research settings. Zeto's revolutionary FDA-cleared headset is backed by a cloud data and software platform, a real-time LSL-based API, and a TTL-based trigger device for ERP studies.Contact InformationIrina NazarovaMarketing Manager9174351226SOURCE: Zeto, Inc.
Nigerias Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, announced Wednesday that the government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nile University of Nigeria for the take-off of the African Aviation and Aerospace University (AAAU) in September this year.

This was made known in a statement issued by the Aviation Ministrys spokesperson, Odutayo Oluseyi, in Abuja.

We are glad that in accordance with convention, norm and practice of the Nigerian University Commission, we are partnering with the Nile University of Nigeria for support and take off of this University with the core mandate of aerospace aviation and aeronautical science, Mr Sirika was quoted to have said at the ceremony.

According to the statement, the minister emphasised that the university will be run on dual mode (hybrid) of physical and virtual classes.

The minister noted further that the take-off of the university would be through public and private sector arrangements, and, in the long run, the varsity will become fully private.

He explained that the MoU would enable Nile University to provide the attention and research support for the take-off of the undergraduate programme for the first two years as provided by the NUC convention and practice.

Its also expected that more research in academic collaboration is established between AAAU and Nile University for the mutual benefit of the two universities, the statement said.

In his remarks, Nile University Vice Chancellor Dilli Dogo, who signed the MoU on behalf of the varsity, expressed satisfaction about the take-off of AAAU on the universitys campus.

After due discussion and intensive negotiation and understanding, we have come to the level where officially we can append our signature to a MoU that will be mutually beneficial to the two institutions, he said.

To us, we are privileged and indeed pleased to be part of this MoU, and we look forward to actively participating in the delivery of this brand-new university that is to impact positively on Nigeria and the African continent.

Aviation roadmap

The establishment of AAAU is one of the components of the aviation roadmap targets the aviation minister set to achieve under this administration before the inauguration of a new government.

Other key components of the aviation sector roadmap consist of the concession of four airports and establishing a national carrier, Nigeria Air, which the minister has repeatedly claimed would commence operation before 29 May.

READ ALSO: Aviation experts discuss sustainability issues amid challenges

The roadmap also involves the development of agro-filled/cargo terminals and establishing maintenance, repairs and overhaul centres.

Its other components are the establishment of an aviation leasing company, the development of aerotropolis (Airport cities), and improvement in aviation safety and security through upgrades and modernisation of aviation infrastructure and facilities.

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Nigerias Central Bank Deputy Governor, Aishah Ahmad, on Wednesday, announced that the bank has developed a financial literacy platform called SabiMONI.

Mrs Ahmad, who disclosed this in a series of tweets posted on her official Twitter page on Wednesday, said the platform was developed through a partnership with financial inclusion experts.

This week, the @cenbank launched #SabiMONI, a digital financial literacy platform developed in conjunction with the @giz_gmbh, @futminna_web and other stakeholders in the Financial Literacy Working Group of the Financial Inclusion Technical Committee, she noted in one of the tweets.

The SabiMoni is an e-learning platform designed to train and provide people with up-to-date financial tools and resources at no cost.

Financial literacy

She explained that Financial Literacy is a critical first step for achieving financial inclusion in the country.

She said an estimated one-third of the Nigerian adult population lacks financial literacy skills, which negatively impacts their likelihood of using financial services

This week, the @cenbank launched #SabiMONI, a digital financial literacy platform developed in conjunction with the @giz_gmbh, @futminna_web and other stakeholders in the Financial Literacy Working Group of the Financial Inclusion Technical Committee. pic.twitter.com/4SjSgdILHI  Aishah Ahmad, CFA (@aishahmad) May 17, 2023

In the age of cashless, electronic transactions and digital financial services, Mrs Ahmad emphasised that digital financial literacy is more vital than ever, adding that it is not just for the financially excluded or the Digital Aliens but also to expand access amongst the financially included.

Higher financial literacy rates means consumers will be more likely to make choices that enhance their use of financial products, reinforce competitive pressure on financial institutions, and promote #FinancialSystemStability by increasing market demand for financial services, she said.

The official said the CBN had implemented several policy initiatives to promote financial literacy nationwide, such as the National Financial Literacy Framework, as well as introducing Financial Education in the Primary and Secondary School Curriculum in conjunction with the education ministry.

Significance

According to Mrs Ahmad, the SabiMONI platform will transform existing financial literacy policies

Similarly, its digital format allows for a wider reach, better tailoring, and more convenience, flexibility and scalability at a lower cost.

It will also generate critical data for evaluating learning effectiveness, she said.

She said SabiMONI is customisable for individuals, small businesses, and financial education providers.

Due to the platforms ability to address the specific needs of various segments, she said SabiMONI would be transformative for the design and delivery of national financial literacy programmes.

The launch of #SabiMONI is a powerful example of effective policy coordination and impactful public-private partnerships. As Chair of the Financial Inclusion Technical Committee, I am very proud of the diverse group who is working tirelessly to ensure financial inclusion for all, she said.

At the #CBN, we are committed to promoting financial inclusion by enhancing trust & confidence in the financial system, deepening the payment system, and upholding consumer rights. Importantly, we understand that financial literacy is a strong lever that will accelerate progress.

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Nollywood filmmaker, Zik Zulu Okafor has explained the context behind his expose on late actor Saint Obis personal and marital struggles.

Days after reports that Mr Obi had died, despite initial denials, Mr Okafor made a lengthy post about the late actors marital life and how it may have led to his demise.

In the expose titled Between Saint Obis Marriage And His Death, the former President of Association of Movie Producers of Nigeria, drew parallels between the late actors public life and on-screen image noting that his social life was blunted.

He further noted in the viral post that it was Mr Obis stardom that fetched him a financially strong and powerful wife, drawing him into a wedding that would drastically alter the cause of his life.

However, he has now come out to say that the post may have been taken out of context by most Nigerians.

In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES, Mr Okafor said that the message was not a comment about Mr Obis marital life.

I didnt write from every context. It was because of the encounter I had with him and not necessarily a comment on his marriage, he siad.

Mr Okafor noted that he received over 70 calls after he made the post.

A lot of people wished he was still alive so they could render some form of assistance to him. You wont believe the calibre of people who called.

Some were top ranking military officers mostly northerners. Because he spoke the Hausa language fluently, they said he was one of them and wished they knew of his issues while he was alive so they could render some assistance, he said.

He further noted that friends and colleagues of the late actor will put their heads together to come up with a way to honour him.

Nollywood and mental health

On the issue of the rising incidence of industry practitioners coming down with mental health issues, Mr Okafor said that the Nigerian movie industry is not well organised to handle the welfare of its members.

Speaking with this newspaper, he noted that Nollywood is an industry with a lot of issues.

It is still largely an informal sector as there is no law backing the practices in the industry. The guilds are trying by forming health partnerships but as a community, we are not doing much.

We are glad there are Over The Top companies like Netflix and others who are at least getting the industry to adapt to international practices, he said.

Dramatisation of love

On the actors marriage to his wife, said to be a top executive of a telecom giant, Mr Okafor said in his write up that it was at best a dramatisation of love.

It was quick. He barely told us that he found a wife. Then, the marriage happened. It was something of a mystique, only those involved understood the histrionics that played out.

None of us who were his closest pals, who walked with him through the crucible to the crest of his career in Nollywood, none of us was invited. The distance between us and the guy I admirably called Saint of the Storm had begun, he wrote

He further stated that the gulf between the late actor and his friends widened with each year.

Despite the distance he wrote; life actually seemed to have given him a fair shake of the dice. He dressed well, drove big cars and even his skin, in literal lingo, spelt wellness.

Sad end

Mr Okafors lengthy expose touched on several aspects of the late actors life including the silent and aloof life he led after getting married, distancing himself from the movie industry and the travails he confessed to have faced at the hands of his inlaws.

But more tragic is the fact that his marriage did not only take away Obinna from his friends, it took him away from Nollywood. Saint stopped acting, absconded from his career and perhaps his calling

It took another three years for Saint to return to his homies. But when he did, some of the deeply disappointed ones sniggered behind him. This was because the simmering rumours of cracks in his marriage had hit home. And though secretive in his ways, he knew it was time to open up. And he did, Okafor wrote.

He noted that Saint Obi told him before his demise that his wifes sibblings see him as a gold digger and that they confront, harass and fight him in his own matrimony.

By the next visit, the Saint returned with a deep cut from knife on his left eye. His wifes brothers, he said, scaled the wall fence of their house to attack him. They were captured by hidden closed-circuit television, CCTV, installed for surveillance and security, he revealed.

He reported them at the police station and subsequently acquired a gun to defend himself. This effectively marked the beginning of the end of his marriage and perhaps Saint Obis long walk to a sad end, he added.

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Alhassan Doguwa, one of the aspirants for the speakership of the House of Representatives, has dropped out of the race and endorsed Tajudeen Abbas, the preferred candidate of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.

Abubakar Makki (APC, Jigawa) and Tunji Raheem (APC, Kwara) also pulled out of the race alongside Mr Doguwa.

The trio announced their withdrawal on Wednesday during a meeting of the Joint Task Group at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.

Speaking on behalf of the aspirants, Mr Doguwa said he is a man of the establishment and cannot go against the party.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Tinubu settled for Godswill Akpabio (South-south) and Barau Jibrin (North-west) for senate president and deputy senate president, respectively.

He also endorsed Mr Abbas (North-west) and Ben Kalu (South-east) for speaker and deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively.

Details to follow

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The spokesperson for the dissolved All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign council, Festus Keyamo, has attacked the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 25 February presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, over his criticism of the United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, for making a phone call to the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.

Barely two days after announcing a Visa ban on Nigerians who allegedly undermined the last general elections, Mr Blinken, on Wednesday, called Mr Tinubu to assure him of the US commitment to further strengthening the U.S.-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration.

But this did not go well with Atiku, who is challenging Mr Tinubus victory in court.

The former vice president took to his Twitter page to express his disappointment, describing Mr Blinkens call to Mr Tinubu as giving legitimacy to the widely acknowledged fraudulent election in Nigeria.

Atiku said the USs new position contradicted its stance as a defender of democracy.

I am in disbelief that @SecBlinken called Tinubu a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigerias 2023 presidential election, he wrote.

This is inconceivable considering that America, as the bastion of democracy, is well briefed on the sham election of February 25. To give legitimacy to the widely acknowledged fraudulent election in Nigeria. It can be demoralising to citizens who have hedged their bet on democracy and the sanctity of the ballot.

Keyamo replies

In a swift reply to Atiku, Mr Keyamo said the US did not contradict itself.

Instead, he accused the former PDP flag bearer and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi, of spreading propaganda to deceive the world that the election was fraudulent.

He said: The United States and @SecBlinken know you and Peter Obi are behaving like Donald Trump in America: refusing to accept your obvious defeat and relying on propaganda to deceive the world. They have your type in the US, so they understand the issues correctly.

Mr Keyamo also claimed that Mr Obis votes in Anambra were inflated and that it is contrary to what can be obtained on the INEV Result Viewing Portal (IReV).

They know that whilst there were intolerable incidents during the election perpetrated by all leading parties (for instance, Peter Obi got far fewer votes in Anambra State than was declared  I dare them to publish what is on IREV), they also have credible reports that those isolated incidents did not substantially affect the overall outcome of the elections.

READ ALSO: Atiku makes first appearance at Presidential Election Petition Court

They know both of you could NOT have won when, as opposition parties, you split your votes into three parts, with even a revolt of 5 of your Governors within your depleted party.

Back story

Both Atiku and Mr Obi, who came second and third, respectively, have rejected the outcome of the 25 February presidential election.

Both are individually challenging the victory of Mr Tinubu at the presidential election petition court, each claiming to be the actual election winner.

Qosim Suleiman is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe

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The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, and Akwa Ibom senator-elect, Godswill Akpabio, have warned incoming members of the National Assembly against inviting the animosity of the President-elect in the election of the presiding officers of the two chambers.

They gave the warning on Wednesday at a meeting with members-elect of the House of Representatives at the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.

Mr Akpabio, a former governor of Akwa Ibom, is the choice of Mr Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for Senate president while Tajudeen Abbas from Kaduna State is their choice for Speaker of the House of Representatives.

However, some of their rivals are refusing to step down and are looking towards the members-elect of the minority parties for support. The minority parties have more members combined than the APC in the House.

Recalling his experience in the aftermath of a similar scenario in the past, Mr Gbajabiamila said he regrets his role in the rebellion that brought in Aminu Tambuwal as speaker in 2011 because the then President Goodluck Jonathan dealt with the House for the rebellion.

He warned the newly elected members against rejecting the choice of the ruling party, stressing that his support for Mr Tambuwal turned out to be a major regret for him in 2011.

The APC has also endorsed Ben Kalu from Abia State as the deputy speaker of the House.

Mr Gbajabiamila, who was the minority leader in the 7th House, led the rebellion that supported Mr Tambuwal against the choice of the then ruling party, Mulikat Akande.

I have been the pioneer of what they call House Project at one time when Tambuwal was the speakerwhen we installed Tambuwal. I regret it, Mr Gbajabiamila said.

He directed Mr Abbas, who was also a member of the House Project, to give details of the actions taken by Jonathans administration to punish the House for the rebellion.

The incoming speaker will tell you more about the travail and the problems we went through for four years, he said.

Speaking on the events that took place in the aftermath of the election in 2011, Mr Abbas said the then administration punished the lawmakers by paying 50 per cent working allowance and reducing the constituency projects funds.

Mulikat (Akande), by way of spread, by way of spread, and by way of equity, the PDP zoned the speakership to the South-west. But we went against it because we want to rebel against anything good or bad that the government bringslet us rubbish it. We elected Tambuwal to be our speaker.

After two weeks of electing Tambuwal, the first blow that came to our faces was a letter written that says we will not be able to collect our running cost. The running cost that you use to manage your office and attend to the need of your constituents, we were told we will only get 50 per cent. That continued for a whole year.

Since you have embarrassed the government, go and pay for yourself. Go and meet the speaker that you have elected. That was how we paid the debt left by the sixth Assembly. For one year, we had half the running cost.

The zonal intervention project that each member is entitled toby the time budget came, we put our interest, what we were supposed to take home by the end of that particular year. We were given only 30 per cent of what was put in the budget. If you have N100 million as your constituency projects, you will get N30 million. That was how the government also punished us, he said.

Fear God, Gun, and GovernmentAkpabio

Godswill Akpabio, the endorsed candidate for senate president, made a brief appearance at the meeting. He warned members to always fear three thingsGod, Gun and Government.

He placed specific emphasis on the government. The message appears to be an attempt by Messrs Akpabio and Gbajabiamila to use fear to sway members to support the candidates of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu.

Yesterday, I met the party. I actually left a sentence with them or thereabouts. Should I leave the sentence with you? In your daily dealings, my late mother told me that I should be aware of the 3Gs: The first G is God; the second G is Gun and the third G is Government.

The first G is God Almighty. The second G is what? Gun and the third one is Government. May you conduct yourself mindful of the admonition of my late mother, by respecting the 3Gs, particularly the government, he said.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. 11 citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan, who were kept in camps located in Syria, were repatriated to their homeland, Trend reports with reference to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

Among the repatriates are 8 children and 3 women.

"As a result of gradual and coordinated measures taken by the Government of Azerbaijan, the location, identity and citizenship of repatriates were established, and then measures were taken to ensure their transfer to the territory of the Republic of Turkiye. Representatives of the relevant state institutions responsible for the repatriation of Azerbaijani citizens from Iraq and Syria and sent to the Republic of Turkiye conducted an initial medical and psychological examination of the repatriates.

Then, as a result of the relevant coordination work carried out by the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Turkiye, Azerbaijani citizens were provided with certificates of return to Azerbaijan and air tickets.

The Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan will continue to take the necessary measures for the repatriation of Azerbaijani citizens who became victims of an armed conflict on the territory of foreign states," the ministry said.
The President-elect, Bola Tinubu, will be conferred with the highest national honour of Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR) on 25 May ahead of his 29 May inauguration.

Vice President-elect Kashim Shettima will also get the Grand Commander of Order of the Niger (GCON) honour on the same day.

This was contained in the schedule of activities for the 2023 Presidential Inauguration released by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

Mr Mustapha, who is the Chairman of the Presidential Transition Council, released the schedule at a press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.

It is the norm in Nigeria for the outgoing president to confer the GCFR honour on the incoming president.

A recent exception was in 2010 when the Council of State had to confer the GCFR title on Goodluck Jonathan due to the circumstances of his emergence. Mr Jonathan emerged after the death of Umar YarAdua.

According to Mr Mustapha, the activities will commence with a dinner in honour of the outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari on 23 May.

Full Schedule

Tuesday 23rd May, 2023

Regimental Dinner in honour of the Commander in Chief

Armed Forces Officers Mess @ 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday, 24th May 2023

Valedictory Federal Executive Council Meeting

Council Chambers, Presidential Villa

Thursday, 25th May, 2023

Investiture of the President-Elect and Vice-President-Elect with the National Honors of

Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR) and Grand Commander of Order of the Niger (GCON) respectively and Handover of Transition Documents State House Conference Centre @ 10:00am

(Guests to be seated by 9:00am)

Friday 26th May, 2023

Public Lecture and Jumaat Prayer

National Mosque @ 10:00am & 1:30 pm

Saturday 27th May, 2023

Inauguration Lecture on the topic: Deepening Democracy for Integration and Development by His Excellency, Uhuru M. Kenyatta, former President of Kenya International Conference Centre, @ 10:00am

(Guests to be seated by 9:00am)

Saturday 27th May, 2023

Childrens Day Program

(i). Parade; and

(ii). Childrens Party

(i). Old Parade Ground @ 10:00am

(ii). State House Conference Centre @ 2:00pm

Sunday, 28th May, 2023

Inter-denominational Church Service

National Christian Centre @ 10:00 a.m.

(Congregation to be seated by 9:00am)

Sunday, 28th May, 2023

Inauguration Dinner/Gala Night

State House Conference Centre @7:00PM

(Guests to be seated by 6:00 pm)

Monday, 29th May, 2023

Inauguration Parade/Swearing-In

Eagle Square, CBD @ 10:00 a.m.

All Guests to be seated by 8:30 a.m.

Monday, 29th May, 2023

Post Inauguration Luncheon

State House Banquet Hall @ 1:30 pm (Strictly for Mr President with brother Presidents, Heads of Government and his invited guests).

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The Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, has explained the economic implication of the federal governments approval to construct a deep sea port in the state.

Mr Akeredolu said the port would put Ondo State on the path of economic prosperity, adding that it was an impressive parting gift from the Buhari administration.

The Federal Executive Council, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, approved an operating licence for the port.

The effort to get the federal governments nod for the project had been ongoing for several years but received a push from the Akeredolu administration.

The seaport is expected to gulp about $ 1 billion (about N461 billion), with the fund sourced through a public-private partnership.

In a statement on Thursday by his Chief Press Secretary, Richard Olatunde, the governor said actualising the port project was very important to the state government.

Port Ondo is one of the most important projects of this administration, he said.

We are determined and committed to actualising this project that will set our state on the path of economic prosperity.

Our dream for this port of Ondo is to serve as a conduit for our goods, agricultural produce, and very soon, our bitumen.

It is the goal of this administration to ensure that the potential of Ondo State is maximised and that all necessary infrastructure required to make this a reality is put in place to achieve this.

Mr Akeredolu, while thanking the president, also appreciated the Minister of Transportation, Muazu Sambo, for his intervention and commitment. He said that the people of the state were grateful for his services as history would be kind to him.

We equally noted with candour, the role of the Minister of State for Transportation, our own, Prince Ademola Adegoroye, he said.

Your impactful struggles and efforts have started yielding enduring fruit of development. Indeed, you have proven to be a true representative of your people. Your doggedness is admirable.

We also appreciate everyone who has, one way or the other, contributed to the process of getting this approval. It is just a phase. We expect that this development will renew our vigour and drive our passion to deliver the Port Ondo project.

Like we say, we are planting a tree, under which shade we may not rest. Nevertheless, it is a worthy cause for the generation yet unborn. We are committed to any effort that targets the good of the next generation.

Also, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Olusola Oke, said the current shape of the global economy and its corollaries had renewed the need to expand the government revenue base at all levels to foster purposeful development.

He said any effort in the direction of industrialisation leading to job creation was a timely response to the issue of development and growth desires by all.

This is how the approval of the Seaport must be regarded as a great accomplishment by all who genuinely crave the greatness of Ondo State, Mr Oke said.

He commended the efforts of the governor and others who worked to ensure its realisation.

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has expressed commitment to implementing the project.

Its managing director, Mohammed Bello-Koko, gave the assurance when he received the Full Business Case for the port two weeks ago in Lagos.

The NPA has consistently restated its readiness to provide requisite technical guidance for the establishment of new ports in line with global best practices, he said.

In keeping with NPAs commitment to creating an enabling atmosphere for the construction of more deep seaports, the Ondo State project will come to fruition.

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The spokesperson of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Oladayo Badmus, and one other member of the party, Olayemi Idowu, have been arraigned before a Magistrate court in Abeokuta, Ogun State, for allegedly breaking into the state secretariat of the party.

The two accused persons were arraigned by the police on Wednesday on a three-count charge of conspiracy, malicious damage and stealing. They both pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The prosecutor, Matthew Famuyiwa, told the court that the accused committed the offences on 12 May at Fajol House in Car Wash area of Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State.

Mr Famuyiwa said the defendants conspired between themselves to commit a felony by breaking into the party secretariat and entering the office of the party chairman, Sunday Oginni.

He further stated that the defendants damaged two standing fans, windows, doors, photo portraits and padlock in the chairmans office, all items which were valued at N575,000.

The police prosecutor also told the court that the defendants also stole the sum of N7.5 million belonging to the party.

He said the alleged offences contravened sections 516, 411 412, 415 and 390 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun 2006.

The magistrate, S.A.A Fiade, thereafter admitted the defendants to bail in the sum of N2 million each with one surety each who must be licenced and registered bonds men with the Ogun State Judiciary.

Mrs Fiade adjourned the case till 8 June for hearing.

Meanwhile, the state executive of the NNPP has suspended the duo till further notice.

The embattled state chairman said a motion for their suspension was ratified at an emergency stakeholders meeting of the party in Abeokuta, shortly after the court session.

Following the outcome in court today, the duo of Oladayo Badmus (South West Public Relations Officer of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP) and Olayemi Idowu (NNPPS chieftain) are therefore suspended from this party till further notice.

As a law abiding party, we will not harbour them hence the ratification of their suspension by this meeting.

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Lagos State commissioner of police, Idowu Owohunwa, paid a visit on Thursday to a motorcyclist, Al-Hassan Usman, brutalised by police officers.

The polices spokesperson in the state, Benjamin Hundeyin, made this known via his Twitter handle.

CP Idowu Owohunwa today visited the young man involved in this incident and members/leadership of the Hausa community in Abattoir Market, Agege, he wrote.

The CP, who condemned the excessive use of force by the policemen in enforcing the existing ban on use of motorcycles in certain parts of Lagos State, has assured members of the public that the disciplinary measures already initiated against the men would be brought to a logical conclusion and the outcome made public.

The Command will continue to ensure that the rule of law is upheld, while not relenting in enforcing the laws of the land.

Backstory

Some police officers had been captured assaulting the unarmed commercial bike rider in the Abule-Egba area of the state.

The viral video shared on Twitter on Wednesday showed the moment three police officers were assaulting the young man.

While one of them hit him with what appears to be an iron rod, another pushed him away in order to forcefully take his motorcycle.

One of the police officers rode the motorcycle away while the others followed behind in a tricycle leaving the young man injured and bleeding.

However, Force spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, said the officers had been detained.

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A former President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and emeritus Prelate of the Methodist Church Nigeria, Sunday Mbang, is dead.

He died on Tuesday, aged 86.

Mr Mbangs demise was announced in a statement on Wednesday by Babatunde Taiwo, a bishop and secretary of the Conference of the Methodist Church Nigeria.

He will be surely and sorely missed by his beloved Church, Methodist Church to which he gave his spiritual, intellectual and servant-leadership for more than two decades and the entire Body of Christ in Nigeria and Diaspora, Mr Taiwo said.

Born on 26 August 1936 in Idua Eket, Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, the departed cleric was a man of many firsts.

He was the first black president of the World Methodist Council. He was also the first Methodist President of CAN. First Patriarchs Chaplain and Bishop of Tinubu and the only person to have held the position of both patriarch and prelate.

Mr Mbangs ministerial work spanned over four decades, having enrolled at the Trinity College, Umuahia, Abia State, in 1962.

He rose through the ranks to become the Bishop of Tinubu, Lagos State, in 1979. He was later elevated to a Patriarch/Prelate  the administrative and pastoral leader of the Methodist Church in Nigeria, a position he served for 22 years.

The late prelate had his primary school education at Salvation Army School, Akai Ubium, Eket and Methodist Boys High School, Oron, Oron Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State, for his secondary education.

He attended the Trinity Theological College, Umuahia, in Abia State, for pastoral training. He further studied at the University of Ibadan, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel and Harvard University in the United States of America.

Until his death, he was the leader of Fathers of Faith, a group of Christian leaders in Akwa Ibom State with influence over the states politics.

In recognition of his leadership, the Methodist Church Nigeria named one of its dioceses Mbangs Cathedral in Eket, Akwa Ibom State, in his honour.

He stood for what was right  Peter Obi

Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, in his reaction to his passing, described Mr Mbang as a man known to be sincere in words and actions.

Mr Obi said he met with Mr Mbang in Uyo last December and that the cleric told him that God would use me to save Nigeria.

As a Prelate, he was one of the most patriotic Nigerians, who not only stood for what is right but also spoke truth to power without fear or favour. In my own case, when I was rigged out in the Anambra Gubernatorial election in 2003, he was the first clergyman to publicly tell the President then, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, that I won that election, Mr Obi said.

READ ALSO: Nigerias President condemns attack on American embassy officials in Nigeria

The nation needs his prayers now more than ever. He truly loved Nigeria. I send my heartfelt condolences to the Mbang family, the Methodist Church of Nigeria and the nation in general on the death of this patriotic Nigerian who lived an exemplary life.

May God grant him eternal rest and comfort all who mourn him, he added.

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Riotous supporters of the Labour Party on Wednesday mobbed a factional national chairman of the party, Lamidi Apapa, at the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja.

Mr Apapa attended the courts proceedings on Wednesday, where the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, are challenging the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Bola Tinubus victory as Nigerias president-elect.

PREMIUM TIMES reported earlier that before the commencement of the days sitting, Mr Apapa had an altercation with Akin Osuntokun, director general of Peter Obis presidential campaign council.

Messrs Apapa and Osuntokun engaged in a confrontation over who would sit at the litigants gallery in the courtroom, as the former asked Mr Osuntokun to give up his seat.

But Mr Osuntokun did not move.

The event set off what would eventually be the fate awaiting Mr Apapa on Wednesday.

How Mr Apapa was attacked

The trouble escalated on Wednesday shortly after the court adjourned proceedings for the day.

As Mr Apata sauntered out of the courtroom to a horde of court reporters outside, the mob, comprising young people, intercepted him.

They stopped Mr Apapa from granting interview to the journalists, as they accused him of factionalising the Labour Party.

Fake national chairman, go home, the mob jeered at Mr Apapa, stripping him almost naked as police officers came to his rescue.

The mob removed his cap and attempted to tear his grey-coloured flowing gown (agbada).

He was later taken into protective custody within the precincts of the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

A video clip capturing the scene and earlier published by PREMIUM TIMES can be found here. https://twitter.com/PremiumTimesng/status/1658795920698355714?t=Fx2qUYz5VIcSjhXKdcp_Iw&s=19

The police later released him after the mob was brought under control, with many of them peacefully dispersed.

Accuses Obi of party leadership crisis

Mr Apapa, after emerging from the milieu, told journalists that the partys presidential candidate was responsible for the leadership crisis rocking the party.

Shortly after the February presidential poll, where Mr Obi came third in the race, the suspended national chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, ran into troubled waters with other party stalwarts who sued him.

Subsequently, an Abuja High Court restrained Mr Abure from parading himself as the partys national chairman.

Following Mr Abures suspension, Mr Apapa, a deputy national chairman of the party, assumed the headship of the LP in an acting capacity.

READ ALSO: Labour Party leaders clash at Presidential Election Petition Court

Mr Apapa explained that the leadership tussle was avoidable had Mr Obi respected the order of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, which barred Mr Abure and three others from parading themselves as party honchos.

Mr Abure was accused of forgery and perjury  an allegation he denied.

Speaking on the alleged receipt of N500 million from opposition political parties to destabilise the party, Mr Apapa said he knew nothing about it.

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As doctors under the aegis of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) commenced a five-day warning strike on Wednesday, skeletal health services were provided in some of the tertiary hospitals visited by PREMIUM TIMES.

The doctors had downed tools in the early hours of Wednesday following the failure of the Nigerian government to meet its demands.

The doctors, among other issues, are demanding the immediate payment of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF), tangible steps on the upward review of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) and payment of all salary arrears owed its members,, from 2015.

The resident doctors comprise the bulk of doctors in Nigerias tertiary hospitals; hence health activities are mostly crippled when they are on strike.

Skeletal activities ongoing

A visit to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Jabi showed that skeletal health activities were going on. Our reporter observed that a few patients were waiting to be attended to.

A staffer who spoke anonymously said the hospital could not shut down because the doctors were on strike. As you can see, some patients are waiting to be attended to. The corp members, house officers and medical consultants are all on the ground to attend to patients.

The source also admitted that services were slow due to the absence of the resident doctors, but every patient in the hospital will be attended to in due time.

A patient, who also declined to disclose his identity, was about to leave the hospital premises and said he could no longer wait to be attended to, saying: I have been waiting for hours, yet no one to attend to me. I will come back next week, he said.

National Hospital, Abuja

When PREMIUM TIMES visited the National Hospital, Abuja, patients were being attended to by nurses, consultant doctors and corps members.

Some patients, however, lamented delay in getting health services.

A patient sitting in the general out-patient area, identified simply as Ms Mary, said she was not aware of the doctors strike.

I have experienced this before, and it was terrible, so if I knew of the strike, I would have stayed back home, she said.

Another patient, Patrick Uzor, said he had been waiting to be attended to for a long time, and it was yet to get to his turn. Mr Uzor said although delayed services are not unusual at the national hospital, the doctors strike has worsened the situation.

I believe the doctors are not happy to go on strike, but they did it for a reason. My appeal is to the government to grant all their demands so they can resume soon, he said.

The hospitals spokesperson, Tayo Haastrup, confirmed that the resident doctors are on strike. He, however, said the hospitals management was ensuring that patients get necessary health care services.

Mr Haastrup said the five-day warning strike would definitely affect the health services across the country as resident doctors comprise a large chunk of their staff composition.

He said the management may likely discharge some patients because of the ongoing strike.

It is not like we will not accept patients in terms of emergency, but we will reduce the rate of admission, and patients that are due to be discharged will be discharged at this time, he said.

For us, we dont have any problem with the resident doctors, but because it is a national bodys directive, they have to comply. I can confirm to you that the resident doctors of the National Hospital have also joined the strike as of this morning.

Mr Haastrup said the hospital management is very proactive and that the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Mahmud Raji, has directed all heads of departments to take charge.

He appealed to the doctors to have rethink and help prevent the loss of lives.

LASUTH

At the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, patients confirmed they are being attended to swiftly despite the ongoing strike.

When PREMIUM TIMES checked the hospitals medical emergency centre, surgical unit, and maternity clinic, among other departments, doctors were still available to attend to patients.

At the hospitals medical emergency centre, a patients relative confirmed that the operations were still on, adding that he didnt experience any delay.

A necessary move

The President of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) at the National Hospital, Abuja chapter, Maruf Alao, said the doctors are not happy to down tools but that the situation forced them to.

Mr Alao said the doctors are overworked because there are insufficient hospital personnel.

The work of 10 doctors is being done by one doctor, and that is why we have situations where a resident doctor was operating in the theatre and collapsed as a result of stress, he said.

He said the government needs to replace doctors that have left the country to distribute the workload.

The government needs to call us to the negotiation table. We are not happy that we are on strike because we have families and friends as patients also. But we are only trying to register our displeasure that the government should meet our needs, Mr Raji said.

The President of LASUTH-ARD, Salmon Abeeb, said the chapter had complied 100 per cent with the directive by the national body.

Mr Abeeb noted that LASUTH is yet to commence the payment of hazard allowance more than two years after the agreement has been reached.

Our hazard allowance still remains N5000. And we want them to hasten the residential quarters for all resident doctors so we can stay close to the hospital and be able to do our job, he said.

We know that this strike is going to hit hard on our members. We just want government at all levels, both federal and state, to pay attention to doctors welfare.

He added that only the consultant doctors and nurses are attending to patients.

No work, No pay

Mr Alao said the no work, no pay policy could not force the doctors to return to work.

You would remember three years ago, NARD was on strike, and that was enforced, that is to tell you that we are ready. We are not challenging the government, we are fighting for what will be of benefit to Nigeria, so this is a sacrifice from us to Nigerians, we want you to come to the hospital and get adequate treatment with good facilities, he said.

The President of NARD, Emeka Innocent, said the threat of a no-work, no-pay policy would not resolve the issues the doctors raised.

Mr Innocent said it was time for the government to get serious with the issues on the ground.

It is most unfortunate the way they are looking at us, we are doctors, and we are looking at germane issues. Instead of addressing the issues, they are drifting and talking about punitive measures, that is not good for Nigeria, and it is not good for the health sector, and it is not going to resolve the issues we have raised, he said.

He said its members were still awaiting the federal governments call for negotiations.

Warning strike

The association had in January issued an ultimatum to the government to resolve issues affecting its members, including the immediate implementation and payment of the new hazard allowance and arrears.

The resident doctors on 29 April further issued a two-week ultimatum to the government to meet its demands or face industrial action.

But the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, described the doctors demands as absurd.

Mr Ngige said the resident doctors are suffering from entitlement syndrome, insisting that the federal government has gone to great lengths to give them everything they want.

We have been managing their matter and have given them everything they want, including the residency training programme funds; we are paying them, even when in training, we pay them a full salary, pay them all the allowances, and you decided that we have not done enough, he said.

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President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana is expected to chair the public presentation and launching of two new books on the legacies of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The event will be held on Friday, 19 May, at the State House Conference Center, Abuja.

This was disclosed in a press statement on Wednesday by presidential spokesperson Garba Shehu.

According to Babagana Kingibe, chairman organising committee for the event, other distinguished guests expected at the book presentation include Bola Tinubu, the President-elect, and Kashim Shettima, the Vice President-elect.

READ ALSO: Ghanas President to chair book launch on Buhari

The books for public presentation are: STATE OF REPAIR: HOW MUHAMMADU BUHARI TRIED TO TRANSFORM NIGERIA FOR THE BETTER by Anthony Goldman, former Journalist and ex Africa Editor of the Financial Times of London, and THE LEGACY OF MUHAMMADU BUHARI by Abu Ibrahim, a former senator of Southern Katsina District.

Mr Buhari will conclude his eight-year tenure on 29 May when he formally hands over to Mr Tinubu.

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The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the concession of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, to the Corporacion American Airport Consortium.

This was disclosed in statement issued by the Special Assistant on Public Affairs to the Minister of Aviation, James Odaudu, on Thursday.

The council has also approved that the Federal Ministry of Aviation be renamed Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace with immediate effect.

In alignment with the Aviation Roadmap, approved by Mr. President on 18th October 2016, the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace is delighted to inform all stakeholders, both local and international, and the media, that the concession of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano has been approved by the Federal Executive Council, the statement said.

The ministry described the achievement as a notable milestone in its commitment towards revitalising the nations aviation sector.

Preferred bidder

According to the statement, after a thorough and comprehensive evaluation process that commenced with the Request for Qualification (RFQ) advertised in both local and international media on 16 August 2021, and subsequent rigorous evaluation of technical and financial bids, coupled with due diligence visits conducted from 27  29 December 2022 and 9  10 January 2023, the Corporacion American Airport Consortium emerged as the preferred bidder.

It said the consortium, globally recognised for its superior technical expertise in the design, construction, management and operation of infrastructures, includes the Corporation American Airports, Mota Engil Africa, and Mota Engil Nigeria.

The Corporation American Airports, a New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) listed airport operator, has presence across three continents, managing 53 airports in six countries and serving approximately 82.4 million passengers in 2019, the statement noted.

It added that the concession of NAIA and MAKIA will considerably enhance the operational efficiency and profitability of these airports, repositioning them to operate optimally and competitively.

According to the statement, the agreement is under a Public-Private Partnership arrangement, and will be effective for the duration of 20 years for NAIA and 30 years for MAKIA.

The statement noted further that the Corporacion American Airport Consortium is committed to making upfront payments of $7 million for NAIA and $1.5 million for MAKIA.

During the concession period, it said the total projected nominal revenues accruable from the combined Concession of NAIA and MAKIA exceed $4 billion.

Over 70 per cent of these projected revenues will be payable to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), thereby generating additional revenue sources for the Federal Government, the statement said.

Reacting to the approval, which came the same day the Aviation ministry signed a Memorandum Of Understanding (MoU) for the commencement of the African Aviation and Aerospace University (AAAU), Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, Hadi Sirika, described the period as momentous for Nigerias aviation industry.

He said the partnership with the Corporacion American Airport Consortium underscores the Administrations dedication to improving the standards of the nations airports, by providing world-class services to all travellers and generating considerable economic benefits for the country.

The concession will herald a new era of excellence in Nigerias aviation industry, saying that he eagerly anticipates a successful partnership with the Corporacion American Airport Consortium, the minister was quoted as saying.

The statement noted that the new nomenclature of the ministry is in line with the nature of the sector, being under the exclusive management and regulation of the Federal Government.

Concerns

Meanwhile, an aviation expert expressed concerns about the concession of major airports in the country.

The President/Chief Executive Officer of Top Brass Aviation, Roland Iyayi, who is also a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), agrees that airports would need to be concessioned but that the mode of conversion needs to be reviewed.

He said experts had advocated for cluster concessioning because of the viability of some of the major airports in the country.

Mr Iyayi explained that monies from these airports are used to subsidise all the other airports in the country and that there could be operational issues as the viable airports are being concessioned.

READ ALSO: Aviation experts discuss sustainability issues amid challenges

However, he said if the government had done a cluster concession of airports in the different geopolitical zones in the country, it would immediately help to address the concerns of how the government intends to sustain and fund the airport systems.

But that is not the case. We obstructed some of these things because we felt it will not help the industry in the longer term, Mr Iyayi told PREMIUM TIMES in an interview.

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The Akpabio/Barau campaign team has approached leaders of the Labour Party and New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) for support in the race for the presidency of the 10th Senate.

The campaign team known as Stability Group was led on the visits to leaders of the opposition parties by the APC choice for Senate president, Godswill Akpabio, and the senator representing Kano North District of Kano, Barau Jibrin, who has also been endorsed by the party for deputy Senate president.

The two senators and their delegation met with the leaders of the opposition parties separately in their national secretariats in Abuja on Wednesday.

They were received by the factional chairman of the LP, Julius Abure, and the acting National Chairman of the NNPP, Abba -Kawu Ali.

In the house, we are blind to party affiliations and thats why we are moving to meet our leaders. I thank you for receiving us. I want to thank your national leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, for the meeting he is having with our president-elect, Bola Tinubu, and I hope the meeting will be fruitful for the progress of the nation, he said to the NNPP leaders.

Responding, Mr Ali assured Messrs Akpabio and Jibrin of the partys support and endorsement.

I know you are a formidable team. As governor of Akwa-Ibom State, we know how you performed. We know you are competent. So, we are supporting you based on your record. We will support your ambition to be the President of the 10th National Assembly, he said.

But I urge your team not to fail Nigerians, especially the youth in the area of employment, Mr Ali said.

Uncommon politics

In his remarks, Mr Abure commended the campaign team for extending hands of fellowship to leaders of the opposition parties.

He said the gesture was unusual in politics for the ruling party to seek support from the opposition.

It is usually uncommon for a political party in power to consider accommodating the opposition. It is an indication that our democracy is growing, he said.

The factional chairman of the LP reiterated the position of his party, which is disputing the outcome of the presidential election but said he was convinced that Mr Akpabio can lead the 10th senate

We arent comfortable with the processes leading to the victory of your candidate. This isnt the forum to ventilate that, but I need to put that on record, he said.

I need to correct the impression that we are supporting Asiwaju. For us, it is a no-go area, but we have no doubt in Akpabios capacity to lead the Senate, he said.

Directive

The factional chairman of LP noted that the partys leadership had not given a directive to senators-elect from its party on who to support for the senate presidency.

I want to say very clearly that in most of our engagements with our senators-elect, we havent given them any directives. We dont want to be dictating to them where they should go, he said.

Two of my senators-elect are here. Ireti Kingibe isnt here, but we shall whisper to her. We need a vibrant legislature to promote our democracy, and we hope yours will be a departure from what we have, he added.

He urged Messrs Akpabio and Jibrin to pay attention to the welfare of Nigerians if they emerge as the Senate President and Deputy Senate President.

Every government policy must be such that it will affect our people positively. The Constitution, in chapter two, states that the welfare of the people and security shall be the primary responsibility of the government. My appeal is that we give attention to the welfare of Nigerians, and the leadership of the Senate can help to make that a national priority.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Turkish Embassy in Baku has appealed to the citizens living in Azerbaijan in connection with the second round of the presidential elections, Trend reports via the embassy's Twitter.

According to the publication, 4 ballot boxes will be installed at the embassy on May 20 and 21, and one ballot box will be installed on May 22.

The voting of Turkish citizens in Azerbaijan in the second round of the presidential elections in Turkiye will be held on May 20-22 in the buildings of the embassy in Baku, Consulate General of the country in Ganja and Nakhchivan.

About 60 million people took part in the presidential and parliamentary elections held in Turkiye on May 14.

According to the results of the counting of votes in the presidential elections, Recep Tayyip Erdogan won 49.50 percent of the votes, Kemal Kilicdaroglu - 44.89 percent, Sinan Ogan - 5.17 percent, and Muharrem Ince - 0.44 percent. Since no one has won more than 50 percent of the vote, the second round of presidential elections will be held in Turkiye on May 28.
The Delta House of Assembly on Wednesday passed the states N71 billion 2023 supplementary budget for the fiscal year ending December 2023.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the figure is made up of N5.6 billion for the Recurrent Expenditure and N65.5 billion for the Capital Expenditure.

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, who has less than 12 days to finish his tenure, forwarded the budget through a letter read during the plenary session on Tuesday by the Deputy Speaker, Christopher Ochor.

Mr Okowa stated that there was projected increase in some fiscal receipts.

He also explained that the supplementary budget became necessary for appropriation to pay for some critical projects and government activities, as well as fund ongoing projects across the state.

Leading the debate, the Majority Leader, Ferguson Onwo, commended the governor for the initiative.

Mr Onwo said that the budget was targeted at the completion of ongoing development projects in the state.

He, therefore, urged his colleagues to ensure the speedy passage of the budget.

Anthony Elekeokwuri (Ika North East), who also commended the initiative, said the budget aimed at improving the well-being of the citizenry.

Other lawmakers who supported the budget were Solomon Ighrakpata, (Uvwie), Rueben Izeze, (Ughelli South) and Emeka Nwaobi, (Aniocha North).

The majority leader, thereafter, moved a motion to suspend relevant sections of the House Rules to enable it to take the third reading and passage of the bill.

The motion, which was unanimously adopted by the house, was seconded by Mr Ighrakpata.

The members passed it following a voice vote in its favour.

The deputy speaker commended the lawmakers for the speedy passage of the bill.

He said that it was incumbent on the house to pass the bill quickly in order to achieve its objective.

I, therefore, thank you for recognising the importance of this bill and its successful passage.

Dear colleagues, we have just performed one of our constitutional responsibilities to Delta people, Mr Ochor said.

The oil-rich Delta is among the states that received billions of naira from President Muhammadu Buharis administration as a refund for the backlog for the 13 per cent oil derivation money held back by the federal government since 1999.

The refund became public when the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike revealed that his administration had received Rivers share of the money.

(NAN)

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Activities were largely paralysed on Thursday at public hospitals in the Ogun State capital as the strike by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) took effect in the state.

When our correspondent visited the Federal Medical Centre and the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, both in Abeokuta, he noticed that resident doctors fully complied with the directive of their national association.

The chairperson of NARD at the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Aro, Odubakun Kazeem, said patients in the facility were not being attended to by resident doctors.

He said the strike would continue until the government meets their demands.

I can confirm to you that we are complying fully. The strike is avoidable because most of the issues have dragged on for long. We have always demanded that the right things be done but the government fails to do its own part, Mr Kazeem told our correspondent.

At the Federal Medical Centre, only senior doctors or consultants were attending to some patients with the sight of doctors rare in the wards.

There were fewer cars than usual at the parking lots of the FMC and OOUTH, an indication that many doctors did not report for work.

Context

The five-day warning strike, which commenced on Wednesday, was called by resident doctors to press their demands of the federal government to make the work environment conducive for medical practitioners.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, had earlier warned against the strike but the doctors ignored the warning.

In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES, the chairperson of NARD at the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, Osundara Tope, said the resident doctors had handed off from the care of patients.

We have handed over the care of patients to consultants and the nurses are on the wards to also assist them. Some of them may want to refer while some of them may want to manage the patients on their own. So, for some of these patients, I will just enjoin them that they can always liaise with consultants of the ward and see what can be done.

Pains

A patient who identified herself simply as Adeola, was seen moving slowing with the help of her caregiver, Michael, out of a ward. Barely audible, she said she could no longer stay at the hospital.

I cant just keep staying here. With what I have seen since yesterday, I dont think things can get better any time soon. Doctors were never enough for the number of patients but they are now nowhere to be found, she said.

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The National Population Commission (NPC) says it has spent about N200 billion to prepare for the 2023 population and housing census.

This is part of the N800 billion expected from the federal government as the total budget, including the cost of more than five years of preparation.

Its Executive Chairman, Nasir Kwarra, said this at a breakfast meeting with media executives in Abuja on Thursday.

Mr Kwarra said the cost of conducting a digital census was high considering the procurement of equipment and data required for the exercise.

He said the commission recruited about one million personnel in a bid to conduct a credible and acceptable digital census.

He reiterated its commitment to a credible and acceptable census and urged the media to sustain the tempo of publicity.

It is important to sustain the tempo of the preparation for the census. The focus of the commission is to lay a foundation for future censuses, he said.

Inuwa Jalingo, census manager, stated that the commission worked round-the-clock to conduct a digital census.

Mr Jalingo said the NPC has already set up a robust quality dashboard and data for a credible census.

In his remarks, Isiaka Yahaya, director, Public Affairs Department at the NPC, also called on the media to continue emphasising the imperatives of conducting censuses.

Mr Yahaya noted that advocacy and publicity were critical to making the census successful. (NAN)

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Some officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) are facing a probe after a surveillance team of the agency allegedly caught them in a suspected act of extortion of commuters, sources familiar with the case told PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday.

Officials of the agency, barred from speaking to the press over the matter, told this newspaper in confidence, that the operatives who were arrested in Sagamu, Ogun State, South-west Nigeria, have been recalled to face probe at the zonal headquarters of the agency in Lagos.

They told this newspaper that the tactical surveillance team of the agency also made a futile attempt to arrest a civilian suspected of helping the allegedly offending officers to take and keep bribes.

After arresting the entire team, the surveillance team swiftly made efforts to get the civilian receiving the proceeds too, one of the sources said.

According to the sources, the surveillance team met a stiff resistance when they attempted to arrest the civilian as he created a scene that could trigger an unwarranted uproar at that location.

The surveillance team had to let go of the civilian, PREMIUM TIMES was told.

This newspaper was informed that the tactical surveillance team was recently set up by the Corps Marshal of the FRSC, Dauda Biu, to fight against bribery and extortion among officers of the agency.

The team is expected to be on a nationwide patrol.

Video clip

Sources provided a short video clip capturing a scene of an encounter the arrested team of operatives in Sagamu had with a motorcyclist.

In the 2.50-minute-long clip, one of the operatives was seen holding the motorcyclist by the waistband of his trousers, and dragging him along on a main road.

During the struggle between them a voice from the background called for the release of the motorcycle in Yoruba.

The motorcyclist later wriggled from the officers hold by stripping himself to his pants.

Sources said the FRSC surveillance team had shifted attention to the Sagamu team upon the discovery of the modus operandi of the operatives, which involved co-opting civilians to receive the proceeds of the bribe on behalf of the patrol team.

Probe

The members of the team arrested in Sagamu were recalled to the Lagos Zonal Headquarters at Ojodu-Isheri for proper investigation, PREMIUM TIMES was told.

If found culpable after investigation, they will be disciplined according to relevant sections of the Federal Road Safety Commissions maintenance of discipline, a source added.

When contacted, FRSC spokesperson, Bisi Kazeem, confirmed the arrest of the operatives and the ongoing probe.

Mr Kazeem, assistant Corps Marshal, warned civilians who collude with FRSC teams in this nefarious and unpatriotic act to desist henceforth or be ready to face the wrath of the law when apprehended.

He also called on the motoring public to resist the temptation of offering any kind of bribe whatsoever to FRSC patrol teams.

As for the suspected culprit, the Corps Marshal empathically assured that he will be arrested and prosecuted in a court of law, so as to set a precedent that will deter other perpetrators, Mr Kazeem added.

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Ini Ekott, a former deputy managing editor at PREMIUM TIMES, has launched a media venture named Pluboard.

Mr Ekott is an alumnus of Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa, where he won the best financial journalist award in the Ghana cohort 2 administered by the University of Ghana and Kenyas Strathmore University business schools.

According to a statement issued by Mr Ekott on Wednesday, the start-up aims to redirect journalism, especially economy and business reporting, towards a model that actively places people at the centre of content creation, information delivery, and accountability drive.

For far too long, news has been more about the influential and the newsmakers and less about the people and what affects them, he said.

In the statement, Mr Ekott noted that the organisations goal is to bring back the real issues in a fiercely honest manner while executing its primary role to inform and help people understand the world around them.

The platform will deliver multi-format content, including video offerings, and will constantly work on simplifying the news, the statement said, adding that their target is anyone knowledgeable enough to consume information in Nigeria and elsewhere.

According to the statement, the companys branding speaks to its objective: Pluboard is shortened Plural Board, denoting a deck focused on people, the plurality of issues that affect them, and the plurality of information products on offer.

We are interested in what others are following, but more interested in what theyre not, Mr Ekott said.

Innovative extras

The statement said Pluboard launched with a small team of volunteer writers focusing on economy and business, politics, security, environment, and technology  areas the company views as impacting people more.

Mr Ekott noted that the outfit started publishing in late February, days before the 2023 presidential election and that the company unveiled its full site last week, with additional sections.

The platforms reporting approach has quickly gained attention due to its distinctive article structure, he noted.

He said: Most news stories follow the Plu-print, which includes Key points to note, Why this matters, and Learn more sections. Its exclusive and major reports will include a paragraph summarising the article and emphasising its relevance to the public.

It is part of a deliberate writing style that goes to the point and addresses readers peculiarly limited patience, said Mr Ekott, who is starting as the publications editorial director.

Pluboard will also deliver innovative extras such as explainers, how-tos, price intel, and product reviews, content it hopes to monetize. It will provide Nigerias first dedicated coverage of consumers and how corporate policies affect them.

With technology and the web, there is information overload; along with that comes fake news. It is true, therefore, that despite that overload, there continues to be a hunger for high-quality information built on accuracy, integrity, and independence. Thats a market opportunity for us, Mr Ekott said.

Pluboard is starting as a free, ad-supported media site but will gradually transform into a subscription-based service, Mr Ekott noted.

Profile

Mr Ekott joined PREMIUM TIMES at its inception in 2011, having worked at 234Next. He left last year after an extensive tenure that included various pivotal newsroom roles including serving as deputy managing editor. His writings have been published in Mongabay, Africa in Fact, and Inter Press Service, and he has reported for the New York Times.

As part of a team of journalists led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Mr Ekott reported on the globally-acclaimed Panama Papers investigation. The teams Pulitzer Prize-winning work exposed how the worlds wealthy and influential used tax havens to hide their wealth.

He previously won the Wole Soyinka investigative reporting award and Global Integrity researcher award. Several reports he supervised won multiple awards, including the CNN/Multichoice award in 2016. His most recent investigation into illegal wildlife trade was recognized as a Fetisov Award finalist.

Mr Ekott holds a degree in physics and electronics and has an MBA.

After dedicating years to the practice of quality journalism, it is time to step further up by focusing more on people and taking a business opportunity, he said.

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The two senators-elect of the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) have endorsed Godswill Akpabio for election as the next senate president.

The senators-elect, Godiya Akwashiki and Ahmed Wadada, will represent Nasarawa North and Nasarawa West districts respectively in the incoming Senate.

The endorsement is coming barely 24 hours after the Akpabio/Barau campaign team approached leaders of some opposition parties for their support.

Mr Akpabio, a former governor of Akwa Ibom State and former Minister of Niger Delta, is the official choice of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu in the race for the seat.

A senator representing Kano North, Barau Jibrin, has also been nominated as the deputy senate president by the ruling party.

The two senators-elect of the SDP announced their endorsement of Mr Akpabio on Thursday after a closed meeting with his campaign team in Abuja.

The senators-elect in the campaign team at the meeting were Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, Solomon Olamilekan (Lagos West), Salisu Shuaib (Ogun Central) among others.

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The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday, fixed 20 September to decide on a suit by Andrew Yakubu, a former Group Managing Director (GMD), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), over some bundles of hard currency notes seized from him by the EFCC.

Although the court had acquitted Mr Yakubu of the charges that formed the basis for the seizure of the money from him, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) insisted it would not release the cash until it exhausted its right of appeal to the Supreme Court over the matter.

The EFCC, acting on a tip-off in 2017, had stormed Mr Yakubus residence in the Sabon Tasha area of Kaduna State and found $9,772 800 and 74,000 in a safe.

The commission subsequently arraigned him at the Federal High Court in Abuja on six counts of money laundering and other offences on 16 March 2017,

But the Court of Appeal, ruling on a no-case submission filed by the former NNPC boss, struck out four charges and ordered the trial to proceed on the remaining two counts. The two counts are money laundering offences.

The trial judge, Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, went on to dismiss the remaining two counts in a ruling delivered on 31 March 2022. He said the prosecution failed to establish the necessary ingredients of the charges to warrant Mr Yakubus conviction.

Displeased that EFCC refused to release the money seized from him after his acquittal, Mr Yakubu sued the commission with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) joined as co-defendants.

Hearing

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the judge handling the new suit, Inyang Ekwo, took arguments of parties before adjourning for judgement on Thursday.

At the hearing, A.A. Usman, standing in for Mr Yakubus lead counsel, Ahmed Raji, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged the court to grant the applicants prayers.

Mr Yakubu, through his legal team, urged the court to hold that EFCC ought not to continue withholding his money after he had been acquitted of the charges the money was linked to on 31 March 2022.

He urged the court to order the release of the money to him immediately or that the money be paid into an account under the control of the registry of the court, pending the outcome of the appeal lodged by the EFCC against his acquittal.

EFCCs argument

But the EFCC urged the court to dismiss Mr Yakubus application.

In its response filed on 12 April, EFCCs lawyer, Faruk Abdullah, argued that the suit constituted an abuse of the court process and that the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

The commission stated in an affidavit deposed to by a detective, Sambo Mayana, to support its legal arguments that its appeal challenging Mr Yakubus acquittal had already been entered with appeal number: CA/ABJ/CR/653/2022.

Besides, it said that there were other appeals arising from the case pending at the Supreme Court. He said one of the Supreme Court cases has an appeal number: SC/CR/241/2020 (between the Federal Government and Mr Yakubu), and the other appeal is marked: $C/CR/223/2020 between Mr Yakubu and the federal government).

The EFCC argued that while parties were awaiting, a date for the hearing of the case marked SC/CR/223/2020 at the Supreme Court, Mr Yakubu filed an application at the court to seek an order directing it to deposit the monies in a bank account to be managed by the Registrar of the Supreme Court.

It said Mr Yakubu, by this present suit at the Federal High Court, replicated his application at the Supreme Court.

The EFCC urged the court to discountenance Mr Yakubus application and uphold its preliminary objection in the interest of justice.

CBNs lawyer, Lateef Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), and the GTBs counsel, similarly asked the court to dismiss Mr Yakubus suit.

The judge then adjourned the case until 22 September for a ruling.

(NAN)

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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), on Thursday, opposed a call for the live broadcast of the proceedings of the Presidential Election Petition Court.

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, who are jointly challenging Mr Tinubus victory at the poll, had called on the court to allow live broadcast of its proceedings.

Arguing the application on Thursday, the petitioners legal team led by Chris Uche, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged the court to allow the live broadcast of proceedings because of the national import of the case.

An integral part of the constitutional duty of the court to hold proceedings in public is a discretion to allow public access to proceedings either physically or by electronic means, Mr Uche wrote in the application.

He said INEC, Mr Tinubu, and the APC opposed his motion without citing any statutory legislation against it.

That it has not been done before does not mean it should not be done.

If the election result was not transmitted, at least the court proceedings should be transmitted real-time, Mr Uche said.

Broadcasting the proceedings live, Mr Uche said, would make lawyers comport themselves in court.

Objection

But objecting to the application, INECs lawyer, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN), said media coverage of court proceedings is controlled across the world, adding that allowing media houses to transmit proceedings live would defeat the solemn atmosphere of the court.

This application is unnecessary and uncalled for and we should be allowed to concentrate on business, Mr Mahmoud argued.

He said Mr Uches claim that a live broadcast of the proceedings would make lawyers sit up was untrue.

Similarly objecting to the application, Mr Tinubus counsel, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), urged the court to dismiss the application with cost awarded against the applicant.

My Lord, we are here for serious business, this is not a stadium or crusade ground. Even an Area Court cannot grant such prayers, Mr Olanipekun said.

He said media houses already had reporters present in court, therefore, there would be no further need for live transmission of the proceedings.

Questioning the intention behind the petitioners request, Mr Olanipekun said: There is no nexus between the request for live broadcast of proceedings and the petitioners petition.

The court should not make an order it cannot supervise.

Citing what he said was the United Kingdoms example, he said only the sentencing part of a criminal trial is allowed to be transmitted live in the country.

Unlike in the United Kingdom where there is a practice direction stipulating which type of case and aspect of it that can be transmitted live, Mr Olanipekun said, there is no such policy in Nigeria in support of or against PDPs request.

Like Big Brother Naija

APCs lawyer, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, similarly urged the court to dismiss PDPs application which he likened to a call for a reality television show known as Big Brother Naija.

He said the court should not allow such a live broadcast like it is done in a show called Big Brother Naija, a submission that triggered laughter across the packed courtroom.

But Mr Uche, in his reply, cautioned that Mr Fagbemi was trying to trivialise his application by likening it to a call for a show like Big Brother Naija.

The five-member panel led by Haruna Tsammani subsequently reserved a ruling on the application. The panel did not fix any particular date for the ruling.

Background

The president of the body of Nigerian lawyers, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Yakubu Maikayu, in March, called for the live broadcast of court hearings of all election petition cases across the country to boost the disappearing public confidence in the judiciary.

Apart from the presidential election petition court, there are election petition tribunals set up across the country to hear disputes arising from this years governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly elections.

There are three petitions pending at the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja to challenge Mr Tinubus victory in the 25 February presidential election.

Apart from the petition filed by Atiku, the other petitioners are the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).

Alleging various infractions and various forms of manipulation of results during the disputed poll, Atiku and Mr Obi have called on the court to declare them the winner of the election or cancel the election and order a fresh one.

APM, on its part, called on the court to declare Atiku, the candidate of the PDP, as the winner of the election.

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Current transition plans appear too narrowly focused on decarbonisation and global climate objectives, rather than looking to the broader goals of the economic and sustainable development of African countries. A poorly framed energy transition plan with restricted net zero emission aims could result in transformation (if any) that is economically and environmentally damaging, as well as technically redundant.

Last month, Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) announced its collaboration with McKinsey & Company to create Energy Transition and Investment Plans (ETIPs) that would assist poorer countries in achieving net zero emissions by mid-century. Ghana, Kenya, and Barbados are among the initial target countries. Many more will follow. According to SEforALL and McKinsey, the programme was inspired by the success of their previous collaboration in creating an Energy Transition Plan (ETP) for Nigeria in the run-up to COP26 in Glasgow, based on which Nigerias president made a net zero commitment by 2060 at the summit.

Energy transition plans, partnerships, and agreements have become a popular strategy for pursuing just energy transitions in poor countries. While the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are part of the formal submissions under the obligations of Parties in the Paris Climate Agreement and they cover adaptation and mitigation measures across all economic sectors, energy transition plans and agreements are informed by bilateral country relationships, though supportive of the goals of the Paris Agreement. They also mostly target the energy sector.

Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) are a new financing cooperation approach primarily aiming to assist largely coal-dependent middle-income economies in shifting their energy portfolios to renewable alternatives. South Africa was pledged USD$8.5 billion at COP26 from a coalition of donor nations, including France, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Germany, in a declaration designed to accelerate its transition away from coal as its primary energy source. The declaration led to the first JETP. Since then, a USD$20 billion JETP-styled pledge has been made with Indonesia, and other nations, including India and Senegal, are said to be in train.

While recognising that these types of energy transition arrangements can assist developing countries to accelerate ambitious climate action and reach net zero by mid-century, we believe the current approach to framing, designing, and implementing energy transition plans and partnerships risks jeopardising long-term and sustainable just energy transitions across Africa and among the broader Global South.

One key risk in the current approach is the positioning of energy transition plans as short to mid-term financial or programming endeavours, rather than long-term transformative programmes aimed at economic, social, and environmental prosperity. Energy transition partnerships between the Global North and developing countries should catalyse learning, leading to shared understanding and transformative action for system-wide energy transitions. This is especially true for Africa, given its diversity, distinct energy and economic needs, and long history of unequal engagement with Europe and the Global North.

An important component will be inclusive communication with key stakeholder groups, to find common ground and ensure the energy transition path taken is socially sustainable and equitable. This means understanding the numerous parties involved in current supply chains of fossil fuels and related services, other existing power provisions, as well as the implications of alternative renewable energy sources. It also requires a framework for evaluating common principles, including macroeconomic impact, environmental resilience, basis for and access to finance, reduction of inequalities and climate justice. Accurately identifying associated social and economic dangers takes time and must be part of the planning process.

The true promise of JETPs, ETPs, and ETIPs lies in their use as a foundation for serious national discourse and structured dialogue about medium to long-term transition visions. It is an opportunity to identify social, institutional, political, and technical imaginations, impediments, and stumbling blocks, as well as substantial lock-in dangers, and then to analyse where and how innovative financial partnership could play a catalytic and learning role in it all.

It is interesting that SEforALL and McKinsey claim the desire to expand the ETIP to other developing countries is based on the success of their Nigerian model, while facts and experience have suggested the need for a more cautionary tale. Many have observed that the Nigerian ETP was constructed rapidly, behind closed doors, by multinational consultants using proprietary modelling tools, rather than through a collaborative process incorporating national discourse and national expertise, to which the continuous energy policy debate could recur again and again. It is possible that the Nigerian governments very limited success in mobilising significant money since the elaboration of the ETP may be partly attributed to the apparent lack of national debate and transparency.

The true promise of JETPs, ETPs, and ETIPs lies in their use as a foundation for serious national discourse and structured dialogue about medium to long-term transition visions. It is an opportunity to identify social, institutional, political, and technical imaginations, impediments, and stumbling blocks, as well as substantial lock-in dangers, and then to analyse where and how innovative financial partnership could play a catalytic and learning role in it all.

Furthermore, the financing of energy transition plans and collaborations must mark a watershed moment in climate finance history. Recognising that the global North is obliged to financially support the global South in their climate response strategies, requires a corresponding step change in partnership with renewed focus, additional resources and financing offers that are aligned with the fiscal realities of the countries being supported. JETPs should not be seen as technological solutions offering modelling engines, as SE4All claims in their announcement, to the exclusion of wider just transition concepts including energy ownership democratisation, local production, loss compensation and regenerative livelihoods.

Transition arrangements and accords must respect heterogeneity. Only when the concept, design, and implementation of JETPs are founded on awareness of the wide diversity of countries energy demands, as well as their economic, social, and political environments, can they then have tremendous potential to build societal resilience. The geopolitical landscape of finance and much else  both in terms of access and cost of finance, is becoming increasingly murky and volatile.

In Africa, for example, consideration needs to be given to the extent of oil and gas dependence (including contribution to GDP), level of energy access, possibility of alternative generation, skills and employment rates, and quality of the existing grid, which are just a few of the many factors influencing energy access. A keen focus on diversity will help avoid JETPs being framed as transferable solutions, which is presently the case. The focus must be on context relating to specific country situations (including the type of energy needs for cooking, heating, cooling, mobility, and agriculture; existing energy resources/potential; existing energy infrastructure; existing jobs and strategies for industrialisation; and the proportion of the economy comprising energy-intensive sectors).

Given the minimal share of past emissions and even in next decades emissions of African countries, Senegal and other LDCs would seem as good examples of where new fossil energy investments are compatible with the objective of global climate action and climate justice, provided they do not trap the country in a stranded asset.

More essentially, JETPs depend on national capabilities, support structures and access to domestic finance as well  particularly for middle income global South countries. It is essential that finance be a partnership of risk sharing, mainstreaming of justice across public and private, international and national financing streams.

In addition, JETPs should not be seen as a device for asking African countries to phase out fossil fuels. A phase-out may be optimal in some countries, but not in others where fossil fuels are not the dominant source of energy  but may be an untapped resource that African countries wish to explore. JETPs should not be viewed solely through the prism of debate about renewable versus fossil energy. Instead, emphasis should be on determining how diverse technologies and innovations may best suit the countrys short- and long-term development needs.

While key voices in Senegal, for example, consider gas as a transition energy, they do not want a situation in which the EUs de facto embargo on the use of natural gas in Africa stifles development of renewable energies. They believe proceeds from gas extraction should instead be used to gradually fund transition to sustainable energy. And the debate on gas development becoming stranded assets needs to be held with regards to the specific Senegalese situation.

Given the minimal share of past emissions and even in next decades emissions of African countries, Senegal and other LDCs would seem as good examples of where new fossil energy investments are compatible with the objective of global climate action and climate justice, provided they do not trap the country in a stranded asset.

Current transition plans appear too narrowly focused on decarbonisation and global climate objectives, rather than looking to the broader goals of the economic and sustainable development of African countries. A poorly framed energy transition plan with restricted net zero emission aims could result in transformation (if any) that is economically and environmentally damaging, as well as technically redundant.

Chukwumerije Okereke is the Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development, Alex Ekwueme Federal University Nigeria, while Sebastien Treyer is the Executive Director, The Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI), France; Chantal Naidoo is Founder and Executive Director, Rabia Transitions Initiative, South Africa; Youba Sokona is Special Advisor for Sustainable Development at the South Centre, Geneva, Switzerland; Ann Kingiri is the Director, Research and Innovation at the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS), Kenya; and Elisabeth Hege is Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI) France.

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Africa is today at midcourse, in transition from the Africa of yesterday to the Africa of Tomorrow. Even as we stand here, we move from the past into the future. The task, on which we have embarked, the making of Africa, will not wait. We must act, to shape and mould the future and leave our imprint on events as they slip past into history.  His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia, May, 1963

In a matter of days, it would be 60 years since 32 African countries, most of whom had just attained independence, shaking off the Monrovia, Brazzaville and Casablanca tendencies to formally establish the intergovernmental Organisation then known as the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) until disbandment in 2002, taking on a new identity as the African Union (AU). The lead objective of the Founders was to encourage the political and economic integration of Africa. Difficult as it ordinarily is for international organisations to make impact in an amorphous and often chaotic international space, especially in the face of the inherent weakness that comes with the absence of enforcement mechanism, it has particularly been a difficult, if not impotent run for the OAU/AU in forging a recognisable and enduring order on the African continent.

The sad events playing out in Sudan is a reminder of how incapacitated the AU is in reining in these ugly situations that have too many times, too many places bedevilled the African continent. Linked to that is the inhumane manner the Egyptians handled the inevitable request for passage through her land by African refugees forced to flee Sudan in recent weeks as the situation there degenerated. In as much as Egypt has a right to police her borders and screen out people who might pose security threat, it is unfathomable, knowing what is going on in the neighbouring country to her, that she would suggest or insist that only people with valid entry visa will be allowed into the country.

To think that some of these people who fled Sudan claimed to have had their passports stuck with the Sudanese, having submitted same for exit visa out of the country. To think that these are people fleeing a war zone. To think that the 1969 OAU (Organization of African Unity) Refugee Convention expands on the definition of refugees in international law to include those fleeing from events seriously disturbing public order. To think that in the case of the Nigerians specifically, they were largely an organised group, heading for the Airport on their way back home under supervision of the Nigerian authorities. One would have thought that it should not have required intervention at the level of Presidents of Nigeria and Egypt to have Egypt to design a humanitarian protocol for the handing of people fleeing a neighbouring country as the conventions provide for.

It is developments such as we have in Sudan and as played out in the evacuation process through Egypt that makes one really question the essence of the African Union. It queries the sense in the routine gathering of African leaders, which, on the face of it, would suggest a singing from the same hymn book. The state of the Continent brings into question the extent to which the vision of the founding fathers of the Organisation of African Unity continues to motivate the action of the current crop of African leaders in their thought and action, seeing how disjointed things continue to be. It is not as if some gains have not been made over the years. It is not as if lofty ideas and thoughts have been articulated. Indeed, there are those big ideas, tall visions and major projects, such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) that have been created over time. But there is no doubt that the OAU/AU has struggled with traction in executing many of these ideas.

But this is not a critique OAU/AU as an institution, the focus here is rather narrow, beamed on the seemingly little things that I would assume Africa ordinarily ought to have gotten a handle of by now, sixty years after the gathering in Addis Ababa, over which we are obviously still struggling. The incident in Egypt is a grim reminder of the fact that after all these years, Africans are still struggling to see and treat other Africans outside the largely artificial geographical borders as their own Brothers. Sixty years after, we are still struggling with according to those who have been categorized as other nationals with the basic sense of dignity and a spirit of communality that we had assumed as native to Africa. Here, my focus is on the little things, something as simple as a common visa policy for Africa.

That 60 years after, African Union still takes the idea of promoting the issuance of visas by Member States to enhance free movement of all African citizens in all African countries as a matter for the future that it makes it a part of its Agenda 2063 flagship project speaks to how far behind we are with efforts at a common agenda on matters so simple yet so fundamental in the journey towards integration. That at this point, we are still unable to make Visa on Arrival an African policy applicable to every African on a legitimate visit to another African country is troubling. As at last year, only 3 countriesBenin, The Gambia and the Seychelles offer visa-free entry to Africans of all other countries, even though 48 of the 54 countries in Africa offer visa-free travel to the nationals of at least one other African country. One wonders what is it that makes it so difficult to have a universal visa-on-arrival across Africa for all Africans, at least for tourism and business, even if we cant go visa-free now. That even an Aliko Dangote would require as many 38 visas to travel within Africa speaks volume.

I dont know what obtains now, but years back, South Africa had this unfriendly visa regime. One has to go through such a strenuous process, a the end of which they stamp only 2 weeks visa on the passport. Not unlike Schengen though, but at least the latter grants one passage into 27 countries within the Schengen zone in Europe. I had cause to travel to South Africa years back and needed to shift return flight forward by 2 days, still within the 2 weeks visa window. Thought it was no big deal until folks at South African Airways made it difficult, insisting I had to come over to the Airport physically before they could reschedule, which was quite difficult because of my engagement at the time. By the time it occurred to me to explore the possibility of making the change through a call to the South African Airways office in Lagos, there was no longer an available for the day. I was left with the choice of leaving family behind to come back alone, and miss a pre-planned family function or take the earliest available date for return flight which fell just a day after the 2-week visa was to expire. I took up the available date and moved our flights, before we missed it. Following up on the emails I had earlier sent, I promptly approached the South African Home Office in Cape Town, seeking visa extension by only 24 hours. They bluntly refused, asking us to go apply afresh through VFS, which would have taken weeks to be attended to. It was as if the Immigration Officials at Oliver Tambo Airport were waiting for us at the Airport for overstaying by less than 24 hours, due to the problem with flight schedule, which we had reported beforehand to same Immigration Office. The harassment from the officials was simply unbelievable. As soon as I made it home, I lodged a protest to the South African authorities, who to their credit, offered apologies for what we were made to go through. But the experience left such a sour taste in the mouth that made me stay away from the country ever since.

I compare that with a situation not too dissimilar to this as experienced in Germany just a few years before the incident in South Africa. It was a few days trip and the Schengen visa issued was for less than 2 weeks, expiring on the last day of the Conference I was there to participate in, which meant I would have had to miss the final day. But the organisers assured me it should not be a problem extending the visa to accommodate that. True to what I was told, it was a breeze at the Foreign Office. I was simply asked how many more days I wanted, and they simply extended it by extra 4 days. Indeed, to each country, its own policy. But I find it difficult how something that was so easy to accomplish for an African in Europe would be that difficult to achieve on the same continent.

For me, it is about these little things that are not as complicated or ought not to be so complicated. It was on this trip to Germany that I joined others to visit the South African Ambassador to Germany. He made a presentation to us, which, in part, showed the trade relations between South Africa and other countries. I found from the presentation that Saudi Arabia was the number 5 top exporter to South Africa, with crude oil being the major product. I was so intrigued by this that I could not help but put a question to the Ambassador. How come South Africa was importing most of its oil from Saudi Arabia? Why not Nigeria, given the rich historical relationship between the two countries? Why not Angola, if not Nigeria? Why Saudi Arabia in particular? The Ambassador was caught off-guard. My question was not part of the script. He fidgeted and struggled with a response which didnt quite address the question.

I found out recently that many years after, not much has really changed. In 2021, South Africa imports from Saudi Arabia stood at 60.61 billion Rands, while South African exports to Saudi Arabia was 5.54 billion Rands, with imports from Saudi Arabia amounting to 60.61 billion Rands. In 2020, while South Africa exported $767M to Saudi Arabia, imports from Saudi Arabia stood at $2.75B. As one would guess, the main products from Saudi Arabia to South Africa were crude oil ($1.87B), refined petroleum products ($395M), and nitrogenous fertilizers ($107M). South Africa mainly export agricultural products, mineral resources, chemicals, automotive parts and components to Saudi Arabia. But as can be seen, there is a lopsidedness in terms of balance of trade, in favour of Saudi Arabia. Reports have it that in the last 25 years, exports from Saudi Arabia to South Africa have increased at an annualised rate of 10.7%, from $215M in 1995 to $2.75B in 2020. Watching the South African television station, SABC, I saw that the trade imbalance had become a source of concern in some quarters in South Africa. However, that is not my concern here, as I do not have, and wont assume the locus to interrogate basis of the trade or the imbalance. My concern remains as I expressed it to the South African ambassador in in Germany back then: Why is South Africa that engaged with countries outside of Africa for products readily available in the continent, even when these products are traded at internationally agreed prices?

I guess that is not as simple as that on the visa policy or that of treating other Africans with a bit of dignity and respect that is at the core of this intervention. One is not asking for borders to be thrown open now. At least not yet. Some might even make valid argument around the issue of terrorism. What I struggle to understand is how difficult it is for us to be simply deliberate about putting other Africans on the priority line in our thoughts and action. What would it take to make them other Africans have that feeling that there is something they have in common with their African neighbours that should make them feel comfortable?

At the meeting of 1963, Ethiopian Leader Haile Sellasie posed these questions: A century hence, when future generations study the pages of history, seeking to follow and fathom the growth and development of the African continent, what will they find of this conference? Will it be remembered as an occasion on which the leaders of a liberated Africa, acting boldly and with determination, bent events to their will and shaped the future destinies of the African peoples? Will this meeting be memorialized for its solid achievements for the intelligence and maturity which marked the decisions taken here? Or will it be recalled for its failures, for the inability of Africas leaders to transcend local prejudice and individual differences, for the disappointment and disillusionment which followed in its train? It should not be that difficult, if truly we are Brothers, to start with the little things, to show by our words and action that we are indeed our Brothers Keeper.

Simbo Olorunfemi works for Hoofbeatdotcom, a Nigerian communications consultancy and publisher of Africa Enterprise. Twitter: @simboolorunfemi

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The death toll from Tuesdays attack in Fungzai and Kubwat villages in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State has risen to 85, an official has said.

The National President of the Mwaghavul Development Association, Joseph Gwankat, stated this while speaking to journalists on Wednesday.

Mr Gwankat spoke to journalists after a security meeting at the palace of the Mishkcham Mwaghavul of Mangu, John Hirse.

The police are yet to give the casualty figure of the incident.

Mr Gwankat added that the search for missing persons was still ongoing in the affected communities.

He noted that several communities were attacked simultaneously by suspected herdsmen, leading to killings as well as burning of houses and the destruction of farmlands.

During the meeting, some women protesting the killings besieged the palace of the traditional ruler.

The meeting was attended by the deputy governor of the state, Soni Tyoden, security chiefs, district heads and other government officials.

Mr Hirse, alongside the local government chairman and district heads from the communities, appealed for the deployment of reinforcements to the communities to safeguard citizens.

Meanwhile 57 victims from a community in Mangu were buried on Wednesday amidst tears by relatives and members of the community.

Plateau, in North-central Nigeria has witnessed several cases of attacks on farming communities by armed nomadic herdsmen.

The attacks are usually economic as herdsmen, migrating from the more arid far north seek grazing areas for their cattle.

However the violence often take ethnic and religious dimensions as the herders are often Fulani Muslims while the natives are often Christians.

Thousands of people have been killed or injured in such violence in the past few years.

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The police in Anambra State, South-east Nigeria, have released fresh figures of victims of the attack by gunmen on Tuesday in the state.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how gunmen killed officials of the US Consulate and some police officers after ambushing their convoy along Atani-Osamala Road in Ogbaru Local Government Area of the state.

Fresh figures

Two officials of the US Consulate alongside two police officers attached to their convoy were earlier reported killed by the gunmen, while three others, including two other police officers and their driver, were abducted by the attackers.

But the Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Echeng Echeng, has confirmed that more people were killed during the attack.

Mr Echeng, who spoke on Thursday during a press conference in Awka, said seven people, not four, have been confirmed killed in the attack while two officials of the US consulate were still missing.

The police commissioner said five male officials of the US consulate and four armed mobile police officers escorted the officials from Lagos State when they were attacked by gunmen who also set their vehicles ablaze.

Regrettably, seven persons, including three of the consulate officials and four mobile police escorts were murdered during the attack while two other officials of the consulate are yet to be found, he said, maintaining that no US citizen was killed in the attack.

The US officials were on a mission to assess the impact of erosion in Ogbaru Local Government Area, he said.

The police commissioner identified the slain officers as Bukar Adams, Friday Morgan, Adam Andrew, and Emmanuel Lupata  all inspectors from Squadron 23, Police Mobile Force, Lagos State, South-west Nigeria.

Mr Echeng said authorities of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have informed them that apart from the four officers, five staff members of the agency were victims of the attack.

Established in 1961, USAID is an agency of the US government responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance mainly in low-income countries.

The staffers of the USAID who are victims of the attack were identified as Jefferson Obayuwane, Sunday Prince Ubong, Ekene Nweke, Hassan Etila and Avwuvie Kaye Monday  all of them Nigerians.

The police did not, however, confirm if any of them were among the US officials killed in the attack or those missing after the attack.

Meanwhile, the remains of the deceased persons have all been recovered and deposited at St. Charles Borromeo Hospital, Onitsha while the police and other security agencies are working round-the-clock, in concert with the Government of Anambra State, to find and rescue the missing officials, he said.

The police commissioner urged residents of the state to support the police timeously with information about the identities and locations of the attackers.

He commiserated with the US consulate as well as the families of those killed in the attack, assuring that the police were resolute and determined alongside other security agencies to track down the gunmen.

Arrest and raid of the suspects camp

Mr Echeng also said the gunmen who carried out the attack were suspected members of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, a group agitating for an independent state of Biafra for Igbo-speaking people in the south-east Nigeria.

He said the police in the state received information about the attack from an official of the US consulate at about 2:30 p.m., prompting police authorities to deploy a joint team of police and troops of the Nigerian Navy in the area.

Upon arrival at the scene of the incident, the joint security team sighted and engaged the assailants in a shoot-out but they escaped through a nearby forest, he stated.

The police commissioner said a security team comprising police from the command, troops of the Nigerian Army as well as the Nigerian Navy raided a camp in Ugwuaneocha, a community in the council area where the attack happened.

He said the raid followed their suspicion that the camp served as a hideout of the gunmen who carried out the attack, although they discovered the camp had been deserted.

Two persons of interest were arrested and they are currently assisting the police in the investigation. The criminal camp was razed down by the joint security team, Mr Echeng said.

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Gani Rajendra Vijay, the pioneer of the Sukhi Pariwar Campaign, the messiah of tribal life and eminent Jain saint has been active on tribal issues for the last 36 years, he has launched many public welfare activities-schemes for the upliftment and development of tribal life, including education, service, medical and has taken initiatives for economic upliftment, which is a shining light in the lives of tribal people. Recently, while launching projects worth 4400 crores in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered Gani Rajendra Vijay with affection and intimacy while talking to the tribal women of online quota, the whole country saw this scenario and felt their services. . Remembering this saintly man by Modi in this way, makes us feel his pride and existence.



Definitely Gani Rajendra Vijayji is ready to give proper status to the tribal society and solve their problems. They themselves are capable and prosperous, so they themselves come forward for basic facilities like education. In a way, with the efforts of a saint, an entire backward and neglected tribal society is getting ready to build itself in an ideal form; this is an exemplary and commendable effort. But these tribal people also got political patrons, for this they made contact with the leaders of all political parties and made them aware of the pain of tribal life.

The ideals that have been conceived in Indian society are accepted by Indians with the same reverence even today. The public's faith in price loyalty is not yet lost. Even if a person is alone but is in favour of morality and someone powerful is opposing him with crookedness and conspiracy, then the public will like the person alone. Establishment of these values is the aim of Gani Rajendra Vijay's mission and vision.



Gani Rajendra Vijay is such a personality who has blossomed further in the effort of spiritual development and moral upliftment. He has been striving for the upliftment of tribal life for a long time and is especially aware of the plans for education in tribal life; In 2010, the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated this school and other schemes among about one and a half lakh tribal people, such a huge tribal presence was showing Ganiji's influence in this area.

Many public welfare schemes are being run under his leadership, in which Brahmi Sundari Girls Hostel is being run efficiently for girls education. In this tribal area, where a Gaushala is operated with the view of life, then the mobile hospital is also providing its remarkable services for medical and service. For the economic progress and self-reliance of the tribal people, they are also running the happy family village industry. For the success of these broad undertakings, they do hard meditation and heat their body. In his programs, along with education among the tribals as well as common people, he awakens the light of drug addiction and eradication of stereotypes. The aim of his efforts is to awaken interest in education and reading as well as to inculcate faith in the minds of tribal people towards non-violence, morality and human values. Let every man look within himself and examine himself. Humanity is in danger today not because immorality is on the rise. Immorality has always been there - sometimes less and sometimes more. The most dangerous thing is that there is no faith in morality.

Filled with sacrifice, meditation, simplicity, enlightenment and compassion, you are constantly striving to protect the identity of the tribal caste and to establish human values. As if he is the emerging 'Gandhi' of Gujarat holding Dandi. Gani Rajendra Vijayji, born in a tribal family on May 19, 1974 in this tribal soil, became a Jain monk at the age of just eleven. There is a flame within this saint who has written more than twenty books, which is sometimes seen agitating against obscenity, and sometimes becomes vocal against those who forcibly convert religion.

Sometimes it becomes vocal for the existence of water, land and forest. The kind of efforts that this saint has made for building a healthy and non-violent society, there is no show-off, no demonstration, no hunger for publicity, no longing for any respect, calling any politicians on his platforms There is no desire for a show of power. In his passion, this saint is trying to establish the ideal and change the face of the tribal society and if we want to see the results of these efforts, it can be seen in tribal areas like Kanwat, Balad, Rangpur, Bodeli etc.



Gani Rajendra Vijayji is active in the Sukhi PariwarCampaign run by the Sukhi Pariwar Foundation to make the family strong. It is my good fortune that from the year 2006 being the founder general secretary of this foundation, I am currently serving as its president. Ganiji's topmost priority is that first of all the family should become cultured, the parents should become cultured, only then the children will be able to increase the prestige of the family by becoming cultured. If the children go astray from the right path, then their life will go into that deep pit of darkness from where it will be very difficult to get out again.

Gani Rajendra Vijay is making special efforts to make children cultured. India is waiting for a cultural revolution today. This task cannot be left to the government machinery. Family, society and nation can be made moral and character-rich in real sense only by building the right education and right values. In my view, the initiative and efforts of Gani Rajendra Vijayji is the incarnation of a light in the tribal area, it is such a light that is becoming the solution to problems like violence, terrorism, Naxalism, Maoism. Often we seek solutions to these problems through politics, while the crisis seems to be deepening instead of the solution.

Because due to political interests these neglected and needy people have been seen being exploited. The tribal society under the leadership of Gani Rajendra Vijayji is determined to move forward with the light to improve the life of this tribal area and to motivate the entire humanity.

The result of Gani Rajendra Vijayji's spiritual aura and hard penance is the empowerment of the tribal society. It is a matter of great pleasure that Gani Rajendra Vijayji has prepared the basis for building a non-violent society with his spiritual brilliance. Many times he not only pacified the bloody struggle, but also brought different opposing groups on a single platform. While the groups were eager to kill each other with different types of weapons for widespread violence and loss of life.

To make this area non-violent surrounded by wide possibilities of violence would be called a revolution and a miracle. Tribal people really need love, compassion, affection and strength, which is possible only through a saint like Ganiji and a human welfare initiative like the Sukhi Pariwar Campaign, a light is indeed being born, which is exemplary for other violence-affected areas as well. The specialty of Gani Rajendra Vijayji is that he has made tribal upliftment the resolution and yearning of his life. There is a lot of light in the lives of tribal people too, but efforts have been made to snatch these lights, are happening and will continue to happen.

Today there are more internal threats than external threats. There are many challenges of violence and alienation that beg solutions. But never get the right answer on the wrong question. When bread is needed, bread becomes the solution. Without bread, you cannot make any theory an injection of strength.

Source :
KYIV, Ukraine, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Smart Holding, one of the largest Ukrainian industrial groups, has now calculated the potential imminent job losses resulting from the freeze on operations as part of the on-going investigation by the Ukrainian authorities, which Smart Holding considers unlawful and without any basis in fact. Taking into account the latest asset freezes and operational hurdles, over 3,000 Ukrainians face losing employment as businesses belonging to Smart Holding operations across a number of key industries were subject to restrictive measures.

Assets worth over US$280 million are currently frozen, including rights to over 40 enterprises as well as licenses to 30 gas wells. Smart Holding's Ukrainian operations have been impacted by the mounting pressures due law-enforcement and investigative actions following the decision by the Ministry of Justice to annul the 2022 corporate ownership changes and to deny the current beneficial owner their rights, alleging that Vadim Novinskiy, Smart's founder and ex-shareholder, remains the current owner.

The asset freezes started on 13 April 2023 when, on the basis of unfounded criminal proceedings related to accusations against the former owner, the Security Service of Ukraine announced the seizure of the property of Smart Holding. This is an extra-judicial ban that ignores due process, and is an unlawful attack on Company's business.

The seizure includes the assets of Smart Energy Group in the Kharkiv region, where production licenses were now suspended, and all activity has been stopped. Smart Holding has previously reported that due to suspension of Ukrgazvydobutok and Prom-Energo Product at Ostroverkhivske and Vasyschivske fields, the State and local budgets have already lost almost US$3 million, and the energy system  12.4 million m of gas. Unless operation of companies is resumed in the near future, by the end of 2023 alone the State will have lost another US$35 million in taxes and 135 million m of gas. Other permits suspended include the licenses of Enwell Energy, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Last year, the dividends of Smart Energy Group amounted to USD 27 million, of which USD 13 million was donated to help the military and citizens affected by the war. The remaining part was used to support the workplaces and operational activities of the Group.

Julia Kiryanova, the CEO of Smart-Holding, commented:

"We fully support Ukraine's effort to protect its national security, and are committed to Ukraine winning the war against the Russian invaders. However, this should not come at the expense of the Ukrainian socially responsible business and must be done in full respect of fundamental rights and freedoms and following international standards.

The suddenly halted operation of a number Smart Holding businesses, including in the strategically vital gas production sector, puts the workforce of entire factories and operations at risk. We are trying to do the best we can for all our stakeholders, employees and the people of Ukraine but the unreasonable and unlawful position that the authorities have adopted to our business are making this increasingly difficult. We continue to offer as much support to our employees as we can.

We vigorously deny any allegations of wrong-doing, and see this as an unjustified and unlawful attack by the authorities on a key Ukrainian business. We call on the Office of the President to urgently launch an investigation and prevent further damage and escalation."

About Smart Holding

Smart Holding is one of the largest investment groups in Ukraine. The interests of the Group focus on the industries that are the key ones for the economy of the country. The companies of the Group invest in metals and mining, oil and gas segment, agriculture, shipbuilding, real estate and energy sector. The strategy of Smart Holding is aimed at efficient management of a diversified investment portfolio in order to increase its value in the long term.

About Smart Energy

Smart Energy is a part of investment group Smart Holding and is in charge of implementing exploration projects, commercial development of the hydrocarbon deposits. It is ranked in top 5 biggest private gas producers of Ukraine, producing over 1 mln m3 of gas per day in total at the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Oil & Gas business block of Smart Energy is represented by gas producing Ukrgazvydobutok (Kharkiv region) and Enwell Energy, a listed British company having assets in Poltava (the Representative Office of Regal Petroleum Corporation Limited and Arkona Gas-Energy LLC) and Kharkiv regions (Prom-Energo Produkt).

SOURCE Smart Holding
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The opening ceremony of the Nakhchivan Regional Center of ASAN Service (Azerbaijan Service and Assessment Network) has been held, the State Agency for Public Services and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan told Trend.

The ceremony was attended by Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic Fuad Najafli and Chairman of the State Agency for Public Services and Social Innovations Ulvi Mehdiyev.

At the event, it was noted that the Nakhchivan center of ASAN Service is the 26th in the country. The construction of the center began in 2020 and was completed in May 2023. The center is equipped with video surveillance, visualization systems, two elevators, a fire extinguishing system, centralized ventilation, a heating system, etc.

It was noted that the center will provide more than 360 services by various government agencies, as well as private companies and enterprises.

The total number of employees of the center is 228 people, and volunteers - 45 people.

Seven of ASAN Service centers are located in Baku, two in Ganja, two in Sumgayit, the rest are in Sabirabad, Barda, Gabala, Masalli, Guba, Mingachevir, Imishli, Shaki, Shamakhi, Kurdamir, Tovuz, Aghjabadi, Balakan and Salyan cities.

Further, the centers will be also built in the liberated territories, and the first one is planned to be built in Shusha city.
Will Run Alongside World Premiere of Art of The Brick Immersive Experience

ATLANTA, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Two years after it took North America by artistic storm, Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience will make an epic return to Atlanta this summer. The reimagined experience features two immersive "Wow Rooms" encompassing over 12,000 square feet of three-story projections, and an all-new virtual reality experience that takes visitors on a new 10-minute journey through Van Gogh's world in Arles, France. This breathtaking show also features a new, soaring musical soundtrack and an immersive gallery dedicated to the significant influence of Japanese art on Van Gogh's work.

"We always challenge ourselves to take our experiences to greater artistic heights," said Mario Iacampo, CEO and creative director at Exhibition Hub. "With the all-new Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience, we have met the challenge."

More than 425,000 people visited the original Van Gogh experience when it made its North American debut in Atlanta in May of 2021, and the waitlist for the all-new version is at historic highs.

Presented by Exhibition Hub in partnership with Fever, the all-new Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience will be showcased at the Exhibition Hub Art Center in Doraville, located in Northeast Atlanta's metro area. Guests will enjoy easy access from major interstates, free parking, and a cafe and champagne bar. The waitlist for tickets is now open and tickets will officially go on sale May 25 at 11 AM ET.

"We are incredibly pleased to be bringing our all-new Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience back to Atlanta where we have enjoyed such tremendous support," said John Zaller, Exhibition Hub's U.S. Executive Producer. "Our world-class new location combined with this spectacular new content is our way of saying 'Thank you' to the entire region."

The opening of the reimagined Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience happens just weeks after the world premiere of Art of The Brick Immersive Experience at the Exhibition Hub Art Center. Visitors now have two great reasons to visit Atlanta this summer and to "Make a day of Doraville"which is home to world-famous international cuisine and a wide range of shopping experiences.

"The Exhibition Hub Art Center is now the anchor of our burgeoning arts district," said Doraville Mayor Joseph Geirerman. "We are proud to welcome the hundreds of thousands of visitors who will soon experience the diversity of our hospitality offerings this summer and beyond."

The Exhibition Hub Art Center is located at 5660 Buford Highway NE, Doraville, GA 30340. The Southeast's leading hub for art and cultural celebration, the all-new, 50,000 square foot space is situated less than 20 minutes from downtown Atlanta and will attract visitors from around the Southeast and across the nation. Guests are encouraged to "Make a Day of Doraville" and visit the many internationally renowned restaurants and shops in the area.

Media Contact:

Kerrie Levick

Creaxion

For Exhibition Hub and Fever

[email protected]

SOURCE Exhibition Hub
The Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act would expand the Dog and Cat Meat Prohibition Act passed in the 2018 Farm Bill to include equines, permanently protecting American horses from slaughter

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As equine enthusiasts celebrate Adopt a Horse Month this May, a bipartisan group of federal lawmakers has reintroduced the Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act  federal legislation that would permanently protect American horses from commercial slaughter. This legislation would expand the Dog and Cat Meat Prohibition Act  which passed as part of the 2018 Farm Bill  to include equines, prohibit the commercial slaughter of horses in the U.S., and end their export for that purpose abroad.

Sponsored in the House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), the SAFE Act is supported by leading animal welfare groups, including the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), the Humane Society of the United States, the Humane Society Legislative Fund, and Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation. The SAFE Act has also received strong support from industry groups, including The Jockey Club, the U.S. Trotting Association, the Stronach Group, the Breeders' Cup, the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, The Jockeys' Guild, the New York Racing Association, Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, and the Maryland Horse Council. Last year, these organizations partnered with animal welfare groups to form the "Final Stretch Alliance to End Horse Slaughter," a collaborative effort urging federal lawmakers to pass a permanent ban on slaughter.

"The slaughter of horses for human consumption is a barbaric practice that has no place in America," Rep. Buchanan said. "As co-chairman of the Animal Protection Caucus, I look forward to continuing to lead the effort with Congresswoman Schakowsky to protect these majestic creatures."

Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky said, "Horses have a special place in our nation's history and in many Americans' hearts. They embody the spirit of America, and it is time to end the brutal and dangerous practice of slaughtering these creatures for human consumption. I have championed this issue for many years, and I am so proud to partner with Congressman Vern Buchanan to reintroduce the SAFE Act once again. Our bipartisan bill would amend the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 to prohibit the slaughter of equines for human consumption. Horses are not raised for human consumption. As a proud animal lover, we owe it to our horse companions to protect their welfare."

"More than 80 percent of Americans oppose horse slaughter for human consumption, and despite robust partnerships between the equine industry and animal welfare groups to support rehoming horses, a legal loophole still allows tens of thousands of American horses to be shipped to other countries for slaughter each year," said Nancy Perry, senior vice president of Government Relations for the ASPCA. "We are working resolutely to solve equine welfare issues on the ground, but the threat of horse slaughter contributes significant harm to industry, horse owners, and adoption organizations, and we cannot fully succeed while the slaughter pipeline remains open. By including the SAFE Act in the 2023 Farm Bill, Congress can start a new chapter for America's equines and finally end the cruel, unnecessary practice of horse slaughter."

"The horse slaughter industry has claimed the lives of millions of American horses over the last few decades, producing unsafe food, likely tainted with residues of dangerous drugs, for foreign consumers. These equines suffer incredible abuse even before they arrive at the slaughterhouse, often transported for long distances without food, water or rest, in overcrowded trailers where the animals are often seriously injured or even killed in transit," said Susan Millward, executive director and CEO of the Animal Welfare Institute. "The overwhelming majority of Americans are vociferously opposed to butchering horses for human consumption, so we are grateful to Reps. Buchanan and Schakowsky for leading the SAFE Act to spare horses from this brutal fate."

"Even one horse sent to slaughter is too many. We have been fighting horse slaughter for years not only because it disregards the special connection that humans share with horses, but also because there is simply no way to kill horses humanely in a slaughterhouse," said Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. "Congress must pass the SAFE Act so no horse from the U.S. is ever subjected to a grueling trip that only ends with a terrifying and inhumane death."

"The pipeline to slaughter is an open grave for the horses it carries off, not just a terrible cruelty but a national heartache. It's time to saddle up and end their journey to hell. No animal more deserving of our kindness has ever suffered such a rotten fate," said Sara Amundson, president, Humane Society Legislative Fund. "Horse slaughter for human consumption is a ruinous policy not merely for its callous indifference to a faithful species but for its blight upon our national character. We hope that legislators in both parties will lend their support to Representatives Buchanan and Schakowsky in their efforts to pass the Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, and vote this appalling practice out of existence."

"We are grateful to Reps. Buchanan and Schakowsky for their continued, unwavering leadership," said Neda DeMayo, president of Return to Freedom. "Polls show that the vast majority of Americans find it abhorrent that any horse, wild or domestic, suffers the road to slaughter. Congress must not allow itself to be undermined by a self-serving few on a measure with overwhelming support."

Research shows that 2.3 million Americans have the interest and resources to adopt a horse, demonstrating that there are more than enough homes for the approximately 20,000 American horses who were exported for slaughter last year. America's equine adoption community is working swiftly to match the horses in their care with foster and adoptive families, increasing the number of adoptions every year. This means that every horse who might have been sent to slaughter could have a home waiting, if given the opportunity to find it. As long as the financial incentive for slaughter exists, it will continue to hamper the lifesaving efforts of rescue and welfare groups to provide humane care to equines.

The horse slaughter industry not only exploits horses who must endure grueling journeys to slaughter plants and an inhumane death, it also harms the broader equine community, including horse owners, riders, and rescues, who fear that their horses will end up in the slaughter pipeline despite their best efforts to keep them safe. Kill buyers  those who buy horses to ship to slaughter in Canada and Mexico  attend auctions and often outbid rescue groups trying to help vulnerable equines. Kill buyers have also been known to pose as good homes in response to ads from horse owners who can no longer care for their animals. Many owners are so fearful that they may even keep their horses beyond the point that they can afford basic care to prevent their animals from being sold to slaughter, causing further suffering. There is no reason to continue this abhorrent practice that 83 percent of Americans oppose.

The SAFE Act received strong bipartisan support last Congress, with more than half of the U.S. House of Representatives signing on as cosponsors and the full House voting in favor of an amendment to ban horse slaughter. Members of the public are encouraged to contact their U.S. representatives to urge them to cosponsor the SAFE Act and secure its swift passage to protect horses, their caregivers, and consumers.

About the ASPCA 

Founded in 1866, the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was the first animal welfare organization to be established in North America and today serves as the nation's leading voice for vulnerable and victimized animals. As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation with more than two million supporters nationwide, the ASPCA is committed to preventing cruelty to dogs, cats, equines, and farm animals throughout the United States. The ASPCA assists animals in need through on-the-ground disaster and cruelty interventions, behavioral rehabilitation, animal placement, legal and legislative advocacy, and the advancement of the sheltering and veterinary community through research, training, and resources. For more information, visit www.ASPCA.org, and follow the ASPCA on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

About AWI

The Animal Welfare Institute (www.awionline.org) is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to reducing animal suffering caused by people. AWI engages policymakers, scientists, industry, and the public to achieve better treatment of animals everywherein the laboratory, on the farm, in commerce, at home, and in the wild. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates and other important animal protection news.

About the HSUS

Founded in 1954, the Humane Society of the United States fights the big fights to end suffering for all animals. Together with millions of supporters, we take on puppy mills, factory farms, trophy hunts, animal testing and other cruel industries. With our affiliates, we rescue and care for tens of thousands of animals every year through our animal rescue team's work and other hands-on animal care services. We fight all forms of animal cruelty to achieve the vision behind our name: A humane society. Learn more about our work at humanesociety.org. Subscribe to Kitty Block's blog, A Humane World. Follow the HSUS Media Relations department on Twitter. Read the award-winning All Animals magazine. Listen to the Humane Voices Podcast.

About HSLF

The Humane Society Legislative Fund is a social welfare organization incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and formed in 2004 as a separate lobbying affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States. The HSLF works to pass animal protection laws at the state and federal level, to educate the public about animal protection issues, and to support humane candidates for office. Visit us on all our channels: on the web at hslf.org, on our blog at hslf.org/blog, on Facebook at facebook.com/humanelegislation and on Twitter at twitter.com/HSLegFund.

About RTF

Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation (RTF) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to wild horse preservation through sanctuary, education, conservation and advocacy since 1998. It also operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary at three California locations, caring for 500 wild horses and burros. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates about wild horses and burros on the range and at our sanctuary.

SOURCE ASPCA
CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America Corporation announced today that it will redeem on May 28, 2023 all $1,250,000,000 principal amount outstanding of its Floating Rate Senior Notes, due May 2024 (CUSIP No. 06051GJX8) (the "Notes"), at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the redemption date of May 28, 2023. Since May 28, 2023 is not a business day, the redemption price together with accrued and unpaid interest will be paid on the next succeeding business day, May 30, 2023. Interest on the Notes will cease to accrue on the redemption date.

Payment of the redemption price for the Notes will be made through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company. The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A. is the trustee and paying agent for the Notes.

Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 68 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs, and award-winning digital banking with approximately 56 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Forward-looking statements

Certain information contained in this news release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are not guarantees of future results or performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions difficult to predict or beyond our control. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement and should consider the uncertainties and risks discussed under Item 1A. "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, and in any of our subsequent Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect the impact of circumstances or events that arise after the date the forward-looking statement was made.

For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts.

Investors May Contact:

Lee McEntire, Bank of America

Phone: 1.980.388.6780

[email protected]

Jonathan G. Blum, Bank of America (Fixed Income)

Phone: 1.212.449.3112

[email protected]

Reporters May Contact:

Bill Halldin, Bank of America

Phone: 1.916.724.0093

[email protected]

Christopher P. Feeney, Bank of America

Phone: 1.980.386.6794

[email protected]

SOURCE Bank of America Corporation
PHILADELPHIA, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Berger Montague advises any individual who received a data breach notice from PharMerica, the long-term care pharmacy services provider, about a potential class action lawsuit.

If you received a data breach notice, you may learn more about this investigation and sign up for a potential lawsuit by visiting: https://investigations.bergermontague.com/pharmerica-data-breach/

Berger Montague is investigating a potential class action lawsuit against PharMerica Corporation and its parent company, BrightSpring Health Services , following PharMerica's announcement that it experienced a large data breach impacting the protected health information and other sensitive information of over 5.8 million individuals.

In a notice PharMerica posted on the Maine Attorney General's website, the company listed the total number of individuals affected as 5,815,591. PharMerica also published notice of the data breach on its own website , which states that the protected health and sensitive information compromised in the data breach includes individuals' "names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, medication lists and health insurance information."

Any individual who received a data breach notice from PharMerica is encouraged to contact Berger Montague to join a possible class action lawsuit.

Berger Montague PC is a national, full-spectrum plaintiffs' law firm that litigates complex civil cases and class actions in federal and state courts throughout the United States. For 53 years, Berger Montague has played lead roles in consequential, precedent-setting cases and has recovered more than $36 billion for its clients and the classes they have represented. A pioneer in the use of class actions in antitrust and securities litigation, the firm has since expanded into consumer, employment, environmental, and insurance litigation. Today, Berger Montague has more than 75 lawyers across six offices, including Philadelphia, Minneapolis, San Diego, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Toronto.

Contacts:

Mark DeSanto

[email protected]

215.875.3046

Noel Hemphill

[email protected]

SOURCE Berger Montague
Agreement to provide new benefits to over 3,300 craft railroaders

ATLANTA and INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) announced Thursday that they have reached an agreement to provide up to seven paid sick days per year to BLET members. The agreement will provide Norfolk Southern engineers with five new days of paid sick leave per year while also offering them the flexibility to use up to two additional days of existing paid time off as sick leave.

The new agreement will provide new paid sick leave benefits to over 3,300 Norfolk Southern engineers, representing almost 25% of the NS craft workforce. With this agreement, almost all of the company's craft employees  approximately 98%  have entered into paid sick leave deals.

"We are proud to be the first to have reached a paid sick leave agreement for our dedicated BLET membership," said Dewayne Dehart, BLET general chairman (NS-Northern Lines GCA). "This trailblazing new deal ensures that engineers finally have access to the time they need and deserve to manage their personal well-being."

"Our agreement with Norfolk Southern recognizes the critical contributions our members make to keep the railroad and the American economy running," added Jerry Sturdivant, BLET general chairman (NS-Southern Lines GCA). "Our members are the hardest-working folks on the railroad, and we thank NS for their collaboration to get this deal done for them."

"This is a big day for the BLET," said Scott Bunten, BLET general chairman (NS-Eastern Lines GCA). "Our members are the heart of the railroad, and this agreement is a major win in our tireless efforts to improve the quality of their experience on and off the job."

"I deeply appreciate the contributions of our Norfolk Southern engineers and the longstanding partnership we've had with the BLET," said Alan H. Shaw, president and CEO of Norfolk Southern. "This agreement builds on that relationship and continues our industry-leading effort to enhance quality of life as we become the first railroad to reach an engineer sick leave deal."

"This agreement is yet another important milestone in our ongoing efforts to enhance quality of life for our craft employees," said Wai Wong, vice president, Labor Relations at Norfolk Southern. "I want to thank our BLET general chairmen for their partnership as we worked to negotiate this important benefit for their members."

The paid sick leave agreement is accompanied by a second quality-of-life agreement that needs to be ratified under BLET's bylaws. This second agreement offers additional preservation of earnings unique to Norfolk Southern engineers when they use paid sick leave, as well as greater protection for vacation time, further enhancing the paid sick leave deal. The paid sick leave agreement will be effective upon ratification of the second agreement.

"I want to thank General Chairmen Dehart, Sturdivant, and Bunten, along with National Vice President Rick Gibbons, for their efforts in securing this historic agreement," said BLET National President Eddie Hall. "The BLET is currently working to secure similar sick leave agreements with the other Class I railroads, and I hope this settlement will help bring those negotiations to a positive conclusion."

About the BLET

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen represents nearly 57,000 professional locomotive engineers and trainmen throughout the United States. The BLET is the founding member of the Rail Conference, International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

About Norfolk Southern

Since 1827, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) and its predecessor companies have safely moved the goods and materials that drive the U.S. economy. Today, it operates a customer-centric and operations-driven freight transportation network. Committed to furthering sustainability, Norfolk Southern helps its customers avoid 15 million tons of yearly carbon emissions by shipping via rail. Its dedicated team members deliver more than 7 million carloads annually, from agriculture to consumer goods, and is the largest rail shipper of auto products and metals in North America. Norfolk Southern also has the most extensive intermodal network in the eastern U.S., serving a majority of the country's population and manufacturing base, with connections to every major container port on the Atlantic coast as well as the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes. Learn more by visiting www.NorfolkSouthern.com.

SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation
TORONTO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - BLiNQ Networks and GT Global Services are proud to announce their new partnership that will help support some of the remote mining sectors in North America as well as provide critical communications for remote indigenous communities.

Initially, starting with a vast mining community in a remote area of British Columbia, BLiNQ will provide the mines that would otherwise be without communication systems, with a way to get connectivity in isolated regions. The mines require the ability to store data in an urban centre, and this solution will help them achieve that.

GT Global Services' expertise in provisioning, implementing and managing communication systems, along with BLiNQ will ensure robust always-on communications for remote mining and indigenous people who otherwise would have to rely on little to no connectivity.

"We see our partnership with GT Global Services as a symbiotic relationship that extends to their customers. Some of the tribal areas have received funding, but don't have the knowledge to setup and maintain a network. BLiNQ will provide the wireless connectivity and GT will integrate and manage it for them.," says Patrick Buthmann, VP of Sales and Business Development at BLiNQ Networks.

Paul Quenneville, CEO of GT Global Services gives the following thoughts on choosing to work with BLiNQ: "We view this partnership as an integral part of providing critical communications systems across remote areas within North America, we anticipate this will be a high growth area for both or our organizations in the foreseeable future."

ABOUT BLINQ NETWORKS

BLiNQ Networks is a pioneer manufacturer of CBRS-ready and multiband wireless broadband solutions, building the technology to provide essential internet connectivity all over the world. BLiNQ provides industry-leading price and performance in LTE and 5G-ready solutions, driven by a talented team based in Ontario, Canada.

For more information, visit blinqnetworks.com.

ABOUT GT Global Services

GT Global Services is an award-winning provider of IT services with a global reach. Some of the world's largest companies trust GT to provide innovative solutions across a wide spectrum of technologies such as IoT, Cloud, Network, Security, and more.

GT Global Services boasts a team of highly qualified and certified professionals who possess extensive expertise across a broad range of technologies. In addition to this, they have a vast network of thousands of on-site technicians at their disposal. This powerful combination enables GT Global Services to deliver an unparalleled level of service.

GT is headquartered in Miami, Florida and Toronto, Ontario. For more detailed information about their offerings and capabilities, please visit their website at www.gtglobal.ca.

SOURCE BLiNQ Networks Inc.
NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Winsight, LLC, a leading B2B information provider in the foodservice and allied retail industries, is to combine with London-based Informa PLC, a publicly traded, global events, digital products, and academic services firm. Informa acquired Winsight from HPS Investment Partners, and the combination with Informa's existing B2B foodservice portfolio establishes a category-leading B2B business. Winsight CEO Mike Wood will continue to lead the business, which will become part of the Informa Connect division.

BrightTower, a New York City headquartered investment banking and M&A advisory services firm, served as exclusive financial advisor to Winsight in this transaction.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Winsight provides actionable information, market intelligence, professional events, and media to the restaurant, noncommercial foodservice, and convenience retail industries. The Company offers a multi-channel portfolio of brands across research, data and analytics, events, websites, newsletters, and content marketing solutions. With nearly 3,000 customers, Winsight's solutions enable customers to measure and predict industry dynamics, drive engagement with target audiences, refine business development strategies, and create networking opportunities between buyers and sellers.

Technomic, Winsight's data and insights business, will be Informa's first insights business dedicated to foodservice. Winsight will continue to operate business as usual through 2023 and will rebrand as Informa in the new year once integration planning is complete.

Wood noted, "Our team is incredibly proud of what we've achieved since originally acquiring our founding brands in 2012. Our rapid recovery to pre-pandemic performance levels is a testament to the essential qualities of our products and services, and the caliber of our employees. We are excited to build upon this momentum as part of Informa whose global reach, existing market presence, and growth minded philosophy will only allow us to do more and better for our clients."

Informa Connect CEO Andrew Mullins said, "At Informa, our purpose is to champion the specialist. This new combination of Informa's existing foodservice assets with Winsight's outstanding media, event and data assets, provides the capability to create even more market-leading products and services that will better serve the needs of the foodservice industry and its customers. We are very excited to be bringing together such well respected market-leading brands, and the talented teams that support them to facilitate the creation of even greater customer value and exciting new growth opportunities for all."

About BrightTower

BrightTower is a New York City headquartered investment bank focused on M&A advisory services, capital raising, and debt capital markets. The firm leverages sector expertise, global reach, and tailored insights to deliver enterprise advisory services across the software, technology-enabled marketing, IT business services, and information markets. BrightTower is focused on growing a robust ecosystem supporting entrepreneurs, private equity firms, growth equity firms, venture capitalists, debt providers, and corporations as they stay ahead of quickly evolving markets. The firm is committed to delivering world class advisory talent to every engagement that builds trust in the knowledge economy. Visit us on LinkedIn.

Contact:

Christie Haselton

Director, Development

BrightTower

[email protected]

SOURCE BrightTower
Applications to present on key solar, storage, and clean energy topics open until June 30, 2023

PORTLAND, Maine, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North America (ISNA/ESNA), the industry's premier solar, storage, and clean energy event, is now accepting abstracts for speaking opportunities at the conference to be held January 17-19, 2024 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California.

"As policies, market opportunities, and technologies supporting clean energy adoption accelerate, it's never been more critical to stay informed," said Wes Doane, VP, Clean Energy Group (Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North America). "Guided by our mission to advance the energy transition, we remain committed to delivering the up-to-date information and forward-looking insights that industry professionals need to make strategic decisions and accelerate in their careers."

Through the Call for Abstracts, the #isnaesna24 conference program will feature approximately 24 sessionselevating diverse speakers, exploring key topics across utility, commercial and industrial sectors, and spanning multiple focus areas and technical levels. Available speaking formats include keynote addresses, single and multiple session presentations, and panel discussions.

"By integrating feedback from last year's conference attendees with timely industry topics and trends, our 2024 program will deliver valuable content and facilitate meaningful discussions," said Krista Simicich, Digital Editor, Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North America. "We look forward to receiving thoughtful proposals that focus on delivering the insights that matter to our community of clean energy professionals."

Apply to Speak

Industry professionals are invited to submit an abstract before submissions close on June 30, 2023. Each abstract will be reviewed by ISNA/ESNA's advisory board. Selected speakers will be notified in September and will receive a complimentary registration pass in addition to thought leadership exposure across ISNA/ESNA's digital channels and marketing initiatives.

About

Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North Americaproduced by Diversified Communicationsis the premier US-based conference and trade show focused on solar, energy storage, and clean energy. Dedicated to accelerating the energy transition, the combined event delivers forward-looking education, impactful networking, and an immersive exhibit hall experienceincluding the industry-favorite Solar Games installer competition.

Join 8,000+ energy leaders and 400+ exhibitors January 17-19, 2024 in San Diego, CA to help shape the next phase of our clean energy transformation. Learn more: intersolar.us

Media Contact:

Candace Letizia

[email protected]

SOURCE Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North America
Jeff Balmer to Retire from Position, Russell Parker to Succeed Him as COO

HOUSTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Callon Petroleum Company (NYSE: CPE) ("Callon" or the "Company") today announced that Russell Parker is expected to join the Company as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in late June. Mr. Parker will succeed Dr. Jeff Balmer who plans to retire upon his successor's appointment.

Russell Parker is an experienced leader with more than 20 years of operations and strategic leadership that spans public and private energy companies including EP Energy, Phoenix Natural Resources, Chief Oil & Gas, and Hilcorp Energy. He most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of EP Energy and brings extensive experience enhancing operational efficiencies, developing talented teams, and executing strategic transactions.

"We are excited to welcome Russell to drive the continued evolution of our 'Life of Field' Co-Development Model across our top-tier Permian inventory," said President and Chief Executive Officer Joe Gatto. "Russell's track record of achieving operational successes and financial results through a culture of collaboration makes him a great fit for Callon and our outstanding team."

"It is a privilege to join the Callon team at such a pivotal time for the Company, as the Permian Basin becomes the sole focus with a strong opportunity set for capital efficiency gains and cost structure enhancements," said Parker. "I have long admired the Company's high-quality asset base and look forward to joining Callon's talented team as we continue our trajectory of improving operational performance."

Dr. Balmer is retiring from Callon after a successful career that spans 35 years in the oil and gas industry including nearly five years at Callon.

CEO Joe Gatto continued, "On behalf of Callon's Board, management team and employees, I want to extend our deep appreciation to Jeff for his valued contributions to Callon over the past five years. Since joining the Company in 2018, Jeff has been an instrumental part of assembling our high-quality inventory and the successful integration of acquired assets into our portfolio. We appreciate Jeff's service and wish him and his family the very best."

Dr. Balmer commented, "I am extremely proud of the team at Callon and the progress we have made together on our sustainable business model and operational execution, including our safety and environmental initiatives. We have highly capable leaders at all levels of the Company, and I am confident that Callon is well-positioned to achieve even greater levels of success."

About Russell Parker

Mr. Parker was previously President and Chief Executive Officer of EP Energy from 2017 to 2022, where he led the company's strategic repositioning following emergence from bankruptcy and oversaw improvements in capital efficiency, well productivity, and safety and environmental performance. Prior to joining EP Energy, Mr. Parker served as Chief Executive Officer of Apollo-backed Phoenix Natural Resources and President of Chief Oil & Gas. Earlier in his career he spent over a decade with Hilcorp Energy Company where he held positions of increasing responsibility across their engineering and operations functions for its Texas, Louisiana and Utica operations.

Mr. Parker holds a Bachelor of Science in Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.

About Callon Petroleum

Callon Petroleum Company is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of high-quality assets in the leading oil plays of South and West Texas.

Contact:



Kevin Smith

Director of Investor Relations

Callon Petroleum Company

[email protected]

(281) 589-5200

SOURCE Callon Petroleum Company
MIAMI, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Car Wash Advisory, a leading investment banking and M&A advisory firm focused exclusively on the car wash industry, has announced the debut of its publicly available and accessible database of historical car wash M&A transactions. This resource, which will be continually updated both on a historical and move-forward basis, provides a window into the largest and most meaningful M&A transactions in the car wash industry. This repository of M&A deal history features all the fastest growing and largest car wash companies and consolidators in North America. Additional coverage by way of year span, additional functionality and data are planned for continuous rollout starting later this year to enhance analytical study abilities.

"Top 100 Car Wash Companies is a testament to our commitment to providing the best resources and information to the car wash industry," said Harry Caruso, Founder and CEO of Car Wash Advisory. "This asset will undoubtedly be valuable for industry professionals, operators and investors looking to stay informed and competitive." Car Wash Advisory has a proven history of providing expert M&A advisory services to car wash business owners and this M&A transaction database is the latest addition to their portfolio of resources.

CWA launched this database alongside their official and initial rollout of their Top Car Wash Companies, a list of the largest car wash companies operating in the U.S. This database, which includes more detailed information on a per site basis, is encouraged to be used alongside the M&A transaction data to provide readers with unique insights in the car wash industry. This is but a sample of the result produced by a truly specialized and focused M&A firm.

The Car Wash M&A Transaction Data page is now live on Car Wash Advisory's website and can be accessed at https://www.carwashadvisory.com/car-wash-acquisitions.

The Top Car Wash Companies page is now live on Car Wash Advisory's website and can be accessed at https://www.carwashadvisory.com/top-car-wash-companies.

About Car Wash Advisory

Car Wash Advisory is a leading nationwide investment banking, M&A advisory, and brokerage firm focused solely on the car wash industry. Car Wash Advisory's team of financial professionals provides sell-side M&A advisory and debt and equity capital raising services to car wash owners and operators across the United States. To learn more or reach out to the CWA team, visit www.carwashadvisory.com.

Media Contact:

Robin Sisk

332-209-4246

[email protected]

SOURCE Car Wash Advisory
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delivered medicines and other supplies for medical institutions along the Lachin road yesterday and today, Trend reports via ICRCs post on Facebook.

The statement of ICRC exposed a rumor spread of a number of Armenian media outlets earlier that the ICRC cars were unable to pass along the Lachin road.

The peaceful protest on the Lachin-Khankendi road against the illegal exploitation of Azerbaijan's mineral resources in the area of Russian peacekeepers' temporary deployment started on December 12, 2022 and ended on April 28, 2023. This peaceful protest organized on the Lachin-Khankendi road lasted 138-day.

Previously, following the talks with the Russian peacekeepers' command on December 3 and 7, 2022, a group of experts from the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the State Property Service under the Ministry of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC were going to begin preliminary monitoring of the illicit mineral resource exploitation, as well as emerging environmental implications on Azerbaijani lands, where the Russian peacekeepers are temporarily deployed, on December 10, 2022.
Specialized training includes Alzheimer's and related dementia care, emergency preparedness

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Center for Caregiver Advancement (CCA) has been awarded a $10 million grant from the California Workforce Development Board (CWDB) and the Labor and Workforce Development Agency to bring its caregiver training programs to In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) providers in San Bernardino County. The grant is part of CWDB's HRTP Resilient Workforce Fund.

Through the grant, CCA will conduct a randomized control trial in partnership with the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (JPAL) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This will be the first RCT on IHSS training. Building on CCA's existing research, the study will lay the foundation for policy change that will recognize worker specializations, improve worker retention, create advancement within the home care workforce, and secure long-term funding for caregiver training. JPAL will conduct the RCT on IHSS+ Basic training, while UC San Francisco will continue to study the impact of the Alzheimer's care and Caregiver Resiliency Teams programs.

"As California prepares for demographic changes, including the growth of the 60-and-over population, it's critical that we develop a direct care workforce that is adaptable and responsive to the State's unique challenges," said Tim Rainey, Executive Director of the California Workforce Development Board. "This grant recognizes the essential role that the caregiving workforce plays in ensuring Californians age with dignity and respect, and will positively impact both the job quality of caregivers, and the care they provide, in San Bernardino County."

The training will be offered in two languages: English and Spanish. CCA's IHSS training programs consist of successive classes over multiple weeks that build on each other to progressively develop participants' skills. The IHSS Basic training program will have a total of 35 hours of learning, while the two specialized training programs will each have 15 hours of learning.

"CCA is thrilled to have been chosen to receive this grant from the CWDB. It will help us provide essential training and resources to caregivers in San Bernardino County, improving both quality of care for consumers and developing specialized skills for workers. Through the research that will come out of this grant, we have the potential to generate systems change that will positively impact half a million IHSS caregivers in California," said Corinne Eldridge, President and CEO of the Center for Caregiver Advancement.

Access to CCA's specialized training programs is critical to support older adults and people with disabilities in San Bernardino County. Alongside basic caregiver skill-building, CCA will offer Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia care training. Majority of the IHSS population in San Bernardino is Latino, and individuals of Hispanic origin have a higher prevalence of ADRD, with cases predicted to increase by 21% across the state. CCA has offered the Alzheimer's care training in Alameda County since 2020, and has started offering it in Los Angeles County this spring.

The grant will also enable CCA to offer the Caregiver Resiliency Teams to San Bernardino's IHSS providers. CCA developed the nation's first climate-related emergency preparedness training for long-term care workers. Over 70% of San Bernardino County census tracts have high levels of pollution and are considered disadvantaged areas, according to the CalEnviroScreen index. The disproportionate environmental pollution that can lead to negative public health effects highlights the need for caregiver training. CCA's Caregiver Resiliency program helps caregivers connect climate change with their roles as first responders, and helps them understand how climate change affects different communities.

CCA is the only organization within California utilizing evidence-informed curriculum that has already been tested and delivered to thousands of IHSS providers in California.

ABOUT CCA: The Center for Caregiver Advancement is the largest provider of training for caregivers in California and has trained more than 20,000 nursing home workers and in-home caregivers. advancecaregivers.org

SOURCE Center for Caregiver Advancement
BEIJING, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Xi'an, China, receives presidents from five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, as the China-Central Asia Summit is held from Thursday to Friday. President Xi Jinping will host the summit.

This is China's first major diplomatic event that China hosts this year and is the first ever in-person summit between the leaders of China and five Central Asian countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations 31 years ago. The heads of state will not only exchange views on bilateral, multilateral, and major international and regional issues, but also sign an important political document. It can be fully expected that this summit will further deepen the political mutual trust between China and the five Central Asian countries, and promote bilateral cooperation in various fields to a new level. Not only is it a milestone in the history of the development of relations between China and Central Asian countries. It will contribute to the peace, stability and prosperity of the region. For the world, the lively scene in Xi'an also has a very positive demonstration effect.

It should be said that China and Central Asian countries have no special "innate advantages" in developing good-neighborly and friendly relations. The two sides have differences in social systems, religious cultures, etc and once faced practical constraints and challenges in their economic and security cooperation. But the two sides have successfully transcended these differences. After all, it is the strong value resonance of a shared destiny that has allowed the two sides to embark on a new path of mutual respect, good neighborliness, friendship, mutual assistance, mutual benefit and win-win outcomes, and set a model for a new type of international relations. In particular, in the turbulent and complex world situation, Central Asian countries have become more aware of the need to support each other in order to resist security risks and realize the modernization and development of their respective countries. This is highly consistent with China-proposed Global Development Initiatives, Global Security Initiatives and Global Civilization Initiative. In this sense, the holding of the China-Central Asia Summit itself is a matter of course.

The practice since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the five Central Asian countries 31 years ago has also proved that as long as we follow the right path, we will surely reap rich fruits. Central Asia was the place where the Belt and Road Initiative was launched. Now the busy China-Europe freight trains have become a landscape there. China has also been the largest or main trading partner of Central Asian countries for many years, and its trade volume has continuously hit record highs. At the same time, the cooperation between the two sides in security and other fields has also been further deepened. For example, in the process of combating extremist terrorist activities, China has carried out close cooperation with law-enforcement agencies and judiciary institutions in Central Asia. The epidemic prevention and health departments of both sides have established a cooperation platform for information sharing and joint epidemic prevention. The benefits brought by the cooperation between the two sides to these countries and people are tangible.

In recent years, the cooperation between China and Central Asian countries has been very stable, almost unaffected by geopolitical factors. The fundamental reason is that there is no geopolitical element in their cooperation. The China-Central Asia Summit is being held with confidence and openness. Cooperation between the two sides is a valuable asset for each other and the world. No matter how the international situation changes, and how much China develops in the future, China will always be a trustworthy and reliable neighbor, partner, friend, and brother to Central Asian countries. Reality has shown that the more such friendships exist, the more peace, security, cooperation, and development there will be.

SOURCE Global Times
Benefits to CPAs Include Access to Choreo's Comprehensive Financial, Estate and Business Exit Planning Solutions, as well as its Customized Marketing and Technology Platforms

CHICAGO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Choreo, LLC ("Choreo") has announced the launch of the Choreo Partner Alliance1, a program designed to allow industry CPAs the opportunity to better serve their clients. This offering allows a broader group of entrepreneurs and families to access wealth management advice and services through Choreo, while providing CPAs with the resources to deepen their existing, trusted-advisor relationships.

"I'm excited to unveil the new Choreo Partner Alliance," said Larry Miles, Choreo's CEO. "Choreo is well-suited to offer this program. Having been associated with one of the nation's largest accounting firms for more than two decades, our advisorsmany of whom are CPAs themselveshave a passion for delivering a comprehensive tax and financial planning experience to their clients."

The Choreo Partner Alliance creates a framework for CPAs to partner with a Choreo advisor to better serve clients who have unaddressed or complex wealth management needs. CPAs can access a broad array of tax-efficient estate planning, business exit-planning, and investment solutions, along with Choreo's marketing, thought leadership and technology platforms.

Benefits of the Choreo Partner Alliance

A partnership with Choreo, whose advisors understand the financial planning needs of CPA clients

Commitment to generating tax alpha while maintaining tax-aware beta exposure

Multigenerational estate planning and gifting strategies for families

Business exit planning that factors in valuation, tax, and succession considerations

Monitoring third-party activities for clients with multiple investment advisors

Access to custom financial planning tools and dashboards provided by Choreo to help facilitate deeper insights and a better understanding of a shared client's needs

A partner with decades of experience working in a coordinated fashion with a client's tax advisor and navigating the intricacies of a CPA firm environment

Initial participants in the program include Cherry Bekaert Advisory LLC and Greer Walker LLP. Both firms recently entered a partnership with Choreo that included the divestiture of their existing wealth management businesses and the formation of a strategic, go-forward relationship where Choreo will provide comprehensive financial planning solutions to the firms' existing and future tax clients. Choreo plans to build on this initial success by becoming a preferred wealth partner of the nation's tax professional community.

Miles added, "Beyond playing to our historical strengths, the Choreo Partner Alliance is also consistent with our desire to team with a broader group of strategic partners to help ensure that entrepreneurial-minded investors can meet all their planning needs. At the end of the day, helping CPAs do an even better job of serving their clients is what this program is all about."

About Choreo, LLC

Passionate about improving the well-being of clients, their families and their communities, Choreo operates out of 39 locations across the country. Choreo's experienced advisors define, design and build solutions for their clients' financial and related needs so they can focus on what matters most to them. Originally launched over 20 years ago as a subsidiary of one of the largest CPA and professional services firms in the country, Choreo serves over 6,000 families with approximately $14.8 billion of assets under management or advisement (as of April 2023). For more information, visit choreoadvisors.com .

Choreo, LLC is a limited liability company that provides investment advisory services, financial planning, and other wealth management services to individuals and businesses. Choreo, LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply any skillset of the wealth manager and/or its advisors.

Media Inquiries

Joseph Kuo / Michael Dugan

Haven Tower Group

424 317 4851 or 424 317 4852

[email protected] or [email protected]

1 The Choreo Partner Alliance Program is offered through Choreo Partner Alliance, LLC, a registered investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Choreo Partner Alliance is an affiliate of Choreo, LLC, a registered investment adviser with the SEC. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply a certain level of skill or training of the adviser or its representatives.

SOURCE Choreo, LLC
With more than 1,500 bird species registered over the weekend, the country won the bird-watching competition for the eleventh time.

MIAMI, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Colombia the second most biodiverse country in the world has 1,966 bird species, 20% of the world's total, and way more than other countries such as Peru, Brazil, Ecuador, India, and Indonesia. A few days ago, the largest birding event organized by Cornell's University Ornithology Lab occurred, reuniting scientific and amateur birdwatching communities worldwide. This contest proved, once more, why Colombia is the #1 country in bird diversity on the planet.

Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Photo credit: Courtesy of Manakin Nature Tours.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), emphasizes that participating in this event contributes to conserving Colombia's biodiversity and strengthening regenerative nature tourism. Julian Guerrero, Chief of the Party of Destino Naturaleza at USAID, said: "Global Big Day is a powerful citizen science tool that allows us to position Colombia and its territories as a world-class nature destination."

The regions reporting the most significant number of bird species are Antioquia, Meta, Valle del Cauca, Cundinamarca, and Caldas. So, attention nature fans, as these destinations are perfect for the incoming birdwatchers seeking the ultimate experience.

"Our natural wealth means great opportunities to continue promoting our country as an ideal destination for birdwatching, a product that meets the sustainability parameters to ensure the conservation of the species, as well as the livelihoods of the communities that depend on these meaningful activities," said Carmen Caballero, President of ProColombia. Furthermore, birdwatching promotes environmental justice through the conservation of the ecosystems; thus, this tourism type brings awareness to travelers on the protection of habitats.

Currently, Americans are the largest number of international travelers arriving in Colombia, making this country the ultimate destination of US travelers in South America; as of today, 11 cities in the US are directly connected to 8 cities across the Colombian territory, and there are 301 air frequencies with over 52,000 seats available per week.

"Having earned this recognition seems like the perfect opportunity to invite Americans and travelers from across the globe, to visit Colombia and see by themselves the immense biodiversity and beauty of our territories," concluded Caballero.

For more information about Colombia, please visit https://birds.colombia.travel/en

SOURCE ProColombia
Cava Law Firm shares its thoughts on the frequency of certain injuries during car accidents.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Car accidents are unpredictable and can cause significant damage to your property as well as injury to the occupants of the vehicle. Though each accident has unique features, there are a few common injuries that occur frequently in car accidents.

According to Christopher Cava, lead attorney at Cava Law Firm, "When a car accident occurs, there are certain types of injuries that the victim is likely to sustain. Knowing them can improve first-response intervention." Knowing these injuries can help front-line accident responders be better prepared to manage car accident cases.

Head Injuries

These occur in car accidents where the head receives a blow or is pierced by a sharp object. They can lead to facial disfigurement, nerve injury, and brain damage. Post concussion syndrome can occur with a violent shaking of the head, even with a direct head strike to a place inside the car.

Burns

Car accidents always have the potential to cause a fire outbreak. When this occurs, the burn victim can suffer from massive dehydration, disfigurement, or even death.

Back Injuries

Back injuries are one of the most common injuries that occur in car accidents. They occur when the back is forcefully twisted or hit by a heavy object. Impact of the accident can cause the spine to move in ways that it normally does not move. Which can lead to severe pain or damage to the spinal cord.

Fractures

Simply put, a fracture is a break in the continuity of a bone. It is caused by the collision of the accident victim with a hard surface. Fractures are a common type of injury found in car accidents. Accident victims who have fractures suffer from excruciating pain. They also experience loss of function in the part of the body that the bone supports. Some fractures require surgery and other require resetting of the bones then isolation in a cast or a brace.

Whiplash

A whiplash injury is an injury that occurs when the neck is suddenly jerked forward and then backward. It is common in car accidents where there is a collision or where there is a very sudden braking. Not wearing a seatbelt increases the risk of such an injury. Whiplash injuries result in damage to the neck muscles and ligaments and can also affect the cervical vertebrae.

Shoulder Injuries

Shoulder injuries are another common type of injury in car accidents. They occur when the hand is braced against a surface (such as the steering wheel or dashboard) at the point of impact during a collision. The excessive force absorbed can lead to a dislocation of the shoulder or even an outright fracture.

About Cava Law Firm

Cava Law Firm is a highly reputed law firm in Massachusetts with over 25 years of experience in legal representation. The team of attorneys provides legal support for victims of car accidents and personal injury. At Cava Law Firm, clients are offered both compassion and aggressive representation in the event of an injury accident.

This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

SOURCE Cava Law Firm
Profitable Bootstrapped Business Model Succeeds Amid Volatile VC/PE Funding Market

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Contract Guardian, Inc. (CG), a leading provider of SaaS healthcare contract lifecycle management software, today announced that its revenues and net earnings have tripled over the past four years. The company credits organic growth to a combination of unwavering focus on solving client contract management challenges with hardened entrepreneurial bootstrapping business lessons learned over 34 years. This contrasts with the typical SaaS-company growth model of venture capital, private equity funding, or merger/acquisition that tends to favor additional growth over all else.

The contract management software market is growing rapidly with revenues expected to reach nearly $3.6 billion by the end of 2028 on a compound annual growth rate of 12%, according to Verified Market Research. Growth is driven by a changing regulatory landscape, increasing contract complexity, and the drive by healthcare organizations to reduce costs.

"Large healthcare organizations may have more than 30,000 contracts to manage," Matt Paterini, PharmD and VP Contract Guardian said, "and many diverse types, including agreements with vendors, payers, employees, leasing firms, affiliates, and contract physicians just to name a few. Different departments tend to operate in silos making contract management an even greater challenge."

Contract Guardian's successes are attributed to the software's ease of use, responsive interface, custom workflows, and automatic notifications, among other features. For example, notifications alone can help organizations realize significant savings by alerting administrators to events such as automatic renewals, which can bind organizations to a contract long after goods or services are required. Contract Guardian is also distinctive in its laser focus on healthcare and the tailored configuration that goes into each customer's implementation.

More recently, the firm has benefited from the increased involvement of CEO Jim Kandrac in Contract Guardian's growth strategy. Kandrac started and scaled UCG Technologies over 34 years into a technology services firm spanning thirty-one states, Canada, and the Caribbean. Since the December 2021 sale of UCG Technologies, Kandrac has focused his energies on growing Contract Guardian which he purchased in 2018. Contract Guardian's Vice President Matt Paterini, whose healthcare background includes a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and extensive health system administration experience is invaluable in leading the day-to-day operations.

Kandrac explains, "Contract Guardian is uniquely positioned in the CLM marketplace to address hospital business issues and pains. The solution was initially developed for a multinational health system 16 years ago and has been continuously enhanced since. The combination of longevity coupled with our team's healthcare expertise makes for a winning combination for hospital clients."

The company has also benefited from consolidation in its own market, with one of its leading competitors having recently been acquired by a provider of healthcare governance, risk, and compliance software. The result within those acquired has been "increased pricing, increased system downtime, and lack of support," Paterini said. Contract Guardian inquiries have increased by over 30% in the past nine months.

With CG renewal rates of better than 96% and customers who range from small rural institutions to multinational giants, Contract Guardian's SaaS solution and "Train the Trainer" onboarding approach has proven itself in a wide range of use healthcare scenarios.

"We're distinctive in being solely focused on healthcare," Paterini said. "You don't need an IT degree to use our software and each onboarding comes with expertise from client consultants who know hospitals and have collaborated with them for many years."

The privately-owned company has hospital clients in forty-four states, is profitable, and is in business to solve client problems, issues, and pains having ingrained successful business principles from the history of UCG Technologies. "CG isn't a software company chasing revenue and customers at the expense of our existing clients," Paterini said. "I suppose you could say CG's not an exciting Silicon Valley startup, but with a tripling of business and no requirement for debt or PE/VC dollars, it's a great place to be."

About Contract Guardian

Contract Guardian provides an intuitive, cost-effective contract management system that delivers enterprise functionality while mirroring existing processes and terminology. Contract Guardian is expeditiously implemented to bring immediate visibility to business commitments and turn static data into actionable content. Customers see a rapid and dramatic improvement in the quality of customer, employee, and vendor interaction while reducing risk, maintaining compliance, and streamlining operational efficiency. www.contractguardian.com/rx

Media contact:

Francine Ciaccia, VP Marketing

[email protected]

SOURCE Contract Guardian
The Funding Will Drive the Next Phase of Course5's Growth through Targeted Acquisitions and IP-Based Innovation in its AI Labs

BELLEVUE, Wash., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Analytics & AI solutions company, Course5 Intelligence, announced today that they are raising a round of funding of USD 55 million. The company has taken a first close with 360 ONE Asset Management Limited's (formerly known as IIFL Asset Management Limited) Tech Fund which focuses on growth-oriented technology companies. 360 ONE Asset has led the round by investing USD 28 million in Course5. The company will be closing the balance with other premier investors shortly. Course5 has been experiencing rapid growth and has delivered consistent financial performance.

Course5's analytics and insights solutions are backed by continuous innovation in Course5's AI Labs and also leverage global open research in AI technology. The company's enterprise analytics platforms are already integrated with Open AI's GPT models for Generative AI and offer enterprises the capability to rapidly leverage the latest technology innovations to derive business impact from data.

Course5 plans to use investor funds to supplement its strong organic growth with inorganic growth as well as synergistic acquisitions, and also ramp up its investments in innovation and advanced AI technology in areas such as deep learning, computer vision, natural language and generative AI. The company is in talks with several M&A prospects that would add strategic capabilities or IP to complement its existing bouquet of solutions. Course5 Intelligence is on track to cross USD 100 million revenue in the next fiscal and plans to launch its IPO in the next 18 months.

Ashwin Mittal, Chairman and CEO of Course5 Intelligence, said, "Course5 has been organically built on its own cash flows to date. We have always believed in being capital efficient and think that this is the right time to raise external capital given our trajectory and the tailwinds in our industry. We have been experiencing strong demand for our analytics and AI solutions with current and new clients. Analyst recognitions for our IP-based products and solutions have also been pouring in and testify to the kind of value we are creating for our clients. Course5's growth and client wins are largely due to our focus on building a world-class talent pool, driving innovation through our AI Labs, and creating business impact through the work we do. This funding will enable us to continue to invest in augmenting our value proposition for our clients. We are thrilled to have found a strong partner in 360 ONE Asset. They have a strong understanding of the technology landscape and have made many successful bets."

Chetan Naik, Fund Manager and Senior EVP at 360 ONE Asset, said, "Data Analytics is expected to see strong secular growth over the next decade with companies leveraging AI and Advanced Analytics to accelerate digital transformation. Course5 has emerged as a leading Data Analytics and Insights player with strong IP-led solutions and deep domain knowledge across Technology, Media & Telecom, Life Sciences, Consumer Packaged Goods and Retail. Course5 is amongst the few scaled, profitable, and highly capital efficient pure-play Data Analytics players out of India. Ashwin Mittal has built a highly respected and market-leading company, and we are excited to partner with Ashwin on the next journey of growth and value creation."

The funding will be targeted at expanding Course5's footprint in the current industries it serves, while also entering new sectors that are relevant to its business.

As Course5 continues to enhance its analytics and insights offerings with AI capabilities across machine learning, computer vision, natural language and generative AI, growing investor confidence in the company indicates that this is the way forward in the organizational growth and customer service excellence journey.

About Course5 Intelligence Limited

Course5 Intelligence Limited ("Course5") focuses on helping organizations drive digital transformation using artificial intelligence ("AI"), advanced analytics, and insights. Course5's AI-driven products and solutions and IP-led solutions are supported by industry-specific domain experience and the latest technologies and aim at enabling organizations to solve complex issues relating to their customers, markets, and supply chain at speed and scale. Course5 combines a multi-disciplinary approach to data integration across structured and unstructured data sources to help businesses grow through informed decision-making.

Course5 caters to some of the world's largest enterprises, including many Fortune 500 companies. The company's clients span Technology, Media, and Telecom (TMT), Pharma & Lifesciences, CPG, Retail, and other sectors. Course5 Intelligence has been recognized by leading industry analysts like Gartner and Forrester for its Analytics and AI capabilities and proprietary AI-based platforms.

About 360 ONE Asset Management Limited

360 ONE Asset Management Ltd, earlier known as IIFL Asset Management Limited, is one of India's leading alternates-focused and public markets-focused firm, offering products across multiple asset classes. With deep-domain knowledge, a strong understanding of the Indian markets and a highly experienced investment team, 360 ONE Asset is focused on creating the right risk-adjusted alpha for investors.

360 ONE Asset manages a total AUM of more than INR 58,000 crores* across all its businesses. The sizeable and growing asset management business is the market leader in alternatives and an important pillar of the 360 ONE group, growing independently but also synergistically. 360 ONE Asset's differentiated product suite includes alternative investment funds (AIFs), portfolio management services (PMS) and mutual funds (MFs) spanning across asset classes of public and private equity, fixed income and real estate. 360 ONE Asset has been playing a pivotal role in the growth of the AIF industry in India.

360 ONE Asset has been active in the private equity ecosystem since late 2015. Across multiple strategies, 360 ONE's Category II AIF has early-stage to late-stage investments across Technology, Healthcare, Financial Services and Consumer spaces. The company has made investments in multiple unicorns in India and generated exits from few portfolio companies.

*As on March 31, 2023

Securities investments are subject to market risks and there is no assurance or guarantee that the objectives of the scheme/strategy will be achieved. This press release is neither a recommendation nor a research report for investing in any of these sectors/portfolio companies and these sectors/portfolio companies may or may not form part of the portfolio of the scheme(s) in the future. The views & opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s)/individuals mentioned herein and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of 360 ONE Asset Management Limited ("360 ONE AMC") (Formerly known as IIFL Asset Management Limited) / 360 ONE WAM Limited ("360 ONE WAM") (Formerly known as IIFL Wealth Management Limited) and/or its subsidiaries.

Media Contact:

Megha Chaudhry

Vice President  Global Head of Marketing

Course5 Intelligence

M: +1(925)9179139

E: [email protected]

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1987372/3852234/Course5_Intelligence_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Course5 Intelligence
Highlights

New ClearVue PV solar vision glass IGU design improvements significantly reduce fabrication and assembly time by over 90%

New ClearVue PV solar vision glass IGU design integrates seamlessly with existing industry standard production equipment

New integrated Solar Facade Solutions combines ClearVue PV glazing with ClearVue solar spandrel panels and ClearVue solar wall cladding into fully integrated energy generating building envelope

New Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver significantly lower costs and higher overall energy generation resulting in expected payback period, depending on territory, for a full solar facade of less than 8 years

ClearVue has patented a method to export and import power to an IGU without compromising the seal compared to a traditional IGU

The ClearVue Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver efficiencies that will make solar an attractive mainstream option for commercial building sustainability

PERTH, Australia, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Smart building materials company ClearVue Technologies Limited (ASX:CPV OTC:CVUEF) (ClearVue or the Company) is pleased to announce the official release of its improved product design for the ClearVue PV solar vision glass integrated glazing unit or IGU. At the same time, the Company officially releases its new integrated Solar Facade Solutions.

The official launch of the new IGU design and the new integrated Solar Facade Solutions is taking place at a private event tonight 18:00 GMT on 18 May 2023 at the Building Centre at 26 Store Street, Fitzrovia, London (https://www.buildingcentre.co.uk/).

The new IGU design integrates new electrical connection elements that further simplify the assembly and fabrication of ClearVue's world leading triple and newly engineered double glazed IGU. Testing in fabricator facilities has shown that the design improvements reduce the fabrication time for a finished IGU by over 90% with consequent cost savings and the benefits of being able to scale production faster. Additionally, the new design greatly reduces the already low-risk of end-product rejections.

ClearVue's new Solar Facade Solutions extend energy generation across building facades by combining ClearVue's patented transparent solar glazing with ClearVue solar spandrel panels and solar wall cladding panels for enhanced efficiency and a lower average cost per watt. The integrated ClearVue Solar Facade is expected to provide a faster payback period on new curtain wall and facade projects resulting in improved return on investment. The expected payback period, depending on territory, for a full Solar Facade Solution is less than 8 years versus an expected product life of over 30 years.

Solar technologies used in building and construction have long been relegated to rooftop implementations due to prohibitive costs, weight, installation challenges, and lack of aesthetic appeal. ClearVue is addressing these challenges to make solar energy generation cost effective, easy to install, and aesthetically pleasing for use across commercial building facades and curtain walls. Early testing has demonstrated around 100 watts peak1* per square meter averaged across the building envelope.

By integrating ClearVue's patented transparent solar glazing IGUs with other solar energy generating facade solutions including spandrel panels and cladding, ClearVue can optimize efficiency, lower the overall cost of manufacturing and installation while maximizing energy production from a facade. To bring these different Solar Facade Solutions together, ClearVue has developed an integrated wiring system that will streamline installation, reporting, and maintenance in facade deployments.

ClearVue's latest improvements to its solar clear vision glass IGU design are expected to:

Reduce embedded carbon by approximately 30% by incorporating advanced thermoplastics

Offer a double glazed IGU design which reduces thickness by up to 48.5% when compared to ClearVue's current triple glazed IGU design and deliver a consequent weight reduction of up to 20kg per square meter (40% weight reduction)

Reduce thickness of the previous triple glazed IGU by 15.4%

Provide an IGU assembly process that allows seamless integration with standard IGU assembly production lines

Decrease IGU assembly labor time by 90% with consequent cost savings and increased production outputs

Work with advanced thermal glass coatings that materially reduce building energy use

ClearVue's new Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver:

Reduced overall cost per watt by over 70% when compared to previous generation vision glass

Increased output averaging 100 watts peak per square meter over an entire facade

The new ClearVue Solar Facade solution will be delivered to the market globally through a partner network of licensees including glazing and curtain wall manufacturers, and facade experts and consultants.

Acting CEO and Executive Director Jamie Lyford, commenting on the improvements to the IGU product design and the release of the new ClearVue Solar Facade Solutions offering said:

"The latest improvements to the ClearVue IGU design are a step-change for how ClearVue's core product is manufactured offering significant reductions in fabrication time for our licensed manufacturers. delivering consequent cost reductions and increases in manufacturing throughput. Every licensee and new potential licensee that has been exposed to this new design and approach to assembly of the ClearVue product believes this is the way forward and have supported this design initiative.

The new ClearVue Solar Facade separately takes a dramatic step forward in commercial building sustainability and architectural design. Now, solar energy generation is possible across nearly every surface of the building envelope. The extension of our product range expands the market by increasing the types and parts of buildings which can be addressed by ClearVue products. The ClearVue solar spandrel and cladding, when combined with ClearVue's solar vision glazing, make the integrated solution a game-changer."

The London Building Centre event tonight will be followed by a series of similar events to be hosted by ClearVue in the coming months in key target markets around the world.

The Company looks forward to updating the market on the upcoming launch events when the new upgraded products complete their testing and as the new Solar Facade Solutions are released into the market.

View official ASX Release here: https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02667227-6A1150664?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4

Authorised by the Board of ClearVue Technologies Limited.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Investor Relations Inquiries ClearVue Technologies Limited Earle Harper Head of Investor Relations [email protected] +61 407 345 180 Citadel-MAGNUS Michael Weir / Russell Quinn 0402 347 032 / 0403 322 097 Profile Advisors Rich Myers [email protected] +1 347 774-1125





Media Inquiries Guideforce LLC Lisa Dreher [email protected] +1 425-442-1301 Business & Distribution Inquiries ClearVue Technologies Limited Clifton Smyth Chief Business Development Officer [email protected] +44 756 876 8947



ABOUT CLEARVUE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED

ClearVue Technologies Limited (ASX: CPV) is an Australian technology company that operates in the Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BPIV) sector which involves the integration of solar technology into building surfaces, specifically glass and building facades, to provide renewable energy. ClearVue has developed advanced glass technology that aims to preserve glass transparency to maintain building aesthetics whilst generating electricity.

ClearVue's electricity generating glazing technology is strategically positioned to compliment and make more compelling, the increased use of energy-efficient windows now being regulated in response to global climate change and energy efficiency goals.

Solar PV cells are incorporated around the edges of an Insulated Glass Unit (IGU) used in windows and the lamination interlayer between the glass in the IGU incorporates ClearVue's patented proprietary nano and micro particles, as well as its spectrally selective coating on the rear external surface of the IGU.

ClearVue's window technology has application for use in the building and construction and agricultural industries (amongst others).

ClearVue has worked closely with leading experts from the Electron Science Research Institute, Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Western Australia to develop the technology.

To learn more please visit: www.clearvuepv.com

Follow ClearVue social media on: Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements contained in this release, particularly those regarding possible or assumed future performance, revenue, costs, dividends, production levels or rates, prices or potential growth of ClearVue Technologies Limited, are, or may be, forward looking statements. Such statements relate to future events and expectations and, as such, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements depending on a variety of factors.

1 Peak watt: a manufacturer's unit indicating the amount of power a photovoltaic cell or module will produce at standard test conditions (normally 1,000 watts per square meter and 25 degrees Celsius). Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration - https://www.eia.gov/tools/glossary

SOURCE ClearVue Technologies Limited
OSLO, Norway, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Crayon, a global leader in innovation and IT services, today announced it has signed a new Strategic Collaboration Agreement (SCA) with Amazon Web Services (AWS). The agreement expands Crayon's existing AWS Premier Tier Services Partner role to further cloud adoption and modernization of joint customers.

The agreement also represents a new phase in the relationship to create a Crayon team of 500 AWS-certified experts worldwide. By doing so, Crayon and AWS can bring innovation to clients faster and help them leverage the transformative power of the cloud.

Through this collaboration, customers will receive high performance services to manage their IT estate in the cloud, including guidance, tools, and expertise to manage costs, governance, and security. This collaboration will expand Crayon and AWS's reach, offering clients faster, easier, and more cost-effective solutions to meet their cloud-computing needs while continuing to drive innovation and help organizations optimize their cloud environments.

"Crayon and AWS share a strong commitment to customer centricity and this Strategic Collaboration Agreement enhances how we help our customers leverage all the benefits of the cloud," said Melissa Mulholland, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Crayon. "With our significant technical competence, we are continuing to build momentum on our focus areas of cloud economics, infrastructure, security, data and AI."

AWS has been consistently named as a leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Cloud Infrastructure and Platform Services (CIPS). According to Gartner, AWS offers the greatest breadth and depth of capabilities of any provider in the market for CIPS. Crayon guides its customers on assessing their infrastructure, software, and applications, selecting workloads and phasing, architecting a complete solution, and defining and launching their environment on AWS. Crayon's deep competencies in software assessment and total cost of ownership (TCO) are designed to enable customers to quickly and cost-effectively chose the right combination of services.

"We are delighted to continue the strategic collaboration with Crayon, which is designed to accelerate growth due to the commitment to build a global AWS business unit. Crayon's strength in helping customers optimize cloud consumption to increase innovation will greatly benefit customers on their journey to the cloud," said Vittorio Sanvito, EMEA Director of Partner Development at AWS.

The partnership underscores the value of Crayon and AWS to provide flexibility and unlock greater business value for customers across industries.

With more than 20 years' experience in transforming the IT landscape, Crayon leverages its cloud expertise and experience to help clients build new business models and achieve compliance. Crayon delivers end-to-end managed cloud services combined with training, support, security policy guidance, and all the necessary tools to maximize customers' agility, efficiency, and productivity across multiple cloud platforms.

For more information about Crayon's offerings visit: https://www.crayon.com/software-partners/aws/.

CONTACT:

Melanie Coffee

VP of PR and Communications

[email protected]

+47 46 74 86 48

SOURCE Crayon
CALGARY, AB, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Crescent Point Energy Corp. ("Crescent Point" or the "Company") (TSX: CPG) (NYSE: CPG) held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders ("the meeting") on May 18, 2023.

During the regular business proceedings at the meeting, shareholders elected all director nominees to the Board of Directors of the Company (the "Board") and approved all other items of business brought before the meeting. Voting results for all resolutions and advisory votes are below.

1. Fixing the Number of Directors

The appointment of nine Board members for the ensuing year was approved. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Against Percent 214,364,168 99.46 % 1,166,754 0.54 %



2. Election of Directors

The nine director nominees were elected. Votes were received as follows:

Nominee Votes For Percent Withheld Percent Barbara Munroe 210,166,111 97.51 % 5,364,821 2.49 % Craig Bryksa 214,019,791 99.30 % 1,511,141 0.70 % James E. Craddock 211,768,386 98.25 % 3,762,546 1.75 % John P. Dielwart 213,095,225 98.87 % 2,435,708 1.13 % Mike Jackson 211,898,374 98.31 % 3,632,558 1.69 % Jennifer F. Koury 210,322,985 97.58 % 5,207,948 2.42 % Francois Langlois 210,728,974 97.77 % 4,801,958 2.23 % Myron M. Stadnyk 212,815,897 98.74 % 2,715,036 1.26 % Mindy Wight 210,454,595 97.64 % 5,076,338 2.36 %



3. Appointment of Auditors

The appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as Crescent Point's auditor was approved. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Withheld Percent 224,209,769 96.81 % 7,399,009 3.19 %



4. Advisory Vote on Executive Compensation

The advisory vote to accept the Company's approach to executive compensation was supported by shareholders. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Against Percent 206,803,736 95.95 % 8,727,180 4.05 %



The biographies of Crescent Point's Board members, details about the Company's environmental, social and governance ("ESG") practices and a recorded webcast from the meeting earlier today are available on www.crescentpointenergy.com. The full terms of each resolution voted on at the meeting can be found in the Company's latest information circular, which is also available on Crescent Point's website.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON CRESCENT POINT ENERGY, PLEASE CONTACT:

Shant Madian, Vice President, Capital Markets, or

Sarfraz Somani, Manager, Investor Relations

Telephone: (403) 693-0020 Toll-free (US and Canada): 888-693-0020 Fax: (403) 693-0070

Address: Crescent Point Energy Corp. Suite 2000, 585 - 8th Avenue S.W. Calgary AB T2P 1G1

www.crescentpointenergy.com

Crescent Point shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CPG

SOURCE Crescent Point Energy Corp.
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Advanced detection library, flexible deployment model, and services bundles provide added

protection for customers

NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- CyberMaxx, Inc. , a tech-enabled cybersecurity services company, today introduced MaxxMDR, its revamped managed detection and response (MDR) solution. MaxxMDR provides enhanced protection through an advanced detection library proprietary to CyberMaxx developed through the company's comprehensive DFIR, offensive security, and threat hunting research.

Traditional MDR tools and processes only provide a base-level of protection. By supplementing a SIEM or EDR tool's default detections library with advanced insights gained from its offensive and DFIR work, MaxxMDR strengthens an organization's defenses and enables them to catch more advanced threats. This provides customers with a strong partnership for a comprehensive offensive and defensive approach to securing their environments.

CyberMaxx launches next-generation MDR combining offensive and defensive security Tweet this

MaxxMDR empowers organizations to monitor and manage cyber risk through:

24 x 7 x 365 SOC: around-the-clock monitoring and response by CyberMaxx Security Operations Center of experts

around-the-clock monitoring and response by CyberMaxx Security Operations Center of experts Custom Detection Library: derived from years of experience and working closely with our DFIR and Offensive security teams across a diverse set of customers

derived from years of experience and working closely with our DFIR and Offensive security teams across a diverse set of customers Purpose-built: purpose-built platforms designed with SOAR in mind

purpose-built platforms designed with SOAR in mind Endpoint security (EDR): partnership with industry-leading endpoint security providers like SentinelOne and Crowdstrike

partnership with industry-leading endpoint security providers like SentinelOne and Crowdstrike Proprietary Advanced Analytics Platform: cloud-native analytics platform for better integration with SAAS and IAAS

cloud-native analytics platform for better integration with SAAS and IAAS Full Visibility: full stack visibility of your assets both on-premise and in the cloud

full stack visibility of your assets both on-premise and in the cloud Faster & Better Quality: improved mean time to recovery (MTTR) and reduced false positives through automation and orchestration

Additionally, MaxxMDR is offered through a flexible deployment model available in both managed and co-managed environments. The managed solution is delivered on a proprietary analytics engine for organizations looking for a fully outsourced solution. The co-managed solution is delivered on a third-party SIEM either licensed by CyberMaxx or the customer and allows the customer more control and access.

"The speed and pace of evolving threats today requires a new approach to defensive security," said Michael Quattrochi, CyberMaxx's SVP of Defensive Security. "Traditional MDR solutions too often aren't able to detect modern threats because they are based on legacy insights. By empowering MaxxMDR with real-time insights into active threats from our offensive and DFIR work we are enabling customers to better keep pace with their adversaries and strengthen their defensive posture."

MaxxMDR bundles

CyberMaxx helps customers strengthen their security posture by offering both offensive and defensive security solutions together. The MDR bundles strengthen MDR detection with insights from offensive solutions and provides a uniform customer experience at a competitive investment level.

MaxxMDR: provides monitoring + Alert Escalation and containment through EDR API .

provides monitoring + Alert Escalation and containment through . MaxxMDR Advanced: builds on monitoring, alerting, and containment by including an annual Security Configuration Assessment (M365/Azure, Active Directory, AWS & GCP), semi-annual Hunt & Detect in EDR, annual IR or BCDR Tabletop, Password Hash Strength Testing, Deception Tokens Deployment and Monitoring, and Discounted Advanced DFIR Rates.

builds on monitoring, alerting, and containment by including an annual Security Configuration Assessment (M365/Azure, Active Directory, AWS & GCP), semi-annual Hunt & Detect in EDR, annual IR or BCDR Tabletop, Password Hash Strength Testing, Deception Tokens Deployment and Monitoring, and Discounted Advanced DFIR Rates. MaxxMDR Premium: builds on MaxxMDR Advanced and includes monthly Hunt & Detect in EDR, Endpoint Purple Team, annual External Penetration Test, annual VIP Public Data Reconnaissance, additional discounts on advanced DFIR Rates.

You can learn more about the MaxxMDR solution at www.cybermaxx.com/mdr and learn about MaxxMDR bundles here: www.cybermaxx.com/mdrbundles

About CyberMaxx: CyberMaxx, Inc., founded in 2002, is a tech-enabled cybersecurity service provider headquartered in Nashville, TN. Through a comprehensive set of services CyberMaxx empowers customers to Assess, Monitor, and Manage cyber risk and stay ahead of emerging threats. CyberMaxx expanded its capabilities through the 2022 acquisition of CipherTechs, an international cybersecurity company providing a complete cybersecurity portfolio across MDR Services, Offensive Security, Governance, Risk & Compliance, DFIR, and 3rd party security product sourcing.

CyberMaxx's managed detection and response solution (MAXX MDR) is designed to be scalable for clients of all sizes, providing protection and improving the organization's security posture, ultimately giving customers peace of mind that their systems and data are secure.

SOURCE CyberMaxx
SONOMA, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Daylight Wine & Spirits , known for its flagship brand, Ammunition Wine & Whiskey , is thrilled to announce the promotion of Doug Benzenberg, carrying over 25 years of industry experience, to National Sales Director.

This role is integral in leading the Daylight Wine & Spirits sales team and driving growth across the brand's award-winning portfolio and substantial distribution network spanning 40 states.

"As an entrepreneur leading an independent company, you're required to wear many hats but you need to know when to pass the torch," said Daylight Wine and Spirits President and Co-Founder, Andy Wahl. "That time is now and the management team here at Daylight couldn't be more proud to see Doug take this massive step in his career. His passion and undeniable talent, instills great confidence that he will rise to the challenge and drive our sales to the next level.

Doug, who resides in Colorado, joined Daylight in January of 2020 to run the west division. After much success, he further cemented his commitment to the company by becoming a vested partner in early 2023.

Prior to joining Daylight, Doug's first industry job brought him to the Lansdowne Resort in Virginia, where he developed a true passion for the food and beverage business.

In 2003, he joined Constellation Brands as a field sales manager which eventually brought him to Denver in 2006 where he ran the state for the Icon Estates division. From there, he joined Hope Family Wines as a regional sales manager. After a seven year run building new brands with Hundred Acre Wine Group and Old Bridge, he saw the potential in the Daylight portfolio and joined the team as a regional sales director.

"I'm honored the leadership at Daylight trusts me to captain this incredibly talented sales crew and serve as a steward for our phenomenal distribution, retail and restaurant partners," added Doug Benzenberg, National Sales Director for Daylight Wine & Spirits. "I'm looking forward to utilizing my experience and passion for brand building to provide internal structure and foster a culture that will help accelerate the momentum behind our award winning family of brands."

Daylight Wine and Spirits brands can be found in select retailers, restaurants and online partners nationwide. For more information on Daylight Wine and Spirits, visit daylightwineandspirits.com and follow along on Instagram at @Drink Ammunition .

About Daylight Wine & Spirits

Since 2013, Andy Wahl and Bill Kerr, co-founders of Daylight Wine & Spirits, have focused on producing world class wines and spirits that resonate with real people. From day one, the Daylight team committed to a singular phrase; "Excellence Over Everything." Nearly a decade later, not only has that commitment taken shape, but it continues to drive every element of the company  from grape to glass, barrel to bottle. Daylight's brands all share a common thread, each challenging stodgy industry conventions and instead focusing squarely on crafting world-class products for passionate consumers, not critics. For more information on Ammunition Wines and Whiskey, Screen Door Cellars and Badgerhound visit: daylightwineandspirits.com.

SOURCE Daylight Wine & Spirits
Second Such Recent Win for ZiGGY, Following Choice by Barcelona of EV Safe Charge as Winner of EV-Charging Innovation Challenge

LOS ANGELES, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) has named ZiGGY, the new robotic EV charger from EV Safe Charge, as a participant in the airport's demonstration program to assess cutting-edge EV-charging approaches this summer. ZiGGY is the first and only mobile EV charger that aims to affordably and safely meet the EV charging needs of virtually any commercial parking lot  including airports - and offer a built-in communications and advertising platform to create a revenue stream for sites and maximize EV owner engagement. This airport demonstration is the first of its kind anywhere. DFW's Innovation and Planning teams will host a series of EV charging demonstrations from May through August.

ZiGGY with Dallas Fort Worth International Airport

"Airports must meet the growing demand for travelers owning EVs to easily charge while they fly," explained Caradoc Ehrenhalt, founder and CEO, EV Safe Charge. "In evaluating potential technologies for their demonstration, DFW chose to display the tech offered by ZiGGY due to its innovative flexibility to reach every car in a parking lot, not just a few spaces. We look forward to working with DFW with the goal of identifying more options to service their expanding EV-driving traveler base, and we are thrilled to be part of this historic moment."

EV Safe Charge, in addition to selling commercial Level 2 and DC Fast Chargers, creates and implements temporary charging solutions for its large-scale commercial customers, including many mobility manufacturers such as Jaguar, Porsche, Stellantis, Nissan, Audi, Daimler, and Harley-Davidson.

"At EV Safe Charge, we recognized early the need for a truly mobile EV charging solution and worked the past three years to develop ZiGGY, an onsite-autonomous vehicle operating through an app to meet a broad range of EV charging needs in locations away from single- and multi-family housing," continued Ehrenhalt. "We are thrilled to be included in these historic demonstrations at DFW Airport so that we can bring the convenience, safety and reliability of ZiGGY to EV drivers traveling from this important hub."

This DFW Airport demonstration project follows other recent EV Safe Charge milestones. Recently, the city of Barcelona chose EV Safe Charge as the winner of its pilot-project competition for flexible EV charging based on ZiGGY's ability to serve many vehicles within a parking area. The aim of Barcelona's project is to expand electromobility in the city. This is the first municipal pilot of a mobile, robotic EV charger.

The announcement from DFW International Airport can be seen here.

About EV Safe Charge

EV Safe Charge is a leading provider and innovator of flexible electric vehicle (EV) charging technology. We offer end-to-end charging solutions to support the demands of the rapidly growing EV market. The company, funded by private angel investors, created the first comprehensive mobile rental charging solution for the launch of the Jaguar I-PACE, and is meeting the mobile charging needs for major OEMs and events and venues needing temporary charging. EV Safe Charge clients include Audi, Hertz, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Porsche, Stellantis, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and many others. A BRITE Energy Innovators portfolio company, EV Safe Charge recently previewed ZiGGY, its advanced technology solution to further meet mobile charging needs. EV Safe Charge is committed to creating a more sustainable and convenient electric future. For more information, visit our Website, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. Charging Toward a Greener Future

ZiGGY is a Trademark of EV Safe Charge Inc.

A short ZiGGY video can be seen here and one created by the World Economic Forum can be seen here.

Media contact:

[email protected]

844-EV-FOR-ME

SOURCE EV Safe Charge Inc.
Digs' new homeowner (digital twin) feature now connects homeowners to pros nationwide, with ability to share access to their virtual digs, thanks to the partnership

VANCOUVER, Wash., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Digs , a web-based collaboration platform for home builders and homeowners, announces the official release of its software and the launch of its homeowner experience. Digs is also partnering with Thumbtack , a technology leader building the modern home management platform, to connect its new homeowner experience [digital twin] feature with pros nationwide.

After a successful beta launch at the International Builders Show ( IBS ) in February, Digs is now being used nationwide, with builders and homeowners from almost all 50 states and Canada, resulting in nearly half a billion dollars worth of homes on the platform.

"Digs has incorporated months of real-world usage and feedback from the builder community, and this launch will, for the first time, allow builders to hand off homes digitally  moving the physical home binder from the junk drawer into the cloud. This represents a significant milestone for our company." Says Ryan Fink, CEO & Co-Founder at Digs.

Digs homeowner experience is a complete digital version of a home [digital twin] in the cloud. Homeowners can seamlessly share their digital home with skilled professionals for all maintenance and home project needs, enabling them to manage all aspects of the homeownership journey and fully understand their home for the first time.

Nick Schiffer, Founder of Boston-based NS Builders , is a pioneer in providing high-end full-service client experiences. "We're excited to be working with Digs  to not only help them develop the software further, but to utilize the software at NS Builders for all of our post-construction needs. Having a program to help us keep everything in one spot for a clean client handoff will be great for homeowners and our Home Care technicians. This will make our post-construction services that much more efficient and cost-effective."

Ty Frackiewicz, CPO & Co-Founder at Digs expands upon the vision for the homeowner experience. "We are partnering with a leader in the space, Thumbtack , who connects homeowners with a team of professionals to help care for every aspect of their new home. This is an immense value-add for builders to hand over a home to their clients with a full digital record and a built-in network to support in maintaining their most valuable asset."

Through the Thumbtack API, Digs homeowners are intelligently matched to skilled local professionals with the right expertise, availability, and pricing  available nationwide. With Digs, homeowners can invite pros into their cloud-based virtual [digs] home to understand the full context of the space before they arrive on site.

"We're excited to partner with Digs, not only to help connect homeowners with the right pros, but also to provide pros with deeper context for the project before ever stepping foot onsite," said David Steckel, Senior Director of Partnerships at Thumbtack. "This integration will allow for an even more seamless and hassle-free experience for both pros and homeowners from the beginning of the home improvement journey."

Digs is also teaming up with one of its earliest residential construction partners, Cascade West Development , which specializes in high-end and comprehensive home construction, to expand Digs' offering to two of its latest residential communities  Trails at Whipple Creek and Firestone Ridge totaling over $100 million home value on the platform.

"We partnered closely with Digs from day one because we strongly believe that bringing our clients' visions to life takes deep communication. Digs allows us to collaborate with our homeowners effortlessly and document every detail, so we can focus on our craft of bringing their vision to life." Says Ron Wagner at Cascade West.

About Digs

Digs mission is to power experiences that unlock happier homes. Digs is a web-based software company that leverages human-centric design and patent-pending artificial intelligence (AI) to make it simple for residential builders and homeowners to store documents, collaborate on home builds, and generate automatic digital homeowner handoffs. Digs results in more efficient builds and a full digital understanding [digital twin] of the home for the homeowner that is both usable and shareable.

About Thumbtack

Thumbtack is a technology leader building the modern home management platform. Through the Thumbtack app , homeowners can effortlessly manage their homes  confidently knowing what to do, when to do it, and who to hire. Bringing the $600 billion home services industry online, Thumbtack empowers millions of homeowners to fix, maintain, and improve their most valuable asset. The company is backed by Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global Management, Javelin Venture Partners, Baillie Gifford, and CapitalG, among others.

SOURCE Digs
Mortlach celebrates those boldly pushing design forward during one of the industry's biggest moments in continuation of its Mortlach program

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Mortlach Single Malt Scotch Whisky, the design world's whisky of choice, celebrates its unique heritage and the creative community through a series of events aligned with the NYCxDesign festival from May 17 - 22, 2023. These events, which range from private celebrations to Mortlach signature serves by the city's premier cocktail bars expressly for Design Week, promise to bring together the boldest and brightest minds of the industry over well-made cocktails with the whisky crafted by design.

Discover Design throughout NYC with Cocktails and Bespoke Events from Mortlach Single Malt Scotch Whisky at NYCxDesign Tweet this Mortlach by Design - NYCxDesign Week Activations

The Mortlach event series is part of the brand's ongoing collaboration with the design industry, following the successful Mortlach by Design program launched last year, known as the Six Stills Series. The program featured six renowned designers who crafted bespoke products inspired by Mortlach signature Single Malt Scotch, its six unique stills and distinct distillation process.

The week's cocktail trail kicks off on Thursday, May 18, with a cocktail hour at The Campbell 6:00 pm  8:00 pm, followed by a post-opening party and Mortlach flight tasting at the Brandy Library from 8:00 pm  10:00 pm. Mortlach will also be activating during the Mercer Street Block Party with signature cocktails at Lure Fishbar , Friday, May 19, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm.

Furthermore, NYC residents and visitors alike are invited to discover design through taste by sampling Mortlach cocktails around the city at:

The Modern , Friday, May 19 , 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

, , 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm The Standard Grill , Saturday, May 20 , 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

, , 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm Copper and Oak , Saturday, May 20 , 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm - Mortlach tasting

, , - LB , Saturday, May 20 , 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

, , 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Analogue , Sunday, May 21 , 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

These events are private and attendance by RSVP only at https://linktr.ee/mortlachbydesign . RSVP does not guarantee entry. Entry is on a first come first serve basis. Thank you for your understanding.

In addition to these events, the above bars will feature custom design-inspired cocktails on their menus throughout the week running May 17 - May 23, 2023. Design-lovers can also experience Mortlach limited-edition cocktails at Flatiron Room Murray Hill and NoMad , Hawksmoor and Quin Bar throughout the week.

In celebration of this Design Week, Mortlach has created an illustrated map highlighting the events and exhibitions held by its design coterie and frequent collaborators around Manhattan's design districts, as well as where one can enjoy Mortlach year-round. To learn more, please visit www.mortlach.com/the-places.html to see our illustrated map highlighting each spot. Additionally, to purchase a bottle, please visit mortlach.com .

About Mortlach

The Mortlach distillery was founded in 1823 in Dufftown, Scotland by James Findlater and his two partners, Donald McIntosh and Alexander Gordon. In 1852, the distillery was reopened by John Gordon after a few silent years. In 1853, Gordon took on George Cowie as a partner, a former engineer who spent a career carving the great Scottish railways into the rugged landscape, creating John Gordon & Co. Cowie became the sole proprietor when Gordon died in 1867.

Dr. Alexander Cowie, George's son, oversaw the very first spirit distillation through a completely unique and fiendishly complex process, which he crafted using his scientific acumen. He was not a distiller by trade and had not long returned from a posting in Hong Kong, where he spent five years practicing medicine. After the untimely death of his older brother, he returned to run Dufftown's oldest distillery with his father. George bestowed it all to Alexander when he died, and Alexander doubled the stills his father left him. www.mortlach.com

About DIAGEO

DIAGEO is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bulleit and Buchanan's whiskies, Smirnoff, Ciroc and Ketel One vodkas, Casamigos, DeLeon and Don Julio tequilas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Tanqueray and Guinness.

DIAGEO is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: DGE) and their products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world.

For more information about DIAGEO, their people, brands, and performance, visit www.diageo.com. Visit DIAGEO's global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practices. Follow Twitter and Instagram for news and information about DIAGEO North America: @Diageo_NA .

Please drink responsibly. Mortlach Single Malt Scotch Whiskies. 43.4  55.9% Alc/Vol.

Imported by Diageo, New York, NY.

SOURCE Mortlach Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Ongoing donations will support the youth-serving organization in providing safe spaces, caring mentors and life-enhancing experiences to kids and teens across the nation.

ATLANTA, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- DYMA Brands ("DYMA" or the "Company"), an industry leader in innovation and foodservice manufacturing, will launch newly designed, co-branded salt and pepper packets under the Single Serv brand that highlight the Company's support of Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

In May 2023, DYMA will launch the co-branded product platform with Boys & Girls Clubs of America that will put a spotlight on the youth-serving organization in all restaurants and foodservice venues across the country, inspiring and educating consumers on the organization's mission to support today's young people. In connection with the launch, DYMA will make ongoing donations to Boys & Girls Clubs of America to support the organization's mission of providing innovative, high-quality programs designed to empower youth to excel in school and lead healthy, productive lives.

DYMA CEO Bill Goetz has served as co-chair of the National Resource Development Committee since February 2023 and as a National Trustee for the organization's Southeast Region since 2021. During this time, DYMA has supported Boys & Girls Clubs of America by: sponsoring Southeast fundraising events; giving to The Atlanta Braves Foundation; and participating in charitable community programs like youth backpack and toy drives

"DYMA is deeply committed to the mission of Boys & Girls Clubs and is honored to launch new packaging that both supports young people and reflects the culture of community service and philanthropy at DYMA," said Mr. Goetz. "As a company, we see it as our responsibility improve our community and educate our customers to do the same. By co-branding our salt and pepper packets, which are used by millions of consumers across the country for takeout, delivery, or in-restaurant dining, we aim to spread awareness of the great work Boys & Girls Clubs of America is doing to support today's young people."

"For over 160 years, Boys & Girls Clubs have provided a safe place for young people to have access to caring mentors and life-enhancing programs," said Jim Clark, President & CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of America. "We are honored to have DYMA's support as we continue to educate consumers on the role our mission plays to enable our next generation to reach their full potential."

DYMA plans to exhibit the new packets at the 2023 National Restaurant Association Show on May 20-23. Attendees can sample the product by visiting Booth 9622 located at the Lakeside Center of McCormick Place in Chicago.

About DYMA Brands

Based in Atlanta, GA, DYMA Brands is a leader in liquid portion control and bulk condiments, seasonings and dry blend mixes, and custom printing to the foodservice industry. Their product portfolio includes brands such as Chef's Companion and Flavor Fresh, as well as licensed properties. DYMA Brands is known for consistent quality, service, flexibility and innovation.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of America

For more than 160 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA.org) has provided a safe place for kids and teens to learn and grow. Clubs offer caring adult mentors, fun and friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily basis during critical non-school hours. Boys & Girls Clubs programming promotes academic success, good character and leadership, and healthy lifestyles. Over 5,000 Clubs serve over 3.6 million young people through Club membership and community outreach. Clubs are located in cities, towns, public housing and on Native lands throughout the country, and serve military families in BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations worldwide. National headquarters are located in Atlanta. Learn more about Boys & Girls Clubs of America on Facebook and Twitter .

Media Contact:

Simone Leung

Kekst CNC

[email protected]

SOURCE DYMA Brands
ATLANTA, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Coming on the heels of the Company's successful second hosted Speaker Series in Orlando, Florida, Experiential Media Group 'EMG' LLC ("E/M Group") will participate in the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Annual Meeting and Museum Expo in Denver, Colorado May 19-22, 2023.

The mission of the American Alliance of Museums is to champion equitable and impactful museums by connecting people, fostering learning and community, and nurturing museum excellence. E/M Group supports the mission by exhibiting to millions of people all over the world.

E/M Group joins the 2023 American Alliance of Museums Annual Meeting and Museum Expo (Booth 1044) Tweet this

The Company's affiliate, RMS Titanic, Inc. is the salvor-in-possession of the wreck site of the RMS Titanic and has honorably conducted eight expeditions to the wreck site, recovering approximately 5,500 authentic artifacts. Real artifacts and real stories are presented in exhibitions worldwide through E/M Group, and research is ongoing. Visitors can stop by booth 1044 to meet key members of the team, learn what new experiences and exhibition enhancements the Company is offering, and experience authentic artifacts recovered from the Titanic wreck site.

"We are pleased to have announced several key partnerships since the beginning of the year which allow us to expand our reach and capability to tell the captivating story of Titanic in fulfillment of our mission. With the addition of permanent international installations, digital content, immersive environments, and blockchain capabilities, the Company has successfully entered a new era in the presentation of historical content," related Jessica Sanders, CEO of E/M Group. "Our goal is to adapt to the changing needs of our venues and guests, and we believe with creative approaches to our environments and agreements and an ethical business approach, we will continue to build strong partnerships."

"At TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition, our touring exhibitions team places a high focus on meeting the needs of museums, promoters, and audiences globally. Our objective is to transform the way in which artifacts are presented and experienced during our exhibitions," commented Gautam Chandna, Director of Business Development of E/M Group. "The strategic partnerships we have formed in the US and international markets will not only foster a more unified approach, but also enhance and expand the Titanic ecosystem. Our pledge is to provide unparalleled experiences to our audiences while consistently pushing the boundaries of improvement and innovation."

For media requests, please contact: Wendy Perez ([email protected])

About E/M Group

Experiential Media Group, LLC (E/M Group), located in Atlanta, GA, is a world leader in the development and display of exhibitions that educate, entertain, and inspire audiences of all ages. E/M Group's affiliate, RMS Titanic, Inc., serves as the salvor in possession of RMS Titanic. RMS Titanic, Inc., has recovered and conserved more than 5,500 artifacts since 1987. The Company's exhibitions captivate audiences through compelling stories, authentic artifacts, and amazing specimens. Exhibitions are presented in museums, exhibition centers and entertainment venues. Additional information about E/M Group is available at www.emgroup.com.

SOURCE E/M Group, LLC
Global cybersecurity regulations create increased demand for C2A Security's DevSecOps Platform, for the specific needs of the automotive industry

JERUSALEM and SINGAPORE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- C2A Security, the only DevSecOps Platform for car makers and mobility companies, announced it has been selected by Evvo Labs, a leading IT Security company in Singapore, to expand the availability of the EVSec platform to EV Charging and mobility companies. Evvo Labs will provide C2A Security's EVSec solution to companies in Singapore, China, Vietnam, and other countries in the APAC region.

As cybersecurity regulations for the automotive industry are being adopted globally, OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and EVSE (Electric Vehicles Supply Equipment) companies will need to implement new security tools and practices throughout the development process. Implementing these tools and practices is a complex and often manual process, yet are mandatory to strengthen the company's competitiveness of delivering innovative products faster to consumers, while adhering to regulatory requirements.

"We are thrilled that Evvo Labs has selected our tailored solution to help bolster their security portfolio around EV Charging and mobility in the APAC region," said C2A Security CEO, Roy Fridman. "Just last month, the FBI warned consumers to refrain from using public USB charging stations at airports and hotels due to cybersecurity concerns, and our researchers already identified similar vulnerabilities in some EV charging stations. We look forward to working with IT security leaders Evvo Labs to improve their customers' security posture and promote stricter regulation around EV Charging infrastructure."

C2A Security's flagship product EVSec Platform is the only cybersecurity DevOps platform that helps automotive companies to automate their risk management practices, at scale. The platform was built to 'take the edge off' the compliance process for cybersecurity standards and regulations. EVSec enables developers to focus on innovation, such as new products and features, to provide more business value to consumers while getting built-in, efficient, and streamlined cybersecurity practices, tools, and processes.

"Evvo Labs is excited to add C2A Security's solution to our cybersecurity portfolio, providing all-round cyber protection to the EV charging, and mobility provider, not just in terms of IT security, but also OT security as well," said Rayson Lim, Deputy CEO of Evvo Labs. "Asian countries' movement towards green and sustainable energy will push up the demand for electric vehicles, and cybersecurity on EV charging stations will be a real concern. With C2A Security coming into play, this concern will be better addressed."

Just this year, C2A Security added new top-tier mobility players to its customer and partners portfolio, such as Valeo, Marelli, NTT Data, and Segula Technologies, among others, and the EVSec Platform is already in use at several global car makers.

C2A Security will be hosting a special discussion on "Software, Regulation, and Electrification in the Automotive Industry" on May 22, 2023, in Tel Aviv during EcoMotion Week, and exhibiting at the EcoMotion main event on May 23, 2023.

About C2A Security

C2A Security is the only DevSecOps Platform vendor that addresses the specific needs of car makers and mobility companies. Founded in 2016, C2A Security transforms cybersecurity from being a company-wide limitation to a business value multiplier, through advanced security automation and compliance, to shorten software release times and decrease costs. Our vision is to turn product security into a seamless, automated, and transparent process, reducing time to deployment and costs of managing automotive software products and resources. C2A Security was founded by NDS/Cisco veteran Michael Dick, and is based in Jerusalem, Israel.

https://c2a-sec.com/

About Evvo Labs

EVVO Labs is Singapore's leading digital transformation and corporate technology services provider. The company offers a wide range of services including advisory and consulting, artificial intelligence, blockchain, BPO cloud, cybersecurity, IoT, media, mobility, and system integration. EVVO Labs helps both public and private sector organizations streamline their workflows and make the most of disruptive technologies. From design to build, training to operation, the company provides seamless and effective solutions and applications to customers across all industries. With a focus on innovation and commitment to helping businesses thrive in the digital age, EVVO Labs is a trusted partner for organizations looking to transform the way they work.

Photos available at this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1_yQnwSk6dGAv2FCUsIrtFn8QR-9LDLDj?usp=sharing

Contact

C2A Security

Estee Yaari

[email protected]

SOURCE C2A
Retail pioneer, student mentor, and bestselling author Bob Fisch presents two $25K awards

to graduate students from Fashion Design and Global Fashion Management Programs

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 18, the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), a college of the State University of New York (SUNY), announced that two $25,000 awards for entrepreneurial excellence were presented to outstanding students in the Fashion Design MFA and Global Fashion Management MPS programs in its School of Graduate Studies. Robert (Bob) Fisch, founder and former chairman and CEO of rue21, award-winning author of the bestseller Get a Life: A Roadmap to Rule the World, and an FIT Foundation board member, established the awards to help advise and advance the careers of the students.

Fisch, widely recognized for his bold innovations in value-priced, fast fashion retailing, said, "I enjoy mentoring the FIT Fashion Design and Global Fashion Management graduate students to be bold and fearless in their careers and lives. It's important to stand up for what you believe and not be afraid to take risks. It's about intergenerational bonding and mutual mentoring. The FIT graduate students are innovative thinkers, with big ideas soaring toward their futures. My role in mentoring is to help them take their vision to fruition."

"We are so grateful to Bob Fisch for recognizing the incredible talent of our master's level students, and for creating the entrepreneurial awards and scholarship for our School of Graduate Studies," said FIT President Joyce F. Brown. "The students who are fortunate enough to win this prestigious award continue to have the opportunity to be in touch with Bob and be mentored by him, and that advice means so much more than words can convey."

"I've watched the students over the past year benefit immeasurably not only from Bob Fisch's generosity of resources but also his generosity of time and mentorship," said Dr. Brooke Carlson, interim dean of the School of Graduate Studies. "This scholarship is about so much more than dollars, and we remain grateful for Bob's ongoing commitment to the students with whom he is working."

The Class of 2023 recipients of the Bob Fisch Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence are:

Lindsey Mortensen , of Dallas , Mubarak Abliz, of Xinjiang, China , and Victoria Shchepakina, of Saratov, Russia , all Global Fashion Management, for POSSE, the "Innerwear as Outerwear" luxury lingerie brand created for sizes D cup and up.

"This is an idea we really believe in, and I struggled myself with this," said Mortensen. "I can't wait to help bring this to life, and I can't wait for you all to see it."

"We have a launch plan that we presented where we allocated certain costs toward product development and marketing, so we already have our initial solid plan," said Shchepakina. "This funding will help us get started."

"We had multiple one-on-ones where he was really able to help me with my career," said Abliz of the mentorship he received from Fisch. "Meeting the Millennial Advisory Board was very inspiring, and [Bob Fisch] was able to give me really good advice. He was always able to help me stay grounded and help me actualize my plans for the long term."

Valeria Watson , Fashion Design MFA, of Guadalajara, Mexico , creator of ValeriaWatson, a line of clothing that explores the blend of cultures between the United States and Mexico . She designs expressive, colorful, playful garments through handweaving and digital printing of childhood photographs, inviting all to join in the celebration.

"I have a business plan with the fabrics I need and the machines I need," Watson said. "I went to Mexico and visited factories because I want to support local talent. With the money, I'm getting the materials and the machines, and I'm flying over to Mexico in a week to contact the factories and start production. I have a store in Williamsburg that's willing to take in my first collection."

Amanda Brown, one of last year's winners with her company, Maid to Alter, underscored what it's been like to receive support from the award. "Winning the award opened that door for us, but it was so much more than financial support," Brown said. "The outpouring of support and recognition we have received from Bob Fisch and the FIT community has been life changing. Our GFM experience taught us there are so many ways to be an entrepreneur. We know we will face many more obstacles before running a successful company, but with the support of all the amazing people we have met in the last few years, we are excited about what's next for Maid to Alter."

Launched in 2021, the awards are an extension of the comprehensive Bob Fisch Graduate Student Award Program, which celebrates entrepreneurial excellence and intergenerational mentoring through an initial gift from Fisch of over $400,000. The program includes thesis project completion grants, scholarships for FIT's Fashion Design MFA and Global Fashion Management MPS programs, year-round educational "fireside chats" led by Fisch, and extraordinary one-on-one and group mentoring sessions.

FIT's Fashion Design MFA program, established in 2017, focuses on practice-based research. Unconventional in approach, the program welcomes students with non-fashion backgrounds as well as those with rich traditional undergraduate training in fashion design. The curriculum emphasizes research methodologies and pushes critical thinking that motivates innovation and invention in design, fit, cut, construction, silhouette, and materiality. The Global Fashion Management program emphasizes leadership, applied creativity, problem-solving, and analytical thinking along with effective writing and presentation skills. The curriculum includes courses in production management and supply chain, global marketing and fashion brand management, culture and international business, corporate finance, politics and world trade, business policy, global retail management, entrepreneurship, and leadership.

To find out more, please visit FIT .

About FIT

A part of the State University of New York, FIT has been a leader in career education in art, design, business, and technology throughout its history. Providing over 8,000 students with an uncommon blend of hands-on, practical experience, theory, and a firm grounding in the liberal arts, the college offers a wide range of affordable programs that foster innovation and collaboration. Its distinctive curriculum is geared to today's rapidly growing creative economy, including fields such as computer animation, toy design, production management, film and media, and cosmetics and fragrance marketing. Internationally renowned, FIT draws on its New York City location to provide a vibrant, creative community in which to learn. The college offers nearly 50 majors and grants AAS, BFA, BS, MA, MFA, and MPS degrees, preparing students for professional success and leadership in the new creative economy. Among notable alumni in fashion are Calvin Klein, Michael Kors, Reem Acra, Brian Atwood, Dennis Basso, Francisco Costa, Norma Kamali, Nanette Lepore, Bibhu Mohapatra, Daniel Roseberry, Ralph Rucci, John Bartlett, Peter Do, and Michelle Smith. Other prominent graduates include Leslie Blodgett, creator of bareMinerals; international restaurant designer Tony Chi; and Nina Garcia, editor in chief, Elle.

About the FIT Foundation



As the primary fundraising arm for FIT, the FIT Foundation supports and celebrates fearless innovation, inclusivity, and unabashed creativity. Since 1944, the FIT Foundation has advanced the mission of the college and its strategic goals by preparing students to fuel the future of fashion, business, design, technology, and the arts. Serving as a bridge between donors and FIT's schools, departments, and programs, the foundation strives to inspire and empower the vibrant community of FIT friends, students, alumni, faculty, and industry leaders. Through scholarship development, industry engagement, and programs and events with social impact, the foundation is dedicated to the following core mandates: igniting thought leadership, fostering ingenuity and exploration, and helping FIT lead the next generation of unconventional minds into the new creative economy.

About Bob Fisch

Robert Fisch is recognized as a pioneering merchant for his bold and successful innovations in value-priced, fast fashion retailing, notably at rue21. Fisch is the founder and former chairman and CEO of rue21, and took the company from bankruptcy to a fast-track winning streak that included a hot-stock IPO, building a national network of 1,200 stores, and a billion-dollar plus value. Fisch's proven management practices and motivational skills have resulted in a unique mutual-mentoring relationship with millennials in the workplace. He formed a millennial advisory board which also served as a consulting body for his 2019 book release, Fisch Tales: The Making of a Millennial Baby Boomer, and his current book, Get a Life: A Roadmap to Rule the World, which led him to becoming a featured Forbes published author. Fisch is currently president of RNF Group, a consulting company focused on the assessment and evaluation of retail and other business enterprises, as well as providing mentoring services to existing management of these companies.

SOURCE Fashion Institute of Technology
NYC DOT Releases Evaluation of New York City Curbside Charger Deployment showing high utilization and high reliability of FLO curbside chargers

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - A newly released evaluation report on the NYC DOT Curbside Level 2 EV Charging Pilot Program shows FLO curbside chargers maintained an uptime of more than 99% during the first 18 months of the program. The pilot program was launched by the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT), Consolidated Edison (Con Ed) and FLO, a leading North American electric vehicle (EV) charging company and smart charging solutions provider, in June 2021, and includes 100 public FLO curbside Level 2 charging stations located across all five boroughs.

FLO Maintains 99% Uptime at NYC Chargers During First 18 Months (CNW Group/FLO)

During the evaluation period, nearly 50,000 charging sessions were initiated by 7,200 unique users. Overall utilization of the system, or the percentage of time the chargers were connected to a vehicle, reached 34% in December 2022. The efficiency rate of the system  the percentage of time that vehicles were actively charging while plugged in  was 81%. FLO maintained an uptime of over 99% on its network of chargers across the city.

"With an operational uptime of more than 99% and a presence in all five boroughs, these curbside chargers are available when and where NYC EV drivers need them," said Louis Tremblay, president and CEO of FLO. "FLO is proud that our curbside chargers are bringing access to EV charging to more and more drivers and we look forward to advancing our work with our partners at the NYC DOT and Con Edison as New York City's transition to a cleaner transportation future continues."

EV adoption in New York City has grown rapidly in recent years. The New York City DOT has set ambitious targets for vehicle electrification to meet its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. By 2030, the city will need over 40,000 publicly accessible Level 2 chargers to meet the projected demand of the nearly 400,000 EVs expected to be registered in the city.

The report will provide one of the first comprehensive evaluations of a curbside Level 2 EV charging program in the world. By benchmarking the usage patterns and performance of the FLO chargers deployed for the program, this evaluation provides valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders in major cities looking to deploy curbside chargers.

To learn more about how FLO calculates uptime, visit: 98% Uptime | FLO

About FLO

FLO is a leading North American electric vehicle (EV) charging network operator and a smart charging solutions provider. We overcome climate change and accelerate EV adoption through a vertically integrated business model and by delivering EV drivers the best charging experience from curbside to countryside. Every month, we enable more than 1 million charging events thanks to over 90,000 fast and level 2 EV charging stations deployed at public, private and residential locations. FLO operates its network across North America and our high-quality charging stations are assembled with care in Michigan and Quebec. To learn more about what "EV charging done right" means to us, visit flo.com .

FLO is a registered trademark of Services FLO Inc.

SOURCE FLO
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Azerbaijan's "Zangilan" tanker has been launched for the next stage of construction, Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov wrote on Twitter, Trend reports.

As the minister noted, this versatile ship is the fourth oil tanker under construction at the Baku Shipyard, and the second tanker designed for carrying petrochemical products.

"The construction of this tanker is a significant contribution to the implementation of transit cargo transportation through Azerbaijan's territory. It also aids in the successful execution of oil and gas projects and the development of the local shipbuilding industry," the publication says.

The "Zangilan" tanker was launched in Azerbaijan, it is being built at the Baku Shipyard LLC by order of the Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company (ASCO).

The length of the tanker is 141 meters, the width - 16.9 meters, height  six meters. The dead weight of the tanker at sea is 8,009 tons, the vessel is equipped with the most modern equipment, including two main engines of 1200 kW each, cargo pumps, a ventilation system, navigation devices and a separator. The speed of the vessel can reach 10 knots per hour. It has six cargo tanks with a total capacity of 9,212 cubic meters.
CALGARY, AB, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Frontera Energy Corporation (TSX: FEC) ("Frontera" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results from its 2023 annual meeting of shareholders held today (the "Meeting").

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Shareholders elected each of the nominees proposed by management as set forth in the management information circular of the Company dated March 30, 2023. The total number of shares represented by shareholders present in person or by proxy at the Meeting was 60,340,410, representing approximately 70.83% of Frontera's issued and outstanding common shares. The directors achieved an average approval vote of 98.79% from shareholders.

The detailed results of the vote are set out below:

Nominee Outcome of Vote Voted Voted (%) Gabriel de Alba Approved 50,977,426 Voted For 391,591 Withheld 99.24% 0.76% Luis F. Alarcon Mantilla Approved 49,375,626 Voted For 1,993,391 Withheld 96.12% 3.88% W. Ellis Armstrong Approved 51,030,403 Voted For 338,614 Withheld 99.34% 0.66% Orlando Cabrales Segovia Approved 50,973,779 Voted For 395,238 Withheld 99.23% 0.77% Russell Ford Approved 51,127,981 Voted For 241,036 Withheld 99.53% 0.47% Veronique Giry Approved 51,006,471 Voted For 362,546 Withheld 99.29% 0.71%



Each of the directors elected at the Meeting will hold office until the close of the next annual meeting of shareholders of the Company or until he or she resigns or his or her successor is duly elected or appointed pursuant to the Articles of the Company.

Detailed voting results for all resolutions considered by shareholders at the Meeting are contained in the report of voting results, which is available on SEDAR under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com .

BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

The Company has the following committees: Audit Committee, Compensation and Human Resources Committee ("CHRC"), and Corporate Governance, Nominating, and Sustainability Committee ("CGNSC"). The current committee membership is set forth below:

Committee Members Audit Committee W. Ellis Armstrong (Chair) Luis F, Alarcon Mantilla Russell Ford CHRC Gabriel de Alba (Chair) Veronique Giry Russell Ford CGNSC Luis F. Alarcon Mantilla (Chair) W. Ellis Armstrong Veronique Giry



About Frontera

Frontera Energy Corporation is a Canadian public company involved in the exploration, development, production, transportation, storage, and sale of oil and natural gas in South America, including related investments in both upstream and midstream facilities. The Company has a diversified portfolio of assets with interests in 31 exploration and production blocks in Colombia, Ecuador, and Guyana, and pipeline and port facilities in Colombia. Frontera is committed to conducting business safely and in a socially, environmentally, and ethically responsible manner.

If you would like to receive News Releases via email as soon as they are published, please subscribe here:

http://fronteraenergy.mediaroom.com/subscribe .

Social Media

Follow Frontera Energy social media channels at the following links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fronteraenergy?lang=en

Facebook: https://es-la.facebook.com/FronteraEnergy/

LinkedIn: https://co.linkedin.com/company/frontera-energy-corp.

SOURCE Frontera Energy Corporation
PORTLAND, Maine, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Rubbish Doctor , a junk removal business founded by Tom Hayes in Portland, Maine, is continuing their mission for sustainability with their growing team.

Rubbish Doctor has added new team members as a result of the rising demand for their services. The new hires bring a wide-range of experience and knowledge to the table, allowing Rubbish Doctor to provide their clients with even greater customer service and value.

Rubbish Doctor, Maine Junk Removal

Exciting expansion plans are in the works at Rubbish Doctor. The business has been successful in meeting the junk removal and demolition needs of Maine and the surrounding areas.

Rubbish Doctor has decided to accelerate efforts by opening a warehouse where we can sort and repurpose more items. The company plans to turn the warehouse into a cutting-edge facility so they can quickly sort and sustainably repurpose all sorts of materials.

The company is proud to share that they have collectively planted 445 trees in collaboration with the One Tree Planted Organization , which shows their continued commitment to having a positive environmental impact, and they hope that by taking this action, other companies will be motivated to follow in their footsteps.

Local digital newspaper, The Concord Sentinel , recently conducted an interview with Tom Hayes, Rubbish Doctor's founder, where Hayes shared insights into the company's inspirations and aspirations.

Hayes says, "We have a business model that puts the community and employees first, and profits follow when you do those two things first."

In the interview, Hayes discussed his goals for the Rubbish Doctor's future as well as the path that led to the creation of Rubbish Doctor. He added that the company's motivation came from his appreciation of environmental sustainability and his desire to have a positive impact on the world. Additionally, Hayes talked about Rubbish Doctor's future goals and how this is an exciting time for his company.

To learn more about Rubbish Doctor in Portland, Maine visit here: https://rubbishdoctor.com

CONTACT:

Tom Hayes

Owner

Rubbish Doctor

207.687.1534

[email protected]

https://rubbishdoctor.com

SOURCE Rubbish Doctor
BIRMINGHAM, England, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 12, the Vapouround Global Award, known as the "Oscars of the global vape industry", was held in Birmingham, UK. The "Industry Leader", "Best Tank MTL", "Best Mod", "Best Beverage", and "Best Shisha Flavour" honors went to GEEKVAPE after a stringent evaluation procedure in recognition of its expertise in the field as well as its ability for innovation.

GEEKVAPE Wins Industry Leader At The 2023 Vapouround Global Awards

The "Vapouround Annual Award," instituted in 2015 by the renowned media Vapouround, is the most prestigious and trustworthy selection and recognition event in the vaping industry. This year, roughly 650 vape businesses participated.

GEEKVAPE won the "Industry Leader" award this year, which is a testament to its strength, representing both the high-end design of the product and the authoritative recognition of the R&D strength behind it, in addition to the high recognition of GEEKVAPE's position as the industry leader in vaping devices.

"It is an honor to be recognized by senior figures in the industry," GEEKVAPE CEO Allen Yang stated. GEEKVAPE is committed to pursuing its social responsibility in order to enhance product service and quality, to pioneer a new trend of healthy living through technological advancement, and to contribute positively to the development of a healthy human society."

As a global leader in vaping devices, GEEKVAPE has always adhered to its brand vision of "Creating Health, Accomplishing Partners" by gaining a deep understanding of the needs of users and developing high-quality products and a forward-thinking product layout.

GEEKVAPE was the first company in the industry to establish a research institute comprised of a number of doctors and scientific research institutions. Recent developments at GEEKVAPE make it clear that its R&D and production systems have entered a phase of efficient operation. In another example, in April 2023, GEEKVAPE launched its new vape technology solution VPU in Paris, France. Similarly to the current iterations of CPUs in the technology sector, which focus on improving graphics performance and AI computing power, VPU is a comprehensive solution designed to address the main pain points in the vaping industry, such as vape experience, safety performance, and life expectancy.

Allen Yang, the CEO of GEEKVAPE, said: "With excellent R & D capabilities and innovative design, GEEKVAPE will continue to maintain a pioneering perspective in the future, to create more high-quality products with international standards, to promote the quality sustainable development of the vape industry."

SOURCE GEEKVAPE TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD
Loacker Quadratini provides the perfect indulgent balance for the high standards and mindful snacking habits of younger generations

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The latest trend in sweet snacks among younger generations is balance and mindfulness. In a survey* of nearly 2,000 Americans over the age of 18, Loacker found that mindfulness in snacking is on the rise, especially for younger generations. With 30% less sugar** than the leading wafer brands, Loacker Quadratini meets the needs of today's more mindful consumers by offering great taste from real, high-quality ingredients sourced ethically.

Loacker's survey affirmed that great taste remains a top priority for sweet snacks across all generations but revealed that Gen Z and Millennials place a higher priority on balancing great taste with high quality ingredients that support their lifestyle choices. Across all generations, taste was cited as the single biggest influence on snack choices. However, over 73% of Gen Z respondents cited quality as a key influence in how they choose sweet snacks now, compared to 50% of adults over 60 - a major difference of 46% percent across generations. Moreover, 39% of Gen Z respondents reported "too much sugar" as one of the main things they try to avoid in deciding what sweet snacks to buy now - compared to just 30% of adults over 60.

"We're thrilled to see consumers embracing mindful snacking, recognizing the importance of making choices that fit their lifestyles and meet their needs," said TJ Rooney, President Loacker USA. "At Loacker, we're committed to providing snacks that not only taste great, but also support a mindful approach to snacking, balancing real, high-quality ingredients and sugar content."

Loacker Quadratini not only meets the taste and quality demands of younger generations, but also of adults over 60 who reported avoiding artificial sweeteners in their sweet snacks more than any other generation. Loacker Quadratini have no artificial sweeteners and are Non-GMO Project Verified. They are made with 100% Italian hazelnuts roasted in house by Loacker, with milk from the Alps, from cows fed with Non-GMO feeds, authentic vanilla pods from Madagascar known for their premium quality and purity, and cocoa from Loacker's sustainability programs in Ecuador & Ivory Coast that guarantee transparency in the supply chain, fair working conditions for farmers, and respect for the planet's resources.

Available in a tempting variety of flavors such as Hazelnut, Chocolate, Lemon, Vanilla, Double Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Matcha, Dark Chocolate, and more, Loacker Quadratini provides the perfect balance between indulgence and mindfulness, catering to the high standards and mindful snacking habits of all generations.

Loacker Quadratini can be found at major retailers and on Amazon. For more information about Loacker Quadratini or the survey, please contact Rachel Morrison.

Loacker

Loacker is an Italian Wafers & Chocolate family company known as one of the world's leading wafer brands and its delicious patisseries and chocolates. Founded in the heart of the Italian Alps more than 95 years ago, the geography of Loacker's origins (Mount Sciliar in the South Tyrolean Dolomites of the Italian Alps) is meaningful because it embodies the natural values of the brand and unique sourcing of ingredients. Since the company was first founded, the Loacker family has always had the highest level of respect for their natural surroundings. From 100% Italian hazelnuts freshly roasted by Loacker in-house, to authentic vanilla pods from Madagascar, Loacker aims to create the best taste using the best quality, natural ingredients.

"Che bonta!" means Pure goodness! with every bite, since 1925. For all this time, we have been offering you the pure, natural goodness and pleasure of our magnificent creations. This long confectionary tradition started with Alfons Loacker, who first started making wafers in his little pastry shop in Bolzano. Really not much has changed since then: we now make all our delicacies at 1000 meters above sea level, high up in the mountains in Auna di Sotto and Heinfels, using only carefully selected natural ingredients, with no trace of any added flavors, colors or preservatives, and we pack our specialties fresh out of the oven to preserve their full fragrance. But, to achieve perfection, goodness demands more than this, which is why we are constantly committed to greater social and environmental sustainability. Because, at Loacker, goodness is a choice.

*Loacker Snacking Survey of 1,703 Americans over the age of 18 was conducted between May 5, 2023 and May 7, 2023. The data for this survey was collected using SurveyMonkey Audience. Information on how respondents are recruited to SurveyMonkey is available here: www.surveymonkey.com/mp/audience

**Loacker Quadratini contain at least 30% less sugar than the average of leading filled wafer cookies in the market; 6-9g vs. 15-22g sugar per serving. See nutrition information for saturated fat content.

SOURCE Loacker
Nearly 100 youth gather in Washington D.C. to protest Altria's shareholder meeting and expose Big Tobacco's lies and schemes to addict kids



WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- This morning, over 125 youth and advocates from 15 different states will protest tobacco giant Altria's annual shareholders meeting. These advocates are holding a demonstration outside Altria's Washington, D.C. office, while several youth activists have been made designees by shareholders to directly address Altria's executives and ask questions during the virtual shareholders' meeting.

This year marks the eighth consecutive year that Mobilize Against Tobacco Lies (MATL), a collaborative of youth programs and national partners, will gather to expose and fight back against the tobacco giant.

Altria and its Philip Morris USA subsidiary sell the number one most popular cigarette brand among kids, Marlboro, and its John Middleton subsidiary sells the second most popular brand of cigars among kids, Black & Mild. Altria has long targeted kids and other vulnerable groups with its products and also invested in Juul at the height of the youth e-cigarette epidemic. Altria claims to be "moving beyond smoking," but the truth is that they make most of their revenue from cigarettes and fight real efforts to reduce smoking like bans on menthol cigarettes.

Despite Altria and the tobacco industry's efforts, the United States has made great progress to reduce youth smoking. However, the latest government survey shows over 3 million U.S. middle and high school students still use tobacco products, including over 2.5 million who use e-cigarettes.

WHAT: Over 125 youth and other advocates will protest Altria's shareholder meeting to expose how Altria profits off cigarettes and other tobacco products, addicts kids, and fights real efforts to reduce tobacco use.



WHO: Mobilize Against Tobacco Lies is a collaborative of tobacco control youth programs and national partners, including seven youth programs and five national partners:

Reality Check of New York Delaware Kick Butts

Michigan Making It Count Generation

Texas Say What Indigenous Peoples Task Force

New Hampshire Dover Youth to Youth



Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii Corporate Accountability

Wisconsin FACT Counter Tools

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids



Center for Black Health and Equity



Truth Initiative





WHEN: Today - Thursday, May 18, 2023, at 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM ET



WHERE: Altria's Lobbyist Office

101 Constitution Ave NW, #400W, Washington, D.C. 20001

SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
SEATTLE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Bill Marler, the nation's leading food safety attorney, has launched a campaign for Salmonella policy reform with t-shirts stating, "Get the S*%! Out of Chicken." Currently, there are no food policies or regulations in the United States that prohibit the presence of Salmonella in poultry. To compel food safety leaders to make bold changes to policy in this area, Marler sent t-shirts to the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA/FSIS) and the National Chicken Council. He is also making the t-shirts available at upcoming food safety conferences.

"Anything that can poison or kill a person, like Salmonella in chicken, should be an adulterant", said Bill Marler Tweet this "Get the S*%! Out of Chicken"

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that Salmonella bacteria cause approximately 1.35 million human infections and 26,500 hospitalizations in the United States every year. Of those infections, over 23% are attributed to poultry consumption. Foodborne illness can have a devastating impact, both personally and financially, on people's lives, the cost of which reverberates through the economy. Data from USDA's Economic Research Service (ERS) show the total cost for foodborne Salmonella infections in the United States is a staggering $4.1 billion annually and the cost for the loss of productivity to the economy is $88 million. These are real costs to real people that can and should be prevented.

Marler points out that when Americans bring chicken into their homes, "it is likely teeming with Salmonella that the manufacturer  with the USDA stamp of approval  can knowing sell that is tainted with a pathogen that sickens over a million people a year."

"The USDA/FSIS have the authority to deem Salmonella and other pathogens adulterants  they just need to use it, "stated Marler. "Personally, I think that anything that can poison or kill a person should be an adulterant. Ignoring Salmonella in chicken makes no sense," said Marler.

The USDA/FSIS recently released a proposed rule to declare Salmonella an adulterant in breaded stuffed raw chicken products when they exceed a low level of Salmonella contamination. This announcement is a first step that builds on FSIS' proposed regulatory framework to reduce Salmonella infections linked to chicken products. "It is a baby step, but it is a step," added Marler.

For more information on why Salmonella should be an adulterant, visit Marler Blog.

About Bill Marler: An accomplished attorney and national expert in food safety, William (Bill) Marler has become the most prominent foodborne illness lawyer in America and a major force in food policy in the U.S. and around the world. Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, has represented thousands of individuals in claims against food companies whose contaminated products have caused life altering injury and even death.

SOURCE Marler Clark, The Nation's Food Safety Law Firm
The glaucoma pipeline and clinical trial analysis report delivers important insights on ongoing research, clinical strategies, upcoming therapeutics, and commercial analysis.

LAS VEGAS, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- DelveInsight's ' Glaucoma Competitive Landscape  2023 ' report provides comprehensive global coverage of available, marketed, and pipeline glaucoma drugs in various stages of clinical development, major pharmaceutical companies working to advance the pipeline space, company assessment, comparative assessment, and future growth potential of the glaucoma competitive domain.

Key Takeaways from the Glaucoma Competitive Landscape Report

Over 45+ glaucoma companies are evaluating 50+ glaucoma drugs in various stages of development, and their anticipated acceptance in the glaucoma market would significantly increase market revenue.

glaucoma companies are evaluating glaucoma drugs in various stages of development, and their anticipated acceptance in the glaucoma market would significantly increase market revenue. Key glaucoma companies such as Santen Pharmaceuticals, Visiox Pharma, Nicox Ophthalmics, pH Pharma, Omikron Italia, Tarsier Pharma, TearClear, Laboratoires Thea, EMS, Peregrine Ophthalmic, Ocuphire Pharma, HK inno.N, VivaVision Biotech, Qlaris Bio, Future Medicine, PolyActiva Pty Ltd, Theratocular Biotek, Whitecap Biosciences, JeniVision, AbbVie, Noveome Biotherapeutics, and others are evaluating new glaucoma drugs to improve the treatment landscape.

and others are evaluating new glaucoma drugs to improve the treatment landscape. Promising glaucoma pipeline therapies such as DE-130A, PDP-716, NCX 470, PHP-201 , Citicoline, TRS01, TC-002, T4032, Bremen , POLAT 001, Nyxol, IN-A010, VVN539, QLS-101, FM 101, PA5108, TO-O-1001, WB-007, JV-GL1, AGN-193408 SR, ST266, and others are under different phases of glaucoma clinical trials.

and others are under different phases of glaucoma clinical trials. In December 2022 , Visiox Pharma announced that it had received notification from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the agency had completed its filing review and accepted for filing the New Drug Application (NDA) for PDP-716 (0.35% brimonidine tartrate) for the treatment of glaucoma.

announced that it had received notification from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the agency had completed its filing review and accepted for filing the New Drug Application (NDA) for PDP-716 (0.35% brimonidine tartrate) for the treatment of glaucoma. In October 2022 , Essex Biotechnology Ltd announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Essex Bioinvestment Ltd had secured (i) a patent and know-how license agreement; and (ii) a patent assignment deed in relation to SkQ1, an active pharmaceutical ingredient from Mitotech S.A. Under these Agreements, Mitotech grants Essex Bioinvestment worldwide rights (excluding Armenia , Belarus , Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , and Russia ) and interests in SkQ1, transferable and irrevocable, in the field of ophthalmology exclusively.

announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Essex Bioinvestment Ltd had secured (i) a patent and know-how license agreement; and (ii) a patent assignment deed in relation to SkQ1, an active pharmaceutical ingredient from Mitotech S.A. Under these Agreements, Mitotech grants Essex Bioinvestment worldwide rights (excluding , , , , and ) and interests in SkQ1, transferable and irrevocable, in the field of ophthalmology exclusively. On October 6, 2022 , Santen Pharmaceutical announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) had accepted the Santen filing for reviewing the marketing authorization application for the use of STN1013001 for the lowering of intraocular pressure (IOP) in open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. The marketing authorization application is based on a clinical package that includes positive results from a Phase III clinical trial conducted in Europe and Asia  a non-inferiority trial of STN1013001.

announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) had accepted the Santen filing for reviewing the marketing authorization application for the use of STN1013001 for the lowering of intraocular pressure (IOP) in open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. The marketing authorization application is based on a clinical package that includes positive results from a Phase III clinical trial conducted in and  a non-inferiority trial of STN1013001. In September 2022 , TearClear announced that the company's lead product, TC-002 (latanoprost ophthalmic solution 0.005%), met the primary and all secondary endpoints in the CLEAR Phase III pivotal trial. With these results, TearClear plans to file a New Drug Application (NDA) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the first quarter of 2023.

announced that the company's lead product, TC-002 (latanoprost ophthalmic solution 0.005%), met the primary and all secondary endpoints in the CLEAR Phase III pivotal trial. With these results, TearClear plans to file a New Drug Application (NDA) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the first quarter of 2023. In May 2022 , Qlaris Bio, Inc., announced results from QC-201, a first-in-human, Phase 2 clinical trial of QLS-101, the Company's investigational therapy for lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) in the treatment of glaucoma. Study findings demonstrated a favorable safety and tolerability profile for QLS-101, including no evidence of hyperemia (eye redness) and a positive efficacy signal, in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) or ocular hypertension.

announced results from QC-201, a first-in-human, Phase 2 clinical trial of QLS-101, the Company's investigational therapy for lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) in the treatment of glaucoma. Study findings demonstrated a favorable safety and tolerability profile for QLS-101, including no evidence of hyperemia (eye redness) and a positive efficacy signal, in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) or ocular hypertension. In December 2021 , Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company Ltd. announced that it had entered into an agreement with Visiox Pharma LLC (Visiox) to grant exclusive worldwide rights (except for India and Greater China ) for the development and commercialization of PDP-716 and SDN-037. Under the terms of the license agreement, SPARC received an upfront payment, milestone payments, and royalties on sales, in addition to 10% equity* in Visiox.

Request a sample and discover the recent advances in glaucoma treatment drugs @ Glaucoma Competitive Landscape Report

Glaucoma Overview

Glaucoma refers to a group of disorders characterized by distinctive cupping of the optic disc and associated visual field abnormalities caused by retinal ganglion cell death. It is a progressive disorder that is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the globe. Open-angle glaucoma and narrow-angle glaucoma/angle-closure glaucoma are the two major types of glaucoma. In both cases, the "angle" refers to the drainage angle within the eye, which governs the outflow of the watery fluid produced within the eye.

Most people with glaucoma do not notice symptoms until they lose their vision. As glaucoma destroys the optic nerve fibers, tiny blind patches may form. These specks typically appear on the side or in the peripheral vision. Many people do not detect blind spots until considerable optic nerve damage has occurred. Blindness can occur if the entire nerve is damaged. Although there is no cure for glaucoma, early glaucoma treatment can frequently prevent more damage and preserve vision. Glaucoma is treated with various methods, including medications (typically eye drops), laser treatment, and surgery.

Find out more about glaucoma treatment drugs @ Drugs for Glaucoma Treatment

Glaucoma Pipeline Analysis: Drug Profile

NCX 470: Nicox Ophthalmics

Nicox Ophthalmics is actively developing NCX 470, a novel, second-generation nitric oxide (NO)-donating prostaglandin analog. NCX-470 may benefit glaucoma patients by a mechanism other than IOP reduction, most notably by improving ocular perfusion. Preliminary research indicates that if approved, NCX-470's dual mechanistic approach (nitric oxide donation and prostaglandin F2 activity) could make it the most effective single-agent glaucoma therapy in terms of IOP-lowering efficacy. The medication is currently in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.

TRS01: Tarsier Pharma

TRS01, developed by Tarsier, is a potent, fast-acting immunomodulator administered as eye drops for the treatment of non-infectious anterior uveitis in patients with uveitic glaucoma, which is considered an end-stage uveitis condition. Once a patient has uveitis plus glaucoma (uveitic glaucoma), the only effective therapy for active inflammation, steroids, should be avoided due to the negative effects of hastening glaucoma and vision loss. TRS01 could thus become the standard of care for uveitic glaucoma. TRS01, an eye drop formulation of TRS, is being developed to treat the signs and symptoms of active uveitis in patients with uveitic glaucoma. TRS01 is now undergoing Phase III testing.

A snapshot of the Glaucoma Pipeline Drugs mentioned in the report:

Glaucoma Drugs Company Phase MoA Latanoprost emulsion Santen SAS Preregistration Prostaglandin F2 alpha agonists Brimonidine ophthalmic suspension Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company Preregistration Alpha 2 adrenergic receptor agonists NCX 470 Nicox Ophthalmics Phase III Nitric oxide donors TRS01 Tarsier Pharma Phase III Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors; Prostaglandin F2 alpha agonists QLS-101 Qlaris Bio Phase II KATP channel modulators PHP-201 Amakem Phase II Rho-associated kinase inhibitors Latanoprost controlled release Peregrine Ophthalmic Phase II Prostaglandin F2 alpha agonists Phentolamine Ocuphire Pharma Phase II Alpha 1 adrenergic receptor antagonists; Alpha 2 adrenergic receptor antagonists ST266 Noveome Biotherapeutics Phase I Bone development modulators; Neuron modulators; Paracrine communication modulators; Proto oncogene protein c akt modulators; SIRT1 protein stimulants

Learn more about the emerging glaucoma pipeline therapies @ Glaucoma Clinical Trials

Scope of the Glaucoma Competitive Landscape Report

Coverage : Global

: Global Key Glaucoma Companies : Santen Pharmaceuticals, Visiox Pharma, Nicox Ophthalmics, pH Pharma, Omikron Italia, Tarsier Pharma, TearClear, Laboratoires Thea, EMS, Peregrine Ophthalmic, Ocuphire Pharma, HK inno.N, VivaVision Biotech, Qlaris Bio, Future Medicine, PolyActiva Pty Ltd, Theratocular Biotek, Whitecap Biosciences, JeniVision, AbbVie, Noveome Biotherapeutics, and others

: Santen Pharmaceuticals, Visiox Pharma, Nicox Ophthalmics, pH Pharma, Omikron Italia, Tarsier Pharma, TearClear, Laboratoires Thea, EMS, Peregrine Ophthalmic, Ocuphire Pharma, HK inno.N, VivaVision Biotech, Qlaris Bio, Future Medicine, PolyActiva Pty Ltd, Theratocular Biotek, Whitecap Biosciences, JeniVision, AbbVie, Noveome Biotherapeutics, and others Key Glaucoma Pipeline Therapies : DE-130A, PDP-716, NCX 470, PHP-201 , Citicoline, TRS01, TC-002, T4032, Bremen , POLAT 001, Nyxol, IN-A010, VVN539, QLS-101, FM 101, PA5108, TO-O-1001, WB-007, JV-GL1, AGN-193408 SR, ST266, and others

: DE-130A, PDP-716, NCX 470, , Citicoline, TRS01, TC-002, T4032, , POLAT 001, Nyxol, IN-A010, VVN539, QLS-101, FM 101, PA5108, TO-O-1001, WB-007, JV-GL1, AGN-193408 SR, ST266, and others Company Analysis, Therapeutic Assessment, Pipeline Assessment, Inactive drugs assessment, Unmet Needs

Dive deep into rich insights for new drugs for glaucoma treatment, visit @ Glaucoma Drugs

Table of Contents

1. Glaucoma Pipeline Report Introduction 2. Glaucoma Pipeline Report Executive Summary 3. Glaucoma Pipeline: Overview 4. Glaucoma Marketed Drugs 4.1. DURYSTA: Allergan 5. Glaucoma Clinical Trial Therapeutics 6. Glaucoma Pipeline: Late-Stage Products (Pre-registration) 7. Glaucoma Pipeline: Late-Stage Products (Phase III) 7.1. NCX 470: Nicox Ophthalmics 8. Glaucoma Pipeline: Mid-Stage Products (Phase II) 8.1. QLS-101: Qlaris Bio 9. Glaucoma Pipeline: Early-Stage Products (Phase I) 9.1. ST266: Noveome Biotherapeutics 10. Glaucoma Pipeline Therapeutics Assessment 11. Inactive Products in the Glaucoma Pipeline 12. Company-University Collaborations (Licensing/Partnering) Analysis 13. Unmet Needs 14. Glaucoma Market Drivers and Barriers 15. Appendix

For further information on the glaucoma pipeline therapeutics, reach out @ Glaucoma Treatment Drugs

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Gleneagles is among the few hospitals in Malaysia that continually invests in clinical data solutions to improve patient outcomes using procedural clinical data.

SAN ANTONIO, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost & Sullivan recently assessed the healthcare industry and, based on its findings, recognizes Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur with the 2023 Malaysia Hospital Customer Value Leadership Award. The hospital employs excellent human capital to provide the best possible service to meet its patients' healthcare needs and to enhance patients' experience during their stay at the healthcare facility. With the multiple training platforms within the hospital, all healthcare professionals are constantly updating their skillsets and enhancing their soft skills to care for patients. To mitigate concerns about the acute shortage of healthcare workers, especially nursing staff, the hospital works with leading nursing colleges and universities to hire nurses, who must undergo rigorous training and attend work experience programs before caring for their patients and becoming involved in hospital operations.

As a multidisciplinary tertiary hospital, Gleneagles proficiently manages complex conditions, such as cardiovascular, oncology, and orthopedics, resulting in a significant market share of patients in these specialty care areas and with increasing patient growth in the overall healthcare market.

Gleneagles' nurses are experienced and well trained across the healthcare delivery spectrum, from outpatient and inpatient to intensive care unit (ICU) settings. The hospital provides its healthcare professionals with the latest technology to drive operational efficiencies and capitalizes on clinical data to improve delivery of care, thus enhancing the overall patient experience and treatment outcome.

As a multidisciplinary tertiary hospital, Gleneagles proficiently manages complex conditions, such as cardiovascular, oncology, and orthopedics, resulting in a significant market share of patients in these specialty care areas and with increasing patient growth in the overall healthcare market. The intensity of cases, optimal patient stay length at the healthcare facility, and increasing patient volume year-on-year contribute to Gleneagles' overall revenue growth.

According to Bhaskar Vittal, Industry Principal, Frost & Sullivan, "The Malaysian healthcare sector have high regards for their nursing staff. The training programs at Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur, with technology adoption and best practices implementation act as important drivers to enhance the patient experience during treatment and hospital stay."

Gleneagles places great emphasis on ensuring the optimal duration of the patient's length of stay in the hospital. The hospital is up to date with the international guidelines of treatment protocols and best practices in patient management to provide the most effective treatment and safe environment to shorten the recovery period and prevent complications.

For example, when a patient undergoes a total knee replacement (TKR) and stays longer than four days, clinicians will assess the reason for the extended stay. Post-surgical treatment and strict compliance to patients' customized physiotherapy sessions are important factors in ensuring a positive treatment outcome for patients after their TKR surgery.

Hoo Ling Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur shared her principles, "Being abreast with the international healthcare industry best practices in the delivery of patient care, Gleneagles strives to ensure all patients receive the best possible treatment outcome for their medical conditions for value of their money. When patients step into Gleneagles, the right people will be assigned to their care, using the most appropriate resources available and providing a comfort level that only a few hospitals can offer."

"Gleneagles also focuses on continuous internal process improvements to drive efficiency for all medical and surgical procedures using clinical data and ensuring seamless patient experience in their healthcare journey. It improves treatment processes to drive a positive patient experience, setting it apart from the Malaysian healthcare community," added Vittal. With its strong overall performance, Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur earns Frost & Sullivan's 2023 Customer Value Leadership Award in the Malaysian hospital industry.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has demonstrated excellence in implementing strategies that proactively create value for its customers, with a focus on improving the return on the investment that customers make in its services or products. The award recognizes the company's unique focus on augmenting the value that its customers receive, beyond simply good customer service, leading to improved customer retention and customer base expansion.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in various regional and global sectors for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare sector participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analyses, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

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Contact:

Tammy Chan

E: [email protected]

About Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur

Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur is currently the leading private hospital in Malaysia's metropolitan capital. One of the first private hospitals in Malaysia to receive a Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation, Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur also received the 'International Hospital of the Year' award as well as a 'Highly Commended for Excellence in Customer Service' award from the prestigious International Medical Travel Journal in 2018, best Urology Service Provider and Health Screening Provider in Asia Pacific by the Global Health and Travel Awards 2019.

Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur is home to some of the most advanced medical technologies and procedures available such as:

Gamma Knife - an advanced medical procedure that boasts faster set-up and treatment delivery to multiple tumors in a single session with potential to treat lesions in hard-to-reach areas such as the sinuses, orbits, and upper cervical spine.

Da Vinci - a surgical system powered by robotics to perform intricate types of surgeries with utmost meticulous precision catered to patient procedures such as obstetrics, gynecology, urology, colorectal as well as head and neck.

For more information on Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur, please visit www.gleneagles.com.my/kuala-lumpur

Contact:

Lee Ai Lin

E: [email protected]

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
DUBLIN, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Insurance Brokerage Market: Global Market Size, Forecast, Insights, and Competitive Landscape" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global insurance brokerage market is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 6.7% during 2023-2030.

Companies Mentioned

Acrisure LLC

Aon plc

Brown and Brown Inc

Gallagher

Hub International Limited

Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group

Lockton Companies

Marsh and Mclennan Companies Inc

Meadowbrook Insurance Group

Truist Insurance Holdings

USI Insurance Services LLC

Wills Towers Watson

This report on global insurance brokerage market report provides holistic understanding of the market along with market sizing, forecast, drivers, challenges, and competitive landscape.

The report presents a clear picture of the global insurance brokerage market by segmenting the market based on Brokerage type, Insurance Type and region. Also, detailed profiles of companies operating in the insurance brokerage market are provided in this report. We believe that this report will aid the professionals and industry stakeholders in making informed decision.

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Increasing Demand for Insurance Policies

Government Initiatives Regarding Insurance Policies

Increasing Technology in the Area of Insurance Brokerage

Challenges

Lack of Knowledge in Insurance Brokers About Technology

Impact of COVID-19

Historical & Forecast Period

Base Year: 2022

Historical Period: 2018-2022

Forecast Period: 2023-2030

Market Segmentation

by Brokerage Type

Retail Brokerage

Wholesale Brokerage

by Insurance Type

Life Insurance

Property & Casualty Insurance

by Region

Europe

Germany

United Kingdom

France

Italy

Spain

Russia

Netherlands

Rest of Europe

North America

United States

Canada

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

South Korea

Australia

Indonesia

Rest of Asia Pacific

Latin America

Mexico

Brazil

Argentina

Rest of Latin America

Middle East & Africa

& Saudi Arabia

Turkey

Iran

United Arab Emirates

Rest of Middle East & Africa

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/la5q9i

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ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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BOSTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Goulston & Storrs, an Am Law 200 firm, is pleased to announce that Thuy-Dien Bui has been named a 2023 "Up & Coming Lawyer" by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. The award recognizes the rising stars of the Massachusetts legal industry who have been practicing for 10 years or less and have distinguished themselves professionally and in the community.

Bui is a corporate attorney who advises clients on mergers and acquisitions and corporate governance. She also counsels foreign businesses on their U.S. cross border interests.

Goulston & Storrs corporate attorney Thuy-Dien Bui has been named a 2023 Up & Coming Lawyer by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. The award recognizes the rising stars of the Massachusetts legal industry who have been practicing for 10 years or less and have distinguished themselves professionally and in the community. (PRNewsfoto/Goulston & Storrs PC)

Beyond her busy practice, Bui serves on the firm's Hiring Committee, Training Committee, and Corporate Group's Associate Committee. She also devotes extensive time to pro bono work, with a focus on supporting children and immigrants and on promoting reproductive justice and expanding access to reproductive healthcare to women. She serves as outside pro bono counsel to Horizons for Homeless Children and Physicians for Reproductive Health and is an attorney partner to Kids In Need of Defense (KIND) and the International Refugee Asylum Project (IRAP).

Outside of work, Bui serves on the board of directors of the National Conference for Vietnamese American Attorneys. She is also a devoted supporter of Boston College Law School's LAHANAS organization, which supports students of color and the LGBT community, where she served as the Executive Director during law school, and continues to organize events and mentor BC LAHANAS students every year.

Bui has been named to the Best Lawyers in America Ones to Watch: Corporate Law for the past three consecutive years. She received her J.D. from Boston College Law School in 2015 and her B.A., with honors, from the University of California at Los Angeles in 2009.

About Goulston & Storrs

Collaboration is not just a pillar of our strategy; it is the key to our competitive advantage and approach to clients, community, and each other. At Goulston & Storrs, we practice law with excellence and integrity. We are a place where mutual respect and collaboration drive open discussion, transparency, creativity and optimal results for our clients. We are committed to being a diverse and inclusive workplace where sophisticated business is conducted with genuine camaraderie. To learn more about us, visit www.goulstonstorrs.com.

Contact: Leigh Herzog Amy Blumenthal Goulston & Storrs PC Blumenthal & Associates PR (617) 574-2259 (617) 879-1511 [email protected] [email protected]

SOURCE Goulston & Storrs PC
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev approved the law on approval of the agreement "On international road transport between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland", Trend reports.

According to the law, the agreement "On international road transport between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland", signed on February 23, 2023 in Baku, was approved.
NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- GPARENCY, the first membership-based commercial mortgage brokerage, is pleased to announce the formation of a new technology advisory committee. This initiative aims to expand use of publicly available data, modern technologies, advanced analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI) for increased transparency and streamlined and swift decision-making in commercial real estate financing.

GPARENCY Team to form a new Technology Advisory Committee, From left to right, Abrar Quershi, Evguenia Yerukhimovich, John Bryan

The committee will be spearheaded by GPARENCY's Partner and Chief Technology Officer, Abrar Quershi, who has been instrumental in the evolution of the company's technology platform. Alongside Quershi, John Bryan, Head of Design, and Evguenia Yerukhimovich, Chief Product Manager, will contribute their expertise. The team is further enhanced by the inclusion of CTOs and CIOs from leading banks specializing in commercial real estate loans.

"Our primary mission is to equip our customers with the necessary technology capabilities and relevant data to help them make better investment and financing decisions," stated Quershi."We would align our efforts with our partners in the industry for better data and operations standards which will reduce inefficiencies, increase transparency, and deliver more robust outcomes for all the stakeholders."

The committee will explore collaboration with the industry partners to automate and streamline processes, bolster decision-making, mitigate risks, and facilitate a more transparent, efficient, and profitable commercial real estate financing ecosystem.

GPARENCY's CEO, Ira Zlotowitz, commented, "The formation of this advisory committee underlines our commitment to continual innovation and industry leadership. We are excited to collaborate with our peers and use our collective expertise to transform the commercial real estate industry, which has been traditionally slow to adopt new technologies."

With the insight from top banking executives on the advisory committee, GPARENCY is confident that it can develop solutions tailored to the unique needs of the commercial real estate lending sector.

About GPARENCY:

GPARENCY is a membership-based commercial mortgage brokerage that offers a revolutionary flat fee pricing model for commercial real estate mortgages. The company's comprehensive marketplace and CRE toolkit provide a seamless experience for its members, including access to lenders, public data, sales and finance comparables, and mortgage rates. GPARENCY's mission is to bring transparency and efficiency to the commercial real estate industry. For more information, visit gparency.com.

Media Contact:

GPARENCY

[email protected]

SOURCE GPARENCY
TORONTO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Great Gulf Group, a leading real estate organization that develops, constructs, and manages residential, resort, recreational, commercial, and industrial real estate across 20 markets in North America, is thrilled to announce its recent triumphs in the building industry, receiving four prestigious awards that recognize its unwavering commitment to excellence. These accolades highlight the significant role played by its team to imagine, construct, and manage the greatest communities to live, work, and play.

Ashton Woods, Great Gulf Group's U.S. affiliate, has been named the 2023 Builder of the Year by BUILDER magazine. Over the past decade, Ashton Woods has experienced remarkable growth, expanding from $300 million to over $3.5 billion in revenue. This year, they secured the 12th position on the Builder 100 list, with 8,591 homes closed. "This honor is truly a testament to the collective work of our entire team," said Ken Balogh, President, and CEO of Ashton Woods. "While it was never a stated goal of ours to be named Builder of the Year, it is a by-product of the incredible talent we have across the organization and a culture that empowers our teams to take big swings, make an impact and do the right thing. Every single one of our employees should feel a great sense of pride in this recognition."

Great Gulf Group's Canadian based Great Gulf Homes was honored with the Homebuilder of the Year - Low-Rise award by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). This award highlights Great Gulf's excellence in the design, construction, marketing, and sales of new homes in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The rigorous evaluation process involved the submission of over 990 entries, judged against stringent criteria by 40 experts from across Canada and the United States. Great Gulf's commitment to providing exceptional customer experiences was a key factor, as the judging process included a comprehensive customer satisfaction survey. "Every interaction with our purchasers from sales, construction, design, development, and service is an opportunity to deliver and execute on our core values and provide the optimal customer experience," said Katy Schofield, President, Low-Rise Residential Canada. "This award is a testament to the passion of our employees for this business and Great Gulf."

Great Gulf's excellence was also recognized with BILD's International Project of the Year award for La Clara, a remarkable 25-story high-rise condominium development in West Palm Beach, Florida. Neil Vohrah, President, High-Rise North America, expressed his delight at receiving this prestigious recognition, "This award celebrates the high-rise team and the entire organization for its vision and commitment to excellence."

Finally, Great Gulf Homes won the highest honor for customer service with the Avid Service Award. "This award honors employees who receive exemplary customer satisfaction scores amongst the thousands of employees rated in the AvidCX platform," said Tad Putyra, President Low-Rise. "The Avid Service Awards are widely considered to be the premier awards for homebuilding professionals. Employees selected have scored in the top 5% in customer satisfaction nationwide. Thank you to all our frontline people who earned this important recognition."

The Great Gulf Group of Companies extends its sincerest gratitude to its customers, as well as its incredible team members, whose talent and dedication is unparalleled. Through a culture that empowers people to make a difference and a focus on delivering the best customer experiences, Great Gulf Group continues to set new standards in the building industry.

ABOUT GREAT GULF GROUP

Established in 1975, the Great Gulf Group includes Great Gulf Homes; Ashton Woods Homes, the largest private homebuilder in the US; First Gulf, a commercial developer specialized in industrial, lab, data centres, and mixed-use properties; Tucker HiRise, specializing in the construction of high-density, mixed-used projects; H+ME Technology, a precision engineering panelization manufacturing facility; a new Recreation and Resort division responsible for Taboo and Lora Bay in Ontario and now Killington Mountain in Vermont; and a Build-To-Rent division with a growing presence across the U.S. Sunbelt States. Learn more at www.greatgulfgroup.com

ABOUT ASHTON WOODS / STARLIGHT HOMES

Ashton Woods is the #1 private home builder in the United States and was recently named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine. The company markets its homes through its two award-winning brands, Ashton Woods Homes and Starlight Homes. The Ashton Woods brand is known for designing thoughtfully curated, inspired homes for people who love design. The company's industry-leading experience at The Studio and with AW Collections results in exceptional design and special designer touches in every Ashton Woods home. The Starlight Homes brand builds homes specifically for the first-time homebuyer, offering affordable homes with well-executed designs and quality finishes for buyers looking to make the dream of home ownership a reality. The company's commitment to innovation and continually evolving to meet the needs of the market is a key reason it is one of the most celebrated homebuilders in the nation, winning hundreds of national and local industry awards in product design, community design, architecture, merchandising, sales, marketing, customer service and innovation. Learn more at www.ashtonwoods.com

SOURCE Great Gulf Group
TIANJIN, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The following article was published today by China Daily.

As the next generation of artificial intelligence technology is expected to play a positive role in improving human well-being, greater efforts should be made to give full play to the role of emerging intelligent technology to empower high-quality economic development and ensure the safe and responsible use of AI, according to speakers at the latest Vision China event on Thursday.

Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, called for efforts to nurture new drivers of economic growth in the post-pandemic era, create an open, fair, just and nondiscriminatory environment for scientific and technological development, and work hard to eliminate "gaps" and "barriers".

The purpose of such moves is to promote balanced, coordinated and inclusive global development while enabling people of all countries to better share the fruits of development, Qu said.

"We should work together to improve global governance on science and technology, build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture, and let intelligent technology evolve in the right direction to provide a strong pillar for global security," Qu said at the event.

He also stressed the need to further tap into the potential of intelligent technology and explore scenario-based, smart applications of cutting-edge technology, in order to build new platforms for dialogue among civilizations and cross-cultural communication, and make greater contributions to cultural blending and people-to-people exchanges across the globe.

Jointly organized by China Daily and the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Tianjin Municipal Committee, the event, themed "Intelligence: Extensive Development Space, Sustainable Growth Driver", was broadcast to a global audience on Thursday night. The event is part of the ongoing 7th World Intelligence Congress, which started on Thursday and runs through Sunday in Tianjin.

The congress showcases the latest achievements and trends of AI development and brings together officials, experts, scholars and entrepreneurs to discuss key topics such as intelligent connected vehicles, generative AI, intelligent manufacturing, brain-machine interaction and other cutting-edge technologies.

"We need to harness the power of the new generation of artificial intelligence to drive technological innovation, upgrade industries and boost productivity," said Shen Lei, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and head of the committee's Publicity Department.

Shen highlighted the significance of fostering new advantages in industrial development by vigorously developing the digital economy, accelerating industrial digitalization and digital industrialization, and promoting the in-depth integration of the internet, big data and AI with industries.

Tianjin, a major port city in northern China, has been actively embracing AI, intelligent manufacturing and other related smart technologies to stay abreast of key developments. It has set up a special 10 billion yuan ($1.42 billion) fund for intelligent manufacturing and a 100-billion-yuan industry fund for the new generation of AI.

Shen said Tianjin will deepen reform and opening-up, create a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based and internationalized, and build a high-level platform for opening-up.

Wei Qing, Microsoft (China) Ltd's chief technology officer, said no matter how powerful AI is, it is a machine's capability. How humans react to, manage and guide it will determine whether it serves human purposes. "So, there must be a responsible AI approach and principle," Wei added.

AI is gradually being implemented in the medical field, covering screening, diagnosis, treatment and predictions, said Yan Hua, Party secretary of Tianjin Medical University. It helps to provide better hospital management, patient services, chronic disease management and more efficient medical process.

There are still problems in AI's use in the medical field, such as ethical issues, data security and the calculation of the cost of AI, Yan said, adding that its application in the field is still in the early stages of development.

Pierre Pakey, head of product innovation of Laiye Technology (Beijing) Co, said one of the most exciting developments in AI is that large language models can sometimes provide much finer details than human efforts.

Fu Xiaolan, a fellow of the British Academy of Social Sciences and professor and director of the Technology and Management Center for Development at the University of Oxford, said AI can bring wonderful opportunities for development through providing greater efficiency and improvement in work conditions and welfare. It can also enable innovation in production and social services, and bring significant digital windows of opportunity for some developing countries.

Although AI brings new development opportunities, there are still challenges to face, she added.

"We need to ensure the privacy, security and safety and robustness in the use of AI and also the transparency and fairness in the application of AI and accountability of the people who develop and employ AI for business and other services," Fu said.

By Fan Feifei

and Liu Yukun

SOURCE China Daily
QINGDAO, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Hisense, the consumer technology brand has announced the launch of its brand new ULED X and hero U8 TV products in the South Africa region.

In 2022, Hisense TV ranked No.2 in global TV shipments, and as of April this year, Hisense TV sales in the South African market ranked first in the industry.

Hisense shows new U8 and ULED X TV products at the press conference. Jerry Li, Vice President of Hisense International, shares Hisense Globalization Strategy and CSR efforts in South Africa.

First unveiled at this year's CES, Hisense's 110-inch ULED X offers advanced optical systems, extraordinary image processing, and industry-leading display technologies. Similarly, the new range of U8 TVs promises to bring an enhanced visual and audio experience to South African consumers across the country.

Hisense is also committed to investing locally by providing professional skills training for local people at the South Africa Industrial Park. This enables them to move out of impoverished neighborhoods and become skilled industrial workers. At present, Hisense has created more than 1,000 direct jobs and more than 5,000 indirect jobs for local people in South Africa.

Speaking at the press conference launch in Johannesburg, Jerry Liu Vice President of Hisense International commented: "Since entering the South African market 20 years ago, the company has been steadily growing and expanding its presence across the country. As of 2022, we have achieved 98% brand awareness in this market, increasing our brand equity from 125 to 236. This is in part helped by attaching great importance to ESG. We pursue the development of green, healthy, low energy consumption and environmental protection, ensuring that Hisense remains a caring enterprise."

He continued: "Hisense has been practicing public welfare activities in South Africa for a long time, continually advocating for social good. Hisense South Africa Industrial Park Project was selected as a demonstration case of South-South cooperation by the UNOSSC. In 2022, Hisense partnered with FIFA to organize the "Disappearing Pitch" charity event to call attention to global warming and provide practical help to the community. Our promise is to continue to aid the growth of generations to come, with the power of science and technology to improve everyone's quality of life."

About Hisense

Hisense is a leading global home appliance and consumer electronics brand. Hisense's business covers multimedia products (with a focus on Smart TVs), home appliances, and IT intelligent information. Recently, Hisense has grown rapidly and is now operating in more than 160 countries.

SOURCE Hisense
SHANGHAI and CLINTON, N.J., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- HuidaGene Therapeutics (; HuidaGene), a clinical-stage genome-editing company, today announced the online National Science Review published the comprehensive data from a study of the world's first DNA base editor converting G-to-Y, glycosylase-based guanine base editor (gGBE). Company has filed an international patent application for this base editor and owns the exclusive global rights to the underlying patent.

Current widely-used DNA base editors mainly integrate programmable DNA binding proteins (Cas9, Cas12, or TALE protein variants) with base deaminases (cytidine deaminase or adenosine deaminase variants). There are mainly two types of base editors: ABE (adenine base editor) and CBE (cytosine base editor), which can realize A-to-G and C-to-T transition between such bases 1-2. However, there is currently no base editor directly edits G or T since deamination of G rarely causes base conversion while T lacks amino groups, making it a challenge to overcome the limitation and to develop new class of base editors. Therefore, there is still a need to edit G or T in many cases.

"Following our publication in Nature Biotechnology early this year of the independently-developed, programmable A-to-Y DNA base editor, AYBE (adenine transversion base editor), we're thrilled that the National Science Review published our paper sharing the comprehensive data on our discovery of the world first guanine-based base editor, gGBE," said Xuan Yao, Ph.D., Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of HuidaGene. "CRISPR-Cas9-based CBEs and ABEs can efficiently mediate C-to-T and A-to-G substitutions, respectively. gGBE converting G-to-Y has immense potential for gene-editing drug development, and our successful development of the gGBE further strengthens the Company's intellectual property layout in the global gene editing field."

"Currently, all base editors need the deamination reaction of A or C as the initial step to trigger the subsequent DNA repair process and achieve the goal of base editing. Existing deaminases cannot catalyze guanosine and thymidine in genomic DNA into other nucleosides; therefore, direct editing of guanosine and thymidine is the major bottleneck for gene editing," said Hui Yang, Ph.D., Co-Founder, Chief Scientific Advisor, and Chairman of the SAB at HuidaGene. "Our publication entitled, 'Programmable deaminase-free base editors for G-to-Y conversion by engineered glycosylase', of the world's first guanine-based based editor, gGBE, through our HGPRECISE platform, has demonstrated guanine editing efficiency up to 90% with lower off-target editing, setting the foundation of developing a new class of base editors based on glycosylases. The new class of engineered glycosylases base editors may further enrich the base editing tool, establish disease models, and develop gene editing therapies."

About HGPRECISE Platform

HuidaGene's HGPRECISE ( H uida G ene  P latform for R ational E ngineering of C RISPR-Cas I dentification by S ynergic E xpertise) platform enables rapid discovery of Cas proteins using both artificial intelligence (AI) and deep machine learning (ML) of DNA sequencing and assembly prediction from metagenomic database. HGPRECISE generated Cas proteins have demonstrated superior editing efficiency, lower off-target editing activity compared to widely-used CRISPR-Cas9. The series of engineering transformation, protein evolution, mutational screening and validation on gGBE was performed on the HGPRECISE platform.

About HuidaGene -

HuidaGene Therapeutics () is a global clinical-stage biotechnology company focusing on discovering, engineering, and developing gene editing tools and gene therapies to rewrite the future of genomic medicine. Based in Shanghai and New Jersey, HuidaGene is committed to addressing patients' needs globally with various preclinical therapeutic programs covering ophthalmology, otology, myology, and neurology. HuidaGene is currently advancing clinical programs in RPE65 mutation-associated inherited retinal dystrophies and various preclinical pipeline, including programs in neovascular age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, hereditary hearing loss, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and MECP2 duplication syndrome. Those CRISPR-based therapeutics offer the potential to cure patients with life-threatening conditions by repairing the cause of their disease. HuidaGene is committed to transforming the future of genome-editing medicine.

For more information, please visit http://www.huidagene.com

or follow us on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/company/huidagene

Reference:

1. Gaudelli, N.M. et al. Programmable base editing of A*T to G*C in genomic DNA without DNA cleavage. Nature 551, 464-471 (2017).

2. Komor, A.C., Kim, Y.B., Packer, M.S., Zuris, J.A. & Liu, D.R. Programmable editing of a target base in genomic DNA without double-stranded DNA cleavage. Nature 533, 420-424 (2016).

SOURCE HuidaGene Therapeutics
Recreated Pony Coupe Concept makes debut in Lake Como nearly 50 years after its original debut at 1974 Turin Motor Show

Rebuilt by original designer, Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Pony Coupe Concept has been faithfully recreated to exacting specifications and original materials

Original Pony Coupe Concept inspired current flagship concept, N Vision 74 which makes its Italian debut at 'Hyundai Reunion' event and then at the Concorso d'Eleganza on May 20 th

Pony Coupe Concept is now widely considered a retro-futuristic classic that has served as design inspiration for more recent Hyundai Motor models and represents a significant part of the brand's proud heritage

Like the original, the origami-like exterior design features geometric lines and pure unadorned surfaces while the minimalist interior is distinguished by its driver-focused floating architecture

COMO, Italy and SEOUL, South Korea, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Motor Company's recreated Pony Coupe Concept has made its world premiere  nearly 50 years after its original debut  in Lake Como, Italy. Originally unveiled at the 1974 Turin Motor Show, the Pony Coupe Concept is an important vehicle in the company's history and design heritage.

Hyundai Motor unveiled the rebuilt Pony Coupe Concept at the inaugural Hyundai Reunion, a heritage brand platform that reflects on Hyundai Motor's past and its future direction.

Hyundai Pony Coupe Concept Restored - After 50 Years, Unveiled at Its Birthplace Italy Hyundai Pony Coupe Concept Restored - After 50 Years, Unveiled at Its Birthplace Italy Hyundai Pony Coupe Concept Restored - After 50 Years, Unveiled at Its Birthplace Italy

Under the Pony Coupe Concept restoration project, Hyundai Motor Company has brought the original Pony Coupe Concept shown at the 1974 Turin Motor Show back to life. This restoration project is a testament to the spirit, daring passion and ambition that Hyundai employees and executives had to create a global brand with the Pony Coupe Concept at its forefront.

"Despite the poor industrial environment in the 1970s, my grandfather and Hyundai's Founding Chairman Ju-young Chung poured his heart and soul into rebuilding Korea's economy and improving the lives of its people after the devastating Korean War. He finally realized his vision of making Korea a country capable of developing its own vehicles with perfection," said Euisun Chung, Executive Chair of Hyundai Motor Group. "I express my sincere gratitude to everyone from both Italy and Korea who played a critical role in the success of Pony."

"In the age of electrification, a key condition for Hyundai Motor Company to become a leader in future mobility will be our ability to remain faithful to the unshakable values we inherited," said Jaehoon Chang, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company. "Moving forward, through Hyundai Reunion and other heritage communication initiatives, we will continue to leverage our past as a unique vector for our future innovation."

When asked about his first interaction with Hyundai on the development of the 1973 Pony Coupe Concept more than fifty years prior to the reunion, Giugiaro revealed: "Hyundai approached us to start a complete redesign of a model, without much experience. I was skeptical at first because I didn't know Hyundai Motor at that time. We were all impressed by the passion and commitment of the Hyundai engineers. They were sharp, curious, open and extremely eager to learn. They immediately embraced the working methods that were new to them. They sacrificed themselves to make a good impression  for company and their partners. I'm proud and honored to witness how this company has evolved since we first met."

Luc Donckerwolke, President and Chief Creative Officer of Hyundai Motor Group, added, "The restoration of this unique vehicle is a milestone in Hyundai's history. It represents our beginnings and our commitment to the future. It serves as a legacy for generations to come. It virtually symbolizes the mobile relay baton we are passing from the past to the future of the company."

"The Pony Coupe Concept reflects the company's gratitude and dedication to the challenging spirits that people at Hyundai Motor had back in 1974," said SangYup Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of Hyundai Design Center. "The rebirth of the Pony Coupe Concept is a meaningful milestone in the history of Hyundai Motor because it signifies not only our beginnings but also our commitment to the future with our new dreams."

"It is very special to have significant people from the company's early days meet those who are leading the company into the future," said Sungwon Jee, Senior Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer at Hyundai Motor Company. "It also marks the launch of Hyundai Reunion, our platform for showcasing the brand's heritage. This is where one can see how our past success still serves as a basis for our daring attitude today. This spirit of innovation can be seen in these two models as well as the people who made them possible."

More information about Hyundai Motor can be found at: http://worldwide.hyundai.com or http://globalpr.hyundai.com.

SOURCE Hyundai Motor Company
We believe, IFS composability, industry focus and capabilities continue to make IFS the clear choice for global companies.

LONDON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- IFS, the global cloud enterprise software company, today announced that it is ranked #1 in the Enterprise Asset Management market based on revenue for the second consecutive year in the Gartner, Market Share: All Software Markets, Worldwide, 2022.

The company attributes its continued growth and success in EAM to its continued focus on building rich capabilities aligned to deep industry expertise, and the acquisition of IFS Ultimo in 2022.

The Gartner Market Share: All Software Markets, Worldwide, 2022 report aims to provide an overview of 2021-2022 of all enterprise software revenue and vendor market share. As part of the report, enterprise asset management (EAM) is a product category analyzed in its own right and vendors active in the segment have their market share reported. Overall, the worldwide enterprise software market grew by 11.3% in 2022.

IFS believes that the Gartner Market Share report reinforces the success IFS has seen in recent years, in EAM and across its entire business. This includes its 5th consecutive year of double-digit growth for the 2022 Financial Year. In addition to securing the highest EAM market share based on revenue, IFS is also investing in its recently established EAM business unit, which is focused on helping customers realize value faster.

Marne Martin, Chief Strategy Officer and President, commented: " In our opinion, we retain this ranking not by accident but through our commitment to provide our customers with a composable solution that supports their business across the asset lifecycle. As many enterprises globally face continued economic challenges, we are confident that our customers are maximizing the profitability of their assets with IFS EAM regardless of their current ERP solution, providing an enterprise-wide view of company asset performance and resilience to inform their business decisions."

IFS EAM is a composable solution for global organizations that understand the value of connecting processes that have either an upstream or downstream impact on their assets and customers. With a single integrated platform, IFS EAM uniquely combines enterprise class ERP capabilities with leading service management functionality  addressing the needs of complex asset-intensive environments. It automates the management of assets to control maintenance and optimize performance within a single solution. The breadth of IFS EAM capabilities are designed to support asset-intensive industries such as Energy and Utilities, Construction & Engineering, Manufacturing, Services, Aerospace & Defence and Telco for both current and future needs.

Ewout Noordermeer, Chief Marketing Officer, IFS Assets said: "Together, IFS Ultimo and IFS Cloud EAM have enabled IFS to reach a broader market and serve large global organizations as well as mid-size companies so they can build their asset management maturity. This strategy has been instrumental in enabling us to achieve accelerated growth. At IFS, and regardless of company size, we pride ourselves on our commitment to help customers enhance their operations by connecting the delivery of the right people, tools and equipment to an asset. We believe these Gartner Market Share results highlight our continued success in asset-intensive industries and help our customers deliver amazing moments of service."

Learn more about how IFS supports asset-intensive industries: https://www.ifs.com/solutions/enterprise-asset-management

Additional highlights

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally, PEER INSIGHTS is a trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Gartner Peer Insights content consists of the opinions of individual end users based on their own experiences with the vendors listed on the platform, should not be construed as statements of fact, nor do they represent the views of Gartner or its affiliates. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in this content nor makes any warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this content, about its accuracy or completeness, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About IFS

IFS develops and delivers cloud enterprise software for companies around the world who manufacture and distribute goods, build and maintain assets, and manage service-focused operations. Within our single platform, our industry specific products are innately connected to a single data model and use embedded digital innovation so that our customers can be their best when it really matters to their customersat the Moment of Service. The industry expertise of our people and of our growing ecosystem, together with a commitment to deliver value at every single step, has made IFS a recognized leader and the most recommended supplier in our sector. Our team of over 5,500 employees every day live our values of agility, trustworthiness, and collaboration in how we support thousands of customers. Learn more about how our enterprise software solutions can help your business today at ifs.com.

IFS Press Contacts

EUROPE, MEA & APJ: Adam Gillbe

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +44 7775 114 856

USA: Mairi Morgan

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1 520 396 2155

The following files are available for download:

https://news.cision.com/ifs/i/ifs-listed-as--1-in-2022-global-eam-market-share-by-revenue-for-the-second-consecutive-year-in-a-gar,c3180140 IFS listed as #1 in 2022 Global EAM Market Share By Revenue for the second consecutive year in a Gartner report - Graphic https://mb.cision.com/Public/855/3771510/9035ec01752c1cce.pdf IFS listed as #1 in 2022 Global EAM Market Share By Revenue for the second consecutive year in a Gartner report - Press Release

SOURCE IFS
The unmistakable illy 100% Arabica blend, the freshness of mint leaves and the delicate, exotic flavour of coconut come together to create a new, irresistible recipe

TRIESTE, Italy, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- illycaffe, the global leader in high-quality sustainable coffee, is freshening up summer 2023 with a new recipe based on its Cold Brew, the natural soft drink made with cold-brewed coffee elevated by illy's unique 100% Arabica brand.

illy's latest recipe, Cocomint

Cocomint, the latest recipe developed by the University of Coffee in collaboration with illy's experts and available exclusively in all the illy's single-brand outlets in Italy, France, UK and US, is a new flavor experience that evokes tropical and exotic memories, just like your favorite holiday! The new drink, made with the original Cold Brew Flat or Aria  with a natural, soft, and persistent head of foam  is enhanced by the sweetness of coconut milk and the freshness of mint.

Anyone can add their own personal touch to this creative recipe by stirring some coconut milk and mint into the Cold Brew for an explosion of freshness that packs a visual punch as well: the addition of mint will turn the drink bright green.

A unique experience will only be available at the illy retail stores of Monte Napoleone in Milan and Giardini Reali in Venice: the drink will be served in an amazing cloud of vapour, an exclusive experience developed by the University of Coffee's docents, that will also be accompanied by two macarons and some fresh spearmint leaves to add an extra kick.

Cocomint is much more than a simple coffee: it is an alternative and sensory way to enjoy the illy blend's rich aroma combined with the freshness and elegance typical of a summer drink made with illy cold brew.

illycaffe is an Italian family-owned company, founded in Trieste in 1933 which has always set itself the mission of offering the best coffee to the world. It produces a unique 100% Arabica blend composed of 9 different ingredients. The company selects only 1% of the best Arabica beans in the world. Every day 8 million cups of illy coffee are served in over 140 countries around the globe, in the cafes, restaurants and hotels, in single-brand cafes and shops, at home and in the office, in which the company is present through subsidiaries and distributors. Since its foundation, illycaffe has oriented its strategies towards a sustainable business model, commitment that it strengthened in 2019 by adopting the status of Benefit Company and in 2021 becoming the first Italian coffee company to obtain the international B Corp certification. Since 2013 the company is also one of the World Most Ethical Companies. Everything that is "made in illy" is about beauty and art, the founding principles of the brand, starting from its logo, designed by artist James Rosenquist, up to illy Art Collection cups, decorated by over 125 international artists, or coffee machines designed by internationally renowned designers. With the aim of spreading the culture of quality to growers, baristas and coffee lovers, the company has developed its Universita del Caffe which today holds courses in 25 countries around the world. In 2021, Rhone Capital became a minority shareholder of illycaffe with the aim of contributing to the company's international growth plans. In 2022, the company had 1230 employees and a turnover of 567,7 million. The illy single-brand network has 190 points of sale in 34 countries.

For more information

www.illy.com

[email protected]

SOURCE illycaffe
SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- California Forward (CA FWD) is thrilled to release a report detailing a set of immediate- and medium-term actions to accelerate the delivery of up to $180 billion worth of infrastructure projects to promote equity, environmental sustainability and economic growth in the state.

This release is a major work product of Antonio Villaraigosa's time as Infrastructure Advisor for the state of California. It is the culmination of a partnership between Governor Newsom's office, former Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa, CA FWD and the Boston Consulting Group, a strategic advisor on delivering new infrastructure ecosystems, who helped support the production of the report.

Through a series of regional meetings in late 2022, over 1,000 Californians from across sectors and industries provided feedback on regions-focused infrastructure spending. With California set to receive an estimated $120 billion in anticipated federal and state infrastructure funds, the state faces an unprecedented moment to leverage that funding into an additional $60 billion and accelerate project delivery.

"California has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to rebuild our infrastructure thanks to up to $180 billion going to infrastructure projects across our state over the next decade," said Governor Newsom. "These projects will power our homes with clean energy, transform our water delivery and storage system and ensure safe drinking water, rebuild our roads and highways and boost our transit options. Thanks to Mayor Villaraigosa and California Forward, this report will help guide our efforts as a state for how we leverage unprecedented infrastructure funding so we can deliver results for all Californians."

"The recommendations are the result of meeting with Californians from all walks of lifeelected officials from around the state and heads of major transportation agencies but also community leaders and members," said Mr. Villaraigosa. "Centering community and advancing equity is essential in this work, as is promoting environmental sustainability and expanding economic opportunity for all."

"We have a remarkable opportunity to improve California's infrastructure planning and deliveryand to make sure infrastructure projects are built better, faster and with greater transparency," said Micah Weinberg, CEO of CA FWD. "We look forward to working with the administration to bring community voices forward as the planning for this historic investment gets underway."

The final report developed in partnership with CA FWD, Mr. Villaraigosa and the Boston Consulting Groupoutlines recommended action steps, the critical roles that different sectors can take and how these improvements can create an estimated 400,000 construction jobs.

ABOUT CA FWD

California Forward (CA FWD) leads a statewide movement, bringing people together across communities, regions and interests to improve government and create inclusive, sustainable growth for everyone. A 501(c)(3) organization, CA FWD drives collective action to identify solutions that can be taken to scale to meet the challenges the state is facing. CA FWD serves as the backbone for the California Stewardship Network , an alliance of regional economic development leaders, and is home to the California Economic Summit and the California Dream Index .

Contact: Sarah Walsh

[email protected], 661-332-5999

SOURCE CA FWD
CHICAGO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Winsight, LLC ("Winsight" or the "Company"), a leading B2B information provider in the foodservice and allied retail industries, is to combine with London-based Informa PLC ("Informa") (LSE: INF.L), a publicly traded, global events, digital products and academic services firm. Informa acquired Winsight from HPS Investment Partners and the combination with Informa's existing B2B foodservice portfolio establishes a category-leading B2B business.

Winsight CEO Mike Wood will continue to lead the business which will become part of the Informa Connect division.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Winsight provides actionable information, market intelligence, professional events and media to the restaurant, noncommercial foodservice, convenience retailing and grocery industries. The Company offers a multi-channel portfolio of brands across research, data and analytics, events, websites, newsletters, and content marketing solutions. With nearly 3,000 customers, Winsight's solutions enable customers to measure and predict industry dynamics, drive engagement with target audiences, refine business development strategies, and create networking opportunities between buyers and sellers.

Informa currently owns established foodservice media brands and tradeshows and intends to operate Winsight brands alongside these to strengthen its position in the Restaurant and Food space. Technomic, Winsight's data and insights business, will be Informa's first insights business dedicated to foodservice. Winsight will continue to operate business as usual through 2023 and will rebrand as Informa in the new year once integration planning is complete.

Wood noted, "Our team is incredibly proud of what we've achieved since originally acquiring our founding brands in 2012. Our rapid recovery to pre-pandemic performance levels is a testament to the essential qualities of our products and services, and the caliber of our employees. We are excited to build upon this momentum as part of Informa whose global reach, existing market presence and growth minded philosophy will only allow us to do more and better for our clients".

Informa Connect CEO Andrew Mullins said, "At Informa, our purpose is to champion the specialist. This new combination of Informa's existing foodservice assets with Winsight's outstanding media, event and data assets, provides the capability to create even more market leading products and services that will better serve the needs of the foodservice industry and its customers. We are very excited to be bringing together such well respected market leading brands, and the talented teams that support them to facilitate the creation of even greater customer value and exciting new growth opportunities for all."

Winsight was advised by BrightTower (exclusive financial advisor) and Latham & Watkins LLP (legal advisor).

About Winsight

Winsight provides actionable information, market intelligence, professional events, and media to the global restaurant, noncommercial foodservice, convenience retailing and grocery industries. The Company offers a multi-channel portfolio of brands across research, data and analytics, events, magazines, web sites, e-newsletters, and content marketing solutions. With nearly 3,000 customers, Winsight's solutions enable customers to drive engagement with target audiences, refine business development strategies, and network within the industry. For additional information, please visit www.winsightmedia.com or www.technomic.com.

About Informa

Informa is a leading international B2B markets, live and on-demand events and digital services group. They connect businesses and professionals in 30+ industries with the knowledge they need to learn more, know more and do more. Informa has hundreds of global brands, products and services and employs 11,000 employees in ~30 countries worldwide.

Informa Connect is a content-led, live and on-demand experiences business which connects professionals with knowledge, ideas and opportunities. Informa Connect, a community of over 1,000 colleagues globally, offers connection through events, media and research. They service a number of different industries including Finance, Bio Tech and Pharma, Restaurant and Food, Catering, Event Planning, Pop Culture, Marketing, Law, Energy, HR, Sustainability, Construction.

Find out more about Informa and the Informa Connect division at www.informa.com and www.informaconnect.com.

CONTACT

Public Relations

Winsight, LLC

[email protected]

Related Links

http://www.winsightmedia.com

SOURCE Winsight, LLC
Added details (the first version was published at 12:25)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Azerbaijan's PASHA Bank allocated 8.25 million manat ($4.85 million) to social projects in 2022, Chief Compliance and Management Director of PASHA Bank Anar Karimov said this at a press conference on the last year's results, Trend reports.

According to him, PASHA Bank allocated 7.5 million manat ($4.4 million) for the restoration of cultural heritage sites in the Karabakh region of the country.

"Our bank donated 362,000 manat ($212,941) for charity purposes, a total of 394,000 manat ($231,764) were allocated to PASHA Bank's corporate social responsibility projects last year. In general, our expenses for the above activities amounted to 8.2 million manat ($4.8 million)," he said.

According to Karimov, PASHA Bank was awarded the following nominations: "Corporate social responsibility", "The most active participant in financial literacy", "In the promotion of non-cash payments", "Electronic banking projects", "Information projects on the security of digital payments" in 2022.
DUBLIN, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Innovations in Methane Pyrolysis, Downhole Imaging, Produced Water Remediation, Oil-water Separation & Liquid Methanol Production" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This edition of the Oil and Gas (O&G) TOE features information on the use of modular methane pyrolysis units to cost-effectively split natural gas into clean hydrogen and graphite that are used in a wide range of industries. The TOE also covers innovations based on the use of equipment health monitoring software platforms based on predictive analytics in the upstream oil and gas industry. The other focal point of the TOE is the use of X-Ray based downhole imaging solutions to enable oil well companies to monitor the quality and health of the oil wells.

The TOE additionally provides insights on the use of integrated processes for the cotreatment of produced water and abandoned mine drainage water and the use of porous polyketone-based ultrathin membranes for efficient oil-water separation in various industries. The TOE also provides the latest innovations in the use of novel cellulosic membranes for natural gas separation and hydrogen production, and the use of low-temperature catalysts for the production of liquid methanol from natural gas.



The Oil and Gas TOE provides intelligence on innovations pertaining to technologies, products, and processes, along with strategic insights, in the upstream and downstream processes in the oil and gas industry.



The Energy and Utilities cluster provides global insights and intelligence on a wide variety of disruptive emerging technologies and platforms ranging from energy storage, advanced batteries, and solar and wind energy, to unconventional oil, bioenergy, geothermal energy, and energy transmission.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Innovations in Unmanned Ground Vehicles, Oil Spill Remediation, & Enhanced Oil Recovery

Modular Methane Pyrolysis Units to Split Natural Gas for Generating Clean Hydrogen

SynergenMet's Value Proposition

SynergenMet - Investor Dashboard

Equipment Health Monitoring Solutions for the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry

APO Offshore's Value Proposition

APO Offshore - Investor Dashboard

X-ray-based Downhole Imaging Solution for Usage in Oil Fields

Visuray's Value Proposition

Visuray - Investor Dashboard

Integrated Processes for Produced Water and Abandoned Mine Drainage Cotreatment

Pittsburgh University's Value Proposition

Value Proposition Porous Polyketone-based Ultrathin Membranes for Enhanced Oil-water Separation

Swansea University's Value Proposition

Novel Membrane Material for Efficient Gas Separation

MIT's Value Proposition

Value Proposition Water-based Drilling (WBD) Fluid Utilizing Nanoparticles for Shale Application

Missouri University of Science and Technology's Value Proposition

of Science and Technology's Value Proposition Liquid Methanol Production from Methane at Low Temperature

University of Illinois Chicago's Value Proposition

Value Proposition Novel Technique to Convert Methane Gas into Liquid Methanol

Federal University of Sao Carlos's Value Proposition

Membrane-based, Energy-efficient Fractionation Route for Crude Oil

Queen Mary University's Value Proposition

Key Contacts

Appendix

Criteria for Rating of Innovations--Explanation

Legal Disclaimer

A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes

APO Offshore

SynergenMet

Visuray

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/rkcdv2

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]

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SOURCE Research and Markets
The research suggests that cutaquig infusions at higher infusion parameters, may offer greater dosing flexibility for primary immunodeficiency patients

The majority of patients in the study found the new investigational infusion regimens to be better or somewhat better than their previous regimens

Study evaluated increased infusion volume per site, infusion rate, and interval between infusions

The study results will be presented to attendees at the Clinical Immunology Society 2023 Annual Meeting to be held May 18-21

PARAMUS, N.J., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- An Octapharma-sponsored study published recently in The Journal of Clinical Immunology concludes that cutaquig  (Immune Globulin Subcutaneous [Human]-hipp, 16.5% solution) infusions at higher infusion rates, volume and therapy intervals met study endpoints for efficacy and safety, and were generally well tolerated with reduced infusion time, fewer infusion sites, and reduced frequency. The journal further reported the majority of study patients found the new investigational infusion regimens to be better or somewhat better than their previous regimens.

An Octapharma-sponsored study published recently in The Journal of Clinical Immunology concludes that cutaquig (Immune Globulin Subcutaneous [Human]-hipp, 16.5% solution) infusions at higher infusion rates, volume and therapy intervals met study endpoints for efficacy and safety, and were generally well tolerated with reduced infusion time, fewer infusion sites, and reduced frequency.

"The research suggests that cutaquig infusions at higher infusion parameters, may offer greater dosing flexibility for patients," said Primary Investigator Sudhir Gupta, MD, Chief, Basic and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, and Director, Jeffrey Modell Diagnostic Center for Primary Immunodeficiencies. "From both the patient and physician perspective, the benefits of subcutaneous immunoglobulin (SCIG) include stable serum IgG levels, a reduction in systemic side effects as compared to intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) and improved compliance and reductions in hospitalizations as a result of the flexibility of self-administration."

Cutaquig is indicated for treatment of primary humoral immunodeficiency (PI) in adults and pediatric patients age 2 and older.

"We are hopeful that higher infusion rates may provide patients with more flexibility and time to focus on their lives," said Octapharma USA President Flemming Nielsen. "Octapharma is committed to providing the PI community with life-saving and life-enhancing therapies. The study fit that mission perfectly by evaluating increased infusion volume per site, increased infusion rate, and increased interval between infusions when compared to previous approved regimens for cutaquig."

The increased utilization of SCIG and improvements in methodology now drive replacement therapy in patients with primary immune deficiency. Octapharma sponsored the Phase 3 study (NCT03939533) to further explore dosing flexibility with potential reductions in infusion time, sites, and/or frequency. The study results will be presented to attendees at the Clinical Immunology Society 2023 Annual Meeting to be held May 18-21 in St. Louis, Missouri.

The clinical trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of cutaquig in three modified infusion regimens. Researchers observed that increasing infusion volume resulted in a reduction of injection sites, while increasing infusion rates subsequently decreased infusion duration. Dosing every other week demonstrated equivalency to trough levels with weekly dosing.

In three separate cohorts, patients received cutaquig with researchers evaluating volume, rate, and frequency. For cohort one (n = 15), the maximum realized volume per site was 108 mL/site, exceeding the currently labeled (US) maximum (up to 40 mL/site for adults). In cohort two (n = 15), the maximum realized infusion flow rate was 67.5 mL/hr/site, which is also higher than the labeled (US) maximum (up to 52 mL/hr/site). In cohort three (n = 34), the mean total trough levels for every other week dosing demonstrated equivalency to weekly dosing (p value = 0.0017).

"All regimens were well tolerated," the journal article noted. "There were no serious bacterial infections. Most patients had mild (23.4%) or moderate (56.3%) adverse events. The majority of patients found the new infusion regimens to be better or somewhat better than their previous regimens and reported that switching to cutaquig was easy."1

About cutaquig

Cutaquig (Immune Globulin Subcutaneous [Human]-hipp) is a 16.5% immune globulin solution for subcutaneous infusion indicated for treatment of primary humoral immunodeficiency (PI) in adults and pediatric patients 2 years of age and older.

CONTRAINDICATIONS

History of anaphylactic or severe systemic reaction to human immune globulin or other components of cutaquig (Polysorbate 80).

IgA deficient patients with antibodies against IgA and a history of hypersensitivity.

WARNING: THROMBOSIS

Thrombosis may occur with immune globulin products, including cutaquig. Risk factors may include: advanced age, prolonged immobilization, hypercoagulable conditions, history of venous or arterial thrombosis, use of estrogens, indwelling vascular catheters, hyperviscosity, and cardiovascular risk factors.

For patients at risk of thrombosis, administer cutaquig at the minimum dose and infusion rate practicable. Ensure adequate hydration in patients before administration. Monitor for signs and symptoms of thrombosis and assess blood viscosity in patients at risk of hyperviscosity.

For complete prescribing information, please visit cutaquigusa.com/pi .

About the Octapharma Group

Headquartered in Lachen, Switzerland, Octapharma is one of the largest human protein manufacturers in the world, developing and producing human proteins from human plasma and human cell lines.

Octapharma employs more than 11,000 people worldwide to support the treatment of patients in 118 countries with products across three therapeutic areas: Hematology, Immunotherapy and Critical Care.

Octapharma has seven R&D sites and five state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Austria, France, Germany and Sweden, and operates more than 190 plasma donation centers across Europe and the US. The company's American subsidiary, Octapharma USA, is located in Paramus, N.J. For more information, please visit octapharmausa.com .

REFERENCE

1 - Gupta S, DeAngelo J, Melamed I, Walter JE, Kobayashi AL, Bridges T, Sublett JW, Bernstein JA, Koterba A, Manning M, Maltese J, Hoeller S, Turpel-Kantor E, Kreuwel H, Kobayashi RH. Subcutaneous Immunoglobulin 16.5% (Cutaquig) in Primary Immunodeficiency Disease: Safety, Tolerability, Efficacy, and Patient Experience with Enhanced Infusion Regimens . J Clin Immunol. 2023 May 9. doi: 10.1007/s10875-023-01509-4. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37160610.

SOURCE Octapharma USA
NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten today announced as its New York office managing partner Wendy E. Cohen, who co-chairs the firm's Investment Management and Funds practice and has long prioritized supporting women attorneys, particularly those in the field of finance. Cohen has spent the majority of her career at Katten, which provided invaluable support after she returned from a multiyear hiatus to raise her family.

Katten named top Investment Management and Funds attorney Wendy Cohen as the new managing partner of the firms New York office, effective June 1.

Cohen started her legal career in 1986 as a first-year associate at the venerable New York-based Rosenman & Colin LLP and was there when the firm merged with Katten in 2002. She succeeds Structured Finance and Securitization partner Chris DiAngelo, who has served as managing partner since 2013.

DiAngelo is credited with managing Katten's increased growth in New York, shepherding that office through the pandemic and guiding its move to a new space in Rockefeller Plaza last year. He will formally turn over the reins to Cohen on June 1.

"Wendy is right for this role. She is authentic and cares deeply about people. She is a skilled counselor with a strong penchant for over-and-above client service, all of which will enhance our strategic efforts in New York and elsewhere," said Katten CEO Noah Heller, who is based in New York.

"Chris was an excellent leader of our New York office. He deepened the sense of community even as he continued to lead teams representing our clients on innovative deals in our preeminent Structured Finance and Securitization practice," Heller added. "Similarly, some of the top private investment funds in the industry count on Wendy's counsel because she is sharp, collaborative and strategic, undaunted by challenges."

In a move largely considered a risk, Cohen left the workforce to grow her family before being considered for partner. She returned to Katten about five years later, the mother of three, working remotely, then gradually ramping up to full time before making partner.

A member of Katten's National Compensation Committee and co-founder of its Women in Finance initiative that supports and helps leverage the skills of those Katten attorneys, Cohen attributes her success to the firm's longstanding support.

"I am proud to take on this new role at a firm that realized well before others in the industry that accommodating an untraditional career path for a talented female attorney could result in a triple win  for me, for my clients with whom I have had decades-long relationships, and for the firm, which benefits from the retention of talent and the strength of those relationships," Cohen said.

Katten is a full-service law firm with approximately 700 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include corporate, financial markets and funds, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, private credit and private wealth. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit katten.com .

SOURCE Katten
Loanspark Continues to Strengthen SMB Funding Security and Compliance with Mastercard, Middesk, and LexisNexis

BOSTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Loanspark partnered with world-leading tech brands Mastercard, Middesk, and LexisNexis to enhance, speed up, and secure service delivery for its co-branded partners and their business customers.

Founder and CEO Michael Barnett stated that these partnerships were vital to Loanspark's mission. He said, "We are committed to bringing sanity, normalcy, confidence, and compliance to the SMB lending landscape. Integrating Mastercard, Middesk, and LexisNexis into our processes is in the best interest of our co-branded partners and their business customers."

It's on all of us to end dubious business practices that have no place in SMB lending and in the financial industry. Tweet this

Mastercard for Powerful Open Banking Connections

A partnership with Mastercard enables Loanspark to leverage Mastercard's open banking platform, with some services delivered through its subsidiary, Finicity, allowing businesses to establish direct consumer-permissioned connections with their customers' bank accounts. This enables SMB owners to submit financial information securely and easily while focusing on running their business, and in turn allowing Loanspark to make better credit decisions by quickly verifying the borrower's financial details. Accurate borrower information minimizes the lending risks and increases accuracy and speed of funds for SMBs. "Small businesses are increasingly looking for greater choice in how they borrow, pay and manage their finances. Partnering with organizations like Loanspark, provides small businesses with a streamlined process to gain access to capital and putting their financial worries at ease," said Andy Sheehan, EVP, US Open Banking, Mastercard.

Middesk for Onboarding Co-Branded Partners

With Middesk's business identity platform, Loanspark accurately verifies its co-branded partners. To ensure compliance, security, and trust, Loanspark only partners with authorized U.S. companies. Business identity data from Middesk ensures Loanspark continues to onboard the right co-branded partners.

LexisNexis for Lending Risk Mitigation

LexisNexis is a part of the RELX corporation, a global leader in information-based analytics, business intelligence, and decision tools. Loanspark leverages LexisNexis's trusted risk intelligence to analyze and validate borrowers on behalf of its co-branded partners.

By establishing these three partnerships, Loanspark continues to drive easy, transparent, secure, and compliant lending practices, creating a safe lending marketplace for its co-branded partners as well as their customers. Michael Barnett believes mutual trust is critical in building a thriving commercial lending ecosystem.

"Security, trust, and compliance are not a one-way street. We must all work together to ensure things are done the right way. It's on all of us to end dubious business practices that have no place in the financial industry."  CEO Michael Barnett

True to Michael's word, Loanspark is doing its part to clean up the commercial funding landscape by pulling all the stops to incorporate trusted resources into its fintech processes.

About Loanspark

Loanspark is a fintech start-up at the forefront of creating accessible and affordable funding solutions for SMBs. It empowers B2B businesses, accounting firms, financial brokers, and lenders to provide favorable business funding solutions to their customers. It does so through co-branded partnerships, a robust loan origination platform, and an ever-growing marketplace with over 100 SMB funding programs.

Loanspark creates a commercial financing ecosystem that's mutually beneficial to lenders and borrowers. It promotes growth to its partners by positioning them as value-added lenders to their customers. And in the process, SMBs gain quick, easy, safe, and affordable access to much-needed capital.

SOURCE Loanspark, LLC
The annual research list recognizes innovative tech companies driving the future of retail and ecommerce

TORONTO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Maropost, a unified commerce platform for fast-growing retail and ecommerce businesses, has been named to The Leading 100 of 2023. This highly anticipated annual research list is compiled by The Lead to recognize innovative tech companies and high-impact businesses that are driving value for brands as well as retailers. Maropost is thrilled to be among this year's recipients.

Maropost Maropost Named to Leading 100 List of Top Retail Tech Companies

"Being named among the top tech companies driving change for brands and retailers is an honor that fuels our passion to keep pushing the boundaries," said Ross Andrew Paquette, Maropost CEO. "Our customer obsession drives us to constantly challenge ourselves, develop cutting-edge solutions, and find ways around obstacles that others in the industry have accepted as the status quo."

The Leading 100 companies are solving business problems, powering growth and helping brands deliver on customer expectations through innovative, accessible and powerful technology solutions.

Maropost's unified commerce platform powers the customer experience for over 5,000 rapidly growing brands and retailers worldwide. Complete with marketing automation, ecommerce, POS, help desk, and even AI personalization, Maropost centralizes customer data and communications and offers merchants an all-in-one tech stack to scale their business.

All companies were vetted and selected using a rigorous methodology that measures innovation, business impact, commercialization and customers, teams and experience, competition, media buzz, and investor value creation. The selection committee, led by The Lead's Chief Content Officer, Sonal Gandhi, conducted an analysis and the final selection.

"The pace of change in the fashion, beauty and consumer industries has become dizzyingly fast, even for the industry leaders," said Ms. Gandhi. "The companies selected for The Leading 100 list represent some of the best examples of how technology innovation is helping address the needs of this rapidly evolving business environment. Some are helping brands get the best out of latest advances in powerful technologies such as AI, while others are creating solutions to optimize efficiency and productivity across the value chain."

ABOUT MAROPOST

Maropost's unified commerce platform powers the customer experience for rapidly growing retail, ecommerce and publishing companies worldwide. Complete with marketing automation, ecommerce, POS, help desk, and AI personalization, Maropost centralizes customer data and communications and offers merchants an all-in-one tech stack to scale their business. Since its founding in 2011, Maropost has been frequently featured on Deloitte's Technology Fast 500 list and G2's Leaderboard. The company has headquarters in Toronto, Brisbane, and Stockholm and now serves over 5,000 customers across the globe, including Sandro Paris, Untuckit, James Perse, Shop.com, Scott Sports, Mountain Equipment Co-Op, Nutrition Warehouse, Andie Swim and Fujifilm.

Visit maropost.com to learn more.

Media Contact:

Rachel Kuper

1.888.438.3152

[email protected]

SOURCE Maropost
SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Legislation to strengthen consumer protections and improve physician oversight at the Medical Board of California passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee today and heads to the Senate Floor. It must pass the Senate by the end of May.

The bill, SB 815 by Senator Richard Roth and Assemblymember Marc Berman, contains patient safety reforms long sought by patient advocates and Consumer Watchdog, including:

Changing the balance of power at the board so it has a public member majority;

Increased rights for patients in the enforcement process, including a mandatory interview before a complaint is closed, and the right to submit a victim impact statement before discipline;

A licensing fee increase to adequately fund the board's operations;

Reducing the standard of proof for most doctor discipline to match the standard used by 41 other state medical boards.

The Medical Board of California has previously endorsed many of the changes contained in SB 815.

"Senator Roth, committee members, and the Medical Board deserve credit for acting on the pleas of Californians who have shared their tragic stories of medical harm in order to improve doctor oversight and protect patients. While the details need fine-tuning, this bill is a significant step forward for patient protection in California," said Carmen Balber, executive director of Consumer Watchdog.

A remaining gap in the bill is increased disclosure, said Consumer Watchdog. Patients in California currently have no right to know when they walk into a doctor's office if the Medical Board is investigating, has charged, or has disciplined their provider for causing a patient's injury or death. Even criminal charges are not disclosed to patients before a medical appointment.

"We urge lawmakers going forward to address the missing piece -- transparency -- because we all have a right to know if our doctor has a history of harm," said Balber.

For example, Dr. Carlos Chacon is currently charged with murder for actions in December of 2018 that led to the death of patient Megan Espinoza, and is still allowed to practice. At least 7 other women were harmed by the doctor, several in the four years following Mrs. Espinoza's death, according to criminal charges, civil lawsuits, and complaints shared with Consumer Watchdog. Those patients were not warned about the doctor's history, even after he was first charged with manslaughter in December 2021, until a criminal court this month required him to disclose the murder charges as a condition of bail. Read more about the case: https://consumerwatchdog.org/healthcare/san-diego-doctor-charged-with-2nd-degree-murder-in-patients-death-shows-failure-of-californias-doctor-discipline-patient-disclosure-laws/

California patients denied justice at the Board have shared their stories to illustrate the need for reform before the Medical Board and the Legislature. Hear the testimony of many of the patients advocating for change here https://consumerwatchdog.org/meet-the-advocates/ and read their stories, and those of their loved ones, here https://consumerwatchdog.org/meet-the-patients/.

Read Consumer Watchdog's sunset review letter to the Senate and Assembly Medical Board oversight committees here: https://consumerwatchdog.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ConsumerWatchdogMBCSunset3-15-23.pdf

View or share this press release online.

SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
AMSTERDAM, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- MODIFI , a global commerce platform for business payments, announced a partnership with leading global payments and financial platform Airwallex to launch a streamlined, innovative, and secure solution for transferring money across multiple regions. Leveraging Airwallex's global payments and financial infrastructure, MODIFI has created Global Account Solutions, a payment tool which facilitates a seamless payment integration for exporters in China and large buyers around the world, by addressing the complexities and high costs of cross-border payments and invoice financing.

MODIFI partners with Airwallex to launch Global Account Solution

Cross-border payments are associated with high costs, longer payment terms, limited access, and lack of transparency. Banks, which are typically dominant in global business payments, tend to favor larger companies, leaving emerging SMEs struggling to find affordable and flexible global payment services. As a result, there is a demand for efficient and cost-effective cross-border payment solutions.

MODIFI has embedded Airwallex's payment infrastructure to provide Global Account Solutions for exporters around the globe who are seeking sustainable growth in their international business. This solution simplifies the financing and collection process for buyers and sellers across multiple regions, including North America, Europe, and Asia. MODIFI Global Account Solution is designed to address the financing pain points of B2B exporters, as well as meet the cash flow needs of e-commerce marketplace vendors and non-traditional businesses. MODIFI supports major platforms such as Walmart, JD Worldwide, Amazon, Wayfair, Tmall International, Coupang, and Temu. By optimizing cashflow, bridging financing gaps, and providing support for Chinese exporters, MODIFI facilitates cross-border e-commerce platforms.

Wenlong Huang, General Manager of MODIFI Greater China, said, "The innovative solution with Airwallex builds convenient cross-border payment and financing services for Chinese exporters and helps them to speed up the working capital cycle and increase profit margins."

Commenting on the partnership, Pranav Sood, GM, EMEA at Airwallex, said, "Moving money around the world can be incredibly restrictive, time-consuming and costly. Airwallex's global financial infrastructure coupled with MODIFI's digital commerce payments platform, will simplify the way businesses can grow across borders. We're excited to work with MODIFI and further empower businesses to reach their global ambitions."

Sven Brauer, COO of MODIFI, said, "We're offering this solution not only to Chinese exporters but also to exporters outside of China. It eases trade bottlenecks and tackles liquidity issues, benefiting exporters struggling with financing and collection solutions."

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080102/Modifi_Airwallex.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080100/Modifi_Logo.jpg

SOURCE MODIFI B.V.
SAO PAULO, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Movida Europe S.A. (the " Issuer "), a wholly-owned finance subsidiary of Movida Participacoes S.A. (" Movida "), announces that it has commenced a cash tender offer (the " Tender Offer ") for up to US$375.0 million in aggregate principal amount (subject to increase or decrease by the Issuer, in its sole discretion, the " Maximum Tender Amount ") of its 5.250% senior sustainability-linked notes due 2031 (the " Notes "). The Notes are fully, unconditionally and irrevocably guaranteed by Movida and Movida Locacao de Veiculos S.A. (together with Movida, the " Guarantors ").

The Tender Offer is being made upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in an offer to purchase, dated May 17, 2023 (the " Offer to Purchase "). Any capitalized term used but not defined in this press release has the respective meaning set forth in the Offer to Purchase.

The following table sets forth the material pricing terms of the Tender Offer:

Title of Security CUSIP / ISIN Principal Amount

Outstanding Early Tender

Premium(1) Total

Consideration(2) Tender Offer

Consideration(3) 5.250% Senior

Sustainability-Linked

Notes due 2031 Rule 144A: 62459LAA7 /

US62459LAA70 Regulation S:

L65266AA3/

USL65266AA36 US$677,644,000 US$30.00 US$780.00 US$750.00

__________________ (1) Per US$1,000 principal amount of Notes accepted for purchase. (2) The amount to be paid for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered at or prior to the Early Tender Date and accepted for purchase. The Total Consideration includes an Early Tender Premium of US$30.00 for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes. In addition, Accrued Interest will be paid. (3) The amount to be paid for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered after the Early Tender Date but at or prior to the Expiration Date and accepted for purchase. In addition, Accrued Interest will be paid.

The Tender Offer will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on June 15, 2023, unless extended by the Issuer (such time and date, as it may be extended, the " Expiration Date "). The deadline for Holders to validly tender (and not validly withdraw) Notes in the Tender Offer and be eligible to receive payment of the Total Consideration, which includes the Early Tender Premium, will be 5:00 p.m. (New York City time) on May 31, 2023, unless extended by the Issuer (such time and date, as it may be extended, the " Early Tender Date ").

The " Total Consideration " for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date and accepted for purchase pursuant to the Tender Offer will be US$780.00, which includes an early tender premium equal to US$30.00 (the " Early Tender P remium "). Holders who validly tender Notes after the Early Tender Date but at or prior to the Expiration Date and whose Notes are accepted for purchase will not be entitled to receive the Early Tender Premium and will therefore be entitled to receive, for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes accepted for purchase, US$750.00 (the " Tender Offer Consideration ").

The Issuer, in its sole discretion, may elect to purchase Notes that are validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Date (and whose Notes are accepted for purchase) three business days following the Early Tender Date but before the Expiration Date. If the Issuer does not, in its sole discretion, elect to pay for such early tendered Notes prior to the Expiration Date, then all Notes up to the Maximum Tender Amount that are validly tendered and not validly withdrawn in the Tender Offer will be accepted for purchase on a date that is expected to be two business days following the Expiration Date or as promptly as practicable thereafter.

Withdrawal rights with respect to tendered Notes will terminate at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on May 31, 2023, unless extended by the Issuer (such time and date, as it may be extended, the " Withdrawal Date "). Accordingly, following the Withdrawal Date, Notes validly tendered, including Notes tendered prior to the Withdrawal Date and Notes tendered thereafter, may no longer be validly withdrawn except in certain limited circumstances where additional withdrawal rights are required by applicable law (as determined by the Issuer).

If the purchase of all Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date would cause the Issuer to accept for purchase an aggregate principal amount of Notes that exceeds the Maximum Tender Amount, then the Tender Offer will be oversubscribed at the Early Tender Date and, assuming satisfaction or waiver of the conditions to the Tender Offer, the Issuer will purchase on, at its option, the Early Settlement Date or the Final Settlement Date Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date and accepted for purchase on a prorated basis according to the principal amount of such Notes, such that the Issuer purchases an aggregate principal amount of Notes that does not exceed the Maximum Tender Amount.

If the Tender Offer is not oversubscribed at the Early Tender Date and the purchase of all Notes validly tendered after the Early Tender Date but at or prior to the Expiration Date (when combined with all Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date) would cause the Issuer to accept for purchase an aggregate principal amount of Notes that exceeds the Maximum Tender Amount, then the Tender Offer will be oversubscribed at the Expiration Date and, assuming satisfaction or waiver of the conditions to the Tender Offer, the Issuer will purchase on the Final Settlement Date Notes validly tendered at or prior to the Expiration Date and accepted for purchase, as follows:

first , to the extent there was no Early Settlement Date, all Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date; and

, to the extent there was no Early Settlement Date, all Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) at or prior to the Early Tender Date; and second, all Notes validly tendered after the Early Tender Date but at or prior to the Expiration Date, on a prorated basis according to the principal amount of such Notes, such that the Issuer purchases an aggregate principal amount of Notes that does not exceed the Maximum Tender Amount.

All tendered Notes not accepted will be promptly credited to the Holder's account with DTC or otherwise returned to the Holder without cost.

The Issuer's obligation to accept for purchase, and to pay for, Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn pursuant to the Tender Offer is conditioned upon the satisfaction or, when applicable, waiver of certain conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase.

The Issuer has the right to amend or terminate the Tender Offer at any time and to increase or decrease the Maximum Tender Amount in its sole discretion, subject to applicable law. If the Tender Offer is terminated at any time, the Notes tendered will be promptly returned to the tendering Holders without compensation or cost to such Holders and will remain outstanding. The Issuer reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to not accept any tenders of Notes for any reason. The Issuer and its affiliates reserve the absolute right, in their sole discretion, from time to time to redeem or purchase any Notes that remain outstanding after the Expiration Date through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, tender offers, exchange offers or otherwise, upon such terms and at such prices as they may determine, which may be more or less than the price to be paid pursuant to the Tender Offer.

Copies of the Offer to Purchase are available to Holders from D.F. King & Co., Inc., the tender agent and the information agent for the Tender Offer (the " Tender and Information Agent "). Requests for copies of the Offer to Purchase should be directed to D.F. King at +1 (800) 628-8532 (toll-free), +1 (212) 269-5550 (collect) or [email protected].

The Issuer has engaged Banco Bradesco BBI S.A., Banco BTG Pactual S.A.  Cayman Branch, Itau BBA USA Securities, Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Santander US Capital Markets LLC, UBS Securities LLC and XP Investments US LLC to act as dealer managers (the " Dealer Managers ") in connection with the Tender Offer. In such capacity, the Dealer Managers may contact Holders regarding the Tender Offer and may request brokers, dealers, commercial banks, trust companies and other nominees to forward the Offer to Purchase and related materials to beneficial owners of Notes. The Dealer Managers can be contacted at their telephone numbers set forth on the back cover page of the Offer to Purchase with questions regarding the Tender Offer.

Neither the Offer to Purchase nor any related documents have been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, nor have any such documents been filed with or reviewed by any federal or state securities commission or regulatory authority of any country. No authority has passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of the Offer to Purchase or any related documents, and it is unlawful and may be a criminal offense to make any representation to the contrary. This Offer to Purchase has not been approved by and will not be submitted for approval to the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier for the purposes of approval under Regulation (EU) 2017/1129, as amended, and/or the Luxembourg Law dated 16 July 2019 on prospectuses for securities, as amended.

Under no circumstances shall this press release constitute an offer to buy or the solicitation of an offer to sell the Notes or any other securities of the Issuer, the Guarantors or any of their affiliates in the United States, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg or in any other jurisdiction. The Tender Offer is not being made to, nor will the Issuer accept tenders of Notes from, Holders in any jurisdiction in which the Tender Offer would not be in compliance with the securities or blue sky laws of such jurisdiction.

Important Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are information of a non-historical nature or that relate to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties. No assurance can be given that the transactions described in this press release will be consummated or as to the ultimate terms of any such transactions. Neither the Issuer nor the Guarantors undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or future events or for any other reason.

Disclaimer

This press release must be read in conjunction with the Offer to Purchase. This press release and the Offer to Purchase contain important information that must be read carefully before any decision is made with respect to the Tender Offer. If any Holder is in any doubt as to the action it should take, it is recommended to seek its own legal, tax, accounting and financial advice, including as to any tax consequences, from its attorney, accountant or other independent financial or legal adviser. None of the Issuer, the Guarantors, the Dealer Managers, the Tender and Information Agent or any affiliate of such persons expresses any opinion as to whether the terms of the Tender Offer are fair to any Holder. Holders must make their own decision as to whether to tender any Notes and, if so, the principal amount of Notes to tender.

SOURCE Movida Europe S.A.
Amsted Powershift system will enable the next-generation of EV drivetrains

CTI Symposium USA will host the first-ever public presentation on Amsted's technology

will host the first-ever public presentation on Amsted's technology Event is in Michigan May 24-25, 2023

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- To enable a rapid, successful transition from traditional propulsion systems to the unique requirements of electric vehicle counterparts, the automotive industry needs a trailblazer for next-generation EV drivetrains. At the forefront is Amsted Automotive Group, which continues to develop functional, efficient, and cost-effective new EV propulsion system architectures that improve an EV's range. The latest ground-breaking technology that Amsted is revealing is a Multi-Functional Shift System for EV Drivetrains, improving overall vehicle dynamics and extending driving ranges.

John Jennings, Amsted Automotive Director of Innovation and eMobility, will present the companys latest ground-breaking technology -- a Multi-Functional Shift System for EV Drivetrains, improving overall vehicle dynamics and extending driving ranges -- at CTI USA in Novi, MI on May 25, 2023. (PRNewsfoto/Amsted Automotive)

John Jennings, the Director of Innovation and eMobility at Amsted, will give the presentation on Multi-Functional Shift System for EV Drivetrains at 4:10 pm EST on May 25, 2023 at the 2023 CTI Symposium USA in Novi, Michigan. The technology will also be on display in the Amsted Automotive booth at CTI USA, booth number #D-1.

CTI Symposium USA's focus is on Carbon Neutral, Automotive Drivetrains & Infrastructure, with international experts in manufacturing and supply in attendance. The event is built around addressing challenges and solutions in electric drives, power electronics, battery systems, and more, and features keynote speeches, panel discussions, and technical presentations.

About Amsted Automotive Group.

In 2021, Amsted Automotive Group brought together Means Industries Inc., SMW Manufacturing, and Burgess-Norton Mfg. Co., Inc. to form a new and innovative technology team. The integration provides an expanded global presence with 21 facilities in North America, Europe, and Asia to serve the global automotive customer base with a robust manufacturing footprint, producing over 100 million components and assemblies annually. The group combines design and engineering expertise, strategically aligned to be a nimble leader in advanced metal-forming and powder metal manufacturing with electro-mechanical clutch design capabilities for electrified propulsion solutions and builds on Amsted Automotive Group's integral role in global advanced automatic transmissions designed in North America, Europe, and Asia.

SOURCE Amsted Automotive
Financing accelerates MT-302, the Company's first clinical candidate for in vivo cell programming, into a Phase 1/2 clinical trial for TROP2+ solid tumors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Myeloid Therapeutics, Inc. ("Myeloid"), a clinical stage mRNA-immunotherapy company, announced today the completion of a $73 million financing led by Hatteras Investment Partners, with participation from new investors ARCH Venture Partners and Moore Strategic Ventures. All existing investors, including Newpath Partners, 8VC and Alexandria Venture Investments, also participated.

"Myeloid continues to make significant progress across all aspects of our business. We are pioneering the convergence of immunology and RNA science to build a clinical-stage portfolio of products, starting with the significant unmet needs of cancer patients," said Daniel Getts, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Myeloid. "We are pleased that such high-quality investors have joined with us to accelerate this effort."

Proceeds from the financing will support the continued clinical development of MT-101, Myeloid's lead cell therapy program in Phase 1/2 for T cell lymphoma, and will accelerate the development of MT-302, a first-in-class TROP2-FcA mRNA-LNP product, into a Phase 1/2 study for TROP2-expressing tumors. Additional in vivo programming candidates are also advancing to the clinic.

Clay B. Thorp, General Partner at Hatteras, added, "Hatteras focuses on investments in cutting-edge companies that are disrupting the status quo and accelerating the pace of innovation. We are highly encouraged by the innovation, execution and clinical development progress demonstrated by Myeloid. We are proud to support this field-leading Company through its next phase of growth and are optimistic that these approaches will drive a meaningful clinical outcome for patients."

About MT-302

Emerging from the Company's proprietary ATAK CAR receptor library, Myeloid's novel in vivo engineering platform specifically targets and activates myeloid cells to elicit broader anti-tumor adaptive immunity. Through this approach, Myeloid demonstrates that delivery of lipid-nanoparticles (LNPs) encapsulating mRNA results in uptake and selective expression by myeloid cells in vivo, leading to potent tumor killing in multiple cold tumor models.

The Company's lead in vivo program, MT-302, is a TROP2-targeting in vivo CAR designed for expression within the myeloid compartment. TROP2 is a tumor associated antigen expressed widely on epithelial tumors, including some of the most difficult to treat cancers. Treatment with MT-302 has demonstrated monotherapy activity in a TROP2/TNBC model, confirming the potency of programmed myeloid cells in the absence of T cells. Myeloid believes that MT-302 has significant advantages over TROP2-ADC approaches through its ability to engage the full immune response. In 2023, Myeloid expects to initiate a Phase 1/2 clinical study with MT-302 for patients with TROP2-expressing tumors.

About MT-101

MT-101 is the Company's first autologous CAR monocyte. This candidate was derived from the Company's proprietary ATAK platform and designed to harness the ability of myeloid cells to penetrate into tumors and promote broad anti-tumor activity. MT-101 targets CD5, a surface receptor that is present in greater than 75% of peripheral T cell lymphomas. To create MT-101, the patient's cells are engineered ex vivo with the mRNA-strand coding for the CAR. The engineered cells are delivered back to the patient with a vein-to-vein time of eight days. The ATAK CAR is proprietary to Myeloid and manufactured using the Company's patented processes.

The IMAGINE study (NCT05138458) is a Phase 1/2, multicenter, open-label, first-in-human, multiple ascending dose study to evaluate MT-101 in patients with refractory or relapsed PTCL and CTCL. The dose-escalation portion of this study, conducted with and without conditioning therapy, is open and enrolling patients.

RetroT

Retrotransposons are genetic elements that replicate through reverse transcription of an RNA transposition intermediate. Retrotransposons contribute to structural changes, and more importantly, to gene regulation. Myeloid's RetroT technology relies on a single-strand mRNA to deliver genetic sequences and integration enzymes. This breakthrough technology offers the potential to deliver gene-sized pieces of DNA into the genome in a virus-free manner. The payload realizable with RetroT is larger than currently possible with all known existing gene editing technologies. As a result, the Company's RetroT platform holds the potential to significantly expand the type and scope of genetic errors that can be reversed in situ. In March 2022, Myeloid entered into an exclusive option and research collaboration agreement with Prime Medicine, Inc. to develop and accelerate RetroT.

About Myeloid Therapeutics

Myeloid Therapeutics is a clinical stage mRNA-immunotherapy company developing novel therapies for cancer. Integrating the fields of RNA, immunology and medicine, the Company's proprietary platform provides clinical solutions by matching therapeutic modalities to disease conditions, including use of autologous cell therapies, in vivo cell programming using mRNA, and RNA-based gene-editing using RetroT.

For more information, please visit https://www.myeloidtx.com/.

Investor and Media Contact:

Amy Conrad

Juniper Point

[email protected]

858-914-1962

SOURCE Myeloid Therapeutics
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Azerbaijan State Oil Company (SOCAR) and Uzbekneftegaz JSC, state-owned holding company of Uzbekistan's oil and gas industry, have discussed the creation of a joint venture for gas trading, Trend reports via Uzbekneftegaz.

The issue was discussed at the meeting between management of Uzbekneftegaz and the delegation headed by President of SOCAR Rovshan Najaf.

Particular interest was expressed for the creation of a "SOCAR Trading" joint venture.

The sides also discussed the project of modernization of the Uzbek Bukhara Refinery, as well as joint development at fields both on the territory of Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.

At the same time, SOCAR's management has expressed its readiness to become an operator of energy projects in Uzbekistan.

Meanwhile, earlier this year, Board Chairman of Uzbekneftegaz company Bahodir Siddikov told Trend that the creation of this JV will lift the cooperation to the fundamentally new level.

"We know about the very successful experience of SOCAR Trading. I believe that in the near future well see such serious stages," Siddikov added.
HOUSTON, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Nabors Energy Transition Corp. (NYSE: NETC) ("NETC" or the "Company") announced that its board of directors has elected to extend the date by which NETC has to consummate a business combination by three additional months from May 18, 2023 to August 18, 2023 (the "Extension"), as permitted under NETC's second amended and restated certificate of incorporation. The Extension provides NETC with additional time to complete its previously announced initial business combination (the "Business Combination") with Vast Solar Pty Ltd ("Vast").

In connection with the Extension, Nabors Lux 2 S.a.r.l. ("Nabors Lux") and Greens Road Energy LLC ("Greens Road"), each an affiliate of Nabors Energy Transition Sponsor LLC (the "Sponsor"), have deposited a total of $886,557.69 (the "Extension Payment") into NETC's trust account for its public stockholders (the "Trust Account"), which enables NETC to effectuate the Extension. Nabors Lux and Greens Road each loaned their respective portion of the Extension Payment to NETC through a non-interest-bearing loan. If NETC consummates an initial business combination, it will repay the loans out of the proceeds of the Trust Account or, at the option of the Sponsor, convert all or a portion of the loans into warrants for $1.00 per warrant, which warrants will be identical to the warrants issued by NETC in a private placement in connection with NETC's initial public offering. If NETC does not consummate an initial business combination, it will repay the loans only from funds held outside of the Trust Account.

About Nabors Energy Transition Corp.

NETC is a blank check company formed to effect a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. The Company focused its search for a target business on companies that identify solutions, opportunities or technologies that focus on advancing the energy transition; specifically, companies that facilitate, improve or complement the reduction of carbon or greenhouse gas emissions while satisfying growing energy consumption across markets globally.

Important Information for Stockholders

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or constitute a solicitation of any vote or approval.

In connection with the proposed Business Combination, Vast has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") a registration statement on Form F-4 (the "Registration Statement"), which included (i) a preliminary prospectus of Vast relating to the offer of securities to be issued in connection with the proposed business combination and (ii) a preliminary proxy statement of NETC to be distributed to the holders of NETC's capital stock in connection with NETC's solicitation of proxies for a vote by NETC's stockholders with respect to the proposed business combination and other matters described in the Registration Statement. NETC and Vast also plan to file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed Business Combination. After the Registration Statement has been declared effective by the SEC, a definitive proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to the stockholders of NETC. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF NETC AND VAST ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT, THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS CONTAINED THEREIN (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION.

Investors and security holders can obtain free copies of the proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about NETC and Vast once such documents are filed with the SEC, through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, the documents filed by NETC may be obtained free of charge from NETC's website at www.nabors-etcorp.com or by written request to NETC at 515 West Greens Road, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77067.

Participants in the Solicitation

NETC, Nabors Industries Ltd., Vast and their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of NETC in connection with the proposed Business Combination. Information about the directors and executive officers of NETC is set forth in NETC's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the SEC on March 22, 2023. To the extent that holdings of NETC's securities have changed since the amounts printed in NETC's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, such changes have been or will be reflected on Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 filed with the SEC. Other information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitation and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials to be filed with the SEC when they become available. You may obtain free copies of these documents as described in the preceding paragraph.

Forward Looking Statements

The information included herein and in any oral statements made in connection herewith include "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. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included herein, regarding the proposed Business Combination, NETC's and Vast's ability to consummate the transaction, the benefits of the transaction and NETC's and Vast's future financial performance following the transaction, as well as NETC's and Vast's strategy, future operations, financial position, estimated revenues and losses, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. When used herein, including any oral statements made in connection herewith, the words "could," "should," "will," "may," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "project," the negative of such terms and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. These forward-looking statements are based on NETC and Vast management's current expectations and assumptions about future events and are based on currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, NETC and Vast disclaim any duty to update any forward-looking statements, all of which are expressly qualified by the statements in this section, to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. NETC and Vast caution you that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of NETC and Vast. These risks include, but are not limited to, general economic, financial, legal, political and business conditions and changes in domestic and foreign markets; the inability of the parties to successfully or timely consummate the proposed transactions or to satisfy the conditions to the closing of the proposed transactions, including satisfaction of the minimum proceeds condition and the risk that any required regulatory approvals are not obtained, are delayed or are subject to unanticipated conditions that could adversely affect the combined company; the risk that the approval of the stockholders of NETC for the proposed transactions is not obtained; the failure to realize the anticipated benefits of the proposed transactions, including as a result of a delay in consummating the proposed transaction or difficulty in, or costs associated with, integrating the businesses of NETC and Vast; the amount of redemption requests made by NETC's stockholders; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against NETC or Vast following announcement of the transaction; the occurrence of events that may give rise to a right of one or both of NETC and Vast to terminate the definitive agreements related to the proposed Business Combination; difficulties or delays in the development of Vast's concentrated solar power facilities; the risks related to the rollout of Vast's business and the timing of expected business milestones; potential benefits and commercial attractiveness to its customers of Vast's products; the potential success of Vast's marketing and expansion strategies; and the effects of competition on Vast's future business. Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties described herein and in any oral statements made in connection therewith occur, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Additional information concerning these and other factors that may impact NETC's expectations and projections can be found in the Registration Statement and NETC's periodic filings with the SEC, including NETC's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 22, 2023, and any subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. NETC's SEC filings are available publicly on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

Investor Relations Contact

William C. Conroy

[email protected]

SOURCE Nabors Energy Transition Corp.
A first-of-its-kind marketing software, Modern.AI creates custom content and automates processes for brands to boost sales and maximize profitability.

MIAMI, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tapping into the vast potential of artificial intelligence, data-based brand accelerator Neon Flux is launching Modern.AI . Available to the public this year, Modern.AI is one of the first AI tools designed specifically for e-commerce. The software automates virtually every aspect of the online sales process, and generates custom content, to make e-commerce companies streamlined and more profitable.

"Without a doubt, artificial intelligence will totally upend the way we approach online selling. E-commerce brands that do not begin to incorporate artificial intelligence in their processes will soon be left behind," shares Adam Wellington, Founder and CEO of Neon Flux. "Digital marketing has evolved numerous times since I first started out more than 15 years ago, and I've always been a futurist, constantly seeking out the next big thing to transform the industry. Advancements in artificial intelligence over the past few years have made it the ultimate tool for predicting customer behavior and optimizing customer conversions, all while saving brands time and money."

A new type of buyer has emerged, as modern technology has shifted customer expectations. Brands can and should create a seamless, omnichannel experience for customers, and a constant online availability for products offered, so that customers get what they want, exactly when they want it.

Noting artificial intelligence's potential to automate the majority of the online selling process for this non-stop demand, Neon Flux set out to design a software which not only helps reduce time and cost associated with creating an integrated customer experience, but it also minimizes effort and manual errors.

Modern.AI is one of the only artificial intelligence tools currently available that combines generative AI, classification AI, and optimization AI to help businesses with every aspect of an omnichannel customer experience. The tool can classify the consumer, optimize how they move through pieces of an online brand, and create content that appeals to them, all with minimal manpower. It maximizes profitability across various direct-to-consumer verticals, including advertising, price testing, web design and customer segmentation.

AI Website Optimization and Cross-Channel Integration

There is more opportunity than ever in the digital advertising space, but this success has become much more complicated to achieve. Modern.AI allows brands to optimize online advertising, as one of the first artificial intelligence tools that uses multivariate AI testing to generate customized landing pages for each consumer.

When a potential customer clicks on an advertisement, a brand can use Modern.AI to create a landing page that incorporates facts about the user - such as location and age - to generate copy, fonts and images designed to encourage them to make the purchase. The tool also simultaneously uses AI to track which of these custom ads are performing the best.

In order to optimize the ad experience, and ensure brands are getting the most out of their advertising dollars, Modern.AI utilizes artificial intelligence to connect directly with ad networks. It determines which offer the highest and lowest conversion rates, and bypasses the need for third-party partners or sites.

With the use of ChatGPT, Modern.AI provides copy suggestions for product descriptions, calls to action and more, based on language that performs well. Subscription services can customize every aspect of a subscription, from the frequency of deliveries to the specific products or services customers receive. Modern.AI helps brands make smart marketing decisions through automated price sensitivity testing and sales funnel statistics. For smaller businesses, Modern.AI also allows brands to create fully-functioning e-commerce websites without any coding knowledge.

The Future of AI for E-Commerce

Modern.AI will soon be able to offer automated customer segmentation and gather data about consumers - such as demographic information, purchase history, website behavior and other relevant factors - so that its users can have a completely customized experience.

"Digital transformation can be nearly apocalyptic for many large companies, let alone small businesses. I have seen time and time again where high level CEOs of nine-to-10-figure companies are steering a massive ship and can't turn nimbly enough, or their team is not up to the challenge of innovating fast enough to stay ahead of the curve," Wellington continues. "Neon Flux's goal with Modern.AI is to provide the ultimate assistant for your business to flourish, with a system that simplifies processes, optimizes customer experience and maximizes results to enable e-commerce brands to scale exponentially at record rates."

ABOUT NEON FLUX

Neon Flux is a global leader in the incubation and acceleration of digital brands and offers an end-to-end brand acceleration platform. Using proprietary technology, data-driven marketing strategies, and connected services, Neon Flux is a one-stop shop for driving hyper-scale brand growth and maximizing brand value. Neon Flux works with brands internationally and across multiple categories, including health, beauty, consumer products, insurance, financial products, and more. Learn more at http://neonflux.com .

Media Contact:

Neon Flux

[email protected]

SOURCE Neon Flux
In the first of a series of global films highlighting Indigenous Peoples from the Wayfinders Circle, water and culture bring together a father and daughter fighting to protect their homelands in Southern California.

SEATTLE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- We are thrilled to announce that Tuhaymani'chi Pal Waniqa (The Water Flows Always) is an official selection for the Academy Award-qualifying 2023 Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF). It is the first release in an upcoming series of films created by the Wayfinders Circle  a global network of Indigenous guardians who protect their lands, waters, and territories, and are dedicated to sharing the transformative potential of Indigenous lifeways.

"The water can teach us, the water can help us, the water heals us." - Sean Milanovich, Ph.D. (Cahuilla), NALC Tweet this Tuhaymani'chi Pal Waniqa (The Water Flows Always) is the first of a series of global films highlighting Indigenous Peoples from the Wayfinders Circle (www.WayfindersCircle.org), and will make its world premiere on May 20, 2023 at the Seattle International Film Festival.

Tuhaymani'chi Pal Waniqa (The Water Flows Always) represents the power of collective filmmaking between Indigenous communities and creative storytellers, influenced by Indigenous guardianship since time immemorial of the region now known as Southern California. Directed by Gina Milanovich (Cahuilla, Cupeno) and Nils Cowan, the film follows a father seeking to reconnect his daughter with her Indigenous roots and the ancient springs of the Mojave Desert, just as a water mining project threatens their very existence.

"When we first learned of the illegal efforts to mine the water underneath the Mojave Desert, we were more dismayed than surprised. But those feelings soon turned to creative energy as we witnessed the galvanizing force this threat was having among Indigenous Peoples of the area," said co-director Milanovich.

The film was created in partnership between the Wayfinders Circle conveners (Nia Tero, Pawanka Fund, the World Union of Indigenous Spiritual Practitioners) and the Native American Land Conservancy (NALC)  a member of the Wayfinders Circle that protects and restores sacred sites and areas in their ancestral lands, provides educational programming for Native American youth and the general public, and conducts scientific studies on cultural, biological, and historical resources on sacred lands.

"Having this documentary film involving Tribal members, community memberscoming together, celebrating all these beautiful thingsis so good," shared Sean Milanovich, Ph.D. (Cahuilla), Vice President of NALC. "The water can teach us, the water can help us, the water heals us."

You can attend the world premiere in-person on May 20 as part of CONNECTED by WATER at SIFF, and stream virtually from May 22-28. Tickets can be purchased online: https://www.siff.net/festival/connected-by-water.

For press inquiries, contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Nia Tero
DALLAS, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NexPoint, a multibillion-dollar alternative investment firm, today announced that its cutting-edge life sciences real estate project known as the "TxS District," a proposed 200-acre development in Plano, Texas, has been renamed the "Texas Research Quarter."

Originally signifying "Technology x Science," the new Texas Research Quarter ("TRQ") name was chosen to better reflect the commitment to innovation and collaboration among companies and organizations across the life science sector. This focus echoes and complements NexPoint's own ongoing initiatives to further support and foster real estate development on behalf of the life sciences industry across the U.S.

"The new TRQ moniker reflects the scope and scale of the project," said Frank Zaccanelli, president of NexPoint Development Company, the development arm of NexPoint's real estate platform. "It has the potential to put Texas on the map in life sciences, while serving as a major catalyst for economic development in the region."

The TRQ is centered around a 91-acre main campus, which was acquired by NexPoint in 2018 and previously served as the headquarters for Electronic Data Systems. The proposed project will incorporate 109 additional acres in the Legacy neighborhood. In total, the TRQ is expected to create over four million square feet of lab, office, and therapeutic production space across four phases of construction. The project will also have a significant impact on the local economy as it will generate nearly $3.8 billion in gross product and 38,405 job-years of employment in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.1

The TRQ is an integral part of NexPoint's continued push into real estate development in support of the life sciences industry. The firm has made numerous direct investments in biotech companies and other public and private healthcare businesses through its corporate credit and equities group and has been involved in other real estate transactions, including its investment in life science clusters on the East and West Coasts.

For more information about the TRQ, please visit nexpoint.com/trq-coming-soon.

About NexPoint

NexPoint is a multibillion-dollar alternative investment firm comprised of a group of investment advisers and sponsors, a broker-dealer, and a suite of related investment vehicles. NexPoint provides differentiated access to alternatives through a range of investment solutions, including public and private real estate investment trusts, tax-advantaged real estate vehicles, merger arbitrage and event driven strategies, other private real estate investments, closed-end funds, interval funds, and a business development company. NexPoint is based in Dallas, Texas and is part of a network of affiliates with expertise across the asset management and financial services spaces. For more information visit nexpoint.com.

Disclosures

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements reflect the current views of management with respect to future events and financial performance. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "anticipate", "expect", "could," "may", "potential", "will", "ability," "targets," "believe," "likely," "assumes," "ensuring," "available," "optionality," "viability," "maintain," "consistent," "pace," "should," "emerging," "driving," "looking to," and similar statements of a future or forward-looking nature. Forward-looking statements address matters that involve risks and uncertainties.

CONTACTS

Media Relations

Prosek Partners for NexPoint

[email protected]

1 Source: "A New Legacy: The Potential Economic and Fiscal Impact of The Texas Research Quarter," The Perryman Group, May 2023.

SOURCE NexPoint
According to Prophecy Market Insights "Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market accounted for US$ 556.6 billion in 2019 and is estimated to be US$ 8177.9 billion by 2029 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of 31.3%"

COVINA, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- What is the Overview of Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market?

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is the type of liver disease where fats build up in liver of alcoholic or non-alcoholic people and causes inflammation and damage to cells in liver leading to cirrhosis and failure of liver. Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis biomarker are used as diagnostic tool to measure severity of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis for liver damage assessment.

Growing prevalence of liver diseases and demand for non-invasive diagnostic tools for detection of NASH has contributed in target market growth. New launch of diagnostic tools, presence of major key players, increasing availability of market is anticipated to increase the demand for Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis Market growth over the forecast period.

What is Prophecy's Analyst View on Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market?

Growing prevalence of NASH and NAFLD and growing diagnostic rate has become a key factor in market growth. Growing awareness among patients about their health has given rise in market growth. Presence of robust healthcare infrastructure and growing research & development activities with technological innovation is likely to propel Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis market growth in coming years.

Download a Sample Copy of Report:

https://www.prophecymarketinsights.com/market_insight/Insight/request-sample/4413

Our Sample Report Includes:

2032 Updated Report Introduction, Overview, and In-depth industry analysis.

115+ Pages Research Report (Inclusion of Updated Research).

Provide Chapter-wise guidance on Request.

2023 Updated Regional Analysis with Graphical Representation of Size, Share & Trends.

Includes Updated List of table & figures.

Updated Report Includes Top Market Players with their Business Strategy, Sales Volume, and Revenue Analysis.

Who are the Top Key players operating in the Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market?

GENFIT

Gilead

AstraZeneca

Novartis AG

GE Healthcare

EUSA Pharma

Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH

Bristol-Myers Squibb

Allergan Novo Nordisk A/S

Nordisk Pfizer, Inc.

Report Scope:

Attribute Details The base year for estimation 2022 Forecast period 2023 2032 Market representation Revenue in USD Million & CAGR from 2023  2032 Accounted in 2019 US$ 556.6 billion Estimated to be in 2029 US$ 8177.9 billion CAGR 31.3 % Market Segmentation By Type - Serum Biomarkers, Hepatic Fibrosis Biomarkers, Apoptosis Biomarkers, Oxidative Stress Biomarkers, and Others By End-user  Pharma & CRO Industry, Hospitals, Diagnostic Labs, and Academic Research Institutes Regional scope North America - U.S., Canada Europe - UK, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Russia, Rest of Europe Asia Pacific - Japan, India, China, South Korea, Australia, Rest of Asia-Pacific Latin America - Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Rest of Latin America Middle East & Africa - South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Rest of Middle East & Africa Report coverage Revenue forecast, company share, competitive landscape, growth factors, and trends Customization Scope Avail of customized purchase options to meet your exact research needs. https://www.prophecymarketinsights.com/market_insight/Insight/request-customization/4413

What are the Covid-19 Impact on Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers market?

The COVID-19 pandemic has had both challenges and opportunities for the Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market. Delays in research and development have impacted the timeline for new biomarkers. Limited access to diagnostic testing and altered healthcare delivery have affected the diagnosis and monitoring of NASH patients. However, increased awareness of comorbidities and liver complications has highlighted the importance of early detection and management, potentially driving innovation and research funding in NASH biomarkers. Ongoing research and adaptation are crucial to navigate the pandemic's impact and leverage opportunities in the NASH Biomarkers Market.

Major Growth Drivers

Increasing prevalence of NASH: The global prevalence of NASH is on the rise, driven by the growing incidence of obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. This increasing prevalence creates a significant demand for effective biomarkers that can aid in early detection, accurate diagnosis, and monitoring of NASH, thereby driving the growth of the NASH Biomarkers Market.

Advancements in biomarker research and technology: Ongoing advancements in biomarker research and technology have significantly contributed to the growth of the NASH Biomarkers Market. The discovery of novel biomarkers and the development of advanced technologies for biomarker detection and analysis have improved the accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of NASH diagnosis and monitoring, fueling the demand for biomarkers in the market.

Market Overview:

 The Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market involves diagnostic biomarkers used for the detection, monitoring, and management of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis.

 The market is driven by the increasing prevalence of NASH, which is often associated with obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome.

 The rising awareness about the disease and its potential complications, such as liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, has led to a growing demand for reliable and accurate biomarkers for NASH diagnosis and prognosis.

 Biomarkers utilized in the NASH Biomarkers Market include biochemical markers, genetic markers, imaging biomarkers, and molecular biomarkers.

 These biomarkers play a crucial role in identifying patients at risk of NASH progression, assisting in treatment decision-making, and providing insights into disease progression and response to therapies.

 Active research and development efforts are focused on discovering novel biomarkers and improving existing ones in the NASH Biomarkers Market.

 Various stakeholders, including pharmaceutical companies, diagnostic laboratories, and research institutions, are actively involved in the development and commercialization of NASH biomarkers.

Market Challenges:

Lack of validated biomarkers

Heterogeneity of NASH

Limited understanding of disease mechanisms

Regulatory and reimbursement hurdles

High research and development costs

Competitive landscape

Integration with clinical practice

Download a PDF Brochure:

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Market Trend:

Increasing research and development

Integration of multiomics approaches

Personalized medicine approach

Advancements in imaging biomarkers

Collaboration and partnerships among industry players

Growing emphasis on non-invasive biomarkers

Application of artificial intelligence and machine learning in biomarker discovery and analysis

Focus on predictive and prognostic biomarkers

Rising demand for point-of-care biomarker testing

Regulatory developments and guidelines for NASH biomarkers.

What are the Key Benefits of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Biomarkers Market?

1. Early detection and diagnosis: Biomarkers play a crucial role in the early detection and diagnosis of NASH. By identifying specific molecular indicators or patterns, biomarkers can help identify individuals at risk of developing NASH or detect the disease at an early stage when interventions are most effective. Early detection enables timely treatment initiation and improves patient outcomes.

2. Accurate disease monitoring: Biomarkers provide a means to monitor the progression and severity of NASH. They can indicate changes in disease activity, liver fibrosis, inflammation, and other relevant factors. Regular monitoring of biomarker levels can help clinicians assess treatment response, adjust therapy as needed, and make informed decisions about patient management.

3. Personalized treatment approaches: Biomarkers in the NASH Biomarkers Market have the potential to guide personalized treatment approaches. By analyzing individual patient characteristics and biomarker profiles, healthcare professionals can tailor treatment strategies to address specific patient needs. This personalized medicine approach aims to optimize treatment outcomes and improve patient care.

4. Drug development and clinical trials: The availability of reliable and validated biomarkers in the NASH Biomarkers Market facilitates drug development and clinical trials. Biomarkers serve as surrogate endpoints, allowing researchers to assess the efficacy and safety of potential NASH therapies in a more efficient and timely manner. Biomarkers can also aid in patient stratification for clinical trials, ensuring that the right patients are enrolled, thus enhancing the chances of successful trial outcomes.

5. Improved research and understanding: The NASH Biomarkers Market fosters research and a better understanding of the disease. Biomarkers enable researchers to investigate the underlying mechanisms, identify potential therapeutic targets, and gain insights into disease progression.

Key Questions Answered in Report:

1. What are the current available biomarkers for the diagnosis and monitoring of NASH?

2. What is the accuracy and reliability of these biomarkers in detecting NASH and assessing disease severity?

3. Are there specific biomarkers that can differentiate NASH from other liver diseases and provide a more accurate diagnosis?

4. What is the role of biomarkers in predicting disease progression and identifying patients at high risk of developing advanced stages of NASH?

5. Are there biomarkers that can predict treatment response and guide personalized treatment approaches in NASH management?

6. What advancements are being made in the discovery and development of novel biomarkers for NASH?

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WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NSSF, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, recognized former sheriff and U.S. Congressman John Rutherford (R-Fla.) as a Real Solutions. Champion during National Police Week 2023. Rep. Rutherford was presented the award for his contributions to keeping communities safe during his law enforcement and Congressional career. Congressman Rutherford embodies the ethos of NSSF's Real Solutions. Safer Communities. campaign to ensure firearms remain beyond the reach of those who cannot be trusted to possess them while respecting and preserving Second Amendment rights.

U.S. Rep. John Rutherford (R-Fla.) is given the NSSF Real Solutions Champion award by NSSF's Larry Keane in Washington, D.C.

"NSSF is proud to recognize Congressman John Rutherford for dedicating his life to serving and protecting his communities  first while wearing a badge to enforce laws in Florida counties and presently by representing his district in Congress," said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. "NSSF's Real Solutions campaign focuses on firearm industry-led efforts to improve community safety by ensuring firearms remain beyond the reach of prohibited individuals and those suffering through suicidal ideations or a mental health crisis. These programs save lives, reduce crime and make our communities safer while respecting the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms. Congressman Rutherford lives those values of service to protect and preserve life in our communities while guaranteeing constitutional rights."

NSSF's Real Solutions. Safer Communities. campaign creates safer communities through proven partnerships with law enforcement, elected officials and community leaders. The programs include:

Project ChildSafe  a partner program with law enforcement in all 50 states and five U.S. territories that has distributed over 40 million free firearm safety kits, including locking devices to ensure firearms are secured when not in use.





Operation Secure Store  a partner program with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to improve security at firearm retailers to deter firearm burglaries and robberies.





Don't Lie for the Other GuyTM  an ATF-partner program to warn the public against the crime of "straw purchasing" a firearm for someone who can't legally do so on their own.





FixNICS  the firearm industry-led effort to ensure all disqualifying background information is submitted to the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).





Suicide Prevention  NSSF's partnership with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) to encourage gun owners to have a "brave conversation" and intervene before a moment of crisis to prevent suicide by firearm.

Congressman Rutherford introduced the NSSF-supported bipartisan Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) Protection Act, H.R. 2620, which would strengthen and enhance criminal penalties for thefts of firearms from federally licensed firearm retailers. This legislation sends a strong message to those violent criminals engaging in these illicit activities and helps provide for safer communities, assists law enforcement and protects the livelihoods of firearm retailers.

About NSSF

NSSF is the trade association for the firearm industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has a membership of thousands of manufacturers, distributors, firearm retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen's organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, visit nssf.org.

SOURCE National Shooting Sports Foundation
MIAMI and DALLAS, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- OmicsEdge has launched an industry leading drug discovery service that leverages Almaden's g.nome platform to streamline the iteration process. The service makes it easy for labs to conduct a quick analysis of a patient or trial participant's medical condition and genomics, gaining valuable insight in genomic criteria and how it affects elevated risk. The service can be used to significantly accelerate the drug discovery process and eliminate trial-and-error with abilities such as identifying causal variants that make ideal drug targets.

"Most clinical trials do not take genomics into account as a confounding factor, even though they play a major role in both results and analysis," said David Gascoigne, CEO of Almaden Genomics. "Together with OmicsEdge, our technology allows those conducting or pursuing clinical trials to incorporate genomics into the selection of targets for discovery."

OmicsEdge is a science-first bioinformatics company, and is the only one utilizing ancestry-informed Polygenic Risk Scores based on over 83 million genetic variants and benchmarking. Its team of software engineers, data scientists, MDs and geneticists leads the industry in polygenic risk scoring, imputation, and ancestry determination. OmicsEdge partners with clients on bioinformatic projects including GWAS analysis, RNA-Seq, and spatial genomics with use cases in supporting pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies during drug discovery, diagnostic development, and post-market surveillance work.

"Our team has decades of experience in helping organizations with their genomics and bioinformatics projects, from development and execution to publication," said Puya Yazdi, M.D., Chief Science Officer and Chief Medical Officer of OmicsEdge. "Almaden's g.nome platform is an invaluable tool in our work that accelerates development of state-of-the-art pipelines, enabling us to iterate quickly and efficiently, freeing our team to focus on answering important biological questions."

Launched in 2022, g.nome revolutionizes bioinformatic pipeline building with an advanced visual drag-and-drop workflow builder and curated library of tools to condense what previously has taken months to mere hours. Most pharma and research institutes still perform the laborious work of building pipelines with solutions being hand-coded by a limited number of highly skilled bioinformaticians. The g.nome platform, which integrates with Jupyter Notebook, eliminates the need for coding in most applications and allows the broader research team to actively participate in the pipeline iteration and executing processes.

About OmicsEdge

Bioinformatics technology from OmicsEdge processes and analyzes genomic and phenotypic data at an unprecedented scale providing unmatched utility for any organization performing diagnostic and drug development processes or research. Formed in 2021, OmicsEdge's mission is to make precision health affordable to all by empowering organizations to easily build precision health products using its bioinformatics infrastructure. For more information, visit omicsedge.com

About Almaden Genomics

Almaden Genomics is accelerating drug discovery with g.nome, a cloud-native platform designed to unite scientists and bioinformaticians in high-throughput sequencing data analysis. Brought to market by a team of bioinformaticians, engineers and industry professionals, g.nome provides an easy-to-use GUI workflow builder with strong iteration, version control and data provenance capabilities, and enables bioinformaticians and biologists to collaborate more effectively by translating complex code into easy-to-understand, visual representations. Formerly part of IBM Research, Almaden Genomics became a new standalone company under Catalyze Dallas' ownership in 2022. For more information, visit www.almaden.io .

Contact:

Ariel Herr

469-235-2708

[email protected]

Victoria Shelton

850-590-4960

[email protected]

SOURCE Almaden Genomics
Supporting Professional Growth: Pacific Dental Services' First-of-its-kind College Advancement Program Helps Team Members Reach Their Goals

IRVINE, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pacific Dental Services (PDS), a leading national leading dental and medical support organization, is celebrating a groundbreaking achievement this week as it honors the first graduate from its College Advancement Program. Deja Yslava, who started at PDS two and a half years ago first as a healthcare coordinator and worked her way up to operations manager in training (OMT), has earned her bachelor's degree in community health from Arizona State University (ASU) through the program.

The first of its kind in the dental industry, the PDS program covers the college tuition of eligible team members. Tweet this Deja Yslava, scholarship recipient, Pacific Dental Services College Advancement Program. Yslava graduated with a bachelor's degree in Community Health from Arizona State University in spring 2023.

The PDS College Advancement Program, which launched in 2021, is the first of its kind in the dental industry, offering eligible team members 100 percent up-front college tuition coverage towards an undergraduate degree of their choice through ASU Online. In partnership with InStride, a premier global provider of strategic workforce education, the program allows PDS operations managers, healthcare coordinators and dental assistants the flexibility and satisfaction of advancing their careers while earning their education tuition and debt-free  all while remaining employed full-time.

Yslava was inspired by her father, a self-made, hardworking man who dreamt of his children attaining higher education and graduating from college. She began attending on-campus classes at ASU in 2015 but had to stop two years shy of graduating, in part due to the heavy financial burden. Starting in 2021, the PDS College Advancement Program provided the scholarship funds that enabled her to resume her studies online while continuing to work and eventually graduate.

Yslava said she chose community health as her major to help those in need and gained knowledge that informs her work at PDS. "I learned a lot about health literacy through my degree program and how every patient has a different understanding of his or her own health," Yslava said. "In my work as an OMT, it's a good reminder to meet patients where they are as individuals and help educate them about not only their oral health but its connection to their overall health."

"I am so grateful for the opportunity that Pacific Dental Services has given me to achieve my dream of earning a college degree, and for the support and encouragement that my managers provided along the way. I feel truly valued by PDS and have a deep sense of loyalty and appreciation for the investment the company has made in me and my future."

Trish Elliott, vice president of PDS' people services department, said, "We are thrilled to celebrate the graduation of our first College Advancement Program participant, Deja Yslava. At Pacific Dental Services, we are dedicated to fostering the growth and development of our team members, both personally and professionally. This milestone is a testament to our commitment to providing team members with the resources and opportunities to thrive in their careers and in life."

According to a survey taken by team members currently enrolled in the College Advancement Program, 94 percent of learners said the program increased their desire to grow their professional career with PDS. This program is one of several education benefits available to the company's team members. For those who may not be eligible for the College Advancement Program, other options include a traditional tuition reimbursement program up to $5,250 per year, over 1,000 units of free continuing education, and a professional development program focused on specialized training and certificates.

To learn more about the Pacific Dental Services College Advancement Program, visit pacificdentalservices.com/education.

About Pacific Dental Services

Pacific Dental Services (PDS) is one of the country's leading dental and medical support organizations, empowering clinicians with supported autonomy to deliver comprehensive patient care. PDS provides administrative and business operations support, highly skilled staff, and ongoing training and education to help healthcare providers succeed. PDS incorporates the most advanced, proven technologies with best practices and procedures to ensure high-quality care and is a leading advocate for the integration of dental and medical care to improve whole-person health. Since its foundation in 1994, PDS has grown to support over 4,100 clinicians (dentists, dental hygienists, physicians, and nurse practitioners) in nearly 1,000 practices across 25 states and continues to expand. To learn more, visit pacificdentalservices.com or connect on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.

About InStride

InStride drives business and social impact through strategic workforce education. As the global leader in these programs, InStride works with corporate partners like Pacific Dental Services, Amazon, Labcorp, Medtronic and more, providing their employees with access to top-tier academic institutions, strategic learning paths and an innovative technology platform. Visit instride.com or follow InStride on Twitter and LinkedIn for more information and up-to-date news.

SOURCE Pacific Dental Services
Brie Olson Appointed Chief Executive Officer

Mike Relich to Retire as Co-CEO; Will Transition to Vice Chairman on Pacsun Board

Russell Bowers Appointed Chief Operating Officer; Will Continue to Serve as CFO

LOS ANGELES, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pacsun today announced a series of leadership changes whereby Brie Olson, Pacsun Co-Chief Executive Officer and Board member, will be appointed Chief Executive Officer, effective June 15, 2023. Mike Relich will retire as Co-CEO and will continue to serve on the Pacsun Board of Directors in a new role as Vice Chairman. Russell Bowers will be appointed Chief Operating Officer and will continue to serve as Pacsun Chief Financial Officer, overseeing Finance, Operations, and Information Technology functions in his expanded role.

Ms. Olson has over two decades of experience in the retail industry, including 17 years at Pacsun. She has served as Co-CEO since March 2023, and before that as President and a Board member since May 2021. Since becoming Co-CEO, Ms. Olson has been responsible for leading Pacsun's brand strategy, including spearheading the company's latest collaboration with Formula 1 at the Miami Grand Prix, launching PS Reserve, a custom curated retail platform, opening a slate of new stores in premier locations and establishing a new feedback channel between store staff and Pacsun's buying and design teams. During her tenure with Pacsun, Ms. Olson introduced Pacsun's first gender neutral collection, Colour Theory, and oversaw Pacsun's entry into the Kids' category with Pacsun Kids. She continues to guide the company's cutting-edge AI and metaverse initiatives, as well as key partnerships with cultural powerhouses including Kendall & Kylie, Emma Chamberlain and Storm Reid.

Ms. Olson stated, "I am excited to continue this adventure as the CEO of Pacsun, which is a cultural force on the forefront of fashion, music and sports. It is a privilege to work beside our talented team to bring the best brands, curated products and most innovative collaborations to our community of passionate young people around the world. I would like to thank Mike for his partnership and look forward to continuing to collaborate with him on the Board."

Neale Attenborough, a Managing Director at Golden Gate Capital, said, "Brie is a respected veteran and bold pioneer in the fashion industry and has been a key driver of Pacsun's success. She has gained critical expertise in numerous leadership positions during her 17 years at the company and has her finger on the pulse of emerging brands and trends. The Board has the utmost confidence that Pacsun will continue to thrive under her leadership."

Mike Montgomery, a Managing Director at Golden Gate Capital, said, "Russ has been a tremendous asset to Pacsun since he joined the company in 2017, and we look forward to the positive impact he will have with his broadened role in the company as COO and CFO."

Mr. Bowers commented, "I am pleased to take on the COO role and continue to work closely alongside Brie and the rest of the management team as we build on our strong momentum."

Mr. Attenborough continued, "On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Mike for his many contributions to Pacsun over the years, including his pivotal role in helping the company navigate through a challenging operating environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mike also successfully led several transformational milestones at the company during his tenure, including building out the company's omni-channel infrastructure to support continued ecommerce growth, strengthening the company's customer analytics tools and spearheading the company's entry into the China marketplace. We are pleased that we will continue to benefit from Mike's expertise in his capacity as Vice Chairman of the Board."

Mr. Relich said, "I am very proud to have helped position Pacsun as an industry leader and I look forward to continuing to work with the Pacsun team and Golden Gate Capital as Vice Chairman of the Board. Brie is an exceptional leader and I am excited to watch the company continue to flourish with her at the helm."

Brie Olson Biography

Ms. Olson joined Pacsun in 2006 as Senior Design Director (Women's) and has held roles of increasing responsibility since that time. Prior to becoming Co-CEO in March 2023, she held the titles of President, Chief Brand Officer, Chief Merchandising Officer and Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Design. Ms. Olson has over 20 years of experience in the retail industry and has played an instrumental role in building and strengthening Pacsun's brand through innovative strategies with a Gen Z focus. A graduate of Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program, Ms. Olson also serves on the advisory board of the Women in Retail Leadership Circle and as a member of RETHINK Retail's Advisory Committee.

Russell Bowers Biography

Mr. Bowers joined Pacsun in 2017 as the company's Chief Financial Officer overseeing the brand's restructuring, financial strategy, ventures and risk management. Prior to joining Pacsun, Mr. Bowers accrued more than two decades of experience in multiple executive finance positions with notable fashion retailers including as COO and CFO at Hanna Andersson, VP, CFO North American Retail at Guess? and VP of Retail Finance at BCBG Max Azria. Mr. Bowers earned his Master of Business Administration from UCLA's Anderson School of Management.

ABOUT PACSUN

Pacsun is a leading specialty retailer offering a cross-section of emerging brands and trending fashion through the lens of youth culture. Throughout the contemporary, streetwear and active lifestyle markets, Pacsun partners with the best brands to offer curated collections, rare and exclusive products, and creative collaborations on every level. Founded in 1980, Newport, CA. Curated in Los Angeles.

ABOUT GOLDEN GATE CAPITAL

Golden Gate Capital is a San Francisco-based private equity investment firm with over $19 billion in cumulative committed capital. The principals of Golden Gate Capital have a long history of investing across a wide range of industries and transaction types, including going-privates, corporate divestitures, and recapitalizations, as well as debt and public equity investments. For more information, visit www.goldengatecap.com.

Contacts

Media

FGS Global

[email protected]

SOURCE Pacsun
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Azerbaijan has a huge energy potential and every opportunity to turn from a supplier of fossil fuels into a supplier of green energy to the European Union, EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan Peter Michalko said at the event dedicated to Europe Day, Trend reports.

"We have already taken the first step in this direction by signing an agreement on laying an underwater cable across the Black Sea," he said.

One of the key steps taken by Azerbaijan to implement the start of the export of alternative electricity to Europe was the signing of the "Agreement on Strategic Partnership in the Field of Development and Transmission of Green Energy" with the participation of Georgia.

As part of this project, it is planned to lay a 1,195-kilometer power transmission line with a capacity of 1,000 MW between Georgia and Romania along the bottom of the Black Sea and install a digital connecting cable.

It is planned to prepare technical and economic study of the project with the support of the World Bank by the end of 2023.
MIAMI, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- In an effort to contribute positively to sustainable development goals, Dominican Starchitect Yermys Pena has dedicated herself to designing projects focused on user well-being and climate viability. This led to the idea of constructing Paseo Isleno, a villa complex in Punta Cana that will opt for EDGE certification, ensuring a minimum 20% energy and water savings.

Occupants will be able to enjoy a lifestyle that offers spaces with a natural, cozy, and fresh concept, perfect for comfortable living in this area.

Yermys Pena, the first Latina starchitect

The inspiration for these luxurious single-family villas comes from the Mediterranean: Icaria, Naxus, and Evia, with their clean and pure lines, extensive and symmetrical facades, and alluring and majestic spaces. Mediterranean architecture captivates both lovers of classical lines and modern enthusiasts. It is precisely for this reason that the concept was transposed to the Dominican Republic, recreating that microcosm of well-being and communion with nature, which has such a positive impact on human life.

"Constructions can indirectly cause pollution by using many resources for their operation. Therefore, it is important to include elements in their design that help maintain balance with the environment and make them sustainable. It is also necessary for them to be adaptable to extreme climate changes in order to guarantee minimal living conditions and ensure resistance in buildings," commented Pena.

The Paseo Isleno project arose from the intention to innovate architectural designs in the eastern part of the Dominican Republic, specifically the Punta Cana area, seeking to improve the quality of life in this important tourist zone through architecture. The objective was to develop contemporary family villas that provide a healthy, sustainable, and unique living space according to the residents' lifestyle.

Another strategy implemented was passive design, which takes advantage of the climate to maintain a comfortable temperature range in the home. It responds to the local climate and site conditions to maximize the comfort and health of building users while minimizing energy use.

Pena designed and constructed the first sustainable building in Santo Domingo, earning her the recognition as the first Dominican Starchitect. She has a bold and visionary style, incorporating unique elements into her designs, thinking outside the box. She is renowned for her free and independent spirit, creating innovative, functional, sustainable, harmonious, stable, and happy spaces. She has been the architect behind projects such as Villas Icaria, Evia, Naxus, and more. Her success showcases the ability of women to carve out space and overcome any challenge, no matter how difficult it may seem.

Yermys Pena is a prominent Dominican architect with extensive experience in sustainable design, bioclimatic architecture, and urban planning. She graduated as an architect at the age of 20 but has been working in the industry since the age of 19. She is recognized for her free and independent spirit, creating innovative, functional, sustainable, harmonious, stable, and happy spaces. She is the CEO Partner of Construger Construction Company and the founder of Studio YP, the first architectural design firm in the Dominican Republic. She created, designed, and constructed the first LEED Gold-certified sustainable building in Santo Domingo. Her success exemplifies the capability of women to earn their place and overcome any challenge, no matter how difficult it may seem. She has designed and built projects such as Corporativo Vista 311, Urban Houses, Paseo Isleno, Eco 23 Residences, Edificio Residencial BH, Centro de Salud y Formacion NJSD, and more. Learn more at https://arquitecturayp.com/proyectos-de-studio-yp

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SOURCE Yermys Pena
Final Approval from U.S. Bureau of Land Management for largest clean energy infrastructure project in American history; Full construction anticipated to commence in summer 2023

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pattern Energy Group LP (Pattern Energy), a leader in renewable energy, welcomes the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management's Record of Decision on the SunZia Transmission project, which will enable over 3,500 MW of New Mexico wind power from the SunZia Wind project to provide clean, reliable, and affordable electricity across Western states.

SunZia Transmission will enable access to the 3,500+ MW SunZia Wind project, powering the needs of 3 million Americans

Today's Record of Decision by the Bureau of Land Management marks an important milestone for the SunZia Transmission project. After over 16 years of development including rigorous regulatory and environmental review, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process is complete. Full construction is anticipated to commence in the summer of 2023.

"This is a historic day for the advancement of America's clean energy goals as SunZia receives its major federal routing permit, clearing the way to bring online enough renewable power for 3 million Americans," said Hunter Armistead, CEO of Pattern Energy. "We're proud that SunZia is the culmination of over a decade of collaboration with communities, residents, landowners, environmental groups, wildlife organizations, and federal agencies. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, specifically the New Mexico State office, did a thorough and professional job managing this robust environmental NEPA process review to a close. SunZia will implement industry-leading measures for environmental mitigation, including emerging technology and long-term conservation research. More than 2,000 workers will now roll up their sleeves and get to work on America's largest clean energy infrastructure project, which we look forward to completing in 2026."

SunZia Transmission is setting a precedent with a gold standard in environmental mitigation efforts developed hand-in-hand with the environmental community. These range from restoring thousands of acres of wildlife habitat to investing in emerging technology and long-term conservation research. SunZia Wind has also established robust environmental best practices to reduce project impacts and study effective habitat restoration strategies in partnership with local and state experts.

"Climate change is the number one threat to birds' survival, and projects like SunZia are key to reducing carbon pollution and creating a cleaner future for people and wildlife," said Garry George, Director of the National Audubon Society's Clean Energy Initiative. "We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Pattern Energy and other conservation groups to responsibly expand our nation's clean energy and transmission infrastructure in ways that avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts on birds and communities."

"We welcome this important milestone for the SunZia project that will unlock New Mexico's vast renewable wind resource," said Fernando Martinez, Executive Director of the New Mexico Renewable Energy Transmission Authority (RETA). "Pattern Energy has been an excellent partner and we see SunZia as the model for planning and developing critical transmission projects that will advance our transition to clean energy.''

SunZia Transmission is a 550-mile  525 kV high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line between central New Mexico and south-central Arizona with the capacity to transport 3,000 MW of clean, renewable energy. SunZia Transmission will open access to the western energy markets to SunZia Wind, the largest wind project in the Western Hemisphere, which is comprised of more than 3,500 MW of new wind generation located in Torrance, Lincoln, and San Miguel Counties in New Mexico.

Pattern Energy recently announced that the SunZia Transmission and SunZia Wind projects are expected to generate $20.5 billion dollars in total economic benefit, which includes over $8 billion of direct capital investment, at no added cost to ratepayers, according to the results of an independent study conducted by the research firm Energy, Economic & Environment Consultants LLC. Together, the projects will generate an expected $1.3 billion in fiscal impacts that will go to governments, communities, and schools. These benefits are generated through sales and use taxes, property taxes, community benefit payments, and land payments to federal and state agencies.

The Record of Decision also includes an updated Preferred Alternative Route for the adjacent RioSol Transmission Line, a 500-kV High Voltage Alternating Current project that will have a capacity of 1,500 MW and will bring additional clean resources to western markets.

About Pattern Energy

Pattern Energy is one of the world's largest privately-owned developers and operators of wind, solar, transmission, and energy storage projects. Its operational portfolio includes 38 renewable energy facilities that use proven, best-in-class technology with an operating capacity of more than 6,000 MW in the United States, Canada, Japan, and Mexico. Pattern Energy is guided by a long-term commitment to serve customers, protect the environment, and strengthen communities. For more information, visit www.patternenergy.com.

Contacts:

Matt Dallas

Pattern Energy

917-363-1333

[email protected]

SOURCE Pattern Energy Group LP
Increase Seen in the General U.S. Workforce Started Same Year First States Legalized Recreational Marijuana

Overall Workforce Drug Test Positivity Persisted at Two-Decade High Across All Workers

Marijuana and Amphetamines Positivity Climbed in Key Industries

SECAUCUS, N.J., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The percentage of employees in the general U.S. workforce testing positive for marijuana following an on-the-job accident increased to its highest level in 25 years in 2022, according to a new analysis released today by Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services.

Post-Accident Workforce Drug Positivity for Marijuana Reached 25-Year High in 2022, Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index Analysis Finds Post-Accident Workforce Drug Positivity for Marijuana Reached 25-Year High in 2022, Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index Analysis Finds

In 2022, post-accident marijuana positivity of urine drug tests in the general U.S. workforce was 7.3%, an increase of 9% compared to 6.7% in 2021. The new peak follows a steady increase in post-accident marijuana positivity every year from 2012 to 2022. In that 10-year time frame, post-accident marijuana positivity increased 204.2%. From 2002 to 2009, post-accident marijuana workforce positivity declined.

These increases in post-accident marijuana positivity correspond with legalization of marijuana in certain states. In 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize marijuana for recreational use. Since then, 19 additional states and the District of Columbia have legalized the recreational use of marijuana and 38 states (plus the District of Columbia) have legalized medical use, although either kind of use remains illegal under federal law.

"Intoxicating cannabis products, including marijuana, can have a major impact on safety at work and have been proven to slow reaction time, impact memory and impair skills essential to driving. State legalization of the drug creates new challenges for employers," said Katie Mueller, a senior program manager at the National Safety Council focusing on cannabis safety. "The Quest data provide compelling evidence that increased use of cannabis products by employees can contribute to greater risk for injuries in the workplace. It is imperative employers take the proper steps to create and maintain a policy that addresses cannabis use, build a safety-focused culture and educate the workforce to keep all workers safe on and off the job."

In 2022, the combined U.S. workforce urine drug positivity for all drugs persisted at 4.6%  the highest level in two decades. The 2021 and 2022 positivity rates were the highest since 2001, up more than 30% from an all-time low in 2010-2012.

While marijuana was the main driver of workforce positivity increases in the general U.S. workforce, amphetamines positivity also contributed to the increase. Positivity for marijuana in the general U.S. workforce increased 10.3% (4.3% positivity in 2022 versus 3.9% positivity in 2021) and amphetamines positivity increased 15.4% (1.5% positivity in 2022 versus 1.3% positivity in 2021). While the company's amphetamines data does not differentiate between prescribed medications and illicit drug use, the increase correlates with other data suggesting that the use of amphetamines, prescribed or illicit, has grown in recent years in the U.S.

The rising overall drug positivity rate for general workforce urine testing was observed widely across U.S. industries. Over the past five years, the workforce positivity rate climbed in most industry sectors, led by Accommodation and Food Services increasing 42.9% (4.9% in 2018 versus 7.0% in 2022), Retail Trade increasing 42.6% (5.4% in 2018 versus 7.7% in 2022), and Finance and Insurance increasing 38.5% (2.6% in 2018 versus 3.6% in 2022).

"Our 2022 Quest Diagnostics analysis shows that the overall U.S. workforce positivity rate continued to be at a historically elevated level in 2022, even as much of the nation's workforce returned to the office post-pandemic," said Keith Ward, General Manager and Vice President for Employer Solutions at Quest Diagnostics. "This historic rise seems to correspond with sharp increases in positivity for marijuana in both pre-employment and post-accident drug tests, suggesting that changing societal attitudes about marijuana may be impacting workplace behaviors and putting colleagues at risk. The increase in amphetamines positivity is also notable, given the addictive potential and health risks associated with this class of drugs."

"Year-over-year and five-year data point to continuously higher workforce drug positivity overall, by industry, and across multiple drug categories," said Suhash Harwani, PhD, Senior Director of Science for Employer Solutions at Quest Diagnostics. "As employers express concern for employee health, wellness and safety, they may want to consider these data as a warning sign, particularly as a growing body of science demonstrates the risks of marijuana to mental and physical health."

The new Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index (DTI) report is based on more than 10.6 million deidentified urine, hair and oral-fluid drug test results reported between January and December 2022, aimed at providing insight into behavior seen in workers across the combined U.S. workforce by industry and drug type. The combined U.S. workforce includes the general U.S. workforce of mostly company-policy testing by private employers as well as the federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce, which includes federal employees and the transportation and nuclear power industries, and can include workers such as pilots, truck drivers, train conductors and others required to drug test under federal legislation.

The new findings will be presented at the National Drug & Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) 2023 Conference taking place May 23-25 in Bellevue, WA.

Marijuana positivity in states that permit recreational and medical use continued to climb

In the general U.S. workforce, marijuana positivity increased 10.3% year over year (3.9% in 2021 versus 4.3% in 2022). Marijuana positivity increased 11.8% (5.1% in 2021 versus 5.7% in 2022) in states in which recreational marijuana is legal and 8.3% (3.6% in 2021 versus 3.9% in 2022) in states in which medical marijuana is legal. In states in which neither recreational nor medical marijuana is legal, marijuana positivity increased 3.3% (3.0% in 2021 versus 3.1% in 2022) year over year and 14.8% over five years (2.7% in 2018 versus 3.1% in 2022).

In the federally mandated safety-sensitive workforce, marijuana positivity increased nationally 14% year over year (0.86% in 2021 versus 0.98% in 2022). Marijuana positivity increased 17% (0.94% in 2021 versus 1.1% in 2022) in states in which recreational marijuana is legal. Marijuana positivity increased 5.9% (0.85% in 2021 versus 0.90% in 2022) in states in which medical marijuana is legal. In states in which neither recreational nor medical use marijuana is legal, marijuana positivity increased 12.7% (0.79% in 2021 versus 0.89% in 2022) year over year and 1.1% over five years (0.88% in 2018 versus 0.89% in 2022).

"In the general U.S. workforce, states that have legalized recreational and medical marijuana use exhibit higher positivity rates than the national average. States that have not legalized marijuana appear to have positivity rates below the national averages," said Dr. Harwani. "Overall, post-accident and pre-employment positivity test rates among the federally mandated, safety-sensitive population have always been lower, suggesting the expectation of testing may be a deterrent."

Urine positivity rates for post-accident testing increased over five years

The rise in marijuana post-accident positivity among private employers mirrored an increase in overall drug positivity in individuals tested post-accident. In the general U.S. workforce, rates of post-accident drug positivity increased both year over year and over the past five years in nearly all specimen types tested. Over the last five years, in general workforce urine testing, overall post-accident positivity increased 22.6% (8.4% in 2018 versus 10.3% in 2022). Specifically, post-accident positivity as compared to pre-employment tests in urine specimens tested for marijuana and cocaine in the general U.S. workforce was higher by 58.7% and 230%, respectively.

Additionally, post-accident urine positivity for marijuana among the federally mandated safety-sensitive population increased year over year by 16.7% (1.8% in 2021 versus 2.1% in 2022) and over five years by 40% (1.5% in 2018 versus 2.1% in 2022). Pre-employment positivity for marijuana also increased 18.2% for this group (1.1% in 2021 versus 1.3% in 2022) and 30% over five years (1.0% in 2018 versus 1.3% in 2022).

Post-accident testing is conducted to evaluate whether drug use may have played a role in a workplace incident prompting the drug test. Both post-accident and pre-employment drug testing aim to protect non-drug using workers from others who may use drugs in the workplace and pose a danger.

U.S. workforce positivity plateaued at 20-year high

The overall positivity rate in the combined U.S. workforce, based on more than nine million urine drug tests, was 4.6% in 2022 and 2021, an increase of 31.4% from the all-time low of 3.5% just 11 years ago (2010-2012). In the general U.S. workforce, positivity increased 1.8% (5.6% in 2021 versus 5.7% in 2022) and was 11.8% higher than in 2018 (5.1% in 2018 versus 5.7% in 2021).

Overall positivity in the federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce based on more than 2.9 million urine drug tests climbed 9.1% year over year (2.2% in 2021 and 2.4% in 2022). While the positivity rate dropped 11.1% since 2018 (2.7% in 2018 to 2.4% in 2022), 2018 marked the introduction of testing for certain prescription opioids. Positivity rates based on urine drug tests in certain drug categories for the federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce increased in 2022. Of note, marijuana increased 14% (0.86% in 2021 to 0.98% in 2022) and amphetamines increased 8.7% (0.69% in 2021 to 0.75% in 2022).

"Safety-sensitive jobs, like pilots and some federal positions, carry responsibilities that have higher potential risk of harm to public safety than most private-sector jobs," said Dr. Harwani. "Employers need help identifying individuals who are capable, competent and fully focused to perform their duties  and it is discouraging to see such a steep increase in drug positivity for workers in safety-sensitive roles."

Positivity for marijuana continued upward climb in the general U.S. workforce

Positivity rates for marijuana in the general U.S. workforce, based on more than 6.3 million urine tests, continued an upward climb, increasing 10.3% (3.9% in 2021 versus 4.3% in 2022), the highest positivity rate ever reported in the DTI, and 53.6% over the past five years (2.8% in 2018).

Increase in 5-year positivity in every industry; 9 of 15 increased year over year

Year-over-year positivity based on urine drug tests among the general workforce increased in 9 of 15 industries reported (industries are based on the North American Industry Classification System [NAICS] standard used by federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments). Positivity in Health Care and Social Assistance increased year over year by 3.9% (5.1% in 2021 versus 5.3% in 2022) and by 14.3% in Public Administration (3.5% in 2021 versus 4.0% in 2022).

Over five years, workforce positivity increased in every industry category. Accommodation and Food Services led the way with a 42.9% increase in positivity (4.9% in 2018 versus 7.0% in 2022). Retail Trade positivity was close behind at 42.6% increase (5.4% in 2018 versus 7.7% in 2022). Positivity in Finance and Insurance increased 38.5% (2.6% in 2018 versus 3.6% in 2022). Positivity in Transportation and Warehousing increased 35.9% (3.9% in 2018 versus 5.3% in 2022). Construction increased 14.6% (4.1% in 2018 versus 4.7% in 2022). Manufacturing increased 21.6% (3.7% in 2018 versus 4.5% in 2022).

Marijuana, cocaine and amphetamines showed widespread increases across industry sectors

Marijuana positivity was highest in Retail Trade and Accommodation and Food Services, at 8.1% in 2022. Over five years, marijuana positivity in Retail Trade increased 131.4% (from 3.5% in 2018 versus 8.1% in 2022). Marijuana positivity in Accommodation and Food Services increased 102.5% (from 4.0% in 2018 versus 8.1% in 2022). Cocaine positivity increased in 12 of 15 industries year over year and was highest in construction at 0.33%. Amphetamines positivity increased 15.4%, driven by increases in 14 of 15 industries, and was highest in Education Services, at 2.1%.

Cocaine positivity was mixed in the general U.S. workforce

Positivity for cocaine based on urine tests in the general U.S. workforce ticked up 4.8% (0.21% in 2021 versus 0.22% in 2022) and positivity for cocaine over the past five years declined 21.4% (0.28% in 2018 versus 0.22% in 2022). Positivity rates for cocaine based on urine tests in the federally mandated safety-sensitive workforce stayed even (0.21% in 2021 and 2022) and were down 25% over five years (0.28% in 2018 versus 0.22% in 2022).

Positivity for 6-AM (heroin) in all urine drug tests decreased over five years

Positivity for 6-AM metabolite (heroin) in the general U.S. workforce decreased 53.8% (0.013% in 2021 versus 0.006% in 2022) and 80% over five years (0.03% in 2018 versus 0.006% in 2022). Positivity for the 6-AM metabolite (heroin) in the federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce decreased 40% (0.005% in 2021 versus 0.003% in 2022) and 76.9% over five years (0.013% in 2018 versus 0.003% in 2022).

About the Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index

The Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index (DTI) is a series of reports that provide insights into trends in workforce drug use based on positivity rates of deidentified laboratory tests performed by Quest Diagnostics for a range of illicit, legal and prescription drugs. It examines test results according to three categories of workers: federally mandated, safety-sensitive workers; the general U.S. workforce; and the combined U.S. workforce. Federally mandated, safety-sensitive workers include pilots, bus and truck drivers, and workers in nuclear power plants, for whom routine drug testing is mandated by government agencies like the Department of Transportation, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Defense.

The strengths of the DTI analysis include its large, nationally representative sample size, longitudinal monitoring, a testing population that is generally reflective of the U.S. workforce and the quality of the company's drug testing services to confirm positive results. Limitations include analysis only of employers that perform drug testing with the company, and a lack of exact cross-specimen comparisons due to variations in substances for which employers test. Quest Diagnostics has analyzed annual workplace drug testing data since 1988 and publishes the findings as a public service.

Quest Diagnostics is the leading workforce drug testing provider, offering a broad range of drug testing options that allow employers to combine and customize a drug testing program that meets their unique business needs, all from a single, convenient provider. Employers seeking information on the company's services should visit the company's Employer Solutions page for more information.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics empowers people to take action to improve health outcomes. Derived from the world's largest database of clinical lab results, our diagnostic insights reveal new avenues to identify and treat disease, inspire healthy behaviors, and improve health care management. Quest annually serves one in three adult Americans and half the physicians and hospitals in the United States, and our nearly 50,000 employees understand that, in the right hands and with the right context, our diagnostic insights can inspire actions that transform lives. www.QuestDiagnostics.com .

SOURCE Quest Diagnostics
powered by's YOU NEED THIS Debuts A Line of Savory Almond Flour Crackers, While Popchips Gets A Vegan Glow Up

CHICAGO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Powered by Real Food From the Ground Up , a portfolio of better-for-you brands that deliver great tasting snacks without the snack'rifice, invites Sweets & Snacks Expo attendees to get the scoop at booth #11188 on the latest from its brands: Real Food From The Ground Up, YOU NEED THIS, Food Should Taste Good, and Popchips. Booth visitors will be among the first to try YOU NEED THIS ' latest launch, Almond Flour Crackers, learn about the latest Popchips product updates, view single-serve options that are available for convenience stores from all four brands, and have a chance to try the portfolio's full array of better for you snacks.

YOU NEED THIS, a line of ridiculously delicious plant-based snacks that are made without the junk, is adding Almond Flour Crackers to their suite of affordable snacks. The gluten-free and plant-based crackers will be available in two addicting flavors: Sea Salt and Cheddar. Almond Flour Crackers feature a nut and seed flour mix of almonds, flaxseeds, and sunflowers. Every bite of these crackers out-crunches and out-tastes other snacks. YOU NEED THIS' Almond Flour Crackers will officially launch in June 2023.

Additionally, the cult-favorite brand Popchips, maker of never fried and better-for-you popped potato chips, is proud to announce it's better-for-you potato chips will be going vegan at the end of the Summer. The brand has reformulated its products to encapsulate the taste of traditional dairy products, like sour cream, without the use of animal products.

"We always strive to give people more of what they want without sacrificing taste or ingredients. With this upgrade to the Popchips line, the brand perfectly aligns with the powered by mission of giving delicious snacks a plant-based twist," said Deb Holt, Chief Marketing Officer at powered by Real Food From the Ground Up. "The team tirelessly worked to reformulate popchips so it still prioritized bold flavors and now happens to be plant-based."

Sweets & Snacks Expo will be held from May 22-25, 2023, at McCormick Place, at 2301 South King Drive in Chicago, Illinois. powered by invites all attendees to stop by their booth (#11188) to sample YOU NEED THIS' new Almond Flour Crackers and learn more about Popchips going vegan. Keep an eye out for the brand's signature pink bellhop to snag a bag at the show. For more information on the trade show, please visit sweetsandsnacks.com . For more information on powered by Real Food From the Ground Up, visit www.poweredbysnacks.com .

About powered by Real Food From the Ground Up

Powered by Real Food From The Ground Up is a leading better-for-you snacks brand. The company promises to serve up more of what the consumer loves, wants and needs! The snack brands in its portfolio include YOU NEED THIS, Real Food From the Ground Up, Popchips, and Food Should Taste Good. Each brand relates to powered by's ethos of giving consumers more of what they want  great tasting snacks without the snack'rifice. The expanding powered by Real Food From The Ground Up portfolio positions the brand to meet customer needs. For more information on powered by Real Food From the Ground Up, visit www.poweredbysnacks.com . To find additional information on their portfolio of brands, please head to www.youneedthissnack.com , www.fromthegroundupsnacks.com , www.popchips.com , and www.foodshouldtastegood.com .

MEDIA CONTACT

Alessandra Luckey

818-478-0530

[email protected]

SOURCE powered by Real Food From The Ground Up
MENLO PARK, Calif., May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Global talent solutions and business consulting firm Robert Half (NYSE: RHI) announced today that Joseph Tarantino has been named an RHI executive officer. He will also continue to serve in his current capacity as president and CEO of Protiviti, Robert Half's global business consulting subsidiary.

Tarantino is one of the founding members who launched Protiviti in 2002 and became its president and CEO in 2007. In 2022, Protiviti celebrated its 20th anniversary and achieved record revenues of $1.98 billion. Under Tarantino's leadership, the firm has grown to comprise almost 30% of Robert Half's annual revenues and combined segment income.

"Over the last two decades, Joe has led Protiviti to incredible heights and helped establish the successful go-to-market strategy that seamlessly blends the unique capabilities of our talent and business consulting solutions," said M. Keith Waddell, president and CEO of Robert Half. "I am very proud to have Joe join the RHI executive team."

Under Tarantino's leadership, Protiviti has consistently been named to the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For and Consulting magazine 'Best Firms to Work For' lists. Tarantino has also received several individual accolades, including being recognized by Glassdoor as one of its Top CEOs and named three times to the NACD (National Association of Corporate Directors) Directorship 100 in the Governance Professionals category. As a leader committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, Tarantino is a signatory of the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion and the Catalyst CEO Champions for Change. He currently serves on the board for Calvary Hospital in New York and the board of trustees for St. John's University.

About Robert Half

Robert Half is the world's first and largest specialized talent solutions firm that connects opportunities at great companies with highly skilled job seekers. Offering contract and permanent placement solutions in the fields of finance and accounting, technology, administrative and customer support, legal, and marketing and creative, Robert Half has more than 300 locations worldwide, including nearly 100 locations in 18 countries outside the United States. Robert Half, including Protiviti, has been named to the Fortune World's Most Admired Companies and Forbes Best Employer for Diversity lists. Both Robert Half and Protiviti are among the 2023 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For. Explore our comprehensive solutions, research and insights at RobertHalf.com.

About Protiviti

Protiviti (Protiviti.com) is a global consulting firm that delivers deep expertise, objective insights, a tailored approach and unparalleled collaboration to help leaders confidently face the future. Protiviti and its independent and locally owned Member Firms provide clients with consulting and managed solutions in finance, technology, operations, data, digital, legal, governance, risk and internal audit through its network of more than 85 offices in over 25 countries. Named as one of the 'Best Firms to Work For' by Consulting Magazine, Protiviti has served more than 80% of Fortune 100 and nearly 80% of Fortune 500 companies.

SOURCE Robert Half
JAKARTA, Indonesia, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PT Perusahaan Gas Negara Tbk (the "Company") today announced that it has commenced a tender offer to purchase for cash ("Tender Offer") any and all of its outstanding 5.125% Senior Notes due 2024 ("Notes"). The Tender Offer is being made pursuant to a Tender Offer Memorandum, dated May 18, 2023 ("Tender Offer Memorandum") which is available on the tender website ("Tender Website") at https://deals.is.kroll.com/pgn.

Capitalized terms used but not defined herein have the meanings assigned to them in the Tender Offer Memorandum.

The Company has announced the Tender Offer as part of its plan to proactively manage the Company's upcoming debt maturities. The Company intends to use the proceeds from certain external commercial loans from banks, together with cash on hand, to fund the aggregate Tender Offer Consideration and the Accrued Interest Payment for Notes accepted for tender.

Summary of the Tender Offer

Title: 5.125% Senior Notes due 2024

CUSIP / ISIN: Y7136Y AA 8 / USY7136YAA83 (Regulation S); 69367P AA 4 / US69367PAA49 (Rule 144A)

Outstanding Principal Amount: US$950,000,000

Tender Offer Consideration: US$1,006 per US$1,000, plus accrued and unpaid interest

Amount subject to the Tender Offer: Any and all

The Tender Offer will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York time, on May 25, 2023, unless extended or earlier terminated as described in the Tender Offer Memorandum (such time and date, as they may be extended, the "Expiration Time").

Holders of Notes who validly tender (and do not validly withdraw) their Notes at or prior to the Expiration Time, or who deliver to the Information and Tender Agent a properly completed and duly executed Notice of Guaranteed Delivery (and deliver the Notes for which such Notice of Guaranteed Delivery is made no later than 5:00 p.m., New York time, on May 30, 2023) in accordance with the instructions in the Tender Offer Memorandum, will receive in cash, for Notes accepted for purchase by the Company, a Tender Offer Consideration of US$1,006 per US$1,000 principal amount of the Notes. In addition to the Tender Offer Consideration, Holders whose Notes have been accepted for purchase pursuant to the Tender Offer will be paid accrued and unpaid interest, if any, in cash in respect of any Notes purchased in the Tender Offer from, and including, the last interest payment date to, but excluding, the Payment Date ("Accrued Interest Payment").

The Tender Offer is subject to the satisfaction or waiver of a number of conditions as set forth in the Tender Offer Memorandum.

Tendered Notes may be withdrawn at any time at or prior to the Expiration Time so long as they are validly withdrawn in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Tender Offer Memorandum.

The Company has retained BNP Paribas, Mandiri Securities Pte. Ltd. and Standard Chartered Bank ("Dealer Managers") to act as dealer managers in connection with the Tender Offer. For additional information regarding the terms of the Tender Offer, please contact BNP Paribas at +65 6210 3322 / +44 20 7595 8668 or by email at [email protected] / [email protected]; Mandiri Securities Pte. Ltd. at +65 6589 3880 or by email at [email protected]; and Standard Chartered Bank at +65 6557 8252 / +44 20 7885 5739 / +1 212 667 0351 or by email at [email protected].

The Company has retained Kroll Issuer Services Limited ("Information and Tender Agent") to act as the information and tender agent for the Tender Offer. Questions regarding the Tender Offer should be directed to the Information and Tender Agent at the contact details provided. Documents for the Tender Offer, including the Tender Offer Memorandum, are available at the Tender Website: https://deals.is.kroll.com/pgn and may also be obtained by contacting the Information and Tender Agent by telephone at +44 20 7704 0880 (London) / +852 2281 0114 (Hong Kong) or by email at [email protected].

The Tender Offer is being made solely pursuant to, and will be governed by, the Tender Offer Memorandum. This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities nor will there be any sale of any securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. This announcement must be read in conjunction with the Tender Offer Memorandum. No offer or invitation to acquire or exchange any Notes is being made pursuant to this announcement.

SOURCE PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (Persero) Tbk
SANT'ANGELO DI PIOVE DI SACCO, Italy, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pylon Technologies Co., Ltd. ("Pylontech") announces its plan to build its first overseas factory in Italy at a press conference in Veneto on 18 May 2023.

Pylon LiFeEU S.r.l., the joint venture based in Sant'Angelo di Piove di Sacco (PD) will result in Pylontech's first overseas factory to produce and deliver energy storage solutions in a more stable and secured way for customers in Europe. It's jointly owned by Pylon Technologies Europe Holding B.V. ("Pylontech EU"), a company incorporated under Dutch law wholly owned by Pylontech, and Energy S.p.A. ("Energy"), who have been in cooperation for ten years with shared commitments to promote renewable energy and decarbonization initiatives. This factory will utilize resources and expertise from both sides to develop and market energy storage products in Europe, creating a new base for innovative energy storage solutions.

Pylontech has secured the number one position in the global residential battery energy market in 2022 with over one million energy storage systems commissioned in over 80 countries and regions starting from its first delivery in 2013. Today, the establishment of the new factory will be another significant milestone for this rapidly growing company, who continues to play a pioneering and leading role in the industry.

"It's an important step for Pylontech to set localized production as our partners especially in Europe are eager to have more secured and stable supply chain." Said Geoffrey Song, vice president of Pylontech, "We picked up Veneto as the starting place which enjoys both long time wisdom from Galilei and fresh friendship from Energy. I believe in the super bright future of renewable energy industry in EU by leveraging the global wisdom and local resources. "

About Pylontech

Pylontech (SHSE:688063) is a dedicated battery energy storage system (BESS) provider by consolidating its expertise in electrochemistry, power electronics and system integration to deliver reliable energy storage solutions globally. With continuous and rapid growth, it has become a leading provider of energy storage system worldwide.

About Energy S.p.A.

Energy S.p.A. founded in 2013, listed on the Euronext Growth Milan market of the Italian Stock Exchange, is an energy storage systems leader for both residential and large-scale applications sector. It has sold and installed more than 53,000 systems across the country, with a focus on the residential, commercial, industrial, utilities and electric mobility markets.

SOURCE Pylontech
TOKYO, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- QunaSys, a quantum computing software company, is excited to invite students, researchers, and anyone learning and researching quantum computation and quantum chemistry worldwide to participate in the Quantum Algorithm Grand Challenge (QAGC).

The challenge began on May 3, 2023, and the final submission deadline is July 31, 2023. The top four individuals or teams will have the opportunity to present their algorithms at the workshop hosted by QunaSys during IEEE Quantum Week 2023, taking place in Seattle, USA from September 17 to 22, 2023. Additionally, the top three individuals or teams will receive cash prizes: USD 10,000 for the first place, USD 5,000 for the second place, and USD 3,000 for the third place.

Contest-based research has successfully driven industrialization in fields like machine learning and robotics. It involves benchmarking real problems and competing for improvements. QAGC provides a quantum algorithm platform that evaluates proposed algorithms based on the same criteria, inspiring researchers worldwide to enhance their algorithms through competition. The ultimate goal is to expedite the industrial implementation of quantum computing.

The challenge problem for QAGC is to calculate the ground energy of the modified Fermi-Hubbard model, which closely resembles molecular problems but with a known exact solution. Using this model enables benchmark beyond classically simulatable size. The evaluation will be based on accuracy, measured by the absolute difference between proposed results and the exact solution. The evaluation system will consist of 8 qubits, and the estimated running time should not exceed 1000 seconds.

QAGC presents a perfect opportunity for quantum computing enthusiasts to showcase their skills and creativity. By participating, you will have the chance to push the boundaries of NISQ algorithms and contribute to the advancement of quantum computing technology. Additionally, you will gain valuable insights from other researchers and developers worldwide while becoming part of the thriving quantum computing community.

Join the race today to take NISQ algorithms to the next level! Register for the Quantum Algorithm Grand Challenge now. To learn more about the challenge and how to participate, visit https://www.qagc.org/ for further information.

Contact

QAGC secretariat: [email protected]

SOURCE QunaSys Inc.
SAN FRANCISCO, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Rainbow Grocery is issuing notice of a data privacy event that may impact the confidentiality of personal information for a limited number of individuals who shopped at Rainbow Grocery between February 10 and February 26, 2023, and paid by swiping a payment card on one of its PIN pads. Payments using card chip insertion or card taps were unaffected by this event.

On February 26, 2023, Rainbow Grocery discovered a card skimmer on one of its cash register PIN pads. Rainbow Grocery immediately removed the card skimmer and disconnected the PIN pad from its network. Rainbow Grocery promptly commenced an investigation with the help of third-party forensic specialists to determine the nature and scope of this incident. Rainbow Grocery also notified Federal law enforcement and worked expeditiously to provide notice to affected individuals.

Rainbow Grocery's investigation determined that an unauthorized person installed a card skimmer on one of Rainbow Grocery's PIN pads and may have wirelessly intercepted certain users' payment card information from magstripe swipe transactions between February 10 and February 26, 2023.

Rainbow Grocery is notifying potentially affected individuals by this media notice and by electronically mailing letters directly to potentially affected individuals. Rainbow Grocery is also notifying certain state regulators, where required, and posting a notice regarding this incident on its website.

Rainbow Grocery encourages potentially impacted individuals to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud, to review account statements, and to monitor their credit reports and explanation of benefits forms for suspicious activity. Rainbow Grocery is providing potentially impacted individuals with credit monitoring and identity restoration services, contact information for the three major credit reporting agencies, as well as providing advice on how to obtain free credit reports and how to place fraud alerts and security freezes on their credit files.

Rainbow Grocery takes this event and the security of the information in its care seriously. Rainbow Grocery apologizes for any inconvenience or concern this event may have caused.

Individuals seeking additional information regarding this event may call (415) 863-0620 during the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time, 7 days a week (excluding U.S. holidays). Individuals may also write to Rainbow Grocery at 1745 Folsom Street, San Francisco, CA 94103. Additional information can also be found on Rainbow Grocery's website at www.rainbow.coop.

SOURCE Rainbow Grocery
Ramp Intelligence encompasses industry-first AI solutions powered by GPT-4, including vendor price intelligence, an accounting copilot, and effortless expense reports, among other releases.

Products go beyond "AI washed" chatbots in the market today and drive tangible value for businesses and their people: from ensuring businesses never overpay on software to automating mundane accounting tasks.

Company also reveals AI experts as individual investors and advisors, including Satya Nadella , Adam D'Angelo , Fidji Simo, and professor Chris Re .

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ramp, the leading finance automation platform helping 15,000+ businesses find time and money savings across transactions, bill payments, and accounting, today announced Ramp Intelligence: a suite of never-before-seen tools in financial services, driven by AI, designed to solve customer problems. The launch represents the most significant evolution of Ramp's core time and money saving engine, with solutions powered by GPT-4 embedded throughout Ramp's platform  including vendor price intelligence, an accounting copilot, contract extraction and negotiation, and automated accounting processes.

With these solutions, customers benefit from expenses that code themselves, dramatically faster and more accurate month-end closing processes, democratized software prices, and automated insight into business performance.

The functionality and impact of these products stand in stark contrast to the flurry of superficial "AI-washed" products to enter the market over the last six months. In fact, Ramp's AI expertise has drawn the involvement of prominent AI experts as individuals investors and advisors, including Satya Nadella, Adam D'Angelo, Fidji Simo and Chris Re.

"Ramp has baked AI into the tool in a really thoughtful way," says Laura Moreno, Senior Manager, Global Accounts Payable, Eventbrite. "Their automation allows us to move so much faster and remain focused on what really matters."

Ramp is now applying AI's power of historical pattern analysis to over $10 billion in aggregated spend data, so customers can benefit from the wisdom of the crowd to uncover cost-saving opportunities and make data-backed decisions.

"We believe generative AI will transform how businesses work. " says Eric Glyman, CEO, Ramp. "With the launch of Ramp Intelligence, we are taking a significant step forward in democratizing over $10 billion in transaction data and leveraging it on behalf of companies to enhance pricing transparency, productivity, and improve their bottom lines. If we're successful, it means a material drop in price discrimination. For software buyers, it means less time trying to understand complicated contracts. For accountants, it means an end to chasing the sales team for incorrectly categorizing expenses and freeing up time for more strategic work. All in, it means more profitable businesses and more productive finance organizations."

Powered by GPT-4, Ramp Intelligence unlocks the value of unstructured data previously siloed in card transaction data, documents, and receipts for the very first time. Through these products, Ramp is supporting people in finance, accounting, and IT roles, and putting an end to outdated processes like expense reports and "contact sales for pricing".

"The difference between a few data points I source on my own and the thousands that Ramp is benchmarking against has the potential to be tens of thousands of dollars," says Matt Dougherty, Finance & Strategy Director, Crossbeam. "We could be investing that back into our company rather than overpaying for software."

Smart from the start

With Ramp Intelligence, the company is helping businesses:

Get the best price on software : For such an advanced sector, B2B software pricing works in a surprisingly outdated and opaque way. Ramp's Price Intelligence uses AI to bring the wisdom of the crowd to software pricing by benchmarking SaaS contract quotes against millions of aggregated purchasing data points. Business owners and IT buyers can see if they're getting a fair price, and Ramp will help them negotiate if they're not.

: For such an advanced sector, B2B software pricing works in a surprisingly outdated and opaque way. Ramp's Price Intelligence uses AI to bring the wisdom of the crowd to software pricing by benchmarking SaaS contract quotes against millions of aggregated purchasing data points. Business owners and IT buyers can see if they're getting a fair price, and Ramp will help them negotiate if they're not. Instant review of complicated contracts : Powered by GPT-4, Ramp will extract data from any software contract, give customers a summary, and tell them if they're getting a good deal. Businesses using Ramp's negotiations service have saved an average of 17.5% (approx. $21,500 ) on software contracts.

: Powered by GPT-4, Ramp will extract data from any software contract, give customers a summary, and tell them if they're getting a good deal. Businesses using Ramp's negotiations service have saved an average of 17.5% (approx. ) on software contracts. Auto-complete expense reports and accounting processes : The sales team shouldn't have to know how to speak the language of the accounting ledger every time they travel or eat for work. Eliminate guesswork and get expenses right with AI-generated fields and categories based on how tens of thousands of accountants have classified similar expenses previously.

: The sales team shouldn't have to know how to speak the language of the accounting ledger every time they travel or eat for work. Eliminate guesswork and get expenses right with AI-generated fields and categories based on how tens of thousands of accountants have classified similar expenses previously. Accelerate work with Copilot: Ramp users can ask Ramp any question in English and get a data-backed answer within seconds, from "How can I reduce costs?" to "Show me all gas purchases above $100 ." Whether reviewing weekly office expenses, setting up configurations, or creating a new workflow, Ramp's industry-first Copilot is a smart AI assistant that helps businesses get the most advanced work done faster and achieve more in Ramp in less time.

About Ramp

Ramp ( https://www.ramp.com ) is the first and only finance automation platform from corporate cards and expense management software, to bill payments and accounting integrations designed to save businesses time and money with every click. Businesses are spending an average of 3.5% less and closing their books 8x faster by switching to Ramp. Founded in 2019, Ramp powers the fastest-growing corporate card in America and enables tens of billions of dollars of purchases each year. If you're interested in helping teams run smarter and faster, please visit www.ramp.com/careers .

Contact

[email protected]

SOURCE Ramp
With a reputation for offering the overall best in the equipment-as-a-service industry, Relayr simplifies operations by offering a comprehensive solution.

SAN ANTONIO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost & Sullivan recently assessed the equipment-as-a-service (EaaS) industry and, based on its findings, recognizes relayr with the 2023 Global Company of the Year Award. The company offers a holistic approach to EaaS  pay-per-demand, guaranteed performance as a one-stop-shop. Relayr partners with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to develop and offer EaaS solutions tailored to the needs of industrial manufacturers. Relayr drives the development of the EaaS offering, enables the implementation with its technological capabilities, and offers to operate the model for OEMs and their customers, performing the risk management, asset management, and necessary financial services.

2023 Global Equipment-as-a-Service Company of the Year Award

Relayr's Equipment as a Service offering significantly reduces the hurdles for an OEM to enter into EaaS as relayr takes away the complexity of operations, necessary investments into core infrastructure, and the headache of potential balance sheet impacts.

The OEMs' customers, as business model subscribers are able to use the equipment based on demand of their end-customers, without having to shoulder the otherwise required capital investment to upgrade or expand their machine park. Operating costs are synchronized with revenue cycles, optimizing the cash flow of the manufacturer. Relayr technology increases the insights into machine usage and equipment health, and, together with integrated service agreements, improve productivity and reliability.

Relayr connects the OEMs' knowledge of optimized equipment operations and equipment servicing, with relayr's deep-seated IoT Tech and Data Science knowledge, adding the proven expertise in structuring and operating servitization models of its dedicated EaaS structure, including IoT Financing Services (IFS). Bundling all EaaS know-how and management in one dedicated entity and team of experts, distinguishes relayr from its competitors further. This approach, together with a tailored IoT and operating platform, supports fast go-to-market strategies to generate proof points of the business model as well as scaled rollouts of EaaS, including its partnership with Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG.

Sebastian Trolli, Senior Industrial Analyst, Industrial Technologies, Frost & Sullivan, observed, "Relayr offers game-changing EaaS solutions that make it easy for clients to roll out and scale machines globally and quickly. This approach gives clients the flexibility to prove their machine and operations and go to market rapidly, positioning Relayr as a pioneer in the EaaS industry."

"Relayr's dedicated team maintains close partnerships with the OEM to ensure an understanding of the business and strategic implications of its EaaS model. This strong focus includes creating business cases to demonstrate operational and value-added impact. Its one-stop-shop solution combines complex processes into a unified service that allows OEMs to focus on its core business," added Elizabeth Whynott, Best Practices Research Analyst, Frost & Sullivan.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents the Company of the Year Award to the organization that demonstrates excellence in terms of growth strategy and implementation in its field. The award recognizes a high degree of innovation with products and technologies and the resulting leadership, in terms of customer value and market penetration.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in various regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analyses, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

About Frost & Sullivan

For six decades, Frost & Sullivan has been world-renowned for its role in helping investors, corporate leaders, and governments navigate economic changes and identify disruptive technologies, Mega Trends, new business models, and companies to action, resulting in a continuous flow of growth opportunities to drive future success. Contact us: Start the discussion.

Contact:

Claudia Toscano

P: 1.956.533.5915

E: [email protected]

About relayr  a Munich Re company:

Relayr is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) powerhouse delivering the most complete solutions for Predictive Maintenance and Equipment as a Service.

We enable industrial companies by providing a combination of unique IIoT technology and solutions with powerful business services such as IoT Financing Services or bespoke transformation de-risking instruments  all from a single source.

With relayr, manufacturers, operators, and service companies for industrial equipment are empowered to implement fully interoperable Industrial IoT solutions designed to enhance productivity and efficiency, such as reducing Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and minimizing unplanned downtime.

More at: www.relayr.io

Contact:

Michal Kraus

P. +49 174 950 9671

E [email protected]

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
Former New York City Resident and Tillman Scholar to be Honored at JFK Airport on Friday, May 19

NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. Marine veteran Grady Kurpasi's remains will be returned to his family this Friday, May 19, following his disappearance in Ukraine last spring. Kurpasi's remains were located by the RT Weatherman Foundation ("Weatherman Foundation") and will be accompanied by the Foundation's team on a nonstop flight on Turkish Airlines Flight #001 from Istanbul, landing in JFK at 5:50 EDT on Friday. The fallen Marine will be honored with a brief ceremony at the airport before being transferred by private jet to Wilmington, NC to be reunited with his family.

Retired Marine Captain Grady Kurpasi, 50, and veteran of the Iraq war, volunteered to fight in support of Ukraine and was last seen on April 26, 2022, after investigating the source of gunfire in southern Ukraine with a group of international volunteers. Kurpasi was accompanied by a British citizen, Andrew Hill, and the men radioed back to their team that they were under fire. Hill was captured by Russian-backed forces and has reportedly been charged with being a mercenary.

Kurpasi first traveled to Ukraine in February 2022 to assist with evacuations and train Ukrainian soldiers. Eventually joining the Ukrainian Foreign Legion, Kurpasi was motivated to stay and fight after witnessing the many atrocities committed in the communities outside of Kyiv.

Missing for more than a year, Kurpasi was declared dead by the State Department in April 2023. The Weatherman Foundation, a private operating foundation founded by Bess Weatherman and Andrew Duncan, worked tirelessly to locate Kurpasi's remains and was determined to travel to Ukraine to ensure the safe passage of Kurpasi's remains back to American soil. "Our family is deeply grateful to the Weatherman Foundation for their tireless efforts to find our beloved Grady's remains and to bring him home to us," said Kurpasi's wife.

Kurpasi, who grew up in New York City following his adoption from Korea, enlisted in the Marine Corps at the age of 29 following the attacks on 9/11. He deployed three times to Iraq, serving as an infantry assaultman and ultimately becoming a scout sniper, retiring as a captain in September 2021.

The Weatherman Foundation's Andrew Duncan said, "Grady is a hero for helping to protect the innocent children of Ukraine from an indicted war criminal. As children in occupied Kherson were forced to breathe the constant smell of burning dead Russian soldiers, we, as fellow Americans, share a core moral ideal: we never leave Americans behind. Ever."

Kurpasi was also a Tillman Scholar. Meaghan Mobbs, the president of the Weatherman Foundation and fellow Tillman Scholar, who led the effort to retrieve Kurpasi, will also be in attendance to honor him. Mobbs said, "There is an unspoken bond between those who serve in uniform - if you give your life in combat, your fellow Americans will bear any burden to bring you home. This bond lays at the heart of the mission and values of the RT Weatherman Foundation. Our team spent the last 9 months quietly and diligently working to honor that commitment to Grady and his family. As a fellow Tillman scholar, Veteran, and American I could not be prouder to see him returned home."

In addition to being a Tillman Scholar, Kurpasi has also been awarded Good Conduct Medal three times, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal three times, the Purple Heart Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, among other awards.

About the RT Weatherman Foundation

The RT Weatherman Foundation was founded Bess Weatherman and Andrew Duncan in honor of Romulus T. Weatherman, a decorated WWII veteran and journalist. The Foundation is dedicated to protecting children, defending human rights, and promoting democracy around the world.

Contact

Edelman

Stephan Pechdimaldji

Senior Vice President

(415) 531-4847

[email protected]

SOURCE RT Weatherman Foundation
CHEYENNE, Wyo., May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation announced on May 17, 2023 that it had filed suit in federal court to stop the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from stripping about 2 million acres from wild horses in southwest Wyoming for the benefit of private livestock ranchers.

"This decision must not be allowed to stand," said Neda DeMayo, president of Return to Freedom (RTF), a national nonprofit wild horse and burro advocacy organization. "The BLM is using an agreement with livestock ranchers as an excuse to violate its responsibilities under the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Federally protected wild horses and burros must not be allowed to be removed from our public lands due to private landowner pressure -- or whole herds will vanish across the West."

RTF is joined in the lawsuit by plaintiffs Front Range Equine Rescue (FRER), a Colorado non-profit organization, and wild horse photographers and advocates Meg Frederick and Angelique Rea.

Under the BLM's changes, finalized on May 8, 2023, the agency will:

remove 1.95 million acres from wild horse use by converting the Salt Wells and Great Divide Herd Management Areas to inactive Herd Areas not managed for horses;

manage the herd on the 393,000-acre White Mountain Herd Management Area as non-reproducing, effectively zeroing it out, too, with the agency considering population management tools that are dangerous, inhumane, unproven, costly (surgical sterilization of mares), ineffective (sex-ratio skewing) or that do not have a fully understood effect on wild herds (gelding stallions);

slash its population target for the 478,000-acre Adobe Town Herd Management Area from a range of 610-800 wild horses to just 225-450 horses; and

potentially engage in illegal and unnecessary surgical sterilization of the resident wild horses.

The BLM says that it amended its Resource Management Plan based on an agreement it entered into in 2013 with the Rock Springs Grazing Association.

The ranching group sued for the removal of all of the wild horses from the 2-million-acre Checkerboard region, an unfenced area of alternating, one-mile-square blocks of public and private land set up in the 1860s as part of negotiations with the Union Pacific railroad.

BLM's reason for removing land from wild horse use: complying with its legal obligations to America's wild horses is too much trouble for it.

"The BLM can't just throw up its hands because Congress handed it a challenge," said Hilary Wood, president of plaintiff FRER. "That's just not good enough for the agency charged with conserving wild horses and burros on our public lands on behalf of all Americans."

The announced changes demonstrate explicit bias and violation of federal law. And during a $1.1 million, three-month-long helicopter roundup from late 2021 to early 2022. the BLM set the stage for the changes by capturing and removing 3,502 wild horses from their home ranges in Southwest Wyoming. Thirty-seven wild horses died during the roundup.

Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation (RTF ) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to wild horse preservation through sanctuary, education, conservation, and advocacy since 1998. It also operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary at three California locations, caring for more than 450 wild horses and burros. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram for updates about wild horses and burros on the range and at our sanctuary.

Front Range Equine Rescue (FRER) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to end the abuse and neglect of horses through rescue and education. It was incorporated in the State of Colorado in 1997. FRER's "Save the Wild Horses" campaign provides rescue, education, advocacy and legal action to protect America's wild horses. To learn more, visit www.frontrangeequinerescue.org.

SOURCE Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation
SAN FRANCISCO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sakari has been named to Inc. magazine's annual Best Workplaces list. Featured in the May/June 2023 issue, which hits newsstands on May 16, 2023, and prominently featured on Inc.com, the list is the result of a comprehensive measurement of American companies that have excelled in creating exceptional workplaces and company culture, whether operating in a physical or a virtual facility.

As a best-in-class omni-channel communication platform, Sakari empowers teams to establish engaging conversations and build meaningful relationships with their leads and customers around the world. With over 6,000 active users using Sakari to send messages, Sakari's scalable solution is changing the way businesses communicate with their customers. Built with a powerful suite of business messaging features, the Sakari platform is designed to help start and scale your business communications.

"Sakari is honored to receive this recognition from Inc. Magazine as one of the top places to work," said Adam Horsman, Co-Founder of Sakari. "I'm proud of the fact that as we've more than doubled in size in the last 18 months, we've continued to maintain our culture and provide all team members with the resources and opportunities they need to thrive and do their best work. We are incredibly proud of the team we have built and are equally excited about what's ahead."

After collecting data from thousands of submissions, Inc. selected 591 honorees this year. Each company that was nominated took part in an employee survey, conducted by Quantum Workplace, which included topics such as management effectiveness, perks, fostering employee growth, and overall company culture. The organization's benefits were also audited to determine overall score and ranking.

"Being named to Best Workplaces is an honor that only a small fraction of companies have been able to claim," says Inc. editor-in-chief Scott Omelianuk. "Proving to the world that you're a magnet for talent and have a culture that keeps teams engaged, productive, and proud to come to work is a truly remarkable achievement."

About Sakari

Founded in 2016, Sakari is an omni-channel communication platform used by businesses around the world to communicate with their customers. We enable businesses to easily send customized alerts, reminders, and marketing campaigns to leads, customers, and employees, wherever they are. We serve thousands of businesses across more than 40 countries, with headquarters based out of San Francisco. For more information, visit www.sakari.io

About Inc. Media

The world's most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com

About Quantum Workplace

Quantum Workplace, based in Omaha, Nebraska, is an HR technology company that serves organizations through employee-engagement surveys, action-planning tools, exit surveys, peer- to-peer recognition, performance evaluations, goal tracking, and leadership assessment. For more information, visit QuantumWorkplace.com.

Contact:

Ally Harris

[email protected]

SOURCE Sakari
MIAMI, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Scott Disick, renowned entrepreneur and television personality, is thrilled to announce that his premium Champagne brand, Leo De Verzay, will now be available across Florida in restaurants, bars, clubs and wine / spirit stores. In partnership with Republic National Distributing Company, one of the nation's leading distributors of wine and spirits, consumers can now enjoy Leo De Verzay Champagne at their favorite clubs, restaurants, bars and Liquor stores.

To celebrate this exciting milestone, Disick will be making appearances in select venues across Florida, the weekend of May 20 and 21 , where the product is sold. This presents an opportunity for his fans and consumers of Leo De Verzay Champagne to engage with Disick, and learn more about the brand's story.

While consumers can still purchase Leo De Verzay online at buyldvdirect.com and receive free shipping to their door, Disick wants to give his fans the opportunity to taste the Champagne and experience its unique flavor profile firsthand as he introduces his brand state by state. "I am excited to bring The Taste of Luxury to wine and spirit stores and make Florida my first stop. My goal has always been to bring affordable luxury to people, and I believe Leo De Verzay does just that," said Disick.

Miami is like a second home to Scott, so it seemed natural to kick off in The Sunshine State. Leo De Verzay is also available through RNDC in California and will soon be in New York. Kick off parties are being planned for each state. Leo De Verzay is quickly becoming a favorite among celebrities, influencers, and Champagne enthusiasts. With its elegant packaging and luxurious taste, it is the perfect Champagne for special occasions. Stay tuned for more updates as Scott Disick continues to expand his brand and bring affordable luxury to consumers throughout the US.

About Leo De Verzay Champagne:

Leo de Verzay champagne was founded by 8th generation wine-grower Charlotte Castagne-Chaudron, and brought to the U.S. market by American entrepreneurs, Scott Disick and Brad Turk. Leo de Verzay Cuvees are aged a minimum of three years in the bottle and embody everything the Champagne experience has come to represent and does so with an irrepressibly artistic and powerful personality. A certified Swarovski crystal adorns each bottle. Leo de Verzay's appeal to both jet-setters and connoisseurs lies in its attention to detail in both bottle presentation and exceptional quality. It is made from the very best grapes rooted in the Premier and Grand Cru villages of the Champagne region in France.

For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected] , (214) 676-9187

Instagram: @leodeverzay

SOURCE Leo De Verzay Champagne
SB 556 would have held oil companies presumptively liable for causing cancer, asthma, preterm and high risk births for people living within 3200 ft of an oil well.

SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- SB 556, legislation that gives people who live near oil wells and have developed cancer, respiratory illnesses and birth defects the right to hold oil drillers liable for their illnesses, was held without a vote on the suspense file by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill can no longer proceed this year.

Senator Anthony Portantino used his power to stop the bill without a hearing or vote. More than 130 public interest, environmental and labor groups back SB 556.

Authored by California State Senator Lena Gonzalez, SB 556 builds on scientific evidence proving a link between drilling and these maladies, like cancer, the same evidence that was used to enact SB 1137 (Gonzalez), which banned new drilling in the 3200 foot "set-back" zone. Oil drillers qualified a referendum that put SB 1137 on hold until voters vote on it in November 2024. If SB 556 becomes law, it would further protect communities by making drillers liable for the harms they cause in all their wells starting January 2024.

Responses from members of the Last Chance Alliance follow:

"Senator Portantino betrayed the people in his district who live close to the more than 100 operational oil wells there by failing to give a bill that protects them from drilling a fair hearing and using his unilateral power to hold the legislation. Portantino sided with the drillers against the community he represents and allowed oil drillers to continue to recklessly drill without accountability for their actions. His undemocratic actions today will live in infamy in the communities most affected by oil drilling."

Jamie Court, President of Consumer Watchdog.

"Corporate polluters have spent over $9 million lobbying against legislation that would protect communities and consumers in the first three months of this year alone. In failing to pass SB 556 out of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Portantino has failed the millions of Californians who are used as a sacrifice zone for oil drilling and polluter greed. Big Oil should not be allowed to continue acting with impunity. Californians have suffered for too long. We thank Senator Gonzalez for her efforts in holding corporate polluters accountable and we will continue working towards ending neighborhood oil drilling in California. We will not allow Big Oil to intimidate us." Chirag G. Bhakta, California Director, Food & Water Watch

"EWG is disheartened by the decision to hold this well-conceived proposal in the Appropriations Committee. Committee Chair Portantino needs to hold the state's big oil corporations accountable for the serious, often life-threatening health effects inflicted upon millions of hardworking people, including children. The adverse health impacts associated with oil and gas extraction activities are undeniable. The release of toxic emissions, air pollutants, and the contamination of groundwater have been linked to a range of health conditions, including respiratory ailments like asthma, neurological disorders, and increased risk of cancer. It's shameful that Senator Portantino caved into the pressure the oil companies have put upon the Committee and the Legislature by spending millions of dollars on a fleet of lobbyists to work against this bill." Bill Allayaud, EWG Vice President for California Government Affairs

"Fossil fuel executives have known for decades that drilling in neighborhoods puts our communities at risk of cancer, asthma, pregnancy complications, and other illnesses. Instead of acting to protect public health and our shared climate, they've lobbied and spent millions of dollars convincing elected officials to look the other way. We will continue to work with Senator Gonzalez and other environmental justice champions in efforts to hold these corporate polluters accountable and end neighborhood drilling in California." Nicole Rivera, Government Affairs Director, The Climate Center

"Our Elected Officials to Protect America California network of over 460 elected officials from 49 counties, representing more than half of Californians, have fought for science-based public health setbacks to protect our communities from oil and gas industry pollution," said Meghan Sahli-Wells, California Director, Elected Officials to Protect America - Code Blue, Former Culver City Mayor. "SB 556, gives people who have developed cancer, respiratory illnesses and birth defects the right to hold oil drillers liable for their illnesses if they live, work, or go to school within 3200 feet of oil drilling and if the company did not use the best technologies to mitigate risk. Our communities have suffered for far too long, forced to breathe toxic air and live on contaminated soil from oil and gas facilities in our neighborhoods.The industry must responsibly pay for the undeniable harm they have caused too many families. We will not give up until there is justice."

"Oil and gas wells have plagued our marginalized California communities for far too long, and it is past due for these owners and operators to take responsibility for the health harms they have caused California residents. We strongly believe in Senator's Gonzalez's bill, and we are very disappointed in the Appropriations Committee's failure to pass SB 556. Our communities deserve to live in an environment that does not give them cancer, pregnancy complications, or respiratory issues, and this bill would have moved us toward that reality." Kayla Karimi, Staff Attorney, Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment

"Every community deserves to live free of pollution that impacts their health and wellbeing. Yet, for far too long frontline communities of primarily Black and Brown residents across the state have been subjected to egregiously negligent practices by Big Oil that harm their health on a daily basis. SB556 is a result of their relentless advocacy and refusal to take no for an answer. It is beyond time we stopped putting corporate profits over people's wellbeing, yet, that's exactly what the Appropriations committee's failure to pass this bill does. Their shameful action keeps in place barriers to accountability that are necessary to protect communities. We thank Senator Gonzalez for her work to hold the oil industry responsible for the harm they cause. While this decision was disheartening, it has only sharpened our resolve to fight for accountability and a clean future where oil drilling doesn't exist.

Kobi Naseck, VISION Coalition Coordinator.

SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
BEIJING, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from China Daily:

The city of Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, is a prime destination for domestic and international tourists who seek to explore the culture and scenery of Northeast China. In recent years, it has implemented various measures to conserve its rich historical, revolutionary, industrial and ethnic heritage, leveraging its cultural advantages to attract travelers from around the world.

The illustration represents the rich and diverse tourism resources in Shenyang

Shenyang welcomed 94.13 million domestic tourist visits in 2022. In the first quarter of 2023, the city recorded 26.61 million domestic tourist arrivals with tourism revenue reaching 26.49 billion yuan ($3.82 billion), a year-on-year increase of 61.6 percent in terms of tourist arrivals and 99.09 percent in terms of revenue. In recent years, Shenyang has been placing great emphasis on integrating culture and tourism, tapping into the natural and cultural resources of the "Three Mountains, Three Rivers and Six Areas" to create unique cultural attractions. The Three Mountains refer to Ma'er Mountain, Qipan Mountain and Shengji Mountain, while the Three Rivers are the Hunhe River, Liaohe River and Puhe River. The Six Areas are comprised of Shenyang Fangcheng, Northern Marketplace, Zhongshan Road, Weigong Street, Dadong Road and Huanbeiling.

Shenyang's goal is to boost its soft power and become a regional hub for cultural and creative industries, a domestic destination for ecological leisure tourism, a prime destination in Northeast Asia and an international city for cultural tourism.

The first investment promotion event for key cultural tourism projects in Shenyang held in Beijing on Feb 17 drew representatives from 120 key domestic enterprises. The event saw the launch of 21 investment projects, out of which 10 projects worth 12.29 billion yuan were signed.

On April 13, Shenyang hosted a cultural tourism investment promotion event in Shanghai, unveiling 100 cultural tourism scenes categorized into 10 groups, plus 33 spring travel routes and 30 year-round travel routes for visitors to explore in Shenyang.

A representative of a Shanghai travel agency commended the travel routes for being expertly designed. They feature food, culture, history and creativity, integrating the premium tourism resources in Shenyang.

In 2023, Shenyang will prioritize the development of historical culture, Red culture related to the revolutionary past of the Communist Party of China, industrial culture and ethnic culture, according to local officials. The city intends to utilize 10 major cultural venues, including the September 18 Incident History Museum and the China Industrial Museum, to lead the way in creating a series of first-class cultural landmarks.

Shenyang boasts a rich history spanning 110,000 years of human activity, 7,200 years of human tribal history, 2,300 years of city building and was once the national capital. The mention of these achievements always sparks a sense of pride among the people of Shenyang.

The Shenyang region gave birth to the early culture of the Liaohe River basin. Excavations at the Xinle site revealed human activity in the area dating back 7,000 years, which marks the first evidence of the Shenyang culture. Built in 1625 under the order of Nurhachi (1559-1626), founder of the kingdom of Great Jin which preceded the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Shenyang Palace Museum is one of the only two remaining intact imperial palace complexes in China today. The palace features a fusion of the architectural principles of the Han palace system and the political structure, customs, religious beliefs and architectural styles of the Manchu people.

In recent years, Shenyang has taken steps to protect its historical and cultural heritage. In March, Shenyang announced that it will conduct an archaeological investigation of the Hongshan Culture archaeological site along the Liaohe River. Furthermore, the city will be hosting the 9th Shenyang Intangible Cultural Heritage Expo.

On March 25, the first lecture in a series on Shenyang's archaeology and cultural relics was launched. Professor Zhao Binfu, the dean of the School of Archaeology at Jilin University, gave a lecture on Chinese archaeology.

During the May Day holiday from April 29 to May 3, the Shenyang Museum hosted daily cultural activities under the theme of "Revealing the legacies of our hometown and uncovering the stories behind relics", providing visitors with an opportunity to learn more about the city's illustrious history.

The Shenyang Museum is a modern and comprehensive museum that showcases the history and culture of the Shenyang region. According to a staff member of the museum who spoke to Shenyang Daily, the museum proved to be highly popular during the May Day holiday, with record-breaking daily visits since its opening.

Shenyang boasts abundant Red culture resources and has adopted innovative methods to upgrade its Red heritage sites, attracting more visitors to learn about the historical significance of Red culture.

To enhance the tourist experience, the September 18 Incident History Museum showcases over 30 3D-scanned artifacts, carefully selected from over 100, on a touch-screen interactive display, according to Xinhua News Agency. Visitors can use the device to explore the artifacts from both broad and intricate perspectives.

Shenyang is also home to a rich industrial culture. Many tourists have come to love the tourism destinations and creative products that evoke the city's industrial past.

The 1905 Cultural and Creative Park was built upon the renovated workshops of Shenyang Heavy Machinery Group. Notably, the steel beams and other original parts have been preserved intact. Today, the renovated park has become a base for young people to engage in cultural and creative entrepreneurship. It features cafes, bars, restaurants and numerous cultural and creative stores that appeal to young people.

Local resident Zhang Lyuyun frequently takes part in hands-on activities in the park to create cultural and creative products with distinctive Shenyang features, China Tourism News reported.

The cultures of various ethnic groups are a crucial part of Shenyang's cultural heritage. Over the years, people within these communities have developed a diverse range of intangible cultural treasures. Protecting, promoting and maximizing the utility of these valuable assets is a practical approach toward promoting the city's ethnic culture and building a shared spiritual home for all ethnic groups.

According to China's seventh census, conducted in 2020, 931,781 individuals from 55 ethnic groups other than Han were living in Shenyang, making up 10.27 percent of the city's population.

The Manchu ethnic group was the largest, with 569,951 individuals, followed by the Mongolian with 135,265 people and the Korean with 88,676 people.

To better preserve and promote the cultural heritage of ethnic groups and boost tourism, Shenyang has taken several measures. These include organizing exhibitions and performances to showcase the cultures of these ethnic groups. Additionally, booths and interactive zones have been set up during traditional festivals and other citywide events to raise public awareness and understanding of the cultural heritage of these ethnic groups.

Shenyang's rich historical, revolutionary, industrial and ethnic cultures are not only a source of pride for its people, but also a major draw for domestic and foreign tourists. By incorporating its natural and cultural resources to create unique cultural attractions, Shenyang has achieved notable progress in developing its tourism industry. The city's dedication to preserving and showcasing its diverse cultures will continue to fuel its ascent as a premier destination for travelers.

SOURCE China Daily
NEW YORK, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The shipbroking market size is set to grow by USD 244.12 million from 2022 to 2027 progressing at a CAGR of almost2.95% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario, the latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. The market is driven by demand for significant value creation in the shipping process.

Here is an Exclusive report talking about Market scenarios with a historical period (2017-2021) and a forecast period (2023-2027). Download Sample Report in minutes!

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Shipbroking Market 2023-2027

The report on the shipbroking market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis.

Shipbroking Market 2023-2027 - Market Dynamics

Market Driver

Demand for key value addition in the shipping process

Growth in the global economy

Increased demand for seaborne trade

Market Trend

Implementation of advanced technologies

Strategic alliances leading to carrier consolidation

Volatility in crude oil prices

Market Challenges

Increased exposure to global macroeconomic factors

Advanced technology supplanting shipbroking functions

Supply-demand mismatch

Shipbroking Market 2023-2027: Market Segmentation

The shipbroking market is segmented by application (bulker, tanker, and others), end-user (oil and gas, manufacturing, aerospace and defense, and others), and geography (Europe, APAC, North America, Middle East and Africa, and South America).

The shipbroking market share growth by the bulker segment will be significant during the forecast period. The bulker segment is driven by the growth in demand for dry bulk seaborne trade across the world, the dry bulk fleet size, and global infrastructural activity. By geography, Europe is estimated to contribute 49% to the growth of the global market during the forecast period. The presence of the global top five countries in vessel ownership is expected to drive the overall shipbroking market in the region.

The report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources through an analysis of key parameters- View Sample Report

The shipbroking market covers the following areas:

Shipbroking Market Sizing

Shipbroking Market Forecast

Shipbroking Market Analysis

Companies Mentioned

AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp.

Aries Shipbroking ( Asia ) Pte Ltd.

) Pte Ltd. Braemar Shipping Services Plc

BRS Group

Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd.

Clarkson PLC

E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd.

Fearnleys AS

Galbraiths Ltd.

Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd.

INTEROCEAN

Lorentzen and Stemoco AS

Maersk Broker KS

Maritime London Ltd.

McQuilling Partners Inc.

Poten and Partners Inc.

Seacore Shipbrokers Ltd.

SHIPLINKS

Simpson Spence Young Ltd.

SPI Marine (UK) Ltd.

agoraships.com- The company offers broking services like dry bulk cargo chartering, coal, iron ore, steels, sugar, biofuels, tanker chartering

ariesasia.com- The company offers shipbroking and related consultancy services to its global client base

braemar.com- The company offers advisory services in shipping investment, delivering creative shipbroking solutions and tailored support for customers around the world

Related Reports:

Dry Bulk Shipping Market- The dry bulk shipping market size is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 3.87% between 2022 and 2027 and the size of the market is forecast to increase by USD 3,304.17 million.

Tank Trucking Market- The tank trucking market is estimated to decline at a CAGR of 7.29% between 2022 and 2027. The size of the market is forecast to increase by USD 97.06 billion.

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Shipbroking Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2022 Historic period 2017-2021 Forecast period 2023-2027 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 2.95% Market growth 2023-2027 USD 244.12 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023(%) 2.8 Regional analysis Europe, APAC, North America, Middle East and Africa, and South America Performing market contribution Europe at 49% Key countries US, Singapore, China, UK, and Norway Competitive landscape Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks Key companies profiled AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp., Aries Shipbroking (Asia) Pte Ltd., Braemar Shipping Services Plc, BRS Group, Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd., Clarkson PLC, E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd., Fearnleys AS, Galbraiths Ltd., Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd., INTEROCEAN, Lorentzen and Stemoco AS, Maersk Broker KS, Maritime London Ltd., McQuilling Partners Inc., Poten and Partners Inc., Seacore Shipbrokers Ltd., SHIPLINKS, Simpson Spence Young Ltd., and SPI Marine (UK) Ltd. Market dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and recovery analysis and future consumer dynamics, Market condition analysis for forecast period Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized.

Key Topics Covered:

1 Executive Summary

1.1 Market overview

Exhibit 01: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Overview



Exhibit 02: Executive Summary  Data Table on Market Overview



Exhibit 03: Executive Summary  Chart on Global Market Characteristics



Exhibit 04: Executive Summary  Chart on Market by Geography



Exhibit 05: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by Application



Exhibit 06: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by End-user



Exhibit 07: Executive Summary  Chart on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 08: Executive Summary  Data Table on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 09: Executive Summary  Chart on Vendor Market Positioning

2 Market Landscape

2.1 Market ecosystem

Exhibit 10: Parent market



Exhibit 11: Market Characteristics

3 Market Sizing

3.1 Market definition

Exhibit 12: Offerings of vendors included in the market definition

3.2 Market segment analysis

Exhibit 13: Market segments

3.3 Market size 2022

3.4 Market outlook: Forecast for 2022-2027

Exhibit 14: Chart on Global - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 15: Data Table on Global - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 16: Chart on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 17: Data Table on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

4 Historic Market Size

4.1 Global shipbroking market 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 18: Historic Market Size  Data Table on Global shipbroking market 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.2 Application Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 19: Historic Market Size  Application Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.3 End-user Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 20: Historic Market Size  End-user Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.4 Geography Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 21: Historic Market Size  Geography Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.5 Country Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 22: Historic Market Size  Country Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

5 Five Forces Analysis

5.1 Five forces summary

Exhibit 23: Five forces analysis - Comparison between 2022 and 2027

5.2 Bargaining power of buyers

Exhibit 24: Chart on Bargaining power of buyers  Impact of key factors 2022 and 2027

5.3 Bargaining power of suppliers

Exhibit 25: Bargaining power of suppliers  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.4 Threat of new entrants

Exhibit 26: Threat of new entrants  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.5 Threat of substitutes

Exhibit 27: Threat of substitutes  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.6 Threat of rivalry

Exhibit 28: Threat of rivalry  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.7 Market condition

Exhibit 29: Chart on Market condition - Five forces 2022 and 2027

6 Market Segmentation by Application

6.1 Market segments

Exhibit 30: Chart on Application - Market share 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 31: Data Table on Application - Market share 2022-2027 (%)

6.2 Comparison by Application

Exhibit 32: Chart on Comparison by Application



Exhibit 33: Data Table on Comparison by Application

6.3 Bulker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 34: Chart on Bulker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 35: Data Table on Bulker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 36: Chart on Bulker - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 37: Data Table on Bulker - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

6.4 Tanker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 38: Chart on Tanker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 39: Data Table on Tanker - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 40: Chart on Tanker - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 41: Data Table on Tanker - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

6.5 Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 42: Chart on Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 43: Data Table on Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 44: Chart on Others - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 45: Data Table on Others - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

6.6 Market opportunity by Application

Exhibit 46: Market opportunity by Application ($ million)

7 Market Segmentation by End-user

7.1 Market segments

Exhibit 47: Chart on End-user - Market share 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 48: Data Table on End-user - Market share 2022-2027 (%)

7.2 Comparison by End-user

Exhibit 49: Chart on Comparison by End-user



Exhibit 50: Data Table on Comparison by End-user

7.3 Oil and gas - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 51: Chart on Oil and gas - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 52: Data Table on Oil and gas - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 53: Chart on Oil and gas - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 54: Data Table on Oil and gas - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.4 Manufacturing - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 55: Chart on Manufacturing - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 56: Data Table on Manufacturing - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 57: Chart on Manufacturing - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 58: Data Table on Manufacturing - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.5 Aerospace and defense - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 59: Chart on Aerospace and defense - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 60: Data Table on Aerospace and defense - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 61: Chart on Aerospace and defense - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 62: Data Table on Aerospace and defense - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.6 Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 63: Chart on Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 64: Data Table on Others - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 65: Chart on Others - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 66: Data Table on Others - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.7 Market opportunity by End-user

Exhibit 67: Market opportunity by End-user ($ million)

8 Customer Landscape

8.1 Customer landscape overview

Exhibit 68: Analysis of price sensitivity, lifecycle, customer purchase basket, adoption rates, and purchase criteria

9 Geographic Landscape

9.1 Geographic segmentation

Exhibit 69: Chart on Market share by geography 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 70: Data Table on Market share by geography 2022-2027 (%)

9.2 Geographic comparison

Exhibit 71: Chart on Geographic comparison



Exhibit 72: Data Table on Geographic comparison

9.3 Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 73: Chart on Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 74: Data Table on Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 75: Chart on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 76: Data Table on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.4 APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 77: Chart on APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 78: Data Table on APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 79: Chart on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 80: Data Table on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.5 North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 81: Chart on North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 82: Data Table on North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 83: Chart on North America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 84: Data Table on North America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.6 Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 85: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 86: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 87: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

and - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 88: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.7 South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 89: Chart on South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 90: Data Table on South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 91: Chart on South America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 92: Data Table on South America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.8 UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 93: Chart on UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 94: Data Table on UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 95: Chart on UK - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 96: Data Table on UK - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.9 Singapore - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 97: Chart on Singapore - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 98: Data Table on Singapore - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 99: Chart on Singapore - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 100: Data Table on Singapore - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.10 Norway - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 101: Chart on Norway - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 102: Data Table on Norway - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 103: Chart on Norway - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 104: Data Table on Norway - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.11 US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 105: Chart on US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 106: Data Table on US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 107: Chart on US - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 108: Data Table on US - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.12 China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 109: Chart on China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 110: Data Table on China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 111: Chart on China - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 112: Data Table on China - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.13 Market opportunity by geography

Exhibit 113: Market opportunity by geography ($ million)

10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

10.1 Market drivers

10.2 Market challenges

10.3 Impact of drivers and challenges

Exhibit 114: Impact of drivers and challenges in 2022 and 2027

10.4 Market trends

11 Vendor Landscape

11.1 Overview

11.2 Vendor landscape

Exhibit 115: Overview on Criticality of inputs and Factors of differentiation

11.3 Landscape disruption

Exhibit 116: Overview on factors of disruption

11.4 Industry risks

Exhibit 117: Impact of key risks on business

12 Vendor Analysis

12.1 Vendors covered

Exhibit 118: Vendors covered

12.2 Market positioning of vendors

Exhibit 119: Matrix on vendor position and classification

12.3 AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp.

Exhibit 120: AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp. - Overview



Exhibit 121: AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp. - Product / Service



Exhibit 122: AGORA SHIPBROKING Corp. - Key offerings

12.4 Aries Shipbroking ( Asia ) Pte Ltd.

) Pte Ltd. Exhibit 123: Aries Shipbroking ( Asia ) Pte Ltd. - Overview

) Pte Ltd. - Overview

Exhibit 124: Aries Shipbroking ( Asia ) Pte Ltd. - Product / Service

) Pte Ltd. - Product / Service

Exhibit 125: Aries Shipbroking ( Asia ) Pte Ltd. - Key offerings

12.5 Braemar Shipping Services Plc

Exhibit 126: Braemar Shipping Services Plc - Overview



Exhibit 127: Braemar Shipping Services Plc - Business segments



Exhibit 128: Braemar Shipping Services Plc - Key offerings



Exhibit 129: Braemar Shipping Services Plc - Segment focus

12.6 BRS Group

Exhibit 130: BRS Group - Overview



Exhibit 131: BRS Group - Product / Service



Exhibit 132: BRS Group - Key offerings

12.7 Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd.

Exhibit 133: Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 134: Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 135: Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd. - Key offerings

12.8 Clarkson PLC

Exhibit 136: Clarkson PLC - Overview



Exhibit 137: Clarkson PLC - Business segments



Exhibit 138: Clarkson PLC - Key offerings



Exhibit 139: Clarkson PLC - Segment focus

12.9 E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd.

Exhibit 140: E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 141: E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 142: E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers Ltd. - Key offerings

12.10 Fearnleys AS

Exhibit 143: Fearnleys AS - Overview



Exhibit 144: Fearnleys AS - Product / Service



Exhibit 145: Fearnleys AS - Key offerings

12.11 Galbraiths Ltd.

Exhibit 146: Galbraiths Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 147: Galbraiths Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 148: Galbraiths Ltd. - Key offerings

12.12 Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd.

Exhibit 149: Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 150: Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 151: Howe Robinson Partners Pte Ltd. - Key offerings

12.13 Lorentzen and Stemoco AS

Exhibit 152: Lorentzen and Stemoco AS - Overview



Exhibit 153: Lorentzen and Stemoco AS - Product / Service



Exhibit 154: Lorentzen and Stemoco AS - Key offerings

12.14 Maersk Broker KS

Exhibit 155: Maersk Broker KS - Overview



Exhibit 156: Maersk Broker KS - Product / Service



Exhibit 157: Maersk Broker KS - Key offerings

12.15 McQuilling Partners Inc.

Exhibit 158: McQuilling Partners Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 159: McQuilling Partners Inc. - Product / Service



Exhibit 160: McQuilling Partners Inc. - Key offerings

12.16 Poten and Partners Inc.

Exhibit 161: Poten and Partners Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 162: Poten and Partners Inc. - Product / Service



Exhibit 163: Poten and Partners Inc. - Key offerings

12.17 Simpson Spence Young Ltd.

Exhibit 164: Simpson Spence Young Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 165: Simpson Spence Young Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 166: Simpson Spence Young Ltd. - Key offerings

13 Appendix

13.1 Scope of the report

13.2 Inclusions and exclusions checklist

Exhibit 167: Inclusions checklist



Exhibit 168: Exclusions checklist

13.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

Exhibit 169: Currency conversion rates for US$

13.4 Research methodology

Exhibit 170: Research methodology



Exhibit 171: Validation techniques employed for market sizing



Exhibit 172: Information sources

13.5 List of abbreviations

Exhibit 173: List of abbreviations

adoption of multichannel marketing strategies: The key vendors in the market are striving to expand their target customer base by investing in marketing and promotional activities. Large specialized consumer service providers aim at strengthening their presence by investing in brand visibility activities, celebrity endorsements, and marketing through channels such as television, radio, the Internet, print media, posters, and direct mails. The competitors also use a targeted advertising approach and launch advertisements that are designed and crafted to promote the services and communicate the brand positioning.

attrition and training: Professional, skilled, and unskilled workforce is required to provide specialized consumer services. However, there is a shortage of skilled and professional workforce to meet the demand. For instance, in security services, a skilled workforce is required when new monitoring devices and security gadgets are developed and adopted. Several vendors provide rigorous training to their employees about the handling of critical tasks while serving specialized consumer services. However, the retention of such a workforce is a major challenge.

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Contact

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

SOURCE Technavio
CHANGSHA, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 10th and 11th, SINOBOOM, a prominent manufacturer of MEWPs (Mobile Elevating Work Platforms) that specializes in researching, manufacturing, selling, and servicing a wide range of access solutions, celebrated its 15th anniversary with a series of events, including a Global Partners Summit themed "Support Global Partners with Dedication and Difference", an Intelligent Manufacturing Park tour, and a Groundbreaking Ceremony for Its Phase II Scissors Factory. This celebration marked a new chapter for the company, emphasizing that globalization is its key strategy and that it is embarking on a rapid acceleration process.

In his welcome speech at the Global Partners Summit, SINOBOOM's Chairman and Founder, Steven Liu, presented a development blueprint for SINOBOOM from multiple perspectives, including future business layout, research and development, supply chain construction, and after-sales service, which will support the company's vision and achieve its mission of bringing a better life for humanity.

"We always position ourselves as a value provider. Together with our global partners, we create value through cooperation," said Dawei He, International Sales Director of SINOBOOM. "To sustain our growth in the international market in 2023, we plan to continue investing overseas across the entire spectrum of the MEWP value chain covering digitalized manufacturing, parts, and service, used machines, localized operation, people, and product development. Furthermore, SINOBOOM is in the process of building more overseas subsidiaries, including manufacturing bases and product development centers."

During the event, SINOBOOM's partners and clients from around the world, visited the SINOBOOM Intelligent Manufacturing Park where they were able to test out SINOBOOM's latest offerings, such as the AB10ERJN, a lightweight and compact articulating boom lift with enhanced agility that is ideal for restricted and sensitive work sites. They also had the chance to experience the AB16EJ Plus, an environmentally friendly and energy-saving articulating boom lift designed to prioritize safety and minimize maintenance. The guests were thoroughly impressed by the intelligence of the production line, the innovative design and exceptional performance of the products.

The park, with a total planning site of about 1.2 million square meters and an investment of 6 billion yuan, is set to become a high-end intelligent manufacturing plant in the MEWP industry. Phase II construction will significantly bolster SINOBOOM's manufacturing capacities, enhancing the modernization of the industrial chain. By building a lighthouse factory, SINOBOOM is set to deliver more value to the industry.

Vera Li

[email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080217/image_5026265_34145505.jpg

SOURCE SINOBOOM
TALLAHASSEE, Fla., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Gallopade International, the Atlanta-based publishing company with over four decades of experience creating standards-aligned, state-specific curricula, is honored to announce its approval for grades K-5, World History, and US History in the Sunshine State.

Gallopade's Social Studies Curriculum, created specifically for Florida, introduces a comprehensive, flexible, and engaging educational experience fully aligned to the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards.

To address Florida's latest Social Studies standards, Gallopade created an all-new platform for educators and students that combines traditional content, multimedia resources, and interactive activities and tools with support for teachers to ensure that students are on track to master the state's standards throughout their elementary and middle school years.

Since 1979, Gallopade has joined forces with educators to cultivate solutions, addressing academic needs in the classroom. The company's extensive catalog consists of over 6500 titles, including children's fiction and non-fiction, and supplemental resources emphasizing Social Studies and Science. During its 44 years in business, the company has become a leader in providing state standards-aligned Social Studies curriculum, and Florida is the sixth state to adopt their program.

Following the announcement, Gallopade's President, Michael Longmeyer, stated, "We are excited and proud to be selected as a partner in education for the state and look forward to providing a best-in-class program for the students and teachers of Florida. Gallopade Curriculum represents the combined work of expert writers, editors, and designers who built this new program from the ground up, specifically for Florida, with complete alignment and full coverage of Florida's Next Generation Sunshine State Standards."

Florida's students can look forward to using their new Gallopade Student Book, an innovative combination of traditional textbook content and reinforcement activities that fully covers the state standards through engaging lessons and entertaining exercises. The company's unique approach gives Florida's educators customizable solutions, with differentiation for all learning styles, to immerse students in a multi-sensory and interactive learning experience. The Gallopade Online platform, "GO!", also provides a solution for remote learning and virtual schools, ensuring all students have access to resources that align with Florida's standards.

Gallopade is focused on creating a student-centered experience where Social Studies comes alive. Longmeyer says, "Our commitment to educators and families starts with giving students the tools necessary to thrive in their academic endeavors as they build their skill sets and boost their confidence. We don't just want students to love Social Studies, but to develop a passion for learning that stays with them throughout their lives."

With the state's approval, Gallopade is already at work, and the publisher will be ready to deliver classroom resources and the digital platform for the 2023-24 school year. You can view samples of Florida's Social Studies resources and learn more about Gallopade and their products at gallopadecurriculum.com/florida.

SOURCE Gallopade International
APPS will integrate Splitit into its processing platform and enable Splitit APIs via its front-end to offer its network of ISO's, ISV's and merchants a seamless, simplified way to adopt card-based installments.

Splitit's white-label platform delivers one-click installments embedded into the merchant's existing checkout flow.

Automotive, Healthcare, Education, and Furniture industries will benefit.

ATLANTA, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Splitit (ASX:SPT, OTCQX: SPTTY ), the only white-label service allowing customers to pay by installments using their existing credit on their payment card, and Atlantic-Pacific Processing Systems NV, Corp. (APPS) , a leading North American payment solutions provider, today announced they have partnered to deliver an integrated card-based installment payments solution. The partnership will create many new buy now pay later (BNPL) options for merchants to access as part of APPS white-label acquiring programs for ISOs, ISVs and Payment Facilitators.

Splitits Installments-as-a-Service (IaaS) platform will be embedded into APPSs suite of white-label booking, boarding tools, APIs and merchant-facing front-end acceptance tools. This will allow merchants to easily add one-click installments to their checkout, as well as provide a simple solution for ISOs, ISVs and Payment Facilitators to offer this service to their customers. APPS provides solutions to merchants of all sizes, including enterprise partners with worldwide names, philanthropic institutions and third-party software providers, as well as ISOs and ISVs that require customized payment processing solutions, designed to meet their needs.

We are delighted to partner with APPS to offer their enterprise clients, ISOs, ISVs and integrated accounting solutions Splitits best-in-class white-label experience, said Nandan Sheth, CEO, Splitit. This partnership demonstrates the strength of Splitits distribution-led strategy as it serves ISVs in the automotive, healthcare, education, and furniture industries.

Splitit will be added to other acquiring front-end checkouts that currently could benefit from the opportunity to have access to BNPL designed to meet the needs of todays ISO, ISV and Payment Facilitation providers.

Splitit is the ideal complementary solution to offer our ISOs, BINs, and ISV Payment Facilitation partners, said Abe Maghaguian, CEO, APPS. This partnership will allow them to maintain their merchant relationships while providing a frictionless BNPL program which any customer may apply to any transaction at check out. Together, we can bring a new BNPL program to market for any ISO or ISV to use with their existing acquiring program, expanding this underserved group of merchants ability to sell their products to customers who may be otherwise burdened by rising costs.

In addition, APPS and Splitit will bring several programs to market:

Splitit will be added into APPSs private branded enterprise and ISV platform which allows quick-to-market, semi-integrated APIs with full VPOS UI, with CNP and EMV terminals, including convenience fee, discounting, custom invoice creator, ERP plugins, email and text invoicing, customer payment portals, merchant funding and billing, and merchant location and sub merchant management.

Splitit will be integrated into APPS QuickBooks SaaS, Basic, Pro, Enterprise and POS integrations, Sage 50 and 100, and many others.

APPS ERP and Accounting Integrations platforms will be augmented with Splitit's Installments-as-a-Service platform.

Maghaguian added: We are honored to welcome Splitit to the APPS family of strategic partners. APPS is a perfect match for Splitits Installments-as-a-Service platform and will empower our Agents, ISOs, ISVs and Payment Facilitators to grow their margins with their clients, an important differentiator for APPS. We look forward to a long and prosperous relationship with Splitit and are excited about adding this important service to our line of merchant processing solutions.

For more information about Splitit's Installments-as-a-Service, visit www.splitit.com .

About APPS

Atlantic-Pacific Processing Systems NV, Corp. ( APPS ) is a full-service acquirer offering secure connectivity for card present transactions and online payment gateways for all e-commerce, mobile and virtual transactions. With more than 15 years in the payments business, APPS has organically grown into a premier leader in our trade through core solutions for service, savings, reporting, technology and security. The company is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada and has offices in Fountain Valley, California and Louisville, Kentucky.

About Splitit

Splitit powers the next generation of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) through its merchant-branded Installments-as-a-Service platform. Splitit is solving the challenges businesses face with legacy BNPL while unlocking BNPL at the point of sale for card networks, issuers and acquirers all through a single network API. Splitit's Installments-as-a-Service platform mitigates issues with legacy BNPL like the declining conversion funnel, clutter at the checkout and a lack of control of the merchant's customer experience while putting the power back in the hands of merchants to nurture and retain customers, drive conversion and increase average order value. Splitit's white-label BNPL is the easiest installment option for merchants to adopt, integrate and operate while delivering an uncluttered, simplified experience embedded into their existing purchase flow. Headquartered in Atlanta, Splitit has an R&D center in Israel and offices in London and Australia. Splitit is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) under ticker code SPT and also trades on the US OTCQX under ticker SPTTY (ADRs) and STTTF (ordinary shares).

Contact Information

US Media Lyndal Newman Splitit [email protected] US Media Michael McMullan Berns Communications Group, on behalf of Splitit [email protected]

SOURCE Splitit USA, Inc.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Stampli, the leading provider of Accounts Payable (AP) Automation Solutions, was named by Forbes as one of America's Best Startup Employers of 2023. This nationwide accolade recognized U.S.-based employers founded between 2013 and 2020 with at least 50 employees based on three criteria: employer reputation, employee satisfaction and growth. Forbes evaluated 2,500 employers before selecting the winners.

"Stampli is honored to make this prestigious list of the best startup employers," said Eyal Feldman, CEO of Stampli. "We've focused on building a team that first and foremost meets our customers' needs, with a particular emphasis on people who have existing accounts payable or ERP experience. Not only does this ensure that we best support our customers AP needs, it also creates a unique culture. And we're delighted to see this culture recognized by Forbes."

Forbes said the America's Best Startup Employers list highlights the importance of cultivating a positive work environment and a supportive company culture, particularly in the uncertain world of startup businesses. By prioritizing employee satisfaction and investing in sustainable growth, the companies on the list distinguished themselves as leaders in their respective industries.

Combined with an excellent culture and vibrant locations in both downtown Mountain View and downtown Nashville, Stampli also won 12 Comparably awards in 2022, including; Best Company Outlook, Best Company Work-Life Balance, Best Company Happiness, Best Company Perks & Benefits, Best Company Compensation.

Customers' love for the product is the core of Stampli's success, contributing to G2 Crowd naming Stampli a "Leader in AP Automation"' for 16 consecutive quarters.

About Stampli

Founded in 2015, Stampli is for Accounts Payable teams that want the efficiency of automation, but don't want to rework their ERP or change their existing AP processes. Unlike other solutions, Stampli provides full support for the full range of native functionality for more than 70 ERPs  enabling Stampli to deploy in a matter of days, not months, with no disruption to your business.

Stampli brings all AP-related communication, documentation, and workflows into one place for complete visibility and control. It's simple for users to learn and even simpler to use, especially with Billy the Bot automating nearly all capture, coding, routing, fraud detection, and other manual tasks. For even greater efficiency, Stampli's core AP solution is complemented by a suite of integrated products that include Direct Pay, Credit Cards, Advanced Vendor Management, and others. It reduces the risk of errors, fraud, and compliance issues while improving vendor relationships and making AP processes much more efficient.

For more information, visit www.stampli.com .

SOURCE Stampli
CANNES, France, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- IHG Hotels & Resorts collaborated with the 76th Cannes Film Festival to celebrate the return of the world-renowned Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel  part of IHG's luxury and lifestyle portfolio. Over the last few days, Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel hosted multiple events to celebrate the hotel's return in grand style, after being closed for two years for extensive refurbishment.

Guests at Carlton Cannes, A Regent Hotel during Festival de Cannes. Divia Thani, Janie Mackie, and Tom Rowntree at Carlton Cannes, A Regent Hotel during Festival de Cannes.

Guests included Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones, Helen Mirren, Fan BingBing, Uma Thurman, Mads Mikkelsen, Naomi Campbell, Brie Larson, to name a few. The following evening, saw The Official Launch Party of Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel, which also welcomed notable attendees including John C. Reilly, Twiggy, Maxime Bouttier, Andrew Scott, and Freddy Carter.

The Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel has long been the setting for stars of film and screen, making the legendary property a natural choice to host the Cannes Film Festival's Official Opening Dinner following the highly anticipated premiere of Jeanne du Barry.

On Wednesday night the exterior of the Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel was flooded with light and music in a show entitled 'Follow The Sun,' choreographed by famed artistic director Lionel Hun in partnership with creative teams from Image and Auditoire. The six-minute performance illuminated the legendary facade of the Carlton Cannes depicting the evolution of the sun throughout the day, from morning through to dusk.

The light show coincided with The Official Launch Party of Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel, where over 300 guests attended a cocktail party and gala dinner to celebrate the hotel's grand reopening. At the property's iconic Beach Club, VIPs enjoyed an evening of wonder set against the backdrop of the historic property and stunning views of the Cannes Bay as the hotels historic facade came to light with the dazzling display of light and sound.

Carlton Cannes, a Regent Hotel is the first new Regent destination in Europe, offering its visionary experiential and design signatures, and joins the brand's Asia flagship, Regent Hong Kong. Together, they mark a new era of Regent along with Phu Quoc, Shanghai and Chongqing, as well as three additional destinations to follow in 2023, including Regent Bali Canggu, Regent Shanghai on the Bund and Regent Santa Monica Beach, the first Americas property for the reimagined brand.

For all images, click here.

Contact - The Brandman Agency, [email protected]

SOURCE Carlton Cannes, A Regent Hotel
Unprecedented Demand Creates Consumer Frenzy for Beloved Botanical Non-Alcoholic Spirit as well as Interest from Global Spirits Powerhouse

SEATTLE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pathfinder Hemp and Root  the fermented and distilled non-alcoholic amaro turning the bar world on its end, is pleased to announce strategic investment from Stoli Group, a world class producer, manager, and distributor of global spirits and wines. The Pathfinder has developed a loyal following amongst mindful imbibers, cocktail enthusiasts, bartenders, and baristas alike, and this financial injection from the global premium spirits business' first foray into the zero-proof space occurs on the heels of The Pathfinder's 10,000+ waitlist and production of a limited-edition collector's bottle in order to meet consumer demand (available online here, $39.99).

The Pathfinder

"We are excited about investing in The Pathfinder Hemp and Root and the diversification it brings to the Stoli Group portfolio," commented Damian McKinney, Global CEO, Stoli Group. "The Pathfinder is a true trailblazer in the zero-proof category and as this massive shift in the culture of socialization continues, The Pathfinder and Stoli Group combo creates limitless possibilities."

Lauded as the new Pappy Van Winkle by The New York Post, The Pathfinder raises the standards of flavor and quality for the non-alcoholic category and was the number one selling product this year in many non-alcoholic retailers across the country, including Met Market in Seattle, Wellspent in Portland, as well as New York's Amor Y Amargo, Boisson, Spirited Away and Minus Moonshine, plus Atlanta's The Zero Proof and The Zero Co., Los Angeles' New Bar, Pittsburgh's Open Road, and Virginia's Point 5, who, overwhelmed with interest, met demand by limiting purchases to one bottle per customer per day.

"We have won over a lot of skeptics who didn't believe that non-alcoholic options would find a place in the beverage world," noted Kraig Rovensky, Global Ambassador for The Pathfinder Hemp and Root. "We're blazing a trail for those who want to try something different  and the demand we've seen in the past few months proves that zero-proof spirits are here to stay."

In drinks, The Pathfinder behaves like a spirit and can be served in coffee, sipped neat, served on the rocks, or used as the base of a cocktail. In other words, it fits right into the back bar of your favorite bar or cafe as well as it does your home bar cart. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is available now ($39.99/700 ml) for purchase online here.

"The Pathfinder is a pioneering non-alcoholic spirit made from fermented and distilled hemp resulting in a highly unique bitter, sweet, and complex elixir that is remarkable and highly versatile," says Guy Escolme co-founder. "In a world of imitation, The Pathfinder is a true disruptor, endorsed by trailblazing bars and world-class bartenders who prioritize innovation over imitation. The Pathfinder and Stoli Group embarking on this new journey together is truly a new frontier!"

ABOUT THE PATHFINDER HEMP and ROOT

The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is a non-alcoholic spirit made from fermented and distilled hemp to deliver the intense flavor and aromatic characteristics of a spirit.

The Pathfinder is steeped in the rich history of the American West with a liquid that is just as wild as the landscape and the people that inhabited it. Inspired by the age of apothecaries and the homemade remedies often employed by pioneers' homesteaders and snake oil salesmen alike, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root equally hearkens to a bygone age as it raises the standard of flavor and quality in non-alcoholic spirits with an eye to the future.

Inspired by the golden age of cannabis and flourishing in top cocktail bars and coffee shops, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root raises the standard of flavor and quality in non-alcoholic spirits with an eye to changing the future of socialization. In drinks, The Pathfinder behaves like a spirit and can be served in coffee, sipped neat, served on the rocks, or used as the base of a cocktail. In other words, it fits right into the back bar of your favorite bar or cafe as well as it does your home bar cart. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is now available for purchase online here.

ABV : Zero Proof Spirit

: Zero Proof Spirit Bottle Size : 700 ml

: 700 ml Flavor Profile/Tasting Notes : Bittersweet and gently tart, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root features foremost the distinctive flavor of hemp, balanced out with many of the common herbs, barks, and roots common in traditional amaros and gins. Root cellar aromas highlighted by dried herbs, gentle warming spice, bittersweet citrus, and pine, with a bracing finish.

Made from fermented and distilled hemp plus a slew of other wild ingredients such as Douglas fir, sage, juniper, saffron, wormwood and angelica root, the unmatched herbaceous flavor, versatility, and good vibes can be enjoyed now.

For more information, please visit www.drinkthepathfinder.com, for inspiration on all things alchemy check out @drinkthepathfinder, and for press inquiries, please reach out: [email protected]

ABOUT THE PATHFINDER HEMP and ROOT FOUNDERS:

The Pathfinder was born out of a simple question: what will the back bar of the future look like? Three proven trailblazers in their respective fields set out to answer that question with a spirit that only they could dream up. Guy Escolme (expert brand builder with 22 years of experience at Diageo), Chris Abbott (founder of Mr. Moxey's, a cannabis industry pioneer), and Steven Grasse (founder of Quaker City Mercantile, creator of Hendrick's Gin, Sailor Jerry Rum, and others) combined their expertise to create an iconic cannabis spirit rooted in the "golden era" of cannabis in the American West. Fermented and distilled hemp make up the base, while a blend of botanicals including wormwood, Angelica root, and Douglas fir combine with natural terpenes for a uniquely western flavor on the nose and palate. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root has the intense flavor and aromatic characteristics of a spirit.

About Stoli Group

Stoli Group was established in 2013 and is responsible for the production, management, and distribution of a global spirits and wines portfolio. Mainly known for the Stoli Vodka brand, Stoli Group has expanded to appeal to luxury on-premise and more sophisticated global consumers. Signature brands are: Stoli Vodka, elitVodka, Bayou Rum, Kentucky Owl, Villa One, Gator Bite Rum Liqueurs, Cenote Tequila, Tulchan Gin, Se Busca Mezcal and Stoli Group's wine division, Tenute del Mondo. With a presence across a network of more than 176 markets, Stoli Group works with a passionate team of 200 distributors around the world. Headquartered in Luxembourg, Stoli has production facilities in Argentina, Latvia, Spain, and the United States, some of which are steeped in history dating back to the early part of the last century. For more information, visit stoli-group.com .

Drink Responsibly.

CONTACT:

[email protected]

Maureen Landers

[email protected]

SOURCE Stoli Group
YORKSHIRE, England, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sungrow, the global leading inverter and energy storage system solution supplier, announced that it signed a contract to supply its liquid cooled energy storage system (ESS), the PowerTitan, to a 150MW/300MWh project in Ferrybridge, West Yorkshire, the United Kingdom. The project is expected to increase total grid stability and bolster the country's energy transition.

Contract Signing Ceremony

The 150MW/300MWh project, located at the redundant Ferrybridge coal power station, is the latest in SSE Solar and Battery's growing pipeline of projects located across the UK. The project, with construction due to start in May 2023, has the grid connection confirmed for June 2024 and is set to be operational by October 2024.

Sungrow will provide the project with its liquid cooled ESS PowerTitan, which is an embodiment of Sungrow's advanced technologies and years-long experience in the fields of power electronics, electrochemistry, and grid forming. Tailored for utility-scale energy storage demand, Sungrow's PowerTitan adopts advanced liquid-cooled thermal management and AI monitoring of the battery cells so as to safeguard the system's safety and ensure a superior lifespan. Meanwhile, the DC-DC controller can charge and discharge battery racks individually; thus, increasing the overall system performance.

The PowerTitan enables the project a favorable return on investment through peak shaving -- charging the batteries when electricity rates are at their lowest and discharging to avoid paying peak prices during the expensive times of the day.

Richard Cave-Bigley, SSE Solar and Battery Director, said: "To be constructing this project on the site of a previous coal-powered station really shows the strides we are making in developing clean low-carbon energy and it's the latest in what is an extremely healthy project pipeline for our business."

Lewis Li, President of Sungrow Europe, said: "Sungrow is proud to supply our liquid cooled energy storage system, the PowerTitan, to this landmark project. We are excited for what is to come with our partnership with SSE as we work towards maximizing the profitability for the project with cutting-edge products and services."

About Sungrow

Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd. ("Sungrow") is the world's most bankable inverter brand with over 340 GW installed worldwide as of December 2022. Founded in 1997 by University Professor Cao Renxian, Sungrow is a leader in the research and development of solar inverters with the largest dedicated R&D team in the industry and a broad product portfolio offering PV inverter solutions and energy storage systems for utility-scale, commercial & industrial, and residential applications, as well as internationally recognised floating PV plant solutions, NEV driving solutions, EV charging solutions and renewable hydrogen production systems. With a strong 26-year track record in the PV space, Sungrow products power over 150 countries worldwide. Learn more about Sungrow by visiting: www.sungrowpower.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2079963/Contract_Signing_Ceremony.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1344575/Logo.jpg

SOURCE Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd
AUSTIN, Texas, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Texas Blockchain Council announces that today, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 1666. The bill requires many digital asset service providers operating in Texas to segregate and separately account for customer funds. It also requires the filing of reports, a component of which is auditor-attested 'proof-of-reserves'. The companion bills HB1666 and SB770 were sponsored by Texas Representative Giovanni Capriglione and Texas Senator Tan Parker. The enrolled bill will now go to Governor Abbott's desk for signature.

The new law will require many digital asset service providers serving customers in Texas to segregate and separately account for customer funds. It also requires greater transparency to customersat least quarterlyas well as the filing of an annual report with the Texas Department of Banking containing a third party attested "proof-of-reserves" report.

The Texas Blockchain Council, a trade association working to make Texas a leader in digital assets, assembled a group of industry experts to provide input and feedback on HB 1666. The bills' authors Representative Capriglione and Senator Parker have worked tirelessly to ensure the creation of sound policy that increases consumer protections and enables digital asset platforms to operate in a climate of increased confidence and transparency. "We are grateful for the many hours of work contributed by subject matter experts such as Gavin Fearey of Winstead, Nic Carter of Castle Island Ventures, Tim Savage of Weaver, Noah Buxton, Clayton Lowery, and Jeremy Nau of the Network Firm and significant contributions from various digital asset exchanges," said Lee Bratcher, the TBC President. Bratcher added, "We greatly appreciate the intent of this bill and the author's commitment to delivering meaningful consumer protections. We look forward to working closely with the Texas Department of Banking on responsible implementation."

Gavin Fearey, a member of Texas Blockchain Council's working group, said:

"Segregating and separately accounting for customer funds are foundational principles in custody and trading of many types of assets in the financial industry. Recent events, such as FTX, remind us how important these principles are, particularly whenfor regulatory reasons, investor protection, or otherwisethere is not self-custody of bitcoin and other digital assets. It's been a pleasure to serve with Lee Bratcher, my colleague Nick Curley and the team on TBC's working group providing input and feedback on HB 1666."

Nic Carter, another contributor to the work group, said, "This landmark bill is a ringing endorsement of industry-derived best practices around PoR. Texas is setting a strong legislative precedent by being the first state to ratify the use of PoR for exchange oversight."

To learn more about Texas emerging as a clear leader in the digital asset space, be sure to attend the Texas Blockchain Summit November 15th  17th in Fort Worth, Texas.

For press inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Texas Blockchain Council
Rohit Manocha, Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder of TriArtisan Capital Advisors, to serve as interim executive as TGI Fridays enters a new phase of revitalization

DALLAS, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- TGI Fridays announced today that Ray Blanchette has stepped down as Chief Executive Officer. Rohit Manocha, Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder of TriArtisan Capital Advisors, will be assuming Mr. Blanchette's responsibilities in the interim. The TGI Fridays executive team will report directly to Mr. Manocha.

Mr. Blanchette led TGI Fridays for the past five years managing the company through a successful turnaround that included both national and global growth as well as through the turbulent impacts around the COVID-19 pandemic. TriArtisan is the lead investor in TGI Fridays with extensive holdings in the restaurant and hospitality industry, including P.F. Chang's, Hooters, and Creating Culinary Communities (C3).

"We are deeply grateful for Mr. Blanchette's contributions over the last several years. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors, and we look forward to building on the legacy he has left to take Fridays to new heights," said Mr. Manocha. "TGI Fridays is beginning a new phase of revitalization, innovation, and value creation. We are turning our focus towards growth and creating relevance with today's consumers because we believe there is significant upside potential. Under Ray's leadership, the brand's performance has improved, and he built a strong operating culture that will carry us forward as we pursue new territories. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of all of our team members, Fridays is well positioned for success as we look toward the future."

While Mr. Manocha serves as interim, a global executive search firm, has been retained to search for a new Chief Executive Officer, with both internal and external candidates under consideration.

TGI Fridays, the world's first casual bar and grill, operates 700 restaurants in 52 countries. The company saw total sales projected at $1.6B in 2022 with same US sales growing at +8% compared to 2019 (pre-pandemic). The company announced its most significant deal in its history in September of last year, including 75 new restaurants throughout South and Southeast Asia over the next 10 years representing over $500MM in revenue.

About TGI Fridays 

As the world's first casual bar and grill, TGI Fridays is the birthplace of fun, freedom, and celebration, bringing people together to socialize and experience "That Fridays Feeling"  a sense of celebrating the fun in everyday moments, big and small. For over 50 years, Fridays has been lifting spirits around the world with nearly 700 restaurants in 52 countries, serving high-quality, classic American food and iconic drinks backed by authentic and genuine service. Visit www.Fridays.com for more information and join Fridays Rewards. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

About TriArtisan Capital Advisors

TriArtisan Capital Advisors is an established, New York-based private equity investing firm. TriArtisan's flexible institutional capital allows it to invest in companies requiring a broad range of investment needs. In each of its investments, TriArtisan partners with high quality management teams and founders to support them in achieving returns for its institutional and management partners. For more information, please visit the firm's website at www.triartisan.com.

PR Contact

Rebecca Epps

Head of Corporate Media

t: 212-994-7570 | m: 925-451-3126

[email protected]



RF|Binder Partners

950 3rd Avenue

New York, NY 10022

www.rfbinder.com

SOURCE TGI Fridays
HOUSTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The CODE Group has launched CODE Staffing, a new IT contingent staffing agency with a novel model that offers its employees benefits to rival those of Silicon Valley tech firms and a culture that brings a team of business experts to help client companies succeed.

The Houston-based company was started to address the impersonal relationship between traditional contingent contract employees and the companies they work for. Such employees are often treated differently than the client's own employees and as a result, are reluctant to commit to long-term relationships, and suffer from job dissatisfaction. CODE Staffing's model  in which workers are hired and treated as valued employees - is designed to change that for both its employees and clients.

Rather than treating contingent IT staffers as contract employees, CODE Staffing provides a fulfilling work experience for its employees to encourage them to stay with the company and minimize churn for its clients.

"We're doing things differently. We offer killer benefits  like those offered by Microsoft and Google. That includes 100% healthcare, vision and dental for employees and their families, retirement benefits with a 401(k) match, and 50% of our profits go back to our people so they have a stake in our success," said CODE Staffing Chief Operating Officer Yair Alan Griver, a serial entrepreneur who worked for nearly 10 years as a manager for numerous Microsoft business products. "We believe that happy employees lead to happy clients."

On the client side, CODE Staffing focuses on partnering with quality clients, embracing the intricacies of client businesses as a trusted partner. "Our rigorous focus on training and regular meetings with client's executives ensure that we understand their technological road map and guarantees that we provide the best people for their needs," Griver said.

Griver noted that traditional contingent staffing companies are generally not responsible for outcomes, only for finding workers and hoping that they are good enough that the client wants to keep them. They also typically only work with the contractors when they are hired, when they are let go, and when they send a 1099 tax form. Because of that, many staffing companies have obtained a bad reputation for not caring about their people. If a project ends, the contractors are laid off, only to be rehired when another project comes along.

CODE Staffing builds strong, long-lasting partnerships by working closely with clients to thoroughly understand the intricacies of their business and to better grasp their goals and objectives. CODE Staffing leaders become a trusted and integral part of their clients' operations to support their growth and success.

"Our clients want to be able to focus on their business, not on managing multiple vendors for staffing," Griver said. "Our executive team includes technologists who have owned long-standing, successful businesses, have grown technology teams to thousands of people, and have learned that the only way to succeed is to invest in our own employees."

Because CODE Staffing is part of The CODE Group, training opportunities are not only offered to CODE Staffing employees, but to clients' own workers as well. "This allows clients to concentrate on their business operations while we take charge of training everyone in the latest technology," Griver said.

CODE Staffing's goal is to make the employee experience so pleasant that attrition stays low and it is easy to attract and retain top talent. "We are looking for a long-term relationship with our clients and we hope that eventually we'll force other staffing companies to provide similar types of benefits," Griver said.

CODE Staffing is the IT contingent staffing arm of The CODE Group, which was established in 1993 by Markus Egger and has grown its service offerings from publishing and distributing one of the longest-running, global software magazines (CODE Magazine), to completing multi-million-dollar projects with its CODE Consulting and CODE Training. CODE Staffing provides professional software developers at a client's workplace or remotely to augment their software development team and help staff projects of any size. Learn more at www.codestaffing.com.

CONTACT:

Cynthia Flash

425-603-9520

[email protected]

SOURCE CODE Staffing
CHONGQING, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from iChongqing - Chongqing - The Fifth Western China International Fair for Investment and Trade (WCIFIT) Opening Ceremony and the 2023 CCI-ILSTC International Cooperation Forum commenced in Southwest China's Chongqing on May 18.

The ten gigabit Ethernet switching chip developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation was unveiled at the Fifth WCIFIT, on May 18, Chongqing. (Chongqing Release/Zou Le)

With 13 exhibition halls covering 180,000 square meters this year, the largest in history, the WCIFIT has set the annual theme of "Inland China Opening-up & Innovative Development Driven by Digital Technology," featuring two major thematic exhibition areas focused on investment, trade and industry promotion.

Malaysia is the guest country of honor, and China's Sichuan and Gansu provinces are the guest provinces.

During the WCIFIT, Chongqing signed 84 projects worth a contract investment of 285.415 billion yuan (about USD 40.69 billion). The investment projects of centrally-managed enterprises include the joint construction of advanced manufacturing clusters, digital economy industries in western China and energy development and utilization.

"To foster digital connectivity and streamline customs procedures, Singapore's and China's customs authorities have linked up the National Single Window systems to enable the electronic exchange of trade documents and data," said Tan Kiat How, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of National Development & Ministry of Communications and Information, Singapore.

The 2023 CCI-ILSTC International Cooperation Forum saw guests from Singapore, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam and other countries discussing how to build the linkage between western China and the world through the New International Land-sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC).

Vilaykham Phosalath, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport of Laos, stated that the China-Laos Railway plays a significant role in goods transportation between the two countries. It also provides great convenience to ASEAN countries for cross-border transport, such as Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar and Singapore.

At the forum, the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing released the 2022 Development Index of the ILSTC, highlighting three aspects: development scale, quality and competitiveness.

Data shows that the 2022 Development Index of the ILSTC was 135.2, increased by 10.3% and 32.5% compared to 2021 and 2020 respectively.

During the four-day conference, more than 900 enterprises and 186 guests from 40 countries and regions as well as 29 provincial regions and two special administrative regions in China gathered in Chongqing to participate in a series of events, including the "Invest in China" Western Region Special Promotion Event and the 2023 Forbes China Urban Consumption Development Forum.

For more, please visit: https://www.ichongqing.info/special/the-5th-wcifit/

SOURCE iChongqing
POTTSDALE, Pa., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Prominently featured in The Inner Circle, Wael Hassanein is acknowledged as a Top Pinnacle Professional for his contributions to the Field of Anesthesia.

Wael Hassanein, MD

Dr. Hassanein began his medical scholarship at Ein Champs University, Faculty of Medicine in Cairo, Egypt where he received an MBBS. He then completed a residency and fellowship in cardiac anesthesia at Hahnemann Medical Center (Allegheny University). Board-certified as an anesthesiologist, Dr. Hassanein currently serves as the Chief of Anesthesia, overseeing all patient care and notes that he has an extensive experience in cardiac anesthesia. Known for working with each patient as an individual, the doctor believes this practice helps him to provide the best outcomes for his patients.

Dr. Hassanein asserts that anesthesia is the practice of taking patients through a difficult time of having surgery and ensuring their safety by customizing a plan for each patient based on their health issues and kind of surgery. He is responsible for ensuring the safety of patients who are about to undergo surgery. A leader in his field, Dr. Hassanein has had advanced training in cardiac anesthesia, which involves being unconscious (asleep or sedated) and pain-free both during and after surgery, which may or may not involve regional anesthesia.

Dedicated to providing the latest advancements in his field, Dr. Hassanein is a member of the American Medical Association; Pennsylvania Society of Anesthesiologists; and American Society of Anesthesia. His mentor is Willi Hardy, Jr., MD and he credits Dr. Hardy with his keen eye to detail for each of his patients. Outside of his professional pursuits, Dr. Hassanein volunteered his time with local high schools and middle schools, administering vaccines to the students during the COVID Pandemic.

Contact:

Katherine Green

516-825-5634

[email protected]

SOURCE The Inner Circle
Grant recipients will receive mentorship resources as well as capital to uplevel their businesses through annual program

CHICAGO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Famous Amos, in partnership with the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), began accepting applications to the Famous Amos' Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative. The national grant competition, now in its third year, awards three Black, early-stage business owners with $50,000 in unrestricted business capital along with business and mentorship resources provided by NBCC.

"The Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative is a way for Famous Amos to honor the legacy of Wally Amos, a passionate entrepreneur whose impact has led to so many joyful cookie moments," said Rachna Patel, Vice President of Marketing for Famous Amos. "We are thrilled to launch the third year of this special grant program for Black business owners as it means we get to continue carrying out our mission of advancing racial equity and supporting Black economic success."

Eligible applicants must be business owners at least 21 years old, at minimum 90% Black-owned, in business for five years or less, and headquartered in the United States. To be considered, applicants must submit a 90-120 second elevator pitch video that explains why they should receive the $50,000 grant for their business. The process of creating the pitch video is meant to mimic and prepare applicants on pitching their businesses for additional capital investments.

Black businesses continue to face financial challenges in their efforts to sustain profits and success. According to a 2022 Meta survey, the COVID-19 pandemic greatly impacted small businesses due to their vulnerability to economic shocks. In turn, 51% of Black-owned small businesses experienced record low sales in 2022. A similar report by Black Enterprise found that venture capital funding for Black businesses fell 45% after hitting record highs in 2020.

"We are proud to continue our partnership with Famous Amos to advance our necessary mission of empowering Black businesses and communities," said Charles H. DeBow, III, CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce. "The Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative is a philanthropic effort that provides a solution to a persistent need in the Black founders community: financial and mentorship support to ensure there is continued business growth. Closing the knowledge gap that many Black owners find themselves facing is critical to closing the significant wealth gap that Black communities have experienced for many generations."

A total of $300,000 has been given to six Ingredients for Success grant recipients from the previous two cycles. Previous grant recipients and Ingredients for Success alumni have included a legal services business, a startup fresh grocery, a luxury eyewear company, among more. The program continues to be highly competitive with thousands of applications submitted each year.

Hopeful entrepreneurs have until 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, June 25, 2023 to submit their applications and elevator pitch videos into the online portal for Cycle 3 of Famous Amos' Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative.

For more information and to apply, please visit FamousAmosIngredientsforSuccess.info.

About Famous Amos

Famous Amos has been a beloved brand since 1975, known for its classic chocolate chip cookies. Founded by Wally Amos, an African American entrepreneur, Famous Amos grew from a bakery in Hollywood, California into a company serving millions of customers across the United States. In 2020, Famous Amos began a major philanthropic effort, the Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative. The initiative is a part of the brand's efforts to support racial equity, give to social causes, deepen diverse vendor partnerships, and concentrate on an inclusive and diverse work culture.

About Ferrero

Ferrero began its journey in the small town of Alba in Piedmont, Italy, in 1946. Today, it is one of the world's largest sweet-packaged food companies, with over 35 iconic brands sold in more than 170 countries. The Ferrero Group brings joy to people around the world with much-loved treats and snacks including Nutella, Kinder, Tic Tac, and Ferrero Rocher. More than 38,000 employees are passionate about helping people celebrate life's special moments. The Ferrero Group's family culture, now in its third generation, is based on dedication to quality and excellence, heritage and a commitment to the planet and communities in which we operate.

Ferrero entered the North American market in 1969 and has grown to more than 5,100 employees in 15 plants and warehouses, and eight offices in North America across the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. It has expanded its presence and portfolio with the addition of iconic brands such as Butterfinger, CRUNCH, Keebler, Famous Amos, Mother's Cookies, and other distinctive cookie and chocolate brands. Follow @FerreroNACorp on Twitter and Instagram. www.ferreronorthamerica.com.

About the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC):

The NBCC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonsectarian organization dedicated to the economic empowerment of African American communities. 140 affiliated chapters are locally based throughout the nation as well as international affiliate chapters based in North, Central, and South America, the Caribbean, Africa and businesses as well as individuals who may have chosen to be direct members with the national office. The National Black Chamber of Commerce is dedicated to economically empowering and sustaining African American communities through entrepreneurship and capitalistic activity within the United States.

SOURCE Famous Amos
Experience the Premier Event Advancing Tech-Enabled Agriculture

DES MOINES, Iowa, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tech Hub LIVE is thrilled to announce its highly anticipated event, bringing together tech-enabled, data-driven agriculture practitioners for a groundbreaking conference. Scheduled to take place July 24-26 in Des Moines, Iowa, this must-attend event promises a unique experience that combines knowledge sharing, learning opportunities, and valuable networking.

Tech Hub LIVE Conference and Expo, powered by CropLife Media Group, the nation's leading voice for the ag retail industry, attracts the largest gathering of ag retailers, distributors, consultants, manufacturers, and other stakeholders in the ag supply chain, all committed to leveraging the latest tech innovations for practical business advantages on the farm.

The event kicks off with an exciting 1990s-themed welcome party , sponsored by the Greater Des Moines Partnership, on July 24 at 5:30 p.m. at Ricochet, just a short walk from the Iowa Events Center. This lively event sets the stage for attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and speakers to connect, enjoy themselves, and celebrate the start of an unforgettable event.

Central to the unique event experience is the exhibit hall , where leading companies showcase their latest products and services. Attendees can explore cutting-edge tools and technologies to revolutionize their businesses. Whether searching for solutions to enhance farm data management or insights into autonomous equipment and robotics, the exhibit hall caters to every attendee's needs.

Tech Hub LIVE continues to enhance its offerings by developing new elements with Fireside Tech Chats showcasing top retailers and industry leaders sharing experiences, case studies, and best practices. Additionally, Roundtables Discussion Groups will be available each morning providing the opportunity for more focused conversations with industry experts and innovators. There's also more dedicated time available to explore companies in the exhibit hall and listen in on 10-minute Tech Talks to learn more about the technologies and solutions developed to improve operations.

The conference sessions themselves span a wide range of subjects, including optimizing digital strategies, the Ag Retailers' playbook, drones, scouting and imagery tools and techniques, innovations in application equipment, attracting and retaining top talent, farm data management best practices, and advancements in autonomous equipment and robotics. Additionally, there will be sessions dedicated to ag tech risk and reward, achieving clean data collection in the field, soil sampling insights, and actionable takeaways from the 2023 Purdue/CropLife Retail Precision Adoption Survey.

Tech Hub LIVE has announced a groundbreaking addition for 2023, the inaugural meeting for Women in Ag Tech on July 24 from 2:00 to 5:00 PM. This crucial initiative fosters connections, engagement, and community building among women in the ag tech industry.

An essential gathering for the ag retail supply chain, Tech Hub LIVE attracts advanced in-field practitioners, trusted advisers, and precision experts, making it the ultimate destination for professionals seeking to embrace technology in helping them better serve their grower customers.

To learn more and register for Tech Hub LIVE, visit TechHubLIVE.com . Take advantage of Early Bird discounts by registering before May 19.

About Meister Media Worldwide

Meister Media Worldwide is the leading global media company serving specialty agricultural markets around the globe. With a vision of cultivating a sustainable world through the power of knowledge, Meister U.S. and international brands advance these markets with print and digital media, events, data intelligence products and custom business solutions. Meister Media Worldwide is based in Willoughby, Ohio, USA, with presences in Beijing, China, and Mumbai, India. To learn more, visit www.meistermedia.com.

About CropLife Media Group

Part of the Agribusiness Group at Meister Media Worldwide, CropLife Media Group is the nation's brand leader in ag retail communication. CropLife Media Group offers unmatched market reach through relevant, impactful brand extensions focused exclusively on the input distribution channel, including CropLife eNews and CropLife Webinars. Other brands in the Agribusiness Group include CropLife IRON, PrecisionTech Ag Professional, Global Ag Tech Initiative and AgriBusiness Global.

Contact:

Amy Reddington | Show Director

Tech Hub LIVE Conference and Expo

Phone: 781-858-9970

Email: aredd[email protected]

SOURCE CropLife Media Group
Utah's deal volume continues to hinge on technology and software, while ecommerce and medical deals took a step backward from last year

SALT LAKE CITY, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Utah's financial market transaction values took a step back after two record-breaking years, but total deal volume remained high, according to MountainWest Capital Network 's (MWCN) annual Deal FlowReport, released today. MWCN's Deal Flow Report is Utah's only in-depth publication that tracks publicly disclosed equity-related financial transactions throughout the stateincluding mergers and acquisitions, public deals and private placements.

Utah businesses continued to see a strong market for transactions in 2022, in spite of growing economic uncertainty across the country. MWCN tracked 423 total publicly disclosed deals, in line with 435 in 2021 and demonstrating a consistent recovery from COVID-related challenges which contributed to only 289 in 2020.

Total deal value in 2022 was approximately $12 billion, a significant decrease from 2021, when deal value reached an all-time record of approximately $31.2 billion. MWCN pointed to a lack of public transactions and large leverage buyout deals with disclosed values in 2022 as the driver behind this change.

"Our report highlights a great deal of resiliency in volume of deals during what was otherwise a challenging year," said Kady Reese, MWCN's Deal Flow chair and M&A partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP. "After the total publicly disclosed value dropped from a historic year in 2021 for deals  both locally and nationwide  we are encouraged to see a continuing drumbeat of both mergers and acquisitions and private placement deal activity. Utah continues to rank among the top states for business and employment, and this resiliency is the driving force that keeps us there."

The US News & World Report recently named Utah the "top state in the nation," based on finishing in the top 15 in six of its eight categories, including No. 1 in employment, No. 2 in growth and No. 7 in business environment. WalletHub ranked Utah as the best state in which to start a business. Several cities in the Beehive State are also consistently mentioned among top places in the country for employment, wages and high-tech GDP growth, including Salt LakeCity, Ogden-Clearfield and St. George. Tech and software development continue to drive the state's investments, with approximately 52% of the total deals coming from enterprise/SaaS organizations, up from approximately 41% in 2021. Consumer and retail/e-commerce dropped to approximately 17% from a high of approximately 31% the previous year. Healthcare likewise dropped to approximately 10% in 2022 from approximately 14% in 2021.

Now in its 28th year, the Deal Flow Report is a publication of the MWCN, a nonprofit organization, created to foster a dynamic flow of information about capital formation and distribution. It does not report on transactions that were either confidential or otherwise not publicly disclosed and some transactions were not included due to lack of sufficient publicly disclosed information.

The MWCN Deal Flow Report is representative of the publicly disclosed transactions available to researchers at the time of publication. View the full 2022 report at https://www.mwcn.org/deal-flow/.

About MountainWest Capital Network

MountainWest Capital Network is Utah's first and largest business networking organization devoted to supporting entrepreneurial success and dedicated to the flow of financial, entrepreneurial and intellectual capital. Learn more at www.mwcn.org.

SOURCE MountainWest Capital Network
Workers Demand Fair Treatment, File ULPs and OSHA Complaint

CHULA VISTA, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Transdev workers represented by Teamsters Local 683 who provide transportation services for the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) are on an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike.

Local 683 has filed three ULP charges and an OSHA complaint against Transdev for bargaining in bad faith, threatening workers for honoring a picket line, unilaterally changing drivers' schedules, and failing to provide workers with access to sanitary bathrooms and secure rest areas for their legally mandated breaks.

"These bus drivers are the backbone of the San Diego public transit system, and it is abhorrent how they are being treated by Transdev," said Jose Puga, Vice President and Business Agent at Local 683. "In addition to facing inhumane conditions, Transdev has failed to bargain in good faith and offer these workers a fair contract. Workers deserve much better  and Transdev bus workers will be on strike until they are provided decent wages and sanitary conditions."

"We are not asking for much," said Adelene Adams, a Transdev bus operator. "We want clean bathrooms, somewhere safe to take breaks, and better compensation. It is disheartening to be treated so despicably by Transdev, but we are grateful to have the Teamsters  especially Jose Puga  fighting for us at the bargaining table and alongside us on the picket line."

Local 683 has been in negotiations with Transdev for six months and recently received a final offer from Transdev, which workers voted down. After exhausting negotiations, workers unanimously voted to authorize the strike.

Teamsters Local 683 represents 2,700 workers in a variety of industries in Southern California.

Contact:

Matt McQuaid, (202) 624-6877

[email protected]

SOURCE Teamsters Local 683
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, May 25 2023 all 3rd grade students at Traverse Heights Elementary will each receive a free copy of Good Night Traverse City, purchased from Horizon Books (https://www.horizonbooks.com/product/good-night-traverse-city-mandy-toomey). Making connections between the written word and the real world is so important for children as they move from "learning to read" to "reading to learn." So, each student will not only receive their own copy of Good Night, Traverse City by local Traverse City resident Mandy Toomey, but they will get to visit a few of the familiar places featured in the book, including the Mission Point Lighthouse, the Open Space, and the Grand Traverse Pie Company, where they will practice their interpersonal skills placing their own order for you know what--PIE!

This book will help bridge connections between content and real-world experiences for students. Students are so excited for our students to have this opportunity. Third Graders have spent a year learning about Michigan history and culture. Now they have a chance to really live those concepts out through their own explorations.

A special thank you to the following businesses for helping make this opportunity a reality:

Sander Scott , Full Service Realtor with Key Realty for donating money to cover the cost of the books and the field trip

, Full Service Realtor with Key Realty for donating money to cover the cost of the books and the field trip Grand Traverse Pie Company for donating the yummy pies.

Horizon Books for providing discounts on the books!

For More Information, please contact

Jenny Walter, Teacher

Traverse Heights Elementary School Traverse City Area Public Schools

231-499-1226

[email protected]

Sander Scott, Full Service Realtor

231-499-0165

[email protected]

SOURCE Sander Scott, Full Service Realtor
Tripleseat, for the fifth time, wins Boston Business Journal Fast 50 with double-digit growth

CONCORD, Mass., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tripleseat is thrilled to announce that we have been named to the prestigious Boston Business Journal's Fast 50 list for the fifth year. As the leading sales and event management platform for restaurants, hotels, and unique venues, we are honored to be recognized as one of the fastest-growing private companies in Massachusetts.

Tripleseat was founded to streamline the booking process for venues, enabling them to host more events, generate greater revenue, and enhance guest satisfaction. Despite significant challenges the hospitality industry faced over the last few years, Tripleseat leveraged its extensive market insight to introduce new features, like TripleseatDirect for large party reservations and direct booking of on and off-premise events, to serve the hospitality market. As a dedicated industry partner, our commitment to our customers and hospitality overall has been a driving force behind our growth.

"Being recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in Massachusetts in this challenging economic climate for tech companies is a reflection of our dedication to providing restaurants and hotels valuable software to help them grow their event business," said Jonathan Morse, CEO of Tripleseat.

The Fast 50 companies are selected and ranked based on revenue growth from 2019 to 2022. The numbers are crunched and analyzed by the Business Journal's research department.

For the complete list of 2023 Fast 50 companies:

https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/news/2023/03/27/here-are-the-50-fastest-growing-private-companies.html .

About Tripleseat

Tripleseat is an event and catering management platform used by more than 15,000 restaurants, hotels, and unique venues globally, enabling them to streamline the event booking and planning process and increase revenue. To date, the Tripleseat platform has helped venues book over 10 million events and deliver $15 Billion in event leads. To learn more about Tripleseat or to schedule a demo, please visit www.tripleseat.com .

Let's Connect:

LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Media Contact:

Azure Collier

Director of Content Marketing

978-614-0490

[email protected]

SOURCE Tripleseat
ATMORE, Ala., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- UB Community Development, LLC (UBCD), a community development partner of United Bank, announced today that it has closed a $9 million New Markets Tax Credit transaction with Northwest Florida Healthcare, Inc. for the construction of a new surgical center on their existing campus in Chipley, Florida. The project will add an additional 14,000-square-foot facility and offer inpatient and outpatient surgical services.

"By, Through and With is a common phrase we use in the military to describe how we carry out our mission in concert with our allies," stated Alex Jones, President of UBCD. "Assisting Northwest Florida Healthcare in the funding of their new surgery center is a case study of working with partners to achieve a desired outcome. With Community Health and Hospitality Services providing the $9 million NMTC allocation, Dudley Ventures serving as the investor, United Bank providing a $6.5 million source loan and UBCD assisting the hospital in navigating the closing process, the goal was reached: funding a new surgery center in this rural community."

Northwest Florida Community Hospital is a 59-bed facility that houses a 25-bed critical access hospital, a 34-bed long term care facility and health care clinics. They also have an Express Care Clinic, Family Health Care Clinic in Chipley and clinics in Graceville, Bonifay, Marianna and Vernon, Florida. The current surgical facilities are at capacity, limiting the number of patients served. With the new surgical center, patients will have better access to surgical care in Washington County and surrounding counties. The new facility will employee approximately 29 employees.

For more information about UB Community Development, or for help with planning your next funding project, contact Alex Jones, President, UB Community Development at (251) 446-6017 or email [email protected].

About UB Community Development

UB Community Development's strong history and experience in New Markets Tax Credit transactions, coupled with our passion for improving the communities around us, make UBCD Alabama's premier financial partner for economic and community development. Through our NMTC projects, Community Facilities Lending Program and Community Housing Capital Fund, UBCD is working with community development partners in the fields of healthcare, education, manufacturing, public works, affordable housing and more. For more information about UB Community Development, visit our website at www.UBCommunityDevelopment.com.

SOURCE United Bancorporation
Unisys annual flagship event in India connects aspiring innovators with business leaders to foster new technology and ideas

BENGALURU, India and BLUE BELL, Pa., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Unisys (NYSE: UIS) announces the winners of the company's annual technical project competition for engineering students in India  the Unisys Innovation Program (UIP). The program's goal is to connect young engineers with today's business leaders to collaborate on new-age tech and innovations.

Now in its 14th year, the program received more than 700 project submissions from nearly 190 higher education institutions across India  a 250% increase over the last year's submissions and the highest number since its inception in 2009. Registration for the program closed in February with more than 7000 registrants.

The winners of the 14th Annual Unisys Innovation Program are:

First place goes to M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology for their project, Sleep Apnea Detection using Personal IoT Devices with Novel Privacy Persevered Federated Learning. The project harnesses the power of IoT, Cloud Computing, Machine Learning and Web3 to offer a privacy-focused framework that can be used to diagnose diseases like sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation. The student team included Hrishikesh K Haritas, Darshan Bankapure, Rahul K Vishal, and Vineet H Sadarangi, and they were led by faculty guide Dr.Meeradevi.

Second place goes to Dayananda Sagar University for their project, Breast Cancer Detection Using Quantum Machine Learning and Deep Learning compared to the conventional methods. This project leverages quantum machine learning and deep learning algorithms to diagnose breast cancer and classify patients based on their tumor characteristics  it also dives into whether quantum algorithms have the edge over classical approaches. The student team included Snavya Sai M B, Sindhu S, and Varsha Premanand, and they were led by faculty guide Veena M.

Third place goes to M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology for their project, Privacy-Preserving Machine Learning Computation using zkSNARKs. This project explores how zero-knowledge proofs and homomorphic encryption can be leveraged to enable privacy-conscious training and inference of machine learning models. The student team included Rohin Joshi, Rohan A J, Dhruv Dange, and Sharath R Maiya, and they were led by faculty guide Sanjay H. A.

"For a long time, India has been acknowledged as the world's IT capital, and we're excited to see this reflected in the response to our UIP program with an all-time high number of registrants from across the country," said Sumed Marwaha, Managing Director for Unisys in India. "Students and job seekers are determined to thrive in today's competitive landscape. At Unisys, we believe in breakthroughs, which is why it's important to have a platform for new talent that helps the youth improve their skills and expertise and prepares them for the specialized technology roles of the future."

Overall, seven winning teams were invited to present their projects at the grand finale ceremony for the final round of evaluations. The winners were selected by a panel of judges based on feasibility, viability, originality, sustainability and technical approach. Special guests Suresh M Khadakbhavi, CEO of Digi Yatra Foundation and Ken Henry, who leads the Solutions Development team that drives the development of Enterprise Computing Solutions at Unisys. He also delivered keynotes during the ceremony.

"We are impressed by the degree of imagination and effort demonstrated by this next generation of talent," said Dwayne Allen, Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer of Unisys and head of Solution Innovation. "Curiosity and innovation are at the heart of all we do, and the Unisys Innovation Program is one of many platforms we host to stimulate collaborative thinking, experiential learning, and to cultivate a pipeline of promising talent."

About the Unisys Innovation Program

Established in 2009, UIP is the flagship technical project competition for engineering students across India. The contest is open to all engineering students in computer science, information technology, and other fields. The program brings industry perspectives via interactive sessions and provides learning and networking opportunities to participants.

About Unisys

Unisys is a global technology solutions company that powers breakthroughs for the world's leading organizations. Our solutions  digital workplace; cloud, applications & infrastructure; enterprise computing; and business process  help our clients challenge the status quo and create new possibilities. To learn how we deliver breakthroughs for our clients, visit unisys.com.

RELEASE NO.: 0518/9907

Unisys and other Unisys products and services mentioned herein, as well as their respective logos, are trademarks or registered trademarks of Unisys Corporation. Any other brand or product referenced herein is acknowledged to be a trademark or registered trademark of its respective holder.

UIS-C

SOURCE Unisys Corporation
NEW YORK, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The vehicle-to-grid market size is set to grow by USD 29788.38 million from 2022 to 2027 progressing at a CAGR of 31.5% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario, the latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. The market is driven by improvements in EV battery technology. As the adoption of EVs grows, existing technologies are being pushed to their limits, necessitating the development of newer technologies.The need for grid integration is driven by better energy storage options and their easy integration into the grid.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Vehicle to Grid Market 2023-2027

Here is an Exclusive report talking about Market scenarios with a historical period (2017-2021) and forecast period (2023-2027). Download Sample Report in minutes!

The report on the vehicle-to-grid market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis.

Vehicle To Grid Market 2023-2027 - Market Dynamics

Market Driver

Improvements in EV battery technology

Ability to meet peak electricity demands

Change in grid structure allowing decentralized power generation

Market Trend

Rise in the number of EV charging stations

Rapid deployment of smart grids

Increasing popularity of EVs through government initiatives

Market Challenges

Interoperability issues

Competition from alternative technologies

Additional stress on EV battery

Vehicle To Grid Market 2023-2027: Market Segmentation

The vehicle-to-grid market is segmented by product (power electronics and software), vehicle type (BEV, PHEV, and FCEV), and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, Middle East and Africa, and South America).

The vehicle-to-grid technology market share growth of the power electronics segment will be significant during the forecast period. In 2017 the power electronics segment was valued at USD 2,527.30 million and it continues to grow exponentially during the forecast period.

By geography, North America is estimated to contribute 34% to the growth of the global market during the forecast period. The US is the leading market for vehicle-to-grid in North America. This growth is attributed to rapid investments in the development and deployment of vehicle-to-grid infrastructure.

The report presents a detailed picture of the market by way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources through an analysis of key parameters- View Sample Report

The vehicle-to-grid market covers the following areas:

Vehicle To Grid Market Sizing

Vehicle To Grid Market Forecast

Vehicle To Grid Market Analysis

Companies Mentioned

ABB Ltd.

AC Propulsion Inc.

ChargePoint Inc.

Continental AG

Coritech Services

Edison International

Fermata LLC

Hitachi Ltd.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd

Liikennevirta Oy Ltd.

Mercedes Benz Group AG

Mitsubishi Motors Corp.

Nuvve Holding Corp.

OVO Energy Ltd

Renault SAS

Tesla Inc.

TransnetBW GmbH

Ford Motor Co.

Qualcomm Inc.

Wallbox N.V.

global.abb- The company offers evaporating cooling systems through its subsidiary Baltimore Aircoil Co.

acpropulsion.com- The company offers evaporating cooling systems under its brand HMX.

chargepoint.com- The company offers evaporating cooling system namely KEC OEM kit.

Related Reports:

Push-to-Talk (PTT) Market- The push to talk (PTT) market size is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.99% between 2022 and 2027. The market size is forecast to increase by USD 17,473.47 million.

Satellite Internet Market- The satellite internet market size is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 16.85% between 2022 and 2027. The market size is forecast to increase by USD 4,476.69 million.

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Vehicle To Grid Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2022 Historic period 2017-2021 Forecast period 2023-2027 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 31.5% Market growth 2023-2027 USD 29788.38 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023(%) 30.5 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, Middle East and Africa, and South America Performing market contribution North America at 34% Key countries US, Japan, China, Germany, and UK Competitive landscape Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks Key companies profiled ABB Ltd., AC Propulsion Inc., ChargePoint Inc., Continental AG, Coritech Services, Edison International, Fermata LLC, Hitachi Ltd., Honda Motor Co. Ltd, Liikennevirta Oy Ltd., Mercedes Benz Group AG, Mitsubishi Motors Corp., Nuvve Holding Corp., OVO Energy Ltd, Renault SAS, Tesla Inc., TransnetBW GmbH, Ford Motor Co., Qualcomm Inc., and Wallbox N.V. Market dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and recovery analysis and future consumer dynamics, Market condition analysis for forecast period Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized.

Key Topics Covered:

1 Executive Summary

1.1 Market overview

Exhibit 01: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Overview



Exhibit 02: Executive Summary  Data Table on Market Overview



Exhibit 03: Executive Summary  Chart on Global Market Characteristics



Exhibit 04: Executive Summary  Chart on Market by Geography



Exhibit 05: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by Product



Exhibit 06: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by Vehicle Type



Exhibit 07: Executive Summary  Chart on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 08: Executive Summary  Data Table on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 09: Executive Summary  Chart on Vendor Market Positioning

2 Market Landscape

2.1 Market ecosystem

Exhibit 10: Parent market



Exhibit 11: Market Characteristics

3 Market Sizing

3.1 Market definition

Exhibit 12: Offerings of vendors included in the market definition

3.2 Market segment analysis

Exhibit 13: Market segments

3.3 Market size 2022

3.4 Market outlook: Forecast for 2022-2027

Exhibit 14: Chart on Global - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 15: Data Table on Global - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 16: Chart on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 17: Data Table on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

4 Historic Market Size

4.1 Global vehicle to grid market 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 18: Historic Market Size  Data Table on Global vehicle to grid market 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.2 Product Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 19: Historic Market Size  Product Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.3 Vehicle type Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 20: Historic Market Size  Vehicle type Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.4 Geography Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 21: Historic Market Size  Geography Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

4.5 Country Segment Analysis 2017 - 2021

Exhibit 22: Historic Market Size  Country Segment 2017 - 2021 ($ million)

5 Five Forces Analysis

5.1 Five forces summary

Exhibit 23: Five forces analysis - Comparison between 2022 and 2027

5.2 Bargaining power of buyers

Exhibit 24: Chart on Bargaining power of buyers  Impact of key factors 2022 and 2027

5.3 Bargaining power of suppliers

Exhibit 25: Bargaining power of suppliers  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.4 Threat of new entrants

Exhibit 26: Threat of new entrants  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.5 Threat of substitutes

Exhibit 27: Threat of substitutes  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.6 Threat of rivalry

Exhibit 28: Threat of rivalry  Impact of key factors in 2022 and 2027

5.7 Market condition

Exhibit 29: Chart on Market condition - Five forces 2022 and 2027

6 Market Segmentation by Product

6.1 Market segments

Exhibit 30: Chart on Product - Market share 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 31: Data Table on Product - Market share 2022-2027 (%)

6.2 Comparison by Product

Exhibit 32: Chart on Comparison by Product



Exhibit 33: Data Table on Comparison by Product

6.3 Power electronics - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 34: Chart on Power electronics - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 35: Data Table on Power electronics - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 36: Chart on Power electronics - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 37: Data Table on Power electronics - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

6.4 Software - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 38: Chart on Software - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 39: Data Table on Software - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 40: Chart on Software - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 41: Data Table on Software - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

6.5 Market opportunity by Product

Exhibit 42: Market opportunity by Product ($ million)

7 Market Segmentation by Vehicle Type

7.1 Market segments

Exhibit 43: Chart on Vehicle Type - Market share 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 44: Data Table on Vehicle Type - Market share 2022-2027 (%)

7.2 Comparison by Vehicle Type

Exhibit 45: Chart on Comparison by Vehicle Type



Exhibit 46: Data Table on Comparison by Vehicle Type

7.3 BEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 47: Chart on BEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 48: Data Table on BEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 49: Chart on BEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 50: Data Table on BEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.4 PHEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 51: Chart on PHEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 52: Data Table on PHEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 53: Chart on PHEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 54: Data Table on PHEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.5 FCEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 55: Chart on FCEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 56: Data Table on FCEV - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 57: Chart on FCEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 58: Data Table on FCEV - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

7.6 Market opportunity by Vehicle Type

Exhibit 59: Market opportunity by Vehicle Type ($ million)

8 Customer Landscape

8.1 Customer landscape overview

Exhibit 60: Analysis of price sensitivity, lifecycle, customer purchase basket, adoption rates, and purchase criteria

9 Geographic Landscape

9.1 Geographic segmentation

Exhibit 61: Chart on Market share by geography 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 62: Data Table on Market share by geography 2022-2027 (%)

9.2 Geographic comparison

Exhibit 63: Chart on Geographic comparison



Exhibit 64: Data Table on Geographic comparison

9.3 North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 65: Chart on North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 66: Data Table on North America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 67: Chart on North America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 68: Data Table on North America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.4 Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 69: Chart on Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 70: Data Table on Europe - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 71: Chart on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 72: Data Table on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.5 APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 73: Chart on APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 74: Data Table on APAC - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 75: Chart on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 76: Data Table on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.6 Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 77: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 78: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

and - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 79: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

and - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 80: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.7 South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 81: Chart on South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 82: Data Table on South America - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 83: Chart on South America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 84: Data Table on South America - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.8 US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 85: Chart on US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 86: Data Table on US - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 87: Chart on US - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 88: Data Table on US - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.9 Japan - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 89: Chart on Japan - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 90: Data Table on Japan - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 91: Chart on Japan - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 92: Data Table on Japan - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.10 China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 93: Chart on China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 94: Data Table on China - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 95: Chart on China - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 96: Data Table on China - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.11 Germany - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 Exhibit 97: Chart on Germany - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 98: Data Table on Germany - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)

Exhibit 99: Chart on Germany - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

Exhibit 100: Data Table on Germany - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.12 UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027

Exhibit 101: Chart on UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 102: Data Table on UK - Market size and forecast 2022-2027 ($ million)



Exhibit 103: Chart on UK - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)



Exhibit 104: Data Table on UK - Year-over-year growth 2022-2027 (%)

9.13 Market opportunity by geography

Exhibit 105: Market opportunity by geography ($ million)

10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

10.1 Market drivers

10.2 Market challenges

10.3 Impact of drivers and challenges

Exhibit 106: Impact of drivers and challenges in 2022 and 2027

10.4 Market trends

11 Vendor Landscape

11.1 Overview

11.2 Vendor landscape

Exhibit 107: Overview on Criticality of inputs and Factors of differentiation

11.3 Landscape disruption

Exhibit 108: Overview on factors of disruption

11.4 Industry risks

Exhibit 109: Impact of key risks on business

12 Vendor Analysis

12.1 Vendors covered

Exhibit 110: Vendors covered

12.2 Market positioning of vendors

Exhibit 111: Matrix on vendor position and classification

12.3 ABB Ltd.

Exhibit 112: ABB Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 113: ABB Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 114: ABB Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 115: ABB Ltd. - Segment focus

12.4 AC Propulsion Inc.

Exhibit 116: AC Propulsion Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 117: AC Propulsion Inc. - Product / Service



Exhibit 118: AC Propulsion Inc. - Key offerings

12.5 Coritech Services

Exhibit 119: Coritech Services - Overview



Exhibit 120: Coritech Services - Product / Service



Exhibit 121: Coritech Services - Key offerings

12.6 Edison International

Exhibit 122: Edison International - Overview



Exhibit 123: Edison International - Business segments



Exhibit 124: Edison International - Key offerings



Exhibit 125: Edison International - Segment focus

12.7 Ford Motor Co.

Exhibit 126: Ford Motor Co. - Overview



Exhibit 127: Ford Motor Co. - Business segments



Exhibit 128: Ford Motor Co. - Key news



Exhibit 129: Ford Motor Co. - Key offerings



Exhibit 130: Ford Motor Co. - Segment focus

12.8 Hitachi Ltd.

Exhibit 131: Hitachi Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 132: Hitachi Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 133: Hitachi Ltd. - Key news



Exhibit 134: Hitachi Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 135: Hitachi Ltd. - Segment focus

12.9 Honda Motor Co. Ltd

Exhibit 136: Honda Motor Co. Ltd - Overview



Exhibit 137: Honda Motor Co. Ltd - Business segments



Exhibit 138: Honda Motor Co. Ltd - Key news



Exhibit 139: Honda Motor Co. Ltd - Key offerings



Exhibit 140: Honda Motor Co. Ltd - Segment focus

12.10 Liikennevirta Oy Ltd.

Exhibit 141: Liikennevirta Oy Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 142: Liikennevirta Oy Ltd. - Product / Service



Exhibit 143: Liikennevirta Oy Ltd. - Key offerings

12.11 Mercedes Benz Group AG

Exhibit 144: Mercedes Benz Group AG - Overview



Exhibit 145: Mercedes Benz Group AG - Business segments



Exhibit 146: Mercedes Benz Group AG - Key offerings



Exhibit 147: Mercedes Benz Group AG - Segment focus

12.12 Mitsubishi Motors Corp.

Exhibit 148: Mitsubishi Motors Corp. - Overview



Exhibit 149: Mitsubishi Motors Corp. - Business segments



Exhibit 150: Mitsubishi Motors Corp. - Key offerings



Exhibit 151: Mitsubishi Motors Corp. - Segment focus

12.13 Nuvve Holding Corp.

Exhibit 152: Nuvve Holding Corp. - Overview



Exhibit 153: Nuvve Holding Corp. - Product / Service



Exhibit 154: Nuvve Holding Corp. - Key offerings

12.14 Qualcomm Inc.

Exhibit 155: Qualcomm Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 156: Qualcomm Inc. - Business segments



Exhibit 157: Qualcomm Inc. - Key news



Exhibit 158: Qualcomm Inc. - Key offerings



Exhibit 159: Qualcomm Inc. - Segment focus

12.15 Renault SAS

Exhibit 160: Renault SAS - Overview



Exhibit 161: Renault SAS - Product / Service



Exhibit 162: Renault SAS - Key news



Exhibit 163: Renault SAS - Key offerings

12.16 Tesla Inc.

Exhibit 164: Tesla Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 165: Tesla Inc. - Business segments



Exhibit 166: Tesla Inc. - Key news



Exhibit 167: Tesla Inc. - Key offerings



Exhibit 168: Tesla Inc. - Segment focus

12.17 Wallbox N.V.

Exhibit 169: Wallbox N.V. - Overview



Exhibit 170: Wallbox N.V. - Key offerings

13 Appendix

13.1 Scope of the report

13.2 Inclusions and exclusions checklist

Exhibit 171: Inclusions checklist



Exhibit 172: Exclusions checklist

13.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

Exhibit 173: Currency conversion rates for US$

13.4 Research methodology

Exhibit 174: Research methodology



Exhibit 175: Validation techniques employed for market sizing



Exhibit 176: Information sources

13.5 List of abbreviations

Exhibit 177: List of abbreviations

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.

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Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

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SOURCE Technavio
VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Vortex Metals Inc. (TSXV: VMS) (FSE: DM8) (OTC: VMSSF) ("Vortex" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the initiation of its comprehensive environmental and surface geological studies at its Zaachila Copper project. The commencement of this work marks a significant milestone in the project's advancement.

Building on the previous identification of copper mineralization (Ref:Company's NI 43-101 report filed on Sedar), Vortex Metals will begin an extensive program of environmental baseline studies and corresponding surface geological work. This undertaking is designed to deepen the understanding of the project's potential using an integrated approach in the documentation of the project's environmental state including the geologic environment.

The environmental and surface geological activities, which began on May 15th, have been made possible due to the previously announced community approval, granted following a general assembly meeting held with the local people residing at the Zaachila project. Vortex Metals is deeply committed to conducting responsible and sustainable operations, with a steadfast dedication to environmental stewardship and community engagement.

Under the expert guidance of Ambiental y Social Servicios Integrales (ASSI), a renowned Mexican environmental firm, a team of 10 environmental specialists, supported by local community field assistants, will diligently gather vital data over the course of approximately 15 days. The study will focus on land uses defined by the esteemed National Institute of Statistics Geography (INEGI) and informatics, encompassing an extensive area of 500 hectares.

The findings of the Environmental and surface geological work will serve as a crucial tool to protect the local environment, benefitting both the community and Vortex Metals. Additionally, the environmental study will form the basis of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to be submitted to the Federal Environmental Office, The Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT). Seeking approval for advanced mineral exploration activities, including drilling, the company is poised to advance its pursuit of multiple high-grade copper targets.

Vikas Ranjan, Chief Executive Officer of Vortex Metals, expressed his enthusiasm for this significant milestone, stating, "The launch of our comprehensive Environmental and surface geologic studies at the Zaachila project represents a pivotal moment for Vortex, as it brings us closer to exploring multiple high-grade copper targets previously identified in geochemical targeting analysis by VMS expert and Vortex Metals' advisor, Jim Franklin. Vortex remains fully committed to environmental sustainability, and we are grateful for the local community's support and collaboration throughout this process."

Qualified Person / Quality Control and Quality Assurance

Robert Johansing, M.Sc. Econ. Geol., P. Geo., is a qualified person ("QP") as defined by NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical content of this press release.

About Vortex Metals Inc.

Vortex Metals Inc. is the parent company of Mexican subsidiary Empresa Minera Acagold, S.A. de C.V., which is the owner of a 100% interest in two drill-ready high-potential copper volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) properties (Riqueza Marina and Zaachila) in the state of Oaxaca, and a third high-potential gold property (El Rescate) in the state of Puebla. The Oaxaca projects incorporate the most highly prospective areas of high-grade copper mineralized surface exposures ('gossans') and prominent gravity anomalies along an emerging copper VMS belt that includes Minaurum Gold's (TSXV: MGG) Santa Marta project.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward looking statements that are made as of the date hereof and are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions which involve risks and uncertainties associated with our business including permitting approvals, any private placement financings, the uncertainty as to whether further exploration will result in the target(s) being delineated as a mineral resource, capital expenditures, operating costs, mineral resources, recovery rates, grades and prices, estimated goals, expansion and growth of the business and operations, plans and references to the Company's future successes with its business and the economic environment in which the business operates. All such statements are made pursuant to the 'safe harbour' provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under, applicable Canadian securities legislation. Any statements contained herein that are statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements require us to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. We caution readers of this news release not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual results or conditions to differ materially from current expectations. Please refer to the risks set forth in the Company's most recent annual MD&A and the Company's continuous disclosure documents that can be found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com . The Company does not intend, and disclaims any obligation, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Vortex Metals
PARSIPPANY, N.J., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group is pleased to announce that three firm attorneys have been named to the prestigious Super Lawyers and Super Lawyers Rising Stars lists for 2023. Receiving New Jersey Super Lawyers designation are founding partner Bari Z. Weinberger and partner Robyn Howlett. Attorney Jessica Budrick is honored among this year's New Jersey Rising Stars.

"Robyn, Jessica and I are honored to be held in such high regard by the family law community and to have our deep care for our family law clients recognized by Super Lawyers. This distinction is incredibly meaningful for us," says certified matrimonial attorney Bari Weinberger, founder of Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group.

"Robyn, Jessica and I are honored to be held in such high regard by the family law community and to have our deep care for our family law clients recognized by Super Lawyers. This distinction is incredibly meaningful for us," said certified matrimonial attorney Bari Weinberger, founder of Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group.

Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Each year, no more than 5% of lawyers in New Jersey are selected to receive the Super Lawyers honor; only 2.5% of lawyers statewide are selected for Rising Star designation. Selection is based on statewide surveys of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. Ms. Weinberger and Ms. Howlett have achieved Supers Lawyers status for over a decade.

Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group is also pleased to confirm other attorney and firm-wide accolades received in 2023:

- Partners Bari Weinberger and Robyn Howlett were named 2023 Best Attorneys in New Jersey by US News & World Report.

- Ms. Weinberger and Ms. Howlett were recognized as Best New Jersey Lawyers for Families 2023 by NJ Family Magazine.

- Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group was honored as a Best Law Firm for 2023 by US News & World Report, a designation based on client and peer reviews.

"Our team is laser-focused on providing our divorce and family law clients with masterful guidance in their family law matters. It is wonderful to receive these accolades, but truly the best reward will always be seeing our clients relaxed and thriving because our care made a difference," notes Weinberger.

About Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group

With offices located in Parsippany, Freehold, Hackensack, and Mount Laurel, award-winning Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group assists client throughout New Jersey in all their family law matters, including divorce, custody, alimony, domestic violence, adoption and all other family law matters. To experience the Weinberger difference, schedule an initial consultation with one of the firm's family law attorneys.

Media Contact:

Bari Weinberger

888-888-0919

[email protected]

SOURCE Weinberger Divorce & Family Law Group, LLC
To align business strategies with the 10 Principles of the UNGC

To fulfill social responsibility and duty based on global ESG management standards

Strengthens commitment to higher corporate citizenship awareness and responsible ESG practices

SEOUL, South Korea, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading Korean gaming company Wemade has joined the UN Global Compact, affirming its commitment to good environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and policies. Founded in 2000,the UN Global Compact is the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative with more than 15,000 companies and 3,000 non-business signatories based in over 162 countries, and 69 Local Networks. UN Global Compact participants are encouraged to internalize the 10 Principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption into their operations and management strategies.

Wemade joins the UN Global Compact

Wemade is driving ESG policies and practices focused on three core goals; environmental responsibility, inclusive growth for future generations, and transparent governance. As an UN Global Compact corporate participant, Wemade will further align its management decisions and business strategies with the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact and strive to strengthen ESG practices. Wemade is also committed to the enhanced CoP (Communication on Progress) for demonstrating progress which was launched this year.

"Joining the UN Global Compact is the first step in our path toward sustainable growth through Wemade's vision of ESG," said Henry Chang, CEO of Wemade. "As a leader in the blockchain market, fulfilling corporate social responsibility and duty is Wemade's highest priority, as our commitment to global ESG management standards shows."

About Wemade

A renowned industry leader in game development with over 20 years of experience, Korea-based Wemade is leading a once-in-a-generation shift as the gaming industry pivots to blockchain technology. Through subsidiary WEMIX, Wemade aims to accelerate the adoption of blockchain technology by building an experience-based, platform-driven, and service-oriented mega-ecosystem that offers a wide spectrum of intuitive, convenient, and easy-to-use Web3 services for everyone.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080116/Wemade_joins_UN_Global_Compact.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1867226/4042737/wemix_logo_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Wemade Co., Ltd
SAN FRANCISCO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The global women's health market size is expected to reach USD 63.02 billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 5.4% from 2023 to 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The introduction of innovative novel products and the presence of a strong pipeline of women's health products are prime factors driving the market growth. For instance, in May 2021, the Food & Drug Administration approved Myfembree, developed by Pfizer Inc. in collaboration with Myovant Sciences, for uterine fibroids associated with heavy menstrual bleeding. An increase in the incidence of endometriosis and a rise in support from non-profit organizations are expected to fuel the market growth over the forecast period.

Key Industry Insights & Findings from the report:

The contraceptives segment held the highest market share of more than 35.49% of the global revenue in 2022 due to increased awareness about family planning and rapid technological advancements in contraception.

The University of California Bixby Center released a reimbursement guide to help health providers offer women a full range of contraceptives.

Bixby Center released a reimbursement guide to help health providers offer women a full range of contraceptives. The endometriosis segment is expected to witness significant growth over the forecast period due to the launch of products, such as Relugoliz and the impending launch of Linzagolix for the treatment of women with uterine fibroids.

Based on age, the 50 years and above segment is expected to register the fastest growth rate of 6.7% over the forecast period as an increase in life expectancy is boosting the overall menopausal population across the globe.

According to the International Menopause Society, globally, women aged between 45 and 55 years typically experience menopause, with the average age of onset at 51.5 years.

Read 130 page market research report, "Women's Health Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Application (Postmenopausal Osteoporosis, Hormonal Infertility, Endometriosis & Uterine Fibroids, Contraceptives), By Age, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030", published by Grand View Research.

Women's Health Market Growth & Trends

For instance, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged USD 280 million every year from 2021 to 2030 for the development of new contraceptive technologies and to support family planning initiatives. According to the WHO report 2021, globally, around 10% (190 million) of reproductive-age girls and women are affected by endometriosis. It is a chronic disease related to severe pain during periods, bowel movements and/or urination, abdominal bloating, nausea, fatigue, etc. The COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the market. Strict measures undertaken by governments to control the spread of the SARS-CoV-2, such as social distancing and community-wide lockdowns, have had a detrimental impact on treatment facilities & gynecological clinics.

For instance, in low- and middle-income countries there has been a decline in the usage of long- and short-acting reversible contraceptives. Strategic initiatives undertaken by key players, such as collaborations, agreements, and partnerships, for the development and commercialization of products are anticipated to drive market growth. For instance, in October 2021, Richter and Hikma signed an exclusive licensing agreement to commercialize denosumab, comprising biosimilar of Xgeva and Prolia in the U.S. Moreover, the growing competition from generic drugs increases the pricing pressure after patent expiration, which is anticipated to impede market growth.

For instance, after the patent expiry, the revenue of Forteo declined by 23% between 2020 and 2021. North America dominated the global market in 2021 owing to favorable reimbursement policies, the presence of key market players, supportive government regulations, approval & commercialization of products, and high usage of contraceptives among women. The Asia Pacific region is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period due to rising government spending on women's health. For instance, the Australian Government announced an investment of USD 333 million to support health services and support.

Women's Health Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global women's health market based on age, application, and region:

Women's Health Market - Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Postmenopausal Osteoporosis

Hormonal Infertility

Endometriosis & Uterine Fibroids

Contraceptives

Menopause

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

Women's Health Market - Age Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

50 years and above

Postmenopausal Osteoporosis



Endometriosis & Uterine Fibroids



Menopause



Others

Others

Women's Health Market - Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million; 2018 - 2030)

North America

U.S.



Canada

Europe

Germany



U.K.



France



Italy



Spain



Denmark



Sweden



Norway

Asia Pacific

China



India



Japan



Australia



South Korea



Thailand

Latin America

Brazil



Mexico



Argentina

Middle East & Africa

& South Africa



Saudi Arabia



UAE



Kuwait

List of Key Players of Women's Health Market

AbbVie, Inc.

Bayer AG

Merck & Co., Inc.

Pfizer, Inc.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

Agile Therapeutics

Amgen, Inc.

Apothecus Pharmaceutical Corp.

Blairex Laboratories, Inc.

Ferring B.V.

Check out more related studies published by Grand View Research:

Women's Health And Beauty Supplements Market - The global women's health and beauty supplements market size is expected to reach USD 79.29 billion by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 5.1% during the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is anticipated to witness exponential growth opportunities owing to the increasing awareness about healthy living and well-being coupled with an increase in the adoption of an active lifestyle. Moreover, the wide applications of supplements in the treatment of various disorders such as anemia, depression, arthritis, and others are propelling the demand.

- The global women's health and beauty supplements market size is expected to reach by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 5.1% during the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is anticipated to witness exponential growth opportunities owing to the increasing awareness about healthy living and well-being coupled with an increase in the adoption of an active lifestyle. Moreover, the wide applications of supplements in the treatment of various disorders such as anemia, depression, arthritis, and others are propelling the demand. Postmenopausal Osteoporosis Treatment Market - The global postmenopausal osteoporosis treatment market size is expected to reach USD 13.7 billion by 2030 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 5.22% from 2023 to 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market has grown significantly as a result of the growing geriatric population and lifestyle changes. As the older population is more susceptible, their population growth is anticipated to be a major driving force behind the market expansion. For instance, the number of people aged 60 years and above is predicted to rise from 1 billion in 2020 to 1.4 billion by 2030 and 2.1 billion by 2050, according to the World Health Organization's October 2021 report. As a result, the market is anticipated to expand during the forecast period due to a rise in demand for postmenopausal osteoporosis treatment among older people.

- The global postmenopausal osteoporosis treatment market size is expected to reach by 2030 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 5.22% from 2023 to 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market has grown significantly as a result of the growing geriatric population and lifestyle changes. As the older population is more susceptible, their population growth is anticipated to be a major driving force behind the market expansion. For instance, the number of people aged 60 years and above is predicted to rise from 1 billion in 2020 to 1.4 billion by 2030 and 2.1 billion by 2050, according to the World Health Organization's report. As a result, the market is anticipated to expand during the forecast period due to a rise in demand for postmenopausal osteoporosis treatment among older people. Infertility Drugs Market - The global infertility drugs market size is expected to reach USD 5.6 billion by 2030 expanding at a CAGR of 6.1% from 2023 to 2030 according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market seems to be saturated with fewer opportunities for new entrants. The companies including Merck & Co. Inc., Ferring B.V., and Organon group of companies holds majority of market share. Thus, the pharmaceutical companies are focusing on developing biosimilar of gonadotropins for market penetration. For instance, Qilu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. focuses on developing QL1012, a recombinant human follicle stimulating hormone which is under phase 3 clinical trial. Successful completion of of trial and subsequent launch is anticipated to drive market.

Browse through Grand View Research's Pharmaceuticals Industry Research Reports.

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, U.S.-based market research and consulting company, provides syndicated as well as customized research reports and consulting services. Registered in California and headquartered in San Francisco, the company comprises over 425 analysts and consultants, adding more than 1200 market research reports to its vast database each year. These reports offer in-depth analysis on 46 industries across 25 major countries worldwide. With the help of an interactive market intelligence platform, Grand View Research Helps Fortune 500 companies and renowned academic institutes understand the global and regional business environment and gauge the opportunities that lie ahead.

Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, USA

Grand View Research, Inc.

Phone: 1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519

Email: [email protected]

Web: https://www.grandviewresearch.com

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Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/661327/Grand_View_Research_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.
KAWANISHI-CITY, Japan, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Ryohei Mori at Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd. developed water based 100 % natural biodegradable nail polish with "Re:soil" brand name. The brand name "Re: soil" originates from the concept of developing cosmetic products which returns back to soil by biodegradation. The company is aiming to replace all the petroleum, fossil fuel based chemical products with natural biomass based chemical products and this time, he has developed water based 100 % natural biodegradable nail polish and 100 % natural nail polish remover.

Water base 100 % Natural Biodegradable Nail Polish Water base 100 % Natural Biodegradable Nail Polish and Designed Nail

In general, water based nail polish can come off easily with water although these products stick onto nail surface strongly. Color pigments are also derived from inorganic materials or stone based materials and not from petroleum. There are some other 100 % natural nail polish products but they are solvent based and not water base.

The products do not contain any toxic chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate, synthesized camphor, triphenyl phosphate, paraben, xylene, styrene, oxybenzene, acetone etcThe products do not have obnoxious smell either and children can enjoy the products.

The mother company of Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd. is Fuji Pigment Co., Ltd. and they have been developing petroleum based color chemical business over 85 years. They always had concern about environmental damage. Dr. Ryohei Mori has established internal startup company named Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd. who focuses on developing natural biomass based chemical products such as biomass biodegradable plastics, biomass biodegradable resin, biomass coating, biomass glue, biomass paint, biomass color etc... He is trying to replace all the petroleum based chemicals into natural biomass based chemicals in the world. He previously made plant natural based biodegradable artificial nails recently and this time, he additionally created biomass biodegradable nail polish and remover which can be added to natural cosmetic nail products, without any petroleum derived chemicals.

Re:soil : Nail Cosmetic Products for Sustainable, Carbon Neutral Society

1. Water based 100 % Natural Biodegradable Nail Polish : Nail Polish Color  Green, Violet, Red, Yellow, Blue, Pearl Green, White, Black (Bamboo Charcoal, Biochar)

Disclaimer about 100 % natural derived products.

a. Ammonia as one of the ingredients of this products are assumed to be nature origin since ammonia is industrially produced from natural gas.

b. Inorganic pigment such as titanium dioxide, ultramarine blue, iron oxide etc are synthesized or calcined with some chemicals from not natural ores. Therefore, precisely, one cannot say color is also made from 100 % nature.

2. Plant based Natural Biodegradable Artificial Nails.

Color Green, Violet, Red, Yellow, Blue, Pearl Green, White, Black (Bamboo Charcoal, Biochar)

3. 100 % Natural Nail Polish Remover

4. Plant Natural based Artificial Nails Glue (coming soon)

These innovative materials and technologies are registered as UNIDO and WIPO GREEN (United Nations). Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd was also selected as United Nation support startup company in 2020, Kobe, Japan (UNOPS S3i Innovation Centre Japan).

Contact:

Ryohei Mori

+81-72-759-8501

[email protected]

SOURCE Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd.
SHENZHEN, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- X Financial (NYSE: XYF) (the "Company"), a leading online personal finance company in China, today announced that it will release its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023, before the open of U.S. markets on Thursday, May 25, 2023.

X Financial's management team will host an earnings conference call at 7:00 AM U.S. Eastern Time on Thursday, May 25, 2023 (7:00 PM Beijing / Hong Kong Time on the same day).

Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows:

United States: 1-888-346-8982 Hong Kong: 852-301-84992 Mainland China: 4001-201203 International: 1-412-902-4272 Passcode: X Financial

Please dial in ten minutes before the call is scheduled to begin and provide the passcode to join the call.

A replay of the conference call may be accessed by phone at the following numbers until June 1, 2023:

United States: 1-877-344-7529 International: 1-412-317-0088 Passcode: 7019207

Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available at https://ir.xiaoyinggroup.com.

About X Financial

X Financial is a leading online personal finance company in China. The Company is committed to connecting borrowers on its platform with its institutional funding partners. With its proprietary big data-driven technology, the Company has established strategic partnerships with financial institutions across multiple areas of its business operations, enabling it to facilitate loans to prime borrowers under a robust risk assessment and control system.

For more information, please visit: https://ir.xiaoyinggroup.com.

For more information, please contact:

X Financial

Mr. Frank Fuya Zheng

E-mail: [email protected]

Christensen

In China

Mr. Eric Yuan

Phone: +86-10-5900-1548

E-mail: [email protected]

In US

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Phone: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE X Financial
BEIJING, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Northeast Asia Finance Conference 2023 kicked off on Wednesday in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, with experts, scholars and business representatives from financial institutions at home and abroad discussing latest development in financial industry and measures for financial cooperation.

The Northeast Asia Finance Conference 2023 kicked off on May 17 in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. (PRNewsfoto/Xinhua Silk Road)

Themed on "accelerating the construction of regional finance center and building the growth pole of revitalization and development in northeast China", the conference released the "index for core area of regional financial center in northeast China" and launched "Liaoning and Shenyang financiers" selection activity.

During the conference, a series of activities have also been held including investment promotion, release of newly formulated business rules, launch of green finance research project, and others.

Shenyang has always prioritized the financial development as an important strategic choice, and developed it self as the investment, financing and innovation center of northeast China and the hub of financial resource allocation of China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor in a bid to build the growth pole for revitalization of northeast China, said Lyu Zhicheng, Mayor of Shenyang.

Northeast Asia, with its rich natural resources and broad market potential, has a broad space for deepening regional financial cooperation, said Jing Ruyue, secretary-general of Xinhua News Agency, adding that the conference will build a new bridge for win-win regional financial and economic cooperation and form a regular cooperation mechanism.

It is noted that by the end of 2022, a total of 26 financial institutions have registered to set regional headquarters, specialized institutions and service centers in Liaoning, providing high-quality services and strong support for the economic and trade cooperation between Liaoning and Northeast Asian countries.

The conference was co-hosted by Shenyang Municipal People's Government, Liaoning Local Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau, Liaoning Branch of Xinhua News Agency and China Economic Information Service (CEIS).

Original link: https://en.imsilkroad.com/p/334148.html

SOURCE Xinhua Silk Road
DALLAS and CAESAREA, Israel, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. (OTCQX: ZNOG) celebrates significant milestones and divine guidance leading the company into a new phase of operations in Israel.

"We have seen God's hand guiding us as we make significant strides toward our mission of providing oil and gas for Israel's economic and political independence," said Rob Dunn, CEO of Zion Oil & Gas. "Our preparations for the re-entry of the Megiddo-Jezreel #1 well (MJ-01) are underway, and we are excited about the potential for success by utilizing new perforation methods."

Zion Oil & Gas Drilling Rig in Israel

The company owns its drilling rig, a substantial advantage that eliminates past challenges of securing one. They are also finalizing quotes for specialized coil tubing and plan to commence operations in the third quarter of this year.

"Our 7th license application is in process, and we are confident in its approval, considering we have never been denied a license," said Jeffrey Moskowitz, VP and Managing Director, Israel Branch. "This is not an extension but a new license spanning seven years, providing ample time for further exploration and development."

As pioneers in their field, Zion Oil & Gas conducted the first and only commercial 3D seismic testing in Israel. The Israeli Ministry of Energy has expressed encouragement towards their planned operations.

In addition to their operational achievements, the company recently concluded a SEC investigation without any charges or recommendations for enforcement action, highlighting the company's commitment to the highest levels of integrity and transparency.

Zion is also excited to announce a new Unit Program running from May 15, 2023, to June 15, 2023. Each Unit costs $250 and is available to both new and existing Direct Stock Purchase Plan investors. Each unit comes with 200 Warrants, with an option to gain an additional 300 Warrants for those who join the Automatic Monthly Investment (AMI) Program with the DSPP. More details about the Unit Program can be found on their website at https://www.zionoil.com/unit-2023.

"We are thankful for the continued support, trust, and prayers of our shareholders and supporters. Your encouragement plays a vital role in our work, and we are confident that we are part of God's plan for Israel," said John Brown, Zion Founder and Board Chair.

About Zion Oil & Gas

Zion Oil & Gas, a US public company traded on OTCQX Best Market, explores for oil and gas onshore in Israel.

"The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

Deuteronomy 31:8

"Sing to the Lord, for He has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."

Isaiah 12:5-6

Contact:

Andrew Summey

VP, Marketing and Investor Relations

Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. (OTCQX: ZNOG)

12655 North Central Expressway, Suite 1000, Dallas, TX 75243

Telephone: 888-891-9466

Email: [email protected]

www.zionoil.com

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: Statements in this communication that are not historical fact, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Zion's operations and the results therefrom, including testing and completion; Zion's ability to discover and produce oil in commercial quantities; Zion's ability to continue as a going concern; operational risks in ongoing exploration efforts; regulatory approvals needed for our license and the rig's operation; the effect, if any, of the coronavirus pandemic on the timing of the operation of the well, and liquidity for shareholders on OTCQX are forward-looking statements as defined in the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that are subject to significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other unpredictable factors, many of which are described in Zion's periodic reports filed with the SEC and are beyond Zion's control. These risks could cause Zion's actual performance to differ materially from the results predicted by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those described in Item 1A in Zion's Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference, and other factors as may periodically be described in Zion's filings with the SEC. Zion can give no assurance that the expectations reflected in these statements will prove to be correct and assumes no responsibility to update these statements.

SOURCE Zion Oil & Gas, Inc.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. PASHA Bank's Cybersecurity Center received a high international rating in 2022, Javid Guliyev, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board of PASHA Bank, said at a press conference dedicated to the results of 2022, Trend reports.

According to him, the Cybersecurity Center was established in the bank in 2022.

"It operates 24/7. Our center has been highly appreciated by the international organization and its compliance with international standards has been confirmed," Guliyev said.

Guliyev pointed out that the bank is committed to introducing the best technologies to meet the needs of its customers and comply with international standards.

Will be updated
Chinese Investment Roundtable will be held today in Chinas Xian with the participation of the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Kazinform learned from the Akorda press service, Trend reports.

Those attending the event are SNPC, CITIC, SPIC, Sinopec, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, POWERCHINA, GENERTEC, COFCO, XCMG, JD Group, Sun Seven Star Investment Group, Xian Aiju Grain and Oil Industrial Group, Great Wall Motors, Chery, Huawei Technologies, and Changan International orporation.

And this is not a complete list of Chinese companies whom the investment opportunities of Kazakhstan will be presented.

As reported before, the Kazakh Leader arrived in Xian on May 17 for a state visit. He was greeted by Chinese President Xi Jinping. Upon arrival, the two countries leaders held talks.

A number of documents was signed during the visit in transport, agriculture, trade-economic cooperation and cultural relations.
Ramallah, May 18 : The Palestinian presidency's spokesman has condemned the Israeli government's plan to hold the controversial "flag march" in East Jerusalem as scheduled on Thursday.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh said on Wednesday in a press statement that "organising such a provocative act would only lead to more tension and would blow up more violence".

He added that the Israeli government's insistence on holding the march in Jerusalem "shows the acquiescence of this government to the Jewish extremists".

The march is aimed at marking Jerusalem Day, which commemorates the unification of the city after Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1967, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a Likud party meeting that "the flag march will take place according to its planned path".

Nearly 3,300 police officers would be dispatched to maintain public order, and 37 activists, including Jews, had been dispelled from Jerusalem in case of their disruptive attempts during the event, Israeli media reported.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry vowed in a statement to "hold the Israeli government fully and directly responsible for the march of flags and its results and repercussions, not only in Jerusalem but also in the conflict arena".

In 2022, the march entered the old city of Jerusalem from Damascus Gate and Hebron Gate in the Palestinian part of Jerusalem to commemorate the anniversary, causing clashes with the Palestinians.

The one in 2021 sparked a heavy fighting between Israel and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in Gaza that lasted for 11 days.
New York, May 18 : A US court has cleared the extradition of Pakistani-Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Said to be linked with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Rana, 62, was arrested in the US for his role in attacks that saw 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists storm buildings in Mumbai, killing 164 people, including six Americans, in a 60-hour siege.

"The court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing," Magistrate Judge of the US District Court of California, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, said in a 48-page court order on Tuesday, which was released on Wednesday.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below and certifies to the Secretary of State of the US the extraditability of Rana on the charged offenses that are the subject of the Request," the judge said in the order.

Rana's arrest in the US was made at India's request as per the 1997 Extradition Treaty between the two countries.

He was convicted in Chicago in 2011 of providing material support to the LeT, which planned the Mumbai terror attacks.

The development comes after a US court last month dismissed a status conference motion moved by Rana, stating that it anticipates a ruling on his extradition to India within 30 days.

Prosecutors in the court argued that Rana knew that his childhood friend Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley was involved with the LeT, and helped him in scouting locations and landing zones in Mumbai for carrying out the attack.

Rana was also aware of what was discussed in Headley's meetings, including planning of the attacks as well as the targets.

While the extradition was contested by his lawyer, the judge ruled that there is sufficient competent evidence to extradite him.

The extradition had been requested for conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act; waging war; murder; committing a terrorist act; and conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the US Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, US Code, section 3186 and the Treaty," the Judge ruled.

Rana was born in Chichawatni in Pakistan's Punjab province, and attained his medical degree from the Cadet College Hasan Abdal, a military residential college in Hasan Abdal, Attock district.

In this college, he met Headley, who became a major ISI operative.

A physician by profession, Rana served as a captain general duty practitioner in the Pakistan Army Medical Corps.

Rana and his wife, who is also a physician, immigrated to Canada in 1997, and obtained Canadian citizenship in June 2001.

The couple lived primarily in Chicago and owns several businesses, including an immigration service agency.
Lucknow, May 18 : After the makeover of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Varanasi and the proposed Bankey Bihari corridor in Mathura, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh is planning to develop the Nath Corridor in Bareilly.

The corridor will be built by connecting Alakhnath Temple, Madhinath, Tapeshwar Nath, Dhopeshwar Nath, Pashupatinath, Vankhandi Nath Temple -- the seven mythological Nath temples in Bareilly city.

According to an official press release, the chief minister said a six-lane road should be developed around the Nath Corridor and electric buses/e-rickshaws be deployed to provide transport facility to people around the circuit.

"Develop footpaths for pedestrians, renovate Shiv temples within the circuit, provide facilities for pilgrims and beautify crossings in the area on the theme of Lord Shiva," he told officials.

This will be the first religious destination dedicated to the Nath sect in the state, to which Yogi Adityanath belongs.
New York, May 18 : Indian-American Captain Pratima Bhullar Maldonado has become the highest-ranking South Asian in the New York Police Department (NYPD), a position she was promoted to last month.

Maldonado runs the 102nd Police Precinct in South Richmond Hill -- home to one of the largest Sikh communities in the US -- and is now the NYPD's first female South Asian captain, CBS News reported.

The mother of four lived in Punjab until she was nine before moving to Queens.

"It feels like coming home. I spent more than 25 years of my life in this precinct when I was growing up," Maldonado said, adding that her new role will help with community policing.

The top-ranking cop told CBS News that it wasn't easy climbing the ranks.

"Getting out there and working, and protecting people that are cursing you out sometimes and not appreciating what you're doing, but you still got to do what you got to do," Maldonado said.

"It's a big responsibility. I want to be a better and positive example, not only for my community, for other females, kids that see us every day. Because that would change their perspective of how they view law enforcement," she said.

According to the NYPD, of the Department's 33,787 members, 10.5 per cent are Asian.

"I feel extremely proud. It's good to show other up and coming Asian, South Asian females that if you work hard enough you too can climb the ladder of success," Maldonado told CBS News.

Remembering her father, Maldonado said he drove a taxi in the US for many years to support the family.

"He was a hard worker. He passed away in 2006, before I became a cop. He would have been so proud right now," she said.

Earlier this year, Lt Manmeet Colon, a 37-year-old Indian-origin Sikh woman officer, assumed charge as the assistant police chief in the state of Connecticut, becoming the department's first-ever second-in-command of Asian descent.
Varanasi : , May 18 (IANS) Apparently upset over a family dispute, a 35-year-old man hanged himself to death after going live on Facebook.

His family was not at home at the time of the incident.

When the victim, Kanad Raghuvanshi's relatives, reached the room, they found his body hanging.

Some family dispute is stated to be the cause behind the incident.

The Lalpur police reached the spot and sent the body for post-mortem.

Before hanging himself, Kanad was seen saying on camera, "Lost from my home, lost from my brothers and lost from the people I considered mine. I apologize to my wife. I apologize to my family and father. Father, I will never be worthy of you." The deceased was the brother of a social worker, Lenin Raghuvanshi, who runs an NGO.

Lenin has gone abroad to participate in a programme in Manila.

According to the locals, Kanad had married the girl he loved from another caste in September 2021. His financial condition deteriorated after marriage, as he was unemployed and the relatives stopped helping him. Moreover, he was disturbed due to some family disputes. He had also become addicted to drugs, police said.
Srinagar, May 18 : Security forces on Thursday busted a terrorist hideout in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district.

Officials said a joint team of the Army and local police detected a hideout in the Kasbalari village of Mendhar tehsil in the district during searches of the area.

The search party found an IED and other explosive material hidden inside the hideout.

"An improvised explosive device (IED) and other explosive material found inside the hideout was defused safely by the bomb disposal squad in presence of the village Sarpanch," officials said.
Rudraprayag : , May 18 (IANS) A recent study conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has found that Rudraprayag's Tungnath temple has tilted slightly.

The report said that the temple has tilted by around five to six degrees, and the idols and smaller structures within the complex have also tilted by 10 degrees which has raised concerns about the existence of the temple.

Located at an altitude of 12,800 feet in the Garhwal Himalayas, the temple is the world's highest Shiva shrine.

Manoj Kumar Saxena, the Superintendent Archaeologist of Dehradun Circle, has expressed grave concerns about the tilting of the temple which may cause problems in the future. Therefore, an inspection of the temple is being done to know the reason for the tilting and damage caused.

The report said that the ASI will find the root cause of the damage in case it can be repaired immediately. Along with this, complete data will be prepared after inspection of the temple premises.

At the same time, the ASI officials are also ascertaining the reasons for the sliding and subsidence of the lower part of the temple which might be the cause of its tilting.

According to Saxena, the damaged foundation stones will be replaced after consulting experts. For now, the agency has fixed glass scales that can measure the movement on the walls of the main temple.

Earlier also a letter was written to the ASI by the Central government to take over the temple. The government is considering it to be declared as a monument of national importance. It has given a two-month period to register any objections.

The Badri Kedar Temple Committee (BKTC) and the local authorities of the temple have raised objections to handing over the Tungnath temple to the ASI.

This temple also comes under Badri Kedar Mandir Committee like the Kedarnath Dham.

Locals only worship in the Tungnath temple. However, priests are not appointed here by the Badri Kedar Temple Committee. Till date, the management of this temple has been under the Badri Kedar Temple Committee and the local authorities.

The Badri Kedar Temple Committee and the rights holders have decided to oppose the declaration of the temple as a national heritage.

Ajendra Ajay, Chairman of the Badri Kedar Temple Committee, said that a notification has been issued by the ASI to take the Tungnath temple under its protection. Along with this, objections have also been sought in the matter.

"In the board meeting, this proposal has been discussed with the officials and the local authorities. If everyone is objecting to handing over the temple to the ASI, then the temple committee will also register an objection." In Tungnath temple, Lord Shiva is worshiped as the third Kedar out of the Panch Kedars. This temple is a religious place as well as a beautiful tourist attraction where devotees and tourists throng throughout the year.

Tungnath Dham, a tourist destination known as 'Mini Switzerland'.
New York, May 18 : Sukhcharn Singh, an Indian-American cab driver in New York City who drove Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for a short while while they tried to escape the paparazzi, said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex "looked nervous" during the brief ride.

Speaking to the BBC, Singh, who goes by the name Sonny, said that he picked the couple up at a local police precinct in Midtown Manhattan.

"I was on 67th Street and then the security guard hailed me. Next thing you know, Prince Harry and his wife were hopping into my cab," he said.

"We got blocked by a garbage truck, and all of a sudden paparazzi came and started taking pictures." The couple were about to share their destination, when the security guard made the call to return to the police precinct, Singh told the BBC.

"They looked nervous, I think they were being chased the whole day or something," he said, adding: "They were pretty nervous, but the security guard, he was on it." On Tuesday night, the couple had attended an awards ceremony in the city along with Meghan's mother Doria Ragland.

When they were chased by numerous photographers after leaving, the couple tried to take shelter from the paparazzi by going to a Manhattan police station -- which is where Singh picked them up.

For at least the few minutes they were in Singh's car, he did not believe they were in danger.

"I don't think that's true, I think that's all exaggerated and stuff like that. Don't read too much into that," Singh told the BBC.

He later added "that must have happened before" they got in his taxi.

"New York City's the safest place to be... There's police stations, cops on every corner, there's no reason to be afraid in New York." The paparazzi were not being aggressive during his drive, he said.

"They were behind us. I mean, they stayed on top of us, that was pretty much it, it was nothing more. They kept their distance." In a statement, Harry and Meghan's spokesperson said they had experienced a "near catastrophic car chase".

The New York police also said numerous photographers "made their transport challenging".

Singh also described Harry and Meghan as "nice people".

"At the end of the trip, they say, 'Oh nice meeting you'," and asked his name, Singh recalled.

As his passengers disembarked, the security guard paid and tipped him for the ride.

"It was great. Ten-minute drive, $50... What can you ask for? You can't beat that," he told the BBC.
Quito, May 18 : Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso has dissolved the opposition-controlled National Assembly, or parliament, by decree amid an impeachment process against him.

Lasso made the announcement on Wednesday, citing a constitutional mechanism, known as "muerte cruzada" (mutual death), that allows the President to dissolve the National Assembly, call general elections and rule by decree for six months, reports Xinhua news agency.

The mechanism was introduced in 2008 and has never been used in Ecuador before.

It is seen as an extreme measure and is expected to trigger protests from opposition groups.

Lasso however, argued it was necessary "due to a grave political crisis and internal commotion".

The President accused the opposition-controlled National Assembly of obstructing reform.

He said it was impossible to "solve the problems of Ecuadorean families... when there is a National Assembly whose political mission it is to destabilise democracy".

Also on Wednesday, military personnel were deployed inside and outside the National Assembly headquarters in the capital Quito, as metal fences were put in place.

Legislators who were inside the building were removed while others were prevented from entering, according to National Assembly communications staff.

Interior Minister Juan Zapata arrived at the scene to ensure compliance with the decree and reinforce security in case of possible violence.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador condemned the decision to dissolve the National Assembly, and announced an "extraordinary council" to analyse the situation and decide what its next steps will be.

The impeachment proceedings against Lasso opened in the National Assembly on Tuesday.

The 67-year-old former banker, is accused by the opposition of embezzling funds through a contract signed between state-owned oil tanker fleet Flota Petrolera Ecuatoriana and the privately-owned company Amazonas Tanker, for the rental of vessels to ship hydrocarbons.

The contract was signed in 2018 and renewed in 2020, before he took office in May 2021.

But his opponents claimed he allowed the business arrangement to continue despite knowing it meant losses for the state.

Lasso argued in his defence and accused the opposition of making the "absurd accusation" to create instability.

This is the first time in Ecuador's 44 years as a democracy that a President has faced possible ouster by the legislative branch.

The vote on impeachment could take place as early as May 20.

Impeachment requires the votes of two-thirds of the 137-member Assembly, or 92 lawmakers.

The trial has gripped the nation, which went through a period of political upheaval between August 1996 and January 2007, when Ecuador was governed by seven presidents with three of them being overthrown.
Kiev, May 18 : Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Thursday claimed that Russia has aerially attacked the Ukrainian capital for the ninth time this month.

In a Telegram post, Klitschko said that falling debris started a in a garage in the Darnitsya area of Kiev, but added no one had been injured, reports the BBC.

The capital's military administration said preliminary information indicated that all incoming missiles had been destroyed.

Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration, said a heavy missile attack was launched from Russian strategic bombers over the Caspian sea.

Popko said the attack probably included cruise missiles, adding that Russia had deployed reconnaissance drones over Kiev after unleashing its wave of air strikes, the BBC reported.

He said a second fire had broken out in a non-residential building in the city's Desnyansky area, but did not give details on injuries or damages.

On Thursday, blasts were also heard in central Ukrainian regions of Vinnitsa, Khmelnitsky and Zhytomyr.

Ukraine said it had shot down six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles as part of an "exceptionally dense" attack on Tuesday.

At least eight people were reportedly killed, including a five-year-old boy, and 17 others injured near Kherson due to shelling on Wednesday.
Mumbai, May 18 : Following the release of 'The Kerala Story' in the UK, the team behind the film addressed the media to celebrate the success of the film. The film, according to its makers, is likely to cross the Rs 190-crore-mark in India today.

'The Kerala Story' has been facing the backlash of a certain political parties and groups that have claimed that the film is not based on facts, and propagates hatred against the Muslim community.

The West Bengal government has declared a ban on 'The Kerala Story' in the state and in Tamil Nadu, exhibitors have withdrawn it from theatres, but the film has still become a commercial success.

At the press conference, Vipul Amrutlal Shah, the film producer, claimed that uncovering the truth behind "this hidden scandal" was of paramount importance.

People are trying to claim that this movie is a fake, the makers are lying and the film is filthy, which is not the case. The film is bigger than just the story of three girls, Shah said.

Shah used the occasion to announce that he had donated Rs 51 lakh to the Aarsha Vidya Samajam Ashram, which takes care of survivors of religion conversion. The makers also invited 26 girls from the Ashram to interact with the media along with the film's ensemble cast.

'The Kerala Story' follows the story of a group of women from the state who are converted to Islam and join the jihadist group ISIS.
Kochi, May 18 : The Kerala High Court will, on Monday, take up a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a ban on children performing 'Thee Chamundi Theyyam', a customary dance that is prevalent in northern Malabar district of the state.

Theyyam is a traditional religious ritualistic practice in northern Kerala and the Thee Chamundi Theyyam is one of its forms.

Filed by an NGO Dhisha Foundation, the petition claims that this art form affects the well-being of children.

A division bench of the Court has already asked the petitioner to implead the Malabar Devasom Board and the trustees of the temple under which the dance performance is conducted.

The PIL submitted that the children selected to perform in said customary dance are from a backward community and are a relic of the feudal past.
Chennai, May 18 : The spurious liquor tragedy of Tamil Nadu that took 22 lives has become a major talking point in the state and the police and the Prohibition and Enforcement Wing (PEW) of the state government have come under flak for their failure in preventing the spurious liquor flow and subsequent deaths.

22 people died and 55 people were admitted in various hospitals of Villupuram and Chengalpattu districts of Tamil Nadu after consuming spurious liquor.

The AIADMK general secretary and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) has directed all the district committees of the party to conduct corner programmes at the taluk level and to apprise people of the failing law and order situation in Tamil Nadu. The opposition is also planning to step up its agitation against the Tamil Nadu minister for Excise and Prohibition Senthil Balaji and has called upon the resignation of the minister owning responsibility.

DMK government has drawn flak over the involvement of party local level functionaries in crime-related activities ever since the party came to power in 2021.

DMK Tindivanam municipal councilor Ramya's husband Raja has been slapped with Goonda Act after he was arrested with 5,000 litres of illicit arrack and 180 litres of rectified spirit. The AIADMK has pointed out that all those arrested in the hooch tragedy have connection in one or the other way with the ruling DMK.

Police have also arrested more than 2000 people in the crackdown against illicit liquor and the AIADMK said that the police were hand in glove with the bootleggers.

Party leader and Member of Parliament, C.V. Shanmughan who is a former law minister of Tamil Nadu has called upon the state government to conduct proper raids at the factories from where methanol is procured.

The AIADMK leader also said that the DMK local-level leaders were flaunting their party contacts to be part of the illegal liquor sale.
Dharamshala: PBKS' Atharva Taide celebrates his half-century during the IPL 2023 match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, at HPCA Stadium, in Dharamshala, on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. (Photo:Raj Kumar/IANS) Image Source: IANS News

Dharamshala: PBKS' Atharva Taide celebrates his half-century during the IPL 2023 match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, at HPCA Stadium, in Dharamshala, on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. (Photo:Raj Kumar/IANS) Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, May 18 : Former India batter Mohammad Kaif hit out at Punjab Kings (PBKS) for retiring out set-batter Atharva Taide mid-way through the chase in the IPL 2023 match against Delhi Capitals, citing it an 'extremely poor decision'.

Chasing 214, when Punjab needed 86 runs in 30 balls, a tactical move saw PBKS retire out Taide in the 15th over, bringing an end to a 50-ball 78-run second-wicket partnership with Liam Livingstone.

Taide scored a 42-ball 55 as Livingstone's stunning knock of unbeaten 82 off 37 went in vain as the Shikhar Dhawan-led side went on to lose the match by 15 runs at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala on Wednesday to virtually bow out of the playoff race.

Speaking during the post-match discussion on Star Sports, Kaif criticised PBKS decision by citing an example of Rinku Singh and Rahul Tewatia.

"Extremely poor decision to ask him to come out. Why do you talk about Rinku Singh and Tewatia? Rinku Singh was a run-a-ball at the start and Tewatia was on 13 off 21 balls. They hit five sixes after that," Kaif said.

"Taide was scoring at a strike rate of 130 and was a set batter alongside Liam Livingstone. Livingstone was playing fast and Taide was performing his role. He is an uncapped player who was hitting fours and sixes." he said.

Kaif further pointed out that the Kings' incoming batters after Taide were all dismissed quickly, adding that such moves rarely produce the desired outcomes.

"He had gotten his eye in and you asked him to come out when it was the time to hit sixes. Very bad decision because who came after that - Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan and Sam Curran - all of them came and got out. If the decision had been good, I would have praised them.

"If you check the stats, whenever such a thing has been done that a set batter has been asked to come out, how many times has the new batter won the match? Show me the stats, I will concede defeat," he added.

Latest updates on IPL 2023
Los Angeles, May 18 : Hollywood actor Eddie Murphy is readying his magnifying glass, as the actor is in talks to star as Inspector Clouseau in upcoming 'Pink Panther' film.

The reboot of the classic property will be directed by 'Sonic the Hedgehog' filmmaker Jeff Fowler. Chris Bremner ('Bad Boys for Life,' 'The Man From Toronto') is writing the script, while Rideback's Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich serve as producers alongside Larry Mirisch and Julie Andrews, reports Variety.

'The Pink Panther' franchise began with the 1963 comedy film starring Peter Sellers as Inspector Jacques Clouseau. Sellers would go on to reprise the role in 1964's 'A Shot in the Dark,' 1975's 'The Return of the Pink Panther,' 1976's 'The Pink Panther Strikes Again' and 1978's 'Revenge of the Pink Panther.' The role has also been inhabited by Alan Arkin, Roger Moore and Steve Martin.

The IP extends to books, video games and animated series based on the bumbling French police detective and the titular character, which started out as only an animated character in an opening sequence.

'The Pink Panther' refers to the name of a valuable pink diamond at the centre of a heist in the original film.

Murphy most recently starred in Netflix's 'You People' alongside Jonah Hill, Lauren London and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The film centred on an interracial relationship and the ensuing culture clash between the couple's respective Black and Jewish families.

He's best known for leading comedy classics 'The Nutty Professor' and 'Coming to America,' as well as voicing Donkey in the 'Shrek' franchise. After Murphy publicly expressed interest in a Donkey spinoff movie, Variety reported in April that Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri is open to the idea while also currently assembling the original voice cast for a fifth 'Shrek' movie.
London, May 18 : A team of Swedish researchers have found evidence for how the common herpes virus -- Epstein-Barr -- can trigger multiple sclerosis or drive disease progression of the neurological disease.

The herpesvirus Epstein-Barr is one of the most widespread viruses in humans It infects most people early in life and then remains in the body, usually without causing symptoms.

While the link between Epstein-Barr virus and multiple sclerosis (MS) was discovered many years ago, the mechanism was not known.

A study published in Science Advances shows that some individuals have antibodies against the virus that mistakenly attack a protein in the brain and spinal cord.

"MS is an incredibly complex disease, but our study provides an important piece in the puzzle and could explain why some people develop the disease," said Olivia Thomas, postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

"We have discovered that certain antibodies against the Epstein-Barr virus, which would normally fight the infection, can mistakenly target the brain and spinal cord and cause damage," she added.

The researchers analysed blood samples from more than 700 patients with MS and 700 healthy individuals.

They found that antibodies that bind to a certain protein in the Epstein-Barr virus, EBNA1, can also bind to a similar protein in the brain and spinal cord called CRYAB, whose role is to prevent protein aggregation during conditions of cellular stress such as inflammation.

These misdirected, cross-reactive antibodies may damage the nervous system and cause severe symptoms in MS patients, including problems with balance, mobility and fatigue.

The antibodies were present in about 23 per cent of MS patients and 7 per cent of control individuals.

"This shows that, whilst these antibody responses are not required for disease development, they may be involved in disease in up to a quarter of MS patients," said Olivia Thomas.

The researchers also found that there is likely a similar cross-reactivity among T cells of the immune system.

This demonstrates the high variation between patients, highlighting the need for personalised therapies.

Current therapies are effective at reducing relapses in MS but unfortunately, none can prevent disease progression, Thomas said.
Jaipur, May 18 : Former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje has accused the Gehlot government of taking the Jaipur serial blast case lightly and following the policy of appeasement.

Attacking the state government, she tweeted (in Hindi), "The government deliberately took such a serious matter lightly, otherwise the decision of the lower court would have been upheld by the High Court and the Supreme Court. In this case, the Advocates General did not advocate for 45 days. In such a situation, there is a doubt whether this happened at the behest of the government?" Her reaction came after the Supreme Court's hearing on Wednesday in which SC refused to completely stay the High Court's decision acquitting the four accused in the Jaipur serial blasts. While giving relief to the police officers investigating the blast case, the decision of investigation against them has been stayed. This case will now be sent to the Chief Justice's bench. The next hearing will be on August 9.

Raje in fact blamed Congress, and said, "In May 2008, the Jaipur bomb blast case, which left Pink City blood-stained, killed 80 people and people became handicapped, the Congress government did not follow up properly. This decision of the Supreme Court is the result of that." "Do the victims' screams not reach the ears of this government? Did the government not do this because of appeasement?

"The way negligence was done in this, it is clear that the Congress government of the state is guilty. According to the intention of the government, the accused of the bomb blast in Jaipur may have been acquitted for the time being, but the people suffering from their misrule will definitely answer it on time, she said.

On May 13, 2008, Jaipur city was rocked by serial bomb blasts at eight places. On March 29, the Rajasthan High Court acquitted four men who were sentenced to death in December 2019 by the trial court.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 18) ordered the release of the four people who were acquitted by the Rajasthan high court. The Supreme Court also put a stay on the High Court's direction, in which the DGP was asked to take action against the ATS officers who conducted the investigation.

A division bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Rajesh Bindal gave this order on Wednesday while approving the hearing of the SLP of the state government. The court has asked the trial court to produce the record of the case. The responsibility of ensuring this has been given to the state government. The court said that this matter is related to death reference. In such a situation, it should be sent before the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court so that a three-judge bench can be formed for the next hearing on August 9.
Mumbai, May 18 : After the initial first-look poster, the makers of 'Maamannan', with Tamil Nadu Minister for Youth Affairs and actor Udhayanidhi Stalin and Vedivelu in the lead roles, will release the first single on May 19.

Helmed by Mari Selvaraj, the Tamil film, billed as a political thriller, also stars Fahadh Faasil and Keerthy Suresh. A.R. Rahman has been roped in to compose the music for the film. Theni Eswar helms cinematography and Selva RK is in charge of editing.

The Red Giant Movies official handle shared the first-look poster for the song and tweeted, "Get ready for the musical storm. The first song from #MAAMANNAN drops on May 19th." The film has been bankrolled by Red Giant Movies, which is Udhayanidhi Stalin's production house.

Udhayanidhi, who was last seen in 'Psycho' and 'Nenjuku Needhi', has announced that 'Maamannan' will be his last film as an actor. It is, incidentally, director Mari Selvaraj's third film after 'Pariyerum Perumal' and 'Karnan'.

-- Syndicated from IANS
Kolkata, May 18 : The nine workers killed in the illegal firecracker factory explosion in West Bengal's East Midnapore district were forced to take up the job owing to acute poverty and lack of alternative income opportunities.

According to sources from the state government, the provision of 100-day job scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in the entire Egra block, like many other pockets in West Bengal, had been suspended for around the last couple of years due to paucity of funds under the scheme.

In such a situation, local people claim that owners of illegal factories in the region like that of Krishnapada Bag a.k,a. Bhanu provided an opportunity offering a daily wage of Rs 400 to those looking for jobs.

"Despite knowing the acute risk involved, these poor people were forced to accept the offers from people like Bhanu. The Trinamool Congress- controlled panchayats actually looted money by creating fake job-cards and fake master-roles. Because of this rampant corruption, the central funds under the job scheme have been stopped and people are forced to look for alternative jobs even at the cost of risking their lives," said local BJP leader Mamata Maiti.

Admitting that some people are often getting lured because of the lack of alternative income opportunities, the local Trinamool Congress MLA Tarun Maiti has alleged that the Union government had deliberately held back the funds under MGNREGA scheme out of vendetta after being defeated in the 2021 state Assembly polls.

"As long as the funds were there, all got jobs under the MGNREGA schemes. Even after the central funds were discontinued, the state government tried to continue with their limited resources, but it is impossible to continue with the scheme for long without the Centre's grants," he said.
New Delhi, May 18 : A 30-year-old man was shot dead by unknown assailants near the Jama Masjid here on Thursday, a police official said.

The deceased was identified as Sameer, a resident of Chawri Bazar.

According to the official, the Jama Masjid police station received a PCR call at around 1.40 a.m. regarding the incident.

"A police team reached the spot and found the injured victim and shifted him the hospital where he was declared brought dead. The deceased had a bullet injury on his head," he said.

Preliminary investigation has suggested that the assailants had come there and fired upon the deceased resultantly, he received bullet injury on his head.

The official said the victim was the brother-in-law of the owner of Ya-Rub-Chala De Hotel near Jama Masjid.

"The hotel is also near the spot where the incident occurred," the official said, adding that legal action under appropriate sections of law has been initiated and an investigation is ongoing.
New Delhi, May 18 : After the suspense on the next Karnataka Chief Minister ended, Chief Minister candidate Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM face D.K. Shivakumar arrived at the residence of party chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday, and together posed for photographs.

Before arriving at the residence, both leaders went separately to meet party general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal at his residence in the morning.

After meeting Venugopal, both the leaders along with Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala arrived at Kharge's residence in the same vehicle.

Venugopal will be holding a press conference at the party headquarters here in the afternoon.

The Congress has called the meeting of the CLP on Thursday evening in Bengaluru.

The decision for the top post came after deliberations by Kharge for three consecutive days with the three central observers, former party chief Rahul Gandhi, party leaders Surjewala and Venugopal.

The Congress won in Karnataka by emerging victorious on 135 seats in the 224-member Assembly. The BJP won 66 and JD(S) secured 18 seats.
New Delhi, May 18 : Pizza Hut, installs a one-of-its-kind AI-powered mood detector device that studies facial cues and expressions of customers and gives them recommendations for pizzas that best match their moods with "Your Mood, Your Pizza" campaign.

The brand becomes the first-ever QSR brand to use the power of AI to understand the mood of its consumers to help them choose what they crave. This device is installed in select restaurants across Delhi, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai.

The mood detector uses innovative technology that offers a unique and personalised ordering experience. All you need to do is stand in front of the device, look into the screen, and leave it on the detector to calibrate your mood and flash its pizza recommendation before you.

The device uses a statistical model that detects facial expressions by analyzing landmarks on the face such as eye movements, smiles, frowns, etc. captured by the camera. The model compares these patterns against a database of hundreds of thousands of publicly available images. Customers' privacy is protected because the AI only stores face patterns as numbers and does not save any images in any format.

Aanandita Datta, Chief Marketing Officer, Pizza Hut India said, "At Pizza Hut, we believe that dining is more than just eating - it's about the entire experience. With our new AI-powered mood detector, we're taking that experience to the next level by offering personalised pizza recommendations based on our customers' moods. We're thrilled to bring this innovative technology to our customers and offer a new and exciting way for them to interact with our brand. This is just one of the many ways that we're striving to provide the best possible service to our customers and can't wait to see their reactions!" The AI-enabled device gives pizza recommendations in both veg and non-veg variants from Pizza Hut's new range of 10 exciting and unique flavours like Mazedar Makhni Paneer, Dhabe Da Keema, Cheezy Mushroom Magic, Mexican Fiesta, Awesome American Cheesy, and Nawabi Murg Makhni, among others. The mood detector will be installed at the following Pizza Hut restaurants for a limited period, following the below schedule: Store Schedule

Delhi

Janpath, New Delhi, May 10 to May 17

Saket, New Delhi, May 19 to May 26

Bengaluru

Nexus Mall, Koramangala, Bengaluru, May 10 to May 17

Mantri Mall, Bengaluru, May 19 to May 26

Lucknow

West End Mall, Lucknow, May 29 to June 5

Engineering Crossing, Lucknow, June 7 to June 14

Chennai

Ashok Nagar Metro Station, Chennai, May 29 to June 5

Phoenix Market City, June 7 to June 14

Hyderabad

Sarath City Mall, Gachibowli, Hyderabad June 17 to June 24

GSM Mall, Miyapur Main Road, June 26 to July 3

(IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)
New Delhi, May 18 : Technology and the fashion industry have always looked to be on completely different wavelengths. While technology is linked to innovation, efficiency, and utility, fashion stands for the art of self-expression, creativity, and personal flair. But recently, these seemingly unrelated professions have come together, creating an intriguing and revolutionary junction of style and invention. The fusion of fashion and technology has revolutionised how we dress and created a world of intriguing new possibilities.

The advent of wearable technology is one of the most obvious examples of the blending of fashion and technology. Wearable technology has developed from simple gadgets to stylish items that are integrated into our daily lives. These gadgets, which range from smart glasses that offer augmented reality experiences to smartwatches that monitor our fitness and health parameters, are concurrently altering how we connect with technology and fashion.

Along with wearables, new fabrics, and materials have opened up fresh opportunities for fashion design. Intelligent fabrics that are capable of much more than just covering our bodies have been made possible by advancements in fabric technology. Today, it is possible to create fabrics that can control body temperature, keep track of vital indicators, and even emit light or alter colour. The fascinating possibilities from the marriage of fashion and technology include dresses that change colour to fit your mood or jackets that regulate their warmth based on the outside temperature.

The shopping experience has changed dramatically as a result of technology's incorporation into fashion. Online marketplaces and smartphone applications have developed into essential tools for fashion fans, offering a practical method to find, try on, and buy apparel and accessories. Customers may virtually try on clothing, see how they might appear in various designs, and customize their purchasing experiences thanks to augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technology. The precision of size and fit is improved by these technologies, which also help businesses lessen the environmental effect of unnecessary returns and trash.

The development of technology has also benefited sustainability, a topic that is becoming more and more significant in the fashion sector. To lessen the negative environmental effects of the fashion industry, novel methods, and materials have been created. Technology is promoting a more circular and sustainable fashion business, from the 3D printing of clothing to the usage of recycled and bio-based materials. Blockchain technology is also being investigated to improve traceability and transparency in the supply chain, assuring moral business practices and employees receive fair treatment.

Technology and fashion, formerly thought to be entirely unconnected, have now come together to form an alluring and ground-breaking synergy. The confluence of fashion and innovation has revolutionised how we dress and opened up a world of exciting possibilities.

The ways that technology and fashion interact have changed fashion's presentation and consumption, in addition to its design and manufacturing. With the help of live streaming and virtual reality experiences, fashion shows-once private occasions reserved for industry insiders-have become increasingly open to all people. Social media platforms have developed into effective tools for fashion firms to promote their designs, interact with customers, and get real-time feedback.

Future possibilities are even more intriguing as the interplay between fashion and technology continues to develop. Algorithms for artificial intelligence and machine learning may be used to study customer preferences and trends, resulting in more specialised suggestions and experiences. Real-time health monitoring might be made possible by incorporating sensors and networking in clothing, offering useful information for healthcare prevention. Additionally, the fusion of fashion and technology may inspire fresh partnerships between designers, engineers, and scientists, leading to ground-breaking breakthroughs that go beyond our present capacity for conception.

Today, rather than being two distinct fields, fashion, and technology are mutually reinforcing factors. The combination of fashion and innovation can completely alter how we shop, wear, and see fashion. In this area, innovation, usability, and sustainability come together to open new possibilities. The future seems very bright for those at the vanguard of this dynamic and revolutionary alliance as fashion and technology continue to cross; the only restriction is our imagination.

(Dhruv Taneja, CEO of Pratapsons Jaipur) (IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)
New Delhi, May 18: Mama Qadeer Baloch and his organisation - Voice of Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) completes 5,000 days of strike on April 1, 2023. Mama Qadeer Baloch has been protesting against atrocities carried out by Pakistan against the Baloch community by way of enforced disappearances.

He even broke Mahatma Gandhi's record of Dandi March and walked 2,000 km on foot from Quetta to Islamabad to highlight human right issues of Balochistan.

India Narrative speaks to Mama Qadeer Baloch in an online interview about his movement related to enforced disappearances of the members of his community, human right violations by Pakistan, his trip to India and much more.

Excerpts: IN: You have been protesting since the last 14 years. What were those circumstances which instigated you? MQB: I was a banker by profession and only four months were left in my retirement when my oldest son Jalel Ahmed Reki was forcibly disappeared by the ISI on November 13, 2009 from our house. This case of enforced disappearance was also confirmed by former Chief Minister of Balochistan, Aslam Raisani and who even informed us. To highlight my son's disappearance, the Chairperson of Defence of Human Rights Pakistan, Amina Masood Janjua visited Balochistan, met with the Chief Minister and held a press conference at the Quetta Press Club.

After my retirement, I decided that we should make our own organization consisting of all those people who have lost their loved ones to the menace of enforced disappearance and this became the basis of our protest camps. Nobody can understand the pain of a missing person more than their family members. Further we made sure that no NGOs or political organisations try to utilise our just cause for their own benefit or sabotage the same. Since our movement has begun, we have had to face a lot of struggle. Even after several years of intimidation and threats by ISI, we have completed 5,047 days as of today and counting.

IN: As per your records, how many Baloch are victims of enforced disappearances by the Pakistan Army and how many mutilated bodies have been discovered? MQB: The long march held by Voice of Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) was for a specific reason to highlight the atrocities on Baloch by Pakistan. At least 20,000 mutilated bodies have been found till now and 60,000 Baloch continue to be missing. As we speak, there is a genocide happening in Balochistan by the ISI and Pakistani forces wherein the common man, political workers, labourers, doctors, teachers, lawyers, intellectuals etc. are either being killed or are subject to enforced disappearances. We used to hear stories of barbarian kings like Mongol ruler Hulagu Khan who ransacked Baghdad and killed millions of people but the Pakistani Establishment and Pakistani Punjabis have crossed his limits.

IN: Do you think the commission on missing persons formed under the chairmanship of Sardar Akhtar Mengal will yield any results? MQB: All these commissions and committees on missing persons formed by the government have no authority, they are for namesake. Millions of dollars are wasted on these commissions and till date not one missing person has been presented in the court of law. Government formed a commission for missing persons earlier under the chairmanship of Justice (Retd.) Javed Iqbal. Justice Iqbal is a known womaniser and rather than doing his duty he tried to sexually abuse the wives of missing persons and made them illicit offers.

He is said to have told one victim "why do you need your husband when I am there?" A lot of women have complained about his lecherous behaviour with evidence. Do you think such commissions or committees can do any justice? Sardar Akhtar Mengal and his commission members have submitted their report to the Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court (IHC) and even informed VBMP of the same. But till today we don't see any action on that report, even Chief Justice of IHC is being stopped and warned not to take any action on the report as per the law by the Pakistani Establishment. These committees are useless and cannot get any result while on a daily basis Baloch are being abducted, killed and Balochistan is being bombed.

IN: Why do you think the UN and other human rights organisations do not give enough attention to the human rights issues faced by the Baloch? MQB: We have written to the UN and made submissions to several human rights organisations in the US, Canada, Europe etc. and made them aware about the issue of enforced disappearances in Balochistan and as a result UNHRC met with VBMP and other concerned individuals in Balochistan.

They condemned the brutality of Pakistan and called upon it to stop all military operations in Balochistan, initiate recovery of missing persons and complete restraint on its kill-and-dump policy. On another front, US Congressman Dana Rohrabacher highlighted Pakistan forcible occupation on Balochistan and how Pakistan is doing genocide of Baloch. He also tabled a bill in the US House of Representatives for Baloch's Right to Self-Determination and that the US should stop supporting Pakistan financially.

I believe the US has put a lot of pressure on Pakistan concerning Balochistan and the US is showing its remorse towards Pakistan by degrading their financial and military help to Pakistan. Even the IMF is not giving loans to Pakistan and has kept stringent conditions and this is also one of the tactics played by the US. While the US is doing its part but Pakistan continues unabated in its human right abuses of Baloch but one day Pakistan will learn its lesson.

IN: In 2018 you visited India. Please tell us about your trip? MQB: I stayed in India for about two months. I started my journey with Uttar Pradesh where I got my grandchild treated for a medical condition. While in Uttar Pradesh, I visited Bilochpura which is a small hamlet of the Baloch in India. I also visited the holy city of Benares. Thereafter I stayed in Delhi for a month where I visited Delhi University and interacted with students. I got tremendous media coverage in India. I was invited to English and Hindi/Urdu news programmes where I informed them about the situation in Balochistan and how Pakistan is creating new records of torture on Baloch and destroying their properties, livestock and the land of Balochistan.

IN: Do you have any message for India and Indians? MQB: For hundreds of years, Hindu and Muslim Baloch have been staying together. And even today in Balochistan, Hindu community resides with us and more than Muslims we respect as they are our guests. Our relationship has transcended centuries, both our communities admire the other and always want the best for the other. We aspire to live together as we are one people, Inshallah! The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative
Canberra, May 18 : Australian authorities have identified a large area in the Indian Ocean where they will focus the search for a capsized Chinese fishing vessel.

A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) told Xinhua news agency on Thursday that, based on drift modeling, a remote 12,000 square km zone has been identified to search for the vessel.

A Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel capsized on Tuesday in the central Indian Ocean, which has so far left 39 people on board missing -- 17 Chinese mariners, 17 Indonesian mariners and five Philippine mariners.

An AMSA spokesperson said on Thursday that they continued to coordinate a multinational search effort after a distress beacon signal was received by AMSA from the fishing vessel at about 5.30 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

AMSA requested assistance from the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

An ADF P-8A Poseidon aircraft was tasked with assisting with the long-range search. The ADF aircraft will re-join the search on Thursday after overnighting in the Maldives.

A private charter aircraft from Perth with State Emergency Service (SES) observers on board, also assisted with the search on Wednesday and will re-join the search on Thursday.

"A number of merchant ships and other vessels have been assisting with the search and will continue to do so today. AMSA would like to thank these vessels and their crews for their invaluable assistance," the spokesperson said on Thursday.

"Australia has been liaising with the Chinese Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), with three Chinese naval ships continuing the search in the area today." They said weather conditions have calmed significantly since Tuesday.
Chennai, May 18 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin will, on Friday, chair a meeting of ministers and officials at the secretariat here on the centenary celebrations of former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.

The ruling DMK has decided to celebrate the centenary of party leader and late Chief Minister, M. Karunanidhi on June 3.

According to sources, the DMK has decided to conduct an year-long celebration from June 2023 to June 2024.

It is planning to bring back several schemes that were implemented by the late leader which include welfare schemes.

The 'Kalaignar Koottam', which is constructed by the Dayalu Ammal Trust in memory of the late Chief Minister, will be inaugurated by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on June 15.

The 'Kalaignar Koottam' is situated at Kattur in Tiruvarur district and houses a museum, marriage halls besides other facilities.
Chennai, May 18 : The elite CB-CID of Tamil Nadu Police has begun probe into the liquor tragedy in Tamil Nadu.

As many as 22 people died and 55 were hospitalised after drinking spurious liquor in two separate incidents at Villupuram district and adjacent Chengalpattu district.

The distance between Marakannam in Villupuram and Maruthanthakam in Chengalpattu is just 50 km and police are probing whether same spurious liquor was distributed in both the places.

ADSP Gomathi is in charge of the CB-CID investigation in Villupuram district while ADSP Maheswari is heading the CB-CID team probing the Chengalpattu liquor deaths.

It is to be noted that of the 22 who lost their lives, 14 are from Marakkanam in Villupuram district while 8 are from Maruthanthakam in Chengalpattu district.

The Tamil Nadu Police have already arrested S. Elaya Nambi, a chemical engineer and owner of Jayashakthi chemicals Pvt Ltd, for supplying methanol which is used for industrial purposes. A murder charge has also been slapped against him.

The police have also levelled murder charges against 16 people who had distributed the spurious liquor in the Villupuram and Chengalpattu districts of Tamil Nadu.

As per the local police investigation, Elaya Nambi had sold 1200 litres of methanol at a cost of Rs 66,000 to Barkathullah alias Raja and R. Ezhumalai of Puducherry. Small-time bootleggers bought spirit in small amount from these people and distributed it to people at Ekkiyarkuppam at Marakkanam in Villupuram district and Sithamur near Maruthanthakam in Chengalpattu district.

It may be noted that the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has already issued a notice to Tamil Nadu government over the hooch tragedy.
Islamabad, May 18 : Four children were killed and three others injured in a wind storm in Pakistan's Punjab province, police said on Thursday.

The children were sitting beside the wall of a mosque in Mianwali district when it collapsed on them on Wednesday night, the police told the media.

The injured children were shifted to a nearby hospital where one of them is in critical condition, reports Xinhua news agency.

Pakistan is currently facing a weather pattern due to which wind and thunderstorms coupled with rain are expected to persist in the country till May 18, the meteorological department said in a statement.
Mumbai, May 18 : Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra shared a set of new unseen pictures from her engagement, which also featured a photograph of her father getting emotional and wiping his tears.

The actress shared some more pictures from her engagement along with a note about the intimate ceremony, which took place as per Sikh customs.

In the images, Parineeti had her hair covered with a sheer dupatta as she joined her hands and greeted a religious leader.

The next few photos showed the happy couple at the engagement ceremony. Parineeti's father Pawan Chopra was seen wiping his tears in the background in one of the pictures; he sat behind the couple.

Parineeti captioned: "Felt surreal to be blessed by the Jathedar of the Akal Takht Sahib, Singh Sahib Giani Harpreet Singh Ji. His sacred presence at our engagement meant everything to us."

The actress got engaged to AAP leader Raghav on May 13 in New Delhi in an intimate ceremony, which was attended by Priyanka Chopra Jonas and some renowned politicians.

-- Syndicated from IANS
New Delhi, May 18 : In a major cabinet reshuffle on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed Arjun Ram Meghwal as the new Minister of Law and Justice, and moved Kiren Rijiju to Earth Sciences.

Meghwal's appointment has come at a crucial time, when the central government and the Supreme Court have often not been on the same side in connection with the appointment of judges to the higher judiciary.

Rijjiju's term was controversial -- the government and the judiciary had a series of differences in connection with the appointment of judges -- and at a media event, last year, he had said that judges only recommend the appointment or elevation of those they know and not always the fittest person for the job.

Also, in November last year, Rijiju attacked the mechanism to appoint Supreme Court and high court judges, saying the collegium system is "alien" to the Constitution.

In February, the Supreme Court warned the Centre on the delay in clearing the transfer of high court judges recommended by the apex court collegium, saying it may result in both administrative and judicial actions which may not be palatable.

A bench comprising justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Abhay. S. Oka told the Attorney General R Venkataramani, representing the Centre, "Don't make us take a stand which will be very uncomfortable...", and further added that if transfer of judges is kept pending then it is a serious issue.

Justice Kaul said transfer is a very serious issue and warned against the interference of third parties in the process. He told the AG that sometimes the government does it overnight and sometimes it takes longer and there is no uniformity, and added that even chief justices' transfers are also pending.

The bench orally observed, "We will have to take a difficult decision. Do not make us take a hard stand" and told the AG, who said the court may not record anything as it is happening. Rijiju had stressed that the country would be governed according to the Constitution and the wishes of the people.

In January, Rijiju had said that the Supreme Court collegium publishing inputs of Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) and intelligence bureau (IB) on candidates recommended by the collegium for judgeship, is a serious issue.

Addressing the media at the felicitation of award winners of the e-courts project, Rijiju said that if a person is working for the nation, then he may think one day his R&AW and IB files can be made public. "It is a matter of concern.... It is a serious issue and one day I will speak on this," he said, while responding to a query regarding collegium's recent statements in public domain citing objections raised by the central government to recommendations made regarding the judges' appointment.

In January this year, the apex court collegium published on its website resolutions reiterating names of some advocates for judgeship in various high courts. The apex court cited inputs by R&AW and IB on candidates, whose files were returned by the Centre to the collegium for reconsideration.

In a statement, in connection with appointment of openly gay lawyer Saurabh Kripal as a judge of the Delhi High Court, the collegium said: "From the letters of the Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) dated 11 April 2019 and 18 March 2021, it appears that there are two objections to the recommendation which was made by the collegium of this courtAon 11 November 2021 approving the name of Saurabh Kirpal namely: (i) the partner of Saurabh Kirpal is a Swiss National, and (ii) he is in an intimate relationship and is open about his sexual orientation".

Reiterating Kripal's name, the collegium said there is no reason to pre-suppose that the partner of the candidate, who is a Swiss National, would be inimically disposed to our country, since the country of his origin is a friendly nation. "Many persons in high positions including present and past holders of constitutional offices have and have had spouses who are foreign nationals", it added.
Lahore, May 18 : The Punjab Police may launch a "grand operation" to arrest the "terrorists" allegedly holed up in Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khans Zaman Park residence in Lahore.

According to the police, all roads leading towards Zaman Park have been blocked and a heavy contingent of law enforcement is in the area, Geo News reported.

The Punjab government had given a 24-hour ultimatum to the PTI to hand over the "terrorists" who had taken refuge in the former Prime Minister's home.

The ultimatum would end at 2 p.m. on Thursday.

Sources said that the "grand operation" may be launched after the deadline ends, Geo News reported.

Sources shared that the inspector general of Punjab police and the capital city police officer (CCPO) have asked the police to remain "vigilant".

Punjab caretaker Information Minister Amir Mir said on Wednesday night that the provincial government has no plans so far of arresting the Khan.

"First let the 24-hour deadline expire then the government will reveal its plans," the provincial minister said.

The Minister's comment came hours after the PTI chief expressed fears that he would be arrested, Geo News reported.

"Probably my last tweet before my next arrest. Police has (sic) surrounded my house," the PTI chief -- who was ousted as the Prime Minister last year in April -- said in a tweet.

Amir Mir added that Khan is inciting people, "just like always".

The information minister said the PTI chief was "lying".

In his presser earlier in the day, the Minister gave the PTI a 24-hour deadline to hand over the "30-40 terrorists that have taken refuge" at the former Prime Minister's Lahore residence to the police.
Hyderabad, May 18 : Telangana BJP MLA Eatala Rajender on Thursday denied reports that he is planning to switch loyalties to Congress party.

He dismissed the reports published in a sections of media that he may join the Congress party.

The former minister tweeted that Telangana's four crore people want KCR's dictatorial rule to end. He stated that only the BJP-led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president J.P. Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah would be able to do this.

"The BJP leaders in the state of Telangana are united and constantly strive to proudly form BJP's government in Telangana. It is not my practice to switch parties, and it is inappropriate to publish such news without consulting me," he wrote.

Congress MP Komatireddy Venkat Reddy had said on Wednesday that the party was trying to rope in two suspended leaders of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and two BJP leaders.

The MP from Bhongir had said that he will talk to Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy and Rajender.

Venkat Reddy's brother, Rajagopal Reddy, who had joined BJP after resigning from Congress last year, lost the by-election to Munugode assembly seat, which he contested as BJP candidate.

Rajender had joined BJP in 2021 after resigning from TRS (now BRS) when Chief Minister KCR had dropped him from the Cabinet after allegations that he grabbed the lands of some farmers.

Rajender had also quit as MLA from Huzurabad and contested the by-election on BJP ticket. He won the by-election and emerged as a key leader of the saffron party.

The BJP leadership had rewarded Rajender by making him head of a committee to invite leaders from other parties to join the saffron party. He reportedly communicated to Amit Shah on Tuesday that the victory of Congress party in Karnataka assembly elections has hit joinings in Telangana BJP.

Rajender had also reportedly shared the opinion of several leaders within the party who are advocating for a change in the leadership of the party's state unit to strengthen the party by attracting leaders from other parties.

Rajender is said to be leading a group of dissidents who want the BJP central leadership to remove Bandi Sanjay Kumar as the state president.
Bengaluru, May 18 : The designated Deputy Chief Minister and Karnataka Congress President D.K. Shivakumar stated on Thursday that the state's secure future and people's welfare were his top priorities.

Taking to social media, Shivakumar, who was vying for the post of Chief Minister, announced, "Karnataka's secure future and our peoples welfare is our top priority, and we are united in guaranteeing that." Shivakumar also shared a picture with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and designated CM Siddaramaiah. The picture showed all three leaders raising their hands and expressing solidarity.

The designated Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah said soon after the announcement by the Congress, that "Our hands will remain united to protect the interests of Kannada people." Siddaramaiah said that the Congress party will work like a one family to fulfil all guarantees assured by the party. "The government will also ensure pro-people, transparent and corruption free administration," Sidddaramaiah said.
Mumbai, May 18 : Barely known before the political storm over 'The Kerala Story' catapulted her to national headlines, Adah Sharma has urged people to shower the love and appreciation they have shown for the film on the real-life victims of forced religion conversions.

Speaking to the media here on Wednesday evening, she said: "You have given so much love and appreciation, now it is time to listen to these girls' stories and appreciate them." 'The Kerala Story' team, including the quartet of Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Inani and Sonia Balani, director Sudipto Sen and producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah addressed the press conference.

The makers invited 26 young women victims of forced religous conversion from Aarsha Vidya Samajam Ashram, Ernakulam, Kerala, and introduced them to the media. They also donated Rs 51 lakh from the film's profits to the Ashram for the education and uplift of the women.

The controversial film, which has been released in 27 countries, narrates the story of three young women from economically weak families who are forced into marriage, converted to Islam and brainwashed into joining the jihadist organisation ISIS. The movie draws a lot of inspiration from real-life stories emerging out of Kerala.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a notice on a bail plea by Satyendar Jain, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former cabinet minister in the Delhi government, in a money laundering case.

Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, representing Jain, submitted before a bench comprising A.S. Bopanna and Hima Kohli that his client has extreme health problems, he has lost 35 kgs and is a skeleton now.

The apex court issued notice on Jain's plea and also gave him liberty to move the court's vacation bench seeking urgent listing of his plea against a Delhi High Court judgment denying him bail. The bench said, "Issue notice...liberty to move vacation bencha." Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju appeared for the Enforcement Directorate.

In April this year, the Delhi High Court had dismissed Jain and his two aides' bail pleas in a money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma said that Jain is an influential person and cannot be said to have satisfied the twin conditions for bail under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

"The simple fact is the CBI has filed a case of disproportionate assets (DA). The present court cannot go into the validity of these proceedings. Facts show that certain DA were masked. The court has to see the prima facie case. The broad probabilities indicate that the companies associated with him are controlled and managed by him. Learned special judge order (rejecting bail to Jain) does not have any perversity. Order is well reasoned," the judge said.

Jain has been in custody since May 30 last year. A trial court had, on November 17, 2022, dismissed the leader's bail application.

According to the trial court, it has prima facie come on record that Satyendar Jain was "actually involved" in hiding the proceeds of crime by paying cash to entry operators based in Kolkata and then bringing the money into three companies against the sale of shares to demonstrate that their revenues were clean.
Kolkata, May 18 : St. Xavier's University has have announced the beginning of four-year degree course in line with the National Education Policy this making these two institutes the first among all state varsities in West Bengal introducing this new system The same thing will also be introduced at the university's affiliate and iconic St Xavier's College in Kolkata.

The student opting for the new four-year undergraduate course, after completion of that course would be able to undertake a one- year post-graduation.

However, both St. Xavier's University and St. Xavier's College will continue with the old system of a three-year undergraduate course followed by a two-year post-graduation course.

Both the universities have made a formal announcement on this count on its website.

The authorities of both St. Xavier's University and St. Xavier's College have claimed to have completed the process of putting in place the infrastructure necessary to introduce this new academic system. The new system will be available for all the subjects taught in these two institutes.

It is learnt that students who will be completing a four-year undergraduate course, will have the option to either go for a one- year post-graduation course or straight go to Ph.D.

However, those opting for the second option of going straight to Ph.D will have to fulfill some criteria for that.

Students opting for research in the fourth year will have to score 75 per cent in the first six semesters and also complete a research project under any faculty member.

The decision of these two prime educational institutes of the state come at a time, when no other university in the state, especially the state-run universities are yet to spell out their concrete plan in the matter.

Even the TWest Bengal government has expressed its reservations on this count.
Bengaluru, May 18 : Designated Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar conveyed their wishes to former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, who is celebrating his 90th birthday on Thursday.

"Best birthday wishes to the former Prime Minister and senior leader of Janata Dal Shri. H.D. Deve Gowda. I wish him good health and happiness. May he continue to guide us to protect the interests of Kannadigas and our land, water and language," Siddaramaiah stated.

Shivakumar stated that, "Birthday wishes for the former PM and senior leader H.D. Deve Gowda. His steps in national and state politics are an inspiration to us. Let the God bless him with health and age." Caretaker Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai made a personal phone call to JD (S) National President Deve Gowda and conveyed his birthday wishes to him.

Deve Gowda turned 90 on Thursday (May 18). Known as son of the soil, Haradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda, is the only politician from Karnataka who saw meteoric rise in politics and went on to become the Prime Minister of the country.

Deve Gowda, an ardent believer of Hindu traditions, is still pursuing active politics and campaigned across the state in the recently-concluded assembly elections. He had challenged national parties and proclaimed before the elections that there is no Modi wave in the state.

His party won 19 seats dashing the hopes of Deve Gowda to see his son H.D. Kumaraswamy to become the king maker. Deve Gowda still remains as the most influential politician of the state and an iconic figure of the Vokkaliga community. He also emerged as the leader of masses cutting across caste and creed.
Kolkata, May 18 : A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal Police to continue with the probe on the explosion at an illegal firecracker factory at Egra in West Bengal's East Midnapore district, and asked it to include sections under the Explosives Act in the FIR.

The explosion, which took place on Tuesday, has claimed nine lives. Although the police filed the FIR, only sections under the Indian Penal Code and West Bengal Fire Service Act were included in the FIR for which the state police attracted severe criticisms.

On Thursday, while hearing on a petition by the leader of the opposition in West Bengal Suvendu Adhikari demanding a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe in the matter, the division bench of Calcutta High Court's Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya gave the direction to the CID to incorporate sections of the Explosives Act and continue with the investigation.

However, the division bench did not give any ruling in favour of the NIA probe in the matter on Thursday. The matter will be heard against June 12.

When shown the pictures of the blasts, Justice Sivagnanam expressed worry over the body-parts recovered in pieces.

Although the initial police investigation has suggested that the explosion was probably from the firecracker manufacturing raw material stocked at the illegal factory, the opposition parties have claimed that the impact of the explosion proves that not firecrackers but crude bombs were being manufactured there.

On Thursday only the sleuths of CID arrested the owner of the illegal factory, Krishnapada Bag a.k.a. Bhanu, his son Prithvijit Bag and nephew Indrajit Bag, from a private nursing home at Cuttack in Odisha. Bhanu is admitted there as he also had received severe burn injuries in the explosion.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Delhi High Court on Thursday sent a notice to the central government regarding petitions filed by the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF) and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust.

These petitions challenge the government's cancellation of their registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).

Sonia Gandhi, a prominent Congress leader, heads both of these non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

The RGF counts former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Minister P. Chidambaram, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi among its trustees.

Justice Jyoti Singh issued a notice while expressing dissatisfaction with the fact that it took eight hearings to issue the notice, as the government had requested adjournments on at least four occasions.

Despite the government counsel's request for a pass over, Justice Singh stated that she would take notice of the matter.

The bench commented: "This is a Regular First Appeal (RFA). It cannot be dismissed immediately. Eight dates have already passed, so let's be a little practical... Eight dates just for this." The court then scheduled hearing next on August 23.

The case initially came before the court in January 2023, but it was adjourned a few times due to the unavailability of the bench.

When the case was finally taken up for hearing on February 3, the government counsel sought an adjournment, stating that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta would be appearing in the matter.

The RGF's FCRA registration was cancelled in October 2022 by the Union Home Ministry for allegedly violating the foreign funding law.

As per MHA, the FCRA licence of the foundation has been cancelled due to violation of foreign funding rules. The MHA had also constituted a committee in 2020 to probe this. This decision has been taken on the basis of the report by the same inquiry committee.

According to sources, the RGF came under the scanner in July, 2020. The MHA then constituted an inter-ministerial committee headed by an Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer to investigate NGOs, including the RGF, linked to the Gandhi family. The foundation was accused of tampering with income tax returns, including suspected FCRA violations.

The RGF was established in 1991. For many years, this foundation worked on important issues regarding health, science and technology, women, children and education, etc.
Islamabad, May 18 : Pakistan will take special measures to address the issue of out-of-school children and maximise the enrollment of school-age children across the country, according to the Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives.

With an estimated 22.8 million children aged 5-16 years out of school, Pakistan is among countries with the highest numbers of out-of-school children in the world, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying in a statement.

In the 5-9 age group, 5 million children are not enrolled in schools and 11.4 million adolescents between the ages of 10-14 were currently not receiving formal education.

The Ministry said that Pakistan has made considerable progress in providing access to education to its school-age population over the years, but the pace of improvement has been slow compared to other developing countries, highlighting that federal and provincial governments have decided to develop a national action plan to address the issue.

A Universal Enrollment Pilot Project will be launched in the capital to ensure that there are no out-of-school children, the Ministry statement said, adding that the project may be replicated to produce similar results in other areas across the country.

Also, a national out-of-school children fund will be created to provide performance-based cash grants to provincial governments for improving education outcomes in the most affected districts.

Additionally, to reduce dropout rates, the government will launch a comprehensive virtual schooling system.

Besides economic factors, gaps in service provision at all education levels and socio-cultural barriers also contribute to children dropping out of schools in Pakistan.
Patna, May 18 : After repeated statements of Baba Bageshwar on 'Hindu nation', Chirag Paswan, the MP from Jamui and national president of LJPR, said on Thursday that the country will be run only on the basis of constitution.

After arriving in Patna on Thursday, Paswan said: "Everyone is free to express his views. All have the right to say what they think, but the country will eventually run on the basis of the constitution. In the last 75 years, the country has run only on the basis of constitution. The opposition leaders are blaming that the constitution and the democracy of the country are being killed. I want to ask them if the election has stopped here. Are political parties making their own laws by putting the constitution of the country aside." "We all are under the constitution. People of every religion come here and put their points of view but the country runs only on the basis of constitution," Paswan said.

The statement of Chirag Paswan came after Baba Bageshwar during his five-day stay in Patna repeatedly advocated for working to build a Hindu nation.

Paswan also slammed the Nitish Kumar government after a drone costing Rs 60 lakh was stolen a few days ago. Chirag Paswan said: "He has failed to secure government assets. Moreover, he is roaming in the country to become prime minister. What vision does he have? Sometimes bridges collapse due to wind and drone theft takes place."
Bhubaneswar, May 18 : Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to introduce two Vande Bharat Express trains on Puri-Rourkela and Bhubaneswar-Hyderabad routes.

Patnaik made this request to the Prime Minister during the launch of Vande Bharat Express train service from Puri to Kolkata, and sought the support of the Prime Minister for early implementation of the same.

Thanking the Prime Minister for launching several railway projects in Odisha, the Chief Minister said, "I would take this opportunity to request Prime Minister for introduction of a Vande Bharat Express train between Puri and Rourkela connecting Sambalpur and another connecting Bhubaneswar and Hyderabad which will facilitate faster movement of passengers between these important cities, for the benefit of our aspiring people." Saying that the state government is developing Puri as an international heritage centre, Patnaik said that Puri is the first city in India to have 100 per cent drink from tap facility.

The Chief Minister said he had recently met the Prime Minister and had a detailed discussion on the proposed Shree Jagannath Puri International Airport at Puri.

"We will incorporate all the suggestions given by the Prime Minister for making it a world class sea-side airport. I hope that with the cooperation and support of the PM, this airport will be ready within 3 to 4 years and the PM will come to Shreekhetra (Puri) to dedicate the airport," he said.

Further, Patnaik also requested Modi to sanction Puri-Konark new railway line which will connect two iconic marvels of Odisha. The state government has offered 50 per cent of construction cost and entire land cost for the project, making it extremely profitable for railways, he said.

He further mentioned that Odisha has always been very proactive in supporting railway projects in the state. People of the state have also willingly pledged their invaluable land for the railway development, hoping that railway projects will offer them many new economic avenues.

The Chief Minister also requested for early introduction of passenger services in both Angul-Sukinda line and Haridaspur-Paradip line to meet the aspirations of the people of these districts.

Hoping that the bullet train dream will soon be realised, he said that introduction of Vande Bharat train is one step closer towards our aspiration of bullet trains in India.

"I am sure, with your leadership, we should soon have our own bullet trains," he added. The Chief Minister also expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the new projects.

Notably, the Prime Minister has flagged off a maiden Vande Bharat Express Train on Puri-Howrah route through video-conferencing mode in presence of Chief Minister Patnaik.

Modi also either inaugurated or laid foundation stones for several railway projects worth more than Rs 8,000 crore in Odisha.

Among major projects, the Prime Minister laid foundation stones for Puri and Cuttack station redevelopment projects, inaugurated Bichhupalli-Jhartarbha new railway line and dedicated Sambalpur-Titlagarh doubling line, Angul-Sukinda new line, Rourkela-Jharsuguda & Manoharpur-Bondamunda third line to the nation.

Besides, he also inaugurated 100 per cent railway line electrification in Odisha. This will reduce the operating and maintenance cost and reduce reliance on imported crude oil.
Macao City, May 18 : Visitor arrivals to Macao surged 274.7 per cent year on year to 2,274,050 in April, the statistical agency said on Thursday.

The figure represented a month-on-month rise of 16.2 per cent, Xinhua news agency quoted the latest report from the Statistics and Census Service as saying.

Overnight visitors and same-day visitors soared 550.2 per cent and 157.7 per cent year on year to 1,176,456 and 1,097,594, respectively.

The number of visitors from China jumped by 159.3 per cent year on year to 1,386,944, while travellers from Hong Kong and Taiwan rocketed by 1,039.3 per cent and 419.0 per cent year on year to 745,282 and 33,295, respectively.
Chennai, May 18 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin on Thursday laid the foundation stone for Porunai Museum on International Museum day virtually from his office in the Secretariat through video conference.

The Tamil Nadu government has allocated 13.02 acres of land for the Porunai Museum.

The museum will be built on an area of 55,000 square feet at a cost of Rs 33 crore in the first phase. To be built with world-class standards, the museum will display 2,617 rare artefacts that were collected from Aditchanallur, Korkai and Sivakalai.

Stalin also launched two books, 'Tamizh Nattu Panpattu Marabugal' and 'Pudukottai Vattaram' during the event.

State minister for Public Works, EV Velu, Minister for Finance and Archeology, Thangam Thenarasu and Chief Secretary of the state, V. Irai Anbu were present during the function held at the Chief Minister's office in Secretariat.
Lucknow, May 18 : Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) President Om Prakash Rajbhar is back to criticising BJP after the latter refused to respond to his feelers for a return to the NDA fold.

Rajbhar has now alleged that corruption in Uttar Pradesh is no less than that in Karnataka, referring to the Congress' charge against the previous BJP government in the southern state.

Rajbhar's party had allied with the opposition Samajwadi Party in the state prior to the last assembly elections. After the polls, they parted ways. Since then, Rajbhar has been rather appreciative of the Yogi Adityanath government for its work but the BJP has not responded to his feelers.

Rajbhar is now targeting the Yogi Adityanath government over the issue of corruption.

"Corruption in Uttar Pradesh no less than that in Karnataka. Rahul Gandhi had accused the previous BJP dispensation in the southern state of being a '40 per cent commission government'. There is no less corruption in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Rajbhar said that corruption is rampant from the lowest level, including police stations, and the government is blissfully unaware of its impact on the common man.

He claimed that those accused of corruption are being made investigating officers here.

Rajbhar, however, did not rule out an alliance with the BJP in the coming months.

"I am in talks with all party leaders. The ruling party and the opposition need to work together for the development of the country," he said.
Mumbai, May 18 : The recently released trailer of 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One', which stars Tom Cruise in the lead, is drawing some amazing reactions from people on the Internet.

Netizens are comparing the bits of the trailer to the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer 'Pathaan' which broke all records for Hindi films at the box-office upon its release.

The trailer, which is a treat for the lovers of the action genre, has sequences in question which show Cruise hanging off a clip. Another scene shows a train crashing. This has reminded the social media users of the Indian spy thriller, which also starred Deepika Padukone and John Abraham.

Soon after the trailer was released, several social media users took to Twitter to draw comparisons between the two movies.

"Few days ago, I saw the whole twitter making fun of #Pathaan train scene just because it accidentally has similarity with Jackie Chan cartoon. But now that #MissionImpossible also has similar action scenes, nobody will say anything," one of the tweets read.

Another user commented: "Bollywood should be proud @iamsrk." A third user, referencing the director of 'Pathaan' - Siddharth Anand, wrote: "Lord Anand should be proud."

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
New Delhi, May 18 : Microsoft India on Thursday announced the addition of three new Indian languages -- Konkani, Maithili, and Sindhi, in Translator along with Sinhala, the official language of Sri Lanka.

Microsoft Translator now supports 16 Indian languages -- Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.

"We are excited to announce that we are broadening our language capabilities to include Maithili, Konkani, Sindhi, and Sinhala. We celebrate and support India's diversity of language and culture with the most advanced AI to enable India's growth, by making access to technology pervasive," Rajiv Kumar, Managing Director, Microsoft India, said in a statement.

The company said that users can translate Konkani, Maithili, Sindhi, and Sinhala text, supported in more than 125 languages, for their apps, websites, workflows, and tools with Azure Cognitive Services Translator.

Over two million people in India speak Konkani, primarily in the states of Goa, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. It is also spoken by a sizable population in other parts of India, such as Kerala and Gujarat.

Maithili is spoken by over 75 million people in India and Nepal.

It is the second most widely spoken language in Bihar and is also spoken in neighbouring states Jharkhand and West Bengal, the company said.

Sindhi is spoken by over 20 million people in India and several other subcontinental countries, whereas Sinhala is spoken by over 16 million people in Sri Lanka, as well as Malaysia and Singapore.

Microsoft Translator can be used across Windows, iOS, Android, and the web.
Islamabad, May 18 : Pakistan on Thursday 'categorically' rejected the US State Department's report on religious freedom in the country, saying 'baseless' assertions were made in it, media reported.

Speaking during a weekly presser, spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that Pakistan assured religious freedom and provided protection to its citizens.

"We categorically reject the baseless assertions made about Pakistan in the International Religious Freedom Report released by the US Department of State. Such ill-informed reporting exercises about internal affairs of sovereign states are pointless, irresponsible and counterproductive," the spokesperson said, Geo News reported.

The remarks of the spokesperson came days after the US state department published a report highlighting the need to improve "interfaith tolerance, inclusion, and harmony" in the country.

Based on several events in 2022, the US-based report noted that "several political leaders used inflammatory religious language to attack their political rivals." Taking issue with the report, the spokesperson denied its findings and said that Pakistan wanted to work with the world to end racial discrimination and Islamophobia, Geo News reported.

"We are proud of our religious diversity and pluralistic social fabric. Pakistan's Constitution sets a robust framework for wide-ranging legal, policy and affirmative measures to safeguard and advance the rights and freedoms of all Pakistanis irrespective of their faith.

"These rights and constitutional guarantees are protected, upheld and reinforced by an independent judiciary," Baloch asserted.

"In our interactions, including with the United States, we have raised serious concerns about the steady surge in anti-Muslim hatred, racism and Islamophobia. We hope to work with international partners to counter these pernicious forms of religious intolerance, discrimination and Islamophobia."

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Bengaluru, May 18 : Karnataka Chief Minister designate Siddaramaiah on Thursday recalled the hardships he faced during his early years.

He shared how he was forced to discontinue education briefly and tend the cattle to tide through the tough times.

After AICC announced him as the Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah issued a press statement about his life. "I will continue to relentlessly work to ensure justice to every Kannadiga and uphold the pride of Karnataka," he said.

"We are committed to implementing our guarantees and giving the best for our state," he said.

Written by Siddaramaiah, the statement reads, "I was born on August 12, 1948, in Siddaramana Hundi of Varuna Hobli in Mysore district. My family was mainly dependent on agriculture. In the days when getting through matriculation itself was a tough proposition, I was the first graduate in the family." "I spent my childhood days in Siddaramana Hundi. I was forced to discontinue my education for some time due to difficult circumstances at home and because of which I was asked to tend the cattle. But the teachers of my village school recognised my interest towards studies and helped me directly get admitted to IV standard," he recalled.

After his primary and secondary education, he went to Mysore for my college education. He secured admission in Yuvaraja's College in Mysore and obtained my B.Sc. degree. "My father wanted me to become a doctor, but I chose a different path. However, destiny had other plans as I went on to follow my own dreams and pursue law. After obtaining a degree in law from Sharada Vilas College, I served as a guest lecturer at Vidyavardhak College," wrote Siddaramiah.

Even after beginning to practice law, he did not completely dedicate himself to the courts. My mind was always concerned about the hardships of the exploited classes and that was when he came under the influence of socialist thinker Dr Ram Manohar Lohia. As a student, he lived a tough life in a rented room in Mysore. The hardships of those times gave him a deep perspective and have now helped in formulating several schemes for the welfare of the poor and downtrodden, he said.

"I know what trials and tribulations the poor face. I have myself experienced those difficulties. That is why I introduced schemes like Anna Bhagya (providing food grains to the poor for free or at subsidized prices), Ksheera Bhagya (providing milk) and Vidyasiri (providing assistance for education).

"After starting legal practice with Prof. P.M. Chikkaboraiah, I gradually entered public life and started taking the lead to fight against social evils. My quest for social justice through reforms made me quit legal practice and jump into politics. I started taking one small step at a time in politics and started gathering momentum," he said.

His political life began in 1978 when he became a member of the Taluk Development Board. He was also simultaneously attracted to the farmers' movement and thus began his association with Prof M.D. Nanjundaswamy, who pioneered farmers' struggle in Karnataka.

"My entry to electoral politics was through Lok Sabha elections from Mysore in 1980. Though I did not win the election, I was determined to continue my fight. I considered this defeat as a stepping stone to victory when I contested from the Chamundeshwari seat in the 1983 Assembly elections in the state as a candidate of Lok Dal." Contesting with the symbol of a scale, he won against D. Jayadevaraja Urs of Indira Congress and entered the legislative assembly. The role of Shri. Kempaveeraiah, a leader of Mysore taluk, was crucial in this victory. When he entered the legislative assembly, Ramakrishna Hegde's government was in office.

Hegde had taken the support of BJP and independents to form the government, and even he had extended his support to the government. I was then made the Chairman of Kannada Watchdog Committee.

When midterm elections took place for the legislative assembly, I contested as a candidate of the Janata Party and was re-elected. I then became a minister for Animal Husbandry and Sericulture.

"I was Transport Minister in the cabinet of S.R. Bommai. In 1989, Janata Party split into two as Janata Dal and Samajwadi Janata Party. I identified myself with Janata Dal but lost in the subsequent assembly elections. In 1991, I contested in the Lok Sabha elections from the Koppal constituency and lost." "Those were the days when I had more time for fighting against issues other than administrative work," the CM designate said.

Undeterred by electoral failures, he again contested in the 1994 legislative assembly election as a Janata Dal candidate where he won and entered the Assembly for the third time. He became the Finance Minister in the cabinet of H.D. Deve Gowda. When he was preparing the first budget as the Finance Minister, there were jibes like what does a shepherd know about finance? "But I did not pay heed to such insults. Instead, I took it as a challenge and later presented thirteen budgets which were hailed by eminent economists. When in 1996 Deve Gowda became the Prime Minister, I became the Deputy Chief Minister in J.H. Patel's cabinet." "In 1999, Janata Dal split again. I identified myself with Janata Dal (Secular). I lost the subsequent assembly election and only to win in the 2004 assembly election and became Deputy Chief Minister in the Congress-JD(S) coalition government." "Due to altered political circumstances, I was expelled from JD(S). I lost the opportunity to become Chief Minister because of the maneuvers of unseen hands. I spearheaded AHINDA (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes and Dalits) conventions in various places of Karnataka to hear their concerns and be their voice. It was always felt that minorities, backward classes and Dalits were marginalized and not given their due opportunity. I wanted to ensure social justice in all political and administrative platforms.

"After coming out of JD(S), I joined the Congress Party in the presence of AICC President Sonia Gandhi at a huge rally held at Palace Grounds in Bangalore on July 22, 2006. This was another turning point in my political path. Later, I contested in the by-election to the legislative assembly from Chamundeshwari constituency and won.

"In 2008, when the assembly constituencies were reorganized, a new constituency of Varuna came into being. I entered the legislative assembly from this new constituency. I then became the leader of the opposition.

"At this juncture, I took on the mining barons of Bellary and led an historical foot march aBellary Padayatra' from Bangalore to Bellary and exposed the corruption of Bharatiya Janatha Party. This turned out to a great success in terms of reaching out to people and letting them understand the corrupt practices of Bharatiya Janatha Party. This latter generated lot ofAvoice in various public forums," the statement read.

Towards the seat of Chief Minister In the elections held to the assembly in 2013, he travelled the length and breadth of Karnataka and ensured the grand victory of his party.

While taking the oath as the Chief Minister, he was determined that the government would deliver on all the promises made to the people during elections.

He decided that the election manifesto of the party should not remain a mere document, but should be the guiding light of the government. Thus immediately after swearing in as the Chief Minister, he announced several welfare programs for the poor, underprivileged and minorities, most prominently, Anna Bhagya.

"In my very first budget, I fulfilled 60 out of 165 promises made in the election manifesto. In the second budget, another 30 promises were fulfilled. By the end of fifth year, all the promises were fulfilled.

"The schemes and policies, during my tenure, have provided relief to all sections of our society and have helped everyone to improve their standard of living. I always wanted to dedicate my work for the welfare of the poor and the marginalized and I am confident that I have succeeded in it," he said.

According to him, multiple factors led to the formation of Indian National Congress - Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government after the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections. He was chosen as the leader of the coordination committee and tried a lot to safeguard the government.

"Unfortunately, the unethical political game plan of BJP succeeded in ending the coalition government. I was chosen as the leader of opposition and leader of Congress legislature party in Karnataka Assembly." he said.

"Our fight continued to expose the failures of BJP and ensure justice to Kannadigas.

We fought extensively to highlight the 40 per cent corruption, covid scam, recruitment scams, etc.

"We finally succeeded in putting a break to the miserable governance of BJP by winning 136 seats in the 2023 Assembly Elections.

"I will continue to relentlessly work to ensure justice to every Kannadiga and uphold the pride of Karnataka. We are committed to implement our guarantees and give the best for our state," he added.
Dwarka Expressway will be completed in next few months: Nitin Gadkari. Image Source: IANS News

Dwarka Expressway will be completed in next few months: Nitin Gadkari. Image Source: IANS News

Dwarka Expressway will be completed in next few months: Nitin Gadkari. Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari with Delhi Lt. Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena inspects the under-construction 29.6 km, 8 lane access control Dwarka Expressway, in New Delhi, Thursday, May 18, 2023. (Photo:IANS/Twi Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari with Delhi Lt. Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena inspects the under-construction 29.6 km, 8 lane access control Dwarka Expressway, in New Delhi, Thursday, May 18, 2023. (Photo:IANS/Twi Image Source: IANS News

Gurugram, May 18 : Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari, during his inspection on Thursday announced that Dwarka Expressway will be completed in next 3-4 months.

The construction work of the Haryana section (18.9 km) of the 29-km-long Dwarka Expressway from Shivmurti near IGI Airport through Dwarka near the Kherki Daula toll in Gurugram has reached the final stage.

Dwarka Expressway starts near Shiv Murti on NH-48 and terminates near Kherki Daula Toll Plaza on the Delhi-Jaipur Expressway.

This will be the country's first elevated urban expressway.

The expressway has been constructed by dividing it into four parts, in which 10.01 km area has been kept in two areas in the Delhi region and 18.9 km area in Haryana region has also been kept in two areas.

The construction work in the Haryana region has been completed by up to 99 per cent.

The expressway is being constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 10,000 crore as part of Delhi's decongestion plan.

Dwarka Expressway will have a fully-automated toll system and the entire project will be equipped with an intelligent transportation system (ITS).

It will provide connectivity to Indira Gandhi International Airport from the Dwarka side through Dwarka Expressway.
Kolkata, May 18 : Trinamool Congress' national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee will be challenging the decision of Calcutta High Court's single-judge bench of Justice Amrita Sinha allowing central agencies to question him in connection with the teachers' recruitment case in any higher court.

"Let me first get a copy of the order. I have the options to approach either a division bench of the Calcutta High Court or the Supreme Court of India. I will surely make a decision on this count after I receive a copy of the order," he said.

On Justice Sinha's decision to impose a penalty of Rs 25 lakh for wasting the time of the court, he said that although he accepts the verdict of the court, his question is that there are several other matters filed in the court where the same contention is applicable.

Speaking on the occasion, he rubbished the allegations of the opposition that he was deliberately trying to dodge the central agency questioning.

"These are baseless allegations, I had faced the questioning and never dodged it. Once I was summoned to Delhi and in that case I approached the court arguing that since the case in the matter was filed in Kolkata, I should be allowed for questioning at Kolkata only. As I have always said that I am ready to cooperate in any sort of investigation," he said.

He also said that if he is proven guilty of involvement in any kind of corrupt activities, he is ready to be hanged in public.

On the allegations of the expelled Trinamool Congress leader Kuntal Ghosh accusing central agencies of putting pressure on him to name Abhishek Banerjee in the recruitment case, the latter said that even Union Home Minister Amit Shah had recently claimed that he was pressurised by CBI to name Narendra Modi when BJP was in opposition.
New Delhi, May 18 : Not just international spam calls, scamsters have devised several ways to con WhatsApp users in India, especially the popular 'like YouTube videos' scam, where they lure them via WhatsApp and then take them to rival chat app Telegram and siphon off their hard-earned money.

Although international spam calls have reduced in the past few days, people are still losing money via spam text messages on WhatsApp which has more than 500 million users in the country.

A software engineer in Gurugram lost over Rs 42 lakh after scammers tempted him with promises of huge earnings for simply liking videos on YouTube, first via WhatsApp message and then adding him to a Telegram group.

In April, with the arrest of four men, Delhi Police claimed to have busted a gang of cyber crooks for cheating over 500 people on the pretext of 'online trading' on a huge margin across the country. The official said that the gang members were connected with Chinese accomplices operating from Dubai.

A senior Delhi Police official told IANS that in the past six months, several cases of fraud, ultimately connected to Chinese cyber gangs who are using WhatsApp to connect and lure people, have come to light.

"They lure people on pretext for small earnings just for a 'like' and then dupe them of their hard-earned money from banks. Several Chinese gangs have been identified behind such rackets operating across the country and rotating money through Hawala channels," the official said.

According to police, a woman in her recent complaint said she was searching for a job online when she received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number.

"The message has an offer of paying Rs 50 per like for the link of social media accounts sent to her through WhatsApp. She opened the various links sent by the caller and liked them. She sent the screen shot to the sender named Xarina," Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central, Sanjay Kumar Sain said.

Xarina asked her to open a Telegram link to receive the credited amount.

"She joined the Telegram channel and Rs 150 was credited in her bank account. Xarina then instructed her to join another Telegram channel and like some YouTube videos, which she completed and received Rs 200 in return," the DCP said.

Later, Xarina convinced her to invest in crypto currency with the promise of significant profits. The woman initially invested Rs 1,000, and Xarina lured her with the prospect of even more profit. However, the woman ended up losing around Rs 22 lakh in a single day and has requested legal action against Xarina for her actions.

Delhi Police recently unearthed an international gang of cyber crooks based in China, Dubai and the mastermind sitting in Georgia who have defrauded 11,000 of people on the pretext of providing online work from home jobs in Amazon.

The gang duped crores of rupees on the pretext of providing online jobs. Police arrested three people in separate raids conducted at Delhi, Gurugram and Fatehabad (Haryana) in this connection.

The investigation indicated that Chinese cyber-criminals developed a module to cheat people looking for online work from home or part-time jobs as Chinese loan fraud is now declining due to action by agencies and awareness among people.

It was revealed that the Telegram ID used by the scammers was being operated from Beijing and the WhatsApp number -- used to defraud the victim by convincing her to invest into a fake Amazon site -- was also found being operated from outside India.

The police then wrote an email to the National Payments Council of India (NPCI) and Kotak Mahindra Bank, seeking beneficiary details of the suspected transactions and it was revealed that a shell firm account had been used to accumulate money from victims.

"During the examination of details received from the bank, it was found that a total of Rs 5.17 crore were credited in a single day. In further money trail, it was revealed that the whole amount was siphoned off further through seven different firms. That siphoning of money has been done to foreign accounts through crypto currency," the DCP informed.

In another modus operandi, Delhi Police arrested eight people who used to dupe people on pretext of investment and online gaming. The gang used to contact the victims over WhatsApp and offered them to earn money through investment and online gaming.

"After that, they add the victims in a Telegram group and represent that other members of the group are earning good profit in a short span of time. The victim falls in their trap and transfers money as per their instruction and loses his hard earned money," said the official The gang also lured the victims to earn money through online gaming.

"They send them the link to their website to play games. If a person wins, they give them coins in their account instead of money when victims ask for money, thereafter they stop responding to him," said the official.

Meta-owned WhatsApp last week took action on the growing menace of International scam calls in India, after the government took cognisance of the issue and announced to send a notice to the platform over the issue.

"Our new enforcement will reduce the current calling rate by at least 50 per cent and we expect to be able to control the current incidence effectively. We will continue to work relentlessly towards ensuring a safe experience for our users," a company spokesperson said in a statement.

WhatsApp this week launched a safety campaign 'Stay safe with WhatsApp' in an effort to raise awareness around its existing safety tools and product features.

(Shekhar Singh can be reached at shekhar.s@ians.in)
Chennai, May 18 : The Congress has invited Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, whose DMK is its alliance partner in the state, to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Siddaramaiah as the new Chief Minister of Karnataka on Saturday.

Karnataka Congress President and prime architect of party's landslide win in Karnataka, D.K. Shivakumar will also take oath as the only Deputy Chief Minister. He is likely to hold the plum portfolio of Home, it is reported.

Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K.C. Venugopal in a statement said that the Congress is extending invitations to allies and like-minded party leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Siddaramiah.
Chandigarh, May 18 : Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij has provided financial assistance to a boy who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a rare and life-threatening blood disorder, as his family could not afford the high cost of the treatment.

Upon hearing about boy's condition, the minister released Rs 15 lakh from the National Child Health Programme.

The funds were used to cover the cost of the treatment and other medical expenses, an official statement said.

The minister's timely intervention and support have given boy a new lease of life and have brought hope to his family. The boy is undergoing treatment at the PGIMER in Chandigarh.

Vij on Thursday handed over a cheque of the second installment for Rs 5 lakh to the boy and wished him good health.

Earlier, Rs 10 lakh was given for the treatment of the child. The boy and his family members thanked the Health Minister.

Also due to the efforts of the Health Minister, the aplastic anemia disease is included in the National Child Health Programme and now the patient suffering from it can get financial assistance for the treatment.
New Delhi, May 18 : Experts have exposed several apps as ChatGPT-based chatbots that overcharge users and bring in thousands of dollars a month, a new report showed on Thursday.

According to cybersecurity company Sophos, there are a number of free apps that are available on Google Play and Apple App Store, but because they provide little functionality and are constantly ad-ridden, they entice unsuspecting users to subscribe for hundreds of dollars a year.

"With interest in AI and chatbots arguably at an all-time high, users are turning to the Apple App and Google Play Stores to download anything that resembles ChatGPT. These types of scam apps -- what Sophos has dubbed 'fleeceware' -- often bombard users with ads until they sign up for a subscription," said Sean Gallagher, principal threat researcher, Sophos.

According to the report, experts investigated five of these ChatGPT fleeceware apps, all of which claimed to be based on ChatGPT's algorithm.

For instance, developers of the app "Chat GBT" used ChatGPT's name to boost their rankings in Google Play or App Store.

While OpenAI provides basic ChatGPT functionality to users for free online, these apps charged anywhere from $10 per month to $70 per year.

After a three-day free trial, the iOS version of "Chat GBT", called Ask AI Assistant, charges $6 per week -- or $312 per year -- after earning the developers $10,000 in March alone, the report said.

Moreover, the report mentioned that another fleeceware-like app, Genie, which encourages users to sign up for a $7 weekly or $70 annual subscription, earned $1 million in the previous month.

"While some of the ChatGPT fleeceware apps included in this report have already been taken down, more continue to pop up - and it's likely more will appear. The best protection is education. Users need to be aware that these apps exist and always be sure to read the fine print whenever hitting 'subscribe'," said Gallagher.
Agartala, May 18 : A court in Tripura has upheld the decision of a trial court to award two-year rigorous imprisonment to three Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leaders for creating a ruckus inside a courtroom and insulting a judge.

The incident took place eight years ago during a nation-wide shutdown called by the Left parties.

South Tripura District and Session Court Judge Ashutosh Pandey on Wednesday upheld the trial court's earlier judgement awarding two years of rigorous imprisonment to three CPI-M leaders -- Tapas Datta, Trilokesh Sinha and Babul Debnath. The trial court also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on them.

After the incident on September 2, 2015, the police registered a suo-moto case and launched a probe. The police also filed chargesheets against the three CPI-M leaders.

A first class judicial magistrate imprisoned the Left leaders, who subsequently filed a review petition in the district court against the trial court judgement.

The trial court last year convicted the three CPI-M leaders for insulting the then South Tripura District and Session Court judge Ruhi Das Paul and obstructing official duties.

The lawyer of the three accused pleaded in court that the three CPI-M leaders were not guilty in the case.

The lawyer on Thursday said that the CPI-M leaders would approach the Tripura High Court within 60 days.

Datta is the CPI-M state committee member while Debnath is the leader of All India Kishan Sabha and Sinha is the Secretariat member of CPI-M Belonia Sub-Divisional committee.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to interfere with the Patna High Court's interim order, staying the caste survey by the Bihar government.

A bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Rajesh Bindal queried as to why the court should interfere with the high court order at this stage and asked the Bihar government to place its arguments before the high court, which has scheduled the hearing of the matter on July 3.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing on behalf of the Bihar government, submitted that the state required only 10 days to complete the process.

As the state government insisted on an order from the top court, the bench said it would have to examine if the exercise being carried out is a census in garb of survey, which has been pointed out by the high court, adding that "this is not a case where we can grant you interim relief".

The state government counsel maintained that the survey was not on a 100 per cent basis like a census but voluntary for the people and argued that the state has got legislative competence to collect statistics.

After hearing submissions, the apex court scheduled the hearing of the state government plea on July 14, if the high court is not able to hear the matter.

The Bihar government filed an appeal challenging the May 4 order of the high court. The state contended that the stay will adversely affect the entire exercise and collection of caste-based data is a constitutional mandate under Articles 15 and 16.

It contended that it has already completed more than 80 per cent of the survey work in some districts and less than 10 percent of the work is pending. It further argued that the stay on the collection of data would cause a huge loss and if finally, the action of the state is upheld, the state would be required to put logistics in place with additional expenditure and burden on the public exchequer.

The high court, while hearing a batch of petitions, had directed the state government to immediately stop the caste-based survey. It also asked the state to ensure the data collected is secured and not shared with anybody until final orders in the matter.

It had suspended the caste survey by prima facie holding that the state government does not have power to undertake such an exercise and observed that the caste-based survey is a census in the garb of a survey.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Supreme Court has granted bail to an accused in a case lodged under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, noting that he was on ventilator support.

A bench of Justices Krishna Murari and Sanjay Kumar said: "Looking to the medical condition of the petitioner that he was on ventilator though now he has been discharged however, because of non-availability of advanced proper medical treatment in jail and considering the fact that the petitioner has been in incarceration for more than 1 year and 7 months, we are inclined to release the petitioner on bail." Advocate Namit Saxena, appearing for the accused, submitted that the accused is facing charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act for possession of 10 kg ganja which is not commercial in nature. He told the court that his client's medical condition has deteriorated and was earlier on ventilator support.

The top court, in its order, said: "The petitioner is directed to be released on bail, subject to such terms and conditions which the trial Court may deem fit and proper to impose. The special leave petition stands disposed of accordingly. Pending application(s), if any, shall also stand disposed of." The apex court order came on a plea filed by Salim Majothi challenging an order of the Gujarat High Court which had dismissed his bail plea.

The plea alleged that the high court, without looking into the facts and circumstances of the case and without appreciating that nothing could be found against the petitioner to show his involvement in the alleged crime for which he has been incarcerated, dismissed his petition.

"That the present case is an unfortunate one where despite having no involvement in the commission of any offence, the petitioner has been incarcerated for the offences under Section 8(c), 20(b) & 29 of the NDPS Act, 1985. Courts below failed to take into account a plethora of reasons, including the ill health of the petitioner and the bail granted to the co-accused persons, while passing the impugned order. The petitioner at the time of filing of the present SLP is on ventilator," said the petitioner.

--IANS ss/vd

A
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov is expected to pay a working visit to Russia on May 21-22, Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said at a briefing, Trend reports.

According to Zakharova, during the visit, the minister will hold talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

The sides will assess all aspects of bilateral political cooperation, as well as main issues of a trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian fields.

The two FMs will discuss the tasks related to the development of interstate dialogue in the current year.
Greater Noida, May 18 : A 22-year-old student allegedly shot his female classmate dead before killing himself from the same gun at a well-known university on Thursday, the police said.

The incident took place around 2 p.m. at Shiv Nadar University located on NH-91, near Dadri in Uttar Pradesh.

The duo, identified as Anuj and Neha, was pursuing Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and were in third year.

The woman was a resident of Kanpur while the accused was from Amroha.

The police said: "Both were last seen together near the canteen between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. They were engaged in a conversation and even hugged each other. While leaving, the youth sudeenly pulled out a pistol and shot the girl. He later killed himself by shooting in his head at the boys' hostel." The police said: "The whole incident happened inside the college campus. The boy and the girl were close friends for quite some time.

From the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that the accused shot his friend after they got involved in an argument, the police added.
New Delhi, May 18 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday said that three persons have been arrested after multi-state raids were conducted on Wednesday as part of the nationwide 'Operation Dhvast'.

These raids targeted networks involving terrorists, gangsters, and drug smugglers.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Praveen Wadhwa from Bhiwani, Irfan from New Seelampur in Delhi, and Jassa Singh from Moga.

On Wednesday, the NIA carried out a coordinated crackdown with the Punjab Police and Haryana Police, conducting raids at 129 out of a total of 324 locations searched.

Following searches at 129 places in eight states, the NIA took into custody three individuals, one from Moga (Punjab), one from Bhiwani (Haryana), and one from the North-East district (Delhi).

Wadhwa was found to be working for Lawrence Bishnoi, while weapons were seized from Irfan's house.

Jassa Singh was discovered to be working on behalf of the Canada-based 'listed terrorist' Arsh Dhalla. Jassa Singh was also involved in delivering a pistol at Arsh Dalla's request.

According to an NIA official, Parveen a.k.a. Prince maintained regular contact with Lawrence Bishnoi, along with gang members Deepak a.k.a. Tinu and Sampat Nehra, and other associates. He worked as their special messenger from inside jails.

Investigations into Irfan's activities revealed his involvement in a terror conspiracy connected to gangster Kaushal Choudhary and his associates, including Sunil Balyan a.k.a. Tillu Tajpuriya.

Irfan has been charged as an accused in this case, which also resulted in the recovery of arms during the raids.

These cases are linked to conspiracies involving targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits, and extortion, among other crimes.

Notable among these cases are the sensational killings of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani and international Kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambian in Punjab last year.

NIA investigations have revealed that these conspiracies were being plotted in jails across different states and executed by an organised network of operatives based abroad.

Recent reports have shed light on the gangs operating within prisons and the prevalence of gang wars, which have resulted in violence and murder inside Goindwal Jail and Tihar Jail.

Furthermore, the NIA has discovered that many criminals, who were leading gangsters in India, have fled to countries such as Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia, and Australia.

From there, they are involved in planning serious crimes in collaboration with criminals incarcerated in jails across India.

These groups are responsible for targeted killings and generate funds for their illicit activities through drug and weapon smuggling, hawala transactions, and extortion.
New Delhi, May 18 : Consumer electronic brand Nothing's Founder Carl Pei on Thursday said that Phone (2) will be powered by Snapdragon 8 Series chipset, which is a clear upgrade from Phone (1).

In a tweet, Pei said that it initial tests show that app opening speed on Phone (2) is twice as fast compared to Phone (1), "with an impressive 80 per cent overall performance improvement".

"There has been a lot of discussion ever since we announced that Phone (2) will have a Snapdragon 8 Series chipset. Well here's some news - it's going to be the premium-tier powerhouse Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1," he posted.

The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 features an 18-bit Image Signal Processor (ISP) capable of capturing over 4,000 times more camera data than the ISP used on Phone (1).

"As a result, the Phone (2) camera offers advanced features like Raw HDR and 4K recording at 60 fps," Pei informed.

Nothing is geared up to launch its Phone (2) soon.

"We chose the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 for a reason. Manufactured on TSMC's 4nm process, it's best-in-class when it comes to power consumption and heat management," said Pei.

He said that Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 has been thoroughly tested and continuously optimised through numerous updates.

The company's first product, Ear (1), was received well. Following its success, the company's smartphone product Phone (1) was launched in July 2022.
Srinagar, May 18 : Some people wait for a lifetime for a moment like this, and that moment is finally here for Kashmir. In Srinagar, the air smells victorious.

More than the event -- the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting under India's presidency -- the residents know it's a big win for J&K. It's a chance to showcase their best after three decades of terrorism, which was uprooted after the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A in 2019.

Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, is due to host the Tourism Working Group meeting of G20 members from May 22-24, which is part of a series of meetings ahead of a G20 Summit in New Delhi in September.

Last year, the J&K tourism industry recorded a footfall of 1.88 crore people from across the world. The Gulf countries, the US, and European nations are making a beeline to invest in Kashmir. The builder of the Burj Khalifa, Dubai's Emaar Group, is already building a $60 million shopping and office complex while projects worth $181 million are in the pipeline. Now that's a number to envy! New Delhi's decision to host the G20 meeting in Srinagar has also greatly encouraged J&K to outperform itself, a chance to redeem the status before militancy from across the border ruined it.

In India's ongoing 75th year of Independence, 75 new tourist destinations were launched in the Union Territory, including some border villages, all pristine and breathtaking. Since then, tourism has been woven into all aspects of life. The concept of agro-eco tourism took shape; nature walks in cities, culture walks, and food walks helped businesses across sectors to take off.

Faced with resistance from Pakistan and China initially in convening the G20 meeting in Srinagar because it is "self-serving", Kashmiris are thrilled to be in the international limelight. Terrorism and conflict sent them to sleep on empty stomachs, but the Centre's promotion and developmental works have brought peace and prosperity.

The G20, an international congress of 20 major economies, builds a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of about $82.8 trillion, accounting for 74 per cent of the world's total GDP. Such public exposure could be the beginning of a complete 180-degree transition for J&K.

In March 2022, the first-ever consignment of GI-certified Kashmiri silken carpets worth a whopping 40,000 euro was exported to Germany. And now that delegates from Germany, a member country of the G20, will be visiting Kashmir, it is exciting to imagine the magnitude of business they will bring in.

J&K is already leaps ahead of its projected growth rate from the pre-2019 era. All the telltale signs of a potentially robust economy such as new highways and roadways, multispeciality hospitals and research centres, universities and vocational centres, and clean water and gas access to every last village - are all at play in the Union Territory.

The summit will be an excellent occasion to leverage strategic alliances and partnerships, attract foreign investment, and grab global attention. It will also be a curt reply to our immediate neighbour in the West who has always portrayed J&K as a damsel in distress.

Naya Kashmir is rooted in a target-oriented citizen-centric government - a regime of the people, by the people. It will be a self-sustaining economy within a few years. The JK Economic Survey 2022-23 report stated, "J&K is expected to grow at 8 per cent as against 7 per cent at the national level during 2022-23 at constant prices. At current prices, the GSDP of J&K is expected to record a growth of 15 per cent which is at par with the national level." J&K doesn't need saving, the delirious elements of the society need to come out of the reverie. Their state is akin to how seasoned addicts are denied their favourite choice of addiction. The addiction of victimising J&K globally while being unable to appraise their own condition.

Tourists and foreign delegations such as the ones who attended the International Sufi Conference in January 2023 were pleasantly surprised after having arrived here. In heightened emotion, some guests agreed that Kashmir has joined the ranks of places like Istanbul, Cairo and Rome in their historical richness and in having something for everyone who visits her.

The G20 meet will pave the way for increased regional stability and development and cultivate better understanding among the participant countries. It's a chance for Kashmir to tell its story, its truth. A chance to finally make use of its geostrategic location and multi-talented demography, which had been waiting on an opportunity to showcase its capabilities.

The thrill among the locals is palpable. The Valley of Kashmir is decked up in her bridal attire and the future looks bright.
New York, May 18 : Just as social media can facilitate spread of misinformation, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered writing assistants that autocomplete sentences or offer "smart replies" can be biased and produce shifts in opinion, and hence can be misused, warned researchers calling for more regulation.

Researchers from Cornell University in the US said the biases baked into AI writing tools -- whether intentional or unintentional -- could have concerning repercussions for culture and politics.

To probe, Maurice Jakesch, a doctoral student in the field of information science from the varsity, asked more than 1,500 participants to write a paragraph answering the question, "Is social media good for society?" People who used an AI writing assistant that was biased for or against social media were twice as likely to write a paragraph agreeing with the assistant, and significantly more likely to say they held the same opinion, compared with people who wrote without AI's help.

"The more powerful these technologies become and the more deeply we embed them in the social fabric of our societies," Jakesch said, "the more careful we might want to be about how we're governing the values, priorities and opinions built into them." These technologies deserve more public discussion regarding how they could be misused and how they should be monitored and regulated, the researchers said. Jakesch presented the study at the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems in April.

Further, the team found that the survey revealed that a majority of the participants did not even notice the AI was biased and didn't realise they were being influenced.

When repeating the experiment with a different topic, the research team again saw that participants were swayed by the assistants.

"We're rushing to implement these AI models in all walks of life, but we need to better understand the implications," said Mor Naaman, Professor at the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute at Cornell Tech.

"Apart from increasing efficiency and creativity, there could be other consequences for individuals and also for our society -- shifts in language and opinions," Naaman added.
New Delhi, May 18 : After being revived by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the 17th-century general Lachit Borphukan's story is being brought to life by 'RRR' screenwriter, film director and Rajya Sabha MP Vijayendra Prasad in a novel titled 'Brahmaputra: The Ahom Son Rises (Book 1)'.

The prolific screenwriter of blockbusters, who's also S.S. Rajamouli's father, has collaborated with naval officer-turned-espionage fiction writer Kulpreet Yadav to put together the novel being released by HarperCollins Publishers India on May 30.

The story, which mixes action and romance, takes off with Lachit falling in love with Princess Padmini, daughter of Swargadeo Jayadhwaj Singha, ruler of the Ahom kingdom. The king finds out about the romance and throws Lachit out of the capital, Jorhat.

A few days later, the Ahom capital is attacked by Aurangzeb's forces, forcing the king to sign a peace treaty, whereby he cedes part control of his kingdom to the Mughals. For Lachit and his best friend, Prince Chakradhwaj, the terms of the treaty are humiliating.

Within days their troubles multiply when a prince from a kingdom loyal to the Ahoms misleads other minor rulers and attacks Jorhat. As Lachit and Prince Chakradhwaj defend the capital, this battle has the power to change the future of the Ahom kingdom forever.

Can Lachit, Prince Chakradhwaj and Princess Padmini restore the honour of the Ahoms by defeating the rebels and breaking free from the Mughal stranglehold? That is the crux of the story from the multi-award-winning writer of the two 'Baahubali' films, beside 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' and 'Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi'.

Prasad's collaborator, Kulpreet Yadav, is a product of the Naval Officers' Academy who has spent two decades as an officer in uniform and successfully commanded three ships in his career.

Since his retirement from the Indian Coast Guard in 2014, he has authored books across multiple genres, such as espionage, military history and true crime. He lives in Mumbai and his latest is 'The Battle of Rezang La' (Penguin, 2021).
Mumbai/Nashik, May 18 : The Maharashtra Congress on Thursday praised the citizens of Trimbakeshwar for effectively "thwarting the Bharatiya Janata Party's sinister plans" to foment communal troubles in this prominent pilgrimage centre.

Maharashtra unit Congress president Nana Patole also demanded a Special Investigation Team probe against various Hindu groups which he alleged were 'conspiring to increase communal tensions in different parts of Maharashtra' as the civic, parliament and assembly polls approach.

Simultaneously, former Congress MP Husain Dalwai along with his supporters went to the Trimbakeshwar Temple and offered their respects from outside the premises, just as the local Muslims have been doing since decades.

Referring to the crisis after the May 13 incident which created tensions in this holy town, Patole said that the tradition of offering 'incense dhoop' at the Trimbakeshwar Temple has been going on for centuries.

The ritual is carried out during the annual 'Urs' procession of the Hazrrat Pir Syed Gulab Shahwali Baba Dargah and Hazrat Pir Karim Shahwali Dargah Trust, both located within a km radius of the Jyotirlinga temple, and revered by people of all religions.

However, on account of certain mischievous social media posts and videos this year, the situation suddenly became abnormal with allegations of 'trespassing' inside the temple by the local Muslim community and alleged 'clashes' which both communities have denied.

"The BJP activists, the Hindu Maha Sabha, All India Brahmin Federation, Yuva Morcha, Love-Jihad groups and others performed a maha-aarti, sprinkled cow urine and threw flowers to 'purify' the temple entrance after the alleged non-existent incident," said Patole taking a jibe.

He expressed serious concerns at the BJP deliberately trying to disturb social harmony and creating a divide among communities, first in Aurangabad, then Akola, Ahmednagar and now Nashik (Trimbakeshwar).

"However, the people of Maharashtra are now wary of these plots and tactics of the BJP and will not fall prey to them anymore. There was no forcible entry into the Trimbakeshwar Temple, and this has been confirmed by the local police and also the villagers," Patole pointed out.

He slammed the BJP and the other saffron groups which tried to exploit the situation and praised the villagers who stonewalled their evil plans by standing unitedly with the local Muslims.

"Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an SIT probe into the so-called incident. We demand that it should also investigate all the BJP-supported organisations which tried to incite violence and spoil the social harmony of Trimbakeshwar," said Patole.

It may be recalled that on Wednesday, the Trimbakeshwar Temple trustees, the two dargahs officials, the former Municipal Council President, all local political parties and social groups met together and voted for peace in the region.
Kolkata, May 18 : Trinamool Congress' national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday approached a division bench of the Calcutta High Court, hours after the single-judge bench of Justice Amrita Sinha allowed central agencies to question him in connection with the teachers' recruitment case.

Expelled Trinamool Congress leader and another accused in the case, Kuntal Ghosh, had also approached the same division bench challenging Justice Sinha's order.

Besides allowing central agencies to question Banerjee and Ghosh in the matter, Justice Sinha also imposed a penalty of Rs 25 lakh on each of them.

The division bench of Calcutta High Court's Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnaanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya has admitted the plea, but as of now it has not agreed for fast-track hearing of the matter. The case is likely to come up for hearing on Friday.

Earlier also, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had empowered the central agencies to question Abhishek Banerjee. The latter then approached the Supreme Court in the matter. Following the Supreme Court order, two related cases in the matter were transferred to the bench of Justice Amrita Sinha.

Though the hearing in the matter concluded on May 15, Justice Sinha had reserved the verdict on that day.

Abhishek Banerjee's name surfaced in the matter after Kuntal Ghosh wrote letters to a local police station as well as to the judge of a lower court accusing central agencies of putting pressure on him to name Banerjee in the alleged scam.

During the course of hearing, last week, Justice Sinha had raised questions about the reasons for the petitioner's reluctance in facing the investigation in the matter. Observing that the petitioner should cooperate in the investigation process, Justice Sinha also observed that no one is above investigation.

"Let the investigating agency decide who is involved and who is not. The legal system is above all. Everyone should cooperate in the process of investigation," Justice Sinha had observed earlier.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Delhi High Court on Thursday ruled that the application for drawing a sample of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances must be made within 72 hours to the Magistrate concerned under Section 52A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Justice Jasmeet Singh firmly asserted that the submission of such applications should not be subject to the arbitrary discretion of the Narcotics Control Bureau, which functions as the prosecuting agency.

While acknowledging that the reasonable time for submitting such an application depends on the specific circumstances of each case, the court emphasised that it is not the legislature's intention to allow the prosecuting agency to move the application arbitrarily.

"Therefore, taking cue from the Standing Order 1/88, it is desirable that the application under 52A should be made within 72 hours or near about the said time frame," the court said.

The court noted that Section 52A of the NDPS Act does not specify a specific timeframe for submitting an application to the magistrate for the collection of samples. It further clarified that the timeframe mentioned in Standing Order 1/88 solely pertains to the transportation of the samples to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).

According to the court, the legislative intent behind Section 52A of the NDPS Act is not to grant the respondent authorities the freedom to delay their submission of an application. Although the statute does not specify a time limit, the court emphasised that the application should be filed promptly to prevent any concerns of sample tampering.

"It cannot be the intent of the legislature that since no time limit is mentioned in the statute, the respondent authorities can take their own sweet time in moving an application under section 52A NDPS. Rather, the said application should be moved at the earliest to prevent the apprehension of tampering with the samples as the seizure, quantity and quality of contraband is the most crucial evidence in NDPS cases and drawing of sample and certification in the presence of magistrate is of utmost importance," the court said.

Referring to Clause 1.13 of the standing order, it was highlighted that samples should be dispatched to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) within 72 hours of seizure, either through insured post or a duly authorised special messenger, to avoid any potential legal objections.

Justice Singh emphasised the need for a coherent interpretation of Standing Order 1/88 and Section 52A, indicating that a reasonable timeframe should be considered when applying for sample collection and certification before the Magistrate.

These observations were made during the granting of bail to Kashif, who was charged under sections 8, 22(c), 23(c), and 29 of the NDPS Act.

The court concluded that the violation of Section 52A undermines the integrity of the sample collection process, resulting in a benefit of doubt that should be extended to Kashif.

"A period of 51 days, by no stretch of imagination, can be called a reasonable period for filing an application under section 52A NDPS for drawing the sample. It cannot be that the contraband lying in the custody of the Narcotics Department for 51 days, in their power and possession, is immune from tampering and mischief. Furthermore, no reasons have been furnished by the Respondent for the delay of 51 days for moving an application under section 52A NDPS," the court said.

"I hold that violation of Section 52A vitiates the sample collection procedure and the benefit of the same must accrue to the applicant. The application by the respondent under section 52A was filed after a delay of 51 days. At that time, the applicant did not object. However, the same being a legal objection can be raised at any stage," Justice Singh said.
New Delhi, May 18 : With the arrest of three men, the Delhi Police has busted a gang of car-borne snatchers-cum-robbers for several house burglaries in the outer-north Delhi area, an official said on Thursday.

The accused were identified as Ravi (22), Deepak alias Chhanga (30) and Manoj (22), all residents of Rohini.

As per police record, Deepak is previously involved in seven cases of robbery, hurt and excise act.

The official said that with their arrest, three cases of theft and snatching in Samaypur Badli have been solved.

According to police, car-borne snatchers looted a man at knife-point near Dr Lal Path Labs, Sector-18, Rohini on May 11, and after that the assailants fled away from the spot in the car.

During investigation, the police team minutely scrutinised the CCTV cameras as per the details provided by the complainant.

"After thorough and exhaustive checking of the CCTV cameras available, the team finally succeeded in establishing the identity of the vehicle involved in the offence as Ertiga Taxi," said Ravi Kumar Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (outer-north).

The police team also found that the taxi was being used by Ravi following which he was apprehended.

"During interrogation, he admitted his involvement. Subsequently, Deepak was also arrested and a button-operated knife which was used in the commission of the offence was recovered from his possession," said the official, adding that at their instance, Manoj was also nabbed.

The remaining accused has been identified as Lalu and he is presently absconding, said the official, adding that a manhunt has been initiated to nab him.
Lahore, May 18 : The caretaker Pakistan Punjab government has presented evidence of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) involvement in terrorism to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Sikander Sultan Raja in a bid to declare it a banned organisation, the media reported.

According to details, the CEC arrived at the Chief Minister House in Lahore to meet Caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday, Express News reported.

A high-level briefing session was held under their chairmanship. The meeting strongly condemned the terrorist incidents of May 9 and expressed complete solidarity with the Pakistan Army.

During the meeting, the CEC and members were presented with solid evidence of the involvement in the May 9 "terrorist" incidents by a political party, including briefings, images, videos, and messaging proofs.

Speaking on the occasion, Mohsin Naqvi said that on May 9, a political party disgraced the entire nation and carried out planned attacks on military installations, Express Tribune reported.

He said that evidence of contacts between attackers and party leadership present in Lahore's Zaman Park came to light through geo-fencing. "A dirty game was played in the guise of politics, and the initial estimate suggests a loss of Rs 600 million to the national exchequer," he added.

Sultan Raja said that under the leadership of Mohsin Naqvi, the Punjab government has taken the best and courageous steps to protect the people in the current situation.

"I am confident that the Punjab government's team is fulfiling its responsibilities with integrity. The purpose of the ECP is to conduct free, fair, and peaceful general elections. We have no affiliation with any political party and no political agenda," he added, Express Tribune reported.

During the meeting, the CEC and other ECP members were briefed about the incidents of terrorism that occurred on May 9.

Inspector General of Police, Dr Usman Anwar, provided details of the attacks on Jinnah House and other military installations to the delegation.

The Additional Chief Secretary on Interior gave a briefing on the damages caused by the terrorist attacks, stating that a total of 256 violent incidents occured in a span of three days, adding that military installations and locations were specifically targeted.

He said that a total of 108 vehicles and 23 buildings, including police and other government institutions, were damaged.

Five individuals lost their lives in the violent incidents, while 127 police officers, personnel, and 15 civilians sustained injuries, he added, Express Tribune reported.
Mumbai, May 18 : Disney Star Network on Thursday announced sustaining its streak of breaking viewership records for Indian Premier League (IPL) on television with 2.1 crore new viewers tuning in to watch the 'rivalry week' or Week 6 of the ongoing 2023 season.

With the additions of new viewers, the tally of total live broadcast viewership has gone up to 47.14 crore after 57 games, which is the highest in IPL history at the same stage, the company said in a media release.

The seven matches in Week 6 crossed a peak concurrency of three crore with the MI vs RCB match registering a peak concurrency of 4.7 crore, the highest for week 6. The broadcaster also witnessed a y-o-y growth of more than 44 per cent in Weekly TVR (Week 6), compared to the last edition.

The Rivalry Week was a special initiative by Disney Star to brand Week 6 of Tata IPL 2023 as a "must watch" week with key rivalries between the most popular teams and teams from the North & South.

"Disney Star is building the highly anticipated 'Race To The Playoffs', from 23rd May 2023, through a host of initiatives across live coverage, programming, and fan engagement. The league is at its competitive best with 5 teams still fighting for the remaining three Playoff spots, with Gujarat Titans already qualified," the release further said.

Latest updates on IPL 2023
Gurugram, May 18 : Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday inspected country's first elevated highway from an interchange of the Dwarka Expressway near Khedki Daula Toll in Gurugram to Dwarka in New Delhi.

Gadkari was accompanied by Union Minister of State for Statistics and Programme Implementation and Planning (Independent Charge) and Gurugram MP Rao Inderjit Singh; Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways and Civil Aviation VK Singh; and Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. Delhi MPs Parvesh Verma and Ramesh Vidhuri were also present.

"With the commencement of this expressway, the connectivity between Gurugram and Delhi's IGI Airport will be improved, as well as the project will have four categories of road transport, which are tunnels, underpasses, flyovers and flyovers overpass. The length of this road is 18.9 km in Haryana region and 10.1 km in Delhi region," Gadkari said.

Rao Inderjit Singh said this is a big gift of the government for the residents of Gurugram.

"With the opening of this expressway, the road infrastructure will get a new expansion not only in Gurugram but also in the NCR region. The people living in the new sectors of this area will also be benefitted," Singh said.

The construction of the Dwarka Expressway is in progress in four sections. The first section is in Delhi region from Shiv Murti in Mahipalpur to Bijwasan (5.9 km), the second is from Bijwasan Railway Over Bridge (ROB) to Delhi-Haryana border in Gurugram (4.2 km), the third in the Haryana region from Delhi-Haryana border to Basai ROB (10.2 km) and Fourth is from Basai ROB to Khedki Daula (cloverleaf interchange) (8.7 km).

Around Rs 2,507 crore will be spent on the construction of the first section in Delhi, Rs 2,068 crore on the section, Rs 2,228 crore on the third in the Haryana region, and Rs 1,859 crore on the construction of the fourth section.

61 per cent of the first section in the Delhi region, 82 per cent of the second, 94 per cent of the third, and 99 per cent of the fourth section in the Haryana border have been completed. The work in both the sections of Haryana region will be completed by next month.

Eight-lane access-controlled Dwarka Expressway is being built at a cost of about Rs 9000 crore.

There is also an eight-lane 34-meter wide elevated road on a single pillar of nine kilometers in length, which is the first elevated road of its kind in the country.

In Haryana, this expressway will meet at Pataudi Road (State Highway-26) near Harsaru and Farukhnagar (State Highway-15A) near Basai. Apart from this, it will also cross the Delhi-Rewari rail line near Sector-88 (B) of Gurugram and Bharthal. The expressway will also connect Sector-88, 83, 84, 99, and 113 to Dwarka Sector-21 along with the proposed Global City in the Gurugram district.
Mumbai, May 18 : The Maharashtra government on Thursday welcomed a US court decision that will clear the decks for the extradition of Pakistani-Canadian businessman and 26/11, 2008 Mumbai terror attack accused Dr Tahawwur Hussain Rana.

Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that this re-affirms India's stance that Pakistan had played a role in the 26/11 terror strikes "Everybody was aware that Pakistan had a hand behind the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai. Now, with Rana's extradition to India, it will help legally establish Pakistan's role behind those attacks," he said.

This was possible with the deposition of David Coleman Headley which had thrown light on various aspects of the planning and conspiracy and also provided crucial evidence indicating Pakistan's role.

Headley had made six trips to Mumbai, five prior to the 26/11 terror attacks and one later, while Rana had come here thrice before the strikes.

Fadnavis added that it was the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that took the initiative in these cases and had made representations to the US authorities in the matter.

Ace lawyer Ujjwal Nikam, the Special Public Prosecutor in the 26/11 trial, also lauded the development as a "big success for India's efforts".

A Pakistani-Canadian origin resident of Chicago, Rana, 62, is an immigration services consultant and a former army physician who was nabbed for plotting the attacks on the Danish newspaper "Jyllands-Posten" and is currently serving a 14-year jail term.

In her May 16 order, US Federal Court Magistrate Judge in California, Jacqueline Choolijian has allowed the extradition of Rana to India under the Indo-US Extradition Treaty, to face the laws here for his involvement in the 26/11 mayhem, which killed 166 civilians and 9 of the terrorists, while the lone terrorist nabbed alive, Ajmal Kasab underwent a full trial and was hanged on November 21, 2012.

Rana was convicted by a Chicago court in 2011 for providing support to the terror outfit operating from Pakistan, the Lashkar-e-Taiba, which had masterminded the 26/11 2008 strikes, along with Headley, currently serving a 35-year jail term.

Judge Choolijian's order said that after reviewing all the relevant documents and arguments submitted during the hearings in the court, it certified Rana's extraditability to India on the charges against him.

India had filed a plea in June 2020 seeking Rana's provisional arrest prior to extradition, and the judge's order comes ahead of PM Modi's scheduled state visit to US on June 22.
Guwahati, May 18 : A 13-year-old minor girl has been allegedly gang-raped by four youth in a moving car in Assam's Kokrajhar district, officials said on Thursday.

According to a senior police officer, the incident happened on Tuesday night when the four youth forced the girl inside a car and sexually assaulted her while travelling on National Highway 31C.

The police officer claimed that all four accused had been taken into custody.

"The region is close to Dotma town. All four were apprehended on Wednesday evening after the police initiated a manhunt after receiving information," he added.

"The accused have been sent for three days of police remand after being produced before a court in Kokrajhar." In Dotma Police Station, a case has been opened under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO), as well as several other sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Hyderabad, May 18 : In a major move, the Telangana cabinet on Thursday decided to scrap a Government Order (GO) issued in 1996 to protect two reservoirs on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

The government claimed that the decision will benefit people of 84 villages as the GO was hampering their development.

The decision was taken at the Cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. This was the first Cabinet meeting at the new Secretariat complex inaugurated on April 30.

The GO 111 was issued on March 8, 1996 to protect the catchment areas of Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar by imposing restrictions on construction activity.

The two reservoirs were built across Musi River by the Nizam of Hyderabad after the devastating Musi floods of September 1908 which had killed thousands of people. The two reservoirs were the main source of drinking water for the twin cities.

The government argued the GO became redundant as the two reservoirs were no longer the sources of drinking water as Hyderabad is getting piped supply of water from Krishna and Godavari rivers.

The government's proposal mooted last year was strongly opposed by environmentalists and citizens who cautioned it against the catastrophic move to lift the restrictions on construction activity in the catchment areas of the two reservoirs.

Finance Minister Harish Rao told reporters after the Cabinet meeting that the Kaleshwaram reservoir will be linked to Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar.

The Cabinet also decided to bring Godavari water to Hussain Sagar lake in the heart of the city.

It decided to formulate a scheme to provide financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh each to artisans. A Cabinet sub-committee headed by the Backward Classes Welfare Minister will be constituted to work out modalities for the scheme, which will be launched during state formation day celebrations, beginning on June 2.

The government decided to organise state-wide formation day celebrations for 21 days.

The Cabinet decided to create 38 posts of District Medical and Health Officers (DMHOs). It also gave its nod for setting up primary health centres in 40 newly created mandals.
Bengaluru, May 18 : Veteran leader Siddaramaiah was elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party in Karnataka held here on Thursday, paving the way for his swearing in as the Chief Minister.

After the election, Siddaramaiah and state Congress President D.K. Shivakumar, who will be Deputy Chief Minister, went in the same car to meet the Governor at the Raj Bhavan.

Shivakumar moved the proposal to elect Siddaramaiah as the legislative party leader after the commencement of the meeting and it was supported by all the 135 MLAs.

Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, observers Sushilkumar Shinde, and Jitendra Singh also participated in the CLP meeting. The leaders handed over a bouquet to Siddaramaiah and congratulated him after his election.

The resolution on this regard was approved by senior leaders Dr. G. Parameshwara, H.K. Patil, M.B. Patil, R.V. Deshapande, Laxmi Hebbalkar, Tanveer Sait, and K.H. Muniyappa.

After the selection, Legislative Council floor leader B.K. Hariprasad, Shivakumar and Surjewala presented Siddaramaiah with a bouquet.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar will take oath on May 20. Senior Congress leaders are also taking oath as cabinet ministers and the party is going to announce a major decision regarding implementation of guarantees assured to the people of Karnataka.

The party has promised to give 10 kg of rice to every member of BPL family, Rs 2,000 for woman heads of family, Rs 2,000 allowance for 2 years for unemployed graduates, Rs 1,500 allowance for 2 years for unemployed diploma holders, and free bus travel for women in the entire Karnataka state.
Gwadar, May 18 : Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Thursday that Iran will supply 100 MW of electricity daily to Balochistans Gwadar once the Polan-Gabd electricity transmission line project becomes functional, media reports said.

The Prime Minister made the announcement at a media briefing after he and Iranian President Seyed Ebrahim Raisi inaugurated the transmission line project and a marketplace at the Mand-Pishin border crossing point, Dawn reported.

State-run APP reported that the line will play a pivotal role in meeting the energy needs of the region, including households and businesses, by bringing in an additional 100 MW of electricity from Iran.

According to Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, the project was pending since 2009 and was completed in a record time of four months under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

She added that the project will open up development, trade, business, and employment opportunities contributing to the future prosperity of the people of Gwadar and Balochistan, Dawn reported.

The Mand-Pishin border sustenance market will provide a thriving platform for increasing cross-border trade, fostering economic growth, and opening up new avenues of opportunity for local businesses.

Pakistan and Iran also agreed to accelerate work on Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries and finalise it at the earliest. This was stated by Sharif while speaking to the tribal elders and notables of the city of Gwadar after the meeting.
Patna, May 18 : At least 35 school children fell ill on Thursday in Bihar's Saran district after consuming mid-day meal in which a lizard was found, an official said.

The incident happened at Dundri Tikuria village. The school administration along with villagers immediately rushed the children to Sadar Hospital in district headquarters, Chapra.

Pankaj Kumar, a medical officer, said that the condition of the students is stable, and they are out of danger.

"The mid-day meals are provided to the school by an NGO. We inspected the food and found a dead lizard in rice. We have informed the senior officials of the district about the incident," said Suman Kumari, a teacher.
Ahmedabad, May 18 : The upcoming two-day visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to Gujarat is packed with events and inaugurations in an itinerary covering Ahmedabad, Devbhumi Dwarka and Gandhinagar.

Shah will be in Gujarat on May 20 and 21 and will kick off his tour from Dwarka with Lord Dwarkadhesh's darshan. He will then take part in the ceremony for the new establishment of the National Academy of Coastal Policing. On the same day, he will also visit Gandhinagar where the Home Minister is scheduled to inaugurate several developmental projects under the purview of the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation.

On May 21, Shah's itinerary includes commissioning 320 state road transport corporation buses. He will also launch a state-of-the-art organic testing laboratory at the AmulFed Dairy in Gandhinagar.

In Ahmedabad, Shah will preside over the inauguration of a national convention for the Modi community. He will also unveil a new gymnasium and library in the Naranpura ward.

In total, Shah will attend six events in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar on the second day of his visit.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte discussed bilateral ties and Georgias European integration prospects on the sidelines of the ongoing Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe in Reykjavik, Trend reports with reference to Agenda.

The officials reviewed Georgias progress on its European integration path and the European Council's decision last year to grant the country a European perspective.

They also discussed prospects of further strengthening sectoral cooperation between their countries, the Georgian Government press office said.

Garibashvili thanked Rutte for his countrys support for Georgias sovereignty and territorial integrity and extended an invitation for an official visit to Tbilisi.
Srinagar, May 18 : The Indian Army's medical staff at Sadhna Pass in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district on Thursday, under daunting circumstances, assisted a woman in an emergency delivery ensuring the safety of both mother and newly born baby girl, who has been named 'Sadhna', an official said.

The army said that Harmida Begam, a resident of Jadda village, Tangdhar was referred by medical authorities as a critical patient and was taken in an ambulance towards Kupwara.

"The movement of the woman was expedited at Sadhna Pass. However, after a few minutes, the ambulance returned to Sadhna Pass since the lady went into labour and the medical staff accompanying the patient were experiencing difficulties in conducting the procedure as unforeseen complications emerged during the delivery.

"The Indian Army medical staff at Sadhna Pass was approached and was co-opted in the procedure," the army said.

"The well-trained Indian Army medical staff with experience showed great resilience and carried out delivery on time, thereby bringing joy to the anxious family members," a statement noted.

The army said "the baby girl was named 'Sadhna' by her parents in recognition of the location and to honour the efforts of the Indian Army".

"The heart-warming action by the Indian Army has once again exhibited reassurance of unconditional support to the citizens of Kashmir. The parents and relatives of the newly born child conveyed their gratitude," the army said.
New Delhi, May 18 : The Customs officials at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai on Thursday seized 4.2 kg gold valued at Rs 2.28 crore, and detained a man in this connection.

A senior Customs officer said that the accused arrived at Mumbai Airport from Muscat.

"What made this operation particularly intriguing was the meticulous and unconventional manner in which the smuggler had hidden the gold, stitching pockets within various parts of his clothing, including jeans, undergarments, and knee caps," the Customs officer said.

The officer said that the smuggling technique employed in this case demonstrates the lengths to which individuals will go to evade authorities "The recovered gold has been seized under Section 110 of the Customs Act. The passenger has been placed under arrest in terms of Section 104 of the Customs Act," the officer added.
Hiroshima : , May 19 (IANS) Japanese and US leaders met in Hiroshima prior to a larger gathering of G7 nations, overshadowed by protests and a tense atmosphere.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who holds the G7's rotating presidency and will host a three-day G7 summit which starts on Friday, held talks with US President Joe Biden on Thursday evening in the western Japanese city.

The two leaders discussed further strengthening deterrence of the Japan-US alliance and decided to advance Japan-US-South Korea cooperation, according to notes released after the meeting.

Hiroshima, devastated by US atomic bombings in 1945, has become the scene of intense demonstrations decrying the bloc days before the summit, while police officers from all over the nation were seen patrolling the streets, Xinhua news agency reported.

Nearly 100 protesters gathered from Wednesday to Thursday in front of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also known as Atomic Bomb Dome, at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which will be shut till next Monday due to the summit.

Pulling up banners and signs such as "Crush the G7 Summit" and "No War-themed Conference," protesters shouted slogans such as "No Japan-US leaders talk" and "Withdraw US military bases in Japan".

The protesters, including university students and family members of atomic bombing victims, rallied along one of the main streets in Hiroshima, crowded by police over 10 times the number of protesters.

The Japan-US leaders' talk on Thursday will eventually lead to upgrade of the military alliance between the two countries in East Asia, said Ryo Miyahara, head of a Hiroshima citizens' group and one of the protests' organisers, citing the Japanese government's aggressive announcements of counterattack abilities in striking enemy bases and doubling its defence spending.

"Today's talks will definitely ignore the ideas of ordinary people," said Akamine Chiaki, a college student from Okinawa at Thursday's rally.

His words were echoed by another protester on-site, a 23-year-old French student named Fred who now studies Japanese in Osaka, who said there is nothing to be expected from the G7 gathering.

"The G7 summit has nothing to do with the interests of humanity," he told Xinhua, adding that it is simply a game for the rich bloc.
Islamabad, May 19 : Pakistan's military have claimed to have killed a terrorist in an operation in the country's Bajaur district of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan Army, said in a statement that a fire exchange took place between government troops and the terrorists on Thursday in the Loesam area of the Bajaur district.

The government troops effectively engaged the terrorists' location and one terrorist was killed, said the ISPR, adding that a soldier of the security forces has also died in the operation.

The government forces had launched an operation in the area to eliminate the terrorists, Xinhua news agency reported.

The military added that the security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and the sacrifices of soldiers would further strengthen the resolve of the country against terrorism.
New Delhi, May 19 : The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB)'s 'Operation Samudragupt', in which the agency seized drugs worth Rs 12,000 crore, has exposed a major terror conspiracy which was hatched by the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Dawood Ibrahim's close aide.

It was a joint operation between the Indian Navy and the NCB officials in which a Pakistani national was also held from Kochi, Kerala.

The intelligence agencies have called it a big cocktail of terrorism which includes numbers of terror outfits and ultras.

The report states that Pakistan is using D-Company, ISI, LeT, and other terrorist organisations to smuggle drugs into India, aiming to cause extensive harm through narcoterrorism and disrupt the country's stability.

The name of Hazi Ali, a close aide of Dawood Ibrahim, protected by the ISI, has surfaced during the probe.

Hazi Salim's connection was found with LeT's terrorist Shazidulla.

The report says that Shazidulla has masterminded several terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

The sezied Rs 12,000 crore drug indicates that a major portion of this money was being sent to Pakistan through hawala via Dubai route. Subsequently, the funds were used for terrorism financing.

The report of intelligence agencies states that Hazi Salim often holds meetings with Commanders of LeT regarding drug trafficking. The intelligence agencies were able to detect one of the audio calls made by Hazi Salim to LeT Commander after which the former gathered information regarding Hazi Salim's Dubai trips.

One Pakistan national, who was held during the Operation Samudragupt from Kochi, is currently in judicial custody. On Monday, the intelligence agency could question him.

(Atul Krishan can be approached at atul.k@ians.in)
Colombo, May 19 : Sri Lanka's Navy has said that it seized a multi-day trawler carrying more than 120 kg narcotics off the southern coast of Sri Lanka.

The local multiday fishing trawler was carrying about 111.6 kg heroin and about 10.2 kg hashish when it was intercepted on May 13, the Navy said on Thursday in a press statement.

The special operation was carried out about 413 nautical miles off Dondra, south of Sri Lanka, the Navy added.

The Navy said it also apprehended six suspects, Xinhua news agency reported.

The drugs, suspects and the vessel were brought to Colombo Port on Thursday.

The street value of the seized drugs is believed to be around 2.8 billion rupees ($9.1 million).

Including the latest seizure, the Sri Lankan Navy has confiscated drugs with a gross street value of more than 7.6 billion rupees ($24.8 million) this year.
Islamabad, May 19 : At least one person was killed and three others were injured in a bomb blast in Peshawar city of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said.

Senior Superintendent of Peshawar police, Harood Rashid, told local media on Thursday evening that the explosion occurred at a motorcycle workshop near the Ring Road of Peshawar.

Police and rescue teams rushed to the site and shifted the body and injured to Hayatabad Medical Complex hospital, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to an initial investigation, at least 200 gram of explosives were used in the blast, said the officer.

The officer added that the bomb, which was planted in a motorcycle, exploded during the repair of the motorbike.

No group has claimed responsibility for the blast.
The Air Force Services Center is set to release the first five episodes of the highly anticipated Artisan Air series Memorial Day Weekend!

The new series showcases the creativity and depth of talent in both the Air Force and Space Force.

The Air Force Services Center recognizes that people are its greatest asset, accordingly we are putting audiences behind the scenes of service members' lives and are engaging audiences with a new 30 episode series, comments Richard Cooper, Strategic Marketing & Branding Specialist. Our Over-The-Top (OTT) media channel, AF Live APP, will feature our Artisan Air series and showcases Airmens and Guardians' most coveted interests.

The series release will kick off May 25 with five 30-minute episodes highlighting a mix of talent ranging from visual artists, musicians, and poets. Five new episodes will be released every Thursday through June 29th.

The series was recorded from September through December 2022 in Austin, Texas.

In addition to the series release, AFSVC plans to release songs from the episodes to music streaming platforms, adding to the Air Force's extensive music catalog. At the end of the series release, the work of 13 musicians and a spoken word poet will be packaged in a digital album available on various streaming platforms June 29.

In part, this program is a tribute to all U.S. Airmen and Guardians who, at a moments notice are ready to risk all in defense of our great nation, said Gary Lott, Chief Integrated Marketing and Branding. Additionally, a special thanks to the Air Force Service Center for trusting us to execute new concepts that highlight our people on a more personalized level.

Additionally, all eligible Department of Defense ID cardholders will have the chance to win a limited-edition vinyl recording. Watch for more details on the AF Live app for iOS and Android.

About Episodes 1-5 Streaming on May 25

Set to debut May 25, the new Artisan Air series features five episodes each week through June 29.

The series showcases individual Airmen and Guardians and their artistic processes, influences and background. Each episode tells the story of dedication to craft and service to the nation. The first release features Air Force Master Sgt. Trevor Clark stationed with the 58th Rescue Squadron, Nellis AFB; Airman 1st Class Adrianna Parson stationed with the SHAPE International Band in Mons, Belgium; Tech. Sgt. George Linen with the 765th Air Base Squadron at Lajes Field, the Azores; Tech. Sgt. Amy James with the 64th Air Refueling Squadron at Pease Air National Guard Base, New Hampshire; and Staff Sgt. Jon DeLise, 553rd Air Force Band, Ft. Indiantown Gap, PA.

This has been such an incredible project to be part of, and a real step forward for the Air Force in the way that they are encouraging Airmen and Guardians to embrace their talents, hobbies and unique backgrounds, said Clark, an Air Force pararescueman. Art for me is more than just creating something cool for people to look at; its an outlet for all the stressors that come with being in the military and life in general. The escape that art provides for creators and viewers alike has an amazing impact on mental health and well-being, and I am grateful to be part of a project that emphasizes its value and encourages the creation of art.

Clark is one of the first artists featured in the series. His art is bold, graphic and illustrative, with influences ranging from comics to horror movies to punk and metal album covers. He draws influence from his career, travel, food and life in general.

Linen, the featured poet who goes by Fresh Linen added, I feel like my craft is not mainstream, but this project filled my creative cup and affirmed that this is what I am meant to do. Im excited to see more artists being highlighted and appreciated.

He said his poetry comes from his community, work and life. In his episode, he will be performing a few poems including Hyperventilate. He comments,  Hyperventilate is one of my most important pieces on this tracklist. Its important to highlight mental health to remove its current taboo status.

He also performs his poem Black Currently" where he talks about his reply to the question

Whats it like to be black in todays military? and reflects on his time as a youth mentor and being mentored in Real Men Tour. He said, I hope this poem charges people to be more intentional about their interactions with people, especially those who are younger. This poem discusses socio-behavioral tendencies and the unfortunate stories based on real events.

In addition to being a musician, Parson is a vocalist with the U.S. Air Force Band of the West at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.

In her episode, Parson performs new music including Ember.

Im told successful people will often have motivational phrases. Think of Ember as my long motivational phrase to continue living a life motivated by love and kindness, Parson said. Before the Tree Falls was inspired by a tree that burst through her living room window, an experience that shook her and stayed with her for weeks, but also helped her see her future. And Promises is based on her love of horror movies and the supernatural, it signifies the summoning of the most powerful presence that exists throughout the universe ... love.

In addition to the new episodes, Parson and Jon DeLise will be releasing three songs each on May 25. Their journey along with the other artists will be available on the AF Live app, and on all

music streaming platforms.

To catch the new series download AF Live app for iOS and Android.

Connect:

Artist and Master Sgt. USAF Pararescueman Trevor Clark Website | Facebook | IG

Musician and Airman 1st Class Adrianna Parson Facebook | YouTube

Poet and Tech. Sgt. George Linen aka Fresh Linen Facebook | IG | YouTube | Spotify

Artist and Tech. Sgt. Amy James Website | IG

Musician and Staff Sgt. Jonathan DeLise

Website

Wk 1

MSgt Trevor Clark - 58th Rescue Squadron, Nellis AFB

SrA Adrianna Parson - SHAPE International Band NATO HQ SHAPE/

Mons, Belgium

TSgt Amy James - 64th Air Refueling Squadron, Pease ANGB, NH

TSgt George Linen - 765th ABS, Lajes Field, Azores, Portugal

SSgt Jonathan Delise - 553rd Air Force Band, Ft. Indiantown Gap, PA

Wk 2

SrA Clarissa Tweed - 36 LRS/LGRV, Andersen AFB

SSgt Derek Skelton - 147 ASOS, Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base

SrA Daryl Bowden Jr. -15AMXS, Offutt AFB

SSgt Connor Remboldt - 190th Air Refueling Wing, Forbes Field ANGB

SSgt Sarah Brice - DINFOS, Fort Meade, MD

Wk 3

SSgt Roberto Hernandez Nieves - 823d Red Horse SQ, Hurlburt Field, FL

SrA William Rosado - 1st Combat Camera Squadron, JBCharleston, SC

SSgt Kenneth Diaz Figueroa - 143rd Airlift Wing, Rhode Island ANG

Capt Lindsay Cordero - AFGSC CCX, Barksdale AFB, LA

TSgt Ashlyn - 69th Cyberspace Squadron, Schriever Space Force Base,CO

Wk 4

TSgt Aaron Evins - AFPC Evaluations/ Recognitions, Randolph AFB

SrA Nina-Sophia Pacheco - 134 Air Refueling Wing, 572nd Band of the South, McGhee Tyson ANG Base

SrA Sarah Porrazza - 4RS/MXAAS, Andersen AFB, Guam

TSgt Seth Groves - 434 OSS, Grissom ARB, IN

Maj Kim Panagsagan - USSF/S8, Pentagon

Wk 5

SrA Jonathan Bell -802d Force Support Squadron, JBSA Lackland AFB

A1C Colton Richards - 27th SOSS, Cannon AFB

Capt Cydnee Reese - 350th ARS, McConnell AFB

Capt Jacob Bryant - Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB

A1C Mandie Simon - 20 EMS, Shaw AFB

Wk 6

TSgt Nicholas Brown - 31st Munitions Squadron, Aviano Air Base, Italy

SSgt Erasmus Hartsfield - Andrews AFB

2d LT Touacha Her - 349 AMW, Travis AFB

Special Bonus Episodes

Follow the Series:

Streaming at http://www.AFLive.tv

Website: http://www.TheAFLive.com
Pine Meadow Townhomes, Shawnee, KS acquired by Freshwater Investments While operating in a more challenging market these days, we continue actively looking for new opportunities. After all, you dont create value for investors by waiting out on the bench.

Freshwater Investments, a Silicon Valley based real estate investment firm, is pleased to expand its presence in Johnson County, Kansas with the acquisition of Pine Meadow Townhomes, a 102-unit community in Shawnee for $24.55M. Johnson County has been one of the Midwests premier locations due to the areas high concentration of major employers, outstanding amenities, award-winning schools, and reasonable cost of living.

Built in 2004, Pine Meadow consists of large 2- and 3-bedroom townhomes with attached garages, walk-out patios, washer/dryer connections, and fully finished basements for most units. Pine Meadow boasts numerous amenities, including a swimming pool with sundeck, private pond, park-like setting with lush greenery and mature trees, making it an ideal choice for families and young professionals alike.

Ever since we first visited Overland Park in 2020, we have been believers in this market," said Alex Rozenfeld, Founder and Managing Partner at Freshwater Investments. "While operating in a more challenging market these days, we continue actively looking for new opportunities. After all, you dont create value for investors by waiting out on the bench. Adding Pine Meadow to Freshwater portfolio is a win for our investors, and I commend our team and all parties involved for making it a smooth transaction.

Freshwater plans to renovate the property, including common areas and individual units upgrades. The company also plans to implement several energy-efficient upgrades, including the installation of LED lighting and low-flow plumbing fixtures, to reduce the property's operating costs and environmental impact.

Freshwater is not a novice in this market and has been successfully operating the Savoy Apartments in Overland Park, KS and Fairways at City Center in Lenexa, KS. With the acquisition of Pine Meadow, the firm's portfolio now includes over 1,100 units in various US markets.

CBRE team has brokered this transaction. It was a pleasure to work with Freshwater team on their acquisition of Pine Meadow Townhomes, commented Max Helgeson, Senior Vice President, CBRE. Operating in a highly volatile environment, the Freshwater team executed without hiccup and performed as advertised. I commend their honesty and integrity demonstrated throughout the process. We look forward to working on many more transactions with them in the future.

Freshwater Investments, headquartered in Redwood City, California, is a private equity real estate investment firm creating opportunities for private and institutional investors to diversify portfolios and gain attractive returns through co-ownership of multifamily housing properties. For more information, visit http://www.freshwaterinvestments.com
Oasis Marinas, the Annapolis Maryland based marina management and experience company, is kicking off its National Marina Day campaign for the third year in a row, where boaters, staff and industry partners are invited to help clean the waterways in and around all Oasis Marinas properties in June 2023.

National Marina Day is a marine industry holiday where marinas honor their local boating community's and their environmentally friendly marina practices by hosting marina cleanups. Oasis Marinas began celebrating in 2021, where the Oasis team and their Baltimore based boaters combined efforts to help clean up Lighthouse Point Marina. Last year, Oasis was proud to expand the celebration to six marina cleanups, and this year, almost all Oasis properties, across 13 states, will be participating and hosting marina cleanups of their own. This will enable the entire Oasis boating community to participate in helping keep the waterways we love and enjoy pollution-free.

To make this year even more special, Oasis has partnered with a few significant regional and national organizations to help with the cleanup efforts including:



Our National Marina Day initiative is such an important campaign for us at Oasis Marinas and we are thrilled to continue to positively impact our waterways and include more our boating community in this cause, said Oasis Marinas President, Matthew Shipman. He continued, We are driven to operate certified clean marinas as a company, and work diligently to be environmental stewards in our industry, and led the way on incredible initiatives like National Marina Day.

The following marinas will be supporting marina cleanups this June:

Virginia -



June 3 - Cape Charles Yacht Center (in coordination with Chesapeake Bay Foundations Clean the Bay Day)

June 3 - Coles Point Marina & RV Resort (in coordination with Chesapeake Bay Foundations Clean the Bay Day)

Maryland -



June 2 - Baltimore Yacht Basin & Port Covington Marina- June 10 - Gunpowder Cove

June 17 - Harbor East Marina

June 17 - Shelter Cove Yacht Basin

June 17  Skipjack Cove

June 21 - Inner Harbor Marina with Clinton Street Boatel, Lighthouse Point and the Crescent Marina

June 21 - Rod n Reel Marina

June 22 - The Marina at Nautilus Point

Washington DC -



June 9 - The Wharf Marina

June 16 - National Harbor Marina

June 17  The Yards

Florida -



June 9 - Westshore Yacht Club Marina

June 17  Fernandina Harbor Marina

June 30 - Four Fish Marina

Northeast -



June 23  Greenwich Cove (RI)

June 24  Troy Downtown Marina (NY)

Ohio -



June 10 - Port Conneaut with Ohio Clean Marinas & Eriesponsible

June 17 - Battery Park Marina with Ohio Clean Marinas & Eriesponsible

June 24 - Port Lorain with Ohio Clean Marinas & Eriesponsible

The Carolinas -



June 3 - Northwest Creek Marina (NC) sponsored by Sound Rivers and Crystal Coastal Realty & Home Services

June 21  Grande Dunes Marina (SC)

Each location will provide cleanup supplies, official event t-shirts, and a post-cleanup party to show thanks to our boaters and partners for contributing to our eco-friendly practices at the marinas. To get involved in any of the cleanups above, you can find information on each cleanup on the marina social channels, or contact mailto:marketing@oasismarinas.com [marketing@oasismarinas.com __title__ null] to learn how to help support Oasis environmental mission.

About Oasis Marinas

Oasis Marinas is the leading marina hospitality company operating a portfolio of more than 50 amazing properties, comprising more than 8,000 wet & dry slips and hundreds of RV pads across 13 states. Each year our 350+ team members create incredible experiences for over 13,000 guests. In 2023 Oasis was honored to be recognized as a Great Place to Work. Visit oasismarinas.com for more information and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to sign a historic Hiroshima Accord on Thursday when he meets with Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of a G7 meeting, to step up defense cooperation with Japan, according to a statement from the UK government, Trend reports citing Al Arabiya.

As part of the accord, the countries will also announce the launch of a semiconductors partnership to strengthen chip supply chain in an increasingly competitive market, the statement said. The Hiroshima Accord will see us step up cooperation between our armed forces, grow our economies together and develop our world-leading science and technology expertise, Sunak said.

On Thursday, Sunak will visit a naval base and confirm new UK-Japan defense cooperation, the statement said, adding that the partnership includes doubling UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises.

Last week, Reuters reported that Washington and the European Union would also pledge joint action to tackle concerns focused on China about non-market practices and coordinate export controls on semiconductors and other goods at a meeting this month.
The Symphonina Foundation is pleased to announce the 2023 Best Symphonina of the Year Award Competition. Composers from around the world are invited to submit their best original (unpublished) Symphonina for consideration in this annual contest. The first place award will receive a $2000 prize and the second place award will receive a $1000 prize. The Symphonina Foundation will endeavor to recognize and promote all submissions that the judges deem suitable for recognition.

Interested participants can find more information about the contest and how to participate here. Contestants must read the full rules of the contest found at the foundation's website http://www.symphonina.org. Only one submission for consideration may be offered by a composer. The competition deadline is 11:59pm, Pacific Time, December 1, 2023, with all entries being sent to Symphonina founder Dr. David Fogel (david.fogel@symphonina.org) in mp3 format. Prior to submission, entrants are encouraged to email any questions regarding the competition directly to Dr. Fogel.

The Symphonina Foundation held its inaugural Best Symphonina of the Year competition in 2022. The compositions by first-prize winner Christopher Reed (USA) and runner-up Steve Locks (UK) are available on the Symphonina Foundations SoundCloud channel, along with submissions of distinction by Richard White (USA), James Dumas (USA), and Marc Caroul (USA). The Symphoninas can be streamed on SoundCloud here.

Symphoninas are small symphonies, written with three or four movements with melodic themes, and play in about 10 minutes. The Symphonina genre was created by Dr. David Fogel, co-founder of The Symphonina Foundation, as a way to help symphonic music become more amenable to online streaming and reaching younger audiences.

The Symphonina Foundation is currently preparing for the release of the Foundations first album featuring live performances by the players in the International Symphonina Orchestra, along with the Budapest Scoring Orchestra. In 2022, Budapest Scoring recorded Dr. Fogels compositions Symphonina No. 1 and Symphonina No. 2. Now, individual players from around the world have also been recorded as part of the International Symphonina Orchestra. This virtual/remote orchestra was formed to provide an opportunity for young players to play along with experienced professionals and promote opportunities for young people internationally. The orchestra comprises excellent young performers from the USA, Nigeria, Argentina, France, and other countries playing along with virtuosos such as violinist and Concertmaster Oleksander Bozhyk (Ukraine), former touring concert pianist Chetan Tierra (USA), and two-time Grammy-winning flute player Wouter Kellerman (South Africa).

You can see the entire International Symphonina Orchestra and discover more about the initiative at: http://www.symphonina.org. Those interested in helping to promote the mission of the organization as a donor, supporter, or volunteer  and be considered for the Symphonina Foundation Wall of Appreciation  should contact Dr. Fogel directly at david.fogel@symphonina.org or directly place a one-time or monthly donation via PayPal here. All contributions directly help The Symphonina Foundation share the joy of symphonic music with young audiences around the world.

About The Symphonina Foundation

The Symphonina Foundation has a mission to bring the joy of symphonic music to young audiences around the world. The Symphonina Foundation was started in 2020, is 501(c)(3) approved, and is based in San Diego, California, USA. More information can be found at: https://symphonina.org/.

Media Contacts:

David Fogel

david.fogel@symphonina.org

Jory White

Vesperize PR (for The Symphonina Foundation)

jory@vesperize.com
Featuring renowned speakers, employee awards and more, WealthVest, a financial services marketing and wholesaling firm, held its annual National Sales Meeting in Bozeman, Montana, earlier this May. The company hosted more than 100 employees for the two-day event.

It was an absolute pleasure having all of our employees join us for two full days of learning, networking and idea exchange, said Wade Dokken, co-founder and president at WealthVest. This years content, which centered around modern-day wholesaling, was exceptional and aligned well with our mission to rethinking retirement and add more value to our advisors practices.

WealthVests three nationwide wholesaling teams and its back-office support team had the opportunity to learn from keynote speakers Hank Schulthesz from North Pointe Partners and Colin Lake with Developing the Next Leaders. Schulthesz and Lake provided essential guidance and insight into being a better partner for advisors and their clients during multiple sessions with attendees.

Team members also heard from WealthVest executives, National Sales Managers and department heads, who presented several new sales ideas and strategies aimed at helping team members build for the future. Chief Investment Officer Tim Pierrotti also provided an in-depth market update.

During the meeting, WealthVest also recognized its top-producing wholesalers from last year, which included:

2022 Top Regional Consultants:

Brian Sweeney Brian Robinson Katie Gaunt

2022 Top Regional Vice Presidents:

Michael Soulis Jeff Orlando Ken Rathke

2022 Top Marketing Consultant:

Michael Lovisolo

Additionally, the company celebrated the hard work of its back-office employees with its first-ever Give an F awards, which recognized employees who best embodied the companys core values. Voted on by their coworkers, this years recipients included:

Fiduciary  Katelyn Couturier Friendly  Lisa Davis

Fast  Kim Wendell Focused  Cody Wacura

Flexible  Tana Parisi Fun  Amanda Hauer

Photos from the national sales meeting can be found on WealthVests Facebook and LinkedIn pages or at http://www.wealthvest.com.

###

About WealthVest

WealthVest is one of the leading distributors of fixed, fixed index, registered index-linked and variable annuitiesas well as structured products to U.S. financial advisors. WealthVests leadership is fueled by proprietary thought-leadership, consumer-driven product design expertise, strategic marketing, technology, and specialization in both field and hybrid-based advisor wholesaling. Follow them on Facebook and LinkedIn or visit wealthvest.com.
Comfort at Every Touch: About The Baby Care Collection

Baby Wash and Baby Cream have been developed by Waphyto founder, Atsuko Morita, an award-winning phytotherapist with extensive expertise in womens wellness, birth, and nursing care.

As part of the brands mission to support multigenerational wellness, Waphytos baby care collection focuses on the needs of sensitive infant skin, and also encourages skinship between infants and their caregivers.

For head-to-toe cleansing, Baby Wash is a gentle foaming wash formula that moisturizes and protects healthy barrier function in the skin. It also features easy-to-use packaging that can be opened and used with just one hand.

Similarly, Waphytos Baby Cream uses proprietary three-phase emulsification technology to ensure the delivery of nourishing active ingredients. Its lightweight and silky texture makes it appropriate to use as moisturizing cream following cleansing, or as a massage medium.

Both products come in colorful packaging with stickers, designed to make baby care time playful and fun. They also utilize biodegradable materials, post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic, recycled paper packaging, and soybean ink, as part of the brands commitment to producing products sustainably.

Soothing For The Skin and The Mind: About Waphytos Proprietary Ingredients

As Japans biomethodology beauty and wellness brand, Waphyto is known for creating innovative products using nutrient-rich homegrown botanicals from the Mikawa region.

In particular, the baby care collection was inspired by the powerful effects of chrysanthemum flowers, or Japanese calendula. Sometimes referred to as the elixir for longevity, chrysanthemum flower extract is known to have calming properties for the skin, as well as a pleasant aroma that promotes peaceful sleep.

Both Baby Wash and Baby Cream contain a golden ratio of Waphytos signature plant-derived ingredients  chrysanthemum, mulberry, mugwort, gotu kola, and horsetail  which have all been demonstrated to improve skin health and function. Meanwhile, other key ingredients included in the two new formulas are artichoke leaf extract, yoshino cherry, meadowfoam oil, coix seed, plant-based squalane, suizenji nori, and noni.

Lastly, what makes Baby Wash and Baby Cream unique to the market is their special scent. The formulas are infused with a blend of 100% natural essential oils, including lavender, primrose, geranium, and sweet orange.

Based on French phytotherapy principles, Waphytos fragrances give the products an added aromatherapy element that is soothing to babies but can also be enjoyed by the adults who take care of them.

About Waphyto:The Power of Plants Meets Modern Cosmetic Science

Waphyto is a self care and wellness brand that combines the finest natural ingredients with the most sophisticated cosmetic innovations. From skincare to body, hair, and intimate care, all products embody an appreciation for Japanese Wa culture - promoting peace and harmony.

All products from Waphytos personal care lineup are made with plant-based, natural ingredients and essential oils. They are also completely free of synthetic coloring, synthetic fragrances, parabens, petroleum-based surfactants, phenoxyethanol, and ethanol.

With a passion for preserving the purity of nature, Waphyto works to ensure that all ingredients and formulas meet the highest standards of the companys scientists and herbalists, as well as those of todays socially-responsible marketplace.
Middle School Science Teachers Participate in National STEM Scholar Program "The National STEM Scholar Program is an excellent way for teachers to learn new strategies and new ways to engage students to help them become and stay interested in science and math."

Ten middle school teachers from eight states have been selected to participate in the prestigious National STEM Scholar Program, a unique professional development program providing advanced STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) training, national network building and project support for middle school science teachers nationwide.

Created in partnership between the National Stem Cell Foundation and The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science at Western Kentucky University (WKU), the National STEM Scholar Program selects ten teachers each year from a national pool of applicants based solely on the description of a big idea Challenge Project the applicant would implement in their classroom if funds were available. Selected projects are chosen for maximum impact in middle school classrooms where research shows lifelong STEM career decisions are being made. STEM Scholars convene on WKUs campus for a week of advanced STEM training and finalize their projects with input from their STEM Scholar class colleagues.

The 2023 National STEM Scholar class will be hosted by The Gatton Academy from May 29th to June 2nd on the campus of WKU in Bowling Green, KY:



Laura Cummings, Haleiwa, HI  Sunset Beach Elementary School

James "JJ" Frye, Leitchfield, KY  Grayson County Middle School

Emily Harer, St. Paul, MN  Global Arts Plus - Upper Campus

Erin Hullinger, Buxton, ME  Bonny Eagle Middle School

Patricia Pati Huntington, San Diego, CA  Farb Middle School

Jennifer Jenny McCall, Lexington, KY  Winburn Middle School

Michele Mitnitsky, Sanibel, FL  The Sanibel School

Teresa Robertson, Munfordville, KY  Munfordville Elementary School

Sarah StCyr, Sulphur, LA  W.W. Lewis Middle School

Kandice Taylor, Jackson, MS  Brinkley Middle School

Studies show that middle school students who become excited about science are the ones who will pursue STEM courses in high school and major in them at the technical and college level. At a pivotal time in decision-making that will open or close the door to opportunity, however, nearly 50% of 8th graders in America lose interest in pursuing the STEM-related subjects increasingly required for 21st-century jobs.

Dr. Paula Grisanti, CEO of the National Stem Cell Foundation, said, we added education to our mission and partnered with The Gatton Academy in 2015 to support the development of a new generation of scientists in academic research, advanced technology, and infrastructure engineering. Supporting teachers who inspire and motivate middle school students at this critical decision-making age will directly impact how many choose to pursue the STEM skills essential for living wage jobs. By investing in the influential middle school STEM teacher now, we reach thousands of students in classrooms today and far into the future.

Dr. Julia Link Roberts, Executive Director of The Gatton Academy, added, this partnership will accrue benefits for the National STEM Scholars, middle school students in their classrooms, and the middle school science teachers with whom they collaborate. The National STEM Scholar Program is an excellent way for teachers to learn new strategies and new ways to engage students to help them become and stay interested in science and math.

Now in its 8th year, there are 80 National STEM Scholars representing middle schools in 33 states. 91% teach in public schools, 41% teach in mid- to high-poverty schools and 38% teach in communities with a population under 15,000. A unique requirement of the program is the responsibility for STEM Scholars to share lessons learned with colleagues in their home schools, districts or states, magnifying impact over multiple classrooms and years. By June 2023, National STEM Scholars will have directly and indirectly impacted more than 104,000 middle school students in the U.S.

About the National Stem Cell Foundation

The National Stem Cell Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that funds adult stem cell and regenerative medicine research, underwrites the National STEM Scholar Program for middle school science teachers inspiring the next generation of STEM pioneers nationwide, and covers copays and deductibles for children of limited means participating in clinical trials for rare diseases. For more information, visit http://www.nationalstemcellfoundation.org.

About The Gatton Academy

Established in 2007, The Gatton Academy is Kentuckys first residential two-year program for gifted and talented juniors and seniors. The Gatton Academys students enroll as juniors and are full-time WKU students pursuing their interests in advanced science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The Gatton Academy is a recipient of the 2022 Inspiring Programs in STEM Award from Insight Into Diversity Magazine and the Innovation Partnership Award from the National Consortium for Secondary STEM Schools.
"High quality customer insights are game-changing," said Jeremy Ames, Guidant Financial President and Co-founder. "Groopit helps our employees capture the voice of the customer after every interaction and gives our leadership team the agility to inform any decision with insights from our employees."

Groopit, an enterprise SaaS platform that makes it easy to crowdsource insights from employees and use that data to solve complex problems, has raised $3.5M in Seed funding led by WestRiver Group with continued participation from existing investors Cercano Management, Tapas Capital, Cascade Seed Fund and others. The company, whose software is already available on Slack, Teams, Salesforce, iOS, and Android, will invest the funds in continued product innovation and expand the number of enterprise customers it serves. Today, companies like The Home Depot, Guidant Financial, and Stuckeys rely on Groopit to accelerate revenue growth, improve customer experiences, and outsmart competitors with quantitative insights from employees.

Guidant Financial has served 25,000+ small businesses and is deeply committed to delivering outstanding customer experiences. Thats easier said than done. Guidant attempted to diagnose areas to improve the customer experience via traditional methods like surveys, spreadsheets, and Salesforce notes. The work was slow, laborious, and imprecise - until they found Groopit. Now, any time a customer is confused or frustrated, the customer-facing employee captures the reason, frustration level, and time cost with a few quick taps. Groopit delivers a precise, quantitative, real-time view of how the customer experience can be improved. Guidant integrates data into daily operations so the teams responsible for SCRUM, training, and policy are empowered with real-time data to continually improve customer experience.

Having high quality customer insights is game-changing, said Jeremy Ames, Guidant Financial President and Co-founder. Groopit helps our employees capture the voice of the customer after every interaction and gives our leadership team the agility to inform any decision with insights from our employees.

Business leaders need data from frontline employees to make informed decisions and solve complex problems. However, traditional data sharing methods are time-consuming and inefficient. Groopit streamlines data sharing into a single workflow, making it easy for frontline employees to share data in three taps. Groopit also integrates with existing enterprise systems, including Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Salesforce, so leaders can gain real-time insights into what is happening across their extended teams.

Nobody has a monopoly on knowledge. The ability to share data and collaborate in real-time is a critical competitive advantage for leaders, said Anthony Bontranger, Managing Director at WestRiver Group. Groopit leverages the wisdom of the crowd - where the crowd is most active in Slack, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, or on their mobile devices - to capture and deliver actionable insights and empower everyone to make better, faster, more customer-centric decisions. Groopit is well positioned to disrupt the $30B Collaboration Software market with its unique approach to crowdsolving.

Innovative leaders are using Groopit to get --- and actually use --- insights from employees. Theyre building competitive advantage, improving customer experience, accelerating revenue growth, and tackling their most strategic initiatives, said Tammy Savage, CEO and Co-founder of Groopit. Solving complex problems is possible with the radical simplicity of Groopit. The solution is different from any other, replacing the pain of ad-hoc data chaos with the power of crowdsolving.

Groopit was co-founded in 2018 by Tammy Savage and John Vert. Savage, a former Microsoft executive, became obsessed with understanding what leaders need to accelerate business results, especially when leading large, distributed and cross-functional teams. Out of that obsession, Groopit was born.

About Groopit

Groopit is the leading provider of crowdsolving software, a new category of enterprise SaaS software that transforms how people come together to solve problems. With Groopit, front-line employees share real-time data to illuminate a problem, and everyone involved is empowered to make better, faster decisions. To learn more about Groopit, visit https://groopit.co/.
"We are thrilled to announce our move to a new office space. This relocation will provide employees with the best possible working environment that allows for the same innovative and collaborative office culture that Evan-Moor has fostered for over 40 years."

Evan-Moor Educational Publishers, a leading publisher of PreK8 educational materials for the classroom and home, is excited to announce their relocation to a new and innovative hybrid workspace in Monterey, California.

Effective June 1, 2023, the new office space will better support Evan-Moors hybrid work model and provide flexible working opportunities for its employees. The Evan-Moor warehouse will remain at its current location in Salinas, California.

Designed for collaboration and creativity, Evan-Moors new office space will benefit employees and departmental teams with social areas, meeting rooms, and flexible furniture arrangements for creative brainstorming sessions.

We are thrilled to announce our move to a new office space that supports our employees in a hybrid work model, said Judy Harris, President and CEO of Evan-Moor Educational Publishers. This relocation will provide employees with the best possible working environment that allows for the same innovative and collaborative office culture that Evan-Moor has fostered for over 40 years.

All purchase orders and remittances should be directed to the new address as of June 1, 2023. The new address for Evan-Moors headquarters is:

Evan-Moor Educational Publishers

10 Harris Court, Suite C-3

Monterey, CA 93940

About Evan-Moor Educational Publishers

Evan-Moors mission is clear and unwavering: to help children learn. As a team of educators, we are dedicated to providing teachers and parents with innovative supplemental resources for grades PreK8 that are easy to use and accessible in a variety of formats and learning modalities, including print books, e-books, and an affordable digital subscription, TeacherFileBox. We are proud to partner with educators and parents around the world and to be a part of students academic journeys. Learn more about Evan-Moor at http://www.evan-moor.com.
Paul Mengert and Dr. Lori Baker Schena Our session on creating an intentional work-life balance vividly reflects how professionals in our industry must keep up with todays constantly expanding work responsibilities while balancing an increasingly demanding personal life. - Dr. Lori Baker-Schena

Founder and CEO Paul K. Mengert of Association Management Group (AMG), one of the Carolinas largest professional homeowner association management companies representing more than 30,000 property owners, will present a session on work/life balance at the Community Associations Institute (CAI) 50th-anniversary conference May 17 - 20 in Dallas. Per the conference theme of Community NOW, Mengert and colleague Dr. Lori Baker-Schena, MBA, EdD, leadership consultant and professional speaker with Baker Schena Communications, will present a workshop titled Mindful Managing: Achieving the Elusive Work-Life Balance.

The invitation to present at CAIs golden anniversary conference is a huge honor, said Mengert. Its AMGs mission to help community associations create safe, attractive, effective neighborhoods. Association managers do a stupendous job of managing their properties. Its a pleasure to present a workshop teaching them how to strategically perform their many commitments and duties with a spirit of mindfulness and joy. For more than 35 years, AMGs excellence has been driven by our managers excellence, so our topic is a good fit for todays demanding times.

Begun in 1973 and with 1000 members by 1975, CAI now has more than 43,000 members worldwide. The exponential growth of community associations over the last 50 years (from 10,000 in 1970 to 358,000 today) and the burgeoning job requirements association managers must handle solidify Dr. Baker-Schenas belief that the workshop she and Mengert will present will meet an absolutely vital workforce need.

As CAI celebrates its 50th anniversary, it is a good time to reflect on how the community management industryand the workloadhas changed in the last five decades, Dr. Baker-Schena noted. Our session on creating an intentional work-life balance vividly reflects how professionals in our industry must keep up with todays constantly expanding work responsibilities while balancing an increasingly demanding personal life.

The Mindfulness Management workshop is designed to help participants learn how to manage feelings of frustration and helplessness by empowering them with practical tips on busting the multitasking myth, taking control instead of being controlled, protecting their time, being fully (and positively) present, and mastering teamwork and communicating more effectively with volunteer boards and teams. For additional details and insights on the conference, community management, and work/life balance, visit the websites for the 2023 Annual CAI Conference & Expo, AMG, and Dr. Lori Baker-Schena.

About AMG

AMG is a professional community association management company dedicated to building effective community associations. AMG guides and assists executive boards to help protect the association's interests, enhance the lives of community members, and improve the property values in the community. With offices throughout the Carolinas in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Charlotte and Raleigh, NC, and Greenville and Aiken, SC, AMG is a knowledgeable partner in enforcing community governing documents with a proven set of processes and techniques and supporting communities with a broad range of services which can be tailored to individual community needs. Association Management Group, Inc. is a locally Accredited Business by the BBB and is a nationally Accredited Association Management Company (AAMC) by the Community Associations Institute. For more about AMG, visit http://www.amgworld.com.

About Dr. Lori Baker-Schena, MBA, EdD

Dr. Baker-Schena, a leadership consultant and professional speaker, brings to her clients 35 years as a healthcare public relations and marketing consultant and 25 years as a tenured university professor at California State University, Northridge (CSUN), teaching public relations and journalism. Dr. Baker-Schena holds a bachelors degree in Journalism, an MBA from CSUN, and a doctorate in Organizational Leadership from the University of La Verne. Over the past seven years, she has presented to CAI chapters nationwide on topics such as managing conflict, dealing with difficult people, achieving work-life balance, helping Boards function effectively, retaining employees, and delivering excellent customer service.
Managing through an illness can be very hard but being able to receive treatment in these centers ensures our Members will be truly safe and supported as they navigate their busy lives. Dr. Lori Tishler, Chief Medical Officer, Community Health Options

Community Health Options has expanded its outpatient infusion Site of Care program through a preferred provider partnership with Local Infusiongiving Members in Central Maine a new option for affordable infusion therapy, the company announced today.

Local Infusion recently opened in Augustaits first infusion center in Maineand will soon open a center in South Portland. Local Infusion also has locations in Concord and Bedford, New Hampshire. Nurse practitioners provide all care at the centers, which offer private suites, a dedicated infusion guide to assist patients with scheduling and financial guidance, flexible hours including nights and weekends, and convenient parking.

Managing through an illness can be very hard but being able to receive treatment in these centers ensures our Members will be truly safe and supported as they navigate their busy lives, said Dr. Lori Tishler, Community Health Options chief medical officer. Were excited to work with a provider who shares our mission to make treatment more affordable while improving health outcomes for the people of Maine.

Local Infusion is the newest addition to Community Health Options voluntary Site of Care Incentive Program, which gives Members access to preferred infusion providers at a fraction of the cost of non-preferred providers, yielding savings of as much as 50%. Along with reducing out-of-pocket costs, the program pays Members incentives of up to $1,000 a year to use the program.

For too long, patients in Central Maine have been without options for affordable infusion therapy, said Woody Baum, CEO & founder of Local Infusion. Local Infusion changes that by offering a care model with the highest patient satisfaction in the country. When you combine our focus on patient experience with Community Health Options innovative approach to plan and network design, you get a recipe to materially drive savings for Mainers while elevating their satisfaction and health outcomes.

Community Health Options Members are already taking advantage of the new service. One of the first Members to use Local Infusion said, "This was my first time getting an infusion, and I had originally tried to go to a different place. I waited months, and they never called me back. I just kept getting the answering machineit was horrible! Local Infusionthey texted me back right away and I got an appointment the very next week. The nurse was amazing; it was an incredible experience."

The Community Health Options Utilization Management Team tries to reach Members within two business days of a pre-authorization approval for infusion therapy to help them determine the best site of careperhaps even in their homebased on the Members location and medication being prescribed. Members in need of infusion treatment may also call Community Health Options' Maine-based Member Services team at (855) 624-6463.

About Local Infusion

Local Infusion is setting a new standard for infusion therapybecause patients deserve better. It aims to improve outcomes for patients, save time for physicians and make it all more affordable for everyone involved. Through a blend of human-centered design and a people-first culture, Local Infusion puts the "local feel" of community, comfort and connection back into the patient and provider experience. Local Infusion operates in the Northeast U.S., with the goal of improving patient care and outcomes, while saving time and lowering costs for patients, physicians and payers. To learn more, visit mylocalinfusion.com.

Follow Local Infusion on LinkedIn and Facebook.

About Community Health Options

Community Health Options is the only Mainebased, nonprofit, Memberled health insurer, providing comprehensive health plans for individuals, families and businesses. Community Health Options offers a robust network of 48,000 healthcare providers in New England, along with plans with U.S. national coverage for individuals and businesses.

Follow Community Health Options on LinkedIn, Facebook or Instagram.
Helen Elizabeth Payne and Janet Anne Goldman announces the release of A Curlew Cried (published by Balboa Press AU), a historical novel set from 1911 to the outbreak of the Second World War in which an English family immigrates to a farm in Western Australia where they must endure many trials and tribulations. Their late mother, Winifred Millicent Hardie wrote this book over 40 years ago.

It is 1911 when Bill and Isobel Elgin scramble down from the Kalgoorlie Express with their family of six to begin a new life in the wheat lands of Western Australia. As they head to their farm in Bunburra to fulfill their dream of a better future, Isobel and her daughters lament over the dry, dusty, vermin-infested landscape that is vastly different from their former home in England. Still, they are determined to support the men in their family, no matter the personal sacrifices.

However, as they face one complex challenge after another, the entire Elgin family soon realizes that nothing in life is certain, especially when living in a land filled with brown snakes, questionable neighbors, and seemingly insurmountable obstacles that even shock the local clergy.

This book was rediscovered after being in a filing cabinet for over 40 years. It speaks of the history, the hardships, and remoteness of the wheat and sheep country in Western Australia, Payne says. When asked what she wants readers to take away from the book, she answers, even through the extreme emotional pressure and heartbreak, they were still able to find humor and snippets of happiness. For more details about the book, please visit https://www.balboapress.com/en-au/bookstore/bookdetails/849121-a-curlew-cried

A Curlew Cried

By Winifred Millicent Hardie

Softcover | 5.5 x 8.5in | 338 pages | ISBN 9781982296278

E-Book | 338 pages | ISBN 9781982296285

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

The late Winifred Millicent Hardies own mother died when she was only 15 months old. She was raised by her maternal grandmother on a wheat farm in Western Australia. Her flair for writing came at a young age where she used to write stories for the Western Mail paper and that is how she met her husband, who also wrote stories for the same paper. They went under pen names of Silver Concha and Born In the Saddle. Friendly rivalry ensued of who would write the best story. They met in real life when her husband joined the Army at the outbreak of World War II. They became engaged before he went overseas. On his return, they married and went on to have two daughters.

Balboa Press Australia is a division of Hay House, Inc., a leading provider in publishing products that specialise in self-help and the mind, body and spirit genre. Through an alliance with the worldwide self-publishing leader Author Solutions, LLC, authors benefit from the leadership of Hay House Publishing and the speed-to-market advantages of the Author Solutions self-publishing model. For more information or to start publishing today, visit balboapress.com.au or call 1-800-844-925.
Andrea Zechmann As someone who lived and worked in Silicon Valley, it is so encouraging to see my home state show a vested interest in supporting and growing entrepreneurship in Minnesota.

As someone who lived and worked in Silicon Valley, it is so encouraging to see my home state show a vested interest in supporting and growing entrepreneurship in Minnesota, said Andrea Zechmann.

As a part of the ILT Academy team, Zechmann traveled to her home states capitol to discuss how Minnesota can be the next growing hub for startup founders and entrepreneurs. ILT Academy was one of several organizations that were joined together at the Minnesota State Capitol for the meeting. At the capitol, the gathered organizations conversed with Minnesotas governor, Governor Tim Walz.

Listening to Governor Waltz's enthusiasm about focusing Minnesota's resources towards supporting and launching startups locally is something I am so excited to help be a part of, commented Zechmann.

At ILT Academy, Zechmann holds the role of Business Development Representative. She aids in fulfilling the organizations mission to help underestimated entrepreneurs in underserved communities create untold opportunity. ILT Academy hosts and trains entrepreneurs from many different areas and walks of life on a one-of-a-kind platform for virtual learning and community building. The platform welcomes startup founders from all populations, backgrounds, and locations to come train and develop 21st-century businesses that thrive.

ILT Academy understands that entrepreneurship is a journey, which is why individuals who go through the organizations programs are connected with a greater community of startup support systems while gaining the tools necessary to boost entrepreneurship skills.

The extensive and practical educational experiences that ILT Academys programs deliver empower, educate, and mentor aspiring entrepreneurs in a way that elevates business ideas, products, and services to higher levels.

To contribute entrepreneurial opportunities to underserved communities, ILT Academy offers two 10-Week programs, its cohorts Lean Start-Up Innovation and Advanced Lean Start-Up, for free to entrepreneurs that are local to available regions such as in areas of Minnesota including North East, North West, Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Fergus Falls. ILT Academy also offers its Virtual Spring Cohort 2023 Lean Start-Up Innovation nationwide. Other regions that offer ILT Academys programs at no cost to local entrepreneurs include Nairobi, Kenya.

Multiple neighborhoods in Minnesota have partnered with ILT Academy to unlock the potential that entrepreneurship can bring to the future of their communities. Community leaders and economic development partners contribute to the success of growing entrepreneurship roles in these local areas. Essentially, ILT Academy is the answer for communities seeking to upskill local entrepreneurial talent and startup opportunities or provide innovative education to small business owners.

For more information about ILT Academy and the programs it offers startups and entrepreneurs, visit https://iltacademy.io/startups/.

About Andrea Zechmann

As a forward-thinking business luminary armed with a Juris Doctorate and an MBA, Andrea Zechmann brings legal and business expertise. With a background of distinctive leadership and passion for uncharted territory, Zechmann assists businesses as they launch, expand and enter into new markets.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres thanked Turkiye for contributions to the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative for ensuring global food security, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.

"We have some positive and significant developments... The confirmation by the Russian Federation to continue its participation in the Black Sea Initiative for another 60 days. I welcome this decision," Guterres said at a news conference.

His remarks came hours after Erdogan announced the deal, which was set to expire May 18, was extended for two months.

"With the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends, and the contributions of our Ukrainian friends, it was decided to extend the Black Sea grain corridor agreement for another two months," Erdogan said in an address to his Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) provincial heads, deputies and mayors via video link.

Guterres said the continuation is good news for the world but outstanding issues remain.

"I once again express my gratitude to President Erdogan and the government of Turkiye for their efforts working in permanent coordination with the United Nations," said the U.N. chief.

Turkiye, the U.N., Russia and Ukraine initially signed the agreement in Istanbul last July to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which were halted after the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022.

A Joint Coordination Center with officials from the three countries and the UN was set up in Istanbul to oversee the shipments.
"Exceeding expectations every day is what we strive for so its incredibly exciting to have our dedication recognized by an industry leader like U.S. News. -Nick Barash, acting executive director, Ashland Farm

Ashland Farm at North Andover, a Benchmark assisted living and Mind & Memory Care community, has ranked among the best assisted living with memory care communities in Massachusetts and the entire U.S. In U.S. News & World Reports second annual Best Senior Living ratings published today, the community was selected following a comprehensive resident and family member survey. Ashland Farm is the only assisted living community in the greater Andover area to have earned this prestigious award.

Ashland Farm earned Best status by achieving the highest possible rating for memory care. Respondents gave the community high marks in critical areas, such as overall value, management and staff, resident enrichment, dining and food, safety, transportation, maintenance, housekeeping and location.

Forty Benchmark communities throughout the Northeast received a total of 53 U.S. News awards for the second straight year.

We are honored and humbled that our residents and their families, once again, recognized the hard work, compassion, and dedication of our 6,000-plus associates. Its their shared purpose of transforming lives through human connection that earned Benchmark these U.S. News & World Report awards and continues to separate Benchmark communities from other senior living companies, said Tom Grape, founder, chairman and CEO of Benchmark.

Ashland Farms care and experiences spans independent assisted living to specialized memory care assisted living for those who would benefit from a safer, engaging environment, chef-prepared meals, supportive living services, transportation and assistance with daily activities, such as getting dressed and medication management. Residents enjoy connecting over programs and amenities offered in many common spaces including a bistro, demonstration kitchen, hair salon, wellness center, recreation room, outdoor walking paths and more.

Ashland Farms award-winning Mind & Memory Care program offers carefully created living environments and unique opportunities for those with Alzheimers and dementia to find joy in each new day. Residents are supported by 24/7 care providers who have been hired for heart and educated in memory loss, communication and empathy. Neighborhoods provide the comforts of home and have unique features that help those with memory impairment stay connected to who and what matters most to them. Thoughtful touches, visual cues and purposeful amenities further promote familiarity and wellness.

Our team is committed to keeping our residents connected to who and what matters most through outstanding care and experiences, said Nick Barash, acting executive director of Ashland Farm. Exceeding expectations every day is what we strive for so its incredibly exciting to have our dedication recognized by an industry leader like U.S. News.

For more than 30 years, U.S. News has served the American public as an unbiased arbiter of quality across a variety of important choices. Whether picking a college, selecting a hospital or moving to a nursing home, consumers go to U.S. News to research and make consequential life decisions.

For the second consecutive year, U.S. News is providing in-depth information to help potential residents and their loved ones find the best place to help meet their needs, said Sumita Singh, senior vice president and general manager of Healthcare at U.S. News. Communities that are highly rated excel in making residents feel safe, well cared for and highly satisfied by the services provided.

For more information about Ashland Farm, click here or go to its U.S. News profile at https://health.usnews.com/best-senior-living/ashland-farm-at-north-andover-1894.

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About Benchmark Senior Living

Benchmark is New Englands largest senior living provider with 65 independent living, assisted living, memory care and continuing care communities and over 5,000 dedicated associates providing compassionate care and outstanding experiences throughout the Northeast. The Waltham, Mass.-based company was founded over 25 years ago by Tom Grape with the purpose of Transforming Lives Through Human Connection. Since then, Benchmark has continued to set the industry standard, having won over a hundred local, regional and national awards for its care, programs and as a top workplace. Benchmark has been named one of the Top Places to Work for 15 straight years in The Boston Globes annual employee-based survey and received repeated recognition in FORTUNEs Best Workplaces for Aging Services list. For more information, visit BenchmarkSeniorLiving.com.
We are excited to build a new home for Bella Union to showcase our mastery of crafting Cabernet Sauvignon-blends, drawing upon Far Niente Wine Estates more than 40 years of experience producing renowned wines in the Napa Valley. said Steve Spadarotto, CEO at FNWE.

Far Niente Wine Estates (FNWE) is excited to announce that Bella Unions new winery in Rutherford has been approved by the Napa County Planning Commission and will be opening its doors to guests in early summer of 2024. Known-for its renowned Cabernet Sauvignon-blends from top vineyards in the Napa Valley, Bella Unions new property will continue to build on Far Nientes legacy of hospitality and winemaking excellence with Estate Director for Bella Union, Alysha Lee, overseeing the winerys opening.

We are excited to build a new home for Bella Union to showcase our mastery of crafting Cabernet Sauvignon-blends, drawing upon Far Niente Wine Estates more than 40 years of experience producing renowned wines in the Napa Valley, said Steve Spadarotto, CEO at FNWE. Bella Union honors the legacy of our winemaking and farming expertise while celebrating the creativity and artistry of the winemaker in crafting signature blends that showcase the range of expressions of Cabernet Sauvignon.

Founded in 2012, Bella Union exemplifies the creative vision of the winemaker, elevating the art of blending by meticulous sourcing of grapes from Napa Valleys top appellations. Guided by the vinous expertise of Far Niente Winery, Bella Union has been working with the pedigreed DeCarle Vineyard in Rutherford for over a decade, producing the wines nearby on Bella Oaks Lane. Building on the foundation of FNWEs expertise with Cabernet Sauvignon, Winemaker Brooke Bobyak Price will introduce new wines to Bella Unions portfolio sourcing varietals from top vineyards across the Napa Valley to craft distinctive and exceptional wines that showcase the mastery and creativity of the blending process.

Located along Highway 29 in Rutherford, the new Bella Union will be a renovation of the former Provenance winery. Bella Union will be following in the FNWE tradition of renovation and restoration of historic properties. Far Niente Winery (designed and built in the late 1880s by Hamden W. McIntyre) started the history of renovation with Gil and Beth Nickel fully restoring the building in 1979-1981, and turning it into a working winery with a tasting room. Then, Gil Nickel was joined by nephew Erik Nickel to oversee the development of Nickel & Nickel winery housed on the restored 19th century John C. Sullenger farmstead. This led to the development of The Gleason Barn, which was originally built in 1770. We are committed to preserving the legacy of Napa Valley through its unique and historic spaces, comments Erik Nickel. With our new home for Bella Union, we are eager to bring a more modern approach to the renovation that will create a welcoming and warm atmosphere for all guests. Architect Mike Niemann, owner of Pacific Design Workshop, will be leading the design and renovation for the new Bella Union Winery.

Based in the heart of Cabernet country, Bella Unions new winery will offer a variety of indoor and outdoor tasting experiences and serve as a gathering place to discover the artistry at the heart of the winemaking process. FNWE has promoted Alysha Lee to Estate Director for Bella Union to oversee the opening of the winery. With over 20 years of experience in the hospitality and events industry, Alysha will guide the Bella Unions tasting program offering educational and entertaining experiences that meet consumers no matter where they are in their wine journey.

With Bella Unions new winery, we have set out to design a friendly space in the Napa Valley where people can make new connections and discover the winerys new unique blends, said Estate Director for Bella Union Alysha Lee. Im thrilled to be taking on a leadership role with such an exciting new project that celebrates the artistry of winemaking while telling the story of Bella Union.

Updates on the new Bella Union Winery will be shared throughout the renovation process including details on design and architecture, new hospitality experiences and the winemaking program.

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About Bella Union - bellaunionwine.com

Rooted in the famous Rutherford appellation, and driven by curiosity and creative vision, Bella Union is where the artistry of winemaking flourishes. Founded in 2012, the winery was built upon Far Niente Wine Estates legacy of winemaking and farming expertise while celebrating the art of blending, and the role of the winemaker in crafting each blend to cultivate a proprietary style. Drawing upon more than 40 years of working with grapes from areas as diverse as Oakville, Howell Mountain, Stags Leap District and St. HelenaBella Union sources from numerous appellations, vineyards, and varietals to build layers of nuance into distinct wines of unparalleled character and complexity. Working with such varied influences allows us to fully showcase the range and depth of expression of Cabernet Sauvignonfrom the Napa Valley appellation, to explorations of Bordeaux-style blends inspired by the right or left bank, to a pinnacle Rutherford Cabernet. Each wine and vintage are masterfully crafted using sustainable practices to reflect Bella Unions independent spirit.

About Far Niente Wine Estates - farniente.com

Far Niente Wine Estates is a family of California wineries linked by a joint mission: To produce world-class wines representative of their home vineyards and grape varieties. Built around Oakvilles Far Niente Estate, originally established by John Benson in 1885, Far Niente Wine Estates is committed to elevating Californias finest terroirs through precision winemaking and conscientious farming. Abandoned during Prohibition, the original Oakville estate was restored by the Nickel family, and resumed wine production in 1982. Preserving and expanding the Napa legacy that began on this land over 135 years ago inspired Far Niente Wine Estates to gradually expand in the Napa and Russian River Valleys. The family of wineries includes several Cabernet Sauvignon-focused wineries including single-vineyard Cabernet pioneer Nickel & Nickel; the blend-focused Bella Union estate in Rutherford; and Post and Beam, a winery inspired by the Americas iconic post and beam barns, and dedicated to crafting equally long-lived, classic wines. Far Niente Wine Estates also includes En Route, a Russian River Valley estate devoted to world-class Pinot Noir; and Dolce, Americas leading late-harvest dessert wine.
Educational Services & Consulting presenting their scholarship check to Polk State College We created this scholarship in partnership with the Polk State College Foundation as part of ESC's philanthropic initiative of continuing to expand educational opportunities around the country, our hope is that this scholarship will provide entrance to insurance adjuster education.

Clermont, Florida-based Educational Services & Consulting (ESC), an industry leader in online certification for the 6-20 Accredited Claims Adjuster designation and the 4-40 Registered Customer Service Representative designation, is proud to announce the establishment of the Connie Hammond McChesney Developing Futures Scholarship at Polk State College in Winter Haven, Florida. The scholarship fund is designed to provide financial assistance to students who are considering pursuing education in insurance adjusting.

The Connie Hammond McChesney Developing Futures Scholarship is a tribute to ESC's founder the late Connie Hammond McChesney, who was a respected insurance professional with more than 30 years of experience in the industry. She was an advocate for education and always believed that learning was the key to success.

McChesney established ESC as a leader in providing insurance adjuster education and training earning the company a reputation for excellence in the industry.

McChesney's vision and mission were rooted in civil liberty, social equality, and the strive to service the underprivileged and less fortunate. She began this ideology early in her career and never looked back.

The scholarship fund is intended to support students who are interested in pursuing a career in insurance adjusting, a field that requires specialized knowledge and skills. The insurance adjusting profession is an essential part of the insurance industry, and the demand for skilled adjusters continues to grow. To contribute to the Connie Hammond McChesney Developing Futures Scholarship, organizations can easily make their contribution online by visiting:

https://bit.ly/3pLgSA9

ESC is committed to providing opportunities for individuals who are looking to advance their careers through education. The company offers a range of courses and training programs designed to help students prepare for the insurance industry's demands.

"We created this scholarship in partnership with the Polk State College Foundation as part of ESC's philanthropic initiative of continuing to expand educational opportunities around the country," said Co-Owner and Chief Strategy Officer, Natalie Zimmerman. "Our hope is that this scholarship will provide entrance to insurance adjuster education that previously would not have been accessible. The scholarship's purpose is aligned with our mission which is to provide opportunities to achieve your professional goals through specialized education in insurance designations."

The scholarship fund will be administered by the Polk State College Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the college's mission of providing access to high-quality education and training.

"We are excited to partner with Polk State College to provide this scholarship opportunity to students who are interested in pursuing insurance adjusting as a career," stated Angela Milligan, Co-Owner and Chief Operations Officer. "Through this scholarship fund, we hope to help students achieve their educational and career goals and make a positive impact on their lives and the community."

ESC is committed to helping students achieve their professional goals through specialized education in insurance designations. The 6-20 ACA designation is one of the most popular and sought-after insurance designations in Florida, and ESC is proud to offer courses and training programs to help students prepare for this certification.

In Florida, once you earn your 6-20 accredited claims adjuster designation, you can apply to the state for your all-lines adjuster license. Once individuals obtain their Florida license, they are eligible to work in 34 of the 37 states across the United States that require an adjuster license. Those participating states will offer a reciprocal license to practice in their state, however, individuals must have a valid Florida all-lines adjuster license to be eligible for this reciprocity opportunity.

Polk State College is an excellent institution that provides high-quality education and training to students from all backgrounds, Zimmerman said. ESC is excited to partner with them to support students who are interested in pursuing careers in insurance adjusting.

To be eligible for the scholarship, students must review the eligibility requirements and complete the Polk State College Foundation General Scholarship Application. All eligible students are encouraged to apply, and the applications will be reviewed and rated by the team at Educational Services & Consulting. Students will be notified of offered scholarship awards via their Polk State College student email.

"We believe that investing in education is one of the best ways to make a positive impact on our community and our society as a whole," said Milligan. "By supporting students, we hope to help build a stronger and more innovative workforce for the future."

Students interested in learning more about the Connie Hammond McChesney Developing Futures Scholarship at Polk State College are encouraged to visit the college's foundation website at https://foundation.polk.edu/foundation-scholarship-information/ for more information. Zimmerman adds Together, we can help make higher education more accessible and affordable for students in our community.

For more information on how to earn the 6-20 ACA designation, ESC invites people to call their Clermont, Florida office at 1-800-309-2459 or read more about the accredited claims adjuster certification process online at https://escconnected.com/accredited-claims-adjuster/. ESC is dedicated to providing high-quality education and training to help students achieve their professional goals in the insurance industry.
Eiseman Construction employees Sean Maxwell, Vitaly Kazimirchik, Aaron Pilch, Courtney Dickinson-Mukamuri, and Patrick Gallagher collect essential items on behalf of A Womans Place. As the primary domestic violence center in Bucks County, A Womans Place plays a vital role in our area, and Eiseman Construction is proud to support their essential work, said Courtney Dickinson-Mukamuri, Director of Admin and Operations at Eiseman Construction.

Eiseman Construction recently held a supply drive to support A Womans Place, Bucks Countys domestic violence response organization. The company collected donations of essential items with the help of Eiseman employees and business partners.

As the primary domestic violence center in Bucks County, A Womans Place plays a vital role in our area, and Eiseman Construction is proud to support their essential work, said Courtney Dickinson-Mukamuri, Director of Admin and Operations at Eiseman Construction. We are committed to supporting local organizations that are striving to better this community for everyone.

After seeing an Instagram post from A Womans Place indicating that the organization was in need of specific items, Dickinson-Mukamuri reached out to advancement specialist Audrey Shapiro to coordinate the two-week supply drive. During the drive, Eiseman Construction collected such items as paper plates and cups, paper towels, plastic cutlery, toilet paper, trash bags, laundry detergent pods, fabric softener, and dryer sheets. Items were contributed by Eiseman employees and business partners including ABC Supply, Universal Supply, Lansing Building Products, and Bustamante Engineers.

A Womans Place provides important services for survivors of domestic violence, such as a 24-hour hotline, legal assistance, and education. The organization also offers a full-service shelter where survivors can receive food and clothing, as well as assistance with finances, housing, and employment. A Womans Place offers counseling services tailored to the immediate needs of each client. Counselors also provide medical advocacy to victims of domestic violence who require medical treatment.

About Eiseman Construction: A full-service contractor specializing in roofing and exterior remodeling, Eiseman Construction has served residential and commercial clients across Pennsylvania and New Jersey for more than 50 years. From its headquarters in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Eiseman provides services for a variety of projects, from residential housing, multi-family townhouses, and condominium projects to historic and commercial repairs and renovations. Eiseman has got you covered, always.
The Charming Taste of Europe'' is pleased to announce that for the second year it will host an exclusive press trip to discover the delicious cherries from Rachi Pieria and kiwis from Kavala in Greece in late May. The selected US media will fly to Thessaloniki on May 21st for a 6-day trip organized by The Agricultural Cooperative of Rachi Pierias, AGIOS LOUKAS and KAVALA COOP.

Started in 2021, The Charming Taste of Europe is a three-year campaign promoted by t he Union of Agricultural Cooperatives of Kavala (Kavala COOP), the Agricultural Cooperative of Rachi Pieria (Agios Loukas) the Vini d Abruzzo consortium and the Late Harvest Bordeaux Wines, co-financed by the European Union. This campaign focuses on raising awareness of these high-quality products in the American and Canadian market.

Throughout Greece the production of cherries has risen rapidly as they are ranked 10th in the world with most production coming out of Northern Greece, in particular from the regions of Pella, Imathia and Rachi Pieria. With 250 members,The Agricultural Cooperative of Rachi Pierias, AGIOS LOUKAS, founded in 1978 has expanded its cherry grove to 200 hectares. Throughout the trip, participants will speak with the producers where they will discover more about the cherries, the market and the complex production methods. In addition, the respective media will also get an opportunity to visit the cherry fields.

Originating from China and arriving in Europe in the late 19th century, the Kiwi began to cultivate itself in Greece in the early 1980s. Throughout the last 20 years, production has expanded and the Kiwi has become a national product in Greece, specifically in Kavala on the Northern coast. The production of Kiwi in Kavala is approximately 50,000 tons, 10,000 of which are produced by KAVALA COOP. During the trip the media participants will visit the Kavala COOP Cooperative where they will see the kiwi fields and facilities as well as speak with the producing organization.

The Charming Taste of Europe aims to educate participants on some of the most exquisite products from Europe by providing hands-on experiences in the respective countries of origin.

About the Charming Taste of Europe:

Europe, a place with timeless charm, is the birthplace of some of the highest-quality products in the world. The Charming Taste of Europe is a special project that introduces exquisite specialties to the United States and Canada, such as Italian and French wines, and fresh fruits from Greece, that showcase Europes charm, beauty, culture, history, art, heritage and unmistakable tastes.

The mission of the Charming Taste of Europe, co-funded by the European Union, is to increase awareness of the merits and quality standards of select European wines and fresh fruits with promotional activities in the competitive markets of the U.S. and Canada. The Charming Taste of Europe is promoted by the Consortium for the Protection of Wines of Abruzzo, the Union of Agricultural Cooperatives of Kavala (Kavala COOP), the Agricultural Cooperative of Rachi Pieria Agios Loukas and the Union of Sweet Bordeaux Wines. These European agricultural products, famous around the world for their outstanding qualities, will continue to be promoted with initiatives and events for consumers, journalists and trade professionals. For more information visit charmingtasteofeurope.eu

To Follow The Charming Taste of Europe Campaign:

Website: charmingtasteofeurope.eu

Facebook: @CharmingTasteofEU

Instagram: @charmeu_usa

YouTube: The Charming Taste of Europe

Hashtags: #thecharmingtasteofeu and #charmeu

The content of this promotion campaign represents the views of the author only and is his/her sole responsibility. The European Commission and the European Research Executive Agency (REA) do not accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the information it contains
This was a long overdue opportunity to gather in person. We are thankful to celebrate our clients and their trust in us. Our office brought a new model of legal service to the Philadelphia market when we opened our doors 25 years ago, Scarola said.

The Philadelphia office of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP recently hosted a thank-you event for clients, concluding a year of celebrations commemorating the firms 25th anniversary in the city.

On April 25 at VUE on 50, Philadelphia office members, global firm leadership, and clients from a range of industries participated in the festivities. Guests from across the region, nation, and globe reconnected and enjoyed food and music against the backdrop of spectacular views of the city at sunset.

A founding member of the Philadelphia Public Finance & Infrastructure Practice, Shareholder Dianne Coady Fisher, gave remarks, as did office Managing Shareholder Alexander L. Scarola, Chair Curtis B. Toll, and firm Co-President Ernest LaMont Greer. Greenberg Traurig CEO Brian L. Duffy also attended.

This was a long overdue opportunity to gather in person. We are thankful to celebrate our clients and their trust in us. Our office brought a new model of legal service to the Philadelphia market when we opened our doors 25 years ago, Scarola said. Our team continues to engage both our clients and the community, and we pledge to be as committed to these goals and values today as when we started.

Starting with three attorneys on May 5, 1997, the office has since expanded to over 60 attorneys handling various matters across industries. Philadelphia office attorneys are also actively involved in a variety of local and regional community and service organizations and are committed to offering pro bono services.

This has been a great opportunity for our office to reflect on our humble beginnings, but we also are very much focused on the future for our clients, attorneys, and community, Toll said. Our goal is to remain reliable partners to our clients and to continue providing high-quality legal skills, innovative approaches, and excellent service.

About Greenberg Traurigs Philadelphia Office: Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, Greenberg Traurigs Philadelphia office has grown from an initial three-attorney Public Finance Practice to include more than 60 attorneys whose practices include Real Estate; Litigation; Intellectual Property; Labor & Employment; Environmental; Government Law & Policy; Restructuring & Bankruptcy; White Collar Defense & Investigations; Corporate; Investment Management & Regulation; Immigration & Compliance; Health Care & FDA; and Tax. The Philadelphia office represents a broad range of clients in real estate, manufacturing, health care, financial, and insurance industries, as well as state and local governments, professional services, and energy firms. The office also is known for its pro bono work and community service/social action initiatives in the Philadelphia region.

About Greenberg Traurig: Greenberg Traurig, LLP has more than 2650 attorneys in 45 locations in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The firm is a 2022 BTI Highly Recommended Law Firm for superior client service and is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law Global 100 and NLJ 250. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 5.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab. The firm is recognized for powering its U.S. offices with 100% renewable energy as certified by the Center for Resource Solutions Green-e Energy program and is a member of the U.S. EPAs Green Power Partnership Program. The firm is known for its philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com.
As a global IP Association, INTA is thrilled to bring its 2026 Annual Meeting to Dubai.

The International Trademark Association (INTA) has announced that it will hold its 148th Annual Meeting, the largest gathering of brand owners and intellectual property professionals, academics, and government officials, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from May 16 to May 20, 2026.

INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo made the announcement during the Associations Annual Meeting Live+ Opening Ceremonies today in Singapore, the second Annual Meeting to be held in Asia. The event drew more than 8,000 brand professionals, government officials, business leaders, and academics from 140 countries to the in-person gathering.

In 2014 INTAs Board of Directors approved a rotation strategy to host the Annual Meeting in a location outside the United States every third year and this marks the first time INTA will host its Annual Meeting in the Middle East. It is not the first INTA gathering in Dubai; previous events include the 2017 Membership Road Show and Free Trade Zone workshop, as well as the 2018 Middle East and Africa Conference.

The process of choosing a host city for the Annual Meeting is one that is multi-years long and is as logistically complex as the global membership the Association serves.

The Meeting will take place at the Dubai World Trade Center. It is equipped with the necessary space and technology the Association requires for its programming, with ample food options and in-house technology and exhibition suppliers. Dubai is also a regional travel hub with direct flights from points around the globe. As an international destination, the city boasts abundant cuisine; scenic desert, sea, and modern city vistas; with inexpensive taxi service available for inter-city movement.

An international city in which ex-pats are the majority, Dubai boasts a wide variety of hotel options and English is spoken widely. It is also a sustainable city where vaccinations and other health precautions earn it high ratings. The UAE is home to INTA corporate members, associate members, and the Association has fostered a strong and productive relationship with the countrys government. INTA also has a newly appointed consultant based in the region to focus on Middle East issues and there are strong member champions firmly entrenched in the regional IP community.

Dubai ranks first in the Middle East and North Africa cities and 14th in the world in the Innovative Cities Index for 2023, up from number 23 in 2021. There is an extraordinary focus on growing itself into a leader in innovation, with government spending and private sector investment contributing to create an innovation ecosystem that has start-ups, entrepreneurs, and those who invest in them taking notice.

"We are most thrilled to deepen our collaboration with INTA, an organization with which we share so many goals advancing intellectual property for brands and consumers alike. Dubai is easily accessible, with one-third of the worlds population able to reach the city within a four-hour flight and two-thirds able to access it in less than eight hours. We are honored to host the first Annual Meeting in our region and look forward to welcoming the global IP community to Dubai in 2026, said the Chair of EIPA, HE Major General Dr. Abdel Qudous Al-Obaidli.

As a global IP Association, INTA is thrilled to bring its 2026 Annual Meeting to Dubai, one of the leading cities in the world. From Dubais constantly thriving culture to its incredible success in the business world, Dubai is a must for INTA as its next international Annual Meeting venue, declared INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo.

About the International Trademark Association

The International Trademark Association (INTA) is a global association of brand owners and professionals dedicated to supporting trademarks and complementary intellectual property (IP) to foster consumer trust, economic growth, and innovation, and committed to building a better society through brands. Members include nearly 6,000 organizations, representing more than 33,500 individuals (trademark owners, professionals, and academics) from 181 countries, who benefit from the Associations global trademark resources, policy development, education and training, and international network. Founded in 1878, INTA is headquartered in New York City, with offices in Beijing, Brussels, Santiago, Singapore, and the Washington, D.C., Metro Area, and representatives in Amman and New Delhi. For more information, visit inta.org.
"Quorum Cyber's attention to detail, quick response time, and efficient triaging of information by their SOC is outstanding." - Daniel Iturbe, Vice President of Infrastructure, Security & Compliance at MCi

Get more story insights from reading Quorum Cybers complete MCi case study: https://bit.ly/457plOj

Serving state, local governments, and global Fortune 100 companies in the energy, mining, manufacturing, and chemicals industries, MCi provides critical Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions and its unique TRACK platform for tracking and managing contract labor, equipment rental, and material spending. The company strongly focuses on expanding in the U.S. healthcare, automotive, aerospace, chemical, and upstream energy sectors and extending its footprint across North America, Europe, Asia, Australasia, and Africa.

Safeguarding customers' data against cyber-attacks is essential to achieving MCis international expansion plans. To meet these goals, the company required a cybersecurity partner to provide a Security Operations Center (SOC) that would match its business needs and meet the high standards of cybersecurity demanded by its customers worldwide. In addition, MCis ideal partner needed experience working within a single, integrated security ecosystem.

After evaluating all proposals, MCi selected Quorum Cyber as their long-term cybersecurity partner. Quorum Cyber met all MCis requirements, including their need for an experienced and reputable Microsoft partner with a complete set of security competencies, certifications, advanced SIEM services, and strong customer support.

MCi is confident that Quorum Cyber, whose SOC team runs the Microsoft Sentinel Managed Detection & Response (MDR) service, has helped improve its cybersecurity posture and scores.

I am thoroughly impressed by the exceptional customer service provided by Quorum Cyber, said Daniel Iturbe, Vice President of Infrastructure, Security & Compliance at MCi. Their attention to detail, quick response time, and efficient triaging of information by their SOC is outstanding. In addition, the single-pane-of-glass view offered by their customer portal, Clarity, has been an invaluable asset to my team. This enables us to easily access all the necessary information from one dashboard.

"We are proud that MCi has selected us as their long-term cybersecurity partner, said Federico Charosky, Chief Executive Officer at Quorum Cyber. Quorum Cyber understands the critical importance of safeguarding sensitive data against cyber-attacks, especially in industries like energy, mining, manufacturing, and chemicals. Our Microsoft Sentinel MDR service provides a comprehensive approach to detecting incidents and defending against attacks; we are confident in our ability to continually enhance MCi's cybersecurity posture."

About Quorum Cyber

Quorum Cyber is one of the fastest-growing cybersecurity companies in the U.K., with over 150 customers on four continents. Our mission is to protect teams and organizations from the rising cyber-attack threat, enabling them to thrive in an increasingly hostile and unpredictable digital landscape. Quorum Cyber is a Microsoft Solutions Partner for Security and a member of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association (MISA). For more information, please visit Quorum Cyber or contact us at info@quorumcyber.us.
Milk Jar Cookies Logo We are now ready to partner with others to help share this vision; you dont need to be a professional baker or a serial entrepreneur to join our franchising family, just have an entrepreneurial spirit," said Courtney Cowan, founder of Milk Jar Cookies and author of The Milk Jar Cookies Bakebook.

Milk Jar Cookies, a sought-after sweets destination, announced today the launch of its franchising program across the country. The gourmet cookie shop is set to expand to 39 U.S. states and invites passionate individuals to join its franchising family and share in the vision of spreading joy and kindness through irresistible homemade cookies.

The Milk Jar Cookies brand has waited ten years to prove the concept, maintaining our hands-on baking method, perfecting our recipes, and protecting the integrity of an extraordinary cookie community bond, said Courtney Cowan, founder of Milk Jar Cookies and author of The Milk Jar Cookies Bakebook. We are now ready to partner with others to help share this vision; you dont need to be a professional baker or a serial entrepreneur to join our franchising family, just have an entrepreneurial spirit.

The gourmet cookie shop run by Courtney Cowan has been made famous for its homemade and hand-rolled cookies, partnered with a mission to spread joy and kindness. Since its inception, Milk Jar Cookies has been the go-to gift for friends & Fortune 500 companies alike. The first location opened in 2013 on Wilshire Blvd. in Central Los Angeles, and the second one in Encino, Calif. will open this summer.

Milk Jar Cookies plans to leverage its dedicated corporate team and technology to support franchisees through onboarding. The team includes Matt Hale, an experienced franchisor, franchising expert and consultant, to oversee and advise the growth of franchising efforts in the target expansion areas. At a high level, this will include robust training, site selection, real estate, construction, premarketing, hiring, location opening training and support, grand opening, and ongoing operations/marketing support.

"Having been deeply involved in the franchising industry for years, I've come to understand the essential ingredients that create a successful brand and franchise, and Milk Jar Cookies embodies those qualities wholeheartedly," said Matt Hale, franchising consultant and CEO of Modern Acupuncture. "Their commitment to preserving the culture of 'cookies and kindness' and vetting exceptionally qualified individuals sets them apart, ensuring that every franchisee they bring on board is not just a business partner, but a dedicated ambassador of the Milk Jar experience."

Interested individuals can become part of the Milk Jar Cookies franchise family by making an initial investment between $327,545 and $750,770, which includes an initial franchise fee of $50,000 for a single-unit franchise. Costs may vary based on market factors, lease terms, construction materials availability, and location conditions. Franchisees will pay a royalty fee of 7% of gross sales, as well as a national ad fund fee of 2% of gross sales.

Milk Jar Cookies stores require a minimum of 800 square feet, 15 feet of store frontage minimum, and a preference for end-cap or inline locations in well-curated collectives featuring other unique brands. The company aims to establish its presence in neighborhood and daily-needs centers with favorable demographics, targeting areas with a population of at least 50,000 households within the trade area and a median household income of $75,000 per year. Milk Jar Cookies believes that franchising the brand will positively impact communities while spreading joy and create financial freedom for franchisees and their families.

Aspiring franchisees will undergo a personalized and detailed vetting process, including a meeting and a potential full-day program at company headquarters to learn more about Milk Jar, meet the team, and review key aspects of the franchise program in more detail.

From Portland, Maine, to Portland, Oregon, Milk Jar Cookies ships regularly to all 50 states. To learn more about menu prices, merchandise and location details, please visit .

To learn more about Milk Jar Cookies franchising opportunities visit tinyurl.com/nhcm3b2v.

About Milk Jar Cookies

Since its launch in 2013, LAs Milk Jar Cookies has become a sought-after sweets destination, the go-to gift for friends and Fortune 500 companies alike. Milk Jar Cookies are homemade and hand-rolled daily & baked in small batches of fresh ingredients and zero preservatives. The unique in-home cookie experience has now expanded with Courtneys first cookbook, Milk Jar Cookies Bakebook. Services include in-shop sales, delivery and country-wide shipping of all cookies, unique merchandise, pup cookies, dough and more.
Moore, a leading constituent experience management company, is proud to announce that the company has been selected by Belvoir Media Group as data manager of record for its Health Division. The Belvoir Media Group relationship will be led by data strategists from AudienceFirst Media, a division of Moore, with SimioCloud by Moore as the technology infrastructure.

Belvoir Media Group is a leading provider of reader-focused digital content, high-quality magazines, newsletters and books. Their publications are produced in association with Harvard Medical School, Tufts University, Cleveland Clinic, Mount Sinai and UCLA. As the leader in data management and monetization solutions, Moore will develop data-driven audience segments to increase the data value in the marketplace and drive incremental revenue for Belvoir Media Group.

Belvoir Media Group is looking forward to working with Moore and their advanced data management capabilities to help us discover untapped revenue streams by monetizing our subscriber data, said Tom Canfield, vice president of Circulation/Partner. Our data consists of health-conscience audiences, and we believe Moore is the right partner to represent us in the marketplace.

Harnessing the power of SimioCloud, Moore will combine data from all health publications under one rental file to create the new and streamlined Health Subscriber Database. Demographic data will be applied, as well as audience propensity model scores, to ensure the best performance.

Moore provides unmatched expertise in creating successful data-driven integrated strategies for nonprofits, publishers, catalog, and retail clients across a wide range of verticals. As data representatives, Moores turnkey management, promotion and fulfillment services provide clients with expanded options to monetize their most valuable asset.

Moore is excited to be working alongside Belvoir Media Group to expand the reach and monetization of their data, said John Ernst, president of AudienceFirst Media, a division of Moore. We see the new Health Subscriber Database as highly desirable, and we look forward to representing it in the marketplace.

For more information on data services provided by Moore, visit wearemoore.com.

About Belvoir Media Group

Addressing the need for reliable and responsible intelligence in todays information age, Belvoir Media Groups publications offer readers accessible, affordable, and above all, authoritative guidance on a broad range of interests and endeavors.

In conjunction with institutions, including Harvard Medical School, Cleveland Clinic, Tufts University and UCLA Medical Center, Belvoir delivers targeted health and wellness news and guidance to millions of readers each month. Through its many newsletters and magazines, as well as books, special reports, and online services, Belvoir brings a growing audience of health-conscious adults with timely and useful instruction and direction.

In addition, Belvoir Media Group serves a wide spectrum of active and involved readers whose interests range from flying and sailing to pet owning and organic living. Providing expert and unbiased insight, each Belvoir enthusiast publication and website is a trusted resource for a loyal and passionate readership.

With an informed understanding of its readers and a dynamic commitment to its partners, Belvoir Media Group offers each a culture of excellence, experience, and reward.

About Moore

Moore is a data-driven constituent experience management (CXM) company achieving accelerated growth for clients through integrated supporter experiences across all platforms, channels and devices. We are an innovation led company of 5,000 people that is the largest marketing, data and fundraising company in North America serving the nonprofit industry with clients across education, association, political and commercial sectors.

Moore combines our strength in technology and unmatched industry expertise to provide clients with strategy, creative, production, media, data, response management and analytic services. Our omnichannel solutions are powered by an ongoing investment in next-generation artificial intelligence and machine learning that deepens constituent relationships and creates transformational growth.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. People's Alliance and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) of Turkiye showed democracy, which will be an example for the whole world, in the presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters at the headquarters of AK Party, Trend reports via TurkicWorld.

"We wont allow the opposition, collaborating with terrorists, to disturb the stability in the country," Erdogan noted.

About 60 million people took part in the presidential and parliamentary elections held in Turkiye on May 14.

According to the results of the counting of votes in the presidential elections, Recep Tayyip Erdogan won 49.50 percent of the votes, Kemal Kilicdaroglu - 44.89 percent, Sinan Ogan - 5.17 percent, and Muharrem Ince - 0.44 percent. Since no one has won more than 50 percent of the vote, the second round of presidential elections will be held in Turkiye on May 28.
More than 500 agents and advisors taking our message in support of financial security directly to members of Congress resonates clearly and has a powerful influence.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) will host the 10th annual Congressional Conference May 22-23 in Washington, D.C. The event will feature targeted advocacy training with briefings on legislative issues that affect members businesses and the clients they serve. Expert presenters will offer best practices for conducting Congressional meetings and tips for developing impactful long-term relationships with legislators.

On the second day of the Congressional Conference, attendees will go to Capitol Hill for meetings with their Senators, Representatives, and Congressional staff. They will discuss legislative issues important to their businesses and clients. Their stories offer unique insights into the important work they do providing Main Street USA consumers with opportunities to achieve financial security and prosperity.

Once again, we are pleased to return to Washington, D.C., for NAIFAs signature advocacy event, said NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux, CAE. NAIFA is the One and Only when it comes to protecting the interests of agents, advisors, and consumers with grassroots advocacy at the federal level and in every state capital.

NAIFA President Bryon Holz, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, CASL, LACP, stated, We are One NAIFA speaking with a single voice on behalf of our industry, colleagues, clients, and communities. Nowhere is that more apparent than at Congressional Conference. More than 500 agents and advisors taking our message in support of financial security directly to members of Congress resonates clearly and has a powerful influence. Our members stories and expertise inform policymakers whose decisions impact the ability of Americans to plan for retirement, protect their families, mitigate financial risks, and achieve their financial dreams.

Featured speakers on Monday, May 22, include the Honorable Monica De La Cruz (R-TX) and the Honorable Brad Schneider (D-IL). Both members of the U.S. House of Representatives were financial professionals and NAIFA members before they entered public service.

Through events like the Congressional Conference, state-level legislative days, and in-district meetings during the summer congressional recess, NAIFA develops and recognizes members who are politically involved. NAIFA also offers members a training course known as the Financial Security Advocate Academy, which covers a continuum of topics for how to be effective in grassroots advocacy. Those who complete the course receive the Financial Security Advocate badge, which is displayed online, on social media, and on NAIFAs consumer-facing website found at http://www.financialsecurity.org.

The Congressional Conference bolsters NAIFAs prestige among lawmakers and industry partners and enhances the associations standing as the leading voice for producers. It is crucial for ensuring lawmakers thoroughly understand the important role financial services professionals play in:



Providing products, services, and advice that improve the financial security of 90 million American families

Promoting financial literacy and self-sufficiency in diverse communities

Strengthening the U.S. economy and contributing to the financial health of communities in every Congressional district

Representing the best interests of their clients and promoting the success of Main Street Americans and businesses

The personal stories financial services professionals tell profoundly illustrate how public policies impact their clients, said NAIFA Senior Vice President for Government Relations Diane Boyle. These are stories lawmakers want and need to hear. No one can tell them better than NAIFA members, and the Congressional Conference is our best vehicle for reaching a large, attentive audience of policymakers.

The event is open to all financial services professionals, including those exploring membership in NAIFA.

ABOUT NAIFA: The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors is the preeminent membership association for the multigenerational community of financial professionals in the United States. NAIFA members subscribe to a strong Code of Ethics and represent a full spectrum of financial services practice specialties. They work with families and businesses to help Americans improve financial literacy and achieve financial security. NAIFA provides producers a national community for advocacy, education and networking along with awards, publications and leadership opportunities to allow NAIFA members to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. NAIFA members in every congressional district advocate on behalf of producers and consumers at the state, interstate and federal levels.
Author Rowena Walker and editor Nicki Gibbs release The Little Princes and Princesses (published by AuthorHouse in October 2011), the story of a little boy and his sister who did not understand the Sunday school lesson they were just taught.

After Ms. Rachaels Bible Class lesson, little Sidney is beaming with excitement after learning that Gods children are princes and princesses. Her big brother, Demetrius, is full of questions that his parents Kevin and Tamika try their best to answer.

These books are designed to reach all ages. We believe at one time or another, we have had questions regarding a Sunday school lesson being taught, or a sermon being preached. We are using these books to answer some unasked questions, Walker say. She adds, We want our readers to fall in love with the Smith family. We want them to follow Demetrius and Sydney throughout their journey in life, as they grow and mature, as well as they develop a closer relationship with God.

When asked what she wants readers to take away from the book, Walker answered, We hope that the words of this book will provide answers and spark meaningful conversations. For more details about the book, please visit https://www.authorhouse.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/341633-The-Little-Princes-and-Princesses

The Little Princes and Princesses

By Rowena Walker and Nicki Gibbs

Softcover | 8.5 x 11in | 32 pages | ISBN 9781463445560

E-Book | 32 pages | ISBN 9781546232704

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Rowena Walker is married to Dwayne Walker. They have four children Da'Vion, Sa'Lena, Destinee, and Trinity. She always had a passion to care for children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. The teaching of God's word started early in her life. Her parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles taught them the Word of God when they were young. She is very grateful for the upbringing she had because according to Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

AuthorHouse, an Author Solutions, Inc. self-publishing imprint, is a leading provider of book publishing, marketing, and bookselling services for authors around the globe and offers the industrys only suite of Hollywood book-to-film services. Committed to providing the highest level of customer service, AuthorHouse assigns each author personal publishing and marketing consultants who provide guidance throughout the process. Headquartered in Bloomington, Indiana, AuthorHouse celebrates over 23 years of service to authors. For more information or to publish a book visit authorhouse.com or call 833-262-8899.
Outsourcing B2B Telemarketing or Telesales: A Comprehensive Guide We want to help companies avoid the mistakes that impact the success of oursourced programs, said Vanella. This eBook is a valuable resource for anyone considering outsourcing B2B telemarketing.

The Vanella Group, Inc. Releases New eBook on How to Succeed with Outsourced B2B Telemarketing

The Vanella Group, Inc., a leading provider of outsourced B2B telemarketing and sales development services, today announced the release of a new eBook titled, How to Succeed with Outsourced B2B Telemarketing.

The eBook "Outsourcing B2B Telemarketing or Telesales: A Comprehensive Guide" provides a comprehensive overview of the benefits of outsourcing B2B telemarketing, as well as a step-by-step guide to selecting the right partner and ensuring a successful engagement.

We have over two decades of experience helping B2B companies achieve their sales goals through outsourced telemarketing, said MariAnne Vanella, CEO of The Vanella Group, Inc. In that time, weve seen firsthand the challenges that companies face when outsourcing, and weve developed a proven methodology for success.

The eBook covers a wide range of topics, including:



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"Our analysis shows that the regulatory environment in the food industry is becoming more complex, and it's essential for companies to keep up with these changes to avoid costly fines, legal action, and reputational damage." - Elizabeth Salvo VP of Regulatory and Consulting Services at Trustwell

Regulatory Notices in the Food Industry Increase by 40% in Q1 2023, According to Trustwell Analysis.

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The mass incarceration of Black people in the United States is gaining attention as a public health crisis with extreme mental-health implications. Despite Black Americans making up just 13% of the general U.S. population, Black people constitute about 38% of people in prison or jail. What does this have to do with psychological science? Well, historical efforts to oppress and control Black people in the United States helped shape definitions of crime but also mental illness. And, through its research and clinical practices, the field of psychological science might even have contributed to the perpetuation of anti-Blackness.

To speak about psychologys contributions to anti-Blackness, this conversation features Evan Auguste, a researcher and professor at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and Steven Kasparek, a graduate student at Harvard University, talking with APSs Ludmila Nunes. Auguste and Kasparek co-authored a recent article published in Perspectives on Psychological Science that explored how psychology has contributed to anti-Blackness within psychological research, criminal justice, and mental health, and what scientists and practitioners can do to interrupt the criminalization of Blackness and redefine psychologys relationship with justice.

Unedited transcript:

[00:00:11.970]  Ludmila Nunes

The mass incarceration of black people in the United States is gaining attention as a public health crisis with extreme mental health implications. Despite representing only 5% of the worlds population, the United States is responsible for 22% of the incarcerated population globally. Whats even more striking is that the percentage of black Americans in the general US. Population is 13%, whereas the percentage of people in prison or jail who are black is about 38%. What does this have to do with psychological science? Well, historical efforts to oppress and control black people in the United States helped shape definitions of crime, but also mental illness. And through research and clinical practices, the field of psychological science might even have contributed to the perpetuation of antiblackness. This is Under the Cortex. I am Ludmila Nunes with the Association for Psychological Science. To speak about psychologys contributions to antiblackness in the United States within psychological research, criminal justice, and mental health. I have with me. Evan Auguste, researcher and professor at, UMass, Boston, and Steven Kasparek, graduate student at Harvard. They were coauthors in a recent article published in Perspectives on Psychological Science that explored how psychological science has contributed to anti-Blackness and what can scientists and practitioners do to interrupt the criminalization of blackness and redefine psychologys relationship with justice.

[00:01:52.930]  Ludmila Nunes

Welcome to Under the Cortex. Thank you for joining me today.

[00:01:57.190]  Evan Auguste

Of course, thank you. Thank you for having us.

[00:01:59.700]  Steven Kasparek

Yeah, its a pleasure to be here. Excited to chat with you.

[00:02:03.670]  Ludmila Nunes

So I had the pleasure to read your article in Perspectives on Psychological Science. And I would like to start by asking you. Maybe start with the end, what is the main takeaway from your work, from the facts you put together?

[00:02:23.710]  Evan Auguste

Of course, I could take this one of my favorite psychologists named Amos Wilson, and he has this idea that when you frame history as progress, you risk erasing the harms, the damages that are going on in contemporary society. When I think about the project that we embarked on, it was, what are the harms? What are these harms based in that were erasing when we frame psychology as this force of progress and justice in society, when in actuality, it often serves and continues to serve as this kind of carceral punitive force in a lot of places, especially when youre thinking about black people within the context of the United States. So thats what we were hoping people would walk away with.

[00:03:15.230]  Steven Kasparek

Yeah. And for me, I would say my takeaway from working on this project is that interdisciplinary research and science is extremely important. Oftentimes in our academic work, we are in silos. And so moving forward from here, I feel like I have this awareness that interdisciplinary research is so important, and particularly when youre trying to address some of these social ills that have plagued us for so long and definitely want to.

[00:03:46.030]  Evan Auguste

Shout out the people we worked with on this article, right? Jeanne McPhee, Molly Bowdring, Alexandra Tabachnick, Irene Tung, and Chardee Galan and the whole seed group, the Scholars for Elevating, Equity and Diversity. Again, it was a really collaborative project.

[00:04:04.670]  Ludmila Nunes

So would you tell us more about the history of anti blackness and how psychological science has contributed to this general sentiment?

[00:04:17.490]  Evan Auguste

Yeah, of course. Im thinking about a disabilities black study scholar by the name of Alyce Pickens who said within the United States cultural zeitgeist, theres no blackness without madness and no madness without blackness. The very ideas of mental health, disorder, of mental disease defect in many ways, especially in the context of the United States, are based in these ideas of innate inferiority that was formed by how specifically white European peoples thought about African peoples. Throughout the articles, we briefly go over how some of the theoretical basis of psychology of psychodynamic theory is based in that. For example, Carl Young, who went to I believe it might have been Uganda, was observing the populations there, those African populations there, and saw that as a complete lack of consciousness. As we know now, these peoples are guided by deep, intricate philosophies based in impart, bantu understandings of the world and spirit. And he saw that and could not reconcile that, saw that as unconscious. What becomes our idea now of the collective unconscious thats rooted, that really serves as a root for a lot of psychodynamic theory. You look at G. Stanley hall, his idea that it was actually unhealthy for black people to experience and have freedom, that enslavement was the healthier condition for black people.

[00:05:48.980]  Evan Auguste

As we move to the article, we show that these are not just ideas. We have institutions that are built based on these understandings, psychiatric hospitals that house people. And while peoples ideas and understandings of mental health might evolve, those institutions and their functions still remain. So you see those same populations if forcibly institutionalized at these places.

[00:06:12.150]  Steven Kasparek

So, for example, a lot of us in psychology, as we go through our training, we become familiar with some of the more hallmark studies that represent kind of psychological research. Malpractice, like the Tuskegee Is Syphilis study being an example of that. But there are a lot of kind of lesser known studies, many of them actually, that were unaware of, that have systematically tried to find characterological flaws in black individuals specifically, or biological or genetic flaws that predispose us to believing that those individuals are more likely to be hostile or aggressive or more likely to use drugs. As some examples. And then when we think about how research is represented and where it gets published and how it is disseminated there was a really compelling paper by Dr. Roberts at Stanford, I believe it was published in 2020 showing the kind of systematic exclusion of psychological research that actually focuses on and reports findings on race. Those studies are oftentimes relegated to specialty journals and theyre not often included in journals that have a broader readership, which also would happen to be the readerships that most need the information.

[00:07:30.610]  Ludmila Nunes

Its interesting what youre mentioning, because we just published another article in Current Directions in Psychological Science, actually, that talks about how the emphasis on universalisms, finding these universal cognitive processes has helped to shape a very racist field. So I think this is connected to what youre saying.

[00:07:54.390]  Evan Auguste

Exactly. And so I would dig up the field of black psychology. Its played a consistent and a forceful role in tackling that idea that psychology has ever been a universalist project. It has been based in very specific ideas of sanity, of community, of civilization that for a lot of people we know it doesnt work. We can see the fallout of that. So to your point, this very idea of universalism has cast aside so many brilliant thinkers, so many brilliant healers and removed so many useful strategies we have for guiding community.

[00:08:34.070]  Ludmila Nunes

Thats absolutely true. Going back to what you described earlier about how certain theories, certain researchers basically created dysfunctions that they could attribute to black people. You give an example in your article of a fake disease, basically a fake mental illness. Do you want to tell our listeners about it?

[00:09:01.710]  Evan Auguste

Theres a couple snuck in there, right? We have Cartwright, who I believe the late 18 hundreds, has drapedomania the very idea that to desire and pursue freedom is a mental health disorder because, again, as the theory would say, no enslavement is a better situation for these African people. Their biology is more suited for labor. Civilization, in fact, would render them, as they would say, insane. So the idea of a draper Tamini becomes a disorder used exclusively for African peoples. And we push forward and we look at the protest psychosis, the idea that to participate in civil rights, black liberatory movements, again, was evidence of a specific type of psychosis. And again, I think theres this tendency within psychology for people to say, okay, of course theres racist, everybody has racist, but weve moved on from that. But this has shaped our practice. And so the book, The Protest Psychosis shows not only that disorder, but how that disorder then shaped our understanding of schizophrenia. And so when we look at today, everybodys well aware now that black people tend to get misdiagnosed over diagnosed with psychotic disorders as opposed to mood disorders. People try to act like its a distinction and symptom profile.

[00:10:21.020]  Evan Auguste

But I think the research would show its happening at the intersection of culture, the type of culture, the type of practice that people think of, again, as worthy of institutionalization.

[00:10:30.730]  Ludmila Nunes

And you also mentioned a study about connecting biology and criminality.

[00:10:38.550]  Steven Kasparek

Yes.

[00:10:39.290]  Ludmila Nunes

And the findings were not very surprising given this framework, right?

[00:10:44.160]  Steven Kasparek

Yes, absolutely. There have been many studies, and in the paper we pick out just a few as exemplars to kind of highlight the larger issue of these well established researchers and labs at prestigious institutions. That have been able to publish these works that have clear methodological biases and flaws. So, for example, theres been several studies, many studies actually attempting to link the presence of a genetic anomaly, the X-Y-Y anomaly, so an extra Y chromosome with a kind of hyper maleness, particularly in black males, young black males. The idea being that of course, there would be a higher prevalence in young black males who are naturally more aggressive, more violent, more prone to those types of behaviors. And of course, they didnt find a higher prevalence in black males. In fact, they found a higher prevalence in white males, but they didnt end up publishing those studies because they werent in support of their original hypotheses. So thats one example. There have also been examples where they have targeted younger brothers of kind of older male siblings who were incarcerated to try to study risk for juvenile delinquency. But that sample, again, was about 90% black, almost 100% black, actually.

[00:12:04.570]  Steven Kasparek

And they were administering drugs to those youth that had not been administered to children ever before. They caused really kind of severe side effects. And so there were many things being done in the context of the study that were harmful, but the welfare of the children was disregarded in the process. And so it just kind of showed the lengths that people historically have been willing to go to to make these associations, even despite evidence to the contrary that they dont exist. And at the same time, there have been many, many studies, of course, seeking to validate treatments for broad populations, psychological treatments such as things like CBT, for example. And those studies that would benefit, in theory, the population have systematically excluded black people. So at the same time that you have many studies historically seeking to showcase violent traits or risk for juvenile delinquency in black people, you have other studies that are systematically excluding black people from research that would be able to validate treatments for use to help improve the well being of those people. So this just highlights like another kind of cycle throughout history in the research space that has contributed to the same issues that I was talking about earlier.

[00:13:22.690]  Ludmila Nunes

Yes. So basically, researchers are using samples composed almost exclusively of black people if they are researching criminality behaviors that are considered nonoptimal, but then when they are investigating how to address any type of issue, mental health issues, then they completely ignore black people in their samples. Its almost like theyre trying to find these treatments only for white people.

[00:13:49.150]  Steven Kasparek

Exactly.

[00:13:51.130]  Ludmila Nunes

But in your article, you also identify some steps that researchers and practitioners can take to improve the field.

[00:14:01.310]  Evan Auguste

We actually have a lot of recommendations. We have several tables of recommendations, and by no means is that list exhaustive. One of the things that we do mention right, as Steven had mentioned previously, the importance of interdisciplinary work, some people would frame it as almost antidisciplinary work. We almost cant hope to do this work effectively, authentically, without considering the complexities of history, philosophy, sociology that frame all these conditions. As researchers in psychology, we cant be so myopic as to think our measures, our assessments, our MRIs effectively capture the full weight of somebodys sociocultural and historical context.

[00:14:47.210]  Steven Kasparek

And to that , one thing that we discussed when we presented this work at the American Psychology Law Society conference in March was that there tends to be a lot of gatekeeping, particularly at the PhD level. There tends to be a lot of gatekeeping around who deserves a seat at the table when were designing these studies, when were deciding on components of these interventions that we want to test, and so that mentality of gatekeeping has to really be shed in order to facilitate the type of interdisciplinary work that Evans talking about. Because were not just talking about working with other PhDs from other fields. Thats part of it. Were also talking about working with community and cultural leaders, people who are experienced in some of these treatment modalities that Evan referenced earlier that have roots in kind of African history. And so that gatekeeping mentality is another big barrier that we have to work on overcoming as a field as well.

[00:15:45.710]  Ludmila Nunes

What this means is, if we want to dismantle systems that are perpetuating racism and other issues, we cannot work just within academia, for example, because these systems are transversal to many aspects of our society.

[00:16:03.970]  Evan Auguste

Exactly. And I think thats a really important point. Im sure weve all seen those conversations. But even among people who want to do antiracist work, who want to do antiracist research, who are giving keynotes on antiracism, who have the book, a lot of this work staged in academia, it has to be direct service. It has to uplift exactly as Stephen was talking about, right? The people that are actually being impacted, because often those people with lived experience have the dreams of freedom needed to guide us towards better, more effective communities of care.

[00:16:38.270]  Steven Kasparek

Some of the other recommendations that we make at kind of the research level because that is ultimately the space that a lot of us are in. We try to break it down by both the individual or, like, departmental level as well as the broader level of a journal or funding agency because really these things can be addressed at all of those levels and ultimately need to be to really create changes in the academy. But at the level of the individual or academic departments, we have recommendations such as diversifying course materials. How many of us have been in a history of psychology course only to find the kind of classic articles, not a lot of articles written by diverse authors or not a lot of diverse perspectives? And I think that awareness of the fact that this is happening is really important. First step for any psychologist in training and even just for myself, like working on this project, I felt like at times a veil was being lifted because I didnt know so much of this information that we were able to kind of collate in this paper. And I feel like I know a lot more now and theres so much to learn.

[00:17:43.500]  Steven Kasparek

So thats a first step. And at the level of journals and funding agencies, there have to be structures that are created to really promote equitable research practices. For example, minimum standards of equity. Journals and funding agencies can outline these things and they ultimately do get to dictate like, what papers theyre accepting, what projects theyre funding. And so they have to set the standard. And then there also has to be an acknowledgment at some point of past harms. So at the level of a journal, some of the things that we cite in the paper as these past studies that have been harmful and that have kind of leveraged harmful conclusions and discussions, they still just exist out there. And you can go read it and download it. And if you dont have that context or if you dont have that discipline to check, like, has this been debunked or has this been corrected, then you can take that at face value. So some kind of disclaimer or some kind of indicator that maybe this article is not being retracted, but theres counter evidence to some of the claims made in this article would maybe be a good starting place as well.

[00:18:52.410]  Ludmila Nunes

And besides these strategies and recommendations, I would like to end with a question about applications. So I started by talking about the percentage of Black people who are incarcerated in the United States, which is much higher than what youd expect given the percentages of black people in the general population. So what can we researchers and scientific societies, and even the common people who might be listening to us, what can we do to start making a difference. And changing these patterns?

[00:19:31.750]  Evan Auguste

Yeah, of course. And Ive thought about it, right. Like often as researchers, again, especially within the academy, we go to think like, okay, we need more and more and more robust studies, more and more robust evidence at this point. We have a lot of evidence. Over the last several decades, people have done the work. Weve seen the alternate models in the paper. We mentioned all the different alternatives to policing for mental health that exist and have documented efficacy. So at a certain point, its like, okay, can continue to refine, continue to optimize. But heres where the scholar activist piece comes in too. We have the evidence. Its not enough to go to your local conference where youre going to have a room full of maybe 20 people who are going to nod vigorously. Its about like, reaching those other audiences, reaching public audiences, reaching political audiences to help shift and shape that. As a brief example, we referenced that I think some of the maybe like the 31st APA presidents were involved at some level in the leadership of eugenics organizations. Thats people who are leaders in the field making one of their primary societal interventions eugenics.

[00:20:48.110]  Evan Auguste

So when we think about, okay, what should our calling be, what should our commitments be? I can count on my hands the number of psychologists I know that are engaged in the reparations movement, like creating material substance for the people whove been harmed by this history. So thats where I think we move, right? We have research. People can continue to do research, but making that advocacy, that activism a substantial part of their scholarship.

[00:21:15.750]  Steven Kasparek

Yeah, I was going to say the same thing, and I would just add, you might be the only person in your department or your lab group to listen to this episode of this podcast, but now you know, and now you have a resource and you can be the one to spread that within your small circle. And thats how this ultimately takes hold and leads to the types of action that Evans talking about, leads to the political arena where those people ultimately end up deciding a lot of these policies. And so I think that is another crucial level of intervention that we can all take on for ourselves.

[00:21:51.490]  Ludmila Nunes

This is Ludmila Nunes with APS. And Ive been speaking to Evan August from, UMass, Boston, and Steven Kasparek from Harvard. Contributions to Antiblackness in the United States Within Psychological Research, Criminal Justice and Mental Health is the title of their article.

[00:22:09.410]  Ludmila Nunes

In perspectives on Psychological Science, and it was my pleasure to talk to them today. Id like to thank you both for joining me.

[00:22:17.370]  Evan Auguste

Thank you.

[00:22:18.590]  Steven Kasparek

Thanks so much for having us.

[00:22:20.210]  Ludmila Nunes

If anyone is interested in reading this article or learning more, please visit our website, psychologicalscience.org. You can also follow us on Instagram and Twitter at @psychscience.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Turkiye will produce domestic fighters as part of the modernization of the F-16 to reduce dependence on imports in this area, Head of the Turkish Defense Industry Agency Ismail Demir said, Trend reports with reference to TurkicWorld.

He noted that fighters called Ozgur will be equipped with ATMACA anti-ship missiles and GEZGIN missiles.
The Biden administration proposed to Israel a few weeks ago the idea of engaging in joint military planning concerning Iran, three U.S. and Israeli officials told Axios, Trend reports.

U.S. officials say the proposal is unprecedented and could significantly upgrade U.S.-Israeli military cooperation.

Israeli officials have so far treated the proposal with suspicion, fearing it is an attempt to tie Israel's hands from taking action against Iran  especially its nuclear facilities  if the U.S. objects.

A U.S. official stressed that the proposal is "not about planning any kind of joint U.S.-Israeli strike against Irans nuclear program."

U.S. officials said the proposal came up during recent visits to Israel by chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and CENTCOM commander Gen. Erik Kurilla.

Israel didnt reject the idea but asked for clarifications regarding what joint military planning actually means in practice, including whether this process stays in the realm of intelligence and scenarios or extends into the realm of joint operations, a senior Israeli official said.

A U.S. official said the proposal was meant as a reassurance of U.S. military backing to Israel and wasnt meant in any way to tie Israels hands.

The U.S. official added that such joint planning means that each side shares its plans for different contingencies and both sides can discuss ways to better deal with different scenarios that could develop regarding Irans activities in the region.

Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Phillip Ventura said that senior Defense Department leaders "have made repeated public statements regarding our interest in expanding military cooperation with the Israeli Defense Forces, to include by increasing joint participation in military training exercises in order to improve interoperability and promote a common understanding of regional security challenges."

He added that "the relationship between the U.S. and Israeli militaries is extremely close, and our commitment to Israels security remains ironclad."

The IDF did not respond to requests for comment.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan tried to calm Israeli concerns in a speech at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy two weeks ago.

We have made clear to Iran that it can never be permitted to obtain a nuclear weapon. As President Biden has repeatedly reaffirmed, he will take the actions that are necessary to stand by this statement, including by recognizing Israels freedom of action," he said.

The White House recently announced that the U.S. military will bolster its defensive posture in the Gulf due to what it called increasing harassment of commercial ships by Iranian navy vessels.

The U.S. Navys Fifth Fleet also announced it was working to increase the rotation of ships and aircraft that patrol the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route in the region.
Veteran New York Times Israel correspondent Kershner illuminates the serious domestic issues dividing that country in The Land of Hope and Fear: Israel's Battle for Its Inner Soul, which was published by Knopf May 16.

There have been a lot of books written about Israel; what were you trying to do that was different?

Jonathan Segal, the vice president of Knopf, was looking for somebody to answer his question, Who are the Israelis today? I said that that was exactly the book Id been wanting to write  to take a journey through Israeli society through its people. But as I was working on this book, it also struck me that while a lot of people have written about Bibi Netanyahu, the longest-serving Prime Minister, there hasnt been so much about the Israel hes shaped as its leader.

To what extent are the fissures that you write about long-simmering ones?

These fissures have been boiling for a long time. In Chapter Two, I go back to the pre-state underground militias, and the competition between them. There have always been serious divisions here, but I think several things have changed. One is the demographic balance - some of what were marginal populations are now becoming major parts of the population just because of the varying birth rates. The settlement project has reached what some might see as a kind of critical mass, which makes it impossible to disentangle in many ways now. I think that you also have much bigger trends all over the world where identity politics come into play, and certainly that is something that Netanyahu has played on greatly.

You would think with generational change in Israel, and the original melting pot concept of Ben-Gurion, now that we're 75 years in, and you have these Israeli-born generations, that these fissures would be fading a bit. But in fact, the opposite seems to be happening. You have this divide between those who put Israel before the Jewish state component, and the other side, who want to see a more Jewish country, and a less liberal one, in terms of Western values. So, all these divisions just seem to be becoming sharper, rather than fading.

Youve lived in Israel for decades; what stands out for you as something you learned researching this book?

I came across sections of the newer Israel that I didn't really know about before. In particular, the so-called Generation 1.5 of Russian-speaking Israelis. We had this million-strong immigration in the 1990s, mostly from the former Soviet Union. And the families who came with children, those children didn't have a choice. They might have been perfectly happy in St. Petersburg, or Ukraine, wherever they were at the time. They found themselves in a country which was not entirely welcoming. I mean, at the state official level, yes, everybody was very happy for the mass immigration. But down at the street level, it wasn't always a welcoming place. And these were children, who were in Russian-speaking households, and going to school in Hebrew, and being mocked and laughed at because of their kind of Soviet-era clothing, habits, and discipline. Now, they are young adults, and they've become very active and very vocal in trying to make some space for Russian culture here, and to have some kind of recognition of where they've come from, and what they brought with them, and what their parents brought with them. And they're very inspiring. These are the younger forces that are also helping to shape the new Israel.

Is Israeli democracy being eroded by the judicial reforms and other legislation that the Netanyahu government is proposing?

First of all, I do want to say that everybody here, on either side of this divide, they all think they're fighting for Israeli democracy, they just have a very different view of what that democracy should look like. And, when an increasing proportion of the people here are ultra-Orthodox, religious Zionists, etc., in their view, having their voice heard and having influence, that's democracy. So, it really is a kind of struggle over what kind of democracy you're talking about - whether it's a more Jewish one, or a more liberal universal one. What happens if it becomes the more Jewish and less liberal universal one? What does that mean more broadly? For thousands of years, it was the Jewish hope to be a free people in their land. And if people here do not feel free, if they feel they're living under some kind of coercion - people are now using the term dictatorship, people are talking about civil war? Then it really is the end of that Zionist dream - and then what?
The Purdue-led Integrated Midwest Partnerships for Actionable Climate Tools and Training (IMPACT2) project will explore how farmers might diversify their crop production as a hedge against projected lower corn yields in the wake of climate change. (Purdue Agricultural Communications photo/Tom Campbell)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  Purdue University is leading a $1.5 million partnership with the U.S. Department of Agricultures Midwest Climate Hub to help a highly diverse group of farmers and landowners in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa learn what practices will help them elude the worst effects of climate change.

The project, titled Integrated Midwest Partnerships for Actionable Climate Tools and Training (IMPACT2), is funded by the USDAs National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Purdues partners in the project are Iowa State University, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

IMPACT2 will complement the Purdue-led, USDA-funded $10 million Diverse Corn Belt Project, which was launched in 2021. That project explores how diversifying crop production will make farms and farmers in the Midwest more resilient to the impacts of climate change and other challenges facing farming.

Projections show that corn wont do as well in a changing climate, said IMPACT2 co-leader

Linda Prokopy, professor and head of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture in Purdues College of Agriculture. It doesnt yield as well as temperatures increase.

The changing climate also will bring more extreme weather. Midwest agriculture thus faces near- and long-term issues, said IMPACT2 co-leader Dennis Todey, who directs USDAs Midwest Climate Hub. Adapting to the currently changing climate is the near-term issue.

Agriculture can adapt, but we want to help adapt even more quickly to the changing conditions, Todey said.

The long-term issue is to figure out how to limit further problems.

We call that the mitigation part, he said. Agriculture has an ability to sequester greenhouse gases to make itself further resilient to coming climate changes. How then do we prepare for, help mitigate and reduce some of the potential longer-term issues?

A major project goal is addressing these issues by reaching and serving a widely diverse audience across the Corn Belt.

Historically, the USDA and others working in agriculture have focused their efforts on conventional row-crop farmers, but there are numerous types of farmers out there that we need to work with, including urban farmers and small-scale horticultural farmers, Prokopy said.

These diverse audiences include long-time and beginning farmers who operate large or small farms devoted to corn, soybeans or vegetables.

Were going to make sure that our materials work for the full gamut of farmers out there, Todey said. Even people who arent farming but who are thinking, Maybe I can acquire some land. What should I grow? How should I farm it? Were trying to get to people early so as theyre entering agriculture, theyre doing the right things.

The IMPACT2 team will offer some scenario-based activities to these diverse stakeholders in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa to help them envision a different future.

What does that look like? And what support from Extension do they need? What type of information do they need to help answer questions that those scenarios bring up? Prokopy said.

The team aims to reach at least 2,000 stakeholders via an online portal and deliver training to 500 or more farmer producers and landowners.

Many of the Impact2 team worked together on the Useful to Usable (U2U) project from 2012 to 2018. The group includes a mix of social scientists, climatologists and experts from other fields.

In the U2U project we developed decision-support tools for corn farmers to help them adapt to climate change, Prokopy said. As the team introduced the tools in public meetings, they also gathered data from the users about their likes and dislikes.

That project was so successful, the tools are still being used, she said.

The Iowa State project co-leader, rural sociologist J. Arbuckle, conducts an annual survey of Iowa farmers.

A lot of what motivates farmers is not economic in nature, Prokopy said. Farmers are very much motivated by their values, by social norms, by culture. Without bringing in social scientists, its hard to understand those influences, which makes it hard to figure out how to communicate effectively.

University of Nebraska-Lincolns IMPACT2 co-leaders Deb Bathke and Tonya Haigh and their colleagues at UNLs National Drought Mitigation Center have developed scenarios that help people prepare for climate extremes such as drought.

Well modify their drought scenarios looking more broadly at climate-change impacts, Prokopy said. Precipitation is expected to increase in the Midwest, but timing and amounts are likely to change, which could lead to more regular spring planting delays and drier mid-summer issues.

Co-leading the project for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are Trent Ford, the Illinois state climatologist, and Duane Friend, state master naturalist and climate change specialist at Illinois Extension. And bringing additional expertise are Purdue co-leaders Beth Hall, Indiana state climatologist; Melissa Widhalm and Austin Pearson of the Midwest Regional Climate Center; and Aaron Thompson, associate professor of horticulture and landscape architecture. Project co-leaders from Purdue Extension are conservation agronomist Hans Schmitz and beginning farmers coordinator Amy Thompson.

Amys role will be helping us connect to the more diverse farmers that are harder for us to access, Prokopy said. She has a lot of connections, experience and trust with that community. Were hoping to build on that.

Writer: Steve Koppes

Media contact: Maureen Manier, mmanier@purdue.edu

Sources: Linda Prokopy, lprokopy@purdue.edu

Dennis Todey, dennis.todey@usda.gov

Agricultural Communications: 765-494-8415;

Maureen Manier, Department Head, mmanier@purdue.edu

Agriculture News Page
The US has decided to expand its sectoral sanctions on Russia and sanction more than 300 individuals and entities, a senior US official said on Thursday, Trend reports citing TASS.

The restrictive measures will affect not only Russia, but also some third countries, the official told reporters in a conference call ahead of US President Joe Bidens trip to Japan for a G7 summit.

"The United States will be rolling out a substantial package" of sanctions, the official said. "Moreover, we will announce upwards of 300 new sanctions against individuals, entities, vessels, and aircraft. These will go after circumvention. These will go after financial facilitators, as well as future energy" the official went on to say.
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The sautoir watch is one of those watch formats that have gone forgotten, maybe the most elegant of all. The idea is to fit a timepiece inside a pendant and to attach the latter to a sautoir, which is essentially a long necklace. The sautoir watch dial is reversed, like on nurse watches and it had jewelry timepieces turned upside down when it started popping up on the radar in surprisingly high numbers. Several of them have made a simultaneous appearance at Watches and Wonders '23, signed by Van Cleef & Arpels, Piaget, Chanel and even Jaeger-LeCoultre.

Launches of timepieces other than wristwatches are few and far between, but it is a regular occurrence, just like flowers blooming in a desert. They're generally buoyed by a rising economic tide, which as we know floats all boats, including those with improbable chances of commercial success. This is how pocket watches and various types of clocks sometimes make it past product management committees. The sautoir is but an avatar of these timepieces, rendered close to irrelevant by the almighty, ubiquitous, monopolistic wristwatch.

These debuts often happen in flocks. Their confluence may seem haphazard, but in really never truly is. Managers from competing brands talk among themselves, even more so within corporate groups and so do suppliers. All this informal talking leads to great minds ending up thinking alike, and releasing similar products at the same time, thus creating the stuff trends are made of.

But never mind how they come to life, they do have one of their own, and they're generally charming. Since they're so rare, sautoir watches will stun, interest and or ravish one more easily than the pervasive wristwatch. All the more so as they are rooted in both watchmaking and jewelry, which makes them very delicate objects.

At least that is how Piaget has designed its latest sautoirs, boosted by renewed confidence, energy and creativity. The brand has crafted many of its  Swinging Sautoirs  in the past, Swinging vbeing a reference to the 1960's Swinging London, the time and place where Piaget took a turn for the creative best. The brand is introducing several High Jewelry Sautoir Watches, including one built around a 25ct. cabochon emerald, and another made of ornate gold.

Piaget High Jewelry Sautoir Watch  David Chokron/WorldTempus

Van Cleef & Arpels is making its sautoir an extension of their Perlee collection. Without climbing too high on the sophistication ladder, the Perlee secret pendant watches are sheltered behind swiveling cabochons carved from hard stones, or set with colored gems, all of which are surrounded by beads (perles in French) of gold that gave the collection its name.

Perlee secret pendant watch  Van Cleef & Arpels

For Chanel, it is a single, unique piece such as the brand regularly releases under its Mademoiselle Prive umbrella. As is customary for the brand, it's showcasing one of their signature symbols, in this instance the lion. The Sautoir Mademoiselle Prive Lion has two faces, one made of faceted onyx, the other with a watch hidden under a three-dimensional lion head, carved in gold and adorned with diamonds. The whole pretty thing hangs from a necklace made of gold beads, diamonds and carved onyx.

Chanel Sautoir Mademoiselle Prive Lion  Chanel

For Jaeger-LeCoultre, it is an opportunity to show everyone how versatile their rectangular timepiece actually is. The Reverso Secret Necklace can evidently be worn on both its sides, and is attached to an elaborate chain set with thousands of diamonds. A good reminder that among the dozens of crafts mastered by the Grande Maison, those related to jewelry have pride of place.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Secret Necklace  Jaeger-LeCoultre

And just a few weeks after Watches & Wonders, another unique piece joins the chorus as Bulgari reveals Mediterranea, their latest, exuberant high jewelry collection. It includes Cameo Imperiale, a necklace secret watch, adorned with rubies and diamonds, whose openworked tourbillon movement hides under a Cleopatra face.
U.S. policy towards Russia has hardened following Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and appears likely to remain focused on punishing Russia's aggression for some time. Before the war, however, there had been an ongoing debate about whether Washington should consider alternative approaches to the U.S.-Russia relationship that might be less costly for U.S. interests, including the possibility of adopting a less-hardline approach to Russia.

To inform this debate, RAND conducted a series of historical case studies of similar less-hardline approaches rivals had adopted towards their adversaries in the past during peacetime. We asked RAND senior political scientists Miranda Priebe and Bryan Frederick to discuss the implications of the findings in their new report, Future U.S. Peacetime Policy Toward Russia: Exploring the Benefits and Costs of a Less-Hardline Approach.

It's been more than a year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began. Was your report written in reaction to this conflict?

Miranda Priebe No, it wasn't. Our research was actually completed in January of 2022. Not the best timing, we know. Since that time, we've updated the analysis and implications of the research for the evolving circumstances, but the motivations for the work preceded the conflict.

So what were the motivations for doing this work originally?

Bryan Frederick There had been a long-standing debate within the United States about long-term policy towards Russia. On the one hand, Russia had been engaged in a series of malign activities internationally for years, from the 2014 invasion of Ukraine to numerous instances of election interference in other countries. So the motivation for U.S. policymakers to punish or constrain Russia was fairly clear. On the other hand, the relationship with Russia had become highly costly for the United States at a time when competing priorities like China's rise and domestic challenges were becoming more acute. As a result, in 2021, the Biden administration was considering whether a more stable, predictable relationship with Russia might be possible that would allow policymakers to focus on these other challenges. Our report was initially undertaken to try to inform these decisions.

What type of alternative policies does your research explore?

Priebe We focused on what we call less-hardline policy approaches. A state adopts a less-hardline approach when it seeks to advance its own interests by proactively addressing what it perceives to be the rival's interests or concerns. That is, we wanted to explore what the costs and benefits would likely be of the United States being more accommodating of Russia's concerns as a means of trying to shift Russian behavior.

And how did you go about doing this research?

Frederick We tried to identify historical cases that had structural similarities to the U.S.-Russia relationship as it stood in 2021 and then see what we could learn from them. That means that our research focuses on four historical case studies where a stronger state adopted a limited less-hardline approach towards a weaker rival in peacetime, that is, where it adopted policies to address some of its rival's concerns but maintained more-competitive policies in other areas. Specifically, we looked at the Anglo-Russian negotiations over Central Asia (18991914), the U.S.-Soviet negotiations on the post-World War II order (19451946), U.S.-Soviet Detente (19691975), and the U.S.-Russia Reset (20092013). We then explored what the costs and benefits of adopting the limited less-hardline approach had been for the stronger state.

What did you learn from these historical cases?

Priebe We found that pursuing limited less-hardline approaches can lead to some gains for stronger-state interests and that these gains can be fairly durable. For example, the various arms control treaties that came out of U.S.-Soviet Detente survived the later downturn in relations in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In the Anglo-Russia case, the agreement resolved issues that may have otherwise led to conflict. Of course, the stronger state makes compromises as part of a less-hardline approach, so there are always some costs, too. In our cases, critics of less-hardline approaches worried that these compromises would embolden the weaker state to be more demanding or aggressive. But we did not find evidence of that happening in our cases. Limited less-hardline approaches also had limited effects. The competitive issues that remained unaddressed between the states tended to be the sources of future conflict. In other words, a limited less-hardline approach did not stabilize rivalries over the long term. The bottom line is that policymakers should keep their expectations realistic: It's possible for a limited policy to produce limited gains, but probably not to fundamentally transform the relationship.

What does all this mean for U.S.-Russia policy today?

Frederick Our research focused on peacetime policy, so it doesn't offer insights for U.S. policy toward Russia during the war. For the foreseeable future, U.S. policy towards Russia is going to be focused on punishing Russian aggression in Ukraine. And it is also quite difficult to imagine the United States pursuing a less-hardline approach towards the present Russian leadership even after the war. But going forward, the United States is still likely to face structural incentives similar to those it was concerned with in 2021, including the need to focus on China and domestic challenges. Those pressures could prompt U.S. policymakers to consider less-costly approaches towards its rivalry with Russia. As remote as this possibility may seem today, our research could eventually inform those future deliberations.

Priebe Yes, we know that this is not research that is going to be of near-term interest to most people. But there are some scholars and policymakers that do focus on longer-term strategy and policy. And history shows that even bitter rivals often do pursue alternative policies towards one another at some point. So, having this research available to inform those decisions, whenever they may become relevant, may be helpful.

Miranda Priebe is director of the Center for Analysis of U.S. Grand Strategy and a senior political scientist at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation. Bryan Frederick is associate director of the Strategy and Doctrine Program within RAND Project AIR FORCE, and a senior political scientist at RAND.
In the New Scientific Age, the Non-Sciences Are More Important Than Ever

Over the past 40 years, Western education has emphasized math, engineering, and invention, while neglecting the disciplines that allow us to cope with their creations. We are more equipped than ever to disrupt entire economies and ways of life with technology and less equipped than ever to deal with the consequences. If we want to retain a life worth living, one where human beings control the tools that they create, and not vice versa, we need to return to the deep well of human wisdom: what we once called with pride the humanities.

The most obvious factor in the disruption is the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence. We seem to have created machines better than us at most human endeavors: teaching, writing, analyzing, and yes, even programming machines. And we arent prepared to deal with it.

Urgent warnings have sounded from multiple quarters: we better slow down because we dont know what is inside this Pandoras box. If the monster at the end of the story, so to speak, is the subjugation of what is most human to the machine, Im afraid were in worse condition than ever to confront it.

Most of us already yield our mental life to machineslike the tiny computer youre probably reading this on. We are perennially distracted, so much so that scientific studies chronicled an alarming drop in the average attention span, from 2.5 minutes in 2004 to 47 seconds in 2012. I suspect its gotten even worse since. Gen Z purportedly spends half its waking hours on screens, watching an average of 7.2 hours of video a day.

The youngest generations are lonelier, more mentally ill, and unhappier than their predecessors.

What are we to do? We can hardly slow down the course of history, and we certainly cant reverse it. But perhaps we can find a way to weather it without losing our souls.

In this age of rapidly progressing technology and our increasing entanglement with it, the non-sciencesthe humanitiesare more important than ever.

The questions that we will have to confront in this new age are not questions the revered STEM fields can answer. They are questions of meaning and teleological hope. If history must march on, then what, exactly, is it marching toward? What is the purpose of human life? What can we give up and safely outsource to machines without losing our dignity?

More than ever, these arent just abstract philosophical inquiries. They are pressing questions.

The good news is, while our situation is new, the questions it provokes are not. Thousands of people, much smarter and more experienced than you and I, have dedicated their lives to such examinations. The bad news is weve willfully forgotten all that they have to teach us.

The Lebanese philosopher and diplomat Charles Malik famously remarked: What is fascinating about great literatureHomer, Dante, Shakespeare, Goethe, Dostoyevskyis not that ages and cultures differ, which of course they do, but how much behind its infinite variations, the human condition is always essentially the same.

The enemy at the gates may change, but human frailty and mortality remain the same. Whether it is the Vikings, or the plague, or the atom bomb, human beings have always had to confront novel threats to life and livelihood, many of our own invention.

Perhaps our next battle is, in the words of Malik, to keep the machine, the instrument, in its subordinate placealways the slave, never the master. If we are to do this, we will need to do it in good companywith Homer and Rembrandt and Wordsworth.

To remain fully human, well need to tap into the cumulative human tradition. We will need good, time-tested art, and philosophy, and literature, and religion, and we will need it now.
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Halle Bailey makes her debut as Ariel in The Little Mermaid when it enters theaters next Friday. Ahead of the film's release, she stopped by Good Morning America to discuss the role with Robin Roberts, Michael Strahan and George Stephanopolous.

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Bailey, 23, was once trolled online for being cast in the live-action role. The original version 1989 animated movie The Little Mermaid was animated but featured Jodi Benson in the lead role, who is White.

But as social media posters in defense of Bailey pointed out, mermaids can come in any color. Bailey met Benson on the movie's set as she makes a cameo in the new film.

"She has been the soundtrack of a lot of our childhood and a lot of our lives because the work she did as the original Ariel is so special," Bailey told GMA. "So to have her blessing, and her stamp of approval is so beautiful and validating, and I'm just honored to meet her because she's a legend."

Bailey was joined on set by little girls of color from a New York City arts program who got to see the movie immediately after their appearance on GMA. Bailey's live-action Ariel Barbie is already on sale, and GMA showed a clip of a little girl gazing at the doll in wonder after getting it as a gift.

"I'm just in a constant state of awe and so grateful that they're able to see themselves in a character like Ariel," Bailey said. "We deserve to have representation where we can look and be like, 'Wow, I'm worthy, too. She looks like me. I have a doll that looks like me.' Like, it's so special, and I'm grateful to even be a part of this."

The Little Mermaid co-stars Javier Bardem as Ariel's father, King Triton, Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Awkwafina as Scuttle, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian and Noma Dumezweni as King Eric's mother, making it one of the most racially diverse Disney classic adaptations ever. But director Rob Marshall says casting Bailey as Ariel wasn't planned as a diversity move.

"I first saw Halle on the Grammys, when we had just started casting," Marshall told Deadline. "We were looking everywhere, and there was no agenda to cast a woman of color. Just, let's find the best Ariel. And then I saw this beautiful creature, singing like an angel on the Grammys."

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Marshall says he had no idea if she could act, but after bringing her in to audition for the role, he knew she was right for the part. They did look at other actresses but Bailey was the first choice.

" The thing about Ariel that's so tricky is that you're asking for so many things. You're asking for innocence and vulnerability, but strength at the same time. Strong-willed, almost bullheaded kind of character who sees what they want and goes to get it."

He added, "But there had to be joy from her, and Halle had all of that. She was the first actor we saw for the film, the first one. And then we saw everybody else. She set the bar so high, and nobody surpassed that bar."

The Little Mermaid opens in theaters on May 26.
The Egyptian Meteorological Authority (EMA) has cautioned the public to wear masks outdoors and to secure windows in homes as a severe sandstorm hit various parts of the country on Saturday.
On May 12, 6,008 graduates celebrated the end of their undergraduate studies at the University of Georgia with a graduation ceremony at Sanford Stadium.

Thousands of family and friends packed the stadium, cheering on loved ones turning their tassels and taking their first steps into a new chapter of their lives.

Across Dooley Field, graduates donned cords and stoles to represent their involvement and achievements through college, as well as many decorated caps to reflect their personalities.
Keep sufficient funds in your bank account until the cheque is cleared.

Cheque bounce is back in the news with three cases making the headlines.

A court in Maharashtra's Thane district sentenced a businessman to rigorous imprisonment for three months and directed him to pay double the bounced amount.

A metropolitan court punished a man in Gujarat with a one-year jail sentence.

The Sikkim high court recently ruled that offences under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act can be compounded at any stage.

What is a cheque bounce?

Cheque bounce or 'dishonour of cheque' occurs when a drawee is unable to withdraw money using a cheque due to certain limitations.

It is covered by the Negotiable Instruments Act (NI Act), 1881, which aims to deter the issuance of cheques without sufficient funds in the bank account, and provides legal remedy to the aggrieved party.

Insufficient funds

Section 138 of the NI Act mentions two reasons for cheque bounce.

Tushar Agarwal, advocate, Supreme Court of India, says, "First, there is insufficient money in the account. Second, the cheque amount exceeds the arrangement the account holder has with the bank."

The second reason refers to the cheque amount being higher than the account's withdrawal limit.

Over time various other reasons have emerged.

Signature or number mismatch: A cheque can be dishonoured if there is a discrepancy between the drawer's signature on the cheque and the specimen signature available with the bank.

Pratyush Miglani, managing partner, MVAC Advocates & Consultants, says, "This is done to avert fraudulent activities like forgery."

A number mismatch may arise if the cheque number entered in the MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) code line doesn't correspond with the pre-printed cheque number.

Expired or damaged cheque: A cheque is usually valid for three months from the date of issuance. If presented after this period, it is not honoured.

The bank may also declare a damaged or mutilated cheque as invalid.

Miglani says, "Essential elements like the date, payee's name, amount, and signature must be legible and undamaged for successful processing."

Stop payment instruction: The issuer may have instructed the bank to stop the payment due to reasons like a dispute, suspicion of fraud, loss of the cheque, or change in circumstances.

Legal consequences

Cheque bounce is a criminal offence under Section 138 of the NI Act Suhael Buttan, counsel, SKV Law Offices, says, "The sentence can be for up to two years; a fine, which can be extended to twice the amount covered by the dishonoured cheque; or both."

Anushkaa Arora, principal & founder, ABA Law Office, adds, "Bail can be secured when the matter is pending in lower court. Post-conviction the chances of bail become bleak."

Regarding legal notice, Abhinay Sharma, managing partner, ASL Partners, points out, "The receiver of the bounced cheque can send a legal notice to the issuer within 30 days of receiving the bounce memo from the bank."

Sections 143A and 148 have been inserted through recent amendments.

Buttan says, "These sections give the trial or the appellate court the right to direct payment of interim compensation during the trial and deposit of a certain minimum sum in an appeal by the drawer of cheque against conviction."

The Sikkim high court recently ruled that offences under Section 138 of the NI Act can be compounded at any stage. This means the parties can enter into a compromise and settle the matter out of court.

Proceed with caution

Keep sufficient funds in your bank account until the cheque is cleared.

Fill all details correctly.

If there is any doubt, verify with the bank that your signature hasn't changed. Also avoid overwriting.

If availability of funds is an issue, communicate with the payee and resolve the matter instead of issuing the cheque.

Use the Sikkim high court's recent ruling to compromise and settle out of court.

M Barve, founder, MB Wealth Financial Solutions suggests making online payments.

Landlords can use cheque bounce laws to their advantage.

"Take one or a few signed cheques in advance. The stringent consequences of bounced cheques will ensure you get the rent on time and there is no default."

Check bounce: Fallout can be expensive

The bank may charge the issuer a penalty, which can range from Rs 50 to Rs 750

If the cheque amount is not paid within the stipulated time, the receiver may be entitled to claim interest on the cheque amount

The issuer's credit score could take a beating

This can make it difficult to obtain credit in the future

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
The Union finance ministry on Thursday issued a clarification on the changes in FEMA rules which brings overseas international credit card spending under the RBI's liberalised remittance scheme (LRS). Heres how it affects you.

1. What is the notification dated 16th May, 2023, amending the FEM (CAT) Rules, 2000?

The notification dated 16th May 2023 omits Rule 7 of the FEM(CAT) Rules, 2000.

In effect, it removes the exemption given to the use of international credit cards for meeting his/her expenses by a person when he is abroad.

Even earlier, all current account transactions undertaken on international credit cards in India were subject to Rule 5 of the FEM(CAT) Rules and covered under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS).

The notification dated 16th May 2023 does not effect any changes in the use of international credit cards by residents while in India.

2. What is Rule 7 of FEM(CAT) Rules, 2000?

Rule 7 of the FEM(CAT) Rules, 2000 exempted the use of international credit cards from the LRS for payments by a person towards meeting expenses while such a person is on a visit outside India.

3. What was the need for the notification?

While on a visit abroad, a person could use international debit cards or other methods or international credit cards for undertaking current account transactions.

Payments by debit cards etc have been treated as LRS even earlier.

Due to the exemption under erstwhile Rule 7, expenditures through credit cards were not accounted for under the specified LRS limit, which has led to some individuals exceeding the LRS limits.

Data collected from top money remitters under LRS reveals that international credit cards are being issued with limits in excess of the present LRS limit of USD 2,50,000.

The differential treatment between debit cards and credit cards needed to be removed in the interest of uniformity and equity in the treatment of modes of drawal of foreign exchange and for capturing total expenditures under LRS for prudent foreign exchange management and to prevent by-passing of LRS limits.

RBI had written to the government on more than one occasion, pointing to the need to remove this differential treatment.

4. What modes of expenditure of foreign exchange are covered under FEM(CAT) Rules, 2000?

It includes the drawal of foreign exchange from an authorised person and use of an international credit card, international debit card or ATM card.

All such drawals for the purposes specified in Schedule III are eligible for the limit of US $2,50,000.

5. What are the purposes under FEM (CAT) Rules, 2000, under which a resident individual can avail of a foreign exchange facility?

As per Rule 5 of the FEM (CAT) Rules, 2000, Individuals can avail of a foreign exchange facility for the following purposes, as detailed in Schedule III of the Rules, within the LRS limit of USD 2,50,000 on a financial year basis.

Prior approval of the Reserve Bank would be required for remittances exceeding the specified limits.

i. Private visits to any country (except Nepal and Bhutan)

ii. Gift or donation

iii. Going abroad for employment

iv. Emigration

v. Maintenance of close relatives abroad

vi. Travel for business, attending a conference or specialised training or for meeting expenses for meeting medical expenses, or check-up abroad, or for accompanying as an attendant to a patient going abroad for medical treatment/ check-up

vii. Expenses in connection with medical treatment abroad

viii. Studies abroad

ix. Any other current account transaction

The Master Direction of RBI on LRS, available at may be referred to. (external link)

6. Does LRS cover business visits of employees?

No. When an employee is being deputed by an entity for any of the above, and the expenses are borne by the latter, such expenses shall be treated as residual current account transactions outside LRS and may be permitted by the AD without any limit, subject to verifying the bona fide of the transaction.

7. What is Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS)?

Under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, all resident individuals, including minors, are allowed to freely remit up to USD 2,50,000 per financial year (April-March) for any permissible current or capital account transaction or a combination of both.

Further, resident individuals can avail of foreign exchange facility for the purposes mentioned in Para 1 of Schedule III of FEM (CAT) Rules 2000 within the limit of USD 2,50,000 only.

The scheme is not available to corporates, partnership firms, HUF, Trusts etc.

Under the LRS, in the financial year 2021-22, a total of USD 19.61 billion was remitted, rising from USD 12.68 billion in 2020-21.

In 2022-23, it rose to more than USD 24.0 billion, of which overseas travel accounted for more than half.

8. What is a current account transaction?

As per FEMA Act, 1999, a "current account transaction" means a transaction other than a capital account transaction and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, such transaction includes,

(i) payments due in connection with foreign trade, other current business, services, and short-term banking and credit facilities in the ordinary course of business,

(ii) payments due as interest on loans and as net income from investments,

(iii) remittances for living expenses of parents, spouse and children residing abroad, and

(iv) expenses in connection with foreign travel, education and medical care of parents, spouse and children.

Source: Union finance ministry.
After being caught in the perfect storm and conquering near death at sea four years ago, Abhilash Tomy has made seafaring history by coming second in the world's most difficult ocean race.

As he sailed to the finish line to welcoming cheers, holding the Indian flag, his remarkable story tells us the amazing things human beings can do.

IMAGE: Commander Abhilash Tomy (retd) waves the Tricolour after finishing second in the 2022 Golden Globe Race in Les Sables d'Olonne, France. All Photographs and video: Kind courtesy Bayanat

In the eight months [236 days] that Commander Abhilash Tomy (retd) was sailing around the globe in the world's most difficult and dangerous ocean race -- non-stop, alone in a boat without GPS and modern navigation tools -- he spoke to his family only thrice.

At the Hobart gate in Tasmania, Australia; Lanzarote in the Atlantic Ocean and Cape Town gate, South Africa.

Each call around 20 minutes.

"I saw my son's first day in school through a video call arranged by the sponsors at Cape Town gate. I can never forget that moment, and the rare occasions I got to speak with my wife through passing ships," says Commander Abhilash Tomy (retd), Kirti Chakra, who finished second in the Golden Globe Race on April 29 and made history as the first Asian to achieve the feat.

"I tried to gauge his mental and physical wellbeing in those three calls," says wife Urmimala who has not had a full night's sleep in these months.

"I was worried about his water supply, food and health, while he was worried about the kids and family.

"I was checking the race app every four hours to know the update. Now that he is back on land -- safe -- we are sleeping better and can have normal conversations that are not centered around the weather," she says over the phone from Goa as she prepares the home for Commander Tomy's return to India today, May 18, 2023.

The last time he took part in the race four years ago, Abhilash Tomy was caught in a severe storm that destroyed his boat and left him nearly paralysed. He was rescued in a multi-nation effort and underwent surgery in Delhi more than two weeks after the accident. Titanium rods were inserted into his spine and five vertebrae fused into one.

The sailor and retired naval aviator learnt to walk, fly and sail again. Last September, he returned to complete the race -- and has finished gloriously.

"He believes in picking up the broken pieces and moving ahead," says Urmimala Abhilash who was scared many times and prayed a lot more during this voyage.

"Till the time he crossed that spot where the accident happened in 2018, he was stressed. Cape Horn is an area notorious for bad weather and he suffered two knock-downs facing 7 meter high waves and 70 Knott winds -- we constantly worried in those days, but once he crossed the Horn, we were at ease," she said.

As he sailed to the finish line to welcoming cheers, holding the Tiranga, Abhilash Tomy's remarkable story tells us the great things human beings can do -- and the limitless possibilities that stretch out like the vast oceans before us.

This is the second time the sailor has solo-circumnavigated the globe. The first one took 151 days and his boat was equipped with modern navigational technology as he sailed for the Indian Navy's Sagar Parikrama in 2013.

Back on land, Abhilash Tomy is now on his way home and looking forward to a meal of fish curry and rice.

Shortly before leaving for India from France, the decorated officer and sailor par excellence shared moments of his great journey with Rediff.com's Archana Masih.

How have you spent your days after completing the race in France? What are some of the activities/tasks that have kept you busy?

I got busy with interviews for a couple of days and then I came down with Covid, which in a way extended my isolation.

I have been eating, catching up on sleep and a lot of messages from friends and well-wishers. And of course talking to my family and friends.

IMAGE: Abhilash Tomy heaves a sigh of relief.

How is your health after a long 8-month circumnavigation around the globe? How is your back, the injury in your ribs that you sustained on this journey?

I think I have lost about 20 kilos in the journey. So I have spent some time buying new clothes.

The back injury was muscular and that was ok by the time I finished the race. The ribs healed in two weeks.

Who all were there to welcome you at the completion of your journey? What were some of the reactions that you received?

We had sponsors (Bayanat and G42), members of the Indian embassy (deputy ambassador and defence attache), the mayor of Les Sables d'Olonne, friends, my brother with his wife, a lot of acquaintances in Les Sables d'Olonne and, of course, the race management to receive me.

IMAGE: An overjoyed Abhilash Tomy.

What are some of the personal things you carried with you on the boat?

Only my clothes, and one sextant, a head torch, a few religious icons and the Indian flag.

When will you return to India? What will your welcome/arrival in India be like?

I should be back on 18th. And I would prefer a quiet entry!

IMAGE: Commander Abhilash Tomy's boat arrives in Les Sables d'Olonne (you can see the Tricolour), accompanied by a flotilla of other boats.

In what ways was this race different from the last one? What were some difficult moments; and what were the moments of ecstasy/exhilaration?

This was quite a tough one and it tested me in many ways. There were high points. For example, I saw my son in school through a video call arranged by the sponsors at Cape Town gate and I can never forget that moment, and the rare occasions I got to speak with my wife through passing ships.

The high point, of course, was the finish.

The Golden Globe Race race begins and finishes in Les-Sables-d' Olonne, France.Participants use 1968 vintage boats and 1968 era technology to circumnavigate the world solo and non-stop.

Commander Tomy navigated the route using a sextant on paper charts, without electronic instruments or autopilot and determined the weather himself.

He made calculations looking at the sun, moon, stars and handwrote the logs.

As per the rules of the race, participants cannot enter any port or receive any help from any passing boat. If a participant borrows even a toothbrush, bottle of water or sheet of paper, s/he will be disqualified.

Sailors are tracked round the clock by satellite, but cannot inquire about each other's positions. In case of an emergency, a sealed safety box that they carry with them containing a GPS and satellite phone is used to communicate with the race organisers.

Abhilash Tomy encountered such an emergency in the race in 2018.

IMAGE: With South African Kirsten Neuschafer who finished first. Kirsten is the first woman to win the Golden Globe Race. She completed the race a day before Abhilash Tomy.

What becomes of your boat, the Bayanat now? You were the last entrant in the race and had just about two months to prepare the boat -- what challenge did that pose and how did you overcome it?

Bayanat will now go to a museum in Abu Dhabi where it will serve to inspire more people to take up sailing, or pursue their dreams and passions.

I was quite short on time preparing the boat. The entire boat labour market was busy preparing boats post Covid so almost the entire refit was done by Dick Koopmans (technical manager) and me.

Besides I could take the boat only for a short test sail. I would have preferred a much longer one.

Sailors spend a minimum of three years preparing their boats for a race such as this, but Commander Abhilash did it in two months.

The boat incurred a lot of wear and tear during the journey and he had to carry out a lot of repairs and improvisation like using the toilet door to fix a broken self-steering equipment.

IMAGE: Abhilash Tomy and Kirsten Neuschafer pose for photographs with Indian dignitaries and race officials.

How much money did you have to spend of your own to participate in this GGR?

I did have a fantastic sponsor who covered all costs, but a collision before the start saw me spend 50,000 euros approximately from my own pocket.

What were some of the observations that you made on this journey about the changing landscape around you -- especially the effects of climate change etc?

The climate is definitely changing. We had more intense high and low pressure systems in the South Pacific. I saw flying fish at 40 south (never seen them so far south). Sargasso weed south of the Equator and covering almost the entire North Atlantic.

IMAGE: Onlookers at Les Sables d'Olonne.

What are the next goals you have set for yourself?

In the immediate future I am looking forward to spending time with my family. Perhaps there are more adventures in store after that!

Do you like the sea more than land? How has sailing and your relationship with the sea made you the person you are?

I see a deep connection between the sea and the human soul. I see the sea as a teacher and being alone at sea has been an intensely spiritual experience.

I believe being away from the world gives one a better understanding of it.

Of course, one must come to land once in a while!

Commander Tomy's wife remembers seeing a video of her husband controlling his sail boat in bad weather. The boat had toppled to one side as the wind and sea raged around him.

"I asked, what do you do in moments like these?" says Urmimala Abhilash... "He replied, 'There are certain things beyond your control, you surrender to the moment and figure out what to do after the storm has passed'.

"He believes in picking up the broken pieces and moving on."

"Looking back, I don't remember any of those hard times after his accident at sea, they seem like a blur. The effort was not to dwell on those difficult moments, but always find a way to move ahead," says the commander's wife.

IMAGE: The finishing point of the race.

What will be some of the immediate things you will be busy with once you arrive? What is the kind of food you are waiting to have?

I am eagerly looking forward to meeting my wife and kids, and parents after that and having some nice home cooked food. And fish curry rice at Goa!

Watch: Abhilash Tomy arrives at Les Sables d'Olonne.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
'Had it not been for the complicity of the state and Biren Singh's leadership, these riots would not have spread this far and for so long.'

IMAGE: Vehicles set ablaze after a clash broke out during the 'tribal solidarity march called by the All Tribal Students Union Manipur in the Torbung area of Churachandpur, Manipur, May 5, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Violence in Manipur, which broke out two weeks ago, refuses to subside, with tensions between the Meiteis and Kukis continuing to simmer.

And to make the situation worse, 10 Kuki MLAs from Manipur have demanded a 'separate administration' for Manipur's hill areas.

Of these, seven MLAs are from the Bharatiya Janata Party which rulES Manipur under the leadership of Chief Minister Biren Singh, whose government was pulled up by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

Directing the Manipur government to take steps to foster confidence and ensure peace and tranquillity in the state torn by ethnic violence, the Supreme Court asserted that being the top-most court it can ensure that the political executive exercises its power and does not turn 'a blind eye' to the situation.

What is going on in Manipur?

To find out more, Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com spoke to Kham Khan Suan Hausing, professor and head of department of political science, University of Hyderabad.

The first of a two-part interview:

Is it a new demand by Kuki MLAs for a separate administration from Manipur, or was it always there?

This is not new and was asked in the past, amongst others, by the Kuki National Organization (KNO) and United People's Front (UPF) groups. They have been asking for separate administration for the hill areas including a separate 'state within a state' under Article 244A, a Union Territory and a territorial council modelled along the lines of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) under the Sixth Schedule (of the Constitution).

How do they expect to run this separate administration when the hill region is part of Manipur?

The demand for a territorial council by the SoO (Suspension of Operations) parties, namely KNO and UPF, for instance, by incorporating provisions of the Sixth Schedule and Articles 244A and Article 371C of the Constitution, is intended to give a semblance of a 'separate administration'.

These demands in some sense draw from the experience of Meghalaya between 1969 and 1971 before it became a fully-fledged state, and the best practices of the BTC.

In fact, institutional frameworks of a separate administration are already there in the hill areas of Manipur under Article 371C wherein all 'scheduled matters' pertaining to the hill areas are mandated by law to be vetted by the Hill Areas Committee (HAC) which consisted of 20 members of the 60-member Manipur assembly; the provisions of the Manipur (Hill Areas) District Councils Act, 1971 which envisions 'autonomous' district councils in the hill areas, and the Manipur (Hill Areas) Village Authority Act, 1955.

Given that extant arrangements of 'separate administration' in the hill areas are either routinely bypassed by the state government or remain powerless and dysfunctional, the idea of a territorial council which the UPF and KNO negotiated with the Union government in the past under the umbrella of Suspension of Operations (SoO) pact signed between the central government, the Manipur government and Kuki-Zomi insurgent groups, was an attempt to overcome these.

The idea is to get more judiciary, legislative and executive powers while simultaneously incorporating more developmental mandate like the one that obtains in Assam's Bodoland Territorial Council.

Among the Sixth Schedule provisions, the Bodoland Territorial Council has the most extensive powers when it comes to the executive, judiciary or legislature. BTC has a provision for a separate budget wherein funds allocated both by the Centre and the state are devolved within a specific time limit.

Is it not surprising that the BJP, which has a clear majority in the state assembly, is seeing this kind of violence? Is the double engine sarkar not working in Manipur?

By all accounts, it appears that the double engine sarkar does not work in Manipur. The collapse of law and order became fully evident as ragtag mobs were given a full night-and-a-day in the valley areas to engage in extensive ethnic cleansing and genocidal attacks on Kuki-Zomi inhabited areas in Imphal.

The delay in invoking shoot-at-sight order, which came only in the latter half of May 4, could not have been starker.

Apparently, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 which has been enforced in the hill areas for quite some time, could not prevent counter-ethnic cleansing drives of the Meiteis undertaken by their counterparts in the hills.

There is now ample evidence to suggest that two radical and militant organisations, namely Meitei Leepun and Arambam Tenggol, are largely responsible for carrying out extensive ethnic cleansing and genocidal attacks of the Kuki-Zomi.

In fact, Pramot Singh, the president of Meitei Leepun, openly incited his followers in his Facebook post on April 28, 2023, (which is not taken down so far) to 'annihilate our traditional rival on the hills'.

Given his proximity to Biren Singh and the massive organisational support he received across the state, the extensive attacks on the Kuki-Zomi unleashed by ragtag mobs in the Imphal and valley areas could not have come about without the complicity of persons in power.

That these militant organisations nurture a political agenda and ideology which not only seek to revive pre-Hindu Meitei indigenous religious (Sanamahi) tradition by repudiating the Hinduisation of the Meitei communities, a process which began since the early 18th century, but also to restore the glorious past of Kangleipak (Manipur's ancient name), which they contended was undone by Manipur's merger with the Indian State in 1949 under 'coercion', their ideology and programmatic actions are clearly anti-India, anti-Hindu, and anti-Hindi.

Biren Singh may have found these militant organisations very useful to aggressively push his integrationist and majoritarian agenda and conveniently use this to electorally consolidate his position by neutralising intermittent challenges from powerful factional leaders within the BJP.

Yet, it becomes increasingly apparent that his BJP-led government is playing with this fire for a short time electoral gain.

Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah should see through this gamble soon enough. They must immediately sack Biren and impose President's Rule to restore trust and legitimacy of the State and its institutions.

That is a serious allegation,'genocidal attack', that you are levelling.

Unfortunately, it looks like that because had it not been for the complicity of the state and Biren Singh's leadership, these riots would not have spread this far and for so long.

A review of civil war literature in other places will show that the recent waves of riots/civil wars in Manipur clearly constitute ethnic cleansing, and Biren Singh's regime presides over an 'institutionalised riot system'.

The same thing is happening in Myanmar where the army junta is targeting Rohingya Muslims.

Is it not true that Kukis have also attacked Meiteis as they fear that the Meiteis will get Scheduled Tribe status?

It is true that the Kuki-Zomi groups have also attacked the Meiteis in retaliation. However, let us be clear that these retaliatory attacks have nothing to do with the Meiteis' demand for Scheduled Tribe status.

The Kuki-Zomi and all the tribal groups in Manipur, including the Nagas, have genuine fear that giving ST status to the Meiteis will be the surest way to snatch tribal lands.

Come to think of it, the Meiteis demand for ST status is also likely to create a Constitutional anomaly as they have already got protective discrimination benefits (reservation benefits) under the categories of Other Backward Class, Schedule Caste and recently Economically Weaker sections.

If ST recognition is accorded to them over and above the three categories, it will go against the 50 percent reservation ceiling that the Supreme Court laid down in the famous Indira Sawhney Case, 1992.

It must, however, be noted that the point in contention is not really about the Meiteis' desire to get additional reservation quota, but a calibrated attempt to have access to ownership of tribal lands, which is seen as a deliberate attempt to snatch away the tribal lands of Kuki-Zomi communities.

Right now, the tribals get Constitutional protection for their land in the hill areas, a privilege which the Meiteis do not get.
'Religion has divided our country like it never had done.'

'I can't remember a time of such focused hatred.'

IMAGE: Bharatiya Janata Party lead campaigner Narendra D Modi at an election roadshow in in Bengaluru for BJP candidates ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections, May 7, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Award-winning novelist Shashi Deshpande -- a native of Karnataka and the legendary playwright Adya Rangacharya's daughter -- discusses the Karnataka election results with Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier.

It is said many people in India sighed in relief after the Karnataka election results were out. How was it for you?

Yes, indeed great relief. Democracy gives us the right to change governments which are not working well.

It is an important right and I think all governments need a shake up every 5 years. Otherwise, they get complacent and arrogant.

I am also very glad that we did not have a hung assembly which would have meant that whoever gets power begins it with corruption by 'buying' legislators.

How do you describe the last five years of the BJP rule in the state?

Not very pleasant. Too much focus on inessentials, like the hijab etc, too many unfulfilled promises.

Above all, I think that to set any community apart and make life difficult for them goes against the very tenets of our Constitution.

The Constitution gives us all equal rights. Any government in power must respect that.

Besides, one never felt that the people one had voted for were in charge. The orders came from elsewhere. How can you hold people accountable then?

Though Rahul Gandhi said it was a vote against the rule of hatred, many analysts were of the opinion that the results were against corruption and price rise. What do you say?

Yes, indeed people's desire for change came out of many economic factors and, as I said, broken promises.

Corruption was visible and was equally visibly condoned.

I am happy that people made their displeasure clear.

As for Rahul Gandhi's speaking of love, it may sound a bit weird in the kind of politics we have. But I am glad he is speaking of these things.

The hatred which was incited against a particular community is something that most Indians would not approve of.

Killing people on suspicion of eating beef was horrifying.

People in India have lived together for centuries, respecting the rights of others to live and worship the way they want, to eat what they want.

I have a great faith in the common woman/man. All that most people want is to live in peace, look after their families, educate their children and see them do well in life.

The events that dominated in the last few years in Karnataka were attacks against Muslims, and also bans like hijab ban, beef ban, azaan ban, etc. Can you recollect such turbulent and divisive times in Karnataka?

I must say I can't remember a time of such focused hatred.

The hijab ban, for example, is so unnecessary. I personally dislike the hijab, but I have to concede the right of wearing it to others.

IMAGE: Bajrang Dal members in Dehradun, May 4, 2023 protest against the Congress manifesto for the Karnataka assembly elections. Photograph: ANI Photo

You were the second writer after Nayantara Sehgal to protest against the Sahitya Akademi by resigning from the Akademi General Council for not reacting strongly against the killing of Kannada writer Professor M M Kalburgi.

Now, Indian society is divided in the name of religion like never before. How dangerous has it become?

Yes, religion has divided our country like it never had done. I find this divide everywhere.

Many say they have stopped speaking of politics even with friends or family.

I was born when Gandhi, in the course of delivering India from the British, emphasised love and communal harmony.

I grew up in the Nehru era when education, rationalism and liberalism were part of the fibre of the country. How can I agree with hatred of others?

Right wing politics had become invincible in India in the last couple of years. Can people feel relieved after their defeat in Karnataka? Or, is it just a small setback for them?

One has to hope that this is a sign of better times to come. That governments will understand that dividing people on religious grounds is not an important issue.

So too dividing people because of caste or gender.

What all rulers should strive for is to give all citizens equality of status and opportunity.

Education, economic security, medical aid, environmental issues -- these are far, far more important

IMAGE: Shashi Deshpande IMAGE: Shashi Deshpande

Looking at the way Bangalore voted, do you think educated urban India has turned 'right'?

I think the middle-class -- some of it -- has found something to cling to in the Hindutva campaign.

Now that many countries in the world are moving to right wing politics, are we going to witness more turbulent times?

That's for sure. But I have hopes that India will never resort to violence. That we will bring about changes through elections.

For this, the right to dissent is very important.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
In more than a decade since 2002, 60 fugitives were extradited or deported by foreign governments to India, which received a major victory in its fight to bring the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice when a US federal court agreed to the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to the country.

IMAGE: Tahawwur Rana. Photograph: PTI Photo

US magistrate judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US district court of the central district of California issued a 48-page order on Wednesday, saying Rana "should be extradited to India" under the extradition treaty between India and the United States.

"The court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the secretary of state of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the request," the order said.

According to information on the website of the ministry of external affairs (MEA), 60 fugitives were extradited or deported by foreign governments to India between February 2002 and December 2015. Of them, 11 were extradited from the US, 17 from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), four from Canada and four from Thailand.

Gangster Abu Salem, serving life imprisonment for his role in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, was extradited from Portugal in November 2005.

Iqbal Sheikh Kaskar, Izaz Pathan and Mustafa Ahmed Umar Dosa -- all involved in the Mumbai bomb blasts -- were extradited from the UAE in early 2003.

Fugitives have been extradited to India for offences including terrorism, organised crime, criminal conspiracy and cheating, sexual abuse of children, financial fraud, murder and waging war against the country.

The extradition treaty between the US government and the Government of India was signed in Washington on June 25, 1997, under the administration of former president Bill Clinton and leadership of former Indian prime minister I K Gujral. The treaty was signed by then minister of state for external affairs Salim Shervani and former US deputy secretary of state Strobe Talbott.

Under the treaty, the offence is extraditable if punishable under the laws in both contracting parties by imprisonments for more than one year or by a more severe penalty.

This applies whether or not the laws in the contracting state place the offence within the same category of offences or describe the offence by the same terminology, whether or not the office is one for which US federal law requires the showing of such matters as interstate transportation, or use of the mails or of other facilities affecting interstate or foreign commerce, such matters being merely for the purpose of establishing jurisdiction in a US federal court, or whether or not it relates to taxation or revenue or is one of a purely fiscal character.

Extradition shall be granted for an extraditable offence regardless of where the act or acts constituting the offence were committed.
The Enforcement Directorate questioned former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi for about five hours and recorded her statement in New Delhi on Thursday in a money laundering case linked to the alleged land-for-jobs scam, official sources said.

IMAGE: Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Rabri Devi arrives at Enforcement Directorate office to appear for questioning in connection with the land-for-jobs case, in New Delhi, May 18, 2023. Photograph: PTI Photo

She reached the office of the federal probe agency in central Delhi around 11 am and left around 6 pm.

In between, she stepped out for about an hour for lunch.

It was not immediately known if she had been summoned again.

The sources said the statement of 68-year-old Rabri Devi, wife of Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad, was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Rabri Devi's children, including Bihar deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, daughters Misa Bharti (RJD MP in Rajya Sabha), Chanda Yadav and Ragini Yadav, have also been questioned by the agency in the case over the last few months.

The ED had raided the premises of Chanda Yadav, Ragini Yadav, Hema Yadav, and former RJD MLA Abu Dojana in Patna, Phulwari Sharif, Delhi-NCR, Ranchi and Mumbai in March this year.

The agency had claimed that it had seized "unaccounted cash" of Rs 1 crore and detected proceeds of crime worth Rs 600 crore during the searches.

The alleged scam pertains to the period when Lalu Prasad was the railway minister in the UPA-1 government, and the money laundering case stems from an FIR of the Central Bureau of Investigation.

It is alleged by the agencies that during the period 2004-09, various persons were appointed to Group D positions in various zones of the Indian Railways, and in lieu, the persons concerned transferred their land to Prasad's family members.

It is alleged by the CBI in its complaint that no advertisement or public notice was issued for the appointment but some residents of Patna were appointed as substitutes in different zonal railways located at Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Jaipur and Hazipur.

As a quid pro quo, the candidates, directly or through their immediate family members, allegedly sold land to the family members of Prasad at highly discounted rates, up to one-fourth to one-fifth of the prevailing market rates, the CBI had alleged.

Tejashwi Yadav has denied these allegations in the past, saying that the then railway minister Prasad had "no powers" to give employment in exchange for favours. PTI NES
Arab foreign ministers held a preparatory meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the 32nd Arab Summit on Friday, welcoming Syria back into the Arab fold and reaffirming the centrality of the Palestinian cause to the pan-Arab agenda.

Saudi Arabia assumed the presidency of the upcoming Arab Summit from Algeria during the meeting.

The foreign ministers reviewed a draft agenda for the summit, which brings together the heads of Arab states to discuss a number of issues pertinent to a pan-Arab agenda.

The heads of Arab states are expected to discuss the ongoing mediation efforts to end the conflict in Sudan and the latest developments in the Arab-Israeli conflict including serious Israeli violations in Jerusalem, among other issues.

Syria: Welcome back

The preparatory ministerial meeting was attended Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad and Information Minister Butrus Halaq.

It is the first such participation of a Syrian delegation in a high-level Arab foreign ministers meeting after the Arab League welcomed Syria back into the Arab fold on 7 May ending a 12-year-suspension.

In statements to the press upon his arrival in the Red Sea coastal city, the Syrian foreign minister said: We are happy to be in Saudi Arabia and we hope the summit will be successful.

The AL summit will discuss joint Arab action and we are looking forward to the future, Mekdad added.

According to diplomatic sources who spoke to Ahram Online, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad is expected to attend the summit in Jeddah per an invitation from Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz.

Speaking in the ministerial meeting, Saudi Arabias Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan also welcomed Syrias return to the Arab fold and called for cooperation between Arab countries to achieve security, stability and economic prosperity.

Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf also welcomed Syrias return to the AL.

The world is witnessing major transformations, which require a joint Arab stance to keep up with them, Attaf noted.

The Algerian foreign minister also called for doubling Arab efforts to establish a Palestinian state.

"We seek Palestine's full membership in the United Nations," he added.

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Karnataka's new Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said he agreed to a compromise in the larger interest of the party.

IMAGE: Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar arrives to meet AICC general secretary K C Venugopal at his residence in New Delhi on Thursday. Photograph: Ayush Sharma/ANI Photo

"We have a commitment before the people of Karnataka. Parliament elections are ahead. So, I have to bow to the AICC president and the Gandhi family. In the larger interest of the party (I have agreed to the formula) and why not, because sometimes the ice should break. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a commitment to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver," he said.

Shivakumar on Thursday said that he has agreed to the decision of the party high command to become the new deputy chief minister of the state in the larger interest of the party.

After four days of uncertainty, Congress is set to announce Siddharamaiah as the chief minister and Karnataka Congress chief Shivakumar as the deputy chief minister of the state.

"In the larger interest of the party...why not," said DK Shivakumar to a television news channel confirming the power-sharing agreement in the state.

"The party high command has taken a decision..." Shivakumar said on being named the new Karnataka deputy CM adding that the party has a commitment to the people of Karnataka and has to deliver it.

According to sources, Kharge worked till late night Wednesday to break the political deadlock over the next chief minister and arrived at a consensus for government formation.

Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP meeting.

Meanwhile, security was stepped up and banners were also put up outside Congress leader Siddaramaiah's residence.

The Congress bagged 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly ousting the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, which got 66 seats while the Janata Dal-Secular secured 19 seats.
Ahead of a formal announcement that Congress veteran Siddaramaiah will be Karnataka's next chief minister, his supporters broke into celebrations in Bengaluru and at his native village in Mysuru district on Thursday morning.

IMAGE: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge meets party leaders Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar in New Delhi on Wednesday. Photograph: ANI Photo

Siddaramaiah will be the next CM of Karnataka and D K Shivakumar his deputy, Congress sources in Delhi said on Thursday after the party arrived at a consensus on government formation in the state following hectic parleys.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

Siddaramaiah's supporters shouted slogans in his favour as the news came out that he would take oath as the CM on May 20.

The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah were, in fact, jubilant since Wednesday following reports that their leader would become the chief minister again.

The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah and distributed sweets.

His brother Sidde Gowda was confident that Siddaramaiah will be chosen for the top post.

"There's a guarantee that Siddaramaiah will become chief minister. He has done good for the people. He introduced 'Anna Bhagya' scheme giving free rice to the poor people," Sidde Gowda told reporters in Siddaramanahundi on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, arrangements were afoot at the Kanteerava stadium in Bengaluru where the swearing-in ceremony will take place.

Security has been stepped up near the residence of the Leader of Opposition in the outgoing assembly in Bengaluru and in and around the stadium where the ceremony will take place.

According to party sources, All India Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge along with other stakeholders held parleys past midnight to hammer out a solution between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- the two chief ministerial aspirants.

A Congress Legislature Party meeting has been called by Shivakumar, the party's state unit chief, in Bengaluru on Thursday evening. The decision will be announced there.

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief has written to all legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road at 7 pm.
Hours after issuing a diktat against indecent clothing on the premises, the management of the famous Tulja Bhavani temple in Maharashtra's Osmanabad district on Thursday made it clear that no restrictions have been imposed on devotees.

IMAGE: Goddess Tulja Bhavani. Photograph: Courtesy Tulja Bhavani Temple Trust/Twitter

The centuries-old temple, located at Tuljapur, attracts lakhs of visitors every year.

"No restrictions have been imposed on devotees visiting the temple for darshan or puja," a circular or notice signed by the local tehsildar (revenue official), who is an ex-officio member of the temple management committee, said.

Earlier in the day, the administration put up boards in Marathi on the premises with a message which said "uncivilised dress, indecent clothing and those displaying body parts, half pants and Bermuda pants will not be allowed".

"Be mindful of Indian culture," the message read.

The temple management's public relations officer Nagesh Shitole told PTI in the morning that the boards were installed to ensure that sanctity of the place was maintained, and such rules were commonplace at temples across the country.
India on Thursday said it is expecting several deliverables to come out of the Quad summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima that will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden and their counterparts from Japan and Australia.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gandhinagar on May 12, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Modi will embark on a six-day visit of Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia on Friday to attend three key multilateral summits including that of the Group of Seven (G7) and the Quad.

Prime Minister Modi's three-nation tour will be a hectic one as over 40 engagements have been lined up, officials said, adding that he will interact with over two dozen world leaders in summits as well as through bilateral meetings.

In the first leg of his trip, Modi will visit Hiroshima from May 19 to 21 primarily for the annual summit of the G7 advanced economies in which he is expected to speak on challenges facing the globe including food, fertiliser and energy security.

From Japan, Modi will travel to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea where he will host the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) on May 22 jointly with Prime Minister James Marape.

In the third and final leg of the trip, Modi will visit Australia, where he will hold talks with his counterpart Anthony Albanese and address a diaspora event on May 23.

The Quad summit was originally scheduled to be held in Sydney but it will now take place in Hiroshima as Biden postponed his visit to Australia to focus on crucial debt-ceiling talks in Washington.

"There are several deliverables which we are expecting to come out of it and I think all that would be showcased when the four leaders meet in Hiroshima," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing without elaborating.

Asked whether it will be a regular summit of the Quad at Hiroshima or just a meeting, he said, "When the four Quad leaders meet, it is a Quad summit."

The foreign secretary said India's regular participation at the G7 summits clearly points to increasing recognition that it should be a part of any serious effort to resolve global challenges including those of peace, security and development.

"This is even salient in the context of our ongoing presidency of the G20 and our particular efforts to prioritise the interests and concerns of our fellow members of the global south," he said.

Japan is hosting the G7 summit in its capacity as the current chair of the powerful grouping. Modi is travelling to that country at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

The broad agenda of the G7 summit will revolve around nuclear disarmament, economic resilience, economic security, regional issues, climate change, energy security, food and health.

Kwatra said India's participation at the summit would be structured around two formal sessions on May 20 and another one on May 21.

The first session would be on food, health, development and gender equality, the second one will be on climate, energy and environment while the third session would be on the theme 'peaceful stable and prosperous world'.

To a question on India's position on the Ukraine conflict, Kwatra referred to Modi's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that it is not an era of war during a bilateral meeting in the Uzbek city of Samarkand in September last year.

Modi clearly said this is not an era of war and the resolution of the conflict has to be through dialogue and diplomacy, Kwatra recalled.

"That is the fundamental anchor on which our political positioning and the pursuit of our economic interests and other interests is based insofar as this conflict is concerned," he said.

The foreign secretary said Modi will inaugurate a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima.

He said the prime minister will also hold bilateral meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima. He, however, said the details of the meetings are being worked out.

To a question, Kwatra indicated that the prime minister may raise incidents of attacks on Indians in Australia during his talks with his Australian counterpart.

Separately, officials said Modi will address over thousands of members of the Indian diaspora in Sydney along with Albanese.

The event will have a lot of elements from culture to commerce and diaspora to diplomacy.
Pakistani-origin terror convict Tahawwur Rana, whose extradition to India has received a green signal, was 'very relaxed' in the days after the 26/11 attacks and wanted Pakistan's highest military honour to be bestowed on the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who carried out the carnage in Mumbai.

IMAGE: Tahawwur Rana. Photograph: ANI Photo

In a major victory for India's fight in bringing perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice, United States Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the US District Court of the Central District of California issued a 48-page order Wednesday saying that Rana 'should be extradited to India' under the extradition treaty between India and the US.

'The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extractability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the Request,' the order said.

According to the details in the Certification of Extraditability and Order of Commitment about Rana's involvement and association with a friend and LeT terrorist David Coleman Headley, on December 25, 2008, a 'co-conspirator who met Rana in Dubai sent Headley an email asking 'How's . . . [Rana's] reaction on what all is happening, is he terrified or relaxed'?'

Headley responded the next day that Rana 'is very relaxed' and was trying to calm Headley down.

In a September 7, 2009 conversation, Rana told Headley that the 'nine Lashkar terrorists who had been killed in the Mumbai attacks should be given Nishan-e-Haider', which is Pakistan's highest military honour.

Rana, now 62, also asked Headley to tell 'one of the co-conspirators responsible for planning the Mumbai attacks that he should get a medal for top class'.

The document also notes that Rana was pleased to learn Headley had already conveyed the compliment based on prior statements Rana had made equating the co-conspirator to a famous general.

Rana also occasionally communicated directly with some of Headley's contacts in Pakistan, it said.

'Rana was also in direct touch with the . . . handlers for [Headley] and passed on information as and when required.'

The order noted that the court cannot certify Rana's extradition unless there is probable cause to believe he committed the offences for which extradition is sought.

Citing its reasoning in detail, the order states, 'Accordingly, the Court finds there is probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offences as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition Treaty between the United States and India.'

India filed a complaint on June 10, 2020, seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.

The order also mentions that in India, Headley conducted surveillance on Chabad Houses in Delhi, Goa, and Pushkar as well as the National Defence College (NDC), which 'teaches courses for high-level Indian Army officers, colonels and up'.

He kept Rana apprised of the surveillance activities.

In the September 7, 2009 conversation, Headley and Rana discussed targeting the NDC, Rana told Headley that he was already aware that the NDC was a target, and 'they talked about how such an attack would kill more high-ranking Indian military officials than previous wars between India and Pakistan'.

Rana also set up an email account for Headley so that Headley could communicate securely with Rana, and Headley transferred a list of Chabad houses in India -- including the ones he was supposed to conduct surveillance on -- into the email account for security purposes.
Supporters of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his bete noire Sachin Pilot on Thursday got into a scuffle with each other ahead of a feedback meeting with the party workers in Ajmer, the police said.

IMAGE: Congress leader Sachin Pilot sets out on his Jan Sangharsh Yatra in Ajmer, May 11, 2023. Photograph: PTI Photo

The meeting was scheduled at a place in Vaishali Nagar area of Jaipur ahead of a meeting scheduled to be chaired by AICC's Rajasthan co-incharge Amrita Dhawan.

According to Christianganj police station SHO Karan Singh, supporters of both leaders had an altercation over seating arrangement, which led to a scuffle.

"It was an office-bearers meeting where supporters of Ajmer Saras Dairy chairman Ramchandra Chaudhary and RTDC chairman Dharmendra Rathore had come. They started shouting slogans against each other, which led to a scuffle between them," Congress city president Vijay Jain said.

SHO Karan Singh said that the police present at the spot intervened and pacified the protestors. No major injury was reported, he added.

Rift runs deep in the Rajasthan Congress with Pilot raising a dissidence banner against Gehlot over alleged corruption by the previous Bharatiya Janata Party dispensation in the state and demanding action against them.

Apart from a call for a high-level probe into corruption, Pilot recently spelled out two other demands -- disbanding the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) and its reconstitution, and compensation for those affected by the cancellation of government recruitment exams after paper leaks.

Earlier in the week, he also threatened a statewide agitation if his demands are not met.
The law of the land must be followed, the Supreme Court said on Thursday while expressing displeasure over the Nagaland assembly passing a resolution to repeal the municipal act and resolving not to hold elections to the urban local bodies.

IMAGE: The Supreme Court of India. Photograph: ANI Photo

The apex court observed that it respects the local sentiments but asserted authorities cannot let the law of the land not prevail especially when there is nothing affecting the personal rights or personal laws.

A bench of justices SK Kaul and A Amanullah is hearing a petition seeking 33 per cent reservation for women in the elections to local bodies in the state.

The top court had on April 5 stayed the March 30 notification cancelling till further orders the elections to the urban local bodies in Nagaland which were scheduled for May 16 after almost two decades.

Following pressure from tribal organisations and civil society groups, the Nagaland assembly passed a resolution to repeal the municipal act and resolved not to hold the elections.

On March 30, the State Election Commission (SEC) issued a notification cancelling the election programme notified earlier "till further orders" in view of the repeal of the Act.

During the hearing on Thursday, the bench observed it is not something adverse to the interest of the state which is happening as the people will elect their representatives in the elections.

The top court said the Centre have to find a solution in the matter.

"We respect the local sentiments but the law of the land must be followed and it is your duty as the Union government... You have to find a solution. We cannot let the law of the land not being followed," the bench said.

"You can't let the law of the land not prevail especially when there is nothing affecting your personal rights or personal laws in this behalf. We are only getting people to represent you who will look after your interest at the grass-root level. How can one have objection to that?" it observed.

The bench told the counsel appearing for Nagaland that it has given long enough rope to the state in the matter.

"We have given you a long rope. Don't make it so long that you hang yourself," it observed.

The bench noted that additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, appearing for the Centre, and the state's counsel have submitted that they are at the task and request for a short accommodation.

"We have put to them the seriousness of the matter as long rope also has its limitations," it said while listing the matter for hearing in July.

During the hearing, the bench told the state's counsel, "In the nutshell, the position is, you are not willing to implement the assurances given to the court on the right or wrong pretext that there are groups who don't want it and you don't want to go against them."

It asked if a section of a society have a contrary point of view on the issue, does the government "succumb to the blackmail".

"We are sensitive to the issue in the state and therefore we gave time. There has to be some end to it," the bench said, adding the state can't keep the issue hanging.

The Centre had earlier told the top court that inter-ministerial discussions are on in pursuance to the apex court's order seeking its stand on whether the constitutional scheme of one-third reservation for women in municipalities and town councils can be violated by state of Nagaland.

In its April 17 order, the top court had noted that the "ingenious method" adopted to evade the undertaking given to the court earlier about holding the election has been the repeal of the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2001 itself.

It had also observed that in respect of the special provisions with respect of Nagaland under Article 371-A of the Constitution, nothing has so far emerged to advance a plea that religious or social practices of Nagas or Naga customary law and procedure denies the right of equality to women insofar as the participatory process is concerned in such elections.

The apex court had noted in its March 14 order that the SEC counsel had submitted the elections will be held on May 16.

The petitioners have moved an application before the top court through advocate Satya Mitra against the cancellation of the elections and urged it to take contempt action for "disobeying" the March 14 order.

Besides seeking quashing of the March 30 notification issued by the SEC cancelling the election programme, the application has also sought setting aside of the Nagaland Municipal (Repeal) Act, 2023.

The SEC had earlier announced elections to the 39 urban local bodies in the state.

Of these 39 bodies, Kohima, Dimapur and Mokokchung have municipal councils, while the rest are town councils.

Several Naga tribal bodies and civil society organisations had opposed the elections under the Nagaland Municipal Act 2001, asserting it infringes the special rights for Nagaland guaranteed by Article 371-A of the Constitution.

The 2001 Act, which was amended later, made 33 per cent reservation of seats for women mandatory for holding the elections, as directed by the Supreme Court.

Urban local bodies elections in Nagaland have been long overdue with the last elections having been held in 2004.
Ending days of suspense, the Congress on Thursday announced Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka and Pradesh Congress Committee president D K Shivakumar as his only deputy in the soon-to-formed cabinet.

IMAGE: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge meets party leaders Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar in New Delhi on Wednesday. Photograph: ANI Photo

The two leaders, who were in a tight race for the top post, would take oath along with other ministers on May 20 and leaders of all like-minded parties will be invited for the swearing-in ceremony.

Announcing the decision taken by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge after hectic parleys ever since the party emerged victorious on May 13, General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal said all leaders, including the top leadership, worked very hard to make Karnataka victory a reality.

"We have decided on Siddaramiah as the chief minister of Karnataka. D K Shivakumar will the only Deputy CM," he said.

Shivakumar will also continue as the party's Karnataka state president till Parliamentary elections are over, he said.

He also said that the swearing-in ceremony would be held on May 20 at 12.30 pm.

At the same press conference, senior party leader Randeep Surjewala said the Congress party is committed to fulfil the five promises that were made during the elections and action would be taken on them in the first meeting of the cabinet.

Asked about the much-talked-about power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, Venugopal said the only power-sharing formula is to share the power with the people of Karnataka.

"Ours is a democratic party, we believe in consensus and not in dictatorship," he said on the hectic discussions held over the last few days.

Crediting the people of the state and party leaders in Karnataka for the 'spectacular' victory, he said this election was a clearly a fight between the poor and the rich and the poor and middle class have stood with the Congress party.

He also gave credit to Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi for the victory in the polls and thanked them for campaigning and guiding the party rank and file.

Venugopal said the Congress victory was initiated from the time of the Bharat Jodo Yatra and thanked Rahul Gandhi for his spirited campaign and guidance.

He said for the last two-three days, the party was trying to bring about a consensus and described both the leaders as 'dynamic'.

Venugopal said Siddaramaiah is a senior-most politician and an able administrator who contributed a lot in this election.

He also said that Shivakumar had electrified the campaign in the state and the two leaders were a 'very good combination'.

"Both are big assets of the Congress party," he said, adding both were justified in their wish and desire to be chief minister.

Surjewala said both the leaders are capable of being chief minister and the Congress would provide a 'transparent, honest and stable government' that would serve as a role model.

"This victory is the joint victory of the Congress organisation. Every worker showed that the Congress can fight this battle together and win," he said.

"The real crown of Congress victory is of 6.5 crore Kannadigas. It is a victory of every Kannadiga, of the democracy and the values of this Constitution and is a loss for those who want to quell democratic traditions under a bulldozer," Surjewala said.
The National Investigation Agency on Thursday said it has arrested three people after conducting massive country-wide raids against the terrorist-gangster-narcotics smuggler nexus.

IMAGE: Police personnel stand guard as NIA conducts a raid at a location in connection with the terror-narcotics smugglers-gangsters nexus cases, in Bathinda, May 17, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

The three have been identified as Parveen Wadhwa alias Prince, Irfan alias Chenu and Jassa Singh.

Wadhwa, who hails from Bhiwani in Haryana, was found "liaising" with certain notorious gangsters, including Lawrence Bishnoi in jail.

The agency seized weapons from the house of Irfan from New Seelampur (Delhi), who is also "associated with dreaded gangsters."

Jassa Singh, a resident of Moga in Punjab, was working at the behest of Canada-based 'listed terrorist' Arsh Dhalla, the NIA said in a statement.

"Parveen was in regular touch with Lawrence Bishnoi and his gang members Deepak alias Tinu and Sampat Nehra, along with other associates. He was working as their special messenger from inside jails," it said.



Similarly, Irfan disclosed "his involvement in a terror conspiracy involving gangster Kaushal Choudhary and his associates Sunil Balyan alias Tillu Tajpuria, among others," the NIA said.

He (Irfan) has been arraigned as an accused following the raids that also led to the recovery of arms, the agency said.

The role of Jassa Singh, the NIA said, has been "established" in the Khalistan terror conspiracy and he had delivered a pistol at the instance of Arsh Dalla.

The agency launched the raids, under an operation named 'Dhvast' (demolish), on Wednesday at a total of 324 locations in coordination with the Haryana and Punjab Police.

The NIA has said investigations in these cases are connected with conspiracies related to targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits, extortion and other such criminal activities.

Some of these cases include the killing of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani and international Kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambia in Punjab last year, it said.

"NIA investigations have so far revealed that the conspiracies were being hatched in jails of different states and were being executed by an organised network of operatives based abroad.

The spotlight on these gangs has become sharper after reports of several prisons becoming havens of the deadly nexus and hubs of gang wars, which recently resulted in violence and murder inside Goindwal jail and Tihar jail," the NIA said.

The agency said many criminals, who were leading the gangsters in India, had fled to countries such as Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia and Australia, from where they were engaged in planning serious crimes, in association with criminals lodged in jails across India.

These groups were carrying out targeted killings and raising funds for their nefarious activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons, hawala and extortions, it said.
Several top Congress leaders from party chief Mallikarjun Kharge to former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were involved in the hectic parleys with Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar, which finally helped to break the logjam over the top post in Karnataka.

IMAGE: Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar. Photograph: PTI Photo

Ever since the Karnataka assembly results were declared on May 13, both the leaders started garnering the support of MLAs close to them while mustering support for themselves.

The supporters of both, meanwhile, started building up \momentum in support of their respective leader and a poster war erupted.

As the race for the top post heated up, Kharge appointed three observers -- Sushilkumar Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria -- and the first meeting of the Congress legislature party was convened on May 14. Supporters of both the leaders continued to raise the pitch by raising slogans in support of their leaders outside the CLP meeting venue.

The Congress MLAs authorised the party chief to appoint a leader of the CLP, who would also be the new chief minister.

Keeping the consultation process alive, the newly-elected MLAs authorised Kharge to appoint the new CLP leader, after which the scene shifted from Bengaluru to Delhi.

The observers also held one-on-one consultations with all MLAs and sought a secret ballot from all of them, the results of which were tabulated and shared with the party chief the next day.

In the national capital, the three observers along with party general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal and AICC general secretary in-charge Randeep Surjewala held a meeting with Kharge.

With Siddaramaiah emerging as the frontrunner in the race and after the report of observers, the party leadership asked him and Shivakumar to arrive in Delhi for further consultations.

While Siddaramaih arrived on Monday evening, Shivakumar cancelled the meeting citing health issues.

This complicated the situation for the party as it hardened its stand against Shivakumar, who arrived the next day.

Tuesday saw the entry of Rahul Gandhi in the consultation process, who drove down to Kharge's residence and held a meeting on the Karnataka government formation for over an hour-and-a-half.

A series of fresh consultations started once again, with Kharge meeting both the leaders separately, as also with the two general secretaries on Tuesday.

The final round of talks started on Wednesday when both the leaders met Rahul Gandhi at his residence. In the meantime, Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah also spoke to Sonia Gandhi, who was away in Shimla on vacation. Sonia also asked Shivakumar to speak to Kharge and Rahul to sort out the matter, sources said.

The hectic parleys continued from Monday and went on till the wee hours of Thursday to break the deadlock in deciding the Congress's chief ministerial pick in Karnataka as both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar presented their cases before the top brass.

The leadership issue in Karnataka lingered as Shivakumar dug his heels in and asserted that he be made the chief minister as the party staged a stunning victory in the southern state under his presidency.

Sources said after Rahul Gandhi told both the leaders to sit together and work out a solution with Kharge, it was the party chief who told Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to hold talks with Venugopal and Surjewala, and sort out the differences and agree to Siddaramaiah as chief minister, whose leadership abilities and mass support helped him clinch the top post.

The decision, sources said, was chalked out in the wee hours of Thursday when all parties agreed to accommodate confidants of both the leaders and asked Shivakumar to continue in the post of state Congress chief till next year's parliamentary elections.

To maintain his number 2 position in the Karnataka government, Shivakumar was made the deputy chief minister, the only one.

The chief minister and his deputy along with over 20 ministers in the cabinet would take oath on May 20 in Bengaluru, where leaders of several political parties would also be invited.
The contact group tasked by the Arab League (AL) with finding a peaceful resolution for the conflict in Sudan stressed in its first meeting on the necessity of reaching an immediate and sustainable ceasefire in the country to preserve the capabilities of the Sudanese people and their national institutions.

The contact group meeting, held on Wednesday in Jeddah, was attended by the Foreign Minister of Egypt, Sameh Shoukry, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, Faisal bin Farhan and the Secretary-General of the Arab League (AL), Ahmed Abul Gheit.

The Sudan contact group, which was formed on 7 May per a resolution by the AL, compromises Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Secretary-General of the AL.

In a statement after the meeting, the contact group stressed the importance of dealing with the Sudanese crisis as an internal issue and warned against outside interference.

The statement also stressed the centrality of neighbouring countries' role and the ALs contact Group in resolving the crisis.

Following the outbreak of fighting in Sudan in mid-April, Saudi Arabia hosted rounds of talks between representatives of the two warring sides in Sudan in Jeddah to reach a ceasefire.

The contact group also affirmed in the statement its support for the Jeddah Humanitarian Declaration agreement to protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian relief work to meet urgent needs.

The Jeddah humanitarian agreement was signed on 12 May in Saudi Red Sea coastal city between representatives of the two warring sides who committed to respecting humanitarian principles during the conflict.

A call to the world

The group members commended in their statement, the efforts of several Arab countries, including Egypt, in alleviating the suffering of the brotherly Sudanese people.

They also vowed that the group would continue all efforts with all the Sudanese sides, in coordination with regional and international partners, to resolve the crisis.

They also called on the international community to provide urgent humanitarian and medical aid to the Sudanese people.

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Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said it was a privilege to serve as Union Minister of Law and Justice and thanked the entire judiciary, including Chief Justice of India Justice D Y Chandrachud, for their 'huge support'.

IMAGE: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju. Photograph: ANI Photo

He further said that he is now looking forward to fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision in the Earth Sciences Ministry.

Rijiju's remarks came hours after he was divested of the Law and Justice portfolio and made the Minister for Earth Sciences in a surprise reshuffle of ministers by the prime minister.

'It has been a privilege and an honour to serve as Union Minister of Law and Justice under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji,' Rijiju said on Twitter.

He also thanked Chief Justice of India Chandrachud, all judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices and judges of high courts, lower judiciary and law officers for the "huge support" in ensuring delivering ease of justice and providing legal services for citizens.

'I look forward to fulfilling the vision of PM Narendra Modi ji in the Earth Sciences Ministry with the same zeal and vigour I have imbibed as a humble 'karyakarta' of (the) BJP,' Rijiju, a three-term Lok Sabha member from Arunachal Pradesh, said.
'Shivakumar is an andhbhakt of Congress ideology and principles.'

IMAGE: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with D K Shivakumar, left, and Siddaramaiah, New Delhi, May 17 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo

Karnataka's voters handed over a decisive victory to the Congress last week, ensuring their win in 135 seats out of 228 in the assembly elections.

The chief minister's crown, many felt, would go to Karnataka Pradesh Congress Comittee President D K Shivakumar, but then there was another strong contender in former chief minister Siddaramiah.

For four days the Congress leadership was convulsed over the decision, with both leaders digging their heels in and staking claim to the CM post.

Congress party crisis managers Sushil Kumar Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria were deputed observers for the election of the Congress Legislature Party leader in Karnataka, but with the search for consensus elusive the action shifted to New Delhi.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, who was authorised by the CLP to name the chief minister, held extensive talks with both contenders, as did party general secretaries K C Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala, and former party president Rahul Gandhi.

The parleys continued till late into Wednesday night, and finally on Thursday morning Siddaramiah pipped rival DKS, as he is known, to the post.

Shivakumar will be the deputy chief minister, it was announced.

Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com spoke to Deepak Babaria, who was involved in the process to finalise the CM, to know what made Shivakumar change his mind and agree to the No. 2 post in the government.

Not many people know that D K Shivakumar has great respect for (former Congress president) Sonia Gandhi.

For him, Sonia Gandhi's word is the last word and he will not argue with that.

Rahul Gandhi also played an important role to come out with a formula to end this crisis.

And then there was our party president, Mallikarjun Kharge, who was trying to bring out a solution to this leadership crisis.

Shivakumar's respect for Sonia Gandhi began from the day when her husband Rajiv Gandhi spotted his talent as a young National Students Union of India leader in Karnataka.

At one of the meetings when Rajiv Gandhi met Shivakumar, he was so impressed with his sincerity that he told him he has to contest elections on a Congress ticket.

Shivakumar said 'yes'and as they say, the rest is history.

From that day onwards he is a loyal Congress party man and will continue to remain so.

Shivakumar is not a traitor like Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Before leaving Bengaluru for Delhi, he told reporters that he will not betray the party and will never be a traitor.

He said that he will not rock the boat and he will be a dedicated Congressman.

People should understand that just like there are supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party who are andhbhakt (blind believers), D K Shivakumar is an andhbhakt of Congress ideology and principles.

When he came to Delhi we all knew his immense contribution to the party in winning the Karnataka assembly elections. He had to go to jail too for taking a stance against the Modi government.

The media tried its best to spread the message that Shivakumar was going the Sachin Pilot way in Rajasthan, but these all were make-believe stories.

Just like there is no problem in the Rajasthan Congress party, there is no problem in the Karnataka Congress party too.

Shivakumar knows that if any party that can take India on the right direction of progress it is the Congress. No other party has the capability and ability to do that.

The Congress victory in the Karnataka elections will have a ripple effect across South Indian states in the general elections of 2024.

Shivakumar will ensure the success of the Congress will not be restricted to his state alone, but to the Centre too in the 2024 general elections.

Already, in Madhya Pradesh the party workers are very charged up and feel that there is no way the Congress will lose the state in the coming assembly elections that is to be held in December 2023.

Many people in North India believed that the Congress will never be able to defeat the BJP in a straight fight in any of the states, and we did it in Karnataka.

We have proved all the poll pundits wrong and now there is a new-found vigour in Congress workers to defeat the BJP in other states.
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"Misconceptions" is now being performed at 122CC Theater in New York City through June 3. Tickets are on sale now at blessedunrest.org.
Photographer / Multimedia Editor

Has been working as a photojournalist since 2007, before moving into newspapers, he worked with an NGO called Project HOPE. He then went to work for the Press and Sun-Bulletin in New York, and then in New England working for the Brattleboro Reformer.
Egypt's business community has welcomed the government's new decisions bolstering support for investors in Egypt, while some members have called for more legislative reforms followed by relevant bylaws to see these decisions implemented on the ground.



Responding to the requests of Egyptian investors, the Supreme Council for Investment approved 22 decisions to encourage foreign direct investments (FDIs) and private investments in Egypt, including licensing facilities and a host of legislative reforms.

The decisions aim to streamline the business establishment process by lowering costs, simplifying approvals and shortening timeframes. They also aim to expand the Golden Licence programme.

The council introduced incentives for investors in various sectors, as well as draft resolutions on legislative amendments which the government should draft and present to parliament for discussion and approval.

Reassuring the market

"There has been a state of concern and uncertainty among investors. The latest decisions send a message of reassurance to the market, as they reflect the state's seriousness about addressing all the obstacles facing the market," Alaa El-Sakty, vice chairperson of the Egyptian Federation of Investors Associations (EFIA), told Ahram Online.

"The decisions are the result of discussions and cooperation with the EFIA in which the government listened to the requests of investors," El-Sakty added.

"Incentives related to facilitating the procedures of opening, closing, and changing the activities of companies are far more important to investors, who need legislative flexibility more than just tax incentives.

"Among the key requests of the EFIA that were answered by the government is cooperating with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to contract a global consulting firm to develop a clear shared vision and strategy for investment in Egypt," he stated.

El-Sakty highlighted that "having a clear strategy that determines the sectors that need and offer more investments is indicative of the state's keenness in creating a more suitable environment for investors."

Demanding more legislative reforms, bylaws

"The new decisions will affect the investment climate in Egypt positively, and now the government should issue bylaws required to take them into effect, in order to set a clear action plan," Sherif El-Gabaly, chairman of the Egyptian Chamber of Chemical Industries at the Federation Of Egyptian Industries (FEI), told Ahram Online.

Hany Abul-Fotouh, a banking expert, said that "the Egyptian economy needs legislative reforms to encourage investments and attract more foreign investors."

Abul-Fotouh stressed that Egypt should create a better climate for investment and production and remove obstacles for local investors even before it does for foreigners.

"Foreign investors would be reluctant to come to Egypt unless Egyptian investors are fully secured," the expert noted, adding that some local investors are already exiting the market to invest in neighbouring countries.

New laws needed to support startup growth

"The EFIAs latest decisions send a positive message to investors, especially endorsing a 10-day approval process for all necessary requirements when establishing a company," Ahmed Hazem, CEO of Falak Startups, told Ahram Online.

Hazem said Egyptian and foreign investors have had some concerns that were compromising their confidence in investing in Egypt, including the complexity of the litigation process with regard to the settlement of trade disputes.

He noted that another issue dissuading many investors is the obstacles restricting the transfer of foreign currency abroad.

Some investors establish their head offices outside Egypt and operate in the country through a subsidiary to avoid the painstaking legal processes that hit them hardest when they decide to close businesses, Hazem said.

He suggested that startups need more legislative reforms to facilitate funding and operations, pointing to drafting laws allowing and regulating SAFE notes as a good example.

These, he explained, enable startups to raise capital from foreign investors in exchange for a specific number of shares at an agreed-upon price at some point in the future, usually when the startup has a subsequent funding round.

Room for the private sector

Egypt is currently under the first review for a $3 billion loan programme by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and privatization is among the key issues in the fund's negotiations with the Egyptian government.

Egypt is preparing two state-owned companies to be offered as investments before the end of the current fiscal year, in addition to seven companies planned to be offered by Q1 of next year in the oil, petrochemical, and transport sectors, according to Mohamed Metwally, CEO of NI Capital, the Egyptian government's financial adviser.

On Sunday, the Egyptian government offered a 10 percent stake in Telecom Egypt in two tranches totalling 170.7 million shares. This was part of the government's privatization programme.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced in February government plans to offer shares in 32 state-owned companies operating in 18 sectors to strategic investors within a year. However, Telecom Egypt was not on the list.

Egypt's Paint and Chemicals Industries (PACHIN) was the first company on the list to be sold after the UAE's National Paints acquired 81 percent of the company's shares for EGP 770.4 million (about $25 million) in early May.

Two other companies on the list, the National Company for Producing and Bottling Water (Safi) and Wataniya Petroleum Company, have seen little progress despite being mentioned in several statements. The government announced in mid-May that it was starting to accept bids for the companies.

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A pig head was allegedly put on a stake to provoke emotional distress for the owner of 34 Look Road.
BRATTLEBORO  Two Vermont State Troopers were ordered Monday to appear in Vermont Superior Court in Brattleboro next week to face charges in c
Russia agreed to extend a deal that has allowed Ukraine to ship grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday, a boost to global food security after the more than year-old war drove up prices.

I want to give a good news, Erdogan said. With the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends and the contribution of our Ukrainian friends, the Black Sea Grain Initiative has been extended by another two months.

Turkey and the UN brokered the breakthrough accord with the warring sides last summer, which came with a separate agreement to facilitate shipments of Russian food and fertilizer that Moscow insists hasn't been applied.

Russia had threatened to bow out if its concerns were not ironed out by Thursday. Such brinkmanship isnt new: With a similar extension in the balance in March, Russia unilaterally decided to renew the deal for a similar 60 days instead of the 120 days outlined in the agreement.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova confirmed the extension and that problems would need to be resolved at the technical level. Neither she nor Erdogan mentioned any concessions Moscow may have received.

"We will continue our efforts to ensure that all the conditions of the agreement are fulfilled so that it continues in the next period, said Erdogan, who announced the highly anticipated decision two days after being forced into a runoff in Turkey's presidential election.

Extending the Black Sea Grain Initiative is a win for countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia that rely on Ukrainian wheat, barley, vegetable oil and other affordable food products, especially as drought takes a toll.

The deal helped lower prices of food commodities like wheat over the last year, but that relief has not reached kitchen tables.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Kubrakov wrote on Facebook that the world will continue to receive Ukrainian products thanks to the efforts of Turkey and the UN.

He blamed Russia for dragging its heels on joint inspections of ships by Russian, Ukrainian, UN and Turkish officials and emphasized that it welcomed the continuation of deal but it has to work effectively.

Average daily inspections, meant to ensure vessels carry only food and not weapons that could aid either side, have steadily dropped from a peak of 10.6 in October to 3.2 last month. Shipments of Ukrainian grain also have declined in recent weeks.

Russia had denied slowing the work. No vessels have been cleared to enter Ukraines three open ports since May 6, and Kubrakov says nearly 70 vessels are waiting in Turkish waters to participate.

Russia, meanwhile, is rapidly shipping a bumper harvest of its wheat through other ports. Critics say that suggests Moscow was posturing or trying to wrest concessions in other areas, such as on Western sanctions.

The deal has allowed over 30 million metric tons of Ukrainian grain to be shipped, with more than half that going to developing nations. China, Spain and Turkey are the biggest recipients, and Russia says that shows food isn't going to the poorest countries.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says Ukrainian corn for animal feed has headed to developed countries, while a majority of grain for people to eat has gone to emerging economies.

Even if a meaningful part of the shipments headed to developed nations, that has a positive impact to all countries because it brings prices down," Guterres told reporters in Nairobi, Kenya, this month. "And when you bring prices down, everybody benefits.

William Osnato, a senior research analyst at agriculture data and analytics firm Gro Intelligence, said there had been bluster from Russia to push for easing some sanctions because it's shipping record amounts of wheat this season, and its fertilizers are flowing well, too.

Trade flows tracked by financial data provider Refinitiv show that Russia exported just over 4 million tons of wheat in April, the highest volume for the month in five years, following record or near-record highs in several previous months.

Exports since last July reached 32.2 million tons, 34% above the same period from last season, according to Refinitiv. It estimates Russia will ship 44 million tons of wheat in 2022-2023.

With Ukraines wheat harvest coming up in June and the need to sell that crop in July, maintaining a Black Sea shipping corridor is key to avoid taking another large chunk of wheat and other grains off the market, Osnato said.

Ukraine also can send its food by land through Europe, but those routes have a lower capacity than sea shipments and have stirred disunity in the European Union.

It comes as places including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Syria and East Africa, big importers of food, are facing drought and economic issues that are likely to keep food prices high.

Shortages of food in the system and lack of affordable fertilizer continues to push up prices, making it difficult for families in countries like Somalia to predict if they will be able to afford a meal the next day, said Shashwat Saraf, emergency director for East Africa at the International Rescue Committee.

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CANNES, France (AP)  Just a year ago, the image of Johnny Depp smiling and waving atop the Palais steps at the Cannes Film Festival would have been unthinkable to most  including to Depp, himself.

When you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, you hit the bottom, then you find the basement to the bottom, Depp told The Associated Press the day after Jeanne du Barry," in which he stars as King Louis XV, opened Cannes.

This time last year, Depp was immersed in a libel trial he brought against Amber Heard, his ex-wife, based on a 2018 Washington Post op-ed piece in which she referred to herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse. A British court had ruled in 2020 that a tabloid labeling Depp a wife beater were substantially true. Soon after the ruling in the U.K., Hollywood had largely cut ties with Depp, jettisoning him from both the Fantastic Beasts and Pirates of the Caribbean franchises.

When it all went down, confusion is a good word. Befuddled. Because it does almost reach the Bugs Bunny experience, Depp says now. You say to yourself: Is this my life? What happened?

Some greeted Depps feting in Cannes with similar degrees of befuddlement.

A Virginia jury eventually ruled that Heard had defamed Depp on three counts and awarded him $15 million in damages. In a countersuit, Depp was found guilty of one charge of libel and Heard was awarded $2 million. Depp may have won in court, but public opinion remains divided on the actor who was once one of the most bankable stars in movies  with many supporters of abused women and the #MeToo movement wondering if sexual assault victims would be more reticent to come forward if they might be sued for defamation.

Outside the premiere of Jeanne du Barry in Cannes, fans grasped for autographs and signs read Viva Johnny! On social media, the reception was more fraught. Supporters of Heard rallied around the hashtag #CannesYouNot, arguing that Cannes  which has been criticized for welcoming men accused of misconduct  shouldn't have invited Depp.

If you support Cannes, you support predators, posted Eve Barlow, a journalist and friend of Heard. Heard herself hasn't commented on Depp's Cannes premiere.

Depp has seldom spoken in public since the trial, but he granted an interview with the AP on Wednesday after a day of interviews with mostly French media. (Depp remains very popular in France where he has sometimes lived and where the film industry is contending with its own #MeToo reckoning.) He was eager to cast his own battles in the light of Hollywood scandals of the past.

Never boring but unpleasant, curious years. Escapades. Rumors. Accusations, Depp said. I read far too much about Fatty Arbuckle but I didnt see any (Buster) Keaton coming my way to save my ass.

One of the things that kept going in my head was Hunter, he continued, invoking longtime mentor Hunter S. Thompson. I could hear his voice: Buy the ticket, take the ride.

I dont think Marlon would have survived, Depp said, referencing Brando. I dont think he came close to going through something like this. Had he been alive to watch this happen, he would have gone sideways. He would have killed somebody.

One thing thats been unclear was if Depp had any remorse for how the trial  a bitter and often theatrical legal battle played out in front of cameras  unfolded. Depp became a hero to some right-wing critics of so-called cancel culture. Asked if he had any misgivings about the supporters he attracted, Depp responded:

I did notice that people actually opened their mouths about it. At that time, that was brave.

Not for a moment will I regret anything unless Ive done something horrible to someone, which I havent, Depp added. Im not going to regret being taken down a strange road for that period of time because I learned so much more about myself.

Jeanne du Barry, directed by the French filmmaker and actor Maiwenn, is Depps first film in three years. Maiwenn stars as Jeanne Vaubernier, a working-class woman who becomes Louis XVs mistress. Depp speaks French in the film, which doesnt yet have U.S. distribution. Maiwenn, too, is a controversial figure. She recently admitted to assaulting prominent French journalist Edwy Plenel at a cafe, yanking his hair back and spitting in his face.

Its not the only business Depp has in Cannes. He's seeking financing for Modi, a biopic of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani that he hopes to shoot this fall, with Al Pacino attached. Depp, who will perform next week at a London tribute for the late Jeff Beck, a close friend, also recently renewed his contract with Dior in a $20 million deal.

I dont know the image of Johnny Depp in the U.S., Cannes director Thierry Fremaux said Monday. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned, we wouldnt be here talking about it.

And theres been plenty of conversation generated by Depps appearance in Cannes, even in reviews havent been good. Times Stephanie Zacharek called it less a comeback than a tepid lurching into a very small spotlight. But the overall reception has been warm. Depp, who said he lives 45 minutes away, was taken aback by the thrall.

I didnt know what planet I was on, he said, smiling.

Speaking to reporters in the festival press conference, Depp mocked the idea that he has many critics, likening anyone who protested his presence in Cannes to some species, some tower of mashed potatoes, covered in the light of a computer screen, anonymous, with apparently a lot of spare time.

Sitting on a terrace overlooking the Cannes Croisette later, Depp appeared relaxed and jovial, though his thoughts remained fixed on his legal battles with Heard.

Youre not powerless but youve been postponed, he said of how he felt before the trial. At that point, I just thought: F--- it. Ive been lucky. Ive been around for a long time. Ive made a lot of films. Thats, I suppose, my legacy. Alright. I can live with that. I didnt do anything wrong. But he said after years of swimming through that horrible molasses, he came out much stronger.

Depp said in the press conference that he has no further need for Hollywood. In the interview, he said he remains intent on making more films but outside the studio system. At the same time, Depp rejected that he was ever really a movie star in the first place.

Thats the last thing to call me, he said. For 20 years they never mentioned that until Pirates 1. Oh, hes a movie star now! We like him!

Many have portrayed Depps Cannes return as an attempt to win back moviegoers after a thoroughly revealing trial. Depp says hes not trying to convince anyone of anything. To him, theres no such thing as an unsullied movie star.

You mean peoples obsession that everybody must be Doris Day? Even Doris Day wasnt Doris Day. They have to know that, Depp said. And Rock Hudson certainly wasnt Rock Hudson. I can only try to offer that I feel like might be interesting or different.
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A Darien native who appeared on "RuPaul's Drag Race" will perform in their hometown for the first time since appearing on the show this Friday.

Jackson McGoldrick, who is known by their drag name Jax, will appear at The First Congregational Church of Darien on May 19 at 8 p.m., according to its Eventbrite page. This will be Jax's first Darien performance since they appeared on "RuPaul's Drag Race" in season 15, according to Eventbrite. They performed alongside other Connecticut drag queens including West Hartford's Amethyst, Hartford's Robin Fierce and Ansonia's Loosey LaDuca. The queens received support from Connecticut legislators including Gov. Ned Lamont, who retweeted a video of them appearing on the show.
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HOUSTON (AP)  Attorneys for the man accused of killing five of his neighbors after storming into their Texas home suggested on Thursday that not all has been revealed about what led up to the deadly shooting and that the suspect was someone who was generous and well-liked.

Francisco Oropeza, 38, made his initial court appearance Thursday following his arrest May 2 after a four-day manhunt. He is facing five charges of murder for the April 28 shooting deaths in a rural neighborhood in Cleveland, located 45 miles (72 km) northeast of Houston. Authorities allege Oropeza, after being asked by his neighbors to stop firing his AR-style rifle because a baby was trying to sleep, responded by charging into their home and killing five people, including a 9-year-old boy. All five victims were from Honduras.

Oropeza, dressed in a faded pink and white striped prison uniform, did not say anything to reporters as he was led into a courthouse in Coldspring, Texas, located about 60 miles (97 km) north of Houston. He also did not speak during the procedural court hearing. Oropeza is a Mexican national who has been deported four times between 2009 and 2016, U.S. immigration officials said.

After the hearing, his attorneys said its still too early to know what happened on the night of the killings and that tension between Oropeza and his neighbors had been building for quite some time.

The initial story about asking him not to shoot his gun in the backyard because a baby was sleeping is probably not going to prove to be an accurate version of the events, said Anthony Osso, one of Oropezas attorneys.

Osso said that while the killings have been presented as a mass shooting, it will end up being a different kind of situation.

Wilson Garcia, whose wife and 9-year-old son were two of the people killed, previously told reporters he and two others had respectfully asked Oropeza if he could shoot farther away from his home because Garcias newborn son was trying to sleep.

He told us he was on his property and he could do what he wanted, Garcia had said after a vigil at his sons school on April 30.

Osso said Oropeza and his neighbors had been friends. Oropeza, a tradesman, would help anyone in the neighborhood who needed any electrical or plumbing work done, his lawyers said.

The relationship between Oropeza and his neighbors started to go downhill after the neighbors dogs went into Oropezas yard and killed his familys sheep and chickens, Osso said.

Lisa Andrews, another of Oropezas attorneys, said what led up to the shooting is much more complicated and much different a picture than that original witness statement.

Both Andrews and Osso declined to comment on what happened the night of the shooting or what Oropeza might have told them about it.

Garcia said he never had problems with Oropeza and that their wives sometimes talked. He said Oropeza had once helped him cut down a tree.

Rob Freyer, the first assistant district attorney with the San Jacinto County district attorneys office, declined to comment on the claims by Oropezas attorneys that not all has been revealed about what led up to the shooting.

It was a massacre. The whole world knows that ... It was a tragedy, Freyer said.

Andrews said she expects the murder charges against Oropeza to be upgraded to capital murder, which would make him eligible for the death penalty.

San Jacinto County District Attorney Todd Dillon said Oropezas case will likely not be presented to a grand jury until next month.

Oropezas next court date is Aug. 10. His wife and one of Oropezas friends have each been charged with hindering the apprehension or prosecution of a known felon.

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
BOSTON (AP)  Superiors of the Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with leaking highly classified military documents had raised concerns internally on multiple occasions about his handling or viewing of classified information, according to a court filing Wednesday.

Justice Department lawyers made the disclosure in a court papers urging a magistrate judge to keep Jack Teixeira behind bars while he awaits trial in the case stemming from the most consequential intelligence leak in years. The judge is expected to hear more arguments Friday on prosecutors' detention request and issue a ruling.

Teixeira is accused of sharing highly classified documents about top national security issues in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. He has not yet entered a plea.

Prosecutors told the judge in their filing that Teixeira continued leaking documents even after he was admonished by superiors on two separate occasions last year over "concerning actions he took related to classified information.

A September memo from the Air National Guard 102nd Intelligence Wing that prosecutors filed in court says Teixeira had been observed taking notes on classified intelligence information and putting the notes in his pocket. Teixeira was instructed at the time to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, the memo says.

Another memo from late October says a superior had been made aware that Teixeira was potentially ignoring the cease-and-desist order on deep diving into intelligence information given to him the month before. The memo says Teixeira attended a meeting and proceeded to ask very specific questions." He was told again to focus on his job, not any deep dives into classified intelligence information.

Still, a third memo from February says Teixeira was again observed viewing information that was not related to his primary duty and was related to the intelligence field. Teixeira had previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and to not seek out intelligence products, the memo said.

The Defendant even continued to share information with his online associates, defying these admonishments and taking further efforts to conceal his unlawful conduct, prosecutors wrote.

The revelations have raised questions about why military officials did not take further action and why Teixeira continued to have access to classified information after his superiors raised concerns.

Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh was questioned on Thursday about why Teixeiras leaders did not take action after the concerns were raised. Singh referred to the Justice Department and Air Force investigations, and said those concerns and potential lack of response to them was one of the areas the inquiries would examine.

Lawyers for Teixeira, who was arrested last month on charges under the Espionage Act, are urging the judge to release Teixeira to his fathers home, noting that the man didnt flee when media outlets began publishing his name shortly before his April 13 arrest. His lawyer told the judge last month that Teixeira "will answer the charges and will be judged by his fellow citizens.

In their own court filing Wednesday, Teixeiras lawyers noted there have been many Espionage Act cases in which courts have approved release or the government did not seek to keep the person behind bars pretrial. They have also said there is no allegation that Teixeira ever intended for documents to be distributed widely.

But prosecutors said in their filing Wednesday that one of the servers on the social media platform he posted classified information to had at least 150 users at the time the information was shared and now may have many more users that are actively seeking access to information.

Among the individuals with whom the Defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses, prosecutors wrote.

In messages, Teixeira bragged about the scope of information he had access to, writing, The information I give here is less than half of whats available," prosecutors said. He also acknowledged he wasn't supposed to be sharing the information, prosecutors said, writing in another message, All of the s- I've told you guys I'm not supposed to, according to the Justice Department's filing.

Magistrate Judge David Hennessy heard arguments from lawyers over detention late last month, but has yet to issue a ruling and scheduled a second hearing on the matter for Friday. In earlier court records, prosecutors revealed that Teixeira kept an arsenal of weapons before his arrest and has a history of violent and disturbing remarks.

The leaked documents appear to detail U.S. and NATO aid to Ukraine and U.S. intelligence assessments regarding U.S. allies that could strain ties with those nations. Some show real-time details from February and March of Ukraines and Russias battlefield positions and precise numbers of battlefield gear lost and newly flowing into Ukraine from its allies.

____

Associated Press reporter Tara Copp in Washington contributed.
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NEW YORK (AP)  An unrepentant and defiant Islamic extremist received 10 life sentences and another 260 years in prison on Wednesday for killing eight people with a truck on a bike path in Manhattan on Halloween in 2017, as a judge decried his callous and cowardly crimes.

The conduct in this case is among the worst, if not the worst Ive ever seen, said U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, as he announced a sentence designed to underscore the severity of the terrorist attack Sayfullo Saipov claimed he carried out on behalf of the Islamic State group.

A life sentence was mandatory after a jury rejected the death penalty in March, but prosecutors had asked Broderick to impose eight consecutive life sentences and two concurrent life sentences. They also wanted an extra 260 years to send a stern message to other like-minded terrorists. And that's what the judge did.

Broderick cited the defiance of Saipov, who, given a chance to speak, said the tears of victims and family members in the courtroom during the six months of the trial would fill a single tissue. But, Saipov said, the tears and blood of followers of Islam killed unjustly worldwide would fill the courtroom.

In a rambling rant delivered through a translator, Saipov spent most of an hour talking about the creation of religions and how the devil was instrumental in the evolution of the human population.

When he finished, a female victim's relative briefly stood, shouting: The only act of the devil here is the act you did!

You did not and you do not care about their pain and their suffering, the judge said to Saipov about the victims. He noted that even Saipov's relatives, including his father, were ashamed and traumatized and forever changed.

Saipov, 35, an Uzbekistan citizen and onetime New Jersey resident, was expected to serve his sentence at the maximum security prison in Florence, Colorado, for his Oct. 31, 2017, slaughter of tourists and a New Yorker.

His head was drooped and eyes were lowered as 19 victims and relatives of the people killed in the terror attack spoke sometimes through tears, describing lingering pain and occasionally directly addressing him.

Frank Decadt, father of victim Ann-Laure Decadt, told Saipov that he hoped that one day you will understand the extent of horror you have inflicted on so many people.

Only a monster can do what you did, said Vanesa Erlij Wittenberg, calling her deceased brother an amazing person.

You, on the contrary, are a shame to your family and especially your kids," she said.

Marion Van Reeth, who lost her legs in the attack, sat before Saipov in her wheelchair, telling him: I will never be able to walk like you can.

As Saipov listened to a translation of the proceedings through earphones, she said: I have a question for you. After all this time in prison, are you still convinced that your criminal acts against innocent people was the right thing?

Like others, she wished that someday Saipov would realize he was wrong.

Gabriela Pabla Pereya, the wife of Ariel Erlij, who was among five men from Argentina killed during a bike ride as they celebrated the 30th anniversary of their high school graduation, delivered the shortest statement. She called Saipov a coward and said if he truly wanted God to accept and love you, go kill yourself.

Monica Missio, whose only child, Nicholas Cleves was killed, told Saipov his death has completely destroyed my life.

His conviction brought a small sense of justice, but for me there is no sense of closure, she said.

He gets to wake up every day while my son does not, Missio said.

After they spoke, Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Houle called the attack pure evil and showed a recent photograph of the victims after they returned to the bike path with photographs of the dead.

They are reclaiming that crime scene. They are shouting that they are stronger together, she said. Their capacity for love and compassion is remarkable.

After the sentencing, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a statement that the Justice Department will "continue to vigorously defend the American people from threats of terrorism and will work tirelessly to bring those who perpetrate terrorist attacks to justice.

Five tourists from Argentina, two Americans and a Belgian woman were killed, and 18 others were seriously injured.

Saipov was shot by a police officer and immediately taken into custody after emerging from his truck shouting God is great in Arabic and waving paintball and pellet guns in the air.

Prosecutors said he smiled while asking FBI agents questioning him in a hospital room after the attack if they could hang an Islamic State group flag on the walls.

At trial, his family urged a life sentence, saying they hoped he'd someday realize what he'd done and express remorse. They said he was normal before he grew obsessed with online terrorism propaganda.

A former long-haul truck driver, Saipov moved legally to the U.S. from Uzbekistan in 2010 and lived in Ohio and Florida before joining his family in Paterson, New Jersey.

Among those who attended the sentencing was the trial's jury foreperson, John Francis Patrick III. He said jurors initially favored the death penalty but we felt another death will not help this matter at all. Better that this defendant know the pain of what living is.

He said emotional testimony in the trial and the gruesome crime made it hard to be a juror, but he also cited an act of love when Van Reeth awoke in the hospital 10 days after she was struck to learn both her legs were missing.

And the first thing she said was: Is my husband ok?
WASHINGTON (AP)  In a rare judicial defeat for President Joe Biden, Michael Delaney is withdrawing his nomination for the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to a letter he sent to the White House on Thursday.

"At this time, I believe it is appropriate for me to withdraw my name from consideration for this position to advance the important work of the federal judiciary, he wrote in the letter, obtained by The Associated Press.

In a statement, White House spokesman Andrew Bates said the White House would consult with New Hampshire's two senators, Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, to find a new nominee. Both had strongly supported Delaney.

President Biden put forward a deeply qualified nominee, with a long and distinguished career in public service," Bates said.

Delaneys nomination lacked the needed votes in the Senate Judiciary Committee, said two people familiar with the confirmation process who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe internal dynamics.

Democrats' inability to secure the necessary votes both in the committee and on the floor is partly due to concerns over a legal brief on abortion that Delaney signed as deputy attorney general in New Hampshire. The brief defended a parental notification law in the state.

Delaney also faced scrutiny of his representation of St. Pauls School, a private boarding school in New Hampshire that was sued in connection with a sexual assault.

Delaney said in written testimony to senators that he did not write the 2005 abortion brief and otherwise had extremely limited involvement in the case that was brought while he was deputy attorney general in New Hampshire. But he was never able to gain the support of enough Democrats to win approval in the committee, on which Democrats have a narrow one-vote margin.

Delaney's nomination was held up for months as California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., was absent and Democrats could not move any party-line nominees through the committee. But it became clear last week, upon Feinstein's return, that Delaney did not have enough Democratic votes to move forward.

The committee chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., declined to hold a vote on Delaneys nomination as the panel considered other nominees. He then skipped over Delaney again this week when the committee met on Thursday.

After last week's meeting, Durbin said the votes werent yet there.

It wasnt the right moment, Durbin said last week of Delaney. Well see.

Delaney would be the first of Bidens judicial nominees to fail due to a clear lack of support from the full Senate. The White House has continued to back him despite the scrutiny, along with Shaheen and Hassan.

In a joint statement, Shaheen and Hassan said they strongly supported him and know personally his strong character and commitment to justice."

We disagree with the criticism that has been leveled against him, and we are disappointed that it got in the way of confirming a highly qualified individual, the senators said.

In his letter to Biden, Delaney wrote that he was honored by the nomination and added that he was deeply indebted to the support from his home-state senators.

Despite the New Hampshire senators' support, multiple Democrats on the committee were undecided as of this week, according to a person familiar with the process.

Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Cory Booker of New Jersey had all indicated that they were undecided in recent months.

For me personally, reproductive rights is a fundamental, core issue, Blumenthal told The Associated Press in March. And I think Id want to know why he put his name on the brief and what it reflects in his personal view.

At issue is a New Hampshire law, passed in 2003 but repealed in 2007, that required minors to tell their parents before they obtained an abortion. As the states deputy attorney general, Delaney was among those who signed a brief submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court that defended the law because it does not present a substantial obstacle to any womans right to choose an abortion.

The law, according to the brief filed in the case, Ayotte vs. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, promotes compelling state interests, not the least of which is protecting the health of the pregnant minor by providing an opportunity for parents to supply essential medical history information to the physician.

Biden nominated Delaney for the appeals court in January, almost a year after Shaheens office first contacted him to discuss filling the vacancy. Since then, Shaheen and Hassan have been Delaneys biggest patrons, despite a rocky confirmation hearing that even Democrats say did not go well for him after he faced repeated questions from Republican senators who attacked his handling of the St. Pauls case.

At Thursday's committee meeting, Durbin was quiet on Delaney's nomination and faced criticism from some Republicans.

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the committee, said the parents of the victim involved in the boarding school litigation had come to the committee continuously" and that Delaney had not sufficiently answered questions about that case.

I understand and share their concerns, Graham said. "I urge the Biden administration to withdraw Mr. Delaneys nomination.

Delaney told the committee that he had had limited involvement as a lawyer in the criminal case, in which a former student was eventually sentenced to a year in prison for sexually assaulting another student. Delaney said he was instead part of a team of advocates for the school who responded to civil claims filed by the family.

The expectation of Delaney's withdrawal was first reported by Bloomberg Law.
WEST HARTFORD  A policy change considered by the Board of Education would have restricted public comment on non-agenda items to the end of the first meeting of the month.

Ultimately, the board amended the proposed policy  which will be voted on for adoption at a future meeting  to limit public comment on non-agenda items to the start of the first meeting of the month, but not before a sometimes emotional discussion, with one board member claiming they were "blindsided" by the proposed change.

Dr. Gayle Harris, a Republican member of the board who also sits on the policy subcommittee the proposed change came out of, said she in no way supported the original proposed changes that would make residents wishing to speak on non-agenda items wait until the end of the first meeting of the month, which sometimes can last two or three hours, if not longer.

"I want to be very, very clear there was no agreement on this policy," Harris said. "I was entirely blindsided by it. On Thursday night, we had a 40-minute meeting where the current policy was simply put in front of meand that was the end of that. There was no discussion or attempt to negotiate it."

The policy in question was already changed once in November when the Board of Education voted to alter the policy to prioritize those speaking on agenda items and cap the number of speakers at each meeting, unless the comments were about agenda items.

At the time, the board was looking to pull back on some of the more elongated public comment sessions. The district released data at the time showing that there had been 154 speakers last year for a total of 462 minutes. That compared to the rolling four-year average of 37 speakers for a total of 111 minutes.

"We worked very hard in the fall to come up with this current policy," Harris said. "I stated at that time that this policy was a very good compromise in trying to balance the needs of the board and the needs of the community. I was proud of the fact that we came to an agreement in a bipartisan way and that we did something that I thought was good for the board and good for the community."

But board member Jason Chang, a Democrat who announced his resignation from the group at the same meeting, said the new policy wouldn't impact the "majority of speakers this year."

"This policy prioritizes public comment for agenda items only," said Chang, who is also on the policy subcommittee. "Most Boards of Education in Connecticut do not entertain any non-agenda comments, and some allow a single speaker or none at all, regardless of party affiliation of that board."

Harris challenged that claim, saying that nearby communities like Bloomfield, Simsbury and Farmington don't have such restrictions, and that making residents wait until the end of the meeting would be detrimental.

"Theres no restriction to agenda items only," Harris said. "All of those towns allow public comment at the beginning of the meeting. None of them relegate people to wait hours and hours and hours for the end of the meeting for the honor of addressing us for three minutes."

Simsbury's Board of Education bylaws read that the Board "will schedule one or more periods during each regular meeting for public participation. Members of the public may address the board on any item not on the meeting's agenda during the public comment portion." Farmington's Board of Education also doesn't seem to limit comments to agenda items only. In Bloomfield, bylaws state that the board "may permit any individual or group to address the Board concerning any subject that lies within its jurisdiction."

Still, Chang noted that there is no guarantee of public comment at Board of Education meetings, though he added that the board isn't looking to get rid of it entirely.

"Public comment on agenda items is vital to the accountability and transparency of the board," Chang said. "In this proposed policy, there is no change to the ability for the public to make comments on agenda items. Public comment is an important means to bring voice and lived experience to bear on the choices of the board."

Lorna Thomas-Farquharson, the Democratic chairwoman of the board and the third member of the policy subcommittee, said the board could always choose to vote and suspend the rules to allow comment on non-agenda items.

"It is speaking about prioritizing agenda items," Thomas-Farquharson said about the proposed change. "Its not about hindering or stopping public communication. Its important to say that, because when its presented differently, that can linger and become a narrative of its own. There are no steps moving towards eliminating in totality public communication."

Harris said she doesn't think relying on a board vote is a good solution.

"I dont think thats a good answer," Harris said. "It would be entirely dependent on what you want to hear about and thats not the way a democratic process works. You should be able to sit through 12 or 15 minutes of public comment, even if its difficult."

Sometimes, it is difficult, other board members noted. Policy states that members aren't permitted to respond to speakers, whether that's to answer a simple question or defend themselves against allegations.

Ari Steinberg, a Democrat member of the board, noted a shift in public comment that she has observed over the last four years.

"What I feel that non-agenda public comment has become is an opportunity for people who are unhappy," Steinberg said. "Its an opportunity to accuse, publicly ridicule and spread unsubstantiated information. The problem with that for me, on a personal level, is that because we are not allowed to respond or reply, what is said at that podium is taken as fact with no opportunity to fact check."

Clare Neseralla, also a Democrat member of the board, followed Steinberg's comments with similar ones.

"Since Ive been on the board, I have read such awful, accusatory, nasty things," Neseralla said. "I am sad that we have high school students that have to sit through some of the things that are said. The emails that I receive, I wouldnt let my daughter read. I dont think people understand the kind of cruelty and lack of civility. I am proud to sit on the board, but this has been a tough two years. It is awful."

Ethan Goldman, a Republican member of the board who was the only one to vote against the initial policy change in November, said he felt sorry to hear about what Steinberg and Neseralla had experienced, but that they shouldn't penalize other speakers because of it.

"To Clare and Ari, I am sorry you are being attacked," Goldman said. "At the same time, I dont think that should eliminate free expression. The attacks dont help anybody. I cringe when I hear them. And again Im sorry. But we shouldnt penalize the majority for some few."

Goldman said that just like in November, he was unsure of what problem the board is trying to solve by making the change.

"It was unclear to me then, and its still unclear to me, what problem were solving," Goldman said. "My issue on the subject then and now is that we as members of the Board of Education were selected to represent the residents of West Hartford. As part of that responsibility, we should listen to the input of all members of the community, especially that of the parents and where applicable the students. We should be building community trust and encouraging conversation, not destroying it."

After deliberation, the board voted to amend the policy change  with four yes votes, three abstentions and zero votes against  to still limit public comment on non-agenda items to the first meeting of the month, but at the start of the meeting, rather than the end.

The board accepted the first reading of that amended policy and will vote at a future meeting on whether to officially approve the change.
The second edition of the Five Regional Roundtables aims to secure financing for climate projects presented during the first edition, UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for Egypt and UN Special Envoy on Financing 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda Mahmoud Mohieldin stated on Wednesday.

The second edition of the Five Regional Roundtables will be organized by Egypt and UAE  respectively presidents of COP27 and COP28  in cooperation with UN Regional Economic Commissions and UN High-Level Climate Champions (HLCs), Mohieldin said.

His remarks came during his participation in the opening session of the second edition of the Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) held in Bangkok under the title "Financing Opportunities to Accelerate Climate Action and Advance the SDGs".

The forum, organized in partnership with the COP27 and COP28 presidencies and the UN High-Level Climate Champions (HLCs), brought together key figures such as Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of ESCAP; Ambassador Wael Aboulmagd, Special Representative of COP27 President; and Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

In July 2022, Egypt, as the President of COP27, unveiled an initiative to host five regional roundtables to catalyze investments in various climate sectors.

These roundtables, organized by Egypt in collaboration with UN regional committees and UN High-Level Climate Champions (HLCs), were conducted as part of the first edition.

The inaugural and second roundtables were held in Addis Ababa and Bangkok in August, followed by the third and fourth roundtables in Santiago and Beirut in September.

The final roundtable of the first edition took place in Geneva towards the end of the same month.

In October 2022, Mohieldin emphasized the success of the first edition of the forums, which saw active participation from over 1,000 attendees discussing more than 400 projects.

By the end of the first edition, 128 projects from around the world were shortlisted. These projects required $128 billion in funding.

According to Mohieldin, the second edition of the Five Regional Roundtables will facilitate a dialogue between stakeholders to address challenges in building and implementing project pipelines in developing countries.

The event aims to connect project proponents with potential financiers and provide technical assistance to help develop projects.

These projects aim to support climate mitigation, adaptation, resilience, and nature.

During the event, held on Wednesday, the UN climate champion also discussed the Assets to Flows Report launched by the HLCs, which includes key takeaways from last years forums.

He also discussed a factsheet of financing tools that project proponents need to mobilize and scale private finance.

In addition, Mohieldin emphasized the importance of reforming the financing systems of International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).

He also stressed the importance of funding the Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, addressing debt problems in developing countries, and supporting the Sustainable Debt Coalition's goals of transitioning to a green economy and investing in climate action.

Mohieldin stated that the five regional roundtables aim to close 10-15 deals across five regions in preparation for COP28, adding that they are currently engaging with project proponents, to help them meet the needs of financiers, and with financiers to encourage them to review the opportunities.

He noted that the first edition of ESCAP identified five promising projects, while the second edition will connect the owners of these projects with 5-10 financiers.

Mohieldin emphasized the need to improve finance policies to attract more private finance and sustainable financial instruments.

He urged financiers and investors to explore promising opportunities in climate action projects, including mitigation, adaptation, and nature, and to support project proponents in the early stages to attract investors.

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The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday raided houses of five terrorists and three suspected persons in Kishtwar and Pulwama districts in connection with a terror support and terror funding case, officials said.

The houses in Kishtwar belonged to terrorists who are operating from Pakistan and are engaged in revival of terrorism in the region, they said.

After obtaining search warrants from NIA court, Jammu, in Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case, houses of five terrorists, who are presently operating from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, were searched in various locations, Kishtwar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Khalil Poswal said.

Five SIU teams along with police carried out the raids, he said.

The SSP said the evidence found in the searches will be used to indict the targets role in engaging in anti-national activities and perpetuating acts of terrorism.

The SIU raided the houses of Shahnawaz alias Nayeem of Chirool Padyarna, Nayeem Ahmed alias Amir alias Gazi of Jamia Masjid, Mohammad Iqbal alias Bilal of Kichloo Market, Shahnawaz Kanth alias Munna alias Umer of Hullar Kishtwar, and Javid Hussain Giri alias Muzamil of Kundali Pochal, he said.

A special NIA court in Jammu had on April 26 issued non-bailable warrants against 23 terrorists from Kishtwar operating from across the border.

Earlier, non-bailable warrants were issued against 13 terrorists.

In Pulwama, the SIU of Awantipora police carried out raids at multiple locations in Reshipora area of Tral in connection with a terror support case, the officials said.

The searched locations are residential houses of three suspects namely Manzoor Ahmed wani of Reshipora, Mouhsin Ahmed Lone of Tral and Ariaf Bashir Bhat of Reshipora, they said.

During the search, proper SOPs were followed and relevant information was gathered and incriminating material was recovered by the SIU, they said.

Thirty-six individuals from Kishtwar went to Pakistan after joining the terror ranks over a period of time. Subsequently, two FIRs were registered against them, Poswal said.

The raids are part of J&K Police's action against terrorists whose involvement surfaced during investigations, he said.
A high-tech Patriot air defense system provided to Ukraine suffered damage but is still working, a US defense official said Wednesday.

"The Patriot system remains operational" and the damage -- caused by an unspecified projectile landing near it -- is still being assessed, the official told AFP.

Ukrainian air force spokesman Yury Ignat earlier said that "all is fine with the Patriot," but declined to specify if the sophisticated system had been damaged.

"The Patriot is in service," Ignat told AFP. "All is well."

Kyiv received the first shipments of the American-made Patriot surface-to-air missile system in April, with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg saying that both Germany and the US had delivered batteries to Ukraine.

The Russian defense ministry said Tuesday that its forces had struck a Patriot system in Kyiv with a Kinzhal hypersonic missile.

Kyiv announced Ukraine's air defense shot down six of Russia's hypersonic missiles, but Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu rejected that claim.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who unveiled the Kinzhal in 2018, has termed it "an ideal weapon" that is extremely difficult to intercept.

Ukraine repeatedly pushed for the high-tech system to help shield itself against relentless Russian strikes targeting civilians and infrastructure.

Made by Raytheon, the MIM-104 Patriot is a surface-to-air missile system initially developed to intercept high-flying aircraft.

It was modified in the 1980s to focus on the new threat of tactical ballistic missiles and was used in combat against Iraq's Russian-made Scuds in the first Gulf War.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed serious concern over the death of three cheetahs translocated from South Africa and Namibia to Kuno National Park (KNP) of Madhya Pradesh in less than two months and asked the Centre to rise above politics and consider shifting them to Rajasthan.

A bench of justices BR Gavai and Sanjay Karol told the Centre that from reports of experts and articles, it appears that KNP does not seem to be sufficient for such large number of cheetahs and the Union government may consider shifting them to other sanctuaries.

"Three deaths (of cheetahs) in less than two months is a matter of serious concern. There are opinions of experts and articles in media. It appears that Kuno is not sufficient for so many cheetahs. There is too much concentration of cheetahs at one place. Why don't you look for suitable place in Rajasthan? Merely because Rajasthan is ruled by opposition party does not mean, you will not consider it," the bench said. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre said the task force is seized of the deaths and is investigating all possible aspects including shifting them to other sanctuaries.

On March 27, a female Cheetah named Sasha (from Namibia) died due to kidney ailment, on April 23, Uday (S Africa) died due to cardio-pulmonary failure and on May 9, another South African female cheetah named Daksha, died following a violent interaction with a male during a mating attempt.

The bench said from the reports it seems one cheetah died after suffering injuries during a fight between two males over mating and one died of kidney related ailment.

"We came to know that the cheetah which died due to kidney related ailment was suffering from the problem before being brought to India. Question is how was that female cheetah cleared to be brought to India, if the feline was suffering from ailment," the bench said.

Bhati said autopsies of all the deaths were done and task force is investigating the issue.

"You are bringing the cheetahs from abroad, it's a good thing. But they need to be protected. They need to be given suitable habitat, why don't you explore for more suitable habitat than Kuno", the bench said, adding that it is not casting any aspersions on the government but expressing concern over the deaths.

Bhati said one cheetah has given birth to four cubs which shows that they are acclimatising well in Kuno.

Justice Gavai, who is heading the green bench of the apex court, said environmental issues concern him very much and it is a subject which is close to his heart.

Bhati said death of cheetahs is not an unusual thing but they are thoroughly investigating and if the court wishes, the government would like to file an additional affidavit giving the details of the deaths.

The bench said it not doubting the intent of the government but there are articles and reports of cheetah experts in newspapers and therefore the Centre must consider at least one or more habitat for them.

"The cheetahs were brought subsequent to orders of this court. It appears Kuno is not sufficient for them, therefore consider transferring them to other sanctuaries in Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan, wherever it suitable," the bench said, adding the government should consider taking views from cheetah experts.

Justice Gavai told Bhati, "Don't bring party-politics into this issue. Consider all the available habitats, whatever is suitable for them. I will be glad if cheetahs are brought to Maharashtra." Bhati said Mukundara National Park is ready and the task force is also considering transferring some of them to other national park in Madhya Pradesh.

"There are no cheetah experts in India as cheetahs went extinct from the country in 1947-48. Since then our officials have been to South Africa, Namibia and undergone specialized training on Cheetah management", Bhati said, adding if the court is considering hearing views of cheetah experts, then it should hear all of them and not one or two, who have particular kind of opinions.

The bench then asked the apex court-constituted expert committee to give its suggestion to the national task force on cheetah in 15 days, so that it could be considered.

It posted the matter for further hearing after summer vacation.

The top court's direction came while hearing an application filed by the Centre seeking direction from the court that it is no longer necessary and mandatory for the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to continue taking the guidance and advice of the expert committee appointed by this court through an order dated January 28, 2020.

The top court had then said that the three-member committee comprising former director of wildlife protection M K Ranjit Sinh, chief conservator of forests, wildlife administration in Uttarakhand Dhananjai Mohan and the DIG (Wildlife) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) will guide the NTCA in the introduction of African cheetahs in India.

On March 28, a day after the first death of cheetah at Kuno, the top court had sought details of experts in the Cheetah Task Force such as their qualification and experience.

The Centre, in its application said that according to the action plan for cheetah introduction in India, annually 8-14 big cats are required to be brought in from African countries for the next five-years at least and an memorandum of understanding in this regard has been signed by the government of India with Namibia and South Africa for cooperation in the field of cheetah conservation.

Giving the details, the Centre said that following the signing of the MOU, "in a historic wild to wild intercontinental translocation of large carnivore, eight cheetahs were transported from Namibia to India on September 17, 2022 and were released into the quarantine enclosures in Kuno National Park of Madhya Pradesh".

The government said that as per MoU with South Africa, 12 cheetahs -- seven males and five females -- were translocated from South Africa to KNP on February 18, 2023.

It said that this entire exercise of cheetah introduction in India has been carried out under the expert guidance and supervision of the International cheetah experts, scientists, veterinarians, forest officials and NTCA in consultations with the committee appointed by this court vide order dated January 28, 2020.
Activists with the World Uyghur Congress and supporters staged a protest outside Volkswagen's shareholder over the German carmaker's alleged use of Uyghur forced labor in its joint venture factory with its Chinese partner SAIC Motor Corp. in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Inside the meeting, one activist hurled a cake toward a company executive who was addressing shareholders. China is facing harsh international criticism for forced labor and other rights abuses of the Uyghurs, policies that the German Bundestag and other Western parliaments and governments say amount to genocide or crimes against humanity. Volkswagen denies any mistreatment of workers.
Authorities in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou have pulled the plug on a concert by a Japanese Buddhist monk amid a widening political crackdown on cultural and artistic performances.

A planned concert by Zen musician Kanho Yakushiji at the city's MAOLivehouse venue on Thursday was canceled by the organizers, who said the decision had been taken due to "force majeure," a term that typically refers to forces beyond someone's control.

"After receiving notification from higher up, we regret to inform you that the Guangzhou leg of Kanho Yakushiji's Fu Yuan Asia Tour 2023 that was scheduled for May 17 has been canceled," promoters Mugen Creations said in a post on the venue's Weibo account.

The artist, who chants sutras to evocative guitar chords, also tweeted his apologies to Guangzhou fans, saying: "I'm sorry, I wanted to sing today," but the tweet had been removed by May 18.

In its place was a selfie of Yakushiji boarding a plane along with the words: "Heading to Hangzhou now. I am praying that there won't be any issues today."





 pic.twitter.com/FgSxMvMveW   / Kanho Yakushiji - Japanese Zen Music (@yakushiji) May 18, 2023

The cancelation comes after Beijing police announced a criminal investigation into stand-up comedian Li Haoshi, known as "House," after he likened People's Liberation Army soldiers to feral dogs in pursuit of a squirrel, while Xiaoguo Culture, the promoters of Li's show, were fined tens of millions of yuan.

Chain reaction

Soon afterwards, the organizers of a stand-up show by comedian Wang Defa said they had canceled his booking in the eastern province of Shandong, while a planned concert by the Taiwan group The Chairs was canceled in the eastern city of Hangzhou.

Social media users commenting under the Mugen Creations announcement on Weibo appeared to believe the move was part of a wider crackdown.

"I guess it's part of a chain reaction after Xiaoguo," @Triple_concentrate_without_sugar commented from Guangdong, in a reference to the "self-reflection" promised by an apologetic Li and by Xiaoguo. "They are all self-examining."

"Foreigners in Beijing and Shantou have also canceled [shows]," Weibo user @Ms._Diaochan added.

"Can you tell us why? Is there anyone among the higher-ups who isn't fossilized?" @UndecidedBz commented, while @-yuzu-flavored- added: "There must have been a notification with a red letterhead," in a reference to top priority documents from the central government in Beijing.

"Getting notification from higher up can hardly be said to be force majeure," @Don't_be_a_pig added.

Disappointed fans

Photos posted to social media showed young people already at the venue, looking at the cancellation message on their phones.

"I was already at the doors, laughing, in high spirits over a rare opportunity to relax and get into a good mood," one disappointed fan complained on social media.

One disappointed concert-goer, Sun Qian, said she hadn't expected it to be canceled.

"I think the cancellation could have something to do with Xiaoguo Culture," Sun told Radio Free Asia. "But a lot of performances have been canceled, including performances by foreigners in a lot of places."

"What did they think he was going to sing? Especially given that Kanho Yakushiji is a monk," she said.

According to music blogger "Music Festival Distribution Center," the first few stops of Yakushiji's tour in Chongqing, Chengdu and Changsha had gone ahead without a hitch, while the artist himself posted a thank-you message to fans in the southern city of Shenzhen following a successful gig on May 16.

Current affairs commentator Bi Xin said the cancelations weren't a matter of choice for the artists, venues or promoters, but were imposed on them by cultural affairs officials in the Chinese government.

"These are compulsory cultural measures, and have included a Taiwanese group that wasn't allowed to perform," Bi said. "In this political environment, the cultural ideologies they're all so worried about are giving rise to a new wave of cultural coercion."

The Chairs had been scheduled to play in a Hangzhou department store on Saturday, while Wang Defa had been scheduled to perform at the Linyi Xiaosheng Comedy Club on May 26.

And a performance by stand-up comic Shanliren on Sunday at 88 Wangfujing in Beijing was also canceled.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Barrister and rights activist Chow Hang-tung is serving a 15-month sentence for inciting people to hold a vigil for the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre.

Updated at 8:45 a.m. EDT, May 19, 2023.

Despite pressure from Beijing, South Korea's biggest human rights group went ahead on Thursday with an award to jailed Hong Kong barrister and rights activist Chow Hang-tung.

The 5.18 Memorial Foundation presented its 2023 Gwangju Human Rights Award to a friend of Chow's at a ceremony several days after a visit from three Chinese consular officials, who wanted the award withdrawn. The foundation is based in the southwestern Korean city of Gwangju, scene of a pro-democracy uprising that was violently crushed in 1980.

Her friend and fellow activist Na Hyun-Phil received the award on her behalf in a ceremony that took place in pouring rain in Seoul.

Choking up during his speech, Na said he expects not to be allowed to enter China or Hong Kong as a result of receiving the award for her.

"This Human Rights Award represents that we stand with the people of Hong Kong," said Na, who heads the non-profit Korean House for International Solidarity.

Chow is currently serving a 15-month sentence for inciting people to hold a vigil for the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre.

She also stands accused of incitement to subvert state power, with the prosecution claiming that she and the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China used the now-banned vigils to incite the overthrow of the Chinese government.

Na vowed to light a candle outside the Chinese Embassy in Seoul every year on June 4, the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre, until her release.

Growing risks

After the ceremony, he told Radio Free Asia that Chow's friends and supporters from Hong Kong didn't dare to turn out at the ceremony for fear of political reprisals.

"The main reason [I accepted the award for her] is because it would be ... very risky for Hong Kongers to attend the award ceremony for the Gwangju Human Rights Award," Na said.

"The award ceremony was a public event, and all of the information [on those who take part] will be publicly available," he said. "This means that the Chinese government will know who accepted the award on her behalf."

Friend and activist Na Hyun-Phil accepted the 2023 Gwangju Human Rights Award on behalf of Chow Hang-tung in a ceremony that took place in pouring rain in Seoul. Credit: Screenshot from 5.18 Memorial Foundation video





"They thought that I, as a Korean, would be a better choice, so as to protect her family and friends," Na said, adding that it would be risky for him to travel to Hong Kong following the event.

"I would very much like to go to Hong Kong, but can't be sure that it would be safe either for me or other friends there, so I ... won't be going to Hong Kong or mainland China now," he said.

Na said of Chow that she shines out like a candle, as the hope of Hong Kong's democracy movement, so it was fitting for the Gwangju Human Rights Award to go to her.

"Although I am in South Korea, I want to light a candle for her," he said. "I will be doing that outside the Chinese Embassy every June 4 until she is released."

Na said he first lit a candle outside the Chinese Embassy a year after Chow's arrest following a banned candlelight vigil for the Tiananmen massacre victims on June 4, 2021.

Very principled

Na said he first met Chow in 2011 at a human rights conference in Taiwan, where they discussed labor rights -- an early focus of Chow's -- with rights groups from across the region.

"She is a very sincere person, and really cares about workers," Na said. "She insists on doing the right thing, and is very principled."

"She was so passionate about holding candlelight vigils for Tiananmen, and very proud of being able to do it in Hong Kong, which made a big impression on me," he said.

Na, who also has a background in the labor rights movement, said he visited Hong Kong during the 2014 Occupy Central pro-democracy movement.

He said the city had fallen "silent" since the national security law was imposed by the ruling Chinese Communist Party in 2020, criminalizing public dissent and peaceful political opposition.

"Hong Kong is a silent society, and we can't find a way to fight for democracy there right now," he said.

Chow's award came as the Weiquanwang rights group reported that former 2019 protester Tan Qiyuan, widely known by her nickname Nicole, was jailed for six years for "incitement to subvert state power" for taking part in the movement.

Tan, a permanent resident of Hong Kong, was detained by police in Guangxi's Liuzhou city in April 2021 when she took a trip to her parental home after many years of living in Hong Kong.

She had been incommunicado since April 2, 2021, after tweeting prolifically from the front line of the protests.

UPDATED to clarify the foundation is based in Gwangju, not Seoul.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Kuanzhai Xiangzi, a 120-seat hotpot restaurant, opened last week on Woody Island [shown in April 2022], which is located in the Paracel island chain in the South China Sea and claimed by China.

China has opened a huge hotpot restaurant on the main island it controls in the disputed South China Sea, a Hong Kong newspaper reported, drawing poor reviews from Hanoi for Beijings latest move to bolster claims over islands and waters seized from Vietnam nearly 50 years ago.

The South China Morning Post said the Kuanzhai Xiangzi hotpot restaurant opened late April on Woody Island, the largest natural land feature that China occupies in the South China Sea. The popular dish features raw ingredients such as meat, seafood and vegetables, cooked in a simmering broth and consumed in groups.

The opening of the 120-seat restaurant marks the latest soft push from Beijing to consolidate its claims in the busy, strategically important waterway, most of which it claims under what it calls its historical nine-dash line, the English-language daily said. The hard push was Chinese militarization of the islands, it added.

Woody Island, one of the Paracel Islands, serves as the headquarters for Sansha City, which China established in 2012 to administer all the islands it claims in the South China Sea and their surrounding waters.

The Paracel Islands, or Xisha Islands in Chinese, are claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan but occupied entirely by Beijing since 1974 after the Chinese Navy defeated the then South Vietnamese Navy in a brief sea battle that killed more than 50 South Vietnamese sailors.

Vietnams Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Spokesperson Pham Thu Hang protested against China and the Philippines recent activities in the South China Sea. Credit: State media/Tien Phong newspaper

China also occupies some of the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands in Chinese) that are claimed by some other neighboring countries such as Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Vietnam has sufficient legal basis and historical evidence to assert our sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly archipelagos in accordance with international law, said Pham Thu Hang, Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs deputy spokesperson.

Vietnam has and is taking appropriate measures, which comply with international law, to ensure our legitimate rights and interests, she told a news conference in Hanoi on Thursday.

The Post report quoted a Sansha executive named Wang Panpan as telling local broadcaster Hainan TV that the restaurant would "enrich the material and cultural life of the military, police and people on the island.

The civilian population of Woody Island rose to about 2,300 in 2020, from 1,000 when the city of Sansha was set up in 2012, the newspaper said.

In major ongoing upgrades, China opened a civil-military airport in 2014, a kindergarten and primary school in 2015, and has since built a courthouse, a cinema, banks, hospitals, post offices, a stadium, it added.

Radio Free Asia reported in January that satellite imagery showed a Chinese air defense facility on Woody Island, with silos for permanent surface-to-air missiles.

Translated by Anna Vu. Written by Paul Eckert. Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Another group says the next 5 years will almost certainly be the warmest on record.

A man sprays water on his face from an irrigation pipe to beat the intense heat wave in Lucknow in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, April 19, 2023.

The record-breaking humid heat wave that hit India, Bangladesh, Laos, and Thailand in April was made at least 30 times more likely as a result of human-induced climate change, while the next five years are expected to be the warmest period on record globally, according to two reports by scientists.

Parts of South and Southeast Asia saw record temperatures, over 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) last month. The temperatures were at least 2 degrees Celsius hotter due to climate change, which has seen average global temperatures rise 1.2 degrees since 1900, a study by the World Weather Attribution (WWA) said Wednesday evening.

Temperatures reached 45.4 C (113.7 F) in Thailands western Tak province, the highest ever reported anywhere in the country, while Xayaburi province in Laos hit 42.9 C (109.2 F), an all-time national high that was broken a few weeks later in May in Luang Prabang province.

In Bangladesh, Dhaka observed the highest maximum temperature recorded in five decades at 40.6 C (105 F), while several northern and eastern Indian cities recorded temperatures above 44 C (111.2 F).

The heat wave in Southeast Asia would have been virtually impossible without climate change, the scientists said. While they used to take place in South Asia once a century the scientists expect them to occur every five years now.

The heatwaves were not natural  Unless we take drastic measures to reduce carbon emissions, heatwave events like this will continue to become more common, said Chaya Vaddhanaphuti, a member of the WWA team and a geography lecturer at Thailands Chiang Mai University.

A man swims in a canal as temperatures hit a record 45.4 C (113.7 F) in Bangkok, April 22, 2023. Credit: Reuters





Several casualties were reported during the April heat wave, especially in India, but the full effect will only be known months later, WWA said.

Heat is more dangerous in humid conditions because the body cannot properly regulate its temperature through various activities, like sweating.

The heat index  feels like temperatures that factor in humidity  exceeded dangerous (41 C) over large parts of South and Southeast Asia, according to WWA.

In some areas of Laos, the heat index was close to the hazardous level of 54 C, under which the body temperature is difficult to maintain, the report said.

The scientists warned that these heat waves will continue with further warming, with such events in Thailand and Laos about ten times more likely to occur if the earth warms by 2 C and expected every one to two years in India and Bangladesh.

Until overall greenhouse gas emissions are halted, global temperatures will continue to increase, and events like this will become more frequent and severe, they added.

WMO: 98% chance of hottest five years

WWAs report coincided with another study from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), saying that there is a 98% likelihood that at least one of the next five years will be the warmest on record.

The next five-year period would also almost certainly be the warmest on record, WMO said, with a 66% likelihood that the annual average global temperature will be more than 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels for at least one year.

The record surge is primarily due to climate change and naturally occurring El Nino events, said WMO, a specialized United Nations agency that looks into weather and atmospheric science.

El Nino is a climate pattern characterized by hot ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, which can significantly affect weather patterns worldwide.

In Southeast Asia, that would mean warmer, drier weather conditions. The last two years have seen the cooling influence of La Nina conditions, which ended in March.

Earlier this month, WMO had said there is an 80% chance El Nino will appear by October. It typically increases global temperatures by the following year.

A warming El Nino is expected to develop in the coming months, and this will combine with human-induced climate change to push global temperatures into uncharted territory, said WMO Secretary-General Prof. Petteri Taalas.

This will have far-reaching repercussions for health, food security, water management, and the environment. We need to be prepared.

A man picks up an iced bottle of water at Lumpini Park, Bangkok, May 9, 2023. Credit: Subel Rai Bhandari/RFA

According to scientists, the past eight years have been the eight warmest on record globally, with 2016 being the hottest on record. WMO says that is primarily due to the double whammy of an exceptionally strong El Nino event and human-induced warming from greenhouse gasses.

A climate expert said the report proves once again that climate change is changing global temperatures to levels never experienced previously by humanity.

We are moving further into uncharted territory, in which previous adaptation and coping strategies may not apply, said Professor Janette Lindesay from the Australian National University.

Global heating is accelerating. The chance of exceeding 1.5 C was nearly zero in 2015, and 10% up to 2021. It is now 66%.

Last year, the average global temperature, which has not crossed the 1.5 C threshold set by Paris climate agreement, was about 1.15 C above the 1850-1900 average.

Kimberley Reid, an atmospheric scientist from the Monash University in Melbourne, said her biggest fear is that we become desensitized to the ever-falling records and forget what these numbers actually mean.

1.5 degrees warming means the Great Barrier Reef probably won't survive this century. That's tragic, she said.

Edited by Mike Firn.
Student planned to sell the gas to pay an arbitrarily imposed fee so he could continue going to school.

People welcome soldiers who parade to mark the 73rd anniversary of the founding of North Korea in Pyongyang, Sept. 9, 2021.

North Korean soldiers beat a middle school student to death for trying to steal gasoline from a military truck, apparently because he was hoping to sell the gasoline to pay for an arbitrary school fee, residents in the country told Radio Free Asia.

The May 4 incident in Tongnam village in the northern province of Ryanggang stems from a common occurrence in the country: North Koreas cash-strapped government frequently taps students to provide free labor or materials for state projects  or pay some money if they cant supply whats asked of them.

In the victims school, students were ordered to bring paint and varnish to school for a construction project. But four students couldnt come up with either those materials or any money, two residents in the province said on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

They tried to steal the gasoline to get money for school, one of the residents said. Students who were unable to donate paint or varnish were instructed to donate 4,000 won [US$0.50] each.

Varnish and paint are hard to come by in rural areas, she said.

Five soldiers who had stopped in the village for lunch noticed what the boys were doing and began beating them, the two sources said.

The soldiers were of the 8th General Bureau stationed in Komsan-dong, Hyesan. They were on their way back to the base after delivering food to a sideline military unit in Potae Workers District of Samjiyon, a second resident said.

After they realized one of the students had died, they drove off without doing anything for him, he said.

The three other students fled the scene and were later arrested and police are currently investigating their case, the first resident said

Where are they supposed to get paints and varnish? she said. The students had no way to raise money.

The soldiers fate is not yet known, the resident said.

Military police of Hyesan City conducted an on-site investigation, but we dont know what kind of punishment the soldiers were subjected to, she said.

Translated by Claire Shinyoung Oh Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong.
Soldiers attend the launching ceremony of the China-Laos Friendship Shield-2023 joint exercise in Laos, May 11, 2023.

Lao troops got firsthand experience using modern Chinese weapons during joint China-Laos military exercises, which analysts say neighboring Vietnam is watching warily.

The three weeks of drills  Friendship Shield 2023  are taking place through May 28 in an army training ground near the Lao capital Vientiane. They began May 9, with some 200 Chinese troops and 700 Lao troops taking part.

The exercise is aimed at exchanging experiences between the two militaries, as well as a concrete measure to deepen friendship and boost cooperation between the two countries, the Chinese Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

Such events will definitely keep the Vietnamese military busy, said Wendell Minnick, an independent military analyst based in Taipei, pointing to the proximity between Laos and Vietnam.

Vietnam is Laos' biggest traditional ally but Vientiane in recent years have been edging towards China, Minnick told RFA.

Furthermore, Chinas military has been in Laos since the Vietnam War, he added.

China has been eyeing Laos as a potential market for its exports, including military equipment, but so far the land-locked country has not bought much because of lack of money.

Most of the weapons and military equipment used by the Lao army date from the Soviet era, and after that, Russia.

In April 2017, Beijing gifted the Lao Defense Ministry office equipment, according to a report by Xinhua, which observers suspected could in fact be defense equipment. That November, Vientiane announced a multi-million-dollar contract to buy weapons and equipment from Chinas state-owned China North Industries Corp.

There were no details of the deal nor whether any progress has been made in implementing it.

High level of mutual trust

The Chinese state-run TV network CCTV on Wednesday ran a brief news item on the Friendship Shield 2023, in which Lao personnel were seen practicing live-fire target shooting with Chinese guns and rifles under the guidance of Chinese instructors.

The Lao forces for the first time got  first-hand experience using the next-generation service rifle of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), said the Chinese newspaper Global Times.

The paper quoted Chinese experts as saying that the weapons exchanges display a high level of mutual trust and military cooperation.

Lao and Chinese troops practicing live-fire shooting during the Friendship Shield-2023 joint exercise in May, 2023. Credit: Screenshot from CCTV video





The Chinese light arms used in the exercise included fast pistols, multi-stance rifles and long-range sniper rifles.

The troops also practiced live-fire shooting of vehicle-mounted weapons, man-portable rocket launchers, grenade launching snipers and mortars, CCTV reported.

New rifle

The Chinese military brought to the joint drills a new type of assault rifle  the Type 191  said to be much lighter and having almost double the service life compared with the PLA's previous service rifle, the Type 95.

The Type 191 was first seen at Chinas 70th Anniversary Military Parade in 2019 and is believed to have been recently issued to the troops at the Xinjiang Military Region.

I dont think the new rifle is that superior, said Jyh-Shyang Sheu, a senior researcher who specializes in the PLA ground weapons and equipment at Taiwans Institute for National Defense and Security Research.

Perhaps the new model of ammunition is improved though of the same caliber, but the Type 191 is still just another Chinese-made assault rifle not too dissimilar from their previous model QBZ-95, Sheu told RFA.

It is unclear whether the rifle will be offered to Laos.

While small arms such as the rifles are inexpensive and could be within reach for the Laos army, they are not a game changer, said military analyst Minnick.

But the PLA knows what Laos can handle, and small arms are low cost and low maintenance.

If Laos needs higher technology for its defense China will simply place Laos under its defense umbrella, said the military analyst, Missiles and radars can simply be moved to Laos in a debt forgiven leasing agreement and operated by Chinese technicians under a Laos flag.

Vietnam watching

The Lao-China drills have gone unreported in Vietnamese state media, but military analysts in Vietnam have been closely watching developments there.

Vietnam is officially Laos only military ally as the two countries signed a defense treaty in September 1977. Their communist regimes have strong ties that pre-date their rise to power in 1975 after the Vietnam War.

But as Chinas economic clout has grown, its partnership with Laos has deepened. While Vietnam and China also have fraternal relations, there are some tensions between them. They fought a border war in 1979 and have competing claims in the South China Sea.

An observer in Hanoi who didnt want to be named due to the sensitivity of the subject said while theres a large number of Chinese military equipment in Laos, they are in general not of great quality.

Another analyst, Khang Vu, from Boston College, told RFAs Vietnamese Service that the ongoing joint drills may help draw Laos deeper into Chinas sphere of influence.

The increased defense cooperation between China and Laos will weaken the Vietnam-Laos defense ties, Khang said.

RFA Vietnamese contributed to this report.

Edited by Mike Firn and Malcolm Foster.
China's special envoy Li Hui told Ukraine 'there is no panacea to resolve the crisis' as he repeated calls for Kyiv and Moscow to engage in talks to end the war, Beijing said on Thursday.

China, a strategic ally of Russia, has refrained from condemning Moscow's invasion, and has instead sought to position itself as a neutral mediator that could help end the conflict.

Li visited Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he held talks with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and other officials.

Li is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Ukraine since Russia's February 2022 invasion.

"There is no panacea to resolve the crisis, and all parties need to start from themselves, build mutual trust and create conditions to stop the war and talk," said Li, China's special envoy for Eurasian affairs, according to a statement by Beijing's foreign ministry.

Li's visit to Kyiv was part of a European tour to promote Beijing's proposals to end the conflict.

Li added in his talks with Ukrainian officials including Kuleba that China would "continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capabilities".

Xi Jinping met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in March.

In April, he spoke by phone for an hour with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Western allies of Ukraine have criticised Xi for refusing to condemn the invasion and for maintaining China's strategic alliance with Russia even as Moscow faces deepening international isolation.

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A new report pinpoints the origins of the arms the junta relies on to retain power.

Myanmar's military tanks and military fighter planes are displayed during a parade marking the country's 75th anniversary of Independence in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Jan. 4, 2023.

UPDATED at 1:05 p.m. EDT on 05-19-2023

Chinese and Russian entities have sent more than US$660 million in weaponry and other arms-related equipment to Myanmars military since its coup two years ago, enabling the junta to wage its brutal campaign to retain power.

The sales are part of US$1 billion in total in arms-related trade to the country since the Feb. 1, 2021, coup, despite overwhelming evidence of the Myanmar militarys atrocity crimes against the people of Myanmar, United Nations Special Rapporteur for Myanmar Tom Andrews said in a statement Wednesday.

The support comes in a variety of ways, including advanced weapons systems, spare parts for fighter jets, raw materials and manufacturing equipment for domestic weapons production. Perhaps most critical to the militarys insurgency suppression efforts is the supply of aircraft that it has used to strike combatants and terrorize citizens who live in areas of resistance.

The report identified US$406 million in arms sales from 28 Russian entities and US$267 million from 41 state-owned and private companies in China.

Given the widespread reporting of the Myanmar militarys war crimes, China has arguably made these transfers with actual knowledge that the Myanmar military will use the fighter jets transferred by its state-owned arms manufacturers in attacks on civilians in violation of international humanitarian law, the report states.

Sanctions ineffective

Sanctions imposed by the United States, members of the European Union and other countries have been ineffective in stopping the flow of weaponry into Myanmar, Andrews said.

Those providing these weapons are able to avoid sanctions by using front companies and creating new ones while counting on lax enforcement, Andrews said.

The report urges new efforts, including sanctions on one of the militarys main sources of revenue, the Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise. So far, the European Union is the only entity to sanction the company.

The aftermath of the Myanmar juntas shelling and airstrikes on Pa Zi Gyi village, Kanbalu township, Sagaing region on April 11, 2023, that killed nearly 200 civilians. Credit: Citizen Journalist

Declaration of friendship

After earlier indicating some impatience with the Myanmar military regime led by Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, Chinese officials appeared to reaffirm support earlier this month.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gan hailed the friendship between the two countries during a meeting with the junta leader on May 3, according to official reports.

An email to the Chinese Embassy in Washington was not returned.

Myanmar militarys relationship with its more powerful neighbor has been among the keys in its ability to hold onto some semblance of power despite widespread opposition among an array of armed groups, including ethnic-armed organizations and militia forces.

Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, right, shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang during their meeting in Naypyitaw, May 2, 2023. Credit: Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua via AP

The Myanmar militarys relationships to Russian and Chinese arms suppliers are the backbone of the juntas combat capabilities, without which its ability to hold on to the countrys center and urban areas would likely suffer substantially, said Lucas Myers, a senior associate for Southeast Asia at the Wilson Center, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank.

The report says that Chinese K-8 fighters had been the most frequently spotted ground attack jet of the Myanmar Air Force before April 2022, when the Russian Yak-130 began to be deployed more often.

In December, China shipped six FTC-2000G fighters, which combine training and attack capabilities, to Myanmar. The delivery is concerning, Myers said.

Support from Singapore, Thailand

The arms have been used in a number of documented atrocities committed by Myanmars military, including a Sept. 16, 2022, hour-long attack on a school and monastery in Let Yet Kone Village led by Russian Mi-17 and Mi-35 helicopters. At least six children were killed in the attack.

Andrews report also notes the not-insignificant amount of sales from Singapore, India and Thailand, which collectively come to US$333 million in arms trade.

Arms dealers operating out of Singapore are critical to the continued operation of the Myanmar militarys deadly weapons factories (commonly referred to as KaPaSa), the report states.

Andrews noted the Singapore governments declaration to block any arms transfers to Myanmar.

Myanmar army officers intervene during a protest against the military coup in Yangon, March 2, 2021. Credit: Reuters

Zachary Abuza, a professor at National War College in Washington and an expert on Southeast Asia, said that Thailands and Singapores sales to Myanmar, though smaller than either Russias or Chinas, are important because the goods they ship allow the military to continue to produce its own munitions.

With a floundering post-coup economy, the junta doesnt have a lot of money for imports, making its domestic manufacturing capability critically important to its efforts to hold onto power, Abuza said.

Singapore and Thailand may also be more responsive to U.S. pressure to stem the flow of imports into Myanmar, compared with either Russia or China, he said.

Since the coup, the military has killed at least 3,500 civilians, detained at least 22,000 political prisoners and forcibly displaced over 1.5 million people, the report states, citing figures from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a human rights group based in Thailand.

The international communities need to realize that providing Myanmar military junta with weapons means supporting its war crimes, crimes against humanity and all its brutal atrocities against the people and neglecting the will of the people, too, said Nay Phone Latt, a spokesman for the opposition National Unity Government, a group that includes members of Myanmar's Parliament who were ousted in the coup.

This story has been updated to include a comment from Myanmar's National Unity Government.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Junta threatens prison and death penalty for those who bear, sell and distribute weapons.

Anti-coup fighters escort an anti-junta street march in Sagaing Township Sept. 7, 2022. Myanmars junta is threatening stiff prison terms and even the death penalty under a law regulating weapons ownership that analysts say aims to instill fear in supporters of the armed resistance.

Myanmars junta is threatening stiff prison terms and even the death penalty under a law regulating weapons ownership that analysts say aims to instill fear in supporters of the armed resistance.

The new Weapons Law, enacted on May 11, comes at a time when armed resistance to the military government, which took over in a 2021 coup, is spreading throughout the country.

It appears to have been released with the intention of targeting urban guerrillas, said Saya Kyaung, a spokesman for the Yangon UG Association, a rebel group. This is simply an attempt to try to weaken the revolution."

The law details restrictions on the right to bear, transfer and hold weapons, including the selling, production, distribution, import and export of firearms.

It states that a person who has purchased or is in possession of a weapon with an intent to commit treason  meaning fighting junta forces  can be sentenced to five to 10 years in prison.

It also states that stealing, destroying, selling or transferring state-owned weapons or the ammunition of government personnel is punishable by 10 years to life imprisonment, or a maximum penalty of a death sentence.

Anti-coup fighters escort an anti-junta street march in Sagaing Township Sept. 7, 2022. Armed with little more than homemade weapons and knowledge of the local terrain, some of these groups have surprised the military with their effectiveness. Credit: AFP





These two provisions are designed to prevent members of the juntas armed forces from joining the anti-junta Civil Disobedience Movement or handing them weapons and ammunition, CDM officer Kaung Thu Win told Radio Free Asia.

Thein Tun Oo, executive director of the Thayninga Institute of Strategic Studies, which is made up of former Burmese military officers, said the law is aimed at curbing the illegal use of firearms  but its also aimed at retrieving weapons from Peoples Defense Force fighters, he said.

By enacting this new law, those who want to bear arms will be able to do it with the boundaries of the law, he said. This is the benefit. It will have controlled illegal weapons spread across the country, too.

Anti-coup fighters escort an anti-junta street march in Sagaing Township Sept. 7, 2022. The new Weapons Law, comes at a time when armed resistance is spreading throughout the country. Credit: AFP





Facing the threat of the PDFs

Armed conflicts have taken place in 255 out of 330 townships in Myanmar, the annual report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights published on March 3 stated that in the two years since the military took power.

Earlier this month, the junta announced that people with illegal firearms can apply for licenses  including PDF members who could receive cash in exchange for their weapons.

Anti-coup fighters with their weapons sitting in a field in northwestern Sagaing region, Aug. 10, 2022. The new weapons ownership law imposes restrictions on the right to bear, transfer and hold weapons, including the selling, production, distribution, import and export of firearms. Credit: AFP





The junta is trying to arm those who support it and keep weapons out of the hands of the PDFs, said Than Soe Naing, a political analyst.

The junta has been faced with two problems: One is that it needs to manufacture and equip weapons to its forces in order to reinforce them. But it is also facing the threat of those weapons getting in the possession of the revolutionary PDF forces, he said.

Thats why the law is a threat to the people of Myanmar, said Kyaw Zaw, spokesman for the presidents office of the shadow National Unity Government.

The military council itself is an illegal entity. Therefore, they have no right to enact any law in Myanmar, he said. Since they are a bunch of criminals, they have absolutely no legal authority to declare a law or enact it. Thats why I first want to say that the law they have created is entirely illegal which is just mainly designed to scare the people.

Translated by Myo Min Aung. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
It claims the institutions used members of the civil disobedience movement.

A file photograph of City Hospital in Mandalay whose business license was revoked on May 15, 2023.

Updated at 4:09 p.m. ET, May 18, 2023.

The junta has revoked the business licenses of three private hospitals in Myanmars central Mandalay region, it announced this week.

Palace, City and Kant Kaw hospitals had already been told to stop accepting patients because they were using staff belonging to the civil disobedience movement.

An order signed Monday by Dr. Myat Wunna Soe, secretary of the junta-led Private Health Industry Central Group said the licenses were revoked because the hospitals failed to comply with the licensing rules in Section 19 (a) of the Law Relating to Private Health Care Services.

This vague clause stipulates only that a person who obtains a license for any private health care services shall  comply with the terms and conditions of the license.

Radio Free Asias calls to the junta spokesman for Mandalay region, Thein Htay, seeking comment on the decision to revoke the licenses, went unanswered.

The junta has cracked down on doctors who voice opposition to the military, sacking 557 and revoking their medical licenses for one year.

NUG: Junta still bombing hospitals, clinics

The move against the private hospitals comes as the Ministry of Health of the shadow National Unity Government reported that the junta is continuing to target and attack hospitals.

Junta troops targeted hospitals and clinics at least seven times through land and air attacks in Kachin, Kayah and Shan states and in Sagaing and Magway regions in April and so far in May, NUG said in a statement.

Hospitals, clinics, ambulances, medicine and medical supplies were destroyed. Five civilians, including health workers, were killed and 11 were injured by the juntas attack during that time period, according to the NUG.

The attacks in Sagaing and Magway took place in regions where anti-junta armed conflict has been near constant in recent months.

These are acts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, said NUG's Health Minister, Dr. Zaw Wai Soe. These places are the medical refuge of the sick and injured. Attacking these places proves that the military junta is completely inhumane and lacks human sympathy.

On Wednesday, two rural medical facilities, a monastery and six civilian homes were destroyed by an aerial attack on Saw Lon village in Kayah states Bawlake township. A 17-year-old girl was killed and four men were injured.

On April 25, a junta airstrike hit a hospital in Hsaung Phway village in southern Shan State where a woman was giving birth. She was killed and four people, including a nurse, were injured.

A local resident told RFA that a fighter jet bombed the hospital at least five times.

Attacked indiscriminately

RFA called Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, spokesman for the military junta, regarding the attacks on hospitals, but he did not pick up the phone. When asked by RFA on previous occasions, he has denied that the military targets civilians.

Zaw Win, a human rights expert at London-based rights group Fortify Rights, said the international community, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, needs to find a way to prevent such attacks from happening again.

From a human rights standpoint, it is absolutely unacceptable, he said. Even the patients in the hospital were attacked indiscriminately by the junta.

The National Unity Government said in a statement last month that 71 health workers had been killed and 836 arrested in the time period between the February 2021 coup and the end of February 2023.

It said the junta attacked and seized equipment from 188 clinics and hospitals, damaged 59 ambulances and seized 49 more during that two-year period.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn and Matt Reed.
Mining has increased dramatically on the Tibetan Plateau  and with it pollution and degradation.

View of a river polluted by mining in Maldrogongkar county, western China's Tibet Autonomous Region, in an undated photo.

A search is underway for six workers who went missing after a lift cage fell at a Chinese-backed copper mine in Tibet during shaft construction of an open-pit mine drainage system project, forcing production to stop.

The accident occurred May 14 at the Julong Copper and Polymetallic Mine site operated by Tibet Julong Copper Co. Ltd. in copper-rich Gyama township in Meldrogunkar county of Lhasa prefecture. Chinas Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd. owns a 50.1% stake in the subsidiary.

The six missing miners work at Fujian Xingwanxiang Construction Group Co., Ltd., subcontracted by Tibet Julong Copper Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Zijin Mining Group, to perform the project construction. Their names and ethnic identities have not been released.

After the accident, Julong Copper began an emergency and rescue plan and reported the incident to the relevant government departments, Zijin Mining Group said Monday in a statement filed with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and posted on the companys website.

Julong Copper also suspended production and was investigating the incident, which led to the loss of contact with six Xingwanxiang staff members, it said.

The company will continue to pay attention to the Incident, and discharge its information disclosure obligations in a timely manner, the statement said.

Zijin Mining Group has not posted any updates, and did not respond to attempts to gather more information.

It owns three sites in Tibet, which generate nearly half of the companys revenue, said Dhondup Wangmo, a research fellow at the Tibet Policy Institute in Dharamsala, India.

Expansion of mining

Mining and mineral exploration have increased dramatically on the Tibetan Plateau since 2006 following the arrival of the Golmud-Lhasa railway link and Chinese government programs and promotion.

With it has come an increase in pollution and a destruction of pasture land, prompting Tibetan protests over harm caused to the environment and local livestock.

A surge in the Chinese governments mining activities in Meldrogunkars Gyama Valley began as early as in the 1980s and has yielded valuable resources such as gold and copper for products benefiting Chinas economy, said a Tibetan from the area who now lives in exile.

But it has come at the cost of environmental degradation and the relocation of Tibetan nomads who grazed their animals there, said the source who asked that his identity not be disclosed.

The forced settlement of nomads is a policy that Chinas Communist Party has been pushing for years in Tibet, he said.

The increased mining activity also led to pollution and contaminated water sources that killed animals who drank from them, he said.

Tibetans in the region have protested over the years  many have been detained and many imprisoned as well, the Tibetan said.

Operations at one Gyama copper and gold mine was the scene of a catastrophic landslide that killed 83 people, mostly Chinese migrant workers in March 2013, drawing attention to the toll that mining and industrialization were having in Tibet.

Translated by Tenzin Dickyi for RFA Tibetan. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
The European Unions former high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Catherine Ashton, has defended the blocs initial response after Russia occupied Crimea in 2014, but acknowledged we did not know then what we know now and said subsequent policy did not sufficiently prioritize what was happening in Ukraine.

She also urged Balkan neighbors Serbia and Kosovo to get round the table and find answers to lingering differences preventing normalized relations between Belgrade and Pristina, a full decade after the so-called Brussels agreement that she helped forge.

In an exclusive interview with RFE/RLs Balkan Service, Ashton underscored the Western Balkan countries eventual suitability for EU membership and the added challenge of Russian engagement in the region.

We were always aware of Russias influence and engagement in the Western Balkans, she said. The events in Ukraine have brought that more into view.

Ashton was the EUs first-ever high representative, serving as the blocs chief foreign and security policy coordinator and envoy from 2009-14.

Russia covertly occupied the Crimean Peninsula and annexed it in 2014 in a move overwhelmingly rejected by the United Nations, and a simmering conflict waged by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine escalated into a full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022.

The European Union and the United States led a sanctions push particularly after the downing of a Malaysian airliner over eastern Ukraine in July 2014 to punish Russia, the ruble, and perceived proxy fighters in Ukraine.

But critics have accused the West of underestimating the threat to international order and UN-recognized borders for years from Russian President Vladimir Putin, particularly in what Moscow regards as its near abroad.

We did react at the time, imposing sanctions on Russia and trying to get negotiations moving, Ashton said. Hindsight is always difficult. We did not know then what we know now; however, in the intervening years, what was happening in Ukraine was not as high on the agenda as it should have been, in my opinion.

Ashton published her memoirs -- titled And Then What? Inside Stories Of 21st-Century Diplomacy -- in February.

Speaking to RFE/RL, she drew a sharp distinction between the challenge of China, which has grown considerably for European policymakers, and the situation with Russia.

Chinese President Xi Jinping asserted a no-limits partnership with Russia weeks before Russias all-out invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and Beijing has urged peace but declined to directly criticize Moscow publicly.

I hope that we will see more effort put into developing a strategic approach to China that recognizes the connections and the concerns, Ashton said. I recall that China played a role with the rest of the P5+1 in the Iran [nuclear] negotiations, and my hope would be that China would seek to play a positive role in the multilateral system we need to take care of.

In the former Yugoslavia, Ashton was essential to an apparent breakthrough in Brussels in 2013 that provided a road map toward normalized relations between Serbia and its majority ethnic Albanian former province, Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008.

A decade later, Belgrade still refuses to recognize Kosovar sovereignty while blocking its membership in international institutions.

Serbias populist President Aleksandar Vucic has leveraged regional might to pursue closer relations with Moscow and Beijing, and outsiders accuse him of increasingly authoritarian leadership that damages Serbians desire for EU membership.

Kosovos prime minister, Albin Kurti, has toughened Pristinas stance on a number of bilateral issues since taking over in 2020, pledging reciprocity, and is frequently critical of Western attempts at mediation.

Ashton played down a question about Washington and Brussels vying for influence in the Balkans, saying that its not about who has more power, its about the power of working together.

She conceded that there is concern across the [Balkan] region that the EU is not as enthusiastic as it was once for enlargement. Yet there is no question that the countries of the Western Balkans belong inside the EU.

But there is a lot to be done by those countries who want to be part of the EU, and some of the lack of enthusiasm is because of the lack of progress being made by those who want to be members, she said. It is not an easy journey, but a journey well worth making.

Ashton stressed democracy, human rights, and rule of law as central guiding principles and part of the ongoing dialogue.

Among the lessons of her diplomatic years, Ashton stressed to RFE/RL the need for compromise and good negotiators whose drip, drip efforts enable solutions.

It is not just the role of the EU to push forward with the Western Balkans, it is also down to each country to determine that it will make the changes necessary to deal with all the issues that are necessary to become a member of the EU, she said. So I hope we will see more done by everyone to address these challenges.
SOFIA/SKOPJE -- A snub for a Bulgarian member of the European Parliament (MEP) traveling to North Macedonia is just the tip of the iceberg.

On May 6, which is St. George's Day and Armed Forces Day in Bulgaria, North Macedonia's border guards turned back five Bulgarians, including a conservative MEP who has repeatedly waded into the nationalist debate between the two countries.

MEP Andrey Kovachev called the snub "quite sad," and it elicited condemnations from Sofia and from the EU's commissioner for neighborhood and enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi.

It was the latest affront in what Bulgaria alleges is an erratic, monthslong effort by Skopje to suppress pro-Bulgarian sentiment on both sides of the border, including through a "blacklist" whose existence the Macedonian side refuses to acknowledge.

But it's also part of a lingering dispute that has put relations on ice along the EU's southern border, reminded 2 million Macedonians of their second-tier status in Europe, and even erupted into occasional violence.

And veteran political observers warn that the tensions are unlikely to ease anytime soon, with posturing and symbolism amplified ahead of elections and historical rivalries still bedeviling bilateral relations and, by extension, Skopje's recently reinvigorated EU integration.

"Politicians on both sides of the border seem more interested in raising their ratings than de-escalating the situation," Petar Arsovski, a Macedonian political analyst, told RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service.

He and other analysts in the region used words like "predatory" and "reckless" to describe the Kovachev incident.

Both countries are members of NATO and of the Council of Europe, and while a politically sensitive deal struck last year ended Bulgaria's two-year veto on the start of North Macedonia's EU accession negotiations, a key pledge by Skopje to add "Bulgarians" to the preamble of the constitution remains unmet.

Bulgaria and North Macedonia have closely intertwined cultures and overlapping histories that continue to fuel accusations of dangerous Bulgarian irredentism and counterclaims of disregard for Bulgarian national identity by the Macedonian authorities.

'Reckless Act'

Kovachev was planning to attend a ceremony at Novo Selo, in eastern North Macedonia, on St. George's Day to honor Bulgarians who died in the Balkan Wars of 1912-13. It's an event he said he's attended regularly for more than a decade.

Stefan Tafrov, a veteran Bulgarian diplomat and permanent representative to the United Nations in 2001-06 and again in 2012-16, called the Kovachev rebuff a "reckless act" that doesn't contribute to North Macedonia's EU candidacy or to bilateral relations with Sofia.

"They may be dissatisfied with the positions of Mr. Kovachev and the others," he said, and the Macedonians "do not even claim" that they are guilty of criminal wrongdoing. Instead, he said, "They are concerned about some symbolic actions that Mr. Kovachev and the others, whom they don't like, might perform."

The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry immediately called it a "provocation" and vowed to take the matter up with the Macedonian government.

Two days later, EU Commissioner Varhelyi tweeted a condemnation of the Macedonian authorities' denial of entry to Kovachev, adding that it was "a very serious decision."

Another two days later, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ivan Kondov delivered an unmistakable warning by repeating Sofia's grievances at the center of its long-running veto on North Macedonia's EU negotiations, which was ostensibly lifted based on a French proposal from July 2022.

Kondov cited Skopje's alleged failure to implement a 2017 Good Neighbor Agreement and "the problems of people with Bulgarian self-awareness" in North Macedonia, an allusion to the Macedonian government's promise last year to recognize a Bulgarian minority in its constitution.

"We expect a country that is a candidate for membership in the European Union to effectively protect all its citizens," Kondov said. "Instead, we're witnessing attempts to silence the voice of the Macedonian Bulgarians by raising unfounded accusations against them, by pressuring them with lawsuits, by demonizing them in the media and especially on social networks."

Rumors Of A Blacklist

The Macedonian government has repeatedly dismissed accusations that it has abandoned its commitment to protect all its citizens, including those who identify as Bulgarian.

Kovachev reportedly had been threatened with refusal if he tried to travel to North Macedonia with a European Parliamentary delegation ahead of an annual event in February to mark the death of a Balkan revolutionary claimed by Bulgarians and Macedonians named Gotse Delchev.

That warning followed months of tensions that included intimidation, vandalism, and violence following the launch last year in both countries of "cultural clubs" asserting nationalist narratives and myths.

After the Kovachev incident this month, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry said it had "only partial information" on the cases but that instances had become more frequent this year and 50 of its citizens have now been similarly rejected. It said that "until last year, these were episodic cases and the information about them was not systematized."

Sofia acknowledged that Macedonian border authorities are under no obligation to inform it when they turn back visitors, but it also said that "however well-founded these arguments are," some of those Bulgarian nationals "literally the next day crossed the border without any problems."

Backtracking by the Macedonian government and conflicting reports of a purported blacklist have complicated matters.

The Macedonian Interior Ministry initially said Kovachev and his companions were denied entry because they were "potential violators of public order." Three days later, however, the Foreign Ministry said the group included individuals who posed a risk to peace and security, but Kovachev was not among them.

The party, in two vehicles, included the chairman of the Bulgarian Memory Foundation, Milen Vrabevski, a physician and wealthy entrepreneur who is said to be among the supporters of the controversial Bulgarian cultural clubs in North Macedonia.

Kondov told journalists that Kovachev and the others who'd been turned away had received "notices...[that] explicitly stated that they are on a prohibited list in the border system of our neighboring country."

Kovachev said that Varhelyi told him that he was blocked entry because others in his group are on a list of individuals who recognize neither Macedonian identity nor the Macedonian language.

Neither the Macedonian Interior Ministry nor the Foreign Ministry responded specifically to inquiries by RFE/RL's Balkan Service, other than to say the decision was the responsibility of the Interior Ministry, which repeated a broad citation of the country's law on foreigners.

'Short-Sighted, Unnecessary'

Nationalism has surged in Bulgarian politics amid governmental and institutional instability that has already resulted in five elections in a span of two years. Current coalition talks could easily give way to another election in the coming months, according to experts.

Macedonian Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski's government took a significant risk of nationalist backlash in agreeing last year to the compromise with Bulgaria to unstick Skopje's accession framework. The passage of the amendment to identify "Bulgarians" as a constitutive people in the preamble of the Macedonian Constitution has so far been blocked and some observers warn that such a move could spark a vote of no confidence in the government well before scheduled elections in 2024.

Arsovski drew a line between electoral considerations that include opposition attacks based on the defense of Macedonian identity and Skopje's decision to refuse entry to Kovachev to attend an event that stirs nationalist sentiment in both countries.

He accused politicians of a "short-sighted and unnecessary" strategy in which they are "behaving in a predatory way and using every excuse to be a little populist."

Written by Andy Heil based on reporting by Dilyana Teoharova of RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service in Sofia and Marija Tumanovska of RFE/RL's Balkan Service in Skopje
CHISINAU -- In a move likely to increase tensions with the Kremlin, Moldova has distanced itself further from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) this week by revoking key agreements with the Russian-led intergovernmental organization.

On May 15, the speaker of the Moldovan parliament, Igor Grosu, announced that Moldova will initiate its withdrawal from the CIS's Interparliamentary Assembly, which facilitates cooperation among member parliaments and, according to the organization's website, "serves as a guide in the development and convergence of legislation of the countries of the community."

This, Grosu said, was "a first step" for Moldova's withdrawal from the CIS. "We can no longer sit at a negotiating table with an aggressor state," he said, alluding to Russia's war on Ukraine. Two days later, on May 17, Moldova's pro-Western government approved the termination of two agreements, one regarding the delivery of goods between member states and another concerning border protection.

Chisinau has been distancing itself from the CIS for a while, with Grosu's ruling Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) believing that cutting ties with the organization would enable Moldova to work toward aligning its policies with the European Union, before eventually joining the bloc. But with Russian interference in Moldovan politics said to be intensifying in recent months and a pro-Kremlin domestic opposition, attempting to leave the CIS will be far from straightforward and instead presents another geopolitical tightrope Moldova must walk.

After the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, members of the Moldovan government spoke about the possibility of leaving the CIS, although in May 2022, the country's pro-Western president, Maia Sandu -- who has not attended any meetings of CIS heads of state since she became president in 2020 -- affirmed that the country would not leave the organization.

At the start of 2023, the PAS announced that the country would revoke some of the 300 or so agreements between Moldova and the CIS. Then, in February, Chisinau recalled its representative to the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly, saying that the delegate wasn't needed, as Moldova wasn't very active in the CIS.

Another snub came in April, when the Moldovan government revoked the CIS agreement regarding the activities of Mir, a Moscow-led TV and radio company that broadcasts in Russian across the CIS. Speaking at the time, government spokesman Daniel Voda said that Moldova "will no longer finance propaganda and disinformation," a reference to the channels' coverage of the Ukraine war.

More agreements between Moldova and the CIS are likely to be revoked. The Foreign Ministry told RFE/RL's Moldovan Service on March 20 that the process of rescinding the agreements was complex but that the government had identified a number of cooperation deals that it deemed "unnecessary and inappropriate to be kept in force for the Republic of Moldova...in accordance with the norms of international law and the provisions of national legislation."

'A Body For Russian Influence'

Founded in 1991 after the break-up of the Soviet Union, many participating states initially saw the CIS as a useful forum for economic and political cooperation and the facilitation of trade. The CIS also coordinates election monitoring in its members states, along with combating security challenges and threats. But the organization has been waning for years, with reduced participation and some of its members wary of Russian dominance.

Under the pretext of harmonizing the legislation of its member states, the former Moldovan ambassador to Russia, Anatol Taranu, told RFE/RL's Moldovan Service that the CIS's Interparliamentary Assembly "is nothing but a body through which the Russian Federation tries to influence the legislative activity in the CIS area."

There are currently nine full member states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Turkmenistan and Ukraine are so-called founding states but not full members, and Kyiv stopped participating after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 before withdrawing all its representatives in 2018. Georgia left the organization after its 2008 war with Russia.

For some of Moldova's 20 delegates to the CIS's Interparliamentary Assembly, especially those from the pro-EU ruling party, the organization has been anemic for years, and their participation has diminished. Natalia Davidovici, a deputy from the PAS and also a delegate to the Interparliamentary Assembly, said that since she was elected to the Moldovan parliament in 2021, she had not participated in any meeting or session of the assembly.

"There was no collaboration in this forum. This procedure [of leaving the Interparliamentary Assembly] is a formal one, because we are not working in this structure. Now we are just noting a fact, because we have not collaborated with this structure for two years," Davidovici told RFE/RL.

Vasile Bolea, a deputy for the opposition, pro-Russian Moldovan Socialist Party (PSRM) and another delegate to the CIS assembly, said that he did not participate in last year's assembly because of "logistical problems." There were no more flights to Russia, he said, adding that the Chisinau parliament refused to pay for his travel.

The aim of Moldova's current leaders to distance themselves from the CIS and move closer to the West is a precarious endeavor, and one that could only exacerbate strains between Moscow and Chisinau.

With President Sandu attempting to move Moldova westward out of Russia's orbit, in June 2002, Moldova was granted EU candidate status. And while Moldova is not aiming to join the NATO military alliance, as neutrality is enshrined in its constitution, Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu said in November 2022 that that didn't have to translate into self-isolation, demilitarization, or indifference toward world affairs.

'Russophobic' Moldova

None of this has pleased Moscow. Earlier this year, a member of Russian President Vladimir Putin's Human Rights Council, Aleksandr Brod, said that Moldova "continues to adopt the worst Russophobic characteristics of the West." In a January interview with TASS, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Second CIS Department, Aleksei Polishchuk, said that Moscow expected that Moldova will remain a member of the CIS and continue to participate in its bodies.

"The CIS is often associated by Moscow with the so-called Russian world," former Ambassador Taranu said. "If the Republic of Moldova were to leave the CIS, it would indirectly declare that it does not belong to the Russian world and has no intention of being in the geopolitical space influenced by the Russian Federation."

Tensions between Chisinau and Moscow have ramped up since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, with fears that Russia could expand the war to Moldova, where up to 1,500 Russian troops are based in the breakaway pro-Moscow Transdniester region. The Moldovan government has been critical of Russian aggression in Ukraine, with Sandu saying in May 2022 that Crimea, the Donbas, and Kyiv are all part of Ukraine.

On February 13, Sandu announced that the Kremlin was planning a coup in her country, claiming that Ukrainian intelligence had flagged details of an alleged plot, accusations that the Kremlin denied. More recently, according to leaked U.S. military documents seen by RFE/RL's Russian Service, the Wagner mercenary group that operates alongside Russian troops in Ukraine was involved in alleged Kremlin-led efforts to whip up civil unrest in Moldova.

Political Divide

Whether or not Moldova will leave the CIS is unclear, especially with domestic political parties split over the issue.

The pro-Russian Socialists have said that Moldova will not survive if it loses its status as a full member of the CIS, as it will be unable to strengthen political, economic, social, and spiritual ties with countries in Eurasia. The other main opposition parties, the Moldovan Communist Party and the Shor Party, are both supportive of Russia and want to stay in the CIS.

Asked by RFE/RL about the benefits that participation in the Interparliamentary Assembly brings to Moldova, Socialist deputy Bolea said: "I don't know what advantages we will gain by leaving the assembly, but it will certainly bring more negative consequences than positive ones. We will not be looked on favorably by the representatives of the other countries that are part of the CIS."

The Socialists argue that the decision to leave the CIS can only be made by calling a referendum. The party has also announced a national campaign "to preserve the membership of the Republic of Moldova within the CIS." Those in favor of Moldova staying in the CIS say that leaving the organization could mean dire economic consequences for Moldova and a disruption of trade with countries of the former Soviet Union.

The Moldovan public also seems split on the benefits of CIS membership, although there is a paucity of polling data on the issue. An April poll from the Moldovan-based polling company iDATA shows that 40.6 percent of Moldovans would want to quit the CIS, while 41.2 percent would want to stay.

Taranu says that revoking the agreement to participate in the Interparliamentary Assembly is a first step in the process of Moldova leaving the CIS, a demonstration of the government's seriousness of intent. But don't expect anything to happen any time soon.

In a recent interview, Prime Minister Dorin Recean, who has previously called the CIS an "inefficient organization," said that Moldova's exit from the CIS "could take years" and that the authorities would make sure that revoking agreements with the CIS didn't adversely affect Moldova's citizens. And if Moldova did attempt to move even closer to the West, he warned, Moscow was unlikely to let Chisinau leave the CIS quietly.
Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi arrived on Thursday afternoon in Saudi Arabia's Jeddah to participate in the 32nd Arab Summit on Friday.

"The summit aims to enhance consultation and coordination between Arab countries to maintain security and stability in the region, and promote Arab interests amidst the escalating crises at the international and regional levels," Egypt's Presidential Spokesperson Ahmed Fahmy said in a statement.

El-Sisi's participation in the summit reflects Egypt's efforts to develop its relations with Arab countries and promote joint action mechanisms.

On Wednesday, Arab foreign ministers held a preparatory meeting in Jeddah ahead of the Arab Summit, where they welcomed Syria back into the Arab fold and reaffirmed the centrality of the Palestinian cause to the pan-Arab agenda.

The decision to accept Syria back took place on 7 May, ending a 12-year suspension.

The heads of Arab states are expected to discuss mediation efforts to end the conflict in Sudan and the latest developments in the Arab-Israeli conflict, including serious Israeli violations in Jerusalem, among other issues.

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SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan -- May has been a month for messages in Uzbekistan.

On the one hand, President Shavkat Mirziyoev's announcement of a snap presidential election and his participation in the vote alongside three friendly candidates confirmed the status of Central Asia's most populous country as a closed shop in the political sense.

On the other hand, the return of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's (EBRD) annual meeting after a two-decade absence showcased an investment and credit-hungry government keen to expand its global economic ties -- which wasn't always the case under Mirziyoev's predecessor, the late Islam Karimov.

The July 9 date for the presidential election was announced just a week after the country passed constitutional changes that included extending the presidential term from five to seven years.

Moreover, the very fact of passing the new constitution has allowed 65-year-old Mirziyoev to reset his term count under a new constitution, bypassing the basic laws enduring -- but seemingly meaningless -- limit on consecutive terms, a sleight of hand Karimov used to clock up a quarter century in power.

That means the 65-year-old Mirziyoev can rule at least until 2037, by which time he would have clocked up nearly 21 years in office and be even older than Karimov was when he died.

But for many foreign businesses eying a market of 35 million people where opportunities have expanded greatly in recent years, the fact the vote is a fait accompli will not be a major concern, argues Alex Melikishvili, principal research analyst at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

In fact, a win for Mirziyoev "safeguards political stability and policy continuity in Uzbekistan, which is what foreign investors typically look at when weighing market entry," he told RFE/RL.

Meetings With History

The city of Samarkand, where the EBRD's three-day annual meeting began on May 16, was once a powerful hub along the historic Silk Road trade route linking East and West, and is now the center of an Uzbek tourism industry that has been thrown wide open by Mirziyoev's reforms.

But it is also the birthplace of Karimov, whose statue in the historical district is a short walk from the grandeur of the Registan Square's trio of bedazzling, intricately patterned madrasahs.

Cast in a benevolent, statesman-like pose, the strongman renowned for his brutality has become a cherished photo opportunity for couples and families from all over Uzbekistan, his pate an occasional stopping point for birds.

Next to the Hazrat Khizr Mosque -- another example of Samarkand's rich Islamic civilization -- is the domed mausoleum where Karimov was laid to rest, still drawing large crowds more than six years after his death.

The last time Uzbekistan hosted an EBRD annual summit -- in the capital, Tashkent, in 2003 -- it was a fiasco.

The Human Rights Watch account from the time described how then-EBRD President Jean Lemierre and British Development Minister Clare Short used keynote speeches to call for improvements in Tashkent's dismal human rights record, particularly on torture.

Karimov, who had reportedly resisted pressure to use his own speech to condemn torture, "removed his headphones and demonstratively covered his ears" during the speeches, HRW wrote.

After that, the bank gradually wound down its projects in the country, as Uzbekistan began a long journey into isolation that grew deeper following a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests in Andijon in 2005.

As the statue, mausoleum, and the name of Uzbekistan's main airport in Tashkent all testify, Mirziyoev has honored Karimov's legacy. But he has also looked to create distance from his rule by championing what he calls the New Uzbekistan -- a country where economic reforms have taken precedence over the political type.

Addressing the EBRD's board of governors in a May 17 speech, Mirziyoev referenced the 2003 meeting directly, though he did not mention Karimov.

"In this context, I would like to emphasize one point: Today's Uzbekistan is not yesterday's Uzbekistan. The fundamental reforms that we began six years ago have completely changed the image of our country.... [We] welcome you, dear friends, in a completely new environment of the New Uzbekistan, which is opening up to the world and is committed to cooperation in all areas," he said, according to the presidential website.

Debt Accrual

Uzbekistan is certainly open to the EBRD again.

The bank spent $900 million on projects in 2022 alone, a record disbursement for Central Asia.

Of the $4 billion the bank has invested since the country gained independence, $3 billion has come during Mirziyoev's six years in office, targeting a bare-bones but largely debt-free economy left behind by Karimov.

Melikishvili, the S&P analyst, said the rapid foreign-debt accrual from the EBRD and other creditors under Mirziyoev's rule was mitigated by "healthy and robust levels of foreign currency and gold reserves" and "should not be a matter of concern given [Mirziyoev's] ambitious plans for the development of Uzbekistan's economy."

"However, obviously much will depend on the successful implementation of the said plans," he added.

As to Mirziyoev's claims of a wholly changed Uzbekistan, observers with a critical eye offer a more nuanced picture.

While his arrival in power precipitated the end of systematic forced labor in the national cotton harvest, the release of political prisoners and the easing of draconian restrictions on freedom of speech, civil activists complain that those gains have been rolled back in the last three or so years.

A lethal crackdown last year on protests in the environmentally devastated autonomous region of Karakalpakstan, meanwhile, has left many questioning the gap between presidents current and former.

"After they allowed space for some criticism, bloggers, journalists, and activists used these opportunities to raise problems, like corruption and other issues," explained Gulnoz Mamarasulova, a Sweden-based Uzbek rights activist, who attended the conference. "This perhaps caused some real concerns for officials, and now we are seeing new challenges in the enabling environment."

Some of those challenges were even on display at the meeting in Samarkand, as seemingly exasperated EBRD staff were more than once called upon to moderate their co-hosts' sometimes officious policing of the event.

On one of these occasions, a security staffer physically prevented a journalist from RFE/RL's Uzbek Service from filming Sardor Umurzakov -- Mirziyoev's powerful chief of staff and a former EBRD staffer -- as the official passed through the venue's lavish conference hall.

On another, security guards briefly appeared set to prevent an activist registered at the event from entering it on account of his rainbow-colored bag -- an apparent affront to a government that has retained its Soviet-style ban on homosexuality.

The activist, Nezir Sinani, was subsequently able to enter.

Compared to the 2003 event, when HRW counted more than 60 Uzbek NGOs in attendance, there were few independent organizations from Uzbekistan this time round -- a fact that activists attributed to systemic barriers to registration that emerged in the second half of Karimovs reign.

'The Repression Is Coming'

Among the businesses that were present at the 2023 EBRD event, there seemed to be little appetite for turning back the clock.

The venue was the upscale Silk Road Samarkand development, opened last year and boasting an eternal city with replicas of Uzbekistan's most famous heritage sites, as well as five-star hotels and glittering conference facilities.

One of the companies represented at the event was the Saudi Arabia-headquartered ACWA Power, whose CEO, Marco Arcelli, told RFE/RL by e-mail that the Uzbek market "holds immense importance" for his company. ACWA Power's "transformative portfolio of energy projects," including key projects in Uzbekistan's fast-growing renewables sector, now represents a total investment of $7.5 billion, according to Arcelli. "In fact, Uzbekistan is currently one of the fastest-growing portfolios and our second-largest market in terms of investment, after our home base of Saudi Arabia," he said.

"Gas development, or trying to," a smiling North American businessman said when asked why he came to the conference. He said he had been coming to Uzbekistan for "the last few years now."

"They are still learning, and we are trying to help them in terms of learning about how contracts tend to be structured in the industry. But the opportunities are definitely there," the businessman said, also requesting anonymity.

At a table nearby, a representative of one of Uzbekistan's top commercial banks, Asia Alliance Bank, expressed excitement about his forthcoming trip to Prague for a conference on green finance. "This is very much a new direction for us," he told RFE/RL.

Immediately after his address to the EBRD, Mirziyoev was bound for Xian, China, and the May 18-19 China-Central Asia summit, the first-ever, in-person meeting between Beijing and the region's five countries after the 5+1 debuted in an online format last year.

That follows a trip to Germany at the beginning of this month and prefaces a visit to Italy slated for June.

He need not worry too much about missing days on the campaign trail.

On July 9, the incumbent will face three vetted opponents that have no track record of opposition to the government and have instead served in positions as his subordinate, including, in one case, as education minister.

Mirziyoev's own nomination came from the same party that used to nominate Karimov back in his day, the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, a jarring indicator of continuity rather than change.

Top officials, for their part, continue to talk up a desire for further progress, with Mirziyoev's deputy chief of staff, Komil Allamjonov, giving Uzbekistan's freedom of speech a "5.5 out of 10" rating in comments earlier this week, acknowledging there is "still much to be done."

Uzbekistan this month fell to 137th place out of 180 countries in the annual press-freedom rankings published by Reporters Without Borders, four places below its standing last year.

But Dilmurad Yusupov, a Tashkent-based activist for disability rights and one of several civic voices to emerge in the early years of the Mirziyoev opening, says that Uzbeks do not need to look at rankings to get a sense of receding freedoms.

"You can see it with your own eyes. People are self-censoring because they are afraid," he told RFE/RL. "In 2017 you could feel the freedom in the air. But now it feels like the repression is coming."
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Thursday said he had agreed to a Russian proposal to hold talks in Moscow next week with the president of its historic rival Azerbaijan.

The negotiations will take place as tensions rise between the Caucasus neighbours, who have fought two wars over disputed territory and who often see deadly clashes along their volatile border.

Locked in a decades-long territorial conflict, Baku and Yerevan are negotiating a peace agreement with mediation from the European Union and United States, whose diplomatic engagement in the Caucasus has irked traditional regional power broker Russia.

"We received a proposal from Russia to hold a trilateral meeting at the highest level under the mediation of the president of Russia on May 25. We have accepted that proposal," Pashinyan told his cabinet meeting in Yerevan.

On Friday, foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are set to hold talks in Moscow hosted by their Russian counterpart.

Baku and Yerevan fought two wars -- in 2020 and in the 1990s -- for control of Azerbaijan's mostly Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Six weeks of hostilities in autumn 2020 ended with a Russian-brokered ceasefire that saw Armenia cede swathes of territory it had controlled for decades.

Yerevan has grown increasingly frustrated over what it calls Moscow's failure to protect Armenia in the face of military threat from Azerbaijan.

With Russia bogged down in Ukraine and unwilling to strain ties with Azerbaijan's key ally Turkey, the United States and European Union have sought to steer the talks.

On Sunday, Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met in Brussels for a new round of talks hosted by European Council President Charles Michel.

Another meeting between Pashinyan and Aliyev was set for June 1 in Moldova and is expected to involve French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

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Norwegian Ambassador Hilde Klemetsdal said that Egyptian-Norwegian relations date back to the 13th century, when King Haakon IV Haakonsson (1217-1263) of Norway decided to send an ambassador to Cairo along with gifts to the Egyptian Sultan, which were trained hunting falcons.





Klemetsdal added that the relationship between the two countries has developed over the past years to include cooperation in the field of renewable energy.

The two sides signed a number of agreements recently to establish new and pioneering projects in the field of clean energy, because of Egypts enormous natural resources, whether in solar or wind energy, which qualifies it to be a regional hub for green energy.





This came during a celebration held by the Embassy of Norway in Cairo on the occasion of Constitution Day.

Constitution Day, or Norwegian National Day, is recognized yearly on 17 May and is an official holiday that is celebrated with children's parades.

Rami Atalah's Egyptian musical band gave a thrilling performance, and the ambassador was keen to wear the national uniform of her country.

At the end of the ceremony, the guests were also given gifts consisting of a pin bearing the flags of Egypt and Norway together as a symbol of friendship between the two countries.

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A TRAIN which carried coal wagons between South Yorkshire and Manchester made its familiar trip to become a Rotherham museums newest exhibit.

The 6.5-ton drivers cab section of a British Railways Class 76 locomotive would have regularly travelled from the Dearne Valley pits through Sheffield and the Woodhead tunnel to the north-west.

It has been transferred from Manchesters Museum of Science & Industry to the South Yorkshire Transport Museum at Aldwarke and will make its next public appearance at the open day on June 11.

This is an important piece of history returning to Rotherham, said SYTM secretary and trustee Martyn Benson.

It was delivered to us in late March, as shown in the photo, and as it weighed 6.5 tons, it wasnt a case of just throwing it in a van!

It is from of one of the unique design of electric locomotives that primarily used to haul coal wagons from the Dearne Valley mines.

It is, therefore, an important part of the history of transport in South Yorkshire.

SYTM is creating a display around the exhibit compiling information for visitors about the particular cab plus its class of locomotives.

Visit sytm.co.uk for more details about the museum, including opening times.
Union Ministers Mansukh Mandaviya and Ashwini Vaishnaw

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya shared info after the Cabinet meeting

NEW-DELHI: Farmers have received a big gift from the Modi Government. The Central Government has approved a fertilizer subsidy of Rs 1.08 lakh crore for the Kharif season. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya shared this information after the Cabinet meeting.

The Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the proposal to give subsidy of Rs 70,000 crore on urea and Rs 38,000 crore on DAP and other fertilizers for the kharif season. Thus, the worth of total fertilizer subsidy for the kharif season has increased to Rs 1.08 lakh crore. The Union Cabinet in its meeting has approved the proposal to give Rs 38,000 crore subsidy to farmers on phosphate and potash (P&K) fertilizers for the 2023-24 monsoon season. The fall in international prices of P&K fertilizers in the last few months has reduced the subsidy burden. With this, the fertilizer subsidy can go up to Rs 2.25 lakh crore in the entire financial year of 2023-24.

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Briefing reporters about the decision taken in the cabinet, Mandaviya said that the cabinet has decided to give subsidy of Rs 76 per kg for nitrogen, Rs 41 per kg for phosphorus, Rs 15 per kg for potash and Rs 2.8 per kg for sulphur. The proposal has been approved. Mansukh Mandavia while informing the decision of the cabinet said that 325 to 350 lakh metric tons of urea is used in the country. 100 to 125 lakh metric tonnes of DAP and NPK are used. 50-60 lakh metric tonnes of MOP is used. The Modi government has increased the subsidy so that the farmers can get fertilizer on time and the MRP does not increase. For kharif crops, the government has decided that the GOI will not increase the price of fertilizers. Government of India will spend Rs 1 lakh 8 thousand crore as subsidy for kharif season crop.

With this, the Union government on Wednesday also approved the second installment of the Production Linked Incentive Scheme for IT hardware with a total budget outlay of Rs 17,000 crore. This will include IT Hardware PLI Under scheme-2, laptops, tablets, personal computers equipped with all the equipment (all in one PC), servers etc. Union Information Technology and Telecommunication Minister Ashwini Vaishnav told reporters after the Cabinet meeting, "The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the PLI scheme for IT hardware with a budget outlay of Rs 17,000 crore. The duration of this program is 6 years." The Union Minister also said that this incentive scheme is expected to generate Rs 3.35 lakh crore and investment of Rs 2,430 crore. This is expected to provide direct employment to about 75,000 people.




Siddaramaiah to be the New Chief Minister of Karnataka

Siddaramaiah to be the New CM of Karnataka, DK Shivakumar to be the Deputy CM, Oath Ceremony on May 20

BENGALURU: After four days of discussions, Karnataka has got its new Chief Minister. Siddaramaiah will be the new Chief Minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister. The party made the announcement after several hours of discussions between Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi and former chief ministers Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.

Siddaramaiah has won from Varuna assembly constituency, while Shivakumar has won from Kanakpura seat. Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, K.C. Venugopal said, "The Congress President has decided after extensive deliberations that Siddaramaiah will be the Chief Minister of Karnataka and D.K. Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister.

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He said that the oath-taking ceremony will be held on May 20. Venugopal said that along with the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, a group of ministers will also take oath. Crediting the party's resounding victory in the assembly elections to the two leaders of the southern state, he said, "Both leaders are a great asset of the Congress in Karnataka."

Addressing a press conference today, Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said that victory in Karnataka does not belong to the party but to the people. He said that the party president has decided who will become the chief minister.

Shivakumar said on Thursday morning, "I agree with the party's formula. Lok Sabha elections are ahead and I am ready for the responsibilities. Keeping the interest of the party in mind, I have agreed."

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Notably, The Congress has called a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Bangalore today at 7 pm. Central observers of the party will also attend it. The swearing-in ceremony of the new government will be held on May 20 in Bangalore. Earlier, two meetings between Rahul and Kharge with Siddaramaiah and DK were inconclusive.
Navjot Singh Sidhu

The High Court will pronounce its decision in the Next Hearing

CHANDIGARH: A Hearing was held in the Punjab and Haryana High Court regarding the reduction in the security cover of Punjab Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu. The Punjab government had submitted a sealed report assessing Sidhu's security in the HC. The High Court said that after analysing the report of the 'AAP' government of Punjab, the case will be heard on Monday. The High Court will pronounce its decision in the next hearing.

In the hearing held 6 days ago, the Punjab government could not present the status report. They said that the reason for this was non-response from the central agencies. After which the High Court ordered the state government to submit the report by May 18. It is worth mentioning here that a few days ago, Sidhu had registered a case in Patiala that his servant had seen an unknown person on the roof. Sidhu had said that his life is in danger.

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Navjot Sidhu has recently returned from Patiala Jail after serving a one-year sentence in the road rage case. The AAP government had reduced his security cover from Z Plus to Y Plus. After which, Sidhu filed a petition in the High Court. Last month, during the hearing on April 28, the High Court issued a notice to the government and sought its response.

After this, during the hearing held on May 5, the Punjab government asked to submit a report on May 12 for Sidhu's security review. Citing non-availability of information from central agencies on the previous date, the government had sought two weeks' time.

In his petition, Navjot Sidhu has demanded increased security citing the threat to his life. Sidhu clearly said that he is receiving death threats. On the other hand, upon reaching Moosewala's house after being released from jail, Navjot Singh Sidhu had said, "The gangsters were openly threatening me. In such a situation, after Sidhu Moose Wala, now the government wants to kill another Sidhu."
Pratima Bhullar Maldonado

I have spent more than 25 years of my life in this field: Pratima Bhullar Maldonado

USA: Indian-origin police officer Captain Pratima Bhullar Maldonado has become the highest-ranking South Asian woman in the New York Police Department. Recently, she have been promoted.

According to a news report, Maldonado runs the 102nd Police Precinct in South Richmond Hill, Queens. She was promoted as Captain last month. Maldonado, a mother of four, was born in Punjab and lived there until the age of 9 before moving to Queens, New York.

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"It feels like coming home. I have spent more than 25 years of my life in this field," Maldonado said. South Richmond Hill is home to the country's largest Sikh community. After coming from the Gurdwara, Maldonado said, "I like going to the same Gurdwara that I went to as a child and now as a captain."

She said, "This is a big responsibility. I want to be a better and better example not only for my community but also for other women and children who see us every day. How they view law enforcement will change their perspective. My father used to drive a taxi for many years. They supported us. He was a hardworking person. He died in 2006 before I joined the police. If they were here now, they would be very proud."
Under the Patronage of the Minister of Finance of Egypt H.E. Mohammad Maait & In the Presence of H.E. Minister of Health & Population Dr. Khaled Abdel Al Gaffar & H.E. Chairman of GlobeMed Egypt Michel Pharaon.

Universal Health Insurance Authority and Northeastern University and GlobeMed Group Collaborate to launch the Recommendations of the Impactful Research Initiative: Harnessing the Role of the Private Sector in Advancing the Universal Health Coverage in Egypt

During a conference held under the patronage and in the presence of H.E. Dr. Mohammad Maait, the Minister of Finance and Board Chair of the Universal Health Insurance Authority, the Bouve College of Health Sciences of Northeastern University, USA in collaboration with GlobeMed Group, the leading healthcare benefits management group in the Middle East, launched the insights and recommendations of its impactful research initiative Harnessing the Role of the Private Sector in advancing the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Egypt. The prestigious event was held in the Four Seasons Nile Plaza Hotel in Cairo, Egypt.

The Minister of Finance H.E. Dr. Maait inaugurated the launch event in the presence of Minister of Health and Population H.E. Dr. Khaled Abdel Al Gaffar, the Advisor to the President of Egypt for health and prevention affairs H.E. Dr. Mohamed Awad Taj El-Din, the Northeastern University President Dr. Joseph Aoun, H.E. Mr. Michel Pharaon, Chairman of GlobeMed Egypt and Deans of Bouve College of Health Sciences and DAmore-McKim School of Business, along with prominent attendance including presidents and board members of major health insurance organizations in Egypt, in addition to representatives of major insurance and brokerage companies in Egypt and executive attendance from the insurance sector.

During his participation virtually from Boston, Dr. Joseph Aoun emphasized the importance of the insights and recommendations of the initiative and the essential role of Northeastern University. He also praised the efforts of the minister, the health insurance sector, and the interdisciplinary team of researchers from Northeastern University and GlobeMed.

In his opening speech, Dr. Mohamed Maait said that the study is part of the efforts of the Ministry of Finance and the Universal Health Insurance Authority (UHIA) to establish a universal health insurance system for all Egyptians that covers all diseases, and in line with what was indicated by Article 18 of the Egyptian Constitution and the right of every citizen to health and integrated health care in accordance with quality standards.

H.E. the Minister of Finance also emphasized the importance of the efforts of the Egyptian government to involve the private sector in order to strengthen the health system and achieve reform in the Egyptian health sector by implementing the universal health coverage through the implementation of the Universal Health Insurance in Egypt, in which the UHIA constitutes the responsible authority for its management and financing. This includes targeting the strategic purchase of quality health services, according to the needs of citizens, at fair and flexible prices, to achieve the best health outcomes in return for what is spent, while contracting with healthcare providers and various medical treatment systems, as well as the citizens right to choose treatment facilities from the healthcare providers contracted with the UHIA to provide the service according to the specified referral levels.

In his speech, H.E. Dr. Khaled Abdel El-Ghaffar stressed the importance of the research imitative and the steps taken to implement the Universal Health Insurance in Egypt for the benefit of the community. He also emphasized the importance of the role of the Private sector.

H.E. Michel Pharaon praised the efforts and the vision of the Egyptian leadership led by his H.E. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. He also praised the efforts of the interdisciplinary team of researchers from Northeastern University along with experts from GlobeMed Group which managed $3 billion in claims worth in the region during 2022 for insurance programs in the public and private sectors in 12 countries in the MENA region. He considered that this research study constitutes a modest stepping stone in the development of the universal health coverage. through cooperation between the public and private sectors in the development of superior administrative mechanisms. He also stressed the importance of supporting and encouraging the Universal Health Insurance Authority in Egypt, given the importance of the quality experiences in Egypt, which affect the policies of many Arab and African countries, and concerns many researchers in the world.

During the conference, Dr. Fadi El-Jardali, representing the team of researchers at Northeastern University, stressed the importance of this initiative to build on the achievements made since the adoption of the Universal Health Insurance law in Egypt and to ensure a sustainable impact and tangible results through the participation of stakeholders, including the private sector. With Egypt's progress in implementing the new Universal Health Insurance system, one of the important areas that require study and the focus of this project is the role of the private sector in developing the Universal Health Coverage program.

In a detailed presentation, Dr. El-Jardali presented results of the research project, which saw the participation of number of researchers from Northeastern University in the United States, in addition to researchers from the region. During which he demonstrated the experiences of countries in involving the private sector to find solutions to the challenges facing the health system. He pointed out the importance of adopting a strategy that benefits from the strengths of both the public and private sectors. Dr. Jardali concluded his presentation with the critical insights and recommendations of this report at the level of governance, financing, service delivery and infrastructure, based on a comprehensive review of the literature and interviews conducted with the concerned parties.

The conference concluded with a discussion panel attended by H.E. the Minister of Finance, H.E. the Minister of Health and Population, and H.E. Mr. Michel Pharaon with representatives from the health insurance sector, where they discussed the recommendations and results of the study along with the way forward for implementing these recommendations and achieving the desired results for the benefit of the Egyptian citizens.











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Hottest Summer

United Nations has issued a warning of Rising Temperature

GENEVA: The Global Temperature is likely to rise in the next five years. As per the report, people have to face the hottest summer between the year 2023 and 2027. It is also being estimated that there will be a year in these five years which will break the temperature record of 2016.

The World Meteorological Organization of the United Nations has said that the global temperature is close to exceeding the target set in the Paris Climate Agreement. In fact, the annual mean temperature for the year 2016 was 1.28 degrees Celsius, which was higher than in pre-industrial times (average period 1850-1900).

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Rising TemperatureSignificantly, The Eight warmest years on record were between 2015 and 2022. Now, the temperature is likely to rise further due to the acceleration of climate change. According to the WMO, there is a 98 percent chance of seeing record levels of heat in the next five years.

It is worth mentioning here that the United Nations has issued a warning of rising temperatures due to greenhouse gases and El Nino. Temperatures are likely to rise further due to the acceleration of climate change. Global temperature in 2022 was 1.15 degrees Celsius above the 1850-1900 average. Apart from this, the change in weather can be attributed the most responsibility for the intense heat in April.
Australia will on Thursday release April figures for unemployment, headlining a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

The jobless rate is expected to hold steady at 3.5 percent, with the Australian tipped to add 25.0K jobs following the increase of 53.0K jobs in March. The participation rate is called steady at 66.7 percent.

Japan will provide April numbers for imports, exports and trade balance. Imports are expected to fall 0.3 percent on year after rising 7.3 percent in March. Exports are called higher by an annual 3.0 percent, easing from 4.3 percent in the previous month. The trade deficit is pegged at 613.8 billion yen following the 755.1 billion yen shortfall a month earlier.

New Zealand will see Q1 figures for producer prices. Inputs are expected to hold steady at 0.5 percent on quarter, while outputs are tipped to rise 0.8 percent, easing from 0.9 percent in the three months prior.

Hong Kong will see April figures for unemployment, with forecasts pinning the jobless rate at 2.9 percent - down from 3.1 percent in March.

Finally, the in Indonesia are closed in observance of Ascension Day and will reopen on Friday.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Economic News

What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
European stocks advanced on Thursday after U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy underscored their determination to reach a deal soon.

This helped ease fears of a potential U.S. debt default as a June 1 deadline loomed.

Meanwhile, traders await Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey's testimony to the U.K. parliament Treasury Select Committee, where he will outline to MPs how the MPC sees the prospects for the U.K. .

The pan European STOXX 600 rose 0.6 percent to 466.58 after declining 0.2 percent on Wednesday.

The German DAX rallied 1.5 percent, France's CAC 40 added 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.6 percent.

Trading volumes were thin as several , including those in the Nordics and Switzerland, remain closed for Ascension Day.

Volkswagen jumped 2.3 percent after the German automaker announced plans to overhaul its core brand to increase efficiency and returns.

Deutsche Bank AG climbed 3.5 percent after reports that the lender will pay $75 million to settle litigation alleging the bank financially benefited from supporting Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking scheme.

British luxury fashion brand Burberry soared 5.2 percent after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales.

EasyJet gained about 1 percent after narrowing its first-half pre-tax loss.

Premier Foods soared 4.5 percent after posting a strong annual profit and raising its dividend payout.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Language Audit organising team. From left to right: Lebogang Boemo, Andiswa Bukula, Professor Dion Nkomo, Juan Steyn and Rooweither Mabuya. Photo cred: Vusumzi Tshekema.

By Esethu Seholoba

Rhodes University hosted the first sector-wide Language Resources Audit conducted by the South African Centre for Digital Language Resources (SADiLAR) at the Continuing Education Centre this week. The SADiLAR's audit team was led by their Operations Director, Jaun Steyn. Professor Dion Nkomo, the NRF SARChI Chair in Intellectualisation of African Languages, Multilingualism and Education, and Vuyo Baneti, the Equity and Institutional Culture Manager, received it.

Section 29(2) of the South African Constitution states, "Everyone has the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public educational institutions where that education is reasonably practicable. In order to ensure the effective access to, and implementation of, this right, the state must consider all reasonable educational alternatives". The audit is intended to ensure that this mandate is upheld through the development and sharing of relevant language resources across the higher education sector.

According to Professor Nkomo, the audit is a stock-taking exercise to determine the resources and infrastructure available across the Higher Education sector to facilitate resource sharing and collaboration in developing resources needed to implement the Language Policy Framework for Public Higher Education Institutions and institutional language policies. The audit was approved by the Universities South Africa (USAf) Board, which constitutes the vice-chancellors of the 26 public universities, added Professor Nkomo.

Professor Nkomo said the audit also aims to help institutions develop other resources to implement their language policies. Rhodes University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sizwe Mabizela, spoke extensively about the importance of the language policy and the implementation thereof. This is an important exercise in the life of Rhodes University because it will enable us to reflect on language resource needs as an institution and inform our language policy review, promote multilingualism and the implementation of the Language Policy Framework for Public Higher Education Institutions. This exercise will also inform the conceptualisation of the Language Centre, which is one of the priority goals in our strategic document, the Institutional Development Plan. It is of utmost importance to preserve language because if we lose it, we lose our identity, said Professor Mabizela.

Professor Nkomo indicated a few milestones Rhodes University has achieved in its quest to implement the language policy. He highlighted that the institution's language policy is a milestone in its own right. He said the shift from being a historically monolingual institution to one with a policy that mandates it to embrace multilingualism, including isiXhosa, is a milestone for the institution. He applauded the institution's significant progress in promoting linguistic diversity. He also cautioned that the University should not be complacent because it has a language policy; it needs a monitoring and evaluation process to ensure implementation.

The session was closed off with the students partaking in answering a 30-minute survey. The survey required students to list some of their concerns with the implementation of the language policy so far, provide an opinion about how far the institution has come in its quest, and make much-needed suggestions as to the implementation of the policy. The students raised a need for easier access to internet sources in the other official languages embraced by the institution's language policy. They presented that the institution needs to publicise its language policy and plan on its official website as an accountability mechanism. They agreed that there has been progress in implementing the language policy.

Source: Division of Communication and Advancement
Rafale crossover SUV by Renault is the brands flagship and will take a coupe roofline design and feature the companys E-Tech Hybrid powertrains

Renault is naming its upcoming flagship SUV Rafale, after the famous Rafale 4.5 generation jet fighter manufactured by French brand Dassault Aviation. Just like 36 Rafale jets have reached India, Renaults Rafale crossover SUV is likely to reach India as well.

We say this because Renault India teased Rafale crossover SUV on its social media handles, which could be a hint of a launch in the Asian sub-continent. Renault will debut Rafale at the 54th Paris Air Show in La Bourget held between 19th and 25th of June, 2023. Rafale will be Renaults flagship crossover SUV offering upon launch.

Renault India Teases Rafale Crossover SUV  The next flagship

Renault will underpin Rafale crossover SUV with CMF-CD platform and will feature E-Tech Hybrid powertrains. It will fall in D-segment SUV space in Europe and hence it will be under 5m in length. Intended rivals are Audi Q5, Alfa Romeo Stelvio, Tesla Model Y, BMW X3, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Volvo XC60, Kia Sorento, Lexus NX and the likes.

Rafale will follow brands effort in SUV space after Austral and Escape. The teaser shows Rafale in its side profile. Looking at its silhouette, Rafale will take a coupe-ish crossover form. This sloping roofline looks stylish and will breathe fresh air into its segment which is mostly occupied with typical upright-design SUVs.

all new Renault Rafale

a name that reflects a clear vision of performance.

1934 Caudron-Renault Rafale.

2023 new Renault Rafale.

find out more on 18 June.https://t.co/hLp4R4zPd9#RenaultRafaleSUV #hightech #ComingSoon *subject to model release in select markets pic.twitter.com/ul222nVyBd  Renault India (@RenaultIndia) May 17, 2023

The roof spoiler finished in red, lends a touch of sportiness to this design and reminds me of Porsche Macan, which is one of Rafales primary rivals. We can see some German design influences like the pointy end where upper window line and belt line meet. The cuts and creases in body panels is typically European.

There are interesting LED elements at the front. DRL at the top and headlights below it is highly possible. LED tail lights are likely to be of a connected design with a sleek light bar in the middle.

Renaults aircraft manufacturing lineage

If youre still wondering why the Rafale name, that is to celebrate Renaults aircraft manufacturing history in 1930s. Word Rafale means gust of wind in French. The companys founder Louis Renault was an aviation enthusiast and hence acquired Caudron in 1933 and renamed it, Caudron Renault, in 1934.

In 1934, Caudron Renault came up with C460, an aircraft designed to break records. It is a single-seater racing aircraft that became the first ever Rafale aircraft. Hence the name. Launch is probable in 2024, but it will debut next month. Renault will reveal powertrain-related and other details in the future. We hope India launch is on the cards too.
Hyundai Exter packs in a range of segment-first and best-in-class features, which could be a reason to worry for rivals like Tata Punch

In Indian automotive space that is dominated by Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors are facing a tough battle for the second position. While Hyundai is ahead in most months, the overall lead is not enough to feel comfortable. A significant percentage of Tata sales comes from Nexon and Punch, which have achieved cumulative production milestones of 5 lakh and 2 lakh units, respectively.

Like assassins are sent to eliminate rivals, Hyundai seems to be following a similar strategy to take on Tata Punch. Hyundais answer to Punch is Exter that will enter production around July. Market launch is expected around August. Bookings are currently open for a token amount of Rs 11k.

Reasons why Hyundai Exter is worth the wait

Youthful design and styling  Hyundai Exter appears to have a more dynamic profile. Or it could be just the human tendency to be attracted to something new. Some of the key highlights of Exter include parametric front grille, rectangular headlamps, top-mounted H-shaped LED DRLs, prominent skid plate, squared wheel arches, blacked-out pillars, roof rails, body cladding and diamond cut alloy wheels. It is also expected to get a single pane sunroof.

More spacious  Hyundai Exter could offer more space on the inside. It can come from effective utilization of cabin space. Dimensionally, Exter will be around the same size as Tata Punch.

Segment-first features  Exter is bringing in loads of new equipment. One of the key highlights is front and rear dashcam, which can be useful for collecting evidence, as required for making insurance claims. Other segment-first features include tyre pressure monitoring system and burglar alarm. Exter will be the first sub-4-meter SUV in the country to be equipped with 6 airbags as standard across all trims. Although not confirmed, Exter could also get largest-in-segment touchscreen infotainment system.

Advanced safety features  To take on Tata Punch that has 5-star safety rating (Global NCAP), Hyundai has equipped Exter with more than 40 advanced safety features. It includes segment-first features such as ESC (electronic stability control), VSM (vehicle stability management) and HAC (hill assist control). Other safety features include auto headlamps, headlamp escort function, rear parking camera, ABS with EBD, rear parking sensors, emergency stop signal and 3-point seat belt & seatbelt reminder (all seats).

Exter CNG from Day 1  As compared to Tata Punch that is yet to get a CNG option, Hyundai Exter will have CNG right from start. Exter will have a total of 3 powertrain options. The 1.2-litre Kappa Petrol engine (E20 Fuel Ready) generates 83 hp of max power and 113.8 Nm of peak torque. Transmission choices include 5-speed manual and smart auto AMT. The bi-fuel petrol with CNG variant will have 5-speed manual transmission.

Is it worth the wait?

With such compelling features on offer, Exter is definitely worth the wait  especially when the launch is so close. If you are planning to buy Punch, it is advisable to wait till official launch of Exter. Once Exter prices are out along with variant wise features, it will help you decide better, as to which of the two to buy.

With a fully-loaded Hyundai Exter, Tata Motors may have to introduce some updates for Punch. Tata also seems to be focusing on a new front in the form of Punch EV, which is expected to be launched soon. Hyundai Exter EV is also in the making.
How should we react to people who are homeless? Its an issue facing more and more Americans, as the problem keeps swelling, particularly in our cities. One reaction is to run from the word. Using "homeless," or specifically "the homeless," has been assailed by activists as insensitive. Alternative suggestions range from "the unhoused" to "the unsheltered" to "urban campers" or even "curbside community." Stop. The word is not the problem. And debating it is a diversion from the serious issue it represents, and how we are  or arent  responding to it. One major response is fear. People see a homeless person, they cross the street. They avoid. If that person is screaming, muttering or threatening passersby, the fear increases. Recently, in New York City, a homeless man with a long criminal record named Jordan Neely reportedly made threats to passengers in a subway car and talked about not caring if he died. One of the passengers, a former Marine, assumedly out of fear that the man would harm others, put Neely in a chokehold. Neely later died. The former Marine has now been charged with manslaughter. Theres nothing good about either of those outcomes.

Hard to find the right response

Another reaction to homelessness is compassion. This is the driving force behind the countless shelters, rehab programs, outreach groups and faith-based initiatives across the nation that help homeless people find their way to a better and healthier existence. But even compassion has its controversy. Some cities, under the premise of being compassionate, have treated homelessness less as a problem than as a sacred existence, one that should be welcome anywhere and not interfered with. Thus makeshift tents, open-air drug use, even urination or defecation is tolerated in areas that were previously devoid of such issues. Sometimes, these homeless encampments spring up near expensive homes that owners purchased in the hopes of living in a "nice" neighborhood. To complain however, is to be branded a bigot or a privileged ogre.

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Cynicism is also a common response to homelessness. "These people dont want to work" or "if you give them money, theyll just buy drugs or alcohol." Such sentiments make people walk past men sleeping in the street, or drive past women begging on a corner with a cardboard sign.

Another reaction is anger. People are fed up. They dont want their families constantly exposed to this plight. In Seattle, where homeless encampments are rampant, citizens have been complaining that their children, on the way to school, have to walk past drug addicts sometimes shooting up right in front of them.

Meanwhile at our southern border, a record number of migrants crossed last week with the expiration of Title 42, and, almost by definition, none of them have homes. Consequently, many are living in the streets of border cities like El Paso, Texas, leaving the permanent residents angry and resentful.



Ways to help



So what is the proper reaction to homelessness in America, which has been ticking up every year since 2016? Fear? Compassion? Cynicism? Anger?

How about we begin with "understanding"? I dont mean understanding as a euphemism for embracing homelessness. I mean understanding as in who are these people, and what is causing their status?

Now, you have the right to ask "What do you know about it?" Well. I have been working with the homeless population since 2006, when I founded SAY Detroit in direct response to how we were treating homeless people during the Super Bowl. Our numerous charities have operated and funded programs for people in various states of homelessness for the last 17 years.

I also operate an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where most of our 60 children come from homeless backgrounds.

This work has not only exposed me to countless members of the homeless population, but to many great people who work with them. One is Chad Audi, the CEO and president of the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, whose programs take care of 2,200 homeless and substance-abuse victims every night in our city.

So I asked Chad first to break down the homeless population, and how they got that way.

"I would estimate around 50% are dealing with mental health issues," he said. "About 30% are homeless due to drug and alcohol abuse. And about 20% are homeless due to an economic setback."

While there are, of course, crossovers, the easiest segment to help, Audi said, is the smallest one. Those who became homeless due to a job loss or a workplace issue often just need a stopgap to get back on their feet. A brief stretch in shelter. A retraining program.

The hardest group to help is the largest segment: those with mental health issues.

"I would break this group in two," Audi said, "those with moderate issues who can function well if their medication is prescribed and taken, and those with severe issues who may require to be in institutions."

Audi laments that the government does not invest nearly enough in the mental health area. Instead, he said, it tends to want to build housing and more housing.

But housing people who "are not ready to be homeowners" often fails, Audi said, and ultimately results with those people back in the street.



Getting to the root of the issue



Audi also confirms that there is a chunk of the homeless population that does not want help, no matter what is offered.

"The chronically homeless often wont go anyplace where you have control or rules. They usually are dealing with some mental health issues, or they dont want to be told they cant use drugs or alcohol. They dont want a structured environment."

The challenge is to help those who are open to help, with programs that address the core problems.

For many years, I have attended The DRMMs "graduation" ceremonies, where those who have completed treatment and training programs, often taking up to two years, are given diplomas and celebrated for the work they put in to get back on their feet.

Temporary housing enabled them to improve, and readied them for a job and independence.

But such programs take time and money. And willing participants. Not every homeless person fits that bill. People need to be honest about that. Just as we need to be honest that homelessness is not a one-size-fits-all issue. People become homeless for various reasons. And certain solutions makes sense in one case, but not in another.

Ultimately, a societys response to the homeless issue will depend on its viewpoint. In California, where housing prices are astronomical, some have taken to opening parking lots all night to allow those who dont have housing to live in their cars. Some folks think this is brilliant. Others, like Audi, believe it perpetuates the problem.

"We have to stand up for the truth. The truth is a homeless person usually has issues that made them homeless. No one is saying homeless people are bad people, or second-class citizens. But most do have issues.

"Our job is to change government policies so we can attract homeless citizens to programs where they can get help and get a safe place to go. Where they can get back on their feet."

Whats your response to a homeless person? Hopefully, before cynicism, anger, violence or misplaced over-compassion, it starts with understanding who that person is sleeping in the street, or lying on a bench, or begging on a corner, and what brought them there.

If were not realistic about the problem, we cant expect much from our solutions.

(COMMENT, BELOW)




Egypt will receive $1 million from the Japanese government to alleviate the suffering of Sudanese who have fled their country to Egypt.

The sum is part of a $3.5 million grant Japan has allocated to displaced Sudanese in Chad, South Sudan, and Egypt, read a statement by the Japanese Embassy in Egypt on Wednesday.

The emergency grant aid aims "to alleviate the suffering of forcibly displaced people and returnees forced to flee from Sudan to Egypt due to the armed clashes in Sudan," the embassy said.

The aid will be used to provide food and non-food items for Sudanese in collaboration with the Egyptian Red Crescent.

The grant will be provided through the World Food Programme (WFP) and the High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), with each giving $500,000.

The WFP will provide food assistance to approximately 150,000 people, while the UNHCR will provide essential non-food items, such as hygiene kits and water, to approximately 80,000 people.

During his visit to Egypt in April Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said that "Japan is ready to provide emergency humanitarian assistance for displaced persons in the neighbouring countries of Sudan."

Japan intends to support Egypt's efforts to protect displaced persons and returnees through such assistance and in cooperation with the countries concerned, the embassy added.

According to the latest figures released by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry to the UNHCR, more than 98,000 refugees crossed into Egypt from 15 April to 15 May.

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Danielle is a freelance culture journalist focusing on music, food, wine, hospitality, and arts, and founder-playwright of Yeah No Yeah Theatre company, based in San Diego. Her work has been featured in FLAUNT, Filter Magazine, and San Diego Magazine. Born and raised in Maui, she still loves a good Mai Tai.

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Egypt condemned the incursion of several Israeli officials, parliamentarians, and settlers into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem during the so-called Flag March earlier Thursday, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.





Such irresponsible escalation fuels emotions, increases tension, and aggravates the existing frustration in the occupied territories, the Ministry said in a statement on Thursday evening.

The statement further condemned "the provocative acts and practices that aim to restrict the access of worshipers and incite negative sentiments among the Palestinian people".

On Thursday, thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems occupied Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city.

Egypt reiterated its longstanding position that insists on "upholding the legal and historical status quo in Jerusalem and emphasizing that Al-Aqsa Mosque is a purely Islamic sanctuary".

In its statement, Egypt unequivocally reaffirmed that East Jerusalem is an integral part of those Palestinian territories that have been illegally occupied by Israel since June 1967.

It emphasized that this occupation violates international law and the resolutions of the international community, which do not recognize the Israeli annexation of these territories.

Egypt has been calling for a two-state solution whereby a Palestinian state is established on the borders of the 4 June 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Thousands of Israel's ultra-nationalists and fanatic settlers, led by a couple of Israeli ministers, marched through East Jerusalem, storming the courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Mosque to celebrate the city's capture in the 1967 war.

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North County Transit District will eliminate about 90 bus stops from the more than 1,800 stops on 30 routes in its Breeze service area in April.

Most of the bus stops to be discontinued have fewer than five daily riders, fail to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and have other stops within walking distance, said Kimberly Hayford, the transit districts director of service planning, in a recent presentation to the board of directors.

The goal is to right-size the system, Hayford said.

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Reducing stops means faster service between the remaining destinations, she said. Its also one way to attract more riders.

Breeze bus routes go from Oceanside and Camp Pendleton to the northern end of San Diego, and from the coast inland through Escondido.

But some people think the district should be adding stops, not subtracting them, and that would increase ridership throughout the system.

I just cant get places in the city, and they are going to take out more stops, said Cindy Rocco, an Oceanside community activist and frequent bus rider. Its not convenient as it is.

A better solution might be to make the existing stops more attractive to riders by adding more benches and shelters, she said Friday. Many of the stops are marked only by a small sign on a pole, and some dont have sidewalks.

Seniors and low-income residents are often the hardest hit by cuts in public transit.

If clients have to increase walking distance, (that) could limit the amount of food they can access, since they have to carry it longer distances, said Amber Rizkalla, director of employment and economic opportunity at Oceanside-based Interfaith Community Services.

A longer walk to the bus stop increases overall commute times, cuts hours spent with family and can limit employment opportunities, Rizkalla said in an email Friday. Also, it becomes more difficult for people to reach service centers and health care providers.

Nearby activities such as schools, senior centers, and disadvantaged communities were considered in choosing the locations to be discontinued, Hayford said.

Bus ridership has declined for a decade or longer as more people use online ride-hailing services such as Uber, buy cheap personal vehicles, and turn to other forms of personal transportation.

Meanwhile, San Diego Countys population grew from less than 3 million in 2007 to more than 3.3 million in 2017, an average annual increase of more than 1 percent.

Riders are counted each time they board a bus in the Breeze system. In December, that total was 478,223, down 1.36 percent from 484,831 riders the previous December, according to a report the district issued in February.

Elsewhere, the decline is greater. Bus ridership nationwide dropped 2.8 percent from 2015 to 2016, according to the most recent numbers from the American Public Transportation Association.

Bus transit does need to be more efficient, said Russ Cunningham, a principal planner for Oceanside, where 27 under-utilized stops are to be discontinued. That is going to (give people an incentive) to use the bus.

City planners encourage the use of public transit as a way to reduce traffic congestion, fuel consumption and air pollution, and to increase safety for pedestrians, drivers and passengers.

NCTD plans to improve its remaining stops by adding more benches, shelters and trash cans, and enlarging the paved roadside spaces available to people using wheelchairs. However, those improvements are still a year or more away.

What we are trying to do is start with the easy, low-hanging fruit, NCTD Executive Director Matt Tucker said at the recent board meeting.

The truth of the matter is weve got to make transit a lot more competitive and a lot better, he said.

Fares are another uphill battle for the transit district. Operating costs constantly increase, but ridership declines when ticket prices go up. Fares cover only a fraction of public transit costs, most of which is passed on to taxpayers.

The district held a series of community meetings last fall to discuss the possibility of increasing fares for the first time in 10 years. The new NCTD fares would be coordinated with changes by the Metropolitan Transit System in San Diego to ease passenger transfers between the two systems.

NCTDs basic one-way bus fare of $1.75 is expected to increase to $2.50, but so far no date has been announced for the new ticket prices to take effect.

The district has reduced the number of bus stops before.

A 2004 newspaper story about installing solar-power lights noted that at the time there were 2,150 bus stops in the Breeze system. In 2010, the district trimmed overall service by 6 percent, reducing hours of operation, closing stops and shortening some routes.

This time, notices will be posted 30 days in advance at each stop where service is to be discontinued, transit officials said. Then, on April 7, the signs will be covered with bags and service will end. The signs and poles will be removed by April 22.

A second phase of what the district calls its optimization project could further consolidate bus stops, but district officials have not said when that will happen. A third phase will be to upgrade the remaining stops.

The implementation of those phases depends on future studies, contract negotiations for the improvements and funding, district staffers said.

The installation of a shelter costs about $10,000 and a bench costs about $1,000 at each stop, Tucker said.

There is no dignity in having to stand out in the rain to get a bus, Tucker said. We need to improve amenities at all bus stops. Standards do matter  but you dont want to put these things where people dont ride.

Hayford gave two examples of the stops to be closed.

One was in Oceanside, on Rancho del Oro Drive at Mission Avenue, which averaged zero daily boardings in the fall of 2017-18, and one daily boarding in the fall of 2016-17. The stop is on a dirt path with no sidewalk and no bench or shelter, and theres another stop 484 feet away.

The other example was in Escondido, on Broadway at Brava Place, also with no amenities. That stop had seven daily boardings in the fall of 2017-18 and six in 2016-17. It is in a residential area with flat terrain, and the nearest stop was 800 feet away.

Our bus stops are too close together in this area, and thats why we are recommending the removal, Hayford said.

Many of the stops to be eliminated were established before the ADA was enacted in 1992 and have not been improved since then.

Oceanside has the largest number of stops to be closed, followed by Escondido with 18. Others are Carlsbad with 11, Solana Beach with seven, and San Marcos and San Diego each with three. Del Mar has six bus stops, none of which is to be closed.

Letters were sent Jan. 23 to the city managers in each of the cities to inform them of the plan.

philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl
FILE - In this April 21, 2005, file photo former Merrill Lynch & Co. executive James A. Brown arrives for his sentencing at Federal Court in Houston. Federal prosecutors Thursday, Sept. 16, 2010, asked that the three most serious charges against Brown in a long-running and problematic Enron-related case marred by overturned convictions and flawed legal theory be dropped. The motion comes just days before the former Merrill Lynch executives retrial on these counts was to begin. Browns attorney, who was pleased by the prosecutors decision, expected the judge to grant the request. A Justice Department spokeswoman declined to comment. (AP Photo/Michael Stravato, File)

A judge on Thursday dismissed charges against a third defendant in a problematic Enron-related case marred by overturned convictions and flawed legal theory.

The motion by prosecutors to have charges against former Merrill Lynch executive James A. Brown dismissed was granted just days before a retrial was to begin on Monday. The charges were originally overturned in 2006 on appeal.

But even with Thursdays dismissal, Brown could still return to prison on two other convictions that were not overturned.

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U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein Jr.s ruling came a day after prosecutors asked that the charges be dropped.

Justice Department spokeswoman Alisa Finelli declined to comment Thursday on the decision to dismiss one charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and two charges of wire fraud, the three most serious counts Brown faced when indicted in 2003.

Sidney Powell, Browns attorney, said her client and his wife were pleased by the prosecutors decision.

The Browns are beginning to get a sense that the worst is over and their family can get out from under the cloud they have been living under for seven years, a cloud of persecution, Powell said.

In 2004, Brown and two other executives, Robert S. Furst and Daniel Bayly, were convicted of conspiracy and wire fraud, accused of helping push through Enrons sham sale to Merrill Lynch of three power barges moored off the Nigerian coast in 1999. The deal was struck to make the earnings of Enrons energy division appear larger.

Enron Corp. filed for bankruptcy protection in December 2001, after years of accounting tricks could no longer hide billions in debt or make failing ventures appear profitable.

Brown was an accountant at Merrill Lynch. Bayly was the firms former head of investment banking and Furst was Merrills Enron relationship manager.

The fraud and conspiracy charges of all three men were thrown out in 2006 after an appeals court found fault with the prosecutions legal theory known as honest services.

The court said the three executives were doing what Enron wanted them to do and did not profit at its expense. As a result, the court ruled, they did not deprive Enron of honest services. Prosecutors later removed the honest services language from the indictment.

In January, prosecutors dismissed charges against Bayly. In May, Furst entered into agreement with prosecutors that would dismiss charges against him after serving a year of probation.

Brown was also convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice for lying to a grand jury about the nature of the deal. Those convictions were upheld by the appeals court.

Brown was sentenced to nearly four years for all five counts. When the conspiracy and wire fraud convictions were overturned, he was freed on bond - after serving a year in prison - until those charges could be resolved.

Prosecutors have indicated Brown should be returned to prison for the perjury and obstruction of justice charges but have not said how much more time they want him to serve.

Powell said Brown has already served the maximum possible sentence for those two charges.

They really dont have a leg to stand on in putting him back in prison, she said.

Powell said Brown wants a retrial on the perjury and obstruction charges because he didnt lie to anybody.

Werlein has denied motions by Browns attorneys for a retrial or to have him sentenced to time served on the perjury and obstruction counts.

Brown was to remain free on bond while he appeals Werleins denial of a new trial.
Egyptian luxury brands are harnessing traditional craftsmanship from jewelry design to carpet weaving to bring the country's ancient cultural riches to the world.

Experts in the sector say the global appeal of Arab and Islamic designs from other countries shows Egypt could do more to promote its rich, millennia-old artistic heritage.

One pioneer has been master jeweller Azza Fahmy, whose signature Islamic art-inspired pieces have graced the world's rich and famous including US pop star Rihanna and Jordan's Queen Rania.

Fahmy, who started off in an Old Cairo workshop about 50 years ago, said her focus has been designs that "resonate with Egyptian identity".

Artists and artisans in Egypt, the Arab world's most populous country, draw from a history that spans ancient Pharaonic times, the Mamluk, Ottoman and modern eras.

"We are lucky to be able to draw on 6,000 years of history," said textile designer Goya Gallagher, founder of Cairo-based Malaika Linens, which makes high-end household pieces.

"The main challenge is making sure our pieces are timeless, that they're very well made and always hand-made," she said at the company workshop on the western outskirts of Cairo.

Myriad challenges

But while Egypt boasts some business success stories, many more luxury goods makers say they labour against myriad odds to eke out a market both locally and internationally.

In the era of global mass production, Egypt's once expansive pool of skilled artisans has shrunk, with many young people turning their backs on family skills passed down through the ages.

As businesses struggle to fill the talent gap, they also face the headwinds of a painful economic crisis that has tanked the local currency and restricted raw material imports.

The state's efforts to support the handicrafts sector, meanwhile, have been "limited and sporadic", says the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

Culture consultant Dina Hafez agreed that Egypt offers little in the way of formalised arts and crafts training.

"The training of artisans is still essentially based on informal education and networks of apprenticeship," said Hafez.

"The sector lacks any structure. We need a real ecosystem. But for the moment, it's all based on personal initiatives."

She said Egypt could learn from Turkey and Morocco, "where the opportunities and obstacles look a lot like Egypt", but which had managed to launch "their designs onto the international scene".

Soft power

Still, change is afoot.

Fahmy, the jewellery designer, said there is always space in the market for works made by skilled artisans and "good designers with creative minds and quality education".

Many designers hope to benefit from government initiatives to draw in investment and tourism revenue from its ancient wonders.

At the Grand Egyptian Museum at the foot of the Giza pyramids, Egyptian luxury stores enjoy pride of place.

Although its official opening has been long delayed, the museum offers limited tours and events, and the shops already "showcase the best of Egyptian crafts", said the owner of one, Mohamed al-Kahhal.

In Cairo's historic centre, linen company Malaika trains women from marginalised backgrounds in embroidery and sells the wares to its customers and to other fashion and textile brands.

Carpet maker Hend al-Kahhal works in the same spirit, of bringing Egyptian identity to global frontiers.

Standing on the factory roof, where wool and silk creations hung out to dry, Kahhal said the family business works with designers "to give a contemporary touch to Pharaonic and Mamluk motifs".

The Egyptian Handicrafts Export Council, under the trade and industry ministry, has long been working to showcase such Egyptian creations internationally.

But Hafez, the culture consultant, said she hopes for more progress in future, as often "budget constraints, red tape and customs regulations don't exactly make things easier".

The question, she said, is whether Egyptian "authorities are really aware of the soft power these creators can have".

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Lining the Cape of South Africa and its southern coast are long chains of caves that nearly 200,000 years ago were surrounded by a lush landscape and plentiful food.

During a glacial phase that lasted between 195,000 to 123,000 years ago, these caves served as refuge to a group of humans that some researchers think were the only people to survive this ice age, called Marine Isotope Stage Six, or MIS6. And in this coastal region, a lot of archaeological research has taken place. Of less interest to archaeologists has been the interior of South Africa, which was thought to be an uninhabited, inhospitable place during at least two waves of ice ages, MIS3 and 2.

Now, a study has shown that the region might have been more fertile and temperate during these two glacial periods than previously thought, and that the region likely played host to human populations living around a series of paleolakes. The study, led by University of Michigan archaeologist Brian Stewart, provides a more comprehensive timeline of the age and stages of these lakes, and shows human fingerprints across the region. The research, funded by the National Geographic Society, is published in the journal PNAS.

"There's this perennial assumption that human population centers were always along the coast and that the interior, especially the southern interior of the Karoo Desert, were largely depopulated for long stretches of time," Stewart said. "The funny thing is that one just has to go into the interior and walk around and notice that there's archaeology everywhere."

But to flag the region as worthy of archaeological attention, the researchers needed to show that humans could have actually lived there. The research team, an international group including researchers from South Africa, the United Kingdom and France, examined a series of super flat areas of land ringed by higher ground. They showed that these regions, called "pans" in Afrikaans, are ancient lake beds, while the areas of higher elevation that encircle them are erosional landforms and sedimentary deposits left over from their ancient shorelines.

This suggests that these time periods were not as dry in this region as previously thought: there would have needed to have been sustained rainfall and humidity to keep these lakes full. The more temperate climate required to sustain lakes also meant the landscape was also able to sustain both vegetation and animals required to support human populations.

Reconstructing the paleolakes

The researchers used a variety of technologies to date and reconstruct these ancient lakes, shorelines and lake bottom deposits, and to recreate the landscape of the region.

These include radiocarbon dating and a technique called luminescence, which measures the radioactivity of tiny crystals of quartz or feldspar that haven't seen the light of day since they were covered by sediment tens of thousands of years earlier. While buried, electrons from radioactive elements common to all sediments get trapped in these crystal matrices at a constant rate. By measuring how many electrons accumulated in the sample and comparing that to the degree of background radioactivity, the researchers can predict its age.

The researchers used these techniques to date columns of sedimentary lakeshore and lake bottom deposits, called lacustrine deposits, found surrounding and within a series of three pans dotted across a region some 100,000 square miles, about the size of Texas. They also aged the shells of freshwater mollusks found scattered throughout the region and embedded within the sedimentary lake deposits.

An aquatic gastropod, Tomichia ventricosa, found at a pan called Swartkolkvloer, was embedded in a column of lacustrine deposits. Together, the deposits and shells were radiocarbon dated to two time periods: approximately 39-55 thousand years before present, and approximately 31-34 thousand years before present.

At another pan called Grootvloer, the researchers found a freshwater mollusk called Unio caffer, which required "perennial freshwater" and the presence of fish to reproduce. These shells and lacustrine deposits in this pan were dated to between approximately 20-22 thousand years before present.

The researchers were also able to predict the area of land the lakes encompassed, as well as how deep they were, based on the height of the lacustrine deposits ringing their shorelines. For example, they determined that the paleolake at Swartkolkvloer was about 83 miles square and 59 feet deep, while the paleolake at Grootvloer was likely about 17 miles square and 62 feet deep. Another pan called Alexanderfontein, some 300 miles northeast near the town of Kimberley, held a lake about 13.5 miles square and 48 feet deep.

Based on these parameters, the researchers knew the lakes would have required a climate drastically different from the one that exists in South Africa's interior today. Using a hydrological model, they determined that evaporation rates within the region were between 20% and 25% lower than what they are today, while precipitation would have been more than 200% higher at Swartkolkvloer and 88% higher at Alexanderfontein.

"In various parts of the interior, between about 60 to about 12,000 years ago, we can see that there were enduring phases of pretty large bodies of water kicking around what used to be thought of as an arid and inhospitable environment," Stewart said. "This was a period that used to be thought of as notoriously dry and freezing cold in the winter. But we've got this evidence for these large lakes existing during this time period."

The researchers say current day regions that have similar climates and rates of precipitation and evaporation are likely northern Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Based on this estimation and data found from a contemporaneous site called Equus Cave, the researchers think large grazing and browsing mammals would have thrived in this region.

A complex, prehistoric people

Scattered alongside the lakes are human artifacts such as triangular points, bladelets, weathered ostrich shells and other assemblages. Much of these are from the Middle Stone Age, which ranged from about 280,000 years ago to about 25,000 years ago, and the Later Stone Age, which lasted from 25,000 years ago right up to European contact in the 15th century.

"There's Middle Stone Age archaeology just everywhere," Stewart said. "You can't drive anywhere and open the car door and not step on it. It's astounding how much there is."

Stewart says their findings could also expand the region where archaeologists think humans became more behaviorally complex. Over the past decades, researchers have found evidence that humans living in coastal South Africa started making the leap into complex thought, showing some of the earliest signs of behavioral complexity. It was thought that both climate and nutrient stability -- including the rich omega fatty acids gleaned from seafood -- allowed humans here to become behaviorally modern.

The group's work may challenge this idea by suggesting that favorable conditions for hunter-gatherers were not confined to the coastline but probably characterized many regions as climates changed, including the interior, current-day desert.

"Ours is a basin-wide study with much more macro scale implications. It also involves some of these areas that are just inland of this coastal and mountain belt that's dominated the archaeological narratives for so long," Stewart said. "Just inland of this area is a region that has been, for a long time, portrayed as hostile, and it just simply appears not to have been the case for big chunks of time -- with the caveat that we need information on temperature depressions to understand how humans dealt with that."

Stewart says next steps will be to return to the pans to study the archaeology throughout the region to understand better how humans lived in the area.
Syrian President Bashar Assad headed to Jeddah on Thursday to attend the Arab League summit, his first visit to the kingdom since Syrias conflict began in 2011, the president's office said.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts Friday, is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold following a 12-year suspension and open a new chapter of relations after more than a decade of tensions.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, a long-time regional pariah, back into the fold. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

During Syria's civil war, Saudi Arabia had been a key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad. However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syrias pre-war population.

Assads troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to his main allies Russia and Iran that helped tip the balance of power in his favor.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad. The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syrias conflict. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad. Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdoms yearslong war in Yemen. Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assads government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalization of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syrias conflict based on U.N. Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the Feb. 6, earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.

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Approximately 700,000 years ago, a "warm ice age" permanently changed the climate cycles on Earth. Contemporaneous with this exceptionally warm and moist period, the polar glaciers greatly expanded. A European research team including Earth scientists from Heidelberg University used recently acquired geological data in combination with computer simulations to identify this seemingly paradoxical connection. According to the researchers, this profound change in the Earth's climate was responsible for the change in the climate cycles, thus representing a critical step in the later climate evolution of our planet.

Geological ice ages -- called glacial periods -- are characterised by the development of large ice sheets in the Northern Hemisphere. In the past 700,000 years, phases shifted between distinct glacial and warm periods about every 100,000 years. Before then, however, the Earth's climate was governed by 40,000-year cycles with shorter and weaker glacial periods. The change in the climate cycles occurred in the Middle Pleistocene Transition period, which began approximately 1.2 million years ago and ended about 670,000 years ago. "The mechanisms responsible for this critical change in the global climate rhythm remain largely unknown. They cannot be attributed to variations in the orbital parameters governing the Earth's climate," explains Associate Professor Dr Andre Bahr of the Institute of Earth Sciences at Heidelberg University. "But the recently identified 'warm ice age', which caused the accumulation of excess continental ice, did play a critical role."

For their investigations, the researchers used new climate records from a drill core off Portugal and loess records from the Chinese Plateau. The data was then fed into computer simulations. The models show a long-term warming and wetting trend in both subtropical regions for the past 800,000 to 670,000 years. Contemporaneous with this last ice age in the Middle Pleistocene Transition period, the sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic and tropical North Pacific were warmer than in the preceding interglacial, the phase between the two ice ages. This led to higher moisture production and rainfall in Southwest Europe, the expansion of Mediterranean forests, and an enhanced summer monsoon in East Asia. The moisture also reached the polar regions where it contributed to the expansion of the Northern Eurasian ice sheets. "They persisted for some time and heralded in the phase of sustained and far-reaching ice-age glaciation that lasted until the late Pleistocene. Such expansion of the continental glaciers was necessary to trigger the shift from the 40,000-year cycles to the 100,000-year cycles we experience today, which was critical for the Earth's later climate evolution," states Andre Bahr.

The results of this research were published in the journal Nature Communications. Scientists from Germany, France, Spain, and Portugal contributed to the research. The work was funded by the German Research Foundation.
Research shows that the numbers of butterflies in meadows and pastures of Europe are in a continuous decline. A new EU regulation aims to stop this trend.

Grassland butterflies will soon play an even greater role in EU nature conservation legislation. Based on the occurrences and population trends of butterflies, the member states are supposed to document the progress they have made in implementing the planned "Nature Restoration Law." The Butterfly Grassland Indicator, recently calculated for the eighth time by European foundation "Butterfly Conservation Europe," is to be used for this. This analysis, which also includes data and expertise from many volunteers in Germany -- coordinated by experts from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) in Halle -- shows an urgent need for action. This is because the situation of grassland butterflies in Europe has deteriorated considerably since the first calculations in 1990.

The diagnosis sounds worrying: More than 80% of habitats in the EU are currently considered vulnerable. This has negative consequences on their functional capability and thus the services they provide for humans. In order to counter this, the European Commission has proposed a new set of rules. This "Nature Restoration Law" is one of the key elements of the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030 to be published this May. It defines binding targets for the entire EU for the renaturation of various ecosystems. Two years after the regulation enters into force, member states must submit plans on how they intend to meet these targets. They must also document the success of their measures.

However, the latter is not so easy. So far, there are only a few indicators that can reliably show the state of biodiversity. For most animal and plant groups, there is a lack of comparable data across Europe from which to assess the development of populations. The few exceptions include birds, bats, and butterflies.

"Butterflies in particular are ideal bioindicators," says agricultural ecologist Prof. Dr Josef Settele from the UFZ. This is because these insects occur in a wide range of habitats and react sensitively to environmental changes. With their specific requirements, they are often representative of many other insects. Finally, they are eye-catching, attractive, and popular. It is thus relatively easy to motivate volunteers to take part in scientifically oriented butterfly counts.

Such actions are becoming increasingly popular. For example, in 2005 the UFZ and the Gesellschaft fur Schmetterlingsschutz (GfS) launched a citizen science project called "Tagfaltermonitoring Deutschland" (Butterfly Monitoring Germany) in which anyone interested can participate. Since then, butterfly enthusiasts from all over Germany have been walking fixed routes from spring to autumn to record the number of individuals and species they have seen. Similar monitoring programmes now exist in most other European countries. "Around 5,000 volunteers spread all over Europe are now taking part -- all following the same protocol," says Settele.

The data are collected and analysed in the central "European Butterfly Monitoring Scheme" (eBMS) database, managed by UKCEH and mirrored at UFZ and the Dutch "Vlinderstichting." In this way, the population development of individual species can then be tracked. Common trends for the inhabitants of certain habitats can also be identified.

This is precisely the idea behind the Butterfly Grassland Indicator, which is based on the population trends of 17 typical species of meadows and pastures. If the positive and negative trends in these species roughly balance each other out, the indicator remains at the same level. If more species decline than increase in the same period, the value decreases -- and vice versa. Lower values thus indicate greater problems among grassland dwellers.

The latest results of these calculations, which include data from 1990 to 2020, therefore do not bode well. The analysis, which was also co-financed by the EU project SPRING (Strengthening Pollinator Recovery through Indicators and monitoring) coordinated by the UFZ, shows only one winner: In the 27 memberstates of the EU, only the Orange Tip (Anthocharis cardamines) displayed a moderate increase. Three species are stable: the Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus), the Common Copper (Lycaena phlaeas), and the Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina). Five species -- from the Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) to the Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera) -- are showing declining populations. "The biggest loser in recent years has been the large blue (Phengaris arion), which for example has disappeared completely in the Netherlands," says Settele. For the remaining species of the 17 grassland inhabitants studied, there is either no clear trend or too little data.

The picture becomes even less favourable if we look not only at the EU but rather at Europe as a whole. Then there are no species on the rise and only three are stable. Six show a moderate and one even a strong decline.

In view of these developments, it is not surprising that the grassland indicator is now at a considerably lower level than before. In the last 10 years alone, the calculated value for the EU has fallen by 32% -- and that for Europe as a whole by as much as 36%. The crisis of the grassland dwellers has apparently already taken hold of the entire continent. This is becoming increasingly more evident the more information is provided by the volunteer butterfly counters from different countries. "The declines are not confined to north-western Europe," says Chris van Swaay of Butterfly Conservation Europe. "However, some species in the South and East are doing much better."

He and his colleagues attribute the dwindling butterfly occurrences mainly to changes in agriculture. In north-western Europe, for example, the over-intensive use of meadows and pastures has a particularly unfavourable effect. The heavy use of fertilisers often also pollutes adjacent protected areas with excessive amounts of nitrogen. In the rest of Europe, the main problem is the complete abandonment of cultivation. That's because grassland butterflies also cope poorly with this.

According to the experts, a large set of measures is necessary in order to save them. It is important to promote the sustainable use of meadows and pastures, to create new valuable habitats, and to better connect the existing ones. And most grassland butterflies would also benefit from effective climate change mitigation. "Despite all efforts, these insects are still declining in many parts of Europe," says van Swaay. "We hope that the upcoming Nature Restoration Law can stop this decline so that our children can also enjoy butterflies in flower-rich grasslands."
A new extraterrestrial world about the size of the Earth with active volcanoes shows the potential to sustain an atmosphere. The exoplanet was found 90 light-years away from our planet.

Exoplanet With Active Volcanoes That Could Potentially Sustain Atmosphere

The exoplanet, LP 791-18 d, is located in the southern constellation Crater and revolves around a red dwarf star 90 light-years from Earth. According to the study team, it is somewhat bigger and more massive than Earth and is likely far more volcanically active than our planet, Space.com reported.

According to co-author Bjorn Benneke, an astronomy professor at the University of Montreal's Institute for Research on Exoplanets who organized and oversaw the work, LP 791-18 d is tidally locked, meaning the same side always faces its star.

It would likely be too hot throughout the day for liquid water to exist on the surface. However, they believe there is enough volcanic activity on the planet to provide an atmosphere allowing water to condense on the night side.

Along with LP 791-18 b and c, LP 791-18 d is the third planet discovered in this unique star system. The innermost planet, planet b, is nearly 20% bigger than Earth. According to team members, Planet d, the farthest world, is at least seven times more massive and almost 2.5 times broader than Earth.

The orbits of planets c and d around the red dwarf host star bring them reasonably close to one another. The new exoplanet is affected significantly by these interactions.

Planet d experiences a gravitational tug with each close approach from the larger planet c, which causes Planet d's orbit to become somewhat elliptical. Every time planet d circles the star on this elliptical route; it gradually deviates from its original shape.

These distortions can provide sufficient Internal friction to significantly heat the planet's innards and cause volcanic activity on its surface. Io experiences similar effects from Jupiter and some of its moons.

This does not necessarily mean that planet d is a good contender to support life as we know it; the planet might be too volatile. However, astrobiologists and scientists who are interested in the development and evolution of exoplanet atmospheres will find the newly discovered world to be an appealing target.

According to research co-author Jessie Christiansen of NASA's Exoplanet Science Institute at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, one important topic in astrobiology, the area that broadly examines the origins of life on Earth and beyond, is whether tectonic or volcanic activity is necessary for life. Aside from providing atmosphere, these activities may stir up substances like carbon, which scientists believe is vital to life.

ALSO READ: Two Supermassive Black Holes Predicted to Collide Within Three Years: Here's What to Expect

Spitzer Telescope Aids in Exoplanet Discovery

LP 791-18 d was discovered and studied using information from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS).

TESS is actively searching for exoplanets from Earth orbit, looking for the distinctive brightness dips that occur when these planets pass in front of the faces of their home stars.

In a previous report from Science Times, Spitzer Space Telescope had stopped its operation in 2020 after 17 years of service to give way to NASA's James Webb Space. However, US Space Force is trying to bring it back from retirement.

Startup Rhea Space Activity received a $250,000 grant from the Space Force to explore the device and bring it back into operation.

Rhea CEO and astrophysicist Shawn Usma accepted the challenge and said the idea is "the most complex robotic mission ever performed by humanity."

RELATED ARTICLE: Tidal Disruption Event Results in Spaghettification When a Star Wanders Too Close to a Black Hole, Showing Violent Events in Galaxy

Check out more news and information on Space in Science Times.
Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived on Thursday in Saudi Arabia to attend a regional summit that is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold, marking his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syrias conflict began in 2011.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts Friday, is a major step in normalizing relations following a 12-year suspension which saw the embattled leader turn toward non-Arab allies Iran and Russia to maintain his grip on power.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, once viewed as a regional pariah, back into its ranks. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

Assad appeared relaxed and cheerful as he descended onto the tarmac, where he was greeted by Prince Badr bin Sultan, deputy governor of the shrine city Mecca, along with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit and several local officials.

It was not immediately clear if Assad will meet some of the Arab leaders attending Friday's summit. During Syria's conflict, Assad only visited Russia and Iran and over the past two years he went to Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia was formerly key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad. The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syrias conflict. However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syrias pre-war population. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad. Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdoms yearslong war in Yemen. Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assads government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalization of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syrias conflict based on U.N. Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the 6 February earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.

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Thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded on Thursday through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems occupied Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city.

The boisterous crowds danced and chanted Jewish religious songs outside Damascus Gate as scores of Israeli police stood guard. In several cases, groups chanted slogans such as Death to Arabs, Mohammed is Dead and Burn Your Village as they stared at Palestinian onlookers. Some of the youths wore clothing identifying themselves as members of Lehava  a far-right Jewish supremacist group that opposes assimilation or romantic relationships between Jews and Palestinians.

The marchers, who were overwhelmingly male Orthodox teens and young men, were celebrating Jerusalem Day, which marks Israels occupation of the Old City 56 years ago. The Palestinians see the event as a provocation. Two years ago, the parade helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas resistance group in the Gaza Strip.

Throughout the afternoon, dozens of groups hoisting blue and white Israeli flags streamed through Damascus Gate  the entry to the areas Muslim Quarter  as they made their way across the Old City to the Western Wall. The area is normally bustling on Thursday afternoons with Palestinians doing their errands ahead of the weekend.

The Israeli settlers assaulted and beat up at least three of Palestinian civilians, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.

Since the early morning, over 2,500 of Israeli occupation forces were deployed in and around occupied Jerusalem and its old city disrupting normal life of the Palestinian population.

Old City shops were ordered to remain shuttered for the day to allow free and easy access for the settlers to the Old City and marchers occasionally threw water bottles at nearby journalists, eliciting cheers from the crowd.

Israeli police kept the sides apart but did little to stop the chants or the attacks.

The annexation by Israel of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized and the Palestinians consider the city as the capital of a future state.

Israel decided to allow the marchers to take the traditional route through Damascus Gate, instead of an alternate path circumventing the Muslim Quarter, despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and last weeks heavy fighting between Israel and Palestinian resistance group in Gaza.

Extremist and right-wing cabinet ministers and members of parliament from the government coalition, led by the fascist Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has joined the march in past years, are participating in the march. Other politicians participating include Minister of Transport Miri Regev, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and a number of Knesset members.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian president in the occupied West Bank, said allowing the march to snake through the Palestinian areas of the Old City will only lead to a rise in tension and could lead to an explosion.

On Wednesday, Gazas ruling Hamas group called on Palestinians to oppose the parade.

Ahead of the parade, about 900 Jews visited Jerusalems most sensitive holy site early Thursday, according to Beyadenu, an activist group that promotes Jewish visits to the site. Police were seen escorting groups of Jewish visitors walking through the compound and several coalition lawmakers also arrived at the site.

Jordan, which acts as a custodian of the Jerusalem shrine, condemned the Jewish visits there and the trajectory of the march.

Egypt also condemned the parade as well as the storming by the Israeli government officials, parliamentarians, and settlers into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there. But an increase in such visits, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, has raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo.

The parade comes as fighting in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem is at its highest level in two decades. It also comes just days after a cease-fire took effect ending five days of heavy fighting between Israel and the Islamic Jihad resistance group in Gaza.

* This story has been edited by Ahram Online.

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The first edition of the Egypt Fashion Week was a celebration of Egypts millennia-old civilisation, a glimpse of the present, and a vision for the future

Held under the auspices of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, the first edition of the Egypt Fashion Week took place at the Museum of Agriculture in Dokki this week and was a must-go opportunity for all fashion-obsessed visitors who enjoyed the morning till night days of the event.

The huge open area and the museums three historical buildings dating back to the time of King Fouad were used as spaces for fashion shows, exhibitions, educational workshops, lectures and insightful talks, and model photo sessions.

Wherever you wandered, indoors or outdoors, you met identity and culture-obsessed designers, models and sometimes even visitors wearing fashionable pieces and vintage items. You mingled with all these and the mix of the heritage site and the present fashionable atmosphere, and western and eastern music, all went with the flow of everything happening around you.

Agriculture for the ancient Egyptians was the basis from which their civilisation was born. By choosing the venues of the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square and the Agriculture Museum in Dokki we already see the theme of the event coming true: we have all the past in Tahrir, and we have all the present of fashion-making here, Paul Antaki, founding member of the Egyptian Fashion and Design Council (EFDC), told Al-Ahram Weekly

This inspires the designers of today to become more creative and not to copy, in order to prepare for the future.

The EFDC is aiming to develop excellence in the Egyptian fashion and textile industries by nurturing, supporting, and promoting Egyptian fashion and design talent and businesses locally, regionally and globally.

Around 70 designers showed off their latest lines, among them Egyptian pioneers Marie Louis and Mix&Match known for their unique styles and fabrics, mainly linen. Marie Louis models appeared on the fashion runway with some iconic pieces that attracted the audience for their pharaonic patterns that tell the story of Egypts heritage..

Part of this collection was shown at the French Fashion Week in Paris in 2008 and 2011, Marie-Louis Bishara, chair of the Apparel Export Council of Egypt (AECE) and co-founder of the Fashion Week, told the Weekly. She is also the CEO of fashion houses Bishara and BTM.

Ive been working for a long time adding and updating this collection with new creations in order to continue in the same line and get inspired by the Egyptian culture to attract our customers with pharaonic embroidery and symbols of Egyptian heritage, Bishara said.

The idea of organising the event came in 2008, when it was proposed to the French Fashion Syndicate, they recommended that we should get at least 17 Egyptian designers to be able to organise a fashion event in Cairo. We started working on preparing a new generation of designers through seminars and workshops to help them with all possible tools, Bishara said, adding that given the great leaps and bounds that have been made in recent years Egypt was ready to host such an event.

We didnt have good schools specialising in fashion in 2008, but now we have a lot of schools and designers who are showing their work abroad, she added. She said that Egypt has a great generation of designers today, either those who studied in Egypt or abroad, and they all understand branding, marketing, products and quality control.

There is also the development that went in parallel with the growth of our exports from $1.1 billion in 2021 to $2.5 billion in 2023, with everyone working together to encourage us and to prepare the funds for such a huge event.

Haute couture Nuria Telpian, known as Nara, has spent her life performing folkloric dances in Armenia, Russia, and various Middle Eastern countries including Egypt, and she settled in the Land of the Pharaohs in 2003. Her interest in fabrics and design came from the early years she spent working in drama and plastic art.

Every collection has its own story or theme. My collections theme is the snake, as you may have seen on the runway, Telpain said. Snakes symbolise life and death. I see life in snakes as some medicines are prepared using snake poison, so a snake can also be a life-saver and not only a reason for death.

In her book Cleopatra: Egypts Last Queen, UK Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley says that the ancient Egyptians believed that snakes were good mothers. Academics at the University of Manchester in the UK have dismissed the notion that Cleopatra was killed by a snake bite.

I know that the connection between Cleopatra and the snake is one of life and not death, so its a positive effect and not a negative one, Telpian said. Some Egyptologists say that Cleopatra believed she was the embodiment of the goddess Isis who could take on the form of a snake.

Telpian had a solo show at the Fashion Week, and her collection included 29 glamorous evening gowns, mostly in vibrant colours, either with a snake design on the dress or handmade snakeskin-style fabrics. Not all the materials used in the gowns are made in Egypt, however, with some of them imported from abroad. My collection of snakes is for women who dare to wear, Telpian concluded.

With Egypt being ready for more colour, Rasha Al-Gammal, owner of the Rasha Pasha Studio, had made statement khayyameya-like cotton art pieces, kimonos and handbags in strong colours that are uniquely hand crafted and give a luxurious look for either men or women. Her colourful tote bags and belts displayed inside the Dokki museum all had Horus eyes on them.

Inside the same hall, there was a huge gown made of linen with words like sustainable, slow fashion, durable, and handmade embroidered on it in different languages. Manar Hilal is the owner of the Talalya slow fashion brand, a womens empowerment platform that started in 2014. It serves women who have disabilities, trains them in handicrafts like crochet, knitting, and embroidering, and then buys products from them.

We sometimes provide the materials they cant afford to buy, and then we sell the products that meet our design and quality guidelines inside Egypt and abroad, Hilal said.

In another building, the cotton building, there was a lot happening. The space was promoting different fashion schools in Egypt and displaying the designs of their students. Our Centre collaborates with the Italian Instituto di Moda Burgo. We mostly use Egyptian cotton in our designs. During this event, we are displaying haute couture, ready to wear, smart wear and mens wear made by our students, Sally Taha, coordinator of the Fashion and Design Centre said, adding that it receives students from around the world.

In the same space, there was the Design Studio by Azza Fahmy providing free classes in jewellery making, especially silver wire rings. Most of the contemporary designers taking part in this event are mixing the old with the new, like having crochet and pharaonic patterns in one creative piece, which is something I like, the famous designer told the Weekly.

Meeting designer Adrien Roberts was rewarding, a UK designer who stresses the importance of formal education. He thinks education is about the questions youre asking of the student and not the answers youre giving him or her: its about opening the door to the imagination.

I always discover new things about Egypt and the Pharaohs and their culture. Its a country that keeps on giving, Roberts said. I teach the history of knitwear, and I love telling my students that knitwear was born in North Africa and the only ancient knitwear we have is of Egyptian origin  a red sock displayed in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It is a split-toe sock, so I asked why the ancient Egyptians were wearing knitted socks with split toes.

Then I discovered that the culture of knitting originated in Egypt and that we have the first pair of knitted socks in England made by the ancient Egyptians.

The Egypt Fashion Week closed with a Shop the Runway event featuring all participating designers at the Mall of Arabia on Monday.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 18 May, 2023 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), the Museums Sector, and the National Committee for Egyptian Museums (ICOM Egypt) commemorate International Museum Day at the Manial Palace with a forum themed "Museums, Sustainability, and Quality of Life."



The forum's objective is to heighten awareness regarding the pivotal role of museums in promoting mutual understanding and cultural exchange among diverse cultures.

World International Museum Day was inaugurated in 1977 and is celebrated on the 18th of May every year.

Since 1977, the ICOM has organized International Museum Day (IMD), an annual event that serves as a special occasion for the global museum community, according to the ICOM website.

The primary goal of IMD is to promote awareness of museums as vital platforms for cultural exchange, the enrichment of cultures, and the cultivation of mutual understanding, cooperation, and peace among peoples.

By focusing on sustainability and quality of life, this years IMD aims to raise awareness about the significant role of museums in facing environmental challenges.

It also seeks to highlight the value of culture and heritage as essential elements for sustainable development and improved quality of life.

The discussions revolved around the challenges that museums face and their potential to contribute to implementing UNESCO's recommendations in the field of culture.

The forum will explore the connection between museum practices and UNESCO's conventions and stress the importance of effectively implementing these recommendations in the museum sector.

"Museums have the power to transform the world, as they serve as vital channels for cultural and civilizational exchange among different societies," stated Mostafa Waziry, the Secretary General of the SCA.

He further stressed that the ministry has improved visitor services at numerous archaeological sites and museums throughout Egypt.

Furthermore, Waziry highlighted the establishment of new museums in Sharm El-Sheikh and Kafr El-Sheikh. In addition, he spoke about the ongoing development of existing museums, including the forthcoming opening of the Greco-Roman Museum in Alexandria.

The antiquities and tourism ministry has collaborated with UNESCO Cairo to develop several noteworthy museums, including the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC), Museum of Islamic Art, Gayer Anderson Museum, and Manial Palace Museum, with the support of the Italian Government.

Nuria Sanz, Director of the UNESCO Office in Cairo, said that the activity achieved an outstanding formula that brought together national museum professionals and various key stakeholders in Egypt.

This collaborative platform facilitated valuable information exchange and networking. It also helped the participants to reflect deeply on the role which museums effectively play in implementing UNESCO Culture Conventions and the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development's (MONDIACULT) declaration.

The declaration perceives culture as a global public good with an intrinsic value.

In this context, Moamen Othman, Head of the Museums Sector, stressed that all museums play a role in shaping and creating a sustainable future through practices such as educational and awareness programmes, exhibitions, community outreach and research.

Since 2020, International Museum Day has supported several sustainable development goals. In 2023, the IMD will focus on goals related to global health, the quality of life, the climate, and life on Earth.

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Sterling Heights Mayor and City Council, Sterling Heights Administration, members of the Sterling Heights CommUNITY Alliance and members of Macomb County Pride raise the Pride flag at Sterling Heights City Hall for Pride month in June 2022. (Photo courtesy of Sterling Heights)

Kozeta Elzhenni is chairperson of the Sterling Heights Ethnic Community Committee. (Photo: Joe Powers Insitu Photography)

Sterling Heights City Manager Mark Vanderpool. (Photo: Joe Powers Insitu Photography)

The Sterling Heights Skate Park opened in November of 2017  the first cornerstone amenity that was completed on the Recreating Recreation timeline. (Photo: Steve Koss)

Performers take the stage at the 2023 Sterling Heights Cultural Exchange. (Photo: David Lewinski)

Community is at the heart of the Vision 2030 plan. Not only was the city investing in its residents, it worked hard through social media and public campaigns to have residents join in on the commitment to excellence. The Vision 2030 plan led to the creation of numerous community groups such as the African-American Coalition Ethnic Community Committee , and commUnity Alliance These groups are independent partners to the city. They help the city organize and plan events and help bring residents voices to council meetings. This integrated form of engagement is paying off for the city. Residents ranked the value of city services per tax value 22 percent higher than regional and national averages. In 2020, Sterling Heights was ranked the safest big city in the entire state.[Vision 2023] really transformed the city, says resident Benjamin Orjada. There are a lot of options here.Orjada has lived in Sterling Heights for most of his life. "We came here when I was two. I obviously didn't have much say in the matter, but I love it here.Orjada was diagnosed with a form of autism in his youth. When asked if he would have had the same positive experience elsewhere, Orjada says, "I can't really talk about everywhere, but Sterling Heights is special. I definitely had a lot of support. It was probably the most optimal outcome I could have had. It really is a safe and inclusive city."Orjada has become involved in the city and is returning that investment it once made for him. He is now one of the members of the citys Citizen Advisory Committee.Orjada says, The stereotype is that people like me have a hard time with socialization. I love that a big part of my job is talking to people. Im glad I can do that for my city.Cindy Bjornson has lived in Sterling Heights for 25 years. As a former teacher she watched the generations grow and change."It was a very different city 20 years ago," Bjornson says.As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, Bjornson says the city had initially struggled to accept all its residents. After the start of the Vision 2030 plan things began to change."We were one of the first cities in the country to provide protections for gay and transgender people in our city charter. This was before the state did it," Bjornson says. "The moment they flew the Pride Flag at city hall, that meant so much to me and others. I really felt like I belonged then."Diversity and inclusion became a leading principal as the Vision 2030 plan rolled out.We know that our city is diverse and thats one of our strengths. Even when it comes to hiring, we try to cast a wide net and meet people where they are. When everyone is involved a city just works better, says City Manager Mark Vanderpool.Its one of the reasons that when Kozeta Elzhenni immigrated from Albania to the United States, she chose to make Sterling Heights her home."I came to Sterling Heights because it was so inclusive," Elzhenni says. I love Sterling Heights. This is the place I decided to raise my kids. As a Muslim, it was wonderful to see such a big community here.Elzhenni says the community's rich range of cultural events and the newly constructed mosque in 2020 are reasons she stays in the city.I know some communities have struggled to accept muslims after 2001. But one of the things I like here is that they make an effort. During Ramadan, my childrens school had a unit on it. It made me very happy to see kids have an opportunity to learn about different cultures, including my own.As the Vision 2030 plan nears its end, the city is already in the process of forging a new plan for 2040. This unique approach has faced some common obstacles.The first challenge listed in the Vision 2030 plan is an aging population. It's estimated that the city will have 25 percent of its population above the age of 65 within the next 10 to 15 years. This could lead to population loss, as only 62 percent of residents surveyed said the city was a desirable place to retire in.Were aware of the natural maturation of our population. Thats why were working hard to create more jobs and community destinations to attract younger residents. We also want to make sure there is enough support for our aging residents, Vanderpool says.Property values are hot , which further demonstrates the success of the Vision 2030 plan  but its also pricing out younger people."I just want to live in my own city," Orjada says. Its the one thing that might force me to leave. I love it here. My career is here and my support network is (here), but I really want a place of my own.This young population is needed to power the workforce and even engage in elder care. A report from the US Congress Joint Economic Committee rated Michigan as the seventh highest state experiencing brain drain in the country.As the city seeks more diversity, it still faces the same challenges as others in the region. According to the 2020 US Census , the citys population is 82 percent White. Warren has a White population of 63 percent and Fraser is at 87 percent. Sterling Heights Black population is 6 percent and, for comparison, Warrens population is 20 percent. The citys Asian population is 7.7 percent and its Hispanic/Latino population is 2.5 percent.Currently, the US Census does not count Arab as a separate race  they are considered White. But data from NeighborhoodScout lists the citys Assyrian, Chaldean, and Syrian population at 11 percent, the third highest ethnic group in the city. Twenty-eight percent of Sterling Heights population is foreign born. The city has done a great job integrating and supporting these diverse cultures but it faced one of its biggest challenges in 2015 with the development of a new mosque and community center at 15 Mile and Mound roads.Members of the citys non-Muslim community expressed displeasure for the project. Elzhenni recalls how difficult it was to get the project completed."There are always some people who won't be happy about the things we do. They exist but I feel like they are just a small part of the community," Elzhenni says. But it took a lot of effort to complete the mosque.The city worked with the entire community to resolve issues on both sides, and they broke ground on the mosque in 2020. Elzhenni says the experience did affect the way she felt about the city, but in the end is generally happy with everything they are doing.As many neighboring communities are declining in myriad ways, the city has a chance to push ahead again in developing Vision 2040. With both the leadership and residents committed to excellence, Vision 2040 has the potential to outperform Vision 2030.Sterling Heights is a fighter, Vanderpool says.Bjornson, Elzhenni, and Orjada all agree that the city is unique in its level of communication between residents and local governments. They say thats why people ultimately stay in the city.This is my home. I feel accepted here and I know I can make an impact, Bjornson says. That means the world to me.Its a sentiment not lost on city officials.No one is ever going to want to live in a city theyre not truly a part of. Thats our mission here, Vanderpool says, That's what every city employees job is about  creating a place to call home.
Battle Creek Central High Schools college decision day and the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage were held at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

Kim Carter, Superintendent of Battle Creek Public Schools, announces the new Bearcat Advantage program at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

La June Montgomery Tabron, President and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, speaks during the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

Award scholarship amounts on a sliding scale based on the length of time a student has been continuously enrolled at BCPS. For example, those who have been a student at BCPS for at least every year of high school will be eligible to receive a 65% scholarship. Those who have been a student at BCPS for all of K-12 will be eligible to receive a 100% scholarship.

Be available to use for a four-year undergraduate degree for up to six years after high school graduation.

About 1,200-1,500 students, teachers, parents, administrators, board members, and others attended the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

Battle Creek Central students applaud during college decision day and the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

Cheryl Roberts, left, and Celeste Clark, former Kellogg Company employes attended college decision day and the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium. Clark is a W.K. Kellogg Foundation Trustee.

Students hold keys which are symbols for the new Battle Creek Public Schools Bearcat Advantage.

Battle Creek Central sophomores, from left, Amauria and Amari Faithful, were of the Bearcat Ambassadors during college decision day and the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage.

Students walk across the stage at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium as their names and college choices were announced.

Batlle Creek Central High Schools college decision day and the announcement of the Bearcat Advantage were held at W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.
Photographer Fran Dwight being interviewed about her participatino in the "We are Edison" Inside Out Project in 2017. Courtesy Photo

Students faces  smiling, laughing, thinking, frowning, squinting  are the focus of a display of almost 1,000 black and white portraits that will line the interior sidewalks of Bronson Park in an exhibition called Inside Out: We Are Kalamazoo Arti Fran Dwight

Families will gather on the opening day of the exhibition to enjoy the art, along with music, food, chalk drawing, henna tattoos and other activities, which run 4-6:30 p.m. Friday, May 19. The event is open to the public. Fran Dwight

Students in the exhibition were encouraged to participate by art teachers and stood with the statement: We are Kalamazoo artists. We are innovators, dreamers, and creators." Fran Dwight

The Inside Out portraits are part of the KPS all-district art show, which has been held in Bronson Park since the pandemic. Fran Dwight

Volunteer photographers took three photos of each student, who were then allowed to choose their favorite portrait for the project. Fran Dwight

Most students won't see their portraits until Friday's All-District Art Fair, but a few helped affix the portraits to the sidewalks. Fran Dwight

Many hands make light work. A pre-ordered, powdered wheat paste was delayed and so teachers and students made handmade paste of flour, sugar, and water. Fran Dwight

Kalamazoo Public Schools students are declaring, We Are Kalamazoo Artists with a major Inside Out art installation that runs in conjunction with the school districts annual Bronson Park Outdoor Art Show, which opens May 19 to May 31. Fran Dwight

This is the second showing of an Inside Out project in Kalamazoo. The first, We are Edison, took place in 2017 in the Edison neighborhood on Washington Square buildings that we're being rehabilitated in an effort towards neighborhood placemaking. Fran Dwight

Over the course of a week, parents, students, and teachers volunteered to paste 4 1/2 X 3 feet black and white student portraits on the sidewalks of Bronson Park in preparation of the All-District Art Fair on Friday, May 19. Fran Dwight

The portraits, which are intended to last from a week to three months, will go through a natural process of deterioration. Fran Dwight

A thousand KPS' students have their photos on the sidewalks of Bronson Park as part of the Inside Out Project. KPS

The installation is part of the worldwide Inside Out Project, a participatory art platform, which was created by the French artist known as JR. Inside Out allows everyone to share their untold stories by creating a work of public art. Since 2011, Fran Dwight

Mandy Clearwaters, an art teacher at Winchell Elementary, had a vision to bring Inside Out , an international portrait project devised by French-artist JR, to Kalamazoo Public Schools. Students in the exhibition were encouraged to participate by art teachers. The theme of the project is unity and expressed in the statement, We are Kalamazoo artists. We are innovators, dreamers, and creators, which Clearwaters wrote.





A thousand KPS' students have their photos on the sidewalks of Bronson Park as part of the Inside Out Project. Art has allowed us to share who we are with the world. We are a diverse group of people using art to build bridges and understanding among the many communities that we represent. By sharing our thoughts and identities, we create a stronger and healthier future for Kalamazoo, Clearwaters stated in a press release. "Our voices speak loud, not through our mouths, but through our hands."

The project itself required enormous team effort. The districts diversity is represented in the 1,000 smiling, serious, and silly faces in black and white portraits that line the inner sidewalks of Bronson Park. The impactful display is part of KPS All-district Art Fair, which takes place from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Friday at Bronson Park. In addition to Inside Out, student artwork will be featured.

Families will gather on the opening day of the exhibition to enjoy the art, along with music, food, chalk drawing, henna tattoos and other activities, which run 4-6:30 p.m. Friday, May 19. The event is open to the public. As parents, teachers and volunteer students worked with mops and homemade wheat paste this week to affix the 4  by 3-foot portraits to the cement, a sense of teamwork and collaboration was palpable.

The Inside Out portraits are part of the KPS all-district art show, which has been held in Bronson Park since the pandemic. Chrissy Brege, a Winchell art teacher who worked with Clearwaters on the project, had been busy at home making wheat paste the night before because an expected delivery of powdered paste didnt arrive on time.

Most students won't see their portraits until Friday's All-District Art Fair, but a few helped affix the portraits to the sidewalks.

Over the course of a week, parents, students, and teachers volunteered to paste 4 1/2 X 3 feet black and white student portraits on the sidewalks of Bronson Park in preparation of the All-District Art Fair on Friday, May 19.

Photographer Fran Dwight being interviewed about her participatino in the "We are Edison" Inside Out Project in 2017. Since 2011, more than 400,000 people from 149 countries and territories have participated in the Inside Out Project. This is Kalamazoos second Inside Out Project. The first, We are Edison, which took place in 2017, featured portrait of Edison residents attached to Washington Square buildings that were in the process of being rehabilitated. Sponsored by the Kalamazoo County Land Bank,  We are Edison  helped provide a sense of place and resident-presence in the neighborhood. Southwest Michigan Second Wave Photographer Fran Dwight, who was the photographer for the Edison Inside Out, also took these photos of the KPS Inside Out installation, which surely brought back a few memories.

Volunteer photographers took three photos of each student, who were then allowed to choose their favorite portrait for the project.



The portraits, which are intended to last from a week to three months, will go through a natural process of deterioration. As people worked on the project in Bronson Park Wednesday, many expressed gratitude for the dry weather. Within less than a week, a few of the portraits already had small rips or missing parts, and some were covered with pollen or speckled with leaves.Deterioration is a natural part of the project, says Brege. The kids were informed what they were getting into with the portraits, she says, adding that each photo was expected to last from one week to three or four months.

Students' faces  smiling, laughing, thinking, frowning, squinting  are the focus of a display of almost 1,000 black and white portraits that will line the interior sidewalks of Bronson Park in an exhibition called

A thousand KPS' students have their photos on the sidewalks of Bronson Park as part of the Inside Out Project.

Many hands make light work. A pre-ordered, powdered wheat paste was delayed and so teachers and students made handmade paste of flour, sugar, and water.

Students in the exhibition were encouraged to participate by art teachers and stood with the statement: We are Kalamazoo artists. We are innovators, dreamers, and creators."

Since 2011, more than 400,000 people from 149 countries and territories have participated in the Inside Out Project designed by French artist JR.

In addition to the many who were scattered throughout Bronson Park, there were as many behind the scenes who took photos, edited, organized photo releases, says Brege.The most valuable part of this project was bringing together, students, teachers, and parents, says Brege. We all came together as working artists. Its a beautiful thing to see.Its weird to see the photos decompose when you want them to be perfect, said Dava Antoniotti, a mother of three who attend Winchell. Their cute little faces. Im trying to embrace that part of the project, but it goes against a natural part of being a parent, being a human.As she worked, Antoniotti had already spotted two of her childrens portraits, but the third hadnt yet been applied. Above the park, two drones were taking videos and photos, the images which she was looking forward to seeing.Its such a fun project, Antoniotti says, adding her children wont see the exhibit until Friday. Im really excited for them to see it. They cant wait.The exhibit will be on display throughout the month of May. Fridays celebration is open to the public.
Paper envelopes, plastic shipping bags, and bubble wrap were cut into small, medium, and large squares to prepare for making the skirt.

Will I be able to wear this item with multiple outfits? Do I own something like this already? Have I wanted to buy this for more than 24 hours? Do I want to buy this simply because I saw someone else with it?

These are the materials that were collected to start the project  more or less the fabric of the dress.

The squares were matched up according to size and sewn into strips on a sewing machine.

On the mannequin, the cardboard was shaped into the top portion of the dress. It was then sewn together with embroidery floss.

A close-up view of the front of the dress. The straps were made with more strips of patchwork plastic.

A close-up view of the corset back. The tie for the lace-up was created by making a chain of small strips of plastic using a large crochet hook.

A close-up view of the corset back. The tie for the lace-up was created by making a chain of small strips of plastic using a large crochet hook.

The finished Plastic Patchwork Packing Dress is appropriately showcased on a doorstep where a package might land.

Kayanna Smith, a Lakeview High School senior and Voices of Youth participant.



Kayanna Smith is a senior at Lakeview High School. She enjoys anything related to music, art, and frogs. At Lakeview, she is involved with the theatre program, yearbook, and Channel 101. She hopes to attend Eastern Michigan University in the fall to pursue Communications and Journalism.
Talaas said the negative trend was likely to continue until the 2060s and then "the return back to normal level might take even thousands of years because we already have such a high concentration of carbon dioxide" in the atmosphere.

CO2 and methane and other greenhouse gases that cause global warming are the main drivers of climate change. While many greenhouse gases occur naturally, human activities increase their concentration in the atmosphere.

"Actually, there is no return back to the good old days because we already have such a high concentration of carbon dioxide and we also, of course, have increased the methane concentration in the atmosphere."

"We estimate that in the coming five years, we will hit 1.15C on a temporary basis, but in the coming 15 to 20 years, we estimate that might be the more permanent feature of climate," said Petteri Taalas, WMO secretary-general.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warns global temperatures are likely to surge to record levels in the next five years, with temperatures reaching more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for at least one year.

Meteorologists expect the most dramatic changes to happen in the Arctic, where the warming is disproportionately high and temperatures in this region are predicted to be more than three times as large as the global average in the coming five years.

Talaas warns that it will have a major effect on the eco system. "For example, we expect that there will be changes in fisheries and in the melting of permafrost and it also will have big impacts on infrastructures."

He noted that many settlements are built on permafrost"railroads, roads, gas pipelines and so forth and they are going to be endangered because of this high level of warming."

The WMO report predicts precipitation patterns in the next five years will result in increased rainfall in the Sahel, northern Europe, Alaska and northern Siberia and reduced rainfall over the Amazon and parts of Australia.

Additionally, Talaas said he expected drought in the Amazonian region would adversely affect the global climate because parts of the region have become a source of carbon instead of a carbon sink, which it classically has been. "This is one of the tipping points that we have to follow because we would again see large amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from that region," he said.

Leon Hermanson, the United Kingdom's Met Office expert scientist and lead author of the report, said what worries him most is the impact that extreme weather events will have on people. "Nobody is going to be untouched by these changes that are happening and have happened," he said. "It is leading already to floods across the world, droughts, and big movements of people."

Last year saw stark evidence of that. Countless millions of people have suffered from severe drought and heat in China, Europe, North America, and the Horn of Africa.

Record breaking temperatures in several European countries in 2022 led to the deaths of at least 15,000 people. More than 20 million people have been pushed into acute hunger following three consecutive years of drought in the Horn of Africa. More than 1,700 people were killed and the lives of 33 million others were upended because of climate-related flooding in Pakistan last June.

"We could phase out this negative trend in weather patterns of heat waves, flooding, drought and tropical storm by being ambitious and successful in climate mitigation," said Talaas. "But there is no turning back to the climate, which persisted during the last century. That is a fact."

Hermanson concurred that it will be a sad day for the world when it passes the 1.5 Celsius mark but added that is not a reason to give up. "We have to continue working out how we can reduce emissions of greenhouse gases as much as possible, even after that because it will make a difference," he said.
The U.S. military has confirmed another Russian military aircraft was tracked while operating near the U.S. state of Alaska on Monday, the second such incident in less than a week.

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said that it had "detected and tracked" one Russian military aircraft while it was operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter U.S. or Canadian sovereign airspace, according to a NORAD press release.

Speaking to VOA on Wednesday, a NORAD official declined to identify the type of Russian military aircraft, adding that U.S. fighter jets did not fly out and intercept the aircraft in this instance.
Press Release

May 17, 2023 Pia: it would be prudent for Congress not to increase the exposure to Maharlika of GOCCs providing social services to Filipinos

Highlights from the interpellation of Senator Pia S. Cayetano on the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund Act (SBN 2020) The Maharlika Investment Fund needs to be studied carefully I sponsored the CREATE Bill and that took us a year. With the number of session days, the number of hours we defended that. I am not questioning his honor. I am just saying that for the record, bills of this magnitude take time. And I say this not just to the sponsor but to the Filipino people, na pinag-aaralan ho nang maayos ito. Also to our colleagues, both in the executive and in the other House, the Senate has been known to take its time to study these measures. And this representation has defended similar measures. So yun lang naman ang sa akin. We want to study it well. *On investments and 'voluntary contributions' of GOCCs" Okay, and then this is an important one. His honor mentioned that GSIS and SSS will no longer be required to invest as was part of the original plan. So now they will no longer be required to invest. Di ba may iba pa rito? Ano pa bang mga ibanGOCCs...GSIS, SSS...that were originally included in the required investors list? PhilHealth? Was PhilHealth included? * Pagibig and PhilHealth. I don't know if there were other mandatory investors in this Maharlika bill. Correct? That's the first statement. * So you are saying that the Committee Report actually took out GSIS and SSS and went further by saying that other social institutions will not be required? Are we talking about initial contribution during the period of incorporation or are we talking about contributions throughout the lifetime of the corporation? * So these are the only subscribers, A, B, and C right? And then you have a provision later on that says, "under no circumstances shall the GOCCs providing for social security of government employees, etc., be requested or required." So meaning to say, they won't be requested, there will be no formal request or an informal request, they will not be required, but they can voluntarily contribute. How does one voluntarily contribute when they are a GOCC and their heads are appointed by no less than the government itself? * Does his honor actually think that this gives comfort to the Filipino people? Given the Blue Ribbon Committee hearings we've had, all these investigations. It's an honest-to-goodness question, your honor. Does that give his honor comfort? * So his honor is not aware of situations in the past where heads of GOCCs somehow agreed to certain agreements, and I know there are provisions here that it's bawal to enter into transactions disadvantageous to government, talagang yung utak natin punong puno na, every Filipino knows that phrase already: disadvantageous to the Filipino people. The Blue Ribbon Committee is always so busy investigating these things. So I am genuinely curious if this did not cross his honor's mind. May concern ba tayong ganun? Kasi I note that this is a priority bill and the Senate does have a history of doing its best, at least the majority, of course, but the minority has always been as supportive as possible to support the administration's measure. So we take the lead from the sponsor. So I hope his honor will understand that I need to ask this question because his honor is the one who spent hours and hours studying, discussing, and me being the Senate's futures thinking hindi naman expert, practitioner, parang takot na takot ako ma-foresee na yung next order or business natin in a few years will be the investigation of [GOCCs]... hindi naman sila ni-request o ni-require, pero nag-volunteer sila. Tapos ayan na yung mga initials initials na papel. Yun lang naman, your honor. I want this to be on record kasi anglaki ng tinataya natin dito. And if I may just add one last point, ito nga yung GOCCs providing social security measures. And I will just speak for the health sector. Every year, your honor, P70 B ang hinihingi na extra funding ng PhilHealth, taun-taon. Every year, ang nabibigay lang natin sa kanila is maybe an extra P5 B, kasi hindi rin nila maayos-ayos ang kanilang mga finance and accounting... I haven't, for the sake of this interpellation, really had the chance to look at how much of their funds are invested in other investments. But alam ko nga may board of directors, but those same board of directors were the ones who, on their watch, hindi nababayaran ang mga ospital, magsasara ang mga private hospital dahil hindi nababayaran. And I am not even attributing malice pa. I am just saying na yun ang mga nangyayari under their watch. * Thank you, your honor. Would his honor be open to an amendment that would prevent these government corporations that provide social services from contributing so that there is actually no opportunity for the crossing of that line? * SO his honor earlier mentioned that these social service GOCCs, he assumes that their board of directors would, in my own words, exercise due diligence required of them to choose their investments and the entire resource group of his honor are nodding their heads, so I will take that as a yes, your honor. And at the same time, his honor is saying that if the Maharlika Corporation will be investing in other investment opportunities, why would you prevent them? Well, I will ask his honor this question: what is the main purpose of the existence of these social security corporations? It's to provide social service. It would be great if they have additional income, but that is definitely secondary. Would his honor agree? * Mr President, thank you for his honor's explanation. My response to his honor's explanation is as follows. If his honor agrees that the principal purpose of existence of a GOCC providing for social services like PhilHealth is to provide for health, and yet they are allowed to invest in funding, but they must do so prudently, would it not be prudent on our part in Congress to not increase the exposure of the Filipino people, such that if the Maharlika fund fails, and before I continue my question, there is no guarantee that it will be successful, correct? So let's not debate that because we both know that with prudence, hopefully it does very well. But there is no guarantee. If P125 B pesos is already going to be invested there, would it not be an acceptable amount of prudence that the GOCCs providing for the Filipino security, yung kanilang health security, home security, huwag na lang din dumagdag pa doon? Para lang in case hindi siya naging successful, hindi na siya nadamay. Would that not be a prudent thing to do? *Summary of concerns" If I were to summarize my concerns, my concern would be, yes, it is a fund that could generate income. But the underlying word here is "could." It's a possibility but it is not an assurance. And we should not in any way add to the uncertainty by allowing, including, or even accepting investments from our corporations such as PhilHealth, GSIS, and SSS, from investing people's money in these funds. " I thank the gentleman for his time. I wish him all the best in the defense, but I also hope that his honor would be willing to work with us so that the Senate can come up with a version that is more acceptable to us, so that we can support. Because we are one in the desire of the administration to provide for a better future for the Filipino. I don't think anyone in the... Senate will disagree with that. But the manner by which we will go about it is very important, your honor. And we have to use utmost prudence in the exercise of our powers because it's in our hands, your honor. That is also my appeal. It's in our hands. So we must, I hope we will take time to work together to craft a measure that is actually less risky. # Kumbaga, what is your risk appetite? For the Filipino people, if there is extra money somewhere, walang problema. Pero kung pondo yun na directly contributing to their welfare, health nila, pabahay nila, medyo mahirap po sa akin na isipin na iri-risk po yun. Thank you, Mr President. Thank you, your honor. #
He was once again accompanied by his daughter Ju-ae.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made his first public appearance in about a month on Tuesday, when he checked preparations for the launch of North Korea's first military satellite.

According to state media, Kim visited the National Aerospace Development Administration to check the final stage of preparation for the reconnaissance satellite.

He made his last visit there a month ago, when Pyongyang claimed the satellite had passed some of the final tests.

The official [North] Korean Central News Agency said the project was at the "binding stage," which apparently means it is almost ready for launch.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday pledged to work with Seoul to promote human rights in North Korea "just like [South] Koreans chose to fight for democracy during the Gwangju democratization movement 43 years ago." Trudeau was speaking in the National Assembly in Seoul on Wednesday while on a visit to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations. He also met with President Yoon Suk-yeol.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at the National Assembly in Seoul on Wednesday. /News1

"Gwangju serves as a reminder that democracy in [South] Korea didn't happen by accident," Trudeau said. "At its best, democracy will always be stronger than authoritarianism." "Your democracy is resilient, it is hard won, with the blood and sacrifice of [South] Koreans. It was a long fight but ultimately freedom prevailed." "And now, [South Korea] is one of the most successful and vibrant democracies in the world, and each and every one of you in this chamber plays a key role within it," he added. Trudeau spoke alternately in English and French. Lawmakers applauded 15 times during the half-hour speech, but about half of the 300 seats in the main hall were empty because some lawmakers had already left for Gwangju for anniversary celebrations of the 1980 democratic uprising.

President Yoon Suk-yeol (right) shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul on Wednesday. /Newsis

Trudeau then visited Yoon in his office. The two leaders issued a joint statement afterwards where they condemned "Russia's illegal and unjustifiable full-scale invasion of Ukraine." They pledged to "continue working closely together, in coordination with the international community, to respond to Russia's severe violations of international law and human rights." "We remain committed to strengthening cooperation to protect and promote human rights in North Korea, seek accountability, and improve the living conditions of the North Korean people," they added.
Lawmakers from both sides of the divide converged in Gwangju on Thursday to remember the pro-democracy uprising of 1980.

President Yoon Suk-yeol attended the annual ceremony despite intelligence warnings of violent protests by some civic groups, who believe that today's conservatives are the ideological heirs of the military regimes of the time.
Nurses nationwide will go on strike after President Yoon Suk-yeol vetoed a bill improving their working conditions and giving them more independence, the Korean Nurses Association said on Wednesday.

Nurses will strike by doing their jobs by the book, refusing to follow doctors' orders to perform certain parts of operations or prescribe medicine. Current law prohibits them from performing such duties, but they have been carrying them out for a long time now as a matter of course.

The main opposition Minjoo Party, which holds a super-majority of seats, railroaded the new bill that more clearly defined nurses' duties through the National Assembly, but protests from doctors, who claim the law will divide the medical profession and cause confusion and conflict, persuaded Yoon that it was too divisive.
To win the role that would make him famous, all Pierce Brosnan had to do was put on a good suit. The eighties had just begun, and he and his first wife, Australian actress Cassandra Harris, had put a second mortgage on their home in Wimbledon, London, to try their luck in Los Angeles. In 1980, Brosnan had made his film debut with a nameless part in The Long Good Friday, in which he played Irishman Number 1, an IRA assassin who pointed a pistol at Bob Hoskins. A year later, he had received the starring role in The Manions of America, a miniseries about the drama of Irish immigration during the great famine. With that CV in hand, he and Harris moved to the city of the stars. Borsnan rented an old lime-green AMC Pacer, at $50 a week, to attend his first audition. On the way, the car broke down. Brosnan walked to the audition through the hills of Laurel Canyon, an idyllic Los Angeles neighborhood with cabins among the trees, just five minutes from Hollywood. He arrived, and he got the role. The suit was everything.

The part wasnt for James Bond, the character who would accompany him for posterity, but a role in the television series Remington Steele. He played a young adventurer who worked for a peculiar detective agency. The show turned into a star both in the United States, where the series became a hit, and beyond. Today, its impossible to look at the images from the series, in which Brosnan appears in a black suit jacket and bow tie, and not see a glimpse of the eternal 007, though 13 years elapsed between the roles. During that time, he experienced the death of his wife and the mother of his three children, who moved with him to Hollywood and introduced him to the producer of the films who would make him an icon. Unlike the mischievous secret agent, and his image as an old Hollywood charmer, Brosnan is a family man with long-lasting, solid relationships who prefers calm to the spotlight.

Born in Drogheda, one of Irelands oldest towns, he did not have a happy childhood. Childhood was fairly solitary, he said in a 1997 interview. Brosnan was the only child of May Smith, a nurse, and Thomas Brosnan, a carpenter: I grew up in a very small town in southern Ireland. I never knew my father. He left when I was an infant, and I was left in the care of my mother and my grandparents. My mother was very courageous. She took the bold steps to go away and be a nurse in England. Basically wanting a better life for her and myself. My mother came home once a year, twice a year. In his mothers absence, Brosnans grandparents raised him. When they died, he went to live in a lodging house owned by a woman named Eileen. She had a place in a poor part of town. She had her own children and I moved upstairs with the lodgers, all grown men with jobs. One worked in the mill. One worked in a bank. The three lodgers stayed in a long room with iron beds with old mattresses. At the end of the room, there was my little bed, with a curtain around it, so the light wouldnt shine in when the older guys came home, he told The Guardian.

Pierce Brosnan and Cassandra Harris at the premiere of the movie Ninja Turtles, November 21, 1990 in California. Ron Galella (Ron Galella Collection via Getty)

In 1964, at 11 years old, he moved to the British capital to live with his mother and her new husband, William Carmichael. The reunion with my mother was joyous. Finally, I had my mother, he would say years later. His stepfather became a paternal figure: together they went to see Brosnans first Bond movie, Goldfinger, with Sean Connery as the spy. I can discard what my father did because he did nothing. I have a great father stepfather in William, he said. Dubbed the Irishman by his classmates, Brosnan soon grew interested in the arts. He left school at 16 years old to study illustration at the prestigious Saint Martins school, then went on to study acting for three years at The Drama Center at Kings Cross in London, where figures like Colin Firth, Michael Fassbender and Emilia Clarke also started their careers.

In the seventies, Brosnan met Cassandra Harris. Before you knew it, we fell in love, the actor said. Harris was Australian, and she moved to London with her two children, Charlotte and Christopher, who Brosnan adopted. It just felt so right. I didnt feel like a father, I wasnt a father; I was just Pierce. And then I became Daddy Pierce. And then I became Daddy. Perhaps because of the difficulty of his childhood, the actor never hid his intention to form a family and be a present father for all his children. I want my children to have love in their life when they are young. I want them to know the true meaning of love, he said later. Brosnan and Harris married in 1977. In 1981, Harris became a Bond girl in the film For Your Eyes Only, starring Roger Moore. Thanks to that role, Brosnan met Albert R. Broccoli, the producer of the saga. In 1983, the couples third child and the actors first biological child, Sean Brosnan, was born. In 1987, while Brosnan filmed a movie in India, Cassandra fell gravely ill. Shortly thereafter, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She died in 1991, at 43 years old. Brosnan was widowed and left with their three children. It was and is a terrible loss, Brosnan said. How do you carry on afterwards? Slowly. Very, very, very slowly. It hurts. And you have to sit and endure it. Theres nothing else to do; it wont go away.

Pierce Brosnan and his second wife, Keely Shaye Smith, during the Met Gala on May 1 in New York. Cindy Ord/MG23 (Getty Images for The Met Museum/)

In 1994, his life took a big turn. Brosnan was announced as the next James Bond after Timothy Dalton, who played the M16 agent in only two films. Rumors that he would be the next 007 had been circulating for years, since his late wife had played a Bond girl and Remington Steeles cancellation in 1986. Curiously, those rumors reignited the audiences interest in the series, which was renewed. Brosnan had to return. Two films later, he was finally confirmed as the secret agent. He was the fifth James Bond in history, and he played the character for four films.

That same year, Brosnan also met the journalist Keely Shaye Smith as both of them spent the summer in Mexico. They began a relationship. I found a great woman in Keely Shaye. Not if I searched a million times over would I find one as good, he told People Magazine. In 1997, their first child together, Dylan, was born. In 2001, they were married in Ireland. That year, they welcomed another child, Paris. Together, they are one of the most solid couples in Hollywood, with a relationship that has lasted 29 years. Brosnan calls his wife his North Star. On the secret to their marriage, he told People, solving problems day in, year after year, liking each other, getting on with each other. But in 2003, another tragedy befell Brosnan: his daughter, Charlotte, died from the same kind of cancer that ended her mothers life.

Pierce Brosnan and his first wife, Cassandra Harris, with their children Charlotte and Christopher, at a Saint Patricks Day celebration at the restaurant Jimmys in Beverly Hills, California, March 17, 1985. Ron Galella, Ltd. (Ron Galella Collection via Getty)

A lot can happen in seventy years. Today, Brosnan spends his days alongside his wife in Hawaii. The actor has revealed in interviews that he has returned to his first passion, painting, to which he dedicates most of his time. In addition to his four children, he has four grandchildren. Like any good grandparent, he shares photos of them on Instagram. Last time he wore a suit was for his sons graduation in early May. Now he prefers black cotton t-shirts.

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Simon Fraser University is Canadas top university for innovation and industrial application, as well as number two in the world for entrepreneurial spirit, according to the 2023 Worlds Universities with Real Impact (WURI) rankings.

It is the third consecutive year that SFU has ranked as the top university in Canada in the overall innovation category, as well as for the entrepreneurial spirit and industrial application categories. SFU moved up globally among innovative universities, to 13th in the world  up from 18th in 2022. SFU is the only Canadian university to break into the top 100 overall.

I am thrilled at the progress we are making towards our vision of advancing an inclusive and sustainable future, says SFU president Joy Johnson. Thank you to WURI for recognizing the contributions of SFU students, faculty and staff who are building a better world through innovation, research, entrepreneurship and social impact.

The WURI rankings measure how universities make a positive impact on society and highlight creative and innovative approaches to university research and education, based on six ranking categories.

While we are supporting our researchers passion for engaging in and tackling global challenges through innovation and entrepreneurship, we are also helping industry strengthen its science innovation pipeline through SFUs innovation eco-system, says Elicia Maine, SFUs associate vice-president, knowledge mobilization and innovation.

Since 2016, SFU has been advancing its innovation ecosystem through SFU Innovates, the universitys innovation strategy. SFU facilitates partnerships, creates an environment that allows for innovation to thrive and provides multi-way paths to navigate innovation opportunities.

One success story is SFU spinoff company Ionomr Innovations  a clean tech and advanced materials company that had its first intellectual property protected through SFU  which a ttracted more than $15 million USD in funding in 2022. For the last two years, Ionomr has been named on the Global Cleantech 100, an annual list of the most innovative and promising companies that are advancing net-zero efforts. Before this success, Ionomr was supported by nearly every component of the SFU Innovates ecosystem, including: 4D LABS; SFU Beedie School of Businesss Invention to Innovation (i2I) program; The Charles Chang Institute for Entrepreneurship; Coast Capital Venture Connection at SFU; SFU VentureLabs; and SFUs Technology Licensing Office.

Programs from the SFU innovates ecosystem are supporting innovators across Canada, most notably 4D LABS and Mitacs i2I.

With our university now consistently recognized as a global leader in impactful innovation for its interdisciplinary and collaborative innovation ecosystem, I am very excited to see where our talented researchers take Canadian invention and innovation over the next several years, says Maine.



Learn more about SFUs innovation strategy. Visit sfu.ca/innovates.
Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay up to $75m to settle a lawsuit alleging the lender helped facilitate human trafficking by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein by retaining him as a client.

The lawsuit was brought in November by an unnamed woman, referred to as Jane Doe, who says she was abused by the late Epstein. The payout is expected to be shared among a number of women.

Deutsche Bank accepted Epstein as a client despite numerous claims of sexual assault against him, all made by underage girls, and maintained the relationship until 2018. Epstein, who was convicted in 2008 of procuring a child for prostitution, was arrested in 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking of minors. He died in prison a month later.

In 2020, Deutsche Bank paid $150m to the New York State Department of Financial Services over the lender's relationship with the disgraced financier. At the time, it said: "We acknowledge our error of onboarding Epstein in 2013 and the weaknesses in our processes, and have learned from our mistakes and shortcomings."

Deutsche Bank had sought to have Doe's class dismissed. It argued that a settlement reached with the Epstein estate last year, under which Doe received $7.4m, covered its alleged liability too.

In a joint statement, Does law firms - Boies Schiller Flexner, and Edwards Pottinger - said the "ground breaking" settlement was the culmination of "more than a decade-long investigation to hold one of Epsteins financial banking partners responsible for the role it played in facilitating his trafficking organisation".

Deutsche has yet to comment on the settlement, which is expected to draw a line under legal claims relating to the lenders relationship with Epstein.

It is not the only financial institute targeted in the wake of the Epstein scandal, however. Rival JP Morgan is facing two separate lawsuits: in the US Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a home, and by another unnamed woman, Jane Doe 1. Epstein was a client of the US lender for 15 years until 2013.

JP Morgan, which is suing former employee Jes Staley over his relationship with Epstein, has said previously that both claims are "misplaced and without merit". Staley, formerly chief executive of JP Morgans investment bank, left the lender in 2013 after more than 30 years, becoming chief executive of Barclays two years later. He left the UK bank in 2021.
Shares in Future tumbled on Thursday after the media group lowered its full-year expectations on the back of 'challenging' market conditions.

The publisher - whose brands include Country Life, Marie Claire, Music Week and GoCompare, among others - said revenues in the six months to 31 March were 404.7m, largely unchanged year-on-year on a reported basis but down 10% organically.

Within that, media revenues, which include advertising, tumbled 12% to 265.5m, while magazine revenues were 5% lower at 139.2m.

Group adjusted operating profits eased 3% to 130.3m.

Looking to the rest of the year, Future said the trends it had seen in the first half were likely to continue into the second, "with challenging market conditions impacting audience".

As a result, it now expects its full-year performance to be "towards the bottom end" of market expectations. Consensus is currently for adjusted full-year operating profits of between 255m and 277m.

As at 1000 BST, shares in Future had tumbled 15% to 890.5p.

Chief executive Jon Steinberg, who joined in April, said: "The macroeconomic environment remains tough, but we are well-positioned to continue to outperform the industry. Our investment in new strategic verticals, coupled with the groups the stack and operating model, will create long-term value for our stakeholders."

Steinberg is an American digital entrepreneur and a former BuzzFeed and Daily Mail executive. Future generates around 60% of revenues in the UK and the rest in the US.

Peel Hunt, which has a buy rating on the stock, said: "While we continue to believe the Future model is strong, audience trends, currently a headwind, can be unpredictable, and until we see a sustained change in trend there is no guarantee we are the bottom of the downgrade cycle."
The Internet is awash in all kinds of tests, from personality tests to the most bizarre quizzes that guess your age based on how you design a room. Mixing such tests with the creative and ever-changing world of fashion results in thousands of blogs and articles that claim to be able to recommend clothing styles for all body types.

Finding a personal style that looks good may seem like an easy task, but the overload of trends and the daily news of more low-cost brands makes it more complicated. Tests such as colorimetry, figures referred to as hourglass, pear, inverted triangle and now the viral Kibbe test are based on the principles of design: they use proportion, balance, color, contrast, etc., to determine what (potentially) looks best on a person.

To do this, the tests create different standardized body types, that is, labeling a body by shape or type. Marian Rubio (@anatomia), an image consultant, says it is a very useful tool in fashion; it serves as the basis of all consulting: I always say its not your body, its the clothes you wear. Knowing what your strengths are and the clothes that can enhance them changes how you look in the mirror.

Gloria Miguel, a psychologist at the Egoki center, comments that body typing doesnt lead to anything good. She adds that some peoplestylists or designers, for examplecan use it to do their work well because clothes are made in specific ways to fit body shapes: Its not a matter of denying that the body has a shape, but rather a question of who defines it and to what end.

The basis of the system

The Kibbe body type test was created in 1987 by image consultant David Kibbe, the author of the book Metamorphosis: Discover Your Image Identity and Dazzle as Only You Can. Its almost impossible to buy a copy today; the few available ones cost 400 on Amazon or eBay. Still, through the magic of the internet, the method discussed in Kibbes book has reemerged and gone viral.

Kibbe created an image identity system that considers a persons skeleton, flesh and facial features and groups them into five broad types: dramatic, classic, natural, romantic and gamine. These five are then further divided into 13 subtypes: dramatic and soft dramatic; classic, soft classic and classic dramatic; natural, soft natural and flamboyant natural; romantic and theatrical romantic; and gamine, flamboyant gamine and soft gamine.

In turn, all these types are on a spectrum that goes from yang (more masculine) to yin (more feminine). Classic types are in the middle, the dramatic and natural types with more angles are more yang and on the left, and the curvier romantic and gamine types are more yin and placed on the right.

Nekane Cuellar (@nekane_loveyourself), a plus-size model, hadnt heard of the test but says that she was horrified when she read that it is divided into categories that measure the percentage of a persons femininity and masculinity. It seems completely absurd to me, she says. Psychologist Gloria Miguel agrees: I dont understand the need to label so many body types. It resorts to connecting femininity with what it considers romantic: curves... but the reality is that being and feeling like a woman goes beyond how curvy one is or is not.

A test for everyone?

The tests growing popularity has both delighted and worried its creator. Kibbe, 66, sees that hundreds of people on social media now believe that they are experts on the subject. In his most recent interview with The New York Times, he observed that many of the principles on which his arguments are based have been taken out of context. Furthermore, he emphasizes that you need to have experience (in image consulting) to do this for someone else.

Mr. Kibbe does not deny the importance of an online presence. He himself participates in the Strictly Kibbe Facebook group, which, even today, is the only creator-approved forum/website. The group is made up entirely of women, with the exception of Kibbe, although he participates using his wifes profile.

Kibbe provides examples of each body type. In his book, the author shares a list of celebrities who fit into each category, primarily actresses from the golden age of Hollywood and celebrities from decades ago: Sophia Loren, Ingrid Bergman, Joan Crawford, Grace Kelly, Liza Minelli, Jackie O... Although the women are different, they are all beautiful and slim, as defined by the industrys beauty standards at the time. Nowadays, virality on social media has made celebrities more inclusive and diverse.

The Kibbe test has given rise to a variety of opinions. On the one hand, content creator and writer Adriana Boho (@adrianaboho), believes that while it is difficult for a single test to categorize all body types, it can be a good starting point. Vai Sawaneh, better known as @betweenmyclothes, agrees that it can offer helpful guidance and adds that the test is intended for those people who are interested in taking it.

On the other hand, image consultant Marian Rubio says that it is very difficult to see yourself reflected in these images. She points out that it leaves out many body types. Aitziber Badiola (@aitziber_personalstylist), a personal stylist, adds that a persons body type and style should not be tied to metrics. Cuellar agrees: I dont think any body type is meant to be pigeonholed in a test; everyone should be free to dress as they please.

Gloria Miguel believes that we must be careful with this type of test: It can create significant pathologies in people who have difficulty accepting their bodies, because they see that they do not fit the standard. She stresses that bodies should not become trendy, and that beauty standards, which tests like Kibbes promote, are highly subjective and extremely confusing for people who are discovering their identities.

The experts all agree that fashion is a mode of free expression that does not need to be subjected to imposed rules. They emphasize that only people in good mental health should take the Kibbe test, because it thoroughly analyzes all parts of the body. Only stylists Marian and Aitziber have taken the test; both say that they did not completely agree with the tests results and note that the quiz is overly complex. It seems to me that you are a prisoner of the test. The only way to get it right is for David himself to do it for you; if you do it without him, you get the sense that [your] answers are not correct, Marian points out. She adds that the initial purpose of Kibbes body types has been lost amid its current popularity: the system was originally designed to be Kibbes business.

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Water companies have apologised for repeated sewage spills and pledged to invest 10bn this decade in an attempt to quell public anger over pollution in seas and rivers. The companies will triple their existing investment plans to plough funds into the biggest modernisation of sewers since the Victorian era to reduce spills of overflowing sewage into Englands waterways.  Guardian

San Francisco has reached a $230m settlement with Walgreens over the corporations role in the citys unprecedented opioid crisis. The settlement is the largest ever awarded to a local government amid years of continuing, nationwide opioid-centered litigation, according to San Franciscos city attorney.  Guardian

Barclays is planning to hire 200 new traders in Paris in the latest blow to the City of London in the wake of Brexit. The British lender said it expects to increase its headcount in the French capital by about two-thirds over the next two to three years as it increasingly becomes Europes main trading hub.  Telegraph

The former chief executive of London Capital & Finance, the collapsed investment company, received a suspended jail sentence after he admitted concealing 95,000 from investigators that was used to fund his luxury lifestyle. A judge at Southwark crown court in London sentenced Michael Thomson, 50, to ten-months in jail, suspended for two years, yesterday after he was found to have breached a restraint order imposed on his finances.  The Times

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit which accused it of helping to facilitate sex trafficking by the paedophile and financier Jeffrey Epstein, according to lawyers for the plaintiffs. Alleged victims of Epstein, led by a woman listed anonymously as Jane Doe, launched legal action against the investment bank last November.  The Times
Security forces stand guard outside the National Assembly in Quito after Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso issued a decree dissolving the legislature, on May 17, 2023.

Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso on Wednesday put an end to impeachment proceedings against him by dissolving the opposition-led National Assembly, which had accused him of embezzlement.

The conservative president, who has denied wrongdoing, can govern for up to six months by decree under a constitutional provision that had not previously been used, and his move swiftly drew pushback from critics who said his removal from office had been imminent.

Soon after Lassos announcement, the South American countrys top military leader warned that the armed forces would act firmly if any violence erupts. A strong contingent of military and police officers blocked access around the National Assembly building in Ecuadors capital, Quito.

In a televised message, Lasso accused the National Assembly of focusing on destabilizing the government. He called his move democratic, and a way to give people the power to decide their future in the next elections.

Lawmakers had accused Lasso of not having intervened to end a contract between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company. They argued Lasso knew the contract was full of irregularities and would cost the state millions in losses, something that the president rejects as untrue.

The National Electoral Council now has seven days to call presidential and legislative elections, which must be held within 90 days. Those elected will finish the terms of Lasso and the lawmakers he ousted, which had been set to end in May 2025. Lasso can choose to run in the election.

Lasso, a former banker, was elected in 2021 and has clashed from the start with a strong opposition in the 137-member National Assembly. He defended himself before Congress on Tuesday, insisting there was no proof or testimony of wrongdoing.

After Lasso announced his decision Wednesday, the head of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces, Gen. Nelson Proano, called on Ecuadorians to maintain respect for the law and warned against rupturing the constitutional order through violence.

If violence erupts, the armed forces and police will act firmly, he said.

Lassos move quickly led to criticism from the powerful Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities, which in recent years has carried out protests that have virtually paralyzed the country. Its leader, Leonidas Iza Salazar, said Lasso launched a cowardly self-coup with the help of the police and the armed forces, without citizen support as he faced imminent dismissal.

Will Freeman, fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said Lassos decision signals that he was aware the opposition had enough votes to impeach him, and maybe then some. He said mass protests are likely in the coming days.

Its also hard to imagine Lasso is making this move without the tacit support of top brass in the military, he said. In the past, protests have tended to turn destructive quickly  and security forces have also cracked down.

In dissolving the assembly, Lasso made first use of the Ecuador presidencys nuclear option in conflicts with the legislative branch. Known colloquially as the death cross, the option to disband and temporarily rule by decree was established in the constitution in 2008.

The measure is aimed at avoiding protracted periods of political paralysis, Ecuadorian legal analyst Ramiro Aguilar said. A conflict of this nature can last four years, and it is a conflict that paralyzes the country.

However, the country also loses democratic debate during the interim. There will be a unilateral voice of the executive branch imposing a course without the counterweight of the assembly and the country loses credibility, because it is left with a weak institutional framework, Aguilar said.

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Marina Shaikh, the Founder and Chairperson of The Rising World Foundation (RWF), has emerged as a driving force in relieving the impact of COVID-19 on India's most vulnerable communities. With a strong background in social organization and philanthropy, Marina has dedicated herself to providing aid and support to those in need.

Marina's journey in social work began in Brussels, where she worked under the guidance of former European Parliament member Nirj Deva. Starting as an intern, Marina quickly proved her capabilities and rose through the ranks to become a special assistant and eventually an advisor. Her time at the European Parliament allowed her to develop her skills as a social organizer and gain international experience.

During her tenure, Marina became a vital operator for the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE). Representing ACRE as a delegate, she attended conferences in Turkey, Armenia, Italy, and the United States. Additionally, Marina contributed to critical humanitarian projects, such as the Praksis Organisation in Athens, Greece. Through Praksis, she collaborated with charities and government representatives to provide essential economic, social, and medical assistance to vulnerable populations across Europe.

Marina's unwavering commitment to her home country led her to assume the role of Director General for India within ACRE. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, Marina decided to forge her own path by establishing the RWF. In a short span of time, the RWF has become one of India's leading organizations in COVID-19 relief efforts.

Under Marina's exemplary leadership, the RWF has made a significant impact by distributing meal ration kits and sanitation supplies to thousands of people across India. The Foundation's proactive approach and dedication to helping the most vulnerable communities have earned it widespread recognition and support.

Marina Shaikh's vision and determination have allowed her to bring her political and humanitarian expertise back to her homeland. Through the RWF, she continues to make a tangible difference in the lives of those affected by the pandemic. Her inspiring work serves as a testament to the power of compassion, resilience, and the ability to affect change in challenging times.

The Rising World Foundation is currently running a fundraiser to empower women: Pad Empowerment Project in India. It aims to empower women economically and provide access to feminine hygiene products. India has both low female labor force participation rates and limited usage of sanitary pads. The project will raise funds to purchase sanitary products and provide menstrual education and sales training in Indore, Gwalior, and Piploda. Women in the program will receive entrepreneurship and menstrual health education and sell affordable sanitary pads in communities with limited resources. This initiative offers women the chance to develop sales skills, earn income, combat menstrual hygiene stigma, and support their community.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the Vande Bharat Express Train on the Puri-Howrah route via video conferencing. Modi also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for several railway projects worth more than Rs 8,000 crore in Odisha.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also virtually joined the programme, while Governor Ganeshi Lal, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also attended the grand event organised at the Puri railway station.

Among major projects, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stones for the Puri and Cuttack station redevelopment projects, inaugurated Bichhupalli-Jhartarbha new railway line and dedicated Sambalpur-Titlagarh doubling line, Angul-Sukinda new line, Rourkela-Jharsuguda & Manoharpur-Bondamunda third line to the nation.

Besides, he also inaugurated 100 per cent railway line electrification in Odisha, which will reduce the operating and maintenance cost and reduce reliance on imported crude oil.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said that the people of Odisha and West Bengal are being presented the Vande Bharat Express which is a symbol of modern and aspirational India.

"India's speed and progress can be seen whenever a Vande Bharat Train runs from one place to another," he said and noted that this pace can now be witnessed in the states of Odisha and West Bengal.

Modi said that this will entirely change the meaning of development along with the experience of traveling for the passengers.

"Be it travelling from Kolkata to Puri for darshan or the other way round, the travel time will now be reduced to only six and half hours, thereby saving time, giving rise to business opportunities and providing new opportunities for the youth," he pointed out.

Modi further said that 15 Vande Bharat Trains are already running in various states, giving a push to the overall economy.
Day trading has always been a popular way to make a living for those who have the skills, knowledge, and discipline to navigate the volatile world of financial markets. Over the years, several individuals have managed to turn their passion for trading into a successful career, earning substantial profits and inspiring others with their stories. In this article, we will explore the stories of some of the most successful day traders and examine the qualities that have enabled them to achieve their remarkable feats.

1. Paul Tudor Jones: A Legend in the Trading World

Early Life and Education

Paul Tudor Jones is a self-made billionaire and one of the most successful day traders in history. Born in 1954 in Memphis, Tennessee, Jones attended the University of Virginia, where he earned a degree in Economics. He later pursued an MBA from Harvard Business School but dropped out to pursue a career in trading.

The Road to Success

Jones started his trading career in the late 1970s as a floor clerk at the New York Stock Exchange. He later worked as a broker and trader for E.F. Hutton before founding his own hedge fund, Tudor Investment Corporation, in 1980. Jones made his name in the trading world during the 1987 stock market crash, where he managed to predict the event and profit from it significantly. Today, he is considered one of the most successful and influential traders of all time.

2. Linda Bradford Raschke: A Trailblazer for Women in Trading

Breaking the Glass Ceiling

Linda Bradford Raschke is a trailblazer for women in the world of trading. With over 40 years of experience in the financial markets, Raschke has built a reputation for her technical analysis skills and impressive track record. She began her career in the early 1980s as a market maker at the Pacific Coast Stock Exchange before transitioning to day trading.

Success and Recognition

Raschke's trading success has earned her widespread recognition in the industry, including being featured in Jack Schwager's book "The New Market Wizards." She has also authored her own book, "Trading Sardines," which offers insights into her journey and trading strategies. Raschke continues to trade actively and educates aspiring traders through her website and various workshops.

3. Ross Cameron: From Struggling Entrepreneur to Day Trading Guru

Overcoming Early Challenges

Ross Cameron's story is one of resilience and determination. After a series of failed entrepreneurial ventures, Cameron found himself in a difficult financial situation. He decided to try his hand at day trading and, despite initial struggles, persisted in learning the ins and outs of the market.

Founding Warrior Trading

Cameron's perseverance eventually paid off, and he became a consistently profitable day trader. In 2012, he founded Warrior Trading, an online platform dedicated to educating and supporting aspiring traders. Today, Warrior Trading is one of the largest day trading communities, with thousands of members worldwide.

4. Timothy Sykes: Turning a Small Investment into a Trading Empire

The Beginning of a Trading Journey

Timothy Sykes's success story began when he turned a modest $12,000 investment into over $1.65 million during his college years. Sykes achieved this remarkable feat by focusing on penny stocks, an often-overlooked niche in the trading world. His early success caught the attention of others, and he began teaching his methods to others.

Building a Trading Education Empire

Sykes has since built a thriving trading education business, offering online courses, mentoring, and various educational resources to aspiring traders. He has also authored several books and maintains a popular blog where he shares his insights and experiences in trading.

Sharing Knowledge and Inspiring Others

Sykes'scommitment to sharing his knowledge and experiences has made him a respected figure in the trading community. He regularly posts on social media platforms, conducts webinars, and hosts live trading sessions, where he demonstrates his strategies and techniques in real-time. His dedication to teaching and inspiring others has helped countless traders embark on their journey toward success in the world of day trading.

5. Rayner Teo: From Retail Trader to Trading Educator

Finding His Passion

Rayner Teo's introduction to trading came during his time at university. After completing his military service in Singapore, Teo decided to pursue a career in trading. He started by trading equities and eventually transitioned to forex and futures markets.

Overcoming Obstacles

Like many traders, Teo faced numerous challenges in the beginning. He suffered losses and struggled to develop a consistently profitable strategy. However, through persistence and a commitment to learning, Teo eventually found success in day trading.

Becoming a Trading Educator

Today, Teo is a well-known trading educator, teaching others through his popular blog, TradingwithRayner, and his YouTube channel, which has amassed over 500,000 subscribers. His down-to-earth approach and focus on practical strategies have made him a favorite among aspiring traders worldwide.

Key Traits of Successful Day Traders

While the stories of these successful day traders vary, they share several key traits that have contributed to their day trading success:

1. Discipline: Successful day traders have the discipline to stick to their trading plans, manage their risk, and follow their strategies consistently.

2. Persistence: Trading can be challenging, and losses are inevitable. Successful traders have the resilience to overcome obstacles and keep learning from their experiences.

3. Continuous Learning: The most successful traders are lifelong learners, continually refining their skills, staying informed about market developments, and adapting to changing conditions.

4. Emotional Control: Successful traders know how to manage their emotions, remaining calm under pressure and not allowing fear or greed to dictate their decisions.

5. Risk Management: Understanding and effectively managing risk is crucial for any successful trader. This includes setting stop losses, position sizing, and knowing when to cut losses or take profits.

By examining the stories of these successful day traders, it becomes clear that achieving success in the world of trading is not easy. It requires dedication, discipline, and a willingness to learn from both successes and failures. While there is no guaranteed path to success, those who possess these traits and are committed to their trading journey have the potential to join the ranks of the most accomplished day traders.
Former India batter Mohammad Kaif hit out at Punjab Kings (PBKS) for retiring out set-batter Atharva Taide mid-way through the chase in the IPL 2023 match against Delhi Capitals, citing it an 'extremely poor decision'. Chasing 214, when Punjab needed 86 runs in 30 balls, a tactical move saw PBKS retire out Taide in the 15th over, bringing an end to a 50-ball 78-run second-wicket partnership with Liam Livingstone.

Taide scored a 42-ball 55 as Livingstone's stunning knock of unbeaten 82 off 37 went in vain as the Shikhar Dhawan-led side went on to lose the match by 15 runs at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala to virtually bow out of the playoff race.

Speaking during the post-match discussion, Kaif criticised PBKS decision by citing an example of Rinku Singh and Rahul Tewatia. "Extremely poor decision to ask him to come out. Why do you talk about Rinku Singh and Tewatia? Rinku Singh was a run-a-ball at the start and Tewatia was on 13 off 21 balls. They hit five sixes after that," Kaif said.

"Taide was scoring at a strike rate of 130 and was a set batter alongside Liam Livingstone. Livingstone was playing fast and Taide was performing his role. He is an uncapped player who was hitting fours and sixes." he said.

Kaif further pointed out that the Kings' incoming batters after Taide were all dismissed quickly, adding that such moves rarely produce the desired outcomes. "He had gotten his eye in and you asked him to come out when it was the time to hit sixes. Very bad decision because who came after that - Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan and Sam Curran - all of them came and got out. If the decision had been good, I would have praised them.

"If you check the stats, whenever such a thing has been done that a set batter has been asked to come out, how many times has the new batter won the match? Show me the stats, I will concede defeat," he added.
Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), the nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state, has been ranked as the world's top public business incubator.

The ranking has been announced by the UBI Global World Benchmark Study 2021-2022 of Business Incubators and Accelerators, marking a major endorsement of its role in turning Kerala into a vibrant startup hub.

For arriving at this recognition, UBI Global assessed 1,895 organisations. UBI Global is a Sweden-based innovation intelligence company and community founded in 2013 in Stockholm. The award was handed over at a function in Belgium .

"KSUM's incubation programmes demonstrated exceptional value for client startups, value for the local ecosystem, and overall attractiveness as a programme. Following a rigorous data-driven approach, we assessed and benchmarked incubation organisations across the world," said Head of Research at UBI Global, Joshuah Sowah.

The World Benchmark Study is conducted to identify the best programmes from around the world and share the best practices for building a robust startup ecosystem. KSUM received major accolades in the last five years, adding to the momentum of its incubation activities that accelerated the growth of nascent firms.

In 2018, 2019 and 2021, the state was ranked as the top performer in the state startup rankings by Startup India, which comes under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
Nayib Bukele in San Salvador, on May 6. Kellys Portillo (Getty Images)

President Nayib Bukele has doubled down on his offensive against gangs in El Salvador. The controversial leader has ordered the mobilization of more than 5,000 military officers and 500 police to track down those responsible for the murder of an officer on Tuesday while on patrol in Chalatenango, in the north of the country. This new show of force against the gangs comes at a time when the National Assembly has approved a new extension of the state of emergency, which means that the suspension of legal guarantees remains in force for another 30 days. They will pay dearly for the murder of our hero, Bukele warned.

The officers murder was reported by the National Police in a brief message published on social media. According to the report, the policeman was attacked by gang members while on patrol with other officers in the community of Nueva Concepcion, in the northern province of Chalatenango. One terrorist was captured at the scene. We have launched an operation to find the other responsible individuals, the police reported. Bukele reacted furiously to the attack and in a series of messages on his social networks lashed out at human rights organizations, journalists and media outlets that criticize his controversial security strategy. The gang members that are still left in our country just murdered one of our heroes. But the human rights NGOs will say nothing, they only watch over the rights of criminals, the president said.

00:47 The video of the armed forces of El Salvador that Bukele shared on social networks The video of the armed forces of El Salvador that Bukele has spread on social networks after the murder of an officer. Photo: Marvin RECINOS (AFP) | Video: RR SS

Bukele has taken advantage of this new attack to ask for the extension of the state of emergency imposed a year ago by his government as a strategy to eliminate the gangs that for decades have sown terror in the Central American country. The president has asked for a new extension until this pest is completely eliminated, he said. The Salvadoran Parliament, controlled by Bukele, extended the measure at the request of the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Gustavo Villatoro. The request was approved with a total of 67 votes from legislators. This is an innovative strategy, decisive and for the good of all majorities, that is the democracy that President Nayib Bukele wants to have, where governments, state bodies listen to the demands of the population and solve them, said Villatoro after making the request to the legislators.

With the latest extension of the state of emergency under his arm, Bukele felt emboldened and announced the mobilization of thousands of officers of the armed forces to find those responsible for the murder of the policeman. In view of yesterdays murder of an agent of our Police by gang members who are still hiding in some areas of our country, fleeing from the Exception Regime, since early this morning we have established a security siege around the municipality of Nueva Concepcion, Chalatenango, with more than 5,000 elements of the Armed Forces and 500 of the Police in search of those responsible for the murder and the entire structure of gang members and collaborators who are still hiding in that place. They will pay dearly for the murder of our hero, he warned. The video that came with the announcement shows the mobilization of thousands of soldiers in a new show of force by the president.

Since the Salvadoran presidents war on the maras  as the gangs in the country are usually called  began, authorities have captured more than 68,000 people accused of being part of these groups. To date, at least 5,000 people have been released who, following investigations by the prosecutors office, have no links to the gangs. Bukeles security strategy has been criticized by human rights organizations that have warned of violations of the detainees rights. A report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) has denounced large-scale abuses in the Central American countrys prisons under the emergency regime decreed since March 2022, which includes extreme overcrowding, violations of due process, lack of guarantees, mass detentions and deaths in custody.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Daniel Gill, an ex-Staten Island ShopRite employee, has sued former Mayor Rudy Giuliani for $2 million, alleging he was put behind bars on false charges after their supermarket encounter last year.

The 39-year-old Oakwood resident had filed a Notice of Claim against the city back in September. Gill was originally charged with felony assault. Charges were later reduced to misdemeanor counts of assault and menacing, and a non-criminal violation of harassment, the Advance/SILive.com previously reported.

Based on their review of the evidence, prosecutors in September agreed to have the case adjourned in contemplation of dismissal. That means all charges against Gill were to be dropped and his Criminal Court file sealed if he stayed out of trouble for six months.

Gills lawsuit includes a quote from Mayor Eric Adams from June 2022, who criticized Giuliani after the incident.

Attorney Susan Platis with Daniel Gill of Oakwood as he is arraigned in Criminal Court in St. George on Monday, June 27, 2022. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

Someone needs to remind former Mayor Giuliani that falsely reporting a crime is a crime, Adams said at the time. What he stated, there was a lot of creativity, and I think the district attorney, he has the wrong person he is investigating ... When you look at the video, the guy basically walked by and patted him on the back.

Gill maintains in the filing he patted or tapped Giuliani on the back, said whats up scumbag and walked away.

Giuliani was campaigning with his son Andrew, a candidate in the Republican gubernatorial primary at the Charleston ShopRite on June 26, 2022.

Surveillance camera video, originally posted by the New York Post, shows the former mayor standing at the center of a group of about a half dozen people inside the supermarket when Gill, wearing a pandemic mask, walked up behind him and appeared to slap him on the back with his right hand as he walked by.

Giuliani, not satisfied with the result of his unlawful agreement with the NYPD to detain defendant, went on a media tour touting, expanding upon, embellishing, and outright lying about his wounds from the encounter, claiming that he was suffering a variety of serious physical injured of a result of the attack, the complaint alleges. And engaging in a pattern of false and defamatory statements, both before and after the videotape was publicly released.

Giuliani had previously said it was as if a boulder hit me when describing the pat on the back.

In addition to Giuliani, the lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, names the City of New York and several police officers as defendants.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  First, it crab-tivated Mississippi. Now in its 15th location, The Mighty Crab restaurant chain has spawned in New York City at the Staten Island Mall.

Jason Zheng, Jamie Li and Susan Yuan enjoy Mighty Crab's fresh seafood. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

On this episode of The Dish, we meet the man behind the crustacean sensation, Jason Zheng, co-owner of those operations sprinkled throughout the South. His sister, Jamie Li, is the familiar face at the door: she and her husband own New China Hibachi and Sushi Buffet in New Dorp. With this concept, they bring to the Island both a la carte fish selections such as oysters on the half shell and an all-in-one seafood boil  a bag of Cajun-seasoned shellfish of choice, corn and potatoes.

Landlubbers also will be pleased with chicken, beef and pork from the kitchens hibachi. PoBoys feature a choice of fried proteins served with onion rings.

But crabs of the fun kind are there to celebrate with fried soft shells, steamed Alaskan king, Snow, blue and Dungeness.

Three-plus pounds of crab (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Mighty Crab patrons are treated to a few surprises. Spoiler alert: buy more than three pounds of seafood in one shot and the kitchen staff will plate the creatures in a big trough. Hands-on eating earns a body a pair of plastic gloves, dandy bib and keepsake crab cracker that zips through shells like a box cutter. And a color-pulsing goblet serves as vehicle for shrimp cocktail.

The opened bag of steaming seafood with Cajun seasoning (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

In building out the former Red Robin space, Zheng invoked a nautical theme. He wrapped rope around faux pilings, hung boats from the ceiling and, as the name would suggest, decorated mightily with crabs. A projector casts an image of underwater scenes on one side of the restaurant so a diner can literally swim with the fishes.

Aligator bites (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

The restaurants hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. The Mighty Crab can be found at the Staten Island Mall by the JC Penny wing. It also is accessible from the parking lot just outside of Applebees. The restaurant can be reached at 718-987-3388 and the website is Themightycrabsi.com. Delivery is offered through GrubHub, DoorDash and UberEats.

The options on the menu (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Pamela Silvestri is Advance Food Editor. She can be reached at silvestri@siadvance.com.

>>> Adam Lener, Portobello Cafe owner, dies. A trendsetter, he made his mark on Staten Island with fine dining. The chef was 48.

>>> These Staten Island restaurants closed amid a boom of grand openings

>>> Garden Club ladies talk dirt, install new officers

The parking lot entrance to The Mighty Crab (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

In the former Red Robin a crab-tastic option now lives. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

The list of shellfish (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Boil bags can include corn and potatoes. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Landlubber items come from the hibachi. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Taking a tour of The Mighty Crab with its nautical theme (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Sections reminiscent of a wharf (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

An alcove in the corner of the Mall's newest restaurant, The Mighty Crab (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

The partially open kitchen (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Host station at the Mall entrance of Mighty Crab (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Cornmeal coated catfish (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Lobster pulled partially out of the shell for easy eating (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Oysters on the half shell (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Mighty Crab's bar (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Beers on draft (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

Seafood platter with steamed corn and broccoli (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

The Mighty Crab opens in the former Red Robin space at the Staten Island Mall. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Staten Islanders diagnosed with cancers and respiratory issues who lived along the Ground Zero debris removal route do not qualify for compensation from the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) and the eligibility requirements published on the funds website will be updated to clarify any confusion, the funds deputy special master told SILive.com/Staten Island Advance.

Stefanie Langsam, who has been the VCF deputy special master since 2016, said changes will be made as soon as possible to funds website. Clarifying language will be added as soon as possible, she said.

Langsams comments were in response to a story recently published in the Advance/SILive.com quoting the requirements listed on the VCF website and a Manhattan attorney, who said residents along the debris removal route to the Fresh Kills Landfill could experience cancers and respiratory illness that may qualify them for financial compensation from the fund.

She, along with a spokesperson for the fund, responded by saying that people living along route  traveled daily by trucks carrying dusty remains from the World Trade Center site  do not qualify for compensation, even if they suffer from illness thought to be the result of breathing in dust from the trucks passing their homes daily between Sept.11, 2001 and May 30, 2002. Those eligible must have been employed in the debris removal process, Langsam said.

The Advance/SILive.com quoted eligibility requirements from a statute on the VCF website, which said differently as of May 18, 2023. And Michael Barasch, managing partner at the Manhattan law firm of Barasch & McGarry, told the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com that his firm will represent residents along the routes that he believes qualify. Baraschs firm represents more than 2,700 Ground Zero-related cancer victims.

The VCF website, on May 16, the time of publication of the original story, in a series of bullet points, lists locations considered to comprise The NYC Exposure Zone. These include specific areas of lower Manhattan, including the World Trade Center site. It also lists the Pentagon site, the Shanksville, Pennsylvania site and any area related to or along the routes of debris removal, such as barges and Fresh Kills landfill.

The site said that to be eligible for the VCF, a person must have been at one of those locations.

Trucks leaving Ground Zero traveled through Brooklyn, crossed the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and moved along the Staten Island Expressway to the West Shore Expressway to the landfill during the months-long debris removal process, according to a Sanitation Department source, who told the Advance/SILive.com that the drivers were instructed to avoid residential neighborhoods.

Yet, residential communities line different sections of both expressways, and the Staten Island Expressway was like a dust bowl, the source recalled.

Barasch told the Advance after the initial story publication that many of those residents should be considered for financial compensation if they experienced one of the 69 cancers and respiratory conditions and applied through the proper channels, including the World Trade Center Health Fund.

The dust was flying out of the trucks everywhere, he said. Of course they were exposed.

Langsam said the wording on the website is meant to refer only to individuals who responded, worked at the landfill, worked loading and unloading debris or drove the trucks. Applicants further into the application process would not meet the requirements of the Health Fund, the spokesperson said, thereby making them ineligible for compensation from the VCF.

We will be making updates to clarify it now that the questions have come up, Langsam said, noting that the words have never before been misinterpreted. Nor have we ever received a claim from a person who lived in the area where a truck drove by.

Barasch said he had just recently noticed that the residents may qualify, based on the website wording. He encouraged anyone living along the route, or working near Ground Zero or the other to be seen regularly by a dermatologist because various skin cancers, including melanoma, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, have been linked to dust exposure.

It has been reported that skin cancers are the most common cancers reported, and have been on the list of qualifying conditions since the programs inception.

Langsam and the VCF spokesperson said the words on the website were being misinterpreted by Barasch, but changes will be made to avoid further misunderstanding. Other areas of the website providing information sheets, facts sheets and additional resources for claimants will be gone over and worked through as quickly as we can, she said.

The VCF spokesperson stressed that the fund is unlimited for those who do qualify for compensation, and urged people who who were present at the World Trade Center or the surrounding areas, the Pentagon crash site and the Shanksville, Pennsylvania crash site, at some point between September 11, 2001, and May 30, 2002, and who have since been diagnosed with a 9/11-related illness to submit claims. The VCF is not limited to first responders, she said.
Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss is all set to premiere Thursday, May 18 on Peacock.

The series features five hour-long episodes (dropping all at once) with Wilson traversing the globe with a goal in mind: hes searching for the secrets to the happiest societies on Earth.

Based on Eric Weiners New York Times bestselling book, The Geography of Bliss: One Grumps Search for the Happiest Places in the World, Rainn will explore some of the happiest and least happy places on the planet ranging from Iceland to Bulgaria to Ghanam in a profound, humorous way that unravels the science of happiness.

The host is Rainn Wilson, executive producers are Wilson, Dave Sirulnick, Jen Isaacson, Jon Kamen, Evan Rosenfeld, Casey Scharf, and Melissa Wood. Co-executive producer is Eric Weiner.

HOW TO STREAM, WATCH WITHOUT ADS

The show streams exclusively on Peacock. The service offers a low-cost monthly option of $4.99 -- but for the commercial-avoidant among us, there is also a premium ad-free version of the service for $9.99 monthly.

Peacock also carries the hugely popular Yellowstone, as well as old standbys like The Office.

Other shows include the updated Bel-Air, Queens Court, The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip, and Pete Davidsons show, Bupkis.

The premium option also includes selected live streaming channels, including NBC, NBC Sports, WWE Network and The Hallmark Channel.

WATCH A PREVIEW OF RAINN WILSON AND THE GEOGRAPHY OF BLISS

A LITTLE ABOUT WILSON

Wilson is an Emmy-nominated actor, writer and producer best known for playing the role of Dwight Schrute on NBCs The Office. Other Movie and TV roles include Super, The Meg, Backstrom, Blackbird, The Rocker, Utopia, Six Feet Under and Dont Tell a Soul among many others.

He co-founded SoulPancake, a digital media company designed to celebrate humanity and champion creativity AND most recently created, executive produced and hosted the docu-series An Idiots Guide to Climate Change for YouTube and Soul Pancake. He is the author of The Bassoon King and the New York Times Bestselling SoulPancake: Chew on Lifes Big Questions. He continues to explore many of the biggest human ideas and questions on his podcast, Metaphysical Milkshake.
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Colombia is on edge over the fate of four children who went missing in the Amazon rainforest over two weeks ago. The small aircraft they were traveling in crashed on May 1 in a remote spot, and was located on Tuesday by rescuers who also found the bodies of the pilot, the co-pilot and the childrens mother. But there was no trace of the minors.

The whereabouts of the children, whose ages range from 11 months to 13 years, are still a mystery. The search has been agonizing because of the adverse conditions in the Amazon region, where survival is not easy. Authorities and surrounding communities have combed the area.

President Gustavo Petro on Wednesday tweeted that all four minors had been found alive. After an arduous search by our Military Forces, we have found alive the 4 children who had disappeared in an aviation crash in Guaviare. A joy for the country.

However, as the hours went by, the information became confusing and contradictory. Neither the civil aviation authority Aerocivil nor the military forces, the two agencies in charge of the search, confirmed it. Reports began to circulate that it was all a huge misunderstanding and that the children had not been found. Someone from Bienestar Familiar (ICBF), the institution in charge of the protection of minors, reportedly informed the president, who immediately shared the news on social media. The institution has confirmed that the information reached the president through them.

Information was received from the area assuring contact was made with the four children who were part of the group transported on the aircraft. This report stated that they had been found alive and in good health, said a statement from the ICBF. However, the Military Forces have not yet been able to establish official contact due to adverse weather conditions and difficult terrain, the statement added. Authorities have not been able to corroborate the information received by the ICBF from various sources.

Meanwhile, the company that operated the crashed aircraft has issued its own version of the story. It said that the children had not yet been found and that the search was still underway. In a statement, it provides an alternative narrative about what might have happened.

This version holds that the captain of a light aircraft that landed Wednesday in Cachiporro, the Caqueta community closest to the crash site, heard at 3:30 p.m. from local residents that the children had been found and that they were traveling downriver. The captain radioed a colonel in charge of the search. If this version is true, the children could have been caught in a thunderstorm along the way that prevented them from continuing their journey and they might be somewhere cut off from communication while waiting for the weather to clear up.

The fact is that no official authority has yet seen them or made contact with them.

An independent radio station associated with OPIAC (National Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Colombian Amazon) announced, almost at the same time as the president, that according to sources in the area, the children had been found by an indigenous man. This organization has been actively involved in the search process, and one of its members posted on social media that they were the ones who found the children and not the army. However, official OPIAC spokespersons have not confirmed the news either.

As of Thursday morning, the official line is that it has all been a huge and painful misunderstanding. President Gustavo Petro has admitted he made a mistake and acknowledged that the four children missing in the jungle for two weeks have not been found, despite his announcement to the country the day before. I regret what happened. The Military Forces and the indigenous communities will continue in their tireless search to give the country the news it is waiting for. At this moment, there is no other priority than to move forward with the search until they are found. The lives of the children are the most important thing, Petro rectified on his Twitter account.

Before this clear statement, local media were divided between those who believed the presidents information to be true and those who were highly suspicious. It would not be the first time that the president has made a mistaken announcement. At the stroke of midnight on New Years Eve, he announced a ceasefire with the ELN, which was later denied by the guerrilla group. On other occasions, he has even shared messages from fake accounts on Twitter.

The news that the children had survived brought, for a short moment, an enormous joy to the country. It is reminiscent of the story of a castaway told by Gabriel Garcia Marquez in a magazine, or that of Juliane Koepcke, the only survivor of a plane crash who was lost in the Peruvian jungle for 11 days until she was found.

The children live in Araracuara and are members of the Huitoto people, an indigenous group from southeastern Colombia and northern Peru. Their names are Lesly Mucutuy (13 years old), Soleiny Mucutuy (nine years old), Tien Noriel Ronoque Mucutuy (four years old) and Cristin Neriman Ranoque Mucutuy (11 months old).

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Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $US75 million ($113 million) to sexual abuse victims of Jeffrey Epstein to settle a lawsuit filed last year in New York City, according to the lawyers for the victims.

The settlement, which must be approved by a federal judge, would resolve a proposed class-action suit that alleged the bank had helped enable the disgraced financiers sex trafficking of young women by missing warning signs in Epsteins accounts that he was engaged in wrongdoing.

Deutsche Bank took Epstein on as a client after JPMorgan Chase, which had been his primary bank for roughly 15 years, stopped doing business with him.

Jeffrey Epstein in a court appearance in 2008. Credit: AP

Dylan Riddle, a spokesperson for the German bank, declined to comment on any proposed settlement. But in a statement, Riddle said the bank has made considerable progress in remedying a number of past issues, while investing in bolstering its internal controls.
The worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange has been kicked off a major Australian payments service and banned by big four bank Westpac, with customers suddenly unable to deposit funds on the platform.

Binance Australia  the local arm of the $6.7 billion crypto exchange Binance  told customers on Thursday afternoon they would no longer be able to deposit funds onto the exchange via PayID, a popular instant payment method.

AUD deposits by bank transfers are no longer available to Binance users in Australia due to a decision made by our third-party service provider. The suspension of this service is with immediate effect, a spokesperson for the business said.

Customers can still withdraw funds from the platform despite an earlier statement from Binance Australia saying withdrawals were also affected, with the company later confirming withdrawals were still available.
Former prime minister Julia Gillard is wisely reluctant to waste her time in the muck of Australias political debates.

If anything, that dignified distance has done wonders for Gillards legacy. While other former occupants of The Lodge appear like permanently embittered miserable ghosts, Gillard has become a feminist icon of sorts.

Political spotlight: The Julia theatre production is proving popular. Credit: John Shakespeare

After sell-out discussion shows last year, her latest girlboss moment has come in the form of Julia, the Sydney Theatre Company play starring Justine Clarke which will soon end its Opera House run.

So far, the former PM, who divides her time between Adelaide and London, hasnt yet seen the play  and theres every chance she wont. But its certainly been very popular with political types. From Anthony Albaneses cabinet, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek and Minister for Industrial Relations Tony Burke have been spotted in the crowd.
We Could Be Something by Will Kostakis We Could Be Something

Will Kostakis, Allen & Unwin, $19.99 Suddenly transplanted from Perth to Sydney after his dads relationship breaks down, 17-year-old Harvey is thrust into a Greek family who live atop the cafe they run. Its a lively and hardworking environment, though tragic news isnt far away. Also 17, Sotiris has busted a gut to achieve his dream of becoming an author at an early age, only to find its not all its cracked up to be. Soon love beckons in the form of Jeremy  a hot bookseller with a sharp wit  and another road begins to take shape before him. When Harvey and Sotiris meet, their stories converge in an unexpected way. Alternating between the two main characters, Will Kostakis We Could Be Something combines romance, grief, coming-out story, and the domestic dramedy of an extended Greek family to produce a queer YA novel full of heart and humour. The Red Hotel by Alan Philps. NON-FICTION PICK OF THE WEEK

The Red Hotel

Alan Philps, Headline, $34.99

When I stayed at Moscows Metropol Hotel in 1975 I had no knowledge of its colourful-cum-shady past, or that the rooms were bugged. Alan Philps engaging study creates a portrait of an establishment that, like a grand dame, has seen it all. Especially the 1940s, which he focuses on, when foreign reporters were housed there to report faithfully on Russias war to the outside world. But Stalin had other ideas, and the truth had nothing to do with it. Its a fascinating gallery of reporters, spies, prostitutes and more, cooped up in the hotel, not only being fed caviar and vodka but the party line as well. There was the occasional visit to the front, but orchestrated. Often drawing on the memoirs of the reporters, Philps creates a vivid picture of an intense time, of the seedy and the well- intentioned, true believers and conflicted loyalties. Honey, Baby, Mine

Laura Dern & Diane Ladd, Coronet, $32.99 Credit: In 2018, actress Diane Ladds lungs were severely damaged by pesticide sprays from nearby farms. She was given six months to live. Her actress daughter Laura Dern refused to accept that. She forced Ladd to go on walks to exercise her lungs. And, like a Santa Monica Scheherazade, distracted her mother from her pain with stories  the book being an extended dialogue that covers the light, dark, guilt and deep bond of love between them. There are a few too many anecdotes about acting and films, and at times the exchanges can feel a bit stilted. But, like a good film, it gathers and becomes dramatically moving when they broach the accidental death of Derns sister while visiting the old family home, the scene of divorce, happiness and tragedy. Ultimately though, an uplifting record of coming through.

Our King

Robert Jobson, John Blake Publishing, $34.99 Credit: The title notwithstanding, its debatable whether most Australians see Charles III as our king. All the same this is a chatty, detailed and sympathetic portrait of the man who waited, and waited, for the top job. Robert Jobson casts him as a man of destiny, but one who hears the clock ticking. He covers key points in his life, from the formality, even coldness, of his relations with mum and dad, to the trauma of being packed off to Gordonstoun, first loves, meeting Camilla, the ill-fated marriage to Diana and the fabricated media stories that grate with him even now. The more interesting aspects of the portrait cover the progressive nature of Charles politics, especially his opposition to the second Gulf War. Less interesting are Jobsons world exclusives on, say, Charles and Camillas engagement. Easy reading introduction to the king. Vegemite

Jamie Callister, with Rod Howard, Murdoch Books, $32.99 In 1923 a Melbourne factory launched a national competition to name the food product they had just invented. The identity of the winning entrant is not known, not so the name of the product  Vegemite, invented by Cyril Callister, the authors grandfather.
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Review Eating outSouth Yarra California-cool rooftop bar Beverly serves up never-before-seen views and glam food Dani Valent May 19, 2023 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share

This story is part of the May 20 Edition of Good Weekend. See all stories .

1 / 7 Beverly rooftop restaurant in South Yarra offers a view Melburnians havent seen before. Bonnie Savage 2 / 7 The signature pasta with chargrilled marron, squid-ink spaghetti and crab. Bonnie Savage 3 / 7 Lobster-filled cannoli. Bonnie Savage 4 / 7 Go-to dish: Cali cobb salad. Bonnie Savage 5 / 7 Flat iron steak with Beverly butter. Bonnie Savage 6 / 7 Dark chocolate terrine dessert with sour cream, caramel and salted pretzel. Bonnie Savage 7 / 7 Melbourne customers are bringing the glam. Bonnie Savage Previous Slide Next Slide 13.5 / 20 How we score American$$$ I dont know what its like to be a property developer with a slate of projects worth more than $3 billion, but I assume it means you can add a rooftop bar to one of your buildings if you feel like it. When Goldfields Groups Marco Gattino and Lachlan Thompson pushed go on their 24-storey flagship office block in South Yarra, the top level was slated as a Friday-night hang for in-house office workers. But the plan for an in-house lounge has been shelved for a bigger dream: Beverly, a rooftop drinking and dining destination with an outlook weve never seen before. Lets start with the view because its extraordinary: a 270-degree tableau with the citys skyscrapers at the centre, the coast to the south and hills to the distant north. By day, you can watch Melbournes weather dramas roll through. Over the river, you could just about watch a torpedo spearing the goalposts at the MCG.

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Sunsets are routinely spectacular, so much so that the chefs in the open kitchen have been known to wear sunglasses as they toil. At night, youre seated in a sea of twinkling lights. A retractable glass roof and slide-back windows speak to an optimism that hasnt quite been repaid since the mid-April opening, but the 190-seat venue is sure to live up to its sunny aspirations come springtime. From a glam Californian-inspired rooftop to a cosy Carlton gem: Three new Melbourne bars to try right now Beverly is for Beverly Hills, the LA neighbourhood synonymous with celebrity, glamour, rooftop spritzers and caesar salads. Our version does some California dreaming with its pastel tones, striped lounge chairs and silk pyjamas worn by the meet-and-greet staff. Melbourne customers are bringing the glam, too: Ive already spied one feather boa and some serious sparkle. Marketing has targeted influencers and the crowd has reflected that in these early weeks. Service rolls all day: choose a quieter time if you prefer ceviche to selfies.

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Beverlys sunsets are spectacular. Chefs in the open kitchen have been known to wear sunglasses. Goldfields has partnered with Sydney hospitality consultant Cam Northway, whose first Melbourne project was LOTI in St Kilda. Hes brought in a crack drinks team (the cocktails are smashing; the wine list shows depth) and chef David Ball, an Englishman who trained with legendary chef Raymond Blanc. Ball has 30 years experience cooking around the world, most recently at Dominique Portet Winery in the Yarra Valley. He wanted something a bit busier. If he rued that ambition when scanning the list of 460 people booked one recent Friday, hes not telling me. Go-to dish: Cali cobb salad. Bonnie Savage Balls menu tips a cap to Los Angeles in dishes such as the cobb salad ($36), a vegan version of the Californian classic which sees ingredients lined up in neat rows. This one is a striped assembly of almond feta, herbed guacamole, wood-grilled watermelon, which comes out like translucent tuna, and a spicy-sweet granola with nuts and nigella seeds.

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It reminds me of feeding my kids when they were going through fussy stages of not eating food that was mixed together but, despite my personal salad PTSD, its a classic for a reason. Snacks include a lobster cannoli ($12) thats a light, crisp, two-bite spin on the ubiquitous lobster roll, and shishito peppers ($14) that are supposed to be laced with smoked olive oil and fish sauce but, to my taste, are overpoweringly vinegary. Lobster-filled cannoli. Bonnie Savage For the signature pasta ($52), whole chargrilled marron is dramatically posed over squid-ink spaghetti tangled up with crab and a rich bisque. The flavours are gorgeous: theres a soft symphony of onion, fennel and tomato layered into the slow-cooked shellfish sauce. In such a busy restaurant, its impressive to have steaks cooked to order over a wood grill: my flat iron (250g, $65) was just-so medium-rare and with the bold texture thats inherent in the cut.

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Desserts are simple and thats no flaw. The chocolate terrine ($21) is basically a cooked ganache, while the tiramisu ($21) is a cloud-like scoop. A restaurant so ambitious is bound to have teething issues. The arrival experience feels clunky: potential diners must chat to security, be buzzed in and escorted to a dedicated lift that whooshes skyward. California cool: Beverlys pastel tones and striped lounge chairs. Bonnie Savage Service is getting there: a handful of experienced professionals are doing a fair bit of mopping up for newbies, but the intention to deliver a great time seems genuine. I love the way Ball is developing a signature flavour palette. The Beverly seasoning dusted over the fries ($12) includes sea salt, tarragon and dill. The herb notes are picked up in the Beverly butter spiked with sweet shallots and nori paste.

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Both condiments are tasty, but its also a clever move, delivering a happy flavour ploy that will ensure Beverly sticks in the mind, not just for the view but for its culinary virtues. The low-down Vibe: Sky-high Beverly Hills on Chapel Street Go-to dish: Cali cobb salad ($36) Drinks: Excellent house cocktails, including non-alcoholic, and a rich wine list featuring US bottles Cost: About $180 for two, excluding drinks This review was originally published in Good Weekend magazine

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Review Eating outCrows Nest Its a buttery pastry paradise at Crescent Croissanterie in Crows Nest Theres a croissant for every occasion from this hard-working patissier, who brings skills and experience from all over the world. Lenny Ann Low May 18, 2023 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share

1 / 7 A new batch of croissants arrives on the cooling racks at Crescent Croissanterie. Janie Barrett 2 / 7 A ham and cheese croissant is a fat pillow of pastry loaded with gooey cheese and a lolling fold of cured pink meat. Janie Barrett 3 / 7 The eggplant parmigiana is a deep pastry box with corners reminiscent of a knotted handkerchief, filled with rich tomato sauce-covered eggplant and festooned with mozzarella cheese. Janie Barrett 4 / 7 A flamboyant Earl Grey custard croissant, its creamy innards blushing with fresh raspberries. Janie Barrett 5 / 7 A sweet maple marron croissant. Janie Barrett 6 / 7 A classic chocolate croissant. Janie Barrett 7 / 7 Enjoy your croissant in the small outdoor seating section. Janie Barrett Previous Slide Next Slide Cafe$$$ If there is one piece of advice for visiting Crescent Croissanterie, it is go in the morning. Demand for baker and co-owner Elly Kims bogglingly wide and lustrously golden range of croissants means the shops entire front counter

cabinet is bare by early afternoon. All thats left is a scattering of pastry flakes and 18 lonely nameplates explaining the buttery glories that once lay before them. Plain croissant, gone. Chocolate croissant, gone. Almond, camembert, tiramisu,

pistachio, pretzel, basil, chorizo, ham and cheese, cinnamon bun, eggplant parmigiana and custard Earl Grey, all gone.

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A ham and cheese croissant is a fat pillow of pastry loaded with gooey cheese and a lolling fold of cured pink meat. Janie Barrett Some days it is all Kim can do to write, Sold out. See you tomorrow, thanks, on a brown paper bag and stick it to the front door before going to have a lie down.

Except she doesnt rest or recline. Closing the shop after each days trading means starting preparation for subsequent days pastry excitements. It takes 48 hours to create a

croissant and Kim, who opened Crescent Croissanterie last July, is awake for about 20 hours every day. During the busy season, I often end up sleeping only three hours a night because I finish work late, she says. Im not sure where the problem is but I really want to finish work quickly and go home early so that I can have enough rest. In this tiny grey and butter-yellow-tiled bakery, heralded by a small, boxed and glowing croissant illustration jutting out from the exteriors black-tiled facade, Kim is the only baker.

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Each week she single-handedly makes between 2000 and 3000 croissants,

along with fronting the till and co-running the business with her brother Youngjun Kim. She is devoted to pastry baking after training and working for 14 years as a pastry chef at Giaanas Baking Company in California, pastry chain Paris Baguette in South Korea, Organic Bread Bar in Paddington and northern beaches bakery Berkelo. The croissants taste, beauty and ability to dextrously incorporate ingredients absorbs her aim to create versions that can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner or as a snack. The eggplant parmigiana is a deep pastry box with corners reminiscent of a knotted handkerchief, filled with rich tomato sauce-covered eggplant and festooned with mozzarella cheese. Janie Barrett Today, with cold winds whipping Crows Nests streets and puffer-jacketed customers queuing out the door, she is explaining to people that another run

of croissants will be ready in 15 minutes.

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Minutes before, a full 15-tier rack of just-baked plain, chocolate, ham and

cheese and custard Earl Grey croissants has emptied like a sped-up film to patrons inching in from the cold. Some stay to watch the golden-lit revolving racks of baking croissants in ovens along the back wall. If you get in early enough, Kims croissants swing boisterously between sweet and savoury, crescent-shaped and pie-like, classically plain and lusciously festooned. Some, like the pistachio croissant, a delicately turreted, melty and light beauty, is filled and topped with lusciously nutty cream. Chopped pistachios adorn its peak like tiny green rocks on snow. It is easy to have a three-course meal here, entirely furnished by croissants and covering all the major food groups but without any cutlery or plates. Perch on Crescent Croissanteries street benches, tear your gaze from the imploring eyes of fellow customers dogs, and start with a ham and cheese croissant. Here is a fat, deeply lush and high pillow of pastry loaded with gooey cheese and a lolling fold of cured pink meat. Move to the eggplant parmigiana, a deep pastry box with corners reminiscent of a knotted handkerchief, filled with rich tomato sauce-covered eggplant and festooned with mozzarella cheese.

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Then, consider the crunchier and sweeter yuzu butterfly croissant, a layered orchestration of citrussy honey, fresh lemon glaze and candied yuzus fruit peel. Theres also Single O coffee on tap, so please finish up with a strong brew and a flamboyant Earl Grey custard croissant, its creamy innards blushing with fresh raspberries. In Kims eyes, croissants can be anything and she is far from ending her quest within the buttery pastry universe. Shell recommend a croissant but dont ask her to pick the best. But, if I had to choose, I would say plain croissant for my favourite one, she says. To see it rise in the oven is always fascinating. The low-down Vibe: Speciality croissant bakery with wide-ranging, fast-to-sell-out variations on the buttery crescent-shaped baked good. Go-to dish: Plain croissant, custard Earl Grey croissant and chocolate croissant

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The 30-seat bar has opened at the former site of sibling venue Soul Deli, which has moved down the street.

With Sydney still digesting the influx of Korean restaurants, omakases and barbecues, from this week the city has a Korean wine bar to add to the list, from the crew at the hatted Soul Dining.

Bar Soul, in Surry Hills, explores the less-travelled intersection of wine and Korean food.

Owners Daero Lee and Illa Kim are matching wines to Korean dishes at their new bar. Oba Yusuke

Korean food is rarely associated with wine, says co-owner Illa Kim. Thats something head chef Sunny Ryu (ex-Quay and Michelin-starred Seoul restaurant Ryunique) will look to remedy.

Pairing a Touriga Nacional with our dry-aged duck with sweet potato puree and Korean cabbage salad is a revelation, Kim says.
Jon Travers of Mollymook recalls that his economics teacher, Mr Thomas Deamer, at Homebush Boys High School in the 60s, did not wear a tie (C8) and also had longish hair when ours wasnt allowed to touch the collar. He once explained that he was on the casual teachers list (although he was, in fact, full-time) and as such did not have to comply with the permanent teachers code. He enjoyed bucking the system in this manner. An unconventional character in Sydney by the name of Deamer? It couldnt be a coincidence, and Jon confirms that his teachers father was indeed Column 8s founder, Sydney Harold Deamer.

In her Dip Ed year at Sydney Teachers College (C8) in the mid-1960s, Valerie Little of Tathra recalls that we were told not to wear red dresses to school (no jeans/slacks allowed in those times) because red could excite the senior boys.

Regarding the ties v casual recollections (C8), George Zivkovic of Northmead thinks there is a place for memories of stereotypical teacher fashions of years gone by. It was always easy to play spot the geography or maths teachers with great success, wasnt it?

Call him old-fashioned if you wish, but when Allan Gibson of Cherrybrook attended a Governance and Risk Forum, suited up and wearing a tie with a Windsor knot (C8), I looked around the room and could not see a tied collar on any other male present.

Why wait for the nuclear option (C8)? asks Peter Riley of Penrith. Our current fleet of diesel/electric submarines could be plugged into the power grid today, and because diesel engines can run on used cooking oil, Sydney would smell like fish and chips and battered savs. Win/win.
Ukraine is aiming to mark a turning point in the course of the war with its anticipated counteroffensive to retake territory occupied by Russia. Kyivs strategists have said they are waiting for the end of the spring, when the weather will be drier and mud will not hinder tanks and other armored vehicles, and to receive the remaining armaments being delivered by their NATO allies. Ukraine is expected to launch its offensive in the next few weeks, according to Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov and advisors to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

In the wake of a series of sabotage operations on Russian soil and the alleged drone attack on the Kremlin, Moscow has intensified airstrikes against Ukrainian infrastructure. At the front, Russian troops have been digging a vast defensive network of trenches and fortifications that stretches from Kharkiv province to the Crimean Peninsula. According to analysts consulted by EL PAIS and based on recent troop movements, there are five main points on the front where Kyiv could launch its counteroffensive.

Zaporizhzhia toward the Sea of Azov

Zaporizhzhia, in the southeast of the country, is one of the most promising areas for Ukraines counteroffensive. If the attack is staged on this flank, Ukrainian forces could attempt to reach the city of Melitopol, on the Azov Sea, to sever the territories under Russian control in two and city off supply lines between Donbas and Crimea.

According to reports from Ukrainian brigade and regional commanders, Kyiv is preparing armored battalions in this region. The Armed Forces have around 200 NATO-supplied tanks at its disposal across the entire front, but the exact details are unknown as information about deployments has been drastically reduced for the civilian population and the media.

Moscow, which controls over half of the 27,180 square kilometers that make up the province of Zaporizhzhia, has announced the evacuation of civilians from 18 localities close to the front lines. Russia also plans to evacuate at least 3,000 people from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, which it has occupied for 14 months. Most of the newly located Russian trenches are concentrated east of the Kakhovka reservoir, which separates the plant in Enerhodar from the town of Zaporizhzhia itself.

Kherson, the challenge of the Dnipro

Russian forces are also preparing for an assault in the southern region of Kherson, southwest of Zaporizhzhia along the Dnipro River, which currently acts as a natural barrier between the two armies as it passes through the city of Kherson. Ukrainian troops have been probing Russian defenses for months with a view to launching amphibious assaults against the far bank of the river.

A counteroffensive on this flank is a possibility, although a landing operation is extremely complex: the Dnipro at this point is about a mile wide, and it will be very difficult to establish a pontoon bridge without first silencing the Russian artillery. In addition, the terrain consists of marshlands, which makes the movement of armaments and heavy vehicles problematic.

The Kherson region was seized by Russia at the outset of the invasion. Kyiv recaptured the north of the province, including its capital, in a counteroffensive last November, which forced Russian troops to retreat across the Dnipro to the south. The city of Kherson is now home to only about 25% of its pre-war population of around 300,000. Pro-Russian authorities have announced evacuations in the areas of the province that remain occupied, a sign that Moscow is anticipating a possible offensive on this front.

Bakhmut, Ukraines fortress city

Bakhmut, in the Donetsk province, is under almost complete control of Russian forces and has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance. The battle for the city has been the bloodiest of the war to date, and Russian losses have been significant.

One of the most visible symptoms of Russian war fatigue in Bakhmut is the growing internal battle between the Kremlins regular army and the Wagner Group mercenaries fighting alongside them. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner commander, has accused Russian army units of fleeing the battlefield and has launched a series of verbal attacks on the military high command, who he accuses of incompetence and of failing to supply his men with ammunition. Based on leaked U.S. intelligence documents, The Washington Post reported on May 15 that Prigozhin had made an offer to Ukraine in January to provide details on Russian positions in the area if Kyiv withdrew its forces from Bakhmut.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops, who control about 2.4 square kilometers of the city, have staged several counterattacks in recent days. Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar reported that more than 10 Russian positions on the northern and southern outskirts of the city were captured last Sunday, as confirmed by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). According to Russian sources, Kyivs troops advanced toward Yahidne from Berkhivka and made gains in Ivanivske, to the southwest of Bakhmut. Now, Russian forces around the besieged town, where Moscow had been launching wave after wave of attacks, have switched to a defensive stance to repel Ukrainian counter-assaults, according to the ISW.

According to the Ukrainian armys spokesman in the region, Kyivs main objective in Bakhmut is to destroy Russian troop staging areas and encircle the city, without committing to frontal assaults.

Donetsk, breaking pro-Russian control

In addition to the southern front, Ukraine could launch a counteroffensive across the entire Donetsk province on the eastern to break the Russian sieges on Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka. An offensive through this region would take the Ukrainian armed forces to the gates of Donetsk, the largest Russian-controlled city, which has been occupied by pro-Moscow militias or Kremlin troops since the outbreak of the Donbas conflict in 2014.

The latest ISW updates indicate recent battles in the devastated town of Marinka, further south, and Ukrainian advances along the Krasnohorivka railroad and through Ivanivske. On the other hand, Russia has recently claimed that Novopil, to the west of Vuhledar, has been taken by its troops and that its forces have made advances near Berkhivka. Across the entire Donetsk front line, Russia has been digging trenches and constructing fortifications since March, according to data from Brady Africk, an open-source intelligence researcher and analyst at the American Enterprise Institute.

After staging large-scale attacks on Ukraines major cities at the beginning of the invasion, Moscow has shifted its offensive efforts to concentrate on the eastern Donbas region. The Russian objective, ISW reports, is to take the whole of the Donetsk region, where the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, as well as parts of Bakhmut, remain under Ukrainian control.

Kharkiv, the gateway to Luhansk

Although the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine is currently one of the least active fronts, it is also one of the possible launching areas for the Ukrainian counteroffensive, where the goal would be to drive into Luhansk. Russian sources claim that Ukrainian troops are conducting sabotage and reconnaissance operations around Kreminna, although the ISW says it has no confirmation of military activity in that area.

Russian and Ukrainian forces are engaged in a largely static struggle between Novoselivske and Kuzemivka (8 miles northwest of Svatove), and the Russian Army has established its first lines of defense along the eastern side of the railway near Novoselivske. The ISW reports that the Russian objective is to capture the remainder of the Luhansk province (which it controls almost completely) and to advance westwards, towards eastern Kharkiv and the northern part of Donetsk.

At the end of 2022, Ukraine drove the Russians out of almost the entire Kharkiv region and the western half of Kherson in a counteroffensive that was launched at several points at once. On this occasion, the analysts consulted agree that the counteroffensive will be staged on various parts of the front along with diversionary maneuvers that will force the Russian military to divert its troops and expend ammunition.

Although attention is now focused on when, where and how the counteroffensive will be carried out, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba has sought to temper expectations about the coming operation: Do not consider this counteroffensive as the last one, because we do not know what will come out of it, he said. For his part, Zelenskiy has stated that Ukraine needs a little more time to receive all the NATO armaments. However, analysts point out the presidential announcement could be a strategy to secure the element of surprise.

Methodology

This report was made possible thanks to information provided by Cristian Segura, EL PAIS special correspondent in Ukraine.

Data on Russian trenches comes from Brady Africks analysis, and the dates correspond to when they were detected by satellites; the date of construction is unknown. Russian and Ukrainian troop movements come from the Institute for the Study of War and sources consulted by this newspaper.

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A coal mine expansion in the Hunter Valley is set to blast a large hole in the states net zero climate plan, a government agency has warned.

The amount of methane leaking from the Hunter Valley Operations mine near Singleton would force other sectors of the economy to make even deeper emissions cuts to compensate, the net zero emissions modelling team in the NSW planning department said in a submission to the miners proposal.

The Hunter Valley mine is seeking to lock in exports out to 2050. Credit: Bloomberg

The operators of the open cut mine complex, a joint venture between Yancoal and Glencore, are seeking to extend its life to 2050 by extracting coal from deeper seams which are rich in methane  a potent greenhouse gas.

It means about 4.6 million tonnes of extra greenhouse gas will leak as fugitive emissions over the extended life of the mine, in addition to the emissions already forecast by the government.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Welcome back to Yours.Sincerely, our Friday dive into the letters and comments on what you decided was the topic of the week. This week, readers voiced their angst about the countrys dire housing problem, many offering suggestions for quick (and not-so-quick) fixes. Illustration: John Shakespeare Credit: Is life like a Monopoly game? We wont get better housing outcomes for younger Australians until we stop doing dumb stuff in planning, wrote independent economist Chris Richardson. Max Australia - the Lucky Country? Where those who cant afford a house (renters), subsidise those who can (landlords). Ghost of Hitch We have turned a basic requirement, shelter, into a commodity and profit centre. Our tax system clearly encourages it. If you want to [build] up, fine, but first remove the distortions in the market that makes it far cheaper for an investor to buy a house than an owner-occupier.

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Loading Al Kidder High density living is OK for people who like strangers. Full_Bodied_Reds Life is like a monopoly game ... See how many houses you can acquire while stitching up your fellow players who have none. Mitch It amuses me that the vast majority of cities in the world have much higher population density than any city in Australia. And every NIMBY seems to think that it just wont work here, like the laws of physics operate differently in Australia. Coleridge Rather than destroy the neighbourhoods that people (ordinary people not mythical bad, selfish people) live in and love, how about we try a few other things, beginning with reducing immigration? Adam Connolly Why do first home buyers expect to live in Sydneys most desirable and expensive suburbs? Surely, first home buyers should expect to afford the cheapest suburbs first up. They can then trade up over time. Anon Our cities continue to spread outwards at rapid pace, and governments cannot keep up pace with the cost of infrastructure to service these dormitory suburbs, so [they] end up socially isolated. Yes, cheap housing, but you have to travel hours to get to work or anything else really.

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Caleb The Australian property and migration Ponzi schemes are interlinked; business and government have no desire for a sustainable Australia and will turn our cities into absurdly expensive concrete jungles with zero amenity full of serfs on stagnant wages. Illustration: John Shakespeare Credit: Will urban dwellers need to grow bigger elbows? Premier Chris Minns warned that urban sprawl will stop Sydney from being a leading global city and insisted that building up  not out  is the key to creating a vibrant metropolis, wrote state political editor Alexandra Smith. Roger Kaputnik Yep, five or six stories, sure, but not those hideous highrises that block out light and create wind tunnels. smokinmad Agree. Stop bulldozing bush and destroying habitat on the city fringe. The Nozzle Build sensible high-rise next to transport hubs.

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Carlo Campanini Stop complaining and move on: move up or pileup. Telemeister Problem is, none of them are quality buildings and increasing approvals isnt going to make them any better. Another Day Sydney to be turned into a global city like NY full of skyscrapers? A jungle of brick and mortar. Optimist Whats needed are apartments that families can live in, with three or four bedrooms. We wont solve the problem with one-bedroom shoeboxes. Cottonup We need quality urban design for high rise, not a cookie cutter approach visible in many areas across Sydney. Craig Forbes, Lewisham We are already all too familiar with clogged roads, overloaded public transport and overcrowded schools. Creating a vibrant, young metropolis? Dont think so. More like urban dwellers all needing to grow bigger elbows. Elizabeth Vickers, Maroubra Minns is a father and should know families with children need to live in houses with yards. Dont condemn Sydneys children to the strictures of high-rise housing.

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Illustration: Cathy Wilcox Credit: A dire situation, but can we turn back time? For too long, the measure of success in Australia was owning a house with a backyard and a Hills Hoist. But the Great Australian Dream is no longer about owning a house, its being able to afford the rent, commented state political editor Alexandra Smith. Allan Gibson, Cherrybrook The Great Australian Dream is now the Nightmare on Struggle Street. Loading Daisy Blue The great Australian dream is about to go over a cliff. The only way Minns can help is to build more homes, build them fast and keep them in government hands. Nietzsche The notion of private property ownership and a middle class was a recent and short-lived blip in time. We are currently returning to the social and wealth structures that were the norm during most of history.

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A notorious serial rapist and sexual sadist has been questioned behind closed doors over the cold case death of a NSW man.

A landmark NSW inquiry into hate crimes against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) community interviewed convicted rapist Mark Anthony Scerri this month over the death of William Bill Rooney in February 1986.

William Bill Rooney (left) and his late partner Wayne Davis (right).

Meg OBrien, one of a team of counsel assisting the inquiry, said at a hearing in Sydney on Thursday that Scerri, who has been jailed twice for a series of sexual assaults on men, had never before been questioned over Rooneys death.

An attempt to interview him in 1993 ... was fruitless because Mr Scerri, then in custody, refused to speak to the police, she said.
Cotter said the incident was captured on the officers body camera and would now form part of a critical incident investigation led by homicide squad detectives. It is confronting footage, Cotter said. It forms a significant and integral part of the investigation and it is not in the public interest to be releasing that. Clare Nowland went skydiving for her 80th birthday. A family spokesman, Andrew Thaler, said Nowland suffered life-threatening head injuries, including a fractured skull and brain bleed, when she fell during the altercation. Her family is reportedly by her side at Cooma District Hospital. Earlier on Friday, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said she shared the communitys concerns after Nowland was Tasered.

Webb said her thoughts are with the family at this difficult time as police investigate what occurred. I understand and share the community concerns and assure you that we are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness, she said. NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Peter Cotter during Fridays press conference. Credit: Kate Geraghty NSW Deputy Premier Prue Car said what occurred was very concerning. Obviously, our thoughts go out to the family of this woman that has gone through a pretty horrific situation, she said.

A spokesman for NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley confirmed on Friday that the homicide squad would be involved in the investigation, which would be subject to an independent review. Critical incidents are declared in cases where police are involved in an incident where a death or serious injury occurs. In most cases where a person is critically injured or killed as a result of police force, the homicide squad will be involved. NSW Police initially released a statement declaring the critical incident on Wednesday, saying only that a 95-year-old sustained injuries during an interaction with police at an aged care facility in the states south today. On Friday, police confirmed emergency services were called about 4.15am on Wednesday to the aged care facility after reports Nowland was armed with a knife.

Officers attached to Monaro Police District attended, along with NSW Ambulance paramedics, and located the woman, still armed with a knife, a police spokesperson said. Police attempted to speak to the woman. During this interaction, a senior constable discharged his Taser, causing the woman to fall and strike her head. Nowland was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics before being taken to hospital where she remains in a critical condition. Cotter defended the decision of police not to release more information earlier, saying police were always transparent about critical incidents.

We are much better informed today to give an honest and transparent and open position of what occurred on that early morning a couple of days ago, he said. People with Disability Australia president Nicole Lee said she understood police had to be guarded in their response but it was a little bit dehumanising and a little unempathetic. The police have responded in the way wed expect them to respond, she said. Lee said she hoped in future police responded to disability incidents without using any force or practices where the person would be harmed.

Dementia is very challenging and it changes who people are and people can get quite aggressive and that aggression is coming from a place of fear and confusion for the individual whos suffering with the condition, she said. Loading What they need is somebody that can slowly work with them, whilst keeping everybody safe, to be able to bring them back around to reality. Cotter said senior police had been at Nowlands bedside with her family, speaking to them candidly about what they know. He would not comment on her medical history or her prognosis. She is a 95-year-old lady, a frail lady, a much loved lady. She is a resident of a nursing home who [was] receiving the care that she needs. Somewhere along this journey that was interrupted the other evening, he said.

Thaler said Nowland has dementia that waxes and wanes, shes good and bad at times. The family are shocked, the community are shocked ... The question will be how was it appropriate to use this level of force on a 95-year-old woman? Patrick McGrath, the director of community engagement at St Vincent de Paul  the charity where Nowland volunteered locally for 50 years  said she was a tireless worker who provided assistance to people in need in the Cooma area until five years ago. I think theres level of shock and [people are] not quite sure about whats happened, he said. Pat, who has known Nowland his whole life, told 2GBs Ben Fordham on Friday that the family was devastated by what happened.

She was always doing something for the community, always all her life she was active, he said. It doesnt look good. Pat said when Nowland was in her 80s her children paid for her to go skydiving. She wanted to go parachuting, she jumped out of an aeroplane, beautiful person, he said. Snowy Monaro Regional Council, which operates Yallambee, confirmed via social media on Thursday that the incident took place at the facility. Council are supporting our staff, residents, and families during this difficult time, the statement read.
The former Brisbane headquarters of the fundamentalist Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, formerly known as the Exclusive Brethren, has been sold, with developers proposing 181 units for the inner-east site at Balmoral.

On a huge inner-city parcel of land  23,265 square metres of prime real estate on the site of a former quarry  181 units and townhouses would be built across three buildings at 91 Lytton Road, Balmoral.

Skyhold has proposed a 181-unit and townhouse complex on the former site of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church at Balmoral. Credit: Brisbane City Council DA

The project, about 400 metres from Bulimbas Oxford Street precinct, was designed by architecture firm Fender Katsalidis.

Developers Skyhold planned to build three large buildings containing 167 units, consisting of 13 one-, 79 two- and 75 three-bedroom homes. Fourteen townhouses, half of which would be three bedrooms and the other half four, would also be included in the complex.
BRIAN CLIVE PYMAN October 22, 1942-April 27, 2023

Brian Pyman was a leading ear nose and throat surgeon in Melbourne who spent his career at the Royal Victorian and Eye and Ear Hospital and as associate professor at the University of Melbourne. He held a unique place in the development and global dissemination of cochlear implantation, a Melbourne-led innovation that has transformed the lives of more than 500,000 hearing-impaired people.

Brian was born to Melbourne-based ENT surgeon Clive Pyman, who was himself a leader in the field, serving as head ENT surgeon at the Royal Childrens Hospital, Melbourne. Brian, like his father trained to become an ENT surgeon, adopting some of his fathers defining qualities of generosity, warmth and a deep commitment to educating others. Unlike many of his generation, Brian chose to complete his ENT training in Melbourne, rather than travelling to the UK. Instead, he sought opportunity to contribute to research, teaching and training in Australia.

He joined the department of otolaryngology, University of Melbourne in 1975, which had been established six years earlier with the young Professor Graeme Clark as its inaugural chair. At that time, Professor Clark was well advanced in the development of first Australian multiple-channel cochlear implant. The plan of stimulating the hearing nerve electrically by an invasive operation of the ear was audacious, and although based on firm science, was high-risk and widely criticised professionally. Brian had the mettle to adopt this vision and went on to make pivotal contributions to its world-wide success.

Brian had the courage to undertake the first cochlear implant surgery with Professor Clark at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in 1978 and played key roles in its adoption for the rest of his career. Notably, Brian helped to establish the worlds first public cochlear implant clinic at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in 1985, remained the most senior surgeon and cared for cochlear implant patients until his retirement in 2007.
A teenager has been stabbed to death near Sunshine train station in Melbournes west.

Victoria Police said emergency services were called to Station Place about 3.45pm on Thursday after reports that a male had been injured.

The force confirmed late on Thursday that a 16-year-old Melton South boy had been stabbed. Paramedics tried to revive him, but he died at the scene.

A 16-year-old Sunshine North boy was also taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size When Warwick Teague raced into the emergency room, he expected commotion. Instead, he was struck by the quietness. Six seriously injured children had just arrived at the Royal Childrens Hospital, pulled from the wreckage of a school bus crash on Melbournes western fringe and then ferried in by helicopter and ambulance. Quiet is good, the hospitals director of trauma services thought. It means staff are focused on the job and the pain relief is working. The children had a sense that they were being looked after, Teague says. These are devastating injuries, and visually and mentally upsetting injuries. But behind the lack of noise, there was also adrenaline and meticulous planning. Teague and his colleagues had been preparing for years for an incident like this. Every moment and decision could have a material impact on a childs future and quality of life. They knew what they had to do. As soon as staff were notified by ambulance services shortly after 3.30pm on Tuesday that the most critically injured children from the Exford Primary School bus crash would soon be arriving, they sprang into action. There was a lot to try and get ready as quickly as possible, Teague says.

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The hospital began pulling together five teams of surgeons, doctors and nurses. It sourced additional vascular and plastic surgeons from the neighbouring Royal Melbourne Hospital, according to its plan. Once the students arrived at the hospital, the trauma teams set about assessing their devastating injuries. Several had tourniquets that had been applied by paramedics at the crash scene to help stem the flow of blood from their limbs, which had been crushed and severed by the toppled bus. The bus had tipped onto its left side, and many of the injuries were confined to that side of the childrens bodies. The teams of trauma specialists assessed the childrens airways, breathing and circulation. They took blood tests so they could provide the appropriate transfusion. Those who needed surgery were whisked away to theatre and operated on by orthopaedic, plastic and vascular surgeons. This is the worst scale of severe injuries that we have faced in recent times, Teague says. The six children were among the most seriously injured, but more than a dozen in total were taken to the Royal Childrens and Sunshine hospitals after the crash.

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Joanne Grindlay, the Royal Childrens Hospitals director of emergency medicine, says she was relieved that most children had been wearing seat belts. Loading This was a school bus with a large number of children on it, she says. We saw nine children here. We didnt see a whole busload of children, which is what we might have seen if they hadnt been wearing seat belts ... a whole lot of children got out and were physically OK and seat belts had a large part to do with that. While many children escaped without physical injures, Grindlay says the incident would have traumatised all the children and their families. Theyll need lots of emotional support. Some of the injured children will need to have ongoing rehabilitation once their initial injuries are managed and obviously psychological support for them and their families. The hospital has also offered confidential support services to all staff who responded to the incident.

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Staff werent just responding to the incident within the walls of the hospital. Dr Claire Wilkins, a field emergency medical officer and paediatric emergency physician at the Royal Childrens and St Vincents hospitals, rushed to the site after the crash. She had just arrived at the Royal Childrens Hospital when she was paged about the incident. She supports Ambulance Victoria, brings equipment to patients, makes rapid assessments about who first responders can manage at the site and determines where patients should go. By the time she had arrived, it was a well-organised scene. The Country Fire Authority, State Emergency Service, police and ambulance were already there. Wilkins was there for about two hours and cared for 20 to 30 patients, mostly children with wounds that needed to be irrigated or dressed. Sore limbs that needed to be splinted. Some pain relief, and then prioritising moving people on to a sort of warmer, more comfortable environment, she says.

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It took several years, a high-profile council row and state government intervention, but the $25 million riverfront Tawarri Hot Springs development has been given the green light.

The luxury wellness retreat, spearheaded by Claremont Hotel proprietor and FJM Property principal Barry Jones, was unanimously approved by the states planning commission during a 90-minute meeting on Thursday.

The $25 million redevelopment of the Tawarri Hot Springs in Dalkeith has been approved.

The development, which comprises pools, saunas, a restaurant and cafe spanning 5500 square metres of the historic Dalkeith Hot Pool site, was touted as a world-class tourism drawcard which could attract as many as 140,000 visitors annually.

The approval marks the end of a lengthy battle by the developer to get the project over the line, which drew the ire of the City of Nedlands council and dozens of residents.
The Chinese government has extended an olive branch to Australia, saying it looks forward to hosting Anthony Albanese as soon as possible in Beijing and lifting a trade ban on $600 million worth of Australian imports, in the latest sign of a thaw in the previously frosty relationship.

Brushing off the forced cancellation of next weeks Quad leaders summit in Sydney, Albanese will arrive in Hiroshima on Friday to meet with the leaders of the worlds seven richest economies and hold a stopgap summit with US President Joe Biden and his fellow Quad leaders.

Speaking before leaving for Hiroshima, Biden rejected claims his inability to travel to Australia for the planned Quad summit was a publicity win for China, which has not been invited to the G7.

No, because were still meeting, he said. We still have four good allies.
Press Release

May 18, 2023 Tolentino lauds pilot testing of internet voting for OFWs in 2025 polls MANILA - Senator Francis 'TOL' N. Tolentino on Thursday lauded the leadership of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) over its plans to conduct the pilot testing of internet voting for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the 2025 midterm elections. According to Tolentino, allowing migrant Filipino workers to vote in the most convenient way will definitely encourage them to exercise their constitutional right to suffrage and choose their preferred leaders who will lead the country in the next three to six years. "Mas magiging demokratiko ang proseso kapag maraming kababayan nating nasa ibayong dagat na mga absentee voters--migrant workers, OFWs-- ang kalahok. Magiging kumbinyente ang paraan ng pagboto at hindi na po nila kailangang bumyahe pa ng ilang oras para lamang marating ang mga itinakdang polling precincts," said Tolentino. During last year's presidential election, only 626,000 out of the 1.6-million registered overseas absentee voters were able to cast their ballots--equivalent to only 39 percent voter's turnout. Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia in a statement released on Wednesday said there is no need for a new law to authorize internet voting for registered overseas absentee voters, since the poll body "promulgate rules and regulations and consequently, implement other means of overseas voting that are more reliable, secure, and efficient." During the 18th Congress in January 2021, it was Tolentino who first appealed to the poll body to devise a more convenient way for OFWs--Filipino seafarers in particular--to exercise their respective voting rights. The senator then noted that Filipino seafarers have been deprived of their right to vote in the past elections since they are at sea most of the time. While the current process allows seafarers to vote by going to the nearest embassy or consular post during the 30-day voting period, Tolentino stressed that most seafarers are at sea for six months, which is the usual duration of their respective contracts.
Argentina presidential candidate Javier Milei at the Buenos Aires book fair in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on May 14,. Natacha Pisarenko (AP)

Shouting lefties are afraid, presidential candidate Javier Milei summoned a crowd last Sunday at one of the most anticipated events at the Buenos Aires Book Fair. The night did not seem to be one for celebrations. That day, elections were held in three provinces of the country and his party, La Libertad Avanza (Freedom Moves Forward), barely registered. With the vote count still underway, the libertarian lawmaker who is heading numerous presidential polls in Argentina presented a book before a packed room that went wild as soon as he walked through the door. Milei had given up supporting provincial candidates two weeks earlier due to lack of resources, and the few candidates who did run made a poor showing. It didnt matter. His party seeks to focus on the bigger battle: the August primaries and the October presidential election.

Milei made the leap from television to Congress in just four years, and currently sounds like a convincing candidate to a third of Argentines. Running along the lines of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil and Donald Trump in the U.S., his proposals  to eliminate the Central Bank, to dollarize the economy, to privatize state companies and the free of arms and organs  have set the pace in the public debate in recent months . On Tuesday night, a lawyer published excerpts from his government program on Twitter and the proposals became a great topic of debate. They include the end of legal abortion and sexual education in schools, a for-pay public health system, and merging the Security and Defense systems so that the Army can have a greater deployment in the national territory.

The electoral debate is red-hot in Argentina, but with the August primaries as the first horizon in sight, political platforms have not yet been defined. Mileis came to light because it was included in the documents filed with a court on May 10 to request that La Libertad Avanza be granted legal entity status.

There is no more time, that is why we are proposing the structural change that Argentina needs today to become a power once again, says Mileis program. La Libertad Avanza proposes conducting a historical review of Argentina as the promised land for the European migrants of the 19th century, a land that has maintained itself thanks to the effort, work and motivation of its working middle class; a country that Milei considers destroyed by the populist and totalitarian governments that marked the change of era in the middle of the last century and contributed to the relaxation of that methodology of life and work.

The far-right candidate is proposing a three-stage plan to promote a strong cut in public spending that would include the privatization of state-owned companies, eliminating subsidies and cutting spending on pensions to promote a private system similar to the one in place in the 1990s and dismantled by former president Nestor Kirchner. Milei also plans to start charging for the services provided by public hospitals and to implement a system of education checks to stop financing the Ministry of Education and have parents invest their money in private schools. The free sale of firearms and the transition towards a public-private management prison system that would be militarized are some of his other proposals.

Milei also wants to introduce a labor reform that would eliminates compensation for seniority, to repeal the rural land law that prevents foreigners from selling land with important water sources or located in border security zones, protect the child from the moment of conception and collect medical expenses from foreign residents who are economically solvent.

To reverse the economic crisis that Argentina is suffering, Mileis priority will be to immediately ease all foreign exchange restrictions and eliminate withholdings on exports. His signature idea to burn the Central Bank to eliminate the Argentine peso would only occur after the end of a projected 35-year plan.

A party without a national structure will fight for the presidency

Milei is rebounding in the polls even in spite of himself. The Argentine far-right candidate is gaining popularity with his cries of kicking the ass of the political caste, but the lack of a national structure for his party has led him to form alliances with old acquaintances across the country. Among them is Ricardo Bussi, a lawmaker from the province of Tucuman, son of a repressor during the military dictatorship and a professional politician since 1987; there is also the lawmaker from La Rioja Martin Menem, nephew of former neoliberal president Carlos Saul Menem and son of another historical legislator from his province.

The latest addition to his lists has been his partner in Congress, the lawyer Victoria Villarruel, as his vice-presidential candidate. A daughter and granddaughter of soldiers, Villarruel came to the fore as a defender of the soldiers accused of crimes against humanity during the dictatorship. The national defense law must inevitably be reformed so that the military can operate within the territory, she defended this week in a television interview with Milei. According to the latest polls, they are among the favorites to lead the open primaries to be held in August, while the ruling Peronism and the center-right opposition have yet to define their candidates.
A looming federal byelection in the Gold Coast electorate of Fadden will test support for the Liberal Party after one year of Peter Duttons leadership, amid expectations the party will face another byelection in the former prime ministers seat of Cook by the years end.

Former Morrison government minister Stuart Robert officially resigned from parliament on Thursday in a letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, setting in train the process for calling a byelection.

Liberal MP Stuart Robert has handed in his resignation. Credit: Rhett Wyman

Robert announced his intention to leave federal parliament earlier this month, fuelling speculation that his close political ally Scott Morrison will also soon bow out of politics.

Some Liberals were anticipating Morrison would retire from his south Sydney seat of Cook as soon as the coming sitting fortnight.
Pacific leaders are warning the Albanese government it must raise its climate goals or risk harming Australias security ties to the region, following an alarming forecast that global warming will almost certainly exceed a crucial temperature limit within the next five years.

The World Meteorological Organisation on Wednesday warned there was a 98 per cent chance that at least one of the next five years would exceed an annual average global temperature of 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels.

Hilda C. Heine, former president of the Marshall Islands, is part of the Pacific Elders Voice group that issued the warning to the Australian government. Credit: AP

Australia signed the Paris Agreement in 2015, committing to make cuts to greenhouse emissions consistent with the global action needed to limit warming to 1.5 degrees  the level calculated by scientists to avoid the worst damage from climate change.

However, the government is failing this goal. Its target to cut emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050 is consistent with at least 2 degrees of warming.
Pubs and clubs will have to remove all external gambling signage promoting VIP Lounges or players rooms within three months or face hefty fines as the state government cracks down on venues flouting laws.

NSW Labor vowed to remove external signage as part of its gambling reform package, which was released in response to a damning NSW Crime Commission report that found criminals were using poker machines to wash dirty money in clubs.

Sydneys pubs have long used the phrase VIP Lounge as code for poker machines. Credit: Oscar Colman, Flavio Brancaleone

The commissions main recommendation was a cashless gaming card, which the then Coalition government committed to implement in all 90,000 machines across the state by 2028.

However, Labor resisted and instead agreed to a trial of 500 machines to ensure a cashless card would not cause job losses across the hospitality industry.
The Palaszczuk government plays its part. Once promoting evidence-based solutions to youth crime, it now spruiks youth justice laws it claims to be the toughest in the nation. The reforms have been universally opposed by experts waving bothersome, and thus ignored, facts. The Facebook page is like countless others springing up and swelling with members all over Queensland. In some instances, posts can be forces for good. More often, they are, or degenerate to, swill. Other posts lament interstate laws providing Aboriginal elders a say over First Nation criminal sentencing (Better not pass. Have enough troubles from them stealing up here).

Some praise Torin OBrien, the one-time One Nation candidate who led vigilantes to the home of Indigenous teens they decided were criminals (absolutely back them all the way). There is constructive debate, too, but reasonable voices are consumed by the mob, whose numbers spill from behind keyboards and onto the streets, a trend Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll warned could lead to deaths. What we have is a group of people going to peoples houses for this issue, and the information is wrong, she said of OBriens Rockhampton affair. In Mackay, an anonymous community member recently posted a flyer calling on any fathers ready to stand up to join them in enforcing a self-declared youth curfew from next week. Any young people caught on the streets after 10pm shall be disciplined, it warned. In Queenslands febrile media and political landscape, how could we expect anything else?

Problem is, youth crime figures are difficult to report. This is because the Queensland Police Service only aggregates total crime figures in the easy-to-read graphs on its website. Far easier to mine the ready supply of online videos posted by crime groups or boastful criminals themselves. Trends can nevertheless be gleaned by sifting through the wads of raw data regularly posted in voluminous spreadsheets. The best we can do with this available data is to look at the proportion of total charges levelled against adults and juveniles.

The information is not infallible, and does not present a full picture of crime. The data is modest, but something. Brisbane Times tabulated the numbers to find the proportion of crime attributable to children in two of Queenslands vigilante hotspots  Rockhampton and Mackay  is below peak levels and has remained relatively steady for the past five years (since 17-year-olds were included in the statistics). Measured as a proportion, even juvenile car theft, a perennial go-to for youth crime crisis news fodder, is comparable with previous years. The total crime count (adults and juveniles) in Rockhampton last year was on par with previous years as far back as 2012. In Mackay, crime has been trending down for two years.

Whole-of-Queensland rates of youth criminals, a more accurate measure of crime because it accounts for population growth, have been falling even longer. This does not diminish victims experiences or ignore a youth crime problem, particularly in certain pockets. All crime is bad, but context is good. To everyones detriment, Queenslands political culture does not permit easy nuance on youth crime. In this issue, and others, the beaten-up Palaszczuk government reacts instead of leads.

It blows with the front pages and 6pm news bulletins. Rather than explain, it participates, soundbites and legislative pitchforks at the ready for easy electoral sugar. In an extraordinary glimpse into this cowed disposition, Labor MP Barry ORourke, backed by Police Minister Mark Ryan, legitimised the Rockhampton mob by agreeing to meet with OBrien, who was also once affiliated with an organisation comparing Muslims to rats and cockroaches. The meeting was later cancelled. The cabinet reshuffle of the Palaszczuk government puts new ministers into key portfolios of health, youth justice and housing as it resets for an election in 18 months. Their challenge is to shrug their servility to hyperbolic narratives, and set evidence-led paths to a better state.
The westernmost Cycladic island is littered with ancient ruins and catacombs and has abundant and beautiful beaches. Cliff-backed Paleohori might be the best, but Plathiena, framed in the limestone outcrops, is lovely. Like overcrowded Santorini, Milos features a giant flooded caldera. Curious volcanic formations, white cliffs banded in coloured rock and dramatic coastlines create some of the Aegeans most striking landscapes. See visitgreece.gr BORNHOLM, DENMARK Credit: Getty This Baltic island, close to the Swedish coast, has been an important trade and naval outpost since the Middle Ages, though rock carvings indicate Bronze Age settlement. Bornholm relies on agriculture, ceramics manufacturing and summer tourists attracted to wild landscapes of moor and forest, dotted with huge glacial boulders. Fishing villages such as picturesque Gudhjem and arty Svaneke hunker under the chimneys of herring smokehouses. See visitbornholm.com LINDISFARNE, UK

Credit: iStock This dot off the Northumbrian coast is otherwise known as Holy Island thanks to its links to early Christianity. Monkish scholarship produced the gorgeous illuminated Lindisfarne Gospels, displayed in e-version in the visitor centre. The ruined priory, moody weather and tidal flats create haunting scenery offset by a pretty Victorian village and 16th-century castle converted into a summer home by architect Edwin Lutyens. See visitnorthumberland.com LANZAROTE, SPAIN Credit: Getty La Palma and Tenerife are the best-known Canary Islands off northwest Africas Atlantic coast, and favoured by European sun-seekers. If you want to combine hedonism with hiking, though, hit Lanzarote, the most scenically dramatic island thanks to volcanic landscapes and lush vegetation. The cliffs at Famara and the road to Yaiza have staggering views. A bonus is the excellent seafood and local cheese and wines. See hellocanaryislands.com

BELLE-ILE, FRANCE Credit: Alamy Brittanys largest island is pounded by waves that create jagged rock stacks, umpteen coves and windswept allure, while the warm Gulf Stream provides green agricultural interiors and a faintly Mediterranean atmosphere. The islands pastel-coloured fishing villages, lighthouses and flower-dappled fields were much painted by artists such as Monet and Matisse. The island also has a whopping fortress built by Louis XIVs military engineer, Vauban. See belleileenmer.co.uk LINDAU, GERMANY Traditional German houses in Lindau, Lake Constance. Credit: iStock

This island, 460 kilometres from the sea in landlocked Bavaria, sits on Lake Constance, which is shared with Austria and Switzerland, draped in vineyards and backed by snowy Alps. The island is dominated by 800-year-old Lindau town, bristling with defensive towers and graced with gabled medieval merchant mansions. A fringe of lakeshore promenades and cafe terraces is the perfect place to soak up alpine views. See bodensee.eu COMINO, MALTA Blue Lagoon, Comino. Credit: Joana Kruse/Alamy Tiddly Comino is this nations third island, wedged between Malta and Gozo and previously a hideout for pirates and plague victims. These days its worn-down limestone landscape is almost empty, but its cliffs, sea caves and startling turquoise waters are utterly lovely. Its most famous landmark is the Blue Lagoon. Clamber up St Marys Tower to inspect the whole island from above. See visitmalta.com LIPARI, ITALY

Credit: iStock The Aeolian Islands off northeast Sicily are best known for volcanic Stromboli, but Lipari makes a great base. Loading The island is cluttered with fishing villages, churches, and random curiosities such as an obsidian quarry, acropolis, significant archaeological park and hot springs. A walk up 600-metre Monte Chirica provides magnificent views over the archipelago, Stromboli booming in the background. See visitsicily.info Brian Johnston has travelled courtesy of numerous tourism offices and travel companies.
We cant seem to understand this problem in Japan, he says.I lost my identity. The pain that this Japanese system causes children is beyond description. Wataya has published a collection of 12 abducted and alienated childrens stories. Some children said they are still suffering from the pain for 50 years, he says, fuelling issues with trust, abandonment, and mental health. Susuma Wataya says international pressure is needed for Japan to make reforms to its laws. Credit: Eryk Bagshaw Wataya and Atsukis experiences are not unique to Japanese children. Hundreds of children born to a foreign-born parent have been alienated or abducted in Japan, drawing condemnation from the United Nations and the United States Congress.

Their lives are now part of a diplomatic tussle that is damaging Japans carefully crafted international image as it looks to expand its influence abroad. The leaders of the worlds seven largest economies and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will fly into Hiroshima for the G7 on Friday. Their focus will be on the war in Ukraine and China, but there will also be an opportunity for leaders to raise the fate of hundreds of missing kids from France, the US, the United Kingdom and Australia with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Loading In March, an investigation by this masthead and 60 Minutes revealed that Japanese police had ignored Interpol missing persons notices and courts had failed to enforce visitation orders for dozens of missing Australian kids. Of course, they should be raising it at the G7, says Australian father Matt Wyman. There are 82 kids from Australia. They know what is going on. Wyman lost his kids in 2009. My marriage was a normal marriage. My wife just wanted to go to Japan for a holiday, he says. They disappeared instead. When he found his kids and tried to give his son a birthday card in 2012, he was surrounded by six police officers. I was a wreck, but I never gave up, he says.

In 2015, his eldest son refused to go to school. Desperate, Wymans ex-wife agreed to send him back to Australia where he has been ever since. He doesnt like to talk about it now. It has affected him since. Even to this day, he has anxiety about it. Keiko Jalilis daughter was taken when she was four years old. This system doesnt think of children, she says. The children are abandoned. Matt Wymans says the abduction of his kids his caused them long term damage. Credit: Paul Harris Jalili is one of the few Japanese parents who have since reconnected with their son or daughter. It took 14 years. The Japanese system is very good at kidnapping, she says. My daughter doesnt want to talk about the past. She is still damaged.

The mental health impacts of being abducted and then feeling abandoned by the other parent are profound in a country that is grappling with a mental health and fertility crisis. Its a lifelong pain, says Wataya. It ruined my relationship with my father and my mother. Keiko Jalilis daughter was taken when she was four. Credit: Eryk Bagshaw A 2016 study by the Scandinavian Journal of Public Health found children with access to only one parent had higher levels of psychological complaints and were at risk of worse mental health. Japanese government figures show 200,000 couples separate in Japan each year, and a third of children lose all contact with one of their parents.

Japan is a world champion in suicide. And we know that for 65 per cent of them, it is because of family issues, said French father Phillipe Cocatrix. The government is crying we dont have enough kids. But they cant protect the kids who are already born. Japanese government officials are reluctant to talk publicly about the issue despite some MPs labelling the decades of child abductions an international embarrassment. French father Phillipe Cocatrix (centre) marches in Tokyo with other victims of parental abduction in May. Credit: Christopher Jue There has been some discussion regarding possible legal reform, says Kishidas cabinet secretary for public affairs Noriyuki Shikata. But I dont think any conclusions have been reached. One of the key focal points proposed by Japan at the G7 apart from the war in Ukraine, Chinas economic coercion and the role of artificial intelligence will be on gender and empowering women. Mothers who have had their kids taken from them have accused the Japanese government of breaching their human rights.

There are mothers who cant see their kids because of this current law, says 40-year-old Izumi Uchiyama, whose kids were taken suddenly by her husband in 2017. She has not seen them since. We hope they actually understand this is our situation and the government has to revise the laws to protect the rights of women like us. James Cook with his wife and four children before they left for Japan. American father James Cook was one of the first cases raised between the US and Japan after it signed The Hague Convention for international child abductions in 2014. His last photo of him and all of his kids is at the airport before they left for Japan for a holiday. They did not come back. My kids have been so mentally done over that there is no hope for them, he says.

Cook has testified before US Congress three times. He won his first case under The Hague convention in an Osaka court in 2016. Still, his children were not returned. That decision was then rolled back by the Japanese courts. Cook says the only way to get Japan to change its ways is for its partners, particularly the US, to take a public stand. Japan has basically mastered the diplomatic rope-a-dope. They will withstand any amount of conversational Oh yes, yes, yes, well do that. Oh, yes we will look into that, but its difficult. OK, well put in a committee yeah were working on it. And then they just wont do a thing, he says. Izumi Uchiyamas children were abducted by her husband in 2017. Credit: Christopher Jue The international community basically has to tell Japan: Cut this shit out and return these f--- kids. No excuses. Wataya says because Japan is reluctant to openly discuss the treatment of abducted children, we need international voices.
London: The head of the British navy says he cannot envisage the United Kingdom ever permanently deploying an aircraft carrier to the Indo-Pacific after being challenged about Britains minimal presence in the region by Australias former high commissioner to the UK George Brandis.

Admiral Sir Ben Key, First Sea Lord, was speaking at the First Sea Lords Sea Power conference hosted by the Council on Geostrategy at Lancaster House, London.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak inspects a guard of honour onboard the Japanese aircraft carrier JS Izumo at Yokosuka Naval Base on Thursday, ahead of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima. Credit: Getty Images

His comments came before Prime Minister Rishi Sunak  on the first day of his visit to Hiroshima for the G7  unveiled a defence pact with Japan, pledging a second aircraft carrier deployment to the region in 2025.

The prime minister and Prime Minister Kishida agreed on the importance of the G7 having a unified approach on China, recognising the systemic challenge China poses to our collective economic security and regional stability, a Downing Street spokesperson said in a statement.
Washington: Veteran CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour has publicly rebuked her boss over last weeks raucous town hall with Donald Trump, saying the network should not have hosted the event and that she would have dropped the mic once his attacks got personal.

In the latest sign of the ongoing ructions within the organisation, Amanpour also revealed she met network chief executive Chris Licht at CNNs New York headquarters to hear his justification, which led to a very robust exchange of views.

Christiane Amanpour has confronted her boss about his decision to grant Donald Trump a platform on the network. Credit: AP

My management believes they did the right thing, a service to the American people, she said during a speech given to the 2023 graduates of the Columbia Journalism School in New York City on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST).

For me, of course, the fact that the American people voted three times against Trump and Trumpism  2018, 2020, 2022  also speaks volumes. Weve done our duty. We have told the story. We have put that in everybodys awareness and people have had the opportunity to make their choices and they have done.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The General Audit Chamber of St. Maarten presented its report on the process of ex officio tax assessments.

These administrative tax assessments are issued by government officials without a taxpayer's request and are considered automatic. When a tax return is not filed, the authorities issue an estimate of income, turnover, profit, and related factors. However, the estimate must be reasonable.

The audit aimed to determine if the condition of reasonableness was met. A surcharge of 10% for individuals and 25% for companies is added when setting the reference amount to encourage taxpayers to file a tax return. The effectiveness of the surcharge is not measured, so its impact is unknown.

The General Audit Chamber attempted to extract random sample data to gain insight into the standard application of the surcharge. However, they were unable to access records due to privacy concerns, preventing them from verifying the consistency and integrity of the ex officio assessment process.

The report concludes that there are risks of arbitrary discretion, as the assessment is not checked for reasonableness by another employee, and there is no established written policy governing the ex officio assessment process.

The report on the process of ex officio tax assessments is published in English and Dutch and is available on the General Audit Chamber's website (www.arsxm.org) and social media platforms, Facebook and LinkedIn. Interested parties are encouraged to read the report and gain valuable insights into the Audit Chamber's activities and achievements throughout the year.
PHILIPSBURG:--- In response to a surge in complaints regarding stray and dangerous dogs in various districts of St Maarten, the local police force has taken proactive measures to address these growing concerns. Community policemen from different neighborhoods have been actively engaging with dog owners and handlers to mitigate the potential risks associated with these animals.

The recent incidents have brought to light the urgent need for responsible pet ownership and control. The community police officer of Guana-Bay is currently searching for the owner of a brown/white pit bull, which has been involved in multiple attacks in the area.

An appeal goes out to the owner of this animal to take immediate action in order to bring their pet under control and prevent further harm to the community.

The Police strongly emphasize the importance of responsible pet ownership, including proper containment of dogs to ensure the safety of both residents and visitors. It is the responsibility of every dog owner to take appropriate measures to prevent their pets from becoming a threat to public safety.

However, if the owner of the brown/white pit bull fails to cooperate or neglects their responsibility, the police will be left with no choice but to take further action. In the interest of public safety, the police are prepared to intervene with appropriate measures, potentially involving other agencies, to resolve this dangerous situation.

The St Maarten Police Force urges anyone with information regarding the identity or whereabouts of the owner of the brown/white pit bull to come forward and provide this vital information to the authorities. It is through collective efforts that we can ensure a safe and secure community for everyone.
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during an interview with foreign media on April 20 in Tokyo. Eugene Hoshiko (AP)

In a changing world and with increasing tension between global powers, many countries are in the process of redefining their position and capabilities. For some, this means touching on deep aspects of national identity. This is the case of Japan, the host country of the G-7 summit to be held this weekend. The Asian nation is in the midst of a momentous reconfiguration of its military and economic dimensions, in what probably amounts to the biggest change of tack for post-war Japan, with its strict pacifism and its far-reaching projection in the global markets.

The government headed by Fumio Kishida, a representative of the moderate wing of the conservative Liberal Democratic Party  in power almost uninterruptedly for around seven decades , is advancing resolutely on both fronts, committed to strengthening Japans defense capabilities while simultaneously driving changes in the trade relationship with China. All of this is being done in close coordination with its main ally, the United States, and with the major advanced democracies such as those that make up the G-7 group of industrialized nations, whose relationship with Beijing will be one of the key issues on the summits agenda.

On the military front, the current administrations commitment is unequivocal. The government has launched fiscal plans to double military spending within five years, raising it from 1% of GDP to 2%. In December, the Japanese executive approved a new strategic doctrine that indicates, together with the reasons for the change, the depth and path it intends to follow. The document states that the world is facing the most severe and complex security environment since the end of WWII. Against this backdrop, Japan must protect its own national interests including the peace, security and prosperity of Japan, the safety of its people, and the coexistence and coprosperity of the international community by steadfastly preparing for the worst-case scenario, including fundamental reinforcement of its defense capabilities.

The text warns that the new strategy will dramatically transform Japans national security policy after the end of WWII from the aspect of its execution. Adherence to pacifist constitutional principles is reaffirmed, but different action is announced.

Although they do not imply changes to the Constitution, these measures do represent steps that overcome decades of strict containment of military development, one of the founding pillars of the identity of postwar Japan. A leap of this magnitude and speed would have been unthinkable, and certainly extremely controversial until recently. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine and a clear deterioration in relations between advanced democracies and China have changed the mood, providing the conditions for supporting this shift. In addition to those two major issues, Japan also faces challenges in connection with North Korea and its complicated relationship with Russia over a territorial dispute.

Missile capabilities

Within the new strategy, Japans willingness to acquire counter-attack missile capabilities stands out. Until now, under its restrictive interpretation of military development, Japan has limited itself to anti-aircraft defenses. Now, authorities feel it necessary to have weapons that can hit the enemys nerve centers in the event of an attack. A greater commitment to the national defense industry has also been announced.

The strategy expresses the desire to have developed sufficient military capabilities by 2027 to assume primary responsibility for defense in the event of an invasion of the nation. The date is particularly relevant if we compare it with Chinas own plans to complete an upgrade phase of its armed forces by the same year.

The alliance with the U.S. not only remains a basic pillar; steps will be taken to reinforce it further. Tokyo and Washington recently sealed a pact to extend their defense agreements to outer space. Meanwhile, Japan is cultivating ties with the Quad group  which also includes Australia, the U.S. and India  and it is taking small steps towards greater coordination with NATO.

Japan has not delivered weapons to Ukraine, but it joined Western sanctions against Russia after the invasion. Its prime minister made a conspicuous visit to Kyiv while the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, was in Moscow to meet with Vladimir Putin. Tokyo has expressed its view that the Russian invasion is an inadmissible outrage and that the response to it could be a determining factor as a deterrent for possible future offensives in its region  clearly bearing in mind the risk of an attack by Beijing on Taiwan.

It is against this backdrop that Japan seems willing to forge greater cooperation with advanced democracies on a global scale, an undertaking in which the G-7 is a fundamental forum.

Relationship with China

The G-7 plans to address the redefinition of economic relations with China, a matter of global importance. The summit will try to send a united message about how to move forward to reduce the risk associated with the Wests heavy reliance on Chinese manufacturing, as well as warnings to Beijing against what some in the West see as China abusing its economic clout with coercive practices.

On the economic front, Tokyo has taken significant steps beyond the sanctions against Russia. For instance, it has backed the U.S. governments moves to restrict Chinas access to high-end microchips, a key technology for the development of key sectors such as artificial intelligence, next-generation weapons and mass surveillance systems.

The underlying argument is that advanced democracies do not want to pave the way for Beijing to continue down a path that they see as increasingly repressive at home and assertive abroad. A Japanese company, Tokyo Electron, has capabilities that are very difficult to reproduce in the manufacture of essential machinery to produce high-end chips.

It is not the only relevant step in the review of economic relations with China. Despite ongoing Japanese suspicion about developments in Beijing, economic relations with that country are enormous, and many Japanese companies operate on Chinese soil. Prime Minister Kishida has established a Ministry of Economic Security, a symbol of his desire to reconfigure some of Japans economic balances in the understanding that they are an inextricable part of national security.
PHILIPSBURG:--- This visit marks a significant step toward strengthening international cooperation in law enforcement and combating transnational crime.

During the meetings that were held at the police station in Philipsburg, discussions were held on various topics, including information sharing, training programs, and joint operations.

The Chief of Police of Sint Maarten expressed gratitude for the visit and reaffirmed the commitment of the local law enforcement to work hand-in-hand with Interpol in tackling emerging challenges.

Interpol's presence on Sint Maarten reinforces the island's dedication to maintaining a safe and peaceful environment for residents and visitors alike. It highlights the recognition of the island as a valuable partner in global efforts against crime.

KPSM Press Release.
PHILIPSBURG:---The court of appeal ruled in favor of the country St. Maarten and the Kingdom on Wednesday when the verdict was rendered.

Cactus Tree Captain Olivers Restaurant and Marina submitted an appeal against the verdict rendered by the court of first instance on November 24th, 2020.

The attorneys representing Cactus Tree submitted six points of contention as their ground for appeal all of which were rejected by the appellate court.

In its ruling, the court made clear that Captain Olivers Restaurant and Marina is located in a disputed area and that safety and security take priority.

The appellants also filed for a conditional alternative claim. Its conclusion is that the Court will quash the verdict and still allow their alternative claims.

In memorandums of reply, with exhibits, received on 29 April 2021 and 12 April 2021 respectively, the Country and the State contested the grounds of appeal. Their conclusion is that the Court will uphold the contested judgment, with the appellants being ordered to pay the costs of the appeal proceedings.

Cactus Tree contested the fact that the French authorities had conducted controls both at the restaurant and marina which they said are not within the French territory, this claim could not be justly proven since both business establishments are located in a disputed area, and possibly within the French territory.

The appellants argued that the country had issued permits for the operation of restaurants and marinas and had collected taxes and other dues. The court ruled that the country did everything possible to safeguard the rights of the business owners, it also ruled that there was no agreement between France and the Kingdom about the exact land border between Sint Maarten and Saint Martin.

The border dispute was discussed in 2014 between representatives of the countries involved and Saint Martin. They have agreed to maintain the existing situation. Maintaining the existing situation was also later confirmed between them.

France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands have since established the maritime border between them in the Maritime Border Treaty of 6 April 2016.

At least in the period between 2014 and 2017, French authorities carried out checks at Captain Oliver's. Following an audit on 26 October 2016, the Kingdom of the Netherlands requested clarification from France. Following an incident that took place on 26 June 2017 at Captain Oliver's, the Kingdom of the Netherlands has again requested clarification from the French authorities, both orally and by means of a 'note verbale'.

In this regard, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the French authorities have also brought to the attention of the existing agreement that commercial activities undertaken in Oyster Pond under a Sint Maarten permit may not be inspected.

In 2017, the Country also protested in writing against the French actions and inspections at Captain Oliver's and furthermore drew France's attention to the importance of 'good neighborliness'. In these letters, the Country also points to the importance of the agreement to maintain the existing situation in the disputed area.

Captain Oliver's has held both the State and the Country liable in writing in 2017 and 2018 for the damage suffered by Captain Oliver's as a result of the incidents and inspections by the French authorities in the disputed area.

In the proceedings, the appellants claim, in short, a declaratory judgment that the respondents have acted unlawfully towards the appellants, as well as

compensation for the damage suffered by the appellants as a result has to be made by the State. In the alternative, they claim, after the amendment of the claim in the event that it is judged that the checks took place on French territory and that therefore no wrongful act was committed because the respondents did not have jurisdiction', declaratory judgments that - according to the Court - the appellants have made payments to the Country of leasehold canon, rights for the establishment and other permits, taxes and social premiums, with an order from the Country to reimburse all amounts paid in relation thereto.

In the contested judgment, the Court rejected the claims, ordering the appellants to pay the costs of the proceedings.

In essence, the Court has considered that the plots of Captain Oliver's are located in an area where there is no agreement between the Netherlands and France about the course of the border between the two countries so it cannot be determined by the law of Sint Maarten whether the parcels are legal in Sint Maarten than in France. Why nor can it be judged that the parcels are located in Sint Maarten (and the checks by French gendarmes were therefore carried out in Sint Maarten). The Court also considered that, whether the disputed territory is French or Dutch, the State has no effective control there, and the State has no legal obligation to guarantee the fundamental rights of the appellants. The State can only be expected to try to safeguard those rights. It ruled that, according to the 'demarches' and 'notes verbal through the agreement with France of 2014 regarding the status quo and the consultations that the State is conducting with France, the State has made sufficient efforts to safeguard those rights of the appellants. and prevent imminent infringements. In doing so, the Court also considered that the claims are closely related to questions of national security and foreign policy, in which policy areas the State and the Country have a large scope for policy and assessment. It had not been stated or proved that the State and the Country

have acted outside their policy and discretion, nor that they have not taken Captain Oliver's interests into account.

With regard to Captain Oliver's reproach to the country for forbidding him to carry out work at the marina and the restaurant, the Court ruled that this cannot be successfully sued in this civil action, the alleged construction ban with more durable and resistant material could have been challenged in the court, but it has not been argued or proven that Captain Oliver's has successfully used an administrative legal remedy against the construction ban, so that the minister's possible refusal of VROMI has formal legal effect in this case so that the Court had to assume the lawfulness of this prohibition.

In the introduction to their statement of appeal and with the first ground of appeal, the appellants dispute the Court's judgment that the plots of Captain Oliver's are located in the disputed area.

This argument is rejected. From the 'notes verbal of 7 July 2017, 13 August 2018, and 7 March 2019 submitted by the State in the first instance, but also from the letter of 8 February 2021 from the Minister of Foreign Affairs to the relevant minister of France, it is undeniable that the plots of Captain Oliver's are located in the disputed area. In appeal, the appellants only contest that opinion with their argument that Sint Maarten considered those plots in the past - when granting permits and issuing the plots (in the long lease) to Captain Oliver's - as belonging to its territory, about which (currently:) the country has jurisdiction. These circumstances may indicate that (in the past: the Island Territory of Sint Maarten and now: the Country) considered those parcels as belonging to its territory, but that view is relevant to the question at issue here whether the area concerned is disputed, is of no significance. The fact that respondents, as the appellants still argue, called the French checks at Captain Oliver's illegal, does not change that: in the opinion after all, the defendants committed a violation of the 2014 status quo agreement.

The second and third grounds of appeal are directed against the judgment of the first judge that, insofar as Captain Oliver's claims are based on the assertion that the French authorities have intervened on the territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, this proposition is ignored, since this is not established and protection of fundamental rights by a state, other than by way of exception, only takes place on the territory where that state has jurisdiction. If it is assumed that Captain Oliver's is located on French territory, the jurisdiction of the State can therefore only be assumed exceptionally. Apart from the exception - about which nothing has been stated - in that case, the State is not obliged to respect the fundamental rights of the appellant's protection and they can turn to the French courts. If it is assumed that the actions of the French authorities did take place on Dutch territory, then the State, in the absence of effective control, can only be expected to try to guarantee the fundamental rights in the disputed territory. The Court held "that the Kingdom of the Netherlands has made sufficient efforts to safeguard fundamental rights of Captain Oliver's and to prevent imminent infringements. The 'demarches' and 'notes verbale' mentioned in the statement of the facts of this form testifies to this. has the kingdom der Nederland and to avert imminent infringements already made an agreement with France and Saint Martin in 2014 that the existing situation

in respect of the disputed area will be maintained. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is also currently holding talks with France about the to establish final land boundary This has been finalized and the French authorities have full control of the water and land rights where both businesses are located.

In the explanation of the second complaint, the applicants misunderstand that the Court of First Instance did not assume that the disputed territory constitutes French territory, but merely examined what would be legal if that were the case. For the rest, the explanatory notes contain only repetitions of those on the first ground of appeal. The complaint therefore fails.

In the explanatory notes to the third ground of appeal, it is denied that the appellants (could have) turned to the French judge. However, the judgment of the Court is correct, since the appellants believe that the French authorities have acted unlawfully. The basis of the denial by applicants is that the French once referred Captain Oliver to the Land when they wanted to build the marina. However, it does not make clear why the appellants could not approach the French courts in respect of the checks carried out by the French authorities.

Incidentally, the appellants have not submitted any document showing that reference.

With the fourth ground of appeal, the appellants dispute the Court's standard applied for the assessment of the alleged unlawfulness of the actions of respondents. It is argued that this standard is incompatible with the obligation of a State to uphold and guarantee the fundamental rights of citizens, as assumed by the Court. To that extent, the ground of appeal fails on the same ground as the previous grounds of appeal.

Insofar as the ground of appeal contests the correctness of the judgment cell that the progress is closely related to questions of national security and foreign policy and that in these policy areas, the State and the Country should be given a broad policy and

discretion is due, the grievance also lacks doe! since that judgment is correct.

The fifth ground of appeal is first of all against the judgment of the Court that in these proceedings the refusal of the Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment to permit Captain Oliver to carry out work on the marina and the restaurant, against which Captain Oliver's has not appealed to the decision, has legal force so that civil liability of the Country for that refusal cannot be assumed.

The objections raised by the appellants cannot alter that judgment.

Insofar as the grounds of appeal complains that the Court of First Instance has concluded from all the considerations made above that neither the State nor the Country acted unlawfully towards Captain Oliver's that ground of appeal is only elucidated with the statement that the efforts Respondents would not have been aimed at France respecting the agreements regarding the status quo.

This argument already fails because it is refuted by what has been established in this case about the protests of the State against France and what the State has undertaken to arrive at a border treaty with that country.

With the sixth ground of appeal, the appellants contest what the Court of First Instance. However, these considerations are superfluous, so the complaint cannot lead to the annulment of the contested judgment.

All in all, the Court of Appeal also leads to the judgment that, against the background of the broad discretion and discretion referred to above respondents could reasonably have decided to act as they did. There is therefore no wrongful act.

The enhanced requirement

On appeal, the appellants have conditionally increased their claim with a subsidiary claim, in the event that it is ruled 'that the checks took place on French territory and that no unlawful act was therefore committed because the respondents did not may enter such jurisdiction'.

The appellants demand declaratory judgments

(I) that they paid the Land leasehold canon, license fees, taxes, and social premiums without legal basis, while the Land had no jurisdiction over Captain Oliver's and its business operations; and

(II) that all those payments made by the appellant were not due, with an order from the Country to repay it.

Partly in view of the explanatory notes, this claim must apparently be understood as meaning that it has been brought in the event that it should be held that the Country should not have granted the said permits, should not have levied taxes and social security contributions and should not have exercised the leasehold right. could (or could) have been granted, on the grounds that Captain Oliver's parcels are located on French territory. As is clear from the foregoing, that is not the opinion of the Court.

All grounds of appeal therefore fail, and it is not necessary to rule on the alternative claim. The contested verdict should therefore be affirmed, with the costs of the appeal against the appellants.
Calibre reports high-grade drill results from its Talavera deposit within the Limon Mine Complex

Calibre Mining Corp. (TSX: CXB; OTCQX: CXBMF) (the \Company\ or \Calibre\  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/calibre-mining-corp/ ) is pleased to announce results from its drill program at the past producing Talavera mine, now known as the Talavera extension (aTalaveraa), located within the Limon Mine Complex 3 km from the Limon processing plant. These new intercepts continue to demonstrate the resource expansion and new discovery potential at the Limon mine complex.

Drill intercept highlights at Talavera include:

22 g/t Au over 4.2 metres including 15.25 g/t Au over 2.0 metres; 15.46 g/t Au over 6.7 metres including 18.09 g/t Au over 5.7 metres; 10.58 g/t Au over 7.9 metres including 15.18 g/t Au over 2.9 metres in Hole LIM-22-4688;

89 g/t Au over 2.5 metres including 5.85 g/t Au over 1.5 metres; 4.45 g/t Au over 20.9 metres including 8.09 g/t Au over 5.4 metres and 6.69 g/t Au over 3.5 metres; 9.31 g/t Au over 3.1 metres in Hole LIM-22-4677;

92 g/t Au over 3.6 metres in Hole LIM-22-4673;

10 g/t Au over 4.2 metres in Hole LIM-22-4721

Note: A True widths are unknown as several generations of gold bearing veins exist. As a result, the Company will advance a structural study employing the use of downhole televiewer technology to determine vein orientations.

Darren Hall, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Calibre stated: aI am encouraged by these initial results from the drill program at Talavera, which is located only 3 km west of the Limon processing plant.A While not currently included in the Companya?s Mineral Resources, Talavera is a former underground producer with past production of 800,000 ounces of high-grade ore and represents another opportunity to grow our resource base given the multiple high-grade vein sets.

We see excellent exploration opportunities across our portfolio of assets I look forward to sharing the results as our 2023 drilling programs progress.a

About the Talavera Extension

Located west of the main El Limon trend and mill, Talavera is a former underground mining area with past production, during the 1990s, of approximately 800,000 ounces of high grade, low sulphidation gold and has the potential for resource expansion on parallel veins. The Talavera deposit is an epithermal vein trend consisting of high-grade vein shoots along strike of the productive Veta Nueva and AtravesadaA veinA systems. Historic drill results include 7.4 g/t Au over 10.42 metres (LIM-05-3334), and 18.0 g/t Au over 5.93 metres (LIM-04-335) (see press release dated February 3, 2022).

Link 1 a Figures

Link 2 a Drilling Tables

Quality Assurance/Quality Control

Calibre maintains a Quality Assurance/Quality Control (\QA/QC\) program for all its exploration projects using industry best practices. Key elements of the QA/QC program include verifiable chain of custody for samples, regular insertion of certified reference standards and blanks, and duplicate check assays. Drill core is halved and shipped in sealed bags to Bureau Veritas in Managua, Nicaragua, an independent analytical services provider with global certifications for Quality Management Systems ISO 9001:2008, Environmental Management: ISO14001 and Safety Management OH SAS 18001 and AS4801. Prior to analysis, samples are prepared at Veritas\- Managua facility and then shipped to its analytical facility in Vancouver, Canada. Gold analyses are routinely performed via fire assay/AA finish methods. For greater precision of high-grade material, samples assaying 10A g/t Au or higher are re-assayed by fire assay with gravimetric finish. Analyses for silver and other elements of interest are performed via Induction Coupled Plasma (ICP)

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release was approved by David Schonfeldt P.GEO, Calibre Mininga?s Corporate Chief Geologist and a \Qualified Person\ under National Instrument 43-101.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

\Darren Hall\

Darren Hall, President and Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact:

Ryan King

Senior Vice President, Corporate Development & IR

T: (604) 628-1012

E: calibre@calibremining.com

W: www.calibremining.com

In Europe:

Swiss Resource Capital AG

Jochen Staiger & Marc Ollinger

info@resource-capital.ch

www.resource-capital.ch

About Calibre Mining Corp.

Calibre Mining is a Canadian-listed, Americas focused, growing mid-tier gold producer with a strong pipeline of development and exploration opportunities across Nevada and Washington in the USA, and Nicaragua. Calibre is focused on delivering sustainable value for shareholders, local communities and all stakeholders through responsible operations and a disciplined approach to growth. With a strong balance sheet, a proven management team, strong operating cash flow, accretive development projects and district-scale exploration opportunities Calibre will unlock significant value.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Information

This news release includes certain \forward-looking information\ and \forward-looking statements\ (collectively \forward-looking statements\) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements in this news release that address events or developments that we expect to occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are identified by words such as \expect\, \plan\, \anticipate\, \project\, \target\, \potential\, \schedule\, \forecast\, \budget\, \estimate\, \intend\ or \believe\ and similar expressions or their negative connotations, or that events or conditions \will\, \would\, \may\, \could\, \should\ or \might\ occur. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to: the Company\-s expectations toward higher grades mined and processed going forward; statements relating to the Company\-s 2023 priority resource expansion opportunities; the Company\-s metal price and cut-off grade assumptions. Forward-looking statements necessarily involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond Calibre\-s control. For a listing of risk factors applicable to the Company, please refer to Calibre\-s annual information form (\AIF\) for the year ended December 31, 2022, and its management discussion and analysis (\MD&A\) for the year ended December 31, 2022, all available on the Company\-s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect Calibre\-s forward-looking statements such as potential sanctions implemented as a result of the United States Executive Order 13851 dated October 24, 2022.

Calibre\-s forward-looking statements are based on the applicable assumptions and factors management considers reasonable as of the date hereof, based on the information available to management at such time. Such assumptions include but are not limited to: the Company being able to mine and process higher grades and keep production costs relatively flat going forward; there not being an increase in production costs as a result of any supply chain issues or ongoing COVID-19 restrictions; there being no adverse drop in metal price or cut-off grade at the \-Company\-s Nevada properties. Calibre does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management\-s beliefs, expectations or opinions should change other than as required by applicable securities laws. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.A
The price of lithium seems to recover

After the crash of the lithium price, it went down less in April than in March. Now the tide seems to be turning.

Since the last days of April, the price trend has reversed, it is going up again. The crash came because the price had climbed to extreme heights and demand was at a seasonal low. This is because subsidies in Europe and China were coming to an end. Most lithium is needed for electric vehicles. And in this sector, the demand is great in the long term. Chile\-s announcement to put the lithium industry under state control raised eyebrows. This in turn did good for the share price performance of Australian lithium producers. And also, the lithium price. Chile has the world\-s largest lithium reserves and is the second largest lithium producing country. Australia is in first place. China\-s actions also contributed to the drop in lithium prices. The problem there is that sales of electric vehicles are growing too fast. In order for Chinese production to catch up, China has scaled down domestic production of e-cars. This is because there is a lack of critical metals in the country and the grid connection is not the best either, at a time when the signs are pointing to deglobalization.

In the long term, the demand for lithium will increase, there is pretty much unanimity in the industry. Lithium has economic and strategic potential. Deglobalization is driving resource nationalism. Last year, by the way, Mexico declared its intention to nationalize its lithium reserves. Investments in lithium companies like ION Energy or Targa Exploration, which are currently not affected by the covetousness of the project home countries, should be under a good star.

Targa Exploration  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/targa-exploration-corp/  has added three lithium projects, also located in Quebec, to its lithium projects in Quebec. The projects are located in promising lithium zones.

ION Energy  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/ion-energy-inc/  owns two lithium projects in Mongolia. Urgakh Naran covers 80,000 hectares of land. In addition, there is the flagship project Baavhai Uul. Currently, ION Energy has also added another lithium project, in the Northwest Territories.

In accordance with A34 WpHG I would like to point out that partners, authors and employees may hold shares in the respective companies addressed and thus a possible conflict of interest exists. No guarantee for the translation into English. Only the German version of this news is valid.

Disclaimer:

The information provided does not represent any form of recommendation or advice. Express reference is made to the risks in securities trading. No liability can be accepted for any damage arising from the use of this blog. I would like to point out that shares and especially warrant investments are always associated with risk. The total loss of the invested capital cannot be excluded. All information and sources are carefully researched. However, no guarantee is given for the correctness of all contents. Despite the greatest care, I expressly reserve the right to make errors, especially with regard to figures and prices. The information contained herein is taken from sources believed to be reliable, but in no way claims to be accurate or complete. Due to court decisions, the contents of linked external sites are also co-responsible (e.g. Landgericht Hamburg, in the decision of 12.05.1998  312 O 85/98), as long as there is no explicit dissociation from them. Despite careful control of the content, I do not assume liability for the content of linked external pages. The respective operators are exclusively responsible for their content. The disclaimer of Swiss Resource Capital AG also applies: https://www.resource-capital.ch/en/disclaimer/
Firefighters in the province of British Columbia. KAMLOOPS FIRE RESCUE (via REUTERS)

Western Canada has been battling wildfires for nearly two weeks. Authorities warned that the wave of wildfires is unprecedented for this time of the year, and that the country must be better prepared to face July and August, the hottest months of the year. High temperatures  which have broken several records  and strong winds are making it difficult for firefighters to control the blazes.

In the province of Alberta, there are 91 active fires, with 27 classified as out of control, according to Alberta Wildfire information unit manager Christie Tucker. Smoky conditions can make it difficult to fly over wildfires, which can mean sometimes it takes longer for us to get an assessment, she said at a press conference on Wednesday. The province declared a state of emergency on May 7. More than 17,000 people are still under evacuation orders. So far this year, some 534,000 hectares have been devastated by the flames.

A total of 1,600 provincial firefighters are battling the blazes. They have been joined by 600 firefighters from other parts of the country, as well as 300 members of the armed forces. On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Edmonton, the capital of Alberta. Soldiers have been deployed to provide firefighting support, help evacuate isolated communities, and make sure people are safe, Trudeau tweeted after his visit.

The province of British Columbia has also been affected by the fires. There are currently 58 active blazes, mainly in the north of the province. An open-burning ban will begin in the province on Thursday, while a campfire ban will apply to the Prince George Fire Region. In the province of Saskatchewan, there are 27 active fires. The Shaw fire and Vermette fire are of particular concern due to their size: 47,000 and 45,000 hectares respectively.

The wildfires have affected air quality in areas hundreds of miles away, including some of the large urban centers. Environment Canada issued a warning in Calgary Albertas most populous city  for smoke and toxic particles, as well as reduced visibility. The department also issued air quality warnings in Regina and Saskatoon, in Saskatchewan province, and for northeastern areas of British Columbia.

The forest fires have affected the countrys oil production, which has fallen by about 4%. Alberta  the source of Canadas main oil reserves  has been hit especially hard. In the summer of 2021, a dizzying rise in temperatures  a phenomenon known as a heat dome  triggered a wave of wildfires in western Canada. One of the fires devastated 90% of Lytton, a community in British Columbia. A few days prior to the blaze, it had recorded a temperature of 49.6C (121.3F), a national record.

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String theory turns the page on the standard description of the universe by replacing all matter and force particles with just one element: Tiny vibrating strings that twist and turn in complicated ways that, from our perspective, look like particles.

String theory is the idea in theoretical physics that reality is made up of infinitesimal vibrating strings, smaller than atoms, electrons or quarks. According to this theory, as the strings vibrate, twist and fold, they produce effects in many, tiny dimensions that humans interpret as everything from particle physics to large-scale phenomena like gravity.

String theory has been held up as a possible "theory of everything," a single framework that could unite general relativity and quantum mechanics , two theories that underlie almost all of modern physics. While quantum mechanics does very well in describing the behavior of very small things and general relativity works well to explain how very large things happen in the universe, they don't play nicely together. Some scientists think (or thought) that string theory could resolve the conundrums between the two, conquering one of the major remaining unsolved problems of physics.

But after string theory gained prominence in the late 1960s and '70s, its popularity among theoretical physicists fluctuated, according to a lecture by California Institute of Technology physicist John Schwarz , widely considered one of the founders of string theory. After countless papers, conferences and dry-erase markers, the breathtaking breakthrough many once hoped for seems further away than ever.

Nevertheless, the flurry of thought around the very idea of string theory has left a deep imprint on both physics and math. Like it or not (and some physicists certainly don't), string theory is here to stay.

String theory FAQs answered by an expert

We asked Nick Geiser, a theoretical physicist at UCLA, a few frequently asked questions about string theory.

Nick Geiser Theoretical physicist Nick Geiser is a PhD candidate in theoretical physics at UCLA and will join the University of Michigan as a Leinweber and Van Loo Postdoctoral Fellow, working with Professor Henriette Elvang in the Leinweber Center for Theoretical Physics in June 2023. Geiser's research spans several areas of theoretical high-energy physics centered around scattering amplitudes. Scattering amplitudes are fundamental objects in theoretical physics that can be measured in experiments and reveal deep connections between physics and pure mathematics. Outside of research, Geiser works with a variety of organizations to support under-represented minority groups in STEM fields.

What is string theory? String theory is a collection of ideas in theoretical physics in which the fundamental building-blocks of nature are not particles (such as the point-like electron) but instead strings. Imagine microscopic wiggling rubber bands.



String theory is primarily a theory of quantum gravity which elegantly combines the theories of gravity and quantum mechanics. Physicists have been searching for a theory of quantum gravity for nearly one hundred years. Moreover, ideas from string theory have been used to solve problems in mathematics and other fields of theoretical physics.



In many ways, string theory is a language that can be used by theoretical physicists to solve problems and to investigate the mathematics of the universe.



Who invented string theory? String theory was discovered by accident! In 1969, Italian physicist Gabriele Veneziano wrote down a formula describing the scattering of four strings, the now-famous Veneziano amplitude. Veneziano was trying to describe the physics of particles like the proton and neutron, not strings. In the following years, physicists around the world began to unravel string theory from that first formula.



The full picture of string theory has become clearer over the following fifty years. There were several bursts of new ideas and deep insights in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and string theory is still an active field with thousands of researchers around the world.



Has string theory been proven? No experiment has definitively proven string theory to be the fundamental theory of nature. However, the ideas of string theory have passed countless theoretical and mathematical tests over the last fifty years.



Fundamental physics is a long-game. Einstein first predicted gravitational waves in 1915, and they were first detected by the LIGO experiment in 2015, one hundred years later! Future particle physics experiments, gravitational wave observatories, or cosmological measurements may offer definitive tests of string theory.

How many dimensions are there in string theory? String theory predicts ten total spacetime dimensions, but we clearly live in a world with four dimensions (three space and one time)! Thankfully, it is not a problem to get from ten to four. Six of the dimensions predicted by string theory could be wrapped into a small compact shape. These compactified dimensions could then only be seen by a large, precise experiment like CERN's Large Hadron Collider .

What is string theory?

String theory is a framework that physicists use to describe how forces usually conceptualized on a gigantic level, like gravity, could affect tiny objects like electrons and protons.

In Albert Einstein 's theory of general relativity, gravity is a force that warps space-time around massive objects. It's one of the four forces that physicists use to describe nature. But unlike the other forces (electromagnetism, the strong force and the weak force), gravity is so weak that it can't be detected or observed on the scale of a particle. Instead, its effects are only noticeable and important on the scale of moons, planets, stars and galaxies.

Gravity seems not to exist as a particle of its own, either. Theorists can predict what a gravity particle should look like, but when they try to calculate what happens when two such "gravitons" smash together, they get an infinite amount of energy packed into a small space  a sure sign, according to astrophysicist Paul Sutter in a previous article for Space.com , that the math is missing something.

One possible solution, which theorists borrowed from nuclear physicists in the 1970s, is to get rid of the idea of problematic, point-like graviton particles. Strings, and only strings, can collide and rebound cleanly without implying physically impossible infinities.

String theory math required six additional dimensions (for a total of 10) visible only to the little strings , much as a powerline looks like a 1D line to birds flying far overhead but a 3D cylinder to an ant crawling on the wire. (Image credit: Shutterstock)

"A one-dimensional object  that's the thing that really tames the infinities that come up in the calculations," string theory expert Marika Taylor, a theoretical physicist at the University of Southampton in England, told Space.com.

String theory turns the page on the standard description of the universe by replacing all matter and force particles with just one element: tiny vibrating strings that twist and turn in complicated ways that, from our perspective, look like particles. A string of a particular length striking a particular note might gain the properties of a photon, another string folded and vibrating with a different frequency could play the role of a quark, and so on.

In addition to taming gravity, string theory was attractive for its potential to explain so-called fundamental constants like the mass of an electron. The next step, theorists hoped, would be to find the right way to describe the folding and movement of strings, and everything else should have followed.

But that initial simplicity turned out to come at the cost of unexpected complexity  string math didn't work in our familiar four dimensions (three of space and one of time). It needed a total of 10 dimensions , with six visible only to the perspective of the little strings, much as a powerline looks like a 1D line to birds flying far overhead but becomes a 3D cylinder to an ant crawling on the wire.

How did string theory evolve?

String theory today doesn't exactly match the string theory of the 1960s and '70s. Researchers disagree over whether, with modifications, it's still the best candidate for a "theory of everything" or whether theorists should abandon it in favor of other topics.

"By 1973'74 there were many good reasons to stop working on string theory," Schwarz wrote. Physicists' attention had turned from what felt like an unfruitful exploration of tiny undetectable "soft" strings and instead taken up more compelling evidence of hadrons, subatomic particles made up of quarks whose actions couldn't be explained by strings.

"What had been a booming enterprise involving several hundred theorists rapidly came to a grinding halt," Schwarz wrote. "Only a few diehards continued to pursue it."

Over the next decade, a few scientists continued to pursue five different versions of string theory. Over time, the researchers began to find unexpected connections between the five ideas, which Edward Witten, a theorist at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, gathered up and presented at a 1995 string theory conference at the University of Southern California. Witten argued that the five string theories each represented an approximation of a more fundamental, 11-dimensional theory as it behaved in a particular situation, much as how Einstein's space- and time-bending theories of relativity match Newton's description of objects moving at normal speeds. That was the beginning of one string theory spin-off: M-theory.

The "M" is likely inspired by higher-dimensional objects called membranes, Taylor said, but since the theory has no concrete mathematical equations, the "M" remains a placeholder with no official meaning. "It was really a parametrization of our ignorance," she said.

Attempts to find those general equations that would work in every possible situation made little progress, but the alleged existence of the fundamental theory gave theorists the understanding and confidence needed to develop mathematical techniques for the five versions of string theory and apply them in the context where each theory worked.

An artist's interpretation of string theory. (Image credit: Science Photo Library via Getty Images)

Strings are far too small to detect with any conceivable technology, but one early theoretical success was physicists' ability to describe black hole entropy in a 1996 paper published in the journal Physics Letters .

Entropy refers to the number of ways that you can arrange the parts of a system, but without being able to see into the impenetrable depths of a black hole, no one knows what type of particles might lie inside or what arrangements they can take. And yet, in the early 1970s, Stephen Hawking and others used the laws of thermodynamics and, according to an article published in 2020 in the journal Physics , quantum mechanics to calculate entropy inside a black hole, suggesting that black holes must have some sort of internal structure. What that structure might be, remained a mystery.

Most attempts to describe the black hole's makeup fall short, but the configurations of hypothetical strings does the trick. "String theory has been able to give a spot-on counting," Taylor said  an actual possible explanation of black hole interiors, not just a rough idea.

The string theory framework still faces many challenges, however: It produces an impossible number of ways to fold up the extra six dimensions. Every option seems to fit the broad features of the Standard Model that governs particle physics, with little hope of distinguishing which is the right one. Moreover, wrote astrophysicist Ethan Siegel in his blog Starts With a Bang , all of those models for managing the extra dimensions rely on an equivalence between force particles and matter particles called supersymmetry. But, just like the extra dimensions that string theory requires, we don't observe supersymmetry in our world.

On top of those objections, it's not clear that string theory  M-theory or not  can ever be compatible with our modern understanding of an expanding universe, replete with dark energy, reported Quanta Magazine in 2018.

A number of physicists, such as Peter Woit of Columbia University, view these divergences from reality as fatal flaws. "The basic problem with string theory unification research is not that progress has been slow over the past 30 years," he wrote on his blog , "but that it has been negative, with everything learned showing more clearly why the idea doesn't work."

Taylor, however, maintains that today's models are overly simplistic, and that features like cosmological expansion and a lack of supersymmetry may someday be built into future versions. Taylor expects that, while the new era of gravitational-wave astronomy may bring new tidbits of information about quantum gravity, more progress will be made by continuing to follow the math deeper into string theory.

"I have a theoretical bias," she said, "but I think the kind of breakthrough I'm describing would come from a chalkboard; from thought."

Why is string theory still important?

Regardless of whether string theory can ever be massaged into a "theory of everything," its legacy as a productive research program may be assured on mathematical merit alone.

"It can't be a dead end in the sense of what we've learned just from mathematics itself," Taylor said. "If you told me tomorrow that the universe absolutely isn't supersymmetric and doesn't have 10 [spatial] dimensions, we've still connected whole branches of mathematics" using the string theory framework.

In particular, when Witten and other researchers showed that the five-string theories were shadows of a single-parent theory, they highlighted connections called dualities, which have proven to be a major contribution to mathematics and physics.

Dualities let mathematicians translate from one branch of math to another, attacking problems untenable in one framework by using calculations done in the other, for example in geometry and number theory. Other dualities have helped overcome challenges in quantum computing, according to Taylor. "It's not going to make your next-generation iPhone," she said, "But it may make your iPhone for the 22nd century."

Whether string theory's ability to illuminate the dark web connecting different areas of math turns out to be a sign of its potential or just a lucky coincidence remains a subject of debate. Witten, speaking at the Institute for Advanced Study in 2019, acknowledged that while he no longer feels as confident as he once did that string theory will evolve into a complete physical theory, his gut tells him that the theory remains a productive field of research.

"To me, it's implausible that humans stumbled by accident on[to] such an incredible structure that sheds so much light on established physical theories, and also on so many different branches of mathematics," he told the audience. "I have confidence that the general enterprise is on the right track, but I don't claim that the argument I've given is scientifically convincing."

Additional resources

Find more in-depth history and explanations of current string theory science at WhyStringTheory.com , a website created by graduate students at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge for the "interested layperson." Or, if you'd rather go right to the source, check out this CERN Courier interview with string theory originator Gabriele Veneziano. If you're looking for a video explainer, watch these two videos entitled " Why string theory is right " and " Why string theory is wrong ," both from PBS Digital Studios.

Bibliography
Winds Blow Over the Canary Islands

Tuesday, April 30, 2019: Wispy clouds sweep across the sky over the Canary Islands in this photo by astronaut David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency. It's "easy to tell which way the wind is blowing over the Canaries," Saint-Jacques tweeted yesterday from the International Space Station.  Hanneke Weitering

A Spiral Starburst Galaxy

(Image credit: ALMA/ESO/NAOJ/NRAO/AUI/NSF/B. Saxton)

Monday, April 29, 2019: Meet Messier 100, a so-called "grand design" spiral galaxy with bright, well-defined arms that tightly curl around its galactic core. Located about 60 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation Coma Berenices, Messier 100 is a known "starburst" galaxy that serves as a stellar nursery for waves of new star formation. Astronomers used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile to capture this new view of Messier 100 as part of an astronomical census called Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS (PHANGS).  Hanneke Weitering

Queensland Floods Seen from Space

(Image credit: ESA)

Friday, April 26, 2019: Muddy water gushes into the Coral Sea near the Great Barrier Reef after torrential rains flooded Queensland, Australia earlier this year. The European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite, which monitors coastal waters, captured this image on Feb. 10, a few days after the rainfall stopped. The high-resolution view shows sediment flowing from the Burdekin River into the Coral Sea, not far from the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.  Hanneke Weitering

STS-31 Deploys the Hubble Space Telescope

(Image credit: NASA)

Thursday, April 25, 2019: Twenty-nine years ago today, astronauts on the space shuttle Discovery used the Canadarm robotic arm to deploy the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit. This view from the shuttle's cargo bay shows the iconic telescope glistening in the sun shortly after it was released.  Hanneke Weitering

Related: On This Day in Space! Hubble Space Telescope Deployed

Happy Birthday, Hubble!

(Image credit: NASA/ESA/STScI)

Wednesday, April 24, 2019: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope launched on this day 29 years ago. To celebrate the beloved telescope's anniversary, the Hubble team released this new image of the Southern Crab Nebula. This hourglass-shaped nebula is the product of interactions between stars in a binary system, where a red giant star is feeding material to its white dwarf companion.  Hanneke Weitering

A 'Comet Cat'

(Image credit: ESA/Rosetta/MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/SSO/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA)

Tuesday, April 23, 2019: From this angle, Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko looks a bit like a rocky space cat! The European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft captured this view of the comet in October 2014, about one month before it dropped off the smaller Philae lander to touch down on the comet's surface. At the time, Rosetta was 11.6 miles (18.6 kilometers) from the comet's surface. The cat's "ears" are twin peaks that surround a region known as the "C. Alexander Gate," which was named for Rosetta project scientist Claudia Alexander, who passed away in July 2015.  Hanneke Weitering

Easter Sunrise in Space

Monday, April 22, 2019: Happy Earth Day (and happy late Easter)! Here's what the Earth looked like from the International Space Station during one of the 16 sunrises the astronauts experienced on Easter Sunday (April 21). Because the orbiting laboratory orbits Earth while traveling at a speed of about 17,500 mph (28,000 km/h), the astronauts see the sun rise and set every 45 minutes as they race around the globe. NASA astronaut Anne McClain tweeted this sunrise photo from space last night.  Hanneke Weitering

The Egg Nebula

(Image credit: NASA/ESA/Hubble/STScI/AURA/W. Sparks/R. Sahai)

Friday, April 19, 2019: Here's a colorful cosmic Easter egg to start off your holiday weekend! The Egg Nebula, seen here in a view from the Hubble Space Telescope, is a "preplanetary nebula," or a cloud of dust and gas ejected from a dying star and illuminated by the star's last bit of light. Located about 3,000 light-years away from Earth in the Cygnus constellation, the faint Egg Nebula was first spotted by astronomers in the 1970s, and it was the first nebula of its kind that anyone had ever seen. It was then imaged by Hubble in the 1990s.  Hanneke Weitering

Beresheet's Last Photo

(Image credit: SpaceIL/IAI)

Thursday, April 18, 2019: This is the last photo that the Israeli moon lander named "Beresheet" took before it crashed into the surface of the moon in a failed landing attempt last week. At the time, the spacecraft was about 9 miles (15 kilometers) above the lunar surface, just a few moments before mission control lost contact with the spacecraft. Investigators believe that a "manual command" inadvertently caused Beresheet's main engine to shut down, and the lander crashed because it couldn't slow down in time to execute a soft landing.  Hanneke Weitering

It's a Giant Space Jellyfish!

(Image credit: NASA/ESA/CXC)

Wednesday, April 17, 2019: Swimming through a group of galaxies more than 200 million light-years away from Earth is the so-called "jellyfish" galaxy named ESO 137-001. This celestial jellyfish is a spiral galaxy much like the Milky Way, but it has long "tentacles" of hot gas streaming away from the galactic disk. Scientists aren't sure how the gas is being stripped away, but NASA's James Webb Space Telescope may be able to shed some light on the origin of those tentacles by studying them in unprecedented detail after its planned launch in 2021. This view combines visible-light imagery from the Hubble Space Telescope and X-ray data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory.  Hanneke Weitering

Antares at Sunrise

(Image credit: Bill Ingalls/NASA)

Tuesday, April 16, 2019: The Antares rocket that will launch the next cargo shipment to the International Space Station stands tall on Pad-0A at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia during sunrise this morning. Tomorrow (April 17) the rocket will launch the Cygnus CRS-11 cargo spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory with about 7,600 lbs. (3,450 kg) of supplies for the Expedition 59 crew.  Hanneke Weitering

Meteor Streaks Over Portuguese Castle

Monday, April 15, 2019: As star trails circle over the Castle of Noudar in Barrancos, Portugal, a stray meteor streaks across the night sky. A thick light trail from the bright planet Jupiter inches through the sky to its right, and a thinner trail from the brilliant star Arcturus dominates the upper-right edge of the image. Astrophotographer Sergio Conceicao captured 80 frames to create this time-lapse view of the night sky on Feb. 17, 2019.  Hanneke Weitering

SpaceX Aces Falcon Heavy Booster Landings

(Image credit: SpaceX)

Friday, April 12, 2019: The two side boosters on SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket stick a simultaneous upright landing at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida following the launch of the Saudi Arabian communications satellite Arabsat-6A on Thursday (April 11). A third booster, the core stage, landed shortly afterward on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. This was the second successful flight of a Falcon Heavy and the first commercial mission for the enormous rocket.  Hanneke Weitering

Twin Rockets Make 'Fireworks' Over Norway

(Image credit: Lee Wingfield/NASA)

Thursday, April 11, 2019: Two sounding rockets created this colorful light display in the night sky as they launched on a mission to study Earth's auroras. NASA's Auroral Zone Upwelling Rocket Experiment (AZURE) mission launched two Black Brant XI-A sounding rockets on April 5 from the Andya Space Center in Norway.  Hanneke Weitering

Earth Photobombs a 'Space Selfie'

(Image credit: NASA)

Wednesday, April 10, 2019: Earth's reflection looks like a beautiful "blue marble" on the visor of Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques, who took this selfie during a spacewalk outside the International Space Station on April 8.  Hanneke Weitering

Starhopper in Silhouette

Tuesday, April 9, 2019: SpaceX's Starhopper prototype is seen during testing operations at the company's launch site in Boca Chica, Texas near Brownsville, Texas in this photo released by CEO Elon Musk on April 7, 2019.

Starhopper is a prototype for SpaceX's larger Starship spacecraft and its Super Heavy booster. The prototype will make test hops to suborbital altitudes to prove technologies needed for SpaceX's 100-person Starship spacecraft for deep-space flights to the moon, Mars and beyond. -- Tariq Malik

Webb in the Clean Room

(Image credit: Chris Gunn/NASA)

Monday, April 8, 2019: Engineers prepare the optical portion of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope for integration with its rocket at a Northrop Grumman facility in Redondo Beach, California. The new space observatory is scheduled to launch in 2021 on an Ariane 5 rocket.  Hanneke Weitering

A Jovian Cyclone

(Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstadt/Sean Doran)

Friday, April 5, 2019: A cyclonic storm churns through Jupiter's northern hemisphere in this new view from NASA's Juno spacecraft. The swirling cloud formation looks a lot like a hurricane on Earth, with fluffy clouds popping up from the storm's spiral arms. Juno captured this view with its JunoCam imager on Feb. 12, when it was about 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) above Jupiter's cloud tops.  Hanneke Weitering
Canada seeks foreign help to fight spreading wildfires



Ottawa, May 17 (AFP) May 17, 2023



Canada called for foreign help Wednesday to combat wildfires burning out of control and spreading across vast swathes of the western half of the country.

The fires that have devastated the oil-producing Alberta province have in recent days spread to neighboring British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well as the Northwest Territories.

Some 2,500 firefighters from across Canada backed by 400 military personnel have been deployed across Alberta to try to tame the wildfires, which have already burned more than half a million hectares of forests and grasslands and destroyed many homes and businesses.

But they aren't enough, officials said.

"It's still a very significant and dangerous situation in Alberta," federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Blair said the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center "is reaching out to foreign countries -- the United States, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand... We're asking them to come and help us."

Smoke from the wildfires has blanketed western Canada, leading to warnings about poor air quality posing risks to health.

In Calgary, the sky had an orange hue to it as the smoke grew thicker throughout the day.

Hundreds of kilometers (miles) to the east, residents of Regina and Saskatoon in neighboring Saskatchewan province said they woke up to a thick haze and a strong smell of smoke in the air.

Across the region, almost 180 wildfires were burning -- including 48 out of control -- forcing tens of thousands to flee over the past two weeks.

Evacuation orders and alerts were lifted in some parts on Tuesday and Wednesday, including hard-hit Drayton Valley west of Edmonton in Alberta and Fort St. John in British Columbia, as those fires were subdued.

Air quality indexes in several cities, however, indicated wildfire smoke that spread from the Pacific Coast to Manitoba province still poses a "very high risk" to health.

In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.

This has brought floods and mudslides, forest fires that destroyed an entire town, and record-high summer temperatures that killed more than 500 people in 2021.

This spring's mostly hot, dry weather has resulted in what Alberta leader Danielle Smith described as an "unprecedented" crisis.

As evacuees trickled back to Drayton Valley, local fire Chief Tom Thomson urged caution.

"There are still extremely hazardous areas... There are concerns about falling trees. There are concerns about ash pits," he told a news conference.

"We do still have fire crews actively working on the fire," he added, warning people to remain vigilant.
Arab conflict zones missing out on climate funds: aid groups



Dubai, May 18 (AFP) May 18, 2023



Conflict-plagued countries in the Middle East are among the most vulnerable to climate change but are almost entirely excluded from meaningful financing to mitigate its effects, aid groups warned Thursday.

In a joint report focusing on Iraq, Syria and Yemen, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Norwegian Red Cross demanded greater assistance, saying the combined effects of climate change and armed conflict create an alarming cocktail of humanitarian woes.

The Climate Funds Update database, which collates information from 27 UN, World Bank and other multilateral funds, listed only 19 single-country projects in Iraq, Syria and Yemen that have been approved for funding as of January 2022, the report said.

It noted the total amount disbursed to date is just $20.6 million -- less than 0.5 percent of the money spent on climate projects worldwide.

"Current climate finance distributions almost entirely exclude the most fragile and unstable places," said the 56-page report.

"It's clear from a humanitarian perspective that this must change," said Anne Bergh, secretary-general of the Norwegian Red Cross.

Grappling with an eight-year civil war, the University of Notre Dame's Global Adaptation Initiative ranks Yemen as one of the region's most climate-vulnerable countries, topped only by Sudan and Afghanistan.

"In Yemen, it is not uncommon for people to flee their homes seeking safety from conflict only to then leave that new location because the land cannot be farmed" due to drought and water scarcity, the ICRC said in a statement.



- 'Terrible combination' -



The United Nations lists Iraq, still recovering from decades of conflict, as one of the five countries most impacted by some effects of climate change including drought.

Syria is also at heightened risk following more than a decade of war that has battered the country's infrastructure.

"Death, injury and destruction are the devastating and well-known effects of armed conflict," ICRC regional director Fabrizio Carboni said in a statement.

"Less well-known are the challenges residents must endure and overcome because of this terrible combination of conflict, climate change and environmental degradation."

Climate finance is expected to be a key issue at upcoming UN climate talks, which will be held in the United Arab Emirates' business hub of Dubai in November and December.

Helena de Jong, a senior adviser with the UAE's COP28 team, said she was looking into ways to accelerate climate action and finance ahead of the event into regions affected by conflict.

COP28 offers an opportunity to talk to climate finance providers, including development banks such as the World Bank as well as humanitarian bodies, she said.

"We do want to see a big step forward at COP28," potentially in the "form of a global pact that all these actors would sign up to", de Jong said.

The proposed pact "would include at least a couple of solutions" such as streamlining applications and enabling more local projects rather than relying on government-driven schemes, she added.
ChatGPT is coming to smartphones



San Francisco, May 18 (AFP) May 18, 2023



ChatGPT, the artificial intelligence bot that became a global sensation for its powers to churn out human-like content and provide answers on all subjects, is now available in the Apple app store.

OpenAI, the Microsoft-backed company behind ChatGPT, on Thursday said the release came after it heard from users that they "love using ChatGPT on the go."

By moving to smartphones, OpenAI continues its encroachment on the search market, massively dominated by Google, which has been put under pressure by the rise of generative AI.

Offered free of charge, the app will allow users to "get precise information without sifting through ads or multiple results," OpenAI said on its website, in a subtle dig at Google's search engine.

The app can also give "guidance on cooking, travel plans, or crafting thoughtful messages," the company added.

OpenAI said it was starting the rollout in the United States and will expand to additional countries in the coming weeks. ChatGPT would be available on Android devices "soon," it added.

ChatGPT's powers are already available on smartphones, through Microsoft's Bing search app, which uses technology from OpenAI.

The app store is also stocked with apps riding the wave of excitement around AI. Facebook-owner Meta last month warned of malicious software posing as ChatGPT or similar AI tools.

arp/sw



MICROSOFT
The most precious icon of Russian antiquity  The Trinity, painted by Andrei Rublev in the 15th century  is to be handed over to the Russian Orthodox Church by virtue of a decision made by President Vladimir Putin. The transfer, which has been met with the opposition of many restorers and art experts across the country, could prove fatal for this treasured work of art. In addition to The Trinity, also by Putins decree, the Orthodox Church will receive the sarcophagus of the 13th-century Prince Alexander Nevsky, an exquisite silver work crafted in the 18th century and kept in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. The Trinity, meanwhile, had hung in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow since it was confiscated by the Bolsheviks in the late 1920s before its transfer to the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, the spiritual center of the Orthodox Church.

The Russian Orthodox Church has supported Putins war in Ukraine, blessing Russian soldiers and promising them salvation if they perish on the battlefield. There is a long-standing symbiosis between the state and the religious institution, which has basically replaced the Communist Party of the USSR as an ideology, but the transfer of cultural heritage belonging to the Russian people goes much further, as it not only instrumentalizes the religious sentiments of the faithful, but seems to respond to an obscurantist concept of religion.

In a press release, the Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church stated that Putin had acted in response to numerous requests from the Orthodox faithful, although in fact there is no record of any such requests. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, for his part, claimed that he had merely asked Putin to lend him the icon for two weeks for display in Moscows Cathedral of Christ the Savior, on the occasion of the feast of the Trinity on June 4. We could only dream that this relic would be returned to the Church so that our people can pray before this sacred object, Kirill said, adding that Putin had personally made the decision to return The Trinity and Nevskys sarcophagus.

Nevsky, who was canonized as a Russian Orthodox saint in 1547, is considered the protector of Russian soldiers. During Orthodox Easter this year, Putin visited his military commanders fighting in Ukraine and presented them with a copy of an icon. Historically, during difficult times for Russia, the countrys leaders have turned to the Orthodox Church for social cohesion. In 1943, Stalin altered his religious policy and urged the Orthodox Church to mobilize spiritually in the name of the USSRs victory over Nazism.

The President of the Russian Federation does not have the authority to dispose of objects belonging to the state, included in the Russian museum collections [...] and he has never had such authority, writes Andrei Vorobev, who was head of the catalog of the Russian Federation Museum collections as well as deputy director of the Tretyakov Gallery. The expert is convinced that Putins decision has opened a Pandoras box and will necessarily be continued. According to various laws and guidelines on Russian cultural assets, the transfer of state cultural heritage to the Orthodox Church requires that the transferred property does not constitute heritage that belongs to the Russian people as a whole and that a special agreement on responsible custody is concluded under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture.

In this case, the transfer has been made on the basis of a presidential decision, which as far as is known has not been formalized as an edict, although few doubt that while it is theoretically temporary, it will be approved at all the relevant levels and the cultural institutions will submit to the presidents wish, whatever their misgivings.

Elizaveta Likhacheva, the new director of the Tretyakov Gallery, has warned of the serious risks to preservation of The Trinity, which consists of three poorly fastened together boards. The Trinity is the most important Russian contribution to Christian iconography Lijacheva told the Tass news agency, pointing out that its value lies not in the religious sense but the artistic sense.

Today the sacred significance of the monument is more important than its artistic value, said Hermitage Museum director Mikhail Piotrovsky. The Hermitage assumes that in the current geopolitical moment for the destinies of the country and social peace within it, the union of the relics with the sarcophagus [...] acquires a special meaning. In 1922, Nevskys sarcophagus was separated from his remains, which after passing through the Museum of Atheism during the Communist era are now  as relics  under the custody of the Orthodox Church.

Russian art conservators have been warning for many years that works of art cannot be removed from museums, where they are kept in specific conservation conditions with stable temperatures and humidity, and in the case of The Trinity encased in a special glass chamber. The Trinity has only left the Tretyakov Gallery twice, when it was evacuated during World War II and last year when it was ceded to the Orthodox Church for a few days. Upon its return to its protective glass chamber, the gallerys curators detected about 60 flaws in the work.

Russia is officially a secular state and the handing over of The Trinity to the Orthodox Church represents the sacrifice its artistic value in favor of its religious value, as the Church views these works above all as sacred products. Under legislation enacted in the 1990s, the state is gradually restoring part of the real estate owned by the Church before it was confiscated by the Communist regime. However, the government does not always satisfy the demands of the Church, which asks for much more than it can accommodate.

While many old churches in ruins dot the Russian landscape, the Orthodox Church is building new places of worship, often of dubious esthetic taste. In St. Petersburg, this construction drive is a response to the motto a church for every neighborhood courtyard. Moscow, for its part, has launched a building program called two hundred churches.

Both The Trinity and Nevskys sarcophagus will be preserved in accordance with the requirements of the Tretyakov and the Hermitage, according to the chairman of the Patriarchal Council of Culture and Metropolitan of Pskov, Tikhon, who is considered as Putins personal spiritual adviser.

For the communists, culture took the place of religion. Today in Russia, religion has taken the place of culture. It is idiotic, said award-winning film director Alexander Sokurov.

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The internal commotion that Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso claimed to be addressing on Wednesday with his decision to dissolve the National Assembly and call new elections did not translate into external commotion on the streets. In anticipation of protests, the National Assembly had been heavily guarded, while authorities in Quito had enacted a protocol to maintain public order in the capital. But these measures were unnecessary: the country received the news impassively.

Lasso, a right-wing former banker, dissolved Parliament to avoid an impeachment vote over corruption accusations that could have seen him kicked out of office. In disbanding the assembly, the conservative leader has given himself a more dignified way out. But not even Correismo, the political movement built after former president Rafael Correa, has kicked up a fuss, despite being Lassos biggest political adversary. The abrupt end of term  Lasso was elected in 2021 and elections were not scheduled until 2025  has given the left a chance to return to power and has spared Lasso the disgrace of impeachment. Everyone seems happy, although no one dares to admit it.

Ecuadors National Assembly  which will remain closed until the next lawmakers take office  is the institution with the lowest credibility in the country. In March, its approval rating was barely 9%. And that is partly why its dissolution has not triggered any protests, even though it is one of the pillars of Ecuadors democracy. Elections must be called within three months, and until then, Lasso will govern by decree. On Wednesday, he issued his first decree, signing a package of tax cuts.

Lassos decision to dissolve the National Assembly has allowed him to put a dignified end to what has been a difficult mandate. Violence has become a national emergency in Ecuador. Drug trafficking groups, with ties in Mexico and Colombia, have extended their power throughout the country, which is undergoing the worst wave of violence in its history. And Lassos popularity had taken a hit.

Two police officers during an operation in a neighborhood affected by violence in Esmeraldas (Ecuador), on April 28. Vicente Gaibor

The local elections in February were a major blow to Lasso. The left won in the countrys main cities and provinces, including Guayaquil, the second-largest city in Ecuador, which had been governed by the right for the past 30 years. Lasso took advantage of the local elections to launch a referendum on security, in a bid to demonstrate the popular support for his measures. But that didnt work either: more than 50% of voters opposed his proposals.

In the end, it was the specter of corruption that pushed Lasso into a corner. For months, the president had been dragged down in a scandal over graft in state-owned companies, a network allegedly led by his brother-in-law. The impeachment proceedings  backed by the Constitutional Court, the institution with the highest credibility in the country  placed him in a very tight spot.

Before dissolving parliament, Lasso had tried to negotiate with his political opponents to ensure that a majority would vote against impeaching him. But the risk of betrayal was too high: the president preferred to leave on his own terms rather than risk being impeached. On Wednesday, he used the constitutional power that allows him to dissolve the assembly and call for new elections. Its colloquially known as la muerte cruzada, or the crossed death, because it cuts short the mandate of both the assembly and the president.

When announcing the move, Lasso accused parliamentarians of having a plan to destabilize the government, democracy and the state. In other words, he tried to shift the blame to the lawmakers. The armed forces immediately offered support and promised to maintain public order in the event of social unrest, a situation that has not happened yet.

The feeling in Ecuador today is now one of a country preparing for an election, rather than one in the midst of a political crisis. In the coming days, the National Electoral Council (CNE) will announce the date of the elections, which in principle are expected by the end of August. In Ecuador, the presidential elections are held in two rounds, with one month between the first vote and the runoff. Given that many candidates tend to run, its difficult to win the 40% needed to win outright in the first round  a feat that has only been achieved by Correa, when he was elected in 2009. Indeed, Correa remains the biggest name in national politics, even though he lives in Belgium and is unable to return to Ecuador due to a conviction for corruption.

Correa on Wednesday tried to play both sides: on the one hand, he argued that Lassos claim that the National Assembly is to blame for the political crisis was a lie, and on the other, he said that dissolving it was the best way for the country to move forward. Correa  who believes his conviction is due to political persecution  is trying to find a way to return to the country. In the meantime, he continues to influence the party and its candidates.

In Ecuador, there are two forces that bring people out to the streets: Correismo and the indigenous community. While Correismo appears to be appeased by the fact elections will be held soon, given it is leading in the polls, there was doubt over how the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) would respond. It had previously said that it would call protests if Lasso invoked the crossed death, but in a statement on Wednesday, it said that it would remain alert and mobilize if Lasso abused his power to pass legislation by decree. For now, it has ruled out demonstrations.

With the military and the police surrounding the National Assembly building on Wednesday morning, there were fears that it would be the scene of social riots. But with the exception of the lawmakers who found out that they could not enter and were asked to go home sine die, no one else approached the building.

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President Joe Biden poses for photos with Pacific Island leaders including Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, center, and Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape on the North Portico of the White House in Washington, Sept. 29, 2022.

Papua New Guinea had declared next Monday a public holiday in anticipation of an historic visit by U.S. President Joe Biden and other leaders from the region.

Police were tightening security, billboards were going up, and people were getting ready to sing and dance in the streets. Expectations were high for what would have been the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to any Pacific Island nation.

I am very honored that he has fulfilled his promise to me to visit our country, Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape had written on Facebook.

Those expectations were dashed Wednesday when Biden canceled the visit to focus on debt limit talks at home.

To be sure, many of the festivities will still be going ahead. Bidens planned three-hour stopover  sandwiched between the Group of Seven meeting of wealthy democracies in Japan and a now-scrapped trip to Australia  was timed to coincide with a trip by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will still meet with Pacific Island leaders to discuss ways to better cooperate. But now that Biden plans to return home directly after the G-7 meeting, many in Papua New Guinea are feeling deflated.

Steven Ranewa, a lawyer in the capital, Port Moresby, said Bidens planned visit had been very big news across the Pacific, and he planned to watch the motorcades from the street.

Everyone was excited, he said. But now that its been canceled, its really demoralizing.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday that Biden still planned to visit Papua New Guinea and the trip was not canceled, postponed.

Were looking forward to getting that back on the books, she told reporters en route to Japan aboard Air Force One.

Its unclear if the promise would assuage any of the disappointment.

Konio Anu, who manages a lodge in the capital, said she was saddened that Biden wouldnt visit as expected, and wondered if people would still get the day off on Monday. She said she was waiting to see if one international guest who booked for Monday would cancel.

Some other leaders had their doubts as well. New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins deliberated most of the day before announcing that he would still go ahead with his trip to Papua New Guinea.

Anna Powles, a senior lecturer in international security at New Zealands Massey University, said that although Pacific leaders would understand that Biden was needed at home, the cancellation demonstrated how domestic U.S. politics can undermine the nations foreign policy agenda.

Unfortunately, it speaks to a pattern of behavior that causes many in the region to regard the U.S. as a less-than-reliable partner, Powles said.

She said the meeting had been framed as a sequel to a summit held with Pacific leaders in Washington last year, and was supposed to represent a deepening of the relationship between the U.S. and the Pacific at a time when China is increasingly exerting its influence in the region.

The U.S. has recently opened embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, and plans to open more in the region as it tries to reassert its presence in the Pacific.

Powles said the hectic schedule leading into the U.S. elections next year would make it difficult for Biden to reschedule.

Home to nearly 10 million people, Papua New Guinea is the largest Pacific Island nation by population. It is located just north of Australia on the eastern side of New Guinea island, the worlds second-largest island. The western side of the island is part of Indonesia. Papua New Guinea is relatively poor, with many people leading subsistence lives.

During a 2016 speech in Australia when he was vice president, Biden talked about his connections to the Pacific region and said that two of his uncles had fought in Papua New Guinea during World War II. He said one had been killed and the other had returned home badly injured.

But China ended up sending a top-level delegation first, after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Papua New Guinea for an APEC summit in 2018.

Ranewa, the lawyer, said that Chinas increasing influence could be seen throughout the nation, whether it was in providing services or building infrastructure. He said some welcomed Chinas help, while others did not.

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T he FTSE 100 made gains on the back of an uptick in broad trading sentiment despite a slump by telecoms giant BT.

Shares in the company tumbled by 5% on Thursday after it said it would cut up to 55,000 jobs by the end of the decade, with thousands lost in favour of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated services.

It came as the company reported a 12% decline in its pre-tax profit to 1.7 billion over the past year, and a slight dip in revenues.

The update and a similar negative reception to the latest trading update from Burberry dragged on the FTSE compared to European peers.

The FTSE 100 moved 0.25%, or 19.07 points lower to finish at 7,742.3.

The other key European markets made sharper increases as they were led by more cheery earnings updates as well as early optimism regarding the US debt ceiling talks.

The Dax rose by 1.33% and the Cac 40 increased by 0.64% at the close as a result.

The afternoon session has seen a modest retreat from the highs of the day, with US markets initially acting as a drag, before pulling higher on comments from House Republican Kevin McCarthy that a debt ceiling deal could be on the floor of the house by next week

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said: European markets got off to a strongly positive start to the day in early trading, with the Dax pushing up to its best levels this year, as it looks to retest the record highs set at the back end of 2021.

The FTSE rebound has been much more modest, with the telecoms sector once again acting as a ball and chain around the indexs progress.

The afternoon session has seen a modest retreat from the highs of the day, with US markets initially acting as a drag, before pulling higher on comments from House Republican Kevin McCarthy that a debt ceiling deal could be on the floor of the house by next week.

Meanwhile, sterling drifted against the resurgent dollar amid concerns over the UK economy and particularly the countrys housing market.

Chinese carmaker Geely into Aston Martin Lagonda" data-source="">

The pound was down 0.55% to 1.241 US dollars but up by 0.06% to 1.152 euros at market close in London.

Elsewhere in company news, British fashion group Burberry dropped in value after the group failed to improve its previous medium-term revenue targets, highlighting that it was mindful of the global economic backdrop.

But the retail business revenues grew by 10% to 3.1 billion over the year to April 1 as it benefited from the rebounding Chinese market over the latest quarter. Shares fell by 131p to 2,389p at the close of play.

Aston Martin Lagonda shareholders had more to cheer after Chinese carmaker Geely grew its stake in the business with a fresh 234 million investment.

Shares in Aston Martin climbed by 28.8p to 260p after Geely said it would buy shares from top shareholder Lawrence Stroll.

The price of oil slipped back as it came under pressure from the strength of the US dollar.

Brent crude oil decreased by 0.99% to 74.71 US dollars per barrel.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were JD Sports, up 9.65p at 172.65p, Convatec, up 10.8p at 226p, Ashtead group, up 161p at 4,960p, Standard Chartered, up 18p at 642.6p, and DCC, up 132p at 4,990p.

The biggest fallers of the session were Burberry, down 131p at 2,389p, BT, down 7.4p at 140.7p, Ocado, down 12.6p at 397.7p, National Grid, down 32.5p at 1,108p, and Centrica, down 2.95p at 116.8p.
T here has been a 50% rise in the last year in the proportion of children trying vaping, new figures show.

The data for Great Britain shows a rise in experimental vaping among 11 to 17-year-olds, from 7.7% last year to 11.6% this year.

Children were asked if they had ever tried vaping once or twice, with the proportion roughly doubling in nine years, from 5.6% in 2014 to 11.6% this year.

Asked what they used, disposable vapes appear to be the e-cigarette of choice among youngsters, while purchases of vapes are mostly made from corner shops.

It is illegal to sell vapes to under-18s but social media carries posts from teenagers showing vapes and discussing flavours such as pink lemonade, strawberry, banana and mango.

Experts have warned previously how the new generation of disposable vapes known as puff bars  which contain nicotine  have flooded the market.

This is borne out by the latest survey, with Elf Bar being the most popular brand of disposable among children who vape, followed by Lost Mary, Elux, Geek Bar and Crystal.

In 2021, current child vapers were least likely to vape disposables (7.7%) but in 2022 they became the most used (52%) and this has continued to grow to 69% in 2023.

The latest survey of 2,656 youngsters was carried out by YouGov in March and April for Action on Smoking and Health (Ash).

It will be submitted as part of the Governments call for evidence on measures to reduce the number of children accessing vaping, while ensuring e-cigarettes can still be used by adults who want to quit smoking.

The new data showed there has been no significant change since last year in the proportion of children currently smoking (4.8% in 2022 and 3.6% in 2023) or who say they currently vape (6.9% in 2022 and 7.6% in 2023).

When asked why they vape, 40% of youngsters said they just wanted to give them a try, while 19% used them because they wanted to join in with others, and 14% said they like the flavours.

Nearly three-quarters (73%) of youngsters said their first vape was given to them, two-thirds by a friend, but for children who currently vape, nearly three-quarters (72%) said they usually buy their vapes, most commonly from a corner shop (26%).

Other places where vapes are bought by children include petrol stations or petrol station shops (9.4%) and online (7.6%).

When it comes to awareness of vapes being on sale, children were most aware of promotions in shops, up from 37% last year to 53% in 2023.

Online awareness has also risen (from 24% to 32%), while awareness via buses stood at 11%.

Asked about online awareness, children who had seen vapes promoted online said they had seen them on TikTok (49%), YouTube (29%), Instagram (28%) and Snapchat (24%).

The evidence is clear, government needs to take strong action to prevent the marketing of vapes to children

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash, said: We need to stem the tide of child vape experimentation and the Governments investment in a crackdown on illegal underage sales of vapes is a vital first step.

But enforcement on its own wont do the trick without tougher regulation to address the child-friendly promotion of these cheap and attractive products.

The Ash youth survey demonstrates the rapid growth of instore promotion of vapes, using brightly coloured pack displays, reminiscent of cigarette displays from yesteryear.

The evidence is clear, government needs to take strong action to prevent the marketing of vapes to children.

Geoff Worsley, a father from Abergele, North Wales, whose change.org petition Stop Children Vaping  More Regulation Now has more than 100,000 signatures, said: Parents like me up and down the country are calling on government to act to protect our children from vaping as well as smoking.

Regulations are needed to prevent vapes being openly sold in prominent positions within shops, in brightly coloured packaging and sweet names attractive to kids

More funding for enforcement is a good first step but its not enough. Vaping is safer and better for smokers than smoking, but it shouldnt be promoted to children.

Regulations are needed to prevent vapes being openly sold in prominent positions within shops, in brightly coloured packaging and sweet names attractive to kids.

We need tougher regulation to stop our children vaping and we need it now.

Ash said, however, that fears vaping is leading to a new generation addicted to nicotine are not justified by the evidence to date.

It said the data showed that most of the 20.5% of young people who have ever vaped have only vaped once or twice, or used to vape, or vape less than once a week.

Some 1.8% of those polled said they vape between daily and weekly and 2% every day.

Most (63%) of those who have tried vaping once or twice have never smoked, the data also showed. Yet most (71%) of current vapers have tried smoking.

Ann McNeill, professor of tobacco addictions at Kings College London, said the data showed that too many smoking adults and children believe vaping is more than or equally harmful as smoking.

These misperceptions are likely to encourage children to believe that they might as well smoke as vape, and discourage adults who smoke but have never vaped from taking up the Governments swap to stop offer (of taking up vapes instead of cigarettes), she said.

A well-funded communications campaign is needed to address these growing misperceptions.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman said: Its already illegal to sell vapes to children and we are exploring further ways to tackle youth vaping through our newly launched call for evidence, which will look at the appearance and characteristics of vapes, the marketing and promotion of vapes, and the role of social media.

We also recently announced a new illicit vapes enforcement squad  backed by 3 million  to remove illegal products from shelves and stop them from crossing our borders.

Liberal Democrat health spokeswoman Daisy Cooper said: Vapes are a great aid to quitting smoking but efforts to market them to children are cynical and damaging to young people.

We need tougher regulation on vapes, such as age warnings on packets, an end to toy-like advertising targeted at children, and a ban on the sale of single use vapes and free samples.
S ir Keir Starmer views the current Brexit deal as a starting point with gaps that we need to fill, a Labour frontbencher has said.

Shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon insisted the Opposition leader had not suggested he would rip up the agreement when he said on Wednesday the UK needed a better deal with Brussels.

Labour would seek to reduce red tape and allow us to trade on a competitive basis but a return to free movement remains off the table, Mr McMahon said.

Asked whether the party leader had meant he would rip up the agreement and start again with negotiations, Mr McMahon said: He certainly hasnt said that. Hes been clear that the agreement is a framework and a starting point but its not the end because there are naturally gaps that we need to fill.

Sir Keir told the British Chambers of Commerce conference that Britain needed a closer trading relationship with the EU but ruled out a push to rejoin the bloc under a Labour government.

Speaking on the BBC, Mr McMahon said: We do need to improve that deal. Of course we want a closer trading relationship, we absolutely do. We want to ensure that Vauxhall and many others not just survive in this country but thrive.

Because there are jobs bound up, there are families watching this morning either employed by Vauxhall or a similar place who are deeply worried about what this means.

So yes we need a better Brexit deal. We will make Brexit work. That doesnt mean reversing the decision and going back into the EU but the deal weve got, it was said to be oven-ready, it wasnt even half-baked.

It comes as the UK lobbies Brussels over a Brexit trade deal deadline which could pose an existential threat to the British automotive industry, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch and UK officials have raised the issue with counterparts in Brussels ahead of a looming cliff edge when new rules covering electric vehicles (EVs) come into effect at the start of 2024.

Bosses at Vauxhalls parent company Stellantis told MPs it will be unable to keep a commitment to make EVs in the UK without changes to the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA) with the EU.

Under the TCA, from next year 45% of an EVs value should originate in the UK or EU to qualify for tariff-free trade.

Without meeting the requirements, cars manufactured in the UK would face a 10% tariff if sold in the EU  and vice versa  rendering them uncompetitive.

A Downing Street spokesman said we hope to come to a resolution with the EU on this but would not confirm whether talks were aimed at pushing back the deadline.
B anknote printer De La Rue has appointed seasoned turnaround specialist Chris Whiley as its new chair, after its share price fell by 60% in the last six months.

Whiley is currently chair of Mothercare, leading the retailer through the collapse of its UK business and turning it into a brand focused on overseas markets.

He was also chair of funeral director Dignity from 2019 until he was ousted in a shareholder revolt in 2021. He joined the business after its share price had fallen by more than 80% in the space of just over 18 months.

De La Rue, which has seen shares tumble after repeated profit warnings in the past year, noted that Whiley is capable of operating in all operational, financial or regulatory circumstances.

I am keen to lend my proven experience and knowledge to assist management as it strives to optimise the underlying intrinsic value of the business, Whiley said.

Margaret Rice-Jones, Senior Independent Director of De La Rue, said: I am pleased to welcome Clive to the Board of De La Rue. He brings a wealth of experience in listed companies operating in many different countries and environments. He is a highly respected business leader with a proven track record and ideally suited to support the executive team in delivering future growth.

The 202-year-old banknote printer said last month that demand for banknotes has been at the lowest levels for over 20 years. Its shares once traded at 1,270p, and they were still worth more than 400p before it lost the contract to print the post-Brexit blue passport to a Franco-Dutch company Gemalto.

Today, shares are at 41.0p, after a rise of 1.4p following Whileys appointment.
E ASYJET will soar back to profits this year as holiday makers prioritise summer sun over almost all other purchases outside of household bills.

Research by the budget airline shows that travel is regarded as more important for Brits still getting over the effects of the pandemic than takeaways, meals out or clothes.

Easyjet ran up losses of around 2 billion in the Covid affected years but, a rights issue of 1.2 billion helped it get through.

Now chief executive Johan Lundgren insists the business is back on the front foot. He is opening a new aircraft base at Birmingham Airport, the first such opening since lockdown.

Lundgren said: easyJets optimised network combined with the strong demand seen for flights and holidays, enhanced revenue capabilities and operational resilience, means we enter the summer with confidence.

The holiday arm will make full-year profits of 80 million. It will move into the Swiss market this summer as part of a wider European expansion.

Analysts say the CEO has more to do. Emma Carr at Gowling WLG, said:

"easyJet is currently navigating through economic turbulence, and despite introducing new cost control measures and adding additional routes to its offering, more is needed to strengthen its margins. Lundgren needs to focus on decarbonising the airlines fleet ahead of the net zero 2050 target, something which the sector as a whole is falling behind on compared to others.

In the six months to March the company made another loss, this time of 411 million. Sales rose from 1.5 billion to 2.7 billion.

Sophie Lund-Yates at Hargreaves Lansdown said: easyJet is enjoying the spoils that come with a Covid-restriction-free summer. Trips abroad are so important to the groups core customers, easyJets been able to pump up its ticket prices and passengers are still pouring on board.

The new Birmingham base will create around 100 direct jobs for pilots and crew, and supporting around 1,200 jobs in total.

EasyJet already operates flights to and from the airport, which recent analysis found was the worst in the UK for delays to departing flights in 2021 and 2022.
A nnual profits at the distributor of the UKs electricity neared 5 billion today, and its boss said measures used to keep the lights on this winter by cutting demand were a glimpse of the future as the UK drops fossil fuels.

National Grids overall operating profit for 2023 hit 4.8 billion, up 12%, with profits from its core electricity distribution business surging by almost two-fifths to 1.2 billion.

It raised investment to a record 7.7 billion, up 15%, and called for more agile regulation to speed up getting green power sources connected to the network .

John Pettigrew, its CEO, told The Standard the numbers came at a pivotal moment in the decarbonisation journey, adding: I think everyone is starting to recognise the scale of the transformation that is going to be required ... we need a much more agile regulatory framework.

He also said the UK got a hint of what the future looks like in the winter, with domestic customers offering demand reduction  and being paid for it.

The FTSE 100 company has faced pressure to get green power projects connected to the grid more quickly, but Pettigrew says fundamental reform is required and emphasised his call for rule changes on connecting green energy projects to the network.

He backed a more selective approach to how new power projects are connected to the grid, saying the current first-come-first-served approach was out of date.

I think everyone is starting to recognise the scale of the transformation that is going to be required ... we need a much more agile regulatory framework, Pettigrew told The Standard.

John Pettigrew (right) is CEO of the National Grid (Dominic Lipinski/PA) / PA Archive

He pointed out that at the moment, National Grid can only make investments when it has a contract drawn up with a customer, rather than entering into anticipatory agreements, which would speed up energy transition.

Were seeing two-to-three times more people wanting to connect today than we were three or four years ago. There is actually there is about two-to-three times more connection agreements today than we need to meet the targets.

The problem is that the regulatory framework is first-come-first-served, which means that you can have a connection agreement that is not ready in front of the queue, holding up someone who is ready to go.

Pettigrew suggested there should be an amnesty to incentivise companies to leave the queue if they are not ready to connect.

We think fundamental reform is needed to support the energy transition, he said. The challenge ahead is significant in terms of the infrastructure that needs to be built.

Nonetheless, progress has been made. On January 4 this year, 87% of the electricity produced in the UK came from zero carbon sources, which Pettigrew called a huge number.
R oyal Mail made a loss of 1 billion in the year to the end of March 2023 after the postal service was hit by a wave of strikes and slump in demand for parcel deliveries.

Royal Mail owner International Distribution Services said the loss was due to industrial action, inability to deliver the in-year benefits of planned productivity improvements, lower test kit volumes and a weaker online retail market.

The firm said it had completed a 10,000 reduction in its staff numbers by the end of March, and last month reached a deal with the Communication Workers Union that would see a 10% pay rise and profit share scheme for remaining staff.

Royal Mail bosses said: We apologise to everyone for not delivering a quality of service to the standard we expect. We failed on some aspects last year and we apologise for that. Its obviously been a difficult year for Royal Mail, and our customers and shareholders.

IDS chair Keith Williams said: I said before that we had reached a crossroads at Royal Mail. Now that we have a negotiators agreement with CWU that will shortly go out to ballot, and thanks to the good progress made on our five-point plan to stabilise Royal Mail, our destination is coming into sight.

IDS made an overall operating loss of 748 million for the year, after the Royal Mail loss was offset by a 296 million profit in its parcel business, GLS.

The 1 billion loss by Royal Mail compares to a 250 million profit it made in the previous year. The bulk of the loss relates to an impairment charge of 539 million for the value of Royal Mail which it said was given the current risk backdrop and ongoing industrial dispute.

It follows an 18-day spate of strikes by postal workers, including during the crucial Christmas trading season, which the firm said caused shoppers to shop in-person rather than online and retailers to favour other parcel carriers instead of Royal Mail.

Demand for tracked returns parcels fell 21% year-on-year, while total parcel revenue was down 18.5% to 3.9 billion. Letter revenue fell 5.7% to 3.5 billion.

The firm also suffered a cyber-attack which is believed to have cost it at least 20 million to deal with, and earlier this week became the subject of an Ofcom investigation into failing to meet its annual delivery targets. Last week, CEO Simon Thompson said he would quit his role and leave the company in October.

If it does not provide a satisfactory explanation and we determine that Royal Mail has failed to comply with its obligations, we may consider whether to impose a financial penalty, Ofcom said.

IDS shares fell 2.3% to 217p.

Matt Britzman, Equity Analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: Its been difficult to find too much to get excited about at IDS recently, as the owner of Royal Mail has felt the hefty impact of union battles over the past year or so. Results show the full extent of the damage caused by 18 days of strikes alongside a weaker macro environment, with revenue at Royal Mail down over 1bn.

The silver lining is that performance wasnt quite as bad as analysts had forecast, and an agreement is now in place with the union on pay; the final hurdle is a vote from union members, which should end the lingering threat of further strike action. That means IDS can get back to concentrating on hiring a new CEO.
A competition to find future female tech stars has awarded its latest set of prizes for ideas on how technology can be used to improve schools and education.

Girls aged 16-18 from across England were invited to submit their ideas as part of the TechGirl 2023 competition, its second annual award series. They were encouraged to think critically about their own school experience to identify an important challenge facing the education system, and to think creatively about how technology can be used to solve that problem.

The competition, which was run by business community HotTopics, was won by ten girls, who will receive ongoing mentorship from industry leaders and were presented with an award at a ceremony in London on Tuesday.

Ideas included the use of technologies like holograms to make complex diagrams more accessible, pods designed specifically for neuro-divergent children, and advancements in mental health and sustainability technologies demonstrate the vast potential of the tech industry in improving education outcomes.

Matilda, one of the prize-winners, came up with the idea for headphones which use voice recognition to identify and filter the voice of the teacher in a classrom, for those with autism and ADHD who suffer from auditory hypersensitivity.

Another winner, neha Adapala, collected an award for her idea of using brain computing technology to measure students attention spans in order to adapt learning styles and techniques to suit their needs.

It feels great, she said. With this win I feel more confident to be able to go out in the world and change it for the better with my interest in technology.

Wayne Ellis, Marketing Director at Hot Topic, said: Its truly inspiring to see the creativity and forward-thinking vision represented by this years entries.

The TechGirl award is incredibly important. by giving winners access to women tech leaders who have paved the way, you are not only celebrating and rewarding innovation, but also promoting mentorship, empowerment, and inclusivity. This can certainly help break down barriers and inspire more women to pursue and thrive in tech leadership roles.

Hot Topic

Full list of tech girl winners 2023
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Scientists say theres now a 66 per cent chance the 2015 Paris agreements 1.5C global warming threshold will be breached within the next four years.

In this episode of The Leader podcast, we examine how London could be impacted by the devastating effects of climate change unless urgent action is taken by government, business and the people.

Youve seen those often angry confrontations between drivers and Just Stop Oil protesters at flashpoints throughout the capital - but while we may not agree with their means, theyre undoubtedly shining a light on the challenges we face.

Breaching 1.5C annually for a decade or more would see more intense heatwaves, even worse than Londons recent baking summers, and heightened pollution.

To find out what this means for Londoners and our dense urban infrastructure - plus how to do your bit, were joined by Laurie Laybourn, author of Planet on Fire: A Manifesto for the Age of Environmental Breakdown.

Listen above, and find us on your Spotify Daily Drive or wherever you stream your podcasts.
KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 16:29 | All, G7, Japan

Japan's ruling bloc on Thursday submitted a bill to parliament aimed at introducing legislation to promote a better understanding of the LGBT community, a day before the country hosts the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, apparently wants to showcase progress on the issue to his G-7 peers, with the country under mounting pressure to do more to protect the rights of the community. Japan has been lagging behind other G-7 members on the issue.

The LDP seeks to pass the bill by the end of the ongoing Diet session through June 21, Yoshitaka Shindo, executive acting chairman of the party's Policy Research Council, told reporters after its submission.

Kishida's stance on sexual minorities has come under fresh scrutiny since his then close aide told reporters in February that he would "not want to live next door" to an LGBT couple and that he does "not even want to look at" LGBT people. The aide was swiftly sacked.

The submission by the LDP and junior coalition partner Komeito follows months of deliberations over its phrasing, with deep-rooted opposition among conservative LDP members who say they cherish traditional family values, such as the role of women in giving birth and raising children.

In consideration of some LDP lawmakers who are cautious of the legislation, expressions in the bill have been watered down from a version agreed upon with opposition parties in May 2021. The LDP eventually did not submit that bill due to persistent opposition within the party.

Among the revisions, the bill now says "there should not be unfair discrimination" instead of "discrimination is unacceptable."

While the LDP is seeking to secure support for the bill from other parties, the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has said it has been "changed for the worse."

Japan is the only G-7 country not to have instituted laws prohibiting discrimination against sexual minorities and legalizing same-sex marriage or civil unions.

A survey by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development shows Japan ranked 34th out of 35 countries in terms of LGBT inclusion legislation in 2019, down from 22nd in 1999.

In a recent video compilation of messages, 15 diplomatic missions in Japan, including those of the United States, Europe and Australia, called on the Japanese government to take concrete action toward protecting LGBT rights ahead of the G-7 summit.

Related coverage:

Japan gov't spokesman mum on diplomats' call for LGBT rights

15 diplomatic missions call on Japan to protect LGBT rights in video

G-7 summit statement to show resolve to protect LGBT rights: sources
I was privileged to attend the British Book Awards on Monday. There were buckets of champagne and wine, and a three-course meal.

But the highlight of the evening was not the food and drink, the literary chat, the gossip. It was Sir Salman Rushdie appearing on the video screen, his right eye was covered by darkened glasses. His voice sounded croaky and fatigued.

In August last year Rushdie was attacked in Chautauqua, New York, by a young man. It was a gruesome reminder of the death sentence (fatwa) imposed on him by the savage theocracy of Iran in February 1989 for the alleged crime of writing a novel: The Satanic Verses. I was moved by his resilience.

But what was striking about Rushdies acceptance speech  for the Freedom to Publish award, sponsored by Index on Censorship  was that he didnt speak about his experience of being continually threatened with murder over 30 years. Nor did he mention those who are imprisoned or killed for writing a book or making a speech. His message was not about China, Russia, North Korea or Saudi Arabia. It was about the liberal West, and what he sees as the growing threats against freedom of expression within nations that claim to cherish this principle.

The freedom to publish, Rushdie said, is also the freedom to read. And the ability to write what you want. But this conviction is now being weakened: We live in a moment, I think, at which freedom of expression and freedom to publish has not in my lifetime been under such threat in the countries of the West.

This is not a problem thats confined to the political Right or Left. Rushdie mentioned the extraordinary attack on libraries and books for children in schools in the US. A recent report by PEN America has found that book bans are rapidly rising in the US.

Across the country, novels by distinguished authors such as Toni Morrison and Margaret Atwood have been banned in schools and libraries. Rushdie argued that this constitutes an attack on the ideas of libraries themselves.

But he also described as alarming the trend where publishers bowdlerise the work of such people as Roald Dahl and Ian Fleming. This is where editors are trying to update novels by dead authors by removing or replacing offensive words or phrases. Rushdie argued that the idea that James Bond could be made politically correct is almost comical.

Rushdie viscerally understands the severe end of censorship; he has been nearly murdered for writing a book. But he is also rightly cognisant of, and opposed to, the milder threats. Because he recognises that the two ends are interlinked: once we accept that some books should not be allowed to be published, or read, or should have their content suppressed or bowdlerised in any other way, we accept the logic of those who think freely producing such books is a crime worthy of prison or death.

Kate Winslets swipe at social media

After winning the Bafta TV award for best leading actress last Sunday, Kate Winslet tearfully dedicated her trophy to her daughter, Mia. Winslet described the show she won it for, I Am Ruth, as one made for parents who still wish

they can communicate with their teenagers but who no longer can, and for young people who have become addicted to social media and its darker side.

Winslet is right to make the link between social media use and the deteriorating mental health of young people. As John Burn-Murdoch in the Financial Times points out, the number of teenagers who report feelings of depression, anxiety and other mental health problems has soared since 2010.

Studies show that the more time teens spend on social media, Burn-Murdoch writes, the worse their mental health is.

The decline has been sharpest for teenage girls. Parents: get your kids off the social media apps.
W ith characteristic guile and misdirection, Ukraine appears to be executing the opening stages of its long-awaited summer offensive. The shaping operations have been going on for more than a week around Bakhmut.

Seemingly cut off and surrounded a fortnight ago, the Ukrainians now appear to have established corridors for resupply and rescuing the wounded. Beyond the town they claim to have retaken several square kilometres.

The battle has been supervised by Ukraines ground force commander, Colonel General Olesksandr Syrsky.

The offensive is likely to be a series of rolling battles as Ukraines refreshed brigades push and probe with punch and counter-punch at any weak points they can find along the nearly thousand kilometres of Russias frontline across southern Ukraine. It will be a mixture of conventional and improvised moves, with a growing element of guerrilla and sabotage actions.

We shouldnt get too focused on the tactical details, a senior military source tells me. There will be setbacks and reversals but we need to focus on the long term. The rolling battles on the ground will be matched with diplomatic and political moves. We have just seen the opening of President Zelenskys summer diplomatic offensive with the series of visits to Berlin, Paris, Rome and London.

These focused on the call for more arms, more long-term backing for stabilising and then reconstructing the Ukraine economy, and exploring paths to peace .

It was a direct appeal to the leaders of Europe, including Britain, to stick with Ukraine. A lot of the new weapons promised by Rishi Sunak wont arrive for months. It is not yet clear precisely what air defence missiles and attack drones are to be sent.

General Syrskys ground commanders will have to husband their resources. Only three or four of the new armoured brigades can be in battle at any one time  as many or more have to be held in reserve. There is still a problem with air cover, particularly in close fighter cover.

This has brought a change in posture by the Europeans over the supply of strike aircraft. The group now prepared to provide Nato F-16 fighters is nicknamed the Flight Club among the allies. The Dutch are preparing to send up to 18 of their surplus F-16s while Britain is less decisive, offering some training, but awaiting Washingtons final decision on providing F-16s.

President Macron has said France will also train pilots, while Norwegian veterans are suggesting they should send all 57 of Norways recently retired F-16s. The American-designed F-16 Fighting Falcon has been built for Europe with a consortium of Dutch, Norwegian, Belgian and Danish companies. Though reluctant to sanction the forwarding of former US Air Force planes, Joe Biden would find it hard to veto Europeans sending their F-16s.

The aim is to defeat Russian forces psychologically as much as physically. Ukraine doesnt have the means to retake the entire swathe of the country now occupied by Russian forces. The aim must be to show Moscow that it is an unwinnable war. This will require innovative tactics and surprise guerrilla actions, sudden attacks on Crimea, insurgent operations and ambush within the occupied zone, as we are seeing already round Melitopol.

This now leaves Vladimir Putin with tricky choices. For once it appears that time isnt on his side. His bleak speech on Victory Day in Red Square on May 9 had one clear message  that his personal future, and that of his regime very likely, depends on the war and garnering some semblance of a win from it. Yet his forces in southern Ukraine are exhausted, bewildered, undernourished and badly led. He cannot afford to call up another 300,000-strong army. That would likely require a general mobilisation and martial law, a very dicey proposition.

Increasingly, Russia is relying on irregular patriot groups and company militias, now all singing from the Putin hymn sheet. Guerilla and sabotage attacks inside Russia are on the rise.

This means Europes allies must consolidate their efforts to supply and support Kyiv. This is now a core security interest. The new UK Defence Command Paper, due in a month, must recognise that stability and security in the Europe-Atlantic region is vital. And takes priority over fantasies about global power.
S lowthai has been removed from both Glastonbury and Reading and Leeds festival line-ups following two charges of rape.

The Grammy-nominated rapper, whose real name is Tyron Frampton, was charged with two counts of rape earlier this week, and appeared at Oxford Magistrates Court via video-link yesterday.

Slowthai spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address.

The 28-year-old was set to perform at this years Glastonbury Festival, Parklife and Reading and Leeds Festival, but has been removed from the bill of both festivals.

Neither Glastonbury nor Reading and Leeds have made any official announcements about the changes to their line-ups. Slowthai has yet to comment on the line-up changes.

The rapper had previously appeared in the Glastonbury line-up poster below Royal Blood and next to Sparks but has since disappeared from the bill, with the festival putting Sparks in the space Slowthai occupied. He is also no longer listed on Glastonburys website.

Slowthai was scheduled to perform at Reading and Leeds Festival on the Main Stage West in Reading on Saturday August 26 and Sunday August 27 in Leeds. He has since disappeared from the line-up on the festivals website.

He is still listed as performing at Wembley Arena this summer, supporting Blur at the opening of their string of Wembley Stadium shows.

Following his court appearance, Slowthai was bailed and is due to appear before Oxford Crown Court next month.

The rapper is yet to enter a plea, but posted a statement on his social media accounts denying any wrongdoing. He said in his statement: I categorically deny the charges. I am innocent and I am confident that my name will be cleared.

I ask that my supporters dont comment about this situation and respect the process and privacy of my family during this time.

Slowthai rose to fame with his 2019 debut album Nothing Great About Britain, and would go on to receive a Mercury Prize nomination. His song My High, a collaboration with Disclosure and Amine, was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2021, and his album Tyron topped the UK charts the same year.

His most recent album UGLY, which came out earlier this year, was met with critical acclaim and reached number two in the UK Albums Chart, with many lauding it as his strongest project yet. The rapper promoted his latest project with a pub tour in various locations across the UK, with tickets costing 1.
B ritish star Sting has said musicians need to be ready for the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), describing it as an interesting time for copyrights.

The Police star is set to become the 23rd musician to be honoured with a fellowship from the Ivors Academy, the organisations highest honour, during a ceremony at Grosvenor House in London on Thursday.

The 71-year-old said he loves the Ivors Academy and was delighted to be granted this wonderful honour.

He told the PA news agency on the red carpet: The last time I was here I got a lifetime achievement award which I thought was a bit premature, but the fellowship was obviously beyond lifetime and it sounds a bit like Lord Of The Rings, but I think there are more duties attached to a fellowship.

The Ivors protect the rights of songwriters  thats one of the things they do, not just established songwriters like me, but up-and-coming songwriters.

It is also a major export of Britain, our songwriting, so they need protecting, so I am very proud to be part of this organisation.

Sting, who will perform the classic track Message In A Bottle at the event, also spoke about challenges facing the music industry.

It is a very interesting time in terms of copyright, he said, referencing Ed Sheerans recent US copyright lawsuit win over his song Thinking Out Loud.

I wouldnt be complacent about artificial machine intelligence being able to write music, but the building blocks of music are human capital, so theyre ours and they dont belong to a machine.

So we have to be vigilant of whats happening, it could get very, very strange so we need to be ready.

He added: Apparently I am the first person to perform at these events so I hope I dont mess it up.

Meanwhile Charli XCX, who is nominated for the visionary award at the Ivors, said I dont really care about the rise of AI in the industry.

The 30-year-old said: Maybe that is a very uneducated answer, but I havent delved super deep into it. I heard an AI-generated song, it was a collaboration between me and Ava Max and it slapped.

Personally Im not really bothered, Im into the idea of me just being global so have robots make songs I dont care.

Fontaines DC guitarist Carlos OConnell, whose band is nominated for best album, said AI has been coming for a long time but he is optimistic about the future.

He told PA: I think this kind of stuff will point out the bullshit. Youll see something that gets into the charts generated by a computer and youll realise that everything in the charts is absolute bullshit, and its only the special stuff that doesnt get there because its human, so Im happy to see a load of commercial producers lose their jobs.

Scottish composer Patrick Doyle, known for creating the music to films such as Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, Thor and Murder On The Orient Express, also spoke about AI, advising musicians to keep adapting.

The 70-year-old told PA: It is a very fast-changing world. All I can advise is people keep their nose to the grindstone and ear to the ground, just to be aware of what is going on.

I remember when computers came along, I was terrified of them, but once I got over the terror of them and with the help of younger people, it helped.

He is nominated for best original film score at the Ivors for Sir Kenneth Branaghs Death On The Nile.

Doyle said: I won the award right at the beginning of my career, and this is also my 70th year. Its another highlight of my career. Its been a wonderful year for me, I did the Coronation March  Im still coming down from that helium balloon.

The Oscar-nominated composer was commissioned for the Kings Coronation March, which was among 12 new compositions for the ceremony which saw Charles and the Camilla crowned at Westminster Abbey earlier this month.

Doyle said: I was very fortune to be in the Quire area, literally I could almost touch him. It was very surreal, a huge honour, an unbelievable privilege.

I got a lovely email this morning from Sir Billy Connolly, whos an old friend of mine  we worked together on a film called Brave  and he was so generous and so nice, he signed his email from my Aye-phone.

Ive known King Charles throughout my career as a professional friend and hes been very supportive, so to receive that call was unbelievable.

Meanwhile Raye, who is nominated for best contemporary song and will perform her hit Escapism at the event, said she is grateful to be shortlisted.

The 25-year-old told PA: It is so validating, to be an independent artist and releasing music that I love and believe in and to be recognised with an Ivors nomination, it feels different and so much sweeter than anything I have ever been recognised for. I am very happy.
U S rapper and actor Chris Ludacris Bridges said he would continue to shatter stereotypes as he was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Ludacris thanked his fans, family and the people who showed up for me, that had inspired his hard work and dedication throughout his career.

As a recording artist, he has sold more than 24 million albums worldwide, with tracks including Stand Up, Get Back, Southern Hospitality, Number One Spot, Money Maker and My Chick Bad.

He later transitioned to the big screen, starring in the blockbuster franchise Fast And Furious.

His character of Tej was first introduced in 2003s 2 Fast 2 Furious, and Ludacris reprises the role for the seventh time in Fast X  due for worldwide release on May 20.

Ludacris was joined at the ceremony in Los Angeles on Thursday by his Fast and Furious co star Vin Diesel, as well as rapper LL Cool J, both of whom gave remarks.

In his own remarks, Ludacris thanked his village for helping him go from a young man with a dream to being honoured on the Walk of Fame.

No matter what people say I cant do, I will continue to shatter those stereotypes and show people its possible in order to make everyone who got me here proud, he said.

Because you all inspire my hard work and dedication to receive this star today. Im motivated by legacy and history.

He continued: This means that Ive made my mark my own personal history being documented. To be amongst these names is just amazing to me.

I went from being a young man with a dream to having my name cemented in one of the most visited places on Earth.

People walk this block and their eyes are glued to the ground.

If kids and parents or anyone walking up and down the street sees my name and the pavement and it ignites just the smallest spark of creativity, drive and ambition in any of these people, it will continue to just mean the world to me and I know its all worth it.

So getting a star as a statement, but be clear about this statement, the even bigger statement to me is that we are all interconnected.

And I am a culmination of the people who showed up for me today believing in me and pushing me to inspire me. Im a reflection of you.

So yall be clapping for me all day Im gonna need yall to give yourselves a round of applause. Because Im nothing without you.

Ludacris was also surprised by his daughter who had previously told him she would not be in Los Angeles to attend the event.

Karma Bridges described her father as my rock, my hero and the perfect example of a father.

Words cant describe how much being here for you today means to me. If practice what you preach was a person, it would be you, she said.

You are a go-getter, you are a natural leader, you are a risk taker, you are a multitasker, you are a king and you are a perfect example of a father.

After years of being the one surprising me, it is my honour to have the tables be turned.

Diesel also praised Ludacris curiosity, loyalty and gratitude and said the he would not be here if not for the rapper.

Weve never seen anybody dominate the music world and then come and dominate cinema while being entrepreneurial in the way that he is, he said.

I come from a place that the way you show love to somebody and say I would die for you. What Chris has brought in is another variation on that term which is I will live for you.

So I will live for you my brother, always, and I love you from the bottom of my heart.

Ludacris star is the 2,756th on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and is awarded in the category of Motion Pictures

It is located at 6426 Hollywood Boulevard.
Review at a glance









F or anyone who grew up in the Seventies and Eighties, Rolf Harris: Hiding In Plain Sight is a deeply uncomfortable watch. Harris, a social hypnotist, fooled the public, police and even the Royal family into believing (in his own words) he was the same jovial person at the stage door as he was on TV.

Within minutes of this two-part documentary, we learn the Australian-born entertainer and Jimmy Savile both ruthlessly used celebrity power to groom young women and girls in full view, often on shows together.

At its peak, Saviles show Jimll Fix It attracted 15 million viewers. Children like me eagerly wrote to BBC Television Centre in Wood Lane (the address is still imprinted in my mind) begging for our dreams to come true. But for many who received replies, it turned into the stuff of nightmares.

We see Savile place his hand on the shoulder of one blonde schoolgirl called Lynn, who submitted a letter requesting to watch Harris paint in 1976. She looks no older than 12. He says to Harris: Do you think I may leave her in your charge? The artist replies, Safely leave her in my capable hands.

Once the drawing is complete, Savile reappears. Harris tells his co-host, She is anxious to run away. Savile then jokes, She is, Ive got fast hold of her, while Harris adds sternly, You stay here and enjoy it, girl. Viewed in 2023, knowing what we now know, the footage and the words are deeply chilling.

Karen Gardner applied to be on Harriss Star Games show after a notice was put up at her Cambridge school in 1978. She describes here how he told her she was irresistible, adding, I was 16, he was 48. He was 10 years older than my dad. For the first couple of hours, he was lovely. I didnt see any signs of what was to come at all. Nothing.

Then, she says, within 35 minutes, Harris sexually abused her three times. It was horrible, she says. Your blood turns to concrete. I cannot explain the triumph in his eyes. You knew hed won and youd lost but you hadnt a chance to defend yourself.

Rolf Harris police mugshot /

Like many others, Gardner suspected if she told her parents or the police, she wouldnt be believed. Her fears were well-founded. In 1985, Harris appeared on the BBC Breakfast Time sofa to launch his Kids Can Say No guide, a video accompanying it gave schoolchildren advice on rejecting inappropriate advances.

Harris is seen larking around and singing with uniformed police officers and children in multi-coloured sweaters, days before attending a global conference on abuse. Just because hes a grown-up, does not mean you have to do what he says, instructs Harris, without a hint of irony.

Setting himself up as a person who could be trusted, he tells children to say firmly to perverts: Go away, please! Harris adds, A lot of cases youll find that adults dont believe you. Oh, dont be so stupid or How dare you tell such lies? These problems are a lot more widespread than anybody believes. A lot of it has been pushed under the carpet.

Harris knew he was different to Savile. Five decades of being the nations avuncular and loveable uncle, and a CBE (of which he was later stripped) for painting the Queens 80th birthday portrait, solidified his undeserved position as a safe pair of hands we allowed into our front rooms each weekend.

Harris, now 93, was convicted of 12 indecent assaults in June 2014 under the Metropolitan Polices Operation Yewtree, an investigation launched after Saviles death.

These included one on an eight-year-old autograph hunter, two on girls in their early teens, and a catalogue of abuse against a friend of his daughter over the course of 16 years.

Hindsight is wonderful thing. But, as I remember at the time, the word paedophile didnt exist in common parlance like it does today. According to my parents, there were just men you werent allowed to be alone with. Harris wasnt like that for the viewing public  he was the sort youd allow to look after your children.

This punchy film doesnt reveal much about Harris that isnt now painfully known: its more of a recording of events. Its spread over two hour-long episodes, and at the end of first theres a caption revealing that Harris was acquitted after two juries failed to convict him of assaulting Gardner, and allegations made by a second talking head were not tried in court because they occurred outside the UK. The second part deals with how the net finally closed in.

Though it could probably have benefited from being tightly cut into 60 hard-hitting minutes, the documentary, produced by Lila Allen and Nick Hornby, starkly highlights the national disgrace that Harris hadnt been questioned until it was too late. Never again should we be so trusting.

Rolf Harris: Hiding in Plain Sight is out now on ITVX and will air on ITV tonight
H ome is...

Henley and Richmond. For the past seven years I have lived mostly in New York and LA but England has been my home for 40 years and now I am back here mostly.

When did you first move to London?

When I was 19 years old I moved to Holland Park with Bryan Ferry.

What was your first job in London?

For British Vogue with Norman Parkinson in Jamaica. My first job in London was with David Bailey. The best thing about the Jamaica shoot was working with Grace Coddington, the stylist. She was so talented and got together great clothes. Also I was with my then boyfriend, the fashion illustrator Antonio Lopez. We talked about getting married, but he was bisexual and I did not like to share. The photos were stunning and launched my career.

Which shops do you rely on?

I love Harrods and have been going there 40 years! I adore Manolo Blahniks shoes and have way too many of them. Sadly my feet are huge but luckily Manolo makes my size. I think the hat designer Philip Treacy is a genius and I am going to get a new summer hat for Ascot soon. I loved shopping at Vivienne Westwood and still do  going to Vivienne Westwood and Malcom McClarens shop, Sex.

Favourite restaurant?

I love Italian food and my favourite restaurant is The River Cafe, such delicious yummy pasta! I also am thrilled there is a new Scotts restaurant in Richmond. I prefer going out for lunch with my best girlfriends  Suzanne Wyman, Jeanne Fieldorf and Sabrina Stoppard. We have a club called The Butterfly Club, we get together and read each other our writing.

What is your London secret?

My happiest times are spent in Richmond Park. It is especially delightful in the fall when all the leaves turn golden orange and red. My children and I kept horses in the park and the children loved climbing trees there. This was our special place, with all the deer and endless adventures. I had an old Silver Cross pram... with four children and there was always a baby bouncing along.

Favourite grooming spot?

My daughter Georgia [May Jagger] has the hair company Bleach and I love going to her salon and having Alex Brownsell cut and colour my hair. I had a beautiful bright copper colour done once, although last time I went blonder. Georgia thought I should go blonder again as blondes have more fun.

We talked about getting married but he was bisexual and I didnt like to share...

What are you working on right now?

I recently did an ad for Mugler H&M. I worked for many years with the talented Thierry Mugler and I think it is so great that H&M is coming out with affordable Mugler clothes.

Favourite piece of art in London?

I love going to art galleries and museums. The British Museum has such beautiful Greek and Roman sculptures  I could look at them forever. My favourite work of art is Michelangelos Taddei Tondo, the virgin and child with the infant Saint John, a marble relief at the Royal Academy.

Best play youve seen?

Tom Stoppards last play, Leopoldstadt. And Fran Lebowitzs funny show. I adore Fran. We met in NY in the 1970s and went to Studio 54 with Andy Warhol most nights.

Who is the most iconic Londoner?

I, like the rest of the UK, have a crush on Joanna Lumley. I am glued to her TV show about travelling to the source of the Nile. I was lucky to work with her a few times in the TV series Cluedo and the film Absolutely Fabulous. She is a life-enhancing tonic!

The Mugler H&M capsule collection is available now (hm.com)
Car boot sales are an indisputable British pastime, one that conjures up images of muddy fields, sub-zero temperatures and 5am wake-up calls. Despite the conditions, the allure is simple: everyone loves a bargain  especially after foraging through mounds of stuff to find it.

But imagine getting to thumb through your favourite fashion insiders wardrobe instead of someones dusty attic clearout. Better yet, you get to do so from the comfort of Selfridges car park, where every piece is up to 70 per cent off and all the proceeds go to Women for Women International, an incredible organisation that has helped more than 530,000 women across 14 conflict-affected countries.

ABronacMcNeill

This is what Alex Eagle has built with her annual #SheInspiresMe car boot, which has garnered a reputation among the style set as the chicest car boot sale ever. Taking place on Saturday, May 20, the event sells past-season, vintage and pre-loved designer goods at a fraction of their RRP. Think 150 Jimmy Choo shoes, 400 for Loewe Mini Gate Crossbody bags and 250 for Molly Goddard frocks.

Normally, with transactional things, especially in terms of shopping, theres guilt. But here theres none, says Eagle, who is the brains behind Alex Eagle Studio and The Store X. Its only a win-win. You either get to see your beloved clothes going to good homes, or you get to support a worthwhile charity sustainably.

Alex Eagle at the #SheInspiresMe car boot sale / Alex Eagle

The style guru founded the event in 2016 as the antithesis of elitist charity fundraisers. Why do we need to have fancy galas which only the super, super rich people are able to buy tickets to? It just felt a bit old-fashioned and not that fun, says Eagle, on her decision to host this particular kind of format. With this car boot sale theres such a good feeling of circularity thats accessible to everyone.

Women for Women, Car boot Sale, 14May2022, Photographer Bronac McNeil / BronacMcNeill

For Eagle it was especially important that everyone who wanted to be involved could be. You can buy coffee and youve supported. You could buy a five quid T-shirt and youve supported. There shouldnt be a price limit on being involved and caring about a charity, she explains.

Some people donate clothes, then some people come and support on the day. Theres loads of ways of being involved in the event.

Over the years its become a mythical date in the fashion calendar, with celebrities such as Helen Mirren previously donating her Bafta dress and supermodel Kate Moss emptying her wardrobe out for the cause. However, 2023s iteration promises to be the highest calibre offering yet. As part of Worn Again, a season of experimental and circular shopping experiences at Selfridges, so far more than 100 brands and VIPs have donated items, including: Vogue deputy editor Sarah Harris, Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner (who has pledged a Louis Vuitton) and cult-favourite occasionwear label RIXO.

Theres also a dedicated beauty station filled with 111 Skin, Charlotte Tilbury and Founded Beauty for those wanting to stock up their bathroom cabinets with top products, too.

Women for Women, Car boot Sale, 14May2022, Photographer Bronac McNeil / BronacMcNeill

I am so happy that we can play a part in this special event with Women for Women International, says Sandra Choi, creative director of Jimmy Choo, who regularly donates several stalls worth of shoes each year. Its inspiring to see the positive results of people coming together with a simple idea that becomes a life-changing force for the women who need it the most.

Currently theyve raised nearly 1 million for Women For Women International, and this year they hope to surpass this milestone within the first two hours. In a time of excessive consumption and fast fashion, the #SheInspiresMe car boot sale stands out as the ultimate feelgood, guilt-free shopping extravaganza. So as Eagle says: Dont overthink it and just have fun!

A limited number of tickets for #SheInspiresMe Car Boot Sale will be made available aon the day at 10am on May 20 at womenforwomen.org.uk/sheinspiresme-car-boot-sale-2023 .

Alex Eagles five best tips for a successful car boot outing

1. Follow your gut. If you see something that sparks joy, go for it.

2. Go with a budget in mind and save up beforehand.

3. Dont be afraid of missing bargains as people replenish throughout the whole day (and prices drop even more right at the end of the day).

4. Bear other people in mind as this is a really good place to stock up on gifts.

5. Know your uniform and what you like, and get fresh versions of that. If you love black blazers and high waisted jeans just go for that.
A man was left with serious facial injuries following a brutal attack near Bermondsey Underground Station in south London.

Police officers were called to reports of a man, aged in his 40s, with head and facial injuries on Janeway Place just before 6.30pm on Tuesday.

He was rushed to hospital where he remains in a critical but stable condition, Metropolitan Police said.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the attack, or anyone who saw anything out of the ordinary in the area at the time.

Detective Inspector Yasser Awad, from Central South BCU, said: This appears to have been a brutal attack and one which has left the victim in a very serious condition in hospital.

We are carrying our urgent enquiries to try and establish exactly what happened but we would like to hear from anyone who has information that could help our investigation.

This includes anyone who might have CCTV or doorbell footage in the surrounding areas.

Anyone with information should call police via 101 with reference CAD 6620/16MAY.
T he Croydon tram disaster driver was a special guy who exchanged waves with a colleague before his carriage derailed, killing seven passengers, a court has heard.

Alfred Dorris, 49, is on trial at the Old Bailey over the fatal incident at Sandilands in south London on November 9 2016.

Giving evidence on Thursday, fellow driver Keith Crump recalled how he had been coming back from Elmers End around to Sandiland when he saw Dorriss tram.

He told jurors: On the right-hand side was Alfs tram. He was going to New Addington. We exchanged waves and that was it. He was always pleasant.

Later, the power went off and he found out there had been an accident.

He agreed with Dorriss barrister that he was always friendly and gave an exaggerated wave.

Mr Crump added that he was a special guy.

He also agreed that Dorris was always smartly turned out, immaculate, pleasant and professional.

He said he had never heard of any concerns about his driving before the crash and was totally shocked to learn Dorris was the driver.

Mr Crump told jurors the conditions that day had been awful.

He said: I was going a lot more slowly and a lot more cautious because the rain was very heavy. It was very dark. Sometimes it can cause distractions. You are just extra careful.

The court has heard Dorris was going more than three times the speed limit when he attempted to negotiate a sharp turn out of a tunnel at more than 70kmh before the tram derailed.

Passenger Joseph McKoy boarded Dorriss tram at New Addington, sat down and put head phones on to read or listen to the news before disaster struck.

He said: I used the phone as a torch to see what was going on in the drivers cabin. I decided to have a look to see the state of the driver.

I could not see too much. I could make out the driver was not responsive. I started shouting to get the attention of the driver. I remember kicking the glass.

Mr McKoy said that when the driver came round, he said: What happened. I must have blacked out.

Georgina Reeves had got the tram towards New Addington to secure a place on the return journey towards Croydon.

Asked what she was doing before the crash, she said: I was probably half asleep. I remember texting a friend because I was meeting her at Croydon but that was about it.

I was sitting behind the driver before the accident, the seat directly behind the cabin.

Ms Reeves said that after the tram derailed, she stood up to call 999 and noticed someone was shining a light into the drivers cabin before Dorris opened his eyes and opened the door.

She told jurors the driver said: I must have passed out.

He then asked if anyone was hurt, someone replied look around you, and Dorris said oh shit, the witness said.

The prosecution alleged Dorris may have had a micro-sleep at the time of the crash or became disorientated.

Dorris, from Beckenham, south London, denies failing to take reasonable care of the health and safety of himself and his 69 passengers on Tram 2551 on that day.

The Old Bailey trial continues.
KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 22:13 | All, World, G7

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will participate in the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima online on Sunday, the Japanese government said Thursday, following speculation that he might attend the meeting in person.

When Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made a surprise trip to Kyiv on March 21 for talks with Zelenskyy, he said he invited the Ukrainian leader to take part in the three-day summit from Friday online.
A man who waited for almost four hours to call an ambulance after inflicting fatal injuries on his undernourished 11-year-old son has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 21 years and six months.

Michael Harrison pleaded guilty last month to the murder of Mikey Harrison, who died in hospital in June last year after paramedics were called to a country park.

Harrison leaned forward in his seat staring at the ground, shielding his face from the public gallery, during almost all of his two-hour sentencing hearing on Thursday.

The court was told that he repeatedly punched Mikey, who weighed 3st 11lb, at his home in Derbyshire on the morning of June 18, causing a fatal laceration to his liver.

The 41-year-old later drove to Heanors Shipley Country Park, phoned the ambulance service from his van and falsely claimed Mikey  who could have been saved by prompt treatment  had fallen from a tree.

Passing sentence at Derby Crown Court, Judge Shaun Smith KC told Harrison: At 18 minutes past one on Saturday June 18 you embarked upon a charade solely intended to protect yourself.

That was because you had attacked your 11-year-old son Mikey. You hit and punched him many times. At least one of those blows was so hard it lacerated his liver.

Rather than face up to what you had done, you made a call to the ambulance service to report that Mikey had fallen out of a tree.

What you did that morning ended the life of a little boy and emptied the lives of many others.

The judge added that what happened during the assault was a result of Harrison going crazy as he damaged furniture and caused multiple blunt force injuries to Mikey.

Opening the case against Harrison, prosecutor Peter Joyce KC told the court: At 1.20pm on Saturday June 18 this defendant, Michael Harrison, made an emergency 999 call to the East Midlands Ambulance Service, to report that his son had fallen out of a tree in Shipley Park, Heanor.

He told the emergency services the number of his vehicle and where he and Mikey could be found.

Mr Joyce said ambulance service staff then arrived to find Mikey struggling for breath, but he went into cardiac arrest and was taken to hospital in Nottingham, where he was pronounced dead at 2.39pm.

The prosecutor said of the victim: He was 11 years old when he died and he weighed three stone, 11lbs.

The defendant was spoken to that day by the police as a witness in relation to what was then described as the accidental death of his son.

The prosecutor added: His first account was that he had been in Shipley Country Park when Mikey had fallen from a tree.

But inquiries established that this entire account was a fiction made up by the defendant to cover up the fact that he himself had fatally injured his son, Mr Joyce continued.

Following the assault, the court heard, Harrison stripped the Heanor property where he and Mikey had been living of almost every item that you would expect to find in a home.

Mr Joyce alleged that Harrison had also cleaned the scene of the attack to remove any prospect of any evidence being found in relation to what he had done to Mikey.

The 999 call took place almost four hours after the attack took place, Mr Joyce said, adding: In common parlance he (Mikey) had received many blows to many areas of his body.

In the opinion of an expert who had studied the evidence, Mikey may well have been saved with prompt and appropriate medical treatment, the court heard.

Offering mitigation, defence barrister Vanessa Marshall KC said Harrison would have to bear the awful, tragic, unforgivable death of his son for the rest of his life.

Submitting that Mikeys death was the result of an isolated outburst of gratuitous violence, Ms Marshall claimed Harrison had cleared out the property amid safety concerns, having been kidnapped and stabbed by a gang in 2006.

After he was sentenced, Harrison, wearing a white T-shirt with FAMILY printed on the front, gestured towards members of the media and said: I will always love my family no matter what you lot say. Put whatever version you like.
A drug dealer has been jailed for more than five years following a police investigation.

Frank Chapman, 24, from Islington, appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court on May 16 where he was jailed for five years and eight months for a series of drug offences.

Police stopped Chapman as he travelled through Hackney in February 2022.

Met Police

Met Police

After establishing his address on Mildmay Street, officers searched the property where they found a variety of drugs including cocaine, MDMA, cannabis, ketamine and mushrooms.

Despite initially pleading not guilty, on the first day of his trial Chapman admitted to four counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, two counts of possession with intent to supply class B drugs, and four counts of drug supply relating to Class A and B substance.

Detective Constable Howard New, who led the investigation, said: The negative effect that drug use and supply have shouldnt be underestimated. The sale and use of drugs, and the associated crime that comes with it, are a blight on communities.

Although Chapman is just one man, he represents one less drug dealer operating in London, and a variety of substances that could cause misery and harm, now wont be sold on the streets.

Anyone with information should call police on 101, Tweet @MetCC or report online at www.met.police.uk.
T he mother of 15-year-old Khayri Mclean, who was stabbed to death as he walked home from school, said this violence has to stop as two teenagers were jailed for life for his murder.

Khayri was stabbed in the chest close to North Huddersfield Trust School (NHTS), in the West Yorkshire town, by 15-year-old Jakele Pusey, who was described by prosecutors at Leeds Crown Court as jumping into the air and swinging a knife with a 30cm blade.

The teenager had waited for his victim with 16-year-old Jovani Harriott, now 17, who followed up the initial attack, running after Khayri and stabbing him in his lower leg.

The incident in September last year, which was captured on CCTV, was said to have been provoked by Khayri sharing a video on social media after Harriotts mother had a window broken at her house.

The judge, Mrs Justice Farbey, heard that Pusey admitted to probation officers that he had a history of gang-related criminality and had been shot by masked men when he was 12 in a gang incident.

She was told he was involved in a Huddersfield gang called F-block or Fartown Boys, whose exploits are celebrated by drill rap artist Booter Bee.

The judge was also told that Pusey  who admitted murdering Khayri  said he started dealing class B drugs when he was about 13, class A drugs from the age of 14, and regularly carried a knife.

A pre-sentence report concluded that violence against opposing gang members was the norm for (him)  the life he lived.

The judge told Pusey he will serve a minimum term of 16 years and Harriott that he will serve at least 18 years before being considered for release.

Harriott denied murder but was found guilty after a trial earlier this year.

He denied being part of a gang.

In a victim personal statement read to the court, Khayris mother Charlie Mclean said: I ask myself what has this achieved?

What has my son died for? Nobody has won in this situation.

Ive lost a child and other parents have lost two sons who have committed this offence.

This violence has to stop, carrying weapons has to stop.

I have lost my son and I would not wish this on anyone else.

Ms Mclean said the boys who attacked her son were cowards, adding: He was not given an opportunity to run or defend himself, he was helpless.

The fear he went through when he realised he had been stabbed and was bleeding to death will stay with me forever.

Family and friends of Khayri sat in the jury box for the sentencing hearing on Thursday wearing matching T-shirts featuring his picture.
g A ang of four consultants has pinned the blame for baby deaths on her to cover up hospital failings, nurse Lucy Letby told her murder trial.

Letby, 33, denies the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of 10 others while working at the neo-natal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital.

During her trial, she named four hospital consultants who she alleged had conspired against her.

Nick Johnson KC, prosecuting, cross-examining Letby for a second day, listed the names of 19 hospital doctors and suggested none had any issues while working alongside Letby.

Mr Johnson said: Are you suggesting theres some sort of agreement between medical staff to get you?

Letby replied: In the consultants group, I do believe yes.

Mr Johnson said: Who in the consultants group?

Letby named Dr Stephen Brearey, Dr John Gibbs, Dr Ravi Jayaram and one other doctor who cannot be named for legal reasons.

Mr Johnson replied: Four doctors. A gang of four lets call them. Whats the conspiracy?

Letby replied: They have apportioned blame on to me.

Mr Johnson said: The motive?

Letby said: I believe to cover failings at the hospital.

Earlier Mr Johnson suggested Letby was the only common feature and had to be the only person responsible for harming the babies.

He said: Do you agree that if certain combinations of these children were attacked, then unless there was more than one person attacking them, you have to be the attacker?

Letby replied: No, I have not attacked anyone.

Mr Johnson continued: If the jury conclude that a certain combination were actually attacked by someone, then the shift pattern gives us the answer, who the attacker was?

Letby replied: No, I dont agree. Just because I was on shift doesnt mean I have done anything.

Mr Johnson said: If the jury conclude, lets say babies five, eight, 10 and 12, were all attacked, you are the only common feature, it would have to be, you are the attacker?

Letby replied: Thats for them to decide.

The defendant, from Hereford, denies all the alleged offences said to have taken place between June 2015 and June 2016.

The trial continues.
A man has been jailed after locking a woman in a train station cafe and demanding that she have sex with him.

Joseph Farrell, 45, from Tottenham, made unwanted sexual advances towards his victim at Crediton station in Devon on April 22 last year.

Salisbury Crown Court heard how Farrell had entered the cafe and locked the door from inside.

After the woman repeatedly said no to his sexual advances, he left the cafe and boarded a train.

CCTV images, combined with images taken by the victim, meant police were able to positively identify Farrell.

He was sentenced to 26 months in prison for false imprisonment and handed a ten-year restraining order, forbidding him to contact the victim in any way whatsoever.

Farrell was also banned from Crediton railway station for the same time period.

Investigating officer Police Constable Adam Rudling, of the BTP, said: Unwanted sexual behaviour on the railway and at stations will not be tolerated in any way. Farrell's actions took the victim completely by surprise and made her feel very scared and extremely uncomfortable.

I would like to thank the woman who came forward and reported this and her quick thinking in capturing images of Farrell, as he waited for a train, made the evidence against him all the more compelling.

If you experience or witness a sexual offence on the railway, or at a station, I urge you to report it to us by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40. We will always take you seriously. In an emergency always dial 999.
A high-flying pharmaceutical consultant stabbed a Metropolitan Police officer in the neck after her family tried unsuccessfully to get her mental health treatment, a court heard.

Venice Burgess, 32, attacked PC Ryan Spaul with a knife as he attempted to arrest her for cutting up a lodgers clothes and hitting him over the head with a bottle, it is said.

A bloodied PC Spaul was seen fleeing from the house as Burgess chased him and a police colleague down the stairs, Inner London crown court heard.

Burgess is now on trial, accused of attempted murder, possession of a knife, damaging property, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Isolyn Burgess told the court her daughter, a first class science graduate from the University of Greenwich, has no criminal record and a high-powered job with a pharmaceutical firm.

She was diagnosed with mental health problems at the age of 25, and did not like the high medication doseage she was placed on as it affected her ability to work and she feared it could cause fertility problems.

Mrs Burgess said her daughter was hospitalised for two months in late 2021, she would become unpredictable when not medicated, and by June 2022 there were growing concerns about her mental state.

A friend came to spend time with us and she believed Venice put bleach in her food, she said. I called police and told them to come and take Venice to get help.

She said police and paramedics came but said they couldnt do anythingas she was deemed to have capacity.

The following day, on June 25, 2022, the friend accused Burgess of putting faeces in her food, the court heard.

We both called police but no one came, said her mother.

My daughter would never hurt a fly in a normal frame of mind. But her mental health problems mean she has no inhibitions.

Mrs Burgess said she had moved in with her daughter to look after her and had hidden the knives and tools.

The alleged attack on PC Spaul happened in the early hours of June 27, the court heard, after a lodger in Burgesss home in Lewisham reported that she had cut up his clothes, bedsheets, and important documents, and thrown a bottle of beer at his head.

Burgess pretended to be asleep when she was first confronted by police, jurors heard, and eventually a decision was taken to arrest her.

PC Fiona Warr was one of the officers at the scene, and told the court she heard a commotion when PC Spaul started to arrest Burgess.

She said she rushed into the bedroom to find her colleague shouting she has a knife while attempting to restrain Burgess.

I could see he had blood on his left arm, she said. I caught glimpses of what I believed to be a knife in her right hand.

I made the decision to get out of the room.

PC Warr said she and PC Spaul retreated as Burgess shouted get out of the house, and they both went downstairs.

The suspect was right behind us, chasing us down the stairs.

I could hear her chasing and she was close.

PC Spaul was treated for a puncture wound in the back of his neck and an injury to his left arm.

The reality is the officers injuries could have been very very serious, said paramedic Hannah Martin.

In her statement, Burgesss mother was also critical of the police intervention on the night of the stabbing.

It was not handled properly, she said. My advice was ignored, I told police Venice was vulnerable, and they didnt understand her condition.

They ignored me and refused to let me upstairs which has resulted in someone getting hurt.

Burgess, who is following the trial via a videolink, denies the charges. The trial continues.
L ondons iconic Big Ben clock has stopped ticking for a second time in a week, just months after its multi-million dollar makeover.

Hands on all four dials of the Great Clock on the Elizabeth Tower froze for around half an hour at 9am on Wednesday, according to the Telegraph.

Thats despite the same problem occuring the Wednesday prior just before 1pm, with the bell failing to chime on the hour.

The 96-metre-tall clock at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster had just been given an 80 million facelift that took five years, using taxpayers money.

Sources told the Telegraph that the stoppages were down to a bedding in process following the refurbishment.

The 13-tonne Big Ben bell was largely silenced for five years while under major restoration, with the bongs finally returning in November last year.

Big Ben is silenced for four years 1 / 10 Big Ben is silenced for four years Big Ben is to be silenced today for the next four years AP Photo/Caroline Spiezio A row has broken out about the silencing of the bells Rex Workers installed scaffolding as the major restoration was beginning Rex Big Ben will fall silent at midday Jeremy Selwyn Tourists gathered to hear the bell silence for the last time in several years Jeremy Selwyn Workers erect scaffolding around Big Ben's tower Jeremy Selwyn The bells were silenced to protect workers' hearing Jeremy Selwyn Tourists take a selfie in front of Big Ben's tower AP

Last Wednesday the clock stopped at 12.55pm, leaving the bells silent at 1pm.

Half an hour later, the clock hands were moved forward but the clock was still running about five minutes late, according to witnesses.

By 1.47pm, the hands were moved forward again to show the right time.

A House of Commons spokesperson said: We are aware that the clock dials on the Elizabeth Tower were temporarily displaying the incorrect time on Wednesday afternoon.

Clock mechanics worked quickly to rectify the issue and the clock is now functioning as normal.

The renovation period marked the longest period of silence in the landmarks 165-year history.

The clock was largely concealed by scaffolding while the works were carried out, disappointing many tourists.

The works, designed to restore the original vision by Parliaments architects Charles Barry and Augustus Welby Pugin, unveiled a row of six shields above each dial that displays a St Georges red cross on a white background.

Clock watching - a fresh perspective on Big Ben 1 / 33 Clock watching - a fresh perspective on Big Ben Golden vista A sunset view from the South Bank (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Tarmac The famous tower from road level (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) River view Big Ben framed by an arch (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Strolling A wide shot takes in the Palace of Westminster (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Flag flying A union flag flutters in the foreground (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Hello Big Ben Big Ben and bigger bird (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Going Underground? Westminster Tube (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Flying above Swooping over the river (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Traffic View from Trafalgar Square (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Walking along Umbrellas out on the South Bank (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Clouds The skies above darken (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Leafy Through the trees (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Time to fly A bird swoops in blue skies (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Bridge The tower stands out in the distance (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Cleaning face Daredevil maintenance workers tend to the clock (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Reflection A black-and-white view (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Watching A family gazes over to the landmark (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Hand A man almost appears to grasp the tower (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Water An inventive take on the icon (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Bridge Reflected in a rain-soaked road (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Railings Big Ben towers above (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Water feature The view from a nearby park (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Cloudy skies Another shot from across the Thames (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) London Eye Two landmarks come together (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman) Wildlife Another bird helps to frame the landmark (Picture: http://instagram.com/fiireman/ @fiireman)

The UK Parliament describes the clock as probably the worlds most famous clock.

Six monarchs and 41 prime ministers have come and gone since the bells first struck across Westminster.

The iconic structure is one of the most Instagrammed landmarks globally, and in 2022 it was the second most Googled landmark in the world.

It is often used to mark historic occassions in Britain, including being lit in a floral design for the Kings coronation and striking 11 times to mark the start of two minutes silence on Remembrance Sunday.
A man has died after collapsing on The Strand, in central London.

Charing Cross Station was temporarily closed as emergency services rushed to reports of a man taken ill on The Strand just before 1am on Thursday.

A Met spokesman said: Officers and London Ambulance Service attended but despite the efforts of the emergency services the man, believed to be aged in his 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Work is ongoing to identify and inform next of kin.

At this early stage the death is being treated as unexpected and unexplained.

A scene remains in place.

Enquiries into the circumstances continue.

The Strand reopened to traffic at Trafalgar Square and Bedford Street - either side of Charing Cross station - after being closed at 1am.
KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 07:45 | All, Japan, World, G7

U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday departed for Hiroshima to attend this year's Group of Seven summit, cutting short his original weeklong itinerary in the Asia-Pacific region as he needs to continue domestic negotiations toward averting an unprecedented default.

He will become the second sitting U.S. president after Barack Obama to visit the western Japanese city, where the first atomic bomb attack in history was carried out by the United States in the closing days of World War II in 1945.

"America's role in the world is vital, especially right now as we work together with other countries to support Ukraine and take on the challenges (that) demand international cooperation, from tackling the climate crisis to strengthening the global economy," Biden told reporters before leaving the White House to board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

A day after shortening his planned trip to the Asia-Pacific region to focus on the talks over the debt ceiling, Biden also told reporters he is "confident that we'll get the agreement on the budget and America will not default."

At the three-day summit of the major industrialized democracies, set to begin Friday with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida serving as chair, major topics to be discussed include Russia's war in Ukraine, nuclear disarmament, promotion of a rules-based international order and diversifying supply chains.

Biden may also have a trilateral meeting with Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has been invited as a guest to G-7 discussions, as well as a number of bilateral meetings on the fringes of the gathering.

Following the G-7 summit, Biden was scheduled to visit Papua New Guinea and Australia. But he has canceled the second and third legs of the original itinerary and will return to the United States on Sunday, the White House said.

The Biden administration has been finding it difficult to strike a deal with top congressional leaders to raise the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling to prevent the world's largest economy from running out of money as soon as June 1.

Biden's stop in Papua New Guinea would have marked the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to the Pacific island country.

In Port Moresby, he had planned to meet with leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum, an 18-member group that promotes cooperation among mostly very small countries in Oceania. The stop was meant to be part of Washington's efforts to make up ground in the region, where China's influence is rapidly expanding.

Biden's change of plans also caused Australia to cancel a summit of the Quad group slated for May 24 in Sydney. Japanese government sources said they are trying to see whether the Quad meeting, also involving India and Japan, can be arranged for Sunday in Hiroshima instead, with China's rise and its behavior in the Indo-Pacific likely to top the agenda.

Biden told the press on Wednesday that he expects to talk "separately" with the Quad leaders on the sidelines of the G-7 summit.

Related coverage:

G-7 summit to kick off Fri. with tour of Hiroshima A-bomb museum

Biden to urge importance of nuke disarmament at G-7 summit: spokesman

U.S. to give more security assistance to Taiwan soon: Pentagon chief
K now anyone who looks like Matt Hancock? His nemesis Isabel Oakeshott is looking for an actor to play the former health secretary in a live show. Oakeshott, right, who co-wrote Hancocks pandemic diaries last year then betrayed him by giving his WhatsApps to a newspaper, is putting on a show based on the messages.

There have been setbacks. First she says they had to move venue from the Emmanuel Centre after Hancocks people complained about the show. Now actor Laurence Fox has said he wont play Hancock, over a feud with co-organiser Toby Young, so the pair are seeking a new star, and someone to play Boris Johnson.

Hancock is keeping busy. Last night at a think-tank event he told liberal Tories to stand up to the reactionaries in their party. He also said he would never appear on Strictly.

New rules for book lover Dua

Dua Lipa / Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Popstar Dua Lipa is making a turn towards the written word. It started with her podcast, At Your Service, where she has interviewed writers like Hanya Yanagihara and Lisa Taddeo. Now shes launched a book club for fans, who are first going to read Douglas Stuarts Booker Prize-winning novel Shuggie Bain. Next month, Dua will do two events Hay book festival: first interviewing Stuart, then chatting about her love of books. They do call Hay the literary Glastonbury...

Too much cuddling?

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meets Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street

Ukraines President Zelensky got a big hug from Rishi Sunak at Chequers on Monday, but did politicians always embrace? Veteran journalist Michael Crick tells us a hug is a good thing if it improves relationships, but adds it used to be communist leaders who were known for intimacy: Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker once shared a famous kiss. I cant imagine Churchill or Thatcher hugging people, Crick said.

Rory Stewart goes solo

Ex-Tory leadership hopeful Rory Stewart gave a warning about AI last night, calling the new tech a fundamental threat to our democracy and our culture. Stewart, who usually co-hosts a podcast with Alastair Campbell, went solo at the Guildhall for this years Tacitus lecture, and said our leaders are failing to take AI seriously. Is he eyeing a comeback in the technologically enhanced future?

Roxy glows at the Gherkin

Londoners Diary 18th May 23 1 / 8 Londoners Diary 18th May 23 Tiger Lily Taylor attends the London Blockchain Conference VIP dinner at Searcys at The Gherkin, curated by Michelin star chef and co-founder of HIDE, Ollie Dabbous on May 17th in London, England. Tiger Lily Taylor attends the London Blockchain Conference VIP dinner at Searcys at The Gherkin, curated by Michelin star chef and co-founder of HIDE, Ollie Dabbous on May 17th in London, England. Kate Green Roxy Horner attends the London Blockchain Conference VIP dinner at Searcys at The Gherkin, curated by Michelin star chef and co-founder of HIDE, Ollie Dabbous on May 17th in London, England. Roxy Horner attends the London Blockchain Conference VIP dinner at Searcys at The Gherkin, curated by Michelin star chef and co-founder of HIDE, Ollie Dabbous on May 17th in London, England. Kate Green "I Don't Take Requests" Paperback Launch Party Akuac Thiep attends the Paperbook launch party for Fat Tony's "I Don't Take Requests" at The Twenty Two on May 17, 2023 in London, England. Dave Benett "I Don't Take Requests" Paperback Launch Party Charli Howard attends the Paperbook launch party for Fat Tony's "I Don't Take Requests" at The Twenty Two on May 17, 2023 in London, England. Dave Benett The Female Quotient X Linkedin: Celebrating Female Firsts Trinny Woodall attendsOThe Female Quotient X Linkedin: Celebrating Female Firsts' at The Londoner Hotel on May 17, 2023 in London, England. Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty Images The Female Quotient X Linkedin: Celebrating Female Firsts Donna Air attends 'The Female Quotient X Linkedin: Celebrating Female Firsts' at The Londoner Hotel on May 17, 2023 in London, England. Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty Images

Models Tiger Lily Taylor and Roxy Horner went to the London Blockchain Conference dinner at the Gherkins Searcys restaurant last night. Horner has just announced she is expecting a baby with her comedian partner Jack Whitehall, who has joked that hes worried about getting less attention after the birth. Guests were treated to a maverick menu by chef Ollie Dabbous, where one of the courses was a single tulip, see right. Elsewhere, models Akuac Thiep and Charli Howard celebrated the paperback release of DJ Fat Tonys memoir in Mayfair, while Trinny Woodall and Donna Air went to an event by The Female Quotient at The Londoner Hotel.
T he race to be the Tory mayoral candidate ramped up on Thursday as Government front-bencher Paul Scully threw his hat into the ring.

Mr Scully, the Minister for London, is the first MP to declare a wish to challenge LabourmayorSadiq Khan, who is seeking a record third term next May.

He is the seventh person to publicly seek the Tory nomination but arguably the first political big hitter. He claimed he had the support of a significant number of MPs and councillors.

He dismissed suggestions he was not well enough known to defeat Mr Khan, whose victories in 2016 and 2021 have come with record majorities.

This isnt a celebrity election, Mr Scully told the Standard. Celebrity status doesnt get houses built, doesnt get transport moving, doesnt make people safe. That is what Im focusing on.

I have delivered in four different departments in Government. I am about action, about changing the malaise we have from a mayor who is just deflecting, not delivering.

Mr Scully, 55, has been MP for Sutton and Cheam since 2015. He is also the tech minister.

He said his time as Minister for London felt like a three-year apprenticeship to become mayor. In a personal attack on Mr Khan, he described him as a self-serving incumbent who was crushing aspirations underfoot and who was using the mayoralty as a platform to virtue signal.

Mr Scully, in a letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, said he would pause being Minister for London, in line with advice he had sought from the propriety and ethics team in the Cabinet Office, to ensure he remained within the Ministerial Code.

He will stand down from the post if he is selected as Tory mayoral candidate.

He told LBC he had spoken with Boris Johnson, the last Tory to serve as London mayor. He first appointed me as Minister for London,  Mr Scully said. I know he has every faith in me. If he endorses me that would be fantastic.

He said outer London residents were frustrated with Mr Khans proposed expansion of the Ulez to the Greater London boundary, and vowed to scrap it on day one.

Instead, he would seek to improve air quality on the Tube and complete the electrification of the capitals 9,000-vehicle bus fleet.

He said: For some people, the Ulez expansion is the first thing they have seen him do. They clearly dont like what they are seeing.

He said the Met police and London Fire Brigade had to be brought out of special measures and more family homes were needed to avoid Londoners being priced out of London. He railed against what he called the high-rise jungle threat from new housing.

Previously Mr Scully said he would only stand if he felt he was the best placed person to take on Mr Khan.

Other candidates include London Assembly members Susan Hall, Andrew Boff and Nick Rogers, and former Downing Street aides Daniel Korski and Samuel Kasumu. Duwayne Brooks, who was with Stephen Lawrence when he was attacked, has also said he will run.

Mr Scully said: There are some really good ideas coming forward from my colleagues but I am best-placed because Ive had three years as Minister for London, Ive had 25 years campaigning round every single borough.

I understand inner London, having got hospitality and retail open again after covid. But I understand outer London, being an outer London MP.

He denied he was only standing because he faced losing his constituency, where he holds a 8,351 majority, to the Lib-Dems at the next general election.

I have always treated my constituency as marginal, in the same way as Ill treat the mayoral elections, he said. They are both winnable.

My inbox is full of Ulez, transport, crime, where the issues sit with the mayor, not with central Government.

He backed Brexit but believes this will not count against him. I was always a pragmatic Brexiteer, he said.

He claimed Mr Khan was a slick politician but hes not a great leader for the city, contrasting him unfavourably with mayors such as Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester and Andy Street in West Midlands.

He said: I believe Mayor Khan is very beatable because of his inaction.

Mr Scully moved to London when he was 19. He ran small businesses for 25 years before becoming an MP. His father came to the UK from Burma and worked as an engineer.

In a dig at Mr Khans own back story, he added: Im sorry he wasnt a bus driver.

Having a Burmese dad does not build a single house, it doesnt get transport working and it doesnt make us feel safer. But I do share the values as well as the issues and concerns of true Londoners.

A Labour source said: Londoners know exactly what the Tories are about  a cost-of-living crisis, soaring housing costs, huge cuts to public services, and opposing measures to clean up our dirty air.

Despite this Sadiq is getting on with building a better London for everyone  reducing violent crime, cleaning up the air, delivering a record number of council homes and providing free school meals for all London children from September.

Tory nominations close next Wednesday, May 24. A shortlist of up to three candidates will be announced, with the winner due to be unveiled on July 19.
T here is no doubt Russia has the intent and the ability to target the Wests underwater energy and communication lines, Ben Wallace said as he launched a security partnership with Norway.

At a press conference alongside his Norwegian counterpart at the Northwood military base on Thursday, the Defence Secretary said Moscow has submarines and spy ships specifically designed to potentially sabotage or attack critical national infrastructure belonging to its adversaries.

Mr Wallace and Norwegian defence minister Bjorn Arild Gram signed a statement of intent to increase cooperation on countering undersea threats in the wake of last years attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

While the Ministry of Defence did not name Russia in its release about the agreement, Mr Wallace left little doubt as to where the threat is emanating from.

He told the press conference: What we know is the Russians have a work programme, they have a specific naval programme designed to both look at and potentially sabotage or attack critical national infrastructure belonging to its adversaries.

It has a number of submarines and other pieces of equipment and spy ships and everything else specifically designed for that purpose.

So whether we are talking about Nord Stream, whether we are talking about our own infrastructure, that is an area that is vulnerable and needs to be protected.

He added: What we can say without doubt is Russia has the intent and the capability to target the Wests critical national infrastructure. We have to have the intent and the capability to defend it.

Asked whether he was aware of any underwater cables already being sabotaged, the Cabinet minister said any speculation on the UKs levels of knowledge on Russian activities would only help the Kremlin.

We have to be alert to the deliberate programme that the Russians have invested in, we must do the same, he said.

Mr Gram noted the difficulty of guaranteeing that no infrastructure has been undermined as we have almost 9,000 kilometres of gas pipelines on the bottom of the sea.

Neither Mr Wallace nor his Norwegian counterpart would comment on whether Russia was linked to the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, which are still under investigation.

The two nations agreed to increase cooperation to improve their ability to detect submarines, counter mine threats and generally enhance North Atlantic security.

The agreement also bolsters the development of better technology to protect shared interests in the North Sea while streamlining the process for other allies to join their activity, according to the Ministry of Defence.

They have already jointly increased security patrols in the region where the unexplained blasts occurred.

From July, the Royal Navys new multi-role ocean surveillance vessel RFA Proteus will go to sea to help protect critical infrastructure, Mr Wallace said.

I fully expect a large part of the area that it will patrol will be Norway and the United Kingdom, the area where our gas pipelines are, where our wind farms are, where our electronic cables and optic cables are, he said.

Four leaks were discovered last September on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines that run from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea.

The pipelines were not operational at the time because of disputes between Russia and the European Union over Moscows invasion of Ukraine but were filled with natural gas.
U krainian forces have used UK-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles against Russian targets, Ben Wallace confirmed.

The Defence Secretary declined to give further details about the use of the long-range cruise missile.

The UK confirmed it would supply the weapons to Ukraine earlier this month.

Ukraines leader Volodymyr Zelensky has lobbied Western leaders to supply Nato fighter jets to his nation, particularly F-16s which the UK does not possess.

Mr Wallace suggested the Storm Shadow missiles could help provide some of the same capabilities to strike at Russian positions behind the front line.

At a press conference at the UKs Permanent Joint HQ in Northwood with his Norwegian counterpart Bjorn Arild Gram, Mr Wallace said: It is my understanding that it (Storm Shadow) has been used since we announced its deployment to Ukraine.

He said the missiles gave the Ukrainians the ability to strike Russian command and control centres which had been moved further behind the front line to keep them out of range of the rocket artillery systems the West had supplied to Kyiv.

He added: Its also one of the mitigations that, if you cant supply fighter aircraft, can you help provide one of the things that fighter aircraft deliver, which is deep strike?

And yes, we can, we can do that with Storm Shadow.

The Defence Secretary warned that Vladimir Putin seemed determined to prolong the war in Ukraine no matter what the cost to the Russian people.

Mr Wallace said: Hes on the receiving end of over 250,000 dead or injured of his own troops, over 10,000 armoured vehicles destroyed or capture, hes low on his stocks, his international reputation is pretty much trashed on the rocks, and he is still pressing on.

So Im afraid to say at the moment Russia still seems determined, no matter what the cost to their own people.

And thats why its important that Ukraine is not only given the tools to defend itself, but also to go to the next step of expelling Russia from its borders.

Im not going to speculate when they will do that. We are on the right trajectory of their capability, their training their weapons systems.
H undreds of vulnerable Londoners have had their homes taken over by criminal gangs who use them to store drugs and weapons, a shocking report warned today.

Cases of cuckooing in the capital have quadrupled from 79 in 2018 to 316 last year and are continuing to rise, the City Hall Labour investigation revealed.

The practice, which involves criminals taking over a persons home predominantly to use it to store, take or deal drugs or for prostitution, is almost certainly more widespread as fewer than half of councils were able to provide data on how many cases they had dealt with over the last four years.

Victims are most likely to be older men, who often suffer learning disabilities, mental health needs or have had a substance misuse issue.

"Loneliness, low self-esteem and social isolation were also identified as key factors affecting an individuals likelihood of being targeted", the report found.

MPs have called for cuckooing  which was highlighted in the BBC series Happy Valley  to be criminalised as part of an overhaul of the 2015 Modern Slavery Act.

Labour London Assembly member Unmesh Desai, who commissioned the investigation into the capital's problem, warned that the number of cases are likely much higher because of inconsistent reporting both by councils and the Metropolitan Police.

Cuckooing is a terrible crime which harms some of the most vulnerable in our society," he said.

Having your home taken over by criminals is traumatic and the anti-social behaviour carried out at the property creates chaos for neighbouring households.

This report shows recorded cases of cuckooing are on the rise. But we still do not know the true scale of the problem with some councils not yet recording data. Too often cuckooing is hidden in plain sight and without knowing the true picture, we cannot put the most effective plans in place to tackle this crime and support victims.

I found some councils are already working closely with the police  so it can be done  but we need a more consistent approach so all victims of cuckooing receive the help the need regardless of where they live. We need better guidance from the Government to make this happen."

The report highlighted cases including a man in his sixties with learning difficulties whose housing association flat was taken over by a local group of street drinkers and drug users.

Once the group had entered his property, he was forced to sleep in the living room as another man had occupied his bedroom. His clothes were stolen and bank cards taken from him.

In another case, a local authority revealed that perpetrators would wait outside the councils addiction service building to groom a victim who had previously been moved from a property due to cuckooing.

The investigation found that cuckooing needs a sharper focus" and more public awareness as it is currently an under-reported crime".

It made ten recommendations, including that the Mayor should work with the Government, London Councils and the Victim's Commissioner to develop guidance for local authorities and that the Met should ensure its officers are recording cases systematically using a newly developed flag on the police systems.

In response to questions around how the force is working to address the issue of cuckooing, a Met spokesman said: The MPS has developed guidance for officers on how to deal with cuckooing. This includes guidance around the law, identifying vulnerable persons or venues, how Safer Neighbourhood Team Officers can assist by conducting regular visits, partnership working with other agencies, and obtaining a closure order when antisocial behaviour is associated with a premises.

The reporting of cuckooing has also been streamlined.

Cuckooing is often linked with county lines drug gangs, but many councils said it was more often being committed by local drug gangs in the capital.

The Crown Prosecution Service said cuckooing is often not covered by the Modern Slavery Act if the victim has done nothing apart from agree to their home being used for criminal activity, for example the supply of drugs.

But if they were forced into labour, threatened or attacked, then charges could be brought under existing laws.

The Home Office has said cuckooing is wholly unacceptable and the government is determined to tackle it and those who perpetrate this abuse.
B ritain is banning Russian diamonds in a new wave of sanctions to pressure Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine as Rishi Sunak warns allies against complacency at the G7 summit in Japan.

The Prime Minister announced the new measures against Russia, also including a prohibition on imports of Russian-origin copper, aluminium and nickel on the eve of the meeting in Hiroshima on Thursday.

Having signed a new defence and security pact with Tokyo, Mr Sunak will visit the A-bomb dome ruin with his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, to reflect on the atomic devastation in the Second World War.

Talks between G7 allies including the USs Joe Biden and Frances Emmanuel Macron will centre on military and economic support for Ukraine as they seek to show a united front.

For the sake of global peace and security, we must show that brutal violence and coercion does not reap rewards

The UK is also preparing new individual sanctions against 86 people and companies to apply further pressure on the Russian president and his supporters.

Downing Street expects other G7 allies, which also include Germany, Italy and Canada, as well as the EU, to impose similar sanctions.

The diamond export industry was worth more than 3 billion to Russia in 2021, but No 10 conceded direct imports have been low since the UK sanctioned state-owned miners Alrosa last year.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said discussions will include future security guarantees and long-term deterrence to prevent Ukraine ever facing a similar situation.

On the Chinese threat to Taiwan, the official said: Guarding against economic coercion is something that the Prime Minister is pushing for.

Becoming the first Prime Minister to visit Hiroshima, Mr Sunak signed a new pact with Mr Kishida to bolster strength in the Indo-Pacific region amid concerns over Chinese aggression.

For the sake of global peace and security, we must show that brutal violence and coercion does not reap rewards, he said.

As todays sanctions announcements demonstrate, the G7 remains unified in the face of the threat from Russia and steadfast in our support for Ukraine.

On Sunday, Mr Sunak will meet his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, who is attending the summit as a guest.

Mr Modi has remained neutral on the Russian invasion, calling for peaceful dialogue to end the war.

The Prime Minister told reporters travelling with him in Japan that he has seen positive steps from India in its stance.
R ishi Sunak sent a strong warning to China on Thursday against seeking to seize Taiwan by force or coercion.

Speaking from an aircraft carrier at the Yokosuka Naval Base ahead of a G7 summit in Japan, the Prime Minister stressed Britains determination to keep the Indo-Pacific region free and open.

WIth Beijing having deployed warships amid growing tensions over Taiwans future, Mr Sunak announced a new defence deal with Tokyo and highlighted the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine pact with Australia.

We share with Japan a belief in a free and open Indo-Pacific region, he said.

Its very important and we are increasing our engagement in the region to work with allies, like Australia, like Japan, to ensure that the Pacific region does remain free and open.

We dont want to see any change to the status quo by force or coercion.

The UK, like most other countries, does not officially recognise Taiwan, nor maintain formal diplomatic relations with the island.

But the British government says the dispute between Taiwan and the Peoples Republic of China should be resolved through dialogue, in line with the views of the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Sunak with reporters on the flight to Tokyo / PA

On the plane to Tokyo, Mr Sunak told reporters one of his priorities for the summit was ensuring we as G7 allies are aligned in our approach to protecting ourselves against the risks and challenges that China poses.

Mr Sunak unveiled a new agreement with Japan to foster closer defence, security and cyber ties amid growing concerns about the threat from China.

He committed to Britain deploying a naval battle fleet in the Indo-Pacific in 2025 and to double UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises.

He was also due to agree to to launch a partnership on semiconductors in order to reduce the reliance on Beijing for the supply of the essential microchips before attending the G7 summit.

The Hiroshima Accord will be formally agreed on Thursday between Mr Sunak and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida ahead of the meeting of world leaders in the city hit by the atom bomb.

The Prime Minister will share talks with world leaders including Joe Biden during the summit, which is expected to focus on economic security and support for Ukraine.

But he will not hold more personal bilateral talks with the US president, instead sitting down with Mr Kishida, Frances Emmanuel Macron and Indias Narendra Modi.

Mr Sunak will be joined by his wife Akshata Murty, as she joins the G7s partners programme in her first official foreign visit since they entered No 10.

Under the agreement with Japan, Mr Sunak will commit to deploy the Navys carrier Strike Group to the Indo-Pacific in 2025.

Including an aircraft carrier and fighter jets, the fleet will work with the Japanese military and other allies to defend peace and stability in the region.

A fourth UK-Japan vigilant isles military exercise taking place in Japan later this year is being billed as the biggest yet and will include around 170 UK service personnel.

The UK and Japan are also expected to commit to consulting each other on key regional and global security issues and to consider measures in response.

They will also launch the semiconductors partnership to make use of British expertise and Japans materials to bolster supply chains amid concerns over Chinese dominance.

A new cyber partnership will be announced to deepen co-operation, as will plans to accelerate use of clean energy.

Mr Sunak will also host a business reception in the Roppongi Hills of Tokyo, with the bosses of Toshiba, Nissan and Hitachi, as well as UK firm Octopus Energy, invited.

At the G7 summit starting on Friday, Mr Sunak will discuss shoring up support and holding Vladimir Putins Russia to account among his priorities.

The Prime Minister will reflect on the sombre reminder of the human cost of all-out war while visiting Hiroshima, where he will plant a tree to remember victims of the atom bomb.

Mr Sunaks official spokesman said: The visit is a crucial opportunity to build our relationship with Japan, already one of the UKs strongest and most important partners.

The summit is an opportunity for the G7 to demonstrate unified resolve and action in the face of threats from autocratic states - threats to global prosperity, security and sovereignty.
T he KS2 year 6 reading paper has been released early after complaints from parents and teachers over the difficulty of the questions.

Due to be published on Monday, the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) made the exam available due to public interest in the tests.

James Bowen, assistant general secretary at the school leaders union the NAHT, said: We are pleased that the Government will be looking at what happened with the reading test this year.

It is essential that test papers are accessible for the large majority of pupils. We need to remember that these are 10 and 11-year-olds and the last thing we need are papers that leave them feeling demotivated and dejected

We have had clear feedback from school leaders that this years paper was not pitched appropriately for a large proportion of pupils and even highly proficient readers struggled with it.

It is essential that test papers are accessible for the large majority of pupils. We need to remember that these are 10 and 11-year-olds and the last thing we need are papers that leave them feeling demotivated and dejected.

Sats, or Standard Assessment Tests, are used to measure childrens English and maths skills in year 2 and year 6, and consist of six papers which last between 30 minutes and an hour.

Last week, the NAHT expressed concerns over the Sats reading paper, saying it planned to raise the issue with exams regulator Ofqual and the STA.

In the test, children had one hour to answer 38 questions about three set texts.

The first was an extract from a story about friends who believed they had come across sheep rustlers  a word used in the text, which means someone who steals animals from farms.

The second was an interview with a bat expert about a bat colony in Texas, adapted from a 2016 New York Times article.

The final passage was taken from a book called The Rise Of Wolves, where a young boy called Innis hears a wolf in the remote rural area he lives in.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: Key Stage 2 assessments are an important way of identifying pupils strengths and where they may have fallen behind as they head to secondary school.

The Standards and Testing Agency (STA) independently develop these tests, with questions rigorously trialled with year 6 pupils and reviewed by education and inclusion experts to ensure appropriateness. Ofqual regulate all national curriculum assessments, which includes observing STAs processes.

The STA will continue to work with schools, children and parents to understand the views on this years papers.

Outlined below are some of the more unclear or harder questions from the paper.

 Question 2 asked why the main character in the story, Priya, was surprised to hear two vehicles drive by at nighttime. But the mark scheme specified pupils should not be rewarded for giving the midnight setting as the response  even though this would be a logical inference.

Question: Why did Priya find it surprising to hear two vehicles drive by?

Relevant extract: Priya was surprised, and now she was completely awake. They had only seen a couple of cars all day, and now two had come past together.

Answer: Because they hadnt heard that many cars drive by.

Mark scheme note: Do not accept reference only to it being late at night/very early in the morning, eg because it was the middle of the night.

 Question 8 asked pupils to choose the correct meaning of wriggled in the same passage.

Question: She wriggled back inside the tent. What does this tell you about how Priya got inside the tent? Tick one.

She ran quickly inside/She jumped through the flap/She had to squeeze in/She crept in quietly.

Answer: She had to squeeze in.

But online thesauruses by Merriam-Webster and Collins list creep as a synonym for wriggle, among others.

 Question 30 asks why Innis, the main character in the third story who has just heard a wolf, found it hard to trust his own senses.

But the passage does not actually suggest Innis distrusts his own senses. Rather the boy understands straight away there is a wolf, and tries to convince himself the wolf does not exist. He walks quickly to leave the area which is becoming dark.

Question: What two things made it hard for Innis to trust his own senses when he was looking for the wolf? Tick two.

Relevant extract: The howl pierced the darkening sky and made Innis Munro stop dead in his tracks. He pulled his hood down, listened intently. The only sound was his beating heart. That was a wolf, he thought. But it couldnt have been. There were no wolves on the island of Nin, no wolves in Scotland any more, not for almost 300 years. It was just a trick of the wind. He pressed on but kept his hood down. The afternoon light of early March was fading fast, snow was falling, and he was still a good half-mile from home. Innis walked faster, told himself it was not the howl that made him hurry but the gloomy sky and gathering snow.

The choices: How flat the land was/the fading light/how tired he felt/the weather/how fast he was walking

Answer: The fading light, the weather.
N orthern Irelands political leaders have been casting their ballots in the local government elections.

Voters are electing 462 councillors across the 11 councils in Northern Ireland.

It is the first electoral test for the parties since last years Assembly elections and takes place against the backdrop of the continued Stormont stalemate, with the powersharing institutions not operating as part of a DUP protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements.

Among those who voted early was Sinn Fein vice-president Michelle ONeill, who filled out her ballot paper at St Patricks primary school in her home village of Clonoe, Co Tyrone.

After voting, Ms ONeill spoke to some of her partys candidates in the area.

Naomi Long, leader of the Alliance Party, voted in east Belfast.

Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie voted in Craigavon, and SDLP leader Colum Eastwood was accompanied by his two young daughters when he voted at a school in Londonderry.

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson is expected to vote later in the day in Co Down.

Despite a dry and sunny start, early anecdotal evidence from count centres suggested a slow but steady stream of voters.

Mr Beattie said he thought more people would turn out to vote later in the day when they had finished work.

The poll was pushed back by two weeks due to the coronation of the King on May 6.

It has been a low-key election campaign, largely overshadowed by the visit to Northern Ireland of US President Joe Biden, commemorations of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and the coronation.

The 11 local councils are responsible for a number of services, including waste collection, street cleaning, local planning, leisure services and parks.

However, the elections may come to be seen as a measure of public feeling on larger political issues such as the ongoing suspension of powersharing and a budget crisis facing Stormont departments.

Sinn Fein, which currently has 105 councillors, is hoping to emulate last Mays Assembly election result and emerge as the largest party.

The republican party is fielding 162 candidates and has predicted it could make gains in areas where it has not previously had an elected representative.

The DUP is currently the largest party in local government with 122 councillors.

The unionist party is running 152 candidates this time.

Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has pledged that his party will stand firm over any return to Stormont until political and trading concerns around the Windsor Framework are addressed.

The cross-community Alliance Party made the largest gains in last years Assembly elections and will be hoping to increase the 53 councillors it currently has.

Alliance is running 110 candidates across the 11 council areas.

The Ulster Unionist Party is running 101 candidates. It suffered losses in both the last Assembly and local government elections. It currently has 75 councillors.

The nationalist SDLP has similarly seen its vote squeezed in recent elections. It has 59 councillors and is running 86 candidates.

The TUV has 46 candidates, the Green Party has 37, Aontu has 19 and People Before Profit has 16.

A number of smaller parties and independent candidates will also contest the election.

Belfast City Council is the largest local government area in Northern Ireland with 60 councillors to be elected.

No party has overall control but Sinn Fein is currently the largest party in Belfast City Hall.

Voters have been reminded to bring photographic ID to the polling station to enable them to vote.

The elections use the single transferable vote system where voters rank candidates in order of preference.

Counting across 11 sites will begin on Friday and is expected to continue into Saturday.
By Keita Nakamura, KYODO NEWS - May 19, 2023 - 00:05 | All, Japan, World, G7

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday agreed to closely cooperate to address Beijing's assertive behavior and step up bilateral cooperation on semiconductors and artificial intelligence amid increasing U.S.-China technology competition.

At their talks in Hiroshima a day before the Group of Seven summit opens, the two also reaffirmed the importance of strengthening the bilateral security alliance and recognized that the U.S. nuclear deterrence provided to Japan is "essential" for the security of the key Asian ally and the East Asian region, according to a Japanese official.

"The Japan-U.S. alliance is a cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region," Kishida said at the outset of the talks, while Biden said that "the whole world is safer" when the two allies, with shared values, stand together.

Both leaders affirmed their resolve to continue supporting Ukraine as it defends itself from Russia's invasion, and committed to work together to address regional security challenges, such as North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and "coercive behavior" by China that "runs counter to international law," the White House said in a press release.

Kishida and Biden also reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, according to the Japanese and U.S. governments, reflecting their concerns over China's pressure on Taiwan, a self-ruled island which Beijing views as a breakaway province to be united with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Highlighting their deepening cooperation on emerging technology, the two countries said they plan to launch new partnerships between U.S. and Japanese companies and universities in areas like quantum computing and semiconductors.

Kishida told Biden that Japan is considering setting up a hub to promote the launch of startups in Tokyo in 2028 at the earliest, with the cooperation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

Kishida also mentioned a factory in Hiroshima Prefecture run by U.S. chip giant Micron Technology Inc.'s Japanese unit as a "good example" of bilateral cooperation in the semiconductor field that should continue to be supported.

They also agreed on efforts to establish "diverse and resilient critical minerals supply chains," at a time when China's strong position on critical technologies and resources, such as semiconductors and rare earth materials, is causing concern.

Biden arrived in Hiroshima earlier in the day, becoming the country's second sitting leader after Barack Obama to visit the city devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb in the final stages of World War II in 1945.

The three-day G-7 talks from Friday come as a rift between the major democracies and the China-Russia camp widens, with Beijing making extensive territorial claims in the East and South China seas and its economic clout growing while Moscow continues its military aggression against Ukraine.

North Korea, meanwhile, has test-fired a spate of ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan since the beginning of last year, with speculation lingering that the country might conduct its first nuclear test since September 2017 and seventh overall.

With trilateral cooperation among the United States, Japan and South Korea key in dealing with regional security challenges, Biden commended Kishida on "his courageous efforts" to improve bilateral ties with South Korea, according to the White House.

Tokyo-Seoul relations have been rapidly improving after President Yoon Suk Yeol, who took office in May 2022 and takes a "future-oriented" approach toward Japan, announced in March a proposal for solving a wartime labor compensation row that had long soured bilateral ties.

On the fringes of the summit, Kishida and Biden are considering holding a trilateral meeting with Yoon, according to diplomatic sources. Yoon was invited to the G-7 gathering as a guest, and will join three outreach sessions.

At the G-7 summit, Kishida, who represents a Hiroshima constituency, and Biden will also discuss nuclear disarmament and economic security, among other issues, with their counterparts from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union.

Biden's trip to Japan had been overshadowed by the stalemate in domestic negotiations over the U.S. government's debt ceiling. He initially planned to visit Papua New Guinea and Australia as well as Japan but has cut the trip short to attend the G-7 summit only.
N urses in Northern Ireland will later hold a demonstration at Stormont to highlight the escalating crisis in the health service.

It comes as voters across Northern Ireland head to the polls for the council elections.

The Department of Health last week said officials are having to make decisions on spending reductions with great regret following the budget which was set by Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris in the absence of locally elected ministers.

Stormont remains effectively collapsed amid DUP protest action against the Northern Ireland Protocol, with the party urging the London government to act to address its concerns.

The health and social care system in Northern Ireland is being decimated

The expected cuts include reducing the number of nursing student places in Northern Ireland to 1,025.

Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will take part in the demonstration on Thursday.

RCN Northern Ireland director Rita Devlin said while the local government elections have no bearing on the issues they are raising, they want to highlight the need for all parties to work together in the interests of patients, staff and the people of Northern Ireland.

The health and social care system in Northern Ireland is being decimated, she said.

The financial position is desperate and it is impossible to progress transformation or other long-term measures that are urgently required.

The cuts to nurse training confirmed by the Department of Health will devastate patient care for years to come.

Ms Devlin said there are almost 3,000 unfilled nursing posts in the health service and a similar number in the independent sector.

Measures to address this, such as through safe staffing legislation, are not being progressed because of the absence of government, she said.

Falling out of pay parity with UK colleagues will have a further, negative, impact on the number of staff leaving the profession.

Unless there is immediate progress, RCN members in Northern Ireland will feel they have no alternative other than to return to the picket lines, even though this is the last thing they want to do.
T he boss of Burberry on Thursday warned that the tourist tax is diverting vital spending away from its London stores to Paris as a government minister broke ranks to urge Jeremy Hunt to scrap it.

Burberrys chief executive Jonathan Akeroyd said the Governments disappointing decision to end the 20 per cent VAT shopping refund for foreign visitors was costing the company dear.

Announcing annual financial results for Britains biggest luxury fashion brand, he said London stores  including the Regent Street flagship  were recovering from the pandemic much more slowly than outlets on the Continent.

Our tourists returning in London were up 19 per cent, but that does compare poorly to the rest of Europe. Our increase in Paris was in triple-digits, so London is still some way behind. In Milan it was 43 per cent, he said. Were disappointed that the Government chose to scrap it [VAT refunds for tourists]. It puts the UK at a competitive disadvantage.

Were fortunate that were a global business and we can manage that but we want to be celebrating the fact that were a British luxury brand. And when tourists come into the UK they will be coming to Burberry as one of the first shops they would go to and as a distinctively British luxury brand.

Burberry has 13 stores and concession outlets in the capital. Chief financial officer Ian Brimicombe added that even British shoppers were now preferring to do their spending on mainland Europe rather than in the UK.

At last months Business Connects conference, Burberry chairman Gerry Murphy accused Rishi Sunak of a spectacular own goal when, as chancellor, he ordered VAT free shopping for tourists to be axed at the start of 2021. Mr Murphy said this made Britain the least attractive shopping destination in Europe.

Meanwhile minister for London Paul Scully, who on Thursday announced he was entering the race to become the Conservatives mayoral candidate, became the first member of the Government to openly call for the tourist tax perk to be restored.

He told LBC: There are a few political areas where I struggle to hold the line. This is one. He said the scheme was misconstrued by some as being about luxury brands when it was a way to generate millions in income that would work its way through the system to benefit many Londoners, from taxi drivers to restaurant chefs.

Mr Scully revealed he had asked the Treasury to carry out dynamic modelling research to better illustrate the benefits of the scheme.

The PM and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt are coming under increasing pressure from their own MPs to rethink the decision on VAT. One senior Tory source said: He (the Chancellor) could be persuaded to do it [reverse the policy] if it could be shown to be tax neutral or better. The Treasury has argued that keeping VAT free shopping after Brexit when it would have been extended to EU shoppers, would have cost 2 billion a year in lost tax revenue by 2026.

However, a study by forecaster Oxford Economics concluded that extra spending generated by scrapping the tourist tax could give the economy a 4.1 billion GDP boost.

Downing Street said this week that Mr Sunak was ready to listen calls from business chiefs to axe the tax. The PMs official spokesman said: We are always happy to listen to the sector about their concerns and obviously we will respond accordingly.
The former party leader was blocked from standing as a Labour MP by Sir Keir Starmer earlier this year, and currently sits as an independent.

But on Wednesday night, local party delegates in Islington North passed a motion saying it was their democratic right to select the candidate they wanted to fight the next election.

The motion, which thanked Mr Corbyn, 73, for his commitment and service to the people, was passed by 98 per cent of attendees at the local partys monthly general meeting.

Following the vote, Mr Corbyn said: I love my job and I want to carry on doing it.

He told the Standard: Today Im focused on doing what Ive done for the past 40 years. Campaigning to end poverty, homelessness and inequality on behalf of the people of Islington North.

A Labour Party source said the vote held no weight at all.

The Islington North MP was suspended in 2020. He has since served as an independent MP, but has remained a member of the Labour Party. This means he has continued to attend local party meetings in Islington North.

Heres how Labours ex-leader, who was brought to power by the partys left wing in 2015, had the whip removed.

Why was Jeremy Corbyn suspended from the Labour Party?

A report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission published in October 2020 found that under Mr Corbyns leadership, the Labour Party breached the Equality Act when it failed to effectively address antisemitism within it. It identified cases of harassment, political interference into complaints, and inadequate training to deal with antisemitism.

Mr Starmer condemned the findings and apologised to the Jewish community. But he did not initially take disciplinary action against Mr Corbyn, who led the Labour Party between September 2015 and April 2020. He said instead that the report indicated a collective failure of leadership.

Responding to the report, Mr Corbyn said at the time: One anti-semite is one too many, but the scale of the problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents inside and outside the party, as well as by much of the media.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and Jeremy Corbyn in happier times in 2019 / PA

He was dismissed shortly afterwards, with a party spokesman saying: In light of his comments made today and his failure to retract them subsequently, the Labour Party has suspended Jeremy Corbyn pending investigation.

Mr Corbyn criticised the decision, stating that political intervention was behind his removal.

Defending his comments, he added: Ive explained what Ive said. Ive explained what I meant by it. I am not diminishing or minimising the issue of antisemitism. It is serious. It is real. It does exist.

His allies spoke out against his suspension. John McDonnell, who served as shadow chancellor under Mr Corbyns leadership, said it was profoundly wrong. Len McCluskey, leader of the Unite union, described it as an act of grave injustice that could cause chaos.

There is evidence that Labour Party infighting was to blame for Mr Corbyns reputation being smeared. Vested interests in the media also apparently sought to paint the lifelong anti-racism campaigner as an antisemite.

In March 2023, and as reported by the BBC, Labours governing body voted to block Mr Corbyn from standing as a Labour candidate at the next election.

The National Executive Committee (NEC) voted 22 to 12 to approve a motion from Mr Starmer to prevent Labour endorsing Mr Corbyn. There is no right of appeal.

Why was Jeremy Corbyn reinstated without the whip?

As reported by the Guardian, his reinstatement without the whip came in November 2020, 19 days after his suspension. This followed an NEC ruling.

The Jewish Labour Movement (JVM) criticised the decision, saying a factionally aligned political committee was behind it.

Mr Starmer announced he would set up a new independent disciplinary process as soon as possible. He said he would not be restoring the whip to Mr Corbyn while the Jewish community lacked trust and confidence in the party.

In January 2022, an attempt by the committee to reinstate him as a Labour MP was voted down.
A south London woman may have been mauled to death by her own pet dog as she walked a pack of dogs in Surrey.

Natasha Johnstons American Bully XL was among eight animals the 28-year-old was walking when she was attacked.

The Croydon woman died after suffering multiple penetrating bites to the neck, according to her inquest.

The bulldog was put to sleep, Surrey Police said after a recommendation from a forensic veterinary report.

Police at Gravelly Hill in Caterham, Surrey (Yui Mok/PA) / PA Wire

The other seven dogs were placed in private kennels since the fatal attack on January 12.

Only two Dachshunds have been returned to their owner, police said.

A spokesman for Surrey Police said: We have now received a forensic veterinary report and this has been shared with the Surrey Coroner.

As a result of this, two dogs (both Dachshunds) were returned to their owner at the end of April and one dog, which belonged to the deceased, has been put to sleep.

The five other dogs remain in private kennels and we are speaking with their owners regarding recommendations from the report.

We believe the breed of dog which was put to sleep was an American Bully XL.

Natasha Johnston suffered shock and haemorrhage including a wound to her left jugular vein as she walked in woodland in Gravelly Hill, Caterham, Surrey Coroners Court was told.

Surrey Police said they had closed their investigation into her death, with no prosecutions being brought against any individuals.

A friend of Ms Johnston from her childhood home of Ryde on the Isle of Wight, Jo Butchers, told the Mail on Sunday: Long countryside walks with the dogs were her thing.

She did a lot of dog walking here, not as a professional but with her own dogs and those of friends.

Then she moved away and that became her job in London. She grew up with dogs, so she always loved them.

A childhood friend, who is a mum of one, added: Were absolutely devastated. She was so caring, a beautiful girl inside and out.

She was always bubbly when she used to come to meet my girl. They used to go out together and enjoy their lives as young teenagers.

A full inquest is set to be heard next month at Woking Coroners Court.
T he Princess of Wales has praised as inspirational a new anxiety toolkit developed by a leading mental health charity after collaborating with schoolchildren.

Kate visited the Anna Freud Centre to learn about the project, launched on Thursday by the research and development organisation, and meet some of the children who helped develop the initiative.

She wore a green Suzannah tea dress after the Mental Health Foundation encouraged people to dress in clothes of the same colour on Thursday to raise awareness about mental wellbeing, as the date fell within Mental Health Awareness Week.

When the princess went on a brief walkabout after leaving the institution, based in central London, she met a group of children and their parents outside and told them: Im leaving feeling inspired  Ive learned lots from young people.

The princess then sat down with pupils from St Richards Catholic College, Bexhill on Sea, and was shown a range of activity cards that provide practical advice to youngsters who may be affected by issues like anxiety.

The children helped to develop Anna Freuds lets talk about anxiety new animation and teacher toolkit, which typifies the charitys vision to empower young people with the knowledge, confidence and skills to manage their mental wellbeing.

When one of the pupils mentioned her interest in sport, Kate replied: So much in sport is mental as well as the physical skills and abilities, to have these sort of skills and these sorts of things in your toolbox will really help you, probably not just in school but home life and school life and other things as well.

Kate also joined a series of round table discussions with health professionals and academics from Anna Freud, which Kate supports as patron, and those from the wider community with experience of mental health.

Among the group was Tom Chapman, a Torquay-based barber who founded the Lions Barber Collective in 2015, a group of international barbers who raise awareness about mental health and provide training for barbers to engage with customers at a low ebb.

He said after the visit: I found out recently, it seems 2% of people who end their life have had no contact with mental health services in the 12 months before they died.

I think that theyve probably had a haircut or beauty treatment or gone to the pub  its about providing as many opportunities as possible for these conversations and interventions to happen.

Kate later filmed a short video which was posted on the Waleses Instagram channel, in which she stressed the importance of talking about both good and difficult emotions because we all have them.

The princess, who took a copy of the toolkit home with her, said: Ive had the most inspiring morning with the Anna Freud Centre discussing all things mental health.

It is so important that we all talk about our feelings and emotions. the good ones and the more difficult ones too, because we all have them.

The princess said the toolkit aims to help young people understand, normalise and manage their feelings around anxiety.

She described it as a fantastic resource and one which Im sure we could all use to help support our mental health.
R MT members working for 14 train companies will stage a fresh strike on June 2 in the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions, the union has announced.

The strike on June 2 will see 20,000 railway workers in catering, train managers and station staff take action, affecting train services throughout the country.

It means there will be three rail strikes within four days with Aslef train drivers walking out on 31 May and 3 June, the day of the FA Cup final and Epsom Derby.

In a statement, the RMT said the Rail Delivery Groups previous pay offer and associated conditions were unacceptable.

Despite contact between the parties since the strike on 13 May, no new proposals have been formulated for the RMT to consider, the union tweeted on Thursday.

The day of action takes the total length of the RMTs dispute with the Government to a year and comes as the National Education Union (NEU) said teachers would strike in July if their pay dispute is not resolved by mid-June.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: The Government is once again not allowing the Rail Delivery Group to make an improved offer that we can consider.

Therefore, we have to pursue our industrial campaign to win a negotiated settlement on jobs, pay and conditions.

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Ministers cannot just wish this dispute away.

They underestimate the strength of feeling our members, who have just given us a new six-month strike mandate, continue to support the campaign and the action and are determined to see this through until we get an acceptable resolution.

The Government now needs to unlock the RDG and allow them to make an offer that can be put to a referendum of our members.

An RDG spokesperson said: In recent discussions with the RMT, we have continued to stand by the fair, industry-level dispute resolution proposal agreed line by line with their negotiating team, which would have resolved this dispute and given our lowest-paid staff a rise of up to 13 per cent.

By calling more strike action, the RMT leadership have chosen to prolong this dispute without ever giving their members a chance to have a say on their own offer.

Instead, they will be subject to yet more lost pay through industrial action, customers will suffer more disruption, and the industry will continue to suffer huge damage at a time when the railway is taking more than its fair share from taxpayers to keep trains running post-Covid.

We remain open and willing to engage in national-level talks so that we can secure a pay rise for our people and the long-term future of an industry vital to Britain's economy.

Aslef, which represents train drivers, ground the rail network to a halt on Friday, May 12, with its last strike.

A walkout by the RMT last Saturday also disrupted services during the Eurovision song contest, which was held in Liverpool.

Aslefs general secretary Mick Whelan said there had been no meetings with the Government since early January despite continuing deadlock over the pay row.

The union has described an offer of an 8 per cent wage rise over two years as risible.
T he fate of four children missing for more than two weeks after a plane crash in southern Colombia is unclear after President Gustavo Petro deleted a Tweet saying they had been found alive and then said the search was still on.

The children have been missing since May 1, when the plane they were traveling in crashed in thick jungle.

On Wednesday, Petro said in the now-deleted Twitter message that the children, aged 13, 9 and 4, as well as an 11-month-old baby, had been found alive thanks to arduous searching by members of the armed forces.

He said: I have decided to delete the tweet because it hasnt been possible to confirm the information provided by the (child welfare agency), Im sorry it happened. At this time theres no other priority other than moving forward with the search until you find them. The childrens lives are the most important.

The plane - a Cessna 206 - was carrying seven people on a route between Araracuara, in Amazonas province, and San Jose del Guaviare, a city in Guaviare province, when it issued a mayday alert due to engine failure in the early hours of May 1.

Three adults, including the pilot, died as a result of the crash and their bodies were found inside the plane.Preliminary information from the civil aviation authority, which coordinated the rescue efforts, suggests the children escaped the plane and set off into the rainforest to find help.

Rescuers, supported by search dogs, had previously found discarded fruit the children ate to survive, as well as improvised shelters made with jungle vegetation.Airplanes and helicopters from both Colombias army and air force participated in the rescue operations.
Press Release

May 18, 2023 Opening Statement of Senator Cynthia A. Villar during the Committee Hearing on Senate Bill No. 1963 or the Anti- Agricultural Smuggling Court

18 May 2023, Thursday, 10:00 A.M.

Sen. Recto Room The bills that we are tackling today will amend certain sections of Republic Act No. 10845 Otherwise known as the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016, to include the acts of hoarding, profiteering and cartel of agricultural products as economic sabotage. In 2016, the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016, was enacted for the purpose of protecting local agricultural industry and farmers from agricultural smuggling. However, we could barely feel the positive impact of this law. Early this year, the Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform conducted a hearing in aid of legislation on the soaring market price of onions. The committee found out that cartels over import onions thereby fixing the price of local onions. The hoarders, in collusion, store these supplies in the cold storage to create a shortage so that the price would go up. A clear scenario of price manipulation. We were also baffled to find out that with all the issues on smuggling, hoarding, profiteering and cartel of agricultural products, no one has ever been convicted since the law was passed in 2016. Through that hearing, this Committee was able to come up with the Committee Report No. 25 on the Soaring Market Prices of Local Onions, recommending the following: 1. Amendment of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016 to include profiteering, hoarding and smuggling in its list of crimes involving economic sabotage; 2. Creation and establishment of the "Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Task Force" directly under the control and supervision of the Office of the President to serve and protect the entire agricultural sector; 3. Creation of an Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Court that shall try and hear the cases in violation of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, which is the subject matter of Senate Bill No. 1963 which I also authored and is now lodged in the Senate Committee on Justice; and 4. Creation of a Special Team of Prosecutors from the Department of Justice that shall be assigned to assist the Task Force in the expeditious prosecution of criminal and other cases involving economic sabotage under this law. Thus, the filing of Senate Bill No. 1962 which we are hearing today. According to a report of the Department of Agriculture - Inspectorate and Enforcement, a total of 2.1 Billion Pesos smuggled agri-fishery commodities were seized and a total of 42 cases were filed for violating Republic Act No. 10845 or Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016 and the Republic Act No. 10611 or the Food Safety Act of 2013, from October 19, 2022 to April 5, 2023. That is just for 6 months. The top agricultural commodities seized were sugar and onions. The funds that the government should have collected from these duties and taxes could have been used to fund agriculture programs for farmers to improve their productivity and income, public services and infrastructure projects. In the Committee Hearing on livestock industry, it was found out that we are importing more than our country's demand instead of just supporting through importation the deficiency in the local production. According to the records of the Bureau of Animal Industry, for 2022, the highest meat importation accounts for pork with 710,362 MT, followed by chicken with 411,069 MT and beef with 186,152 MT. However, based on PSA data, the demand on pork has been in a downward trend since 2019, from 15.67 kg/year per capita, to 14.17 kg/year per capita for 2021, but it gain increased to 15 kg/year per capita in 2022. Multiplying these data to the total population of the Philippines, it is clear that there is a surplus of supply of pork brought by imported pork products. Based on PSA data, the demand on pork has been in a downward trend since 2019, from 15.67 kg/year per capita, to 14.17 kg/year per capita for 2021, but it again increased to 15 kg/year per capita in 2022. Multiplying these data to the total population of the Philippines, it is clear that there is a surplus of supply of Pork brought by the imported pork products. For chicken, total production was estimated at 1.87 Million Metric tons of live weight while demand is at 1.62 vs. total importation of 485,861 Metric Tons. The total production for Beef in 2022 estimated at 222,720 MT while demand is 270,408 MT. Imported Beef reached an estimate of 187,200 for the year. For dairy, production is at only 31,160 tons while the demand is 3.12 MMT our import reached 3,584 MMT. We only produce one percent of our demand vs. 99% imports. For onion, total production in 2022, 238.56 thousand metric tons, demand is 270.41 (thousand) Metric tons, vs import of 29.7 thousand metric tons but with stored volume of onions of 53,202 metric tons. There an indicative surplus of 51.05 thousand metric tons 2022. With all the issues on smuggling, hoarding, profiteering and cartel of agricultural products, it is baffling that no one is prosecuted. It is high time to amend the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling law. The issue is not only about smuggling but also hoarding, profiteering and cartel. Thus, hoarding, profiteering and cartel shall also be considered as economic sabotage under this amendatory law. Thank you.
KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 23:00 | All, Japan, World

The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

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Japan, U.S. leaders agree to beef up advanced technology cooperation

HIROSHIMA - Japan and the United States on Thursday agreed to step up their cooperation related to cutting-edge technologies such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence, an area where U.S.-China competition is intensifying.

At their talks in Hiroshima a day before the Group of Seven summit opens, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden also reaffirmed the importance of strengthening the bilateral alliance's deterrence amid China's growing military assertiveness and North Korea's missile and nuclear development programs.

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Japan PM eager to aim for nuclear-free world at G-7 Hiroshima summit

HIROSHIMA - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged Thursday to pave the way for achieving his cherished goal of a world without nuclear weapons at the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, a day before it opens in the western city devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb in 1945.

Earlier in the day, Kishida arrived in Hiroshima Prefecture, with stringent security in place, to host the first G-7 summit in Japan in seven years, following the one held in the Ise-Shima area of Mie Prefecture, central Japan, under then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

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Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke in hospital, suicide attempt suspected

TOKYO - Popular Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke was taken to hospital Thursday after his manager found him collapsed along with his parents at their home in Tokyo, an investigative source said, adding he is believed to have attempted suicide.

The 47-year-old actor's life was not in danger, the source said, although his mother, 75, was confirmed to have died at the home in Tokyo's Meguro Ward and his 76-year-old father Ichikawa Danshiro, also a Kabuki actor, was confirmed dead after reaching the hospital.

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S. Korean President Yoon to meet Japan's Kishida in Hiroshima on Sun.

SEOUL - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Sunday on the sidelines of a Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, the presidential office said on Thursday, as bilateral relations continue to thaw.

Yoon has been invited to the three-day G-7 summit, starting Friday, as a guest. He and Kishida are expected to discuss various issues, such as enhancing security cooperation in the face of North Korea's missile development and other challenges in Asia.

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2 wounded Ukraine army soldiers to be treated in Japan next month

TOKYO - Two injured soldiers of Ukraine's armed forces will receive medical treatment in a hospital in Japan beginning next month, the Japanese defense minister said Thursday, as the country aims to show a stronger commitment to Ukraine ahead of the Group of Seven summit.

The two men in their 20s will undergo rehabilitation treatment at the Self-Defense Forces Central Hospital in Tokyo after one lost a leg while another lost both legs in Ukraine's ongoing battle to defend itself against Russia, according to the Defense Ministry.

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Biden not to issue apology in Hiroshima for U.S. use of atomic bomb

HIROSHIMA - U.S. President Joe Biden has no plans to issue an apology on behalf of the United States for the use of an atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945 during his trip to the city in western Japan for the Group of Seven summit, according to his national security adviser.

Biden, as one of the G-7 leaders, will "pay respects both for history but also respects" to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima as a lawmaker, Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One before arriving in Japan on Thursday.

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A-bomb survivor Thurlow urges G-7 to pledge no nuke use in summit

HIROSHIMA - Atomic bomb survivor Setsuko Thurlow has called on leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations to at least pledge "not to use nuclear weapons" when they hold a summit from Friday in the world's first city to suffer a nuclear attack.

Thurlow said in an interview with Kyodo News on Wednesday that the leaders, who are expected to tour the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum that commemorates those lost to the bombing, should also "reflect as individuals, or as human beings, on the terrible suffering that took place" and have what they learn reflected in their nuclear policies.

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Sony looks to list financial unit to accelerate entertainment push

TOKYO - Sony Group Corp. said Thursday it is considering a spinoff and listing of Sony Financial Group Inc. in the next few years as the Japanese conglomerate has been stepping up efforts to better focus on its entertainment and chip businesses.

Sony plans to retain a stake of around 20 percent in the financial unit, which includes a bank and a life insurance firm, after the listing, the group's president, Hiroki Totoki, said at a press conference outlining its business strategy for fiscal 2023.

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Video: Kyoto's Aoi Festival parade returns
H ong Kongs leader has defended pulling politically sensitive books from the citys public libraries, saying residents will not be recommended titles featuring bad ideologies.

Books referencing the 1989 Tiannmen Square massacre, which saw troops in Beijing violently crack down on pro-democracy protesters, have been removed from library shelves without a clear explanation, along with others written by pro-democracy politicians and political commentators.

Critics say the move will further undermine Hong Kongs reputation for having free access to information and freedom of expression.

But Hong Kongs chief executive John Lee defended the sweeping law at the legislature, saying the citys freedoms are protected by the its constitution.

The books we offer for residents to borrow are those that we recommend, he said.

We would never recommend books that are illegal and violate copyrights. We would never recommend those that we deem to be featuring bad ideologies.

Mr Lee did not elaborate on what are considered bad ideologies, but said residents can still find such books to read elsewhere.

The removal of the books from libraries was reported by local media outlets after a Chinese newspaper stopped publishing works by the citys most prominent political cartoonist on Sunday, following government complaints.

Comic strip collections by the cartoonist were also no longer available in public libraries.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to Chinas rule in 1997, promising to retain its western-style freedoms.

But the citys cultural and creative sectors said freedoms have shrunk since Beijing imposed a tough national security law in 2020, following massive pro-democracy protests the previous year.

Since the sweeping law was enacted, the citys art and media communities have learned to be wary of crossing vaguely defined red lines in producing art and other content that might be perceived as challenging the Chinese Communist Partys control.

The group that formerly organised an annual vigil in Hong Kong in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law.

The vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the event on Chinese soil and was attended by massive crowds until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures.

Supporters say the groups closure shows the freedoms and autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 are diminishing.
P olice divers have launched an underwater search of Barcelona port for missing X Factor star Levi Davis.

The 24-year-old former Bath player and Celebrity X Factor contestant was last seen at The Old Irish Pub in Barcelona on October 29.

It came after it emerged cruise ship staff reported trying to save a man who was in the water near Barcelonas commercial port.

Daviss passport was also found nearby.

Police scan Barcelona Port for a sign of Levi Davis / Mossos

Weeks after Levis family complained about the slow response of Spanish authorities, with the search tied up in bureaucracy, divers launched the search of the port of Barcelona and the nearby Llobregat Delta.

A spokesman for the Mossos dEsquadra regional police force said: The searches began this morning about 10am.

Getty Images

We cannot say at this stage how long they will continue. Theyre underwater searches involving divers.

The police force added in a tweet confirming the search for Levi: We continue investigating the disappearance of a man on October 29.

We have mobilised the Maritime Police and the Aquatic Unit to search the port of Barcelona and the Llobregat Delta.

The case continues to be investigated.

Local reports say police are expected to conduct searches over several days.

A spokesman for the force added: The search is being conducted by the Mossos Maritime Police and the Aquatic Unit. Its an underwater search with the Maritime Police in the boats and the divers involved belonging to the Aquatic Unit.

The search is taking place because of the possibility this person could have fallen into the water, from information received following his disappearance, around the time he was last seen.

Civil Guard and Coastguards carried out an initial exhaustive search but found no sign of him.

The possibility objects or clothes belonging to the man who disappeared were not ruled out and today in the two areas we are mentioning this new search has begun as part of the investigation.

The objective is to find any evidence that might support the theory of a possible accidental death by drowning.

The Llobregat Delta is in the southern part of Barcelona where the movement of the waters mean investigators think there could be something in that area.

The search began at 10am local time but I dont have information at this stage about how long it will last. We are talking about an underwater search. Court of Investigation Number Seven which is the court overseeing this investigation is aware of todays search.

Levi Daviss mother Julie Davis making a plea for her son to come home in November / ITV/Good Morning Britain

It is thought that Levi walked back down La Rambla and entered the commercial port with his phone last pinging a mast at the far end of the port closest to the sea entrance.

After meeting Spanish police the family were told four cruise staff saw a man matching Levis description in the water shouting for help in English at 6.30am on October 30.

In a statement, they said: A life jacket was thrown from the ship and emergency sea and air rescue services searched the area but they were unable to find him.

His family criticised slow Spanish police with Levis mother Julie Davis telling The Sun: Its disheartening when you ask police questions and get very limited feedback.

Its been a total emotional rollercoaster.

The way the evidence is pointing isnt good but without a body, theres just no way of knowing whats happened.
P olice in New York were on Thursday investigating the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs near catastrophic car chase with paparazzi as a row broke out over the incident.

It was said to have happened after Prince Harry, Meghan and her mother Doria Ragland attended an awards ceremony on Tuesday night. A spokesman for the couple claimed a relentless pursuit involving photographers in half a dozen blacked-out vehicles lasted for more than two hours and there were multiple near collisions involving other drivers, pedestrians and two NYPD officers.

While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyones safety, they added.

New York mayor Eric Adams described the actions of the paparazzi as reckless and irresponsible, while the couples press secretary Ashley Hansen added: I have never experienced their vulnerability as much as I did. They were incredibly shaken up.

But taxi driver Sukhcharn Singh, 37, who drove Harry and Meghan for part of the journey, didnt agree with the assessment that it was near catastrophic. He said he never felt in danger and shrugged off suggestions the episode was like a movie car chase.

Mr Singh, who drives a yellow cab, said: I think thats all, you know, exaggerated and stuff like that. So dont read too much into that. New York City is the safest place to be. Theres police stations, cops on every corner, so theres no reason to be afraid in New York.

Taxi driver Sukhcharn Singh drove Harry and Meghan for part of the journey / AP

Mr Singh, who said he was tipped $50 (40) for the 10-minute drive, added that the pair seemed nervous while they were in his vehicle.

It is understood Harry, Meghan and Ms Ragland were staying at a private residence and did not want to compromise the security of their friends home. The trio had flown to New York for Meghan, 41, to attend an awards ceremony in Manhattan. She received the Women of Vision Award recognising her global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls.

It was Harry and Meghans first public appearance together since the duchesss absence at the Coronation earlier this month. The prince, 38, is currently involved in two High Court battles with the Home Office over its decision to deny them police bodyguards after they stepped back from royal duties.

Two New York police officers also played down the incident, describing it as a bit chaotic. Officers said the Sussexes had been driven around for about an hour and 15 minutes as they were followed by paparazzi before they were dropped off at the New York City police departments 19th precinct. They were picked up by Mr Singh who was waved down by one of the royals security guards.

Celebrity news agency Backgrid that filmed Harry and Meghan also disputed their version of events, claiming it was an SUV in the couples security detail that drove recklessly.

A paparazzi driver reportedly involved in the chase told ITVs Good Morning Britain: Their driver was making it a catastrophic experience... if they were going 80mph, I would probably have been going 20mph behind them and hoping to keep sight of them. So if it was dangerous and catastrophic, it was more than likely based on the person that was driving.

Omid Scobie, author of a biography on Harry and Meghan, told the BBC: When you read the statement you assume its some sort of Fast and the Furious situation in the middle of New York City, which we know crawls at a snails pace. It was sort of a game of cat and mouse, sometimes their car sat in traffic surrounded by photographers on bikes and cars behind them, and then there were moments when the road was clear and the car went up to 80 mph trying to lose some of the people that were following them.

New York police are investigating the circumstances but mayor Mr Adams said he would find it hard to believe the pursuit lasted two hours. He added it would be horrific for Harry to be involved in an accident similar to the one that killed his mother Diana in 1997.

A Palace spokesman declined to comment, and it is understood no senior royals have contacted the couple.
T wo nations that weren't even invited to Hiroshima this year  China and Russia  will cast the biggest shadows at the Group of Seven (G7) leaders' summit at the weekend.

The leaders started to arrive on Thursday, in preparation for a visit to the city's Peace Memorial Museum on Saturday, May 20.

The museum has exhibits that illustrate the scope of the tragedy that developed after the US dropped a nuclear bomb on Japan on the morning of August 6, 1945, killing 140,000 people by the end of the year.

Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his goal for "a world without nuclear weapons" in the lead-up to the summit, but activists point out that Japan, a country under the US nuclear umbrella, has yet to ratify a 2021 UN treaty outlawing the possession and use of nuclear weapons.

Regarding the group's scheduled visit to the peace museum, Kishida said: I believe the first step towards any nuclear disarmament effort is to provide a first-hand experience of the consequences of the atomic bombing and to firmly convey the reality.

Here is everything you need to know, from what it is, to where its being held, and what you can expect.

What is the G7 summit?

The G7 is an organisation of the worlds seven largest so-called advanced economies, which dominate global trade and the international financial system. This list includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Russia joined the group in 1998, but was excluded in 2014 for its takeover of Crimea.

Every year since the 1970s, the leaders of these countries have gathered to discuss the most pressing global issues, with this year marking the 47th meeting of the G7.

At the end of the summit, a statement of intent is issued, outlining whats been agreed.

Where is the G7 summit held?

Each year, each member country of the G7 takes its turn to host the G7 summit and take on the year-long presidency.

This year, Japan is hosting the G7 summit and is taking over the presidency, with the event taking place from May 19 to 21, at Hiroshima.

Does the G7 have any power?

The G7 cant pass any laws, because it is made up of separate nations with their own democratic processes; however, some of its past decisions have had global effects.

For example, the G7 played a crucial role in setting up a global fund to fight malaria and Aids in 2002 and, ahead of the 2021 G7 summit in the UK, the G7 finance ministers agreed to make multinational companies pay more tax.

It also provided financial aid to developing countries as well as addressing climate change.

Who is attending the 2023 G7 summit?

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, United Kingdom

Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Germany

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada

President Emmanuel Macron, France

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Italy

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Japan

President Joe Biden, United States

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission

Charles Michel, President of the European Council

Invited countries include:

Australia

Brazil

Comoros (African Union Chair)

Cook Islands

India

Indonesia

Korea

Vietnam

What are the key issues for the G7 summit 2023?

During the summit in Hiroshima, the location of the first atomic bombing in history, Kishida aims to draw attention to the dangers of nuclear proliferation.

The close proximity of North Korea, its recent missile tests, and Russia's threats to use nuclear weapons in its conflict with Ukraine have all contributed to the possibility of another nuclear attack. By 2035, China's nuclear arsenal is expected to have increased from an estimated 400 warheads to 1,500, according to projections from the Pentagon.

Leaders will be highly concerned about the health of the global economy, price increases, and the US debt limit crisis.
D avid Beckham said he was very excited to meet the King at a prestigious fashion award ceremony in London, claiming he is a huge royalist.

The former England captain presented Charles with a jar of honey, made in his own beehive, claiming it would be rude not to at the event hosted by the British Fashion Council.

He added that he had been a secret fan of fashion for years and always tried to dress different as a youngster.

The King visited the 180 Studios art gallery in the Strand to present the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design.

Before meeting him, Beckham, ambassadorial president at the BFC, said: Obviously its been a big few weeks for His Majesty and the family but we are all very excited about being here today.

PA

It will be a pleasure to meet our King today. I have always been a huge royalist and I was brought up to love the royal family.

Fashion secretly has been a part of my life for many years  even when I was a young boy I always liked to dress in things that were different and different hair styles as youve seen over the years.

He added that it was a huge honour to encourage and inspire young designers who benefit from the BFCs scholarships.

Being part of the BFC over the years has been a huge honour for me to help encourage, inspire and inform these incredible creatives, especially over the last couple of years, he said.

Its been so challenging for them in their industry, so to see them adapt proves how inspired they are.

After the event, Beckham embraced the awards recipient, Sierra Leone designer Foday Dumbuya, in his design workshop, saying he had made his first Unicef trip to the country in 2008 as it really needs a spotlight.

Mr Dumbuya, who moved to London at the age of 12, said he shared a common ground with Beckham as he hoped to inspire a generation of boys from Sierra Leone after the country was torn apart by war in the late 90s.

PA

He said: As a kid, I remember him coming to Sierra Leone, the way that ignited kids who loved David Beckham.

It put Sierra Leone on the map, so we do have a common ground in a way.

As a global ambassador he inspires people to think they can do anything. For that young kid watching him on TV, he gets to connect to him and believe he can achieve whatever hes achieved.

It is telling stories about London, Sierra Leone, West Africa  for me its about how we bring those stories to life.

In a tearful speech after receiving his award, Mr Dumbuya said: Things like this dont happen to people where Im from.

This award is for all young British and Sierra Leone kids who continue to dream  please dont stop dreaming.
A museum in Glasgow will offer the final chance to see an exhibition showcasing fashion designer Dame Mary Quant, often credited with pioneering the mini skirt and super-high hemlines.

Opening at the Kelvingrove Museum on Saturday, the retrospective Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary includes more than 100 garments, accessories, cosmetics and photographs from the V&A Museums extensive collection.

It will be the last stop of the touring exhibition before the pieces are put back into storage.

Dame Mary died last month aged 93, leaving behind a lasting legacy after she blazed a trail in womens fashion in the 1960s.

The exhibition focuses on the period between 1955 and 1975 when Dame Mary revolutionised womens fashion with subversive and playful designs for a younger generation.

Dame Mary had a close relationship with Scotland, having visited on several occasions to look at different fabrics such as Harris Tweed and the Paisley pattern  both of which featured widely in her designs.

Visitors can expect highlights including the wet collection of PVC rainwear that featured on an edition of Vogue, a collection of Daisy dolls created in Scotland by Lanarkshire-based Model Toys, and the dress Dame Mary wore when receiving her OBE in 1966.

Heather Tilbury Phillips, former director of Mary Quant Limited and an adviser to the V&A on the exhibition, said: I know how delighted Mary would have been that the exhibition is here at this wonderful venue in Glasgow.

We very much enjoyed several highly successful and inspirational trips to Scotland together visiting fabric and knitwear producers and leading retailers.

Harris Tweed, Paisley designs, plaids, definitive checks and tartans in Viyella often featured strongly in her collections, and the vibrant fashion shows and cosmetic launches were always such fun, stimulating many happy memories.

Jenny Lister, co-curator of Mary Quant at the V&A, added: Im thrilled that we can present another chance to see the Mary Quant exhibition in Scotland and Im so looking forward to seeing the iconic Mary Quant dresses on display in the amazing building at Kelvingrove.

It will be the perfect way of celebrating Dame Marys magnificent contribution to fashion.

The exhibition will run until October 22 and tickets cost 8.50, concession 6.50, and is free for children under 12.
D ame Prue Leith has addressed the affair she had with her first husband Rayne Kruger.

The Great British Bake Off judge, 83, and author Kruger were married from 1974 to 2002 before he died at the age of 80.

However their long marriage started out as an affair which the South African restaurateur detailed in her 2012 autobiography, Relish.

Leith was drawn on the subject while speaking to Kate Thornton on her White Wine Question Time podcast and asked why she had decided to disclose the affair.

The TV personality explained she had no desire to be discreet about her personal life, saying: If there are things in your life youre not exactly proud of, but they would be interesting to the reader, you should try to tackle them.

Rayne Kruger pictured far right in 1956 / Getty Images

I thought, You know, to skip it when Rayne was the most important person in my life ... how could I not tell his whole story? So I did.

Leith worked with Rayne for years, who at the time was married to the late South African actress Nan Munro, who awkwardly, was Leiths mothers best friend.

I never asked him to leave his wife because I was very happy, she said of their affair.

I had none of the duties of life and all of the pleasures of somebody who loved me. I wasnt pressing for marriage. We did have 13 secret years and nobody ever guessed because we were discreet.

But it was easier in a way because he was a family friend, chairman of my company, and hed helped me enormously and everyone knew we were great friends.

Prue Leith pictured with the two children she shared with Rayne Kruger / Getty Images

Kruger eventually did leave his wife, who was 17 years his senior and already had three children before they married, and began a life with Leith. They went on to have two children together.

Despite the affair, they remained on good terms with Munro, who even forgave them for the affair.

Prue hailed her as an extraordinary woman.

Leith and Kruger first met in 1961 when she had left home in South Africa to study at the Sorbonne in Paris and her mother sent her to England for the summer to stay with her best friend Munro and Kruger.

They were a fascinating, intelligent, generous and loving family, she wrote in her book, adding that Nan, a successful actress, was usually at the theatre. So I saw more of Rayne than any of the others.

Prue Leith pictured with second husband John Playfair / Getty Images

Soon there was nothing I would rather do than be with Rayne. I told myself I was not falling in love with him, that he was out of bounds. And anyway, he loved Nan, she continued.

Then, one evening when we were in the kitchen, he kissed me. I wish I could say I objected, but I didnt. Guilt about Nan would creep in later, but what I felt at that moment  apart from a leaping desire  was surprise and delight that he considered me kissable; a woman, not a child.

Adding: So began a 13-year affair. I was utterly infatuated.

Following Krugers death, Leith went on to marry again in 2016 to her current husband, retired English fashion designer John Playfair.
M ost stories that imagine a world where artificial intelligence supersedes our own involve machines waging war on humanity. In these tales we become slaves, pets or a biological underclass to our mechanical betters. As companies plough more resources into generative AI, experts in the field are warning of the corrosive effect the technology might have on our civilisation. Long before we are forced to form guerrilla groups to take back the planet, there are some more present (but equally troubling) problems with which to contend.

We are currently at the start of a new era in technology. This one promises to be more revolutionary and disruptive than the invention of the internet, the smartphone or cloud computing. AI is already re-shaping things like education, publishing, and the arts. Soon it will deeply affect the things that sustain us as a civilisation. That is  law, democracy, human rights, and geopolitics.

Crime and punishment

Consider the few early experiments when it comes to crime and AI. Last year, researchers from the University of Chicago created an AI model that analysed incidents of crime in the city, taking in data from between 2014 and 2016. Then they programmed the AI to predict the pattern of crime in the coming weeks. The experiment showed that this method was able to predict crime with 90 per cent accuracy.

If this method was rolled out broadly in cities, it makes sense to assume that police forces could better deploy and drastically reduce things like violence, vandalism, and drugs. Perhaps, but there is a fear that this sort of approach confirms biases. For instance, the more crimes are reported, the more police patrol a particular area. More police usually means more arrests.

Automation

If were concerned about human biases being replicated in our AI systems, the problem gets worse as the technology is more heavily relied upon by leaders and governments.

Writing in The Economist, Yuval Noah Harari predicts that we will see the impact of AI in politics as soon as the next US election: Forget about school essays. Think of the next American presidential race in 2024, and try to imagine the impact of AI tools that can be made to mass-produce political content, fake-news stories and scriptures for new cults.

Indeed, some are already concerned at the projected wave of fabricated images and automated disinformation that might blight democracy. Crucially, its the speed with which they can be created that is alarming - fact checkers might not be able to keep up.

When it comes to the big decisions, some start-ups are already allowing bots to call the shots (see AIsthetic Apparel, a t-shirt company run by GPT-4, the most advanced form of ChatGPT). But things would become altogether scarier were elected officials to punch knotty policy problems into a language model before acting on what is thrown back.

Despots

The fast-evolving world of AI offers an increasing set of opportunities for administrations that wish to subjugate citizens. Specifically, autocrats will have better tools to centralise information and monitor those within their borders. In this future, AI could be used to predict dissent and enable the state to stamp it out fast and with little fuss.

Perhaps the biggest fear isnt that AI will help dictators, but that it will become one itself. Geoffrey Hinton, often referred to as the godfather of AI, left his job at Google at the start of May, publicly joining the group of experts who warn of dire consequences should a superintelligence emerge.

Hinton worries that we will arrive at this point sooner than we might think and that the AI threat may be more urgent than even climate change: With climate change, its very easy to recommend what you should do: you just stop burning carbon. For this its not at all clear what you should do.

Our human civilisation is at a crossroads and the stakes are high. A fight against machines wont look like anything from a sci-fi film. Its a war that will be waged with regulation, laws and sensible debate. And when the minds that helped create the beast are taking up arms against it, its a battle that may have already begun.
R ishi Sunak has insisted that guardrails will be put in place so the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) can be reaped while minimising the risks to society.

The Prime Minister said the UKs regulation must evolve alongside the rapid advance of AI, with threats including to jobs and disinformation.

His comments came as BT Group said it will cut up to 55,000 jobs by the end of the decade amid plans to shift to AI and automated services.

Mr Sunak has advocated the technologys benefits for national security and the economy, but growing concerns have been raised with the prominence of the ChatGPT bot.

Former Government chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance has said AI could have a comparable impact on jobs to the industrial revolution.

If it's used safely, if it's used securely, obviously there are benefits from artificial intelligence for growing our economy, for transforming our society, improving public services

Earlier this month, Geoffrey Hinton, the man widely seen as the godfather of AI, warned some of the dangers of AI chatbots are quite scary as he quit his job at Google.

Speaking to journalists travelling with him in Japan, Mr Sunak said he expects his discussions with world leaders on AI to carry on at the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

If its used safely, if its used securely, obviously there are benefits from artificial intelligence for growing our economy, for transforming our society, improving public services, he said.

But, as I say, that has to be done safely and securely, and with guardrails in place, and that has been our regulatory approach.

His comments mark a hardening in tone towards AI.

The Governments policy paper on the technology published less than two months ago was titled A pro-innovation approach to AI regulation.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said: Theres a recognition that AI is a problem that cant be solved by any one country acting unilaterally.

The UKs approach is meant to be nimble and iterative because of the nature of AI.

The starting point for us is safety and reassuring the public they can have the confidence in how AI is being used on their behalf.
KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 19:47 | All, Japan, World, G7

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Sunday on the sidelines of a Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, the presidential office said on Thursday, as bilateral relations continue to thaw.

Yoon has been invited to the three-day G-7 summit, starting Friday, as a guest. He and Kishida are expected to discuss various issues, such as enhancing security cooperation in the face of North Korea's missile development and other challenges in Asia.

The two leaders are scheduled to visit a monument dedicated to Korean victims of the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of the western Japanese city together.

The meeting will be their third in two months. Yoon traveled to Tokyo in mid-March for talks with Kishida, while the prime minister visited Seoul earlier this month.

Relations between Japan and South Korea soured under Yoon's predecessor Moon Jae In following a dispute over wartime labor compensation.

Yoon, who became president last year, has been taking steps to improve bilateral relations with Japan, proposing a solution to the compensation issue in March.
H umanitys earliest recorded kiss dates back to around 4,500 years ago in the ancient Middle East  1,000 years earlier than previously thought, according to researchers.

Scientists said they have found literary evidence that kissing was practised in the earliest Mesopotamian societies and may even have contributed to the spread of of cold sores.

In their article, published in the journal Science, the researchers said the findings suggest kissing was common across many cultures and did not originate in a specific region.

They said this contradicts a previous hypothesis that the earliest evidence of human lip kissing came from a specific area in south Asia 3,500 years ago.

Dr Troels Pank Arboll, an expert on the history of medicine in Mesopotamia at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, said: In ancient Mesopotamia, which is the name for the early human cultures that existed between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in present-day Iraq and Syria, people wrote in cuneiform script on clay tablets.

Many thousands of these clay tablets have survived to this day, and they contain clear examples that kissing was considered a part of romantic intimacy in ancient times, just as kissing could be part of friendships and family members relations.

Kissing should not be regarded as a custom that originated exclusively in any single region

Therefore, kissing should not be regarded as a custom that originated exclusively in any single region and spread from there but rather appears to have been practised in multiple ancient cultures over several millennia.

Studies on bonobos and chimpanzees  the closest living relatives to humans  have shown they engage in kissing.

This suggests the practice of kissing is a fundamental behaviour in humans and explains why it can be found across cultures, the scientists said.

The researchers also said kissing may have unintentionally played a role in the transmission of viruses such as herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), which causes cold sores.

Dr Arboll said: There is a substantial corpus of medical texts from Mesopotamia, some of which mention a disease with symptoms reminiscent of the herpes simplex virus 1.

But he added that ancient medical texts can be influenced by cultural and religious concepts so they cannot be read at face value.

Dr Arboll said: It is nevertheless interesting to note some similarities between the disease known as bushanu in ancient medical texts from Mesopotamia and the symptoms caused by herpes simplex infections.

The bushanu disease was located primarily in or around the mouth and throat, and symptoms included vesicles in or around the mouth, which is one of the dominant signs of herpes infection.

Recent studies have shown that modern-day viruses that spread through kissing, such as HSV-1, Epstein-Barr virus, which causes glandular fever, and human parvovirus B19, which causes a bright red rash on the cheeks in children, were present in ancient times.

Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen, of the University of Oxford, said: If the practice of kissing was widespread and well-established in a range of ancient societies, the effects of kissing in terms of pathogen transmission must likely have been more or less constant.
T he discount e-commerce site Temu, which has taken the US by storm, has launched in the UK, topping the free app charts in the Apple store.

Having been downloaded millions of times in the US, the shopping platform  which carries the tagline shop like a billionaire  has now made its way across the pond.

The company has spent millions on marketing, with a heavy focus on social media, so it wouldnt be surprising if youve come across Temu on your scrolls.

But with items costing just pennies, sceptical customers are wondering: is Temu too good to be true?

What is the Temu app?

Temu is a Chinese ultra-low-cost shopping app that launched in the US last September and has expanded into the UK.

It has been compared to other discount e-commerce sites, like AliExpress and Wish, which also sell a wide range of items at incredibly low prices.

The platform sells a range of products directly from Chinese sellers, such as clothing, jewellery, beauty products, and homeware, at ultra-low prices.

Temus prices are made even lower with its lightning deals and various sales, including deals promising up to 99 per cent off.

For example, at the time of writing, Temus lightning deals included a ring for 77p and a bracelet for 89p.

According to a report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), Temu placed more than 8,000 ads across Meta platforms in 2023, and spent around $14 million (11.2 m) on two adverts during the Super Bowl.

The app also relies on influencer marketing, rewarding their affiliates with shopping perks and rewards, and encourages users to share the app with friends for deals in return.

Temu sells a wide range of products at ultra-low prices / Florence Lo / Temu / Reuters

Where is Temu available?

Temu was previously only available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Mobile intelligence firm Sensor Tower reported that Temu was downloaded 19 million times in the first quarter of 2022, and was the most downloaded app on the Apple and Google Play stores in the US.

As of April, Temu is available in the UK as well as a number of other European countries, including France, Spain, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands, as reported by Reuters .

Who owns Temu?

Temu is owned by multinational commerce group PDD Holdings, which was founded by Chinese billionaire Colin Huang.

Its the sister site of the Chinese e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, which was valued at $200 billion(160 bn) in 2021, according to the Financial Times .

In March 2021, Huang stepped down from his executive roles at Pinduoduo and turned over the voting rights for his 29 per cent stake in the company.

In 2020, Huang was briefly ranked the second-richest person in China thanks to a surge in sales at Pinduoduo, as reported by the BBC .

Temu is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

Why is the US government concerned about Temu?

The US government has accused Temu, alongside Shein, of data risks, sourcing violations, and trade loopholes, in a report published by the USCC last month (April 2023).

The report also raises concerns around quality and copyright: Like Shein, Temus success raises flags about its business practices.

Temus lack of affiliation with established brands has brought concerns of product quality as well as accusations of copyright infringement.

Temu has 2.9 stars on Trustpilot, with 43 per cent of reviews rating the platform one star.

Negative reviews complain about the quality of the products and the number of notifications the app sends.

Temu also has a 2.37 rating on the Better Business Bureau, where reviewers say they didnt receive the items they ordered, or that they received faulty items.

As of April 2023, the app had received 235 complaints with the Better Business Bureau.

The USCC report also says that PDD Holdings has been accused by Chinas Labour Watch of forcing employees to work extreme overtime, and that CNN reported that sophisticated malware was found on the Pinduoduo sister-app (though Temu itself was not implicated in either accusation).
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The Research Information Team Lead at Cancer Research UK has told Tech & Science Daily we are currently in a golden age of cancer research.

Sam Godfrey discusses the use of new technology to speed up and improve both treatments and the diagnosis of cancers.

He highlighted use of the iKnife which can sniff out tumours, a breath test which can detect lung cancer, and how artificial intelligence is being used to save doctors time.

Apple is being investigated in France for practices that may amount to planned obsolescence in iPhones; the practice of making a product obsolete through software or hardware changes.

Quentin Ghesquiere, the president of campaign group Stop Planned Obsolescence tells Tech & Science Daily why they issued a complaint against the tech giant.

TikTok is set to be banned from the state of Montana in the US.

Its the first ban of its kind in the United States, and means mobile app stores will need to make the app unavailable for Montana residents.

Scientists say the discovery and use of fire by early humans in Europe actually began 50,000 years earlier than previously thought.

Experts from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh found evidence of things being burnt organised in a pattern, suggesting humans were using the fire to cook food, or protect themselves, around 250,000 years ago.

And the rest

Experts say teenagers with obesity should be offered weight loss drug semaglutide, plastic-eating fungi discovered in China, and the first-ever full-sized digital replica of the Titanic created using deep sea scans.

Listen above, and find us on your Spotify Daily Drive or wherever you stream your podcasts.
By Tomoyuki Tachikawa, KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 23:29 | All, Japan, World, G7

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged Thursday to pave the way for achieving his cherished goal of a world without nuclear weapons at the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, a day before it opens in the western city devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb in 1945.

Earlier in the day, Kishida arrived in Hiroshima, with stringent security in place, to host the first G-7 summit in Japan in seven years, following the one held in the Ise-Shima area of Mie Prefecture, central Japan, under then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

During the three-day summit from Friday, Kishida, who represents Hiroshima as a lawmaker, and other G-7 leaders are likely to confirm the importance of making sure nuclear weapons will never be used again, amid Russia's threat to utilize such arms against Ukraine.

In the face of the war in Ukraine and China's military assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region, Kishida and the leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United States plus the European Union are also expected to show their resolve to uphold a rules-based international order.

The Japanese government said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will participate in the G-7 summit online on Sunday.

Other key topics at the meeting are economic security and generative artificial intelligence technology that can utilize vast amounts of data from the internet and other sources to generate text, images, or other media in a human-like way.

The G-7 leaders may agree that their countries will formulate the group's view on generative AI applications such as ChatGPT by the end of this year, a Japanese government source said.

On Thursday, Kishida met with U.S. President Joe Biden and told him at the outset of their talks that he would like to show the G-7's "unwavering" determination to tackle global and regional challenges at the upcoming summit.

In the run-up to the gathering, Kishida also met with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni the same day, aiming to finalize the details of the conclusions that the G-7 leaders will hammer out.

Before leaving for Hiroshima, Kishida told reporters at his office in Tokyo, "I would like to demonstrate our commitment to peace in Hiroshima. I hope this summit will be etched in history."

At the summit, Kishida is expected to emphasize the necessity of a "free and open Indo-Pacific," a Japan-led initiative designed to curb China, and to promise to enhance engagement with developing nations called the "Global South."

On the opening day of the gathering, Kishida is set to welcome the G-7 leaders at the Peace Memorial Park, built in memory of the victims of the first nuclear attack in history on Aug. 6, 1945, nine days before Japan surrendered in World War II.

It would be the first time for the heads of the G-7 industrialized economies, three of which -- the United States, Britain and France -- are nuclear powers, to visit the park together.

Biden became the second U.S. sitting leader after Barack Obama to visit Hiroshima. He has no plans to issue an apology on behalf of the United States for the use of an atomic bomb on Hiroshima during his trip to the city, according to his National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.

At the Hiroshima summit, the G-7 leaders are scheduled to discuss ways to advance nuclear disarmament at a session on Friday and release an outcome document vowing to bolster the regime established by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the source said.

On Thursday, G-7 leaders, with the exception of French President Emmanuel Macron, arrived in Hiroshima in the rain. Macron is due to arrive in Hiroshima on Friday.

The G-7 gathering comes around one month after an explosive device was thrown at Kishida just before he was due to make an election campaign speech in the western Japan city of Wakayama.

The attack came less than a year after Abe was fatally shot in July 2022 during a stump speech in the city of Nara, about 90 kilometers north of Wakayama, an incident that prompted the National Police Agency to beef up its VIP security.

Up to 24,000 security personnel have been mobilized for the Hiroshima summit, the police said, far more than the 5,600 mobilized for Obama's brief visit in May 2016.
Coal shipments on the 3,700-kilometre Great Lakes- St. Lawrence Seaway system shot up 134.3 per cent by the end of April, says St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp.

Thats compared to the same time last year, according to figures released by the organization this week.

But from mid-March to the end of April, total cargo shipped on the seaway was nearly 3.7 million tonnes, down from 3.9 million tonnes last year, a 6.27 per cent decrease.

General cargo was down 30.79 per cent, followed by dry bulk, with a 12.55 per cent decrease over last year.

The seaways figures showed liquid bulk shipments were down 11.24 per cent, with all grain shipments down 7.57 per cent,

Iron ore saw a drop of 2.38 per cent from mid-March to the end of April compared to the same time last year.

Twenty-two fewer vessels  lakers, tug and barges, ocean-going  transited the system, a 5.28 per cent drop.

While ongoing fluctuations in commodities can be expected, the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence shipping corridor, a dependable green corridor, is well positioned to ensure shippers maximize opportunities presented in 2023, said seaway president and chief executive officer Terence Bowles, in a release through the Chamber of Marine Commerce.

He said through careful planning, investment and responsiveness to the needs of shippers and ship owners, the seaway is doing its part to move goods efficiently, safely and in an environmentally sustainable manner.

The seaway corporation invested $45 million in its winter works maintenance program to maintain the systems reliability, it said in the release.

That work included new ice-management equipment to support cold-weather operations, bridge work to maintain reliable operation and ground transportation requirements  roads and railways.

The seaway is a vital link in the North American supply chain, and we are proud to support the success of the shippers who use it through our comprehensive and vigilant maintenance program, said Bowles.

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Niagara is among several regional municipalities in Ontario being considered for dissolution, after the provincial government announced its plans to scrap Peel Region.

While announcing the Hazel MacCallion Act  legislation that if passed would dissolve Peel Region and allow the municipalities of Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon to operate independently  the provincial government said Thursday facilitators would be named in the coming weeks for six other regions, including Niagara, to determine if the upper-tier levels of municipal government continue to be relevant to the needs of their communities, or if the lower-tier municipalities are mature enough to pursue dissolution.

But even if the facilitators determine regional levels of government are still required, the provinces media release said they will still be asked to make recommendations on how the regions can more effectively respond to the issues facing Ontarios fastest-growing municipalities today, particularly when it comes to meeting municipal housing pledges and tackling the housing supply crisis.

Niagara Region Chair Jim Bradley said the underlying goal of the legislation is to get housing units built.

The facilitator, I would suspect, would be there to work with me and our staff to determine how we can move along the approvals of housing units as quickly as possible in those regions, he said in an interview. I think thats the primary focus, they want to see what role should the regional level play, what role should the local level have in terms of providing the approvals for the housing projects.

Although the province announced provincial facilitators would be assigned to work with regions throughout the province when the Better Municipal Governance Act was tabled in November, Bradley said the province has taken its time in appointing them.

The fact that theyve taken this time means that theyve given it a good deal of thought about who would be best in the various roles, he said.

Other regions being considered for dissolution are Durham, Halton, Simcoe, Waterloo and York.

Bradley said Steve Clark, Ontarios minister of municipal affairs and housing, recognizes that each of the municipalities is unique in itself and so I dont expect theyre going to come down with some sot of cookie-cutter solution.

Theyre going to assess whats best with each of the regions and proceed after that. Were more than happy to co-operate with them, he said. We have a similar goal of getting housing units built for the people who reside here and others who will obviously be coming here as a result of our increased population.

While both St. Catharines and Niagara Falls are optimistic about achieving provincial new housing targets of 11,000 homes and 8,000, respectively, Bradley said Niagara municipalities had already approved construction of thousands of housing units and are waiting for developers to begin work.

Theres not a holdup there, because theyre already on stream.

However, he said developers are facing challenges, too, such as finding skilled trades, building materials and project financing.

In Peel, the province said its legislation will ensure the continuation of services while improving efficiency. A five-member transition board will be established to facilitate the changes  including overseeing the financial affairs of the municipalities with a target date of dissolving the region by the start of 2025.

Bradley said the situation in Peel differs from Niagara.

If you look at Peel, we have two very large municipalities  both over half a million people, he said, referring to Mississauga and Brampton with populations of 717,961 and 656,480, respectively, based on 2021 Statistics Canada data.

Im very encouraged by the fact that they are very thoughtful in their approach in that theyre trying to determine whats best in each of the individual municipalities.

Bradley said he didnt want to speculate on what the provinces plans may hold in store for Niagara.

I think they will look and see what is working well in each of the areas and if they believe theres a better way of doing things, they will. But Ive not had any indication that theres a grenade to be rolled into the room or anything of that nature, he said.

I think they are genuinely consulting in each of the areas and doing a very careful assessment. Theyre to be commended for doing that.

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CALGARYDanielle Smith moved Thursday to stem outrage flowing from the comments of a United Conservative candidate who last year compared transgender children in schools to feces in cookies.

Even in a race riddled with controversial statements, the remarks from candidate Jennifer Johnson have been widely condemned as hateful and bigoted, as she appears to question the intrinsic worth of young people who are questioning their gender identity. The wave of disapproval has again threatened to derail Smiths efforts to make her party and herself more appealing to uncommitted voters in the midst of a vice-tight election race, and raised questions of what voters will accept from potential leaders.

The deadline to replace candidates passed last week, but Smith now says that if Johnson is elected, she will not sit as a member of the UCP caucus in the legislature. She used offensive language and a vile analogy when speaking about the 2SLGBTQIA+ community for which she has apologized, Smith said in a statement sent to media Thursday morning.

She added that she has informed Johnson of the decision, and has encouraged her to meet parents, students and other members of the LGBTQ community to learn, grow and inform herself about these issues.

The move is too little, too late for at least some members of that community, said Jessica Jones, a member of the Ponoka Pride Society. The group advocates for sexual and gender minorities in one of the main towns in the central Alberta riding of Lacombe-Ponoka, which Johnson is looking to represent.

Smith should have removed Johnson as a candidate outright when those horrendous comments surfaced, Jones said. The very fact that she hasnt done that is because she wants to try and win an election.

Smith presides over a party divided by warring factions. The United Conservatives were created when Jason Kenney merged two right-wing parties back in 2017 and has long struggled with competing visions. Smith narrowly won a leadership vote last fall by harnessing a narrow base of supporters angry at pandemic restrictions and Ottawa. The socially conservative leanings of some of her candidates have raised eyebrows even among more mainstream conservatives.

These latest comments, made in September, have drawn fire from across the political spectrum.

Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi took to Twitter before Smiths announcement, saying that a close election was no excuse. She called children  from a group that already has much higher rates of suicide  not only subhuman but literally pieces of crap, he wrote. Smith has to determine what lines cant be crossed for power.

Jeromy Farkas, a former conservative member of Calgary council, has been particularly outspoken, blasting Smith as encouraging unhinged and dangerous people. On Twitter, he implored fellow Conservatives to recognize the rhetoric as dangerous and unfit for ANY office. Even some from the UCP ranks have spoken out. Ric McIver, a former minister and incumbent MLA, tweeted that he completely condemn[ed] the comments.

Recently resurfaced audio from last fall captures Johnson telling a group in Stettler, Alta., that while Albertas test scores rank among the highest in the world, that achievement is tainted by the presence of transgender students.

Johnson used the analogy of a batch of cookies with feces stirred in. We can be top three per cent but that little bit of poop is what wrecks it, she said.

This is more than a teaspoon of poop in the cookie batch, right?

During the talk, which was about the hazards of the public education system and homeschooling/pod schooling as a solution, Johnson also claimed that kids in school are identifying as cats and requiring litter boxes  a debunked claim that first arose in the United States  and girls as young as 14 are getting mastectomies, double mastectomies and getting chemically sterilized when they cant even go to a liquor store and buy a beer.

The Alberta Teachers Association has called the remarks falsehoods  rooted in ignorance, intolerance and hatred, and has called on Smith to denounce them.

Johnson herself apologized in a statement released earlier this week. I apologize for the way I discussed these issues in September of 2022, she said in a statement Wednesday. I have nothing but love and compassion for everyone equally and am embarrassed that I have caused hurt in this way.

The revelation is the latest in a series of controversial statements made by primarily United Conservative candidates in a neck-and-neck race to the polls on May 29. Smith herself has apologized for a 2021 podcast interview in which she compared people who had been vaccinated against COVID with those who followed Hitler.

There wasnt much Smith could do other than promise to boot Johnson out of caucus, said Lisa Young, a political scientist at the University of Calgary. Once nomination papers are signed and ballots printed, theres not much a leader can do.

The federal Liberals ran into a similar situation in 2021 when they were forced to disavow Toronto candidate Kevin Vuong after it emerged he had once faced a sexual assault charge, which was dropped. Vuong won re-election and sits as an Independent.

Its worth noting that many of the recent apologies for controversial statements, including Johnsons and Smiths, fall short of actually disavowing the original points made, Young added.

One of the things we have seen from Danielle Smith since she became premier was an assertion that its acceptable to say just about anything and then offer an apology, and the slate is supposed to be clean, she said.

They dont say, I was wrong, or I no longer believe this,  she pointed out. They dont offer an account of what has changed their thinking. So I dont understand how we arent supposed to believe that these are the authentic views of the speakers.

In some ways, its a similar situation to 2012, when Smith, then the leader of the Wildrose Party, plummeted in the polls after refusing to condemn a candidate who said gay people were destined to suffer the rest of eternity in the lake of fire. But back then there was another conservative party  the Progressive Conservatives  that disgruntled voters could flock to.

This time, however, Smith is the only right-wing game in town. Otherwise sympathetic voters offended by this latest misstep may be less willing to switch their vote to the NDP, Young said.

The comments come at a time when discrimination against LGBTQ youth, and trans rights in particular are increasingly under threat south of the border. While some debate continues about how best to provide health care to trans youth, many American states have limited or banned affirming care altogether.

Canada, meanwhile, has seen some of that rhetoric spill over, advocates said.

Over the past few years weve seen a drastic increase in slurs and hate, verbal stuff from passenger vehicles, those sorts of things, said Corey Wyness, director of the CHEW (Community Health Empowerment & Wellness) Project, a support centre for LGBTQ youth in downtown Edmonton. While he didnt lay blame at the feet of any particular politician or party, he said the rhetoric in Canadian and American politics seems to be having an effect.

RELATED STORIES Canada Albertas Danielle Smith found to have violated conflicts of interest act

It just seems like all of a sudden we have this culture where its OK for people to be homophobic and transphobic.

According to Statistics Canada, police-reported hate crimes targeting a persons sexual orientation increased 64 per cent between 2020 and 2021, to 432 incidents. Hate crimes motivated by sex and gender went up 27 per cent in the same time period.

According to her website, Johnson has a nursing degree and lives on a farm with her husband. The two are entrepreneurs in the agri-tourism industry with a prairie fruit orchard. She is a first-time candidate in the central Alberta riding that has voted conservative since its creation in 2003.

The race in Alberta has often broken down on urban and rural lines, with Edmonton expected to vote left, rural areas predicted to go right, and Calgary up for grabs.

Jones, of Ponoka Pride, said that part of the problem is that when Johnson made those comments, you can hear the audience applauding.

Ponoka is a town of roughly 7,000 people with deep agricultural roots and a hugely popular annual rodeo, but Jones argues that the small-town stereotype can obscure the fact that communities like hers have people who are willing to stand up for the LGBTQ community.

There this viewpoint of, oh, theyre just country bumpkins, and thats not who we are, she said. We want our youth to to know that theyre valued, and we are here for them as a society and they can come to any one of us and we are happy to stand up for them.

With files from The Canadian Press

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It took eight years to put a man on the moon. The first portion of the London underground took three years to build. The Eglinton LRT however  well, were still unsure when that will be finished, 12 years and counting.

Construction started in the summer of 2011 with an initial completion date of 2020 for the light-rail system that stretches 19 kms along Eglinton Avenue, with 25 stations along the way. Metrolinx confirmed on Tuesday the LRT will not open this year.

This week, legal wrangling added more uncertainty to the projects ever-expanding timeline, with the group of companies building the line asking for a courts permission to stop construction.

If 12-plus years seems like a long time to build a rail system down a Toronto street, it is. Here are some projects  and some truly epic human and engineering feats  that took less time to complete than the construction of the Eglinton LRT.

CN Tower: Three years

Construction crews started working on the CN Tower on Feb. 6, 1973. The tower was finished on April 2, 1975 and opened to the public on June 26, 1976.

Landing a man on the moon: Eight years

In 1961 President John F. Kennedy told Congress: I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth.

Apollo 11 launched on July 16, 1969 and landed on the moon four days later on July 20.

The nuclear bomb: Six years

On Aug. 2, 1939 Albert Einstein wrote a warning to U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt that Nazis were working on the Atomic bomb. That soon led to the creation of the Manhattan Project. Six years after Einstein sent his letter, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan on Aug. 6, 1945 killing 140,000 people during the explosion and from the after-effects.

Canadian Pacific Railway: Four years

The Canadian Pacific Railway Company was incorporated on Feb. 16, 1881 and construction later started on the railway. On Nov. 7, 1885 the eastern and western parts of the CPR met in B.C. and the last spike was driven into the track, marking the end of the transcontinental railway. The work was treacherous, much of it given to poorly paid Chinese workers, hundreds of whom died.

Hadrians Wall: Six years

In 122 AD, Emperor Hadrian came to Britain and its believed in that same year he ordered a wall be built to keep hostile tribes out of the Roman Empires northern frontier.

Construction of the 118-km wall stretching across rolling hills and fields was completed six years later. The stone and turf barrier measured about four metres high and about two metres thick.

The Roman Colosseum: Eight years

One of the greatest pieces of Roman architecture ever built took eight years to complete. Planning on Colosseum began in 70 AD and construction started in 72 AD. According to thecolesseum.org, most of the work was done by Jewish slaves.

Panama Canal: 10 years

An agreement between the U.S. and Panama was negotiated, granting the U.S access to a wide strip of land for the canal. The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was ratified in the U.S. on Feb. 23, 1904 and the Canal was completed in 1914. The official opening on the Panama Canal was on Aug. 15, 1914.

The London Underground (first line): Three years

In 1863, the worlds first underground railway opened in London between Paddington and Farringdon, with six stations along the route.

Hoover Dam: Five years

Construction on the Hoover Dam started in 1930 and the dam was completed in 1935.

The Channel Tunnel: Six years

The Channel Tunnel  often referred to as the Chunnel  is a 50 km-long undersea tunnel connecting southern England with northern France. Construction started in 1988 and was completed in 1993 with Eurostar Services starting in Nov. 1994.

The 407 Highway: 10 years

Construction on the Highway 407 started in August 1987, marked by a sod-turning ceremony by politicians on Aug. 4, 1987. The highway opened to motorists on June 7, 1997  six months behind schedule.

Marmaray tunnel: Nine years

Construction on Istanbuls Marmaray tunnel connecting Asia to Europe beneath the Bosporus strait started in 2004 and was completed on Oct. 29, 2013, according to a CNN report.

War and Peace: Six years

Leo Tolstoy wrote the historical novel War and Peace over six years. Its known as a masterwork of Russian literature and one the worlds greatest novels.

The next records to fall to the LRT?

Here are a couple of epic achievements that took  at least so far  longer than construction on the Eglinton LRT.

The empire of Alexander the Great: 13 years

Named king of Macedonia after his fathers death in 336 BC, Alexander the Great travelled from Greece to Egypt to India building an unrivalled empire over three continents.

The Big Dig: 14 years

The Boston underground highway project stands as the modern-day epitome of the sprawling megaproject. Construction started in 1991 and, dogged by massive cost overruns and delays, it was largely completed by early 2006, at a final cost of over $15 billion.

A race to the finish

The Winds of Winter: Ongoing

Who will finish first: Toronto with its LRT or George R.R. Martin? The sci-fi writers last work in his A Song of Ice and Fire series was published in 2011, the same year the Eglinton LRT project started. Martin once said he expected the next book would take three years. He is still going.

 with files from Star Archives

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BEIJING (AP)  China said Thursday its special envoy met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during talks in Kyiv earlier this week.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the meeting came amid discussions between envoy Li Hui and Ukraines foreign minister and other government officials.

There is no remedy to resolve the crisis, Wang told reporters at a daily briefing. All parties should create favorable conditions and accumulate mutual trust for the political settlement.

The visit followed an earlier phone call between Zelenskyy and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Over two days, Li and Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba discussed ways to stop Russian aggression, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Kuleba briefed Li, a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, about the principles of restoring a stable and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

According to the statement, Kuleba repeated his governments position that Ukraine wouldnt accept any proposal involving the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict.

Xis government says its neutral and wants to serve as mediator in the 15-month-long conflict, but has supported Moscow politically and economically.

China sees Moscow as a diplomatic and military partner in opposing United States domination of global affairs. Beijing has refused to criticize the invasion and used its status as one of five permanent United Nations Security Council members to deflect diplomatic attacks on Russia.

Beijing released a proposed peace plan in February, but Ukraines allies largely dismissed it, insisting that Russian President Vladimir Putin must withdraw his forces. Zelenskyys own 10-point peace plan also includes a tribunal to prosecute war crimes committed by Russia.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said Li also will visit Poland, France and Germany, but didnt give details of his schedule.

Political analysts see little hope for a peace agreement because neither Ukraine nor Russia is ready to stop fighting.

African countries are also undertaking a peace initiative over the war in Ukraine.

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HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kongs leader said Thursday the citys public libraries would not recommend books featuring bad ideologies to residents after they pulled titles related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and certain political figures, further shrinking the citys freedoms.

Chief Executive John Lee was addressing a lawmakers question about dozens of books in public libraries that were taken down without a clear explanation. Those include publications about the bloody crackdown and others written by pro-democracy politicians and political commentators.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to Chinas rule in 1997, promising to retain its Western-style freedoms. But the citys cultural and creative sectors said the citys freedoms have shrunk since Beijing imposed a tough national security law following massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Critics said the book pulling would further undermine Hong Kongs reputation for having free access to information and freedom of expression.

But Lee defended the sweeping law at the legislature, saying Hong Kongs freedoms are protected by the citys constitution.

The books we offer for residents to borrow are those that we recommend, he said. We would never recommend books that are illegal and violate copyrights. We would never recommend those that we deem to be featuring bad ideologies.

He said residents could still find such books to read elsewhere. He did not elaborate on what was considered bad ideologies and why the books were removed.

Asked why the books were removed, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department said public libraries review and withdraw materials that do not conform to the collection development from time to time. If any material is suspected of being contrary to the interests of national security or violating laws, the libraries will immediately suspend services of the material in question for review, it said.

The removal of the books was reported by local media outlets after a Chinese newspaper stopped publishing works by the citys most prominent political cartoonist on Sunday following government complaints. Comic strip collections by the cartoonist were also no longer available in public libraries.

Political scholar Ivan Choy said one book he co-authored was pulled despite a previous endorsement by former Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam. Lam wrote the foreword for the title and said it was the most comprehensive book on the citys electoral system, Choy said.

We wrote this book as academics and are not trying to make any political statements. So I feel they have overreacted, he said.

After the books were pulled and the publication of political cartoons halted, Choy questioned how Hong Kong could still stay as an international metropolitan without being broad-minded and inclusive. He added China wants Hong Kong to become an international cultural exchange center, where the East meets the West.

He said the changes keep Hong Kong from living up to its reputation.

Since a sweeping security law was enacted in 2020, the citys art and media communities have learned to be wary of crossing vaguely defined red lines in producing art and other content that might be perceived as challenging the Chinese Communist Partys control.

The group that organized Hong Kongs annual vigil in remembrance of the Tiananmen Square crackdown also voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the security law. The annual vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the event on Chinese soil and was attended by massive crowds until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures.

Supporters say the groups closure shows that the freedoms and autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 are diminishing.

This year, a massive vigil is unlikely to take place in its usual spot, Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, on June 4. Instead, some pro-Beijing groups will host a bazaar to celebrate the citys handover to Chinese rule there.

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HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  Leaders of the worlds most powerful democracies warned China and North Korea against building up their nuclear arsenals, pivoting to major northeast Asian crises ahead of the arrival later Saturday of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The focus on Asia at the Group of Seven summit comes as leaders tighten sanctions meant to punish Moscow and change the course of its 15-month invasion of Ukraine. Japan confirmed that Zelenskyys decision to attend the G7 in person stemmed from his strong wish to participate in talks that will influence his nations defense against Russia.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that President Joe Biden and Zelenskyy would have direct engagement at the summit, a day after Biden announced his support for training Ukrainian pilots on U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, a precursor to eventually providing those aircraft to Ukraines Air Force.

World leaders have faced a high-stakes balancing act in Hiroshima as they look to address a raft of global worries demanding urgent attention, including climate change, AI, poverty and economic instability, nuclear proliferation and, above all, the war in Ukraine.

China, the worlds No. 2 economy, sits at the nexus of many of those concerns.

There is increasing anxiety in Asia that Beijing, which has been steadily building up its nuclear bomb program, could try to seize Taiwan by force, sparking a wider conflict. China claims the self-governing island as its own and regularly sends ships and warplanes near it.

The G7 leaders issued a statement warning that Chinas accelerating build-up of its nuclear arsenal without transparency (or) meaningful dialogue poses a concern to global and regional stability.

North Korea, which has been testing missiles at a torrid pace in an attempt to perfect a nuclear program meant to target the mainland United States, must completely abandon its nuclear bomb ambitions, the leaders said, including any further nuclear tests or launches that use ballistic missile technology. North Korea cannot and will never have the status of a nuclear-weapon State under international nuclear treaties, the statement said.

The green light on F-16 training is the latest shift by the Biden administration as it moves to arm Ukraine with more advanced and lethal weaponry, following earlier decisions to send rocket launcher systems and Abrams tanks. The United States has insisted that it is sending weapons to Ukraine to defend itself and has discouraged attacks by Ukraine into Russian territory.

Weve reached a moment where it is time to look down the road again to say what is Ukraine going to need as part of a future force, to be able to deter and defend against Russian aggression as we go forward, Sullivan said.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity to brief reporters on the deliberations, said Zelenskyy will take part in two separate sessions Sunday. The first session will be with G7 members only and will focus on the war in Ukraine. The second session will include the G7 as well as the other nations invited to take part in the summit, and will focus on peace and stability.

The G7 leaders also used their summit to roll out a new wave of global sanctions on Moscow as well as plans to enhance the effectiveness of existing financial penalties meant to constrain President Vladimir Putins war effort.

Our support for Ukraine will not waver, the G7 leaders said in a statement released after closed-door meetings. They vowed to stand together against Russias illegal, unjustifiable and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.

Russia started this war and can end this war, they said.

Zelenskyy has consistently called for the supply of Western fighter jets to bolster his countrys defenses against Russias invasion, but has until now faced skepticism from the United States that they would turn the tide in the war.

Now, as Ukraine has improved its air defenses with a host of Western-supplied anti-aircraft systems and prepares to launch a counteroffensive against Russia, officials believe the jets could become useful in the battle and essential to the countrys long-term security.

Bidens decisions on when, how many, and who will provide the fourth-generation F-16 fighter jets will be made in the months ahead while the training is underway, Biden told leaders.

The F-16 training is to be conducted in Europe and will likely begin in the coming weeks. Thats according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss Bidens private conversations with allies.

Zelenskyy said Friday that he had opened a visit to Saudi Arabia, where Arab leaders were holding their own summit.

The latest sanctions aimed at Russia include tighter restrictions on already-sanctioned people and firms involved in the war effort. More than 125 individuals and organizations across 20 countries have been hit with U.S. sanctions. The financial penalties have been primarily focused on sanctions evaders connected to technology procurement for the Kremlin. The Commerce Department also added 71 firms to its own list.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Friday sanctions will further tighten the vise on Putins ability to wage his barbaric invasion and will advance our global efforts to cut off Russian attempts to evade sanctions.

In addition, new reporting requirements were issued for people and firms that have any interest in Russian Central Bank assets. The purpose is to fully map holdings of Russias sovereign assets that will remain immobilized in G7 jurisdictions until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine, the U.S. Treasury Department said.

Russia is now the most-sanctioned country in the world, but there are questions about the effectiveness.

Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said going into the summit that while G7 countries deserve credit for their sanctions, Russia still maintains capacity to fight this war in the long term.

She added that wars costs are easily manageable for Russia in the next couple of years at least, and the cumulative effect of sanctions is just not strong enough to radically alter that.

The G7 nations said in Fridays statement that they would work to keep Russia from using the international financial system to prosecute its war, and they urged other nations to stop providing Russia with support and weapons or face severe costs.

World leaders Friday visited a peace park dedicated to the tens of thousands who died in the worlds first wartime atomic bomb detonation. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in parliament, wants nuclear disarmament to be a major focus of discussions.

The peace park contains reminders of Aug. 6, 1945, when a U.S. B-29 dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, a city that has become synonymous with anti-nuclear peace efforts.

Biden, who scrapped plans to travel on to Papua New Guinea and Australia after his stay in Japan so that he can get back to debt limit talks in Washington, arranged to meet Saturday on the G-7 sidelines with leaders of the so-called Quad partnership, made up of Japan, Australia, India and the U.S.

As G7 attendees made their way to Hiroshima, Moscow unleashed yet another aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital. Loud explosions thundered through Kyiv during the early hours, marking the ninth time this month that Russian air raids have targeted the city after weeks of relative quiet.

In a bit of dueling diplomacy, Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting the leaders of the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a two-day summit in the Chinese city of Xian.

The G7 leaders are also to discuss efforts to strengthen the global economy and address rising prices that are squeezing families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

A U.S. official said the leaders on Saturday would issue a joint communique outlining new projects in the G7s global infrastructure development initiative, which is meant to offer countries an alternative to Chinas investment dollars.

The G7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, as well as the European Union.

__

Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Elaine Kurtenbach and Mari Yamaguchi in Hiroshima, Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Fatima Hussein in Washington contributed to this report.

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KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 18:17 | All, Japan, World, G7

U.S. President Joe Biden has no plans to issue an apology on behalf of the United States for the use of an atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945 during his trip to the city in western Japan for the Group of Seven summit, according to his national security adviser.

Biden, as one of the G-7 leaders, will "pay respects both for history but also respects" to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima as a lawmaker, Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One before arriving in Japan on Thursday.

Biden will attend the three-day summit of the group of industrialized democracies starting Friday as scheduled, after canceling other pre-planned stops on what would have been a weeklong trip at the last minute to return home to deal with stalled negotiations on the debt ceiling.

Biden landed at the U.S. Marine Corps base in Iwakuni, located about 50 kilometers southwest of Hiroshima, on Thursday afternoon. He became the second sitting U.S. president after Barack Obama to visit the city that was devastated by the world's first atomic bomb attack, carried out by the United States in the closing days of World War II.

He then held one-on-one talks with Japanese Prime Minister to reconfirm the strength of the two countries' alliance.

He is scheduled to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum with other G-7 leaders on Friday before the start of discussions that will focus on key global issues, ranging from Russia's war against Ukraine, supply chains and clean energy to artificial intelligence and nuclear disarmament.

Sullivan said concerns and issues related to China will also be dealt with at the G-7 summit.

"I think you will see...alignment and convergence around the fundamental principles of our approach to the People's Republic of China," he said.

The visit to Japan is Biden's second since taking office in January 2021, and it comes after months of wrangling between his administration and congressional Republicans over government spending.

The U.S. Treasury Department has warned that the federal government could run out of money to pay its bills as early as June 1 if Congress does not raise the debt limit.

The impasse seems to have hampered Washington's efforts to make up ground in the Indo-Pacific region, where China's influence is rapidly expanding.

After the summit, Biden initially planned to stop for about three hours in Papua New Guinea to meet with leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum, an 18-member group that promotes cooperation among mostly small countries in Oceania, before going to Sydney.

Biden would have been the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Pacific island country, which has a population of nearly 10 million and is rich in natural resources.

Sullivan said Biden is now preparing to hold a summit with Pacific island leaders late this year.

In Sydney, Biden had planned to hold talks with the three other leaders of the Quad grouping -- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Kishida and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

As Albanese and Modi have also been invited as guests to Hiroshima, officials of those countries are hoping to arrange at least brief Quad discussions.

Related coverage:

Hiroshima under tight security ahead of G-7 summit

Biden leaves for Hiroshima to attend G-7 summit

G-7 summit to kick off Fri. with tour of Hiroshima A-bomb museum
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP)  Denmarks Supreme Court on Wednesday overruled two lower courts, saying a cartoon depicting Copenhagens The Little Mermaid statue as a zombie and a photo of it with a face mask did not violate the copyright of the famous bronze.

The Berlingske newspaper published the cartoon in 2019 to illustrate an article about the level of debate in Denmark and used the photo in 2020 to represent a link between the far right and people fearing COVID-19.

Copenhagens district court and the Eastern High Court found in 2020 and 2022 that the cartoon and the photo were infringements of the Danish Copyright Act, and ordered the newspaper  one of Denmarks largest  to pay the heirs of Danish sculptor Edvard Eriksen thousands of kroner in compensation.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court said that neither the caricature drawing nor the photograph of The Little Mermaid with a mask on, which was brought to Berlingske in connection with newspaper articles, infringed the copyright of the heirs to the sculpture The Little Mermaid.

The dailys chief editor, Tom Jensen, had argued that the paper had used the image of The Little Mermaid for noncommercial purposes.

On Wednesday, Jensen called it a very happy day. Not just for us, but for all media in Denmark,.

It would have been a problem for the freedom of the media to do what we were created to do  namely to run a journalistic business, including satirical cartoons  if we had been convicted, Jensen said.

The plaintiffs were the heirs of sculptor Eriksen, who created the girl-size mermaid that has been sitting on a rock at the entrance of the Copenhagen harbor since 1913.

The heirs are rigorous in enforcing the copyright to the sculpture, which runs until 2029, 70 years after Eriksens 1959 death. Several publications have been charged with copyright infringement over the years after publishing pictures of the artwork.

Eriksen created The Little Mermaid in tribute to Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen. One of Europes most recognizable landmarks, the sculpture draws about 1 million visitors annually and has been a regular target for vandals who have blown the mermaid figure off its perch and beheaded or painted it.

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Declic Community announced on Thursday that it will take legal action against the Government of Romania in order to annul the Government Decision which set the minimum salary at only 1,863 RON net, without being related to the minimum consumption basket necessary for a decent living.

"The Declic Community invites you, Friday, May 19, from 11:00 a.m., to the Cluj Court of Appeal, where it will file a request to summon the Government, for the annulment of the last Government Decision by which the minimum wage was set at only 1,863 RON. Concretely, Declic asks the judges to compel the Executive to comply with the law and to correlate the minimum wage with the value of the minimum consumption basket for a decent living," the Declic press release informs.

The representatives of Declic emphasized that Government Decision 1447 of December 8, 2022, which set the value of the minimum wage at only 1,863 RON per month, will be challenged in court.

"We came to this decision, to call the Government to court to comply with the law, because more than 1.5 million Romanians live at the limit of subsistence, with only 1,863 RON per month. We cannot leave these people in the lurch, when the minimum monthly salary should be almost double, of 3,273 RON net," declared Anduta Karetsou, Declic campaigner.

According to the press release, the minimum consumption basket for a decent living involves a set of periodic expenses necessary to fulfill some basic needs. In addition to food and transport, the basket also covers clothing, personal hygiene, education, health, unforeseen expenses.AGERPRES
DefMin Tilvar, on working visit at NATO HUMINT Centre of Excellence in Oradea.

National Defence Minister Angel Tilvar paid a visit on Thursday to the NATO HUMINT (Human Intelligence) Centre of Excellence nucleus in Oradea, the National Defence Ministry's (MApN) Press Office informed.

According to the press release sent to AGERPRES, the command team of the institution presented to the National Defence minister the missions assumed in the HUMINT expertise field within NATO, as a single point of reference, both in terms of training and development of standardized policies and procedures at NATO level in the HUMINT field, and in supporting allied countries in planning and developing HUMINT capabilities, in line with developments in the security environment, told Agerpres.

"In the almost 13 years since its establishment, the Center has strengthened its position and reputation among similar institutions in NATO, becoming the Alliance's main agent of transformation in its specific area of expertise, HUMINT, through policy development, promotion and implementation, concepts and new strategies in order to improve operational capabilities and, ultimately, to achieve interoperability goals," NATO HUMINT Centre of Excellence Director, Colonel Florin-Vasile Tomiuc stated, as quoted in the mentioned press release.

Minister Angel Tilvar informed himself about the projects which are currently being carried out by the Center of Excellence in Oradea, as well as the development prospects, assuring the command team of the institution of the MApN's full support.

"Our country's hosting of this center was boosted by the excellent results obtained by the Romanian servicemen in relevant intelligence missions conducted to the highest standards in the most difficult theatres of operations and which have been and are appreciated at the same high level by our allies and partners. We are aware of the projects you are running, we are directly interested to have success in what you have proposed from now on and you can count on the full support of the team I lead at the top of the ministry," minister Angel Tilvar said, according to the quoted source.

In the context of the war started by the Russian Federation in Ukraine, the National Defence minister underscored the important role of military intelligence in creating a comprehensive picture of the security environment and in the most effective planning of actions to strengthen the defence and deterrence posture of any aggression on the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance.

"Romania is not only the framework nation of the NATO HUMINT Center of Excellence, but also one of the main beneficiaries of your activities. By establishing the NATO HUMINT Center of Excellence in Oradea, our country took on an important mission in an essential area for the development of the Alliance, especially in the context of complex security challenges that are emerging in the Black Sea region in the years to come. The war that is taking place beyond our borders shows how important intelligence gathering, analysis and processing capabilities in the security environment area, so that we can take the best decisions at national and allied level to enhance defence and deterrence capabilities, based on a deep understanding of the security situation and context," minister Angel Tilvar stated.

Centers of Excellence are international military institutions, hosted by one of the NATO member states (framework nation), supported by other nations, called sponsor-nations. As a result of the experience gained in numerous missions in theatres of operations, Romania has assumed the status of framework nation for a centre of excellence focused on human intelligence (HUMINT).

The NATO HUMINT Center of Excellence in Oradea was accredited and activated as an international military organization by the North Atlantic Council on 29 July 2010, succeeding in becoming, with the support of the sponsor-nations (the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, the US, Turkey and Hungary), the main vector of the important initiatives carried out within NATO in this specialized area.
The Bucovina Destination Management Organization received on Wednesday the operating permit from the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism, thus being the first entity established at regional level, the ministry informed in a press release.

"It is a result of the MAT team included to correctly regulate the legal framework through which the public-private partnership becomes a reality at regional level as well, respecting also the obligations assumed by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Congratulations to all local authorities and economic partners for accepting and understanding the essential role implied by this reform on how to promote tourism destinations!" the minister of Entrepreneurship and Tourism Daniel Cadariu said.

The main objective of the Bucovina DMO is to develop and promote tourism in the northeastern Bucovina region in order to create a framework for the integrated development of different kinds of tourism and tourism services in the region, in accordance with the legal provisions in force.

The minimum criteria for the establishment of a regional DMO to represent the destination are: at least 10,000 accommodation places in tourist reception structures classified within the destination; the organizational structure of the destination management organization should include at least one tourist destination manager position; the existence of a tourism development and marketing strategy project and an action plan, which will be subject to the approval of the management forums of the destination management organization, or the elaboration and adoption of such strategic documents within a maximum of one year from the approval of the organization of management of the destination by the central public authority responsible in the field of tourism; a minimum budget of 250,000 euros, the equivalent in RON Romanian currency, at the central bank's exchange rate from the date of submission of the request for approval.AGERPRES
The gov't approved, on Wednesday, the negotiation of a cooperation programme in the field of culture between the Ministry of Culture in Romania and the Ministry of Culture and Mass Media in Croatia.

"The cooperation programme contains topics providing for: cooperation in the field of culture and art through the exchange of artists and artistic ensembles, the exchange of information in the field of literature and publishing activities, of libraries, inviting artistic bands and ensembles within some festivals, facilitating the organization of art exhibitions, direct cooperation between museums, galleries, in the field of research, protection and conservation of cultural heritage, the organization of artistic film galas, cooperation in the field of intangible cultural heritage and the exchange of specialists in the field, cooperation in the field of digitization and accessibility to cultural heritage," a Government press release says.

The document will be forwarded to the Croatian side in order to start negotiations.AGERPRES
Health Min Rafila attends launch of Health Innovation Hub encouraging development of innovative solutions.

The Ministry of Health, the G6-UMF University Alliance and the Local American Working Group (LAWG) Association launched the Health Innovation Hub on Thursday, during an event held at the Parliament Palace, told Agerpres.

According to the organizers, the Health Innovation Hub aims, through the strategic projects that will be carried out, to encourage teams of Romanian researchers and entrepreneurs to develop pragmatic innovative solutions for the priorities in the health care field - as they are identified in the National Health Strategy 2023-2030 - "For health, together" - which will generate a net contribution to the development of the health system and the economy in Romania.

The Minister of Health, Alexandru Rafila, pleaded, during the event, for the establishment and development of a network of university hospitals.

"We are advocating for the establishment of a network of university hospitals, an integrated concept that I care a lot about and that we have imagined and taken concrete steps forward to develop this network. We now have a turning point because a emergency ordinance that allows the transfer of hospitals belonging to the Ministry of Transport to other authorities and we advocate for the transfer of some of them to universities of medicine and pharmacy. If we do this integrated concept - universities, hospitals, industry - we can really have a perspective like in over the course of a few years this innovation hub will represent the great success project in the field of research and development in the medical field," said Rafila.

He added that such an innovation hub should ensure several important issues, one of them being related to the possibility for patients in Romania to have access to innovative technologies and medicines.

The President of the Local American Working Group Association, Radu Rasinar, mentioned that there is already a first generation of projects within this hub, discussed and selected, which are very close to being started.
The world's leading professional services firm in risk, strategy and people Marsh McLennan is launching a new IT center in Cluj-Napoca, planning to hire over 100 personnel for the facility, the company said in a release on Wednesday.

Through the new hub in Cluj, the consulting giant will offer IT career opportunities for software engineers, cloud data engineers, system analysts and project managers.

The new tech hub becomes the company's main IT center for Europe and will contribute to speeding up the pace of innovation for Marsh McLennan's four businesses: Marsh, Guy Carpenter, Mercer and Oliver Wyman.

"Our history is built on 152 years of innovation and we promote a culture that encourages experimentation and the development of new ideas. For us, innovation represents everyone's responsibility. That is precisely why the IT center in Cluj-Napoca will be the ideal environment for the colleagues who seek new professional challenges," said Marsh McLennan Chief Information Officer Paul Beswick.

Marsh McLennan has been present in Romania for over 28 years now. In 1995, Marsh was the first international insurance broker to open an office in Bucharest.

Benefits technology company Darwin, which counts 550 specialists, has been part of Marsh McLennan since 2016. Darwin is a single global platform that allows employees to choose their benefits according to their lifestyle, enabling organizations to attract and retain top talent. The platform is part of the employee benefit programs in Mercer Marsh Benefits' portfolio.

"Cluj-Napoca has both the right infrastructure and human potential to serve as a launching pad for innovation at Marsh McLennan. We are excited to be able to create career opportunities that provide our future colleagues the chance to make a difference," said Attila Takacs, Marsh McLennan Tech Hub Lead.

In the coming months, Marsh McLennan will expand to Cluj-Napoca with a new ultra-modern 1,300 sqm office facility that will host both the new IT center and the Darwin team. AGERPRES
MEP Ciolos: I won't run just for the sake of pursuing a political career.

MEP Dacian Ciolos said on Thursday, in Timisoara, that if he decides to run in next year's elections, he shall not do it for "the sake of pursuing a political career so that I have something to do," but to do something for Romania and its citizens, told Agerpres.

Ciolos told a press conference that, a few months ago, he founded the REPER party, from whose leadership he is not part of.

"If there will be a candidacy for the European parliamentary elections or for the parliamentary elections, it [candidacy] will have to take place on the list of a party or of an alliance, and if there will be a candidacy for the presidential elections, it will be an individual one, which is obviously addressed to all citizens and voters, beyond the support of one party or several parties for such a candidacy. When I will formulate my candidacy, I will be very clear and precise whom I am addressing to and why I am running. I will not run for the sake of pursuing a political career so that I have something to do. It took me a long time to decide to join a political party, even if I have exercised responsibilities and duties in the state, at national or European level. I entered politics and a political party in order to do things for Romania from a better position," Dacian Ciolos explained.

Responding to a question, the MEP underscored that it is premature to talk about a candidacy in the 2024 elections at this time and that he is now focusing on his mandate in the European Parliament, of which he still has 20pct to pursue.
MEP Nicu Stefanuta, after inspection in Romania's forests: Wood theft is significant.

MEP Nicu Stefanuta (Group of the Greens) believes that the theft of wood from Romania is significant, after the visit he paid the other day to the forests of Fagaras and Suceava, alongside seven other MEPs, a press release sent to AGERPRES informs.

Nicu Stefanuta believes that "the figures communicated by the authorities are not credible."

"In Suceava we were told that only 0.15pct of the timber is harvested illegally. Or this is not possible. Even the Police say that only on the transport side 3pct of the wood is illegal. NGOs say that up to 80pct of it is harvested illegally. The Institute for Forestry Research gives a figure of 50pct. Moreover, the abuses, the violence against environmental activists would not be justified if the figures for illegal timber theft were so low," Nicu Stefanuta said.

Stefanuta also says that Romania has a new infringement procedure.

"European Commissioner for Environment Virginijus Sinkevicius already has the decision on the infringement procedure for illegal deforestation in Romania on the table. It is in our interest to stop the thefts so that we do not have infringement, meaning huge fines from the European Commission," the MEP added.

Stefanuta underscores: "If valuable wood is cut from a virgin forest, from a secular forest, it is not the same as cutting from an old forest, a few years old, a few decades old. It's much worse for the ecosystems, the soil doesn't recover, the forest doesn't have the function of capturing carbon dioxide."

The European Parliament delegation was made up of Nicu Stefanuta, Vlad Gheorghe, Cristian Terhes, Lorant Vincze, Yana Toom, Alexander Bernhuber, Maite Pagazaurtundua and Andrey Slabakov, told Agerpres.

Nicu Stefanuta also mentioned that he is the first Romanian MEP affiliated to the political group of the Greens in the European Parliament (Greens / European Free Alliance -EFA) and is currently a member of the Committee on Budgets and the Subcommittee on Public Health. Furthermore, he is also a substitute member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) and he is part of the Delegation to the EU-Moldova Parliamentary Association Committee, as well as of the Delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
By Noriyuki Suzuki, KYODO NEWS - May 18, 2023 - 12:19 | All, Japan

Japan's trade deficit nearly halved to a one-year low of 432.41 billion yen ($3 billion) in April, as imports dropped for the first time in 27 months on lower crude oil prices, while U.S.-bound auto shipments delivered record exports, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

Surging energy imports kept resource-poor Japan deeply in the red, with a weaker yen inflating their value. For April, total imports fell 2.3 percent to 8.72 trillion yen, dragged down by crude oil and liquefied natural gas.

Exports, meanwhile, gained 2.6 percent to 8.29 trillion yen, the largest-ever for April. The increase came despite growing concerns about slowdowns in the U.S. and European economies.

Japan reported a trade deficit for the 21st straight month, underscoring its sensitivity to swings in commodity prices. The yen recovered some of the ground lost during its rapid deprecation last year but was still relatively weak against the U.S. dollar.

On average, the dollar traded at 132.23 yen, 7.6 percent higher than a year earlier. The total value of imported crude oil fell for the first time in over two years, down 25.0 percent to 883.0 billion yen.

Japan had a 794.83 billion yen trade surplus with the United States after exports gained 10.5 percent to 1.66 trillion yen while imports rose 1.0 percent to 862.09 billion yen.

With its major trading partner China, Japan logged a trade deficit of 460.88 billion yen. Imports gained 14.8 percent to 1.91 trillion yen, which compare with exports that fell 2.9 percent to 1.45 trillion yen.

"Auto exports have been recovering after they were affected by supply chain bottlenecks. So this is a bright spot in the export numbers that came at a time of slowdown concerns," said Chisato Oshiba, an economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute.

"Going forward, however, we cannot be bullish because China's economic recovery is also slow. Crude oil prices have fallen after their earlier sharp gains but are expected to remain at elevated levels, which will blunt the fall in imports," Oshiba added.

In the January-March quarter, Japan's economy rebounded from a technical recession as private consumption remained resilient. But exports marked the sharpest fall in about three years.

Aggressive interest rate hikes in advanced economies, including the United States, have clouded the economic outlook. The Group of Seven nations remain vigilant against such uncertainty, despite the global economy showing resilience so far.

Japan's trade surplus with the rest of Asia, including China, more than halved to 297.87 billion yen while its deficit with the European Union came to 72.40 billion yen, down 62.2 percent from a year earlier.

Related coverage:

Japan posts record 21.73 tril. yen trade deficit for FY 2022

Japan logs record red ink in Jan. on energy, slower export growth

Japan posts 1st trade deficit in electronics for half-year period
Minister Bode discusses with his Bulgarian counterpart about coordination of steps for accession to Schengen.

The Minister of Internal Affairs, Lucian Bode, had, on Thursday, a meeting with Ivan Demerdzhiev, Minister of the Interior and Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria, in which context the two officials discussed the management of challenges at the common border and the coordination steps for accession to the Schengen area, told Agerpres.

According to a release sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI), the meeting represents a continuation of the constant dialogue held by the two dignitaries, since the beginning of this year, on the occasion of the JHA meetings, the participation in the Ministerial Conference in Sofia, respectively the meetings in the format video conference.

Lucian Bode and Ivan Demerdzhiev held an exchange of views regarding the discussions held with the ministers of interior from the EU member states in the perspective of coordinating the steps for accession to the Schengen area.

Also, measures were agreed to strengthen cooperation at the border to prevent and combat illegal migration and related crimes.

During the discussions, the good operational cooperation between the two countries was highlighted, by continuing the joint patrolling missions on the Bulgarian coast, in the summer season 2023, and by ensuring a rapid exchange of data and information.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the "Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum" international conference organized in Bucharest on May 18-19.
The head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, participates, Thursday and Friday, in the high-level Meeting on the intermediary evaluation of the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, organized in New York, the USA.

"Before the meeting, on May 17, the DSU head had a meeting with the president of the UN General Assembly, Csaba Korosi, with whom he addressed the measures arranged at the global level to reduce the risk of disasters, the continuation of the efforts of the states to increase the capacities to respond to emergency situations, as well as the importance of financing the respective measures and the creation of fast and efficient response mechanisms," a post on the Facebook page of DSU reads.

At the same time, Raed Arafat paid a working visit to the New York Fire Department, establishing together with Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh the opportunities for exchange of experience with the structures of fire fighters in Romania, as well as actions to intensify cooperation activities in the preparation of the population and disaster resilience.

"Furthermore, the DSU chief had meetings with the ambassadors of Indonesia and Australia at the UN, where the initiatives in the field of reducing the risk of disasters at the level of each state were addressed, being mentioned, among other things, the response operations in the context of the military aggression in Ukraine, the international assistance offered by Romania, the measures available at the national level to increase the capacity to respond to emergency situations, as well as the need to create quick mechanisms to ensure a coordinated response to disasters, a model to follow for other regions being the Civil Protection Mechanism of the European Union," the DSU says.

Raed Arafat also visited the Department of Emergency Situations Management, the Regional Response Division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the New York Fire Academy and the Emergency Response Coordination Center.AGERPRES
The Standing Bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate analyzed on Thursday a letter from Ombudsperson Renate Weber, requesting the removal from office of Daniel Iovanescu, the Deputy Ombudsman for the prevention of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, who was appointed on 26 October 2022 for a 5-year term.

According to the request, which will be analyzed by the Judicial Committees, "almost every day, the papers that Daniel Iovanescu submits are sent back with resolutions of the Ombudsperson on their correction, in order to comply with the law."

"The constant attitude of deputy Daniel Iovanescu makes it impossible for the Ombudsperson to collaborate with him, with the consequence of the appearance of dysfunctions in the work of the institution. (... ) Unfortunately, since the date of his appointment as Deputy Ombudsman, Mr. Daniel Iovanescu has proved, through the acts he drafted or approved as Deputy: the violation of the legal framework of organization and functioning which governs the Ombudsperson status, constantly challenging the authority of the Ombudsperson and making the work of the institution vulnerable," the document shows.

Daniel Iovanescu is accused of "not-observing and defying the exclusive decision-making powers of the Ombudsperson," but also of "subrogating, in violation of the law, the exclusive powers of the Ombudsperson." AGERPRES
A number of 23 non-governmental organisations are asking Social Democratic Party (PSD) Chairman Marcel Ciolacu, in the context of becoming prime minister, to implement his statements on the fair representation of women in politics, according to a press release from the Resource Centre for Public Participation (CeRe) sent to AGERPRES on Thursday.

"As of June 1, you will become Romania's prime minister. Right now, you are working together with your government partners on the political programme and the list of the cabinet of ministers. Show that the time has really come for a change, starting with the Ciolacu Cabinet! We have calculated for you. At the first level, the ministerial level, there are 24 dignitaries with the rank of minister: the Prime Minister, 21 ministers, the head of the Chancellery and the Secretary General of the Government. At least 30% means at least 8 women in the Ciolacu Cabinet. Maybe you will say that you cannot control the nominations of your partners (although for a politician of your stature this should not be a problem). Even so, will there be at least 4 women proposed as ministers by the PSD? That would be double the number of the current cabinet, which started with only one woman," the press release reads.

Representatives of non-governmental organisations say they are surprised that, in his list, Marcel Ciolacu excluded an essential level of political representation, the executive.

Marcel Ciolacu announced last week that he had signed a series of amendments making it mandatory that at least 30% of the candidates in all political elections in Romania be women. He added that the amendments complement the provisions of the draft law on the establishment of a minimum 30% representation quota in local elections and in the corporate management of public enterprises.
PM Ciuca: Human trafficking is a form of crime for which Romania's Government has zero tolerance.

Human trafficking is a form of crime for which the Romanian Government has "zero tolerance," stated Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca.

The head of the Government participated, on Thursday, at the Victoria Palace, together with the British Ambassador to Romania, Andrew Noble, at the signing ceremony of the Bilateral Action Plan in the field of preventing and combating human trafficking agreed between Romania and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, told Agerpres.

"The joint action plan represents an extremely important moment in the context of our joint efforts to prevent and fight crime. It is part of the vision and development strategy of this field, which the Government of Romania has assumed in the last two years, through which we want Romania to be a hostile country to human traffickers and a safe and friendly country for the victims who had the misfortune of being exploited. The signing of this joint document is also the expression of the care and concern that the Romanian Government has for its most vulnerable citizens and exposed to the risk of trafficking in people who live in Romania or in one of the largest communities in the Diaspora, namely the one in Great Britain," stated Nicolae Ciuca.

The Prime Minister warned that human trafficking is currently one of the forms of crime with accelerated growth, including at the European level, adding that new technologies, migratory flows and the COVID 19 crisis have generated additional risks and challenges at the European and international level.

"Traffickers are constantly adapting and often changing their methods in real time. They exploit people with insufficient resources, the unprotected and the most vulnerable. Also, the conflict in Ukraine has caused millions of vulnerable people to leave their country. Exactly these types of vulnerable situations are often exploited by traffickers to turn people in difficult situations into involuntary victims in order to force them to provide sexual services for commercial purposes, forced labor or domestic servitude," explained Ciuca.

Compared to what was shown, the prime minister highlighted the fact that the bilateral plan with Great Britain comes to offer common and convergent action solutions between the two states in several directions: "On the line of understanding trafficking and new forms of exploitation, identifying traffickers and bringing them before the courts, the prevention of human trafficking, the identification and protection of victims of human trafficking."

The Bilateral Action Plan was signed on the Romanian side by State Councilor Madalina Turza, national anti-trafficking coordinator at Government level, and by State Secretary Bogdan Despescu, head of the Department for Order and Public Safety within the Interior Ministry, and on the British side by Sarah Dines, Minister Responsible for Human Trafficking in the British Home Office.
Prime minister Nicolae Ciuca pleaded, on Thursday, at the Security Forum in the Black Sea and Balkans region, for the strengthening of NATO's presence in the area, considering the existing security threats.

"Freedom of overflight and freedom of maritime traffic, freedom of navigation in territorial waters, exclusive economic zones and the free international zone in the Black Sea create a distinct component of security threats that call for the reinforcement of the Alliance's presence. Outside the restricted areas, with months, even years, for firing exercises, dangerous wartime operations, Russia's abuses resulted in the subsequent controlled downing of the American surveillance drone by the Russian fighter trail or a similar and dangerous intervention, but under the name of the qualified direct operation, without using the armament provided, at the Polish plane participating in a European FRONTEX mission, in an aggressive and imprudent, dangerous and discouraging flight of Russian aircraft," the prime minister assessed.

He added that, regarding the threats, the abuse produced by Russia on entire areas of the Black Sea, which does not exclusively target Ukraine, should be noted.

"I raised several times the issue of these prohibition zones in the Black Sea area that limited and sometimes blocked the freedom of navigation in the Black Sea. Real or imaginary exercises, the artificial creation of war zones and danger for the movement of commercial vessels, their blocking in ports or their interception, all were the subject of discussions and direct threats to maritime security, which must be properly regulated and included in action plans, but also in projects to preserve freedom of movement, including by accompanying the transports of military patrol vessels, which will safeguard the transit," Ciuca said.

The premier emphasized that the world has changed and everything in terms of security has been rewritten and must be revised in the Black Sea region where a large part of the components of Russia's war of aggression, on a large scale, in Ukraine is consumed.

"We have the clearest elements of the definition of a war of conquest, but also of a neo-colonial war - Russia against Ukraine, which breaks away from the empire, a true war of independence of Ukraine. If all assessments regarding the security situation of Eastern Europe, the threats, risks and vulnerabilities of the region had a conservative post-Cold War approach, with Russia committed and partner, possibly competitor and rival, we saw, on the occasion of February 23, 2022, the transition to a new old paradigm of war on a large scale, of duration, of high intensity as a threat. Thus, on the work plan returns the construction of the defense industry, which must become a war industry, and of small, technological and sophisticated armies of professionals, which must return to mass armies with reserves at the level of the entire society and extensive mobilization capacity to face a large-scale war, a long and high-intensity war, which exhausts the resources not only of the country in conflict, but also of the countries of Europe," the head of the government detailed.

He added that maritime security in the Black Sea is inextricably linked to the security of the drilling platforms in the exclusive economic zones.

The Security Forum in the Black Sea and the Balkans region, now in its 7th edition, is organized on Thursday and Friday by the New Strategy Center think-tank and the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, with the support of NATO's Public Diplomacy Division, in partnership with the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.AGERPRES
PSD's Firea: We would like Senator Radu Oprea to join the government team as Minister of Economy.

PSD First Vice-President Gabriela Firea stated, on Thursday, in Ploiesti, that the social democrats would like Senator Radu Oprea to take over the portfolio of Minister of Economy in the future government formula, told Agerpres.

"We very much want to keep for our team, because there are tangible results, for people, for citizens, not only for PSD members, that's not what we're talking about, the Ministry of Labor, with Mr. Marius Budai, the Ministry of Health, with Mr. Minister Rafila and, first of all, I want to tell you, we, the team, Mr. President Ciolacu, Mr. Secretary General Stanescu, Sorin and I, would very much like Senator Radu Oprea to join the government team as Minister of the Economy. Although we all love and appreciate our current minister, as far as I understand, he has other political and administrative plans. I understood that the proposal would be for Mr. Senator Oprea to take over this portfolio in a future government formula. The decision has not been taken at this moment, we do not want to reveal the inside of the negotiations, I will tell you what I consider personally, what is my opinion as a senator, a colleague and as a person who comes from a place very close to your county - Bucharest," said Firea in the speech held during the PSD Prahova County Election Conference.

Also, Gabriela Firea showed that Lucian Romascanu is the best Minister of Culture given by the PSD, showing her support for him to remain in the government formula.
Seven Romanian companies participate under the national flag in the Marche du Film Cannes international movie industry fair running May 16 - 24, 2023, the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism (MAT) announced on Thursday in a release.

Romania's participation in this event is ensured by MAT in cooperation with the Romanian Film and Television Association - Creative Romanian Film Makers (CRFM).

"The fair is more than a market for films and audiovisual content, positioning itself as a platform for innovation and change. The Marche du Film is an event that goes along with the well-known Cannes Film Festival, a traditional event that has seen Romania's successful participation throughout the years," the release states.

The Romanian companies participating in the Marche du Film Cannes are: Catchwave, GAT Transylvania Films, Idea Film Distribution, Malno, Libra Films, Transylvania Film and Western Transylvania Studios.

Romania participates with a 32 sqm national stand that will host seven screenings for specialists, intended to increase the visibility of the Romanian film industry: Clara, Clouds of Chernobyl, Occasional Spies, Playback, Sabina, The Goat and Her Three Kids and The Secret of Pin-Up Island.

The Romanian production The Goat and Her Three Kids was already purchased and distributed by one of the video-on-demand platforms which also popular in Romania. AGERPRES
Romanians from Bitdefender expand their partnership with Ferrari, on cyber security.

The Romanian maker of antivirus solutions, Bitdefender, is expanding its partnership with the car maker Ferrari, to provide the Bitdefender Advanced Threat Intelligence solution to the company's global security operations, told Agerpres.

According to a press release sent to AGERPRES on Thursday, Ferrari S.p.A. will integrate Bitdefender Advanced Threat Intelligence into its Security Operations Center (SOC) to help Ferrari's IT security analysts validate and triage alerts faster, improve threat hunting and incident response capabilities.

"The Italian car maker will benefit from Bitdefender Operational Intelligence Feeds services that provide contextual information on cyber threats and indicators of compromise (IoC) around advanced persistent threats (APT), phishing and fraud, dangerous IP addresses, domains, URLs and signatures used to spread cyber threats, exploitation of vulnerabilities, command and control (C2) servers and more. Security analysts at Ferrari will also have access to the Bitdefender Operational Intelligence API, a query service that provides useful information not only about cyber threats cyber security, but also contextualized information around them, such as threat actors, malware families, victim profiles (industry, country, platform), trust, severity, popularity score, vulnerabilities, exploits and others", states Bitdefender.

The Bitdefender Advanced Threat Intelligence solution is based on an extensive network of hundreds of millions of sensors, including its global OEM ecosystem (serving small and medium-sized enterprises), and continuously collects data on cyber threats worldwide. In this context, Bitdefender Labs, formed by an elite team of IT security specialists, correlates data on possible threats, collects known indicators of compromise (IOC), malware, dangerous domains and URLs, and performs complex analysis to provide an extended context of threats.

"This telemetry along with human and automated analysis results in hundreds of new threats added every minute, the validation of billions of threat queries daily, and fewer false positive alerts for IT security teams," notes the quoted source.

Against this background and based on relevant threat intelligence, the security team at Ferrari will be able to detect cyber threats, dangerous campaigns and abnormal behavior more quickly, stopping threats before they affect the organization or spread to the IT infrastructure - from the office on-circuit, on-premise or in the cloud.

A recent study of over 400 IT security professionals from around the world shows that expanding capabilities across multiple environments (on premise, cloud, hybrid) represents the main challenge for many organizations.

Bitdefender is a leader in the field of IT security, offering superior solutions for prevention, detection and response to cyber security incidents. Founded in 2001, the company has clients in over 170 countries and offices on all continents.
Health workers will organize a protest rally in front of the government, in Victoriei Square in Bucharest, on June 8, followed by a general strike from July 1, according to a press release from the Solidaritatea Sanitara Federation.

The representatives of the Federation request the provision of decent working conditions and the application of the salary bill established with the Ministry of Health, which will ensure the resettlement of all employees in the public health sector, starting with nurses, and the possibility of an effective and relevant income increase of health workers.

Furthermore, the health trade unionists demand the reporting of increases for working conditions to the basic salaries for auxiliary health personnel (nurses, support workers, orderlies), TESA (Technical Economic Scientific Administrative) staff and health workers and the reporting of increases for shifts and for working on legal holidays to the basic salaries in payment for all categories of personnel.

Also, other demands aim at paying doctors' guards with the hourly rate of the basic norm, updating the value of the food allowance taking as a reference the minimum salary in payment and removing it from the calculation of the limit applicable to increments, unlocking positions in the public health system and increasing the share of expenses for health in GDP at the level of the EU average.

"We specify that the protest actions will be carried out after the appointment of the new Government, in order to maximize the chances that the demands of the health workers will be satisfied," the source emphasizes.AGERPRES
Staff members of the Guizhou branch of the China Southern Power Grid use a robot to conduct inspections at a power substation in Tongren, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Oct. 23, 2022. (Photo by Fan Caifu/Xinhua)

GUIYANG, May 16 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Guizhou Province has started using robots to conduct routine inspections at its power substations in remote mountainous areas.

So far, 13 robots have been deployed to 10 power substations in the city of Tongren, where they can conduct automatic inspection patrols, according to the Guizhou branch of the China Southern Power Grid.

"Once per week, they can patrol and check 3,800 points at the station without human intervention, at an accuracy rate of 100 percent," said Zhou Jingyu, head of the Taiping Power Substation in Tongren.

Equipped with high-precision sensors and high-definition cameras, the robots can complete a routine patrol in 50 minutes, compared with 12 hours by human inspectors, who must spend another 40 minutes traveling to the substation, Zhou said.

Perched on the rugged Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, Guizhou's power facilities are susceptible to disruption by extreme weather conditions, thus demanding frequent patrols and maintenance.

Boasting higher efficiency and reliability, the patrol robots are expected to be applied in other roles within the mountainous province's power supply sector, Zhou said.

China is increasingly using robotic technologies to solve the lack of technicians in out-of-the-way mountainous areas. Last year, the mountainous province of Yunnan said drones had replaced humans in the arduous inspection of its 90,000-km power transmission lines. 

Staff members of the Guizhou branch of the China Southern Power Grid use a robot to conduct inspections at a power substation in Tongren, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Feb. 22, 2023. (Photo by Tian Jie/Xinhua)
Mytien Nguyen, from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, and colleagues examined trends in childhood household income among 232,275 applicants and 93,258 matriculants to medical school in 2014 to 2019 and the likelihood of acceptance by income. Overall, applicants were 50.9 percent male and 52.3 percent White, with a 3.58 median grade point average. The median number of programs applied to was 13.

The researchers found that the percentage of applicants reporting income in the categories >$75,000 increased annually, with the highest increase seen in the category of $200,000 (annual percent change, 0.41 percent). Over time, the percentage of applicants and matriculants reporting income in the categories <$75,000 declined annually. The likelihood of acceptance into an M.D. program increased in a stepwise fashion by income when combining all years. For applicants with income <$50,000, the adjusted rate of acceptance was 24.31 percent compared with 27.57 percent for $50,000 to $74,999, 29.90 percent for $75,000 to $124,999, 33.27 percent for $125,000 to $199,999, and 36.91 percent for $200,000. Applicants reporting income in the category <$50,000 were 48 percent less likely than those reporting income of $200,000 to be accepted into an M.D. program (adjusted relative risk, 0.52).
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ZELL, Mo.  St. Joseph Catholic Church is the focal point of this small town in rural Ste. Genevieve County, which still resembles the village German immigrants left nearly two centuries ago. Built by ancestors of some of the current members, it has long been an anchor and meeting place in unincorporated Zell.

And yet on a recent night, with its future in question, parishioners did not gather on the hallowed ground of the white stone campus.

They said they werent allowed to.

Instead, lay leaders, as well as representatives from a handful of other rural parishes in the area, met right across the parking lot from St. Joseph, at the volunteer fire department. It smelled of exhaust fumes lingering from a big truck that pulled out to accommodate them.

We need to come up with viable alternatives, said Matt Blumenfeld, 38, one of 17 people seated at a long table inside.

Without any priests present, theyd come to strategize responses to St. Louis Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanskis final All Things New restructuring plan, which, after a year and a half of speculation and headlines, will be formally unveiled next weekend. Rozanski has said prudent decisions need to be made to better evangelize in an era of fallen church attendance and fewer priests.

The Archdiocese of St. Louis has said that it wants about 1,800 households grouped together some way, which, considering existing church attendance, would require a lot of square miles in rural areas. Some small parishes feel like they have a bulls-eye on their backs, even though their finances, buildings and attendance are solid.

They believe they have something special that needs to be protected, not suppressed.

But they think their voices arent being heard by the archdiocese.

And so members of St. Joseph, which draws about 225 people to weekend services, went out and gathered more than 170 signatures to designate Blumenfeld as their procurator. That way, he said at the meeting, he can speak officially and quickly on behalf of congregants, should an appeal be needed to stave off closure or a decision from the archdiocese that would effectively close the parish, such as removing their resident pastor and cutting off access to other clergy.

Blumenfeld said hed been in contact with a canon lawyer and sent an official letter to Rozanski, calling for more time to refocus and reengage Roman Catholics who havent come back to church since COVID-19 and news of the clergy sex abuse crisis breaking open in 2002.

As he awaited answers from the archdiocese, Blumenfeld said hed been considering the realities of relying on a lay parish life coordinator or deacon to run things day-to-day. Hed entertained the idea of finding a priest on his own who could be vetted by the archdiocese. Perhaps a friend of another priest he knows in Virginia, originally from Uganda, could come over and help.

It would be a role reversal for St. Joseph, which produced nine priests and 21 nuns.

Why dont they consider changing the model for the priests, instead of changing the model for all the parishes? Blumenfeld said. We need missionaries in this country. We used to send a lot of people overseas. Now we are the ones in need.

Close The Rev. Henry Purcell, pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., hurries back to the rectory on Thursday, May 4, 2023, before the start of a Confirmation ceremony Mass. St. Louis Auxiliary Bishop Mark Rivituso Confirmed 11 youth from several rural parishes in Ste. Genevieve County. St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., is one of the longest continually running churches in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. The parish, dating to 1847, is one of several in rural Ste. Genevieve County facing possible consolidation from the "All Things New" restructuring initiative. St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., seen atop a hill from Interstate 55 on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, is one of the longest continually running churches in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. The parish, dating to 1847, is one of several in rural Ste. Genevieve County facing possible consolidation from the "All Things New" restructuring initiative. Kimberly Basler, left, Mary Beth Kreitler and Brandon Basler, choir members at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., confer after playing a hymn on Thursday, May 4, 2023, during a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Gunner Gegg, 8, chases his little sister, Georgie, 4, around the yard of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, near its cemetery, before the start of their sister's Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Maia Rottler, 12, Katelyn Roth, 9, Kate Fischer, 12, and Jacob Rottler, 9, leave the sacristy at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, to be servers in a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Parishioners exit St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, at the conclusion of a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Photos: St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Missouri St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Missouri is one of the oldest parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Louis dating back to 1847. The congregation there is one of several historic Ste. Genevieve County parishes now contemplating its fate as the All Things New reconfiguration plan is implemented. Photos by Christian Gooden, St. Louis Post-Dispatch The Rev. Henry Purcell, pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., hurries back to the rectory on Thursday, May 4, 2023, before the start of a Confirmation ceremony Mass. St. Louis Auxiliary Bishop Mark Rivituso Confirmed 11 youth from several rural parishes in Ste. Genevieve County. St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., is one of the longest continually running churches in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. The parish, dating to 1847, is one of several in rural Ste. Genevieve County facing possible consolidation from the "All Things New" restructuring initiative. St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., seen atop a hill from Interstate 55 on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, is one of the longest continually running churches in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. The parish, dating to 1847, is one of several in rural Ste. Genevieve County facing possible consolidation from the "All Things New" restructuring initiative. Kimberly Basler, left, Mary Beth Kreitler and Brandon Basler, choir members at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., confer after playing a hymn on Thursday, May 4, 2023, during a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Gunner Gegg, 8, chases his little sister, Georgie, 4, around the yard of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, near its cemetery, before the start of their sister's Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Maia Rottler, 12, Katelyn Roth, 9, Kate Fischer, 12, and Jacob Rottler, 9, leave the sacristy at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, to be servers in a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish. Parishioners exit St. Joseph Catholic Church in Zell, Mo., on Thursday, May 4, 2023, at the conclusion of a Confirmation ceremony Mass at the Ste. Genevieve County parish.

The archdiocese, which oversees the Catholic experience in St. Louis and 10 surrounding Missouri counties, said early on in the All Things New process that being unable to produce its own priests was a sign of weakness. Considering future projections, one of its first publicized restructuring models had Ste. Genevieve Parish, in the town of Ste. Genevieve, absorbing all seven rural parishes in the county. That plan was poorly received, which some believe helped change the narrative.

Parish is no longer the main metric. Now its pastorate, a more squishy term, some at the meeting believed.

Currently, the archdiocese says some individual parishes may be their own pastorate, perhaps with some adaptations to church services due to priest availability, which seems most likely for large, suburban parishes. In another scenario, the archdiocese says two or more parishes would remain financially independent but become a new pastorate under one pastor or pastoral team, which seems likely for some rural and urban churches.

Only after we have discerned which communities ought to come together as a new pastorate can we begin the case-by-case examination of which structure is most prudent for each existing parish, the archdiocese says. No matter the chosen structure, some worship sites may no longer be used in the future.

Reporting signals those decisions will be hard to accept in Ste. Genevieve County, one of the most Catholic areas of the archdiocese.

Under the latest restructuring model, Our Lady, Help of Christians in Weingarten, Sts. James and Philip in River aux Vases and Sacred Heart in Ozora would still be with Ste. Genevieve Parish, which seats 960. Others  St. Joseph in Zell, St. Agnes in Bloomsdale and St. Lawrence in Lawrenceton  would be grouped together.

Nothing against Bloomsdale. Id rather stay here in Zell. Our roots are here, said Paul Flieg, 59, a farmer whose family name dates to at least 1869 in town records.

Its a sacred building on sacred ground, added his wife, Mickey, 50.

Their 17-year-old son, Dennis, who was killed in a tractor accident in 2013, is buried in the church cemetery, which also motivates them to fight for St. Joseph.

Joe Young, 66, of St. Agnes, said he had two canon lawyers on retainer and had spoken to several others. He shared a variety of documents with the group, including one that says a lack of priests isnt just cause to close a parish. Even though the archdiocese has one of the best ratios of priests per number of Catholics in the country, he encouraged everyone present to continue to work on their action plans to stay intact.

Time is getting short, he said.

Changing history

And yet time goes back the farthest here.

Ste. Genevieve, the oldest permanent European settlement in Missouri, was founded around 1740 by French-Canadians, including some who migrated from Illinois Country, just across the Mississippi River. Traders and explorers were drawn to the area by salt springs and lead.

They brought Catholicism with them. So did many of the German immigrants, who later came up the Mississippi River, primarily from New Orleans. Some were drawn to the town of Ste. Genevieve; most settled in surrounding farming communities like Zell.

Barbara McClurkin, author of Seventy-Five years of German Immigration to Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri: 1800-1875, said in a telephone interview that many traveled in large groups from the same regions in Germany, like Baden, which borders France along the Rhine River.

Most of them came hoping to establish a new Germany, she said. They brought their culture very much with them.

They built and supported churches that remain today.

The demographics and the dynamics have not changed in Ste. Genevieve County, for all intents and purposes, McClurkin said. The social and family contacts are still there. And they are still very much connected to those churches.

Throughout history, there have been various strategies to serve Catholics in remote Ste. Genevieve County that often included priests riding a circuit. The Rev. John Rothensteiner wrote in his 1928 history of the St. Louis Archdiocese, a two-volume set, that there were more than half a dozen towns in the area whose churches branched off from the old mother parish in Ste. Genevieve.

For instance, parishes in Bloomsdale, Lawrenceton and French Village, just across the border in St. Francois County, formed a ragged outline of an isosceles triangle, he wrote. At various times, the three churches were administered as one parochial entity that was united under the pastorship of one priest. In 1882, the priest lived in Bloomsdale, but visited his two missions of Lawrenceton and French Village in rotation every Sunday morning for the purpose of saying mass and performing the other functions of his pastoral office.

After a year of such strenuous missionary labor, Rothensteiner noted, the priest was transferred to Ste. Genevieve. His replacement lasted about four years in the same arrangement. Then Lawrenceton had a series of eight resident priests who also served the spiritual needs of St. Anne Catholic Church, 5 miles down the road in French Village.

During that era, Rothensteiner reported, Lawrenceton had 40 families, about the same as it has today  though families are much smaller. They lost their resident pastor in 1967. The priest at St. Agnes in Bloomsdale has kept them going since. Once a week, he drives 7 miles to Lawrenceton to celebrate Mass at St. Lawrence early Sunday morning, then rushes back.

Does the pope know?

Pershing Carron would like the same arrangement to continue in Lawrenceton, which, by his count, has 11 people in town, with dozens more off in the hills.

The Navy veteran is spry for 90. He sings in the choir. He rings the bell tower and watches over the grounds. He grew up there. He moved back with his wife in the 1990s, after raising a family in St. Charles and retiring from McDonnell Douglas as a machinist.

It always had a tender spot in my heart, he said.

His great-grandfather helped establish the original church, dedicated in 1872. Forty-five years later, the community persevered to rebuild after a tornado destroyed the church in 1917.

Now, Carron doesnt think St. Lawrence can overcome what he described as a global churchs failure to modernize.

I hate to go into all this, but part of it originates in Rome, he said. The first thing: Is the pope so oblivious that all of this is going on?

He said the lack of priests reflects a lack of awareness at the Vatican.

The pope says we cant have women for pastors. We cant have married people for pastors. And who knows more about family life than a husband and wife? he said. When are we going to take our blinders off and see what the real world is about?

As is, he said, St. Lawrence only has a couple families with children these days and hasnt had a baptism in a while. But its a devoted flock. Financially, the congregation is in decent shape. They still pay tuition for their youths to attend Catholic schools in Bloomsdale.

And Carron said the brick church doesnt have any major flaws. Nor do the outbuildings, used to host a famous annual fried chicken feast  though not last year. On recent days, the grass was freshly cut, with mulch spread nice and tidy around the base of trees. The cemetery also looked well taken care of.

I truly feel, and Id hate to see this, that this church will be shut down, said Carron, out in the graveyard, where his ancestors are buried. Our problem is, if it closes, what do you do with a building like this?

Continued presence

Bob Palmer isnt Catholic, but as president of Bloomsdale Bank, which dates to 1914, he and the board of directors have faced similar obstacles regarding branch offices.

Consolidation may be cheaper, he said, but not better.

Its that sense of community in a Zell, a Bloomsdale, and Ozora that people want to be a part of, Palmer, 65, said from his desk. Youve got to be where the people are.

And available. His office door was open. He takes random calls.

If you want to call Bloomsdale Bank, just pick up the phone, he said. If you want to talk to the president of the bank, just ask for him.

Residents around Ozora have had that kind of access for more than 20 years at Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

Father knows everybody by name  Sister, too, said Tom Otte, 63, who lives on a century farm where he grew up. They get along with everybody. Its unreal.

The Rev. Jim Schaefer, 93, and Sister Agnes Marie Keena, 80, came to Sacred Heart from St. Norbert Catholic Church in Florissant more than 20 years ago. They are both active.

I love what I am doing, and I feel like I am making a difference  and I still have the energy, said Sister Agnes.

She had previous stints in Dubuque, Iowa; Wichita, Kansas; Chicago; Kansas City; and St. Louis, where she was raised. She described the Sacred Heart congregation as alive in Christ.

People know each other. They talk to each other. They dont just leave and go on their merry way. They are interested in what people are doing, she said. I never thought Id like rural. I love this. The people. You really are part of their families.

She said she has written Rozanski about her concerns for the parishioners.

I was positive, but I dont feel they are being listened to, she said. I wish he wouldnt have gone down this road. I wish hed gone a little slower.

Sister Agnes served as a school principal in the archdiocese for 47 years. When enrollment fell to 15 students at Sacred Heart elementary, it closed in 2014.

The people decided, she said. That makes a difference. It was hard, but people understood. (Now), its almost like they are imposing closure.

If the church is going to die, she prefers a natural death.

People are more prepared, she said.

But she said Sacred Heart still has a lot of life left in the 140 families that go there.

Most of them grew up here, she said. Their young kids are staying here, to farm, to take care of the land. We dont have many that move away.

Toni Grass, one of her former students, was an exception. She left to join a Roman Catholic religious order. In her early 30s, shes serving in Canada as Sister Rose Catherine.

Ottes son, Tommy, also got away. Hes an auditor in St. Louis. This fall, he hopes to enter Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in Shrewsbury to pursue becoming a priest in the St. Louis Archdiocese.

In a telephone interview, Tommy Otte, 23, recalled hearing Sacred Hearts bell tower from the pasture lands of his family farm. Because its a small parish, he said, everyone is counted on to participate in different ways. For him, that included being an altar server, singing in the youth choir and playing trumpet for Christmas Eve Mass every year.

He said church involvement, and being one of five students in his elementary school class, had a lot of impact on his spiritual life and eventual pursuit of the priesthood.

Especially Father Jim and Sister Agnes being around since I was born until now, he said. Their continued presence.

Growing rift

St. Joseph in Zell has served as an unofficial hub of the rural parishes in Ste. Genevieve County since a cornerstone was laid in 1845.

Its one of the longest continually running churches in the archdiocese.

While lay leaders from various congregations spoke calmly at their recent meeting at the firehouse in Zell, some parishioners were more raw.

Theres blood, sweat and tears in this area that no one will understand, Sharon Werner, 67, said of generational investment into the church and school.

Werner said she grew up in Zell, one of eight siblings. When her parents didnt want them to understand, they spoke in German. Her grandparents were neighbors. Three of her uncles from Zell became priests.

Its home, she said.

But she may find a different denomination. The threat of consolidation angers her too much.

If I wanted a mega church, I could find one, she said. Its real easy.

Her husband, Dennis, 68, agreed. He used to be an altar server at St. Lawrence when he was a boy. He said the lay deacon should be leaned on more to keep St. Joseph open.

That archbishop could send some hosts down here, he said of sacramental bread used for Holy Communion.

Angst over the situation has already significantly cut into their weekly offerings.

Rather than make financial donations to the archdiocese, which might be working to shut St. Joseph down, Mickey Flieg said a few parishioners are making direct payments to cover church utilities and other bills.

Its still tithing, but its not going to the archdiocese, she said.

Cheryl Bauman, 56, a retired elementary school principal who also served on a Catholic school board in the area, said its the people who have built and supported St. Joseph for generations.

They just need to leave us alone, she said. If the archbishop is truly listening to the parishioners, and he truly has their best interest at heart, things will stay the same.

Bauman said she has personally tried to reach Rozanski by telephone to express her concerns but hasnt gotten through. She said if he could prove that consolidating would save more souls, shed be on board. She fears the opposite.

Hes setting us up for hell if he goes through with this, she said. People are going to fall through the cracks.

Originally posted at noon Thursday, May 18.
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CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  A bill that would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender was defeated Thursday in the New Hampshire House.

The bill had passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines. But while Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the 400-member House, Democrats had a one-vote edge in attendance for Thursdays session.

Democrats passed several poison pill amendments to weaken the bill before it was defeated on a 195-190 vote, with two Republicans crossing party lines to oppose it. Rep. Gerri Cannon, a Democrat from Somersworth who was one of the first transgender lawmakers elected in New Hampshire, said her heart was beating faster and faster with each amendment until the final vote.

I was truly excited, she said. Ive been so upset with whats going on in this country.

Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. House, such a bill was the first legislation that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally announced  fulfilling a major part of the GOP campaign platform.

The New Hampshire version sought to establish a consistent mechanism for parents to be notified of information relating to the health, well-being, and educational progress of their minor children while those children are in the custody and control of the public schools.

Now is the time to recognize that parents, not schools, not school personnel, are the parents with all those rights and responsibilities for their minor children, said Rep. Rick Ladd, a Republican from Haverhill.

The final vote to indefinitely postpone the bill means the topic cant be revisited this session, a scenario that drew an angry response from House Majority Leader Jason Osborne.

This will send a message to parents that they must continue, until the next election when they can replace their representatives, to accept that school is a mysterious and secretive black box where they deposit their children, who knows what happens inside that box and who knows what comes out the other side, he said.

Opponents have argued that while it may appear benign in detailing many rights already covered by existing state and federal law, the bill would have exposed LGBQT+ students to the risk of abuse at home  a bad idea for young people who are already prone to stress, depression and suicidal thoughts. Rep. Linda Ryan, a Democrat from Nashua and a retired teacher, objected to a provision that would have allowed parents to sue school personnel.

If I have to keep a record and call every one of those parents every single time I see Susie and Sally hugging in the hallway, we will never have another public school teacher again," she said. "I strongly encourage you to go to your public schools and substitute for less than $100 a day and see for your very own self what this bill will do to our public schools and our teachers.

Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed a similar bill last year that would have required schools to automatically notify parents about students sexual or gender identity. Sununu said Wednesday he generally supported the new bill.
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THURSDAY, May 18, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Individuals with combat-related traumatic injury (CRTI) have lower femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD), with this reduction significant only at the femoral neck of the amputated limb of amputees, according to a study published online May 17 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

Louise McMenemy, from the Centre for Blast Injury Studies at Imperial College London, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the first phase of a cohort study, including 575 male adult U.K. military personnel with CRTI, including 153 lower-limb amputees, who were frequency-matched to 562 uninjured men. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scanning of the hips and lumbar spine was conducted to assess BMD.

The researchers found that the CRTI group had lower femoral neck BMD than the uninjured group (T-score, 0.08 versus 0.42). This reduction was significant only at the femoral neck of the amputated limb of amputees in a subgroup analysis, with a greater reduction noted for above-the-knee than below-the-knee amputees. No differences were seen between amputees and controls in spine BMD or activity levels.

"We need to investigate the role of prosthetics and exercise in reversing bone mineral density loss to reduce the longer-term risk of hip fracture," a coauthor said in a statement. "Because systemic treatments like bisphosphonates are not indicated in this young population with bone mineral density loss, it is important to understand other ways to reduce their hip fracture risk."
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THURSDAY, May 18, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Heart transplant (HT) recipients from donors with active COVID-19 have increased mortality at six months and one year, while survival is similar for recently resolved COVID-19 donors and non-COVID-19 donors, according to a study published online May 17 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Shivank Madan, M.D., from Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, New York, and colleagues examined data for HT using COVID-19 donors. A total of 27,892 donors were identified between May 2020 and June 2022 with 60,699 COVID-19 nucleic acid amplification tests (NAT). Donors were considered COVID-19 donors if they were NAT-positive at any time during hospitalization and were further classified as active-COVID-19 (aCOV) if NAT-positive within two days of organ procurement and recently resolved COVID-19 (rrCOV) if initially NAT-positive but became NAT-negative before procurement. A total of 1,445 COVID-19 NAT-positive donors were identified: 1,017 aCOV and 428 rrCOV. Overall, 239 adult-HT recipients from COVID-19 donors met the inclusion criteria (150 aCOV; 89 rrCOV).

COVID-19 donors were younger and mostly male compared with non-COVID-19 donors. The researchers found that HTs from aCOV donors had increased mortality at six months and one year compared with HTs from non-COVID-19 donors (hazard ratios, 1.74 and 1.98, respectively). Similar six-month and one-year mortality was seen for rrCOV and non-COVID-19 donors. In propensity-matched cohorts, the results were similar.

"These early trends should be concerning enough such that heart transplantation centers need to thoroughly evaluate and continue to weigh the risks/benefits of using hearts from active COVID-19 donors," Madan said in a statement.
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ST. LOUIS  A crime summit attended Wednesday by local political leaders, top police brass, business executives and academics could lead to a regional partnership with a University of Maryland program focused on reducing urban violence and the high murder rate.

St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, who has said violence is the top issue facing the city, called for the summit late last year. Organized by regional planning arm East-West Gateway Council of Governments, it was another nod by much of the areas political and business leadership to a growing consensus that the top issue facing the region is violent crime.

The gathering, held at the Washington University Medical Campus, was an audition of sorts for Thomas Abt, a criminologist and author who leads the Violence Reduction Center at the University of Maryland.

Abts center has worked with cities including Boston and Knoxville, Tennessee, where two very different political environments existed. In Knoxville, the challenge was convincing conservative county and state leaders to fund and support social service programs to stabilize living conditions for those likely to commit violence. In Boston, the challenge was convincing progressive leaders that police intervention was still an essential component to violence reduction.

In a speech to dozens of area leaders and experts Wednesday morning, Abt implored them to stop the either/or conversation on public safety, in which some on the Left want only social service programs deemphasizing police and some conservatives focus only on more police and tougher sentences. Both carrot and stick are necessary. No city has programmed away violence, Abt said, and no city has arrested and incarcerated its way out.

The research says you must have both, Abt said.

An approach called focused deterrence, which targets those at high-risk of committing violence with a choice between social services and community support or swift and certain sanctions from police, has among the strongest evidence behind its effectiveness, Abt said. But other approaches such as hot spot policing and behavioral therapy to prevent recidivism can be combined with focused deterrence or community development and place-making cleaning and greening investments to drive down violence.

Im a big fan of focused deterrence, I just dont want the message to be, hey, no problem, just do focused deterrence, Abt said. Its not that simple.

East-West Gateway Executive Director Jim Wild said the group could vote at its next monthly meeting to begin working with the Violence Reduction Center.

As long as political leaders truly are open to the process, Abt said his organization provides a short, intense planning process for no charge to help cities develop a strategy and connect with the leading experts in the field.

Thats a collaboration both Jones and the citys new police chief, Robert Tracy, welcome. As the jurisdiction with the vast majority of the regions homicides, St. Louis will be at the center of any comprehensive crime reduction strategy.

What weve learned through the Office of Violence Prevention is that one strategy isnt what we hang our hats on, Jones told reporters after the summit. One approach isnt always the right approach. We have to have multiple approaches.

Tracy, who began in January, said the mayors launch of the Office of Violence Prevention, led by Wilford Pinkney, is an essential first step for his job. It has already been using focused deterrence, sometimes called community violence intervention, along with other strategies such as CURE Violence, a health department program that uses community members to intervene and prevent violent altercations.

Tracy has experience with focused deterrence and said he is all about the group violence intervention approach.

We want to keep those with the highest propensity from going back to crime, but weve got to give them options out of crime, Tracy said. If they want to continue to cause carnage or harm to people in the community, then comes incarceration and arresting through cases. Because its a very small amount, very very small amount, committing most of the violent crime. And if we concentrate on those individuals, well bring crime down overall together.

In order to expand that policing strategy, Tracy said he would like to get budgeted strength in a department down about 200 officers from budgeted positions. But he said he knew the departments realities when he took the job, and I have to get the job done with the amount of officers I have.

With the right resources and focus, reducing homicide by 10% a year is very doable, Abt said. That can have a transformative effect in just a few years. But it is up to St. Louis leaders to commit to the violence reduction effort for the long-term and avoid letting it morph into an anti-poverty program or an anti-crime-in-general program that loses its focus on the people most likely to commit violence.

And, in a nod to St. Louis fractured political environment, he warned that the places that havent succeeded tend to have one thing in common.

The key issue is that they cannot seem to work together, Abt said.
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ST. LOUIS  New faces swept in to help mop up St. Louis courts on Wednesday, the first day in six years Kimberly M. Gardner was not the top prosecutor in the city.

Lawyers from the Missouri Attorney Generals Office walked the halls and sat at counsel tables, handling the daily docket of newly arrested defendants and watching over proceedings.

Its a new dawn breaking in St. Louis and across the region and state, Attorney General Andrew Bailey said in an interview with the Post-Dispatch.

Still, many of the problems from Gardners tenure remained.

In one three-year-old murder case, a staffer recently hired by Gardner as a special prosecutor told a judge he needed to dismiss and refile a murder charge for a second time because prosecutors werent ready to proceed.

Sturgeon Stewart, 51, was set to face trial next week in the deaths of two people during a 2020 home invasion. But prosecutor Rufus Tate said key DNA evidence had not yet been prepared by law enforcements processing lab.

In three years they havent run the DNA? asked Judge Rex Burlison.

Tate responded that the lab was understaffed and had a backlog. Burlison appeared perplexed and shook his head.

Gardner resigned unexpectedly on Tuesday after months of pressure to step down. Her resignation left city and state officials scrambling to determine who would lead prosecutions in the city. Republican Gov. Mike Parson asked Attorney General Andrew Baileys Office to send staffers to help handle cases in the short term.

Parson later appointed his own general counsel to lead the office for a few days until Parson could name a permanent replacement. He expects to announce his selection before the end of this week.

Dismissing and refiling cases was a common tactic during Gardners tenure as a way to delay trials and move them to the back of the docket when prosecutors werent ready to proceed. Chronic understaffing left attorneys with crushing caseloads. Prosecutors regularly failed to turn over evidence and prepare prosecutions on time.

Gardners resignation also scuttled two legal efforts against her.

Late Tuesday, Judge Michael Noble dismissed an attempt to hold Gardner in contempt of court after her assistants failed to show up for a pair of hearings in an assault case. And on Wednesday Bailey dropped a lawsuit he filed in February seeking her removal.

We accomplished (our) mission, Bailey said in an interview.

But for defendants like Stewart and Charl Howard, 49, the dysfunction left over from Gardners tenure are still keeping them waiting for their day in court.

Howard was arrested Nov. 13, 2018, and charged with killing 71-year-old Gregory Stevens, who was found stabbed 38 times inside his Hyde Park home. Howard sat in jail for nearly four years while his case was delayed 25 times during the COVID-19 pandemic, then delayed again when prosecutors dismissed and refiled the charges in May 2022.

The case was set for trial again in December, but it was delayed once again. He was released from jail on bond, and he was set to face trial in April. But prosecutors at the last minute said they planned to call a new witness at trial. Defense attorneys argued the revelation fundamentally changes the trial and asked for more time to prepare.

At long last, Howards trial was set to begin Tuesday morning. But at 9 a.m., the courtroom was still empty. Attorneys were back in Judge Bryan Hettenbachs chambers discussing how to proceed.

By noon, Gardner announced she was resigning.

Howards case was dismissed altogether, but prosecutors said they plan to refile it again. His attorney Brian Horneyer said Wednesday he hoped prosecutors would drop it for good.

We are extremely disappointed that the state has chosen to delay this case for the second time, he said. Mr. Howard hopes the state will choose not to pursue this matter any further given the clear evidence of his innocence.

Stewart faced similar issues in court Wednesday afternoon.

He has been facing first- and second-degree murder charges, as well as charges of robbery, kidnapping, burglary and assault, since September 2020. Police said he forced his way into a home with an accomplice, Floyd Willis, then exchanged gunfire with someone inside the home. Both Willis and the the person inside the home, Roy Griffin, died.

On the morning six months ago when the trial was slated to bein, prosecutors dismissed and refiled the case because they werent ready to proceed.

Then, last week, prosecutors appeared in court again to say they werent ready to begin. Burlison, the judge, gave prosecutors two weeks to prepare. If they didnt have the case ready, he said, it would be dismissed altogether.

But prosecutors beat Burlison to the punch on Wednesday. Tate said prosecutors planned to dismiss and refile the case once again, so Burlison couldnt dismiss it altogether.

Stewarts lawyer, Adofo Minka, had filed a motion to dismiss the case altogether, but the maneuver by prosecutors made that motion moot.

I have no ability to stop the state from (dismissing) the case, Burlison said.
Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979. (Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)

HOHHOT, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

They were found earlier this month in a one-hectare land in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, said Zhao Liqing, a botanist at the Inner Mongolia University.

Zhao said the discovery is of great significance to China's ecological protection and studies on the country's endangered plants.

Tulipa mongolica is a perennial herb 10-25 cm tall, featuring an ovate bulb and yellow perianth segments. It is placed under state protection in China. 

Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

(Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)

Plants of Tulipa mongolica are pictured in the Gogestai Khan Uul National Nature Reserve under the city of Chifeng, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, May 14, 2023. Researchers in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have found wild plants of Tulipa mongolica, a species that had not been sighted for more than 40 years in the region.

The bright yellow flowers, distributed solitarily in Inner Mongolia, were believed to be functionally extinct after the species was last sampled in 1979.

(Zhao Liqing/Inner Mongolia University/Handout via Xinhua)
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UPDATED with additional information on both girls

PIKE COUNTY  A 15-year-old girl from Eolia, Missouri, died Wednesday after crashing an all-terrain vehicle in Pike County. Her 14-year-old passenger was seriously injured.

The Missouri Highway Patrol refused to release the name of the girl who died because she was a juvenile. However, an online fundraising campaign identified her as Krista Adam.

She was driving a 2021 Polaris Sportsman ATV that crashed along County Road 268, north of Highway D, about 5:40 p.m. Wednesday.

The ATV ran off the road and up an embankment before hitting a tree and overturning, the patrol said.

Both girls were taken to hospitals by medical helicopter. The driver died at DePaul Hospital. The seriously injured girl was being treated at Mercy Hospital St. Louis, the patrol. said. The Eolia Little League identified her as Bradyn Jensen.

The girl who died wasn't wearing a helmet. The girl who survived was wearing a helmet, said Highway Patrol Cpl. Dallas Thompson.
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ST. LOUIS  The board overseeing the citys economic development arm on Thursday approved an additional $300,000 for a marketing firms contract despite questions from an alderwoman over its mounting costs.

St. Louis Development Corp., which manages development and tax incentives citywide, hired Kansas City-based Candid last year to lead its rebranding and oversee the agencys marketing and public relations services as it rolls out its community improvement programs. Candids initial contract was worth $140,000, but a $685,000 amendment was approved in a closed board meeting late last year.

The amendment approved Thursday raises the total to $1.1 million. The latest funds will be used to provide marketing and public relations support for several SLDC programs like its Small Business Grants Program, SLDC Housing Development Pool and Economic Empowerment Center, SLDC staff said.

But Alderwoman Cara Spencer, citing reporting from the Post-Dispatch, said she wanted more information as to how the money from the contract was being spent, and questioned what presence Candid had in St. Louis as it performed community outreach work.

Its just such a large, large, large amount of money, said Spencer, who joined the board after her election in April to represent the Eighth Ward.

Board members have pushed back on the number of consultants SLDC has hired over the past two years. Still, former Alderwoman Marlene Davis defended Candids work when she was an SLDC board member, saying the firm has done better work than the agency could when it handled marketing itself. SLDC eliminated its inhouse marketing team in 2021 after Neal Richardson took over as executive director.

The money approved Thursday will use American Rescue Plan Act funds, which required SLDC to hire the lowest responsive bidder, said Lorna Alexander, SLDCs vice president of programmatic compliance. Candid was one of five companies that responded to SLDCs request for proposals. It, along with another firm whose name wasnt disclosed, were the lowest bidders at $300,000. An internal SLDC committee ranked Candid as its top choice.

Staff then took Candids proposal to an award committee composed of a representative from the mayors office, Comptrollers Office and President of the Board of Aldermens Office, which approved putting Candids amendment up for vote during SLDCs Thursday board meeting.

Richardson praised Candid for helping SLDC improve SLDCs marketing, branding and public relations and making the agency more nimble. He said SLDC has saved money by hiring an outside firm to do the work.

Having Candid on board has allowed us to take our communications and marketing to a new level, not just on a social media perspective, but also in the community, Richardson said.

A staff report said the money approved Thursday would go towards oversight and coordination, public relations, graphic design, copywriting and editing, website design and development, social media support, promotional items, banners and signage, photography and video production.

Candids marketing work has included handling questions from reporters, writing and editing press releases, buying local newspaper and billboard ads, and creating fliers for events like job fairs and neighborhood input sessions and posting them on social media channels. Its previously filed invoices for promotional materials like insulated coffee mugs for an employee appreciation celebration and filming SLDC events like the unveiling of its Economic Justice Action Plan and the ribbon cutting of Northside Economic Empowerment Center.

Candid co-owners Becky and Sara Freetly said theyre licensed to do business in St. Louis but dont have a physical presence here. They often rely on video conferencing to conduct meetings.

They called the Post-Dispatch reporting on its contract misleading, saying that most of the money went towards buying ads and billboards, as well as video production and other work.

Were extremely transparent with everything that we do, said Becky Freetly.

After Spencer questioned Candid, other board members raised concerns over how this latest round of money would be spent. The Freetlys said Candid did not yet have a breakdown of how the $300,000 would be spent but that said they would likely spend 70% and keep 30% for their fee.

Ultimately, the board approved the contract over concerns delaying a vote would hamper community outreach. Spencer abstained from the vote.

Jacob Barker of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
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Ideas about men and manhood have been evolving for more than 50 years, but Sen. Josh Hawley has not gotten the message. Like so many others working to protect white male supremacy (see Carlson, Tucker; McCarthy, Kevin), hes driving a gas-guzzling Cadillac on a road increasingly filled with electric vehicles. Just as women are vigorously resisting returning to a pre-Roe v. Wade America, men arent going back either. Tone deaf to shifts in the culture, Hawley published a book about men this week, perhaps as a ploy to revive his presidential ambitions.

Manhood: Finding Purpose in Faith, Family, and Country is a call for American men to stand up and embrace their God-given responsibility as husbands, fathers, and citizens, according to Regency, Hawleys far-right publisher. If you want to know what not to embrace in considering American manhood, its all in the 256 pages of this book. Claiming that our countrys all-male founders believed that the United States depends on certain masculine virtues, it ignores the realities of today.

There is much to appreciate about men. Still, wed be much better off if we talked about positive changes  embracing gender equality and rejecting white male supremacy. Calling men out as unemployed whiners, and trash-talking women while playing video games and watching pornography, misses the mark. Examples of new expressions of masculinity abound, from stay-at-home dads to younger men becoming curious about feminism.

Hawleys thesis  that men are in crisis  does have a kernel of truth. There are men floundering, but that is not where the majority of younger men are headed. More and more men are abandoning expressions of masculine culture based on oppressing anyone not white or male. Sure, we still have a ways to go, but support among younger men for womens reproductive rights, for gay and transgender rights, for voting rights, is on the rise.

There are organizations around the country and across the globe promoting gender equality, challenging mens violence, encouraging involved fatherhood, while rejecting men as top dog at home, work, and houses of worship.

Danger does exist, just not what Hawley is concerned about. Its in young men enamored of gun culture, sucked into social media echo chambers of hate. To see how out of touch Hawley is, theres nothing in his book about perpetrators of mass shooting massacres  primarily young men.

Ever since the January 6 committee showed the video of Sen. Hawley running from the insurrectionist mob hed earlier encouraged with a fist in the air, weve all had a good laugh at his expense, Jonathan Capehart wrote in The Washington Post.

Although caricatured as a manhood-obsessed hypocrite, make no mistake: Hawley is dangerous precisely because, as Capehart noted, He is selling a vision of masculinity to White America that has much more to do with prejudice than manliness. His message may still resonate with older white men, but younger men, even those who may enjoy watching Ultimate Fighting, are tolerant, accepting of their gay and trans coworkers, and are supportive of colleagues who have had an abortion.

The future is not white male supremacy, in part because patriarchy is dangerous for men.

In a March 31, 1776 letter, Abigail Adams, future first lady to our second president, wrote her husband John, urging the Continental Congress to remember womens interests as they prepared to fight for independence from Great Britain. In the new code of laws, she wrote, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors.

She added: Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.

There have been pro-feminist men since at least the 18th century. While Abigail Adams may not have mentioned men, they were allies-in-waiting then, and are growing in numbers today. What is different now is that were stepping forward to say so. Fifty years ago, Josh Hawley may have sold a lot of books. Today, Im betting theyll be remaindered by the Fourth of July.

Rob Okun is editor-publisher of Voice Male, a magazine thats been chronicling the antisexist mens movement for 30 years. He writes about politics and culture.
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There was perhaps no one more in the crossfire of the pandemic-era culture wars than Dr. Anthony Fauci. The federal governments top infectious disease expert wasnt omniscient or flawless  thats not how science works  but he was clearly dedicated to getting the latest and best medical advice to the public. For that, he continues to be slandered and vilified, even in retirement, by a segment of the political right that is more interested in scoring ideological points than addressing public health issues.

Faucis sober grace in the face of this howling mob was on full display in St. Louis this week as he urged Washington University medical school graduates to confront the dangerous undercurrent of anti-science ideology that has infected Americas political debate like a virus. Its good advice  for everyone.

With the clear vision of hindsight, Faucis critics continue to savage the man who, in his many years leading Americas fights against national and global epidemics, probably has saved more lives than any other American living today. Information is still emerging about how the coronavirus began in Wuhan, China, and regarding U.S. research funding. But the assertion by right-wing critics like Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky that Fauci lied about that involvement has been repeatedly debunked by fact checkers.

This and other invalid criticism is part of a baffling phenomenon in which Fauci has been viciously demonized by conservatives. Its one thing to say Fauci (and others) got things wrong early on. That happens with mysterious new viruses  as Fauci plainly acknowledged in his Washington University commencement speech Monday. But irrational allegations that Fauci was incompetent, or driven by some unspecified malice against America, is slanderous and, well, bonkers.

Its also dangerous to the extent that this vitriolic campaign against this prominent medical expert has driven many Americans to reject medical expertise itself on issues like vaccination. As Fauci told the new Washington University medical graduates: The promotion of lies, disinformation and false conspiracy theories caused thousands of people to doubt the safety and effectiveness of proven vaccines and  suffer illnesses and deaths that could have been prevented.

Predictably enough, some protesters rallied outside the commencement speech. But inside, Fauci received an immediate, extended standing ovation from the students  an encouraging sign that these newly minted doctors understand the dangerous political era America is still traversing, and their role in it.

They should heed his advice: Do not hesitate to push back on these destructive forces, with civility but also with all the strength you can muster. He added that they should listen to doubts and concerns and, in turn, communicate with plain language and compassion to ... explain what is known and what is not known. An increasingly important and vital part of your career will be helping people to understand and to follow the best available science-based information.
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Who needs medical experts when we have state lawmakers?

Hats off to the Missouri Legislature for leading the way on this transgender crisis. A lot of effort was put in to dealing with less than 1% of our population, but if we allowed those radical, woke, leftist, gay-loving liberals to have their way, this percentage could go to 1.5% or 2%. If we allow one boy in a dress, where does it stop? It surprises me to think that we trusted trained medical personnel all these years to deal with this, when our elected leaders came up with solutions in just one short legislative session.

I plan to do a little celebrating this weekend by taking my gun, which Ive been waiting to brandish if someone steps on my lawn, and shooting up some cans of a locally produced, union-made beer. I wont worry if some of my friends at the brewery get laid off because in this culture war  it is that important to own the libs.

Bob Utt  St. Charles

Politicians have failed to do the job at every level of government

Politicians need to work for the people. On every level, they seem to be working for themselves and not the people who voted them into office.

At the national level, we have the annual battle over the budget deficit. The politicians say we need to raise the debt ceiling because we will default on the debt we owe. But theyre not willing to make cuts to programs because it may mean lost votes. We need to cut spending. Enough with the handouts. Make people get back to work. If people havent seen the hiring signs, they are blind. I say: Deduct 10% of the politicians pay for every day they delay a viable decision  and that doesnt mean raise the debt ceiling, that means make cuts on wasteful programs.

At the state level, we in Missouri just saw our Legislature adjourn without passing a sports-betting bill that would have brought funds into the state that are currently being taken to the surrounding states. I understand the point of contention that illegal slots need to be addressed, and they should be, but this is the states loss. There were several other issues that needed to be addressed and werent because Legislature was in a hurry to get home. I hope they have a nice summer off.

Ken Schatz  St. Louis

Bring back reform schools to deal with rampant crime by kids

With juvenile crime continuing to run rampant, I believe its way past time to bring back juvenile reform schools. Apparently parents dont care or are unable to keep these kids under control. Lets bring back reform schools to keep these juvenile offenders in school and show them where they are headed if they continue breaking the law.

Its time the courts hands were untied and these kids started facing some serious consequences for their behavior. They know now that theyre released with a slap on the wrist. Reform these kids before the streets and society do it.

Mark Howard  Fenton

GOP investigations against Biden are much ado about nothingIn the letter to the editor Biden corruption should be getting more attention than Trump (May 13), the writer is stunned that the Post-Dispatch is not commenting on unfounded Republican claims of President Joe Bidens imaginary misdeeds. Republicans said that after months of false claims and many investigations of Biden, they have found no evidence of a specific corrupt action by him with any business of his son or other family members.

However, in spite of this, the feckless Republican Rep. James Comer of Kentucky said that even though there is no proof of Bidens corruption, Americans should just infer hes guilty of something. While with former President Donald Trump, there is a veritable cornucopia of his verified lies and a plethora of his proven misdeeds. I guess the Post-Dispatch just finds no merit in reporting on an endless barrage of Republican untruthful and scurrilous claims and innuendo.

Edward Olsen  Affton

Criticism of Trumps town hall missed the issue: the economy

Kevin McDermott wasted a third of a page lecturing readers on what liberals wanted from Donald Trumps town hall meeting on CNN. (Trumps town hall was a gruesome spectacle  and a warning of whats coming, May 13.) McDermott betrayed his feelings when he used the term MAGA to describe Trump voters. Had he actually known a conservative, he would know that term has been adopted by the left to replace Hillary Clintons deplorables. He also missed that it was not a crowd of independents but of Republicans and right-leaning independents.

The biggest thing he missed was Trumps answer about what he would do to fix the economy: Drill baby, drill. Trump voters dont want to hear yet another left-winger drone on and on about the 2020 election, they want to know how to return to the good old days when they could afford a dozen eggs.

Bob Kenney  St. Louis

Read letters online at STLToday.com
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ST. LOUIS  When Kira Dunn told her husband Christopher Dunn by phone that the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office has launched an effort to overturn his murder conviction, he was quiet.

It was 4:30 p.m. Monday. Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner's office had announced that morning it was moving to prove his innocence in court.

"We've had so many emotional ups and downs, sometimes we don't react with joy or sorrow. We just absorb it," said Kira Dunn in an interview. The pair met while she was a volunteer for a justice publication in 1999 and grew closer. They married nine years ago.

"Until he walks out that door, we can't get our hopes up," she said.

Christopher Dunn's innocence claims rely on the lack of physical evidence linking him to the killing of 15-year-old Ricco Rogers in 1990. A teen himself at the time, Christopher Dunn, now 51, maintains that at the time of the murder, he was at home with his mother and sister.

The main two witnesses have since recanted their testimony, saying they were pressured by police and prosecutors at the time to make an identification. A judge in 2020 noted no court today would convict Christopher Dunn but cited legal hurdles in Dunn's case.

Until Monday, Dunn's bid for freedom had been denied by nearly every possible court. The Missouri Supreme Court and U.S. Supreme Court have both refused to hear his case.

"When you lie down, it's over. As long as there is breath in our bodies, we are going to fight until he gets home," Kira Dunn said.

Gardner filed the motion to vacate the murder sentence of Christopher Dunn just a day before her surprise early resignation. She used a law influenced by the case of a man she worked to set free earlier this year, Lamar Johnson. At one point, Johnson and Dunn, both Black men from St. Louis, were acquainted with each other in prison.

The nation should be paying attention to Dunn's case, said one of his original attorneys, Justin Bonus.

"Let me make this clear: He's not getting a favor. This is what is supposed to happen," said Bonus, who is based in New York. "He proved his innocence, and because of a procedural bar, they kept him in jail. This could be anybody's relative. It could be you sitting in Chris Dunn's position right now."

Kira also flew into St. Louis from her home in California to attend Lamar Johnson's five-day hearing in December, where witnesses and former detectives and officers testified about Johnson's prosecution. A judge ultimately granted Gardner's motion, and Johnson walked out of the Carnahan Courthouse a free man on Valentine's Day.

"It takes everyone's voice to say, 'This is what we as a community believes is justice,'" said Tricia Bush well, executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project, which has taken up Christopher Dunn's case.

"A lot of families go through what Kira is going through. They are working really hard to bring their loved ones home, but oftentimes the courts don't pay attention until there's a professional voice."

Steve Ohmer, one of the prosecutors from Christopher Dunn's trial, is now a St. Louis Circuit Court judge. During the 1991 trial, Ohmer simultaneously prosecuted a case against one of the main witnesses, who, after testifying, had pending felony charges reduced.

But Dunn, with his quest for freedom being led by the same Circuit Attorney's Office that convicted him, isn't worried about the politics.

Thursday will be the anniversary of Rogers' death. Normally, Christopher Dunn fasts during this time, praying that he and Rogers get justice. His wife says that will continue.

It's something all St. Louisans should pay attention to even in the midst of crime waves, said St. Louis University criminology professor Kenya Brumfield-Young.

"We also have to focus back and say the victims have not received justice truthfully if there's a person who is sitting in prison who is not the person that committed the offense. That's why we care," she said.

Bobby Bostic was cellmates with Johnson and Dunn during his 20year stint in prison. Bostic was sentenced to more than 241 years in prison for a robbery as a teen but was released on parole last year.

Bostic, too, was happy to hear the news about Dunn's case was making movement. But with the birthdays, Christmases and graduations missed, it's still hard to accept.

"It's a lot harder than most people think. It's especially hard when you're innocent. I was guilty. I always looked at those guys like: How do you do it?" Bostic said. "Every day that he's sitting in there is an injustice."

Taylor Tiamoyo Harris 314-340-8319 @ladytiamoyo on Twitter tharris@post-dispatch.com
~ Live streaming featuring Japanese-to-English consecutive interpreting & all-new Chinese and Korean language support on Twitter Spaces ~

TOKYO, JAPAN / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / On Saturday, June 10, and Saturday, June 17 (JST), pixiv Inc. (hereafter referred to as "pixiv"; Office: Shibuya, Tokyo; Representative Director: Shingo Kunieda) in partnership with Wacom Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kazo, Saitama prefecture; CEO: Nobutaka Ide) will be holding the fourth installment of Drawfest, a massive online drawing event attracting participation from more than 10,000 creators around the world.

Drawfest4

Drawfest Special Website: https://pixiv.net/special/drawfest4/

Drawfest 4 Special Features

Drawfest is an online event with audience participation, in which popular creators from around the world teach master classes in drawing and creative techniques, and participants complete works of their own within the time frame of the event.

This event is the fourth installment of Drawfest, and will feature master classes by multi-media artist OMOCAT, known for her work on the development of the popular video game "OMORI"; KawaiiSensei, who's getting a lot of attention on social media such as TikTok for their unique how-to-draw tutorials; as well as popular illustrator Ogipote, known for their nostalgic, colorful, cute depictions of young girls. pixiv is proud to announce that part of the contents are sponsored by VShojo's Ironmouse. VShojo is a VTuber group mostly known in the English-speaking community.

pixiv will continue to hold events to fulfill its mission of "building an exciting space for everyone to enjoy creative activities."

Drawfest 4 Event Information & How to Participate

Dates

Study Day: Saturday, June 10, 2023, 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. JST (scheduled)

Feedback Day: Saturday, June 17, 2023, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. JST (scheduled)

Languages

YouTube Live: Japanese, English *consecutive interpretation

Twitter Spaces alternate audio: Chinese, Korean

pixiv official Twitter - Traditional Chinese account (https://twitter.com/pixiv_zh_hant)

pixiv official Twitter - Korean account (https://twitter.com/pixiv_kr)

Streaming Program

2 days, 3 programs per day

1. How OMORI was born: Draw your own HEADSPACE

Lecturer: OMOCAT

2. KawaiiSensei's Lesson on Anatomy & Composition

Lecturer: KawaiiSensei

3. Let's draw Vshojo Ironmouse with Ogipote's "Anime-Style Coloring ver. 2.0"!!

Lecturer: Ogipote

Content Sponsor: Ironmouse

*VShojo is a VTuber talent management agency representing VTubers in the USA.

Website: https://www.vshojo.com/

Streaming PlatformYouTube Live exclusive

Participation FeeFree *the event will not be archived

How to Join

To join Drawfest 4, participants must register in advance.

Pre-register here: https://pixiv.net/special/drawfest4/

Pre-registration period: Thursday, May 18, to Friday, June 16, 2023

*Pre-registration may be be closed early if the event capacity is reached

Drawfest 4 key visual creator: OMOCAT

 pixiv Inc. https://www.pixiv.co.jp

Striving to be an exciting space for users to enjoy creative activities, we provide various services to support creators, including pixiv, one of the world's largest art communities, FANBOX, encouraging creators' activities, and the 3D project VRoid.

Representative Director: Shingo Kunieda

Established: July 25, 2005

Inquiries: Takahashi, Nishidoi

E-mail: [email protected]

Contact Information

Mika Nishidoi

editor

[email protected]

SOURCE: pixiv Inc.

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Blue Lagoon Resources Inc. (the "Company") (CSE:BLLG)(FSE:7BL)(OTCQB: BLAGF) is pleased to announce that it has signed an amending agreement with its toll milling partner, Nicola Mining Inc ("Nicola"). The amended agreement extends the toll milling agreement to March 31, 2027.

Starting June 2021, Blue Lagoon successfully shipped approximately 5,000 plus tonnes of underground stockpiled material to Nicola for testing and processing. Since that campaign, Blue Lagoon has been focused on exploration and receiving final permitting approval to commence mining at its Dome Mountain Mine project.

For further information, please contact:

Rana Vig

President and Chief Executive Officer

Telephone: 604-218-4766

Email: [email protected]

The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information: This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Blue Lagoon Resources Inc. (the "Company") expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include results of exploration activities may not show quality and quantity necessary for further exploration and exploitation of minerals deposits, market prices, and continued availability of capital and financing, permitting and other approvals, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

SOURCE: Blue Lagoon Resources Inc.

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Comcast Corporation

We are pleased to announce that Comcast NBCUniversal has been recognized as a top 20 company on DiversityInc's Top 50 list of the nation's most inclusive companies, placing 13th overall.

In addition, Comcast NBCUniversal was recognized on 11 of DiversityInc's Specialty Lists:

Top Companies for LGBTQ Employees: We ranked #3

Top Companies for Black Executives: We ranked #3

Top Companies for Latino Executives: We ranked #7

Top Companies for Native American and Pacific Islander Executives: We ranked #7

Top Companies for Supplier Diversity: We ranked #8

Top Companies for Female Executives: We ranked #9

Top Companies for People with Disabilities: We ranked #9

Top Companies for Asian Executives: We ranked #14

Top Companies for ESG (Environmental Social Governance): We ranked #17

Top Companies for Employee Resource Groups: We ranked #19

Top Companies for Talent Acquisition for Women of Color: We ranked #20

Diversity, equity and inclusion are shared commitments across Comcast NBCUniversal. This important recognition is a testament to the tremendous work that our employees do every day to prioritize DE&I in all areas of our business and community. DALILA WILSON-SCOTT Executive Vice President & Chief Diversity Officer, Comcast Corporation and President, Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation

The rankings are derived from results compiled from corporate survey submissions completed by companies with at least 750 employees in the U.S. Companies are measured by their overall performance in six key areas of diversity and inclusion management: human capital diversity metrics, leadership accountability, talent programs, workplace practices, supplier diversity, and philanthropy. Learn more about the DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity rankings here.

Jobseekers can explore opportunities at jobs.comcast.com, nbcunicareers.com, and through Comcast NBCUniversal's LinkedIn page.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Comcast Corporation on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Comcast Corporation

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/comcast-corporation

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE: Comcast Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:
This photo taken on April 15, 2023 shows a view of "shared village" Huanghuawan in Longnan City, east China's Jiangxi Province.(Xinhua/Liu Yang)

NANCHANG, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Hearing the ballads floating from "Shi Yin," a tea bar in Huanghuawan, east China's Jiangxi Province, visitors and residents could not help but walk into it.

"I wish folks here could enjoy recreational activities as city dwellers do," said Shi Qingxiong, the bar's owner.

Situated about 5 km from the urban area of Longnan City in southern Jiangxi, Huanghuawan is a riverside zone within Liantang Village in Dujiang Town. It had been "hollowed out" years ago after many locals moved to resettle in surrounding urban areas, leaving their old houses empty and dilapidated.

To revitalize these housing resources and develop rural tourism, the local government commenced building Huanghuawan into a "shared village" demonstration site at the end of 2021.

That was when Shi, a Longnan native who previously worked as an interior designer in southwest China's Chengdu, returned to rent a yard and build the tea bar with a few friends.

"The point of a 'shared village' lays in sharing resources of land and housing," introduced Li Jing, head of Dujiang Town. Trusteeship stations have been set up in every village to manage the idle houses provided by their owners voluntarily, and government subsidies and self-raised funds pay for renovations.

In Shi's opinion, the "shared village" meets the needs of entrepreneurs who dream about a pastoral lifestyle, while those houseowners can obtain rental income. Shi rents for about 24 yuan (about 3.44 U.S. dollars) per square meter a year.

Villagers' opinions mattered greatly during the construction of Huanghuawan. According to Chen Jing, the village Party chief of Liantang, some locals were concerned about whether their leased houses would be properly managed, and some wanted to ensure that the village's transformation provided convenience rather than the other way around.

They have put forward their own ideas actively about details of the area planning, such as the location of public toilets and even the color of the tiles on the roof of their ancestral temple, added Chen.

Since Shi's bar is near the temple, he abandoned an original two-story house design with more usable space, and adopted an all-wood one-story structure to match the traditional vibe.

"I want my bar to incorporate the vernacular buildings of Huanghuawan instead of replacing them," said Shi.

So far, 15 businesses, including catering, accommodation, and camping, have settled in Huanghuawan. An average of 13,000 visitors have come here every month since the beginning of this year.

Near lunchtime, tourists flood into Zeng Hui's restaurant to taste the traditional Hakka cuisine.

After engaging in the catering business in the city for some time, Zeng saw the development prospect of Huanghuawan and became one of the earliest merchants to settle here. The restaurant has seen a monthly revenue of more than 180,000 yuan, according to Zeng.

The "shared village" project is part of Longnan's plan to revive historic buildings. The city boasts a treasure trove of traditional Hakka Round Houses, and many of them date back hundreds of years. They have been restored to their former glory highlighting original styles and features.

Ordinary residential buildings like those in Huanghuawan have acquired a new look with more public facilities installed.

Several other villages and towns in Longnan have also started rural tourism development based on their unique resources. Young people who grew up here are returning for jobs near home, injecting vitality into the aging villages.

In Dongkeng Village, paper-making and bamboo-weaving studios have opened to attract tourists interested in learning the time-honored local crafts. Zhenggui Village, however, has been built into a homestay hub with over a dozen traditional Hakka-style bed and breakfasts.

"Represented by the 'shared village,' Longnan's plan to revive historic buildings has offered a platform for rural tourism and entrepreneurship and contributed to Hakka culture's preservation and inheritance," said Li of Dujiang Town. 

This photo taken on April 15, 2023 shows Shi Qingxiong's tea bar "Shi Yin" in Huanghuawan, Longnan City, east China's Jiangxi Province.(Xinhua/Liu Yang)
One in Placerville in the Lake Tahoe Foothills and Another in the Gold Rush Town of Murphy.

Both Towns are Highly Threatened by Wildfires

CHEYENNE, WY / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Mighty Fire Breaker's Retail Store rollout started in Sonoma County in the towns of Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Sonoma and Ukiah, where the Tubbs Fire of 2017 killed 22 people, destroyed 5,000, and caused billions of dollars in losses. This week, (MFB) delivering product to a store in El Dorado County, where the Caldor Wildfire of 2020 destroyed over 1,000 homes in Grizzly Flats. We are also delivering to a store in Murphy, an old Gold Rush town which is close to where the Dixie Fire of 2021 destroyed most of the town of Greenville.

We are targeting these high risk regions so that local retailers can sell our MFB products, and make it easy for property owners to start spraying now, as these regions are already seeing higher than normal temperatures. The store will attract contractors that want to be trained to install the MFB Wildfire Defense Sprinkler Systems with Smoke Detection Camera Monitoring and our Remote Telemetry System Activation, which we have patented.

Recent studies show that there has been a 246% increase in the number of homes and structures destroyed by wildfires in the last two decades, and there are a great many regions that need our patented products and wildfire defense systems. This staggering loss is costing Federal and state governments and taxpayers more than it would cost to make homes more fire resistant with our wildfire defense systems. Furthermore, when a home is lost to wildfire, an array of harmful toxins are released into the atmosphere along with the CO2. Mighty Fire Breaker WFD Systems can help reverse the degradation of our air quality by reducing the number of homes that wildfires destroy.

Retailors in these regions are stocking our fire defense chemistry because the safety of our products is being supported by our many accreditations. With all the news about the FSEEE lawsuit over toxic fire retardants dropped from planes killing fish, the AFFF fire-fighting foam causing cancer, and the news about Roundup weed killer, people are looking for true safety accreditation, which our fire chemistry has.

The MFB fire inhibitor chemistry (i.e. fire retardant) is the only such substance Certified by the U.S. EPA Safer Choice Program. It has also received the UL GreenGuard Gold and LENS certifications, and two accredited aquatic laboratories have proven that our fire chemistry does not kill fish. Furthermore, our fire chemistry does not violate the Clean Water Act, and it is deemed by the State of California to be a Non Toxic and Non-Hazardous. Our goal in each region is to teach how when our chemistry is deployed before the wildfire arrives property owners and firefighters need thousands of gallons of less water to stop a wildfires advance.

For technical product information: [email protected]

Contact Information

Twitter:@GEVIOfficial

Website: https://generalenterpriseventures.com/

Forward Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking statements. The words 'believe,' 'may,' 'estimate,' 'continue,' 'anticipate,' 'intend,' 'should,' 'plan,' 'could,' 'target,' 'potential,' 'is likely,' 'will,' 'expect' and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The Company has based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. Some or all of the results anticipated by these forward-looking statements may not be achieved. Any forward-looking statement made by us herein speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

SOURCE: General Enterprise Ventures, Inc.

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / CNH Industrial brand New Holland Agriculture and energy company Repsol are collaborating to further evaluate the use of renewable fuels in agriculture equipment. Over the course of a year, machines such as tractors, harvesters and telehandlers will be tested with net-zero emission fuels. The aim is to demonstrate how such fuels can reduce emissions from the industry.

The initiative was presented at the New Holland Campus in Segovia, Spain. Since 2006, it has been a testing site and training center, with hundreds of farmers and dealers passing through the facilities every year.

Scientists from both companies will work alongside the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) to assess the real-world performance of the renewable fuels. Using the telemetry systems in New Holland's machines, parameters such as performance, power and fuel consumption will be measured. Emissions data will be obtained using specific equipment provided by UCLM scientists. This data will be analyzed and compared with that of conventional fuels.

Carlos Surez, Director of Mobility at Repsol, said: "this agreement with New Holland, a world leader in agriculture, reinforces our commitment to the sector. This is another step in Repsol's commitment to renewable fuels, a solution that reduces net CO 2 emissions, and one that is compatible with current machinery and existing distribution and refueling infrastructures. These fuels expand the range of sustainable technologies available for mobility, helping users choose what best suits their needs."

Francesco Zazzetta, Business Director, New Holland Agriculture, Iberia, highlighted: "the search for alternative fuels in the field of agricultural machinery is important. New Holland is a pioneer in this area, with its Clean Energy Leader strategy. The brand has solutions such as the T6 Methane Power - the only tractor in the world powered by biomethane - or the E15X electric mini excavator. This agreement with Repsol gives us another partner with the same goal: a complete alternative fuels range with net-zero emissions as soon as possible."

New Holland and Repsol further promote renewable fuels in the agriculture sector



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SOURCE: CNH Industrial

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NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISEMMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / NOA Lithium Brines Inc. (TSXV:NOAL) ("NOA" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has completed a non-brokered private placement ("Private Placement") for the sale of 17,633,741 units (the "Units") at a price of $0.40 per Unit for gross proceeds of $7,053,496. All amounts expressed are in Canadian dollars.

Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one-half of one common share purchase warrant of the Company (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant is exercisable into one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.60 for a period of 36 months from the date of issuance.

Taj Singh, President and CEO states, "In just a couple of months since going public we have made rapid progress. Our drill program at our flagship Rio Grande project resulted in the discovery of multiple brine horizons of significant thickness in the alluvial fans surrounding the salar in our first drill hole, with full assay results expected to be received shortly. Also at Rio Grande, we have strategically acquired claims to strengthen our position, both on the surface salar and in the alluvials. Most recently, we made an important acquisition at the Arizaro salar, materially increasing our land holdings here and acquiring a drill-permitted, high potential project on the surface salar. With the closing of this upsized financing, we are very well-positioned for long-term success."

The Company primarily plans to use the proceeds of the Private Placement for exploration of its properties, including accelerating the current drill program at its flagship Rio Grande project. The Private Placement is subject to a statutory 4-month and one day hold period from the date of issuance. The Private Placement remains subject to final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities regulatory authorities.

In connection with the Private Placement, an aggregate of $206,725 was paid in cash as finder's fees to Zaphiros S.A., Patricio Milic, Gustavo Kagel, Ignacio Marseillan, Ruben Jabib, and Stephen Avenue Securities Inc.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

About NOA Lithium Brines Inc.

NOA is a lithium exploration and development company formed to acquire assets with significant resource potential. All NOA's projects are in the heart of the prolific Lithium Triangle, in the mining-friendly province of Salta, Argentina, near a multitude of projects and operations owned by industry leaders. NOA has rapidly consolidated one of the largest lithium brine claim portfolios in this region that is not owned by a producing company, with key positions on three prospective salars (Rio Grande, Arizaro, Salinas Grandes) and a total portfolio of over 100,000 hectares.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors,

Taj Singh, M.Eng, P.Eng, CPA

President & CEO, Director

For Further Information

Website: www.noalithium.com

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 416-568-1027

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. All statements within this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements including, but not limited to NOA's future plans and objectives regarding its projects, which constitute forward looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although NOA believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements include fluctuations in market prices, including metal prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. NOA does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable laws.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: NOA Lithium Brines Inc.

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / SAP:



By Sebastian Steinhaeuser

Sustainability has risen quickly to the top of executive priorities, with climate action being the most pressing concern. The central question is no longer why, but how? A big part of the answer may come from the unlikely world of accounting. Companies need to start treating carbon like money - they need a carbon accounting system that mirrors their financial accounting system.

However, carbon accounting is still done mainly using spreadsheets and semi-automated tools that use estimates and averages for carbon footprints. Only 9% of companies have a comprehensive view of their greenhouse gas emissions and their impact across the entire value chain.

This is no longer enough. We need to account for carbon with much more precision and control by using actual data values across our business operations and supply chains in sync with financial flows. We need to redefine "resource" in enterprise resource planning (ERP) and extend our understanding of resources beyond financials. SAP now brings a precision-approach to do just that by enabling transactional accounting for carbon.

Introducing Future-Proof Solutions for Transactional Carbon Accounting

SAP's approach to transactional carbon accounting comprises three future-proof capabilities.

First is SAP Sustainability Footprint Management, a single solution to calculate and manage carbon flows with high granularity on company, process, and product levels across Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. The solution integrates capabilities from previously released SAP solutions and adds new functionalities, such as the ability to manage a greater scope of emissions sources and support for a broader range of industry-specific requirements. Using SAP Sustainability Footprint Management helps provide a seamless integration with SAP S/4HANA, allowing for a strong data foundation to calculate footprints directly from individual transactions at each step of production. Companies can reduce their climate risk and make progress towards their climate commitments by better adhering to and reporting on rapidly changing standards. They can also achieve operational excellence by dramatically improving the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of emissions calculations and management. SAP Sustainability Footprint Management will be available from June 2023.

Second, SAP offers SAP Sustainability Data Exchange, a new application designed to securely exchange standardized sustainability data, including product footprints, along the value chain. The application allows precision accuracy by gathering actual carbon data directly from suppliers. SAP Sustainability Data Exchange, part of SAP Business Network, uses the carbon data interoperability standards established by the Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT), hosted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). The beta version is available and will be generally available in Q3 2023.

Third, SAP also introduces the green ledger concept, which combines financial and environmental data to enable deep insights and effective decision-making at different points across the business process. Green ledger will be embedded into RISE with SAP and GROW with SAP for SAP S/4HANA Cloud and will deliver new capabilities with each release. The next major update, for example, offers a new way to embed carbon data, starting with most impactful scope categories, into product-level costing.

Using these three powerful capabilities that reinvent carbon accounting, executives can have a future-proof tool kit to help manage and reduce their carbon footprints. The SAP solutions record data based on actuals instead of averages to increase data transparency, accuracy, and reliability. The high-quality carbon data, like the financial data, is auditable, transparent, and reliable. To take climate action, companies sync the emissions data with financial data to make granular, accurate, and right-time decisions that are both financially and environmentally sound.

Acting on Carbon Emissions Data

SAP's carbon accounting solutions allow business decision-makers to not only see emissions on an operations level, but also at the product level by including carbon footprints alongside financial data to make trade-offs between cost efficiency and carbon intensity. To make these assessments, carbon footprints need to be available at a granular level and at the point where the business decision is made.

In the automotive industry, for example, the sources of steel, rubber, batteries, and electrical components are key elements of the carbon footprint of an electric car manufacturer's product. SAP solutions provide the foundational data for these purchased materials and components, as well as consumed energy and other inputs, and combine it with additional data sources such as life cycle assessment databases.

Using the input data, the footprint is calculated by matching source data with emission factors. Like in financial accounting, the inflows and outflows of materials, components, and products are traced and accounted for with a high level of transparency and auditability.

This isn't accounting for accounting's sake. This level of data transparency helps teams across the business, from the C-suite to supply chain management to marketing, take sustainability action. They can make decisions together on both cost and carbon emissions that are rarely made in parallel today. Based on both cost and carbon values, the car manufacturer can scenario plan and make fully informed decisions about how to drive optimal financial and sustainability performance.

Bringing a Holistic View to Sustainable Business

To truly run sustainably and decarbonize business at the speed and scale needed, companies must record, report, and act on reliable and accessible sustainability data. By embedding sustainability data into their core business processes through their ERP, executives can achieve a holistic, enterprise-wide performance capability.

Based on the ERP backbone, sustainable business data is the foundation for setting regulatory-compliant KPIs and disclosing sustainability progress to a broad range of reporting frameworks using SAP Sustainability Control Tower. This holistic view is vital to understanding where emissions are occurring, setting accurate net-zero targets, and identifying specific areas to take action for maximum decarbonization impact. The SAP Sustainability solutions are cloud-based, modular, and integrate with SAP S/4HANA Cloud.

Peter Bakker, CEO of WBCSD, said accountants will save the world. He very well may be right. With over 50 years of experience in financial accounting, future-proof technology, and wide access to customer and partner ecosystems, SAP is well-positioned deliver high-quality emissions accounting to rapidly scale business decarbonization.

Sebastian Steinhaeuser is chief strategy officer at SAP.

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Contact Info:

Spokesperson: SAP

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/sap

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE: SAP

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Company to remain active on its Apollo Gold, MAX Lithium and Silver Strike projects

MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Tarku Resources Ltd (TSXV:TKU)(FRA:7TK)(OTCQB: TRKUF) (the "Company" or "Tarku") is pleased to announce that at its Annual General and Special Meeting of Shareholders, held on May 15, 2023, Tarku shareholders re-elected Bernard Lapointe, Julien Davy, Jeff Sheppard, Kyle Appleby and David Watkinson as directors.

Nominee Votes for % For Abstentions % Abstained Votes Against % Against Julien Davy 23,295,312 99.98% 5,000 0.02% 0 0.00% Bernard Lapointe 23,259,415 99.82% 40,897 0.18% 0 0.00% Kyle Appleby 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00% Jeff Sheppard 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00% David Watkinson 23,282,112 99.92% 18,200 0.08% 0 0.00%

The shareholders also approved maintenance of the stock option plan as described in the information circular and reappointed Davidson & Company LLP as the independent auditor of the Company.

Following the annual meeting, the Board of Directors appointed the following individuals as officers of the Company: Bernard Lapointe, Chairman of the Board, Julien Davy, President and Chief Executive Officer and Kyle Appleby, Chief Financial Officer.

Update on Tarku's 2023 Exploration Programs

The Company's exploration portfolio has 3 separate components, namely gold, lithium and silver, allowing Tarku to react quickly to changes in market conditions. The Company will remain active in 2023 on all its key projects.

In Quebec, the recent drill program on its wholly-owned Apollo Gold project confirmed the presence of a strong gold-bearing orogenic system identified over a 3-km strike length. The results (see press release dated April 4, 2023) revealed several >10 m sections of anomalous gold-bearing rock associated with very finely disseminated cubic pyrite within pervasive silicification and/or quartz stockwerk systems. Examples of assay results received were:

Hole AP-22-005 intersected 8 m at 0.98 g/t Au .

. Hole AP-22-07 intersected four gold-bearing structures over 10 metres wide, including 46.9 m at 0.33 g/t Au, 11.27 m at 0.46 g/t Au, 20.48 m at 0.23 g/t Au and 14.0 m at 0.37 g/t Au, with mineralization at the end of the hole.

Tarku is now planning a phase 2 drilling program over a 5 km section, adjacent to the east that hosts similar high-potential geophysical anomalies, which could extend the length of the gold-bearing zone to up to 8 km.

In Quebec, Tarku also owns 100% of the MAX Lithium project, located 45 km north of Val-d'Or and 4 km southwest of Sayona Mining's North American Lithium mine (proven reserves of 1.2 million tonnes grading 0.92% Li 2 O and probable reserves 28 million tonnes grading 0.96% Li 2 O (source: company press release dated May 23, 2022)). As reported previously, Tarku will conduct a ground sampling and mapping program in the coming weeks.

On its wholly-owned Silver Strike project in Arizona, Tarku conducted a geophysical survey in 2022 and is now finalizing the planning of its 2023 exploration program, which will include surface mapping over the new targets generated, and potentially a drilling program, depending on market conditions. The data from the 2022 magnetic geophysical survey was the first recent geophysical data for the area and has been used successfully in the discovery of carbonate replacement deposits (CRD), Tarku's target at Silver Strike.

Tarku is also pleased to announce that the wholly-owned subsidiary of Exla Resources Inc. (OTC PINK:EXLA) has converted CA$150,000 of a CA$500,000 principal amount of a six percent (6%) convertible unsecured subordinated debenture due in 60 months (5 years) for a conversion price of $0.10. The unsecured convertible debenture was part of a purchase agreement between Tarku and Exla, pursuant to which Tarku acquired 100% ownership of the Silver Strike Project located in Tombstone, Arizona. The acquisition was announced in a news release dated February 25, 2022.

Qualified persons

Julien Davy, P.Geo., M.Sc, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tarku and a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 on standards of disclosure for mineral projects, prepared, supervised and approved the technical information in this news release.

About Tarku

Tarku Resources Ltd. (TSXV:TKU)(FRA:7TK)(OTCBQ: TRKUF) is a mining exploration company focused on advancing the development of new discoveries by using modern techniques in favourable mining jurisdictions such as Quebec and Arizona.

In Arizona, within the famous Tombstone District, Tarku owns 100% of the 29 km2 Silver Strike project. Silver Strike has been interpreted by management to have the potential for similar Carbonate Replacement Deposits (CRD) comparable to the Hermosa project, located 80 km west in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, which South32 acquired for USD 1.8 billion in 2018.

In Quebec, Tarku owns 100% of the "Three As" exploration projects (Apollo, Admiral and Atlas) in the Matagami Greenstone Belt, interpreted by management as the eastern extension of the Detour Belt, which has seen recent exploration successes by Midland Exploration, Wallbridge Mining Company and Probe Metals. In addition, the Company owns the MAX Lithium project, located 4 km southwest of Sayona Mining's North American Lithium mine.

On behalf of Tarku Resources Ltd.

Julien Davy,

President and CEO

Tarku contact information:

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.tarkuresources.com

Please follow @TarkuResources on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and activities to vary materially from targeted results and planning. Such risks and uncertainties include those described in Tarku's periodic reports including the annual report or in the filings made by Tarku from time to time with securities regulatory authorities.

SOURCE: Tarku Resources ltd

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Tapestry, Inc.



Tapestry Foundation team at Boa Vida farm

In April 2023, the Tapestry Foundation visited Mato Grasso do Sul in Brazil to visit sites that are part of a pilot program sponsored by a four-year, $3 million grant from the Tapestry Foundation. Launched in 2021, Tapestry and WWF are partnering to accelerate the development of deforestation- and conversion-free leather supply chains.

In Central Brazil's vast Cerrado savanna, a grand experiment is taking place. Baru trees by the hundreds are being planted - some in the form of seeds, some as seedlings, and some well on their way to maturity in agroforests alongside other native vegetation. In some tracts, cattle graze among the more mature baru trees, in other areas, no cows are allowed.

The point of all this testing is to uncover the premium growing conditions under which the baru (Dipteryx alata) can thrive. The species, native to the Brazilian Cerrado, is a key part of reforestation efforts in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. And overseeing a reforestation project on the Boa Vida farm near town of Bonito is a woman who is a "traditional seed guardian," Elida Cristina Martins.

"I found that if we planted baru with bananas nearby it grows much faster than when planted alone, and the bananas help break the wind and keep the ground wet to keep the baru healthy," she said as she gave a recent tour of her farm to a group of visitors from World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Tapestry Foundation.

The Tapestry Foundation is entering the second year of a four-year, $3 million grant to WWF to establish a deforestation-free leather supply chain and to work on reforestation efforts on the Cerrado, a vast tropical biome that includes the Pantanal headwaters, and which provides much of the water, produce and beef within Brazil and for export. One of the planet's richest savannas and one of 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world, the Cerrado is being steadily deforested as individual landowners and companies clear natural habitat to graze cattle and grow soy.

Some of the Tapestry Foundation funding goes to WWF-Brazil to fund unique reforestation programs like the one on Boa Vida. Although national legislation requires that landowners must preserve 20 percent to 35 percent of their land and all riparian vegetation as well, the rest of the land can be legally cleared due to the lack of a zero-deforestation law for the Cerrado. Because half of the Cerrado has already been converted to pasture and farmland, it's been under heavy use, and two-thirds of the pastures in the Pantanal headwaters are under moderate to severe degradation. Landscape restoration and pasture rehabilitation are key parts of solving the environmental crisis in Brazil and are therefore among the highest priorities of WWF and the Tapestry Foundation.

"The purpose of our work in Brazil is to try to be part of the solution towards a more sustainable leather supply chain- one that works for the environment and local communities. During our time in Brazil, it was important that we met with local people and communities to better understand the impact climate change is having on the most vulnerable populations," said Julia Furnari, Director of the Tapestry Foundation. "For vulnerable communities like this one, where so many depend on nature to survive, protecting the community and the environment helps to turn sustainable practices into long-term solutions while creating opportunity for so many."

Roughly 36 families live on the Santa Lucia settlement, of which Boa Vida is a part, and Elida Cristina Martins has been farming and raising cattle for more than 25 years on 12 hectares, or nearly 30 acres. Nearly one-third of the land in the settlement is owned by women, she said, creating a unique economic opportunity for a group that often gets overlooked in discussions about the wealth of the land and environment in South America.

"We have an integrated system, where baru is planted with Crotalaria and sorghum to determine which grows better together," she said. The sorghum can be used for cattle feed, and therefore can be revenue-producing.

In the last year alone, she has planted 2,200 trees. "We're always testing what will work better. We experiment with multiple people planting and with a single person - me - planting, to see which grows better," she said. "And we plant mango, cashew, coconut, guava, lime, pineapples --- all alongside the baru to protect it and help it thrive. Every species has a time to fruit and so you also have fruit all year long."

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Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Tapestry, Inc.

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/tapestry-inc

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE: Tapestry, Inc.

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MEXICO CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of a (Excellent) of Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS) (San Jose, Costa Rica). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect INS balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strongest, as well as its strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).

INS risk-adjusted capitalization remains at the strongest level, as measured by Bests Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and is supported by a comprehensive and adequate reinsurance program, solid operating performance and its position as the leading insurer in Costa Rica. INS business profile assessment considers the characteristics of Costa Ricas market, derived from the countrys Insurance Law of 2008, and includes INS robust market share and the guarantee provided by Costa Ricas government to support INS domestic obligations.

INS is Costa Ricas largest insurer with a market share of 65%, as of December 2022. The company still dominates compulsory workers compensation and mandatory auto insurance segments despite the market opening up for other participants several years ago. INS compulsory premium segment represents 35% of its business portfolio, as of December 2022.

In 2022, Costa Ricas market showed a recovery, after being affected by a slowdown during the previous years, as a result of the economic contraction caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and an adverse fiscal situation. INS underwriting performance improved in comparison with 2021, mainly driven by a lower level of claims. The company has not relaxed its underwriting standards from the adjustments implemented in previous years, like the abandonment of poor-performing products in auto, personal property and group life.

INS presented a diminished return on equity of 3.3% from 12.3%, mainly due to mark-to-market losses. Investment income, based on a conservative investment portfolio, still contributed to a positive bottom-line result of USD 65.1 million at year-end 2022, providing a solid growth for its capital base, despite the effect of market volatility.

AM Best expects INS to continue improving and consolidating its business by implementing its strategy progressively, which should offset increased competition in the voluntary segments. The company is in a good position to maintain its strongest risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by BCAR, due to its good profitability, appropriate ERM practices and adequate reinsurance with highly rated international reinsurers, which provides a buffer for variations in claim severity and catastrophe events.

Positive rating movements are not expected in the medium term. Negative rating actions could occur if technical results deteriorate or if there is a reduction in net income, given any kind of loss that significantly affects the companys profitability or risk-adjusted capitalization to levels that are no longer supportive of its current ratings.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Bests website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Bests Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Bests Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Bests Credit Ratings, Bests Performance Assessments, Bests Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Bests Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright  2023 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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Olga Rubo, FRM

Senior Financial Analyst

+52 55 1102 2720, ext. 134

[email protected]

Christopher Sharkey

Associate Director, Public Relations

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159

[email protected]

Salvador Smith

Senior Financial Analyst

+52 55 1102 2720, ext. 109

[email protected]

Al Slavin

Senior Public Relations Specialist

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5098

[email protected]

Source: AM Best
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B (Fair) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of bb+ (Fair) of Jordan Insurance Company Plc. (JIC) (Jordan). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect JICs balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and marginal enterprise risk management (ERM).

JICs balance sheet strength is underpinned by its risk-adjusted capitalisation at the very strong level at year-end 2022, as measured by Bests Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR). JICs BCAR scores have improved in recent years as a result of measures taken by management to strengthen the balance sheet, including the suspension of dividend payments and the divesture of some capital-intensive investments. Nonetheless, AM Best views liquidity, as well as asset and liability management as partially offsetting factors, as JIC still maintains significant investment concentrations within equity and real estate asset classes. The companys prospective liquidity position will depend on its ability to continue de-risking its investment portfolio and re-investing in higher-quality liquid assets. The ratings also consider JICs moderate, albeit reducing financial leverage, associated with overdrafts and loans contracted to fund the companys regulatory capital for its branch in the United Arab Emirates.

JIC has a track record of adequate operating performance, as demonstrated by a five-year weighted average (2018-2022) return on equity of 2.8%. Non-life underwriting profitability deteriorated in 2022, which translated into a combined ratio of 103.5%, as calculated by AM Best. This compares with 96.3% in 2021 and 92.4% in 2020, when non-life technical results were aided by a reduction in motor and medical claims due to restrictions imposed by the government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the non-life underwriting loss recorded by JIC in 2022 was offset by a return to profit for its life business in that year. AM Best expects JICs underwriting performance to improve in the coming years, due to increased underwriting discipline, and remain supportive of an adequate assessment.

JIC has a good competitive position within Jordan, where it is ranked No. 2 based on 2022 gross written premium. However, Jordans insurance market remains relatively small by international standards. The company benefits from some geographic diversification, with approximately 13% of its net written premium emanating from the UAE and Kuwait in 2022.

JIC has demonstrated good controls and adequate risk management in respect of its underwriting operations. Nevertheless, deficiencies in the management of investment, liquidity and capital risks have had a negative impact on AM Bests assessment of JICs ERM.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Bests website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Bests Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Bests Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Bests Credit Ratings, Bests Performance Assessments, Bests Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Bests Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specialising in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright  2023 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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Marving Lopez

Financial Analyst

+44 20 7397 4389

[email protected]

Valeria Ermakova

Associate Director, Analytics

+44 20 7397 0327

[email protected]

Christopher Sharkey

Associate Director, Public Relations

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159

[email protected]

Al Slavin

Senior Public Relations Specialist

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5098

[email protected]

Source: AM Best
US business grew 80% in the first quarter of 2023 establishing North American K-beauty leadership

SEOUL, South Korea--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Amorepacific is diversifying its global business to further cement its reputation as the leader of K-beauty in the beauty market. Amorepacific recently announced the launch of LANEIGE, the group's flagship global skincare brand, in the United Kingdom and the Middle East, following North America.

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Amorepacific recently launched its premium skincare brand Laneige in the Middle East market as part of the efforts for global expansion. (Photo: Business Wire)

The region specifics are as follows:

The North America Market

Since last year, Amorepacific gained prominence in the North American beauty market with its LANEIGE, Sulwhasoo, and Innisfree brands. Sales in North America grew 80% in the first quarter of 2023, thanks to strong sales growth in e-commerce channels such as Amazon and branded stores, as well as offline channels including Sephora. LANEIGEs Lip Sleeping Mask and Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Collection, Sulwhasoo's First Care Activating Serum and Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream, Innisfree's Daily UV Defense Sunscreen and Green Tea Hyaluronic Acid Collection have become best-selling products among Millennials and Gen Z consumers who are highly engaged in skincare. In addition, Amorepacific continues to invest in North America, expanding its brand portfolio with the acquisition of luxury clean beauty brand Tata Harper last year, and partnering with the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) through its Sulwhasoo brand in March to expand communication with local customers.

"The North American and European markets are a hotbed for global beauty brands. The growth of Amorepacific's brands in these markets shows that local customers recognize our efforts in investing in natural ingredients and R&D for more than 70 years," said Jinpyo Lee, Chief Strategy Officer at Amorepacific Group. "Amorepacific will continue to actively expand customer contact points in various global markets and grow into a global beauty company that helps individuals discover their unique healthy beauty."

UK Market

LANEIGE, which has grown into a leading K-beauty brand with a global presence in 18 countries across Asia, North America, Australia, and Europe, officially entered SPACE NK, a luxury beauty multi store in the UK, at the end of April. SPACE NK is a retailer of luxury skincare, makeup, perfume, and haircare products, offering a selection of multinational beauty brands through 72 stores in the UK and Ireland. It is characterized by its personalized customer service with highly trained sales associates.

Amorepacific plans to expand customer points in the UK market, focusing on LANEIGEs global flagship products, Lip Sleeping Mask and Waterbank Cream. For the month of May, Amorepacific will operate an exclusive LANEIGE brand space at a SPACE NK store (KINGS CROSS & WESTFIELD) in central London, England, while expanding brand awareness locally through content related to brand ambassador Sydney Sweeney.

"Prior to our official launch, LANEIGE was featured on Cult Beauty, LOOK FANTASTIC, and Beauty Bay, e-commerce platforms specializing in beauty in the U.K., and we were able to see the strong interest from local customers," said Lee. "As the demand for Korean beauty products in the European market has increased in recent years, our sales in Europe grew by more than 90% year-on-year in Q1 2023. We look forward to providing our customers in the U.K. with the same high level of satisfaction with our brands."

Middle East Market

This month, LANEIGE also made its first foray into the Middle East. Through a partnership with Sephora, the number one beauty retailer in the region, LANEIGEs flagship products are now available in Sephora stores across the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and four Gulf Cooperation Council countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain). In May, the Sephora store at Dubai Mall in the UAE will unveil the launch products through large electronic boards to drive brand awareness.

About Amorepacific in the U.S.

Amorepacific is the leader in K-Beauty with a global presence and is experiencing significant growth outside of Asia with the U.S. being one of its primary growth markets (for context in 2022, overseas sales reached KRW 1.5 trillion, accounting for 36% of the overall sales.) U.S. support revolves around three primary brands (flagship luxury brand Sulwhasoo, Lanegie and Innisfree) and ecommerce efforts as well as retail footprint inside Sephora and Bloomingdales have increased, along with the acquisition of Tata Harper.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005592/en/

Brooke Vane

FleishmanHillard

[email protected]

615.977.2522

Source: Amorepacific
Munro Tours Amprius Headquarters for an Inside View of the Manufacturing Process and Next-Generation Battery Technology

FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Amprius Technologies, Inc. ("Amprius or the Company") (NYSE: AMPX), a leader in next-generation lithium-ion batteries with its Silicon Anode Platform, recently hosted Sandy Munro  engineering expert based in Detroit, MI and creator of the prominent YouTube channel Munro Live  at the Amprius Lab in Fremont, California. Munros visit to California followed his update when Amprius announced the breaking news of a 500Wh/kg, 1300 Wh/l battery platform in March. His visit included a tour of the facility and manufacturing process, as well as a peek into our mass production equipment and future scaling plans. In addition, the Company was pleased to share a walk-through of the testing and validation of Amprius anode technology and a live demonstration of its extreme fast charge battery test rate of 0-80% state of charge in approximately six minutes.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005328/en/

Amprius Hosts Prominent YouTuber and Engineering Expert Sandy Munro (Photo: Business Wire)

This is about as revolutionary as Ive seen. We watch a lot of different tests, and I havent seen anything like this, its really quite impressive, said Sandy Munro, CEO of Munro & Associates and creator of the Munro Live YouTube channel. You have something that gives me twice as much power as anyone else can as far as gravimetric and volumetric standpoint. Im totally blown away; Ive had a chance to watch the whole process and youve got it all locked in.

We were honored to give Sandy a tour of our facility and share the details of our next-generation battery technology, said Dr. Kang Sun, Chief Executive Officer of Amprius. We recognize Sandys influence and respect in the automotive and engineering communities especially given his knowledge of electric vehicles and all of the leading battery suppliers today.

To watch the full Amprius Lab tour and fast charge demonstration titled, Nobody Has Anything like This: Amprius Factory Tour visit Sandy Munros YouTube channel, Munro Live. To view the breaking news of the 500Wh/kg battery visit this link from March 2023: BREAKING NEWS: Amprius Creates a 500Wh/kg Battery - YouTube.

For more information on Amprius, please visit the Companys investor relations website at https://ir.amprius.com.

About Amprius Technologies, Inc.

Amprius Technologies, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of high-energy and high-power lithium-ion batteries producing the industrys highest known energy density cells. The companys commercially available batteries deliver up to 450 Wh/kg and 1,150 Wh/L. The companys corporate headquarters is in Fremont, California where it maintains an R&D lab and a pilot manufacturing facility for the fabrication of silicon anodes and cells. To serve customer demand, Amprius recently entered into a lease agreement for an approximately 774,000 square foot facility in Brighton, Colorado. For additional information, please visit amprius.com. Also, see the companys LinkedIn and Twitter pages.

Forward-Looking Statements

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, each as amended. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "estimate," "plan," "project," "forecast," "intend," "expect," "anticipate," "believe," "seek" or other similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the performance of Amprius batteries and the ability of Amprius to scale its business. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on the current expectations of Amprius management and are not predictions of actual performance. Actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. For more information on these risks and uncertainties that may impact the operations and projections discussed herein can be found in the "Risk Factors" section of our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on May 11, 2023, and other documents we filed from time to time with the SEC, all of which are available on the SECs website at www.sec.gov.There may be additional risks that Amprius does not presently know or that Amprius currently believes are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect Amprius expectations, plans or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this press release. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing Amprius assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, Amprius specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

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Investors

Cody Slach, Tom Colton

Gateway Group, Inc.

949-574-3860

[email protected]

Media

Zach Kadletz, Brenlyn Motlagh

Gateway Group, Inc.

949-574-3860

[email protected]

Source: Amprius Technologies, Inc.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the city of Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Xi welcomed Mirziyoyev to China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit. He recalled his state visit to Uzbekistan last September and the hospitality of Mirziyoyev.

He congratulated Mirziyoyev on Uzbekistan's recent successful referendum and the adoption of the new Constitution, which fully demonstrated the deep trust and wholehearted support of the Uzbek people for Mirziyoyev.

He expressed confidence that under Mirziyoyev's leadership, reform and opening up in Uzbekistan will enjoy broader prospects and the development of "New Uzbekistan" will yield greater outcomes.

Xi noted their joint announcement of the implementation of the vision of a community with a shared future at the bilateral level and the new characterization of the bilateral relations last September. He expressed China's readiness to work with Uzbekistan to deepen cooperation across the board and build a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future.

The two sides should firmly support each other and be reliable friends and partners, Xi said.

Xi called for joint efforts to expand economic, trade and investment cooperation, deepen connectivity construction, and enhance cooperation in energy and medical and health care. China and Uzbekistan should also promote cooperation in countering terrorism and interference to contribute their share to regional security and stability.

The summit is a milestone in China-Central Asia relations and will usher their cooperation into a new era, Xi said.

Noting that Uzbekistan is China's reliable all-weather strategic partner, Mirziyoyev said Uzbekistan is willing to learn from China's experience in poverty reduction, deepen cooperation in various fields, and strengthen people-to-people exchanges.

The country will actively implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative, Mirziyoyev said.

After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement, approved a plan for the development of the China-Uzbekistan comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era, and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral documents on investment, poverty reduction, agricultural products trade, inspection and quarantine, and local cooperation.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi, and Qin Gang attended the events. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement, approved a plan for the development of the China-Uzbekistan comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era, and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral documents on investment, poverty reduction, agricultural products trade, inspection and quarantine, and local cooperation. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)
The Calix platform offers the most comprehensive lineup of tri-band Wi-Fi 6E and dual-band Wi-Fi 6 systems with the GigaSpire BLAST u10xe, u4hm, and u4gmaking it even easier for broadband providers to deploy in only days while addressing a wide range of subscriber needs

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) announces the availability of three Calix GigaSpire BLAST systems in its world-leading portfolio. The GigaSpire BLAST u10xe, u4hm, and u4g systems are tailored to a variety of premium, high-value subscriber profiles, enabling broadband service providers (BSPs) to address an even broader range of use cases. These include small businesses, gaming enthusiasts, subscribers who want to extend Wi-Fi experiences outdoors to the backyard or patio, or residents in apartments or multi-dwelling units (MDUs). Featuring the latest Wi-Fi technologies, these systems provide faster speeds, better coverage, and increased capacity, offering seamless connectivity within and around the home or business. With an expanding portfolio of systems for the Calix platform, BSPs can easily deliver the exceptional Wi-Fi experiences that subscribers want and need.

Because each new GigaSpire BLAST u10xe, u4hm, and u4g system is pre-integrated on the Calix platform, BSPs can deploy them in days rather than weeks or monthsdramatically lowering operating expenses (OPEX). This flexibility allows Calix customers to reduce inventory, simplify training, and streamline field installations. Thanks to the power of the Calix platform, BSPs are leveraging these systems to unlock new market segments, differentiate their services against legacy competitors, and accelerate time to revenue.

The latest additions to the GigaSpire BLAST portfolio include:

u10xe: Optimal for high-bandwidth active gamers, demanding home users, or small businesses. With pre-integrated Wi-Fi 6E capabilitiesincluding high-gain and tri-band antennasthe u10xe is the ultimate router for lightning-fast 10G Ethernet. This enables BSPs to support small businesses in their community as they leverage Calix SmartBiz to expand into new markets. Additionally, this system delivers high-bandwidth services such as online gaming thanks to greater capacity, faster speeds, and lower latency. It also supports the rapidly growing number of consumer devices that use Wi-Fi 6E technology, including 4K and 8K televisions, computers, and mobile devices.

With pre-integrated Wi-Fi 6E capabilitiesincluding high-gain and tri-band antennasthe u10xe is the ultimate router for lightning-fast 10G Ethernet. This enables BSPs to support small businesses in their community as they leverage Calix SmartBiz to expand into new markets. Additionally, this system delivers high-bandwidth services such as online gaming thanks to greater capacity, faster speeds, and lower latency. It also supports the rapidly growing number of consumer devices that use Wi-Fi 6E technology, including 4K and 8K televisions, computers, and mobile devices. u4hm: Extend the Wi-Fi experience outdoorsto backyards and beyond. The u4hm is a powerful, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 mesh system designed to replicate the whole-home Wi-Fi experience in the great outdoors. This durable, weather-proof system extends residential Wi-Fi coverage into backyards, patios, and pool areas. The u4hm also includes integrated Power over Ethernet (PoE) that allows it to be placed in locations without local power supply for optimal outdoor location flexibility.

The u4hm is a powerful, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 mesh system designed to replicate the whole-home Wi-Fi experience in the great outdoors. This durable, weather-proof system extends residential Wi-Fi coverage into backyards, patios, and pool areas. The u4hm also includes integrated Power over Ethernet (PoE) that allows it to be placed in locations without local power supply for optimal outdoor location flexibility. u4g: Offer subscribers a simplified premises solution in a compact, appealing design. The u4g offers a compact, all-in-one integrated GPON-based Wi-Fi 6 system perfect for smaller residences and tenants in MDUs. The u4g complements the recently announced GigaSpire BLAST u4xg for XGS-PON, further expanding the choice of systems available to address every subscribers needs and requirements.

Bulloch Solutions is committed to offering our residential and commercial fiber subscribers across Bulloch County, Georgia, the very latest Wi-Fi technologies from Calix to help us gain market share and beat the competition, said Stuart Gregory, director of business development, Bulloch Solutions. Were excited to be one of the first providers to offer the new Calix systems designed to meet demand for new use cases requiring faster speeds, greater reach, and improved reliability. The GigaSpire BLAST u10xe with integrated Wi-Fi 6E will give us a unique offering for high-bandwidth users that none of our competitors can match. Meanwhile, the u4hm will enable us to extend Wi-Fi so we can truly deliver an unrivalled whole home experienceboth indoors and outdoorsthat will transform our subscriber experience.

Broadband subscribers demand seamless connectivity at the ever-growing number of locations where they connect with the networkthroughout the home, by the pool, at a small business, or on the move, said Shane Eleniak, chief product officer at Calix. By introducing this expanded range of residential Wi-Fi systems, were enabling BSPs to offer the most advanced Wi-Fi technologies and expand into previously unreachable marketsoffering differentiated services that keep them one step ahead of the competition. Moreover, thanks to the power and flexibility of the Calix platform, BSPs can deploy these new systems quickly and easily by seamlessly integrating with operations, customer support, and other teams.

In this webinar, Beat the Competition With Invincible (and Invisible) Wi-Fi, discover how the latest Wi-Fi systems from Calix deliver an unrivalled subscriber experience that provides BSPs with a competitive edge.

About Calix

Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX)Calix cloud and software platforms enable service providers of all types and sizes to innovate and transform. Our customers utilize the real-time data and insights from Calix platforms to simplify their businesses and deliver experiences that excite their subscribers. The resulting growth in subscriber acquisition, loyalty, and revenue creates more value for their businesses and communities. This is the Calix mission: To enable broadband service providers of all sizes to simplify, excite, and grow.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based upon managements current expectations and are inherently uncertain. Forward-looking statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this release, and we assume no obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking statement to reflect any event or circumstance after the date of this release, except as required by law. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from current expectations based on risks and uncertainties affecting Calixs business. The reader is cautioned not to rely on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Additional information on potential factors that could affect Calixs results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed in its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC and available at www.sec.gov.

Calix and the Calix logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Calix and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Calixs trademarks can be found at https://www.calix.com/pages/trademarks.html. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

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Press Inquiries:

Alison Crisci

919-353-4323

[email protected]

Investor Inquiries:

Jim Fanucchi

[email protected]

Source: Calix, Inc.
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BXP (NYSE: BXP), the largest publicly traded developer, owner, and manager of premier workplaces in the United States, announced today that it will host BXPs second annual ESG Investor Update on Wednesday, May 31, 2023 at 2:00 PM ET.

BXPs ESG Investor Update will be webcast live beginning at 2:00 PM ET and is expected to conclude at approximately 3:15 PM ET. The webcast will be moderated by Doug Linde, President, and will include presentations by Ben Myers, SVP, Sustainability, and Amy Gindel, SVP, Finance & Planning, and Blake Levy, VP, Construction, Co-Chairs of BXPs DEI Council.

The webcast can be accessed by registering through this dedicated link, which can also be found in the Investors section of BXPs website. A replay of the webcast will be also available in the Investors section of BXPs website shortly after the call.

About BXP ESG

BXPs commitment to ESG leadership has been recognized by numerous industry groups and rankings, including BXPs inclusion as #3 on Barrons 10 Most Sustainable U.S. REITs list. BXP was named to Newsweeks Americas Most Responsible Companies 2023 list, ranking first in its industry and 29th overall out of the 500 companies included on the list. BXP was recently recognized for Best ESG Program by Commercial Property Executive and was again named ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence, as well as a Best in Building Health winner by the Center for Active Design. BXP was recognized as an inaugural Platinum level Green Lease Leader by the Institute for Market Transformation and the U.S. Department of Energy and was the recipient of Nareits prestigious Leader in the Light Award.

About BXP

BXP (NYSE: BXP) is the largest publicly traded developer, owner, and manager of premier workplaces in the United States, concentrated in six dynamic gateway markets - Boston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC. BXP has delivered places that power progress for our clients and communities for more than 50 years. BXP is a fully integrated real estate company, organized as a real estate investment trust (REIT). Including properties owned by unconsolidated joint ventures, BXPs portfolio totals 54.5 million square feet and 192 properties, including 15 properties under construction/redevelopment. For more information about BXP, please visit our website or follow us on LinkedIn or Instagram.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005785/en/

At BXP:

Helen Han

Vice President, Investor Relations

[email protected]

617.236.3429

Source: BXP
Data Presented at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Annual Meeting

BURLINGTON, Mass. & BEIJING--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc. (HKEX: 1228), a leading China-based global biopharmaceutical company committed to the research, development and commercialization of transformative rare disease and rare oncology therapies, announced that data on a novel second-generation spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) gene therapy (CAN203), developed under the CANbridge and UMass Chan Medical School research agreement, was presented as a poster at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 26th Annual Meeting, in Los Angeles.

In a study entitled Low-dose intracerebroventricular delivery of a second-generation AAV gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy achieves efficient and toxicity-free motor function rescue in mice, researchers reported that a novel second-generation hSMN1-AAV gene therapy vector, consisting of an endogenous SMN1 promoter and codon-optimized human SMN1 transgene, improved life span and motor function in a mouse model of SMA better than the benchmark vector, when delivered via intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection. The benchmark vector is identical in design to the only approved gene therapy for SMA. Furthermore, the second-generation gene therapy resulted in higher levels of SMN protein in the central nervous system (CNS), particularly within motor neurons, and lower expression in the peripheral tissues, compared to benchmark vector-treated mice.

Specifically, researchers compared the second-generation vector construct, packaged into two different capsids, against the benchmark vector by ICV injection at two doses, high (3.3x1013 vg/kg) and low (1.1x1013 vg/kg). These doses were one-tenth of those evaluated in an earlier intravenous (IV) study. At the high dose, the second-generation and benchmark vector-treated cohorts had 100% survival at the end of the 90-day study period, while at the low dose, both second-generation vector-treated cohorts had better survival than the benchmark vector-treated group. Mice treated with second-generation vector, regardless of dose, also saw a faster improvement in the righting reflex, reaching response times comparable to those of the healthy carrier cohort by day nine, compared to day 11 for the benchmark-treated mice. At the high-dose, second-generation vector-treated mice achieved significantly better (p=0.043) rotarod performance after 90 days and both doses of the second-generation vector led to faster improvement in the grid test, compared to benchmark-treated mice. Importantly, the second-generation gene therapy increased SMN expression in the targeted tissues, specifically the CNS, and reduced off-target expression, better than the benchmark therapy, revealing expression patterns that more closely resembled those of healthy carriers. Superior transgene expression was observed in disease-vulnerable cells, including ChAT-positive motor neurons in the spinal cord.

In addition, because dorsal root ganglia (DRG) toxicity has been associated with AAV gene therapies, the researchers evaluated the transgene expression in the DRG of SMA mice. No evidence of DRG toxicity associated with superior SMN expression was observed at 90 days after ICV injection with the high dose of the second-generation gene therapy. In a separate study, researchers observed that a very high ICV dose (1.1x1014 vg/kg) of the second-generation gene therapy in healthy mice maintained superior SMN protein expression after one year, compared to the same dose of the benchmark therapy, suggesting durability of treatment. The researchers also did not observe any signs of DRG toxicity associated with prolonged and superior SMN expression, as indicated by a normal clasping response and DRG morphology.

Intravenous delivery of gene therapy has been successfully used to treat infants with SMA type 1, but it will be challenging to treat older patients who need much more viral vector or have pre-existing anti-AAV antibodies, said Jun Xie, PhD, associate professor of microbiology & physiological systems, UMass Chan Medical School, and lead study author. Direct CNS delivery of our second-generation hSMN1-AAV vector could enable gene therapy treatment for more SMA patients.

ICV delivery of CAN203 in the animal model results in a more targeted SMN expression profile using a low vector dose, which could lead to a safer and more efficacious gene therapy, with the potential to be used across all ages of patients with SMA when delivered directly to the CNS, said Jason West, PhD, vice president, head of gene therapy research, CANbridge Pharmaceuticals. We are pleased to advance CAN203 from these proof-of-concept nonclinical studies to IND-enabling studies.

About UMass Chan Medical School

UMass Chan Medical School, one of five campuses of the University of Massachusetts system, comprises the T.H. Chan School of Medicine; the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing; ForHealth Consulting of UMass Chan Medical School, , a public service consulting division; and MassBiologics, the only nonprofit, FDA-licensed manufacturer of vaccines, biologics and viral vector gene therapies in the United States. UMass Chans mission is to advance the health and wellness of our diverse communities throughout Massachusetts and across the world by leading and innovating in education, research, health care delivery and public service. In doing so, it has built a reputation as a world-class research institution and as a leader in primary care education, perennially ranked in the top 10 percent of medical schools for primary care by U.S. News and World Report. UMass Chan attracts more than $300 million annually in research funding, placing it among the top 50 medical schools in the nation. In 2021, the Medical School received a $175 million donation from The Morningside Foundation and was renamed UMass Chan Medical School.

About CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc.

CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc. (HKEX: 1228) global biopharmaceutical company, with a foundation in China, committed to the research, development and commercialization of transformative therapies for rare disease and rare oncology. CANbridge has a differentiated drug portfolio, with three approved drugs and a pipeline of 10 assets, targeting prevalent rare disease and rare oncology indications that have unmet needs and significant market potential. These include Hunter syndrome and other lysosomal storage disorders, complement-mediated disorders, hemophilia A, metabolic disorders, rare cholestatic liver diseases and neuromuscular diseases, as well as glioblastoma multiforme. The CANbridge Next-Generation Innovation and Process Development Facility is developing novel, potentially curative, gene therapies for rare genetic diseases, including Pompe disease, Fabry disease, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other neuromuscular conditions, and collaborates with world-leading researchers and biotech companies. Animal data from the SMA gene therapy was presented in 2022 at the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT), the European Society for Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT) and the World Muscle Congress. CANbridge global partners include: Apogenix, GC Pharma, Mirum, Wuxi Biologics, Privus, UMass Chan Medical School, the University of Washington School of Medicine and Scriptr Global.

For more on CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc., please go to: www.canbridgepharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The forward-looking statements made in this article relate only to the events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this article. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the data on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should read this article completely and with the understanding that our actual future results or performance may be materially different from what we expect. In this article, statements of, or references to, our intentions or those of any of our Directors or our Company are made as of the date of this article. Any of these intentions may alter in light of future development.

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U.S. Investor Relations:

Chris Brinzey

ICR Westwicke

[email protected]

China Investor Relations

CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc.

[email protected]

Media:

Deanne Eagle

Planet Communications

[email protected]

917.837.5866

Source: CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc.
ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Board of Directors of Carters, Inc. (NYSE: CRI) today declared a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, payable on June 9, 2023, to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 30, 2023.

Future declarations of quarterly dividends and the establishment of future record and payment dates will be at the discretion of the Board based on a number of factors, including the Companys future financial performance and other considerations.

About Carters, Inc.

Carters, Inc. is the largest branded marketer in North America of apparel exclusively for babies and young children. The Company owns the Carters and OshKosh Bgosh brands, two of the most recognized brands in the marketplace. These brands are sold in leading department stores, national chains, and specialty retailers domestically and internationally. They are also sold through nearly 1,000 Company-operated stores in the United States, Canada, and Mexico and online at www.carters.com, www.oshkosh.com, www.cartersoshkosh.ca, and www.carters.com.mx. The Companys Child of Mine brand is available at Walmart, its Just One You brand is available at Target, and its Simple Joys brand is available on Amazon. The Company also owns Little Planet, a brand focused on organic fabrics and sustainable materials, and Skip Hop, a global lifestyle brand for families with young children. Carters is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Additional information may be found at www.carters.com.

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Sean McHugh

Vice President & Treasurer

(678) 791-7615

Source: Carters, Inc.
American Heroes: Portraits of Service Second Installation Lands at ORD with Ribbon Cutting and Flag-Folding Commemoration Ceremony

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA), in partnership with Belmont Village Senior Living and co-sponsor Harrison Street, announce the arrival of a new exhibition at OHare International Airport (ORD) titled American Heroes: Portraits of Service displayed in Terminal 3, Concourse I near gates 20-24. This thoughtfully curated photography exhibit is the second collaboration and showcases portraits of 55 distinguished senior veterans who valiantly served their country during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, captured through the lens of renowned photographer Thomas Sanders. The first installation housed at Chicagos Midway International Airport (MDW) was unveiled in November 2022.

A ceremony to introduce the exhibit at ORD, included a flag-folding ceremony led by distinguished veterans featured in the installation, as well as remarks from Chicago Airport Commissioner Jamie Rhee and Belmont Village Senior Living Founder and CEO Patricia Will, who recognized the contributions of veterans who are showcased in the exhibit.

On behalf of Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago airport community, I am proud to partner with Belmont Village Senior Living ahead of Memorial Day to unveil this exhibit honoring the brave men and women who have sacrificed so much to serve our country, CDA Commissioner Jamie Rhee said. Chicagos airports are always looking for more ways to highlight the contributions of service members through efforts like these exhibits, regular Honor Flight Chicago trips to visit the national war memorials in Washington, D.C., and increased contracting opportunities for veteran-owned firms alongside other minority- and women-owned businesses.

The American Heroes: Portraits of Service has been a long-standing photography project at Belmont Village Senior Living to capture the stories and images of veterans in its communities to preserve their history.

Chicago's O'Hare Airport now offers travelers an opportunity to learn about the inspiring stories of distinguished veterans, like Myron Petrakis, a Navy machinist who served on the USS Murrelet during WWII. Petrakis, who was also showcased in the exhibit at MDW, requested that his colleague and friend, Richard Nelson, be featured in the exhibit at ORD. This tribute to the enduring bonds forged during wartime demonstrates the profound impact of service to our country.

This project is a staple in Belmont Villages culture, having portraits displayed in permanent galleries in our communities throughout the nation, and were proud to continue our efforts to showcase this project at O'Hare International Airport, after successfully exhibiting at Midway last year, states Will.

Belmont Village Senior Living initiated the American Heroes: Portraits of Services photography project in 2008 with the objective of capturing and conserving the stirring personal accounts of veterans. Sanders has since captured thousands of images of Belmont residents featured in over 30 permanent exhibits in Belmont communities across the country.

The project is sponsored by Harrison Street, which has invested over $13.6 billion in senior living communities across North America, including independent living, assisted living and memory care units that serve more than 60,500 seniors. The firm is committed to supporting veterans and active military and has partnered with the U.S. Government and Department of Defense to provide over 4,000 homes to military families located across six U.S. Air Force bases.

We are pleased to join our long-standing partner, Belmont Village, and the Chicago Department of Aviation to pay tribute to the selfless service members with this incredible tribute, said Christopher Merrill, Co-founder, Chairman & CEO of Harrison Street.

About Belmont Village Senior Living

Founded in Houston in 1997, Belmont Village is an integrated developer, owner, and operator of high-quality seniors housing with more than 4,000 employees. Its 33 locations across the country and in Mexico City, provide award-winning assisted living and memory care programs and ongoing collaborations with Baptist Health South Florida, USC, UCLA, and more to continually improve their cognitive health and evidence-based enrichment programs. Renowned for distinctive design, high standards of life and safety, and reputation for leading edge, quality of care, Belmont Village is certified as a Great Place to Work and has been ranked as one of FORTUNE Magazines 50 Best Workplaces for Aging Services since 2018. www.belmontvillage.com, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

About the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA)

The Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) is self-supporting, using no local or state tax dollars for operations or capital improvements at OHare and Midway International Airports. Chicagos airports offer service to over 250 nonstop destinations worldwide, including 47 foreign countries, combined. Together, Chicagos airports serve more than 105 million passengers each year and generate approximately $70 billion in annual economic activity for the region. Please visit flychicago.com to learn more about the Chicago Department of Aviation.

About Harrison Street

Harrison Street is one of the leading investment management firms exclusively focused on alternative real assets. Since inception in 2005, the firm has created a series of differentiated investment solutions focused on demographic-driven, needs-based assets. The firm has invested across senior housing, student housing, healthcare delivery, life sciences and storage real estate as well as social and utility infrastructure. Headquartered in Chicago with offices in London, Luxembourg, New York, San Francisco, Tokyo, Toronto and Washington DC, the firm has more than 250-employees and approximately $55 billion in assets under management. Clients of the firm include a global institutional investor base domiciled in North America, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Latin America. Harrison Street has been awarded Best Places to Work by Pensions Investments for eight years (2014-2020, 2022) and has won multiple awards from PERE, including five for the 2022 Awards: Alternatives Investor of the Year - Global, Industry Figure of the Year - Global, Residential Investor of the Year - Global, Data Centers Investor of the Year - Global, and Residential Investor of the Year - North America. For more information, please visit www.harrisonst.com.

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Dara Shlifka, [email protected]

Source: Belmont Village Senior Living
SHANGHAI, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The China Brand Day events kicked off at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center in mid-May, joined by over 1,000 Chinese brands.

At the events, China Eastern Airlines (CEA) displayed its cabin services, in-flight meals, technological and innovative products and other interactive experiences with an aim to build an immersive experience for visitors, which well indicated the company's commitment to creating splendid experiences for travelers with targeted and meticulous services.

A newly developed mixed reality (MR) headset was a big hit at the China Brand Day. It integrates mobile equipment and digital technologies, and is widely used in aviation scenarios. The equipment attracted a number of visitors.

Besides, CEA also exhibited a smart bracelet that is able to sense staff members' motions in baggage handling and thus improve their work efficiency and ensure their occupational health. The bracelet is the first of its kind in the civil aviation industry and is gradually being distributed to relevant CEA employees.

At the center of CEA's exhibition booth, there were in-flight meals and drinks newly launched by CEA's Excellent Sky Chef, including the MU Catering Zhen,"MU Catering Huan, MUNoodles and MUTea series. International passengers flying to and from China with CEA will have the opportunity to enjoy delicious food served by CEA's "Lingyan" crews.

CEA also attended a conference on the global communication of Chinese brands, a sub-event of the China Brand Day, to share the excellent stories of CEA.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005874/en/

Company: China Eastern Airlines

Website: http://www.ceair.com/

Contact: fangying

TEL: 00862122331470

Email: [email protected]

Source: China Eastern Airlines
This marks the second stage of the Elephant Genome Project, a landmark de-extinction genetic rescue partnership that previously announced the successful sequencing of the endangered Asian elephant genome

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Colossal Biosciences, a breakthrough biosciences and genetic engineering company, and the Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP), which aims to sequence high-quality reference genomes for all living vertebrates, partnered to successfully generate the first high-quality reference genome of the African elephant. Last year, the partnership announced a near complete sequence of the Asian elephant genome. The sequencing work is part of a long-term effort to ensure the survival of elephant species in the face of climate change, deforestation, and disease. The genome, published in NCBI and public to all, includes sequencing, assembly, and annotation, and introduces a step forward in innovative animal conservation. The project was overseen by Erich Jarvis, Ph.D., a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor at The Rockefeller University and Chair of the Vertebrate Genomes Project, Olivier Fedrigo, Former Director of The Vertebrate Genomes Laboratory (VGL), and Eriona Hysolli, Head of Biological Sciences at Colossal.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005164/en/

African elephant image and genome assembly statistics; sequencing and assembly platforms used with genome coverage fold; Arima Hi-C assembly map. Credit: Olivier Fedrigo Ph.D., Former Director of the Vertebrate Genomes Laboratory

At Colossal, we believe that purposeful advancements in science are critical to the conservation efforts needed to restore our planet. The partnership with VGP is essential to this larger body of work. Todays milestone shows how cooperation and advancements in science can ensure that the animals we love and need to have a healthy planet will be with us forever, said Ben Lamm, Colossal Co-Founder and CEO.

African elephants, along with Asian elephants, are known to be engineers of biodiversity and face a high risk of extinction in the wild. African elephants have decreased by more than 86% over the past 31 years, and the African savanna elephant populations have fallen at least 60% over the last 50 years, according to the IUCN. About 415,000 African elephants of both species combined are left on the continent and will disappear within two decades if urgent action is not taken, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has warned. The development of high-quality genome assemblies of the African elephant, join the complete and near gapless sequence of the Asian elephant, and ensure all valuable parts of the genomes are captured for long-term species preservation and de-extinction efforts.

We are excited to produce high-quality reference genomes for the conservation community. A good reference genome is needed to research and study any species, said Erich Jarvis, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor at The Rockefeller University and Chair of the Vertebrate Genomes Project.

The African elephant genome was sequenced using Pacbio HiFi long reads, Bionano optical maps, and Arima Hi-C read platforms to generate the highest-quality genome to date for this species. VGP and Colossal will aim for T2T (telomere to telomere) assemblies for all extant elephant species as the next step towards complete and gapless assemblies. The new African elephant genome is available in NCBI under accession numbers GCA_030014295.1 and GCA_030020305.1.

The third phase of the project will include genetic rescue of the Forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), which is classified as endangered or critically endangered species by IUCN. The VGP and Colossal are seeking help with sample donors to produce a high-quality reference genome of the Forest Elephant.

Todays news follows Colossal Biosciences accelerated efforts to eradicate a fatal disease affecting endangered elephants, Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpes Virus (EEHV), the leading cause of death in juvenile Asian elephants born in North America and in their natural range countries. Colossal is leading the development of novel treatments and a vaccine that would prevent the deadly virus from infecting elephants - both in zoos and in their natural habitats.

Since launching in September 2021, Colossal has raised $225M in total funding. The company, which just completed an oversubscribed $150M Series B financing, has announced three species to de-extinct including the thylacine, the dodo, and the Woolly Mammoth - which shares 99.6 percent of its DNA with the Asian elephant.

ABOUT COLOSSAL

Colossal was founded by emerging technology and software entrepreneur Ben Lamm and world-renowned geneticist and serial biotech entrepreneur George Church, Ph.D. Colossal creates disruptive technologies for extinct species restoration, critically endangered species protection and the repopulation of critical ecosystems that support the continuation of life on Earth. Colossal is accepting humanitys duty to restore Earth to a healthier state, while also solving for the future economies and biological necessities of the human condition through cutting-edge science and technologies. To follow along, please visit: www.colossal.com.

ABOUT THE VERTEBRATE GENOMES PROJECT (VGP)

The Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP) aims to sequence high-quality reference genomes for all living 70,000+ vertebrates (i.e., mammals, amphibians, birds, reptiles, and fishes), and to use those genomes to address fundamental questions in biology, disease, and conservation. This includes using the genomes to identify species most genetically at risk of extinction, and to preserve the genetic information of life. The VGP produces near error-free and complete chromosomal-level genome assemblies, and has become a model for the broader Earth Biogenome Project, to produce high-quality assemblies of all eukaryotic species. To date, the current VGP pipelines have led to high-quality reference genomes for over 233 species deposited in the public databases (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/489243), representing the most complete and accurate versions of those species to date, including multiple species at risk of extinction. The VGP 2021 flagship paper and associated publications demonstrates feasibility in quality standardization and scale for the field of genomics. To find more information, visit https://vertebrategenomesproject.org/.

WEBSITE & SOCIALS

Websites: www.colossal.com, www.vertebrategenomesproject.org

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ItIsColossal, https://twitter.com/genomeark

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itiscolossal/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/itiscolossal/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ItIsColossal

Hashtag: #ItIsColossal, #VGP, #GenomicsForAll

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Media Contacts:

R&CPMK: Emily Mailaender

[email protected]

Source: Colossal Biosciences
HOUSTON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Contango ORE, Inc. (CORE, Contango or the Company) (NYSE American: CTGO) is pleased to announce that it and its subsidiaries have entered into a Credit and Guaranty Agreement with ING Capital LLC (ING) and Macquarie Bank Limited (Macquarie) for a senior secured loan facility of up to US$70 million, of which $65 million is committed and subject to certain conditions, to fund its portion of the pre-production construction and working capital/operating expenditures for the Manh Choh gold project in Alaska (Manh Choh), which is owned and operated by the Companys 30% owned Peak Gold, LLC (PGJV). PGJV has received the federal permits needed for road construction and early work construction, which has been underway since August 2022 and continued throughout the winter months. PGJV also received the State of Alaska approval for the Mine Operating and Closure Plan on May 15, 2023 and mine site construction work will be underway shortly. First gold production from the project is expected in the second half of 2024.

Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, the Companys President and Chief Executive Officer, said, We are very pleased to have finalized the up to $70 million credit facility with two of the mining industrys leading financial institutions. Building upon the relationship with these two institutions will be a key part of growing the Company going forward. I am also very excited to announce that the Waste Management Plan, Plan of Operations, and Reclamation and Closure Plan has been approved by the State of Alaska Departments of Environmental Conservation and Natural Resources. On behalf of Contangos Board and shareholders, we thank all those involved for their efforts. With these approvals, PGJV is now able to start mine site facility construction. Kiewit was hired as the mining constructor and is responsible for preparing the Manh Choh site for all mining-related activities, which will start immediately. Other major contracts have been signed with Black Gold Transport, a local Alaska contractor based in North Pole, Alaska to transport the run-of-mine ore to the Fort Knox Facility and a Tolling Agreement has been signed with Fort Knox Mine to process the PGJV ores.

"Now that the major contracts are signed, and financing and permitting are concluded, all the elements are in place to bring our 30% interest in Manh Choh into production. With a gold price hovering around $2,000, the high-grade nature of the Manh Choh deposit will ensure solid cash flows for the Company and its shareholders. We look forward to keeping our investors up to date with construction and mining progress as we approach that momentous occasion in 2024 when we have our first gold pour.

"With all the news flow expected throughout the month of May, we will be hosting a corporate update to go over all our recent news at the end of the month. Please use this link to register to our live event: https://my.6ix.com/STEXS5np.

Highlights of the Secured Loan Facility

Up to $70 million of availability, of which $65 million is committed in the form of a term loan facility and $5 million is uncommitted in the form of a discretionary liquidity buffer facility.

$10 million has been drawn on the term loan facility at the initial closing, with additional draws subject to certain final conditions being met.

Outstanding amounts under the facility will bear interest based on the 3-month adjusted term Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) plus (i) 6.00% per annum prior to the completion date for the Manh Choh gold project and (ii) 5.00% thereafter, which will be payable quarterly.

The facility will mature on December 31, 2026 and will be repaid via quarterly repayments over the life of the loan.

The facility has an upfront fee of 2.85% and a production linked arrangement fee of $5.00 times the projected total production of gold ounces in the base case financial model delivered on the closing date, payable quarterly based on attributable production, with any balance due upon the maturity or termination of the facility.

The facility is secured by all the assets and properties of the Company and its subsidiaries, including the Companys 30% interest in PGJV but excluding the equity interests of Alaska Gold Torrent, LLC in respect of the Lucky Shot Mine.

As a condition precedent to the second borrowing, the Company is required to hedge approximately 125koz of its attributable gold production from Manh Choh. The hedges will be provided by ING, Macquarie or their affiliates.

Roc Global, LLC, a mining, metals and clean energy focused investment advisory firm based in New York, acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Contango for this financing. Holland & Knight LLP acted as legal counsel to the Company and its subsidiaries for this financing, with Perkins Coie providing Alaska law advice.

ABOUT CORE

CORE is a company that engages in the exploration in Alaska for gold and associated minerals through a 30% interest in PGJV, which leases approximately 675,000 acres for exploration and development, and through a 100% owned subsidiary, Contango Minerals Alaska, LLC, which leases approximately 200,000 acres for exploration. The Company also owns the rights to the Lucky Shot, Coleman and War Baby mines, and approximately 16,600 acres of surrounding mining claims located in the Willow Mining District about 75 miles north of Anchorage, Alaska. Additional information can be found on our web page at www.contangoore.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding CORE that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor for forward-looking statements provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, based on COREs current expectations and includes statements regarding future results of operations, quality and nature of the asset base, the assumptions upon which estimates are based and other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, strategies or statements about future events or performance (often, but not always, using words such as expects, projects, anticipates, plans, estimates, potential, possible, probable, or intends, or stating that certain actions, events or results may, will, should, or could be taken, occur or be achieved). Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those, reflected in the statements. These risks include, but are not limited to: the risks of the exploration and the mining industry (for example, operational risks in exploring for, developing mineral reserves; risks and uncertainties involving geology; the speculative nature of the mining industry; the uncertainty of estimates and projections relating to future production, costs and expenses; the volatility of natural resources prices, including prices of gold and associated minerals; the existence and extent of commercially exploitable minerals in properties acquired by CORE or PGJV; ability to realize the anticipated benefits of PGJV; potential delays or changes in plans with respect to exploration or development projects or capital expenditures; the interpretation of exploration results and the estimation of mineral resources; the loss of key employees or consultants; health, safety and environmental risks and risks related to weather and other natural disasters); uncertainties as to the availability and cost of financing; COREs inability to retain or maintain its relative ownership interest in PGJV; inability to realize expected value from acquisitions; inability of our management team to execute its plans to meet its goals; the extent of disruptions caused by the an outbreak of disease, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; and the possibility that government policies may change, political developments may occur or governmental approvals may be delayed or withheld, including as a result of presidential and congressional elections in the U.S. or the inability to obtain mining permits. Additional information on these and other factors which could affect COREs exploration program or financial results are included in COREs other reports on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Investors are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from the projections in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the estimates and opinions of management at the time the statements are made. CORE does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or managements estimates or opinions change.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005887/en/

Contango ORE, Inc.

Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse

(713) 877-1311

www.contangoore.com

Source: Contango ORE, Inc.
Leading cell therapy accelerator will drive the development of novel therapies for Texas cancer patients

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- CTMC, a joint venture between Resilience + MD Anderson Cancer Center, announces that it has been awarded $9.1M in the newly created Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) Texas New Technologies Company grant. The grant will focus on retroviral vector (RVV) manufacturing, an enhanced tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) platform, and a differentiated process development approach to CAR-T manufacturing.

CPRIT created a new grant category called Texas New Technologies Company to fund development projects of promising technologies. The proposal CTMC submitted addressed four of CPRITs key priorities: develop novel projects that offer therapeutic benefit, address challenging unmet medical needs, stimulate commercialization of technology developed at Texas entities, and attract promising companies to Texas.

We are proud to be the first recipient of the New Technologies grant. CPRIT has been forward-looking in supporting the oncology-focused life sciences ecosystem in Texas. By funding innovation in underlying manufacturing technology, we can add further value to our partners' products, reduce risk, and decrease development timelines, said Jason Bock, CEO, CTMC. This award provides us with new opportunities to create advanced manufacturing technologies to accelerate cell therapies reaching patients.

CTMC will utilize this grant to fund three goals:

GOAL 1: Establish an industrial and flexible center for RVV manufacturing focused on reducing overall development times through vertical integration with cell therapy development and an integrated regulatory strategy.

GOAL 2: Develop an advanced, commercializable TIL manufacturing platform to improve process robustness.

GOAL 3: Provide a differentiated process development approach for CAR-T manufacturing by reducing the risk of batch failure and clinical delays.

CTMCs unique model accelerates the development and manufacturing of innovative cell therapies for patients with cancer. CTMC works in collaboration with both academic faculty at MD Anderson and with biopharmaceutical companies to drive life-saving cell therapies from the pre-clinical stage through regulatory filing to clinical trials.

About CTMC

CTMC  a joint venture between Resilience + MD Anderson Cancer Center  was created to accelerate the development and manufacturing of impactful cell therapies for patients with cancer. CTMC is uniquely positioned within the Texas Medical Center to provide therapies that begin and end with the patient. By leveraging the strengths of MD Anderson and Resilience we start clinical trials faster and provide a clear path to robust commercialization. Learn more at www.ctmc.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005232/en/

Linda Healan

CG Life

404-725-7117

[email protected]

Source: CTMC
FHLB Dallas Provided $200K to Support Affordable Rental Homes

RUIDOSO, N.M.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Village officials, affordable housing advocates and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) came together this week to celebrate the opening of a housing development serving low-income residents in the Village of Ruidoso, New Mexico. FHLB Dallas provided a $200,000 donation through the Villages Affordable Housing Bank and Trust following the fatal 2022 McBride Fire.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005789/en/

An affordable housing development in Ruidoso, New Mexico, was funded, in part, with a $200,000 donation from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas. Mechem Meadows provides rental housing to people displaced by last years wildfires and serves as affordable workforce housing in the region. (Photo: Business Wire)

The funds helped address the immediate housing needs of low-income residents who lost their homes to the April 2022 fire that killed two people and destroyed more than 200 homes. In addition to providing housing to displaced families, the new housing development, called Mechem Meadows, will serve as workforce housing for the area.

We appreciate the donation from FHLB Dallas that helped our fellow New Mexicans during a difficult time, said Village of Ruidoso City Manager Ron Sena.

The contribution, along with funding from the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, helped support housing and infrastructure costs.

Helping communities recover after a natural disaster is something we are proud to be able to do, and its wonderful to combine that effort with this affordable housing initiative, said Greg Hettrick, senior vice president and director of Community Investment for FHLB Dallas.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $181.2 billion as of March 31, 2023, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to approximately 800 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. For more information, visit our website at fhlb.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005789/en/

Corporate Communications

Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

fhlb.com

(214) 441-8445

Source: Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
MADRID, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Madrid Community is pleased to strengthen ties with China's Sichuan province to promote tourism between each another, a Spanish official has said.

Luis Fernando Martin Izquierdo, general director of tourism of the Madrid Community, made the remarks at a ceremony here awarding Xiaolongkan Madrid restaurant a global image experience shop of Chinese Sichuan cuisine on Tuesday.

Madrid is experiencing a recovery in tourism as the pandemic dissipates, and will open its arms wide and look forward to more Chinese tourists, he said.

At the ceremony attended by dozens of Chinese and Spanish officials and business people, Wen Su, director of the Sichuan Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, said that Spain has deep and long-standing friendship with Sichuan, and is Sichuan's important partner in economic and trade cooperation in Southern Europe.

Noting that Xiaolongkan Madrid has become an important culinary landmark in Madrid, Wen said he hoped the restaurant could promote better Sichuan cuisine culture and the international image of Sichuan province.

Sichuan cuisine is one of the four major cuisines in China. The Sichuan government has selected a number of experience restaurants to promote Sichuan cuisine across the world. The parent company Xiaolongkan has over 50 overseas branches worldwide. 
A retail partner since 2019, online shoppers checking out at Ashley and Dufresne ecommerce sites are now able to access Flexitis flexible financing

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Flexiti Financial Inc. (Flexiti), a leading provider of point-of-sale consumer financing solutions for retailers, is pleased to announce that it has expanded its partnership with TDG Furniture Inc., Furniture Investment Group Inc., and DFA Operation. Inc. (The Dufresne Group, or TDG) and now offers customers shopping online at Ashleyhomestore.ca or Dufresne.ca the ease and financial flexibility to immediately apply or use their existing FlexitiCard at check-out.

A Flexiti (in-store) partner since 2019, Ashley and Dufresne are trusted Canadian home retailer banner stores under TDG specializing in affordable mattresses, furniture, appliances, and accessories. Ashley has 37 retail locations across Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Saskatchewan, and Dufresne has 15 locations within Manitoba, Ontario and Saskatchewan. With this partnership advancement, customers can now shop online and use their existing FlexitiCard at check-out or instantly apply to secure a new FlexitiCard with 0% interest1 financing plans.

Were thrilled when a long-time merchant partner like The Dufresne Group trusts Flexitis flexible financing platform to help expand its business offering and further serve customers, said Peter Kalen, Founder and CEO of Flexiti. Online customers now have the opportunity to make important life purchases with the option of a flexible financing plan through Flexitis trusted on-demand 0% financing solution.

Across our Ashley and Dufresne retail stores and now available on our ecommerce sites, we understand the importance of the financial considerations that Canadians take into account before making a large purchase, said Evan Vermette, Senior Director, Corporate Development at Dufresne. Were pleased that this expanded partnership with Flexiti now offers our customers additional financing options in a simple, seamless manner both in-store and online.

1 O.A.C. Terms and conditions apply.

About Flexiti

Flexiti provides flexible financing to help customers make important purchases. Available at a network of over 8,000 top-tier retail locations and e-commerce sites, including The Brick, Wayfair.ca, Sleep Country, Staples and Birks, Flexitis award-winning sales financing platform provides customers and merchants alike with seamless point-of-sale service. Flexiti users can be instantly approved in-store and online to receive 0% interest financing on purchases within their credit limit without needing to reapply. Helping Canadians secure over $3B in flexible financing since inception, Flexiti is one of Canadas fastest growing sales financing providers. In 2022, Flexiti was named one of Canadas Top Growing Companies for the fourth consecutive year. In 2021, Flexiti ranked 10th on Deloittes Canadas Technology Fast 50, 54th on Deloittes North American Technology Fast 500, and ranked 13th on The Globe and Mails 2021 Canadas Top Growing Companies. Flexiti is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CURO Group Holdings Corp. (NYSE: CURO). For more information on Flexiti's service offering and growing Flexiti Network, visit www.flexiti.com.

About Dufresne

Dufresne is a family-owned and operated Canadian home furnishings retailer specializing in mattresses, furniture, appliances, and accessories. We are proud to announce that we have been recognized as a Best Managed company for the 23rd straight year. This prestigious award recognizes excellence in Canadian-owned and operated companies across a range of industries. It is a testament to our commitment to our purpose of making life better for our teams, guests, and community. We are honored to be part of this distinguished group of Canadian companies, and we will continue to work hard to maintain our position as a leader in the home furnishings retail industry.

At Dufresne, we are more than just a home furnishings retailer. We are a family-owned and operated business with a purpose. Our mission is to make life better for our teams, guests, and community. We are committed to creating a supportive and caring work environment that allows our team members to provide exceptional service to our guests. We are passionate about providing our guests with high-quality products that enhance their homes and lifestyles.

As a proudly Canadian brand, we believe in supporting and caring for our communities across the country. With retail stores in Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia we have provided jobs and training for thousands of team members and supported numerous charities to make life better for all. We remain committed to our purpose of making life better for our teams, guests, and community. To learn more about Dufresne and our commitment to excellence, please visit www.dufresne.ca.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005074/en/

MEDIA:

For Flexiti:

Jennifer Knox [email protected]

For The Dufresne Group:

Christine Reimer [email protected]

Source: CURO Group Holdings Corp. and Flexiti
TAMARAC, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Gold Coast Schools, a leading Florida-based provider of traditional classroom and distance learning in the fields of real estate, appraisal, mortgage, insurance and construction education, today announced an exclusive education partnership with Echovate to uncover real estate students personality insights with actionable items that will help propel their real estate career forward.

We are excited to offer Echovate assessments to all of our Gold Coast students as part of their learning experience, said Jennifer Dixson Hoff, General Manager of Professional Portfolio and Partnerships at Colibri Real Estate, the parent company of Gold Coast Schools. With these assessments, our students will be equipped with the knowledge and tools they need to enter the real estate sector and become successful agents.

The Echovate personality assessment is a simple process that includes a brief survey sent to students. When finished, students obtain real-time results in a report that shares their strengths and how they are leveraged in a work environment.

Our vision of driving successful outcomes through science and data are perfectly aligned with Gold Coast Schools and will change the landscape of real estate, said Matt Gough, CEO of Echovate. We are excited about the amazing impact this will have on students and their real estate careers as well as brokers and teams to help recruit, retain and grow their next top performers.

Already, real estate brokers in Florida are leveraging Echovate assessments to elevate the recruiting and retention process for agents.

With Echovate, we have been able to understand what makes a top-performing agent in our company  giving us the insights we need to reduce turnover and increase retention, said Wendi Iglesias, Chief Information Officer at The Keyes Company. In addition, the tool helps us identify existing agents from within our company to promote and ultimately build their career in real estate.

Gold Coast Schools will offer Echovate assessments to all real estate students beginning today.

As part of the experience at Gold Coast, we initiate career fairs between brokers and students, Hoff continued. This tool is meant to bolster those conversations and to help both parties find the right fit. In our pilot program, many students found the assessment and results helpful in preparing them to secure their first role.

For more information on becoming a Gold Coast student to take advantage of the Echovate assessment and many other resources, visit https://goldcoastschools.com/courses/real-estate/sales-associate-pre-license-course/#learning-format.

ABOUT GOLD COAST SCHOOLS

Gold Coast began operations in 1970 as a real estate school with a single location and has since grown into one of the countrys largest providers of classroom and distance learning in the fields of real estate, appraisal, mortgage, insurance, CAM and construction education. The company now has six Florida campuses to serve students and provides education for out of state students through online learning programs.

ABOUT COLIBRI REAL ESTATE

Colibri Real Estate empowers aspiring and seasoned real estate professionals to start or advance their career through unmatched learning solutions. Colibri Real Estate is part of the Colibri Group, an education company composed of elite brands that provide learning solutions to licensed professionals. For more information, visit https://www.colibrirealestate.com.

ABOUT ECHOVATE

Echovate is a people analytics software that leverages behavioral science so organizations can recruit, retain, and grow successful people. Echovates data helps to ensure fit, drive performance, and build more cohesive teams by revealing an individuals strengths and motivations.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005723/en/

Alexis Petersen

Colibri Group

[email protected]

Source: Gold Coast Schools
Microsoft Azure customers worldwide now gain access to three NAVIK AI solutions to take advantage of Azure scalability, reliability, and agility to shape business strategies.

LOS GATOS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Infogain, a Silicon Valley-headquartered leader in human-centered digital platform and software engineering services, today announced the availability of three AI-powered business solutions on the Azure Marketplace, an online store providing applications and services for use on Azure. NAVIK customers can now take advantage of the productive and trusted Azure cloud platform, with streamlined deployment and management.

NAVIK is an AI platform that addresses the breadth of AI solution needs, including data infrastructure, data engineering, and data analytics requirements. NAVIKs modular components include data integration repositories and pipeline scripts, a library of highly trained algorithms built on state-of-the-art machine learning models, and pre-built UI components. Using NAVIK, Infogain can rapidly design, develop and deploy AI-powered solutions to meet the unique needs of its clients.

ASK NAVIK powered by OpenAI on Azure delivers all the capabilities and promise of a state-of-the-art generative AI solution, but in a package that will work safely and effectively inside a business organization. Each ASK NAVIK implementation is designed to meet the needs of a particular business use case. Models are trained on the clients business data, wherever it may reside. ASK NAVIK combines OpenAIs large language models and Azures enterprise and supercomputing capabilities into a clients data estate.

Infogain NAVIK Sales AI platform generates sales efficiency and uncovers new monetization strategies. Infogain helped a Fortune 100 beverage company make smarter assortment recommendations by creating an AI-driven solution that combines deep neural nets, collaborative filtering, and ensemble models. Field sales teams use the tool to improve effectiveness and drive business growth.

Infogain NAVIK Marketing AI platform is a powerful B2C campaign automation and hyper-personalization tool focusing on customer-directed customization through AI integration. Infogain designed and built a holistic analytics solution for a multi-billion-dollar wireless network operator. It combines customer profitability goals with Customer Lifetime Value model results and feeds the output into an optimization algorithm, generating campaign lists with targeted offers for each micro-segment.

Anil Kaul, Chief AI Officer at Infogain, said, We designed NAVIK to put the power of advanced AI solutions including machine learning models directly into the hands of business users, suppressing human bias and enabling better decision making. Azures scale, native machine learning operations, and enterprise security capabilities will help us rapidly accelerate this vision.

Jake Zborowski, General Manager, Microsoft Azure Platform at Microsoft Corp., said, Were pleased to welcome three NAVIK AI solutions from Infogain to the Microsoft Azure Marketplace, which gives our partners great exposure to cloud customers around the globe. Azure Marketplace offers world-class quality experiences from global trusted partners with solutions tested to work seamlessly with Azure.

The Azure Marketplace is an online market for buying and selling cloud solutions certified to run on Azure. The Azure Marketplace helps connect companies seeking innovative, cloud-based solutions with partners who have developed solutions that are ready to use.

About Infogain

Infogain is a human-centered digital platform engineering company based out of Silicon Valley. We engineer business outcomes for Fortune 500 companies and digital natives in the technology, healthcare, insurance, travel, telecom, and retail/CPG industries. We accelerate experience-led transformation in the delivery of digital platforms using technologies such as cloud, microservices, automation, IoT, and artificial intelligence. Infogain is a multi-cloud expert across hyperscale cloud providers  Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services.

Infogain, an Apax Funds portfolio company, has offices in California, Washington, Texas, the UK, and Singapore, with delivery centers in Seattle, Houston, Montevideo, Krakow, Noida, Bengaluru, Pune, Gurgaon, and Mumbai. To learn more, visit www.infogain.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005632/en/

Infogain

Piyali Guha

[email protected]

+91 9739015925

Archetype

Suryansh Gaur

[email protected]

+91 9711306903

Source: Infogain
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- KBRA is pleased to announce the assignment of preliminary ratings to 18 classes of BMO 2023-C5, a $657.6 million CMBS conduit transaction collateralized by 34 commercial mortgage loans secured by 190 properties.

The collateral properties are located throughout 32 MSAs, of which the three largest are New York (15.1%), Raleigh (9.9%), and Indianapolis (8.7%). The pool has exposure to all major property types, with five types representing more than 10.0% of the pool balance: retail (28.5%), industrial (25.1%), lodging (15.0%), multifamily (11.8%), and office (11.5%). The loans have principal balances ranging from $2.3 million to $65.0 million for the largest loan in the pool, Brier Creek Commons (9.9%), which is secured by a 519,277 sf anchored retail center located in Raleigh, North Carolina. The five largest loans, which also include Central Florida Industrial Portfolio (6.4%), Hyatt Regency Indianapolis (6.1%), Cincinnati Multifamily Portfolio (5.9%), and Great Lakes Crossing Outlets (5.7%), represent 34.0% of the initial pool balance, while the top 10 loans represent 56.4%.

KBRAs analysis of the transaction incorporated our multi-borrower rating process that begins with our analysts' evaluation of the underlying collateral properties' financial and operating performance, which determine KBRAs estimate of sustainable net cash flow (KNCF) and KBRA value using our U.S. CMBS Property Evaluation Methodology. On an aggregate basis, KNCF was 11.2% less than the issuer cash flow. KBRA capitalization rates were applied to each assets KNCF to derive values that were, on an aggregate basis, 41.7% less than third party appraisal values. The pool has an in-trust KLTV of 91.3% and an all-in KLTV of 93.3%. The model deploys rent and occupancy stresses, probability of default regressions, and loss given default calculations to determine losses for each collateral loan that are then used to assign our credit ratings.

To access ratings and relevant documents, click here.

Click here to view the report.

Related Publications

Disclosures

Further information on key credit considerations, sensitivity analyses that consider what factors can affect these credit ratings and how they could lead to an upgrade or a downgrade, and ESG factors (where they are a key driver behind the change to the credit rating or rating outlook) can be found in the full rating report referenced above.

A description of all substantially material sources that were used to prepare the credit rating and information on the methodology(ies) (inclusive of any material models and sensitivity analyses of the relevant key rating assumptions, as applicable) used in determining the credit rating is available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) located here.

Information on the meaning of each rating category can be located here.

Further disclosures relating to this rating action are available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) referenced above. Additional information regarding KBRA policies, methodologies, rating scales and disclosures are available at www.kbra.com.

About KBRA

Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC (KBRA) is a full-service credit rating agency registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an NRSRO. Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited is registered as a CRA with the European Securities and Markets Authority. Kroll Bond Rating Agency UK Limited is registered as a CRA with the UK Financial Conduct Authority. In addition, KBRA is designated as a designated rating organization by the Ontario Securities Commission for issuers of asset-backed securities to file a short form prospectus or shelf prospectus. KBRA is also recognized by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners as a Credit Rating Provider.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005663/en/

Analytical Contacts

Samuel OConnell, Associate (Lead Analyst)

+1 (646) 731-1300

[email protected]

James Wang, Managing Director

+1 (646) 731-2450

[email protected]

Nitin Bhasin, Senior Managing Director (Rating Committee Chair)

+1 (646) 731-2334

[email protected]

Business Development Contact

Daniel Stallone, Senior Director

+1 (646) 731-1308

[email protected]

Source: Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- On April 27, 2023, KBRA affirmed the senior unsecured debt rating of BBB, the subordinated debt rating of BBB-, and the short-term debt rating of K3 for Henderson, Texas-based VeraBank, Inc. (VeraBank or the company). In addition, KBRA affirmed the deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings of BBB+, the subordinated debt rating of BBB, and the short-term deposit and debt ratings of K2 for its subsidiary, VeraBank, National Association. The Outlook for all long-term ratings is Stable.

VeraBanks ratings are supported by the companys prudent approach to liquidity management, evidenced by a loan- to-deposit ratio that has been generally maintained between 60%-70% resulting in a correspondingly high level of cash and securities on-balance sheet (+40% of total assets at 1Q23). Given this, the company has been able to consistently reflect a strong core deposit franchise, which has averaged 96% of total funding for the last five years. Additionally, overall deposit balances have remained steady throughout the turbulent liquidity environment in 2023 and management expects to continue maintaining a higher amount of on-balance sheet liquidity prospectively to mitigate against any future volatility in the funding base. VeraBanks proportionally lower percentage of loans to earnings assets lends to low risk-weighted asset density (65% of total assets) and, in our opinion, suggests a more conservative balance sheet relative to many similarly rated peers. Further supporting the ratings is the company's solid market share in its rural East TX markets, which combined with a healthy proportion of noninterest-bearing deposits (~30% of total) and virtually no reliance on CDs and brokered deposits, allows for below average funding costs. VeraBank also has balance sheet flexibility to potentially reduce the size of the balance sheet without material realized losses. Relatedly, VeraBank advanced $500 million in FHLB as an abundance of caution in 1Q23, but has not historically utilized "noncore" funding sources since 2007. KBRA also recognizes the companys favorable risk-adjusted returns (RORWA ~2% in 2022), aided by a healthy proportion of noninterest income which has represented approximately 25% of total operating revenue since 2016, and is considered fairly diverse for a bank of its size. VeraBanks ratings also reflect the companys modest NPA levels historically (0.28% of total loans as of 1Q23), though we acknowledge the sustained improvements in reported asset quality in 2022. The company also has modest exposures to potentially volatile sectors such as office (6% of total loans) and retail (7%). Furthermore, the reserve level of 1.27% of loans is considered appropriate given the current levels of classified and criticized loan balances. Capital levels are somewhat weaker than peers, notably the TCE ratio which was 6.1% at 1Q23. Relatedly, risk-weighted capital ratios are slightly below peer levels as well, however, KBRA expects positive momentum in capital levels via earnings accretion and slower balance sheet growth moving forward.

Click here to view the report.

To access rating and relevant documents, click here.

About KBRA

KBRA is a full-service credit rating agency registered in the U.S., the EU, and the UK, and is designated to provide structured finance ratings in Canada. KBRAs ratings can be used by investors for regulatory capital purposes in multiple jurisdictions.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005556/en/

Ben Rodriguez, Director

+1 301-969-3186

[email protected]

John Rempe, Director

+1 301-969-3045

[email protected]

Business Development Contact

Justin Fuller, Senior Director

+1 646-731-1250

[email protected]

Source: KBRA
Melody Lee named Chief Marketing Officer

Heike Scheuble promoted to Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz Vans

Jee-Seop Kim appointed Head of Customer Services

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) announced today, three executive appointments to its U.S. leadership team. Melody Lee was appointed Chief Marketing Officer, Heike Scheuble was named Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz Vans and Jee-Seop Kim was announced as Head of Customer Services. All three executive roles will be based in Atlanta, Georgia.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005607/en/

Melody Lee, Chief Marketing Officer, Mercedes-Benz USA (Photo: Mercedes-Benz USA)

I am incredibly excited to further strengthen our U.S. executive leadership team with the broad expertise that Melody, Heike and Jee-Seop bring to Mercedes-Benz USAs Marketing, Vans and Customer Services business areas. With these new appointments, we are poised to accelerate our path to become the most desired luxury electric brand in North America, and reinforce our commitment to our customers and dealer partners.

-Dimitris Psillakis, Head of Marketing and Sales, Mercedes-Benz Cars North America and CEO of MBUSA

Melody Lee, Chief Marketing Officer

A proven marketing executive, Melody Lee joins MBUSA from global design company MillerKnoll, where she served as Senior Vice President of Global Brand & Product Marketing, leading brand strategy across Herman Miller and Knolls products, channels and audiences. Prior to MillerKnoll, Lee was the Global COO for design communications agency Camron and Vice President for Brand Development with beauty brand Shiseido. Lee served two executive roles at luxury automotive brand Cadillac, including Global Brand Director of BOOK by Cadillac and Director of Brand Marketing during her six year tenure. Before joining Cadillac, Lee was Executive Vice President at PR agency Hill+Knowlton Strategies. Lee assumes her new role from previous CMO Drew Slaven, who retired from MBUSA earlier this year. Melody is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology and will begin her new assignment effective July 1.

Heike Scheuble, Managing Director Mercedes-Benz Vans

Previously responsible for Sales Vans, Heike Scheuble is promoted to Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz Vans USA. Scheuble succeeds Nicolette Lambrechts, who was promoted to Head of Sales & Marketing Mercedes-Benz Vans Region Overseas earlier this year.

With a profound expertise in Customer Service and Sales, Heike Scheuble is central to the current and future business development of Mercedes-Benz Vans in the U.S. Scheuble began her career with Daimler-Benz in 1980, holding leadership positions in various business units. With a move to the U.S., Scheuble led the warranty team at MBUSI in Vance, Alabama. After returning to Germany, Scheuble led the Product Management Service & Parts team at smart gmbh, eventually moving to assume responsibility for Aftersales Market Management at Global Service & Parts from 2005 to 2013. In 2014, Scheuble was charged with global responsibility for Aftersales Market Management at Mercedes-Benz Trucks.

Scheuble joined the MBUSA Van team in December 2015 as the General Manager, Van Customer Service & Parts, leading the unit to sustained profitable growth in the U.S. and Canadian markets. Scheuble assumed U.S. responsibility for Sales Vans in 2019, adding vehicle logistics to her portfolio 2022.

Jee-Seop Kim, Head of Customer Services

Jee-Seop Kim was appointed as Head of Customer Services of Mercedes-Benz USA, succeeding Dianna du Preez, who retired from MBUSA earlier this year. Kim began his career with Mercedes-Benz Korea (MBK) in 2002 as a management associate and a founding member of MBK in the Sales & Marketing department. From 2008 to 2014, Kim headed the Planning and Product Strategy team, driving diversification of MB product portfolio and achieving substantial volume growth.

From 2015 to 2021, Kim headed the Customer Services department at MBK, earning numerous awards from service quality groups as a consistent leader of Customer Satisfaction. In 2021, Kim returned to the Sales function at Stuttgart, Germany HQ as head of Sales Market Management for the top five markets of Region Overseas, and was integral in the EV transition for the associated markets.

About Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA), headquartered in Atlanta, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and customer service for all Mercedes-Benz products in the United States. MBUSA offers drivers the most diverse line-up in the luxury segment with 18 model lines ranging from the sporty GLA SUV to the flagship S-Class and the dynamic all-electric Mercedes-EQ family. MBUSA is also responsible for Mercedes-Benz Vans in the U.S. More information on MBUSA and its products can be found at www.mbusa.com and www.mbvans.com.

Accredited journalists can visit our media site at media.mbusa.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005607/en/

Anne McGregor [email protected]

Amanda Painter [email protected]

Source: Mercedes-Benz USA
Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans from Mobil 1 and Hagerty Media brings Porsches dominant racing history to the big screen

Watch the Official Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans Trailer Now

SPRING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ahead of the 100th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Mobil 1 joined together with Hagerty Media to celebrate this iconic milestone in racing with a first of its kind documentary: Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans. The legendary motorsport and automotive brands collaborated with two-time Primetime Emmy Award and Peabody Award winner Robert Dalrymple and his production company to produce a film that will connect the race cars to the road cars they inspired, showcasing Porsches engineering expertise.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005287/en/

Le Mans winners and racing icons Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell. (Photo: Business Wire)

Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans will premiere on June 1 during a special screening in Brooklyn, and be immediately available for fans to watch globally that evening on Hagerty Medias YouTube channel. The documentary, which will debut just prior to the centennial 24 Hours of Le Mans, will pair archival footage from the event with firsthand interviews from former and current racers, notable collectors, and enthusiasts. Specifically, the film celebrates milestone anniversaries of the race itself, and the role that Porsche has played in motorsports for the last 75 years.

From our own rich history in motorsport and our long-standing relationship with Porsche this documentary truly celebrates the unique impact that racing has on the cars that we drive every day, shares Bryce Huschka, Consumer Marketing Manager of North America, on behalf of Mobil 1. "For 100 years, Le Mans has uniquely captured the attention and imagination of fans. Thanks to them, our partners and fellow car lovers, we cant wait to bring this exceptional story to life.

Through this documentary, viewers will see industry titans as they dive deep into the biggest race in endurance racing, including:

Nick Tandy: 2015 Porsche Le Mans winning driver and current Penske Porsche 963 driver

Spike Feresten: Podcast host, television personality, comedy writer

Rod Emory: Renowned restorer of Porsche

Patrick Long: Former Porsche factory driver

Derek Bell: Five-time Le Mans winning and Formula 1 winning driver

Jacky Ickx: Six-time Le Mans winning and Formula 1 wining driver

Allan McNish: 3-Time Le Mans winning driver including the 1998 Porsche Mobil 1 GT1 race car

Loni Unser: Professional race car driver and member of the legendary Unser racing family

For a sneak preview of Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans, check out the trailer on YouTube here.

Car enthusiasts have a special bond born from the simple love of driving, adds Larry Webster, VP of Content, Hagerty Media. 24 Hours of Le Mans represents the pinnacle of driving, and we couldnt be prouder to co-produce Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans in partnership with Mobil 1. We hope the audience enjoys learning more about the history of the event  as we celebrate its 100th anniversary over the course of the next few weeks!

About Mobil 1

Mobil 1, the worlds leading synthetic motor oil brand, is a brand that has been trusted for more vehicle miles than any one of us sees in our lifetime. Designed to empower our love of driving, Mobil 1 advanced synthetic motor oil features anti-wear technology that provides performance beyond our conventional motor oils  that means more time behind the wheel than under the hood. This technology allows Mobil 1 advanced synthetic motor oil to meet or exceed the toughest standards of vehicle manufacturers and tuning shops, all while providing exceptional protection against engine wear, under normal or even some of the most extreme conditions. Not that youd ever put your car through any extremes. Join us. For the love of driving.

About Hagerty, Inc.

Based in Traverse City, Michigan, Hagertys purpose is to save driving and car culture for future generations and its mission is to build a global business to fund that purpose. Hagerty is an automotive enthusiast brand offering integrated membership products and programs as well as a specialty insurance provider focused on the global automotive enthusiast market. Hagerty is home to Hagerty Marketplace, Broad Arrow Group, Hagerty Drivers Club, Hagerty Drivers Club magazine, Hagerty Drivers Foundation, Hagerty DriveShare, Hagerty Valuation Tools, Hagerty Media, MotorsportReg, Hagerty Garage + Social, The Amelia, Detroit Concours dElegance, the Greenwich Concours dElegance, the California Mille, Motorlux, Broad Arrow Group and more. For more information on Hagerty, please visit www.hagerty.com, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

About Robert Dalrymple:

Robert Dalrymple is a two-time Primetime Emmy Award and Peabody Award winner. His documentaries have included Billy Joel in the USSR and Billy Crystal Midnight Train to Moscow for HBO. Other credits include Howard Hughes: His Women in His Movies for TNT and Bruce Willis in Sam Shepards True West for Showtime. Robert is also the co-founder of the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the CBS show Superbowl Greatest Commercials for which he continues to serve as producer. He has also produced several motorsports TV specials including films on Nigel Mansell, A winning Strategy documentary on the improbable Indianapolis 500 win by Alexander Rossi and numerous documentaries for Porsche including Decades of Disruption.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005287/en/

832-625-4000

Source: Mobil 1
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MOGAS Industries, Inc. (MOGAS) will be celebrating its 50-year anniversary with a commemorative celebration on Thursday, May 18th, 2023. The company officially began at 8:20 p.m. on May 17th, 1973.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005845/en/

Matt Mogas (left) and Louis Mogas (right) pose next to a large MOGAS ball valve (Photo: Business Wire)

MOGAS has earned a global reputation as a leading severe service manufacturer for the most extreme industrial applications in power, mining, refining, petrochemical/chemical, oil & gas, and specialty application industries. Significant business units include Severe Service Valves, Systems & Consulting (modules), Surface Technologies (coatings), Service & Reliability.

Louis Mogas formed Mogas Machine Works in 1973 with 16 employees working under 19,000 sq ft of manufacturing space on a couple of acres. Today, privately owned MOGAS Industries employs over 325 people across six countries. Their Houston-based headquarters now has 100,000 sq ft of manufacturing capacity spanning 15 acres. Campus improvements, such as 'Class A' corporate offices, an advanced coating facility, a 3-acre wooded park and numerous facility upgrades attest to MOGAS' successnot only as a significant manufacturerbut also to the Company staying true to its original business philosophy of putting people before profits.

A significant part of MOGAS sales is international, with sales and service centers in China, Australia, Canada, South America, Africa, The Middle East, Europe and India. With representatives and technicians in more than 40 countries, MOGAS is known for partnering with its customers to meet the ever-increasing challenges of severe-service applications.

On the occasion of the companys 50th anniversary, MOGAS CEO/COO Matt Mogas notes: I feel incredibly blessed to have worked with so many great employees, representatives, and customers these last 33 years. They have made a meaningful impact on MOGAS Industries and me personally. I feel honored to stand on the shoulders of the great men that came before me at MOGAS, especially Sam Furman, Tommy Bright, Cary Lorenz and of course my father, Louis Mogas, the grand architect, master, creator of our culture, beliefs and vision.

Serving the community is ingrained in the MOGAS culture. The Company contributes significant resources to many worthy causes and enthusiastically supports their employees robust spirit of volunteerism. Charitable contributions to organizations include: Ronald McDonald House, MS150, Camp for All, The Periwinkle Foundation, and business partnerships with local elementary and junior schools. The Company also supports private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of life.

The entire MOGAS organization is proud of this momentous achievement.

For more information, please contact MOGAS Industries at 281.449.0291 or Email: [email protected]

About MOGAS Industries, Inc.

MOGAS Industries Inc. is the most trusted severe service technology company, providing world-renowned services and the best severe service, application-specific products for critical applications in power, mining, oil & gas, refining, chemical/petrochemical and specialty industries.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005845/en/

MOGAS Industries, Inc.

Rajan Luthra, VP Sales, Marketing and Technology

[email protected]

Source: MOGAS Industries, Inc.
GOLDEN, Colo. & MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Board of Directors of Molson Coors Beverage Company (NYSE: TAP, TAP.A) today declared a regular quarterly dividend on its Class A and Class B common stock of US$0.41 per share, payable June 15, 2023, to stockholders of record on June 2, 2023. The quarterly dividend is payable to holders of Class A and Class B common stock of Molson Coors Beverage Company.

In addition, the Board of Directors of Molson Coors Canada Inc. (TSX: TPX.B, TPX.A) today declared a quarterly dividend of approximately CDN$0.55 (the Canadian dollar equivalent of the dividend declared on Molson Coors Beverage Company stock), payable June 15, 2023, to its Class A and Class B exchangeable shareholders of record on June 2, 2023. The dividends declared in respect of the Class A and Class B exchangeable shares are eligible dividends for Canadian tax purposes.

Overview of Molson Coors Beverage Company

For more than two centuries Molson Coors Beverage Company has been brewing beverages that unite people to celebrate all lifes moments. From Coors Light, Miller Lite, Molson Canadian, Carling and Staropramen to Coors Banquet, Blue Moon Belgian White, Vizzy Hard Seltzer, Leinenkugels Summer Shandy, Miller High Life and more, Molson Coors produces many beloved and iconic beer brands. While Molson Coors history is rooted in beer, Molson Coors offers a modern portfolio that expands beyond the beer aisle as well.

Our reporting segments include: Americas, operating in the U.S., Canada and various countries in the Caribbean, Latin and South America; and EMEA&APAC, operating in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Montenegro, the Republic of Ireland, Romania, Serbia, the U.K., various other European countries, and certain countries within the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. In addition to our reporting segments, we also have certain items that are unallocated to our reporting segments and reported as "Unallocated".

Our Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy is focused on People and Planet with a strong commitment to raising industry standards and leaving a positive imprint on our employees, consumers, communities, and the environment. To learn more about Molson Coors Beverage Company, visit molsoncoors.com, MolsonCoorsOurImprint.com, or on Twitter through @MolsonCoors.

About Molson Coors Canada Inc.

Molson Coors Canada Inc. (MCCI) is a subsidiary of Molson Coors Beverage Company (MCBC). MCCI Class A and Class B exchangeable shares offer substantially the same economic and voting rights as the respective classes of common shares of MCBC, as described in MCBCs annual proxy statement and Form 10-K filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The trustee holder of the special Class A voting stock and the special Class B voting stock has the right to cast a number of votes equal to the number of then outstanding Class A exchangeable shares and Class B exchangeable shares, respectively.

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Investor Relations

Greg Tierney, (414) 931-3303

Traci Mangini, (415) 308-0151

News Media

Rachel Dickens, (314) 452-9673

Source: Molson Coors
MONATs naturally based, anti-aging product innovations and global market expansions place it among the top 100 beauty manufacturers globally.

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MONAT GLOBAL (MONAT), a multinational distributor, social and direct seller of award-winning beauty products has once more made the list of WWD Beauty Incs Top 100 Global Beauty Manufacturers for 2022.

Listed under its parent company, Alcora Corp., Doral, Florida-based MONAT has appeared in the Womens Wear Daily annual ranking of beautys biggest manufacturers since 2019. MONATs flagship hair care line remained the companys top-selling category for 2022, followed by skincare and its newest category MONAT Wellness.

MONATs top markets in 2022 were the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including the U.K. In 2021, MONAT launched in Australia, Spain, and Lithuania. The companys global expansion continues, with the opening of New Zealand as a new market in October 2022, and France in April 2023.

We are proud to be counted among the top 100 beauty manufacturers around the world. Through growth and contraction in the market, our innovative products shine through and continue to be a favorite among consumers, said Ray Urdaneta, MONAT Global Founder and CEO. This is a top accolade in the beauty industry for our independent Market Partners and employees in ten countries, and their passion for our products and our purpose is recognized globally.

Follow MONAT on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube. Additional information about the company can be found on its website, www.monatglobal.com.

About MONAT Global

MONAT Global is an international healthy aging haircare, skincare and wellness brand founded to help people everywhere enjoy beautiful, healthy, fulfilling lives through exceptional, naturally based products; a fun and rewarding business opportunity; and a culture of family, service, and gratitude. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Miami, Florida, MONAT provides ground-breaking opportunities through a novel Social Marketing approach to Direct Sales. MONAT's product development is led by Chief Science Officer Alan J. Meyers and supported by a Scientific Advisory Board comprised of eminent professionals in medicine, cosmetics, haircare, science, and health. MONAT offers a unique and exciting business model and one of the most generous compensation plans in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Ireland, Lithuania, Spain, Poland, Australia, and France.

#MONATGlobal

Facebook: /MONATOfficial | Instagram: @monatofficial | YouTube: /MONATOfficial

Twitter: @MONATOfficial | Pinterest: /MONATOfficial

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Ginger Greenberg

Sunwest Communications for MONAT Global

+1 (469) 547-0259

[email protected]

Source: MONAT Global
The Parliament of Georgia conducted a voting process to select candidates for the five available non-judge positions in the Supreme Council of Justice, ultimately appointing three individuals as non-judge members of the council.The support received by the chosen candidates remains uncertain due to the anonymous voting process. Additionally, two positions remain unfilled as a result of a faction of the opposition leaving the meeting hall in protest.Tristan Benashvili, Giorgi Gzobava, and Zurab Guraspashvili secured their positions as non-judge members of the Supreme Council of Justice, each receiving over 90 votes. Tristan Benashvili obtained 93 votes, Giorgi Gzobava received 91 votes, and Zurab Guraspashvili acquired 93 votes.For the election of a non-judge member of the Supreme Council of Justice, a minimum of 90 votes was required, necessitating a consensus between the majority and the opposition. The majority, which holds 84 votes, needed to secure additional support to meet the threshold.Prior to the commencement of voting, 'Lelo' member Davit Usupashvili conveyed that the opposition's proposal was to engage in discussions with the majority and exchange their respective stances. However, this proposition was deemed unfeasible, and the voting process proceeded without any consultations taking place.At a briefing held in the White House in Washington, Vedant Patel, the Principal Deputy Spokesperson at U.S. Department of State, was asked a question about the restoration of direct flights between Russia and Georgia.Patel emphasized that the United States is carefully observing this process and will act accordingly if the need arises. He highlighted that, at present, the global community as a whole is distancing itself from Russia, making it an inappropriate time to seek closer ties with Moscow.According to Vedant Patel, the existence of direct flights between Georgia and Russia would raise significant concerns for not only the United States and other Western nations but also for companies operating within Georgian airports."If there are direct flights between Georgia and Russia, it will be a matter of growing concern not only for the USA and other Western countries, but also for the companies that work in Georgian airports.We have been very clear about our concerns about this, and we reiterate that we have taken steps to prevent Russian aircraft from entering our airspace, as have many Western countries. So we will continue to monitor the situation closely and take additional steps if necessary," Patel said.
A visitor looks at the Sword of Goujian, which was named after the king of the state of Yue during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), in Hubei Provincial Museum in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Dec. 20, 2021. (Xinhua/Cheng Min)

BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Search the internet for "wanghong wenwu" -- or "internet famous cultural relics" -- and you find photos and emojis of fun-looking antiquities from museums across China, often made funnier by young people with wild imaginations.

For instance, one exhibit from the Shanxi Museum is a bronze wine vessel in the shape of an owl, dated to as early as the 16th century B.C. Netizens have dubbed it "angry bird" due to its resemblance to a chubby Finnish video game character of that name. Meanwhile, a bronze figure unearthed at the Sanxingdui Ruins site is likened to the Japanese animation character Ultraman.

Behind these widely shared internet memes is a growing interest among young Chinese people in historical artifacts, and their newfound enthusiasm for visiting museums in general. They have become the driving force in a growing fascination with museums across the country.

The craze was on display during the five-day May Day holiday this year. Across the country, over 6,000 museums received more than 50 million visits, a record high, according to preliminary figures from the National Cultural Heritage Administration.

The Hubei Provincial Museum, located in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, attracted over 20,000 visits a day during the holiday. Its exhibition of the sword of Goujian, drew long lines of youngsters hoping to see an authentic piece of the legendary King's sword, a treasure dating back 2,500 years.

Tian Xing, a college student majoring in computer science traveled from Hunan Province, set aside an entire day to visit the Hubei Provincial Museum. "Every time I travel to a new city, visiting local museums is my first choice," he said. "Museums are like a window, allowing me to see how ancient men lived and how wise they were."

According to data from the Hubei Provincial Museum, from 2021 onwards, young people aged below 30 have made up over 60 percent of the total number of visitors. The 18-24 age group accounts for 39.96 percent of visitors, making it the largest.

At least 80 percent of visitors to the Luoyang Museum of Ancient Tombs in central China's Henan Province were aged below 35, according to Zhang Jianwen, the museum's vice curator.

Zhang believes that young people enjoy visiting historical museums due to their growing curiosity about and fondness for cultural relics, ancient history and traditional culture.

"To put it in a broader perspective, the younger generations' identification with traditional Chinese culture and their cultural confidence in general are on the rise," said Zhang.

More and more young people have gone beyond merely snapping photos and "checking-in" at exhibitions, and are now nurturing a true appreciation for the historical and cultural value of the treasures on display.

Yang Yang, a 30-year-old IT industry worker, traveled from the city of Xingtai, Hebei Province, to Luoyang for a four-day tour dedicated to museums. As someone who was "quite interested in history and culture from early childhood", he cherished the opportunity to broaden his horizons in the historic city of Luoyang.

"Through cultural relics, I learn about the everyday lives, rituals and social systems of ancient people, and even the boom-and-bust cycles of imperial dynasties," Yang said.

Sharing his feelings about the tour, Yang said he was most impressed by the fresco exhibitions in the Luoyang Museum of Ancient Tombs. "It's like a panorama of ancient life, vividly showing people going out, drinking at banquets, playing musical instruments, dressing up and putting on make-up," he said.

Museums have also done their utmost to woo the younger generations, providing a greater range of attractions. Many cater specifically to the preferences of youngsters, including laser shows, giant-screen video shows, night tours, stamp-collecting museum passports and other creative souvenirs.

Even the millennium-old artifacts have found their ways of relating to young people.

For instance, in 2020, the Henan Museum launched a creative souvenir named the "archeological blind box", which allows buyers a hands-on experience of excavating an unspecified "antiquity" with a miniature Luoyang shovel, a traditional Chinese tool for archaeological digging.

Tan Ping, director of Art Exhibitions China, a government agency affiliated to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, said that today's youngsters are well-off, patriotic and ready to explore new things. These traits have spurred museums into experimenting with the fusion of tradition and new trends, using modern ingenuity to present history and civilization, said Tan. 
The Restaurant Invites Guests to Meat Their New Delicious Collection and Announces Special Deal for National Burger Day on May 28

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- OCharleys Restaurant + Bar is inviting guests to meat their all-new Smash Hit Burger lineup beginning May 22. This rollout arrives just in time for National Burger Day on May 28, when guests will receive $5 off any burger that day.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005078/en/

Say Hello to O'Charley's New Smash Burger Lineup! (Photo: Business Wire)

The all-new smash burgers are the same 7 ounces guests love but are grilled so that the edges are nice and crispy and the flavor gets big and bold, giving them a bun-in-a-million taste. The irresistible new burger lineup is wide-ranging, ensuring the perfect fit for every tastebud in your group. New offerings include:

Bacon Triple Smash Burger  Three juicy smash burgers topped with melted American cheese, crisp lettuce and onion, ripe tomato, dill pickles and our smoky honey BBQ, all over applewood-smoked bacon. $14.99

Butter Me Up Burger  Everythings better with budda. Two juicy smash burgers topped with our savory garlic butter and melted American cheese, with tangy dill pickle chips on the side. Served with French fries. $11.99

The Patty OMelt  Hello, vintage crispy-creamy perfection! Two mouthwatering smash burgers topped with caramelized onions and creamy American cheese on fluffy, thick-cut Texas Toast, with tangy dill pickle chips on the side. Served with French fries. $12.99

Cheeseburger and Tender Combo  Our classic cheeseburger served with OCharleys Famous Chicken Tenders and fries. $16.99

Slim Bob Burger  Two classic dishes in one -- double the deliciousness! Double smash burgers topped with smoky-sweet sliced ham, melted Swiss cheese, crisp lettuce, ripe tomatoes, and our extra-special sauce. Served with French fries. $13.99

The Swisshroom Burger  A gourmet classic, perfected: A pile of sizzling Cajun-sauteed mushrooms and onions join melted Swiss cheese on top of two juicy smash burgers with crispy bacon below. $12.99

To make these already mouthwatering burgers even more delicious, guests can add bacon to any burger for just $1 extra, as well as another smash patty for an additional $2.

About OCharleys

OCharleys was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and has served craveable American food and drinks inspired by their Southern roots since 1971. OCharleys operates more than 120 restaurants across the Southeast and Midwest. In addition to great food, good times and famous unsliceably soft rolls, OCharleys welcomes guests with genuine hospitality every time they walk through our doors or use our curbside delivery. To find an OCharleys location near you, please visit www.OCharleys.com. OCharleys is also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005078/en/

Sarah Burden @ 615-496-8894

[email protected]

Source: OCharleys Restaurant + Bar
BEIJING--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The 10th ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge (ASC) Finals recently concluded at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in Hefei. For the onsite competition, Peking University emerged as the overall Champion, while USTC secured the Silver Prize and e Prize, marking a remarkable achievement. Zhejiang University was honored with the Highest LINPACK award, alongside several other teams who garnered prestigious honors. In the virtual competition, the team from the Chinese University of Hong Kong emerged as the champion, while the teams from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, National Tsing Hua University, and Kasetsart University were recognized with the Application Innovation Award.

Over 300 teams from universities worldwide participated in the 10th ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge. Following the preliminary contests, the Top 24 teams advanced to the finals. Among them, the Top 20 teams from the Chinese mainland competed onsite, while others engaged in virtual participation through the AWS cloud computing platform.

During the finals, teams showcased their prowess by designing and constructing cluster systems with a maximum power consumption of 3,000 W. Furthermore, they were tasked with running and optimizing cutting-edge scientific and engineering applications, such as HPL and HPCG benchmarks, Large Language Model, DeePMD, WRF-Hydro, and FVCOM. Remarkably, the 10th ASC featured a group competition, with 24 teams divided into 4 groups, tackling the current application of random quantum circuit sampling simulation.

The competition reached its pinnacle with Peking University ultimately clinching the coveted Champion title. The team demonstrated exceptional performance across various tasks, including WRF-Hydro and DeePMD, showcasing profound expertise in comprehensive supercomputing systems, applications, and outstanding optimization abilities. Meanwhile, the USTC team secured the Silver Prize, excelling in tasks such as Large Language Model and HPL&HPCG benchmarks.

USTC's team delivered outstanding results in the challenging Large Language Model task, employing cutting-edge large model parallel strategies, computing acceleration algorithms, and video memory optimization techniques. Their considerations of training speed and loss-convergence led to the team's remarkable performance, earning them the esteemed e Prize.

Zhejiang University's team, operating within the specified 3,000W power consumption limit, attained an impressive floating-point performance of 109 TFLOPs, ultimately securing them the Highest LINPACK award.

A collaborative effort by the Southern University of Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Qilu University of Technology, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong resulted in efficient optimization of random quantum circuit sampling simulation. Their commendable efforts were rewarded with the Group Competition Award.

Furthermore, Qinghai University's outstanding performance earned them the Application Innovation Award.

Jack Dongarra, Member of US National Academy of Engineering, winner of the Turing Award, Distinguished Professor at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee, and ASC Advisory Committee Chair said in the 10th ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge Finals closing ceremony, "The goal of the ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge is to foster the next generation of young talent, to inspire exploration, innovation, and collaboration in supercomputing and AI. Your efforts in designing, building, tuning, and optimizing your HPC systems, benchmarks and real scientific applications with a 3 kilowatt power cap are truly inspirational."

About ASC

The ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge stands as the world's most extensive competition in student supercomputing, expertly organized and sponsored by the Asia Supercomputer Community with support from esteemed institutions and experts across Asia, Europe, and America. ASC's primary goals encompass fostering international exchange and training for budding supercomputing talents, enhancing applications and research capabilities in the field, propelling the advancement of supercomputing technologies, and stimulating technical and industrial innovation. Since its inception in 2012, the ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge has attracted close to 10,000 undergraduate participants hailing from all corners of the globe. Learn more about ASC at http://asc-events.org/

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Media:

Fiona Liu

[email protected]

Source: ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge
WAYNE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Radian Group Inc. (NYSE: RDN) today announced that Sumita Pandit has been named Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective immediately. She succeeds J. Franklin Hall in this role, who served as CFO until December 2022.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005731/en/

Sumita Pandit, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Radian (Photo: Business Wire)

Pandit joined Radian in March 2023 as the companys first Chief Growth Officer, working with Chief Executive Officer Rick Thornberry and Radians executive leadership team to develop and execute the companys long-term growth and innovation plans. As Chief Financial Officer, Pandit will retain those strategic and business development duties while assuming responsibility for all Radian financial functions, including financial reporting, financial planning and analysis, enterprise capital planning, investment portfolio management and other treasury activities, investor relations, and tax.

We are pleased to appoint Sumita as our new Chief Financial Officer, said Thornberry. She brings to the CFO role an exceptional blend of financial markets and investment banking expertise as well as years of experience in strategically growing businesses. In her short time at Radian, Sumita has developed a strong understanding of our businesses and our strategic goals as well as the strength of our capital position including the strategic flexibility it provides to us today and into the future.

Pandit has more than two decades of experience in investment banking, advising companies across verticals in fintech, including payments, financial software, neo-banks, and insurance technology. She joined Radian after serving more than two years as the Chief Operating Officer of a global financial technology company dLocal, where she oversaw client management, marketing, investor relations, and corporate development. In 2021, she was named to the Top 25 Women Leaders in Financial Technology list by The Financial Technology Report.

Prior to dLocal, Pandit worked at J.P. Morgan in several Managing Director roles, including as Global Head of FinTech Investment Banking. Before joining J.P. Morgan, Pandit was a Vice President at Goldman Sachs in their Financial Institutions Group. Pandit earned an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was a Palmer Scholar. She is currently a board member at donor management company Pushpay.

Radian is a proven industry leader with an excellent team and culture, combined with a very strong financial position, and I am honored and excited to serve as its Chief Financial Officer, Pandit said. Radians focus on innovation in the mortgage and real estate services markets positions the company well, and I look forward to helping the company achieve its strategic objectives.

About Radian

Radian Group Inc. (NYSE: RDN) is ensuring the American dream of homeownership responsibly and sustainably through products and services that include industry-leading mortgage insurance and a comprehensive suite of mortgage, risk, title, valuation, asset management and other real estate services. We are powered by technology, informed by data and driven to deliver new and better ways to transact and manage risk. Visit radian.com and homegenius.com to learn more about how Radian and its pioneering homegenius platform are building a smarter future for mortgage and real estate services.

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For Investors:

John Damian - Phone: 215.231.1383

email: [email protected]

For the Media:

Rashi Iyer - Phone 215.231.1167

email: [email protected]

Source: Radian Group Inc.
Viewing in NY, Dubai, Bahrain, AGTA-JCK Las Vegas Jewelry Show

Auction Tender Will Close on June 20th in Bahrain

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In a historic move, Rapaport will launch the first-ever Natural Pearl Auction in Bahrain on June 20th. Most of the pearls will be supplied directly from Bahraini divers who operate under strict government supervision to ensure protection of the natural habitat and environmental sustainability. DANAT the Bahrain Institute of Pearls and Gemstones has been instrumental in collecting, grading and certifying the pearls. Only natural pearls will be offered for sale, and all will be certified as natural by DANAT.

Natural pearls are one of the rarest gifts of nature - so rare that until now no one has been able to offer them for sale on a regular basis. Bahrain has produced natural pearls for centuries as it is blessed with sea-beds fed by fresh water, an ideal setting for natural pearl growth.

Rapaport in an exclusive relationship with DANAT the Bahrain Institute of Pearls and Gemstones is creating a new market for certified natural pearls that are environmentally and socially responsible. We are delighted to have this opportunity to offer natural pearls direct from the divers of Bahrain to the jewelry trade, said Martin Rapaport, Chairman of the Rapaport Group.

We look forward to developing the natural pearl market with the international Rapaport Group. This new initiative will provide Bahraini divers with direct access to the global jewelry industry, said Noora Jamsheer, CEO of DANAT.

About the Rapaport Group: The Rapaport Group is an international network of companies providing added-value services that support the development of ethical, transparent, competitive, and efficient diamond and jewelry markets. Established in 1976, the group has more than 20,000 clients in over 121 countries. Group activities include Rapaport Information Services, providing the Rapaport benchmark Diamond Price List, as well as news, analysis, and research; RapNet, the worlds largest diamond trading network with daily listing of over 1.7 million diamonds valued at more than $8 Billion; and Rapaport Trading and Auction Services, the worlds largest recycler of diamonds. Additional information is available at rapaport.com.

About DANAT: The Bahrain Institute for Pearls and Gemstones (DANAT) is a world-class gemological laboratory, education, and research center, specializing in the testing and study of natural pearls as a reflection of Bahrains ancient pearling history and desire to protect and advance Bahrains pearling heritage. DANATs expert team of gemmologists supports clients and students from around the world through pearl, gemstone, and diamond identification and education services, DANAT was established in 2017 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company (Mumtalakat), the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain.

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[email protected]

US: Sherri Hendricks +1-702-893-9400

International: Avital Engelberg +1-718-878-5138

India: Sathi Nair +91-22-6628-6500

Source: Rapaport USA Inc.
CAMBRIDGE, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Redgate Software announced today the pre-con sessions for the PASS Data Community Summit 2023, which will be an in-person only event, with a wider variety of conference sessions to reflect the growing demands on data professionals with increasingly complex database environments.

After being held virtually in 2021, and as a hybrid in-person and online conference in 2022, this years Summit is back to an in-person only event, in Seattle, the city regarded by many as the home of the Summit. And in a sign of a growth in cross-database development environments, the comprehensive and wide-ranging calendar of sessions which focus on SQL Server is being complemented by additional sessions which include topics around databases like PostgreSQL and MongoDB.

The return to an in-person event is a reflection of feedback from the 2022 conference, which showed the in-person event achieving a Net Promotor Score (NPS) of 67%, which is on the edge of excellent, while the NPS for online attendees was 44. Trending on social media also showed the value in-person attendees found in networking with their peers, having direct access to subject matter experts, and meeting  and making  friends in the database community.

However, with 74% of attendees regarding post-event access to the dozens and dozens of sessions as an importance conference element, on-demand recordings will be available after the Summit. Giving those with the inevitable diary clashes at the event, and those who arent able to attend in-person, the opportunity to catch up on the many learning opportunities available.

The learning pathways and calendar of sessions at the Summit have also changed this year to reflect the adoption of different database platforms and technologies. The 2022 Developer Survey showed that developers now work with an average of 2.7 types of database, with databases like PostgreSQL and MySQL now being used alongside SQL Server.

As Ryan Booz, Redgate PostgreSQL Advocate, comments: Were now seeing developers and DBAs supporting multiple database platforms, with PostgreSQL part of that picture more than almost any other relational database. That calls for more skills across more platforms to make the most of the advantages they bring.

There is also a widening of the knowledge now expected among data professionals, which has moved beyond managing database performance to areas like BI, analytics, AI, and the various flavors of cloud now available. As a result, the learning pathways now include Cloud DBA Fundamentals, The Battle of Data Transformation Tools, and PostgreSQL.

This is shown in the one-day pre-conference sessions announced today, which include a beginner's guide to Azure Data Factory, elevating Power BI skills, and T-SQL query tuning for data analysis. Similarly, the calendar of conference sessions is filling up fast with topics as varied as controlling cloud costs, flexible indexing for PostgreSQL, and visually transforming data.

The efforts to make the 2023 Summit wider and more varied are also reflected in repeating the Diversity, Equality, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) target of last years Summit, which saw over 40% of the event speakers from underrepresented groups. This can already be seen in the pre-con sessions, and the Summit team are now working to see the same representation across the full selection of speakers.

Tickets are now available for the PASS Data Community Summit 2023, which takes place in Seattle from November 14 - 17, with discounted Launch Price tickets offering savings of 30% on the standard price until June 7. Visit www.passdatacommunitysummit.com for more details.

About Redgate Software

Redgate makes ingeniously simple software used by over 800,000 IT professionals around the world and is the leading Database DevOps solutions provider. Redgate's philosophy is to design highly usable, reliable tools which elegantly solve the problems developers and DBAs face every day and help teams get the most value out of any database, on a growing number of platforms, anywhere. As well as streamlining database development and preventing the database being a bottleneck, this helps organizations introduce data protection by design and by default. As a result, more than 200,000 companies use Redgate tools, including 91% of those in the Fortune 100.

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Contacts

Meghana Shendrikar

Allison+Partners for Redgate Software

[email protected]

Source: Redgate Software
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Rejuvenate Bio, today announced new data for its gene therapy RJB-01 from a pilot study in canines with myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD), at the 26th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT), held May 16-20, 2023, in Los Angeles, California.

RJB-01, expresses the genes FGF21 and sTGFR2 with an adeno-associated virus (AAV) delivery system in order to upregulate FGF21 and downregulate TGF1 for the treatment of heart failure. MMVD is a common heart valve disease in dogs where the heart valve becomes thickened as a dog ages, causing leakage at the valve that eventually leads to heart failure. The purpose of the study is to determine whether RJB-01 can help delay the progression of this disease.

Results were reported from a subset of the companys pilot study of RJB-01 in Cavalier King Charles Spaniels (CKCS) for MMVD. Of all the dogs afflicted with MMVD, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels have one of the highest breed incidences, with rates approaching 80%. MMVD is easily diagnosable with a stethoscope as it initially presents as a heart murmur and is confirmed with an echocardiogram.

Mitral valve disease is often fatal for canines at the advanced stage, with no current treatments that can provide a cure. The disease is caused by a malfunction of the mitral valve, which causes congestive heart failure, said Noah Davidsohn, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, Rejuvenate Bio. The current standard of care is Vetmedin (pimobendan), paired with ACE inhibitors, but this only treats symptoms and does not address the underlying disease. Were excited to share these initial results from our pilot study at ASGCT 2023 and we will continue to provide updates as the study progresses.

Pilot Study Results

RJB-01 has been administered to 17 canines approaching 3 years of durable expression and bioactivity of our genes with a favorable safety profile. These dogs were monitored hourly during administration when given RJB-01 in a pilot trial to treat mitral valve disease. Four dogs have been on the therapy for greater than two years with no safety signals.

Twelve Cavalier King Charles Spaniels administered RJB-01 and pimobendan, the current best in class medication to treat dogs with congestive heart failure, experienced a delay in progression of over 1.5 years when compared with the reported time to progression in all breed treated with standard of care. When compared to a historical control of pimobendan alone in all breeds, CKCS treated with RJB-01 and pimobendan saw an increase in time to progression of ~600 days, and over 800 compared to placebo.

Dogs with MMVD often see an enlargement in the left atrium of their heart due to damage caused by a malfunctioning mitral valve. Pimobendan limited the increase in heart size to 0.8 units over 28 months. Excitingly, Rejuvenates gene therapy in conjunction with pimobendan was able to reduce left atrium size by 0.3 over a similar timeframe with some dogs reverting to an earlier stage of the disease.

About Rejuvenate Bio

Rejuvenate Bio is a spinout from the Wyss Institute at Harvard focused on reversing aging and eliminating age-related disease. Rejuvenate Bio utilizes gene therapy, proprietary targets, and tools to bring treatments to patients suffering from age-related conditions. The company is developing a pipeline of therapies with applications in cardiac and metabolic disease. The company raised a Series A financing in 2021 led by Kendall Capital Partners, Digitalis Ventures, KdT Ventures and V Capital. Rejuvenate Bio is based in San Diego for more information, visit www.rejuvenatebio.com.

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Media

Kimberly Ha

KKH Advisors

917-291-5744

[email protected]

Source: Rejuvenate Bio
Company sees adoption of suite of cyber underwriting and digital risk management solutions

BLOOMINGTON, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SecondSight reports early-stage growth and adoption of its digital risk management artificial intelligence (AI) platform  the first cyber insurance vertical operating system. Transcending the entire insurance industry data ecosystem, SecondSight for the first time uniquely enables truth and transparency across the digital risk data pipeline with future-proof scalability to protect the burgeoning digital economy. Todays announcement follows the companys oversubscribed $3 million seed round of financing from a series of investors.

Were veering towards a global digital economy that is increasingly more complex and under armed against the digital risk that outweighs the available cyber insurance capacity. As this digital dimension is inherently unbounded, alongside it is a perception of infinite digital risk. With SecondSight technology facilitating a reinvention of underwriting, we believe that perception can shift from infinite to finite and the tangible outcome will be an increase in cyber capacity, said Reuben Vandeventer, CEO and founder of SecondSight. Were beginning the transformation towards next-generation digital underwriting and moving at a digital pace that eliminates the cycle time between understanding risk and action. Its great to see SecondSights traction and the new collaboration between businesses, carriers, brokers, and the entire digital risk ecosystem.

Following its implementation across the insurance industry, companies are experiencing the value that SecondSight technology delivers. SecondSight technology has successfully helped customers in manufacturing, healthcare, non-profit, and mining industry categories as well as several brokerages receive optimal cyber insurance underwriting, better aligning policies with risk exposure. Customers are gaining clarity and an understanding of their risk exposure and utilizing intelligence to immediately implement risk controls and protections, ultimately safeguarding the operational and financial impact.

The vertical integrated operating system for cyber insurance

SecondSight has created bespoke experiences and AI agents that have normalized how to collect and share information across the full insurance industry value chain, enabling the insurance market to have a new future. SecondSights powerful AI infrastructure is interoperable across legacy and modern technology architectures. This is the vertical operating system, enabled by SecondSight, that transforms the assessment, management and mitigation of digital risk, leveraging the power of AI to advance from static to continuous digital risk assessment.

SecondSight technology

Developed by leading data science and digital insurance industry pioneers and inspired by catastrophe modeling and stress-testing practices of commercial property underwriting, its state-of-the-art AI transforms digital underwriting  from process efficiencies to a comprehensive understanding of digital risk severity that was previously unattainable. SecondSight is the first AI-driven platform that brings telematics to digital risk, with proprietary AI that is built, not borrowed. SecondSight leverages multiple forms, models and methods of AI with its robust and agile infrastructure that autonomously adapts to the unpredictable landscape of digital risk. The result is near instantaneous, continuous intelligence and predictions on insurability for the broker and insured, and predictions of exposure for the carriers and reinsurance.

The SecondSight AI product portfolio is composed of four commercial-ready offerings creating an end-to-end solution for businesses, brokers, and insurance carriers to manage digital risks effectively:

SecondSight Workbench: An intuitive software suite empowering businesses to uncover, comprehend, and manage digital risk efficiently.

An intuitive software suite empowering businesses to uncover, comprehend, and manage digital risk efficiently. SecondSight Risk Tracker: Introduces telematics to digital risk management, providing real-time insights into evolving digital risk profiles.

Introduces telematics to digital risk management, providing real-time insights into evolving digital risk profiles. SecondSight Workbench for Brokers: A breakthrough productivity tool designed for next-generation brokers, enabling optimal cyber insurance program design and differentiation in the market.

A breakthrough productivity tool designed for next-generation brokers, enabling optimal cyber insurance program design and differentiation in the market. SecondSight ExposureScape: A portfolio analytics product to help carriers, brokers, and private equity firms understand risk concentration, shifting risk profiles, and maintain acceptable digital risk levels.

SecondSight products are available in different pricing and usage models. All SecondSight Workbench products are subscription license. SecondSight Risk Tracker will adhere to a usage-based model and SecondSight ExposureScape is license and usage-based.

About SecondSight

SecondSight is transforming cyber insurance and preparing organizations for the mounting risks in our digital age. SecondSight AI has for the first time connected and enabled true digital risk transparency across the insurance industry data pipeline, creating a scalable vertical operating system for cyber insurance. SecondSight AI-powered cyber underwriting bridges the gap between the digital world and insurance, re-imagining how digital risk is discovered, quantified, hedged and insured. The company is helmed by a seasoned leadership team with deep experience in data science, insurance and asset management backgrounds from Allstate, Bridgewater Associates, Cloudera and Informatica. SecondSight is expanding its platform roadmap, organization and market penetration following its fall 2022 seed financing. Visit www.secondsight.ai for more information.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005334/en/

Eric Doyne | (415) 652-8452 | [email protected]

Source: SecondSight
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Sound Point Capital Management, LP, a credit-oriented investment manager overseeing approximately $32 billion in total assets, is pleased to announce it has hired Gunther Stein to become Head and Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of its U.S. Performing Credit and CLO platform. The move follows Sound Points recently announced agreement to acquire Assured Investment Management LLC (Assured-IM), the institutional asset management business of Assured Guaranty Ltd. [NYSE: AGO], formerly known as BlueMountain Capital Management, LLC. This acquisition will boost Sound Points assets under management to approximately $47 billion.

Mr. Stein is a longtime investor and veteran portfolio manager who previously served as Chairman, CEO and CIO of Symphony Asset Management, a San Francisco-based alternative asset manager that invested across the capital structure, primarily in credit. Symphony Asset Management was bought in 2001 by Nuveen Investments, Inc., which itself was acquired in 2014 by TIAA (Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America).

The addition of Gunther as Head and CIO of our U.S. performing credit platform is a major win for our franchise, said Stephen Ketchum, Sound Points Managing Partner and CEO. His credibility is widely established in the markets where our firm is most active, and his track record of leadership is stellar. We look forward to his integration and adding his deep investment acumen to our existing brain trust.

Mr. Stein will be joining Sound Point in June and his responsibilities will include overseeing Sound Points formidable U.S. CLO vertical, which today encompasses 30 U.S. CLOs and a long-only loan investing business. Under the announced transaction with Assured Guaranty, Sound Point will also assume the management of 32 active Assured-IM CLOs, comprising 25 U.S. CLOs and seven European CLOs, making Sound Point the fifth largest broadly syndicated loan CLO manager globally on a pro forma basis.

Im thrilled to be joining Sound Point at such a pivotal time in its growth trajectory, said Stein. Notwithstanding the firms meteoric rise, there is always work to be done and Im delighted and gratified to bring my experience to such a compelling organization. Sound Point is well on its way to becoming a world class investment leader in credit, and Im honored to join and help lead the continued growth effort.

In his new role, Mr. Stein will jointly oversee the U.S. CLO investment committee with Founder and CEO Stephen Ketchum and Chief Credit Officer Tom Newberry. Mr. Stein is also expected to join Sound Points management committee.

Mr. Stein joined Symphony in 1999 after having previously worked at Wells Fargo, First Interstate Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Citi Investment Bank. He rose to CEO and CIO at Symphony in 2009, growing the business from approximately $7 billion in AUM to $19.5 billion when he departed the firm at the end of 2018. Under his leadership, Symphony issued more than $10 billion of CLOs and related products.

At Symphony, Mr. Stein oversaw a broad slate of traditional and alternative strategies for both institutional and retail investors. These strategies included long/short credit, long only loans, high yield, CLOs, CLO tranche investing, as well as investments in the stressed/distressed space.

In time, under Mr. Steins leadership, Sound Point expects to launch new initiatives in the performing credit space.

New York-based Sound Point is currently managing 37 CLOs of its own across the U.S. and Europe and also manages over $10 billion of assets in other areas of credit investing, including direct loans, capital solutions, distressed, structured products, commercial real estate lending, and specialty finance. Following its acquisition of Assured-IM, Sound Point will take over the management of approximately $15 billion in Assured-IM assets, predominantly across CLOs but also including structured asset-backed investments.

About Sound Point Capital Management, LP

Sound Point is an alternative asset management firm founded in 2008 with particular expertise in credit strategies. Based in New York, with offices in London, Florida and Connecticut, the firm manages money on behalf of institutional investors including top-tier pensions, foundations, insurance companies, wealth management firms and family offices. Sound Point's strategies span the spectrum of liquid and illiquid credit alternatives and include funds and managed accounts focused on leveraged loans, special situations, distressed debt, structured credit, direct lending and commercial real estate. Sound Point currently manages approximately $32 billion of assets. Five principals of Stone Point Capital LLC, as well as Dyal Capital Partners, a division of Blue Owl Capital Inc. [NYSE: OWL], are also strategic investors in our business. For more information, please visit Sound Point's website at www.soundpointcap.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005718/en/

Media Contact

Greg Cresci

Sound Point Capital

(212) 895-2277

[email protected]

Investor Contact

Julie Smith

Sound Point Capital

(212) 895-2293

[email protected]

Source: Sound Point Capital Management, LP
Imagination Way returned for its second year, offering a new look into the future of self-service and unattended retail, setting an elevated standard for innovation in the industry

ARLINGTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) welcomed nearly 5,000 operators, suppliers and industry professionals, representing 35 countries, to The NAMA Show 2023 at Atlantas Georgia World Congress Center (May 10-12). From the return of Imagination Way, to the expo hall, education and networking events, attendees experienced a line-up of opportunities to envision the future of the consumer journey and explore the important touchpoints of convenience along the way.

I encourage our attendees to think about client and consumer relationships, to think about the limitless potentials of convenience, and to think about the experience that ties it all together, said Carla Balakgie, FASAE, CAE, president & CEO of NAMA. Because thats what brings us here to the NAMA Show 2023  Clients, Consumers, Convenience, and Experience.

The NAMA Show kicked off on Wednesday, May 10, with the general session, which included a thought-provoking panel discussion that delved into the associations next-level advocacy agenda.

The panel  moderated by NAMA Board strategic advisor Jim Meffert and featuring Balakgie and NAMAs incoming chair, Lance Whorton of Imperial Inc.  addressed two pivotal issues. The first was the acceptance of SNAP EBT (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Electronic Benefit Transfer) in vending machines and micro markets. Recognizing the significance of accessibility, the panel shed light on the potential benefits associated with the expansion, focusing on enhancing consumer convenience, filling a crucial food accessibility need, and the opportunity to serve a larger market.

The second issue was elimination or reduction of state sales tax in vending machines and micro markets, achieving parity in relation to similar industries. This endeavor aims to foster an environment conducive to business growth and creating more opportunities for operators.

Following the panel, keynote speaker, Mick Ebeling, founder and CEO of Not Impossible Labs, challenged attendees to think about embracing new ideas, overcoming the impossible and achieving outcomes that are seemingly out of reach. He stressed to the crowd, Everything thats possible today was impossible at first.

Ebelings keynote, and the opening session, set the tone for the event, emphasizing the profound impact of the advocacy initiatives and inspiring attendees to harness the power of innovation and look to the overall possibilities for the industry.

At this years show, it was inspiring to see our attendees get behind the same cause, advancing the industry forward, said Kristen Griffith, Vice President of Programs & Services of NAMA. From the general session and education tracks to the products and demonstrations on display, it all leads to one outcome: setting up convenience services for greater success now and in the future.

Imagination Way offered visitors the chance to explore hands-on exhibits replicating visionary concepts and solutions for end-consumers and public environments. Showcasing everything from automated restaurants to robotic self-service retail technology, the exhibition presented an impressive showcase for attendees looking for inspiration to take back to their own companies.

The NAMA Show 2023 offered over 30 education sessions across five tracks including the concepts and adjacencies presented in Imagination Way. NAMAs annual Industry Awards also were presented during the event.

View photos.

The NAMA Show 2024 will take place May 7-9, in Dallas, TX, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.

NAMA represents the $34.9 billion U.S. Convenience Services Industry. By providing advocacy, education, and research, NAMA works to promote and protect the industrys over 160,000 hardworking employees. Through traditional vending and micro markets, office coffee and pantry services, product manufacturing, and small-drop distribution, convenience services meets the needs of over 40 million American consumers daily at work, home, school, and play. Visit NAMA on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005162/en/

Dylan Lynch

Source: NAMA
This limited time only potato chip is a one-two-three taste combination of salty, sweet, and heat!

HANOVER, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Utz, a leading U.S. manufacturer of branded salty snacks, has teamed up with Mikes Hot Honey, Americas No. 1 brand of hot honey, to create the Utz Mikes Hot Honey Potato Chip.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005752/en/

Try the new Utz Mikes Hot Hot Honey Potato Chips  act quickly, theyre only available for a limited time! Source: Utz Brands, Inc.

Available for a limited time only, this bold new potato chip is crafted by covering classic Utz Original Potato Chips with cravable Mikes Hot Honey flavor for a sweet, salty crunch that finishes with a kick of heat. These mouth-watering potato chips come in a range of convenient sizes, including an on-the-go 2.625 oz. and two multi-serve options, 7.75 oz., and 13 oz., for families that demand more at home!

Utz Mikes Hot Honey Potato Chips are now available at grocery, mass, and convenience retail stores nationwide, including Walmart, Target, Amazon.com, and Utzsnacks.com. Also, look for the 13 oz. size available at select Sams Club and BJs Wholesale Club beginning in June 2023.

Our new Utz Mikes Hot Honey Potato Chip perfectly combines our classic, Utz original potato chip with the fierce flavor of Mikes Hot Honey, said Utz Brands, Inc. CEO Howard Friedman. "As a leader in the salty snack category, we are always looking for cravable new tastes, and the uniquely sweet and heat combination of our newest potato chip is irresistible for those who want bold new flavors when they reach for a snack.

We couldnt think of a better brand to help us create our first potato chip, said Mikes Hot Honey Founder Mike Kurtz. Not only is the chip the perfect pairing of Utzs classic, salty crunch and our distinctive sweet with a kick of heat, but its the perfect pairing of two brands with rich histories in New York City, now made available nationwide thanks to popular demand. Were excited about this partnership.

The Utz story began in 1921 in Hanover, Pennsylvania, in the small-town kitchen of Bill and Salie Utz. They believed potato chips could be better and should be made from clean and simple ingredients to bring out the natural flavor of farm-fresh potatoes. Mikes Hot Honey was founded in 2010 by Mike Kurtz with a desire to create and share the highest quality honey infused with chili peppers. Mikes Hot Honey has become a word-of-mouth sensation sparking the creation of a new honey category that empowers chefs and eaters alike and which now includes potato chips.

Utz snacks and Mikes Hot Honey can be found in leading retailers across the U.S. Tell us what you think of the new Utz Mikes Hot Honey Potato Chips on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter using @UtzSnacks and find Mikes Hot Honey on social channels @mikeshothoney.

About Utz Brands, Inc.

Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE: UTZ) manufactures a diverse portfolio of savory snacks through popular brands including Utz, On The Border Chips & Dips, Golden Flake, Zapp's, Good Health, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian Brand and TORTIYAHS!, among others.

After a century with a strong family heritage, Utz continues to have a passion for exciting and delighting consumers with delicious snack foods made from top-quality ingredients. Utz's products are distributed nationally through grocery, mass merchandisers, club, convenience, drug and other channels. Based in Hanover, Pennsylvania, Utz has multiple manufacturing facilities located across the U.S. to serve our growing customer base. For more information, please visit www.utzsnacks.com or call 1-800-FOR-SNAX.

About Mikes Hot Honey

Mikes Hot Honey is Americas leading brand of hot honey and has been elevating everyday eating experiences since 2010, when its first drizzle on a pizza at Paulie Gees in Brooklyn sparked a word-of-mouth sensation and created a new category of pizza topping. By popular demand, Mike started selling his small-batch, hand-labeled hot honey bottles to visitors of the pizzeria, as well as other local restaurants and businesses. Today, Mikes Hot Honey, with the same original recipe, can be found in thousands of restaurants and retailers across the country. Using only 100% pure honey infused with real chili peppers, Mikes Hot Honeys one-two flavor punch of sweetness then heat makes any dish more dynamic, from the original pairing on pepperoni pizza to chicken, cheese and charcuterie, ice cream, cocktails, and so much more. Mikes Hot Honey empowers chefs and eaters everywhere to customize, create, and share extraordinary meals. Happy drizzling!

Try the new Utz Mikes Hot Hot Honey Potato Chips  act quickly, theyre only available for a limited time!

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005752/en/

SPM Communications

Agency Media

Ashley Lennington

[email protected]

Utz Brands, Inc.

Media

Kevin Brick

[email protected]

Investors

Kevin Powers

[email protected]

Source: Utz Brands, Inc.
Mambetova Elnura from Kyrgyzstan is a doctoral student and owner of a cross-border trade business in Xi'an, China. She is optimistic about her business as the exchanges and cooperation between China and Central Asian countries are deepening.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Vonage Conversational Commerce, Powered by Jumper.ai, Enables Full Messaging-First eCommerce for Customers

SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Vonage, a global leader in cloud communications helping businesses accelerate their digital transformation, has partnered with WhatsApp as a Business Solution Provider, to launch payments on the messaging app in Singapore. With this new capability, Vonage Conversational Commerce, powered by Jumper.ai, enables businesses and consumers to benefit from seamless, end-to-end shopping experiences, from discovery to engagement and payments, all within WhatsApp.

Vonage Conversational Commerce enables brands to create omnichannel, messaging-first customer buying experiences across popular messaging, social and web platforms such as WhatsApp, Messenger, Apple Business Chat, Instagram, Twitter, SMS, LINE, Google Business Messages, brand websites, and more. As messaging becomes more important to consumers across the globe as a quick and direct way of connecting with their favourite brands, Vonages application meets the needs of major global brands, helping them to connect with consumers, while also turning these conversations into richer AI-enabled customer experiences.

Additional value and scalability are provided by Vonages Communications APIs, including the capability to seamlessly invite buyers to a live video interaction with an in-store associate or customer service agent in just one click. This allows consumers to engage in personal conversations about products from anywhere while helping retailers build trusted relationships with customers.

Seamless and secure payments on WhatsApp in Singapore, enabled for businesses by Vonage Conversational Commerce, will transform the way people and businesses in Singapore connect. With an estimated 1 billion+ users connecting with businesses across Metas messaging services every week, the ability to process payments securely through WhatsApp will enable companies to deliver a differentiated, and real-time customer experience, which will boost customer engagement and build loyalty.

#NOEXCUSES, a boutique fitness studio, is now leveraging Vonages payments capability to collect fees and rental payments from customers through WhatsApp, along with homeware and fashion brands such as Tyetye, which is using WhatsApp to get closer to consumers and enable payments to provide a seamless experience to its customers.

Backed by the power of the full Vonage Communications Platform, we are delighted to meet customers' evolving needs with Vonage Conversational Commerce powered by Jumper.ai - providing embedded commerce capabilities to drive more engaging and seamless shopping experiences through WhatsApp, said Yash Kotak, Sr. Director of Product Management at Vonage. This development highlights our commitment to continue pushing the boundaries of conversational commerce and empowering businesses throughout Singapore to create meaningful relationships with their customers.

To find out more about Vonage, visit www.vonage.com.

# # #

Source: Meta

About Vonage

Vonage, a global cloud communications leader, helps businesses accelerate their digital transformation. Vonage's Communications Platform is fully programmable and allows for the integration of Video, Voice, Chat, Messaging, AI and Verification into existing products, workflows and systems. The Vonage conversational commerce application enables businesses to create AI-powered omnichannel experiences that boost sales and increase customer satisfaction. Vonage's fully programmable unified communications, contact center and conversational commerce applications are built from the Vonage platform and enable companies to transform how they communicate and operate from the office or remotely - providing the flexibility required to create meaningful engagements.

Vonage is headquartered in New Jersey, with offices throughout the United States, Europe, Israel and Asia and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ericsson. To follow Vonage on Twitter, please visit www.twitter.com/vonage. To become a fan on Facebook, go to facebook.com/vonage. To subscribe on YouTube, visit youtube.com/vonage.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005466/en/

Nicola Brookes

+44 (0)207 785 8888

[email protected]

Source: Vonage
Callon Petroleum Company (NYSE: CPE) ("Callon" or the "Company") today announced that Russell Parker is expected to join the Company as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in late June. Mr. Parker will succeed Dr. Jeff Balmer who plans to retire upon his successor's appointment.

Russell Parker is an experienced leader with more than 20 years of operations and strategic leadership that spans public and private energy companies including EP Energy, Phoenix Natural Resources, Chief Oil & Gas, and Hilcorp Energy. He most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of EP Energy and brings extensive experience enhancing operational efficiencies, developing talented teams, and executing strategic transactions.

"We are excited to welcome Russell to drive the continued evolution of our 'Life of Field' Co-Development Model across our top-tier Permian inventory," said President and Chief Executive Officer Joe Gatto . "Russell's track record of achieving operational successes and financial results through a culture of collaboration makes him a great fit for Callon and our outstanding team."

"It is a privilege to join the Callon team at such a pivotal time for the Company, as the Permian Basin becomes the sole focus with a strong opportunity set for capital efficiency gains and cost structure enhancements," said Parker. "I have long admired the Company's high-quality asset base and look forward to joining Callon's talented team as we continue our trajectory of improving operational performance."

Dr. Balmer is retiring from Callon after a successful career that spans 35 years in the oil and gas industry including nearly five years at Callon.

CEO Joe Gatto continued, "On behalf of Callon's Board, management team and employees, I want to extend our deep appreciation to Jeff for his valued contributions to Callon over the past five years. Since joining the Company in 2018, Jeff has been an instrumental part of assembling our high-quality inventory and the successful integration of acquired assets into our portfolio. We appreciate Jeff's service and wish him and his family the very best."

Dr. Balmer commented, "I am extremely proud of the team at Callon and the progress we have made together on our sustainable business model and operational execution, including our safety and environmental initiatives. We have highly capable leaders at all levels of the Company, and I am confident that Callon is well-positioned to achieve even greater levels of success."

About Russell Parker

Mr. Parker was previously President and Chief Executive Officer of EP Energy from 2017 to 2022, where he led the company's strategic repositioning following emergence from bankruptcy and oversaw improvements in capital efficiency, well productivity, and safety and environmental performance. Prior to joining EP Energy, Mr. Parker served as Chief Executive Officer of Apollo -backed Phoenix Natural Resources and President of Chief Oil & Gas. Earlier in his career he spent over a decade with Hilcorp Energy Company where he held positions of increasing responsibility across their engineering and operations functions for its Texas , Louisiana and Utica operations.
It is with profound sadness that Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) mourns the death of its Founder and Chairman, Samuel Zell, who died today at age 81.

Mr. Zell was an iconic figure in real estate and throughout the corporate world. An active investor in real estate since the 1960s, he helped revolutionize the industry through the popularization of the real estate investment trust (REIT) structure in the 1990s, democratizing the ownership of publicly traded real estate companies. Mr. Zell founded the predecessor company to Equity Residential while a student at the University of Michigan and took it public on the NYSE in August 1993. Under his leadership, Equity Residential grew into a highly regarded $31B apartment owner, developer and operator and S&P 500 member. Over the years he invested in and grew businesses in multiple industries including real estate, manufacturing, retail, travel, healthcare and energy.

Mr. Zell was an active philanthropist with a focus on entrepreneurial education. He established several leading entrepreneurship programs including the Zell Lurie Institute at the University of Michigan; the Zell Fellows Program for entrepreneurship at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management; the Samuel Zell & Robert Lurie Real Estate Center at the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School and the Zell Entrepreneurship Program at Reichman University (formerly IDC Herzliya), a private higher education institution in Israel.

Please see www.samzelllegacy.com for a retrospective of Mr. Zells many accomplishments and contributions to the investing and philanthropic communities.

The world has lost one of its greatest investors and entrepreneurs, said Mark J. Parrell, Equity Residential's President and CEO. Sams insatiable intellectual curiosity and passion for deal making created some of the most dynamic companies in the public real estate industry. He was a generous philanthropist and an incredible mentor and friend and will be missed by all who were lucky enough to be part of his extraordinary world. We extend our deepest condolences to Sams family and loved ones.

Equity Residentials Board of Trustees has considered succession management one of its core responsibilities since the Companys initial public offering in 1993. Consistent with the Companys long-term succession planning process, the Company has appointed David J. Neithercut (67) as Chairman of the Board of Trustees effective immediately. Mr. Neithercut has had a long and successful career as a leader in the real estate industry, including serving as the Companys Chief Executive Officer from 2006 through 2018 and as a member of the Companys Board continuously since 2006.

Sam spent decades creating value for the investors in Equity Residential and his many other enterprises. It was my great privilege to work closely and learn from him for more than 35 years and my honor to succeed him as Chairman of Equity Residential, said Mr. Neithercut. The Board, executive leadership and all the employees of Equity Residential are committed to honoring Sams legacy through a continued focus on value creation for our shareholders.
GFL Environmental Inc. (NYSE: GFL) today announced the pricing of the previously announced secondary offering by BCEC-GFL Borrower LP, OTPP Environmental Services Trust, GFL Borrower II LP and Poole Private Capital, LLC of 18,176,073 subordinate voting shares, which represents an increase of 4,091,566 Shares from the previously announced offering size, at the public offering price of US$36.20 per Share. GFL will not receive any proceeds from the Offering. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Goldman Sachs Canada Inc. will act as underwriters for the Offering in the United States and Canada , respectively.

The Shares issued pursuant to the Offering will be offered in all provinces and territories of Canada by way of a prospectus supplement (the "Prospectus Supplement") to the Company's short form base shelf prospectus (the "Final Base Shelf Prospectus"). The Company has filed a registration statement on Form F-10 (the "Form F-10") and will file the Prospectus Supplement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") in accordance with the multi-jurisdictional disclosure system established between Canada and the United States .

No securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved the contents of this news release. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any province, state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such province, state or jurisdiction.

Prospective investors should read the Final Base Shelf Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, when available, and the documents incorporated by reference therein before investing in the Shares. When available, these documents may be accessed for free on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

GFL has filed the Form F-10 registration statement (including a prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov . Alternatively, copies of the prospectus and Prospectus Supplement relating to the Offering may be obtained, when available, upon request from Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 200 West Street , New York, NY 10282, or by telephone: 1-866-471-2526, or by facsimile: 212-902-9316 or by emailing [email protected] or Goldman Sachs Canada Inc., TD North Tower , 77 King Street West Suite 3400, Toronto, ON M5K 1B7.

About GFL

GFL, headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario , is the fourth largest diversified environmental services company in North America , providing a comprehensive line of solid waste management, liquid waste management and soil remediation services through its platform of facilities throughout Canada and in more than half of the U.S. states. Across its organization, GFL has a workforce of more than 20,000 employees.

Forward Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements relating to the proposed Offering. In some cases, but not necessarily in all cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology such as "plans", "targets", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "an opportunity exists", "is positioned", "estimates", "intends", "assumes", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate" or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "will" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, nor guarantees or assurances of future performance but instead represent management's current beliefs, expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events and operating performance. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on a number of opinions, assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by GFL as of the date of this release, are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ, possibly materially, from those indicated by the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the factors described in the "Risk Factors" section of GFL's annual information form for the 2022 fiscal year filed on Form 40-F and GFL's other periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the securities commissions or similar regulatory authorities in Canada . These factors are not intended to represent a complete list of the factors that could affect GFL. However, such risk factors should be considered carefully. There can be no assurance that such estimates and assumptions will prove to be correct. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. GFL undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, except as required by applicable securities laws.

For more information:

Patrick Dovigi

+1 905 326-0101

[email protected]

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SOURCE GFL Environmental Inc.
ECM Investors, LLC, the parent company of ECM Industries, LLC, announced today it has been acquired by nVent Electric plc (NYSE: NVT) ("nVent"). nVent is a leading global provider of electrical connection and protection solutions. With a team of 10,000+ people at more than 130 sites around the world, nVent designs, manufactures, markets, installs and services high-performance products and solutions that connect and protect mission critical equipment, buildings and essential processes. nVent has industry-leading brands that are recognized globally for quality, reliability and innovation, including nVent CADDY, ERICO, HOFFMAN , RAYCHEM, SCHROFF and TRACER. Its management office is in St. Louis Park, Minnesota .

Mike Masino , CEO of ECM Industries, stated, "We are excited to be joining the nVent family of brands. nVent's focus on the electrification of everything, high-growth verticals, global expansion and complimentary products will benefit ECM Industries' customers, suppliers and employees."

ECM Industries will join the Electrical Fastening and Solutions segment. ECM will continue to operate its sales, engineering, operations and all customer support functions from its existing locations.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted that the available data support the efficacy and safety of its unadjuvanted bivalent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) prefusion F vaccine candidate RSVpreF or PF-06928316. The Committee voted 14 to 0 on effectiveness and 10 to 4 on safety. The vaccine candidate is currently under FDA review for the prevention of medically attended lower respiratory tract disease (MA-LRTD) and severe MA-LRTD caused by RSV in infants from birth up to six months of age by active immunization of pregnant individuals.

We are encouraged by the outcome of todays VRBPAC meeting as it is a critical step forward in the scientific communitys long-sought-after goal to help prevent RSV disease in infants during their most vulnerable first six months of life, said Annaliesa Anderson, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, Vaccine Research and Development, Pfizer. If approved, our RSV vaccine candidate has the potential to be the first maternal immunization vaccine to help protect infants at first breath through their first six months of life from this potentially serious infection.

The VRBPAC based its recommendation on the scientific evidence shared by Pfizer, including primary analysis results from the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial (NCT04424316) MATISSE (MATernal Immunization Study for Safety and Efficacy) announced in November 2022. These results were also recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

The role of the VRBPAC is to provide recommendations to the FDA; however, these recommendations are not binding. The FDAs decision on the potential approval of RSVpreF for the prevention of MA-LRTD and severe MA-LRTD caused by RSV in infants by active immunization of pregnant individuals is expected by the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) goal date in August 2023.

Burden of RSV in Infants

RSV is a contagious virus and a common cause of respiratory illness.1 The virus can affect the lungs and breathing passages of an infected individual and can potentially cause severe illness in young infants, older adults, and individuals with certain chronic medical conditions.2,3,4

In the United States, approximately 500,000 to 600,000 cases of MA-LRTD due to RSV occur annually in infants less than 12 months of age.5 Worldwide, there are an estimated 6.6 million cases of RSV annually in infants less than six months of age, with approximately 45,000 dying each year from complications associated with the infection, and the vast majority in developing countries.6,7,8

About RSVpreF

Pfizer is currently the only company pursuing regulatory applications for an RSV investigational vaccine candidate for both an older adult indication, as well as a maternal indication to help protect infants through maternal immunization.

In December 2022, Pfizer announced that the FDA had granted priority review to a biologics license application for RSVpreF for the prevention of RSV disease in older adults with a decision on whether or not to approve RSVpreF expected by thePDUFA goal date later this month. This was followed by the February 2023 vote by VRBPAC in support of the safety and effectiveness of RSVpreF in adults 60 years of age and older. The FDAs VRBPAC based its recommendation on the scientific evidence shared by Pfizer, including interim data from the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial (NCT05035212) RENOIR (RSV vaccine Efficacy study iN Older adults Immunized against RSV disease). Top-line results for RENOIR were previously announced by Pfizer in August 2022 and presented at IDWeek and the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in October 2022, as well as recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

In February 2023, it was announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) accepted for review Pfizers Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) under accelerated assessment for RSVpreF, as submitted for both older adults and maternal immunization to help protect infants against RSV. The formal review process by the EMAs Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) currently is ongoing. Also in February 2023, Pfizer Japan announced an application was filed with the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for RSVPreF as a maternal immunization to help protect infants against RSV. In April 2023, Pfizer Canada announced Health Canada accepted RSVpreF for review for both individuals ages 60 and older and as a maternal immunization to help protect infants against RSV.

Earlier this month, Pfizer also announced it would be initiating multiple clinical trials evaluating RSVpreF in healthy children ages 2-5; children ages 5-18 with underlying medical conditions; adults ages 18-60 at high-risk due to underlying medical conditions; and adults ages 18 and older who are immunocompromised and at high-risk for RSV.9

Pfizers investigational RSV vaccine candidate builds on foundational basic science discoveries including those made at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which detailed the crystal structure of prefusion F, a key form of the viral fusion protein (F) that RSV uses to enter human cells. The NIH research showed that antibodies specific to the prefusion form were highly effective at blocking virus infection, suggesting a prefusion F-based vaccine may confer optimal protection against RSV. After this important discovery, Pfizer tested numerous versions of a stabilized prefusion F protein and identified a candidate that elicited a strong anti-viral immune response in pre-clinical evaluations. The bivalent vaccine candidate is composed of equal amounts of recombinant RSV prefusion F from subgroups A and B.

About Pfizer: Breakthroughs That Change Patients Lives

At Pfizer, we apply science and our global resources to bring therapies to people that extend and significantly improve their lives. We strive to set the standard for quality, safety and value in the discovery, development and manufacture of health care products, including innovative medicines and vaccines. Every day, Pfizer colleagues work across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. Consistent with our responsibility as one of the world's premier innovative biopharmaceutical companies, we collaborate with health care providers, governments and local communities to support and expand access to reliable, affordable health care around the world. For more than 170 years, we have worked to make a difference for all who rely on us. We routinely post information that may be important to investors on our website at www.Pfizer.com. In addition, to learn more, please visit us on www.Pfizer.com and follow us on Twitter at @Pfizer and @Pfizer News, LinkedIn, YouTube and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/Pfizer.

DISCLOSURE NOTICE:

The information contained in this release is as of May 18, 2023. Pfizer assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this release as the result of new information or future events or developments.

This release contains forward-looking information about Pfizers respiratory syncytial virus vaccine candidate (RSVpreF), including its potential benefits and regulatory applications pending with the FDA, the EMA, and other regulatory authorities for a maternal indication to help protect infants through maternal immunization and an older adult indication, that involves substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including the ability to meet anticipated clinical endpoints, commencement and/or completion dates for our clinical trials, regulatory submission dates, regulatory approval dates and/or launch dates, as well as the possibility of unfavorable new clinical data and further analyses of existing clinical data; risks associated with interim data, including the risk that final results from the Phase 3 trials could differ from the interim data; the risk that clinical trial data are subject to differing interpretations and assessments by regulatory authorities; whether regulatory authorities will be satisfied with the design of and results from our clinical studies; whether and when biologic license applications may be filed in particular jurisdictions for RSVpreF for any potential indications; whether and when the regulatory applications pending with the FDA and the EMA, and other regulatory authorities and any such other applications that may be pending or filed for any indications for RSVpreF may be approved by regulatory authorities, which will depend on myriad factors, including making a determination as to whether the product's benefits outweigh its known risks and determination of the product's efficacy and, if approved, whether RSVpreF will be commercially successful; decisions by regulatory authorities impacting labeling, manufacturing processes, safety and/or other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of RSVpreF; uncertainties regarding the ability to obtain recommendations from vaccine advisory or technical committees and other public health authorities regarding RSVpreF and uncertainties regarding the commercial impact of any such recommendations; uncertainties regarding the impact of COVID-19 on our business, operations and financial results; and competitive developments.

A further description of risks and uncertainties can be found in Pfizers Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, and in its subsequent reports on Form 10-Q, including in the sections thereof captioned Risk Factors and Forward-Looking Information and Factors That May Affect Future Results, as well as in its subsequent reports on Form 8-K, all of which are filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov and www.pfizer.com.

______________________________

1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV). https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/index.html. Updated December 18, 2020. Accessed November 18, 2022.

2 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. RSV Transmission. https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/about/transmission.html. Updated December 18, 2020. Accessed November 18, 2022.

3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV)  Older Adults are at High Risk for Severe RSV Infection Fact Sheet. https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/factsheet-older-adults.pdf. Accessed November 18, 2022.

4 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. RSV in Infants and Young Children. https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/high-risk/infants-young-children.html. Updated December 18, 2020. Accessed November 18, 2022.

5 Rainisch G, Adhikari B, Meltzer MI, Langley G. Estimating the impact of multiple immunization products on medically-attended respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections in infants. Vaccine. 2020;38(2):251-257. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.10.023

6 Rha B, Curns AT, Lively JY, et al. Respiratory Syncytial Virus-Associated Hospitalizations Among Young Children: 2015-2016. Pediatrics. 2020;146(1):e20193611. doi:10.1542/peds.2019-3611

7 Li et al. Global, regional, and national disease burden estimates of acute lower respiratory infections due to respiratory syncytial virus in children younger than 5 years in 2019: a systematic analysis. Lancet 2022; 399: 2047-64.

8 Scheltema NM, Gentile A, Lucion F, et al. Global respiratory syncytial virus-associated mortality in young children (RSV GOLD): a retrospective case series [published correction appears in Lancet Glob Health. 2017 Dec;5(12 ):e1190]. Lancet Glob Health. 2017;5(10):e984-e991. doi:10.1016/S2214-109X(17)30344-3.

9 Pfizer First Quarter 2023 Earnings Teleconference Presentation, May 2, 2023, page 22, https://s28.q4cdn.com/781576035/files/doc_financials/2023/q1/Q1-2023-Earnings-Charts-FINAL.pdf

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005725/en/

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Source: Pfizer Inc.
United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X) (U. S. Steel or the Company) today announced the closing of $240 million unsecured Arkansas Development Finance Authority environmental improvement revenue bonds, which carry a green bond designation (the Green Bonds).

The Green Bonds, issued through Arkansas Development Finance Authority, have a coupon rate of 5.70% and carry a final maturity of 2053. Under the agreement with the Arkansas bond issuer, U. S. Steel will pay semiannual interest.

The Company will use the proceeds from the Green Bonds to partially fund work related to its new technologically advanced flat rolled steelmaking facility, Big River 2 (BR2), currently under construction near Osceola, Arkansas. The facility will recycle, refine, and process scrap steel into finished steel products.

The $240 million Green Bonds transaction that closed today, together with $290 million of Green Bonds issued in 2022 concludes the financing available through the Arkansas Development Finance Authority for BR2, commented U. S. Steel President and Chief Executive Officer David B. Burritt. The opportunistic transactions completed in 2022 and 2023 carried a weighted average coupon of 5.56% with 30 year maturities. Our strong balance sheet and liquidity provide a solid foundation to continue to execute on our Best for All strategy.

Construction of BR2 is expected to be completed in 2024, and once complete will be the most advanced steelmaking facility in North America, featuring two EAFs, with a total three million tons per year of advanced steelmaking capability, a state-of-the-art endless casting and rolling line and advanced finishing capabilities. BR2 is expected to operate with up to 70-80% fewer greenhouse gas emissions compared to the traditional integrated steelmaking approach and directly support the Companys sustainability commitments.

BofA Securities, Fifth Third Securities, Truist Securities, Wells Fargo Securities, Barclays, Citigroup, Crews & Associates, Goldman Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities, and Morgan Stanley & Co. acted as underwriters for the Green Bonds.
FILE PHOTO: A U.S. F-22 Raptor, based out of Al Udeid Base in Doha, Qatar, receives fuel from a 28th Expeditionary Air Refuelling Squadron KC-135 Stratotanker during a combat air patrol mission over an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, in this pictu

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Air Force intends to award a contract in 2024 for its sixth-generation fighter jet as it races to retain its edge against rapid advances in Chinese military technology, the service said on Thursday.

Lockheed Martin Corp, Boeing Co and Northrop Grumman Corp are expected to compete for the Next Generation Air Dominance program, which will replace Lockheed's F-22 Raptor with a fighter built to battle alongside drones.

Boeing, Lockheed and Northrop did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Air Force released a classified solicitation to industry on Thursday laying out the technical requirements. Details have been mostly kept secret but in 2020 the Air Force disclosed that at least one prototype of the jet had flown.

The new fighter will "survive, persist, interoperate, and adapt in the air domain, all within highly-contested operational environments," Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said in a statement. "No one does this better than the U.S. Air Force, but we will lose that edge if we don't move forward now."

The Air Force plans to spend $2.3 billion on the program in fiscal 2024, and an additional $595 million to continue engine development for the new fighter.

(Reporting by Valerie InsinnaEditing by Leslie Adler and Richard Chang)
Westminster, Colorado, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Advanced Space, a leading space tech solutions company, is pleased to announce the successful completion of the six-month Primary Mission for CAPSTONE, the first commercial satellite to operate at the Moon. The CAPSTONE missions objective is to pioneer a new and challenging lunar orbit - the Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO) - to help inform future operations for the Gateway lunar space station that will support NASA's Artemis missions. CAPSTONE has operated in the NRHO for six months, following its second correction maneuver after orbit insertion.

Since entering the NRHO six months ago, the CAPSTONE mission has achieved many accomplishments, including:

28 successful orbits

7 maneuvers

89 published orbit determination navigation solutions

Collected more than 315,000 measurements from the Deep Space Network including the site at Morehead State University. CAPSTONE was the first mission to use Morehead State University - this capacity added to DSN was critical to support the mission.

Endured 6 lunar eclipses with a maximum duration of 74.32 minutes

As designed, zero Earth eclipses

CrossLink Communications

In addition to the milestones and objectives outlined above, Advanced Space also announced the successful demonstration of the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS) which collected crosslink measurements between CAPSTONE and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) on May 9th. This milestone was met after two years of collaboration between Advanced Space and the LRO Team.

Were extremely proud that the CAPSTONE mission has reached its primary mission milestone. Navigating to the Moon and in the NRHO has presented a lot of challenges that the mission teams at Advanced Space and Terran Orbital have had to overcome, said Alec Forsman, Mission Operations Manager for CAPSTONE at Advanced Space. Weve been able to share valuable insights with NASA who continues to be supportive and instrumental in our success. Seeing the CAPS technology successfully executed is also an incredible achievement for the team and is the culmination of nearly 6 years of hard work at Advanced Space. We thank LRO for their support as we'll continue to perform and learn from these demonstrations.

During this demonstration, the CAPSTONE spacecraft sent a specialized signal to LRO which returned the signal and allowed CAPSTONE to calculate range and Doppler measurements. This was a primary objective for the mission which sought to showcase Advanced Spaces autonomous onboard navigation solution, CAPS. Using the gathered data, the team will look to improve subsequent crosslink demonstrations and continue to work towards demonstrating operational feasibility. In the future, additional data types will be demonstrated and incorporated into CAPS to deliver navigation knowledge to users in orbit and on the surface of the Moon.

"As the first U.S. commercial mission to the Moon and the first spacecraft to operate in this unique orbit, CAPSTONE is helping inform future lunar exploration operations for the Artemis program," said Christopher Baker, program executive for the Small Spacecraft Technology program in NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate. "Importantly, the mission also is pushing the boundaries of what we can do with small spacecraft and how new technologies and commercial capabilities can support missions to the Moon and beyond."

Lunar Imagery

As an addition to the mission objectives, the CAPSTONE spacecraft was designed with an imager on board. This imager was included to support technology demonstration as well as public awareness objectives. As part of the Primary Mission, the Advanced Space team was able to capture the attached image of the lunar surface on the 3rd of May 2023 at 15:11 UTC. At this time, the spacecraft was near its perilunethe spacecrafts closest approach to the Moonwhich occurs approximately above the Moons North pole. The center of this image is approximately located at 25 N, 85 E on the lunar surface.

Upcoming Milestones

While the Primary Mission saw several significant milestones, the CAPSTONE mission is not complete. The mission team, led by Advanced Space, is now planning and preparing to execute the "Enhanced Mission" phase which will see the CAPSTONE spacecraft remain in the NRHO for up to 12 months, continuing to demonstrate critical technologies that will support future missions to the Moon.

Continued operations are planned during the Enhanced Mission phase with specific emphasis on further demonstrating additional collections for crosslink measurements and one-way uplink measurements from the Earth. The Enhanced Mission will also emphasize increasing efficiency and automation by the flight dynamics system as a precursor to multi-mission support in the future. Extended mission plans will be considered beyond this next mission phase if the spacecraft continues to weather the conditions posed by the lunar radiation and thermal environments.

We are very grateful to NASA, our mission partners and everyone who has supported us through this journey, said Advanced Space CEO and President Bradley Cheetham. The development of CAPS started as an SBIR back in 2017 and has now evolved into a significant historical development in space exploration. We look forward to ongoing operations of the spacecraft at the Moon and future missions it will support.

ABOUT CAPSTONE: CAPSTONE Press Kit

CAPSTONE is owned and operated by Advanced Space. It was the first CubeSat to fly in cislunar space  the orbital area near and around the Moon  and demonstrate an innovative spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation technology. The mission launched on June 28, 2022. Critical partners in the CAPSTONE mission include:

NASA: CAPSTONE's development is supported by the Space Technology Mission Directorate via the Small Spacecraft Technology and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley. The Artemis Campaign Development Division within NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate supported the launch and mission operations. NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center in Florida was responsible for launch management. NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory supported the communication, tracking, and telemetry downlink via NASAs Deep Space Network, Iris radio design and groundbreaking 1-way navigation algorithms. NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center awarded the CAPS SBIR award.

CAPSTONE's development is supported by the Space Technology Mission Directorate via the Small Spacecraft Technology and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley. The Artemis Campaign Development Division within NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate supported the launch and mission operations. NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center in Florida was responsible for launch management. NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory supported the communication, tracking, and telemetry downlink via NASAs Deep Space Network, Iris radio design and groundbreaking 1-way navigation algorithms. NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center awarded the CAPS SBIR award. Terran Orbital Corporation: Spacecraft design, development and implementation, hardware manufacturing, assembly, testing and mission operations support.

Spacecraft design, development and implementation, hardware manufacturing, assembly, testing and mission operations support. Stellar Exploration: Propulsion subsystem provider.

Propulsion subsystem provider. Rocket Lab USA, Inc.: Launch provider for CAPSTONE on a three-stage Electron launch vehicle.

Launch provider for CAPSTONE on a three-stage Electron launch vehicle. Space Dynamics Lab (SDL): Iris radio and navigation firmware provider.

Iris radio and navigation firmware provider. Orion Space Solutions (formerly Astra): Chip Scale Atomic Clock (CSAC) hardware provider necessary for the 1-way ranging experiment.

Chip Scale Atomic Clock (CSAC) hardware provider necessary for the 1-way ranging experiment. Tethers Unlimited, Inc.: Cross Link radio provider.

Cross Link radio provider. Morehead State University (MSU): Operates the newest "affiliated node" on the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN). Providing telemetry, tracking and control services for NASA and commercial space missions and to engage university students in deep space mission operations.

ABOUT ADVANCED SPACE:Advanced Space (https://advancedspace.com/) supports the sustainable exploration, development, and settlement of space through software and services that leverage unique subject matter expertise to improve the fundamentals of spaceflight. Advanced Space is dedicated to improving flight dynamics technology development and expedited turn-key missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The team has been honored with the AIAA Small Spacecraft Mission of the Year (2022), Commercial Spaceflight Federation Award and the NASA Honor Group Achievement Award. Learn more about what Advanced Space is creating; check out details on the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations Navigation Experiment mission page.

Attachment

Dawn Love Advanced Space 7207163355 [email protected]

Source: Advanced Space
KIRKLAND, Wash., May 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alliance Memory today announced that it has strengthened its market presence in Asia with the appointment of Linus Park as the companys country manager for Korea. In his new role, he will work closely with Alliance Memorys distribution partners to expand the companys sales coverage in the country.

Mr. Park brings extensive experience in the semiconductor industry to Alliance Memory. He comes to the company from Selko Electronics, an exclusive representative for leading manufacturers of semiconductors and electro-mechanical components. As a sales representative, he was responsible for increasing the companys market share in Korea with the addition of several manufacturers to its line card, including Alliance Semiconductor. Previously, Mr. Park served as a sales engineer for Telcom Semiconductor and Liteon Korea. He began his career as a network system developer at the Korea Telecom Research Institute and holds an electronics engineering degree from Dankook University.

Having worked closely with Linus as both a sales rep for Alliance Semiconductor and a distributor for Alliance Memory, I know that his knowledge of the Korean market is second to none, said David Bagby, president and CEO of Alliance Memory. Combined with his familiarity with our line-up of memory solutions, there is no one better suited to lead our efforts in the country. Im thrilled to welcome him to the Alliance team.

I couldnt be more excited to join Alliance Memory, especially at a time when the memory market is changing so significantly, said Mr. Park. The company has more than kept up with the shifting landscape, introducing a wide range of new products and industry partnerships over the last few years. Im looking forward to contributing to Alliance Memorys success by supporting its growing customer base in Korea.

Mr. Park is based in Seoul and reports to Mr. Bagby. He can be reached at [email protected].

About Alliance Memory Inc.Alliance Memory is a worldwide provider of critical and hard-to-find memory ICs for the communications, computing, consumer electronics, medical, automotive, and industrial markets. The companys product range includes flash, DRAM, and SRAM memory ICs with commercial, industrial, and automotive operating temperature ranges and densities from 64Kb to 8GB. Privately held, Alliance Memory maintains headquarters in Kirkland, Washington, and regional offices in Europe, Asia, Canada, and South America. More information about Alliance Memory is available online at www.alliancememory.com.

Editor resources:

Link to images of Linus Park:https://www.flickr.com/photos/alliancememory/albums/72177720308352707

Agency Contact:Bob DeckerRedpines+1 415 409 0233[email protected]

Source: Alliance Memory, Inc.
by Xinhua writer Wang Zhuolun

JERUSALEM, May 18 (Xinhua) -- How do 16 electric violinists playing the same repertoire pinpoint the exact moment of synchrony without hearing each other's performance? In the central Israeli city of Ramat Gan, a special museum on the campus of Bar-Ilan University, which aims to transform unfathomable scientific research projects from the labs into unique artistic exhibits, provides creative answers.

"The scientist adopts a methodology which was used in nanolaser research to measure synchronization between human beings. In an article published by the scientific journal Nature, you can see the graphs when they are in synchronization and when they're not," Tal Yizrael, curator and co-founder of the museum, told Xinhua ahead of International Museum Day, which falls on Thursday.

Located at the Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials of the university, the Fetter Nanoscience and Art Museum was unveiled in 2021. The 10 exhibits, displayed inside and outside the complex of the institute, epitomize many cutting-edge scientific research achievements of the researchers from the university.

In the museum, one will feel that science is intertwined with art and art is a way to express science. Entering the ground floor of the hall, the first exhibit that comes into sight is a large wooden arch called "Arabesque," inspired by nanocrystal structures researched in a light matters lab.

Yizrael explained that after the idea of establishing the museum came to her mind a few years ago, 40 scientists and 40 artists were selected in the "match-making" process, and later some groups of collaboration were gradually created.

The artists were invited to visit the labs, where they were able to observe corresponding experiments and have in-depth discussions with researchers before incorporating their creative ideas into scientific breakthroughs.

"The artists and scientists cooperated for several years and some have continued to work on projects until now. The museum is a platform for collaboration, and in the future we hope it will also be a hub hosting international exhibitions," said Yizrael.

"Actually, arts and science lived together for many years, and it's only modernism that separated them. Each time when artists and scientists met, they found out that they had a lot in common -- both of their work require creativity, sometimes the same practice, trial and error or long time of research," she noted.

Almost all of the research related to the exhibits in the museum are interdisciplinary, involving nanoscience, life sciences, engineering and chemistry, according to Elana Oberlander, foreign press spokeswoman of the university. Meanwhile, some projects serve to explore and demonstrate human behavior through scientific and technological means and hence are also related to psychology and sociology, such as the exhibit about synchronization among violin players.

A paper painting made of crystallized Dead Sea salt materials stabilized by nanotechnology, a mobile water droplet wrapped in hydrophobic coatings of polymer nanoparticles passing through mechanical equipment, winding rubbers showcasing the application of nanometer structure in observing the recovery process of damaged neurons...Though the number of exhibits is not large, each piece is the result of long-time joint efforts of artists and scientists. Alongside each exhibit, a video in English, Hebrew and Arabic is played to explain the complex science behind it.

Eyal Malka, a graduate student of the Department of Chemistry who participated in the exhibit named "Flooding," told Xinhua that the creative world and innovative ideas are very helpful for scientists to reach unconventional solutions. "I think the fields of science and art are interconnected very beautifully here, and artistic exhibits provide a very vivid and convenient way to show the general public scientific solutions."

"I brought my family and my parents to the museum and they were very interested. Most people may not have background knowledge about nanoscience, but when they visit here they will definitely be fascinated," he added. Enditem

(Nick Kolyohin also contributed to the story.)
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ameriwest Lithium Inc. (Ameriwest or the Company) (CSE: AWLI) (OTC: AWLIF) (FSE: 5HV0), a North American lithium exploration and development company is pleased to announce that it has recently engaged a field crew to be mobilized for its Thompson Valley Lithium Project in the next few days to begin the Companys 2023 pre-drilling exploration program phase. The pre-drilling phase includes several tasks and, without limitation, establishing and marking out the boundaries of trails and drill sites for legal, archaeological, and native plant surveys. Once the surveys are complete and prior to trail and drill site construction the Company will submit a Geologic Field Operations Plan to the State of Arizona for approval. Simultaneously the Company is continuing to work on the best possible solution for its right-of-way (ROW) which requires State approval and cooperation from private landowners. The Company will issue further news releases as progress continues.

David Watkinson, President, and CEO of Ameriwest stated, We are excited to initiate the 2023 exploration program at Thompson Valley and look forward to progressing this lithium project as quickly as possible. Subject to the permitting timeline, we expect this to be the first property Ameriwest drills after acquiring three lithium brine properties and two lithium clay properties in Nevada and Arizona in 2021 and 2022. Ameriwest has become one of largest lithium claim holders in Nevada with approximately 50,000 acres of mineral claims staked or acquired.

About Ameriwest Lithium Inc.

Ameriwest Lithium Inc. is a Canadian-based exploration company with a focus on identifying strategic lithium mineral resource projects for exploration and development. The Company is currently focused on exploring its Thompson Valley lithium property located in Yavapai County, Arizona. Ameriwest owns 100 percent of the property which covers 6,881 acres. As stated in the Companys news release dated January 31, 2023, the Company entered into an option agreement with Nova Lithium Corp (Nova) whereby Nova can earn a 51 percent interest in the Edwards Creek Valley project encompassing 22,210-acres. Ameriwest Lithium also owns 100 percent of 5,640-acre Little Smoky Valley property, 13,580-acre Railroad Valley property and its 7,600-acre Deer Musk East property in Nevada.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Glenn CollickChief Operating Officer and director

For further information, please contact:

Glenn CollickChief Operating Officer and a director(778) 868-2226

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not in any way passed upon the merits of the matters referenced herein and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forwardlooking information. Forwardlooking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as anticipate, plan, estimate, expect, may, will, intend, should, and similar expressions. Forwardlooking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forwardlooking information. The Companys actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forwardlooking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to the Companys strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forwardlooking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forwardlooking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forwardlooking information contained in this news release represents the Companys expectations as of the date hereof, and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forwardlooking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.

Source: Ameriwest Lithium Inc.
Atlas Global Brands signs definitive agreement to acquire an additional Israeli pharmacy

The additional medical cannabis pharmacy enhances Atlas premium positioning in the Israeli market with its modern design, located in central Israel

The completion of this acquisition will add another Israel-based pharmacy, licensed to sell medical cannabis, strengthening Atlas geographical coverage in Israel

Inclusive of the previously announced signed letters of intent and definitive agreements, upon closing of these transactions, Atlas will own a majority interest in six pharmacies along with a trading house distribution centre in Israel

CHATHAM, ONTARIO and TEL-AVIV, ISRAEL, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Atlas Global Brands Inc. (Atlas Global, Atlas or the Company) (CSE: ATL), a cannabis company with expertise across the value chain, announces that it has entered into a definitive agreement (Proposed Transaction), signed May 17, 2023, for the acquisition of 51% of the outstanding securities of an Israeli private limited liability company operating a medical cannabis pharmacy (the Pharmacy). The Proposed Transaction is one of two proposed acquisitions previously announced on March 7, 2023 upon the Company entering into binding letters of intent for the acquisition of a 51% and 70% interest in two medical cannabis pharmacies in Israel.

The Pharmacy was granted a license to sell medical cannabis in October 2022 and annualized sales have since grown to approximately NIS 6.0 million (approximately CAD $2.2 million).

The signing of the definitive agreement strengthens Atlas Globals strategy to improve patient access to high-quality cannabis products, through new distribution points in primary locations in Israel, said Bernie Yeung, CEO of Atlas Global. Atlas intends to continue leveraging our value chain expertise to offer a greater assortment and variety of quality offerings, while enhancing the patient experience. We believe that this acquisition will benefit both patients and our shareholders, while continuing to expand our footprint in the international cannabis market.

Terms of the Proposed Acquisitions

Under the Proposed Transaction, Atlas will acquire a 51% interest in the Pharmacy for 1,132,000 common shares of Atlas Global (the Consideration Shares) and NIS 650,000 (the Cash Consideration) (equivalent to approximately CAD $239,743) payable at closing. The Cash Consideration may be increased by up to NIS 2,050,000 upon the Pharmacys revenue and profitability exceeding certain prescribed amounts for the financial years completed December 31, 2023 to 2025 (the Additional Cash Consideration).

The Proposed Transaction includes a call option whereby Atlas Global can acquire, and the vendor has a put option to sell, the remaining 49% interest in the Pharmacy at a price equal to the revenue of the twelve-month period ended September 30, 2026, multiplied by 0.7. The put option is subject to satisfaction of conditions of profitability and good corporate standing.

The Consideration Shares will be subject to a lock-up period of 36 months during which 15% shall be released every six months, commencing on the six-month anniversary of the Closing.

The final structure of the Proposed Transaction shall be determined by the parties subsequent to the receipt of tax, corporate, and securities law advice.

The Proposed Transaction is subject to receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and other customary conditions precedent.

The Proposed Transaction was negotiated at an arms length and will not constitute a fundamental change or result in a change of control of the Company within the meaning of the policies of the CSE. No finders fees are payable in connection with the Proposed Transaction.

The Proposed Transaction is expected to close in calendar Q4 2023.

Update on Previously Announced Acquisitions

In addition, as previously announced on February 7, 2023, the Company entered into a definitive agreement to acquire one trading house and majority interests in two additional purpose-built cannabis pharmacies in Israel (Previously Announced Acquisition 1) and as announced on March 7, 2023, entered into two binding letters of intent to acquire 51% and 70% of the outstanding securities of two additional cannabis pharmacies in Israel (the Previously Announced Transaction 2 and with Previously Announced Transaction 1, together the Previously Announced Transactions).

The Company is awaiting regulatory approval for Previously Announced Acquisition 1 and expects the Previously Announced Transaction 1 will complete in calendar Q3 2023. The Company and the other party to Previously Announced Acquisition 2, continue to settle the terms of the definitive agreement for the acquisition of a 70% interest in the remaining pharmacy.

About Atlas Global

Atlas Global is a global cannabis company operating in Canada and Israel with expertise across the cannabis value chain, including cultivation, manufacturing, marketing, distribution, and pharmacy. Atlas currently distributes to eight countries: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Israel, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. In addition to a differentiated product mix, Atlas operates three licensed cannabis facilities  one with EU-GMP, with three medical pharmacies in Israel and has entered into binding agreements for the acquisition of a majority interest in a trading house and three additional medical cannabis pharmacies in Israel.

Learn more by visiting: www.atlasglobalbrands.com.

Contacts

Bernie YeungChief Executive Officer 1-844-415-6961[email protected]

Alyssa Barry Media and Investor Relations 1-833-947-5227[email protected]

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans", "budget", "scheduled", "forecasts", "estimates", "believes" or "intends" or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results "may" or "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking information reflects management's 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, including that the conditions to completion of the transaction contemplated by the Proposed Transaction and the Previously Announced Transactions will not be satisfied or that the Proposed Transaction and the Previously Announced Transactions will be terminated.

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 time frames or at all. 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 forwardlooking statements set forth herein concerning the Company reflect management's expectations as at the date of this news release and are subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Source: Atlas Global Brands Inc.
Decatur, AL, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The highly anticipated Bassmaster Open Series St. Croix Tournament is set to make a triumphant return to Decatur, Alabama this week, attracting professional anglers and fishing enthusiasts from across the country. The event, which runs from May 18th to May 20th, promises an exhilarating showcase of skill, strategy, and passion for the sport.

As one of the most prestigious fishing tournaments in the nation, the Bassmaster Open Series consistently delivers unparalleled excitement and fierce competition. The event in Decatur is expected to be no exception, with seasoned anglers and rising stars vying for glory on the picturesque waters of Wheeler Lake.

Decatur is no stranger to hosting top-tier fishing tournaments, having previously welcomed the Bassmaster Open Series with open arms. The city's strategic location on the Tennessee River and its abundance of bass-rich waterways makes it an ideal playground for anglers seeking to test their skills and land that trophy-winning catch.

The Bassmaster Open Series will consist of multiple rounds, including practice days and intense competition days. Anglers will showcase their expertise and adaptability as they navigate the diverse fishing conditions presented by Wheeler Lake. Spectators can expect thrilling moments of intense action, as anglers battle it out to secure their place atop the leaderboard.

Decatur Morgan County Tourism President & CEO Danielle Gibson expressed her enthusiasm for the return of the Bassmaster Open Series to the city. "We are honored to once again host this prestigious fishing tournament in Decatur," said Gibson. "The Bassmaster Open Series not only highlights our beautiful waterways but also provides an economic boost for our community as fishing enthusiasts from all over come to experience our hospitality."

The Bassmaster Open Series in Decatur, Alabama promises an unforgettable week of angling excellence, camaraderie, and thrilling competition. Whether you're an avid angler or simply enjoy the sport, this event is not to be missed.

For more information about the Bassmaster Open Series and its schedule of events, please visit www.bassmaster.com.

About Decatur Morgan County Tourism

Decatur Morgan County Tourism is a not-for-profit organization promoting tourism and economic growth in Morgan County. Travel-related expenditures for Morgan County in 2021 exceeded $333 million and state lodging taxes collected reached nearly $1.7 million. The tourism and travel industry within Decatur and Morgan County provided 3,588 direct and indirect jobs for local residents and total travel-related earnings exceeded $88 million. For information on special events and attractions in Decatur and Morgan County, call 800.524.6181 or 256.350.2028; or visit https://www.visitdecatural.org/.

Danielle Gibson Decatur Morgan County Tourism 256-350-2028 [email protected]

Source: Decatur Morgan County Tourism
NEW YORK, NY, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire  CGrowth Capital Inc. (OTC: CGRA) is a public holding company for alternative and undervalued assets. The company is sector and industry agnostic and is solely focused on investing in growth-oriented opportunities where the companys capital, expertise, and capabilities can help create significant added value for shareholders.

CGrowth Capital Inc. is delighted to announce the acquisition of a series of highly promising lithium tenements in Tanzania, marking a significant step forward for the company's entry into the lithium market. This strategic move positions CGRA as a key player in the global supply of critical minerals. Tanzanias rich lithium reserves offer immense potential, and CGRA is excited to tap into this resource to meet the growing demand for lithium in the renewable energy sector. This acquisition signifies a major milestone in CGRAs journey toward creating and delivering significant added value and strong returns for shareholders.

The lithium market, often referred to as 'white gold,' presents a formidable opportunity. As a key driver in the global energy transition, lithium has seen its demand skyrocket. The market is estimated to surge from $525.8 million in 2021 to nearly $1.4 billion by 2026, showcasing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.8%.

"Lithium is the linchpin of the green energy revolution, and its demand is set to increase exponentially," commented Mitchell Smith, CEO of CGrowth Capital Inc. "Our venture into lithium mining in Tanzania is timed perfectly to capture this growth wave, promising substantial returns for our shareholders.

In the coming years, batteries are expected to account for 95% of lithium demand, with automotive manufacturers setting ambitious electric vehicle targets. Electric vehicles (EVs), which require six times the mineral inputs of conventional cars, will significantly impact lithium-ion battery demand.

"We're committed to positioning CGRA at the forefront of this global shift," stated Nicolas Link, Chairman of CGRA. "Our strategic commitment to this essential metal underpins our commitment to driving shareholder value, fostering sustainable growth, and shaping our leadership in the global mining industry.

The company's investment in Tanzania, a region rich in lithium resources, has led to the acquisition of the Hombolo Lithium Project. Comprising of 17 prospecting licenses and 37 primary mining licenses across 435.3 square kilometers, the project offers significant potential for long-term revenue. "We are extremely encouraged by the promising indications of significant lithium deposits in the area," Smith noted. "We remain hugely optimistic about this sizable site becoming a significant source of long-term revenue.

As part of its strategic plan, CGRA will commence a comprehensive series of geological surveys to identify prospective mining sites within the project area. "With the global demand for lithium set to outstrip supply by 2025, we are confident that our strategic investments will yield significant returns for our shareholders, concluded Link.

The timing of this acquisition coincides with the recent landmark visit of US Vice President Kamala Harris to Tanzania, further highlighting the strategic importance of the region in the global supply of critical minerals. "The Vice President's visit signals the recognition of Tanzania's potential as a critical supplier of metals essential for the green energy revolution," stated Smith. "This development aligns perfectly with our acquisition, enhancing the potential returns for our shareholders.

"US Vice President Harris's visit to Tanzania is indicative of the increasing geopolitical importance of critical minerals and the role they play in the drive towards renewable energy. Her visit strengthens the credibility of CGRAs strategic vision and the potential of its latest acquisition. We are excited about the global recognition of Tanzania as a key player in the minerals sector, and we look forward to contributing to a greener future, said Nick Link.

The launch of this lithium-focused acquisition marks a pivotal moment in CGRAs growth trajectory. The company is now perfectly positioned to seize upon the booming global demand for lithium. "With the global demand for lithium set to outstrip supply by 2025, we are confident that our strategic investments will yield significant returns for our shareholders, concluded Link.

For regular CGrowth Capital (CGRA) updates, you are invited to view the companys website and/or to follow the companys Twitter account:

Website: https://cgrowthcapital.com Twitter: @CGRAOTC Contact: [email protected]

Source: CGRA

Forward-Looking Statement Certain information set forth in this press release contains "forward-looking information", including "future-oriented financial information" and "financial outlook", under applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as forward-looking statements). Except for statements of historical fact, the information contained herein constitutes forward-looking statements and includes, but is not limited to, the (i) projected financial performance of the Company; (ii) completion of, and the use of proceeds from, the sale of the shares being offered hereunder; (iii) the expected development of the Company's business, projects, and joint ventures; (iv) execution of the Company's vision and growth strategy, including with respect to future M&A activity and global growth; (v) sources and availability of third-party financing for the Company's projects; (vi) completion of the Company's projects that are currently underway, in development or otherwise under consideration; (vi) renewal of the Company's current customer, supplier and other material agreements; and (vii) future liquidity, working capital, and capital requirements. Forward-looking statements are provided to allow potential investors the opportunity to understand management's beliefs and opinions in respect of the future so that they may use such beliefs and opinions as one factor in evaluating an investment. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. Such forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or result expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although forward-looking statements contained in this presentation are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions, 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. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has provided guidance to issuers regarding the use of social media to disclose material non-public information. In this regard, investors and others should note that we announce material financial information via official Press Releases, in addition to SEC filings, press releases, Questions & Answers sessions, public conference calls and webcasts also may take time from time to time. We use these channels as well as social media to communicate with the public about our company, our services, and other issues. It is possible that the information we post on social media could be deemed to be material information. Therefore, in light of the SEC's guidance, we encourage investors, the media, and others interested in our company to review the information we post on the following social & media channels: Twitter: @CGRAOTC

Source: CGrowth Capital, Inc.
North of the Tulameen River, the Project covers the southeastern portion of the Late Triassic - Early Jurassic Boulder Intrusion and extends east covering exposures of Early Cretaceous Summers Creek stocks.

Immediately south of the Tulameen River, the Project covers a portion of the Rice Stock, a Late Triassic diorite correlated to the Tulameen Mafic-Ultramafic complex.

The intrusions (above) are all hosted by the Late Triassic - Early Jurassic Nicola Group, regionally significant as a host to copper-gold porphyries.

Previous work has identified numerous targets areas, with the Coalmont Road Gossan, North Nighthawk Au Target, VMS Target and North Max located north of the Tulameen River; the Findlay, Goat, Bear, Kid, Elk and Deer mineral showings and the LAM MINFILE occurrence to the south.

The target areas are characterized by variable chalcopyrite mineralization and propylitic alteration (chlorite, epidote and/or carbonate). Potassic alteration has been identified in target areas south of the Tulameen River. The styles of alteration and mineralization are consistent with Porphyry-style mineralization.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- COLLECTIVE METALS INC. (CSE: COMT | FSE: TO1) (the Company or Collective), is pleased to provide further information with respect to the Princeton Project (the Project). The Project is a copper-gold project located in south-central BC covering 70,570 acres west and southwest of the community of Princeton. Furthermore, the Project is located approximately 10 km west of Copper Mountain Mining Corporations currently producing Copper Mountain Mine (Copper Mountain), which hosts a Proven and Probable Mineral Reserve of 702 Mt of 0.24% Copper. The Project hosts potential for identification of one (or more) copper gold alkalic porphyry occurrences similar in age and deposit type to the Copper Mountain Mine.

The Project is divided into two portions, the northern and central-south portions (see Fig. 1). The northern portion is the subject of the remainder of this News Release. It is located west of Princeton, straddling the road between Coalmont / Tulameen and Princeton. Kodiak Coppers MPD property is approximately 27 km northeast and Sego Resources Miner Mountain property is approximately 8 km east. The predominant feature of interest with respect to the entire property is a large, high intensity magnetic anomaly (see the Companys News Release dated May 10, 2023). High intensity magnetic anomalies represent high priority features of interest, particularly those associated with diorite intrusions.

The Project is easily accessible by road, located immediately west of Highway 3, in a well-established mining district with excellent infrastructure, a local workforce and support services. British Columbia is known as a low-risk jurisdiction with high standards for environmental stewardship and community engagement.

Christopher Huggins, Chief Executive Officer, commented, The Princeton Project hosts many high-priority targets that the Company intends on investigating during the 2023 exploration program. Along with the on-site program, Collective will collect and analyze data that exists in the region to build a complete geological model of the Project to create efficient and effective work programs. Collective will look to announce work program details in the coming weeks at the high-priority targets.

Figure 1 - Collective Metals Princeton Project Regional Location

Princeton Project Northern Portion Geology

The tenures comprising the northern portion overlie the Boulder intrusion, a Late Triassic - Early Jurassic granodiorite to quartz diorite to the west and several smaller Early Cretaceous intrusions correlated to the Summers Creek stocks, tentatively interpreted by Mihalynuk et al. (2014) to represent deeper level equivalents of the Early Cretaceous Mine Dykes at Copper Mountain (BC Geological Survey Branch Open File 2014-5). Although not a host to significant copper mineralization at Copper Mountain, their presence and interpreted equivalency with the Mines Dykes is interpreted to suggest a relationship with the Copper Mountain Intrusive Complex which hosts the Copper Mountain Mine. As such these intrusives are of considerable significance with respect to future exploration and evaluation of the Project.

The tenures also cover a portion of the Rice Stock, a Late Triassic diorite correlated to the Tulameen Mafic-Ultramafic complex. A pair of MINFILE occurrences spatially associated with the Rice Stock have been interpreted to have affiliations to Porphyry-style Cu  Mo  Au and there is an approximately 2-3 km exposure of medium to dark orange iron-stained gossan along the Princeton  Coalmont road, interpreted to represent altered rock in the halo of the Rice Stock.

The remainder of the tenures overlie the Late Triassic - Early Jurassic Nicola Group, comprising both volcanic and sedimentary rocks. Regionally, the Nicola Group is a significant host to copper-gold mineralization, both as alkalic gold porphyries (i.e., the Premier North and South Zones on Kodiak Coppers MPD property) and, to a much lesser extent, skarn-style mineralization.

Princeton Project Northern Portion Previous Work

Previous work completed straddling, and north of the Tulameen River, identified five target areas, designated as the Coalmont Road Gossan, North Nighthawk Au Target, VMS Target and North Max. Previous rock chip sampling emphasized occurrences of propylitic alteration (epidote  chlorite  quartz  pyrite) hosted in Nicola Group volcanics in the North Max porphyry target area. A total of only 21 rock chip samples were collected, with the best returning 65.1 ppm Mo from a large angular boulder of strongly pyritic, silica altered metasediment. Copper values were less than 150 ppm.

The area south of the Tulameen River comprises the Findlay and Lamont Ridge targets identified by the previous operator, with Nicola Group rocks including andesite, hornblende andesite, tuff, dacite, sandstone, argillite and siltstone, while Princeton Group rocks include basalt, andesite and dacite. Alteration and mineralization are associated with a north-east trending structure mapped over four kilometres. Chalcopyrite-pyrite-bearing showings identified include, from north to south, the Findlay, Goat, Bear, Kid, Elk and Deer mineral showings.

The LAM MINFILE occurrence (092HSE135), slightly farther south, is described as a small elliptical plug of diorite, 600 metres long and up to 260 metres wide, which intrudes andesitic flows and agglomerates correlated to the Upper Triassic Nicola Group. Sulphide minerals include pyrite and minor pyrrhotite, with blebs and fine disseminations of chalcopyrite. Alteration minerals include chlorite and epidote, typically associated with porphyry-style mineralization.

Mineralization identified consists of chalcopyrite and pyrite, with subordinate pyrrhotite, along fractures and as fine disseminations. Copper values to 1,000 ppm have been documented, together with low gold values. Propylitic (chlorite, epidote and carbonate) and potassic alteration has been described in association with the mineralization. Alteration and mineralization described are consistent with porphyry-style occurrences.

Two different airborne geophysical surveys have been flown over the entire Project area, with digital data available for the central and southern portion of the Project. Only hard copy data are available for the northern portion of the Project as 2D maps.

A northwest-southeast oriented, strong magnetic anomaly has been identified on the tenures north of the Tulameen River, oriented at a moderately high angle to the geological contacts. This strong anomaly is spatially associated with several exposures correlated to the Summers Creek stocks, referred to previously. The association of the Summers Creek stocks with the strong magnetic anomaly similarly represents a high priority target for subsequent exploration and evaluation. In addition to the stocks, the strong magnetic anomaly is associated with the contact between sedimentary and volcanic rocks of the Nicola Group and, slightly farther southeast, with pyroxene and hornblende porphyry breccias.

The airborne survey south of the Tulameen River, by a different previous operator, identified a number of strong magnetic anomalies, spatially associated with small mafic to ultramafic exposures and associated alteration and mineralization, interpreted to represent high priority exploration targets for follow-up evaluation. The LAM MINFILE occurrence represents a good example of such a target, having several relatively small dioritic exposures located on the eastern margin of a high intensity magnetic anomaly. In addition to the airborne survey, a ground radiometric survey was completed on many of the logging roads in the Lamont Ridge area, returning a number of potassic anomalies, interpreted to represent potential porphyry-style potassic alteration. The Lamont Ridge area has a high priority for subsequent exploration and evaluation on the basis of the documented coincidence of porphyry-style alteration (specifically chlorite and epidote) and chalcopyrite-dominant mineralization, together with areas of potential potassic alteration independently identified by the ground radiometric survey.

Qualified Persons

This news release has been reviewed and approved by Rick Walker, P. Geo., who is acting as the Companys Qualified Person for the Princeton Property project, in accordance with regulations under NI 43-101.

About Collective Metals:

Collective Metals Inc. (CSE: COMT | FSE: TO1) is a resource exploration company specialized in precious metals exploration in North America. The Companys flagship property is the Princeton Project, located in south-central British Columbia, Canada, approximately 10 km west of the currently producing Copper Mountain Mine. The Princeton Project consists of 29 mineral tenures totaling approximately 28,560 ha (70,570 acres) in a well-documented and prolific copper-gold porphyry belt and is easily accessible by road, located immediately west of Highway 3.

The Companys Landings Lake Lithium Project, which is located in northwestern Ontario where numerous lithium deposits have been delineated to host significant reserves of Li2O. The Landings Lake Lithium Project is located 53 km east of Ear Falls, Ontario and covers 3,146 hectares.

Collective Metals is also advancing the Uptown Gold Project 4 km outside of Yellowknife, adjacent to several high grade past producing mines. The Uptown Gold Property is a high-grade Archean lode gold prospect adjoining the Giant Mine in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The property consists of 4 claims covering over 2,000 hectares and borders the west side of the Giant Mine leases.

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ON BEHALF OF COLLECTIVE METALS INC.

Christopher HugginsChief Executive OfficerT: 604-968-4844E: [email protected]

FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION

Certain statements in this news release are forward-looking statements, including with respect to future plans, and other matters. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such information can generally be identified by the use of forwarding-looking wording such as "may", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intend", "believe" and "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including but not limited to, business, economic and capital market conditions, the ability to manage operating expenses, and dependence on key personnel. Forward looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to the Project and its mineralization potential; the Companys objectives, goals or future plans with respect to the Project; the commencement of drilling or exploration programs in the future. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business strategies and the environment in which the Company will operate in the future, anticipated costs, and the ability to achieve goals. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include, the continued availability of capital and financing, litigation, failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations, loss of key employees and consultants, and general economic, market or business conditions. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information.

The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed this press release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3d9d4767-1537-4e8d-8e34-2ed8d5a31bba

Figure 1 Collective Metals Princeton Project Regional Location

Source: Collective Metals Inc.
CALGARY, Alberta, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ECO Canada, a leading environmental certification and training organization, has recently announced its plans to explore opportunities internationally. With over 30 years of experience in providing environmental workforce development solutions, ECO Canada aims to bring its expertise and knowledge to global markets. The organization is establishing partnerships with governments, academia, NGOs and other key stakeholders to deliver training, certification, and accreditation in various countries.

Kevin Nilsen, President and CEO of ECO Canada, will be traveling to Guyana and Trinidad on May 20-27, 2023, to discuss the expansion of ECO Canadas international presence. Kevin brings more than 20 years of experience in developing and implementing sustainability initiatives and is committed to promoting environmental stewardship and workforce development. Under his leadership, ECO Canada has continued to expand its programs and services, including its international partnerships. Most recently the Canadian University Dubai (CUD) announced that the Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health Management program was awarded Accreditation Status from ECO Canada.

Travelling with Kevin to the Caribbean is Dr. Yogendra Chaudhry, Vice President of Professional Services at ECO Canada. Yogendra oversees the development and delivery of professional services while providing strategic insight and technical support for environment and sustainability programs. He works closely with a diverse range of stakeholders including government, industry and professionals. With more than two decades of experience in Environment and Sustainability, he has worked in numerous countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America. Yogi holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and supports several Canadian and international academic institutions, standard-setting organizations, and industry associations.

ECO Canada's expansion is driven by the growing demand for sustainability and environmental stewardship, and it aims to provide the workforce with the necessary skills and knowledge to create a sustainable future. The organization's international expansion is expected to benefit not only the environment but also the economy and workforce by creating new job opportunities and promoting sustainable business practices.

The Caribbean region is facing significant environmental challenges, including those related to climate change and unsustainable use of natural resources. ECO Canada is exploring joining efforts to address these challenges and ensure sustainable social and economic growth in the region.

ECO Canada has many services to offer including its Environmental Professional (EP) Certification, Environmental Education Curriculum Accreditation through university education, BEAHR Program and other Training Services. With international efforts, it will enhance the organization's reputation and increase its credibility as a leader in environmental workforce development.

About ECO Canada:ECO Canada is the steward of the Canadian environmental industry. From job creation and wage funding to training and labour market research  we champion the end-to-end career of an environmental professional. We aim to promote and drive responsible, sustainable economic growth within the industry while ensuring that environmental care and best practice are priorities. For the last 30 years, weve worked alongside government, policymakers, academia, students, employers, professionals, industry, and international audiences to ensure we support Canada as a global leader in innovative workforce solutions and job creation. We remain the go-to source in the environmental labour market; our research provides unmatched statistics and analysis on the industry's economic and labour trends that identify workforce gaps.

For more information, contact:Aaron Wilson [email protected] VP, Marketing & SalesECO Canada

Source: ECO Canada
HAMPSTEAD, Md., May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On May 15, 2023, the Board of Directors of Farmers and Merchants Bancshares, Inc., the parent of Farmers and Merchants Bank, declared a cash dividend of $.33 per share of common stock, which will be paid on June 23, 2023 to shareholders of record on June 2, 2023. The $.33 per share dividend is $.01 greater than the most recent dividend paid in December 2022. The semi-annual dividend has increased or remained the same compared to the previous dividend 27 consecutive times starting with the June 2010 dividend.

Please visit the investor relations section of the Banks website, www.fmb1919.bank. It includes press releases, financial information, stock information, peer analysis, and information about Farmers and Merchants Bancshares, Inc. officers and directors.

Farmers and Merchants Bancshares, Inc. is a financial holding company and the parent of Farmers and Merchants Bank. Farmers and Merchants Bank was chartered in Maryland in 1919 and has over 100 years of service to the community. The Bank serves the deposit and financing needs of both consumers and businesses in Carroll and Baltimore Counties along the Route 30, Route 795, Route 140, and Route 26 corridors. The main office is located in Upperco, Maryland, with seven additional branches in Owings Mills, Hampstead, Greenmount, Reisterstown, Westminster, and Eldersburg. Certain broker-dealers make a market in the common stock of Farmers and Merchants Bancshares, Inc., and trades are reported through the OTC Markets Groups Pink Market under the symbol FMFG.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Gary A. Harris President & CEO (410) 374-1510, Ext. 1104

Source: Farmers and Merchants Bancshares, Inc.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A collaborative cross-Canadian partnership between infection control researchers, transit authorities and private industry has demonstrated the effectiveness of antimicrobial copper to reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses in public spaces. The results of a successfully completed, one-year study, led by the medical microbiology research team at Vancouver Coastal Health and hosted by TransLink and Toronto Transit Commission, found that select copper products on public transit can eliminate up to 99.9% of bacteria.

This groundbreaking study was the first of its kind in North America and was fully funded by Teck as part of its Copper & Health program. The study evaluated the efficacy of three copper-based solutions for reducing the transmission of bacteria and viruses on high-touch surfaces on public transportation. The solutions tested included thermal coated copper surface layers, copper alloys, and copper decals; both in-situ for bacterial testing and in-lab for virus testing. Test results showed that select copper products can eliminate up to 99.9% of bacteria on public transit and 99.9% of viruses in a laboratory setting within two hours of contact.

The medical microbiology team from Vancouver Coastal Health, supported by Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, conducted tests every two months over the course of a year, analyzing samples from both copper and non-copper surfaces on public transit. This phase of the study was critical in determining the long-term viability of copper as a material for high-touch surfaces on public transportation, with particular emphasis on its antimicrobial properties and potential for infection control in public settings.

Led by the Vancouver Coastal Health medical microbiology team, researchers tested for virus-killing capabilities, including surrogates for COVID-19 and Noroviruses. This testing is crucial, as it demonstrates the potential for copper surfaces to reduce the risk of transmission of viruses in addition to bacteria. Results of the in-laboratory studies showed consistent viral load reduction for surrogates of COVID-19 and Noroviruses, as well as the bacterial testing, across all copper products compared to no reduction in the stainless steel comparison.

Research Details:

This trial tested three types of registered products including thermal coated copper surface layers, copper alloys, and copper decals on handles and exit doors on buses, streetcars and trains.

Samples were analyzed every two months, from copper surfaces as well as non-copper surfaces on transit by Vancouver Coastal Healths medical microbiology team, supported by Mount Sinai Hospital/University Health Network in Toronto and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Researchers from the University of British Columbia tested and analyzed the durability of the three products as they aged over the course of the year.

In-lab virus and bacterial testing simulated a years worth of use, including disinfectant cleaning and human touch (sweat). The copper products showed consistent and sustained antimicrobial activity through the course of the testing, showing that cleaners and human use did not affect the efficacy of the copper in killing surface bacteria and viruses.

This trial was fully funded by Tecks Copper & Health program. The findings have significant implications for public health, especially during pandemics and outbreaks, and highlight the importance of interdisciplinary collaborations between health care providers, academic researchers, and industry partners in improving infection control measures. The success of this pilot project demonstrates the efficacy of copper surfaces in reducing the spread of bacteria and viruses in shared public spaces.

The project is the result of a partnership between Teck Resources Limited, Toronto Transit Commission, TransLink, Vancouver Coastal Health, Mount Sinai Hospital/University Health Network, the Coalition for Community and Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction (CHAIR), UBC Department of Materials Engineering, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, and Westech Cleaning Audit Systems. The trial follows preceding studies conducted by the Infection Prevention and Control team at Vancouver Coastal Health that have shown copper to be highly durable and effective at killing bacteria in laboratory and healthcare settings.

QUOTES

Jonathan Price, CEO, Teck  Coppers unique antimicrobial properties make it ideal for use in busy public spaces such as transit systems. Teck is proud to partner with leading researchers on this study, which continues to demonstrate that copper is a critical tool to help stop the spread of infection and make our communities safer.

Kevin Quinn, TransLink CEO TransLink is proud to be the first transit agency in North America to welcome healthcare providers and academic researchers onto our system to test copper on transit vehicles. We hope this innovative partnership will help to broaden the scientific communitys understanding of copper and its use in public spaces.

Dr. Marthe Charles, Medical Microbiologist, Vancouver Coastal Health This study provides another proof point that copper, alongside hand washing, vaccination programs and other infection prevention measures, is an added layer that can help reduce the risk of transmission of pathogens. Were excited that we have been able to contribute to the global understanding of the antibacterial and antiviral properties of copper and that was made possible through this partnership.

Angela Chapman, President & CEO, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation Microbes that are dangerous to human health and well-being will continue to evolve, including COVID-19. VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation has played a vital role in funding innovation through medical research that has produced new technologies, and changed practice and protocols that have saved lives here in BC and globally. The latest groundbreaking study on the use of copper to reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses in public spaces is another step in our mission to inspire philanthropy, transform health care and save lives. We are grateful for the partnership of Teck and our colleagues across Canada whose innovative approach to health care in public spaces is bettering our health across the country.

About TeckAs one of Canadas leading mining companies, Teck is committed to responsible mining and mineral development with major business units focused on copper, zinc, and steelmaking coal. Copper, zinc and high-quality steelmaking coal are required for the transition to a low-carbon world. Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, Tecks shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols TECK.A and TECK.B and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TECK. Learn more about Teck at www.teck.com or follow @TeckResources.

About Tecks Copper & Health ProgramThrough its Copper & Health program, Teck has funded numerous initiatives across a range of industries and public facilities to help improve health and safety in high-traffic, high-touch areas through the installation of antimicrobial copper. Tecks Copper & Health program has installed copper surfaces in a number of healthcare facilities, including Vancouver General Hospital and St. Pauls Hospital, on public transit in partnership with TransLink and Toronto Transit Commission, throughout the terminal at Vancouver International Airport, in major attractions including Royal Ontario Museum and Science World, and in schools through partnerships with BCIT, SFU and UBC. Teck is a proud member of CHAIR Canada, the Coalition for Community and Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction (chaircanada.org).

About VGH & UBC Hospital FoundationVGH & UBC Hospital Foundation is Vancouver Coastal Healths primary philanthropic partner, raising funds for specialized adult health care services and research for all British Columbians. VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation partners with donors to raise essential funds for Vancouver Coastal Health, supporting VGH, UBC Hospital, GF Strong Rehab Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, and Community Health Services.

Media downloads:

Video

MORE INFORMATION: Copperstopsthespread.ca

Teck Media Contact Chris StannellPublic Relations Manager604.699.4368[email protected]

Vancouver Coastal Health Media Contact: April Penney604.290.7482[email protected]

Source: Teck Resources Ltd
SHENZHEN, China, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Shenzhen Century Joint Innovation Technology Company Ltd. (INNOCN) is a leading innovator in the market for luxury brand monitors. Renowned for its top notch designs, INNOCN has earned a stellar reputation in the industry. The company manufactures cost-effective monitors that offer competitive features and are available at the best prices on Amazon.





One of the INNOCNs standout offerings is the 27 Inch 4K USB Type-C Computer Monitor 27C1U-D. This top-tier rotating computer monitor boasts an impressive 4K resolution, making it the perfect choice for a wide range of users. What sets the INNOCN 27C1U-D apart is its unbeatable price on Amazon US and Amazon EU (DE, FR, IT, ES). From May 15th to 21st, the INNOCN 27C1U-D is on sale for $237.49 on Amazon US (originally $279.99) between 12:00 AM and 11:45 PM PDT, while EU customers can get it for 369.

The 27C1U-D monitor is packed with features that enhance gaming, productivity, studying, office work, and general usage. With its 27-inch size and HDR400 capability, this monitor delivers an immersive gaming experience and exceptional clarity for reading documents or viewing media. Its stunning color performance, supporting 1.07 billion colors (8 bits+FRC), ensures vivid and sharp visuals. The monitor's 400 nits of brightness bring images to life, while the 60Hz refresh rate and 1000:1 contrast ratio provide smooth motion and deep blacks.

Furthermore, the INNOCN 27C1U-D offers a height and pivot adjustable stand, enabling users to easily maneuver the monitor for optimal comfort during various tasks. Its compatibility with Apple products, future-proof technology, and modern devices is made possible by the inclusion of USB-C, DisplayPort (DP), and HDMI ports. Designed to cater to diverse user needs, this monitor suits gamers, professionals, students, and casual users alike.

Don't miss out on the exceptional value of the INNOCN 27C1U-D Rotating Computer Monitor, offering the best price on Amazon for a premium viewing experience.

Media Contact

Manufacturer's Name: Shenzhen Century Joint Innovation Technology Company Limited

Manufacturer's Official Website: https://www.innocn.com/

Manufacturer's Email Address: [email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bf9d973f-3f8d-4db8-b245-e31bd2d75982
TORONTO, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Goliath Resources Limited (TSX-V: GOT) (OTCQB: GOTRF) (Frankfurt: B4IF) (the "Company" or "Goliath") is pleased to announce the closing of its previously announced "best-efforts" upsized private placement (the "Offering") for gross proceeds of C$9,650,000, which includes the full exercise of the Agents Option for gross proceeds of C$1,150,000. Under the Offering, the Company sold 9,650,000 flow-through units to charitable purchasers (each, a "Charity FT Unit") at a price of C$1.00 per Charity FT Unit (the "Offering Price"). Red Cloud Securities Inc. (the "Agent") acted as sole agent and bookrunner under the Offering.

Each Charity FT Unit consists of one common share of the Company (each, a "Common Share") issued as a "flow-through share" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (each, a "FT Share") and one half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant shall entitle the holder to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.92 at any time on or before May 18, 2025.

Proceeds from the sale of FT Shares will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" as defined in subsection 66.1 (6) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) and "flow through mining expenditures" as defined in subsection 127(9) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Qualifying Expenditures"). Such proceeds will be renounced to the subscribers of Charity FT Units with an effective date not later than December 31, 2023, in the aggregate amount of not less than the total amount of gross proceeds raised from the issue of FT Shares.

The Company intends to use most of the proceeds from the Offering for Qualifying Expenditures for exploration and drilling at its new Surebet discovery at its 100% controlled Golddigger property located in the Golden Triangle, British Columbia.

6,150,000 Charity FT Units were sold pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption under Part 5A of NI 45-106  Prospectus Exemptions (the "Listed Issuer Financing Exemption"). Pursuant to applicable Canadian securities laws, the Common Shares issuable from these 6,150,000 Charity FT Units will be immediately freely tradeable under the Listed Issuer Financing Exemption for Canadian purchasers. The remaining 3,500,000 Charity FT Units sold under the Offering will be subject to a four-month restricted period in Canada ending on September 19, 2023.

In connection with the Offering, the Company paid to the Agent a cash commission totaling C$437,250 and issued to the Agent 437,250 warrants of the Company (each, a "Compensation Warrant"). Each Compensation Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.75 at any time on or before May 18, 2025. In addition, the Company paid to a Finder a cash commission totaling $90,000 and issued to the Finder 90,000 Warrants (each, a "Finders Warrant"). Each Finders Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of C$0.75 at any time on or before May 18, 2025.

The securities described herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act, or any state securities laws, and accordingly may not be offered or sold within the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities requirements or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.

About Goliath Resources Limited

Goliath Resources Limited is an explorer of precious metals in the prolific Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia and Abitibi Greenstone Belt of Quebec. All its projects are in world class geological settings and geopolitical safe jurisdictions amenable to mining in Canada. The new high-grade gold-silver Surebet discovery at its 100% controlled Golddigger Property located in the Golden Triangle, British Columbia is its flagship project.

For more information please contact: Goliath Resources Limited Mr. Roger Rosmus Founder and CEOTel: +1-416-488-2887[email protected]www.goliathresourcesltd.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), nor the OTCQB Venture Market accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on Goliaths current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the ability of Company to conduct drilling to expand the footprint of its new Surebet discovery and its ability to build value for its shareholders as it develops its mining properties. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information. Those assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to Goliath. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the proposed transactions will occur, or that if the proposed transactions do occur, will be completed on the terms described above.

The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and Goliath is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

This announcement does not constitute an offer, invitation, or recommendation to subscribe for or purchase any securities and neither this announcement nor anything contained in it shall form the basis of any contract or commitment. In particular, this announcement does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, securities in the United States, or in any other jurisdiction in which such an offer would be illegal.

The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to or for the account or benefit of a U.S. person (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN

Source: Goliath Resources Limited
TIANJIN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The seventh World Intelligence Congress (WIC), a major artificial intelligence (AI) event in China, kicked off in the northern Tianjin Municipality on Thursday.

With an aim to build a global platform for academic exchanges, exhibitions, innovation and business promotion in the field of intelligent technology, this year's event has attracted almost 500 exhibitors from all over the world.

"In recent years, China has experienced rapid growth in the AI industry, resulting in notable economic and social benefits," said Wang Zhigang, China's minister of science and technology, speaking at the opening ceremony of the event.

By 2022, China had secured the top position globally in terms of the number of patent applications filed for AI technologies. The scale of the core AI industry in China has surpassed 500 billion yuan (about 71.46 billion U.S. dollars), with more than 4,200 major enterprises, comprising approximately 16 percent of the global total, the minister noted.

The four-day event, themed "Intelligence: Extensive Development Space, Sustainable Growth Driver," is being held at National Convention and Exhibition Center (Tianjin) and multiple other venues in the port city.

Covering a record exhibition area of 120,000 square meters, the intelligent technology event has set up 10 themed exhibition areas, including information technology application innovation, AI and 5G+ industrial internet.

Since its inauguration in 2017, the event has offered a platform for scientists, entrepreneurs and economists from home and abroad to discuss the frontier trends of intelligent technology. 
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- International Land Alliance, Inc. (OTCQB | ILAL), (ILAL or the Company), an international land investment and development firm, announced today that it has been working with OTC Markets Group, Inc. (OTC) and OTC has granted our request for an extension to file our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ending December 31, 2022 (the Form 10-K). We are confident we will file the Form 10-K within the extended time frame provided by OTC Markets, during which time our stock will continue to be quoted on the OTCQB Marketplace operated by OTC.

The Companys recent acquisition of Rancho Costa Verde Development, LLC (RCVD) for $13.5M required that substantial resources be devoted to the completion of the transaction and consolidation of operations, as well as ensuring that RCVDs accounting policies and processes are aligned. RCVD has never been subject to audit and is considered a significant, acquisition pursuant to Rule 1-02 (w) of Regulation S-X and as such the Company must filed audited financial statements of RCVD. This acquisition, combined with a change in the Companys independent auditor in September of 2022, has presented challenges that have rendered timely filing of the Form 10-K impracticable without undue hardship and expense.

Jason Sunstein, CFO of ILA, commented: This has been an enormous undertaking and everyone here has been making contributions to see to this to completion. As part of this acquisition and recent filings, we are making internal adjustments and adding staff to ensure we remain timely going forward.

Mr. Sunstein continued: I thank our shareholders for their strong support of this transaction and our talented employees for their hard work and dedication. We are proud to have this significant milestone now behind us and expect the combined companies to deliver shareholder value in the future.

About International Land Alliance, Inc.:

International Land Alliance, Inc. (OTCQB: ILAL) is an international land investment and development firm based in San Diego, California. As its core mission, the Company has embraced technology for sustainable and socially responsible solutions, in addition to using proptech and construction tech advanced applications to meet these goals. The Company is focused on acquiring attractive raw land primarily in Northern Baja California, often within driving distance from Southern California. The Company serves its shareholders by devoting considerable time and resources to seeking out the finest sites available and obtaining the necessary development permits to build a compelling portfolio of properties, which provide a diversity of investment and living options. Please visit: www.ila.company.

Safe Harbor Statement

The press release may include certain statements that are not descriptions of historical facts but are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements may include the description of our plans and objectives for future operations, assumptions underlying such plans and objectives, and other forward-looking terminology such as "may," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "intends," "projects, or similar terms, variations of such terms or the negative of such terms. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements made herein. Such information is based upon various assumptions made by, and expectations of, our management that were reasonable when made but may prove to be incorrect. All such assumptions are inherently subject to significant economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies beyond our control and upon assumptions with respect to the future business decisions which are subject to change. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that actual results will meet expectations and actual results may vary (perhaps materially) from certain of the results anticipated herein.

CONTACT:Dave GentryRedChip Companies Inc.1-800-RED-CHIP (733-2447)Or 407-491-4498[email protected]

Source: International Land Alliance, Inc.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) announced the winner of the 2023 SFI Implementation Committee Achievement Award at the 2023 SFI Annual Conference in collaboration with PEFC Week today. The Maine Committee was selected for its collaborative leadership in addressing key enhancements to the SFI Forest Management and Fiber Sourcing Standards related to climate smart forestry, fire resilience, and forests of exceptional conservation value.

This award recognizes SFI Implementation Committees for outstanding work in fostering community engagement by strengthening the connections between sustainable forests, thriving communities, and responsible purchasing. The award recognizes SFI Implementation Committees for implementing SFI Standards and programs locally, making a difference on-the-ground to advance sustainable forestry and promote the benefits of SFI certified forests and forest products. The award is designed to provide a positive incentive for SFI Committees to go above and beyond required efforts to increase SFIs visibility across the U.S. and Canada.

The Maine Committee has raised the bar on collaboration through the SFI network, working with SFI-certified organizations, state officials, conservationists, harvesters, and landowners to maximize the impact of enhancements to the SFI Forest Management Standard and Fiber Sourcing Standards, said Nadine Block, Senior VP of Community and Government Relations, SFI. This makes an important contribution to shared priorities like addressing climate change, wildfire, and conservation of biodiversity.

Enhancing climate smart forestryThe Maine Committee helped secure an SFI conservation grant with partners at the Maine TREE Foundation and Manomet to conduct research on climate smart forestry in the Northeast covering Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York and produce a climate smart manual for forest managers. SFI-certified organizations are required to assess climate change risks to forests to meet the SFI Forest Management Standard. The Maine and New Hampshire committees worked directly with SFI to convene a regional workshop with the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science to develop a regional climate risk assessment for SFI-certified organizations, which set the stage for a series of six additional regional SFI Implementation Committee workshops across the U.S. and Canada. The outcomes of the first workshop were compiled into a Northeast SFI Implementation Committee Climate Smart Forestry Regional Assessment report to help SFI-certified organizations meet the Climate Smart Forestry Objective.

Building wildfire resilienceThe Maine Committee initiated a process with the forest fire division of the Maine Forest Service to address fire resilience by developing a risk assessment and establishing an annual workshop to discuss risks, mitigations, and lessons learned. Organizations certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard are required to evaluate and address the risk of wildfire. Forest fire division staff offered fire prevention training for SFI-certified landowners to improve fire awareness and readiness. This collaboration between the Maine Committee and the state agency will enable greater attention to wildfire risks on the landscape.

Supporting biodiversity in forests of exceptional conservation valueThe Maine Committee worked with the Maine Natural Areas Program, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, and Maines Certified Logging Professionals program to conduct an assessment of forests of exceptional conservation value  a new requirement of the SFI Fiber Sourcing Standard. The assessment produced a map of these forests and a list of nearby towns. A video explaining steps to take if forestry activities intersect with forests of exceptional conservation value was developed and shared broadly with Maines community of loggers, foresters, and landowners. The list of forests of exceptional conservation value will be revisited annually.

SFI Standards are on the frontlines when it comes to the most pressing issues facing forest sector organizations and the lands they care for. Its very gratifying for everyone connected to the Maine SFI Implementation Committee to be recognized for helping to maximize SFIs leadership, reach, and impact, said Pat Sirois, Maine SFI Implementation Committee Coordinator.

About SFI Implementation Committees

SFI responds to local needs through SFI Implementation Committees at the provincial, state, and regional levels. These committees work with local, forestry, and professional associations, universities, government agencies, landowner groups, conservation groups, and many others. They play a vital role in promoting logger training, landowner outreach, youth and adult education, community engagement, the integrity of SFIs work, and responsible forestry at local levels.

About the Sustainable Forestry Initiative

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) advances sustainability through forest-focused collaborations. We are an independent, non-profit charitable organization that leverages four interconnected pillars of work: standards, conservation, community, and education. SFI works with the forest sector, conservation groups, academics, researchers, brand owners, resource professionals, landowners, educators, local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and governments.

MEDIA CONTACT

Christine LeducVP, Communications and Government RelationsSustainable Forestry Initiative613-706-1114[email protected]

Nadine BlockSenior VP, Community and Government RelationsSustainable Forestry Initiative202-596-3456[email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0987f494-7c9b-4d6f-9946-9cf33edd96d6

2023 SFI Implementation Committee Award Winner The Maine Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Implementation Committee received the 2023 SFI Implementation Committee Achievement Award at the 2023 SFI Annual Conference in Vancouver, BC. Accepting the award from Nadine Block, SFI Senior VP of Community and Government Relations and Gordy Mouw, SFI Director, Network Relations is Pat Sirois, Maine SFI Implementation Committee Coordinator and Jeremy Stultz, Senior Procurement Forester at Sappi North America. (L-R: Nadine, Gordy, Pat & Jeremy)

Source: Sustainable Forestry Initiative
Salt Lake City, UT, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CenExel announces the addition of Michele Baptista as the new Senior Director of Business Development. In this new capacity, Michele will be responsible for developing, selling, and supporting CenExels 18-site network for early phase clinical trials, while also identifying new business opportunities and expanding CenExels customer base.

Michele joins CenExel from WCG IRB, where she was a Business Development Director developing and selling ethical review services for all Phase 1, biotech, medical device, diagnostics, biologics, and social and behavioral research.

Prior to her position with WCG, Michele was co-founder and president of Aspire IRB, building strong relationships with clients by understanding their institutional review board needs and delivering solutions that exceeded expectations. Michele has also held other business development and administration positions in the clinical trial space working for Biomed IRB. Throughout her career, she has always distinguished herself with a reputation for professionalism and integrity. Michele attended Mesa Community College and National University for Business Administration with a focus on sales and marketing.

We are thrilled to have Michele join our team as our new Senior Director of Business Development," said CenExel Chief Commercial Officer, Casey Orvin. "Michele has been an active part of the industry for over 30 years, and we look forward to her joining our CenExel commercial team. With Micheles extensive background and experience, we know she will play a crucial role in driving growth and exceeding partner Sponsor and CRO expectations, particularly in the early phase space.

Michele added, "I am excited to join CenExels dynamic, therapeutically-aligned network to work alongside such a talented team. CenExel has a strong reputation in the industry for its high-quality clinical trial management services, and I look forward to helping the company expand its capabilities and develop concierge relationships with our Sponsor and CRO partners to streamline studies."

While Michele will be reaching out to Sponsors and CROs soon, she can be contacted before then at [email protected].

CenExel was formed in 2018. The network now includes 18 of the most proficient clinical research sites in the country, with special emphases on Neurology, Pain, Psychiatry, Vaccines/Immunology, Dermatology, Ethnic Bridging, Sleep studies, and Clinical Pharmacology. The CenExel research units have outstanding records of assisting pharmaceutical Sponsors with protocol development, study design, and conducting Phase I-IV trials to develop new therapeutics for improved patient care. The mission of CenExel is to work with trial Sponsors and CROs to reduce costs and development times for innovative therapies while advancing patient care.

About CenExel CenExel (www.CenExel.com) provides unparalleled medical and scientific support in the design and execution of clinical trials. Our therapeutic area focus, attention to detail, and auxiliary services assure quality, reliable results and help CenExel consistently achieve and exceed patient recruitment goals. CenExel Centers of Excellence have conducted thousands of studies, the variety and complexity of which have resulted in a vast depth of experience and insight for the Principal Investigators and research staff in each facility. The CenExel Centers of Excellence deliver the engagement, expertise, and results to ensure that their clients achieve their clinical research goals.

Attachment

David Blackmer CenExel Clinical Research 866-236-3935 [email protected]

Source: CenExel Clinical Research
ASHEBORO, N.C., May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The worlds largest natural habitat zoological park, the North Carolina Zoo, will soon undergo an expansion and the addition of a new Asia habitat complex with the help of a $2 million gift from the member-funded SECU Foundation. The announcement was made yesterday in Asheboro to highlight the Foundations gift to the North Carolina Zoological Society.

Funding from the Foundation will enable the Zoo to expand its capacity for education and outreach for both virtual and in-person visits through the SECU Visitor View Pavilion and Classroom in Asia, the centerpiece of the new 10-acre complex. The Pavilion and Classroom will offer a formal venue for interactive learning and a glass observation wall overlooking an indoor primate habitat. It will also provide a closer look at Komodo dragons, gibbons, giant salamanders, king cobras, and other animal species.

North Carolina is most fortunate to have a world-class facility that is dedicated to protecting wildlife populations and their living habitats while educating the community about conserving the natural world, said Bob Brinson, SECU Foundation board chair. Education is one of the Foundations core areas for giving, and we are pleased to support the Zoos expansion project to further enrich experiences for visitors of all ages.

The North Carolina Zoo welcomes nearly 1,000,000 guests annually, including 100,000 school children through field trips. Virtual education programs have been offered by the Zoo since 2020 with a viewership of over six million from 63 North Carolina counties, 42 other states, and 18 foreign countries. This will be the Zoos first opening of a new habitat region since 1994.

The NC Zoo Society is honored to have been selected as an SECU Foundation grant recipient. Partnerships like this will help us build the new Asia Habitat expansion and continue our goal of securing a safe and enduring future for the Zoo and its programs, said NC Zoo Society Board Chair John Ruffin.

Bringing the worlds continents to the North Carolina Zoo has always been our goal, and this generous gift brings us closer to our mission and celebrates the uniqueness of the animals and culture of Asia, said Director and CEO Pat Simmons of the North Carolina Zoo.

About SECU and SECU FoundationA not-for-profit financial cooperative owned by its members, and federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), SECU has been providing employees of the state of North Carolina and their families with consumer financial services for over 85 years. SECU is the second largest credit union in the United States with $50 billion in assets. It serves over 2.7 million members through 274 branch offices, over 1,100 ATMs, Member Services Support via phone, www.ncsecu.org, and a Mobile App. The SECU Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization funded by the contributions of SECU members, promotes local community development in North Carolina primarily through high-impact projects in the areas of housing, education, healthcare, and human services. Since 2004, SECU Foundation has made a collective financial commitment of over $235 million for initiatives to benefit North Carolinians statewide.

About the North Carolina Zoological Society The North Carolina Zoo Society is a private, 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization that supports the conservation, education, research, and recreation missions of the North Carolina Zoo. The Society funds Zoo programs that conserve wildlife, protect wild environments, conduct research, and offer recreational experiences that strengthen the bonds between people and animals. The Society also funds Zoo programs that protect the well-being of animals that live in zoos or in the wild.

Contact: Jama Campbell, Executive DirectorOffice: 919-839-5562 | [email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/77dec576-bf65-4aac-86d6-c3e0a6cb2929

Check Presentation Left to right holding check is Pat Simmons, director and CEO, North Carolina Zoo; John Ruffin, board chair, NC Zoo Society; Jama Campbell, executive director, SECU Foundation; Cheryl Armstrong, executive director, NC Zoo Society; Bob Brinson, board chair, SECU Foundation; and Smedes York, a campaign cabinet leader, NC Zoo Society.

Source: State Employees' Credit Union (SECU)
TORONTO, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northland Power Inc. (Northland or the Company) (TSX: NPI) today announced the results of the election of Directors at its Annual Meeting (the Meeting) held on May 18, 2023, in a virtual-only meeting format.

The total number of voting shares represented by shareholders present electronically and by proxy at the Meeting was 162,537,272, representing 64.51% of Northlands outstanding voting shares.

The nine nominees proposed by Management for election as Directors were elected. Information on each of the Director Nominees is contained in Northlands Management Information Circular dated April 10, 2023, which is available on the companys website at northlandpower.com

The votes received were as follows:

Nominee Votes For Percent Withheld Percent John W. Brace 155,959,763 96.45% 5,735,227 3.55% Linda L. Bertoldi 160,960,170 99.55% 734,820 0.45% Lisa Colnett 155,010,377 95.87% 6,684,613 4.13% Kevin Glass 155,153,311 95.95% 6,541,679 4.05% Russell Goodman 159,031,490 98.35% 2,663,500 1.65% Keith Halbert 159,079,349 98.38% 2,615,641 1.62% Helen Mallovy Hicks 157,615,564 97.48% 4,079,426 2.52% Ian Pearce 141,525,062 87.53% 20,169,928 12.47% Eckhardt Ruemmler 156,963,864 97.07% 4,731,126 2.93%

The Board of Directors accordingly fixed the number of Directors to be elected at nine and the election proceeded on that basis.

The Appointment of Ernst & Young LLP to serve as the independent auditors of Northland, and setting of their remuneration, until the next annual meeting was approved. Votes received were as follows:

Votes For Percent Withheld Percent 124,573,674 76.64% 37,963,598 23.36%

Northlands approach to executive compensation was accepted. Votes received were as follows:

Votes For Percent Against Percent 153,769,199 95.10% 7,925,190 4.90%

ABOUT NORTHLAND POWER

Northland Power is a global power producer dedicated to helping the clean energy transition by producing electricity from clean renewable resources. Founded in 1987, Northland has a long history of developing, building, owning and operating clean and green power infrastructure assets and is a global leader in offshore wind. In addition, Northland owns and manages a diversified generation mix including onshore renewables, efficient natural gas energy, as well as supplying energy through a regulated utility.

Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with global offices in eight countries, Northland owns or has an economic interest in 3.0 GW (net 2.6 GW) of operating capacity. The Company also has a significant inventory of projects in construction and in various stages of development encompassing over 20 GW of potential capacity.

Publicly traded since 1997, Northland's common shares, Series 1 and Series 2 preferred shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols NPI, NPI.PR.A and NPI.PR.B, respectively.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Wassem Khalil, Senior Director, Investor Relations647-288-1019[email protected]northlandpower.com

Source: Northland Power Inc.
CALGARY, Alberta, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Peyto Exploration & Development Corp. (TSX: PEY) ("Peyto" or the "Company") announces that the annual general meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") was convened and adjourned yesterday, as planned and previously announced, without any business being conducted. The Meeting has been adjourned to June 13, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. (Calgary time) in order to give shareholders additional time to cast their votes at the Meeting and will be held at the Sheraton Suites Calgary Eau Claire, Wildrose Ballroom, 255 Barclay Parade S.W., Calgary, Alberta T2P 5C2.

The Company may use Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc.s QuickVote service to assist beneficial Peyto shareholders with voting. The Companys proxy solicitation agent, Laurel Hill, may contact certain beneficial Peyto shareholders who have not objected to the Company knowing who they are (non-objecting beneficial owners, or NOBOs) to conveniently obtain a vote directly over the telephone. Shareholders who have already voted do not need to recast their votes unless they wish to change their vote. Shareholders who have not already voted or wish to change their vote are strongly encouraged to do so promptly using the instructions provided in the Company's information circular and in the form of proxy or voting instruction form or by contacting Laurel Hill toll free within North America at 1-877-452-7184 (1-416-304-0211 outside North America), or by email at [email protected].

How to Vote

Shareholders of record of the Companys common shares at the close of business on March 28, 2023 may vote at the Meeting, vote by proxy by internet, over the telephone or by mail.

To vote through the Internet , go to www.investorvote.com (for registered shareholders) or www.proxyvote.com (for beneficial shareholders) to complete an electronic proxy card. You will be asked to provide the control number from the proxy card.

, go to www.investorvote.com (for registered shareholders) or www.proxyvote.com (for beneficial shareholders) to complete an electronic proxy card. You will be asked to provide the control number from the proxy card. To vote over the telephone , dial toll-free 1-866-732-8683 using a touch-tone phone and follow the recorded instructions. You will be asked to provide the company number and control number from the proxy card.

, dial toll-free 1-866-732-8683 using a touch-tone phone and follow the recorded instructions. You will be asked to provide the company number and control number from the proxy card. To vote by mail, use the proxy card, simply complete, sign and date the proxy card delivered to you and return it promptly in the envelope provided. A shareholder's proxy or voting instructions must be received no later than no later than 48 hours (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays) before the adjourned Meeting on June 13, 2023.

Shareholders and interested investors are encouraged to visit the Peyto website at www.peyto.com to learn more about what makes Peyto one of North Americas most exciting energy companies. The website also includes a monthly report, which discusses various topics chosen by the President and CEO and includes estimates of monthly capital expenditures and production. For further information please contact:

Jean-Paul Lachance President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (403) 261-6081 Fax: (403) 451-4100 [email protected]

Certain information set forth in this document, including the date the Meeting will be re-convened, contains forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond these parties' control, including any changes to the date of the adjourned Meeting. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Peyto's actual results, performance or achievement could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements and, accordingly, no assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward looking statements will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits that Peyto will derive therefrom. The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein.

Source: Peyto Exploration & Development Corp.
MANAGEMENT REPORT

CEO summary

Q1 2023 marks as a start of new developments in AS Pro Kapital Grupp.

Real estate development

In Tallinn, we took the decision to start the final stage of development in Kalaranna 8. This last and final stage consists of 4 residential buildings with 146 apartments and 4 commercial units. What is different this time around is that we decided to proceed the construction without the general contractor. Due to several reasons stemming from the pandemic and the ongoing war, the general contractors market still seems to be on shaky ground and it is close to impossible to reach agreements for fixed price. Hence, we decided to split the construction agreement in smaller pieces and the contracting of which, we will manage in house with our highly skilled technical department.

At the end of Q1, we initiated a tender for the excavation and retaining walls contract and we started works in mid-April.

Kalaranna 1st stage construction is formally finished, all units delivered to clients and the main activity there is property management by our Pro Halduse OU and the management of warranty works, if any.

We also started the presales of Kalaranna final stage with 31 apartments and 4 business premises closed with notarial presale deeds.

As with the already completed stages of Kalaranna development, we are grateful to the local authorities and community to have been helpful and understanding also in this preliminary preparatory stage. The completion of this final stage will definitely close the circle and add to the beautiful neighbourhood of the city.

In Kindrali Houses in Kristiine City we have also completed the 3 residential buildings for a total of 195 apartments. The project is entirely sold out and by now the handovers of the last building are all done and final notarial deeds closed.

In Riga we continue the sales of our luxury product River Breeze Residence which has been awarded the Baltics Prestige Award for its outstanding architecture. During Q1, 2023 we signed 4 new sales. Overall, we see an upwards trend in the real estate segment in Riga as it pertains to our project.

We hold a building permit for City Oasis residential quarter, a project consisting of ca 330 apartments and 32.500 sqm GBA located in Tallinas iela a tranquil and green living environment in the city centre. We will be ready to proceed with construction activities as soon as the market situation becomes fit for such an ambitious and vast project.

Out of the three capitals (Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius), Riga seems to have the most challenges in terms of overall market conditions. However, our long-term outlook for the Latvian real estate sector remains bullish.

In 2019 we completed five buildings in Saltiniu Namai Attico project in Vilnius with 115 apartments. Today we have only 2 apartments unsold, out of which one is a model unit. We are preparing for the following phase with city villas (43 units) and a commercial building and plan to start the construction this year.

Despite the geopolitical situation, Vilnius market is very active in the high-end segment and we look forward to the next stage of our high-end development.

The Company has also expanded its land portfolio in Vilnius, purchasing a school in Naugarduko street for the price of 6.25M euros. The school will be converted into a high-end residential property, consisting of circa 50 luxury apartments. An architectural competition was carried out for the purpose, the winning studio which is currently in the design process and ready to start the permitting process.

Hotel operations

After two difficult years, which clearly affected the global sector of tourism because of the pandemic, there seems to be a strong demand in the hotel industry.

In Bad Kreuznach we have reached a substantial operational break even, despite the fact that a large portion of the rooms were not available to the public due to ongoing renovations. A few years ago, we renovated half of the rooms and part of the common areas. The renovations of the remaining rooms were completed by the end of Q1 2023, and all the room count (116 units) are available. We are seeing an increase in Average Daily Rate already and also positive trends in outperforming against the budgeted proforma.

The Baltic real estate sector showed great resilience throughout the pandemic period as well as during the turbulent geopolitical period we live in, and we are confident that we will manage to develop our pipeline of projects in line with the markets expectations, thus continuing to provide a stream of high-quality properties to the local population. We are aware of the challenging historical times we live in; we will need to be fast to adapt to an ever-changing and fast paced world (especially in regards of the construction works and the related challenges to the supply chain and cost of materials), but we still have a very positive outlook on the Baltic region and thus far the market has been supporting our sentiment.

The economic outlook for the Baltic region is generally positive. The Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have experienced steady economic growth in recent years, driven by a combination of factors such as increasing foreign investment, a growing service sector, and export-oriented manufacturing. The region has also benefited from its proximity to Northern Europe and its membership in the European Union, which has helped to boost trade and investment.

All the positive indicators above will not disappear despite the challenges that are posed to the real estate sector by the global macroeconomic outlook and the geopolitical turmoil caused by the war in Ukraine.

As the CEO of a successful development company, I see the future of real estate being heavily impacted by technology and changing consumer preferences. Smart home technology, virtual and augmented reality, and online marketplaces are becoming increasingly popular and will continue to shape the way we buy, sell, and experience real estate. Additionally, there is a growing demand for sustainable and energy-efficient homes, as well as for flexible living spaces that can adapt to the changing needs of residents. Overall, the future of real estate is exciting and dynamic, and we are constantly looking for innovative ways to stay ahead of the curve and meet the evolving needs of our customers.

Edoardo Preatoni

CEO

Key financials

The total revenue of the Company in first three months of 2023 was 13.4 million euros compared to 7.9 million euros in the reference period.

The gross profit for three months of 2023 has increased by 43% amounting to 3.7 million euros compared to 2.6 million euros in 2022.

The operating result in three months of 2023 has increased to 2.2 million euros profit comparing to 1 million euros profit during the same period in 2022.

The net result for the three months of 2023 was 1.3 million euros profit, comparing to 251 thousand euros loss in the reference period.

Cash generated in operating activities during first three months of 2023 was 10.3 million euros comparing to 3.2 million euros used during the same period in 2022.

Net assets per share on 31 March 2023 totalled to 1.00 euro compared to 0.75 euros on 31 March 2022.

Key performance indicators

2023 3M 2022 3M 2022 12M Revenue, th EUR 13 415 7 916 65 654 Gross profit, th EUR 3 666 2 558 16 965 Gross profit, % 27% 32% 26% Operating result, th EUR 2 160 989 17 657 Operating result, % 16% 12% 27% Net result, th EUR 1 303 -251 13 452 Net result, % 10% -3% 20% Earnings per share, EUR 0.02 0.00 0.24





31.03.2023 31.03.2022 31.12.2022 Total Assets, th EUR 101 587 117 371 101 256 Total Liabilities, th EUR 44 961 74 779 45 933 Total Equity, th EUR 56 626 42 592 55 323 Debt / Equity * 0.79 1.76 0.83 Return on Assets, % ** 1.2% -0.2% 12.4% Return on Equity, % *** 2.6% -0.6% 27.4% Net asset value per share, EUR **** 1.00 0.75 0.98



*debt / equity = total debt / total equity

**return on assets = net profit/loss / total average assets

***return on equity = net profit/loss / total average equity

****net asset value per share = net equity / number of shares

CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Consolidated interim statement of financial position

in thousands of euros 31.03.2023 31.03.2022 31.12.2022 ASSETS Current assets Cash and cash equivalents 18 773 7 650 10 589 Current receivables 2 331 1 546 955 Prepaid expenses 395 525 64 Inventories 26 113 59 360 34 224 Total current assets 47 612 69 081 45 832 Non-current assets Non-current receivables 15 20 2 016 Property, plant and equipment 7 733 6 866 7 294 Right-of-use assets 268 173 195 Investment property 45 615 40 871 45 575 Goodwill 262 262 262 Intangible assets 82 98 82 Total non-current assets 53 975 48 290 55 424 TOTAL ASSETS 101 587 117 371 101 256 LIABILITIES AND EQUITY Current liabilities Current debt 28 422 16 131 173 Customer advances 1 270 11 477 1 659 Current payables 3 156 7 961 4 626 Tax liabilities 816 116 111 Short-term provisions 19 6 5 Total current liabilities 33 683 35 691 6 574 Non-current liabilities Long-term debt 10 086 37 909 38 184 Other non-current payables 0 20 0 Deferred income tax liabilities 1 132 1 134 1 130 Long-term provisions 60 25 45 Total non-current liabilities 11 278 39 088 39 359 TOTAL LIABILITIES 44 961 74 779 45 933 Equity attributable to owners of the Company Share capital in nominal value 11 338 11 338 11 338 Share premium 5 661 1 748 5 661 Statutory reserve 1 134 0 1 134 Revaluation reserve 2 012 2 984 2 012 Retained earnings 36 481 26 522 35 178 TOTAL EQUITY 56 626 42 592 55 323 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY 101 587 117 371 101 256

Consolidated interim statements of comprehensive income

in thousands of euros 2023 3M 2022 3M 2022 12M CONTINUING OPERATIONS Operating income Revenue 13 415 7 916 65 654 Cost of goods sold -9 749 -5 358 -48 689 Gross profit 3 666 2 558 16 965 Marketing expenses -133 -114 -498 Administrative expenses -1 374 -1 449 -4 946 Other income 1 0 6 278 Other expenses 0 -6 -142 Operating profit/ loss 2 160 989 17 657 Financial income 20 1 3 Financial expense -874 -1 226 -4 211 Profit / loss before income tax 1 306 -236 13 449 Income tax -3 -15 3 Net profit / loss for the period 1 303 -251 13 452 Other comprehensive income net of income tax: Net change in asset revaluation reserve 0 0 -972 Total comprehensive income / loss for the year 1 303 -251 12 480 Earnings per share (continuing operations)  Earnings per share for the period  0.02 0.00 0.24

The full report can be found in the file attached.

Angelika Annus

CFO

+372 614 4920

[email protected]

Attachment
CINCINNATI, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ultimus Fund Solutions (Ultimus), a leading independent provider of full-service technology-enhanced fund administration, accounting, and investor solutions, announced today its collaboration with Nomura Private Capital in the launch of the firms first interval fund.

Globally Nomura services the needs of individuals, institutions, corporates and governments through its three business divisions: Retail, Investment Management, and Wholesale (Global Markets and Investment Banking). Nomuras Investment Management division is expanding into intermediary distribution with a particular focus on RIAs, Banks, Trusts and family offices with the launch of the Nomura Alternative Income Fund (NAIFX). NAIFX is an interval fund that will provide clients with diversified exposure to private and public credit sectors for accredited investors and will aid the firm in reaching its goal to expand into private markets. Nomura took a deliberate approach in developing their first interval fund where Ultimus assisted through conception stages as they were reviewing the market. The two firms worked diligently through the product development process and Ultimus remained a strong partner throughout the launch.

Robert Stark, Chief Executive Officer of Nomura Private Capital, said, We are excited and proud to announce the launch of Nomura Private Capitals first interval fund. Launching our first product is an important milestone for the firm, and we needed to work with the right partner to bring this fund to life. In order for the fund to be successful, we wanted to understand the marketplace which we were entering. Ultimus has no shortage of experience and we were confident that they would help us navigate through the building and launching process.

Matthew Nelson, Chief Operating Officer of Nomura Private Capital, emphasized how Ultimus project management approach was key to a seamless launch. The execution was thorough and their project management skills were efficient. They were able to work with us through the intricacies of the launch, and made us feel comfortable jumping into a space that is relatively complex.

Gary Tenkman, Ultimus CEO, is pleased to continue diversifying firm clients. We are thrilled to partner with a firm like Nomura as they expand their business into the alternative investment space. This has been a key area of growth for us as a firm, and we are excited to partner with an organization of such caliber. This successful fund launch is the first chapter in Nomura Private Capitals entry into the space, and we are delighted to be a part of their story.

Nick Darsch, Managing Director, adds, We continue to see strong growth trends in the marketplace and our team is extremely adept at packaging alternative strategies in interval and tender offer funds, and helping firms like Nomura navigate product development and the entire launch process. Nick is participating in a panel covering the Democratization of Alternatives at the upcoming Investment Company Institute Leadership Summit.

About Ultimus

Ultimus Fund Solutions (Ultimus) is a leading provider of full-service tech-enhanced fund administration, accounting, middle office, and investor solutions to support the launching and servicing of registered funds, private funds, and public plans. The company also offers customized structures designed for the unique needs of pensions, endowments, foundations, and other large institutions. Ultimus deep commitment to excellence is achieved through investments in best-in-class technology, compliance programs, organization-wide cyber security efforts, and hiring seasoned professionals.

Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio with offices in other major cities such as Chicago, Denver, New York, and Boston, Ultimus employs more than 925 seasoned accountants, attorneys, paralegals, application developers, fund administrators, compliance specialists, and many others with years of experience in the financial services industry. Servicing over 1,800 total traditional and alternative funds, Ultimus helps investment managers and fund families flourish in todays increasingly sophisticated and dynamic investment landscape. For more information, visit www.ultimusfundsolutions.com.

The Funds investment program is speculative and entails substantial risks. There can be no assurance that the Funds investment objectives will be achieved or that its investment program will be successful. Investors should consider the Fund as a supplement to an overall investment program and should invest only if they are willing to undertake the risks involved. Investors could lose some or all of their investment.

The shares are not listed on any stock exchange, and we do not expect a secondary market in the Shares to develop.

You should generally not expect to be able to sell your Shares (other than through the limited repurchase process), regardless of how we perform.

Although we are required to and have implemented a Share repurchase program, only a limited number of Shares will be eligible for repurchase by us.

You should consider that you may not have access to the money you invest for an indefinite period of time.

An investment in the Shares is not suitable for you if you have foreseeable need to access the money you invest.

Because you will be unable to sell your Shares or have them repurchased immediately, you will find it difficult to reduce your exposure on a timely basis during a market downturn.

The Fund has no operating history and the Shares have no history of public trading.

An investment in the Fund involves risk. The Fund may use leverage its investments by borrowing. The use of leverage increases both risk of loss and profit potential. Alternative investments provide limited liquidity and include, among other things, the risks inherent in investing in securities, futures, commodities and derivatives, using leverage and engaging in short sales. The Funds investment performance depends, at least in part, on how its assets are allocated and reallocated among asset classes and strategies. Such allocation could result in the Fund holding asset classes or investments that perform poorly or underperform.

Investors should consider the Funds investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. This information is included in the Fund Prospectus and can be accessed by calling 833-836-0206. Read the prospectus carefully before you invest.

The Nomura Alternative Income fund is distributed by ACA Foreside Fund Services, LLC

16871360 5/18/2023

Source: Ultimus Fund Solutions
Washington, DC, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The United States Mint (Mint) 2023 American Eagle One Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin produced at the Mints West Point facility will be released on May 25 at noon EDT, with orders limited to 10 coins per household for the first 24-hour sales period.

The American Eagle Silver Uncirculated Coin is the collector version of the official United States Mint American Eagle Silver Bullion Coin. Produced since 1986, this coin was updated in 2021 with a refreshed obverse (heads) and a completely redesigned reverse (tails) to mark the 35th anniversary of the American Eagle Coin Program.

Like its bullion counterpart, the obverse of the American Eagle Silver Uncirculated Coin features sculptor Adolph A. Weinman's full-length figure of Liberty in full stride, enveloped in folds of the flag, with her right hand extended and branches of laurel and oak in her left. Using technological advancements, the coin has been redesigned to encompass some of Weinmans original details, which renders a closer reflection of his original vision, including the addition of his traditional artist mark. Inscriptions are LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST, and 2023.

The reverse was created by United States Mint Artistic Infusion Program Designer Emily Damstra and sculpted by United States Mint Medallic Artist Michael Gaudioso. The design depicts an eagle as it approaches a landing, carrying an oak branch, as if to add it to a nest. Inscriptions are UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, E PLURIBUS UNUM, 1 OZ. FINE SILVER, and ONE DOLLAR.

To provide an added level of security, the redesigned American Eagle Silver Coin also includes a reed pattern variation. The Mint benchmarked its efforts against anti-counterfeiting programs implemented by major mints around the world.

The 2023 American Eagle One Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin (W) is priced at $76.

To set up a Remind Me alert, please visit https://catalog.usmint.gov/american-eagle-2023-one-ounce-silver-uncirculated-coin-23EG.html/ (product code 23EG). This product is included in the Numismatic Bulk Purchase Program, as well as the Authorized Bulk Purchase Program.

The American Eagle Silver Uncirculated Coin is also available for purchase through the Mints Subscription Program. Structured like a magazine subscription, this program affords customers the convenience of signing up to receive automatic shipments of products in a series. The shipments continue until the enrollment is cancelled. For details, visit https://catalog.usmint.gov/shop/subscriptions/.

Visit https://catalog.usmint.gov/ to shop additional United States Mint products.

About the United States Mint

Congress created the United States Mint in 1792, and the Mint became part of the Department of the Treasury in 1873. As the Nations sole manufacturer of legal tender coinage, the Mint is responsible for producing circulating coinage for the Nation to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint also produces numismatic products, including proof, uncirculated, and commemorative coins; Congressional Gold Medals; silver and bronze medals; and silver and gold bullion coins. Its numismatic programs are self-sustaining and operate at no cost to taxpayers.

Note: To ensure that all members of the public have fair and equal access to United States Mint products, the United States Mint will not accept and will not honor orders placed prior to the official on-sale date and time of May 25, 2023, at noon EDT.

Please use our website for all order placements or call 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468).

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Visit https://catalog.usmint.gov/coins/coin-programs/american-eagle-coins/ for more information about the American Eagle Coin Program. Watch our flagship video honoring the American Eagle Coin Program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rs6_FTgIX8Y



Visit https://www.usmint.gov/about for information about the United States Mint.



Visit https://catalog.usmint.gov/email-signup to subscribe to United States Mint electronic product notifications, news releases, public statements, and our monthly educational newsletter, Lessons That Make Cents .



Visit and subscribe to the United States Mints YouTube channel to view videos about the United States Mint.



Sign up for RSS Feeds from the United States Mint and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest .



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United States Mint  Connecting America through Coins

Attachment
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. (West Red Lake or WRLG) (TSXV: WRLG) (OTCQB: WRLGF) is pleased to announce that further to its news release dated April 17, 2023 it has entered into the Definitive Share Purchase Agreement with Pure Gold Mining Inc. (Pure Gold), and a fund managed by Sprott Resource Lending Corp. in respect of the acquisition of the Madsen Gold Project through the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding shares of Pure Gold (the Acquisition). Details of the Acquisition and the Madsen Gold Project can be found in the Companys April 17, 2023 news release, which is available on SEDAR.

Closing of the Acquisition is subject to various conditions precedent including receipt of all required regulatory approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, and receipt of the reverse vesting order from the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Pure Golds ongoing proceedings pursuant to the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act. The court hearing for approval for the sale of Pure Gold is set for May 29, 2023.

ABOUT WEST RED LAKE GOLD MINES LTD.

West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. is a mineral exploration company that is publicly traded and dedicated to creating value for its shareholders by discovering new gold mines in the highly productive Red Lake Gold District of Northwest Ontario, Canada. This district has yielded 30 million ounces of gold from high-grade zones and hosts some of the world's richest gold deposits. WRLG holds an expansive property position spanning 3,100 ha in Red Lake, the Rowan Project, including three former gold mines - Rowan, Mount Jamie, and Red Summit. The Rowan Project covers a 12-km strike length along the Pipestone Bay St. Paul Deformation Zone and WRLG plans to continue exploring this property along strike and to depth aggressively in 2023.

ON BEHALF OF WEST RED LAKE GOLD MINES LTD.

Tom Meredith

Tom Meredith Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact:Jasvir KalotiCFO & Corporate Secretary Tel: (604) 609-6110

Amandip Singh, VP Corporate DevelopmentTel: 416-203-9181 Email: [email protected]or visit the Companys website at https://www.westredlakegold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Certain statements contained in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements". When used in this document, the words "anticipated", "expect", "estimated", "forecast", "planned", and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements or information. These statements are based on current expectations of management, however, they are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this news release. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these statements. West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. does not undertake any obligation to revise or update any forward- looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise after the date hereof, except as required by securities laws.

Source: West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd
In the Tajik capital Dushanbe, a workshop named after an ancient Chinese woodcraft master provides vocational training to young students seeking skilled employment.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Luthersville, Georgia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Anamnesis: Kristie Baldridge-Hatch's latest book, Rediscovery of the Sorvath Splendor, is now available on the Website and Amazon. This captivating story of mystery, suspense, and romance is a must-read for anyone who enjoys the fantasy and romance genres.

Anamnesis follows Thoromor's trip as he solves the puzzle of a strange and enigmatic image in a book, learns the significance of the Sorvath Splendor, and finds out how the smell of roasting photos can draw in terrible monsters. Readers will be captivated by Kristie Baldridge-Hatch's extraordinary ability to create tension and keep the mystery alive throughout the entire novel from the first page onward.

Anamnesis' author, Kristie Baldridge-Hatch, is a skilled technical writer with a Master's in Technical Communications. Her instructor reading The Hobbit to fifth-grade students ignited her passion for science fiction and fantasy. Using her writing expertise, Kristie has expertly crafted a compelling tale that masterfully combines romance, mystery, and adventure.

Anamnesis, the author's most recent book, is eagerly anticipated by readers. This book has taken a lot of work, and the author is looking forward that readers will appreciate Thoromor and Readre's adventure as they fall in love and learn more about themselves while solving the mystery of the Sorvath Splendor.

About the Author:

Kristie Baldridge-Hatch grew up in the Midwest on a farm, where books constantly accompanied her. She developed a passion for science fiction and fantasy after her fifth-grade teacher read The Hobbit to the class. She continued to obtain a Master's in Technical Communications and spent several years working as a technical writer while pursuing her artistic interests. Kristie is a gifted writer, photographer, and cook who enjoys using her work to express herself. She currently resides in Georgia with her family and on a small farm.

Anamnesis is available for purchase on the Website and Amazon. For further details, visit the following Website: https://klbhbooks.com.

Media Details:

Company Name: Anamnesis: Rediscovery of the Sorvath Splendor

Contact Person: Kristie Baldridge-Hatch

Contact Email Address: [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166017
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Baytex Energy Corp. (TSX: BTE) (NYSE: BTE) ("Baytex") provides an update with respect to closing of the previously announced acquisition of Ranger Oil Corporation ("Ranger") by Baytex (the "Merger").

Baytex has filed its Registration Statement on Form F-4 which has been declared effective by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Baytex's Registration Statement on Form F-4 registers, under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, the Baytex shares being issued to Ranger's shareholders.

Ranger has scheduled its shareholder meeting for June 16, 2023. Subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of requisite regulatory approvals and Ranger shareholder approval, the Merger is expected to close on or within three business days of the Ranger shareholder meeting.

Forward-Looking Statements

In the interest of providing Baytex's shareholders and potential investors with information regarding Baytex, including management's assessment of Baytex's future plans and operations, certain statements in this press release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "anticipate", "believe", "continue", "could", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "intend", "may", "objective", "ongoing", "outlook", "potential", "project", "plan", "should", "target", "would", "will" or similar words suggesting future outcomes, events or performance. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof and are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements relating to: the Merger and its expected timing and closing.

Although Baytex believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements because Baytex can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed, projected or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the ability to obtain shareholder, and regulatory approvals of the Merger; the ability to complete the Merger on the anticipated terms and timetable and the risk factors discussed in our Registration Statement on Form F-4, filed with the SEC on May 18, 2023 (Registration No. 333-271191), and our management information circular and proxy statement dated April 3, 2023 (the "Information Circular") filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.There may be additional risks that Baytex presently does not know, or that Baytex currently believes are immaterial, that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of the assumptions below prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on certain key assumptions regarding, among other things, the ability of Baytex and Ranger to satisfy all conditions to closing of the Merger; and the completion of the Merger on the timing anticipated. Readers are cautioned that such assumptions, although considered reasonable by Baytex at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect.

The above summary of assumptions and risks related to forward-looking statements has been provided in order to provide shareholders and potential investors with a more complete perspective on Baytex's current and future operations and such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. There is no representation by Baytex that actual results achieved will be the same in whole or in part as those referenced in such forward-looking statements and Baytex does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

No Offer or Solicitation

This communication relates to the proposed Merger between Baytex and Ranger. This communication is not intended to and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to subscribe for or buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval with respect to the Merger or otherwise, nor shall there be any offer, solicitation or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offer of securities in the United States shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933.

Baytex has filed a copy of the merger agreement on its profile on SEDAR (www.sedar.com). Further, Baytex has filed the Information Circular, which contains important information about the Merger and related matters. Shareholders of Baytex are advised to read the Information Circulars in connection with Baytex's solicitation of proxies for the meeting of Baytex shareholders to approve the Merger. Baytex shareholders may obtain copies of the Information Circular on Baytex's SEDAR profile (www.sedar.com).

Important Additional Information and Where to Find it

In connection with the proposed Merger, Baytex has filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form F-4 (the "Registration Statement") to register the Baytex securities to be issued in connection with the proposed Merger (including a prospectus therefor). Baytex and Ranger also plan to file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed Merger. This communication is not a substitute for the Registration Statement or the prospectus or for any other document that Baytex or Ranger may file with the SEC in connection with the Merger. U.S. INVESTORS AND U.S. HOLDERS OF BAYTEX AND RANGER SECURITIES ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED MERGER (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS TO THOSE DOCUMENTS) BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BAYTEX, RANGER AND THE PROPOSED MERGER. Shareholders will be able to obtain free copies of the Registration Statement, proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about Baytex and Ranger through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of such documents may also be obtained from Baytex and Ranger without charge.

Participants in the Solicitation

Baytex, Ranger and certain of their respective directors, executive officers and other members of management and employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from Baytex's shareholders and the solicitation of proxies from Ranger's shareholders, in each case with respect to the Merger. Information about Baytex's directors and executive officers is available in the Annual Information Form published February 23, 2023, in the Information Circular and in the Registration Statement. Other information regarding the participants in the solicitations and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, is contained in the Registration Statement, the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials that have been and will be filed with the SEC regarding the Merger. Shareholders, potential investors and other readers should read the proxy statement/prospectus carefully before making any voting or investment decisions.

Baytex Energy Corp.

Baytex Energy Corp. is an energy company based in Calgary, Alberta. The company is engaged in the acquisition, development and production of crude oil and natural gas in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and in the Eagle Ford in the United States. Baytex's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BTE.

For further information about Baytex, please contact:

Brian Ector, Vice President, Capital Markets

Toll Free Number: 1-800-524-5521

Email: [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166709
Ten holes completed at Killick target - second drill to begin testing the Hydra Dyke

Thunder Bay, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Benton Resources Inc. (TSXV: BEX) ("Benton") and Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV: SIC) (OTCQB: SICNF) ("Sokoman") together, (the "Alliance") are pleased to announce that 1,400 m in ten holes have been completed on the 50/50 Golden Hope Joint Venture (GHJV) targeting lithium and other critical metals. Drilling has focused on the Killick Dyke zone, where 2022 drilling returned up to 1.04% Li 2 O over 15.23 m, including 4.18 m of 1.48% Li 2 O, and 2.98 m of 1.23% Li 2 O in GH-22-27 and 9.50 m of 1.08% Li 2 O in GH-22-26. All ten holes have intersected spodumene-bearing dykes ranging from less than a metre to over 20 m thick.

Drilling will continue to test the Killick Dyke area plus any new dyke discovered in the ongoing soil geochemical and trenching program along strike to the east of the Kraken Pegmatite Field, where lithium-in-soil geochemical anomalies of similar strength to the Kraken Discovery Dyke area were found, 4 km along strike to the east of any known dykes.

The Alliance is also pleased to announce that it plans to mobilize a second diamond drill to test the Hydra (cesium/lithium/tantalum) target 10 km northeast of the Killick Dyke. Trenching is ongoing here to expose the dyke and help plan for the drilling. The Hydra Dyke is host to high-grade cesium mineralization as pollucite, as well as significant lithium, tantalum, and rubidium values with a 1.2 m channel sample from 2022 grading 8.76% Cs 2 O, 0.41% Li 2 O, 0.025% Ta 2 O 5 , and 0.33% Rb 2 O (news release December 1, 2022).

The Alliance has received the first batch of soil sampling results from the Hydra area which shows a significant lithium/tantalum anomaly (5 to 996 ppm Li; 5 to 141 ppm Ta) in the vicinity of the Hydra Dyke. The soil survey is continuing, using 500 m spaced lines to cover the 10 km gap between the Killick and Hydra fields crossing the favourable dyke-bearing corridor.





Figure 1: Close up of coarse-grained spodumene in GH-23-44

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3657/166633_0110d7a654e0e9f1_003full.jpg.





Figure 2: Close up of medium-grained spodumene in GH-23-45

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3657/166633_0110d7a654e0e9f1_004full.jpg.





Figure 3: Camp photo showing the drill setup testing the

Killick Dyke (both can be seen on the left-center side of the image)

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3657/166633_0110d7a654e0e9f1_005full.jpg.





Figure 4: Golden Hope Project drill plan map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3657/166633_0110d7a654e0e9f1_006full.jpg.

Stephen Stares, President and CEO of Benton, says: "We continue to be excited about the potential of the Kraken Dyke system and the new Killick Dyke zone. The rate of success in expanding the lithium zones in drilling continues to show that we are truly in a new lithium-cesium-tantalum (LCT) belt. We look forward to our continued success as we move the project along."

Tim Froude, President and CEO of Sokoman, says: "We are off to a great start at Golden Hope, and we expect the 5,000 m drill program to be completed before the end of summer giving us plenty of time to build on significant results and plan for additional drilling. Coupled with the ongoing soil sampling and prospecting programs, this will be a defining year for the project."

QA/QC Protocols

Rock and core samples are submitted to SGS Canada Inc. in Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland for preparation and then sent to the SGS Canada Inc. analytical laboratory in Burnaby, British Colombia for analysis. All samples were acquired by hand (rocks) or saw-cut (channels/drill core) and delivered, by Benton/Sokoman personnel, in sealed bags, to the Grand Falls-Windsor prep lab of SGS, which is an accredited assay lab that conforms to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025. Samples are analyzed using SGS's GS_IMS91A50 method that delivers a 56-element package utilizing sodium peroxide fusion, ICP-AES, and ICP-MS analytical techniques. All reported assays are uncut. Soil samples were collected by Benton/Sokoman personnel utilizing a standard Dutch-auger, collecting B Horizon soil, where possible. Where B was not present, the soil horizon or type was noted. Soil samples were sent to Eastern Analytical Ltd., in Springdale, NL, for Li, Ta, Sn, and Nb analyses by four-acid digestion, analyzed by ICP-OES. Eastern Analytical Ltd. achieved ISO 17025 accreditation in February 2014 (for more details on the scope of accreditation visit the CALA website).

QP

This news release has been reviewed and approved by Stephen House, P. Geo., VP Exploration for Benton Resources Inc., and Timothy Froude, P. Geo., President and CEO of Sokoman Minerals Corp., both 'Qualified Persons' under National Instrument 43-101.

About Benton Resources Inc.

Benton Resources Inc. is a well-funded mineral exploration company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol BEX. Following a project generation business model, Benton has a diversified, highly-prospective property portfolio of Gold, Silver, Nickel, Copper, Platinum Group Elements, and most recently Lithium and Cesium assets. In addition, it currently holds large equity positions in other mining companies that are advancing high-quality assets. Whenever possible, BEX retains net smelter return (NSR) royalties with potential long-term cash flow.

Benton also entered into a 50/50 strategic alliance with Sokoman Minerals Inc. (TSXV: SIC) through three large-scale joint-venture properties including Grey River Gold, Golden Hope, and Kepenkeck in Newfoundland that are being explored.

About Sokoman Minerals Corp.

Sokoman Minerals Corp. is a discovery-oriented company with projects in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The company's primary focus is its portfolio of gold projects: flagship, 100%-owned Moosehead, Crippleback Lake (available for option) and East Alder (optioned to Canterra Minerals Corporation) along the Central Newfoundland Gold Belt, and the district-scale Fleur de Lys project near Baie Verte in northwestern Newfoundland, that is targeting Dalradian-type orogenic gold mineralization similar to the Curraghinalt and Cavanacaw deposits in Northern Ireland, and Cononish in Scotland. The company also recently entered into a strategic alliance with Benton Resources Inc. through three large-scale joint-venture properties including Grey River Gold, Golden Hope, and Kepenkeck in Newfoundland. Sokoman now controls independently and through the Benton alliance over 150,000 hectares (>6,000 claims - 1,500 sq. km), making it one of the largest landholders in Newfoundland, Canada's newest and rapidly-emerging gold districts. The company also retains an interest in an early-stage antimony/gold project (Startrek) in Newfoundland, optioned to Thunder Gold Corp (formerly White Metal Resources Inc.), and in Labrador, the Company has a 100% interest in the Iron Horse (Fe) project that has Direct Shipping Ore (DSO) potential.

For further information, please contact:

Sokoman Minerals Corp.

Timothy Froude, P.Geo., President & CEO

Phone: 709-765-1726

Email: [email protected]

Benton Resources Inc.

Stephen Stares, President & CEO

Phone: 807-475-7474

Email: [email protected]

CHF Capital Markets

Cathy Hume, CEO

Phone: 416-868-1079 x 251

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.bentonresources.ca, www.sokomanmineralscorp.com

Twitter: @BentonResources, @SokomanMinerals

Facebook: @BentonResourcesBEX, @SokomanMinerals

LinkedIn: @BentonResources, @SokomanMinerals

THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements."

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Alliance's expectations; risks related to gold price and other commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Alliance's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Alliance's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Alliance does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Alliance's expectations or projections.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166633
Las Vegas, Nevada--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Boardsi, a leading player in the human talent industry, is excited to announce the launch of Venture Capital Governance, a groundbreaking digital recruiting solution specifically designed to meet the board-level needs of venture capital funds and their affiliates. With a successful track record since 2016, Boardsi has facilitated thousands of human capital solutions, connecting companies with exceptional talent at the advisory and board levels.

Venture Capital Governance represents a significant milestone in the evolution of Boardsi's services, addressing the unique challenges and requirements faced by the dynamic and fast-paced venture capital industry. This innovative digital platform will empower venture capital funds to access a pool of highly qualified and diverse board-level professionals, revolutionizing their ability to build robust and strategic boards.

Through Venture Capital Governance, venture capital funds will be able to leverage Boardsi's extensive network and cutting-edge technology to streamline their board-level recruiting process. The platform will connect venture capital firms with a diverse range of experienced professionals, including board directors, advisors, and industry experts. This tailored solution ensures that venture capital funds can access the exceptional talent necessary to drive innovation and success in their portfolios.

"Boardsi is thrilled to launch Venture Capital Governance, marking a significant step in our commitment to transforming the board-level recruiting landscape," said Martin Rowinski, CEO of Boardsi. "We understand the unique challenges faced by venture capital funds in building high-performing boards, and our new platform provides a tailored solution to address these needs. We are excited to empower venture capital firms with access to exceptional board-level talent, enabling them to make strategic and impactful decisions that drive their investment success."

With its proven expertise in connecting companies with top talent, Boardsi is well-positioned to drive the success of Venture Capital Governance. The platform will not only benefit venture capital funds but also empower professionals seeking rewarding board-level opportunities within the vibrant and dynamic venture capital ecosystem.

To learn more about Venture Capital Governance and how Boardsi is revolutionizing board-level recruiting for venture capital funds, visit https://boardsi.com/venture-capital/.

About Boardsi:

Boardsi is a leading player in the human talent industry, specializing in connecting companies with exceptional talent at the advisory and board levels. Since 2016, Boardsi has been at the forefront of facilitating human capital solutions, enabling companies to build robust and high-performing boards. With the launch of Venture Capital Governance, Boardsi aims to revolutionize the board-level recruiting process for venture capital funds, empowering them to access top-tier talent and make strategic decisions that drive investment success.

Media Contact:

Lisa Williams

Marketing Director

Boardsi

(916) 750-2537

[email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166647
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Cleantek Industries Inc. (TSXV: CTEK) ("Cleantek" or the "Company") is pleased to announce its record first quarter 2023 financial and operational results. Cleantek is an innovative provider of patented, clean technology solutions focused on reducing both cost and carbon intensity in the wastewater management and industrial lighting sectors across North America. All amounts are in thousands of Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated.

Cleantek Chief Executive Officer Matt Gowanlock commented, "It has been a tremendous start to 2023 for Cleantek. We are pleased to announce positive earnings and record revenues along with the launch of two new product and service offerings that will add depth to our portfolio of ESG accretive technology. In line with our growth strategy is building a strong team, and promoting an experienced individual in Chris Murray to COO will serve to accelerate our growth and capabilities as an organization."

Highlights for the First Quarter 2023

Cleantek generated revenue of $3,833 for Q1 2023, an increase of $686 or 22%, from Q1 2022. The increased revenue in 2023 is primarily due to a ramp up in rental activity and increased rental prices in both sustainable lighting solutions and ZeroE dehydration;





Cleantek's gross profit of $2,317 or 60% of revenue for Q1 2023 was in line with target and improved substantially when compared with gross profit of $1,836 and 58% of revenue for Q1 2022;





Cleantek's net income of $180 for Q1 2023 was a $914 improvement from the net loss of $734 for Q1 2022; and,





Cleantek's Adjusted EBITDA was $1,184 for Q1 2023, an increase of $24 when compared to Q1 2022 primarily due to the increased revenue.

Expansion and Outlook

Cleantek's strategy focuses on delivering innovative and cost-effective solutions that reduce the carbon intensity as well as the capital and operating costs of industrial operations. By focusing on expanding the market awareness and adoption of its sustainable lighting solutions and wastewater treatment assets, Cleantek continues to experience increased utilization of these high-margin product lines.

In Q1 2023, the Company launched two new growth initiatives, including SecureTek, Cleantek's line of remote security services, as well as the company's newest addition to the ZeroE line of wastewater treatment products, the mobile GZeroE. Both growth initiatives will utilize the Company's existing asset base and will require minimal capital investment for what the Company believes could be substantial growth opportunities in adjacent industry verticals.

SecureTek - Cleantek's line of remote security services, being offered as a stand-alone system or integrated with our sustainable lighting products, is expected to drive higher utilization of existing assets and creating an exciting new recurring revenue stream for the Company. Utilizing our existing infrastructure, SecureTek is an accretive bolt-on service offering and a great opportunity to expand our reach into the construction, mining, storage, agriculture, and other commercial markets, with minimal new capital investment.





- Cleantek's line of remote security services, being offered as a stand-alone system or integrated with our sustainable lighting products, is expected to drive higher utilization of existing assets and creating an exciting new recurring revenue stream for the Company. Utilizing our existing infrastructure, SecureTek is an accretive bolt-on service offering and a great opportunity to expand our reach into the construction, mining, storage, agriculture, and other commercial markets, with minimal new capital investment. Mobile GZeroE - Adding to the fleet of ZeroE technology is our new waste-gas powered, wastewater treatment and dehydration system, or "GZeroE". GZeroE will utilize waste-gas as its primary energy source, allowing for deployment of the ZeroE system into areas without a waste-heat source while providing substantial ESG and cost benefits. This product is currently under construction and will launch to the market in Q3 of this year to a growing backlog of interested clientele.

The Company's near-term strategy will continue to focus on:

maximize utilization rates of its current fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets;





expanding and growing the Company's fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets to satisfy increased demand in the oil and gas, midstream, mining, industrial and construction markets;





leveraging Cleantek's technology to capture additional market share through organic growth of the ZeroE wastewater treatment and vaporization services;





expanding and diversifying Cleantek's geographic focus and customer base, including exploring opportunities outside of the North American market; and,





focusing on growth, generating positive return for shareholders and improving financial position now that the patent litigation related to the HALO" lighting systems in the United States is completed; and,





evaluating new technology, products and services to increase our offering to our current client base.

The Company is uniquely positioned with the prospect to capture expansion in both ZeroE wastewater vaporization and sustainable lighting markets. Cleantek expects that wastewater and vaporization opportunities in the oil and gas, municipal grey water, and industrial wastewater industries and a growing awareness regarding the disadvantages and risks of downhole injection will continue to increase the demand for Cleantek's ZeroE products.

Appointment of Chief Operating Officer

The Company is pleased to announce the promotion of Chris Murray, P.Eng. to Chief Operating Officer ("COO"), effective May 18th, 2023.

Mr. Murray brings a wealth of experience to Cleantek through his extensive career as a sales, marketing and operations executive, with over 25+ years of experience in the energy industry. Mr. Murray is recognized as a driven and highly competitive team player with extensive leadership success. He previously held positions at Total Oilfield Rentals, Patterson-UTI, Horizon Drilling as well as a previous tenure at Cleantek where he held executive roles in strategy, sales & marketing.

Operational Update

Cleantek's first quarter 2023 revenue was $3,833, an increase of $686 from same period last year.

Results of Operations

(Canadian $000's, except





Three months ended

March 31 per share amounts and percentages)







2023

2022

Change Revenue







3,833

3,147

686 Gross profit







2,317

1,837

481 Gross profit %







60

58

2% Net income (loss)







180

(734)

914 Net income (loss) per share - basic and diluted ($)





$ 0.01 $ (0.03) $ 0.04 EBITDA(1)







1,112

454

658 Adjusted EBITDA(1)







1,184

1,160

24 Capital expenditures







125

297

(172) As at: March 31,

2023

December 31,

2022

Change



Total assets







16,601

15,917

680 Working capital deficit(1)







(8,043)

(8,348)

305 Non-current debt(1,2)







2,304

2,121

(183) Total non-current liabilities







2,350

2,167

(183)

(1) Management considers EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA key metrics in analyzing operational performance and the Company's ability to generate cashflow. EBITDA is measured as net income (loss) before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is measured as EBITDA adjusted for share-based compensation and unusual items not representative of ongoing business performance such as patent litigation expense. Working capital (or also referred to as net current assets/liabilities) for Cleantek is calculated as current assets less current liabilities per the statement of financial position. These items are not defined and have no standardized meaning under IFRS. Presenting these items from period to period provides management and investors with the ability to evaluate earnings trends more readily in comparison with prior periods' results. Please see "Non-IFRS Measurements" for further discussion of these items, and where applicable, reconciliations to measures calculated in accordance with IFRS.

(2) Total non-current debt includes the non-current portions of long-term debt and lease liabilities.

Selected financial and operation information is outlined below and should be read in conjunction with Cleantek's unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A") for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About Cleantek

Cleantek is a clean energy technology company focused on ESG accretive technology solutions with operations across North America. Cleantek has developed and commercialized its patented wastewater dehydration technology, the ZeroE, which it rents to its customers for use at gas processing facilities and on drilling rigs focused on hydro-sustainability. Cleantek's ZeroE technology separates wastewater into (i) clean water which is evaporated and returned to the natural hydrological cycle and (ii) concentrated brine which is disposed of using traditional means. The ZeroE technology is powered by the waste heat generated from the engine exhaust of gas plants and drilling rigs. Complimenting Cleantek's ZeroE technology is the suit of low carbon LED lighting systems containing our patented Solar Hybrid lighting systems and HALO Crown mounted lighting systems.

NON-IFRS MEASUREMENTS

Cleantek uses certain financial measures to quantify its results that are not prescribed by IFRS. The following terms: "EBITDA", "adjusted EBITDA", "working capital" and "non-current debt" are not recognized measures under IFRS and may not be comparable to that reported by other companies. Cleantek believes that, in addition to measures prepared in accordance with IFRS, the non-IFRS measurements provide useful information to evaluate the Company's performance and ability to generate cash, profitability and meet financial commitments.

These non-IFRS measures ae intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.

EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA

Management considers EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA key metrics in analyzing operational performance and the Company's ability to generate cash flow. EBITDA is measured as net income (loss) before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization as differences in accounting treatments may distort our core business results. Adjusted EBITDA is measured as EBITDA adjusted for certain non-cash items, including share-based compensation as well as unusual items not representative of ongoing business performance such as patent litigation expense.

The following table provides a reconciliation of the non-IFRS measures, EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA, to the applicable IFRS measurements for Cleantek:





Three months ended

March 31 (Canadian $000's)









2023 2022 Net income (loss)









180 (734) Depreciation and amortization









551 924 Finance costs, net









381 264 EBITDA









1,112 454 Share-based compensation









71 148 Patent litigation expense









- 558 Adjusted EBITDA









1,184 1,160

Working capital

Working capital (or also referred to as net current assets/liabilities) for Cleantek is calculated as current assets less current liabilities per the statement of financial position. The following table provides a reconciliation of working capital, a non-IFRS measure to the applicable IFRS measurements for the Company:









March 31,

December 31,

(Canadian $000's)







2023

2022 Current assets







4,325 3,774 Current liabilities







12,368 12,122 Working capital deficit







(8,043) (8,348)

Non-current debt

Management considers non-current debt in analyzing the Company's capital structure. Cleantek's capital structure consists of working capital, non-current debt and shareholders' equity. Non-current debt measures the long-term borrowings of the Company. Non-current debt for Cleantek is calculated as the non-current portions of long-term debt and lease liabilities. The following table provides a reconciliation of non-current debt, a non-IFRS measure to the applicable IFRS measurements for the Company:









March 31,

December 31,

(Canadian $000's)









2023 2022 Long-term debt - non-current portion









1,758 1,853 Lease liabilities - non-current portion









546 268 Non-current debt









2,304 2,121

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements" including, for example, statements relating to expected revenue growth and corresponding increased in profitability, potential expansion outside North America, expansion of Cleantek's fleet of sustainable lighting solutions and mobile ZeroE wastewater treatment assets, the expected deployment of Cleantek's assets, available liquidity, Cleantek's outlook for the future and near-term strategy. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown. The results or events depicted in these forward-looking statements may differ materially from actual results or events. In addition to other factors and assumptions which may be identified herein, assumptions have been made regarding and are implicit in, among other things: receipt of regulatory approvals, the state of the capital markets, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability of the Corporation to successfully manage the risks inherent in pursuing business opportunities in the oilfield services industry and outside the North American market, and the ability of the Corporation to obtain qualified staff, equipment and services in a timely and cost efficient manner to develop its business. Any forward-looking statement reflects information available to Cleantek as of the date of this news release and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Cleantek disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

Matt Gowanlock, President & Chief Executive Officer

E-mail: [email protected]

Orson Ross, Chief Financial Officer

E-mail: [email protected]

Cleantek Industries Inc.

Tel: 403-567-8700

www.cleantekinc.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166658
Dieppe, New Brunswick--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Colibri Resource Corporation (TSXV: CBI) (OTC Pink: CRUCF) ("Colibri" or the "Company") is very pleased to report the occurrence of a Soil Gas Hydrocarbon ("SGH") gold anomaly located south of the Main Zone on the Company's Evelyn-Plomo ("EP") Project located in the Caborca Gold Belt, Sonora, Mexico.

Ron Goguen, President & CEO of Colibri commented, "SGH is a soil geochemistry exploration method that has been successfully used for the detection of precious and base metal mineralization buried under glacial sediments in the Abitibi region of Quebec and Ontario. We are very pleased to have applied this method and generated such a high quality target at the Main Zone on our EP project in the Sonoran Desert. We look forward to drill testing this new target with the hopes of expanding the Main Zone and plan to continue evaluating the SGH method as a tool for future exploration on the EP project."

Illustration 1 - SGH Gold Survey at Evelyn

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/166586_c172f3c034f29b05_001full.jpg

Main Zone and SGH Survey

The Main Zone mineralization occurs as a north-northeast striking and moderately easterly dipping quartz vein that is discontinuously exposed on surface over a strike length of approximately 120 m. The quartz vein pinches and swells along the strike length on surface reaching a maximum exposed thickness of approximately 1.5 m. Grab samples from surface exposures of the vein have returned assay values of 43.9 g/t Au and 40.1 g/t Au. Previous drilling has intersected similarly high-grade mineralization and includes 12.19 g/t Au over an intersection length of 3 m. Mineralization in both the hanging wall and footwall of the Main Zone vein includes multiple quartz vein intersections and low to locally moderate grade Au assay values in chlorite-sericite-carbonate-pyrite altered host rocks. Wider intersections of mineralization at the Main Zone include: 0.47 g/t Au over an intersection length of 29 m, 0.28 g/t Au over an intersection of 34.7 m (including 1 g/t Au over 5.65 m), and 0.17 g/t Au over an intersection length of 86 m (including 0.55 g/t Au over 10 m). To the south, the Main Zone is projected under an apron of colluvium derived from the higher terrain to the east.

The SGH soil sample grid was laid-out to explore the interpreted Main Zone vein projection and consisted of 110 soil samples collected at 25m stations along 100 m spaced lines (see figure 1). The interpretation of the SGH data includes two anomalous areas on the SGH Gold Pathfinder Class Map, Predicted Gold Mineralization domains with a SGH signature rating of 5 out of a possible 6 , and a Redox zone coincident with the SGH gold anomalies. The northern most grid line and resulting anomaly overlies the exposed Main Zone, whereas the remaining southern lines and the resulting anomaly is located in an undrilled area over colluvium. Collectively, these interpreted features indicate a robust SGH response with a high degree of confidence that it is indicative of blind mineralization underlying the southern SGH gold anomaly.

About SGH

SGH is a deep penetrating geochemical exploration method that involves the analysis of surficial samples from over potential (buried) mineral or petroleum targets. The analysis involves the testing for 162 hydrocarbon compounds in the C5-C17 carbon series range applicable to a wide variety of sample types. Samples are collected over the target in a systematic manner such as the sample grid employed on the EP project. Analysis and interpretation of the results has been completed at Activation Laboratories Inc. ("Actabs") located in Ancaster, Ontario. Actlabs has developed an in-depth understanding of the unique SGH signatures associated with different metals, deposit types, and commodity targets. Using a forensic approach based on scientific research, orientation surveys over known (buried) mineralization, and the results of a high number of exploration projects, Actlabs has developed commodity target signatures, or templates, for identification and interpretation of analytical results. The results and interpretation of the SGH survey reported here have been summarized from the interpretation report provided to the Company by Actlabs.

QUALIFIED PERSON

Jamie Lavigne, P. Geo and a Director for Colibri is a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information in this press release.

ABOUT COLIBRI RESOURCE CORPORATION:

Colibri is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company listed on the TSX-V (CBI) and is focused on acquiring and exploring prospective gold & silver properties in Mexico. The Company holds seven high potential precious metal projects of which six have planned exploration programs for calendar 2023.

For more information about all Company projects please visit: www.colibriresource.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be accurate.

For information contact: Ronald J. Goguen, President, Chairperson and Director, Tel: (506) 383-4274, [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166586
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - Le 18 mai/May 2023) - Effective immediately, Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. will be reinstated for trading.

The Company has rectified the situation that gave rise to the suspension.

_________________________________

 compter d'aujourd'hui, Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. sera reintegre a la negociation.

La Societe a rectifie la situation qui a donne lieu a la suspension.

Date : Le 18 mai/May 2023 Symbol(s)/Symbole(s) : RWB

If you have any questions or require further information please contact Listings at (416) 367-7340 or E-mail: [email protected].

Si vous avez des questions ou si vous avez besoin d'informations supplementaires, veuillez contacter le service des inscriptions au 416 367-7340 ou par courriel ladresse: [email protected].
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Delivra Health Brands Inc. (TSXV: DHB) (OTCQB: DHBUF) ("Delivra Health" or the "Company"), a consumer packaged goods leader uniquely positioned in the health and wellness sector, is pleased to announce it will report its quarterly financial results for the three and nine months ending March 31, 2023, on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

Conference Call Details

The Company will host a conference call on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. (EST) / 8:00 a.m. (PST) to discuss the financial results for the three and nine months ending March 31, 2023. Gord Davey, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Jack Tasse, Chief Financial Officer of the Company will be conducting a question-and-answer session following management's prepared remarks.

Participant Dial-In Numbers:

All interested parties can join the conference call by dialing: 1-800-319-4610 (Canada/USA Toll Free) or +1-604-638-5340 (International Toll). Please dial in 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time and ask to join the Delivra Health Brands call. A replay of the call will be available on the Company's investor page by the end of the business day on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

About Delivra Health Brands Inc.

Helping people take control of their health with alternative wellness solutions is what energizes the Delivra Health team! The Delivra Health portfolio features innovative brands like Dream Water" and LivRelief", which deliver relief from common everyday issues like chronic pain, anxiety, and sleeplessness. Delivra Health products have allowed millions of customers to reclaim their mobility, energy, and in turn, quality of life. The websites of the Company's two subsidiaries are /Dream Water" and /LivReliefTM. For more information, please visit www.delivrahealthbrands.com.

Investor Relations:

Jack Tasse

Chief Financial Officer

[email protected]

1-877-915-7934

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166645
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Fjordland Exploration Inc. (TSXV: FEX) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received promising results from a scoping level metallurgical evaluation of the graphite potential at its Renzy Project located northwest of Maniwaki Quebec.

In early 2023, Fjordland engaged SGS Minerals Lakefield to test a representative graphite sample on drill core derived from its 2022 drill program. The primary objectives of the testing were to develop a preliminary understanding of the metallurgical response of the mineralization and to characterize the graphite concentrate in terms of flake size distribution and total carbon grade of different size fractions. After the third floatation test (F3), the 6th cleaner concentrate grade was 95.6% C(t) with a total carbon recovery of 94.2%. This high concentrate grade was achieved with polishing only, which suggests that the impurities are attached to the surface of the flakes rather intercalated. The flake size distributions of the sample classify the product as relatively coarse with 55% of the concentrate mass reporting to the +100 mesh size fractions. Only 5.1% of the total concentrate mass reported to the very small flake sizes of minus 325 mesh.

James Tuer, Fjordland's President commented, "I'm very encouraged by this early metallurgical testing on the graphite intercepts from our last drill program at Renzy. In order to decide whether further graphite work was warranted, we wanted to make sure that there was good potential for generating a high-grade concentrate. This now appears to be the case and we are looking at expanding the program along the 8km long geophysical signature that's coincident with the graphitic drill intercepts."

The final 2 holes of the 2022 Renzy drill program tested portions of a long surface anomaly referred to as the "S-Conductor" located 6km south-east of the old Renzy mine. The anomaly coincides with a wide zone of graphite mineralization tested by drill holes RZ-22-06 and RZ-22-07 that intersected 34m and 55m core lengths and averaged 0.9% and 0.7% carbon, respectively. Higher grades occurred within the intercepts and the head grade for the metallurgical test measured 1.57% total carbon.

Table 1 : Size x Size Assays on F3 6thCleaner Concentrate

Size Weight Assay % Distribution Fraction g % % C(t) C(t) 32 mesh 0.3 0.6 98.2 0.6 48 mesh 6.6 12.2 98.1 12.7 65 mesh 9.9 18.3 96.1 18.6 80 mesh 6.5 12.0 95.5 12.1 100 mesh 6.2 11.5 95.1 11.5 150 mesh 11.2 20.7 93.4 20.5 200 mesh 6.6 12.2 92.6 12.0 325 mesh 3.9 7.2 92.3 7.0 400 mesh 1.2 2.2 93.6 2.2 -400 mesh 1.6 3.0 91.1 2.9 Total Concentrate 54 100 94.7 100 (calculated)

SGS Lakefield reported that in order to evaluate the quality of the cleaner concentrates with regards to flake size distribution and total carbon grade of the various size fractions, the final cleaner concentrates from F2 and F3 were submitted for a size fraction analysis. The mass distribution and total carbon grades of the various concentrate size fractions from F3 are depicted in Table 1. There is a trend of higher grade flakes in the coarser fractions, reaching >98% C(t) in the +32 mesh fraction down to ~91% C(t) in the finest -400 mesh fraction. All fractions at +100 mesh or coarser (the classified mesh size for many graphite commercial processing plants) achieved >95% C(t), which is often considered an acceptable flake grade target. Approximately 55% of the concentrate mass was in the +100 mesh fractions, indicating fairly coarse flakes are present in the deposit.

Based on these preliminary results, the Company will concentrate on exploring for locations along the S-Conductor where higher grades may occur. The ultimate value of a graphite deposit is a function of grade and the coarseness of the concentrate grade. Coarser higher grade graphite material, generally referred to as Jumbo Flake, commands significantly higher prices compared with finer concentrates. With the recent announcements regarding the introduction of Electric Vehicle battery manufacturing facilities being built in Bcancour, Quebec. Fjordland believes it is a good position participate in this growth should an economic deposit be developed.

Quality assurance/quality control

Fjordland's 2022 Renzy drill program was managed by Equity Exploration Consultants Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C., which provided qualified Quebec-registered geoscience professionals. For graphite samples, graphitic C was determined by digesting sample in 50 per cent HCl to evolve carbonate as carbon dioxide. Residue is filtered, washed, dried and then roasted at 425 C. The roasted residue is analyzed for carbon by oxidation, induction furnace and infrared spectroscopy (C-IR18). ALS Minerals' analytical laboratory in North Vancouver completed the analysis. Full QA/QC statements can be found in press release dated October 24, 2022. Metallurgical work reported herein was completed by SGS Lakefield in Lakefield Ontario.

About Fjordland Exploration Inc.

Fjordland Exploration Inc. is a mineral exploration company that is focused on the discovery of large-scale economic metal deposits in Canada.

In collaboration with Commander Resources Ltd., Fjordland is exploring the SVB "Pants Lake Intrusive" target which is in a geologic setting analogous to the nearby nickel-cobalt-copper Voisey's Bay deposit. Fjordland has earned a 75% interest in the project.

Fjordland, owns a 100% interest in the Renzy nickel-project located near Maniwaki, Quebec. The project encompasses the former Renzy Mine where, during the period from 1969 to 1972, 716,000 short tons were mined with average grades of 0.70% nickel and 0.72% copper. Fjordland has staked additional claims to increase the size of the project to 530 sq. km.

As well, Fjordland has two copper-gold properties in the Quesnel Trough of central British Columbia, The West Milligan copper-gold project is a joint venture with Northwest Copper Corp. located within 4 km of Centerra's Mount Milligan copper-gold mine. The 103 sq. km. Witch copper-gold project is located another 35 km west of the Milligan mine.

Robert Cameron, PGeo, is a qualified person within the context of National Instrument 43-101 and has read and takes responsibility for the technical aspects of this release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"James Tuer"

James Tuer, CEO

For further information:

James Tuer

Ph: 604-688-3415

[email protected]

www.fjordlandex.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain forward-looking statements or information. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this news release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the private placement, and other future plans and objectives of the Company are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's plans or expectations include market prices, general economic, market or business conditions, regulatory changes, timeliness of government or regulatory approvals and other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulators. The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166522
Gross Proceeds of up to $2,000,000 to Be Used to Expand the Mineable Resource at Bradshaw Gold Deposit

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Gowest Gold Ltd. (TSXV: GWA)("Gowest" or the "Corporation") announced today a proposed non-brokered private placement of up to 11,111,111 flow-through units of the Corporation (the "FT Units"), at a price of $0.18 per FT Unit, for gross proceeds of up to $2,000,000 (the "Offering"). Each FT Unit will be comprised of one common share and one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"), issued on a flow-through basis, with each Warrant being exercisable to acquire one additional common share of the Corporation at a price of $0.24 for a period of 24 months following the closing date of the Offering. The common shares underlying the Warrants will not be issued as flow-through shares.

The gross proceeds of the Offering will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" as defined in subsection 66.1(6) of the Income Tax Act (Canada)(the "Tax Act"), and renounced to subscribers under the Offering with an effective date no later than December 31, 2023. Such Canadian exploration expenses will also qualify as "flow-through mining expenditures" as defined in subsection 127(9) of the Tax Act.

More specifically, it is anticipated that the gross proceeds from the Offering will be used to expand the mineable resource at the Corporation's 100% owned Bradshaw Gold Deposit ("Bradshaw"), as well as to further test other parts of the Corporation's North Timmins Gold Project ("NTGP") area where notable gold has previously been intercepted. The latter includes both the Roussain Gold Zone, located approximately two kilometers northeast of Bradshaw, and the Sheridan Gold Zone, located just west of Bradshaw.

Dan Gagnon, President and Chief Executive Officer of Gowest, said, "While we continue to aggressively accelerate Bradshaw's restart, we will be using the funds from this flow-through financing with the intention of increasing our gold resource at both the mine and at other parts of our large and highly prospective NTGP area. As we have previously reported, the results of earlier drilling have convinced us that the Bradshaw deposit extends beyond the currently defined outline in new areas adjacent to the existing underground infrastructure. Our objective is there to identify additional gold resources and reserves at the deposit. Earlier drilling has also intercepted good grades and widths of gold at both the Roussain and Sheridan zones, where we continue to see the potential to develop additional resources in the future."

It is anticipated that the closing of the Offering will occur on or about June 15, 2023; provided however, the Offering may be completed with one or more tranches (including after such date). The closing of the Offering is subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Corporation anticipates that certain officers and/or directors of the Corporation may participate in the Offering. Participation by insiders in the Offering will be exempt from the valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101") by virtue of the exemptions contained in Sections 5.5(a) and (b), and 5.7(1)(a), respectively, of MI 61-101.

Further, subject to compliance with the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities legislation, the Corporation may pay a finder's fee in connection with the Offering equal to up to 8.0% of the gross proceeds received from the sale of shares sold to subscribers introduced to the Corporation by the finder.

All of the securities issued or issuable pursuant to the Offering will be subject to a hold period in Canada expiring four months and one day after the date of issuance.

All dollar amounts referred to in this press release are in Canadian Dollars, except where expressly indicated otherwise.

The securities offered pursuant to the Offering have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements. This release does not constitute an offer for the sale of securities in the United States.

About Gowest

Gowest is a Canadian gold exploration and development company focused on the delineation and development of its 100% owned Bradshaw Gold Deposit (Bradshaw) on the Frankfield Property, part of the Corporation's North Timmins Gold Project (NTGP). Gowest is exploring additional gold targets on its +100squarekilometre NTGP land package and continues to evaluate the area, which is part of the prolific Timmins, Ontario gold camp. Currently, Bradshaw contains a National Instrument 43101 Indicated Resource estimated at 2.1 million tonnes ("t") grading 6.19 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) containing 422 thousand ounces (oz) Au and an Inferred Resource of 3.6 million t grading 6.47 g/t Au containing 755 thousand oz Au. Further, based on the PreFeasibility Study produced by Stantec Mining and announced on June 9, 2015, Bradshaw contains Mineral Reserves (Mineral Resources are inclusive of Mineral Reserves) in the probable category, using a 3 g/t Au cutoff and utilizing a gold price of US$1,200 / oz, totaling 1.8 million t grading 4.82 g/t Au for 277 thousand oz Au.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this news release and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Corporation disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

For further information please contact:

Dan Gagnon

President & CEO

Tel: (416) 363-1210

Email: [email protected]

Greg Taylor

Investor Relations

Tel: (416) 605-5120

Email: [email protected]

Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for dissemination in the United States

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166521
NAIROBI, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Kenya and Singapore on Thursday signed three Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) on information and communications technology (ICT), climate change and skills development to help boost bilateral ties between the two countries.

Kenyan President William Ruto and visiting Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong witnessed the signing of the three MoUs during bilateral talks held in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, according to a statement issued by the Kenyan presidency.

The ICT agreement will facilitate cooperation on cyber security, digitization of government services and ICT capacity building, Ruto said.

He noted that the MoU on skills development will facilitate collaboration in human resource capacity building for civil servants and students.

Lee noted that the signing of a climate change pact will build a collective action to deal with the "greatest existential threat to mankind."

"Our ties have been growing. We will further this by pursuing more economic opportunities that will stimulate our shared prosperity," Lee said.

Later at a joint press conference, Ruto said his country will consider Singapore's strategic location in South East Asia as a gateway for its products to enter regional markets.

Ruto said the move is guided by the government's commitment to expanding market access for its agricultural produce. 
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Heliostar Metals Limited (TSXV: HSTR) (OTC Pink: HSTXF) (FSE: RGG1) ("Heliostar" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has appointed Samuel Anderson as Vice President of Projects.

Heliostar CEO, Charles Funk commented, "Mr Anderson has significant development experience with Newmont Mining. He took multiple projects through the same steps we are undertaking at Ana Paula. Sam will lead the re-scoping of Ana Paula over the next six months. He will lead delivery of the required drilling programs, resource model updates, and engineering and metallurgical studies that we believe will unlock significant value from an underground mine at Ana Paula."

VP Projects, Samuel Anderson commented, "Ana Paula is an exciting project because of the multiple pathways that exist to improve the economics of mining the deposit. We see potential for benefits to come from resource growth, mining methodology and metallurgy. I look forward to leading the key studies that will underpin a future mine at Ana Paula. Ultimately, I look forward to seeing Ana Paula as a profitable, producing gold mine."

Samuel Anderson has 23 years of experience in development, construction, and production environments including a 17-year career with Newmont Corporation. At Newmont he held positions of successively greater responsibility including Ore Control and Geologic Modeling Geologist at the Twin Creeks Mine in Nevada and Mine Geology Superintendent at the Merian Mine in Suriname.

As Superintendent of the Merian Mine, Sam built strong interdepartmental relationships to execute a wide variety of projects during the development and studies, construction, and steady state operation phases of the mine. Merian was completed under budget and ahead of schedule with gold reconciliation performing well. During his time the reserves at the mine increased from 1 million ounces to greater than 6 million ounces of gold.

Sam holds a Master of Science Degree in Finance from the University of Arizona and a Masters of Science Degree in Geology from the University of Idaho.

Exploration Update

Drilling at Ana Paula is progressing well with five holes completed to date. The first three holes have targeted infill areas where the company believes it has the potential to increase the total ounces and potentially the local grade compared to the existing resource.

Holes four and five are growth targets above the High Grade Panel. The drill rig will next move to test the up-dip growth target.

Drilling is ahead of schedule and first results are expected before the end of May.

Investor Relations

The Company is pleased to announce that it has retained the services of Swiss Resource Capital AG ("SRC") to undertake European focused investor relations activities on behalf of the company. SRC is an independent arms-length entity based in Switzerland who will introduce the Company to its European investor network by recording, translating, broadcasting, and disseminating on its digital platform's news, articles, interviews, and webinars. Under the terms of the Agreement, the Company will compensate SRC 3,500 Euro per month for a 12-month term.

Statement of Qualified Person

Stewart Harris, P.Geo., a Qualified Person, as such term is defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"), has reviewed the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release and has approved the disclosure herein. Historical information contained in this news release cannot be relied upon as Stewart Harris has not prepared nor verified such information.

About Heliostar Metals Ltd.

Heliostar is a junior mining company with a portfolio of advanced high-grade gold projects in Mexico and Alaska.

The Company is focused on developing the 100% owned Ana Paula Project in Guerrero, Mexico. In addition, Heliostar is working with the Mexican government to permit the San Antonio Gold Project in Baja Sur, Mexico. The Company continues efforts to expand the resource at the Unga Gold Project in Alaska, United States of America.

The Ana Paula Project deposit contains proven and probable mineral reserves of 1,081,000 ounces of gold at 2.38 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold and 2,547,000 ounces of silver at 5.61 g/t silver. Ana Paula hosts measured and indicated resources of 1,468,800 ounces of gold at 2.16 g/t gold and 3,600,000 ounces of silver at 5.3 g/t silver. The asset is permitted for open-pit mining and contains significant existing infrastructure including a portal and a 412 metre long decline.

San Antonio is a high-grade oxide gold deposit containing measured and indicated mineral resources of 1,735,000 ounces of gold at 0.83 g/t gold. A Preliminary Economic Assessment for Argonaut Gold was completed in 2012.

Unga is an advanced vein district containing the SH-1 gold deposit within a large, prospective vein field. SH-1 contains inferred minerals resources of 384,00 ounces of gold at 13.8 g/t gold.

Sources

Heliostar Metals Limited, Ana Paula Gold Project NI 43-101 Technical Report Preliminary Feasibility Study Update with effective date 28 February 2023.

For additional information please contact:

Charles Funk

Chief Executive Officer

Heliostar Metals Limited

Email: [email protected]

Rob Grey

Investor Relations Manager

Heliostar Metals Limited

Email: [email protected]

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains forwardlooking information which is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those projected in the forwardlooking statements. Forward looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding delivery of the required drilling programs, resource model updates, engineering and metallurgical studies that we believe will unlock significant value from an underground mine at Ana Paula, potential for benefits to come from resource growth, mining methodology and metallurgy. I look forward to leading the key studies that will underpin a future mine at Ana Paula. Ultimately, I look forward to seeing Ana Paula as a profitable, producing gold mine. These forwardlooking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forwardlooking information. Risks that could change or prevent these statements from coming to fruition include, but are not limited to, general business, economic and social uncertainties; litigation, legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; and other risks outside of the Company's control. Further, labour shortages, high energy costs, inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, the global financial climate and the conflict in Ukraine and surrounding regions are some additional factors that are affecting current economic conditions and increasing economic uncertainty, which may impact the Company's operating performance, financial position, and future prospects. Collectively, the potential impacts of this economic environment pose risks that are currently indescribable and immeasurable. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and, accordingly, are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty of such statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and, unless required by applicable law, the Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166569
Presentation on Tuesday, June 6 at 3:00 PM PT

Los Angeles, California--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - IGC Pharma, Inc. (NYSE American: IGC) announced today that it will be presenting at the 13th Annual LD Micro Invitational at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel, California June 6th-8th, 2023. The event is expected to feature 150+ companies, presenting in half-hour increments, as well as private one-on-one meetings.

IGC Pharma is scheduled to present on Tuesday, June 6 at 3:00 pm PT. Ram Mukunda, CEO, and Claudia Grimaldi, PFO, will be leading the presentation.

We invite interested parties to register to watch the presentation virtually here.

About IGC Pharma, Inc.

IGC Pharma (dba IGC) develops advanced cannabinoid-based formulations for treating diseases and conditions, including, but not limited to, Alzheimer's disease, period cramps ("dysmenorrhea"), premenstrual syndrome ("PMS") and chronic pain. IGC has two investigational drug assets targeting Alzheimer's disease, IGC-AD1 and TGR-63, which have demonstrated in Alzheimer's cell lines the potential to be effective in suppressing or ameliorating key hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease, such as plaques or tangles. IGC-AD1 is a low-dose tetrahydrocannabinol ("THC") based formulation that is currently in a 146-person Phase 2 clinical trial for agitation in dementia due to Alzheimer's (clinicaltrials.gov, NCT05543681). IGC also markets a wellness brand, Holief", that targets women experiencing premenstrual syndrome and menstrual cramps.

About LD Micro

LD Micro, a wholly owned subsidiary of Freedom US Markets, was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the micro-cap space. Whether it is the Index, comprehensive data, or hosting the most significant events annually, LD's sole mission is to serve as an invaluable asset for all those interested in finding the next generation of great companies. For more information on LD Micro, visit www.ldmicro.com.

To present or register, please get in touch with [email protected]

To learn more about Freedom US Markets, visit www.freedomusmkts.com

For further information on IGC Pharma, Inc.

IMS Investor Relations

Walter Frank

[email protected]

(203) 972-9200

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166568
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Independence Gold Corp. (TSXV: IGO) (OTCQB: IEGCF) (the "Company" or "Independence") is pleased to announce additional assay results from its recently completed 4,000 metre ("m") winter drill program at its 100% owned 3Ts Project, located approximately 185 kilometres ("km") southwest of Prince George, British Columbia and situated 16 km southwest of Artemis Gold Inc.'s Blackwater Project.

The winter drill program was designed to test exploration targets outside of the known Tommy vein system, as well as to infill significant gaps within historical drilling of the Tommy vein system which were highlighted in the 2022 resource model. The combined in-pit and underground components of the Tommy and Ted-Mint vein systems contain a total inferred resource estimate of 4,469,297 tonnes grading 3.64 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold and 96.26 g/t silver, at a cut-off grade of 0.4 g/t gold equivalent ("AuEq") in-pit and 2.0 g/t AuEq underground, containing 522,330 ounces of gold and 13,831,415 ounces of silver (see news release dated August 18th 2022).

Drill holes 3TS-23-07, 3TS-23-08 and 3TS-23-10 targeted the central section Tommy vein within its currently known 1,075m strike length, and within the pit shell modelled by SGS Geological Services ("SGS"). A total of 13 drill holes were selected to target the pit in this current program in order to increase the resource model. These three holes were collared at 50m spacing along a north-south line. 3TS-23-13 was collared 130m south-southeast from 3TS-23-10 and tested for the continuity of the southern extension of the vein. The Tommy vein system remains open along strike and at depth.

Please refer to the website for a map showing the veins and drill hole locations.

Drill Hole Host Rock From

(m) To

(m) Drill

Intercept

(m)* Gold

(g/t) Silver

(g/t) 3TS-23-07 Quartz Veins,

Rhyolite Breccia 62.50 72.50 10.00 4.69 73.70 including 70.00 72.00 2.00 11.34 94.00 3TS-23-08 Quartz Veins,

Rhyolite Breccia 59.90 62.90 3.00 6.35 39.33 and 70.00 71.00 1.00 1.53 - 3TS-23-10 Quartz Veins,

Rhyolite Breccia 56.00 71.00 15.00 6.32 94.07 Including 67.50 69.00 1.50 26.36 274.67 3TS-23-13 Quartz Veins,

Rhyolite Breccia 128.50 140.00 11.50 7.72 172.85 including 134.50 137.50 3.00 16.63 232.00



*the true widths of the veins are approximately 85% of the reported interval width

**Using a cut-off grade of 0.4 g/t gold as per the resource estimate for "in-pit" grades

Ian and Johnny Veins

Drilling also targeted the Ian Vein and the Johnny veins, both of which are located 185m and 585m to the west of the Tommy vein system respectively. These veins were first discovered from historical trenching in the late 1990's. A total of three holes targeted the Ian Vein and a further two holes in the Johnny Vein, several of which have intersected significant quartz veining, up to 27m intercepts. Results are pending for all five holes and are expected to be completed in the coming weeks. Both the Ian and Johnny veins are open along strike and at depth. Please refer to the website for a map showing the veins and drill hole locations.

Update on the Current Drill Program

The drill program commenced at the 3Ts Project on March 7th, 2023, and will be completed during the last week of May, with a total of 4,000m of drill core recovered from 33 drill holes. Results are being released as they arrive from the lab and may be out of sequential order due to varying submission dates after logging and sample preparation times.

All drill holes completed to date have been sent to SGS in Vancouver for sample preparation and analysis. Robotic sample preparation is used to ensure reproducibility; samples are pulverized to greater than 85% passing 75 microns. All samples are submitted for four acid digest with an ICP finish. Gold grades are obtained by fire assay with AAS finish. Samples which return greater than 10 parts per million gold and 100 parts per million silver are resubmitted for fire assay with a gravimetric finish.

The 3Ts Project is comprised of fifteen mineral claims covering approximately 5,200 hectares in the Nechako Plateau region of central British Columbia. The 3Ts Project covers an epithermal quartz- carbonate vein system within which more than a dozen individual mineralized veins, ranging from 50 m to more than 900 m and true widths up to 25m, have been identified.

About Independence

Independence Gold Corp. is a mineral exploration company with holdings ranging from early-stage grassroots exploration to advanced-stage resource expansion in British Columbia and Yukon. The Company is positioned to add shareholder value through systematic project advancement, while management continues to evaluate additional gold and silver projects for possible acquisition. For additional information, visit the Company's website www.ingold.ca.

Andy Randell, P.Geo., the Company's Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed the technical information in this news release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF INDEPENDENCE GOLD CORP.

"Randy Turner"

Randy Turner, President and CEO

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" with respect to Independence within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements with respect to the Company's planned drilling and exploration activities. The Company provides forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those identified and reported in Independence's public filings under Independence Gold Corp.'s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although Independence has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Independence disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.

Suite 580 625 Howe, Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 2T6

Telephone: 604-687-3959

Facsimile: 604-687-1448

E-Mail: [email protected]



To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166516
Sudbury, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Magna Mining Inc. (TSXV: NICU) ("Magna" or the "Company") is pleased to announce additional assays results from the ongoing diamond drilling program at Crean Hill. Results include assays from five drillholes completed on the G1 Zone, a narrow embayment structure at the Sudbury Igneous Complex ("SIC") contact, approximately 1000 metres east of the Crean Hill Main Zone (See news release dated February 23, 2023), and one additional drillhole targeting the 109 Footwall ("109 FW") Zone.

Highlights from the new assay results include:

G1 Zone (MCR-23-014): 1.0% Ni, 0.8 % Cu, 0.2 g/t Pt + Pd + Au over 5.2 metres

109 FW Zone (MCR-23-019): 0.2% Ni, 0.3 % Cu, 8.0 g/t Pt + Pd + Au over 28.4 metres

G1 Zone

The G1 Zone exploration drilling was targeted based on historical drillhole LM01800, which was drilled beneath a mineralized outcrop at surface, and was not previously followed up with subsequent drilling. Magna drillholes MCR-23-014 to MCR-22-18 were designed to define the plunge of the mineralization, and intersected a narrow zone of Ni-Cu mineralization from surface to the 65m level. Nickel and copper grades within the G1 zones are generally consistent with SIC contact mineralization at the historically mined Crean Hill deposit, approximately 1000m west of the G1 Zone. The G1 Zone remains open down-plunge.

109 FW Zone

Drillhole MCR-23-019 was drilled within the 109 FW Zone to better define the true width of the mineralized breccia. The hole intersected 0.2% Ni, 0.3% Cu, 8.0 g/t Pt + Pd + Au over 28.4 metres, confirming the presence of high grade PGM 's in this section of breccia in the 109 FW Zone. Previously released drillholes in the 109 FW Zone (MCR-22-010 and MCR-23-013) intersected an overall mineralized zone grading 0.4% Ni, 0.5% Cu, 7.2 g/t Pt + Pd + Au over 98.3 metres and 0.2% Ni, 0.6% Cu, and 11.0 g/t Pt + Pd + Au over 95.4 metres, respectively. Both of these holes were drilled down the plunge of the breccia to better understand the distribution and continuity of high grade veins in this area. These results are not incorporated into the current Mineral Resource Estimate.

The location of the diamond drilling is illustrated in Figures 1 & 2, and assay results are summarized in Table 1.

Dave King, SVP Technical Services, stated: "These results are encouraging, and the information provided allows our exploration team to develop a better understanding of the geological controls on the property. Although these results are not as exceptional as some of our previous results, we are extremely pleased to continue to intersect not only high grade PGM's in the 109 FW Zone, but to start to define a new zone of near-surface mineralization elsewhere on the property which is open below 65 metres from surface. The Crean Hill deposit was historically mined to depths below 1400 metres, so we have a large area below these intersections to explore. We have identified another exploration target further to the east of G1, which we call the G2 target, and drilling has been initiated on the G2 target as well. The exploration potential of the Crean Hill property is quite exceptional."

Exploration Update

The Company currently has two diamond drill rigs operating at Crean Hill since mobilizing a second drill rig in early April. This year to date, there have been 47 drillholes completed for 8,145 metres of drilling, with the results of 9 holes reported to date from the 2023 drilling program. Of 4,966 samples sent for analytical analysis year to date, approximately 2,124 assays currently outstanding and will continue to be released as they are received. Magna currently anticipates completing a total of 15,000 to 18,000m of drilling at Crean Hill in 2023.

A third drill rig will be commencing a 5,000 metre program at the Company's Shakespeare Mine in mid-June. The objective of the 2023 exploration at Shakespeare will be to follow up on the 2022 exploration holes that identified a potential feeder system for the Shakespeare deposit, and test other high priority targets that have been identified at depth adjacent to the Shakespeare deposit. Both the Crean Hill and Shakespeare drilling programs are fully funded for 2023.

Figure 1: Plan View of Denison Surface Geology Showing the Location of the East Embayment and G1 and G2 target areas.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8002/166564_14779424d46968d6_002full.jpg

Figure 2: Vertical Section with the 109 Footwall Zone Showing the Location of Drillhole MCR-23-019

(see Figure 1 for location of section)

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8002/166564_14779424d46968d6_003full.jpg

Table 1: Summary of Drilling Assay Results

Drillhole Zone From

(m) To

(m) Length

(m)

Ni

%

Cu

% Co

% Pt

g/t Pd

g/t Au

g/t TPM

g/t NiEq MCR-23-014 G1 13.77 48.28 34.51 0.39 0.39 0.02 0.04 0.04 0.06 0.15 0.61

including

13.77 19.00 5.23 1.02 0.76 0.06 0.03 0.07 0.11 0.20 1.46

including

45.93 48.28 2.35 0.74 0.33 0.04 0.18 0.15 0.03 0.35 1.00 MCR-23-015 G1 No significant values MCR-23-16 G1 0.65 4.42 3.77 0.31 0.18 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.02 0.12 0.44 MCR-23-17 G1 28.80 31.16 2.36 0.43 0.43 0.02 0.02 0.06 0.05 0.12 0.67

and

54.13 66.78 12.65 0.46 0.31 0.02 0.10 0.03 0.03 0.17 0.65

Including

62.20 66.78 4.58 0.86 0.27 0.04 0.14 0.05 0.01 0.20 1.07 MCR-23-18 G1 No significant values MCR-23-19 109FW 116.59 144.95 28.36 0.15 0.30 0.00 4.53 2.04 1.41 7.99 1.59





All lengths are downhole length.

NiEq % = ( (Ni% x 2204 x Ni Price $/lb) + (Cu% x 96% Recovery x 2204 x Cu Price $/lb) + (Co% x 56% Recovery x 2204 x Co Price $/lb) + (Pt gpt x 69% Recovery / 31.1035 x Pt $/oz) +(Pd gpt x 68% Recovery / 31.1035 x Pd $/oz) + (Au gpt x 68% Recovery / 31.1035 x Au $/oz))/2204 x Ni $/lb

Table 2: Drillhole Collar Coordinates.

BHID Easting Northing Elevation Azimuth Dip Depth (m) MCR-23-014 474200 5141966 300 220 60 150 MCR-23-015 474200 5141966 300 202 46 94 MCR-23-016 474200 5141966 300 241 46 75 MCR-23-017 474200 5141966 300 154 80 75 MCR-23-018 474200 5141966 300 175 55 71 MCR-23-019 473169 5141743 308 299 46 200

*Drillhole Coordinates are in coordinate system NAD 83 Zone 17

Qualified Person

The technical information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by David King, M.Sc., P.Geo. Mr. King is the Senior Vice President, Technical Services for Magna Mining Inc. and is a qualified person under Canadian National Instrument 43-101.

QA/QC

Sample QA/QC procedures for Magna have been designed to meet or exceed industry standards. Drill core is collected from the diamond drill and placed in sealed core trays for transport to Magna's core facilities. The core is then logged, and samples marked in intervals of up to 1.5m and cut with a diamond saw. Samples are then bagged in plastic bags with 10 bagged samples being placed into rice bags for transport to Swastika Laboratories in Kirkland Lake Ontario via Ontario Northland Bus services. Samples are submitted in batches of 50 with 5 QA/QC samples including, 2 certified reference material standards, 2 samples of blank material and 1 duplicate.

About Magna Mining Inc.

Magna Mining is an exploration and development company focused on nickel, copper and PGM projects in the Sudbury Region of Ontario, Canada. The Company's flagship assets are the past producing Shakespeare and Crean Hill Mines. The Shakespeare Mine is a feasibility stage project which has major permits for the construction of a 4,500 tonne per day open pit mine, processing plant and tailings storage facility and is surrounded by a contiguous 180km2 prospective land package. Crean Hill is a past producing nickel, copper and PGM mine with an updated technical report dated August 2022. Additional information about the Company is available on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) and on the Company's website (www.magnamining.com).

For further information, please contact:

Jason Jessup

Chief Executive Officer

or

Paul Fowler, CFA

Senior Vice President

Email: [email protected]

Cautionary Statement

This press release contains certain forward-looking information or forward-looking statements as defined in applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are subject to several risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control, including statements regarding the production at the Shakespeare and Crean HIll Mines, the economic and operational potential of the Shakespeare and Crean Hill Mines, potential acquisitions, plans to complete exploration programs, potential mineralization, exploration results and statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations, or intentions of the Company. Resource exploration and development is highly speculative, characterized by several significant risks, which even a combination of careful evaluation, experience and knowledge may not eliminate. All forward-looking statements herein are qualified by this cautionary statement. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information or future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166564
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Maple Gold Mines Ltd. (TSXV: MGM) (OTCQB: MGMLF) (FSE: M3G) ("Maple Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update regarding property-wide volcanogenic massive sulfide ("VMS") targeting and plans for a summer field program at the Douay and Joutel Gold Projects ("Douay" and "Joutel", respectively) located in Qubec, Canada, which are held by a 50/50 joint venture (the "JV") between the Company and Agnico Eagle Mines Limited. The Company is also planning VMS exploration work at its 100%-owned Morris Project ("Morris") located approximately 30 kilometres ("km") east of the town of Matagami in Morris Township, Quebec.

The JV's primary focus remains on testing resource expansion targets at Douay and testing prospective near-mine extension targets in the Telbel mine area at Joutel. However, the Douay and Joutel projects each have demonstrated potential for gold and base metals VMS mineralization, as is illustrated by a series of targets previously defined by field mapping and geophysical surveying across the combined 400 km property package (see news from July 19, 2022). Under the terms of the JV agreement, the partners agreed to jointly fund C$500,000 in exploration on VMS targets on the western portion of Douay (see news from February 3, 2021).

Summary of VMS-focused exploration and corporate initiatives:

The Company's mapping, sampling and top of bedrock drilling during 2018 identified six (6) priority target areas for potential base metals and gold-rich VMS mineralization (see press release November 14, 2018).

The Company subsequently appointed Dr. Gerald Riverin, a recognized VMS expert with 40+ years of experience in the Abitibi Greenstone belt, to its board of directors and Technical Advisory Committee (see news from June 9, 2020).

In late 2021, the JV consolidated two (2) inlier claim blocks covering 22 claims and 12.3 km of ground in the central portion of Douay in an area deemed prospective for zinc and copper mineralization (see news from October 19, 2021).

Also in 2021, the Company acquired 100% of Morris and completed preliminary ground geophysics and lithogeochemical sampling. In 2022 and 2023, the Company completed deep penetrating pulse electromagnetic ("PEM") surveys that outlined a 3 km long conductive zone adjacent to a favorable rhyolite unit.

In 2022, the JV completed a regional airborne magnetic and electromagnetic ("Mag-EM") survey to support exploration drill targeting, which identified 55 targets within four (4) primary target areas prospective for pyritic gold and VMS mineralization (see news from July 19, 2022). After geophysical review, sixteen (16) of these targets were selected for priority follow-up (see Figure 1).

In 2023, the Company appointed Paul Harbidge, CEO of Faraday Copper Corp., an emerging U.S. copper developer, to its Technical Advisory Committee to further strengthen the Company's technical group and support gold and base metals exploration (see news from February 7, 2023).

The JV has recently hired Dr. Marina Schofield, an expert in volcanology, structural geology and VMS systems, to lead the Company's VMS exploration efforts.

"We have methodically built a pipeline of prospective gold and base metals VMS targets across the large >400 km Douay-Joutel property package and have expanded our technical expertise in order to systematically evaluate and advance a VMS-focused exploration program," stated Matthew Hornor, President and CEO of Maple Gold. "The past-producing high-grade Estrades zinc-gold mine is located just over 11 km to the west of Douay-Joutel and the same geologic horizon that hosted that mine appears to continue onto the western portion of the Douay property. Further to the southeast, historical regional exploration drilling along the Joutel Deformation Zone, east of the historical Eagle-Telbel deposits, has also returned anomalous zinc and gold values. We look forward to completing further cost-effective field work this summer to bring the highest priority VMS discovery targets to a drill-ready stage."

VMS Targets and Associated 2023 Summer Exploration Plans:





Figure 1:Geology base map highlighting VMS and VMS-like base metal mines and deposits in the region and copper-zinc showings.



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3077/166582_final%20fig%201%20may%2018.png





The Douay-Joutel property straddles the Casa Berardi Deformation Zone, which is geologically underlain, from south to north, by predominantly intermediate to felsic tuffs of the Joutel-Raymond Grp, the basinal sediments of the Harricana Grp and the predominantly mafic volcanic sequence forming the Cartwright Hills Grp, followed by further basinal sediments of the Taibi Grp. Although the geological model for Eagle-Telbel is still evolving, gold mineralization was associated with mixed sedimentary and pyroclastic horizons hosting abundant iron carbonate and semi-massive sulfide (pyrite) at the top of the volcanic package that hosts the past-producing Joutel/Poirier VMS mining camp. The main VMS target horizons occur laterally along the Eagle-Telbel Mine Horizon, as well as along multiple interflow horizons within The Cartwright Hills Grp, which include the interpreted eastern extension of the Estrades horizons.









Figure 2:Gold, VMS and base metal target areas in the greater Joutel area (same legend as Fig 1).



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3077/166582_final%20fig%202%20may%2018.png

The Joutel Targets (see Figure 2 above) include several EM anomalies within ~2-5 km of the historical Eagle, Telbel and Eagle West deposits that have very limited drilling. These deposits are associated with the Harricana and Joutel Deformation Zones and appear as discrete conductive zones aligned along a well-defined northwest trend. The Mag-EM survey indicates possible similar structures extending more than 9 km further to the east in this area where historical drilling intersected anomalous gold ("Au") and zinc ("Zn") in several holes. Hole M-94-078 (also known as McClure 93-2 showing) intersected 0.81% Zn over 0.6 metres ("m"); hole JO-12-05 intersected6.1 g/t Au over 1.5 m, as well as 0.55% Zn over 4 m further downhole, including 0.88% Zn over 1m.

Planned work to advance VMS targets at Douay and Joutel is expected to include compilation of existing data, including review of historical drill logs, followed by field work including lithogeochemistry and initial follow-up ground EM surveys to support bringing highest priority VMS target areas towards a drill ready stage.

Separately, planned work at Morris is expected to include detailed lithogeochemical sampling to establish the full extent of strong VMS related hydrothermal alteration identified in 2021 and identify promising portions of the 3 km long conductor identified by ground geophysics in 2022 and 2023 (see Figure 3). Morris is located approximately 30 km east of the Matagami VMS mining camp and hosts the Watson Lake rhyolite unit which forms the footwall of all the VMS mines at Matagami.





Figure 3:100% owned Morris claims with geology and geophysics compilation. Favorable alteration is highlighted by higher Riverindex values.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3077/166582_a96d77c1043a2814_003full.jpg

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical data contained in this press release was reviewed and prepared under the supervision of Fred Speidel, M. Sc., P. Geo., Vice-President Exploration of Maple Gold. Mr. Speidel is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Speidel has verified the data related to the exploration information disclosed in this press release through his direct participation in the work.

About Maple Gold

Maple Gold Mines Ltd. is a Canadian advanced exploration company in a 50/50 joint venture with Agnico Eagle Mines Limited to jointly advance the district-scale Douay and Joutel gold projects located in Quebec's prolific Abitibi Greenstone Gold Belt. The projects benefit from exceptional infrastructure access and boast ~400 km2 of highly prospective ground including an established gold resource at Douay (SLR 2022) that holds significant expansion potential as well as the past-producing Eagle, Telbel and Eagle West mines at Joutel. In addition, the Company holds an exclusive option to acquire 100% of the Eagle Mine Property.

The district-scale property package also hosts a significant number of regional exploration targets along a 55 km strike length of the Casa Berardi Deformation Zone that have yet to be tested through drilling, making the project ripe for new gold and polymetallic discoveries. The Company is well capitalized and is currently focused on carrying out exploration and drill programs to grow resources and make new discoveries to establish an exciting new gold district in the heart of the Abitibi. For more information, please visit www.maplegoldmines.com.

ON BEHALF OF MAPLE GOLD MINES LTD.

"Matthew Hornor"

B. Matthew Hornor, President & CEO

For Further Information Please Contact:

Mr. Joness Lang

Executive Vice-President

Cell: 778.686.6836

Email: [email protected]

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS PRESS RELEASE.

Forward Looking Statements:

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively referred to as "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation in Canada, including statements about exploration work and results from current and future work programs. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions, uncertainties and management's best estimate of future events. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations and projections. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to Maple Gold Mines Ltd.'s filings with Canadian securities regulators available on www.sedar.com or the Company's website at www.maplegoldmines.com. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166582
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - OBSIDIAN ENERGY LTD. (TSX: OBE) (NYSE American: OBE) ("Obsidian Energy", the "Company", "we", "us" or "our") is pleased to provide an update on the status of temporarily shut-in operations due to the impact of recent Alberta wildfires.

The wildfire activity has largely decreased in the Pembina area at this time. As a result, the majority of our Pembina fields that remained shut-in due to evacuation orders or for precautionary measures were restarted on the morning of Wednesday, March 17th, restoring an additional 6,600 boe/d of production on top of the 2,500 boe/d previously brought online. Combined, Pembina now has approximately 9,100 boe/d of light oil-weighted production restored.

With changing weather conditions, the Harmon Valley South field in Peace River was once again taken offline as a precautionary measure. Approximately 5,500 boe/d of heavy oil in Peace River and approximately 1,900 boe/d of light oil weighted production in Pembina is shut-in for a total of 7,400 boe/d curtailed across the two areas due to wildfires. To our knowledge, there has been no damage to the Company's key assets or infrastructure.

The Company will continue to closely monitor the situation as it evolves and provide an update when appropriate as the protection and safety of our people, local communities, and the environment are of the highest priority. With changing winds and weather conditions, we will continue to adjust our plans accordingly to protect our people and the communities and maintain as much business continuity as possible. We are relieved that most of our employees and their families that were affected by evacuation orders have been able to return safely to their homes, and thank our staff, industry partners and emergency responders for their ongoing and tireless work to protect our communities.

ADDITIONAL READER ADVISORIES

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained in this document constitute forward-looking statements or information (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of the "safe harbour" provisions of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "budget", "may", "will", "project", "could", "plan", "intend", "should", "believe", "outlook", "objective", "aim", "potential", "target" and similar words suggesting future events or future performance. In particular, this document contains forward-looking statements pertaining to, without limitation, the following: that we will continue to monitor the situation and provide an update when appropriate; and that we will continue to adjust our plans accordingly to protect our people and the communities and maintain as much business continuity as possible.

With respect to forward-looking statements contained in this document, the Company has made assumptions regarding, among other things: our ability to restart production; that there has been no damage to key assets and infrastructure; that we are able to monitor the situation by getting accurate and timely information; our ability to execute our plans as described herein and in our other disclosure documents and the impact that the successful execution of such plans will have on our Company and our stakeholders; our ability to execute our capital programs as planned without significant adverse impacts from various factors beyond our control, including extreme weather events, such as wildfires and flooding, infrastructure access and delays in obtaining regulatory approvals and third party consents; our ability to conduct an investigation to better understand the situation; and our ability to obtain equipment and staffing in a timely manner to carry out plans and the costs thereof.

Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements contained in this document, and the assumptions on which such forward-looking statements are made, are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements included in this document, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which the forward-looking statements are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties that contribute to the possibility that the forward-looking statements contained herein will not be correct, which may cause our actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any estimates or projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things: whether the Company will receive timely and accurate information regarding the wildfires; that there is damage to the Company's key assets and infrastructure; that production will be shut-in longer than expected or have to be shut-in again as wildfires return; whether the Company is in compliance with all regulatory requirements; the possibility that we change our 2023 capital plans in response to internal and external factors, including those described herein; the possibility that the Company will not be able to continue to successfully execute our business plans and strategies in part or in full, and the possibility that some or all of the benefits that the Company anticipates will accrue to our Company and our stakeholders as a result of the successful execution of such plans and strategies do not materialize; and unanticipated operating events or environmental events outside these wildfires that can reduce production or cause production to be shut-in or delayed (including extreme cold during winter months, wildfires and flooding in other areas). Additional information on these and other factors that could affect Obsidian Energy, or its operations or financial results, are included in the Company's Annual Information Form (See "Risk Factors" and "Forward-Looking Statements" therein) which may be accessed through the SEDAR website (www.sedar.com), EDGAR website (www.sec.gov) or Obsidian Energy's website. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive.

Unless otherwise specified, the forward-looking statements contained in this document speak only as of the date of this document. Except as expressly required by applicable securities laws, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this document are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Obsidian Energy shares are listed on both the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada and the NYSE American in the United States under the symbol "OBE".

All figures are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated.

CONTACT

OBSIDIAN ENERGY

Suite 200, 207 - 9th Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta T2P 1K3

Phone: 403-777-2500

Toll Free: 1-866-693-2707

Website: www.obsidianenergy.com;

Investor Relations:

Toll Free: 1-888-770-2633

E-mail: [email protected]

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166705
The Customer will license the Company's high-margin software offering, 'Plurilock AI'

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Plurilock Security Inc. (TSXV: PLUR) (OTCQB: PLCKF) and related subsidiaries ("Plurilock" or the "Company"), an identity-centric cybersecurity solutions provider for workforces, is pleased to announce that the Company has received a sale order for its flagship software platform, 'Plurilock AI' with an overseas utility infrastructure developer (the "Customer").

The Customer's portfolio which includes projects that are completed and under development, covers over 10,000 kilometres of power transmission lines across two countries. According to the terms of the contract, the Customer will license the cloud security functionality of the Plurilock AI platform, which includes Single Sign-On, Access Control Management, Password Policy and Self-Password Reset.

"We are pleased to announce a sale order for our high-margin AI-driven software with a new customer," said Ian L. Paterson, CEO of Plurilock. "The utility sector is, unfortunately, a popular target for cybercriminals, and we see a growing demand for advanced zero-trust technology in this space. Overall, this order highlights our commitment to further expand our sales pipeline across different key industries."

About Plurilock

Plurilock provides identity-centric cybersecurity for today's workforces. The Plurilock family of companies enables organizations to operate safely and securely while reducing cybersecurity friction. Plurilock offers world-class IT and cybersecurity solutions through its Solutions Division, paired with proprietary, AI-driven and cloud-friendly security through its Technology Division. Together, the Plurilock family of companies delivers persistent identity assurance with unmatched ease of use.

For more information, visit https://www.plurilock.com or contact:

Ian L. Paterson

Chief Executive Officer

[email protected]

416.800.1566

Prit Singh

Investor Relations

[email protected]

905.510.7636

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") related to future events or Plurilock's future business, operations, and financial performance and condition. Forward-looking statements normally contain words like "will", "intend", "anticipate", "could", "should", "may", "might", "expect", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "potential", "project", "assume", "contemplate", "believe", "shall", "scheduled", and similar terms. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, actions, or developments and are based on expectations, assumptions, and other factors that management currently believes are relevant, reasonable, and appropriate in the circumstances. Although management believes that the forward-looking statements herein are reasonable, actual results could be substantially different due to the risks and uncertainties associated with and inherent to Plurilock's business. Additional material risks and uncertainties applicable to the forward-looking statements herein include, without limitation, the impact of general economic conditions, the success of the Company in obtaining new or extended contracts or orders; the Company's ability to maintain existing customers or develop new customers; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquisitions of other businesses and/or companies or to realize on the anticipated benefits thereof; and unforeseen events, developments, or factors causing any of the aforesaid expectations, assumptions, and other factors ultimately being inaccurate or irrelevant. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect the Company's forward-looking statements. Many of these factors are beyond the control of Plurilock. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as at the date hereof, and Plurilock undertakes no obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in its most recent Annual Information Form. They are otherwise disclosed in its filings with securities regulatory authorities available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166562
Hole# WL003 intersected 0.49 g/t Pt+Pd over 10.50m from 14m downhole, and

Hole# WL004 intersected 0.46 g/t Pt+Pd over 14.40m from 5.60m downhole

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Prospector Metals Corp.(TSXV:PPP)(OTCQB:PMCOF)(FSE:1ET0) ("Prospector" or the "Company")is pleased to announce diamond drill results from the Company's 100% owned district scale Whitton Ni-Cu-PGE Project covering 4,400 ha (44 km2) located 20 km north of Impala Canada's Lac des Iles platinum group elements ("PGE"), Ni-Cu Mine, Ontario. The 2023 maiden drill program consisted of four NQ-sized diamond drillholes totaling 826.40m to test the Roadcut Pt-Pd target and the Whitton Ni-Cu sulphide target.

Roadcut Discovery Drilling Highlights

Two drill holes totaling 245.67m were completed at the Roadcut target, where sampling by Prospector in 2021 identified anomalous Pt and Pd surface / outcrop mineralization within a previously unrecognized and unmapped mafic intrusive complex, now known as the "Roadcut Complex."

The two Roadcut holes were spaced approximately 100m apart, were completed to test the anomalous surface Pt and Pd results located on the northwestern margin of the Roadcut Complex. (Figure 1-3). Both drill holes returned significant intervals: 23WL003: 0.49 g/t Pt+Pd over 10.50m from 14m, and 23WL004: 0.46 g/t Pt+Pd over 14.40m from 5.60m (Table 1). Initial interpretations suggest the holes intersected a single, continuous zone associated with a non-magnetic gabbroic border phase of the Roadcut Complex. These are the first ever drill holes at Roadcut and mineralization is open along trend and at depth.

Initial interpretations suggest the holes intersected a single, continuous zone associated with a non-magnetic gabbroic border phase of the Roadcut Complex. These are the first ever drill holes at Roadcut and mineralization is open along trend and at depth. Prospector currently has field crews mobilized back to the Roadcut area in order to expand the surface expression of the mineralized zone and define further drill targets. Crews are also conducting property-wide evaluations to possibly identify additional mafic complexes similar to Roadcut. The mineralised zone comprises fine- to locally medium-grained gabbro to melanogabbro containing pervasive trace to locally 0.5% extremely fine-grained (0.1 to 0.2 mm) "pin-point" sized disseminated sulphides, including pyrrhotite and subordinate chalcopyrite. Both intersections display relatively consistent grades for both Pd and Pt (see Table 1) and there are no significant spikes or "nuggety" assays. The highest Pd concentrations may correlate approximately with subtle slightly more foliated zones within the gabbro.

The generally massive equigranular nature of the gabbro, commonly with unoriented tabular pyroxene crystals, makes it difficult to assess the true width of the mineralised zone at this time, but if the relatively uncommon feldspathic zones represent some sort of primary magmatic zoning or fabric, then since they most commonly cut across the core at nearly right angles, the mineralized zone may be dipping approximately 50 degrees west and may, speculatively based on this evidence, be close to true width.

Dr. Rob Carpenter, Co-Chairman of Prospector stated stated: "The maiden drill program at Roadcut successfully intersected a previously unknown and highly anomalous Pt+Pd bearing altered and mineralized gabbro; an encouraging positive step forward for a project that has seen little systematic exploration in the past. We are eager to resume prospecting to expand this exciting new discovery."





Figure 1. Drillhole location map

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Table 1. Summary of Roadcut diamond drill holes and significant composite drill assay results

Hole ID Easting Northing Azimuth Dip From

(m) To

(m) Width (m) Pt (ppm) Pd (ppm) Pt+Pd (ppm) 23WL003 322612 5472409 132.98 -48.32 14.00 24.50 10.50 0.26 0.23 0.49 inc. 14.00 15.00 1.00 0.1435 0.0930 0.2365 inc. 15.00 16.00 1.00 0.3150 0.2060 0.5210 inc. 16.00 17.00 1.00 0.2360 0.2740 0.5100 inc. 17.00 17.80 0.80 0.1608 0.2776 0.4384 inc. 17.80 18.70 0.90 0.2286 0.3762 0.6048 inc. 18.70 19.60 0.90 0.2790 0.3888 0.6678 inc. 19.60 20.60 1.00 0.2930 0.3270 0.6200 inc. 20.60 21.60 1.00 0.3010 0.2150 0.5160 inc. 21.60 22.50 0.90 0.2871 0.1314 0.4185 inc. 22.50 23.50 1.00 0.2940 0.1040 0.3980 inc. 23.50 24.50 1.00 0.1840 0.0550 0.2390 23WL004 322609 5472329 131.86 -50.23 5.60 20.00 14.40 0.23 0.23 0.46 inc. 5.60 6.50 0.90 0.2853 0.1764 0.4617 inc. 6.50 7.50 1.00 0.27 0.2500 0.5200 inc. 7.05 8.50 1.00 0.182 0.2690 0.4510 inc. 8.50 9.40 0.90 0.16245 0.2637 0.4262 inc. 9.40 9.90 0.50 0.1125 0.1960 0.3085 inc. 9.90 10.90 1.00 0.158 0.3170 0.4750 inc. 10.90 11.90 1.00 0.0769 0.1650 0.2419 inc. 11.90 12.90 1.00 0.269 0.3810 0.6500 inc. 12.90 13.95 1.05 0.2562 0.2772 0.5334 inc. 13.95 15.00 1.05 0.3213 0.2846 0.6059 inc. 15.00 16.00 1.00 0.264 0.1900 0.4540 inc. 16.00 17.00 1.00 0.271 0.1560 0.4270 inc. 17.00 18.00 1.00 0.232 0.1070 0.3390 inc. 18.00 19.00 1.00 0.281 0.1240 0.4050 inc. 19.00 20.00 1.00 0.207 0.0880 0.2950





* Pt and Pd assays are reported in length weighted values.

* True widths of the new exploration intercepts reported in this press release have yet to be determined but are estimated to be 70% to 90% of reported core lengths.

*All Coordinates are NAD83 Zone 16.





Figure 2. Plan map of Roadcut PGE Prospect

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Figure 3. Sections Cross Sections 23WL003 and 004

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Whitton Conductor Drilling Highlights

At Whitton, two drill holes totalling 580.73m were completed to test the Whitton geophysical conductor (Figure 1). No significant metal values were intersected in these holes (Table 2).

Additional analysis of the results will be ongoing to ensure the Whitton conductor was adequately tested.

Table 2. Summary of Whitton diamond drillholes

Hole ID Grid Easting Northing Azimuth Dip From

(m) To

(m) Pt (g/t) Pd (g/t) Pt+Pd (g/t) Width (m) 23WL001 Whitton 318645 5469326 149.87 -43.89 No significant intervals 23WL002 Whitton 319781 5469664 139.99 -45.79 No significant intervals





*All Coordinates are NAD83 Zone 16.

Whitton Project Geology Overview

Whitton Project (formerly known as Heaven Lake Project) is a 100% owned district scale Ni-Cu-PGE Project covering 4,400 ha (44 km2) located 20 km north of Impala Canada's Lac des Iles platinum group elements ("PGE"), Ni-Cu Mine, Ontario. The property covers the Heaven Lake Greenstone Belt, accessed via a main provincial highway and an extensive network of forestry roads that cut through the claim block. There has been no recorded staking activity since early 2000's with only sporadic work for Zn-Cu-Ag (1970's-1990's) and Ni-Cu-PGE (2000-2002), and no previously recorded gold exploration despite favorable geological setting and nearby mine complex.

Whitton represents a unique setting for VMS base metal, mafic magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE and lode gold within overlapping rock types and structural sites with multiple major zones along a NE trend, that are favorable trends for syn-volcanic VMS mineralization, MUM intrusions with Ni-Cu-(PGE) sulfides, and development of shear zones hosting lode gold deposits. All three of these possibilities are evident from the mapped geology and aeromagnetics. Robust geophysical targets from modelled 2021 VTEM conductors are ready to drill, for both MUM hosted Ni-Cu-PGE sulfides at the Whitton target and for syn-volcanic VMS deposits in the Syncline target in the southwestern portion of the claim block.

Whitton Ni-Cu-PGE Project Highlights

Road accessible project located within 20 km of Impala's operating Lac des Iles platinum-palladium-nickel-copper mine.

The presence of low-grade, yet significantly anomalous Ni-Cu-PGE values in rocks with less than 5% total sulphide (disseminated) suggests that rocks with massive sulphide concentrations could yield much higher metal values.

Modeling of the VTEM survey conducted in 2021 defined strong, steeply dipping, linear conductors.

Subsequent 2021 prospecting and mapping successfully confirmed the presence of sulphidic mafic-ultramafic intrusive rocks, locally anomalous in Ni, Cu, and Pt-Pd (Figure 1).

A multi-year exploration permit was issued at the beginning of April 2022.

Sampling and QA/QC Discussion

The Company has implemented a quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) program to ensure sampling and analysis of all exploration work is conducted in accordance with the National Instrument 43-101 and industry best practices.

Core samples were logged and processed by company geologists at the Bayside Geoscience Inc. facility in Thunder Bay. Ontario. All drilling recovered NQ core. Drill core was spit in half using a diamond saw. A geologist examined the drill core and marked out the intervals to be sampled and then drew a cutting line. Sample lengths were mostly 1.0 meter and adjusted to respect lithological and/or mineralogical contacts and isolate narrow (

All NQ split core assays reported were obtained by both 30g Ore grade Pt, Pd and Au by fire assay and ICP-AES, and 48 Multi-Element Ultra Trace method combining a four-acid digestion with ICP-MS instrumentation at ALS Global in Thunder Bay, Ontario. ALS is an ISO/IEC17025 accredited laboratory. Assays are uncut, and calculated intervals are reported over a minimum length of 0.25 meters using a lower cutoff of 0.2 Pt+Pd.

A rotation of certified standards, coarse and pulp blanks were inserted into the sample stream every 10 samples and after samples with high sulphide content. In addition, a duplicate sample (quarter core) was inserted every 20 samples. The company QA/QC, as well as the laboratory inserted standards, blanks, and duplicates were monitored closely upon receiving assay certificates from the laboratory. No issues with respect to the QA/QC of assays have been detected to date.

Qualified Person

The technical content disclosed in this press release was reviewed and approved by Jo Price, P.Geo., M.Sc., MBA, VP Exploration of Prospector, and a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument NI 43-101 ("NI 43-101").

About Prospector Metals Corp.

Prospector Metals Corp. is a Discovery Group Company with a business model focussed on district scale, early-stage exploration of gold and base metal prospects and create shareholder value through new discoveries. The Company's focus is to identify underexplored or overlooked mineral districts which display important structural and mineralogical similarities with well-endowed mining camps. The majority of the projects acquired by Prospector occur in Ontario, Canada, which is a tier-1 mining jurisdiction with abundant overlooked geological regions with high mineral potential. Prospector engages proactively with local and Indigenous rightsholders and seeks to develop relationships and agreements that are mutually beneficial to all stakeholders.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Prospector Metals Corp.

Alex Heath, CFA

President & CEO

For further information about Prospector Metals Corp. or this news release, please visit our website at prospectormetalscorp.com or contact Alex Heath at 604-354-2491 or by email at [email protected].

Prospector Metals Corp. is a proud member of Discovery Group. For more information please visit: discoverygroup.ca.

Forward-Looking Statement Cautions:

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, including, but not limited to, statements regarding the Company's plans with respect to the Company's projects and the timing related thereto, the merits of the Company's projects, the Company's objectives, plans and strategies, and other project opportunities. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective,", "strategy", "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include the risk of accidents and other risks associated with mineral exploration operations, the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, or the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other agency or governmental clearances, necessary to carry out the Company's exploration plans, risks and uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal changes in the jurisdictions where the Company carries on its business that might interfere with the Company's business and prospects. The reader is urged to refer to the Company's reports, publicly available through the Canadian Securities Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166476
Pomona, California--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - Shipping1, a leading overseas freight forwarding service provider, is celebrating its 10th anniversary of providing comprehensive Less Than Truckload (LTL) services in the United States. Over the past decade, Shipping1 has grown from humble beginnings to collaborating with hundreds of trucking companies, offering shipping solutions for its diverse clientele across China and the US.

Shipping1

Founded by Kevin Ng from the ground up, Shipping1 has experienced remarkable growth, now serving over 1,300 clients. During this time, the company expanded its service portfolio to encompass air, ocean, and ground freight services. They offer international and domestic air import/export, documentation, consular licensing, customs brokerage services, packing and crating, door-to-door delivery, high-value cargo, hot rushes, oversized cargo, and charters and ATA Carnets.

According to Kevin Ng, the success of Shipping1 in the industry can be attributed to the company's commitment to providing an extensive array of services, including LTL and Full Truck Load (FTL). "By offering a one-stop solution for all shipping needs, Shipping1 ensures that clients receive personalized service tailored to their specific requirements," states Ng.

Additionally, Shipping1's commitment to enhancing the client experience is evident through its ancillary services, which include cargo insurance, customs documentation, fulfillment, pick & pack, distribution, and courier services. The company is also renowned for its expertise in Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC) documentation, Bills of Lading (BOL), warehousing and inventory management, risk assessment, and international payment management.

As Shipping1 commemorates this significant milestone, the company looks ahead to a future of sustained growth and innovation, with an unwavering dedication to providing the highest quality services to its esteemed clients.

About Shipping1

Shipping1 is a leading overseas freight forwarding service provider based in Pomona, CA. Founded in 2013 by Kevin Ng, the company has become a prominent player in the LTL freight forwarding industry, collaborating with hundreds of trucking companies to provide seamless shipping solutions for its clients in China and the US. With a focus on personalized service and a comprehensive range of shipping options, Shipping1 is committed to ensuring the timely and efficient delivery of packages for its diverse clientele. Shipping1's extensive service offerings include air, ocean, and ground freight services, as well as ancillary services such as cargo insurance, customs documentation, fulfillment, pick & pack, distribution, and courier services. Shipping1 Inc. is an excellent value-for-money solution to any company's logistical needs.

Contact details

Joe Law

[email protected]

(800) 935-6857

1783 W 2nd St, Pomona, CA 91766

shipping1.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166580
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 18, 2023) - The BC Bud Corporation (CSE: BCBC) (OTCQB: BCBCF) ("The BC Bud Co." or the "Company"), a house of high-quality cannabis brands based out of British Columbia, Canada, is proud to announce the launch of six new products, including two live hash rosin budders, two live hash rosin-infused BCBC flower PR strains, a Mosambi Live Hash Rosin Vape Cart, and Alaskan Thunder F (ATF) 2 x 1 g a pre roll flower SKU.

The BC Bud Co. has partnered with Cedar Organics, a Vancouver Island-based outdoor trichome cultivator and live concentrate producer, and their partner Common Roots Extracts, an offshoot of Synthite Industries, one of the world's largest botanical extraction companies, to create a full range of both solvent and solvent-free live concentrate products and formulations for direct delivery and provincial distribution.

"After years of hard learning experiences, we are beyond happy to see our live concentrates getting onto to BC store shelves with a brand that shares our commitment to quality. Together, we will deliver a full range of artisanal solvent-free products that are the purest and most true-to-plant cannabis concentrates available," said Greg Kasting, Founder and General Manager of Cedar Organics. "Cedar's entire team proudly stands behind these products, and the quality of the products will speak for themselves."

"We are thrilled to enter these unique products into our home province, BC, as it's a key strategy for The B.C. Bud Co.'s brand growth," said Josh Taylor, President of The B.C. Bud Co. "Over time, we aim to bring these new products to consumers in additional provincial markets and let them experience the quality of The B.C. Bud Co. We are excited to continue to innovate and bring new and valuable products to the cannabis market."

The two live hash rosin dab products, Mosambi Live Hash Rosin and Narang Tang Live Hash Rosin, are produced using traditional solventless techniques and are handcrafted from Cedar Organics' premium sun-grown cannabis.

The two live hash rosin-infused BCBC flower PR strains, Mosambi Live Hash Rosin Infused BCBC Flower PR and Narang Tang Live Hash Rosin Infused BCBC Flower PR, provide a potent and flavorful experience. These strains are perfect for those who are looking for a more intense cannabis experience.

The Mosambi Live Hash Rosin Vape Cart is a convenient and discreet way to consume this high-quality product. Made with 100% pure, full-spectrum cannabis extract, this vape cart delivers a smooth and flavorful experience for the premium cannabis category.

Finally, the BCBC is proud to launch their Alaskan Thunder F (ATF) 2 x 1g flower SKU into the BCLDB, a classic sativa cultivar well known from the legacy market.

About The B.C. Bud Co.

The B.C. Bud Co. is a house of brands created by industry professionals who are passionate about the user experience.

For more information, please visit www.thebcbc.com

Investor Relations:

Phone: 1-(778)-656-0377

Email: [email protected]

Web: www.thebcbc.com

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements included in this press release constitute forward-looking information or statements (collectively, "forward-looking statements"), including those identified by the expressions "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "should" and similar expressions to the extent they relate to the Company or its management. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect current expectations regarding future results or events. This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and various estimates, factors and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors.

Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions which are difficult to predict. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include failure to obtain regulatory approval, the continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions, including the effects of COVID-19. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the statements will prove to be accurate or that management's expectations or estimates of future developments, circumstances or results will materialize. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by law. Readers should not place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/166653
The Turkish lira hit a record low of 19.70 against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday as the presidential election is heading to a runoff on May 28 after Sunday's inconclusive vote.
The Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act would expand the Dog and Cat Meat Prohibition Act passed in the 2018 Farm Bill to include equines, permanently protecting American horses from slaughter

WASHINGTON , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As equine enthusiasts celebrate Adopt a Horse Month this May, a bipartisan group of federal lawmakers has reintroduced the Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act  federal legislation that would permanently protect American horses from commercial slaughter. This legislation would expand the Dog and Cat Meat Prohibition Act  which passed as part of the 2018 Farm Bill  to include equines, prohibit the commercial slaughter of horses in the U.S. , and end their export for that purpose abroad.

Sponsored in the House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), the SAFE Act is supported by leading animal welfare groups, including the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), the Humane Society of the United States, the Humane Society Legislative Fund, and Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation. The SAFE Act has also received strong support from industry groups, including The Jockey Club, the U.S. Trotting Association, the Stronach Group, the Breeders' Cup, the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, The Jockeys' Guild, the New York Racing Association, Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, and the Maryland Horse Council. Last year, these organizations partnered with animal welfare groups to form the "Final Stretch Alliance to End Horse Slaughter," a collaborative effort urging federal lawmakers to pass a permanent ban on slaughter.

"The slaughter of horses for human consumption is a barbaric practice that has no place in America," Rep. Buchanan said. "As co-chairman of the Animal Protection Caucus, I look forward to continuing to lead the effort with Congresswoman Schakowsky to protect these majestic creatures."

Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky said, "Horses have a special place in our nation's history and in many Americans' hearts. They embody the spirit of America, and it is time to end the brutal and dangerous practice of slaughtering these creatures for human consumption. I have championed this issue for many years, and I am so proud to partner with Congressman Vern Buchanan to reintroduce the SAFE Act once again. Our bipartisan bill would amend the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 to prohibit the slaughter of equines for human consumption. Horses are not raised for human consumption. As a proud animal lover, we owe it to our horse companions to protect their welfare."

"More than 80 percent of Americans oppose horse slaughter for human consumption, and despite robust partnerships between the equine industry and animal welfare groups to support rehoming horses, a legal loophole still allows tens of thousands of American horses to be shipped to other countries for slaughter each year," said Nancy Perry , senior vice president of Government Relations for the ASPCA. "We are working resolutely to solve equine welfare issues on the ground, but the threat of horse slaughter contributes significant harm to industry, horse owners, and adoption organizations, and we cannot fully succeed while the slaughter pipeline remains open. By including the SAFE Act in the 2023 Farm Bill, Congress can start a new chapter for America's equines and finally end the cruel, unnecessary practice of horse slaughter."

"The horse slaughter industry has claimed the lives of millions of American horses over the last few decades, producing unsafe food, likely tainted with residues of dangerous drugs, for foreign consumers. These equines suffer incredible abuse even before they arrive at the slaughterhouse, often transported for long distances without food, water or rest, in overcrowded trailers where the animals are often seriously injured or even killed in transit," said Susan Millward , executive director and CEO of the Animal Welfare Institute. "The overwhelming majority of Americans are vociferously opposed to butchering horses for human consumption, so we are grateful to Reps. Buchanan and Schakowsky for leading the SAFE Act to spare horses from this brutal fate."

"Even one horse sent to slaughter is too many. We have been fighting horse slaughter for years not only because it disregards the special connection that humans share with horses, but also because there is simply no way to kill horses humanely in a slaughterhouse," said Kitty Block , president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. "Congress must pass the SAFE Act so no horse from the U.S. is ever subjected to a grueling trip that only ends with a terrifying and inhumane death."

"The pipeline to slaughter is an open grave for the horses it carries off, not just a terrible cruelty but a national heartache. It's time to saddle up and end their journey to hell. No animal more deserving of our kindness has ever suffered such a rotten fate," said Sara Amundson , president, Humane Society Legislative Fund. "Horse slaughter for human consumption is a ruinous policy not merely for its callous indifference to a faithful species but for its blight upon our national character. We hope that legislators in both parties will lend their support to Representatives Buchanan and Schakowsky in their efforts to pass the Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, and vote this appalling practice out of existence."

"We are grateful to Reps. Buchanan and Schakowsky for their continued, unwavering leadership," said Neda DeMayo , president of Return to Freedom. "Polls show that the vast majority of Americans find it abhorrent that any horse, wild or domestic, suffers the road to slaughter. Congress must not allow itself to be undermined by a self-serving few on a measure with overwhelming support."

Research shows that 2.3 million Americans have the interest and resources to adopt a horse, demonstrating that there are more than enough homes for the approximately 20,000 American horses who were exported for slaughter last year. America's equine adoption community is working swiftly to match the horses in their care with foster and adoptive families, increasing the number of adoptions every year. This means that every horse who might have been sent to slaughter could have a home waiting, if given the opportunity to find it. As long as the financial incentive for slaughter exists, it will continue to hamper the lifesaving efforts of rescue and welfare groups to provide humane care to equines.

The horse slaughter industry not only exploits horses who must endure grueling journeys to slaughter plants and an inhumane death, it also harms the broader equine community, including horse owners, riders, and rescues, who fear that their horses will end up in the slaughter pipeline despite their best efforts to keep them safe. Kill buyers  those who buy horses to ship to slaughter in Canada and Mexico  attend auctions and often outbid rescue groups trying to help vulnerable equines. Kill buyers have also been known to pose as good homes in response to ads from horse owners who can no longer care for their animals. Many owners are so fearful that they may even keep their horses beyond the point that they can afford basic care to prevent their animals from being sold to slaughter, causing further suffering. There is no reason to continue this abhorrent practice that 83 percent of Americans oppose.

The SAFE Act received strong bipartisan support last Congress, with more than half of the U.S. House of Representatives signing on as cosponsors and the full House voting in favor of an amendment to ban horse slaughter. Members of the public are encouraged to contact their U.S. representatives to urge them to cosponsor the SAFE Act and secure its swift passage to protect horses, their caregivers, and consumers.

About the ASPCA 

Founded in 1866, the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was the first animal welfare organization to be established in North America and today serves as the nation's leading voice for vulnerable and victimized animals. As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation with more than two million supporters nationwide, the ASPCA is committed to preventing cruelty to dogs, cats, equines, and farm animals throughout the United States . The ASPCA assists animals in need through on-the-ground disaster and cruelty interventions, behavioral rehabilitation, animal placement, legal and legislative advocacy, and the advancement of the sheltering and veterinary community through research, training, and resources. For more information, visit www.ASPCA.org, and follow the ASPCA on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

About AWI

The Animal Welfare Institute (www.awionline.org) is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to reducing animal suffering caused by people. AWI engages policymakers, scientists, industry, and the public to achieve better treatment of animals everywherein the laboratory, on the farm, in commerce, at home, and in the wild. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates and other important animal protection news.

About the HSUS

Founded in 1954, the Humane Society of the United States fights the big fights to end suffering for all animals. Together with millions of supporters, we take on puppy mills, factory farms, trophy hunts, animal testing and other cruel industries. With our affiliates, we rescue and care for tens of thousands of animals every year through our animal rescue team's work and other hands-on animal care services. We fight all forms of animal cruelty to achieve the vision behind our name: A humane society. Learn more about our work at humanesociety.org. Subscribe to Kitty Block's blog, A Humane World. Follow the HSUS Media Relations department on Twitter. Read the award-winning All Animals magazine. Listen to the Humane Voices Podcast.

About HSLF

The Humane Society Legislative Fund is a social welfare organization incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and formed in 2004 as a separate lobbying affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States. The HSLF works to pass animal protection laws at the state and federal level, to educate the public about animal protection issues, and to support humane candidates for office. Visit us on all our channels: on the web at hslf.org, on our blog at hslf.org/blog, on Facebook at facebook.com/humanelegislation and on Twitter at twitter.com/HSLegFund.

About RTF

Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation (RTF) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to wild horse preservation through sanctuary, education, conservation and advocacy since 1998. It also operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary at three California locations, caring for 500 wild horses and burros. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates about wild horses and burros on the range and at our sanctuary.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/animal-welfare-groups-commend-members-of-congress-for-reintroducing-legislation-to-end-horse-slaughter-301829070.html

SOURCE ASPCA
WASHINGTON , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A Cotton Council International (CCI)-sponsored Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture Delegation's U.S. visit from Oct. 30-Nov. 5, 2022 , coupled with indispensable efforts by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) office in Dhaka, ultimately convinced the Bangladesh government to relax its nearly-five-decade-long fumigation requirement on U.S. cotton imports.

This shift will remove a significant export barrier for U.S. cotton to Bangladesh , as well as saving Bangladeshi mills time and money as they look to the U.S. to fill their cotton fiber import needs. Bangladeshi mills have been paying over a million dollars annually to cover unnecessary fumigation costs imposed on cotton imported from the U.S.

U.S. exporters will continue to use APHIS-generated phytosanitary certificates, but under the new regulation the certificate will have additional language confirming no live boll weevils are in U.S. baled cotton. APHIS will issue revised instructions for exporters.

Bangladesh's Agricultural and Commerce Ministries' decision to lift the fumigation requirements came after six Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture delegation members joined a CCI-sponsored U.S. cotton tour coordinated with the National Cotton Council (NCC). The delegation learned why U.S. cotton bales do not harbor live boll weevils, including a review of the U.S. cotton industry's successful Boll Weevil Eradication Program and its modern cotton harvesting and standardized ginning techniques.

Bangladesh presently ranks as the No. 2 global importer of cotton, according to the USDA FAS's global market analysis in May 2023 . Although there is some domestic cotton produced in Bangladesh , it accounts for 1% or less of total demand.

Bangladesh was a Top 10 export market for U.S. cotton in 2022, with exports valued at $477.07 million (https://www.fas.usda.gov/regions/bangladesh).

Cotton Council International (CCI) is a non-profit trade association that promotes U.S. cotton fiber and manufactured cotton products around the globe with our COTTON USA Mark. Our reach extends to more than 50 countries through 20 offices around the world. With more than 65 years of experience, CCI's mission is to make U.S. cotton the preferred fiber for mills/manufacturers, brands/retailers and consumers, commanding a value-added premium that delivers profitability across the U.S. cotton industry and drives export growth of fiber, yarn and other cot ton products. For more information, visit cottonusa.org.

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SOURCE COTTON USA
BUENA PARK, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Celligence International, LLC, is a leading fintech company that assists real estate agents, brokers, loan officers, and buyers through its revolutionary empathetic A.I. program called MORGAN. Celligence is proud to announce that their CEO, Pavan Agarwal , has been awarded the Inman Best Finance Award.

The Inman Best Finance Award is given to individuals who have made significant contributions to the real estate industry through their innovative and impactful finance solutions. This award is one of the most prestigious honors in the real estate industry, and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, innovation, and impact in their field.

Pavan Agarwal has been instrumental in the success of Celligence International, LLC since its founding, and this award is a testament to his commitment to providing exceptional technological solutions in a notoriously slow industry, with outdated technology. Under his leadership, Celligence International, LLC has become one of the most innovative companies in the real estate industry.

"I am honored to receive this award from Inman," said Pavan Agarwal , CEO of Celligence International, LLC. "This award is a recognition of our team's hard work and dedication to providing the best real estate technology solutions in the market. I am proud of what we have achieved so far and excited about what the future holds for Celligence International, LLC," Agarwal explained.

Celligence International, LLC provides A.I. - powered real estate transactions that empowers buyers of all credit scores and bridges the gap in home ownership in the US. MORGAN is available 24/7 and is designed to make the stressful real estate process as stress-free as possible.

Inman is a third party organization and is not affiliated with Sun West Mortgage Company, Inc. or Celligence International, LLC.

About Sun West Mortgage Company (NMLS ID 3277):

At Sun West Mortgage Company, Inc. we dedicate ourselves to offering an amazing experience to our customers. To accomplish this, we empower our loan officers so that they can find great rates and provide the most fitting loan options for each customer  at amazing speed. Our focus on technology has given us an edge in the mortgage industry to offer exceptional turn times so the customers can get into the home of their dreams sooner!

We are committed to our core values of people, experience, technology, and product. Sun West was founded in 1980 with the perspective of "customers first" and the desire to make the mortgage process easy and stress-free for prospective homeowners. Since then, Sun West has been servicing a multi-billion-dollar loan portfolio and is licensed in 50 states, the District of Columbia , Puerto Rico , and the US Virgin Islands. Our 42 years of experience has been passed down to everyone here at Sun West through excellent leadership and capabilities.

For licensing information, go to: www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org. Visit http://www.swmc.com/swmc/disclaimer for the full list of license information. Please refer to https://www.swmc.com/TXdis to view Texas Complaint Notice and Servicing Disclosure. In all jurisdictions, the principal (main) licensed location of Sun West Mortgage Company, Inc. is 6131 Orangethorpe Avenue , Suite 500, Buena Park, CA 90620, Phone: (800) 453-7884.

About Celligence:

Celligence International, LLC. is one of the fastest growing fin-tech and A.I. companies. Celligence has engineered a novel A.I. that is evolving and self-generating neural-cells which come together to solve complex problems. The Celligence A.I. is deterministic, not merely generative, and it delivers 100% accurate and trustworthy responses, as is required for financial transactions.

At Celligence, a team of brilliant engineers are expanding the boundaries of the financial services industry through innovations in mobile applications, customer acquisition, retention algorithms, and A.I. based process automation continuously filing new patents supporting our technology.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080276/Celligence_LLC_CEO.jpg

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SOURCE Celligence LLC
BEIJING , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Xi'an, China , receives presidents from five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , and Uzbekistan , as the China-Central Asia Summit is held from Thursday to Friday. President Xi Jinping will host the summit.

This is China's first major diplomatic event that China hosts this year and is the first ever in-person summit between the leaders of China and five Central Asian countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations 31 years ago. The heads of state will not only exchange views on bilateral, multilateral, and major international and regional issues, but also sign an important political document. It can be fully expected that this summit will further deepen the political mutual trust between China and the five Central Asian countries, and promote bilateral cooperation in various fields to a new level. Not only is it a milestone in the history of the development of relations between China and Central Asian countries. It will contribute to the peace, stability and prosperity of the region. For the world, the lively scene in Xi'an also has a very positive demonstration effect.

It should be said that China and Central Asian countries have no special "innate advantages" in developing good-neighborly and friendly relations. The two sides have differences in social systems, religious cultures, etc and once faced practical constraints and challenges in their economic and security cooperation. But the two sides have successfully transcended these differences. After all, it is the strong value resonance of a shared destiny that has allowed the two sides to embark on a new path of mutual respect, good neighborliness, friendship, mutual assistance, mutual benefit and win-win outcomes, and set a model for a new type of international relations. In particular, in the turbulent and complex world situation, Central Asian countries have become more aware of the need to support each other in order to resist security risks and realize the modernization and development of their respective countries. This is highly consistent with China -proposed Global Development Initiatives, Global Security Initiatives and Global Civilization Initiative. In this sense, the holding of the China-Central Asia Summit itself is a matter of course.

The practice since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the five Central Asian countries 31 years ago has also proved that as long as we follow the right path, we will surely reap rich fruits. Central Asia was the place where the Belt and Road Initiative was launched. Now the busy China - Europe freight trains have become a landscape there. China has also been the largest or main trading partner of Central Asian countries for many years, and its trade volume has continuously hit record highs. At the same time, the cooperation between the two sides in security and other fields has also been further deepened. For example, in the process of combating extremist terrorist activities, China has carried out close cooperation with law-enforcement agencies and judiciary institutions in Central Asia . The epidemic prevention and health departments of both sides have established a cooperation platform for information sharing and joint epidemic prevention. The benefits brought by the cooperation between the two sides to these countries and people are tangible.

In recent years, the cooperation between China and Central Asian countries has been very stable, almost unaffected by geopolitical factors. The fundamental reason is that there is no geopolitical element in their cooperation. The China-Central Asia Summit is being held with confidence and openness. Cooperation between the two sides is a valuable asset for each other and the world. No matter how the international situation changes, and how much China develops in the future, China will always be a trustworthy and reliable neighbor, partner, friend, and brother to Central Asian countries. Reality has shown that the more such friendships exist, the more peace, security, cooperation, and development there will be.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/china-central-asia-summit-a-positive-demonstration-for-world-global-times-editorial-301828507.html

SOURCE Global Times
With more than 1,500 bird species registered over the weekend, the country won the bird-watching competition for the eleventh time.

MIAMI , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Colombia the second most biodiverse country in the world has 1,966 bird species, 20% of the world's total, and way more than other countries such as Peru , Brazil , Ecuador , India , and Indonesia . A few days ago, the largest birding event organized by Cornell's University Ornithology Lab occurred, reuniting scientific and amateur birdwatching communities worldwide. This contest proved, once more, why Colombia is the #1 country in bird diversity on the planet.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), emphasizes that participating in this event contributes to conserving Colombia's biodiversity and strengthening regenerative nature tourism. Julian Guerrero , Chief of the Party of Destino Naturaleza at USAID, said: "Global Big Day is a powerful citizen science tool that allows us to position Colombia and its territories as a world-class nature destination."

The regions reporting the most significant number of bird species are Antioquia, Meta, Valle del Cauca , Cundinamarca, and Caldas. So, attention nature fans, as these destinations are perfect for the incoming birdwatchers seeking the ultimate experience.

"Our natural wealth means great opportunities to continue promoting our country as an ideal destination for birdwatching, a product that meets the sustainability parameters to ensure the conservation of the species, as well as the livelihoods of the communities that depend on these meaningful activities," said Carmen Caballero , President of ProColombia. Furthermore, birdwatching promotes environmental justice through the conservation of the ecosystems; thus, this tourism type brings awareness to travelers on the protection of habitats.

Currently, Americans are the largest number of international travelers arriving in Colombia , making this country the ultimate destination of US travelers in South America ; as of today, 11 cities in the US are directly connected to 8 cities across the Colombian territory, and there are 301 air frequencies with over 52,000 seats available per week.

"Having earned this recognition seems like the perfect opportunity to invite Americans and travelers from across the globe, to visit Colombia and see by themselves the immense biodiversity and beauty of our territories," concluded Caballero.

For more information about Colombia , please visit https://birds.colombia.travel/en

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SOURCE ProColombia
Highlights

New ClearVue PV solar vision glass IGU design improvements significantly reduce fabrication and assembly time by over 90%

New ClearVue PV solar vision glass IGU design integrates seamlessly with existing industry standard production equipment

New integrated Solar Facade Solutions combines ClearVue PV glazing with ClearVue solar spandrel panels and ClearVue solar wall cladding into fully integrated energy generating building envelope

solar spandrel panels and solar wall cladding into fully integrated energy generating building envelope New Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver significantly lower costs and higher overall energy generation resulting in expected payback period, depending on territory, for a full solar facade of less than 8 years

ClearVue has patented a method to export and import power to an IGU without compromising the seal compared to a traditional IGU

has patented a method to export and import power to an IGU without compromising the seal compared to a traditional IGU The ClearVue Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver efficiencies that will make solar an attractive mainstream option for commercial building sustainability

PERTH, Australia , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Smart building materials company ClearVue Technologies Limited (ASX:CPV OTC: CVUEF) (ClearVue or the Company) is pleased to announce the official release of its improved product design for the ClearVue PV solar vision glass integrated glazing unit or IGU. At the same time, the Company officially releases its new integrated Solar Facade Solutions.

The official launch of the new IGU design and the new integrated Solar Facade Solutions is taking place at a private event tonight 18:00 GMT on 18 May 2023 at the Building Centre at 26 Store Street , Fitzrovia, London (https://www.buildingcentre.co.uk/).

The new IGU design integrates new electrical connection elements that further simplify the assembly and fabrication of ClearVue's world leading triple and newly engineered double glazed IGU. Testing in fabricator facilities has shown that the design improvements reduce the fabrication time for a finished IGU by over 90% with consequent cost savings and the benefits of being able to scale production faster. Additionally, the new design greatly reduces the already low-risk of end-product rejections.

ClearVue's new Solar Facade Solutions extend energy generation across building facades by combining ClearVue's patented transparent solar glazing with ClearVue solar spandrel panels and solar wall cladding panels for enhanced efficiency and a lower average cost per watt. The integrated ClearVue Solar Facade is expected to provide a faster payback period on new curtain wall and facade projects resulting in improved return on investment. The expected payback period, depending on territory, for a full Solar Facade Solution is less than 8 years versus an expected product life of over 30 years.

Solar technologies used in building and construction have long been relegated to rooftop implementations due to prohibitive costs, weight, installation challenges, and lack of aesthetic appeal. ClearVue is addressing these challenges to make solar energy generation cost effective, easy to install, and aesthetically pleasing for use across commercial building facades and curtain walls. Early testing has demonstrated around 100 watts peak1* per square meter averaged across the building envelope.

By integrating ClearVue's patented transparent solar glazing IGUs with other solar energy generating facade solutions including spandrel panels and cladding, ClearVue can optimize efficiency, lower the overall cost of manufacturing and installation while maximizing energy production from a facade. To bring these different Solar Facade Solutions together, ClearVue has developed an integrated wiring system that will streamline installation, reporting, and maintenance in facade deployments.

ClearVue's latest improvements to its solar clear vision glass IGU design are expected to:

Reduce embedded carbon by approximately 30% by incorporating advanced thermoplastics

Offer a double glazed IGU design which reduces thickness by up to 48.5% when compared to ClearVue's current triple glazed IGU design and deliver a consequent weight reduction of up to 20kg per square meter (40% weight reduction)

current triple glazed IGU design and deliver a consequent weight reduction of up to 20kg per square meter (40% weight reduction) Reduce thickness of the previous triple glazed IGU by 15.4%

Provide an IGU assembly process that allows seamless integration with standard IGU assembly production lines

Decrease IGU assembly labor time by 90% with consequent cost savings and increased production outputs

Work with advanced thermal glass coatings that materially reduce building energy use

ClearVue's new Solar Facade Solutions are expected to deliver:

Reduced overall cost per watt by over 70% when compared to previous generation vision glass

Increased output averaging 100 watts peak per square meter over an entire facade

The new ClearVue Solar Facade solution will be delivered to the market globally through a partner network of licensees including glazing and curtain wall manufacturers, and facade experts and consultants.

Acting CEO and Executive Director Jamie Lyford , commenting on the improvements to the IGU product design and the release of the new ClearVue Solar Facade Solutions offering said:

"The latest improvements to the ClearVue IGU design are a step-change for how ClearVue's core product is manufactured offering significant reductions in fabrication time for our licensed manufacturers. delivering consequent cost reductions and increases in manufacturing throughput. Every licensee and new potential licensee that has been exposed to this new design and approach to assembly of the ClearVue product believes this is the way forward and have supported this design initiative.

The new ClearVue Solar Facade separately takes a dramatic step forward in commercial building sustainability and architectural design. Now, solar energy generation is possible across nearly every surface of the building envelope. The extension of our product range expands the market by increasing the types and parts of buildings which can be addressed by ClearVue products. The ClearVue solar spandrel and cladding, when combined with ClearVue's solar vision glazing, make the integrated solution a game-changer."

The London Building Centre event tonight will be followed by a series of similar events to be hosted by ClearVue in the coming months in key target markets around the world.

The Company looks forward to updating the market on the upcoming launch events when the new upgraded products complete their testing and as the new Solar Facade Solutions are released into the market.

View official ASX Release here: https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02667227-6A1150664?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4

Authorised by the Board of ClearVue Technologies Limited.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Investor Relations Inquiries ClearVue Technologies Limited Earle Harper Head of Investor Relations [email protected] +61 407 345 180 Citadel-MAGNUS Michael Weir / Russell Quinn 0402 347 032 / 0403 322 097 Profile Advisors Rich Myers [email protected] +1 347 774-1125





Media Inquiries Guideforce LLC Lisa Dreher [email protected] +1 425-442-1301 Business & Distribution Inquiries ClearVue Technologies Limited Clifton Smyth Chief Business Development Officer [email protected] +44 756 876 8947



ABOUT CLEARVUE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED

ClearVue Technologies Limited (ASX: CPV) is an Australian technology company that operates in the Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BPIV) sector which involves the integration of solar technology into building surfaces, specifically glass and building facades, to provide renewable energy. ClearVue has developed advanced glass technology that aims to preserve glass transparency to maintain building aesthetics whilst generating electricity.

ClearVue's electricity generating glazing technology is strategically positioned to compliment and make more compelling, the increased use of energy-efficient windows now being regulated in response to global climate change and energy efficiency goals.

Solar PV cells are incorporated around the edges of an Insulated Glass Unit (IGU) used in windows and the lamination interlayer between the glass in the IGU incorporates ClearVue's patented proprietary nano and micro particles, as well as its spectrally selective coating on the rear external surface of the IGU.

ClearVue's window technology has application for use in the building and construction and agricultural industries (amongst others).

ClearVue has worked closely with leading experts from the Electron Science Research Institute, Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Western Australia to develop the technology.

To learn more please visit: www.clearvuepv.com

Follow ClearVue social media on: Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements contained in this release, particularly those regarding possible or assumed future performance, revenue, costs, dividends, production levels or rates, prices or potential growth of ClearVue Technologies Limited, are, or may be, forward looking statements. Such statements relate to future events and expectations and, as such, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements depending on a variety of factors.

1 Peak watt: a manufacturer's unit indicating the amount of power a photovoltaic cell or module will produce at standard test conditions (normally 1,000 watts per square meter and 25 degrees Celsius). Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration - https://www.eia.gov/tools/glossary

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SOURCE ClearVue Technologies Limited
CALGARY, AB , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Crescent Point Energy Corp. ("Crescent Point" or the "Company") (TSX: CPG) (NYSE: CPG) held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders ("the meeting") on May 18, 2023 .

During the regular business proceedings at the meeting, shareholders elected all director nominees to the Board of Directors of the Company (the "Board") and approved all other items of business brought before the meeting. Voting results for all resolutions and advisory votes are below.

1. Fixing the Number of Directors

The appointment of nine Board members for the ensuing year was approved. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Against Percent 214,364,168 99.46 % 1,166,754 0.54 %



2. Election of Directors

The nine director nominees were elected. Votes were received as follows:

Nominee Votes For Percent Withheld Percent Barbara Munroe 210,166,111 97.51 % 5,364,821 2.49 % Craig Bryksa 214,019,791 99.30 % 1,511,141 0.70 % James E. Craddock 211,768,386 98.25 % 3,762,546 1.75 % John P. Dielwart 213,095,225 98.87 % 2,435,708 1.13 % Mike Jackson 211,898,374 98.31 % 3,632,558 1.69 % Jennifer F. Koury 210,322,985 97.58 % 5,207,948 2.42 % Francois Langlois 210,728,974 97.77 % 4,801,958 2.23 % Myron M. Stadnyk 212,815,897 98.74 % 2,715,036 1.26 % Mindy Wight 210,454,595 97.64 % 5,076,338 2.36 %



3. Appointment of Auditors

The appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as Crescent Point's auditor was approved. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Withheld Percent 224,209,769 96.81 % 7,399,009 3.19 %



4. Advisory Vote on Executive Compensation

The advisory vote to accept the Company's approach to executive compensation was supported by shareholders. Votes were received as follows:

Votes For Percent Against Percent 206,803,736 95.95 % 8,727,180 4.05 %



The biographies of Crescent Point's Board members, details about the Company's environmental, social and governance ("ESG") practices and a recorded webcast from the meeting earlier today are available on www.crescentpointenergy.com. The full terms of each resolution voted on at the meeting can be found in the Company's latest information circular, which is also available on Crescent Point's website.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON CRESCENT POINT ENERGY, PLEASE CONTACT:

Shant Madian , Vice President, Capital Markets, or

Sarfraz Somani , Manager, Investor Relations

Telephone: (403) 693-0020 Toll-free (US and Canada ): 888-693-0020 Fax: (403) 693-0070

Address: Crescent Point Energy Corp. Suite 2000, 585 - 8th Avenue S.W. Calgary AB T2P 1G1

www.crescentpointenergy.com

Crescent Point shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CPG

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SOURCE Crescent Point Energy Corp.
Executing on Growth and Increasing Guidance

First quarter revenues of $472.4 million , up 17.7% year-over-year

IFRS Diluted EPS of $0.84 for the first quarter

Non-IFRS Diluted EPS of $1.28 for the first quarter

LUXEMBOURG, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Globant (NYSE: GLOB), a digitally native technology services company, today announced results for the three months ended March 31, 2023 .

Please see highlights below, including certain Non-IFRS measures. Note that reconciliations between Non-IFRS financial measures and IFRS operating results are disclosed at the end of this press release.

First Quarter 2023 Financial Highlights

Revenues rose to $472.4 million , representing 17.7% year-over-year growth.

, representing 17.7% year-over-year growth. IFRS Gross Profit Margin was 35.6% compared to 38.0% in the first quarter of 2022.

Non-IFRS Adjusted Gross Profit Margin was 38.2% compared to 39.5% in the first quarter of 2022.

IFRS Profit from Operations Margin was 9.4% compared to 12.6% in the first quarter of 2022.

Non-IFRS Adjusted Profit from Operations Margin was 15.1% compared to 16.8% in the first quarter of 2022.

IFRS Diluted EPS was $0.84 compared to $0.86 in the first quarter of 2022.

compared to in the first quarter of 2022. Non-IFRS Adjusted Diluted EPS was $1.28 compared to $1.19 in the first quarter of 2022.

Other Metrics as of and for the quarter ended March 31, 2023



Cash and cash equivalents and Short-term investments were $284.8 million as of March 31, 2023 , a decrease of $56.1 million from $340.9 million as of December 31, 2022 , driven mainly by payments of bonuses, investments in our platform business and inorganic expansion initiatives. As of March 31, 2023 , our credit facility was fully undrawn.

as of , a decrease of from as of , driven mainly by payments of bonuses, investments in our platform business and inorganic expansion initiatives. As of , our credit facility was fully undrawn. Globant completed the first quarter of 2023 with 26,288 Globers, 24,496 of whom were technology, design and innovation professionals.

completed the first quarter of 2023 with 26,288 Globers, 24,496 of whom were technology, design and innovation professionals. The geographic revenue breakdown for the first quarter of 2023 was as follows: 61.4% from North America (top country: US), 21.8% from Latin America (top country: Argentina ), 13.4% from EMEA (top country: Spain ) and 3.4% from Asia and Oceania (top country: India ).

(top country: US), 21.8% from (top country: ), 13.4% from EMEA (top country: ) and 3.4% from and (top country: ). Globant's top customer, top five customers and top ten customers for the first quarter of 2023 represented 9.4%, 24.5% and 34.8% of revenues, respectively.

top customer, top five customers and top ten customers for the first quarter of 2023 represented 9.4%, 24.5% and 34.8% of revenues, respectively. During the twelve months ended March 31, 2023 , Globant served a total of 1,342 customers (with revenues over $10,000 in the last twelve months) and continued to increase its wallet share, with 276 accounts generating more than $1 million of annual revenues, compared to 206 for the same period one year ago.

, served a total of 1,342 customers (with revenues over in the last twelve months) and continued to increase its wallet share, with 276 accounts generating more than of annual revenues, compared to 206 for the same period one year ago. In terms of currencies, 74.8% of Globant's revenues for the first quarter of 2023 were denominated in US dollars.

"As we celebrate our 20th anniversary, we delivered a robust Q1 2023 performance, executing on all of our strategic growth pillars. We continue to thrive at supporting organizations in every stage, whether they are looking to enhance their user experience, or if they are seeking greater efficiency and productivity. Our recently launched studios keep expanding on this approach: our Create Studio will be key to deliver a full funnel digital marketing strategy to reach audiences, while our Commerce Studio will help our clients create the best commerce-enabled experiences," said Martin Migoya , Globant's CEO and Co-founder. "Also, AI continues to be a strong pillar for our company and our Globers. We've consolidated our AI-focused offering into our MINDS program to better service clients, and we are applying generative AI in our signature platforms MagnifAI and Augoor, to increase time-to-value and shorter production cycles for our clients, helping them unleash their full technology potential. Our unique positioning will enable us to continue delivering leading value for our clients over the long term."

"Globant achieved industry-leading growth in the first quarter of 2023, with a 17.7% year-over-year revenue increase while meeting adjusted operating profit margin guidance. The company has also successfully executed M&A initiatives to expand its presence in the U.S. and Europe . Early-year trends indicate confidence in sequential growth for the second quarter of 2023, as well as a positive outlook for the rest of the year. Globant remains dedicated to revolutionizing businesses with digital transformation and cutting-edge AI advancements. Q1 results reveal strong growth and healthy profitability. The company's strong balance sheet management and undrawn credit facility ensure sufficient funding for short-term growth plans," explained Juan Urthiague, Globant's CFO.

2023 Second Quarter and Full Year Outlook

Based on current market conditions, Globant is providing the following estimates for the second quarter and the full year of 2023:

Second quarter 2023 Revenues are estimated to be at least $496.0 million , or 15.5% year-over-year growth.

, or 15.5% year-over-year growth. Second quarter 2023 Non-IFRS Adjusted Profit from Operations Margin is estimated to be in the range of 15-16%.

Second quarter 2023 Non-IFRS Adjusted Diluted EPS is estimated to be at least $1.33 (assuming an average of 43.4 million diluted shares outstanding during the second quarter).

(assuming an average of 43.4 million diluted shares outstanding during the second quarter). Fiscal year 2023 Revenues are estimated to be at least $2,074.0 million , implying at least 16.5% year-over-year revenue growth. This expected growth includes a neutral FX outlook.

, implying at least 16.5% year-over-year revenue growth. This expected growth includes a neutral FX outlook. Fiscal year 2023 Non-IFRS Adjusted Profit from Operations Margin is estimated to be in the range of 15%-17%.

Fiscal year 2023 Non-IFRS Adjusted Diluted EPS is estimated to be at least $5.71 (assuming an average of 43.4 million diluted shares outstanding during 2023).

Conference Call and Webcast

Martin Migoya , Globant's CEO & co-founder, Juan Urthiague - CFO, Patricia Pomies - COO, and Diego Tartara - CTO, will discuss the first quarter 2023 results in a video conference call today beginning at 4:30pm ET .

Video conference call access information is:

https://more.globant.com/F1Q23EarningsCall

Webcast http://investors.globant.com/

About Globant (NYSE: GLOB)

We are a digitally native company that helps organizations reinvent themselves to create a way forward and unleash their potential. We are the place where innovation, design and engineering meet scale.

We have more than 26,000 employees and we are present in more than 25 countries in 5 continents working for companies like Google, Electronic Arts and Santander, among others.

We were named a Worldwide Leader in CX Improvement by IDC MarketScape report. We were also featured as a business case study at Harvard, MIT and Stanford. We are a member of the Cybersecurity Tech Accord.

For more information, please visit www.globant.com

Non-IFRS Financial Measures

While the financial figures included in this press release have been computed in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB"), this announcement does not contain sufficient information to constitute an interim financial report as defined in International Accounting Standards 34, "Interim Financial Reporting" nor a financial statement as defined by International Accounting Standards 1 "Presentation of Financial Statements". The financial information in this press release has not been audited.

Globant provides non-IFRS financial measures in addition to reported IFRS results prepared in accordance with IFRS. Management believes these measures help illustrate underlying trends in the company's business and uses the non-IFRS financial measures to establish budgets and operational goals, communicated internally and externally, for managing the company's business and evaluating its performance. The company anticipates that it will continue to report both IFRS and certain non-IFRS financial measures in its financial results, including non-IFRS measures that exclude share-based compensation expense, depreciation and amortization, impairment of non-financial assets, acquisition-related charges, and the related effect on income taxes of the pre-tax adjustments. Because the company's non-IFRS financial measures are not calculated according to IFRS, these measures are not comparable to IFRS and may not necessarily be comparable to similarly described non-IFRS measures reported by other companies within the company's industry. Consequently, Globant's non-IFRS financial measures should not be evaluated in isolation or supplant comparable IFRS measures, but, rather, should be considered together with its condensed interim consolidated statements of financial position as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 and its condensed interim consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard ("IAS") 34, "Interim Financial Reporting".

Globant is not providing a quantitative reconciliation of forward-looking Non-IFRS Adjusted Profit from Operations Margin or Non-IFRS Adjusted Diluted EPS to the most directly comparable IFRS measure because it is unable to predict with reasonable certainty the ultimate outcome of certain significant items without unreasonable effort. These items include, but are not limited to, share-based compensation expense, impairment of assets, acquisition-related charges, and the tax effect of non-IFRS adjustments. These items are uncertain, depend on various factors, and could have a material impact on IFRS reported results for the guidance period.

Forward Looking Statements

In addition to historical information, this release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. 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 statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our future financial and operating performance, including our outlook and guidance, and our strategies, priorities and business plans. Our expectations and beliefs regarding these matters may not materialize, and actual results in future periods are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Factors that could impact our actual results include: our ability to maintain current resource utilization rates and productivity levels; our ability to manage attrition and attract and retain highly-skilled IT professionals; our ability to accurately price our client contracts; our ability to achieve our anticipated growth; our ability to effectively manage our rapid growth; our ability to retain our senior management team and other key employees; our ability to continue to innovate and remain at the forefront of emerging technologies and related market trends; our ability to retain our business relationships and client contracts; our ability to manage the impact of global adverse economic conditions; our ability to manage uncertainty concerning the instability in the current economic, political and social environment in Latin America ; and other factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in our most recent Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and any other risk factors we include in subsequent reports on Form 6-K.

Because of these uncertainties, you should not make any investment decisions based on our estimates and 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.

Globant S.A.

Condensed Interim Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income

(In thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share amounts, unaudited)



Three Months Ended

March 31, 2023

March 31, 2022







Revenues 472,421

401,378 Cost of revenues (304,124)

(248,967) Gross profit 168,297

152,411







Selling, general and administrative expenses (119,357)

(101,638) Net impairment losses on financial assets (4,717)

(37) Profit from operations 44,223

50,736







Finance income 1,235

290 Finance expense (4,172)

(4,029) Other financial results, net 3,762

438 Financial results, net 825

(3,301)







Share of results of investment in associates 56

 Other income and expenses, net 1,487

874 Profit before income tax 46,591

48,309







Income tax (10,206)

(11,502) Net income for the period 36,385

36,807







Other comprehensive income, net of income tax effects





Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit and loss:





- Exchange differences on translating foreign operations 2,741

(2,435) - Net change in fair value on financial assets measured at FVOCI 25

(1) - Gains and losses on cash flow hedges 4,206

133 Total comprehensive income for the period 43,357

34,504







Net income attributable to:





Owners of the Company 36,419

36,623 Non-controlling interest (34)

184 Net income for the period 36,385

36,807







Total comprehensive income for the period attributable to:





Owners of the Company 42,129

34,320 Non-controlling interest 1,228

184 Total comprehensive income for the period 43,357

34,504 Earnings per share





Basic 0.86

0.88 Diluted 0.84

0.86 Weighted average of outstanding shares (in thousands)





Basic 42,297

41,748 Diluted 43,237

42,741

Globant S.A.

Condensed Interim Consolidated Statements of Financial Position as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022

(In thousands of U.S. dollars, unaudited)





March 31, 2023

December 31, 2022 ASSETS







Current assets







Cash and cash equivalents

254,025

292,457 Investments

30,819

48,408 Trade receivables

451,635

425,422 Other assets

14,660

15,197 Other receivables

74,487

70,212 Other financial assets

11,838

6,529 Total current assets

837,464

858,225









Non-current assets







Investments

1,513

1,513 Other assets

6,093

10,657 Other receivables

16,628

16,316 Deferred tax assets

53,088

46,574 Investment in associates

1,393

1,337 Other financial assets

34,632

34,978 Property and equipment

162,393

161,733 Intangible assets

187,866

181,612 Right-of-use assets

139,893

147,311 Goodwill

745,268

739,204 Total non-current assets

1,348,767

1,341,235 TOTAL ASSETS

2,186,231

2,199,460









LIABILITIES







Current liabilities







Trade payables

76,060

88,648 Payroll and social security taxes payable

200,580

203,819 Borrowings

754

2,838 Other financial liabilities

32,644

59,316 Lease liabilities

37,638

37,681 Tax liabilities

21,507

23,454 Income tax payable

11,048

11,276 Other liabilities

1,532

808 Total current liabilities

381,763

427,840









Non-current liabilities







Trade payables

3,234

5,445 Borrowings

54

861 Other financial liabilities

54,328

82,222 Lease liabilities

92,438

97,457 Deferred tax liabilities

5,353

11,291 Income tax payable

10,993

 Payroll and social security taxes payable

3,145

4,316 Provisions for contingencies

12,184

13,615 Total non-current liabilities

181,729

215,207 TOTAL LIABILITIES

563,492

643,047









Capital and reserves







Issued capital

50,797

50,724 Additional paid-in capital

974,690

950,520 Other reserves

(25,270)

(32,242) Retained earnings

574,970

538,551 Total equity attributable to owners of the Company

1,575,187

1,507,553 Non-controlling interests

47,552

48,860 Total equity

1,622,739

1,556,413 TOTAL EQUITY AND LIABILITIES

2,186,231

2,199,460

Globant S.A.

Selected Cash Flow Data

(In thousands of U.S. dollars, unaudited)





Three months ended



March 31, 2023

March 31, 2022 Net Income for the period

36,385

36,807 Non-cash adjustments, taxes and others

46,218

39,806 Changes in working capital

(48,776)

(99,276) Cash flows from operating activities

33,827

(22,663) Capital expenditures

(35,610)

(22,673) Cash flows from investing activities

(46,880)

(51,148) Cash flows from financing activities

(25,960)

(13,492) Net decrease in cash & cash equivalents

(39,013)

(87,303)

Globant S.A.

Supplemental Non-IFRS Financial Information

(In thousands of U.S. dollars, unaudited)



Three Months Ended

March 31, 2023

March 31, 2022







Reconciliation of adjusted gross profit





Gross Profit 168,297

152,411 Depreciation and amortization expense 6,432

5,218 Share-based compensation expense - Equity settled 5,590

800 Adjusted gross profit 180,319

158,429 Adjusted gross profit margin 38.2 %

39.5 %







Reconciliation of selling, general and administrative expenses





Selling, general and administrative expenses (119,357)

(101,638) Depreciation and amortization expense 19,779

14,155 Share-based compensation expense - Equity settled 11,130

10,361 Acquisition-related charges (a) 4,548

2,477 Adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses (83,900)

(74,645) Adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses as % of revenues (17.8) %

(18.6) %







Reconciliation of Adjusted Profit from Operations





Profit from Operations 44,223

50,736 Share-based compensation expense - Equity settled 16,720

11,161 Acquisition-related charges (a) 10,415

5,640 Adjusted Profit from Operations 71,358

67,537 Adjusted Profit from Operations margin 15.1 %

16.8 %







Reconciliation of Net income for the period





Net income for the period 36,419

36,623 Share-based compensation expense - Equity settled 16,720

11,161 Acquisition-related charges (a) 9,872

6,309 Tax effect of non-IFRS adjustments (7,607)

(3,293) Adjusted Net income 55,404

50,800 Adjusted Net income margin 11.7 %

12.7 %







Calculation of Adjusted Diluted EPS





Adjusted Net income 55,404

50,800 Diluted shares 43,237

42,741 Adjusted Diluted EPS 1.28

1.19

(a) Acquisition-related charges include, when applicable, amortization of purchased intangible assets included in depreciation and amortization expense line on our consolidated statements of comprehensive income, external deal costs, acquisition-related retention bonuses, integration costs, changes in the fair value of contingent consideration liabilities, charges for impairment of acquired intangible assets and other acquisition-related costs. We cannot provide acquisition-related charges on a forward-looking basis without unreasonable effort as such charges may fluctuate based on the timing, size, and complexity of future acquisitions as well as other uncertainty inherent in mergers and acquisitions.

Globant S.A.

Schedule of Supplemental Information (unaudited)

Metrics Q1 2022 Q2 2022 Q3 2022 Q4 2022 Q1 2023











Total Employees 24,504 25,924 26,541 27,122 26,288 IT Professionals 23,158 24,410 24,922 25,331 24,496











North America Revenues % 64.1 64.5 64.9 61.7 61.4 Latin America Revenues % 23.5 23.8 21.9 22.7 21.8 EMEA Revenues % 10.1 9.7 10.0 11.9 13.4 Asia and Oceania Revenues % 2.3 2.0 3.2 3.7 3.4











USD Revenues % 80.6 79.0 81.2 77.5 74.8 Other Currencies Revenues % 19.4 21.0 18.8 22.5 25.2











Top Customer % 11.0 10.5 10.7 10.8 9.4 Top 5 Customers % 28.0 25.7 24.7 25.1 24.5 Top 10 Customers % 38.6 36.7 34.5 34.3 34.8











Customers Served (Last Twelve Months)* 982 1,043 1,114 1,249 1,342 Customers with > $1M in Revenues (Last Twelve Months) 206 233 255 259 276













(*) Represents customers with more than $10,000 in revenues in the last twelve months.

Investor Relations Contact:

Arturo Langa , Globant

[email protected]

+1 (877) 215-5230

Media Contact:

Wanda Weigert , Globant

[email protected]

+1 (877) 215-5230

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/globant-reports-2023-first-quarter-financial-results-301828873.html

SOURCE Globant
TORONTO , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Great Gulf Group, a leading real estate organization that develops, constructs, and manages residential, resort, recreational, commercial, and industrial real estate across 20 markets in North America , is thrilled to announce its recent triumphs in the building industry, receiving four prestigious awards that recognize its unwavering commitment to excellence. These accolades highlight the significant role played by its team to imagine, construct, and manage the greatest communities to live, work, and play.

Ashton Woods, Great Gulf Group's U.S. affiliate, has been named the 2023 Builder of the Year by BUILDER magazine. Over the past decade, Ashton Woods has experienced remarkable growth, expanding from $300 million to over $3.5 billion in revenue. This year, they secured the 12th position on the Builder 100 list, with 8,591 homes closed. "This honor is truly a testament to the collective work of our entire team," said Ken Balogh , President, and CEO of Ashton Woods. "While it was never a stated goal of ours to be named Builder of the Year, it is a by-product of the incredible talent we have across the organization and a culture that empowers our teams to take big swings, make an impact and do the right thing. Every single one of our employees should feel a great sense of pride in this recognition."

Great Gulf Group's Canadian based Great Gulf Homes was honored with the Homebuilder of the Year - Low-Rise award by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). This award highlights Great Gulf's excellence in the design, construction, marketing, and sales of new homes in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The rigorous evaluation process involved the submission of over 990 entries, judged against stringent criteria by 40 experts from across Canada and the United States . Great Gulf's commitment to providing exceptional customer experiences was a key factor, as the judging process included a comprehensive customer satisfaction survey. "Every interaction with our purchasers from sales, construction, design, development, and service is an opportunity to deliver and execute on our core values and provide the optimal customer experience," said Katy Schofield , President, Low-Rise Residential Canada. "This award is a testament to the passion of our employees for this business and Great Gulf."

Great Gulf's excellence was also recognized with BILD's International Project of the Year award for La Clara, a remarkable 25-story high-rise condominium development in West Palm Beach, Florida . Neil Vohrah, President, High-Rise North America, expressed his delight at receiving this prestigious recognition, "This award celebrates the high-rise team and the entire organization for its vision and commitment to excellence."

Finally, Great Gulf Homes won the highest honor for customer service with the Avid Service Award. "This award honors employees who receive exemplary customer satisfaction scores amongst the thousands of employees rated in the AvidCX platform," said Tad Putyra , President Low-Rise . "The Avid Service Awards are widely considered to be the premier awards for homebuilding professionals. Employees selected have scored in the top 5% in customer satisfaction nationwide. Thank you to all our frontline people who earned this important recognition."

The Great Gulf Group of Companies extends its sincerest gratitude to its customers, as well as its incredible team members, whose talent and dedication is unparalleled. Through a culture that empowers people to make a difference and a focus on delivering the best customer experiences, Great Gulf Group continues to set new standards in the building industry.

ABOUT GREAT GULF GROUP

Established in 1975, the Great Gulf Group includes Great Gulf Homes; Ashton Woods Homes, the largest private homebuilder in the US; First Gulf, a commercial developer specialized in industrial, lab, data centres, and mixed-use properties; Tucker HiRise, specializing in the construction of high-density, mixed-used projects; H+ME Technology, a precision engineering panelization manufacturing facility; a new Recreation and Resort division responsible for Taboo and Lora Bay in Ontario and now Killington Mountain in Vermont ; and a Build-To-Rent division with a growing presence across the U.S. Sunbelt States. Learn more at www.greatgulfgroup.com

ABOUT ASHTON WOODS / STARLIGHT HOMES

Ashton Woods is the #1 private home builder in the United States and was recently named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine. The company markets its homes through its two award-winning brands, Ashton Woods Homes and Starlight Homes. The Ashton Woods brand is known for designing thoughtfully curated, inspired homes for people who love design. The company's industry-leading experience at The Studio and with AW Collections results in exceptional design and special designer touches in every Ashton Woods home. The Starlight Homes brand builds homes specifically for the first-time homebuyer, offering affordable homes with well-executed designs and quality finishes for buyers looking to make the dream of home ownership a reality. The company's commitment to innovation and continually evolving to meet the needs of the market is a key reason it is one of the most celebrated homebuilders in the nation, winning hundreds of national and local industry awards in product design, community design, architecture, merchandising, sales, marketing, customer service and innovation. Learn more at www.ashtonwoods.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/great-gulf-group-of-companies-people-culture-and-values-propel-success-garnering-multiple-top-building-industry-awards-in-north-america-301828258.html

SOURCE Great Gulf Group
TIANJIN, China , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The following article was published today by China Daily.

As the next generation of artificial intelligence technology is expected to play a positive role in improving human well-being, greater efforts should be made to give full play to the role of emerging intelligent technology to empower high-quality economic development and ensure the safe and responsible use of AI, according to speakers at the latest Vision China event on Thursday.

Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, called for efforts to nurture new drivers of economic growth in the post-pandemic era, create an open, fair, just and nondiscriminatory environment for scientific and technological development, and work hard to eliminate "gaps" and "barriers".

The purpose of such moves is to promote balanced, coordinated and inclusive global development while enabling people of all countries to better share the fruits of development, Qu said.

"We should work together to improve global governance on science and technology, build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture, and let intelligent technology evolve in the right direction to provide a strong pillar for global security," Qu said at the event.

He also stressed the need to further tap into the potential of intelligent technology and explore scenario-based, smart applications of cutting-edge technology, in order to build new platforms for dialogue among civilizations and cross-cultural communication, and make greater contributions to cultural blending and people-to-people exchanges across the globe.

Jointly organized by China Daily and the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Tianjin Municipal Committee, the event, themed "Intelligence: Extensive Development Space, Sustainable Growth Driver", was broadcast to a global audience on Thursday night. The event is part of the ongoing 7th World Intelligence Congress, which started on Thursday and runs through Sunday in Tianjin .

The congress showcases the latest achievements and trends of AI development and brings together officials, experts, scholars and entrepreneurs to discuss key topics such as intelligent connected vehicles, generative AI, intelligent manufacturing, brain-machine interaction and other cutting-edge technologies.

"We need to harness the power of the new generation of artificial intelligence to drive technological innovation, upgrade industries and boost productivity," said Shen Lei , a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and head of the committee's Publicity Department.

Shen highlighted the significance of fostering new advantages in industrial development by vigorously developing the digital economy, accelerating industrial digitalization and digital industrialization, and promoting the in-depth integration of the internet, big data and AI with industries.

Tianjin , a major port city in northern China , has been actively embracing AI, intelligent manufacturing and other related smart technologies to stay abreast of key developments. It has set up a special 10 billion yuan ( $1.42 billion ) fund for intelligent manufacturing and a 100-billion-yuan industry fund for the new generation of AI.

Shen said Tianjin will deepen reform and opening-up, create a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based and internationalized, and build a high-level platform for opening-up.

Wei Qing , Microsoft (China) Ltd's chief technology officer, said no matter how powerful AI is, it is a machine's capability. How humans react to, manage and guide it will determine whether it serves human purposes. "So, there must be a responsible AI approach and principle," Wei added.

AI is gradually being implemented in the medical field, covering screening, diagnosis, treatment and predictions, said Yan Hua , Party secretary of Tianjin Medical University. It helps to provide better hospital management, patient services, chronic disease management and more efficient medical process.

There are still problems in AI's use in the medical field, such as ethical issues, data security and the calculation of the cost of AI, Yan said, adding that its application in the field is still in the early stages of development.

Pierre Pakey , head of product innovation of Laiye Technology ( Beijing ) Co, said one of the most exciting developments in AI is that large language models can sometimes provide much finer details than human efforts.

Fu Xiaolan, a fellow of the British Academy of Social Sciences and professor and director of the Technology and Management Center for Development at the University of Oxford, said AI can bring wonderful opportunities for development through providing greater efficiency and improvement in work conditions and welfare. It can also enable innovation in production and social services, and bring significant digital windows of opportunity for some developing countries.

Although AI brings new development opportunities, there are still challenges to face, she added.

"We need to ensure the privacy, security and safety and robustness in the use of AI and also the transparency and fairness in the application of AI and accountability of the people who develop and employ AI for business and other services," Fu said.

By Fan Feifei

and Liu Yukun

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/greater-efforts-urged-to-give-ai-full-play-301828811.html

SOURCE China Daily
Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visits Weichai Holding Group Co., Ltd. in Weifang, east China's Shandong Province, May 17, 2023. Li made an inspection tour in Shandong Province from Wednesday to Thursday. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

JINAN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang has urged efforts to boost the real economy, expand domestic demand and stabilize external demand to promote economic recovery.

Li made the remarks during his inspection tour in Shandong Province from Wednesday to Thursday.

The premier said the real economy is the lifeblood of China's economy. The country should foster advanced manufacturing clusters, make coordinated efforts to transform and upgrade traditional industries, and foster and expand strategic emerging industries, while moving industries to the medium-high end, he said.

He stressed the need for efforts to improve purchasing policies for new-energy vehicles while accelerating the construction of charging piles and other infrastructure, in order to unleash the consumption potential of new-energy vehicles further.

More efforts should be made to build a new platform for international cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, expand areas of cooperation, and enhance the complementarity of resources and strengths to achieve mutual benefits, Li said.

When inspecting companies in the city of Qingdao, Li said he hopes that companies will be able to adapt better to users' needs, carry out personalized services, create more competitive products and explore domestic and foreign markets further. He also underlined the importance of efforts to promote the development of the industrial internet to empower small and medium-sized enterprises.

The key to boosting economic recovery is strengthening people's confidence in development, the premier said, stressing the importance of moving the manufacturing industry toward high-end, green and smart development.

The expansion of domestic demand should be integrated with the improvement of people's livelihoods, Li said, calling for the construction of urban and rural infrastructure, and of projects that shore up weak links in public services.

Li noted that the development of new foreign trade business forms and models should be accelerated, and greater efforts should be made to attract and utilize foreign capital and stabilize China's international market share.

Efforts should also be made to forestall and defuse risks in key areas to create a favorable environment for economic development, he said. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visits Haier Group in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, May 18, 2023. Li made an inspection tour in Shandong Province from Wednesday to Thursday. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- HR Acuity, the leading human resources SaaS solution for employee relations case management and investigations, today released the results of its Seventh Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study.

67% of organizations are reporting an increase in mental health issues.

The study surveyed employee relations professionals at enterprise organizations in the United States with at least 1,000 employees. 190 organizations participated, representing a combined workforce of 6.3 million employees globally.

Moving beyond the pandemic and the groundswell of political and social justice activism of the past few years, 2022 ushered in fresh challenges for organizations, employees and employee relations professionals. Uncertainty about the economy, coupled with struggles to strike the right balance for hybrid return-to-work environments, have led to a new set of challenges for employee relations.

Key findings from the Study include:

The mental health crisis is having a significant impact in the workplace, with 67% of organizations reporting an increase in mental health issues. Mental health issues were also the most significant driver of employee-related issues and events. Employee relations teams are now triaging mental health issues, conducting threat assessments and evaluating security risks. The striking conclusion is that with deep insight into workplace culture, employee experience and well-being, employee relations plays a critical role in managing these issues. To effectively support employee mental health, organizations must commit to greater investments in training, investigation aftercare and additional employee relations resources.

Tracking employee relations and investigations data is universal, but many organizations struggle to effectively leverage the data to inform business decisions. Nearly one in five organizations collects but does not use employee relations data and metrics. These organizations are missing the opportunity to both demonstrate to leadership the value of employee relations practices and to unlock additional resources and build greater trust.

Many employers still engage in employee relations practices that can undermine transparency and trust. Although some organizations have made efforts to improve employee experience and culture, this year's study shows only 17% of organizations share investigation outcomes with employees, a rate of ten points below that in 2019. Fortune 100 respondents are leading the industry as 27% shared aggregated, anonymous investigation and employee relations data with employees in 2022.

"The results of our Seventh Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study are a clear signal that Employee Relations has not only arrived as a full-fledged function, but it also faces a critical moment to grow in its leadership," said Deb Muller , CEO of HR Acuity. "This year's data provides a striking reminder that living through times of great change requires courageous leadership. While we have emerged on the other side of the pandemic, the impact on employees' mental health is far-reaching. Simultaneously, as younger generations transform the demographics of our workforce, we are leading at a time when expectations for transparency and accountability are at the highest levels ever seen."

Introduced in 2016, the Employee Relations Benchmark Study is the preeminent source for information from employee relations leaders at organizations with more than 1,000 employees from a wide range of industry sectors. The study has become the go-to resource for employee relations professionals to guide strategy, resource, and process decisions to improve the employee experience and drive better business outcomes.

For more insights from the Seventh Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study, visit https://www.hracuity.com/employee-relations-benchmark-study/.

To register for the live Webinar on June 6 th with HR Acuity CEO Deb Muller and Vice President of Isurus Market Research Jeana McNeil , visit https://www.hracuity.com/events/webinars/dive-into-data-the-must-know-er-insights-and-norms-from-the-seventh-annual-benchmark-study/.

About HR Acuity

While you can't prevent every employee relations issue, you can change how you respond. HR Acuity is the only technology platform specifically built for employee relations and investigations management. HR Acuity's SaaS technology empowers you with built in intelligence, templates and reporting so you can conduct fair investigations according to best practices; uncover trends and patterns through forward-looking data and analytics; and provide trusted, consistent experiences for your people.

For more information, visit hracuity.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

Media Contact:

Kate Freer , SVP Marketing

[email protected]

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SOURCE HR Acuity
SHANGHAI and CLINTON, N.J. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- HuidaGene Therapeutics (; HuidaGene), a clinical-stage genome-editing company, today announced the online National Science Review published the comprehensive data from a study of the world's first DNA base editor converting G-to-Y, glycosylase-based guanine base editor (gGBE). Company has filed an international patent application for this base editor and owns the exclusive global rights to the underlying patent.

Current widely-used DNA base editors mainly integrate programmable DNA binding proteins (Cas9, Cas12, or TALE protein variants) with base deaminases (cytidine deaminase or adenosine deaminase variants). There are mainly two types of base editors: ABE (adenine base editor) and CBE (cytosine base editor), which can realize A-to-G and C-to-T transition between such bases 1-2. However, there is currently no base editor directly edits G or T since deamination of G rarely causes base conversion while T lacks amino groups, making it a challenge to overcome the limitation and to develop new class of base editors. Therefore, there is still a need to edit G or T in many cases.

"Following our publication in Nature Biotechnology early this year of the independently-developed, programmable A-to-Y DNA base editor, AYBE (adenine transversion base editor), we're thrilled that the National Science Review published our paper sharing the comprehensive data on our discovery of the world first guanine-based base editor, gGBE," said Xuan Yao , Ph.D., Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of HuidaGene. "CRISPR-Cas9-based CBEs and ABEs can efficiently mediate C-to-T and A-to-G substitutions, respectively. gGBE converting G-to-Y has immense potential for gene-editing drug development, and our successful development of the gGBE further strengthens the Company's intellectual property layout in the global gene editing field."

"Currently, all base editors need the deamination reaction of A or C as the initial step to trigger the subsequent DNA repair process and achieve the goal of base editing. Existing deaminases cannot catalyze guanosine and thymidine in genomic DNA into other nucleosides; therefore, direct editing of guanosine and thymidine is the major bottleneck for gene editing," said Hui Yang , Ph.D., Co-Founder, Chief Scientific Advisor, and Chairman of the SAB at HuidaGene. "Our publication entitled, 'Programmable deaminase-free base editors for G-to-Y conversion by engineered glycosylase', of the world's first guanine-based based editor, gGBE, through our HGPRECISE platform, has demonstrated guanine editing efficiency up to 90% with lower off-target editing, setting the foundation of developing a new class of base editors based on glycosylases. The new class of engineered glycosylases base editors may further enrich the base editing tool, establish disease models, and develop gene editing therapies."

About HGPRECISE Platform

HuidaGene's HGPRECISE ( H uida G ene  P latform for R ational E ngineering of C RISPR-Cas I dentification by S ynergic E xpertise) platform enables rapid discovery of Cas proteins using both artificial intelligence (AI) and deep machine learning (ML) of DNA sequencing and assembly prediction from metagenomic database. HGPRECISE generated Cas proteins have demonstrated superior editing efficiency, lower off-target editing activity compared to widely-used CRISPR-Cas9. The series of engineering transformation, protein evolution, mutational screening and validation on gGBE was performed on the HGPRECISE platform.

About HuidaGene -

HuidaGene Therapeutics () is a global clinical-stage biotechnology company focusing on discovering, engineering, and developing gene editing tools and gene therapies to rewrite the future of genomic medicine. Based in Shanghai and New Jersey , HuidaGene is committed to addressing patients' needs globally with various preclinical therapeutic programs covering ophthalmology, otology, myology, and neurology. HuidaGene is currently advancing clinical programs in RPE65 mutation-associated inherited retinal dystrophies and various preclinical pipeline, including programs in neovascular age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, hereditary hearing loss, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and MECP2 duplication syndrome. Those CRISPR-based therapeutics offer the potential to cure patients with life-threatening conditions by repairing the cause of their disease. HuidaGene is committed to transforming the future of genome-editing medicine.

For more information, please visit http://www.huidagene.com

or follow us on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/company/huidagene

Reference:

1. Gaudelli, N.M. et al. Programmable base editing of A*T to G*C in genomic DNA without DNA cleavage. Nature 551, 464-471 (2017).

2. Komor, A.C., Kim, Y.B., Packer, M.S., Zuris, J.A. & Liu, D.R. Programmable editing of a target base in genomic DNA without double-stranded DNA cleavage. Nature 533, 420-424 (2016).

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SOURCE HuidaGene Therapeutics
Recreated Pony Coupe Concept makes debut in Lake Como nearly 50 years after its original debut at 1974 Turin Motor Show

nearly 50 years after its original debut at 1974 Turin Motor Show Rebuilt by original designer, Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Pony Coupe Concept has been faithfully recreated to exacting specifications and original materials

Original Pony Coupe Concept inspired current flagship concept, N Vision 74 which makes its Italian debut at 'Hyundai Reunion' event and then at the Concorso d'Eleganza on May 20 th

Pony Coupe Concept is now widely considered a retro-futuristic classic that has served as design inspiration for more recent Hyundai Motor models and represents a significant part of the brand's proud heritage

models and represents a significant part of the brand's proud heritage Like the original, the origami-like exterior design features geometric lines and pure unadorned surfaces while the minimalist interior is distinguished by its driver-focused floating architecture

COMO, Italy and SEOUL, South Korea , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Motor Company's recreated Pony Coupe Concept has made its world premiere  nearly 50 years after its original debut  in Lake Como, Italy . Originally unveiled at the 1974 Turin Motor Show, the Pony Coupe Concept is an important vehicle in the company's history and design heritage.

Hyundai Motor unveiled the rebuilt Pony Coupe Concept at the inaugural Hyundai Reunion, a heritage brand platform that reflects on Hyundai Motor's past and its future direction.

Under the Pony Coupe Concept restoration project, Hyundai Motor Company has brought the original Pony Coupe Concept shown at the 1974 Turin Motor Show back to life. This restoration project is a testament to the spirit, daring passion and ambition that Hyundai employees and executives had to create a global brand with the Pony Coupe Concept at its forefront.

"Despite the poor industrial environment in the 1970s, my grandfather and Hyundai's Founding Chairman Ju-young Chung poured his heart and soul into rebuilding Korea's economy and improving the lives of its people after the devastating Korean War. He finally realized his vision of making Korea a country capable of developing its own vehicles with perfection," said Euisun Chung , Executive Chair of Hyundai Motor Group. "I express my sincere gratitude to everyone from both Italy and Korea who played a critical role in the success of Pony."

"In the age of electrification, a key condition for Hyundai Motor Company to become a leader in future mobility will be our ability to remain faithful to the unshakable values we inherited," said Jaehoon Chang , President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company. "Moving forward, through Hyundai Reunion and other heritage communication initiatives, we will continue to leverage our past as a unique vector for our future innovation."

When asked about his first interaction with Hyundai on the development of the 1973 Pony Coupe Concept more than fifty years prior to the reunion, Giugiaro revealed: "Hyundai approached us to start a complete redesign of a model, without much experience. I was skeptical at first because I didn't know Hyundai Motor at that time. We were all impressed by the passion and commitment of the Hyundai engineers. They were sharp, curious, open and extremely eager to learn. They immediately embraced the working methods that were new to them. They sacrificed themselves to make a good impression  for company and their partners. I'm proud and honored to witness how this company has evolved since we first met."

Luc Donckerwolke , President and Chief Creative Officer of Hyundai Motor Group, added, "The restoration of this unique vehicle is a milestone in Hyundai's history. It represents our beginnings and our commitment to the future. It serves as a legacy for generations to come. It virtually symbolizes the mobile relay baton we are passing from the past to the future of the company."

"The Pony Coupe Concept reflects the company's gratitude and dedication to the challenging spirits that people at Hyundai Motor had back in 1974," said SangYup Lee , Executive Vice President and Head of Hyundai Design Center. "The rebirth of the Pony Coupe Concept is a meaningful milestone in the history of Hyundai Motor because it signifies not only our beginnings but also our commitment to the future with our new dreams."

"It is very special to have significant people from the company's early days meet those who are leading the company into the future," said Sungwon Jee , Senior Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer at Hyundai Motor Company. "It also marks the launch of Hyundai Reunion, our platform for showcasing the brand's heritage. This is where one can see how our past success still serves as a basis for our daring attitude today. This spirit of innovation can be seen in these two models as well as the people who made them possible."

More information about Hyundai Motor can be found at: http://worldwide.hyundai.com or http://globalpr.hyundai.com.

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SOURCE Hyundai Motor Company
Smallwood brings to the position over 30 years of international experience in investor relations and financial communications, to support the local IPOs and transaction communications in both the United Arab Emirates and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

DUBAI, UAE , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Instinctif Partners, one of the leading and fastest growing business communications and reputation management consultancies in MENA has further strengthened its team as it continues to build and grow its leading franchise in both Riyadh and Dubai .

Matthew Smallwood , a founder and Managing Partner within Instinctif Partners, has relocated to the region from London to build and extend the investor relations (IR) and Financial Communications team, alongside Frederic Cornet , Head of MEA Capital Markets & Investor Relations.

Matthew joined Instinctif's predecessor company, College Hill in 1989 and has been a mainstay in its Capital Markets business for over 30 years. He has a wealth of experience advising and promoting companies to investors, analysts and marketing companies through the media. During his time he has been involved in almost every type of corporate situation: IPO, Mergers and Acquisitions, fundraising, crisis management and more generally bespoke day to day communication programmes.

He has a particular specialism in hospitality, hotels, construction and retail (especially online). He has advised on approaching 100 IPOs and helped companies with over 2000 earnings statements as well as a plethora of M & A transactions of all kinds.

Notable transactions he has been involved with include Froneri's 3bn acquisition of Nestle's Ice Cream business to create the largest ice cream business in the world, The $3bn sale of Millennium Hotels to CDL and a Stars Group acquisition, for $4.3 bn . He has also been instrumental in assisting companies in crisis notably Findus in the global horsemeat scandal and ASOS's distribution warehouse fire.

Other high profile clients over time have included ASOS, Caffe Nero, David Lloyd Leisure , Farfetch, Global Blue, Guoco Hotels, Morgan Sindall , Superdry, SAB, Saatchi and Saatchi, ASDA, Wagamama and eDreams, to name a few

Samantha Bartel , CEO, Instinctif MENA said:

"We are delighted to have Matthew join our successful and growing MENA team. There are few people with his experience and knowledge of capital markets. Not only will he help us grow our business, but also our people will benefit from his extensive experience."

Instinctif Partners have also grown their Riyadh and Dubai based Capital Markets and Investor Relations teams, by adding 11% since last year, to better serve local client demand.

Matthew Smallwood , Managing Partner, Instinctif said:

"I am really thrilled to have relocated to the Middle East . Both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are among the most active and exciting markets in the world today and Instinctif's MENA practice one of the fastest growing across our group. I am eager to assist in growing the practice further and sharing my experience for the benefit of existing clients, new companies and the team."

Instinctif MENA boasts a growing blue chip client list across the region and scooped 13 out of 18 awards at the 2022 MEIRA awards in October last year.

About Instinctif Partners:

Instinctif Partners is an EMEA business communications consultancy. As partners in change, we help navigate societies' constantly changing rules. We provide an integrated service drawing on expertise in communications, capital markets, content & design, digital, insight, public affairs and sustainability. Our aim is to build trust through transparency and honesty, so that together with our clients, we can be a force for good.

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SOURCE Instinctif Partners
NEW YORK , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), the nation's leading suicide prevention organization, is hosting its flagship fundraising event, the 28th Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk on June 3, 2023 , in Washington , D.C.

Suicide is a leading cause of death, but it is preventable. The Overnight is the largest single annual fundraising event held by AFSP and a powerful opportunity for suicide prevention advocates to raise awareness for suicide prevention and connect with a community that understands.

"The Overnight is an opportunity like no other to support suicide prevention and healing after loss," said AFSP Chief Executive Officer Bob Gebbia . "We hope you'll join us in this unforgettable experience as we walk to advance the life-saving work of our organization and honor those who've struggled. Walking from dusk to dawn with more than 1,500 participants, you will be reminded that you're not alone."

Walkers come together from across the country for The Overnight and there is also an option to participate virtually. Each Walker raises a minimum of $1,000 to participate, and students and military members raise $700 . There is also an option to participate virtually and the minimum to participate virtually is $500 . 1.7 million dollars has been raised thus far.

Proceeds help AFSP save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide by funding the creation of evidence-informed programs, advocacy efforts, and ground-breaking research. AFSP is the largest private funder of suicide prevention in the country. Last year's event raised three million dollars and brought thousands together with the shared goal to #StopSuicide.

"I walk to keep my twin brother's memory alive," said Walker Chloe Stevens who will be walking in her fourth Overnight in D.C. in memory of Clark Stevens . "The Overnight Walk sparks connections between people who have experienced the devastating effects of suicide. It is a healing environment that not only promotes awareness but changes the lives of people that have been impacted by suicide."

We can't wait for you to join us in D.C. in 2023. Register today for the 2023 Overnight Walk.

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is dedicated to saving lives and bringing hope to those affected by suicide, including those who have experienced a loss. AFSP creates a culture that's smart about mental health through public education and community programs, develops suicide prevention through research and advocacy, and provides support for those affected by suicide. Led by CEO Robert Gebbia and headquartered in New York , with a public policy office in Washington, DC , AFSP has local chapters in all 50 states including Puerto Rico , with programs and events nationwide. Learn more about AFSP in its latest Annual Report and join the conversation on suicide prevention by following AFSP on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

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SOURCE American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
Peresolimab met the primary efficacy endpoint in patients with refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA)



Study evaluated a novel approach to treating patients with autoimmune diseases

INDIANAPOLIS , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The New England Journal of Medicine today published detailed results from Eli Lilly and Company's (NYSE: LLY) phase 2a study of peresolimab in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), in which peresolimab met the primary endpoint for efficacy and had similar rates of adverse events between peresolimab and placebo arms. These data represent the first clinical evidence that stimulating the endogenous PD-1 inhibitory pathway could be an effective approach to treat rheumatologic disease. The phase 2a clinical trial (NCT04634253) evaluated the safety and efficacy of peresolimab in adult participants with moderate-to-severe RA who had an inadequate response to prior conventional, biologic or synthetic disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs).

"In the study, peresolimab showed meaningful results in refractory RA patients," said Jay Tuttle , Ph.D, study first author and associate vice president, research and development at Lilly. "Refractory patients make up approximately 21% of the RA population1, having tried and failed multiple treatments, and are often hesitant to try new options. While still early, these data signify an important potential new therapeutic approach for RA patients, including both refractory and biologic-naive patients."

Peresolimab is an investigational humanized immunoglobulin G1 monoclonal antibody that stimulates human programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), a checkpoint inhibitory receptor, that may induce physiological immune inhibitory pathways to restore immune homeostasis. RA, a form of rheumatologic disease, is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by inflammation and progressive destruction of joints.2,3 While several treatment options exist, including the use of oral conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs)  such as methotrexate, the current standard of care; and injectable, biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs)  many patients do not reach or maintain their therapeutic goals.4,5,6 There remains a crucial unmet need to provide new treatment options for better overall patient care, particularly for refractory and biologic-experienced patients.

"Lilly is proud to share these results in The New England Journal of Medicine, which reinforce our commitment to discoveries that may transform care for patients. Our ultimate objective in treating immunologic conditions is to achieve not only symptom reduction, but to also induce immune homeostasis and achieve longstanding resolution of disease," said Ajay Nirula , M.D., Ph.D, study senior author and senior vice president, Immunology at Lilly. "These early data for peresolimab in RA reflect our commitment to develop first-in-class therapeutic options for patients."

These data were first presented as a late-breaking abstract at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) annual Convergence in November 2022 . In this phase 2a, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, adult patients with moderate-to-severe RA who had an inadequate response to, a loss of response to, or unacceptable side effects with conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) or to biologic or targeted synthetic DMARDs to receive 700 mg of peresolimab, 300 mg of peresolimab, or placebo intravenously once every 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the change from baseline to week 12 in the Disease Activity Score for 28 joints based on the C-reactive protein level (DAS28-CRP). The primary comparison was between the 700-mg group and the placebo group.

At week 12, the change from baseline in the DAS28-CRP was significantly greater in the 700-mg peresolimab group than in the placebo group (least-squares mean change [SE], 2.090.18 vs. 0.990.26; difference in change, 1.09 [95% confidence interval, 1.73 to 0.46]; P

Noted improvements were seen in the Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) in participants treated with both peresolimab doses compared to placebo. In addition, low disease activity was maintained through Week 24 in most patients achieving CDAI low disease activity at Week 14.

Adverse events were similar in the peresolimab and placebo groups. Treatment emergent events were mild or moderate in severity, with the most common events being infections and infestations, in addition to skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders. A single serious adverse event (worsening of hypothyroidism, 700 mg) was reported during the treatment period, which did not result in participant discontinuation from the study. There were no deaths reported in the study, and no reports of malignancy in participants receiving peresolimab.

The results support further clinical evaluation of peresolimab in rheumatologic diseases. Future studies will continue evaluating peresolimab as treatment for RA, including the ongoing RESOLUTION-1 (NCT05516758) clinical trial, a phase 2b study of peresolimab in adult participants with moderate-to-severe RA. Additionally, Lilly is considering evaluating peresolimab in other autoimmune diseases.

About Lilly

Lilly unites caring with discovery to create medicines that make life better for people around the world. We've been pioneering life-changing discoveries for nearly 150 years, and today our medicines help more than 51 million people across the globe. Harnessing the power of biotechnology, chemistry and genetic medicine, our scientists are urgently advancing new discoveries to solve some of the world's most significant health challenges, redefining diabetes care, treating obesity and curtailing its most devastating long-term effects, advancing the fight against Alzheimer's disease, providing solutions to some of the most debilitating immune system disorders, and transforming the most difficult-to-treat cancers into manageable diseases. With each step toward a healthier world, we're motivated by one thing: making life better for millions more people. That includes delivering innovative clinical trials that reflect the diversity of our world and working to ensure our medicines are accessible and affordable. To learn more, visit lilly.com and lilly.com/newsroom or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. P-LLY

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements (as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) about peresolimab as a potential treatment for people with rheumatoid arthritis and the timeline for future readouts, presentations, and other milestones relating to peresolimab and its clinical trials, and reflects Lilly's current beliefs and expectations. However, as with any pharmaceutical product, there are substantial risks and uncertainties in the process of drug research, development, and commercialization. Among other things, there is no guarantee that planned or ongoing studies will be completed as planned, that future study results will be consistent with study results to date, that peresolimab will prove to be a safe and effective treatment for rheumatoid arthritis or other autoimmune diseases, that peresolimab will receive regulatory approval, or that Lilly will execute its strategy as expected. For further discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from Lilly's expectations, see Lilly's Form 10-K and Form 10-Q filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, Lilly undertakes no duty to update forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this release.

Melville, A. R., Kearsley-Fleet, L., Buch, M. H., & Hyrich, K. L. (2020). Understanding Refractory Rheumatoid Arthritis: Implications for a Therapeutic Approach. Drugs, 80(9), 849857. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40265-020-01309-9 Klareskog L, Catrina AI, Paget S. Lancet . 2009;373:659-672. Hand Clinics , Advances in the Medical Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3135413/pdf/nihms305780.pdf. Accessed April 23, 2018. Hunter TM, et al. Rheumatol Int. 2017;37:15511557. Smolen JS, Aletaha D, McInnes IB. Lancet . 2016;388:2023-2038. Sustained Rheumatoid Arthritis Remission is Uncommon in Clinical Practice, Arthritis Research & Therapy, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3446437/. Accessed April 23, 2018.

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SOURCE Eli Lilly and Company
SACRAMENTO, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Legislation to strengthen consumer protections and improve physician oversight at the Medical Board of California passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee today and heads to the Senate Floor. It must pass the Senate by the end of May.

The bill, SB 815 by Senator Richard Roth and Assemblymember Marc Berman , contains patient safety reforms long sought by patient advocates and Consumer Watchdog, including:

Changing the balance of power at the board so it has a public member majority;

Increased rights for patients in the enforcement process, including a mandatory interview before a complaint is closed, and the right to submit a victim impact statement before discipline;

A licensing fee increase to adequately fund the board's operations;

Reducing the standard of proof for most doctor discipline to match the standard used by 41 other state medical boards.

The Medical Board of California has previously endorsed many of the changes contained in SB 815.

" Senator Roth , committee members, and the Medical Board deserve credit for acting on the pleas of Californians who have shared their tragic stories of medical harm in order to improve doctor oversight and protect patients. While the details need fine-tuning, this bill is a significant step forward for patient protection in California ," said Carmen Balber , executive director of Consumer Watchdog.

A remaining gap in the bill is increased disclosure, said Consumer Watchdog. Patients in California currently have no right to know when they walk into a doctor's office if the Medical Board is investigating, has charged, or has disciplined their provider for causing a patient's injury or death. Even criminal charges are not disclosed to patients before a medical appointment.

"We urge lawmakers going forward to address the missing piece -- transparency -- because we all have a right to know if our doctor has a history of harm," said Balber.

For example, Dr. Carlos Chacon is currently charged with murder for actions in December of 2018 that led to the death of patient Megan Espinoza , and is still allowed to practice. At least 7 other women were harmed by the doctor, several in the four years following Mrs. Espinoza's death, according to criminal charges, civil lawsuits, and complaints shared with Consumer Watchdog. Those patients were not warned about the doctor's history, even after he was first charged with manslaughter in December 2021 , until a criminal court this month required him to disclose the murder charges as a condition of bail. Read more about the case: https://consumerwatchdog.org/healthcare/san-diego-doctor-charged-with-2nd-degree-murder-in-patients-death-shows-failure-of-californias-doctor-discipline-patient-disclosure-laws/

California patients denied justice at the Board have shared their stories to illustrate the need for reform before the Medical Board and the Legislature. Hear the testimony of many of the patients advocating for change here https://consumerwatchdog.org/meet-the-advocates/ and read their stories, and those of their loved ones, here https://consumerwatchdog.org/meet-the-patients/.

Read Consumer Watchdog's sunset review letter to the Senate and Assembly Medical Board oversight committees here: https://consumerwatchdog.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ConsumerWatchdogMBCSunset3-15-23.pdf

View or share this press release online.

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SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
Workers Recognize Value of In-Person Work, But Have Concerns About Work-Life Balance and Commute Times

ARLINGTON, Va. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly half (47 percent) of U.S. workers indicate that they will consider looking for a new job should their employer reduce remote and hybrid work flexibility, new Eagle Hill Consulting research finds. Remote work flexibility is substantially more important to younger workers. Sixty-one percent of GenZ and 57 percent of Millennial employees indicate they would look for other employment if remote flexibility were scaled back, with Baby Boomers at 29 percent.

These findings come as employers are announcing plans to end remote work for some employees, while other organizations are sticking with remote-first or employee driven work location decisions. At the same time, job market power is shifting back to employers amid layoffs and economic turbulence.

The nationwide survey of U.S. workers also finds that employees see the value of in-person work. A large share of workers (60 percent) say those who work more in the office than remotely are more likely to be successful in their jobs. Eighty-three of workers say integrating a new team members is managed better in person, as is team building (82 percent), managing teams and training (77 percent), onboarding and kicking off a new project (73 percent), getting a project back on track and performance discussions (71 percent), giving and receiving feedback (66 percent), and brainstorming (62 percent).

"Employers are walking a tightrope when it comes to remote and hybrid work changes," said Melissa Jezior , president and chief executive officer of Eagle Hill Consulting. Balancing the need for high performance while also retaining top talent isn't easy. The research suggests that approaches to remote work must be nuanced and there is common ground."

"Workers know that some work is best accomplished in-person, especially work that requires collaboration. At the same time, workers don't want to be forced to work fully in-person because of concerns about work-life balance and commuting time. This means giving employees flexibility is the key to success  perhaps permitting remote work for individualized tasks, re-thinking traditional work schedules, and having collaborative time in the workplace. The research is clear that most employees want a certain degree of in-person work, but they don't like mandates and rigid rules on how they get their work done. Ultimately, organizations that successfully navigate remote work will have a high level of trust between employees and managers, an environment that fosters good communication, and effective processes for managing performance outcomes," Jezior said.

The research also finds:

Forty-two percent of U.S workers say their job satisfaction would decrease if their employer mandated a return to in-person work, while 34 percent say their productivity would decrease with such a requirement. Thirty-five percent say a mandate would decrease how long they will stay with their current employer.

workers say their job satisfaction would decrease if their employer mandated a return to in-person work, while 34 percent say their productivity would decrease with such a requirement. Thirty-five percent say a mandate would decrease how long they will stay with their current employer. Many workers (43 percent) prefer to work with an organization that offers hybrid and remote work flexibility, highest for Millennial (48 percent) and GenZ employees (46 percent).

Worker concerns about more in-person work include work-life balance (44 percent), commute times (37 percent), higher costs (33 percent), and stress (33 percent).

In terms of the benefits of required in-person work, employees say it's more socialization (39 percent), the ability to leave work at the work (30 percent), improved collaboration (28 percent), and increased productivity (24 percent).

Work that is better achieved remotely includes research (55 percent), deep thinking (55 percent), and focus time (51 percent).

Employees are almost evenly split as to whether they are more productive spending a full day in the workplace (53 percent) versus spending only part of the day (47 percent).

Sixty-seven percent of workers say remote work flexibility decisions lie with their immediate supervisors.

Most workers (77 percent) say they trust the person who determines where they work understands how employees can be most productive.

When given the choice between either coming to the workplace or remote work, more employees (57) would choose the workplace over remote (43 percent).

These findings are based upon the 2023 Eagle Hill Consulting Telework Survey conducted by Ipsos from April 27 -May 1, 2023 . The survey included 10013 respondents from a random sample of employees across the U.S. Respondents were polled about their views about working remotely.

Eagle Hill Consulting LLC is a woman-owned business that provides unconventional management consulting services in the areas of Strategy, Performance, Talent, and Change. The company's expertise in delivering innovative solutions to unique challenges spans across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. A leading authority on employee sentiment, Eagle Hill is headquartered in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, with employees across the U.S. and offices in Boston and Seattle . More information is available at www.eaglehillconsulting.com.

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SOURCE Eagle Hill Consulting
OKLAHOMA CITY , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE: OGE) virtually held its 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders today, electing its board of directors and acting on a number of items.

Chairman, President and CEO Sean Trauschke began the meeting by thanking the company's employees for their unwavering commitment to the company's customers and communities as they deliver life-sustaining and life-enhancing products and services.

"I am grateful for our incredible employees whose dedication and strong execution led to a solid year, particularly when you consider how weather extremes impacted other parts of the country," Trauschke said. "In 2022, we advanced a number of customer initiatives including continued upgrades and enhancements to the grid as well a new mobile app and new System Watch outage map. We look forward to continuing OG&E's rich history in building and growing communities as we invest in transmission, distribution and generation to support that growth."

Trauschke discussed the company's continued focus on delivering reliable and resilient electricity at rates 22% below the national average and 15% below Texas . He reflected on fully exiting the midstream natural gas segment in 2022 and the growth that investment provided OG&E, OGE Energy's electric company subsidiary, over the last 36 years.

In voting announced at the meeting, OGE Energy shareholders:

Elected 10 members of the company's board of directors to one-year terms. They are:

Judy R. McReynolds , lead director, chairman, president and chief executive officer of ArcBest Corporation.

chairman, president and chief executive officer of ArcBest Corporation.

Frank A. Bozich , president and chief executive officer at Trinseo PLC

president and chief executive officer at Trinseo PLC

Peter D. Clarke , former of-counsel and partner of Jones Day, a law firm

former of-counsel and partner of Jones Day, a law firm

Cathy R. Gates , former assurance partner of Ernst & Young LLP

former assurance partner of

David L. Hauser , former chairman and chief executive officer of FairPoint Communications Inc.

former chairman and chief executive officer of

Luther C. Kissam , IV , partner with Bernhard Capital Partners

, partner with

David E. Rainbolt, executive chairman of BancFirst Corporation

executive chairman of BancFirst Corporation

J. Michael Sanner, former audit partner of Ernst & Young LLP

former audit partner of

Sheila G. Talton, president and chief executive officer of Gray Matter Analytics

president and chief executive officer of Gray Matter Analytics

Sean Trauschke , current chairman, president and chief executive officer of OGE Energy Corp. and OG&E

current chairman, president and chief executive officer of and Ratified the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as the company's principal independent accountants for 2023;

LLP Approved, on an advisory basis, the compensation paid to named executive officers;

Approved, on an advisory basis, a voting frequency of every year (annually) on the compensation paid to named executive officers;

Did not approve an amendment of the Restated Certificate of Incorporation to modify supermajority voting provisions, as it received less than 80% of the outstanding shares of the Company's common stock required for passage.

Quarterly Dividend Declared

The OGE Energy board of directors also declared a third quarter dividend of $0.4141 per common share of stock, to be paid July 28, 2023 , to shareholders of record July 10, 2023 . The dividend was unchanged from the previous quarter.

OGE Energy Corp. is the parent company of OG&E, a regulated electric company with approximately 890,000 customers in Oklahoma and western Arkansas .

This news release may contain "forward-looking" statements. Forward-looking statements are intended to be identified by words such as "anticipate," "believe," "intend," "plan," "expect," "continued," "goal," "may" or similar expressions. Factors that could affect actual results are listed in the reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission including those listed in Risk Factors in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.

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SOURCE OGE Energy Corp.
Array Technologies, Nextracker, and GameChange Solar Trackers are Fully Compatible with Ojjo's Innovative Foundation Technology

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ojjo, the leading provider of next-generation solar foundations, has expanded the compatibility of its patented Earth Truss System across top-tier tracker manufacturers: Array Technologies, Nextracker, and now including GameChange Solar. Ojjo's novel design typically requires significantly less steel volume and labor as compared to conventional pilesdelivering millions in value to utility-scale projects that contain subsurface risk, predrill requirements, or significant grading. Explicitly engineered with mating hardware designed for each tracker manufacturer's bearing componentry, Ojjo foundations seamlessly integrate for a supplier-agnostic approach with no modifications to any tracker systems required.

Ojjo foundations have been successfully deployed on nearly two gigawatts (GW) of large-scale projects utilizing both Nextracker and Array Technologies systems. Nextracker took early adopter advantage and was first-to-market with an Ojjo UL 2703 listed solution, selected for initial projects including 105 megawatts (MW) of the Titan and Aragorn Solar Projects in Texas , as well as 175 MW Yellow Pine 1 solar project in Nevada . Following the release of Ojjo's compatible solution with Array Technologies, both companies were chosen for the 967 MW Gemini Solar Project, the nation's largest standalone solar and storage project. Ojjo has several additional projects underway with both Array Technologies and Nextracker, and is seeing strong demand for GameChange Solar trackers across anticipated projects.

"Since our inception, we have worked closely with the innovative leaders at Nextracker and Array Technologies to provide a cost-effective and streamlined offering, and we are grateful for their respective teams' ongoing support and collaboration," said Mike Miskovsky , Chairman and CEO of Ojjo. "We are proud today to also announce our compatibility with GameChange Solar, and appreciate the continuing efforts of all these industry leaders to help Ojjo execute across our 10-Gigawatt active project pipeline."

"We firmly believe that purpose-built solar foundations are a crucial step forward for the solar industry, enabling more efficient and cost-effective installations. The Earth Truss System harnesses advanced automation for precise truss placement and torque-tube-ready alignment to simplify tracker installation," said Helena Kimball , President of Ojjo. "In expanding our tracker compatibility today, we are pleased to offer customers even greater flexibility of choice to leverage value-engineering benefits."

About Ojjo

Ojjo is the industry leader in the development and manufacture of next-generation utility-scale solar foundations. Ojjo's patented approach combines novel hardware, the Earth Truss, with an innovative drilling machine, the Truss Driver. The Earth Truss is one of the fastest-to-install solar foundations in the industry, typically requiring significantly less steel volume and labor than a conventional pile system. Founded in 2018 by solar innovation veterans from Zep Solar and Tesla, Ojjo holds more than 300 domestic and international patents related to its system. Rapidly becoming a preferred solution for leading utility-scale projects, Ojjo has been chosen in over 2 Gigawatts of solar projects to date and has 40+ Gigawatts of opportunities across its overall North American pipeline. For more information, visit: www.ojjo.com

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SOURCE Ojjo
Shi Taifeng, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, meets with a delegation led by Paulo Raimundo, general secretary of the Portuguese Communist Party, in Beijing, capital of China, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Gao Jie)

BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Shi Taifeng, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met with a delegation led by Paulo Raimundo, general secretary of the Portuguese Communist Party, in Beijing on Thursday.

Shi, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, said the CPC is willing to deepen exchanges and cooperation with the Portuguese Communist Party, strengthen mutual learning, and push for the continued development of the China-Portugal comprehensive strategic partnership.

Raimundo spoke highly of China's development achievements, expressing his willingness to learn from the CPC's experience in national governance. 

Shi Taifeng, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, meets with a delegation led by Paulo Raimundo, general secretary of the Portuguese Communist Party, in Beijing, capital of China, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Gao Jie)
Final Approval from U.S. Bureau of Land Management for largest clean energy infrastructure project in American history; Full construction anticipated to commence in summer 2023

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pattern Energy Group LP (Pattern Energy), a leader in renewable energy, welcomes the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management's Record of Decision on the SunZia Transmission project, which will enable over 3,500 MW of New Mexico wind power from the SunZia Wind project to provide clean, reliable, and affordable electricity across Western states.

Today's Record of Decision by the Bureau of Land Management marks an important milestone for the SunZia Transmission project. After over 16 years of development including rigorous regulatory and environmental review, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process is complete. Full construction is anticipated to commence in the summer of 2023.

"This is a historic day for the advancement of America's clean energy goals as SunZia receives its major federal routing permit, clearing the way to bring online enough renewable power for 3 million Americans," said Hunter Armistead , CEO of Pattern Energy. "We're proud that SunZia is the culmination of over a decade of collaboration with communities, residents, landowners, environmental groups, wildlife organizations, and federal agencies. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, specifically the New Mexico State office, did a thorough and professional job managing this robust environmental NEPA process review to a close. SunZia will implement industry-leading measures for environmental mitigation, including emerging technology and long-term conservation research. More than 2,000 workers will now roll up their sleeves and get to work on America's largest clean energy infrastructure project, which we look forward to completing in 2026."

SunZia Transmission is setting a precedent with a gold standard in environmental mitigation efforts developed hand-in-hand with the environmental community. These range from restoring thousands of acres of wildlife habitat to investing in emerging technology and long-term conservation research. SunZia Wind has also established robust environmental best practices to reduce project impacts and study effective habitat restoration strategies in partnership with local and state experts.

"Climate change is the number one threat to birds' survival, and projects like SunZia are key to reducing carbon pollution and creating a cleaner future for people and wildlife," said Garry George , Director of the National Audubon Society's Clean Energy Initiative. "We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Pattern Energy and other conservation groups to responsibly expand our nation's clean energy and transmission infrastructure in ways that avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts on birds and communities."

"We welcome this important milestone for the SunZia project that will unlock New Mexico's vast renewable wind resource," said Fernando Martinez , Executive Director of the New Mexico Renewable Energy Transmission Authority (RETA). "Pattern Energy has been an excellent partner and we see SunZia as the model for planning and developing critical transmission projects that will advance our transition to clean energy.''

SunZia Transmission is a 550-mile  525 kV high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line between central New Mexico and south-central Arizona with the capacity to transport 3,000 MW of clean, renewable energy. SunZia Transmission will open access to the western energy markets to SunZia Wind, the largest wind project in the Western Hemisphere, which is comprised of more than 3,500 MW of new wind generation located in Torrance , Lincoln , and San Miguel Counties in New Mexico .

Pattern Energy recently announced that the SunZia Transmission and SunZia Wind projects are expected to generate $20.5 billion dollars in total economic benefit, which includes over $8 billion of direct capital investment, at no added cost to ratepayers, according to the results of an independent study conducted by the research firm Energy, Economic & Environment Consultants LLC. Together, the projects will generate an expected $1.3 billion in fiscal impacts that will go to governments, communities, and schools. These benefits are generated through sales and use taxes, property taxes, community benefit payments, and land payments to federal and state agencies.

The Record of Decision also includes an updated Preferred Alternative Route for the adjacent RioSol Transmission Line, a 500-kV High Voltage Alternating Current project that will have a capacity of 1,500 MW and will bring additional clean resources to western markets.

About Pattern Energy

Pattern Energy is one of the world's largest privately-owned developers and operators of wind, solar, transmission, and energy storage projects. Its operational portfolio includes 38 renewable energy facilities that use proven, best-in-class technology with an operating capacity of more than 6,000 MW in the United States , Canada , Japan , and Mexico . Pattern Energy is guided by a long-term commitment to serve customers, protect the environment, and strengthen communities. For more information, visit www.patternenergy.com.

Contacts:

Matt Dallas

Pattern Energy

917-363-1333

[email protected]

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SOURCE Pattern Energy Group LP
ANN ARBOR, Mich. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Plymouth Growth, a leading growth equity firm, is pleased to announce the successful closing of Plymouth Growth V, LP, with approximately $125MM in committed capital. Plymouth Fund V is exclusively focused on investing in high-growth, B2B software and tech-enabled services companies throughout the North American mid-continent.

Plymouth's fifth fund - led by Partners Jeff Barry , Brook Critchfield , Kevin Terrasi , and Evan Ufer - is the firm's largest to date with commitments nearly double its prior fund and serves as a testament to the firm's track record. With a focus on B2B technology, Plymouth Growth has a long history of identifying promising companies and working with management teams to help them achieve successful outcomes.

"We are thrilled to close Plymouth Fund V and continue our mission of partnering with exceptional software and technology companies," said Evan Ufer , Partner at Plymouth Growth. "Having successfully achieved our target for Fund V in a challenging environment, we are truly grateful for the trust and support our investors have in our firm and its vision."

"We are proud of our track record and the role we have played in helping to build some of the region's most successful tech companies," said Brook Critchfield , Partner at Plymouth Growth. "Our expanding investment team is excited to build on this momentum in Fund V and continue joining forces with exceptional leadership teams."

With this new capital, Kathleen Kaulins recently joined the firm as a senior member of the investment team. Kathleen, a Michigan native, came to Plymouth from Vistara Growth, where she served as Investment Director. Prior to working as an investor, she spent more than 10 years as an operator at two New York City -based technology startups where she led several different functions including finance, strategy, operations, and product. Kathleen began her career as an investment banker at UBS.

In addition to Kathleen, the firm has doubled its investment team in the past two years - adding Michelle Erikson , Senior Associate, Alison Todak , Director of Platform, and Caroline Wolanin , Analyst - to support its accelerated investment activities.

Fund V has already invested in six growth-stage technology companies, including most recently Forj and CloseSimple , and will continue to make $5MM to $15MM investments in the next wave of B2B businesses looking to scale.

About Plymouth Growth

Plymouth Growth invests in mid-continent B2B software and technology companies with proven business models, rapid growth, and strong teams - that are ready to scale. The Plymouth team brings decades of experience as operators, advisors, and investors, and understands that while metrics matter, it's people that are critical to growth. Based in Ann Arbor, MI , and actively investing out of its fifth fund, Plymouth Growth helps teams achieve smart, proven, growth. For more information about Plymouth Growth and its investments, please visit https://plymouthgp.com/ .

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SOURCE Plymouth Growth
SANT'ANGELO DI PIOVE DI SACCO, Italy , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pylon Technologies Co., Ltd. ("Pylontech") announces its plan to build its first overseas factory in Italy at a press conference in Veneto on 18 May 2023 .

Pylon LiFeEU S.r.l., the joint venture based in Sant'Angelo di Piove di Sacco (PD) will result in Pylontech's first overseas factory to produce and deliver energy storage solutions in a more stable and secured way for customers in Europe . It's jointly owned by Pylon Technologies Europe Holding B.V. ("Pylontech EU"), a company incorporated under Dutch law wholly owned by Pylontech, and Energy S.p.A. ("Energy"), who have been in cooperation for ten years with shared commitments to promote renewable energy and decarbonization initiatives. This factory will utilize resources and expertise from both sides to develop and market energy storage products in Europe , creating a new base for innovative energy storage solutions.

Pylontech has secured the number one position in the global residential battery energy market in 2022 with over one million energy storage systems commissioned in over 80 countries and regions starting from its first delivery in 2013. Today, the establishment of the new factory will be another significant milestone for this rapidly growing company, who continues to play a pioneering and leading role in the industry.

"It's an important step for Pylontech to set localized production as our partners especially in Europe are eager to have more secured and stable supply chain." Said Geoffrey Song , vice president of Pylontech, "We picked up Veneto as the starting place which enjoys both long time wisdom from Galilei and fresh friendship from Energy. I believe in the super bright future of renewable energy industry in EU by leveraging the global wisdom and local resources. "

About Pylontech

Pylontech (SHSE: 688063) is a dedicated battery energy storage system (BESS) provider by consolidating its expertise in electrochemistry, power electronics and system integration to deliver reliable energy storage solutions globally. With continuous and rapid growth, it has become a leading provider of energy storage system worldwide.

About Energy S.p.A.

Energy S.p.A. founded in 2013, listed on the Euronext Growth Milan market of the Italian Stock Exchange, is an energy storage systems leader for both residential and large-scale applications sector. It has sold and installed more than 53,000 systems across the country, with a focus on the residential, commercial, industrial, utilities and electric mobility markets.

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SOURCE Pylontech
PALO ALTO, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ramen Inc. a pioneering Silicon Valley startup, today announced at the Cota Connect summit in San Francisco hosted by Cota Capital, the general availability of its Secure Wireless Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) solution, RamenSN. Ramen uses a full stack approach, combining hardware, software, orchestration and monitoring to enable any company to leverage the benefits of a secure, highly reliable wireless network for their internal operations. By partnering with Ramen, enterprises can focus on their core business, while delegating the management and operation of their wireless network to a company with specialized expertise.

Ramen Inc announces the general availability of its Secure Wireless Network-as-a-Service ( NaaS ) solution, RamenSN.

RamenSN is:

Highly reliable: Ramen provides industry-leading Service Level Assurance for enterprise network uptime.

Zero customer touch: The Ramen team can have the entire network up and running in just a few weeks with minimal work for the customer.

Comprehensive technology support: Ramen supports CBRS, Wi-Fi and other radio technologies. Ramen selects the best wireless technology based on the use case and customer connectivity requirements.

Secure: Ramen provides Zero Trust Network Access, end-to-end encryption and authentication, and easy integration with the enterprise network security architecture. The customer can generate security audit and compliance (such as PCI & HIPPA) reports on-demand.

Application aware: In an enterprise network, various applications have their own set of network requirements. Ramen automatically configures the network based on the application requirements.

"RamenSN is ready for mass deployment after almost 2 years of development and over 6 months of intensive usage at multiple customer locations" said Partho Mishra , CEO of Ramen Inc. "Our customers are running their companies' mission-critical workflows day in and day out on the Ramen infrastructure, and we are proud to offer an industry leading SLA for reliability. Our solution has been deployed and tested in punishing conditions ranging from -30 degrees Fahrenheit to 120 degrees Fahrenheit."

"Denver University has been exploring new wireless technologies, specifically private CBRS/5G for a year," said Russell Kaurloto , CIO and Vice Chancellor at DU. "We now have a Ramen solution fully deployed across our mountain campus (8000 feet high), with coverage over roughly 700 acres and with phenomenal success. The system has been up and running for over 6 months, being one of the first in higher education. It's like WiFi on steroids."

Media Contact:

Partho Mishra

[email protected]

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SOURCE Ramen Inc.
CHEYENNE , Wyo., May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation announced on May 17, 2023 that it had filed suit in federal court to stop the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from stripping about 2 million acres from wild horses in southwest Wyoming for the benefit of private livestock ranchers.

"This decision must not be allowed to stand," said Neda DeMayo , president of Return to Freedom (RTF), a national nonprofit wild horse and burro advocacy organization. "The BLM is using an agreement with livestock ranchers as an excuse to violate its responsibilities under the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Federally protected wild horses and burros must not be allowed to be removed from our public lands due to private landowner pressure -- or whole herds will vanish across the West."

RTF is joined in the lawsuit by plaintiffs Front Range Equine Rescue (FRER), a Colorado non-profit organization, and wild horse photographers and advocates Meg Frederick and Angelique Rea .

Under the BLM's changes, finalized on May 8, 2023 , the agency will:

remove 1.95 million acres from wild horse use by converting the Salt Wells and Great Divide Herd Management Areas to inactive Herd Areas not managed for horses;

manage the herd on the 393,000-acre White Mountain Herd Management Area as non-reproducing, effectively zeroing it out, too, with the agency considering population management tools that are dangerous, inhumane, unproven, costly (surgical sterilization of mares), ineffective (sex-ratio skewing) or that do not have a fully understood effect on wild herds (gelding stallions);

slash its population target for the 478,000-acre Adobe Town Herd Management Area from a range of 610-800 wild horses to just 225-450 horses; and

potentially engage in illegal and unnecessary surgical sterilization of the resident wild horses.

The BLM says that it amended its Resource Management Plan based on an agreement it entered into in 2013 with the Rock Springs Grazing Association.

The ranching group sued for the removal of all of the wild horses from the 2-million-acre Checkerboard region, an unfenced area of alternating, one-mile-square blocks of public and private land set up in the 1860s as part of negotiations with the Union Pacific railroad.

BLM's reason for removing land from wild horse use: complying with its legal obligations to America's wild horses is too much trouble for it.

"The BLM can't just throw up its hands because Congress handed it a challenge," said Hilary Wood , president of plaintiff FRER. "That's just not good enough for the agency charged with conserving wild horses and burros on our public lands on behalf of all Americans."

The announced changes demonstrate explicit bias and violation of federal law. And during a $1.1 million , three-month-long helicopter roundup from late 2021 to early 2022. the BLM set the stage for the changes by capturing and removing 3,502 wild horses from their home ranges in Southwest Wyoming . Thirty-seven wild horses died during the roundup.

Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation (RTF ) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to wild horse preservation through sanctuary, education, conservation, and advocacy since 1998. It also operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary at three California locations, caring for more than 450 wild horses and burros. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram for updates about wild horses and burros on the range and at our sanctuary.

Front Range Equine Rescue (FRER) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to end the abuse and neglect of horses through rescue and education. It was incorporated in the State of Colorado in 1997. FRER's "Save the Wild Horses" campaign provides rescue, education, advocacy and legal action to protect America's wild horses. To learn more, visit www.frontrangeequinerescue.org.

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SOURCE Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation
MIAMI , May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Scott Disick , renowned entrepreneur and television personality, is thrilled to announce that his premium Champagne brand, Leo De Verzay , will now be available across Florida in restaurants, bars, clubs and wine / spirit stores. In partnership with Republic National Distributing Company, one of the nation's leading distributors of wine and spirits, consumers can now enjoy Leo De Verzay Champagne at their favorite clubs, restaurants, bars and Liquor stores.

To celebrate this exciting milestone, Disick will be making appearances in select venues across Florida , the weekend of May 20 and 21 , where the product is sold. This presents an opportunity for his fans and consumers of Leo De Verzay Champagne to engage with Disick, and learn more about the brand's story.

While consumers can still purchase Leo De Verzay online at buyldvdirect.com and receive free shipping to their door, Disick wants to give his fans the opportunity to taste the Champagne and experience its unique flavor profile firsthand as he introduces his brand state by state. "I am excited to bring The Taste of Luxury to wine and spirit stores and make Florida my first stop. My goal has always been to bring affordable luxury to people, and I believe Leo De Verzay does just that," said Disick.

Miami is like a second home to Scott, so it seemed natural to kick off in The Sunshine State. Leo De Verzay is also available through RNDC in California and will soon be in New York . Kick off parties are being planned for each state. Leo De Verzay is quickly becoming a favorite among celebrities, influencers, and Champagne enthusiasts. With its elegant packaging and luxurious taste, it is the perfect Champagne for special occasions. Stay tuned for more updates as Scott Disick continues to expand his brand and bring affordable luxury to consumers throughout the US.

About Leo De Verzay Champagne :

Leo de Verzay champagne was founded by 8th generation wine-grower Charlotte Castagne-Chaudron, and brought to the U.S. market by American entrepreneurs, Scott Disick and Brad Turk . Leo de Verzay Cuvees are aged a minimum of three years in the bottle and embody everything the Champagne experience has come to represent and does so with an irrepressibly artistic and powerful personality. A certified Swarovski crystal adorns each bottle. Leo de Verzay's appeal to both jet-setters and connoisseurs lies in its attention to detail in both bottle presentation and exceptional quality. It is made from the very best grapes rooted in the Premier and Grand Cru villages of the Champagne region in France .

For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected] , (214) 676-9187

Instagram: @leodeverzay

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SB 556 would have held oil companies presumptively liable for causing cancer, asthma, preterm and high risk births for people living within 3200 ft of an oil well.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- SB 556, legislation that gives people who live near oil wells and have developed cancer, respiratory illnesses and birth defects the right to hold oil drillers liable for their illnesses, was held without a vote on the suspense file by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill can no longer proceed this year.

Senator Anthony Portantino used his power to stop the bill without a hearing or vote. More than 130 public interest, environmental and labor groups back SB 556.

Authored by California State Senator Lena Gonzalez , SB 556 builds on scientific evidence proving a link between drilling and these maladies, like cancer, the same evidence that was used to enact SB 1137 (Gonzalez), which banned new drilling in the 3200 foot "set-back" zone. Oil drillers qualified a referendum that put SB 1137 on hold until voters vote on it in November 2024 . If SB 556 becomes law, it would further protect communities by making drillers liable for the harms they cause in all their wells starting January 2024 .

Responses from members of the Last Chance Alliance follow:

" Senator Portantino betrayed the people in his district who live close to the more than 100 operational oil wells there by failing to give a bill that protects them from drilling a fair hearing and using his unilateral power to hold the legislation. Portantino sided with the drillers against the community he represents and allowed oil drillers to continue to recklessly drill without accountability for their actions. His undemocratic actions today will live in infamy in the communities most affected by oil drilling."

Jamie Court, President of Consumer Watchdog.

"Corporate polluters have spent over $9 million lobbying against legislation that would protect communities and consumers in the first three months of this year alone. In failing to pass SB 556 out of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Portantino has failed the millions of Californians who are used as a sacrifice zone for oil drilling and polluter greed. Big Oil should not be allowed to continue acting with impunity. Californians have suffered for too long. We thank Senator Gonzalez for her efforts in holding corporate polluters accountable and we will continue working towards ending neighborhood oil drilling in California . We will not allow Big Oil to intimidate us." Chirag G. Bhakta , California Director, Food & Water Watch

"EWG is disheartened by the decision to hold this well-conceived proposal in the Appropriations Committee. Committee Chair Portantino needs to hold the state's big oil corporations accountable for the serious, often life-threatening health effects inflicted upon millions of hardworking people, including children. The adverse health impacts associated with oil and gas extraction activities are undeniable. The release of toxic emissions, air pollutants, and the contamination of groundwater have been linked to a range of health conditions, including respiratory ailments like asthma, neurological disorders, and increased risk of cancer. It's shameful that Senator Portantino caved into the pressure the oil companies have put upon the Committee and the Legislature by spending millions of dollars on a fleet of lobbyists to work against this bill." Bill Allayaud , EWG Vice President for California Government Affairs

"Fossil fuel executives have known for decades that drilling in neighborhoods puts our communities at risk of cancer, asthma, pregnancy complications, and other illnesses. Instead of acting to protect public health and our shared climate, they've lobbied and spent millions of dollars convincing elected officials to look the other way. We will continue to work with Senator Gonzalez and other environmental justice champions in efforts to hold these corporate polluters accountable and end neighborhood drilling in California ." Nicole Rivera , Government Affairs Director, The Climate Center

"Our Elected Officials to Protect America California network of over 460 elected officials from 49 counties, representing more than half of Californians, have fought for science-based public health setbacks to protect our communities from oil and gas industry pollution," said Meghan Sahli-Wells , California Director, Elected Officials to Protect America - Code Blue, Former Culver City Mayor. "SB 556, gives people who have developed cancer, respiratory illnesses and birth defects the right to hold oil drillers liable for their illnesses if they live, work, or go to school within 3200 feet of oil drilling and if the company did not use the best technologies to mitigate risk. Our communities have suffered for far too long, forced to breathe toxic air and live on contaminated soil from oil and gas facilities in our neighborhoods.The industry must responsibly pay for the undeniable harm they have caused too many families. We will not give up until there is justice."

"Oil and gas wells have plagued our marginalized California communities for far too long, and it is past due for these owners and operators to take responsibility for the health harms they have caused California residents. We strongly believe in Senator's Gonzalez's bill, and we are very disappointed in the Appropriations Committee's failure to pass SB 556. Our communities deserve to live in an environment that does not give them cancer, pregnancy complications, or respiratory issues, and this bill would have moved us toward that reality." Kayla Karimi , Staff Attorney, Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment

"Every community deserves to live free of pollution that impacts their health and wellbeing. Yet, for far too long frontline communities of primarily Black and Brown residents across the state have been subjected to egregiously negligent practices by Big Oil that harm their health on a daily basis. SB556 is a result of their relentless advocacy and refusal to take no for an answer. It is beyond time we stopped putting corporate profits over people's wellbeing, yet, that's exactly what the Appropriations committee's failure to pass this bill does. Their shameful action keeps in place barriers to accountability that are necessary to protect communities. We thank Senator Gonzalez for her work to hold the oil industry responsible for the harm they cause. While this decision was disheartening, it has only sharpened our resolve to fight for accountability and a clean future where oil drilling doesn't exist.

Kobi Naseck , VISION Coalition Coordinator.

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SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
Unprecedented Demand Creates Consumer Frenzy for Beloved Botanical Non-Alcoholic Spirit as well as Interest from Global Spirits Powerhouse

SEATTLE , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pathfinder Hemp and Root  the fermented and distilled non-alcoholic amaro turning the bar world on its end, is pleased to announce strategic investment from Stoli Group, a world class producer, manager, and distributor of global spirits and wines. The Pathfinder has developed a loyal following amongst mindful imbibers, cocktail enthusiasts, bartenders, and baristas alike, and this financial injection from the global premium spirits business' first foray into the zero-proof space occurs on the heels of The Pathfinder's 10,000+ waitlist and production of a limited-edition collector's bottle in order to meet consumer demand (available online here, $39.99).

"We are excited about investing in The Pathfinder Hemp and Root and the diversification it brings to the Stoli Group portfolio," commented Damian McKinney , Global CEO, Stoli Group. "The Pathfinder is a true trailblazer in the zero-proof category and as this massive shift in the culture of socialization continues, The Pathfinder and Stoli Group combo creates limitless possibilities."

Lauded as the new Pappy Van Winkle by The New York Post, The Pathfinder raises the standards of flavor and quality for the non-alcoholic category and was the number one selling product this year in many non-alcoholic retailers across the country, including Met Market in Seattle , Wellspent in Portland , as well as New York's Amor Y Amargo , Boisson, Spirited Away and Minus Moonshine, plus Atlanta's The Zero Proof and The Zero Co., Los Angeles' New Bar, Pittsburgh's Open Road , and Virginia's Point 5, who, overwhelmed with interest, met demand by limiting purchases to one bottle per customer per day.

"We have won over a lot of skeptics who didn't believe that non-alcoholic options would find a place in the beverage world," noted Kraig Rovensky , Global Ambassador for The Pathfinder Hemp and Root. "We're blazing a trail for those who want to try something different  and the demand we've seen in the past few months proves that zero-proof spirits are here to stay."

In drinks, The Pathfinder behaves like a spirit and can be served in coffee, sipped neat, served on the rocks, or used as the base of a cocktail. In other words, it fits right into the back bar of your favorite bar or cafe as well as it does your home bar cart. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is available now ( $39.99/700 ml) for purchase online here.

"The Pathfinder is a pioneering non-alcoholic spirit made from fermented and distilled hemp resulting in a highly unique bitter, sweet, and complex elixir that is remarkable and highly versatile," says Guy Escolme co-founder. "In a world of imitation, The Pathfinder is a true disruptor, endorsed by trailblazing bars and world-class bartenders who prioritize innovation over imitation. The Pathfinder and Stoli Group embarking on this new journey together is truly a new frontier!"

ABOUT THE PATHFINDER HEMP and ROOT

The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is a non-alcoholic spirit made from fermented and distilled hemp to deliver the intense flavor and aromatic characteristics of a spirit.

The Pathfinder is steeped in the rich history of the American West with a liquid that is just as wild as the landscape and the people that inhabited it. Inspired by the age of apothecaries and the homemade remedies often employed by pioneers' homesteaders and snake oil salesmen alike, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root equally hearkens to a bygone age as it raises the standard of flavor and quality in non-alcoholic spirits with an eye to the future.

Inspired by the golden age of cannabis and flourishing in top cocktail bars and coffee shops, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root raises the standard of flavor and quality in non-alcoholic spirits with an eye to changing the future of socialization. In drinks, The Pathfinder behaves like a spirit and can be served in coffee, sipped neat, served on the rocks, or used as the base of a cocktail. In other words, it fits right into the back bar of your favorite bar or cafe as well as it does your home bar cart. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root is now available for purchase online here.

ABV : Zero Proof Spirit

: Zero Proof Spirit Bottle Size : 700 ml

: 700 ml Flavor Profile/Tasting Notes : Bittersweet and gently tart, The Pathfinder Hemp and Root features foremost the distinctive flavor of hemp, balanced out with many of the common herbs, barks, and roots common in traditional amaros and gins. Root cellar aromas highlighted by dried herbs, gentle warming spice, bittersweet citrus, and pine, with a bracing finish.

Made from fermented and distilled hemp plus a slew of other wild ingredients such as Douglas fir, sage, juniper, saffron, wormwood and angelica root, the unmatched herbaceous flavor, versatility, and good vibes can be enjoyed now.

For more information, please visit www.drinkthepathfinder.com, for inspiration on all things alchemy check out @drinkthepathfinder, and for press inquiries, please reach out: [email protected]

ABOUT THE PATHFINDER HEMP and ROOT FOUNDERS:

The Pathfinder was born out of a simple question: what will the back bar of the future look like? Three proven trailblazers in their respective fields set out to answer that question with a spirit that only they could dream up. Guy Escolme (expert brand builder with 22 years of experience at Diageo), Chris Abbott (founder of Mr. Moxey's , a cannabis industry pioneer), and Steven Grasse (founder of Quaker City Mercantile, creator of Hendrick's Gin, Sailor Jerry Rum , and others) combined their expertise to create an iconic cannabis spirit rooted in the "golden era" of cannabis in the American West. Fermented and distilled hemp make up the base, while a blend of botanicals including wormwood, Angelica root, and Douglas fir combine with natural terpenes for a uniquely western flavor on the nose and palate. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root has the intense flavor and aromatic characteristics of a spirit.

About Stoli Group

Stoli Group was established in 2013 and is responsible for the production, management, and distribution of a global spirits and wines portfolio. Mainly known for the Stoli Vodka brand, Stoli Group has expanded to appeal to luxury on-premise and more sophisticated global consumers. Signature brands are: Stoli Vodka, elitVodka, Bayou Rum, Kentucky Owl, Villa One, Gator Bite Rum Liqueurs, Cenote Tequila, Tulchan Gin, Se Busca Mezcal and Stoli Group's wine division, Tenute del Mondo. With a presence across a network of more than 176 markets, Stoli Group works with a passionate team of 200 distributors around the world. Headquartered in Luxembourg, Stoli has production facilities in Argentina, Latvia , Spain, and the United States , some of which are steeped in history dating back to the early part of the last century. For more information, visit stoli-group.com .

Drink Responsibly.

CONTACT:

[email protected]

Maureen Landers

[email protected]

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SOURCE Stoli Group
GAITHERSBURG, Md. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute (NTCRI) is proud to announce the exhibition tour in the U.S.A. : "Homeland: Relationship of Taiwan Green Craft with Earth, Community and Mind." The theme of the exhibition revolves around the multilayer meaning of "homeland", explore and reflect the values of Taiwan sustainable craft and its local aesthetics as well as humans' roles in nature, society and themselves.

The exhibition divided into three sections - Earth, Community and Mind, expresses the artists' focus on environmental sustainability, post-pandemic community relations, and the physical and emotional wellbeing of individuals. Using crafts as a medium , Taiwanese artists try to explore contemporary issues from many different level and as a platform to showcase the integration of the traditional and innovative aspects of Taiwanese crafts.

"Earth" expresses the conflicting yet coexisting presence of nature and progress. Artists showcase their eco-friendly way of creation and how we can better coexist with nature. There is also a contemporary approach to circular sustainability where artist incorporate waste into their creations. They transform agricultural waste (straw), recycled wastes (ceramics, glass, paper), and nature materials into crafts. This aims to draw the audience attention to critical environmental issues such as pollution and waste recycle.

Meanwhile, "Community" embodies the connections, engagement and support between individuals and the community. NTCRI has launched the program "One Community, One Craft " initiative which creates a platform for community engagement and support.

This section showcases community crafts in Taiwan and how craft evolves from an artist's creation to a medium for social service and shows that craft is more than an object, but a force that brings hope, healing and unites people in the community.

"Mind" portrays craft as a medium that connects culture and faith in Taiwanese's daily life. This section aims to draw out conversations with ourselves through faith and crafts. Taiwanese temples are like ecological art galleries in the daily life, and crafts are a unique form of art that has been shaped by the country's rich cultural heritage and religious traditions. Temple decorative art- Koji pottery, transformed a well-known tale - "The Eight Immortals crossing the sea" will be shown on the exhibition.

Four artists from Taiwan will join the tour to showcase a wide range of Taiwanese crafts. While artists apply relational aesthetics using contemporary craft to delve into important global societal and environmental issues, the exhibition is also intended to inspire the audience to reflect, resonate and care about our homeland.

"Homeland: Relationship of Taiwan Green Craft with Earth, Community and Mind" will start in Washington D.C on May 12 till May 31 in Culture Center of Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office and continue the exhibition to New York .

Media Contact:

Sunny Chiang

[email protected]

6462705533

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SOURCE National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute
CHONGQING, China , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from iChongqing - Chongqing - The Fifth Western China International Fair for Investment and Trade (WCIFIT) Opening Ceremony and the 2023 CCI-ILSTC International Cooperation Forum commenced in Southwest China's Chongqing on May 18 .

With 13 exhibition halls covering 180,000 square meters this year, the largest in history, the WCIFIT has set the annual theme of "Inland China Opening-up & Innovative Development Driven by Digital Technology," featuring two major thematic exhibition areas focused on investment, trade and industry promotion.

Malaysia is the guest country of honor, and China's Sichuan and Gansu provinces are the guest provinces.

During the WCIFIT, Chongqing signed 84 projects worth a contract investment of 285.415 billion yuan (about USD 40.69 billion ). The investment projects of centrally-managed enterprises include the joint construction of advanced manufacturing clusters, digital economy industries in western China and energy development and utilization.

"To foster digital connectivity and streamline customs procedures, Singapore's and China's customs authorities have linked up the National Single Window systems to enable the electronic exchange of trade documents and data," said Tan Kiat How , Senior Minister of State, Ministry of National Development & Ministry of Communications and Information, Singapore .

The 2023 CCI-ILSTC International Cooperation Forum saw guests from Singapore , Laos , Malaysia , Vietnam and other countries discussing how to build the linkage between western China and the world through the New International Land-sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC).

Vilaykham Phosalath, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport of Laos, stated that the China-Laos Railway plays a significant role in goods transportation between the two countries. It also provides great convenience to ASEAN countries for cross-border transport, such as Thailand , Malaysia , Myanmar and Singapore .

At the forum, the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing released the 2022 Development Index of the ILSTC, highlighting three aspects: development scale, quality and competitiveness.

Data shows that the 2022 Development Index of the ILSTC was 135.2, increased by 10.3% and 32.5% compared to 2021 and 2020 respectively.

During the four-day conference, more than 900 enterprises and 186 guests from 40 countries and regions as well as 29 provincial regions and two special administrative regions in China gathered in Chongqing to participate in a series of events, including the "Invest in China " Western Region Special Promotion Event and the 2023 Forbes China Urban Consumption Development Forum.

For more, please visit: https://www.ichongqing.info/special/the-5th-wcifit/

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SOURCE iChongqing




ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The China-Central Asia Summit is held on Thursday and Friday in northwest China's Xi'an, the ancient Silk Road's starting point.

A Pakistani expert believes that China will embrace the summit as an opportunity and work with the five Central Asian countries to push for more cooperation.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
































The new care kits support MySimplePetLab test results with relief of digestive troubles, ear infections, itchy skin or general first aid at first sign of concern.

MINNEAPOLIS , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- By Vets, For Pets - MySimplePetLab is leading the future of modern pet wellness with their launch of targeted relief dog care kits. MySimplePetLab focuses on getting to and addressing the root problem of common pet concerns and offering high quality, medical grade products to remedy pet symptoms. The new product line from MySimplePetLab is a smart companion to their from home routine pet tests. The test and care products provide diagnosis and solutions for pet concerns quickly, allowing pet parents to test, care and get relief fast and stay on top of their pet's wellness at first sign of concern. MySimplePetLab's care kits include everything your pet needs to feel better fast, while registering the kit helps keep vets in the loop.

MySimplePetLab is on a mission to automate pet wellness and create access for all

Simple isn't always easy, but with the new care kits from MySimplePetLab, pet parents can get vet approved, on-the-go kits that deliver fast relief to common pet concerns in between vet visits. MySimplePetLab care products support pet parents with effective solutions and the education that they need to feel good about their pet's health. Several common pet concerns (diarrhea, sore ears, itchy skin, and minor cuts and injuries) often require a vet visit and or multiple OTC/RX products to support with relief.

MySimplePetLab's offerings allow pet parents and vets to test real-time with our from home tests and use our care kits to support until they can get into the vet.

"MySimplePetLab started in 2019 with a focus on quality and innovative pet tests with vet approved results. The expansion to care is a natural evolution," says Co-Founder and Chief Lab & Innovation Officer Dr. Dennis Chmiel , DVM. "Routine testing among pet owners and vet clinics has grown and the market is demanding more solutions that make pet care simple. Our care kits are the first of their kind, offering fast relief for digestive issues and skin and ear infections. Kits include high quality efficacious products, a reusable carrying case, and care kit instructions that are vet approved and simple to follow."

The care kits, which retail for $39.99 , will roll out to +500 Target locations in Fall 2023 and will launch on Target.com in Summer 2023, making it the company's first major retail partnership. MySimplePetLab products can also be found on Amazon, Walmart Marketplace , Allivet and Tractor Supply RX.

"75 million pets may not have access to care by 2030 and MySimplePetLab is on a mission to change that," says Mark Cushing , Founder and CEO, Animal Policy Group. "Millions of pets who are suffering from digestive issues, diarrhea, ear infections, itchy skin and minor cuts and injuries have pet parents and vets that are looking for fast, accessible, and simple solutions."

MySimplePetLab is on a mission to automate pet wellness and create access for all.

With their at-home vet approved routine pet tests and medical grade care kits, MySimplePetLab makes pet health and wellness simple, accessible, and enjoyable by delivering technology, consumer friendly products, advice, and vet services directly to customers' homes.

"The past 3-4 years of growth in pet categories across animal health and retail have been unprecedented, and they are not slowing down," says John Bork , Senior Vice President Vet Health Services at Petsmart. "Pet parents are demanding more access to simple care and services when and where they need it most. MySimplePetLab's test and care platform is innovative as it bridges the virtual and physical pet wellness experience, which means more pets can be seen and supported both in clinic and virtually."

MySimplePetLab has grown rapidly since they took in a $6M Series A funding round led by the Companion Fund in 2022. Earlier this year, the company expanded their state-of-the-art, technology-driven laboratory, which is the first veterinary diagnostic reference laboratory to share test results directly with pet parents as well as their care team. Recently, the company has added Dr. Cindy Cole , DVM and Partner at Companion Fund as a board member and has also brought in Dr. Jennifer Welser , DVM - Former Chief Medical Officer, Mars Veterinary Health as a strategic advisor.

"Humanization of pets is here to stay," says Jen Hagness , CEO & President at MySimplePetLab, "and although we recognize the importance of food and treats, we believe the future of this category will be a balance of products, services and accessories that deliver pet wellness solutions across both animal health and retail. With both test and care solutions, MySimplePetLab is building a new, flexible pet wellness category and bridging the gaps across the care continuum  in clinic, from home, on-the-go, online, in-store, etc. We are incredibly excited to provide pet parents, vet clinics, and pet services with the tools they need to care for pets where and when they need it most."

About MySimplePetLab

By vets, for pets. At MySimplePetLab, we are creating the future of pet wellness, made simple. Our pet care solutions provide simple, fast, and reliable support through products that support the most common pet health concerns (i.e., digestive issues and infections of the ear and skin). We believe pet ownership should be simple, and our products offer effective ways to keep your pet healthy and happy, from routine pet wellness tests to vet approved OTC products  we believe all vets, pet parents and pets deserve better access to care. We are the future of pet wellness, made simple. Our pet care products and tech automation are simple to use, fast and reliable. We provide on-the-go results and relief when you and your pet need them most.

About MySimplePetLab's Team

MySimplePetLab was founded in 2019 on the belief that everyone deserves access to high quality pet care. The Company's co-founders, Dr. Dennis Chmiel , DVM, and Dr. Nancy Willerton , DVM, take inspiration from their combined 40+ years of Animal Health experience. Jen Hagness brings a background in building and scaling consumer brands and joined the team as CEO & President in 2021. Together they are making pet care simple and accessible, for all. Headquartered in Minneapolis, MN and Denver, CO home to state-of-the-art lab facility MySimplePetLab is on a mission to create the future of pet wellness, made simple.

MySimplePetLab has been recognized for its innovation and positive impact on the pet care industry through accolades such as Target Takeoff Accelerator 2022 and Pet Innovation Award Winner 2021. https://mysimplepetlab.com/

For MySimplePetLab inquiries, please contact:

Autumn Furr

[email protected]

John Kendzierski [email protected]

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SOURCE MySimplePetLab
Workers Demand Fair Treatment, File ULPs and OSHA Complaint

CHULA VISTA, Calif. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Transdev workers represented by Teamsters Local 683 who provide transportation services for the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) are on an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike.

Local 683 has filed three ULP charges and an OSHA complaint against Transdev for bargaining in bad faith, threatening workers for honoring a picket line, unilaterally changing drivers' schedules, and failing to provide workers with access to sanitary bathrooms and secure rest areas for their legally mandated breaks.

"These bus drivers are the backbone of the San Diego public transit system, and it is abhorrent how they are being treated by Transdev," said Jose Puga , Vice President and Business Agent at Local 683. "In addition to facing inhumane conditions, Transdev has failed to bargain in good faith and offer these workers a fair contract. Workers deserve much better  and Transdev bus workers will be on strike until they are provided decent wages and sanitary conditions."

"We are not asking for much," said Adelene Adams , a Transdev bus operator. "We want clean bathrooms, somewhere safe to take breaks, and better compensation. It is disheartening to be treated so despicably by Transdev, but we are grateful to have the Teamsters  especially Jose Puga  fighting for us at the bargaining table and alongside us on the picket line."

Local 683 has been in negotiations with Transdev for six months and recently received a final offer from Transdev, which workers voted down. After exhausting negotiations, workers unanimously voted to authorize the strike.

Teamsters Local 683 represents 2,700 workers in a variety of industries in Southern California .

Contact:

Matt McQuaid , (202) 624-6877

[email protected]

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SOURCE Teamsters Local 683
HOUSTON , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. Legal Support, the nation's leading provider of litigation support services, has announced that Theresa Cases has been appointed as the Vice President of Operations, Records. In this new role, Theresa will be responsible for all record retrieval operations nationwide, ensuring timely delivery and an exceptional client experience.

Theresa brings over a decade of experience to her new position, having held various roles within the organization since 2011. She started as a member of the Accounts Receivable department before being promoted to the National Accounts Billing Team, where she played a critical role in building important client relationships. In 2015, Theresa moved to the record retrieval division, where she was a key part of the expediting process and growth of the division. Most recently, she served as Director of Operations, Records, where she oversaw the entire Expediting Team and led multiple technology initiatives, which streamlined service delivery and dramatically improved the quality of services for clients.

As the Vice President of Operations, Records, Theresa will oversee the day-to-day operations of the record retrieval division, including supervising the digital infrastructure, launching process and delivery improvements through technology, managing relations with over 1.1 million providers, and assisting the sales teams in winning important cases, specifically in the Mass Tort area.

"We are thrilled to announce Theresa's appointment as Vice President of Operations, Records," said Jimmie Bridwell , CEO of U.S. Legal Support. "Her extensive leadership and operational experience, track record of success, and commitment to the client experience make her an ideal candidate for this role. We are confident that Theresa will continue to propel innovation and deliver exceptional results in her new position."

"I am honored to take on this new role and lead the record retrieval division at U.S. Legal Support," said Theresa Cases . "I am excited about the opportunity to work with our talented team to deliver exceptional service to our clients while continuing to drive growth for the organization."

About U.S. Legal Support

U.S. Legal Support was founded in 1996 with a single goal: to be the first nationwide, all-inclusive litigation support company. Over the last thirty years, our mission has remained the same: to build lasting relationships with our legal industry partners by delivering exceptional litigation support services. With a full suite of court reporting solutions, record retrieval, interpreting & translations, trial services and transcription services, we serve the legal industry better. To law firms, enterprise legal teams, and insurance carriers across the country, U.S. Legal Support offers on-demand access to 12,000+ offices in more than 2,700 cities with in-person, remote and hybrid service capabilities. For more information about U.S. Legal Support, visit www.uslegalsupport.com.

Media Contact

[email protected]

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SOURCE U.S. Legal Support, Inc.
FILE PHOTO: A worker wearing a face mask works on a production line manufacturing bicycle steel rim at a factory, as the country is hit by the novel coronavirus outbreak, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China March 2, 2020. China Daily via REUTERS

By Joe Cash

BEIJING (Reuters) - China needs to level the playing field between private and state owned firms, the Asian Development Bank's chief economist said on Thursday, adding that the world's second-largest economy risks "wasting a tonne of money" with a state-led growth model.

"If you just try to use brute force, spend your investment in a few companies that are not really facing a lot of competitive pressure, those policies, usually they often don't yield much return for your money," Albert Park told Reuters in his first trip to Beijing since COVID restrictions were lifted.

The Manila-based lender "consistently" raises with China the importance of improving the business environment and the sustainability of the country's development, he said, while noting that a one percentage increase in growth in China can increase growth in developing Asia by 0.3%.

The comments come amid growing signs that China's post-COVID economic recovery is losing steam, intensifying pressure on policymakers to shore up wobbly growth.

April industrial output, retail sales, and property investment data this week disappointed investors. Private fixed-asset investment rose only 0.4% last month, in sharp contrast to the 9.4% jump in investment by state entities, indicating weak business confidence.

"I feel China does need to move towards really creating a dynamic private sector with open market competition because that's how you generate innovation," Park said.

"If you look at the history of China's economic development, a lot of the gains in growth, productivity, and employment have come from the non-state sector," he added.

Youth unemployment hit a record high of 20.4% in April.

Park remains optimistic, however, that policymakers will implement further reforms. Not least, so that China can meet the accession requirements of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, an aim China's commerce minister reiterated to his Australian counterpart in Beijing last Friday.

"I think you should take them at their word," Park responded when asked how China could expect to join the free trade bloc while appearing to place state-owned enterprises at the centre of its economic recovery.

"China has always, like many of the countries in Asia, been very supportive of multilateral open trading systems," he said, pointing to how China is already a member of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.

(Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by Kim Coghill)
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday he had agreed to hold peace talks in Moscow on May 25 with Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, with Russian President Vladimir Putin mediating, the Interfax news agency reported.

"We received a proposal from the Russian side to hold a trilateral meeting mediated by the Russian president on May 25. We accepted this proposal," Pashinyan was cited as telling a government meeting.

Russia brokered a truce to halt a six-week conflict between the two countries in 2020, but the agreement has not led to lasting peace, tensions remain high, and flare-ups in violence are common.

Moscow has a peacekeeping force in Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, but populated mainly by ethnic Armenians.

The United States and the European Union have also undertaken efforts to encourage both sides to agree to a lasting settlement.

(Reporting by Reuters reporters; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
A gavel and a block is pictured at the George Glazer Gallery antique store in this illustration picture taken in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., August 18, 2020. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/Illustration

By Mike Scarcella

(Reuters) - Simmons Bedding Company LLC has been sued by a consumer who accused the company of selling bedding and linens that falsely inflated their "thread count," duping buyers over the purported higher quality and durability of the products.

The lawsuit filed on Wednesday in a California federal court alleged certain Simmons Beautyrest products were deceptively marketed as having a "1,000 thread count" when the number of strands per square inch was really 216.

In the proposed class action, California resident Loriann Staples said she would not have purchased Beautyrest bed sheets, or would have paid less for them, had Simmons disclosed the alleged actual count.

The lawsuit filed by plaintiffs' firm Bursor & Fisher alleged that misbranded thread counts deceive consumers into believing "they are purchasing a product which is of higher quality, durability, longevity, softness, or better for sleeping than products with a lower thread count."

A representative from Simmons parent Serta Simmons Bedding LLC, based in Georgia, did not immediately respond to a message on Thursday seeking comment. An attorney for Simmons had not yet made an appearance in the case.

Lawyers for Staples did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment on Thursday.

Staples' lawsuit is among at least a handful of others that have accused manufacturers or retailers of deceptively marketing thread-sheet counts. Macy's Inc agreed in March to settle a class action in Ohio federal court for $10.5 million. A fairness hearing in that case is set for September.

The Federal Trade Commission in an advisory staff opinion in 2005 warned that consumers could be deceived based on variations in industry practices about how to count threads.

In January, Serta Simmons Bedding filed for bankruptcy protection in Texas in a bid to eliminate most of its debt. Serta Simmons Bedding's brands include Serta, Simmons, Beautyrest and Tuft & Needle. In the year ending June 30, 2022, the company's sales topped $2.4 billion.

The plaintiffs' lawyers said in the complaint that they "commissioned independent laboratory testing" to examine thread count.

The lawsuit, which estimated a potential class size of "hundreds of thousands" of members, seeks unspecified monetary damages and other relief.

The case is Staples v. Simmons Bedding Company LLC, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 4:23-cv-02427.

For plaintiff: Joel Smith and Brittany Scott of Bursor & Fisher

For defendant: No appearance yet

(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; editing by Leigh Jones)
Michael Arthur Delaney testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee during a hearing to become United States Circuit judge for the First Circuit on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 15, 2023. REUTERS/Sarah Silbiger/File Photo

By Jacqueline Thomsen

(Reuters) -Former New Hampshire Attorney General Michael Delaney on Thursday asked U.S. President Joe Biden to withdraw his nomination to the 1st Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals amid opposition from both Democrats and Republicans, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

In the letter to Biden, Delaney said he believes "it is appropriate for me to withdraw my name from consideration for this position to advance the important work of the federal judiciary."

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates in a statement called Delaney "deeply qualified," but said that Biden will work with New Hampshire's U.S. senators to find a new nominee for the vacancy. Delaney is the first of Biden's judicial nominees to fail due to lack of Democratic support.

Delaney's nomination to the Boston-based appeals court had been on the Senate Judiciary Committee's agenda for a month, including for Thursday, but was never called to a vote.

Some Democrats had raised concerns about a legal brief Delaney signed defending a New Hampshire law, since repealed, that required parents to be notified before their minor child has an abortion.

Delaney said in response to written questions from the committee that he had "extremely limited involvement" in the case, which was litigated while he was the state's deputy attorney general.

Abortion has been a top priority for Democrats considering judicial nominees after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling last June that overturned the national right to abortion and returned regulation of the issue to the states.

Delaney also faced questions over his representation of a New Hampshire boarding school that was sued in connection with a sexual assault between students.

Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn said at the Senate Judiciary Committee's meeting on Thursday that she believed Delaney is "unfit for public service," citing his work for the school.

Senator Lindsey Graham, the judiciary panel's top Republican, also urged the Biden administration to withdraw Delaney's nomination.

The vast majority of the White House's court picks have seen unanimous Democratic support. Senator Joe Manchin on Wednesday became the first Democrat to vote against one of Biden's judicial nominees, opposing the nomination of Nancy Abudu for the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

Abudu was confirmed to the court on Thursday on a 49-47 vote.

(Reporting by Jacqueline ThomsenEditing by Marguerita Choy and Bill Berkrot)
FILE PHOTO: Canada's Minister of Justice and Attorney General David Lametti speaks in parliament during Question Period in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, March 28, 2023. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle

By Anna Mehler Paperny

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's government has introduced a bill seeking to make it harder for some repeat offenders of violent crimes to get bail even as the federal justice minister says it lacks data to show violent crimes committed by people on bail are on the rise, while pre-trial detentions make up a growing share of adults in provincial and territorial jails.

When asked if the measure is about perception or reality, Justice Minister David Lametti told Reuters in an interview that pursuing this legislation is "probably a mixture of both." He said there are no statistics available showing more people are committing violent offences while on bail.

"There are data gaps" that the provinces have committed to filling, he said, adding "that's a fair point" when asked if his government was pursuing policy without underlying data.

"It can't stop us from acting in the meantime."

The bill introduced this week comes after multiple high-profile violent crimes that police allege were committed by people on bail, including the killing of a police officer late last year. These prompted the provinces to push the federal government to tighten bail rules, Lametti said.

But he said the bill is targeted enough not to contravene the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which gives a person charged with an offence the right not to be denied reasonable bail "without just cause."

The bill puts the burden on accused to prove they should be released awaiting trial, rather than on prosecutors to prove they should not, for crimes including repeat violent offences involving weapons, some firearms charges and repeat charges of intimate partner violence.

It would also require courts to consider whether the accused's record includes convictions for violent offences.

The bill needs to be passed in Parliament, where the governing Liberals have a minority and require support of another party.

Some provinces and police associations welcomed the bill, with Police Association of Ontario President Mark Baxter calling it "a step in the right direction" and British Columbia's Attorney General Niki Sharma urging Parliament to pass it quickly.

But lawyers and criminologists say it may not make people safer and could hurt poor, Indigenous and Black Canadians, who are over-represented in pre-trial detention, often because they lack the resources or supports to come up with a bail plan.

According to Statistics Canada, Indigenous people comprised 30% of pre-trial detention admissions in 2016-17 while making up about 5% of the Canadian population. Reuters has found Black people in Canada's most populous province spend a longer time behind bars awaiting trial than white people charged with many of the same categories of crimes.

The bill "will lead to more people being detained and ... those detention orders will impact marginalized communities more than any other group of accused persons," said criminal lawyer Daniel Brown.

Under the current rules, about 70.5% of adults in Canada's provincial and territorial jails in 2021-22 were awaiting trial, according to monthly averages from Statistics Canada, up from about 41.5% in 2001-02 and about 22.5% in 1978-79.

People jailed awaiting trial may feel pressured to plead guilty to get out of jail sooner, Brown said. People may also lose housing, employment or custody of their children while behind bars.

"We dont need to detain more people," Brown added. "We just need to hold those accountable when they fail to do their jobs as bail supervisors or when people fail to abide by their bail terms."

(This story has been refiled to say 'bail terms,' not 'jail terms,' in paragraph 16)

(Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny; Editing by Denny Thomas and Aurora Ellis)
A Swiss guard wearing a protective face mask stands guard at the Vatican's entrance, as Italy begins a staged end to a nationwide lockdown due to the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the Vatican, May 4, 2020. REUTERS/Remo Casilli

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -A man who breached Vatican security on Thursday evening driving at high speed through a gate of the city-state and reaching a central courtyard of the Apostolic Palace was arrested and will undergo compulsory medical treatment, the Vatican said.

A statement on Thursday said a Vatican policeman fired a gun and hit the car. The man, described as about 40 and in an unstable sate of mind, did not get near the guest house on the other side of Vatican City where Pope Francis lives.

The statement said the security breach occurred at about 8 p.m, when the man drove through Saint Ann's gate, one of several entrances that separate the 108-acre sovereign city-state from Rome.

On Friday, the Vatican said a prosecutor questioned the man, who was accompanied by a lawyer. He was later taken to the psychiatric unit of a hospital in Rome to undergo compulsory medical treatment.

The man first tried to enter the Vatican but Swiss Guards turned him away at the gate. He then manoeuvred the vehicle to pick up speed and raced through the gate as well as a second checkpoint near the back of St. Peter's Basilica.

A policeman fired a shot and hit the car's front fender but the man kept speeding ahead, and reached the San Damaso Courtyard, part of the Apostolic Palace where previous popes lived and where Francis still holds official meetings.

He was arrested in the courtyard and put in a cell in the Vatican's small jail, where he was examined by Vatican doctors.

Italy's ANSA news agency, citing unnamed high-level sources, said on Friday the man had made two previous attempts on Thursday to enter the Vatican, saying he wanted to speak to the pope, but Swiss Guards refused him entry.

(Reporting by Philip Pullella; additional reporting by Angelo Amante; editing by Chris Reese, David Gregorio and Bill Berkrot)
FILE PHOTO: U.S. and Chinese flags are seen in this illustration taken, January 30, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

By David Brunnstrom, Michael Martina and David Lawder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Chinas commerce minister will visit the United States next week for meetings with the commerce secretary and Washingtons top trade official, the Chinese embassy spokesperson in Washington said on Thursday, as the U.S. seeks engagement with Beijing to salve damaged ties.

Liu Pengyu made the announcement at a Chinese embassy online briefing with journalists, adding that Beijing was open to communication at all levels with United States, but only on the basis of mutual respect.

The Chinese embassy later said in an emailed statement that both sides were still discussing details of the plans.

A source familiar with planning for the meetings said that Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao was expected to meet with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Washington next week before traveling to Detroit for a meeting of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) trade ministers.

Wang would then meet with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on the sidelines of that gathering, scheduled for May 25-26.

Spokespersons for Tai's and Raimondo's offices did not respond to requests for comment.

Washington has expressed eagerness for high-level meetings with China in an effort to keep increasingly tense relations from veering toward conflict.

President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan met China's top diplomat Wang Yi last week in Vienna, and both sides recognized the need to move beyond an alleged spy balloon incident that dented relations between the superpowers, a senior U.S. official has said.

Biden has been seeking to hold a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping but neither side has offered updates on the prospects for such a call, or on the possibility of rescheduling a visit to Beijing by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Blinken postponed a planned February trip after the U.S. shot down a Chinese balloon that flew over sensitive military sites.

"It is imperative for the U.S. side to adopt a correct perception of China and we hope the U.S. side will return to a rational and pragmatic China policy for the two countries to better develop themselves and prosper together," Liu told reporters.

Liu said China and the U.S. should put into practice what has been agreed between Xi and Biden at their last meeting in November and properly handle sensitive issues such as Taiwan, the democratically self-governed island claimed by China.

The U.S. and Taiwan on Thursday agreed on an initial trade pact, a move likely to anger China, which sees official engagement by the island with other countries as a violation of its sovereignty.

"China is open to communication at all levels and cooperation across the fields with the United States, but only on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit," Liu said before that trade deal was announced.

He added that the U.S. should work with China to "create favorable conditions for the future interactions between the two presidents."

Some Biden administration critics, including Republican lawmakers, have questioned U.S. overtures to Beijing to hold high-level meetings, arguing that past decades of engagement have failed to change China's calculus on a slate of trade, security and human rights issues.

Blinken, Raimondo, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have all expressed interest in visiting China.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom, David Lawder and Michael MartinaEditing by Deepa Babington)
Christian Group Calls for the Immediate Release of The Covenant School Shooter's Manifesto and Writings

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Christian Defense Coalition

May 18, 2023



WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 /Standard Newswire/ -- Rev. Patrick Mahoney, Director of the Christian Defense Coalition, says it is critical to know if The Covenant School shooter was targeting Christians or the church community.



The shooter, Audrey Hale, left detailed writings and journals about the mass shooting which would clearly offer insight into the motivation and thoughts on why these Christian school children and staff were targeted.



It is deeply concerning the FBI and law enforcement officials are refusing to release these documents to the public. This refusal is creating more questions and mistrust among the Christian community regarding the government's commitment to determine if this shooting was a "hate crime" directed against people of faith.



The Christian Defense Coalition is asking for the same response from President Biden regarding the mass shooting at The Covenant School as he publicly shared when four Muslim men were tragically killed in New Mexico last year.



Here is what President Biden said about those killings; "I am angered and saddened by the horrific killings of four Muslim men in Albuquerque. While we await a full investigation, my prayers are with the victims' families, and my Administration stands strongly with the Muslim community. These hateful attacks have no place in America."



Rev. Patrick Mahoney, Director of the Washington, D.C. based Christian Defense Coalition, states;

"The Christian Defense Coalition calls for the immediate release of The Covenant School Shooter Manifesto. It is critical to know if the shooter was targeting Christians or the church. No American, regardless of their faith tradition, should face violence or attacks because of their beliefs. The Christian community needs to know the government is standing with them to prevent malicious attacks.



"It is deeply concerning the FBI and law enforcement officials are refusing to release these documents to the public. This refusal is creating more questions and mistrust among the Christian community regarding the government's commitment to determine if this shooting was a 'hate crime' directed against people of faith.



"It is even more critical the FBI release the manifesto to the public after their integrity and analysis come under fire in Special Counsel John Durham's recently released report. In that report, Mr. Durham stated, 'Senior FBI personnel displayed a serious lack of analytical rigor toward the information they received...'



"In light of this scathing report, it would be impossible for the Christian community to accept the FBI's conclusion this was not a 'hate crime' directed against Christians without seeing the manifesto."

For more information or interviews contact

Rev. Patrick Mahoney at 540.538.4741



SOURCE Christian Defense Coalition



CONTACT: Rev. Patrick Mahoney, 540-538-4741


This file photo taken on July 15, 2021 shows artists from the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan performing at the Hunan provincial museum in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. In a packed auditorium at the Hunan provincial museum in central China, a special performance is being staged, transporting the audience back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 25). (Xinhua)

CHANGSHA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- In a packed auditorium at the Hunan provincial museum in central China, a special performance is being staged, transporting the audience back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 25).

Featuring melodious Beijing opera vocals, mesmerizing choreography and modern multimedia visuals, the show is centered on the world-famous Mawangdui Tombs, bringing to life the various ancient treasures discovered there.

"We want to tell a story that is consistent with the historical facts," said Chi Jun, the playwright behind the performance. "The performances that people watch in the museum theater upstairs must match with the artifacts they see in the exhibition downstairs."

Mawangdui, located in the eastern suburbs of Changsha, capital of Hunan, houses the grand tombs of the Marquis of Dai during the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD), as well as his wife and son.

The site gained international attention in the 1970s when researchers opened a coffin and found a female corpse that showed no signs of decay. The corpse, now preserved in the museum, was over 2,200 years old and is said to be that of a woman named Lady Xin Zhui, the wife of the Marquis of Dai.

More than 3,000 precious cultural relics were excavated from the site, including intricately crafted lacquerware pieces and skillfully woven silk garments adorned with beautiful embroidery, all of which are housed in the museum. Now the special performance, produced in collaboration with the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan, leads visitors on a journey through the site's vibrant history, putting the relics center stage.

To ensure historical accuracy in depicting the life of Lady Xin Zhui, Chi drew inspiration from extensive research and consultation with museum experts. The narrative focuses on Lady Xin Zhui's role as a devoted mother, raising her son and preparing him for the nation's battles.

Ge Qianqian, deputy director of the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan, remembers that the performers went back and forth to the exhibition hall to observe and imitate the expressions, mannerisms and movements from the relics' figurines. These observations were seamlessly incorporated into their singing, recitation and acting during the performance.

According to the museum, the show utilizes 3D modelling and one-to-one replicas of the museum's cultural relics to create most of its props, costumes and other elements. The costumes worn by the performers were meticulously crafted based on excavated garments, and were thoroughly examined and approved by the museum's experts.

After watching the show, an anonymous college student said, "I had just been to the tomb exhibition, so when I came back to see the play, Lady Xin Zhui seemed more real to me. Her devotion to her nation is impressive." 

This file photo taken on July 15, 2021 shows artists from the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan performing at the Hunan provincial museum in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. In a packed auditorium at the Hunan provincial museum in central China, a special performance is being staged, transporting the audience back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 25). (Xinhua)

This file photo taken on July 15, 2021 shows artists from the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan performing at the Hunan provincial museum in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. In a packed auditorium at the Hunan provincial museum in central China, a special performance is being staged, transporting the audience back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 25). (Xinhua)

This file photo taken on July 15, 2021 shows an artist from the Peking Opera Protection and Inheritance Center of Hunan performing at the Hunan provincial museum in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. In a packed auditorium at the Hunan provincial museum in central China, a special performance is being staged, transporting the audience back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 25). (Xinhua)
FILE PHOTO: A logo of Brazil's state-run Petrobras oil company is seen at its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil October 16, 2019. REUTERS/Sergio Moraes

By Lisandra Paraguassu and Marta Nogueira

BRASILIA (Reuters) - A decision by Brazil's environmental regulator to block state-owned oil company Petrobras' Amazon oil project has exposed tensions in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's coalition between green advocates and those prioritizing economic development.

Ibama, late on Wednesday, said it would block a request by state-run oil giant Petrobras to drill at the Amazon mouth near Amapa, in a much-awaited decision that followed a technical recommendation by Ibama experts to reject the project.

In a filing, Petrobras said it planned to file an appeal for Ibama to reconsider its ruling, saying it "strictly complied with all the requirements of the licensing process."

The decision by Ibama, which is overseen by Lula's environment minister, the globally recognized environmentalist Marina Silva, has riled some within the governing coalition.

Lula, who hails from the poor northeast, has staked his international reputation on reversing environmental back-sliding under his far-right predecessor former President Jair Bolsonaro. But he is also under pressure to deliver much-needed growth to poor, under-developed regions in the north and northeast, and wants state-owned Petrobras to be an engine of that growth.

Senator Randolfe Rodrigues, who represents the state of Amapa, said Ibama had taken a decision with major economic impact for the state without taking into account the views of the people of Amapa or its state government. Rodrigues is a senior Lula ally who ran his presidential campaign last year.

"We'll fight against this decision," Rodrigues wrote on Twitter, adding that "the people of Amapa want to have the right to be heard". He later announced he was departing his party, the center-left Sustainability Network, in light of the decision.

The Sustainability Network was founded in the early 2010s by Silva, the environment minister, who appointed Ibama head Rodrigo Agostinho.

Agostinho told GloboNews TV on Thursday that Petrobras would be allowed to file a new request to drill in the region, but noted that studies presented by the firm to date were not enough for the move to be cleared.

Petrobras' said in its filing that it was not giving up hope on its plans to develop an oil-rich region with potential reserves of up to 14 billion barrels of oil.

"The company remains committed to the development of the Brazilian Equatorial Margin," it said, adding it would "ensure the country's energy security."

'THE DECISION IS FINAL'

Despite Petrobras' stated intentions, the ruling effectively ends all future development of the unexplored oil prospects at the mouth of the Amazon river, former Ibama boss Suely Araujo told Reuters.

Araujo said that even if Petrobras undertakes the deeper studies requested by Ibama, the final say would still rest with the regulator. "The decision is final," she said, adding she expected Lula to support Ibama's ruling.

Shares in Petrobras were down around 0.5% on Thursday.

Exploration rights in the area were auctioned in 2013, but oil majors BP and TotalEnergies pulled out due to the cost of the off-shore studies and difficulties in obtaining licenses for drilling, while Petrobras kept going.

Neither Lula's office, nor the environment ministry responded to requests for comment.

Environmental groups celebrated Ibama's decision.

In a statement, Greenpeace said Ibama had emphasized the need for "a fair energy transition, instead of insisting on yet another oil exploration frontier in the context of the climate crisis."

Ibama has "postponed the end of the world," environmental group Observatorio do Clima proclaimed.

(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguasu in Brasilia, Eduardo Simoes in Sao Paulo and Marta Nogueira in Rio de Janeiro; Editing by Steven Grattan and Aurora Ellis)
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, presidential candidate of Turkey's main opposition alliance, speaks during a press conference ahead of the May 28 runoff vote, in Ankara, Turkey May 18, 2023. REUTERS/Cagla Gurdogan

ANKARA (Reuters) - Tayyip Erdogan's challenger in Turkey's presidential race has sharpened his tone on migrants on Thursday, vowing to send all migrants back to their countries once elected in a May 28 runoff vote.

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the candidate of a six-party opposition alliance, won 45% support in Sunday's vote while Erdogan got 49.5%, falling just short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff vote.

Kilicdaroglu's latest comments came amid expectations that a third candidate in the presidential race would announce his decision for the runoff.

Sinan Ogan, a nationalist politician endorsed by an anti-refugee party obtained 5.2%, which made him a kingmaker in the runoff vote.

Addressing his party members at his Republican People's Party (CHP) headquarters, Kilicdaroglu maintained his defiant tone against Erdogan's policies on migration.

"Erdogan, you have deliberately allowed 10 million refugees to Turkey. You even put Turkish citizenship on sale to get imported votes," Kilicdaroglu said, without providing evidence.

Turkey hosts the world's largest refugee population of around 4 million, according to official figures.

"I am announcing here: I will send all refugees back home once I am elected as president, period," he added.

In his election campaign, Kilicdaroglu had said they had plans to send Syrians in Turkey back home within two years after making a deal with Syrian President Bashar al Assad for their safety and coordinating with the U.N.

(Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever; Editing by Ece Toksabay and)
FILE PHOTO: India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, and British Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan pose for a picture during the launch of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between the United Kingdom and

By Shivangi Acharya, Aditi Shah and Aftab Ahmed

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India and Britain are struggling to make progress in free trade talks due to differences on some key tariff lines and investment protection rules, making a deal unlikely during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second term ending next year, Indian sources said.

The two nations are unable to agree on concessions on duties levied by India on car and liquor imports, a government official with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Besides tariffs, Britain is also pushing India to agree on strong investment-protection provisions either as part of the deal or in a parallel investment treaty, according to a second government official.

"Britain has insisted on investor protection if it were to proceed with a final deal," said the person who has direct knowledge of the talks.

A deal between India and the United Kingdom is crucial for New Delhi, which hopes to become a bigger exporter, while the UK would get wider access for its whisky, premium cars and legal services.

Both countries are aiming to double bilateral trade by 2030 via such a deal.

For India, a deal with the UK would be its first with a developed country after it signed an interim trade pact with Australia last year. It comes at a crucial time for Modi, who is looking to solidify India's business-friendly image in the run up to national elections next year.

Britain, on the other hand, has prioritised a deal with India as part of its Indo-Pacific foreign policy tilt aimed at enhancing ties with the region's fast-growing economies.

The main disagreement on the investment protection provisions is Britain's insistence that its companies be allowed to seek international arbitration should a dispute arise without going to Indian courts first, said the second government official who is directly involved.

This would be a marked departure from India's present provision that calls on companies to exhaust local remedies first, and is not agreeable to the Indian government, said a third senior government official.

"We had kept November as another soft deadline. But does not look like this is going to work out till at least next year. Maybe after the general elections in India," a fourth government official told Reuters.

Both nations are set to hold general elections next year where India's Modi will seek a rare third term while British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faces a stiff test of electoral popularity after a choppy term for the Conservative Party.

As of the end of April the countries were unable to complete discussions on any more chapters than they had in December. They have agreed on terms of 13 out of 26 chapters that constitute the pact.

The two countries have also ruled out the possibility of an interim pact, two of the sources said.

All officials spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity as negotiations over the trade agreement are private.

India's ministries of trade, finance and external affairs did not respond to a request for comment.

A spokesperson for the UK's Department of Business and Trade said the two countries are "committed to working towards the best deal possible for both sides."

"We are clear that we will only sign when we have a deal that is fair, balanced, and ultimately in the best interests of the British people and the economy," the person said.

Sunak's approach to focus on quality over speed of the deal is in contrast to Boris Johnson, who as prime minister had set a deadline of Diwali last October for a deal, which was then missed under the tenure of his successor Liz Truss.

(Additional reporting by Alistair Smout; Graphics by Riddhima Talwani; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
U.S. President Joe Biden gestures, as he boards Air Force One for travel to the G7 Summit in Japan from Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S. May 17, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden and House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in Washington, hope to finalize a deal on the debt ceiling after Biden returns from the Group of Seven meeting in Japan on Sunday.

The debt ceiling bill Republicans have passed in the House and Democrat Biden's 2024 budget are far apart in terms of spending, taxes and other measures. But a vague outline of what may be in a deal, and what will not, has slowly begun to take shape.

WORK REQUIREMENTS

Republicans are demanding tougher work requirements for some federal aid programs, like SNAP food assistance. This has raised concerns among Democrats that low-income Americans would suffer. Biden on Wednesday said he is open to some added work requirements in limited cases "but not anything of consequence." He has ruled out changes in particular to Medicaid and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) programs.

PERMITTING CHANGES

A compromise is possible on reforming the process for energy permits and White House officials say it is being actively discussed. The White House has called on Congress to pass permitting legislation that would help speed up clean energy and fossil fuel projects. Republicans have made permitting reform a priority.

NO NEW TAXES?

Biden told reporters Tuesday, after meeting with McCarthy in the Oval Office, that Republicans are opposed to raising more tax revenues as a way to pay for government programs. White House officials say they have brought up proposals like increasing taxes on the wealthy and closing tax loopholes for the oil and pharmaceutical industries, but Republicans have rejected the ideas.

SPENDING CUTS

The two sides remain far apart on where to cut spending in the federal budget. A House Republican bill would cut 2024 U.S. discretionary spending back to the 2022 level of $1.664 trillion and limit subsequent annual increases to 1% for a decade. The White House's 2024 budget request proposes $1.9 trillion in discretionary spending - a 9.4% increase followed by annual increases averaging 1% over a decade. The discretionary spending proposals would add $2.23 trillion to deficits over 10 years, offset by tax increases.

The White House has for the most part ruled out Republican spending cuts. But Republicans are insistent that any debt ceiling deal will have to including spending cuts, and negotiations continue on this front.

FUTURE CAPS?

Republicans would like to cap federal spending for 10 years. The White House has countered with a proposal for capping spending for two years.

(Reporting by Heather Timmons and Steve Holland; editing by Grant McCool)
FILE PHOTO: An ultrasound is taken ahead of a surgical abortion as patients receive care at Blue Mountain Clinic in Missoula, Montana, U.S. February 23, 2023. REUTERS/Callaghan O'Hare/File Photo

By Gabriella Borter and Sharon Bernstein

(Reuters) - State legislatures are wrestling with how much to restrict or expand abortion access after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year.

Here is a snapshot of pending and passed legislation seeking to restrict or protect access in 2023.

RESTRICTIONS

FLORIDA: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in April signed a six-week abortion ban, which includes exceptions for rape, incest, human trafficking and the life and health of the mother. It cannot take effect until the state Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of the 15-week ban that is currently in place.

IDAHO: Idaho Governor Brad Little signed a bill in April that makes it illegal to help a minor cross state lines to get an abortion without the permission of a parent or guardian. Offenders would face two to five years in prison. The Republican-led state is currently enforcing a near-total abortion ban, with exceptions for rape, incest or the life of the mother.

MONTANA:

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte in May signed into law several bills limiting abortion access, including one that aims to overturn a 1999 state Supreme Court ruling that found the state constitution protected a right to abortion.

Another new law bans most second trimester abortions by prohibiting a common surgical procedure. Planned Parenthood has asked a state judge to temporarily block the measure.

NEBRASKA: Lawmakers in Nebraska's 50-seat unicameral legislature are considering a bill restricting gender-affirming care for minors that was amended to also prohibit abortions for pregnancies beyond 12 weeks.

The legislature failed to pass a six-week abortion ban in April, after the chamber did not amass enough votes to end debate on the bill. Much of the debate centered on one member's proposed amendment to allow abortions up to 12 weeks. Abortion is currently legal in the state up to 22 weeks.

NORTH CAROLINA: Republican lawmakers this week overrode Democratic Governor Roy Cooper's veto to enact a law limiting most abortions to the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions for rape, incest, life-limiting fetal anomalies and the life of the mother. Abortion was formerly legal up to 20 weeks in the state. The measure also requires doctors to be present when abortion medication is given and requires those seeking medical abortions to have an in-person consultation with a doctor 72 hours before the procedure.

NORTH DAKOTA: North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum in April signed a bill that bans abortion with exceptions for cases where the mother's life or health are at serious risk. The law, which took immediate effect, also makes exceptions for rape and incest victims, but only during the first six weeks of pregnancy.

The measure passed despite the state Supreme Court's decision not to revive a previous version of the near-total ban, after finding that the state constitution protects abortion rights in some cases.

SOUTH CAROLINA: The Republican-led House has passed a "fetal heartbeat" bill to ban abortions about six weeks into pregnancy, before most people know they are pregnant, sending it to the state Senate where its fate is less certain.

The measure is a heavily amended version of a ban that the Senate passed in February. It failed then because House Republicans wanted to instead push through a near-total abortion ban, which five women in the state Senate banded together to block. A similar six-week ban passed last year was ruled unconstitutional by the South Carolina Supreme Court in January.

TEXAS: While abortion is completely banned with very limited exceptions in Texas, Republican state representatives have introduced legislation that would compel internet providers to block websites that supply abortion pills or provide information on how to obtain an abortion.

UTAH: Republican Governor Spencer Cox in March signed legislation to prohibit the licensing of abortion clinics, which abortion rights advocates say would effectively eliminate access in the state. Abortion is currently banned after 18 weeks in Utah.

WYOMING: The Republican-led state legislature passed a bill in March banning the use or prescription of medication abortion pills, and Republican Governor Mark Gordon signed it into law. It is due to take effect July 1. Abortion is currently legal until viability, about 24 weeks, while a state court is reviewing a challenge to a near-total "trigger" ban, which was took effect when Roe v. Wade was overturned.

PROTECTIONS

CALIFORNIA: A Democratic state senator has introduced a bill to protect doctors who prescribe medication abortion pills to patients in other states.

MICHIGAN: Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation in April repealing a 1931 bill that criminalized abortion.

ILLINOIS: Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker in January signed a law protecting abortion providers and out-of-state patients from legal attacks waged by other states.

MINNESOTA: Democratic Governor Tim Walz in January signed legislation passed by the Minnesota legislature's new Democratic majority that codifies abortion rights in state law, as well as a right to contraception and fertility treatment. The Democratic-led House passed a bill to shield abortion providers and patients from other states' legal attacks, and the Senate is considering it.

OHIO: Abortion rights supporters are trying to collect enough signatures by July to put a constitutional amendment on the November 2023 ballot that would assert a right to abortion. Abortion is currently legal up to 22 weeks.

(Reporting by Gabriella Borter in Washington and Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, California; Additional reporting by Julia Harte in New York; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Alistair Bell)
FILE PHOTO: People walk on the street around Kwame Nkrumah circle in Accra, Ghana, December 2, 2016. REUTERS/Luc Gnago

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Ghanaian authorities aim to agree a memorandum of understanding with official creditors before the first IMF programme review, which they expect to bring to the Fund's board in November and would trigger a payout of $600 million, the IMF said on Thursday.

The International Monetary Fund's executive board approved a $3 billion, three-year rescue loan on Wednesday, paving a potential path for Ghana out of the worst economic crisis in a generation.

Ghana's Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta said during a joint press conference with IMF Mission Chief Stephane Roudet that there was no rush to go back to the international financial markets.

"Our expectation is that in managing our expenditure and increasing our revenue ... we then get our ratings up and make the country more attractive for foreign investors," Ofori-Atta said.

Ghana is targeting $10.5 billion of external debt service relief from 2023-2026, the IMF said, giving first indications of how big a hit investors might face in the coming debt overhaul.

(Reporting by Rachel Savage and Maxwell Akalaare Adombila in Accra; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Alex Richardson and Estelle Shirbon)
(Reuters) - Investment advisory firm Edenbrook Capital sent a letter to the board of Canada's Absolute Software Corp saying the deal for the company to be taken private by Crosspoint Capital Partners "significantly undervalues" the firm.

Edenbrook, which has a stake of 10.4% in Absolute Software, said on Thursday the "transaction is unfair to public shareholders".

Last week, Absolute Software agreed to be bought by Crosspoint for $657 mln and said its shareholders will receive $11.50 per share in cash.

Absolute Software and Crosspoint did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Shareholders are set to vote on the acquisition at a special meeting expected to be held in late June.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru)
FILE PHOTO: A bone that belonged to a "Chucarosaurus Diripienda", a newly discovered gigantic species of long-necked herbivorous dinosaur, is pictured next to a shovel, in Pueblo Blanco Nature Reserve, in Rio Negro, Argentina October 16, 2019. Nicolas Chi

By Lucila Sigal

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentine paleontologists have discovered the remains of a gigantic new species of long-necked herbivorous dinosaur in the country's southern Patagonia region, saying the beast ranks as one of the largest ever discovered.

The find in the Pueblo Blanco Nature Reserve, presented on Thursday, was first discovered by scientists in 2018. The dinosaur's bones were so big they caused the van carrying them to a Buenos Aires laboratory to tip over, though no one was injured and the remains were left intact.

Paleontologist Nicolas Chimento said scientists decided to name the dinosaur "Chucarosaurus Diripienda", meaning hard-boiled and scrambled, because it had rolled around and survived the accident.

At 50 tonnes and 30 meters in length, the Chucarosaurus is the largest-ever dinosaur discovered in the mountainous Rio Negro province. It would have lived in the Late Cretaceous period alongside predators, fish and sea turtles.

The Chucarosaurus' femur bone, which spanned 1.90 meters, was split into three parts, each weighing over 100 kilograms and requiring at least three people to lift it up, scientists said.

Patagonia was home to the world's largest plant-eating dinosaurs such as the colossal Patagotitan mayorum, the biggest dinosaur ever discovered, though scientists still do not know why species there grew so fast and in some cases never stopped growing throughout their lives.

Paleontologist Matias Motta said that while the Chucarosaurus, a sauropod, rivaled other Patagonian giants in size and weight, characteristics in its hips, forelimbs and hindlimbs suggested it was more slender and graceful.

Some 140 dinosaur species have been discovered in Argentina, which ranks among the world's top three countries for research and discoveries alongside China and the United States.

The studies were carried out by researchers from the Bernardino Rivadavia Museum of Natural Sciences, the Azara Foundation and national research council Conicet with support from the National Geographic Society.

(Reporting by Lucila Sigal; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by David Gregorio)
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Forty-nine migrants from Honduras, Haiti, Venezuela, El Salvador, Brazil and Cuba who had been kidnapped from a commercial bus in central Mexico have been found, Mexico's defense minister said on Thursday.

The migrants were found in several groups in the central state of San Luis Potosi and the neighboring state of Nuevo Leon to the north, including about 30 people early on Thursday, Defense Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval said.

Several hundred members of Mexico's armed forces had participated in the search, and Sandoval said they would look for any remaining migrants, as well as the bus drivers. The total busload was estimated to be about 50 people.

"We're going to keep looking, and the drivers are a priority," Sandoval told a government news conference.

Some of the migrants told authorities that members of an organized crime group had boarded the bus when it stopped at a gas station, he said.

An unnamed Honduran migrant, speaking in a video released by San Luis Potosi state prosecutors, said the bus had departed from the southern state of Chiapas and was about three hours from the northern city of Monterrey when it was intercepted.

A person who stopped the bus demanded a payment of 40,000 pesos ($2,250) from the bus owner and kidnapped the migrants, the Honduran migrant said.

The incident was the latest mass kidnapping in Mexico, where migrants bound for the U.S. must pass through areas rife with drug violence and with patchy rule of law, making them vulnerable to organized crime.

Several busloads of Nicaraguans were kidnapped late last year in the northern state of Durango in one of the biggest known kidnappings of migrants in Mexico in recent years.

($1 = 17.7767 Mexican pesos)

(Reporting by Natalia Siniawski, Lizbeth Diaz and Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Nick Macfie and Bill Berkrot)
FILE PHOTO: A smartphone with a displayed Micron logo is placed on a computer motherboard in this illustration taken March 6, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

(Reuters) -Micron Technology Inc said on Wednesday it plans to invest up to 500 billion yen ($3.70 billion) in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology over the next few years with support from the Japanese government.

The latest extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) chipmaking machines will be used to make 1-gamma chips, which can be used for mass production of material required in complex applications such as image processing networks.

Micron will be the first semiconductor company to bring EUV technology to Japan for production, the company said, adding that it expects to ramp EUV into production on the 1-gamma node in Taiwan and Japan from 2025 onwards.

The announcement comes after the U.S. memory chip maker kicked off mass production of its new high-capacity low-power 1-beta dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips at its plant in Hiroshima last year.

DRAM chips are memory chips that lose the memory when the power is off.

Japan has been striving to reinvigorate its chip sector, whose global market share has fallen to about 10% from around 50% in the late 1980s, while the United States is increasingly urging its allies to work together to counter China's chips and advanced technology development.

($1 = 135.0500 yen)

(Reporting by Kanjyik Ghosh and Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Subhranshu Sahu)
Tourists visit the scenic area of Yulong Snow Mountain in Lijiang City, southwest China's Yunnan Province, May 17, 2023. The Yulong Snow Mountain scenic spot has received 2.4 million tourists since the beginning of this year. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)

Tourists visit the scenic area of Yulong Snow Mountain in Lijiang City, southwest China's Yunnan Province, May 17, 2023. The Yulong Snow Mountain scenic spot has received 2.4 million tourists since the beginning of this year. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)

Tourists visit the scenic area of Yulong Snow Mountain in Lijiang City, southwest China's Yunnan Province, May 17, 2023. The Yulong Snow Mountain scenic spot has received 2.4 million tourists since the beginning of this year. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)

This aerial photo taken on May 17, 2023 shows the summer scenery of Lanyue (Blue Moon) Valley in Lijiang, southwest China's Yunnan Province. The Yulong Snow Mountain scenic spot has received 2.4 million tourists since the beginning of this year. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)

This aerial photo taken on May 17, 2023 shows the summer scenery of Lanyue (Blue Moon) Valley in Lijiang, southwest China's Yunnan Province. The Yulong Snow Mountain scenic spot has received 2.4 million tourists since the beginning of this year. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)
Migrants, without a place to stay upon arrival in the city, seek safe shelter at the District 12 station of the Chicago Police Department in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. May 17, 2023. REUTERS/Eric Cox

By Eric Cox and Ted Hesson

CHICAGO (Reuters) -Chicago's new mayor is grappling with how to house hundreds of migrants arriving on buses from the U.S.-Mexico border, with some sleeping in police stations and shelters strained after border crossings rose earlier this month.

Officials in the third-largest U.S. city have said they cannot afford to rent hotel rooms for all arriving migrants and have pressed for more federal funding. Some migrants seeking a safe place to sleep have turned to police stations.

"We're waiting to see where they're going to place us," said Tomas Orozco, a 55-year-old migrant who arrived at a Chicago shelter on Wednesday with his family after an arduous seven-week journey from his home country, Venezuela.

The trip took them through the Darien Gap, an inhospitable jungle separating Colombia and Panama, and his family members were still sick from drinking contaminated water, Orozco said.

The scramble for housing in Chicago and other cities follows the end last week of COVID-19 border restrictions known as Title 42, which allowed U.S. authorities to expel migrants to Mexico without the chance to seek U.S. asylum. Tens of thousands of people hurried to cross the border illegally before U.S. President Joe Biden implemented a strict new asylum regulation to replace Title 42.

Earlier this month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, resumed a campaign of busing migrants to Democratic strongholds further north, including Chicago and New York City.

The busing aims to alleviate pressure on border cities and call attention to what Abbott says were overly lenient policies by Biden's Democratic administration.

On Thursday, Texas began busing migrants to Denver, where Democratic Mayor Michael Hancock is already struggling to house new arrivals.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, another Democrat, has called on the Biden administration to provide more funding to cities.

Adams suspended some of New York's right-to-shelter rules last week, citing the strain of housing asylum seekers, and is considering using school gyms as shelters.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, a Democrat who took office on Monday, reaffirmed the city's commitment to welcoming asylum seekers in his inauguration speech, saying "theres enough room for everyone."

Johnson's Democratic predecessor, Lori Lightfoot, declared a state of emergency earlier this month, calling migrant arrivals a "humanitarian crisis" and pressing for more federal assistance.

Dean Wynne, who owns a Chicago building serving as a temporary shelter for nearly 200 migrants, said families were "subdued and quiet" on the first day they arrived.

"By the second day, I could see little kids were playing around, playing catch, kicking the ball and stuff," Wynne said. "They were just happy."

(Reporting by Eric Cox in Chicago and Ted Hesson in Washington; Editing by Mica Rosenberg and Bill Berkrot)
FILE PHOTO: Pope Francis shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, at the Vatican, May 13, 2023. Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS

By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis hopes to send personal peace envoys to the Ukrainian and Russian presidents to try to broker a ceasefire in the war, a Catholic website reported on Thursday.

Il Sismografo, which specialises in Vatican news and has a good track record, said this is the "mission" Francis spoke of cryptically when he was returning from Hungary last month.

According to the website, the plan would be for Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Bologna to go to Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and for Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti, the head of the Vatican's department for Eastern Churches, to go to Moscow to meet President Vladimir Putin.

It said both presidents had agreed to meet with the papal envoys, without citing sources or giving details.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said he had no comment on the report but pointed a reporter to recent comments by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin that "now is the moment to take the initiative to create a just peace in Ukraine".

Zuppi and Gugerotti could not be reached for comment and a key diplomatic source said nothing was yet "concrete".

If the envoys are sent, it would be identical to a gesture by the late Pope John Paul II, who in 2003 sent high-level representatives to Washington and Baghdad in an unsuccessful attempt to thwart the start of the Iraq War.

Zelenskiy met Pope Francis at the Vatican last Saturday but in comments afterwards he appeared to downplay the possibility of a papal mediation.

"With all due respect for His Holiness, we do not need mediators, we need a just peace ... Putin only kills. We don't need a mediation with him," Zelenskiy said on Italian television.

Returning from a trip to Hungary on April 30, Francis made an intriguing but puzzling comment about the Vatican being involved in a mission to try to end the war.

"There is a mission in course now but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it," he told reporters. Both Kyiv and Moscow said they know nothing about it at the time.

But the Vatican statement on the day of Zelenskiy's visit made no mention of any such mission and Zelenskiy said he asked the pope to back Kyiv's own peace plan, which calls for restoring Ukraine's territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops and cessation of hostilities.

(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Christina Fincher)
Ukrainian refugee Maja, 26, feeds her newborn twins Polina and Daniel at the University Hospital in Zielona Gora Poland, April 28, 2023. REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel

(Correct spelling of surname to Dabiak in paragraphs 8-9)

By Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska

WARSAW (Reuters) - Denis Dziubanovskiy weighed only a perilous 1.5 kg when his Ukrainian refugee mother, traumatised by the war in her homeland, gave birth to him prematurely via caesarean section, leaving her unable to breastfeed him.

A UNICEF-funded milk bank in Poland set up for mothers in crisis came to the rescue of Evgeniya Loshkarova last September, giving Denis access to milk and his mother psychological support and lactation advice.

Loshkarova, who had been found unconscious by the police in her Warsaw apartment in her seventh month of pregnancy after a friend raised the alarm, said she was deeply grateful for the U.N.-backed milk bank in Poland - which has taken in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians who fled Russia's invasion.

It is such a great help both for the baby's health, and for the psychological comfort of the mother. When a baby is born prematurely, it is always very stressful, because something has gone wrong, she said.

With the help of UNICEFs programme, more than 300 mothers - about 20% of them from Ukraine - benefit every month from various services in 10 hospitals hosting milk banks in Poland.

These are women who have difficulties in the initial stage of motherhood. They are under a lot of stress, some of them have suffered war trauma," said Aleksandra Wesolowska, head of the Human Milk Bank Foundation.

"Therefore they really need lactation care and psychological support. This element of support is the most important. Milk from the bank is food, of course, but it is also the expression of female solidarity.

Denis was probably nourished with the milk of Karolina Dabiak, 37, a former Polish health and safety worker who has donated to the milk bank since August 2022, two months after giving birth as she realised she was producing more milk than her infant son needed.

What is the most important for me is helping the little people who come into this world in such difficult circumstances - premature babies, Dabiak said.

Doctors in Ukraine advised Olena Liubimova, 36, to terminate her pregnancy because of uterine fibroids she had developed due to stress.

She gave birth prematurely after arriving in Poland, but Oleg came into the world "on the verge of a miscarriage ... The doctors warned us the child might not survive and Olena's life was in danger", husband Oleksandr Kyrnasivskyi said.

A milk bank in a hospital in Zielona Gora tube-fed Oleg with milk until Olena was able to breastfeed him. She has since benefited from the UNICEF programme's advanced perinatal care.

(This story has been corrected to fix the surname of Karolina Dabiak in paragraphs 8 and 9)

(Reporting by Agnieszka Pikulicka-Wilczewska, editing by Mark Heinrich)
FILE PHOTO: A sign is on display outside Russia's Finance Ministry building in Moscow, Russia March 30, 2021. A sign reads: "Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation". REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

(Reuters) - Russia's finance ministry on Thursday outlined proposals to tax people working remotely from abroad for Russian companies at the standard income tax rate even if they lose their tax residency, as Moscow looks for ways to maximise revenues.

Hundreds of thousands of Russians have fled since Moscow invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, with a second wave following when a military call-up began in September, leaving Russia with fiscal holes to plug as it presses on with its military campaign.

The government has for months been exploring ways to solve the issue, with proposals including punitive tax rates for those working abroad and bans on remote work for some professions, neither of which have come to fruition.

The finance ministry proposed forcing non-residents to pay, but at the same rates as residents. A person loses Russian tax residency if they are abroad for more than 183 days in a calendar year.

"The issue of taxation for remote employees who work with organisations under both employment and self-employment contracts has been resolved," Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Sazanov said in a statement.

Regardless of their status - Russian tax resident or non-resident - their income will be taxed at 13%, or 15% if it exceeds 5 million roubles ($64,333) a year, Sazanov said.

"Clarifying the types of income of remote employees and applying a unified tax rate will significantly simplify the tax administration mechanism for tax agents."

Having relatively portable jobs, IT workers featured prominently among the many Russians who fled and the government estimated in late December that 100,000 IT specialists were working abroad.

The scale of the exodus - put at up to 700,000 people by some Russian media, a figure the Kremlin has suggested is exaggerated - has fuelled fears of a brain drain at a time when Russia is under tough Western economic sanctions.

($1 = 77.7205 roubles)

(Reporting by Darya Korsunskaya and Alexander Marrow; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Military personnel take part in a funeral ceremony to bury the remains of sixty service members of the Russian armed forces and three civilians, who were killed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, at a cemetery in Luhansk, Russian-controlled Ukraine

By Ivan Lyubysh-Kirdey

NEAR BAKHMUT, Ukraine (Reuters) -The Ukrainian military and Russia's Wagner private army both reported further Russian retreats around the city of Bakhmut on Thursday, as Kyiv pressed on with its biggest advance for six months ahead of a planned counteroffensive.

Ukrainian troops near the front line said Russia was bombarding access roads to slow the Ukrainian assault, which has shifted momentum after months of slow Russian gains in Europe's deadliest ground combat since World War Two.

"Now, for the most part, as we have started to advance, they are shelling all the routes to front positions, so our armoured vehicles can't deliver more infantry, ammunition and other things," said Petro Podaru, commander of a Ukrainian artillery unit.

Ukraine's military said troops had advanced in places by more than a mile. Its forces had been on the defensive for half a year, weathering a huge offensive by Moscow that saw only slow gains.

"Despite the fact that our units do not have an advantage in equipment ... and personnel, they have continued to advance on the flanks, and covered a distance of 150 to 1,700 metres (1.1 miles)," military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi said in televised comments.

Ukraine's gains have been accompanied by a deepening public split within Russia's forces between Wagner, which has led the Bakhmut campaign, and the regular Russian military.

The blasted ruins of Bakhmut, described by both sides as a "meat grinder", would be Moscow's only prize for its huge winter offensive that failed elsewhere along the front.

Kyiv says it has launched local advances around Bakhmut as a prelude to an upcoming big counteroffensive that it hopes will turn the tide against Russia's 15-month-old invasion.

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin says his forces inside Bakhmut itself are still advancing, on the cusp of pushing Ukrainian troops out of their last foothold in the built-up area on the city's western outskirts.

But he accuses commanders of Russia's regular forces of abandoning ground north and south of the city, raising the risk of troops inside being encircled.

"Unfortunately, units of the Russian Defence Ministry have withdrawn up to 570 metres (1,880 feet) to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks," Prigozhin said in his latest voice message on Thursday.

"I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence - publicly - because my letters are not being read," Prigozhin said, addressing Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.

"Please do not give up the flanks."

The Russian defence ministry has acknowledged some withdrawals from positions near Bakhmut over the past week but denies Prigozhin's assertions that flanks are crumbling, or that it has withheld ammunition from Wagner.

FALLING INTO 'THE MOUSETRAP'

Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Russia had pushed reserves into Bakhmut and battles had raged in its northern and southern suburbs all day. But the Russians had been repelled and her forces had advanced, by her estimate by about a kilometre in some areas.

"We are buying time for certain planned actions," Maliar said on her Telegram channel. Reuters could not confirm her account.

Kyiv says its tactic around Bakhmut is to draw Russian forces into the city, so as to weaken Russia's front line defences elsewhere ahead of Kyiv's planned counterassault.

"Wagner troops climbed into Bakhmut like rats into a mousetrap," Oleksander Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine's ground forces, told troops at the Bakhmut front in video he released this week on social media.

"Using the principle of active defence, we resort to counteroffensive actions in some directions near Bakhmut. The enemy has more resources, but we are destroying his plans."

With Kyiv's counteroffensive looming, Russia has resumed missile and drone strikes across Ukraine this month after a near two-month lull. Waves of attacks now come several times a week, the most intense pace of the war.

On Thursday, air raid sirens sounded overnight, black smoke filled the sky over Kyiv and one person was reported killed in the southern city of Odesa. Ukraine said it shot down 29 of 30 incoming missiles. Moscow claimed to have hit military targets.

Russia has also been experiencing attacks and explosions both in Ukrainian territory it controls and in Russian territory near the border. Officials in Russian-occupied Crimea reported a freight train had been derailed overnight by "interference". Kyiv never confirms any role in incidents there.

On the diplomatic front, leaders of the G7 group of big developed countries were meeting in Japan where they are expected to unveil tighter measures to close off Russia's opportunities to bypass financial sanctions.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Japan's Fumio Kishida met for talks in Hiroshima, aiming for closer cooperation in the face of both an unpredictable Russia and ascendant China.

A U.S. Senate aide and a defence official said on Thursday the Pentagon had overvalued U.S. equipment it sent to Ukraine by around $3 billion, an error that opens up the possibility of more weapons being sent to Kyiv.

On Wednesday, Moscow agreed to a two-month extension of a deal safeguarding exports of Ukrainian grain from Black Sea ports despite the war. Russia had threatened to abandon the deal unless it received additional guarantees protecting its own grain and fertiliser exports.

However, a Ukrainian official said the corridor had not yet resumed, while Russia said more progress was needed to advance its interests.

(Writing by Peter Graff, and Andrew Heavens; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Andrew Cawthorne)
FILE PHOTO: Founder of Wagner private mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin leaves a cemetery before the funeral of Russian military blogger Maxim Fomin widely known by the name of Vladlen Tatarsky, who was recently killed in a bomb attack in a St Petersburg

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of Russia's Wagner mercenary group, on Thursday accused regular Russian army units of pulling back 570 metres north of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, leaving his own fighters' flanks exposed.

Reuters was unable to verify his assertion and there was no immediate comment from the defence ministry.

Wagner forces have been spearheading the assault on Bakhmut, one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the war, something Moscow calls "a special military operation," with some support from the regular army in recent months.

Prigozhin, who has repeatedly accused Russia's top military brass of not doing enough to back his men, asked the defence ministry to do all it could to protect Bakhmut's flanks after what he alleged was a withdrawal.

"Unfortunately, units of the Russian Defence Ministry have withdrawn up to 570 metres to the north of Bakhmut, exposing our flanks," Prigozhin said in a voice message.

"I am appealing to the top leadership of the Ministry of Defence - publicly - because my letters are not being read," Prigozhin said.

"Please do not give up the flanks," he said, addressing Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff.

Wagner says it has taken most of the shattered city - albeit at enormous human cost. But Ukraine says its forces have retaken territory around Bakhmut in recent days.

Moscow sees Bakhmut, a city of about 70,000 before the war, as a potential stepping stone towards capturing the rest of the eastern industrial Donbas region bordering Russia.

(Reporting by Reuters reporters; Writing by Caleb Davis; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
KYIV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy set up a reintegration council on Thursday to advise on the restoration of Ukrainian rule over Crimea, saying liberation of the peninsula, seized by Russia in 2014, will "happen for certain".

He was speaking at a gathering in Kyiv to mark the anniversary of the mass Soviet-era deportation of Crimean Tatars from the peninsula in 1944.

Zelenskiy said that more and more countries realised it would be impossible "to return peace to international relations and the full force of international law" without first returning Crimea.

"We continue our work in order to liberate the Crimea. It will happen for certain - its full-fledged return to Ukraine's state system," Zelenskiy told Tatar community leaders and senior officials.

"We are preparing to reintegrate Crimea. I signed the decree about the advisory council on reintegration and de-occupation of our Crimea and the (Crimean port) city of Sevastopol."

Russia shows no sign of abandoning Crimea, home to its Black Sea fleet, and has used the peninsula as a platform to launch missile strikes on Ukrainian targets.

Kyiv is planning to launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces and hopes it will change the dynamics of the war that has raged since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February last year. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly said that seizing the peninsula back from Russia is one of its key objectives.

Zelenskiy and other officials held a minute of silence to remember victims of the 1944 deportation of some 200,000 Crimean Tatars to Siberia and Central Asia under the orders of Soviet leader Josef Stalin.

Zelenskiy also said Ukraine was working hard to free Crimean Tatars who were being held in Russia.

Moscow has denied accusations of human rights abuses in Crimea, and says a referendum held after Russian forces seized the peninsula showed that Crimeans genuinely want to be part of Russia.

The referendum is not recognised by most countries.

(Reporting by Olena Harmash; Editing by Nick Macfie)
An explosion is seen during an operation of members of the 225th Kharkiv Battalion in the location given as near Bakhmut, Ukraine and released May 18, 2023 in this still image obtained from a video. Courtesy of Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander

(Reuters) - Ukraine's military and Russia's Wagner private army both reported fresh Russian retreats on the outskirts of Bakhmut, as Kyiv pressed on with its biggest advance for six months ahead of a planned major counteroffensive.

FIGHTING

* Ukraine's military said its troops had advanced in places by more than a mile. Some of its soldiers on the front line said Russian troops were pounding supply lines to try to halt the gains.

* Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin says his forces inside Bakhmut itself were still advancing. But he accused commanders of Russia's regular forces of abandoning vital ground north of the city, exposing his troops.

* Ukraine's reported gains amount to a striking change of momentum in the east, where Kyiv's forces had been on the defensive for half a year, weathering a huge winter and spring offensive by Moscow that saw only slow gains.

* Air raid sirens sounded across most of Ukraine overnight Wednesday into Thursday, as Russia kept up missile and drone strikes. One person was reported killed in the southern city of Odesa. Ukraine said it shot down 29 of 30 incoming missiles. Moscow said it hit its military targets.

* Officials in Russian-occupied Crimea reported a freight train had been derailed overnight by "interference". Kyiv never confirms any role in incidents there.

* Reuters could not verify the battlefield reports.

DIPLOMACY AND ECONOMY

* Leaders of the G7 group of big developed countries were meeting in Japan where they are expected to unveil tighter measures to close off Russia's opportunities to bypass financial sanctions.

* At a meeting in Russia's former Central Asian backyard, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development pledged further support for Ukraine with plans to increase its capital by 3 billion-5 billion euros.

* On Wednesday, Moscow agreed to a two-month extension of a deal safeguarding exports of Ukrainian grain from Black Sea ports despite the war. Russia had threatened to abandon the deal unless it received additional guarantees protecting its own grain and fertiliser exports.

* Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had agreed to the extension although its concerns were not yet fully addressed.

IN-DEPTH STORIES

* INSIGHT-Communities torn as Ukraine turns its back on Moscow-linked church.

* INSIGHT-How Russians end up in a far-right militia fighting in Ukraine.

* INSIGHT-Ukraine farms lose workers to war, complicating a tough harvest

* EXPLAINER-Why the EU is restricting grain imports from Ukraine

(Compiled by Reuters editors)
Residents use a boat to navigate through flood water after heavy rains hit Italy's Emilia Romagna region, in San Pancrazio near Ravenna, Italy, May 18, 2023. REUTERS/Antonio Denti

ROME (Reuters) - U.S. rock legend Bruce Springsteen came under criticism in Italy for going ahead with a concert in Ferrara on Thursday evening after the northern Emilia-Romagna region was battered by floods that left at least nine people dead.

Fans of "The Boss" took to social networks to urge him and its staff to reconsider in a sign of respect for the eleven dead and the thousands evacuated from their homes after torrential rains caused landslides and made rivers break their banks.

"@springsteen please consider to reschedule your concert today. Surrounding areas have faced devastating floods. You should because: all emergency resources should be available in the affected area; we need to avoid massive traffic; out of respect for the victims", Massimiliano Zampini tweeted.

Others were more outraged.

Cristiana Boi described the decision to go ahead with the show as "outrageous," while Laura Casadei posted: "It is a scandal that they are doing Springsteen's concert in Ferrara tonight. He will sing without an audience as all the main streets are blocked in several places."

Representatives for Springsteen did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Ferrara, one of Emilia-Romagna's main cities, has not been directly affected by the floods and Mayor Alan Fabbri defended the decision not to cancel the concert, which was expected to attract as many as 50,00 people.

"I am sorry if anyone may have thought that Ferrara was insensitive to the tragedy in Romagna just because it did not cancel the concert of The Boss," Fabbri posted on facebook.

A concert, "given its enormous complexity, cannot be postponed or cancelled" at short notice after having involved thousands of workers and tourists arriving in the city, he said.

The floods have instead led authorities to call off Sunday's Formula One Grand Prix in Imola, which is close to many of the areas worst hit by flooding, with organisers saying it was not possible to "safely hold the event".

(Reporting by Francesca Piscioneri; editing by Alvise Armellini and Mark Heinrich)
FILE PHOTO: A participant stands near a logo of IMF at the International Monetary Fund - World Bank Annual Meeting 2018 in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, October 12, 2018. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo/

By David Lawder and Rodrigo Campos

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Suriname on Thursday cleared a hurdle on its way to restructure more than $600 million debt with private creditors as it secured an initial agreement to revive its program with the International Monetary Fund.

The IMF said it reached a staff-level agreement with Suriname on the second review of the South American country's loan program, which will make a $53 million disbursement available upon the fund's executive board approval.

The announcement revives a near $700 million IMF program that had been dormant for over a year due to missed fiscal targets.

"This came a bit sooner than we were expecting, but very good news," said an investor involved in the restructuring.

Completion of the second review was viewed as a critical element of the country's agreement in principle to restructure more than $600 million in debt with private creditors, as are future oil revenues.

"Completing the ongoing debt restructuring negotiations with Surinames official and private creditors is a critical step in restoring the countrys debt sustainability," IMF Suriname mission chief Anastasia Guscina said in a statement after the May 8-16 review.

The IMF said last month it was working closely with Suriname to bring the financing program back, while looking for progress in bilateral debt talks between the government and China.

Guscina said on Thursday Suriname's authorities "are actively negotiating in good faith with China and India" on a deal on the restructuring agreement.

The IMF said that Suriname's 2023 budget was conservative, incorporating the removal of fuel subsidies, phasing out electricity subsidies and containing public wages while expanding social assistance and "growth-enhancing" infrastructure investment.

The program targets achieving a 2023 primary budget surplus of 1.7% of GDP, about half of what was envisaged in the first review, which would allow for such investments, the Fund added. This will increase to 3.5% of GDP in 2024, a level it said was consistent with medium-term debt sustainability.

(Reporting by David Lawder in Washington and Rodrigo Campos in New York; Editing by Christina Fincher)
This aerial photo taken on April 25, 2023 shows the view of the Tang Paradise in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. The Tang Paradise, located in the south of Xi'an, is a large cultural theme park showing the life style of the prosperous Tang Dynasty (618-907). (Xinhua/Liu Xiao)

The China-Central Asia summit is expected to boost the already-burgeoning Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asia.

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The city of Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has captured global attention as the two-day China-Central Asia Summit kicked off here Thursday.

The summit is expected to boost the already-burgeoning Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asia. Officials from Central Asian countries and global observers have said that deepened Belt and Road cooperation between the two sides will be a boon for the prosperity of both the region and the world.

Ten years into Belt and Road cooperation, China and Central Asian countries have made historic achievements. In 2022, trade volume hit a record high of 70.2 billion U.S. dollars, an over 100-fold increase since diplomatic ties were established about three decades ago. In the first two months of this year, trade between China and the five Central Asian countries surged 22 percent year on year.

This photo taken on April 3, 2023 shows some wind turbine generators of the 100-MW Zhanatas wind farm in Zhanatas, Kazakhstan. (Photo by Kalizhan Ospanov/Xinhua)

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been very fruitful since it was first proposed by China in Kazakhstan, said Timur Kuvatov, director-general and editor-in-chief of Kazakhstan Today News Agency.

Reviving the visions and spirits embodied in the ancient Silk Road will promote international development and trade and economic ties, as well as peaceful relations among countries, he said, adding that deeper Belt and Road cooperation has great significance for all the people living in the region and the whole world.

Over the past decade, promoted by the BRI, China and Uzbekistan have enjoyed expanding economic cooperation. "China is one of the most important partners of Uzbekistan," Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov said at a business forum held Wednesday ahead of the China-Central Asia Summit.

In 2022, bilateral trade grew 20 percent year on year, said the minister, hoping that the goal of 10 billion dollars in annual trade set by both heads of state could be achieved soon.

Noting that the China-Uzbekistan cooperation covers such areas as chemical, textile, and oil and gas industries, Kudratov said that tens of thousands of jobs have been created in Uzbekistan.

This aerial photo taken on Oct. 27, 2020 shows the construction site of the second phase of the north-south highway built by China in Kyrgyzstan. (China Road&Bridge Corporation/Handout via Xinhua)

Kudratov said that by combining China's innovative technologies with Uzbekistan's resources, the two countries could improve energy efficiency and manufacture products with high-added value for export to other countries.

In the eyes of Lu Shanbing, dean of the Central Asia Institute of Northwest University, China and Central Asian countries' efforts to advance the BRI highlight their commitment to promoting globalization.

The BRI has followed the guiding principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, which are also emphasized by China's global governance philosophy, Lu said.

Noting that the interconnectivity facilitated by the BRI has helped Central Asian countries strengthen communications with the world and better exploit their comparative advantages in the process of globalization, he said the relationship between the two sides has set a benchmark for mutually beneficial cooperation and served as a role model for Belt and Road cooperation.

Both Tajikistan and China are marking the 10th anniversary of the launch of the BRI, said Tajikistan's Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqizoda Zavqi.

"Thanks to the sincere friendship and wise policies of the leaders of both countries, the cooperation of our countries has improved," he said, noting that "China has become the third-largest trade partner and the largest investment partner of Tajikistan."

"This summit is very important. The Central Asia has lots of potential to further develop. So all five Central Asian countries, particularly Tajikistan, have very important development goals of matching up the potential of China and the Central Asia. We will receive win-win results in terms of development," said the minister.
FILE PHOTO: Syria's President Bashar al-Assad addresses the new members of parliament in Damascus, Syria in this handout released by SANA on August 12, 2020. SANA/Handout via REUTERS

BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad has always seen time as an ally in the Syrian civil war, along with the Iranian and Russian firepower that helped him defeat his enemies, according to sources familiar with his thinking.

After more than 12 years of civil conflict that made him a reviled figure to much of the world and killed 350,000 people, his strategy appears have paid off as Arab states that once shunned him welcome him back into the Arab League.

It marks the latest twist in the path of a leader who once aimed to become an eye doctor but found himself being groomed to succeed his father, Hafez al-Assad, as head of state after his older brother Basil was killed in a car crash in 1994.

His presence at an Arab summit in Jeddah on Friday hosted by Saudi Arabia appears to seal his rehabilitation in the region - a diplomatic triumph alongside the military victory he proclaimed years ago, though much of Syria is outside his grasp.

It would have been unthinkable earlier in the conflict when Gulf Arab states swung behind rebels battling to oust Assad, and then U.S. President Donald Trump branded him an "animal" for using chemical weapons - an accusation he routinely denied.

Assad, 57, owes his survival in large part to Iran and Russia. But geopolitical shifts in the Middle East have strengthened his hand as the region's most powerful states pursue entente over conflict, among them Assad's Shi'ite Islamist backers in Tehran and their Sunni rival Saudi Arabia.

But Assad always saw time as an ally.

"Syrian foreign policy is all about waiting for everyone else to come around to their position - just waiting and taking the punishment on the assumption their enemies will tire before they do. That has worked out for Bashar al-Assad - to an extent," said Aron Lund of Century International.

Western sanction remain in place, however, with no sign at all that will change soon.

REFORMS AND REPRESSION

Upon becoming president in 2000, Assad appeared to adopt liberal reforms, an optimistic moment painted as "the Damascus Spring".

He released political prisoners, allowed free-speaking salons, made overtures to the West, and opened the state-run economy to private companies.

His marriage to British-born former investment banker Asma Akhras helped foster hopes he could take Syria down a more modern and reformist path after his father's three-decade rule.

But with the political system he inherited left intact, signs of change quickly dried up.

Dissidents were jailed and economic reforms contributed to what U.S. diplomats described, in a 2008 embassy cable released by WikiLeaks, as "parasitic" nepotism and corruption.

While the elite did well, drought was driving the poor from rural areas to slums where the revolt would blaze.

His rule came to be defined by the civil war which spiralled out of the 2011 Arab Spring, when Syrians demanding democracy took to the streets only to be met with deadly force.

Assad saw the war as a foreign-backed conspiracy against a proud Arab state that opposed the United States and its Middle Eastern allies, especially Israel.

Helped by Russia's air force and Iran-backed militias, Assad clawed back the bulk of Syria in years of conflict, deploying siege warfare to recover areas such as eastern Ghouta - a tactic condemned as "medieval" by U.N. investigators.

The determination with which he set about crushing his enemies drew comparisons with his father, who defeated insurgents in Hama in the early 1980s.

Justifying his response, Assad compared himself to a surgeon cutting into a wound.

"Do we say to him: 'your hands are covered in blood?' Or do we thank him for saving the patient?" he said in Syria's parliament in 2012.

Even in the early years of the conflict, as rebels seized town after town, he appeared confident of victory.

But while he took back most of Syria, swathes of the country remained outside state control, cities were flattened, the death toll topped more than 350,000 people, and a quarter or more of the population fled abroad.

Assad enjoyed the backing of those Syrians who believed he was saving their country from insurgents bent on replacing him with hardline Sunni Islamist rule.

As al Qaeda-inspired groups gained prominence in the insurgency, this fear resonated among minority groups, including the Alawite sect which formed the backbone of his rule over the Sunni majority country.

Critics accused Assad of fuelling sectarianism.

The war's sectarian edge was hardened by the arrival of Iran-backed Shi'ite fighters from across the Middle East to support Assad, spearheaded by Lebanon's Hezbollah, and as Sunni Muslim-led states Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia backed rebels.

'RED LINES'

While Iran stood by Assad, the United States failed to enforce its own "red line" set by President Barack Obama in 2012 against the use of chemical weapons.

U.N.-backed investigations have concluded the state used chemical weapons, including sarin and chlorine, on its own people.

The deadliest was a 2013 sarin gas attack on Ghouta that killed hundreds of people but prompted no Western military response.

The threat of a U.S. missile strike was averted when Moscow brokered a deal for Syria's chemical weapons to be destroyed.

But poison gas continued to hit rebel areas. One such attack prompted then U.S. President Donald Trump to order a cruise missile attack.

Assad consistently denied accusations the state was to blame. He also denied the army had dropped barrel bombs - barrels packed with explosives that kill indiscriminately.

He dismissed tens of thousands of photos showing the torture of people in government custody as part of a Qatar-funded plot.

As fighting died down, Assad accused Syria's enemies of turning to economic warfare. And in the aftermath of the deadly Feb. 6 earthquake, Arab states which once backed his opponents began publicly opening doors to him once more.

(Reporting by Tom Perry, Laila Bassam and Maya Gebeily; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
BENI, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) -Assailants killed three rangers and another member of their convoy in an ambush in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday morning, the Congo Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) said.

The attackers struck as the convoy, escorted by ICCN rangers, left Kivandya village near Virunga national park which is home to half the global population of endangered mountain gorillas and the scene of frequent militia attacks.

The fourth victim was one of the technical workers travelling in the convoy who were implementing a project to support communities around Virunga, ICCN said in a statement.

A further six people were wounded, it said.

Virunga has been caught in the middle of militia activity that has destabilised surrounding South Kivu province since civil wars fought around the turn of the century.

The ICCN warned of a resurgence of violence in February after suspected Mai Mai militants attacked a ranger position in Virunga, killing one and injuring two.

(Reporting by Erikas Mwisi and Sonia Rolley;Writing by Sofia Christensen and Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Bhargav Acharya, Nick Macfie and David Gregorio)
TOKYO (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp and two allied automakers unveiled a micro-sized electric van targeted at Japan's delivery industry on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima on Thursday.

The small electric commercial van will run on a battery electric vehicle (BEV) system that Toyota is jointly developing with minivehicle specialists Daihatsu and Suzuki Motor Corp, the companies said in a joint statement.

The van, which will come in Toyota, Daihatsu and Suzuki-branded versions, is slated to have a range per charge of about 200 km (124 miles) and be released by the end of the current financial year running to March 31, 2024.

Daihatsu, which became a Toyota subsidiary in 2016, will produce the vehicles, the companies said in the statement.

The van will be classed as a "kei" vehicle, which are low-powered, low-taxed domestic fare.

Micro kei vehicles are hugely popular among businesses and households to deliver agriculture produce, parcels and other goods in urban areas and the countryside in Japan, in part due to their relatively cheap price.

Kei models accounted for 40% of 78.8 million four-wheel vehicles owned in Japan at of the end of February, showed the latest transport ministry data.

Reducing emissions has been a key issue at this year's G7 meeting.

The roll-out by Toyota, which owns 4.89% of Suzuki, and its partners also comes as other automakers in Japan are expanding their lineups with electric mini-commercial vans.

Honda Motor Co Ltd said in December it would start selling a micro-sized commercial electric van with a target cruising range of 200km in spring 2024, as part of its effort to electrify its vehicle lineup.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp in November re-launched its own small commercial van, Minicab-MiEV, which has a shorter cruising range of 133 km.

Mitsubishi will also start producing the van in Indonesia in 2024, it said in February, as it seeks to build out the vehicle's sales across geographies.

Japanese delivery giant Sagawa Express Co has previously said it planned to start replacing all 7,200 of its commercial mini-vehicles with electric vehicles supplied by China's Guangxi Automobile Group from last September onwards.

The company declined to comment when asked on Thursday whether it had started the process.

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
FILE PHOTO: A keyboard is placed in front of a displayed Twitter logo in this illustration taken February 21, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

(Reuters) -Twitter Inc has alleged that Microsoft Corp violated an agreement over using the social media company's data, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Thursday.

Twitter owner Elon Musk's lawyer leveled accusations of "unauthorized" usage of Twitter's data by Microsoft, including sharing data with government agencies without permission in some cases.

In the letter addressed to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Musk's lawyer Alex Spiro asked the tech giant to conduct an audit of its use of Twitter's content. The letter was first reported by the New York Times.

Twitter did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment.

As per Twitter's agreement, the social media company enforces rate limits on use of its application programming interface (API) for all developers.

"Despite these limitations, the Microsoft Apps accessed Twitter's APIs over 780 million times and retrieved over 26 billion tweets in 2022 alone", the letter said.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the company on Thursday heard from a law firm representing Twitter with some questions about its previous use of the free Twitter APIs.

"We will review these questions and respond appropriately. We look forward to continuing our long term partnership with the company," the spokesperson said.

Twitter's accusations come at a time when Elon Musk is at odds with Microsoft over its artificial intelligence platform.

Musk said in April he will launch AI platform "TruthGPT" to challenge the offerings from Microsoft and Google.

He has criticized Microsoft-backed OpenAI, the firm behind chatbot sensation ChatGPT, of "training the AI to lie" and said OpenAI has now become a "closed source", "for-profit" organization that is "closely allied with Microsoft".

He has also accused Larry Page, co-founder of Google, of not taking AI safety seriously.

(Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
FILE PHOTO: The U.S. Supreme Court building is seen in Washington, U.S., April 6, 2023. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday sidestepped a challenge to federal protections for internet and social media companies that free them of liability for content posted by users in a case involving a lawsuit against Google LLC involving the practices of video-sharing platform YouTube.

The justices, in a brief and unsigned ruling, returned to a lower court a lawsuit by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, a 23-year-old college student from California who was fatally shot in an Islamic State attack in Paris in 2015, of a lower court's decision to throw out their lawsuit. Google and YouTube are part of Alphabet Inc.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Will Dunham)
FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a working session of G7 leaders via video link on the day of the first anniversary of Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 24, 2023. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout

By Jeff Mason and Trevor Hunnicutt

HIROSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) - The United States and the rest of the "Group of Seven" major economies will unveil new sanctions and export controls targeting Russia over its war against Ukraine, a U.S. official said ahead of a G7 summit in Japan.

G7 leaders are gathering in Hiroshima on Friday with the invasion of Ukraine, now in its second year, high on the agenda. The U.S. has spearheaded tough sanctions on Russian companies, banks and individuals, and the coming announcement is designed to reaffirm world powers' resolve to support Ukraine and squeeze Moscow.

A U.S. official, speaking to reporters on Thursday ahead of the gathering, said the G7's latest efforts were aimed at disrupting Russia's ability to get materials it needs for the battlefield, close loopholes used to evade sanctions, further reduce international reliance on Russian energy, and narrow Moscow's access to the international financial system.

"Our commitment to continue tightening the screws on Russia remains as strong as it was last year," the official said.

The United States and its allies, including the European Union and Britain, have continued to ratchet up sanctions and export-control pressure on Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Thousands of targets hit with sanctions by Washington so far have included Russian President Vladimir Putin, the financial sector and oligarchs.

Washington over the past few months has cracked down on sanctions evasion with a heavy focus on dual-use items - those which have both commercial and military applications.

The latest U.S. sanctions package will include "extensively restricting categories of goods key to the battlefield" as well as preventing some 70 entities from Russia and third countries from receiving U.S. exports by adding them to the U.S. Commerce Department's blacklist.

In addition, the United States will announce some 300 new sanctions against individuals, entities, vessels and aircraft targeting "financial facilitators", Russia's future energy extracting capabilities, and others across Europe, the Middle East and Asia helping to support the war.

U.S. sanctions authorities would also be expanded to more sectors of the Russian economy.

The U.S. official said Washington would take significant steps to align its actions closely with the EU and Britain to ensure that the G7 remained as coordinated as possible in response to "Russia's brutal actions".

(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Trevor Hunnicutt in Hiroshima, Japan; additional reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and Susan Heavey in Washington; editing by Heather Timmons and Mark Heinrich)
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain and Norway have agreed to increase cooperation on undersea capabilities, including countering threats to undersea infrastructure, the British government said in a statement on Thursday.

"The attack on the Nord Stream pipeline has determined even closer collaboration across our collective assets to detect and defend against subsea threats and ensure continued North Atlantic security," British defence minister Ben Wallace said in a statement.

(Reporting by Alistair Smout and Kylie MacLellan)
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak holds a bilateral meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the sideline of the G7 leaders' summit in Hiroshima, western Japan May 18, 2023, in this photo released by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTE

(Reuters) - Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to announce a ban on Russian diamonds and imports of metals from Russia including copper, aluminium and nickel in support for Ukraine, his government said in a statement.

Britain is also targeting an additional 86 people and companies from Russian President Vladimir Putin's military industrial complex, in addition those involved in energy, metals and shipping industries.

They include those supporting the Kremlin to actively undermine the impact of existing sanctions, as Britain continues to work with G7 partners to tackle all forms of sanctions circumvention, the government said.

On Monday, Britain promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy long-range attack drones when he visited the country as part of a European tour aimed at securing new weapons for a counteroffensive against Russia.

Leaders of advanced democracies Japan, the United States, Germany, Britain, France, Canada and Italy start their Group of Seven (G7) summit on Friday in Hiroshima.

The G7 countries are poised to use the summit to announce tightened sanctions on Russia and debate strategy on a more than year-long conflict that shows no sign of easing.

(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
(Reuters) - U.S. tech research and advisory firm Forrester Research has decided to close its office in mainland China after the country's government increased scrutiny on western consultancies.

A company spokesperson said on Thursday the closure was part of a broader global restructuring plan, with the majority in the U.S., driven by an unsteady economy.

Overseas business lobbies in China have said they were unnerved by a sweeping crackdown on consultancies and due diligence firms that is damaging investor confidence in the world's second-largest economy.

China state media has described the crackdown as "intensifying" law enforcement aimed at protecting national security, and a broadening of legislation that criminalizes the transfer of information and data.

The crackdowns "send a worrying signal and heighten the uncertainty felt by foreign companies operating in China", the EU's Chamber of Commerce in China said earlier this month.

Forrester Research has begun to let go of employees and plans to lay off most of its analysts in the country, the South China Morning Post reported earlier on Thursday, citing a person with knowledge on the matter.

The Financial Times has also reported, citing sources, on the firm's plans to lay off the majority of its China analysts due to Beijing's intensified scrutiny of western consultancies in the country.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power speaks during the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit 2022 in Washington, U.S., December 13, 2022. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool

By Daphne Psaledakis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chief of the U.S. Agency for International Development traveled on Thursday to Chad, where tens of thousands have fled fighting in neighboring Sudan, to meet with Sudanese refugees and officials, a USAID spokesperson said.

Some 60,000 Sudanese refugees, mostly women and children, have poured over the border since war broke out in Sudan on April 15, seeking safety in Chad, one of the world's most impoverished countries.

The visit, first reported by Reuters, marks USAID head Samantha Power's first trip to the region since the fighting broke out between the regular army and the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Power will also meet with local officials coordinating the humanitarian response to the needs generated by the crisis in Sudan, as well as Chadian civil society and government officials, the spokesperson said.

In addition, Power will speak with U.S. government-supported and other United Nations and non-governmental organizations and humanitarian partners working to provide assistance to refugees and host communities.

Sudan's conflict has killed hundreds of people and caused a humanitarian crisis that threatens to destabilize the wider region, displacing more than 840,000 people and forcing about 200,000 to flee into neighboring countries.

USAID last month deployed a team of disaster response experts for Sudan in the region to coordinate the humanitarian response. The team operates out of Kenya.

Chad, which shares a 1,400-km (870-mile) border with Sudan, was already struggling to cope with some 600,000 refugees, many of them Sudanese, before the latest influx.

Chad has one of the worst hunger problems in the world. More than a third of its children under five are stunted. In total, 2.3 million people in Chad are in urgent need of food aid and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has issued an urgent appeal for $162.4 million to help feed them.

(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis; editing by Mark Heinrich)
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The National Administration of Financial Regulation (NAFR) was officially set up on Thursday as China's new financial regulator, marking an important step in the country's institutional reform on financial supervision.

The NAFR, directly under the State Council, is formed on the basis of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.

The new administration is in charge of regulating the financial industry, with the exception of the securities sector. It will take over certain functions of the People's Bank of China and the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

Vice Premier He Lifeng attended the opening ceremony of the NAFR in Beijing on Thursday.

The establishment of the new regulator is seen as an important move to deepen structural reform in the financial regulatory sector, strengthen and improve the country's modern financial regulation, and promote full coverage of financial regulation in the sector.

The administration plans to dispatch 2,000 teams to inspect about 2,500 banking institutions, and nearly 800 teams to supervise about 800 non-banking institutions this year, according to an official budget document posted on its official website.

The plan to set up the NAFR was adopted by the national legislature in March. 
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen takes questions from journalists during a press conference, at the G7 meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, at Toki Messe in Niigata, Japan, Thursday, May 11, 2023. Shuji Kajiyama/Pool v

By Pete Schroeder and Costas Pitas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reaffirmed the strength and soundness of the country's banking system in a meeting with bank CEOs on Thursday, a Treasury Department statement said.

During the meeting with more than two dozen CEOs and executives convened by the Bank Policy Institute, Yellen also discussed the "urgent need" for Congress to address the debt limit, the statement said.

Yellen's meeting with bank executives came as part of BPI's annual CEO meeting in Washington, which has seen top banking officials also meet with other government officials. A BPI spokesperson declined to comment on the meeting.

While the meeting with Yellen was scheduled months in advance, according to a source familiar with the matter, it came amid a tumultuous time for banks and financial markets.

The banking sector is endeavoring to shake off several weeks of turmoil spurred by the sudden failure of Silicon Valley Bank, which led to regulators seizing two more failing institutions and backing uninsured depositors in an effort to tamp down fears of broader contagion.

The meeting also comes as government officials are looking for an agreement to raise the nation's borrowing cap. Yellen and other officials have warned that a failure to do so could unleash chaos on financial markets, as the U.S. government would not be able to meet its obligations as early as June 1.

"She outlined how a failure to raise or suspend the debt limit would be catastrophic for the financial system, as well as American families and businesses, and underscored the Administrations belief that the debt limit should be addressed without delay," the Treasury said in its statement.

President Joe Biden and top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy have been negotiating over a potential deal to raise the borrowing cap.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas; Writing by Katharine Jackson; Editing by Eric Beech and Daniel Wallis)
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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

 QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended

OR

 TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ______ to ______

Commission file number: 333-261062

HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Nevada 77-0643398 (State or Other Jurisdiction of (I.R.S. Employer Incorporation or Organization) Identification No.)

8 The Green Suite 4000 , Dover , DE 19901

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

Registrants telephone number, including area code: ( 302 ) 538-4165

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: None

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes  No 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (ss.232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes  No 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of large accelerated filer, accelerated filer, smaller reporting company and emerging growth company in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.:

Large Accelerated Filer  Accelerated Filer  Non-accelerated Filer  Smaller reporting company  Emerging Growth Company 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). YES  NO 

The number of shares of Registrants Common Stock, $0.001 par value per share, outstanding as of May 16, 2023 was 464,192,444 shares

HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC

INDEX TO FORM 10-Q

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Unless the context suggests otherwise, references in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, or Quarterly Report, to Hero Technologies, the Company, we, us, and our refer to Hero Technologies, Inc. and, where appropriate, its subsidiaries.

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect our plans, estimates and beliefs. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performances or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as anticipates, believes, could, estimates, expects, intends, may, plans, potential, predicts, projects, should, would and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are based on assumptions and subject to risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties, the forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this report may not transpire. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q under Part II, Item IA, Risk Factors and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 under Part I, Item IA, Risk Factors.

Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Also, forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this document. You should read this document with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we expect. Except as required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this report, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

All trademarks, trade names and service marks appearing in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are the property of their respective owners.

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PART I  Financial Information

Item 1  Financial Statements

HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

March 31, 2023 December 31, 2022 ASSETS (Unaudited) Current Assets: Cash $ 19,190 $ 34,325 Prepaid expenses 3,282 6,563 Total current assets 22,472 40,888 Non-current Assets Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation 603,833 604,329 Total Non-current assets 603,833 604,329 Total Assets $ 626,305 $ 645,217 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY (DEFICIT) Current Liabilities: Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 102,905 $ 95,540 Accounts payable and accrued related party liabilities 15,000 15,000 Loans payable, long term portion - non-related party 525,000 525,000 Loans payable, current portion - related party 200,000 200,000 Total current liabilities 842,905 835,540 Total Liabilities 842,905 835,540 STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY (DEFICIT) Authorized: 10,000,000 preferred shares, par value $ 0.001 per share 950,000,000 common shares, par value $0.001 per share Issued and outstanding: 1,000,000 preferred shares at March 31, 2023 ( 1,000,000 at 2022) 1,000 1,000 461,192,444 common shares at March 31, 2023 ( 451,692,444 at 2022) 461,192 451,692 Additional paid-in capital 39,012,032 38,846,282 Stock Receivable ( 15,000 ) - Stock Payable 27,970 27,970 Non-controlling Interest ( 120,781 ) ( 119,574 ) Accumulated deficit ( 39,583,013 ) ( 39,397,693 ) Total stockholders equity (deficit) ( 216,600 ) ( 190,323 ) Total Liabilities and Stockholders Equity (Deficit) $ 626,305 $ 645,217

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS

(Unaudited)

Three months ended March 31, 2023 March 31, 2022 Expenses: Consulting 6,695 7,646 Compensation expense 152,750 153,800 Office, travel, and general 5,071 19,495 Professional Fees 7,781 26,601 Depreciation 496 496 Total expenses ( 172,793 ) ( 208,138 ) Other income (expense) Interest income 183 - Interest expense ( 13,917 ) ( 37,831 ) Total other income (expense) ( 13,734 ) - Net Loss $ ( 186,527 ) $ ( 245,969 ) Non-controlling interest in (income) loss of consolidated subsidiaries 1,207 373 Net loss attributable to the company $ ( 185,320 ) $ ( 245,596 ) Weighted Average Number of Basic and Diluted Common Shares Outstanding 457,575,777 443,952,889 Basic and Diluted Net Loss Per Common Share $ ( 0.00 ) $ ( 0.00 )

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HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY (DEFICIT)

(Unaudited)

Accumulated Other Total Additional Non- Comprehensive Stockholders Common Shares Preferred Shares Paid-In Stock Stock Controlling Income Accumulated Equity Shares Amount Shares Amount Capital Payable Receivable Interest (Loss) Deficit (Deficit) Balance, January 1, 2022 442,977,000 $ 442,977 1,000,000 $ 1,000 $ 38,461,909 27,970 - $ ( 93,328 ) $ - $ ( 38,856,110 ) $ ( 15,582 ) Investment Units issued for cash at $.02 per unit 1,000,000 1,000 19,000 - - - 20,000 Issued for services 1,480,000 1,480 - - 67,020 - - - - - 68,500 Common Stock  Related party compensation 4,235,444 4,235 177,853 - - - 182,088 Imputed interested on outstanding loan - - 22,500 - - - - - 22,500 Investment Units issued for cash at $.05 per unit 2,000,000 2,000 - - 98,000 - - - - - 100,000 Non-Controlling Interest - - - - - - - ( 26,246 ) - - ( 26,246 ) Net Loss - - - ( 541,583 ) ( 541,583 ) Balance, December 31, 2022 451,692,444 451,692 1,000,000 1,000 38,846,282 27,970 - ( 119,574 ) - ( 39,397,693 ) ( 190,323 ) Investment units issued for cash at $0.01 per unit 1,500,000 1,500 - - 13,500 - ( 15,000 ) - - Inputed interest on loan - - 7,500 - - - 7,500 Common Stock  related party compensation 2,000,000 2,000 - - 31,000 - - - 33,000 Common Stock - Non-Related party compensation 6,000,000 6,000 113,750 - 119,750 Non-Controlling Interest - - ( 1,207 ) ( 1,207 ) Net Loss - - - - - - - ( 185,320 ) ( 185,320 ) Balance, March 31, 2023 461,192,444 461,192 1,000,000 1,000 39,012,032 27,970 ( 15,000 ) ( 120,781 ) - ( 39,583,013 ) ( 216,600 )

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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HERO TECHNOLOGY, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(Unaudited)

Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 2022 OPERATING ACTIVITIES: Net loss attributable to Hero Technologies Inc. $ ( 185,320 ) $ ( 245,596 ) Non-controlling interest in income (loss) of consolidated subsidiaries $ ( 1,207 ) $ ( 373 ) Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: Shares issued for services 152,750 153,800 Loss from conversion of debt to common stock Depreciation expense 496 496 Imputed Interest 7,500 - Discount amortization - 30,412 Change in operating assets and liabilities: Prepaid expenses 3,281 1,378 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 7,365 6,943 Cash used in operating activities ( 15,135 ) ( 52,940 ) FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Proceeds from sale of common stock - - Borrowings on debt - - Cash provided by financing activities - - NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH ( 15,135 ) ( 52,940 ) CASH, BEGINNING OF YEAR 34,325 174,477 CASH, END OF YEAR $ 19,190 $ 121,537 NON-CASH INVESTING ACTIVITIES Land financed with debt - 525,000 Stock Receivable for shares issued 15,000 -

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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HERO TECHNOLOGIES INC.

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(Unaudited)

1. NATURE OF OPERATIONS Hero Technologies Inc. (the Company) was incorporated in the State of Nevada on May 14, 2004. The Company had previously focused on oil and gas exploration in Australias Cooper Basin. During 2019, the Company sold its remaining oil and gas assets and discontinued operations in the energy industry. As a result, the financial results related to the oil and gas activity were reflected in the consolidated statements of operations discontinued operations. Hero Technologies Inc. is a cannabis company with a vertically-integrated business model. The company has a majority stake in BlackBox Systems and Technologies LLC, an aeroponic cannabis cultivation system that provides optimal growing conditions to enhance photosynthesis and cultivation of large flowering plants, creating increased harvest efficiencies. The companys business plan includes cannabis genetic engineering, farmland for both medical and recreational cannabis cultivation, production licenses, distribution licenses, consumer packaging and retail operations, and dispensaries that make the company a multi-state operator (MSO). The Companys consolidated financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (US GAAP) which contemplates the realization of assets and discharge of liabilities and commitments in the normal course of business. The Company has not generated operating revenues and has funded its operations through the issuance of capital stock. There is no certainty that further funding will be available as needed. These factors raise substantial doubt about the ability of the Company to continue operating as a going concern. The Companys ability to continue its operations as a going concern, realize the carrying value of its assets, and discharge its liabilities in the normal course of business is dependent upon: the continued support of its controlling shareholders, its ability to raise capital sufficient to fund its commitments and ongoing losses, and ultimately generating profitable operations.

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of Presentation These consolidated financial statements and related notes are presented in accordance with US GAAP, and are expressed in United States dollars. These statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries First Endeavor Holdings, Inc. (FEH), Veteran Hemp Co (Veteran), and its majority owned subsidiary Blackbox Technologies and Systems (Blackbox). All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated. In the opinion of management, all adjustments, all of which are of a normal recurring nature, considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Accounts Receivable Accounts receivable consist of trade receivables and are carried at their estimated collectible amounts. The Company provides credit to its clients in the form of payment terms. The Company limits its credit risk by performing credit evaluations of its clients and maintaining a reserve, if deemed necessary, for potential credit losses. Such evaluations include the review of a clients outstanding balances with consideration towards such clients historical collection experience, as well as prevailing economic and market conditions and other factors. Based on such evaluations, the Company determined to write off $ 620 of accounts receivable at the end of December 31, 2022. The total accounts receivable was $ 0 at March 31, 2023 and $ 0 as of December 31, 2022.

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Property and Equipment Property and equipment is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation is computed using the straight- line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, ranging from three to seven years. The cost and related accumulated depreciation and amortization of property and equipment sold or otherwise disposed of are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reported as current period income or expense. The costs of repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred. The total value of property and equipment at March 31, 2023 is $ 603,833 and $ 604,330 at December 31, 2022. Asset Purchase Price Accumulated Depreciation Land (2022-current) 600,000 0 Furniture and Fixtures 5 - 7 Years (2021-current) $ 6,030 $ ( 2,715 ) Computer Equipment and Software 3 - 5 Years (2021-current) 2,331 ( 1,813 ) Intangible Assets / Goodwill The Company accounts for certain intangible assets at cost. Management reviews these intangible assets for probable impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable. If there is an indication of impairment, management would prepare an estimate of future cash flows (undiscounted and without interest charges) expected to result from the use of the asset and its eventual disposition. If these estimated cash flows were less than the carrying amount, an impairment loss would be recognized to write down the asset to its estimated fair value. The Company performed a qualitative assessment of certain of its intangible assets and determined that $ 60,700 of intangible trademarks and customer base included with the Veteran Hemp Co acquisition be impaired and that $ 5,881 of goodwill associated to Veteran Hemp Co be impaired as of December 31, 2021. Use of Estimates The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. The Company regularly evaluates estimates and assumptions. The Company bases its estimates and assumptions on current facts, historical experience, and various other factors it believes to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities and the accrual of costs and expenses that are not readily apparent from other sources. The actual results experienced by the Company may differ materially and adversely from the Companys estimates. To the extent there are material differences between the estimates and the actual results, future results of operations will be affected. Revenue Recognition The Company recognizes sales when merchandise is shipped from a warehouse directly to wholesale customers (except in the case of a consignment sale). For consignment sales, the Company recognizes sales upon the consignees shipment to the customer. Postage and handling charges billed to customers are also recognized as sales upon shipment of the related merchandise. Shipping terms are generally FOB shipping point, and title passes to the customer at the time and place of shipment or purchase by customers at a retail location. For consignment sales, title passes to the consignee concurrent with the consignees shipment to the customer. The customer has no cancellation privileges after shipment or upon purchase at retail locations, other than customary rights of return. The Company excludes sales tax collected and remitted to various states from sales and cost of sales.

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Cash, Cash Equivalents The Company considers all highly liquid instruments with an original maturity of three months or less at the time of issuance to be cash equivalents. Cash totaled $ 19,190 and $ 34,325 at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. The Company is exposed to a concentration of credit risk with respect to its cash deposits. The Company places cash deposits with highly rated financial institutions in the United States. At times, cash balances held in financial institutions may be more than insured limits. The Company believes the financial institutions are financially strong and the risk of loss is minimal. The Company has not experienced any losses with respect to the related risks and does not believe its exposure to such risks is more than normal. Fair Market Measurements The Company estimates the fair values of financial and non-financial assets and liabilities under ASC Topic 820 Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (ASC Topic 820). ASC Topic 820 provides a framework for consistent measurement of fair value for those assets and liabilities already measured at fair value under other accounting pronouncements. Certain specific fair value measurements, such as those related to share-based compensation, are not included in the scope of ASC Topic 820. Primarily, ASC Topic 820 is applicable to assets and liabilities related to financial instruments, to some long-term investments and liabilities, to initial valuations of assets and liabilities acquired in a business combination, and to long-lived assets written down to fair value when they are impaired. It does not apply to oil and natural gas properties accounted for under the full cost method, which are subject to impairment based on SEC rules. ASC Topic 820 applies to assets and liabilities carried at fair value on the consolidated balance sheet, as well as to supplement fair value information about financial instruments not carried at fair value. Valuation techniques are generally classified into three categories: the market approach; the income approach; and the cost approach. The selection and application of one or more of these techniques requires significant judgment and is primarily dependent upon the characteristics of the asset or liability, the principal (or most advantageous) market in which participants would transact for the asset or liability and the quality and availability of inputs. Inputs to valuation techniques are classified as either observable or unobservable within the following hierarchy:  Level 1 - quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.  Level 2 - inputs other than quoted prices which are observable for an asset or liability. These include: quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active; inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability; and inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means (market-corroborated inputs).  Level 3 -unobservable inputs that reflect the Companys own expectations about the assumptions that market participants would use in measuring the fair value of an asset or liability. A financial instruments level within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of any input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Where available, fair value is based on observable market prices or parameters or derived from such prices or parameters. Where observable prices or inputs are not available, valuation models are applied. These valuation techniques involve some level of management estimation and judgment, the degree of which is dependent on the price transparency for the instruments or market and the instruments complexity. In accordance with ASC Topic 820, valuation techniques used for assets and liabilities accounted for at fair value are generally categorized into three types: market approach, income approach and cost approach. The Company had no outstanding securities at March 31, 2023. The Company uses the market approach technique to account for its financial instruments at fair value for the period ended March 31, 2023, and the application of this technique applied to similar assets and liabilities has been applied on a consistent basis. Income Taxes Income taxes are determined using the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of assets and liabilities and their respective tax basis. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using the enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes that date of enactment. In addition, a valuation allowance is established to reduce any deferred tax asset for which it is determined that it is more likely than not that some portion of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. The Company accounts for uncertainty in income taxes by applying a two-step method. First, it evaluates whether a tax position has met a more likely than not recognition threshold, and second, it measures that tax position to determine the amount of benefit, if any, to be recognized in the financial statements. The application of this method did not have a material effect on the Companys consolidated financial statements.

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Stock Based Compensation The Company records compensation expense in the consolidated financial statements for share based payments using the fair value method. The fair value of stock options granted to directors and employees is determined using the Black-Scholes option valuation model at the time of grant. Fair value for common shares issued for goods or services rendered by non-employees is measured based on the fair value of the goods and services received. Share-based compensation is expensed with a corresponding increase to share capital. Upon the exercise of the stock options, the consideration paid is recorded as an increase in share capital. Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) The Company reports and displays comprehensive income and loss and its components in the consolidated financial statements. For the years ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the only components of comprehensive income were foreign currency translation adjustments. Earnings (Loss) Per Share The Company presents both basic and diluted earnings per share (EPS) on the face of the consolidated statements of operations. Basic EPS is computed by dividing net earnings (loss) available to common shareholders by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. Diluted EPS gives effect to all dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period including convertible debt, stock options, and warrants, using the treasury stock method. Diluted EPS excludes all dilutive potential shares if their effect is anti-dilutive. Diluted EPS figures are equal to those of Basic EPS for each period since the Company had no securities outstanding during periods in which the Company generated net income that were potentially dilutive. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company adopted ASC 2020-06, Debt  Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 47020) and Derivatives and Hedging  Contracts in Entities Own Equity (Subtopic 81540). ASC 2020-06 reduces the number of acceptable methods of accounting models for convertible debt instruments and convertible preferred stocks. The implementation of ASC 2020-06 had no material impact on the Companys consolidated financial statements.

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3. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS Interest to related parties was $0 at March 31, 2022 compared to $ 15,000 at December 31, 2022. On March 15, 2022, the Company issued 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock to Topline Holdings Inc in consideration for advisor and managerial services. The shares were priced at $ 0.052 at a fair value of $ 104,000 . On September 9, 2022, the Company issued Topline Holdings Inc 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for advisor and managerial services at a fair value of $ 66,000 at a stock price of $ 0.033 . On September 27, 2022, the Company issued Richard Bowersock Inc 166,000 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for consulting services at a fair value of $ 9,130 at a stock price of $ 0.055 . On October 1, 2021 the Company entered into a note to borrow $ 200,000 over a 6 month period with interest of $ 15,000 and issuance of 750,000 shares of common stock to an unrelated accredited investor. The common shares were at fair value at a stock price of $ 0.081 per share. The common shares were at fair value at a stock price of $ 0.081 per share and were issued as an inducement to provide the note. This has been treated as a discount and amortized over the life of the note. On October 13, 2021 the Company engaged North Equities for three months of consulting services to assist with Social Media and Client Outreach. In consideration for these services the company issued 632,912 shares of common stock at a fair value of $ 50,000 at a stock price of $ 0.079 . On November 7, 2022, the Company issued Marcin Drwila 69,444 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for consulting services at a fair value of $ 2,958 at a stock price of $ 0.043 . On March 31, 2023, the Company issued Topline Holdings Inc 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for advisor and managerial services at a fair value of $ 33,000 at a stock price of $ 0.0165 .

4. CAPITAL STOCK Preferred Stock On May 1, 2020, the Company issued 1,000,000 shares of its Series A preferred stock to Magenta Value Holdings, LLC resulting in a change in management of the entity. The Series A preferred shares have the right to cast 90 % of the total votes with respect to any and all matters presented to the stockholders of the Company for their action or consideration. The Series A preferred shares are not entitled to any dividends or liquidation preferences and are not convertible into shares of the Companys common stock. Common Stock On July 20, 2020, the Company changed its name from Holloman Energy Corporation to Hero Technologies Inc. and increased its authorized capitalization to 950,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of $ 0.001 .

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On January 19, 2022, the Company issued 330,000 shares of restricted common stock to Juddah Holdings LLC in consideration for consulting services. The shares were priced at $ 0.05 . at a fair value of $ 19,800 . On February 5, 2022, the Company issued 600,000 shares of restricted common stock to Jack Becker in consideration for consulting services. The shares were priced at $ 0.052 . at a fair value of $ 30,000 . On March 15, 2022, the Company issued 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock to Topline Holdings Inc in consideration for advisor and managerial services. The shares were priced at $ 0.052 at a fair value of $ 104,000 . On June 27, 2022, the Company sold 2,000,000 shares of common stock to an unrelated accredited investor. The shares were sold at a price of $ 0.05 per share. Proceeds from the private placement totaled $ 100,000 . The entire $ 100,000 was paid in cash. On September 09, 2022, the Company issued Topline Holdings Inc 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for advisor and managerial services at a fair value of $ 66,000 at a stock price of $ 0.033 . On September 5, 2022, the Company issued 550,000 shares of restricted common stock to Jack Becker in consideration for consulting services. The shares were priced at $ 0.034 at a fair value of $ 18,700 . On September 27, 2022, the Company issued 166,000 shares of restricted common stock to Richard Bowersock in consideration for consulting services. The shares were priced at $ 0.055 at a fair value of $ 9,130 . On November 1, 2022, the Company sold 1,000,000 shares of common stock to an unrelated accredited investor. The shares were sold at a price of $ 0.020 per share. Proceeds from the private placement totaled $ 20,000 . The entire $ 20,000 was paid in cash. On November 7, 2022, the Company issued Marcin Drwila 69,444 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for consulting services at a fair value of $2.958 at a stock price of $ 0.043 . On January 3, 2023, the Company issued 5,000,000 shares of restricted common stock to Igala Commonwealth Limited Trust Company in consideration for consulting services. The shares were priced at $ 0.020 at a fair value of $ 100,000 . On January 30, 2023, the Company sold 1,500,000 shares of common stock to an unrelated accredited investor. The shares were sold at a price of $ 0.010 per share. Proceeds from the private placement totaled $ 15,000 . The entire $ 15,000 is to be paid in cash and has been recorded as a stock receivable as of March 31, 2023. On February 2, 2023, the Company issued 500,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif in consideration for consulting services. The shares were valued based on the days closing price at $ 0.023 and a fair value of $ 11,500 . On March 31, 2023, the Company issued Topline Holdings Inc 2,000,000 shares of restricted common stock in consideration for advisor and managerial services at a fair value of $ 33,000 which was based on the days share closing price of $ 0.0165 . This is a related party transaction. On March 31, 2023, the Company issued 500,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif in consideration for consulting services. The shares were valued based on the days closing price at $ 0.0165 and a fair value of $ 8,250 .

5. NON-CONTROLLLING INTEREST Non-controlling interest in loss of consolidated subsidiaries was $ 1,207 and $ 26,246 for March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 respectively. The loss from non-controlling interest resulted in the legal and early construction expenses related to Blackbox Technologies and Systems Inc.s commencement of the Michigan growth facility. The Company has a 51 % equity interest in Blackbox Technologies and Systems. LLC. Blackbox Technologies and Systems, LLC.

6. PREPAIDS Prepaids consisted primarily of OTC annual fees totaling $ 3,282 and $ 6,563 for March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 respectively.

7. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Legal Proceedings The Company may be subject to legal proceedings and claims arising from contracts or other matters from time to time in the ordinary course of business. Management is not aware of any pending or threatened litigation where the ultimate disposition or resolution could have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

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8. PROPERTY, PLANT, AND EQUIPMENT Property and equipment is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation is computed using the straight- line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, ranging from three to seven years. The cost and related accumulated depreciation and amortization of property and equipment sold or otherwise disposed of are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reported as current period income or expense. The costs of repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred. The total value of property and equipment at March 31, 2023 is $ 603,833 and $ 604,330 at December 31, 2022. Asset Purchase Price Accumulated Depreciation Land (2022-current) 600,000 0 Furniture and Fixtures 5 - 7 Years (2021-current) $ 6,030 $ ( 2,715 ) Computer Equipment and Software 3 - 5 Years (2021-current) 2,331 ( 1,813 )

9. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS On April 6, 2023, the Company issued 750,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif in consideration for consulting services. On April 6, 2023, the Company issued 250,000 shares of restricted common stock to Aaron Scott Haney in consideration for consulting services. On April 6, 2023, the Company issued 250,000 shares of restricted common stock to Calum Rodger in consideration for consulting services. On April 7, 2023, the Company issued 250,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif in consideration for consulting services. On April 10, 2023, the Company issued 1,000,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif in consideration for consulting services. On April 10, 2023, the Company issued 500,000 shares of restricted common stock to Ryan Smith in consideration for consulting services. On April 17, 2023, the Company assigned their 10 -acre property in the Vassar Township to DMB LLC in consideration for undertaking all liabilities associated to the land. On May 4, 2023 HENC executed a Letter of Intent with LoadzPro by which HENC will acquire all the outstanding shares of LoadzPro in accordance with the following terms: (1) HENC will issue subordinate convertible preferred shares in the amount of $ 5,000,000 to all LoadzPro shareholders; (2) The convertible preferred shares in the face amount of 5 million dollars are convertible only into control shares of LoadzPro when it is spun out. Loadzpro is an AI Powered Digital Freight Company that leverages its network of 10,000+ Trucks & Truck Drivers to move loads for shippers.

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Item 2. Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Overview

Hero Technologies Inc. is an early stage cannabis company. The company has a majority stake in BlackBox Systems and Technologies LLC. BlackBox is an aeroponic cannabis cultivation system that provides optimal conditions to enhance photosynthesis and cultivation of large flowering plants, creating increased efficiencies. The BlackBox project consists of environmental growth chambers for the cultivation of large flowering plants based on aeroponic technology. Hero Technologies owns and operates HighlyRelaxing.com under Highly Relaxing LLC. The Company also operates VeteranHempCo.com after the acquisition of V Brokers LLC assets.

Our flagship project, Blackbox has applied to the state of Michigan for marijuana licenses which, if granted, will allow Blackbox to cultivate cannabis for sale in the state of Michigan. Blackbox is currently seeking two Michigan marijuana licenses, one for adult use and one for medicinal use. The current status of Blackboxs marijuana license may be summarized as follows:

Our flagship project, Blackbox has applied to the state of Michigan for marijuana licenses which, if granted, will allow Blackbox to cultivate cannabis for sale in the state of Michigan. Blackbox is currently seeking two Michigan marijuana licenses, one for adult use and one for medicinal use. The current status of Blackboxs marijuana license may be summarized as follows:

 Blackbox is in the process of pursuing a Class C license, which would permit them to cultivate up to 2,000 marijuana plants for adult use and 1,500 plants for medicinal use.  To date, Blackbox has spent approximately $190,577 in pursuit of a marijuana license.  Per the MRA, Blackbox is required to pay an initial fee of $40,000 for each license.  Blackbox is required to pay a renewal fee for every year that they wish to retain their license. The fee for renewing a marijuana license can range from $30,000 to $50,000, depending on the total weight of the marijuana plants that were cultivated for the preceding year.  These licenses will allow Blackbox to cultivate cannabis, within the state of Michigan, for adult use and medicinal use.  Blackbox has already completed Step 1 in the application process. However, before Blackbox can submit an application for Step 2, Blackbox is required to complete construction of its greenhouse facilities.  Once the facilities are complete, Blackbox may proceed with a Step 2 application, which entails having the newly constructed facility inspected by the Bureau of Fire Services within 60 days after the Step 2 application is submitted.  Failure to pass an inspection by the BFS within 60 days may result in the denial of the license.  Blackbox is also required, by the MRA, to disclose the sources and total amount of capitalization that is required to operate and maintain a proposed marijuana facility. For a Class C license, Blackbox is required to show that they have $500,000 available to operate and maintain the facility.  Completing the Step 2 process will allow the company to proceed with the cultivation of cannabis in Michigan.

Once Blackbox receives a Class C marijuana license for adult use, they will be subject to various provisions and obligations, including the following:

 Under rule 420.102(1), one who holds a Class C marijuana license for adult use is permitted to grow 2,000 marijuana plants  According to rule 420.102(4) of the MRA, A marijuana grower license authorizes a marijuana grower to transfer marijuana without using a marijuana secure transporter to a marijuana processor or marijuana retailer if both of the following are met:

o (a) The marijuana processor or marijuana retailer occupies the same location as the marijuana grower and the marijuana is transferred using only private real property without accessing public roadways. o (b) The marijuana grower enters each transfer into the statewide monitoring system.

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 Pursuant to rule 420.102(5), A marijuana grower license authorizes sale of marijuana, other than seeds, seedlings, tissue cultures, immature plants, and cuttings, to a marijuana processor or marijuana retailer.  Under rule 420.102(7), A marijuana grower must enter all transactions, current inventory, and other information into the statewide monitoring system, known as METRC, as required in these rules. Under the METRC system:

 a serialized tag must be attached to every plant,  and labels must be attached to wholesale packages

 According to rule 420.102(8), A marijuana grower license does not authorize the marijuana grower to operate in an area unless the area is zoned for industrial or agricultural use. At present, the Company is in compliance with this rule, as we intend to operate in an area that has been zoned for industrial and agricultural use.  Under 420.102(9), A marijuana grower may accept the transfer of marijuana seeds, tissue cultures, and clones that do not meet the definition of marijuana plant in these rules at any time from another grower licensed under the acts, these rules, or both. Marijuana.  Per rule 420.102(11), A marijuana grower licensee is required to comply with the requirements of the Michigan regulation and taxation of marijuana act and these rules.

With regard to a Class C marijuana license for medicinal use, the MRA imposes very similar provisions and obligations to those state above. According to rule R 420.108 of the MRA, one who possess a Class C marijuana license for medical use is subject to the following obligations:  Under rule 420.108(1), one who holds a Class C marijuana license for medicinal use is only permitted to grow marijuana 1,500 marijuana plants, as opposed to the 2,000 plants authorized for those who obtain an adult-use license  Similar to the rule governing an adult-use license, marijuana under rule 420.108(3), a medicinal-use license authorizes a grower to transfer marijuana without using a secure transporter to a processor or provisioning center if both of the following are met:

o (a) The processor or provisioning center occupies the same location as the grower and the marijuana is transferred using only private real property without accessing public roadways. o (b) The grower enters each transfer into the statewide monitoring system.

 According to rule 420.108(4), a grower license authorizes sale of marijuana, other than seeds, seedlings, tissue cultures, and cuttings, to a processor or a provisioning center.  To be eligible for a grower license, the applicant and each investor in the grower must not have an interest in a secure transporter or safety compliance facility.  Under rule 420.108(7), a medicinal-use license, like an adult-use license, requires a grower to enter all transactions, current inventory, and other information into the statewide monitoring system, known as METRC  Similar to the rule for an adult-use license, under rule 420.108(8), a medicinal-use license does not authorize the grower to operate in an area unless the area is zoned for industrial or agricultural use. As mentioned, the Company is in compliance with this rule, as we intend to operate in an area that has been zoned for industrial and agricultural use.

Our goal is to become a low-cost national or internationally branded cannabis company. Through cost measurement methods unused elsewhere by the industry, we will be able to measure costs of production by pound. With this information, we will target production costs of $150 to $350 per pound, and estimate selling cannabis at wholesale prices between $2,400 and $3,200. The end goal is to become a Multi-State Operator (MSO) that is fully integrated from seed to sale

However, there are numerous other developments that will need to occur in order to allow us to implement the final aspects of our business plan and there are no assurances that any of these developments will occur, or if they do occur, that we will be successful in fully implementing our plan. The Company is continuing to look for investors as well as experienced personnel to increase the facilitation of future development of the Company. Management is also reviewing other business opportunities and researching other areas for the business.

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Since inception of Hero Technologies, we have devoted the majority of our resources to acquiring assets and subsidiaries, organizing and staffing our company, business planning and execution, and raising capital.

 We have incurred recurring losses, the majority of which is attributable to minimal revenue, compensation expenses, consulting expenses, loss on the sale of a subsidiary, and losses on share conversion.  We have funded our operations primarily through issuance of shares for services and proceeds from sale of stock.  Our net loss was $245,596 for the three months ended March 31, 2022, and $185,320 for the three months ended March 31, 2023.  As of March 31, 2023, we had an accumulated deficit of $ 39,583,013.  Our primary use of cash is to fund operating expenses, which consist primarily of compensation expenses, consulting expenses, and general and administrative expenditures.

As of March 31, 2023, only Veteran Hemp Co. has generated any revenue.

Material changes in our Statement of Operations for the periods shown below compared to the prior periods are discussed below:

Three months ended March 31, 2023

Item Increase (I) or Decrease (D) Reason Consulting Expense I Increased activity in marketing Impairment of Intangibles - No change Compensation Expense D Decreased due to a decline in the issuance of stock-based compensation Office, Travel and General D Decreased activity due to a decline in travel Professional Fees D Decreased activity due to a decline in cannabis licensing

Factors that will most significantly affect future operating results will be:

 Funding for construction of greenhouses in Michigan under Blackbox  Timing related to construction and actual production of cannabis  Wholesale cannabis prices in the state of Michigan

Other than the foregoing we do not know of any trends, events or uncertainties that have had, or are reasonably expected to have, a material impact on our revenues or expenses.

Results of Operations

Comparison of Results of Operations for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and March 31, 2022.

Three months ended March 31, March 31, 2023 2022 Sales $ - - Cost of goods sold - - Gross profit - - Operating Expenses Consulting 6,695 3,271 Compensation 152,750 153,800 Office, travel, general 5,071 19,495 Professional fees 7,781 26,601 Other 496 1,400 Total Operating Expenses (172,793 ) (204,567 ) Other income (expense), net (13,734 ) - Net loss $ (186,527 ) $ (204,567 )

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Revenue and Cost of Goods Sold

There was no change in sales for the three months ended March 31, 2023. No sales were recorded in March 2023. Similarly, there was no change in cost of goods sold for the three months ended March 31, 2023

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses decreased from $204,567 to $172,793. This decline was driven by a decrease in consulting expenses, compensation expenses, professional fees, and office, travel, and general expenses.

Consulting

Consulting expenses increased from $3,271 to $6,695. This increase was driven by an increase in marketing activity.

Compensation

Compensation expenses decreased from $153,800 to $152,750. Compensation was higher in March 2022 due to the issuance of stock-based compensation.

Professional Fees

Professional fees decreased from $26,601 to $7,781. This decrease was driven by a decline in cannabis licensing projects.

Our Energy and Exploration Legacy and Transition to Cannabis

The Company underwent significant changes from the year 2019 to 2020, which caused fluctuations in the various operating costs. Before its name change in 2020, the Company was incorporated in the state of Nevada under the name Holloman Energy Corporation. The Company had previously focused on oil and gas exploration in Australias Cooper Basin. However, during 2019, the Company sold its remaining oil and gas assets and discontinued operations in the energy industry. On May 1, 2020, Holloman Energy Corporation Series A Preferred Shares were purchased by Magenta Value Holdings LLC. On July 20, 2020, the Company changed its name to Hero Technologies Inc. with the state of Nevada. After which, the Company begun making the transition into the cannabis industry.

On September 10, 2020, Hero Technologies Inc. formed the company Blackbox Technologies and Systems LLC and entered into an operating agreement. The name was subsequently changed to Blackbox Systems and Technologies LLC. The Blackbox project consists of environmental growth chambers for the cultivation of large flowering plants based on aeroponic technology. On November 3, 2020, the Company purchased Veteran Hemp Co., which operates an international retail and wholesale online store selling cannabis and cannabidiol. On November 4, 2020, the Company purchased a www.highlrelaxing.com and began selling CBD topicals and rubs under the name Highly Relaxing. Today, Hero Technologies Inc. is a cannabis company with a vertically integrated business model and plan that includes cannabis genetic engineering, farmland for medical and recreational cannabis cultivation, production licenses, distribution licenses, consumer packaging, retail operations and dispensaries. The Company focuses on two principal segments of the cannabis industry, (i) cultivation and (ii) the dispensary business model, including combinations. The Company is an expanding vertically integrated, cannabis operator, focusing on high-growth markets. Hero Technologies Inc. pairs premier seed genetics and growing techniques, with plans to utilize and expand its growing technology/techniques to all its facilities and operations. The Companys business model includes cultivation, licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation, and technology development.

Capital Resources and Liquidity

Overview

Since our inception, we have recognized limited revenue from our core cannabis operations and have incurred operating losses and negative cash flows from our operations. We have not yet commercialized any product from our planned aeroponic cultivation of cannabis, and we do not expect to generate revenue until completion of greenhouse buildouts. Since our inception through March 2023, we have funded our operations through proceeds from the sale of stock, borrowings on debt, and shares issued for service. We expect our existing cash and cash equivalents, together with the anticipated net proceeds from this offering, to enable us to fund our operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements for the foreseeable future.

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Our sources and (uses) of cash for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 are shown below:

2023 2022 $ $ Cash provided by (used in) operations (15,135 ) (52,940 ) Cash received upon sale of subsidiary - - Cash provided by (used in) investing activities - - Cash provided by (used in) financing activities - - Changes in exchange rates - -

Our material capital commitments for the nine months ending March 31, 2023 are:

Description Amount (Include all amounts pertaining to Blackbox, cannabis licensing, pre-acquisition development, land acquisition construction, etc.) $ 9,000,000

Operating Activities

During the three months ended March 31, 2022, we used $52,940 of cash in operating activities. Cash used in operating activities reflected our net loss of $245,969 and a net decrease of $21,475 in our operating assets and liabilities. The primary use of cash was to fund our operations related to compensation expenses, consulting expenses, and professional fees.

During the three months ended March 2023, we used $15,135 of cash in operating activities. Cash used in operating activities reflected our net loss of $185,320, offset by operating assets and liabilities of $170,185. The primary use of cash was to fund our operations related to compensation expenses, consulting expenses, and professional fees.

Investing Activities

During the three months ended March 31, 2022 we used $0 in non-cash investing activities, primarily due to liabilities settled with common stock. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, we received $0 for investing activities.

Financing Activities

During the three months ended March 31, 2022, financing activities provided $470,000. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, we received $0 from financing activities.

We anticipate material capital requirements of $9,000,000 for the twelve months ending March 31, 2024.

Other than as disclosed above, we do not know of any trends, demands, commitments, events or uncertainties that will result in, or that are reasonably likely to result in, our liquidity increasing or decreasing in any material way.

Other than as disclosed above, we do not know of any significant changes in our expected sources and uses of cash.

We do not have any commitments or arrangements from any person to provide us with any equity capital.

Our current losses, working capital deficit, and accumulated deficit raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

Our current operations are being funded by capital that has been raised through the issuance of capital stock. Additionally, we may decide to raise more capital in the future through private offerings, public offerings, and/or debt offerings.

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Funding Requirements

Our primary use of cash is to fund operating expenses, primarily consisting of compensation, consulting and professional fees and general administrative expenses.

Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated the cannabis industry, we are unable to estimate the exact amount of our operating capital requirements. Our future funding requirements will depend on many factors, including, but not limited to:

 Regulatory and statutory developments regarding the legalization and commercialization of the marijuana industry in the United States  Compensation expenses related to our growing platform  Business development opportunities in the form of targeted acquisitions of subsidiaries  Investment activities related to the construction and deployment of aeroponic growth technology.

We currently have no credit facility or committed sources of capital. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with the cannabis industry and our core businesses, we are unable to estimate the amounts of increased capital outlays and operating expenditures.

Until such time, if ever, as we can generate substantial product revenue, we expect to finance our operations through a combination of equity offerings and/or debt financings. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, ownership interests will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of common stockholders. Debt financing and preferred equity financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making acquisitions or capital expenditures or declaring dividends. If we are unable to raise additional funds through equity or debt financings or other arrangements when needed, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate the implementation of our business plans.

Critical Accounting Policies

The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. On an on-going basis, we evaluate our estimates based on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. The following represents a summary of our critical accounting policies, defined as those policies that we believe are the most important to the portrayal of our financial condition and results of operations and that require managements most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates about the effects of matters that are inherently uncertain.

See Note 2 to the December 31, 2022 Financial Statements included as part of this document for a summary of our significant accounting policies.

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Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions. These estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. It is possible that accounting estimates and assumptions may be material to the Company due to the levels of subjectivity and judgment involved.

Accounts Receivable

The Company grants credit to customers under credit terms that it believes are customary in the industry and does not require collateral to support customer receivables. The Company currently does not provide an allowance for doubtful collections, which is based upon a review of outstanding receivables, historical collection information, and existing economic conditions. Normal receivable terms vary from 30-90 days after the issuance of the invoice and typically would be considered past due when the term expires. Delinquent receivables are written off based on individual credit evaluation and specific circumstances of the customer.

Inventory

Inventory is valued at the lower of the inventorys cost (first in, first out basis) or the current market price of the inventory. Management compares the cost of inventory with its market value and an allowance is made to write down inventory to market value, if lower.

Long-Lived Assets

The Company applies the provisions of ASC Topic 360, Property, Plant, and Equipment, which addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment or disposal of long-lived assets. ASC 360 requires impairment losses to be recorded on long-lived assets used in operations when indicators of impairment are present and the undiscounted cash flows estimated to be generated by those assets are less than the assets carrying amounts. In that event, a loss is recognized based on the amount by which the carrying amount exceeds the fair value of the long-lived assets. Loss on long-lived assets to be disposed of is determined in a similar manner, except that fair values are reduced for the cost of disposal.

Revenue Recognition

Net sales include product sales, less excise taxes and customer programs and incentives. The Company recognizes revenue by applying the following steps in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) Topic 606  Revenue from Contracts with Customers: (1) identify the contract with a customer; (2) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (3) determine the transaction price; (4) allocate the transaction price to each performance obligation in the contract; and (5) recognize revenue when each performance obligation is satisfied.

The Company recognizes sales when merchandise is shipped from a warehouse directly to wholesale customers (except in the case of a consignment sale). For consignment sales, the Company recognizes sales upon the consignees shipment to the customer. Postage and handling charges billed to customers are also recognized as sales upon shipment of the related merchandise. Shipping terms are generally FOB shipping point, and title passes to the customer at the time and place of shipment or purchase by customers at a retail location. For consignment sales, title passes to the consignee concurrent with the consignees shipment to the customer. The customer has no cancellation privileges after shipment or upon purchase at retail locations, other than customary rights of return. The Company excludes sales tax collected and remitted to various states from sales and cost of sales

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Deferred Income

In some instances, the Company receives payments prior to delivery of its products, whereupon such revenues are deferred until the revenue recognition criteria are met.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company records stock-based compensation in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718, Compensation  Stock Compensation. FASB ASC Topic 718 requires companies to measure compensation cost for stock-based employee compensation at fair value at the grant date and recognize the expense over the employees requisite service period. The Company recognizes in the statement of operations the grant-date fair value of stock options and other equity-based compensation issued to employees and non-employees.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We do not maintain any off-balance sheet arrangements, transactions, obligations or other relationships with unconsolidated entities that would be expected to have a material current or future effect upon our financial condition or results of operations.

Going Concern

Our net losses through March 31, 2023 raise some or substantial doubt about the Companys ability to continue as a going concern.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company adopted ASC 2020-06, Debt  Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 47020) and Derivatives and Hedging  Contracts in Entities Own Equity (Subtopic 81540). ASC 2020-06 reduces the number of acceptable methods of accounting models for convertible debt instruments and convertible preferred stocks. The implementation of ASC 2020-06 had no material impact on the Companys consolidated financial statements.

Competition

We face extreme competition from both larger, better-financed national brands as well as an ever-increasing number of boutique service providers in the cannabis industry. We currently track sixty-nine (69) such providers in this space and are continually monitoring their progress and presence in the industry while working to continue to demonstrate our unique licensing offering. We also track eighty-eight (88) public companies that are either directly in or loosely involved in the cannabis industry.

Regulatory Considerations

Marijuana is a Schedule-I controlled substance and is illegal under federal law. Even in those states in which the use of marijuana has been legalized, its use remains a violation of federal laws.

As of the date of this Prospectus 36 states and the District of Columbia allow its citizens to use Medical Marijuana. Additionally, 15 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for recreational use by adults. The state laws are in conflict with the Federal Controlled Substances Act, which makes marijuana use and possession illegal on a national level. The Biden Administration, if it follows Obama Administration policies, is not likely to use of resources to direct law federal law enforcement agencies to prosecute those lawfully abiding by state-designated laws allowing the use and distribution of medical marijuana. However, there is no guarantee that the Administration will not change its stated policy regarding the low-priority enforcement of federal laws. Additionally, any new administration that follows could change this policy and decide to enforce the federal laws strongly. Any such change in the Federal Governments enforcement of current federal laws could cause significant financial damage to us.

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The Department of Justice has stated that it will continue to enforce the Controlled Substance Act with respect to marijuana to prevent:

 the distribution of marijuana to minors;  criminal enterprises, gangs and cartels receiving revenue from the sale of marijuana;  the diversion of marijuana from states where it is legal under state law to other states;  state-authorized marijuana activity from being used as a cover or pretext for the trafficking of other illegal drugs or other illegal activity;  violence and the use of firearms in the cultivation and distribution of marijuana;  driving while impaired and the exacerbation of other adverse public health consequences associated with marijuana use;  the growing of marijuana on public lands; and  marijuana possession or use on federal property.

Laws and regulations affecting the medical marijuana industry are constantly changing, which could detrimentally affect our proposed operations. Local, state and federal medical marijuana laws and regulations are broad in scope and subject to evolving interpretations, which could require us to incur substantial costs associated with compliance or alter its business plan. In addition, violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our business and result in a material adverse effect on its operations. It is also possible that regulations may be enacted in the future that will be directly applicable to our business. These ever-changing regulations could even affect federal tax policies that may make it difficult to claim tax deductions on our returns. We cannot predict the nature of any future laws, regulations, interpretations or applications, nor can we determine what effect additional governmental regulations or administrative policies and procedures, when and if promulgated, could have on its business.

Since the use of marijuana is illegal under federal law, most banks will not accept, for deposit, funds from businesses involved with marijuana. Consequently, businesses involved in the marijuana industry often have trouble finding a bank willing to accept their business. The inability to open bank accounts may make it difficult for us to operate.

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.

As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures.

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining a system of disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act)) that is designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SECs rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by an issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the issuers management, including its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Management recognizes that there are inherent limitations to the effectiveness of any system of disclosure controls and procedures and any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can only provide reasonable assurance of achieving their control objectives.

As of the end of the period covered by this report, management, including our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures. Based upon the evaluation, our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of March 31, 2023.

Changes in Internal Controls Over Financial Reporting:

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended March 31, 2023 that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

23 Table of Contents

PART II

Item 1. Legal Proceedings.

Not Applicable.

Item 1A. Risk Factors.

As a smaller reporting company, as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act), we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds.

The Company relied upon the exemption provided by Rule 504 of the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the sale of these shares. There was no general solicitation in connection with the sale of these shares. The persons who acquired these securities acquired them for their own accounts. The securities cannot be sold except pursuant to an effective registration statement or an exemption from registration. No commission was paid in connection with the sale of these securities.

On May 6, 2019, the Company issued 578,409 shares to Holloman Value Holdings LLC at $0.013 per share.

On December 31, 2019, the Company issued 885,714 shares to Holloman Value Holdings LLC at $0.007 per share.

On November 11, 2020, the Company issued 3,757,437 shares to Kevin Gerbers at $0.024 per share.

On November 24, 2020, the Company issued 8,349,860 shares to Konkler Enterprises LLC at $0.024 per share.

On December 1, 2020, the Company issued 100,000,000 shares to James Bradley at $0.0043 per share.

On December 23, 2020, the Company issued 250,000 shares to Chesapeake Group, Inc at $0.03 per share.

On December 31, 2020, the Company issued 100,000,000 shares to Dark Alpha Capital, at $0.00001 per share

On January 7, 2021, the Company issued 2,920,896 shares to Kevin Gerbers, at $0.024 per share.

On January 18, 2021, the Company issued 2,800,000 shares to Patriot Shield National LLC at $0.05 per share.

On January 23, 2021, the Company issued 250,000 shares to Chesapeake Group, INC, at $0.01 per share.

On January 29, 2021, the Company issued 6,259,063 shares to Konkler Enterprises at $0.024 per share.

On January 29, 2021 the Company issued 1,252,479 shares to Travis Clegg at $0.024 per share.

On February 12, 2021, the Company issued 834,986 shares to Christopher Garten at $0.024 per share.

On February 22, 2021, the Company issued 65,494,349 shares to P2B Capital LLC at $0.035 per share.

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On February 22, 2021, the Company issued 2,337,228 shares to James Bradley at $0.001 per share.

On March 30, 2021, the Company issued 300,000 shares to Chesapeake Group, Inc. at $0.001 per share.

On September 15, 2021, the Company issued 875,000 shares to Topline Holdings, Inc. at $0.001 per share.

On October 1, 2021, the Company issued 750,000 shares to Konkler Enterprises LLC at $0.0667 per share.

On October 11, 2021, the Company issued 300,000 shares to Chesapeake Group, Inc. at $0.001 per share.

On October 13, 2021, the Company issued 632,912 shares to North Equities Corporation at $0.001 per share.

On December 14, 2021, the Company issued 500,000 shares to Henry Leo Staples Jr. at $0.01 per share.

On January 19, 2022, the Company issued 330,000 shares to Juddah Holdings LLC at $0.06 per share.

On February 5, 2022, the Company issued 600,000 shares to Jack Becker at $0.05 per share.

On March 15, 2022, the Company issued 2,000,000 shares to Topline Holdings Inc at $0.051 per share.

On June 27, 2022, the Company issued 2,000,000 shares to an unrelated accredited investor at $0.05 per share.

On September 09, 2022, the Company issued 2,000,000 shares to Topline Holdings Inc at $0.033 per share.

On September 5, 2022, the Company issued 550,000 shares to Jack Becker at $0.034 per share.

On September 27, 2022, the Company issued 166,000 shares to Richard Bowersock at $0.055 per share.

On November 1, 2022, the Company sold 1,000,000 shares to an unrelated accredited investor at $0.020 per share.

On November 7, 2022, the Company issued Marcin Drwila 69,444 shares at a stock price of $0.043 per share.

On January 3, 2023, the Company issued 5,000,000 shares of restricted common stock to Igala Commonwealth Limited Trust Company at $0.020 per share.

On January 30, 2023, the Company sold 1,500,000 shares of common stock to an unrelated accredited investor at a price of $0.010 per share.

On February 2, 2023, the Company issued 500,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif at $0.023 per share.

On March 31, 2023, the Company issued Topline Holdings Inc 2,000,000 shares at $0.0165 per share.

On March 31, 2023, the Company issued 500,000 shares of restricted common stock to Shereef Elkhafif at $0.0165 per share.

The Company relied upon the exemption provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 in connection with sale of these securities. The persons who acquired these securities were sophisticated investors and were provided full information regarding the Companys operations. There was no general solicitation in connection with the sale of these securities. The persons who acquired these securities acquired them for their own accounts. The securities cannot be sold except pursuant to an effective registration statement or an exemption from registration. No commission was paid in connection with the sale of these securities.

Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities.

Not applicable.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

Item 5. Other Information.

Not applicable.

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Item 6. Exhibits.

The following exhibits are filed with or incorporated by referenced in this report:

__________________

* Incorporated by reference to the same

26 Table of Contents

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

HERO TECHNOLOGIES, INC. DATED: May 17, 2023 By: /s/ Gina Serkasevich Gina Serkasevich, Principal Executive, Financial and Accounting Officer

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UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT





Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934





Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):





BORGWARNER INC.

________________________________________________

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware 1-12162 13-3404508 State or other jurisdiction of Commission File No. (I.R.S. Employer Incorporation or organization Identification No.)

3850 Hamlin Road, Auburn Hills, Michigan 48326 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

Registrants telephone number, including area code: ( 248 ) 754-9200





(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)





Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

o Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) o Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))





Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share BWA New York Stock Exchange 1.00% Senior Notes due 2031 BWA31 New York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (  230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (  240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company o





If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o









Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure





BorgWarner Inc. disclosed that PHINIA Inc. has publicly filed a preliminary Registration Statement on Form 10 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in connection with BorgWarners intended separation of BorgWarners Fuel Systems and Aftermarket Segments into a new, publicly traded entity.





The preliminary Form 10, prepared in accordance with SEC guidelines, includes detailed information about PHINIA Inc. as a standalone company, such as historical financial information, as well as important information about BorgWarner and its business and strategy and other legal and financial disclosures. This registration statement is subject to change prior to it being declared effective by the SEC.





The separation remains subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including obtaining final approval from the BorgWarner Board of Directors, receipt of a written opinion of Ernst & Young, LLP to the effect that the distribution will qualify as a tax-free reorganization within the meaning of Sections 368(a)(1)(D) and 355 of the Code with respect to the tax-free nature of the transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and the effectiveness of the Form 10.





A copy of the preliminary Form 10 is available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.





Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits





(d) Exhibits. The following exhibits are being furnished as part of this Report.

Exhibit Number Description 104.1 The cover page from this Current Report on Form 8-K, formatted as Inline XBRL













SIGNATURES





Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

BorgWarner Inc. Date: May 18, 2023 By: /s/ Tonit M. Calaway Name: Tonit M. Calaway Title: Executive Vice President and Secretary









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Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

On May 17, 2023, Zymeworks Inc. (the Company) and Mr. Neil Klompas, the Companys President and Chief Operating Officer, mutually agreed to terms pursuant to which Mr. Klompas will step down as the Companys President and Chief Operating Officer and separate from employment effective as of June 30, 2023 (the Separation Effective Date).

In connection with Mr. Klompas departure, Zymeworks BC Inc., a subsidiary of the Company (Zymeworks BC), and Mr. Klompas entered into a separation agreement and release (the Separation Agreement) providing for certain benefits, including:

 A lump sum payment of $1,000,000, equivalent to twenty-four (24) months of his current base salary, subject to not being terminated for cause prior to the Separation Effective Date. Mr. Klompas will not be eligible for any annual performance bonus with respect to the Companys 2023 fiscal year.

 Eligibility for Mr. Klompas and his spouse to participate in the Companys employee benefit plans for the lesser of (a) twenty-four (24) months following the Separation Effective Date and (b) the date of enrollment in the benefit plans of a new employer.

 Entry into a consulting services agreement (the Consulting Agreement), whereby Mr. Klompas will assist with certain transitional matters at the request and direction of Zymeworks BC on an as needed basis. The Consulting Agreement will begin on the Separation Effective Date and cease on June 30, 2025. Mr. Klompas will be entitled to continued vesting and exercise benefits for outstanding stock options and restricted stock units under the Companys equity incentive plans for the duration of the Consulting Agreement as well as certain cash payments at a rate of $300/hour for any services provided in excess of five hours per week. If a change of control (as such term is defined in the Companys Amended and Restated Stock Option and Equity Compensation Plan) occurs prior to the expiration or earlier termination of the Consulting Agreement, any unvested options and restricted stock units held by Mr. Klompas immediately prior to such change of control that would have vested on or prior to June 30, 2025 had Mr. Klompas remained as a service provider through such date, shall be accelerated such that they are vested as of immediately prior to and contingent upon such change of control. Following the termination of the Consulting Agreement, and provided that Mr. Klompas (i) has not been terminated for cause prior to the Separation Effective Date and (ii) timely executes a supplemental release agreement, Mr. Klompas will have the period from the termination of the Consulting Agreement to June 30, 2026 to exercise any vested Company stock options, subject to any such options earlier expiration during such period.

 Reimbursement for all reasonable and documented business expenses actually and properly incurred in relation to Zymeworks BCs and the Companys business up to the Separation Effective Date.

Pursuant to the terms of the Separation Agreement, Mr. Klompas will remain bound by the confidentiality provisions and certain restrictive covenants included in his employment agreement, including non-solicitation and non-competition covenants.

In connection with Mr. Klompas departure, the board of directors of the Company (the Board) appointed Mr. Kenneth Galbraith, the Companys current Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board, as President of the Company to succeed Mr. Klompas in the role of President of the Company, effective as of the Separation Effective Date. Following Mr. Galbraiths appointment, Mr. Galbraith will continue in the role of Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.

Mr. Galbraith is 60 years old and has served as our Chief Executive Officer and Chair of our Board since January 2022. Previously, Mr. Galbraith served as our President from January 2022 to August 2022. Mr. Galbraith was a Managing Director at Five Corners Capital, Inc., which he founded in 2013. Most recently he served as Executive in Residence at Syncona Limited from April 2021 until January 2022. He served as Chief Executive Officer of Liminal BioSciences Inc. (formerly Prometic Life Sciences Inc.), a publicly held company, from April 2019 to November 2020, continuing as an advisor to that company from November 2020 to February 2021. He also served as Chief Executive Officer of Fairhaven Pharmaceuticals Inc. from June 2017 to April 2019. Mr. Galbraith has served as a director of several publicly held companies, including MacroGenics, Inc. from July 2008 until January 2022, Profound Medical Corp. from January 2017 to May 2023, and Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from July 2008 to October 2013. He has also served as a director of several privately held companies. Previously, he joined Ventures West Capital in 2007 and founded Five Corners Capital Inc. in 2013 to manage the continued operations of the Ventures West Investment Funds. Mr. Galbraith has over 35 years of experience serving as an executive, director, investor and adviser to companies in the biotechnology, medical device, pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. Mr. Galbraith received his B.Comm. from the University of British Columbia.

There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Galbraith and any other persons pursuant to which he was appointed President of the Company. There are also no family relationships between Mr. Galbraith and any director or executive officer of the Company, and he has no direct or indirect material interest in any transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

2
(Tribune News Service)  A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a bill in the House on Wednesday that would temporarily pause planned retirements of aging aircraft at Air National Guard bases around the country, including the A-10 squadron at Selfridge Air National Guard base in Michigan.

The legislation, led by U.S. Reps. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, John James, R-Farmington Hills, and Don Bacon, R-Nebraska, would impose the retirement freeze until the U.S. Air Force produces a 10-year plan for replacing legacy airframes like the A-10, one for one, with next-generation aircraft at the 25 Air National Guard bases around the country.

"The idea is that we believe that there should be a more significant fighter capability into the future, and, of course, Selfridge Air National Guard base would like to compete for that fighter mission in the future," Slotkin told The Detroit News. "But we can't do that unless we understand what the Air Force's recapitalization plan is."

The bill comes amid a bipartisan effort by Michigan's congressional delegation and state leaders to secure another fighter mission to eventually replace Selfridge's A-10s, which are expected to be retired in the next decade, if not sooner.

The A-10 mission is the backbone of the Harrison Township base, which marks its 106th anniversary this year and supports an estimated 5,000 jobs in the community, according to state figures.

The push to retire A-10s is part of an Air Force effort to reduce the top line number of fighter aircraft across the service, with leaders this year proposing to divest, for example, an additional 42 A-10s in its fiscal 2024 budget. Last year, lawmakers let the Pentagon to divest 21 A-10s based in Indiana while blocking divestment of the oldest and least capable F-22s.

"What this bipartisan group is saying is, 'No, we think it should be a replacement fighter mission, not a reduction, and we'll stand fast for your plan,'" Slotkin said. "There's no guarantees that anything will end up at Selfridge, but we at least want to compete for those future fighter missions."

The bill's original co-sponsors include Reps. Jason Crow, D-Colorado; C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Maryland; and Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado. Slotkin, Bacon and Lamborn all serve on the House Armed Services Committee, which crafts the annual defense policy bill that Slotkin and her colleagues aim to attach the bill to.

Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, is a retired Air Force brigadier general who previously served as wing commander at Ramstein Air Base and Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. In a statement, he noted the Air National Guard is no longer the strategic reserve it was in the 1980s and '90s.

"These units deploy globally to meet combatant commander requirements while simultaneously defending the homeland. We must ensure the most important part of our fighter force  the airmen  are retained as fighter recapitalization decisions are made," Bacon said.

"Every pilot and aircraft maintainer matters, and our nation simply cannot afford continued loss of these highly trained personnel."

The Air Force did not immediately respond Wednesday for a request for comment on the legislation.

Lawmakers say a next-generation fighter mission like the F-15EX or F-35 would help ensure that Selfridge would stay open long term and remain part of the community.

"Michigan is a military powerhouse and Selfridge Air National Guard Base is its crown jewel," James said in a statement. "My district has long been a strong advocate of replacing the current A-10 Thunderbolts with a next generation fighter. I will not rest until Selfridge is home to a mission worthy of its stature and strategic position."

The Air Force last month made final its decision to skip over Selfridge to base its international training center for the F-35 fighter aircraft in Arkansas at Ebbing Air National Guard Base. That decision had been widely anticipated after an initial recommendation in 2021, but was still disappointing to Michigan officials. The Air Force has also cut its procurement plan for the F-15EX.

In the meantime, Michigan is moving ahead with planned improvements at Selfridge, including putting $28 million in federal money toward a new maintenance hangar there that could accommodate larger aircraft like the F-15EX.

That two-year project is the first of eight planned projects intended to prepare the air base for a future fighter jet mission, Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, said Monday. Peters secured the money for the hangar in the 2021 defense policy bill.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer previously pledged nearly $100 million in state tax dollars to upgrade Selfridge facilities.

Slotkin noted that Michigan's delegation has taken steps to show off Selfridge's facilities and features  including northern Michigan's uninterrupted training airspace  to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, including when he visited Selfridge last summer.

During that trip, Kendall commented on the kinds of things that the Pentagon needs to see at bases where they place future fighter missions, Slotkin said.

"And so we are attempting to make those upgrades and investments so that we are as attractive and sexy as possible to the U.S. Air Force," said Slotkin, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

"It's a hugely important mission ... not only important from a military perspective, but it really is important from an economic perspective, particularly to Macomb County."

(c)2023 The Detroit News

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DAYTON, Ohio (Tribune News Service)  The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, is huge. If the organization were a private business, it would rank fourth on the Fortune 500 list.

Finding, training and retaining talent for that sprawling, global effort is a full-time job, Kathy Watern, AFLCMC executive director, told a Dayton Defense lunch gathering Wednesday at the Fairborn Holiday Inn.

A member of the federal government's Senior Executive Service, Watern told Dayton Defense listeners that thousands showed up at recent AFLCMC hiring events in Fairborn and near Robins Air Force Base in Georgia.

"There were a lot of people lined up," she said of the March 22 event in Fairborn. "And I think that's great."

Referring to the even longer lines at the March 1 event at Robins, Watern joked: "When I first saw that, I said, 'They're in line for Taylor Swift tickets.'"

Responsible for developing, procuring and sustaining every piece of equipment in the Air Force, AFLCMC needs a constant infusion of talent, she said. Particularly at a time when 30% of all federal workers are expected to become retirement-eligible next year  although Watern cautioned that many employees are working longer these days, and it's not expected that most federal employees will retire as soon as they are eligible.

Anchored at Wright-Patt, the center has more than 17,000 civilian employees at 79 locations worldwide, with about 36% of those in the Dayton area.

"That's a lot of pipeline to keep filling," Watern said.

The center manages more than 25,000 contracting actions valued at more than $35 billion, with total oversight of $310 billion in spending.

For perspective, in fiscal year 2022, AFLCMC spent 68% of the total budget of Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC), which is also headquartered at Wright-Patterson. And AFMC itself spent 72% of the total Air Force budget.

Said Watern: "That's a pretty big chunk of the Air Force budget."

In the quest for talent, she noted that AFLCMC is competing with Dayton Defense's own member businesses, as well as big corporations nationally.

The center is also pushing against the fact that 42% of Americans are unaware of open civil service jobs or how to find them.

"We have work to do," Watern said.

The center has produced a new brochure for job-seekers, which she shared with lunch guests Wednesday, touting flexible work arrangements that include remote or "telework" positions, three weeks of paid time off each year, with up to six weeks based on time of service, as well as 13 days of paid sick leave and 11 paid federal holidays.

As well as salaries that range from $50,000 to $90,000 a year for starting employees and up to $185,000 annually for senior level employees and technical specialists.

Watern pointed to AFLCMC's career site at aflcmc.af.mil/careers/aflcmc-hiring.

Watern began her career in private industry and entered the federal civil service in 1984. She served in a variety of financial management and acquisition assignments at Wright-Patterson in the F-15 Eagle, F-22 Raptor, and Air Combat System Program Offices as well as the Acquisition Cost Division.

(c)2023 the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio)

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NEW LONDON, Conn. (Tribune News Service)  The United States Coast Guard Academy graduated 243 students at its 142nd commencement Wednesday, preparing to send many to far-off cutters following their demanding but community-building 200-week educational journey.

Two Coast Guard helicopters flew overhead as the newly minted ensigns heard the words, "You may now divest yourselves of all symbols of cadet life" and consequently threw their cadet covers into the air.

The Class of 2023  which includes 11 people from Connecticut  is 42% women and 34% underrepresented minorities, with three cadets from other countries: the Philippines, Costa Rica and Mauritius. They and a few students with medical issues were not among the 235 ensigns commissioned Wednesday.

"You are now leaders of people and of the Coast Guard," said U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the keynote speaker. "You are also the leader of your own life. What type of life do you want for yourself? What do you want out of life? What meaning do you want your life to have? Think about it. It will help you act with purpose."

Mayorkas shared three leadership lessons he said Nathan Bovankovich, who entered the academy with the Class of 2023, wrote before his death: be a servant, under-promise and over-deliver, and deeper meaning can be found in a world without putting people into boxes.

According to the academy, Bovankovich was selected president as a third-class cadet  meaning in his second year  but chose to leave the academy before incurring a service commitment and later died by suicide.

Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan told cadets, "You'll instantly find yourself at the center of critically important work to ensure our national security."

She said they will lead boarding teams on vessels smuggling tons of narcotics, break ice and maintain aids to navigation to keep waterways open, respond to oil spills and investigate environmental crimes.

Fagan said the four-year journey she finished 38 years ago "at the time felt like an eternity to me," but the years since "have been nothing but a pleasure and a privilege, and frankly have gone by in a blink."

This was Fagan's first commencement since becoming commandant, but it was the last as academy superintendent for Rear Adm. William Kelly, who is retiring and becoming president of Christopher Newport University.

"Remain all-in to do what is right, regardless of your personal sacrifice that it may entail," Kelly said, "and if you remain all-in for your people  if you care for them, if you prepare them, and if you set incredibly high expectations for them, and if you challenge them to meet those expectations  then your unit, our Coast Guard, and the nation we love will be better for it."

This year's distinguished graduate is Christine Groves, a Texas native who is a Truman Scholar and a Fulbright Scholar. She is headed to Reykjavik University in Iceland for graduate school.

In her speech, Groves cited lessons learned from Frodo and Bilbo in the "Lord of the Rings" universe, applying them to the Coast Guard.

She also talked about inclusivity and creating a culture of acceptance, citing the work of some classmates: Taylor Young for serving as a founding member of an advisory board on women, Turner Linafelter and Hector Rivera for developing policy recommendations to be presented at the White House, and the class overall for initiating the first International Transgender Day of Visibility celebration.

"We are going from the top of the cadet chain of command to the bottom of the officer corps, but we must still make our voices heard," Groves said.

She also gave a shout-out to the graduate at the top of the class academically, Teegan Cordova.

Before presenting commissions and degrees, Provost Amy Donahue encouraged cadets not to seek success or happiness, but to instead "determine what is meaningful to you and devote your energy to those things. If you do, you'll find that success and happiness occur naturally."

For some cadets, a short journey to the academy

Allen Kruger of Noank works at the academy as waterfront director, but he was there Wednesday to celebrate the graduation of a child, for the second time. Management major Gaige Kruger is headed to the cutter James in Charleston, S.C., while 2017 grad Niki Kruger is currently serving in Alaska. The family is also celebrating the graduation of Gaige's twin brother from the University of Utah.

Speaking after the regimental review Tuesday, government major Mia Cost said growing up in Deep River and attending the Marine Science Magnet High School in Groton, she drove past the academy every day. She started seeing people she knew attend the academy and thought she could do it, too.

"Knowing these guys since Day One, to see who we are now is just such incredible growth," Cost said.

She said she doesn't come from a military background but was drawn to the Coast Guard's humanitarian mission, which she said "is unmatched anywhere else."

After graduation, she is headed to the 270-foot cutter Mohawk. The boat is homeported in Key West, Fla., which is where Aidan Arsenault of East Lyme is going to serve on the fast response cutter William Trump.

Arsenault moved to the area when his father, retired Coast Guard Capt. Alan Arsenault, became commanding officer of the Coast Guard Research and Development Center in New London in 2011.

In the summer of 2020, when many other cadets were on the training ship Eagle or at a station, Arsenault had the opportunity to go to a California-based cutter that sailed to Alaska, the Russian border and Hawaii.

It was there he met his fiancee, first-class cadet Kevilyn Frazier, who is co-locating with Arsenault in Key West.

Fitch High School graduate Andrew Kerst, who studied naval architecture and marine engineering, is headed to Seattle to serve on the cutter Healy, an icebreaker. Kerst said in high school, he couldn't see himself at a regular college, and his brother paved the way: Matt Kerst graduated from the Coast Guard Academy in 2021.

That year, the commencement speaker was President Joe Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris gave the keynote address last year. The president and vice president each rotate between giving the commencement address at the Coast Guard Academy, Air Force Academy, Naval Academy and West Point.

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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan  President Joe Biden arrived Thursday afternoon aboard Air Force One at this base south of Hiroshima to attend a summit of the worlds leading industrial nations this weekend.

The president stepped from Air Force One onto the tarmac, where he was met by MCAS Iwakuni commander Col. Richard Rusnok and Sgt. Maj. Adam Gharati. Alongside them were U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel; Rear Adm. Takuhiro Hiragi, commander of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces Fleet Air Wing 31; and Iwakuni city Mayor Yoshihiko Fukuda.

Bidens visit began with a face-to-face meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose home city of Hiroshima is the host for the Group of Seven summit this year. The city, where the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb in World War II, is the backdrop for discussions expected to include the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

There will be discussions about the battlefield, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said aboard Air Force One, according to The Associated Press on Thursday. He said the G-7 leaders would work to seal off any loopholes in sanctions so their effect can be maximized, according to AP.

After landing at MCAS Iwakuni, Biden met with approximately 300 service members from the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The president then left the base in the Marine One helicopter bound for Hiroshima and his brief meeting with Kishida.

Biden last traveled to Japan one year ago, when he landed at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in the midst of a festival attended by thousands of Americans and Japanese visitors.

During that swing through Asia, the president met with Kishida, as well as the leaders of India, South Korea and Australia.

The G-7 summit is an international forum held annually for the leaders of the member states France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada.

Biden cut short his trip to this years summit by canceling his plans to visit Papa New Guinea and Australia to return to the United States to continue negotiations aimed at raising the federal debt limit.
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa  A Marine helicopter squadron from Okinawa for the first time delivered supplies to an Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine transiting the Philippine Sea, a practice integral to the Corps island-hopping doctrine.

Two CH-53E Super Stallions on May 9 dropped mission-essential equipment to the USS Maine by a vertical replenishment, according to a III Marine Expeditionary Force news release Wednesday. The Super Stallions are assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 462 of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

Airborne delivery allows Navy assets like the Maine to resupply without disrupting maritime security operations, a key tenet of the Marine Corps role as a stand-in force, the statement said.

Stand-in force is a concept born from Commandant Gen. David Bergers Force Design 2030, the operational doctrine at all levels of the Marine Corps, especially in the Pacific where the U.S. military is training to deter potential Chinese aggression and maintain open sea lanes. It calls for inserting smaller, mobile units within range of enemy missiles to seize and hold key islands and deny enemy vessels access to the surrounding seas.

The 1st MAWs persistent and forward presence makes it the backbone of the stand-in forces expeditionary capability, Col. Christopher Murray, Marine Aircraft Group 36 commander, said in the release. The intricacies of seamlessly sustaining the force through naval integration and aviation-delivered logistics is a testament to our adaptability, readiness, and ability to project power within the Indo-Pacific.

The May 9 drop was the first of its kind to an Ohio-class submarine, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing spokesman Maj. Rob Martins said in an email Thursday.

The Marine Corps does not discuss mission-specific cargo due to operational security, Martins said. Photos posted to Defense Department websites showed a black, plastic case being attached to one of the Super Stallions integrated hoists.

The hoists secure the cargo, guide its descent to a designated area, release and retrieve the hoist cable, Martins said. The Super Stallion, a heavy-lift variant of the CH-53 helicopter, can carry 16 tons of cargo at sea level for 50 nautical miles and return.

Martins declined to discuss how often the sea-service replenishes other submarine classes in the region. He referred all submarine-related questions to Pacific Fleets Submarine Force, which did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Thursday.

The Maine was commissioned in 1995 and is homeported at Naval Submarine Base Bangor, Wash. The nuclear-powered sub hosts 155 sailors and features an armament of MK-48 torpedoes and up to 20 Trident II D-5 ballistic missiles, which can carry nuclear warheads.
A U.S. senator and a former national security adviser, ahead of President Joe Bidens arrival Thursday in Hiroshima for the G-7 summit, called for the return of a U.S. Navy officer imprisoned in Japan.

Robert OBrien, formerly the national security adviser in the Trump administration, in a Wednesday tweet, asked Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to release Lt. Ridge Alkonis as a humanitarian gesture.

Formerly a weapons officer assigned to the destroyer USS Benfold, Alkonis is 10 months into a three-year prison sentence for negligent driving that caused the deaths of two Japanese citizens and injured a third in May 2021.

Reuniting him with his family will be seen as an act of friendship & magnanimity by the American people, OBrien tweeted after meeting with the sailors wife, Brittany Alkonis, in Tokyo.

The following day, as Biden was en route to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called on Biden to return with Alkonis aboard Air Force One at the conclusion of the trip.

This has gone on long enough, Lee said in a video tweeted Thursday by Fox News Radio reporter Ryan Schmelz. This is a man who has faithfully served his country and its time for him to come home.

Lee has remained an outspoken supporter of Alkonis and critic of the way the Japanese handled Alkonis case. Lee on March 1 accused Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi of backtracking on a deal to release the officer to U.S. custody.

The following day, Lee issued a 24-hour ultimatum to Kishida that threatened to reconsider a U.S.-Japan weapons deal if Alkonis wasnt returned to U.S. Navy custody.

He also sponsored an amendment to the Defense Departments 2023 budget that extended pay and benefits for Alkonis, which ultimately passed.

Alkonis imprisonment has attracted the attention of numerous U.S. officials, including Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, since he first reported to prison in July 2022.

Harris, during a visit to Tokyo in September, discussed Alkonis case with Kishida, a White House official told Stars and Stripes at the time.

In February, Brittany Alkonis spoke briefly with Biden about the situation after his State of the Union address. Biden, at the time, told her were not giving up and were going to get him home, according to a tweet from Real Clear News reporter Philip Wegmann.

Other Alkonis supporters include Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., and Rep. Mike Levin, D-Calif., who, along with 30 other members of Congress, sent Biden a letter in October urging him to use all tools available to ensure Lt. Alkonis be returned to the United States.
XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The city of Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has captured global attention as the two-day China-Central Asia Summit kicked off here Thursday.

The summit is expected to boost the already-burgeoning Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asia. Officials from Central Asian countries and global observers have said that deepened Belt and Road cooperation between the two sides will be a boon for the prosperity of both the region and the world.

Ten years into Belt and Road cooperation, China and Central Asian countries have made historic achievements. In 2022, trade volume hit a record high of 70.2 billion U.S. dollars, an over 100-fold increase since diplomatic ties were established about three decades ago. In the first two months of this year, trade between China and the five Central Asian countries surged 22 percent year on year.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been very fruitful since it was first proposed by China in Kazakhstan, said Timur Kuvatov, director-general and editor-in-chief of Kazakhstan Today News Agency.

Reviving the visions and spirits embodied in the ancient Silk Road will promote international development and trade and economic ties, as well as peaceful relations among countries, he said, adding that deeper Belt and Road cooperation has great significance for all the people living in the region and the whole world.

Over the past decade, promoted by the BRI, China and Uzbekistan have enjoyed expanding economic cooperation. "China is one of the most important partners of Uzbekistan," Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov said at a business forum held Wednesday ahead of the China-Central Asia Summit.

In 2022, bilateral trade grew 20 percent year on year, said the minister, hoping that the goal of 10 billion dollars in annual trade set by both heads of state could be achieved soon.

Noting that the China-Uzbekistan cooperation covers such areas as chemical, textile, and oil and gas industries, Kudratov said that tens of thousands of jobs have been created in Uzbekistan.

Kudratov said that by combining China's innovative technologies with Uzbekistan's resources, the two countries could improve energy efficiency and manufacture products with high-added value for export to other countries.

In the eyes of Lu Shanbing, dean of the Central Asia Institute of Northwest University, China and Central Asian countries' efforts to advance the BRI highlight their commitment to promoting globalization.

The BRI has followed the guiding principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, which are also emphasized by China's global governance philosophy, Lu said.

Noting that the interconnectivity facilitated by the BRI has helped Central Asian countries strengthen communications with the world and better exploit their comparative advantages in the process of globalization, he said the relationship between the two sides has set a benchmark for mutually beneficial cooperation and served as a role model for Belt and Road cooperation.

Both Tajikistan and China are marking the 10th anniversary of the launch of the BRI, said Tajikistan's Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqizoda Zavqi.

"Thanks to the sincere friendship and wise policies of the leaders of both countries, the cooperation of our countries has improved," he said, noting that "China has become the third-largest trade partner and the largest investment partner of Tajikistan."

"This summit is very important. The Central Asia has lots of potential to further develop. So all five Central Asian countries, particularly Tajikistan, have very important development goals of matching up the potential of China and the Central Asia. We will receive win-win results in terms of development," said the minister. 
Colorados junior Democratic senator on Wednesday claimed President Trump politicized the decision to relocate U.S. Space Command headquarters to Alabama while Trump was walking out the door of the White House.

Sen. John Hickenlooper was responding to the NBC News report that the Biden administration plans to reverse Trumps move to make Alabama the permanent headquarters for Space Command.

The report, which cited unnamed Biden administration officials, said the Biden White House is set to announce that Space Command will remain in Colorado Springs because of Alabamas harsh abortion ban that only allows the procedure in cases where the mothers life is in danger.

This [report] focuses on the extreme abortion laws in AL and Sen. [Tommy] Tubervilles decision to bar military promotions  a hold that directly affects military readiness, Hickenlooper tweeted Wednesday. But we cant conflate those issues with Space Command for the simple reason that our military shouldnt be politicized.

Hickenlooper also criticized NBC News for not sourcing any Colorado officials in the report while citing voices from the Biden administration and Alabama officials.

Colorados junior senator also said Trumps decision to have Huntsville be the headquarters for Space Command was fueled by politics and that two reviews found the process minimally credible.

The *acting* secretary of the Air Force for the *final six days* of the *Trump* administration made this call., Hickenlooper said. These details are the exact reason WHY this whole decision raised so many red flags  it was decided as Trump was walking out the door!

Tuberville, who was referenced in Hickenloopers tweetstorm, disputed his colleagues characterization:

Nice speech ... but the facts are clear  and the facts are on Alabamas side, he said.

U.S. Space Command belongs in Huntsville.

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(Tribune News Service)  With the support of tribal representatives from the Arapaho and Cheyenne Nations, Boulder has removed an inaccurate historical marker that once stood in city-managed open space at the location of Fort Chambers.

The city acknowledged that the marker at Fort Chambers  where Company D of the Third Colorado Cavalry had trained before participating in the Sand Creek Massacre on Nov. 29, 1864  was removed because it falsely stated that the fort had been used in an "Indian uprising" in 1864, according to a city news release.

In fact, Arapaho and Cheyenne leaders had sought peace in the fall of 1864, and their people camped at Sand Creek had been promised that the U.S. Army would protect them. During the summer and fall of 1864, the release stated, "Exaggerated and false claims of coordinated Indigenous violence helped fan anti-Indigenous hatred in Colorado."

After the marker was erected in 1959 along the boundary of the Fort Chambers-Poor Farm property northeast of Boulder, community members continued referring to the Sand Creek Massacre as a "battle" even though there was evidence documenting the atrocities that Third Cavalry soldiers and volunteers had committed.

"While the marker has helped many in our community to learn about Boulder's participation in the Sand Creek Massacre, we believe leaving it in place without adequate reinterpretation and guidance from Arapaho and Cheyenne people would only perpetuate a false narrative that our community has held on to for far too long," Boulder spokesperson Phillip Yates told the Daily Camera.

Fred Mosqueda, Arapaho coordinator with the Cultural and Language Program for the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes, said he was "kind of upset" when he first saw the marker since it portrayed a nonexistent "uprising," and he understood the city's decision to remove it, but he believes the marker should be kept for posterity because it is "part of history."

"History has to be told, but the truth should be told. ... What (the marker) did is showed, again, the thinking of the people here in Boulder Valley, there was a need for Company D," Mosqueda said. "One hundred years later, (people) still thought there was an uprising. So that should be shown. Because that was part of the facade, you might say, that was spreading through Denver and through Boulder, through Colorado. ... And that was the reason that they were exterminating us and removing us from our homelands here in Boulder and Denver."

Yates said the city consulted with Arapaho and Cheyenne tribal representatives, like Mosqueda, before removing the marker to listen and learn from them.

"For many staff members, I think we learned important history that many of us did not know growing up here in Boulder," Yates added. "And I think we do recognize it's taken time to remove it. But we hope the removal will be another important step in our ongoing collaboration with Arapaho and Cheyenne nations to manage the property in the future."

The marker remains viewable online and will be stored for the time being. Katie Knapp, a senior planner with Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, said the city is in the process of developing a site plan to guide future management of the site, but no decisions have been made yet. According to the news release, the city plans to ask tribal representatives for guidance on reinterpreting the property, the marker's history, and understanding the Arapaho and Cheyenne Tribal Nations' vision for a long-term relationship with the land.

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NAIROBI  Both sides fighting in Sudan are targeting doctors and activists and silencing the civilian voices seeking to document war crimes and provide services in the face of social collapse, their colleagues said Wednesday.

War engulfed the African nation April 14 and shows little sign of abating after more than 1 million people fled their homes. Both the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have repeatedly pledged to respect cease-fires and humanitarian law, only to break those promises within minutes. Each side blames the other for sparking and continuing hostilities.

Many Sudanese resist calling the conflict a civil war, pointing out that neither side enjoys wide public support. Instead, they describe it as a naked power struggle between the two men who jointly directed a 2021 coup against a civilian-military government. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan is the head of the military and the de facto head of state, and Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo  known as Hemedti  commands the powerful RSF.

In the countrys capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere, the RSF has taken up positions inside civilian homes, hospitals and even churches. Residents blame the RSF for widespread looting, several rapes and forced evictions into streets under crossfire. Social media is alight with images of military airstrikes pummeling the capital and accounts of families pulverized by heavy weapons.

As bombs rained down on hospitals and aid workers fled, civilians revived the neighborhood resistance committees that helped force a dictator from power in 2019 and ensured that the civilians had a place in the government. The committees document attacks, set up rudimentary clinics and try to pool resources such as water and safe housing for those fleeing the fighting. Now those activists are being targeted, some residents said.

Three days ago, the military arrested three activists from the resistance committee in Bahri, the town just north of Khartoum, said Mustafa Makki, who worked alongside them. All three are young: Saddam Juma is 29, while Amer Abboud and Mujahid Anwar are both 27, he said.

The reason for their arrests is unclear, but all were taken from their homes May 14 by uniformed military forces in marked vehicles, he said. They are being held in the Kadro area, north of Bahri, now the site of a major firefight, Makki said.

We dont know why they were arrested, he said. We dont support either side, not the military or the RSF. A second member of the committee confirmed his account.

It was the second time that activists from the Bahri committee have been targeted. Last week, the military arrested two other activists from Bahri and held them for 48 hours. The militarys spokesman was unreachable for comment.

The neighborhood is largely under the control of the RSF, but fierce battles have raged there every day. Its industrial area houses a munitions factory and is the target of frequent battles and airstrikes.

Doctors at Bahris Globe Hospital and Hag al-Safi Hospital have also been repeatedly taken against their will and forced to treat RSF fighters, Makki said. Only about 16 percent of the capitals hospitals are still functioning; many have lost power or water, run out of supplies or been hit by shelling.

The RSF come, and the doctors say: We have wounded civilians here. Let us treat them first, Makki said. But the RSF said no, we must be first.

A member of the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said she and the other doctors on the committee have received death threats. Many fled, and others stopped going to work, changed their numbers and went into hiding, she said. At least 11 doctors have been killed; one was stabbed, and others were killed in crossfire or when their homes were hit.

She said the threats appeared to come from people connected to former president Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who was forced out of office in 2019 following massive street protests. The doctor told The Washington Post, The purpose of this threat is to end all the tools of the revolution, including resistance committees and trade unions, so that they do not continue their civil struggle.

On Wednesday, the U.N. humanitarian office in Geneva said 25 million people, more than half of Sudans population, need help. That is 10 million more than before the fighting started and the highest number ever recorded for the country. The office called for $2.6 billion in aid from the international community.

The rival sides are holding talks in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, with little apparent progress. They have issued statements saying they will protect civilians and allow aid to move, but no details have been given, and the fighting has continued unabated.

On Monday, the Professional Pharmacists Association of Sudan accused the RSF of hijacking a convoy of medical supplies headed to regional hospitals, which have also been hit hard by the fighting.

The groups statement called the theft of supplies a death sentence for the residents of the regions, noting that 95 percent of all pharmaceutical production takes place in the capital. About 830,000 people fleeing the fighting have gone to other towns within Sudan and about 220,000 to neighboring countries, the United Nations said Wednesday.

Community leaders have also been targeted in the city of Geneina in the western region of Darfur, said an activist there, who listed their names in a message: Mahamed Badwi, an engineer, activist and writer; Motaz Abujalli, a journalist and human rights activist; and Adam Taiar, an activist and member of the medical committee. All were killed April 24, he said, by militias aligned with the RSF that went to their homes. The activist spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

The activist said the militias  referred to locally as the Janjaweed, or devils on horseback  were carrying out ethnic killings and have also looted and burned the palace of the sultan of the Masalit tribe. The Janjaweed are ethnically Arab militias; the Masalit are a local African tribe that fought the central government and the Janjaweed for nearly 20 years until a peace deal three years ago.

Janjaweed militia and RSF are using [gunmen] to shoot people who have influence like leaders, intellectuals and professionals, the activist wrote, saying it was too dangerous to go home. The phone network was too weak to support calls, so he texted quick answers to questions. No way to get out of the town . . . two days I havent met my family . . . even my young brother injured today . . . most of my friends were killed . . . I have no doubt I will be killed by them.

The death toll in the town as of this past Friday was 556, he said, citing a list kept by clinics. On Tuesday, seven members of one family were killed when the RSF fired heavy weapons into a civilian area.

Lt. Gen. Khamis Abdullah Abkar, the governor of West Darfur, confirmed that more than 500 people have been killed in Geneina since the fighting erupted and that militia members were going house to house in some areas looking for individuals. The hospital was not functioning, and hundreds of wounded people needed urgent medical care, but there was no way to take them to help, he said.
QUITO, Ecuador  Ecuadorian lawmakers who were ousted when President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly denounced the move Thursday and argued it wasn't legal because the country wasn't facing any urgent crisis.

The conservative president, who had sparred with the left-leaning assembly over his pro-business agenda since taking office in 2021, disbanded the chamber Wednesday just as it tried to oust him on mismanagement allegations in an impeachment trial.

Lasso was making first use of a 2008 constitutional provision that allows the president to dissolve the assembly during times of political crisis, with the requirement that new elections be held for both lawmakers and the president.

However, a lawsuit filed Thursday by the assembly's former head, Virgilio Saquicela, argues that Lasso's move violated the constitution because the country was not experiencing any social upheaval. Instead, Lasso's detractors have argued, the president chose to disband the chamber merely to avoid his own ouster.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Saquicela slammed Lasso's move as a last-minute ploy to avoid his removal once it became clear that was under way. "When he saw that he didn't have the votes, he got scared."

Saquicela's lawsuit  and two other challenges filed previously  are before the country's Constitutional Court, which is known to act slowly. Lawmakers have been urging the panel to act quickly this time.

"We require, we demand an immediate pronouncement from the Constitutional Court," Saquicela said.

Meanwhile, the National Electoral Council is moving forward with setting a date for elections. Council President Diana Atamaint told the Teleamazonas television network that the electoral body has until Wednesday to decide. The tentative date is Aug. 20. If needed, a runoff would take place Oct. 15.

The constitution allows the president to dissolve the assembly when it oversteps its mandate under the constitution or during times of "serious political crisis and internal commotion."

Minister of Government Henry Cucalon defended Lasso's decision during a news conference Thursday, arguing that the constitution makes it clear that the dismissal is up to the president's "judgment, criteria, discretion and reason," and that it does not require approval of any other entity.

The president appears to have the support of the armed forces, but faces pushback from critics including a powerful confederation of indigenous group that previously has nearly paralyzed the country with protests.

Lasso can now govern for up to six months by means of decrees on economic and administrative issues under the oversight of Ecuador's Constitutional Court. The National Electoral Council is required to set a date for presidential and legislative elections within seven days from Lasso's decision.

Lawmakers want the court to issue a ruling before the council makes a decision, because after the election date is set "no authority may interfere in the carrying out of the process," lawyer and electoral analyst Medardo Oleas said. He added that if the Constitutional Court interfered, its members "could be dismissed."

The council was scheduled to meet Thursday night to discuss the election.

Those elected would finish the terms of Lasso and the lawmakers he ousted, which had been set to end in May 2025. Lasso, a former banker, can choose to run in the election.

Lawmakers had accused Lasso of not having intervened to end a contract between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company. They argued Lasso knew the contract was full of irregularities and would cost the state millions in losses.

During impeachment proceedings Tuesday, Lasso noted that the contract predated his administration. He also said that the state-owned company experienced losses of $6 million a year before he took office, and that it has seen $180 million in profits under his watch.

Lasso had clashed from the start of his four-year term with the opposition-led National Assembly. He accused them Wednesday of focusing "on destabilizing the government." On Tuesday, he had dismissively referred to their impeachment allegations against him as stretching "the limits of human imagination."

Saquicela accused Lasso's government of being "incapable of solving the real problems of Ecuadorians" including health, transportation and security issues.

He rejected any shared responsibility for the turmoil affecting the country arguing that the assembly had complied with its constitutional obligation to legislate.

"I do not want to justify whether the assembly has been good or bad, what I defend is the constitutional framework," he said. "However, we believe that as a political class, we fell short in our legislating and oversight duties."
SIERRA BLANCA, Texas (Tribune News Service)  The shooting looms over this West Texas town like a storm cloud in the spring.

We dont want to talk about it because we dont want to be defined by it, but this really happened, said Bill Addington, a resident of Sierra Blanca, about 90 miles southeast of El Paso. We have to face the facts, because there will be more shootings.

Addington was referring to the killing of a man and wounding of a woman last September at a reservoir known as Fivemile tank, just miles from the Texas-Mexico border. Both victims were migrants, part of a larger group that had crossed the border.

The two men allegedly behind the shooting are twin brothers, Michael and Mark Sheppard. They told investigators they thought they were firing from their truck at wild animals, perhaps ducks, birds or javelinas.

Michael Sheppard, the man who pulled the trigger, was the warden at the nearby West Texas Detention Center. His brother Mark Sheppard worked for the sheriff in a civilian job.

The Sheppard twins were accused of manslaughter and assault with a deadly weapon, released on bond and returned to Florida, their home state, according to a complaint affidavit and their lawyers. They have not been indicted, according to their lawyers, the Hudspeth County Clerk and District Attorneys office.

It was nothing more than a tragic accident, said Brent Mayr, an attorney for Michael Sheppard, adding his client feels remorse and sympathy for the harm that was caused, and that its never been in his nature to want to take the life of a human being.

Lawyer Richard Esper said his client, Mark Sheppard, did nothing wrong. Period. He called the shooting a hunting accident.

Was it an accident?

Of course not. They saw us, said Berenice Casillas Castillo, a migrant who was wounded in the shooting, speaking in a phone interview. She was hit by one of the bullets.

She and 11 other migrants at the scene later told investigators the men yelled profanity at them in broken Spanish before the shooting and drove off without rendering aid, according to Casillas.

No one, no one deserves this, she said. No one deserves to be greeted like this.

Two women in the group helped Casillas get up and they tried to walk toward town to get medical help, according to Casillas. She said they were so afraid the men would return, every time we heard a car, we crouched down so they wouldnt see us.

Casillas said she almost bled to death from a bullet wound under her rib cage.

Border tensions

The town remains paralyzed by fear, residents said. Tensions along the border are rising, with concern about violence against migrants. The number of migrants at the border has been increasing with the expiration of Title 42, a pandemic-era health order that allowed border agents to expel tens of thousands monthly back across the southern border.

Amid concerns about a large influx of migrants, Texas Republicans are proposing legislation that would make it a state felony to enter the country from Mexico without documents and would deputize private citizens to create a new border police force.

The controversial bill, known as HB 20, was killed last week by Democrats, but Republicans successfully added the border unit to different legislation that passed the House and is now in the Senate. The new unit was added on amendment to a bill by Rep. Ryan Guillen, R-Rio Grande City, but only after agreeing to Democrats demands that everyday residents who joined the unit would pass background checks and not be allowed to detain or repel migrants. Only commissioned officers of the unit would have the power to arrest migrants.

Its the latest attempt by the state to assume a role in border enforcement and immigration control, despite multiple court rulings that only the federal government has that authority.

The Republican proposals in the Texas Legislature would continue support for Texas Gov. Greg Abbotts $4 billion border mission known as Operation Lone Star. That has included the deployment of up to 10,000 National Guard troops to the border with Mexico, enhanced safety inspections of commercial trucks arriving from Mexico, slowing down cargo shipments, and fundraising to build a new wall along the Texas border.

President Bidens open border policies are going to cause a catastrophic disaster in the United States, Abbott said on May 8, as he deployed the Texas Tactical Border Force to assist federal authorities with the aftermath of the lifting of the pandemic rule.

Surveillance cameras

Last September, investigators used Border Patrol surveillance cameras in the area to locate the Sheppard brothers truck. But Michael Sheppard refused to answer questions, according to the Texas Rangers.

According to an affidavit taken on Sept. 29 by a Texas Ranger, two days after the shooting, Mark Sheppard initially denied he was at the location but later told investigators he and his twin Michael were out on a Tuesday afternoon looking for ducks. Later, they said they were hunting javelinas, a breed of wild pigs.

The affidavit noted that the shooting occurred at 7 p.m., though Mark Sheppard said he and his brother had been hunting and later attended a water board meeting, according to the affidavit. Officials said the water meeting began at 5 p.m.

Mark Sheppard said he was using binoculars when Michael got out of the truck, placed the shotgun on the hood and fired two rounds, according to the affidavit. The men then drove away.

Some residents like Addington are concerned that without accountability, there could be other incidents. Life just cant go on, like if nothing happened, he said.

District Attorney Bill Hicks said the case has not been presented to our office. However, our standing position is that we do not comment on pending litigation.

Sierra Blanca is located in Hudspeth County, just off Interstate 10. Most drivers zoom by without stopping. It has no traffic lights and a declining population of about 800 residents, according to the U.S. census.

The town is surrounded by striking landscape: desert, mountains, a shooting range and large detention center thats usually the talk of the town, unless outsiders come in and inquire about the shooting.

Many are reluctant to talk for fear of reprisal. After some convincing, waitress Alejandra Luna spoke.

Luna said she often served Mark Sheppard breakfast. He was like, You people, meaning I guess Mexican people, That yall come over here and want everything free. Well, first I was, like, I wasnt born in Mexico. Im a U.S. citizen. Secondly, I have always worked. That comment is out of place.

Residents like Luna call on politicians to be careful with their rhetoric. Some Republican leaders including Abbott refer to the growing number of migrants as an invasion.

Hudspeth County Commissioner Mike Sheets agrees with Abbott. I call this an invasion and a war. I really believe we should take Fort Bliss and put them on the border, he said, referring to soldiers. ... There are too many people getting away.

But he also questioned how the killing happened and lamented that a life was taken. To me it was senseless, he said. Young kid  should never die over something like that.

Residents say the shooting has shaken their close-knit community, where people know their neighbors. Some newcomers regret their decision to relocate here. Sara Villatoro and her husband moved their family from Dallas to rural West Texas looking for a quiet life in the country, a place to own some land. They opened a small cafe.

We thought this was a tranquil place, she said. But everyone lives with a prayer on their lips. She said she was surprised and afraid after learning the man who shot the migrants was the warden.

Villatoro said she worried her family was at risk and they stopped venturing out to the countryside. We no longer go out there on our own, she said. Because of our skin color, they might say we just crossed the border.

Villatoro recently closed the restaurant and her family left town. The building now sits empty like so many others in Sierra Blanca.

A drink of water

One recent afternoon, following a downpour, sunlight reflected off Fivemile tank reservoir.

The reservoir was originally created for cattle. Wild animals also come here. Increasingly, migrants stop for a drink of water after crossing a rugged stretch of desert.

Standing near the edge of the road, Addington pointed to the watering hole and called it one of his favorite spots growing up. It just makes me sad to come here, he said. Ill never look at it the same way as I did before.

He plans to put up a memorial to mark the spot where a man lost his life.

The scar left by the killing stretches into Mexico. Hundreds of miles south, Napoleon Sepulveda said his family is devastated.

His son Jesus was the man killed. Reached by phone in Durango, Mexico, Sepulveda said the 22-year-old left their small farming community headed for Austin to earn money to build a house for his wife and two little girls.

I ask the U.S. government for justice, he said. As for us, weve been decimated.

Angela Kocherga is news director at KTEP Public Radio and a reporter for El Paso Matters. Staff writer Aaron Torres contributed to this report.

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(Tribune News Service)  Chinese President Xi Jinping will seek to deepen Beijings influence in Central Asia at a major summit, reminding a parallel Group of Seven conclave of Chinas sway outside the U.S.-led world order.

The two-day China-Central Asia Summit will assemble the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan from Thursday in the Chinese city of Xian. Trade ties and regional security concerns will likely dominate talks at the inaugural in-person meeting, along with Russias war in Ukraine.

Xi is expected to deliver a keynote speech at the summit announcing new measures for cooperation among the six nations, state media reported citing an official from Chinas Foreign Ministry. Footage of traditional performers greeting each leader in Xian received prominent coverage on state television Thursday.

The summit unfolds in a split screen with President Joe Bidens effort with G-7 leaders in Japan this week to hammer out a unified response to Chinese economic coercion. As China finds itself increasingly isolated within the U.S.-led system, the two meetings symbolize the calcification of a multipolar world in which Global South nations are being courted as important strategic partners.

While Russia and China are united in their mission to counter the U.S., Xis decision to assemble five former Soviet states without President Vladimir Putin demonstrates Beijings increasingly senior position in their no limits relationship. Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has become reliant on China to provide both economic cover from Western sanctions and much-needed diplomatic support.

The Russians have accepted to some degree they cannot compete with China, said Raffaello Pantucci, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. The two see themselves increasingly reshaping the world order together.

As Xi tries to reorient global affairs away from Western groupings, Pantucci says hes creating more China-centric structures. Beijing is trying to offer an alternative to the Western defined post-World War II order, which the G-7 in many ways represents, he added.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year deepened a tussle for influence in the resource-rich Central Asian states, which were already on a trajectory of economic realignment toward China.

Beijing has since coupled investment in energy, pipelines, power stations, roads and railways with top-level diplomatic exchanges. Xi chose to reemerge on the global stage from three years of COVID-19 isolation in Kazakhstan last September, attending his first in-person summit in years in neighboring Uzbekistan days later.

That defied expectations his first international trip would be a Group of Twenty conclave in Bali. Chinese leaders will meet Central Asian counterparts at three major summits this year, at least.

The U.S. and European Union have also stepped up their outreach. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan earlier this year, while EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell went to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in November. Last month, U.S. and EU officials made a joint trip to Kazakhstan, offering help to minimize any economic impact of averting sanctions evasion by Russia.

While the former Soviet states have avoided backing Russias war  a move that would anger Western partners  their economic incentive remains with their neighbors. Last year, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan each did more trade with China than with either Russia or the G-7 bloc, according to the International Monetary Fund. Chinese imports from the region are mostly commodities, including cotton, oil, natural gas and copper, according to official trade data.

China knows that Russia is no longer in a position to provide anything that Central Asia desires: be that international prestige, economic cooperation or security cooperation, said Niva Yau, nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Councils Global China Hub. Working with China is still a preference.

Still, Moscow remains an important player in the region. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are part of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union free-trade zone. They and Tajikistan are also members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization with Russia, Armenia and Belarus, a defense alliance that Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called upon for military aid to help him crush violent unrest in January last year.

The summit also comes at a slightly awkward moment for Xi. Last month, Chinas ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, questioned the independence of ex-Soviet states during an interview with a local broadcaster. While Beijing said those remarks were the envoys personal views, Lu has not been recalled.

Xi will also likely use the meeting to bolster his flagship Belt and Road Initiative, which was dealt a blow this month when Italy signaled it intends to exit the investment pact this year. Three Baltic states have already quit what was the so-called 17+1 eastern European framework with China, weakening another grouping Beijing had created to counter US global influence.

Chinas military aggression toward Taiwan  a self-ruled island Xi has vowed to control, by force if necessary  and ambivalence over Russias invasion, have triggered a rethink in Europe on relations with the worlds second-largest economy.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin will next week lead a delegation to a Shanghai business forum, which has also invited a group of sanctioned tycoons, exemplifying how China can shelter Moscow from Western economic sanctions.

As the tussle for global influence intensifies, G-7 leaders in Japan this week are preparing to embark on a battle of offers with Beijing and Moscow, according to people familiar with the discussions and documents seen by Bloomberg News.

While the EU and U.S. say they are derisking not decoupling from China, such increased competition looks set to bind Beijing and Moscow more tightly  with Xi as the stronger partner. That means the Chinese leaders huddle with Putins former Soviet partners is unlikely to cause any rupture with the Kremlin.

China is seen as a friendly partner where there is competition, but that doesnt get out of control, said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center.

I dont expect Central Asia to provide any meaningful cracks in the deepening China-Russia axis thats increasingly asymmetrical and dominated by Beijing, which has so much leverage.

With assistance from Lucille Liu, James Mayger and Francesca Stevens.

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A proposed missile-defense system for Guam may provide the island with absolute protection from missile threats, including hypersonic missiles, but the project is already overdue, according to missile defense experts.

Guams Enhanced Integrated Air and Missile Defense System is expected to deploy in long stages starting in 2027, according to the Missile Defense Agency. But with looming threats from potential adversaries like China and North Korea, that timeline may not suffice, according to Riki Ellison, founder of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance.

Were not going fast enough, he told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday.

The project, a joint effort between several Defense Department agencies, is described as a comprehensive, persistent, 360-degree defense of the U.S. island territory against ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles.

Exact figures for the projects cost havent been disclosed, but the Pentagon is requesting $1.5 billion for the defense of Guam against the missile threat from China in fiscal year 2024, according to a March 13 DOD news release. The program is expected to incorporate the Armys Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System and the Navys Aegis Combat System found on Arleigh-Burke class guided-missile destroyers.

Aegis is already capable of intercepting some hypersonic missiles  weapons that travel at Mach 5, or around 1 mile per second  but they can only do so within a relatively small window during a missiles final phase of flight.

The Defense Department is developing a new system  a glide phase interceptor  to intercept hypersonic missiles during the longest portion of their flight, a much larger window, but that technology likely wont be available until the early 2030s, MDA director Vice Adm. Jon Hill said at a March 14 news conference.

This poses a problem, because the United States needs that technology this decade, according to Tom Karako, a missile defense analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

We dont get to choose which missiles China uses to hold Guam at risk, he told Stars and Stripes by phone Tuesday.

Hypersonic missiles can have predictable or maneuverable flight paths, which along with high speed and low altitude trajectories, make them extremely difficult to detect and counter, Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck, head of U.S. Northern Command, told the Senate Armed Forces Subcommittee on Strategic Forces on May 9.

Without a glide phase interceptor, Guams defense is limited to what works today, Ellison said. Aegis systems, for example, may be deployed on Guam in the near future.

However, Ellison advised against waiting for newer technology rather than investing in proven technology right now.

Its really back down to when you think that threat is coming, he said. When do you think that China will make moves on Taiwan?

Guam is home to major military installations, including Naval Base Guam, Andersen Air Force Base and the new Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz. The island has long been called the U.S. militarys tip of the spear in the Indo-Pacific, owing to its proximity to the South China Sea, North Korea and China.

Blaz already has some defenses, such as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system, but those capabilities are often supplemented by guided-missile destroyers, Ellison said. Completion of the project may alleviate the need for those destroyers to protect Guam.

Thats probably the No. 1 driving point of this thing, is to get that done, Ellison said. So those ships can do other missions and do what theyre supposed to do.
Ezequiel Zayas, the 30-year-old man who secretly lived in a military family's home in 2019 and plotted to perform surgery on them, pleaded guilty Wednesday morning in Circuit Court to first-degree burglary in that case and also pleaded guilty in three other cases.

While Zayas' most serious crime was killing fellow inmate Vance Grace, 62, in the Oahu Community Correctional Center while awaiting trial in the burglary case, Zayas had gained notoriety with national media attention about hiding in the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam home of James and Brittany Campbell in 2019.

He surprised the couple and their two children on their return from a weeklong vacation Sept. 20, 2019, when Zayas opened the front door and refused to let them in. James Campbell grabbed a sledgehammer and managed to get Zayas out.

Zayas also used the family's laptop to keep detailed information about them, made videos of the family and planned to do surgery on them, said the Campbells, who realized he had been in the house much longer than a week.

On Wednesday morning, Zayas' hands were uncuffed in order to sign plea agreements in four cases with the Department of the Attorney General and the Honolulu Prosecutor's Office.

The second-degree murder case in the Grace death was initially charged as first-degree murder, which would have meant life without the possibility of parole if convicted. That charge was downgraded to manslaughter for recklessly causing his death.

According to police, correctional officers witnessed Zayas punching Grace's head multiple times and stomping on his head.

However, the plea deal means he will face a maximum 20 years' imprisonment instead of life imprisonment for second-degree murder.

He also pleaded guilty to :First-degree burglary for entering the dwelling of another with the intent to commit a crime (in the Campbell case ), and faces a maximum 10 years' imprisonment and a $25, 000 fine.Second-degree burglary, with a maximum five years in prison and a $10, 000 fine for an Oct. 9, 2019, burglary at the Buddhist Study Center on University Avenue.Second-degree assault for a June 12, 2020, attack of an employee at a mental health facility, and faces a maximum five years' imprisonment.

He also is responsible for any restitution as determined by the court or the Adult Client Services Branch.

Zayas was returned Wednesday to the Hawaii State Hospital, where he had been held since Feb. 4, 2020, after being found unfit to stand trial.

Court-appointed defense attorney Nelson Goo said after Wednesday's trial call and change of plea hearing that Zayas had been receiving mental health treatment and has been making good progress. He was found fit to stand trial Jan. 17 and could have gone forward with trial in the four cases.

However, Judge Rowena Somerville found after questioning Zayas that he made the decision to plead guilty of his own volition and understood he was waiving his right to a trial, where he could have possibly been acquitted by reason of insanity at the time of the crimes.

Court documents show Zayas told a pretrial officer he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, but had stopped taking his medications and began using cannabis.

On Wednesday, Zayas, wearing a gray fleece jacket over a red shirt and gray fleece pants, stood before the judge with his hands behind his back, his right thumb nervously picking his finger.

He only asked Somerville when he would be sentenced, and whether she could move the date up sooner.

The judge set it for Aug. 30, and said that was the earliest possible date since there was a lot to do before sentencing.

(c)2023 The Honolulu Star-Advertiser

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TOKYO  U.S. military personnel living off base in Japan will pay significantly more for electricity under price hikes approved by the Japanese government this week.

Japan's Cabinet on Tuesday gave electric power companies a green light to increase prices starting next month, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said during a news conference that day.

News of the increase arrived along with a taste of summer. Thermometers flirted with 90 degrees Thursday in Tokyo, a city known for killer heat waves and unceasing demands for air conditioning.

Seven out of 10 major electric companies in the country had asked to raise prices due to an increase in the cost of imported energy such as natural gas, according to a statement by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on Tuesday.

Customers will pay between 14% and 42% more for power under the price hike, Matsuno said.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., which supplies electricity mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area, will raise its prices 15.9% on average, according to a news release posted on its website on Tuesday.

U.S. military communities in the metro area include Yokota Air Base, headquarters of U.S. Forces Japan; Yokosuka Naval Base, homeport of the U.S. 7th Fleet; Camp Zama, headquarters of U.S. Army Japan; and Naval Air Facility Atsugi.

Okinawa Electric Power Co., which supplies power to the island thats home to 80,000 U.S. military personnel family members, will raise prices 33.3% on average, according to a statement posted on its website Tuesday.

Tohoku Electric Power Co., which supplies power in Aomori prefecture, home to Misawa Air base and the Air Forces 35th Fighter Wing, will hike prices 25.47% on average, according to a news release posted on its website Tuesday.

Import fuel costs have greatly increased due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 while we were experiencing damage to financial bases from earthquakes, which occurred offshore of Fukushima prefecture in 2021 and 2022, Tohoku company president Kojiro Higuchi said at a news conference Tuesday, according to a transcript posted on the companys website.

Air Force retiree Tony Hughes, who lives in Akiruno, near Yokota, and works as a private contractor on U.S. bases in Tokyo, said his electricity costs have already climbed in recent years.

I like the air conditioner, he said while cooling off at the Yokota food court from 91-degree spring heat on Thursday.

Hughes estimated he and his wife pay $100 a month for electricity in their two-bedroom home, up from around $73 a month in 2016.

The couple are careful about how they use air conditioning lately and Hughes washes his clothes at a base laundromat to cut costs running a dryer, Hughes said.

We both work all day, he said. If we were at home all day it (the power bill) would be double that easily.
Congressman August Pfluger and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn say the People's Republic of China is a serious threat to the United States on multiple fronts and the American government and military must effectively counter those threats.

Rep. Pfluger, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement and Intelligence in Washington, D.C., told the Odessa American Tuesday that he had been worried about China since he took office in 2021.

He is a graduate of the Air Force Academy who was a fighter pilot in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"Despite years of attempts by the United States to develop a productive, fair and honest relationship with the People's Republic of China, America has been met with dishonesty and aggression," said Pfluger, a San Angelo Republican who represents Ector and Midland counties in the 11th Congressional District.

"The PRC government, run by the Chinese Communist Party, has deceived and manipulated the world at every turn, committing espionage in our homeland and working to overturn the global rules-based order," Pfluger said. "We are now locked in a peer competition with the PRC in which their government is actively seeking to install themselves at the top of the global world order, all the while degrading our nation's power militarily, diplomatically and economically.

"In recent months the CCP has escalated this competition and threatened the security of the entire Indo-Pacific region. It takes a unified response from all of us in Congress and the Executive Branch to put an end to this aggression."

Pfluger said he had introduced legislation to combat Chinese influence in American academia, strengthen the nation's ability to access critical minerals, ensure that it has the proper tools to respond to cyber-attacks and hold CCP human rights abusers accountable for atrocities.

"In addition I have held hearings on the threats posed by the CCP at the House Committee on Homeland Security and have had classified briefings with my colleagues in the Congressional Mach 1 Caucus on the PRC's airpower capabilities," he said.

"The threats posed by the CCP are some of the most significant security challenges that our nation has faced since the end of the Cold War."

Pfluger vowed "to continue to use my platform to raise awareness on these threats, among others, and ensure that America can properly defend ourselves and our interests."

Cornyn, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said Chinese President Xi Jinping "has made no secret of his desire to invade Taiwan.

"The Chinese Communist Party falsely asserts that Taiwan is part of its territory and President Xi has said he wants to be ready to invade by 2027, just four years from now," Cornyn said in a March 8 Newsweek op-ed article to which the OA was referred.

"Given everything we've learned from the war in Ukraine, there are three key steps that we need to take to prepare. One, the U.S. and its allies must remain committed to victory in Ukraine through strategic investments with thorough oversight. A Russian defeat is the only way to prevent this conflict from spilling across borders in Europe and keep NATO troops out of the picture.

"It also shows President Xi that the West is operating in lockstep in defense of democracy," Cornyn said. "Two, we must strengthen our defense industrial base to protect our own military readiness and that of our allies. During World War II President Franklin D. Roosevelt transformed the United States into the 'arsenal of democracy.' That arsenal must remain fully stocked.

"And three, we must reduce our reliance on China for semiconductors and other technologies that are crucial to our advanced weapons systems and so much more. Europe paid the price for its longstanding dependence on Russian energy. We could soon find ourselves in a similar position if China invades Taiwan.

"Now that we've addressed the chip shortage through my CHIPS for America Act, we must keep Western investment from fueling the Chinese military and economy by increasing outbound investment transparency."

Cornyn said Ukraine and Taiwan "are thousands of miles from our shores, but that doesn't mean they aren't our problem.

"A myopic view of these threats may be superficially appealing, but it fails to confront the current threat landscape," he said. "This is not about protecting 'them' or 'us.' The United States has the greatest military in the world. It is fully capable of safeguarding our own national security and promoting democracy around the globe.

"What's at stake today isn't the fate of one or two nations, it's the future of democracy itself. Our own security and economic interests are on the line and we have history as our teacher.

"If we aren't ready, we will only have ourselves to blame."

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JERUSALEM, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Israel announced on Thursday that it had signed a 305-million-U.S. dollar deal with the Netherlands on the export of Israeli-made artillery rocket systems.

"This is the first government-to-government defense exports agreement signed between Israel and the Netherlands, and one of the largest agreements signed between Israel and a European country in the past years," the Israeli Defense Ministry said in a statement.

Under the agreement, the Israeli ministry will supply 20 Precise and Universal Launching System (PULS) artillery rocket systems to the Royal Netherlands Army over a period of five years.

The system is manufactured by Elbit Systems, an Israeli-headquartered weapons and security company. The system supports the firing of both free-flying rockets and precision guided rockets and missiles ranging from 12 km to 300 km.

The deal was signed by Israeli and Dutch officials in the Netherlands on Wednesday and approved by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday.

The deal marks a significant event symbolizing "the strategic relationship between our countries and constitutes an opportunity to strengthen our partnership based on mutual values and morals," Yair Kulas, director of the Defense Ministry's International Defense Cooperation Directorate, was quoted as saying in the statement. 
STUTTGART, Germany  A right-hand man of President Vladimir Putin lashed out this week on Twitter, suggesting that the Baltic states belong to Russia, that Poland is temporarily occupied and that NATO allies have soiled themselves in fear of Russias military prowess.

Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian prime minister and president, unloaded Tuesday in response to recent statements by French President Emmanuel Macron, who referred to Russias war on Ukraine as a strategic failure that has left Moscow as a lackey of China.

NATO member states go to bed at night, and wake up in the morning thinking of Russia, wrote Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chairman of Russias security council under Putin.

Europe, and France in particular, were described by Medvedev as an elderly wench that is satisfying all of the most perverted whims of Americans.

While the tweets largely involved hurling insults, Medvedevs comments on eastern flank allies are likely to reinforce regional angst that Russias war ambitions extend beyond Ukraines borders.

Nations that were once dominated by the Soviet Union were deemed especially cowardly, such as temporarily occupied Poland and our Baltic provinces, which have soiled themselves, Medvedev said.

Once regarded by many Western observers as an easy-going alternative to Putin, Medvedevs public comments toward the West over that past year have become increasingly bellicose.

His frequent verbal attacks on Twitter come amid a faltering war effort in Ukraine, where more than 100,000 Russian troops have been killed or injured since February 2022, according to Pentagon estimates earlier this year. Initially, many observers assumed Moscow would march to a quick victory given its advantage in manpower and weaponry. However, Russia has gained little since the earliest stages of the war and now finds itself on the defensive.

The war also has led to other effects unanticipated by the Kremlin, such as the galvanization of NATO, which recently brought Finland into the alliance as the security pacts 31st member. Sweden, which like Finland was militarily unaligned during the Cold War, also is expected to soon join the alliance.

President Putin went to war against Ukraine with a declared aim to get less NATO, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in April during a gathering of allied leaders. He wanted NATO to remove our forces, our structures from all allies that have joined after 1997 . and he wanted NATO to make it absolutely clear that NATO's door was closed for any new membership. He's getting the exact opposite.

NATO allies this summer are expected to update plans for defending against Russia along the alliances eastern flank. The plans will involve thousands more troops operating at higher levels of readiness so that multinational battlegroups can be quickly reinforced in a crisis.

Medvedev, however, asserted that NATO was the strategic loser in connection with events in Ukraine.

If there has indeed been a loss, it is that of the primitive NATO politics, with its underlying ambition to play the exceptional role in the 21st century, Medvedev said.
Rhode Island officials recently announced the proposed location of a place where people could safely use illegal drugs under the watch of staff trained to reverse overdoses  only the second such program in the United States. Visitors would also be able to get meals and showers, test their own drugs for deadly substances, get HIV and hepatitis C testing, and access support groups and addiction treatment.

We know peoples lives are going to be saved, said Colleen Daley Ndoye, executive director of Project Weber/Renew, the nonprofit tasked with running the Providence site slated to open next year.

But in Pennsylvania, where another nonprofit with similar aspirations is mired in litigation, the state Senate overwhelmingly voted May 1 to ban such centers, sometimes called supervised injection sites. The vote came six days after Colorado lawmakers killed a bill in committee that would have authorized the sites in that state.

We need to prioritize sobriety, not just allow addiction to continue and spiral, said Pennsylvania state Sen. Christine Tartaglione, a Philadelphia Democrat, who introduced the bill and represents parts of the neighborhood of Kensington, the epicenter of the citys opioid epidemic.

The contrasting approaches reflect the wariness of overdose prevention sites in the United States despite the staggering loss of life from drug deaths. Addiction experts and others regard the facilities as ways to reach people who use drugs where they are  and keep them alive  despite questions about the sites legality under federal law. But even with the success of New York Citys OnPoint NYC, the only government-sanctioned program operating in this country, such facilities are proving a tough sell over concerns they encourage drug use, crime and neighborhood blight. Similar sites operate in countries such as Canada, Australia and Portugal.

The legislative decisions in Pennsylvania and Colorado also are a blow for advocates of expanding harm reduction, a strategy that includes distributing overdose antidotes and sterile needles, and testing drug supplies.

This is a major step backwards in responding to the overdose crisis, especially at a moment when were witnessing more support for harm reduction nationally and across red and blue states, Brown University epidemiologist Brandon Marshall said of the votes.

The Pennsylvania bill banning overdose prevention centers passed the Republican-controlled Senate with Democratic support. Whether it passes the Democratic-majority House remains to be seen. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, a former state attorney general, has publicly opposed the facilities.

In Colorado, where Democrats control both chambers, the state Senates Health and Human Services committee on April 26 killed a bill that would have allowed cities to authorize the sites. The House had earlier passed the bill.

Sometimes called safe consumption or supervised injection sites, the facilities allow people to use their own drugs under the supervision of people trained to intervene with the opioid antidote naloxone if they overdose. Nearly 200 overdose prevention sites operate in 14 countries, according to the Drug Policy Alliance.

The centers arent a fit for every community, but they do offer people struggling with addiction a welcoming place to get health care, aid in finding housing and treatment  and help staying alive, said Sean Fogler, a Pennsylvania drug policy expert who runs the public health consultant group Elevyst.

If you do give them a clean needle, why then would you tell them to go to the bathroom at McDonalds and lock the door, or go to the alley and hide in the shadows and inject the drugs? Fogler said. With the drug supply today, theres a good chance youre going to die.

Advocates say research shows overdose prevention sites make drug use safer for participants. At last months Harm Reduction International Conference, researchers from France presented a study that found that at two overdose prevention sites there, users were less likely to overdose, visit emergency rooms or commit crime.

A similar study is underway in the United States. On Monday, officials announced the federal government is funding a four-year, $5.8 million study on the impact of the New York City and Rhode Island centers. Researchers will measure whether participants suffer fewer fatal and nonfatal overdoses, as well as the effects on crime and litter in the surrounding areas.

The facilities have proved controversial in the United States, despite the mounting death toll: more than 107,000 fatal overdoses in 2021, two-thirds of them from the opioid fentanyl. In Pennsylvania, 5,168 people died of overdoses in 2021.

Efforts to establish overdose prevention centers have been complicated by a decades-old federal law sometimes called the crack house statute, which outlawed knowingly maintaining a place for the purpose of manufacturing, distributing, or using a controlled substance.

In 2019, President Donald Trumps Justice Department cited the law in suing Safehouse, a nonprofit group that would have been the first in the nation to open an overdose prevention center in Philadelphia, where it faced fierce opposition from neighbors. A federal judge ruled in Safehouses favor, but an appeals court overturned the decision in January 2021.

Safehouse countersued, saying such a ban violates the religious freedom of board members who believe they have a calling to provide lifesaving medical treatment to a vulnerable population. The Biden administration, the first to embrace harm-reduction strategies, has stopped short of endorsing such prevention sites. Settlement talks between the Justice Department and Safehouse have dragged on for over a year.

The Justice Department declined to comment on the status of those talks. Last year, it told the Associated Press it was evaluating overdose prevention sites and appropriate guardrails. The litigation was further complicated last month when 20 community groups in Philadelphia asked to intervene, arguing that the government appears poised to switch sides and they needed to protect their health, safety, and property interests.

Sonja Bingham, a community activist from Philadelphias Harrowgate neighborhood, said residents are tired of drug users from nearby Kensington defecating in the streets, discarding needles and breaking into properties. She said she believes an overdose prevention center will bring more users and drug dealers.

You can have your addiction, but you dont have the right to impede on my quality of life, said Bingham, president of Friends of Harrowgate Park, one of the groups asking to intervene.

Safehouses vice president, Ronda Goldfein, pushed back on such criticism, arguing that moving drug use into prevention centers will curb use on the streets. This isnt complicated, she said. It works everywhere its opened. It should be open here.

Goldfein declined to speculate on how the Senate bill banning overdose prevention sites would affect the settlement talks if it were to become law.

Right now, the only government-approved safe consumption program is run by the nonprofit OnPoint NYC, which operates two facilities: one in East Harlem, the other in Washington Heights. The program connects participants to addiction and mental health treatment, job training and social services. Since the sites opened in late 2021, over 3,200 participants have used them, with staff intervening in 898 overdoses  with no deaths. Staff members also have collected 1.7 million pieces of drug bags, discarded needles and used bandages.

Thats 1.7 million units of hazardous waste not on the streets, not in parks, not on playgrounds, said Executive Director Sam Rivera, who was recently named one of Time magazines 100 most influential people of 2023.

Despite those successes, securing private funding has been a constant worry  it costs $1.4 million annually to operate the prevention centers. Although New York City authorized the sites and supports their operations, the governors office has declined to allocate opioid settlement money over questions of legality under federal law. Rivera said he is hopeful the organization will secure funding to keep going.

While advocates of future overdose prevention centers await the outcome of the Safehouse litigation, they are learning from the experiences of New York, Pennsylvania and California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom last year vetoed a bill that would have authorized overdose prevention centers in three cities.

In San Francisco, an emergency harm-reduction hub that the city set up in the troubled Tenderloin district early last year allowed people to use their own drugs under watch. At the Tenderloin Center, staff intervened in 333 overdoses over 46 weeks before the city shut it down in December, saying it was supposed to be temporary.

Participants were served nearly 100,000 meals, and they also got showers, laundry, wound care, and referrals to treatment and therapy.

The longer people were there, they were more likely to be engaged in a whole host of other services, said Alex Kral, an epidemiologist with the independent nonprofit research institute RTI International.

But participants also described long wait times and shortages of staff and supplies. And because San Francisco required calls to 911 every time naloxone was used to revive someone who overdosed, it created a constant stream of ambulances to the site, raising concerns among neighbors.

Still, San Francisco has authorized private organizations to open sites. The mayors office said it supports the concept and is awaiting guidance from the federal government over whether public money can go toward them.

Other communities arent waiting to make such spending decisions. In Somerville, Mass., a largely blue-collar community just north of Cambridge, the city council allocated $827,000 for site preparation, construction and the purchase of a prefabricated building for such a center, although no location has been determined and officials are awaiting clarity on legalities, said Matt Mitchell, Somervilles prevention services director.

In Rhode Island, the legislature in 2021 authorized its overdose prevention program. The state allocated $2.6 million in opioid lawsuit settlement money to fund the pilots first year-plus. The site will be located at an existing opioid treatment clinic in an industrial part of Providence with no residential neighbors, which officials hope will lessen community concerns.

Nevertheless, staff members have been knocking on the doors of homes in nearby neighborhoods to answer questions about the facility. Project Weber/Renew  a long-established harm-reduction group that will run the program in conjunction with the opioid treatment clinic CODAC Behavioral Healthcare  must iron out design, construction and public safety plans as it seeks approval from Providences city council.

Daley Ndoye, of Project Weber/Renew, said she is closely watching what happens with state legislation and the Justice Department settlement talks in Pennsylvania.

I want these sites to be open across the country, she said. I want peoples lives to be saved.
The Supreme Court ruled for Google and Twitter in a pair of closely watched liability cases Thursday, saying families of terrorism victims had not shown the companies helped foster attacks on their loved ones.

Plaintiffs allegations are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in a unanimous decision in the Twitter case. The court adopted similar reasoning in the claim against Google.

The courts narrowly focused rulings sidestepped requests to limit a law that protects social media platforms from lawsuits over content posted by their users, even if the platforms algorithms promote videos that laud terrorist groups. That law, Section 230, has emerged as a lightning rod in the politically polarized debate over the future of online speech, as tech companies come under increased pressure to police offensive, harmful and violent posts on their platforms.

The courts decision was a victory for tech companies and their surrogates, which have been running extensive lobbying and advocacy campaigns to defend Section 230 in Washington. Changes to the law, they say, could open a floodgate of litigation that would squash innovation and make it impossible for many popular websites to operate.

The claim against Google specifically focused on whether Section 230 protects recommendation algorithms. Tech companies said any novel interpretations of the legal shield could have wide-ranging effects on the technology that underlies almost every interaction people have online, from innocuous song suggestions on Spotify to prompts to watch videos about conspiracy theories on YouTube.

Countless companies, scholars, content creators and civil society organizations who joined with us in this case will be reassured by this result, Google general counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado said in a statement. Well continue our work to safeguard free expression online, combat harmful content, and support businesses and creators who benefit from the internet.

Section 230 has been denounced by politicians from both parties who are increasingly concerned over the power that tech companies have over what posts and videos people see online.

Democrats, wary of the ways social media has been weaponized to spread falsehoods about elections and public health, want to change the provision to ensure that tech companies have more responsibility for harmful and offensive content on their websites. Republicans are concerned that Section 230 protects companies from lawsuits over decisions to remove content or suspend accounts, especially since the companies took the historic step of suspending Donald Trump and individuals involved in the Jan. 6, 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol. (Meta, YouTube and Twitter have reinstated the former presidents account in recent months).

It was clear at oral arguments that the justices were reluctant to make significant changes to the law. Were a court, Justice Elena Kagan said at the time, adding that she and her colleagues are not like the nine greatest experts on the internet.

In the Twitter case, American relatives of Nawras Alassaf said the company failed to properly police its platform for Islamic State-related accounts in advance of a Jan. 1, 2017, attack at the Reina nightclub in Turkey that killed Alassaf and 38 others. In the Google case, the family of an exchange student killed in an Islamic State attack in Paris said Googles YouTube should be liable for promoting content from the group.

The relatives in both cases based their lawsuits on the Anti-Terrorism Act, which imposes civil liability for assisting a terrorist attack. At issue was whether the company provided substantial assistance to the terrorist group.

But Thomas, writing in the Twitter case, said the link was too attenuated.

As alleged by plaintiffs, defendants designed virtual platforms and knowingly failed to do enough to remove ISIS-affiliated users and ISIS related content  out of hundreds of millions of users worldwide and an immense ocean of content  from their platforms, he wrote. Yet, plaintiffs have failed to allege that defendants intentionally provided any substantial aid to the Reina attack or otherwise consciously participated in the Reina attack - much less that defendants so pervasively and systemically assisted ISIS as to render them liable for every ISIS attack.

The Google case specifically raised the issue of Section 230. But the short, unsigned decision said the justices decline to address the application of Section 230 to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief.

The statute was enacted in 1996, years before YouTube, Facebook and other social networks existed. It has proved a potent legal shield for the companies, who regularly use it to seek the dismissal of lawsuits. Both Trump and President Biden and former president Donald Trump have criticized Section 230, at times calling for it to be revoked.

Despite a flurry of congressional hearings, however, theres been little consensus among lawmakers about how to change it.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said that the courts decisions on Thursday put the onus back on Congress to take action. One reason [they declined to take it up] might be that they want the Congress to do our job, Cornyn said in a brief interview. Its a complex issue and I hope we take them up on it.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who co-wrote Section 230 as a member of the House nearly three decades ago and filed a brief in its defense in these cases, said he appreciated the courts thoughtful rulings that even without Section 230, the plaintiffs would not have won their lawsuits.

Despite being unfairly maligned by political and corporate interests that have turned it into a punching bag for everything wrong with the internet, the law  remains vitally important to allowing users to speak online, Wyden said in a statement.

Tech industry-funded groups also celebrated the courts decision. Chamber of Progress, which receives funding from Meta, Google and other companies and filed a brief supporting Google in the case, called the ruling an unambiguous victory for online speech and content moderation.

While the Court might once have had an appetite for reinterpreting decades of Internet law, it was clear from oral arguments that changing Section 230s interpretation would create more issues than it would solve, Jess Miers, a lawyer for the group, said in a statement.

Even some legal experts who submitted briefs in support of the Gonzalez family said they were pleased with the Supreme Courts opinion. Mary Anne Franks, the president of the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, had called for the court to more narrowly interpret Section 230, after she argued lower courts had used it wrongly.

But she said that the justices opinion in the Twitter case shows that such litigation can be decided in the regular course of the law, taking the wind out of the sails of industry arguments that companies need a dedicated shield to protect them from bad lawsuits.

She also said the ruling provides a green light to Congress to move forward.

It does clear up some of the underbrush when it comes to Section 230 reform, she said. If we were holding off to see what court might do, the court has answered.

The cases are Twitter v. Taamneh and Gonzalez v. Google.

The Washington Posts Cristiano Lima contributed to this report.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Irans President Seyed Ebrahim Raisi on Thursday jointly inaugurated the Mand-Pishin border sustenance market aimed at boosting the bilateral trade.

This is one of the six border markets which will be constructed along the Pak-Iran common border.

The Mand-Pishin border sustenance marketplace will provide a thriving platform for increasing cross-border trade, fostering economic growth, and opening up new avenues of opportunity for local businesses.

The two leaders also planted a sapling in the premises of the border market as a gesture to stride forward in the bilateral relationship between the two countries.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Power Minister Khurram Dastagir, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb and senior officials of Pakistan and Iran were present.

The Foreign Office in a statement said, The joint inauguration is a manifestation of the strong commitment of Pakistan and Iran to uplift the welfare of residents of the neighboring provinces of Balochistan and Sistan-o-Baluchestan, respectively.
Fionnghuale Perry (65) was convicted of her first terror offence in 1976 in her teens

As part of a search conducted by police, a significant cache of explosives, weapons and ammunition was uncovered at a family home in Ballymurphy, west Belfast, in 2015.   PSNI

A west Belfast woman was jailed yesterday for four years for collecting information for dissident republican terrorists.

Sentencing Fionnghuale Perry (65), also known as Nuala, Mr Justice OHara said information she had collected was "sinister and "of great concern''.

He added it was depressing that having been convicted of her first terror offence in her teens, Perry remained committed to violent republicanism nearly 40 years later.

Perry, of Waterville Street, was found guilty in March this year at a non-jury Diplock-style trial at Belfast Crown Court for collecting or making a record of information likely to be of use to terrorists.

This related to documents regarding a security debrief following the police recovery of firearms, ammunition and explosives in west Belfast.

It was the prosecution case that the documents were found in Perry's home, which was searched by the PSNI on February 20, 2018.

The box containing handwritten notes found at Perry's home

Police officers searched a spare bedroom and seized a box of Chloe perfume and found "seven cigarette papers'' which contained written information about weapons and explosives.

The notes related to interviews carried out by individuals into the seizure of firearms, ammunition and explosives from the Ballymurphy home of Kevin Barry Nolan on September 17, 2015.

Nolan was later convicted for having explosives and weapons with intent and sentenced to seven years imprisonment.

As part of a search conducted by police, a significant cache of explosives, weapons and ammunition was uncovered at a family home in Ballymurphy, west Belfast, in 2015.   PSNI

The prosecution said the notes were a "security debrief'' into the seizure of items at Nolan's home to find out what went wrong and how police came to find them.

During the trial, Perry's defence was that she had a reasonable excuse to have the notes in her role as a journalist writing on political and security issues.

She claimed that she didn't know what the notes meant and "could not make sense of them''.

Handwritten notes found in a perfume box at Perry's home   PSNI

But this was rejected by trial judge Mr Justice O'Hara, who said in his March judgment: "I am satisfied beyond any doubt that the defendant is guilty of collecting or making a record likely to be useful to a terrorist.

"I reject entirely her defence that she had a reasonable excuse for her action for possessing the information.''

Passing sentence, Mr Justice O'Hara said: "The crime committed by this defendant on any view is a serious one. There are dissident republicans who, after all these years of violence and so many deaths ruined, are still committed to more deaths and more lives ruined.

"For every individual who transports or fires a gun, or makes or plants a bomb, there have to be more people who support and enable them. The defendant is one of those people.

"In terms of recording or collecting information, it is possible to think of worst cases, for instance, collecting information about the addresses and movements of police officers or other people on the grim list of so-called legitimate targets.''

He added: "Every time police find weapons and explosives, they land a blow on those who are committed to violence.

"The dissidents then respond by trying to work out what went wrong, whose fault it may have been and what steps are needed to be taken next time. This defendant played a role in that response in order that violence can continue.''

The judge said that to "make matters worse'', Perry had a conviction dating back to 1976 for hijacking a car and having a firearm with intent. She was also convicted of membership of a proscribed organisation and was sentenced to three years in prison.

"Even in her teens, this conviction shows she was committed to violent republicanism. The most recent offending comes depressingly more than 40 years later and in the same vein, he said.

During a recent hearing, Perry's defence counsel Desmond Hutton KC urged the judge not to send her to prison but to impose a suspended sentence because she has multiple sclerosis and mental health issues.

Mr Justice O'Hara said on Wednesday: "With all due respect, that is entirely unrealistic. It fails to acknowledge the seriousness of her offending, her criminal record from 1976 and she fought the charge and has lost any prospect of credit for pleading guilty.

"She and other dissident republicans have to realise that, as they continue with their efforts to murder and maim, they will face harsh consequences if and when they are caught, convicted and sentenced.''

Mr Justice O'Hara imposed the four-year sentence under the Counter Terrorism Act 2021 which was brought in following a series of terrorist attacks in London. It ended the early release of prisoners half way through their sentence.

He said that under the legislation, Perry will have to serve two thirds of her sentence before she could apply to the Parole Commissioners to be released.

Following the sentencing, the PSNI said: Todays outcome follows from the search of Fionnghuale Perrys home in Belfast on February 20, 2018.

During the search, officers from our terrorism investigation unit found handwritten notes, on cigarette papers, hidden inside a perfume box. The notes, which were partially in code, were seized for forensic analysis.

Their content referred to weapons and explosives, along with the initials or names of a number of individuals who had been questioned by police following a significant firearms find in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast in September 2015.

Essentially, police assessed that the notes amounted to a debriefing by a number of dissident republicans. Its believed this information could be of use to the New IRA, by helping them understand how those individuals had been identified.

Officers from our terrorism investigation unit remain totally committed to investigating and disrupting criminal activity within our communities. I would encourage anyone with information, or indeed concerns, to contact us on 101.
BEIRUT, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese and Saudi economy ministers on Thursday agreed to gradually increase economic and trade exchanges, Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) reported.

During a meeting in the Saudi port city of Jeddah ahead of the Arab League summit to discuss the potential of strengthening economic and trade ties, Lebanese Economy and Trade Minister Amin Salam and Saudi Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal bin Fadhil Alibrahim "agreed to open new channels of cooperation, search for promising and value-added opportunities in the field of economic and trade exchange, and creating a suitable investment environment between the two countries," according to the report.

Salam said there is an excellent opportunity to revive Lebanese-Saudi relations following the recent positive regional developments.

Salam also stressed "the need for Lebanon to expedite the implementation of economic reforms and adopt a new monetary policy based on successful joint projects, which enhances investors' confidence and encourages them to invest in Lebanon."

Salam added that trade between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia exceeded 800 million U.S. dollars in the past decade, and the figure could double once the markets reopen and economic and trade relations return to their previous level.

"An increase in trade between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia requires a stable security situation in Syria, which is the only land crossing for Lebanon," Salam said.

Lebanon's relations with Saudi Arabia were strained after a decision by the kingdom on October 29, 2021 to ban all Lebanese imports after former Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi criticized the Saudi Arabia-led coalition's involvement in the civil war of Yemen. 
A row has erupted between a nephew of Mr Kelly and his partner over his home and other lands

A courtroom battle has erupted over the estate of one of the victims of the Creeslough tragedy.

Farmer Hugh Kelly (59) was one of ten people to lose their lives when a suspected gas explosion ripped through a petrol station in the Co Donegal village on October 7 last.

Now a row has erupted between a nephew of Mr Kelly and his partner over his home and other lands at Bishop's Island, Castledoe, Creeslough.

Documents read out at Letterkenny Circuit Court heard that the late Mr Kelly's partner Ms Linda Gallagher said she is the beneficiary of the last will and testament, dated November 30, 2006.

Ms Gallagher is seeking an interlocutory injunction against a nephew of the deceased, Mr Josie Kelly, who she claims is illegally occupying the property.

A hearing of the court before Judge John Aylmer heard how Ms Gallagher said she attended the property on October 15, 2022, just a week after her partner had been killed.

She discovered that the deceased man's nephew, Mr Josie Kelly, had wrongfully or illegally entered the dwelling and changed the locks.

A locksmith was called and a voice was heard inside the property which Ms Gallagher recognised as Mr Josie Kelly but the locksmith could not gain entry.

These details were outlined by Ms Gallagher's barrister, Mr Gareth McGrory, instructed by solicitor Frank Dorrian who alleged that Josie Kelly had unlawfully and wrongfully trespassed and accessed the dwelling house.

It was also alleged that he had also placed padlocks on the gates and put a donkey on the lands while Ms Gallagher had been in America towards the end of October.

The property was registered in the name of Hugh Kelly who had lived in the house all his life and that it had been passed on to him by his late mother Sally Kelly.

Ms Gallagher sought an injunction to restrain the defendant, his servants or agents from trespassing, entering or making use of the lands without the express authority of the plaintiff.

Mr McGrory said his client was also seeking an injunction to have the defendant, his servants or agents to repair any damage caused following the alleged illegal trespass.

By way of background, Mr McGrory said that Ms Gallagher, who was originally from Indiana in the United States, had been in a loving relationship with the late Mr Hugh Kelly.

They both maintained separate houses but there were several pictures of Ms Gallagher in Mr Hugh Kelly's home.

The court was told that Ms Gallagher had been left "distraught" at Mr Kelly's sudden death and the deaths of the nine other people as well as suffering "shock, pain and sorrow" following the incident.

Mr Josie Kelly was represented in court by barrister, Mr John McCoy.

Mr Kelly said his late grandfather had wished the property to stay in the Kelly family and said he had invested over 100,000 on improvements to the property.

He had also organised crops of hay and silage on the farmland.

He said he had lived at the property since 1984, save for the years of his marriage until 2018, since which he had been living on the property.

Mr Kelly claimed that none of the plaintiffs possessions are in the house and that he always had a key and access to the house.

The property is my home, he said.

Judge John Aylmer asked why Mr Josie Kelly had not exhibited anything in support of his evidence.

The absence is striking, he said, noting that he expected to see evidence that he has been living there since 2018 and of the 100,000 he said he had spent.

Mr McCoy said he would take the matter back to his client for further instruction and said there were parallel proceedings before the High Court.

Judge Aylmer said he was giving a short opportunity for the defendant to put evidence before the court that one would expect to support a contention that he has been living there since 2019.

The matter was adjourned to a future court sitting.
Laurence Nolan (33) is also accused of making threats to kill or cause serious harm to a woman and damaging the windows of her home

Laurence Nolan has not yet indicated to plea

A young man accused of making threats to kill or cause serious harm to a woman and damaging the front windows of her home has been sent for jury trial.

Laurence Nolan (33) is also alleged to have seriously assaulted a garda during the same incident.

Mr Nolan was served with a book of evidence when he appeared before Blanchardstown District Court.

The accused, of Springmount apartments in Finglas, is charged with seriously assaulting Garda Diarmuid Murphy at Deanstown Park in Finglas on May 16, 2022.

Mr Nolan is also accused of making a threat to kill or cause serious harm to a woman at the same time and place.

He is further charged with damaging the window in the front door and the front room window of the womans property at Deanstown Park, with trespassing at that property and resisting arrest.

A State solicitor said the book of evidence was ready and had been served on the accused, who goes forward to the next sittings of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Judge Gerard Jones gave Mr Nolan the formal alibi caution.

The judge also assigned defence solicitor Richard Young and one junior counsel on free legal aid. He further ordered that a video copy of an interview which gardai conducted with the accused be provided to his legal team.

Mr Nolan was remanded on bail to appear before a court in the Criminal Courts of Justice on a date in June.

The accused has not yet indicated a plea to the charges.
Roy Kerr (45), originally from Inverness, is currently serving three life sentences

A life-sentence inmate has been acquitted of attacking and threatening to kill a prison officer in his cell.

The judge questioned the decision to bring the prosecution against Roy Kerr, who is behind bars for attempting to kill a doctor and two members of his family.

In directing the Craigavon Crown Court jury to acquit the 45-year-old, Judge Patrick Lynch KC queried the PPS decision to prosecute a man who is serving three life sentences and who would not have been freed regardless of the outcome of the trial.

He told the jury, given the mechanics of the complainants injury, he was satisfied there was no prospect of a properly-directed jury being able to find Kerr guilty of an intentional assault.

Also, because of the confused scene within Kerrs cell in Maghaberry on November 6, 2020, they could not be sure he had uttered a specific threat to kill the prison officer.

The jury had heard Kerr was harming himself and was covered in blood.

A decision was made to enter his cell to save his life, but when officers did so, there was a fracas, with one sustaining an injury to his wrist.

Having directed the jury to acquit Kerr, who represented himself, Judge Lynch told them, you are probably wondering what his position is and why he is in prison.

He is serving a life sentence for attempted murder, he revealed.

The judge explained Kerr had set fire to a house he had previously burgled by pouring petrol through the letter box and setting it alight while the residents, a doctor and his wife and son, were asleep inside.

The doctor took his own life not that long afterwards and certainly, the family attributed in part the actions of Mr Kerr to that, he said.

He described Kerr as a highly intelligent man, unfortunately wrapped in a warped personality.

Handed three life sentences for three counts of attempted murder with a minimum tariff of 10 years, Kerr has been in prison since his arrest in 2008 and Judge Lynch said his attitude seems to be that he is unlikely to ever be released.

One wonders, and I express this publicly, one wonders why the prosecution found it necessary to go through this procedure and bringing this man to trial, he asked.

Further revealing Kerr had previously been prosecuted for a similar offence in relation to a prison officer assault, the judge said the determinate sentence he imposed for that crime makes no difference whatsoever to his potential release date.

I publicly wonder if theres any purpose in having this matter brought to trial in circumstances where it has caused considerable difficulty over the last 18 months, the judge said.

In that previous case, Kerr was handed an 18-month sentence for threatening to slice a female prison officer from head to toe in June 2018.

Kerr, originally from Inverness, has amassed more than 150 convictions.

In 2009, he was jailed for trying to kill Dr Raymond White in arson attack as they slept in their east Belfast home.

That attack happened in May 2008, the day before doctor and his wife Aileen were due to give evidence against Kerr over a charge that he had twice burgled their home.

Kerr pushed wheelie bins against the front and back doors and poured petrol through the letter box before setting it all alight.

He burnt his hands in the process and it was his screams of pain which alerted the family.

Sentencing Kerr at Belfast Crown Court, Judge Geoffrey Miller QC said he posed a "very real risk of causing serious harm to those whom he considers have crossed him in some way".
He may be just a body number on the inquest list, but to us, he was the first born, a grandson, a big brother, a nephew, a cousin and a loyal friend to those who knew him

The sister of a 17-year-old killed in the Stardust fire has told the inquest of how the trauma of her brothers death caused her to withdraw into herself to the point that she could not be around people if they started talking about him.

Two things in life change you and youre never the same: love and grief, said Donna OConnor, delivering a pen portrait of her brother, George, at the Dublin District Coroners Court today.

George OConnor was one of the 48 victims of the Stardust fire who lost their lives when the flames swept through the nightclub in Artane in the early hours of February 14, 1981.

"He may be just a body number on the inquest list, but to us, he was the first born, a grandson, a big brother, a nephew, a cousin and a loyal friend to those who knew him, Donna told the jury in the Pillar Room of the Rotunda Hospital.

She described George as a homebody who was quiet, reserved and not one for going out much. He was a huge science fiction fan and was always drawing, trying to replicate the spaceships from such comics and films as Star Wars, Star Trek, and War of the Worlds.

Donna said the family still have many of his notebooks of these drawings. She said George was only starting out on lifes journey as an adult when he died in the fire.

He loved working his job and made some lovely friends, who encouraged him to come out of his shell and start to socialise. Sadly, the first dance he ever went to was also to be his last, she said.

My memories over the years have faded to a point where whenever I try to remember, all that comes to mind is George getting ready for the dance, my mam ironing his shirt, him drying his afro hairstyle, and me critiquing his outfit and telling him no girl would ask him to dance dressed like he was.

Donna said she then headed off to bed that night with not a care in the world, only to be woken by utter chaos. She recalled heading off with her father and uncles to collect dental records and going into the coroners courtroom to identify a clear plastic bag of clothes.

The same outfit  what was left of it  I had mocked just a few hours before. Then over to the canteen in Busaras to wait for the dental records to be compared, Donna said.

She said that being a shy and private fifteen-year-old at the time, the trauma she felt caused her to withdraw even further into herself and for a solid ten years she could not be around people if they started talking about George.

But that is not to say that I, and we, do not think about him and miss him every single day. I wonder how very different all our lives would be if he were still here. What career path would he have taken, would he have married, had kids, stayed in Ireland or lived abroad, she said.

When meeting new people, the question if I am the eldest always brings out the familiar furrow on my forehead and I never fail to ponder how to answer this question. What to say, I wonder silently. I am or Im not  yes, or no? Sadly, I was thrust into that unwanted position of eldest which was never meant to be my birthright.

Donna concluded by saying: Two things in life change you and youre never the same: love and grief.

The jury also heard a pen portrait of Brendan OMeara, who was 23 when he died. The portrait of Brendan, written by his siblings, was presented by his sister, Margaret Smith, who described Brendan as a very handsome young man who was always the best dressed in the family.

Unfortunately, the Stardust fire robbed us of our wonderful, exceptional, selfless brother, she said,

My children were deprived of sharing their lives with their Uncle Brendan and making their own memories with him. We relive the heartache of losing Brendan, not only at the Stardust anniversary but on a daily basis, said Margaret, adding that he is forever in all of their hearts.

Margaret also read a pen portrait written by her brother, John, who said Brendan was his buddy as well as his brother because there was not much between their ages, and they always maintained a great relationship.

I miss Brendan very much still. I look at his photos as he was then. He was just 23-years-old when we lost him, and I wonder what he would look like today. I look at myself now. I am in my 60s and my hair is grey, and I think to myself that hed probably look just like me. I still talk to Brendan at his graveside and tell him I will treasure all my memories I have of him, said John.
The accused, of Cliff Road, Windgates, Bray, Co Wicklow, is charged with four counts of harassment and five counts of threats to kill.

Kevin Murphy (26) of Cliff Road Windgates, Bray charged with harassment and threats to kill or cause serious harm. Photo Collins Courts   Collins Courts

A GAELTACHT surfing instructor harassed a student and her family with more than 170 unwanted messages, including threats to cause them serious harm, it is alleged.

Kevin Murphy (26) is accused of unwanted e-mail and social media contact over a five-month period following a brief meeting with the students mother when she came to pick up her daughter after a course.

Dublin District Court heard some of the messages allegedly contained references to family pets and demands for money.

Mr Murphy is facing trial after a judge ruled the case was too serious to be dealt with at district court level.

The accused, of Cliff Road, Windgates, Bray, Co Wicklow, is charged with four counts of harassment and five counts of threats to kill.

The charges relate to five alleged victims including the young woman who attended a course, her mother, sister and brother, the court heard.

Garda Rachel Corcoran told Judge Treasa Kelly the DPP consented to the case being dealt with in the district court subject to the judge considering the issue of jurisdiction.

Outlining the allegations, she said a woman came to gardai in January 2022 and reported that her daughter had attended an Irish Gaeltacht course in 2019 and the accused was a surfing instructor on the course at the time.

The woman had briefly met the accused at the end of the course while she was collecting her daughter. There was communication for a short period between the two, then in July 2021, she started receiving a lot of unwanted emails from Mr Murphy containing threats to cause serious harm to her and family members, Gda Corcoran alleged.

Instagram messages were also received by her daughter who had been on the course, between July 2021 and January 2022.

Her son also got Instagram messages between October 2021 and January 2022.

Another daughter got communications by Instagram messenger between August 2021 and January 2022. This daughter's then-partner got Instagram communications between September and December, 2021.

More than 170 unwanted communications were received by the five alleged victims. The messages contained serious threats to cause harm to family members and also contained references to family pets, locations the family frequented and demands for money," Gda Corcoran said.

Messages were handed in to court and the judge said she had read them. In one, allegedly sent to the partner of one of the sisters, there was a reference to sending cash and a photo of a man connected to a number of machines while in hospital.

Defence solicitor Stephen OMahony submitted a number of documents on his clients behalf. He said there was a confined period of alleged offending. The accuseds parents were in court with him.

Judge Kelly said having considered the alleged facts, she was not satisfied the district court had jurisdiction to deal with the case.

Refusing jurisdiction, she remanded the accused on continuing bail to a date next month for the DPPs consent for the case to be sent for trial to Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

The accused will be sent forward when the book of evidence is ready.

Mr OMahony asked the judge to impose reporting restrictions in the case, saying of the accused that there was a sensitive element to his well-being at the moment.

The garda said all the alleged victims were adults. The judge said it was not an appropriate case for reporting restrictions.
Thug James Kenny has been pictured sweeping streets and helping out at church-run community events

Cowardly career criminal Jim Kenny, from Ballymena was captured on cctv attacking a woman in home.

Cowardly career criminal Jim Kenny, from Ballymena was captured on cctv attacking a woman in home.

Cowardly woman-beating coke dealer James Kenny is helping out at a church in a bid to show hes a reformed character.

The convicted thug and serial drug offender has been pictured sweeping streets and helping out at church-run community events in Ballymena.

But sources in Ballymena have raised eyebrows at Kennys new-leaf-turning efforts, which come coincidentally just as he awaits sentencing for battering a woman in a shocking attack which was caught on camera.

Last month we revealed exclusive images of 60-year-old Kenny attacking a woman in a flat in Ballymena.

Hes facing a return to prison after he was convicted of two counts of assault as a result of that shameful incident.

Kenny will discover his fate today when he appears at Ballymena Magistrates Court to be sentenced.

Coke dealer James Kenny has made sure hes been photographed sweeping streets

The distressing video of the attack, which has no sound and lasts just over one minute, shows Kenny repeatedly punching the woman in the face before knocking her to the ground and laying into her in a property in the Co Antrim town.

The woman desperately tried to defend herself and seems to be pleading for him to stop, but the tattooed thug overpowered her with a serious of heavy blows to the head.

Kenny has had highly publicised run-ins with loyalists and other drug gangs in the last 20 years.

Its not the first time convicted thugs and drug dealers have turned to God after being convicted of serious crimes.

But people in the bible-belt town remain highly sceptical of Kennys motives, after he spent years torturing the town.

Coke dealer James Kenny

Kenny is a scumbag and you can either believe hes had a genuine change of heart and is now a decent, law-abiding citizen or you believe hes only doing it to try and stay out of jail, said a source.

Hes doing general community work for one of the churches in Ballykeel like sweeping alleyways and cleaning up after events but its funny he seems to always be photographed when hes doing it.

Hes going to church every Sunday too, which must be killing him, but you can guarantee this will all be brought up in court on Thursday.

Hes still a chancer and not many people are falling for his road to Damascus act.

The cocaine courier is no stranger to a jail cell after serving five years when he was caught red-handed doing a drug deal with Dwayne Mullan, the ex-partner of Peru drug courier Michaella McCollum.

Cowardly career criminal Jim Kenny, from Ballymena was captured on cctv attacking a woman in home.

Kenny  reportedly a father of eight  was filmed 15 years ago by police exchanging cash and cocaine with Mullan, who coincidentally also has a raft of convictions for beating up women.

Kenny has a previous conviction for possessing a firearm without a licence after cops found an air pistol in his house after a search in the aftermath of his drug deal with Mullan.

The Sunday Worldunderstands Kenny was also a close associate of Ballymena drugs kingpin Noel Johnston, who died after plunging 50ft in 2021 when he jumped out of an apartment window as police raided his flat.
Its understood those involved fled the scene in a car.

The incident took place at the junction on the Jobstown Road with Fortunestown Road (Image: Google Maps)

Gardai are seeking witnesses following a shooting incident in west Dublin on Tuesday night.

A number of shots were at approximately 7.25pm at the junction of Fortunestown Road and Jobstown Road in Tallaght, Dublin 24. Its understood those involved fled the scene in a car.

No-one was injured in the shooting.

The scene has been technically examined and local enquires are ongoing, gardai said.

Investigators at Tallaght Garda Station are appealing to anyone who may have information in relation to this incident to contact them.

Any person who was on the Fortunestown Road, Tallaght Road or in the vicinity of this area between 7pm and 8pm yesterday evening, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, and who may have mobile phone or dash cam footage, is asked to make this available to gardai.

Any person who may have information or footage is asked to contact Tallaght Garda Station on 01 666 6000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any garda station.
He is doing OK and being very brave about it but I don't think the whole brevity of the incident or shock has fully hit him yet

The family of a young teenager that was subjected to a horrific attack in Navan, Co Meath which was filmed and posted online have described the incident as vile.

The 14-year-old suffered concussion, broken teeth, extensive bruising in the assault which left him with a shoe print on his forehead.

The young man was only yards away from a family member's house to where he tried to crawl to safety as blows rained down on him by a group of teenagers from the same school.

One member of his family said: "No 14-year-old should be beaten like that for anything at all. He is only a child and it happened across the road from a family member, where he was trying to get to

"We are shocked, horrified and upset at what can happen in this day and age. It was a number of people against one boy, while others filmed it and posted it online. That is horrific and wrong.

"He is doing OK and being very brave about it but I don't think the whole brevity of the incident or shock has fully hit him yet.

"What happened is out there now and although what happened to him can't be undone, I hope something can be done so no other child suffers like this."

The video that later went viral on social media would be triggering for other kids subjected to bullying, a Dublin Senator has said.

Senator Mary Seery-Kearney, Fine Gael Seanad Spokesperson on Children, said social media images circulating of the teen being attacked by schoolmates as he tried to make his way across a green were appalling.

Speaking on RTE Radio this morning, the Senator added that the images would be triggering for children all around the country.

(There is) the fear of, could I be next, and the fear for those who have experienced bullying, is, is it going to be amplified up to that level and then posted online.

Senator Seery-Kearney who has previously said she could not remember the last times he had seen anything so distressing, said the fact the attack was filmed and posted on social media channels adds to the suffering of the child.

And then I suppose that's where the Digital Services Act comes in where social media platforms benefit from the amplification of this, she said.

The act is going to be very helpful (as) Ireland on its own couldn't legislate to regulate media social media platforms. This is an EU wide regulation (but) the fact is that social media platforms under the act are going to be obliged to explain their algorithms.

But at the heart of this is a human being and unfortunately lots of studies demonstrate that social media exposure to violence the exposure to video games that are violent dehumanises the experience of that real life person.

Speaking on Wednesday in Reykjavik, Leo Varadkar also condemned the incident.

It was horrifying really, and I think everyone would condemn it utterly, he said.

And he had a personal message for the teenage victim: I really want to send my solidarity out to the person who was harmed and injured in this way.

I would say to them that life does get better. It is very sad that people experience violence and bullying in school, but life does get better and Id say not to give up.

The Taoiseach added, however: I understand there is a garda investigation underway and that the victim has been treated for their injuries.

I would first of all, really ask anyone who has information to cooperate with the garda investigation.

And also I would really just say how sad I am that in this day and age we still see this kind of bullying and violence happening in our schools, Mr Varadkar said.

Youd hope that as time moves on, particularly with young people today being so progressive and so clued-in as to the world around them, that this wouldn't happen - but it still does, and I just really, really feel sorry for the young person who was attacked, and for their family.

Justice Minister Simon Harris spoke to the teenagers mother today.

The incident is believed to have happened at approximately 2.30pm on Monday afternoon. The boy was later brought to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda, where he received treatment for serious facial injuries.

A video of the incident is being shared online and shows a number of secondary school students punching and kicking the boy on the ground.

Gardai have said that they are aware of the shocking clip circulating on social media and are urging people not to share the video out of respect for the victim in this case.

An Garda Siochana is appealing to anyone with information on the assault to contact Navan Garda Station at 046 9079930.

Meanwhile, the Louth Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB), which is responsible for the school in question, has also confirmed that it is aware of the incident.

A spokesperson says the matter is currently under investigation by gardai and the Board can offer no further comment at this time.

Independent Councillor Nick Killian, who is a member of the Board of LMETB, told LMFM that the footage of the incident is distressing to watch as he condemned the unacceptable attack.

I obviously have to condemn, in the strongest possible way, that type of thuggery. It has to be dealt with, quite expeditiously obviously, by the school and those that were involved in it will have to be brought to heel and will have to face whatever rigours the school put in place, be it suspensions or whatever,

That is unacceptable and wont be tolerated by the LMETB and wont be tolerated by schools  not just the school in particular, but any schools around Co Meath or Co Louth.
Ultimately I was the brown guy with a funny name who a lot of people suspected might be gay

A still from the viral video showing the attack on the boy in Navan

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has made an emotional appeal to those who have a hard time in school following an incident in Navan in which a teenage boy was attacked by fellow students  telling them it gets better.

He said today he would have some insight into what it's like not to be the popular kid in school.

The attack involved a teenage schoolboy who suffered serious facial injuries in an assault by fellow students.

A video of the attack, which happened in the Navan, Co Meath, has gone viral on social media.

Asked today whether he had a personal response to the incident, the Taoiseach said: I grew up in 1980s/1990s Ireland."

"I had a great childhood  but ultimately I was the brown guy with a funny name who a lot of people suspected might be gay.

All Id say to the young man that was in that video I really feel for him.

Mr Varadkar said he hoped those who had a hard time in school or were struggling would learn that life does get better.

You get to go to college, you get to spend time with people who are much more like you, he said.

He said social media should not be scapegoated over the assault of the teenage schoolboy by fellow students in Navan.

A still from the viral video showing the attack on the boy in Navan

Gardai have requested people to refrain from sharing it out of respect for the victim.

The Taoiseach told Claire Byrne on RTE Radio One that social media companies had a significant role to play in monitoring such content and cancelling the accounts of people who post and repost things like this.

He said social media companies were not the only ones answerable for the content, but the parents of those involved must also take responsibility.

The Taoiseach also noted the number of bystanders to the situation who did not intervene.

Earlier today, Justice Minister Simon Harris said the attack that took place in Navan was unacceptable and should not happen to any person.

A spokesperson for Mr Harris confirmed the minister has spoken to the teenagers family last night.

"The minister shared his horror at the very brutal attack the young man endured.

"There is ongoing Garda investigation under way. However, it is clear the young man suffered significant injuries from a co-ordinated attack.

"That is unacceptable and should not happen to any person.

Gardai are investigating the assault, which occurred on Monday about 2:30pm.

The students school has initiated significant disciplinary procedures arising from the attack.

The attack did not happen on school grounds, but occurred as the teenager was walking across a nearby green.

"A male juvenile later attended Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda where he received treatment for serious facial injuries, the Garda Press Office stated.

"An Garda Siochana is aware of a video circulating on social media of this incident and, out of respect for the victim, has requested that people refrain from sharing it.

Gardai are appealing to any person with information on the assault to contact Navan Garda Station at 046 9079930.

The school attended by the students, Beaufort College, Navan, can be identified by the uniform worn by those involved in the incident.

The co-educational, multi-denominational school has about 790 pupils.

Independent.ie sought to contact Beaufort College for comment.

Louth Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB), the schools patron body, said it had advised the school to refer all queries to it.

LMETB said it was aware of an alleged incident which occurred in Navan on Monday last".

LMETB spokesperson Brian Murphy said later that significant disciplinary procedures have been initiated at school level and we await the outcome of due process.

The Taoiseach has also described the incident as horrific.

He added: I really want to send my solidarity out to the person who was harmed and injured in this way.

I would say to them that life does get better. It is very sad that people experience violence and bullying in school, but life does get better and Id say not to give up.
KHARTOUM, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan has inspected his soldiers at the SAF General Command in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, the SAF has announced.

A video clip posted on the SAF's Facebook page showed Al-Burhan appeared in a military uniform and was surrounded by a group of soldiers who were making victory signs. The timing of the video clip is not verified.

The SAF's General Command compound, which was the target of a surprise attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) soon after armed clashes broke out between the two sides on April 15, is home to several important command buildings for the ground troops, the military intelligence, the naval and air forces, the Defense Ministry as well as the guest house for the SAF's commander-in-chief.

The Sudanese Doctors Union said on Tuesday in a statement that the civilian death toll has climbed to 822 since April 15.

According to the United Nations, more than 936,000 people have been displaced by the conflict since April 15, including about 736,200 internally displaced persons, and about 200,000 people who took refuge in neighboring countries. 
Todd Talks

With Todd Muller

National MP

Opposition Leader Christopher Luxon has released Nationals plan to restore fiscal discipline, curtail wasteful spending and ensure that public finances are reported clearly. National will focus

on funding frontline services such as schools and hospitals.

Nationals leader has shared three initiatives aimed at ensuring fiscal discipline: Annual reports from Treasury on the performance and results of major programmes; clearly itemised receipts from IRD showing what tax has been paid, what credits have been received and where your taxes were spent in the public service; and government department CEOs and deputies will have their salaries linked to achievement, ensuring accountability and greater performance.

Government agencies should monitor programmes, collect data, and measure performance. The Auditor General has raised this consistently and has been calling for it for some time now.

Under National, Ministers would face public scrutiny for how well different programmes are working. Its taxpayers money  and we all deserve to know what its being spent on but unless youve worked in the machine in Wellington, or have trained for years in accounting or economics, its impossible to work out how much money the Government spends, and where it all goes.

New Zealands economic engine must start humming again and these initiatives will be part of Nationals process to restore the fiscal discipline that taxpayers deserve, and the economy needs.
A special gift marking the fifth anniversary of the passing of a Tauranga resident is helping a local wildlife trust rehabilitate birds found in critical condition and requiring special care.

Local wildlife experts from Western Bay Wildlife Trust - WBWT - who spent their summer rehabilitating little blue penguins that suffered dog attack wounds or washed ashore weak and starving on the beaches of the Bay of Plenty are delighted to now have a special wildlife incubator.

The trust has started to rehabilitate little blues and have been fortunate to receive equipment donations from members of public to enable them to undertake this work, says WBWT Korora & Mortality Research Project Manager Melissa McLuskie.

Rehabilitation of seabirds requires lots of special care and is resource and time-demanding with multiple feeds of fish, medications and swims on a daily basis."

A weak and exhausted little blue penguin resting in its 'towel donut' inside the incubator. Photo: Melissa McLuskie.

"WBWT is thankful to have collaboration and support from ARRC and has happily released seven penguins since January 2022.

The trust is heavily reliant on donations and funding grants to operate with all proceeds going back to the birds.

One significant donation was an incubator that can be used to help stabilise birds in critical condition.

The incubator was sponsored by the five daughters of Denise Cassin who passed away in October 2017.

Melissa McLuskie with a little blue penguin chick after a swim session. Photo: Supplied.

The daughters of Denise Cassin have provided the following eulogy.

Denise Cassin

Denise Cassin was born in Tauranga on January 20 1941, the eldest daughter of Frank and Thelma (nee Laurent).

Her father built many of the houses in the Bay of Plenty, and as a child she lived in Fraser Street, in a house built by Frank and designed by Thelma. Her parents spent their later lives in Goods Road.

In 1965 her vivacious nature led her, at the age of just 24, to set out on a journey to Europe to meet up with her sister Laurene who was traveling with a group of friends.

She flew to Sydney and then made the journey on the MV Fairsea to Southampton. Her travel diaries tell of much adventure, both at sea and on land. She met her future husband while in Athens, visiting the Acropolis.

A whirlwind romance led to the pair marrying in Guildford, England in 1966. And over the course of the next 20 years or so they had five daughters.

Denise Cassin. Photo: Supplied.

In 1973, the family journeyed to Denise's native New Zealand to live in Tauranga in a red brick house in Darraghs Road, Otumoetai. At this time there were three daughters.

Two attended St Marys Convent in 13th Avenue - the school Denise had herself attended as a child and where some of the same nuns were still teaching including her favourite music teacher Sister Theresa.

This sojourn to New Zealand lasted six years and in 1979, the family returned to England, settling near the coast in Devon.

Denise made frequent trips back home to her native country, ensuring the two younger daughters also had the NZ experience.

Her address book was full of names of the Kiwis she knew and had grown up with, she was very proud of her roots and determined to stay in touch. She made her last trip home in the early 2000s.

WBWT volunteer Vicki Woodcraft releasing little blue penguins at Shark Alley February 2023. Photo: Melissa McLuskie.

Denise was diagnosed with Alzheimers in 2003.

Her husband cared for her at their home in Bovey Tracey for many years until this became unmanageable and she went into a care home in 2013.

Her determination and strength saw her recover physically from a hip replacement in 2015. She was still laughing when we visited and walking again with her husbands help.

After being forced to move to another care home in early October, Denise stopped eating and passed away peacefully on October 15 2017 at Buckfastleigh, in Devon. In a final show of determination, despite not having eaten for days, she held on for some 35 hours while her eldest daughter travelled from Wellington to say goodbye.

Denises five daughters, the other four of whom live in the UK, decided to sponsor an incubator for Western Bay Wildlife Trust to aid little blue penguin rehabilitation in the Bay of Plenty to mark the fifth anniversary of Denises passing.

Little blue penguins

Little blue penguins in the Bay of Plenty have been washing ashore weak, starving and hypothermic for the last three summers.

This is likely due to La Nina conditions, which can lead to more frequent storm events, warmer sea surface temperatures and lack of food, says Melissa.

Little blue penguins already have a high mortality rate and these extra challenging conditions can make it hard for vulnerable birds like fledglings heading out to sea for the first time or birds that have not gained sufficient weight before undertaking their annual moult.

Little blue penguins preparing for release. Photo: Melissa McLuskie.

Western Bay Wildlife Trust is a charitable conservation organisation dedicated to the protection of seabirds and shorebirds in the Western Bay of Plenty. The trust monitors little blue penguins, grey-faced petrel and NZ dotterel populations in Mount Maunganui.

They also offer a rescue service for the Western Bay of Plenty area for any penguins in distress, particularly during the day as they are most likely sick, starving or injured.

If you spot a penguin on the beach during the day please give it space and call 0800 SICK PENGUIN or 0800 DOC HOT for further advice. Do not attempt to put it back in the water or offer any food or water, says Melissa.

Whilst giving the bird some space, wait nearby until further advice is given and please keep dogs and people away.

To help support little blue penguin rescue and conservation efforts, people are encouraged to donate at www.westernbaywildlife.nz/donate/
New Zealand was warned 35 years ago about the effects of deforestation of hillsides, draining of wetlands and building behind stopbanks, a freshwater expert says.

Forest & Bird freshwater advocate Tom Kay read examples of the warnings from a post-cyclone report at a panel discussion at Whakatane Little Theatre last week, attended by about 100 people.

"Deforestation of hillsides has greatly accelerated widespread erosion. Afforestation (the planting of new trees) of the hill country probably represented the only economically viable erosion control option".

"Unwise intensive development behind stopbanks has often been encouraged. We're too reliant on stopbanks that have given people a false sense of security".

The report also stated: "Draining of wetlands has intensified flooding problems in many areas".

It was written in 1988 by New Zealand's first Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Helen Hughes and summarised the findings of an inquiry into flood mitigation measures following Cyclone Bola.

"The one lesson we took was that we should put forests back," Kay said. "But we put pine forest on very steep hill country and then we clear felled that forest.

"The lesson we need to learn this time is ... native forest needs to be our main focus on that hill country - and it needs to be quality native forest. We need to be doing pest control so that [the forest is] actually doing the job that it used to do."

Photo: Supplied/ Local Democracy Reporting/ Diane McCarthy.

Kay also read from a report written last year by a group of river experts, called Reanimating the Streams and Rivers of New Zealand.

"They concluded that working against nature does not work. We may inadvertently be manufacturing future disasters.

"And moving out of harm's way saves lives," he read.

Kay, who grew up in Napier, spoke first about his own family's recent experience during Cyclone Gabrielle flooding.

Now living in Wellington, he recalled watching the flow gauge for the Tutaekuri River on the Hawke's Bay Regional Council website on the morning of 14 February, as Cyclone Gabrielle was "smashing the region".

"I was refreshing the regional council website, trying to figure out if the river was still rising or falling, because my family lives just downstream from the gauge in Taradale, about 600 metres away from the stopbank."

He said the river was flowing at more than 1800 cubic metres per second when the gauge failed.

"That's 1800 tonnes of water flowing past a single point every second. It probably got higher than that."

His family got off lightly compared to the "massive devastation" others in the region suffered, having their homes yellow-stickered.

While acknowledging that flooding at various places throughout New Zealand in the past couple of years had been caused by extreme weather events due to climate change, he said it was also how we managed our environment that led to flooding.

The country had lost 90 percent of its wetlands, "which are those sponges in the landscape that absorb water during heavy rain and slowly release water during droughts. We've cleared the forests and introduced pests to those forests that are left - which means that those forests don't absorb water like they used to.

"We've severely modified the rivers of our plains. We've straightened them, hemmed them in. We were trying to get the water out to sea as quickly as possible, to drain the landscape."

Kay showed a series of aerial photos of rivers from many places throughout New Zealand, both historically and how they look in the present day, showing how they had been changed from "meandering, rippling, pooling," braided rivers, hundreds of meters wide in places, to straight canals.

He compared them to photos taken after flooding, where the river had returned to its historic paths.

"We have created a false sense of security. We've got rivers perched up above their flood plains and we've built right up next to the stopbank.

He showed examples of projects both internationally and in New Zealand where stopbanks had been set wider apart to allow for wetlands, riparian areas, and more space for the river to self-adjust.

The Netherlands, the country most associated with engineering of waterways, was leading the world in this work, he said.

The panel discussion was one of many Forest & Bird events being held throughout New Zealand to celebrate the organisation's centenary.

Eastern Bay Forest & Bird spokesman Mark Fort said the event was a great success and it was great to see people networking and talking after the event.

What the panel said

Bay of Plenty Regional Council Chairman Doug Leeder said it was important the discussion was taking place, and agreed higher stopbanks were not the answer.

"It's absolutely invaluable and as far as the regional council goes, it's our bread and butter stuff in terms of trying to address the issues that Tom's put in front of you. I wouldn't disagree with one thing that he has said.

"If we think we can keep going higher and higher, we're kidding ourselves. So, it's what we do, going forward, that is the critical thing that we need community input about."

Leeder said the regional council was having conversations with landowners further up the catchments across the Bay of Plenty about allowing the river to go wider.

"Some of those people have big investments. Some people along the Whakatane River, up here in the Tuhoe country, they're losing hectares of their land every year from erosion, from the extra volume and the speed of the waters coming down.

"Those people are reluctant to let that go, but it's a hard conversation we've got to have with them.

"The regional council is out there. We're doing this. There's not one size that fits all, but catchment by catchment we're moving around the communities to endeavour to address some of the issues that Tom's put in front of you."

Another panelist was environmental engineer and farmer Peter Askey. He has spent his career of more than 40 years working on systems such as river controls, stormwater and culverts, and has farmed alongside his family, who have worked the Bay of Plenty's Rangitaiki Plains for more than 70 years.

He said New Zealand needed to get the balance right between providing space for our rivers and maintaining our way of life.

"The concept of making room for rivers is great. I'm sure you'll all agree with that, until it's your place that you've been asked to move - to give up your land, your farm, your whenua, your marae. Suddenly the conversation is an awful lot more difficult."

Askey said flood plain lands had extremely productive soils.

"They pay our bills. We all want a First World health system, great public transport. Something's got to pay for that."

He said pest control in the upper catchments of Eastern Bay rivers was something that needed addressing.

"Last year, a number of us across the three river schemes wrote an open letter to the regional council ... because we were concerned that, as river scheme users, we were having to invest large sums of money into our river schemes but their capacity was being degraded because of the condition of those forests.

"I'd like to say that was well received, but it wasn't. It was batted away."

University of Otago sustainable business economics programme lecturer Mawera Karetai currently leads the social research for the GNS project Our Changing Coast.

She said New Zealand's entire economic model needed to change.

"The focus on constant growth is at the heart of the problem and yet we are still talking about growth.

"At the moment, our economy runs us and is outside our ecological limits. It is running us into unacceptable suffering."

She was also critical of the current emissions trading scheme as it encouraged the planting of more pine forests.

"There are a lot of people making a lot of money out of carbon credits, promoting pine as the solution to the problem that pine created."

How can widening rivers be achieved?

The discussion was opened to questions from the audience and Rangitaiki Plains dairy farmer Alan Law asked whether there was any political appetite for making room for rivers and how it was to be funded.

Kay said it would require central government funding, however the decisions needed to be led by communities.

"We have highly inflated land values in New Zealand because our economy is based on capital gains. That's hard to overcome because we have low rates bases for councils, so public entities don't have the money to compensate people with the prices they expect.

"It's going to require some central government intervention: We need to ask ourselves, do we want it to be a cost that comes to us catastrophically through a big event, or do we want it to be a cost that we pay in advance? The evidence from places where this has been done and where it works seems to be that it's really important that it is community led and decided.

"Communities need to have the information, look at where the rivers used to be, look at where streams and wetlands used to be, look at flood zone maps. Then ask, where do we want to be and not want to be? Rather than someone telling you all to get off the flood plain or whatever, because that's never going to work."

He said managed retreat had been done the latter way after the Christchurch earthquake.

"It was pretty much: 'Right, everyone out of the red zone'. Maybe that is what will happen after Gabrielle. But ideally, managed retreat is done in advance and done collectively in a community kind of way."

Leeder talked about the public pressure local councils faced to allow building in flood-prone areas and leave important information out of LIM reports.

He also talked about the cost of managed retreat in Matata.

"The unfortunate people who built, because they were given building permits after the adverse event at Matata, they built their houses in good faith. Five years down the track, the local council said, 'well, the debris dam that we were going to put in place is not going to work, you're all going to have to go'.

"Shifting those people was a tripartite settlement between the regional council, Department of Internal Affairs and Whakatane District Council. It cost us, collectively, over $20 million.

"So the scale of the challenges in front of us, not just as a region but the country is really large. I don't have the answers as to how someone's going to do it. But I can guarantee it's going to take a long time and we shouldn't expose individuals to the cost, because ultimately, they met the planning requirements of the time."

-Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.
The finalists for the 2023 Fieldays Innovation Awards have been announced across three categories, with 49 entrants standing to win a total prize package of cash, services, and products worth more than $60,000 to help launch their new product.

Showcased at the Fieldays Innovation Hub, the Fieldays Innovation Awards are the ultimate launch platform for Primary Innovation and are a globally renowned awards programme judged by a panel of 15 sector experts who represent a wide range of experience from around the NZ innovation eco-system.

This year's awards promise to showcase some of the most innovative ideas and technologies in the agricultural industry.

"We are thrilled to announce the finalists for this year's Fieldays Innovation Awards," says Fieldays Programme Manager Steve Chappell.

"Its fantastic to see entries of such a high calibre again in the awards 55th year. Im sure visitors will be wowed by the innovation on display in the Fieldays Innovation Hub and on the Fieldays Innovation Trail. The awards have been the launchpad for plenty of unique, global-quality, innovative solutions over the years, and this year will be no different.

Fieldays has been an integral part of the Riverwatch journey, supporting us through our development, awarding us the Prototype Award in 2017, and the Growth & Scale Award last year. Our company would not be in the position that it is now without this support from the Southern Hemisphere's largest agricultural event, says Abi Croutear-Foy, Chief Growth Officer at RiverWatch.

This year we have solutions related to cyclone response, health and safety on farm, and water testing, along with AI farm support, and compliance and regulatory apps and programs.

The global financial crisis has also been on the mind of innovators with practical solutions being sought for better efficiency and ways to combat labour shortages across the food and fibre sector.

This year finalists ranging from individuals, local Waikato companies, and New Zealand-based global companies, to entries from around World: UK, Australia, USA and Switzerland, have been selected to showcase their innovations in three categories.

A total of 25 Finalists have been chosen in the Prototype category, offering the critical opportunity to test new products and process development through exposure at Fieldays - three of which are also in the running for the Young Innovator of the Year award for entrants 19 years old and under.

The Early-Stage category, which recognises a primary industry product or service that hasnt been commercialised for more than 12 months, has seen 16 finalists chosen.

And eight finalists have been announced in Growth & Scale, a category designed to recognise successful innovation products or services looking to grow through new markets, exports, or increased supply chain.

"All of the finalists have demonstrated impressive innovation and commitment to the agricultural industry," says Chappell.

"We can't wait to see who comes out on top to take home the prize packages, a boost that could help them continue to grow and develop their ideas."

Winners will be announced at the Innovation Awards Function during Fieldays.

The finalists entries can be viewed at the Fieldays Innovation Hub at Mystery Creek between 14  17 June. Additionally, the Fieldays Innovation Trail can be turned on in the Fieldays App to explore Innovation Award entries at the exhibitors sites.

For more information visit Fieldays.co.nz.

Finalists in their award categories are:

Prototype:

Innovation Hub: ABMAN, AgriAI, AgriSea NZ, Alps2Ocean Foods Tapui, Bactosure, DairyNZ (x6), Delta Waterways, EMNZ, Landkind, Pivotal Innovations, SPS Automation, St Paul's Collegiate School (x3), TC Fence Systems, Tokaora Diagnostics, XOVR Bikes.

Innovation Trail: Gallagher Group, Ravensdown, Waikato Milking Systems.

Early-Stage:

Innovation Hub: 5th Biz Agri, Agilis Vets, Agriscore, Bovonic, FARM MEDIX, Feed Finder, Hemprino, Nanobubble Agritech, Perkinz (x2), REM Analytics, Rewild, Verdi New Zealand.

Innovation Trail: Aimer Farming, Chillerman, Waiora Research/eClean

Growth & Scale:

Innovation Hub: Ag-drive (UK), CNH Industrial, HALO Systems, Koru Diagnostics, smaXtec, Springarm Products

Innovation Trail: Levno, Wilderlab NZ
Police Search and Rescue squads have been recognised for their exceptional professionalism and expertise, at the annual New Zealand Search and Rescue Awards.

The awards were presented by the Hon Kiri Allan, Associate Minister for Transport, this week.

The Northland Police SAR Squad and the Police National Dive Squad were awarded the Gold Award - Operational for the rescue of 10 people from the vessel Enchanter near North Cape/Otou between March 20-21 2022.

Police National Dive Squad and Southern District Police were awarded Certificates of Achievement for their role in the search for a missing tramper near Milford Sound/Piopiotahi between March 27-31 2022.

Kiri Allan and Representatives from Northland SAR Groups.

Waikato District Police were also awarded for the rescue of three adults and two children from the Tairua Harbour bar on January 5, 2022.

Moreover, two Certificates of Achievement - Support were awarded to Senior Constable Peter Cunningham and Detective Senior Sergeant John Wilson. The certificates recognised their exceptional service and commitment to search and rescue operations in the Waiparapara and Bay of Plenty SAR regions, respectively.

The awards were presented by the Hon Kiri Allan, Associate Minister for Transport.

Our Police SAR experts work with networks of volunteers and specialist organizations to reunite the lost, missing, or injured with their loved ones, says Operations and Emergency Management manager Inspector Craig Rendel.

These awards are a testament to the dedication and expertise of our teams who work to ensure the safety and wellbeing of those in need. Every team member and individual who was acknowledged at last night's awards should feel incredibly proud of the recognition they have received.

The Enchanter rescue was one of the operations recognised with the Gold Award - Operational.

This rescue involved an extensive 46-hour search and rescue operation following a distress call from the charter fishing vessel Enchanter, which had capsized near North Cape Otou with 10 men on board.

"I knew there was an issue straight away with the weather front that was crossing Northland. The weather was so bad that the closest vessels wouldnt leave harbour. The rescue helicopters coming out of Auckland were delayed for a couple of hours because of the weather," says Senior Sergeant Cliff Metcalfe, who was head of SAR in Northland District at the time of the rescue.

I cant praise the dive squad enough for their professionalism and their attention to detail."

Cliff says it was a massive effort by all those involved, not only from the SAR and Dive Squad members but a whole Police and Northland District approach from the time the incident unfolded.

There was a real determination to try to get closure on this. Recovering all the members from the boat finalised it.

Kiri Allan and Sergeant Tod Hollebon.

Thanks to the work of all those involved, five lives were saved, and the deceased could be returned to their families.

The quality of this years Award winners is exceptional, says New Zealand Search and Rescue Secretariat Director Duncan Ferner.

These people and groups represent the very best of the search and rescue sector in 2022.

Some of these individuals have worked diligently, often for years, to ensure that people in distress have a higher probability of being found. Others have supported people to get involved in search and rescue. Others have headed out into atrocious weather conditions to rescue people at risk.

Every one of them has sacrificed time with their family and friends to provide a vital service to New Zealand. Without their efforts, fewer families would be reunited or loved ones returned home.

Kiri Allan and Detective Constable Ben Pye.

Kiri Allan and Representatives from Southern District SAR Groups.

Kiri Allan and Senior Constable Peter Cunningham.

Kiri Allan and winners of 2022 NZSAR Awards.
Illegally harvested timber traders will no longer be tolerated in New Zealand.

A new Act will stop the import of illegally harvested timber and also provides the international market with confidence in New Zealands timber and timber products by introducing a new legislative framework for legal harvest assurance.

Forestry Minister Peeni Henare says the Act cements New Zealands position on combating the trade of illegally harvested timber, which is a significant problem globally.

The trade in illegally harvested timber is a major problem in the world today. Approximately 15 to 30 per cent of the global timber trade involves illegally harvested timber. Illegal logging not only destroys forests and degrades ecosystems, but it also strips the economic livelihood of local communities and responsible companies.

By introducing a legal harvest assurance system for timber products, New Zealand is taking a tangible step to support international efforts to stamp out the trade in illegally harvested timber products and provide assurance that our country is committed to trading only in legally harvested timber.

The legal harvest assurance system will require forest owners, log traders, primary processors, timber exporters and importers to provide assurance the timber they are dealing with has been legally harvested or sourced from timber that has been legally harvested.

At the same time, it provides importers and our domestic processors and exporters with a government assurance framework to support their businesses that will demonstrate that they have completed due diligence on the legal harvest of the timber products they are trading.

The Act is also needed to quash the importation of illegally harvested timber products. With a rising volume of imported timber products, it is important to ensure these products are sourced from legally harvested forests overseas.

Henare says major trading partners such as Australia, United States, the European Union, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Japan and Republic of Korea have implemented or are developing their own legislation to prevent the trade of illegal harvested timber.

This assurance system will bring us in line with these countries to ensure the protection of New Zealands forestry and wood processing sector. We export nearly 85 per cent of our timber products to these countries. Without a legislative scheme for legal harvest, we run the risk that we can no longer export to these markets.

The Act allows for up to three years for commencement and a further 12 months for compliance. The Ministry for Primary Industries and Te Uru Rakau  New Zealand Forestry Service will be administering and facilitating its implementation.

During this time, officials will consult and engage with industry to develop regulations that are practical yet robust.
Like so many others, Detective Senior Sergeant John Wilson joined Police thinking hed be saving lives. In SAR, he finds himself doing exactly that.

For more than two decades John has been at the heart of search and rescue in Rotorua  improving capabilities, innovating, mentoring the next generation and, ultimately, finding people and saving lives.

Hes now been recognised for that service and commitment with a Certificate of Achievement - Support Activity in the 2022 NZ Search and Rescue Awards.

While search and rescue may have seemed like an obvious area for John, a passionate hunter, he says joining wasnt something he ever envisaged.

I didnt take the normal progression of becoming a SAR member, but it gets under your skin a bit.

Theres not many roles where you can say you are responsible for saving lives. In SAR, you get the opportunity to do that and are sometimes the difference between life and death.

John has been a part of dozens of these operations.

The good work stories from SAR also helps to offset some of the tougher stuff you deal with in CIB.

SAR is real hearts and mind stuff - a good SAR job is instant gratification.

The two roles have also had their share of crossover, moving from search to investigations.

On one occasion a man confessed to a murder, saying he had buried the body in a remote area.

Every time I drove past the area I would wonder, and one Sunday I got a phone call to say remains had been found which matched the missing person.

After 26 years we returned him home. That one was like a homicide in reverse, we got the body at the end, after the offender had been to jail.

Some jobs stand out more than others, says John.

Theres a degree of gut but a search is the ultimate mystery. You might have an idea and there is a lot of science but its not until you actually find them that you know where theyve been. It never ceases to surprise me.

John is quick to point out hes but one cog in a big machine.

I have been lucky. There have been a lot of people that could have died and didnt, and whether that is good management or luck I dont know  Im just grateful.

But theres also been those that havent ended happily.

The death of an elderly woman whose body was found after a seven-day search spurred John to introduce WanderSearch - a small tracking device worn by someone at risk of wandering off and getting lost  in the region.

John founded the WanderSearch Charitable Trust and has since seen the benefits of the technology for many people - carrying the device might mean the difference between a search taking days, or just a few hours.

That desire to improve was also the impetus for setting up water rescue squads in the area.

Rotorua SAR has responsibility for something like 17 navigable waterways, some of which are quite hard to access. These make a real difference in a situation where every minute makes a difference.

After two decades, theres one job that continues to weigh on John  a woman who went missing more than a decade ago and hasnt been found despite extensive searches.

John remains in touch with the womans father and says he is still disappointed they never found her, despite all of the efforts.

Bay of Plenty District Commander Superintendent Tim Anderson says it's fantastic to see John recognised for his immense contribution and commitment to search and rescue across the Bay of Plenty over many years.

"Whilst John says hes one cog in a big machine, hes been a vital leader in reuniting missing people with their loved ones.

"This is also a great opportunity to reflect on the tremendous people - both volunteers in our communities and Police officers - who make up the search and rescue machine around New Zealand. These are people who drop everything in their own time to go and find missing people."

-Police Ten One Magazine.
Bay of Plenty

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Police are appealing for information after a body was located in Tauranga on Tuesday.

Tauranga Police are making enquiries after a deceased man was located on Tuesday May 16 in Mount Maunganui.

At around 7.45am, Police were notified that a body was located by a member of the public near the Whareroa boat ramp.

Police have since confirmed the identity of the man. He was Eugene Nicholas, 37, of Tauranga.

"Police extend their condolences to his family and friends at this difficult time," says a police spokesperson.

"Police are now investigating the exact circumstances that led to Mr Nicholas' death, which is currently being treated as unexplained.

"Anyone who was in the area at the time, or has information that can assist Police in our enquiries is asked to come forward."

Police would also like to hear from anyone who saw or spoke with Eugene in the week leading up to May 16.

Information can be provided to Police on 105, or anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

Please reference file number 230516/6200.

A post made to the Whareroa Marae Tauranga Moana Facebook page says Whareroa Beach is now under a rahui for two weeks commencing from Tuesday until May 30.

"Therefore, please do not conduct any water activities including fishing and swimming during this RAHUI," the post reads.

"The appropriate karakia and tikanga ritual was conducted by Pahu Akuhata and Charlie Timutimu. We are grateful for their support."
Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. After the meeting, the two heads of state witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in science and technology, customs and other fields. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday met with Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Xi welcomed Berdimuhamedov to China for the China-Central Asia Summit. He recalled Berdimuhamedov's successful state visit to China in January this year, during which they announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership and the practice of the vision of a community with a shared future at the bilateral level, opening a new chapter in China-Turkmenistan relations.

The year 2023 is the first year for China to fully implement the guiding principles set out at the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. The Party will rally and lead the Chinese people in advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization, said Xi.

Noting that Turkmenistan recently held successful parliamentary elections, concluding an important domestic political agenda, Xi said the country is marching toward the "revival of a new era of a powerful state" under the leadership of Berdimuhamedov.

Over the past 31 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties, China and Turkmenistan have carried out friendly cooperation based on the principles of mutual respect and mutual benefit, said Xi, adding that the bilateral relationship enjoys enormous potential and broad prospects.

China is ready to work with Turkmenistan to keep bringing the relationship forward for greater benefits of the two peoples, said Xi.

Noting that China has always been a trustworthy friend and partner of Turkmenistan, Xi said both sides should fully leverage their complementary advantages, unleash the potential for cooperation, and expand the depth, width and scale of their cooperation across the board.

He said China is willing to expand cooperation with Turkmenistan in areas such as economy, trade, natural gas and connectivity, and to explore high-tech cooperation in fields like communications and aerospace.

China supports more Chinese companies in investing and doing business in Turkmenistan, Xi said, adding that both sides should deepen people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

The Chinese president pointed out that China and Central Asian countries are a community with a shared future.

China expects to work with the five Central Asian countries for a successful China-Central Asia Summit to promote the steady development of China-Central Asia cooperation and to maintain peace, stability and long-term security in the region, Xi said.

Berdimuhamedov said that Turkmenistan highly values its comprehensive strategic partnership with China and is willing to align its initiative to revive the Great Silk Road with the Belt and Road Initiative.

Berdimuhamedov called for deepening cooperation in key fields such as energy and innovation.

The Turkmen president said the China-Central Asia mechanism will provide new opportunities for deepening friendship and cooperation, and will also have great significance for the world.

He went on to say that Turkmenistan is willing to closely communicate and cooperate with China, jointly address challenges, and promote regional security, stability and development.

After the meeting, the two heads of state witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in science and technology, customs and other fields.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang took part in the events. 
Police arrest partner following manhunt after woman was found stabbed to death in Torremolinos The foreign national the police were searching for allegedly killed the 28-year-old victim, who he lived with

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National Police force officers are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a 28-year-old woman, whose body was found today (17 May) in a Torremolinos building.

Police were searching for her partner as the alleged perpetrator of the crime, so the protocol was activated for a possible case of gender violence.

The incident was discovered this Wednesday morning in the Carihuela area. According to the initial investigations, the victim - a Spanish woman - was allegedly stabbed by her partner, who she lived with.

The man, an Italian national, was detained after a manhunt involving a large number of police officers was mounted in the area.

Ampliar Police guarding the entrance to the property where the incident happened. I. Quirante

The town council has declared a day of official mourning following the incident. It has issued a decree "on the occasion of the confirmation of the murder by gender violence of the 28-year-old woman, resident in the municipality, and murdered by her partner in the neighbourhood of La Carihuela". It has declared an official period of mourning in Torremolinos from this Wednesday until 1.30pm on 18 May, during which the exterior flags of all municipal buildings will fly at half mast. In addition, the council has called a minute of silence at the door of the town hall on Thursday, the 18th, at 12noon. The council has also offered the condolences of the town to the relatives and friends of the victim.
Popular television series puts out casting call for British expats on the Costa del Sol If you have relocated from the UK to Spain and want to share your story then now is your chance

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A British television programme that follows the lives of expats who have opted for a low-cost life full of fun in the sun is on the lookout for participants to feature for a new series.

The Channel 5 show Bargain Loving Brits in the Sun put out a call for expats living on the Costa del Sol or Costa Blanca who want to tell their story on television.

"Love your new life in Spain? Have a business or career or voluntary work that you're proud of? Enjoying your retirement in the sun? Have a casa or caravan that's your ideal home? In the process of relocating from the UK to Spain? Or do you just want to share your story of your new life in the sun?," the series advertised.

Bargain Loving Brits in the Sun first aired on January 5 in 2016. The travel show captures the lives of various English expats in Spain in 60-minute episodes.

The programme is searching for participants to be involved in its 11th series. If you're interested you can email sofie.hegreolsen@redsaucetv.com
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) -- On an afternoon in late October 2022, President Xi Jinping visited Yinxu, or the Yin Ruins, during his inspection tour to Anyang City in central China's Henan Province.

Situated on the banks of the Huanhe River in Anyang, the 3,300-year-old Yin Ruins have been confirmed as the capital site of the late Shang (Yin) Dynasty (1600 B.C.-1046 B.C.). They are the first ruins of their kind to receive such confirmation in the Chinese history.

Walking slowly into the Yinxu Museum, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, attentively observed the bronze ware, jade ware, oracle bone inscriptions, and other unearthed relics.

Oracle bone inscriptions are among the relics unearthed at the Yin Ruins. Xi pointed out that oracle bone inscriptions retained evidence of the Chinese written language from 3,000 years ago, helping to extend recorded Chinese history to nearly 1,000 years earlier than previously believed.

"I have long been yearning to visit here. This time I come here to gain a deeper understanding of the Chinese civilization so that we can make the past serve the present, and draw inspiration for better building modern Chinese civilization," he said.

First discovered in 1899, oracle bone inscriptions are considered one of the world's four ancient characters and have been included in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.

In November 2019, Xi sent a congratulatory letter on the 120th anniversary of the discovery of oracle bone inscriptions, describing them as the roots of fine traditional Chinese culture and saying that the discovery is of epoch-making significance in Chinese civilization and even in human civilization.

"With a long and continuous history stretching back to antiquity, the Chinese civilization shaped our great nation, and this nation will continue to be great," he said during the visit.

Since assuming the Party's top job in November 2012, Xi has shown great concern for the preservation of cultural relics and visited multiple museums during his domestic inspections, making a series of important instructions for the work in this regard.

On Tuesday, Xi visited the Yuncheng Museum in north China's Shanxi Province. He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization and improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage.

Over the years, the protection and utilization of cultural relics from the Yin Ruins have been strengthened. Among the programs is a new museum, which is under construction on the north bank of the Huanhe River.

Once completed, the new museum will be well-equipped to showcase the profound civilization of the Shang Dynasty as well as its contribution to the world. 
Rena Murshud

A trilateral meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia (Jeyhun Bayramov, Sergey Lavrov and Ararat Mirzoyan) will take place on May 19 in Moscow, and separate negotiations between Baku and Yerevan will also take place. This was stated on Wednesday at a briefing by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, Azernews reports.

"On May 19, Moscow will host trilateral and separate bilateral meetings between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia. Bilateral Azerbaijani- Armenian negotiations on a peace treaty will be held separately." - Zakharova said.

The diplomat noted that the parties at the meeting will discuss the prospects for the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia "taking into account the dynamic situation in the region."

"There will be a substantive discussion of the implementation of the tripartite agreements of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, which are the basis for this trilateral process, dated November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021 and October 31 last 2022, including the unblocking of transport and economic ties, the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, preparation of a peace treaty between countries, as well as contacts between the public, experts and parliamentarians," she added.

Zakharova also informed that in the course of separate meetings between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts, "an exchange of views on the most pressing issues of the bilateral and international agenda" is planned.

"We hope that the upcoming contacts will help to promote Baku and Yerevan in resolving disputes, searching for mutually acceptable solutions and generally increasing trust between the parties, as well as strengthening and stability in the South Caucasus," the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry concluded.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. The two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks with visiting Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, where the two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era.

Japarov is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi welcomed Japarov to China for the summit and the state visit. He recalled their two meetings last year, which produced important common understandings on China-Kyrgyzstan relations and cooperation in various areas. These common understandings are being implemented effectively, providing strong momentum for bilateral relations, Xi said.

Xi said Japarov has been working tirelessly to develop the economy, improve people's well-being, and promote reconciliation between different political forces since assuming office, which won him the support of the Kyrgyz people.

Xi expressed confidence that under the leadership of Japarov, Kyrgyzstan is bound to achieve new progress in all undertakings.

Noting that the China-Kyrgyzstan relationship has traveled a 31-year journey, Xi said China is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a China-Kyrgyzstan community with a shared future of good neighborliness and shared prosperity, carry out cooperation in all dimensions, and contribute to the development and vitalization of both countries.

Xi said China and Kyrgyzstan should strengthen mutual support, particularly by giving unequivocal and strong support to each other on issues concerning their respective core interests.

Xi called for advancing pragmatic cooperation in various fields with joint high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative.

He spoke of the need to deepen cooperation to enhance connectivity and start the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway at an early date.

China is willing to increase the import of quality agricultural products from Kyrgyzstan and encourage more Chinese companies to invest and do business in Kyrgyzstan, Xi said.

Xi called for strengthening security cooperation to provide a safe and sound environment for jointly advancing Belt and Road cooperation and the development of the two countries.

Japarov said he believes that China will surely gain new and glorious achievements in various fields under President Xi's strong leadership and that China will play an even more important role in the world.

The China-Kyrgyzstan relationship is now at its best in history, Japarov said, adding that Kyrgyzstan firmly supports China's position on issues related to Taiwan, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and other core interests.

Kyrgyzstan supports the Global Security Initiative and the Global Development Initiative, and stands ready to work with China to jointly boost the security and development of the two countries and the region, Japarov said.

The Kyrgyz president said Kyrgyzstan will spare no effort in providing a safe and sound investment environment for Chinese companies.

He said the elevation of bilateral relations will take the China-Kyrgyzstan mutually beneficial cooperation across the board to a new level.

Japarov said he is willing to work with China to jointly build the China-Central Asia Summit into a new platform for forging closer bilateral and regional cooperation between Central Asian countries and China.

After the talks, the two presidents signed a joint declaration on elevating the bilateral relationship and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in fields such as economy, trade, industrial development and investment, customs, agriculture and culture.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang attended the events. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. The two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. After the talks, the two presidents signed a joint declaration on elevating the bilateral relationship and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in fields such as economy, trade, industrial development and investment, customs, agriculture and culture. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)
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Micron Technology has announced plans to invest about $3.6 billion on memory chip production in Japan.

The company announced the plans Thursday ahead of a summit of leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies in Hiroshima starting Friday, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Micron will get about $1.5 billion in incentives from the Japanese government for the work, according to Bloomberg.

The company already has a plant in Hiroshima and employs more than 4,000 engineers and technicians in Japan.

Micron said it will be the first chip maker to use a process called EUV lithography in Japan. The company has said it will use the same cutting edge technology in the four massive chip plants it plans to build in the town of Clay.

EUV machines cost $250 million or more, and are manufactured by just one company in the world, ASML, in the Netherlands.

If fully built, the plants in Clay, just north of Syracuse, will employ 9,000 people. Officials say the project will lead to another 41,000 construction and support jobs in the region. Micron says it expects to invest up to $100 billion in Clay over the next 20 years.

The United States was heavily involved in setting up the deal amid rising tensions with China over chips, the Journal said. The U.S. recently imposed restrictions meant to slow Chinas chip ambitions and has been encouraging investments elsewhere.

Micron itself has already been caught up in the tensions. China launched a cybersecurity investigation of the company after the U.S. first made moves to curb the nations chip efforts.

Micron, a leading manufacturing of computer memory chips based in Boise, Idaho,

Microns chips end up in everything from cell phones to missile systems. The company stands to receive billions in incentives for its Clay project.

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Syracuse, N.Y.  Fred and Sharyn Strickland were driving south on Route 48 to their hotel after visiting their five grandchildren and their parents in Fulton.

The couple, who are from Maine, said they know the Oswego County road well because they had traveled it numerous times since their son and his family moved to Fulton two years ago.

It was raining so hard that Sunday evening that Fred remembered he was driving slower.

The last thing Sharyn remembers is a flash of headlights.

A car heading north crossed over the middle lines of the two-lane road into the southbound lane, colliding with the couples 2014 Chrysler Town and Country minivan that was going south.

The crash on April 30 killed the driver of the car, Rylee Bartlett, 17, and badly injured a passenger, Brady Niver, 16. Brady and the couple were all rushed to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse.

Brady, who was school sweethearts with Rylee at G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, died eight days later.

Fred, 71, and Sharyn, 69, survived the crash, but remain in the hospital as they recover from their injuries.

Fred and Sharyn talked this week to Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard from their hospital room the two share about the crash and their recovery.

They say they have been touched by an outpouring of support from the Oswego County community. People they dont know have sent cards with get wells, flowers and balloons. Many have also donated to their GoFundMe to help pay for their medical expenses.

They both made it clear they dont blame anyone for the crash and recognize that it was an accident. The rain was so heavy that day that Fred said he remembers being extra cautious, driving slower than the speed limit as a safety precaution.

Fred said he saw the crash unfold. He said the other car, a 2010 Dodge Journey, started to slide into their lane. He recalls hitting the brakes as hard as he could, swerving to avoid a collision. The couples minivan hit a guardrail, he said.

The two vehicles collided.

When the vehicles came to a rest, Fred said he looked out of his shattered driver side window to see the other car about eight to 10 feet away.

Fred said he looked over to his wife and saw she was motionless. He thought she was dead. It turned out the crash had knocked her out.

Soon, emergency crews swarmed the scene. Fred said he asked his wife be treated before him.

Sharyn said she doesnt remember the crash other than the flash of lights. She didnt know she had been in an accident until they told her at the hospital.

Freds right leg was injured from his hip to his foot, he said. Doctors operated on his leg in two stages, first working on his hip down to his knee and later operating from his knee to his foot, he said.

Sharyn said she has injuries all over and is recovering from wrist surgery she underwent Saturday. She still cant walk following the accident and is in a wheelchair, the couple said.

Sharyn Strickland remains in the hospital this week following a car accident on April 30, 2023 in Oswego County that injured her and her husband, Fred Strickland. (Photo Courtesy of James A. Strickland)

They said their familys love and support has been outstanding, with their grandchildren all offering up their own rooms for when they are both discharged from the hospital.

The Stricklands, who are from Caribou, Maine, said they enjoy traveling, visiting historical sites and nature.

Fred spent 21 years in the United States Air Force and worked with Civil Air Patrol for 17 years. Since 2017, hes worked as an assistant professor of cybersecurity and computer science at the University of Maine at Presque Isle.

Sharyn worked as a substitute teacher before she retired in 2017.

The couple have a son, who is married and has five children, ranging from pre-school to middle school.

The couple was in Central New York celebrating a milestone of their oldest granddaughter: She was getting baptized.

The couple said it saddened them to learn that Rylee, and then later Brady, had died.

Fred and Sharyn said they hold onto their strong faith while processing the deaths of the two teens at such a young age.

Were seeking and embracing the comfort that comes from God, Fred said.

The Stricklands said that was something they talked about with Bradys mom, Heather Higgins Niver. She visited the couple while they were in the hospital and Brady was still there too.

Fred said Heather spoke of having faith and trusting that God will take care of everything. It was a short visit, but in that time, he said they all shared a mutual encouragement for each other.

We assured her that we were praying for them, for [Brady] to recover, Fred said. And she assured us that she was praying for us too.

Fred and Sharyn Strickland are pictured with their oldest granddaughter, Alison, after she was baptized. The two were in town for the baptism when a car accident on April 30, 2023 in Oswego County left them hospitalized. (Photo Courtesy of James A. Strickland)

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Staff writer Darian Stevenson covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at dstevenson@syracuse.com
Syracuse, N.Y.  The Syracuse Police Department disproportionately stops and frisks people of color, according to police department data analyzed by the New York Civil Liberties Union.

The NYCLU obtained data on 70,000 stops by police officers between 2014 and 2020, according to a study the group published Thursday. The data became available following a court battle between the NYCLU and the city. Due to incomplete data, the group was able to analyze about 50,000 stops.

The data shows Syracuse police stop people of color more often and concentrate stops in mainly non-white neighborhoods. Frequently the stops were in neighborhoods where 70-90% of residents are non-white, the NYCLU found. The stops rarely happened in white or more affluent neighborhoods.

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The South Side had the most stops with 13,412, followed by the North Side 10,322, West Side 9,128, and East Side 6,013.

The data shows that 84% of the stops were while the person was in a car and 16% were stops of pedestrians.

About 75% of the stops were of people of color, the study found. People of color make up 54% of the citys population.

In Syracuse, 30% of the residents are Black. NYCLU said the data shows 65% of the stops were people who are Black.

During stops, Black and Latino people are frisked and searched at twice the rate of white people, the NYCLU found. White people stopped were searched 10% of the time and frisked 14%.

NYCLU Assistant Field Director for Western New York, Deka Dancil said the data shows how different life can be in the city.

This data reveals two faces of the Syracuse police; the one in mostly white neighborhoods that doesnt intrude on people living their lives, versus the one that searches and frisks Black and Latinx Syracuse residents at twice the rate of white residents once stopped, Dancil said in an email.

Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard reached out to the City of Syracuse and Syracuse Police for comment.

In 2021 a review of stop data by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard revealed officers disproportionately stopping people of color.

Then Police Chief Ken Buckner defended the findings, saying the department polices more in neighborhoods where there is more crime --often neighborhoods where Black people live

Police in other communities have previously rationalized similar racial disparities by saying that they police neighborhoods with higher crime that are typically home to more Black people.

Syracuse police have previously defended its use of traffic stops as a way to stop crime. They say stops can lead officers to guns and drugs.

<

Staff writer Rylee Kirk covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, story idea, photo, question or comment? Reach her at 315-396-5961, on Twitter @kirk_rylee, or rkirk@syracuse.com.
Syracuse, N.Y.  SUNY hospitals may ease up on suing patients over unpaid medical bills in the wake of a recent report that revealed Upstate University Hospital sues patients more aggressively than most other hospitals in the state.

SUNYs new chancellor said the public hospitals are working with the state Attorney Generals office, which files the medical debt lawsuits on their behalf, to explore ways to avoid taking patients to court.
By Joshua Solomon | Times Union, Albany

Albany, N.Y.  No lobbying group has spent more this year attempting to influence state policy than American Opportunity, the shadowy group bolstered by billionaire Michael Bloomberg that sought to support Gov. Kathy Hochul.

American Opportunity, which has ties to the Democratic Governors Association, spent $4.7 million the last two months, primarily on TV ads that aired across the state, according to data submitted to the states Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government. The data was made public this week as Hochul faces her lowest approval ratings since taking over as governor, according to a new Siena College poll.

The expenditures by American Opportunity, which are more than double any other individual lobbying entity in the state, reveal the extent of the groups effort to influence the state budget negotiations. Hochul maintains she was not involved in the campaign-like effort.

The budget deal reached three weeks ago yielded Hochul with a mix of policy wins, including changes to the states bail laws and no tax hikes on the wealthy. It also brought losses, most notably her signature policy proposal which called for overriding local zoning in the New York City suburbs to stimulate substantial housing growth.

American Opportunity spent $3.6 million in TV ads as well as $380,000 in social media ads and $328,00 for mailers. The political ads were made by companies Hochuls campaign used during the past election cycle, and which are used by Democrats across the country.

The group, in a statement, said it is committed to supporting the policies of governors across that country that strengthen communities and created opportunities for families and Gov. Kathy Hochuls proposed budget did just that.

Although American Opportunity registered to lobby the executive chamber and Hochul, it also reported lobbying 28 state lawmakers. In the Capital Region, the group lobbied state Sen. Neil D. Breslin and assemblymen John McDonald and Phil Steck. Many of the lawmakers the group lobbied also had mailers distributed in their districts.

You can tell your legislator Sen. Neil Breslin to back Gov. Hochuls budget plan, one mailer said.

American Opportunity formed as a social welfare organization in the District of Columbia in February, according to its incorporation paperwork. It was filed by Jon Berkon, a partner at the Elias Law Group, which often represents Democratic groups. The group also registered as a lobbyist in New York with the same address as the Democratic Governors Association.

Social welfare organizations, known under Internal Revenue Service code as a 501(c)(4), may engage in some political activities, so long as that is not its primary activity, according to the IRS.

The lobbying efforts were buoyed by $5 million from Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor, who is one of New Yorks wealthiest individuals. Tax the Rich advocates, along with certain good government groups and lawmakers, previously asserted that Hochul was not in favor of the Legislatures proposal to increase taxes on New Yorks wealthiest because of her support from Bloomberg.

Weve been seeing billionaires trying to buy elections, theyre trying to buy our budget process, theyve been trying to tilt every single step of our political process to make New York their New York, state Sen. Jabari Brisport, a democratic socialist from Brooklyn, said in March. It is so disgusting.

Hochul, when asked about why tax hikes were not entertained by her office during budget negotiations, deflected to the Legislature.

Thats a question for them, Hochul said last month. I dont want to raise taxes at this time.

Despite nearly $5 million in ads and mailers urging New Yorkers to tell the governor thanks for putting New York families first, Hochuls favorability with registered voters took an apparent hit.

The poll released by Siena College on Tuesday found Hochul hit a new low in favorability with voters since taking over as governor in August 2021. And for the first time, more registered voters  in a state where there are twice as many Democrats as Republicans  found Hochul, a moderate Democrat, unfavorable.

Nearly a majority of New Yorkers also said Hochul is out of touch with average New Yorkers.

The view that Hochul is out of touch is held by a narrow majority of labor union members, those in the suburbs and upstate area, and those making at least $100,000, according to the poll of 810 registered voters. Hochul is the first governor from upstate in a century and the first female governor in New York.

A majority of Republicans said they found Hochul to be neither a strong leader nor honest.

___

(c)2023 the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.)

Visit the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.) at www.timesunion.com
By Brendan J. Lyons | Times Union, Albany

Albany, N.Y.  Republican state lawmakers on Wednesday criticized Gov. Kathy Hochul for what they said has been a lack of leadership and transparency in dealing with an ongoing immigration crisis at the southwest border that has resulted in a record number of migrants being transported to New York City, where shelter capacity has been overwhelmed.

The crisis has set off a national political firestorm with many Republicans criticizing the administrations of President Joe Biden  and now Hochul  for what the GOP contend has been an absence of solid plans to deal with the hundreds of thousands of migrants that have been flowing across the border in increasing numbers and recently transported to shelters across the country.

The situation intensified in New York last week when New York City Mayor Eric Adams bused nearly 200 migrants from his city to two hotels in Orange County, where officials on Tuesday obtained a court order temporarily blocking the relocation of additional migrants there. Officials in neighboring Rockland County, where Adams had planned to send more migrants, also went to court to temporarily block the mayors plan. Both cases are pending.

Many upstate officials have said their counties are not equipped to handle a massive influx of migrants in need of shelter and whose legal status may prevent them from working for at least a year. They also said there are a limited number of hotels and other facilities to handle families, veterans or others who need shelter and that those individuals would be displaced by the migrants.

This is a crisis of our own doing, and this is the result of a failure of Democratic policies, state Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt said Wednesday at the Capitol. Theres no other way you can look at this. So lets start with the failure of a coherent border security policy at the federal level, which has been going on for years now. ... They dont have a plan in place.

Adams has also criticized the Biden administration for its handling of the surge in illegal border crossings, last week saying that the city is being destroyed by the migrant crisis. But the mayor has also placed blame on Republicans in Washington, D.C., contending they have been as irresponsible as the White House for refusing to do real immigration reform.

In recent days, the Biden administration, which has repeatedly declined to refer to the border situation as a crisis, has apparently shifted its strategy and begun to publicize its deportation of migrants who crossed into the U.S. illegally. In news releases on Friday and Monday, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement uploaded videos on its website highlighting what it says are dozens of flights that occur each week in which individuals who entered the U.S. illegally are flown back to their countries of origin  including Colombia, El Salvador and Honduras.

Still, thousands of migrants, many of them self-declared asylum-seekers, are being transported to many cities across the U.S., stretching resources and prompting declarations of states of emergencies, including in New York.

Hochul, in an interview with NY1 on Wednesday, said her administration is looking at whats required for Biden to declare a federal state of emergency in New York  a move that could expedite more federal funding. She also wants Congress to change rules that prevent asylum-seekers and other migrants who entered the U.S. illegally to be unable to work until their cases have been adjudicated.

We sent out our first letter on Friday asking for this level of help, Hochul said during the interview. And if we get that level of help, well be making great strides forward, and thats what Im waiting to hear back from.

The governor noted that New York allocated $1 billion for the crisis in the state budget adopted last month; Hochul has called on Republicans in Congress to devote more resources to the situation.

But dont just talk about it: Help us with the money, Hochul said. Help us with the work authorization, and then well get through this much sooner.

Efforts to deal with the crisis have been hobbled by political bickering. Adams and Democratic leaders of other cities have accused Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of engaging in political stunts by sending migrants from their states to cities that have identified themselves as so-called sanctuary cities.

But Ortt noted that Adams, in turn, recently sought to send hundreds of migrants with very little notice to two counties in upstate New York that are headed by Republican county executives. (The city, however, is paying for the cost of lodging the migrants, while Abbott and DeSantis have been criticized for transporting migrants without arranging their accommodations at their blue-state destinations.)

What is Mayor Adams doing today? Hes using these folks as political pawns. Shame on him, Ortt said. Any credibility he had on that issue, hes just tossed away by what hes doing.

State Sen. Rob Rolison, a former Poughkeepsie mayor, also laid blame for the crisis on Biden, whom he asserted has turned a blind eye to the crisis but has recently acknowledged there has been chaos at the border for years.

Its just theres such a system breakdown here, Rolison said. And its because nothing is being done at the border. ... I would say to the president, respectfully, its a heck of a lot more than chaotic. Its tragic, its shameful and its completely outrageous.

The Republicans buttressed their comments with a series of bills they are proffering that stand little chance of advancing in New Yorks Democrat-controlled Legislature.

One bill would create more oversight of humanitarian aid for migrants through reporting by the governors office and audits by the state comptroller. The GOP lawmakers also proposed legislation they said would require migrants sent to New York to undergo background checks as their asylum cases are adjudicated  a process that can take years.

Hochul said the Republicans forfeit the right to complain about how its been managed at the federal level or the state level if theyre not willing to do their job and say our state ... is under siege; we are the destination for the majority of the migrants. We need help. We need money.

And you can complain all you want about what happened at the border and how that ended up there, the governor continued. Ive got to deal in the reality of managing the crisis. So does Mayor Adams. So give us the resources, give us the work authorization, help us out.

___

(c)2023 the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.)

Visit the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.) at www.timesunion.com
Oswego Countys top elected official issued an emergency order today that bans motels, shelters or other institutions from temporarily housing migrants or transporting people seeking asylum to the county.

Legislature Chairman James Weatherup issued the order on the same day Gov. Kathy Hochul said state officials are considering whether to temporarily house some migrants at SUNY schools.

SUNY Oswego has 11 residence halls and townhouse apartments with more than 1,000 units of housing.

Weatherup said in a statement that Hochuls office notified local officials today that sites in Oswego County are under consideration as potential locations to house migrants that arrived in New York City in recent weeks.

The emergency order would require the state or any entity that wants to transport and house migrants in Oswego County to obtain a license or written permission from the county government.

Oswego becomes at least the ninth county in the state to issue an emergency order aimed at blocking some of the 37,000 migrants temporarily housed in New York City from being sent to Upstate locations.

In Central New York, Cortland County issued a similar emergency order this week, and Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente signed one last week.

Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said he wont consider an emergency order until he receives an inventory report of available housing for migrants from local stakeholders, including social service groups. That report is due this week. Two Syracuse resettlement agencies, Catholic Charities and InterFaith Works, said they had not been contacted by state or federal officials seeking help with migrant housing.

In Oswego County, Weatherup said his rural county simply doesnt have the resources to handle an influx of migrants.

He said the emergency order is a necessary action to ensure the humane treatment of these individuals and safeguard our taxpayers from shouldering the economic and social burden of controversial policies from Washington, Albany and New York City.

He said the county would issue a license to temporarily house migrants only to entities who agree the stay would be less than 15 days and demonstrate they have funding to cover the full cost of any stay.

We empathize with the plight of migrants and asylum seekers, many of whom came here because of misguided policies that welcomed them without considering the potential outcome, Weatherup said, but we cannot ask the taxpayers of Oswego County to pay for transportation, housing and other costs. Under the emergency order, the Oswego County Sheriffs Office could ticket violators, who would face misdemeanor and civil penalties of up to $2,000 for each individual housed in violation of the order.

Hazel Crampton-Hays, a spokesperson for Hochul, declined to say today whether SUNY Oswego was under consideration as a potential site for migrant housing.

But she referred a reporter to Hochuls comments today to NY1 News during a visit to Washington, D.C., where she met with some Democratic members of the states congressional delegation.

Hochul said she asked her cabinet members to analyze all available state properties to see if they could be used to temporarily house migrants.

Clearly a SUNY campus lends itself to immediate help, but long-term, we have to have it free by August, Hochul said. So, what happens in August? So, these are the questions were asking right now. We are looking at every possible property in the state of New York to help have a relief valve for the city of New York.

The number of migrants who need temporary housing has surged this year as Texas offered free bus rides that took migrants from border cities directly to New York City.

While in Washington, the governor asked members of Congress to push for more federal support to address the migrant crisis in New York and met with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

New York and other states are preparing for a potential increase in the number of arriving migrants since a federal policy instituted during the Covid-19 pandemic expired last week. The U.S. is no longer able to order the expulsion of migrants under Title 42 of a public health law.

Separately, one Central New York town supervisor threatened Wednesday to go to court to block migrants from temporarily being housed in local hotels.

Salina Town Supervisor Nick Paro told syracuse.com | The Post-Standard that hes concerned two shuttered hotels in the town could be used for migrant housing. One is the former Holiday Inn at 441 Electronic Parkway and the other is a former Comfort Inn on Buckley Road.

Paro said he had not been contacted by any government agencies seeking to use the vacant hotels for migrant housing. He said the town would consider going to court to seek a restraining order that would prevent the properties from being used for temporary housing.

RELATED

McMahon: Onondaga County needs to prepare for national migrant crisis

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751
This photo taken on May 15, 2023 shows the logo of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna, Austria. (Xinhua/Liu Xinyu)

by Xinhua writers Liu Xinyu, Yu Tao

VIENNA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), hailed China's fast-growing nuclear energy industry, and expressed hope to strengthen nuclear cooperation between the agency and China, in a recent exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Grossi is slated to visit China in late May. The trip, including visits to some of China's critical nuclear facilities, will be his first visit to the country since he took over at the helm of the IAEA in 2019.

Grossi said his visit to China was a "much-awaited visit" as the country is "one of the IAEA's most important partners and a world leader in every respect, in particular, nuclear matters."

He spoke highly of China's nuclear energy development, saying that the country has been expanding its nuclear energy sector at an "exponential" rate as part of its decarbonization and energy transition drive. Besides, China has been exporting its "world-class" nuclear technologies to other countries to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy around the world.

Grossi also highlighted the close cooperation between the agency and China in areas such as nuclear energy development, nuclear technology application, nuclear medicine and non-proliferation.

"China, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and one of the global powers, is a country that has a say in many things where the IAEA also has some role to play," he said. "When we talk about global non-proliferation issues, my discussions with Beijing are simply indispensable."

Noting that as the global interest in and demand for nuclear energy are increasing, he expected the IAEA's cooperation with China, a major technology provider, to become "wider, deeper."

Since the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in February last year, Grossi has repeatedly sounded the alarm over the security situation of nuclear facilities in Ukraine, particularly the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant which has come under attacks.

The IAEA chief has visited Ukraine, consulted with Kiev and Moscow, and established permanent presence of IAEA experts at Ukrainian nuclear facilities to ensure their safety and security.

He welcomed China's support for the IAEA's work, adding that his team regularly exchanges information with and gets advice from Chinese experts.

In February, China released a paper stating its position on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, saying it opposes armed attacks against nuclear power plants or other peaceful nuclear facilities and supports the IAEA in playing a constructive role in promoting the safety and security of those facilities.

Asked about China's position paper, Grossi said it is "very important," as support from China helps him "make the case for nuclear safety and security" in Ukraine. 

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), speaks during an exclusive interview with Xinhua at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna, Austria, May 12, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Xiaopeng)

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), shows his name written in Chinese at the UN Chinese Language Day opening ceremony held at the Vienna International Center in Vienna, Austria, May 2, 2023. (IAEA/Handout via Xinhua)
Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said today he is issuing an emergency order that will block local motels and other properties from temporarily housing groups of migrants amid an influx of new arrivals in New York City.

McMahon said the county and local social service agencies simply dont have the physical space or financial capacity to handle a surge of migrants.

Were not in a position where were going to take in migrants from another government at this time, McMahon told syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

Onondaga becomes at least the 10th county in the state, and one of the largest, to take emergency action aimed at preventing large numbers of migrants from being bused from New York City for temporary housing in Upstate facilities.

McMahon said he decided to issue the order after local social service agencies told him they dont have the resources to help take in an an expected surge of migrants entering the U.S. this spring.

Refugee resettlement groups that include Catholic Charities and InterFaith Works in Syracuse informed the county that they are already stretched thin as they work to resettle an expected 1,900 refugees over the next 12 to 16 months, McMahon said.

We made very public commitments to be a refugee resettlement community, McMahon said. We have to live up to what that means and find housing and supportive services.

Catholic Charities and InterFaith Works told syracuse.com | The Post-Standard that they have not been contacted by any state or federal agencies seeking housing for migrants.

Likewise, Onondaga County officials said they have not received notification from state or federal authorities that the county would receive migrants.

McMahon had asked the social service agencies for an inventory of available space after New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he would send migrants only to welcoming communities that could help relieve crowded shelters in the city.

But McMahon said today he felt betrayed by Adams after finding out that a company that works with New York City to find migrant housing has started advertising for new employees in Syracuse.

McMahon said he sees the ad is an indication that New York City is planning to send migrants to Onondaga County.

What has changed is that we were told by the mayor of New York City that they would not try to go around us as partners in this process, McMahon said, adding, that is why we are somewhat forced into this executive order.

The county executive said his order will prohibit any municipality from entering into contracts to transport or house migrants or asylum seekers in Onondaga County. McMahon said county lawyers told him that he has the legal authority to issue the order under section 24 of the states executive law.

McMahons decision to act comes one day after the chairman of the Oswego County Legislature issued an emergency order that bans local motels, shelters or other multi-family locations from temporarily housing migrants. The order also bans the transport of migrants seeking asylum to the county.

Oneida and Cortland counties issued similar emergency orders last week.

The New York Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to overturn earlier emergency orders in Rockland and Orange counties. The two counties had issued executive orders barring hotels from making rooms available to migrants.

Oswego County issued its ban on the same day Gov. Kathy Hochul said state officials are considering whether to temporarily house some migrants on SUNY campuses, potentially including SUNY Oswego.

The emergency order requires the state or any entity that wants to transport and house migrants in Oswego County to obtain a license or written permission from the county government.

The number of migrants who need temporary housing in New York state has surged this year after Texas offered free bus rides that took migrants from border cities directly to New York City.

City officials say more than 37,000 migrants are being temporarily housed in the city, stretching its ability to handle any new surge this spring and summer.

RELATED

Oswego County issues emergency order that bans housing of migrants

McMahon: Onondaga County needs to prepare for national migrant crisis

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751
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XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on Thursday in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Rahmon is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi expressed his pleasure at meeting with his old friend in Xi'an and warmly welcomed Rahmon to China for the summit and the state visit.

He pointed out that since China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties, the bilateral relationship has grown from one of good-neighborliness to a strategic partnership and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Xi recalled his state visit to Tajikistan in 2019, during which they jointly announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community of common development and security, which has seen encouraging progress over the past four years.

Xi underscored that China-Tajikistan relations enjoy deep historical roots, a solid political foundation, substantive cooperation and extensive public support.

To ensure a bright future for the two peoples, China is ready to work with Tajikistan under the new circumstances to enhance cooperation in various areas and build a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit, Xi said. 
LOS ANGELES, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Stroke care is rife with inequities, and fixing them will require more research into issues such as structural racism and other "upstream" social factors that affect where people live, learn, work and play, said the American Heart Association in a new report.

The report summarizes research on ways to address racial and ethnic disparities in stroke treatment, according to a scientific statement from the association, the nation's largest voluntary organization devoted to fighting cardiovascular diseases and stroke.

The report was published in the journal Stroke on Monday.

The report's authors found that few stroke studies addressed racist policies, such as residential segregation, said the association in a news release, adding that they also looked at issues such as food availability, economic stability, education quality and access to health insurance.

"There are enormous inequities in stroke care, which lead to significant gaps in functional outcomes after stroke for people from historically disenfranchised racial and ethnic groups, including Black, Hispanic and Indigenous peoples," Amytis Towfighi of the University of Southern California was quoted as saying.

Towfighi, who served as chair of the statement's writing group, pointed out that people from historically disenfranchised populations are less likely to get to an emergency room within the time window for treatment.

"In addition, there are persistent racial and ethnic inequities in post-stroke risk factor control, and studies specifically addressing these inequities have not found the optimal method to mitigate the disparities," she added in the news release.

The report also said that historically disenfranchised populations are vastly underrepresented in stroke clinical trials, which contributes to the lack of understanding and reduces the generalizability of research findings -- exacerbating inequities and leading to worse outcomes. 
A hot potato: This year is proving to be the one where AI takes a step closer to the technologies seen in sci-fi movies. Companies say that these systems can improve lives and the economy, but over two-thirds (61%) of Americans believe artificial intelligence is a threat to humanity's future. Those who voted for Donald Trump are even more worried, with 70% of Trump voters expressing higher levels of concern.

Companies are rushing to integrate the likes of ChatGPT and similar generative AIs into their businesses right now. But while CEOs and execs salivate at the thought of a machine that can do the same job as a person in a fraction of the time, many people are worried about the situation getting out of control  and not just on the jobs front.

An online Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted between May 9 and May 15 asked 4,415 US adults their opinions on AI. A massive 61% of respondents believe that AI poses risks to humanity, while only 22% disagreed, and 17% remained unsure.

Looking at specific groups, 70% of Trump voters expressed higher levels of concern over a future threatened by AI, compared to 60% of Biden voters. Elsewhere, Evangelical Christians were more likely to strongly agree that AI presents a threat to humanity (32% believe it's a danger), while 24% of Non-Evangelical Christians strongly agreed.

The good news for the likes of OpenAI is that artificial intelligence isn't Americans' biggest concern; crime and the economy are bigger issues. 77% support increasing police funding to fight crime, and 82% are worried about the risk of a recession.

There have been plenty of worrying signs that the new generation of AI should be taken seriously. Warren Buffett recently compared it to the creation of the atomic bomb. There was also Geoffrey Hinton, known as the Godfather of AI, leaving Google with a warning that as companies take advantage of more powerful AI, the systems are becoming increasingly dangerous. In March, there was a call from leading tech minds for a six-month pause of advanced AI development, and this week saw Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, calling for regulation of the sector, though some say this plea is only to stifle innovation and help his company stay on top, rather than for the good of humanity.

Exactly what kind of AI people are threatened by isn't made clear in the poll, but it likely falls under the general category of machines becoming too smart. The flip side of the coin is that artificial intelligence has plenty of positive aspects, such as drug development, and many people rely on it every day without realizing it. As Ion Stoica, a UC Berkeley professor who also co-founded AI company Anyscale, said, "Americans may not realize how pervasive AI already is in their daily lives, both at home and at work."
In brief: As we move closer to 10nm for DRAM tech, manufacturers like Samsung are having a more difficult time coming up with ways to scale down the transistors and capacitors used in building memory cells. That said, Samsung says it has successfully ramped up the production of 12nm DDR5 chips, with further refinements on the way thanks to recent advancements in materials science.

Today, Samsung revealed it has started mass-producing 16Gb DDR5 chips using the most advanced 12nm-class process technology. The company marks this as its greatest achievement in DRAM since the introduction of 64Mb DRAM chips back in 1992 and says it remains as committed as ever to innovate in this space.

The Korean tech giant explains this generation of DDR5 chips isn't designed for increased bit density or higher speeds. Instead, the focus has been on reducing power consumption by up to 23 percent when compared to the previous generation. That means these chips are still rated for a maximum pin speed of 7.2Gbps, which is comparable to transferring two 30GB 4K movies in around one second.

Samsung says the transition from a 14nm-class process node to the new one was possible thanks in no small part to a new high-K material for transistor gates. This allowed the company to increase cell capacitance and improve signal integrity, which translates into more stable and efficient memory operation since the cells won't have to be refreshed as often.

Furthermore, improvements in EUV patterning accuracy allowed Samsung to increase wafer productivity by up to 20 percent. That said, the company believes there's still plenty of room left for pushing the limits of cell size by using even lower resistance metals. In theory, these new materials should allow the company to improve word- and bit-line resistance by a further 40 and 25 percent, respectively. Additional refinements to FinFET tech could improve speeds by a further 30 percent and reduce power usage by as much as 20 percent.

Also read: Should You Buy DDR5 for Your Next Budget PC Build?

The new 12nm DDR5 memory tech will first hit the data center and workstation markets later this year, but it won't be long before it will make its way into consumer-grade products. It's worth noting that AMD has been working closely with Samsung on 16Gb DDR5 DRAM that's optimized for Ryzen systems, with mass production for that variant planned to start sometime in the second half of this year.

In the meantime, Samsung's memory business is one of many in the chip industry that's been affected by what analysts describe as the "sharpest slowdown" in more than a decade. The Korean company has seen its profits evaporate in recent months but remains optimistic about a market recovery toward the end of the year.

One effect of the downturn is that DRAM prices will continue to drop for a few more months, mostly due to excess OEM inventory. That's great news for consumers, but manufacturers like Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron are understandably interested in stopping that trend as soon as possible. For Samsung in particular, this means making fewer low-margin DDR4 products to nudge its customers toward adopting newer DRAM tech.
What just happened? The US Department of Justice is announcing its new Disruptive Technology Strike Force initiative, with five cases regarding export and trade secrets violations. One of those cases is about Apple's secretive autonomous vehicle, which was seemingly spied on by a former employee working for China's very active espionage machine.

Software engineer Wang Weibao was hired by Apple in 2016 to work on Project Titan, Cupertino's electric self-driving car that has been a work-in-progress tech for a decade now. The developer spent 18 months in Apple's offices, before getting a new job related to autonomous driving from another company in China.

According to the US Department of Justice (DoJ), Wang Weibao was essentially a spy for the Chinese government. During his last days at Apple, the developer accessed "large amounts of sensitive proprietary and confidential information," as Apple representatives later discovered by looking at the company's access logs.

After a search in his home in Mountain View, California, turned up large quantities of Apple's proprietary data, Wang decided to fly from San Francisco to Guangzhou on a "one-way ticket" that same night. He likely brought Apple's secrets with him, and now the DoJ has charged the former engineer with six counts of stealing or attempting to steal trade secrets.

Wang, who will likely stay in China for the foreseeable future, now risks a potential maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000  or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the scheme  for each count of theft or attempted theft of trade secrets, the DoJ has revealed.

Wang's case is part of the Disruptive Technology Strike Force program, which is co-led by the Departments of Justice and Commerce to counter efforts by "hostile nation-states" working to "illicitly acquire" sensitive US-based technology to advance their authoritarian regimes or facilitate human rights abuses. The new "Strike Force" is currently dealing with a total of five cases regarding export violations, smuggling and trade secret theft.

Two of the other cases unsealed by DoJ are about "alleged procurement networks" working to help Russian military and intelligence services; another case is about a software developer stealing trade secrets from a US company for a Chinese competitor; the last case is about a Chinese network trying to bring isostatic graphite to Iran for the country's alleged nuclear weapons program.

Matthew S. Axelrod, Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement at the Department of Commerce, said that protecting sensitive American technology like source code for "smart automotive manufacturing equipment," or even items used to develop quantum cryptography, against illicit acquisition attempts by US adversaries is the core mission of the Disruptive Technology Strike Force.
The big picture: Most of the attention regarding clean transportation has focused on lithium battery-powered electric vehicles (EVs). However, some groups are exploring hydrogen engines. While not a perfect solution, hydrogen has some advantages over EVs, and companies are beginning to investigate its possible applications for motorcycles and other small vehicles.

Honda, Kawasaki Motors, Suzuki, and Yamaha will soon create an organization to research and develop hydrogen engines for motorcycles. The joint initiative, dubbed "the Hydrogen Small Mobility & Engine Technology Association" (HySE), follows other efforts to promote hydrogen as a clean energy source. The group will also include Toyota and Kawasaki Heavy Industries as special members. The HySE will also invite American and European organizations to cooperate to add to their expertise.

Led by Honda, all members will contribute to researching hydrogen-powered engines. Suzuki, Kawasaki, and Yamaha will test their functionality in real-world scenarios, while Yamaha will also focus on researching hydrogen refueling systems like portable fuel tanks. Kawasaki's experience transporting liquid hydrogen puts it in a position to explore fuel supply systems like tanks and auxiliary systems. Toyota and Honda have experimented with hydrogen vehicles for years, with Toyota having unveiled its first semi-truck prototypes in 2017.

Compared to electric vehicles, hydrogen engines have better range, can refuel more quickly, and can reuse existing engine technology. However, although hydrogen is clean  emitting only water vapor  the energy used to produce it by splitting it from other elements often comes from fossil fuels. However, manufacturing and charging EVs also comes from fossil fuels. So neither fuel source is likely to fight climate change on its own.

Toyota unveiled swappable hydrogen fuel cartridges last June, each packing a few hours of electricity into a 16-inch long, 11-pound cylinder. Later that month, Volvo revealed hydrogen-powered semi trucks with a 1,000km (621mi) operating range that can refuel in under 15 minutes. Rolls-Royce is working on hydrogen jet engines as well. It hopes to have them in the skies during the next decade.

If HySE can work the technology into two-wheelers, it shouldn't take long for small boats, drones, and other small vehicles to follow. Since hydrogen isn't very dense, one challenge facing small hydrogen engines is volume. Boeing complained about the same problem regarding hydrogen jetliners.
(Photo : Kirill Ostrovskii)

A tech and banking expert discusses the beginnings of digital banking development and how Russian FinTech services will adapt to international sanctions.

In the 2000s, following the impressive growth of web services in Russia, financial institutions and banks began embracing digitalization and creating their own digital services. They initially focused on refining websites and later on developing mobile applications. Sberbank went even further - its CEO, German Gref, aimed to transform the country's largest bank into an ecosystem, a comprehensive technological platform capable of impacting all aspects of Russian life.

FinTech expert Kirill Ostrovskii was at the forefront of the digital banking market's evolution. With his direct involvement, the country's most popular banking services were developed - Sberbank Online, Service for the Self-Employed, the Fast Payment System, and contactless payments using QR codes. These groundbreaking projects completely reshaped the banking landscape. Kirill shares his experiences and insights on the future of financial technologies in Russia.

Dossier

Kirill Ostrovskii, Head of the Directorate for the Development of Remote Channels of Uralsib Bank (Moscow)

Born on October 3, 1980, in Moscow.

He started his career in 2003 at Mail.Ru, the largest tech ecosystem in Eastern Europe, where he worked his way up from a content manager to a technical project manager. One of the brightest implemented projects is the Mail.ru Maps cartographic service, an analog of Google Maps.

He has over 400 special projects and non-standard advertising activities for Mail.Ru and Odnoklassniki.ru portals.

In 2017, he began working in the banking sector at SBER PJSC, where he developed a marketplace for partner products and services in the Sberbank Online mobile app.

In 2018, Alfa-Bank was one of the first in Russia to launch a Service for the Self-Employed and The Fast Payment System ( FPS ).

Since 2019, he has been working as the Head of the Directorate for the Development of Remote Channels of Uralsib Bank, where he implemented integration with the SBP and other integration projects with market leaders.

Member of the Fintech Start Association.

Competencies

Project management, web, and mobile services development management.

Kirill Ostrovskii entered the tech world at the onset of the internet's rapid growth in Russia. Initially a regular user, he began creating simple websites before becoming a project manager at Mail.ru, the largest tech ecosystem in Eastern Europe. After 11 years of immersing himself in web services and the internet at large, he transitioned to the banking industry. Once again, Kirill found himself at the forefront of change, this time in the digitalization of banking.

As a Product Director, you've developed the most popular banking service in the country, Sberbank Online, despite having no prior experience in financial technology. What led you to enter this field?

- By the end of 2017, when I joined Sberbank, I had already gained considerable experience in creating and developing web services, but I yearned for more. I was always drawn to the idea that working in a bank is more serious and responsible, given that people constantly interact with banks in their daily lives. Additionally, the high stakes in this field appealed to me, as the cost of making a mistake can be significant.

In the past, banks didn't offer mobile applications, and clients had to visit a branch just to transfer money. When top executives announced their plans to develop online banking and enhance customer interaction, it presented new opportunities for tech specialists like myself. I was eager to be part of this global transformation in the financial sector, as it was both ambitious and intriguing..

What was the most crucial aspect when developing Sberbank Online?

Safety was, without a doubt, the most important factor. An online banking application essentially creates a gateway through which vast amounts of money can flow. What we were doing felt like a new universe, the second life of the bank.

Banks did have websites, but they only allowed users to view their account balances. While money transfers eventually became possible, clients still needed to visit a branch and confirm their intention by receiving a confirmation code to complete the transaction. Our goal was to eliminate these intermediary steps, enabling clients to manage their accounts from home.

This undertaking was massive, with the mobile app driving significant structural changes within Sberbank and forming the core of its ecosystem. A large technology office, called the Agile Home, was established, attracting IT specialists from across Russia.

As a result, Sberbank Online became one of the top 5 most popular mobile apps in Russian app stores. Its active user base reached 50 million in 2019 and exceeded 70 million people per month in 2021.

It's not surprising, considering 87% of Russians use Sberbank services.

Indeed, Sberbank is the largest bank in the Russian Federation. However, we faced another challenge - how could we encourage customers who were accustomed to visiting branches to start using the app? We needed to address not only the mindset of customers but also bank employees. Ultimately, we succeeded, as the vast majority of customers began to interact with the bank exclusively online through the mobile app.

Which aspects did you focus on while working with this team?

As a Product Director at Sberbank, I was part of a larger effort that involved several dozen teams working on the mobile application. Each team had its own department, manager, programmers, business analyst, designer, and so on. My specific area of focus was the marketplace, a catalog of third-party services. The aim was to provide users with more than just the standard set of banking operations but also additional features such as purchasing extra banking products, gift cards, and so on.

Rising to the occasion

In the past five years, the Russian Federation's banking sector has seen the introduction of two significant innovative products - the Service for the Self-Employed and the Fast Payment System (FPS). Kirill Ostrovskii was invited to develop these groundbreaking solutions at one of the country's oldest private financial institutions, Alfa-Bank.

Alfa-Bank is much smaller than Sberbank and is a private institution. How did you find the experience of working in a private bank compared to Sberbank?

The structures are indeed different, and so was the work experience. Sberbank is a massive, somewhat rigid organisation, which had its drawbacks, particularly during the digital transformation phase. You could meet with someone multiple times a day for a month and make little progress. In contrast, Alfa-Bank was more agile and progressive.

They were one of the first to create a separate tech division - Alpha Laboratory - and granted its members considerable freedom. The traditional system of visiting offices and utilizing office services isn't suitable when trying to innovate. Instead, you need to generate new hypotheses, test them quickly, anticipate which products might be in demand, and swiftly bring them to market. Alfa-Bank managed to create this different environment.

Alfa-Bank has always been a significant player, as it was one of the first in the country to develop advanced, innovative financial services and products for its customers. I was fortunate to be involved in the implementation of two such services - "Self-Employed" and the "Quick Payment System" (FPS).

If I recall correctly, a service for the self-employed had to be created in a very short time frame, as a law on self-employed individuals came into effect in Russia in January 2019. This law provided a separate legal status for this category of entrepreneurs, with the aim of bringing a large group of small entrepreneurs out of the shadows. It also gave banks the opportunity to attract them as regular customers.

That's right, the law on the self-employed was enacted in early 2019, and Alfa-Bank launched this service in February. My team and I were tasked with integrating with the Federal Tax Service (FTS) and offering self-employed clients the ability to register through the Alfa-Bank mobile application.

Why was it important for the bank to attract these customers?

- Before this, the self-employed segment was largely invisible to the bank. We didn't know the income levels of these entrepreneurs, as they typically kept their money in cash. As a result, we couldn't offer them loans or mortgages, which meant they were essentially lost clients. With the introduction of the new law, we recognized the new business opportunities it presented and realized that, through our service, we could convert these entrepreneurs into our customers.

You're right that we had to act quickly. formed and led a team of 8-12 people, which included specialized developers, a designer, Android and iOS programmers, a tester, and individuals who liaised with accountants and lawyers.

Our efforts paid off, as Alfa-Bank became one of the first Russian banks to offer such a service. Now, self-employed individuals can register through the app, and receive payments for their services via the bank, which then automatically calculates the tax amount and sends it to the Federal Tax Service.

At Alfa-Bank, you also led the team that was among the first in Russia to launch a new money transfer service, the Fast Payment System (FPS). This was a significant breakthrough for the entire market. Why was it necessary to act so quickly?

Firstly, it was a response to the demands of the time. Secondly, it was a business opportunity: when a bank can offer more than its competitors, it's logical that customers will be more likely to choose that bank's services.

Sberbank had already implemented a partially similar system, but it was limited to transfers within the bank itself. With FPS, the scope was much broader, allowing Russians to transfer money to one another using just their phone numbers, provided that both the sending and receiving banks were connected to the system. The Bank of Russia operates as the FPS settlement center, while the National Payment Card System serves as the operational, payment, and clearing center.

As the project director, I worked with a team of programmers, designers, testers, information security officers, system and network administrators, and other specialized experts to develop and implement this cutting-edge payment service for Alfa-Bank clients from scratch. We were among the first banks in the country to test this system, and after our successful implementation, other players in the banking market joined FPS.

Did the QR code payments you launched at Uralsib Bank serve as a natural progression from your work with the Fast Payment System?

Yes, at Uralsib Bank I continued working on the FPS in my role as Director for the Development of Remote Channels for Servicing Individuals. In addition, my development team and I implemented a new method of payment for services and purchases using QR codes.

The underlying principle was the same - to make banking services more convenient for users. Since we had already enabled payment exchanges between clients of any banks, we thought, why not also allow them to transfer money to legal entities, enabling quick and secure payments for services, goods, and education? So, we developed a project that allows legal entities to generate QR codes. Clients simply scan the code, and the money is instantly transferred from their account to the service provider's account via the FPS.

When launching QR-code payments, whose experience did you base your approach on?

We looked to the Chinese market for inspiration, as they've been using this technology for quite some time. It's a convenient method, as it eliminates the need to manually input extensive information when creating a bank order. Plus, with almost everyone having a mobile device nowadays, why not enable people to utilize their phone's camera for payments?

Another important aspect is that this method doesn't rely on plastic cards. Payments are processed through the national payment system "Mir," which is particularly beneficial given the challenges associated with using MasterCard and Visa in Russia.

Have there been any significant results or achievements related to the Fast Payment System and QR payments?

These projects have indeed been very successful. In the first quarter of 2022 alone, over 6 million citizens made approximately 16 million purchases through the FPS, amounting to nearly 63 billion rubles.

In 2023, the banking market will focus on enhancing existing products and services, such as FPS, QR codes, and mobile applications. All major players have started developing overlapping ecosystems, where banks become service providers and retailers establish their own payment systems. However, changes will be necessary due to international sanctions. As a result, the Mir payment system will gradually replace Visa and Mastercard. Kirill Ostrovskii is confident that Russia will follow a "Chinese scenario" in this regard.

Considering international sanctions, what are the main trends in the development of Russian FinTech services?

When looking at the strategies of leading banks, they will all continue their digital transformation and focus on building their ecosystems. Banks are no longer standalone players in the market but rather part of a community consisting of consumers and organisations providing goods and services. Sberbank, for instance, pioneered the digital ecosystem and now holds a leading position in the service market, offering goods delivery, car and apartment rentals, movies, electronics sales, and more. Other banks will inevitably follow this trend.

Digitalization also simplifies data collection on customers who spend within the ecosystem, keeping them within the purview of marketing and sales departments while utilizing banking services.

Key trends in FinTech ecosystems include remote client identification using biometric data, which eliminates the need for offline contact between the bank and its clients. Contactless payment methods, including QR code payments, will undoubtedly expand, especially given the withdrawal of foreign payment systems from Russia.

In response to the loss of phone-based payments at checkout, an alternative in the form of NFT stickers or smartphone stickers mimicking Apple Pay and Google Pay is emerging. The first batch of such stickers has already been released and is in high demand.

Additionally, banks will seek alternative methods for cross-border transfers. With almost all Russian banks disconnected from the international SWIFT system, the Fast Payment System remains the only option for transferring money to friendly countries.

Why do you see your future career in FinTech?

The answer is simple: FinTech is challenging, interesting, and carries significant responsibility. Financial technologies make life easier by providing more freedom in micropayments, and since money is something that connects all of us, I want to contribute to making money transfers technologically simple, fast, and secure. My goal is to help blur the boundaries of money movement.

With your extensive experience in the web industry, how do you find banking technologies different?

Banking organisations are an entirely different domain. There's a high cost for mistakes and a tremendous responsibility towards customers, as money is one of the most sensitive aspects of people's lives, health being another exception. When developing web services at Mail.ru, we didn't face the same level of responsibility. Of course, if the site went down, it was bad and considered an emergency situation, but it could be quickly resolved without major consequences. However, if your bank card fails during a payment at the checkout and you don't have cash, that's a different story altogether.

What adjustments did you have to make when you entered the banking industry?

First and foremost, I had to adapt to a different pace of processes. Decisions in banks are made more slowly because if a mistake is made, the consequences can be irreversible.

For instance, imagine if after an update, cards or the app stopped working for all customers - what would that lead to? People might think something has happened to the bank, and they would rush to withdraw their money en masse. This would be detrimental to banks both reputationally and financially. That's why some banks avoid updates at year-end or on payday.

Initially, I was slightly frustrated by the procedures that prevented me from quickly deploying a new development and testing it. However, that's not how things work in a bank. A bank is a large, traditional organization with multi-step checks and lengthy processes. And that's acceptable - because when dealing with money, you shouldn't rush.

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
As a landlord, you should only want the best candidates to become your tenants. Great applicants become great tenants who pay rent on time, renew their leases, and become reliable members of your community.

However, you won't find these excellent renters without effective tenant screening, and traditionally, that takes time. For even a single applicant, it's a serious commitment to carefully comb through a rental application, read through a credit history, and run full criminal and eviction background checks.

Not to mention, there are fees associated with each screening check and critical legal requirements you must meet, such as obtaining the prospective tenant's signed consent to run such checks.

Fortunately, there's a modern solution: online screening services. With the right tools and technology, even something as complex as tenant screening can be mostly automated. All it takes is a willingness to learn the software, and you'll be screening tenants online in no time.

This article breaks down modern methods you can use to screen tenants online.

First Things First: Getting Started with Property Management Software

If you don't already use property management software, this is the first place to start with online screening.

Software is an easy and often cheap (or free!) way to manage your properties. It offers convenience, automation, and transparency to all your property management tasks, not just tenant screening. However, tenant screening is easily one of its best features.

If tenant screening is offered as a feature on your platform, it can easily take the information a renter provided on their rental application and auto-generate thorough screening reports for you to view at your convenience.

If you choose to accept an applicant, you can then easily set up your new renter with other features your software offers, like digital lease signing and online rent collection.

If you're ready to upgrade and automate your tenant screening process online, the first thing you should do is get set up with property management software.

Rental Applications

Now, onto the tenant screening process itself. Most landlords start with the rental application - a document that asks prospective renters some basic information about themselves, their wants and needs regarding the rental, and their income.

Creating a rental application online is as easy as uploading the application document you've been using to your property management software. You can also use a custom application builder to re-organize your rental application from the bottom up.

Ask the questions that matter most to you, include information about how the tenant will be screened, and get prospective renters' permission to run a criminal background check while you're at it.

Lastly, many software platforms allow you to embed your rental application on your website so that you can pull in renters to apply from all your marketing channels. You'll also be able to collect a credit card number to charge an application fee for your trouble if one is legal in your state.

Income Verification

You can also use the rental application tool on your software to request file uploads, such as for proof of income. Income verification is one of the most important parts of screening - you need to be able to verify that the renter will be able to afford your rent and has consistent, sufficient income.

With this online tool, you can easily ask that renters upload copies of one or two recent paystubs, as well as any other documents that serve as acceptable proof of income. You can also request the name and phone number of their employer so that you can verify that paystubs are real, not forged or exaggerated.

Credit Checks

Credit histories contain important indicators of a renter's past reliability with payments. When you use property management software to screen your tenants, you can get key insights into applicants' financial habits and current responsibilities, such as outstanding debt.

Your software will pull from one of the three major credit bureaus to prepare a full report of these indicators as well as an applicant's open accounts, credit history, inquiries, and other aspects. Generally, it's recommended to use a service that does soft pulls for credit checks so that applicants' credit scores won't be negatively affected.

Criminal Background Checks

Along with applicants' credit histories, your software will also perform a tenant background check. Most property management software platforms will pull from both state and national criminal records, as well as other databases such as the national sex offender registry and the Most Wanted database.

Having your software pull these records for you is much less time-consuming than performing these checks yourself.

Eviction Histories

Eviction histories are no longer bundled with credit checks, so landlords doing traditional screening would need to search for eviction records by hand. However, when you use property management software, your screening tool can tap into the largest national eviction databases and provide information about prior evictions without any extra work on your part.

Eviction reports typically include information about any prior unlawful detainer suits filed against the tenant as well as any judgments, writs, and eviction warrants. This information is vital to find if it's out there, as you'd rarely want to rent to a renter with prior evictions. When you use software, you can trust that you'll find any and all eviction records that exist.

A Note on Fair Screening Practices

Even though software makes tenant screening highly automated, this is not an excuse to get lazy with fair screening practices.

In fact, fair housing violations can lead to thousands of dollars worth of fines, penalties, and court costs. Most landlords are aware of the federal Fair Housing Act and its seven protected classes (race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status).

However, many aren't as familiar with other fair housing laws, such as state/local protections and laws regarding the use of credit and criminal histories. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), for example, protects tenants' credit information and regulates how to use and store these results.

Additionally, the HUD regulates the use of criminal background checks during tenant screening. To avoid fair housing lawsuits, the HUD recommends that landlords avoid blanket policies for rejecting applicants based on the fact that they have a criminal record and assess applicants on a case-by-case basis instead.

Be sure you're aware of these laws (on the federal, state, and local levels) before making any tenant screening decisions.

Conclusion

Tenant screening is a crucial aspect of your rental business and one you can't afford to make mistakes on. That's why you should entrust it to a property management software platform you can count on to make the screening as simple and streamlined as possible. With the tools and capabilities it offers, you will find excellent tenants in no time at all.

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Back in Google's latest event, the company spent a better half of the show introducing its latest developments for its artificial intelligence programs and one of the most promising here is the Duet AI. It is an AI tool that appears directly on users' Workspace Suite, one of Google's best-known apps for work including Docs, Sheets, Slides, Gmail, Drive, Calendar, Meets, and more.

The good thing is that Duet AI is already available on the waitlist, but it is not exactly a long wait to access the generative AI tool that will help with one's needs from the experience.

(Photo : Google Workspace)

Google Duet AI for Workspace Brings Generative AI Tools for All

Google has unveiled its latest creation at the annual Google I/O conference held earlier this month.

Meet Duet AI, an assistive artificial intelligence tool designed to transform the way users interact with Google Workspace apps, including popular tools like Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. This innovative AI system aims to enhance content creation by leveraging generative AI technologies.

Duet AI has been hailed as a significant leap forward in AI-driven productivity tools.

By seamlessly integrating with Google Workspace apps, it empowers users to produce high-quality content more efficiently than ever before.

The technology assists in various aspects of content creation, including generating ideas, improving grammar and syntax, and enhancing overall writing quality.

Read Also: Google Magic Editor: Is this the Magical AI Image Editing Tool We've Been Waiting For?

How to Sign up for the Waitlist for Google's Duet AI?

Users who are interested in using Duet AI for their next use of the Workspace suite may join the waitlist to access this revolutionary tool.

(Photo : Google Workspace)

Interested individuals can now sign up by visiting labs.withgoogle.com, ensuring they are logged into their Google Account, scrolling down to the "Google Workspace" section, and clicking on the "Join the Waitlist" button. Google is expected to provide waitlist confirmations within a day or several days after signing up.

Google's Workspace Suite

Google Workspace has been a massive part of the internet today, as it is the go-to service for all document needs or sending emails to friends, family, or clients via the renowned Gmail.

With I/O 2023's latest releases for the world, the public will soon get to access the latest AI tools that aim to bring better assistive features for all, in the company's AI development milestones.

The introduction of Duet AI aims to address the challenges faced by users in the content creation process.

The tool harnesses the power of advanced machine learning algorithms to understand the user's prompt and context, assisting them in generating more engaging and coherent content. Duet AI offers helpful content, ensuring a smooth and collaborative workflow for individuals and teams.

The introduction of Duet AI reflects Google's dedication to leveraging the power of AI to enhance productivity and provide users with cutting-edge tools. As the waitlist for access to this groundbreaking AI technology opens, users around the world can now look forward to a more streamlined and efficient content creation experience.

Related Article: Google Accounts Deletion: Two Years of Inactivity May Lead to Losing Your Data, Says New Policy

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The first state to completely ban TikTok in the US made it official earlier today, and this is with Montana's latest legislation getting the seal of approval from its governor, Greg Gianforte. This new ban does come with its prohibitions and fines for violating the new rules, and it will require the companies to prevent TikTok's use in the state or face a $10,000 fine for the violations.

Montana's TikTok ban is a significant move towards preventing the app from operating in the state, and it is an extensive one as it centers on having it completely gone in the region.

(Photo : STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Montana Bans TikTok, with Gov. Gianforte Signing the Bill

In a surprising move, the United States has taken its first step towards banning TikTok and Chinese social media platforms within its borders.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Montana, one of the country's northern states, has become the first to enact a comprehensive ban on social media, with Governor Greg Gianforte signing the bill into law. This decision has far-reaching implications for companies such as ByteDance, Apple, and Google, which could face substantial fines if they continue to distribute the app within the state.

This legislation will first take effect by January 1, 2024, giving the companies less than seven months for this transition.

Governor Gianforte's decision to ban social media platforms like TikTok stems from concerns about data privacy and potential national security risks associated with these applications. The new law in Montana aims to protect its citizens by prohibiting access to the Chinese social media network.

It sets a precedent for other states to consider similar measures to address growing concerns over data privacy and security.

Read Also: EU's Digital Services Act Names Tech Companies That Must Follow its Latest Rules; Violators To Be Fined

$10,000 Fine for ByteDance, Apple, or Google

Under the new law, companies involved in distributing banned social media platforms could face severe consequences. ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, as well as technology giants Apple and Google, may be subject to fines of up to $10,000 per violation, per day.

These fines serve as a powerful deterrent, compelling these companies to comply with the ban and prevent the distribution of the app within Montana's borders.

TikTok Ban in the US

The ban on TikTok in Montana comes as a surprise to many, as the app has amassed a massive user base and become a cultural phenomenon worldwide. TikTok's short-form videos have captivated users of all ages, allowing them to express themselves creatively and engage with a global community.

However, the concerns regarding data privacy and national security have prompted certain states to take proactive measures.

While the ban is currently limited to Montana, it sets a precedent that could potentially lead to other states following suit. The implications for TikTok and other social media platforms could be significant, as they may face mounting pressure to address these concerns at a national level.

It is important to note that while the Montana ban may signal a shift in the United States' stance towards Chinese social media, it does not represent a nationwide ban on TikTok.

Related Article: Snap CEO Evan Spiegel Supports Banning TikTok in US

 2023 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A recent study brings attention to the placebo effect when individuals anticipate performance enhancement through augmentation technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).

The study suggests that people with elevated expectations of these technologies tend to make risky decisions.

This trend raises concerns as people adopt these technologies without fully comprehending their advantages and limitations.

Risk-taking and AI

Augmentation technologies have become increasingly prevalent, and some of these technologies, like spellcheck, have seamlessly been integrated into our daily lives, while others, such as exoskeletons and AI-based vision enhancement, have the potential to push human abilities beyond conventional limits.



Nonetheless, the excessive excitement surrounding these technologies generates expectations that can influence human behavior.



As an assistant professor at Aalto University, Robin Welsch, explains, "Individuals are more inclined to take risks when they believe cutting-edge technologies like AI or brain-computer interfaces are enhancing them."



"This occurs even if no actual enhancement technology is involved, indicating that it's about people's expectations rather than any noticeable improvement. The findings also imply that a strong belief in improvement, based on a fake system, can alter decision-making."

Welsch and colleagues studied decision-making and risk-taking using the Columbia Card Task. Participants thought an AI-controlled brain-computer interface (the placebo) would enhance their cognitive abilities.



However, the augmentation had no real benefits, and participants rarely encountered losses. Despite this, most participants believed it improved their performance and took greater risks. The study shows that simulated cognitive enhancements impact risk-taking behavior.

Steeven Villa, a doctoral researcher at LMU Munich, warns, "The hype surrounding these technologies distorts people's expectations, leading them to make riskier decisions and form favorable evaluations, which can have real consequences."

Read Also: Quick Guide: New AI-Powered App Superchat Allows Users to Chat With DaVinci, Other Historical People!

Never Neutral

The researchers contend that technology is never neutral. They note that contemporary AI-based vision enhancement tools are being made accessible to firefighters for improved visibility through smoke, while exoskeletons are aiding factory workers in managing physically challenging tasks.

They suggest that generative AI systems may have comparable benefits for knowledge workers.



However, the authors express concern about the potential consequences, cautioning that entire professions might develop a heightened inclination for risk-taking due to misguided expectations.

Thomas Kosch, a professor at HU Berlin, highlights the growing prevalence of AI-based technologies that enhance users and their influence on crucial real-life decisions affecting individuals' lives, well-being, confidence, and safety.



Kosch emphasizes the importance of conducting placebo-controlled studies to accurately evaluate and validate these technologies, ensuring that genuine innovation is distinguished from deceptive claims.

The study, titled "Anticipating cognitive augmentation increases risk-taking behavior," was published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior.

Related Article: FTC: AI Tech May Help 'Turbocharge' Fraud in Different Industries with its Capabilities, Commission is On It

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The Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) by BAE Systems and Iveco Defence Vehicles (IDV) made its highly anticipated international debut at the FEINDEF international defense and security exposition held in Madrid, Spain.



Developed through a strategic partnership, the ACV family of vehicles is designed to enhance the US Marine Corps (USMC) expeditionary mobility capability and is currently the sole fully amphibious combat vehicle in production.

First Showcase Outside the US

At FEINDEF, the personnel variant of the ACV, known as ACV-P, serves as the foundational platform for the entire family of vehicles.

This momentous occasion marked the first time the Amphibious Combat Vehicle had been showcased outside of the United States, making it a source of pride for both BAE Systems and IDV.



Garrett Lacaillade, Vice President of Amphibious Programs at BAE Systems, expressed enthusiasm about the international showcase, stating, "This is the first time the Amphibious Combat Vehicle has been shown outside the United States, and it is a point of pride that it is here in Spain, an important, long-term US and NATO ally."



The ACV not only caters to the specific requirements of the US Marine Corps but also has the flexibility to accommodate international customization requests.

Nazario Bianchini, Head of Sales at IDV, emphasized this adaptability, saying, "Jointly BAE Systems and IDV are proud to present this critical next-generation amphibious capability that meets the mission needs and program requirements of the Infanteria de Marina Espanola."



Together, we are ready to respond to any international customization request to ensure the optimal deployment of the amphibious vehicles within the Spanish and European defense system."



One of the distinguishing features of the ACV is its ability to evolve and adapt to changing mission needs and emerging technologies. Its modular design allows for the integration of new capabilities such as reconnaissance, electronic warfare, anti-air systems, and Uncrewed Aircraft Systems.

With this versatility, the ACV is poised to provide Marines worldwide with the necessary flexibility to fulfill a range of mission roles and accommodate future advancements.

Read Also: Northrop Grumman's Anti-radiation Missile Achieves 5th Consecutive Successful Test

Fully Equipped for Operations

The ACV-P variant of the Amphibious Combat Vehicle is fully equipped for operations in the open ocean and can transport 13 combat-ready Marines with a crew of three.

Alongside the ACV-P, the ACV family encompasses various other variants tailored to meet specific operational needs.

The ACV Command and Control variant enables Marines to effectively monitor the battlefield with its multiple workstations.



The ACV recovery variant offers on-site assistance, maintenance, and recovery services for the entire ACV vehicle range.

On the other hand, the ACV-30 incorporates a Kongsberg-manufactured stabilized, medium-caliber Remote Turret System, which ensures the necessary firepower and protection for Marines while still allowing sufficient space for troop capacity and payload.

The international debut of the Amphibious Combat Vehicle at FEINDEF underscores its significance as a cutting-edge solution for expeditionary operations.

As it continues to garner attention and gain momentum, the ACV promises to play a crucial role in enhancing amphibious capabilities for defense forces.

Related Article: NASA's Earth Observations Are Monitoring Veterans' Exposure to Air Pollution-How?

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Milan Nedeljkovic, member of the board of management of BMW AG, speaks during a press conference marking the 20th anniversary of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA), BMW Group's joint venture in China, in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

SHENYANG, May 18 (Xinhua) -- BMW Group's joint venture in China, BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA), on Thursday marked the company's 20th anniversary, announcing further investment and localization of its electro-mobility in China.

During a press conference by the company, it said the new generation electric vehicle Neue Klasse is set to be rolled out in 2026 from its production base in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province.

On Thursday, a ground-breaking ceremony was held to kick off the construction of BBA's new battery production plant in Shenyang with a total investment of 10 billion yuan (about 1.43 billion U.S. dollars). Dubbed the sixth generation high-voltage battery, it is expected to power the new model Neue Klasse.

"I am pleased to announce today the local production of the Neue Klasse in China, 20 years after the first start of production at our joint venture. Starting from a small assembly plant with just a few units, our plants in Shenyang have developed into the world's largest production site," said Milan Nedeljkovic, member of the board of management of BMW AG, responsible for production.

Since 2010, nearly 100 billion yuan has been invested in the BMW Shenyang Production Base and its projects, with the production capacity rising to 830,000 units per year. In 2022 alone, BBA's purchasing volume in China exceeded 73 billion yuan, of which more than 60 percent was made in Liaoning Province.

On Thursday, BBA also opened an extension of BMW's Shenyang R&D Center to boost the company's electro-mobility development.

In China, the BMW Group has established its largest R&D and innovation network outside Germany, with locations in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang and Nanjing. It is also forging cooperation with leading Chinese technology and electro-mobility companies, with a joint innovation center built in Shanghai to explore the future mobility ecosystem.

BBA now has around 430 local suppliers in China, of which more than 120 are based in Liaoning. 

This photo taken on May 18, 2023 shows an interior view of Plant Lydia of BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) in Tiexi District of Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

This aerial photo taken on June 23, 2022 shows Plant Lydia of BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) in Tiexi District of Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

BMW i3 electric cars are pictured at Plant Lydia of BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) in Tiexi District of Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 23, 2022. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

Guests attend a ground-breaking ceremony to kick off the construction of a new battery production plant of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA), BMW Group's joint venture in China, in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

Employees perform on stage to celebrate the 20th anniversary of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA), BMW Group's joint venture in China, during a press conference in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)
Toyota Motor Corp's top scientist recently issued a cautionary statement to the automotive industry, urging against overreliance on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as the sole solution to climate change.

Reuters reports that Gill Pratt, CEO of the Toyota Research Institute, emphasized the impracticality of exclusively relying on BEVs due to limited resources, which could inadvertently discourage some drivers from replacing their polluting vehicles.

Toyota's Stand on BEV Adoption

Toyota has faced criticism from investors and environmental groups for the slow adoption of BEVs compared to companies like Tesla.

However, Toyota consistently argues that BEVs are just one option, advocating for the continued use of gasoline-electric hybrids, particularly their iconic Prius, as a more suitable choice for specific markets and drivers.

Due to a variety of factors, then Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda reiterated in October 2022 that he does not believe all-electric vehicles will be adopted as rapidly as policy regulators and competitors believe. Lack of infrastructure, pricing, and regional differences in consumer preferences was cited as possible roadblocks.

Why a focus on BEVs comes with some risks

Pratt acknowledged the positive impact of BEVs in countries like Norway, where extensive renewable infrastructure is in place. However, in regions where coal remains a significant part of the energy mix, hybrids prove superior in reducing CO2 emissions.

During a press briefing in Hiroshima, preceding the Group of Seven leaders summit in the Japanese city, Pratt highlighted the challenges in scaling up battery materials and renewable charging infrastructure.

Read Also: Rimac Nevera is the Electric Hypercar that Broke 23 Records in One Test; 0-60 in 1.74 Seconds

He explained that it would take several decades to reach the necessary resource levels, including battery material mines, renewable power generation, transmission lines, and seasonal energy storage facilities, for widespread implementation.

Toyota Is Still Holding On 'All-Electric' Plans

Despite these challenges, Bloomberg tells us that Toyota is committed to electric mobility. The company aims to sell 1.5 million battery-powered cars by 2026 and has plans to introduce ten new fully electric models. Toyota envisions achieving carbon neutrality by combining hybrid vehicles and fuel-cell technology.

In February, Toyota Motor confirmed that it would soon begin mass production of its own electric vehicles in the United States. Toyota will mass-produce its EVs in Kentucky.

Additionally, a separate Reuters report highlighted that Toyoda had lobbied the Japanese government to show equal support for hybrid vehicles alongside BEVs. He emphasized that BEVs are undoubtedly "one very important option" for achieving carbon neutrality while underlining hydrogen's significance as a potential solution.

The ongoing debate surrounding the role of BEVs versus hybrid vehicles in pursuing carbon neutrality reflects the intricacies and variations across different markets and energy systems.

Toyota's stance emphasizes the necessity for a diversified approach, with hybrids acting as a transitional bridge toward a future where battery technology and renewable infrastructure can effectively meet the demands of a fully electric fleet.

As the world's leading automaker in terms of sales, Toyota's perspective carries significant weight within the industry.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.

Related Article: Scientists Introduce EV Battery For All Seasons

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Google Chrome's third-party cookies will be phased out, as announced by the search engine giant.

As of writing, Google already has efforts to protect users from these cookies. One of these is the option to allow users to reject cookies used by websites they are accessing.

However, Google's efforts don't completely remove these website cookies. But, the tech firm's new plan will change this situation for good.

Google Chrome's Third-Party Cookies To Be Removed

Cookies are used by websites to track users' browsing activities. They commonly provide user information to marketers for their targeted ads.

Also Read: Google Chrome to Update with AI Features, 'GIFI' and 'Searchalong' Among Many Projects Besides 'Magi'

Although they also improve the website experience of users, they are still criticized since they put people's privacy at risk.

This is why Google wants to remove third-party cookies on Chrome. However, the search engine will do this one step at a time.

According to The Straits Times' latest report, Google will remove only 1% of Chrome cookies in the second half of 2024. After that, more website cookies are expected to be phased out.

"To get ready for the Web without third-party cookies, it's important that the ecosystem prepares in advance," said Google Vice President Anthony Chavez.

Google's latest effort against website cookies, which is a collaborative plan with Britain's CMA (Competition and Markets Authority), is expected to encourage developers to conduct real-world experiments that will assess the efficiency of their products.

Google's Privacy Sandbox

Google said that its new Privacy Sandbox initiative will allow it to phase out Chrome's third-party cookies.

Thanks to this effort, the search engine giant can have a more privacy-focused approach, which will enable users to have more control over their online interests.

"The Privacy Sandbox reduces cross-site and cross-app tracking while helping to keep online content and services free for all," said Google via its official Privacy Sandbox website.

As of writing, the Privacy Sandbox is still under development. Google said that this new technology will rely on the contributions of other companies, such as OnePlus, MOLOCO, Neodata Group, Oppo, Realme, Remerge, etc.

If you want to learn more details about this security effort of Google, you can visit this link.

In other stories, Google's new policy confirmed that two-year inactivity could lead to Google account deletion. We also reported about the new partnership between Google and SAP, which will bring AI integration to businesses.

For more news updates about Google's upcoming activities, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: Google Chrome Desktop Gets Dynamic Theming, but There Are Limitations

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Li Qingsheng tunes a guitar in Tangwu, a small town in east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 21, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Guofeng)

JINAN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- After working in the guitar industry for more than a decade, Li Qingsheng, a former farmer, has honed the skill to distinguish the desired timbre and tune more than 300 electric guitars a day.

Li works at the Changyunda musical instrument company in Tangwu, a small town in east China's Shandong Province which has been the manufacturing hub of musical instruments, especially guitars, for decades. At present, about 2 million musical instruments are produced in the town every year, with an annual output value of 1 billion yuan (about 142.92 million U.S. dollars).

According to Zhang Longgang, general manager of the Changyunda musical instrument company, the process of guitar making involves seven crucial stages that include molding, sanding, painting and drying. He explained that each process consists of around 10 to 20 steps, of which 80 percent need to be done manually, and therefore, the core competitiveness of the industry lies in craftsmanship.

More than 8,000 people are involved in the entire production chain of the guitar industry in Tangwu, accounting for over 10 percent of the town's population, with some workers earning a monthly income of nearly 10,000 yuan.

Previously, guitar factories in Tangwu were mostly small and the production standard of the guitars was not clear. The young generation of industry leaders, such as Zhang, continued to refine the production process and quality standards in order to gain market recognition.

After 11 years of development, Zhang's factory has the advantages of scale and standardization. The number of workers has increased from the initial 10 to more than 80, while the annual output of its musical instruments such as electric guitars and bass guitars exceeds 100,000, which are exported overseas.

In Tangwu, the number of musical instrument production and accessories processing enterprises has grown to more than 80. The products cover nearly 400 varieties under eight series, such as electric guitars, acoustic guitars, ukuleles, banjos and mandolins, which are exported to more than 30 countries and regions including the Republic of Korea, Japan and the United States.

According to Meng Hong, the Party chief of Tangwu Town, to ensure the high-quality development of local musical instrument companies, the government actively organizes them to participate in international exhibitions and has increased investment in innovation, promoting the transformation of the musical instrument industry from OEM production to independent research and development.

"We have to build our own brands," said Zhao Weiguo, general manager of Eart Music Co., Ltd.

In over a decade, the company forged cooperations with the Sichuan Conservatory of Music, Tianjin Conservatory of Music and other universities to establish its own art college, and developed more than 500 "guitar classrooms" across the country to train guitar teachers and students. It also held music festivals and summits to expand its brand influence. As a result, a number of national-level performers as well as guitarists from well-known bands have been included in the customer list of Eart Music Co., Ltd.

Thanks to years of efforts, Tangwu has cultivated nearly 40 local brands such as Krait and Eart. Liu Di, who had been engaged in arranging and recording in Beijing, is optimistic about the development prospect of Tangwu's musical instrument industry and set up the Disheng musical instrument company there a few years ago.

Through cross-border e-commerce sites, Liu sells more than 6,000 electric guitars a month abroad. "I want guitarists all over the world to know Tangwu," he said.

"In the near future, we will promote 'Tangwu guitar' as a regional brand, and combine the development model of industry, culture and tourism to make Tangwu a guitar town with international influence," Meng said. 
JINAN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang has urged efforts to boost the real economy, expand domestic demand and stabilize external demand to promote economic recovery.

Li made the remarks during his inspection tour in Shandong Province from Wednesday to Thursday.

The premier said the real economy is the lifeblood of China's economy. The country should foster advanced manufacturing clusters, make coordinated efforts to transform and upgrade traditional industries, and foster and expand strategic emerging industries, while moving industries to the medium-high end, he said.

He stressed efforts to improve purchasing policies for new-energy vehicles while speeding up the construction of charging piles and other infrastructure, in order to further unleash the consumption potential of new-energy vehicles. 
House Republican Rep. Jerome Zeringue, right, from earlier in the legislative session. On May 16, 2023 the Louisiana House approved his resolution urging Attorney General Jeff Landry to legally challenge the formula the Federal Emergency Management Agency is using to determine the new prices for flood insurance policies.
Proposed book bans and re-shelving pushes have increased at libraries across Louisiana. Some say it's how "culture wars" are playing out in ma
People wait to apply for asylum between two border walls Thursday, May 11, 2023, in San Diego. Many of the hundreds of migrants between the walls that separate Tijuana, Mexico, with San Diego have been waiting for days to apply for asylum. Pandemic-related U.S. asylum restrictions, known as Title 42, are to expire May 11. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
The Nile River Dried Up

When parts of the Nile River dried up in 2181 BCE and in the 1980s ancient settlements, artifacts, fossils, and miles of barren desert were discovered.

The Nile River is one of the longest and most important rivers in the world. It flows through 11 countries in Africa, including Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia. The river is essential for the survival of millions of people who live in the Nile River basin. If the Nile River dried up, it would have a devastating impact on the people and the environment.

Parts of the Nile River dried up in Ancient Egypt in 2181 BCE.

However this is not a conspiracy theory because throughout history, the Nile River has dried up in places. There have been a number of droughts in the Nile River basin over the centuries, and during these droughts, the river has sometimes dried up completely or partially.

Around 4,200 years ago, the Nile River experienced a prolonged period of drought that lasted for several decades, leading to a significant decrease in water flow and a decline in the civilization that was flourishing in the region at the time.

The prolonged drought that occurred around 4,200 years ago is believed to have contributed to the decline of the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, which was a period of Egyptian history that lasted from around 2686 BCE to 2181 BCE. During this time, Egypt experienced a period of political instability, economic decline, and social unrest, which some historians believe were exacerbated by the impact of the drought on the Nile River.

The drought is thought to have reduced the amount of water available for irrigation, which impacted agriculture and food production. This, in turn, may have contributed to economic hardship and social unrest, as well as weakening the central government's ability to maintain control over the country. As a result, the Old Kingdom eventually collapsed, and Egypt entered a period of political fragmentation and decentralization known as the First Intermediate Period.

The another major drought in the Nile River basin was in the 1980s. During this drought, the river dried up completely in some areas, and millions of people were affected by hunger and disease.

Climate change is also a major threat to the Nile River. As the Earth's climate warms, the Nile River is expected to experience more droughts and floods. This could have a devastating impact on the millions of people who depend on the river for their water, food, and livelihoods.

The drying up of the Nile River would also have a significant impact on history and science. The Nile River valley is home to a number of ancient civilizations, including the Egyptians, Nubians, and Kushites. If the river dried up again it would expose more of these ancient settlements and artifacts, which would provide valuable insights into the history of the region. The river valley is also home to a number of fossils, including those of dinosaurs, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses. If the river dried up, it would expose these fossils, which would provide valuable information about the prehistoric ecology of the region. You will find, if the Nile River dried up again Ancient settlements and artifacts, fossils and barren desert. Ancient settlements and artifacts The Nile River valley is home to a number of ancient civilizations, including the Egyptians, Nubians, and Kushites. These civilizations built their settlements along the banks of the Nile River because the river provided them with water, food, and transportation. If the Nile River dried up, it would expose these ancient settlements and artifacts, which would provide valuable insights into the history of the region. International and local archaeologists have discovered intact ancient Egyptian temples and tombs along the banks of the Nile River. These temples and tombs provide valuable information about the Egyptian gods, goddesses, and pharaohs. They also provide information about Egyptian art, architecture, and technology. Fossils The Nile River valley is also home to a number of fossils, including those of dinosaurs, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses. These fossils provide valuable information about the prehistoric ecology of the region. Many archaeologists have found a number of dinosaur fossils along the banks of the Nile River. These fossils provide information about the types of dinosaurs that once lived in Africa. They also provide information about the climate and environment of Africa millions of years ago. Barren desert In some areas, the Nile River is the only source of water. If the river dried up, these areas would become barren desert. This would have a devastating impact on the people and the environment of the region. The Sahara Desert is located in the western part of the Nile River basin, if the Nile River dried up, the Sahara Desert would expand. The drying up of the Nile River would be a major disaster for the people and the environment of the Nile River basin. The 1980s Drying up of The Nile River in Sudan and Egypt.

The 1980s drought in the Nile River basin was a severe drought that lasted from 1980 to 1988. It was the worst drought in the region in over 500 years. The drought caused widespread famine, disease, and homelessness.

In Sudan, the drought caused the Nile River to dry up in parts of the country. This led to widespread famine and disease, and it forced millions of people to flee their homes. The drought also had a significant impact on the country's economy, as it disrupted agriculture and transportation.

In Egypt, the drought caused the Nile River to flow at its lowest level in over 100 years. This led to water shortages for irrigation and drinking water, and it forced the government to ration water. The drought also had a significant impact on the country's economy, as it disrupted tourism and agriculture.

The drought of the 1980s was a wake-up call for the countries of the Nile River basin. It showed the vulnerability of the region to climate change and the need for cooperation in managing water resources. The countries of the Nile basin have since taken steps to improve water management and to reduce the impact of future droughts.

To date not all of the dried up areas of the Nile River from the 1980s have been restored. Some areas have been restored, but others have not. The restoration of the dried up areas is a slow and difficult process. It requires a lot of time, money, and effort.
Convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and her Theranos co-founder must repay $US125 million ($188 million) to Rupert Murdoch as part of restitution for their crime, a judge has ordered.

Holmes, 39, and her ex-boyfriend and business partner, Ramesh Sunny Balwani, must hand the sum over as part of court-ordered $US452 million restitution. The money will go to investors who the pair deceived into backing Holmes tech startup, Theranos.

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes turtlenecked persona convinced even seasoned investors like Rupert Murdoch. Credit: AP

Murdoch, 92, invested a reported $US100 million in the company between 2014 and 2015 while its valuation and prominence was soaring.

Other high-profile figures including Henry Kissinger and Bill Clinton also backed Holmes startup.
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The advice columnist writes for two audiences: first the letter-writer who submitted the problem that prompted the column in the first place, and second the assembled readers with no connection whatever to the problem at hand, who return week after week to compare notes, dole out sympathy or judgment in accordance with the letter-writers conduct, offer corrections to the official advice, scold and encourage, gawk and reassure.

While the second audience is always present, there is no way to verify whether a letter-writer has ever seen their dose of advice, much less taken it, unless they write back later with an update. Most dont. The primary audience, the direct recipient of the columnists advice, is phantasmic, exists only in contingency. Its a bit like being asked for directions by someone who immediately sprints away and disappears into a crowd. You can shout Its another block uptown and three more to the left and hope for the best (maybe someone else in the crowd was heading to the same place, and can use the directions), but thats about the extent of your reach.

Daniel M. Laverys Dear Prudence is a record of his five years as an agony aunt. Credit:

Smug self-righteousness, cocksuredness, and heavy-handedness are the besetting sins in such an environment. After all, if a hundred people came up to you in a single week asking for directions, by about the 30th, wouldnt you start to think, I must really know my way around this city? How to treat the hundredth I love my boyfriend, hes fantastic, theres just this one thing framing with the unique attention it deserves, rather than lumping it in with the last 99? The temptation is to read trends into an individual life, which does no one much good. The goal is to provide a concise answer that never turns into a dismissive or reductive one.

And yet there are 15 more questions of similar urgency to answer for the Wednesday column, in four paragraphs or less, and one cant respond to all of them with Gosh, that sounds really complicated  tell me more. The modern advice column is a product of the 20th-century newspaper, for good and for ill; snappy, digestible, easy to syndicate, replicate, and standardise. Write your local representative, call this hotline, go to therapy, ask for help, dump your boyfriend, talk to your friend, turn to page 5 to read more, tell your mother to knock it off, draw up a chore wheel, buy a longer leash.

Most of this is very good advice indeed! It just doesnt happen to be very novel, or interesting. The trick then becomes to render something standardised into something personally significant, with at least an attempt at humility, without the air of a tired principal telling every student to get out of their office and do their homework.

Then again  one doesnt agree to become an advice columnist because one thinks they give bad advice. Of course this is a good idea, I think to myself every time. This is simply the most sensible course of action available. Ideally, one finds a balance between confident direction  this is the way you ought to go, follow this path and do not depart from it, and you will grow in peace and understanding  and flexible humility  be prepared for this to fall apart at any moment, and willing to try something new.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement and witnessed the signing of a raft of bilateral documents on cooperation in areas including economy, trade, connectivity, technology and sub-national exchanges. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on Thursday in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Rahmon is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi expressed his pleasure at meeting with his old friend in Xi'an and warmly welcomed Rahmon to China for the summit and the state visit.

He pointed out that since China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties, the bilateral relationship has grown from one of good neighborliness to a strategic partnership and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Xi recalled his state visit to Tajikistan in 2019, during which they jointly announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community of common development and security, which has seen encouraging progress over the past four years.

Xi underscored that China-Tajikistan relations enjoy deep historical roots, a solid political foundation, substantive cooperation and extensive public support.

To ensure a bright future for the two peoples, China is ready to work with Tajikistan under the new circumstances to enhance cooperation in various areas and build a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit, Xi said.

Xi called on both sides to deepen all-round strategic cooperation and firmly support each other on issues concerning their core interests, including national sovereignty, independence, security and territorial integrity.

Xi also called for deepening China-Tajikistan cooperation in economy and trade, connectivity, agriculture and major projects.

China is ready to import more quality agricultural products from Tajikistan, Xi said.

The Chinese president also called for closer people-to-people exchanges to consolidate the public support and social foundation for bilateral relations.

China stands ready to work with the Tajik side to strengthen law enforcement and security cooperation to safeguard the common security of the two countries and the region, Xi said.

Xi said that he is convinced that, with the concerted efforts of all parties, the China-Central Asia Summit will open a new chapter for China-Central Asia cooperation.

Hailing Tajikistan-China relations as an example of good neighborliness and sincere cooperation between countries, Rahmon said Tajikistan supports the China-proposed Global Security Initiative, the Global Development Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative.

The Tajik side stands ready to dovetail its development strategy with the Belt and Road Initiative and strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, production capacity, agriculture, transportation, green economy and people-to-people exchanges, Rahmon said.

After the talks, the two heads of state signed a joint statement and witnessed the signing of a raft of bilateral documents on cooperation in areas including economy, trade, connectivity, technology and sub-national exchanges.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang attended the events. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
James Balcombe had never had success in business until he joined the jumping castle industry, and quickly grew his empire with a never-ceasing desire to be the best.

After a life of low-paying jobs, he became fixated on the party hire industry and at the peak of his obsession hired a team of arsonists to burn his competition to the ground.

What followed, over the summer of 2016-17, was a campaign of terror and destruction aimed at kneecapping seven of his competitors.

You became very successful in the jumping castle industry, but you also became completely fixated and obsessed with it. It consumed your every waking moment, County Court Judge Stewart Bayles told Balcombe, 58, on Thursday.
Stevenson said at least three of the teenagers were armed with knives, but police are yet to find any weapons. It is unclear whether Pasawm was stabbed by single or multiple attackers. A 17-year-old Caroline Springs boy has been arrested at Braybrook in connection to the fatal stabbing, but police are still looking for two other males. Mawn said his family hadnt slept all night. His body was here until 12.30am, around then. After that, after his body was gone  we couldnt go to the coroner, so we had to go home, he said. Hed been here for six or seven hours. In this cold weather, he was on the concrete.

Standing at the site of his younger brothers death, Mawn said on Friday morning he still couldnt believe what had happened. He didnt do anything, he said. Lifes not fair. Pasawm Lyhym died after being stabbed in Sunshine on Thursday afternoon. Mawn said he wanted the attacker to apologise to the family. We dont want to hurt you. Just come to us. We want to see you, whoever did this. I want you to apologise. Come to us. Just admit that you did it  No one deserves to die like this. A group of family and friends lit candles and left flowers at the bus shelter on Station Place on Friday morning.

CCTV footage from Mann Place, a dead-end laneway near the site of the stabbing, shows someone wearing a black hoodie running with a large knife. About 10 minutes later, he is seen leaving the laneway walking slowly and looking over his shoulder with his hands in his pockets. Detectives cordoned off the laneway as they combed the area and shops for clues. Additional police patrols were deployed to the schools the boys involved attended to speak to potential witnesses and prevent retaliatory attacks. A witness told 3AW the attack happened in front of onlookers. The attacker was the one who was screaming. He had a black hoodie on and he was the one who was running, he said.

Sam Abdulkaram, who runs a convenience store next to the site of the stabbing, said he saw kids running back and forth. For us, something is always happening, he said. Theres always fights, but nothing serious, like now. Pasawms family, who are part of the Chin-Matu community, arrived in Australia from Myanmar in 2013. We first arrived in Sunshine North, thats where we lived, Mawn said. He has a lot of friends who go to Braybrook College. Mawn said it was hard to describe his brother. Hes a funny one. After work I go home, he always says, Whats up bro?

He was the quiet one in the room. He was the nicest of everyone. Mawn said his brother, a year 11 student at Staughton College, was a kind and giving teen who loved rap music and barbecue, played soccer and did karate, and wanted to become a builder. The brothers also have two sisters. Hes a good person, Mawn said. A friend of Pasawm, who did not give his name, said he arrived at the scene of the stabbing only 10 minutes after it happened. The teen said it was only when the ambulance officer brought out a body bag that the reality hit.

By the time I got here he passed away in one of the boys arms. Im shocked. I wasnt thinking of death. I thought he just got injured, he said. Loading In a statement, the Victorian Matu Community said it was deeply shocked and saddened by Pasawms death. Pasawm always wore a warm and sincere smile wherever he went, it said. He was a beloved and cherished member of our Matu community. He will be greatly missed. Staughton College principal David Lord said the Melton school was shocked at the senseless death of one of its students.

We are wrapping our arms around the family and friends of that student and ensuring that students and staff have all the support they need, he said in a statement. Chin community secretary Robert Sang, who knew Pasawm from sporting events, said the whole community was in shock. A tribute to Pasawm Lyhym at the bus stop where he was fatally stabbed. Credit: Nicole Precel He was a lovely boy. The family and community members went back to the station ... they are there to support them. Sang said Sunshine North had been a safe neighbourhood, but this incident really impacts on the community safety concerns  we feel like its not safe.

The community held a memorial for Pasawm in Sunshine on Friday night. Another friend described Pasawm as being funny, too kind and too innocent. He called for stricter penalties for knife crimes. Knives are definitely a big issue, he said. A special investigation from The Age earlier this month found knife violence has reached unprecedented levels in Victoria, sparking police operations targeting at-risk youths, gang crime and weapon possession.

Hospital admissions related to knife assaults have more than doubled in less than three years to more than two victims per day. Police seizures of bladed weapons have also reached record levels. Detective Superintendent Stevenson moved to reassure members of the public after the attack. Although its very concerning, and we take any knife violence seriously, I can say that knife homicides have been decreasing over the past couple of years, she said. It would have been very concerning for the people involved and witnessing it, particularly the children involved. However, this is not something that is a growing concern for us.
Internal documents have revealed the West Australian government considered allowing companies to use carcinogenic chemicals banned by the health department in hydraulic fracturing processes.

A draft copy of the governments Code of Practice for Use of Hydraulic Fracturing in Western Australia was tabled in 2021. It took more than two years for the document to be released by the state government under Freedom of Information laws.

The Kimberley region is one area of the state where the fracturing moratorium has been lifted. Credit: Manfred Gottschalk / Alamy Stock Photo

The draft code stated the use and movement of low levels of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene  also known as BTEX  would occur as a byproduct of fracking development and would be part of rarely used ... synthetic or oil-based drilling fluid or hydraulic fracturing fluid.

Fracking information on the Health Departments website said the use of [BTEX] as additives or ingredients in drilling and hydraulic fracture fluids is not permitted, but the draft code stated the levels must not go above a set level.
A long-running investigation by The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes last year uncovered fundamental flaws in Australias border security and immigration system, including that a global human-trafficking syndicate had been able to run an illegal sex racket here with virtual impunity.

The investigation, under the name Trafficked, exposed how migration agents running visa farms had been able to corrupt the entry process for students, families seeking reunification, and refugees, allowing thousands of people to work in this country under indentured conditions.

Former police chief commissioner Christine Nixon has delivered a report to the federal government on rorting of the immigration system. Credit: Michael Clayton-Jones

Such was its impact that in November, Home Affairs Minister Clare ONeil declared Australias migration system officially broken, ordering an urgent independent inquiry to examine the revelations.

Weve ended up with a system where theres massive visa queues and where the people who actually legitimately want to use the system cant properly use it, she said. And yet criminals who want to bring people into the country as slaves are able to somehow do it.
The troubled school Schneider took over in 2019 and the orderly one he heads today are poles apart, he said. Andrew Schneider credits Berry Streets teaching model with turning his school around. Credit: Simon Schluter He credits much of the transformation to its adoption of Berry Streets trauma-informed teaching model, which has given teachers new techniques to engage with students. Berry Street routinely works with schools where there is a high level of disadvantage and trauma. But the charity is experiencing a surge in interest from more advantaged schools also struggling with classroom behavioural issues, Brunzell said.

He said that demand for its services has doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted face-to-face learning for two years. On Friday, about 80 teachers from more than 20 schools in Melbournes south-east will visit Mahogany Rise to hear how Schneider and Brunzell have built a more positive learning environment. Mental health problems among students have driven many schools to look for new solutions, Brunzell said. We are now seeing the impacts of two years without consistent classrooms. These are kids that are not self-regulated, theyre melting down, not connecting to others, doing unsafe things.

Doveton College has also spent several years training its staff with Berry Streets educational model. Principal Debra Gibson said some teachers came to her in the past and said, I cant teach these kids because theyre not listening. The teachers have since changed their language and approach to using strategies to help students engage. The key is creating a consistent expectation that all students will learn and respond to micro-moments before a blowout occurs, she said. Its not just the kids with traumatic backgrounds that this is helping, she said.

Its pushing our higher-level students to extend themselves more because were finding ways for all students to improve, to learn more about themselves and their goals, no matter their background. Professor Helen Stokes, of the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, said Berry Streets teaching model suited the times. It has been really important for children and young people coming back to school after COVID and all the remote learning theyve had  and thats across the board, its not about whether you are high or low socioeconomic, Stokes said. All those mental health issues with children especially are across the board. Stokes has studied the model up close in three Frankston schools since its introduction in 2019. She says it works because it gives students a safe way to communicate their readiness to learn and it gives teachers a way to help them without distracting the rest of the class.

Punitive practices such as detention are no longer used because they werent working anyway, she said. Loading Theres still work to do around bullying that happens, she said. But certainly in terms of having expectations to learn and that the classroom environment enables them to learn, those things have changed dramatically. Other education experts The Age spoke to endorsed the model. Professor John Hattie, one of Australias most influential education academics, said he had seen its use bring focus to a previously disengaged classroom.

Its not just trauma-informed for the sake of making kids feel good about themselves; they actually go about the learning process, Hattie said. Loading In its submission to a Senate inquiry into increasing disruption in Australian classrooms, Berry Street drew a link between chaotic classrooms and the high rate of teachers exiting the profession, with more than a third of teachers indicating in a major national survey published in March that they intended to leave teaching. This issue is important because poorly addressed disruptive student behaviour can lead to a breakdown of a trusting teacher-student relationship and disengagement with education, the submission said. It is also important because struggling to manage disruptive and disengaged student behaviours can lead to educator burnout and exiting the profession.
Eco Button in a Toyota or Lexus Can Make a World of Difference

SEE ALSO Toyota Choices

Week-long study demonstrates how any Toyota or Lexus with Eco mode can reduce tailpipe CO2 emissions simply by pressing the Eco or EV button

Toyota employees and family members drove more than 400,000 miles in Eco or EV mode during the initiative

Eco mode study showed how drivers of different kinds of vehicles can contribute toward carbon reduction

PLANO, Texas (May 18, 2023)  It can feel overwhelming thinking how to do your best to minimize your impact on the environment. Did you remember to recycle? Turn off the lights when you left a room? Compost your leftovers?

In a world of more than 8 billion people, it turns out that even making the smallest changes can make a positive collective impact. Case-in-point: Driving in Eco or EV mode in gas and hybrid vehicles.

Engineers and data scientists from data and mobility services company Toyota Connected North America (TCNA) set out to see how much one push of a button could reduce drivers carbon emissions. From April 19-25, TCNA recorded data in real-time from more than 2,000 participating corporate-owned Toyota and Lexus vehicles, recording more than 483,000 miles in Eco or EV mode throughout the week. Data scientists compared data from driving in Eco mode a baseline of daily driving taken before the campaign to measure improvements. The TCNA team sifted through more than 2.5 million miles from all participating and non-participating vehicles.

From that sample, the estimated collective impact of the study participants emission reductions were:

The equivalent of 748 trees sequestering carbon for 10 years

45,235,623 g of CO2 reduction of greenhouse gases compared to the baseline

5,091 gallons of gasoline saved

$18,304 of fuel cost savings based on the national average

We have the ability to use data to help empower customers so that they can make a difference, said Brian Kursar, chief technology officer, TCNA. While this study focused on Toyota-owned vehicles, we know there are millions of connected Toyota and Lexus vehicles in the U.S. If everyone drove in Eco mode, it could help greatly reduce our collective CO2 output. Given how successful this internal campaign was, wed love to see where we can take this initiative, and we hope we inspire other automakers to do the same.

Kursar continued: Toyota and Lexus drivers come from all walks of life and live in all kinds of places. Some have long commutes; some may live in rural areas with little fueling infrastructure. Our goal is to meet them where theyre at and use our expertise to help them today, no matter what they drive.

TCNA found in its initial study that using the Eco mode could reduce tailpipe CO2 output in a hybrid by 4%  because it already captures energy from brakes and downhill coasting. Or, in a full internal-combustion engine vehicle, data scientists found using the Eco button could reduce tailpipe CO2 by up to 26%. The benefit of Eco mode is that it remaps throttle inputs for gentler acceleration and optimizes the HVAC to conserve energy.

Toyota companies are dedicated to helping reduce carbon emissions to advance achieving a net-zero society and are challenging ourselves to how we can continually help our drivers do the same, said Olarinre Salako, senior data scientist, TCNA. Connected cars open up a world to see how we can use data for good and how we can unlock the full potential of our Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

To get to a carbon-neutral society, were all going to have to pitch in, said Kursar. Pressing one button in your car to activate Eco mode is one small contribution that our data scientists have shown can benefit everyone.

About Toyota Connected, Inc.

Based in Plano, Texas, Toyota Connected North America (TCNA) was established in 2016 to contribute toward realizing Toyotas global vision for an intelligent mobile society. As an independent Toyota company, TCNA serves as a software and innovation hub that leverages big data from vehicles to humanize the driving experience, providing customers secure, seamless and contextual services. Comprised primarily of software engineers and data scientists, TCNA is a center of excellence for connected services that elevate the customer experience as well as benefiting dealers, distributors and partners. At the heart of TCNA is Toyotas belief in human-centered mobility and a fundamental commitment to personal privacy. Learn more at toyotaconnected.com.

Data captured from model year 2020-23 Toyota and Lexus employee lease, fleet and other vehicles owned by Toyota Motor North America and other Toyota companies from March 18, 2023, until April 24, 2023 (see below for details). Vehicles include model year 2020-2023 Toyota and Lexus vehicles equipped with an on/off Eco Mode button or EV Mode in hybrid vehicles. Data is collected only in vehicles where drivers have consented to sharing data via the Toyota app in North America. For more information on Toyotas data privacy policy, please visit: https://support.toyota.com/s/article/Data-Privacy-Portal-10679

Other factors can limit the reduction of carbon emissions such as idling, weather, route, driving habits, different drivers, etc. Also, the analyses only focused on tailpipe CO2 emissions reduction. Results will vary depending on these and other factors.

How we calculated the Baseline pre-campaign driving period March 15  March 31:

Start from trip level to daily level to historical baseline level for each VIN. Calculated Baseline Total Dynamic Carbon Footprint (g/CO2) when speed > 0, using EPA conversion factor of 1 gallon of gas consumed = 8887 gCO2*.

Obtain Baseline Total Mileage (Mile)

Calculate Baseline Normalized Dynamic Carbon Footprint (gCO2/mile). That is value in (2) divided by value in (1)

For cross referencing with monitor, get historical usages of different driving modes (EV, ECO, and others). Other things being equal, the more EV and ECO modes usage the lower the carbon footprint per mile.

How we calculated the Monitor driving period during Earth Week campaign April 19  April 25:

During the campaign, repeat the process in Baseline above for each VIN, and for each day of the campaign, to get equivalent monitor values.

Take the difference between the Monitor Daily Normalized Dynamic Carbon Footprint and the Baseline Normalized Dynamic Carbon Footprint.

If the difference in (2) yields a negative gCO2/mile, then multiply the Negative Value -by the Monitor Total Daily Mileage (Miles) to get Daily Reduction in Dynamic Carbon Footprint (gCO2) for each VIN.

Sum up the Daily Reduction in Dynamic Carbon Footprint (gCO2) for all VINs and all campaign days, to obtain Total Carbon Footprint Savings for the entire campaign period.

Convert the Total Carbon Footprint Savings to Number of Trees, using the conversion factor provided by the EPA: 60,539 grams of CO2 are required to plant and grow 1 typical urban tree in the US for 10 years**.

Convert the Total Carbon Footprint Savings to Dollars, using national average price of gas per gallon as of 4/10 = $3.596***.

References

*https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator#results

**https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gases-equivalencies-calculator-calculations-and-references

*** https:///www.eia.gov/petroleum/gasdiesel
CheapAir.com data shows while no U.S. city is spared, smaller cities are impacted the most

LOS ANGELES, May 18, 2023 -- CheapAir.com today has published its 2023 year-over-year airfare study , looking at 128 million airfares in cities across the United States, to reveal how the cost of domestic flights has changed compared to this time last year. As travel demand continues to rise, no city in the U.S. was spared from higher flight prices. The study revealed that airfares have spiked an average of 17% compared to last year, with smaller cities seeing the greatest increase in average cost.

According to the study, smaller cities make up the top five airports with the largest airfare increases. This is likely due to the fact that smaller airports offer fewer flights on fewer airlines compared to larger cities. The ten cities with the largest fare spikes in 2023 are noted below, with the full ranking list of 74 cities on CheapAir.com .

Flint, MI : 35% increase in airfare Akron, OH : 32% increase in airfare Dayton, OH : 30% increase in airfare Greensboro, NC : 28% increase in airfare Tucson, AZ : 25% increase in airfare Burbank, CA : 24% increase in airfare Miami, FL : 23% increase in airfare San Juan, Puerto Rico : 23% increase in airfare Fort Myers, FL : 22% increase in airfare Minneapolis, MN : 22% increase in airfare

In contrast, the top 5 cities that experienced the smallest average increase in airfare include:

Manchester ( Boston regional), NH: 10% increase in airfare Oakland, CA : 10% increase in airfare Houston, TX : 11% increase in airfare Rochester, NY : 11% increase in airfare Hartford, CT : 11% increase in airfare

This summer travelers can combat these rising prices by using the following tips:

Book early: On average, the best time to buy flights is 70 days in advance of departure.

On average, the is 70 days in advance of departure. Consider alternative airports: Travelers that live in a smaller city may find it beneficial to fly out of a nearby larger airport.

Travelers that live in a smaller city may find it beneficial to fly out of a nearby larger airport. Manage upfront costs: Monthly payments can help travelers defer up-front travel costs and pay over time.

can help travelers defer up-front travel costs and pay over time. Protect your purchase: Programs, such as CheapAir.com's Price Drop Payback, protect travelers' flight cost for free.

For additional information and the full ranking list of the 74 U.S. departure cities with the highest price hikes, view CheapAir.com's 2023 Year-Over-Year Airfare Study .

About CheapAir.com

Headquartered in California, 2022 Travel Weekly Magellan Awards winner CheapAir.com is powered by a team of travel enthusiasts who use cutting-edge technology and superior customer service to simplify the way people shop for travel. Our proprietary airfare shopping engine provides an easy-to-understand view of flight and fare options, to make trip planning easy and joyful. Only CheapAir provides full apples-to-apples comparisons so you can see and book across different airlines and different flights, not just the lowest fares, but also the best value flights based on quality, comfort, and inflight amenities.

Along with its sister company, AmTrav for Business Travelers, CheapAir.com has helped over five million people buy plane tickets and travel with confidence.
UNITED NATIONS, May 17 (Xinhua) -- The world body is in need of funds to cope with the recent floods in Ethiopia that have caused significant displacement of people and damage in the country's south and east, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Wednesday.

With more than 35,000 households displaced and more than 45 lives lost, Ethiopia's Somali Region is the most affected. More than 23,000 livestock have died, while nearly 100,000 hectares of farmland has been destroyed, said OCHA.

Food, shelter, agriculture, nutrition and health support are the top humanitarian needs. The floods are also heightening health risks in places where there is an ongoing cholera outbreak. Flood water has reached areas already impacted by the historic drought in the Horn of Africa, which has left more than 11 million people food insecure in Ethiopia alone. While the rains have led to some improvements in agriculture and water conditions, the humanitarian situation remains dire, it said.

The United Nations and humanitarian partners, along with the Ethiopian government, are providing life-saving assistance. But more funding is needed, said the office.

A coordinated allocation of 40 million U.S. dollars by the Ethiopia Humanitarian Fund and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund is being prepared to address the needs of drought- and flood-affected people. But to date only 22 percent of the nearly 4 billion dollars required for the humanitarian response this year has been received, it said.

The United Nations and humanitarian partners are also seeking to support those arriving from neighboring Sudan, which is engulfed in a military conflict, said OCHA.

More than 25,000 people have crossed into Ethiopia since April 21, the majority of them Ethiopians returning to their country. The United Nations and partners, together with the Ethiopian government, have installed transit shelters with water and sanitation supplies, and have also provided food and nutrition supplies, said the office. 
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received Secretary-General of the International Civil Defence Organization Njoupouo Yap Mariatou.

President Ilham Aliyev noted that Njoupouo Yap Mariatou's visit to Azerbaijan had contributed to the expansion of the cooperation between the country and the International Civil Defense Organization, and provided a good opportunity to exchange views on the prospects of relations.

Njoupouo Yap Mariatou, first of all, said she was pleased to participate as an honored guest in the operational-tactical training organized by the Ministry of Emergency Situations on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of National Leader Heydar Aliyev.

Emphasizing that Heydar Aliyev is an outstanding statesman and politician, the Secretary-General of the Civil Defense Organization underlined that President Ilham Aliyev is successfully continuing his policy by ensuring stability and dynamic development in the country. The Secretary-General said they appreciate Azerbaijani Presidents activity towards ensuring lasting peace and stability in the region, adding this is President Ilham Aliyevs valuable contribution to Azerbaijan and the region. Njoupouo Yap Mariatou pointed out that the organization had commended the assistance Azerbaijan provided to Turkiye in the aftermath of the earthquake.

The head of the state informed the Secretary-General about the construction of 1000 houses by Azerbaijan in Turkish city of Kahramanmaras.

Njoupouo Yap Mariatou said that Azerbaijan, as a member of the International Civil Defense Organization since 1993, is one of the countries to be actively engaged in civil defense promotion initiatives and to contribute to the cooperation as part of the organization's capacity-building programs. Njoupouo Yap Mariatou hailed Azerbaijans re-election as a member of the Executive Council for another 4-year term during the last session of the General Assembly held in 2022.

The Secretary-General of the International Civil Defence Organization expressed confidence that his visit would give impetus to further development and strengthening of the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the organization.

The head of state noted that Armenians killed Azerbaijani civilians by firing ballistic missiles during the Patriotic War and at the same time, attacked the countrys energy facilities. President Ilham Aliyev provided insight into the ongoing large-scale reconstruction works in Azerbaijans territories liberated from the occupation.

The head of state recalled Azerbaijans support to the World Health Organization during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that this is yet another example of Azerbaijan's active participation in international initiatives. President Ilham Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan had established close cooperation with African countries during the countrys Non-Aligned Movement chairmanship.

During the conversation, they exchanged views on the climate change.

The Secretary-General of the International Civil Defense Organization presented the head of state with a keepsake.
Students show their calligraphy work of Chinese characters "Ping An", meaning safe and sound in English, in London, Britain, May 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ying)

The key to addressing the world's pressing challenges lies in promoting mutual understanding and learning among different civilizations, said Joan Deslandes, a British educator.

LONDON, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The pathway to a globally-connected future lies in language education, cultural exchange and a shared commitment to mutual understanding and respect among civilizations, a British educator has said.

These principles can bring young people from around the world closer together, not only as friends but also as future leaders from diverse backgrounds, Joan Deslandes, head teacher of Kingsford Community School in east London, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"In the context of our ever-globalizing world, it's crucially important that we not only acknowledge but celebrate our cultural differences," she said, adding that "these shouldn't be perceived as remote aspects of a specific curriculum but as integral components of our daily lives."

Noting that nations can bring tangible benefits to one another by appreciating and understanding diverse cultures, she said that the key to addressing the world's pressing challenges lies in promoting mutual understanding and learning among different civilizations.

Kingsford Community School became the first school in the United Kingdom to make Mandarin a compulsory part of its curriculum in 2000. In 2007, it became home to London's first Confucius Classroom.

Students of Kingsford Community School pose for a group photo with presenters at the prize-giving ceremony for the winners of the Chinese proficiency competition -- "Chinese Bridge" -- for primary-and secondary-level students in London, Britain, Oct. 7, 2022. (Xinhua/Li Ying)

Deslandes told Xinhua that Kingsford regularly organized exchange programs with Chinese middle schools before the COVID-19 pandemic. Students are now eagerly anticipating the resumption of these programs.

"The students at my school are incessantly inquiring about when they can return to China. The stories told by older students about their enriching experiences, the friendships formed and the deep cultural immersion have instilled in them a desire to participate in these exchanges," she added.

She said Kingsford students are both willing and genuinely enthusiastic about promoting mutual understanding and learning among civilizations.

On China's recent proposal of the Global Civilization Initiative, Deslandes sees it as attractive and necessary for the world's young population.

She said misunderstanding, misinformation and a lack of trust among nations are barriers to global cooperation.

"I'm excited about the future of this initiative," Deslandes said, "and its potential to expand and reinforce the inter-connectedness of the world's civilizations."
DAR ES SALAAM, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan revealed Thursday that plans were underway to launch the East African nation's own satellite into space.

Tanzania will join neighboring Kenya and Uganda which have developed and launched satellites into space in the past six months.

Launching a digital terrestrial television for Azam Media, the country's leading private media house in Dar es Salaam, President Hassan said negotiations for the launch of the satellite into space have begun.

According to reports, Kenya in April sent into space its first observation satellite onboard a SpaceX rocket from the United States, which is capable of collecting agricultural and environmental data, including floods, droughts and wildfires, which authorities plan to use for disaster management and combat food insecurity.

Uganda launched its first-ever satellite into the international space station last year. 
The Wyoming Department of Corrections Wyoming Honor Farm and the Bureau of Land Management celebrated their 35-year partnership last weekend in Riverton with a successful wild horse and burro adoption. Since 1988, the team has placed more than 5,000 gentled animals into new homes.

Also celebrated were the personal accomplishments realized by the Honor Farm inmates who work in the wild horse training program. Inmates who are released after working in this program have a greater chance to succeed in the outside world.

Itll change your life to see the difference the wild horse program makes in these mens lives every day, said Farm Manager Travis Shoopman.

The adoption was a fitting tribute to the program as each animal was showcased by its trainer in front of a crowd of more than 200 people. Within a couple hours, 45 horses and 10 burros were adopted via competitive bid.

The high bid of the adoption was $7,500 for saddle-trained Phoenix, a 3-year-old black gelding from the Lost Creek Herd Management Area northwest of Rawlins. Phoenixs new owners will use him for hunting trips and plan to train him to be a rope horse on their ranch in Encampment.

Jack Corney of Lander adopted an Honor Farm horse last spring and returned this year based on that positive experience.

That horse is doing great, I had a good summer with him, said Corney, who adopted for a second time on Saturday. It takes a little work to get these horses where you want them, but theyre started really well.

The burros had their share of admirers as well. All ten were adopted for prices ranging from $250 to $1,450. Ross Crandall of Pinedale adopted two burros, Zeus and Dozer.

Ill use them for packing during hunting season and summer trips into the Winds with the family, Crandall said.

Two adoptions are held at the Honor Farm each yearthe next one is scheduled for September 16. Several other wild horse and burro adoptions are scheduled throughout Wyoming this year. Check the schedule at blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro/adoptions-and-sales. To learn more about the BLMs Wild Horse and Burro Program and adopting a Wyoming wild horse, visit BLM.gov/WHB or contact the national information center at 866-468-7826 or wildhorse@blm.gov.
ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Xinhua) -- At least one person was killed and three others were injured in a bomb blast on Thursday evening in Peshawar city of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said.

Senior superintendent of Peshawar police Harood Rashid told local media that the explosion occurred at a motorcycle workshop near the Ring Road of Peshawar.

Police and rescue teams rushed to the site and shifted the body and injured to Hayatabad Medical Complex hospital.

According to an initial investigation, at least 200 grams of explosives were used in the blast, said the officer.

The officer added that the bomb, which was planted in a motorcycle, exploded during the repair of the motorbike.

No group has claimed responsibility for the blast. 
Batavia, NY (14020)

Today

Clear to partly cloudy. Low 51F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Clear to partly cloudy. Low 51F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.
NAIROBI, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Kenya on Thursday placed a bid for private firms to develop 100 dams countrywide amid intensified efforts to tackle water scarcity occasioned by climate change and population pressure.

Alice Wahome, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Water, Sanitation, and Irrigation, said the government will provide financial incentives and a conducive regulatory environment for private companies to develop water storage and irrigation infrastructure.

"We have embarked on a process of increasing the water storage capacity that includes the construction of 100 large dams through the public-private partnership model in order to mobilize additional resources for investments in the sector," Wahome said during an investors conference in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital.

To win bids for developing the 100 dams, private companies must demonstrate financial autonomy, technical expertise, and commitment to environmental conservation, Wahome said.

Kenya's total water storage capacity for hydropower, domestic use and irrigation stands at 5.03 billion cubic meters, translating into 107 cubic meters per capita, below the recommended global average of 1,500 cubic meters per capita, Wahome said.

She added that increasing water storage capacity in the country in the face of soaring demand for the commodity-linked to rapid population growth, intensive farming, and industrialization, required innovative financing and policy realignment.

Wahome noted that Kenya's annual per capita freshwater endowment estimated at 406 million cubic meters in 2022 risks declining further due to recurrent droughts, depletion of catchments and unregulated extraction of the commodity.

She said that President William Ruto's commitment to building 100 dams to cater for domestic water supply and irrigation will be implemented in full, so as to realize a people-centered economic transformation agenda.

At present, Kenya has seven large dams with an estimated 3.976 billion cubic meters of stored water for hydropower generation and another 99 medium and over 3,000 small dams and pans with a storage capacity of 160.25 million cubic meters of water for domestic supply and irrigation, Wahome said.

She said that five large dams that are currently under construction will add 894 million cubic meters of water, and boost access to the commodity in the mushrooming rural towns. 
A fawn rests on a shady lawn in Batavia. Mistaken efforts to aid young animals often do more harm than good.
U.S. border patrol agents make contact with migrants hoping to cross into the United States from Tijuana, Mexico, on May 11. Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/Tribune News Service
RAMALLAH, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Palestine on Thursday condemned an Israeli decision that allows Jewish settlers to return to an Israeli settlement evacuated 18 years ago.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said in a press statement that it condemns the decision of Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to allow settlers to return to the "Homesh" settlement, evacuated in 2005, in the northern West Bank.

On Wednesday, Israel Radio reported that Gallant took the move weeks after the Knesset, or parliament, approved of the settlers' return to the settlement in the second and third readings.

The radio said that the Israeli army will establish military sites as a starting point for rebuilding the deserted settlement.

"What happens is part of an Israeli race against time to prevent any opportunity to embody the Palestinian state on the ground, in implementing the principle of the two-state solution and the UN resolutions," the Palestinian statement said.

It added that "the Palestinian people must be provided with the necessary climates to enable them to exercise their right to self-determination, like other peoples, as stipulated in the UN charter."

After its occupation of the West Bank in 1967, Israel has constructed dozens of settlements in violation of the international law. According to Palestinian and Israeli institutions, more than 450,000 Israeli settlers live in 132 settlements and 147 random outposts in the West Bank.

The settlement issue is one of the main issues that have stalled the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks since 2014. 
Agency With $1.7 Trillion Budget Giving Foster Kids Garbage Bags for Their Belongings

U.S. foster children are issued trash bags for their belongings when taken into state custody. (Hope in a Suitcase)

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has proposed a $1.7 trillion operation budget for the next fiscal year, a 12 percent increase over its already enormous annual budget.

The agency seeks billions more in taxpayer dollars to fund newly-proposed expenditures, including a sexual gender minority research office and grants to abortion providers.

However, the agency has yet to ask for funds to fix the longstanding practice of giving children taken into foster care garbage bags to hold their belongings.

Although its been some 30 years, Tee Marie Hanible, a decorated U.S. Marine gunnery sergeant and former co-star of Foxs American Grit, vividly remembers the day she and her older brother arrived at their foster home with nothing more than a small plastic bag holding their belongings.

It was literally an Osco drugstore bag, which is a step up, I guess you could say, from the garbage bags they usually give foster kids, Hanible told The Epoch Times.

Hanible chronicles the life that landed her in the foster care system in her book The Warrior Code.

She has talked nationally about the system and also founded Operation Heroes Connect, a nonprofit organization that includes, among its array of charity work, providing suitcases to children in foster care.

It is one of several organizations across the United States providing kids with something many question why the government has never addressed.

Grassroots Drive

Kathy Adler was so appalled when she learned foster kids were being handed garbage bags at what she said is likely one of the most degrading times of their lives that she started a grassroots drive for suitcases for foster children in her hometown of Grand Prairie, Texas.

Some of the suitcases members of the community dropped off at Kathy Adlers house after learning of her efforts to replace the trash bags foster children are issued with something more dignified. (Suitcases For Kids In Foster Care)

The communitys reaction was swift. Adler came home to hundreds of suitcases piled at her front doormany newly bought still with their price tags.

I couldnt believe it, said Adler, who learned about foster children in Texas being given garbage bags from her daughter, a longtime foster care provider for the state.

I mean, how hard is it for the system to at least provide these kids with a suitcase?

Adler continues her efforts through a Facebook group called Suitcases for Kids in Foster Care.

Just this month, Texas Rep. John Bucy (R-Austin) introduced a bill that would require the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DTFPS) to end its longtime practice of giving children only a garbage bag to hold their belongings in when they are taken into state custody.

The bill directs the agency to instead provide the children with either a backpack or a duffel bag.

In a statement to The Epoch Times, DTFPS spokeswoman Marissa Gonzales said the agency has developed strong relationships with organizations across the state to collect backpacks, duffel bags, and other luggage for children entering foster care. However, Gonzales also admitted there was not necessarily a consistent supply chain.

According to agency records, 9,623 children in Texas were removed from their homes and placed in foster care.

As of now, the only state that funds the provision of suitcases for foster children is Illinois.

State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (D-Chicago) spearheaded the legislation in 2021. Kifowit, also an ex-Marine, told The Epoch Times she learned of the practice from Hanible when she met her at an event.

Treating foster children with dignity and respect should be a no brainer, she said.

Federal Inaction

So far, there have been no known efforts to fund suitcases for foster children on the federal level.

In spite of accounting for one of the largest government operating budgets, a history of budgetary requests shows the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services, which is responsible for half the funding for state foster care programs, has never moved to change the practice.

With May being National Foster Care Month, many foster care advocates are hoping it will inspire lawmakers to make it a priority.

Several petitions aimed at the practice have been spearheaded over the years, with many like Hanible writing about the humiliation that comes with putting your things in a trash bag.

Marsha Todd Austen, a co-founder of the Los Angeles-based Hope In A Suitcase, one of the largest nonprofits in the U.S. dedicated to replacing the government-issued trash bag with something more dignified, told The Epoch Times, that in most cases, children are removed from their homes under emergency circumstances and are given only minutes by social workers to grab what is most important to them.

So in that moment, its just sending a terrible message to kids who already feel like they are wantedto hand them over a trash bag, she said.

Austen also pointed out that many kids removed from their homes are teenagers who are already dealing with normal teenage problems.

Thats why her group donates the more hip duffel bag, she said.

The all-volunteer organization also fills each duffle bag they provide the children with a variety of essentials, from toothbrushes to pajamas, sweat pants, and other items and things like age-appropriate stuffies to items with teen appeal, including popular snacks.

Hope In A Suitcase also holds shopping days for foster children to come in and pick out clothes, shoes, and other items from its Hope Boutique. All the items are brand new, with visits arranged through social workers.

The group has provided more than 20,000 filled duffel bags to foster children under the custody of the State of California.

Hanible said it is inexcusable that after decades of children suffering the humiliation of being handed a trash bag to put your stuff in, the American government still hasnt addressed the practice.

Youre already feeling like garbage because this awful thing is happening to you, she said, you are losing your home, your sense of security, your world is falling apart, and then some social worker hands you a garbage bag.

The DHHS did not respond to inquiries from The Epoch Times about the government giving foster children garbage bags to hold their belongings. Texas Health and Human Services told The Epoch Times it was a Department of Family and Protective Services issue. The agency did not respond.
A truffle hunter shows truffles in the countryside of Hama, central Syria, on April 18, 2023. People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua)

by Hummam Sheikh Ali

HAMA, Syria, May 18 (Xinhua) -- People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region.

Suffering persistent hardships, some Syrians appear nonchalant about their own safety as they no longer afford the luxury of a logical line of action when the war and its implications have already nullified almost all norms.

Sanctions imposed by the United States and other Western countries have made the situation even worse in Syria, leading to people's further neglect of personal safety when their livelihoods become threatened.

Hunters risk being killed by Islamic State (IS) militants or explosions of undetected landmines left by the extremists in wartime to collect truffles in the desert region where the valued substance can be found.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that more than 244 truffle hunters were killed in the desert region between February 6 and April 16, either by undetected landmines or by armed men.

In a village in the countryside of the central province of Hama, which is only 50 km from the desert areas where foragers collect truffles, lucky hunters can be seen riding motorcycles back with bags of truffles.

Abdul Aziz Al-Oqab, a sheik in the village, told Xinhua that the high demand for the high-priced truffles has tempted hunters to forage at the risk of their lives.

"There is a difficulty in making a living. So people started looking for ways to make money and discovered that collecting truffles and selling them to traders for export makes good money," Al-Oqab said.

"Those who collect truffles don't know if they'd come back alive," he told Xinhua, calling truffle a substance "being dipped in blood."

"Many jobs in our village had gone extinct, so people started relying primarily on the truffle, first because of the good money they can make, and second because it doesn't need any special skill or production cost," said Al-Oqab, noting the truffles harvest in Syria this year is one of the largest since the 1990s.

Al-Oqab said he had stopped consuming truffles or ventured out to collect them long ago as 20 of his extended family members have been killed in incidents when collecting truffles.

The adversity also befell Nazzal al-Adab, Al-Oqab's long-time friend, who lost his young son involved in the truffle-hunting adventure.

"My son told me he wanted to go, as he had made good money the previous day. I told him I wasn't going and he shouldn't either. But he insisted on going out. At 6 p.m. on the day, I went to bring back his dead body," al-Adab lamented, recalling his last conversation with his son.

His son and two companions, along with three others, were killed in a landmine explosion.

"If two men from the same family were to go collect truffles, they could make 1 million Syrian pounds (398 U.S. dollars) in two hours," Al-Adab said, adding the price of truffles has dramatically increased since 2019.

He told Xinhua that more than eight people get killed every week for hunting truffles as far as he is concerned.

The United Nations has repeatedly warned about the danger of undetected landmines and other explosives in Syria.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights revealed in early April that 3,353 civilians, including 889 children, had been killed by landmines in Syria since 2011, not even including those gunned down by IS militants. 

Truffle hunters search for truffles in the countryside of Hama, central Syria, on April 18, 2023. People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua)

Truffle hunters search for truffles in the countryside of Hama, central Syria, on April 18, 2023. People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua)

A truffle hunter shows truffles in the countryside of Hama, central Syria, on April 18, 2023. People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua)

A truffle hunter shows a truffle in the countryside of Hama, central Syria, on April 18, 2023. People in war-torn Syria have gone out of their way to make a living and support their families amid an economic crunch, and one of the ways even faces death as they venture out to collect costly truffles in the desert region. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua)
12-Year-Old Boy Arrested for Fatal Shooting of Sonic Employee in Texas

A man and a 12-year-old boy are facing murder charges after the preteen allegedly shot and killed a Sonic employee in the parking lot of the fast-food restaurant, according to local police.

Officers responded to 911 calls about a shooting at a Sonic drive-in at 9:40 p.m. on May 13 in Keene, Texas, according to Keene Police Department. Keene is a small town about 25 miles south of Fort Worth in Johnson County.

When the officers arrived at the scene, they found Matthew Davis, 32, lying in the parking lot with multiple gunshot wounds. Davis was transported by air ambulance to Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth, where he died in the early morning hours on May 14.

Police said Angel Gomez, 20, and the boy were at the restaurant when Gomez began acting disorderly. Witnesses told police that Gomez was urinating near the restaurant property.

Davis and another employee confronted Gomez, asking him to stop his behavior. The confrontation led to a physical altercation, police said.

At that point, police say the 12-year-old boy went to Gomezs vehicle, where he retrieved a firearm and fired multiple shots striking the victim.

Davis mother, Leigh Anne Miller, who spoke exclusively to The Epoch Times on May 16, said that the boy went to the vehicle where there were other passengers, including a woman, and he pulled the weapon from a pillow case and began firing at her son.

The weapon used appears to be an AR-style 22 rifle, Keene Police Chief James Kidd said in an email. It appears that at least six shots were fired.

Miller said that her son had worked at Sonic for about three weeks when he was killed.

The two suspects fled the scene before police arrived. While law enforcement was conducting their investigation at the Sonic, Gomez returned alone and was taken into custody.

Further investigation led authorities to a location in the nearby town of Rio Vista, where they found the juvenile suspect, along with several firearms.

The boy was taken into custody. He is being held in a juvenile facility in Johnson County, Kidd confirmed. Authorities have not released the identity of the boy because he is a minor.

Gomez is believed to have bonded out of the Johnson County Jail, but authorities at the facility would not confirm the information.

Both of the suspects are charged with murder, according to authorities. The suspects are related to each other, but their relationship is not being released at this time, Kidd told The Epoch Times.

This seems to be an isolated incident that was not racially motivated or gang affiliated, Kidd said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.

What We Know About the Victim

In the days following the shooting, members of the small community left flowers at the Sonic to honor Davis, who leaves behind a 10-year-old son.

Matthew Davis and his son. (Leigh Ann Miller)

A GoFundMe account was created by a co-worker of Millers mother, who is a flight attendant.

One of our beloved flight attendants, Leigh Anne, has suffered a devastating loss, the GoFundMe reads. Her eldest son, Matthew, was tragically shot multiple times while at work. He was airlifted to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Miller, a mother of six sons, was in Georgia on an overnight assignment when she learned that her son had been shot. There were no flights available to get her home in time to see him before he died in the early morning hours of Mothers Day.

Leighs life is shattered by this loss, Millers co-worker and friend Shanene Sadoski told The Epoch Times. His brothers are beyond heartbroken.

Miller told The Epoch Times that her son had recently moved from Louisiana to Texas and was living with her. She said Davis had faced some difficulties but that he had turned his life around and was excited about the future and his new job.

I dont care how much money Im making right now because one day I wont be here, Miller said Davis told her after being hired to work at Sonic. I have to start somewhere, and someone gave me a chance.

Miller said that her son did not have a car, so he walked to and from work every day, arriving an hour early for his shifts to show his appreciation and dedication to the job, Miller said. She described her son as a peacemaker who studied theology and was dedicated to his faith.

He could have been so much, Miller said. He had so much to look forward to. He was so happy.

Miller said her sons were close-knit and that Davis death has been especially difficult for her youngest son, who is 14.

Matthew was rewriting his story, and he never got to finish [it], Miller said one of her sons told her after Davis was killed.

Funds raised through GoFundMe will be used to assist the family with Davis funeral expenses and the needs of his young son.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
24 Governors Pledge Support for Texas, Say Theyre Ready to Protect USMexico Border

Immigrants seeking asylum cross the Rio Bravo to return to Mexico from the United States, after members of the U.S. Texas National Guard extended razor wire to inhibit migrant crossing, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on May 13, 2023. (Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters)

Nearly half the governors in the United States have thrown their support behind Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, saying theyre ready to help deal with the spike in illegal immigration at the southern border.

The federal governments response handling the expiration of Title 42 has represented a complete failure of the Biden Administration, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and 23 other Republican governors said in a May 16 statement. While the federal government has abdicated its duties, Republican governors stand ready to protect the U.S.Mexico border and keep families safe.

Title 42, a public health order that enabled the quick expulsion of some illegal immigrants due to concerns they carried COVID-19, expired last week. U.S. officials had predicted a jump in illegal immigration when Title 42 ended, on top of an already-elevated number of illegal immigrants streaming across the border each day under President Joe Bidens loosened border policies, although they said on May 15 that the number of encounters had actually dropped in the initial days after the order expired.

While officials also have announced several new policies, including one restricting eligibility for asylum, some have been put on hold by courts.

Abbott, a Republican, on May 16 urged governors across the nation to step in to help his administration amid what he described as the federal governments absence.

We, as Governors, must band together to combat President Bidens ongoing border crisis and ensure the safety and security that all Americans deserve, he wrote in a letter sent to each governor. Join us in the mission to defend our national sovereignty and territorial integrity and send all available law enforcement personnel and resources to the Texas-Mexico border to serve alongside our thousands of Texas National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers.

The 24 governors said in response that Abbott has exemplified leadership at a critical time  to prevent illegal crossings and keep the border secure and that they support his efforts.

In addition to Reynolds, the supportive governors are Alabamas Kay Ivey, Alaskas Mike Dunleavy, Arkansass Sarah Sanders, Floridas Ron DeSantis, Georgias Brian Kemp, Idahos Brad Little, Indianas Eric Holcomb, Missouris Mike Parson, Mississippis Tate Reeves, Montanas Greg Gianforte, Nebraskas Jim Pillen, North Dakotas Doug Burgum, New Hampshires Chris Sununu, Nevadas Joe Lombardo, Ohios Mike DeWine, Oklahomas Kevin Stitt, South Carolinas Henry McMaster, South Dakotas Kristi Noem, Tennessees Bill Lee, Utahs Spencer Cox, Virginias Glenn Youngkin, West Virginias Jim Justice, and Wyomings Mark Gordon.

Members of the Texas Army National Guard extend razor wire to inhibit migrants from crossing, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico on May 13, 2023. (Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters)

Troops Sent

Several of the governors have dispatched troops to Texas.

Reeves said he was deploying National Guard troops to help combat drug and human trafficking.

Every state has become a border state, and every day were seeing the terrible impact of this humanitarian and national security crisis, he said in a statement. What happens at the border doesnt stay there. Drugs and people are trafficked to every state in the nationincluding Mississippi.

DeSantis said he was deploying law enforcement and National Guard personnel to the border in response to Abbotts request.

The impacts of Bidens Border Crisis are felt by communities across the nation, and the federal governments abdication of duty undermines the sovereignty of our country and the rule of law, DeSantis said in a statement. While Biden ignores the crisis he created, Florida stands ready to help Texas respond to this crisis.

The federal government has challenged critics who say officials are ignoring the crisis. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said more than 24,000 Border Patrol agents and officers were prepared to enforce border policies as Title 42 ended, with support from thousands of troops deployed on orders from Biden.

Do not believe the lies of smugglers. The border is not open, he said in a statement. People who do not use available lawful pathways to enter the U.S. now face tougher consequences, including a minimum five-year ban on re-entry and potential criminal prosecution. Together with our partners throughout the federal government and Western Hemisphere, we are prepared for this transition.

US Border Patrol agents keep watch over illegal immigrants in Fronton, Texas, on May 12, 2023. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Encounters Drop

The number of encounters with illegal immigrants dropped to an average of 5,000 per day since Title 42 ended, from daily highs of more than 10,000 last week, Blas Nunez-Neto, a Department of Homeland Security official, told reporters on a call on May 15.

He described the situation as very fluid while attributing the decrease to several factors, including the Biden administrations tightening of asylum eligibility and countries to the south stepping up border security.

This is a continuously evolving situation that we are monitoring in real time, Nunez-Neto said. We are processing people safely, orderly, and humanely, and quickly delivering consequences to those that do not establish a legal basis to remain in the United States.

Thousands of illegal immigrants were deported over the weekend, the official said.

Under the Biden administration, officials have repeatedly released illegal immigrants into the U.S. interior, including some without a court date. Many asylum-seekers are ultimately rejected but deportations have plunged under the current administration.

A U.S. judge ordered the administration to stop releasing illegal immigrants without a court notice and threatened on May 15 to hold Biden officials in contempt after some illegal immigrants continued to be released after he ordered a halt to the practice.

Reuters contributed to this report.
2nd Escaped Inmate Captured After Breaking out of Philadelphia Prison

PHILADELPHIAA task force led by federal marshals recaptured the second of two inmates who escaped from a Pennsylvania prison earlier this month, a man who had been held on charges in four slayings, authorities said.

Ameen Hurst, 18, was rearrested Wednesday morning in Philadelphia, according to Robert Clark, a supervisory deputy with the U.S. Marshals Service. Authorities had been working with the family since Tuesday evening after they called seeking to have Hurst surrender, but several deadlines for that to happen had come and gone, Clark said.

Authorities staked out several places where Hurst was believed to be hiding. Clark said that when authorities at one of the locations saw Hurst get into a car with two family members, they arrested him. Also arrested was his brother, Amir Woods, 24, who was later charged with hindering apprehension, conspiracy, escape and other counts, police said. A listed number for Woods couldnt be found Wednesday and its unclear whether he has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

Hurst and Nasir Grant, 24, escaped from the Philadelphia Industrial Correction Center on May 7 by cutting a hole in a fence surrounding a recreation yard, the Philadelphia Department of Prisons has said.

Nasir Grant (L) and Ameen Hurst. (Philadelphia Dept. of Prisons via AP)

Before the escape, Hurst had been held on four counts of murder. Grant was being held on conspiracy drug and weapons charges. Officials have said the inmates were housed in the same unit, but different cells.

Grant was arrested Thursday night after members of the same fugitive task force saw him leave a north Philadelphia home dressed as a woman. He was stopped in a car nearby and arrested.

The men were gone for nearly 19 hours before officials knew they were missing. A top city official said an extensive review of the prison and its operations is planned and called it unfortunate that nearby residents and the city at large werent immediately warned. We never want that to happen again, said Tumar Alexander, the citys managing director

Three people, including a fellow inmate, have been charged with aiding the escape, and officials are trying to determine whether anyone else at the prison was involved. Mayor Jim Kenney said whoever had the responsibility of conducting several bed checks cant count or could count and did something wrong.

Michael Abrams and Xianni Stalling, both 21, helped the men leave the area around the prison, after inmate Jose Flores-Huerta, 35, acted as a lookout helping them elude guards, Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore of the Philadelphia police department said Wednesday.

Flores-Huerta is one of several people charged in the September 2021 death of 28-year-old Isidro Cortez of Queens, New York, outside a well-known cheesesteak shop; his attorney has said other suspects were primarily responsible.
When W.F.K. Traverss 9-foot-tall painting of Abraham Lincoln was first unveiled to America at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it stood alongside Gilbert Stuarts Lansdowne Portrait of George Washingtonand together, the likenesses of Americas two most esteemed presidents stunned viewers.

The oil-on-canvas portrait of Lincoln was painted from life in 1865, mere months before his assassination, and remains one of only three known life-sized paintings of the 16th president. Several times, Congress debated purchasing the painting for display in the Capitol, until eventually it was acquired by the Rockefeller family and faded into history.

But now, roughly 147 years after the two paintings were first displayed together, Lincolns portrait has been returned to Washingtons side at the National Portrait Gallery thanks to the generous, long-term loan of the Hartley Dodge Foundation and its founder, Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge.

Fully restored, Lincolns portrait offers a rich reminder not only of Lincolns accomplishments, but also his struggle to restore the values of a nation then at war with itself. Hints of freedom and liberty are woven throughout: A glimpse of Emanuel Leutzes Washington Crossing the Delaware hangs on the wall; the globe depicts Haiti, whose independence was recognized by Lincoln; and, perhaps most poignantly, his hand rests on a book of the Constitution, beside a sculpture of a freed enslaved person and a manuscript of the 13th Amendment.

Meanwhile, in the background, a bust of George Washington looks on at the man determined to restore the Union which Washington had builta link which ties the two men together even more than the interwoven history of their portraits.

W.F.K. Traverss Lincoln portrait is on display at the National Portrait Gallery from February 10, 2023 until December 31, 2027.

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.
Commentary

Art is the highest form of human expression; that is, art is most effective in evoking and exploring expressions intrinsic to the human experience.

There can be no room for what you might call fake art, art that is, at its heart, inauthentic.

I examined authenticity in my Honours thesis, and submit that authentic art is, in both conception and inception, honest, grounded in knowledge.

To be dishonest as a painter, deliberately reproducing the brushwork of Rembrandt, is hardly to be an authentic creator. Similarly, to know little of the history and pioneers of ones craft brooks no confidence that ones work will be distinctin fact, such ignorance would suggest insincerity, that one actually had no interest in striving towards creating authentic art in the first place.

In a sense perhaps most resonant with my readers who are proponents of capitalism (hopefully all), art is not a product.

Products are manufactured for a purpose. Art, alternatively, in a perfect world, is created regardless of whether it is purposeful or not.

The poems of so many poets, the symphonies of so many composers, or the paintings of so many artists have been written, composed, and painted without any prospect of outcome.

An emerging novelists unpublished manuscript cannot be said to possess any certainty of reward, and yet what strongly increases the chance of its publication is its literary quality.

For do not mistake me: art without purpose must still be excellent, and I have written previously on the necessity of craft.

Paintings cover the ceilings and walls of the Palace of Versailles. (Annie Zhuo/The Epoch Times)

More to the point, though, the author has laboured many hours a day for many months, sometimes years, over his manuscript, without any guarantee that a publisher will champion his work. But labour still he does, and for the simple reason that he does not expect, he loves.

Indeed, I have written much music that remains unperformedin some cases, definitely for the better!and yet this has not dissuaded me from my resolve to compose because the ultimate success of my work is not what led me to write it in the first place.

In the Absence of Lived Experience

Herein all of this lies the philosophic problem with art generated by artificial intelligence (AI).

Humans alone can be artists, for only humans can adequately express the experiences, be they physical or emotional, that are intrinsic to them.

How can a machine describe the beauty of a blood-crisp sunrise or the pain of a parent who has lost a child?

Preconceived interpretations of such things may be programmed, yes, but why programme and replicate when one can uniquely experience them?

I am certainly not one to advocate that the ideologically weaponised concept of the lived experience be accepted in the courthouse or taught in the classroom.

But for the artist, the experience of lifeto experience livingis fundamental. (Incidentally, nearly all wokeness originated in the university Arts faculty; perhaps now you understand why. With art comes great responsibility, for the ability to imagine is the ability to attain and yield power.)

And so, while we might say that AI-generated art is, by necessity, grounded in knowledge, it is inhuman and thus not an honest representation of the human experience. Nor is it honest in generating its art, merely manipulating a pre-programmed digital library of components and ideas built by humans.

Thus, it is inauthentic and not art.

Participants at Intels Artificial Intelligence (AI) Day stand in front of a poster during the event in the Indian city of Bangalore on April 4, 2017. (Manjunath Kiran/AFP via Getty Images)

Moreover, machines are functionary and purpose-driven. They perform their operations in pursuit of concrete outcomes. After all, machines cost money and energy; anyone standing to benefit from AI-generated art should demand a return on investment.

And here is further cause for concern: the basic premise of AI is to service humans.

Just who is being serviced and doing the benefitting? These ethical questions must be askedloudly.

Private experimentation with innovative software is one thing; using technology to achieve widescale commercial dominance is another.

It is my belief that AI constitutes a legitimate threat to authentic artists, as well as societies that rightly prize art as vitalif not now, then certainly in the not-so-distant future.

The solution seems to me to be a kind of global stance: artists everywhere must first identify AI-generated art and, second, reject it and its beneficiaries.

Art, the highest form of human expression, must be upheld, lest we risk jeopardising our humanity altogether, or at least our ever-continuing quest to comprehend it.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
ANALYSIS: 4 Federal Byelections in June: What to Watch For

With four byelections taking place across Canada in June, a drop in popular support by more than 5 percent should be an indication for the major parties as a sign of trouble during the next federal election, according to a pollster.

For any party, a drop in popular support by 5 percent or more would be on the radar, Nik Nanos, chief data scientist and founder of Nanos Research, said in an interview.

If an incumbent party is up or minus 5 percent, you can attribute that to the local campaign and also to the voter turnout. But once you get something beyond that, thats when the parties usually take notice.

The four byelections will be held on June 19 in the ridings of Notre-Dame-de-GraceWestmount in Quebec, Oxford in Ontario, Winnipeg South Centre in Manitoba, and PortageLisgar in Manitoba. In recent elections, all four ridings were relative strongholds for the incumbent parties.

An arrow points to where people can go to cast their ballots on federal election day in Montreal, Sept. 20, 2021. (The Canadian Press/Graham Hughes)

The byelections come as a Nanos weekly tracking poll for the week ending May 5 showed the Conservatives leading the Liberals by seven points nationally, with the Tories holding the support of 35.2 percent of Canadians, followed by the Liberals at 27.7 percent and NDP at 21.7 percent. The two parties were statistically tied in mid-February, with each sitting around 33 percent.

According to Nanos, the results of the byelection cant be seen as predictive of how the next federal election might unfold, as it is still a long way off. But he said the byelections will be predictive of the mood on the ground in these ridings among core supporters.

PortageLisgar, Manitoba

Following interim Conservative Party leader Candice Bergens resignation from politics on Feb. 1, the riding of PortageLisgar was left vacant. Branden Leslie, Bergens former campaign manager, will attempt to retain the partys near two-decade hold on the riding.

Challenging him for the seat will be Peoples Party of Canada (PPC) Leader Maxime Bernier, in an attempt to obtain a seat for his party in Parliament. During the 2021 federal election, the PPC had the best results anywhere in Canada in PortageLisgar, with 21.5 percent of the vote to the Conservatives 52.5 percent.

Oxford, Ontario

Dave MacKenzie held the riding of Oxford for the Conservatives for 19 years before announcing his retirement in January. While political pundits see the riding as a safe blue seat, Nanos said the race will be more complicated for the Conservatives due to controversies surrounding the nomination process.

MacKenzies daughter Deb Tait ran for the Conservative nomination in the riding, but the co-chair of Pierre Poilievres leadership campaign in Ontario, Arpan Khanna, won the nomination. Tait said she would be putting her support behind Liberal candidate David Hilderley, claiming the MP for the riding will need to understand the community.

Gerrit Van Dorland, an executive assistant to a Saskatchewan MP, was also abruptly disqualified from the race by the partys national council over a week before the nomination meeting, with some maintaining his pro-life beliefs led to the ousting.

Nanos said such controversies can sometimes decrease turnout for the incumbent parties in byelections, and the Conservatives will have to fight the Liberals and then fight a narrative that not all is well in the Conservative family.

Tim Powers, vice-chairman of Summa Strategies, said Oxford will be one of the most interesting byelections because of the real drama around the nomination process.

It should probably be, on any other day, a predictable win for the Conservatives. But the noise that has come in advance of the byelection may have an impact, or it may not, he told The Epoch Times.

Notre-Dame-de-GraceWestmount, Quebec

After former cabinet minister Marc Garneau stepped down in March, the Notre-Dame-de-GraceWestmount riding has been open for a byelection. Since the riding was created by the 2012 federal electoral boundaries redistribution, it has been safely held by the Liberals, with the NDP consistently coming in second place.

The Green Party has seen an opportunity to gain a third seat, with Green Party deputy leader Jonathan Pedneault announcing he will run in Notre-Dame-de-GraceWestmount. But Powers said there is slim evidence that the Greens have much of a base in Quebec, especially since the riding has a historic connection with the Liberal Party.

As has been the Green Partys practice, theyve tried to get candidates into different races where they get talked about a little bit more, because I think their metrics for success are different, he said.

Winnipeg South Centre, Manitoba

In Winnipeg South Centre, Liberal candidate Ben Carr is looking to win the seat left vacant by his father, who died in December 2022. Former cabinet minister Jim Carr had held the seat for the Liberals since 2015, defeating Conservative candidate Joyce Bateman during the last three elections.

Jim Carr, minister of international trade diversification, in a file photo. (The Canadian Press/John Woods)

Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said that while he believes the riding will stay Liberal, the partys share of the vote will probably shrink in the byelection.

Generally when you have byelections, supporters of the governing party are less likely to turn out to vote than opponents of the governing party. And thats because everybody knows that no matter what happens in the byelections, the government doesnt change, Wiseman said in an interview.

But, still, because the national trend now shows that the Conservatives are ahead of the Liberals, I expect the Liberal vote will go down.
Another East Oregon County Votes to Explore Unification With Idaho

People hold signs in favor of the Greater Idaho Movement in Enterprise, Ore., on May 12, 2023. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

A dozen counties in eastern Oregon have now thrown their support behind a proposed merger with neighboring Idaho, bringing the idea of Greater Idaho closer to reality.

The ballot measure in the May 16 Wallowa County election was won by a razor-thin 21-vote margin, with 1,721 (50.31 percent) of 3,241 ballots cast in favor of the proposal, according to KTVB7.

Last nights vote in Wallowa County continues to prove that eastern Oregonians are ready for a long-term solution that actually solves the urban/rural divide in Oregon, Greater Idaho movement spokesman Matt McCaw told The Epoch Times.

Despite the promises of bipartisanship and hearing out of eastern Oregonians concerns, the current legislative session has been as divisive and partisan as ever.

Turnout at the election was 55 percentmore than twice the statewide average.

Since the movement began winning elections six election cycles ago, it had averaged 62 percent in favor and 38 percent opposed, a ratio of more than 1.6 to 1, according to a Greater Idaho movement press release.

Wallowa County only has 2 percent of the population of eastern Oregon, and its beautiful mountain views draw an unusually large percentage of upper-income residents from the Willamette Valley, who may have been less supportive of joining Idaho.

Afternoon light falls on rural landscapes in Wallowa County of eastern Oregon on May 11, 2023. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

Smear Campaign

Greater Idaho said the ballot measure passed despite heavy spending on an ad campaign by Portland Democrats to undermine the movement as an extreme right-wing effort.

Their ads claimed that far-right individuals and groups support the movement, but had no evidence that the movement supports those individuals or groups, according to Greater Idaho.

The ads implied that those far-right groups are the people behind the movement, but Greater Idaho leadership says theyve never been contacted by those individuals or groups.

Their other ads claimed that joining Idaho would be financially bad for eastern Oregon and that the group hasnt done an economic analysis. But independent economists proved that Idahos governance would be good for eastern Oregon.

Greater Idaho filed a complaint over the ads with the state on May 5.

A sign for the Greater Idaho movement is displayed in Joseph, Ore., on May 12, 2023. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

According to Greater Idaho, merging the conservative east Oregon counties with Idaho would benefit Oregons state budget and end political gridlock.

Wallowa Countys vote on May 16 brings the total number of Oregons 36 counties supporting Greater Idaho to around 30 percent.

The Greater Idaho movement will continue to advocate for eastern Oregonians by supporting county votes and calling upon the Oregon Senate and House leadership to hold hearings where we can address the sources, and potential solutions, of the discontent in eastern Oregon, the movement press release added.

On Feb. 15, the Idaho House approved exploring the Greater Idaho proposal in Memorial 1 legislation.

Win-Win

If both state legislatures approve the merger, Oregon will lose about 400,000 residents, about 9 percent of its population, making Oregon an even bluer state politically.

By contrast, Idaho would gain roughly $170 million annually in new tax revenues.

A trans rights activist holds a sign while Idaho state rep. Barbara Erhardt, right, speaks during a rally outside of the NCAA Convention in San Antonio on Jan. 12, 2023. (Darren Abate/AP Photo)

Idaho state Rep. Barbara Erhardt, a Republican, told The Epoch Times in November the merger would be a win-win for both states by resolving entrenched ideological differences.

At some point, states will have to get the courage and rise and say, you know what? Were not playing in that sandbox because its corrupt. Were going to do what we need to, Erhardt said.

Theres opposition among Democrats in Idaho, as expected.

The merger proposal would require approval from both state legislatures, including an interstate compact or agreement establishing the new political arrangement.

Congress would also have to approve the unification measure.
Another Illegal Immigrant Child Dies in US Custody

Texas National Guard troops watch over illegal immigrants in El Paso, Texas, on May 10, 2023. (Andres Leighton/AP Photo)

An 8-year-old illegal immigrant died while in U.S. custody.

The child tragically passed away while in U.S. Border Patrol custody in Harlingen, Texas, on May 17, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which includes Border Patrol, said in a statement.

The girl was with her family at the Border Patrol facility in Harlingen when she experienced a medical emergency, according to officials.

Emergency Medical Services were called to the station and transported her to the local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, they said.

The girls nationality hasnt been made public.

CBPs Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating, and officials said they would make additional information available in the future.

The death is the second of a young illegal immigrant this week.

A 17-year-old Honduran national died on May 10 while being held at a facility in Florida.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which operates the facility, hasnt made the suspected cause of death or any other clinical details available.

Officials said a medical examiner was investigating and that the department was reviewing the details of the case.

It is sad news; it is deeply saddening to hear, and we are certainly aware of the tragic loss, and our hearts go out to the family, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during a briefing.

The teenager was an unaccompanied minor, or an illegal immigrant minor, who arrived without a responsible adult.

A 4-year-old girl from Honduras also died in U.S. custody in March, CNN reported. The girl was described as medically fragile, and officials said she suffered a cardiac event.

Neha Desai, senior director of immigration at the National Center for Youth Law, told the media outlet that the girl was provided with appropriate medical care and other support, and she lived longer than was expected.

Multiple illegal immigrant children died in U.S. custody during the Trump administration, including a 10-year-old from El Salvador with a history of heart problems and a 7-year-old Guatemalan girl who suffered organ failure after experiencing strep throat.

Illegal immigration to the United States has spiked since U.S. President Joe Biden took office, with a record 2.3 million encounters recorded at the U.S.Mexico border in 2022 alone.

April Numbers

CBP reported this week that 211,401 encounters happened in April, the second-highest number in an April on record and up by about 20,000, or 10 percent, from March.

About two-thirds of all the illegal immigrants encountered were single adults, a 5 percent increase from March. The rest of the encounters were with family units, or family members traveling together, and unaccompanied minors.

The total didnt include roughly 28,700 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, or Venezuela who were granted parole or allowed into the country with clearance from the Department of Homeland Security.

Arrivals of noncitizens via these processes, which include careful vetting and require a supporter present in the United States, are a testament to the benefit of these lawful processes in promoting safe and orderly migration while reducing encounters along the southwest border, the department said in a statement.

The Biden administration has ramped up its usage of parole powers granted by Congress, a practice being challenged in court.

Also in April, the administration made nearly 72,000 expulsions under Title 42, a public health order first implemented during the Trump administration. The order enabled the quick expulsion of some illegal immigrants over concerns that they were infected with COVID-19 but was ended on May 12 as the COVID-19 public health emergency was allowed to expire.

Overcrowding

More illegal immigrants have been held by Border Patrol than usual in recent days.

About 28,700 illegal immigrants were in custody on May 10, according to a court filing, twice as many as were held two weeks earlier.

On May 14, the number dropped to 22,259.

Border Patrol agents started releasing illegal immigrants without court notices earlier this month, a practice that has been used on and off during the Biden administration, because of overcrowding. Agents asked the illegal immigrants to appear at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility for a court appearance at a later date.

Some 6,413 illegal immigrants were released before a federal judge ordered the administration to halt the releases. U.S. District Judge Kent Wetherell II, a Trump appointee, described the releases as a functionally identical policy to one he struck down in March.

Despite the order, the administration released thousands more illegal immigrants into the U.S. interior, prompting Wetherell to threaten to hold the Department of Homeland Security in contempt.

In response, agency officials claimed that many of the illegal immigrants had been fully processed but not released before the order went into effect. Another 167 illegal immigrants were released, they acknowledged.

Wetherell ultimately chose to not hold the department in contempt but said officials should have clarified with the court before releasing illegal immigrants in possible contravention of the order. He asked for more details on the 167 illegal immigrants who werent fully processed before the order went into effect.
Appeals Court Seems Skeptical of Biden Admin Arguments in Favor of Abortion Pill

Mifepristone (Mifeprex), one of the two drugs used in a medication abortion, is displayed at the Women's Reproductive Clinic in Santa Teresa, N.M., on June 15, 2022. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

A federal appeals court appears skeptical of Biden administration arguments given on May 17 that a lower court ruling overturning a decades-old U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of abortion pill mifepristone was wrongly decided.

The case is one of many that have followed in the wake of the Supreme Courts decision in June 2022 in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and found there was no right to abortion in the U.S. Constitution. The ruling returned the regulation of abortion to the states.

This specific case goes back to April 7 when Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Texas-based appointee of former President Donald Trump, found in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA that the agency was wrong to approve mifepristone, also known as mifeprex or RU-486, for public use in 2000 and that the FDA had stonewalled opponents of the drug for years. The judge also found that the agency had improperly lifted restrictions related to accessing the drug.

The FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concernsin violation of its statutory dutybased on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote at the time.

There is also evidence indicating [the] FDA faced significant political pressure to forego its proposed safety precautions to better advance the political objective of increased access to chemical abortion, the judge wrote. The FDAs failure to impose restrictions on the use of the drug resulted in many deaths and many more severe or life-threatening adverse reactions, he added.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) appealed the decision on April 12 and the New Orleans-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit refused to block most of the order.

The DOJ appealed that decision to the Supreme Court, which issued a stay, temporarily blocking the order until April 19. The Supreme Court extended the stay to April 21 and then, on that day, again blocked the order, allowing mifepristone to remain on the market at least until the 5th Circuit resolves the case. Conservative-leaning Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas voted against extending the stay.

Challenge Facing Appeals Court

At the hearing May 17 before a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit, DOJ attorney Sarah Harrington opened her presentation by saying that Kacsmaryks order was an unprecedented and unjustified attack on [the] FDAs scientific expertise.

This court should vacate the order because plaintiffs are unlikely to prevail on any of their claims and because the balance of equities tips decidedly against preliminary relief, the lawyer said.

Judge James Ho, a Trump appointee, was quick to interrupt Harrington, saying, We had a challenge to the FDA just yesterday.

Harrington acknowledged the challenge but said, I dont think theres ever been any court that has vacated FDAs determination that a drug is safe to be on the market.

Ho said the FDA withdrew approval for a drug just last month.

Harrington replied: FDA can make that determination based on exercising its own scientific expertise, but its not a courts role to come in and second-guess that expertise and no court has ever done [that].

Ho questioned whether an FDA decision has to be treated as sacrosanct.

I dont understand the statement that the FDA can do no wrong, he said. We are allowed to look at the FDA just like were allowed to look at any agency. Thats the role of the courts.

Ho also reiterated concerns previously expressed by Justice Alito in his April 21 dissent that the Biden administration might not abide by the courts order in this matter.

Alito wrote at the time that the FDA has previously invoked enforcement discretion to permit the distribution of mifepristone in a way that the regulations then in force prohibited, and here, the government has not dispelled legitimate doubts that it would even obey an unfavorable order in these cases, much less that it would choose to take enforcement actions to which it has strong objections.

Ho asked Harrington: Will FDA follow whatever this court decides?

Absolutely, Harrington said.

Harrington also argued that the lawsuit is barred by the statute of limitations and that the doctors who brought this lawsuit have no legal standing because they have not shown that prescribing mifepristone harms them. The doctors affidavits dont actually say that they have been required to provide care that runs afoul of their consciences, she said.

Judge Cory Wilson, a Trump appointee, suggested the lawyer was trying to split words to get the lawsuit dismissed.

Attorney Erin Hawley of the Alliance for Defending Freedom, who represents the doctors, said the doctors have in fact been forced to participate in and complete elective abortions, contrary to their consciences.

Attorney Jessica Ellsworth, who acts for Danco Laboratories, which sells mifepristone, also questioned whether the doctors have standing.

The question is not about whether someone will be injured by mifepristone somewhere some time, she said. Its about whether any of the doctor declarants face certainly impending injury.

Judge Jennifer Elrod, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, said Danco had personally attacked Judge Kacsmaryk.

Danco called the district court judges ruling an unprecedented judicial assault that was the product of a relentless one-sided narrative, Elrod said.

These are the kind of comments we normally dont see from learned counsel, Elrod said.

Ellsworth said the criticism was based on Kacsmaryks analysis in the case.

I dont think those remarks  were intended as any kind of personal attack, she said.

It is unclear when the 5th Circuit will issue its ruling.
Australian Banks Launch New Platform to Help Halt Fraudulent Payments

Australian banks have launched a new digital platform to help combat fraudulent transactions. (Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images)

Australian banks launched a new digital platform on May 16 to help stop customers from losing money to scammers.

The new Fraud Reporting Exchange (FRX) platform will facilitate a close to real time reporting of fraudulent payments to another bank, thus increasing the chances of freezing and recovering money that has been transferred to scammers.

Banking Association (ABA) Chief Executive Officer Anna Bligh described the new system as a major development in combating fraudulence as it allows streamlined and targeted communication between member banks.

Every minute can be crucial in disrupting scams,  she said. It means more and more scammers are going to hit a brick wall and adds to the arsenal of anti-scam initiatives underway. 

Some key features of the platform include near real-time reporting, intelligence sharing, secure and tracked communications between member banks, as well as a faster return of funds.

A trial of the FRX platform has shown that the time to resolve most scam cases dropped by more than half.

The platform is owned and operated by the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange (AFCX), an independent body funded by Australian banks. 17 banks are already on board or in the process of joining the platform, following a 12-month pilot.

Banks Under Pressure to Improve Scam Prevention and Response Practices

The launch of the FRX platform came amid pressure from the regulators urging banks to lift their game in protecting customers from the ever-increasing scam risks.

In April, corporate watchdog the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) released a report revealing the  highly variable and less mature than expected approaches of the four major banks  ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and Westpac  in preventing, detecting and responding to scams.

According to the report Scam Prevention, Detection and Response by the Four Major Banks (PDF), around 31,100 customers at the big four banks collectively lost over $558 million to scams in the 2021-22 financial year, an increase of 49 percent in customers and 50 percent in financial losses compared to the previous 12-month period.

In contrast, the banks detected and stopped only 13 percent of scam payments made by their customers and paid only about $21 million (US$13. 9 million) in compensation/ reimbursement to victims, with a rather low rate of reimbursement ranging from two to five percent.

The report has also found the gaps and inconsistencies in the abilities of banks to detect and stop scam payments as well as to support scam victims.

Banks had inconsistent and narrow approaches to determining liability,  the report observed, highlighting that none of the banks has a bank-wide policy to deal with the losses.

To support fair and consistent customer outcomes, banks should have in place a bank-wide policy or approach to determining scam loss liability and reimbursement or compensation, the report says.

Industry Code Under Development

Just one day before the platform launch, the Australian federal government announced the details of its $86 million scam-prevention strategy, with $58 million allocated to Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to build a new Anti-Scam Center. The new centre aims to facilitate data sharing across government, public and private sectors about emerging scam threats.

The consumer Acton Law Centre has welcomed the new moves but insists that Australia should follow the UK to introduce mandatory rules that require banks to reimburse customers if they have been innocent victims of a scam.

We support the National Anti-Scams Centre, but it will only deliver meaningful outcomes if it is backed up by new laws that mandate industry action on scam prevention and impose liability for losses when they fail, said the Consumer Action CEO Stephanie Tonkin.

What we need now is for banks to reimburse scam victims -except in circumstances of gross negligence- and this needs to be made mandatory by the Federal Government.

Financial services minister Stephen Jones said a new banking industry code is now under development to provide a clear set of expectations about banks obligations.

Some work well do between now and the end of the year is working on codes of practice so there are clear lines of responsibility between banks and their customers, he told ABC.

However, the minister has rejected the calls to enforce banks to compensate their customers for scam activities.

Speaking at The Australian Financial Review Banking Summit in March, he made it clear that he opposed a blanket rule requiring banks to reimburse scam victims while agreeing that Industry, including banks, should be held to a very high bar to protect consumers against scams.

If they dont meet the bar, then they should be on the hook to reimburse. However, if theyve met that standard and done what they can, they shouldnt still end up with the bill.
Palestinian people take part in a demonstration to reject the Israeli flag march near the fence of the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on May 18, 2023. The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

RAMALLAH/GAZA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian presidency's spokesman, told reporters in Ramallah in the West Bank that "Jerusalem is and will be the eternal capital of the independent state of Palestine."

On Thursday afternoon, tens of thousands of Israelis participated in the march to commemorate the "Unification of Jerusalem" amid tight Israeli security measures.

Participants waving Israeli flags and chanting anti-Palestinian slogans marched from the western part of the city, passed through the Islamic Quarter of the Old City, and reached the Wailing Wall close to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

"The Palestinian people have the legitimacy in Jerusalem, not Israel or the U.S.," Abu Rudeineh said, denouncing the march as "Israeli provocation and escalation."

He held the Israeli government "fully responsible for this escalation and its repercussions, which will lead to more escalations and tensions not only in Jerusalem, but also the entire region."

The official Palestinian news agency (WAFA) reported that Israeli participants in the march "protected by the Israeli police officers, attacked several Palestinians in the old city of Jerusalem."

The report added that the Israeli police arrested 10 Palestinians for blocking one of the streets in the city to hinder the march.

On Thursday morning, the Israel deployed more than 3,000 policemen throughout the city of Jerusalem to secure the march, according to Israel Radio.

In Gaza Strip, hundreds of Palestinians demonstrated near the fence of the borders between the eastern Gaza Strip and Israel to reject the Israeli flag march.

They waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans against Israel, while burning tires and hanging dozens of Palestinian flags on the border fence, said eyewitnesses.

Khaled Al-Batsh, a Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement leader, told the demonstrators that "the enemy cannot prove its presence in the city by waving thousands of their flag."

"All the historical evidence shows that the city of Jerusalem is Islamic, Arab and Palestinian," he said.

Palestinian medics said that seven Palestinian demonstrators were injured, and dozens suffered suffocation after inhaling the teargas fired by the Israeli soldiers stationed at the border.

Meanwhile, Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the politburo of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) that rules the Gaza Strip, said in a press statement that "the mobilization of the Israeli entity to protect the Flag March reflects the Israeli security fragility."

Haniyeh added that "the chapters of confrontation with the enemy are continuing, and our people will close the account only by liberating the land, including Jerusalem and the right of return."

Israeli nationalists hold the annual Flag March to celebrate so-called "Jerusalem Day." Israel gained control of Jerusalem during the 1967 war and annexed it shortly afterward, a move that has not been recognized by most of the international community. 

Palestinian people take part in a demonstration to reject the Israeli flag march near the fence of the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on May 18, 2023. The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Palestinian people take part in a demonstration to reject the Israeli flag march near the fence of the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on May 18, 2023. The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Palestinian people take part in a demonstration to reject the Israeli flag march near the fence of the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on May 18, 2023. The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Palestinian people take part in a demonstration to reject the Israeli flag march near the fence of the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on May 18, 2023. The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)
BC Man Launches Lawsuit Against AstraZeneca, Federal Government Following Vaccine Injury

AstraZeneca COVID-19 Coronavirus Vaccine and a syringe are seen in front of a displayed AstraZeneca logo, in this illustration photo taken on March 14, 2021. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

A B.C. man who developed severe health complications after receiving the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine has launched a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company, the federal and provincial governments, and the pharmacy that gave him the injection.

Ross Wightman, 41, of Lake Country, B.C., says he was temporarily paralyzed and developed Guilliane-Barre Syndrome after he was given his one and only dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in April 2021.

My reasoning for pursuing alternate legal action or other financial compensation is that what was being offered by the government is so inadequate for people like myself who have been injured, he told The Epoch Times on May 15.

Wightman was one of the first Canadians to have his vaccine injury certified for compensation from the federal governments Vaccine Injury Support Program (VISP). The program offers financial compensation to Canadians who have experienced a serious and permanent injury as a result of receiving a Health Canada-authorized vaccine administered in Canada on or after December 8, 2020.

Ross Wightman sits in a wheelchair at Kelowna General Hospital in July 2021. (Courtesy Ross Wightman)

In his lawsuit submitted to B.C. Supreme Court, Wightman says he was not given adequate warning of the potential risks of the COVID-19 vaccine. The lawsuit names AstraZeneca Canada, Interior Health, the federal and provincial government, Verity Pharmaceuticals, Hogarths Clinic Pharmacy, and the person who administered the vaccine.

Wightman said he was generally extremely healthy, before he took the COVID-19 vaccine in April 2021. Ten days after receiving the dose, Wightman said he experienced severe back pain, which led him to go to the hospital.

Wightman developed facial tingling, which culminated with full facial and body paralysis and a diagnosis of Guilliane-Barre Syndrome, a neurological disorder where the bodys nervous system attacks its nerves. Wightman was also diagnosed with Bells Palsya condition that causes sudden weakness in the muscles on one side of the face. His lawsuit names additional injuries including damaged reflexes and eyesight, weakness of his limbs, and more.

He spent two months in the hospital and undertook months of rehab before he could walk again.

Its been devastating literally from head to toe. I lost hair, my vision was blurry for about a year, and I was in excruciating pain that drugs dont even touch, Wightman said of the injury. Theres really nothing it doesnt affect, unfortunately.

Wightman was unable to get a vaccine exemption form, as health officials said they could not prove his condition was caused by the vaccine. He was advised to get a second dose of a different COVID-19 vaccine.

According to Health Canada, Guilliane-Barre Syndrome diagnoses following a COVID-19 vaccination are extremely rare, impacting about one in 700,000 people.

Compensation

Wightman said within days of VISP being announced in June 2021, his wife had heard about it and submitted an application on his behalf. Wightman described the application process as painful, frustrating, and demoralizing.

The last thing someone who is injured needs to be dealing with is hunting down these programs or authorities that are already supposed to be there to help you, Wightman said.

It wasnt until I went to the media in February [2022] that it seemed to expedite it. I ended up getting a senior case manager handling my file, and since then its been exponentially better.

Ross Wightman at Kelowna General Hospital in July 2021. (Courtesy Ross Wightman)

Wightman did not qualify for the governments maximum amount of financial compensation of $284,000, but was eligible for income replacement of up to $90,000 per year.

Wightman said he has spoken to many Canadians who have had difficulty getting their vaccine injuries recognized by their doctors, let alone qualifying for financial compensation through VISP.

There just needs to be more access to funds and support, in my opinion, for people like myself. [The vaccine injury] obviously affects me, but also my wife and my kids, Wightman said.

You know, its not just the individual, its the family members. The wake of disruption is widespread.

AstraZeneca did not respond to a request for comment from the Epoch Times by publication time.
Beijings Ambassador Confirms Lifting of Ban on Australian Timber As China Seeks CPTPP Approval

Timber supplies are seen during a workshop tour in Blackburn, Melbourne, Australia on April 20, 2023. (AAP Image/James Ross)

After three years of tit-for-tat trade disputes, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has confirmed it will resume its importation of Australian timbereffective immediately.

In a rare media appearance, Beijings ambassador to Canberra, Xiao Qian, told reporters that the central governments decision was based on a serious study provided to Beijing by Australia on the quarantine risks of Australian timber, which have satisfied the conditions of the Chinese Customs.

Yesterday, the Chinese Customs have formally notified the Australian Minister of Agriculture that, starting from today, China will resume import of Australian timbers, Xiao said on May 18.

That is a conclusion [come to] after a serious study based on the materials provided by the Australian side.

Xiao said that while there were other issues on the table to be discussed, the momentum was positive.

This follows trade minister Don Farrells recent two-day trip to Beijing, where he returned to Australia without concessions on Beijings trade bans.

The news also comes a month after Canberra agreed to suspend an appeal to the World Trade Organisation over Beijings tariffs on Australian barley.

Xiao said other trade disputessuch as those applied to barley, wine, lobster, coal, and cattlewill be dealt with one by one and hoped the disputes would be resolved as soon as possible.

Great Outcome for Timber Industry

Trade Minister Don Farrell said Beijings announcement was a great outcome for Australias forestry industry.

The end of the timber ban, which was imposed by Beijing in 2020, comes after then Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent inquiry into the origins of COVID-19.

Australian timber was one of the outstanding trade impediments discussed with my counterpart in Beijing last week, he said on May 18.

Any step towards resolving the trade impediments is welcome.

We look forward to the full resumption of trade for all affected products as soon as possible.

The Chief Executive of the Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA), Joel Fitzgibbon, also welcomed the move.

I look forward to normalisation of trade relations with regards to the timber log trade, and AFPA will work closely with our impacted members, other stakeholders and the Commonwealth to ensure a smooth transition back to normal trade following todays decision, Fitzgibbon said in a statement.

China has been and will continue to be an important market for Australian timber and wood fibre export products. When the ban came into effect more than two years ago, it caused a great deal of upheaval and uncertainty for many timber exporters and the broader forest sector, and this resolution is welcomed.

Fitzgibbon added that the quarantine concerns expressed by Beijing resulted in Canberra working on a range of measures, including increased inspections of log consignments, monitoring during fumigation, re-inspections after fumigation, and increased audits for all log exporters.

AFPA and log exporters have worked closely with the Albanese Government, especially Trade Minister Don Farrell, and the former Coalition Government on this issue, and we thank them for their efforts in helping to resolve the quarantine issues that China faced importing logs from Australia.

The timber trade with Beijing is estimated to be worth $600 million per year.

Chinese Ambassador Wanting to Discuss Joining CPTPP

Xiao told reporters that Beijing was ready to set up a working group to discuss taking part in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

The CPTPP is a free trade agreement (FTA) between 11 countries, including Australia, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Peru, and New Zealand, that entered into force on Dec. 20, 2018.

Beijing applied to join the CPTPP in 2021, but little progress has been made.

Moreover, entry into the CPTPP requires the approval of all member countries, including Australia.

Australian officials have previously said that Beijing would need to remove all tariffs before Canberra would be willing to consider Beijings CPTPP bid, reported the ABC.

Farrell recently returned from Beijing, where he held talks with his Chinese counterpart on the possibility of ending trade restrictions on billions of dollars of Australian export products such as barley, wine, and lobster.

Weve explained just how much damage these tariffs and other bans have done to our trading relationship, and weve asked for the Chinese government to lift these bans, Farrell said on May 16.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the talks represented a positive step given the years-long diplomatic freeze over the past three years.

Talks are underway between the two countries on a convenient date for an official visit to Beijing by Albanese.

Xiao was also asked whether detained Australian journalist Cheng Lei was critical to re-establishing bilateral relations. Lei has been held in detention for more than two years on charges of spying.

Her case is different in the sense that it is not for the (Australian) government to make a decisionit is for the Chinese legal authorities to make based on their rules and laws, Xiao said, adding he had personal sympathy for Lei and hoped for a solution as early as possible.
Biden Arrives in Japan to Meet With G-7 Leaders Amid Looming Debt Crisis at Home

President Joe Biden (C) and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (R) arrive at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni on May 18, 2023, in Iwakuni, Japan. Biden arrived in Japan to attend the G7 summit, which will take place in Hiroshima, Japan. (Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images)

HIROSHIMA, JapanU.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Japan on May 18 to attend the three-day G-7 summit of the worlds top economic powers, leaving behind an intense debt ceiling negotiation with congressional leaders.

Biden arrived in Hiroshima at about 5 p.m. local time, where the Group of Seven (G-7) leaders will meet from May 19 to May 21 to discuss a wide range of issues, including the conflict in Ukraine and Chinas threats against Taiwan, as well as economic security.

The G-7 summit is occurring at a challenging time for Biden, as he faces a potential crisis at home if Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling to avert a default by the so-called x-date, which could be reached as early as June.

Before his departure, Biden expressed confidence that the monthslong impasse between the White House and House Republicans over raising the nations $31.4 trillion debt limit would soon be resolved.

Im confident that well get the agreement on the budget, that America will not default. And every leader in the room understands the consequences if we fail to pay our bills, he told reporters on May 17.

The presidents travel schedule has been shortened so he can return to Washington earlier than planned to continue negotiations with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). His side trips to Australia and Papua New Guinea have been postponed.

Biden landed in Iwakuni, Japan, first to greet troops at a U.S. Marine Corps air station before heading to Hiroshima. He participated in a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Hiroshima shortly after his arrival to discuss military and economic cooperation between the two nations.

President Joe Biden (L) and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (R) attend a bilateral meeting in Hiroshima on May 18, 2023, ahead of the G-7 Leaders Summit. (KIYOSHI OTA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

On May 19, Biden will attend the summit along with leaders from France, the UK, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Canada.

Russias invasion of Ukraine looms large and will be a significant topic of conversation, said White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who briefed reporters on the way to Japan about the summits agenda.

He said the G-7 leaders will discuss sanctions against Russia and how to shut down evasion networks and close loopholes in sanctions to maximize their effects in the months ahead. The United States will impose sanctions in conjunction with a G-7 statement addressing the issue of enforcement.

The leaders will have a busy agenda, according to Sullivan. Supply chains, clean energy, and artificial intelligence will be some of the key topics of discussion.

This years summit is expected to highlight Hiroshimas history as the site of the worlds deadliest military operation and aims to convey a strong message about the dangers of nuclear weapons to the rest of the world, notably Russia.

Another key focus of this years summit is Outreach to the Global South, which intends to increase G-7 countries outreach to Latin America, Africa, the rest of Asia, and the Pacific to counter Chinas growing influence in these regions.

The common concerns and issues associated with the policies and practices of the Peoples Republic of China will come up, Sullivan said. Of course, each country has its own distinct relationship and its own distinct approach, but those relationships and approaches are built on a common basis. And I think you will see that reflected in the outcomes of the G-7.

On the first day of the summit, Biden and other G-7 leaders will visit Peace Memorial Park and meet with survivors of the atomic bomb that leveled the city on Aug. 6, 1945.

When asked if the president intends to issue an apology on behalf of the United States for the use of the atomic bomb 78 years ago, Sullivan said the president wont make any statement.

The president wont be making a statement at the Peace Memorial Park. Hell be participating with the other G-7 leaders in a wreath-laying and a few other events, he said. This is him, as one of the G-7 leaders, coming to pay respects both for history but also respects to Prime Minister Kishida, who, of course, is from Hiroshima.

The summit is expected to be a critical test of Japans global influence, and Kishida chose Hiroshima as the G-7 venue as a symbolic opportunity to show Tokyos commitment to nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation.
Biden to Hold Private Meeting With Japans Kishida Ahead of G-7 Summit in Hiroshima

U.S. President Joe Biden shakes hands with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, on Jan. 13, 2023. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

President Joe Biden is set to hold a private meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on May 18 ahead of the G-7 leaders summit in Hiroshima, Japan, the White House has confirmed.

Biden is currently in Hiroshima, Kishidas home city, for the summit that will be attended by leaders from France, the UK, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Canada.

The President will start his engagements in Hiroshima with a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Kishida, where they will review the really quite extraordinary progress in the alliance over the course of the past two years, building on the trip that President Kishida made to Washington in January, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters aboard Air Force One on May 17.

Sullivan noted that Russias ongoing invasion of Ukraine will be a significant topic of conversation between the two leaders.

There will be discussions about the state of play on the battlefield, he said. There will be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular, making sure that we are shutting down evasion networks, closing loopholes in the sanctions so that the impact is amplified and magnified in the months ahead. 

Sullivan said discussions between the two leaders will also touch on the subject of reconstruction and economic and humanitarian support to Ukraine, as well as how to set the appropriate conditions with progress on the battlefield shaping progress at an eventual negotiating table if and when Ukraine is prepared to do that down the road.

Supply chains and clean energy are also topics that will be discussed between Biden and Kishida in the private meeting, he said, as will the common concerns associated with the growing threat from China, which has declared a friendship without limits with Russia.

Debt Ceiling Negotiations Continue

And I think you will see, coming out of this summit, alignment, and convergence around the fundamental principles of our approach to the Peoples Republic of China, Sullivan said of the G-7 leaders meeting.

The G-7 summit will take place from May 19 to 21.

Bidens latest trip to Japan marks his second since taking office in 2021.

The meeting comes amid a looming U.S. government default as Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) remain in a deadlock over raising the nations $31.4 trillion debt ceiling.

Amid growing criticism from lawmakers, Biden on Wednesday defended the meeting and said he remains optimistic that the country wont default on its financial obligations for the first time in history.

America is not a deadbeat nation. We pay our bills. The nation has never defaulted on its debt, and it never will. And were going to continue these discussions with congressional leaders in the coming days until we reach an agreement, the president told reporters at the White House.

Biden added that he and McCarthy had held a productive meeting a day prior with all four leaders of Congress to discuss the default issue.

The president has appointed Steve Ricchetti, one of his longest-serving advisers, and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young to lead negotiations regarding the debt ceiling on his behalf.

They will join Louisa Terrell, White House director of the Office of Legislative Affairs, in working on the issue.

McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday that he believes its possible to get a deal by the end of the week adding that its not that difficult to get to an agreement.

Biden is scheduled to leave Japan on May 21 and is set to hold a press conference on the debt ceiling on his return to Washington.
Biden Wont Apologize for US Use of Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima

President Joe Biden (L) and Fumio Kishida, Japan's prime minister, shake hands prior to a bilateral meeting ahead of the Group of Seven (G7) leaders summit on May 18, 2023 in Hiroshima, Japan.(Kiyoshi Ota/Pool/Getty Images)

HIROSHIMA, JapanPresident Joe Biden has no plans to issue an apology on behalf of the United States for the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima during World War II, according to the White House.

Biden arrived in Hiroshima on May 18 for the Group of Seven (G-7) summit, becoming the second sitting U.S. president after Barack Obama to visit the western Japanese city.

Reporters have asked the White House several times in recent weeks whether the president will issue an apology statement while there.

When asked about the apology, national security adviser Jake Sullivan replied, No.

The Atomic Bomb Dome is pictured in Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 5, 2022. (Yuichi Yamazaki/Getty Images)

The president wont be making a statement at the Peace Memorial Park. Hell be participating with the other G-7 leaders in a wreath-laying and a few other events, Sullivan told reporters on May 17 aboard Air Force One while en route to Japan.

But this is not, from his perspective, a bilateral moment. This is him, as one of the G-7 leaders, coming to pay respects both for history but also respects to Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida, who of course is from Hiroshima.

On the first day of the summit, Biden and other G-7 leaders will visit the Peace Memorial Park and meet with the survivors of the atomic bomb that leveled the city 78 years ago.

During World War II, a U.S. B-29 bomber dropped the worlds first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945. The explosion is believed to have killed 80,000 people directly, with radioactive exposure claiming tens of thousands of additional lives.

A second atomic bomb was detonated over the city of Nagasaki three days later, killing an estimated 40,000 people.

Shortly after the bombings, Japanese Emperor Hirohito declared unconditional surrender in World War II in a radio address, stating that the enemy has begun to employ a new and most cruel bomb, the power of which to damage is indeed incalculable.

The U.S. government has never apologized for the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings.

In 2016, Obama became the first sitting U.S. president since 1945 to visit Hiroshima, and toured the memorial park with then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. During his visit, he delivered a speech and hugged Shigeaki Mori, a survivor of the atomic bombings, known in Japan as hibakusha.

Someday, the voices of the hibakusha will no longer be with us to bear witness. But the memory of the morning of Aug. 6, 1945, must never fade.

That memory allows us to fight complacency. It fuels our moral imagination. It allows us to change, Obama said in his remarks, calling for a world without nuclear weapons.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also known as the A-Bomb Dome, was the only structure that remained standing in the area where the atomic bomb exploded. The building, located along the Motoyasu River, was built in 1914 with the high engineering standards of the period and used as an exhibition hall to display the products of local manufacturers.

Kishida chose Hiroshima as the G-7 venue this year as a symbolic opportunity to call for nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation.

This years summit is expected to highlight Hiroshimas history and attempt to send a strong message to the rest of the world, particularly Russia, about the dangers of nuclear weapons.

Kishida is from Hiroshima and believes deeply in the disarmament agenda. He was Obamas tour guide when he visited with Abe to Hiroshima in 2016, Christopher Johnstone, senior adviser and Japan chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said during a press briefing.

Hence, Kishida sees the G-7 meeting as a rare opportunity to demonstrate some leadership in light of the war in Ukraine and growing Chinese aggression in the IndoPacific, he added.
Bill Barr Says Durham Report Has Vindicated Trump, Calls FBI Probe an Abomination

Former U.S. Attorney General William Barr speaks at a meeting of the Federalist Society in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 20, 2022. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Former Attorney General William Barr said on Tuesday that John Durhams long-awaited report was a success, further indicating it has cleared former President Donald Trump of all wrongdoing as far as Russiagate is concerned.

The key takeaway of Durhams 300-plus page report (pdf) published on Monday was that FBI agents pursued a full investigationdubbed Crossfire Hurricanewithout actual evidence supporting the alleged claims of coordination between his associates and Russia during Trumps 2016 campaign.

During an interview on Fox Newss Special Report on May 16, Barr called the FBIs investigation one of the greatest injustices done to a presidential candidate and president, designating the federal law enforcement agencys probe as an abomination.

I think the real story herefrom the FBIs perspectiveis what an abomination this was, this so-called investigation. If it wasnt a witch hunt, its a damn good imitation of one, Barr said, adding that Trump was treated unfairly here. So, he is vindicated as far as Russiagate is concerned.

Barr, who served as attorney general under both the George H.W. Bush and Trump presidencies, said he believes the report will help Trump in the short-term, but noted that he stands by previous comments that he believes the former commander-in-chief is not the right person to lead the Republican Party forward.

Im not supporting him for re-nomination. But he was right on this and this is a vindication. He had it right from the beginning, Barr said, referring to Trump calling out for years that the FBI and Department of Justice had been falsely investigating him for alleged collusion with Russia, calling the probe the single greatest Witch Hunt in U.S. history.

In a text message to The Epoch Times following the release of Mondays report, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung reiterated Barrs remarks, stating the report proves there was a coordinated effort by elements in the federal government to falsely accuse Trump through lies and deceit.

Barr noted in his Tuesday comments that while Durhams probe was about to get to the truth  It was not launched as a criminal investigation. And people who compare it to the Mueller investigation are simply wrong.

In October 2020, Barr appointed Durham as special counsel on the investigation, which, after three years, led to Mondays report concluding that senior FBI agents displayed a serious lack of analytical rigor towards the information that they received from a source linked to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The report also described how some of the FBI officials involved in the investigation, such as Deputy Assistant Director for Counterintelligence Peter Strzok, had pronounced hostile feelings toward Trump.

Barr also said Clintons 2016 campaign launched a smear campaign based on Russian sources in an effort to undermine Trump by spreading false claims to the FBI and media outlets.

Both the press and the FBI abandoned any semblance of professionalism and took up the cause with a vengeance, Barr contended.

Barr Refuses to Back Trump

Barr, who recently indicated that hes adamantly against Trump returning to the Oval Office, said that while he has his differences with his former boss, he believes the former president had great policies for which he deserves a lot of credit.

He was very good at stopping the progressive march back in 2016. But I dont think he has the skills of, you know, unifying the party and persuading people on a particular program and getting it done through Congress, Barr said.

I think people who want to restore America should look for a big victory that brings strength into the Congress and allows us to achieve some fundamental changes, and I dont think he is capable of delivering that kind of victory, he added.

Despite Trump being the early frontrunner for the 2024 GOP nomination, Barr said he believes the Republican figure has the best chance of losing to President Joe Biden, who officially announced his reelection campaign last month, given the wider political climate.

Even if he won, my concern is that he would wipe out Republicans in the Congress because of the vast turnout that would occur just to vote against him, he said.

Joe Biden (L) and Donald Trump. (Illustration by The Epoch Times/Getty Images)

Trump, meanwhile, has not been coy in sharing his thoughts on Barr, often lambasting him as a RINO (Republican in Name Only) and a sellout to the Washington establishment.

Last month, Trump ripped Fox News for interviewing the former attorney general, describing him in a Truth Social post as a coward who was absolutely petrified of being impeached and a slave to the Democratic Party.

Despite all the criticism, Barr said during an interview earlier this month that he felt the Trump administration had been largely successful in accomplishing its goals.

From NTD News
Bipartisan Bill Aims to Block Chinese Purchase of US Farmland

An aerial view from a drone shows a truck loaded with soybeans harvested from a field at the Bardole & Son's Ltd. farm in Rippey, Iowa, on Oct. 14, 2019. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

A bipartisan proposal introduced in the U.S. House on May 17 aims to block Chinese Communist Party (CCP) affiliates from taking hold of U.S. farmland, adding to the growing bipartisan push in Congress to counter threats from the regime in Beijing.

The legislation from Reps. Dale Strong (R-Ala.) and Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), titled Protecting Americas Agricultural Land from Foreign Harm Act, would bar individuals associated with the Chinese regime and other foreign adversaries from buying or leasing U.S. farmland.

The prohibition covers any person or entity owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a foreign adversaryamong them are Iran, North Korea, China, and Russia, with the exception of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Under the proposal, those covered individuals and entities would be banned from participating in Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs if they have full or partial ownership of U.S. farmland or lease agricultural land in the country unless its related to food safety regulatory requirements or the health and labor safety of individuals.

The United States can no longer turn a blind eye to the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party. As the CCP looks to exploit weaknesses in our free and open society, it is our responsibility to ensure that the American people are protected against those who seek to undermine our national interest, Strong said in a statement.

An aerial view from a drone shows a combine being used to harvest soybeans in a field in Rippey, Iowa, on Oct. 14, 2019. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

China owned 325,686 acres of U.S. agricultural land as of the end of 2020, according to the USDA. While thats less than 1 percent of the total foreign-held land, the acreage marked a more than 20-fold jump from a decade earlier.

Spanberger, a former CIA case officer, said that her previous work in the intelligence field gave her clarity on the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Partys aggressive influence campaigns, as well as its attempts to target U.S. national security interests through seemingly innocuous transactions.

And as the only Virginian on the U.S. House Agriculture Committee, Im committed to protecting Americas farms and farm families from foreign threats, she added. If buying up American farmland is a tool for eroding our nations food security, economic security, and national security, then we need to be prepared to take steps to push back against these efforts.

Sens. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), John Tester (D-Mont.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) introduced a companion version of the measure in the Senate in March.

The lawmakers noted that the United States currently lacks accurate data on foreign land ownership and investment because of loopholes and lapses in reporting.

Youre looking at more than 3,000 counties in the country; every single county has a recorders office, every single recorders office receives deeds. There is not a process now for there to be an accumulation of the deeds that are being filed today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told the House Agriculture Committee at a March 28 hearing.

In those recorders offices, he said, its dependent on people making the report to us voluntarily. Its a system where there is a gap in terms of our ability to know what transactions are taking place.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack addresses the opening session of the Agriculture Innovation Mission (AIM) for Climate Summit at the JW Marriott in Washington on May 8, 2023. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

At the hearing, Rep. Mark Alford (R-Miss.) described the Chinese ownership of U.S. land as a big concern.

One acre that is bought or owned by the Chinese communist government or any agent thereof is a big concern, especially near Whiteman Air Force Base in my district, home of the B-2 stealth bomber, he said. Something has to change.

Vilsack, in response, said that he agrees that we have to be very, very careful about the ownership of foreign land near any of our defensive installations, which is why the recent situation in North Dakota was brought to everyones attention.

The situation in North Dakota cited by Vilsack involved a Chinese corn mill project in Grand Forks, on land located about 12 miles from the Grand Forks Air Force Base. The Grand Forks City Council voted 50 to end the project in February after a year-long debate and intense pushback from local residents. The U.S. Air Force stated in a late January letter that its view is unambiguous that the proposed project presents a significant threat to national security with both near- and long-term risks of significant impacts to our operations in the area.

An RQ-4 Global Hawk drone lands at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. (Johnny Saldivar/Wikimedia Commons)

In April, a Michigan Senate committee approved sending $175 million of state money to help Chinese manufacturer Gotion build an electric vehicle battery project. The site will be about 100 miles from Camp Graylingthe Michigan National Guard training center, which has been training Taiwanese troops.

We are partnering with Taiwanese military leadership to make sure they can defend themselves from possible invasion from the Chinese military operation. And so the idea that were going to have a company within 100 miles that has an affiliation and has a duty to respond to the Chinese Communist Party, that is a concern, Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.) recently told China in Focus on NTD, the sister media outlet of The Epoch Times.

Strong, in the May 17 statement, also urged stronger oversight over farmland ownership.

We must be able to effectively monitor who is growing, producing, and marketing our food safety and agriculture products. Lacking that ability is a clear threat to national security.
Bipartisan Coalition of 39 Attorneys General Calls on Congress to Combat Illicit Xylazine

A bipartisan coalition of 39 attorneys general has called on Congress to approve legislation to combat the abuse of xylazine, a potent veterinary tranquilizer thats increasingly infiltrating illicit drugs and is easily obtainable online.

The attorneys general (AG) reached out in a May 18 letter to congressional leadership and the chairmen and ranking members of some House and Senate committees to encourage lawmakers to approve the Combating Illicit Xylazine Act, introduced in March by Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.). The measure has 31 Democrat and 29 Republican co-sponsors.

The legislation would prohibit certain uses of xylazine, and for other purposes.

Xylazine is a non-opioid veterinary tranquilizer not approved for human use [that] has been linked to an increasing number of overdose deaths nationwide in the evolving drug addiction and overdose crisis. according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. There have been instances of xylazine mixed with other deadly drugs, including fentanyl.

Xylazine is making the deadliest drug threat our country has ever faced, fentanyl, even deadlier, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram stated in a March alert.

DEA has seized xylazine and fentanyl mixtures in 48 of 50 states, she continued. The DEA Laboratory System is reporting that in 2022, approximately 23 percent of fentanyl powder and 7 percent of fentanyl pills seized by the DEA contained xylazine.

In their letter, the AGs wrote that xylazine is a growing danger to communities across our nation. With a record number of overdose deaths, we must confront this new threat.

Xylazine is also known as tranq or Philly dope, as its a tranquilizer and, per the latter nickname, is popular in Philadelphia. However, unlike fentanyl, it isnt an opioid, so the overdose antidote naloxone, also known as Narcan, doesnt reverse its effects although the DEA suggests administering Narcan if someone might be suffering a drug poisoning.

Xylazine has been spotted in 48 out of 50 states, according to the DEA. There was a 117 percent increase in xylazine-related deaths in 2021 compared to the previous year.

Many of our States have scheduled xylazine, though some minor disagreement exists over which Schedule to place xylazine. Nevertheless, we agree that Congress must act quickly to classify the illicit use of xylazine under Schedule III of the CSA, the AGs wrote. The Combating Illicit Xylazine Act provides critical tools that will enable the DEA to track its manufacturing, prevent diversion, and mandate analysis and reporting on the illicit use of xylazine.

The AGs who signed the letter include New Yorks Letitia James, Floridas Ashley Moody, Tennessees Jonathan Skrmetti, Arizonas Kris Mayes, Californias Rob Bonta, Texass Ken Paxton, Virginias Jason Miyares, Connecticuts William Tong, and South Carolinas Alan Wilson.
As I pen this recommendation, Im looking out my home office window to a world of green from the trees that stand tall to greet the day. Perhaps they will serve as inspiration for a book that calls readers to a deeper connection with nature. I suspect so.

Im reminded of another recent review: Karen Armstrongs Sacred Nature: Restoring Our Ancient Bond with the Natural World, which has a similar theme.

In John Philip Newells Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World, Newell takes a deep dive into, specifically, Celtic Christianity and the wisdom it holds for viewing the world in a very sacred way, not just the world around us but wisdom that lies buried in our souls.

A bit about the author: Newell is an internationally acclaimed spiritual teacher, popular speaker, and author of several books. He is the former warden of Iona Abbey in the Western Isles of Scotland, and the founder of The School of Earth & Soul, which focuses on the Celtic initiative of study, spiritual practice, and compassionate action. He teaches regularly in several states and leads international pilgrimages to Iona.

John Philip Newell has written Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World about Celtic Christianity. Photo by Karin Baard. (Harper Collins)

Hes alive and well and continues in a legacy of what is, safe to say, a long line of Celtic prophets and practitioners. He is a contemporary, teaching and leading workshops on Celtic spirituality.

Celebrating Celtic Christianity

In this narrative, Newell introduces readers to some of Celtic Christianitys leading practitioners, their lives of faith, and what lessons can be gleaned from their work.

Students of history and theology may be familiar with the controversies surrounding Augustine of Hippo (354430) and Pelagius (circa 360circa 420), a monk from Wales. Newell is a champion for Pelagius, whose teachings were eventually banned; Pelagius was excommunicated, but continued with his vision to look beyond sin and affirm our sacredness with all of Gods creation. Pelagius saw the sacredness in wisdom, in nature, and in compassion.

The patron saint of Ireland, Brigid of Kildare, founded two monasteries, one for women and one for men. Heralded in legend as a goddess of spring and fertility, for Celtic Christianity, she is a reminder of the power of the sacred feminine. She was generous to a fault and possessed a strength about the interrelationship of all things; we need each other despite political, racial, or religious boundaries.

John Muir should not be a new name for readers. Hes been known as John of the Mountains and Father of the National Parks. He was born in Scotland but immigrated to America as a young boy, and grew to be a noted naturalist, author, and environmental philosopher. For Newell, its his passion about seeing the beauty and holiness of the wilderness, his awe and respect for Gods creation, and his burning desire to protect these gifts, that earns him a spot as a leader in the spirituality of Celtic Christianity.

The author highlights John Muirs love of the wilderness. (MPI/Getty Images)

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (18811955) was a French Jesuit priest, scientist, paleontologist, theologian, philosopher, and teacher. Chardins theories on the unfolding of the cosmos and the evolution of matter to humanity culminate in a reunion with Christ. There is much to be learned from his inspiration to see how science and faith tell a universal story that begins with sacredness.

George Fielden MacLeod (18951991) was a Scottish soldier and clergyman. He was well known and influential, but also tagged as one of the most unconventional Church of Scotland ministers of the 20th century. He was the founder of the Iona Community on the Island of Iona. Born of an aristocratic family, he believed that the spiritual was to be found in compassionate acts for others: The needs of humanity and the earth should be served. For Newell, MacLeod awakens in us the compassion of God.

What is particularly fascinating and insightful in Newells book is looking back historically, way back to the fifth and sixth centuries, when Roman Christianity and Celtic Christianity took divergent paths. Celtic Christianity had great ties to natureearth, wind, fire, and waterand less on power and institutions. Rome won out and its organization and structure of Western Christianity, as we know it, has prevailed for centuries.

Newell, and many preceding him, believe there is much to be embodied by embracing the wisdom of Celtic Christianity, which teaches how to reconnect with the sacred: how to see the divine in all of creation and, most specifically, within each of us. It just needs to be reawakened.

For Newell, we are inherently spiritual creatures who intuitively know the sacred in earth and ourselves, but cultures, and even faiths, have made us forget, and learn to suppress this knowledge.

It is Newells hope that sharing the stories of Celtic leaders imbued in an ancient spiritual tradition will awaken our souls to the sacred all around us and within us.

There are many lessons within these pages. Readers will be inspired.

The author of Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World, points to the sacred of the natural world. (Harper Collins)

Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World

By John Philip Newell

Harper Collins, July 6, 2021

Hardcover: 288 pages
BP Unit to Pay Record $40 Million to Settle US Air Pollution Civil Charges

The BP logo at a BP gas station in Manhattan, New York, on Nov. 24, 2021. (Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

WASHINGTONA subsidiary of BP Plc. will pay a record-setting $40 million penalty to settle civil U.S. charges that its Indiana-based oil refinery violated federal laws aimed at curbing emissions of cancer-causing benzene in wastewater and other harmful pollutants, the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) said on Wednesday.

The DOJ will require the oil major to make significant investments to curb benzene pollution at its 134 year old Whiting, Indiana refinery, which has a history of violating federal regulations limiting benzene in refinery wastewater streams.

The settlement between BP Products North America Inc., the Justice Department, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will also require the company to invest approximately $197 million in new technology and other capital improvements to reduce air pollution.

Those improvements are expected to reduce benzene by an estimated seven tons per year, other hazardous air pollutants (HAP) by 28 tons per year, and volatile organic compound emissions (VOC) by 372 tons per year at its Whiting Refinery in Indiana, the Justice Department said.

This settlement sends an important message to the refining industry that the United States will take decisive action against illegal benzene and VOC emissions, Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Departments Environment and Natural Resources Division said in a statement.

Under the settlement, the refinery will implement controls that will greatly improve air quality and reduce health impacts on the overburdened communities that surround the facility.

BP said the capital investments agreed upon will be done in close coordination with state and federal regulators over the next several years.

As we move forward, our commitment to safe, compliant and reliable operations remains unwavering at Whiting and everywhere we operate, spokesperson Christina Audisho said in a statement.

BP Plc.s 435,000 barrel-per-day Whiting, Indiana, refinery is the sixth-biggest by capacity in the United States and the companys largest in the nation, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The company reported a record profit of $28 billion for 2022, joining other oil majors in blockbuster profits after energy prices surged in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine.

The EPA had previously uncovered benzene problems in Whitings wastewater from 20032008. The BP refinery near Lake Michigan released nearly 16 times the legal limit of benzene allowed by the Clean Air Act, the EPA said in 2009.

Following the EPAs investigation, BP spent about $4 billion to expand the Whiting refinery to process heavy Canadian crude. The expansion and upgrade project had drawn opposition in the Chicago area because of the increased pollution that would result.

BP said at the time that the expansion included $1.4 billion in environmental improvements that would enhance the performance of the wastewater treatment plant.

Many U.S. refineries also violate the Clean Air Act by releasing high levels of benzene at refinery fencelines.

Nine U.S. Gulf Coast refineries exceeded the federal regulatory action level between 2018 and 2020 for pollution from benzene, according to a study by the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) released in May of last year.

The nine are among 56 U.S. refineries with high benzene levels, the study said.

The latest settlement terms, filed in a proposed consent decree in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, will require approval from a federal judge.

BP also agreed to undertake a $5 million supplemental environmental project to reduce diesel emissions in the communities surrounding the Whiting Refinery and install 10 air pollutant monitoring stations.

By Sarah N. Lynch and Laura Sanicola
MACAO, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Thursday voiced support for the passage of a bill containing amendments to the Law on Safeguarding National Security.

Noting that safeguarding national sovereignty, security, and development interests is the supreme principle of "one country, two systems," a spokesperson for the office said the Macao SAR government effectively fulfilled its constitutional duty of safeguarding national security by amending the law in the face of changes in internal and external security situations.

The amended law is in line with the "one country, two systems" principle, stipulations in the country's Constitution and the Basic Law of the Macao SAR, and the requirements for implementing the overall concept of national security, the spokesperson said.

The passage of the amendments will help further improve the legal system and mechanism of the SAR for safeguarding national security, further prevent and punish criminal activities endangering national security, and further guarantee the rights and freedoms of Macao residents and a sound business environment in Macao, the spokesperson said.

Macao's tradition of rule of law had been respected during the process and the legislative experiences of other parts of the world were drawn on, the spokesperson said, adding that the legal basis for the amendments is sufficient, and the procedures are scientific and democratic.

All sectors of the society have actively participated in the process and more than 90 percent of public opinions supported the revision.

The spokesperson stressed that the liaison office will continue to firmly support the Macao SAR government in fully and accurately implementing the revised law and effectively preventing, stopping and punishing criminal activities endangering national security in accordance with the law.

The office will also support the SAR government in further improving the legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security, strengthening publicity and education on the overall situation and legal system for safeguarding national security, constantly raising awareness of Macao residents in this regard, so as to promote the steady and sustained development of "one country, two systems" with Macao characteristics. 
CalOptima Offers Stipend at Cal State Fullerton to Entice Next Generation of Social Workers

Officials from CalOptima, which offers public health insurance in Orange County, present a $5 million check to California State UniversityFullerton to support students pursuing a masters degree in the schools social worker program at a press conference in Fullerton, Calif., on May 15, 2023. (Courtesy of CalOptima)

CalOptima, which offers public health insurance in Orange County, will invest $5 million in stipends over the next five years for California State UniversityFullerton students pursuing a masters degree in the schools social worker program, according to a May 16 press release issued by the agency.

Qualifying students, starting next fall, will receive $20,000 a year in exchange for committing to two years of full-time work in public health settings or CalOptima contracted agencies post-graduation.

The generous stipend will serve as a major incentive for students to pursue an advanced degree in social work, a field that is experiencing a critical shortage of trained professionals, said Framroze Virjee, president of the college, in the same press release. We are grateful for the funding.

Although a shortage of social workers currently exists nationwide, CalOptima CEO Michael Hunn reported during a May 15 press conference there are currently 200 open positions for social workers in Orange County alone.

The stipend program will encourage more people to become social workers by removing financial barriers to obtaining the necessary education and training to enter the field, CalOptima spokesperson Jamie Rizzutio told The Epoch Times.

According to Virjee, the CalOptima Board chose the Fullerton college because it is the only public institute in Orange County to offer a masters in social work. The programs focus is child welfare, mental health, and aging.

The program was approved by the CalOptima Board of Directors, which is composed of county supervisors and representatives of local medical care agencies.

With Orange County facing a mental health and opioid crisis, its more important now than ever before to inspire [masters of social work] students to pursue a career in the public healthcare system, said Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffeea board memberin the press release.

Orange County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, who is also a CalOptima board member, said the program will not only help the students, but also those in need in the county.

[It] will serve as an incentive for students to join the Orange County workforce, increasing the number of social workers in our community and leading to improved support and services for our most at-risk population, he said in the press release.
Cannes Film Festival Kicks Off With Johnny Depp, Jeanne Du Barry, and Plenty to Talk About

Johnny Depp poses for photographers upon arrival at the opening ceremony and the premiere of the film "Jeanne du Barry" at the 76th international film festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 16, 2023. (Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)

CANNES, FranceThe Cannes Film Festival red carpet sprang to life Tuesday with the premiere of the Louis XV period drama Jeanne du Barry, with Johnny Depp, as the French Riviera movie pageant launched a star-studded and potentially controversy-rife 76th edition.

Throngs of onlookers shouted Johnny! as Depp, in purple-hued sunglasses signed autographs and edged back into the spotlight following his explosive trial last year with ex-wife Amber Heard. Jeanne du Barry, directed and co-starring Maiwenn, has been billed as Depps comebackthough his prominent presence at Cannes has been hotly debated.

A coterie of stars streamed down Cannes famous red carpet for the opening night ceremony, including Brie Larson, Uma Thurman, Gong Li, Elle Fanning, Naomi Campbell, Catherine Deneuve (who graces this years festival poster) and Helen Mirren.

Uma Thurman poses for photographers upon arrival at the opening ceremony and the premiere of the film Jeanne du Barry at the 76th international film festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 16, 2023. (Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)

During the opening ceremony, Michael Douglas received an honorary Palme dOr, with his wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones and their daughter, Carys Zeta Douglas, looking on from the audience.

Im even older than the festival, said Douglas, 78, after receiving a warm standing ovation.

Douglas and Deneuve officially declared open a festival that promises a Cote dAzur buffet of spectacle, scandal, and cinema set to be served over the next 12 days. Its unspooling against the backdrop of labor unrest. Protests that have roiled France in recent months over changes to its pension system are planned to run during the festival, albeit at a distance from the festivals main hub.

Meanwhile, an ongoing strike by screenwriters in Hollywood could have unpredictable effects on the French Riviera festival.

My wife is currently picketing with my 6-month-old, strapped to her chest, Paul Dano, a juror, said Tuesday, referencing Zoe Kazan. I will be there on the picket line when I get back home.

But with a festival lined with some much-anticipated big-budget films, including James Mangolds Indiana Jones and the Dial of the Destiny and Martin Scorseses Killers of the Flower Moon, the party is sure to go on, regardless. Stars set to hit Cannes red carpet in the next week and a half include Natalie Portman, Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Sean Penn, Alicia Vikander, Scarlett Johansson and Abel Tesfayealso known as the Weeknd.

Earlier Tuesday, the jury that will decide the festivals top prize, the Palme dOr, was introduced. Swedish filmmaker Ruben Ostlund, a two-time Palme winner who last year won for the social satire The Triangle of Sadness, is presiding over a jury including Dano, Larson, Argentine filmmaker Damian Szifron, Afghan director Atiq Rahimi, French actor Denis Menochet, Moroccan filmmaker Maryam Tourzani, Zambian-Welsh director Rungano Nyoni, and French director Julia Ducournau, who in 2019 became the second female filmmaker to win the Palme dOr for Titane.

Ostlund, 49, wondered whether he might have been handed the opportunity a decade too soon. But while addressing the press, Ostlundwhose The Triangle of Sadness was nominated for best picture at the Academy Awardsmade it clear where his allegiances lie.

If I can choose between an Oscar and a Palme dOr, its an easy choice, said Ostlund. I would rather have one more [Palme] than have an Oscar.

The opening night selection has attracted some controversy. Jeanne du Barry, which simultaneously opened in French theaters Tuesday, was produced following the much-watched 2022 trial during which both Depp and Heard accused each other of physical and verbal abuse. A civil jury awarded Depp $10 million in damages and $2 million to Heard.

Maiwenn has made headlines recently, too. The French actor-director has been accused of spitting at prominent French journalist Edwy Plenel. Earlier this month, she confirmed that she assaulted him in a restaurant.

In remarks to the press Monday, Cannes director Thierry Fremaux defended the choice, praised Depp as an actor and said he paid no attention to the trial.

To tell you the truth, in my life, I only have one rule, its the freedom of thinking, the freedom of speech and the freedom to act within a legal framework, said Fremaux. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldnt be here talking about it.

By Jake Coyle
Chair of Toronto Chinese Associations Umbrella Group Met With Chinese Foreign Influence Agency Officials

A guard tries to block photos being taken as he and a policeman patrol outside the Canadian Embassy in Beijing on Jan. 14, 2019. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

An executive of a Toronto group known for being aligned with Beijing met in China with representatives of the Chinese regime agency in charge of advancing the regimes influence operations abroad.

Han Jialiang, as executive chairman of the Council of Newcomer Organizations (CONCO)also known as the Federation of Canadian Chinese Associationsholds a key leadership position within the umbrella group of 24 Chinese hometown associations in Canada. He recently travelled to Xiangfen County in northern Chinas Shanxi Province for an inspection of some local industrial and manufacturing sites, according to a May 9 article on Sohu, a well-known media outlet in China.

The article said that on Hans visit on May 8, he was accompanied by a number of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials, including Liu Xuewu, director of the county-level United Front Works Department (UFWD), which is the CCPs primary foreign interference tool, according to studies cited by Public Safety Canada.

Liang Qiuju, Party secretary of the Linfen City Overseas Chinese Federation, also took part. The federation in Linfen Citywhere Xiangfen County is located and where Han was born and raisedis a local branch of the All-China Federation of Return Overseas Chinese (ACFROC). The ACFROC itself is an arm of the UFWD, according to a 2020 report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

The Linfen federation had taken the initiative to invite Han and his wife on the trip, saying in a May 6 news release that it is committed to the work of uniting the hearts, coalescing the wisdom, and exerting the strength of overseas Chinese people.

During a discussion with CCP officials in Linfen, Han said he was committed to serving as a bridge, strengthening communication, and promoting trade cooperation between the region and the Chinese community in Canada, according to the May 9 Sohu article.

Hans trip came at a precarious time for the Canada-China relationship, which recently sank to a new low over Ottawas expulsion of Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei, who was involved in threatening Conservative MP Michael Chongs family in Hong Kong. Chong became a target due to having proposed a motion in 2021 to recognize Chinas treatment of Uyghurs as a genocide, according to an intelligence report first reported by The Globe and Mail on May 1. Beijing retaliated by expelling a Canadian diplomat from the Canadian Consulate in Shanghai.

The tit-for-tat expulsion of diplomats marked the culmination of months of intensity between Ottawa and Beijing over a series of media reports on Beijings foreign interference in Canada. Those operations include interference in Canadas 2019 and 2021 federal elections, the operation of several clandestine police stations on Canadian soil, and the violation of Canadian airspace with surveillance balloons and spy buoys in the Arctic waters. Interference activities also include continuing threats against Chinese Canadians and their families.

The Epoch Times reached out to Han via CONCO for comment on his meeting with the CCP officials, but didnt hear back.

Hearts Forever Aligned With the Party

Despite having lived in Canada since 1991, Han has continued to advocate for his motherland, according to a number of reports from local or state-owned media in China.

China will always be my roots, Linfen will always be my home, he said in an August 2022 article, whose Chinese title can be translated as Overseas Chinese Hearts Forever Aligned with the Party, Joyfully Welcoming [Overseas Chinese] to the 20th National Congress of the CCP, Interviews With Overseas Chinese. The article was published on the official WeChat account of the Linfen City Overseas Chinese Federation.

As my motherland has nurtured me, its only right for me to contribute my humble efforts, to give back to and repay society, and to help those in need, Han added.

In October 2019, Han attended a one-week Overseas Chinese Youth Leaders Workshop in Beijing. The event was hosted by a number of Chinese government departments, including the State Councils Overseas Chinese Affairs Officethe UFWDs external namealong with the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the Beijing municipal government, the China Overseas Friendship Association, and Tsinghua Universitys School of Continuing Education, according to a news release posted on the schools WeChat account.

The workshop focused on topics that included the great achievements of New China in the past 70 years, the spirit of the CCPs 19th National Congress, Chinese leader Xi Jinpings governance ideology, the One Country, Two Systems policywhich Beijing uses to control Hong Kongand the regimes Belt and Road Initiative.

At the opening ceremony, Zhang Jianmin, deputy director of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, spoke to the roughly 40 attendees who represented Chinese organizations from over 20 countries and regions worldwide.

Zhang urged them to become active participants in the construction and high-quality innovative development of the Belt and Road Initiative, promoters of friendly relations between China and other countries, defenders of the Chinese peoples core interests, and exemplars of the image of overseas Chinese in the new era.

When the workshop concluded on Oct. 15, 2019, Han spoke on behalf of all of the attendees as class leader. According to the news release, Han said the workshop had strengthened their [the attendees] sense of pride and confidence in the Chinese nation and deepened their sense of mission and responsibility as leaders of the overseas Chinese community.

He also said that the attendees, upon returning to their countries of residence, will promote what they learned at Tsinghua to overseas Chinese to allow them to better understand their home country.

Affiliations

The Council of Newcomer Organizations (CONCO), where Han has served as executive chair since August 2020, has often taken a stance aligned with Beijing.

In August 2019, it published an advertisement that vehemently criticized the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, alleging that the protesters were colluding with foreign powers.

In March 2021, the organization condemned the House of Commons motion passed in February that year that recognized the CCPs treatment of Uyghurs and other ethnic Muslims as a genocide.

Han is also chairman of the Shanxi Association of Toronto, which is both a CONCO member and part of the Shanxi Communities in Canadaa larger hometown association for people from Chinas Shanxi Province. The Shanxi group in September 2019 hosted an event titled Praising [Our] Motherland to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of communist China.

In January 2023, five major Shanxi-related organizations co-hosted a Chinese New Year Party, according to a report posted on Sohu. The event was attended by officials from the Chinese Consulate in Toronto and several Canadian politicians, including Michael Chan, deputy mayor of Markham; Vincent Ke, member of the provincial parliament of Ontario; and the assistant of former Liberal MP Han Dong, who now sits as an Independent MP.

Back in 2010, Richard Fadden, then-director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), had warned about Chans ties to China, the Globe and Mail reported. Chan, who said he has launched a legal challenge against Globes reporting, was Ontarios citizenship and immigration minister from October 2007 to January 2010 and Ontarios tourism and culture minister from January 2010 to October 2011. He later organized a rally in Toronto denouncing the Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters in 2019.

Han and Ke were both at the centre of recent reports of Chinas interference activities in Canada. Dong, now sitting as an Independent MP in the Ontario riding of Don Valley North, resigned from the Liberal caucus in March after a Global News report cited national security sources saying he had advised a Chinese diplomat that Beijing should delay releasing Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig from detention in China. Dong has denied the allegations and is suing Global News for defamation.

Meanwhile, Ke resigned from the Ontario Progressive Conservative caucus in March after Global News reported on two Privy Council Office documents revealing CCP interference schemes in the 2019 federal election. Global News said that although the documents didnt directly name Ke, unnamed national security sources said the MPP served as a financial intermediary in those Chinese interference schemes. Ke has denied the allegations, and has taken legal action against Global.

Chan, Ke, and Han have not returned multiple requests for comment from The Epoch Times.
Chinas Shanghai Cooperation Organization for the Moon

A screen shows footages of spacecraft for Chang'e-5 mission during an event on Chinas lunar exploration program, at the National Astronomical Observatories of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), in Beijing, on Jan. 18, 2021. (Tingshu Wang/Reuters)

Commentary

A deepening cold war divide between China and the United States is about to be officially extended to the moon by Chinas creation of a formal organization that will help extend the hegemony of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from the Earth to the Earth-moon system.

The impending formation of the International Lunar Research Station Cooperation Organization (ILRSCO), as part of the 2001 China-Russia International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), was announced on April 25 at the Deep Space Exploration Conference in Hefei, China.

China intends to compete with and outmaneuver the United States 24-member Artemis Accords, which is just an agreement on principles for behavior on the moon.

The distinction is crucial as the Artemis Accords do not include the formation of a formal organization.

But as a formal organization, ILRSCO will have a leadermost certainly China. It will also have a bureaucracyagain, most likely in China.

Furthermore, through agreements on principles and then planning led by China, it will implement dual-use scientific and commercial activities on the moon, largely funded by China but approved by ILRSCO members.

The April 25 announcement was made by Wu Weiren, chief designer of Chinas Lunar Exploration Program and director of the China Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL) in Hefei.

Wu told Chinese state television that day: We hope it [ILRSCO] can become a major scientific program that links multiple countries, international organizations, institutions, and scientists together. China is committed to making greater contributions to humanity; this is our main starting point.

However, humanity usually does not benefit when Chinas communist regime creates and then leads broad international organizations.

The regime often restricts the membership of its organizations to other authoritarian nations or those that can be expected to oppose or show independence from the United States, and then stacks these organizations with anti-democratic preferences and agendas.

Coalitions and organizations created and led by China also tend to produce military cooperation that benefits the security interests of their authoritarian members and detracts from that of the democracies.

The premier example is the 2001 Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), whose formation was led by China and Russia.

Today it has a Chinese secretary general as its leader; it began with six members, including Russia and China, and now has nine members, with 17 countries in the membership process.

Participants of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit attend an extended-format meeting of heads of SCO member states in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Sept. 16, 2022. (Sputnik/Sergey Bobylev/Pool via Reuters)

The chief products of the SCO are its annual Peace Mission military exercises that, for nearly 20 years, have enabled China and Russia to increase joint force military cooperation and its repeated admonitions against color revolutions or democratic revolutions.

The South China Morning Post (SCMP) on April 25 reported that Wu said the ILRS has signed cooperation agreements or letters of intent with a number of countries and international bodies, including Russia, Argentina, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, and the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization.

During the Hefei conference, a joint declaration regarding future ILRS cooperation was signed by the China National Space Agency (CNSA) and the China-led Asia Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO).

Formed in 2008, APSCOs members are China, Bangladesh, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru, and Thailand.

SCMP also reported on Wu, noting, CNSA is also negotiating with 10 other countries as potential participants.

Currently, the China-led ILRS envisions five stages between 2030 and 2050 to build increasingly sophisticated unmanned moon bases for scientific exploration, research, and commercial exploitation.

China can be expected to begin manned moon missions before 2030, and, likely, these will quickly become part of the ILRS program.

Into the 2030s, Chinas manned missions will likely include astronauts from ILRSCO member states as manned moon base construction advances.

ILRSCO organized Peace Mission joint military exercises on the moon may seem farfetched, though that possibility should not be dismissed.

Chinas manned and unmanned space programs are controlled by the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA), and Chinese academics have written about using the moon as a platform to surveil the Earth and the cis-lunar space between the Earth and the moon, with implications for seeking military dominance.

China plans its own satellite constellation for the moon that will provide navigation, surveillance, and potential electronic warfare functions.

China is also developing humanoid robots for space functions; a humanoid robot for moon mining could easily be configured as a lunar soldier.

At a minimum, the ILRSCO can be expected to provide political support for the CCPs aggressive territorial grabs on the moon and its introduction of dual-use civil-military capabilities on the moon.

To sustain and increase support for the Artemis Accords, it is crucial that the United States keep to its schedule of returning astronauts to the moon by 2025.

It will also be important for the United States to place a high priority on including astronauts from Artemis partner nations.

Finally, it is crucial that Washington refuses to let CCP-initiated wars on Earth diminish funding and support for building a larger presence for the democracies on the moon.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Chinas Unconventional War Strategies

The CCPs chemical warfare, maritime militia, and plans for Taiwan

The idea of letting 23 million free people come under Chinese communist enslavement is not something that sits well with me, says retired U.S. Marine Col. Grant Newsham, referring to Taiwan.

In a recent episode of American Thought Leaders, host Jan Jekielek and Newsham, the author of When China Attacks: A Warning to America and an Epoch Times contributor, discussed the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) techniques of unrestricted warfare, its ongoing deployment against the United States, its plans for expansion in the Pacific and in the world, and Chinese vulnerabilities.

Jan Jekielek: You start When China Attacks with this scenario of an attack by the Chinese Communist Party on Taiwan. As I was reading, I was charting all these unconventional methods of warfare the CCP utilizes to achieve its objectives. Realistically, will this happen in the near future?

Col. Grant Newsham: The Chinese want to seize Taiwan. Theyd like to get it without fighting, but if they have to, they will. Theyve built up a military that is capable of doing it, but they also need to ensure that the Americans are kept at bay. Theyve got to thread a needle here, because if they go too hard against the United States, it may provoke America to respond with everything they have, and thats not what China wants. They want to humiliate the Americans just enough to make them worry about what happens if they go all in.

Essentially, its the front men in the United States telling whatever administration is in office to hold still. Dont respond. We cant risk nuclear war over little Taiwan, and we want to get back to business as usual. What I can see is the Chinese launching an all-out quick hard assault on Taiwan, but not going all out on the United States, not doing another Pearl Harbor attack or hitting the U.S. mainland, and maybe even leaving the U.S. bases in Japan alone.

They do have ways to make life difficult for us, like their fishing fleet, the maritime militia, things that look like civilian weapons or civilian entities, and also their proxies. In just about every country, theyve got people who put in a good word for them.

Mr. Jekielek: Why is Taiwan so important to China, and why is it so important to the U.S.?

Col. Newsham: You hear a lot of people say, Taiwans worth more to China than it is to us. It cant be defended. Just let it go.

Thats wrong, and theres an element of maliciousness in it. The idea of letting 23 million free people come under Chinese communist enslavement is not something that sits well with me. But why is it important?

Surprisingly, it doesnt have so much to do with the high-end semiconductors that Taiwan manufactures. That gets a lot of attention, and yes, it would be an inconvenience, and probably a big one if Taiwans semiconductor production was cut. They produce something like 90 percent of all high-end semiconductors.

But I dont think thats the main reason. With or without chips, Taiwan is a juicy target for Beijing. Its part of the so-called first island chain that stretches from Japan to Taiwan, down to the Philippines, down to Malaysia. If you look at a map, that will tell you a lot about Chinese thinking.

That first island chain hems in the Peoples Liberation Army. It makes it hard for them to get into the Pacific to go east. But if China takes Taiwan, they have seized a lodgment right in the middle of the first island chain. Think of a castle wall being breached and suddenly the attackers just pour in and keep going.

If the Peoples Liberation Army launches from Taiwan and goes up north, they can surround and isolate Japan. If they go down south, they can isolate Australia, cutting it off from the U.S. and from the rest of Asia.

The Chinese objective is not to just stop at the first island chain. Rather, its to go all the way to the west coast of Latin America, where they are setting up the infrastructure, the ports, the airfields, the political influence, and the economic influence theyll need to deploy Chinese forces in the future. Its part of the plan.

And suppose Taiwan comes under Beijings rule. The message that would be sent is that the U.S. military could not keep the Taiwanese free. In short order, Asia will turn red as countries there realize that an American promise is not what it used to be, and youre going to see that worldwide as well. We dont have a particularly good track record in recent times of taking care of our friends. Rather, we tend to leave them high and dry, and theres a point at which a lot of people notice.

Mr. Jekielek: Please tell us a bit about your background and how you came to study Chinese military capability and intentions.

Col. Newsham: I first started looking at Taiwan and China around 1981, so its been 40 years or so. I was with the Marines for 30 years and active in reserve time, and spent a lot of time in the Asia-Pacific. Also, I was a diplomat with the U.S. State Department for eight years, and a lot of that was in Pacific East Asia. I also worked for an investment bank in Japan and for Motorola in Japan and Korea. So, Ive had decades of experience looking at China and Asia from different perspectives, not just the military, but also from the diplomatic, the financial, and that of high-tech industry.

Mr. Jekielek: A lot of the unconventional warfare the Chinese Communist Party wages involve all these different sectors.

Col. Newsham: Its a different concept of war and of bringing your enemy under your control. For the Chinese, a shooting war is the last on the list, if its even necessary. Ideally, youve weakened your enemies to the point that they cant respond effectively, or at all. You do this with methods that dont involve shooting people, although they are willing to do that, or they have other people do the shooting for them.

These are things that to an American or Westerner look unobjectionable, that just looks like business competition. The Chinese look at this as economic warfare. The idea is to drive your opponents or your competitors out of business, to get their technology, suck their know-how out of them, and rig the system in China so that you can build up Chinese companies.

The idea is to dominate the main sectors and just about anything thats on the Chinese list of things to dominate. You can look at how that has actually worked in the U.S. Once China was let into the World Trade Organization in the early 2000s, despite not meeting any of the requirements that every other country would need, American businesses started flocking to China. China turned into this manufacturing juggernaut.

Americas manufacturing capabilityand, more importantly, the jobs and the livelihoods that came with itdisappeared. Its weakened us, and its strengthened China, because the Chinese economy has grown, with many countries growing dependent on it, America not the least. This helps China develop its military as well. Its a net gain for the Chinese and a net loss for us. There are other lines of attack that China sees as warfarepsychological warfare, biological war, chemical war, cyberwarfare, and proxy warfare.

Proxy warfare means getting your opponents influential people to do your bidding for you. It was very interesting the other day when we saw the CEO of TikTok testifying before Congress. Behind him was a phalanx of Americans who had signed up to do Chinas bidding. Money has a way of doing that.

Theres also one more point I wanted to mention as to why Taiwan matters. It is proof that people of Chinese origin can handle democracy, consensual government, freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and all the freedoms we think are important. That is one of the reasons Beijing wants to strangle it, because it is a daily living reminder there is an alternative for China besides Chinese communist rule.

Mr. Jekielek: Tell us about this concept of comprehensive national power, which the CCP uses to rate itself against every nation in the world.

Col. Newsham: Whatever is good for me is bad for you is the idea. Something that weakens your opponent while strengthening you is ideally what you want. China actually counts all of these wins and successes that they have around the world. They set up and get ownership of some strategic locations or airfields. Everything that is good for China and benefits China is exactly what they want, and they want the other side to go down. If you can weaken your enemy, confuse him, take away his key industries, weaken his currency, and get people to start using Chinese currency overseas, that is a big plus for Chinas comprehensive national power and a decline for American national power.

They are very much keeping score on this. Its helpful to remember the ultimate objective of the Chinese Communist Party. Ultimately, it is to get the Americans out of Asia, but also to keep pushing and eventually dominate the region and the globe.

Mr. Jekielek: Whats the state of the Chinese military? Ive heard wildly different assessments of their capabilities.

Col. Newsham: People used to laugh 20 years ago at the idea of the Peoples Liberation Army attacking Taiwan. It was jokingly referred to as the million-man swim, the idea being they didnt even have the resources to get across the Taiwan Strait.

Nobody is laughing these days. China has a navy, an air force, ground forces, and rockets and missiles. Right now, its able to throw its weight around in the region, and the idea is to eventually throw it around globally.

The fix weve gotten ourselves into with the Chinese comes from not having taken them seriously enough and maintaining our edge. We spent so many years in the so-called sandbox in Iraq and Afghanistan, focusing on those kinds of wars, that the Chinese caught up in many areas and surpassed us in some as well.

Mr. Jekielek: Since were talking about maritime capability, there is this unconventional fleet that the CCP has used in a military way, which is essentially their fishing fleet, but which also doubles as a maritime militia. Please tell us how this maritime militia works.

Col. Newsham: These are fishing boats that sometimes do fishing, but theyre also built for double hauls and are up-engined. They have people with arms on them and they use them to ram, intimidate, and sink other vessels, particularly other fishing vessels.

You have this charade that they are not a part of the military and theyre just fishing boats. Theyve used these very successfully in the South China Sea. You can establish a long-term presence in places and drive your opponents out, and they wont go back in. If youre a fisherman, theres no way youre going to go in and challenge a big boat with a double haul and guys with weapons on it that is willing to ram you and sink you and shoot you if necessary. The Chinese have a lot of these, in addition to their regular fishing fleet, which sails the seven seas vacuuming up fish.

So, the Chinese have also understood one of the weaknesses of their opponents is that we insist on law and playing by the rules. When somebody doesnt do it, were flummoxed.

Nobody has actually come up with the common sense approach that lets them know that we regard these as naval ships, and we are going to respond accordingly. You can see the advantage that it gives to the Chinese compared to us and others.

Mr. Jekielek: Ive recently become more aware of the bullying actions of the Chinese Communist Party to get the leaders of some of these small island chains in the Pacific to play ball, seemingly on course to assuming eventual administrative control. But a few of these leaders have stood up to the behemoth.

In one case, President Panuelo of the Federated States of Micronesia is on record saying that Chinese officials have threatened his life. In this long letter, he describes a host of serious threats to his nation. Its unheard of anywhere, never mind in a tiny island chain state. What is the significance of this?

Col. Newsham: President Panuelo had the nerve and courage to say this and writes in great detail about things like the Chinese paying off all sorts of officials and influential people in Micronesia. Theyre providing money to secessionist groups in several of the states in Micronesia. It would be like providing money to Texas so they could go independent.

And this is just Micronesia. You have huge Chinese investments where these real estate developers come in and promise billions, and they insinuate themselves commercially. That leads to political influence, and then they pretty much get a lock on the local economy. They create a constituency of people that get a ton of money from the PRC [Peoples Republic of China]. Theyve been very effective doing this in the Pacific.

These islands in the Central Pacific are actually in the middle of Americas defenses. We have the first island chain with Taiwan, but the Chinese are setting up behind us. Recently, they have signed a deal with the prime minister of the Solomon Islands that effectively lets the Chinese military into the Solomon Islands. Thats where Guadalcanal was, the World War II battle. The Chinese military will get in there before too long.

Mr. Jekielek: Lets talk about one of these unconventional warfare methods in which the CCP has been engaged, which is fentanyl.

Col. Newsham: Its as clear a case of chemical warfare as youll find. China provides about 99 percent of the fentanyl precursors. The raw materials go to Mexico and then get turned into pills and moved into the United States. Fentanyl killed about 70,000 Americans last year. In the entire 12 years of the Vietnam War, 55,000 Americans were killed.

In one year, America lost 70,000 people, many of these of military age, and this is just the ones who died. Then, there are the walking wounded, along with the effect this has on families and society. The costs of dealing with and trying to treat these people are immense. Some figures are over a trillion dollars, depending on where you look.

Think about it. Youve effectively launched an attack on your main enemy. Youre taking what amounts to a couple divisions of troops off the battlefield every year, and nobody does anything, and you get away with it.

Also, theres a psychological warfare aspect to this. By getting so many influential Americans convinced that they have to be in the China market, that they need to make money from China, and that we need Chinas help with issues like North Korea and climate change, we have tied our hands and will not take on China on the fentanyl scourge.

Ive heard the excuses that its local officials behind the fentanyl and the central government doesnt know what theyre doing. Once again, that suggests you dont really know how China works. The law is what Xi Jinping says it is. China could crack down on fentanyl if it wanted to, but I would suggest it doesnt because its been wildly successful in killing us. I dont know why you would stop if your enemy is not wise enough to stand up for himself.

A retired Navy pilot from Pittsburgh called me up and told me that his adult son had just died from fentanyl poisoning. Of course, he was distraught, to put it mildly. He said, I tried to get congressmen interested and they really werent. All I could do was listen to him. To ignore it the way our ruling class and elites have, theres a callousness that just isnt my thing.

Mr. Jekielek: I really want to talk about solutions as we finish up. What can we do?

Col. Newsham: China is very sensitive to its human rights record, where its just an absolute atrocity, but then you have the climate czar, John Kerry, basically saying: Human rights dont matter. The only important thing is climate change. Were not going to talk about this with the Chinese. We need their help.

Its hard to see how youre going to win a war or this fight with the PRC if youre thinking like that.

You need to apply pressure where its really going to hurt. One example that I cover in the book is that the Chinese government is absolutely dependent on the convertible currency, U.S. dollars. Without it, they really cant fund their military or even their economic growth. If they want to fund the Belt and Road initiative, they have to pay in U.S. dollars or something like it.

That can be by manufacturing things in China and selling them overseas. That can be Wall Street pumping tens of billions a year into the Chinese economy, which is a godsend to the Chinese Communist Party. The investment American business puts into China is being used to build their economy, their military, and the so-called comprehensive national power.

Theres a shortage of convertible currency, so heres what you do. You start cutting them off from the U.S. dollar network. Start with the Peoples Bank of China, and revoke its license to operate in the U.S. for six months. That would get some attention.

You have to go up to the highest levels and make them feel the heat. You have to understand their system, realize how to apply pressure and power, then go to the top. Well see if that happens.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Cruz Suggests Biden Admins Russia-Ukraine Policy Hampered By Focus on Securing Iran Nuclear Deal

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) speaks at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol to discuss immigration at the southern border on June 22, 2022. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) railed on May 17 at what he said was the Biden administration approaching the Russia-Ukraine conflict through the goal of achieving a nuclear deal with Iran.

Since last year, indirect nuclear talks between the United States and Iran have been indefinitely suspended.

The United States withdrew from the 2015 deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump, whose administration went on to reinstate the sanctions in addition to slapping on fresh sanctions on Tehran.

Appearing at the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think tank, Cruz cited that Ukraine last year wanted army tactical missile systems to attack Russias base in Crimeawhere they were testing kamikaze drones given to them by Iranonly for the Biden administration to reject the request.

Cruz noted that the Ukrainians said that the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) they got from Washington wouldnt be able to launch rockets far enough to hit the base.

Why did they refuse? Well, according to what they said publicly, they told journalists that the HIMARS have sufficient range for the Ukrainians.

There are many things to say about this excuse, but perhaps the most relevant is that its easily disprovable for anyone with access to Google Maps to discover that was a lie, said Cruz.

What was the real reason? I believe the real reason is that where there were Iranian drones you could expect there would be Iranian personnel, he continued.

And it would have been politically inconvenient to the Biden administration, to President [Joe] Biden and Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken to have dead Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces littering Crimea just at the very instant they were trying to ink another deal with the Ayatollah.

Cruz said that the fundamental problem with the Biden administrations policymaking on Russias invasion of Ukraine is that, while many in the administration want Ukraine to win, they want to enter another nuclear deal with Iran.

Cruz went on to say those two interests are in direct conflict.

The senator blamed the administration for allowing funding to go toward Iran making drones for Russia to use in Ukraine in exchange for reportedly getting Russian Su fighter jets and receiving other benefits.

Cruz claimed that Biden and his fellow Democrats wanted the Russia-Ukraine conflict over in a week with one of the reasons being the singular obsession of Biden foreign policy is a nuclear deal with Iran.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the State Department for comment.
De-dollarization?

Commentary

The potential U.S. debt ceiling and U.S. dollar status problems reignite the discussion of de-dollarization. The status of U.S. dollar will no doubt be firmly anchored in the financial market, which has already been discussed here previously. But the U.S. dollar share of goods trade is claimed to be jeopardized by the Chinese mouthpieces and some international bodies recently. For foreigners, one camp expresses this openly to please the Chinese Communist Party for more business. Another camp might have this thought based on recent observations.

There are at least two observations to consider. First, China did get more trade partners invoicing in their bilateral currencies (non-U.S. dollar), and second, China and some of her trade partners did have a higher share of goods trade invoicing in their bilateral currencies. Yet there are subtleties here. On the first point, most newly joined countries are very small in economic size or even on the brink of some sort of crisis. On the second point, the share of non-U.S. dollar goods trade is still very small, although it has been increasing in some of these countries, mainly at a few percentages level.

Although China is concerned; its largest export destination is still the United States, taking 17 percent. The second is Hong Kong taking 8.5 percent, while the third and fourth are Japan and South Korea, already taking less than five percent. Among Hong Kongs main re-export destinations excluding mainland China (57 percent share), the largest is again the U.S. taking 6.4 percent. One can see even China cannot evade receiving U.S. dollars from exports. Among the top 14 export destinations, Hong Kong probably might pay non-U.S. dollars (yuan); the next is already the 15th largestRussia.

Illustration of the BRICS net Merchandise Exports, May 15, 2023. (Courtesy of KC Law Ka-chung)

Viewing the issue more broadly, one can see such de-dollarization among the camp of emerging markets (EMs) is infeasible. The accompanying chart shows net exports of BRICS based on World Trade Organization (WTO) monthly data annualized by a 12-month moving sum. Among these giants, EMs, all but India are net exporters, meaning that they all are net receivers rather than net payers of foreign exchange. From the balance of payments (BoP) point of view, only India has the potential to build up an international currency as only she keeps paying.

Here are the subtitles again. India imports the most from China, double the amount of her second largest importer United Arab Emirates (UAE). Would China and UAE be willing to accept Rupee by exporting to India? The answer is obvious. The Chinese mouthpieces keep praising the yuan internationalization, yet they just empty talk without understanding how this can be achieved, with earning export foreign exchange being another goal at the same time. Even China-Russia cannot be a sustainable pair because both of them are large net payers.

According to the 2022 WTO data, the United States is still the largest net importer, which is already larger than the sum of the second to tenth largest net importers together! And all G10 belong to the Western camp. As countries in the anti-U.S. camp are mostly net exporters, de-dollarization remains just an empty talk stage at this stage.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Eco-Anxiety Is a Reflection of a Sick Society

Commentary

Unless you happen to live under a rock on a distant planet, youre no doubt familiar with climate doomism, the idea that our planet is past the point of saving.

In the UK, a staggering two-thirds of people are worried sick about the environment. In the United States, doomism, a potent mix of fear-based proclamations and patently false information, is causing a mental health crisis of epic proportions. It has given rise to a phenomenon known as eco-anxiety.

According to the American Psychological Association (APA) (pdf), eco-anxiety involves a chronic fear of environmental doom that comes from observing the seemingly irrevocable impacts of climate

change unfold, and worrying about the future for oneself, children, and later generations.

Although eco-anxiety is very much a global issue, its having a particularly profound impact on the people of America. According to a recent report in the Washington Times, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) employees have fallen prey to doom-driven beliefs. So overcome with feelings of distress, many employees now find themselves unable to perform their well-paid jobs.

According to the piece, an increasing number of FWS employees are suffering from something called eco-grief, a close cousin of eco-anxiety. Eco-grief involves a sense of profound sorrow stemming from natural and man-made damage to the broader environment. Rather alarmingly, eco-grief is also associated with anticipatory grief, or preparatory grief, which involves a feeling of despair that usually occurs prior to the death of a loved one. Now, though, government employees are pre-grieving future lossesor perceived future lossesto the environment. This isnt normal behavior. Then again, these are nt normal times.

If all of this isnt odd enough, according to the Washington Times piece, the FWS is also offering paid leave to employees who attend eco-anxiety seminars. You, the taxpaying reader, are expected to fund this madness. Of course, the FWS insanity must be viewed through a much broader lens. Eco-grief and eco-anxiety are symptoms of much broader problems. They didnt just magically appear out of thin air.

Studies clearly demonstrate a strong association between feelings of eco-related doom and various mental health problems, including generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and major depressive disorder (MDD). Both MDD and cases of anxiety are on the rise, particularly among younger people. Not surprisingly, younger individuals tend to be particularly vulnerable to the effects of eco-anxiety.

All of this existential angst and pain for what, exactly?

Not much, it seems. The paralyzing fears associated with eco-anxiety appear to be entirely unwarranted. As the scientist Bjorn Lomborg has clearly shown, although both global warming and climate change are real, the threats posed have been, intentionally or otherwise, greatly exaggerated. Instead of feeding young people nightmarish narratives, Lomborg has pleaded with (and continues to plead with) fellow climate scientists, policymakers, and economists to deliver comprehensive strategies and actual solutions.

Through the use of hard data and scientific models, Lomborg has shown that, contrary to popular belief, climate disasters (hurricanes, wildfires, flooding, etc.) are actually occurring with less frequency than before. Moreover, humans, via scientific advancements, have become far more adaptive. In short, the fatalistic, doom-driven scenarios only make sense if we stupidly assume that humans will do absolutely nothing to address the problems. This is the truth, even if partisan fact-checkers suggest otherwise.

Lomborgs findings have been echoed by Michael Shellenberger, an environmental activist who is intimately familiar with the realities (or the non-realities) of climate change. In his best-selling book, Apocalypse Never, Schellenberger aptly demonstrates thatagain, contrary to popular beliefcarbon emissions have already peaked. In fact, theyve been declining in most developed nations since the late 2000s. Moreover, according to Schellenberger, an author who always uses data to support his points, deaths from extreme weather conditions have been declining since the 1980s. Yet, for some unfathomable reason, one must really dig to discover this information. It has been buried under mounds of fear-based propaganda. This, one assumes, is intentional.

Instead of more people acknowledging the facts, we find ourselves inundated with an increasing number of erratic, unhinged calls for more extreme climate-driven action. One piece, recently published in The Conversation, actually equated good parenting with climate activism. In other words, parents that fail to educate their children on the supposed dire state of the environment are bad parents.

Theyre not. Parents that needlessly scare their children into believing that the end of the world is just around the corner are bad parents.

Its really a shame that more individuals arent familiar with the work of Lomborg and Shellenberger. After all, mental health problems already cost the U.S. economy $48 billion per year. As cases of eco-anxiety continue to grow, we should expect to see the economy stretched even further. Eco-anxiety is fast becoming a mental health crisis of epic proportions, with some of the more severely affected even contemplating suicide.

There has never been a better time to be alive than right now, but bad science and bad role models are contributing to a climate of misplaced fear.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Ethics Commissioner Finds Alberta Premier Contravened Conflicts of Interest Act in Pastor Case

CBC allegations that Danielle Smith contacted Crown prosecutors were found to be without substance

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks at a press conference after the speech from the throne, in Edmonton on Nov. 29, 2022. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)

The ethics commissioner has found that Alberta Premier Danielle Smith contravened a section of the Conflicts of Interest Act in her conversation with Minister of Justice Tyler Shandro, in relation to criminal charges faced by Calgary street pastor Artur Pawlowski following a speech he gave at the Coutts border protest in 2022.

However, the report by Alberta Ethics Commissioner Marguerite Trussler, released on May 18, found there was no evidence that Smith or any staff in the premiers office contacted prosecutors, or tried to influence Coutts and COVID-related criminal prosecutions, as CBC News had alleged in a series of articles earlier this year.

The report comes with less than 12 days remaining until Albertans go to the polls on May 29, and on the same day Smith is scheduled to take part in a debate with NDP Leader Rachel Notley, who is also vying for the seat of premier.

Trussler stated that it was her opinion that Smith inappropriately talked to Justice Minister Tyler Shandro about criminal charges laid against Pawlowski, which the commissioner said was an improper attempt to influence the independence of the legal system.

She said that the premier speaking to the justice minister about a specific ongoing criminal case in the way Smith did was unacceptable and was in contravention of the act.

Vehicles parked by Coutts in southern Alberta as part of a protest convoy blocking the Canada-U.S. border to demand the removal of COVID-19 mandates, on Feb. 10, 2022. (Michael Wing/The Epoch Times)

CBC Allegations

The commissioners report details a January CBC story which it said rel[ied] on an unnamed source that a political staff member in the Premiers office had directly contacted prosecutors in the Criminal Prosecution Service about Covid-related prosecutions.

Trussler noted that Smith received questions during her leadership campaign about amnesty for COVID-related Public Health charges. She said that the premier asked for an update on two high-profile cases before the courts, during briefings on forthcoming legislation from the Justice Department.

Shandro received a briefing in October 2022 related to public health prosecutions that set out the limits on political interference in ongoing prosecutions, said Trussler.

Minister Shandro did not brief the Premier on the briefing note, she wrote.

Smiths executive director, lawyer Rob Anderson, exchanged a number of emails with Shandros chief of staff and deputy justice minister, according to the commissioner. They included a briefing on the role of the attorney general and what the government was allowed to do with respect to prosecutions, Trussler said.

However, there is no evidence that the Premier received this briefing, she said.

Trussler also detailed how Anderson followed up with Shandro and his chief of staff, Christopher Thresher, for updates on legislative options to provide amnesty.

No particular cases were discussed, she said. Premier Smith seems to have left Mr. Anderson to pursue what could be done with Covid-related charges for cases where there was no violence, no firearms involved or there was no contempt of court.

Artur Pawlowski speaks at a freedom rally in Edmonton on March 20, 2021, part of a worldwide protest against COVID-19 restrictions. (Courtesy of Artur Pawlowski)

Phone Call

The controversial telephone call between Smith and Pawlowski was requested by Smiths long-time friend Dr. Dennis Modry, a prominent former heart surgeon.

Trussler said the text only asks Smith to have a call with Pawlowski. She said, in fairness, the text requesting a conversation with Pawlowski did not say the reason was to discuss criminal charges.

Smith felt blindsided when Mr. Pawlowski wanted to talk about his pending criminal trial during that phone call, said the commissioner.

Smith took the call on Jan. 6 with Modry and Pawlowski, and unbeknown to the other parties, the pastor taped the call, which was later released by CBC and the NDP.

An interesting sidenote is that Dr. Modry believes that the tape was edited as he remembered Mr. Pawlowski being much more aggressive and threatening than on the tape released to the public, said the commissioner.

While the call was probably ill-advised, said Trussler, it did not breach any laws. The premier should have clearly told Pawlowski she could not speak to him about criminal charges he was facing, and should have terminated the call, Trussler said. While Premier Smith breached this principle, her telephone call with Mr. Pawlowski itself is not a matter covered by the Conflicts of Interest Act, she added.

Justice Minister

However, the ethics commissioner said Smiths conversation with Shandro was problematic.

According to Shandro, in a phone call while the justice minister was on vacation in B.C., the premier asked him specifically if there was anything he could do about Mr. Pawlowskis case. She wanted him to make it go away, Trussler wrote.

The commissioner noted that Smith did not direct him to do so.

Minister Shandro told her there was nothing that could be done, and she accepted his advice, said Trussler. However, the said, Speaking to an Attorney General about a specific ongoing criminal case, in the way that Premier Smith did on the call with Minister Shandro, is not acceptable.

Trussler said there was an improper attempt to influence the independence of the legal system, breaching Section 3 of the Conflict of Interest Act, which states legislators should not seek to influence a decision to be made by Crown prosecutors.

Trussler confirmed in her report that Smith never spoke to Crown prosecutors, as she has consistently maintained since the CBC story in January.

The only people that she spoke to were Minister Shandro and Deputy Minister [Frank] Bosscha. It appears that whenever Premier Smith referred to the Crown Prosecutors, she meant the Justice Ministry, Minister Shandro and Deputy Minister Bosscha, she wrote.

Vehicles parked by Coutts in southern Alberta, Canada, as part of a protest convoy blocking the Canada-U.S. border to demand the removal of COVID-19 mandates, on Feb. 10, 2022. (Michael Wing/The Epoch Times)

Smith Responds

In a statement released on May 18, Smith said she will be seeking formal guidelines on future policy discussions with her justice minister, while taking a shot at CBC and the NDP.

The Ethics Commissioner report has confirmed the CBC and NDP lied regarding Crown Prosecutor contact, she wrote. I was gratified to read the Ethics Commissioners findings confirming that neither I, nor anyone in my office, tried to or did contact any Crown Prosecutors regarding any COVID-19 prosecutions.

Various false and defamatory statements are now confirmed to have been made by the CBC and NDP in this matter against me and several individuals in my office, said Smith. She said that there remains the potential of civil litigation, possibly after the election, and that she wanted to focus on campaign issues, namely the economy, jobs, affordability, public safety and health care.

Chuck Thompson, ahead of public affairs for CBC, said the broadcaster stands by its journalism and it sources.

We would also note the Commissioner did not search for additional emails, Thompson said in an email.

The Epoch Times reached out to the NDP for comment, but didnt immediately hear back.

In her statement, Smith said she always stated I wanted to find a path of amnesty for those charged with non-violent COVID-related offences and violations during the pandemic.

Smith said she is not a lawyer, and spoke with Shandro who is an experienced lawyer to get his advice. She acknowledged that it is the commissioners opinion that the discussion was inappropriate.

I invited the Commissioner to give me and future premiers the benefit of some guidance on how to advance sensitive policy issues similar to this with the Minister of Justice if she thought there was a more appropriate way, said Smith.

The premier said Trussler has yet to offer a different approach or advice to consider, but Smith said she will be seeking legal advice on creating specific formal guidelines as to when and how a Premier may speak with a Minister of Justice in the future about policy issues and other sensitive matters.

Smith said she would ask the ethics commissioner to review the guidelines once drafted.

Crown Independence

Trussler said she received a total of 56 requests for an investigation, and her office received many calls and emails, mostly from media, to determine if we were carrying out an investigation.

She noted all participants fully cooperated, including the premier, and Smith also waived solicitor/client privilege during the investigation.

I think that it can be said that the members of the Crown Prosecution Services were annoyed and even incensed by the allegation that one of them had received outside political pressure, said Trussler.

She said all 44 Crown prosecutors who had Coutts or COVID-related files provided a statement that they did not receive any contact relating to their files from the premiers office.

Additionally, all 32 political staff members in the Premiers office, at the relevant time, provided a statement that they did not contact any Crown Prosecutors regarding the Coutts or Covid-related files, she said.

Trussler said she was making no recommendations with regard to her report, but reserved the right to do so once the Legislature was back in session following the election.

Leader of the NDP Rachel Notley responded to the report stating, The Ethics Commissioner found that Danielle Smith broke the law. Albertans deserve a government they can trust  a government led by Rachel Notley.
Europe Approves Worlds First Cryptocurrency Regulations

The United States could soon follow the region in establishing crypto-regulations

A visual representation of the Bitcoin cryptocurrency is pictured in London on May 30, 2021. (Edward Smith/Getty Images)

The European Union has approved a set of rulesthe first such regulation in the worldto regulate crypto assets like cryptocurrencies and tokens in a bid to curb money laundering activities and protect investors.

The markets in crypto-assets (MiCA) legislation was approved on May 16 by EU ministers. The new rules will increase transparency and create a comprehensive framework for businesses operating in crypto markets, including compliance with anti-money laundering rules, according to a May 16 press release. Recent events have confirmed the urgent need for imposing rules which will better protect Europeans who have invested in these assets, and prevent the misuse of crypto industry for the purposes of money laundering and financing of terrorism, said Elisabeth Svantesson, Minister for Finance of Sweden.

Crypto markets have suffered in recent months due to the collapse of multiple firms. FTX, Alameda, Core Scientific, Voyager Digital, Celsius Network, BlockFi, and Three Arrows Capital are some of the major crypto companies that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and decided to liquidate their assets to pay back customers. Each of these firms is estimated to have liabilities worth billions of dollars that they owe to thousands of creditors.

MiCA was approved unanimously by members of the EUs Economic and Financial Affairs Council (EcoFin). EcoFin represents the economic and finance ministers of all 27 EU nations.

In May last year, European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde raised concerns about cryptocurrencies during an interview on Dutch television.

I have said all along the crypto assets are highly speculative, very risky assets, Lagarde told the program. My very humble assessment is that it is worth nothing. It is based on nothing, there is no underlying assets to act as an anchor of safety.

Earlier, the ECB President had called Bitcoin a highly speculative asset that contributes to money laundering activity.

The Legislation

MiCA covers issuers of utility tokens, asset-referenced tokens, as well as stablecoins. Service providers like trading venues and crypto wallets also come under its purview. The legislation is on track to become law in the EU region this summer, and is expected to be rolled out from 2024.

Firms looking to issue, trade, or safeguard crypto assets in the EU bloc will have to secure a license to do so. MiCA aims to combat tax evasion and money laundering via cryptocurrencies by making transactions involving these instruments easier to trace.

Beginning January 2026, service providers in the crypto industry will have to obtain the names of senders and beneficiaries of digital assets irrespective of the amount involved in the transaction.

Entities doing business in the crypto sector will be obliged to ensure their security protocols are up to the required standard. They have to comply with stringent rules to protect consumer funds and can become liable in case the funds of investors are lost.

MiCA establishes liquidity and disclosure requirements for crypto companies. The management of a crypto firm may be fined in case they fail to make sure the reserve funds are properly managed.

US Situation

Efforts to establish comprehensive regulation in the crypto industry are also underway in the United States. In March 2022, President Joe Biden issued an executive order seeking to ensure the responsible development of digital assets.

Since then, multiple government agencies have been framing policies aimed at pushing six areas of focus outlined in the order, including protecting investors and customers, ensuring financial stability, and countering illicit finance.

In September, the Biden administration released its first-ever comprehensive framework aimed at regulating digital assets like cryptocurrencies.

In January 2023, a White House blog post highlighted some of the dangers posed by cryptocurrencies while calling on Congress to pass new laws to limit criminal activity in the sector.

Officials characterized digital assets as a promising nascent industry that needs to be reined in to protect consumers. It also asked that laws incentivizing more investment into crypto be avoided.

Legislation should not greenlight mainstream institutions, like pension funds, to dive headlong into cryptocurrency markets, the blog said. It would be a grave mistake to enact legislation that reverses course and deepens the ties between cryptocurrencies and the broader financial system.
ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan's military on Thursday evening claimed to have killed a terrorist in an operation in the country's Bajaur district of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan army, said in a statement that a fire exchange took place between government troops and the terrorists on Thursday in the Loesam area of the Bajaur district.

The government troops effectively engaged the terrorists' location and one terrorist was killed, said the ISPR, adding that a soldier of the security forces has also died in the operation.

The government forces had launched an operation in the area to eliminate the terrorists.

The military added that the security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and the sacrifices of soldiers would further strengthen the resolve of the country against terrorism. 
Every State Has Become a Border State: Mississippi Sends National Guard to Texas

Texas National Guard troops set up a "choke point" near an illegal border crossing near El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023. (John Moore/Getty Images)

Republican Gov. Tate Reeves announced on Wednesday the deployment of Mississippi National Guard troops to the southern border, saying that every U.S. state has become a border state, with trafficked drugs impacting the entire country.

Reeves, who mobilized the National Guard in response to an urgent call for help from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, expressed concerns over the Biden administrations handling of border security, citing the influx of drugs and illegal immigration as a threat to public safety.

Every state has become a border state, and every day were seeing the terrible impact of this humanitarian and national security crisis, Reeves wrote on Twitter. What happens at the border doesnt stay there. Drugs and people are trafficked to every state in the nationincluding Mississippi.

Troops from the states 112th Military Police Battalion have been mobilized to support Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers and agents along the southwestern border to enhance surveillance, deter smuggling activities, and provide additional support in managing the border situation. They will join law enforcement support sent by Florida and Idaho.

The Biden administration has estimated that there may be around 150,000 migrants seeking to illegally cross the border into Texas communities after the expiration of Title 42.

Emboldened Mexican drug cartels and other transnational criminal enterprises profit off this chaos, smuggling people and dangerous drugs like fentanyl into communities nationwide, Abbott said in a letter to fellow governors, in which he asked for support via the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which allows states to collaborate and share resources during emergencies or disasters.

Reeves believes the deployment of National Guard troops is a necessary step to protect Mississippians from the consequences of uncontrolled borders. He expressed gratitude toward the Guardsmen and CBP officers for their service in safeguarding the nation.

Texas has mobilized its recently formed Tactical Border Force and stationed them in several key areas along the states southern border. Their mission is to repel large groups of migrants trying to enter Texas illegally.

In a separate move, President Joe Biden has dispatched 550 active-duty troops to support operations at the southern border, with an additional 900 soldiers, Marines, and airmen expected to join them by the end of May. The task of these troops will be to help monitor and watch the border or do data entry and support, according to Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder. The troops will not be interacting directly with the immigrants in any way, Ryder said, adding that their main goal is to free up CBP personnel to do law enforcement activities.

At the moment, about 2,500 federal National Guard members are already assisting CBP across the entire length of the border.

Border Security

The issue of border security has been a contentious topic in recent years, with differing viewpoints on the best approach to address the challenges at the border. The Biden administration has faced criticism from Republicans who argue that lax immigration policies have contributed to increased drug trafficking and illegal immigration.

The Title 42 border policy implemented during the Trump administration was officially lifted at midnight on May 11. However, the replacement policies proposed by the Biden administration, which would permit the release of illegal immigrants into the country without a court date, have been halted by federal court actions.

Since the Title 42 policy was enacted in March 2020, U.S. officials were able to quickly remove over 2.8 million asylum seekers and illegal immigrants who arrived at the southern border during the COVID-19 pandemic, citing concerns about preventing the spread of the virus.

In anticipation of the policys expiration, tens of thousands of migrants have made their way to the U.S.Mexico border, expecting a significant change in the immigration policy landscape.

The Biden administration has introduced new policies that provide a pathway for migrants to enter the United States. Under these policies, individuals can apply online through a government app, have a sponsor, and undergo background checks in order to be considered for entry.

Federal officials have estimated that roughly 10,000 illegal immigrants per day will be apprehended at the southern border after the expiration of Title 42. On May 9, around 11,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended in a single day. Other reports indicate the number has reduced to around 5,000 per day for the last few days.

Texas law enforcement has seized over 400 million lethal doses of fentanyl through Operation Lone Star, a mission established soon after Biden took office to counter his administrations refusal to secure the border.

Since then, Texas has apprehended more than 376,000 illegal immigrants and made over 28,000 criminal arrests, with over 25,000 felony charges, Abbott said in his letter.

Operation Lone Star has also seized more than 416 million lethal doses of fentanyl that would have otherwise spread into communities across the nation, Abbott wrote. Thats enough deadly fentanyl to kill every man, woman, and child in the United States.

Reeves said that his state is paying close attention to the situation at the border.

Mississippi stands with those trying to secure our border and we will continue to do everything we can to assist, Reeves said. Im thankful for the service of Mississippis brave Guardsmen, CBP, and everyone else working to keep us safe.
Everything Has Become a Threat Assessment

Commentary

The following article describes K.C. Auds first day in the shoot house at ME A-School at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) written after passing his teams lethal use of force drills. [Editors note: ME A-School, or Maritime Enforcement Specialist A School, trains Coast Guard personnel to provide security and law enforcement support for U.S. Coast Guard missions.]

Feb. 23, 2021: FLETC, Charleston, South Carolina

The wall Im propped against is a repurposed shipping container, one of a dozen in this tiny yard. Stacked three high and arranged to simulate the superstructure of a commercial vessel, their outsides are covered in conduit, wall-mounted air conditioners, and ladders and railings. At first glance, the whole arrangement looks like the Department of Defense version of a fast-food restaurant playground. I hear muffled shouting and the hollow pop and bang of low velocity simunition bullets hitting the walls. Its a strange contrast to the birds and everyday sounds of a government facility. Someone inside the containers starts screaming unintelligible commands followed by more gunfire.

I squint against the glare of the sun since my eyes are still adjusting from the gloom of the shoot house. The low-grade gunpowder used in the training ammunition leaves a sharp metallic sting in my nose, masking the odors of sweat, stress, and the crisp clean smells of a southeast coastal winter. Not ten minutes earlier, I was climbing a ladderwell (stairs) when the strobe of a muzzle flash caught me off guard at the same instant two bullets hammered into the wall right by my ear. Even knowing they were non-lethal, that I was wearing full safety gear, and that it was a training scenario, I ducked cussing a blue streak as we backpedaled.

My scalp prickles and tingles as the minutes tick by. I havent gotten enough sun to get a good base tan in years and I can feel the tentative start of a sunburn. This might be February in Charleston, but its still a cloudless day. I grudgingly put my cover on and scoot over into a shadow; Id seen too many old men with chunks of their scalps and ears missing. More gunfire echoes through the walls and I replay the scenario again.

After he shot at us everything went to hell. I forgot my procedures, my verbatim legal definitions and all the training wed endured over the last six weeks went right out the window. All I could think to do was sit and wait the shooter out. Wait for him to step far enough into the hall to give me a clear line of fire. He retreated back into his compartment and we took advantage of the moment to advance up the ladderwell to take a position on either side of the hall, guns at high ready.

Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) deportation officers move in a stack prior to entering a building during training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), in Glynco, Georgia, on April 13, 2022. (DoD photo by Erica Knight)

The padded helmet was laying too close to my face, pressing the cotton cloth mask to my nose and mouth, every exhalation fogging my face plate even more. What should have been a normal, if stressed, communication with my partner, was turned into a shouting match every time we needed to talk. At two feet away we sounded like we were hollering through pillows. Why the hell were they making us wear COVID face masks under the simunition helmets anyway? I couldnt see from condensation running down the inside of my helmet, I could barely hear, and every breath was a labored inhalation through multiple layers of cloth.

I was making stupid mistakes as the frustration piled onto the stress that piled onto the constant corrections from instructors before I could fix the error they spotted. It was all I could do not to march down the hall and pistol whip the hostage taker, then toss him down the ladderwell as an example to any other would-be assailants. I dont respond to fear or threats very well. You want to exchange fire? Fine. You can have ALL of mine, right now. Point blank.

He released the hostage who stepped out into the hall a little too quickly and I nearly drilled the poor bastard between the eyes. The aggressor kept making demands as we tried to talk him down. Eventually, he agreed to give up and slowly stepped out. We thought wed gotten lucky with a no shoot win. As he went to lower his gun to the deck, he snapped it up to point at us and we responded. Twelve rounds in about two seconds. Our guns ran dry and we reloaded by reflex action, ready to fight as the empty magazines hit the deck. I radioed the boarding officer: Subject down, proceeding with room clearing, no injuries to team, request medical support, continuing sweep. I was so damn angry Id have shot the suspect two more times in the head to make sure he was dead, but we were told upfront that was an automatic failure.

Sitting outside in the breeze, breathing free without a mask, I thump my skull against the wall in aggravation while I replay each step of the exercise over and over. Its hard to quickly come down from that kind of adrenaline high. Remembering the tight passageways and muzzle flashes, the frustration turns into a cold fear when I think about the world outside this training center. Real bullets in the hall like that would have been deafening, the gunshots blindingly bright in the dark confines. At such short-range ricochets could kill or maim just as easily as a direct hit.

Instead of bad acting and paint spatters, our return fire would have blown a volleyball-sized hole out of the subjects back and taken a chunk of his GI tract with it. All our shots were low center mass, a long oval from just below the sternum to the top of the large intestine. The organic chemical stink of innards would have competed for the sharp tang of gun smoke. Even if we missed all the major blood vessels, he wouldnt have been able to inhale with the middle third of his diaphragm missing.

I pick up my helmet from the grass and look it over, wondering if Id been too keyed up to notice a grazing strike. Pink paint flecks mark two distinct splash patterns at my right ear where the paint round hit the wall. It was close enough that had they been real bullets shrapnel would have peppered the whole right side of my head. He missed me by less than two inches. I shiver in the suddenly cold air.

Since our first week here weve been reviewing Use of Force Policy, Levels of Forcescenario after scenario after scenario on what if and de-escalation. Then we go into the shoot houses and the gun range where were taught to draw and fire in a second and a half, hitting a spot three inches across from fifteen yards away. Too far to see if the flash in the subjects hands is a phone, or nickel-plated revolver, too fast to tell if theyre putting it down or aiming in to kill us. Were taught to hit the heart from a foot and a half away with the butt of the pistol tucked hard into our ribs.

We have to process the scene in a second and make a life-or-death snap decision that cannot be undone. This isnt to say that we walk into every situation with our hands on our guns waiting to draw and fire. Most of our training is about doing everything we can to NOT put ourselves in such a situation. In fact, the Coast Guard has fewer shooting incidents from law enforcement action than almost every other federal agency. Every lethal use of force is prefaced with a loud clear warning, Put the weapon down or you may be shot! Sitting here outside the shoot house all I can think about are those bullets hitting the wall next to my head. My hands tingle from the pistol jerking in my hand as I fire as fast as possible.

I left my pistol and magazines at the clearing station inside the shoot house. I can still feel the memory of their weight dragging at my belt. Ive been here less than two months and notice the absence of their weight more than I do their presence. I dont think Ill ever look at law enforcement officers or regular civilians the same way again. Everything has become a threat assessment.

Sleep is going to be a long time coming tonight.

This article first appeared in The Havok Journal.

The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
EXPLAINER: Winnipeg Lab Documents  Why Did It Take so Long and What Could They Reveal?

Will the public finally be provided some details behind the mysterious firing of Chinese-Canadian scientists who were working at the countrys top biosafety lab?

The Liberal government announced on May 17 that an ad-hoc committee of selected MPs will be able to review documents pertaining to the matter, and a panel of arbiters composed of three former justices will decide what can be released to the public.

Up to now, the government has resisted revealing details about the scientists Qiu Xiangguo and Cheng Keding, who were escorted out of Winnipegs National Microbiology Laboratory in 2019 amid a police probe and then fired in January 2021.

The new development comes after a long battle that saw the Liberal government file a lawsuit during the previous Parliament against the House of Commons Speaker, Liberal MP Anthony Rota, to prevent the disclosure of documents. The case was dropped when Parliament was dissolved.

After the Liberals secured another minority government in the fall of 2021, they proposed a way forward to provide access to the documents, but opposition parties were initially not in favour.

The Conservatives under then-leader Erin OToole were staunchly opposed to the idea of only providing the documents to the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP), which reports to the prime minister and not the House. They also refused the new proposal of an ad-hoc committee, saying the government was trying to avoid being accountable to Parliament.

The Bloc Quebecois, meanwhile, questioned the good faith of the governments offer, due to its several previous attempts at stonewalling the production of documents.

For eight months, the government refused to hand over documents about what could have been espionage on behalf of China, said Bloc MP Christine Normandin in December 2021.

Now it has relented and is offering to hand the documents over to the opposition parties, but only under tightly controlled conditions. The government House leader says this is a good faith effort. Does that mean it was acting in bad faith for eight months?

The House of Commons Canada-China committee had requested the documents without success, and then-president of the Public Health Agency of Canada Iain Stewart was reprimanded by the House Speaker for not being forthcoming on the matter.

On May 17, Government House Leader Mark Holland told reporters that the ad-hoc committee can now begin its work after members and arbiters were selected following a long process.

The first problem was that we only had one partner at the beginning in the NDP, and we were ready to move with it. Then the Bloc indicated that they wanted to participate, and then the Conservatives, he said.

Participating MPs had to be identified by parties and also obtain security clearances to be allowed to review the documents.

Those are Liberal Iqra Khalid, Conservative John Williamson, Rene Villemure from the Bloc, and Heather McPherson from the NDP.

The former magistrates who will sit as arbiters are former Supreme Court justices Ian Binnie and Marshall Rothstein, and former Federal Court of Appeal judge Eleanor Dawson.

Cooperation With China

The Liberal government has fought hard to prevent the release of information on the circumstances surrounding the firing of Qiu Xiangguo and her husband Cheng Keding, citing national security and privacy concerns.

While the two scientists were escorted out of the Winnipeg lab by the RCMP in 2019, they were never charged with any wrongdoing despite being under police investigation. They relocated to China after their firing, reported the Globe and Mail in June 2021.

The Globe also said the RCMP was investigating the scientists to determine whether they had passed Canadian intellectual property to the Chinese regime and its Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).

Wuhan is the epicentre of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and U.S. agencies such as the FBI have assessed that the virus likely escaped from a Wuhan lab. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that causes COVID-19.

Qiu Xiangguo is known to have sent samples of Ebola and Henipah viruses to the WIV in March 2019, but those transfers had been approved by the Winnipeg labs management. The management had said it received assurance that no gain-of-function research would take place at the WIV before sending the samples.

The Epoch Times reported previously that there is evidence the WIV has engaged in synthetic biology research on the Henipah virus, contrary to international agreements. Synthetic biology involves redesigning biological entities and systems, an example of which is gain-of-function research, which makes pathogens more lethal or transmissible.

There was also an investigation at the Winnipeg lab in 2018, though no details have been provided.

Then-PHAC president Stewart told the CanadaChina committee in March 2021 that his agency had initiated review processes in 2018 for the Winnipeg lab regarding possible breaches of security.

Stewart would not provide additional context when pressed in committee by MPs.

This is a question of the nature that weve discussed in the past, and Im not at liberty to answer these questions, he said in June 2021.

But what led to the scientists removal could be a recommendation by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) that they be stripped of their security clearances.

The Globe reported CSIS was concerned about the intellectual property being passed to China and Qius contact there.

Qiu has done past research work with Maj. Gen. Chen Wei, a leading bioweapons expert at Chinas Academy of Military Science. She also collaborated with another Chinese military scientist, Yan Feihu, who worked at the Winnipeg lab for a time, according to the Globe.

Security Concerns

The cleared MPs will be able to learn more about the links the couple had with Chinese government figures, details on the information and virus transfers, and the security investigations that were launched.

A portion of the information could also likely originate from foreign partners, who either alerted Canadian authorities or were being kept apprised of security concerns at the Winnipeg lab.

When Holland first presented his plan in 2021, he noted the information was subject to national security that would have been injurious to Canadas reputation with its international security partners.

The ad-hoc committee will begin its work amid multiple controversies gripping the federal government in relation to the Chinese regimes interference and espionage in Canada.

The government says it has taken a firm stance against the threat by establishing various mechanisms, but opposition parties question whether the Liberals have been ignoring the warnings about Beijings interference activities, based on national security leaks revealed in media reports.

The ad-hoc committee could shed light on a potential lackadaisical attitude towards security in Canadas top biosafety lab that led to cooperation with Chinese entities tied to military programs.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
FBI Concerned Jan. 6 Footage Would Expose Undercover Agents, Informants: Whistleblower

FBI Director Christopher Wray prepares to testify before the House Homeland Security Committee in the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Nov. 15, 2022. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

FBI officials were concerned that footage from inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, would show undercover agents and confidential informants, a whistleblower said in testimony revealed on May 18.

George Hill, a retired supervisory intelligence analyst who worked out of the FBIs Boston field office, recounted that the bureaus Washington field office (WFO) pressured officials in Boston to open investigations on 138 people who attended a rally on Jan. 6, 2021, even though there were no indications the people violated the law.

Boston officials pushed back, saying they would need evidence, such as footage of individuals inside the Capitol, to open investigations of the individuals.

Happy to do it. Show us where they were inside the Capitol, and well look into it, one official was quoted as saying.

We cant show you those videos unless you can tell us the exact time and place those individuals were inside the Capitol, WFO officials responded, according to Hill.

Hill said Boston officials questioned why they couldnt get access to the tranche of some 11,000 hours of footage from inside the Capitol.

Because there may bemay beUCs, undercover officers, or  confidential human sources, on those videos whose identity we need to protect, Washington-based officials responded.

Hill recounted the discussions during testimony to the U.S. Houses Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. The clip from the testimony was played during a hearing on May 18 and detailed in a report the panel released based on whistleblower disclosures.

The FBI declined to address Hills testimony.

The FBIs mission is to uphold the Constitution and protect the American people. The FBI has not and will not retaliate against individuals who make protected whistleblower disclosures, the bureau told The Epoch Times in an email.

In an image from an undated video, FBI whistleblower George Hill, right, testifies to Congress. (NTD via The Epoch Times)

Wray Testimony

Marcus Allen, another FBI employee who has also become a whistleblower, has alleged that he was retaliated against because he shared an email with other FBI workers that questioned whether FBI Director Christopher Wray was truthful while testifying to Congress.

You believe that Christopher Wray indicated that there were no confidential informants, no FBI assets that were present at the Capitol on Jan. 6 that were part of the violent riot, isnt that right? Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), a member of the subcommittee, asked Allen.

Yes, sir, Allen said.

They appeared to be referring to testimony given behind closed doors.

After playing the clip of Hills comments, Gaetz said, You got retaliated against for the very thing, for saying the very thing that the Washington field office was telling Boston.

Wray told one congressional panel in a public hearing in late 2022 that he wouldnt say whether the bureau had confidential sources embedded among the Jan. 6 protesters.

As Im sure you can appreciate, I have to be very careful about what I can say, about when we do and do not, and where we have and have not used confidential human sources, Wray said. But to the extent theres a suggestion, for example, that the FBIs confidential human sources or FBI employees in someway instigated or orchestrated Jan 6th, thats categorically false.

You should not read anything into my decision not to share information about confidential human sources, Wray added later.

Garret OBoyle, another FBI special agent who is now a whistleblower, told the House panel that he was pressured by at least one agent based in Washington to violate FBI policy and also the law by serving grand jury subpoenas against a person who was the subject of an anonymous tip.

They tried to get me to serve a federal grand jury subpoena when there was no proper predicate to do so, OBoyle said on May 18.

From left to right: Suspended FBI special agent Garret OBoyle, former FBI agent Steve Friend, and suspended FBI agent Marcus Allen during a hearing in Washington on May 18, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Informant, Undercover Police

During the trial of some Proud Boys members, an FBI informant testified that he helped to block law enforcement officers and entered the Capitol. The informant hasnt been charged.

Dozens of people who appeared to commit crimes, or definitely committed crimes, on Jan. 6 have also gone uncharged, sparking questions about their affiliations.

Attorneys for the Proud Boys have alleged that there were at least 50 people in the crowd on Jan. 6 who were undercover police officers or agents, or informants.

At least three undercover Metropolitan Police Department officers were in the crowd, it was revealed in a different case. Body camera footage from undercover police officers has been made public.

Among the defendants who have been charged is former FBI agent Jared Wise. He was arrested in May on multiple charges related to Jan. 6, including knowingly engaging in disorderly conduct with intent to impede government business.

Wise worked for the FBI through 2017, the government said in court filings.

Wise also was a contractor for Project Veritas, the nonprofit journalism group that specializes in recording surreptitious video, from February 2018 through May 2018, a spokesman told The Epoch Times in an email.

During his time at Project Veritas, Mr. Wise did not partake in any January 6 related actionsgiven the fact that January 6 occurred well over two years after he had already departed the organization, the spokesman said.

Wises lawyer didnt immediately respond to requests for comment.
Former CBC Journalist Tells National Citizens Inquiry That Public Broadcaster Censored Stories on COVID Vaccine Harms

A former CBC journalist who testified at the National Citizens Inquiry (NCI) in Ottawa on May 18 said the public broadcaster failed in its coverage of the pandemic by barring journalists from writing stories on lockdown harms, COVID-19 vaccine injuries, and protests against vaccine mandates.

I know that as a public broadcaster, youd expect us to be telling you the truth, and we stopped doing that, said former CBC Manitoba reporter Marianne Klowak. And it was a number of stories that I have put forward that were blocked, but it seemed to me as a journalist whod been there 34 years, its like the rules had changed overnight. And it changed so quickly that it left me just dizzy.

Klowak, who left the CBC in December 2021, told the NCI she was blocked from writing several pandemic-related stories she pitched to her editors, such as those highlighting protests against vaccine mandates, concerns with adverse reactions from COVID-19 vaccines, and problems doctors were facing with reporting vaccine injuries using the Adverse Events Following Immunization Surveillance System.

The NCI describes itself as a citizen-led and citizen-funded initiative that is completely independent of government. It has been examining how the COVID-19 pandemic measures put in place by all levels of government impacted Canadians in the categories of health, fundamental rights and freedoms, social well-being, and economic prosperity.

The inquiry ended in Ottawa on May 19 after holding eight hearings in cities across the country, including testimony from expert witnesses and members of the public.

Klowak said, from her perspective, the CBC betrayed the Canadian publics trust by shutting down one side of the debate around COVID-19. She accused the network of portraying one side of experts as competent and trustworthy, while branding the side who questioned the effectiveness of public health restrictions and vaccines as dangerous and spreading misinformation.

I had witnessed in a very short time the collapse of journalism, news gathering, investigative reportingand the way I saw it is that we were in fact pushing propaganda, she said.

Not only had we shut down one side by silencing and discrediting anyone opposing the narrative, we had elevated and designated ourselves as gatekeepers of the truth. We no longer believed our audience was capable of thinking for themselves.

Klowak said in the months leading up to her departure from the broadcaster the complaints and criticism from CBC viewers and listeners continued to mount.

People [were] stopping me on the street and saying what the heck is going on at the CBC? People [were] telling me they felt betrayed, lied to; a gut feeling that they werent being told the whole truth, she said.

When contacted for comment, Chuck Thompson, head of public affairs at CBC, told The Epoch Times in an email that CBC News covered all aspects of the pandemic thoroughly and fairly.

Over the course of the pandemic, CBC News had multiple stories sharing the perspective of those Canadians who opposed COVID vaccine mandates, he said on May 18. While we didnt cover every protest, we covered many. And to be clear, there was no overarching directive banning our journalists from writing about them.

This Is Unethical

In June 2021, Klowak wrote an article about Canadian parents that were concerned about potential links between the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and heart inflammation in children. She said while everything in her article was factual, her editors asked her to drop the Canadian COVID Care Alliance from the story because they supported ivermectin, even though the article did not mention the drug.

I could not believe that they were asking me to do this. I said, This is unethical. This is immoral. Youre violating all the principles of fairness and balance and accuracy and being impartial and acting with integrity. And I said, What youre asking me to do is dishonest and its manipulative.'

While another story by Klowak on a woman injured by the COVID-19 vaccine did get published, she said her editors modified the article until its meaning was completely changed.

It should be just a straight story about someone who suffered an adverse reaction and we shouldnt downplay it. Instead, the way I saw it, her story was buried in experts and health officials and stats, which sanitized it, she said.

We failed to hold power to account and no one was holding the media to account, she later added. We failed to serve the public, and we broke their trust.
Fox News Spokesperson Responds to Laura Ingraham Rumors

Political talk radio host Laura Ingraham delivers a speech on the third day of the Republican National Convention at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 20, 2016. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Fox News responded to online rumors this week claiming that it would part ways with host Laura Ingraham amid rumors that the network would be changing its primetime lineup in the wake of Tucker Carlsons exit.

A spokesperson for Fox told The Epoch Times that reports based on various tweets by left wing activists are wildly inaccurate and that Laura Ingraham, the top-rated woman in cable news, is now and will continue to be a prominent host and integral part of the FOX News lineup.

It came after the Drudge Report, a formerly conservative-leaning website that critics say has shifted politically to the left in recent years, claimed that Fox hosts Greg Gutfeld and Jesse Watters will be joining the primetime lineup. Sean Hannity would be taking Carlsons old 8 p.m. ET timeslot, the report said, although it did not cite any sources for the claims.

In response to those rumors, No decision has been made on a new primetime line-up and there are multiple scenarios under consideration, said the network.

Neither Ingraham, Watters, Hannity, nor Gutfeld publicly responded to Drudges story, which was posted on the front page of the website on Wednesday afternoon.

After Carlsons departure, which Fox News confirmed in a brief news release issued in late April, a replacement show called Fox News Tonight hasnt performed as well as Carlsons old program. The show routinely draws fewer than 1.5 million viewers each night, whereas Carlson drew more than 3.2 million viewers on average through all of March 2023.

Fox News said it would use a rotating cast of hosts for Fox News Tonight, including Brian Kilmeade, Kayleigh McEnany, Lawrence Jones, and now Will Cain. Its not clear who the next host will be or how long that program will last.

After the change, Hannitys and Ingrahams shows have respectively seen a decline in overall viewership. But The Five, which airs at 5 p.m. ET, hasnt seen a noticeable drop in viewership since Carlson left, according to Nielsen ratings.

Both Watters and Gutfeld have been two breakout personalities for Fox News since they launched their respective shows, replacing newscasts in their timeslots. Gutfelds other show airs at 11 p.m., while Watters program airs at 7 p.m. Both are regular hosts on The Five, which airs at 5 p.m. and is one of the highest-rated cable news programs.

Murdoch Speaks

One of Fox Corporations executives, Lachlan Murdoch, appeared to defend his companys decision to remove Carlson and insisted that Fox executives strategic vision for the network is a sound one. However, when asked about more details regarding Carlsons exit at a conference this week, Murdoch demurred.

News Corp. Exeuctive Chairman Rupert Murdoch, center, and his sons, Lachlan, left, and News Corp Deputy COO James Murdoch attend the 2014 Television Academy Hall of Fame in Beverly Hills, Calif., on March 11, 2014. (Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP Images)

Im not going to go into programming decisions at Fox News, short of saying that all of our programming decisions are made with the long-term interest of the Fox News brand and the Fox News business at heart, said Murdoch, the son of Fox Corporation and NewsCorp mogul Rupert Murdoch.

So we make those decisions really thinking broadly, or long term, in terms of what is the best thing for the company in the long term, Murdoch said Wednesday at the SVB MoffettNathanson conference, according to multiple news reports.

During the event and amid questions about the channels recent dip in ratings, Murdoch reportedly did not appear concerned. He said that Fox continues to defeat the other cable news networks like MSNBC and CNN in the respective timeslots.

And weve done it before, right? he said. Bill OReilly was a superstar. Megyn Kelly was a superstar. Glenn Beck was a superstar. And were able to move forward with programming decisions that ultimately result in the long-term growth and profitability of the business. So thats number one, he said, referring to the three former Fox hosts who left the network in recent years.

Murdoch also suggested that advertisements may have played a role in Carlsons exit.

From an advertising point of view, the whole business is incredibly strong, including still at 8 oclock, and were seeing advertising, if anything, strengthen at FOX news rather than weaken, said Murdoch, who did not mention Carlson by name or offer any more details about why the two parties split.

As for Carlson, the former host said that he is planning to host a new Twitter-based show that would be similar to the one that he hosted on Fox News. But details about the program, including when or how long it would last, were not provided.

Interest in the show and Carlson remain high. His video drew more than 120 million impressions and tens of millions of views, becoming the No. 1 Twitter post for that week.

Twitter has long served as the place where our national conversation incubates and develops, Carlson said in the clip, adding that corporate news outlets are thinly disguised propaganda outlets. He added: You see it on cable news, you talk about it on Twitter.

The result may feel like a debate, but actually the gatekeepers are still in charge, he said. We think thats a bad system. We know exactly how it works and were sick of it.
GOP Introduces Resolution to Expel Adam Schiff From Congress

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) walks through Statuary Hall to the House Chamber for President Donald Trumps State of the Union address in the Capitol in Washington on Feb. 4, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) unveiled a resolution Wednesday seeking to expel Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) from Congress, as she alleges that Schiff played a decisive role in pushing the narrative of former president Donald Trumps colluding with Russia.

Lunas resolution comes just days after a report (pdf) by special counsel John Durham revealed massive failures and deficiencies in the FBIs investigation of the Trump campaign.

Adam Schiff lied to the American people, Luna stated in a press release. He used his position on House Intelligence to push a lie that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars and abused the trust placed in him as Chairman. He is a dishonor to the House of Representatives.

Knowingly using your position on House Intel to push a lie that ripped apart our country, cost taxpayers millions of dollars, and authorized spying on a US President and then proceeding to double down on the lie within days of the Durham report coming out makes you unfit for office, she posted on May 17 on Twitter. Ethics should investigate.

The Florida Republican also posted a photo of her motion.

Knowingly using your position on House Intel to push a lie that ripped apart our country, cost taxpayers millions of dollars, and authorized spying on a US President and then proceeding to double down on the lie within days of the Durham report coming out makes you unfit for pic.twitter.com/A8rTBPY77Z  Anna Paulina Luna (@realannapaulina) May 17, 2023

Schiff was the leading voice among Democrats claiming that Trumps campaign conspired with the Russian government during the 2016 presidential election.

During a December 2017 appearance on CNN, Schiff said, The Russians offered help; the campaign accepted help. The Russians gave help and the president made full use of that help. That is pretty damning, whether it is proof beyond a reasonable doubt of conspiracy or not.

But in 2019, after a 22-month investigation, special counsel Robert Mueller found no evidence of conspiracy or coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia. That sparked GOP calls on Schiff to step down from his post as chairman of the House Select Committee on Intelligence. Then-president Trump also issued a message calling for Schiffs resignation.

Schiff remained defiant on Tuesday, repeating his assertion about secret meetings between Trumps campaign manager and a Russian intelligence agent.

Asked by The Epoch Times about the conclusion of special counsel John Durhams report, namely that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, Schiff said: If you read Mr. Durhams report, what he said is that there wasnt evidence of collusion before they began the investigation. Thats obviously a very important distinction.

Schiff insisted that Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort provided a Russian intelligence agent with internal polling data with their strategy for key battleground states, while that unit of Russian intelligence was engaged in trying to help Donald Trump win.

For most Americans that looks like plain collusion, he said.

Special counsel John Durham arrives at federal court in Washington on May 18, 2022. (Teng Chen for The Epoch Times)

Schiffs comment came after Durham concluded a three-year-long examination of the FBIs investigation of the 2016 presidential election, and reported that the agencys investigation into Trumps campaign had no basis in evidence.

Released on May 15, Durhams 300-page report (pdf) specifically stated that the FBIs senior analyst on Russian intelligence didnt see collusion evidence regarding Manafort.

The FBI Intelligence Analyst who had perhaps the most in-depth knowledge of particularly sensitive Russian intelligence information in FBI holdings during the relevant time period disclosed that she never saw anything regarding any Trump election campaign conspiracy with the Russians, nor did she see anything in FBI holdings regarding Carter Page, Michael Flynn, George Papadopoulos, or Paul Manafort engaging in any type of conspiracy with the Russians regarding the election, Durham stated in the report.

On Wednesday evening, Lunas statement accused Schiff of pushing a lie to the American people that had cost taxpayers millions of dollars, and said Schiff was a dishonor to the House.

Within half an hour, Schiff fired back, saying Republicans now want payback.

A MAGA Republican Member of Congress just filed a motion to expel me from the U.S. House of Representatives, Schiff posted on Twitter on May 18, in reference to Luna. Schiff is running for the U.S. Senate to replace the retiring Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.).

I stood up to Donald Trump and held extreme MAGA forces accountable. Now they want payback. Theyll go after anyone who defends the rule of law.
Newsom Sets Up Soviet-Style Hate Snitch Line

Commentary

Weve seen this before. California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently established a new hotline, CAvsHate.org, which provides a safe, anonymous reporting option for victims and witnesses of hate acts, according to his offices announcement.

Here in California, we are sending an unequivocal message that hate will not be tolerated, said the governor himself. We stand firm for a California for All and it is important that we hold perpetrators accountable for their actions and provide resources for those individuals victimized by hate crimes.

Notice how the announcement and the governor elide between reporting hate crimes and actual hate crimes. Who will judge whether such actions are genuine hate crimes?

Under Stalins communist dictatorship, the Soviets developed the cult of Pavel Morozov. He was a young communist during the collectivization campaign that killed as many as 7 million people, mainly Ukrainians. According to Britannicas account, In 1930, at age 12, he gained notoriety for denouncing his father, the head of the local soviet, to the Soviet authorities. He denounced his father for allegedly forging documents and accused other peasants of hoarding their grain and withholding it from the authorities.

(Far L) The Chicago Americans front page depicting the Holodomor, a man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine in 1932 and 1933 that killed millions. (Top) Carts of grain are taken from a collective farm in the village of Oleksiyivka, Ukraine, in 1932, part of the Soviet regimes policy of deliberately taking away food from the peasants. (Bottom) Emaciated children during the Holodomor. (All Public Domain)

The locals murdered Pavel, after which he was held up as an exemplary communist. In particular, children were encouraged to denounce their parents. California now has its own, high-tech version of the Morozov snitch cult.

Heres how the states Civil Rights Department explained the new program:

The California Civil Rights Department received funding and authorization from the State Legislature to establish the non-emergency, CA vs. Hate Resource Line and Network to support individuals and communities targeted for hate.

The goals of CA vs. Hate are to help individuals and communities targeted for hate; identify options for next steps after a hate incident; connect people targeted for hate with culturally competent resources; and to improve hate incident and crime reporting data to enhance hate crimes prevention and response.

You can report anonymously. Whether or not you report anonymously, your identity will not be disclosed. The only exception to non-disclosure is if a report is made of child abuse, elder abuse, or activities indicating an imminent risk of violence, or if required by law.

Indefinite Definitions

The site does provide definitionssort offor hate crimes. Please excuse the word salad, but the gibberish shows what this really is:

Hate Incidents: A hate incident is a hostile expression or action that may be motivated by bias against another persons actual or perceived identity(ies). Perpetrators may be motivated by different discriminatory biases, including, but not limited to, bias on the basis of race, color, disability, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender, including gender identity. There are two main kinds of hate incidents  (1) acts of hate that are not crimes but violate civil rights laws, and (2) acts of hate that may not violate the law but still cause significant harm in a community.

Tom Garing cleans up racist graffiti painted on the side of a mosque in what officials called an apparent hate crime in Roseville, Calif. on Feb. 1, 2017. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP Photo)

And:

Hate Crime: Under California law, a hate crime is a criminal act committed, in whole or in part, because of one or more of the following actual or perceived characteristics of the victim: disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation; or because of the persons association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.

Notice actual or perceived identity(ies) and perceived characteristics. Heres the most obvious problem. Take religion. We have many different religions in America. Under our First Amendment, you can worship as you please. But what if you have a friendly discussion with another person of another religion about your differences? You say their religion is wrong, and yours is right. He says his religion is right and yours is wrong. Most of us have these discussions. I do all the time, including with close friends of other religions. I love learning about their religions, and finding areas of commonality, even if we disagree on many things.

But is that hate? Obviously not. And my friends wouldnt say so about our discissions. But under the above definition, if someone overheard us talking, both of us might be reported to the snitch line for acts of hate that may not violate the law but still cause significant harm in a community.

Hate Snitch FAQ

The Civil Rights Department also features a CA vs. Hate Resource Line and Network Frequently Asked Questions.

Q: Who can report a hate incident or hate incident?

A: Anyone can report a hate crime or incident, including the targeted person, a friend or relative, a bystander, etc.

Just like young Pavel, someone can rat out a relative, this time for telling an ethnic joke maybe heard on TV by Richard Pryor or Don Rickles, two late comics.

Q: What if the hate incident or hate crime occurred outside of California, can I still report it via CA vs. Hate? Do I have to be a resident of California to report?

A: Yes, you can still report the hate incident or crime, even if it occurred outside of California. Resources are intended to support California residents regardless of where they are harmed as well as non-California residents who are harmed in our state.

People hold a banner picturing Communist figures including (From L) Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Ilitch Lenin, Joseph Stalin, and Mao Zedong, as they gather in Bakirkoy district as part of the May Day rally, in Istanbul, on May 1, 2017. (Ozan Kose/AFP/Getty Images)

Even Stalin didnt think up that one. Mainly because the Soviet Union was a closed communist society. It was hard to leave. But under CA vs. Hate, if you travel to Vegas for a show by Chris Rock, also known for his raucous ethnic humor, you could be finked on to the Golden State speech police.

Q: Am I able to report to CA vs. Hate anonymously?

A: Yes, you may report anonymously, if you choose. Although it is important to note that information reported to CA vs. Hate is confidential, including your name.

If you believe that, I have a bridge over the Bering Strait to sell you. As The Epoch Times reported last June, Gun Owners Private Information Breached After California Unveils Firearms Portal.

Thats just one example of the states notorious incompetence with data systems. Government Technology also reported two years ago, California EDD Struggles Against Computer Outage, Backlog.

Fake Hate Crimes and Anti-Christian Bias

Then theres the problem of fake hate crimes. One of the most notorious was the Duke lacrosse case of 2006, in which three young men were accused of rape. It was so bad, District Attorney Mike Nifong later was disbarred and sent to prison for faking the case. But the three players were suspended for two games just for the allegations. And they have to live with the ordeal the rest of their lives.

In 2014, Houston Mayor Annise Parker subpoenaed five city ministers for sermons and other private correspondence regarding their opposition to the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, part of a campaign against alleged hate speech.

At the time, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee asked, Sure, it happens in North Korea, China and Iran, but should churches in America just sit back and shut up when their religious liberty, free speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of religion is directly threatened? Parker later backed down. Will future California prosecutors?

A protester with a bullhorn speaks outside an Orange County Board of Supervisors meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on June 16, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Real Tolerance

The main problem with Californias new CA vs. Hate hotline is it will not reduce hate, but do the opposite, further dividing us. Petty squabbles of daily life will be turned into hate incidents to gain an edge in court battles, such as the typical tussles between neighbors.

As I keep saying, in this increasingly diverse state, we have to tolerate one another or disaster looms. Real crimes, such as killing someone for racial reasons, obviously ought to be punished. But in those cases, theres real evidence, such as a dead body, of a real crime that can be prosecuted using laws on the books in every civilized society.

Poor Pavel Morozov himself was a victim, and not just of murder. He was raised in communist society to turn against his own family, friends, and neighbors. He was brainwashed to rip down the very fabric of civility that makes society possible. Is that what we want for California?

John Seilers email: writejohnseiler@gmail.com

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
The debate around whether fluoride should be added to tap water has been ongoing for almost 80 years. Government agencies argue that fluoride helps prevent tooth decay, while opponents are concerned about potential health risks. Recently, there has been some progress in the EPA fluoride lawsuit, which has raised questions about the safety of adding fluoride to drinking water.

Some research suggests that fluoride should have been under scrutiny long ago because of a possible link between high levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ scores and between fluoride and sleep patterns.

A Tale of 2 Villages

In 2003, a study (pdf) was conducted in the rural townships of Xinhuai and Wamiao in Jiangsu Province, China, located north of Shanghai. The two villages had significantly different fluoride concentration levels in their drinking water, with Xinhuai at approximately 0.91 milligrams per liter (mg/L) and Wamiao at around 4.12 mg/L. For reference, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends a level no higher than 0.7 mg/L of fluoride in drinking water.

The study examined the IQ of 512 children between the ages of 8 and 13 from both villages and found that, on average, the mean IQ of children in Xinhuai was significantly higher than that of the children in Wamiao.

Two Chinese villages differing in fluoride concentrations show discrepancies in childrens IQs. (The Epoch Times)

Fluoride was believed to have no harmful effects on people apart from causing dental fluorosis. Thus, the results of the 2003 study in Xinhuai and Wamiao came as a surprise, suggesting that the impact of fluoride on the human body is more complex than previously thought. Additional research (pdf) concluded that the difference in IQ scores was not due to variations in lead levels or differences in socioeconomic or geographic factors. Its worth noting that this study was not an isolated case, as other studies (pdf) have investigated the potential link between fluoride exposure and cognitive function.

More Research Suggests Fluoride in Drinking Water Is Harmful

For example, a study from New Zealand with nearly 1,000 children showed similar results to the Chinese study. An analysis of 14 studies also concluded that high fluoride levels impact cognitive function. Overall, there have been at least 85 studies, according to the activist group Fluoride Action Network, detailing the effects of fluoride on childrens IQs, and 76 of those studies reported a potential link between elevated fluoride exposure and reduced IQ in humans. This raises the question of what other factorsincluding fluoridecould have contributed to the results.

When we refer to low IQ, it means that the brain cannot function optimally, likely due to improper development or neural damage. In the years after the 2003 study in China, researchers found that fluoride, much like heavy metals such as mercury, lead, aluminum, and iron, can damage the nervous system by producing free radicals (pdf) that degrade cell membranes in the brain. Free radicals are like little asteroids that fly around inside the body and damage cells, including DNA, cell membranes, and proteins.

Accumulation of free radicals can increase the risk of various diseases, including cancer. High levels of fluoride intake can lead to the accumulation of free radicals in a developing brain, which may result in neuronal damage, potentially explaining why the children from the village with high concentrations of fluoride in the water had lower-than-average IQs than the children in the village with low concentrations. It is difficult for the human body to break down fluoride, so managing excessive intake can be challenging.

How Fluoride Can Affect Your Sleep

Fluoride can accumulate in the pineal gland, located deep in the middle of the brain, disrupting hormone-regulated sleeping patterns.

In Alzheimers disease, the pineal gland accumulates large amounts of calcium, reducing melatonin production. (The Epoch Times)

After entering the body, fluoride accumulates in places rich in calcium, such as bones, teeth, and, surprisingly, the pineal gland. Calcium is essential to proper brain function, so calcium tends to accumulate there, especially in the calcium-rich pineal gland, which tends to get the highest fluoride concentration. Research shows that high fluoride levels are associated with the calcification of the pineal gland.

The pineal gland plays a critical role in melatonin production, the primary hormone responsible for the bodys circadian rhythm, which regulates a persons sleep-wake cycle. Melatonin levels peak during childhood and gradually decline as people age, with elderly individuals having the lowest levels. However, because the body has difficulty breaking down fluoride, it tends to accumulate, including in the pineal gland, making it challenging to maintain a healthy balance of melatonin.

The accumulation of both calcium and fluoride can disrupt the production of melatonin in the pineal gland. For example, a cross-sectional study published in Environmental Health found that exposure to fluoride in older adolescents may disrupt their sleep cycle, leading to sleep problems and daytime drowsiness. However, further research is needed to confirm these findings.

Calcification of the pineal gland is a characteristic feature of Alzheimers disease. In Alzheimers, prolonged calcification reduces the glands volume, decreasing melatonin production. Less melatonin can lead to poor sleep regulation and more sleep problems. In addition, melatonin plays a role in the regeneration of neurons in the brain, serving as the brains self-repair mechanism.

While a causal relationship between higher fluoride intake and Alzheimers has not been established, a high fluoride intake may lead to persistent symptoms resembling Alzheimers disease. This raises concerns about the difficulties in regulating and controlling high fluoride intake.

Considering the potential risks to the pineal gland and other health issues associated with the fluoridation of drinking water, it is essential to question what sacrifices people may be making in pursuit of healthy teeth and a pleasing smile.

How to Avoid Fluoride

The fluoride added to tap water differs significantly from the fluoride in natural deposits. In nature, fluoride usually exists in combination with calcium. The fluoride added to our drinking water in the form of fluorosilicic acid or sodium fluoride, hazardous synthetic chemicals whose descriptions seem questionable regarding human health:

Fluorosilicic acid: A colorless fuming liquid with a penetrating pungent odor. Corrosive to metals and tissue. Both the fumes and very short contact with the liquid can cause severe and painful burns. Used in water fluoridation, in hardening cement and ceramics, as a wood preservative, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Chemical Datasheet.

A colorless fuming liquid with a penetrating pungent odor. Corrosive to metals and tissue. Both the fumes and very short contact with the liquid can cause severe and painful burns. Used in water fluoridation, in hardening cement and ceramics, as a wood preservative, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Chemical Datasheet. Sodium fluoride: It is corrosive to aluminum. It is used as an insecticide. It is also used to fluorinate water supplies, as a wood preservative, in cleaning compounds, manufacture of glass, and for many other uses, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) PubChem library.

The former compound is labeled as corrosive and the latter as toxic. However, the calcium fluoride found in nature has no warning labels. So aside from questioning why officials arent fluoridating water with calcium fluoride, some people may be wondering about how to avoid it. Here are a few easy ways:

Certain water filters can effectively remove fluoride from tap water.

Check the bottled water labels for information on manufacturers additives and treatments.

Buy spring water instead of purified water.

Buy fluoride-free toothpaste.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Epoch Health welcomes professional discussion and friendly debate. To submit an opinion piece, please follow these guidelines and submit through our form here.
In this series, Promise or Peril: Alarming COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Issues, we explore how the introduction of mRNA technology lacked an adequate regulatory framework, setting the stage for serious adverse events and other concerns related to inadequate safety testing of lipid nanoparticles, spike protein, and residual DNA and lipid-related impurities as well as truncated/modified mRNA species. Previously: In Part 1 of this series, FDA Overhaul Needed for New Vaccines and mRNA Therapies, we introduced how the FDA relaxed the rules for mRNA vaccines compared to mRNA therapies. We also discussed the available data regarding lipid nanoparticle (LNP) distribution throughout the body based on animal testing, the fact that human testing was not done, and the lack of mRNA or spike protein biodistribution data for the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine. We now turn to the health implications of these compounds in the body.

Summary of Key Facts:

The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines were authorized for human use without going through complete animal testing on the active ingredients.

The animal testing data, which we review in detail, shows that the mRNA and LNP shell are present in tissues at high concentrations for about 72 hours, consistent with the timing of systemic reactions to vaccination within the first two to three days.

The lipids used to create the LNP shell likely stay in the body for four to five months due to their long half-life. (pdf)

Details on animal testing also show elevated adverse event rates, including joint inflammation and early pregnancy loss.

The regulatory authorities knew about these adverse events found in animals by January 2021. Nevertheless, the products were permitted to go forward in humans, assuming the benefits would outweigh the risks.

Post-licensure studies on rare adverse events have found evidence of post-vaccination myocarditis, neurological issues, thrombocytopenia (low platelet counts), and clotting, and a new study shows a strong, twofold increased risk of vision loss.

False Reassurances From CDC

As discussed in Part 1, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) did not require Pfizer and Moderna to do biodistribution testing on the active mRNA encoding spike protein used in the vaccines. The FDAs relaxed biodistribution and pharmacokinetic testing essentially approved a bioengineered egg based on an examination of the shell only; in other words, the contents were not tested.

Reports provided by Pfizer to the FDA (pdf), Australian, and Japanese (pdf) health authorities, as well as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) (pdf) in January 2021 include identical animal data showing how the new LNP shell travels throughout the body. The reports also show how a substitute (fake) mRNA (encoding for luciferase) was used to visualize where the mRNA travels.

Although the compound luciferase has a sinister name, it is a harmless enzyme found in fireflies and elsewhere in nature, and it is bioluminescentmeaning, it glows in the dark. Thus, luciferase is useful for visualizing biological compounds in animal tissues.

These reports show widespread dispersal of the LNP shell. The CDC gave false reassurances about the duration of biological activity and distribution based on scant data on animals and no human data on biodistribution. People relied on these statements as truth. Thus the agency disseminated vague and misleading reassurances when data was available at the time, which contradicted these claims.

Although the CDCs original webpage, now only available through web archives, contained a message stating that mRNA is broken down within days and that the spike protein does not persist in the body beyond a few weekswe simply did not have this data, presumably leading them to remove the highlighted duration reference.

To understand the health implications of the new mRNA vaccine technology, we must first examine where luciferase, the spike protein, and the LNPs travel in the body and how long they persist.

What Happens to the Glow-in-the-Dark Luciferase?

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is the European Unions FDA equivalent. The EMA report (pdf) gives us more detail about animal studies showing where the luciferase and LNP shell travel, as well as the concentrations of these compounds in tissues immediately after vaccination.

Pfizer conducted a study using two approachesbioluminescence and radioactivityto tag the mRNA for luciferase and the LNP shell for radioactivity.

The luciferase mRNA signals peaked at the injection site within six hours, at 10,000 times that of the control animals. Luciferase activity was also found in lymph nodes and the liver. The signal then decreased slowly over 72 hours. (page 46) Levels continued to decline and by day nine, the luciferase level in the experimental animals was seven times the level found in the control animals. No additional measures were taken after day nine. This elevated luciferase activity in the first 72 hours correlates with adverse symptoms people may experience after vaccination.

The radioactivity study on the LNP shell found the highest levels in most tissues within eight to 48 hours after injection. Most of the LNP was concentrated in the liver. The report goes on to describe how long the lipids stay in the liver. One of the lipids (ALC-0315) may remain in the liver for four to five months when the data is extrapolated to humans. (pages 53-54)

Together, these two animal studies show that mRNA and the LNP shell can be found in tissues at peak concentrations within 72 hours.

Figure 1. Vaccination Adverse Reactions by Days Since Last Dose

(The Lancet Infectious Diseases 2022 22802-812DOI: 10.1016/S1473-3099(22)00054-8)

What Happens to the Spike Protein?

Once the vaccine LNP enters our cells and releases the mRNA, spike protein is produced and displayed on the surface of our cells. The mRNA code contains instructions to make the full-length spike protein, containing two subunits (S1 and S2). The immune system sees these cells displaying the spike protein and responds as if the virus had infected the cell.

When these cells are destroyed by the immune system, antibodies are made that bind to the spike protein. However, the spike protein, including its S1 subunit, can be released into the blood during this messy process of cell digestion by the immune system.

Circulation of the spike protein in the blood may explain some serious adverse events, such as myocarditis and other adverse events, including rare neurological issues which result from COVID-19 infection as well as BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 vaccination.

For example, a study published in Circulation points out that markedly elevated levels of full-length spike protein (33.922.4 pg/mL), unbound by antibodies, were detected in the plasma of individuals with post-vaccine myocarditis, whereas no free spike was detected in asymptomatic vaccinated control subjects (unpaired t-test; P<0.0001). In other words, free spike protein may provide a clue about why some young people develop myocarditis following vaccination.

This study suggested that the difference was not caused by neutralizing antibodies in the myocarditis group, but was likely due to overactive innate immunity. In other words, having too many antibodies was not the cause of myocarditis. The authors suspect that another component of the immune systeminnate immunitymight be involved.

Innate immunity is what helps the body fight off infection, even the first time it sees a new virus or bacteria. These innate first responders (inflammatory cytokines) need no training to identify foreign invaders. An overactive innate response is associated with allergies and may also be what triggers myocarditis.

Conversely, some authors have hypothesized that suppression of the natural innate immune response could explain some adverse events from the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine.

Because the active mRNA and the spike protein it encodes were never tested in animals or live tissue culture, there was no way to predict these issues. The FDA essentially allowed a product to be licensed without sufficient preclinical toxicity testing.

How Toxic Is the Lipid Nanoparticle Shell?

As the EMA reiterates, No traditional pharmacokinetic or biodistribution studies have been performed with the vaccine candidate BNT162b2. (page 45) The biodistribution studies are important because, as the EMA continues, ALC-0315 and ALC-0159 are novel excipients, not previously used in an approved finished product within the EU. These two novel excipients (ALC-0315 and ALC-0159) are the lipid nanoparticles used to create the LNP shell. They are new compounds, different from existing data on PEGylated compounds used in a wide variety of injected medications.

The EMA report further states that the half-life of the lipid ALC-0315 is quite long. (page 46) The term half-life means the amount of time it takes for half of the compound to be removed. On page 54, the EMA report clarifies that we might expect half of the ALC-0315 to be removed from the human body in about 20 to 30 days, and 95 percent to be removed in four to five months.

A separate deliberation summary (pdf) from the Japanese governments Pharmaceutical Safety and Environmental Health Bureau (February 2021) reviewed all of the data prior to making a determination regarding authorization. The report showed effects on the liver which were considered to be of little toxicological significance. (page 20) However, the report also notes that long-term repeated-dose toxicity of Comirnaty has not been evaluated and therefore, the dosing regimen should be limited, and the use of lipids in the vaccine should not be considered a precedent. In other words, although PEGylated compounds have been used in medicine for years, there is limited information on their use as part of an LNP carrying a vaccine, thus no existing data to support repeated doses, such as boosters, beyond the original primary series.

The EMA concurred: This [BNT162b2] vaccine contains two new components (cationic lipid ALC-0315 and PEGylated liquid ALC-0159) in the LNP, for which there is limited experience. Given the long half-life of the ALC-0315 lipid and the toxicity of the PEG-lipid ALC-0159, the EMA acknowledged that while there are no immediate and obvious concerns for human use, there is also very limited data and the current evidence is not definitive.

Regarding PEG-related toxicity which is known to depend on the dose, dose frequency, duration of treatment, and molecular weight of the PEG protein, immunogenicity is not expected to be an issue due to the low molecular weight of this PEG (<2KDa). The scientific data available at this stage do not raise noticeable concerns regarding immunogenicity or immunotoxicity of the PEG, but current evidence is not definitive. (page 134)

The EMA notes that serious adverse events were twice as common in the vaccine group (21 percent) as in the placebo group (13 percent). The frequency was low overall (<1 percent) but the following system/organ/class adverse events were the most frequently reported: General disorders and administration site conditions (11.9 percent versus 2.9 percent), musculoskeletal reactions (5.5 percent versus 2.1 percent), and nervous system disorders (4.2 percent versus 2.1 percent).

Because the active ingredient (mRNA encoding spike protein) was not tested in these animal studies, these findings likely speak to the immunotoxicity of the LNP shell itself. Nevertheless, the EMA concluded that the benefits overall were positive enough to go forward given the protection afforded to the elderly and those with comorbidities.

Inflammation and Miscarriage Rates Noted in EMA Report

In repeat dose toxicity studies among rats given one dose per week for three weeks, joint and lymph node inflammation as well as changes in the bone marrow were observed. (page 49)

In reproductive toxicity tests (page 50), the report states: There was an increase (~2x) of pre-implantation loss (9.77%, compared to control 4.09%) although this was within historical control data range (5.1%-11.5%). In other words, although the miscarriage rate was twice as high in the vaccinated than in control animals, the rate was within the expected range based on previous studies. The same data can be found on page 55 of the Australian report.

Interestingly, the BNT162b1 candidateone of Pfizers two vaccine candidates which coded for the receptor binding domain only, not the full-length spikehad a much lower pre-implantation loss rate (4.8 percent) than the vaccine eventually brought to market. The second model (BNT162b2) was chosen for global use because it had fewer side effects.

Some Types of Vision Loss Correlate with Vaccination

A new study in Nature confirms a strong correlation between vaccination with an mRNA vaccine and retinal vascular occlusion. The retina is part of the eye that receives light and converts it into nerve signals which are translated into vision in the brain. The retina is covered with tiny blood vessels, and when these become occluded (blocked) due to poor cardiovascular health or diabetes, vision is lost. The blockage in the vessels can be caused by swelling, spasms, poor blood flow into the vessels, and thromboembolism (clotting). Infection with SARS-CoV-2 is also linked to retinal occlusion.

Given the mounting evidence of vaccination causing occlusion, this study used medical records for approximately 6 million people to explore the long-term association between vaccination and occlusion. The authors matched 745,041 vaccinated and 3,874,458 unvaccinated people, resulting in a final comparison group of more than 500,000 individuals in each group.

Researchers found 415 cases among vaccinated people 18 to 64 years of age and 1108 cases among the vaccinated age 65 years or older. This represented a greater than threefold higher risk of retinal occlusion following vaccination within 12 weeks and a greater than twofold risk up to two years later compared to the unvaccinated. There was no difference in risk between mRNA vaccine brands (Pfizer versus Moderna) and the risk was elevated after both doses one and two. The risk was highest for the first two weeks and persisted for 12 weeks. The risk was similarly elevated across males and females as well as across race/ethnicity.

The authors of the study surmise that the similarity between spike proteins and human proteins may cause the blockage.

To summarize, these reports raise many concerning issues which we address in this series.

The LNP capsule is dispersed throughout the body, mostly to the liver. Does it fall apart or stay in a capsule? How long does the LNP capsule persist in the body? Is the immune response to the LNP linked to post-vaccination blindness? The LNP can also cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB), as can the S1 subunit of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (in mice). What are the implications of the LNP and S1 subunits crossing the BBB? The lipid nanoparticle ALC-0315 has a long half-life (around six weeks in the liver). Does 95 percent of the lipid clear from the human body within four to five months as expected? The EMA states there is known immunotoxicity associated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) (page 134). This is the first time that PEG-lipid ALC-0159 has been used as a vaccine component in humans. What immune response is provoked by the PEG-lipid ALC-0159? How long does mRNA persist in the body? Does it stay in the capsule until it is released in cells? Does it fall out of the LNP capsule? What problems might mRNA cause if it circulates throughout the bloodstream? (Series Part 3) Free spike was found in myocarditis patients, but not controls. How long does the spike protein stay in the body? Where does it travel? How might the spike protein or its S1 subunit cause myocarditis or other adverse events which may include neurologic issues? (Series Part 4) The EMA report also noted impurities in the vaccine doses produced using the commercial manufacturing process which were not found in the vials used in the clinical trials. These impurities include RNA fragments which may code for unexpected proteins, potentially causing adverse reactions, including allergic reactions, which we will discuss later in this series. The latter demonstrates an uncanny predominance in females raising the need for tailored risk assessment along yet another parameter. (Series Part 5) What is causing effects on peripheral nerves such as Bells Palsy? What is the latest research describing neurologic, cardiac, autoimmune, and reproductive adverse events? Is there anything people can do to reduce the risk of a future adverse event?

The adverse events noted by the EMA in January 2021 suggest that more thorough animal testing and additional biodistribution and safety studies in humans should have been performed before licensing these products. In addition, the EMA report noted that differences in batches were found. Additional reports were requested from the manufacturer. Where is the public communication regarding updates on these issues? Why did the FDA not apply stricter mRNA genetic therapy standards to the regulation of mRNA vaccines? In other words, why were vaccines given a special pass when they were using the same technology platform?

Required studies could have been performed even within the compressed timeframe. Furthermore, given the massive earnings these products have garnered from global distribution, why are the post-marketing studies not accelerated? As a final example of this lagging regulatory framework, the FDA requested post-marketing surveillance does not require submission of reports on the incidence and natural course of vaccine myocarditis until September 2024.

Next: We look at the design of the LNPs in Part 3 and investigate how their design might predispose them to clustering or falling apartboth of which can lead to clotting.

 References

Addgene. Molecular Biology Reference.

Alana F Ogata, Chi-An Cheng, Michael Desjardins, Yasmeen Senussi, Amy C Sherman, Megan Powell, Lewis Novack, Salena Von, Xiaofang Li, Lindsey R Baden, David R Walt, Circulating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Vaccine Antigen Detected in the Plasma of mRNA-1273 Vaccine Recipients, Clinical Infectious Diseases, Volume 74, Issue 4, 15 February 2022, Pages 715718.

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Baker, A. T., Boyd, R. J., Sarkar, D., Teijeira-Crespo, A., Chan, C. K., Bates, E., Waraich, K., Vant, J., Wilson, E., Truong, C. D., Lipka-Lloyd, M., Fromme, P., Vermaas, J., Williams, D., Machiesky, L., Heurich, M., Nagalo, B. M., Coughlan, L., Umlauf, S., Chiu, P. L.,  Borad, M. J. (2021). ChAdOx1 interacts with CAR and PF4 with implications for thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome. Science Advances. 7(49), eabl8213.

Baumeier C, Aleshcheva G, Harms D, Gross U, Hamm C, Assmus B, Westenfeld R, Kelm M, Rammos S, Wenzel P, Munzel T, Elsasser A, Gailani M, Perings C, Bourakkadi A, Flesch M, Kempf T, Bauersachs J, Escher F, Schultheiss H-P. Intramyocardial Inflammation after COVID-19 Vaccination: An Endomyocardial Biopsy-Proven Case Series. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2022; 23(13):6940.

Bloom, K., van den Berg, F. & Arbuthnot, P. Self-amplifying RNA vaccines for infectious diseases. Gene Ther 28, 117129 (2021).

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Dag Berild J, Bergstad Larsen V, Myrup Thiesson E, et al. Analysis of Thromboembolic and Thrombocytopenic Events After the AZD1222, BNT162b2, and MRNA-1273 COVID-19 Vaccines in 3 Nordic Countries. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5(6):e2217375. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.17375.

daSilva RL. Viral-associated thrombotic microangiopathies. Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Therapy. 2011:4(2):51-59.

De A, Ko YT. Why mRNA-ionizable LNPs formulations are so short-lived: causes and way-out. Expert Opin Drug Deliv. 2023 Feb;20(2):175-187. doi: 10.1080/17425247.2023.2162876. Epub 2023 Jan 1. PMID: 36588456.

Ehaideb, S.N., Abdullah, M.L., Abuyassin, B. et al. Evidence of a wide gap between COVID-19 in humans and animal models: a systematic review. Crit Care 24, 594 (2020).

European Medicines Agency Assessment Report Comirnaty (pdf)

Faizullin D, Valiullina Y, Salnikov V, Zuev Y. Direct interaction of fibrinogen with lipid microparticles modulates clotting kinetics and clot structure. Nanomedicine. 2020 Jan;23:102098. doi: 10.1016/j.nano.2019.102098. Epub 2019 Oct 23. PMID: 31655206.

FDA. Considerations for Human Radiolabeled Mass Balance StudiesGuidance for Industry. May, 2022.

FDA. Development and Licensure of Vaccines to Prevent COVID-19.

FDA-CBER-2021-5683-0013962 approved on: 09-Nov-2020. A Tissue Distribution Study of a [3H]-Labeled Lipid Nanoparticle-mRNA Formulation Containing ALC-0315 and ALC-0159 Following Intramuscular Administration in Wistar Han Rats. (pdf) FINAL REPORT Test Facility Study No. 185350 Sponsor Reference No. ALC-NC-0552.

Fertig TE, Chitoiu L, Marta DS, Ionescu VS, Cismasiu VB, Radu E, Angheluta G, Dobre M, Serbanescu A, Hinescu ME, Gherghiceanu M. Vaccine mRNA Can Be Detected in Blood at 15 Days Post-Vaccination. Biomedicines. 2022 Jun 28;10(7):1538. doi: 10.3390/biomedicines10071538. PMID: 35884842; PMCID: PMC9313234.

Grobbelaar LM et al. SARS-CoV-2 spike protein S1 induces fibrin(ogen) resistant to fibrinolysis: implications for microclot formation in COVID-19 Biosci Rep (2021) 41 (8): BSR20210611.

Hou, X., Zaks, T., Langer, R. et al. Lipid nanoparticles for mRNA delivery. Nat Rev Mater 6, 10781094 (2021).

Iaboni A, Jindal N, Betschel SD, Song C. Second-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccine safety in patients with immediate reactions after the first dose: A case series. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global. 2022;1(3): 172-174.

Lets talk about lipid nanoparticles. Nat Rev Mater 6, 99 (2021).

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Naturally Inspired Podcast. Jessica Rose Ph.D.VAERS, Data And Truth

Ohlson J. Plasmid manufacture is the bottleneck of the genetic medicine revolution. Drug Discov Today. 2020 Oct 16;25(11):18913. doi: 10.1016/j.drudis.2020.09.040. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33075470; PMCID: PMC7564888.

Perico L, Marina Morigi M, Galbusera M, et al. SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein 1 Activates Microvascular Endothelial Cells and Complement System Leading to Platelet Aggregation. Front. Immunol. 2022

Qin, S., Tang, X., Chen, Y. et al. mRNA-based therapeutics: powerful and versatile tools to combat diseases. Sig Transduct Target Ther 7, 166 (2022).

Rafati A, Pasebani Y, Jameie M, et al. Association of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination or Infection With Bell Palsy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. Published online April 27, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamaoto.2023.0160

Rhea EM, Logsdon AF, Hansen KM, Williams LM, Reed MJ, Baumann KK, Holden SJ, Raber J, Banks WA, Erickson MA. The S1 protein of SARS-CoV-2 crosses the blood-brain barrier in mice. Nat Neurosci. 2021 Mar;24(3):368-378. doi: 10.1038/s41593-020-00771-8. Epub 2020 Dec 16. PMID: 33328624; PMCID: PMC8793077.

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Schmeling, M, Manniche, V, Hansen, PR. Batch-dependent safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. Eur J Clin Invest. 2023; 00:e13998. doi:10.1111/eci.13998

Srinivasan M, Thangaraj SR, Arzoun H. Gene Therapy  Can it Cure Type 1 Diabetes? Cureus. 2021 Dec 19;13(12):e20516. doi: 10.7759/cureus.20516. PMID: 35004071; PMCID: PMC8723777.

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Scientists are calling for the federal government to adopt stricter controls around nicotine after the federal government banned recreational vaping.

This comes after Health Minister Mark Butler announced on May 1 a massive new smoking crackdown, emphasising that vapes, which were introduced as therapeutic products, have now become the biggest loophole in Australian healthcare history.

Vaping was sold to governments and communities around the world as a therapeutic product to help long-term smokers quit, he said.

It was not sold as a recreational product, especially not one for our kids. But that is what it has become: The biggest loophole in Australian history.

University of Queensland (UQ) Prof. Coral Gartner from UQs School of Public Health has called on the federal government to consider looking at the disparities in the regulation of nicotine vaping products (NVPs) versus tobacco products.

There are currently no plans to reduce the availability of tobacco cigarettes, Gartner said.A more holistic approach would be to also restrict how and where tobacco can be sold, with a plan for eventually making Australia a smoke-free country.

Gartner told the UQ News that many people were unwilling to comply with regulations around nicotine vaping, and retailers were still continuing to sell the products under the counter, including to children.

The law was intended to support people trying to quit smoking while also protecting young people from taking up vaping, said Gartner.

But youth vaping has continued to rise.

Many consumers feel it makes no sense having greater restrictions on e-cigarettes compared to tobacco products.

There is also insufficient enforcement of the law, leading to what the Therapeutic Goods Administration has described as widespread non-compliance among consumers.

Gartner suggests that the best way to achieve a smoke-free Australia is to consult with those who have lived experience with nicotine addiction.

The best way to reduce youth vaping and achieve a smoke-free Australia is to have meaningful consultation with those who have lived experience, said Gartner.

The New Ban on Vaping

The new plan presented by the Health Minister will prohibit the importation of the non-pharmaceutical NVPs, and they will only be possible to purchase from pharmacies and with a prescription.

In addition, according to the new law, the non-prescription vapes that are disposable will be banned, and the volumes, flavours and packaging are to be changed, with the latter becoming plain and with warning labels.

The new smoking regulation package allots $234 million (US$156 million), of which $63 million will be allocated for a public health campaign to discourage Australians from vaping, $30 million for programs to help people quit the habit, and $140 million for a program to help indigenous people stop smoking and vaping.

The government is calling on the state and territories to join efforts in stopping the sale of vapes in both retail and convenience stores, as well as to make it easier for health professionals to prescribe vapes for therapeutic purposes only.

Another measure is to target the growing black market of vapes and increase the standards of the product, especially its flavours, colours and packaging.

Why Is Nicotine Bad For Our Health

Nicotine, a naturally occurring chemical found in tobacco plants, is known to have negative effects on health.

It is highly addictive, making it difficult for individuals to quit smoking or using other nicotine products, as it activates the reward pathways in the brain, leading to dependence and cravings.

Nicotine increases heart rate, blood pressure and constricts blood vessels, which can strain the cardiovascular system, and prolonged nicotine use raises the risk of heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular disorders.

Smoking or vaping nicotine can lead to respiratory issues because it irritates and damages the lung tissues, causing chronic bronchitis, coughing, wheezing, and increasing the risk of respiratory infections.

While nicotine itself is not carcinogenic, it is often consumed through smoking, which exposes the body to numerous harmful chemicals that are a major cause of lung, throat, mouth, and esophageal cancers, among others. It also contributes to oral health problems such as gum disease, tooth discolouration, bad breath, and tooth loss because it reduces blood flow to the gums, impairs healing, and increases the risk of infections.

Nicotine can have adverse effects on fertility, pregnancy, and fetal development, as it increases the risk of infertility, miscarriages, premature birth, and low birth weight.

Most worryingly, for many Australian teens who have experienced nicotine exposure, the substance can harm brain development and lead to long-term cognitive and behavioural issues. It also can increase the vulnerability to other substance addictions since it may alter the brains reward system, making individuals more prone to seeking pleasure and becoming dependent on other drugs.

Quitting Can be Hard

It is important to note that there are nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs), such as patches or gum, that can be helpful in quitting smoking by gradually reducing nicotine dependence while avoiding the harmful effects of smoking.
Molecular mimicry, which occurs when similarities between different antigens confuse the immune system, is one potential mechanism that could explain the link between COVID-19 shots and tinnitus.

Dr. Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Clinics Vaccine Research Group in Rochester, Minnesota, also developed tinnitus after a COVID-19 shothes been suffering from tinnitus for two years as a result and says he receives emails nearly every day from people with similar stories.

She says her email is bombarded with reports from people who developed tinnitus after getting a COVID-19 shot.

Dr. Konstantina Stankovic, director of the Stanford Medicine Molecular Neurotology Laboratory, is leading research to uncover how COVID-19 and COVID-19 shots may be affecting auditory function and triggering tinnitus.

At least 16,183 people say theyve developed tinnitus after receiving a COVID-19 shot, and this is likely an underestimate.

Tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, has emerged as another adverse event following COVID-19 shots. Even a scientific adviser for Big Pharma developed it after his COVID-19 shot and says it gets so bad, I could just scream.

At least 16,183 people say theyve developed tinnitus after receiving a COVID-19 shot.1,2 The reports were filed with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) database. But considering only between 1 percent 3 and 10 percent4 of adverse reactions are ever reported to VAERS, the actual number is likely much higher.

Tinnitus causes a perception of sound in the ear without an external source. While the sound is often described as ringing in the ears, it can also be a whistling, buzzing, hissing, clicking, swooshing, or roaring sensation. In rare cases, it can even sound like music.5 An estimated 10 percent to 25 percent of adults, as well as children, suffer from tinnitus of varying degrees.6

Of the approximately 25 million Americans who live with tinnitus, 5 million have chronic tinnitus thats burdensome while 2 million describe the condition as debilitating.7 Now, with so many people developing tinnitus after COVID-19 shots, theories have emerged about the possible connection.

Shots May Trigger Chronic Inflammation, Other Risk Factors

Shaowen Bao, an associate professor at the University of Arizona, Tucson, whos also a representative of the American Tinnitus Associations scientific advisory board, has been researching tinnitus for more than 10 years. Hes also a tinnitus sufferer. A support group on social media created for people who developed tinnitus after a COVID-19 shot contacted Bao to study the potential link.

He surveyed 398 people from the group, who tended to suffer from severe tinnitus along with symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, vertigo, ear pain, anxiety, and depression.8

While Bao is still analyzing his findings, he told NBC News that tinnitus tended to develop after the first dose of a COVID-19 shot, suggesting the vaccine is interacting with preexisting risk factors for tinnitus. If you have the risk factor, you will probably get it from the first dose.9 He also suggested chronic inflammation in the brain or spinal cord could be involved.

The CDC also looked into a link between COVID-19 shots and tinnitus. The agency said it didnt find any connection, but their review hasnt been made public.10 Dr. Harlan Krumholz, director of the Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation at Yale University, is also studying tinnitus as it relates to COVID-19 shots and long COVID, as part of the Yale LISTEN study.11

Tinnitus is a prominent symptom in many people with long COVID and in those with vaccine-associated conditions, he told USA Today.12 We are seeking to bring together many people with this symptom and hope we can learn together what might be the causeon the path toward evidence-based strategies to help these people.

Dr. Konstantina Stankovic, an otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon who directs the Stanford Medicine Molecular Neurotology Laboratory, is also leading research to uncover how COVID-19 and COVID-19 shots may be affecting auditory functionand whether tinnitus is a side effect of the shots.

My email is being bombarded by people from across the world who really feel that they dont have a voice, she told NBC News. They feel that theyre being dismissed, that people dont take them seriously, and yet they tell me in very moving ways how they can tie it to the vaccine.13

Vaccine Proponent Gets Tinnitus After COVID-19 Shot

While media and health officials alike often brush off anecdotal reports of vaccine reactions, when Dr. Gregory Poland developed tinnitus after a COVID-19 shot, people took notice.

Poland is the director of the Mayo Clinics Vaccine Research Group in Rochester, Minnesota. Hes also a paid scientific adviser for Johnson & Johnson and a vaccine development consultant for Moderna and other pharmaceutical companies.14 When the tinnitus first struck on his drive home from his second COVID-19 shot, It startled me, Poland said. I thought it was a dog whistle going off right next to me.15

Poland has been suffering from tinnitus for two years and says he receives emails nearly every day from people who say they also developed tinnitus after a COVID-19 shot. He says hes frustrated by the CDCs lack of action on the issue. Why has the CDC not done all of the research that they should do on this and published it? he stated to NBC News.16

Some days, he says, the tinnitus is so bad I could just scream  You dont ever get over tinnitus.17 Its unusual that a person of Polands background and close ties to Big Pharma would speak out about vaccine-induced tinnitus. But he told NBC News, I refuse to be anything less than transparent. I refuse to cherry-pick the information that should be presented to people to make good decisions.18

Is Molecular Mimicry Behind Shot-Induced Tinnitus?

A review published in the Annals of Medicine & Surgery looked at the potential mechanisms behind vaccine-associated tinnitus.19 Molecular mimicry is one possibility. It occurs when similarities between different antigens confuse the immune system.

There are often significant similarities between elements in the vaccine and human proteins, which can lead to immune cross-reactivity. When this occurs, researchers explained in Cellular & Molecular Immunology,  the reaction of the immune system towards the pathogenic antigens may harm the similar human proteins, essentially causing autoimmune disease.20

In relation to COVID-19 shots, specifically, researchers wrote in the Journal of Autoimmunity, Indeed, antibodies against the spike protein S1 of SARS-CoV-2 had a high affinity against some human tissue proteins. As vaccine mRNA codes the same viral protein, they can trigger autoimmune diseases in predisposed patients.21 The Annals of Medicine & Surgery researchers explained:22

Based on the mechanisms behind other COVID-19 vaccine-induced disorders and the phenomenon of molecular mimicry, a cross-reactivity between anti-spike SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and otologic antigens is a possibility. The heptapeptide resemblance between coronavirus spike glycoprotein and numerous human proteins further supports molecular mimicry as a potential mechanism behind such vaccine-induced disorders.

Several autoimmune conditions, including vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia and Guillain-Barre syndrome, have been reported following coronavirus vaccination. Anti-spike antibodies may potentially react with antigens anywhere along the auditory pathway and initiate an inflammatory reaction involving the tympanic membrane, ossicular chain, cochlea, cochlear vessels, organ of Corti, etc.

Other Ways COVID-19 Shots May Be Triggering Tinnitus

Autoimmune reactions are another possibility. Antibodies can form complexes with one or more antigens leading to a type III hypersensitivity reaction. Deposition of circulating immune complexes and vestibule-cochlear antibodies can play a role in autoimmune inner ear disease, according to the review, which also noted, genetic predisposition and immunologic pathways may play a role in post-vaccination-tinnitus.23

The review also raised the possibility that COVID-19 shots could be directly ototoxic, or damaging to the auditory pathway. They may also cause nitric oxide (NO) dysregulation, as inhibition of NO production may underly tinnitusand glaucoma, which increases tinnitus risk:24

Any potential association between vaccines and NO dysregulation should be investigated. Certain COVID-19 vaccines have been associated with vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia.

Developing thrombus can reduce the blood supply to the ear and increase the probability of developing tinnitus. The existing literature lacks articles investigating associations between vaccines and NO levels. Therefore, the association of vaccines with NO deficiency in genetically susceptible patients should be investigated.

Tinnitus Is a Symptom of Long COVID

COVID-19 may also cause tinnitus. A January 2021 systematic review evaluated the effect COVID-19 has on the auditory system.25 The study looked at 28 case reports or series and 28 cross-sectional studies that included reports of hearing loss, tinnitus, and vertigo.

The researchers pooled estimates of the prevalence of these conditions based on the patients recall of their symptoms. They discovered that in this patient cohort that had COVID-19, 7.6 percent reported hearing loss, 14.8 percent reported tinnitus and 7.2 percent reported rotary vertigo.

Another study, published in the Indian Journal of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery in December 2021, assessed hearing in 100 individuals who had a mild to moderate COVID-19 infection.26 In that group, 22 had received remdesivir for treatment of COVID-19.

The researchers found 31 of the 100 participants had ear symptoms, the most common of which was tinnitus, followed closely by new-onset hearing loss. Long COVID, also known as long-haul COVID, chronic COVID, or long-haul syndrome, refers to symptoms that persist for four or more weeks after an initial COVID-19 infection.27 Tinnitus, often severe, and vertigo are common symptoms of long COVID.28

Its interesting to note that, in one study from early in the pandemic, more than two-thirds of those reporting long COVID symptoms had negative antibody tests, suggesting at least some of them didnt even have COVID-19.29 Meanwhile, many COVID jab recipients report long COVID-like symptoms. As reported by Science magazine, In rare cases, coronavirus vaccines may cause long COVID-like symptoms.30

How to Relieve Tinnitus

The Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Working Groups (FLCCC) I-RECOVER31 protocol can be downloaded in full,32 giving you step-by-step instructions on how to treat long COVID33 and/or reactions from COVID-19 injections.34 You also can try my strategies to optimize mitochondrial health if youre suffering from long COVID and related symptoms like tinnitus, with a focus on boosting mitochondrial health.

It is important you do not overlook any new ringing or buzzing in your ears that lasts more than a day, as starting treatment early can help reduce the effects. An otolaryngologist, more commonly known as an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist, may be able to help with symptom relief. Although there is no known cure for tinnitus, it may resolve on its own or become less bothersome.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy helps teach coping strategies and relaxation techniques that can reduce the distress tinnitus triggers. Music therapy35 is another form of treatment for tinnitus that can help lower the negative reactions a patient has and stimulate the auditory cortex simultaneously.

Other natural options include melatonin, which may help decrease tinnitus intensity,36 and ginkgo biloba extract, which works as well as the drug pentoxifylline to reduce loudness, annoyance, and overall suffering in patients with tinnitus.37

The University of California San Francisco also uses neuromonics acoustic desensitization protocol.38 This incorporates a processor connected to earphones that deliver music individualized to the persons hearing loss, as well as counseling. To help prevent and minimize tinnitus, the University of California San Francisco also recommends:39

Exercise.

Reduce fatigue.

Manage stress.

Reduce exposure to extremely loud noise.

Avoid total silence.

Originally published May 16, 2023, on Mercola.com

 References:
House Committee Report Urges Stronger Measures Against Chinese Interference in Canadian Universities

In light of increased foreign interference and infiltration operations by the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), a new report from a House of Commons committee urges the federal government to take a tougher stance against Beijing and strengthen regulations to protect Canadian security.

The report, published May 17, was released in response to Beijings increasingly assertive stance in global affairs, along with its intrusions in the domestic matters of other nations, which have prompted many countries to reevaluate their relationship and policies toward the regime, the Special Committee on the CanadaPeoples Republic of China Relationship (CACN) said in a news release.

The report offers 34 recommendations for the government to reassess its interactions with the regime on a variety of issues, including how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) exploits or interferes with Canadian institutions to advance its own interests. In particular, universities and academic institutions are susceptible to such interference in their research collaborations with Chinese institutions, which calls for proactive measures to safeguard national security and intellectual property, it said.

Paul Evans, a professor at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia, raised concerns about the issue during his testimony at the CACN meeting on May 3.

Evans pointed out that there are currently 140,000 foreign students from China registered at post-secondary institutions in Canada, that hundreds of student exchanges and training programs are established between Canadian and Chinese universities, and that hundreds of research collaborations are funded from a combination of Canadian and Chinese sources.

Some 50 Canadian universities have also been working in partnership with a Chinese military science institution, the National University of Defence Technology, located in Hunan Province, according to a Globe and Mail report in January that cited a study from a U.S.-based data security company, Strider Technologies Inc. Some of their research topics involved high-end and sensitive technologies, including those related to guided missiles and technologies facilitating eavesdropping.

In response to an outcry following the report, Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne pledged to introduce new guidelines to bolster research security in Canadian institutions. A number of universities in recent months said they have terminated or will gradually phase out of their collaborations with Chinese institutions, as well as Chinese companies like Huawei.

Meanwhile, the CACN report provided further recommendations surrounding security concerns in terms of academic collaborations with the Chinese regime. In particular, it urged Ottawa to explore the possibility of issuing security clearances for key individuals in the non-profit sector, private sector, universities, and research institutions, allowing them to receive comprehensive briefings from Canadas security and intelligence agencies so that they can take appropriate steps to protect their intellectual property.

To further mitigate risks, the committee suggests implementing a ministerial policy directive to ban federal granting councils from funding research connected with universities, entities, and researchers from China in five sensitive fields identified by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service: artificial intelligence, quantum technology, 5G, biopharma, and clean tech.

Confucius Institute

The Confucius Institute (CI), a non-governmental organization supervised by the PRCs Ministry of Education, is another source of concern in terms of the CCPs infiltration.

The CACN report cited Carolyn Bartholomew, chair of the United StatesChina Economic and Security Review Commission, who said the CI is part of the United Front Works Department, which has been described by Public Safety Canada as the Chinese regimes primary tool of foreign interference.

The United Front-affiliated organizations include Chinese students and scholars associations, Confucius Institutes, and professional organizations, which offer benefits and support for Chinese students on university and college campuses, she said in testimony to the committee in April 2021. In return for the benefits, Bartholomew said students are expected to rebut any criticism of the CCP and to encourage support for CCPs global rise.

I think [the CIs] are serving as a tool on campuses, both to control the Chinese students who are there and to spread the Chinese worldview, she added.

People demonstrate against the Toronto District School Boards partnership with the Beijing-controlled Confucius Institute outside the TDSB on Oct. 29, 2014. (Allen Zhou/Epoch Times)

Currently, there are eight Canadian institutions that still host the CI, including the Coquitlam School District, Edmonton Public Schools, the University of Regina, the University of Saskatchewan, Seneca College, Carleton University, Dawson College, and Saint Marys University.

Among its 34 recommendations, committee urged Ottawa to work with provincial governments to encourage Canadian education institutions to be fully transparent about their agreements with Confucius Institutes.

Isaac Teo contributed to this report.
House Democrats Introduce Discharge Petition to Force a Vote on US Debt Limit

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) speaks to the press after meeting President Joe Biden and other leaders at the White House in Washington on May 9, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

House Democrats on Wednesday formally introduced a procedural resolution referred to as a discharge petition in an effort to try and force a floor vote on a U.S. debt limit increase without needing the approval of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

The discharge petition was introduced at 10 a.m. as part of a clandestine scheme that had been quietly set in motion since the start of January. The top House Democrat, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), first alerted fellow Democrat colleagues to the plan on May 2.

At the time, he told colleagues that a bill titled Breaking the Gridlock Act was introduced at the start of the 118th Congress that had multiple items on it, but also later had a clean debt ceiling increase attached to it. The bill, brought by Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.) has remained untouched since March 7, when it was referred to 20 different House committees.

A discharge petition, a rarely-used procedural measure, would bring a bill out of committee and force a floor vote, if the bill has remained idle for more than 30 days. This would happen even without the approval of the House Speaker.

On Wednesday, Jeffries urged all members of his caucus to support a discharge petition for DeSaulniers bill.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) leaves a press briefing with reporters after meeting President Joe Biden and other leaders at the White House in Washington on May 16, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

In a dear colleague letter (pdf), he expressed hope to find an acceptable, bipartisan resolution that prevents a default, but noted that because of the impending June 1 U.S. default deadline, it is important that all legislative options be pursued in the event that no agreement is reached.

He said a discharge petition is a vehicle that may be necessary to protect the full faith and credit of the United States, adding, It is imperative that Members make every effort to sign the discharge petition today.

To file the petition and succeed in forcing a House floor vote, Democrats need the support of a majority of the House or 218 votes. If all 213 House Democrats vote in support, the effort would still require at least five House Republicans to join them.

Currently, it is unclear whether all Democrats support the discharge petition.

Standoff Since January

Since January, President Joe Biden has had a standoff with McCarthy over raising the nations $31.4 trillion debt ceiling.

Republicans, who control the House by a 222-213 majority, have been pushing for spending cuts in exchange for a deal with Democrats to raise Congresss self-imposed debt limit.

The government usually spends more than it takes in taxes, so borrowing is needed each year to meet the spending obligations legislated by Congress, which requires raising the debt limit.

The U.S. Treasury has indicated it will be unable to stay under the limit after about June 1. This means the U.S. government wont be able to pay its bills if the debt limit isnt lifted. Economists have said this would trigger a recession.

Deal by May 21 Doable: McCarthy

After a meeting to discuss the debt ceiling with McCarthy and other leaders on May 16the second such meeting in eight daysBiden told reporters on May 17 the meeting was productive, adding he was confident that an agreement would be reached on the budget and there wont be a federal default.

The nation has never defaulted on its debt, and it never will, he told reporters at the White House ahead of his departure that day to attend a G-7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

And were going to continue these discussions with congressional leaders in the coming days until we reach an agreement.

When asked by reporters at the U.S. Capitol whether its possible to reach a debt ceiling deal by the time Biden returns from Asia on May 21, McCarthy said it is doable.

Were on such a short timeline, he told reporters. It makes it almost harder. But theres one thing you know, for me, I never give up. I have the grit, the perseverance and were gonna get it done.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event celebrating Jewish American Heritage Month at the White House in Washington on May 16, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Biden on Wednesday signaled that he might accept work requirement expansions as part of the compromise with Republicans to raise the debt ceiling, so long as they dont affect health care programs.

Meanwhile, McCarthy, in a CNBC interview, defended conservatives call for work requirements, saying they would help the economy and boost the workforce, and vowed to exclude any discussion of taxes.

Raising taxes on the wealthy and companies to help pay for programs for other Americans is a key part of Bidens 2024 budget. On Tuesday, Biden said he was disappointed that Republicans would not consider ways to raise revenue.

If a deal is reached in the House and successfully passes, the Senate must still vote on the measure. Democrats hold a 51-49 majority in the Senate. The deal, with the backing of all Senate Democrats, would still require the support of nine Republicans to be passed.

Lawrence Wilson and Reuters contributed to this report.
House Passes Bill to Deport Illegal Immigrants Who Assault Police

The U.S. Capitol building in Washington on March 31, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

The U.S. House of Representatives approved two bills in observance of National Police Week during its session May 17.

HR 2494 makes illegal immigrants who assault police automatically deportable, and HR 3091 allows retired federal law enforcement officers to purchase surplus federal weapons.

Democrats opposed the bills largely over Republican refusals to amend HR 3091 to require background checks for officers who wish to purchase firearms and their claims that HR 2494 would unfairly target those they said have valid asylum claims.

HR 3091 passed on a vote of 232 to 198, with 219 Republicans and 13 Democrats voting yes, and 198 Democrats and no Republicans voting against the measure. Three Republicans and two Democrats didnt vote.

Republicans raised Democratic ire by expanding HR 3091 to allow retired federal law enforcement officers to purchase more than just their service weapons at lower than fair market value.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks to the press after meeting President Joe Biden and other leaders at the White House in Washington on May 9, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) called on Democrats to oppose the bills over what he called the Republicans poison pill amendments.

HR 3091 initially allowed retired federal law enforcement officers in good standing with their agencies to purchase their service weapons at fair market value. During debate, Nadler said a similar bill had been introduced during the 117th Congress.

He said that bill required that officers undergo a background before making their purchase, Thereby transferring it from it service weapon to a weapon in the hands of a responsible gun owner who is trained to use it.

Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.) countered that not only have the officers been trusted with the weapons in their work, but the plan would help the government recoup part of its intial investment in the weapons instead of costing it $8 million to destroy the guns.

By destroying the guns, Taxpayers are paying for these weapons twice, Fry said.

Law enforcement officers respond to an active shooter at the Old National Bank building in Louisville, Ky., on April 10, 2023. (Luke Sharrett/Getty Images)

Republicans amended the bill to allow all retired federal law enforcement officers to purchase any federally-owned weapons that are declared surplus at salvage value rather than fair market value.

Those amendments were offered by Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R-Texas), Matthew Rosendale (R-Mont.), and Richard McCormick (R-Ga.), respectively.

The Republican majority defeated an amendment offered by Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) to clearly define the term good standing.

Nadler said he supported the previous version of the bill that called for a background check and would have used proceeds from the purchases to finance gun violence prevention programs.

The majority will politicize Police Week to promote their radical gun agenda, Nadler said.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, attends the committees Victims of Violent Crime in Manhattan field hearing at Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York City on April 17, 2023. (Chung I Ho/The Epoch Times)

The House also approved HR 2494, which makes the assault of a law enforcement officer by an illegal immigrant an automatically deportable offense.

The bill passed on a vote of 255 to 75, with 219 Republicans and 36 Democrats voting yes. Zero Republicans and 175 Democrats voting against the measure. Three Republicans and 2 Democrats didnt vote.

According to the bills backers, making assault of an officer a specifically deportable offense will reduce the kind of legal analysis that keeps cases tied up in court for months.

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) offered an amendment to require that the Department of Homeland Security to publish an annual report on its website showing the number of illegal immigrants deported under the law.

Speaking for Democrats, Nadler said he had no argument with Boeberts amendment but he still opposed the bill because it would put legal immigrants with valid asylum claims in danger of being deported.

House To Consider CR 40

The bills will now be sent to the U.S. Senate.

The house will take up a third bill, CR 40 on Thursday, May 18.

CR 40 expresses gratitude for local law enforcement and condemns efforts to defund or dismantle police departments. The legislation is a response to the Defund the Police movement in response to the police-involved death of George Floyd, which grew into the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests that saw some people engage in rioting, almost exactly three years ago on May 25, 2020.

Democrats have taken issue with the measure, saying the fact that it specifies local law enforcement agencies is a slap against federal law enforcement. When the bill was before the Rules Committee, Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.) pointed out that a previous version included all law enforcement agencies. He has repeatedly asked why Republicans changed the bills language.

Republicans have countered that Democrats have no credibility when it comes to supporting law enforcement as many Democrats called for defunding the police.
Congressional Republicans and President Joe Biden are expressing optimism about avoiding an economic catastrophe. What are both sides saying about the deal on the nations debt?

Congressman Brian Babin (R-Texas) weighs in on the ongoing debt ceiling negotiations. He tells us Republicans dont want to see a default.

Donors reportedly want Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to change his media strategy. This comes as a poll shows the majority of Floridians prefer former President Donald Trump over DeSantis in a 2024 matchup.

Former chief of the U.S. Border Patrol Rodney Scott joins us to discuss the border crisis. He says border security is not just about physical barriers, its also about consequences for illegal border crossings.

An Olympic gold medal winner is now segwaying into politics. Well tell you more about her.
House Weaponization Panel Hears FBI Whistleblowers Amid Democrat Delaying Tactics

Suspended FBI special agent Garrett OBoyle (L), former FBI agent Steve Friend, (2L), and suspended FBI agent Marcus Allen (2R) during a hearing in Washington on May 18, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Democrats on the House Judiciary Select Subcommittee on Weaponization of the Federal Government repeatedly raised parliamentary procedural objections to disrupt the panels May 18 hearing on retaliation against three FBI agents-turned-whistleblowers.

At issue for the Democrats was the fact that suspended FBI agent Marcus Allen had talked to Republican members of the subcommittee before the hearing but had declined to do so with Democrats present.

Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wy.) had barely concluded the first opening statement by a regular subcommittee member when Rep. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands), the ranking member, complained about not having access to a transcript of Allens prior conversation.

Just as a point of order, we have learnedthat Mr. Allen did meet with you and might have testimony that was transcribed. And I understand that he was not comfortable meeting with the Democrats, but hes comfortable being here today in this open forum, Plaskett said.

Ranking member Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) delivers opening remarks during the first hearing of the Weaponization of the Federal Government subcommittee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on Feb. 9, 2023. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

When Plaskett asked subcommittee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) for a copy of Allens prior comments, Jordan said, That will be up to Mr. Allen.

Jordan acknowledged having a transcript of Allens comments, but he said that because Allen is a whistleblower, he had the right to decide who could receive a copy.

His response prompted protest from Plaskett and other Democrats, but the chairman said, [Allen] saw what you did to Mr. Friend and others, the false information you gave the press.

Still, Jordan said, Democrats on the panel were free to ask Allen any question.

But subcommittee Democrats argued that Jordan was obligated under House rules to share the Allen transcript with them before the hearing and repeatedly came back to the issue throughout the hearing, which lasted nearly four hours.

When members returned to the hearing following a 30-minute recess to allow them to vote on the House floor, Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) immediately moved that all materials held by Republican members of the panel be provided to the Democrats.

But the Goldman motion was tabled on a party-line vote for which only five Democrats were present.

A subcommittee spokesman told The Epoch Times: Democrats leaked the committees first subpoenas. Democrats leaked and mischaracterized whistleblower testimony, forcing several news outlets to correct their stories. Democrats issued a report attacking these whistleblowers and disparaging their character. Simply put, whistleblowers are not comfortable speaking to Democrats because of their record of slandering whistleblowers.

The focus of the hearing was supposed to be on the trio of agents: suspended FBI agent Garrett OBoyle, former FBI agent Steve Friend, and Allen, who is suspended without pay from his duties as a staff operations specialist.

All three men claimed whistleblower status, which is supposed to provide immunity from illegal retaliation by FBI officials, but all of them said they have suffered significant abuse as a result of sharing information with Congress.

That information included the fact the FBI had created a potential violence tag for pro-life pregnancy centers shortly after the Supreme Courts Dobbs decision in June 2022 that reversed the 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion across the nation. Dobbs returned the authority to decide the issue to the states.

The whistleblowers also told Congress that FBI officials forced agents to record dealings with accused domestic terrorists as if they represented multiple cases rather than individual cases, and they told Congress that the Department of Justice (DOJ) directed surveillance of parents protesting school board policies such as allowing male students who identify as females to use female bathrooms.

FBI Exempted From Whistleblower Obligations

A fourth witness providing testimony was Tristan Leavitt, a former member of the federal civil services Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and the current president of Empower Oversight, which advocates on behalf of whistleblowers, including Friend and Allen.

Leavitt told the subcommittee that whistleblowers in the FBI arent protected against official retaliationunlike the rest of the 2.1 million federal workers.

FBI whistleblowers have second-class status compared to those in most federal agencies. When adopted, the modern system of whistleblower protection  prohibited retaliation against FBI whistleblowers, but it gave them none of the processes other federal law enforcement agencies received, including the DEA, AFT, U.S. Marshals, and Secret Service, Leavitt testified.

Whistleblowers of those agencies can all file retaliation complaints with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, an independent agency. But FBI whistleblowers cannot. Whistleblowers at those agencies can all appeal retaliation to the MSPB. Until just last year, FBI whistleblowers could not.

The National Defense Authorization Act of 2022 included a provision extending the MSPB appeal right to FBI whistleblowers, but Leavitt said Congress still needs to act to ensure that the right is recognized in all cases. Cases that arent so recognized are forced instead to appeal through DOJs long and extended process, he said.

The FBI cannot now claim that these are new rights just because they now have to justify their actions before the MSPB. Time has demonstrated that it was a mistake to exclude the FBI from the standard whistleblower protection process.

It discourages integrity and encourages deceit and obstruction. Congress should treat the FBI the same as all other federal law enforcement agencies.

The FBI can retaliate against whistleblowers by suspending them or withdrawing their security clearance, which effectively renders agents unable to do their jobs. That suspension is often followed by employment suspension and withholding of pay.

All three of the witnesses present for the hearing suffered suspension and much more in the way of retaliation.

OBoyle, who was originally stationed in Kansas City, was promoted to a new position based at the FBI facilities in Quantico, Virginia.

But on his first day on the new job, OBoyle lost his clearance and was suspended without pay. In addition, all of his familys belongings, which were being transported by the FBI to his new location, were delayed for weeks before being delivered.

OBoyle had difficulty holding back tears as he related how he and his family were reduced to a charity case as a result of the FBIs actions.

Family Left Without Clothes

Democrats also questioned the credibility and ethics of the three witnesses, with Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-Fla.) charging that Friend was engaging in the promotion of his new book. What great timing to be on TV and testifying before Congress right before your book tour starts, she said.

Wasserman-Schultz also challenged Friends criticism of a decision by other FBI managers to use a SWAT team in the arrest of an individual associated with a far-right extremist group.

Two FBI agents died in a gunfight that engulfed the SWAT team when they attempted to arrest the individual.

Friend tried repeatedly to explain that the suspect had indicated a willingness to cooperate with the FBI, but Wasserman-Schultz interrupted him and demanded an abbreviated answer to her question.

Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) noted that Friend had arrested more than 150 violent criminals without using a SWAT team and that he had five years of experience working as a member of a SWAT unit.

The FBI has been turned into the enforcement wing of the Democratic Party, going after pro-life individuals, going after individuals who were not in restricted areas on Jan. 6, who were not violent on Jan. 6, and using SWAT team to go after individuals and intimidate them, Steube said.

And then when agents like yourself who have served your country, who have served the FBI, who have served in law enforcement suddenly want to raise concerns and use the whistleblower status to say, Hey, you know this isnt right, this isnt the way we should be treating any of these individuals, suddenly the FBI is taking you out, taking away your clearances, taking away your pay, shutting you down so that your families cant even survive financially.

OBoyle told the subcommittee, I am sad, I am disappointed, and I am angry that I have to be here to testify about the weaponization of the FBI and DOJ.

Weaponization not only against its own employees but against those institutions and individuals that are supposed to protect the American people.

I am here today because, even though I am wrongfully suspended from my duties, I remain duty bound to the American people to perform my small role in rectifying these small issues.
It was a time that called for tenderness and tears, but it was also a time that demanded readiness and strength. The young man was about to leave for America. Seeing his mother crying, he hesitated. He suggested staying home. His mother yelled out fiercely through her tears: Mitri! Mitri! I am ashamed of you! The high-strung young man was startledso much so that he fell off the pier into the ocean. Then, he swam back to the pier and got on board.

And so Russian aristocrat Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin said goodbye to his mother, Princess Adelheid Amalie Gallitzin. He would never see her again. Instead, he took with him to the newly founded United States all the toughness, independence of spirit, and strong capacity for love he had learned from her and made himself into one of the thousands of American heroes you have probably never heard about.

(duncan1890/DigitalVision Vectors/ Getty Images)

True Grit From an Unsung American Hero

Americans particularly value two qualities: being, in some way, self-made, and being gritty. Great Americans have these qualities, from George Washington to Laura Ingalls Wilder. These great Americans in turn had mothers who also exemplified these qualities and expected them in turn from their children.

Much has been written about these mothers. However, Princess Amalie has never really been considered in the light of being a mother to a great American. For one thing, she was a noble, and she never set foot in America. For another, her son, at least today, is not in the lists of famous Americans.

But what is more American than for a nobleman like Demetrius Gallitzin to toss off his title, take on American citizenship, and set himself to the great task of finding places for new Americans to live? What is more gritty than to undertake this task in the American backwoods, far from fame and fortune? And if he was a great American, and if he owed much of his greatness to his mothers care, might we not consider her as an honorary American mother?

Profile of Princess Adelheid Amalie Gallitzin, from Memoir on the Life and Character of the Rev. Prince Demetrius A. de Gallitzin, 1869, by Thomas Heyden. Library of Congress. (Public Domain)

It is necessary to first give a snapshot of the man before proceeding to the mother, a summary of a life of incredible endurance and love: Demetrius arrived in America in 1792, a young Russian nobleman with a bright future who was only supposed to make a brief tour of the new nation. Instead, he almost immediately gave up his title, entered the new Roman Catholic seminary, became a priest, and immediately sought out the lowliest mission assignments in Virginia, Maryland, and eastern Pennsylvania, caring for the poorest Americans.

Because a dying woman far away in the backwoods of Western Pennsylvania wanted a priest, he made a 150-mile sick call. Arriving at the settlement, he decided he was called to remain. For the next 40 years, he not only ministered as a priest, but he also used his own money to buy land and sell at a loss to poor pioneers. Like many great Americans, he was incredibly charitable, founding mills and tanneries for the people in the area, and adopting many of the orphans from the settlement.

Suffering a strangulated hernia after a fall from a horse, he got a sled and kept driving the hundreds of miles to visit his parishioners. Upon the Rev. Gallitzins arrival in 1800, there were a handful of people living in the settlement; by the time he died in 1840, it was the town of Loretto, Pennsylvania, with a population of more than 10,000.

An Inheritance of Determination and Love

The same qualities of toughness, independence, and a charitable heart are found in spades in the life of his mother and in the formation she gave him. This article begins with a striking example of this: their parting at the harbor of Rotterdam in 1792, how she combined a tender mothers love with the steely resolve that her son must grow up.

Portrait of Gallitzin from Life of Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin, Prince and Priest, 1873, by Sarah Micolena Brownson. (Public Domain)

For example, only 20 years before, there she was at the age of 24, the young wife of one of the great Russian nobles, Dmitri Gallitzin. This Dmitri Gallitzin was also the Russian ambassador to France and the Netherlands. A life of balls and receptions, prestige and importance, stretched far before her. And suddenly, in no uncertain terms, she informed her husband that she intended to devote her time to the education of her children.

This love poured out beyond the home, as can be seen in her charity to refugees of the French Revolution who escaped to Munster, Germany (she lived there while her husband served as a diplomat); clearly Demetrius Gallitzin had a pattern to follow in his mother for his charitable works.

Just as George Washington decided to take part in the French and Indian Wars against the wishes of his mother, Demetriuss decision to give up his title and become an American did not meet with Princess Amalies favor. And yet, they went aheadprecisely because they had been raised by their mothers to do the right thing.

Great Americans are shaped, often by their mothers, who instill into their sons and daughters values that will one day serve them well as leaders. Although she never set foot on American soil, Amalie Gallitzin is one of the mothers who helped make America.

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.
In a webinarthe Committee on the Present Danger: China (CPDC), hosted on May 17Miranda Devine, author and columnist at the New York Post; Charles Sam Faddis, former career Clandestine Service Officer at the CIA; Trevor Loudon, author, filmmaker, and expert on communism; U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah), Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, discuss the evidence the U.S. House Oversight Committee documented on President Joe Biden and his family.

Topics for each speaker:

Devine: What We Have Learned to Date about the Biden Familys Compromise and Capture by the CCP

Faddis: An American Career Spys Professional Assessment: Joe Biden is a Controlled Asset of the Chinese Communist Party' (via video).

Loudon: The Enemy Within: The Extent of Joe Bidens Betrayal and that of His Team

Stewart: What We Know So Far About Team Bidens Betrayal: A Career National Security Professionals Preliminary Damage Assessment

Epoch TV will replay the webinar at 4:00 p.m. ET on May 18.
Is Liberal Democracy Possible Without God?

A rare handwritten copy of the U.S. Declaration of Independence is seen at the West Sussex Record Office in Chichester, England, on April 27, 2017. (Hannah McKay/Reuters)

Commentary

As Western society becomes increasingly secularized, can our liberal democracy survive without God?

John Adams wrote to the Massachusetts Militia in 1798 that Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

The claim made by Adams makes eminent sense if we consider that liberal democracy is founded upon the equality and human rights of all people.

How can we make sense of equality without God?

If we are judged against our fellow humans, or against the state, then none of us would seem to be equal. But if our value is judged in relation to God, then we can make the claim to equality.

In the Jewish-Christian tradition, and other faith traditions, people have infinite value and inalienable dignity, and it is the infinite value of every human person that makes us equal.

But what happens when peoples value is judged in relation to other people?

That path leads to inequality, something exploited by Marxism and its condemnation of people to perpetual class struggle.

Protesters throwing the statue of Edward Colston into Bristol harbour during a Black Lives Matter protest rally in Bristol, England, on June 7, 2020. (Ben Birchall/PA Media)

That is also something happening in Australia right now with the proposed constitutional change that will give some people, but not others, a Voice to Parliament.

Instead of defining people by their common humanity, people are being defined in opposition to each other. Australia is thus risking a permanent two-class constitution in which not all are equal or, to borrow Orwells phrase, some will be more equal than others.

What about the human rights that our liberal democracy upholds?

There was great clarity from a Chinese communist leader when he was challenged about the Tiananmen Square Massacre and asked whether the students human rights had been violated. He answered that the state had not granted those rights.

Against that view is the United States Declaration of Independence, which asserts that the inalienable rights of people are endowed by their Creator.

Human rights are made manifest when they are guaranteed by a divine Creator, but they are not always guaranteed when they are subject to the whims of a state or even other people.

It is clear that, throughout history, human rights and human equality have been advanced and protected by belief in a Creator God from whom those rights and equality originate.

However, it can be objected that equality and human rights can also be philosophically defended. That is true, but it only a rigorous and truth-seeking philosophy reality can do that.

Greatest Fear of Dictators Is Belief in God

Contemporary relativist or woke philosophies certainly cannot articulate, let alone defended, equality or human rights. So, it is only a serious philosophy that can be used to protect liberal democracy.

I would therefore argue that belief in God, or a rigorous philosophy, is needed to defend human rights and equality and thus to uphold our liberal democracy.

That point was surprisingly made clear by perhaps Europes worst dictator Adolf Hitler, who claimed that the great mass of humanity consists neither of philosophers nor of saints.

German troops parade in front of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Generals after entry into Warsaw on Oct. 5, 1939. (Keystone/Getty Images)

Believing, as he did, that people lacked the faith in God to oppose Nazi ideology, he was able to steal from the German people whatever hope they had for liberal democracy and plunge the world into a war that was not only over land and resources, but over the rights and equality of all people.

It is easy to understand, then, that while it is hard for a liberal democracy to survive without God, it is near impossible for a totalitarian regime to survive with God and religious belief.

That helps make clear why authoritarian dictatorships are driven so hard to persecute people of faith.

Belief in God and transcendent values is a direct threat to those who would divide their people according to class and condemn them to perpetual class struggle, those who would regard some as more equal than others, and those who would dispense with the human rights of people when it suits the state.

While I write from the Jewish-Christian tradition, it is clear that other faiths help protect and sustain liberal democratic values and, at the same time, present a direct threat to totalitarianism.

A good example is the fear that the Chinese Communist Party has of Falun Gong practitioners and the Muslim Uyghurs and their harsh persecution of such people of faith.

Police detain a Falun Gong protester in Tiananmen Square as a crowd watches in Beijing, China, in this Oct. 1, 2000 photo. (Chien-min Chung/AP Photo)

These ideas may be somewhat academic and theoretical, but they should challenge us. If religious faith and rigorous philosophy have advanced human rights in our own countries, what are we doing to protect them?

The reality right now is that, even in so-called free countries of the West, human rights are being trampled on, and people are being divided by movements and educational institutions that are opposed to religious faith and the pursuit of truth and wisdom.

The question is, What shall we do about that? Shall we tolerate these attacks on faith and truth or allow our liberal democracy to die?

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
On May 18, at around 07:15, Armenian armed forces used combat UAVs against the Azerbaijan Armys several positions stationed in the direction of Yellija settlement of the Kalbajar region, Azernews reports.

During the inspection of the area, the remnants of projectiles made in a handicraft manner and thrown by Armenians by the use of UAVs were detected.

The Azerbaijan Army Units did not suffer any losses and took retaliatory measures.

We inform that the Armenian military-political leadership bears the entire responsibility for the tension caused in the region.
Israeli nationalists hold the Flag March to mark "Jerusalem Day" in Jerusalem, on May 18, 2023. (Photo by Chen Junqing/Xinhua)

RAMALLAH/GAZA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Flag March held by Israeli nationalists in Jerusalem on Thursday sparked outrage and condemnation from the Palestinian public and officials.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian presidency's spokesman, told reporters in Ramallah in the West Bank that "Jerusalem is and will be the eternal capital of the independent state of Palestine."

On Thursday afternoon, tens of thousands of Israelis participated in the march to commemorate the "Unification of Jerusalem" amid tight Israeli security measures.

Israeli participants in the Flag March march through the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem, on May 18, 2023. (Photo by Chen Junqing/Xinhua)

Participants waving Israeli flags and chanting anti-Palestinian slogans marched from the western part of the city, passed through the Islamic Quarter of the Old City, and reached the Wailing Wall close to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

"The Palestinian people have the legitimacy in Jerusalem, not Israel or the U.S.," Abu Rudeineh said, denouncing the march as "Israeli provocation and escalation."

He held the Israeli government "fully responsible for this escalation and its repercussions, which will lead to more escalations and tensions not only in Jerusalem, but also the entire region."

Israeli participants in the Flag March clash with Palestinians in Jerusalem, on May 18, 2023. (Photo by Chen Junqing/Xinhua)

The official Palestinian news agency (WAFA) reported that Israeli participants in the march "protected by the Israeli police officers, attacked several Palestinians in the old city of Jerusalem."

The report added that the Israeli police arrested 10 Palestinians for blocking one of the streets in the city to hinder the march.

On Thursday morning, the Israel deployed more than 3,000 policemen throughout the city of Jerusalem to secure the march, according to Israel Radio.

Palestinians hold a demonstration in response to the Israeli Flag March, in the eastern Gaza city, on May 18, 2023. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

In Gaza Strip, hundreds of Palestinians demonstrated near the fence of the borders between the eastern Gaza Strip and Israel to reject the Israeli flag march.

They waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans against Israel, while burning tires and hanging dozens of Palestinian flags on the border fence, said eyewitnesses.

Khaled Al-Batsh, a Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement leader, told the demonstrators that "the enemy cannot prove its presence in the city by waving thousands of their flag."

"All the historical evidence shows that the city of Jerusalem is Islamic, Arab and Palestinian," he said.

Palestinians hang Palestinian flags on the border fence in response to the Israeli Flag March, in the eastern Gaza city, on May 18, 2023. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Palestinian medics said that seven Palestinian demonstrators were injured, and dozens suffered suffocation after inhaling the teargas fired by the Israeli soldiers stationed at the border.

Meanwhile, Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the politburo of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) that rules the Gaza Strip, said in a press statement that "the mobilization of the Israeli entity to protect the Flag March reflects the Israeli security fragility."

Haniyeh added that "the chapters of confrontation with the enemy are continuing, and our people will close the account only by liberating the land, including Jerusalem and the right of return."

Israeli nationalists hold the annual Flag March to celebrate so-called "Jerusalem Day." Israel gained control of Jerusalem during the 1967 war and annexed it shortly afterward, a move that has not been recognized by most of the international community. 
Is Self-Defense Becoming Illegal?

Commentary

If someone you love is being threatened or physically attacked, do you have the right to defend them? And even more so, when police are being defunded and when criminals are being released on the streets, do you have a right to protect yourself?

Do you have to just let things happen? Must you just watch while innocent people are victimized by criminals? Well, thats the question currently on trial in New York.

Thats the case of Jordan Neely. Now, if you read most media outlets on the left, youll hear that the 30-year-old black man was a street performer and Michael Jackson impersonator. Youll also hear that his friends said he was a sweet kid and that he later suffered from mental disabilities and became homeless.

If you read media outlets on the right, youll hear that he was arrested 42 times between 2013 and 2021.

In 2015, he was convicted of trying to kidnap a 7-year-old girl in Inwood, New York, and was sentenced to four months in jail. Then, in 2021, he was arrested for punching a 67-year-old woman in the face as she exited a subway train in New Yorks East Village, breaking her nose and fracturing her orbital bone.

He pleaded guilty, and while facing 15 months in an alternative-to-incarceration program, he skipped his court date, and he had a warrant out for his arrest since February.

Both sides of Neelys story are true. He was a talented dancer who suffered from mental problems, and he had become a criminal menace. The New York justice system repeatedly let him off the hook. Even outside of his arrests, people were posting online about personal experiences of being threatened or attacked by Neely.

And then, on May 1, Neely was allegedly threatening passengers on a New York subway car until a former U.S. Marine intervened; he restrained Neely with a chokehold while two other men helped subdue him. After Neely lost consciousness, the men placed Neely in a recovery position, and yet, Neely died.

Nobody was initially charged. Video of the incident, which was limited to when Neely had already been restrained, was quickly picked up by political actors to play into the countrys race narratives.

Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) of New York wrote on Twitter a couple of days later that Jordan Neely was murdered. She claimed that he was houseless and crying for food in a time when the city is raising rents and stripping services to militarize itself while many in power demonize the poor.

She said it was disgusting that the man who allegedly killed Neely wasnt charged.

Others on the far left came forward to also criticize the case as being about race and to suggest that justice was needed, although, even among Democrats, not everyone was in agreement.

The political attacks sounded like a dog whistle to radical groups in New York. There were no major protests like those that were common with the Black Lives Matter summer riots a few years back, although a few dozen protesters went viral when they jumped on the subway tracks and forced a Q train to slam on its brakes.

It also turned out that the protesters werent grassroots protesters. They were with an organization called Voices of Community Activists and Leaders, which has funding from billionaires including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, through the FWD.us Education Fund, and radical left billionaire George Soros, through his Open Society Foundations.

It also turned out that the radical organization that staged the subway protest had previously teamed up in other protests with the Young Communist League of the Communist Party USA.

The outright communist group also was involved in the Neely protests and stated on Twitter: Thank you to all our comrades who answered the call today! Were just getting started!

The communist connection to the staged protests brings the whole incident full circle, right back to AOCs taking the lead in calling for charges in the case. Justine Medina, a former AOC aide, is a member of the executive committee of the New York State Communist Party and is co-chair of the New York Young Communist League. Thats the same group that staged the subway protest.

The Peoples World website states: Justine Medina is a co-chair of the New York Young Communist League. Shes also been involved in Democratic Socialists of America and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs campaigns for Congress.

So lets dig into this. Soros finances the campaigns of radical district attorneys who let criminals off the hook. A criminal is killed by people defending themselves when the citys justice system fails. A radical Congress member, whose political campaign was notably assisted by a media network with funding from Soros, comes out and calls for arrests. Then, a radical group funded by Soros stages a protest while being backed by a communist group tied to that same politician, also calling for arrests. Seems to be a lot of overlap here.

Regardless of the Soros above and below strategy at play, former U.S. Marine Daniel Penny was arrested in Neelys death. Hes now facing a felony charge of second-degree manslaughter, although he holds that he acted in self-defense.

So is this really about crime, then? Is it really about justice? Or is it about something else? Well, its not clear. But what we can say is that the narratives arent lining up. Many politicians who called for Pennys arrest were simultaneously criticizing the use of justice. They were noting that young men are being sent to prison, when, in reality, many just need help. Yet they did this while also calling for Penny to be sent to prison.

Others were more direct. Others suggested this may not be about manslaughter or about justice or even about mental health. Instead, theyre saying this is about race.

New York Mayor Eric Adams flip-flopped on that point. He first criticized AOC for claiming that Penny murdered Neely. Then, Adams brought race-based narratives to the case.

For conservatives, its not about race. Instead, its about whether youre allowed to defend yourself. The case has become a symbol of whats wrong with defunding the police and about whether people are being selectively prosecuted, based not on crime but on the color of their skin.

When people such as Adams make it about race, other people start wondering whether the case would be treated differently if race werent an issue.

Thats partly why people are donating to Pennys defense fund; musician Kid Rock donated $5,000, criticized New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg, and declared that Penny is a hero. Its why even politicians such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are getting on board to fundraise for Penny.

And its also why people are now bringing up the idea of self-defense. Al Sharpton, for example, was saying that if Penny werent charged, it would encourage others to become vigilantes.

This is the point at which many cities in the United States find themselves. The common view, at least among conservatives, is this: Police have been made unable to do their jobs, the courts appear to have a swinging door, and violent individuals such as Neely are allowed to attack, harass, and generally menace people.

So if nobody will protect you, what are your options? Even if you see others being attacked or harassed, should you do anything to help them? Should you allow them to be attacked? Or do you want to risk going to prison simply for stepping up to help?

In 2021, we watched in shock at what took place in the Philadelphia area, when a woman was raped on a train. Passengers did nothing to help her. They listened to her cries, and they allowed it to happen. It raised the question of what we become as a society if people dont stand up against evil, what happens when good people dont come forward? And even more so, what will we become when good people arent allowed to intervene?

In the natural world, self-defense is written into the DNA of life. Even bugs have the means to defend themselves. Nearly every creature on earth has been given by God a means to defend itself, whether it be claws, teeth, stingers, or other means.

Humans create tools, such as swords and guns, to defend ourselves. And this has held true throughout all human history. The right to self-defense is the right to life. And the right to guard life is one of the main pillars of law.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
A woman had a close encounter with natures majesty on a hike in the Utah mountains when she came across a beautiful young mountain lion that took her breath away.

Originally from Michigan, 40-year-old Denise Peterson moved to Utah to be closer to the mountains and mountain lions. In mid-April this year, Peterson was stunned, while hiking, to spot a young female lion sitting alone across the canyon.

She was sitting out on the ridge, looking at the valley below, Peterson told The Epoch Times. I pulled out the scope that I had with me and settled in to watch what she was doing.

A young mountain lion basking in the sun. (Courtesy of Denise M. Peterson)

Peterson watched carefully as the young lion meandered from the ridge to several rock outcroppings, then attempted to hunt down a bird but failed.

She continued to watch the young lion as she climbed on top of a flat rock and basked in the sun. During the three hours that Peterson was observing her, she was vocalizing, likely trying to call her mother.

Peterson, a certified geographic information systems (GIS) analyst and founder of Utah Mountain Lion Conservation (UMLC), guessed that the female lion was around 10 months old, and still highly reliant on her mother for food and wild survival skills. However, she noted that the young lion was confident.

As I was sitting with her, runners and hikers were zipping by me. The young lion showed no interest in either me or the folks that were out enjoying the trail that day, said Peterson, who posted footage of the incredible sighting on Facebook.

She wrote: Its so rare to see them in the wild that I cherish every time I get to see one of them.  Its the moments like this that keep us going!

According to Peterson, mountain lions are often very misunderstood. Each has its own unique personality, and the species is adept at coexisting with humans.

One of her most memorable mountain lion encounters, Peterson says, was her first wild sighting without hounds.

Reflecting on the fond memory, Peterson said that she and her colleagues were part of a study of cougar clusters in northern Utah in the spring of 2022, knowing there was a mountain lion and her two cubs in the area. While wrapping up, the team noticed movement ahead and saw one lion running up the draw toward deer.

Peterson said: My partner was on the ridge above me, so I radioed him to keep an eye out for the cat as it was headed in his general direction. As the lion disappeared out of sight, a second one appeared, slowly walking up the same draw that the younger cat had run up moments before. I was able to pull out my phone and get a video of her as she made her way uphill.

It was an incredible moment! she said.

Until that very moment, Peterson had spent hours tracking and catching them on trail cameras and had even assisted with collaring mountain lions for the study, however, this was the first time they had seen mountain lions on the landscape as they were traveling through.

Theres something truly special about seeing a mountain lion in the wild, let alone two at the same time, she said. Im so grateful for that moment.

(Courtesy of Denise M. Peterson)

Peterson founded the conservation group UMLC in 2017 as a passion project and it grew from there. Today, the group is a fiscally-sponsored project of Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs (SEE) concerned with mountain lion biology and behavior, conflict prevention and coexistence, and ongoing research.

Managing human-lion conflict is crucial to the survival of the mountain lion species, according to Peterson. Overhunting and trapping can destabilize their social structures and cause conflict with humans. If a mother is killed, her orphaned cubswho are reliant on their mothers for up to two yearsare unlikely to survive. Mountain lions are also sometimes struck and killed by vehicles and can be killed by farmers when there is a conflict with livestock.

UMLC uses footage from its 50 trail cameras, stationed around northern Utah, to tell the stories of mountain lions at school events and with communities concerned about lions in their area. The group is also trying to protect the lion population from a bill signed by Governor Spencer Cox that exposes Utahs mountain lions to year-round hunting and trapping.

(Courtesy of Denise M. Peterson)

Mountain lions, like any animal, wild or domestic, can potentially be dangerous to humans, but the danger is blown out of proportion, Peterson said. Ive been face to face with a female mountain lion with kittens, and did not feel genuinely threatened. I interpreted what her body language was telling me and acted accordingly. Many situations can be diffused by knowing what to do.

Mountain lions are conflict-averse and avoid humans as much as possible, Peterson said, but its imperative to respect their space and know how to interpret their body language.

If a mountain lion is aggressive you should keep a safe distance, make yourself look big, maintain eye contact, keep kids close and pets on leashes, and talk to or yell at them. If they try to approach, throw something; if they attack, fight back. However, if you come across a mountain lion that is not displaying aggression, there is no harm in enjoying the sighting, she said.

UMLC also provides more safety and conflict prevention tips on its website.

Share your stories with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.com, and continue to get your daily dose of inspiration by signing up for the Inspired newsletter at TheEpochTimes.com/newsletter
IN-DEPTH: JPMorgan Chase Faces Backlash Over Alleged Discrimination Against Religious and Conservative Groups

Bank defeats shareholder proposal to investigate allegations of political, religious discrimination

People pass a sign for JPMorgan Chase at it's headquarters in Manhattan in this file photo. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

In the spring of 2022, Sam Brownback, a former U.S. senator, governor of Kansas, and U.S. ambassador, co-founded the National Committee for Religious Freedom (NCRF) to, in his words, protect the right to the free exercise of faith for all Americans.

NCRFs board members decided to set up the non-profits bank accounts at JPMorgan Chase.

Weve got a bipartisan national advisory board that includes members who are Christians, Hindus, Jewish, Mormon, Muslims, Brownback recounted in a May 16 video conference. In April of 2022 we opened a bank account for the NCRF at Chase; we chose Chase because of the national footprint and the multi-generational relationships that our team had with the bank.

Three weeks later, he went to cash a donors check and was told the accounts were closed. Days later, Brownback said he received a letter from Chase saying they decided to end their relationship with the NCRF.

Despite the fact that the accounts had only been open for 24 days, Brownback said he was told that the NCRFs accounts were closed because it had failed to provide requested background information within 60 days. When he protested that he had never received an information request, he was told that accounts could be reopened if NCRF would disclose the names of its donors, as well as the names of political candidates the organization intended to support. He declined.

By November, Chase pivoted to a different explanation, Brownback stated, saying in an email that I am a politically exposed person.

Brownbacks story and others like it prompted 19 state attorneys general to write a letter of protest to JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, stating that the bank persistently discriminated against certain customers due to their religious or political affiliation.

On March 23, 14 state treasurers penned a letter to Dimon, stating their concern that the bank is engaged in what appears to be politically motivated de-banking of certain industries, individuals, and groups.

It also prompted longstanding shareholder David Bahnsen to issue a proposal at JPMorgans shareholder meeting on May 16, calling for the bank to investigate the matter and clarify its position on religious and political discrimination against its customers.

JPMorgan Fights Back, Denies Allegations

JPMorgan first fought against the proposal, first by asking the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to disallow it. But the SEC ruled on March 29 that the proposal could proceed to a vote.

The bank then urged shareholders to vote against the proposal. JPMorgan Chase has since denied the allegations of political or religious discrimination. One day prior to the shareholder vote, JPMorgans board of directors issued a statement that Bahnsens proposal was based on allegations that are not true.

It is not our policy to debank people because of their political views or religious affiliation, the bank stated. We believe [JPMorgan Chase] has a strong corporate culture that values diversity of backgrounds, ideas, and experience and effectively works to prevent discrimination.

The companys statement of opposition repeatedly claims it is not our policy to debank people because of their political views or religious affiliation, Bahnsen stated. I believe them, but that doesnt really answer the question. Of course there is no explicit policy of political or religious discrimination.

What he hoped to achieve, Bahnsen said, is for JPMorgan Chase to investigate whether its actions, like closing the NCRFs accounts, are a case of activist employees going rogue or a de facto protocol of the bank. Ultimately, bank management prevailed in the shareholder vote and Bahnsens proposal was defeated.

Pressure on Large Banks to Debank Conservatives

Because of the rise of mutual funds, index funds, and pension funds, about 70 percent of all corporate shares in America are held by institutional investors. Many of the worlds largest banks, asset managers, and pension managersincluding JPMorganhave joined progressive clubs like Climate Action 100 and the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative (NZAM) and support progressive agendas like the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) movement.

JPMorgan Chases largest shareholder is BlackRock, which has also been a prominent advocate of progressive causes. BlackRock did not support Bahnsens proposal.

Theres an incredible amount of pressure on large financial institutions to debank people because of their religious or political beliefs that are out of line with progressive values, and for the folks who are debanked thats a terrifying prospect, Jeremy Tedesco, ADF senior counsel, told The Epoch Times. But the real damage is to civil society.

Tedesco said that politicized debanking appears to be on the rise at Chase. He cites a discrepancy between the banks top ratings from left-leaning organizations and dismal ratings according to more conservative criteria like viewpoint diversity.

On social issues, JPMorgan Chase scored a perfect 100 percent on the Human Rights Coalitions Corporate Equality Index, which rates companies according to their Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Equality. However, according to the Viewpoint Diversity Index published by ADF, JPMorgan scored only 9 percent out of 100, a decrease from 15 percent the previous year.

Bahnsen says he is not a shareholder activist. He has been an owner of JPMorgan stock for 14 years, both for his personal investments and on behalf of the billions of dollars of capital we manage for clients, he said.

In his address to shareholders, he stated that JPMorgan is perhaps the best there is when it comes to running its core business, but it is ill qualified to be a political or cultural arbiter. This company that I and you, my fellow shareholders, own has shown a concerning pattern of debanking conservatives and religious organizations who have had accounts cancelled without notice or explanation.

The Alliance Defending Freedom gives our company 15% out of a possible 100% in respect for diverse viewpoints, Bahnsen stated. The 1792 Exchanges Corporate Bias Report classifies the company as high risk when it comes to the probability of denial of services based on views and beliefs. The American Conservative Values Fund lists JPMorgan Chase as among the Worst of the worst companies most hostile to conservative values.

In November 2022, 60 finance professionals signed the Statement on Debanking and Free Speech, which charges that banks including JP Morgan Chase attempted to punish account holders with mainstream conservative political beliefs.

In a particularly egregious display of viewpoint discrimination, JP Morgan Chase refused to process payments for a GOP-aligned organization, the statement alleges.

Damage to Civil Society

When banks target customers because of their views, Tedesco said, the real damage is to civil society.

When theres a threat that a bank will debank you because of your religious or political beliefs, it chills peoples willingness to exercise their free speech and religious freedom rights, or to engage in the democratic process, Tedesco said. So banks have to take seriously the threat they pose by having these unbounded policies that allow them to do just that.

Scott Shepard, a director at the National Center for Public Policy Research, told The Epoch Times that banks like JPMorgan have become like public utilities in that their size means they can dominate consumer markets and that most Americans today are unable to live their lives outside of the banking system.

Banks that are too big to fail have to be too big to discriminate, Shepard said. All American taxpayers backstop these too-big-to-fail banks, and all of their viewpoints should be respected equally.

One thing I am certain of is that the next time a bank manager decides to close an account for somebody like Ambassador Brownback, theyre going to think twice about doing it, Bahnsen said. This was covered far and wide by both the left wing press and the right wing press, and I do not believe it looked good upon JPMorgan. I think, even with this resolution failing, the shareholders of JPMorgan were very well served by this effort.
Lawmakers Clash Over Regulation of Stablecoins

House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 12, 2022 in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

House lawmakers took part in a contentious debate over how stablecoins should be regulated at a hearing held by the Financial Services Committees digital assets panelwhere there were also some hopeful signs from both sides.

At the heart of the debate on May 16 was the level of involvement of state regulators and the Federal Reserve.

Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.), who chairs the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, supports legislation that gives more power to state regulators, while Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the overall committee, advocates for a leading role for the Federal Reserve in the Democratic proposal.

Hill challenged a previous notion put forth by Waters that yielding oversight to the states would be a step backwards in establishing a clear legal framework.

Were not starting from scratch, Hill said. The similarities between the two proposals are strong, and thats why were not that far apart.

Still, Waters argued that several critical positions are missing from the Republican proposal, leading to a further divide between the parties.

Amid the volatile cryptocurrency markets, stablecoins are meant to be a safe haven. They also hold bipartisan appeal as an accessible and less expensive way to conduct monetary transactions outside of the traditional financial system and internationally.

Tetherthe largest U.S. stablecoinand Circle, are digital assets tied to the value of the U.S. dollar and play a significant role in the cryptocurrency market. Both Republicans and Democrats share common goals of protecting consumers and preserving the global role of the U.S. dollar. Regulating dollar-denominated stablecoins within the United States could contribute to achieving these objectives.

While the crypto industry eagerly awaits U.S. regulations, many are encouraged by the multiple congressional hearings dedicated to stablecoins and cryptocurrencies in recent weeks. A compromise on stablecoin regulation would be a significant first step toward establishing oversight of the industry in the United States.

U.S. Rep.-elect French Hill (R-Ark.) delivers remarks in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington on Jan. 5, 2023. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

University of Hong Kong economist Douglas Arner authored a paper for the Bank of International Settlements in 2020 calling for an appropriate registration or licensing regime. The paper argued that regulatory clarity is beneficial to crypto entrepreneurs who are focused on long-term prospects within the sector.

However, any legislation needs to pass through the Senate Banking Committee, chaired by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). So far, Brown has not shown any inclination to move forward with a bill.

In addition to stablecoins, Hill has also weighed in on the topic of a digital dollar. Together with Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), Hill introduced a bipartisan bill to prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a government-backed digital currency.

Uncle Sam is going to use a central bank digital currency to surveil where theyre spending their money and how much, and ultimately block them from using the banking and payments system, Hill said.

Recently, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that bans any U.S. central bank digital currency (CBDCs) from being considered legal tender in the state, further highlighting the ongoing discussions surrounding digital currencies in various jurisdictions.
Lawyers for Derek Chauvin File Petition in Minnesota Supreme Court Appealing Conviction for George Floyd Murder

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin addresses the court as Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill presides over his sentencing in Minneapolis on June, 25, 2021. (Court TV via AP)

Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who was convicted in April 2021 of murdering George Floyd, has appealed his conviction, arguing that he was deprived of a fair trial.

His attorney, William Mohrman, filed a petition for review with the Minnesota Supreme Court on May 17, arguing that the district judges decision not to move the proceedings out of the city deprived his client of a fair trial.

Were very hopeful that the Minnesota Supreme Court will accept review of the case, Mohrman said.

In his petition, Morhman argued that the case presents the state Supreme Court with important questions on developing and clarifying due process requirements to transfer venue when there is unprecedented pervasive pretrial publicity coupled with community violence.

He also noted that it raises issues regarding rules surrounding juror misconduct, pointing to one juror, Brandon Mitchell, who took part in a civil rights event commemorating Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have a Dream speech delivered during the 1963 March in Washington, D.C.

A photograph from the event, posted on social media, showed Mitchel, who is black, wearing a black T-shirt with a picture of Martin Luther King Jr. emblazoned with the words Get your knee off our necks, and BLM, (Black Lives Matter).

The juror only revealed that he attended the summer event after Chauvins trial concluded.

Floyds Death

However, the Court of Appeals declined to send the case back to the trial judge for a hearing on whether the jurors failure to disclose his attendance at the event ahead of the trial amounted to misconduct.

Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was killed on May 25, 2020, by Chauvin during an arrest after Floyd allegedly tried to use a counterfeit $20 bill to purchase cigarettes.

Chauvin pinned him to the ground with a knee on Floyds neck for approximately nine-and-a-half minutes as Floyd lay handcuffed and face-down on the pavement.

Another officer, Thomas Lane, restrained his lower body, and Officer J. Alexander Kueng knelt on Floyds back.

Chauvin was convicted of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter charges in Floyds death in April 2021, and sentenced to more than 22 years in prison.

In July 2022, he was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison for violating the civil rights of Floyd, a convicted felon, and is now serving in Arizona concurrent with his state sentence of murder and manslaughter.

Nationwide Protests

The latest petition comes a month after the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld Chauvins conviction for second-degree murder and let his 22.5-year sentence remain in place.

Chauvins attorney had asked the appeals court to throw out the ex-officers convictions, citing multiple reasons including the huge amount of publicity ahead of the trial and various legal and procedural errors that he argued deprived Chauvin of a fair trial.

The appeal proved to be unsuccessful and the three-judge panel ultimately agreed with prosecutors that Chauvin received a fair trial and just sentence.

Floyds death triggered widespread left-wing demonstrations across the country, many of which were peaceful although others turned violent, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in damage to some businesses from looting and arson.

According to a 2020 report from Axios, the destruction that occurred as a result of the demonstrations was estimated to cost at least $1 billion to $2 billion in paid insurance claims.

Many of the protests continued into early 2021 and prompted calls to defund the police, which some critics attribute to a significant rise in crime across a number of major metropolitan areas in the country.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
London Ontarios Public Library Bans Society for Academic Freedom

Commentary

In mid-May, True North columnist Andrew Lawton reported that the London Public Library in Ontario refused to rent space for an annual public lecture organized by the Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship (SAFS).

Founded in 1992, SAFS is a Canadian academic organization with a mandate to defend freedom in teaching, research and scholarship. It is non-profit, non-partisan, and entirely financed by membership fees and voluntary contributions.

Members of SAFS from across Canada promote reasoned debate on issues of academic freedom and scholarship. They come from a variety of positions on the political spectrum and bring a valuable diversity of opinion to the public square. The majority are practicing or retired university academics.

The library turned down SAFSs request to rent space on the grounds that the participation of their invited speaker, British author and University of Kent lecturer Joanna Williams, would violate the librarys policy on workplace harassment and pose a risk of physical danger.

Williamss 2022 book was How Woke Won: The Elitist Movement That Threatens Democracy, Tolerance and Reason. SAFS invited her to Canada to give a lecture on the subject of Sex, Gender, and the Limits of Free Speech on Campus.

During the rental application process, SAFS President Mark Mercer, a philosophy professor at Saint Marys University in Halifax, was asked by the library to provide a full description of the proposed presentation. The library wanted documentation including PowerPoint slides and a proposed lecture outline.

Mercer informed the library that he didnt have PowerPoint slides or an outline of Williamss forthcoming talk. She probably doesnt either, yet, he explained to me in a telephone interview.

He did provide links to lectures by Williams that followed the publication of her 2016 book on Academic Freedom in an Age of Conformity.

One-Way Harassment Policy

Nine days later, the librarys meetings and events coordinator, Robert Giorgini, told Mercer, As per the Librarys policy governing room rentals, we are not able to approve the rental request.

Initially, Giorgini didnt give any details about the decision, but when pressed he came up with a standard trifecta of official anxieties.

Allegedly, the presence of a group like SAFS would produce A risk or likelihood of physical danger to participants or the audience or misuse of the property or equipment; and The potential or likelihood of the event to negatively impact or impede the ability of others to enjoy the services and facilities of the Library, and/or Library operations.

The librarys final concern stood out for me: The Renter or Event content is or is likely to be in violation of Library policy, including, but not limited to, the Librarys Rules of Conduct, Charter of Library Use or Workplace Harassment and Sexual Harassment Prevention policies.

When Giorgini was asked to explain how Williamss lecture had anything to do with such things, he said, [The library] will not be providing any additional information or details at this time.

The coordinators response sounded eerily like something one might expect from a Soviet-era KGB officer being asked for information about the status of a political prisoner. Lawton reported that Mercer found the librarys reaction deeply disturbing.

With regard to allegations about physical danger and harassment, Mercer pointed out that there has never been a disruptive protest at a SAFS event, nor the need to hire security. He asserted that the librarys risk assessment was simply wrong.

In fact, the 2019 SAFS public lecture, which also featured a controversial international speaker, had been held very peacefully at the same London Public Library without objection or incident.

Mercer told me that part of the important business of a public library is to provide affordable space for public discourse and an open exchange of ideas. He confirmed that, in his opinion, the library was contradicting its own codes and purpose.

Empty Support for Intellectual Freedom

In a 2021 policy document (pdf), the London Public Library reminded citizens that:

Intellectual Freedom is guaranteed as a basic democratic right by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and is defined as a universal right by the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Library authorities went on to assert that all people have the right to access expressions of knowledge, creative thought and intellectual activity. The Library supports, defends and promotes intellectual freedom and actively advocates in defence of the rights of library users to read, seek information, and express their views. The purpose of this policy is to provide broad direction on the access to intellectual content through services, collections and programs offered by the Library.

Mercer told True North that SAFS is seeking internal library records to hold the London Public Library to its own principles. In the case of this innocuous rental request, one can only assume that the library staff dont share the views of the invited speaker and decided to de-platform her.

In an email to Lawton, Joanna Williams herself said the librarys decision proved the point she intended to make in her talk.

By refusing to host some debates but not others, these institutions are effectively taking sides, curtailing free speech and limiting the terrain of public debate, she wrote.

In our imperial Reich of the Woke, the Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship has been bloodied but unbowed.

Williamss public talk was rescheduled to take place at Londons Delta hotel on the evening of May 19. The SAFS Annual General Meeting and Conference, which has convened in London, Ontario, for the past 20 years, will still go on at Western University.

Free citizens in London should turn out and support SAFSs defense of intellectual freedom. Its something their public library claims to do, but doesnt.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Man and 12-Year-Old Boy Arrested After Fatal Shooting at Sonic Restaurant in Texas

Angel Gomez in a photo released on May 14, 2023. (Keene Police Department via AP)

KEENE, TexasA 12-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man have been arrested on a murder warrant in the fatal shooting of a Sonic Drive-In employee in Texas, police said.

Matthew Davis, 32, was shot and killed Saturday night as he fought with Angel Gomez, 20, in the parking lot of the restaurant in Keene, about 40 miles southwest of Dallas, police said.

The boy was at the restaurant with Gomez, who was causing an unspecified disturbance in the parking lot, and shot Davis several times after taking a gun from Gomezs vehicle, according to a police statement.

Davis was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, police said.

Both Gomez and the boy fled the scene, but Gomez later returned and was arrested on a murder warrant and the boy, whose name has not been released, was found and arrested in the nearby town of Rio Vista, said police.

Court records do not show that formal charges have been filed.
Man Gets 40 Years to Life for Killing Boyfriend at San Diego Motel

SAN DIEGOA man who fatally beat his boyfriend at a downtown San Diego motel was sentenced May 17 to 40 years to life in state prison.

Ryan Breeland, 43, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and other charges in the death of 32-year-old Kenneth Banks, who was found dead on the morning of June 9, 2021, at a motel on 10th Avenue.

Bankss body was discovered inside one of the motels rooms when employees went inside to clean it, according to Lt. Matt Dobbs of the San Diego Police Department. Breeland was arrested and booked into county jail later that day.

In addition to murder, Breeland pleaded guilty to charges of domestic violence and assault with a deadly weapon. A prior strike conviction from 2015 for assault with a deadly weapon led to a doubling of Breelands sentence on some of the counts. He also has a prior domestic violence conviction from 2016.

At Breelands sentencing hearing, Bankss sister-in-law Kimberli Coons Banks called Banks an angel and the most innocent, pure-hearted gentle soul.

While Banks had a great love for his family, she said he also yearned for love and acceptance from his peers and people outside of his family.

Coons Banks said that because Kenneth was so naive and innocent, we always worried someone would take advantage of him. And that is exactly what Ryan Breeland did to our sweet, innocent Kenneth.

Deputy District Attorney Taren Brast read a letter in court from Bankss sister, Kendra Banks.

You took advantage of a person you knew wouldnt hurt a fly, the letter read. You saw that as an opportunity to use and abuse and you did just that to the point that he wanted out and you couldnt let him  You never loved him and it breaks my heart because thats the only thing my brother wanted: to be happy, comfortable and loved.
Man Who Killed 8 in NYC Terrorist Attack Gets 10 Life Sentences Plus 260 Years

Sayfullo Saipov (C) is flanked by his attorneys David M. Stern (L) and federal Defender Andrew John Dalack (R) during victim impact statements in the sentencing phase of his trial in a courtroom sketch in federal court in New York on May 17, 2023. (Elizabeth Williams/AP Photo)

NEW YORKAn unrepentant and defiant Islamic extremist received 10 life sentences and another 260 years in prison on Wednesday for killing eight people with a truck on a bike path in Manhattan on Halloween in 2017, as a judge decried his callous and cowardly crimes.

The conduct in this case is among the worst, if not the worst Ive ever seen, said U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, as he announced a sentence designed to underscore the severity of the terrorist attack Sayfullo Saipov claimed he carried out on behalf of the ISIS terrorist group.

A life sentence was mandatory after a jury rejected the death penalty in March, but prosecutors had asked Broderick to impose eight consecutive life sentences and two concurrent life sentences. They also wanted an extra 260 years to send a stern message to other like-minded terrorists. And thats what the judge did.

Broderick cited the defiance of Saipov, who, given a chance to speak, said the tears of victims and family members in the courtroom during the six months of the trial would fill a single tissue. But, Saipov said, the tears and blood of followers of Islam killed unjustly worldwide would fill the courtroom.

In a rambling rant delivered through a translator, Saipov spent most of an hour talking about the creation of religions and how the devil was instrumental in the evolution of the human population.

When he finished, a female victims relative briefly stood, shouting: The only act of the devil here is the act you did!

You did not and you do not care about their pain and their suffering, the judge said to Saipov about the victims. He noted that even Saipovs relatives, including his father, were ashamed and traumatized and forever changed.

Saipov, 35, an Uzbekistan citizen and onetime New Jersey resident, was expected to serve his sentence at the maximum security prison in Florence, Colorado, for his Oct. 31, 2017, slaughter of tourists and a New Yorker.

His head was drooped and eyes were lowered as 19 victims and relatives of the people killed in the terror attack spoke sometimes through tears, describing lingering pain and occasionally directly addressing him.

Sayfullo Saipov. (St. Charles County, Mo., Department of Corrections/KMOV via AP)

Frank Decadt, father of victim Ann-Laure Decadt, told Saipov that he hoped that one day you will understand the extent of horror you have inflicted on so many people.

Only a monster can do what you did, said Vanesa Erlij Wittenberg, calling her deceased brother an amazing person.

You, on the contrary, are a shame to your family and especially your kids, she said.

Marion Van Reeth, who lost her legs in the attack, sat before Saipov in her wheelchair, telling him: I will never be able to walk like you can.

As Saipov listened to a translation of the proceedings through earphones, she said: I have a question for you. After all this time in prison, are you still convinced that your criminal acts against innocent people was the right thing?

Like others, she wished that someday Saipov would realize he was wrong.

Gabriela Pabla Pereya, the wife of Ariel Erlij, who was among five men from Argentina killed during a bike ride as they celebrated the 30th anniversary of their high school graduation, delivered the shortest statement. She called Saipov a coward and said if he truly wanted God to accept and love you, go kill yourself.

Monica Missio, whose only child, Nicholas Cleves was killed, told Saipov his death has completely destroyed my life.

His conviction brought a small sense of justice, but for me there is no sense of closure, she said.

He gets to wake up every day while my son does not, Missio said.

After they spoke, Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Houle called the attack pure evil and showed a recent photograph of the victims after they returned to the bike path with photographs of the dead.

They are reclaiming that crime scene. They are shouting that they are stronger together, she said. Their capacity for love and compassion is remarkable.

After the sentencing, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a statement that the Justice Department will continue to vigorously defend the American people from threats of terrorism and will work tirelessly to bring those who perpetrate terrorist attacks to justice.

Five tourists from Argentina, two Americans, and a Belgian woman were killed, and 18 others were seriously injured.

Saipov was shot by a police officer and immediately taken into custody after emerging from his truck and waving paintball and pellet guns in the air.

At trial, his family urged a life sentence, saying they hoped hed someday realize what hed done and express remorse. They said he was normal before he grew obsessed with online terrorism propaganda.

A former long-haul truck driver, Saipov moved legally to the United States from Uzbekistan in 2010 and lived in Ohio and Florida before joining his family in Paterson, New Jersey.
McCarthy Predicts Debt Ceiling Deal to Reach House Next Week

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks to the press after meeting President Joe Biden and other leaders at the White House in Washington on May 16, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) expects to bring a deal on raising the federal debt ceiling before the House next week, he told reporters on May 18.

The positive tone marks a change for the Speaker, who as recently the day before had refused to say he was optimistic about reaching an agreement with President Joe Biden on raising the debt ceiling, along with spending caps and other provisions demanded by Republicans.

McCarthy said negotiators are in a much better place, adding, I can see now where a deal can come together.

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), and President Joe Biden meet with other lawmakers in the Oval Office of the White House on May 9, 2023. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

The negotiatorsincluding Steve Ricchetti, counselor to the president, and Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.), and unnamed members of McCarthys staffare still in talks over the spending caps, and the amount and duration of an increase or suspension to the debt limit, according to McCarthy.

The working group has met daily since May 16.

Prior to his departure on May 17 for the G7 Summit in Japan, the president also voiced optimism that a deal was in the offing.

Were going to continue these discussions with congressional leaders in the coming days until we reach an agreement, Biden said, referring to talks on the debt ceiling and spending proposals that began on May 9.

The president and the Speaker had been in a months-long standoff over raising the nations $31.4 trillion borrowing limit. Biden had refused to negotiate over raising the limit, saying that it would jeopardize the full faith and credit of the United States.

The Speaker insisted that Congress would not agree to raise the limit without some concession on future spending.

In April, the House passed the Limit, Save, Grow Act, which would raise the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion, enough to last for about one year, while limiting federal spending, strengthening work requirements for some recipients of federal benefits, clawing back unspent COVID-19 relief funds, and loosening restrictions on drilling for oil and gas.

While continuing to say he would not negotiate concerning the debt ceiling, Biden has been willing to negotiate on other provisions of the GOP bill. He has signaled a willingness to consider some changes to work requirements.

If the debt ceiling is not raised, the U.S. Treasury will lack the cash to pay all of the nations bills on or after June 1, according to Secretary Janet Yellen.

Before leaving for the G-7 summit in Japan, the president said he would hold a press conference on the subject upon his return on May 21.
ACCRA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Ghana is nurturing women entrepreneurs to take advantage of opportunities brought by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand their businesses, a Ghanaian official said Wednesday.

The AfCFTA has been offering great opportunities for women, Agnes Adjei-Sam, director for market development and promotion at the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA), told Xinhua in an interview.

"Many Ghanaian women in innovative businesses that, when well-developed, could become continental and global brands through participating in the free trade area," said the director.

"The AfCFTA makes provision for helping women to formalize their businesses. And that makes the woman more secure in trading, more secure to look for partners. So at GEPA, we will nurture Ghanaian women to take full advantage of opportunities," Adjei-Sam added.

The official noted that many Ghanaian women's products did not require much capital or complex and expensive machinery; most of them are the daily necessities people depend on.

"In every capacity-building program that we do, a good percentage of participants are women. Whether it is training, market access, product development or trade information, there is always a good representation of women," she said. 
McCaul Accepts State Department Offer to View Afghan Dissent Cable, Pauses Subpoena Enforcement

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) speaks at a bipartisan news conference, on the Afghanistan evacuations, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Aug. 25, 2021. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) has accepted the State Departments offer to view a dissent cable from the time of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

During a May 17 briefing at the State Department, after months of back-and-forth tensions, Vedant Patel, principal deputy spokesperson, said the department sent a letter to the committee on May 17. The letter contained an offer for McCaul and the committees ranking member, Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), to view the dissent cable at the State Department in camera, with appropriate personal information redacted.

In a May 18 letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, McCaul said, I am available to view the documents as soon as possible.

McCaul also wrote that he will pause efforts to enforce the committees subpoena pending my review of the documents even though the subpoena remains in full force and effect, and the acceptance of this accommodation does not waive any of the Committees rights regarding the subpoena.

McCaul called for other members of the committee to be able to access the cable.

As chairman of the committee, I am leading these oversight efforts, but not to the exclusion of other members of the committee who are undoubtedly entitled to review the contents of the dissent cable and response, he wrote. As such, I must insist on the department allowing other members to review the dissent cable and response.

Despite the subpoena, Blinken has repeatedly refused to give the committee the cable.

The committee subpoenaed Blinken in March for the cable, which, as The Wall Street Journal first reported, shows the U.S. Embassy in Kabul warning the State Department about the Taliban quickly gaining ground and the Afghan forces falling apart. They gave suggestions on how to expedite an evacuation and alleviate the situation.

The cable, dated July 13, also called for the State Department to use tougher language in describing the atrocities being committed by the Taliban, the Journal reported, citing a person familiar with its contents. The withdrawal was completed on Aug. 30, 2021.

On May 17, McCaul announced a markup holding Blinken in contempt of Congress for not handing over the cable. Whether that will proceed is to be determined.

During the May 17 press briefing, Patel lamented the scheduled markup. It is unfortunate that the House Foreign Affairs Committee has continued to pursue this even before the State Department had the opportunity to respond to the chairman and the committee, he said.

When McCaul will view the cable is to be determined.
Medical Providers Defrauded Arizona Medicaid Program, Held People Against Their Will: Hobbs

Gov. Katie Hobbs announced the investigation on May 16

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs announced new actions against more than 100 medical service providers for defrauding the state and targeting vulnerable populations, particularly people in Arizonas tribal nations.

During a May 16 news conference, Hobbs said these service providers targeted vulnerable people struggling with homelessness and addiction and promised them food, treatment, and housing at group homes and rehabilitation facilities.

People are then left in these facilities without proper access to health care and treatment services, Hobbs said. Instead, theyre allowed and sometimes encouraged to continue using drugs and alcohol.

Once in the facilities, the victims are often not allowed to leave or contact their relatives, she said, all while the providers continue to bill the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS)Arizonas Medicaid programfor services.

These providers defrauded the state out of hundreds of millions of dollars and particularly targeted members of tribal communities, Hobbs said, profiting off their pain and suffering rather than providing real care.

I have heard stories of the pain and suffering that these exploited individuals have gone throughdesperate people struggling with addiction picked up off the street and dropped in a home with drugs, alcohol, and no treatment available, Hobbs said, adding that the number of people affected could be in the thousands.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said some providers billed the state for services for patients who were dead, in jail, or clearly not in Arizona at the time, and that this fraud has become one of the biggest scandals in Arizona history.

Some of these scammers didnt even bill AHCCCS for people they were in contact with, Mayes said. They simply purchased lists of names and dates of birth of people and used those to bill AHCCCS.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs delivers her State of the State address at the Arizona Capitol in Phoenix on Jan. 9, 2023. (Ross D. Franklin/AP Photo)

Preventing Future Fraud

Hobbs said shes considering systemic changes to keep this from happening again, but says she wont entertain any policies that will make it harder for people to participate in Medicaid.

Prior to my administration, AHCCCS had taken a piecemeal approach to targeting these fraudulent providers, Hobbs said. Under my administration, this will change.  Together, we are going to bring about the systemic reforms we need to root out this problem and deliver true accountability.

Daniel Scarpinato, who served as chief of staff for former Gov. Doug Ducey, criticized Hobbs for taking credit for the crackdown on Medicaid fraud.

The investigation revealed today has been underway for several years, well before the current occupants took office, Scarpinato said.

In Gallup, New Mexico, officials are investigating recent kidnappings of Native Americans that are allegedly linked to the medical fraud scheme in Arizona.

Gallup Mayor Louis Bonaguidi spoke to KOAT Action News about the situation.

It blew my mind in the sense it raised the hair on the back of my neck because I didnt know something like that was going on, Bonaguidi said.

Police say vulnerable Native Americans are being picked up in vehicles in New Mexico and transported across sate lines into Arizona with promises of receiving rehabilitation help.

The Gallup Police Department has looked into 32 reports of missing persons suspected of being taken to the Phoenix area, Gallup Police Chief Erin Toadlena-Pablo told the local news station.

Jasmine Blackwater-Nygren, first lady of the Navajo Nation and a former Arizona state representative, told the Arizona Senate Health and Human Services Committee in February that tribal members were being held in facilities and given alcohol and drugs to prevent them from leaving so the owners of the facilities could bill the state for the services.

AHCCCS will be conducting a third-party forensic audit of all claims submitted since 2019, Hobbs office said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Montana Becomes First US State to Completely Ban TikTok

The logo for social media app TikTok is displayed on the screen of an iPhone on an American flag background in Arlington, Va., on Aug. 3, 2020. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)

Montana has become the first U.S. state to impose a complete ban on TikTok, a Chinese-owned video-sharing platform thats popular among both youth and adults in the United States.

Gov. Greg Gianforte signed Senate Bill 419 on Wednesday. The ban on TikTok goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024unless Congress passes a national law overriding it, or TikTok cuts its ties with China.

Gianforte said that its well-documented that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is using TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information.

Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party, he said in a statement.

TikTok has over 150 million American users. TikTok has said that the vast majority of its users are over the age of 18. The app is also wildly popular among teenagers, with the Pew Research Center saying 67 percent of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 use TikTok, 16 percent of whom indicate they use the app almost constantly.

$10,000 for Violations

The TikTok legislation would give the Montana Department of Justice the ability to fine any entity such as an app store $10,000 per day if they are found responsible for giving anyone access to the app. Users wouldnt face any penalties.

The law also prohibits app companies like Apple and Google from offering the app for download in the state.

The U.S. federal government already prohibits TikTok on government-owned devices and networks.

This also applies to nearly half of U.S. states, including Montana. Gianforte banned the app on state government devices in 2022, citing grave security concerns and that the use of TikTok on state devices posed a significant risk to sensitive state data.

The latest ban in the state extends that to personal devices, which means TikTok cannot operate at all within Montana.

The Montana House in mid-April voted 5443 to give final approval to the measure, after it had passed the Montana Senate in early March by a vote of 3020. The bill had bipartisan support in both chambers, which are Republican-led.

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, whose office drafted the TikTok legislation, wrote on Twitter on April 14 that the ban is a critical step to ensuring we are protecting Montanans privacy, even as he acknowledged that court battles may ensue.

Looming Lawsuits

At the time when the bill passed the Montana legislature, TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter said that if the bill is signed into law, the company would mount a legal challenge over its constitutionality.

On Wednesday, Oberwetter issued another statement, saying Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok, a platform that empowers hundreds of thousands of people across the state.

We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.

The American Civil Liberties Union has also said it intends to sue over alleged free speech violations.

With this ban, Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature have trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment, ACLU of Montana Policy Director Keegan Medrano said in a statement.

TikTok is working on an initiative called Project Texas, which would make a separate entity to store U.S. user data on U.S. servers, operated by Oracle, a tech company based in Texas.

National Security Concerns

TikTok is owned and operated by ByteDance, a Chinese company based in Beijing, but moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2020.

The FBI and Federal Communications Commission warned in 2022 of possible threats TikTok poses to U.S. national security, including that user data obtained by the appsuch as browsing history and locationcould be shared with the authoritarian Chinese regime. Concerns were heightened in late 2022 amid media reports that staff of ByteDance used the companys access to TikTok user data to improperly track U.S. journalists.

Although TikTok once said that all U.S. user data is stored within the United States, it has also since admitted that this wasnt true. In a September 2022 congressional hearing, TikTok executives refused to commit to stopping the flow of U.S. data to China.

We believe the concerns driving these bans are largely fueled by misinformation about our company, a TikTok spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement in December 2022. We are always happy to meet with state policymakers to discuss our privacy and security practices. We are disappointed that the many state agencies, offices, and universities that have been using TikTok to build communities and connect with constituents will no longer have access to our platform.

TikTok rose in popularity in the United States in 2017 after ByteDance acquired Chinese-owned social media company Musical.ly and paired its Santa Monica office with TikTok. At the time, TikTok didnt inform U.S. officials about the Musical.lyTikTok merger despite both companies ties to China, independent investigative journalist Geoffrey Cain said on EpochTVs American Thought Leaders.

Former President Donald Trump tried to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat through a Commerce Department order in 2020, but it was blocked by multiple courts, and his ban never took effect.

Casey Fleming, a cybersecurity expert and CEO of strategic advisory firm BlackOps Partners, previously told The Epoch Times, All of your data on that phone, everything you do, and everything that you have stored on your phone is being sent out of the country, possibly to be used against you.

In addition to national security concerns, many have raised concerns about TikToks content and its potential harm to the mental health of adolescents. In December 2022, the state of Indiana filed two lawsuits accusing TikTok of sending user data to the CCP and also of falsely claiming that its product was safe for children.
Nashville School Shooting Investigation Used to Identify Possible Accomplices: MNPD

Law enforcement officials and parents urge court to halt release of documents

Top law enforcement officials with the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD), including the lead investigator in The Covenant School shooting case, have filed motions with the court to stop the release of the writings amid their ongoing investigation. In their court filings, law enforcement stated they believed the assailant Audrey Hale, who died on the scene, acted alone, but they do not know for sure.

Even though the assailant died at the school, the criminal investigative file does not automatically, instantly close, investigator Lt. Brent Gibson wrote in a court filing. Investigators must still work to gather and analyze evidence in the case and determine if related crimes were committed, are being planned, or whether other people were involved.

Gibson went on to say the Covenant investigation is expected to take approximately 12 months, based upon the volume of evidence and the number of persons to be interviewed, along with officers working on a total of 46 homicide investigations in the city so far this year.

For comparison purposes, an investigation for a murder-suicide case, where it appears obvious what has happened, typically takes eight months, Gibson added. While we believe at this time that the assailant acted alone in this case, we do not know for sure. And we need to investigate the matter thoroughly, as we do in all homicides, to rule out any co-conspirators or additional crimes related to this matter.

He said he believed the release of the investigative files prematurely could cause harmful and irreversible consequences.

MNPD Weighs In

The court filings came in a pending open records lawsuit, in which MNPD was forced to turn over unredacted versions of shooter Audrey Hales suicide note and journal last week for the judges review. The suit was filed after MNPD refused to release the documents to several individuals and groups.

A hearing and scheduling conference in the lawsuit was scheduled for Thursday, May 18, but Chancellor IAshea Myles, in a Wednesday evening ruling, postponed it to Monday, May 22.

On Wednesday, the officers, alongside several parents of Covenant students, filed their motions with the court, with parents urging the documents to not be released at all.

In this image from video, Audrey Hale points a gun inside the Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn., on March 27, 2023. (Nashville Police Department via The Epoch Times)

MNPD said they are using the investigation process to determine whether the assailant had any assistance with planning the shooting or any assistance with weapons purchases.

MNPD Deputy Chief Mike Hagars motion with the court stated that officers have been investigating and gathering information about the March 27 shooting since it happened.

The MNPD investigation into the matter is still an active, ongoing criminal investigation and an open matter, he wrote in the filing. Based on my 34 years of experience in law enforcement, I believe that harmful and irreversible consequences could result from disclosing investigative files prematurely, including in this case.

Gibson said officers have been meeting with, and grieving with the families alongside working with state and federal agencies, interviewing witnesses, executing search warrants, and gathering documents, items and electronic files from the scene, Hales home, and her background.

MNPDs Arguments

Hagar said the investigative file associated with the Covenant shooting is the result of education and investigative experience utilized by law enforcement officers to gather information relevant to the crime.

It is essential that police investigators be able to gather materials freely and broadly, using their judgment, without fear that materials they gather will prematurely be released to the public and cause prejudice to the effectiveness of the investigation, Hagar continued. I have a good faith belief that [MNPDs] denial of [the] public records requests were proper.

He and Gibson urged the court to allow MNPD to continue and conclude its investigation in an unrushed, deliberate manner before the records are released.

The home of the Nashville Christian School shooter sits quietly in its south Nashville neighborhood, on March 31, 2023. (Chase Smith/The Epoch Times)

Hagar did say, however, that after reviewing the redacted version of the writings submitted to the court alongside the unredacted version, he does not believe the release of redacted documents would impede the investigation.

Gibson said on the matter, Releasing any of the puzzle pieces too quickly could jeopardize putting this intricate puzzle together.

Gibson specified the documents and records MNPD is still in the process of gathering, such as social media records from the past two years, internet and bank account records, phone records, autopsy and toxicology reports, records obtained from search warrants, medical records including psychiatric treatment and gun and ammunition account records.

Gibson also stated they are interviewing individuals identified in all the records and Hales actions for the months prior to the incident and following up on information discovered during the course of the investigation.

Many of these documents must be subpoenaed, and it takes time to get the records back, Gibson wrote. MNPD must then examine the content of the materials and the metadata. MNPD needs to review the assailants messaging data, internet search histories, and any other relevant evidence. This often can be a time-consuming process.

He goes on to say MNPD hasnt had an opportunity to interview everyone connected to the incident or to review all the materials it has gathered.

Parents Argue Against Any Release

Earlier this week, the Covenant School and Covenant Presbyterian Church filed motions with the court to become a third-party intervener in the open records suit, stating the release of such documents could cause safety and security concerns as well as release the private information of church and school staff.

On Wednesday, the parents of Covenant School students filed their motion, stating their filing had the overwhelming support of the Covenant community, with their estimations being that three-quarters of Covenant families expressed support to intervene in the suit.

This brief is filed on behalf of all three families who lost children who have endured a pain that no words can adequately describe, they wrote. This brief is filed on behalf of the surviving children who lived through an unimaginable nightmare and who must deal with the repercussions of that nightmare for the rest of their lives.

In the filing, the parents say the entire country was traumatized by the event, but no one was more traumatized, or has suffered more, than the families of the victims and survivors of the Covenant School atrocity.

Onlookers visit the makeshift memorial on Thursday for the six victims killed in The Covenant School shooting in Nashville, Tenn., on March 27, 2023. (Chase Smith/The Epoch Times)

No one, they wrote. And no one can claim a remotely similar interest in whether the writings of the shooter be released.

The parents go on to argue MNPDs planned release of a redacted version of the writings is too much.

Rather, the parents see no good that can come from the release and wish to contend that the writingswhich they believe are the dangerous and harmful writings of a mentally-damaged personshould not be released at all, they wrote. Furthermore, at a minimum, the parents wish to support the Covenant School in its effort to intervene to keep records and information related to the School, its people, and its security out of the public eye.

The filing goes on to state if they are permitted to intervene in the lawsuit, they will argue the documents should not be released and should not be considered open records due to the school safety exception being broad enough to encompass all of the writings and keep them from being released.

They also cite that public policy behind the Open Records Act does not apply in this case, given the very real danger (and sincere fear of the parents) of copycat attacks and the trauma and harm that public release of the documents will cause to the parents, their children, and related family members for years to come.

In another filing in support of having the schools request to intervene in the suit be expedited, the parents request at a minimum that the court refrains from ordering the release of any of the writings until the June 8 Show Cause hearing to allow the children of Covenant School to finish the school year in peace.
The Heritage Foundation hosts a panel discussion on Naval Statecraft and Power in the 21st Century on May 16. Director of Heritage Foundations Center for National Defense Tom Spoehr moderates a conversation with 77th Secretary of the Navy Kenneth Braithwaite and Brent Sadler, senior research fellow at The Heritage Foundation and author of U.S. Naval Power in the 21st Century: A New Strategy for Facing the Chinese and Russian Threat.

For too long, U.S. statecraft has not delivered needed results, nor has it deterred the worst in our adversaries. A new global framework is needed to contest Chinas designs to re-order the world to its interests. Naval statecraft does this, playing to the United States strengths and Chinas weaknesses. It is resilient enough to handle crises a world away while remaining focused on the principal threatthe Chinese Communist Party.
New York Town Declares State of Emergency Banning Hotels, Facilities From Housing Immigrants

Illegal immigrants carry their belongings to a bus after accepting relocation after being evicted from the Watson Hotel in New York City on Jan. 30, 2023. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Riverhead in Suffolk County, New York, declared a state of emergency on May 16 in an effort to prevent an influx of illegal immigrants from being sent to the small town following the expiration of Title 42.

Riverhead Supervisor Yvette Aguiar signed the emergency declaration after reports emerged that officials from New York City were arranging to transport immigrants to a number of hotels and motels in the town.

According to a statement from Aguiars office, the order was signed based on information received and in response to reports that the New York City Department of Homeless Services has, or will be arranging for the transportation and relocation of undocumented migrants and/or asylum seekers to hotels or motels within the Town of Riverhead.

Aguiar told News 12 Long Island that New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, had recently sent out an advisory to all housing facilities in Suffolk County stating that the city would pay for the housing of immigrants for 12 months if the facilities agreed to accommodate them.

The advisory reportedly stated that the city would sign a contract with the facilities that agreed to house the immigrants.

Aguiar told the publication that three facilities in the small town of roughly 33,539 people had agreed to house immigrants and offered to sign the contract.

In response, Aguiarwho previously worked as a detective sergeant for the NYPD Counter Terrorism Divisiondeclared a state of emergency to stave off what she anticipates would be thousands of immigrants heading to the small town, leaving it overburdened.

Already Overwhelmed

Its going to tax our schools that are already overwhelmed, itll probably increase the crime rate because these individuals are going to be hungry in the street and they need shelter, Aguiar told News 12 Long Island. Its going to tax police; its going to tax the hospitals. The infrastructure component, we dont have it.

Under Aguiars state of emergency, all facilities across the town including hotels, motels, bed-and-breakfast facilities, homeless shelters, and lodgings are banned from accepting immigrants.

Facilities that violate the order will be dealt with in the courts, Aguiar told News 12.

Separately, Aguiar told Patch that, compared to surrounding townships on the East End and throughout Suffolk County, Riverhead has done more than its share when it comes to housing the homeless, providing services, and offering affordable housing and our resources.

Taxpayers simply cannot withstand further demand on our public services, she said, adding that the health and safety of Riverhead residents is her top priority.

Aguiar also took aim at the Biden administration for failing to anticipate the huge volume of immigrants that would overwhelm the southern border when Title 42which allowed Border Patrol agents to turn illegal immigrants back to Mexico immediately over public health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemicexpired.

She said the federal government has failed to defend the sovereignty of the nation, resulting in thousands of migrants and asylum seekers crossing the U.S. border virtually unchecked.

Adams to Send Migrants From NYC

There is nothing humanitarian about a sanctuary city sending busloads of people to a rural town that does not have the infrastructure to care for them, especially since social services funding is not available to undocumented individuals, Aguiar added.

The state of emergency in Riverhead comes after Adams reportedly held a call with more than 100 state leaders on May 11 seeking support from officials to help house thousands of immigrants that were expected to flood the southern border after Title 42 expired.

In the past week alone, some 4,300 illegal immigrants have arrived in New York City, according to New York City Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. That brings the total number of immigrants currently in the citys care to over 41,500.

However, multiple counties across the state, already struggling with limited resources, are pushing back against housing immigrants.

Earlier this month, Rockland and Orange counties filed a lawsuit against the Adams administration to stop him from transferring the illegal immigrants to their jurisdictions.

Meanwhile, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman told a press conference Monday that the county will not participate in any sanctuary programs, adding that it is not the responsibility of local government.

It is the responsibility of the federal government to have a national policy, he said. To invite people in who are undocumented, not knowing who they are or why they are here, I think is very faulty and something we do not endorse in Nassau.

The Epoch Times has contacted New York City Mayor Eric Adamss office for comment.
Newsom Announces Yuba River Restoration Plan to Build a Channel for Salmon

Water flows over the Feather River Fish Barrier dam as it diverts Chinook Salmon up a fish ladder to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Feather River Hatchery below the Lake Oroville dam in Oroville, Calif., on May 27, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Tuesday a $60 million plan to build a channel to open the Yuba River up so salmon and other threatened fish species can swim along the rivers dam.

The channel resembling a natural river would stretch 10 to 12 miles of habitat upstream, blocking the salmon migration route along the Yuba River.

This is a big commitment, a $60 million project. We hope to get it done in the next few years, Newsom said during the press conference.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), Yuba Water Agency, and the federal NOAA Fisheries agency are working together to help boost survival rates for endangered salmon and other fish species living in the river beds, as the dam has impeded their passage for more than a century.

Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference in Dunnigan, Calif., on March 24, 2023. (Courtesy of the Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom)

California is taking action to restore vital habitats and return fish to their historic hometurning the page on outdated water infrastructure that has blocked passage for these fish for over a century. Together with historic investments, were restoring crucial waterways across our state and laying the groundwork for a salmon resurgence thats not only good for fish, but a lifeline for the communities and Native peoples who rely on a healthy fish population, Newsom said in a statement.

Building a modernized water diversion at Daguerre Point Dam would also supply irrigation water south of the lower Yuba River that will protect fish passing the intake. Newsom is also launching a comprehensive reintroduction program to support recovery efforts of spring-run Chinook salmon to return them to their original habitat in the North Yuba River above New Bullards Bar Reservoir by 2025. The fish bypass will follow the original path of the Yuba River before the federal government constructed a submerged concrete dam to contain mining debris and sediment in the early 1900s, officials said.

The fishway at DaGuerre Point will be an unprecedented action to restore habitat and contribute to the recovery of threatened species by providing unobstructed passage to habitat thats been incredibly challenging for them to access, Willie Whittlesey, general manager of the Yuba Water Agency said alongside Newsom at the press conference.

The state will pay for half of the project, while the Yuba Water Agency will fund the rest, as the states portion will come from $100 million in salmon restoration funding it invested last year, the governors office said.

Within a few decades, Gold Rush mining created impacts that have lasted over 150 years. Were finally taking action to reverse those impacts, Whittlesey added said.

The $60 million project, approved by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Yuba Water Agency, is designed to decrease the risk of extinction for threatened species. Aaron Zettler-Mann, executive director of the South Yuba River Citizens League, called the plan to maneuver the fish around the rivers upper dam a trap and haul. But expressed optimism about the fishway effort that his organization has worked on for years. I think theres a lot of potential good to happen from this agreement, certainly, Zettler-Mann told the Sacramento Bee. We are optimistic but skeptical about the reintroduction above New Bullards. The Chinook salmon will be released into the river north of the New Bullards Bar Dam and Reservoir.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Yuba Water Agency, and NOAA Fisheries said they expect to finalize a settlement based on the agreement by the end of 2023.

The Upper Yuba is arguably the best opportunity to get a viable, self-sustaining spring-run Chinook salmon population, Cathy Marcinkevage, assistant regional administrator for NOAA Fisheries, said at the press conference.

That is critical, not just to the recovery of the species, but at this point probably to its survival, she added. This is really a game changer.
Newsom Sets Aside $1 Million for Mandatory Dyslexia Screening for Californias Children

People browse the books at a book drive at Westminster Library in Westminster, Calif., on Sept. 22, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

California may soon implement mandatory dyslexia screenings for its second-grade students, thanks to a budget provision by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

In his latest proposed 202324 state budget, released on May 12, the governor set aside $1 million for the age group to undergo screening for dyslexia beginning with the 202526 school year.

Newsom said that he was confident the last-minute addition would pass negotiations in advance of the June 15 deadline for the Legislature to approve the states upcoming budget, which goes into effect July 1.

The governor, who has noted he struggles with dyslexia, said he wants to ensure that the screening tests will be available in multiple languages and will take into account students cultural and language backgrounds.

The proposed funding calls for a panel to meet next year to review several different types of dyslexia screening tests to offer schools.

He said the University of San Francisco, in particular, is developing a screening test that will take into account such criteriasomething he hopes to share with other states interested in such screening, if successful, he said.

Im excited about what California will export to other states, Newsom said. Its not just about being one of the other states, its about being the best among other states.

State Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-Burbank) introduced a bill requiring mandatory dyslexia screening for second-graders in February.

Portantinos bill has passed the state Senate Education Committee and is set for a hearing in the state Senate Appropriations Committee on May 18.

He praised the governors decision in a May 12 statement.

I am extremely grateful and appreciative of Governor Newsom for including dyslexia risk screening in the [May budget proposal revision], Portantino said. Given our budget challenges this year, the governors commitment to prioritizing and addressing dyslexia risk screening and early literacy demonstrates his deep commitment to ensuring that our children thrive and succeed.

Portantinos office was not immediately available for comment.

Portantino previously referred to data from the International Dyslexia Association, which reports that it takes four times longer to help a child overcome dyslexia in 4th grade than it does in late kindergarten.

California is currently one of only 10 states who do not require dyslexia screening for students, according to the National Center on Improving Literacy, out of Boston Universitys College of Education and Human Development.

Other states that do not screen children are Utah, Alaska, Hawaii, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, and Vermont.
Newsoms Revised Budget Maintains 5 Percent Funding Raises for UC, CSU Systems to Boost Graduation Rate, Enrollment

Students pass through Sather Gate of the college campus at the University of CaliforniaBerkeley, in a file photo. (David A. Litman/Shutterstock)

Gov. Gavin Newsom is maintaining his pledge to give another year of funding increases to Californias two university systems amid a projected $32 billion state budget shortfall.

In a revised 202324 state budgetpresented on May 12Newsom kept intact his plan to give both the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems a 5 percent boost in funding, amounting to $216 million for UC and $227 million for CSU.

The increases fulfill a pledge Newsom made last year to give both systems five percent annual budget increases for the next five years if they worked toward improving graduation and enrollment rates, particularly among California residents.

The increases come as the state reported an additional expected $9.5 billion shortfall last weekup from $22.5 billion in January.

Previously, Newsom called the universities the conveyor belt of talent for the state.

Despite a shortfall, were seeing a five percent increase in the base support of UC and CSU. We are fulfilling that commitment. We are not backing away from that, Newsom said when he presented the states initial budget proposal in January. This is a partnership to advance some efforts to address with much more intensity the need to get more Californians enrolled.

To maintain his commitment, the governor has shifted costs in other areas of the higher education budgetincluding student housing, campus expansion, and clean energy projectsto be now covered by UC and CSU-issued bonds.

Additionally, the May revision halved the proposed one-time increase of $200 million for the states community college system to focus on enrollment strategies.

Jolene Koester, CSUs interim chancellor said in a May 12 statement that the system is thankful for the governors continued support.

By maintaining the commitments of the multi-year compact, the administration has demonstrated its belief in the CSUs mission and the transformative power of higher education for Californians from all backgrounds, she said.

UC President Michael Drake said the funding boost will help maintain Californias economy.

This budget reflects our strong partnership with the governor and his recognition of the universitys role in maintaining the states economic competitiveness and solving Californias most urgent issues. This level of funding is particularly extraordinary given the many competing priorities the governor must balance this year, said Drake in a May 12 statement.

In January, Drake said the extra funding would be used to make critical investments that would expand enrollment and hire more faculty.

Additionally, he said, funds will be used to reduce nonresident undergraduate enrollment and replace those seats with students from California at UCs Berkeley, San Diego, and Los Angeles campuses.

Of the 230,400 undergraduate students enrolled systemwide in Fall 2022, 83 percent were California residents, according to UC enrollment data.

CSU data shows 96 percent of its 404,800 CSU students were also California residents as of last fall.

The details of the budget will likely change in the coming weeks as lawmakers negotiate with the governor before the budget is finalized on June 15 and goes into effect on July 1.
Norways Ailing King Celebrates Constitution Day as Thousands of Flag-Waving Children Cheer

Norway's King Harald V waves from the balcony at Skaugum, their official residence, on the occasion of Norway's Constitution Day, near Oslo, on May 17, 2023. (Frederik Ringnes/NTB Scanpix via AP)

COPENHAGEN, DenmarkNorways King Harald V, who was released from a hospital earlier this week, appeared Wednesday on the royal castles balcony to salute the thousands of children marching by as the Scandinavian country celebrated its Constitution Day.

Cheering and shouting, waving blue-white-red Norwegian flags, kindergarten and school students marched in front of the royal palace where Harald, 86, and his wife, Queen Sonja, sat and waved back to the vast crowd, many of whom wore traditional costumes.

Elsewhere in Oslo, the chairman of the Ukrainian parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, who was visiting his Norwegian counterpart, stood on another balcony and waved at a cheering flag-waving crowd, saying he hoped that we as soon as possible can celebrate like this in Ukraine.

The holiday marks the day the country commemorates the signing of the 1814 Constitution of Norway.

Earlier in the day, Haralds son and heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon, and his wife, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, had another march in front of their home,

Harald was released from Oslos main hospital on Monday after treatment for an infection.

The aging monarch, who has been seen using crutches in recent years, has been hospitalized several times in recent months. In August, he spent three days with a fever at a hospital and in December, he was also admitted for an infection that required intravenous antibiotics.

In October 2020, the king underwent surgery to replace a heart valve after being hospitalized with breathing difficulties.

The king is Norways head of state but holds no political power, so the duties are ceremonial. He ascended to the throne following the death of his father, King Olav, in 1991.
MOMBASA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said the government will support significant projects to boost the country's blue economy.

Gachagua said the government will work with the European Union (EU) and coastal counties to unlock the potential of the sector.

"We are determined to ensure that the Blue Economy contributes to the realization of the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda," he said in the coastal city of Mombasa when he presided over the launch of fishing boats acquired in partnership with the EU under the Go Blue Project.

According to a statement issued by his office, Gachagua said they were ready to provide resources and requisite support to ensure the success of the blue economy.

The Go Blue project is a partnership between the government and the EU and aims at enhancing the country's blue economy through the empowerment of local fishermen.

He welcomed the partnership with the EU and the coastal counties on the Go Blue project, saying it was bound to improve the nation's fortunes in the fishing sector.

"We don't take for granted the support the European Union and partners have accorded us in turning around the fortunes of our Blue Economy which is critical in our national development," he added.

According to government statistics, the sector already supports an estimated 2 million people directly and indirectly as fishers, traders, processors, input suppliers, merchants of fishing accessories, and providers of related services.

It plays an important role in job creation, income generation, nutrition, and food security.

EU Ambassador to Kenya Henriette Geiger said the potential of the country's blue economy is huge, promising to continue supporting projects to boost it. "Kenya's blue economy has a great potential and its worth could grow four times if adequately supported and sustainable policies enacted," Geiger said.

Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs Salim Mvurya said the Ministry is providing a conducive environment for the growth of the blue economy sector.

"As a ministry, we have committed to providing support and creating an enabling environment so this sector can succeed. We will work with the European Union to fine-tune our national strategy on the blue economy," Mvurya said. 
Three whistleblowers allege that the FBI is retaliating against those who allege that the bureau has been politically weaponized, but some Democrats say they arent credible.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis responds after Disney scraps their plan to build an office complex in Florida.

The Supreme Court Thursday ruled unanimously that Twitter cannot be held liable for aiding terrorism, when it hosted tweets by the terror group ISIS. In a second social media content case, against Google, the high court declined to review in light of the Twitter decision.

Illegal immigrants are occupying almost half of all hotel rooms in New York City, according to Mayor Eric Adams.
Ottawa to Join BC Govt Lawsuit Accusing McKinsey of Deceptive Marketing to Boost Opioid Use: Report

The federal government is poised to join a class-action lawsuit being launched by the B.C. government against McKinsey and Co., which accuses the global management consulting firm of false, reckless, and deceptive marketing campaigns aimed at boosting opioid sales, according to a report.

Carolyn Bennett, the federal minister of mental health and addictions, said in a statement that if the class-action suit is certified as scheduled by next year, then the Liberal government will also formally become a class member in it, according to a Globe and Mail report published on May 18.

The B.C. governments statement of claim in the lawsuit alleges that McKinsey created or assisted in the creation of an epidemic of addiction in British Columbia and throughout every province and territory in Canada, and says the consulting firms actions in the matter have caused deaths and serious and long-lasting injury to public peace, health, order and safety.

Over 34,400 Canadians died due to opioid toxicity between January 2016 and September 2022, according to federal statistics.

From January through March of this year, 595 people died in B.C. alone due to drug overdoses, according to the provinces coroner.

The statement of claim against McKinsey further alleges that the company has caused Canadian opioid-related deaths through its previous marketing advice to pharmaceutical companies, such as Purdue Pharma, while also saying McKinsey was aware at the time that the opioids were addictive and were being aggressively promoted to treat conditions that opioids are not effective in treating.

The Epoch Times reached out to Health Canada for confirmation of its intention to join the lawsuit against McKinsey but did not receive a response before press time.

McKinsey denied the allegations in court documents filed in February, which said the consulting firm is not a manufacturer or distributor of opioids and also that there is no meaningful connection between McKinsey and the opioid crisis in Canada, according to the Globe.

If Ottawa does officially join the lawsuit, it would come after the Liberal government has awarded over $100 million worth of contracts to McKinsey since 2015.

Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre has previously said that if he is elected prime minister in the future he will launch a series of lawsuits against large pharmaceutical companies due to their alleged role in Canadas opioid and addiction crisis.

The people who profited from this misery should be the ones to pay the bill, he said on March 14, adding, These powerful multinationals knew exactly what they were doing, but they kept doing it anyway to profit themselves and their wealthy executives.

Marnie Cathcart, Noe Chartier, and Matthew Horwood contributed to this report.
Over 110 International Media Executives and Publishers Call for Immediate Release of Apple Daily Founder Jimmy Lai

Police officers conduct a raid at the Apple Daily office in Hong Kong, China, on June 17, 2021. (Apple Daily via Getty Images)

International nonprofit organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has initiated a joint petition demanding the Hong Kong government immediately release pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying. The signature campaign to #FreeJimmyLai received support from 116 internationally renowned publishers and editors-in-chief in 42 countries, including Maria Ressa, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of Philippines online media Rappler, and other well-known executives from the New York Times and the Sun.

In the joint statement, Reporters Without Borders praised the 75-year-old media founder, Lai, for remaining in Hong Kong to defend the vital values of freedom of speech and journalism in the past 25 years, via his now-defunct news agency Apple Daily, despite endless harassment from the government.

The statement called on news media publishers and editors around the world to support Lai, who became an iconic figure in the fight for press freedom in Hong Kong and worldwide.

It also condemned the Hong Kong governments charges and accusations against Lai and questioned whether it has violated international law, Chinese law, and Hong Kong law.

The reporter protection group demanded the immediate release of Lai and other detained Hong Kong reporters, as well as for all charges made against them to be dropped.

The statement pointed out Lais trial was only part of what the Beijing regime did to oppress the freedom of the press in Hong Kong. The international journalistic community also criticized the Chinese Communist Partys attempt to control information outside China.

When press freedom is threatened anywhere, it is threatened everywhere, RSF added.

Global editors-in-chief and publishers who support the joint-signature campaign include A.G. Sulzberger, publisher of The New York Times; Fred Ryan, publisher of Washington Post; Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief at The Guardian (United Kingdom); George Greig, editor-in-chief of The Independence (United Kingdom); and French Publisher Jerome Fenoglio of Le Monde.

Based on the RSFs Press Freedom Index 2023, released in May 2023, Hong Kong dropped to its lowest rank of 140 among 180 countries and regions.

China is ranked second-to-last at 179.

The Hong Kong government released a statement on May 17, 2023, expressing its strong opposition to using freedom of the press as an excuse to interfere with Hong Kongs judicial proceedings.

The regime also warned any person or organization in the world that making remarks or acting intentionally to interfere or obstruct the Hong Kong judicial administration would likely put them at risk of committing the crime of contempt of the court or obstructing justice.
PM Continues Quiet Targeting of Greens As Housing Fund Stoush Continues

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has continued his quiet targeting of the Greens Party, calling out the Greens Housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather for failing to support the Housing Australia Future Fund, and also running petitions to block the development of more housing supply in Brisbane.

One of the things that we need to do is to make sure that planning keeps up. And one of the things that I find remarkable is that at the same time as the Greens are blocking additional support for social housing, theyre also running petitions of their housing spokesperson to block any development in medium density and development of more housing supply in Brisbane, the prime minister said.

You cant have it both ways. What the government does is have a plan. We want to work with state and territory governments, work constructively, and that is what we are doing.

Chandler-Mather, who holds the Queensland seat of Griffith in Brisbane, has joined community residents to oppose proposals to build new apartment buildings, including the Bulimba Barracks site.

Greens and Coalition Block Labors Push on HAFF

The comments from Albanese come after the Greens sided with the Coalition in the Senate last week to delay the Labor governments push to get the Housing Affordability Future Fund legislation through. The bill will now be debated when the Senate returns in June.

The latest development is a blow to Albaneses $10 billion fund (US$6.7 billion) that is supposed to address the lack of social and affordable housing across the country, with the government hoping the legislation will allow the building of 30,000 homes over five years.

Under the proposed legislation, the fund will stay in perpetuity, and each year, the government will use its returns to invest in housing across Australia. However, the return amount that can be withdrawn from the fund is capped at $500 million annually.

Greens Push Back

But Chandler-Mather has pushed back on the prime ministers comments saying that he believes the electorate was fed up with the petty politics and wanted the government to tackle the housing crisis rather than launch into personal attacks and tirades.

You [Albanese] get up at a press conference, and you attack me personally rather than working out a way to use the wealth in this country to lift people out of poverty and get them into homes right now, Chandler-Mather said.

That is frankly a disgrace.

(L-R) Greens candidate for the seat of Griffith Max Chandler-Mather, party leader Adam Bandt, Queensland senate candidate Penny Allman-Payne and Queensland Senator Larissa Waters take a selfie during the Greens national campaign launch at Black Hops Brewery on May 16, 2022 in Brisbane, Australia (Photo by Dan Peled/Getty Images)

The Greens have previously said that the federal government needed to stay at the negotiating table on HAFF, which the Greens believe does not contain any plans for renters and people who need public and affordable housing.

We thought maybe the Budget would fill the gaps left by the HAFF Bill, but theres nothing in there. Handing out $1.12 a day extra in Rent Assistance while rents go up ten times faster is spitting in the face of struggling renters, Chandler-Mather said.

Were in a once-in-a-generation housing crisis, and the government playing politics with housing in the Senate shows they dont understand or dont care that people are stuck in housing hell.

We warned the government not to bring the Bill on before theyd come up with a real plan for renters and an increased guaranteed spend on public and affordable housing. Instead, they tried to ram it through after only 45 mins of debate, he said.

We were elected to represent people who are hurting: were not going to be intimidated, and were not going to roll over.

Homelessness Advocates Call For Senate to Pass HAFF

Meanwhile, as the Greens and Labor engage in debate around the legislation, housing and homelessness advocate Mission Australia is urging the Senate to pass the bill, saying it will jumpstart the much-needed investment to tackle Australias housing and homelessness crisis.

I am hearing from our frontline workers across the country that the housing situation is far worse than they have ever seen it, Mission Australias CEO Sharon Callister said.

The latest homelessness Census data demands urgent action. Every night in Australia, there are 122,000 people without a safe and secure home, a five percent increase since 2016. The number of children who are homeless has risen by 12 percent.

In a wealthy country like Australia, this should not be the reality. We urge our politicians to keep these vulnerable women, men and children front of mind and work constructively together on a way forward.

The legislation may not be perfect, and we still need to significantly increase the number of new social and affordable homes in Australia beyond the ambitions currently included, but it is an important step towards addressing our housing crisis and ending homelessness in Australia.
PM Swerves Recommitment to Lowering Legal Immigration

Rishi Sunak avoids reaffirming his party's manifesto pledge to lower immigration levels

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak with political journalists on board a government plane as he heads to Japan to attend the G7 summit in Hiroshima on May 17, 2023. (PA Media)

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has swerved questions on whether or not he would recommit to his partys pledge to bring down legal immigration levels.

Speaking to journalists as he travelled to the G7 summit in Japan, Sunak said he wants to see figures fall but repeatedly would not reaffirm the Tory manifesto pledge made under Boris Johnson that led them to a large majority.

Instead Sunak appeared to blame Johnsons leadership in part for the large figures saying he had inherited some numbers on migration.

He also insisted voters were focused on tackling illegal migration, such as small boat crossings.

The prime ministers remarks come just a day after the announcement that an extra 10,000 visas for seasonal workers could be made available on top of the 45,000 currently allocated to the agricultural sector.

During a farming summit in Downing Street on Tuesday, Sunak said the government was responding to the needs of farmers with the extra visas.

His comments were in apparent contrast to those made by Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who on Monday said Britain could train its own fruit pickers.

In a speech at the National Conservatism conference, the Home Secretary said: Its not racist for anyone, ethnic minority or otherwise, to want to control our borders.

After her remarks, Downing Street insisted the focus on cutting net migration was in line with the governments approach.

EU Meeting

In its 2019 manifesto, the Conservative party promised that overall numbers will come down as the government ends freedom of movement in the wake of Brexit.

Migration levels were at 226,000 then and it is expected they will rise when the latest Office for National Statistics figures are published.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Sunak said he was committed to bringing down legal migration but would not stand by the target.

Ive inherited some numbers, I want to bring the numbers down, he said.

Pressed again if he stands by the figure, Sunak replied: Ive said I do want to bring legal migration down. I think illegal migration is undoubtedly the countrys priority, and you can see all the work Im putting into that.

The prime minister had raised migration with allies at a Council of Europe meeting in Iceland on Tuesday.

He described it as another big step forward with European Union President Ursula von der Leyen to discuss the UK working with the blocs border force, Frontex.

That is of enormous practical value to us in stopping illegal migrationthat sharing intelligence, operational co-operation will make a difference to our ability to stop the boats, tackle organised crime upstream, he said.

Thats a very tangible result of the engagement and diplomacy that we conducted.

Sunak also held talks with European Court of Human Rights President Siofra OLeary, over a review of the working of Rule 39.

The order was used to block the inaugural forced removal flight of refugees to Rwanda last year.

Sunak sees the stalled policy as key to reducing unauthorised entries to the UK.

The meeting prompted one of Sunaks own MPs to hit back.

In a video posted to Twitter on Wednesday, Andrea Jenkyns said any push to change the court is futile as they aint gonna reform.

We dont need to amend the convention, we need a British Bill of Rights, putting the power back in the British parliament and the British courts, she said.

Urging the prime minister to listen to the British people she said the UK needed to return sovereignty to Westminster, and not have these powers in the hands of European judges, serving the whims of Strasbourg and Brussels.

Jenkyns, a Johnson supporter, made similar comments in a letter sent to Sunak which she posted alongside the video.

The Bibby Stockholm accommodation barge arrives in Falmouth, Cornwall, to undergo inspection on May 9, 2023. (PA Media)

Barge Housing Compassionate

Asked to respond to concerns that housing asylum seekers on barges and disused military bases was an act of cruelty on the most vulnerable, Sunak insisted the governments response was fair and compassionate.

I think everyone can see the challenge in communities as local hotels are being taken over to house illegal asylum seekers, he told reporters ahead of Thursdays G7 summit.

Its not a sustainable situation. It is not fair to local communities and its also not fair on taxpayers.

I have tried very hard to find alternative sources of accommodation to ease those pressures and costs. Thats why weve bought barges.

He insisted he will keep doing whatever it takes to move asylum seekers from hotels and return them to the use they were intended for to save taxpayers money.

Sunak got the backing of Environment Secretary Therese Coffey in the partys internal tussle over immigration levels.

She told ITVs Robert Peston the prime minister was clearly right to make up to 55,000 visas available for the agricultural sector, when asked whether she agreed with him or Braverman.

Coffey said farmers are concerned about crops being left in the field and that theres a clear need to deploy seasonal fruit pickers.

She said the government is focused on tackling illegal immigration, rather than reducing net migration levels and the number of foreign workers.

Im conscious that overall we want to see a focus on bringing down overall migration as we train and upskill people right across the country. But the key focus, quite rightly, for the prime minister and the home secretary, is focusing on the illegal migration.

Asked about concerns over the impact of a rise in legal migration on resources, Coffey said there is more pressure on housing supply because of more family breakdown.

What I think is fair to say is that we are still seeing different challenges on housing around the country, but it does vary around the country, she said.

And one of the thingspeople are getting older, living longer.

We also have more family breakdown. So with more housing needed that way.

She added, I think historically, weve seen an increase in the number of households has increased as family breakdown meant that we needed more homes in that regard.

PA Media contributed to this report.
Poilievre Says He Didnt Meet With Special Rapporteur Johnston Due to Trudeau Foundation Links

Former governor general David Johnston appears before a Commons committee reviewing his nomination as elections debates commissioner, on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 6, 2018. (The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick)

Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre says he decided against meeting with David Johnston, the special rapporteur on foreign election interference, because of the latters previous involvement with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation.

Poilievre also called Johnstons special role, to which he was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in March, a fake job.

Hes unable to do it impartially, Poilievre told reporters in Ottawa on May 18. He needs to simply hand it over and allow an independent public inquiry into Beijings interference.

Johnstons tasks as special rapporteur include giving the prime minister independent advice and making expert recommendations based on his investigations into reports of foreign election interference in Canadas 2019 and 2021 federal general elections, according to two order-in-council releases from April.

Johnston, who is also a former governor general of Canada, is tasked with giving the federal government reports on his investigations on a rolling basis until Oct. 31, at which time Ottawa will share his findings with all the leaders of recognized parties in the House of Commons.

In order to carry out his mandate, Johnston has been given access to national security intelligence resources, including classified or unclassified records, documents and personnel.

Johnstons first report is due May 23, by which time he must advise the government on establishing a public inquiry into foreign election interference if he sees fit.

The former governor general is being paid between $1,400 and $1,600 per day for as long he holds the position.

Letter

Poilievre and Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet have heavily criticized Trudeaus appointment of Johnston to the role over the past few months.

Blanchet told reporters on March 15 that he was concerned about Johnstons close relation to the Trudeau family, referring to the fact that Johnston used to be a member of the Trudeau Foundation and also that the prime minister called him a family friend in 2017.

Poilievre wrote a letter to Johnston on April 12 questioning how the latter would investigate Beijings donation to the Trudeau Foundation since he used to be a member of the organization.

The Conservative leader told reporters on May 18 that Johnston never replied to the letter.

He didnt even respond to my letter on that obvious question, Poilievre said. So we need to get this special rapporteur distraction behind us and get on with real independent public inquiry.

Trudeau has defended his appointment of Johnston, saying previously that he is confident the former governor general will be impartial in his review of foreign interference reports.

Trudeau has also said his government will comply with any recommendations Johnston makes in his role as rapporteur.

Marnie Cathcart contributed to this report.
Post-Durham Report, Is It Time for GOP Candidates to Stop Campaigning and Support Trump?

Commentary

I have registered my discontent with the Durham Reportthat it doesnt go far enough and advocate punishment (indictments) for the obvious evil-doers at the topalthough it does a workman-like job of detailing the treasonous betrayal of Donald Trump before and during his presidency and, even more ominously, the similar betrayal of this country, its Constitution, and its citizens.

What has been happening in our government since 2016 hasnt just been a disaster for the United States, but also for the whole world. Thats becauselike it or notwithout us, civilization crumbles and the planet is taken over by a form of global communism.

Lenin isnt the only one to ask, What Is to Be Done? Many of us are asking from the other side now.

Im beginning to think this might not be the time for the Republican Party to indulge in the luxury of an internal primary fight that often can be damaging.

The moment may have come for Donald Trumps competition to suspend their campaigns in favor of the former president.

When I say suspend, thats exactly what I meantake a pause, given the gravity of the situation. They can resume their campaigns if things change.

The symbolism of the suspension would be powerful to the American public. The unity would be impressive.

This is especially true in light of the Durham Report and the revelation from the House Oversight Committee that nine members of the Biden family apparently received (as of now) a total of $10 million from China and Romania for doing absolutely nothing.

The argument against Trump by other candidates is that his policies are good, but they can better pursue them without his baggage. But as the report shows, that baggage exists almost entirely because of the most horrendous conspiracy in American history.

Then-President Barack Obama, then-Vice President Joe Biden, then-national security adviser Susan Rice, and the rest of their cartel were informed by then-CIA Director John Brennan of the plot by the Hillary Clinton campaign to deceive, via the bogus Steele dossier, the FBI, the media, and the public about non-existent TrumpRussia collusion.

Brennan informed them of this while the plot was in progress, which this cartel (what else should we call it?) tacitly approved of, as John Durham makes clear.

The report shows that the FBI and some media were in cahoots to effectuate the plot, which created years of disruption in our country and deliberately undermined Trumps presidency.

To call this worse than Watergate is an understatement. This is closer to what went on during Stalins show trials.

It makes the baggage argument weak, to say the least. Trumps continual complaints about the Russia hoax have proven one hundred percent justified as will, undoubtedly, his complaints about the highly politicized prosecutions of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and others.

Beyond that, Trump is so far ahead in the polls, his already strong support growing from the exposure of these myriad lies, a suspension by his campaigns competition, announced or presumed, starts to make sense.

In fact, it might be a relief to the candidates, some of them at least. It might also be a relief to some candidates backers who should be worried about throwing good money after bad.

In the latest Rasmussen poll, Trump leads by 35 points (5217) over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and that isnt even much of an outlier. In other recent polls, by Emerson and perpetually left-leaning CBS, he was up by 46 and by 36, respectively. The rout has been going on for some time.

As for the other possible candidates, they have barely registered from the outset. They continue not to, apart from biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who has risen from out of nowhere to rough equivalency with Mike Pence and Nikki Haley, both of whom have been part of our political lives for as long as most of us can remember.

I have spent a good deal of time with Ramaswamy in South Carolina and New Hampshire, and can attest that not only is the man brilliantdont believe me, read his Woke, Inc.hes a superb stump speaker who relates very well with voters.

I know it will be extremely difficult for him and the others to swallow my recommendation to suspend, but I believe they should consider it a patriotic act. And if they do decide to suspend, they should do so with as much fanfare as possible.

We dont have time to spare. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is poised to act, as foreign policy expert Gordon Chang has warned, not only in Taiwan but right here in our country, where the open border has allowed free entry to who knows how many Chinese agents.

Fortunately, at the moment, Trumps profile is rising as people are becoming less resistant to recognizing the truth of what occurred. It had been obscured by the media, but now the evidence is leaking out everywhere. Even CNNs Jake Tapper has mumbled something about how Trump has been exonerated. (Perhaps he was upset to see his name on The Federalists list of 61 Hacks Who Peddled Russian Collusion and Should Never Be Trusted Again.)

My former colleague on the PJTV Poliwood show, screenwriter and director Lionel Chetwynd, reminded me in a text message of the remarkable similarities between Trump today and Churchill in the early days of World War II.

The timing is perfect! Lionel wrote. Curiously, this parallels Churchills rise in the first two weeks of May 1940. Disliked or distrusted by almost everyone in the Tory Party, it was becoming clear that only he had been telling the truth all through the 1930s.

Thanks to Mr. Durham, not to mention several years of reporting here at The Epoch Times, we can only nod in agreement.

Roger L. Simons 14th bookAmerican Refugees: Tales of the Mass Migration from Blue States to Redwill be published by Encounter in September.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Pro-Life Movement Makes Gains Amid Shifting Abortion Landscape

Pro-life supporters celebrate outside the Supreme Court in Washington after the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)

Nearly one year after the Supreme Courts historic reversal of Roe v. Wade, states across the country are still hashing out where they stand on the issue of abortion.

This week, the popular stance has been to increase protections for the unborn.

In South Carolina, for instance, after hours of voting down hundreds of Democrat amendments, the states Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted late on May 17 to pass a bill that would ban most abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which typically occurs around six weeks into a pregnancy.

The vote follows a failed attempt in April to pass a near-total abortion ban in the state and the South Carolina Supreme Courts January decision to strike down a similar six-week ban passed in 2021.

In its ruling, the court held that the previous ban violated the right to privacy in the South Carolina Constitution. As a result, abortion is currently legal in the state through 22 weeks gestation.

The new bill will now need the approval of the state Senate, also controlled by the GOP, before it passes to the desk of Republican Gov. Henry McMaster, who is expected to sign it into law.

Meanwhile, in neighboring North Carolina, Republican legislators banded together on May 16 to override Democratic Gov. Roy Coopers veto of a law that will ban most abortions in the state after 12 weeks and impose new restrictions on chemical abortions beginning July 1.

Additionally, that same day in Nebraska, the states unicameral legislature voted to move forward with incorporating a 12-week abortion ban into a bill banning sex-change operations for minors.

The momentum for life continues, said Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser, celebrating the developments in a statement.

Pro-life leaders are building a culture of life, protecting unborn children, and providing vital support for moms and families, Dannenfelser noted. Theyre making childcare more accessible; increasing access to postpartum medical care; and creating paternity leave, educational support, and funding for pregnancy centers on the frontline helping mothers.

Were not even close to done yet, she added, advising that her organization would also be advocating for a federal abortion ban.

Changing Landscape

The latest victories for the pro-life movement build upon other recent moves across the country to restrict access to abortion.

In Montana, Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a spate of bills earlier this month aimed at tightening restrictions on the procedure, including a ban on abortions after 24 weeks, save when the mothers life is at risk.

Additionally, last month, Florida passed a six-week abortion banwith multiple exceptionsbut that law will only take effect if the states current embattled 15-week ban is upheld by the Florida Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, a near-total abortion ban remains in effect in Kentucky as litigation over the law plays out, while other restrictions in Indiana, Ohio, and Iowa are tied up in court.

Abortion Pill in Limbo

While many states have cracked down on the legality of abortion in general, chemical abortion has faced heightened scrutiny in recent months as the Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) approval of the abortion drug mifepristone has been called into question.

In November, a group of doctors and medical associations sued the FDA, arguing that the agency unlawfully rushed its approval of the abortion pill without adequately reviewing its safety.

Last month, a federal judge sided with those medical professionals, finding that the FDA should not have approved the drug and that the agency improperly lifted restrictions for its use. That ruling has been appealed by the Department of Justice.

Following oral arguments in the case on May 17, Erin Hawley, vice president of the Center for Life and regulatory practice at Alliance Defending Freedom, said the FDA should be held accountable for injuries women had sustained from taking mifepristone.

The FDA must answer for the damage it has caused to the health of countless women and girls and the rule of law by failing to study how dangerous the chemical abortion drug regimen is and unlawfully removing every meaningful safeguard, even allowing for mail-order abortions, argued Hawley, who represents the doctors in the lawsuit, at a press conference.

These illegal actions do not reflect scientific judgment but rather reveal politically driven decisions to push a dangerous drug regimen without regard to womens health or the rule of law, she added. The public interest weighs in favor of taking a dangerous drug with no meaningful safeguards off the market.

During the hearing, the Justice Department contended that the court had no business questioning the FDAs rulings on the safety of drugsan argument that did not appear to sit well Judge James Ho, a Trump appointee.

I dont understand the statement that the FDA can do no wrong, Ho said. We are allowed to look at the FDA just like were allowed to look at any agency. Thats the role of the courts.

The judge also seemed skeptical that the abortion drug was eligible for the FDAs expedited approval process, which is limited for use in cases related to serious illness.

Pregnancy is not a serious illness  when we celebrated Mothers Day, were we celebrating illness? he asked.

Calls for Court-Packing

With the future availability of mifepristone in question and the tightening of abortion restrictions across the country, the nations biggest abortion provider has begun lobbying for the expansion of the Supreme Court.

As we continue to face unrelenting attacks on our basic freedoms, our courts must be one backstop to protecting our rights, asserted Alexis McGill Johnson, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, in a May 17 statement.

Instead, the courts have been used as a vehicle to advance a dangerous agenda against abortion rights, voting rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and so much more, she said. Planned Parenthood refuses to accept that our courts can only exist as they do now, and understands that reforms are integral to building the publics trust that the courts can and will function to uphold hard-won freedoms and advance justice for future generations.

Historically, the number of justices on the Supreme Court has changed seven times since the court was established in 1789, with the most recent change occurring in 1869. Since then, the court has held steady at nine justices, though President Franklin Roosevelt attempted to add more.

In addition to an expansion of the Supreme Court, term limits for Supreme Court justices and an increase in the number of lower court judges are among the other changes the pro-abortion advocacy group is pushing for.

The call to pack the courts was also taken up this week by Senate Democrats, who introduced a bill that would add four new seats on the Supreme Court.

In unveiling the Judiciary Act of 2023 on May 16, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) charged that the current Supreme Court is not only too conservative in its political leanings but also illegitimate.

Our most fundamentally held freedoms are under attack from an illegitimate, far-right United States Supreme Court, Markey said at a news conference on the steps of the Supreme Court. And if we fail to act, it will only get worse. We must fix this broken and illegitimate court. We must expand the United States Supreme Court.

Republicans have opposed the idea of court-packing, holding that Democrats simply want to add more liberal-leaning justices to secure the legal outcomes they desire.

The Democrats answer to a Supreme Court that is dedicated to upholding the rule of law and the Constitution is to pack it with liberals who will rule the way they want, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told The Epoch Times in March after introducing a constitutional amendment that would block future attempts to add seats to the court.

The Supreme Court should be independent, not inflated by every new administration.

But even with Democrats thin majority in the Senate, as Republicans have control of the House, Markeys measure is likely to be dead on arrival there, if it makes it that far.

Matthew Vadum contributed to this report.
Putin Has Vendetta Against Me, Architect of Sanctions Regime Says

Bill Browder claims Russian President is targeting him over 'Magnitsky Act'

A UK-based financier claims Russian President Vladimir Putin has a personal Vendetta against him over his role in the global sanctioning of oligarchs.

Bill Browder, a U.S. born financier who later became a UK citizen, is best known for successfully pushing for a piece of U.S. legislation known as the Magnitsky Act, which allowed the sanctioning of Russian officials involved in the imprisonment and death of Browders corruption-exposing lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in Russia.

The United States later expanded the tool into a Global Magnitsky Act to impose visa bans and asset freezes on human rights offenders from other countries.

Speaking to NTDs British Thought Leaders programme, Browder said Magnitsky-style sanctioning regimes now exist in 35 countries and its one of the most feared tools that dictators look at when they when theyre dealing with the West.

But even since the first Magnitsky Act was passed into law in 2012, Putin has gone on a personal vendetta against me to try to destroy me, he said.

Browers Hermitage Capital Management was one of the biggest investors in Russia in the nineties and noughties. In 2005, Russia deported him back to the UK and banned him from re-entering, claiming he was a threat to national security.

Browder said Russian officials had also raided his office in Moscow and eventually arrested Magnitsky, all because they were exposing Russian oligarchs.

 in the process, as I was investing, I discovered that many of the companies that I was investing in were being robbed blind by the Russian oligarchs and friends of Putin, he said. And so I started to expose the corruption. I started to give information to the international media about the crimes of the oligarchs.

According to Browders estimates, Putin and about 1,000 people around him in a 23-year period have stolen a trillion dollars from the Russian state.

After Magnitsky died in prison in 2009 under questionable circumstances, Browder began his mission to prosecute those who were responsible outside of Russia after learning there was no chance of getting justice inside the country. The effort culminated in the Magnitsky Act.

Named By Putin

In July 2018, Putin mentioned Browder by name during a press conference with then-U.S. President Donald Trump, accusing Browders business associates of tax evasion in Russia and donating part of the money to Trumps campaign rival Hillary Clinton.

The name drop came immediately after Putin offered to let U.S. officials including special counsel Robert Mueller observe the interrogation of 12 Russian officers accused of interfering with the 2016 U.S. Presidential election if Trump allowed Russian police to be present at the questioning of U.S. suspects.

Trump said it was an incredible offer during the press conference, before then-White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders clarified three days later that Trump disagreed to it.

Asked what he felt when watching the footage, Browder said, not good.

Putin has hated me from the moment that the Magnitsky Act passed in 2012. He was so upset with the Magnitsky Act, he said.  for him, the idea that his entire international wealth can be frozen is just infuriating beyond belief.

According to Browder, Russia has also issued eight Interpol arrest warrants against him, one of which led to his brief arrest in Spain.

The campaigner believes he had managed to avoid at least six months to detention in Spain, if not worse, by sending two Twitter posts about the arrest that attracted media attention.

UK Needs To Sanction More People

Asked if the laws can be made more effective, Browder said one of the things that could be changed is adding kleptocracy as part of the offences besides human rights in the EU version of the laws.

Another thing is you have not that many people sanctioned here in the UK, he said, calling on the government to use its new-found power much, much more liberally can coordinate with other countries.

The other thing is that you can have one person sanction by one country, like say, by the United States and not the UK, or Canada, and not the EU. And so we need to harmonize these sanctions so that everybody does it all together, he said, adding that he believes these changes will come in time.

The UK first used its post-Brexit independent sanctioning powers in July 2020 against 25 Russian nationals over the mistreatment and death of Magnitsky and 20 Saudi nationals held to be involved in the death of journalist Kamal Khashoggi.

To date, The UK has sanctioned 85 individuals and 6 entities under the Global Human Rights regime and 35 individuals under the Global Anti-Corruption regime. Most people on the list are Russians and Saudis, with four Chinese nationals and a number of individuals from countries including Belarus, Burma, Pakistan, Venezuela, and Gambia.

After Russias invasion of Ukraine, the UK government also sanctioned 1,562 individuals and 184 entities under a separate Russia Regime.

But the government has been criticised by parliamentarians for being slow to sanction more human rights abusers from China and elsewhere, such as former Chief Executive of Hong Kong Carrie Lam, former Xinjiang Chinese Communist Party secretary Chen Quanguo and other officials in Hong Kong and Xinjiang who have been sanctioned by the United States.

The Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office, which previously maintained it doesnt comment on future sanctions, didnt respond to The Epoch Times request for comment.
Putin, Zelenskyy Agree to Meet With African Leaders Peace Mission, Says South Africa President

(Left) Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris on May 14, 2023. (Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images); (Right) Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 17, 2023. (Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images)

CAPE TOWN, South AfricaRussian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have agreed to separate meetings with a delegation of leaders from six African countries to discuss a possible plan to end the war in Ukraine, South Africas president said Tuesday.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he spoke with Putin and Zelenskyy by phone over the weekend and they each agreed to host an African leaders peace mission in Moscow and Kyiv, respectively.

Principal to our discussions are efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the devastating conflict in the Ukraine, Ramaphosa said.

The leaders of Zambia, Senegal, Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Egypt would make up the delegation along with Ramaphosa, he said in a statement. Putin and Zelenskyy gave him the go-ahead to commence the preparations, the South African leader said.

Four of those six African countriesSouth Africa, Republic of Congo, Senegal, and Ugandaabstained from a U.N. vote last year on condemning Russias invasion. Zambia and Egypt voted in favor of the motion.

Ramaphosa did not give a time frame or outline any parameters for the possible peace talks. Zelenskyy has said he would not consider a peace deal to end the 15-month war until Russian forces withdraw completely from Ukrainian territory.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also was briefed on the African delegations planned meetings and welcomed the initiative, Ramaphosa said.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric confirmed Monday that Ramaphosa spoke to Gutteres Monday afternoon during his visit to Jamaica.

As weve said before, we are in favor of any initiative that could lead us to a peace in line with the [U.N.] Charter, in line with international law and in line with General Assembly resolutions, Dujarric said.

A readout from a phone conversation Putin and Ramaphosa had Friday said the Russian leader supported Cyril Ramaphosas idea about a group of African leaders participating in the discussion of the prospects of resolving the Ukrainian conflict.

It wasnt clear if that was the phone call Ramaphosa was referring to when he said he spoke with Putin over the weekend.

South Africas leading position in the African delegation is bound to draw scrutiny. Ramaphosas announcement came days after the U.S. ambassador accused South Africa of siding with Russia in the war in Ukraine and even providing weapons to help Moscow.

U.S. Ambassador to South Africa Reuben Brigety alleged last week that weapons and ammunition were loaded onto a Russian-flagged cargo ship at a South African naval base in December and taken to Russia. The South African government has denied it sent any weapons to Russia.

Ramaphosa has said the matter is under investigation.

South Africa has claimed its position on the war is neutral. The country has strong historical ties with Russia due to the former Soviet Unions support of South Africas ruling African National Congress party when it was a liberation movement fighting to end the apartheid regime.

South Africa also hosted Russian and Chinese warships for joint naval exercises off its coast in February and which coincided with the one-year anniversary of Russias invasion of Ukraine. South Africas top army general traveled to Moscow and met with the commander of the Russian ground forces on Monday.

South Africa maintains it also retains a strong relationship with the United States and other Western supporters of Ukraine. Ramaphosa met with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House late last year.

Zambia also has historical ties with Russia. Uganda is a U.S. ally on regional security in East Africa, but Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has spoken of his countrys friendship with Russia and its neutral position in the war in Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine are far apart in terms of an agreement to end the war.

The Kremlin wants Kyiv to acknowledge Russias annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the Ukrainian provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia, which most nations have denounced as illegal. Ukraine has rejected the demands and ruled out any talks with Russia until its troops pull back from all occupied territories.

Ukraine is determined to recover all Russian-occupied areas.

Zelenskyys 10-point peace plan also includes a tribunal to prosecute crimes of aggression, which would enable Russia to be held accountable for its invasion.

China has been the only other country so far offering to mediate possible peace talks, an offer clouded by its show of political support for Moscow.

Beijing released a proposed peace plan in February, and a Chinese envoy is preparing to visit Russia and Ukraine.

But there appeared to be little chance of an imminent breakthrough to end the war since Ukraine and its Western allies largely dismissed the Beijings proposal.
KIGALI, May 17 (Xinhua) -- The government and business community of Rwanda have expressed their anticipation of participating in the upcoming 6th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai in November, with the aim of securing crucial business partnerships with Chinese companies.

Nelly Mukazayire, deputy chief executive officer of the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), made the announcement during a CIIE promotion conference held in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, Wednesday.

Mukazayire emphasized that the CIIE presents an excellent platform for raising brand recognition for Rwandan products and attracting Chinese investors. "This year marks Rwanda's sixth participation in the CIIE, and the continuous involvement has significantly increased awareness of Rwandan products in the Chinese market," she said.

Mukazayire highlighted Rwanda's active trade partnership with China, citing exports primarily composed of minerals, coffee, and chili.

According to her, the expo enables Rwandan companies to explore additional products that might arouse the interest of the Chinese market, beyond the traditional exports of tea and coffee.

Mukazayire pointed out that China ranked first in terms of investments registered with the RDB in 2022, with 49 projects involving investments amounting to 182.4 million U.S. dollars.

Song Shangzhe, visiting deputy director general of the China International Import Expo Bureau, expressed China's sincere desire to share its market with Rwanda and the world through the CIIE. He underscored the positive impact of the CIIE on China-Rwanda economic and trade cooperation, facilitating Rwandan enterprises' access to the vast Chinese market.

"To support Rwandan and African participants, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), CIIE offers various policies and incentives such as a certain number of free standard booths, construction subsidies, and preferential tax policies for the retention and purchase of exhibits," said Song.

Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun emphasized that the CIIE is not merely a week-long exhibition but also an economic forum where dignitaries, international officials, and scholars gather to discuss economic cooperation.

"Bilateral trade between China and Rwanda has seen consistent and rapid growth in recent years, reaching a record high of over 477 million U.S. dollars in 2022, an increase of 31.2 percent," he said.

Wang said that the CIIE serves as a platform to attract investments from China and other countries, offering opportunities for knowledge exchange and improving output and supply chain management for Rwandan counterparts, while welcoming Rwandan enterprises to participate in the CIIE and assuring the Chinese Embassy's commitment to facilitating their involvement.

The preparations for the event are progressing as scheduled, and the 6th CIIE is set to take place from Nov. 5 to 10. The contracted Business Exhibition area has exceeded 260,000 square meters, covering sectors including food and agricultural products, automobiles, intelligent industries and information technology, consumer goods, medical equipment and healthcare products, and trade-in services, according to organizers. 
Quebec Man, 27, Shot and Killed in Southern Mexico Town of Puerto Escondido

A Surete du Quebec police car is seen in Montreal on July 22, 2020. (The Canadian Press/Paul Chiasson)

A 27-year-old man from Quebec was shot to death in Mexicos Pacific coast beach town of Puerto Escondido, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Oaxaca state prosecutors said Victor Masson was found dead in a car with a bullet wound on Monday in a neighbourhood of Puerto Escondido where few tourists stay. Prosecutors did not provide any possible motive in the slaying.

The prosecutors did not release his hometown, but Quebec media outlet Le Quotidien reported that Masson was from Chicoutimi, in the provinces SaguenayLac-Saint-Jean region.

Annie Viau, a family spokesperson who described herself as Massons brothers partner, confirmed the death but gave few other details.

You understand that the family of Victor Masson is in shock and that members learned of the death through the media, Viau told The Canadian Press in an emailed statement written in French and Spanish.

Viau said the family was asking for privacy, fearing that the dissemination of false information in the context of this file could interfere with the investigation.

Masson was the second foreign tourist killed in the southern state of Oaxaca in less than a week. His killing comes three days after a man from Argentina was seriously wounded in a machete attack in another coastal town in Oaxaca. Prosecutors said Monday the Argentine touristwhose name was not releaseddied of his injuries at a hospital in Mexico City.

He was among a group of three Argentines who were attacked by a Mexican man with a machete on Friday in the hamlet of La Isla, at the mouth of the Laguna de Chacahua, on the Pacific coast. The other two tourists were also wounded, but they were expected to survive.

Laguna de Chacahua is about 100 kilometres west of Puerto Escondido.
Rep. George Santos Communications Director Resigns After Criticizing Troubled Congressman

Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) speaks with members of the press as he leaves Federal Court in Central Islip, New York, on May 10, 2023. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Naysa Woomer, the communications director for Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), has resigned amid the congressmans rising legal troubles. Woomer tendered her resignation shortly after an audio recording was published in which she appeared to express support for Santos removal from office.

In a resignation letter that she shared with Scripps News on Wednesday, Woomer said, With respect for my colleagues, the people of New York, and most importantly, myself, I am honored to tender my resignation.

Appearing to direct criticism at Santos in her letter, Woomer wrote, Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given.

Santos office confirmed Woomers resignation in an emailed statement to NTD News. The congressmans office provided no additional details about her resignation letter.

Yesterday, our Communications Director, Naysa Woomer, tendered her resignation, his office said. Naysa served this office and the constituents of New Yorks Third Congressional District for the past five months. We appreciate and thank her for her diligent service and wish her nothing but the best.

Woomer submitted her resignation letter a week after Santos was arraigned in a New York federal court on a 13-count indictment alleging he defrauded donors, misused campaign funds, lied to Congress on his campaign finance disclosures, and took unemployment benefits for which he did not qualify.

Santos is Not a Good Person: Audio Recording

On Wednesday, undercover investigative reporting organization OKeefe Media Group (OMG) shared an audio recording purporting to show Woomer speaking with an undercover reporter. The undercover reporter told Woomer, I kind of feel bad for you right? He [George Santos] cant get kicked out 

I actually hope he does, Woomer replied.

Oh, you hope he does? the undercover reporter continued.

Yes I do, she said.

Why, is he a bad guy? the reporter asked.

13 counts. Money laundering, fraud. Yeah. Hes not a good person. Sorry, she said.

Its unclear what role the release of this audio recording played in Woomers resignation decision.

Santos office did not provide any additional comment about the OMG audio recording.

Woomer had spoken out about another Santos staffer last week. On May 12, the Daily Beast reported that Santos director of operations, Vish Burra, would be disciplined for intimidating comments he allegedly made toward a reporter.

This kind of behavior from anyone is unacceptable, much less from a congressional staffer, Woomer told The Daily Beast on Friday. Threats of violence of any kind will not be condoned. The tweets have been deleted and disciplinary action will be taken.

Congressmans Criminal Charges

The indictment (pdf) against Santos alleges he deceived his supporters into donating to a company under the guise that the funds would be used to support his 2022 congressional campaign. Prosecutors say Santos instead moved money from this campaign fund over to his personal bank accounts and allegedly then used much of that money for personal expenses, including purchasing designer clothing and paying off debts.

The complaint further alleges Santos obtained unemployment insurance through the New York State Department of Labor by falsely claiming to have been unemployed in March 2020. Santos allegedly received $24,000 in unemployment benefits through April 2021.

The complaint also alleges Santos made false statements to Congress by providing incorrect information about his income and assets during his 2020 and 2022 congressional campaigns. In Santoss 2020 campaign, he allegedly overstated his income from one company and altogether failed to report his salary from another investment firm. Santos claimed he received about $55,000 in income from a single company, when in fact he received $25,403 from one company and $27,555 from a second, for a total of $52,958 between the two income sources.

In his 2022 campaign filings, Santos allegedly claimed he was making $750,000 in earned income through a company he owned, and had between $1 million and $5 million in unearned dividends through that same company, along with up to $5 million more in a savings account. Prosecutors say Santos actually received about $28,107 from an investment firm and $20,304 in unemployment benefits during this time period, both of which he failed to truthfully report as required.

Santos has faced pressure to resign over the charges.

This week, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) introduced a resolution to expel Santos from Congress over his alleged crimes. The Republican majority instead voted to refer the issue to the House Ethics Committee for further consideration, essentially deferring a decision on the issue.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) have both indicated they would not call for Santos resignation before the outcome of his court case, sticking with a precedent that has held for other sitting members of Congress.

Fortunately, justice is blind in our country, and everyone is innocent until proven guilty, Santos told Punchbowls Mica Soellner after lawmakers held off on voting for his expulsion on Wednesday. Regrettably so[,] Rep. Garcia and the Democrats are playing the roles of bias[ed] judge and jury. Expelling me is silencing 145k+ voters who sent me here to represent them and taking the voice away from 700k people.

From NTD News
Rep. Greene Introduces Measure to Impeach Biden

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event celebrating Jewish American Heritage Month at the White House in Washington on May 16, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has introduced a measure to impeach President Joe Biden.

The measure, which Greene has introduced to Congress on various occasions before, was announced during a May 18 press conference.

It is with the highest amount of solemnity that I introduce articles of impeachment today on the head of this America Last executive branch that has been working since Jan. 20, 2021 to systematically destroy this country: the president of the United States, Joseph Robinette Biden, Greene said.

In the articles (pdf), Greene wrote: In his conduct as President of the United States, in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of the President of the United States, and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend, the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, Joseph Robinette Biden abused the power of the Office of the President by endangering the security of the United States and thwarting the will of Congress as set forth in duly enacted law.

During the press conference, Greene explained, Joe Biden has deliberately compromised our national security by refusing to enforce immigration laws and secure our border. She cited figures that more than 6 million illegal aliens have entered the United States under Bidens watch.

His administration has willfully refused to maintain operational control as required by the law.

She cited various policies of Bidens administration toward immigration, saying that Biden had refused to carry out the law and to protect American national security.

Greene introduced similar measures during the 117th Congress, but it did not gain traction.

In total, Republicans have introduced nine articles of impeachment against Biden over the course of his presidency. Five of those originated with Greene.

The articles of impeachment are the latest in a series of similar measures by Greene.

This week, the Georgia Republican has also introduced articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Matthew Graves, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.

The articles of impeachment against Biden, like those levied against other officials, have an uncertain future.

Before advancing, theyd need the backing of Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), whos said in the past that were not gonna be political with impeachment.

Reps. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) told the Epoch Times that McCarthy was coming around on some of these pushes, particularly the push to remove Mayorkas, but others are less widely supported.

Any impeachment resolution advanced through the House would initiate a trial for the accused in the Senate. Sixty senators would need to agree to convict before the accused could be removed from office, a challenging prospect for any impeachment resolution.
Rep. Jim Jordan Says Congress Must Target FBIs Budget in Wake of Durham Report

Look at the 'power of the purse' to hold FBI accountable, says House Judiciary chair

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has called for Congress to target the budget of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after the release of special counsel John Durhams bombshell report, which revealed the bureau launched its Crossfire Hurricane investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign without evidence and due process.

Speaking on Fox News Channels Hannity on Monday night, the House Judiciary Committee chairman highlighted a pattern of behavior by Democrats, accusing them of creating false narratives amplified by legacy media outlets and Big Tech.

Citing Durhams report, Jordan said on Monday that former Secretary of State Hillary Clintons campaign collaborated with the FBI in 2016 to target Trump, while in 2020, 51 former CIA agents and intelligence officials worked with then-former Vice President Joe Bidens campaign to achieve the same objective.

Jordan emphasized that in both instances, the aim was to target Trump and prevent him from assuming office.

So weve seen it twiceone it was the FBI, the second one it was former intel officialsbut [with] the same objective: to go after President Trump and keep him from being president, Jordan told Hannity.

The 306-page Durham report (pdf), which was released by the Justice Department on Monday, highlights the disparity between the FBIs handling of issues related to Clintons campaign and those involving her Republican opponent, then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.

The report concluded that the FBIs investigation into alleged collusion between Trumps campaign and Russia demonstrated a lack of analytical rigor, apparent confirmation bias, and an over-willingness to rely on information from individuals connected to political opponents.

FBI Failed to Follow the Law

Jordan described Durhams report as scathing and criticized the James Comey-led FBI for failing to uphold its mission of fidelity to the law.

The report found no evidence or predicate for initiating the FBIs investigation. Bureau officials even dismissed investigating evidence suggesting that the Clinton campaign might have fabricated the allegations against Trump, Jordan alleged.

Jordan stressed the severity of the situation, emphasizing that Durhams report revealed the FBIs failure to follow the law and pursue the truth.

Think about thatfailed to follow the law is what it found. No evidence. No predicate. No evidence whatsoever to start this investigation. And then they talk about a trusted source who came and said, Hey, this really looks like its the Clinton campaign making it all up to go after President Trump. And they dismissed that evidence and went after him nonetheless. Thats how bad this is. Thats what this report shows, Jordan said.

In fact, the report revealed that prior to the 2016 election, FBI officials frequently intervened to restrict agents from investigating possible criminal actions connected to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or her presidential campaign.

Power of the Purse

To hold the agency accountable, Jordan proposed targeting the FBIs budget through appropriations, saying that it is the most effective leverage that Congress possesses. He argued that looking into funding would help regain control over agencies that repeatedly engaged in such behavior.

We have to look at the power of the purse if we are ever going to get control of these agencies, who did this not just once but multiple times, Jordan said.

When asked about the delay in uncovering these revelations, Jordan attributed it to a double standard. He claimed that if conservatives were involved in a similar situation, they would face relentless pursuit, while the other side remains unaccountable. Jordan reiterated the importance of leveraging the power of the purse to address this discrepancy.

Regarding the Crossfire Hurricane investigation into Trump and its impact on the country, Jordan said that for three years, the public was inundated with discussions of collusion with Russia, the Mueller investigation, and coordinationall based on a lie.

The congressman underscored that the FBI knew the allegations were baseless and lacked evidence, yet it proceeded with the operation, subjecting the country to an unnecessary ordeal.

The reports very clear in the executive summary, Jordan said. No evidence whatsoever to commence this operationto commence Crossfire Hurricane. They had none. They did it anyway. They put our country through it. That is the true threat to democracy we face today, when entities and agencies in our government behave like this FBI did.

Furthermore, Jordan highlighted a pattern in which false information originates from political campaignssuch as the Clinton campaign and the Steele dossierand is then transmitted to the FBI. In the case of the Biden campaign, a letter from 51 former intelligence officials sparked the controversy.

He criticized the media and Big Tech for amplifying these false narratives while discrediting those who seek to scrutinize their veracity.

They attack you, and the press is so eager to do that, he said. And then ultimately, in the end, the one thing that is always proven right is, we were right about it all along.

The only thing we had wrong is, in both situations, it was worse than we thought.

Read More Durham Filing Reveals CIA Knew in Early 2017 That Data Tying Trump to Russia Was Fake

FBI Reforms

In a statement on Monday, the FBI stated that it had already rolled out reforms in response to its mistakes, which the bureau acknowledged.

The conduct in 2016 and 2017 that Special Counsel Durham examined was the reason that current FBI leadership already implemented dozens of corrective actions, which have now been in place for some time, reads the statement, released hours after Durhams report was published.

In a letter to Durham (pdf) in response to the report, the FBI detailed the corrective actions it had made, including installing more rigorous requirements for applying for surveillance, requiring personnel training for surveillance applications, updating agency guidelines on vetting confidential human sources, additional requirements for opening sensitive investigative measures, and expanding its internal oversight and auditing programs.

The FBI said that its missteps could have been prevented if these reforms were in place.

This report reinforces the importance of ensuring the FBI continues to do its work with the rigor, objectivity, and professionalism the American people deserve and rightly expect, the agency wrote in acknowledging the findings of Durhams report.

Meanwhile, Durham made no recommendations in his report for new policies at the bureau. He noted that a cultural shift and return to the bureaus founding values remains the best way to ensure integrity of the institution going forward.

The promulgation of additional rules and regulations to be learned in yet more training sessions would likely prove to be a fruitless exercise if the FBIs guiding principles of Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity are not engrained in the hearts and minds of those sworn to meet the FBIs mission of Protecting the American People and Upholding the Constitution of the United States, the report reads.

Bill Pan and Petr Svab contributed to this report.
Repeal the Quarantine Power

Commentary

It was March 12, 2020, and I was sitting on a moving Amtrak train out of Manhattan and headed to the Hudson train stop. From what I experienced in New York City that daypeople drinking themselves silly at noon and scurrying through the streets to get out because of the bad germ on the looseI had a sudden concern. I thought that the train could be stopped and all passengers put in a bus and taken to a quarantine camp.

Crazy? Not so much. This is what happened on cruise ships two weeks earlier. The United States stopped them in the deep seas and sent helicopters to rescue Americans from the virus then spreading. They didnt want to be rescued of coursethey were on vacation and living it upbut the U.S. government thought differently. After that, these poor souls were quarantined for several weeks more while being tested and treated. It was brutal.

Also six years earlier (October 2014) the U.S. government forced aid workers returning from Africa to quarantine on U.S. soil. It was against their wishes. They werent sick. They had no symptoms. Still, they were forced to live for weeks in a plastic shell just to make sure. This was entirely because of an Ebola fear, even though Ebola didnt usually spread asymptomatically. The national media went nuts with anger, but the government overruled concerns about human rights.

In addition, I was well aware of the quarantine powers of the federal government. They were first granted in 1944 with the Public Health Services Act. The purpose of the power was extremely limited. But it did open the door to abuse.

By the way, Ive never been able to discover a legislative history of this action, much less find out the real reasons for its passage and timing. I would like someone to explain it to me. It was passed while 120,000 Japanese Americans were interned in 10 different camps strewn around the United States. The stated reason was national security. So far as I know, this act wasnt invoked to defend this policy.

The government quarantine power gradually grew over the years even though it wasnt often invoked. By the time of the Avian Bird Flu scare of 2005 and 2006, the George W. Bush administration revised the CDC flu protocol to hold out the prospect of mass quarantines. It didnt happen because that scare proved to be much ado about nothing. Still, the CDC advertised its new powers on its website, so I knew they were there and that many people were extant who wanted to test them.

With all this background, I went to an employee of Amtrak and flat-out asked him what the chances are that the train would be stopped and we would all be put in quarantine. He didnt think it was likely but he admitted that it was possible. He added that he would be glad when his shift ended.

The train rocked up to Hudson an hour later, and I was thrilled to touch ground and hop into my car. I had avoided quarantine. It so happens that no train was ever stopped, so far as I know. But it was less than a week later when states started imposing stay-at-home orders with the encouragement of the CDC. This was a reflection of a federal edict issued on March 16, 2020, as an implementation of the state of emergency imposed three days earlier in secret.

Before long, people like me were issuing passes to employees who needed to go back and forth to work, something to prove that they were essential employees. You see, the same government had divided the whole workforce into essential and nonessential. Nonessential employees werent supposed to leave their homes. For people crossing state borders, you needed to quarantine two weeks before going back againnot that everyone went along with this cockamamie plan, but the rule was there.

All those powers still exist at the federal level and in every state. Brownstone fellow and attorney Bobbie Anne Flower-Cox actually challenged these powers in court in the state of New York and won her case. The judge was shocked at how extensive they were. You dont have to be proven sick. There is no age limit. There is no time limit. There is no due process. And there is no viable way to appeal your way out of quarantine. The case is currently on appeal.

We wish her all the luck and hope she prevails. But that still leaves a major problem. The powers still exist at the federal level. We now know for sure that this power can and will be abused. More and better regulations arent the answer. The entire power needs to be taken away from the government now, and that means completely repealing the Public Health Service Act of 1944. Now.

So long as the power exists, it will be a grave occasion of sin for all governments at all levels. It can be invoked for anything. There is, in practice, no real restraint. As with the now-in-question New York law, it can pertain to whole families or just kids. There is no time limit. It can happen for any reason. There is no appeal. You can at any time get a knock on your door and be taken away for any reason whatever and quarantined without ever having been read your rights. Indeed, you have no rights.

The quarantine power deletes every other legal right. So long as it exists, we really dont have any rights, or rather, all rights are contingent on the whims of public health officials or those deputized to act on their behalf. It enables tyranny. And we saw how this unfolds in the cases of Australia and China, two countries that built massive quarantine camps and held thousands of people there without appeal. If you resist, you go to prison.

Im not making this up. You can read about it at the CDC now:

Isolation and quarantine help protect the public by preventing exposure to people who have or may have a contagious disease. 1. Isolation separates sick people with a quarantinable communicable disease from people who are not sick. 2. Quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become sick. In addition to serving as medical functions, isolation and quarantine also are police power functions, derived from the right of the state to take action affecting individuals for the benefit of society.

Whats more:

Public health authorities at the federal, state, local, and tribal levels may sometimes seek help from police or other law enforcement officers to enforce a public health order.  Breaking a federal quarantine order is punishable by fines and imprisonment. Federal law allows the conditional release of persons from quarantine if they comply with medical monitoring and surveillance.

Again, this is the law right now. Even after the incredible fiasco of lockdowns and track-and-trace, this power still exists. No one has yet done anything about it. So long as this power exists, there will be plots to use it again. And they will use it again.

Such power is completely unnecessary and should never be invoked in a free society. We should know that by now. If we cannot and will not get rid of these powers, we will have learned nothing from the past three years.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Reps. Jim Jordan, Mike Turner Threaten to Subpoena CIA in Hunter Biden Laptop Investigation

With a poster of a New York Post front page story about Hunter Bidens emails on display, Rep. Jim Jordan (R- Ohio) listens during a hearing before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee at Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 8, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-Ohio) are threatening to subpoena the CIA to force it to address claims of its involvement in an intelligence community letter to discredit reports on Hunter Bidens laptop.

Last week, the two Republican-controlled House committees published a report alleging the CIAs Prepublication Classification Review Board (PCRB) reviewed and approved an October 2020 letter by 51 former U.S. intelligence community officials, which alleged reports about the contents of Hunter Bidens laptop had all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation. The Republican report also alleged a PCRB employee may have recruited signatories for the letter discrediting the negative reporting about Hunter Biden and his father, then-presidential candidate Joe Biden.

The laptop materials, which were first reported by the New York Post, indicated Joe Biden knew about his sons foreign business dealings despite having denied such knowledge throughout the 2020 election cycle.

Jordan and Turner sent a letter (pdf) to CIA Director William Burns on Wednesday, requesting that the agency turn over additional documents relating to its involvement in the October 2020 intelligence community letter. The Republican chairmen threatened to use their subpoena power to compel the intelligence agency to divulge its records.

PCRBs Role in Intel Community Letter

According to the May 10 Republican report (pdf), former CIA officials played an active role in recruiting signatories for the letter discrediting the Hunter Biden laptop reports.

The report alleges U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was working for the Biden campaign at the time, reached out to former CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell on Oct. 17, 2020, to discuss the intelligence community letter. Morell, an Obama-era CIA official, was quick to agree to the plan and actively recruited other signatories.

On Oct. 19, 2020, two days after discussing the letter with Blinken, Morell sent a final draft of the letter to the PCRB for review. Morell told the CIA board [t]his is a rush job, as it need to get out as soon as possible. According to the Republican report, the signatories hoped to give then-candidate Joe Biden a talking point to defend against the Hunter Biden laptop reporting during his final presidential debate with Donald Trump on Oct. 22, 2020.

The PCRBs sole function is to make sure current and former CIA employees arent disclosing classified information in any materials they may release publicly. The board, therefore, has an influential role over current and former agency employees who may be pursuing potentially lucrative book deals about their time working for Americas premier spy agency.

One such signatory, former CIA analyst David Cariens, told congressional investigators that his book was up for consideration by the PCRB at the time Morell and other former intelligence community officials were looking for people to sign their letter. Cariens told investigators that a CIA employee affiliated with the PCRB informed him of the intelligence community letter and asked if he would sign it. Cariens said the person in charge of reviewing the book called to tell him that it had been approved without any changes required and then told him about the letter.

Carienss wife, Janice, also a former CIA employee, also joined in signing the letter.

If the PCRB or one of its employees was involved in recruiting signatories for the letter, it could potentially prove problematic.

The Hatch Act prohibits federal employees from using government resources to help a partisan political campaign. The intelligence community letter was developed after conversation with a Biden campaign adviser, Blinken, and with the intent to question the veracity of materials negatively implicating Joe Biden and his family.

Even Morell testified that such an action by a CIA employee would be inappropriate,' the May 10 report states.

After detailing the PCRBs connection to the letter, the Republican report states investigators requested additional material from the CIA which has ignored the request to date.

In their latest letter to the CIA, Jordan and Turner called on the agency to turn over any communications it had during the month of October 2020 with any of the 51 signatories of the intelligence community letter.

From NTD News
Rons Magic Is GONE! Trump Says After 2 DeSantis-Endorsed Candidates Lose

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a Make America Great Again rally in Manchester, N.H., on April 27, 2023. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images)

Former President Donald Trump took a victory lap on social media on May 17, following the defeat of two candidates endorsed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in races in Kentucky and Jacksonville, Florida.

Rons magic is GONE! Trump declared on his Truth Social account on Wednesday. A day earlier, Trump-endorsed Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron won the Republican nomination in the Kentucky gubernatorial race, defeating DeSantis-endorsed Kelly Craft, a former ambassador to the United Nations.

Craft finished third with 17.5 percent of the vote, trailing Kentuckys Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles (21.9 percent) and Cameron (46.9 percent).

In his victory speech, Cameron thanked the former president and added, The Trump culture of winning is alive and well in Kentucky.

Cameron will face incumbent Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in November, in a state that Trump carried with more than 62 percent of support in both 2016 and 2020.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron speaks during a press conference in Frankfort, Ky., on Sept. 23, 2020. (Jon Cherry/Getty Images)

Congratulations to a star in Kentucky, Daniel Cameron, who easily won the Republican Nomination for Governor. He had my Complete and Total Endorsement, Trump wrote.

The DeSanctimonious backed candidate came in a DISTANT third. He also lost, shockingly, in Jacksonville last night (Mayor), Trump added. The former president began calling the Florida governor Ron DeSanctimonious days before the 2022 midterm elections.

DeSantis also endorsed Republican candidate Daniel Davis in the mayoral race in Jacksonville, who lost to Democrat candidate Donna Deegan in a May 16 runoff.

Deegans victory flipped the Jacksonville mayors office, which has been under GOP control since 2015 when incumbent Mayor Lenny Curry was first elected. Curry could not seek reelection this year because of term limits.

Trump claimed that Daviss defeat was a big upset and a shocker, in a separate Truth Social post.

If they would have asked me to Endorse, he would have won, easily. Too proud to do so. Fools! This is a BIG LOSS for the Republican Party. Remember, Rob only won because of me!!! Trump added. In 2018, Trump called DeSantis strong on Borders, tough on Crime in endorsing the then-congressman to become the next Florida governor.

Florida GOP Chairman Christian Ziegler took to Twitter on Wednesday to say that Jacksonville Republicans had a good turnout of 43 percent compared to Democrats 35 percent.

Good turnout effort, but not enough to overcome Voter Reg deficit + I loss + R flips post-bloody primary, Ziegler added.

2024

DeSantis, seen as Trumps main rival for the Republican nomination in 2024, has not officially launched a presidential bid but is expected to make his decision soon.

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, biotechnology entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and conservative radio host Larry Elder have announced a 2024 run for the GOP nomination.

At an event in Iowa on May 13, DeSantis said the Republican Party needs to reject a culture of losing in recent years.

If we make the 2024 election, a referendum on [President] Joe Biden and his failures, and if we provide a positive alternative for the future of this country, Republicans will win across the board, DeSantis added. If we do not do that, if we get distracted, if we focus the election on the past or on other side issues, then I think the Democrats are going to beat us again, and I think it will be very difficult to recover from that defeat.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during an Iowa GOP reception in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on May 13, 2023. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

Trump responded to DeSantiss comments in an interview with The Messenger published a day later. The former president said, Ron is not a winner.

First of all, Im not at all caught up in the past. And second of all, Im doing much better against Biden than he is in the polls, and Im doing much better against him, Trump added. I mean, Im beating [DeSantis] by 40 points in some polls, so he can talk about what he wants.

Trump continued: Ron is not a winner because Ron without me wouldnt have won. If I would have left it alone, he would have lost by 30 points or more.

According to a mid-May poll by Rasmussen Reports of 996 likely voters, 62 percent said they would vote for Trump in the 2024 primaries.

DeSantis finished second with 17 percent of support, followed by former Vice President Mike Pence at 6 percent, Haley at 5 percent, Hutchinson at 3 percent, and Ramaswamy at 2 percent.
Russia Agrees to Extend Ukraine Grain Deal in a Boost for Global Food Security

ANKARA, TurkeyRussia agreed to a two-month extension of a deal that has allowed Ukraine to ship grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday, a boost to global food security after the war drove up prices.

Turkey and the U.N. brokered the breakthrough accord with the warring sides last summer, which came with a separate agreement to facilitate shipments of Russian food and fertilizer that Moscow insists hasnt been applied.

Russia had threatened to bow out if its concerns were not ironed out by Thursday. Such brinkmanship isnt new: With a similar extension in the balance in March, Russia unilaterally decided to renew the deal for 60 days instead of the 120 days outlined in the agreement.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday that problems would need to be resolved at the technical level. Neither she nor Erdogan mentioned any concessions Moscow may have received.

We will continue our efforts to ensure that all the conditions of the agreement are fulfilled so that it continues in the next period, said Erdogan, who announced the highly anticipated decision two days after being forced into a runoff in Turkeys presidential election.

Extending the Black Sea Grain Initiative is a win for countries in Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia that rely on Ukrainian wheat, barley, vegetable oil, and other affordable food products, especially as drought takes a toll. The deal helped lower prices of food commodities like wheat over the last year, but that relief has not reached kitchen tables.

Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. They matter because we are still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Kubrakov welcomed the extension, but emphasized that the deal has to work effectively. On Facebook, he blamed Russia for dragging its heels on joint inspections of ships by Russian, Ukrainian, U.N. and Turkish officials.

Average daily inspectionsmeant to ensure vessels carry only food and not weapons that could aid either sidehave steadily dropped from a peak of 10.6 in October to 3.2 last month. Shipments of Ukrainian grain also have declined in recent weeks.

Russia had denied slowing the work. No vessels have been cleared to enter Ukraines three open ports since May 6, and Kubrakov says nearly 70 vessels are waiting in Turkish waters to participate.

Russia, meanwhile, is shipping record amounts of its wheat through other ports. Critics say that suggests Moscow was posturing or trying to wrest concessions in areas such as Western sanctions.

The deal has allowed over 30 million metric tons of Ukrainian grain to be shipped, with more than half that going to developing nations. China, Spain, and Turkey are the biggest recipients, and Russia says that shows food isnt going to the poorest countries.

Harvesters collect wheat in the village of Zghurivka, Ukraine, on Aug. 9, 2022. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo)

Guterres has said developed countries bring in Ukrainian corn for animal feed, while emerging economies receive a majority of grain for people to eat. He noted exports bring prices down for everyone.

Looking ahead, we hope that exports of food and fertilizers, including ammonia, from the Russian Federation and Ukraine will be able to reach global supply chains safely and predictably, the U.N. chief said Wednesday.

The United States said Russia should stop creating hurdles to the deal.

We should not need to remind Moscow every few weeks to keep their promises and to stop using peoples hunger as a weapon in their war against Ukraine, State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

Russia is expected to export more wheat than any country ever has in one year, at 44 million metric tons, said Caitlin Welsh, director of the Global Food Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Trade flows tracked by financial data provider Refinitiv show that Russia exported just over 4 million tons of wheat in April, the highest volume for the month in five years, following record or near-record highs in several previous months.

Exports since last July reached 32.2 million tons, 34 percent above the same period from last season, according to Refinitiv.

With Ukraines wheat harvest coming up in June and the need to sell that crop in July, maintaining a Black Sea shipping corridor is key to avoid taking another large chunk of wheat and other grains off the market, said William Osnato, a senior research analyst at agriculture data and analytics firm Gro Intelligence.

It comes as places including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Syria and East Africabig importers of foodare facing drought and economic issues that are likely to keep food prices high.

Shortages of food in the system and lack of affordable fertilizer continues to push up prices, making it difficult for families in countries like Somalia to predict if they will be able to afford a meal the next day, said Shashwat Saraf, emergency director for East Africa at the International Rescue Committee.
Russia Orders Arrest of Prominent Producer, Director Who Criticized Ukraine War

Directors Andrey Zvyagintsev and Alexander Rodnyansky (R) pose for photographers after receiving the Official Competition Best Film award for their film 'Loveless' at the London Film Festival Awards in London on Oct. 14, 2017. (Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

TALLINN, EstoniaA Moscow court has ordered the arrest of prominent film producer Alexander Rodnyansky and theater director Ivan Vyrypaev for spreading false information about the Russian army.

The initial court hearings against Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev were held on April 27, but not reported by the court until Wednesday.

According to the courts press service, Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev, who are outside Russia, will be placed in custody once Russian authorities manage to detain them or to get them extradited. Russias Interior Ministry additionally put Vyrypaev on the federal wanted list.

Kyiv-born Rodnyansky has been among the most influential figures in Russian cinema in recent decades. He left Russia after the start of the countrys full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has repeatedly spoken openly against the war. In October 2022, Russias Justice Ministry declared Rodnyansky a foreign agent.

Popular playwright, director, and actor Vyrypaev has been living and working in Warsaw for several years and has also spoken in opposition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Also on Wednesday, a Moscow court handed opposition figure and anti-war activist Mikhail Krieger a seven-year prison sentence.

Krieger was arrested in November on charges of justifying terrorism and inciting hatred with the threat of violence, relating to social media posts from 2020 in which he praised the organizers of attacks at Federal Security Service buildings and referred to Russian President Vladimir Putins hanging. Prosecutors on Tuesday requested a nine-year sentence.

In court, just prior to his sentencing, Krieger said that he was being prosecuted for his anti-war and now openly pro-Ukrainian position.
Salman Rushdie Warns Free Expression Under Threat in Rare Public Address After Attack

Salman Rushdie attends the 68th National Book Awards Ceremony and Benefit Dinner in New York on Nov. 15, 2017. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

LONDONWriter Salman Rushdie has made a public speech, nine months after being stabbed and seriously injured onstage, warning that freedom of expression in the West is under its most severe threat in his lifetime.

Rushdie delivered a video message to the British Book Awards, where he was awarded the Freedom to Publish award on Monday evening. Organizers said the honor acknowledges the determination of authors, publishers, and booksellers who take a stand against intolerance, despite the ongoing threats they face.

Rushdie, 75, looked thinner than before the attack and wore glasses with one tinted lens. He was blinded in his right eye and suffered nerve damage to his hand when he was attacked at a literary festival in New York state in August.

His alleged assailant, Hadi Matar, has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and attempted murder.

He told the awards ceremony that we live in a moment, I think, at which freedom of expression, freedom to publish has not in my lifetime been under such threat in the countries of the West.

Now I am sitting here in the U.S., I have to look at the extraordinary attack on libraries, and books for children in schools, he said. The attack on the idea of libraries themselves. It is quite remarkably alarming, and we need to be very aware of it, and to fight against it very hard.

Rushdie spent years in hiding with police protection after Irans Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, or edict, in 1989 calling for his death over the alleged blasphemy of the novel The Satanic Verses.

He gradually returned to public life after the Iranian regime distanced itself from the order in 1998, saying it would not back any effort to kill Rushdie, though the fatwa was never officially repealed.

Rushdie won the Booker Prize in 1981 for his novel Midnights Children, and in 2008 was voted the best-ever winner of the prestigious fiction prize. His most recent novel, Victory Citycompleted a month before the attackwas published in February.

In his speech, Rushdie also criticized publishers who change decades-old books for modern sensibilities, such as large-scale cuts and rewrites to the works of childrens author Roald Dahl and James Bond creator Ian Fleming.

He said publishers should allow books to come to us from their time and be of their time.

And if thats difficult to take, dont read it, read another book, he said.

By Jill Lawless
LILONGWE, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Ninety-five Malawians who were working or studying in Sudan have arrived home fleeing from the conflict between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

John Kabaghe, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed the development to local media Wednesday, saying some of them returned on their own, while others were supported by the Malawian government.

The Malawian government said in late April that more than 100 Malawians were stuck in Sudan and authorities were doing all they could to get the citizens back safely.

Sudan has been locked in deadly military clashes between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since mid-April. The Sudanese Doctors Union said Tuesday in a statement that the civilian death toll had climbed to 822 since the clashes broke out on April 15. 
San Clemente to Appoint New Councilor May 23 to Fill Seat Vacated by Councilman Moving out of California

The San Clemente City Council voted 40 to approve plans to choose a replacement for Councilman Gene Jameswho resigned on April 28 to move to Wyomingduring their May 16 meeting.

The council approved a special meeting, which will be open to the public, on May 23 at 4 p.m. to vet 23 applicants who have applied for the position and then will narrow the pool to five.

Each applicant will be given three minutes to make a statement, followed by questions from the council.

Following at 6 p.m., councilors will vote on Jamess replacement, after a question and answer period between the council and the remaining candidates.

The selected applicant will serve until November 2024.

Applicants provided such information as their occupation, education, length of time theyve lived in San Clemente, and in-depth explanations of why they think they should be selected.

Many listed reasons why they love San Clemente, but councilors said they are looking for someone who can make a difference.

If you spend your five minutes talking about I believe in parks and I want to do everything great for the city and tell us nothing about the core issues that are before the city council, then its going to be hard to get some of our votes, said Councilman Victor Cabral during the meeting. Youve got to distinguish yourself and tell us what youre going to do about those core issues.

One applicant, Donna Vidrine, has run for election to the city council twice before and was the runner-up in the November 2022 election. Multiple speakers said during the meetings public comments she deserved the position outright.

I support Donna because she was the next highest vote-getter, said Pastor Juli Patten of San Clemente Christ Lutheran Church where Vidrine attends. You have no females on the board. You need to have someone to balance out the masculinity up there and share the womens point of view.

The council chose to fill the seat by such an appointment process, rather than having a special election, which would have cost the city around $300,000, per an estimate from the Orange County Registrar of Voters.
Schools Can Hire More Admin Staff to Ease Red Tape Burden on Teachers

Labor Shadow Education Minister Prue Car during an election debate hosted by the Centre of Independent Studies in Sydney, Australia, on March 14, 2023. (Courtesy of the Centre of Independent Studies)

New South Wales (NSW) schools will be able to recruit more support staff to help reduce an endless amount of paperwork that teachers have to deal with every day.

The initiative is part of an election promise by the centre-left NSW Labor government to ease the regulatory burden on teachers so that they can focus more on teaching, which will ultimately improve students outcomes.

Education Minister Prue Car said on Thursday that from term 3, another 284 public schools can employ an extra 400 full-time administration staff or offer more hours to existing staff.

This is an addition to 203 administration roles already in 128 schools.

This means that teachers will have more help with tasks such as timetabling, preparing excursions, liaising with bus companies, and organising permission slips.

Administrative staff can also log student performance data into spreadsheets, manage parental payments, update newsletters, and contact parents about events.

Speaking at a roundtable with key stakeholders in public education at Parramatta on Thursday, Car said teachers signed up to teach our children not to fill out paperwork.

More time to teach frees up teachers to focus on better outcomes in the classroom, she said, AAP reported.

We cant afford to see more teachers leave the profession at a time when we are already dealing with a teacher shortage crisis.

Teachers Should Be Teaching, Not Doing Admin

In April, NSW Premier Chris Minns said the government is looking to support teachers by expanding the school counselling service, providing more well-being support for teachers and simplifying reporting to parents.

We want teachers in front of students in classrooms, not bogged down with admin work. We have too many burdensome programs and admin tasks that is resulting in unsustainable workloads for teachers, Minns said.

Weve made good on a promise to reduce admin hours for teachers. And we know we have more to do.

The move is part of the school administration improvement program that commenced in term three last year. Early results from the initial trial showed it led to a notable reduction in paper workload, Car said.

The program will be expanded across all 2,200 schools next year.

The government is also promising a suite of measures to be rolled out in schools in the next two years to ease the bureaucratic burden on teachers and principals.

The Public Service Association (PSA), which represents administrative school staff, corporate staff, general assistants and school learning support officers, welcomed the move.

Support staff is critical to making sure our kids, especially those with disabilities, learning difficulties, and challenging home environments, can make it through the mainstream school system, PSA general secretary Stewart Little said.

This investment  will allow teachers to concentrate on lesson preparation and quality teaching.

According to the OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS), Australian teachers were more likely than teachers in other countries to reduce administrative burden by hiring more specialist staff.

Teachers Working Longer Hours Due To Red Tape

A report by the Australian Teacher Workforce Data found that teachers were working an average of 140 to 150 percent of their paid hours.

The main reason for the overtime was that they needed to devote more time to teaching preparation and assessment tasks, followed by administrative tasks. Of registered teachers, 83 percent worked in schools, and six percent worked in early childhood services.

Another survey by the NSW Parliament shows that up to 92 percent of teachers believe reducing paperwork is the most effective way to reduce teachers high turnover rate. It was reported that from 2010 to 2021, more than 28,000 permanent staff had left the states public schools.

In December 2022, the former Liberal government said it had helped slash 40 hours of public school teachers administrative burden and saved principals 212 hours and school-based non-teaching staff 71 hours through its Quality Time program.

Im proud weve exceeded our target to reduce the administrative burden on our principals, teachers and support staff by 20 percent, Shadow Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell Mitchell said at the time.

Not only have we saved teachers time by scrapping unnecessary tasks, simplifying school budget processes and providing quality-assured teaching resources, were also giving teachers more time to prepare quality lessons from next year to support the new curriculum rollout.

AAP contributed to this report.
Sen. Cotton Fears CDCs New Vaccine Schedule for Children Will Lead to School Vaccine Mandate

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) questions U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland as he testifies at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about oversight of the Department of Justice, in Washington, on Oct. 27, 2021. (Tasos Katopodis-Pool/Getty Images)

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) has commenced an action to see if Congress can block the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) new vaccine schedule for children and adolescents, saying hes concerned that schools will use the guidelines to impose a vaccine mandate.

In a May 16 letter (pdf), the lawmaker asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to undertake an analysis on whether a recent CDC immunization schedule update qualifies as an official rule for the purpose of the Congressional Review Act.

The change in question came in February when the CDC modified the vaccine schedule to recommend COVID-19 vaccine doses for infants as young as six months.

If determined to be part of the federal rulemaking process, Congress may repeal the new vaccination schedule.

The CDCs modification of the vaccine schedule is irresponsible given the low mortality rates of adolescents with COVID-19 and the unknown long-term side effects of the vaccine, Cotton said in a press release regarding his request.

I fear their recommendation with be used to justify a vaccine mandate in schools across the country. The GAOs ruling will help put every member of Congress on record about the COVID-19 vaccine requirement for children, said Cotton.

A representative for Cottons office told The Epoch Times that because the lawmaker is concerned about public schools across the countrys reliance on the CDCs guidelines, he hopes to hold the agency accountable as far as his office allows.

Many school districts across the country use the CDCs recommendations as the basis of state and local vaccine mandates, Cottons press secretary said. If the CDCs recommendation is that the action qualifies as a rule, he intends to fight that through the Congressional Review Act.

The Congressional Review Act (CRA) is a 1990s-era law that gives Congress the authority to rescind federal rules created by the executive branch through the rulemaking process.

This was found needful by Congress due to the federal rulemaking process offering executive agencies, such as the ATF and Treasury Department, greater authority to establish policies that would ordinarily originate from the legislative process.

Under the CRA, the agency proposing the rule must submit a report containing a copy of the proposed rule to both chambers of Congress and the Comptroller General.

If the GAO discovers that the CDCs vaccination schedule falls under that progress, Congress would have the power to reverse the CDCs decision.

The GAO confirmed to The Epoch Times that they received the request saying: From here, it goes through a regular review process before any decisions are made. This usually takes a week or so.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the CDC for comment.
Senators Accuse Financial Regulators of Lack of Accountability, Competence

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) meets with guests at the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition in Clive, Iowa, on April 22, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) grilled a panel of financial regulators on May 18, with Scott going so far as to demand immediate dismissals at the Federal Reserve in response to the central banks failure to effectively regulate Silicon Valley Bank in view of its collapse.

During the Senate Banking Committee hearing, Michael Barr, Fed vice chair for supervision, faced intense bipartisan scrutiny for his acknowledged failure in providing adequate oversight of Silicon Valley Bank. Barr recently authored a report that highlighted the Feds negligent supervision and its inability to foresee the systemic threat posed by the banks eventual demise.

Taking the stand, Barr took complete responsibility for the Feds shortcomings. In response, Scott posed a direct question: Who have you fired?

No personnel have been terminated as a result of this review, Barr responded. As we continue to assess our supervisory framework, we will ensure that we have the right individuals in place to fulfill our responsibilities.

I hope that entails replacing inadequate personnel with competent ones, Scott said.

Tester expressed skepticism that more regulation is a viable solution to the current unstable financial situation. He alluded to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and other legislation passed in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and the subsequent market consolidation of the big banks as potentially related.

In 2008, I stood up herealong with [Sherrod] Brown and othersand we railed on regulators. We railed and railed and railed because they didnt do their job, Tester said.

You know what they ended up doing? They ended up regulating the hell out of banking to the point where we made the bigger banks bigger.

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) at a Senate hearing in Washington on Sept. 27, 2017. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, the nations 16th-largest bank, in March triggered a financial panic that culminated in the failure of another major lender, Signature Bank, just two days later.

The repercussions of these failures continue to burden the banking system. On May 1, in a bid to head off further turmoil, regulators seized troubled First Republic Bank, selling most of its operations to JPMorgan Chase. It was the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history and the biggest since the 2008 financial crisis.

In Barrs Fed report, he characterized Silicon Valley Bank as an outlier because of its significant financial vulnerability and mismanagement. Still, he acknowledged criticisms of the central bank for its failure to identify and address these risks before they snowballed into larger consequences.

Our initial focus will be on enhancing the speed, strength, and agility of our supervision, Barr emphasized in the report.

The report also admonished the Fed for underestimating the systemic risk associated with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, suggesting that regulators failed to recognize the potential panic that could arise from the failure of a bank heavily concentrated in the tech sector.

Barr asserted before the Senate Banking Committee, I am fully committed to rectifying the deficiencies in our supervision and regulation going forward.
Senior Official at CCPs State-Owned Assets Watchdog Under Probe

Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping (left) walks with members of the new Standing Committee of the Partys Political Bureau, (from 2nd left) Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Can Qi, Ding Xuexiang, and Li Xi as they arrive for a group photo with journalists at The Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on October 23, 2022. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

Luo Yulin, a former senior member of the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) state-owned assets watchdog, is under probe, according to an official notice published on May 17.

Luo was a deputy ministerial-level official of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (or State-owned Assets Commission), and is suspected of serious violations of discipline and law. The CCPs central disciplinary committee made the announcement in a single sentence on its website on Wednesday. No further details were given.

Public records show that the nearly 65-year-old Luo had a long tenure in Chinas northwestern Qinghai Province, serving as an executive deputy governor of the province, a member of the standing committee of the provincial CCPs committee, and the director of the provincial state-owned assets commission, among other positions held since 1976.

The state-owned assets watchdog is responsible for supervising maintenance and appreciation in state-owned asset value of the major large-sized state-owned enterprises (SOEs), and is entitled to decide on the careers of the senior members of the supervised SOEs, according to the watchdogs official website.

In late 2015, Luo left Qinghai Province and was appointed as the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of State-Owned Key Large Enterprises, an entity that ceased to exist in 2018. Luo served as the head of the third inspection team sent out by the CCPs party committee of the state-owned assets watchdog later in that year.

Luo is one of 20 high-ranking CCP officials to have been purged so far this year.

Xi Targets Opponents Via the Disciplinary Body: China Expert

CCP leader Xi Jinping has been using anti-graft campaigns to purge his political rivals, according to a China expert.

As early as February this year, not long before the CCPs Two Sessions, Li Xi, secretary of the CCPs top disciplinary body, said at a meeting that the disciplinary body would enforce further efforts to educate and rectify CCP officials. Li is regarded as a close ally of Xis, and has replaced Zhao Leji as head of the CCPs top anti-graft apparatus.

China observer Li Yuanhua is a former professor at Chinas Capital Normal University who now resides in Sydney, Australia. He said that Li Xis words indicated a forthcoming massive purging campaign to weed out Xis opponents.

So-called education and rectification are used as a means by Xi to crack down on officials who disobey or show disloyalty to him. In addition, through disciplinary inspections, Xi expects to obtain public support, Li told the Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times in an interview on February 26.

There are corrupt officials everywhere within the CCP system, and conducting disciplinary inspections will undoubtedly uncover cases of corruption, Li said. He said that this is why the CCPs disciplinary watchdog is a convenient tool for Xi to fight his opposing factions.

Li added that Xis constant cracking down on CCP officials reveals Xis fear.

Even though Xi gained absolute power by replacing all the members of the Politburo Standing Committee with his allies at the 20th national congress of the CCP, Xi can never have a moment of peace, as the CCP is an authoritarian regime, Li said.

The communist regime is not elected by the Chinese people. No matter who is in power, they wont have peace of mind. They will be constantly suppressing political opponents, worrying about assassination attempts, and guarding against power usurpation. They live in perpetual unease. This is the destiny of all the past, current, and possibly future CCP leaders.

The other 19 officials who have been under investigation by the top disciplinary body include high-ranking officials from the CCPs party organizations, different levels of the government, the military, and large SOEs.
Shetland Islands Spaceport Bosses Plan 1st Launch in Summer

A model of the LauncherOne rocket as Cosmic Girl, a Boeing 747-400 aircraft, prepares to take off at Cornwall Airport Newquay, United Kingdom, on Jan. 9, 2023. (Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)

The UKs first orbital rocket launch could blast off from the Shetland Islands this summer, as industry bosses expect to become licensed within months, British lawmakers have heard.

The Science, Innovation, and Technology Committee met on May 17 to discuss the future of the UKs space strategy and satellite infrastructure.

The MPs heard evidence from chiefs at SaxaVord Spaceport, a multi-use, vertical space launch site in the UK located on the island of Unst in Shetland, Scotland.

SaxaVords CEO Frank Strang and Launch Operations Manager Dave Balance spoke about the significance of the spaceports location.

Space is about geography, maths, and physics  and the geography doesnt lie, said Strang, followed by an explanation from Balance.

There are two reasons for choosing Shetland, he said, with one being the type of orbits we are targeting and the further north you are, the better.

Secondly, Shetland provides a clear area to launch, making it a very safe place to launch, Balance told the committee.

SaxaVords bosses also told the committee they would like to attempt a first rocket launch before the end of 2023.

SaxaVord is currently waiting for a number of licenses to be granted by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), starting with a spaceport licence.

A spaceport license allows an organisation to operate a site from which spacecraft or carrier aircraft can be launched, or a site at which controlled and planned landings of spacecraft can take place.

Spaceports that can demonstrate they have the appropriate infrastructure, equipment, and services can be licensed for vertical or horizontal launches, or potentially both.

The UKs only operating spaceport is in Cornwall, which is built for horizontal launches, which means that a plane takes off from a runway, carrying a rocket with it. Once the plane is safely away from urban areas, the rocket can detach, ignite, and head into space.

Balance told the MPs that SaxaVord was progressing the license well at the minute with the CAA.

The UK needs a license for the SaxaVord spaceport sooner rather than later, said Strang.

I would like to see a licence in three months, he told MPs.

When asked by Stephen Metcalfe MP whether a delay in licensing will have an impact on the UKs viability as a space nation, Strang agreed.

The CAA doesnt foresee any particular problem in licensing Saxavord in the summer, assuming all the tests can be met, according to its Head of Space Regulation Colin Macleod.

Open for Business

The first satellite launch attempt from the UK failed in January during its second stage. According to operator Virgin Orbit, the rocket, which took off from Spaceport Cornwall, suffered an anomaly that resulted in the satellites it was carrying failing to reach orbit, ending the mission.

Science minister George Freeman told the committee: As a result of the Virgin launch [Spaceport Cornwall is] in a number of important conversations with launch parties both here and around the world who want to consider it as a base for launch. Indeed, Ive just come back from Japan where Jaxa [the Japanese space agency] said, Look, were very keen to pursue Jaxa launches from the UK.

We see Spaceport Cornwall not just as a lunch centre but a hub for the commercial small companies that are emerging in this space, the minister added.

SaxaVord spaceport works with nine international companies on the launch and three on data, Strang told the MPs, stressing that theyve all come to us.

They are from Germany, France, Italy, India, Turkey, and America obviously, he added.

The space industry is moving quickly and we need to work with the regulator to show the world we are open for business because there is a lot of young companies who want to come here, Strang told the MPs.

There are seven proposed spaceport locations in the UK, with five based in Scotland.
Skype Calls to China Cannot Connect as CCP Tightens Control

'Weak connection' is thought to be deliberate blocking by CCP

Many Chinese rely on Skype to communicate with relatives and other contacts in the West. (Jonathan Nackstrand, AFP/Getty Images)

Users of Microsofts internet-telephone and messaging service Skype are reporting that they cannot connect to Chinese mobile phones and landlines. Skypes Chinese operator has said the connection difficulties stem from technical problems; while Microsoft said Wednesday it is working to fix the issue. However, a China and technology expert says the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) may be blocking the international calls for the regimes political security.

The topic Skype suddenly cant connect calls to Chinese mobile phones has attracted wide attention online since the beginning of the month. Many overseas Chinese use Skype to communicate with relatives in China.

In an online forum, one user posted: I am in the United States, and I use the Skype App to call my friends mobile phone in mainland China. Since last week, it hasnt been working. Every time it rings twice and gets disconnected, and with an auto voice saying that your connection is too weak. I searched, and Im not the only one. I guess Chinas firewall has been upgraded again.

Other posts reported the same issue: Yes! I cant get through either.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer (L) and Skype CEO Tony Bates speak during a news conference about Microsofts purchase of Skype in San Francisco, Calif., on May 10, 2011. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Users in Malaysia, Australia, and Taiwan told The Epoch Times they were experiencing the same issue with Skype calls to China, on both mobile and landlines.

The Chinese language edition of The Epoch Times used Skype to call the Jiangxi provincial governments landline on May 15 as a test, and also encountered the error message your connection is too weak; please try again later.

Skypes Chinese operator, Shiguangpu Information Technology, posted a notice on its website May 6, attributing the connection problems to technical issues.

Shiguangpu Information Technology operates under Guangming Foundera joint venture of CCP media Guangming Daily and the Founder group, a Beijing tech conglomerate established by Peking University.

Political Motives

Zhong Shan, a wireless business and network broadband engineer at Silicon Valley Telecom, told The Epoch Times on May 15 that political motives might be behind the incident.

He said that the CCP may be trying to bring Microsoft in line with its censorship requirements. Zhong said it is expected that the next version of Skype will be forced to accept complete control by the Chinese regime, or will be jointly developed with the regime.

Activist Wei Jinsheng in a Skype interview with the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times. (Screenshot/The Epoch Times)

Many users talk about anti-communist and anti-totalitarian oppression topics on Skype, Zhong said. Skype is sometimes used to warn dissidents that theyre on the CCPs blacklist, he said. In addition, overseas media outlets use Skype to interview political dissidents in China. And Chinese seeking to leave China rely on Skype to establish overseas contacts.

He pointed out, If WTO [World Trade Organization] rules are followed, this business should be completely operated by the foreign company who owns it. However, the characteristic of the CCP is that it requires a Chinese company to operate the business in China during negotiations with the foreign companies. [Skype is] now run by a company belonging to Guangming.com, which is clearly the partys mouthpiece. Founder group, which is owned by Peking University, provides the technology, while Guangming takes the lead and mainly controls censorship.

The Epoch Times reached out to Shiguangpu on May 15 for comment. The company has not responded.

Skype was acquired by Microsoft in May 2011. It is one of the few outside software communications tools China allows to operate. Some users favor Skype because they are not required to register their names to use the app, allowing for greater anonymity. In addition, calls from Skype are thought to draw less attention from Chinese authorities than calls from U.S. cell phones.

Zhong opined that users should not count on Microsoft to solve the calling issue due to its many interests in China. Microsoft maintains a practice of not offending the Chinese regime, so it will not actively deal with this matter.

However, Microsoft said in a statement Wednesday that it is working to restore service to some customers who may have lost access to Skype in China due to changes made by local telecom operators.

Skype said in a Wednesday notice on its website that the issue started on May 5 and that it has identified its cause.

Ning Haizhong and Yi Ru contributed to this report.
Some Senate Democrats Urge Biden Not to Strike a Deal With McCarthy on Debt Ceiling

A view of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Oct. 6, 2021. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

A group of Democratic senators has said they will not support any deal on raising the debt ceiling that includes cutting vital social services and has urged President Joe Biden to invoke the 14th Amendment if necessary to continue paying the nations bills and avoid a default.

The president has the authority and the responsibility under the Constitution to make sure that we continue to pay our bills. In fact, the 14th Amendment of the Constitution clearly statesnot ambiguousThe validity of the public debt of the United States shall not be questioned, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said at a press conference in Capitol Hill on May 18.

So far, Sanders and 10 Democratic senators have signed a letter to that effect, including Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), John Fetterman (Pa.), Mazie Hirono (Hawaii), Ed Markey (Mass.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Jack Reed (R.I.), Tina Smith (Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Peter Welch (Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.).

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks in Washington in a file photograph. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Dilemma

The Democrats framed the matter as a choice, should it become necessary, between the lesser of three evils: invoking an untested and controversial Constitutional solution, defaulting on the nations debts, or allowing Republicans to impose steep cuts to social programs.

The country will reach the legal borrowing limit on or after June 1 if the ceiling is not raised, according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. If that happens, bill payments will be delayed, and significant economic fallout will ensue, according to many experts.

Negotiations on raising the negotiations between Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) are centered on the Limit, Save, Grow Act, passed by the House in April.

The measure would raise the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion, enough to last for about one year, while reducing federal spending, strengthening work requirements for some recipients of federal benefits, clawing back unspent COVID-19 relief funds, and loosening restrictions on drilling for oil and gas.

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) speaks during a press conference in Washington on Sept. 10, 2020. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Green New Deal Network)

Democrats believe any deal the two leaders reach could involve steep cuts to services that ordinary Americans depend on and greatly increase the consumption of fossil fuels, which they find unacceptable.

Bill Paying, Not Spending

Markey clarified that the borrowing allowed under the debt ceiling goes to pay for appropriations already legislated by Congress, not new spending.

The reality is that the debt limit isnt about government spending. Thats a separate federal budget and appropriations process, Markey said.

Republicans know this but dont want the American people to know that. What were talking about with the debt ceiling is whether we are going to default on the bills weve already incurred. Its like racking up a bunch of spending on your credit card and then refusing to pay the bill at the end of the month.

The debt ceiling has been raised 80 times in the past 63 years under presidents of both parties, usually without incident. Since the 1990s, Republicans have occasionally used negotiations with Democratic presidents over raising the debt ceiling to gain agreement on spending cuts, a practice Merkley characterized as a strong-arm tactic.

So here we are with their strategy to say first we run up the deficit, and then we use the deficit to say we need to cut programs for ordinary Americans, Merkley said. This is a hostage taking.

McCarthy has said it is only reasonable to use the occasion of raising the debt ceiling, which now stands at $31.4 trillion, as an opportunity to address what he calls runaway federal spending.

Advocates, No Precedent

While the 14th Amendment solution has never been tried, it does have some advocates.

I see the debt ceiling as unconstitutional, Eric Foner told The Epoch Times. Foner, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and professor emeritus of history at Columbia University, believes the president has the constitutional duty to pay the nations bills.

If Congress throws the nation into default by refusing to raise the debt limit, President Biden should act on his own, taking steps to ensure that the federal government meets its financial obligations, as the Constitution requires, Foner wrote in a January article appearing on his website.

Noted legal scholar Laurence Tribe also supports the 14th Amendment solution.

The first printing of the U.S. Constitution is displayed at Sothebys auction house in New York on Nov. 5, 2021. (Mary Altaffer/AP Photo)

The question isnt whether the president can in effect become a one-person Supreme Court, striking down laws passed by Congress, Tribe wrote in a May op-ed for The New York Times.

The right question is whether Congressafter passing the spending bills that created these debts in the first placecan invoke an arbitrary dollar limit to force the president and his administration to do its bidding, Tribe concluded.

Not everyone agrees with this assessment.

Yellen has referred to the 14th Amendment suggestion as legally questionable.

Michael W. McConnell, director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School, called the idea dangerous nonsense.

Though only a bare majority of Americans, 52 percent, admit to having seen more news about the debt ceiling negotiations recently, according to data from Ispos and Reuters released in May, most Americans want the debt limit raised if necessary to avoid a default.

According to Ispos and Reuters, 82 percent of Americans are concerned about an economic recession if no agreement is reached, and 72 percent are concerned about financial harm to themselves or their family.

Perhaps most telling, 70 percent of respondents said that Congress should raise the debt ceiling if necessary to avoid a default, according to an April poll by CBS.

Last Resort

Former President Bill Clinton appeared to endorse the 14th Amendment option in a 2011 interview, where he said he would exceed the debt ceiling without hesitation, and force the courts to stop me if that were necessary to avoid a default.

So far, no sitting U.S. president has tried it.

Sanders said he has spoken with the White House about this option. He also emphasized that Democrats were not advocating that the president invoke the 14th Amendment immediately, only that he be prepared to do so if the result of the negotiations is too extreme to be tolerated.

I think what were saying is the president has the authority to use the 14th amendment, and he should be prepared to do that, Sanders said.

I think its the best solution we have. Its not perfect. But throwing  millions of people off of health care and creating a situation with children in this country going hungry, thats less perfect.
Special Forces Structure, Budget Need Revamping to Counter China, Russia, Experts Testify

Navy SEALs perform Advanced Cold Weather training to experience the physical stress of the environment and how their equipment will operate, or even sound, in adverse conditions in Kodiak, Alaska, on Dec. 14, 2003. (Photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Eric S. Logsdon/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

For more than 20 years after 9/11, U.S. special operations forces (SOF) were primarily engaged in counterinsurgency campaigns and operations against terrorist organizations, mostly in the Middle East.

But now, the special ops units are engaged in a great power competition against China and Russia, a transition thats exposing deficiencies in force structure and resources, witnesses told a Senate panel on May 17.

We are no longer trying to defeat most of these terrorist groups across the globe, Jonathan Schroden, Center for Naval Analyses research program director for countering threats and challenges, told the Senate Armed Forces Committee Emerging Threats Subcommittee.

The plan now is to monitor, disrupt, degrade terrorist groups that have the capability to harm the homeland, with a focus on countering Chinese and Russian state aggression, according to Schroden.

This has translated into a reduction in requirements for counter-intelligence, which has freed up some SOF, he said. There is some capacity to repurpose now.

Theres a bit of deja vu with a return to strategic competition with adversarial nation-states, former Army Special Operations Commander Lt. Gen. Kenneth E. Tovo said.

Some of our current SOF organizations were created to meet the requirements of the last period of strategic competition, the Cold War with the Soviet Union, he said.

In some ways, this is a return to our roots.

But its a whole new world now, Tovo acknowledged.

As a nation, we are faced with an incredibly complex and dangerous global security environment, he said in his testimony. The rules-based international order created after WWII is under significant attack: at best, faltering; at worst, crumbling.

U.S. Army 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) Green Berets exit a CH-47 Chinook helicopter into a bay during helocast training at Eglin Base Air Force Base, Fla., on Feb. 6, 2013. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Steven K. Young/Released)

Less Money, More Demand

U.S. special forces operations are coordinated and conducted by the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), the only joint combatant command created by an act of Congress, which also oversees Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force SOF component commands.

There are about 6,400 contractors, 6,875 civilian employees, and nearly 67,000 active-duty military, including 36,000 from the Army and 19 from the newly created Space Force, in USSOCOM, which is headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida.

According to the Pentagon, about 6,000 SOF operators are currently stationed in more than 80 countries.

USSOCOMs $9.68 billion Fiscal Year 2024 budget request is about $437 million less than this years enacted spending plan. Its largest projected expenditures are $3.37 billion for theater forces and $2 billion for combat development activities.

Schroden and Tovo both said the overall spending request, which is about $3 billion to $4 billion less than SOF spending a decade ago, is inadequate, especially when several service branches are either flattening or cutting special operations budgets, most notably the Army by at least 10 percent.

Tovo said the Army is trimming its SOF component by 10 percent or perhaps by 20 percent.

That would be crippling, he said. We are a force enabled by our Intelligence Community. Without the intelligence capability, our operational capabilities are hobbled at best. If the cuts are taken there, that would be devastating.

Schroden said not only could special forces and intelligence operations use more funding, but the proposed budget should be responding more closely to demand signals for SOF.

He said in assessing SOF force structure, it isnt geared to meet a higher demand for psyops, civil affairs, undersea warfare, and maritime capabilities.

Theres a need to expand in the face of increasing demand for those capabilities, yet the supply [SOF] has remained static for quite some time, according to Schroden.

There is a lot of capacity for counterterrorism that hasnt been repurposed yet, he said.

The MH-53 Pave Low is a variant of the U.S. Air Forces Sikorsky HH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant used for special forces operations and long-range combat search and rescue and was developed to replace the HH-3 Jolly Green Giant. (U.S. Air Force)

Change the Ecosystem

Tovo said the current SOF command-and-control procedures are lacking a strategic vision and need to be streamlined.

The challenge is two-fold, he said, noting the statutory authorities and procedures for approving a SOF operation is very hard to get through a chain of command thats structured to only handle one op at a time in its approval process.

Tovo said that up and down the decision-making process, theres no uniting vision, which makes it difficult for decision-makers at any level to view these ops and say, Yes, this supports national strategy. This is an effective tactical action  appropriate to meet strategic objectives within a framework that has been approved.

Among his ideas is pushing authorities and approvals further down the chain of command.

But it still requires action rather than dithering by the Pentagon, according to Tovo.

Our challenge is often moving from authority to permission, he said.

Schroden said restructuring the force to allow for greater and faster flexibility is the million-dollar question.

But one confusing element is clear.

There is no single entity in the Department of Defense that you could point to and say, That entity is in charge. [It is] the lead [entity] for global competition campaign against the likes of China, he said.

For instance, Schroden said, the Indian-Pacific Oceans Command (IndoPaCom) was restructured to be a global integrator, global synchronizer, but I think it is pretty clear for anyone who looks at IndoPaCom capabilities and where its focus areas are, that that mission exceeds its ability to conduct, and that mandate is not something IndoPaCom can reasonably fulfill.

There has been discussion about making SOF and cyber defense separate military branches and debate about whether special operations should come under the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Schroden said being an advisory board rather than an operational command, the Joint Chiefs of Staff wouldnt be suitable to oversee SOF functions. But, he said, the Center for Naval Analysis is in the midst of assessment of the unified commands plan that will lay out some options.

Tovo said theres some movement toward a more streamlined structure being organically developed within the service SOF commands, noting that the Armys First SOF Command has stood up an integrating headquarters to try [to get] a global view of these campaigns against Russia and China.

The command not only has its own forces to deploy but has created a platform to sense and see what the environment is and what our adversaries are doing, particularly on the information domain, but also to synchronize operations.

Overall, Tovo said, the authorities are pretty well drawn in laying out when to deploy SOF or conduct an intelligence operation, such as Section 1202 in the 2018 National Defense Authorization, but there are some quirks that need to be ironed out.

We had some programs, according to open source, being executed in Ukraine under these authorities that had to cease once war started, he said. I dont think that was ever the intent of Congress but Department of Defense (DOD) attorneys made the call.

As a result, we stopped programs for our partner in Ukraine at the very moment they needed our help the most.

Just the fact that there is no single entity coordinating SOF is alarming, according to Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa).

We have to have the right [command structure] and we do not have that right now, she said.

That was evident in her meetings with military commanders in Afghanistan, Ernst said, recalling a visit with Navy SEALS when most of the conversation was with the JAG [Navy lawyers], about what would be legal and what would not be legal.

There were many who can say no to moving out [and launching an operation] but very few who can say yes, she said.

The overly bureaucratic decision-making process is risk-averse, and I think it undermines our ability to effectively compete with our adversaries, according to Ernst.

Instead of empowering them to think creatively, the bureaucracy has literally forced them to fight with one hand tied behind their back, she said.

Tovo said, Theyre being told, You need to compete against China, but without an overarching strategy that defines what we are trying to achieve, it is hard for decision-makers. God bless our SOF operators.

Marines with the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command train in North Carolina on July 28, 2014. Troops with special operations may soon be equipped with new forms of smart technology. (Cpl. Donovan Lee/MARSOC)

Irregular Warfare

Schroden said SOFs biggest gap is in the information operations space where DOD capabilities, organization, doctrine, use of terminology has little coordination or consistency.

It is about as big a mess as you can imagine. None of the services use the same terms. When you say information warfare operations, they are all talking about different things, developing different capabilities in those areas, he said. There is no synchronicity across the department when it comes to the use of information or even how to think about the use of information.

For instance, what the Army calls the information dimension is the information environment referred to by the joint world, as the Army calls USSOCOM.

Tovo said information operations are a key component of irregular warfare that gets lip service from the Pentagon but little attention from military planners, despite the mandate from Congress to create an Irregular Warfare Center.

There is a challenge with definitions here, too, he said. Everybody has a different view of what irregular warfare means. In plain English, I would offer that conventional warfare is very enemy force-focused, whereas the suite of capabilities we call irregular warfare is more often focused on the human terrain, the population, nations, or partner allies we are working with.

These types of operations are what the Green Berets were purpose-built for.

Schroden said that as a result, particularly in information operations, I dont think we are very strong. And I dont think we are likely to get stronger because, in my view, we are not putting enough emphasis on that.

He said discussion about irregular warfare, specifically information operations, is a glaring absence in the Pentagons 2024 National Defense Authorization and that it needs to be examined closely because if done poorly, the stakes now could be higher than they were when levied against terrorist groups and insurgencies.

Certainly irregular warfare against the likes of China and Russia carry much higher degrees of escalatory risk compared to counter-terrorism, Schroden said, noting the risk surfaces in wargaming.

To master this, the military must better think about escalation dynamics in these operations, especially an irregular warfare one.

So, I wouldnt be able to look you straight in the face and say, We have a good understanding now of what those escalation ladders look like and how to manage them, he said.
Supreme Court Rules Against Andy Warhol Foundation in Copyright Dispute

Photographer Lynn Goldsmith attends "Who Shot Rock & Roll: The Film" at the shorts program during the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival in New York on April 20, 2013. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)

The Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in favor of a photographer who claimed her intellectual property rights were violated by Andy Warhols eponymous foundation when it published multiple stylized prints he made based on her photo of the iconic musician Prince.

Warhol, a painter, print-maker, and multimedia artist, died in 1987 at age 58. Prince, who was born Prince Rogers Nelson, died in 2016 at 57.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the majority opinion (pdf) in Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts (AWF) v. Goldsmith, court file 21-869. Justice Elena Kagan filed a dissenting opinion, which Chief Justice John Roberts joined.

The case goes back to 1984 when Conde Nast-owned Vanity Fair magazine commissioned Warhol to create an image of Prince for an article titled Purple Fame. The publication licensed a black-and-white photo of Prince from celebrity photographer Lynn Goldsmith who stipulated that the photo be used one time only.

Warhol cropped the photo, resized it, and changed other details. In a silkscreen, Warhol added other colors to it, along with shading that exaggerated Princes features. The magazine published the image, credited Goldman, and paid her $400 for the source photograph and she received credit for taking it.

Warhol created 15 more images of Prince using Goldsmiths photo, making various alterations. Warhols treatment of the photo transformed Goldsmiths intimate portrait into an iconic, larger-than-life figure that stripped Prince of the humanity  [embodied] in [the] photograph in order to highlight how society encounters and consumes celebrity, a federal district court found in the case. Since 1984, the Prince Series works have been displayed in galleries, museums, and other public places dozens of times.

After Warhol died, his foundation licensed one of the images to Conde Nast, again for the purpose of illustrating a magazine story about Prince. The foundation was paid $10,000, but Goldsmith received nothing and was not given credit for taking the photograph. When Goldsmith saw one of the images on the magazine cover, she threatened to sue the Warhol Foundation, which held the rights to the series, for copyright infringement. The foundation sued Goldsmith in 2017 seeking a declaratory judgment that there was no copyright violation. Goldsmith countersued.

The foundation invoked fair use as a defense and argued a loss in court would chill free expression because artists would be reluctant to develop new interpretations based on existing works. Under the fair-use legal doctrine, copyrighted material may be used in a limited way without the prior consent of the copyright holder.

A federal district court ruled that Warhols contributions created something new within the meaning of the fair use doctrine, but in 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit reversed, holding for Goldsmith.

The Biden administration sided with the photographer, arguing that the Supreme Court shouldnt create a celebrity-plagiarist exception to fair use by giving artists who copy original works special protection against infringement lawsuits.

In her opinion, Sotomayor affirmed the 2nd Circuit ruling and acknowledged the importance of copyright law.

If the last century of American art, literature, music, and film is any indication, the existing copyright law, of which todays opinion is a continuation, is a powerful engine of creativity, she wrote.

Lynn Goldsmiths original works, like those of other photographers, are entitled to copyright protection, even against famous artists. Such protection includes the right to prepare derivative works that transform the original. The use of a copyrighted work may nevertheless be fair if, among other things, the use has a purpose and character that is sufficiently distinct from the original.

In this case, however, Goldsmiths original photograph of Prince, and AWFs copying use of that photograph in an image licensed to a special edition magazine devoted to Prince, share substantially the same purpose, and the use is of a commercial nature. AWF has offered no other persuasive justification for its unauthorized use of the photograph, the justice wrote.

In her dissent, Kagan called Warhol the avatar of transformative copying and accused the court majority of constricting fair uses boundaries, a move that hampers creative progress and undermines creative freedom.

In declining to acknowledge the importance of transformative copying, the Court today, and for the first time, turns its back on how creativity works, she wrote.

Shakespeare borrowed over and over and over, Kagan wrote, but he also added loads of genius when he transformed material.

The majoritys decision to deny Warhol credit for transforming the Prince photo, distorts ultimate resolution of the fair-use question and has troubling implications for other artists, she wrote.

If Warhol does not get credit for transformative copying, who will? And when artists less famous than Warhol cannot benefit from fair use, it will matter even more.

The majority opinion will stifle creativity of every sort. It will impede new art and music and literature. It will thwart the expression of new ideas and the attainment of new knowledge. It will make our world poorer, Kagan wrote.

In the majority opinion, Sotomayor addressed Kagans dissent, writing, It will not impoverish our world to require AWF to pay Goldsmith a fraction of the proceeds from its reuse of her copyrighted work.

Recall, payments like these are incentives for artists to create original works in the first place. Nor will the Courts decision, which is consistent with longstanding principles of fair use, snuff out the light of Western civilization, returning us to the Dark Ages of a world without Titian, Shakespeare, or Richard Rodgers, Sotomayor wrote.

Goldsmith told Reuters she was thrilled with the ruling, saying it was a great day for photographers and other artists who make a living by licensing their art.

Joel Wachs, president of the Andy Warhol Foundation, told the media outlet that AWF did not agree with the ruling, but was pleased that it dealt solely with the Conde Nast license and did not question the legality of Andy Warhols creation of the Prince series.
HARARE, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Thursday thanked Mozambique for its support of the Museum of African Liberation which seeks to preserve African history.

His remarks came as the global community celebrated the role of museums in society on International Museum Day held every year on May 18. This year's celebrations featured a theme: "Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing."

Situated in Zimbabwe's capital of Harare and still under construction, the continental museum narrates the African story from an African perspective and experience.

"We are honored by the commitment and unwavering support of the Republic of Mozambique to the Museum of African Liberation," Mnangagwa said when he handed over a donated piece of land to visiting Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi for the country to erect a monument at the museum in honor of the country's founding leader, Samora Machel.

Machel, who died in a plane crash more than three decades ago, played a prominent role in the liberation of Zimbabwe and other regional countries.

"We look forward to the putting up of the Samora Machel monument which will befittingly overlook one of Harare's busiest and strategic roads, Samora Machel road," Mnangagwa said.

Nyusi said the museum was the pride of the whole of Africa, and applauded Zimbabwe for hosting such an important continental facility. Nyusi is on a three-day State visit to Zimbabwe to boost bilateral ties between the two countries. 
The America I Loved Is Leaving

An American flag waves in the wind on top of Mt. Baldy, in Los Angeles County, on Oct. 21, 2011. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Commentary

The America I grew up in is leaving, spiraling down into the gutter of history like the Roman Empire.

My father was a career military enlisted master sergeant who believed in discipline, and structure. I was raised to clean my room and make my bed before leaving the house. I attended elementary school in Japan, and I graduated from high school in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Living as a military dependent, I traveled all over the world. It is from this viewpoint that I have concluded that my country is leaving me and millions of other people who salute the flag and kneel before God.

America was founded on the principles established by the Judeo-Christian faith. Structured by the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, the country produced men and women who breathed the air of a free and just society. We were taught to appreciate the men who fought and died so we could live free from the tyranny of a repressive dictatorship, or the modern form of communism.

What has changed? The lure of socialism has seeped into our society, poisoning our children by challenging our rich history into believing our country was founded on evil principles. Critical Race Theory (CRT), pitting one race against another, is being touted by the progressives as a solution to racial injustice. CRT is a Marxist ideology that generates hatred and divisiveness. Our children grow up more concerned with the color of their skin than the content of their character.

The concept of big government ruling our lives by over-regulating how we do business, or live our everyday lives, has sapped our core strength of freedom and a work ethic that has made this country great. A welfare system of free handouts has poisoned folks to rely on free money. The theory is, why work when the government pays you not to?

Our criminal justice system is failing. When George Soros-backed district attorneys ignore prosecuting criminals, and release repetitive offenders on their own recognizance, felony crime increases. Chicago, New York, Portland, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Baltimore have seen a significant rise in serious crime, yet they ignore establishing a concept of policing known as the broken windows theory. That concept was instituted in New York in the 90s wherein minor violations initiated an arrest. The enforcement of minor violations drove down felony crimes and made New York one of the safest cities in America.

Why did the Roman Empire collapse? It rusted within because the rulers became obsessed with power and money. This corruption could not sustain an empire that ruled half the world at its peak. The Empire drained its citizens with high taxes that eroded loyalty. The military became undisciplined with a failed leadership. The have-nots outnumbered the haves.

Today the Biden family is a perfect example of corruption based on pay-to-play. Twenty LLCs were formed to funnel money to members of the Biden family with no identifiable business.

The United States of America is duplicating the fall of the Roman Empire. We have forgotten the past is prologue. That is, history repeats itself.

What are solutions to stop the downward spiral we are headed in?

First, we must vote out the current president and vice president, as well as several members of Congress.

Second, we must regain control of the education system and insist that our children be taught the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic. We must teach our children the rich history of our country and appreciate those who died for our freedom.

Third, we must address our energy program to take advantage of our vast fossil resources and support drilling for oil until we can find a solution for alternative energy.

Fourth, we must defeat the concept of woke. It is destroying our culture, and our military. We must stop transgender individuals from competing as women.

Fifth, we must take control of our borders. Under the Biden administration, millions of illegals have entered our country, and the drug cartels have smuggled deadly drugs and poisoned our youth.

Sixth, we must insist on fixing our criminal justice system. When a person breaks a law, they should be prosecuted to the extent of their crime. We must not turn our backs on victims by cuddling criminals.

Seventh, we must back term limits for elected members to Congress. Too many of our elected members go to Washington and forget their constituents. They become wealthy by receiving insider trading information.

Eighth, we must alter the power of career government officials who currently cannot be terminated based on civil service policies unless they have violated criminal laws. They are the unknown members of the swamp.

Ninth, we must honor the concept of building strong families. Too many children are born and raised by a single parent.

Tenth, we must have a revival of faith in God. We have allowed the secular humanist to take control of our society and deny the existence of a higher spiritual power.

If we are to remain a beacon of light as a place for individual freedom, we must change the course on which we are currently headed. Higher taxation, wokeness, free money, greedy politicians, criminals unpunished, and secular humanism must be eradicated, or we are doomed to follow the fall of the Roman Empire.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Tories Introduce Motion Calling on Feds to Reverse Hard Drug Decriminalization Programs

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre rises to question the government during question period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sept. 26, 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

The Conservatives have introduced a non-binding motion in the House of Commons calling on the Liberal government to immediately reverse a number of its hard-drug policies outlined in the Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy (CDSS), which the Tories say has contributed heavily to Canadas ongoing opioid crisis.

Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre introduced the motion on May 18, while criticizing in particular Ottawa granting the B.C. government authorization in January to temporarily decriminalize possession of small amounts of hard drugs.

The Tories motion said that Canadas ongoing opioid crisis has killed over 35,000 people since 2016, adding that yearly drug overdose deaths in B.C. increased by 330% between 2015 and 2022.

The B.C. Coroners Service said in mid-April that almost 600 people died in the province from January through March due to drug overdoses.

The motion called on the federal government to immediately reverse its deadly policies and redirect all funds from taxpayer-funded, hard drug programs to addiction, treatment and recovery programs.

The federal governments safer supply policy includes providing individuals deemed to be at high risk of overdose with prescribed medications as a safer alternative to the toxic illegal drug supply, such as fentanyl.

Mental Health and Addictions Minister Carolyn Bennett said in the House on May 16 that the policy keeps people alive long enough to get treatment.

People are dying because of the toxic drug supply. Safe supply allows people to stay alive long enough, she said, adding that its an evidence-based project.

Poilievre criticized Bennett at the time, saying that even a safe supply of hard drugs has a slim chance of preventing substance abusers from eventually using fentanyl.

Lawsuits

Poilievre has previously said that, if he is elected prime minister, he will launch a massive series of lawsuits adding up to $44 billion against large pharmaceutical companies for their role in Canadas opioid and addiction crisis.

In March, the Conservative leader accused drug companies such as Purdue Pharma of lying to regulators about the addictive nature of opioids in order to market them as safe substances.

These powerful multinationals knew exactly what they were doing, but they kept doing it anyway to profit themselves and their wealthy executives, he said on March 14.

The Globe and Mail reported on May 18 that the federal government is planning on joining B.C. in a class-action lawsuit against McKinsey & Co., accusing the company of engaging in reckless marketing campaigns to boost opioid sales.

According to the report, Minister Bennett said Ottawa will become a formal class member in the lawsuit if it is certified.

Matthew Horwood and Marnie Cathcart contributed to this report.
US Should Strengthen Relationships With Allies to Counter China: Expert

U.S. President Joe Biden (C) speaks alongside British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (R) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (L) at a press conference during the AUKUS summit at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego, Calif., on March 13, 2023. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

The United States should further strengthen relationships with its allies and partners to effectively counter China, according to Roy Kamphausen, president of the National Bureau of Asian Research.

Weve strengthened our relationships with allies and partners, which is really an essential feature. The [Chinese Communist Party] CCP, is threatened by the strengthened US alliances, Kamphausen recently said during an interview with The Epoch Times sister media NTD.

He pointed to the Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) partnership, which will deepen ties between the three nations by codifying several existing military partnerships and creating new ones, calling it a huge deal.

Under the AUKUS agreement, Australia will purchase up to five U.S.-made nuclear-powered submarines over the next decade and build new AUKUS class submarines with UK and U.S. technologies in South Australia by 2042.

Weve strengthened our relationship with Japan. Japans Prime Minister said theyre going to double their defense spending in the next five years, he said.

Kamphausen also spoke of the Washington Declaration outlining a set of U.S. extended deterrence measures, which will involve deploying U.S. strategic assetsnuclear forceson the Korean Peninsula.

The declaration was signed on Apr 26 by two countries leaders during South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeols six-day visit to the United States.

Weve reached a new agreement on nuclear consulting, which is a step maybe to nuclear planning, the expert noted.

Its certainly the case that that system does not appreciate being isolated by other significant players in the region, and so strengthening our relationships with those countries can lead to that sort of sense, he said, referring to the Chinese communist regime.

Growing Assertiveness

According to Kamphausen, mounting assertiveness has been seen among allies in the region in pushing back on pressure from China.

He cited the case of Australia as an example, saying that the Pacific country is a great case of standing up to Chinese pressure.

Since 2020, Beijing has targeted Australia with an economic coercion campaign on beef, lamb, barley, seafood, wine, coal, timber, honey, and wheat following calls from former Foreign Minister Marise Payne for an investigation into the origins of COVID-19.

In his opinion, however, Australia has placed more importance on the values that it stands for and the partnerships it has with other democracies.

He said that Japan has also stood up remarkably against Chinese pressure.

In January, Yasutoshi Nishimura, Japans minister of economy and trade, urged G7 members to team up against Chinas economic coercion.

Chinas recent actions, such as blocking imports of Taiwanese pineapples and Australian wine, pose a clear and present danger to global economies, said Nishimura in Washington.

We expect effective responses to economic coercion will be a major item at this years G7 summit.

Growing Tension

Kamphausen noted that the United States and China will see growing tension in the Indo-Pacific region as the U.S. Navy continues very actively patrolling within the South China Sea with the balance to push back and not allow China to change the status quo by our own inaction.

Meanwhile, he said, the communist regime does not appreciate and observe international law and convention, and it might see the U.S. operations in the western Pacific in accordance with international law as pressure.

The ideological clash between democracy and the socialist system contributes to the growing tension between the two powers as well, in his opinion.

Kamphausen called for the United States and its allies to be proactive and stand against the threat of China as he noted it plays the power game, and it leverages its strengths, especially against weaker countries.

Aldgra Fredly, Emel Akan, and John Haughey contributed to this report.
US Treasury Cash Balance Shrinks to Alarming Levels Amid Debt Ceiling Battle

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen listens during an open session of a Financial Stability Oversight Council meeting at the Department of the Treasury in Washington on April 21, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The U.S. Treasury cash balance inside its bank account at the Federal Reserve continues to shrink at an alarming level as the department attempts to prevent the federal government from defaulting.

According to the latest Daily Treasury Statement, the Treasury General Account (TGA) opening balance was $87.431 billion on May 16, down from about $143 billion on May 12. This represents a 40 percent decline and the lowest level since April 12.

At the beginning of the month, the Treasurys cash balance was $316.381 billion, down roughly 72 percent.

Officials use the TGA to cover the debt service on government bonds, effectively stopping the United States from defaulting. It is also used to pay for a plethora of federal outlays, including employee salaries, and collect funds from the sale of Treasury debt.

Experts say that the TGA will be replenished in the middle of next month when the governments bank account sees an influx of deposits from tax payments. However, the sharpest cash drawdown since March 1 has ignited some concern that the Treasury Department might not possess enough funds to keep up with payments. This could potentially set the stage for Washington to default on its obligations.

U.S. Dollar banknote in this illustration taken on July 17, 2022. (Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters)

Since the federal government reached its debt limit of $31.4 trillion in January, the Treasury has been employing extraordinary measures, such as suspending sales of state and local government series Treasury securities, halting the reinvestment of the Government Securities Investment Fund, and redeeming existing investments of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund and the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund.

But Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has repeatedly warned that the United States could potentially run out of money to pay its bills on June 1.

In a recent letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Yellen urged Congress to act immediately to protect the full faith and credit of the United States.

With additional information now available, I am writing to note that we still estimate that Treasury will likely no longer be able to satisfy all of the governments obligations if Congress has not acted to raise or suspend the debt limit by early June, and potentially as early as June 1, she wrote.

Yellen promised to offer an update to Congress next week.

The actual date Treasury exhausts extraordinary measures could be a number of days or weeks later than these estimates, she added.

US Leaders Offer Reassurance

Despite tense discussions, U.S. leaders have assured the public that the government will not default on its debt.

I think at the end of the day, we do not have a debt default, McCarthy told CNBC on May 17.

The only thing Im confident about is now we have a structure to find a way to come to a conclusion, McCarthy said. The timeline is very tight. But were going to make sure were in the room and get this done.

Before President Joe Bidens trip to the G-7 summit in Japan, it was revealed that there would be daily and direct negotiations between Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.) and two White House officials: Office of Management and Budget head Shalanda Young and key Biden adviser Steve Ricchetti.

House GOP leaders have presented several provisions to raise the debt ceiling. This includes rescinding $30 billion in unspent COVID-19 relief funds, capping government spending through the remainder of Bidens term, reforming permitting rules to rejuvenate domestic energy production and development, and imposing work requirements to access federal aid programs.

Democrats have pushed back against some of these proposals, especially work requirements.

McCarthy called them responsible as they would support the economy, improve the supply chain, and help people find employment. But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said they were entirely unreasonable, adding that the last time they were discussed in 2018, the GOP voted against these measures.

Its entirely unreasonable to think that at this particular point in time, in the context of a debt ceiling showdown that has been manufactured, as part of an effort to avoid default, that these types of so-called work requirements can be imposed on the American people, Jeffries told the business news network.

Even with the tense back-and-forth exchanges between both sides of the aisle, political and financial observers note that talks are moving forward as Biden confirmed he would cut his overseas trip short and return to the nations capital on May 21.

Despite both sides being far apart, everyone knows the catastrophic consequences of an eventual U.S. default, and no one is ready to push the U.S. into that black hole, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank, in a note.
Washington Mayor, Council Struggle to Reach Common Ground on Criminal Code Reform

Council chair Mendelson says Bowser's new tough-on-crime legislation is not the answer

District of Columbia City Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, at a press briefing in Washington on May 15, 2023. (The Epoch Times)

The chairman of the District of Columbia City Council said he has not been briefed on Mayor Muriel Bowsers new legislation to address rising crime in the district, but he and the other council members share the mayors concerns about public safety.

I dont know a single member of the council whos not concerned about public safety, Chairman Phil Mendelson said. And if there are opportunities to make the city safer, we want them.

However, the mayor and D.C. City Council have not been able to agree on the best way to reduce crime in the city. Earlier this year, the mayor vetoed the councils Revised Criminal Code Act of 2022 over concerns about some provisions in the updated code, including insufficient penalties for violent crimes. The council then overrode the executive veto.

After the veto, the mayor announced a public safety summit. The mayor held the summit earlier this month with local and federal public safety officials and partners to discuss what improvements need to be made to ensure public safety.

We have heard from our public safety partners and from members of the community about the gaps that exist in our public safety ecosystemthis package of legislation will address those gaps, Mayor Bowser told reporters at a May 15 press conference.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department, violent crime in D.C. is up 14 percent in 2023 compared with the previous year. There has been an 11 percent increase in homicides, a 44 percent rise in sex abuse cases, a 2 percent increase in assaults with a dangerous weapon, and a 20 percent jump in robberies.

However, Mendelson suggested that increasing penalties for crimes would not prevent those crimes.

We look to longer sentences as if thats the solution to criminal activity. And the research is pretty clear that there isnt that effect. So it sounds good, [but] the effect isnt the same, the council chairman said at a press conference the same day.

Among other provisions, the mayors new public safety bill would increase penalties for violent crimes that target residents with physical or mental impairments. It would also expand protections for transit and for-hire vehicle employees, transit passengers, and people at rec centers.

Mendelson has a different solution to lower crime rates.

What Ive said over and over again is [that] one thing that would have a more direct effect on crime would be increasing the case closure rate, said Mendelson. The closure rate for homicides is, in my view, appallingly too low. The closure rate for robberies is appallingly too low. Increase the closure rate. Thats not a matter of the length of the sentence, but actually getting people arrested and convicted. I subscribe to the theory of swift and certain justice.

According to Metropolitan Police Departments data, there was a 62 percent closure rate for homicides in 2022.

The mayor said she would like to see her new legislation passed before the Council breaks for the summer by the end of June, which Mendelson said will not happen because the bill needs to be considered carefully with feedback given at a public hearing.

The mayors new bill comes after the U.S. Congress twice passed disapproval resolutions that would override D.C. crime bills. In March, Congress passed a resolution disapproving the Revised Criminal Code Act of 2022. President Joe Biden signed the resolution, angering some Democrats.

In May, House and Senate passed another resolution disapproving the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022. This time, Biden has vowed to block the resolution.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) questions witnesses during the first public hearing of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 8, 2023. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Republicans in the House Oversight and Accountability Committee accuse D.C. officials of being soft on crime in the midst of a multi-year spike.

Congressional oversight of the district is written into the Constitution. Lawmakers have used methods like budget riders to alter D.C. laws on issues ranging from abortion to marijuana legalization.

The D.C. City Council said its Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022 aims to boost police accountability and transparency, while Republicans argued that the law puts unnecessary restrictions on police at a time when the city grapples with rising crime.

Council member Brooke Pinto, the chairwoman of the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, said modernizing the districts criminal code will continue to be a priority and the issue will likely be taken up again in the fall.

I dont want continued disagreements over [a] small portion of policy matters to undermine the mission of modernizing the code, said Pinto.
Water Companies Apologise for Sewage Spills, Announce 10 Billion Modernisation Plan

A combined sewer overflow pipe on Ryde beach on the Isle of Wight, which has suffered from sewage pollution in recent years, on March 30, 2023. (Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)

Water and sewage companies in England have apologised for sewage spills in rivers and seas and announced the biggest modernisation of sewers since the Victorian era.

The upgrade of the sewage system will cost 10 billion in the next 10 years, announced Water UK, a membership body representing the UK water industry.

To make amends for the spills of untreated sewage onto beaches and into rivers over the past few years, Water UK plans to make the largest ever investment in storm overflows. The aim is to cut sewage overflows by up to 140,000 each year by 2030 compared to the level in 2020.

A total of 384,568 of sewage spills were counted in 2022 by The Rivers Trust.

We are saying sorry because we get why people are upset and theyre right that we should have given this issue much more attention. We should have acted faster to recognise the impact of sewage spills on peoples enjoyment of rivers and beaches, Water UK said in a statement.

The apology comes amid criticism of UK water and sewage companies for polluting rivers and seas, while planning to hike water bills paid by consumers.

Labour Party MPs John McDonnell and Diane Abbott both condemned private companies expecting customers to foot the bill, in light of the 10 billion investment plan.

Chair of Water UK Ruth Kelly said the industry body is asking shareholders to put down a huge down payment to start fixing the sewage spills.

The way the system works is that over the lifetime of the assets, customers do pay that money back in modest increases in their bills. Over the last 10 years, I think its important to remember, that real water bills have fallen for average customers, she added.

The CEOs of all water companies agreed to not pay a single penny in bonuses in 2023, while some plan to waive bonuses entirely, said Kelly.

Britains water and sewage companies paid 1.4 billion in dividends in 2022, up from 540 million the previous year, according to the Financial Times.

In March 2022, the government backed new plans for the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) to take action against water companies that pay out dividends to their shareholders despite failing to meet the required performance standards.

Licensing

The water industry commitment announced on May 18 includes a transformation programme across 350,000 miles of sewers and the launch of a public hub with up-to-date information on the operation of all 15,000 sewage overflows in England. The companies also plan help up to 100 communities interested in protecting rivers and other outdoor areas of water for the purpose of swimming and recreation.

Water companies confirmed their readiness to deliver the ambition set out in the Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, the largest infrastructure programme in water company history to include 56 billion capital investment over 25 years.

The Water UK statement comes one week after Ofwat announced plans to introduce new regulatory requirements for water companies.

Ofwat expects to see high standards of customer service and has put in place a new licence condition for each water company in England and Wales. The Environment Act 2021 gave Ofwat new powers to change water company licences without consent from water companies.

The proposed license changes will mean companies need to ensure customers are well-informed, can rely on the company to put it right if something goes wrong, and that the full diversity of customers needs are met.

In England and Wales, households are not able to choose their water company, so it is crucial that good customer service is not a postcode lottery. We want the powers to enforce that fundamental expectation, Ofwat CEO David Black said in a statement.

Where Ofwat sees companies letting their customers down, it can use these powers to step in and take action.

The consultation on the new regulatory powers closes on July 7, and Ofwat will publish the licence change in the autumn.
West Virginia Election Officials Say Virginia Correct to Exit ERIC Voter Roll System

Democrats' accusations of "voter suppression" are unfounded, officials said

Virginia voters head to the polls at Nottingham Elementary School in Arlington, Va., on Nov. 5, 2019. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

West Virginias top elections official praised Virginias decision to exit the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) voter roll maintenance service after Democrats criticized Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin for the move, accusing Republicans of voter suppression.

West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner, general counsel Donald Deak Kersey, and Chuck Flannery, Warners deputy secretary and chief of staff, participated in a May 15 webinar hosted by the Virginia-based Middle Resolution Policy Foundation.

The Middle Resolution Policy Foundation advocates for issues such as voter ID laws, election integrity, school choice, and parental rights in Virginia. The organization invited Warner, Flannery, and Kersey to speak at the webinar about how they improved West Virginias election management after leaving ERIC.

No matter what the Republicans do, or the conservatives are going to do, its going to be called voter suppression, Warner said during the webinar. Lets deal with facts and reality.

Democrat state lawmakers in Virginia have accused Republicans of engaging in voter suppression by withdrawing from ERIC, a service they claim ensures accurate voter rolls.

States along with Virginia have a long history of racist voter suppression tactics, and this is just one more move, Democrat state Sen. Mamie Locke said at a May 15 press conference about ERIC. Just recently, Gov. Youngkin and Virginia Republicans unleashed their latest attempt to undermine our democracy and make it harder for Virginians to vote.

House Minority Leader Don Scott and Democrat Del. Marcus Simon also blasted Youngkin and Virginia Elections Commissioner Susan Beals, saying they are following MAGA extremists for questioning the integrity of the 2020 elections and ERIC.

The Virginia Senate meets in Richmond, Va., in a file image. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Legislatures in Charge

Kersey, who specializes in laws pertaining to maintaining voter lists, said the responsibility for how elections are run falls on state legislatures, not the executives.

The voter suppression accusation is misinformed, Kersey said, because executives dont make legislation and everybodys right and ability to register to vote is founded in the states laws and the processes.

During the webinar, Warner said Democrats dismissed legitimate voting concerns from half of all American voters after the 2020 election, and instead of looking into concerns about potential voter fraud, the Biden administration and many government officials characterized those concerned Americans as domestic terrorists.

Warner mentioned the voter ID law enacted in Georgia last year, where Democrats accused Republicans of voter suppression because of the policy.

Those accusations were unfounded and were proven disingenuous when it was shown that more people voted after the law was passed, Warner said.

During the Democrats May 15 press conference, Scott said that if Democrats win back the House of Delegates in November, he would consider holding the state budget hostage until Virginia rejoins ERIC.

I would love to make that a point, that there is no budget if we pull out of ERIC. There is no budget, Scott said.

Virginia Democrats said they dont trust the Youngkin administration to maintain accurate voter rolls after leaving ERIC.

Explain to us how you verify this data, Scott said at the press conference. They are incompetent and now, youre going to trust the same incompetent folks to pull out of ERIC and get it right.

Replacing ERIC

Also at the May 15 press conference, Simon asked how Virginia will maintain its voter rolls now.

If not through ERIC, how are we going to do it? he said, adding that he is concerned about what will replace ERIC with only a year before the 2024 presidential primary and general election.

Andrea Gaines, spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Elections, told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that state officials will continue to conduct their own list maintenance practices, including the removal of deceased voters, felons, noncitizens, and mentally incapacitated individuals from the voter rolls, based on information received from the courts.

The department will also obtain its own subscription to the Limited Access Death Master File from the Social Security Administration and will internally process records of voters who have moved and obtained a drivers license in a new state.

Virginia has been participating in talks with other states for several months about creating new state-to-state data-sharing relationships for the purpose of identifying potential double voters, added Gaines.

Problems with ERIC

Warner said that when he became secretary of state in West Virginia in 2017, the states voter rolls had a massive number of duplicates.

Our rolls got so bloated. Were talking 400,000 names weve taken off in a state with only 1.1 million registered voters, Warner said.

Voters were being registered several times over because state agencies in several other states were registering voters automatically.

They want people on those rolls and they dont want to take them off, Warner said.

West Virginia exited ERIC in March, along with Missouri and Florida.

Kersey said ERIC started as a bipartisan organization but has become a partisan tool.

Before exiting ERIC, West Virginia tried to implement reforms to ERIC, including making certain data-sharing voluntary and getting rid of ex officio members, but ERIC members could not agree to these terms.

At that moment, it was clear to us that the partisan nature of ERIC and the partisanship that was shown by the members to keep the ex officio members thereit was clear for us. The decision was easy. We had to step out, Flannery said during the webinar.

Another issue was that ERIC required its members to send mail-in ballots to eligible but unregistered (EBU) voters, which West Virginia election officials thought was not lawful. The EBU data comes from the Department of Motor Vehicles.

In West Virginia, now that were out [of ERIC], well wait to see what our Legislature tells us to do. And if they tell us to do it, we will, Flannery said.

If Virginia Democrats want to rejoin ERIC, they need to address that during their legislative session, he added.

They need to go to their Legislature and they need to get the law passed and the funding to do it from their Legislature, Flannery said.

Currently, West Virginia uses four main sources to maintain accurate voter registration lists, including other states voter registration lists, other states Department of Motor Vehicles lists, death data from the Social Security Administration, and data sources that are available virtually.

The states work to maintain voter lists has been successful because all counties comply with the laws, which has created a uniformity for registering new voters, Flannery said. The secretary of state has created a culture of following the law, he added, and we just give the resources, the leadership, and the tools necessary.

Stickers that read I Voted By Mail sit on a table waiting to be stuffed into envelopes by absentee ballot election workers at the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections office in Charlotte, N.C., on Sept. 4, 2020. (Logan Cyrus/AFP via Getty Images)

Restoring Confidence

Confidence in the election process has been shattered for many Americans because of how voting was handled in swing states such as Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Nevada during the 2020 election, Warner said.

Thats where the next presidency is going to be determined, just as it has in the last several elections, he added. The key to election confidence is abiding by the law. West Virginia has done a great job of balancing access with security.

Moving forward, all state election departments must follow their states election laws and reverse pandemic-era voting procedures such as the use of unmonitored ballot drop boxes and unlimited mail-in voting, he said.

Flannery said that all 55 county clerks in West Virginia follow the states directives and work together to maintain voter rolls.

The lists are no longer bloated, he said. Confidence in the process is through the roof in West Virginia.
WestJet Says Union for Canadian Pilots Expects American-Style Compensation

Members of the Air Line Pilots Association demonstrate amid contract negotiations outside the WestJet headquarters in Calgary, Alta., on March 31, 2023. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)

WestJet Airlines has suggested that the union representing Canadian pilots expects wages in this country to be on par with high wages for pilots in the United States, which is adding to the risk of a strike by the May long weekend.

Despite efforts to be reasonable and provide significant improvements to the current contract, the union maintains its expectation of closing in towards U.S.-like wages, despite living and working in Canada, WestJet said in a May 15 statement.

This expectation is not reasonable and is impeding the WestJet Groups ability to reach an agreement in advance of the upcoming long weekend, said the airline, which maintains its pilots are among the highest paid in Canada.

South of the border, an estimated shortage of 10,000 pilots saw U.S. Delta Airlines offer pilots a new four-year contract with a 34 percent pay raise in December 2022, according to Reuters.

Pilots with other major airlines south of the border were quoted by the media outlet suggesting the salary raise would set a new benchmark for compensation.

The union for American Airlines pilots, the Allied Pilots Association, promptly told its members the Delta offer would stimulate other ongoing labor negotiations for commercial airline captains and first officers.

Canada is also experiencing movement within the industry, according to Bernard Lewall, the union representative for WestJet. He suggested roughly 340 pilots have left WestJet in the last 18 months for other opportunities.

After nine months of negotiating, management still fails to understand todays labour market conditions, leading to a mass exodus of our pilots in search of better work opportunities, and more will follow if this agreement does not meet our pilots needs, Lewall said on May 15.

WestJet Airlines pilots assemble for a group photo after standing on a picket line at Torontos Pearson Airport on May 8, 2023. The picket is one of three at Canadas largest airports to show WestJet management they remain committed to negotiating a North American industry-standard contract. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press)

Strike Pending

More than 1,900 WestJet and subsidiary Swoop airline pilots and their union have threatened strike action as the two sides remain divided over wages and other collective bargaining negotiations. If a deal is not reached by May 19 at 3 a.m. ET, pilots will walk off the job and the airline will act on a lockout notice it gave the union.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said the airline appreciates its roughly 1,850 pilots from WestJet and Swoop.

We truly value the work and contributions of our pilots. We believe with a commitment from both parties, an agreement is achievable and are committed to offering pilots a competitive collective agreement with meaningful improvements for the Canadian market, whilst remaining competitive at the same time, said von Hoensbroech.

WestJet said that during collective bargaining, it has brought forward a generous contract that if agreed to will make its first officers and captains the highest paid narrow-body pilots in Canada, with a significant advantage over the next best paying airline.

Common passenger airplanes such as the Boeing 737, which have a single aisle between passenger seats, are referred to as narrow-body planes. These make up most of WestJets fleet.

WestJets CEO said the gap between union demands and what the airline carrier is offering is still massive.

He said the company has not been profitable since 2019 because of COVID lockdowns, which grounded flights and reduced travel. Onex Corp acquired the airline in 2019, and von Hoensbroech took the helm in February 2022.

Union Demands

WestJet offered the union a wage increase for pilots, which would give captains of wide-body planes earnings of $350,000 yearly in total compensation by the end of the collective agreement term. Captains of narrow-body planes would earn $300,000 annually. The details come from a letter sent from WestJet to flight crews that was obtained by The Canadian Press, and reported on May 17.

The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), the union that represents WestJet and Swoop pilots, has said over 90 percent of pilots voted in favour of a strike to obtain better pay, job security, and more flexible schedules.

A union member, Captain Jason Roberts, said on May 16 that the strike threat is not solely about wages.

Its a pilot attraction and retention issue, he told Calgary Eyeopener. We know what the market conditions are, the demand for pilots in the industry right now, and unfortunately we see what the company is offering  is not going to stop the outflow of pilots from WestJet, he said.

Tim Perry, national president of the union, told Global News on May 16 that pilots are struggling financially with current wages.

ALPA did not respond to requests for comment by press time.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
Wind Back Regulation: Aussie Mining Magnate Urges Federal Government to Consider Regional Security and Stability

Billionaire Gina Rinehart has generated a profit of $2.3 billion from her most successful venture in Australia on Dec. 1, 2022. (Courtesy of Hancock Prospecting)

Australian mining magnate Gina Rinehart has urged the federal government to reduce regulations for the mining industry so that the nations natural minerals and resources can be better utilised to provide security and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

This follows concerns from Japanese gas company Inpex, which said in April that regulatory changes to natural resources such as gas would choke investment, strangle expansion and would allow Russia, China, and Iran to fill the void.

Speaking at the Queensland Resources Media Club on May 16, Rinehartwho runs the highly successful Hancock Prospecting, a privately owned mineral exploration and extraction company, and is worth an estimated $43.1 billion (US$27.1 billion)said that being a reliable supplier of iron ore and coal for Australias allies is necessary given the current geopolitical climate.

We cannot forget the important role Australias exports play in regional security and stability, Rinehart said.

We should learn from the reality of Germany and the U.S.A.their imports from Russia [are] effectively funding Russias terrible war against Ukraine.

If Australia does not step up our investment and exports, if we allow Russia to become the preferred supplier of energy and met coal to Asia, that will have consequences for the security of Western countries.

Currently, Australia supplies Japan with 70 percent of its coal, 60 percent of its iron ore, and 40 percent of its gas imports.

In April, Woodside Energy chief executive Meg ONeill said the gas industry was essential in maintaining Australias strategic partnerships, including regional security.

ONeill argued that unstable regulatory outcomes would impact the countrys energy industry domestically and internationally, especially as countries such as Japan depend on Australian resources to power their lights in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, India imports 50 million tonnes of Australian coal per year, accounting for 80 percent of Indian coal imports.

A bucket-wheel dumping soil and sand is removed from another area of the mine in Newcastle, Australia, the worlds largest coal exporting port, on Nov. 5, 2021. (Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty Images)

India wants to double its steel production by 2030, meaning Australia should ramp up our critical metallurgical coal exports to help our ally, Rinehart said.

Rinehart added that the recent Australian delegation to India barely dealt with energy exports, even though coal accounted for 70 percent of Indian imports.

Moreover, along with the United States, Japan and India form the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) with Australiaparticularly relevant as Western nations aim to counter Beijings growing influence in the Indo-Pacific.

State and Federal Government Criticised for Delayed Approval Process

Rinehart pointed to the federal governments delayed approval for new mines, which she said takes 16 years to get off the ground.

But that was in 2019, things are far worse in Australia now, with more and more unattractive to investment legislation, and more and more coloured tape making approvals increasingly burdensome, time-consuming, and risky, Rinehart said, adding that the current trend for restricting mining due to environmental reasons is very popular now.

But lets not forget, all this environmental tape takes up staff time, costs money, and means less investment, less philanthropy, less bonuses, and less money available for salary increases, improving conditions, training, and other benefits.

An example she noted was Hancocks Roy Hill mine, which started production in Western Australia in 2015. Hancock invested hundreds of millions in the projects, going through a combination of red tape and setbacks by the WA state government before the project got started.

But this we did, plus the more than 4,000 government approvals and licences pre-construction, more again for actual construction, and the bonanza to the state and country was born, Reinhart said.

Additionally, over-regulation has seen mining investment fall to $40 billion, thus creating a $60 billion investment gap that would be a missed opportunity for Australia, she said.

Moreover, Rinehart called for the federal government to consider that for its green policies to be feasible, metals and minerals need to be mined.

You simply cant build minerals-guzzling EVs without massive mines, Rhinehart explained. The average EV contains over 206 kilograms of copper, lithium, nickel, manganese, cobalt, graphite, and rare earth elements.

Were simply not seeing the massive investments you would expect given high commodity prices, and despite the stated need for rapid expansions in metals and minerals supply to be able to meet the governments green policies.

Mining Industry Contributing to State and Federal Budget Surplus

The recent federal budget surplus of $4.2 billion has been attributed to tax revenue from the mining and resources sector.

The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of WAs Chief Executive, Rebecca Tomkinson, said in a statement that the significant contributions of the mining and resources sector had helped the government deliver $14.6 billion in cost-of-living relief, among other key budget measures.

When commodity prices are high, Australia wins. The resources sector pays more than 30 percent of Australias total company tax income to improve our nations budget bottom line, Tomkinson said.

Commodities remain crucial to the prosperity of our economy and go hand-in-hand with the focus on further developing our critical minerals capabilities as the world continues to decarbonise in line with the Paris Agreement.

According to WAs Chamber of Minerals and Energy, mining and resources makeup 69 percent of all Australian goods and services exportedup three percent from the previous year.

Additionally, Australian resource and energy exports are forecast to set a record of $464 billion in 202223.

For example, Rinehart said that Hancocks mega Pilbara and Hope mines projects have brought billions to both the WA state government and the federal government. The Pilbara project, for instance, has brought in $3 billion in royalties to the WA government and $5.3 billion in company tax.

[I]ts not just get a tenement and money spurts out, indeed most tenements, money never spurts out, its a risky business after all, and takes years of hard work, thousands of approvals and licences, and significant investment, she said.
Woman Pleads Guilty, Sentenced to 52 Years for Texas Boys Death

HOUSTONA woman on Wednesday agreed to a 52-year prison sentence after pleading guilty in the 2021 death of her boyfriends 5-year-old Houston son, whose body she had kept hidden in a storage unit before it was discovered in an East Texas hotel, according to prosecutors.

During a court hearing, Theresa Balboa, 31, pleaded guilty to murder in the death of Samuel Olson. Her plea was part of an agreement with prosecutors, who reduced the charge against her from capital murder to murder.

This woman robbed the world of a little boy with a big smile and bright future, and there is no prison sentence long enough for someone like her, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement.

Anthony Osso, Balboas attorney, said his client will be eligible for parole after serving half her sentence.

She didnt want to put the victims family through a trial, nor did she want to risk dying in prison ultimately. She has some light at the end of the tunnel with this alternative, Osso said in a telephone interview following the hearing.

Balboa did not say anything during Wednesdays court hearing.

Sarah Olson, Samuels mother, disagreed with the prison sentence Balboa received.

Today she admitted to what she did, for 52 years and the chance of parole in 26. My son did not even get six years of life and she still gets a chance at one? This is not justice, Sarah Olson told reporters after the hearing.

Samuel Olson. (The Gonzalez Law Group via AP)

Andy Kahan, the director of victim services and advocacy for Crime Stoppers of Houston, said he and others will fight any efforts to release Balboa on parole

And 26 years from now, God forbid, well be there and make sure that she never breathes free air again, Kahan said.

Prosecutors said Balboa, who had been dating Samuels father, had been watching the boy in her suburban Houston apartment when she hit him with a blunt object on May 12, 2021. Samuel would have turned 6 on May 29, 2021.

Neither the weapon used to kill the boy or a motive for his death were ever determined, according to prosecutors.

Balboa reported Samuel missing on May 27, 2021, initially claiming the boys mother and a man who presented himself as a police officer had taken the boy. Samuels parents had been involved in a bitter custody battle since filing for divorce in January 2020.

Authorities said Samuels body was kept in a bathtub at Balboas apartment until she and her roommate put it in a plastic tote and hid it in a storage unit. The body was later moved to a motel in Jasper, about 135 miles northeast of Houston.

Balboas roommate and a friend who helped her move the body to the motel in Jasper were each charged with evidence tampering counts.

By Juan A. Lozano
HIROSHIMA, Japan, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Japanese and U.S. top leaders on Thursday met in Hiroshima prior to the larger gathering of Group of Seven (G7) nations, overshadowed by protests and a tense atmosphere.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who holds the G7's rotating presidency and is hosting the three-day G7 summit which starts Friday, held talks with U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday evening in the western Japanese city.

Hiroshima, devastated by U.S. atomic bombings in 1945, has become the scene of intense demonstrations decrying the bloc days before the summit, while police officers from all over the nation are seen patrolling the streets.

Nearly a hundred protesters gathered from Wednesday to Thursday in front of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also known as Atomic Bomb Dome, at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which will be shuttered till next Monday due to the G7 leaders' upcoming visit.

Pulling up banners and signs such as "Crush the G7 Summit" and "No War-themed Conference," protesters shouted slogans such as "No Japan-U.S. leaders talk" and "Withdraw U.S. military bases in Japan."

The protesters, including university students and family members of Atomic bombing victims, rallied along one of the main streets in Hiroshima, crowded by police over 10 times the number of protesters.

The Japan-U.S. leaders' talk on Thursday will eventually lead to upgrades of the military alliance between the two countries in East Asia, said Ryo Miyahara, head of a Hiroshima citizens' group and one of the protests' organizers, citing the Japanese government's aggressive announcements of counterattack abilities in striking enemy bases and doubling its defense spending.

"Today's talks will definitely ignore the ideas of ordinary people," said Akamine Chiaki, a college student from Okinawa at Thursday's rally.

His words were echoed by another protester on-site, a 23-year-old French student named Fred who now studies Japanese in Osaka, who said there is nothing to be expected from the G7 gathering.

"The G7 summit has nothing to do with the interests of humanity," he told Xinhua, adding that it is simply a game for the rich bloc. 
3 BJP MLAs paid lakhs to fraudster for ministership





Arrested accused Neeraj Singh Rathod.

Staff Reporter :

Three MLAs of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) reportedly fall prey to the Ahmedabad-based fraudster who promised them ministership in the Shinde-Fadnavis government. Online transactions were made by these MLAs after receiving several phone calls with promising words from a man who impersonated himself as BJP National President J P Nadda. The accused, identified as Neeraj Singh Rathod, a resident of Morbi, Ahmedabad, was arrested by Nagpur Police from his residence, on Tuesday. The cops bundled him in a police jeep and started for Nagpur.

They were likely to reach Nagpur on Wednesday late evening. Nagpur Police initiated the action on the complaint by MLA Vikas Kumbhare (Central Nagpur). Besides Kumbhare, the conman had made phone calls to MLAs Tekchand Savarkar (Kamptee), Tanaji Mutkule (Hingoli), Narayan Kuche (Badnapur), Pravin Arlekar (Goa), and Basha Mowachang (Nagaland) and offered them ministerships in exchange of money. In the case of MLA Kumbhare, the fraudster, who claimed to be Personal Assistant of BJP National President J P Nadda, promised him Urban Development Ministry in Maharashtra Government. Another fraudster, pretending to be Nadda himself, joined the conversation. Kumbhare expressed his interest in a portfolio related to city development. And just like that, the fraudster offered him the post of cabinet minister of Urban Development in the Shinde-Fadnavis government.

Two days later, the same fraudster called Kumbhare to say that Nadda was no longer keen to offer the Urban Development Department. Instead, Kumbhare was offered the Excise Department. But thats not all. The fraudster also brazenly inquired whether Kumbhare could help financially to form the BJP government in Karnataka. Kumbhare received a call from someone claiming to be Nadda himself. During the interaction, Nadda asked Kumbhare to make arrangements for food at a grand RSS event being held in Ahmedabad. Later, a caterer phoned Kumbhare and asked to pay a bill of Rs 1.67 lakh, and shared a link for the payment transaction. Kumbhare was quick to realise that something was amiss and promptly reported the incident to the police. Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar dispatched a squad from Nagpur to arrested the accused from Gujarat.
Decision on Karnataka CM not yet





NEW DELHI :

A DECISION on the Karnataka Chief Minister is likely by Wednesday or Thursday and a new Cabinet will be in place in the next 48-72 hours, the Congress has said amid intense speculation over who would bag the top job between Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar. AICC in-charge of State Randeep Surjewala also asserted that Karnataka will have a five-year-long stable Government and urged people not to believe in speculation and fake news which it alleged was being peddled by the BJP. Addressing the media outside Congress President Mallikarjun Kharges 10 Rajaji Marg residence where hectic parleys are on to decide on the partys chief ministerial pick Surjewala said the party chief has been authorised to appoint the leader of the legislature party and that is why deliberations are underway. Do not resort to any speculation, whenever a decision is taken by the Congress President, we will be happy to inform you. I am only here to quash multiple rumours and hearsay... that are being played on multiple news channels. Please dont believe in it, Surjewala told reporters. Whenever Congress takes a decision either Wednesday or Thursday, the party will be the first one to inform the media, he said. Stop listening to rumours being planted by the BJP which is frustrated by the decisive defeat in Karnataka.

The Congress is committed to the welfare of each Kannadiga, the Congress is committed to fulfilling its five guarantees, the Congress is committed to implementing its agenda. The Congress is committed to giving a clean, transparent and responsible Government, he said. It (the decision to name the CM) is a matter of today and tomorrow and we will have a leader of the legislature party. Within the next 48 to 72 hours, we will have a new cabinet in Karnataka and in the first cabinet meeting, we will implement the five Congress guarantees and begin the work of building grand Karnataka, Surjewala said. He asserted that Karnataka will have a five-year-long stable government that is committed to the states peace, progress and harmony.

Congress President believes in three principles -- consensus, unanimity and unity. Mallikarjun Kharge, who has been authorised by the legislature party, will announce (the name of the leader) after holding due deliberations, Surjewala said. Central observers for the Karnataka Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting, in which the MLAs authorised Kharge to appoint the new CLP leader, also met the Congress President separately at his residence and held further discussions. While the supporters of both leaders are pitching for their respective leaders, the Congress is working on a power-sharing formula to accommodate all sections. The Congress has held a series of meetings on who will be the Chief Minister of the State after the party staged a stunning victory in the assembly elections, winning 135 of out 224 seats.
Is Nagpur losing basic structure in hectic infra devpt? -- II







By Kartik Lokhande :

You are bang on! As always, The Hitavada has taken up right issue. We are grateful that your newspaper has been raising the issues that concern the common people of city. Keep writing. We need such articles to motivate authorities to sit together and focus on proper urban planning before going ahead with infrastructure projects one after the other. The city needs development, but a planned one... These are just three of many comments The Hitavada received on Wednesday after the publication of the first part of the article with the same headline as above. People tended to agree that in infrastructure push, the city of Nagpur was losing its basic character of a not so fast paced and peaceful city. There are signs of growth -- on parameters of economic activity, investment, construction -- but it appears that enough attention is not being paid towards certain issues viz. traffic congestion, parking woes, old city charm getting overshadowed by tall concrete modernity, shrinking green spaces, fading heritage, increasing stress, violators not getting punished in proportion of enormity of violations etc. Of course, there are activists who are trying to hold the fort and fighting the battle. But, even in case of activists, there is much to be desired. They oppose projects but often their resistance is not backed by scientific and methodical research done by them on local conditions. As a result, when authorities concerned come up with detailed booklets, even the well-intentioned opposition is not able to defend the citys interests strongly. Mere social media posts bordering on trolling, do not serve the purpose. Rather, activism backed by data updates and sustained research on local issues can prove to be more impactful in securing long-term interest of the city. This provides a free hand to those believing that only physical infrastructure means development.





Those familiar with not only the ideas but also the ideals of urban design and planning know how important it is to preserve citys character reflected in its heritage. For the past several years, conservationists and eminent architects from the city like Paramjit Singh Ahuja have been suggesting to declare old city area of Mahal, which has several heritage structures, as Heritage Zone. It would have boosted economic activity with tourism, without compromising on heritage. However, since this has not happened, one has a reason to believe that there has been deliberate attempt to neglect heritage structures to allow those to wither away with time, and also to not think of sustainable economic activity. Time and development discourse dominated by construction activities both have taken a toll on water bodies of the city. The citys signature Nag river has turned into a massive open drain. Same is the status of Pili river, Pora river.

The iconic Shukrawari Lake, Ambazari Lake, and Futala Lake are being rejuvenated with more emphasis on construction and putting up a grand show than on preserving natural character of these water bodies. And, little does one realise that green spaces of the city also are becoming victims of neglect. Gradually, at many places, trees are being felled or are proposed to be felled to pave way for some more concrete constructions. Obviously, this is going to adversely impact the micro-climate. Sadly, again, there is no systematic and scientific study to assess the impact of developmental projects on local micro-climate.

There is very little awareness that changes in micro-climate could also affect public health. In fact, there is a big void in administration about understanding newer methods of health surveillance. Not many know that wastewater epidemiological surveillance holds a great promise in creating database of prevalence of various infections and drug consumption patterns in various areas. City-based scientists are working on such projects, but most authorities engaged in development discourse are unaware of this. There are several such dimensions to the citys development (or, shall one say growth?) story. Of course, much of these reflections have been triggered by insightful conversations at the panel discussion organised by The Institute of Town Planners of India (ITPI) Maharsahtra Regional Centre, Nagpur. In response to the discussion moderator Dr Sarika Bahadures query, Dr Akshay Patil and this scribe both offered three keywords around which citys image could be built.

Dr Patil focussed on tangible part of it when he mentioned thoughtful infrastructure, agriculture, and environment. This scribe focussed on values that the city should be identified with -- Openness for ideas, informed activism, and reasoned criticism; Deterrence among violators of traffic norms or other rules instead of only monitoring with the help of technology; and Informed (nor imposed) Aspirations so as to preserve basic structure and character of the city even while carrying out infrastructure development in city. Of course, this is not a one-time thing. For, city evolves and planners and stakeholders have to dynamically respond to changes and newer challenges. So, the most important thing is to streamline the process wherein there is scope for continuous brainstorming to make the city better even while staying time-relevant. For the purpose, on the lines of Police Departments peace committees, sustainable development local committees could be set up in various parts of the city by the multi-agency co-ordination committee for the entire city. These local committees must be non-political in nature with members representing experts from varied fields, who would assess any new proposal for infrastructure development on technical, social, economic, heritage, and environment parameters. The idea of these reports is to trigger thinking across cross-section of the society including planners, administrators, citizens and all stakeholders.
NIA raids 324 places in 9 States, UTs





NEW DELHI :

IN A massive crackdown on the terrorist-gangster-narco nexus, the NIA along with Punjab and Haryana police on Wednesday raided 324 locations in nine States and Union Territories under Operation Dhvast, the agency said. During the day-long raids in Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh, arms and ammunition, incriminating material and Rs 39 lakh were seized, a spokesperson of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said. While the NIA raided 129 locations, the Punjab Police raided 143 places in 17 districts and the Haryana Police 52 locations in 10 districts, the official said and added that the raids simultaneously began at 5:30 am. Several suspects were detained during the raids, conducted as part of Operation Dhvast..., the spokesperson said.

The NIA said the raids were aimed at breaking the terror nexus of designated terrorist Arsh Dalla, and dreaded gangsters such as Lawrence Bishnoi, Chhenu Pehalwan, Deepak Teetar, Bhupi Rana, Vikash Lagarpuriya, Ashish Choudhary, Gurpreet Sekhon, Dilpreet Baba, Harsimrat Simma and Anuradha. The focus of todays raids was on weapon suppliers, financiers, logistic providers and Hawala operators associated with the hardcore gangs working with drug smugglers and terrorists based out of other countries such as Pakistan and Canada, the spokesperson said. The official said the raiding parties have seized a pistol, assorted ammunition (both live and used cartridges), 60 mobile phones, five DVRs, 20 SIM cards, a hard disk, a pen drive, a dongle, a WiFi router, a digital watch, two memory cards, 75 documents and over Rs 39.60 lakh. These was the sixth in a series of crackdowns launched by the NIA following the registration of three cases since august last year pertaining to conspiracies related to targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits, and extortion. Among these cases are the sensational killing of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani and international kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal ambia in Punjab last year.

The spokesperson said investigations have revealed that the conspiracies were being hatched in jails of different States and being executed by an organised network of operatives based abroad. The spotlight on these gangs has become sharper after reports of several prisons becoming havens of the deadly nexus and hubs of gang wars, which recently resulted in violence and murder inside the Goindwal Jail and the Tihar Jail, the official said. The spokesperson said the agency has found that many criminals, who were leading gangsters in India, had fled to countries such as Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia and australia. From there, they were engaged in planning serious crimes in association with criminals lodged in jails across India, the official said.

These groups were carrying out targeted killings and raising funds for their nefarious activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons, Hawala and extortions, the NIA spokesperson said. The agency had previously conducted raids at 231 locations and seized 38 arms, including four lethal weapons, along with 1,129 rounds of ammunition. It has, so far, frozen 87 bank accounts and attached 13 properties, besides seizing 331 digital devices, 418 documents and two vehicles. Two absconders have been declared as designated individual terrorists, and non-bailable warrants have been issued against 10 people and look out circulars against 14 others. Further investigations underway on to dismantle such terror networks as well as their funding and support infrastructure, the spokesperson said.
Planned phased Army withdrawal from J&K shelved indefinitely





By Sumir Kaul :

SRINAGAR,

THE planned phased withdrawal of the Army from certain areas of the Jammu region has been shelved indefinitely in view of terror attacks being orchestrated from across the border, officials said here. They said the Government had planned to reduce the footprints of Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-insurgency force of the Army, in the Jammu region and hand over the urity to the Jammu and Kashmir Police and paramilitary forces. The Army has three Counter-Insurgent Forces (CIF) in the Jammu region -- Delta Force (which looks after the Doda region), Romeo Force (looking after Rajouri and Poonch areas) and Uniform Force (looking after Udhampur and Banihal areas). Some units of the Army had planned to hand over the security and law and order management gradually to the local police and paramilitary units in South of Pir Panjal (Jammu region), the officials said. However, keeping the situation in mind, especially the killings by terrorists this year, it has been decided to shelve the proposal indefinitely, the officials said.

The areas in the Jammu region have seen 17 killings by terrorists, including that of 10 Army personnel. Seven civilians were killed in Dhangri village of Rajouri on January 1 this year. Of them, five civilians were killed in a terrorist firing on January 1 evening while two minors lost their lives when an IED, left behind by the terrorists before fleeing, exploded the next day. Five Army personnel were killed in cold blood when terrorists attacked their vehicle at Bhatta Durrian in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district on April 20. The Army personnel were on their way to distribute Iftar material to a nearby village during Ramzan. Five para commandos were killed and a Major-rank officer injured when terrorists set off an IED in Kandi forest, Rajouri on May 5.

The proposal to withdraw the Army from the hinterland was under discussion for some time and a final recommendation was to be taken at the Unified Headquarters (UHQ) headed by Lt Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha. The UHQ has top representatives from the Army, police and paramilitary forces. Post abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the law and order and terror-related incidents had shown a decline with the number of stone pelting incidents reduced to zero
Freeze warnings have been issued for most of western and eastern Connecticut as parts of the state hit record-low temperatures Thursday morning.

Bridgeport dipped to 38 degrees early Thursday morning, breaking the record low of 41 set in 1984. Hartford also dipped into the lower 30s overnight, breaking a record low of 36 set in 2003.

Other parts of Connecticut were even colder with temperatures in the upper 20s before dawn, the National Weather Service's Boston office reported around 4 a.m.

The cold could impact plants and outdoor plumbing, including sprinkler systems. The weather service on Wednesday morning issued freeze watches across northern Connecticut, advising residents to protect any vulnerable plants and plumbing systems that could be at risk of freezing.

"Frost and freeze conditions will kill crops, other sensitive vegetation and possibly damage unprotected outdoor plumbing," the weather service's New York office said in a bulletin.

The freeze warnings were in effect until 8 a.m. Thursday. The warnings extended across all of Litchfield County and northern parts of Fairfield and New Haven counties inland from the shoreline. The warnings also covered all of Windham, Tolland and New London counties.

The weather service said the cold temperatures are "due to light north winds bringing in cooler air and clear skies allowing for enough cooling to occur as high pressure settles in behind the cold front that passed last night."

Temperatures are expected to rise into the 60s on Thursday, slightly warmer than Wednesday but below the average for this time of year.

Conditions will be mostly sunny, but "smoke from Canadian wildfires will again move in aloft this afternoon," the weather service said.
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP)  Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoed a trio of gun-control bills Wednesday while his office threatened to ax the state budget if his priorities aren't addressed, in the strongest conflict yet for Nevadas split-party government.

Its a combative shift for Lombardo, who previously said he would not use the big hammer of veto to get his school-choice legislation passed by the Democratic-controlled Legislature. He has also remained tight-lipped on several ambitious Democratic proposals, including the gun control measures before Wednesday.

The moves came a day after Democratic leadership said they would kill Lombardos sweeping school-safety bill, which would remove requirements for students to be expelled for certain acts amid a reported uptick in school violence. They instead invited him to pitch the measure as an amendment to a similar bill that theyre pushing. Lombardos school-choice proposals, with various mechanisms at providing public funding to help students access private schools, have also received an icy reception by Democrats.

If a budget is not approved by July 1, state services, including schools and state agencies, may shut down.

If he follows through and stakes out an extremist position, he will have to explain to Nevadans why their kids schools are not opening on time, public safety services are reduced, and other essential state services are shut down, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro said in a statement.

Lombardos office did not provide additional comment on the budget veto threat beyond confirming his position.

Meanwhile, the trio of gun-control bills marked the first vetoes of Lombardo's tenure since becoming the only Republican to unseat an incumbent Democratic governor in the 2022 midterms. The move could be an early indication of how Lombardo will respond to other party-line measures that come from the Legislature.

I will not support legislation that infringes on the constitutional rights of Nevadans, Lombardo said in a statement announcing his vetoes.

One of the gun-control bills would have raised the eligible age to possess semiautomatic shotguns and assault weapons from 18 to 21. Another would have barred possession of a gun within 100 yards (91 meters) of an election site entrance with narrow exceptions, while also solidifying language meant to ban homemade ghost guns. A third bill would have prohibited owning a firearm within a decade of a gross misdemeanor or felony hate-crime conviction.

The vetoes came moments before a news conference scheduled by Democratic leadership and gun control advocacy groups to urge Lombardo to sign the legislation. Standing in front of the legislative building, they chastised his decision.

I desperately wish the governor would put the safety of Nevadans ahead of partisan politics, said Democratic Assembly Majority Floor Leader Sandra Jauregui, who sponsored two of the bills and survived the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting.

She said the bills would better protect Nevada in the wake of recent mass shootings, including one this week in New Mexico, where an 18-year-old gunman killed three and injured six.

Lombardo, the Clark County sheriff at the time of the Las Vegas mass shooting, had previously bucked other Republicans by supporting background checks. But he still positions himself as firmly pro-Second Amendment while touting his NRA membership. He promised on the campaign trail to veto any legislation curtailing access to ghost guns, privately-made firearms without serial numbers that are nearly impossible for law enforcement to trace.

In his veto letters, Lombardo cited recent court rulings that struck down gun-control legislation, including one that nullified a similar law in California that would ban the sale of semiautomatic weapons to adults under 21.

He said that existing law sufficiently addresses people convicted of hate crimes and the bill would effectively open the door to more laws for those convicted of gross misdemeanors. He added that the bill prohibiting firearms from election sites is commendable but too broad.

Democratic leaders  who hold a veto-proof supermajority in the state Assembly and are one away from that in the Senate  said they would continue to press for gun-control legislation with or without (Lombardos) cooperation

We sent over three common sense options  bills, by the way, that Republicans are supporting in other states across this country today, said Democratic Sen. Dallas Harris, who sponsored the bill prohibiting firearm possession ten years after a hate crime conviction. And if this is how he wants to run his office, if these are the first bills he wants to veto, then game on.

Lombardo, who steered a moderate path compared to his primary challengers in the 2022 midterms, has not commented on nearly every other bill still in play. This includes measures that would establish trust fund investments for the children of families who receive Medicaid known as baby bonds,"criminalize fake electors and cap certain drug prices to federally negotiated Medicare rates.

___

Stern is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms. Follow Stern on Twitter: @gabestern326
Back when she started going on ambulance calls with him in Bridgeport, Christina Bradley thought her future husband was the coolest thing on earth.

But after Dan Bradley responded to the Sandy Hook tragedy, it sank him into a depression so deep that Dan and Christina Bradley lost their Stratford home as he went through life self-medicated and homeless. Christina Bradley never gave up hope  even when he told her, leave me alone and let me die.

So when Dan Bradley called her from Florida in 2019 to tell her that he was sober and ready, Christina Bradley eagerly moved down with their kids to start a new life with him in Vero Beach. She said she had never stopped believing that they would be a family again.

Even when I was so angry at him, I was like, I love this guy, Christina Bradley told Hearst Connecticut Media during an interview from her Florida home, where she is due to give birth to a son, Logan, next week.

Christina Bradley / contributed photo

But six weeks ago her and her childrens lives were shattered when Dan Bradley died suddenly at 44.

On April 5, I went into preterm labor at eight months with our sixth child, and Dan left work to be by my side. I was admitted to labor and delivery for observation, and we talked all night and into the morning, until our (obstetrician) came in and told us to get some sleep as it was 3:30 in the morning, Christina Bradley said. I watched him lay down on the dads cot right next to my bed and scroll through TikTok, and soon I closed my eyes.

At 7 a.m., when Dan Bradleys alarm went off and he didnt wake up, Christina Bradley understood something was wrong.

I got a horrible feeling. I ripped out all my leads and I went right to him and I checked for carotid pulse  nothing, she said. I checked for breath sounds and watched for a rise and fall of his chest  nothing.

Using her EMT training, she immediately started CPR and was screaming for a nurse.

Six courses of medications in attempt of resuscitation couldnt bring him back, she said. He was my everything.

Although the medical examiner said it will be June before an official cause of death can be released for the Stamford native, Christina Bradley suspects it was a pulmonary embolism, or maybe the cancer that was removed from his kidney in 2022 came back and perhaps he kept (it) from us all.

Regardless of the cause, Dan Bradleys death is a loss to more than Christina Bradley and her children, she said.

He wasnt just my everything  he was important to a lot of people, and I dont want his memory to be forgotten, she said. I want to keep his life shining.

Kim Kelly Hahn, a former co-worker, agreed.

He was my partner on the Westchester Stat Team, said Hahn of her time working with Dan Bradley from 2009 to 2011. He was a critical care pediatric medic, and he had an infectious personality. He was always someone you wanted to be around, even in the worst situation.

'I never gave up hope'

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On Dec. 14, 2012, he responded to Sandy Hook Elementary School for the privately owned Danbury Ambulance Services Inc. He rushed a first-grade shooting victim who did not survive  one of 26 victims who died that day  and a teacher with a nonlethal gunshot wound to Danbury Hospital.

Dan had seen horrific things in Bridgeport, but the magnitude of that was too much for him  in 2012 our kids were that age, Christina Bradley said. It was the straw that broke the camels back.

The downward spiral of depression and substance abuse that followed forced her and their kids out of their house and into a life of trying to get by without his help.

I always knew where he was  I knew when he was in the shelter and I knew when he was in rehab and I tried to take care of the kids as best I could, she said. I never gave up hope.

In the end, Dan Bradley was back at home with his wife and their kids, giving back to the homeless shelter that gave him his life back and volunteering to help others, she said.

The good die young, said Dan Bradleys former partner Hahn. I commend Dan that after Sandy Hook he still wanted to work with kids and always tried to make things better for people. He was constantly doing charity work like food drives and was always looking for the next person to help.
HANOI, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's garment exports fell further in April as consumers in its major markets cut back on spending amid a likely looming recession, the Saigon Times reported on Thursday.

Textiles and garments reported a year-on-year decline of 19.3 percent in export earnings to 9.6 billion U.S. dollars during the January-April period after falling 17.4 percent in the first quarter, according to the General Statistics Office.

Vietnam's shipments to the U.S. and China in the first four months of the year slumped more than 30 percent while exports to Europe fell 12 percent, according to a report by the country's largest textile and garment maker Vinatex.

As Japan has emerged from a technical recession thanks to a recovery in household spending, Vietnam's garment exports to the market inched up 6.6 percent to 1.2 billion dollars over the period compared to a year ago, said the report.

Since the textile and garment industry are among the country's largest export earners, the hit to its export earnings has put more pressure on Vietnam's economy which grew 3.32 percent in the first quarter, slowing from a growth of 5.92 percent in late 2022 and 5.03 percent in the first quarter last year, said the General Statistics Office.

Local garment and textile makers are faced with a credit crunch that has limited their ability to secure funds from commercial banks for working capital, said the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Business Associations (HUBA).

A shortage of funds has also forced some companies into a debt repayment crisis, HUBA added.

Of businesses recently surveyed by HUBA, 41.2 percent reported a shrinking market demand, 17.6 percent were hit by rising input costs, 17.6 percent faced a shortage of funds, and 11.2 percent were in need of skilled staff among other challenges and difficulties. 
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CASTEL BOLOGNESE, Italy (AP)  Exceptional rains Wednesday in a drought-struck region of northern Italy swelled rivers over their banks, killing at least eight people, forcing the evacuation of thousands and prompting officials to warn that Italy needs a national plan to combat climate change-induced flooding.

The heavy rains also forced Formula One to cancel this weekends Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix to not overtax emergency crews that were already stretched thin in responding to the rivers of mud that have torn through the region, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and homes.

Days of rainstorms stretched across a broad swath of northern Italy and the Balkans, where apocalyptic floods, landslides and evacuations were also reported in Croatia, Bosnia and Slovenia.

The deputy governor of Emilia-Romagna, Irene Priolo, said eight people were killed and others unaccounted for in flooding that forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 people.

On Wednesday evening, authorities in the province of Ravenna, a tourist town famed for its Byzantine-era mosaics, about 14,000 people were ordered to leave their homes as a precaution because of fears that three rivers could overflow their banks.

Among the dead was a farmer who defied floodwaters to try to save equipment on his property, officials said. His wife was among the missing.

Rescue helicopters plucked people from rooftops as floodwaters rose ever higher in homes. In one rescue, a coast guard member pulled a woman out through a skylight from her home and held her tight as the two were winched to a hovering helicopter and pulled inside.

"Even upper floors aren't safe any more,'' Gian Luca Zattini, mayor of Forli', one of the hardest-hit towns, told Sky TG24 TV.

Italian Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci called for a new nationwide hydraulic engineering plan to adapt to the impact of increasing incidents of floods and landslides. At a briefing, he noted that an average of 200 millimeters (7.9 inches) of rain had fallen in 36 hours in the region, with some areas registering 500 millimeters (19.7 inches) in that period.

"If you consider that this region averages 1,000 millimeters (39.3 inches) of rain in a year, you realize the impact that these rains have had in these hours," Musumeci said.

Citing the November landslide in Ischia, which killed a dozen people, he said that Italy is increasingly experiencing tropical weather seen in parts of Africa and other areas around the world, with long periods of drought punctuated by intense rainfall that cant be absorbed by the soil.

Nothing will ever be the same again ... and what has happened in these hours is evidence of that," Musumeci said. "When soil remains dry for a long time, instead of increasing its absorption capacity, it ends up cementing and allowing rainfall to continue flowing over the surface and causing absolutely unimaginable damage.

In Castel Bolognese, a town of around 9,000 people, the mayor said there was no electricity and many families were running out of food in an area that was hit by floods earlier this month. Two weeks ago we had a flood and we were left to believe it happens once every 100 years,'' Luca Della Godenza said.

Compounding Italy's vulnerability to climate-change induced flooding are already fragile hydrological conditions in much of the country. Italy also must grapple with the decades-long practice of people building in areas prone to mudslides or floods  homes that are often allowed to stay in place thanks to occasional government amnesties.

Hillsides, pounded by the rain, gave way in many parts of Emilia-Romagna. In 48 towns or hamlets, a total of 250 mudslides were reported by residents, state television said. Walls of mud, rushing down, toppled trees and buckled roads in their path.

Musumeci said 50,000 people lost electricity, and more than 100,000 lost cellphone or landline use.

Many residents evacuating homes put vital belongings in the rubber boats they'd normally tow each summer to the region's flourishing beach resorts on the Adriatic Sea and pulled them through deluged streets.

Some regional train routes remained suspended Wednesday around Bologna and Ravenna, with severe delays elsewhere, the Italian state railway said.

Premier Giorgia Meloni, who was traveling to the G-7 meeting in Japan, said the government was monitoring the situation and was prepared to approve emergency aid.

In the Balkans, the swollen Una river flooded parts of northern Croatia and northwestern Bosnia, where authorities announced a state of emergency. The mayor of the town of Bosanska Krupa in Bosnia said that hundreds of homes had been flooded.

We have an apocalypse, Amin Halitovic told regional N1 network. We can no longer count the flooded buildings. Its never been like this.

Dozens of landslides were reported in eastern Slovenia, many of which endangered homes and infrastructure.

In Croatia, hundreds of soldiers and rescue teams continued bringing food and other necessities to people in flood-hit areas who have been isolated in their homes. No casualties have been reported so far.

___

Previous versions of this story have been corrected to show that the last name of the Italian Civilian Protection Minister is Musumeci, not Musemeci, and that Meloni was en route to Japan, not coming home.

___

Winfield reported from Rome. Jovana Gec contributed from Belgrade, Serbia, and Frances D'Emilio contributed from Rome.
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EDWARDSVILLE  An East Alton man faces auto theft and drug charges after a March 30 incident in Bethalto.

Jeffrey S. Dosing, 32, of the 100 block of Wesley Drive, East Alton, was charged May 16 with offenses relating to motor vehicles and failure to report an accident involving personal injury or death, both Class 2 felonies; unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony; and leaving the scene of an accident, a Class A misdemeanor. The charges were filed in two separate cases.

The injury accident case was presented by the Collinsville Police Department, the other by the Bethalto Police Department.

According to court documents, on March 21 Dosing was involved in an accident in the 1400 block of North Bluff Road, Collinsville, in which another man was injured and Dosing failed to report the accident as required by law; and on March 30 Dosing was found to be in possession of a stolen Ford F-250; was in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine; and was driving a Mitsubishi Lancer when he was involved in a motor vehicle accident on Wesley Drive and failed to stop at the scene.

Bail was set at $75,000 for the Bethalto case, $50,000 for the Collinsville case.

In an unrelated case, William L. Gartee, AKA Bill or Billy Gartee, 53, listed as homeless out of Highland, was charged with being a child sex offender residing within 500 feet of a child care facility, a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Highland Police Department. According to court documents, between April 5-11 Gartee was living within 500 feet of Bright Beginnings Preschool, 500 Main Street, Highland.

According to the Illinois State Police sex offender database, Gartee is non-compliant.

He has a conviction for child pornography out of Madison County. According to court documents, on April 12, 2021, Gartee was found to be in possession of numerous images of prepubescent girls under 13 engaging in sex acts.

Bail was set at $20,000 in the latest case.

Other felony cases filed May 16 by the Madison County States Attorneys Office include:
The Telegraph

EDWARDSVILLE  A St. Louis man was charged with armed violence and other drug- and weapons-related crimes after an incident in Brooklyn Jan. 22.

Although most of Brooklyn is within St. Clair County, a small portion is in Madison County.
Editors Note: In recognition of National Historic Preservation Month, local historian Cindy Reinhardt tells the stories behind some of Edwardsvilles historic buildings in a series of eight articles in the month of May.

801 St. Louis St.

The Robert G. Baird House

The house at 801 St. Louis St. has had numerous additions to the north side of the building over the years, but its Victorian-era architecture is still in evidence from the street. It was built circa 1905 for Robert George Baird and his wife, Anna Maria (Kinder) Baird, who were retired farmers.

Both were descended from pioneer Madison County families. Robert G. was born in Madison County in 1847. He was the youngest of 12 children born to Irish immigrants, John and Mary (Kirkpatrick) Baird, who came to the United States circa 1835. They immigrated first to Philadelphia, but after a few years, decided to move west where they eventually purchased a farm in Pin Oak Township. During his lifetime, Robert G. experienced the contrast between his education in a log cabin schoolhouse and life in a two-story Victorian home in Edwardsvilles finest neighborhood.

Anna (Kinder) Bairds parents, also farmers, were Nathaniel Buckminster Kinder and Phoebe Ann (Morrison) Kinder, who were married near Edwardsville in 1845. Annas grandparents came to Madison County in 1811, making the Kinders one of the families that arrived before the county was established.

The Bairds built the house on St. Louis Street when they retired from farming. They probably chose this location because their daughter Alice, Mrs. Frank Tunnell, lived at 724 St. Louis St., and Anna had numerous cousins also residing on the street.

Robert G. and Anna had seven children who survived to adulthood. Of those, all but one remained local. By the time Robert G. died in 1924, in addition to his daughter Alice at 724 St. Louis St., three sons had purchased homes on the same street: Homer (at 1301), Clarence (at 724), and Henry (at 821). His son William was running the Pin Oak Township family farm and Robert J. lived a few blocks away on Park Street. (A second daughter, Mary Ann, lived in Chicago.) According to Robert G.s 1924 obituary, there were 10 grandchildren who visited his home often and had a special relationship with their grandfather.

After Robert G.s death, Anna lived at the house until her death in 1925. Their son, Robert J. Baird, bought the house after Anna died and moved from Park Street to St. Louis Street. William, who had continued the family business of farming, later retired to 829 St. Louis St., which meant all six siblings living in the area had residences on the same street.

Robert J., born in 1875, married Mary Esther Desmond. His father-in-law, Michael Desmond, hired him to work in the family business. M. Desmond Manufacturing Company was founded as a machine shop in the 1860s. The firm evolved from repairing and manufacturing buggies for horses to a heating and plumbing business that was a going concern in Edwardsville for a century.

After the death of his wife in 1958, Robert J. moved to Mitford, Connecticut, where their only son, Robert D. Baird, was a physician. He sold the house in 1960 to Stephen and Sheila Stimson. Sheila Stimson was very active in the community, donating both time and talent in support of the Madison County Historical Society and especially to Friends of Lovejoy Library at SIUE. Shiela also sold ticket books in support of the Mississippi River Festival. The Stimsons lived in the home for over 20 years. After they sold the house, there were several short-term owners, but none that came close to reaching the longevity of the Baird family, which owned the house for 55 years.

Sources for this article include materials from the Madison County Archival Library, articles from past issues of the Edwardsville Intelligencer, and land records in the Recorder of Deeds Office. If you have questions about this article, please contact Cindy Reinhardt at cindy.reinhardt@madcohistory.org or 618-656-1294.
EDWARDSVILLE  Multiple people face drug possession charges filed Tuesday by the Madison County States Attorneys Office.

Nicholas Chaney, 41, and Samantha L. Chappel, 43, both of the same address in the 4000 block of Laura, Pontoon Beach, were each charged May 16 with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony.

The cases were presented by the Pontoon Beach Police Department.

According to court documents, on March 22 the two were found to be in possession of less than 15 grams of cocaine.

Bail was set at $25,000 each.

Other drug-related charges filed May 16 include:
andresr/Getty Images

A new movie theater that officially opens in St. Louis today, May 18, will have a special screening room for families with small children.

B&B Theatres has taken up residency in the former AMC Theaters location in the St. Louis suburb of Creve Coeur in west St. Louis County and it is one of 11 facilities that will have a screenPlay! room. The company website describes the room as a "concept unique to B&B Theatres, screenPLAY! will allow little movie-lovers (recommended age 2-8) to enjoy the magic of the movies like never before."
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LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects allegedly sheltered inside expired on Thursday.

The siege and the authorities' demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khan's recent detention, have angered the former prime minister's many followers and raised fears of renewed clashes between them and security forces.

Last week, Khan's supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested in a graft case. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country in the days that followed. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khan's release.

On Tuesday, Khan demanded a probe into the violence, but denied his supporters were behind it. Khan accused Pakistan's ruling party of trying to foment trouble between his supporters and the army, without offering any evidence of his claim. He was speaking at a media conference held at his house, despite police surrounding it.

The popular opposition leader was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistans second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along with private guards. Police surrounded the residence on Wednesday, saying they want 40 suspects handed over.

The ultimatum for Khan ended at 2 p.m. local time, but there were no immediate signs of unusual movement by police. Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, invited reporters to the house to witness any police raid.

Hours after the expiry of the ultimatum, Hassan Javed, a senior police official, told reporters that officers were waiting for a signal from the government to launch the raid. He said police captured at least eight suspects after they left Khan's house and tried to escape via a nearby canal.

Typically between 200 to 300 of Khan's supporters, holding sticks, guard his residence around the clock, but most disappeared overnight. Police have barricaded a key road leading to the house and asked residents to use an alternate route.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest, the 70-year-old popular opposition leader tweeted Wednesday, after the siege started. Police have surrounded my house.

Later, Khan addressed his supporters saying that the police can only search his house with a search warrant and not barge in, creating chaos.

According to Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, police were ready to use firearms if attacked. He told a news conference Thursday that at least 3,400 suspects linked to the clashes have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir said authorities would send police to search Khan's residence on Friday, in comments that appeared to defer the threat of clashes overnight with the leader's supporters.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. Angered over the recent attacks on military installations, two lawmakers and some senior politicians have quit Khan's party, saying they cannot support the man who incited people to violence.

The plan to try civilians in military court has drawn criticism from the advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

Khan was ousted by a non-confidence vote in Parliament last year. He has claimed the ouster was illegal and a Western conspiracy.

He now faces more than 100 legal cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials and defying a ban on rallies. He has been summoned by National Accountability Bureau to answer questions Thursday in connection to a graft case he faces along with his wife.

But Khan informed the agency that he could not attend because he was busy struggling to get protection from arrest in many of the cases against him. In his written reply to the agency, he said its probe against him was politically motivated.

___

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
TASHKENT, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan and China have been actively cooperating in the cultural field in recent years, continuing their millennia-old friendship and exchanges between Silk Road civilizations, said a senior scholar from Uzbekistan's Academy of Sciences.

"Uzbekistan and China have been close partners on the Silk Road throughout history and established long-standing and stable economic and trade relations," Abdullayev Masharib Saydamatovich, deputy director of the Center for Promotion of Science at Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Since establishing diplomatic relations over 30 years ago, the two countries have continued to develop their relationship and cooperation in various fields, including economy and culture, he noted, citing the joint effort to restore the ancient city of Khiva as the best example of cultural cooperation between the two countries.

As one of the ancient cities situated along the Silk Road, Khiva has been a center of education, science and culture, and served as a cradle of civilizations spanning millennia, with Ichan Kala, the inner city of the ancient oasis of Khiva, added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1990.

However, due to a long-time lack of maintenance, some of the ancient buildings suffered damage of varying degrees. In 2014, Uzbekistan and China decided to jointly preserve and restore Khiva, and completed the project in 2019.

According to Saydamatovich, the restoration work was very difficult, requiring in-depth scientific research. At the beginning of the project, Chinese experts conducted a very detailed study of the original appearance of Khiva and used this to formulate the restoration plan.

"The restoration work on Khiva fully reflected China's experience in restoring cultural relics," said Saydamatovich, adding that during the restoration process, Chinese experts and scholars lived in Khiva and directly communicated and collaborated with local experts on how to better carry out the restoration work.

Under the principle of "restoration to the original," Chinese experts managed to use local traditional materials and techniques as much as possible so as not to change the appearance of the cultural relics, said the Uzbek scholar.

"Chinese experts worked meticulously and always strived to preserve the original style of the ancient city," said Saydamatovich, commending them for restoring all the relics to the original appearance.

He stressed that the restoration work by Chinese experts has been highly recognized in Uzbekistan, and China's expertise in restoring cultural relics has also been applied to the protection of other historical sites in Uzbekistan.

"After the joint restoration project in Khiva, cultural cooperation between Uzbekistan and China will continue, and joint restoration work will become an important direction for future cooperation between the two countries," he said.

Saydamatovich pointed out that Uzbekistan and China are now actively promoting cooperation in politics, society, culture, science and other fields under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Belt and Road Initiative.

"We believe that China's achievements in development will directly help Uzbekistan to further enhance its national strength. Uzbekistan looks forward to continuing to carry out extensive exchanges of experience with China," he added. 
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Linkedin Agence France-Presse (The Jakarta Post) Sittwe, Myanmar  Fri, May 19 2023

Residents of Myanmar's cyclone-ravaged Rakhine state capital queued for rice and drinking water on Wednesday as the United Nations negotiated with the internationally isolated junta for access to hard-hit areas.

Cyclone Mocha tore through Myanmar and Bangladesh on Sunday, bringing lashing rain and winds of 195 kilometers per hour that collapsed buildings and turned streets into rivers.

The storm killed at least 81 people across Myanmar, according to statements given by local leaders and officials to AFP journalists and state media tallies.

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Linkedin Ni Komang Erviani (The Jakarta Post) Denpasar  Fri, May 19 2023

The Denpasar Police have arrested two Indian nationals on charges of murdering an Indonesian man and assaulting another Indian national on Saturday. The suspects were apprehended at Ngurah Rai International Airport as they were apparently trying to flee the country.

The two 21-year-old suspects allegedly murdered a 39-year-old Indonesian national following a series altercations at the victims house on Jl. Tukad Bilok in Sanur Kauh.

The two foreigners had been staying at the victims house at his invitation since May 10.

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Linkedin Kamapradipta Isnomo (The Jakarta Post) Stockholm  Fri, May 19 2023

On a sunny Nordic weekend, 60 delegations from 60 countries converged in the second European Union Indo-Pacific Foreign Ministers Forum hosted by Sweden on May 13. Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom co-chaired the forum as the current president of the EU together with EUs foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

The forum took place at a tumultuous period in global affairs where geopolitical and economic rivalries are on the rise, concocted by an almost perpetual conflict in Ukraine in which the international community has yet to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, representing ASEAN chair Indonesia, was invited to the gathering as a special guest to deliver a keynote address in which she highlighted ASEANs unified reluctance to see an Indo-Pacific region evolve into yet another theater of rivalry and wars, as is the case in other regions.

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Shares of Potash America, Inc. (OTCMKTS:PTAM  Get Rating) crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $0.00 and traded as high as $0.00. Potash America shares last traded at $0.00, with a volume of 85,200 shares trading hands.

Potash America Stock Up 7.7 %

Potash America Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Potash America, Inc is an exploration stage company, which engages in the development of fertilizer and agri-business assets. Its assets include Potash, Montmorillonite, Bentonite, and Gypsum. The company was founded by Matthew Markin on July 31, 2007 and is headquartered in Boca Raton, FL.

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Several analysts have recently updated their ratings and price targets for Graco (NYSE: GGG):

4/28/2023  Graco had its price target raised by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $82.00 to $89.00.

4/28/2023  Graco had its price target raised by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $75.00 to $83.00.

4/27/2023  Graco was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a buy rating to a hold rating.

4/27/2023  Graco had its price target raised by analysts at DA Davidson from $70.00 to $75.00.

4/19/2023  Graco was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a hold rating to a buy rating.

Graco Stock Performance

NYSE GGG traded up $0.43 on Wednesday, reaching $77.40. 453,326 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 933,989. Graco Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $56.48 and a fifty-two week high of $80.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a current ratio of 3.38. The firm has a market cap of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $72.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.14.

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Graco (NYSE:GGG  Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.13. Graco had a return on equity of 26.12% and a net margin of 22.44%. The company had revenue of $529.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $501.87 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. The firms quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 17th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 14th. Gracos dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.10%.

In other news, insider Claudio Merengo sold 21,793 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.32, for a total transaction of $1,750,413.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,468,731.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director J Kevin Gilligan sold 16,320 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.88, for a total value of $1,303,641.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,394,864.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Claudio Merengo sold 21,793 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.32, for a total transaction of $1,750,413.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,286 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,468,731.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,943 shares of company stock worth $3,433,404 in the last ninety days. 2.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graco

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Silicon Valley Capital Partners acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Graco during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Graco by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 421 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of Graco by 2,034.8% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 491 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its position in shares of Graco by 569.7% during the 4th quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 509 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. 85.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graco, Inc is a manufacturing company, which engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of systems and equipment used to move, measure, control, dispense, and spray fluid and powder materials. It operates through the following segments: Industrial, Process, and Contractor. The Industrial segment markets equipment and pre-engineered packages for moving and applying paints, coatings, sealants, adhesives, and other fluids.

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abrdn plc boosted its stake in shares of The Bank of New York Mellon Co. (NYSE:BK  Get Rating) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 797,703 shares of the banks stock after buying an additional 54,731 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.10% of Bank of New York Mellon worth $36,311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in Bank of New York Mellon by 0.5% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 436,802 shares of the banks stock valued at $16,826,000 after acquiring an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,000. Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of New York Mellon in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,962,000. Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its stake in Bank of New York Mellon by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 98,444 shares of the banks stock worth $4,481,000 after purchasing an additional 4,538 shares during the period. Finally, Wrapmanager Inc. bought a new position in Bank of New York Mellon in the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,000. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the companys stock.

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Bank of New York Mellon Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE BK opened at $40.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $32.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.07. The Bank of New York Mellon Co. has a 1 year low of $36.22 and a 1 year high of $52.26. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $43.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.91.

Bank of New York Mellon Dividend Announcement

Bank of New York Mellon ( NYSE:BK Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 18th. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.03. Bank of New York Mellon had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 11.98%. The firm had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.86 earnings per share. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Bank of New York Mellon Co. will post 4.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 28th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 27th. Bank of New York Mellons dividend payout ratio is currently 46.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays decreased their price target on Bank of New York Mellon from $64.00 to $62.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Bank of New York Mellon from $42.00 to $41.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Bank of New York Mellon from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. StockNews.com started coverage on Bank of New York Mellon in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Bank of New York Mellon from $49.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $51.61.

Bank of New York Mellon Profile

(Get Rating)

The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services. It operates through the following segments: Securities Services, Market and Wealth Services, Investment and Wealth Management, and Other segment. The Securities Services segment includes Asset Servicing business, which provides global custody, fund accounting, integrated middle-office solutions, transfer agency and data and analytics solutions.

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abrdn plc lessened its holdings in shares of American Equity Investment Life Holding (NYSE:AEL  Get Rating) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 809,828 shares of the financial services providers stock after selling 4,599 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.94% of American Equity Investment Life worth $36,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. TD Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter worth $608,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 49.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,208 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Phase 2 Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter valued at $7,563,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 135.2% during the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 30,917 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,153,000 after buying an additional 17,771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter valued at $8,401,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.03% of the companys stock.

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Insider Transactions at American Equity Investment Life

In other American Equity Investment Life news, Director Alan David Matula purchased 7,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $35.50 per share, with a total value of $252,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 39,942 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,417,941. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.59% of the companys stock.

American Equity Investment Life Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AEL opened at $38.74 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.05 and a beta of 0.88. American Equity Investment Life Holding has a 12 month low of $28.05 and a 12 month high of $48.37. The firms 50-day moving average is $37.01 and its 200 day moving average is $40.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

American Equity Investment Life (NYSE:AEL  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 9th. The financial services provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $662.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $626.02 million. American Equity Investment Life had a net margin of 25.84% and a return on equity of 12.84%. The firms revenue was up 348.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. Research analysts predict that American Equity Investment Life Holding will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AEL shares. Piper Jaffray Companies cut shares of American Equity Investment Life from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the company from $45.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 21st. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of American Equity Investment Life from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a strong-buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of American Equity Investment Life from $48.00 to $43.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of American Equity Investment Life in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of American Equity Investment Life in a research note on Thursday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $44.90.

About American Equity Investment Life

(Get Rating)

American Equity Investment Life Holding Co engages in the development and sale of fixed index and fixed rate annuity products. It focuses on the following portfolios: commercial mortgage loans, agricultural mortgage loans, and residential mortgage loans. The company was founded by David J. Noble on December 15, 1995 and is headquartered in West Des Moines, IA.

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TransDigm Group (NYSE:TDG  Get Rating) had its price objective lifted by Barclays from $840.00 to $930.00 in a research note issued to investors on Sunday morning, The Fly reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $830.00 to $841.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $800.00 to $900.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $765.00 to $793.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Cowen lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $695.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of TransDigm Group from $750.00 to $820.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $834.71.

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TransDigm Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:TDG opened at $819.92 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $747.55 and a 200 day moving average of $693.29. The company has a market capitalization of $45.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.37. TransDigm Group has a 52 week low of $499.63 and a 52 week high of $826.28.

Insider Transactions at TransDigm Group

TransDigm Group ( NYSE:TDG Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 9th. The aerospace company reported $5.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.98 by $1.00. TransDigm Group had a net margin of 17.57% and a negative return on equity of 34.11%. The company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.29 earnings per share. The firms revenue was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that TransDigm Group will post 20.84 EPS for the current year.

In related news, Director W Nicholas Howley sold 3,250 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $800.76, for a total transaction of $2,602,470.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,254,776.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director W Nicholas Howley sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $800.76, for a total transaction of $2,602,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 21,548 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $17,254,776.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sarah Wynne sold 180 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $720.41, for a total value of $129,673.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 700 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $504,287. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,513 shares of company stock valued at $22,944,820. 7.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of TransDigm Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its holdings in TransDigm Group by 29.1% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 5,932 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $3,113,000 after buying an additional 1,336 shares in the last quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC increased its stake in TransDigm Group by 116.0% in the 4th quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 108 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of TransDigm Group by 148.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 541 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $284,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in shares of TransDigm Group by 2.8% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 23,944 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $12,563,000 after buying an additional 659 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 4.7% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 36,133 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $18,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,635 shares in the last quarter. 96.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

TransDigm Group Company Profile

(Get Rating)

TransDigm Group, Inc engages in the production of engineered aerospace components, systems and subsystems. It operates through the following segments: Power and Control, Airframe, and Non-Aviation. The Power and Control segment includes operations that primarily develop, produce and market systems and components that provide power to or control power of the aircraft utilizing electronic, fluid, power and mechanical motion control technologies.

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JAKARTA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's Merapi volcano erupted on Thursday, releasing lava 24 times to the southwest throughout the day, said the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG).

Located on the border of the provinces of Central Java and Yogyakarta, Mount Merapi is now at the third dangerous level, said Mount Merapi monitoring post officer Yulianto on Thursday.

Authorities have recommended people not to stay within a radius of five km in the southwest and three km in the southeast sectors of the summit, to avoid volcanic ash and ejected material.

The danger zone includes rivers originating from Merapi, on which cold lava flows. 
BrewBilt Brewing (OTCMKTS:BRBL  Get Rating) and Kirin (OTCMKTS:KNBWY  Get Rating) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

0.0% of Kirin shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.0% of BrewBilt Brewing shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

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Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for BrewBilt Brewing and Kirin, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score BrewBilt Brewing 0 0 0 0 N/A Kirin 0 0 1 0 3.00

Profitability

This table compares BrewBilt Brewing and Kirins net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets BrewBilt Brewing N/A N/A -498.93% Kirin 4.96% 7.73% 3.79%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares BrewBilt Brewing and Kirins top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio BrewBilt Brewing $120,000.00 0.00 -$8.55 million N/A N/A Kirin $15.23 billion 0.87 $854.75 million $0.90 17.62

Kirin has higher revenue and earnings than BrewBilt Brewing.

Risk and Volatility

BrewBilt Brewing has a beta of 3.63, meaning that its stock price is 263% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kirin has a beta of 0.38, meaning that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Kirin beats BrewBilt Brewing on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About BrewBilt Brewing

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BrewBilt Brewing Co. engages in the manufacture and sale of audio-video system technologies. Its product portfolio includes protection switches, high definition routers, analog routers, control panels, sound pals, and audio distribution. It offers advanced applications utilized in the commercial and government broadcast industry. The company was founded on November 15, 2006 and is headquartered in Grass Valley, CA.

About Kirin

(Get Rating)

Kirin Holdings Co., Ltd. engages in the manufacture and sale of beverages and pharmaceutical products. It operates through the following segments: Japan Beer and Spirits, Japan Non-Alcoholic Beverages, Oceania Integrated Beverages, Pharmaceuticals, and Other. The Japan Beer and Spirits segment manufactures and sells beer, sparkling wine, Western liquor, and other alcoholic beverages through its subsidiary. The Japan Non-Alcoholic Beverages segment handles the manufacture and sale of soft drinks in Japan through its subsidiary. The Oceania Integrated Beverages segment provides beer, Western liquor, dairy products, and fruit juice drinks in the Oceania region through its subsidiary. The Pharmaceuticals segment deals with prescription drugs through its subsidiary. The Other segment includes domestic wine, Myanmar liquor, North American beverage, and biochemical businesses. The company was founded on February 23, 1907 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

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Briggs Advisory Group Inc. cut its stake in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH  Get Rating) by 17.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,660 shares of the utilities providers stock after selling 1,205 shares during the period. Briggs Advisory Group Inc.s holdings in Black Hills were worth $398,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Black Hills by 1.1% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 13,420 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,034,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of Black Hills by 3.7% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 4,322 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Black Hills by 1.5% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,240 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investment Services LLC increased its position in shares of Black Hills by 4.0% in the third quarter. Horizon Investment Services LLC now owns 4,756 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its position in shares of Black Hills by 2.4% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,429 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 88.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other Black Hills news, CFO Richard Kinzley sold 10,033 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total value of $657,061.17. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 36,576 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,395,362.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Black Hills Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BKH traded down $0.12 on Thursday, hitting $63.21. 40,851 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 455,656. Black Hills Co. has a 52 week low of $58.81 and a 52 week high of $79.78. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.63. The company has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a PE ratio of 16.24, a PEG ratio of 7.80 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.06. Black Hills had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 9.62%. The company had revenue of $921.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $754.70 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. Black Hillss revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Black Hills Co. will post 3.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 18th will be issued a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 17th. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.96%. Black Hillss payout ratio is 64.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sidoti cut shares of Black Hills from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $67.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, February 9th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Black Hills in a research note on Thursday. They issued a hold rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Black Hills from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating and cut their target price for the stock from $81.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Friday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Black Hills from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 9th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Black Hills from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $79.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $67.29.

About Black Hills

(Get Rating)

Black Hills Corp. is a diversified energy company. It operates through the following segments: Electric Utilities, Gas Utilities, and Corporate and Other. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The Gas Utilities segment provides natural gas in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming.

Further Reading

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BKH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH  Get Rating).

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China Minsheng Banking Corp., Ltd. (OTCMKTS:CMAKY  Get Rating) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $4.12 and last traded at $4.12, with a volume of 11 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.12.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded China Minsheng Banking from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday.

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China Minsheng Banking Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.40. The company has a market cap of $18.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.43.

About China Minsheng Banking

China Minsheng Banking Corp., Ltd. provides various financial products and services to individuals, small and micro-enterprises, corporate customers, government agencies, and financial institutions in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through Corporate Banking, Retail Banking, and Others segments.

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Edinburgh Dragon Trust plc (LON:EFM  Get Rating) shares crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of GBX 400.50 ($5.02) and traded as high as GBX 402.36 ($5.04). Edinburgh Dragon Trust shares last traded at GBX 400.50 ($5.02), with a volume of 296,613 shares traded.

Edinburgh Dragon Trust Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of GBX 400.50 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 400.50. The firm has a market capitalization of 513.41 million and a PE ratio of -17.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.76.

Edinburgh Dragon Trust Company Profile

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Edinburgh Dragon Trust plc is an investment trust. The Companys objective is to achieve long-term capital growth through investment in the Far East with the exception of Japan and Australasia. The Companys assets are invested in a diversified portfolio of securities in quoted companies spread across a range of industries and economies in the Asia Pacific region, excluding Japan and Australasia.

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European Metals Holdings Limited (LON:EMH  Get Rating)s share price crossed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of GBX 33.05 ($0.41) and traded as low as GBX 30 ($0.38). European Metals shares last traded at GBX 30.50 ($0.38), with a volume of 76,636 shares traded.

European Metals Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of 65.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,700.00 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 38.97, a quick ratio of 17.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of GBX 32.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of GBX 36.88.

About European Metals

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European Metals Holdings Limited engages in the exploration and development of Cinovec lithium and tin projects in the Czech Republic. The company was formerly known as Equamineral Holdings Limited and changed its name to European Metals Holdings Limited in February 2014. European Metals Holdings Limited was incorporated in 2012 and is based in West Perth, Australia.

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Everest Re Group, Ltd. (NYSE:RE  Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 18th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 31st will be paid a dividend of 1.65 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, June 16th. This represents a $6.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%.

Everest Re Group has increased its dividend by an average of 4.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Everest Re Group has a dividend payout ratio of 11.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Everest Re Group to earn $53.95 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $6.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 12.2%.

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Everest Re Group Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE RE traded up $8.50 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $377.50. 1,568,245 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 316,766. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $14.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.60. Everest Re Group has a 1 year low of $244.57 and a 1 year high of $394.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $364.96 and a 200 day moving average of $352.29.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Everest Re Group ( NYSE:RE Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 1st. The insurance provider reported $11.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $12.48 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.10 billion. Everest Re Group had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 5.34%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $10.31 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Everest Re Group will post 44.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Clear Street Markets LLC raised its position in Everest Re Group by 94.9% during the first quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 76 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in Everest Re Group during the first quarter worth about $44,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Everest Re Group by 581.0% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 143 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Everest Re Group during the first quarter worth about $82,000. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its position in Everest Re Group by 112.6% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 253 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on RE. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Everest Re Group from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Monday, February 13th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Everest Re Group in a research report on Thursday. They set a buy rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Everest Re Group from $435.00 to $445.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Everest Re Group from $455.00 to $468.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Everest Re Group in a research report on Thursday, January 19th. They set a market perform rating and a $380.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $410.60.

Everest Re Group Company Profile

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Everest Re Group Ltd. is a holding company, which engages in the provision of reinsurance and insurance services. It operates through the following segments: Reinsurance, and Insurance. The Reinsurance segment writes property and casualty reinsurance and specialty lines of business, including marine, aviation, surety, and accident and health business, on both a treaty and facultative basis, through reinsurance brokers, as well as directly with ceding companies primarily within the U.S.

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Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO  Get Rating) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.02, Yahoo Finance reports. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 4.75% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.44 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Flowers Foods updated its FY23 guidance to $1.15-1.25 EPS.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

FLO traded up $0.22 on Thursday, reaching $28.84. 1,950,063 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,971,548. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $6.09 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75 and a beta of 0.40. The stocks fifty day moving average price is $27.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.05. Flowers Foods has a twelve month low of $24.15 and a twelve month high of $30.16.

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Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.05%. Flowers Foodss dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Flowers Foods

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. First Manhattan CO. LLC. boosted its stake in Flowers Foods by 1,475.9% during the 1st quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 4,050 shares of the companys stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 3,793 shares during the period. Point72 Middle East FZE acquired a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the 4th quarter worth $132,000. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,702 shares of the companys stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Finally, Atom Investors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the 4th quarter worth $231,000. 66.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a report on Thursday. They set a buy rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Flowers Foods from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 20th.

Flowers Foods Company Profile

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Flowers Foods, Inc engages in the manufacture and sale of bakery products. The firm offers bakery foods for retail and food service customers in the United States. Its brands include Natures Own, Daves Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Tastykake and Mrs. Freshleys. The company was founded by William Howard Flowers, Sr.

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JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust (LON:JPB  Get Rating) crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of GBX 66.50 ($0.83) and traded as high as GBX 66.50 ($0.83). JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust shares last traded at GBX 66.50 ($0.83), with a volume of 31,267 shares traded.

JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust Stock Performance

The businesss 50 day moving average price is GBX 66.50 and its 200 day moving average price is GBX 66.50.

JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust Company Profile

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JPMorgan Brazil Investment Trust plc is a close-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by JPMorgan Funds Limited. It invests in the public equity markets of Brazil. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. It invests in stocks of companies across all market capitalizations.

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Moors & Cabot Inc. trimmed its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP  Get Rating) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,015 shares of the utilities providers stock after selling 2,571 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.s holdings in CenterPoint Energy were worth $1,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinebridge Investments L.P. purchased a new stake in CenterPoint Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 176.7% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 891 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 569 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 137.5% in the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 950 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Affiance Financial LLC purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in CenterPoint Energy during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. 90.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Barry T. Smitherman sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.51, for a total value of $152,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,075 shares in the company, valued at $642,998.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other CenterPoint Energy news, Director Ted Pound sold 2,770 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $84,485.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,541 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,419,500.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Barry T. Smitherman sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.51, for a total value of $152,550.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $642,998.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CenterPoint Energy Price Performance

Several research firms recently commented on CNP. Guggenheim cut CenterPoint Energy from a buy rating to a neutral rating and increased their price target for the company from $31.00 to $32.00 in a report on Monday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on CenterPoint Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Monday, March 6th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, April 14th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Thursday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $32.75.

CenterPoint Energy stock opened at $28.72 on Thursday. The companys 50 day moving average is $29.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.71. The firm has a market cap of $18.12 billion, a PE ratio of 22.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.03 and a 52-week high of $33.50.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 9.97%. The business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.47 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 18th will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 17th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. CenterPoint Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.32%.

About CenterPoint Energy

(Get Rating)

CenterPoint Energy, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the business of power generation and distribution. It operates through the following segments: CenterPoint Energy, Houston Electric, and CERC. The CenterPoint Energy segment consists of electric transmission and distribution services in the Texas gulf coast area in the ERCOT region and electric transmission and distribution services primarily to southwestern Indiana and includes power generation and wholesale power operations in the MISO region.

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MQS Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG  Get Rating) by 95.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,090 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 9,331 shares during the quarter. MQS Management LLCs holdings in Leggett & Platt were worth $615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 23,539 shares of the companys stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 317,079 shares of the companys stock worth $10,533,000 after purchasing an additional 48,318 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 291,862 shares of the companys stock worth $9,406,000 after purchasing an additional 5,178 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 15,118,584 shares of the companys stock worth $502,239,000 after purchasing an additional 301,672 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 90,248 shares of the companys stock worth $2,998,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.42% of the companys stock.

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Leggett & Platt Stock Performance

Shares of LEG traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $32.64. The stock had a trading volume of 136,930 shares, compared to its average volume of 865,791. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 2.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $31.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.34. Leggett & Platt, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $30.05 and a fifty-two week high of $41.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.37 and a beta of 1.30.

Leggett & Platt Increases Dividend

Leggett & Platt ( NYSE:LEG Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 1st. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.19 billion. Leggett & Platt had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 16.83%. The firms revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Leggett & Platt, Incorporated will post 1.61 EPS for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This is a boost from Leggett & Platts previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.64%. Leggett & Platts dividend payout ratio is currently 92.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on LEG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Leggett & Platt from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $39.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 11th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Leggett & Platt in a research note on Thursday. They set a hold rating for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Leggett & Platt from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 8th.

About Leggett & Platt

(Get Rating)

Leggett & Platt, Inc engages in the manufacture and distribution of furniture and engineered components and products among homes, offices, automobiles, and commercial aircraft. It operates through the following segments: Bedding, Flooring, Furniture & Textile, and Specialized Products. The Bedding Products segment supplies products and components for the home, including mattress springs and specialty foam, as well as adjustable beds, bedding machinery, steel rod, and drawn wire.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LEG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG  Get Rating).

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May 18, 2023 The IX Kazan OIC Youth Entrepreneurship International Forum jointly organized by the Eurasian Regional Center of the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF-ERC), Ministry of Youth Affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan (RF), and Youth Social Fund "Selet" of Tatarstan Republic, started its work in Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan, Azernews reports.

At the opening ceremony of the event, Damir Fattakhov, Deputy Head of the Russian Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), Rinat Sadikov, Minister of Youth Affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan, Elchin Asgarov, Chair of the Board of the ICYF-ERC, and Timur Suleymanov, Assistant to the Rais (President) of the Republic of Tatarstan, made a congratulatory speech and expressed their satisfaction with the fact that the Forum has already become traditional, as well as they emphasized the promotion of new startup ideas for the sustainability of this format. Additionally, a positive assessment was given to the contribution of investments in some projects over the years.

Within the framework of the Forum, panel discussions, lectures, interactive seminars and project sessions were held on the topics of Development of young entrepreneurship in Russia and OIC countries: difficulties and ways of its solving, "Youth entrepreneurship within the Islamic world" and "Implementation of innovative startup solutions in the OIC countries with the participation of well-known investors and experts representing different countries.

Partners of the event - Sabah.lab Acceleration Center, Next Step Innovation Center, International Incubation Center and Innoland Incubation and Acceleration Center were presented within the framework of the Forum.

More than 200 applications were sent to participate in this year's Forum, and a jury of experts selected 31 startup projects representing 14 countries (Azerbaijan, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Jordan, Turkiye, USA, Kenya and etc.). Along with the OIC Member States, representatives of non-Member States such as the US, UK, Canada, Russia, Germany, and Georgia are also participating in the Forum with a view of supporting the Muslim communities out of the OIC geography and also creating favorable conditions for exchanging experience and knowledge with the youth beyond the OIC geography.

The "OIC Youth Entrepreneurship Forum" initiative was launched by the ICYF-ERC and aims to eliminate unemployment among young people by creating new jobs in OIC member countries. It should be noted that more than 1000 young businessmen from 50 countries have participated in the Kazan Forum, and the investments allocated to start-up projects exceed 2 million USD.

It is worth adding that Forum, held annually in Kazan within the framework of Russia - Islamic world: Kazan Forum 2023 and attended by 80 participants, is also intended to contribute to the implementation of startup ideas in the field of IT and the establishment of relations between young businessmen working in this field, including cooperation in the field of economy, trade and innovation between the Russian Federation and OIC countries.
NEW DELHI, May 18 (Xinhua) -- At least two people were killed and two others injured Thursday after a blast took place inside a firecracker factory in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, police said.

The blast occurred in Oorampatti-Sivakasi area of Virudhunagar district, about 540 km south of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.

According to the police, the explosion took place when workers were filling combustion chemicals for manufacturing firecrackers.

"The explosion resulted in severe injuries to four individuals. They were immediately taken to the Sivakasi government hospital for treatment, where two succumbed to their injuries," a police official said.

The blast triggered a fire, which was later extinguished by fire fighters and rescue teams.

Police have launched an investigation into the blast.

On Tuesday a similar blast inside a firecracker factory in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal killed nine and injured five others.

Accidental explosions are common at Indian firecracker factories and shops as owners usually ignore safety standards. 
Shares of Petro Matad Limited (LON:MATD  Get Rating) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 3.82 ($0.05) and traded as high as GBX 7 ($0.09). Petro Matad shares last traded at GBX 6.55 ($0.08), with a volume of 2,448,307 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Shore Capital reiterated a house stock rating on shares of Petro Matad in a report on Thursday, March 9th.

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Petro Matad Price Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of GBX 4.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 3.84. The company has a current ratio of 17.93, a quick ratio of 16.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of 69.26 million, a PE ratio of -15.50 and a beta of 2.50.

Petro Matad Company Profile

Petro Matad Limited, together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, and produces oil in Mongolia. It holds 100% interests in production sharing contract blocks, including Ongi Block V that covers an area of approximately 7,937 square kilometers; and Matad Block XX that consists of an area of approximately 218 square kilometers in Mongolia.

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Several analysts have recently updated their ratings and price targets for Southern Copper (NYSE: SCCO):

5/9/2023  Southern Copper was downgraded by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. from a neutral rating to a sell rating. They now have a $66.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $65.00.

5/9/2023  Southern Copper was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating.

5/3/2023  Southern Copper had its price target raised by analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $55.00 to $56.00.

5/1/2023  Southern Copper was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating.

4/21/2023  Southern Copper had its price target raised by analysts at Barclays PLC from $53.00 to $64.00. They now have an equal weight rating on the stock.

3/29/2023  Southern Copper was downgraded by analysts at Morgan Stanley from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating. They now have a $70.00 price target on the stock.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of SCCO stock traded up $1.56 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.00. The companys stock had a trading volume of 910,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,329,579. Southern Copper Co. has a 1-year low of $42.42 and a 1-year high of $82.05. The company has a market cap of $54.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.58, a PEG ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 3.38 and a current ratio of 4.17. The firms 50-day moving average is $75.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.14.

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Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 9th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 8th. Southern Coppers payout ratio is 115.94%.

Insider Transactions at Southern Copper

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 500 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.50, for a total value of $39,250.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,014 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $472,099. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website . In other Southern Copper news, Director Andreve Vicente Ariztegui sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.11, for a total transaction of $114,165.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,400 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $334,884. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink . Also, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.50, for a total transaction of $39,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,014 shares in the company, valued at approximately $472,099. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . In the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,500 shares of company stock valued at $192,900. 0.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Accurate Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Boyd Watterson Asset Management LLC OH acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 7.03% of the companys stock.

Southern Copper Corp. engages in the development, production, and exploration of copper, molybdenum, zinc, and silver. It operates through the following segments: Peruvian Operations, Mexican Open-Pit Operations, and Mexican Underground Mining Operations. The Peruvian Operations segment focuses on the Toquepala and Cuajone mine complexes and the smelting and refining plants, industrial railroad, and port facilities that service both mines.

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StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Skechers U.S.A. (NYSE:SKX  Get Rating) in a report released on Thursday. The brokerage set a buy rating on the textile makers stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Cowen decreased their price target on Skechers U.S.A. from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Skechers U.S.A. from $48.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Skechers U.S.A. from $56.00 to $57.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Wedbush upped their price objective on Skechers U.S.A. from $54.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, April 28th. Finally, Cowen raised Skechers U.S.A. from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and increased their target price for the stock from $48.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Monday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $56.27.

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Skechers U.S.A. Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:SKX opened at $53.83 on Thursday. Skechers U.S.A. has a 52-week low of $31.28 and a 52-week high of $54.77. The company has a market capitalization of $8.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.47 and a beta of 1.32. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $48.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Insider Activity at Skechers U.S.A.

Skechers U.S.A. ( NYSE:SKX Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The textile maker reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Skechers U.S.A. had a net margin of 5.41% and a return on equity of 10.72%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Skechers U.S.A. will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other Skechers U.S.A. news, General Counsel Phillip Paccione sold 11,874 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.16, for a total value of $536,229.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $903,200. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Skechers U.S.A. news, General Counsel Phillip Paccione sold 11,874 shares of Skechers U.S.A. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.16, for a total transaction of $536,229.84. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $903,200. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO John M. Vandemore sold 13,255 shares of Skechers U.S.A. stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.16, for a total transaction of $598,595.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 95,956 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $4,333,372.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 101,805 shares of company stock worth $4,806,675. 24.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Skechers U.S.A. during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fred Alger Management LLC bought a new stake in Skechers U.S.A. during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 122.4% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 585 shares of the textile makers stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 133.6% in the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 785 shares of the textile makers stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 100.7% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 913 shares of the textile makers stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.29% of the companys stock.

About Skechers U.S.A.

(Get Rating)

Skechers U.SA, Inc engages in designing, development, and marketing of lifestyle footwear for men, women, and children of all ages. It operates through the Wholesale and Direct-to-Consumer segment. The Wholesale segment includes department stores, family shoe stores, specialty running, and sporting goods retailers.

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Equities research analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG  Get Rating) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a hold rating on the banks stock.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of SMFG stock opened at $8.50 on Thursday. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group has a 1 year low of $5.39 and a 1 year high of $9.18. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $8.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.67.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMFG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 16.2% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,482,362 shares of the banks stock valued at $55,947,000 after purchasing an additional 1,324,493 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 0.8% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 9,029,365 shares of the banks stock valued at $56,614,000 after acquiring an additional 69,960 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 6.4% during the third quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,069,327 shares of the banks stock worth $38,881,000 after acquiring an additional 424,005 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 13.9% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,355,224 shares of the banks stock worth $50,842,000 after acquiring an additional 774,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 4,169.7% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,154,809 shares of the banks stock valued at $26,051,000 after acquiring an additional 4,057,499 shares during the period. 1.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Company Profile

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc operates as a holding company, which engages in the management of its subsidiaries that provide financial services. It operates through the following segments: Commercial Banking, Leasing, Securities, and Consumer Finance. The Commercial Banking segment consists of consumer banking, middle market banking, wholesale banking, retail banking, international banking, and treasury units.

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Tesco PLC (LON:TSCO  Get Rating) insider Ken Murphy purchased 51 shares of Tesco stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 275 ($3.44) per share, with a total value of 140.25 ($175.69).

Ken Murphy also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Friday, April 14th, Ken Murphy bought 51 shares of Tesco stock. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 267 ($3.34) per share, with a total value of 136.17 ($170.57).

On Friday, March 17th, Ken Murphy bought 55 shares of Tesco stock. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 251 ($3.14) per share, with a total value of 138.05 ($172.93).

Tesco Stock Performance

LON:TSCO opened at GBX 269.30 ($3.37) on Thursday. Tesco PLC has a 1 year low of GBX 194.35 ($2.43) and a 1 year high of GBX 285.30 ($3.57). The firms fifty day simple moving average is GBX 267.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 248.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.29. The firm has a market capitalization of 19.71 billion, a PE ratio of 2,693.00, a PEG ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.64.

Tesco Increases Dividend

Analyst Ratings Changes

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 11th will be paid a GBX 7.05 ($0.09) dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 11th. This is a positive change from Tescos previous dividend of $3.85. This represents a yield of 2.63%. Tescos dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11,000.00%.

Several research analysts have recently commented on TSCO shares. Shore Capital restated a buy rating on shares of Tesco in a research note on Monday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Tesco to a buy rating and increased their price target for the stock from GBX 260 ($3.26) to GBX 310 ($3.88) in a research note on Monday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Tesco from GBX 270 ($3.38) to GBX 290 ($3.63) and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Tesco has an average rating of Buy and a consensus price target of GBX 312 ($3.91).

About Tesco

(Get Rating)

Tesco PLC, together with its subsidiaries, engages in retailing and retail banking activities. It provides food products through approximately 4,752 stores in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary, as well as through online. The company is also involved in the food and drink wholesaling activities.

Further Reading

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ANKARA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that it had summoned the German ambassador in Ankara over what it calls the detention of Turkish reporters in Frankfurt.

The ministry denounced the "harassment and intimidation" against the Turkish reporters who work for the pro-government Daily Sabah's Frankfurt bureau, according to a ministry statement.

The statement said the detention was "a deliberate act" that came in the wake of Turkiye's presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday, expecting the "immediate release" of the reporters.

"Germany's action against the free press, which aims to teach the whole world about the freedom of press and expression, reveals its double-standard approach," it noted.

Daily Sabah reported that its Germany representative Ismail Erel and Editor-in-Chief Cemil Albay were detained on Wednesday morning upon a complaint by a fugitive of the Gulen movement residing in Germany.

The Turkish government accuses the Gulen movement of infiltrating into the state bureaucracy and attempting a coup on July 15, 2016. Ankara has been carrying out a massive crackdown on suspects with links to the movement since the coup attempt. 
by Martina Fuchs

GENEVA, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The outlook of Switzerland's mechanical and electrical engineering sector for doing business in China is "generally very positive in the long term," Martin Hirzel, president of Swissmem, told Xinhua recently.

"Trade between Switzerland and China has been a success story," said Hirzel, who has since 2021 been president of the leading association for the Swiss technology industry.

"Over the last 20 years, we have quadrupled our exports to China. Many of our companies have a presence in China. Not only for sales and services but also assembly, manufacturing, and even research and development," he said.

"We encourage Swiss industrial companies to be present in China, to do business in China," and to contribute to benefit China's economy and society, he emphasized.

Founded in 1883 and headquartered in Zurich, Swissmem currently has over 1,350 member companies.

Since 2010, China has been Switzerland's biggest trading partner in Asia and its third largest globally. The two countries signed a free trade agreement (FTA) that entered into force on July 1, 2014.

"Many Swiss industrial companies have a presence in China. They produce in the market for the market," Hirzel said.

"On average, the China business can make up to one-third of the entire business of a Swiss company, that is important," Hirzel said, adding that "Swiss CEOs know China ... and generally, they're very positive on the long term."

According to statistics released by Swissmem in March, the performance of the Swiss technology industry -- mechanical and electrical engineering and related technology sectors -- has improved last year: sales were up by 9.4 percent year-on-year, exports by 5.6 percent, and new orders received by 2.4 percent.

Hirzel said that the Swiss mechanical and electrical engineering industry is very much an export-oriented sector, which depends on its main markets, such as China.

Hirzel noted that while the trade association counts multinational companies such as ABB, Schindler, and Siemens as its members, Swiss semiconductor companies also play an increasingly crucial role.

"It might be unknown that Switzerland does have a semiconductor industry ... some hundred companies are in that ecosystem, in the fields of photonics, optics, equipment manufacturing," he explained, hoping to boost business ties with China in this field. 
Lese majeste stance could sink Dems PM vote

BANGKOK: The Democrat Party are mulling over whether its members should elect Move Forward Party (MFP) leader Pita Limjaroenrat as prime minister and whether any support should be conditional based on how the lese majeste law is to be handled.

politics

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 18 May 2023, 07:04AM

Pita Limjaroenrat. Photo: Bangkok Post

Chanin Rungsaeng, a former Democrat executive, said party members would have no problem electing Mr Pita as prime minister so long as the MFP promises not to abolish the lese majeste law, reports the Bangkok Post.

In a Facebook post yesterday (May 17), he didnt object to any Democrats supporting the leader of the party that won the most votes to be prime minister.

However, the MFP must give its word not to repeal Section 112 of the Criminal Code - the lese majeste law. He added there must be no amendment to Section 112 that would permit anyone to insult the monarchy. The MFP captured 151 MP seats and was the biggest winner in Sundays election.

Mr Pita is mobilising support from fellow opposition parties, including Pheu Thai, to form a new government with him as prime minister. However, support from the bloc alone will not be enough for him to be made prime minister unless the MFP reaches out to some senators and parties in the current government and obtains their backing.

Some members of the Democrats, a coalition partner in the government camp, have suggested their party vote in favour of Mr Pita to be premier. Mr Chanin suggested there is an advantage to the Democrats and other parties rallying behind Mr Pitas bid for the premiership. It might thwart what he sees as the Senates illegitimate exercise of power to co-elect Mr Pita as prime minister.

Mallika Boonmeetrakul Mahasuk, another former Democrats executive, said she felt the 25 Democrat MPs should be free to decide how they will vote in the Pita bid.

Alongkorn Ponlaboot, acting Democrat deputy leader, said hed ask the party at its meeting next week to unconditionally support Mr Pita for the premiership. The Democrats should do their part to break any impasse that might occur in selecting the new PM, he said. Mr Pita needs at least 376 votes from MPs alone or from the MPs and senators combined to win the prime ministerial nomination.
Many of us take for granted the high quality of living in Waterloo Region; however, there is often reluctance to talk about geographic disparities.

Here at Porchlight, we believe Cambridge residents deserve equitable services compared to the rest of Waterloo Region.

We see how geographic disparities impact our neighbours overall well-being every single day. The mental health challenges our clients face are exacerbated by a lack of access to resources south of the 401.

A recent Wellbeing Waterloo Region report shows these inequities are not theoretical; the level of services, supports, and opportunities in our community is determined by which side of the 401 you live on. The data in this 100-page report shows overall quality of life, sense of well-being and belonging, and access to services in Cambridge measures well behind the rest of Waterloo Region.

While it would be impossible to share all findings in this short space, some of the most stunning results include:

INCOME AND WORK

Despite lower income levels, residents in Cambridge work more hours to make ends meet, with 6.2 per cent working 55 hours or more per week in their main job, and a whopping 28.3 per cent of respondents working 20 or more hours a week in a second job.

This income gap impacts housing, as Cambridge had the highest rate of residents spending more than 50 per cent of their income on housing, leaving more residents in Cambridge at risk of housing precarity and homelessness.

TRUST IN INSTITUTIONS

Cambridge residents had the lowest levels of trust in institutions, which isnt surprising if those institutions are not meeting their needs. Only 39.7 per cent of residents had confidence in our local school system, a full 14.9 per cent lower than residents in Waterloo. Both Cambridge and North Dumfries have the lowest number of residents agreeing that the police can be relied on to be there when you need them.

52 per cent in Cambridge believe that if they need help, this community has many excellent services to meet their needs, more than 12 per cent lower than Kitchener.

MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH

Only 10.9 per cent of Cambridge residents agreed with the statement: I feel local mental health resources are adequate, the lowest result in the Region.

Only 55.7 per cent in Cambridge feel satisfied with their mental health, again the lowest result in the Region.

A residents sense of belonging often indicates levels of community engagement, inclusion, and access to programs and spaces that support their well-being and community integration. Cambridge had the fewest residents reporting a strong sense of belonging to their community, at 54.4 per cent compared to 61.6 per cent Regionally, and more than 10 per cent lower than our Waterloo peers.

RELATED STORIES Women with ADHD deserve better

The key takeaway from this  and other similar reports that similarly point to inequities across Waterloo Region  is that the status quo is not working for Cambridge. This data should spur local leaders into action. Local governments, funders, and service providers should be having meetings and summits about how to correct this imbalance.

And though this data paints a bleak picture of Cambridge, we dont point this out to be critical of our community. At Porchlight we envision a community where emotional and mental health and well-being are prioritized and destigmatized. To move in this direction, we need to have uncomfortable conversations, develop new partnerships, and shift programs and funding to meet the needs in Cambridge. Lets start this important discussion for a more equitable Waterloo Region.

A longer version of this piece with a more detailed breakdown of the Wellbeing in Waterloo Region data is available on the Porchlight website.

Robyn Schwarz is the fundraising, communications and advocacy lead at Porchlight Counselling and Addiction Services, serving Cambridge and North Dumfries.







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CAMBRIDGE  The potential loss of lanes on Hespeler Road to make way for light rail got a chilly reception at Cambridge council Tuesday as politicians discussed a proposed vision document for the Hespeler Road secondary corridor.

The corridor plan, which has not received council approval, will guide development along the proposed Ion light rail transit corridor for the next 30 or so years.

The plans goal is to increase height and density with mixed uses to meet the provincial growth target of a minimum 160 people and jobs per hectare.

A diagram of how the road could look showed one fewer lane in each direction on the major commuter and commercial route.

Mayor Jan Liggett said she had really grave concerns.

Weve got the worst backup in the entire region in this city, Liggett said of Hespeler Road traffic. She said council has no desire to see fewer lanes on Hespeler.

Chief planner Lisa Prime said city staff arent proposing the reduction, but the Region of Waterloo may remove the lanes to make way for light rail trains on Hespeler. Hespeler Road and the proposed LRT are both regional. Land use planning is the citys responsibility.

The details of the transit plans for Ion Stage 2 are being done through the region, Prime said. Whatever comes out of that cross-section for transit in future would get updated into this plan.

Planned future transit and stations at Pinebush Road, Cambridge Centre and Can-Amera Parkway are driving the secondary plan.

If approved at a later meeting, the amendment for the secondary plan would change the land designations along the Hespeler Road to a range of uses, from low-density residential to mixed-use high density; it would include designations for mixed-use office, recreation, cemetery and open space and natural open space.

Proposed residential densities include low density up to four storeys, medium density up to eight storeys and high density up to 20 storeys

The aim is to build 15-minute neighbourhoods that allow residents to live, work and play and access daily amenities within a 15-minute distance walk.

The corridor includes lands on the east and west sides of Hespeler Road between Highway 401 and land south of the Can-Amera Parkway  a total of about 250 hectares (617 acres).

As part of the vision document consultants suggested putting in a new local road connecting Pinebush Road to the Dumfries Conservation Area, along with a multi-use trail.

The plan is expected to come back to council with a staff recommendation in the fall or winter of 2023.

Paige Desmond is a Waterloo Region-based reporter focusing on municipal issues for The Record. Reach her via email: pdesmond@therecord.com

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WOOLWICH  The Township of Woolwich made regional municipal history Tuesday, giving approval to a new bylaw that says residents can use whichever washroom in township facilities fits their gender identity.

Its the first municipal bylaw with explicit wording to that effect, though most of the municipalities in Waterloo Region said residents can use whichever washroom suits them.

The change is part of a larger update of the townships bylaw. It says people can use the washroom that suits their lived gender identity.

The Township of North Dumfries, Region of Waterloo and the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo say the same goes in their facilities.

The townships of Wellesley and Wilmot did not respond to questions on the issue.

Paige Desmond is a Waterloo Region-based reporter focusing on municipal issues for The Record. Reach her via email: pdesmond@therecord.com

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CAMBRIDGE  Police have arrested a man in connection to a fire investigation in Cambridge.

Waterloo Regional Police said the man was arrested in Cambridge on Thursday morning.

On Tuesday evening, emergency crews were called to an Alison Avenue home for a dispute; police believe a man left the home when a fire broke out, and officers were searching the area around Soper Park for him on Wednesday.

A 39-year-old man is facing charges including arson  damage to property, cruelty to animals, assault, two counts of uttering threats to cause death, and two counts of failing to comply with a release order.

The man is expected to appear in court on Friday.

RELATED STORIES Waterloo Region Heavy police presence in Cambridge after house fire on Alison Avenue

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KITCHENER  The silence of the bystanders was one of the most surprising things of all.

Mifrah Abid, who wears a hijab, challenged a woman who spoke racist words inside a DriveTest centre Wednesday.

At one point during the interaction, Abid turned to the other people who were watching. I asked: Is no one going to do anything about this?  she said at a news conference Thursday in a parking lot near the DriveTest Centre.

They just looked at me, she said, even though perhaps 80 per cent of them were also racialized.

Waterloo Regional Police said a woman allegedly made racial slurs at the Ottawa Street North business, which provides drivers licences and tests for the province. When Abid used her phone to record the interaction, the woman grabbed her phone and threw it at her. She then left.

The incident was recorded by another bystander, as well as Abid.

Police have since charged a 27-year-old Waterloo woman with assault, theft under $5,000 and assault with a weapon. She was held for a bail hearing.

Abid works in anti-racism advocacy with the Coalition of Muslim Women of KW. She understands that bystanders to an event like this may not intervene, especially if there are a large number of them.

I was still surprised, she said at a news conference called Thursday to discuss the issue.

That was sad, I think, for me.

Abid said she received many incredibly kind and sympathetic comments when she shared the incident and video on Twitter.

She is the co-ordinator of the Together Against Islamophobia program at the Coalition of Muslim Women of KW. She also hosts a podcast telling stories of Canadian women with immigrant roots.

Abid also praised the police for their response.

When she called to report the incident, she asked police not to come to her Kitchener neighbourhood in uniform with flashing lights on their cruisers, because of concerns her children would feel stigmatized. I didnt want my kids to go through that, she said.

Police did as she asked, and arrived in plain clothes and unmarked cruisers.

I truly appreciate the police taking these steps, she said.

She urged others who have been victims of racist abuse to report those incidents.

Also at Thursdays news conference was Fatema Abdalla, communications and advocacy officer for the National Council of Canadian Muslims.

It is deeply saddening to express just how appalled we are, she said, noting that visibly Muslim women continue to be targets for hate.

This cannot be the Canada that we live in, she said.

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ATHENS, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The latest opinion polls indicate that over 10 percent of eligible Greek voters remain undecided ahead of the May 21 general elections.

Dimitris Mavros, managing director at research firm MRB Hellas, told national radio ERT that he could not recall such a high percentage of undecided voters only days before the elections since 1986.

In a recent MRB poll, 63.9 percent of the undecided respondents said they would likely abstain, 50.8 percent said they felt disappointed and 44.4 percent said they were angry at the political system.

High cost of living (37.9 percent), healthcare system (33.3 percent), lack of transparency (18.9 percent) and high unemployment rate (16.1 percent) are their biggest concerns.

Georgia, a pensioner, is a disappointed, undecided voter. "We will vote, but at the end of the day, no one has convinced us," she told Xinhua.

Greek political parties are vying for their support as the undecided voters may have a decisive say.

In its bid to reach out to the undecided, the government is promoting a positive narrative of what it has achieved so far and what it aims to do over the next four years if re-elected, a government source told the daily Kathimerini.

While the ruling party focuses on the economy, the SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance, which also targets the undecided from the center, has been emphasizing their plans to improve the governance of the state.

Pollsters predict a tight election because under the country's electoral system it will be difficult for any party to secure parliamentary majority on Sunday and the first ballot may turn out to be inconclusive.

If required, a second round will be held in early July at the latest, the government has said. 
WATERLOO REGION  Waterloo Region is stronger together and should not be broken up into pieces like Peel Region, says regional Chair Karen Redman.

I do not want to be split up like Peel Region, Redman said in an interview hours after Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark tabled legislation Thursday that will break up the Region of Peel and restructure the cities of Mississauga and Brampton and the Town of Caledon into separate municipalities.

Ive heard from our residents and businesses who are concerned that we would be split like Peel. And our communities, our cities, our towns, our villages weve always been stronger together, Redman said in an interview.

Last month when Ford was in Kitchener he said a facilitator was coming to the region shortly.

I also believe in speaking to the local mayors, getting their input on it. So its absolutely critical we all sit down and come up with a strong plan moving forward as we see this region grow, Ford said at the time.

On Thursday, Clark said the province will name regional facilitators in the near future to assess Waterloo Region, along with Durham, Halton, Niagara, Simcoe and York.

These facilitators will be tasked with reviewing whether the upper-tier government continues to be relevant to the needs of its communities or whether the lower-tier municipalities are mature enough to pursue dissolution, a release from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing said.

Redman said she is prepared to work collaboratively with the province and the facilitator that it appoints to review local government.

Premier Doug Ford pushed to split Peel Region  announcing its dissolution by 2025  saying the current Peel Region needs three governments that can speed up housing development.

Waterloo Mayor Dorothy McCabe said local governments need clarity sooner rather than later on timelines, terms of reference and next steps when it comes to a regional review.

Its important for the province not to take a cookie-cutter approach. Peel Region is much different than Waterloo Region, which is much different than Niagara Region, and Halton and Durham as well  she said in an interview.

The province has said it needs to build 1.5 million homes by 2031, with a target of 150,000 homes a year. If regional review is about building more homes, Waterloo is actively building more housing to meet the critical needs, McCabe said.

We are all hands on deck in terms of the desire to see more homes built. Theres no question there. We are working diligently to meet those targeted housing pledges, she said.

Having a review of local government will mark a second time that the province attempts municipal reform.

In 2019, Clark solicited public input, canvassed councils and hired two expert advisers  former regional chair Ken Seiling and former deputy municipal affairs minister Michael Fenn to examine how to make local government more effective in the region, whether through reform or amalgamation.

Waterloo Region is made up of three cities, four townships and one regional government.

RELATED STORIES Waterloo Region Premier Doug Ford says reforming local government still on his radar in Waterloo Region

After spending $127,000 on the 2019 effort, Clark made no changes, buried expert recommendations and brushed off calls to release the expert report.

Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic said he believes the provincial government is focused on local government and local autonomy to allow municipalities to build homes and grow their economies.

They have a strong belief that municipal government is the order of government that impacts peoples day-to-day lives the most. Thats the order of government thats closest to the people, he said.

Regional review does not mean amalgamation, Vrbanovic said.

Nobodys talking about amalgamation, he said. I have not heard that as a dominant theme from the provincial government; if anything, quite the opposite.

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Strategic importance of India-Bangladesh power transmission corridor

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Bangladesh will likely allow India to set up a 116-200 kilometer power transmission corridor connecting Indias northeastern states, also known as the seven sisters. In return, India may allow Bangladesh to import power from Nepal and Bhutan using its transmission line, which has been under negotiation for years.

Technical data from the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) indicates that the capacity of the Bharamara-Baharampur transmission line is expected to increase from 2,400 MW to 3,200 MW soon. But Bangladesh imports 900-940 MW of electricity from Indias Baharampur to Bheramara. Considering the unutilized 2,040 MW grid line between Bangladesh and India, the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) proposed finalizing the existing grid to supply imported electricity from the GUKUL project in Nepal last year. In response, Indian NVVN stated that an agreement for additional power supply to Bangladesh using the Indian grid line could only be signed after finalizing the new transmission corridor between the two countries. According to Indias Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Indian authority can make cross-border trade where India is involved. There is a specific provision of a tripartite agreement that allows the Indian authority to sign the framework of bilateral agreements between the government of India and the governments of the respective neighboring countries. In other words, Bangladesh and Nepal must sign bilateral agreements for cross-border electricity trade with India.

Bangladesh permitted the 21st Joint Steering Committees meeting with India on power sector cooperation. At the meeting, it was agreed that a tripartite power purchase agreement (PPA) would be concluded soon between Nepal, India, and Bangladesh to facilitate the transfer of 500MW of cross-border electricity from Nepals 900MW Upper Karnali hydropower project. The Joint Steering Committee also discussed implementing a hydropower project in Bhutan through a tripartite investment between Bangladesh, Bhutan, and India. Nepal has an estimated hydropower potential of around 80,000MW, but the country can only produce around 2,000MW. Since 2019, Nepal has been exporting power to India at six Indian rupees per unit. Bangladesh imports 1,160MW of power from India through the Baharampur-Bheramara and Tripura-Cumilla cross-border grid lines. Bangladesh aims to increase the share of imported electricity in its energy mix up to 40% by 2041 when the total generation capacity will reach 60,000MW.

The main reason behind establishing the power transmission lines

The northeastern region is Indias main hub for increasing its renewable energy capacity. India needs to tap the unexplored natural resources of its Northeast. This region has a potential of 33,100 MW of hydropower. Still, it is untapped because of the low electricity demand, while the absence of a power grid hinders the supply of excess electricity to its western parts. Electricity transmission from northeastern India to western parts of India requires a corridor through Bangladesh due to geo-political boundaries.

India and Bangladesh want to substantially increase their share of renewable energy in the upcoming years. The Indian government has set an ambitious plan to generate 500GW from non-fossil energy-based sources by 2030, meeting 50 percent of energy requirements from renewables.

Likewise, Bangladesh wants to increase the share of renewable energy in the countrys power mix to around 40 percent by 2050 from less than three percent now.

Bangladesh has the potential to offer multiple electricity corridors for transmission. Arunachal Pradesh alone has a 50,000 MW of hydroelectricity potential. According to Indian North Eastern Electric Power Cooperation, the Indian North Eastern Region has the potential of about 58,971 MW of power, almost 40 percent of Indias total hydropower potential. India plans to explore all hydropower potentials in Arunachal Pradesh and other northeastern states. India has a total potential of 145,320 MW hydropower, but only 45,399.22 MW of the quantum was being tapped. But India needs to spend a huge amount of money to transmit hydropower from Indias northeastern to northwestern region. But the geographical barrier has constrained India from untapping its potential. Eighteen projects above the capacity of 25 MW were now under construction across Northeast in 2019.

This is why India wants to build power transmission lines for using the power corridor of Bangladesh to reduce the cost. In 2021, Bangladesh showed interest in the power corridor and expected to get 20 to 25 percent of the hydropower to be transmitted through the high-voltage gridline passing through its territory. The transmission line with the capacity of 6,000MW in Bangladesh land maybe 100km in length if it is built in Boropukuria and 200km if it is installed in Jamalpur, while a substation would be built in each route. Two possible routes of the transmission line are  from Asams Bonga through Baropukuria (Dinajpur) or Jamalpur to Bihars Punia and from Asams Silchar via Meghna Ghat-Bheramara to West Bengal. There can be such high-capacity interconnectors in Tripura-Comilla, Bongaigaon (Assam)-Jamalpur/Dinajpur-Purnea (Bihar), Silchar (Assam), and Fenchuganj.

A win-win for both

This deal will be fruitful only if India finally allows a power corridor to Bangladesh to import electricity from Nepal. Along with getting the corridor, Bangladesh needs to ensure that it gets a fair share of electricity from India in return of establishing those transmission lines. Because,India can achieve its untapped opportunities of hydropower from the northeastern region by establishing power transmission lines over Bangladesh, both Bangladesh and India should come forward to enhance their energy security based on reciprocity and enhance South Asian regional cooperation.
Solidarity March of May 3 : ST for Meiteis demand not the real issueIndustrious Students Association, Kongpal Lai-Hiden

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On 3rd May instant Solidarity Rally under the banner of ATSUM (All Tribal Students Union Manipur-a hill based students body) was organized by Kuki Community at Churachandpur District, located near the border with Mayanmar where proper boundary fencing is yet to take place, branding and portraying the rally against the proposed demand/restoration of the tribal status of Meetei/Meitei and inclusion in the ST list of India resulting in a grisly clash--most horrific violence ever witnessed in Manipur and it will be remembered as the Darkest History in Manipur.

The solidarity march suddenly turned ugly and violent with rampant shooting using sophisticated weapons on the streets of Churachandpur. More astonishingly and condemnably, well-armed Kuki militant cadres who are mostly illegal immigrants from Myanmar also directly took part in the highly tense & volatile imbroglio as evident from different social media which went viral finally leading to suspension of Internet service across the State. Not much later after the rally in the afternoon, the Kuki agitators openly backed by the armed militants swooped down at Torbung (a nearby Meitei Village) resulting in large scale burning of homes, indiscriminate killing of innocent Meitei civilians, coupled with despicable looting etc. and other condemnable barbaric acts, never experienced before, which are better to be kept shrouded in the cloak for time being.

Here, it would be undeniable fact that the attack was a well-coordinated-plan and a direct challenge to Meitei community in the form of ethnic cleansing. The clash looks like a manifestation of deeply rooted hatred between two communities.

The sad part is that the present violent clash occurred at a time when the state Govt led by Shri N Biren Singh, Honble Chief Minister has been gradually going through the path of peace and restoring normalcy after so much of bandhs and blockades in the past, because of his hectic and tireless effort on bringing emotional integration by devising many efficacious and logistic mechanisms pragmatically even by holding Cabinet meetings in different hill districts (phase-wise) and Go-to-Hills, Meeyamgi Numit (Peoples Day), to cite a few among others, sharing the grievances being faced by the hill people in particular.

Escalating its impact, the indiscriminate attack spread like wild-fire over to Moreh town, located at the border of Myanmar reducing the dwelling houses and business establishments of Meitei community to cinders and even more heart-shattering was the complete razing down of Hindu/Meetei temples to the ground beyond recognition, which are deeply associated with tradition and culture of the indigenous Meitei Tribes.

As the power of solace/restraint of Meitei went beyond the threshold and by the compelling circumstances, Meitei resorted to retaliatory counter defensive and offensive move (action---reaction syndrome) with arson and vandalism in the limited Meetei dominated valley area bringing in its subsequent imposition of curfew with promulgation of Article 355 of Constitution.

Meitei/Meetei Tribe of Manipur has been demanding restoration of Tribe status which was in existence before the Manipur nerged with the Indian Union in the year 1949. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India vide letter No. 1902005/2012-C&IM on 29th May, 2013 intimated to the State Government of Manipur to send the recommendation, in question. For 10 (ten) long years, the Govt. of Manipur slept on the message from the Centre. Due to the prolonged pendency on the part of Govt. for about one decade, Meetei Tribe Union (MTU), one of the leading organizations demanding inclusion of Meetei/Meitei in ST list, filed a lawsuit in the Honble High Court of Manipur Vide W.P.C No. 229 and Honble High Court of Manipur subsequently, passed an Order/Judgment on 27-03-2023 directing the State Government of Manipur to cause recommendation of the Meitei community to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India within 4 (four) weeks time along with the mandatory Socio-Economic Survey and the Ethnographic reports. However, the Honble High Court, Manipur after due consideration of the present unfortunate situation, caused to effect certain modification in its earlier judgment that the same be recommended within one year.

Afterwards, the communities already in the ST tag in certain Hill Districts illogically resorted to hue and cry expressing their anguish/angst over the High Court judgment and devised to organize the Solidarity Rally against the inclusion of Meitei/Meetei community in the Scheduled Tribe list with contemptuous intent over the High Court directive. Moreover, the Hill Areas Committee, Manipur Legislative Assembly caused to issue a letter to the Honble Chief Minister of Manipur with the intention of urging the State Govt. to appeal to a competent Court against the High Court verdict of 27-03-2023. The gravity of the clash/mayhem was so tense reaching its peak in Churachandpur (Epicentre of the infamous incident) spreading to Moreh, Kangpokpi whilst the other hill districts didnt witnessexcept organising the Rally democratically in a very few and limited districts.

Notably, the un armed Meitei desperately ran away and took shelter in safe locations in the nearby AR Post in CCpur, Moreh and shelter/relief camps opened at Moirang Lamkhai, Bishnupur district and AR post at Kondong Lairembi near Moreh, to site a few while others fled to safer sites and many of whom are still untraceable.

Persons approximately estimated to be around 500 also took asylum/shelter to Namphalong in Myanmar. Some Meitei apart from this, took asylum at Waiton/Khundrakpam area of Imphal East district.

It should be clear to all that the main cause of the current turmoil/mayhem/panicky situation which led to avoidable hatred and highly condemnable communal clash between the two communities are due to:

1) Withdrawal of Suspension of Operation by the State Govt. of Manipur from the Tripartite Agreement among Govt. of India, State Govt. and Kuki Militants very recently.

2) Mass-destruction of poppy plantation/Cultivation in the Kuki dominated including reserved/protected forest by the State Govt under 0.2 War on Drugs Policy as a pivotal part to make defunct the Narco-terrorism/Drug mafia- militant- nexus and Kuki illegal immigrants involved in the infamous Scheme/Syndicate.

3) Eviction of all houses/structures illegally built/constructed in the Reserved and Protected Forest Area.

4) State Governments decision on implementation of National Register of Citizens in line with the Gols pattern.

5) The recent remarks commented at Imphal by Shri Bhupender Yadav, Honble Union Minister of Forest & Environment that the State Govt. of Manipur is fully responsible to protect the reserved and protected forest areas of Manipur, was akin to adding salt to the wounds.

6) Govts initiative on destruction of disputable gates constructed/erected at the cynosure/public-attention-drawn sites depicting and engraving Anglo-Kuki War Memorial 1917-1919 based on unfounded and fabricated history.

7) Govts initiative on devising of Face-recognizable Machine/Equipment associated with detection of malpractices on preparation of fake Aadhaar Cards.

8) Govts initiative on Border-Wall-Fencing.
The city will explore a voluntary registry for Hamilton residents  and councillors  who want to host people who are homeless.

Im trying to find compassionate solutions for folks, Coun. Matt Francis said after a long discussion about encampments Wednesday at city hall. Im not suggesting this is going to solve the problem.

But it could add another tool in our tool belt. Thats as simple as that.

Francis gained support for his motion, seconded by Coun. Tammy Hwang, on a 10-3 vote that directs staff to report back on the idea.

Theyre to examine the feasibility, financial impacts and potential liability of a registry for advocates, members of council and residents to host someone whos homeless as identified by housing support staff.

Such a registry offers a practical and cost-effective approach to expanding available housing options for people who are homeless, the motion reads.

The idea draws inspiration from a program in Oshawa that involves faith groups and social-service agencies, Hwang noted. I think theres an opportunity for us to look at innovative models.

But some city politicians expressed concerns that a registry could put people at risk, notably women, gender-diverse and Indigenous people who are homeless.

Im very cautious about putting those individuals in a place of harm without knowing what would be on the registry and how that matching would be done, Coun. Maureen Wilson said.

Franciss proposal is rooted in the spirit of community love, Coun. Brad Clark said. Lets look after our brothers and sisters.

But he noted trepidation over potentially matching hosts who have no professional expertise with people who have severe mental-health and addiction issues.

Some of the folks that are living in encampments, even our own staff, have some very serious challenges dealing with, and we want to make sure that we dont put either party at risk.

Francis agreed safety concerns are incredibly important but emphasized the motion calls for a staff report to probe such questions.

Coun. Cameron Kroetsch, however, argued the proposal is tokenizing the serious issue of homelessness and suggests individuals can solve it. I dont think thats possible.

Moreover, it conjures up previous remarks by former councillor Terry Whitehead about driving encampment residents to peoples houses to host them, Kroetsch added.

It sends the wrong message. It could send a message that I dont think youre intending to send, he told Francis.

City manager Janette Smith said staff couldnt commit to reporting back on the registry by a specific date due to their existing workload.

Earlier Wednesday, council told staff to seek public feedback on an encampment protocol that would allow for up to five tents pitched in clusters but with a series of restrictions.

As well, theyre to study and report back on how sanctioned encampments could operate.

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Years ago, Imam Abd Alfatah Twakkal got a call at the London Muslim Mosque from a man who was anti-Islam.

He posed several questions to me, Twakkal recalled at a hate crime symposium hosted by Hamilton police Wednesday. Is it true that Muslims believe X, Y and Z? That Islam teaches to kill if those who dont believe in Islam?

Twakkal responded with his own set of questions.

Have you ever been to a mosque? Have you ever met a Muslim? he asked the man. Lets have conversation. Come see me.

So, the man, a self-professed internet troll, visited Twakkal at the mosque. The pair spoke for an hour; Twakkal taught him about the misconceptions surrounding Islam.

At the end of it, he says, I had it all wrong in my head, Twakkal remembered. It was a complete 180 about-face, and he became a person who would stick up for the Muslim community.

These types of interactions are one of many small, but effective steps to stemming the rising tide of hate in Canadian communities, Twakkal said at the symposium, the first such event Hamilton police have hosted.

Being engaged with others and able to reach out and educate, these are active things we can do. We have to take steps that are concrete and will have an impact.

Twakkal was one of about a dozen people to speak at the daylong symposium, which featured talks about the nuances and challenges of hate-crime investigations, the laws around them, the ways they impact the broader community and how to best pinpoint trends.

It comes about a month after a report showed there were 174 incidents of hate reported to Hamilton police last year, an uptick of about 61 per cent compared to 2021 that one advocate said follows a disturbing trend.

The number speaks to the importance of coming together and talking about different solutions, said Det. Fabiano Mendes of the hate-crime unit, noting last years increase is reflective of both heightened reporting and a growing pattern of polarization.

I takes all of us to build wraparound solutions to address hate in our city.

Among those solutions are understanding the drivers behind hate incidents, what motivates perpetrators and why extremist ideologies continue to grow.

Collectively, these lead to greater awareness about hate in communities and heighten reporting of incidents. For Twakkal, they also might help prevent tragic events, like the four members of a Muslim family who were run down in London, Ont., and killed in 2021.

Hate incidents dont happen out of the vacuum, said the Imam. If there are more ways to be able to track these types of things and where theyre taking place, flags can be alerted and police can take action. Otherwise, they can lead up to worst-case scenarios.

While most of the hate incidents reported to Hamilton last year were random and believed to be committed by individuals and not by organized groups, its important to look beyond the incidents themselves, said Barbara Perry, director of the Centre on Hate, Bias and Extremism.

Perry pointed to the perpetrator of the hate crime in London. He acted alone, she said, but he was materialized by what he saw online.

Theyre not lone actors; theyre network individuals, she said at the symposium, alluding to how chat rooms and social-media groups radicalize people.

Things like social media, chat rooms and even gaming platforms have normalized extremist ideals, Perry added, noting 80 per cent of Canadian youth report seeing hate online. It underscored a need to strengthen regulations around digital hate speech.

The online space has contributed greatly that normalization or greater acceptance of hate speech and actions because people feel anonymous.

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Kaley Horton was on her way to work after dropping her daughter off at school when she saw a man rooting through a garbage can near her restaurant in downtown Simcoe.

Horton watched as the man pulled out a plastic container and examined the remnants of a roasted chicken, seeming to decide after a few moments that it looked good enough to eat.

She stopped the car.

I said, Walk in the front door of my restaurant, Im going to feed you, Horton recalled.

He said, Im sorry you saw me do that. And I said, If youre hungry, come and see me.

Soon the man was on his way with a cup of hot coffee, an omelette and toast.

It was that encounter one morning last November that inspired Horton to create the Kaleys Pay it Forward program. The premise is simple: on a bulletin board just inside the front doors of Kaleys Restaurant on Robinson Street are coupons that can be redeemed for a free drink, two-egg breakfast or soup-and-sandwich lunch.

Im not making a million dollars in this business, but I also dont want to ever see anybody hungry, Horton said.

Kaley Horton stands by the bulletin board inside the front door of Kaley's Restaurant in downtown Simcoe, where patrons can help themselves to a coupon to be redeemed for a donated meal through the restaurant's pay-it-forward program. J.P. Antonacci/The Hamilton Spectator

The program is entirely dependant on community contributions and Kaleys customers and the general public have responded enthusiastically, with more than $3,000 in donations collected since the launch in February.

We have some people wholl come in for lunch and double their bill, and donate it to the program, Horton said, adding that patrons often round up their total and contribute the difference.

Donations can be made in any amount and are converted into coupons worth $2, $5 and $10.

Grateful residents started to redeem those coupons as word of the program spread around town, including at a nearby methadone clinic, the Salvation Army and the local Ontario Disability Support Program office.

Those are people that are definitely in need, Horton said, adding she and her staff have seen quite an increase in usage in recent months as more residents feel the financial pinch.

At first, most people took their donated meals to go, Horton said. But more are opting to dine in.

Unfortunately, a lot of people who are down and out dont want to be seen, she said.

But we wanted them to feel comfortable enough that they could come in and sit beside somebody who might have a million-dollar bank account.

The free meal program is similar to the long-running button jar at 541 Eatery and Exchange in Hamilton.

Since 2014, the not-for-profit restaurant on Barton Street East has served residents in need who pay using buttons  each worth a dollar  donated by other patrons.

The focus is on kindness and showing no judgment when people come in, Horton said.

The program is certainly not just for the homeless or unfortunate. Its for anybody.

That includes people who forgot their wallet, kids on their way to school who didnt pack a lunch, or seniors who are trying to make ends meet and are in need of a hot meal.

This is facilitated by us, but it is possible because of the community, Horton said.

J.P. Antonacci s reporting on Haldimand and Norfolk is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. jpantonacci@thespec.com

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Security is heightened at Hamilton city hall after an angry visitor allegedly leaped over a service counter and threatened staff.

He got quite violent with staff and threatening, city manager Janette Smith said.

The episode played out on the main floor by the business service area last Friday.

Its quite wide open and he jumped over the counter, Smith said.

Staff, who werent injured, left the area. Security guards and police responded, she said.

Some staff have since been working on the seventh floor, Smith said.

And so we just have some extra security to ensure staff are safe.

The man was swinging around a metal post that was part of a velvet rope barrier used for blocking off a large art piece, police spokesperson Jackie Penman said.

He smashed the post against the wall leaving marks on the wall and denting the post.

Smith said an ornate Italian cart on display in the lobby was damaged.

She didnt know what sparked the angry outburst but noted the man had been to city hall before. And it just escalated.

There were a few underlying factors, said Carlyle Khan, general manager of public works.

Now he understands theres consequences and hopefully stays away.

Police arrested a 50-year-old man and charged him with mischief under $5,000. He was also issued three tickets under the Trespass to Property Act, Penman noted.

Changes are in order for the service counters as part of an overall city hall security revamp that includes bollards that are to be installed on the forecourt, Smith said.

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The private equity firm behind the revitalization and redevelopment of Stelcos Hamilton lands that would open part of it to the public for the first time in a century says the project will likely take a decade to complete.

Slate Asset Management purchased the approximately 800-acre parcel of industrial land once dedicated to steelmaking last June in a $518-million deal, laying out their plans to transform it into a modern commercial district.

On Tuesday, the firm announced the new name and initial vision for the massive swath of land at 386 Wilcox St. by the harbour, which will now be known as Steelport.

Blair Welch, a founding partner in Slate, told The Spectator the name is a nod to the sites history in steelmaking on the Great Lakes as well as the future of the space.

It was pretty important for the region and the country, said Blair, noting that the land has gone underutilized for several decades. We hope it gets people thinking about the site in a different way.

A timeline for the completion of the project has not been released, however, Blair noted that the redevelopment of the site will be done in phases, including demolition, remediation and construction of new infrastructure such as roads.

Its a massive site, said Blair, describing it as a large investment that will likely take a decade to redevelop.

Slate Asset Management has released new renderings of their plans to redevelop Stelco's Hamilton lands, which they acquired last June. Slate Asset Management

According to a press release, by the time the redevelopment is completed, the site will be home to one of Canadas largest, most state-of-the-art intermodal industrial hubs.

The firm has not yet submitted a formal site plan to the city, but intends to do so in the coming months. But the intention for the lands has not changed from those unveiled last spring, and the primary focus of the site will be employment.

Brady Welch, a founding partner in Slate, said the planned industrial park is positioned for a wide variety of uses as it has three kilometres of deep-water port access and is close to both nearby rail lines, highways and a handful of international airports.

The lands, which verge on Lake Ontario, are also zoned for up to 12 million square feet (or 275 acres) of industrial buildings on the property, according to the company.

Brady said it could be ideal for light-industrial companies that deal in areas such as logistics, manufacturing and distribution as well as the potential for renewable energy.

A study from Ernst and Young last year found the project could create up to 23,000 new jobs and inject $3.8 billion into Ontarios economy.

Stelco will continue to have a presence on the lands, with the steelmaker already signed on for a long-term sale-leaseback of 75 acres of land and two million square feet of buildings for 35 years, with renewal options for five further 20-year terms.

Some organizations have already expressed an interest in leasing parts of the industrial park, noted Blair.

One portion of the project revealed Tuesday includes plans to open up a portion of the lands to the public for the first time in more than a century, noted Blair.

As of now, the master plan for the project includes an extensive trail network through a storm water lagoon park, a waterfront promenade and a park. Retail and cultural elements are also planned for a two-kilometre loop through the site.

People will be able to see the city from a different perspective, said Blair. Were excited.

The site will be accessible through road and trail networks that are set to be integrated into the citys existing infrastructure  which will include bus stops and bike share hubs.

Over the last year, the biggest change on the property has been the landscape of the site, which has changed as long-standing buildings have been demolished.

In an email to The Spectator, the City of Hamilton confirmed that 110 demolition permits have been issued for buildings on the site since 2020, with six applications still under review.

Sixty-five of the issued permits have been closed, meaning those buildings have been torn down, according to the city.

As for what residents can expect to see in the coming months, Slate spokesperson Karolina Kmiecik told The Spectator that demolition and clearing of the site is expected to continue as the company also conducts on-site studies as part of the remediation process.

Kmiecik said Slate will be meeting with city planning staff in the coming weeks, after which they plan to submit their development application. The company is aiming to have shovels in the ground for the first phase of the development sometime next year.

UPDATE: Slate Asset Management contacted The Spectator after publication to clarify that they meant to say the project will take a decade to complete instead of decades. The article was updated May 18 to reflect that.

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NEW YORK, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Native Americans required Dartmouth College to be held accountable after the Ivy League school in the U.S. state of New Hampshire had identified partial skeletal remains of 15 Native Americans in its collections, according to a recent report of The Associated Press (AP).

The remains were used to teach a class in the college as recently as last year, until an audit concluded they had been wrongly catalogued as not Native, the report said.

"Native Americans have a history of injustices in this country starting from it's founding all the way to the present," Shawn Attakai, co-president of the Native American Alumni Association of Dartmouth, was quoted by the report as saying.

More than three decades later, some 884,000 Native American artifacts -- including nearly 102,000 human remains -- are still held by colleges, museums and other institutions in the United States, according to data collected by the National Park Service.

The University of California, Berkeley tops the list of institutions still holding Native American artifacts, according to data, followed by the Ohio History Connection, and Harvard University's Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. 
WASHINGTON - Michigan joined the Line 5 legal fray unfolding just across state lines Wednesday as lawyers for Enbridge Inc. and an Indigenous band prepared to square off over whether the controversial cross-border pipeline should be shut down.

The stage is set for oral arguments Thursday in the Wisconsin capital of Madison as a federal judge contemplates whether to order the taps turned off and the pipelines contents purged to forestall a watershed-fouling rupture.

That hearing will now also include lawyers fighting a similar legal battle with Enbridge in Michigan, where Attorney General Dana Nessel has so far been thwarted in her three-year campaign to seal off Line 5 for good.

The Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa, through whose northern Wisconsin territory the line runs, has filed a motion arguing that spring flooding along the riverbanks has rendered the risk of a breach too great to ignore.

Nonsense, Enbridge argues back in an opposition brief that takes direct aim at the bands claims of a looming environmental emergency, as well as the drastic remedy its lawyers are requesting.

Despite having to prove both liability and grounds for an injunction, the band has done neither. The motion must therefore be denied, the brief reads, describing their argument as alarmist and counterfactual speculation.

No release of oil is ready to take place, happening soon, or real and immediate.

The 50-page filing includes among its exhibits an email exchange between Enbridge and the bands natural resources officials to support its argument that the band has been unwilling to allow the company to do any remedial work.

This court should contrast the evidence before it of Enbridges persistent efforts and overtures to reach a solution  with the bands refusal to meaningfully engage or act.

Even if the risk was high, shutting down the pipeline would not be the appropriate remedy, Enbridge says, pointing to a court-ordered contingency plan that spells out the steps it would take if the threat were indeed urgent.

Enbridge will pre-emptively purge and shut down the line well in advance of any potential rupture, the brief says, adding that the area remains under constant 24-hour video surveillance.

Any flooding and erosion has not, and would not, catch Enbridge by surprise.

Heavy flooding that began in early April washed away significant portions of the riverbank where Line 5 intersects the Bad River, a meandering, 120-kilometre course that feeds Lake Superior and a complex network of ecologically delicate wetlands.

The band has been in court with Enbridge since 2019 in an effort to compel the pipelines owner and operator to reroute Line 5 around its traditional territory  something the company has already agreed to do.

But the flooding has turned a theoretical risk into a very real one, the band argues, and it wants the pipeline closed off immediately to prevent catastrophe.

Line 5 meets the river just past a location the court has come to know as the meander, where the riverbed snakes back and forth multiple times, separated from itself only by several metres of forest and the pipeline itself.

At four locations, the river was less than 4.6 metres from the pipeline  just 3.4 metres in one particular spot  and the erosion has only continued.

Michigan, led by Nessel, has been arguing since 2019 that its only a matter of time before Line 5 leaks into the Straits of Mackinac, the ecologically delicate waterway where it crosses the Great Lakes.

The alarming erosion at the Bad River meander poses an imminent threat of irreparable harm to Lake Superior which far outweighs the risk of impacts associated with a shutdown of the Line 5 pipeline, she argues in her brief.

Without judicial intervention, it is likely that this irreparable harm will be inflicted not only on the band, but also on Michigan, its residents, and its natural resources.

The economic arguments against shutting down the pipeline  which carries 540,000 barrels of oil and natural gas liquids daily across Wisconsin and Michigan to refineries in Sarnia, Ont.  are by now well-known.

Its proponents, including the federal government, say a shutdown would cause major economic disruption across Alberta, Saskatchewan and the U.S. Midwest, where Line 5 provides feedstock to refineries in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

It also supplies key refineries in Ontario and Quebec, and is vital to the production of jet fuel for major airports on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border, including Detroit Metropolitan and Pearson International in Toronto.

The implications (of a shutdown) are significant  not only to Pearson airport, not only to the Detroit airport, but to our mutual economies, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said Wednesday on Parliament Hill.

Talks about possible contingency plans have been taking place, he added, though he hinted at something Enbridge and pipeline experts have been saying for years: there are no real alternatives.

Theres been ongoing discussion, Alghabra said. But I can tell you that our focus is making sure that Line 5 continues operations.

That was the idea behind a lengthy statement issued Tuesday by the Canadian Embassy, which warned of severe economic consequences as well as potential ramifications for bilateral relations were the line to close.

The energy security of both Canada and the United States would be directly impacted by a Line 5 closure, the statement said. Some 33,000 U.S. jobs and US$20 billion in economic activity would be at stake, it added.

At a time of heightened concern over energy security and supply, including during the energy transition, maintaining and protecting existing infrastructure should be a top priority.

Talks have been ongoing for months under the terms of a 1977 pipelines treaty between the two countries that effectively prohibits either country from unilaterally closing off the flow of hydrocarbons.

Nonetheless, the embassys statement and the Enbridge brief tacitly acknowledge that the prospect of a shutdown order is very real.

In Enbridges case, the brief pre-emptively asks the judge to grant a stay of 30 days, should an injunction be ordered, to give lawyers time to mount an appeal.

And if this specific, temporary flood situation results in a shutdown, the embassy says, Canada expects the U.S. to comply with the treaty, including the expeditious restoration of normal pipeline operations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 17, 2023.

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EDMONTONHours before Albertas election debate, the provinces ethics commissioner released a scathing report finding that UCP Leader Danielle Smith violated the Conflicts of Interest Act and breached a fundamental pillar of democracy by speaking with an alleged criminal about his case.

Smith contravened the Conflicts of Interest Act when she spoke to Albertas justice minister and attorney general, Tyler Shandro, about the accused on Jan. 6, 2023.

Controversial street pastor Artur Pawlowski was facing charges of mischief and breaching a release order over his role at the Coutts, Alta., border blockade setup to protest public health measures in February 2022.

Pawlowski was found guilty of the charges earlier this month, just as the election got underway, after a judge said he incited protesters there.

Smith had spoken to the attorney general about Pawlowskis case, and to Pawlowski himself, just weeks before his trial. The investigation looked into both conversations and said that while only one violated the act, both were out of line.

The report from Alberta Ethics Commissioner Marguerite Trussler came down Thursday morning. Smith was set to go head to head with NDP Leader Rachel Notley in a televised debate Thursday night in the middle of whats been a bitterly contested election. Polls have Smiths UCP and Notleys NDP in a neck-and-neck race thats set to be decided on May 29.

In the whole scheme of things, it is a threat to democracy to interfere with the administration of justice, Trussler said in the report.

It is the first step toward the type of judicial system often found in a non-democratic or pseudo-democratic country where members of and friends of those in power are shielded from prosecution or are acquitted by the courts on the instructions of those in power.

In speaking to the attorney general in January, Smith tried to interfere with the independence of the justice system in her role as premier, the investigation found.

The purpose of Premier Smiths call was to influence a decision of the Crown to prosecute Mr. Pawlowski, which is a private interest of that individual, Trussler wrote. She asked the Attorney General if there was something that could be done about the charges and could they help Mr. Pawlowski. She was concerned about the political optics of the press conference Mr. Pawlowski was planning.

Speaking to an Attorney General about a specific ongoing criminal case, in the way that Premier Smith did on the call with Minister Shandro, is not acceptable.

Added Trussler: Minister Shandro stated that Premier Smith was passive/aggressive throughout the call. She asked him specifically if there was anything he could do about Mr. Pawlowskis case. She wanted him to make it go away, although she did not direct him to do so.

Trussler did not recommend any sanctions for Smith, but said she may still do so once the legislative assembly is back in session, after the election.

Smith had won the United Conservative leadership race last October with a pledge to seek clemency for people who violated public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its not a power that a provincial premier has.

The ethics commissioner also probed whether Smith talking to Pawlowski on the phone for 11 minutes just weeks before his criminal trial was a violation.

Smith can be heard in that phone call with Pawlowski commiserating, saying the charges were politically motivated and pledging to make inquiries on his behalf.

Trussler said politicians should never interfere with the judicial branch.

To do so is to endanger the independence of the judicial system. This principle is a fundamental pillar of our democracy, she wrote.

The premier breached this principle by discussing the accuseds case with him.

Smith has maintained she didnt know the call would be about Pawlowskis criminal case. But Trussler said that once the conversation with Pawlowski turned to his criminal proceedings, Smith should have cut it off.

However, this call itself was not a violation of the conflicts act, the commissioner said.

Trussler referenced the SNC-Lavalin affair involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in her report.

As Commissioner Mario Dion stated in the Trudeau Report II, it only takes one instance of seeking to influence a decision of the Crown to improperly further another persons private interest to contravene the section of the Act. The attempt does not have to be successful, she wrote.

(Shandro) stood his ground in defending the independence of the Crown Prosecution Service and its right to be free from political interference. Nonetheless, there was an improper attempt to influence the independence of the legal system.

Trussler cited two complaints inquiring about an investigation; one from a senior citizen and one from NDP MLA Irfan Sabir, who said Trussler should probe the 11-minute phone call between Pawlowski and Smith.

Trussler said there were 54 other requests or support for an investigation.

The investigation also looked into allegations published by CBC News in January. The article claimed emails had been sent from staff in Smiths office to Crown prosecutors questioning criminal matters stemming from the Coutts blockade.

Trussler said she couldnt substantiate this allegation reported on by CBC News.

The CBC has not seen the emails and has not divulged, quite rightfully, its source, said Trussler, who questioned a reporter from CBC News during her investigation.

It was public knowledge that this investigation was taking place and one might expect that the CBC source would have come forward on an anonymous or confidential basis. All Crown prosecutors who have COVID-related files have stated that they did not receive an email critiquing the Crowns position and all the premiers staff have stated that they did not send such an email.

Despite Smith at one point claiming she had spoken with Crown prosecutors directly, Trussler found no evidence that the premier ever spoke to any Crown prosecutor. It would appear that she, unfortunately, used the term inappropriately.

In a statement emailed to media on Thursday, Smith said she wants to learn how to have above-board conversations with her justice minister.

I invited the Commissioner to give me and future premiers the benefit of some guidance on how to advance sensitive policy issues similar to this with the Minister of Justice if she thought there was a more appropriate way, Smith said.

Smith had previously called for CBC News to retract its article about emails from her office. The media outlet stood by its reporting.

On Thursday, Smith doubled down on those calls, calling the claims false and defamatory.

She did not comment on the Pawlowski call findings, stating that the matter is closed.

Smith left the door open for civil litigation against CBC News and the Alberta NDP for publicizing the claims made in the article.

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WINNIPEG - The Manitoba government is promising more camping, better washrooms and other upgrades at provincial parks to address growing demand from people who want to enjoy the great outdoors.

The 10-year, $121-million pledge includes 45 new yurts. There are about 100 yurts - hard-roof structures with lighting, furniture and electrical outlets -- in provincial parks. Demand for them is so high, reservations for the entire season are booked within minutes on opening day each year.

We know that the public demand is there, Natural Resources Minister Greg Nesbitt said Thursday.

The promise follows a consultants report last year that cited a need for more comfort-camping options such as yurts, cabins and campsites with electrical hookups. The report said Birds Hill Provincial Park, just north of Winnipeg, could accommodate 50 new yurts.

That park may see yurts in future years, Nesbitt said, but for the next couple of years, yurts will be added in two parks in western Manitoba -- Asessippi and Duck Mountain.

The plan also includes adding electrical service to campsites in several parks, building washrooms in some remote parks and adding water treatment plants in places such as Tulabi Falls campground, where potable water is in short supply.

The plan also calls for new amenities on the Mantario Trail, a popular multi-day hike along the Ontario boundary.

Nesbitt said park and campground fees wont rise in the immediate future. The consultants report called for an increase, and pointed to the fact that Manitobas rate of $55 a night for a yurt is half as much as what the federal government charges in a national park.

I think the public wants to see value for their money. And I think that well be looking at the fee structure moving forward, but for right now, we have no plans to increase fees at the present time, Nesbitt said.

Critics accused the Progressive Conservative government of making big promises with an election looming in October after years of not improving park services.

Manitobans want a government that cares about our parks, not one that issues empty press releases three months before an election, NDP environment critic Mark Wasyliw said in a prepared written statement.

The Manitoba Government and General Employees Union said the province is facing staff shortages due in part to low pay.

More campsites and yurts are a good start, but we also need the staff to maintain our parks, union president Kyle Ross said in a press release.

I was recently in Swan River talking to members who said the new McDonalds (restaurant) is hiring at $17 per hour, while starting wage for a park attendant is $15.80 for seasonal work. How do you attract folks for that pay rate?

The pre-election promise of more and better camping may ring a bell with Manitoba voters. In the 2016 election campaign, the governing New Democrats promised to double the number of yurts in the province. The NDP lost the election a few weeks later.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story; An earlier version said the park upgrades would cost $110 million over 10 years.

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HALIFAX - Nova Scotias premier on Thursday touted his governments success in recruiting doctors to the province and ensured that he had a multi-pronged approach to improving health-care access for residents.

Houston made the comments after his government released statistics showing that between April 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023, 168 new doctors started practising in Nova Scotia  although the net gain was only 86 physicians because 82 doctors left the network over the same period.

The premier said the province is gradually moving the needle, but he conceded that the number of new doctors practising in Nova Scotia needed to be higher.

Our efforts of the last 18 months are showing tangible results, Houston told reporters. Well need more (doctors) but my commitment to Nova Scotians is that they will have access to care they need when they need it, and I think we are seeing that through a number of access points.

Other than recruiting more doctors, the government, Houston said, has been working to increase access to primary care through mobile clinics, virtual care, urgent treatment centres and pharmacy clinics.

Our focus is on access, he said. Physicians provide access, but there are other channels.

As an example, the premier said that a pilot project involving 12 pharmacy clinics dealt with more than 4,000 strep tests between Feb. 1 and the end of April.

We know where those tests (patients) would have went  they would have gone to the emergency departments, Houston said, suggesting that the pilot reduced pressure on hospitals.

The statistics show that Nova Scotias health authority hired 155 doctors, while IWK Health hired 13. Of the doctors who were recruited last year, 78 are family doctors and 90 work in other specialties. Nova Scotia is still missing 73 specialists and 96 family doctors, the province says.

Meanwhile, between June 1, 2022, and May 1, 2023, the number of Nova Scotians who registered to find a doctor rose from 94,855 to 145,003  an increase of 52 per cent on a trend line that has consistently pointed upward.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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PORTERS LAKE, N.S. - Francophones in Nova Scotias Eastern Shore are getting a new school built by September 2027, Premier Tim Houston announced Thursday.

Houstons announcement that the aging Ecole des Beaux-Marais would be replaced was cheered by a small group of students who were brought into the schools small gymnasium to hear the premier.

We are committed as a government to advancing French first-language education for students through new school infrastructure, Houston said. Weve seen tremendous enrolment at this school and the need is there for sure.

Located in Porters Lake, about 30 minutes outside Halifax, Ecole des Beaux-Marais was built in 1950 and serves the area from Lake Echo to Ship Harbour. It was taken over in 2011 by Conseil scolaire acadien provincial, which administers the provinces French-language schools.

Houston said the Education Department would work with the community to design the school and to choose its location. The school will serve students from pre-primary to Grade 8.

The premier said the cost would be included in his governments new capital plan to be announced May 29.

We dont have a (cost) number today, but the message to the community is that our commitment is to get this done, Houston said.

The Department of Public Works will issue a tender for the design once the site selection process has been completed.

Superintendent Michel Collette said demand for French-language education in the area has grown steadily since 2011. There was an enrolment of just 12 students (in 2011), he said, adding that enrolment is now nearly at capacity with 245 students.

He partly credited population growth in the Halifax region for the increase in demand, but the main reason, he said, was the communitys decision to embrace a culture and heritage that had receded over the years. He characterized nearby Chezzetcook, N.S., as a lost Acadian community.

Within this community there are a lot of families who over the years lost French, their language and their culture, Collette said. After the school was taken over by the francophone school board and boosted enrolment, a lot of these families turned and said, lets build this community again. And thats what happened.

He added that a new building or even a rebuilt school on the same site would make a big difference in the lives of students.

So I think that modernizing or replacing this building will change the overall experience that students receive.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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Toronto firefighters are working to extinguish a blaze on site of a roofing company near Commissioners and Leslie Streets that police said is rendering the air as toxic in the area.

However, a Toronto Fire Services spokesperson told the Star that crews have not tested the air for toxicity, but that any smoke emanating from a fire is not healthy.

Emergency crews responded to reports of an asphalt holding tank that caught fire on 560 Commissioners around 7:15 p.m.

As of 8:30 p.m., the majority of the fire was extinguished with foam and the tank temperature is back to normal, Toronto Fire said.

The address of the fire is for a roofing manufacturer company, CanRoof Corporation.

According to Toronto Fire, no injuries were reported.

Police said roads remain closed in the area.

MH Mahdis Habibinia is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Stars radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: mhabibinia@thestar.ca

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A public safety advisory was issued Tuesday after a series of abortion and emergency contraception drugs, unauthorized by Health Canada, were allegedly sold by Toronto and Laval, Que. based abortion clinics.

Health Canada said the unapproved medications were allegedly sold by two Dr. Pooja clinic websites, including abortion pills labelled to contain mifepristone and misoprostol as well as unauthorized over-the-counter emergency contraception labelled to contain levonorgestrel.

The use of mifepristone and misoprostol is not suitable to terminate all pregnancies, Health Canada said, advising against using it for those who are more than nine weeks pregnant, have a pregnancy outside the uterus (ectopic pregnancy), have an intrauterine contraceptive device, have bleeding disorders or uncontrolled asthma, to name a few.

Unauthorized emergency contraceptives labelled to contain levonorgestrel may be ineffective and may not prevent pregnancy as expected, the health agency continued.

The federal agency said the contraceptive and abortion medication sold by the website have not been tested for safety, efficacy or quality, and it might be subjected to recall or contain wrong ingredients and dangerous additives.

Health Canada will do everything it can to stop this activity, reads the public safety alert. Health Canada will take further action as necessary to protect the health and safety of people in Canada.

In a statement to the Star, the federal department said the company has not provided details on how many units of the medication have been sold. Health Canada added that it has directed the alleged clinic to stop selling the medication while it works on removing the websites.

Surgical abortion procedures, doctor consultation and pregnancy tests are also offered through the website. In person services are advertised on the website for the Toronto Womens Clinic in a Toronto midtown building and at the Cynaecologist Clinic in Laval, Que. The websites also detail clinic services offered in Brampton, but other addresses were not found.

Health Canada is advising people who have taken unauthorized medication from Dr. Pooja containing mifepristone and misoprostol or levonorgestrel to seek immediate medical attention.

Health Canada is also advising consumers not to use any of the products sold through the Dr. Pooja website, and return them to local pharmacies for proper disposal.

Dr. Pooja did not immediately respond to the Stars request for comment by the time of publication.

With files from Mahdis Habibinia.

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A 20-year-old woman riding an E-scooter died on Wednesday after a driver struck her in Oshawa.

Around 1:45 p.m., Durham Regional Police responded to reports of a collision on Harmony Road North near Taunton Road East in Oshawa. Officers found a woman suffering extensive injuries and she was transported to a local hospital where she succumbed to her injuries.

Police said a black 2018 GMC Sierra pickup was exiting a gas station on the southeast corner of the intersection when the driver hit the woman on the sidewalk.

According to police, the driver remained at the scene.

The roadway was closed for several hours while officers investigated but has since reopened.

Police are asking anyone with information about this incident or who witnessed this collision to contact Det. Const. Rayne of the Collision Investigation Unit at 905-579-1520 (toll-free 1-888-579-1520) ext. 5256. Anonymous information can be sent to Durham Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.durhamregionalcrimestoppers.ca.

MH Mahdis Habibinia is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Stars radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: mhabibinia@thestar.ca

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A Scarborough man may be one of the oldest to have a brit milah (traditional circumcision) performed since Abraham, who, according to the Bible, was circumcised at the age of 99.

Last Thursday, 96-year-old Armin Konn entered into one of the oldest Jewish covenants  the Covenant of Abraham  at the Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario in North York.

Typically performed when baby boys are eight days old, Konn is nearly a century older than most Jewish boys are when then are circumcised. But for the veteran born in Zhvil, Ukraine, in 1926, it was really his first opportunity to do so.

It feels like Ive been living in a cage and Ive finally been let out, said Konn. Everything is very good.

When he was a baby, his parents made the decision not to have him circumcised. The decision could be the reason hes alive this day.

Born during a time when it was dangerous to be circumcised

Konns family lived under oppression for most of his early life, his parents unwilling to circumcise him as a child while they lived under Soviet Union rule  a reign fraught with antisemitism in the Russian Empire.

Despite Zhvil being predominantly made up of Jewish people at the time, it remained politically unsafe for young boys to enter that covenant, or for Jewish people at large to openly practise their faith.

It was an often dangerous time, and, when Konn was 10 years old, his father was arrested.

The two never saw each other again.

At 15, knowing of the persecution his family faced, Konn joined the partisans in the Ukrainian SSR who fought against the Nazis before enlisting in the Red Armys air force. Sometime after joining, his plane was shot down over Lithuania, and he became a prisoner of war in Germany during the Second World War.

While in hospital, all men were lined up and stripped from their clothing. Whoever was circumcised was taken away and killed, Konn recalls, the hospital workers often being Nazi collaborators.

Konn, whose parents chose not to circumcise him, survived, and eventually emigrated to Canada when the war ended.

Im lucky enough that I am alive, said Konn.

Decades after his arrival to Canada, he finally felt comfortable and supported enough  not to mention medically sound  to undergo the procedure, Rabbi Yisroel Zaltzman of the Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario being by his side both spiritually and physically for it.

Nearly a century apart in age, two made the covenant together

Zaltzman has known Konn for years, and has been a mentor of sorts as hes become more involved in the Jewish community. He isnt sure how the conversation came up, but Konn had mentioned at one point he had never been circumcised, and detailed his life events that prevented it from happening.

Konn grew more interested in having the procedure done, but Zaltzman had some reservations.

I asked him if he was ready to think about the procedure, meaning I didnt think it was going to happen, because of his age, said Zaltzman. But after medical tests and consultations with a doctor, Konn was cleared for the procedure.

Surrounded by friends and family last Thursday, Konn finally underwent a brit milah performed by a mohel, or a person who performs the Jewish rite of circumcision, who flew in from Baltimore.

The brit milah occurred just an hour before Zaltzmans son, who at the time was eight days old, had the same procedure himself.

It was a beautiful celebration for both of them, he said. Even though theyre 96.5 years apart, (theyre) both Jews getting a circumcision, and making the covenant (together).

Konn chose the Jewish name Avraham, or Abraham, in honour of his ancestor who himself was circumcised in his later years  99 years old, according to the Bible.

After the procedures, the community gathered outside the Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario to celebrate, and Konn, who has become known for his skills on the accordion, began to play music under a tent in the parking lot.

My two fingers are broken, Konn laughed. But the accordion was a big help  our people, they love accordions.

Spiritual and personal freedom at any age

When Zaltzman asked Konn how he felt after the procedure during the celebration, Konn told him he felt like a free man.

He meant more of an emotional, spiritual, psychological type of freedom, said Zaltzman. His identity was robbed from him for so long, and now he made a soulful, godly identity  a covenant  which he embraced so beautifully.

Zaltzman called Konns decision inspiring for other people.

To see a Jew at 96 who is not embarrassed (of his faith), and after his brit milah is full again, thats inspiring. Its important.

About finally making the covenant those who came before him and after him have done, Konn said he feels good. About it taking as long as it did to happen?

Thats life, he said as he was heading out the door to celebrate once again a week later.

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LOS ANGELES, May 18 (Xinhua) -- As mass shootings rise in the United States, despite its relative safety, other nations are highlighting the dangers of gun violence for would-be travelers, Yahoo News reported Wednesday.

At least seven nations have issued advisories to their citizens who intend on traveling to the United States, citing serious safety concerns in recent years, said the report, noting that New Zealand, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Venezuela and Uruguay have each urged precaution for travelers when visiting the United States, due in large part to gun violence.

There have been more than 200 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, said the report, citing the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit organization that tracks gun violence in the country. In each of the last three years, there have been more than 600 mass shootings in the United States, or about two each day.

The threat of gun violence in conjunction with the perceived lack of security within the United States is increasingly seen as a safety concern by both American citizens and would-be tourists. Though the chances of a tourist in the United States becoming a victim of gun violence remain low, experts say "perception is reality," according to the report.

"If people perceive they are not safe in the U.S. they will not visit," Simon Hudson, a professor of tourism at the University of South Carolina, was quoted as saying by the report.

The report pointed out that the 2022 Global Peace Index, which measures the peacefulness of countries and is made up of 23 quantitative and qualitative indicators, ranks the United States the 129th out of 163 countries. 
Cases of Lyme disease are on the rise in Canada, and as the weather warms, the risk of getting a tick bite that can cause the illness is increasing, too.

Thats a result of climate change and ways were using our lands, such as changing farming practices, said Janet Sperling, the president of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.

In Ontario, theres a particularly high risk of running into the blacklegged tick, whose bite could result in Lyme disease and serious consequences if left untreated, said Sperling, who is also an entomologist and lecturer at the University of Albertas Department of Biological Sciences.

However, no matter the type of tick that bites, there could still be a risk of disease being transmitted and whats most important is removing the tick as soon as possible, Sperling said.

Where are ticks found in Toronto

According to the City of Toronto, blacklegged ticks have been documented at Algonquin Island, Amberdale Ravine, Cedar Ridge Park, Colonel Danforth Trail, High Park, Highland Creek, Morningside Park, Toronto Hunt Club and Rouge Valley Park.

Toronto has a map tracking tick locations and where they have tested positive for the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, called Borrelia burgdorferi.

It is important to know that blacklegged ticks are possible anywhere in Toronto where there is a suitable habitat even if it is not documented by our tick surveillance program, the citys webpage adds.

According to Ontarios 2022 Lyme Disease Map, the entirety of Toronto is an estimated risk area.

On trails, ticks will mostly be on the edge of a path, where dogs might meander, Sperling warned.

She also emphasized that maps depicting risk areas for ticks can only show what happened in the past and are not really projecting the future. People in Ontario have a risk of running into Lyme disease pretty much everywhere, she said.

Just because (the risk is) higher or lower doesnt mean its zero, she said.

When are ticks active

Ontarians are most likely to run into ticks in the summer and in the fall, Sperling said, but its not impossible to get bitten in the winter.

The province says ticks can be found at any time of the year when the temperature is above freezing.

In the summer is when the teeny tiny ticks are out, which are the most dangerous and easy to miss, according to Sperling.

A tick bite in the summer could be easily dismissed as something as minimal as having scratched ourselves on a raspberry horn, Sperling cautioned.

In the fall, the risk of being bitten still exists but there tends to be more protection because people typically wear more layers of clothing, she said.

What to do about a tick bite

Remove (the tick) as soon as you see it, Sperling advised.

She suggested getting a tick removal kit in preparation of a possible bite, which is easy to carry in a backpack or car glove-compartment. A fine-point tweezer is usually a good alternative, she added.

The city of Toronto recommends against trying to squeeze or burn it off. Instead, grab the tick as close to your skin as possible and pull the tick away from your skin gently but firmly using fine-tipped tweezers. If you dont have tweezers handy, ticks can also be removed using your fingers, you just want to avoid crushing it during the process.

If you develop a rash or fever within several weeks of removing a tick, see your doctor. Be sure to tell the doctor about your recent tick bite, when the bite occurred, and where you most likely acquired the tick.

People shouldnt wait until they can access a doctor, Sperling said, unless theyre concerned they cant safely remove the tick themselves.

If your dog is bitten by a tick, it might seem unhappy or like something is off. Sometimes ticks can get into their ears; if its deep in the canal, owners should seriously consider asking a vet to remove it to ensure they dont hurt their pet, Sperling advised. There are also little plastic scoops, made to remove ticks that can be used on dogs ears  or for children who are nervous about tweezers.

After removing the tick, Sperling suggested storing it in a plastic bag (or two, to be safe), labelling it with the date, and keeping it in the freezer.

The next step would be to take it to a health care provider to identify the tick, taking a photo and sending it to an image-based identification platform like eTick or contacting the provincial public health authority to find out about identification programs in the area, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.

In Sperlings view, the best thing to do is get the tick tested for Lyme disease, especially if it looks fully fed. Just make sure that when shipping the tick, the container is secured tightly.

In early cases of the illness, theres no sense testing the human because  you havent had time to develop the antibodies that show that you really do have Lyme disease, she said, adding she believes that tests need improvement.

If the tick tests positive for Lyme disease, the person who was bitten should ask their doctor for antibiotics, she said.

But in a place like southern Ontario, she said someone should go to the doctor simply if they have a known tick bite and are feeling sick or off  and definitely if they have an expanding red rash.

There is also a risk that the tick is carrying another kind of disease, Sperling explained, so if the tick tests negative for Lyme disease, its important that someone with a tick bite who feels ill go back to the doctor and advocate for themselves.

How to avoid being bitten by a tick

When going for a hike and entering tick habitat, its best to be covered in light-coloured clothing, tuck socks in or use permethrin-treated socks (treated to protect against ticks), and to use insect repellent, Sperling said.

When you get home, you should remove your clothes and leave them outside in case a tick is still walking on them. Then, take a shower, she advised.

The Public Health Agency of Canada recommends checking ones entire body, especially the head and hair, in and around the ears, under the arms, on the chest, the waist, belly button, around the groin, on the legs, behind the knees and between the toes.

Plus, anyone who is worried they might have a tick on their back should ask a friend to look, Sperling said.

Those with dogs should check their pets for ticks, too, and brush them, Sperling said.

Ticks can transmit Lyme disease-causing bacteria

The longer a tick is attached, the greater the risk of disease being transmitted, Sperling said.

In about 70 to 80 per cent of people who get Lyme disease, they develop a circular rash (also known as a bulls eye rash) after being bitten.

The Public Health Agency of Canada says the blacklegged tick needs to be attached for at least 24 hours in order to transmit the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

Before the insect has fed, it is flat, top to bottom. It starts off with a black shield on the back and is red, Sperling said.

While most insects have three parts  a head, thorax and abdomen  a tick only has two  the big mouth part and the rest of the body, she said.

A tick is going to cut its mouth part into you; it has these little sort of knives on the end of the mouth part, and once it attaches, its going to stay for a long time, she said, adding it will stay for days if it can.

In particular, a tick will likely bite a part of the body thats easy to miss if youre not searching.

Sometimes  its gonna crawl up into your hair. And sometimes its behind your knees, and sometimes your tummy button, she said. Its the sort of quiet, dark places where youre not going to notice that thats worth aiming for.

Once they have set, their abdomen or back part will stretch out and thicken. The more time it spends on a body, the more it feeds, and the thicker it gets. If a tick is feeding for a very long time, it will become tan-coloured, Sperling explained.

If were doing a tick check, we shouldnt ever get to the point where it gets that kind of tan-coloured abdomen, she said.

Symptoms of Lyme disease

Contrary to what some people believe, its not just a yuppie flu, Sperling said.

If you get Lyme disease and you get treated right away, its pretty straightforward, she explained. Early treatment means high success.

But someone sick who doesnt receive treatment early on could get really sick and will likely face some difficulty treating the long or chronic illness, she added. Of course, theres a lot of variability in Lyme disease and in people, and it wont affect everyone in the same way.

Symptoms of Lyme usually begin three days to four weeks after a bite, says Toronto Public Health.

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, early symptoms include an expanding rash, fever, chills, fatigue, headache, swollen lymph nodes and muscle and joint aches.

If left untreated, the infection could spread to the joints, heart and nervous system, the agency says on its webpage.

Additional symptoms may include drooping of one side of the face, difficulty closing one eye and painful swelling of large joints like knees, says Toronto Public Health.

Later symptoms include more rashes, dizziness, severe headaches, migratory pain, arthritis, memory loss and inability to think clearly. There could also be nerve pain, facial paralysis, heart palpitations, abnormal heartbeat, swelling of the brain and spinal cord and eye problems, such as pink eye, the website says.

Advocacy around Lyme disease treatment

In 2018, one study estimated that approximately 90 per cent of Lyme disease cases in Canada go undetected.

A co-author of the study, University of Calgary professor Ralph Hawkins previously told the Star that patients feeling symptoms of the disease who receive a negative test shouldnt assume they dont have Lyme.

The study found diagnosing the illness by blood testing was unreliable due to lab test kits in Canada not being sensitive enough to recognize all the strains of the disease.

Lyme has affected Canadian celebrities, such as Justin Bieber, Shania Twain and Avril Lavigne.

In 2015, Lavigne spoke on Good Morning America about her struggle to get a proper diagnosis, saying top doctors would instead point to chronic fatigue syndrome or depression.

This is what they do to a lot of people that have Lyme disease. They dont have an answer for them, so they tell them  Youre crazy, Lavigne said at the time.

The pop star isnt the only one to discuss the struggle to get a diagnosis  some Canadian doctors have spoken out about the complexities of diagnosing, noting the symptoms of Lyme disease mimic other diseases and can affect any part of the body, including the brain, heart and nervous system.

Model Bella Hadid said she couldnt get out of bed for nearly a week after her Lyme diagnosis. Her mother Yolanda and brother Anwar have also been diagnosed with the disease.

Others believe patients who think they have chronic Lyme with no evidence of infection are grappling with different illnesses and that treating them for Lyme masks the real cause of their symptoms, doing more harm than good.

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Victoria Day long weekend will bring both rain and sunshine, according to Environment Canada.

Torontonians will need their umbrellas for some parts of it. Rain is supposed to roll in on Friday evening with the potential of thunderstorms. During the day on Friday it is forecasted to be sunny with a high of 21 C.

The precipitation will carry into Saturday, specifically in the afternoon.

Saturday is expected to be slightly cooler with a high forecasted at 16 C, with a low of 10 C.

Environment Canada meteorologist Trudy Kidd said stay away from the water during a thunderstorm. It is essential to not to go boating or swimming if theres a storm because water conducts electricity, so its extra dangerous in the water.

She added that its important for those who intend on being outside, to know where to go for safety and to stay there for 30 minutes if there is a thunderstorm.

A mix of sun and clouds is in the forecast for Sunday morning. However, environment Canada says the cloud cap will dissipate into the afternoon, leaving a clear night sky.

Daytime highs will climb back above 20 C during the second long weekend day, getting up to 23 C.

Victoria Day Monday is expected to see a high of 15 C and clear skies with no rain in the forecast. Monday night temperatures will dip to 8 C.

The sunshine is expected to continue into Tuesday as people head back to work and school, with a high of 21 C forecasted during the day. It will continue to be clear overnight with a low of 11 C forecasted.

The city-run firework display at Ashbridges Bay remains on schedule for this Monday. A City Hall spokesperson told the Star that while the weather is always a consideration, delays or cancellations to the pyrotechnic spectacle wont be made until prior to the start of the event on May 22.

If youre looking to use the TTC to attend your local fireworks display this long weekend, a note that it will be operating on a Sunday schedule meaning that routes that do not usually operate on Sunday will not run on Victoria Day.

Service will begin at around 6 a.m. while subway service will begin around 8 a.m. and will run every four to five minutes.

There will also be various closures across the city, while much is happening to celebrate the long weekend.

With files from Santiago Arias Orozco

TG Thea Gribilas is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Stars radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: tgribilas@thestar.ca

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When I first heard the latest bit of news on Tuesday about the further indefinite delays in finishing and opening the Eglinton Crosstown transit line, I thought of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who were once again disappointingly eliminated early from the playoffs.

Of course, I thought  OF COURSE  this is the kind of news we get. Twice in one week, wed seen our hopes of an endlessly long-awaited, much-desired outcome crushed. Twice in one week when the news came it seemed somehow both expected and deadeningly gutting at the same time.

And then I thought of toxic nuclear waste. Naturally.

Before I explain, let me catch you up on the latest fun transit news, if you missed it: Crosslinx, the consortium of companies who have the contract to build the Eglinton Crosstown LRT line, was expected to give an update this week on when we all might expect the project to be finished. (When it was first announced, the line was projected to open in 2016. By the time the contract was awarded, the opening plan was for 2021, then it became fall of 2022. And then, surprise, it became  well, who knows? Not this year.)

But before any report on new projected timing came, on Tuesday Crosslinx was threatening to down tools on the project while it sues the provincial agencies Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario that are overseeing the work. In reporting by my Star colleague Lex Harvey, and other reporters at CBC and Global news, a picture emerges of significant problems: stations being rebuilt because concrete was improperly poured, test trains unable to complete the line at the normal speed because of how tracks have been laid, and so on.

Crosslinx says it should not have to take nitpicky instructions from the TTC  the city agency that will actually operate the line  because its contract is with provincial Metrolinx. And everyone is pointing fingers at each other to assign blame while no one is standing up to accept responsibility to just get the blasted thing finished.

At this point  after a budget thats doubled, after more than a decade of Eglinton Avenue snarled in construction, after delay after delay after delay  most Torontonians are not interested in hearing out the various arguments assigning blame. We blame them all.

And I think most of us have a gut reaction that says none of these companies and government agency executives should ever get another dollar of public money for anything ever again. Let them argue about whether the terms of reference were complied with or unreasonably changed while theyre waiting together in the unemployment line.

Our tempers are going nuclear.

But its when I think of nuclear stuff that I remember thats not how these thing work.

For a few months when I was fresh out of university, I had a job at a trade magazine for the waste management industry, and we ran a story I helped edit on the massive Superfund cleanup sites in Hanford, Washington, the most toxic place in America. Thats the town where U.S. nuclear weapons were originally built, and because of neglect, negligence, and intentional recklessness, it was a massive radioactive waste site. Cleaning it up was to be among the biggest public works projects in U.S. history.

And do you know who was getting awarded the giant contracts to remediate the site? Mostly the same companies that had run the projects that poisoned the site. They were the only ones big enough, and with enough specific expertise, to handle the job.

They got rich making a mess, and then got richer cleaning it up. (By way of update, that cleanup project was originally supposed to be completed in 30 years. Three decades later, its projected to take at least another 20. So it goes.)

There are only so many giant construction and engineering companies who can handle things like digging subway tunnels. The ones that make up Crosslinx are companies whose names are on the construction hoardings and contracts all over the city for major office towers and government buildings and road and transit infrastructure projects.

Members of the consortium are involved in other consortia working on things like the Finch West LRT and the Eglinton Crosstown West extension. They are not just going to continue to work on the Crosstown, theyll keep right on working on all kinds of other government projects.

And then theres Metrolinx, which really is the only game in town for us: overseeing as we speak the projects named above, plus the giant Ontario Line subway, the Scarborough subway extension and soon enough, likely, the Sheppard East subway extension.

In the best case scenario, were looking at what? Another decade of construction at a bill of $30 billion? What does that translate into, realistically, based on what weve seen on Eglinton and Finch, and other provincially managed projects like the Ottawa LRT omnishambles? How long will we really be living with this kind of frustration?

Well, whats the half-life of radioactive nuclear waste? Or the projected number of years before fans actually believe theyll see the Maple Leafs win it all?

For our purposes, the numbers answering those question may as well all be the same, in that theyre all roughly forever. Another thing they have in common: they leave us feeling sicker the more the reality sinks in.

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Toronto has a lot going on this Victoria Day long weekend. Heres a sampling of whats on.

A Simple Space

Watch as seven acrobats from Australia test their physical limits in A Simple Space at Harbourfront Centre, the award-winning performances first time in Toronto. As part of Harbourfronts JUNIOR International Childrens Festival, the outdoor show boasts live percussion and the audience is encouraged to interact.

Lisa Marie DiLiberto, co-curator of JUNIOR, calls A Simple Space an opportunity for families to see internationally renowned, high-calibre performers.

The interesting part is that usually this show will be presented on a huge concert stage  or inside a large studio, DiLiberto said. Its a grand show thats going to be up close and personal. Youre going to be able to see the sweat of the performers.

A Simple Space, which has been performed in 34 countries and is currently on its North American tour, is presented by Gravity & Other Myths, one of Australias most acclaimed circus companies.

Its not a show with a lot of bells and whistles. Its a really visceral, raw show, DiLiberto said. The idea in JUNIOR is for kids to get a sense of how they might be able to find their way into these kinds of art forms. Were trying to break through some of those barriers that are sometimes in theatre with elaborate costumes, the fourth wall or having things be really distant.

Instead of dressing up the show with makeup, elaborate lighting and contrived theatrics, the people behind it want to break down performers usual guards and introduce the possibility of weakness and failure as they push themselves.

There are three shows this weekend: May 20, 21 and 22, at 3 p.m. The show runs one hour and takes place on the south lawn at 235 Queens Quay W.

Fireworks

Victoria Day fireworks are in full force this year, with a couple of locations in the GTA hosting pyrotechnics displays.

After a day enjoying the rides and attractions at Canadas Wonderland (1 Canadas Wonderland Dr.), you can watch a 15-minute, music-packed fireworks display on May 21 at 10 p.m. The show will include more than 6,000 colourful explosions over 800 feet in the sky.

Ashbridges Bay Park will present a 13-minute display of approximately 2,000 fireworks starting around 10 p.m. on May 22, at Lake Shore Boulevard East, near Coxwell Avenue. The city is encouraging attendees to use public transit and leave cars at home.

Drive-in Downsview

On May 21, head to Downsview Airport Lands (30 Hanover Rd.) in the evening for a drive-in screening of the 2006 Jessica Alba dance romance Honey at Drive-In Downsview: A Pop-Up Film Experience. Audience members are encouraged to carpool or bring lawn chairs to watch the movie under the stars. Gates open at 7:30 p.m. for the 8:30 screening. Tickets are free but should be acquired in advance.

Rain or shine, the event offers free snacks and an opportunity to give back to the community. Donations will be matched by event host Northcrest Developments up to $2,500. Proceeds from this weekends program  presented in partnership with JustBGRAPHIC  will support free public drop-in programs this summer at York University.

Street Eats Market

Foodies can try various delicacies in Mississauga from May 20 to 22, starting at 12 p.m., at the citys popular Street Eats Markets new Eats Theme Park, near Dixie GO station at 2445 Dixie Rd. Billed as one massive foodie wonderland, the event combines a food festival with carnival fun.

The Eats Theme Parks 2023 lineup, at various locations in the GTA and Montreal, brings together festivals devoted to mac and cheese, tacos, fried chicken, ice cream, BBQ, noodles, seafood, donuts, poutine and pizza.

Thank You Toronto Tulip Day 2023

The Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Toronto is inviting the public to pick tulips in Toronto on May 21 at Nathan Phillips Square (100 Queen St W.), beginning at 12 p.m.

The tulip is a Dutch national symbol, and since 1945 the Dutch Royal Family has gifted Canada with thousands of the plants to commemorate Canadian soldiers role in helping free the Netherlands during World War II. During the conflict, Canada also invited Dutch Princess Juliana and her daughters to live in Ottawa, where Princess Margriet was born.

Concerts

Dean Lewis will be playing at the Danforth Music Hall on May 20 at 7 p.m. On the same night, Rebel hosts Coi Leray at 10 p.m. On Sunday, Hozier will be at the Danforth Music Hall at 6:30 p.m. Seven Lions will be performing at History on May 20 and 21 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m., respectively.

TG Thea Gribilas is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: tgribilas@thestar.ca

MH Mahdis Habibinia is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: mhabibinia@thestar.ca

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Human-induced climate change and the natural arrival of weather system El Nino almost guarantees the next five years will be sweltering  and temperatures are expected to shatter global records, according to the United Nations.

A new, dire update from the World Meteorological Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, on Wednesday finds were stepping into uncharted territory, with temperatures likely surpassing 1.5 C of warming by 2027.

El Nino coupled with climate change will push global temperatures into uncharted territory, WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas said in a release Wednesday. This will have far-reaching repercussions for health, food security, water management and the environment. We need to be prepared.

According to the report, there is a 98 per cent chance at least one year in the next five years, and the five-year period as a whole, will be the warmest ever recorded. In this time span, theres a 66 per cent chance temperatures will be 1.5 C warmer than pre-industrial levels for at least one year.

That means were on track to breach the long-term warming threshold of 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels set by the 2015 Paris Agreement  at least temporarily.

This report does not mean that we will permanently exceed the 1.5 C level specified in the Paris Agreement which refers to long-term warming over many years, Taalas said. However, WMO is sounding the alarm that we will breach the 1.5 C level on a temporary basis with increasing frequency.

Case in point, theres only a 33 per cent chance the five-year temperature mean will exceed the 1.5 C limit, the report states.

The world has been heating up across the board; in January, the WMO found the past eight years to be the warmest ever recorded. Global warming has already wreaked havoc across the globe, contributing to record-breaking heatwaves, the increased prevalence of storms and natural disasters, extreme droughts and more.

Recently, Canada has also seen devastating wildfires grow in frequency and intensity, with fire seasons stretching in length. Experts say the rise in forest fires has also contributed to increasing greenhouse gas and air pollution emissions.

The last global temperature record was set in 2016, partly resulting from an especially strong El Nino event. At the time, average temperatures were measured at 0.94 C above pre-industrial levels.

What is El Nino?

El Nino and its counterpart, La Nina, describe the respective warming and cooling of surface waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The events typically last nine to 12 months and occur roughly every two to seven years.

Normally, trade winds blow across the Pacific Ocean, carrying warm waters from South America towards Asia. These waters are then replaced by cooler currents rising from the depths.

When El Nino strikes, trade winds falter and the warm waters are pushed back east toward the west coast of the Americas. This may lead to warmer temperatures in general, and generate especially hot and dry conditions in northern Canada.

According to the WMO, El Nino is expected to arrive in the coming months, with an 80 per cent chance of hitting between July and September.

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GOMA, Congo (AP)  Four people were killed in an ambush Thursday in Congos Virunga National Park when their convoy of vehicles was attacked by gunmen, according to a statement by local conservation authorities. A further six people were injured, including villagers from the Lubero Territory where the attack took place.

The convoy included technical staff for rural development projects working in the park area, according to the North Kivu branch of the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN). Three of the dead were ecoguards working for the conservation group.

The ICCN statement said the attack was carried out by a group of armed men belonging to the Mai Mai, a network of local militia groups.

Eastern Congo has been wracked by violence from a myriad of armed groups for more than a quarter-century. While much of it has been linked to the struggle for control of the regions vast mineral wealth, other tensions have stemmed from long-standing inter-communal disputes.

The ICCN condemned the attack and said the injured were receiving care at a health facility.

Virunga Park is home to some of the worlds last mountain gorillas. However, armed groups such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, known by its French acronym FDLR, the Mai-Mai and the M23 regularly vie for control of eastern Congos natural resources and many park rangers have lost their lives trying to protect the area.

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ABUJA, Nigeria (AP)  The death toll from an attack by dozens of gunmen in north central Nigerias Plateau state has reached 80, local authorities said Thursday, with survivors still searching for bodies days after the incident.

The gunmen targeted several villages in the remote Mangu district of Plateau during the attack that started Monday and lasted till Tuesday, according to residents. Burials continued on Thursday in parts of Mangu located 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Jos, the state capital.

The police told The Associated Press seven suspects had been arrested. It was a situation of sporadic shooting across a vast area of different villages, said Alabo Alfred, the command spokesman.

The security crisis in the north-west and central regions of the country has stifled Nigerias development, despite its status as Africas largest economy and one of its top oil producers.

After decades of conflict, current and former pastoralists from the Fulani tribe took up arms against farmers over limited access to land and water. The attacks are sometimes reprisals and are mostly in remote areas where security forces are outnumbered and outgunned.

As of Thursday, families in Plateaus Mangu district are unable to retrieve the bodies of victims in areas that remained volatile, said Philip Pamshak, who has been assisting with the mass burials. The place is still bad, so we had to run, he said.

Quoting the local chiefs he spoke to when he visited the affected areas, Plateau Deputy Gov. Sonni Tyoden said in a statement that at least 10 villages were targeted in the attack. Local residents said it was carried out by herdsmen after a resident complained that his banana plantation had been destroyed by their cattle.

Survivors told the AP the assailants arrived in large numbers and scattered across the villages, setting houses ablaze while shooting at people.

There was tension everywhere. They macheted some and (killed) some with guns, according to Yaputat Pokyes, one of the survivors. Many residents have fled the area while the injured are being treated in different hospitals, he said.

Residents also said security forces only arrived a day after the attack began, echoing criticisms from analysts that security forces are sometimes slow to respond when violence breaks out.

Confidence MacHarry, from the Lagos-based SBM Intelligence security firm, said Nigerian security forces are not able to prevent or respond fast to such attacks because their early warning system was not effective and they lacked the firepower and personnel to prevent such attacks.

For the early warning system to work, we are supposed to have reports of the pending attack and the response mechanism to prevent the attack from taking place, said MacHarry.

Meanwhile, police investigating a separate deadly attack in the southeastern Anambra state said two suspects have been arrested. Tuesdays attack on a U.S. convoy is suspected to have been carried out by violent separatists in the region.

The death toll has also increased from four to seven, including three U.S. Embassy staffers and four police officers, said Echeng Echen, the police chief in Anambra.

The state police command and other security agencies are working round-the-clock, in concert with the Government of Anambra State, to find and rescue (two) missing officials with the embassy, said Echeng.

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LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  Pakistani police kept up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects allegedly sheltered inside expired on Thursday.

The siege and the authorities demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khan's recent detention, have angered the former prime ministers many followers and raised fears of renewed clashes between them and security forces.

Last week, Khans supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested in a graft case. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country in the days that followed. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khans release.

On Tuesday, Khan demanded a probe into the violence, but denied his supporters were behind it. Khan accused Pakistans ruling party of trying to foment trouble between his supporters and the army, without offering any evidence of his claim. He was speaking at a media conference held at his house, despite police surrounding it.

The popular opposition leader was freed from custody over the weekend and returned to his home in an upscale district of Lahore, Pakistans second largest city and the capital of the Punjab region. Dozens of his supporters have been staying there with him, along with private guards. Police surrounded the residence on Wednesday, saying they want 40 suspects handed over.

The ultimatum for Khan ended at 2 p.m. local time, but there were no immediate signs of unusual movement by police. Khans party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, invited reporters to the house to witness any police raid.

Hours after the expiry of the ultimatum, Hassan Javed, a senior police official, told reporters that officers were waiting for a signal from the government to launch the raid. He said police captured at least eight suspects after they left Khans house and tried to escape via a nearby canal.

Typically between 200 to 300 of Khans supporters, holding sticks, guard his residence around the clock, but most disappeared overnight. Police have barricaded a key road leading to the house and asked residents to use an alternate route.

Probably my last tweet before my next arrest, the 70-year-old popular opposition leader tweeted Wednesday, after the siege started. Police have surrounded my house.

Later, Khan addressed his supporters saying that the police can only search his house with a search warrant and not barge in, creating chaos.

According to Amir Mir, a spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, police were ready to use firearms if attacked. He told a news conference Thursday that at least 3,400 suspects linked to the clashes have been arrested and that more raids are planned.

Mir said authorities would send police to search Khans residence on Friday, in comments that appeared to defer the threat of clashes overnight with the leaders supporters.

Pakistani authorities have said they would prosecute civilians involved in recent anti-government protests in military courts. Angered over the recent attacks on military installations, two lawmakers and some senior politicians have quit Khans party, saying they cannot support the man who incited people to violence.

The plan to try civilians in military court has drawn criticism from the advocacy group Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Military trials in Pakistan are usually held behind closed doors, depriving civilians of some of their basic rights, including contracting a lawyer of their choice.

Khan was ousted by a non-confidence vote in Parliament last year. He has claimed the ouster was illegal and a Western conspiracy.

He now faces more than 100 legal cases, mainly on charges of inciting people to violence, threatening officials and defying a ban on rallies. He has been summoned by National Accountability Bureau to answer questions Thursday in connection to a graft case he faces along with his wife.

But Khan informed the agency that he could not attend because he was busy struggling to get protection from arrest in many of the cases against him. In his written reply to the agency, he said its probe against him was politically motivated.

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Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP)  Singapore on Wednesday hanged another citizen for trafficking cannabis, the second in three weeks, as it clung firmly to the death penalty despite growing calls for the city-state to halt drug-related executions.

The 37-year-old man was executed after his last-ditch bid to reopen his case was dismissed by the court Tuesday without a hearing, said activist Kokila Annamalai of the Transformative Justice Collective, which advocates for abolishing the death penalty in Singapore.

The man, who was not named as his family has asked for privacy, had been imprisoned for seven years and convicted in 2019 for trafficking around 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds) of cannabis, she said. His bid to reopen his case was based on DNA evidence and fingerprints that tied him to a much smaller amount, which he admitted to possessing, but the court rejected it, she added. Under Singapore laws, trafficking more than 500 grams (1.1 pounds) of cannabis may result in the death penalty.

If we dont come together to stop it, we fear that this killing spree will continue in the weeks and months to come, she said. Some 60 prisoners are on death row in the city-state, mostly for drug-related offenses, she added.

Singapore executed 11 people last year for drug offenses after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The hanging of one particular Malaysian believed to be mentally disabled sparked an international outcry and brought the countrys capital punishment under scrutiny for flouting human rights norms.

Three weeks ago, Singaporean Tangaraju Suppiah, 46, was hanged in the first execution this year for trafficking 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of cannabis although he was not caught with the drugs. Prosecutors said phone numbers traced him as the person responsible for coordinating the delivery of the drugs, which he denied.

Human rights groups, British mogul Richard Branson and the United Nations have urged Singapore to halt executions for drug-related offenses as increasing evidence shows the death penalty is ineffective as a deterrent. But Singapore authorities insist that all prisoners get due process of law and that capital punishment remains part of Singapores comprehensive harm prevention strategy which targets both drug demand and supply.

Apart from Singapore, Amnesty International said Indonesia carried out 112 drug-related executions last year by firing squad after a hiatus since 2016. In contrast, neighboring Thailand has legalized cannabis while Malaysia has ended the mandatory death penalty for serious crimes.

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This story was first published on May 17, 2023. It was updated on May 18, 2023 to correct the number of prisoners on death row in Singapore. There are some 60 prisoners on death row, not 600.

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CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  A Chinese envoy asked Australian authorities on Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in the search for 39 crew members who were aboard a Chinese fishing boat that capsized in the Indian Ocean, as Chinese media reported two bodies had been recovered.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian told reporters. We wish that our Australian colleagues would coordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible.

Xiao said China wanted to coordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, in the search and rescue effort.

The search coordinator, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, said three aircraft and seven ships including three Chinese navy ships were involved in the search in the center of the Indian Ocean on Thursday. A Sri Lankan navy ship was also heading for the scene, the authority said in a statement.

Two days after the capsize of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, the authority remains hopeful for a successful outcome, however the time elapsed combined with the weather conditions experienced make survival more challenging, it said.

Two bodies were pulled from the ocean on Thursday afternoon by the Chinese navy, Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The upturned hull was spotted Tuesday from a cargo ship 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth, the Australian search coordinator said.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

India, whose ties with China have been strained by a deadly border dispute, said it sent reconnaissance planes to help in the search.

The aircraft have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, navy spokesman Commander Vivek Mehul said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

The search authority said the multinational search effort continued Thursday over an area of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles) south of where the upturned hull was found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Chinese and international agencies remained positive about the search and rescue operation.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing. Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

The capsized boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd.

Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, had been operating near the upturned hull and continued to search on Thursday, the Australian authority said.

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Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma in New Delhi contributed to this report.

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Jakarta: Most of the merchants from the Arabian Peninsula who settled in Batavia in the late 18th century did so in Pekojan, which some locals still regard as the neighborhood's heart.

The capital city of the Dutch East Indies at the time was Batavia, which is equivalent to Jakarta today. Different ethnic groups were also required to reside in particular areas, and Dutch colonial rulers were very particular about implementing racial division.

One of these places was Pekojan, which was a witness to both segregation and the character of the Arab community, which was able to overcome it and embrace the diverse cultural influences of its new home. The landmark structure in the Arab neighbourhood and one of Jakarta's oldest mosques, Langgar Tinggi, is a living example of this with its eclectic design.

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The mosque, which was built nearly 200 years ago, has kept its original shape, unlike the majority of Jakarta's historic buildings.

"Look at this building; it was constructed in 1828, and it is still standing today. Since it was built, this mosque has remained unchanged and original. Caretaker of Langgar Tinggi Achmad Alwi Assegaf told Arab News, "We don't want it changed.

On land donated by a prominent South Arabian merchant family, Abubakar Shihab, a Muslim trader from Yemen, constructed the two-story mosque.

During that time, a large number of prosperous Arab traders from Southeast Asia supported mosques and other places of worship for Muslims in nations that non-Muslim European powers had colonised.

"These were the gifts from earlier generations... According to Assegaf, whose own family emigrated to Batavia from Yemen seven generations ago, they constructed mosques, prayer rooms, and funded the commemoration of Islamic holidays so that people in Pekojan observed them as they were done in Yemen.

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The old neighbourhood had also adapted to the various lifestyles of its nearby Chinese, European, and indigenous populations.

The mosque's wooden components, red roofing tiles, and white walls defy the stereotype of what a mosque looks like. A closer inspection reveals a fusion of architectural traditions that helped shape it.

According to Assegaf, Portuguese architecture, which was popular at the time, served as the inspiration for its pillars. While the style of the building's base was typical throughout Java, it incorporates Chinese building tradition in its doors, windows, and support beams.

"Fusion occurred. According to Assegaf, Langgar Tinggi exhibits architecture from all the people we had traded and coexisted with, not just that of the Arabs.

Pekojan has lost many of its original residents over the years. Wealthier individuals have relocated to other areas of Jakarta, and numerous original structures in the neighbourhood have fallen into disrepair.

Since his family has been residing in Pekojan since 1910, livestock trader Abu Sulthan has remained there. However, he had been noticing how the neighborhood's distinctiveness was gradually vanishing.

"There used to be many Arabs in this area. There were many traders back then," he said. Although many have already left, it is still referred to as an Arab neighbourhood.

The Langgar Tinggi caretaker, who insists that Pekojan still serves as a benchmark for Arab culture, is the one who, despite all odds, maintains optimism that the lost glory will one day be restored.

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According to Assegaf, "the culture of Yemen has always been upheld in Pekojan," citing the area's culinary heritage and demonstrating some of the genuine Arab dishes that are served at nearby restaurants.

"Hotel chefs also learn (to cook) here," he claimed. "The individual identity still exists."
ROME (AP)  A car driven by someone with apparent psychiatric problems rushed through a Vatican gate Thursday evening and sped past Swiss Guards into a palace courtyard before the driver was apprehended by police, the Holy See said.

Vatican gendarmes fired a shot at the speeding cars front tires after it rushed the gate, but the vehicle managed to continue on its way, the Vatican press office said in a statement late Thursday.

Once the car reached the San Damaso Courtyard of the Apostolic Palace, the driver got out and was immediately arrested by Vatican gendarmes. The Vatican said the driver was about 40 years old and was in a serious state of psychophysical alteration. He was being held in the Vatican barracks.

It wasnt clear if Pope Francis was anywhere near the incident, which occurred after 8 p.m. at the Santa Anna gate, one of the main entrances to the Vatican City State in the heart of Rome.

Francis lives on the other side of Vatican City at the Santa Marta hotel, where at that hour he would normally be having dinner and retiring to his room. The Vatican statement said that as soon as the gendarmes sounded the alarm of an incursion, the main gate blocking access to the piazza in front of Francis hotel was shut.

Pope Francis leaves after the weekly general audience at St. Peter's square in The Vatican on May 17, 2023.





















The incident was a rare incursion into the city state, much of which is off limits to the general public, especially at night.

While visitors can access St. Peters Basilica and the Vatican Museums during business hours, and people with doctors prescriptions can go to the Vatican pharmacy, permission is required to get into other buildings in the enclave.

The Apostolic Palace, which houses the papal apartments, key reception rooms, the Vatican archives and offices, is guarded around the clock by Swiss Guards and gendarmes who man various checkpoints.

Its not the first time that someone with apparent psychiatric problems caused a disturbance at the Vatican. During a 2009 Christmas Eve Mass, a woman jumped the barricade of St. Peters Basilica and tried to attack Pope Benedict XVI. He was not harmed, though a cardinal walking in the procession broke his hip in the ruckus.

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Russia fired 30 cruise missiles against different parts of Ukraine early Thursday in the latest nighttime test of Ukrainian air defenses, which shot down 29 of them, officials said.

One person died and two were wounded by a Russian missile that got through and struck an industrial building in the southern region of Odesa, according to Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the regions military administration.

Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv as the Kremlins forces targeted the capital for the ninth time this month in a clear escalation after weeks of lull and ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive using newly supplied advanced Western weapons.

Debris fell on two Kyiv districts, starting a fire at a garage complex. There was no immediate word about any victims, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv Military Administration, said in a Telegram post.

Ukraine also shot down two Russian exploding drones and two reconnaissance drones, according to authorities.

The missiles were launched from Russian sea, air and ground bases, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian commander in chief, wrote on Telegram.

Several waves of missiles were aimed at areas of Ukraine between 9 p.m. Wednesday and 5.30 a.m. Thursday, he said.

Russian forces used strategic bombers from the Caspian region and apparently fired X-101 and X-55-type missiles developed during Soviet times, Kyiv authorities said. Russia then deployed reconnaissance drones over the capital.

In the last major air attack on Kyiv, on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses bolstered by sophisticated Western-supplied systems shot down all the incoming missiles, officials said.

That attack used hypersonic missiles, which repeatedly have been touted by Russian President Vladimir Putin as providing a key strategic advantage. The missiles, which are among the most advanced weapons in Russias arsenal, are difficult to detect and intercept because of their hypersonic speed and maneuverability.

But sophisticated Western air defense systems, including American-made Patriot missiles, have helped spare Kyiv from the kind of destruction witnessed along the main front line in the countrys east and south.

While the ground fighting is largely deadlocked along that front line, both sides are targeting each others territory with long-range weapons.

Meanwhile, Kremlin-installed authorities in occupied Crimea reported the derailment of eight train cars Thursday due to an explosion.

Russian state media reported the train was carrying grain.

Quoting a source within the emergency services, state news agency RIA Novosti said that the incident occurred not far from the city of Simferopol. The Crimean Railway reported that the derailment was caused by the interference of unauthorized persons and that there were no casualties.

The Russia-installed head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, said that train services on the affected section of the line were suspended.

Also, two people were wounded in a drone attack in Russias southern Kursk region, which borders Ukraine, the regional governor reported Thursday.

In a Telegram post, Roman Starovoit claimed Ukrainian forces dropped an explosive device from a drone on a sports and recreation complex.

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Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP)  Kansas Democratic governor on Thursday vetoed parts of the Republican-backed $6 billion funding plan for the states K-12 schools, setting up a likely legal battle that will test her offices powers.

Gov. Laura Kelly, who won reelection in the conservative state in November, issued a statement explaining her decision to take the unprecedented step of vetoing parts of the proposed education budget, saying she objected to one provision, in particular, that she says would cut funding for rural public schools, which have been dealing with declining enrollment.

This provision pulls the rug out from rural school districts at the 11th hour, Kelly said. If the provision is enacted, it will bring dangerous and devastating consequences for our rural districts.

Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, leaders of the GOP-controlled Legislature, quickly issued a joint statement criticizing Kelly, saying the states constitution limits line-item vetoes to appropriations.

We strongly encourage the Attorney General to immediately review this unconstitutional overreach, they said.

The spending plan, which would provide the bulk of the money that the states 286 school districts rely on, would also expand a program aimed at providing private school scholarships for low-income families. Although Kelly opposes that provision, she didnt veto it.

Kelly said that because the bill mixed policy with funding, the Kansas Constitution allows her to veto parts but not all of the bill, as it does with legislation setting the states annual budgets. Top Republicans are likely to object and to challenge the assertion in court.

The issue has never been tested legally, creating uncertainty about how much money school districts might have and what policies they might face the next academic year.

In her statement, Kelly said the GOP-backed bill would change the way districts count their enrollment, which determines their funding. Currently, districts are allowed to use one of the two previous school years to determine how much money they will receive.

The new education bill requires districts to use the current or previous years enrollment to determine appropriations. That provision would force districts with declining enrollments to immediately make changes to budgets they have already approved for the upcoming year, she said.

Kelly also noted that the Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the current method for determining enrollment, and she said changing the formula would raise questions over the states compliance with that law.

Education groups had pushed Kelly to veto the bill even though it would increase the states total aid to districts by about 4% for the next school year. The increases would vary by district, with 29  most with fewer than 700 students  receiving less aid than they did this school year.

Kelly has signed education bills with a similar marriage of funding and policy in the past. But she and top Republicans clashed repeatedly over her handling of the coronavirus pandemic. GOP lawmakers forced her to accept a whittling away of the powers of her office and of local officials to close schools and businesses and impose mask mandates.

If Kelly had vetoed the entire bill, she would have forced a special legislative session to ensure that schools are funded for the next school year because lawmakers have adjourned for the year. If she were to lose a court battle over her vetoing parts of the bill, its unclear if the entire bill would become law or if it would die altogether.

Educators also were upset that GOP lawmakers rejected Kellys proposal to phase in a 70% increase in funding for programs for students with physical or intellectual disabilities, or behavioral problems. It would have required an extra $72 million in the next state budget, but legislators only approved $7.5 million.

Kelly said she was disappointed that lawmakers didnt increase special education funding and that they need to correct their mistake when they return for next years session.

In a statement Thursday, the Kansas Association of School Boards praised Kellys line-item veto and also expressed disappointment in lawmakers inadequate response to special education funding at a time when the state has a record budget surplus.

And educators opposed provisions that would expand an income tax credit program for donors to funds that provide annual private school scholarships of up to $8,000 annually to students from low-income families. Although the total credits would remain capped at $10 million a year, more students would be eligible for the scholarships.

Kelly said most Kansans dont support such policies, and she chastised lawmakers for logrolling them into the education funding bill rather than proposing them as separate bills.

Conservative Republicans wanted to pass a far broader plan to use state education dollars to help parents pay for private or home schooling for their children, something GOP lawmakers have enacted in other states, including Iowa,South Carolina and Utah.

Kelly is strongly opposed to the idea, saying public funds should go to public schools. Republican legislators were split.

The state constitution says that if any bill contains several items of appropriation of money, the governor can veto one or more such items while signing the rest.

While lawmakers often set policy in the budget with provisions directing how money must be spent or prohibiting some spending, those provisions are in effect only for a year. In the past, its been uncommon for lawmakers to mix spending with measures rewriting state laws permanently, so governors havent previously taken actions similar to Kellys.

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Stafford reported from Liberty, Missouri. Follow John Hanna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/apjdhanna

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  The son of a key federal witness who authorities say was killed decades ago with the help of a former Tennessee governors administration during the states largest political scandal is suing the FBI, saying it failed to protect his father.

Marrell Graham filed the federal lawsuit this week claiming that the United States actions led to the deprivation of the loss of income, services, protection, care, assistance ... counsel, and advice of his father.

Details surrounding the movie-like case were first revealed in 2021 after law enforcement officials spent more than 40 years chipping away at the case of Samuel Pettyjohns killing.

Ultimately, officials unveiled a wild scandal showing that Pettyjohn, an ally of union boss Jimmy Hoffa, was gunned down in 1979 in downtown Chattanooga after testifying about corrupt officials selling prison pardons. The slaying took place during the early phases of Tennessees notorious cash-for-clemency scandal, as federal investigators were examining whether persons in the governors office were exchanging cash for parole.

Pettyjohn became involved in the investigation after he was subpoenaed to testify about the matter. He eventually agreed to cooperate with FBI agents, even going as far as providing a list of people who allegedly made payments to the governors office for the early release of certain prisoners.

However, officials said, fear over how much Pettyjohn knew led to several sources hiring a suspected hitman  Ed Alley, a known bank robber who died in 2005 in federal prison. Former Hamilton County District Attorney Neal Pinkston said in 2021 that those sources included an undisclosed third party who paid some of the contract money on behalf of Democratic Gov. Ray Blantons administration. They said the estimated total price for the killing was between $25,000 and $50,000.

According to officials, Alley donned a wig and blackface to throw authorities off the trail.

A spokesperson for the FBI didnt immediately respond Thursday to a request for comment regarding the lawsuit.

Essentially, Mr. Pettyjohn cooperated with authorities and knew too much about what was going on locally, as well as the state level, and individuals didnt like that and so individuals hired someone to murder him, Pinkston said at the time. Here we are some 42 years later.

In 2021, a Hamilton County grand jury concluded that if Alley were alive today, he would be charged with first-degree premeditated murder of Pettyjohn.

Meanwhile, Pinkston is no longer in elected office and is representing Marrell in the case.

The cash-for-clemency scandal ultimately led to the ousting of Gov. Blanton, who was never indicted in the investigation  although three of his aides were. However, questions lingered about the extent to which the governors administration actively worked to thwart the investigation.

The 12-page federal lawsuit alleges that the FBI has refused to disclose any information surrounding Pettyjohns death after local law enforcement publicized their findings two years ago.

As a direct and proximate result of the intentional, reckless and/or negligent actions and omissions of the defendant as set forth above, the plaintiffs father, Samuel Pettyjohn, suffered a wrongful death, the lawsuit claims. As a surviving child, Graham can seek recovery for the wrongful death of his father, including the monetary value of the decedents life.

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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  Torture is how New Mexicos top prosecutor describes the treatment a 38-year-old developmentally disabled woman endured before her death at the hands of her caregivers, who he said were paid thousands of dollars a month through a special program meant to offer an alternative to institutional care.

Attorney General Raul Torrez detailed the womans injuries during a news conference Thursday, saying she died weeks after being found in the back of a van as the caregivers tried to take her to Mexico so her wounds could be treated.

The abuse and neglect that she endured was horrific and the injuries she sustained are among the worst I have seen in my career as a prosecutor, Torrez said. This was torture. Theres really no other word for it.

Three people were arrested and charged Wednesday with abuse and neglect following an investigation that began with the stop at the U.S.-Mexico border in late February.

The case spurred a statewide review of New Mexicos entire developmentally disabled waiver system. Social workers spent weeks conducting individual wellness checks on thousands of developmentally disabled people who receive care through the federally-funded waiver program.

More allegations of possible abuse and neglect were turned up, and the state Health Department canceled contracts with four providers in the Albuquerque area.

An affidavit filed by the Attorney Generals Office details the abuse that resulted in the charges filed Wednesday against Angelita Rene Chacon, 52, and Patricia Hurtado, 42, both of Rio Rancho. They face counts of abuse or neglect of a resident resulting in death, false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

Luz Scott, 53, of Clovis, an acquaintance of the women, has been charged with false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

Messages seeking comment from Daniel Lindsey, an attorney listed for Scott, were not immediately returned. Court records didnt indicate whether Chacon and Hurtado had lawyers yet.

The women were scheduled to make their first court appearances Friday.

According to the attorney generals office, Chacon and Hurtado contracted with At Home Advocacy and three other contractors to provide supplemental care for the victim. They were receiving about $5,000 a month under the waiver program to care for her.

Prosecutors say a preliminary review of available business records indicate that At Home Advocacy received nearly $250,000 to coordinate care and support for the victim in the three years before her death.

Records show the company last visited the home on Jan. 25, one month before the victim was found at the port of entry in El Paso.

According to court records, a supervisor with At Home Advocacy told FBI agents the company conducted monthly wellness visits at Chacons home but that body checks were not conducted during those visits and that no injuries were seen.

Authorities said the woman who died was severely dehydrated and drugged when she was found in the van. She also had numerous open wounds, bedsores with exposed bone and bruises and lacerations on various parts of her body.

They also described marks consistent with being restrained for a prolonged period of time.

Unable to speak when discovered by federal agents at the border crossing, she was transported to University Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, where she died on April 7. The Associated Press generally does not name people who have been abused.

Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and top health officials had warned that any caregivers who mistreat and abuse developmentally disabled or otherwise vulnerable people would be held accountable.

Republican legislative leaders also requested that the federal government investigate, saying an independent inquiry would ensure transparency and might prevent such cases in the future.

Both Torrez and Raul Bujanda, FBI Albuquerque agent in charge, called the case a wake-up call about the treatment of developmentally disabled people in New Mexico.

The woman who died could easily have been our loved one, Bujanda said. You expect, you demand that your loved one is taken care of in such a way that ... the only thing youll ever worry about is making to time to go and see them.

Torrez urged the governor and lawmakers to overhaul protocols at the state Department of Health. His suggestions included increased staff and training, mandatory inspections every 90 days and new civil and criminal penalties for companies and providers.

He tallied 12 auditors for more than 6,000 sites statewide and faulted administrators and the Legislature for relying on care providers to self-report problems.

Thats one of the fundamental problems that has arisen in this case, Torrez said, suggesting that lucrative contracts with the state provide no incentive for providers to police themselves.

State Health Secretary Patrick Allen said Thursday that an independent investigation is ongoing to identify any systemic flaws that would allow for abuse or neglect to go unchecked. He also said the agency will continue to refer any other cases of suspected abuse and neglect to law enforcement.

Persons with disabilities often rely on others for their day-to-day living. They literally entrust their caregivers with their lives, Allen said, adding that when their care is covered by a state program everyone is accountable, and we must ensure their health and safety needs are met.

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This story has been corrected to show the arrests were announced and a news conference was scheduled Thursday, not Wednesday.

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Associated Press writers Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Walter Berry in Phoenix contributed to this report.

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What does a country do with a monarchy most of its people dont want?

Im asking myself this question while watching a social media feud about who sacrificed more for our freedoms  workers or soldiers? Its the same argument that has kept the toiling classes distracted for generations, and one rulers are happy to encourage amongst the ruled.

Im not convinced its the soldiers whove done the heavy lifting. Canada never fought a war to liberate itself from a freedom-hating, anti-democratic oppressor: the rights we cherish were secured largely through peaceful political processes. The war for freedom, such as it is, was fought on our home front, not the front lines.

Our version of democracy seemed like the end result of conflict, two world wars in particular. There were doubtless many people who genuinely believed they were fighting for a greater purpose, but the bulk of those who gave their lives were sent to fight because the empire we belonged to was threatened by the imperial ambitions of another. We can make diplomatic blanket statements, generations later, that the dead all fought for any of the aforementioned values, but so many died for a monarchical empire  one whose values and purpose are at odds with our own.

That bit of history is just one of the many inconsistencies stemming from our increasingly incomprehensible relationship with the British monarchy. It is an institution most of us neither recognize nor appreciate, a tradition most of us arent interested in, and a history of which a lot of us are ashamed.

A recent Angus Reid poll indicates more than half of us want to part ways with the monarchy, and most of us wont acknowledge the monarch formerly known as Prince Charles. What are we to do when most of us have no interest in what is supposedly a core component of our democracy and history? What is the monarchys purpose if most of us dont want it?

To put it another way, when Justin Trudeaus popularity ranks as low as King Charles III, well have an election Trudeau will likely lose. But we cant vote out a king. Worse, we cant get the people we do elect to do anything to distance ourselves from an antiquated system of government whose existence undermines our sovereignty. We attempt to be an open, inclusive, modern multicultural democracy, but our relationship with the Crown subverts us. Politicians preach doctrines of reconciliation and social justice while bowing before  and subsidizing  a multibillion-dollar tax-avoidance scheme that serves to further insulate the progeny of slavers and pirates from public accountability. (And then theres Prince Andrew, who has reportedly agreed to never deny being a rapist.)

Weve been drifting away from the monarchy for some time and for several good reasons, namely major demographic changes and coming to terms with the awful truth of our colonial roots. The nation is changing, whether those in power like it or not.

Defenders of the monarchy argue that its just a nice symbol most of us choose to ignore while also arguing it is an important tradition and foundational, unifying element of our democracy. They also argue that it is too politically and constitutionally complicated to eliminate the monarchy, so its not worth doing.

If the monarchy is indeed nothing but a symbol, then all the more reason to do away with it. We are a fractured nation in need of unifying symbols and national projects. Any money spent on meaningless symbols could therefore be spent better elsewhere.

If the monarchy is supposed to provide that unity, it has failed to do so for some time. It may be a component of our democratic tradition, but our democracy also involves incremental, progressive evolution away from monarchy. The Constitution and Charter of 1982 are better unifiers than the monarchy, and represent something Canadians are immensely proud of. It seems that the momentum that led to that accomplishment four decades ago has been lost, and that, in the absence of renewed nation-building, Canadas establishment has fallen back on the monarchy in the absence of new ideas.

While the last two efforts to amend the Constitution did not succeed (and may have traumatized the baby boomers), this isnt a good reason not to try again. The nation has changed radically in the last three decades. Why should the Canadians of today be held prisoner by the constitutional failures of yesteryear? According to the survey, nearly 90 per cent of us who want to sever ties with the monarchy think those complicated constitutional debates are worth having. Id wager the bulk of the population no longer sees itself reflected in a political class, who, along with the dwindling membership of Monarchist Leagues, appear to be the last groups left in this country who care about the royals. It is the politicians, not the people, who get the taxpayer-funded luxury suites at the funerals and coronations.

I asked Allan Hutchinson, Distinguished Research Professor at York Universitys Osgoode Hall Law School, what Canadians might do about this. He pointed out that while ridding ourselves of the monarchy might be more trouble than its worth, given all the provinces and Parliament would have to agree to it, he believes there is a viable alternative: we could ignore it.

Once we cease to think that the monarchy is important, that fact alone will render them unimportant, said Hutchinson. The less we rely on the monarchy, then they will slide out of the picture. And I think this will be an important democratic initiative.

I do think we need to move on, but the best way to move on is not to do much. If people want to put their energies into constitutional change, there are many, many things that they could concentrate on which might have an effect on peoples lives. And getting rid of the monarchy is not one of them.

Hutchinson points to distribution of federal and provincial powers, which dates to Confederation, as something Canadians should address before tackling the monarchy. We might think again about the power of the Supreme Court in our political system, because even if the government may not be the most democratic institution, its more democratic than the courts are, says Hutchinson, adding this is more worthy of our attention than just getting rid of this ceremonial aspect of our tradition.

Though Hutchinson makes a strong case that the reform-minded among us may wish to put our efforts elsewhere, the sustained decline of the monarchy will likely be impossible for politicians to ignore much longer. With nearly three-quarters saying constitutional monarchy isnt worth preserving, we may be only one major royal scandal away from reopening the Constitution. If this leads us to address other unresolved, and arguably more significant constitutional issues, so be it.

Let us consider the distinct possibility, as well as the exceptional irony, that this nations constitutional inertia may soon be broken not by a groundswell of democratic reformers, but of a widely shared distaste for a profoundly unpopular King.

What a way to become a sovereign nation.

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In 2012, Mark Saunders authored a confidential report analyzing the Toronto Police Services (TPS) carding data. It concluded that there was no evidence of racially biased policing within the force. However, an investigation by the Toronto Star, using carding data and neighbourhood-level census data, revealed that Black people are more likely than white people to be carded in all of the citys 70-plus patrol zones.

Rather than acknowledging the polices systemic biases, Saunders downplayed the experiences of those affected by carding, referring to them as collateral damage.

Between 2010 and 2017, eight men were reported missing from the Gay Village community. By December 2017, Saunders publicly dismissed the possibility of a serial killer targeting LGBTQ residents and failed to warn the public about the killers years-long presence. One month later, Bruce McArthur was arrested on eight counts of first-degree murder.

In the wake of McArthurs arrest, Saunders insinuated that the community, rather than the TPS, was responsible for the delay in his capture. He suggested individuals who encountered McArthur did not come forward with crucial evidence, due to a tendency to self-vet. Remarkably, in spite of the severe consequences of a serial killer remaining undetected for years, Saunders defended the course of the investigation, claiming, With the information that we had in hand, the answer is yes.

Later that year, Saunders appeared on Metro Morning and was asked, Why are Black people in this city so much more likely to be killed or injured by police than white people? He evaded the question and discussed how many young Black boys hed stepped over as a homicide detective.

Collectively, these examples highlight a pattern of behaviour. Saunders dismisses evidence-based data illustrating discriminatory carding practices, blames LGBTQ minorities for their own plight, and turns a blind eye to the use of force against racialized communities. Clearly, his actions shed light on his myriad of shortcomings as the leader of the countrys largest municipal police service.

Against this backdrop, Saunders launched his mayoral campaign with a focus on law and order. For example, he has spoken about the need for families to keep naloxone kits by their front doors, expressed dissatisfaction with judicial courts not addressing violent crime, and called for increased visibility of constables to stop the violence and disorder in subways.

As you consider his suitability to lead our city, keep in mind that his rhetoric serves as a scare tactic, designed to prey on voters fears, while perpetuating stigmas surrounding mental health and addiction issues.

He aims to increase voters perception of crime levels in the city. Further, his diction is a signalling tool  deployed by prominent right-leaning politicians  designed to bolster the turnout of voters who opposed the police reforms sought by some city councillors during the Black Lives Matter Movement in 2020.

In addition, Saunderss campaign hinges on demagoguery, while overlooking the consensus among journalists, researchers, and policy experts that argue that public safety is not directly related to increased police budgets, a greater number of officers, or harsher punishments for criminals.

Rather, research indicates that investing in areas such as health care, housing, universal basic income, child care, universal pre-kindergarten education, and focused deterrence strategies can effectively reduce poverty and inequality. Furthermore, such investments are likely to enhance the safety and well-being of communities.

It is essential for Toronto voters to understand the implications of Saunders kind of campaign. As the sociologist Patrick Sharkey notes, Inequality creates the conditions for violence and violence amplifies inequality. The politics of law and order ignores this line of thinking.

By scrutinizing Saunderss past actions and current campaign, voters can better understand the potential consequences of his leadership and make more informed decisions at the ballot box. Yet, the patterns of his past leadership cast doubt on his aptness for the mayoral office.

Correction  May 18, 2023: A previous version of this column erroneously said the data shows crime is at a historic low in Toronto, when in fact Toronto police data shows an increase across all major crime indicators.

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Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS (18 May 1872  2 February 1970), is the most important philosopher of the 20th century, the most important logician since Aristotle, a mathematician, social critic, political activist, author of over 40 books and thousands of essays and letters addressing a myriad of topics, winner of the Nobel Prize in literature, and a pacifist.

The qualities that make Russell so different from other philosophers are his indomitable courage, unflinching spirit and capacity to stand by his views in even the most challenging circumstances for the poor masses, developing nations and marginalized peoples, even if it meant going against his own country or people.

One of the best examples of this are his speeches in favour of Indias independence against his own British Government as President of Indias League when he categorically mentioned, The British government has been gravely at fault in the past, and Mr Churchill has been even more reactionary than the government, as appeared in his opposition to the Government of India Act.

He acclaimed Gandhis contribution by regarding him unquestionably a great man, both in personal force and in political effect. He molded the character of the struggle for freedom in India. He had that scrupulous honesty which later distinguished him. Gandhi possessed every form of courage in the highest possible degree. Besides this, his opposition to World War I and his countrys involvement in it to the extent of distributing pamphlets against his government, initiating his own people to work for No Conscription Fellowship, the courage to accept what he wrote against the British Government resulting in his imprisonment in Brixton Prison in 1918 for 6 months, bear testimony to this. Not only this, as a result of his antiwar campaigning, Russell was dismissed from his lectureship at Trinity College.

Although Trinity offered to rehire him after the War, he turned down the offer, preferring rather to pursue a career as a journalist and freelance writer rather than to succumb to any authority. Russells opposition to war did not stop with the end of World War I.

He continued to remain a pacifist throughout. He strongly upheld the view that war was the outcome of possessive impulses. The best government is a world federation of Free states. In the years immediately preceding the Second World War, Russell was again an advocate of a policy of pacification.

He aimed at a dialogue with the Nazis to prevent a new conflict, but in 1940 he recognized the impossibility of dealing with Hitler.

Hence he had to change his views. He believed that though war was an evil, but in extreme circumstances, war itself could be the lesser evil. He called his position, relative pacifism.

But this position did not deter him from opposing unjust wars fought by powerful nations against poor nations. This is the reason Russell became one of the staunchest critics of Americas involvement in the Vietnam War.

He spent the 1950s and 1960s opposing the Vietnam War and primarily in campaigning against nuclear armament. The 1955 Russell-Einstein Manifesto was a document calling for nuclear disarmament and was signed by 11 of the most prominent nuclear physicists and intellectuals of the time.

Jawaharlal Nehru was one of them. In 1961, Russell was tried and sentenced to prison for two months at a demonstration in London against the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

Considering his advanced age (he was 89), the judge offered to release him if he promised good behavior ~ but even at that age Russell did not yield, and refused.

He also relinquished his privilege, as a Peer of England, of being exempted from arrest without authorization from the House of Lords. In 1966-1967, Russell worked with Jean-Paul Sartre and many other intellectual figures to form the Russell Vietnam War Crimes Tribunal to investigate the conduct of the United States in Vietnam.

He wrote a great many letters to world leaders during this period. He ceaselessly worked for the release of political prisoners in over forty countries where they were held, half forgotten, for deeds which were often praiseworthy.

He sent many representatives to both Israel and Egypt to discuss the separate and joint problems of those countries. In turn, they sent their emissaries to meet him.

He was very much concerned with the plight of the Jews in the Soviet Union and carried on a considerable and continued correspondence with the Soviet Government. In addition, he made several appeals on behalf of a very large number of Jewish families in Eastern Europe separated during World War II and wished to rejoin their relations abroad, usually in Israel.

Due mainly to his efforts, many prisoners in many lands were freed. Russell was very upset when East Germany abducted and imprisoned Heinz Brandt, who had survived Hitlers concentration camp.

Russell found it so inhuman that he returned to the East German Government the prestigious Carl Von Ossietzky Medal which it had awarded him.

As a result, Brandt was soon released. It was due to his pioneering work for prisoners that the American Emergency Civil Liberties Committee bestowed upon him the Tom Paine Award in January 1963.

Throughout his life, Russell worked in this direction and sent fact-finding representatives to many parts of the world. They travelled to most European countries, and to many Eastern countries ~ Cambodia, China, Ceylon, India, Indonesia, Japan and Vietnam.

They were also sent to Africa ~ Ethiopia and Egypt and the newer countries of both East and West Africa. They travelled to the countries of the Western Hemisphere too.

Due to Russells illustrious personality and sincere efforts, these representatives were generously welcomed by the heads of whichever country they went to.

Russell himself carried on prolonged correspondence with the various Heads of State and officials, and had discussed in London a variety of international problems with them, particularly with those from Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa.

As all this work steadily increased and became increasingly demanding, Russell realized that it was not possible to work alone.

Hence, with the help of Ralph Schoenman and Christopher Farley, he established the Bertrand Russell peace foundation.

This foundation was to deal with the more immediately political and controversial side of the world.

Though it was very difficult to generate funds, the foundation could sustain itself on the generous grants made by numerous artists, painters, sculptors and musicians of different countries.

(The writer is former Professor and Head of Department of Political Science, Benares Hindu University)
India has dealt with the problem of unbanked adults effectively as it has managed to get opened over 489.3 million new banking accounts in the past eight to nine years.

Interestingly, 56 per cent of these beneficiaries are women while 67 per cent are from rural and semi-urban areas. The scheme, named PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), has helped the Government of India make inroads in rural areas and bring underprivileged sections of society under the banking net.

The PMJDY was launched in September 2014. The financial inclusion mission received a huge response from across the country, thanks to favourable terms and conditions and extensive benefits. Thousands of people thronged to different banks to open saving accounts under the scheme that transformed the banking sector in India. It made it to the Guinness World Records for facilitating the opening of over 18 million accounts in just a week.

The Jan Dhan accounts held over Rs 1.98 trillion (roughly $24 billion) in May 2023.

These accounts are linked to several social welfare schemes. The Government of India has succeeded in reaching out to the poorest of the poor, especially during disasters. The PMJDY bank accounts proved very helpful when Covid-19 pandemic induced lockdowns forced people to stay indoors, which caused loss of livelihoods. The government released funds worth Rs 6.8 billion (roughly $8.3 million) in the PMJDY accounts. This allowed the Covid-affected, poor and vulnerable people to buy essential commodities and services.

The scheme has been a landmark achievement as it led to the comprehensive financial inclusion of almost every household in India. Financial literacy, plugging in leakages, access to credit, women empowerment, and extending services of insurance and pension to vulnerable communities are among the major benefits of the PMJDY.

There is no fee for opening a bank account under the PMJDY while accident insurance cover is provided free of cost. There is no requirement to maintain a minimum balance either.

Washington-based Brookings Institution had said that the PMJDY has had a considerable impact in expanding financial access.

The PMJDY programme has certainly helped drive access to formal financial services across India and amplified the discourse surrounding financial inclusion among public and private sector stakeholders, it said in its 2016 report.

In 2014, India used to be one of the top most unbanked countries globally. However, the PMJDY changed the scenario. The percentage of bank account holders rose from 35 per cent in 2011 to 78 per cent in 2021, according to the World Bank.

Much of that growth occurred between 2014 and 2017 as a result of a government programme that began in 2014 and provided unbanked adults with a financial account leveraging an official government identification document, revealed a World Bank report of 2021.

Inclusion of women from poor backgrounds and rural areas in the banking services is a very important aspect of the PMJDY. Globally, the majority of unbanked adults are women. Non-profit Womens World Banking stated that women cannot exercise their rights if they do not have access to financial services.

It also praised India for a huge amount of success in the last-mile delivery of banking services to underserved communities.

While many of these women are actively using their PMJDY accounts, they are doing so only to access the benefit transfers they receive from government initiatives, which means that they are simply cashing out their benefits, it said.

The global non-profit, which was formed after the first-ever UN Womens Conference on human rights in 1975, has collaborated with Indian banks to encourage women to save money in their PMJDY accounts. This would help build financial resilience for women and economic resilience in India, it said in its report on The Power of Jan Dhan.

Access to banking through PMJDY has allowed Indian women to save money they get from different sources. The report revealed that the average balance maintained by women was 30 per cent more than that by men. It reflected how the PMJDY is contributing to womens empowerment.

Womens World Banking Executive VP (Asia) Sriraman Jagannath said, We are blessed to have a platform like the Jan Dhan Yojana, which can be the worlds largest womens empowerment opportunity.
Srinagar: China and Turkey will not attend the tourism working group meeting to be held in Jammu and Kashmir's capital Srinagar next week. Apart from these, there are some other countries, whose participation in this meeting will be negligible. Pakistan has been opposing this meeting to be held in Srinagar since the beginning. Let us tell you that this meeting is being considered as one of the biggest international events to be held in Kashmir after the removal of Article 370 in August 2019.

According to media reports, it is believed that these two countries have avoided the meeting because of their best friend Pakistan. Suspicion still persists even on the participation of Indonesia in the meeting. This meeting is going to be held in Srinagar between 22-24 May. The meeting has been held at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Conventional Center on the banks of Dal Lake. In view of the meeting, strict security arrangements have been made in entire Kashmir. India has already outrightly rejected Pakistan's objections regarding the G-20 meetings. Pakistan says that organizing this meeting in India Srinagar is a violation of the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and international law.

India had given a befitting reply to Pakistan and said that it is not that this meeting is being organized only in Srinagar. Before the summit, such events are being organized in all the states and union territories of the country. Let us tell you that the neighboring country China also abstained from the G-20 meeting held in Arunachal Pradesh in March.

Lalu Prasad Yadav was railway minister in Manmohan Singh's government, ED to question Rabri Devi today

App developers and start-ups have expressed their disapproval of Google's new payment policies

Notes worth Rs 1070 crore were filled in two trucks, the vehicle broke down on the way, the force had to be called
The Delhi government on Wednesday evening sent a proposal to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena to replace Secretary, Services, Ashish More.

Former Delhi Jal Board CEO A K Singh, a 1995-batch (AGMUT cadre) IAS officer, will replace More.

AK Singh will be the new Services Secretary in place of Ashish More. According to the SC order, the decision of the Delhi government is binding on the L-G, a Delhi government official said.

Earlier on Monday, the Delhi government had issued a show-cause notice to Services Department Secretary Ashish More for not complying with its direction to replace him with a new officer.

Delhis Services Secretary Ashish More was removed from his post on Thursday hours after the Supreme Court ruled that control of services or appointments and transfer of officials, vests in the Delhi government, not the Lieutenant Governor.
Taking stringent action against the engineers concerned for the delay in the construction of a school in Rohini Sector 6, Delhi PWD Minister Atishi on Thursday issued show-cause notice to the engineers.

Earlier on Wednesday, Atishi had inspected the new building block being constructed in a Delhi government school located in Rohini Sector-6. During the inspection, the minister observed delays and negligence in the construction work.

In response to this, the department as per her directions promptly issued notices to the Executive Engineer, Junior Engineer, and Assistant Engineer. If the engineers fail to provide a satisfactory response within three days, departmental action will be taken against them, an official statement said.

On Wednesday morning, during a visit to Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in Sector-6, Rohini, the Delhi PWD minister discovered that the construction work of the new building block was significantly behind schedule. The tiling, sanitary fittings and other finishing work in the toilet block were incomplete.

Additionally, electrical fittings in the classrooms of the new block were also unfinished. It was observed that while some work was delayed, there was a severe shortage of workers at the site. Furthermore, during the inspection, it was found that the flooring in some rooms was not done properly. The building had paint smudges visible in various places, and the cleaning work was still pending.

Observing all these discrepancies, Atishi reprimanded the engineers and directed the higher officials to take strict action against all those who show laxity in their work. The Delhi PWD Minister said, The Kejriwal government will not compromise with those who show negligence towards education-related works. We will not tolerate any kind of laxity in the construction of our schools, and anyone found guilty of such actions will not be spared.

Taking cognizance of the delay, the department has issued notices to the Executive Engineers- Civil and Electrical, seeking their response regarding the reasons behind the negligence. Through the notice, an answer has been sought from the engineers as to why action should not be taken against them. The answer has been sought in three days, and if they fail to reply, strict action will be taken against them. Along with this, the Delhi PWD Minister has directed the agency to eliminate the discrepancies in 10 days to avoid any stringent action by the government.
Five persons, including two Army men, were injured when an air condition gas cylinder of an Army vehicle exploded while refilling in Siliguri today. The incident triggered panic among the locals at Punjabi Para under Ward 13.

The incident has led to questions on the functioning of such workshops in a residential area.

According to police officers, it was a case of accident. The garage has been sealed.

Sources said two mechanics, Sudeb Biswas and Sanjay Sarkar, were injured when the cylinder exploded as they filled air conditioning gas in it. They were admitted in the Siliguri District Hospital. An employee of a nearby salon was also injured in the incident.

Army sources said the vehicle had been taken to the workshop for routine repair.

The AC compressor exploded during the process and it led to injuries of two Army personnel and three garage mechanics. The Army men were given medical aid and they are stable now, sources said.

Siliguri Mayor Gautam Deb, Deputy Mayor Ranjan Sarkar, leader of the Opposition at the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) Amit Jain, ward councillor and member of the mayor-in-council, conservancy, Manik Dey, among others, visited the site.

Mr Dey said they had asked the owner of the garage to shift it from the residential area even a few days ago.

I saw the Army vehicle parked near the garage a short while ago. After I went a few meters ahead I heard a loud thud and rushed back here. I found three mechanics were injured while the condition of another was serious. The Army man has sustained injuries on his forehead. Functioning of the workshop has posed a threat, he said.

Mr Deb said he had asked the SMC to look into how the garage was operating in the area.

Additional deputy commissioner of Siliguri police Subhendra Kumar said police will take steps if a complaint is filed.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday urged the Centre for the introduction of new rail projects for Odisha including two new Vande Bharat trains.

Patnaik stated this during the launching of Vande Bharat Express from Puri to Kolkata, and sought the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for early implementation of the same.

Lauding the Prime Minister for launching of several railway projects in Odisha, Patnaik said that I would take this opportunity to request Prime Minister for introduction of a Vande Bharat Express train between Puri and Rourkela connecting Sambalpur and another connecting Bhubaneswar and Hyderabad which will facilitate faster movement of passengers between these important cities, for the benefit of our aspiring people.

Stating that the State Government is developing Puri as an international heritage centre, he said Puri is the first city in the country to have 100 percent drink from tap facility.

Dwelling on the proposed Puri airport, he said Recently, I had met the Prime Minister and had a detailed discussion on the proposed Shree Jagannath Puri International Airport at Puri. We will incorporate all the suggestions given by the Honble Prime Minister for making it a world class sea-side Airport.

With the cooperation and support of the PM, this airport will be ready within 3 to 4 years, he said.

Patnaik also requested for sanction to Puri-Konark new railway line which will connect two iconic marvels of our state. The State offers 50 percent of construction cost and entire land cost for the project, making it extremely profitable for Railways, he informed.

Odisha has always been very proactive in supporting railway projects in the state. People of the state have also willingly pledged their invaluable land for the railway development, hoping that railway projects will offer them many new economic avenues.

The CM also requested for early introduction of passenger services in both Angul-Sukinda line and Haridaspur-Paradip line to meet the aspirations of the people of these districts.

Stating that the bullet train dream will soon be realised, he said that introduction of Vande Bharat train is one step closer towards our aspiration of Bullet trains in India.
Taking advantage of the infighting in Telangana BJP, a resurgent Congress has called on several leaders, who are currently in the BJP, to join the party in order to unite and fight against BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao even as BJP MLA Etela Rajender denied reports that he was considering parting ways with the saffron party.

Bolstered by the Congress victory in neighbouring Karnataka, TPCC president A Revanth Reddy on Thursday named several former Congressmen, who are currently in BJP, along with dissident BRS leaders to join forces, saying the BJP cannot fight the BRS. He even pointed out that Narendra Modis invincibility has been destroyed by the victory of Congress in Karnataka.

Telangana cannot bear KCR anymore, said Reddy, while making an appeal to Vivek Venkataswamy, K Vishweshwar Reddy, Etela Rajender Reddy and Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy to join hands with the Congress. All the three, except for Etela Rajender, were earlier in Congress and had joined the BJP to fight the BRS. Etela Rajender was, however, with the BRS before falling out with K Chandrasekhar Rao. After he resigned from the BRS, he contested on a BJP ticket from Huzurabad and won with massive votes despite attempts by KCR to defeat him in his constituency. The BJP immediately made him the head of the joining committee which tried to poach leaders from other parties.

However, as per a political grapevine, Etela Rajender and the new entrants are unhappy with the current BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar. Moreover, they feel the partys age-old reliance on Hindutva wont cut much ice with the rural voters in Telangana, who have been peacefully residing with their Muslim neighbours for centuries.

The new entrants are said to be even keen to form a new party and ally with the Congress though Etela Rajender denied that he was considering jumping on the ship. He said in a tweet, Telanganas 4 crore people want KCRs directorial rule to end. Only the BJP led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president JP Nadda and Home Minister Amit Shah would be able to do this. The BJP leaders in the state of Telangana are united and constantly strive to proudly form the BJP government in Telangana. It is not my practice to switch parties.

Apart from BJP leaders, Revanth Reddy called upon dissident BRS leaders, such as Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and Jupally Krishna Rao, to join the Congress which, he said, was like a mother. He said if they had any issues with him, they could discuss with the partys Central leadership. The Congress manifesto for Assembly elections will be released on 17 September coinciding with the date of the merger of Hyderabad state in the Indian Union.
A man was stabbed to death during an alleged theft attempt in northeast Delhi and two persons were arrested in connection with the incident, police said on Wednesday.

The deceased has been identified as Rahul Kumar (26), a resident of Ashok Nagar, northeast Delhi. The accused Manish and Prashant have been arrested, police said. According to the police, the deceased Rahul was trying to snatch money from the accused Manish and Prashant. They wrestled with each other for a while. Then Manish took out a knife from his scooty and stabbed Rahul multiple times, police said.

Information was received at around 2.16 pm on May 17, regarding a stabbing incident near Samuday Bhawan, Jyoti Nagar northeast Delhi. It was found that Rahul Kumar, age 26, a resident of Ashok Nagar had been stabbed. Then he was rushed to GTB Hospital, where the doctors declared him dead on arrival, the police said.

As per the police inputs, the deceased had multiple stab wounds in the torso, lower abdomen and temple region of the head.

He (Rahul) used to work as a halwai. He also had a past criminal record. A case under the Gambling Act and another of house theft had been registered against him, the police added.
With an eye on the state assembly polls due at the end of this year, the BJP Government in Madhya Pradesh has legalised more than 6,000 unauthorised colonies located in urban areas across the state.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will officially declare all these hitherto illegal colonies legal at a grand function to be held at the CM House in Bhopal on 23 May. He will also hand over the approved maps of plots in the legalized colonies of Bhopal to their owners during the function.

State Urban Development and Housing Minister Bhupendra Singh said on Thursday that similar functions would be held simultaneously on 23 May in all the urban bodies where similar illegal colonies have been legalised in the state.

Singh informed that the decision to legalise the illegal colonies in the state was taken by Chief Minister Chouhan himself.

In order to implement the decision, the state Urban Development and Housing Department has had to draft, formulate and implement new rules. After the new rules came into force, about 6000 illegal colonies have been declared legal.

The minister said as a result of being legalised, the residents of all such colonies would start getting several benefits. They would become eligible beneficiaries of many government schemes, get bank loans sanctioned and build houses with government-approved maps in such colonies.

Singh informed that after the preliminary publication of a list of 2,282 colonies in municipal corporations and subsequent finalization of 1,032 layouts, the building permission has been accorded and works initiated in 929 such colonies.

Similarly, preliminary publication of a list of 3,792 colonies, and layouts of 299 colonies have been published and finalized in the limits of municipal councils and city councils across Madhya Pradesh.

According to the new rules, the state government has set a target of completing all the formalities of the legalisation process of colonies by June this year.

The Assembly elections in MP are scheduled to take place at the end of this year. The recent unfavourable outcome in the Karnataka Assembly polls has made the ruling BJP in MP jittery.
Ahead of the high-profile G20s tourism working group meeting in Srinagar, security forces along the international border with Pakistan have stepped up vigil against cross-border tunneling by Pakistani agencies to push in trained terrorists.

BSF and intelligence agencies at the international border in the Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts have been put on high alert against mechanisations of Pakistan, which are building cross-border tunnels to push in terrorists and also arms, ammunition and drugs.

The BSF had detected a couple of such tunnels in the recent past. Security forces are also maintaining vigil on attempts of Pakistan to drop arms and ammunition along the border with the help of drones.

Reviewing the security arrangements for the G20 event in a high level meeting in Srinagar, DGP Dilbag Singh stressed on strengthening both border and hinterland security grid and directed the officers to focus on counter terrorist operations and to target the over-ground worker (OGW) network.

He also stressed for strengthening measures for intelligence collection especially at ground level and its sharing among the forces. He also stressed for strengthening the inter-state check posts on the national highway at Lakhanpur in Jammu.

Special DG CID J&K RR Swain, ADGP CRPF J&K, Nalin Prabhat, ADGPs SJM Gillani, Dr SD Singh Jamwal, MK Sinha, Vijay Kumar, IGP BSF Frontier Headquarters Kashmir Ashok Yadav, IG CRPF (Ops) Kashmir MS Bhatia, IGP Traffic J&K Vikramjeet Singh, IGP Hqrs PHQ BS Tuti, BGS Ops 15th Corps, DIGs Sujit Kumar, Imtiaz Ismail Parray, Abdul Qayoom and Javid Iqbal Matoo, SSP Srinagar, SSP Budgam, AIGs of PHQ, SSP Security, SSP Traffic Srinagar besides Kashmir based IR and armed police Commandants attended the meetings.

DIGs and SSPs briefed about the prevailing security scenario in their respective jurisdictions besides measures taken to ensure a peaceful environment in the valley.

Stressing for further strengthening the coordination among all forces, DGP said that a close liaison must be maintained at every level to foil any attempt of troublemakers and strict action to be taken against any person involved.

He directed for increased patrolling and night domination to ensure that anti-peace elements are not given any chance to create any disturbance. He stressed on maintaining alertness for which he advised placement of check posts and joint patrolling to check the movement of anti-national elements especially on inter-district routes and in periphery.

The DGP stressed for ensuring all the possible measures to ensure security of vital installations and protected persons. He advised the officers that the security plans to be reviewed in view of changing circumstances and be executed on ground efficiently to foil any nefarious design of anti national elements.

The DGP discussed in detail all arrangements to be made for smooth conduct of the event and directed officers to ensure that all the necessary arrangements are in place well in time. Emerging challenges and their counter measures were also threadbare discussed during the meeting.

He emphasized coordinated security arrangements for the event among all the forces besides with civil administration. The DGP also stressed for reviewing all the arrangements jointly by all the stakeholders to ensure synergy and better coordination.
In a major breakthrough, the Haryana Police arrested four gangsters linked to the Lawrence Bishnoi and recovered illegal weapons from their possession. All the four have a history of crimines.

Giving this information on Thursday, a spokesperson of the Haryana Police said four bulletproof jackets, four bulletproof helmets, one country made pistol, 16 cartridges, one mobile phone and one WiFi dongle was seized from the arrested accused.

The gangsters have been identified as Ankit alias Dhaulia and Ajay alias Bhola, both residents of Dandma, Ashuraj alias Lucky, a resident of Dwarka and Ravindra alias Mintu of Dabdhani district Bhiwani.

Earlier on Wednesday, in a crackdown against organised crime syndicates, at least four gangsters were arrested following a joint operation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Special Task Force of Haryana Police. The joint force conducted raids at 77 locations, 25 of which were noted by the NIA and 52 by the STF.

Those arrested included Banti aka Pardhan, resident of Desalpur, Jhajjar district; Sunil, resident of Tarkhan, District Jind, Rahul, resident of village Kadarpur, District Gurgaon, and Rohit, resident of village Bisar, Nuh.
Himachal Pradesshs Kangra Tea has become the second product of the country to get registered with the European Union (EU) as a protected Geographical Indication (GI), paving the way for the sale of the product in European countries.

This was stated by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu here on Thursday. He said that registration was an important tool to recognize the quality, genuineness, and reputation of the product in the European markets.

This would prove to be a boon for the sale of Kangra tea as it has received international recognition and would benefit the Kangra tea growers of Palampur, Baijnath, Kangra and Dharamshala in Kangra district, Jogindernagar of Mandi district and Bhattiyat area of Chamba district, said the Chief Minister.

Sukhu said that the present state government was committed to preserving the traditional products of the state and has launched various initiatives to benefit the local artisans and weavers.

He said that GI status has been given to more than 400 traditional products of the State including Kullu shawl, Chamba Rumal, Kinnaur shawl, Kangra painting, Lahaul woolen socks and gloves.

The registration process for GI status for Himachali cap, Sirmauri Loeya, Mandi Sepubari, Chamba metal craft, Kinnauri apple and Kinnauri ornaments was under consideration with the Registrar of Geographical Indication, Chennai, he added.

He lauded the efforts of Himachal Pradesh Science Technology and Environment Council (HIMCOSTE) for completing the tedious process of its registration of Kangra tea with the EU and also congratulated Agriculture Department, IHBT Palampur and Kangra Valley Small Tea Planters Association for their contributions towards this achievement.

Kangra tea is known for its unique taste and fragrance, attributed to its abundant pyrazine contents.

Additionally, it also possesses medicinal values due to antioxidants, phenolic compounds, tryptophan, amino acids, theanine glutamine and catechin.

Kangra tea was given GI status in the year 2005 by the Registrar of Geographical Indicators Chennai and now after registration with EU, the sale of Kangra tea is expected to grow thereby benefiting the Kangra tea growers of the State, said the Chief Minister.

During the British era, Kangra tea was exported to European markets and because of its quality it has bagged various awards from the markets of Amsterdam and London between the years 1886 to 1895.

However, without a registration certificate, selling Kangra tea in European markets was not possible until now. But now its registration opens up opportunities for Kangra tea in European markets as well.
Manila: Following Kuwait's suspension of issuing new visas to Filipinos, the Philippine government announced on Wednesday that it was in discussions with the Gulf state to try and resolve recent labour and travel issues.

After the horrific murder of domestic worker Jullebee Ranara in February, which led Manila to halt the deployment of new workers to the Arab country, the Philippines has been working to address issues involving its migrant workers in Kuwait.

This week, a delegation from the Philippines is in Kuwait to talk about shared labour issues and to get more information about the visa suspension Kuwait announced last week.

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Eduardo De Vega, Undersecretary for Migrant Workers at the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, announced that talks would begin again today.

"What we are bringing to the table is a reassurance that we want to resolve outstanding issues for the benefit of our employees and the mutual benefit of both countries," the statement reads.

De Vega stated that the Philippines wants to understand Kuwait's perspective while also outlining its position on the current problems "so that we could lift the suspension" on first-time worker deployment to Kuwait.

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We want to resolve these differences and avoid making them a long-term issue, he continued.

"We don't expect a resolution this week, but there are some encouraging signs that we could keep talking in the future until we are able to close the gap or resolve what they need and what we need from them, like improving the working conditions for our employees," the statement reads.

According to Department of Migrant Workers data, there were more than 24,000 instances of abuse and violation of Filipino workers in Kuwait last year, a sharp increase from the 6,500 cases in 2016.

Ranara's murder in Kuwait in late January, when her burned remains were found there, was not the country's first such incident involving Filipinos.

Following the murder of domestic helper Joanna Daniela Demafelis, whose body was discovered in a freezer at an abandoned flat, the Philippines banned worker deployment to Kuwait in 2018. The following year, both nations signed an agreement providing for worker protection, and the ban was partially lifted.

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Following the murders of Constancia Lago Dayag and Jeanelyn Villavende, who was tortured to death by her employer, the Philippines once more imposed a worker deployment ban in January 2020. After Kuwaiti authorities accused Villavende's employer of murder and gave her a hanging verdict, the embargo was lifted.

According to De Vega, the most recent Philippine ban was implemented "because someone was killed." The integrity of the country is at risk, which is why we took this action.
Madhya Pradesh will very soon become the first state in India to send elderly people on pilgrimage by air free of cost, state government officials have said here on Thursday.

At a meeting chaired by Home and Religious Affairs department Additional Chief Secretary Dr Rajesh Rajora, it was decided that the first batch of pilgrims would take off from the Bhopal airport on 21 May to visit Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will be present at the airport to see off the pilgrims.

The officials pointed out that MP is the first state in the country to launch this free air trip facility for pilgrimage.

The officers said 32 pilgrims over the age of 65 years would benefit from this free air trip for their pilgrimage. Among them are 24 men and eight women.

As per the terms of the scheme, people above the age of 65 years who are not income tax payee are eligible to avail the facility to visit pilgrimage sites.

The officers said earlier it used to take at least four to five days for such people to complete a pilgrimage travelling by train. Now, the elderly people will be able to return home within 24 to 36 hours by availing the air travel facility.

Following the first set of pilgrims, several other elderly people would also be sent by air on pilgrimage to different sites across the country, as per a schedule.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that Mukhya Mantri Sikho-Kamao Yojana will provide new opportunities of employment, progress and development to the youths in the state.

Mukhya Mantri Kaushal Kamai Yojana was renamed as Mukhya Mantri Sikho-Kamao Yojana and was approved yesterday in the state Cabinet meeting which was chaired by the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister in Bhopal.

Under the scheme, at least one lakh youth will be provided with training in establishments. Local residents of Madhya Pradesh, 18 to 29 years old youth, whose educational qualification is 12th or ITI or higher, will be eligible to be covered in the scheme.

After the training, the State Council for Vocational Training (SCVT) certificate will be given by the Madhya Pradesh State Skill Development and Employment Generation Board (MP SSDEGB). The scheme will provide stipend to the youth along with training.

Chouhan said: The new scheme will give wings to the youth by enhancing their capacity so that they can fly high in the open sky and they get new opportunities for employment, progress and development.

Under the scheme, the registration of establishments giving training to youth will start from June 7 and the registration of youth willing to learn new skills will start from June 15 and the placement will start from July 15.

From July 31, the contract will be processed between the establishment that gives the training and the state government. The youth will start working from August 1. Financial assistance will be provided to the youth during the period of learning from work.
Hitting out at Sachin Pilot for his ultimatum to the Ashok Gehlot Government in Rajasthan on his three demands, chief ministers advisor and independent MLA Sanyam Lodha said the former deputy chief minister wanted to be a martyr by simply cutting nails.

Sachin Pilot had issued the ultimatum over his demands pertaining to corruption and paper leak on the culmination of his Jan Sangharsh Pad Yatra on May 15.

Interacting with the media at a consecration ceremony of Khetlaji Temple in Sinderath village, 10 km from the Sirohi district from May 15-17, Lodha said Pilots movement wont have an impact on the public as and no one is taking him seriously.

A video clip of the chief ministers advisor went viral on social media this morning.

He further said, Despite losing the posts of deputy CM and PCC presidents posts, Pilot managed to retain the bungalow designated for a minister in Civil Lines near Raj Bhawan. He wanted an entry into the assembly through a VVIP porch but failed to succeed in it. He always seeks Delhis (AICC headquarters) intervention in his favour. Thus he sits in the front row of the house, why?

Instead of making himself a laughing stock, Pilot should work within the discipline and decorum of the party to which he belongs, Lodha, a supporter of the Gehlot Government along with 10 other Independent MLAs, exhorted him.

Lodha further pointed out that the people seen surrounding Pilot are associated with some or the other sponsored groups. These are the horses, and this is the ground. The account will open up when election will be held, he remarked.

I raised my voice against the scams of the previous BJP government in the legislative assembly in the last four and half years. But not a single person from the Pilots team stood by me. I have effectively raised the issue of paper leak in the Vidhansabha on Home Department or Education debate, but Pilot has never supported it. Now, you want to become a martyr by cutting your nails, Lodha asked.

Asked about plans of Pilot, Lodha told The Statesman that he always wanted to be the chief minister of Rajasthan, he wont settle for anything less. But now, people have understood his game plan after the Manesar episode in 2020 when he (Pilot) tried to topple the Gehlot Government on the alleged horse trading by the Opposition BJP, his move wont make any dent on the Congress party and prospects of the other MLAs supporting the Gehlot regime.

It is pertinent to mention here that on May 15, the Pilot faction had openly given an ultimatum to the Gehlot government to solve their three main demands pertaining to corruption and paper leak cases within next 15 days, otherwise they would launch an indefinite statewide andolan (agitation).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the Central government is conducting a special campaign to conserve local and rural museums and 10 special museums are being developed to immortalize the contributions of tribal communities in Indias freedom struggle movement.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the International Museum Expo, 2023 at Pragati Maidan. The Expo is being organized as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav to celebrate the 47th International Museum Day (IMD).

During the programme, the Prime Minister inaugurated a virtual walk-through of the upcoming National Museum at the North and South Blocks.

He said the IMDs theme of Museums, Sustainability and Well Being highlights the priorities of todays world and makes the event even more relevant. The Prime Minister expressed hope that todays efforts will make the young generation better acquainted with their heritage.

Mentioning his visit to the Museum before arriving at the venue for todays event, he praised planning and execution efforts which helped in creating a huge impact on the mind of the visitor. He expressed confidence that todays occasion will be a huge turning point for the world of museums in India.

Underlining that a lot of the heritage of the land was lost during the period of slavery which lasted hundreds of years when ancient manuscripts and libraries were burnt to the ground, the Prime Minister emphasized that this was not just a loss to India but to the heritage of the entire world.

He lamented the lack of efforts after Independence towards reviving and preserving the long-lost heritage of the land where the lack of awareness among citizens created an even bigger impact.

Recalling the Panch Pran or the five resolutions taken by the country during the Azadi Ka Amrit Kaal, the Prime Minister emphasized Taking pride in our heritage, and underlined that a new cultural infrastructure of the country is being developed. In these efforts, the Prime Minister said, one can find the history of Indias fight for independence as well as the thousand-year-old heritage of the country.

Giving examples of conserving the heritage of the land, the Prime Minister mentioned Dandi Path where Mahatma Gandhi marched during the Salt Satyagraha and the memorial built at the spot where he broke the salt law.

He referred to the redevelopment of Mahaparinirvana Sthal of Dr B R Ambedkar into a National Memorial at 5, Alipore Road in Delhi along with the development of Panch Teerth related to his life, in Mhow where he was born, in London where he lived, in Nagpur where he took initiation, and the Chaitya Bhoomi in Mumbai where his Samadhi exists today.

He also gave examples of the Museum at Sardar Patels Statue of Unity, Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab, Govind Guru Jis memorial in Gujarat, the Man Mahal Museum in Varanasi and the Museum of Christian Art in Goa.

He also touched upon the Pradhan Mantri Sangrahalaya dedicated to the journey and contributions of all the former Prime Ministers of the country in Delhi and requested all to visit this museum once.

The Prime Minister unveiled the Mascot of the International Museum Expo; the Graphic Novel  A Day at the Museum; the Directory of Indian Museums; the Pocket Map of Kartavya Path; and Museum Cards.

The Mascot of the International Museum Expo is a contemporized version of the Dancing Girl made of wood in the Chennapatnam art style. The Graphic Novel portrays a group of children visiting the National Museum where they learn about the different career opportunities that are available at the museum.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave here tomorrow morning on a three-nation tour of Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia.

He will participate in the G7 Summit in Hiroshima where India has been invited as a guest country. We are also planning a Quad leaders meeting in Hiroshima, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing here today.

The Quad Summit was scheduled to be held on 24 May in Sydney but had to be cancelled after US President Joe Biden decided not to go ahead with a planned visit to Australia due to debt ceiling negotiations back home in America.

Kwatra said that since all four Quad leaders would be in Hiroshima for the G7 Summit, efforts were being made to have their meeting in the Japanese city itself. Apart from President Joe Biden of the US and PM Modi, the Quad meeting is to be attended by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The PM will also hold a bilateral meeting with the Japanese PM. He is scheduled to unveil a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima. Modi will also hold bilateral discussions with several leaders in the G7 as also with the guest countries and international organisations.

During the G7 Summit, the PM will speak at G-7 sessions with partner countries, on subjects such as peace, stability and prosperity of a sustainable planet; food, fertiliser and energy security; health; gender equality; climate change and environment; resilient infrastructure; and development cooperation.

He will then travel to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, where he will host the 3rd Summit of the Forum for IndiaPacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC III Summit) jointly with Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea James Marape on 22 May.

Launched in 2014, FIPIC involves India and 14 Pacific Island Countries (PICs), namely, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, Vanuatu, Niue, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Palau, Nauru and Solomon Islands.

On the last leg of his tour, the PM will travel to Sydney from 22-24 May.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday met with Karnataka party leaders Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar at his residence in the national capital ahead of the departure to Karnataka.

Earlier in the day, Karnataka Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar along with the partys state in-charge Randeep Surjewala held a breakfast meeting with the partys general secretary-organisation KC Venugopal.

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted, The winning team ! #Karnataka.

Kharge taking to Twitter said that Congress is committed to ushering progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka.

Team Congress is committed to usher progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka. We will implement the 5 guarantees promised to 6.5 Cr Kannadigas, he tweeted.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Siddaramaiahs supporters celebrated with sweets and firecrackers outside his residence in Bengaluru as he is set to return as Karnataka chief minister.

The Congress is all set to name Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka, and a formal announcement on the same will be made at a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting this evening here in Bengaluru. According to sources while Siddharamaiah will get the CM position, the Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is expected to invite opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka chief minister and deputy chief minister, according to sources.

They said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Rai Bareli MP Sonia Gandhi, party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other senior party leaders will attend the event.

The oath-taking ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

According to sources, Congress President Kharge worked till late night Wednesday to break the political deadlock over the next chief minister and arrived at a consensus for government formation.

Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP Meeting.

Meanwhile, security was stepped up and banners were also put up outside Congress leader Siddaramaiahs residence.

Congress bagged 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly ousting the ruling BJP, which got 66 seats while the Janata Dal (Secular) secured 19 seats.
India is planning for a Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) leaders meeting in Japan on the sidelines of the G7 Summit, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday.

While addressing the special briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to three-nation countries, Kwatra said, We are also planning Quad leaders meeting in Hiroshima with Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, President of the US Joe Biden, Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese, and of course our Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This statement came after the Quad summit, scheduled to take place on May 24 in Australia, was called off.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday said that the Quad leaders meeting in Sydney next week will not go ahead after US President Joe Biden cancelled his visit to Australia.

Meanwhile, in the special briefing, Kwatra further said that PM Modi is also scheduled to unveil a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima.

Giving details about PM Modis Japan visit, the Foreign Secretary said that at the invitation of the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, PM Modi will be travelling to Hiroshima, Japan tomorrow morning, May 19 to participate in the G7 Summit, where India has been invited as a guest country.

This would be the first leg of the Prime Ministers three-country visit.

The broad terms of the G 7 Summit preferences, in particular regarding their outreach with the invited guest countries, are one-on nuclear disarmament, two-on economic resilience and three-economic security, fourth-regional issues, fifth-climate and energy, food and health and development, Kwatra said.

There are other priorities also, such as digitization and science and technology, which would get highlighted in various sessions during the G Seven Summit, he added.

The Foreign Secretary further informed that Indias participation would be structured around three formal sessions. Two of them would be held on May 20 and the third one on May 21. The two structural sessions on the 20th are the first one that relates to food, health, development and gender equality. The second session is on climate, energy and environment, and the third session on May 21 is titled Towards Peaceful, Stable, and Prosperous World.

The Prime Minister will then travel to Papua New Guinea to host the third Summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation jointly with his Papua New Guinea counterpart James Marape on May 22.

In Papua New Guinea, Prime Minister will begin his bilateral engagements the next day with a call on the Governor General of the Pacific island country, which will be followed by a meeting with Prime Minister James Marape. This will be Prime Ministers first visit to that country during his stay in Port Moraspi.

Kwatra further stated that Prime Minister will also be meeting the Prime Minister of New Zealand during his stay in Papua New Guinea. This would be the first meeting between both the Prime Minister after Chris Hipkins became the new Prime Minister of New Zealand, who was sworn in earlier in January.
The WHO Regional Office for Europe has launched a new campaign called Eliminating mpox: Placing affected populations at the heart of our response to highlight the potential risk of a significant monkeypox (mpox) outbreak.

Although mpox is no longer considered a public health emergency of international concern, recent reports from WHO Europe show an increase in cases, with 17 new infections reported in eight countries in the European region in the four weeks leading up to May 4.

The campaign launched on Wednesday is meant to be a pre-emptive response to potential outbreak triggers, such as large gatherings for spring and summer events, inadequate testing and vaccine access, or the influx of infected individuals from other regions, Xinhua news agency reported.

Key recommendations for health authorities include promoting accessible testing and vaccination in the most affected communities, with clear information on availability and eligibility.

Other measures include developing comprehensive vaccination plans, enhancing health worker skills to identify mpox signs and offer appropriate advice and care, and declaring mpox a nationally notifiable disease to expedite detection and efficient outbreak response.

Richard Peabody, high-threat pathogen team leader at WHO Europe, stressed the importance of these measures.

Complacency is not an option. Our latest mpox policy brief provides a roadmap for countries to control and ultimately eliminate the disease in our region, he said in a press statement.

The campaign also aims to offer a platform for the most vulnerable to share their experiences and insights, said WHO Europe.

Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said he was optimistic about the campaigns potential impact.

Elimination is within our reach, but we must remember that mpox is still circulating. We must renew our collective efforts to stay on course towards eventual elimination.

This initiative follows the successful management of the largest-ever mpox outbreak in the European region in 2022, which provided valuable insights and refined control measures for the disease, according to WHO Europe.
Xian: In times of "prosperity and adversity," China wants to further strengthen its ties with Kazakhstan. On Wednesday, President Xi Jinping told his Kazakh counterpart who was in China.

China will host a summit of Central Asian leaders in person for the first time this week, strengthening ties in Russia's backyard as Beijing's relations with the West deteriorate.

As Moscow directs its resources towards the conflict in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistanall former Soviet Union membersare all looking for alternative sources of investment.

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The first of the five Central Asian leaders to arrive in the northwest Chinese city of Xian for the summit was President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, a vast steppe country with abundant energy and agricultural resources.

China and Kazakhstan should "promote the construction of a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future featuring friendship from generation to generation, a high degree of mutual trust, together in prosperity and adversity," Xi said.

Also Read: The final ship departs Ukraine as Russia controls the outcome of the Black Sea grain deal

"Your state visit to China shows the high level of ties that exist between our two nations and reaffirms the unbreakable bond with China," the statement reads.

According to Tokayev, Kazakhstan will increase its two-way trade with China from over $31 billion in 2022 to $40 billion annually by 2030.

He praised Xi for his ambitious Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, which has improved transport connectivity, and said, "Kazakhstan is interested in expanding the export of agricultural products to China."

"Kazakhstan is prepared to deliver legumes, premium frozen beef, and lamb that is free of environmental contaminants." Tokayev

Also Read: Jordan MP accused of trying to smuggle guns into the West Bank: attorney

Since the two countries' diplomatic relations were established three decades ago, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, trade between China and the five countries of Central Asia has multiplied one hundred-fold. In 2022, investment between China and the five countries surpassed $70 billion, setting a new record.

Due to COVID-19, the first leaders' summit between China and Central Asia was conducted online.

Since Xian played a key role in the historic Silk Road trade route that once connected Central Asia, choosing the city as the location for the first in-person summit is a symbolic nod to the past
Above, Naomi Boucher is wearing a handmade Burmese dress. The bottom part is called longyi that females wear, which is similar to a maxi dress. It wraps around the body and you tuck it in. The top piece has a handmade button that covers over one side of the body. You can see the button along on the right side of the top. The traditional Myanmar dresses are hand stitched and customized. Boucher is left-handed so her top and bottom dress align to the left side.
Federal prosecutors say a former guard at a notorious prison camp in Bosnia-Herzegovina who used a fabricated story to obtain refugee status in the U.S. and settled in the Boston suburbs has been arrested on fraud and other charges
Majid Al Futtaim, the leading retail, shopping mall, communities, and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, has opened the newly designed Dubai store for Italian luxury furniture maker Poltrona Frau, with a grand opening celebration last night (May 16).

The inauguration included some of the biggest names in design who were invited to experience the craftsmanship of Poltrona Frau firsthand, with a live demonstration by one of the brands skilled artisans, showcasing the manufacturing process of the iconic Chester Sofa.

The new 1,000 sqm store in Jumeirah was designed by Poltrona Frau in partnership with Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle and features a curated selection of historical and contemporary pieces such as the iconic Ouverture Sofa by Pierluigi Cerri and Souvenier DItalie, the modern outdoor collection by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba, said the statement from Majid Al Futtaim.

In addition, Ceccotti Collezioni, a Tuscan brand specialised in fine traditional cabinet-making techniques and part of Poltrona Frau since 2018, is featured in the new store with iconic pieces designed by Roberto Lazzeroni such as the iconic sofa D.R.D.P. and the Icolounge armchair.

The Fumoir armchair, a treasured historical piece flown in from the Poltrona Frau Museum in Tolentino, was also showcased alongside the Archibald Limited Edition, a stunning collaboration with artist Felipe Pantone, it stated.

This juxtaposition of past and present was placed to highlight the brand's rich history and also commitment to pushing boundaries and embracing modern design.

The grand opening offered guests an immersive experience, with four dedicated areas showcasing the history of the brand, its commitment to sustainability and Leathership as well as the focus on craftsmanship and quality of materials, it stated.

Roberto Lazzeroni, renowned Italian designer and a special guest for the event, also presented his collaboration with Poltrona Frau, which included a curated collection that was displayed at Milans Salone Del Mobile in April.

On the store launch, Fahed Ghanim, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle, said: "As we celebrate the grand opening of Poltrona Frau in Dubai we are excited to offer our customers a rare glimpse into the world of Italian luxury furniture."

"With its expanded and reimagined space, the new store not only cements the brand's position in the UAE market but also showcases the exceptional quality and craftsmanship that has made Poltrona Frau a timeless icon of luxury," noted Ghanim.

"Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle is proud to bring this unparalleled artisanal experience to our customers in just a few short months following our partnership launch with Poltrona Frau, while also planning for the second store opening set for Mall of the Emirates. This is a testament to our unwavering commitment to elevating the Poltrona Frau brand in the region and highlights the strength of Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle in delivering exceptional experiences for our customers," he added.

The grand opening follows the partnership announcement between Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle and Poltrona Frau in January this year, and the companys first entry into the Luxury Home category.

Poltrona Frau CEO Nicola Coropulis said: "The elegantly redesigned Poltrona Frau Dubai space focuses on creating an unforgettable emotional bond with our customers and instilling a deep sense of fascination with our brand and its history."

"As a brand that represents the pinnacle of Italian luxury design, we are proud to partner with Majid Al Futtaim Lifestyle to offer our customers in the UAE and the wider region a truly exceptional experience. With our focus on craftsmanship, quality, and heritage, Poltrona Frau is a natural fit for the region's elite customers seeking exclusive solutions for their homes, offices and public spaces," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Norway to supply Ukraine with 8 rocket artillery systems 18 May, 08:38 PM Ben Wallace and Bjrn Arild Gram (Photo:regjeringen.no)

In cooperation with the UK, Norway will transfer eight M270 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS) and three ARTHUR counter-battery radars to Ukraine, Norwegian Defense Ministry announced on May 18.

According to the message, the decision was made following Bjrn Arild Gram meeting with his UK counterpart, Ben Wallace.

Read also: Shmyhal and Wallace visit Ukrainian troops training in UK

Additionally, Norway will double the number of military instructors training Ukrainian soldiers in the UK's Operation Interflex this summer.

Gram said that Norway and the UK are trying to "maximize efforts" to deliver weaponry and ammunition to Ukraine.

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In February, Norway approved a 7.5 billion aid package to Ukraine over the next five years.

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Richard Davies is a journalist and podcaster. He runs the podcast consultancy, DaviesContent and co-hosts How Do We Fix It? and Lets Find Common Ground. The Fulcrum is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news platform with a goal of covering whats making democracy dysfunctional and efforts to fix our governing systems.
EDWARDSVILLE  Eight people were charged in separate drug-related incidents Wednesday by the Madison County States Attorneys Office.

Kristina M. Johnson, 38, of Fairview Heights, was charged May 17 with two counts of unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony, in two separate cases. One case was presented by the Glen Carbon Police Department, the other by the Maryville Police Department.

According to court documents, on March 28 Johnson allegedly had less than five grams of methamphetamine in Glen Carbon; on March 17 she was found to be in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine in Maryville.

Bail was set at $20,000 on each charge.

Other drug-related felony charges filed May 17 include:

 Robert E. Lee, 32 of Caseyville, was charged with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Maryville Police Department. According to court documents, on April 6 Lee allegedly had less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Mandy D. Lavite, 50, of Alton, was charged with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Glen Carbon Police Department. On Feb. 3 Lavite allegedly had was less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Wendy K. Cuvar, 46, of Mt. Clare, Illinois, was charged with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Glen Carbon Police Department. On Feb. 6 Cuvar allegedly had less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Kourtney K. Claro, 31, of Benld, was charged with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Glen Carbon Police Department. On Dec. 10, Claro allegedly had less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Paige Keils, 27, of Granite City, was charged with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Glen Carbon Police Department. On Feb. 10 Keils allegedly had less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Sarah B. Tharp, 42, of East Alton, was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Maryville Police Department. On March 26 Tharp allegedly had 15 grams of fentanyl. Bail was set at $15,000.

 Amanda N. Bridger, 32, of Caseyville, was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Maryville Police Department. On April 5 Bridger allegedly had less than 15 grams of fentanyl. Bail was set at $15,000.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)  Two construction workers were still unaccounted for late Thursday after a massive, fast-moving fire broke out at a North Carolina construction site earlier in the day, the city's fire chief said.

Fifteen workers, including a crane operator, were rescued by the more than 90 firefighters called to the five-alarm blaze in the South Park neighborhood of Charlotte just after 9 a.m., Fire Chief Reginald Johnson said at a news conference. The crane operator was taken to a hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening, Johnson said. Two workers were unaccounted for according to the construction foreman, the chief said.
GODFREY  The annual Christmas in July is planned July 21 to kick off for the Community Christmas campaign aiding area families.

Last year the annual event, founded by sisters Taylor and Lily Freer who will be hosting this year's 15th Christmas in July, raised more than $56,000, the most to date.

Community Christmas was founded by The Telegraph and the United Way. The 15th annual Christmas in July is 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. on Friday, July 21, at Freer Auto Body, 4512 N. Alby St., in Godfrey.

"There are great prizes again this year, all donated by our community," said Margaret Freer of Freer Auto Body. "The community always comes together and ensures the success of this event. The community makes this happen.

"Ticket sellers really raise the money," she said. "We could not do it without everyone's help. People realize how much this event helps others."

Tickets to sell for big prizes are available for members of the public to pick up at Freer Auto Body. Tickets are packaged in bundles of 25, and cost nothing to pick up or sell.

There are prizes for the top ticket sellers, including four Cardinals tickets for a game at 6:45 p.m. on Aug. 14, Section 147, Row 13, Seats 11-14, donated by Republic Services. There's another prize of a leather Brahmin bag with a matching wallet donated by Freer Auto Body.

"The prizes are great. We need everyones help in making this event a success," Freer said. "The first Christmas in July in July 2009 made $2,500, while last year this event raised over $56,000. These monies were used for Community Christmas in ensuring our area needy saw the magic of

Christmas. Please step up and help make this event a smashing success."

Christmas in July will be serving Sloppy Joe's for dining in or carry-out; call 618-466-6151.
HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP)  President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met Thursday aiming to showcase the strength of their alliance ahead of a Group of Seven summit where leading democracies will tackle the challenges of Russias war in Ukraine, North Koreas ballistic nuclear threats and an increasingly forceful China.

Biden recalled that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history.

I couldnt agree with you more, Biden told the Japanese prime minister as they sat with their aides at a conference table. When our countries stand together, we stand stronger and I believe the whole world is safer when we do.

Kishida noted that the global tensions had brought the U.S. and Japan closer together, that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds.

The Kishida family's home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialized nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance. Members of the G-7, which also includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union, are grappling with the territorial ambitions of Russia and China, two nuclear powers.

Biden is also appearing on the world stage while trying to manage a divide back in the U.S. on how to raise the government's debt limit. He opted to cut short what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to Asia, so he can return to Washington to try to avoid a potentially catastrophic default in June that could ripple across the global economy. It's a drama that reveals how internal U.S. politics can spill over into global forums.

While aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters that Russia's invasion of Ukraine looms large as a G-7 topic. He added leaders would discuss the state of play on the battlefield and sealing loopholes to strengthen sanctions that have been levied against Moscow.

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the U.S. president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner. The president's first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet U.S. troops at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before he headed to Hiroshima for talks with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of Russian aggression in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the U.S. and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also discussed economic matters. They addressed efforts to bolster supply chains for critical minerals, new partnerships between U.S. and Japanese companies and universities and efforts to promote renewable energy, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

Kishida had planned to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has said that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule.

The U.S. and Japanese leaders also talked about ways to reinforce their three-way partnership with South Korea, which signed an agreement in April with the U.S. to strengthen their tools for deterring a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Koreas Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta citys buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line," said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. "He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japans dependence on U.S. extended deterrence  that thats more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment."

There are outstanding issues between the U.S. and Japan. During his January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a U.S. Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official. Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims $1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

The early return to Washington to deal with the debt limit means Biden will skip planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he was to take part in a meeting of the so-called Quad partnership with leaders of Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea visit would have been the first to the Pacific Island country by a sitting U.S. president.

The White House said that Biden phoned the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, while traveling on Air Force One to personally convey the need to return to Washington. Biden invited Marape and other Pacific leaders to Washington later this year.
SPRINGFIELD  The worst kind of graft is perfectly legal.

Thats a lesson Ive observed in my 35 years as a journalist.

Ive been thinking about that lesson these past few weeks as revelations are brought forth about gifts U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas received from a rich buddy.

Let me preface my criticisms of the jurist by saying I often agree with his decisions. But that doesnt absolve him from the shady things he has done.

Thomas and his wife Ginni, received luxury vacations and private jet travel from Texas real estate magnate Harlan Crow. The justice contends he did nothing wrong and that these were just gifts from a friend.

I dont doubt that Thomas and his wife consider Crow to be a dear friend. But a more appropriate question might be whether the billionaire would be chumming around with Thomas if he didnt happen to be a Supreme Court justice.

Democrats in Congress are squawking about how wrong this relationship is. What is happening here is wrong  but probably not illegal.

When I was a young reporter in Galveston, Texas, the managing editor had a Wheels column in which he wrote a weekly love note to the auto industry.

The price of this journalistic prostitution? Every week, a car company would send him a new vehicle to test drive along with a press release espousing the models virtues.

His teenagers drove them to school. And even when they sent him a real dog with major mechanical issues, he wrote about how swell it was.

There is no such thing as a bad car, he told a group of young reporters who asked about the practice. We rolled our eyes.

Most journalists would say what he was doing wasnt ethical. The readers were never informed of this cozy relationship. But its also the kind of graft that is legal.

If pressed as to why he did it, I suspect he would have justified his actions by pointing to his salary and saying he deserved some sort of perk.

Thomas, who earns $184,000 a year as a Supreme Court justice, could make a similar claim, noting that he would make many times that in private practice.

That justification reminds me a bit of one given by another supreme court justice, Ray I. Klingbiel, who served on Illinois highest court in the 1960s. Before that he was East Moline mayor.

Sometime in 1966 Ted Isaacs, a member of then-Gov. Otto Kerner's cabinet and a wheeler-dealer, managed to put himself in a position to allocate stock in the politically connected Civic Center Bank in Chicago.

At the time, the state high court was considering the dismissal of a 35-count felony indictment accusing Isaacs of bilking the Illinois Treasury. Shortly thereafter, the court unanimously affirmed the dismissal of Isaacs' felony indictments in an opinion written by Klingbiel.

According to the book "Illinois Justice" by Kenneth Manaster, Klingbiel kept his 100 shares in a dresser drawer. Klingbiel insisted that the stock was merely a campaign contribution. But it was given after he had been elected and in the form of a stock certificate and it had been given to him by an associate of Isaacs, who had a case before the court.

"There is no doubt in my mind Isaacs was trying to influence the court with his actions," Manaster told me.

So why do educated people like Thomas and Klingbiel do stupid things like this?

Manaster attributes Klingbiels transgressions to the Illinois political culture that he had been reared in. Klingbiel served as the Republican mayor of East Moline for six years and before that worked as the city attorney. There were few regulations on campaign contributions in those days.

But that strikes me as a childs excuse: Everybodys doing it. Someone with a better moral compass would have known better.

Future U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens was appointed chief counsel to the five-member commission that investigated the allegations of wrongdoing.

Stevens was quoted in a 1969 Associated Press article saying, " Chief Justice Roy J. Solfisburg, Justice Ray I. Klingbiel and Theodore J. Isaacs are guilty of gross impropriety. "

But neither Chief Justice Roy Solisburg nor Klingbiel was ever criminally charged. "The short answer is they never could prove they took a bribe to the degree necessary needed in court," Manaster said.

The worst kinds of graft are often legal.

Stevens insisted during his 1975 confirmation that he never would have been nominated for the supreme court if not for the work he had done investigating Klingbiel and Solfisburg.

One honest man rose as two dishonest ones fell.

The episode ended with Klingbiel retiring and Solfisburg resigning from the state supreme court.

Klingbeil's final days were sad ones, Manaster said. He remained bitter about what he described as a "political push" to get him off the court.

Shaken and sorrowful, Manaster said he told one member of the commission, he knew in his heart he was not a crook, "but I was a damn fool."

Will Justice Thomas have such a revelation? Dont hold your breath.
Why does Putin need Bakhmut, and what did the drone attack on the Kremlin change 18 May, 10:43 PM Putin on May 9 next to Presidents Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan and Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan behind him (Photo:Photo:Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS)

From the experience of the Chechen wars, it is known that Russians always support their authorities regarding their perceived personal safety.

From the experience of the Chechen wars, it is known that Russians always support their authorities regarding their perceived personal safety.

There was quite a serious effort to get at least some foreign leaders to be guests at the May 9 Victory Day parade. And as a result, obviously, they could invite only those who did not have the opportunity to refuse. Did Kazakh leader Tokayev not have the opportunity to refuse? Does he not understand his reputational losses when he appears in the May 9 parade with Putin? Tokayev surely understood his reputational losses when he invited STO troops to Kazakhstan last January; when he said there was an external attack on Kazakhstan.

Video of day

Tokayev is a politician who knows how to balance reputational losses and political priorities. This is not some kind of big news. On the one hand, he can vote in the UN in a way that Russia will not like. But, on the other hand, he may turn a blind eye to the tools that allow Russia to circumvent Western sanctions. This is a traditional policy of the Kazakh leadership both during the time of Nursultan Nazarbayev and that of Kasym-Zhomart Tokayev. I would even say that Nursultan Nazarbayev was more cautious in implementing this strategy because he was historically a more independent political figure.

Is Tokayev, after the events of January 2022, always indebted to Putin? In politics, you cannot always be in debt. You choose your opportunities. If possibilities allow, you can refuse the debt. Or you can overestimate your capabilities.

As you remember, Viktor Yanukovych believed that he was in debt to Vladimir Putin, who always supported him and helped him come to power. And on the other hand, he could sign the Association Agreement with the European Union to get more Western money for the existence of his regime. And we remember how this reassessment of his capabilities ended for Yanukovych. The situation is almost the same with Tokayev.

Recently, news broke that Russia allegedly offered its own gas to Kazakhstan at a price possibly even lower than it provided to Belarus.

In exchange, Kazakhstan wants Russia to build a gas pipeline to pump Russian gas to China. Kazakhstan can afford cheap Russian gas because it can live without it. Therefore, the issue of this gas pipeline will not be related to the fact that Kazakhstan may or may not be afraid of falling into Russia's economic trap, but relates more to Chinas energy needs. Here, not only Putin and the heads of Russia's Gazprom, but also Xi Jinping and the heads of Chinese energy companies, must talk to Tokayev.

Did the drone attack on the roof of one of the Kremlin towers change anything? If it was a Ukrainian special operation, that's one story. If the Russians were cooking it themselves, that's another. It is obvious that to mobilize Russian society, they must demonstrate that there is no safety anywhere and that the only way out of the situation for every Russian citizen is to win the war. This is not a bad sign.

I think that, as Russia's military defeats continue, there will be more and more such signs in order to accustom Russian society to full-fledged, long-term military mobilization. From the experience of the Chechen wars, it is known that Russians always support their authorities regarding their perceived personal safety. If it is not possible to provide security even for Putin, then obviously, there is no security for an ordinary person in a residential area of Moscow. It is a symbol of danger.

The average Russian does not think much about the Kremlin or the State Duma. But if something can hit the center of power, then it is clear that he alone cannot hope for anything at all. If Ukrainians can get to the Kremlin, they can definitely get to his cowshed or Khrushchevka. And nothing will stop them.

This is precisely how Russian propaganda spoke about Chechnya.

Therefore, the only possibility for the average Russian to feel at ease in his bed is the cessation of the existence of the Ukrainian state. I am simply reconstructing their thoughts and intentions from the recent past. And it worked.

What Bakhmut means to the Putin power vertical depends on their plans for the future and what Bakhmut was to them. Did they consider Bakhmut simply as an ideal place to grind the human reserves of the Ukrainian Armed Forces? Did they consider Bakhmut a key to capturing the Donetsk region within its administrative borders?

From a strategic point of view, coming to Bakhmut and its complete capture does not provide such apparent opportunities for occupying other cities of the Donetsk region. Therefore, I am still inclined to think that the Russians hoped that Bakhmut would be the place where they would destroy the Ukrainian military and thus prevent the Ukrainian Armed Forces from launching an offensive against Russian positions.

Read also: 3rd Assault Brigade conducts successful advance on western outskirts of Bakhmut

The fact that "Wagnerians" are generally fighting in Bakhmut, and other parts of the Russian Armed Forces are elsewhere, preparing for the Ukrainian offensive or developing some other plans, possibly for an offensive of Russian troops in other Ukrainian regions, suggests that Bakhmut was not a priority target for the Russian army. They also used Bakhmut to grind Yevgeny Prigozhin's reserves. This is also part of the struggle in the power structures of the Russian Federation for a place near the throne.

The public quarrel between the leader of the Wagner Group, Prigozhin, and the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation, Shoigu, means restoring the position of a court jester, traditional for the Russian authorities. Russian rulers always wanted someone who could shout, scare, and grab beards while having no real political will and influence on actual decisions. It is enough to read the history of any Russian government to find such a fool. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that these foolish actions sometimes gained enormous influence, but only when the monarch wanted it. Without the monarch, they mean nothing.

One way or another, Evgeny Prigozhin plays precisely such a role in this vertical of power. His attempts to fight with St. Petersburg Governor Beglov for some of his own business projects, for example, always ended in complete defeat.

This appears to be the recent story with the Bakhmut ultimatum. First, he promised that his mercenaries would leave Bakhmut on May 10. Then he said he had already got everything he needed and would not go anywhere. We understand this is a simple attempt to keep face. They simply called him and said: "Zhenya, sit where you sit and don't... well, you understand." And he quickly wrote down another statement.

Then there are the assassinations or deaths of various propagandists. For the top propagandists like Solovyov, it means nothing. In a totalitarian state, anyone can die at any time. If you remember the 1930s in the Soviet Union, members of the Politburo of the Party Central Committee were killed, not just propagandists. They also died; we just don't remember it.

Regarding Prilepin. In general, it is a strange situation when a person who has a driver suddenly takes his seat, and the driver is in the passenger seat. And this same person takes his daughter out of the car five minutes before the explosion. We are most likely dealing with a staging that was needed for something.

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By Nidhi Verma

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd sees local gas demand growing by 6%-7% in the fiscal year to March, driven by lower prices and the resumption of supply under a deal with the former unit of Russia's Gazprom, its chairman said on Thursday.

Gas consumption in India fell by about 6% in 2022-23 as higher prices pushed consumers to cheaper liquid fuels and as Russia's invasion of Ukraine disrupted supply, forcing GAIL to ration supplies.

"We definitely see this year to be very promising as far as the natural gas consumption is concerned," said Sandeep Kumar Gupta at an earnings conference.

Gupta does not expect a spike in global liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices in the near future as stocks in Europe are at "sufficiently" high levels compared to last year, when Germany's Sefe stopped supplies to GAIL to meet its own demand.

The Indian company will get four LNG cargoes from Sefe in June, equivalent to the volumes it was getting under a deal with a former unit of Russia's Gazprom, he said.

"Hopefully we will get similar volumes in future also."

Sefe resumed supplies to GAIL from March this year.

In 2012, GAIL agreed to a 20-year LNG purchase deal with Gazprom Marketing and Singapore (GMTS) for annual purchases of an average of 2.5 million tonnes of LNG.

At the time, GMTS was a unit of Gazprom Germania, now called Sefe, but the Russian parent gave up ownership of Sefe after Western sanctions were imposed on Moscow over the Ukraine war last year.

India's gas demand is expected to rise substantially as it wants to raise the share of gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030 from 6.2% now.

Gupta said his company has received offers from more than six companies in response to its tender seeking to buy a 26% stake in an LNG plan in the U.S. and a long-term supply of gas.

Bids are being evaluated, he said, adding GAIL is also looking for long-term gas deals with Qatar and UAE.

(Reporting by Nidhi Verma; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
Description

"National Theatre Live!

BEST OF ENEMIES

by James Graham

directed by Jeremy Herrin

inspired by the documentary by Morgan Neville and Robert Gordon

Thursday, May 18th at 7:00 PM

Members $20 | Public $25

David Harewood (Homeland) and Zachary Quinto (Star Trek) play feuding political rivals in James Grahams (Sherwood) multiple award-winning new drama.

In 1968 America, as two men fight to become the next president, all eyes are on the battle between two others: the cunningly conservative William F. Buckley Jr., and the unruly liberal Gore Vidal.

During a new nightly television format, they debate the moral landscape of a shattered nation. As beliefs are challenged and slurs slung, a new frontier in American politics is opening and television news is about to be transformed forever.

Jeremy Herrin (All My Sons) directs this blistering political thriller, filmed live in Londons West End. (Approx. 180 min)"
Job Title: Project Management Specialist (Global Health Security)

Organisation: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Uganda

Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda

Salary: UGX 157,828,400  232,334,711 per annum

Solicitation Number: 72061723R10012

About US Embassy:

The United States Embassy in Kampala, Uganda has enjoyed diplomatic relations with Uganda for over 30 years. Ambassador Natalie E. Brown currently heads the U.S Mission to Uganda. The Mission is composed of several offices and organizations all working under the auspices of the Embassy and at the direction of the Ambassador.

Among the offices operating under the U.S Mission to Uganda are:

United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Centers for Disease Control (CDC)

Peace Corps

Job Summary: USAID/Uganda is seeking for qualified individuals to fill the Project Management Specialist  Global Health Security. The Project Management Specialist  Global Health Security (GHS) (the Specialist) leads efforts to improve and expand Global Health Security and pandemic preparedness, prevention, and response in Uganda. The GHSSpecialist is a technical expert in the area of emerging infectious diseases in the country, with extensive experience working with national stakeholders including government, professional associations, and the private sector. The Specialist facilitates communication and ensures collaborative working relationships with high  level decision makers, as well as technical staff, in multiple government agencies, USAID Missions, USAID/ Washington counterparts, with other United States Government (USG) partners including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of State, and other USG agencies, as well as other key stakeholders, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

The jobholder provides strategic and technical leadership in the design and implementation of USAID GHS activities. As a senior health advisor for USAID, the Specialist represents USAID and the USG in national and international fora to advise on policies, strategies, and technical issues. The Specialist will exercise programmatic oversight to manage and coordinate USAIDs GHS activities in support of the Government of Uganda and their GHS roadmap and to prevent, detect, and respond to existing and emerging pandemic threats. The GHS Specialist will serve as an Agreement/Contracting Officer Representative (AOR/COR) and/or Activity Manager for USAID programs/projects/activities. As an AOR/COR, the Specialist monitors program performance and progress, identifies implementation achievements as well as problems in performance, and initiates appropriate actions in consultation with others, as appropriate.

The Specialist is a key member of the Health Office, Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) Team. The jobholder reports to the GHS Lead Advisor or the Health Office Director or their designee and has no formal supervisory responsibility.









Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

The applicant must hold a Masters degree is required in public health, infectious disease, epidemiology, ecology, veterinary medicine or a related field. Required.

At least five (5) years of public health and/or animal health and/or related experience in developing countries including at least two (2) years of experience working with USG, international public health and/or animal health organizations, such as the WHO, FAO, and OIE is required.

How to Apply:

Eligible Offerors are required to complete and submit (Requirements (i)  (v) below are critical for compliance of the offer. Therefore, candidates MUST pay due attention to these):

A complete DS-174 Employment Application for Locally Employed Staff or Family Member (https://eforms.state.gov/Forms/ds174.pdf; [click at this link for latest version]. Offerors are required to complete sections 1 through 6 (use additional pages, if needed).

Cover letter (addressed to the USAID Supervisory Executive Officer) clearly indicating the position for which you are applying and describing how you meet the minimum requirements.

Complete curriculum vitae/resume. In order to fully evaluate your application, the resume must include:

Paid and non-paid experience, job title, dates held (month/year). Please specify unpaid or part time work. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year) will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements. (NOTE: Resume and DS-174 work experience should match.)

Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work.

Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards, or accomplishments.

Name and contact information (phone and email) of three (3) professional references. At least one of the references must be a prior or current direct supervisor.

Supplemental [separate] document specifically addressing each QRF as outlined in the solicitation

Copies of Academic Transcripts

Offers should be in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). No other file types will be accepted. All documents should be scanned into one (1) document (one (1) ATTACHMENT) which should not exceed 10MB.

Documents should be arranged and scanned in this order:

DS-174

Cover Letter

Complete Curriculum vitae/resume

Supplemental documents

Academic Transcripts

(vi) Submitted offers and documents become the property of USAID and will not be returned.

Offers must be received by the closing date and time specified in Section I, item 3, and submitted to the Point of Contact in Section I at kampalausaidjobs@usaid.gov Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.

All qualified Offerors will be considered regardless of age, race, color, sex, creed, national or tribal origin, lawful political affiliation, non-disqualifying handicap, marital status, sexual orientation, affiliation with an employee organization or other non-merit factor.

Offeror submissions must clearly reference the Solicitation number on all offeror submitted documents.

For this position, the subject line of the email MUST read:

SOL NUMBER TITLE OF POSITION, LAST, FIRST CANDIDATE NAME  Ex: 72061723R10011 Procurement Agent, Smith, Jose

Deadline: 14th June 2023

For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline
In a major relief for the makers of The Kerala Story, the Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the West Bengal government's ban on the film. Mamata Banerjee's government was the first to implement ban on the controversial movie that revolves around conversions and alleged radicalisation of young women.

A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said it is the duty of the state government to maintain law and order as the film has been granted certification by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The legal provision cannot be used to put a premium on public intolerance. Otherwise, all films will find themselves in this spot, the bench, also comprising justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, said during the hearing which is still on.

The SC also addressed the situation in Tamil Nadu where multiplexes had banned screening of the film. In the counter filed by Tamil Nadu, it was stated that the screening of the film has not been directly or indirectly prohibited within the state. Responding to the plea against the ban, Chandrachud directed the Tamil Nadu government to provide additional security for movie goers who want to see the film. No steps shall be taken by TN or its officers or instrumentalities including police to prevent screening of film, CJI said, Live Law reported.

The CJI also directed the makers to add a disclaimer that the film is 'a fictionlised version of subject matter'. Senior Advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the film producer, agreed to clarify in the disclaimer that "there is no authentic data available to back up the suggestion that the figure of conversions is 32,000 or any other established figure".

The Kerala Story, starring Adah Sharma, was released in cinemas on May 5. Directed by Sudipto Sen, the film claims women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS).
With the Supreme Court staying the ban on The Kerala Story in West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress said on Thursday that the opposition should not blame the ruling party if any issue arises due to the screening of the controversial Hindi film. The TMC maintained that the state government had imposed ban on the film apprehending tension among the communities.

"As the Supreme Court passed an order, the film will be screened again. Now if there are issues due to the film screening, the opposition should not blame us, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court stayed the ban on the film in West Bengal and also directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure the safety of moviegoers after theatre owners decided to stop screening the film due to security concerns. It is the duty of the state government to maintain law and order as the film has been granted certification by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), said a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud.

The top court also directed the producer to put a disclaimer in the movie by 5 pm on May 20 that there is no data to back its claim that 32,000 women in Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and join the Islamic State.

Directed by Sudipto Sen, The Kerala Story narrates the ordeal of three women who are trafficked to the Islamic State terror camp after being converted to Islam. The film has sparked off a political outrage with the opposition parties, including the Congress and the ruling CPI(M) in Kerala, terming it an 'RSS propaganda' to defame a particular community.

The Mamata Banerjee government banned the screening of the film on May 8, following which its makers knocked the doors of the Supreme Court. The court, while hearing the petitions, noted that statutory provisions cannot be used to put a premium on public intolerance.
India and China walked the talk on agreed agenda in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) grouping on managing disasters and cooperating on Search and Rescue (SAR) missions when the hunt for a shipwreck brought the navies of the two countries together on Wednesday and Thursday in the Indian Ocean region.

Besides displaying Indias sincere obligations as a credible and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the effort also underlines the expanding footprint of the Indian Navy.

Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal told THE WEEK: Acting on request by the Peoples Liberation Army - Navy (PLAN), Indian Navys P8I aircraft on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning carried out two sorties in multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessela Chinese deep-sea fishing vessel Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028.

The Indian Navy deployed its Air Maritime Reconnaissance assets in the Southern Indian Ocean Region in an area approximately 900 nautical miles or about 1,600-1,700 km from the south Indian coast The Indian Navy deployed its SAR equipment as the PLAN ships were closing on to the area.

The Indian Navy units also coordinated SAR efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLAN warships transiting to the scene of the incident, the spokesperson added.

Australia, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Indonesia, the Philippines were among the other countries that are collaborating on the SAR effort.

According to Chinese state-owned media, the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 had capsized at about 3 AM on Tuesday in the central Indian Ocean about 5,000 km west of Perth, Australia, with 39 crew members on board including 17 Chinese, 17 Indonesians, and five Filipinos.

The Indian Navy continues to remain deployed in the area to provide all possible assistance to the ongoing SAR efforts.

In another exhibition of its commitment towards ensuring Security And Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) , under Operation Karuna, three Indian Navy shipsthe Shivalik, Kamorta, and Savitriwere the first naval ships to reach Yangon port with relief material for those affected by cyclone Mocha.

Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar tweeted: The ships are carrying emergency food items, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators, clothes, sanitary and hygiene items, etc India continues to be the first responder in the region.

A fourth Indian Navy ship is also expected to reach soon.
(Bloomberg) -- Looming behind market fears over the prospect of a historic US default is the less-discussed risk of what would follow a deal to resolve the debt-ceiling impasse.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Many on Wall Street predict lawmakers will ultimately reach an agreement, likely averting a devastating debt default, even if it goes down to the wire. But that doesnt mean the economy will escape unscathed, not just from the bruising standoff but also as a result of the Treasurys efforts to return to business as usual once it can ramp up borrowing.

Ari Bergmann, whose firm specializes in risks that are hard to manage, says investors should hedge for the aftermath of a Washington resolution.

What the market veteran is getting at is that Treasury will need to scramble to replenish its dwindling cash buffer to maintain its ability to pay its obligations, through a deluge of Treasury-bill sales. Estimated at well over $1 trillion by the end of the third quarter, the supply burst would quickly drain liquidity from the banking sector, raise short-term funding rates and tighten the screws on the US economy just as its on the cusp of recession. By Bank of America Corp.s estimate it would have the same economic impact as a quarter-point interest-rate hike.

Higher borrowing costs in the wake of the Federal Reserves most aggressive tightening cycle in decades have already taken a toll on some firms and are slowly crimping economic growth. Against this backdrop, Bergmann is especially wary of an eventual move by Treasury to rebuild cash, seeing potential for a massive reduction in bank reserves.

My bigger concern is that when the debt-limit gets resolved  and I think it will  you are going to have a very, very deep and sudden drain of liquidity, said Bergmann, founder of New York-based Penso Advisors. This is not something thats very obvious, but its something thats very real. And weve seen before that such a drop in liquidity really does negatively affect risk markets, such as equities and credit.

The upshot is that even after Washington gets past the latest standoff, the dynamics of the Treasurys cash balance, the Feds portfolio-runoff program known as quantitative tightening and the pain of higher policy rates all stand to weigh on risk assets as well as the economy. And a deal is looking more likely.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Thursday that negotiators on the federal debt limit may reach an agreement in principle as soon as this weekend and that he expects his chamber to consider a deal by next week.

Read more: McCarthy Says Debt Deal Is Close, Predicts House Vote Next Week

After a debt-cap resolution, the US cash stockpile  the Treasury General Account  should soar to $550 billion as of the end of June from the current level of about $95 billion  and hit $600 billion three months later, according to the departments most recent estimates.

A rebound will affect liquidity across the financial system because the cash pile operates like the governments checking account at the Fed, sitting on the liability side of the central banks balance sheet.

When the Treasury issues more bills than it technically needs during a certain period, its account swells  pulling cash out of the private sector and storing it in the departments account at the Fed.

Another important piece of the puzzle is the Feds reverse repurchase agreement facility  dubbed the RRP  which is where money-market funds park cash with the central bank overnight at a rate of just over 5%.

$2 Trillion Stashed

That program  currently over $2 trillion  is also a liability at the Fed. So if the Treasury account increases, but RRPs drop, then the drain on reserves is lower.

But Matt King at Citigroup Inc. says money funds tendency to keep cash in RRPs will most likely persist, which could mean a sizable drain in bank reserves when the Treasurys cash jumps.

And that would come as major central banks have already been siphoning off liquidity through aggressive tightening campaigns and efforts to unwind their balance sheets.

We are shifting from a very significant tailwind of global central bank liquidity over the last six months to probably a significant headwind, said King, a global markets strategist. What we really care about is reserves, which should be falling. So Im strongly leaning to risk-off at this point.

Read More: Whats the Debt Ceiling, and Will the US Raise It?: QuickTake

For Priya Misra at TD Securities, the concern is that reserves will become scarce, upsetting funding markets that are at the heart of many trades on Wall Street.

Such scarcity matters a lot because it moves up repo rates, said the firms head of global rates strategy. High repo rates typically result in a big risk-off. If Im a hedge fund, my entire business model is based on borrowing money. And what will happen is not only will the rate go up, but I might not be willing to lend to you.

That sort of impact on funding markets is essentially what was seen after the 2017-2018 debt-ceiling episode  when the Treasury issued $500 billion of bills in roughly six weeks.

Of course, the Treasury knows a deluge could roil markets and queried primary dealers on the topic in the latest refunding period. The firms encouraged the department to monitor markets for potential stress, to ensure it doesnt restock its cash balance too quickly.

The US remains dangerously near the current federal debt limit of $31.4 trillion, at which point it could lose the ability to meet all its payment obligations. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says that critical moment  the X-date  could arrive by June 1. Since mid-January, her department has been using so-called extraordinary measures to keep paying debts  such as reducing benchmark bill auction sizes.

The Treasury has to rebuild their slush fund, which removes liquidity from the system, Jerome Schneider, head of short-term portfolio management and funding at Pacific Investment Management Co., said on Bloomberg Television.

Just how much liquidity will actually be drained from the banking system depends on who buys the bills that will be sold, a team of JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists including Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou wrote in a note Thursday.

For Barclays Plc strategist Joseph Abate, there could even be consequences for Fed policy.

If money funds dont pull cash from RRPs to buy some of the newly issued bills, it would drain proportionally more bank reserves and force the Fed to reconsider its roughly year-old program of quantitative tightening.

--With assistance from Jonnelle Marte and Mark Tannenbaum.

(Adds comments from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in eighth paragraph and JPMorgan strategists in 23rd.)

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2023 Bloomberg L.P.
The next few days are going to be hectic for Prime Minister Narendra Modi as will be traveling to Japan, Papua New Guinea, and Australia from May 19-24.

In Papua New Guinea Modi will host the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) on May 22, jointly with Prime Minister James Marape. He will be in Hiroshima from May 19 to 21 for the annual summit of the G7 advanced economies. Besides, the Quad leaders are set to meet on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Japan. There is a common thread for all these meetingsChina.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden announced that he will postpone the Australia leg of his Asia trip, along with that of Papua New Guinea because of domestic issues.

India's participation in the G7 marks the country's ambition to be part of "any serious efforts to resolve" global challenges in terms of peace, security, and climate change agendas. As part of the guest country, India will be participating in food and health security discussions as well as gender equality and climate and energy security. India will use this platform to be the voice of the Global South.

As war clouds continue to envelop Ukraine and with the relationship between China and the US still heated, there are serious issues for the leaders to grapple with. The US may also use the opportunity to get countries, Brazil, Indonesia, and Indiaso far ambient on Russiato take a harder stand. Pulling off the Quad meeting on the sidelines of the summit will certainly demonstrate the intent of the countries to put up a united front against China.

The broad terms of the G 7 Summit preferences, in particular regarding their outreach with the invited guest countries, are one-on nuclear disarmament, two-on economic resilience and three-economic security, fourth-regional issues, fifth-climate and energy, food and health and development, said the foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra at a special briefing in the national capital. The leaders will naturally take stock of the relationship and build further."

A lot of work has gone into the planning of the Quad summit, he added. It is hoped that there will be deliverables.
President Joe Biden arrived in Japan on Thursday and greeted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida by saying, When our countries stand together, we stand stronger a sign of how the economic and national security alliance between the two countries has grown.

The US president began his remarks by noting that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history. I couldn't agree with you more, Biden said.

We very much welcome that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds," Kishida told Biden about Japan's relationship with the US in their meeting ahead of the Group of Seven summit that begins Friday.

The Kishida family's home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialised nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the US dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance.

The US, Japan and their allies are strategising on how to deal with Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine as well as concerns about the increased cadence of North Korea's ballistic missile tests and Iran's nuclear program.

Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said the Russian invasion looms large, and would be a significant conversation during the summit.

There will be discussions about the battlefield, Sullivan said aboard Air Force One, stressing that the G-7 leaders would work to seal off any loopholes in sanctions so their effect can be maximised.

There'll be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular.

Sullivan said the alliance between the US and Japan was at a genuine high-water mark.

He said Biden and Kishida, in their meeting, will aim to advance a relationship that's progressed over the course of the last two years "in every dimension, whether it's the military dimension of the alliance, the economic dimension, the recently concluded agreement on clean energy, the work we're doing together on economic security."

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the US president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner.

The president's first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet US troops at the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before heading to Hiroshima for the planned 80-minute meeting with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of nuclear-power Russia invading Ukraine in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the US and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also have economic matters to consider. The US and Japan have begun to redefine global trade with an eye toward supply chain resilience and national security. They recently signed an agreement on critical mineral supply chains. They're also cooperating on the development of renewable energy sources and partnering on efforts to limit China's access to advanced computer chips.

Kishida hopes to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has asserted that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule. US officials have been briefed on the possible economic damage caused by a war over Taiwan, which would disrupt the supply of advanced computer chips.

Japan is also keen to discuss ways to reinforce its three-way partnership with the US and Seoul following an April agreement between the United States and South Korea to strengthen their tools to deter the risk of a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta city's buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Kishida is from Hiroshima, believes deeply in the disarmament agenda, said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line. He recognises the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japan's dependence on US extended deterrence that that's more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment."

There are outstanding issues between the US and Japan. During a January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a US Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official.

Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims USD 1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

As much as Biden believes he has improved relations with US allies, he still faces political turmoil at home.

The president on Wednesday curtailed part of his trip across the Pacific Ocean. He will skip Papua New Guinea and Australia in order to return to Washington in hopes of finalising a deal to raise the federal government's debt limit.

The work that we need to do bilaterally with Australia and with the Pacific Islands is work that can be done at a later date, whereas the final stretch of negotiations over the debt limit or the budget cannot be done at a later date," Sullivan said Wednesday.
Days after Ukraine's air defences largely repelled a Russian missile attack, the Ukrainian military on Thursday reported explosions in the capital, Kyiv. Explosions were also reported in central and southern Ukraine as air raid sirens sounded throughout the country.



Warnings were issued in regions including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkasy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine. Kyiv residents were asked to remain in shelters.

"According to preliminary information, the fall of debris was recorded in the Darnytskyi district of the capital. Data on victims and destruction are currently being verified," Serhii Popko, head of Kyiv's civil and military administration, wrote on Telegram.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko told DW that there were no reports of casualties despite falling debris causing a fire in a garage facility in Darnytskyi. Russia has been launching a flurry of attacks, mainly at Kyiv, since late April, after a week-long hiatus.

The attack comes as the Ukrainian army announced territorial gains in Bakhmut. We are successfully conducting a defensive operation, counterattacking and during this day our units have penetrated up to 500 metres in some parts, military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi told Ukrainian television.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arrived in Japan on Thursday for the G7 Summit, on the sidelines of which he clinched a new so-called Hiroshima Accord for greater UK-Japan economic, security and technology collaboration.



This new UK-Japan global strategic partnership is being seen as a counterbalance to Chinese dominance in the region and also includes a Semiconductors Partnership to pursue ambitious R&D cooperation and skills exchange to bolster supply chain resilience in the key sector.

The UK also confirmed that its Carrier Strike Group (CSG) warship will return to the Indo-Pacific in 2025, following a maiden voyage to the region including India in 2021, as Sunak became the first British Prime Minister to visit Hiroshima the site of the Second World War atomic bombing.

It is a privilege to be visiting Tokyo and Hiroshima at this historic moment in the United Kingdom's relationship with Japan, the British-Indian leader said.

Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida and I are closely aligned on the importance of protecting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and defending our values, including free and fair trade. The Hiroshima Accord will see us step up cooperation between our armed forces, grow our economies together and develop our world-leading science and technology expertise. It marks an exciting next phase in the UK and Japan's flourishing partnership, he said.

The Hiroshima Accord will cover agreements on defence, trade and investment, science and technology collaboration, and joint work on tackling global issues like climate change.

Downing Street said Japan's pivotal role in the Indo-Pacific makes strong relations with the nation central to the UK's security and prosperity.

In Tokyo, Sunak visited a naval base to confirm new UK-Japan defence cooperation which includes doubling UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises and agreeing on a formal Consult Clause, whereby the UK and Japan commit to consult each other on important regional and global security issues and consider measures in response.

The CSG fleet, consisting of an aircraft carrier, escorts and aircraft, to be deployed in 2025 will work alongside the Japanese Self-Defence Forces and other regional partners to help defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, Downing Street said.

Meanwhile, it was also announced that leading Japanese businesses have committed to invest almost GBP 18 billion in businesses and projects across the UK.

These new investments are a massive vote of confidence in the UK's dynamic economy, from some of Japan's top firms. Working with the government and British industry they will create the kind of high-quality, reliable jobs and transformative local investment we are delivering around the country, said Sunak.

The British prime minister added that the sky's the limit for British and Japanese businesses and entrepreneurs as bilateral trade ties grow, including through the Japan-included Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade bloc which the UK had joined recently.

According to official statistics, Japan is the UK's fifth largest investor with GBP 92 billion invested in the UK, and trade in goods and services was worth GBP 27.7 billion last year.

The new investments announced this week include funding for offshore wind, low-carbon hydrogen and other clean energy projects from Japanese trading house Marubeni.

Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan, two of the largest real estate companies in Japan, confirmed plans to invest in affordable housing, high-quality office space and a life-science laboratory in the UK.

While Sumitomo Corporation intends to expand its UK offshore wind projects, Sumitomo Electric Industries has also announced its decision to build a strategically important high-voltage cable manufacturing plant in the Scottish Highlands.

The UK and Japanese governments also unveiled a new Renewable Energy Partnership, which includes building business partnerships to accelerate the deployment of clean energy. PTI AK AKJ FZH 05181644
A month before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first state visit to the US, a federal court agreed to New Delhi's request, through Washington, for the extradition of Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.



In a major victory for India's fight in bringing the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice, US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of the District Court of the Central District of California issued a 48-page order on Wednesday, saying Rana "should be extradited to India" under the extradition treaty between India and the United States.



"The court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below, and CERTIFIES to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offences that are the subject of the request," the order said.



The order comes just over a month before Modi arrives in the US for his first state visit to Washington DC and will be hosted by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden for a state diner on June 22.



The order noted that the court cannot certify Rana's extradition unless there is probable cause to believe he committed the offences for which extradition is sought. Citing its reasoning in detail, the order states: "Accordingly, the court finds there is probable cause to believe Rana committed the charged offences as to which extradition has been sought and should be extradited to India under the extradition Treaty between the United States and India."



India had filed a complaint on June 10, 2020 seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India.



In response to a question, a State Department spokesperson told PTI that "we refer you" to the Department of Justice for specifics on this case.



"However, we can say that we are committed to confronting terrorism across the world and we deeply value our counterterrorism relationship with India. We continue to call for those involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks to be brought to justice," the spokesperson said.



During court hearings, US government attorneys argued that Rana was aware that his childhood friend David Coleman Headley was involved with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and that by assisting Headley and affording him cover for his activities, he was supporting the terrorist organisation and its associates.



Rana knew of Headley's meetings, what was discussed, and the planning of the attacks, including some of the targets. The US government asserted that Rana was part of the conspiracy and there is probable cause that he committed the substantive crime of commission of a terrorist act.



Rana's attorney on the other hand opposed the extradition.



As many as 166 people, including six Americans, were killed during the attacks by the LeT terrorists. Because members of the conspiracy committed acts resulting in death with the intention of causing death, or at minimum committed those acts knowing its imminent dangers, there is sufficient evidence that the elements for murder would be satisfied, federal prosecutors said.



There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that Rana's extradition to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty.



India, the judge said, has issued an arrest warrant and charged Rana with the offences on which the United States is proceeding. These include conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act, waging war, murder, committing a terrorist act and conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.



"The foregoing charged offences constitute extraditable offences within the meaning and scope of the treaty and over which India has jurisdiction," the judge ruled.



The order states that for the court to certify Rana as extraditable, the government must establish that "(1) the extradition judge has jurisdiction to conduct proceedings, (2) the extradition court has jurisdiction over the fugitive, (3) the extradition treaty is in full force and effect, (4) the crime falls within the terms of the treaty and (5) there is competent legal evidence to support a finding of extraditability".



The judge said that sufficient competent evidence has been presented to establish probable cause that Rana is the individual who has been charged in India and whose extradition has been sought by India in this action, and that Rana committed the aforementioned offences for which extradition has been sought.



"Based on the foregoing, the court concludes that Rana is extraditable for the offences for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding and hereby CERTIFIES this finding to the United States Secretary of State," the order said.



"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the treaty," the judge ruled.
Kolkata, May 18 (PTI) South Korea on Thursday expressed its desire to boost economic ties with West Bengal which serves as the gateway to South East Asia.

Ambassador of Republic of Korea to India, Chang Jae-bok, said that so far, Korean business has been primarily centralised in Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru and Pune.

"This is why we are focussing on the untapped potential of East India, particularly West Bengal. I believe there is substantial scope in collaboration with West Bengal in future", he said.

The Korean ambassador met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during the day.

"We shared views on how to enhance cooperation between West Bengal and Korea", he said.

According to the Korean envoy, West Bengal is home to the second-largest number of MSMEs in India.

"The state shares international borders with Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh, and domestic borders with five other Indian states", he said.

The envoy said this year marks the golden jubilee of diplomatic ties between Korea and India which witnessed development in economic, political and cultural relations between the two countries.
Guwahati, May 18 (PTI) The Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) on Thursday said it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hyderabad-based T-Hub (Technology Hub), a premier innovation hub and ecosystem enabler.

According to the MoU, NRL and T-Hub will jointly collaborate on business innovation and growth hack for NRLs flagship startup program, iDEATION.

The MoU was signed by NRL's Senior Chief General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Nikunja Borthakur and T-Hub's Chief Innovation Officer Sujit Jagirdar amongst other officials at the NRL Centre here on Wednesday.

T-Hub is Indias pioneering innovation ecosystem and strives to create impact for startups, corporations and other ecosystem stakeholders and this MoU will mark a significant step in the direction of 'Atmanirbhar Northeast and Atmanirbhar Bharat, according to a statement.

T-Hub (Technology Hub) has received the Best Incubator in India for 2022 and the Best National Technology Business Incubator 2023 by Startup India.
New Delhi (India), May 18: Dr. Shelby Kutty, the Director of the Helen B Taussig Heart Centre at Johns Hopkins University, visited Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Dr. KM Cherian Heart Foundation today. Dr. Shelby Kutty gave a talk on the role of AI in cardiology and highlighted the potential of predictive outcomes of diverse cardiovascular data. Under the guidance of Dr. KM Cherian, the talk was attended by eminent faculties from cardiology, including structural heart specialist Dr. Anantharaman from Kauvery, as well as Dr. Ragahavan Subramaniam and Dr. Karthik Suryan.







During the discussion, Dr. Shelby Kutty, along with the eminent paediatric cardiologist, shed light on the role of AI in echocardiographic assessments and imaging. They discussed the potential of AI to aid in accurate diagnoses and treatment plans for heart conditions in children and adults.



The discussion further focused on the power of AI and data analytics to provide a deeper understanding of heart conditions. Dr. Shelby Kutty emphasized the importance of awareness and education on AI in cardiology and the need for more smart hospitals that incorporate technology in healthcare.



The visit from dr Shelby Kutty to Frontier Lifeline Hospital, Dr. KM Cherian Heart Foundation was an excellent opportunity for the medical community to discuss the latest advancements in cardiology and the potential of AI in healthcare.



(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PNN and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday said Go First going into insolvency proceedings is not a "great thing" for the country's civil aviation sector and added that the ministry wants the resumption of flights as early as possible.

While replying to a query on the Go First crisis on the sidelines of an event here, Scindia said it is "certainly something that is not a great thing for civil aviation".

Each company has to manage its own issues. "As far as the ministry is concerned, we are quite steadfast in our resolve in helping airlines...," he said.

Cash-strapped Go First stopped flying from May 3 and has extended the suspension of operations till May 26.

The airline's plea for voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings was admitted by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on May 10.

Some aircraft lessors have moved the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) against the NCLT's decision. The appellate tribunal is scheduled to deliver its judgement on the lessors' petitions on May 22.

To a question on Pratt & Whitney engine issues resulting in the grounding of many planes, Scindia said, "We have impressed upon them (engine manufacturer) that we need to have our planes up and running".
Shimla, May 18 (PTI) The process of Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Himachali cap, Sirmauri Loeya, Mandi Sepubari, Chamba metal craft, Kinnauri apple and Kinnauri ornaments is under consideration with the Registrar of Geographical Indication, Chennai, said Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday.

He informed that GI status has been given to more than 400 traditional products of the state, including Kullu shawl, Chamba Rumal, Kinnaur shawl, Kangra painting, Lahaul woolen socks and gloves.

GI tag is a status given to a product belonging exclusively to a particular area. The quality, reputation and any other characteristics of that particular product is generally attributed to the geographical origin of the product.

The chief minister said that Kangra tea from Himachal was given GI status in 2005 by the Registrar of Geographical Indicators, Chennai and in March 2023 the beverage from the hill state was granted the European GI tag, paving the way for the sale of the product in European countries.

He said that the sale of Kangra tea is expected to grow as registration was an important tool to recognise the quality, genuineness and reputation of the product in the European markets.

Kangra tea is grown in Palampur, Baijnath, Kangra and Dharamshala in Kangra district, Jogindernagar of Mandi district and Bhattiyat area of Chamba district and is known for its unique taste and fragrance, attributed to its abundant pyrazine contents. Additionally, it also possesses medicinal values.

During the British era, Kangra tea was exported to European markets and because of its quality it has bagged various awards from the markets of Amsterdam and London between 1886 and 1895.
For many, the main point of investing is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But even the best stock picker will only win with some selections. At this point some shareholders may be questioning their investment in CVR Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CVI), since the last five years saw the share price fall 45%. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 26% in the last three months. We note that the company has reported results fairly recently; and the market is hardly delighted. You can check out the latest numbers in our company report.

After losing 4.0% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

See our latest analysis for CVR Energy

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. 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 the unfortunate half decade during which the share price slipped, CVR Energy actually saw its earnings per share (EPS) improve by 12% per year. So it doesn't seem like EPS is a great guide to understanding how the market is valuing the stock. Or possibly, the market was previously very optimistic, so the stock has disappointed, despite improving EPS.

Due to the lack of correlation between the EPS growth and the falling share price, it's worth taking a look at other metrics to try to understand the share price movement.

We note that the dividend has remained healthy, so that wouldn't really explain the share price drop. While it's not completely obvious why the share price is down, a closer look at the company's history might help explain it.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

We know that CVR Energy has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for CVR Energy the TSR over the last 5 years was -3.7%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 5.8% in the last year, CVR Energy shareholders lost 9.1% (even including dividends). However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 0.7% 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. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand CVR Energy better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for CVR Energy you should be aware of, and 1 of them is a bit unpleasant.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Kolkata, May 18 (PTI) Director Indrasis Acharya's Bengali movie Niharika will be screened at an international film festival in Bulgaria.

'Niharika' portrays the life of a woman who fights a dark and abusive childhood while searching for her gender identity, Acharya told PTI.

The film will be screened at the Asian Panorama section of the film festival organised by the Festival and Congress Centre Varna, he said.

"The story is of belief in love without any inhibition and boundary. The film also raises pertinent questions on womanhood and identity crisis in the current context," he added.

The 31st edition of the festival will be held from August 25 to September 3.

The film has Anuradha Mukherjee in the lead. She is known for her performances in Sweater (2019) and Golper Mayajaal (2021).

Acharya won several awards for his films, including the bests Indian director for The Parcel (2019) at the Kolkata International Film Festival.
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) There are several heroes in the interiors of the country whose stories go unnoticed and Suparn S Varma says his upcoming production "Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai" is an attempt to give voice to two such bravehearts who fought a long-running legal battle against a self-styled godman.

Billed as a power-packed courtroom drama inspired by true incidents, the upcoming ZEE5 original follows a lawyer, played by Manoj Bajpayee, who goes up against an influential godman accused of sexually abusing a minor girl.

Varma, best known for writing and directing Bajpayee-starrer "The Family Man" season two, said sometimes a certain incident "defines" who a hero can be.

"There are so many stories from the interiors of our country where there are everyday heroes. It's not about muscle building, it's about heart. It's about that one incident that defines you from the rest. This is the story about that one incident where we have two heroes.

"The first hero is the minor girl who fought the tough fight despite the trauma. She fought the case for five years from the Sessions Court, High Court to Supreme Court. Second (hero) was the small-town lawyer who clashed with the bigwig lawyers. This story is already very astounding. He didn't abuse the system, he used the system," the producer told PTI in an interview here.

According to Varma, there are many challenges in bringing a story inspired from true events to screen, but he credited a more mature audience for being open to novelty.

"We are able to tell such stories (now) because we are living in a time where the audience is exposed to diverse content. Even the audiences want more challenging content. They want characters that offer something new," he added.

Apoorv Singh Karki, known for comedy web series such as "TVF Aspirants" and "Saas Bahu Achaar Pvt Ltd", has directed "Bandaa" from a script by Deepak Kingrani.

Asked if it was a conscious decision to break away from his previous work to make his feature directorial debut, Karki said with Varma and Bajpayee on board, it was "a no-brainer" for him to take on this film.

"After 'Aspirants', Suparn and Manoj sir had a word with each other regarding me. Then Suparn called me and said Manoj sir is doing the film. I said yes immediately. But after I read the story, my inner voice told me that I have to tell this as a film," he added.

Narrating relevant issues is "the need of the hour", said the filmmaker, adding he felt strongly about the cause of minor safety.

"When you feel a lot for a cause... It was easy for me to make a decision. It was not a technical choice for me that how I have previously done shows and how I want to do films going ahead. I did the film because of the cause," Karki emphasised.

Earlier this month, the makers of "Bandaa" were sent a legal notice by godman Asaram, sentenced to life for sexually exploiting a minor, and the Sant Shri Asaramji Ashram Charitable Trust alleging that the trailer of the film is "highly objectionable and defamatory".

Asaram has been serving a life sentence in Central Jail Jodhpur since 2018 following his conviction in a case of sexual exploitation of a minor student of his 'gurukul'.

When asked about the notice, producer Vinod Bhanushali said: "Our legal cell has satisfactorily answered the notice that we received." The upcoming film is a biopic on P C Solanki, prosecution counsel for the girl, he added.

"According to us, we have told the story of PC Solanki. This is the story about the lawyer who fought this case where an underage girl was mistreated, abused... This is a case whose facts are out there in the public domain. There is a judgment, we are not here to pinpoint on any person," Bhanushali said.

Karki said he is happy with the way "Bandaa" has shaped up.

"I feel people will like it. All the controversies and questions will be answered once they see the film. People are going to love it. People are going to praise it for the kind of messaging that we want to send with our film," he added.

Produced by Bhanushali Studios Limited, Zee Studios and Varma, "Bandaa" will start streaming on ZEE5 from May 23.
Cannes, May 18 (PTI) Hollywood veteran Michael Douglas on Thursday visited the India Pavilion at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival where he was felicitated and invited to the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa in November.

Douglas was welcomed to the India Pavilion by Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan, who said the actor enjoys a huge fan following in India for his films such as "Wall Street".

"We are conducting our film festival in Goa from November 20 to November 28. This is the 54th edition, I'm welcoming you. I expect your visit and presence along with your entire family to our festival. We will bring our traditions, culture, diversity, languages and food culture to Goa," the minister told 78-year-old Douglas.

The actor said he has been to India before and his wife, actor Catherine Zeta-Jones, loves the country and is a "pretty good Bollywood dancer".

"I'm very impressed with the energy, imagination, and creativity. As somebody who watches news and current events, India is hot. India is rocking," Douglas said.

Filmmaker Shailendra Singh, who moderated the session at India Pavilion, recalled the actor's last trip to Mumbai with his wife and hoped they would revive an old film that the duo were supposed to do 15 years ago.

"If you find a project that we can do together, then I would look forward to coming back to India... Film is an international language," the actor said.

Douglas said he was supposed to do a film called "Racing the Monsoon" with Singh and hopefully they can still revive the project, which could not take off due to logistical issues.

The actor, who received the honorary Palme d'Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, was also felicitated by the Indian Pavilion here.

The "Fatal Attraction" star said in their next trip to India, they want to travel beyond Hyderabad to down south.
Washington, May 18 (AP) US President Joe Biden said there is "work to do" on the global stage as he headed to Japan on Wednesday to consult with allies on Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's assertiveness in the Pacific at the same time that a debt limit standoff looms at home.

With high-stakes talks to head off a federal default underway in Washington, Biden pledged to remain in "constant contact" with negotiators in the capital city while he conducts international diplomacy.

The president departed Washington aboard Air Force One a day after scrapping plans for a historic stop in Papua New Guinea and a key visit to Australia amid the showdown with House Republicans over raising the federal debt limit. The three-nation trip had been meant as a triumphant global leadership showcase, and instead threatened to become a truncated reminder of how partisan disagreements have undercut US standing on the global stage.

"I have cut my trip short in order to be here for the final negotiations and sign the deal with the majority leader," Biden said in remarks before departing the White House. "I have made clear America is not a deadbeat nation, we pay our bills."

For Biden, the intertwined dynamics of the debt standoff and his foray abroad put a spotlight on two key aspects of his presidency -- his efforts to assert US prowess on the international stage and to address economic concerns at home. They also are playing out as Biden is in the early weeks of his candidacy for reelection, adding political overtones to the situation.

Aboard Air Force One en route to Japan, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy put Biden in the bad position of cancelling part of the trip.

"He is taking the American economy hostage," she said.

The president was still set to attend the annual Group of Seven summit of advanced democracies in Hiroshima, where sustaining support for Ukraine's expected counteroffensive against Russia is set to take centre stage, alongside economic, climate and global development issues. More than a year after Moscow's invasion, Biden and allies have armed Kyiv with ever-more-advanced weaponry and maintained deep sanctions on Russia's economy, though maintaining resolve has grown more challenging in Washington and other global capitals.

While in Hiroshima, Biden also plans to sit down with the so-called Quad leaders of Japan, Australia and India, a partnership meant to serve as a counterweight to China in the Indo-Pacific, a region that he bills as a top priority in US national security strategy. That meeting had originally been scheduled to occur next week on what would have been his inaugural visit to Canberra and Sydney as president.

Off the agenda entirely is a stop in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, where Pacific Island leaders were to gather for a first-of-its-kind meeting with a US president. It was meant to be a rejoinder to China's increasing military and economic pressures in the region. The US has recently opened embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga and has expressed a desire to reverse a decades-long pullback in the region.

No US president has ever visited the island nation, and high hopes for the visit were dashed by Biden's announcement that he would not make the stop.

When asked whether he thought his shortened trip was a win for China, he said: "No."

"Because we still work with allies," he said.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan dismissed the idea that jettisoning the Australia trip would do any diplomatic damage or give China leverage, arguing Biden's reputation as a strong ally would help soften the blow while acknowledging the disappointment, particularly in Papua New Guinea, the cancellation has caused.

"The work that we need to do bilaterally with Australia and with the Pacific Islands is work that can be done at a later date, whereas the final stretch of negotiations over the debt limit or the budget cannot be done at a later date," Sullivan said.

During a roughly hour-long meeting in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Biden and McCarthy designated chief negotiators to try to draft an agreement to allow more government borrowing in conjunction with GOP-demanded spending cuts. The Treasury Department has warned that action is likely needed by June 1 to assure the US can continue to meet its financial obligations.

US officials have warned in increasingly urgent tones that a default would not only spark a deep recession, but also weaken its standing on the world stage.

"Countries like Russia and China that would love nothing more than for us to default so they could point the finger and say, 'You see, the United States is not a stable, reliable partner'," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Tuesday. "So, that is a high priority, as it should be, for the president."

For weeks, White House officials have said Biden could manage both the Capitol Hill negotiations and foreign commitments while on the trip. But in recent days, aides have fretted as McCarthy has repeatedly called for Biden to scrap his trip, worried that while abroad, the president would appear to the public as disengaged from the swelling crisis.

The instability of the cancellation could have the opposite effect of the initial purpose of Biden's trip -- reinforcing American commitments to the region, warned Charles Edel, a senior adviser and the Australia chair at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

"It would underscore for partners that despite welcome US focus on the region and the focus on allies and partners at the heart of US foreign policy, domestic politics is still a constraint on US engagement and perhaps on budgetary commitments as well," he said last week. "And I think that is something that will be talked about widely." (AP) RC
Hiroshima, May 18 (AP) President Joe Biden arrived in Japan Thursday with plans to meet privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of the larger Group of Seven summit  a sign of how the economic and national security alliance between the two countries has strengthened.

Kishida's home city of Hiroshima will play host to the gathering of major industrialised nations. The setting of Hiroshima, where the US dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance as the US, Japan and their allies strategise on dealing with Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.

Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said the Russian invasion looms large, and would be a significant conversation during the summit.

There will be discussions about the battlefield, Sullivan said aboard Air Force One, stressing that the G-7 leaders would work to seal off any loopholes in sanctions so their effect can be maximised.

There'll be discussions about the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement in particular.

Sullivan said the alliance between the US and Japan was at a genuine high-water mark.

He said Biden and Kishida, in their meeting, will aim to advance a relationship that's progressed over the course of the last two years "in every dimension, whether it's the military dimension of the alliance, the economic dimension, the recently concluded agreement on clean energy, the work we're doing together on economic security."

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the US president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of nuclear-power Russia invading Ukraine in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the US and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also have economic matters to consider. The US and Japan have begun to redefine global trade with an eye toward supply chain resilience and national security.

They recently signed an agreement on critical mineral supply chains. They're also cooperating on the development of renewable energy sources and partnering on efforts to limit China's access to advanced computer chips.

Kishida hopes to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has asserted that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule. US officials have been briefed on the possible economic damage caused by a war over Taiwan, which would disrupt the supply of advanced computer chips.

Japan is also keen to discuss ways to reinforce its three-way partnership with the US and Seoul following an April agreement between the United States and South Korea to strengthen their tools to deter the risk of a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta city's buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Kishida is from Hiroshima, believes deeply in the disarmament agenda, said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line. He recognizes the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japan's dependence on US extended deterrence  that that's more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment."

There are outstanding issues between the US and China. During a January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a US Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official.

Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims USD 1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

As much as Biden believes he has improved relations with US allies, he still faces political turmoil at home.

The president on Wednesday curtailed part of his trip across the Pacific Ocean. He will skip Papua New Guinea and Australia in order to return to Washington in hopes of finalising a deal to raise the federal government's debt limit.

The work that we need to do bilaterally with Australia and with the Pacific Islands is work that can be done at a later date, whereas the final stretch of negotiations over the debt limit or the budget cannot be done at a later date," Sullivan said Wednesday. (AP)



GRS
London, May 18 (PTI) British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arrived in Japan on Thursday for the G7 Summit, on the sidelines of which he clinched a new so-called Hiroshima Accord for greater UK-Japan economic, security and technology collaboration.

This new UK-Japan global strategic partnership is being seen as a counterbalance to Chinese dominance in the region and also includes a Semiconductors Partnership to pursue ambitious R&D cooperation and skills exchange to bolster supply chain resilience in the key sector.

The UK also confirmed that its Carrier Strike Group (CSG) warship will return to the Indo-Pacific in 2025, following a maiden voyage to the region including India in 2021, as Sunak became the first British Prime Minister to visit Hiroshima  the site of the Second World War atomic bombing.

It is a privilege to be visiting Tokyo and Hiroshima at this historic moment in the United Kingdoms relationship with Japan, the British-Indian leader said.

Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida and I are closely aligned on the importance of protecting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and defending our values, including free and fair trade. The Hiroshima Accord will see us step up cooperation between our armed forces, grow our economies together and develop our world-leading science and technology expertise. It marks an exciting next phase in the UK and Japans flourishing partnership, he said.

The Hiroshima Accord will cover agreements on defence, trade and investment, science and technology collaboration, and joint work on tackling global issues like climate change.

Downing Street said Japans pivotal role in the Indo-Pacific makes strong relations with the nation central to the UKs security and prosperity.

In Tokyo, Sunak visited a naval base to confirm new UK-Japan defence cooperation which includes doubling UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises and agreeing on a formal Consult Clause, whereby the UK and Japan commit to consult each other on important regional and global security issues and consider measures in response.

The CSG fleet, consisting of an aircraft carrier, escorts and aircraft, to be deployed in 2025 will work alongside the Japanese Self-Defence Forces and other regional partners to help defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, Downing Street said.

Meanwhile, it was also announced that leading Japanese businesses have committed to invest almost GBP 18 billion in businesses and projects across the UK.

These new investments are a massive vote of confidence in the UKs dynamic economy, from some of Japans top firms. Working with the government and British industry they will create the kind of high-quality, reliable jobs and transformative local investment we are delivering around the country, said Sunak.

The British prime minister added that the skys the limit for British and Japanese businesses and entrepreneurs as bilateral trade ties grow, including through the Japan-included Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade bloc which the UK had joined recently.

According to official statistics, Japan is the UKs fifth largest investor with GBP 92 billion invested in the UK, and trade in goods and services was worth GBP 27.7 billion last year.

The new investments announced this week include funding for offshore wind, low-carbon hydrogen and other clean energy projects from Japanese trading house Marubeni.

Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan, two of the largest real estate companies in Japan, confirmed plans to invest in affordable housing, high-quality office space and a life-science laboratory in the UK.

While Sumitomo Corporation intends to expand its UK offshore wind projects, Sumitomo Electric Industries has also announced its decision to build a strategically important high-voltage cable manufacturing plant in the Scottish Highlands.

The UK and Japanese governments also unveiled a new Renewable Energy Partnership, which includes building business partnerships to accelerate the deployment of clean energy.
Jeddah, May 18 (AP) Syrian President Bashar Assad headed to Saudi Arabia on Thursday to attend a regional summit, his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syria's conflict began in 2011, the president's office said.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts on Friday, is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold following a 12-year suspension and open a new chapter of relations after more than a decade of tensions.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, a long-time regional pariah, back into the fold. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

During Syria's civil war, Saudi Arabia had been a key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad.

However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syria's pre-war population.

Assad's troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to his main allies Russia and Iran that helped tip the balance of power in his favour.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad.

The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syria's conflict. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad.

Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdom's yearslong war in Yemen.

Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assad's government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalisation of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syria's conflict based on UN Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the February 6, earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria. (AP) FZH
Hiroshima, May 18 (AP) President Joe Biden arrived in Japan on Thursday and greeted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida by saying, When our countries stand together, we stand stronger  a sign of how the economic and national security alliance between the two countries has grown.

The US president began his remarks by noting that Kishida said during a January Washington visit that the world faced one of the most complex security environments in recent history. I couldn't agree with you more, Biden said.

We very much welcome that the cooperation has evolved in leaps and bounds," Kishida told Biden about Japan's relationship with the US in their meeting ahead of the Group of Seven summit that begins Friday.

The Kishida family's home city of Hiroshima will host the gathering of major industrialised nations known at the G-7. The setting of Hiroshima, where the US dropped the first nuclear bomb in 1945 during World War II, carries newfound resonance.

The US, Japan and their allies are strategising on how to deal with Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine as well as concerns about the increased cadence of North Korea's ballistic missile tests and Iran's nuclear programme.

Biden is appearing on the world stage while trying to manage a divide back in the US on how to raise the debt limit. He opted to cut short what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to Asia, so he can return to Washington to try to avoid a potentially catastrophic default in June that could ripple across the global economy. It's a drama that reveals how internal US politics can spillover into global forums.

While aboard Air Force One, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told reporters that the Russian invasion looms large as a G-7 topic. He added leaders would discuss the state of play on the battlefield and sealing loopholes to strengthen sanctions that have been levied against Moscow.

Sullivan said Biden and Kishida, are aiming to further advance a relationship that's progressed over the course of the last two years with the two sides tightening coordination on military, economic and climate matters.

Last year, Biden came to Tokyo to discuss Indo-Pacific strategy and launch a new trade framework for the region, with the US president and Kishida engaging in an 85-minute tea ceremony and seafood dinner.

The president's first stop in Japan on Thursday was to greet US troops at the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, before he headed to Hiroshima for talks with the Japanese prime minister.

Kishida was quick to call out the risks of nuclear-power Russia invading Ukraine in 2022, saying then, Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow.

China has declared a limitless friendship with Russia, increasing trade in ways that blunted the ability of financial sanctions to constrain the war. But the US and its allies say China has yet to ship military equipment to Russia, a sign that the friendship might have some boundaries.

Biden and Kishida also discussed economic matters. They addressed efforts to bolster supply chains for critical minerals, new partnerships between US and Japanese companies and universities and how to promote renewable energy, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

Kishida had planned to discuss further strengthening of deterrence and response capability with Biden in the face of China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as confirming the importance of the Taiwan Strait for global peace and stability. China has asserted that self-governing Taiwan should come under its rule. US officials have been briefed on the possible economic damage caused by a war over Taiwan, which would disrupt the supply of advanced computer chips.

The US and Japanese leaders also talked about ways to reinforce their three-way partnership with South Korea, which signed an agreement in April with the US to strengthen their tools for deterring a nuclear attack by North Korea.

Kishida and Biden will hold a trilateral summit with South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol on the sidelines of the G-7 summit. But Kishida is in a complicated position by discussing efforts to respond to nuclear threats by North Korea with Japan's history of also calling for a world free from nuclear arms, said Kan Kimura, a Kobe University professor and an expert on South Korea.

In the wake of World War II, Japan embraced pacifism. The atomic bomb scorched Hiroshima, killing 140,000 people and destroying most of the river delta city's buildings. But current conditions are testing Japan's pacifism and anti-nuclear weapon tradition.

Of course, Kishida is walking a fine line," said Christopher Johnstone, a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. "He recognises the need for the nuclear umbrella, Japan's dependence on US extended deterrence  that that's more vital than ever, frankly, in the current security environment."

There are outstanding issues between the US and Japan. During his January meeting with Kishida, Biden brought up the case of Lt. Ridge Alkonis, a US Navy officer deployed to Japan who last year was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of two Japanese citizens in May 2021, according to a senior administration official.

Alkonis also agreed to pay the victims USD 1.65 million in restitution. His family is seeking his release, saying he was detained until he confessed.

The early return to Washington to deal with the debt limit means Biden will skip planned stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia, where he was to take part in a meeting of the so-called Quad partnership with leaders of Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea visit would have been the first to the Pacific Island country by a sitting US president.

The White House said that Biden phoned the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, while travelling on Air Force One to personally convey the need to return to Washington. Biden invited Marape and other Pacific leaders to Washington later this year. (AP)



GRS
Colombo, May 18 (PTI) Sri Lankan Tamils on Thursday said the government has failed to deliver justice to the victims of the brutal civil war as they observed the 14th anniversary of the end of the three-decade long conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Lankan forces.

On May 18, 2009, the separatist campaign led by the LTTE to establish a separate Tamil homeland in the northern and eastern province of the island nation came to an end with the killing of the LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabakaran by the Sri Lankan Army in Mullaithvius Vellamulivaikkal.

Every year on May 18, while the armed forces celebrate the war victory, the Tamils mourn their dead during the final phase of the conflict.

The remembrance ceremony was convened on Thursday at Mullaivaikkal in the north eastern district of Mullaithivu - the scene of the final battle on May 18, 2009.

Father Leo, a Catholic priest on behalf of the Mullaivaikkal Memorial Committee, called for justice and accountability at the ceremony held this morning at the site.

The mourners said the government has not delivered justice to the victims of the civil war.

In Colombo, a group of civil society activists said their attempt to commemorate the death of Tamil civilians was disrupted by the members of the majority Sinhala community who branded the commemoration as an act of remembering the "LTTE terrorists".

The riot police who intervened dispersed both sides from the site.

Sinhalese, mostly Buddhist, make up nearly 75 per cent of Sri Lanka's 22 million population while Tamils make up 15 per cent.

The majority hardline Buddhist clergy has also been thwarting attempts for reconciliation with the Tamil minority since 1948 when the country gained its independence from Britain.

The government has also planned for a remembrance of the fallen soldiers in the conflict on Friday near the parliament with all war-winning military commanders in attendance.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe who is the commander-in-chief of the troops is to preside over the event.

The Tamils allege that thousands were massacred during the final stages of the war that ended in 2009, a charge the Sri Lankan Army denies.

At least 40,000 Tamil civilians may have been killed in just the final months of the civil war, according to a UN report.

Sri Lanka has been subject to the UN human rights council resolutions since 2013 calling for accountability through international investigations to the incidents of alleged war crimes.

Ousted president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was the defence secretary during the final phase of the conflict, is accused of ruthlessly ending Sri Lankas civil war with the killing of LTTE supremo Prabhakaran in 2009.

The island nation has had a long history of failed negotiations with the Tamils. An Indian effort in 1987, which created the system of a joint provincial council for the Tamil-dominated North and East, faltered as the minority community claimed it fell short of full autonomy.

Wickremesinghe, who took over as the president last year amidst the unprecedented economic crisis and political turmoil, earlier, underlined the need to fully implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution to grant political autonomy to the minority Tamils in the country.

The 13A provides for the devolution of power to the Tamil community in Sri Lanka. India has been pressing Sri Lanka to implement the 13A which was brought in after the Indo-Sri Lankan agreement of 1987.
Lahore, May 18 (PTI) Embattled former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday accused the PML-N-led coalition government of trying to score a "technical knockout" against him and eliminate his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party ahead of elections.

"Efforts to eliminate PTI have been under way for over a year now. But all what they are doing is just strengthening the party," Khan told a group of journalists here at his Zaman Park residence which has been surrounded by Punjab police.

Stating that what the government is doing has never been seen before in the history of the country, 70-year-old Khan said the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government is trying to score a "technical knockout" against him to disqualify his party from contesting elections.

"My arrest  they want to eliminate me and ban the PTI  all this is a part of the London plan," Khan alleged.

"Where Pakistan is standing today, except for free and fair elections, any route you take will lead to its destruction," he said. "The only way out of this swamp are free and fair elections."

Khan has been demanding early national elections since his ouster in April last year after he lost a confidence vote in Parliament.

The current term of the National Assembly will complete its five-year term in August this year. The election commission is preparing to hold general elections by October.

Khan also demanded an independent probe into May 9 riots, claiming that there was an organised conspiracy behind the violence following his arrest in a corruption case.

"Everything was planned. So I demand that an independent commission is constituted. And let me tell you what will be revealed after its probe. We will give you evidence  how people were made to attack as part of a plan," he said.

On May 9, violent protests erupted after the arrest of Khan. His party workers vandalised a dozen military installations, including the Jinnah House (Lahore Corps Commander house), Mianwali airbase and the ISI building in Faisalabad. The Army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi was also attacked by the mob for the first time.

Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10 while Khan's party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel.

Khan said there is a plan formed to pit his party against the army. "Their plan is to eliminate the PTI through the army, Khan claimed.

"The PDM is behind this and it is very dangerous for the country," he said. "They cant compete with us in elections and now they want to pit us against the army."

The PDM mostly comprises political parties in the ruling coalition, including the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Khan also slammed the police action at his residence in his absence, saying his wife was alone at home when an armoured personnel carrier stormed into the house with over 40 policemen.

The police in March had stormed the Zaman Park residence of Khan to arrest him but strong resistance of his party workers thwarted that plan.

Khan's remarks came as a large number of Punjab police personnel surrounded his house and may launch a security operation any time to arrest the "terrorists" allegedly holed up in his residence as the government's 24-hour deadline to hand them over expired.

He was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.
LPETTET / iStock.com

If you have a Costco membership, you're probably already familiar with all of the in-store and online savings you can find on household goods, groceries, electronics and more. But there may be other ways your membership can score you big savings that you may not be taking advantage of.

Costco's Best Deals? Employee Reveals 10 Standout Buys for Your Money

Find Out: How To Build Your Savings From Scratch

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More: 8 Items To Stop Buying at Grocery Stores If You Want To Save Money

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Did you know that Costco offers pharmacy services? You can have your prescriptions filled at the warehouse store and either pick them up in person or opt to have them shipped to your home.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 8 Money-Saving Costco Membership Features Youre Not Taking Advantage Of
Jeddah, May 18 (AP) Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived on Thursday in Saudi Arabia to attend a regional summit, his first visit to the oil-rich kingdom since Syria's conflict began in 2011, Syrian state media said.

Assad's attendance at the Arab League summit, which starts Friday, is expected to seal Syria's return to the Arab fold following a 12-year suspension and open a new chapter of relations after more than a decade of tensions.

The 22-member league, which is convening in the Saudi city of Jeddah, recently reinstated Syria and is now poised to welcome Assad, a long-time regional pariah, back into its ranks. The Syrian president was officially invited to attend the summit last week.

During Syria's civil war, Saudi Arabia had been a key backer of armed opposition groups attempting to overthrow Assad. However, in recent months, Riyadh has called for dialogue to end the conflict that has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syria's pre-war population.

Assad's troops have taken control of much of Syria thanks to his main allies Russia and Iran that helped tip the balance of power in his favor.

Relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia had been turbulent since Assad took office in 2000, following the death of his late father and former president, Hafaz Assad. The two countries cut relations in 2012, at the height of Syria's conflict. Last week they agreed on reopening their embassies.

In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Riyadh and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Damascus and met with Assad. Mekdad also took part in Arab foreign ministers meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of the summit.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pushing for peace in the region and over the past months, Riyadh has improved its relations with Iran, restored ties with Syria and is ending the kingdom's yearslong war in Yemen. Iran, a main backer of the Syrian government in the country's conflict, signed an agreement in China in March to resume relations with Saudi Arabia.

The renewed Saudi-Iran ties are expected to have positive effects on Middle East countries where the two support rival groups.

However, investments in war-torn Syria are unlikely as crippling Western sanctions against Assad's government remain in place and could prevent oil-rich Arab countries from rushing to release reconstruction funds.

Washington has been strongly opposed to normalization of relations with Assad, saying a solution to Syria's conflict based on U.N. Security Council resolutions should happen first.

Diplomatic contacts intensified between Damascus and Arab countries following the Feb. 6, earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria. (AP) AMS

AMS
Gondia, May 18 (PTI) Wildlife lovers have reasons to cheer as a tigress has given birth to four cubs in the Navegaon Nagzira Tiger Reserve (NNTR) in Maharashtra's Gondia district, officials said.

Besides, two more tigresses from the Bramhapuri range (in Chandrapur district) are expected to be released in the NNTR soon, they said.

Of late, tigress T-4 has been seen moving around with four cubs born in a single litter, NNTR's field director Jayarame Gowda R said.

It is a good sign as the tiger population in the reserve will go up further, he said.

The cubs are believed to be four to five months old, an official said.

Currently, the NNTR has 12 to 17 tigers, as per the recent All India Tiger Estimation report.

The forest department has also brought two tigresses from the Bramhapuri range and they would be released in the NNTR soon, the official said.



With the sighting of T-4 with four cubs and translocation of two big cats on cards, there would be new challenges before the NNTR management, honorary wildlife warden Sawan Bahekar said.





The authorities have to ensure protection of the cubs and also regularly monitor movement of the two new felines to be released in the reserve, he said.

"There may be some conflict situation and natural threats. The management also requires to make efforts to prevent any man-made threat for the felines. It would also have to be ensured that the tigers stay inside the core areas and do not move out often, Bahekar said.
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The BJP on Thursday accused the Congress of ignoring sub-regional aspirations and prominent communities with its choice of Siddaramaiah as the new Karnataka chief minister and DK Shivakumar as his deputy and alleged that corruption has won.

BJP I-T department head Amil Malviya also claimed that For the first time there will be no representation from the all-powerful Lingayat community or the SCs.

"For the first time, Karnataka will have a government that doesn't represent either sub-regional aspirations or for that matter prominent communities. Both CM designate Siddaramaiah and to be Deputy CM DKS come from south Karnataka. For the first time there will be no representation from the all-powerful Lingayat community or the SCs," he tweeted.

He alleged that the Congress has "intentionally" left out M B Patil, a Lingayat, and G Parameshwara, a Dalit, and said they could have been made deputy chief ministers.

The Congress is hell-bent on humiliating both these senior leaders and their communities, he said.

Malviya alleged, "In the end, corruption wins. As the only DCM and moneybag, DKS will run the show, control most of the ministerial appointments and reduce Karnataka to an ATM, just to please the Gandhis in Delhi. Siddaramaiah will be reduced to being a placeholder CM, whose last term, to put it mildly, was nothing short of a disaster."

Ending days of suspense, the Congress on Thursday announced Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka and PCC president D K Shivakumar as his only deputy.

The two leaders, who were in a tight race for the top post, would take oath along with other ministers on May 20 and leaders of all like-minded parties will be invited for the swearing-in ceremony.
Jammu, May 18 (PTI) Scores of individuals in Jammu and Kashmir receiving calls and WhatsApp messages from suspicious international mobile numbers in a bid to spread rumours about upcoming G20 events has emerged as the latest security challenge in the Union territory.

The local police has issued an advisory cautioning the public against these numbers and urging them to remain vigilant.

One such call from a suspicious number stated, "G20 delegatesKashmir is not India. The Modi regime is ill. G20 members boycott it in Srinagar -- save Kashmir Pandits."

Similar messages are being circulated on WhatsApp, attempting to incite trouble and instigate a boycott of the G20 event.

The Jammu police had on Wednesday identified the suspicious numbers as +44 7520 693559, +447418343648, and +44 7520 693134, and warned the general public to exercise caution and refrain from responding to any communication from these or other ISD numbers. These numbers are responsible for spreading anti-national messages and propaganda, they said.

These numbers are spreading anti-national messages and propaganda, and the public should remain fully alert towards these attempts and not respond to any of such suspicious calls, a police officer said.

He emphasised the importance of remaining fully alert and advised individuals to report any grievances or queries related to the matter to the cyber police station, nearby police stations, or police posts.

Moreover, if a person has any grievance or query related to the matter, the cyber police station or any nearby police station or police post can be contacted, the statement added.


Srinagar, May 18 (PTI) PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday alleged that security forces were breaking into homes and violating the privacy of people ahead of the G-20 summit in Kashmir.

Mehbooba's remarks came after Sehar Shabir Shah, the daughter of jailed separatist leader Shabir Shah, said security forces conducted searches at her home.

"Right before G20 in Kashmir, security forces are breaking into homes, ransacking and violating the privacy of people here. As if the existing repression in Kashmir wasn't enough, GOIs paranoia about G20 has unleashed bigger demons. Even women are not being spared," the PDP chief said in a tweet.

Sehar had alleged that security forces entered her house and searched every inch of it "and left a mess everywhere".

"Our rooms are entirely messed, with all of the almirahs open and everything else thrown throughout. I'm disgusted by how everything has been destroyed. My mother was intimidated as they left and warned that they would return," she had tweeted.

However, police said the searches were routine security measures which had no connection with the G-20 event and there was no harassment or harm caused to the family members.

"There are tweets by daughter of separatist Shabir Shah claiming harassment during search operation. It is clarified that it was search of 20 houses, when inputs of movement of terrorists in this locality came. This has nothing to do with G20 but is routine in case of inputs," the Srinagar Police said in a series of tweets.

"No harassment/harm whatsoever was caused during this search and all SOPs were followed," it added.

The police said, "The lady is strangely linking this with G-20, more strange is an ex-CM linking this too with the event, when she herself was privy to such search in particular locality due to terrorist sighting,"

The search team was having three DySPs, four lady officials and others, the police said, adding, "Such attempts of forwarding malicious agenda of attributing routine security measures to an event by family of a separatist undergoing jail in a terror funding case shows sheer frustration of some vested interests".
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The JNU administration on Thursday "firmly advised" a group of students against holding a discussion on the recent Manipur violence on the campus even as the organisers said the event will he held as per schedule.

The group called 'THE COLLECTIVE', said the discussion will begin at 9.30 pm on Thursday.

"It has come to the notice of the administration that a group of students has in the name of 'THE COLLECTIVE' released a pamphlet for discussion on happenings in Manipur scheduled to be held at Ganga Dhaba on 18th May 2023 at 9:30 pm, the varsity said.

No prior permission for this event was taken from the JNU Administration, it said.

"This is to emphasise that such activity may disturb the peace and harmony of the University Campus. The concerned students/individuals are firmly advised to cancel the proposed programme immediately," said the varsity.

According to the pamphlet issued by 'THE COLLECTIVE', the discussion is being organised to "understand what is happening in Manipur".

The students were asked to join a mess table discussion on the socio-cultural context of the ongoing crisis and the role of the state with Dr Thongkholal Haokip, Centre for the Study of Law and Governance, JNU; Dr Praem Hidam, School of Law, Governance and Citizenship, BR Ambedkar University; Nandita Haksar Senior human rights lawyer and author, according to the pamphlet.

Speaking to PTI, Sourya Majumdar, the joint secretary of 'THE COLLECTIVE', said there is no rule against holding a discussion without taking permission.

"We will continue with our plan to hold a discussion. It was never mandatory to take permission to hold a discussion. Why they are making it a rule now? This is baseless. How can a discussion disturb the peace of the university, he said.
Jaipur, May 18 (PTI) An Independent MLA in Rajasthan has urged former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot not to make himself a "laughing stock" as he targeted the Congress leader's call for action against corruption during the previous BJP regime in the state.

Sanyam Lodha, an adviser of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and the MLA from Sirohi, said he has been speaking out in the state assembly against the previous BJP dispensation's corruption for the past five years but found no support from Pilot.

"In these five years, I have been raising the issues of corruption by the previous BJP government and paper leaks (in government recruitment exam) in assembly debates. He (Pilot) or his team members did not support us then," Lodha told reporters.

"This is Rajasthan and the state's people understand why you (Pilot) are bringing up issues of unemployment and corruption of previous governments in an election year. Do not make yourself a laughing stock and work with dignity and discipline for the party you are part of," Lodha added.

The Sirohi MLA added said that there is no impact of Pilot's "Jan Sangharsh Yatra" as nobody took it seriously.

"All supporters seen in the yatra are sponsored. And whatever steps he takes, he can. Politics is an open ground," Lodha said.

Pilot last week launched a five-day foot march against corruption and government recruitment exam paper leaks.

During a rally in Jaipur on Monday, Pilot announced that he would launch a statewide agitation if the government did not act on his demands by the month-end.

At least 14 Congress MLAs were seen on the dais with Pilot, indicating support for the leader who headed a rebellion against Gehlot in 2020. Pilot's office, however, had claimed that 28 current and former MLAs attended the rally.

The Pilot camp also claimed that the rally was attended by chairpersons of five boards of the state government, seven Pradesh Congress Committee office-bearers, 10 district unit presidents and 17 leaders who have contested elections on the party ticket in the past.

The show of strength by Pilot comes just months before the assembly polls when the party hopes to return to power in Rajasthan.

Lodha on Thursday shared past incidents that he claimed had offended Pilot.

He said Pilot was first offended when his car was not allowed to enter via a gate meant for those occupying the highest constitutional posts.

Later, when he was not given a room in the chief minister's block in the secretariat, he also got offended, Lodha claimed.

Lodha alleged that Pilot continued to occupy the deputy chief minister's bungalow even after he was removed from the post despite rules stipulating that the house has to be vacated in a month.

Pilot was also unhappy with his seat in the assembly and made calls to be given a seat in the first row despite not having the seniority, he added.
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed serious concern over the death of three cheetahs translocated from South Africa and Namibia to Kuno National Park (KNP) of Madhya Pradesh in less than two months and asked the Centre to rise above politics and consider shifting them to Rajasthan.

A bench of justices BR Gavai and Sanjay Karol told the Centre that from reports of experts and articles, it appears that KNP does not seem to be sufficient for such large number of cheetahs and the Union government may consider shifting them to other sanctuaries.

"Three deaths (of cheetahs) in less than two months is a matter of serious concern. There are opinions of experts and articles in media. It appears that Kuno is not sufficient for so many cheetahs. There is too much concentration of cheetahs at one place. Why don't you look for suitable place in Rajasthan? Merely because Rajasthan is ruled by opposition party does not mean, you will not consider it," the bench said. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre said the task force is seized of the deaths and is investigating all possible aspects including shifting them to other sanctuaries.

On March 27, a female Cheetah named Sasha (from Namibia) died due to kidney ailment, on April 23, Uday (S Africa) died due to cardio-pulmonary failure and on May 9, another South African female cheetah named Daksha, died following a violent interaction with a male during a mating attempt.

The bench said from the reports it seems one cheetah died after suffering injuries during a fight between two males over mating and one died of kidney related ailment.

"We came to know that the cheetah which died due to kidney related ailment was suffering from the problem before being brought to India. Question is how was that female cheetah cleared to be brought to India, if the feline was suffering from ailment," the bench said.

Bhati said autopsies of all the deaths were done and task force is investigating the issue.

"You are bringing the cheetahs from abroad, it's a good thing. But they need to be protected. They need to be given suitable habitat, why don't you explore for more suitable habitat than Kuno", the bench said, adding that it is not casting any aspersions on the government but expressing concern over the deaths.

Bhati said one cheetah has given birth to four cubs which shows that they are acclimatising well in Kuno.

Justice Gavai, who is heading the green bench of the apex court, said environmental issues concern him very much and it is a subject which is close to his heart.

Bhati said death of cheetahs is not an unusual thing but they are thoroughly investigating and if the court wishes, the government would like to file an additional affidavit giving the details of the deaths.

The bench said it not doubting the intent of the government but there are articles and reports of cheetah experts in newspapers and therefore the Centre must consider at least one or more habitat for them.

"The cheetahs were brought subsequent to orders of this court. It appears Kuno is not sufficient for them, therefore consider transferring them to other sanctuaries in Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan, wherever it suitable," the bench said, adding the government should consider taking views from cheetah experts.

Justice Gavai told Bhati, "Don't bring party-politics into this issue. Consider all the available habitats, whatever is suitable for them. I will be glad if cheetahs are brought to Maharashtra."

Bhati said Mukundara National Park is ready and the task force is also considering transferring some of them to other national park in Madhya Pradesh.

"There are no cheetah experts in India as cheetahs went extinct from the country in 1947-48. Since then our officials have been to South Africa, Namibia and undergone specialized training on Cheetah management", Bhati said, adding if the court is considering hearing views of cheetah experts, then it should hear all of them and not one or two, who have particular kind of opinions.

The bench then asked the apex court-constituted expert committee to give its suggestion to the national task force on cheetah in 15 days, so that it could be considered.

It posted the matter for further hearing after summer vacation.

The top court's direction came while hearing an application filed by the Centre seeking direction from the court that it is no longer necessary and mandatory for the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to continue taking the guidance and advice of the expert committee appointed by this court through an order dated January 28, 2020.

The top court had then said that the three-member committee comprising former director of wildlife protection M K Ranjit Sinh, chief conservator of forests, wildlife administration in Uttarakhand Dhananjai Mohan and the DIG (Wildlife) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) will guide the NTCA in the introduction of African cheetahs in India.

On March 28, a day after the first death of cheetah at Kuno, the top court had sought details of experts in the Cheetah Task Force such as their qualification and experience.

The Centre, in its application said that according to the action plan for cheetah introduction in India, annually 8-14 big cats are required to be brought in from African countries for the next five-years at least and an memorandum of understanding in this regard has been signed by the government of India with Namibia and South Africa for cooperation in the field of cheetah conservation.

Giving the details, the Centre said that following the signing of the MOU, "in a historic wild to wild intercontinental translocation of large carnivore, eight cheetahs were transported from Namibia to India on September 17, 2022 and were released into the quarantine enclosures in Kuno National Park of Madhya Pradesh".

The government said that as per MoU with South Africa, 12 cheetahs -- seven males and five females -- were translocated from South Africa to KNP on February 18, 2023.

It said that this entire exercise of cheetah introduction in India has been carried out under the expert guidance and supervision of the International cheetah experts, scientists, veterinarians, forest officials and NTCA in consultations with the committee appointed by this court vide order dated January 28, 2020.
Bengaluru, May 18 (PTI) If things go as planned, the Indian Space Research Organisation would launch its ambitious Chandrayaan-3 mission aimed at demonstrating critical technologies to land the spacecraft on the south pole of the moon in less than two months.

Chandrayaan-3 mission carries scientific instruments to study the thermo-physical properties of the lunar regolith, lunar seismicity, lunar surface plasma environment and elemental composition in the vicinity of the landing site.

"Chandrayaan-3 mission is scheduled in July second week," a senior official of the Bengaluru-headquartered national space agency under the Department of Space told PTI on Thursday.

While the scope of these scientific instruments on the lander and the rover would fit in the theme of 'Science of the Moon', another experimental instrument would study the spectro-polarimetric signatures of the Earth from the lunar orbit, which would fit in the theme of 'Science from the Moon', according to ISRO officials.

In March this year, Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft successfully completed the essential tests that validated its capability to withstand the harsh vibration and acoustic environment that the spacecraft would face during its launch.

These tests were particularly challenging, considering the fact that the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, which would be launched by LVM3 (Launch Vehicle Mark-III) (earlier referred as GSLV Mk III) from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota, is a composite of three modules -- propulsion, lander and rover.

"Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan-2 to demonstrate end-to-end capability in safe landing and roving on the lunar surface. It consists of Lander and Rover configuration", an ISRO official said.

The propulsion module, which has Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload to study the spectral and Polari metric measurements of Earth from the lunar orbit, would carry the lander and rover configuration till 100 km lunar orbit.

Lander payloads are: 'Chandra's Surface Thermophysical Experiment' to measure the thermal conductivity and temperature; 'Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity' for measuring the seismicity around the landing site; and 'Langmuir Probe' to estimate the plasma density and its variations.

A passive Laser Retroreflector Array from the US space agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is also accommodated for lunar laser ranging studies.

Rover payloads are: 'Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer' and 'Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy' for deriving the elemental composition in the vicinity of the landing site.

The Lander would have the capability to soft land at a specified lunar site and deploy the Rover which would carry out in-situ chemical analysis of the lunar surface during the course of its mobility.

The main function of the propulsion module is to carry the lander module from launch vehicle injection till final lunar 100 km circular polar orbit and separate it. Apart from this, the propulsion module also has one scientific payload as a value addition which would be operated post separation of the lander module, it was noted.
Bengaluru, May 18 (PTI) Many areas were bedecked and supporters set off firecrackers at several places from the HAL airport to the Congress office on Queen's Road here as the Karnataka Chief Minister-designate Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar were given a rousing reception when they arrived from Delhi on Thursday evening.

Siddaramaiah will be the next Chief Minister and Shivakumar the deputy CM, Congress announced in Delhi earlier in the day after the party arrived at a consensus on government formation in the state following hectic parleys over the last few days.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

As soon as their plane landed at the airport, their supporters burst into jubilation. They expressed their joy by raising slogans and setting off firecrackers.

The road from HAL Airport to Queens Road was full of festoons, Congress posters, cutouts of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.

Hundreds of Congress workers on either sides of the road showered flower petals on the two leaders. Congress workers, in fact, have been in festive mood since morning.

A Congress Legislature Party meeting is slated to be held this evening where Siddaramaiah would be formally elected as its leader.

Even before a formal announcement that Siddaramaiah would be the next Chief Minister, his supporters broke into celebrations here and at his native village in Mysuru district.

The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah, were jubilant since Wednesday itself following reports that their leader would become the Chief Minister again.

The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah and distributed sweets.

His brother Sidde Gowda was confident that Siddaramaiah will be chosen for the top post. "There's a guarantee that Siddaramaiah will become Chief Minister. He has done good for the people. He introduced 'Anna Bhagya' scheme giving free rice to the poor people," Sidde Gowda told reporters in Siddaramanahundi on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, arrangements were going on at Sree Kanteerava stadium in the city where the swearing-in ceremony will take place.

Security has been stepped up near the residence of Siddaramaiah, who is the Leader of Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, here and in the vicinity of the stadium where the ceremony will take place.
Ramallah, Palestine - (NewMediaWire) - May 18, 2023 - Adam Gigini, the prominent media personality and owner of Shams Media company, was honoured with the prestigious Best Media Influencer award at the Palestine Social Media Summit. The event took place at the Carmel Hotel in Ramallah and was attended by esteemed guests, including the Palestinian Minister of Information Ahmed Assaf, businessman Yasser Mahmoud Abbas, the ambassador of the State of Oman, and the CEO of "Creativity Moments," the organising company of the summit, Ayman Irshaid, as well as senior marketing and public relations leaders, and social media experts.

Under the theme "The Era of the Digital Revolution and the Impact of Social Media Content Makers on Society," the summit highlighted the significance of social media as a powerful tool in the age of technological progress and the information revolution. Adam Gigini emphasised the importance of creating Palestinian content that represents the aspirations of the youth and encouraged popular awareness about harnessing the potential of social media as an effective weapon for positive change.

Expressing his gratitude, Adam Gigini stated, "Winning the Peacock Prize for Social Media and Communication - Palestine is an incredible honour. It further motivates Shams Media to continue leading the way in providing exceptional services and campaigns that are rooted in creativity and continuous innovation. We are committed to delivering the best results and effects for our clients by utilizing our extensive capabilities in digital and social media marketing, as well as leveraging data analytics to drive success."

Shams Media received the award in recognition of its distinguished work methodology, which combines creativity, innovation, and strategic thinking in the realm of social communication. The company's commitment to delivering tangible positive outcomes for its customers set it apart from its competitors.

Commenting on the achievement, Director of Shams Media, Adam Gigini, remarked, "We take immense pride in receiving this prestigious award. It is a testament to our unwavering dedication to excellence and our commitment to staying at the forefront of the media industry. I extend my gratitude to our hardworking team and express sincere appreciation to our clients for their trust and the opportunities they have given us to showcase our creativity."

Shams Media's ongoing success and numerous accolades exemplify its position as the leading marketing and communications group with a proven track record of achievements on the national stage. The company's dedication to creative and strategic growth, aligned with global trends, aims to elevate the marketing communication sector across the Arab world.

About Shams Media:

Shams Media is a renowned media company specializing in innovative marketing and communication services. With a focus on creativity and continuous innovation, Shams Media consistently delivers exceptional results for its clients, contributing to the development and growth of the marketing communication sector.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Company Name: Shams Media

Contact Name: Sarah Johnson

Email: sarah.johnson@shamsmedia.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adam_jijine

Company Address: Ramallah, Palestine
New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) The Modi government has increased the "pride" of the country through its works such as the evacuation of Indian citizens from violence-hit Sudan and Ukraine, BJP leader BL Santhosh said at the party's Delhi unit executive committee meeting on Thursday.

The executive committee also slammed the Aam Aadmi Party government in the national capital over a range of issues, including renovation of the Delhi Chief Minister's official residence, a statement issued by the BJP's Delhi unit said.

The Delhi BJP will run a public outreach programme from May 30 to June 30 on the "successful" completion of nine years of the party's government at the Centre, it said.

"In recent years, the task of evacuating Indians from Sudan and Ukraine as well as other countries where the political situation worsened was carried out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The pride of India has increased because of what the Modi government has done," Santhosh, who is the BJP national general secretary (organisation), said in his address.

The BJP government has brought international recognition for the Indian currency by buying oil through rupees and then exporting it to the world, he said.

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said the message of service given to party workers by the prime minister by renaming the Rajpath to Kartavya Path will always inspire them.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri claimed that in the last nine years, the Modi government has implemented schemes worth lakhs of crores of rupees for the development of the city, while the Arvind Kejriwal dispensation has "obstructed" the development of Delhi.

Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi, party MPs from Delhi, including Manoj Tiwari, Parvesh Verma, Ramesh Bidhuri and Gautam Gambhir, and other leaders attended the executive committee meeting.

BJP national general secretary Dushyant Gautam and state organisation secretary Pawan Rana were also present. PTI VIT











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JAMES MAIN, Wheeler, Baseball, Sophomore; Main doubled and drove in three wins in a victory against Putnam. Main was 2 for 3 and earned the win in relief. He allowed two hits and struck out three over the final three innings.

EMMA LOGEL, Stonington, Girls Lacrosse, Sophomore; Logel scored 11 goals in a pair of Stonington games. She finished with eight in a win against Ledyard and had three in a loss to East Lyme.

CHRISTIAN DEJOUR, Westerly, Track, Junior; Dejour finished first in two sprints at the Class C championship. Dejour won the 100 in a time of 11.07 and was first in the 200 in 22.34.

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2024 GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley has called for a pardon for Daniel Penny, the man who inadvertently killed homeless agitator Jordan Neely by placing him in a chokehold on a New York City train.

Haley called Pennys arrest an injustice, urging New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to pardon the 24-year-old Marine of his second-degree manslaughter charge.

Military members, they are trained to defend and protect. Thats what he was trying to do, Haley said on the Cats & Cosby radio show. He was trying to defend the people that were on there that were being harassed by this person and that was having challenges. And now hes being prosecuted.

I actually dont think we need to just get behind Penny. I think we need to tell the governor she needs to pardon him. We need to pardon him because what he was doing was trying to protect other Americans, she added.

Haley also accused DA Alvin Bragg of caving to demands that Penny be charged rather than wait for a grand jury to make the decision based on evidence.

What Bragg is doing, hes allowing criminals to run free on the street. And hes going after citizens who are trying to protect themselves and protect people around them, Haley said.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




Senator Diane Feinstein of California returned to the Senate last week after a 2 1/2 month absence during which the 89-year-old underwent treatment for shingles.

The problem? She seems to have no recollection of being missing from Washington.

What has the response from your colleagues been like? The well-wishes, what have you heard, Ben Oreskes of the Los Angeles Times asked Feinstein about her return.

What have I heard about what, Feinstein replied.

Oreskes asked again about her absence, but the senator appeared to have no recollection of it.

No, I havent been gone I havent been gone Ive been working, she insisted. Ive been voting. Please, either know or dont know.

Feinstein is the oldest US senator and has been serving in the position since 1992. She has already stated that she will not seek reelection in 2024.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




The Supreme Court said Wednesday that Illinois can, for now, keep in place a new law that bars the sale of certain semiautomatic guns and large-capacity magazines.

The high court denied an emergency request from people challenging the law, which bans so-called assault weapons. The laws opponents had asked the court to put the law on hold while a court challenge continues. The court did not comment and no justice publicly dissented.

The high courts action comes at a time when gun violence has been heavily in the news. Since the beginning of the year, 115 people have died in 22 mass killings  an average of one mass killing a week, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in a partnership with Northeastern University. The database counts killings involving four or more fatalities, not including the perpetrator. Just recently, on May 6, a man armed with an AR-15 style rifle and other firearms fatally shot eight people, including three children, at a Dallas-area mall.

The case before the Supreme Court involves an Illinois state law enacted in January. The legislation bans the sale of a series of guns including the AR-15 and AK-47. The law also bars the sale of magazines that have more than 15 rounds of ammunition for handguns and more than 10 rounds of ammunition for a long gun.

People who legally owned the now-barred guns and magazines ahead of the laws enactment can continue to keep them. The guns, however, must be registered with law enforcement.

Nine other states and the District of Columbia have gun bans similar to the one in Illinois, according to the gun control group Brady, which tracks the legislation. California, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey and New York also require registration of guns purchased prior to the law while four other states  Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington  do not.

The Illinois legislation was driven largely by the killing of seven people at a 4th of July parade last year in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park. The shooter was armed with an AR-15 rifle and 30-round magazines.

A federal trial court in February declined to put the law on hold. A federal appeals court also declined to put the law on hold while the case continues.

The case also involves a separate so-called assault weapon bans passed by the city of Naperville.

The Supreme Courts conservative majority just last year handed gun rights activists a major victory, ruling that Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense. But the decision left open whether various restrictions states might impose would be constitutional.

(AP)




An optimistic President Joe Biden declared Wednesday he is confident the U.S. will avoid an unprecedented and potentially catastrophic debt default, saying talks with congressional Republicans have been productive. He left for a G-7 summit in Japan but planned to return by the weekend in hopes of approving a solid agreement.

Bidens upbeat remarks came as a select group of negotiators began meeting to try and hammer out the final contours of a budget spending deal to unlock a path for raising the debt limit as soon June 1. That is when the Treasury Department says the U.S. could begin defaulting on its obligations and trigger financial chaos.

Im confident that well get the agreement on the budget and America will not default, Biden said from the Roosevelt Room of the White House.

Democrat Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have traded blame for a debt-ceiling impasse for weeks. But Biden said of the latest White House session with congressional leaders that everyone came to the meeting, I think, in good faith.

McCarthy was upbeat, too, though contending Biden had given ground. The president said the budget talks were still separate from the debt limit issue, but the speaker said Biden had finally backed off his refusal to negotiate.

Biden said that every leader at Tuesdays Oval Office meeting  Vice President Kamala Harris, McCarthy, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.  agreed the U.S. must not default on its obligations.

It would be catastrophic for the American economy and the American people if we didnt pay our bills, Biden said. Im confident everyone in the room agreed  that were going to come together because theres no alternative. We have to do the right thing for the country. We have to move on.

He said he would be in constant contact with White House officials while at the summit in Hiroshima. He is canceling stops in Australia and Papua New Guinea that were to follow so he can return to Washington on Sunday.

Biden and McCarthy tasked a handful of representatives to work swiftly to try and close out a final deal. They include Steve Ricchetti, counselor to the president; legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young for the administration, and Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., a close McCarthy ally, for the Republicans.

Agreement by the negotiators would still leave any deal needing approval by Democratic Senate and Republican House.

Democrats are upset about the possibility of new work requirements for some recipients of government aid. And Republicans want much tougher budget restraints than the Democrats support.

The positive comments by Biden and McCarthy suggest they believe they can gain the backing of their parties lawmakers.

McCarthy was flanked Wednesday on the Capitol steps by some of the most conservative Republicans from the House and Senate in a feisty show of support.

The national debt currently stands at $31.4 trillion. An increase in the debt limit would not authorize new federal spending; it would only allow for borrowing to pay for what Congress has already approved.

The contours of an agreement have begun to take shape, but the details of spending cuts and policy changes will make or break whether the divided Congress can strike a bipartisan deal with the White House.

In exchange for lifting the debt limit to keep paying the bills, newly majority House Republicans are trying to extract steep budget caps of no more than 1% growth a year over the next decade, alongside bolstered work requirements.

Negotiators are preparing to claw back some $30 billion of unspent COVID-19 aid, now that the government has lifted the pandemic emergency. And they are working on a potential agreement for permit changes that would speed the development of energy projects that both Republicans and Democrats want, though the details remain daunting.

But Democrats are not at all willing to accept the 10-year cap on spending that Republicans approved in their own House bill, and the Democrats are instead pushing for a shorter window of budget cuts.

Biden is facing fierce blowback from progressive Democrats after he opened the door to tougher work requirements. But he insisted Wednesday any new work requirements would be of no consequence and that hes not willing to impact health programs, presumably referring to Medicaid.

Asked about that, the Republicans behind McCarthy  who support more work requirements on Medicaid, food stamps and cash assistance programs  broke out in laughter at the Capitol.

The Republicans scoffed aloud as helicopters with the presumably departing Biden flew overhead.

McCarthy, who depended on Donald Trumps backing to become the new speaker, still has work to do to keep his narrow House majority in line for any final deal, particularly among the hardline Freedom Caucus conservatives who almost blocked his election earlier this year for the gavel.

Former President Trump has encouraged Republicans to do a default if they dont get everything they want from Biden.

Bipartisanship is needed, Schumer said Wednesday. Its the only way to go.

As backup on Wednesday, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries launched a process that would force a vote on raising the debt limit.

Its a cumbersome legislative discharge procedure, but Jeffries urged House Democrats to sign on to the measure in hopes of gathering the 218 majority backers including Republicans needed to put it in motion.

Emerging from the White House meeting, I am hopeful that a real pathway exists to find an acceptable, bipartisan resolution that prevents a default, Jeffries said in a letter to colleagues.

However, given the impending June 1 deadline and urgency of the moment, it is important that all legislative options be pursued in the event that no agreement is reached.

(AP)




An Alabama man was sentenced on Tuesday to nearly two years in prison for storming the U.S. Capitol and invading the Senate floor with a knife on his hip and a gaping wound on his face.

A police officer shot Joshua Matthew Black in his left cheek with a crowd-control munition outside the Capitol during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. The bloody hole in his face didnt stop Black from occupying the Senate with other rioters after lawmakers evacuated the chamber.

Black was a notorious offender during the attack on the Capitol, prosecutors wrote in a court filing. The nation was shocked and appalled at the events of January 6, and perhaps no other incident sparked as much as outrage and distress as Black and other rioters occupation of the Senate Chamber.

Prosecutors had recommended a five-year prison sentence for Black, 47, of Leeds, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson sentenced Black to 22 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release, according to court records.

Black didnt testify before the judge convicted him in January of five charges, including three felonies, after hearing trial testimony without a jury. Jackson also acquitted him of one count, obstructing a congressional proceeding.

Black joined the mob that disrupted the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress for certifying President Joe Bidens 2020 electoral victory. But the judge concluded that prosecutors didnt prove Black knowingly intended to obstruct or impede the proceedings.

Defense attorney Clark Fleckinger said Black, an evangelical Christian, was motivated by his religious beliefs. Black believed God directed him to go to Washington so he could plead the blood of Jesus on the Senate floor to foster Congressional atonement for what he perceived to be the transgressions of (a) corrupt Democratic Party and Republican Party, Fleckinger wrote in a court filing.

More than 1,000 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related crimes. Roughly 500 of them have been sentenced to terms of imprisonment ranging from seven days to over 14 years. Nineteen have received prison sentences of five years or longer, according to an Associated Press review of court records.

Black, who runs a lawn-mowing business, traveled alone to Washington, D.C., to attend then-President Donald Trumps Stop the Steal rally on Jan. 6. He joined the crowd walking to the Capitol before Trump finished his speech.

Black, armed with a concealed knife, was the first rioter to breach the barricade at the Lower West Terrace, according to prosecutors.

This brazen act no doubt encouraged other rioters, who soon after overran the entire Lower West Terrace, they wrote.

Black then joined the mob on the West Plaza, where police shot him with a less-than-lethal munition, prosecutors said.

Rioters near Black became enraged that he was shot, and they harassed and assaulted officers, they wrote.

After entering the Capitol through the East Rotunda doors, he breached the Senate chamber and remained inside for over 20 minutes. Black rummaged through a desk assigned to Sen. Ted Cruz and posed for photos on the Senate dais. Before leaving, he joined other rioters in a raucous demonstration styled as a prayer led by Jacob Chansley, the self-styled QAnon Shaman, prosecutors said.

Black later told the FBI that he had a hunting knife on his hip  in a sheath beneath his coat  while inside the Senate chamber. FBI agents found the knife at Blacks home when they arrested him on Jan. 14, 2021.

He was jailed in Washington after his arrest and remained detained until a judge ordered his release on April 24, 2021. Hell get credit for the jail time that he already served.

(AP)




In the wake of organized crime and theft, retail colossus Target has warned of a projected $1.3 billion dent in its profits, as revealed in its Q1 earnings report on Wednesday.

The Minneapolis-headquartered retailer anticipates a surge in losses due to inventory shrink, amounting to $500 million more than the preceding year. In 2022, such losses totalled a staggering $800 million. Inventory shrink refers to the discrepancy between the reported inventory catalog and the actual products present on the shelves.

Theft and organized retail crime are increasingly important drivers of the issue, the company stated, pledging significant investments in preventative strategies.

A company spokesperson expressed Targets commitment to collaborating with lawmakers, law enforcement, and industry peers to promote public policies that effectively tackle retail theft and organized crime.

Despite the persistent theft issue, the companys earnings report highlighted a 0.5% increase in sales, largely credited to the opening of new locations, and a nearly 1% upsurge in customer traffic.

Shares of Target saw a morning trading surge of over 2%, reaching an approximate value of $160.

However, the substantial hit to profits threatens the continued operation of some of Targets nearly 2,000 stores, as per the earnings report.

In 2022, Target inaugurated 23 new stores nationwide, with ambitious plans for 40-plus more across California, New York, Florida, and Texas, as stated on its website.

Nevertheless, the company grapples with the escalating issue of audacious shoplifting at Target locations nationwide, with organized groups systematically pilfering merchandise.

A telling case comes from a downtown San Francisco Target, where employees report thefts occur every 10 minutes. A store worker, preferring to stay anonymous, told The San Francisco Standard, Look in some corner of the store, and youll see people shoveling stuff into a bag  food, cosmetics.

In response, commonplace items such as deodorant, toothbrushes, makeup, and snacks are now safeguarded behind plastic enclosures. At the Metreon-based Target, near Union Square, only lipstick and nail polish remained accessible, becoming an easy target for shoplifters.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




CNN said Kaitlan Collins will host a new hourlong show at the center of the prime-time lineup, filling a slot left vacant since the firing of Chris Cuomo and as the networks ratings are at a low ebb.

Collins will begin regularly hosting the 9 p.m. Eastern show next month, the network said Wednesday, making the announcement during a Warner Discovery sales presentation to advertisers.

The ex-White House correspondent moderated CNNs town hall with former President Donald Trump last week, but was generally held blameless for criticism the event received.

She is a smart and gifted journalist who weve all seen hold lawmakers and newsmakers accountable, CNN Chairman Chris Licht said in a memo to staff members. She pushes politicians off their talking points, gets real answers  and as everyone whos worked with her knows  breaks a lot of news.

Its the biggest move by Licht, who became CNNs leader last year, to put his imprint on the prime-time lineup, which has lagged far behind Fox News and MSNBC in viewership.

In continuing Collins meteoric rise at CNN, Licht has something in common with his predecessor Jeff Zucker, who noticed and hired Collins full-time based on her occasional guest appearances on CNN. Collins had been working for The Daily Caller, a conservative website launched by Tucker Carlson.

Licht had named Collins to host a revamped morning show with Poppy Harlow and Don Lemon that began last November. With Lemon fired and Collins elevated, Harlow will work with guest anchors until morning changes are announced in the months ahead, Licht said in his memo.

CNN has rotated guest hosts in the evening since December 2021, when Cuomo was fired after the network said he was not forthcoming about help offered to his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. At the time, Cuomo hosted CNNs top-rated show.

The network has struggled to gain traction without him. On Monday, for example, CNN averaged 454,000 viewers in the time slot, compared to Rachel Maddows 2.41 million viewers on MSNBC and Sean Hannitys 1.97 million on Fox, the Nielsen company said.

Last Friday, with Anderson Cooper on duty for a second hour at 9 p.m. and reaching an audience of 293,000, CNN slipped behind the conservative Newsmax network and host Chris Plantes Right Squad in viewership, Nielsen said.

CNN last month announced the pairing of Charles Barkley and Gayle King for another prime-time show starting later this year, although that will be once a week.

To the advertisers, CNN tried to increase anticipation by showing clips of King and Barkley. Shes going to be a straight shooter, Barkley said. You know Im going to be a straight shooter.

In his appearance, Licht emphasized CNNs newsgathering and said it was more important now than ever.

We prioritize reporting over punditry and separate the news from the noise, he said.

(AP)




A splendiferous fundraiser in support of United Ocean County, a political PAC promoting Republican unity, was held at Glatt Ambiance on Wednesday night, with Jackson Mayor Mike Reina and the Jackson Township Council being honored for their efforts to promote and advance Republican unity in the county.

The fundraiser, which raised more than $150,000, attracted dozens of top state GOP officials, including the Ocean County Commissioners, future Commissioner Frank Sadeghi, Ocean County Sheriff Michael Mastronardy, Toms River Mayor Mo Hill, Assemblyman John Catalano (who is running for mayor of Brick), Assemblyman Greg McGuckin, Old Bridge mayor and future state senator Owen Henry, Point Pleasant Beach councilmembers, Lavalette elected officials, political strategist Eric Arpert, and many others, including numerous local askanim.

Following a ceremony at which Mike Reina was given a plaque for his years of dedicated and effective service to all of Jackson and Ocean County, the Jackson mayor addressed the crowd, saying that the honor was not about him, but about everyone in the room who were so diligently working to advance unity.

The mayor also ripped into Gov. Phil Murphy and President Joe Biden, saying how their policies and agendas are making life more difficult for all.

United instead of divided were going to win, Reina said. Its an uphill battle; you see with the guy in charge  I dont even think he knows hes in charge  in the White House, now the borders are wide open.

Governor Murphy [spent] $500,000 for a room but he cant figure out how to fix the school funding formula, he continued. If its not for us Republicans and those stepping up  Mayor [Owen] Henry [of Old Bridge] and everyone else running for Senate and Assembly these people in this room make it happen for all of us.

So tonights not about me; its about all of us. Communicating, getting along, and finding out what has to happen, so we can make it happen together and grow as one, he concluded.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Many brands rushed into the NFT space in 2021 as tokenized digital assets were yielding billions of dollars worth of monthly salesbut none did it quite like apparel giant Adidas, which partnered with Web3-native brands and personalities on a high-profile collaboration.

In December of that year, Adidas launched its Into the Metaverse campaign alongside the popular Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT project, Punks Comic (a derivative CryptoPunks project), and pseudonymous NFT influencer gmoney. The Bored Apes had only been minted months prior, and the entire NFT space was still very new and volatile.

For Erika Wykes-Sneyd, then the global VP of marketing for Adidas Originals and now global VP and GM of Adidas /// Studios (a.k.a. Three Stripes Studios), the collaborative approach felt rightbut signing a deal with pseudonymous creators in a nascent space was still risky.

Elon Musk and Tesla Accepting Bitcoin 'Opened Door' for Adidas' Web3 Plans

It really started with our values, and it did feel right at the time, even though there were many late nights where I was like: I could get fired for this," she said on Decrypts gm podcast.

She pointed to Adidas signing a deal with the Bored Ape Yacht Club when co-founders Greg Gargamel Solano and Wylie Gordon Goner Aronow were still fully pseudonymous. That got me nervous, she recalled, as did a public company like Adidas approving a purchase of Ethereum (ETH).

Wykes-Sneyd previously told Decrypt at Februarys NFT Paris event that the process took the better part of a year, and included a lot of Web3 education for corporate leadership at what is now a 73-year-old apparel brand. But ultimately, the entire company got behind this bet on emerging culture in a decentralized space.

We brought everybody in the brand along on the journey with us, and really made sure it was clear why we were doing it, Wykes-Sneyd told gm co-hosts Stacy Elliott and Andrew Hayward, noting that the brands legal and treasury departments were all in the mix. [They] were all right there with us, so its been a really rewarding experience.

Into the Metaverse was a quick success, selling out its primary NFT drop and raising $23 million in the processand that doesnt include Adidas share of royalties on secondary market sales. The NFTs could be redeemed for exclusive physical apparel featuring the branding of all of the collaborators.

Adidas and Pharrell Release Digital Clothing for Doodles NFT Holders

Adidas has continued to build in Web3, including with the recent launch of ALTS, letting Into the Metaverse owners burn (or permanently destroy) the original NFT in exchange for a new Adidas profile picture (PFP) NFT tied into a narrative campaign. The ALTS NFTs include potential exclusive access to future events and merchandise drops.

And since the Into the Metaverse drop, the brands and creators that Adidas worked with have only grown. Bored Ape Yacht Club creator Yuga Labs raised $450 million at a $4 billion valuation and now oversees several NFT projects, Punks Comic is building various IP, and gmoney launched his own tokenized apparel brand called 9dcc.

Why Gmoney Is Buying Twitter Blue Checks for NFT Brand 9dcc's Top Supporters: I Like to Fuck Around and Find Out

Wykes-Sneyd pointed to Adidas' long history of highlighting cultural movements that hadnt yet broken into the mainstream or gained widespread recognitionlike hip-hop and the brands collaboration with genre pioneers Run-D.M.C in the 1980s. Elevating Web3 creators fit that same theme, she said.

What we do best is lift up emerging creators, emerging cultures that don't necessarily have the legitimacy yet or aren't getting recognized by popular culture, she said, and we give them a bigger stage.




Conservative superstar and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to make his official entry into the 2024 presidential race next week, following months of anticipation and speculation.

The Wall Street Journal reports DeSantis will file the necessary paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to declare his candidacy.

DeSantis is also scheduled to meet with top financial backers in Miami, Florida, late next week, which aligns with the filing of his candidacy.

DeSantis is prohibited by law from receiving or requesting campaign contributions until he formally announces his bid. By filing with the FEC, DeSantis would be able to start soliciting donations during the Miami gathering, potentially setting off a significant fundraising effort.

During the previous election cycle, DeSantis broke records for gubernatorial fundraising and began the spring season with $110 million in his fundraising committees. Much of these funds could potentially be transferred to Never Back Down, a super PAC supporting DeSantiss anticipated presidential campaign.

While a formal campaign kick-off event is expected to take place after the donor gathering, no specific details have been disclosed by the campaign team.

In recent days, DeSantis has made several moves indicating an imminent campaign launch. One notable development was his political team relocating from the Republican Party of Florida headquarters to new offices. Additionally, the governor cut ties with Friends of Ron DeSantis, his longstanding political state committee, in order to comply with federal campaign finance regulations.

Although DeSantis has not officially announced his 2024 presidential campaign, he stated last week that he would make a decision relatively soon. While visiting Iowa, the state that hosts the first caucuses of the GOP presidential nominating process, DeSantis responded to inquiries about an impending announcement, stating that there was no news yet.

Nonetheless, DeSantiss multiple visits to early voting presidential primary and caucus states since March, along with his expansion of the political team in Tallahassee, serve as clear indications of his movement towards launching a 2024.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




An unexpected visitor spotted sunbathing on a beach in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv is turning heads and causing a media buzz.

But its not American film director and Tel Aviv mainstay, Quentin Tarantino, or another Hollywood celebrity  its Yulia, an endangered Mediterranean monk seal.

The seal cow first appeared south of Tel Avivs main beachfront last Friday. On Tuesday, Yulia  so named by Israels Nature and Parks Authority  drew clusters of curious onlookers to the rocky beach south of Jaffas historic center.

These seals are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with as few as 350 mature specimens estimated to exist in the wild. Its populations have dwindled due to historic seal hunting, fishing, and habitat destruction.

Rarely spotted on Israels shores, the dwindling Mediterranean monk seal populations are believed to survive only in a handful of places in the Mediterranean Sea.

Israels Parks Authority has fenced off the section of beach where Yulia has come ashore to rest, and dispatched volunteers to monitor her from a distance.

Still, her appearance is a sensation.

This is a very rare event that a monk seal stays for such a long time on the shore, said Aviad Scheinin, a marine biologist from University of Haifa.

Yulia is molting, a multi-day process of shedding her winter coat, he explained, during which time she has been resting on the shore and taken occasional excursions out to sea.

Scheinin said fellow researchers from around the eastern Mediterranean have previously spotted Yulia in Turkey and Lebanon in recent years. She is estimated to be around 20 years old.

Im researching marine mammals for 20 years; this is the first time that Im actually seeing such a thing, and I can hardly sleep at night because of that, he said.

(AP)




Noam chairman Avi Maoz quoted New York Mayor Eric Adamss speech last week at an Orthodox Union event about the benefits of yeshivos in a speech from the Knesset plenum this week and suggested that perhaps Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai could learn from Adams.

Maozs speech was made on the background of a battle by leftists in Tel Aviv over the relocation of a yeshivah. Yeshivas Maale Eliyahu, located in Tel Aviv near Ichilov Hospital, has been in its current location for 26 years. A few months ago, the yeshivah agreed to Huldais request to relocate to a nearby location since its current lot was needed to expand an existing elementary school. The mayor promised to relocate the yeshivah to a nearby lot where a large [unused] shul is located and carry out construction to convert and expand the shul building in accordance with the yeshivahs needs.

However, along the way, a group of extreme leftists got wind of the plan and began a campaign of incitement against the yeshivahs relocation, holding numerous protests against it in front of the yeshivah. Two of the organizations [Crime Minister and Black Flags] that were behind the protests against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in his last term as well as the protests against the judicial reform led protests against the yeshivah as well.

In the wake of the protests by a small but vocal group of extremists, the Tel Aviv municipality announced on Sunday that it is re-evaluating its plan and proposing other alternatives  despite the fact that the municipality already evacuated parts of the yeshivah.

Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Meital Lehavi of Meretz is playing a leading role in the protests  on the background of the upcoming municipal elections, with each candidate vying to show who could be the most anti-religious, i.e. liberal.

In an interview with Galei Yisrael, Lehavi said: I learned about the nature of the yeshivah and I oppose the settlers who want to settle here and change our character.

The radio host responded: So there isnt room for everyone in Tel Aviv? Its a city that hates Chareidim and religion in principle?

Lehavi declared: We wont be silent until this terrible plan is shelved. If it would be implemented, it will harm the secular image of the neighborhood and the quality of life of the residents. We commit to taking an active part in the discussions on the alternatives in order to make sure that the yeshiva will not be established in another liberal neighborhood.

It should be noted that the campaign is not an anti-Chareidi one as Maaleh Eliyahu is a Dati-Leumi yeshivah and its members have served in the IDF  but the leftists cant bear the thought of anything associated with religion. As Maoz said in his speech: The handful of protestors refer to themselves in the notices against the yeshivah as Zionist Israelis who are loyal to the Declaration of Independence, serve in the IDF and pay taxes. Just to mention, this is a Zionist yeshiva, whose students serve in the IDF, including graduates who serve as senior officers.

This is of course not an innocent protest but the continuation of the struggle of a small and extremist minority, who seek to fight against any glimmer of Yahadus out of a deep fear of a meeting of Am Yisrael with Yahadus. Weve survived many scoundrels. Well survive these too, Maoz concluded.

The campaign has been condemned by some members of the opposition, including Gideon Saar and Matan Kahana as a clear hate campaign.

One social media user wrote: A yeshivah that spreads light and goodness, IDF soldiers, an asset to the neighborhood, is now under an antisemitic attack the likes of which in Europe, someone would serve in prison for it.

The day isnt far when a religious person wont be able to walk around in Tel Aviv.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




A large number of officers of Israel Police and Border Guard equipped with horses and water cannons were waiting on Wednesday evening in Bnei Brak in preparation for the provocative siege of the city and march of rage by left-wing protesters.

Hundreds of protesters entered the city waving flags, shouting slogans and carrying anti-Chareidi signs.

There were complaints from dozens of city residents who were blocked by police officers from returning to their homes on the streets where the protesters were marching.

Like the previous march, some residents greeted the besiegers with drinks and snacks.

A sign greeted the protesters saying: Bnei Brak will remain Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv will remain Tel Aviv. We all have to learn to live together.

Several protesters came bearing signs in support of Bnei Brak residents.

Some friendly conversations occurred between Chareidim and protesters:

But there were also conflicts. A protester tried to hit a bochur with his flagpole as seen in the video below:

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




As leftists besieged Bnei Brak in protest of the end of democracy, they apparently had no problem silencing anyone with a different opinion  physically attacking a reporter from the right-wing Channel 14 News channel covering the protest.

Reporter Atay Shalev and his photographer were surrounded by dozens of protesters who first prevented him from broadcasting by shoving their Zionist flags in his face and using drums and other instruments to drown him out, and later in the evening, began to engage in physical violence, using their flagpoles to hit them. Police officers at the scene had to rescue them from the area.

In the video, Shalev, clearly agitated, explained how this wasnt the first time he was attacked but it was the first time he felt real fear of being injured as the attack by dozens of protesters felt like a lynch and he had to be rescued by police forces.

Sadly, leftists flagpoles have been transformed into weapons on a number of occasions, including a separate incident during the Bnei Brak siege when a protester hit a young bochur.

Channel 14 News issued a statement saying: We strongly condemn the violence of the left-wing demonstrators who attacked and beat reporter Atay Shalev and photographer Emil Mushailov during coverage of a demonstration tonight in Bnei Brak.

Our team was attacked by dozens of thugs with sticks, objects were thrown at them, and megaphones were thrust in their ears. The anarchists surrounded the reporter and the photographer and did not allow them to broadcast. The violence against our staff lasted for about two and a half hours and police forces were required to rescue them from the thugs.

Unfortunately, since the start of the protests against the reform, Channel 14 reporters suffer violence and assaults every time they report on them. A complaint will be filed with the police in the next few hours. We demand that the Police Commissioner and all law enforcement agencies act immediately to prosecute the violent thugs. The channels management intends to set up a legal team as early as tomorrow morning to file civil lawsuits against the rioters who attacked our dedicated team. Attempts at violent and criminal silencing will not deter us from doing our important work for Am Yisrael.

We should note that this is not the first time that the Channel 14 team has been attacked by demonstrators during the left-wing protests. The last time happened two months ago when a similar case occurred in which Atay was attacked when he was covering a protest in Tel Aviv. He was attacked by dozens of protesters who cursed him and even used physical violence to prevent him from doing his job. Police officers who were there protected him and prevented the protesters from harassing him.

Channel 12 News reporter Yaron Avraham wrote: The attack of Atay Shalev is precisely the moment when everything should be pushed aside to stand up against the violent and disgusting behavior he was subject to because he expressed views that failed to find favor in the eyes of the protestersif the leaders of the protesters had a little self-respect, they would condemn this attack  the sooner the better.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




A Jordanian lawmaker has been indicted on charges that he illegally smuggled hundreds of rifles and handguns to terror groups in the Shomron through the Allenby Crossing, his lawyer said Wednesday.

Lawmaker Imad al-Adwan, whose parliamentary immunity was revoked, as promised to Israel, could be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

The alleged gun-running scandal that gripped headlines last month has threatened to further strain ties between Israel and its Arab neighbor to the east despite their nearly three-decade-old peace treaty.

The apparent effort by a Jordanian parliament member to sneak guns into the restive Palestinian Authority  where young Palestinians are increasingly getting their hands on rifles and opening fire at Israelis  has raised fears of Jordanian support for Palestinian militancy that undercuts the countrys moderate, pro-Western monarchy.

Al-Adwan was charged in a state security court in Amman last week, his lawyer Ali Mubaideen told The Associated Press. After being interrogated, al-Adwan, 35, was charged with four counts of illegally exporting weapons and carrying out actions that breach security and threaten community peace, Mubaideen added.

Israels Shin Bet security service has said al-Adwan successfully managed to smuggle arms, gold and other items like electronic cigarettes into the West Bank at least a dozen times since early 2022 in exchange for unspecified sums of money. He was caught on April 22 at an Israeli-controlled crossing with over 200 weapons. Israel handed him over to Jordanian authorities last month.

Al-Adwan, a member of one of Jordans biggest tribes, has served for the past three years as a legislator in a newly formed political party called Irada, which aims to modernize the countrys political system.

Violence in the Palestinian Authority has surged to heights unseen in some two decades. The territory has been awash with illegal weapons, including arms smuggled from Jordan.

(AP & YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




Is it Wrong to Force Immigrants (legal or illegal) to Vaccinate?

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5tjt.com

The American Civil War (1861 1865) pitted brother against brother. The real issue that they fought about was whether to allow or forbid the new territories in the west to become slave states. The issue under debate was not just an economic one  it was a moral one too.

We now face another moral issue. New York State, and New York City particularly, has welcomed asylum seekers that have illegally entered into the United States. A spokesman for Mayor Adams recently announced:

New York City has cared for more than 61,000 migrants over the last year  sheltering, feeding, and caring for them almost entirely on our own. In recent days, weve seen upwards of 500 people arrive each day, and we expect those numbers to grow significantly.. With over 130 emergency sites and eight humanitarian relief centers already opened, we have reached our limit, and this last week we had to resort to temporarily housing recent arrivals in gyms..

Gov. Kathy Hochul also released a statement,

I am working very closely with the mayor to identify more sites where we can welcome these individuals..Theyre human beings, they deserve to be treated with dignity, but also were going to have a capacity issue, so were going to be needing to look at other places as well.

So what are the moral and halachic issues under discussion?

It seems that half of these immigrants have not been vaccinated. We are not talking about Covid, we are talking about measles, mumps, rubella, polio and whooping cough (a very serious illness that affects babies). Can we morally force immigrants to vaccinate against these illnesses  in order to lessen the prevalence of illness among ourselves?

In regard to legal immigrants, there is such a thing as an inadmissible alien. The Immigration and Nationality Act defines an inadmissible alien as 1 of 4 categories. Someone who:

Has or has had a physical or mental disorder and associated behavior that may pose, or has posed, a threat to the property, safety, or welfare of the alien or others, and which behavior is likely to recur or lead to other harmful behavior.

Who is determined to be a drug abuser or addict.

Is determined to have a communicable disease of public health significance;

Failed to present documentation of having received vaccination against vaccine-preventable diseases.

But this is only for legal immigrants. As far as the 500 illegal immigrants that are entering New York City each day and the 61,000 illegal ones that entered in 2022  there is no program or effort in place to ensure that they are vaccinated for these illnesses.

The question is whether we have a moral right to demand that the growing illegal immigrants in our midst be vaccinated? Also, the 61,000 that entered NYC last year was just a small fraction of what is to come.

As far as the halacha goes, the following is an excerpt from a letter written by Rav Moshe Sternbuch shlita to HaGaon HaRav Malkiel Kotler shlita on vaccinating for measles:

The heart of the issue is apparent from the words of the Maggid Mishna (Shabbos 2:13) and is cited in the Mogain Avrohom 330:3. Even though not even one in a thousand women in labor pass away during a birth, nonetheless, a woman in labor is considered as a dangerously ill person to violate Shabbos. [It is just that ideally, one should only violate it with a shinui].

OTHER POSKIM THAT CONSIDER 1 in 1000 PIKUACH NEFESH

Similarly, we find regarding prohibitions [where the concept of bitul is for some reason inapplicable], that we are concerned for a very remote possibility  even if it is only one in a thousand (See Rashi, Bava Metziah 6b Kulam.). A matter that involves danger is more serious than a matter that involves a prohibition.

If so, regarding matters of life and death  where we do not follow a majority  it is worthwhile to be concerned even for a remote possibility of one in a thousand.

POSKIM THAT CONSIDER 1 in 1000 REMOTE

On the other hand, we do find a number of Poskim [that are of the position] that a one in a thousand possibility does not qualify enough to be a danger upon which one would violate the Shabbos. as the Mogain Avrohom 316:23 has written  that it is forbidden to kill a rodent on Shabbos even when there is a concern that it will fall into the food. For this is a matter that is not common, and he can always cover the food. Also, the chance that it is dangerous in the food is one in a thousand. It is similarly explained in the responsum of Rabbi Akiva Eiger (Vol. I #60) that even if their is substantial pain and agony, and that there is a remote one in a thousand possibility that it will develop into a life-threatening situation or possible life-threatening situation  this is not considered pikuach nefesh. The Chazon Ish ztl has already warned about this in his letters (Teshuvos and Ksavim #48), that we should not too quickly declare Pikuach Nefesh for every remote possibility  for if so you give a supportive hand to the derelicts  who will constantly find a remote concern in which to violate Shabbos. They will then come to work on Shabbos for purposes of making a living and will say that they are doing so because of Pikuach Nefesh.

RESOLUTION

We must, therefore, distinguish between the situations as follows:

That which the Mogain Avrohom and Rabbi Akiva Eiger have written, that one in a thousand is not considered even a possible Pikuach Nefeshis is in regard to whether we consider the remote one in a thousand chance that it will enter into a dangerous situation  as the wording of Rabbi Akiva Eiger indicates  that it will develop into a life threatening situation. However, when the danger is clearly present before us  where we have cases of mortality of one in a thousand  like a woman giving birth  it is proper to be concerned for a remote possibility and it is treated like possible Pikuach Nefesh (See further what we have written on this in Teshuvos vHanhagos Volume V #399).

APPLICATION TO HERE

If so, here too, where there are before us situations where on account of a failure to vaccinate they arrived at true danger to life it is considered PIKUACH NEFESH to force the parents to vaccinate their children [similarly, even the parents of vaccinated children are permitted to demand that children who are not vaccinated not be allowed to enter the Talmud Torah together with their children, as will be explained later.]

MEASLES CAN DAMAGE LUNGS AND BRAIN

It would further appear that even without a concern of the mortality rate of measles, the doctors testify that measles will at times cause damage to internal organs [where it can cause brain infections and lung infections that cause cause permanent damage to breathing.] I remember that I heard from the Brisker Rav ztl on that which is explained in the Gemorah, that one must do a hatafas dam bris Metzitzah on Shabbos because without this there is a danger to the child. He was asked how nowadays where it was proven medically that there is no danger or Pikuach Nefesh in leaving out the Metzitzah it should be forbidden on Shabbos. He explained that Pikuach Nefesh also involves long term weaknesses that can cause weaknesses in the future, and here too with a strong attack of measles, this illness can cause damage to the internal organs. At times this will not be noticed immediately, only after several years. On account of this concern, parents have the right to demand that those children who are not vaccinated not study with their own children.

Even though there are some individual doctors who claim that the vaccine can damage the child, since the overwhelming majority of doctors hold that vaccines do not damage at all. We are not to follow the tiny fraction of a minority of doctors who claim that vaccines damage (even though in general in safek pikuach nefesh cases we do not follow the majority in cases of medical opinions as is explained in Shulchan Aruch OC 618:4) because here it is different in that if we follow the minority view, we are endangering others according to the majority view of the doctors. On the other hand, if we follow the view of the majority of doctors, we will be endangering people according to the view of the minority of doctors. In such a situation where on each side there is Pikuach Nefesh, we must certainly follow the majority. For the entire reason not to follow the majority is just in order to save life  and there is no greater saving here if we follow the minority view. Thus, the halacha goes back to following the majority like in all other Torah cases where we follow the majority. Therefore it is clear that the father MAY NOT prevent his child from being vaccinated and to cause him to enter a situation that is Pikuach Nefesh according to the majority of medical opinion. Certainly here, where refraining from vaccinating a child causes damage to others. For on account of his not vaccinating his child he is causing the epidemic to spread further not only for his child but for others who can get sick from his child.

It would seem further that the parents of vaccinated children can demand that those children that are not vaccinated not be allowed to enter into schools together with their children. For as it is known this disease is very communicable. The vaccination itself cannot completely prevent the spread of it [there remains a 3 percent chance of infection even after vaccination]. The children that are not vaccinated do not have a right to endanger the vaccinated children and to expose them to the disease  even though the mortal danger to them is remote and minimal, since there is a small chance that they can become sickened by the disease. The parents have the right to demand that their children not be exposed to the illness even with no mortal danger.

We find similar to this in regard to the smoking of cigarettes. There the Halacha is clear that smokers are NOT PERMITTED to smoke cigarettes in a public place since they damage the rest of the public that do not smoke. Even though there are some individuals that claim that smoke does not cause damage, nonetheless, they do not have the right to force the public to follow the minority medical opinion. Here too, since the majority of doctors hold that they should vaccinate, the father is not permitted o force the public to rely on the minority view of doctors that hold not to vaccinate. Rather, the public can demand to fulfill the halachic obligation of Pikuach Nefesh to follow the view of the majority of doctors. It comes out that even the administration of the schools are not obligated to accept a child that did not vaccinate  since it is dangerous [to do so] and against the desires of the parents who are concerned for harm.

And while it is true that perhaps from the perspective of a lofty level of Bitachon a person may be permitted to rely on the Holy One Blessed Be He and not vaccinate (if he is truly on that high level of faith in Hashem in all of his matters), but Bitachon is only in matters that are between him and his Master, but in a place where he is liable to bring others into a state of danger  he is not permitted to endanger others. Rather, he is obligated to function in the manner of the halacha of saving lives. Therefore, the administrations of the schools should conduct themselves in the manner of Torah and they may demand that the students who have not been vaccinated not be admitted into Yeshiva. And even though the Talmud Torah of Tinokos shel Bais Rabban is most serious, for we do not abolish the study of Tashbar even for the building of the Bais HaMikdash  nonetheless, here where there is a concern for danger  even a remote danger  they do not have the right to cause a danger to others. And even though that there is in this a Chilul Hashem  a desecration of the Name for they give power to heretics and derelicts to make fun of Chareidim, for the epidemic is specific to religious communities, and they claim that our religion is not concerned for loss of life  during a time when the opposite is true  that our Holy Torah is concerned for every aspect of Pikuach Nefesh.

In conclusion, since it is proven that vaccines are effective to prevent the spread of disease, it is an obligation upon every father to vaccinate his children to prevent spread of the disease  as is the law of the Torah to follow the majority view of experts. Certainly here, where the view of the overwhelming majority of doctors and the boards of health that one should vaccinate, certainly then the administration of the schools may demand that those children that were not vaccinates not enter into the Talmud Torah.

..His friend who desires his good welfare and who anticipates much Divine mercy, and may he fulfill within us And I shall remove all illness from within your midst,

[Rav] Moshe Sternbuch




A Palestinian Arab who was in Israel illegally was arrested on Wednesday on a Chareidi bus line from Haifa to Bnei Brak after a box of ammunition was found in his possession.

He was transferred for interrogation on the suspicion that he was planning to carry out a terror attack in Bnei Brak, chalilah. The Shin Bet launched an investigation.

The Israel Police stated: An illegal resident was caught near the Grand Canyon mall in Haifa under suspicious circumstances when a box containing ammunition was found near him. The illegal resident was arrested for a joint investigation by the police and Shin Bet. The background and circumstances are under investigation.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




As it becomes more and more clear that left-wing protesters, who every week come up with a new reason to protest, simply hate Chareidim, there was widespread condemnation of the Bnei Brak hate protest on Wednesday evening.

Even left-wing media personalities criticized the siege of the Chareidi city. Journalist Eldad Yaniv wrote: What heartache about good Israelis who lost their way. They yell to the media that theyre besieging their brothers  but in actuality, they fall on the refreshment stands the besieged prepared for them.

My camp doesnt deserve to look like this  like an empty wagon.

The demonstration of hatred against Bnei Brak tonight shames every humanist, liberal and human-loving Israeli.

Yaniv later added: Tell me the truth. Lets assume the Chareidim will fully mobilize. Like Religious Zionism. Lets assume theyll work at full capacity. Like Religious Zionism. Even then youll oppose them. Like youre against Religious Zionism. (Yeshivas Maale Eliyahu). Fully.

So who are your partners for life here? The State of Tel Aviv? After we expel the religious people from the city? With the border on Ayalon?

Ynet political reporter Moran Azulay also condemned the incitement toward Chareidim and expressed surprising words of support for the sector.

The Chareidim dont extort money, she wrote. Most of them live with extraordinary modesty by choice and are happy with their lot in a way that can only be envied. Pleasure trips abroad dont interest them and neither do luxury restaurants and shopping trips.

You can debate and criticize the issue around productivity and sharing the burden. But extortion and greed like you accuse them of here  no and no.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)




One person passed away and nine people were injured as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning in a pizza shop in the Old City of Beer Sheva on Thursday afternoon.

The incident was first believed to be a gas leak and was later identified as a case of carbon monoxide poisoning.

After receiving a report of a gas leak, Israel Fire and Rescue teams from the Beer Sheva station, along with the stations hazardous materials unit, rushed to the scene of the incident.

Shift commander Firefighter Ariel Revach said: As soon as we arrived at the scene, we identified a number of casualties, some inside the pizza shop and some outside, with varying degrees of injury. We started monitoring operations and already in the first stages we detected a gas leak inside the store and elevated gas levels outside it as well.

I divided the teams, with one team monitoring, a second team donning special protective equipment and entering the pizza shop to provide help, and a third team shutting down the energy sources. After we closed the gas source to the store, the levels dropped and we are still monitoring the situation until the levels in and around the store drop significantly. An order was given to evacuate all people from the area.

Meanwhile, MDA and Hatzlah paramedics began performing CPR on a man in his 60s who had lost consciousness and evacuated him to Soroka Hospital in critical condition while continuing resuscitation efforts. Eight others in mild condition and one man in his 30s in moderate condition were also evacuated to the hospital. Some of the paramedics reportedly began feeling ill as well as a result of breathing in the gas.

The man in his 60s was later pronounced dead in the hospital.

This is a developing story.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Precedence Research

According to Precedence Research, the agricultural biotechnology market was valued at USD 101.63 billion in 2022 and is expected to be worth around USD 221.87 billion by 2032.

Ottawa, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global agricultural biotechnology market is expanding at a CAGR of 8.12% over the forecast period 2023 to 2032. A considerable rise in the requirement for new breeding techniques is anticipated to boost the agricultural biotechnology market growth substantially. The market growth is also supplemented by the growing penetration of biotechnology solutions to modify or create traits of organisms-including animals, microbes, and plants with respect to yield, color, and size. Adopting soil biotechnology can help in applying modern farming techniques for soil conservation.



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The stream of biotechnology that specializes in various agricultural applications is known as agricultural biotechnology. Agriculture biotechnology is adopted for a very long time to enhance agriculturally crucial organisms through selection and breeding.

Due to the limited count of agricultural biotechnology providers, the bargaining power of buyers is relatively less as compared to the bargaining power of suppliers in this market. The threat of substitutes is moderate in the global agricultural biotechnology market as of now.

The agricultural biotechnology market players can consider collaborations, expansions, joint ventures, acquisitions, and partnerships to advance the scope for agricultural biotechnology techniques, tools, and solutions respectively.

The global agricultural biotechnology market report analyses leading continents across the globe to provide a better understanding of the recent scenario. Additionally, our global agricultural biotechnology market research report offers crucial insights about the latest industry developments and scrutinizes agricultural technologies that can be adopted at a global level at a rapid pace. Our report highlights some of the significant influencing factors such as drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges. The report also includes value chain analysis, ecosystem analysis, and vendor landscape.

The Feed the Future Biotechnology Potato Partnership, a 5-year multi-institution cooperative agreement was signed for developing and providing improved potato products with respect to consumer and farmer-preferred varieties in Asian countries. This $6.48 million multi-institution cooperative agreement is between Michigan State University (MSU), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Simplot Company, and other global institutions. The Feed the Future Biotechnology Potato Partnership particularly emphasizes Indonesia and Bangladesh.

Report Highlights

By application, the global agricultural biotechnology sector is segmented into transgenic crops & animals, vaccine development, nutritional supplements, antibiotic development, biofuels, and flower culturing. The transgenic crops & animals segment is expected to hold a significant market share during the forecast period. The transgenic crops & animals segment held the largest market share in 2022.

By organism type , the global agricultural biotechnology industry is divided into plants, animals, and microbes. The plants segment is anticipated to dominate the market during the study period. The plants segment had the largest revenue share in 2022.

By Region, the agricultural biotechnology market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America. North America held the highest maker share of the global agricultural biotechnology Market in 2022.





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Scope of this report

Coverage Details Market Value in 2032 USD 221.87 Billion CAGR 8.12% India agriculture production 47% Fastest Growing Region Asia Pacific North America CAGR 10.45% Key Players ADAMA Ltd, ChemChina, Corteva, Evogene Ltd., KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA, Bayer AG, Marrone Bio Innovations, MITSUI & CO., LTD, Limagrain, Nufarm, Performance Plants Inc., Valent BioSciences LLC, and Others

Regional Snapshots

North America is among the most lucrative markets for agricultural biotechnology. The growing inclination of farmers toward modern farming methods is expected to boost the adoption of respective agricultural biotechnologies.

The immigrant population is increasing considerably in Canada since past few years. Canadas population is growing at almost double the pace of each G7 country. Approximately 4/5th of the 1.8 million population rise from 2016 to 2021 was attributable to the new arrivals in Canada, either as temporary or permanent immigrants. When the COVID-19 pandemic slowed the movement of people across various regions, almost 185,000 permanent immigrants arrived in Canada in FY 2020. Thus, the rising population in Canada is creating immense scope for the food sector. The rising population in Canada influences the need for fruits & vegetables in the country. Thus, the growing population in the North American region creates immense scope for the latest agricultural biotechnology tools.

Biotechnology has a significant role in the production of soybeans. Almost 81% of the world's soybeans are biotech and this allows the producer to grow soybeans more profitably. Chinas Soybean cropland accounted for about 25.2 million acres (10.2 million hectares) in 2022, which is a substantial rise of almost 1.82 million hectares, or about 21% as compared to 2021. Thus, the growing production of soybean in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region is driving the agricultural biotechnology market growth in the region.

The Biotechnology Department of the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research conducted preliminary research on the use of biotechnology for growing date palm trees. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabias regulations permit the importation of biotech plant products. But these imported biotech plant products are needed to be labelled in case they contain over 1% genetically engineered (GE) plant ingredients. Thus, ongoing research activities along with favourable regulations are expected to promote the development of the agricultural biotechnology market in the Middle East region.

The countries in the African continent are still in the developing stage and are not as developed as the countries in the West. Thus, the adoption of agricultural biotechnology in the African region is estimated to take place at a relatively slow rate. The awareness about the benefits of agricultural biotechnology is increasing in the Latin America region. The agricultural biotechnology market in the Latin America region is expected to grow considerably.

Market Dynamics:

Market Driver: Rising population all over the world

The increasing population all over the world is boosting the requirement for nutritious food.

On the basis of Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data, the population of the United States was 336,343,250 as of the 6th of April 2023. The population of the United States of America was 331,002,651 by mid-2020.

The population of Australia rose from 25,499,884 in mid-2020 to 26,314,341 in April 2023. The population is forecast to reach about 29,410,244 by 2035.

Based on the Worldometer elaboration of the latest UN data, the population of Brazil is 216,717,274. This is a considerable rise from the count of 212,559,417 in mid-2020.

The world population is predicted to account for 8,548,487,400 by 2030. Thus, the rising population is creating remarkable demand for enhanced agricultural biotechnology required to grow nutritious fruits & vegetables.

Market Restraint: Unfavourable Agricultural Conditions in a Few Nations

Due to limited water resources and harsh climate, commercial agriculture in Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is limited. Owing to this fact, the mentioned countries are majorly dependent on imports of semi, raw, and fully processed food products to meet about 90% of their food requirements. Extreme weather conditions and the unavailability of natural resources prominently make agricultural production difficult in some parts of the Middle East region. Low rainfall and drought have severely decreased the farmer's capability to produce crops in the Middle East region. Thus, unfavourable agricultural conditions in some countries restrain the agricultural biotechnology market growth to some extent.

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Marine Biotechnology Market - The global marine biotechnology market was valued at USD 5.9 billion in 2022 and it is expanding around USD 11.7 billion by 2032 with a CAGR of 7.09% from 2023 to 2032.

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Key Developments in the Marketplace:

In July 2021, Micropep Technologies, one of the prominent agri-biotech companies announced that it raised $10 million (8.5 million) in a Series A funding round. This Series A funding round was led by FMC Venture and Supernova Invest. Increasing funding is expected to boost the development of the agricultural biotechnology market in near future.





In October 2022, Agri-biotech firm BioPrime Agrisolutions received funding of $1.09 million (90 crore) in a pre-series A round. The funding was from Inflexor Ventures, a tech-focused venture company. Agricultural biotechnology startup BioPrime AgriSolutions Pvt. planned to use this funding for deploying the fresh proceeds for expansion, product sale registrations, and ramping up production capabilities.





Market Segmentation

By Application

Vaccine Development

Transgenic Crops & Animals

Antibiotic Development

Nutritional Supplements

Flower Culturing

Biofuels

By Organism Type

Plants

Animals

Microbes





By Geography

North America

Europe

Asia-Pacific

Latin America

Middle East and Africa





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According to three U.S. and Israeli officials who spoke to Axios, the Biden administration recently put forward a proposal to Israel regarding joint military planning focused on Iran. This proposition is seen as unprecedented and has the potential to significantly upgrade the level of U.S.-Israeli military collaboration.

While U.S. officials emphasize that the proposal does not involve planning a joint military strike against Irans nuclear program, Israeli officials have received it with suspicion. There are concerns that the proposal might aim to limit Israels ability to take independent action against Iran, especially concerning its nuclear facilities, if the United States objects.

During recent visits to Israel by top U.S. officials, including Gen. Mark Milley, the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and Gen. Erik Kurilla, the commander of CENTCOM, the proposal was raised for discussion.

Israeli authorities have not rejected the idea outright but have sought clarification on the practical implications of joint military planning. They specifically want to determine whether it would remain limited to intelligence sharing and scenario development or extend into the realm of joint operations.

A senior Israeli official stated that Israel seeks a better understanding of the proposals intentions and whether it could restrict their freedom of action. The U.S. official, on the other hand, emphasized that the proposal aims to provide reassurance of continued U.S. military support for Israel and is not intended to limit its autonomy.

The concept of joint planning, as explained by the U.S. official, involves both sides sharing their respective plans for various contingencies. The goal is to facilitate discussions on enhancing strategies to effectively address different scenarios that may arise from Irans activities in the region.

The proposal signals the Biden administrations intention to strengthen cooperation with Israel on matters related to Iran. It aims to foster closer coordination, information exchange, and strategic alignment between the two countries, while ensuring that Israels security interests are duly considered.

As discussions continue, both the United States and Israel will seek common ground and a shared understanding of the proposals scope and objectives. This collaborative approach intends to enhance preparedness and enable more effective responses to potential challenges posed by Iran, while maintaining Israels ability to protect its interests and regional security.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




The ruling Hamas terrorist group in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday called on Palestinians to confront a flag-waving parade planned by Jews through the main Palestinian thoroughfare in Jerusalems Old City.

The comments by Hamas added to the already heightened tensions ahead of Thursdays march and threatened to reignite fighting between Israel and Palestinian terrorists in Gaza, just days after a cease-fire took hold. Two years ago, an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas erupted during the annual march.

While Hamas stayed out of the latest round of fighting, officials with the ruling Islamic group urged Palestinians to oppose Thursdays parade.

We ask the people of Jerusalem to mobilize the masses to confront the march of the flags in Jerusalem tomorrow, said Mushir al-Masri, a Hamas official in Gaza.

Hamas also urged Palestinians in the West Bank and inside Israel to clash with the occupation and said it would hold a demonstration with Palestinian flags along Gazas heavily fortified frontier with Israel.

The parade is meant to mark Jerusalem Day, Israels annual celebration of its recapture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 war.

Israel considers the entire city to be its eternal capital. But the Palestinians claim the area as the capital of a future state.

In a speech marking Jerusalem Day, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel has broken new horizons since capturing east Jerusalem.

We are committed to safeguarding the security of Jerusalem, to ensuring its prosperity and to continuing its momentum, he said. We are also doing this against all of the threats around us.

Each year, thousands of Israelis participate in the march, waving blue and white Israeli flags and singing songs as they walk through the Muslim Quarter and toward the Jewish Quarter and the Western Wall.

Adding to the combustible atmosphere, large numbers of Jews are expected to visit Jerusalems most sensitive holy site  Har Habayis  early Thursday before the parade.

Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the compound but not pray there. But an increase in such visits in recent years, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, have raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo  a charge Israel denies.

The competing claims to the site lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and often spill over into violence.

Yoram Segal, a senior police official in Jerusalem, said police would deploy some 2,500 officers on Thursday to ensure the day passes without violence.

We are going to deal harshly with anyone who tries to disturb the peace, he told reporters.

The march comes less than a week after Israel and the Islamic Jihad terrorist group in Gaza reached a cease-fire that ended five days of heavy fighting.

Hamas, the de facto government in Gaza responsible for the plight of the territorys 2.3 million people, stayed out of the fighting, while Israel avoided attacking it.

Reham Owda, an independent Gaza-based analyst, said that neither side appears interested in resuming cross-border violence.

No one is interested in fierce escalation, she said, but she said the parade could trigger limited, symbolic firing of rockets that could in turn spark Israeli airstrikes in retaliation.

If violence erupts in Jerusalem, Hamas could jump into the fray, as it did two years ago.

The resistance is ready to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque and prevent the Judaization of Jerusalem, al-Masri said.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)




Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is making an economic development trip to Israel.

Kemp spokesperson Garrison Douglas confirmed the trip Wednesday. Douglas said Kemp will be meeting with Israeli companies that do business in the state, as well as with government officials.

For security reasons, Douglas said he couldnt provide the exact itinerary, but he said the governor is leaving this weekend and will be gone for a week.

Its Kemps fourth overseas trip as governor and his second in less than six months as he seeks to raise his profile. The second-term Republican governor is trying to steer his party away from former President Donald Trump, although Kemp has said hes not running for president in 2024.

In January, Kemp attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, saying he was pitching Georgias economic model and meeting with corporate executives and government officials from around the world.

In 2019, Kemp went to South Korea, where he met with then-Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon and Hyundai Motor Group officials. Last year Hyundai announced it was building a $5.5 billion electric vehicle factory near Savannah. In early 2020, Kemp went to Germany, a trip officials credit with sparking his interest in electric vehicles

Israel is a less obvious economic target than South Korea or Germany. In 2021, according to the state Department of Economic Development, Georgia exported $280 million in goods and services to Israel, making it the states 34th largest export market. Imports from Israel were $650 million, making it the states 29th largest import trading partner.

Georgia officials say Israeli companies employ more than 1,000 Georgians.

The state has had a trade office in Israel since 1994, and two prior governors have led trade missions there, reflecting its outsize political and religious importance. Gov. Sonny Perdue visited in 2005, while Gov. Nathan Deal visited in 2014.

Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson will accompany Kemp. The cost to taxpayers for the trip isnt yet available, Department of Economic Development spokeperson Marie Hodge Gordon said.

Kemps wife and three daughters will join him and the family will pay for their travel, Douglas said.

(AP)
Aston Martin has received a further cash injection from a Chinese car group, sending the luxury British car maker's shares surging.

UK-based Aston Martin unveiled a fresh 234million investment by Geely, which will see the Chinese firm become the car maker's third biggest shareholder.

The investment gives Geely a 17 per cent stake in the company and entitles it to one board seat, behind number two shareholder, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

New invetsment: Aston Martin has received a further cash injection from a Chinese car group, Geely

Aston Martin shares rose over 22 per cent earlier and were up 13.24 per cent or 30.6p to 261.8p in later morning trading.

Geely will acquire about 42million ordinary shares from chairman Lawrence Stroll's Yew Tree, which is currently Aston Martin's largest stakeholder, at 335p apiece, and subscribe for another 28million shares at the same price.

Last night's closing price was 231p.

The fresh issue will garner about 95million in cash proceeds for the British car group.

Geely has agreed not to increase its holding in Aston Martin above 22 per cent until August 2024.

For Aston Martin, the preferred ride of fictional secret agent James Bond which has gone bankrupt seven times in its history, the investment paves the way to secure its long-term future and help the century-old firm reduce its debt.

As a result of the investment, Geely could end up opening flagship stores for Aston Martin in cities like Beijing and Shanghai.

'They offer us a deep understanding of the key strategic growth market that China represents, as well as the opportunity to access their range of technologies and components,' Stroll said in a statement.

Geely, which owns multiple brands including British sportscar maker Lotus, Zeekr, Volvo and, via a joint venture with Volvo, Polestar, had acquired a 7.6 per cent stake in the Formula One team sponsor in September last year.

That came after the car maker rejected Italian investment group Investindustrial and Geely's proposed funds of up to 1.3billion in July.

'Our decision to increase our shareholding in Aston Martin reflects our confidence in the company's growth prospects, its technologies and its management team,' Geely Eric Li, Geely's chairman, said.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: 'After one of the worst starts to life as a listed company, with the share price initially plummeting, there has been a complete change in fortunes for Aston Martin, with it being one of this year's best performing stocks, up 75 per cent year-to-date.

'Chinese automotive group Geely has struck a deal to significantly increase its shareholding in Aston Martin, paying 335p per share for 70million shares  a massive premium to last night's 231.2p closing price.'

He added: 'That shows considerable interest in the business and suggests that Geely is serious about wanting to have more influence over how the iconic car maker is run, and how China could be a major market for the brand.

'Aston Martin has been targeting the Asian market for some time, knowing there is great appeal in the region for its products and British heritage in general. It has recently talked about China and Japan as being 'rapidly expanding' markets for luxury cars.

'The British group will no doubt have its eye on tapping into Geely's connections to get the best price on components and to better understand how to market to the Chinese consumer.

'For Geely, it wants to dominate the automotive industry and owning a slice of Aston Martin is another step towards achieving its goal. It is also likely to work with Aston Martin to see if it can take any learnings away from how the British cars perform.'

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: 'This investment is a welcome developed at a time when there are growing concerns about the Brexit trade deal for UK auto manufacturing.

'Stellantis this week sounded the alarm over potential tariffs on exports to the EU. UK auto manufacturing has come under significant pressure since the referendum with annual car manufacturing more than halving between 2016 and 2022.'
Shares of TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE:TDG  Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $890.00 to $980.00. The company traded as high as $824.59 and last traded at $814.87, with a volume of 120697 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $808.14.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of TransDigm Group from $800.00 to $900.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 10th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $840.00 to $930.00 in a research note on Sunday. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $750.00 to $820.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $725.00 to $840.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, Cowen lifted their target price on shares of TransDigm Group from $695.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $834.71.

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Insider Buying and Selling at TransDigm Group

In related news, Director Robert J. Small sold 4,439 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $739.22, for a total transaction of $3,281,397.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 57,599 shares in the company, valued at $42,578,332.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other TransDigm Group news, CAO Sarah Wynne sold 180 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $720.41, for a total value of $129,673.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $504,287. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert J. Small sold 4,439 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $739.22, for a total value of $3,281,397.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 57,599 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $42,578,332.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,513 shares of company stock valued at $22,944,820. 7.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of TransDigm Group

TransDigm Group Stock Up 1.6 %

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in TransDigm Group by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 964 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $628,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 800 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 99.1% during the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,337 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $1,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 0.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 159,263 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $103,790,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of TransDigm Group by 7.3% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 29,629 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $19,373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,020 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.00% of the companys stock.

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $747.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $693.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.37.

TransDigm Group (NYSE:TDG  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 9th. The aerospace company reported $5.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $4.98 by $1.00. The company had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.53 billion. TransDigm Group had a negative return on equity of 34.11% and a net margin of 17.57%. TransDigm Groups revenue for the quarter was up 20.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.29 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that TransDigm Group Incorporated will post 20.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransDigm Group Company Profile

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TransDigm Group, Inc engages in the production of engineered aerospace components, systems and subsystems. It operates through the following segments: Power and Control, Airframe, and Non-Aviation. The Power and Control segment includes operations that primarily develop, produce and market systems and components that provide power to or control power of the aircraft utilizing electronic, fluid, power and mechanical motion control technologies.

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Genus plc (LON:GNS  Get Rating) insider Iain Ferguson bought 1,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of GBX 2,479 ($31.05) per share, for a total transaction of 24,790 ($31,053.49).

Genus Stock Down 2.4 %

LON GNS opened at GBX 2,484 ($31.12) on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of GBX 2,786.36 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 2,903.69. Genus plc has a one year low of GBX 2,196 ($27.51) and a one year high of GBX 3,364 ($42.14). The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 45.06, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.03. The company has a market cap of 1.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 4,776.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.43.

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Genus Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 2nd were paid a GBX 10.30 ($0.13) dividend. This represents a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 2nd. Genuss dividend payout ratio is currently 6,153.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

About Genus

Separately, Peel Hunt reiterated a buy rating and set a GBX 4,500 ($56.37) target price on shares of Genus in a research report on Tuesday.

(Get Rating)

Genus plc operates as an animal genetics company in North America, Latin America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the Middle East, Russia, Africa, and Asia. The company operates through three segments: Genus PIC, Genus ABS, and Genus Research and Development. It sells breeding pigs and semen to breed pigs with various characteristics for pork production under the PIC brand.

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Shawcor Ltd. (TSE:SCL  Get Rating)  Equities research analysts at Cormark raised their Q2 2023 earnings estimates for shares of Shawcor in a report issued on Monday, May 15th. Cormark analyst D. Ocampo now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $0.30 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $0.25. The consensus estimate for Shawcors current full-year earnings is $1.87 per share. Cormark also issued estimates for Shawcors Q3 2023 earnings at $0.69 EPS, Q4 2023 earnings at $0.64 EPS, FY2023 earnings at $1.97 EPS, Q2 2024 earnings at $0.57 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $0.37 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $1.96 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $1.51 EPS.

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Shawcor (TSE:SCL  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 8th. The company reported C$0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of C$0.21 by C($0.03). The company had revenue of C$345.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of C$344.60 million. Shawcor had a negative return on equity of 4.62% and a negative net margin of 2.39%.

Shawcor Stock Performance

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Shawcor from C$12.50 to C$13.50 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday. ATB Capital lifted their price target on shares of Shawcor from C$16.25 to C$18.00 in a research note on Tuesday. National Bank Financial reiterated an outperform overweight rating on shares of Shawcor in a research note on Friday, February 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Shawcor from C$15.75 to C$19.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Shawcor from C$13.00 to C$14.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Shawcor currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of C$17.43.

Shares of SCL stock opened at C$14.35 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 38.63. Shawcor has a 52 week low of C$4.99 and a 52 week high of C$14.91. The stock has a market capitalization of C$1.01 billion, a PE ratio of -32.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 2.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of C$12.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$12.78.

Shawcor Company Profile

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Shawcor Ltd. operates as a material sciences company that serves the infrastructure, energy, and transportation markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Composite Systems, Automotive and Industrial, and Pipeline and Pipe Services. The Composite Systems segment manufactures flexible composite and high density polyethylene pipes that are used for oil and gas gathering, water disposal, carbon dioxide injection pipelines, and other applications; fiberglass reinforced plastic underground storage tanks for the retail fuel, water and wastewater, and oil and gas markets; and tubular management services to the Western Canadian onshore oilfield market, including inventory management systems, mobile inspection, in-plant inspection and the refurbishment and rethreading of drill pipe, production tubing and casing, and tubular products.

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Mesabi Trust (NYSE:MSB  Get Rating) and Scully Royalty (NYSE:SRL  Get Rating) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

34.7% of Mesabi Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 40.0% of Scully Royalty shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Mesabi Trust shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of Scully Royalty shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

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Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mesabi Trust and Scully Royaltys top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Mesabi Trust $7.74 million N/A $5.31 million $3.22 6.04 Scully Royalty $48.99 million 2.30 -$18.00 million N/A N/A

Analyst Recommendations

Mesabi Trust has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Scully Royalty.

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Mesabi Trust and Scully Royalty, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Mesabi Trust 0 0 0 0 N/A Scully Royalty 0 0 0 0 N/A

Risk and Volatility

Mesabi Trust has a beta of 1, suggesting that its share price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Scully Royalty has a beta of 0.87, suggesting that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Mesabi Trust and Scully Royaltys net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Mesabi Trust N/A 29.70% 21.31% Scully Royalty N/A N/A N/A

Summary

Mesabi Trust beats Scully Royalty on 4 of the 7 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mesabi Trust

(Get Rating)

Mesabi Trust engages in the business of collecting income, paying expenses and liabilities, distributing net income to the holders of Trust certificates after the payment of, or provision for, such expenses and liabilities, and protecting and conserving the assets held. The firm is also involved in iron ore mining activities. The company was founded on July 18, 1961 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

About Scully Royalty

(Get Rating)

Scully Royalty Ltd. is a merchant bank company, which engages in the provision of financial services and facilitates trading of corporations and institutions. It operates through the Industrial and Merchant Banking segments. The Industrial segment includes projects in resources and services. The Merchant Banking segment consists of the European merchant banking business. The company was founded on June 28, 1951 and is headquartered in Shanghai, China.

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Investment analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX  Get Rating) in a report released on Thursday. The firm set a hold rating on the construction companys stock.

Separately, Benchmark restated a buy rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Quanex Building Products in a research note on Tuesday, March 14th.

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Quanex Building Products Price Performance

NX opened at $20.52 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $20.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market cap of $682.08 million, a PE ratio of 8.59 and a beta of 1.35. Quanex Building Products has a 1 year low of $18.00 and a 1 year high of $27.04.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quanex Building Products

Quanex Building Products ( NYSE:NX Get Rating ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 9th. The construction company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $261.92 million during the quarter. Quanex Building Products had a return on equity of 18.33% and a net margin of 6.50%.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State of Wyoming increased its position in shares of Quanex Building Products by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,435 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Quanex Building Products by 229.6% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,661 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in shares of Quanex Building Products by 494.3% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 2,187 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,819 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in Quanex Building Products by 63.1% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,316 shares of the construction companys stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in Quanex Building Products by 43.7% in the 2nd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,938 shares of the construction companys stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.49% of the companys stock.

About Quanex Building Products

(Get Rating)

Quanex Building Products Corp. engages in the manufacture of components sold to original equipment manufacturers in the building products industry. It also designs and produces energy-efficient fenestration products in addition to kitchen and bath cabinet components. The firm operates through the following segments: North American Fenestration, European Fenestration, North American Cabinet Components, and Unallocated Corporate and Other.

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Equities research analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO  Get Rating) in a report released on Thursday. The brokerage set a strong-buy rating on the stock.

Separately, Credit Suisse Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Novo Nordisk A/S presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $383.33.

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Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

NVO opened at $167.10 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $378.14 billion, a PE ratio of 43.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $159.59 and a 200-day moving average of $141.30. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52-week low of $95.02 and a 52-week high of $172.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S Company Profile

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NVO. Schubert & Co grew its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 96.2% in the 4th quarter. Schubert & Co now owns 204 shares of the companys stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tsfg LLC bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. RFP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Sageworth Trust Co bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 6.09% of the companys stock.

(Get Rating)

Novo Nordisk A/S is a global healthcare company, which engages in the the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceutical products. It operates through the Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Biopharm segments. The Diabetes and Obesity Care segment includes insulin, GLP-1 and related delivery systems, oral antidiabetic products (OAD), obesity, and other serious chronic diseases.

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The Saudi Port of NEOM, which has seen over SR7.5 billion ($2 billion) investment on its first phase development, has expanded its capabilities including fixed call with CMA CGM, general cargo handling, storage and on-going passenger services.

Located in Oxagon, the home of advanced and clean industries in NEOM, Duba port, which is the primary seaport of entry to the northwest of Saudi Arabia, is renamed as Port of NEOM.

The management of Duba Port was transferred from the Saudi Ports Authority to NEOM in 2022. Since the transfer, key capabilities have been expanded to match the rising volume of cargo coming into NEOM, including container and general cargo handling.

By the beginning of 2025, the first container terminal will be operational with integrated supply chain and logistics solutions. When completed, the port will operate at net carbon zero levels with 100% renewable energy at source, set to make it the worlds most sustainable next-generation port.

Contracts for design, dredging and quay wall construction, and cargo handling equipment have been recently awarded, said NEOM in its statement.

Jacobs was named as the main design consultant with Moffatt and Nichol, IGO and Trent as main subconsultants; the redesign project, valued at over SR180 million, spans terminals, warehouses, rail delivery, infrastructure and a sustainable energy network.

CEO Nadhmi Al Nasr said: The Port of NEOM will be pivotal to the continued commercial competitiveness, economic diversification and maritime trade ambitions of the kingdom. Our vision is to build one of the worlds most technologically advanced, efficient and sustainable ports with the first fully integrated and automated supply chain and logistics network, and this first phase of development is a step towards realising that.

Located on the Red Sea, at the crossroads of global trading routes, the port will be a critical enabler for NEOM and a catalyst for broader economic development in the region. Our investment to date of over SR7.5 billion and our intention to open the first advanced terminal in 2025 demonstrates our commitment to the vision.

The Port of NEOM will be a critical enabler to the overall build, operations and economic ambitions of NEOM  from the import of goods and materials during the development phase and as a new global port serving the region. This is particularly important as development accelerates and businesses across NEOM come on-stream, said Sean Kelly, Managing Director, Port of NEOM.

As part of the investment into the ports development, several crane and container equipment contracts have been awarded to Saudi Liebherr Company Ltd and Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company Limited (ZPMC).

Saudi Liebherr was awarded contracts for ten mobile harbour cranes with over SR200 million in investment.

ZPMC has been awarded contracts for ten ship-to-shore (STS) gantry cranes, 30 electric rubber tiered gantry (ERTGS) cranes and six automated rail mounted gantry cranes (ARMG) valued at over SR1 billion; ZPMC will be working with Siemens Europe to deliver the automation components.

Kelly said: "Adopting a sustainable approach to the port development, mirroring the guidelines developed that centre on NEOMs core sustainability principles is a critical requirement in our tenders - the consortium of companies collectively demonstrated the ability to deliver our ambition."

To participate in the competitive bidding process for the first phase of the dredging and quay wall tender, a joint venture was formed between Besix and Modern Building Leaders (MBL), who partnered with Boskalis.

Besix, together with Boskalis, are the first European contractors to be awarded a design and build lump sum contract for over SR2 billion with NEOM.

Boskalis will be responsible for the deepening and widening of the main access channel; in line with Oxagon and NEOMs sustainable ambitions, there will be zero material discharge with recovery and reuse of materials and structures prioritised to construct earthwork platforms for the development of Oxagon.

Besix-MBL will be responsible for the design and build of over 3 km of quay walls of variant types utilising innovative construction methodologies and materials. As part of its efforts to reduce the project's carbon footprint, low carbon steel frames will be used for the construction of the quay walls.- TradeArabia News Service
(Bloomberg) -- The Air Force formally opened a multibillion-dollar contest to replace the F-22 Raptor fighter jet thats likely to draw competing bids by US aerospace giants Lockheed Martin Corp., Boeing Co. and Northrop Grumman Corp.

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The service issued a Request for Proposals on Thursday for the full-scale development phase of the Next Generation Air Dominance manned fighter, or NGAD, thats intended to fly in tandem with drones that are being developed in a separate program. The service intents to award a development contract in 2024 with the new fighter entering service in the 2030s.

This solicitation release formally begins the source selection process, providing industry with the requirements the Air Force expects for NGAD, as the replacement of the F-22, the service said in a statement as it gave contractors the classified request. The NGAD Platform represents a generational leap in technology over the F-22, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said.

The Air Force is asking Congress in its fiscal 2024 budget request to retire 32 of the older, so-called Block 20 F-22s that are no longer deemed combat-capable and shift the money its taking to maintain them into the new fighter program.

Little is known about the Air Forces classified program, but the service plans to spend $16 billion on its research and development through 2028. Like the F-22, its intended to be an air-to-air fighter. The better-known F-35 has an air-to-air role is but is also seen as a sensor in sky to collect and widely distribute air and ground target information.

Kendall has said the Air Force chose to defer some F-35 procurement to expedite NGAD development. Kendall he has also said NGAD will cost several hundreds of millions per aircraft. By comparison, the F-22 had an average per unit cost of $191.6 million, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Lockheed Martins F-22 had a rocky development and made its debut in warfare only in February 2015, more than nine years after it was deemed combat-ready. The F-22s production was curtailed in April 2009 at 187 planes instead of a potential 243 by then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who questioned its expense and relevance.

While the F-22 boasts stealth capabilities and a supersonic cruise speed, the plane was developed before the militarys all-in bet on drones as an extension of US power. Air-to-air capabilities also are in the forefront of US thinking again in an era of sharpening tensions with potential adversaries China and Russia, after decades of lower-level conflicts with irregular forces.

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2023 Bloomberg L.P.
Investment analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE:NUS  Get Rating) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a hold rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of Nu Skin Enterprises from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. TheStreet cut shares of Nu Skin Enterprises from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 15th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Nu Skin Enterprises from $35.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Nu Skin Enterprises from a buy rating to a hold rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $39.33.

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Nu Skin Enterprises Price Performance

NYSE NUS opened at $36.71 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.83 billion, a PE ratio of 23.84 and a beta of 1.21. Nu Skin Enterprises has a 52 week low of $29.95 and a 52 week high of $47.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $39.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.45.

Insider Activity

Nu Skin Enterprises ( NYSE:NUS Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.04. Nu Skin Enterprises had a return on equity of 14.13% and a net margin of 3.68%. The firm had revenue of $481.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $477.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.76 earnings per share. The companys revenue was down 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Nu Skin Enterprises will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

In other news, CFO Mark H. Lawrence sold 26,144 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total transaction of $1,066,675.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 57,146 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,331,556.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Mark H. Lawrence sold 26,144 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total transaction of $1,066,675.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 57,146 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,331,556.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Y. Chang sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.77, for a total value of $1,019,250.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,234 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $865,710.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 91,370 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,764. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nu Skin Enterprises

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Nu Skin Enterprises by 39.4% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,296,735 shares of the companys stock worth $404,765,000 after acquiring an additional 2,912,086 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Nu Skin Enterprises by 0.5% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,791,181 shares of the companys stock worth $277,281,000 after acquiring an additional 30,340 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Nu Skin Enterprises by 3.7% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,668,167 shares of the companys stock worth $144,196,000 after acquiring an additional 132,198 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Nu Skin Enterprises by 2.2% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,670,996 shares of the companys stock worth $127,887,000 after purchasing an additional 58,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Nu Skin Enterprises by 3.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,095,009 shares of the companys stock worth $82,355,000 after purchasing an additional 78,602 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.67% of the companys stock.

Nu Skin Enterprises Company Profile

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Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the development and distribution of beauty and wellness solutions. It operates through the following segments: Mainland China, Americas, South Korea, Southeast Asia/Pacific, EMEA, Japan, Hong Kong/Taiwan, Nu Skin Other, Manufacturing, and Rhyz Other.

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Pinebridge Investments L.P. grew its position in shares of Lumen Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LUMN  Get Rating) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 509,401 shares of the technology companys stock after purchasing an additional 30,109 shares during the quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P.s holdings in Lumen Technologies were worth $2,659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Silvant Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Lumen Technologies by 256.5% during the 4th quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC now owns 5,907 shares of the technology companys stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 4,250 shares during the period. Ellevest Inc. grew its position in shares of Lumen Technologies by 489.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 4,830 shares of the technology companys stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 4,011 shares during the period. Blume Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lumen Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. EWG Elevate Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lumen Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Lumen Technologies by 501.5% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 8,036 shares of the technology companys stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 6,700 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the companys stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Lumen Technologies from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Lumen Technologies from $4.00 to $2.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 4th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Lumen Technologies from a c rating to a d rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Lumen Technologies from $6.00 to $2.50 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 13th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Lumen Technologies from a neutral rating to a sell rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $6.25 to $3.50 in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $5.11.

Lumen Technologies Stock Up 4.3 %

NYSE LUMN opened at $2.64 on Thursday. Lumen Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $2.06 and a one year high of $12.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The businesss fifty day moving average is $2.43 and its 200-day moving average is $4.21.

Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN  Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 2nd. The technology company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.12 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. Lumen Technologies had a positive return on equity of 8.87% and a negative net margin of 9.89%. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lumen Technologies, Inc. will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Lumen Technologies Profile

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Lumen Technologies, Inc is an investment holding company, which engages in the provision of integrated communications to residential and business customers. It operates through the following segments: Business and Mass Markets. Business segment provides products and services under four sales channels to enterprise and commercial customers.

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Aviva PLC trimmed its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS  Get Rating) by 53.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 87,944 shares of the casino operators stock after selling 99,535 shares during the period. Aviva PLCs holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $4,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Trustcore Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 242.7% in the 3rd quarter. Trustcore Financial Services LLC now owns 706 shares of the casino operators stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. James Investment Research Inc. purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 42.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,076 shares of the casino operators stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cowa LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. 39.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:LVS opened at $59.64 on Thursday. The firms fifty day moving average is $58.48 and its 200-day moving average is $53.34. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $30.14 and a 52 week high of $65.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.79. The firm has a market cap of $45.58 billion, a P/E ratio of -82.83, a P/E/G ratio of 6.91 and a beta of 1.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Las Vegas Sands ( NYSE:LVS Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The casino operator reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a negative return on equity of 10.21% and a negative net margin of 10.42%. Las Vegas Sandss quarterly revenue was up 124.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.40) EPS. Equities analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $76.00 to $80.50 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 20th. CBRE Group upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the company from $47.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 26th. TheStreet raised shares of Las Vegas Sands from a d+ rating to a c- rating in a research note on Monday, February 6th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group lifted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $68.54.

Insider Activity

In other Las Vegas Sands news, Director Charles D. Forman sold 15,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.17, for a total value of $947,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 205,984 shares of the companys stock, valued at $13,012,009.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.91% of the companys stock.

About Las Vegas Sands

(Get Rating)

Las Vegas Sands Corp. engages in the development of destination properties. The firm operates through the Macao and Singapore geographical segments. The Macao segment handles the operations of The Venetian Macao, The Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Plaza Macao and Four Seasons Macao, and Sands Macao.

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Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its position in Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT  Get Rating) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 508,625 shares of the information technology services providers stock after selling 16,343 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.64% of Gartner worth $170,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its holdings in Gartner by 105.6% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 74 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in Gartner by 4,300.0% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 88 shares of the information technology services providers stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Gartner during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Gartner during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Vienna Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Gartner during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 91.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Gartner Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of IT opened at $323.30 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $25.55 billion, a PE ratio of 27.89, a P/E/G ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $311.38 and a 200 day moving average of $328.15. Gartner, Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.39 and a 52-week high of $358.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Gartner ( NYSE:IT Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 2nd. The information technology services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.84. Gartner had a return on equity of 772.55% and a net margin of 16.56%. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.33 earnings per share. Gartners revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Gartner, Inc. will post 10.05 EPS for the current year.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on IT. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Gartner from $357.00 to $337.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Gartner from $387.00 to $380.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Gartner in a report on Thursday. They issued a buy rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Gartner from $358.00 to $366.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gartner presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $357.86.

Insider Transactions at Gartner

In other news, EVP Michael Patrick Diliberto sold 1,200 shares of Gartner stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.09, for a total transaction of $372,108.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,501 shares in the company, valued at $5,736,975.09. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Valentin Sribar sold 348 shares of Gartner stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.61, for a total value of $112,268.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,189 shares in the company, valued at $3,932,293.29. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Patrick Diliberto sold 1,200 shares of Gartner stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.09, for a total value of $372,108.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,501 shares of the companys stock, valued at $5,736,975.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,259 shares of company stock worth $2,713,709. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Gartner Profile

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Gartner, Inc is a research and advisory company, which equips business leaders with insights, advice, and tools that help build organizations. It operates through the following segments: Research, Consulting, and Conferences. The Research segment provides executives with objective insights and advice through reports, briefings, proprietary tools, access to the firm?s research experts, peer networking services, and membership programs.

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Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG  Get Rating) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,991,752 shares of the utilities providers stock after buying an additional 316,888 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LPs holdings in NRG Energy were worth $158,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 2.5% during the first quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 9,537 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $366,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 2.5% during the third quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 11,877 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $455,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 5.2% during the third quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 6,249 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 3.9% during the third quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 8,427 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 2.1% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 15,650 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $599,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.98% of the companys stock.

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NRG Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

NRG opened at $33.41 on Thursday. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $33.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.66, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.99. NRG Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $30.25 and a one year high of $47.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.03.

NRG Energy Cuts Dividend

NRG Energy ( NYSE:NRG Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 16th. The utilities provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.21. NRG Energy had a positive return on equity of 17.12% and a negative net margin of 5.90%. The business had revenue of $7.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $8.67 billion. Analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.377 per share. This represents a $1.51 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 28th. NRG Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -19.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on NRG. Bank of America upgraded NRG Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Monday, March 20th. TheStreet lowered NRG Energy from a b- rating to a c rating in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on NRG Energy from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on NRG Energy in a report on Thursday. They issued a sell rating for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $41.25.

NRG Energy Company Profile

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NRG Energy, Inc engages in the production, sale, and distribution of energy and energy services. It operates through the following segments: Generation, Retail, and Corporate. The Generation segment includes all power plant activities, domestic and international, as well as renewables. The Retail segment includes mass customers and business solutions, and other distributed and reliability products.

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Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU  Get Rating) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 566,837 shares of the financial services providers stock after selling 243,232 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.15% of Prudential Financial worth $59,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Exos TFP Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 160.3% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 367 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 375 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.33% of the companys stock.

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Prudential Financial Stock Up 3.9 %

Shares of PRU opened at $81.08 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $29.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 900.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.38. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.37 and a 12-month high of $110.96. The companys 50-day moving average price is $82.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Prudential Financial ( NYSE:PRU Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.02 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $15.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.29 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 0.09% and a return on equity of 14.05%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 11.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the companys management believes its shares are undervalued.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.17%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 22nd. Prudential Financials dividend payout ratio is presently 5,555.56%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 4,126 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total transaction of $409,299.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,241 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,214,307.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 4,126 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total value of $409,299.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,241 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,214,307.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 11,405 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.95, for a total value of $1,151,334.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,300 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,241,685. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the companys stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $99.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $88.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Prudential Financial from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $114.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 4th. Piper Sandler restated a neutral rating and issued a $106.00 price objective on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a report on Monday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $99.83.

Prudential Financial Profile

(Get Rating)

Prudential Financial, Inc engages in the provision of insurance, investment management, and other financial products and services to both individual and institutional customers. It operates through the following segments: PGIM, U.S. Businesses, International Businesses, Closed Block, and Corporate and Others.

Further Reading

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(Reuters) - China's Alibaba Group Holding Ltd posted a 2% rise in quarterly revenue that missed expectations on Thursday and said it would list its cloud computing business in the next year.

The company has been struggling to attract new users as China's e-commerce sector matures and it grapples with inroads made by new competitors such as PDD Holdings and Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok that is also owned by ByteDance.

U.S.-listed shares of the Chinese tech giant fell 4.9% to $86.20 in early trading.

Earlier this year, Alibaba announced plans to restructure into six units following a two-year regulatory crackdown on China's tech sector. It expects all of the units except for its China-facing e-commerce division to seek outside funding and go public.

On Thursday it approved a full spinoff of the Cloud Intelligence Group via a stock dividend distribution to shareholders, aiming to complete the public listing within the next 12 months.

Finance chief Toby Xu said Alibaba's board has also approved the process to start external financing for Alibaba International Digital Commerce Business Group. Freshippo, its grocery arm, will kick off the IPO process and logistics unit Cainiao will explore an IPO in the next 12-18 months, he added.

"We would love nothing more than to see one of these little Alibabas...becoming another big Alibaba, as big as the group company is right now," said Alibaba Group chairman Daniel Zhang on an earnings call.

Chinese consumer spending has gained some momentum since the country abandoned draconian zero-COVID policies late last year, but it still remains relatively muted amid a wobbly economic recovery.

Alibaba logged revenue of 208.20 billion yuan ($30.12 billion) for the three months ended in March, compared with a Refinitiv consensus estimate of 210.3 billion yuan. Full-year revenue climbed 2% to 868.69 billion yuan, the slowest rate of growth since the company went public in 2014.

Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders was 23.52 billion yuan for the quarter, reversing a year earlier loss of 16.24 billion yuan.

Amid soft corporate demand and excess capacity, both Alibaba and rival Tencent Holdings Ltd have recently announced drastic price cuts for their cloud computing services, plunging the sector into a price war.

Revenue for Alibaba's cloud division in the recent quarter was 18.6 billion yuan, down 2% year-on-year.

Last month Alibaba showed off Tongyi Qianwen, a generative artificial intelligence model which is similar to the model that powers OpenAI's ChatGPT. The company has opened up registration to test the technology to enterprise customers of Alibaba Cloud.

A number of other Chinese companies, including search giant Baidu have released similar AI models.

($1 = 6.9121 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru and Josh Horwitz in Shanghai; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Devika Syamnath, Kirsten Donovan)
(Bloomberg) -- Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. will explore initial public offerings for its logistics and grocery arms while hiving off its $12 billion cloud business, kicking off the first phase of a much-anticipated breakup to try and revive anemic revenue growth.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Chief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang outlined the contours of that historic shakeup for the first time, which starts with the listing of its grocery arm Freshippo as early as six months from now, before proceeding to the float of its giant Cainiao logistics arm over the next year to 18 months. Significantly, Alibaba will completely carve out the nations biggest cloud services platform as a dividend to shareholders, meaning it could relinquish control of one of its fastest-growing businesses.

Zhang said the cloud spinoff was intended to simplify the structure and respond to market needs. A standalone platform could grow to someday even surpass Alibaba in size if it attracted the right external financing, he said without elaborating. Analysts have in the past argued that private clouds could operate at a disadvantage to state-backed rivals given Beijings growing insistence on using government-controlled data storage and internet services.

Investors harbored hopes that Alibabas March decision to split itself into six units might galvanize the market, enable the different operations to move more nimbly and fuel a share rebound. Each unit, except for the core Taobao Tmall Commerce Group, was freed to seek independent fundraising and listings.

Still, Zhang unveiled that grand vision after Chinas e-commerce leader posted its third consecutive quarter of single-digit revenue growth, reinforcing concerns that a Chinese consumer spending rebound may be farther out than anticipated. Domestic commerce shrank 3% in the March quarter, while the cloud division, the other closely watched business, was down 2%  its first-ever decline on record. Alibaba shares closed 5.4% lower at $85.77 in New York.

That lackluster showing underscores how China may be recovering from years of Covid Zero restrictions at a slower pace than projected, hampered by US sanctions and an uncertain global economic environment. Hopes that Beijing would support private enterprise this year after a blistering crackdown on the internet sector havent translated into meaningful policy so far.

What Bloomberg Intelligence Says

Alibabas first-ever cloud-revenue decline heightens the importance of new strategic investors to revive the business growth after its spun off in the next 12 months. A drop in Alibabas fiscal 4Q direct sales, which include Freshippo revenue, also raises doubts about the grocers catalysts after its IPO, slated within 6-12 months. Cainiao, set to list in 12-18 months, had the lowest 4Q logistics-revenue growth in four years.

- Catherine Lim and Trini Tan, analysts

Click here for the research.

As part of the overall restructuring, Alibaba plans to dispatch about half of its investment team to the six different business units that will be created after the breakup. That team has historically been at the vanguard of a nationwide investment spree that helped extend Alibabas influence and fend off competition from JD.com Inc. and Tencent Holdings Ltd.

This transformation will empower all our businesses to become more agile, enhance decision-making, enable faster responses to market change, Zhang told analysts on a conference call.

Key Points of the Breakup Blueprint

Alibaba plans to spin off its cloud services division as an independent entity by distributing stock to shareholders over the next year

That means Alibaba could eventually end up not owning shares in Chinas biggest cloud services platform

It will aim to float its Cainiao logistics arm within 12 to 18 months

Most immediately, the firm aims to complete an IPO for the Freshippo grocery chain within the coming year

And it plans to secure external financing for its international commerce division, which encompasses overseas operations such as Singapore-based Lazada

Alibaba reported sales of 208.2 billion yuan for the March quarter, lagging an average analyst estimate for 209.2 billion yuan. Net income was 23.5 billion yuan, reversing losses from a year ago thanks to once-off gains.

Investors had bet that consumer spending and the tech sector would rebound after Beijing lifted years of sweeping restrictions that hobbled the worlds No. 2 economy. But economists point to slowing trade and other signs the nascent recovery is losing steam. During the recent Golden Week holiday, an important indicator of broader sentiment, overall spending lagged behind booking volumes.

Despite overall malaise, therere hints online commerce is at least rounding a corner.

Gross merchandise value growth in Chinas e-commerce industry accelerated to 11% in March after slowing to 5% in the first two months of 2023, according to estimates by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which cited recovering demand and easing logistics disruptions. Last week, JD said volume growth this quarter was outpacing the previous three months, helping prop up its stock.

Tencent grew revenue at its fastest pace since 2021, while Baidu Inc. also posted sales beyond estimates. Both credited a recovery in segments of domestic consumption. Michael Burry, the money manager made famous in The Big Short, boosted his bullish bets on JD and Alibaba even as other hedge funds cooled on the nations reopening trades.

For now, Alibaba is pushing cost-cuts to shore up margins and offset anemic domestic growth  a sea-change for a tech deal-maker that once spent aggressively to dominate swaths of the economy. The crackdown on online commerce by the Xi Jinping administration has also forced Alibaba to alter a business model that once pursued merchant exclusivity.

In the past few months, we have noticed a gradual recovery in China consumption, but consumer confidence and spending power still need further momentum, Zhang said. At the same time, competition among the multiple consumption platforms is still fierce, and everyone is trying to capture the incremental demands with more value-for-money products and services.

That bottom-line focus is taking on urgency because of fierce competition in its home market from JD, PDD Holdings Inc. and up-and-comers such as ByteDance Ltd., which have stepped efforts to lure customers and woo merchants.

Overseas, the tech giant is curtailing its global ambitions. Alibaba sold off the last of its shares in Indian fintech giant Paytm this month, accelerating a withdrawal from the worlds fastest-growing mobile and internet arena.

--With assistance from Zheping Huang, Debby Wu, Jennifer Ryan and Peter Elstrom.

(Adds closing share price in fifth paragraph.)

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Three Russian academics who have worked on hypersonic missile technology face very serious accusations, the Kremlin said on Wednesday, in a treason investigation that has spread alarm through Russias scientific community.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was aware of an open letter from Siberian scientists in defence of the men, but that the case was a matter for the security services.

In the letter, published on Monday, colleagues of Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk and Valery Zvegintsev protested their innocence and said the prosecutions threatened to inflict grave damage on Russian science.

We know each of them as a patriot and a decent person who is not capable of doing what the investigating authorities suspect them of, they said.

President Vladimir Putin has boasted that Russia is the global leader in hypersonic missiles, capable of travelling at speeds of up to Mach 10 (12,250 kph) to evade enemy air defences. On Tuesday, Ukraine said it had managed to destroy six of the weapons in a single night, although Russia disputed this.

Notices of academic conferences stretching back over many years show the arrested scientists were frequent participants.

In 2012, Maslov and Shiplyuk presented the results of an experiment on hypersonic missile design at a seminar in Tours, France. In 2016, all three were among the authors of a book chapter entitled Hypersonic Short-Duration Facilities for Aerodynamic Research at ITAM, Russia.

The open letter from their colleagues at ITAM  the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in Novosibirsk  said the materials the scientists had presented in international forums had been checked repeatedly to ensure they did not include restricted information.

The cases showed that any article or report can lead to accusations of high treason, the open letter said.

In this situation, we are not only afraid for the fate of our colleagues. We just do not understand how to continue to do our job.

The letter also cited the case of Dmitry Kolker, another Siberian scientist who was arrested last year on suspicion of state treason and flown to Moscow despite suffering from advanced pancreatic cancer. Kolker, a laser specialist, died two days later.

It said such cases were having a chilling effect on young Russian scientists.

Even now, the best students refuse to come to work with us, and our best young employees are leaving science. A number of research areas that are critically important to laying the fundamental groundwork for the aerospace technology of the future are simply closing because employees are afraid to engage in such research.

Asked about the letter, Kremlin spokesman Peskov said: We have indeed seen this appeal, but Russian special services are working on this. They are doing their job. These are very serious accusations.

SOURCE: REUTERS
OLDWICK, N.J., May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A+ (Superior) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICRs) of "aa-" (Superior) of Intact Insurance Company, the lead company of Intact Financial Corporation (IFC) [TSX: IFC], as well as the other subsidiaries of IFC. Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the Long-Term ICR of "a-" (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings (Long-Term IRs) of IFC, the parent holding company. In addition, AM Best has affirmed the Long-Term ICR of "a-" (Excellent) of Intact U.S. Holdings Inc. (Delaware). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. All companies are domiciled in Ontario, Canada, unless otherwise specified. See below for a complete listing of the members of Intact Financial Corporations FSRs, Long-Term ICRs and Long-Term IRs.

The ratings reflect IFCs consolidated balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its strong operating performance, favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).

The very strong balance sheet strength assessment reflects IFCs very strong level of risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Bests Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and substantial surplus accumulation over the long-term, which has been driven by capital raises (both debt and stock offerings) in support of acquisitions. IFCs consistent net earnings, driven largely by favorable underwriting profitability, has also benefitted the companys capital position. IFC maintains financial leverage ratios consistent with AM Bests expectations with strong interest coverage ratios and the overall enterprise benefits from the financial flexibility afforded by IFC with access to both Canadian and U.S. capital markets.

For the full-year 2022, IFC reported the largest level of earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of the recent five-year period, building upon a strong year in 2021. The increase in earnings has generally been driven by a considerable increase in underwriting income, which has been augmented by growth in investment income. Results have also benefitted from favorable reserve development over the long term, which AM Best expects to continue going forward. IFC maintains favorable combined ratios in all of its major markets, which include Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

IFCs business profile is assessed as favorable, reflecting excellent geographic, product and channel diversification in both the independent broker channel and direct to consumer. IFC is the largest provider of property/casualty insurance in Canada and benefits from a strong brand name recognition through its operating entities. Intact US provides the organization with further diversification and a North America-based platform to write specialty commercial lines. Canada is Intacts largest market, where it is a leading provider of personal auto, property and commercial lines coverage. The RSA acquisition in 2021 has expanded Intacts leadership position within Canada, and has provided Intact with entry into the United Kingdom, Ireland and international markets.

IFC has a comprehensive ERM program in place which AM Best considers appropriate for the organizations size, scale and risk profile.

The FSR of A+ (Superior) and the Long-Term ICRs of "aa-" (Superior) have been affirmed with stable outlooks for the following members of the Intact Financial Corporation:

Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company

Belair Insurance Company Inc.

Homeland Insurance Company of New York

Homeland Insurance Company of Delaware

Intact Insurance Company

Jevco Insurance Company

Novex Insurance Company

OBI America Insurance Company

OBI National Insurance Company

Split Rock Insurance, Ltd.

The Guarantee Company of North America USA

The Nordic Insurance Company of Canada

Trafalgar Insurance Company of Canada

The following Long-Term IR has been assigned with a stable outlook:

Intact Financial Corporation-

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 300 million, 7.338% subordinated debentures, due June 30, 2083

The following Long-Term IRs have been affirmed with stable outlooks:

Intact Financial Corporation

-- "a-" (Excellent) on $500 million, 5.459% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2032

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 250 million, Series 2, 6.40% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2039

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 100 million, Series 3, 6.2% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2061

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 250 million, Series 5, 5.16% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2042

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 250 million, Series 6, 3.77% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2026

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 425 million, Series 7, 2.85% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2027

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 300 million, Series 8, 3.691% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2025

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 300 million, Series 9, 1.928% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2030

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 300 million, Series 10, 2.954% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2050

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 375 million, Series 11, 1.207% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2024

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 375 million, Series 12, 2.179% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2028

-- "a-" (Excellent) on CAD 250 million, Series 13, 3.765% senior unsecured medium-term notes, due 2053

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 150 million, 5.25% preferred shares

-- "bbb+" (Good) on CAD 250 million, 4.125% subordinated debentures, due 2081

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 250 million, 4.841% non-cumulative five-year reset Class A Series 1 preferred shares

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 250 million, 3.457% non-cumulative five-year rate reset Class A Series 3 preferred shares

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 150 million, 5.2% non-cumulative fixed rate Class A Series 5 preferred shares

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 150 million, 5.3% non-cumulative fixed rate Class A Series 6 preferred shares

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 250 million, 4.9% non-cumulative five-year rate reset Class A Series 7 preferred shares

-- "bbb" (Good) on CAD 150 million, 5.4% non-cumulative fixed rate shares Class A Series 9 preferred shares

The following indicative Long-Term IRs under the shelf registration have been affirmed with stable

outlooks:

Intact Financial Corporation

-- "a-" (Excellent) on senior unsecured notes

-- "bbb+" (Good) on subordinated unsecured notes

-- "bbb" (Good) on Class A preferred shares

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Bests website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Bests Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Bests Credit Ratings, Bests Performance Assessments, Bests Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Bests Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright  2023 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5714

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An ancient Bible just sold for $38.1 million. Here's why it's so important

The "Codex Sassoon," an ancient Hebrew Bible written in the late 9th or early 10th century, was purchased Wednesday at Sothebys in New York City for $38.1 million.

For the record: The price for "The Good Book" includes the auction house's fee.

Who bought the Bible?

The nearly complete ancient Hebrew Bible was purchased by former U.S. Ambassador to Romania Alfred H. Moses, Sotheby's said in statement.

Moses bought it on behalf of the American Friends of ANU, according to the sale organizer, and donated to ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv, where it will join a collection.

The 1,100-year-old Codex Sassoon, a Hebrew Bible that is one of the oldest surviving biblical manuscripts, sold for $38.1 million, which includes the auction house's fee, on May 17, 2023, in New York.

A biblical apology Arizona lawmaker apologizes for hiding Bibles at state Capitol after being caught on video

Why was it so expensive?

According to Sotheby's Judaica specialist Sharon Liberman Mintz, the price "reflects the profound power, influence, and significance of the Hebrew Bible, which is an indispensable pillar of humanity.

At 1,110 years old, the Codex Sassoon is said to be "the earliest, most complete Hebrew Bible" ever found, Sotheby's said.

15 people rescued in North Carolina fire Charlotte fire: 2 unaccounted for, 15 rescued as crews battle four-alarm blaze in SouthPark

The purchase is one of the most expensive prices for a manuscript fetched at auction, The Associated Press reported. In 2021, a copy of the U.S. Constitution sold for $43 million and in 1994, Leonardo da Vincis Codex Leicester sold for $31 million (about $60 million today).

Where did the Codex Sassoon name come from?

The leather-bound, "handwritten parchment volume" got its name from David Solomon Sassoon of London, who purchased the Bible in 1929, Sotheby's said. Sassoon, who lived in London and was the son of an Iraqi Jewish business magnate, was "a passionate collector" of Jewish manuscripts who had "a special affinity for Bibles in particular," the sale organizer said.

After Sassoon died in 1942, Sassoons estate was broken up. The "Codex Sassoon" was sold by Sothebys in Zurich in 1978 to the British Rail Pension Fund for around $320,000, or $1.4 million in todays dollars.

The pension fund sold the Codex Sassoon 11 years later to Jacqui Safra, a banker and art collector, who bought it in 1989 for $3.19 million ($7.7 million in todays dollars). Safra was the seller on Wednesday.

Codex Sassoon has long held a revered and fabled place in the pantheon of surviving historic documents and is undeniably one of the most important and singular texts in human history, said Richard Austin, Sothebys global head of books and manuscripts, in the auction's details about the manuscript.

Sassoon,. He purchased the Bible in 1929 and after he died in 1942, the sale organizer said. "Codex Sassoon" got its name in 1929.

Contributing: The Associated Press

Natalie Neysa Alund covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ancient Bible sells for $38.1 million at Sotheby's
[May 18, 2023] New Workhuman-Gallup Wellbeing Study Shows Employees with High Wellbeing Are More Likely to Be Told They Are Top Performers

Workhuman and Gallup released their latest report, From "Thank You" to Thriving: A Deeper Look at How Recognition Amplifies Wellbeing, which shows that employee recognition is a critical element of employees' personal and professional lives and a powerful tool for leaders to revitalize wellbeing. In a large-scale analysis across hundreds of organizations and thousands of teams, Workhuman and Gallup found employees with high wellbeing are more likely to be told they are top performers, feel like their pay is fair, and are less likely to be actively looking for job opportunities. In contrast, those with low wellbeing admit they are less likely to be considered a top performer, less likely to feel their paychecks are fair, and are more likely to be actively searching for another job. Further analysis of the data reveal how a combination of various levels of wellbeing and strategic recognition can predict employee experiences across all three areas. In fact, the results show great strategic recognition experiences can buffer the toll low wellbeing takes on employees' performance, perceived fairness of pay and job-searching tendencies. In short, when people are struggling or suffering in their lives, recognition matters even more. When looking at performance in the United States, employees who have suffering wellbeing are 12 percentage points less likely to be told they're a top performer, compared to the average employee (42% vs.54%). Despite this, when suffering employees have great strategic recognition experiences, Workhuman and Gallup found they are told they're a top performer at a rate of 70%. In contrast, employees who are doing well in their lives overall, but have poor recognition experiences, are much less likely to be a top performer than their peers with better recognition experiences. Only 44% of thriving employees with poor recognition experiences have been told they're a top peformer, compared with 74% of thriving employees overall when recognition is not considered.



The Workhuman-Gallup study found only 31% of U.S. employees strongly agree their paycheck is fair. However, workers with high wellbeing feel they're paid fairly at a significantly higher rate (60%) than those who are struggling or suffering (30%, and 18%, respectively). Employees are more likely to perceive their pay as fair if they experience great strategic recognition no matter their level of wellbeing. The study found the rate of employees who strongly agree their paycheck is fair remains at least 63% for those with great strategic recognition experiences, across all wellbeing levels. Emphasizing the need for recognition, the study found that only 6% of employees who are thriving in their lives overall, but have poor recognition experiences, feel they're paid fairly. Turnover is incredibly expensive and prior Workhuman and Gallup research found a culture of recognition can reduce turnover costs at a 10,000-person organization with an already engaged workforce by up to $16.1 million dollars. In this recent study, 50% of employees were actively looking for job opportunities. In addition, 75% of employees with poor wellbeing and recognition experiences were perusing the job market. Despite this, the study discovered how strategic recognition can help curb attrition. When employees have suffering wellbeing, but are experiencing great strategic recognition, only 40% of them are actively looking or watching for job opportunities.

"This analysis clearly demonstrates the connection among strategic recognition, performance and employees' wellbeing," said Ed O'Boyle, Gallup global practice leader. "Whether an employee is thriving, struggling or suffering in their wellbeing, recognition improves perceptions of their performance and insulates top performers from leaving." To read the full report and learn the four key strategies organizations can use to increase both recognition and wellbeing: on.gallup.com/workhumanwellbeingreport. For information on Workhuman, visit www.workhuman.com. About Workhuman Workhuman is helping companies meet today's biggest human capital challenges - including unprecedented turnover, employee engagement, hybrid work environments and DEI - through the Workhuman Cloud, a secure SaaS platform that provides the industry's best-in-class Social Recognition solution. As the leading global provider of technology solutions, analytics, expertise and services helping organizations of all sizes build and foster workplace cultures powered by employee recognition and crowdsourced feedback, Workhuman is revolutionizing the way employees celebrate, connect with, and appreciate each other in the workplace. Combined with unmatched data through Workhuman iQ, we empower HR (Human Resources) and business leaders with proactive insight to understand issues as they develop and tools to help them make the right decisions to align business objectives and culture to deliver immediate impact. And, with world-class award redemption from our proprietary global network, Workhuman is committed to building more connected human-centered workplaces that recognize the value and potential of each and every employee. For more than 20 years, Workhuman has been pioneering the human workplace by disrupting legacy and obsolete HR approaches to improve the employee experience at work, with solutions that engage with approx. seven million customer employees in 30+ languages, in 180 countries, generating 100 million instances of human connection. With dual headquarters in Dublin, Ireland and Framingham, Massachusetts, Workhuman deploys solutions and services at scale and is committed to helping companies improve returns on their most important investment - their people. For more information, please visit www.workhuman.com. About Gallup Gallup delivers analytics and advice to help leaders and organizations solve their most pressing problems. Combining more than 80 years of experience with its global reach, Gallup knows more about the attitudes and behaviors of employees, customers, students and citizens than any other organization in the world. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005339/en/

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[May 17, 2023] Revolutionizing Utilities: The Power of Private LTE in the 900 MHz Spectrum

TMCnet News The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), a significant public power provider in Texas, has recently announced it is deploying a 900 MHz private LTE (News - Alert) wireless broadband network supported by its partnership with Anterix.



The proliferation of digital technologies and the Internet of Things (IoT) in the industrial and utilities sectors has necessitated robust, reliable, and secure communication systems. Private wireless networks, operating in licensed spectrums such as the 900 MHz range, have emerged as critical components of this digital revolution. The 900 MHz spectrum is beneficial for because it provides excellent penetration and extensive geographic coverage, making it ideal for utilities, especially in remote and challenging terrain. The move from narrowband to broadband in this spectrum further enhances data capacity and speeds, enabling efficient transfer of mission-critical data.

Utility companies are also realizing the benefits of private LTE networks, as demonstrated by the LCRA's recent decision to acquire 900 MHz broadband licenses from Anterix. Private LTE networks also offer a variety of advantages, including improved network performance, enhanced security, and increased operational efficiency. According to Ken Price, LCRA's chief operating officer, the new network will significantly improve LCRA's data transmission, overall communication capabilities, and resilience. Moreover, it will provide numerous upgrades that will benefit both LCRA and its customers, who include electric cooperatives, schools, and transit authorities across more than 73,000 square miles. Anterix, as the largest holder of licensed spectrum in the 900 MHz band, plays a key role in facilitating this transition. The company's focus on delivering transformative private broadband is empowering critical infrastructure modernization across various sectors. Its partnership with LCRA underscores the broad applicability of private LTE, extending beyond the investor-owned electric utility space. Rob Schwartz, Anterix' president and CEO, says as much: "Not only does this agreement clear another 'complex system,' but it also adds a new type of customer to our nationwide network of utility networks, as LCRA is a public power generation and transmission utility that is also a water management utility. This agreement highlights the benefits of private LTE beyond the investor-owned electric utility space that has thus far been the major focus of Anterix's efforts." Private LTE networks offer utility companies the chance to control their own communications infrastructure, significantly reducing reliance on public networks. This, in turn, results in lower latency and greater reliability, particularly in areas where public network coverage may be patchy or unreliable. With a dedicated private LTE network, utilities can ensure reliable communication even in the most challenging conditions - essential for maintaining operations and minimizing downtime. Private LTE networks can be configured to meet specific operational needs, offering greater flexibility and scalability compared to traditional communication methods. This enables utilities to adapt their network as their needs evolve, ensuring they are always operating at peak efficiency. Private LTE networks are also highly secure. By owning and managing their own network, utilities can enforce stringent security protocols, reducing the risk of data breaches and ensuring the integrity of their systems - critical in today's attack-laden world. LCRA has recognized these benefits and is positioning itself at the forefront of this technological shift. As a significant public power provider, LCRA oversees a large, complex infrastructure, requiring efficient and reliable communication. With the new private LTE network, the LCRA will be able to improve data transmission, enhance its overall communication capabilities, and increase resilience. The deal also signifies the broader trend of increasing deployment of private wireless networks in the utilities sector. As more utilities recognize the potential for increased operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness, the demand for private wireless networks is expected to rise. LCRA's move to establish a 900 MHz private wireless network is part of a new era for utilities and industrial sectors. As these industries continue to digitize and modernize, robust, reliable, and secure communication infrastructure, like private LTE networks, will be critical to success.





Edited by Erik Linask



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[May 17, 2023] Johnson Controls and Weas Development break ground at new state-of-the-art Glendale engineering center and lab space

New 105,000-square-foot showcase engineering center and laboratory facility to be complete by late 2024

Approximately 250 employees connected with OpenBlue, hardware and software engineering, including Building Automation Systems & Controls, and materials testing, will be based at facility MILWAUKEE, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Johnson Controls today held a ceremonial groundbreaking celebrating a new state-of-the-art engineering center and laboratory facility where 250 engineering and technology-focused employees will design and test the very best in smart, healthy and sustainable building technology. Johnson Controls will lease the property from owner and developer, Weas Development. Construction is expected to be completed in late 2024. "Buildings account for nearly 40% of global emissions, meaning we have the opportunity to solve one of the most important challenges of our time by applying innovative technologies through healthy, safe and sustainable buildings. As part of this journey we are committed to investing in working environments with the tools and resources that accelerate innovation, foster collaboration and improve efficiency, allowing us to deliver world-class solutions to our customers," said George Oliver, Johnson Controls chairman and CEO. "This new facility is an important step for Johnson Controls and a continuing sign of our commitment to innovation and the Milwaukee metro community we call home." Located across from the current Johnson Controls campus in Glendale, Wisconsin, the 105,000-square-foot building will be a modern space designed for the unique engineering and testing needs of today, while remaining flexible enough to accommodate future needs. The design will allow for cross-team planning and exchange of ideas. Teams will focus on hardware and software engineering, including the OpenBlue suite of digital solutions, Building Automation Systems & Controls, and materials testing. Johnson Controls is committed to sustainable construction and operation of buildings. The new facility will utilize low-impact development and include Johnson Controls equipment, stormwater retention, EV charging stations, and other technologies focused on efficiency and enhanced air filtration. There will be reductions in embodied carbon through building reuse, as well as reduced and diverted construction waste throughout theconstruction process.



Weas Development and Johnson Controls are working with Mortenson Construction, Eppstein Uhen Architects (EUA) and CBRE Global Commercial Real Estate Services to develop the new engineering center. Johnson Controls North American Headquarters Campus Improvements

Additionally, improvements are underway for the company's existing Glendale headquarters, including contemporary workstations and collaboration spaces. Work will be completed over the coming months. The headquarters building proudly holds a Platinum rating of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the highest available for sustainable construction and operation of buildings. In addition, the campus earned a WELL Building Standard Health Safety seal, certifying that evidence-based measures and best practices for the health and safety of employees have been adopted and verified. The campus also has many sustainable features, demonstrating Johnson Controls' commitment to the environment and reducing emissions including: A solar thermal system on the roof that produces hot water for the campus (except the cafeteria), a total of 2,837 therms annually

A ground-mounted solar photovoltaic array totaling 1,452 panels covering 31,115 square feet; it generates 250 kW to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 827,000 pounds each year

A closed-loop heat exchanger relying on 272 geothermal wells that use subsurface temperatures to warm and cool the water supply

Heat pumps that reduce winter heating costs by around 29%

Skylights and increased window space that reduce use of energy for lighting

About 12,000 square feet of green roof that reduces runoff, insulates the building, and extends the life of the roof

A 30,000-gallon cistern captures rainwater, reducing consumption for low-flow fixtures and dual-flush toilets by 77% and saving of 595,000 gallons annually

More than 13 acres of native prairie vegetation

Nearly three acres of parking lot surfaced with permeable pavers, allowing water to filter through to a gravel base before moving via groundwater to a detention pond Media Contacts:

Melissa Talbott

Manager, Public Relations, Global Products

[email protected] Kari Pfisterer

Director, Public Relations and Media

[email protected] About Johnson Controls

At Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI), we transform the environments where people live, work, learn and play. As the global leader in smart, healthy and sustainable buildings, our mission is to reimagine the performance of buildings to serve people, places and the planet. Building on a proud history of nearly 140 years of innovation, we deliver the blueprint of the future for industries such as healthcare, schools, data centers, airports, stadiums, manufacturing and beyond through OpenBlue, our comprehensive digital offering. Today, with a global team of 100,000 experts in more than 150 countries, Johnson Controls offers the world`s largest portfolio of building technology and software as well as service solutions from some of the most trusted names in the industry. Visit www.johnsoncontrols.com for more information and follow @JohnsonControls on social platforms. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/johnson-controls-and-weas-development-break-ground-at-new-state-of-the-art-glendale-engineering-center-and-lab-space-301827931.html SOURCE Johnson Controls

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[May 17, 2023] CANbridge and UMass Chan Medical School Spinal Muscular Atrophy Gene Therapy (CAN203) Improves Lifespan and Motor Function in Mice When Administered via Intracerebroventricular Injection

CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc. (HKEX:1228), a leading China-based global biopharmaceutical company committed to the research, development and commercialization of transformative rare disease and rare oncology therapies, announced that data on a novel second-generation spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) gene therapy (CAN203), developed under the CANbridge and UMass Chan Medical School research agreement, was presented as a poster at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 26th Annual Meeting, in Los Angeles. In a study entitled "Low-dose intracerebroventricular delivery of a second-generation AAV gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy achieves efficient and toxicity-free motor function rescue in mice," researchers reported that a novel second-generation hSMN1-AAV gene therapy vector, consisting of an endogenous SMN1 promoter and codon-optimized human SMN1 transgene, improved life span and motor function in a mouse model of SMA better than the benchmark vector, when delivered via intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection. The benchmark vector is identical in design to the only approved gene therapy for SMA. Furthermore, the second-generation gene therapy resulted in higher levels of SMN protein in the central nervous system (CNS), particularly within motor neurons, and lower expression in the peripheral tissues, compared to benchmark vector-treated mice. Specifically, researchers compared the second-generation vector construct, packaged into two different capsids, against the benchmark vector by ICV injection at two doses, high (3.3x1013 vg/kg) and low (1.1x1013 vg/kg). These doses were one-tenth of those evaluated in an earlier intravenous (IV) study. At the high dose, the second-generation and benchmark vector-treated cohorts had 100% survival at the end of the 90-day study period, while at the low dose, both second-generation vector-treated cohorts had better survival than the benchmark vector-treated group. Mice treated with second-generation vector, regardless of dose, also saw a faster improvement in the righting reflex, reaching response times comparable to those of the healthy carrier cohort by day nine, compared to day 11 for the benchmark-treated mice. At the high-dose, second-generation vector-treated mice achieved significantly better (p=0.043) rotarod performance after 90 days and both doses of the second-generation vector led to faster improvement in the grid test, compared to benchmark-treated mice. Importantly, the second-generation gene therapy increased SMN expression in the targeted tissues, specifically the CNS, and reduced off-target expression, better than the benchmark therapy, revealing expression patterns that more closely resembled those of healthy carriers. Superior transgene expression was observed in disase-vulnerable cells, including ChAT-positive motor neurons in the spinal cord.



In addition, because dorsal root ganglia (DRG) toxicity has been associated with AAV gene therapies, the researchers evaluated the transgene expression in the DRG of SMA mice. No evidence of DRG toxicity associated with superior SMN expression was observed at 90 days after ICV injection with the high dose of the second-generation gene therapy. In a separate study, researchers observed that a very high ICV dose (1.1x1014 vg/kg) of the second-generation gene therapy in healthy mice maintained superior SMN protein expression after one year, compared to the same dose of the benchmark therapy, suggesting durability of treatment. The researchers also did not observe any signs of DRG toxicity associated with prolonged and superior SMN expression, as indicated by a normal clasping response and DRG morphology. "Intravenous delivery of gene therapy has been successfully used to treat infants with SMA type 1, but it will be challenging to treat older patients who need much more viral vector or have pre-existing anti-AAV antibodies," said Jun Xie, PhD, associate professor of microbiology & physiological systems, UMass Chan Medical School, and lead study author. "Direct CNS delivery of our second-generation hSMN1-AAV vector could enable gene therapy treatment for more SMA patients."

"ICV delivery of CAN203 in the animal model results in a more targeted SMN expression profile using a low vector dose, which could lead to a safer and more efficacious gene therapy, with the potential to be used across all ages of patients with SMA when delivered directly to the CNS," said Jason West, PhD, vice president, head of gene therapy research, CANbridge Pharmaceuticals. "We are pleased to advance CAN203 from these proof-of-concept nonclinical studies to IND-enabling studies." About UMass Chan Medical School UMass Chan Medical School, one of five campuses of the University of Massachusetts system, comprises the T.H. Chan School of Medicine; the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing; ForHealth Consulting of UMass Chan Medical School, , a public service consulting division; and MassBiologics, the only nonprofit, FDA-licensed manufacturer of vaccines, biologics and viral vector gene therapies in the United States. UMass Chan's mission is to advance the health and wellness of our diverse communities throughout Massachusetts and across the world by leading and innovating in education, research, health care delivery and public service. In doing so, it has built a reputation as a world-class research institution and as a leader in primary care education, perennially ranked in the top 10 percent of medical schools for primary care by U.S. News and World Report. UMass Chan attracts more than $300 million annually in research funding, placing it among the top 50 medical schools in the nation. In 2021, the Medical School received a $175 million donation from The Morningside Foundation and was renamed UMass Chan Medical School. About CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc. CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc. (HKEX:1228) global biopharmaceutical company, with a foundation in China, committed to the research, development and commercialization of transformative therapies for rare disease and rare oncology. CANbridge has a differentiated drug portfolio, with three approved drugs and a pipeline of 10 assets, targeting prevalent rare disease and rare oncology indications that have unmet needs and significant market potential. These include Hunter syndrome and other lysosomal storage disorders, complement-mediated disorders, hemophilia A, metabolic disorders, rare cholestatic liver diseases and neuromuscular diseases, as well as glioblastoma multiforme. The CANbridge Next-Generation Innovation and Process Development Facility is developing novel, potentially curative, gene therapies for rare genetic diseases, including Pompe disease, Fabry disease, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other neuromuscular conditions, and collaborates with world-leading researchers and biotech companies. Animal data from the SMA gene therapy was presented in 2022 at the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT), the European Society for Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT) and the World Muscle Congress. CANbridge global partners include: Apogenix, GC Pharma, Mirum, Wuxi Biologics, Privus, UMass Chan Medical School, the University of Washington School of Medicine and Scriptr Global. For more on CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Inc., please go to: www.canbridgepharma.com. Forward-Looking Statements The forward-looking statements made in this article relate only to the events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this article. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the data on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should read this article completely and with the understanding that our actual future results or performance may be materially different from what we expect. In this article, statements of, or references to, our intentions or those of any of our Directors or our Company are made as of the date of this article. Any of these intentions may alter in light of future development. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005517/en/

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[May 17, 2023] Franchising & Licensing Asia 2023 Paves the Way for Aspiring Entrepreneurs & Global-Ready Brands

SINGAPORE, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- With more professionals seeking a career change, franchising and licensing continue to be viable options for aspiring entrepreneurs pursuing business ownership. Franchising and licensing offer multiple benefits including a proven business model, established brand recognition, readily available training, support and infrastructure; all of which translate into more assurance and confidence, and lower failure rates, more flexibility and potentially better control over a fulfilling and rewarding career. With Asia as one of the fastest-growing economic regions in GDP per capita, countries in the region are seeing significant growth in their middle-class populations, where this tier of consumers with higher spending power and disposable income are influencing global consumption patterns and driving demand for premium and better-quality service and products. This is where the franchising and licensing models allow home-grown and established brands and aspiring individuals to step in to meet these consumers' needs. Today there are more than 4,300 franchise systems throughout Southeast Asia with more than 150,000 franchisee firms licensed to sell goods on behalf of master franchise brands. Empowering aspiring individuals with knowledge, best practices and meaningful connections to jumpstart their business ownership journeys, Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLA)  Asia's most established trade platform for the industry  returns this year from 17-19 August at Sands Expo and Convention Centre Level 1. Presented annually by the Franchising & Licensing Association (Singapore) and organised by Constellar, FLA2023 offers tremendous opportunities for aspiring individuals and entrepreneurs to connect with global-ready brands who are looking to expand into the rest of Asia Pacific and globally, with Singapore as the springboard. With a diverse and unique range of product and service brands on board, FLA2023 is the ideal platform to meet brand owners and franchise leaders, as well as discover how franchisees can play unique strategic roles in furthering the brand's success in the local market(s) with their in-market knowledge of business, marketing and talent strategies. "Singapore is a lucrative market and springboard for both master franchisors looking to expand in the region and for aspiring individuals seeking opportunities. Singapore's dynamic pro-business environment, political stability, among other considerations, offer a much lower barrier of entry. FLAsia2023 is the key knowledge exchange and business networking platform where both franchisors & franchisees can greatly benefit from" said Mr Dickson Low, President of Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore). Brands to check out at FLA2023 include the The TungLok Group, Russo's New York Pizzeria, the KC Group of Companies (owner of full-service salon brands such as Kcuts, Kskin and Clippers Barber), Mitsuba Japanese Restaurant, Speech Academy, Mscents, Chewy Junior, and many more. More details will be shared nearer to date. To attend Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLA) 2023, sign up here at https://bit.ly/MediaReg2023







Event Details Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLAsia) 2023 17  19 August 2023 (Thursday  Saturday), 10am  6pm, daily Website: https://franchiselicenseasia.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FranchiseLicenseAsia LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franchiselicenseasia/ Official Hashtags: #FLAsia2023 #FLAsia



About Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore) FLA (Singapore), one of the founding members of the World Franchise Council, was established in 1993 with the mission to nurture and develop Singapore's franchising industry. An essential component of Singapore's knowledge-based economy, FLA (Singapore) promotes and facilitates the use of franchising, licensing and branding as a growth strategy for Singapore enterprises, thus contributing to turning Singapore as a regional franchise and license hub. Through its partnership with Singapore government agencies and international franchise and license bodies, FLA (Singapore) also assists its members in their international development programmes. With an active growing membership of close to 140 companies, representing more than 250 strong brands, FLA (Singapore) is led and managed by a dedicated team of advisors, committee members and full-time secretariat with the goal of supporting Singapore companies to expand internationally. https://www.flasingapore.org/ About Constellar Constellar connects a global eco-system of event partners and consumers through a holistic portfolio of intellectual property (IP) in the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) industry. As Asia's partner of reference for curating innovative event and venue experiences, Constellar activates impactful networks to bring global markets, businesses and consumers together for sustainable growth. With our expertise and dedication, we are invested in helping you build trusted relationships with stakeholders for the long term and enabling cross-industry collaboration through world-class audience engagement solutions. Visit constellar.co for more information. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/franchising--licensing-asia-2023-paves-the-way-for-aspiring-entrepreneurs--global-ready-brands-301827985.html SOURCE Constellar

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[May 18, 2023] Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar and renowned musician Mahesh Raghvan set to make their Cannes debut with Walkers & Co. - Highlighting India's vibrant creator culture and modern artistry

Creating the perfect backdrop to showcase some of the finest forces in culture, Diageo India debuts its platform Walkers & Co. at the 76th Cannes Film Festival BENGALURU, India, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- With the intent of enabling progressive creators, Walkers & Co., a platform that celebrates collective progress makes its debut at the 76th Cannes Film Festival. Testament to India's Increasingly diverse and creative culture, Walkers & Co. makes this stride to create a deeper appreciation of modern Indian artistry across global boarders. Defined by her walk, Manushi prides herself on using her platform to create space for conversations that effect positive change in communities. Resonating with the platform's three tenants - co-creation, collaboration and communities, Manushi shall be walking the red carpet representing her journey in progress and the path of inspiration she creates. Speaking on the association, Manushi Chhillar said, "I am honored to represent Walkers & Co at the Cannes Film Festival and to be part of a brand that is committed to supporting emerging talent from the creator community. As an artist, I know first-hand the importance of having a platform to showcase one's work and to be heard on a global stage. I am excited to be part of a movement that is empowering the next generation of creative talent." Walkers & Co. shall also be taking modern Carnatic fusion icon Mahesh Raghvan to the prestigious film festival where he will be playing an intimate set for some of the finest artists from across the globe. Known for his unique sound and interesting collaborations, Raghvan along with his urbane outlook on Carnatic music are well poised to infuse the French riviera with a bold and distinctive melody. Commenting on his debut, Raghvan said, "Walkers And Co is committed to supporting emerging talent from the creator community, and I am honored to represent the brand at Cannes. It is truly an amazing experience to witness some exciting talent and artists across the globe sharing insights and cultures with each other. My experience as an artist has taught me the value of having a platform for one's work to be heard across the globe."



Making all of this happen, Walkers & Co. is a platform created to inspire people to move forward and follow the untreaded paths with courage and confidence. Commenting on this momentous occasion, Shweta Jain, CBDO, Premium, Luxury, Reserve & Craft  India and South Asia, Diageo, said, "Walkers & Co. represents a community of proud walkers globally who are striding ahead in pursuit of leading a progressive generation of young trailblazers. The world needs inspirational stories of walkers who are focused on continuous disruption, leading the meaningful narrative of creativity, representation, inclusivity, and diversity. We feel excited to showcase the conscious tune of Walkers & Co at the Cannes Film Festival and motivate the global audience towards a celebrated and progressive world." Fuelled by the philosophy of "Keep Walking", a rallying cry synonymous to constant evolution, Walkers & Co. celebrates those that take bold steps towards progress.

About Diageo India: Diageo India is the country's leading beverage alcohol company and a subsidiary of global leader Diageo PLC. The company manufactures, sells, and distributes an outstanding portfolio of premium brands such as Johnnie Walker, Black Dog, Black & White, VAT 69, Antiquity, Signature, The Singleton, Royal Challenge, McDowell's No1, Smirnoff, Ketel One, Tanqueray and Captain Morgan. Headquartered in Bengaluru, our wide footprint is supported by a committed team of over 3145 employees, 47 manufacturing facilities across states and union territories in India, a strong distribution network and a state-of-the-art Technical Centre. Incorporated in India as United Spirits Limited (USL), the company is listed on both the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in India. For more information about Diageo India, our people, our brands, and our performance, visit us at www.diageoindia.com. Visit Diageo's global responsible drinking resource, http://www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practices. Celebrating life, every day, everywhere. About Walkers & Co.: Walkers & Co. is a platform that celebrates those driven by self-belief, their identity, and with it, the interlinked idea of progress, both for themselves and the world. Such people are defined by their walk: the milestones, the journey, the resilience, the fluidity, and the learning & growth that comes with it. They are not lone rangers  in fact, the platform recognizes those who collaborate and work with partners, co-conspirators & ecosystems, thereby making a start, taking an action now, and enjoying being a story in progress, whether it is in the space of creativity, inclusion and diversity or sustainability. Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2079407/Manushi_Chhillar_and_Mahesh_Raghvan.jpg View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/miss-world-2017-manushi-chhillar-and-renowned-musician-mahesh-raghvan-set-to-make-their-cannes-debut-with-walkers--co---highlighting-indias-vibrant-creator-culture-and-modern-artistry-301828154.html

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[May 18, 2023] World Intelligence Congress set for Tianjin

Four-day event to play host to experts from across the world BEIJING, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from China Daily: The seventh World Intelligence Congress is to kick off at the National Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin from Thursday to Sunday, aiming to showcase core technologies, industrial trends and future scenarios of artificial intelligence development and accelerate the construction of a new development pattern. Themed "Intelligence: Extensive Development Space and Sustainable Growth Driver", the four-day event will invite experts, scholars and entrepreneurs from 21 countries and regions, as well as officials from nine major government departments, the Ministry of Education and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, to discuss issues such as intelligent connected vehicles, generative AI and brain-computer interaction. Concentrating on technological innovation, industrial expansion and business cooperation, this year's WIC will display Tianjin's strategic layout, core advantages, innovation capabilities and ecological environment in the development of its intelligent tech industries, boosting the high-quality development of the city's economy. A large number of leading enterprises specializing in the commercial applications of generative AI will gather in Tianjin to share views on the country's generative AI innovation and scenario applications and host brainstorming sessions on 5G-powered industrial internet, the integration of the digital economy and real economy, digital infrastructure, digital transformation, intelligent manufacturing and chips. There will be two main events during the WIC: the Summi on Innovation and Development and the World Summit on Intelligent Technology Innovation and Cooperation.



Covering an area of 120,000 square meters, an exhibition in the field of intelligent technology will be held for the first time during the event. It will display novel products and the latest achievements from 23 Fortune Global 500 companies, 43 Chinese Fortune 500 companies and research institutions and universities. These cover Humi Network's national cross-border industrial internet platform; Troila Technology's industrial software; Huawei's coverage of the ICT infrastructure and intelligent terminals; the photoelectric intelligent hybrid storage technology of Beijing E-hualu Information Technology Co and the integrated intelligent bridge building machine of China Communications Construction.

The WIC is to feature investment promotions, matchmaking activities and the signing of major projects. It strives to promote strategic cooperation agreements between government departments and key enterprises and Tianjin. There will also be bilateral talks among districts, departments and participating companies to attract investment, generate transactions and facilitate trade. The WIC innovation application excellent case activity will focus on three major fields: intelligent connected vehicles, intelligent manufacturing and smart low-carbon development and collect 190 cases from around the world. The preliminary review will select 30 finalists, and ultimately, 10 excellent cases are to be released at the closing ceremony. This year's WIC will have two guest countries for the first time; the United Kingdom and Singapore. Mogilev Oblast of Belarus will serve as the guest city. A total of 187 international guests have confirmed their attendance, covering 21 countries and regions such as the United States, Germany, Japan, France, South Korea, Italy, Australia, Greece, Norway, the Netherlands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Spain, Mexico, Egypt, Myanmar and Guatemala. Many international organizations and institutions, such as the Society of Automotive Engineers from the US, Germany's Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft research organization, and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, will participate in the conference. There will be 23 parallel forums with academics, experts and executives from 13 countries including the US, Germany, the UK, France, the Netherlands, Japan and Singapore, to deliver keynote speeches. The Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park is to open on Thursday, as a highlight of this year's WIC. The establishment of Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park was an important and strategic decision made by Tianjin to fully implement the strategy for invigorating synergy between science and education and promoting development via innovation. With the support of key universities and state-level innovation platforms in Tianjin, the Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park is aimed at becoming a source of scientific and technological innovation, which will make breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields, focus on the commercialization of scientific and technological results, and promote the integrated development of innovative and industrial chains. The 10-kilovolt Snowflake Network, which was made by State Grid Tianjin and independently developed with Chinese intellectual property rights, has completed pilot construction in areas such as Quanyun village in Hexi district of Tianjin. It will debut at this year's WIC. The core device in the Snowflake Network is the energy router, which makes the power distribution more secure, reliable, economical and efficient. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/world-intelligence-congress-set-for-tianjin-301828171.html SOURCE China Daily

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[May 18, 2023] GTreasury Secures Investment from Hg to Accelerate Growth as a Global Treasury Management Software Platform

CHICAGO, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GTreasury, a treasury, payments, and risk management software provider, today announces that it has secured a majority investment from Hg, a leading investor in global software and services companies. As part of the transaction, the GTreasury management team and former majority owner, Mainsail Partners, will continue as investors in the business. Based in Chicago, Illinois, GTreasury is a global leader in treasury management systems (TMS) for organizations worldwide. GTreasurys SaaS solutions assist treasury departments to effectively manage liquidity needs, payment execution, bank relationships, FX hedging, and auditing and compliance requirements. GTreasury provides these practitioners with real-time insight and access into their global liquidity needs, serving over 700 customers across 30 industries in over 160 countries. Renaat Ver Eecke, CEO of GTreasury, said: This is a great moment for the team at GTreasury as it will support further product development and geographic expansion, helping us to continue innovating and bringing new products and features to an ever-growing customer base. Hgs global software specialization and deep knowledge in this area will help accelerate this strategy significantly. Hgs investment and support will enable GTreasury to continue its rapid growth as a highly strategic platform in the TMS segment, with scope to drive further operational improvements, invest in more product development, and continue its global expansion plansincluding Asia Pacific regions and in Europe, where Hg has a deep network and 30-year heritage. Hg has invested around $9 billion in the wider tax and accounting software segment across Europe and North America over the last 19 years, with an increasing focus on software serving the Office of the CFO. Ben Meyer, Partner at Hg, said: Renaat leads an impressive team in a high-quality business, providing a leading solution in what is a fast-growing segment. We are excited to partner with Renaat and his team, and to work together with Mainsail, to support them in further scaling GTreasury as a TMS industry champion. Louis Kinsella, Director at Hg, said: TMS software is becoming an increasingly critical segment within the office of the CFO, with companies continuing to focus on their cash and liquidity visibility and needs. This is a really long-term trend, and were delighted to be backig a great business and team which is at the forefront of this sector.



Partnering with Renaat and the rest of the GTreasury team over the past five years to build a leading treasury management platform has been very rewarding, said Vinay Kashyap, Partner at Mainsail Partners. We believe the company is well positioned and are excited to continue our partnership along with management and the team at Hg. Terms of the transaction are not disclosed. Hg was advised by William Blair & Company, Skadden & Arps, Slate Meagher & Flom LLP, EY and McKinsey. GTreasury and Mainsail were advised by Guggenheim Securities and Wilson Sonsini.

For further information, please contact: GTreasury: Bret Clement (Clement | Peterson)

+1 (303) 229-2271

[email protected] Hg: Tom Eckersley

+44 (0)208 148 5401 Harry Mayfield (Brunswick, USA)

+1 917 818 5204

[email protected] About GTreasury GTreasury believes there is opportunity in complexity. We connect treasury and finance teams with industry-leading experts, technology solutions and untapped possibility. By simplifying complexity, teams can unleash their organizations potential to gain strategic advantages and grow. GTreasury helps organizations reach that potential by connecting treasury and digital finance operations through a world-class SaaS treasury and risk management platform and integrated ecosystem where cash, debt, investments, and exposures are seamlessly managed within the office of the CFO. GTreasury delivers intelligent insights, while connecting financial value chains and extending workflows to third-party systems, exchanges, portals, and services. Headquartered in Chicago, with locations serving EMEA (London) and APAC (Sydney and Manila), GTreasurys global community includes more than 700 customers and 30+ industries reaching 160+ countries worldwide. Visit GTreasury.com. About Hg We support the building of sector-leading enterprises that supply businesses with critical software applications or workflow services, delivering a more automated workplace for their customers. This industry is characterised by digitisation trends that are in early stages of adoption and are set to transform the workplace for professionals over decades to come. Our support combines deep end-market knowledge with world class operational resources, together providing compelling support to entrepreneurial leaders looking to scale their business  businesses that are well invested, enduring and serve their customers well. With a vast European network and strong presence across North America, our 400 employees and $65bn in funds under management support a portfolio of more than 45 businesses, worth over $120 billion aggregate enterprise value, with over 100,000 employees, consistently growing revenues at more than 20% annually. If youd like to see more, check us out at www.hgcapital.com. About Mainsail Partners Mainsail Partners is a growth equity firm that partners with founders of bootstrapped software companies to help them realize their potential. For 20 years, Mainsail has been helping management teams navigate the challenges and opportunities that come with rapidly scaling a software company. The firm includes women and men who are former software company operators who have seen these challenges first-hand. Mainsail offers assistance across a variety of functional areas including talent, finance, customer success, sales and marketing, product management, and R&D. With offices in Austin and San Francisco, the firm has raised over $2.2 billion in committed capital and invested in more than seventy companies. For more information, visit www.mainsailpartners.com or follow the firm on LinkedIn.





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[May 18, 2023] Taiwan Security Solution Day in Tokyo: Entrusting Taiwan's Firms for Zero Trust

Zero Trust Architecture and the robust capabilities of Taiwan's InfoSec firms to be highlighted TOKYO, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), a world-leading applied technology research institute, is spotlighting the future of cybersecurity at the upcoming Taiwan Security Solution Day in Tokyo on June 6. Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) has quickly become industry-standard for fighting against cyberattacks, and the event will explore how Taiwan's cybersecurity companies can leverage ZTA and other leading-edge strategies to safeguard enterprises. Noted as a leading hub worldwide, Taiwan's cybersecurity market is reported to have a high CAGR of 11.1% from 2022-2027. Yet with growing risks both globally and in Japan, Nikkei recently reported that cyberattacks on Japanese businesses have doubled in three years and that hackers have been quick to find and take advantage of vulnerabilities. To educate attendees about effective approaches to this threat landscape, Taiwan's industry leaders will hold sessions at Taiwan Security Solution Day on top cybersecurity trends. To attend the event, please register at: https://forms.gle/5PkepLuitDfn5cZi8.



Event Details:

Date: June 6, 2023

Time: 13:00-17:00 pm

Venue: JP Tower Hall & Conference Meeting Room 7-2, Marunouchi 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Taiwanese InfoSec firm attendees: LIONIC Security Solution Provider, Pentium Network Technology, KeyXentic Inc., AuthenTrend, CHT Security, Lydsec Digital Technology, UPAS Information Security, CyCraft, Authme Co., and Changing Tech Airtight cyber-defense with ZTA

A major focus of the event will be on ZTA -- a cornerstone of modern cybersecurity strategy. In traditional models, there is a trusted internal network and any users or devices in that network are assumed to be safe; zero trust eliminates this assumption and requires thorough verification. "In response to growing advanced persistent threats (APTs), particularly in the era of remote work, ZTA has emerged as a new and formidable network security strategy to adapt to today's digital, cloud, and mobile working environment," notes Mr. Akuei Hsu, Manager of the Industry, Science and Technology International Strategy Center at ITRI. "With ZTA, enterprises are better equipped to handle internal and external threats, achieve granular control over resources, improve user experience, and align with compliance standards." Widely considered to play a lead role in the future of cybersecurity, ZTA has even been embraced by the United States government in an executive order on cybersecurity. Similarly, Taiwan's authorities are progressively rolling out zero trust, with an emphasis on identity verification and safeguarding financial institutions. Another important topic covered at the event will be supply chain security solutions -- a critical concern for industries worldwide. Taiwan's leading cybersecurity ecosystem The cybersecurity industry in Taiwan has demonstrated exceptional capabilities over the years, primarily in safeguarding strategic sectors. "Taiwan's InfoSec industry has been remarkably successful at protecting the sensitive intellectual property and supply chains of critical industries like the semiconductor industry," adds Mr. Hsu. "And it is these world-class capabilities and infrastructure that put Taiwanese cybersecurity firms in a unique position for businesses worldwide to entrust them with protection of their mission-critical data." Companies based in Taiwan are also a frequent target for hackers, leading the industry and government to pay special attention to information security, particularly for semiconductor industry supply chains. Having already earned the trust of various companies around the world to manage their cybersecurity needs, a number of Taiwan's InfoSec startups have achieved international recognition with numerous awards and accolades. For example, Lydsec, a leader in user authentication technology, won the top prize in cybersecurity at the SelectUSA tech competition in 2022. Moreover, ITRI's regular surveys of the Taiwanese InfoSec industry have shown Japan to be the top market of interest. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/taiwan-security-solution-day-in-tokyo-entrusting-taiwans-firms-for-zero-trust-301828271.html SOURCE the Industry, Science and Technology International Strategy Center at ITRI

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[May 18, 2023] Huawei Powers up Collaborative Efforts with Partners, Crafting Inspiring Digital Transformation Narratives

SHENZHEN, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- During the Huawei Asia Pacific Partners Conference 2023 hosted in Shenzhen, Huawei shared its latest partner strategy in Asia Pacific, and the company's collaborative progress in crafting narratives of digital transformation across the region. As an engine of global economic growth, Asia-Pacific has long been a leader in digitalization and innovation initiatives. Huawei has more than 7,900 enterprise partners and more than 2,000 cloud partners in the Asia-Pacific region, and it seeks to cultivate an even stronger partner ecosystem here. In this region, Huawei expects to see its business grow rapidly over the coming years, with partners contributing to 95% of the company's revenue. These partners are also expected to take home 800 million US dollars a year just by selling Huawei products and services. During the "InnovAsia Tech Talk" roundtable, Aaron Wang, Vice President of Huawei's Asia Pacific Enterprise Business Group, discussed the company's recent digital transformation initiatives across the Asia Pacific. In Thailand, Srinakharinwirot University (SWU) has digitally transformed into an 'Innovative University' with enhanced digital infrastructure. In Laos, the first smart potash mine facilitated a video call from 300 meters underground. Macau's electricity provider, CEM, has leveraged smart grid technology to increase power supply stability to 99.9998%. In Malaysia, a fully connected airport hs been constructed, improving both customer experience and operational efficiency. In Singapore, Green Link, a burgeoning Digital-Only Bank, is running most of its banking solutions, including core banking, on Huawei Cloud for enhanced business agility.



Wang attributed these successes to the company's experiences in China, specifically mentioning the Smart Tianjin Port, which reduced costs by 30% and energy consumption by 17% through autonomous driving and 5G technology. Additionally, the Hongliulin Mine in Shaanxi has converted all operations to smart mode, connecting all equipment digitally. "We will continue leading the way in digital transformation, continue building bridges with our partners, and continue contributing to the advancement of societies across the globe," shared by Aaron Wang.

Robert Yang, Director of Huawei's Strategic Partner Development, said that the company plans to provide over $200 million in incentives to its Named Account market, Commercial Market, and Distribution Market this year. He also referenced the Market Development and Solution Development Fund program introduced last year, which is projected to allocate approximately $300 million over the next three years. As of now, this program has benefited thousands of partners worldwide, utilizing over $50 million. "Digital and intelligent transformation is creating waves that will sweep across the globe. Together, they will create a market space exceeding one trillion US dollars. Huawei wants to work with partners to seize these huge opportunities. For the Asia-Pacific market, we have designed unique partner development strategies for three major markets, namely the named account (NA) market, commercial market, and distribution business. This helps address their unique needs in a more targeted fashion. Both Huawei and our partners are dedicated to helping NAs go digital, accelerating the digitalization of SMEs, and exploring the blue ocean of the distribution business. During this process, we go all out to help each other succeed. We believe that Huawei can only succeed when our partners succeed. So, let's work together to seize these opportunities and achieve shared growth", shared by David Wang, Huawei Executive Director of the Board, Chairman of the ICT Infrastructure Managing Board, and President of the Enterprise BG, in his keynote. In the event, Huawei launched six new partner alliances for the Asia-Pacific region, one each for the government, finance, electric power, and road, waterway, and port industries, as well as for the independent software vendor (ISV) and data center facility solution sectors. Huawei also launched series of new products, solutions, digitalization tools, and partner support programs for the Asia-Pacific market. These include new flagship intelligent cloud-network products, all-flash products, and F5G products. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/huawei-powers-up-collaborative-efforts-with-partners-crafting-inspiring-digital-transformation-narratives-301828306.html SOURCE Huawei

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FILE PHOTO: women uses her iPhone mobile device as she passes a lighted Apple logo at the Apple store in New York

(Reuters) - Apple Inc has lowered sales estimates for its long-awaited mixed-reality headsets by about two-thirds, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The iPhone-maker had initially hoped to sell about 3 million units a year, but has now pared back those estimates to about 1 million, and then to 900,000 units, the report said.

The company is set to hold a developers' conference on June 5, where it is expected to present the product, the report said.

Apple did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The mixed-reality headset, which can overlay digital objects on a view of the real world, is widely anticipated to be Apple's next major product.

The headset is expected to cost around $3,000, Bloomberg News had reported in February. Meta Platform Inc's Quest Pro virtual and mixed reality headset is priced at about $1,000.

(Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
[May 18, 2023] Avivagen Announces Review of Strategic Alternatives

Avivagen Inc. (TSXV.VIV) ("Avivagen" or the "Company"), a life sciences corporation focused on developing and commercializing products for livestock, companion animal and human applications that safely enhances feed intake and supports immune function, thereby supporting general health and performance, announces the appointment of a Special Committee of the Board to review and assess strategic alternatives for the Company to maximize stakeholder value going forward. The Special Committee will consider all potential alternatives including the sale, in whole or in part, of the Company. As part of that process and to support the strategic review, the Company has implemented certain cost cutting measures including reducing staff and suspending or terminating certain of its consulting arrangements in Asia and Mexico. Avivagen's principal product, OxC-beta, represents an innovative and science backed ingredient platform that has broad health and nutrition benefits in three major market verticals: livestock, companion animals and human health supplements. The technology is protected by a strong patent portfolio consisting of seven patent families. The chemical composition and mode of action are well understood and supported by six peer reviewed publications. Efficacy for improving productivity in the food animal industry is supported by over 100 clinical and field trials and eight peer reviewed publications. OxC-beta has a well-established safety profile for animal and human use supported by an impressive history of use and a suite of internationally standardized safety studies. The product is approved for use in animal feeds in ten countries: Taiwan, Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Australia, China, Mexico and Brazil as well as being self-affirmed as Generally Regarded as Safe (GRAS) in the United States. The product has been fed to over 46.6 million food animals (poultry, swine, and dairy cattle), 133,820 dogs and 4,000 people. With strong technical attributes, proven efficacy, robust IP protection and recurring sales to multiple international customers, the OxC-beta technology holds exceptional value. Updates on the strategic review process will be provided by way of press release, if and when they occur. While every effort will be made to find a suitable transaction or series of transactions, there can be no assurance that any transaction will occur. About OxC-beta Technolog and OxC-beta Livestock



Avivagen's OxC-beta technology is derived from Avivagen discoveries about -carotene and other carotenoids, compounds that give certain fruits and vegetables their bright colours. Through support of immune function the technology provides a non-antibiotic means of promoting health and growth. OxC- beta Livestock is a proprietary product shown to be an effective and economic alternative to the antibiotics commonly added to livestock feeds. The product is currently available for sale in the United States, Mexico, Philippines, Taiwan, New Zealand, Thailand, Australia and Malaysia. Avivagen's OxC-beta Livestock product is safe, effective and could fulfill the global mandate to remove all in-feed antibiotics as growth promoters. Numerous international livestock trials with poultry and swine using OxC-beta Livestock have proven that the product performs as well as, and, sometimes, in some aspects, better than in-feed antibiotics.

Forward Looking Statements This news release includes certain forward-looking statements that are based upon the current expectations of management. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties associated with the business of Avivagen Inc. and the environment in which the business operates. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking, including those identified by the expressions "aim", "anticipate", "appear", "believe", "consider", "could", "estimate", "expect", "if", "intend", "goal", "hope", "likely", "may", "plan", "possibly", "potentially", "pursue", "seem", "should", "whether", "will", "would" and similar expressions. Statements set out in this news release relating to modifications to and execution of the Company's business plan, the review and availability of potential strategic opportunities for the Company, the abilities and anticipated success of the Strategic Committee, planned future communication , expectation as to further adoption of or orders for the Company's products, the possibility that trials underway could lead to additional orders in the future and the possibility for OxC-beta Livestock to replace antibiotics in livestock feeds as growth promoters are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations. For instance, risks and uncertainties regarding strategic alternatives including the terms of their availability whether they will be available at all, and the effects of their implementation, the Strategic Committee may not have the results anticipated, unforeseen factors could limit the growth of the Company and the adoption of its products, customers are under no obligation to make additional orders and may not order increasing quantities of the Company's products, partnerships may not be as successful as hoped, trials may not be successful or may not lead to additional adoption of the Company's products, Avivagen's products may not gain market acceptance or regulatory approval in new jurisdictions or for new applications and may not be widely accepted as a replacement for antibiotics as growth promoters in livestock feeds, all of which could occur due to many factors, many of which are outside of Avivagen's control. Readers are referred to the risk factors associated with the business of Avivagen set out in Avivagen's most recent management's discussion and analysis of financial condition available at www.SEDAR.com. Except as required by law, Avivagen assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Copyright  2023 Avivagen Inc. OxC-beta is a trademark of Avivagen Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005469/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Fujian Delegation Visits Singapore for Economic, Trade and Cultural Exchanges

FUZHOU, China, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- From May 15 to 17, Zhou Zuyi, Secretary of Fujian Provincial Committee and Chairman of the Standing Committee of Fujian Provincial People's Congress led a delegation to Singapore, according to the Information Office of Fujian Provincial People's Government. Acting on the important consensus reached by the state leaders of China and Singapore, the delegation organized extensive activities to promote business cooperation and cultural exchanges, and visited Fujian communities. With the aim of deepening friendship and upgrading the cooperation between Fujian and Singapore, the visit sought to tap into the strengths of both sides and achieve win-win outcomes. Singapore is a major destination for Fujian migrants in the past few centuries, and one of the first countries to participate in Fujian's opening up and development after the implementation of China's reform and opening up policy. At present, around 1.63 million overseas Chinese in Singapore are of Fujian origin. With geographical proximity and cultural affinity, Fujian and Singapore have maintained freqent exchanges in various fields. After China and Singapore established diplomatic relations in 1990, Fujian-Singapore cooperation has gained a stronger momentum in the fields of science and technology, education, health, culture and tourism, adding impetus to the development of both sides.



In 2022, two-way trade between Fujian and Singapore amounted to 27.14 billion Chinese yuan, an increase of 36.8% year-on-year. By the end of 2022, Singapore had invested in 1,833 projects in Fujian Province, with a total contractual investment of USD11.87 billion. In 1821, the first Chinese junk boat to sail directly from China to Singapore departed from Xiamen, Fujian Province. Since then, Fujian and Singapore have enjoyed increasingly frequent economic and trade cooperation and people-to-people exchanges.

Economic and trade cooperation have brought Fujian and Singapore closer in economic ties. The Department of Commerce of Fujian Province and the International Enterprise Singapore and other institutions jointly held a series of promotional events such as the China (Fujian)-Singapore Symposium on Economic, Trade, and Financial Cooperation in 2023, and the Summit for International (SG-CN Fujian) Technology Enterprises Cooperation in 2022. These events served to encourage leading Singaporean enterprises in electronics, information technology, and petrochemical sectors to leverage their advantages in capital, technology, equipment and products and establish operations in Fujian, thus driving related industries in Fujian toward higher-quality development and further enhancing economic and trade cooperation between Fujian and Singapore. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/fujian-delegation-visits-singapore-for-economic-trade-and-cultural-exchanges-301828433.html SOURCE The Information Office of Fujian Provincial People's Government

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[May 18, 2023] InnoPhase IoT Market-Ready Video Solutions Double Battery Life for Wi-Fi Cameras, Doorbells and Video IoT Device Applications

InnoPhase IoT, Inc., a fabless semiconductor company specializing in ultra-low power Wi-Fi IoT solutions, unveiled its Talaria TWO Ultra-low power (ULP) Wi-Fi optimized market-ready solutions for cloud-connected IP video IoT devices. Applications include battery-operated video cameras, smart video doorbells, wearables, smart appliances, home security cameras and in-vehicle dashboard monitoring device. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005186/en/ (Photo: Business Wire) Talaria TWO features for video use-cases include: Integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) for easy provisioning

Ultra-Low-Power (ULP) Wi-Fi at BLE power levels

Complete networking TCP-IP stack on integrated controller enables low latency, always ON cloud connectivity and eliminates image loss issues

Robust throughput under noisy conditions; supports up to 2K camera resolution Untethered wireless cloud connectivity and long battery life are two major design barriers for video IoT. Only approximately 10% of video cameras, for example, are currently battery-operated primarily due to battery life limitations of 3-6 months. Moving to a wireless format, however, has so far been problematic, as ubiquitous Wi-Fi is inherently power hungry, rapidly draining video camera's batteries. Location of the IoT device often makes access difficult and changing batteries cumbersome and time consuming. The InnoPhase IoT solution features 40% lower power consumption and 1+ year battery life performance, coupled with the availability of a variety of market ready solutions from OEMs and OMs.



"The video camera market is ripe for wireless solutions that can speed time to market, ensure low power consumption and extend battery life, and at the same time simplify the design process. InnoPhase IoT's Talaria TWO platform fit that bill," said David Ho, Director at Product Marketing at OMNIVISION. "I expect the IoT camera market to grow rapidly with this dramatic increase in battery-life and lower energy consumption," he added. According to Mr. Hao, Product Manager at Hualai Technology, an ODM focused on smart video camera manufacturing, "We selected the OMNIVISION OA8000 platform as it is the best performing low power consumption video processing solution, and it has been extensively used by tier 1 customers worldwide. Combined with InnoPhase IoT's Talaria TWO Wi-Fi/BLE module, it enables ultra-low power and direct-to-cloud connectivity for battery operated cameras. This allows us to offer quick time to market video products for our end customers."

"We offer a complete solution including hardware, software, integration, certification and cloud connectivity that's available now for evaluation, production and deployment," said Innophase IoT President and COO Wiren Perera. "The InnoPhase IoT low-power solution future-proofs camera systems, allowing for enhanced features such as artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging use cases to be incorporated, while meeting market needs of long battery life." A reference kit includes hardware and software integration with an image signal processor (ISP), cloud connectivity software and access to original design manufacturers. InnoPhase IoT will demonstrate its market-ready capabilities at the IoT Tech Expo in Santa Clara California, May 17-18, booth 260, and at the Embedded Vision Summit in Santa Clara, California, May 23-24, booth 904. To set up a briefing meeting and demo, please contact [email protected]. About InnoPhase IoT InnoPhase IoT, Inc., headquartered in San Jose, CA, is a fabless wireless semiconductor platform company dedicated to enable the promise of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions. Its flagship product, the Talaria TWO multi-protocol chipset and modules deliver the world's lowest power Wi-Fi radio to the rapidly growing untethered and battery-operated IoT device market. InnoPhase IoT enables end-to-end market-ready extreme low power wireless IoT solutions with extended battery life, a low total cost of ownership (TCO), high-performance wireless use-cases and rapid time to market. For more information, contact [email protected] or visit the InnoPhase IoT.com website. About OMNIVISION OMNIVISION is a global fabless semiconductor organization that develops advanced digital imaging, analog, and touch & display solutions for multiple applications and industries, including mobile phones; security and surveillance; automotive; computing; medical; and emerging applications. Its award-winning innovative technologies enable a smoother human/machine interface in many of today's commercial devices. Find out more at: www.ovt.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005186/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Nala Robotics Introduces Autonomous Bowl Bot and Sandwich Bot

New Food Bowl Sous-chef, Wingman Autonomous Fry Station and Spotless Robotic Dishwasher on Display at the National Restaurant Show ARLINGTON HEIGHTS,Ill., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Nala Robotics, an AI technology company revolutionizing the culinary industry, today unveiled two fully autonomous, self-cleaning robots that can prepare an unlimited assortment of customized food bowls and sandwiches anytime, anywhere and without human intervention. Ideal for quick-service chain restaurants and commercial kitchens, these latest additions to the company's growing lineup of robot chefs are compact, scalable, cost-effective solutions that enable restaurateurs to offer expanded menu items without additional labor costs. "Hectic lifestyles continue to drive the growing sandwich market as hungry consumers on the go still choose subs for quick meals," said Ajay Sunkara, CEO and founder at Nala Robotics. "At the same time, people like the versatility of more health-conscious food bowls for meal customization. All of our robots bring to restaurants and commercial kitchens a wide variety of cuisines and popular menu items that always can be generating income, while serving a larger clientele of customers." Within a 10'x10' footprint, Bowl Bot can prepare an infinite number of salad bowls, vegan bowls and burrito bowls. Consumers can select from 28 ingredients of bases, proteins and toppings, including chopped and sliced assorted vegetables, meats and cheeses. Bowl Bot also can grip and control sauce bottles while administering food portions with 95% accuracy, ensuring quality and consistency, while eliminating food waste. Sandwich Bot can prepare nearly any type of sandwich from 48 choices of meats, vegetables and cheeses  all within a 16' x 12' space. Consmers can also select bread choice options and various spreads and sauces to customize their favorite subs.



The Wingman can pick up and load frying baskets with chicken wings, French fries and other food items, dip them in oil and shake off any excess. The multi-fryer configuration allows different cooked foods to simultaneously be sent to individual seasoning bins where spices or sauces are added and properly mixed to ensure every wing or food item is evenly coated. Spotless by Nala provides a complete dishwashing solution, from scrubbing to storage. This highly intelligent robot will remove leftovers, rinse and clean cookware, cutlery, dishware and glassware, as well as dry, stack and store hundreds of varieties of utensils and kitchenware.

Orders and Fulfillment Each Nala Robotics chef is equipped with natural language processing features to respond to voice menu orders at the point-of-sale or operational commands in the kitchen. In addition to on-premises ordering via multi-modal kiosk for in-dining or takeout, restaurants can create virtual storefronts for remote transactions through a website or online food ordering and delivery platform. Advanced AI and machine learning, along with high-performance cameras and sensors are used to perform all autonomous functions. More than 1,200 parameters are checked every microsecond, ranging from robot field of vision and food quality to point-of-sales, ensuring safety and enhanced productivity. Designed to be easily integrated into new or existing kitchens, all robots are equipped with a self-cleaning system and meet UL and NSF standards for safety. Nala Robotics will be demonstrating several of its technologies at the at the National Restaurant Association Show May 20-23 (Booth: Lakeside Center  9409) held at McCormick Place in Chicago. Email [email protected] for more information on pricing and customized solutions. About Nala Robotics Nala Robotics is an AI technology company disrupting the culinary industry with the introduction of The Wingman, Pizzaiola and Nala Chef. Its fully automated, customizable robots use machine learning to cook infinite recipes replicated with exact precision anytime, anywhere. The company's autonomous robotic solutions are ideal for multiple cuisines including American, Chinese, Indian and Thai. Based in Arlington Heights, Ill., Nala Robotics has offices in California, India and Ukraine. For more information, visit? https://nalarobotics.com/ ?or follow the company on? LinkedIn ?and Twitter? @nalarobotics . Media Contact: George Medici

PondelWilkinson

[email protected]

310.279.5968 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nala-robotics-introduces-autonomous-bowl-bot-and-sandwich-bot-301828103.html SOURCE Nala Robotics

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[May 18, 2023] Cashfree Payments empowers Tazapay to offer seamless cross border payments to Indian exporters

Tazapay to use Cashfree Payments' cross border payment solutions to help businesses process cross-border payments into India

Partnership will enable Tazapay to settle cross-border payments directly to Indian exporters' local bank accounts in Rupees (INR) in one business day

Partnership will eliminate hassles for Indian exporters, who previously faced challenges with e-FIRS generation requiring 2-3 weeks and multiple bank follow-ups

Cashfree Payments will provide automatically generated e-FIRS (Foreign Inward Remittance Statement) to Tazapay merchants

Partnership aligns with Cashfree Payments objective of supporting the Indian export growth story by providing businesses with the best cross-border payment infrastructure available to help them grow profitably BENGALURU, India, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Cashfree Payments , India's leading payments and API banking company, has partnered with Tazapay , Singapore-based cross-border payments company to power their cross-border payments for Indian exporters. The partnership allows Tazapay to settle all cross-border payments directly to Indian exporters' local bank accounts in Rupees (INR) in one business day. Previously, Indian exporters faced challenges with e-FIRS (Foreign Inward Remittance Statement) generation, which required 2-3 weeks and multiple bank follow-ups. With this partnership, Cashfree Payments will provide e-FIRS to Tazapay merchants, complete with remitter & buyer details, for all their transactions within one business day. This partnership streamlines transaction processing, improves cash flow management and offers convenient payment options. It aims to unlock new opportunities for Indian sellers to expand their reach and tap into more global buyers. This aligns with Cashfree Payments' objective of supporting the Indian export growth story by providing businesses with the best cross-border payment infrastructure available to help them grow profitably. This partnership will accelerate Indian export growth and aid Indian businesse aiming to grow their customer base in international markets.



Reeju Datta, Co-Founder, Cashfree Payments said, "India is the biggest market for inward remittances globally, covering merchandise and services exports. However, traditional wire transfers have been the go-to payment method for Indian businesses. These methods have caused payment delays, affecting exporters' operations and cash flow management. Our partnership with Tazapay now eliminates payment hassles, empowering Indian exporters to expand their business across borders smoothly. This is just one more example of Cashfree Payments' unwavering commitment to simplifying international payment collection, making it just as effortless as collecting payments domestically." Rahul Shinghal, CEO of Tazapay, said, "Our collaboration with Cashfree Payments marks a significant milestone in our mission to streamline cross-border transactions for Indian merchants. Combining Tazapay's extensive coverage in over 173 countries with local payment collections in 80+ countries and Cashfree Payments' expertise in local payout solutions, we are empowering businesses in India to seize new opportunities and overcome challenges posed by traditional payment methods. Together, we aim to enhance operational efficiency and cash flow management, and tap into previously inaccessible markets, fostering a robust cross-border ecosystem that drives growth, innovation, and success for Indian merchants in the global arena."

Cashfree Payments has focused on building innovative solutions for global companies and international payment aggregators, who need to pay Indian business entities or individuals from anywhere in the world. In addition, Cashfree Payments also provides solutions to enable Indian exporters to collect payments in over 30 currencies from more than 100 countries, with an option to allow payers to pay using their local rails like Automated Clearing House (ACH in US), Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA in EU), Electronic funds transfer (EFT in Canada) and Faster payments service (FPS in UK). With over 50% market share among payment processors, Cashfree Payments today leads the way in bulk disbursals in India with its Payouts and is also among the leading online payment aggregators. India's largest lender, SBI invested in Cashfree Payments underscoring the company's role in building a robust payments ecosystem. Cashfree Payments works closely with all leading banks to build the core payments and banking infrastructure that powers the company's products. Cashfree Payments is also integrated with major platforms such as Shopify, Wix, Paypal, Amazon Pay, Paytm, and Google Pay. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada, and UAE. About Cashfree Payments Cashfree Payments is a leading payment and API banking solutions company. It provides full-stack payment solutions enabling businesses in India to collect payments and make payouts via all available methods with simple integration. Cashfree Payments' offerings include an advanced and easy way to integrate payment gateways, a split payment solution for marketplaces, bank account verification API, Lending disbursals solution and Auto Collect -- a virtual account solution to match inbound payments to customers. Founded by IIIT Hyderabad alumnus Akash Sinha and IIT Kharagpur graduate Reeju Datta, www.cashfree.com is among the leading payment service providers in India processing transactions worth USD 40 Billion annually. It has leveraged technology to lead payment disbursals in India with more than 50% market share among payment processors. Cashfree Payments enables more than 3,00,000 businesses with payment collections, vendor payouts, wage payouts, bulk refunds, expense reimbursements, loyalty and rewards. Apart from India, Cashfree Payments products are used in eight other countries including the USA, Canada, and UAE. Cashfree Payments is backed by Silicon Valley investor Y Combinator, Apis Partners, State Bank of India (SBI), and was incubated by PayPal. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1714361/Cashfree_Payments_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/cashfree-payments-empowers-tazapay-to-offer-seamless-cross-border-payments-to-indian-exporters-301828522.html

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[May 18, 2023] Israel Innovation Authority and Peachtree Corners Ally to Bring Top Technology Startups to Silicon Orchard for Mutual Benefit

The National Technological Innovation Authority is fostering collaboration between the brightest technology developers in Israel and the U.S.' premier smart city  honored recently by IEEE, IDC and more global entities with awards

Startups selected for the program will prove out solutions using city-owned smart infrastructure and a real-world environment, while launching into the North American market

Developers may also collaborate with other top international technology companies as part of the city's Curiosity Lab ecosystem PEACHTREE CORNERS, Ga., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Peachtree Corners  one of the United States' first 5G smart cities powered by real-world connected infrastructure  and the National Technological Innovation Authority in Israel today announced a collaboration that will bring the most promising Israeli technology startups to the heart of "Silicon Orchard." The program will enable selected companies to prove out solutions in a real-world environment to enhance city safety and IoT-enabled operations, as well as share capabilities, resources and learnings for mutual benefit. "We're delighted to partner with Israel Innovation Authority in helping to foster the growth of some of the world's brightest startups working on smart city, IoT and future mobility tech  while elevating safety and enhancing everyday city operations for the benefit of our residents," said City of Peachtree Corners City Manager Brian Johnson. "This alliance is a culmination of the past few years of work between the technology community in Israel and the city's Curiosity Lab ecosystem, with multiple startups having proved out exciting new solutions in Peachtree Corners' unique smart city environment. This is yet another reflection of our international leadership, with many global entities interested in coming to the heart of what is becoming known as Silicon Orchard to develop and scale new technology." Applications to the program will be opened in Israel, with Peachtree Corners and the Innovation Authority selecting, screening and approving finalists. Finalists will thenjoin the Curiosity Lab ecosystem where in addition to testing, they will have access to resources to aid in product development, business development, expanding into the U.S. market and more.



"The collaboration between Israel and Peachtree Corners has been growing for the past several years, and we're excited to formally help bring some of the most advanced new smart city technologies while enabling our startups to expand into North America," said Dr. Amiram Applebaum, Chairman of the Israel Innovation Authority and Chief Innovation Scientist at the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology. "We are proud of Israel's leadership in smart city and IoT innovation, and it only made sense to partner with a city that's now globally recognized for its unique environment and global firsts  from the first cellular vehicle-to-everything system implemented in an American city to other smart infrastructure breakthroughs that affect autonomous mobility and more. There's no better soft launch pad in America to help foster the implementation of innovative technology relevant to smart cities, while positively impacting the daily life for its citizens." The region has rapidly grown into a hotspot for international companies launching into the North American market: From Europe, Asia to the Middle East, technology developers and government-led trade entities have engaged with Peachtree Corners over the past several years on multiple levels.

For more information about the global smart city alliance, or to schedule a briefing with city and Israel Innovation Authority officials, contact Peac[email protected]. About the Israel Innovation Authority The Israel Innovation Authority, an independent publicly funded agency, was created to provide a variety of practical tools and funding platforms aimed at effectively addressing the dynamic and changing needs of the local and international innovation ecosystems. This includes early-stage entrepreneurs, mature companies developing new products or manufacturing processes, academic groups seeking to transfer their ideas to the market, global corporations interested in collaborating with Israeli technology, Israeli companies seeking new markets abroad and traditional factories and plants seeking to incorporate innovative and advanced manufacturing into their businesses. The Startup Division offers unique tools to support the early developmental stages of technological initiatives at the pre-seed or initial R&D stages, thus helping transform their ideas into reality while reaching significant funding milestones. For more information, visit The Israel Innovation Authority | Israel Innovation (innovationisrael.org.il). About the City of Peachtree Corners, Georgia As the heart of what is being called #SiliconOrchard in the metro-Atlanta region, Peachtree Corners is a vibrant municipality that's home to more than 45,000 residents, 45,000 jobs and an innovation hub that houses some of the world's most disruptive technology companies. As the United States' premier smart city powered by real-world connected infrastructure and 5G, Peachtree Corners serves as the model for how government and private industry can better collaborate to create a better future for society and business. From the world's first deployment of teleoperated e-scooters to fully autonomous shuttles being utilized by actual residents, and from a solar roadway to the largest electric vehicle fast-charging hub in the region, Peachtree Corners is where the most future-forward Internet of Things (IoT) and sustainable technologies come to life for the benefit of its citizens, and the world. For more information, visit http://www.peachtreecornersga.gov. About Curiosity Lab at Peachtree Corners Curiosity Lab is a 5G-enabled intelligent mobility and smart city living laboratory located in the southeastern United States near Atlanta, Georgia. Designed as a proving ground for IoT, mobility and smart city emerging technologies, the centerpiece of the lab is a three-mile public autonomous vehicle roadway leveraging cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) technologies. Additional infrastructure includes intelligent traffic cameras and traffic signals, smart streetlights, the country's first "IoT Central Control Room" implemented in a city and a 25,000 square foot innovation center. Owned and operated by the City of Peachtree Corners, Curiosity Lab is one of North America's only real-world testing environments and is available for use free of charge. Additional information can be found at www.curiositylabptc.com. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/israel-innovation-authority-and-peachtree-corners-ally-to-bring-top-technology-startups-to-silicon-orchard-for-mutual-benefit-301827935.html SOURCE Peachtree Corners

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[May 18, 2023] Private Internet Access challenges the VPN industry to raise the bar on accessibility

Private Internet Access marks Global Accessibility Awareness Day by sharing their expert insight on making cybersecurity more accessible and committing to greater heights. DENVER, Colo. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Virtual private network (VPN) provider Private Internet Access (PIA) has been built upon a commitment to protecting people's right to online privacy and to championing digital freedom for all. This means putting accessibility requirements at the forefront of PIA's product requirements, and working towards greater accessibility where possible. They have had the opportunity to engage with members of their community with accessibility requirements, and have worked with them to significantly improve accessibility for the PIA app. Today, Global Accessibility Awareness Day , PIA published their Commitment to Accessibility, marking a new milestone in their accessibility journey. Jose Blaya, Director of Engineering at Private Internet Access, said: "Private Internet Access is committed to protecting people's right to online privacy and digital freedom. Working towards a world in which everyone has access and can benefit from that is extremely important. We're therefore excited to be able to share the process we went through to develop Private Internet Access' accessibility features. As an engineering team we want to continue to address the needs of our customers and making accessibility a key consideration is an important part of that." PIA's Accessibility Journey PIA's story of how they went about improving their VPN's desktop accessibility began when they were contacted by an existing customer who was completely blind. They had been using Private Internet Access but were struggling to use the VPN fully as their screen-reader wasn't working correctly with it. They were having issues such as being unable to fully move around the app to access the different configuration options. The customer provided a huge amount of feedback to the PIA team, who were determined to address some of these issues. They set to work to improve PIA's accessibility. PIA used a cross-platform development framework to develop its apps, which provided toolkits for distributing your app across multiple platforms such as Windows, Mac and Linux. It allows you to write one set of code, a lot of which can then be shared across the different platforms. To improve the PIA app's compatibility with screen-readers, and to really ensure the accessibility features were working as they should, the PIA team would need to look into each operating system's specific accessibility API. The first step was to expose the functionality of each platfom's accessibility APIs. Then, step by step, the team went through the process of making each element accessible. After each attempt, they were able to share the changes with the user who was blind, who provided them with immediate feedback. This enabled the team to really focus in and fine-tune PIA's accessibility, ultimately bringing it to a very high level such that a user who was completely blind would be able to use PIA's VPN as easily as possible.



How PIA delivers accessibility The most important things to consider when making an app accessible are keyboard compatibility and ensuring text information is understandable without the visual context.

PIA is a graphical user interface (GUI) application which means that it is designed using graphical elements such as windows, menus, dialog boxes, and buttons. In order for the accessibility features to work properly, the UI elements must be accessible to screen readers virtually, and be able to be navigated via the keyboard. Image: PIA's engineering team's notes on accessibility considerations when adding a new UI feature. By isolating each graphical UI element and providing text alternatives for them, it enables the keyboard to skip around the different elements and for the screen-reader to say which element it is landing on. Image: PIA's engineering team's notes on key things to consider for keyboard navigation. The high level of customization that is possible with PIA's VPN is one of its standout features, allowing users to configure custom DNS settings, port forwarding, remote ports and proxies. To make these features accessible, a non-visual way to indicate those choices needs to be added, which can then overlay the graphical UI. How different elements and options are grouped together is important. With a graphical UI, the way things are grouped is inherent in the way things are positioned on screen. With a screen-reader you don't have that by default, so the grouping needs to be made explicit. There are no visual cues so naming groups and sub-groups along with any other elements is very important. Image: PIA's engineering team's notes on addressing issues with multiple displays in Mac OS. Once each of the UI elements within PIA's app framework had been interrogated in this way, annotated and grouped in the most effective way, the accessible version of the app was in a very good place, able to work seamlessly with screen-readers and allowing easy keyboard navigation. Staff Software Engineer at Private Internet Access, John Mair, was part of the team who worked on PIA's accessibility features including improved compatibility with screen-readers. John said: "When considering an application's accessibility, it is useful to think of the application as a universe with multiple layers. There are the elements you would normally see within an app - dropdown menus, images, tables - and then there are the hidden versions of these that you need to make visible to the screen-reader and accessible via keyboard input. Working on PIA's accessibility was an incredibly interesting process. Hearing the concerns of the existing user, exploring the adaptations that were possible and seeing the impact that these had, was very engaging. This was especially the case given the input we received from the user and the detailed feedback they were able to provide. It has taught us to make sure that whenever we are implementing a new feature or change, we also need to understand the impact this will have from an accessibility perspective. This is something that we want to take forward in the future." What's next for PIA and accessibility Private Internet Access is committed to continuing to improve its user experience for all customers, and will publish a Commitment to Accessibility acknowledging the need to continue to improve accessibility across all channels and setting out their intentions going forward. Their Commitment to Accessibility can be found on the PIA website from 18 May 2023: https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/blog/commitment-to-accessibility/ In addition to continuing to adapt and improve accessibility within their VPN product, PIA will work towards compliance with W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guideline for their website. In doing so they aim to improve their user experience for all users, and align their website with their VPN app in terms of accessibility. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/private-internet-access-challenges-the-vpn-industry-to-raise-the-bar-on-accessibility-301828388.html SOURCE PIA

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[May 18, 2023] Ellucian Partners with SenecaLab to Expand Digital Transformation for Higher Education in Panama

First reseller partnership in Panama to scale and accelerate institutional success RESTON, Va. and PANAMA CITY, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ellucian, the leading higher education technology solutions provider, today announced a partnership with SenecaLab, a Panamanian company that has been selected by Forbes as one of the 30 promising businesses in Central America, to successfully implement Ellucian solutions in Panama and in other parts of Latin America. This partnership will broaden Ellucian's reach in Latin America, introducing best-in-class products and services, with the help of SenecaLab's deep expertise in the region. In collaboration with SenecaLab, Ellucian will help colleges and universities meet and exceed their strategic goals and drive student success across Panama. Ellucian solutions allow higher education institutions to focus on learning the needs of students by simplifying complex registration, enrollment and administrative processes. For faculty and staff, Ellucian enables greater visibility and transparency supporting data-driven decision making across institutions. "Ellucian is the leading provider of technology to higher education institutions in North America, and together with SenecaLab's unique knowledge of Panama's education system and expertise with both local and regional regulations, we will help scale digital transformation for higher education in Panaa," said Ricardo Leitao, Senior Vice President, Global Services, Ellucian. "Standardizing and unifying data will make it easier for institutions across the country to plan and share information to ensure greater student experiences and access to education."



"Digital transformation is a priority for higher education institutions, and SenecaLab is pleased with this alliance. It will allow us to accompany higher education institutions, because we understand their challenges, and contribute in areas such as change management, leadership, and processes that end up being decisive in the success of institutional modernization. Together, with the most flexible, secure and proven Ellucian technology, as well as best practices from the best universities in the world, we will lead them to effectively develop their full potential," said Adriana Angarita, CEO and Founder, SenecaLab. For more information on Ellucian solutions and services, visit: https://www.ellucian.com/es (for Latin America) or https://www.ellucian.com.

About SenecaLab

Panamanian company that develops educational projects based on technology for competitiveness and measurement of educational quality in Latin America. We design solutions to empower human beings and connect them with society. Integrated by professionals with extensive experience in higher education, we accompany institutions through their processes aimed at their success. To find out about more, visit SenecaLab at www.senecalabonline.com About Ellucian

Ellucian powers innovation for higher education, partnering with more than 2,900 customers across 50 countries, serving 22 million students. Fueled by decades of experience with a singular focus on the unique needs of learning institutions, the Ellucian platform features best-in-class SaaS capabilities and delivers insights needed now and into the future. These solutions and services span the entire student lifecycle, including data-rich tools for student recruitment, enrollment, and retention to workforce analytics, fundraising, and alumni engagement. Ellucian's innovative solutions, vast ecosystem of partners and user community of more than 45,000 provides best practices leading to greater institutional success and achieving better student outcomes. Media Contacts

Lindsay Stanley

[email protected] Adriana Angarita

[email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ellucian-partners-with-senecalab-to-expand-digital-transformation-for-higher-education-in-panama-301827486.html SOURCE Ellucian

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[May 18, 2023] Teradata and FICO Partner to Reduce Fraud, Improve Business Outcomes

Teradata (NYSE: TDC) and FICO, the analytics software provider (NYSE: FICO), today announced they plan to bring to market integrated advanced analytic solutions for real-time payments fraud, insurance claims, and supply chain optimization. Bringing data, analytics and insights together in one environment streamlines the development of solutions for use cases across industries, speeding time-to-delivery and making them available for joint customers sooner. The resulting solutions are part of a new global relationship between the two companies, and are expected to deliver reduced costs, improved profits, increased risk mitigation and greater customer satisfaction for Teradata/FICO customers. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005112/en/ "AI is changing everything, and business will need to adjust to both the threats and the opportunities," said Lisa Stewart, SVP WW Partners and Alliances at Teradata. "From fighting fraud to managing global supply chains, AI-powered analytics and advanced decision management are the new requirements for keeping up as well as creating advantage. These are the core competencies of Teradata and FICO, and our partnership will make it easier for our joint customers to innovate in this new AI-driven reality." The two companies have identified three initial offerings: Fraud detection for real-time payments. While FICO fraud solutions are the global leader in card payments fraud, protecting more than 2.6 billion payment cards worldwide, this kind of sophisticated protection isn't available for other kinds of payment products. To address this gap, FICO and Teradata have designed a fraud solution for real-time payments that will help mitigate the increasing scams and payments fraud in retail banking accounts.



The solution will bring together FICO's market leading FICO Falcon Fraud Manager, with its powerful consortium data and neural network models, and Teradata's capabilities in enterprise-scale AI/predictive and prescriptive analytics. This is expected to provide a holistic view of a banking customer's transactional and payments activity, and when combined with FICO decision management, provide best-in-class fraud prevention for P2P, B2C, ACH and other payment transactions.

Improving outcomes for complex medical claims. Predicting and managing healthcare expenditures is a top strategic priority for property & casualty, major medical, and public (government) insurance programs. Despite industry progress in specific targeted areas - such as opioid addiction or kidney failure - an approach for containing total cost across any condition still eludes industry leaders.







FICO and Teradata have designed a decision automation solution to accelerate the inclusion of patient insights into the operations of claims adjusters, case managers, and special investigations units. The result of using AI in this solution to quickly segment and then identify pathways to care (based on procedures and diagnoses) can lower the financial burden while producing superior medical outcomes for the patient.

Enhancing supply chain efficiency and increasing resilience. Once an almost invisible societal benefit, global supply chains are now increasingly under scrutiny as they continue to experience strain under the unrelenting pressure to deliver. From food to medicine to transportation and technology, fragile supply chains must navigate this volatile environment.



FICO's advanced mathematical optimization coupled with Teradata's multidimensional scaling has the potential to enable organizations to build robust capabilities to model, optimize and simulate different scenarios that affect their supply chains, and then deploy the most efficient options. At the heart of this capability is a leading optimization modeling and solver platform based on FICO Xpress Insight, which allows operation researchers, data scientists, analysts, and business managers to easily collaborate on supply chain solutions that facilitate efficient, effective and time-sensitive decision making. This can lead to improved efficiency across plan, source, make, deliver, and return, increasing an organization's resilience with rapid identification and mitigation of risks, and improved long-term customer satisfaction. "Behind these solutions and others we are developing is incredible IP in decision management technology, predictive analytics, mathematical optimization and other areas," said Alexandre Graff, senior vice president of partnerships for FICO. "Teradata and FICO both have outstanding teams and technologies for operational analytics. Together we can make breakthroughs that help businesses worldwide prosper."

FICO was named Best Technology Provider for Data Analytics at the 2022 Credit Awards, and a Leader in The Forrester Wave: Digital Decisioning Platforms, Q4 2020. Gartner has named Teradata a Leader in the Magic Quadrant for Cloud Database Management Systems and ranked Teradata #1 in all four use cases in the Critical Capabilities for Cloud Database Management Systems for Analytical Use Cases. The four use cases are: Data Warehouse, Logical Data Warehouse, Data Lake, and Streaming Analytics.* FICO and Teradata will discuss their partnership at FICO World 2023, May 16-19 in Hollywood, FL. Please attend Teradata's session on "The Future of Banking Is Open" featuring Lawrence Latvala and Frank Saavedra-Lim on Thursday, May 18 at 4 pm in Great Hall 1. Availability The joint solutions from Teradata and FICO are targeted for availability in Q3 2023, across multi-cloud and hybrid environments globally. About Teradata Teradata is the connected multi-cloud data platform for enterprise analytics company. Our enterprise analytics solve business challenges from start to scale. Only Teradata gives you the flexibility to handle the massive and mixed data workloads of the future, today. Learn more at Teradata.com. About FICO FICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of predictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO holds more than 200 US and foreign patents on technologies that increase profitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial services, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other industries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in nearly 120 countries do everything from protecting 2.6 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving financial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO Score, used by 90% of top US lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the US and other countries, improving risk management, credit access and transparency. Learn more at www.fico.com. FICO and Falcon are registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation in the US and other countries. *Gartner Magic Quadrant for Cloud Database Management Systems; Henry Cook, Merv Adrian, Rick Greenwald, Xingyu Gu, 13 Dec 2022 and Gartner, Critical Capabilities for Cloud Database Management Systems, Rick Greenwald, Merv Adrian, Adam Ronthal, Philip Russom, Henry Cook, Xingyu Gu 15 December. 2022 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005112/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Contract Guardian's Explosive Growth Provides Hospitals Vital CLM SaaS, Support, Consistency & Savings

Profitable Bootstrapped Business Model Succeeds Amid Volatile VC/PE Funding Market INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Contract Guardian, Inc. (CG), a leading provider of SaaS healthcare contract lifecycle management software, today announced that its revenues and net earnings have tripled over the past four years. The company credits organic growth to a combination of unwavering focus on solving client contract management challenges with hardened entrepreneurial bootstrapping business lessons learned over 34 years. This contrasts with the typical SaaS-company growth model of venture capital, private equity funding, or merger/acquisition that tends to favor additional growth over all else. The contract management software market is growing rapidly with revenues expected to reach nearly $3.6 billion by the end of 2028 on a compound annual growth rate of 12%, according to Verified Market Research. Growth is driven by a changing regulatory landscape, increasing contract complexity, and the drive by healthcare organizations to reduce costs. "Large healthcare organizations may have more than 30,000 contracts to manage," Matt Paterini, PharmD and VP Contract Guardian said, "and many diverse types, including agreements with vendors, payers, employees, leasing firms, affiliates, and contract physicians just to name a few. Different departments tend to operate in silos making contract management an even greater challenge." Contract Guardian's successes are attributed to the software's ease of use, responsive interface, custom workflows, and automatic notifications, among other features. For example, notifications alone can help organizations realize significant savings by alerting administrators toevents such as automatic renewals, which can bind organizations to a contract long after goods or services are required. Contract Guardian is also distinctive in its laser focus on healthcare and the tailored configuration that goes into each customer's implementation.



More recently, the firm has benefited from the increased involvement of CEO Jim Kandrac in Contract Guardian's growth strategy. Kandrac started and scaled UCG Technologies over 34 years into a technology services firm spanning thirty-one states, Canada, and the Caribbean. Since the December 2021 sale of UCG Technologies, Kandrac has focused his energies on growing Contract Guardian which he purchased in 2018. Contract Guardian's Vice President Matt Paterini, whose healthcare background includes a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and extensive health system administration experience is invaluable in leading the day-to-day operations. Kandrac explains, "Contract Guardian is uniquely positioned in the CLM marketplace to address hospital business issues and pains. The solution was initially developed for a multinational health system 16 years ago and has been continuously enhanced since. The combination of longevity coupled with our team's healthcare expertise makes for a winning combination for hospital clients."

The company has also benefited from consolidation in its own market, with one of its leading competitors having recently been acquired by a provider of healthcare governance, risk, and compliance software. The result within those acquired has been "increased pricing, increased system downtime, and lack of support," Paterini said. Contract Guardian inquiries have increased by over 30% in the past nine months. With CG renewal rates of better than 96% and customers who range from small rural institutions to multinational giants, Contract Guardian's SaaS solution and "Train the Trainer" onboarding approach has proven itself in a wide range of use healthcare scenarios. "We're distinctive in being solely focused on healthcare," Paterini said. "You don't need an IT degree to use our software and each onboarding comes with expertise from client consultants who know hospitals and have collaborated with them for many years." The privately-owned company has hospital clients in forty-four states, is profitable, and is in business to solve client problems, issues, and pains having ingrained successful business principles from the history of UCG Technologies. "CG isn't a software company chasing revenue and customers at the expense of our existing clients," Paterini said. "I suppose you could say CG's not an exciting Silicon Valley startup, but with a tripling of business and no requirement for debt or PE/VC dollars, it's a great place to be." About Contract Guardian

Contract Guardian provides an intuitive, cost-effective contract management system that delivers enterprise functionality while mirroring existing processes and terminology. Contract Guardian is expeditiously implemented to bring immediate visibility to business commitments and turn static data into actionable content. Customers see a rapid and dramatic improvement in the quality of customer, employee, and vendor interaction while reducing risk, maintaining compliance, and streamlining operational efficiency. www.contractguardian.com/rx Media contact:

Francine Ciaccia, VP Marketing

[email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/contract-guardians-explosive-growth-provides-hospitals-vital-clm-saas-support-consistency--savings-301827326.html SOURCE Contract Guardian

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Student loan debt in the United States now totals over $1.7 trillion, with the average federal student loan debt balance at $37,338, according to the Education Data Initiative. If you're one of the 43.8 million student loan borrowers -- or if you're currently in the process of figuring out how you will finance your education -- you're probably looking for advice on how to make it all manageable.

Student Loan Forgiveness: 3 Key Dates To Mark on Your Calendar

Check Out: All of the States That Will Pay Off Your Student Loans

GOBankingRates gathered advice from several prominent financial experts on how to handle student loans -- here is their best advice.

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The Amount of Debt You Should Take on Depends on Your Degree and Career Prospects

Dave Ramsey, author of "The Total Money Makeover" and host of "The Ramsey Show," doesn't agree with the belief that student loan debt is "good debt."

"Student loans are often said by people to be 'good debt,' which is laughable," he said on the "Borrowed Future" podcast. "Is education a good thing? Yes. Is it worth investing in? Yes, in a proper setting, with proper analysis as to what kind of a degree you're going to get, and is it applicable in the field.

"This idea that you're automatically going to get a return on investment assumes you've completed a degree in a field that will pay you more than you would have made had you not gone to school," he continued. "And it assumes you graduate. So, it's a stupid set of assumptions to get us to the point that this is 'good debt.'"

Read: Student Loan Pause Ends June 30 -- Here's Why You May Not Have to Start Paying Immediately

Student Loan Forgiveness: AOC Tells Scared Follower All Is Not Lost if Supreme Court Rules Against Biden's Plan

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Never Fall Behind on Your Payments

Suze Orman, host of the "Women & Money" podcast, wrote in a blog post that "falling behind on your student loans is one of the worst financial mistakes you can ever make."

"The penalties and fees if you fall behind, and into default, can add thousands of dollars to your bill," Orman said. "And there's pretty much no way to escape this obligation. Student loans are nearly impossible to get discharged in bankruptcy court. Moreover, if you manage to make it to Social Security retirement age and still have a federal student loan balance, the government can take some of your monthly benefit as payment."

Student Loans: Court Allows $6 Billion in Forgiveness Funds To Proceed for 200,000 Borrowers

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Aim To Pay Back Your Student Loans Within 10 Years of Graduating

Orman recommends making sacrifices now to pay your student loans back quicker.

"In general, I don't recommend going with longer-term repayment schedules, as you will be stuck owing a lot more interest over the life of the loan," she wrote in the blog post.

The exception to this is those who qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

"Under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, your loan balance will be forgiven after 10 years of payments (120 on-time payments) and you will not owe any tax on the amount that is forgiven," Orman said. "For this reason, it makes sense to apply for an income-based repayment plan with a longer payback period."

kupicoo / Getty Images

Automate Your Payments

To ensure you never miss a student loan payment, Orman recommends automating the process.

"I don't want you ever -- and I mean EVER -- missing a payment," Orman wrote in the blog post. "That's a slippery slope that can be incredibly expensive to climb back up. Please set up an automated direct payment from a bank account to your loan servicer."

Brothers91 / iStock.com

Don't Take on Big Loans Just To Attend a 'Big Name' School

Paying for a degree at a top school may not always be worth it, said entrepreneur and "Shark Tank" star Mark Cuban.

"The most important criteria when choosing a college is affordability," he tweeted. "Go to a school you can afford. A community college that offers transferable credits is always smart. There isn't a lot of value add from big name schools for freshman or sophomore classes, particularly when a motivated student can augment their studies with free online courses from the big names."

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: The Best Student Loan Advice From Mark Cuban, Dave Ramsey and More
[May 18, 2023] Government of Canada invests in innovation to protect animal health and support export market access for Canadian livestock

OTTAWA, ON, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Investing in Canadian small businesses to develop innovative tools, products and services helps protect the safety of Canada's food and the health of our plants and animals. Today, the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, and the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced a $1 million investment in Bioimaging Research Solutions Inc., a small business based in Guelph, Ontario, to continue their work to develop cutting-edge technology to protect Canadian livestock from bovine tuberculosis and support market access for Canada's beef and cattle exports. With this investment, the company is developing an artificial intelligence system to improve the efficiency of disease surveillance activities in slaughter plants. Bovine tuberculosis is a contagious bacterial disease of livestock that can result in production losses, barriers to market access and risks to both animal and public health. Current methodologies of detection are long and cumbersome, and there are no known automated tools to support surveillance efforts. Bioimaging Research Solutions Inc. will receive $1 million over two years to develop an automated surveillance tool that will scan cattle carcasses as they move along a slaughter line. Machine learning algorithms will be used to "teach" the automated system to differentiate between tissue of concern and healthy tissue. The automated tool will be able to make split-second decisions when assessing the tissue for detection of granulomas for bovine tuberculosis surveillance, helping inspectors check for signs of disease more efficiently. Canada has made great strides towards eradicating bovine tuberculosis, and all provinces and territories are currently recognized as free from the disease in domestic livestock. Improvements to disease surveillance can help to maintain Canada's status as free from bovine tuberculosis, thereby preserving market access opportunities. Ultimately, this innovation may support Canada's efforts to detect animal diseases early, while maintaining Canada's reputation as a supplier of safe and high quality livestock and livestock products to our current and future trading partners. Bioimaging Research Solutions Inc. previously received $150,000 through the Innovative Solutions Canada program to develop a proof of concept as part of Phase 1 of the "Detection of granulomas for tuberculosis surveillance" challenge. The company successfully completed Phase 1 and this additional funding will support the development of a prototype as part of Phase 2 of the challenge. The Government of Canada's continued collaboration with small businesses results in novel solutions that help protect Canadians, the environment and the economy, both now and into the future. Quotes



"Collaboration in research and development for new technologies helps to achieve faster results. Federal government funding for projects protecting animal health supports animal welfare and trade."  The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

"Protecting the wellbeing of all Canadians means safeguarding Canada's food, plants, and animals. Our government is proud to partner with Canadian small and medium businesses to help them develop new efficient technologies which will serve to better protect Canada's food supply."  The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health "Our government is committed to providing Canadian businesses with opportunities to grow and innovate. With this additional support from the Innovative Solutions Canada program, Bioimaging Research Solutions Inc. will be able to develop an innovative prototype of its automated tool to improve disease surveillance. Through projects like this one, we can better protect Canadians' health and safety while strengthening our economy."  The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Quick facts

Innovative Solutions Canada is a research and development procurement program administered by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. Through this program, 21 federal departments and agencies invite small businesses to develop novel solutions to Government of Canada challenges. Small businesses can also propose to have the Government test their late-stage prototypes in real-life settings. The program's ultimate goal is to promote the growth of Canada's firms while helping support the participating government organizations' mandate, such as the CFIA. These funding opportunities result in innovative solutions to challenges faces by the Agency, or fill a gap in the marketplace for the industry we regulate. Related links Innovative Solutions Canada

Detection of granulomas for tuberculosis surveillance Stay connected Twitter: @InspectionCan

Facebook: CFIACanada

LinkedIn: Canadian Food Inspection Agency

Instagram: @CFIA_Canada

YouTube: Canadian Food Inspection Agency The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) touches the lives of all Canadians in so many positive ways. Each day, hard-working CFIA employees  including inspectors, veterinarians and scientists  inspect food for safety risks, protect plants from pests and invasive species, and respond to animal diseases that could threaten Canada's national herd and human health. Guided by science-based decision-making and modern regulations, the Agency works tirelessly to ensure access to safe and healthy food in Canada, and support access to international markets for our high-quality agricultural products. To learn more, visit inspection.canada.ca. SOURCE Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)

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[May 18, 2023] Insight Partners Announces Close of Continuation Fund II

Deepening a longstanding partnership with HarbourVest Partners and Lexington Partners as lead investors, Insight Partners has closed its Continuation Fund II with a diversified, high-quality portfolio of assets NEW YORK, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Global software investor, Insight Partners, today announced the closing of its Continuation Fund II with HarbourVest Partners and Lexington Partners leading a group of limited partners investing in the fund. The transaction closed with total commitments of approximately $1.3 billion. Continuation Fund II was established to acquire stakes in software companies across 6 Insight funds to support their continued growth while providing liquidity to Insight's Limited Partners (LPs). In line with Insight's commitment to being a best-in-class partner to all its LPs, Insight structured Continuation Fund II to include a true "status quo" option, empowering LPs to choose whether they would participate in the transaction and take the liquidity or remain fully invested in the assets. Insight Partners' 28-year focus on finding, investing in and scaling software companies with the support of its 140+ person operations team, Onsite, and breadth of funds that provides capital to meet individual growth needs, results in deep partnerships with companies at every stage of their ScaleUp journey  from startup to at scale. Leveraging one of the software industry's largest data sets, Insight Partners' pattern recognition and rigorous diligence process is the backbone of its investment approach and fuels each fund. "Insight's Continuation Fund II is a vehicle we are proud to launch, allowing us to extend our relationship with portfolio companies from earlier funds, while enabling us to provide the option of more near-term liquidity to our LPs," said Ian Sandler, Managing Director and COO at Insight Partners. "We are grateful for the shared conviction in the value of this portfolio with HarbourVest and Lexington and the continued commitment by a large portion of existing LPs in these specific assets. We look forward to working together to see these companies reach their fullest potential." "HarbourVest is pleased to have expanded our long-standing partnership with Insight in co-leading the Continuation Fund II transaction," said Mike Pugatch, Managing Director at HarbourVest. "Our experience executing these creative secondary liquidity solutions, and Insight's deep experience in the sector aligned well around this portfolio of high quality software businesses." Jennifer Kheng, Partner at Lexington Partners, added, "We ar pleased to partner with Insight, with whom we have a long-standing relationship, to provide additional capital to maximize the value of this portfolio of companies. We believe this continuation vehicle offered strong alignment and a transparent option for investors to access liquidity."



Lazard acted as financial adviser and Willkie Farr and Gallagher served as legal counsel to Insight Partners. Ropes & Gray served as legal counsel to HarbourVest and Lexington. About Insight Partners

Insight Partners is a global software investor partnering with in high-growth technology, software, and Internet startup and ScaleUp companies that are driving transformative change in their industries. As of 31/12/2022 the closing of the firm's recent fundraise, Fund XII, brings Insight Partners' regulatory assets under management to over?$75B. Insight Partners has invested in more than 600 companies worldwide and has seen over 55 portfolio companies achieve an IPO. Headquartered in?New York City, Insight has offices in?London,?Tel Aviv, and Palo Alto. Insight's mission is to find, fund, and work successfully with visionary executives, providing them with practical, hands-on software expertise to foster long-term success. Insight Partners meets great software leaders where they are in their growth journey, from their first investment to IPO. For more information on Insight and all its investments, visit insightpartners.com or follow us on Twitter @insightpartners.

About HarbourVest Partners HarbourVest is an independent, global private markets firm with 40 years of experience and more than $106 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2022. Our interwoven platform provides clients access to global primary funds, secondary transactions, direct co-investments, real assets and infrastructure, and private credit. Our strengths extend across strategies, enabled by our team of more than 1,000 employees, including more than 215 investment professionals across Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Across our private markets platform, our team has committed more than $55 billion to newly-formed funds, completed over $46 billion in secondary purchases, and invested over $33 billion in directly operating companies. We partner strategically and plan our offerings innovatively to provide our clients with access, insight, and global opportunities. About Lexington Partners Lexington Partners is a leading global alternative investment manager primarily involved in providing liquidity solutions to owners of private equity and other alternative investments and in making co-investments alongside leading private equity sponsors. Lexington Partners is one of the largest managers of secondary acquisition and co-investment funds with $69 billion in committed capital since inception. Lexington has acquired over 4,100 secondary and co-investment interests through more than 1,100 transactions with a total value in excess of $78 billion, including $18 billion of syndications. Lexington also invests in private investment funds during their initial formation and has committed to more than 600 new funds in the U.S., Europe, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific region. Lexington has offices strategically located in major centers for private equity and alternative investing  New York, Boston, Menlo Park, London, Hong Kong, Santiago, Sao Paulo and Luxembourg. Lexington is a subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. Additional information can be found at www.lexingtonpartners.com HarbourVest Partners, LLC is a registered investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. This material is solely for informational purposes and should not be viewed as a current or past recommendation or an offer to sell or the solicitation to buy securities or adopt any investment strategy. The opinions expressed herein represent the current, good faith views of the author(s) at the time of publication, are not definitive investment advice, and should not be relied upon as such. This material has been developed internally and/or obtained from sources believed to be reliable; however, HarbourVest does not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of such information. There is no assurance that any events or projections will occur, and outcomes may be significantly different than the opinions shown here. This information, including any projections concerning financial market performance, is based on current market conditions, which will fluctuate and may be superseded by subsequent market events or for other reasons. The information contained herein must be kept strictly confidential and may not be reproduced or redistributed in any format without the express written approval of HarbourVest. Nothing herein should be construed as a solicitation, offer, recommendation, representation of suitability, legal advice, tax advice, or endorsement of any security or investment and should not be relied upon by you in evaluating the merits of investing in HarbourVest funds or in any other investment decision. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/insight-partners-announces-close-of-continuation-fund-ii-301828572.html SOURCE Insight Partners

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[May 18, 2023] Hazeltree Launches Monthly Shortside Crowdedness Report of Top Shorted Securities Globally

Hazeltree, a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology for the alternative asset industry, today published its inaugural Shortside Crowdedness Report. The report is a monthly listing of the top 10 shorted securities in the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions in the large-, mid-, and small-cap exchanges. The data contained in the report comes from Hazeltree's proprietary securities finance platform data, which tracks approximately 12,000 global equities across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. The data is aggregated and anonymized from the contributing Hazeltree community, including approximately 700 asset manager funds. The report tracks shorting activity in three different metrics: Hazeltree Crowdedness Score: This score represents the highest percentage of funds in Hazeltree's community that are shorting a particular security in a pre-defined category. The securities are graded on a scale of 1-99, with 99 representing the security that the highest percentage of funds are shorting.

This score represents the highest percentage of funds in Hazeltree's community that are shorting a particular security in a pre-defined category. The securities are graded on a scale of 1-99, with 99 representing the security that the highest percentage of funds are shorting. Institutional Supply Utilization: This figure represents the percentage of institutional investors in the market that are lending out a security. The institutional supply utilization rate is an indicator of how "hot" a security is in terms of the supply-demand dynamic.

This figure represents the percentage of institutional investors in the market that are lending out a security. The institutional supply utilization rate is an indicator of how "hot" a security is in terms of the supply-demand dynamic. Hazeltree Community Borrow Fee: This figure is the average weighted fee for what members of the Hazeltre community are paying to borrow a security. The fee is represented as the annualized cost above the price of the security.



Americas

For the large-cap top 10 securities, Coinbase saw the highest institutional supply utilization rate, and in turn the highest fees to borrow for the month compared to the rest of this group.

The mid-cap section shows a 99 crowdedness score for Norwegian Cruise Lines and Affirm Holdings with the highest Community Borrow Fee at .55%.

The two most crowded securities in the small-cap category were First Republic Bank, which was seized by regulators on May 1, and Fisker Inc. EMEA Eurofins Scientific SE had the highest institutional supply utilization of 36% in the large cap group. However, borrowing fees remained in line with the rest of the securities in this group.

The most crowded mid-cap securities saw just one security, Avanza Bank Holdings AB, with an institutional supply utilization over 50%.

Among the most crowded small-cap securities, Samhallsbyggnadsbolaget stood out with a crowdedness score of 92, an institutional supply utilization of nearly 96% and a borrowing fee of just over 11%. APAC In APAC, the most crowded large cap security was SoftBank Group Corp.

Among the most crowded mid-cap securities, Wynn Macau Ltd and Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd had borrow fees that were more than double the mode of the group (.40%), at .80% and .85%, respectively.

Sosei Group Corp led the small-cap category in both crowdedness score and institutional supply utilization at 99 and 41.27% respectively. To view Hazeltree's April Shortside Crowdedness Report, click here. Note to editors: If you are a member of the media/press and would like to be included on the distribution list for this report, please reach out to [email protected]. About Hazeltree Hazeltree is a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology. Purpose-built for the alternative asset management ecosystem, Hazeltree's modular platform aggregates internal and external data, providing a comprehensive view of operations and counterparty relationships while proactively highlighting opportunities to extract more value from every transaction. Hazeltree is headquartered in New York with offices in London and Hong Kong. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005489/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Saudi Cultural Development Fund Launches Film Investment Program with SR 300 million Budget and Announces its Partnership to Establish the First Film Investment Fund with SR 375 million Budget

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Saudi Cultural Development Fund (CDF) has launched the Film Investment Program with a budget of SR 300 million under the Film Sector Financing Initiative, which has a total budget of SR 879 million as part of the Digital Content Program IGNITE. The investment program was announced during the Cannes Film Festival, which is currently taking place in France from May 16 to 27. CDF has also called on both local and international investors to collaborate on supporting CDF's efforts to invest in the film sector. Mr. Mohammed Bin Dayel, CEO of CDF, announced an agreement in principle with MEFIC Capital and ROAA Media Ventures on establishing the first investment fund for the film sector, amounting to SR 375 million, 40% of which is contribued by CDF. This Film Investment Fund aims to invest in or provide funding to the companies and projects in the Saudi film sector; provide network support through mentors, business leaders, and distribution networks; and ensure proper risk management for investment portfolios.



Bin Dayel stressed the importance of the Film Investment Program to create film production and distribution investment opportunities and open the door to creatives to launch projects that enhance cultural activities and empower the sector. He confirmed that the program contributes effectively to the development of the Kingdom's creative ecosystem and reaffirms CDF's position as a major investor in the Saudi film sector. The launch of the Film Investment Program reinforces CDF's efforts to increase private sector investment in the cultural sector and develop its resources, with the aim of achieving economic diversification soon.

Through the investment program, CDF aspires to foster a more effective, self-sustainable film sector and subsequently a more vibrant film industry environment by 2030, where the private sector takes the leading role in investing in the sector. The total budget allocated to the Film Sector Financing Initiative is the highest among all art and cultural initiatives in KSA. Therefore, the program is expected to develop creative talents and attract foreign expertise and investment, making the KSA a major film hub in the region. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080462/CDF_CEO_Cannes_Film_Festival.jpg View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/saudi-cultural-development-fund-launches-film-investment-program-with-sr-300-million-budget-and-announces-its-partnership-to-establish-the-first-film-investment-fund-with-sr-375-million-budget-301828751.html SOURCE Cultural Development Fund

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[May 18, 2023] SUNY Plattsburgh Chooses YuJa Enterprise Video Platform to Provide Video Creation and Content Management Campuswide

Part of the State University of New York system, SUNY Plattsburgh has joined the rank of institutions to select the YuJa Enterprise Video Platform to aid in video creation and content management campuswide. The institution was seeking a centralized portal for creating, storing, distributing and managing video and other media content and that provided video quizzing, in-video commenting, and easy-to-use editing tools. The institution also wanted a Video Platform that integrated with the Moodle Learning Management System. In addition to these features, SUNY Plattsburgh will benefit from the ability to provide lecture capture capabilities, live streaming, auto-captioning, and other tools that help create a collaborative and engaging learning environment. In addition to the Video Platform, SUNY Plattsburgh has elected to implement YuJa's Zoom Connector, which syncs Zoom meeting recordings into the secure, cloud-hosted YuJa Media Library and makes them viewable across devices. Administrators can also create data policies to archive content based on video views, the video type,user, and date of upload.



"YuJa's suite of ed-tech tools provides a one-stop-shop for driving digital learning programs at institutions of all sizes," said Nathan Arora, Chief Business Officer at YuJa, Inc. "We work throughout the SUNY system, and we're proud that they continue to trust YuJa for powerful, robust educational solutions." ABOUT SUNY PLATTSBURGH

Since its founding in 1889 as a teaching college, SUNY Plattsburgh has had a strong history of meeting regional and statewide needs for higher education. It is also a major driver of the economic and cultural well-being of the community. SUNY Plattsburgh offers more than 60 degree programs within three academic schools, including Arts and Science, School of Business and Economics, and Education, Health, and Human Services. The institution is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) and authorized by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York. ABOUT THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, with 64 college and university campuses located within 30 miles of every home, school, and business in the state. ABOUT YUJA, INC. YuJa is a leader in ed-tech solutions. Our platforms provide organizations of all sizes with the tools to educate, engage, inspire and collaborate. We serve learning enterprises within all sectors, including higher-ed, K-12, government, healthcare, non-profit and corporate. We have legal headquarters in Delaware with primary U.S. offices in Silicon Valley, California, and Canadian offices in Toronto. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005599/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Bright Pattern Nominated as Finalist for "Cloud-Based CX Solution of the Year" and "Disruptive Technology of the Year" at World's Largest Contact Center Event

Bright Pattern has been nominated for the fourth year in a row by Customer Contact Week for the CCW Excellence Awards  following previous nominations for "Disruptive Technology of the Year" and "Omnichannel Solution of the Year". SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Bright Pattern, a leading solutions provider of cloud-based omnichannel contact center software for world-class enterprises with a global reach, announces its nomination as a finalist for two CCW Excellence Awards: "Cloud-Based CX Solution of the Year" for Bright Pattern's cloud contact center platform

"Disruptive Technology of the Year" for the Omni-Enterprise CXTM capabilities of Bright Pattern Mobile Bright Pattern receives two CCW Excellence Awards nominations at CCW 2023 Las Vegas. "We are honored to be nominated as a leader among other esteemed compaies at CCW," said Michael McCloskey, CEO of Bright Pattern. "Being recognized in two top categories reflects the work by our team to advance not only our product but the contact center industry."



There will be an elaborate awards ceremony to announce the winners of each category at the flagship customer contact event series on June 20, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Exploring The Bright Pattern CX Platform

Bright Pattern is a cloud-based call center software solution that provides omnichannel conversations, omnichannel quality management (recognized as Omni QM), and omnichannel mobile capabilities (Bright Pattern Mobile). It features tools such as: AI-powered conversational IVR, detailed and comprehensive CRM integrations, and a predictive dialer. Bright Pattern allows call centers to connect with customers on any communication channel including: voice, email, web chat, text messaging, SMS, video call, messenger apps (WhatsApp), and mobile apps. Agents have the ability to seamlessly switch between these channels during a conversation while having the entire context of the conversation at the fingertips of the agent regardless of the channel. About Bright Pattern Bright Pattern provides the simplest yet most powerful all-in-one omnichannel contact center solution with over 500 customers in 26 countries including Bank of America, Bell24, Cable and Wireless, City of Brampton, Community Medical, Detroit Water, Enercare, EY, First Bank, Hairclub, Hurtigruten, Mediterranean Shipping Company, Naver, Officeworks, Pepsi, Randstad, SEIU, Southern Cross Health Insurance, Sun Country Airlines, Sylvan Learning, United Power, VW Bentley, YMCA, and Zillow. Bright Pattern is the highest-rated omnichannel platform by customers and analysts with the fastest ROI and time to deploy in the industry. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bright-pattern-nominated-as-finalist-for-cloud-based-cx-solution-of-the-year-and-disruptive-technology-of-the-year-at-worlds-largest-contact-center-event-301828192.html SOURCE Bright Pattern

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[May 18, 2023] Skyflow launches Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault

Today, Skyflow, the data privacy vault company, unveiled Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault, a robust privacy solution that enables organizations to safely and securely leverage the full power of large language models such as GPT. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005391/en/ Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault (Graphic: Business Wire) Companies are rushing to adopt AI, whether to increase productivity, enhance decision-making powered by data-driven insights, or to improve customer experience. However, privacy concerns hinder organizations from fully embracing AI. The Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault can provide enterprises with unparalleled data protection throughout the entire lifecycle of GPT models, and offers a comprehensive range of features tailored to meet the evolving needs of enterprises: Data Privacy and Security: Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault establishes a secure environment for sensitive data, protecting it from unauthorized access, breaches, and data leaks. Granular Data Control: Organizations can maintain strict control over sensitive data, ensuring that only authorized individuals or entities can access specific data sets or functionalities within GPT systems. Privacy-Preserving AI: Sensitive data is redacted and anonymized during data collection, model training, and interactions, enabling organizations to maximize AI capabilities without compromising privacy. Compliance and Regulatory Requirements: With Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault, global companies can leverage AI while complying with data residency requirements, such as GDPR, LGPD, and others. Here's how organizations can leverage Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault: Data Cllection and Preparation : Redact or tokenize sensitive information as it flows through GPT without lessening the value of the output. Skyflow's proprietary polymorphic encryption technique enables the model to seamlessly handle protected data as if it were plaintext.

: Redact or tokenize sensitive information as it flows through GPT without lessening the value of the output. Skyflow's proprietary polymorphic encryption technique enables the model to seamlessly handle protected data as if it were plaintext. Model Training : Safely train GPT models on content where sensitive data is redacted and anonymized. Robust multi-party training is also available, so that two or more entities can share anonymized datasets and safely use AI to unlock substantial insights.

: Safely train GPT models on content where sensitive data is redacted and anonymized. Robust multi-party training is also available, so that two or more entities can share anonymized datasets and safely use AI to unlock substantial insights. Interaction with GPT Models : De-identify sensitive data during interactions with GPT models, ensuring that privacy is preserved throughout the entire user interaction process.

: De-identify sensitive data during interactions with GPT models, ensuring that privacy is preserved throughout the entire user interaction process. Secure Deployment and Integration: Seamlessly integrate Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault into existing data infrastructures to add a robust layer of data protection. Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault will protect all sensitive data flowing into GPT models and only reveal sensitive information to authorized parties once it has been processed by the model and returned.



Pharmaceutical Research: Pharmaceutical companies rely on Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault to protect sensitive data throughout the drug development lifecycle. It ensures the privacy and security of clinical trial data, safeguards proprietary research and intellectual property, and enables secure collaborations with external partners. Additionally, it supports personalized medicine initiatives by preserving the privacy of genetic data. Online Travel Booking: Online travel booking companies utilize Skyflow GPT Privacy Vault to protect customer data while leveraging AI models for personalized recommendations and enhanced customer experiences. It allows them to anonymize and protect personally identifiable information (PII) and payment data, ensuring compliance with privacy regulations while delivering superior travel experiences. "Generative AI can be a powerful tool for teams to maximize their output and scale their products. But the risk of a sensitive data leak is high, and with other providers, the cost of deploying a private GPT can be 10x what it is in a shared environment," said Anshu Sharma, co-founder and CEO of Skyflow. "Skyflow can offer world-class data privacy throughout the lifecycle of GPT models, seamlessly and affordably."

The Global Partner in Cybersecurity and Privacy at Infosys, Joseph Williams, said, "Companies are eager to adopt ChatGPT and other generative AI platforms but they need to solve for privacy and regulatory compliance. Like we laid out in our seminal paper on the future of privacy engineering, data privacy vault architecture is a right way to go about this." Read more about Skyflow for GPT here. About Skyflow Skyflow is a data privacy vault company built to radically simplify how companies isolate, protect and govern their customers' most sensitive data. With its global network of data privacy vaults, Skyflow helps companies meet complex data localization requirements. Skyflow customers span verticals like fintech, retail, travel, and healthcare. Skyflow is headquartered in Palo Alto, California and was founded in 2019. For more information, visit www.skyflow.com or follow on Twitter and LinkedIn. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005391/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Hagens Berman: Hyundai, Kia Theft Class-Action Lawsuit Reaches Settlement Valued at More Than $200 Million

A proposed settlement of a class-action lawsuit reached today brings benefits valued at more than $200 million to owners of Hyundai and Kia vehicles rendered vulnerable to theft following the automakers' failure to install basic security measures, according to lead class counsel at Hagens Berman, Baron & Budd, Fegan Scott and Humphrey, Farrington & McClain who the court-appointed to lead this case. The lawsuit stems from the automakers' failure to equip 2011-2022 models with an immobilizer, a common antitheft device in modern cars which prevents most vehicles from being started unless a code is transmitted from the vehicle's smart key. The lack of immobilizer in affected vehicles spawned viral "Kia Challenge" TikTok videos demonstrating simple measures "Kia Boys" take to steal affected Hyundai and Kia vehicles using only a common USB charging cord or similar metal object to start the engine. According to the lawsuit, in addition to the lack of an immobilizer, design flaws in the affected vehicles also allow thieves to steal them in less than 90 seconds. Lack of adequate security in the steering columns allows easy access to the ignition assembly, while the ignition cylinders do not have a locking mechanism and can be easily removed with minimal force. If you purchased or leased a 2011-2022 Hyundai or Kia with a traditional "insert-and-turn" steel key ignition system, click here to find out more about the lawsuit. "Benefits As Soon As Possible" Attorneys say the settlement has been designed to address a multitude of situations faced by owners of affected vehicles, which total 9 million - 4.5 million Hyundais and 4.5 million Kias. "The settlement will provide benefits as soon as possible to those who have suffered out-of-pocket losses due to car thefts in Hyundai and Kia cars without immobilizers," said Steve Berman, managing partner at Hagens Berman and chair of the lead committee representing affected vehicle owners in the lawsuit. "The agreement also offers upgrades to fix the lack of immobilizer at the heart of the issue, as well as payments to those who are not eligible for the upgrade." "Our goal in finalizing this settlement was to leave no one in the dark," Berman added. "The owners of these cars have experienced enough upset, and we worked to achieve a settlement that covers many types of losses - from those who were lucky enough to have never had their theft-prone car stolen, to those whose stolen cars were totaled completely due to Hyundai and Kia's negligence." What Hyundai and Kia Owners Can Expect The settlement provides various benefits, outlined below: Up to $145 Million for Out-of-Pocket Losses. This tier of payments includes compensation for a range of out-of-pocket damages, including total loss of vehicles up to $6,125, damage to vehicle and personal property up to $3,375, insurance-related expenses and other related expenses including car rental, taxi costs, ride share costs or public transit payments not otherwise coveed by insurance.







The settlement will also reimburse affected owners for towing costs as well as other fees and taxes related to replacement vehicles, if the affected car was lost or stolen.



The settlement also includes payments to those whose vehicles suffered crashes or were stolen and never recovered, as well as coverage for speeding tickets, red light tickets or other penalties or fines incurred arising from a stolen vehicle.





Finally, class members may also seek to recover losses related to lost income or childcare expenses resulting from the implementation of the software upgrade.





This tier of payments includes compensation for a range of out-of-pocket damages, including total loss of vehicles up to $6,125, damage to vehicle and personal property up to $3,375, insurance-related expenses and other related expenses including car rental, taxi costs, ride share costs or public transit payments not otherwise coveed by insurance. The settlement will also reimburse affected owners for towing costs as well as other fees and taxes related to replacement vehicles, if the affected car was lost or stolen. The settlement also includes payments to those whose vehicles suffered crashes or were stolen and never recovered, as well as coverage for speeding tickets, red light tickets or other penalties or fines incurred arising from a stolen vehicle. Finally, class members may also seek to recover losses related to lost income or childcare expenses resulting from the implementation of the software upgrade. Software Upgrades. At no cost, owners of affected vehicles are eligible for a software upgrade to effectively address the cars' lack of an immobilizer. The software is designed to prevent the vehicles from starting without the key being present.



Hyundai vehicles eligible for the software upgrade include: 2018-2022 Accent, 2011-2022 Elantra, 2013-2020 Elantra GT, 2018-2022 Kona, 2013-2022 Santa Fe, 2013-2018 Santa Fe Sport, 2019 Santa Fe XL, 2011-2019 Sonata, 2011-2022 Tucson, 2012-2017, 2019-2021 Veloster, 2020-2021 Venue, 2013-2014 Genesis Coupe and 2020-2021 Palisade.



Kia vehicles eligible for the software upgrade include: 2011-2022 Kia Sportage, 2011-2022 Kia Sorento, 2021-2022 Kia K5, 2011-2021 Kia Sedona, 2014-2021 Kia Forte, 2012-2021 Kia Rio, 2021-2022 Kia Seltos, 2011-2020 Kia Optima and 2020-2022 Kia Soul. Payments in Lieu of Software Upgrades. Owners of models that are not able to receive the software upgrade will be eligible for reimbursement of up to $300 for the installation of a glass breakage alarm or anti-theft system, purchase of a steering wheel lock, or other aftermarket modifications designed to deter or prevent theft. Settlement websites will soon be made available to class members for more information. "We believe this settlement offers comprehensive, welcome relief for the class that will serve as a lesson to automakers to not overlook such integral, basic safety features," said Roland Tellis of Baron & Budd. Fegan Scott's Elizabeth A. Fegan said, "Hyundai and Kia failed to sell cars equipped with fundamental anti-theft features, and that was not a victimless act. We are pleased with the settlement reached and its immediate ability to hinder thieves, as well as compensate victims of thefts that have already occurred." "Plaintiffs' litigation at its best addresses real issues affecting everyday people, and we believe this settlement achieves exactly that," said Kenneth B. McClain of Humphrey, Farrington & McClain. "The benefits will upgrade eligible cars and bring monetary relief to those who suffered damages due to Hyundai and Kia's actions." Class-action lawsuits filed nationwide have been consolidated into multidistrict litigation as In re: Kia and Hyundai Vehicle Theft Litigation, MDL No. 3052. Learn more about the lawsuit against Hyundai and Kia and settlement for vehicle owners affected by the theft defect. About Hagens Berman Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation law firm with a tenacious drive for achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. Since its founding in 1993, the firm's determination has earned it numerous national accolades, awards and titles of "Most Feared Plaintiff's Firm," MVPs and Trailblazers of class-action law. More about the law firm and its successes can be found at www.hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw. About Baron Budd Baron & Budd, P.C. is among the oldest, largest and most accomplished plaintiffs' law firms in the country. The firm has garnered national acclaim for its complex litigation work, including automotive class action litigation against every major automobile manufacturer for concealing safety defects. The firm filed the first lawsuit involving the recall of tens of millions of Takata-branded airbags and achieved a settlement valued in excess of $1.5 billion. The firm was also involved in the Volkswagen "Clean Diesel" litigation and helped achieve a settlement valued in excess of $14 billion. For more information, visit www.baronbudd.com. About Fegan Scott FeganScott is a national class action law firm dedicated to helping victims of consumer fraud, sexual abuse, and discrimination. The firm is championed by acclaimed veteran class action attorneys who have successfully recovered $1 billion for victims nationwide. FeganScott is committed to pursuing successful outcomes with integrity and excellence while holding the responsible parties accountable. More about the law firm and its successes can be found at www.feganscott.com. About Humphrey, Farrington & McClain Humphrey Farrington & McClain is widely regarded as one of the best trial law firms in the country. HFM has pioneered litigation against asbestos suppliers, the tobacco industry and the food flavoring industry. The attorneys at HFM have recovered billions of dollars on behalf of plaintiffs across the United States and Canada who have been harmed by powerful corporations in a wide range of legal matters including consumer class actions, complex litigation, wrongful death and personal injury actions. For more information regarding the firm and its practice, visit: hfmlegal.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005834/en/

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[May 18, 2023]

RISMedia Announces Partnership With Florida's Stellar MLS

NORWALK, Conn. , May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- RISMedia is excited to announce a new partnership with Stellar MLS, the largest multiple listing service in Florida and Puerto Rico serving over 80,000 customers to bring its best-in-class articles and need-to-know information to Stellar's subscribers via RISMedia Premier News service.

Stellar MLS will deliver a selection of RISMedia content to its subscribers, including breaking news, industry updates as well as access to RISMedia's Premier premium content channel that features investigative journalism, one-of-a-kind special reports and proprietary industry data and competitive intelligence.

As part of the partnership, Stellar MLS subscribers also have access to all RISMedia educational events at heavily discounted rates, including the virtual Real Estate's Rocking in the New Year and live CEO & Leadership Exchange, Newsmakers Reception & Dinner and Power Broker Reception & Dinner.

RISMedia's exclusive Premier content is now included as a Stellar MLS subscriber benefit. To access RISMedia Premier content on RISMedia.com, subscribers simply need to log onto their Stellar MLS account.

"At Stellar MLS, we're always looking for ways to provide our customers with the most comprehensive nd valuable resources to help them succeed. We're proud to include RISMedia Premier as a subscription benefit that offers a wealth of industry news, market insights and access to exclusive educational events. We are confident that this partnership will help Stellar customers stay ahead of the curve in today's fast-paced and dynamic market," said Stellar MLS CEO Merri Jo Cowen.







"In today's challenging real estate environment, information is currency, providing real estate professionals with a critical competitive edge," said RISMedia Founder & CEO John Featherston. "Through our partnership with Stellar MLS, members will now have access to information that equips them to succeed in the current market. From economic analysis and research to insights on key trends and business development strategies, our award-winning editors will bring Stellar MLS subscribers the information they need to compete and win."

For more information about RISMedia's premium content channel and to sign up, visit www.rismedia.com/premier.

For more information, visit www.rismedia.com.

For more information about Stellar MLS, visit stellarmls.com/innovation.

CONTACT: RISMedia, 203-855-1234

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rismedia-announces-partnership-with-floridas-stellar-mls-301828895.html

SOURCE RISMedia
[May 18, 2023] Sound Point Names Gunther Stein Chief Investment Officer for U.S. Performing Credit and CLOs

Sound Point Capital Management, LP, a credit-oriented investment manager overseeing approximately $32 billion in total assets, is pleased to announce it has hired Gunther Stein to become Head and Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of its U.S. Performing Credit and CLO platform. The move follows Sound Point's recently announced agreement to acquire Assured Investment Management LLC ("Assured-IM"), the institutional asset management business of Assured Guaranty Ltd. [NYSE: AGO], formerly known as BlueMountain Capital Management, LLC. This acquisition will boost Sound Point's assets under management to approximately $47 billion. Mr. Stein is a longtime investor and veteran portfolio manager who previously served as Chairman, CEO and CIO of Symphony Asset Management, a San Francisco-based alternative asset manager that invested across the capital structure, primarily in credit. Symphony Asset Management was bought in 2001 by Nuveen Investments, Inc., which itself was acquired in 2014 by TIAA (Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America). "The addition of Gunther as Head and CIO of our U.S. performing credit platform is a major win for our franchise," said Stephen Ketchum, Sound Point's Managing Partner and CEO. "His credibility is widely established in the markets where our firm is most active, and his track record of leadership is stellar. We look forward to his integration and adding his deep investment acumen to our existing brain trust." Mr. Stein will be joining Sound Point in June and his responsibilities will include overseeing Sound Point's formidable U.S. CLO vertical, which today encompasses 30 U.S. CLOs and a long-only loan investing business. Under the announced transaction with Assured Guaranty, Sound Point will also assume the management of 32 active Assured-IM CLOs, comprising 25 U.S. CLOs and seven European CLOs, making Sound Point the fifth largest broadlysyndicated loan CLO manager globally on a pro forma basis.



"I'm thrilled to be joining Sound Point at such a pivotal time in its growth trajectory," said Stein. "Notwithstanding the firm's meteoric rise, there is always work to be done and I'm delighted and gratified to bring my experience to such a compelling organization. Sound Point is well on its way to becoming a world class investment leader in credit, and I'm honored to join and help lead the continued growth effort." In his new role, Mr. Stein will jointly oversee the U.S. CLO investment committee with Founder and CEO Stephen Ketchum and Chief Credit Officer Tom Newberry. Mr. Stein is also expected to join Sound Point's management committee.

Mr. Stein joined Symphony in 1999 after having previously worked at Wells Fargo, First Interstate Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Citi Investment Bank. He rose to CEO and CIO at Symphony in 2009, growing the business from approximately $7 billion in AUM to $19.5 billion when he departed the firm at the end of 2018. Under his leadership, Symphony issued more than $10 billion of CLOs and related products. At Symphony, Mr. Stein oversaw a broad slate of traditional and alternative strategies for both institutional and retail investors. These strategies included long/short credit, long only loans, high yield, CLOs, CLO tranche investing, as well as investments in the stressed/distressed space. In time, under Mr. Stein's leadership, Sound Point expects to launch new initiatives in the performing credit space. New York-based Sound Point is currently managing 37 CLOs of its own across the U.S. and Europe and also manages over $10 billion of assets in other areas of credit investing, including direct loans, capital solutions, distressed, structured products, commercial real estate lending, and specialty finance. Following its acquisition of Assured-IM, Sound Point will take over the management of approximately $15 billion in Assured-IM assets, predominantly across CLOs but also including structured asset-backed investments. About Sound Point Capital Management, LP Sound Point is an alternative asset management firm founded in 2008 with particular expertise in credit strategies. Based in New York, with offices in London, Florida and Connecticut, the firm manages money on behalf of institutional investors including top-tier pensions, foundations, insurance companies, wealth management firms and family offices. Sound Point's strategies span the spectrum of liquid and illiquid credit alternatives and include funds and managed accounts focused on leveraged loans, special situations, distressed debt, structured credit, direct lending and commercial real estate. Sound Point currently manages approximately $32 billion of assets. Five principals of Stone Point Capital LLC, as well as Dyal Capital Partners, a division of Blue Owl Capital Inc. [NYSE: OWL], are also strategic investors in our business. For more information, please visit Sound Point's website at www.soundpointcap.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005718/en/

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(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden intends to select veteran government lawyer Anna Gomez to serve on the Federal Communications Commission and give the agency its first Democratic majority of his presidency, a person briefed on the matter said.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Gomezs arrival would poise the FCC, after more than two years of partisan deadlock, to act on matters including restoring net neutrality rules that bar broadband providers from interfering with web traffic.

Gomezs selection may be announced soon, said the person briefed on the matter, who declined to be identified because the matter hasnt been made public. The White House declined to comment.

The FCC has been split 2-to-2 along party lines since Bidens inauguration in 2021. An earlier nominee withdrew amid opposition from Senate Republicans.

The partisan deadlock has left Democratic allies impatient for more action by the FCC. A previous nominee held out hope that the FCC can move past recent gridlock and pursue a pro-civil rights agenda the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights told lawmakers in February.

The FCC needs all five commissioners to redress broadband shortages and take on other issues, more than 230 national organizations said in a Feb. 13 letter to lawmakers.

Free Press, a policy group, in January said the FCC has been unable to tackle key issues on its ever-growing list of things it needs to accomplish in the next two years.

Gomez, with a long resume of Washington jobs including private law practice and work at two agencies, needs to win confirmation from the Senate where Democrats wield a narrow majority.

Democrats including FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel have said they support restoring net neutrality rules that bar broadband providers from unfairly manipulating web traffic. The FCC under Republican leadership in 2017 gutted rules adopted earlier by the agency.

The agency is considering whether to loosen rules on broadcast consolidation, and how to spread broadband to places that lack good service.

Gomez in January joined the US State Department to lead preparations for the International Telecommunication Union World Radiocommunication Conference 2023, to be held in Dubai.

From from 2009 to 2013, Gomez was deputy assistant secretary at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a Commerce Department branch involved in communications policy. Gomez led policy on international telecommunications and satellite spectrum, and efforts to expand broadband access.

She earlier served for over a decade in various management positions at the FCC, and on the White House staff under President Bill Clinton, according to a biography by the NTIA.

After leaving the NTIA, Gomez was a partner at Wiley, a Washington law firm.

Gomez is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and earned her law degree from George Washington University in Washington, DC.

The FCC has five commissioners when fully staffed. They serve staggered terms, and no more than three can be members of the presidents party.

Gomez would be the first Latina to sit on the FCC since 2001, according to the National Hispanic Media Coalition, a non-profit policy group. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus in a March 22 letter urged Biden to appoint a Latino to the FCC.

--With assistance from Justin Sink.

(Updates with comments from Democratic allies)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
[May 18, 2023] MEG Energy Provides Support to Communities Impacted by Alberta Wildfires through The Canadian Red Cross Alberta Fires Appeal

CALGARY, AB, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - MEG Energy Corp. ("MEG" or the "Company") (TSX: MEG) today announced that it made a $100,000 contribution to the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal and its efforts to support Albertans affected by wildfires. The fund supports the thousands of people who have been impacted by the wildfires in multiple regions across the province. "Our donation provides immediate support to the people and communities impacted by the ongoing wildfires," said Derek Evans, President and CEO of MEG Energy. "We thank the Canadian Red Cross for its work in providing relief and recovery efforts to those who have been displaced. We also want to extend our thanks to the many local volunteers, firefighting crews and other first responderswho are working tirelessly to respond to the fires and keep communities safe."



MEG's contribution will be matched by both the Government of Canada and the Government of Alberta, to a total value of $300,000. In addition, MEG will also match employee contributions to the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal through its MEG Match employee donation matching program. The company's Christina Lake Project, located south of Fort McMurray, has not been impacted by the wildfires and remains operational at the current time.

More information about the Canadian Red Cross 2023 Alberta Fires Appeal is available online here.



About MEG MEG is an energy company focused on sustainable in situ thermal oil production in the southern Athabasca region of Alberta, Canada. MEG is actively developing innovative enhanced oil recovery projects that utilize steam-assisted gravity drainage extraction methods to improve the responsible economic recovery of oil as well as lower carbon emissions. MEG transports and sells its thermal oil production to refiners throughout North America and internationally. MEG's common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "MEG". For further information, please contact: Investor Relations

T 403.767.0515

E [email protected] Media Relations

T 403.775.1131

E [email protected] SOURCE MEG Energy Corp.

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[May 18, 2023] Summome Native Ventures Wins Contract to Support HRSA Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Modernization Initiative

Joint Venture between Guidehouse and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians will assist HRSA with strengthening OPTN accountability, equity, and performance for donors, patients, and families WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Summome Native Ventures, a tribally owned Small Disadvantaged Business joint venture between Guidehouse and PCI Government Services (PCI-GS), has been awarded a contract from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to support its comprehensive approach for user-centered, wide stakeholder engagement on modernizing the design and implementation of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). The five-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract will provide HRSA with support for planning, designing, and coordinating the modernization of organ procurement and transplantation operations, governance, and technology to drive improvements in a range of areas in support of HRSA's vision. Under this award, Summome, a mentor-protege joint venture authorized under the U.S. Small Business Administration 8(a) Business Development program, will provide operational planning, strategic communications, and organizational change management consulting services to support HRSA's modernization strategy to drive improvements in equity, patient outcomes, and patient safety. The award builds upon Guidehouse's and PCI-GS' combined decades of experience in strategic planning, management support, and execution of large modernization and organizational transformation efforts across federal agencies. "It is an honor for Summome Native Ventures to assist HRSA with modernizing our nation's organ donor system," said Scott McIntyre, CEO of Guidehouse. "Our expertise across the entire health ecosystem puts us in a unique position to provide perspective on the complex policies, governance, stakeholders, and technologies influencing this essential initiative. Leveraging our collective capabilities will help drive HRSA's vision for a future system that better serves the needs of donors, patients, and their families."



"The Organ Procurement and Transplant Network plays a critical role in our country's healthcare system," said Stephanie A. Bryan, Poarch Band of Creek Indians chair & CEO. "So many lives have been saved through transplants, and as part of Summome Native Ventures, we share a deep commitment with our partner, Guidehouse, to helping find ways to enhance the current system to serve more people, more effectively and more efficiently." An agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), HRSA launched the OPTN Modernization Initiative to better serve the needs of patients and families. The Initiative will strengthen accountability, equity, and performance in the organ donation and transplantation system through a focus on five key areas: technology; data transparency; governance; operations; and quality improvement and innovation.

Ranked 2022's second largest healthcare management consulting firm by Modern Healthcare, the Guidehouse Health team assists government agencies, providers, life sciences companies, employers, payers, and other organizations with solving the industry's most complex challenges. A four-time Best in KLAS winner in 2023, Guidehouse helps organizations modernize and innovate healthcare services, finances, and operations. About PCI Government Services

PCI Government Services (PCI-GS) is a certified 8(a) Small Disadvantaged Business that is wholly owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. The Poarch Band of Creek Indians are based in Alabama and is the only federally recognized Tribe in the state. PCI-GS meets U.S. Small Business Administration requirements as a small business and has significant, large business resources at our disposal. The PBCI enterprise represents holdings in excess of $2B, annual revenue of ~$1.5B, and >7,000 employees. This experience and resources translate to reduced risk for government agencies and forms the backbone for team success. For more information, visit https://www.pci-gs.com/. About Guidehouse

Guidehouse is a leading global provider of consulting services to the public sector and commercial markets, with broad capabilities in management, technology, and risk consulting. By combining our public and private sector expertise, we help clients address their most complex challenges and navigate significant regulatory pressures focusing on transformational change, business resiliency, and technology-driven innovation. Across a range of advisory, consulting, outsourcing, and digital services, we create scalable, innovative solutions that help our clients outwit complexity and position them for future growth and success. The company has over 16,500 professionals in over 55 locations globally. Guidehouse is a Veritas Capital portfolio company, led by seasoned professionals with proven and diverse expertise in traditional and emerging technologies, markets, and agenda-setting issues driving national and global economies. For more information, please visit www.guidehouse.com. Media Contacts:

Guidehouse

Alven Weil [email protected] Poarch Band of Creek Indians/PCI Government Services

Kristin Hellmich [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/summome-native-ventures-wins-contract-to-support-hrsa-organ-procurement-and-transplantation-network-modernization-initiative-301829100.html SOURCE Summome Native Ventures

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[May 18, 2023] University of Idaho to Create Not-For-Profit to Acquire University of Phoenix

This afternoon, the Idaho State Board of Education sitting as the Board of Regents of the University of Idaho granted approval for the creation of a not-for-profit entity that will acquire the operations of the University of Phoenix. This represents a historic opportunity to improve student access to higher education, a monumental broadening of U of I's reach to nontraditional adult learners, and the completion of University of Phoenix's transformation. U of I's affiliation with University of Phoenix unites the two institutions in a shared mission to illuminate and elevate students by expanding access to affordable, career-relevant online education. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005782/en/ University of Phoenix primarily serves students who are working adult learners, while U of I will remain Idaho's land-grant, residential university serving primarily traditional learners. "Higher education across the country is changing. This, together with the impending national enrollment cliff, where smaller class sizes mean fewer traditional students, creates an opportunity for us to innovate," said U of I President Scott Green. "By affiliating with University of Phoenix, a leader in online higher education, we bring together the best of both systems and build on our common desire to educate students." "Since John Sperling founded University of Phoenix in 1976, almost 50 years ago, our mission has been to provide accessible, career-relevant education to underrepresented adult learners," said University of Phoenix President Chris Lynne. "The university has focused on student outcomes, support and upskilling, as well as understanding and reacting to marketplace trends from employers, and innovating ways to make online higher education more accessible and achievable. We are excited to build on the great legacy of our institution by working with University of Idaho, one of our nation's leading public universities." What to know: From a regultory and accreditation standpoint, the path to non-profit status will take some time, as each regulatory and accrediting entity has their own processes to recognize University of Phoenix as a non-profit entity.

During this transition, University of Phoenix will maintain its current operating team, status and mission.

The initial financial benefit to U of I will be $10 million per year, to be invested in strategic efforts at U of I. This amount is expected to grow over time.

Beyond the financial support, the affiliation also provides U of I with a robust technology infrastructure that can be adapted for U of I as well as statewide online programs. The student information system University of Phoenix has built for enrollment and student support is comprehensive and well-tested.

Unlike other recent transitions of for-profit universities to non-profit status, no private beneficiaries, previous owners or for-profit affiliates will remain associated with the university moving forward.



"As an alumnus of the University of Idaho, I know and appreciate the value of a Vandal education," Green said. "This affiliation only strengthens our ability to continue delivering on that promise of value to our students."

The president of University of Phoenix, Chris Lynne, will report to a non-profit board that is being created for the acquisition. The acquisition is contingent on accreditor approvals. There are possibilities for future integration, but there are no specific plans at this point. The acquisition agreement is for $550 million and will be funded by a mix of taxable and non-taxable bonds issued by the new not-for-profit. This money is separate from any U of I budgets, funding lines or state appropriations. University of Phoenix's current ownership will also provide $200 million in cash that will transfer to the new non-profit. About the University of Idaho The University of Idaho, home of the Vandals, is Idaho's land-grant, national research university. From its residential campus in Moscow, U of I serves the state of Idaho through educational centers in Boise, Coeur d'Alene and Idaho Falls, nine research and Extension centers, plus Extension offices in 42 counties. Home to more than 11,000 students statewide, U of I is a leader in student-centered learning and excels at interdisciplinary research, service to businesses and communities, and in advancing diversity, citizenship and global outreach. U of I competes in the Big Sky Conference. Learn more at www.uidaho.edu. About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix is continually innovating to help working adults enhance their careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses, interactive learning, and Career Services for Life help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005782/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Teamsters, Alstom, Reach Tentative Agreement for Toronto GO Trains

The Teamsters Union is pleased to announce a tentative agreement affecting over 850 workers who keep Toronto's commuter trains running on track TORONTO, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) and Alstom today reached a tentative agreement affecting over 850 workers who operate Toronto's commuter trains. Union members will begin voting next week to ratify the agreement. "We are pleased to announce a tentative agreement for the unsung heroes who keep Toronto's commuter train service running on track. These workers safely transport millions of passengers across the GTA every week. It's no small task, and the city simply could not function without thei labour," commented the national president of Teamsters Canada, Francois Laporte.



Gregory Vaughan, TCRC General Chairman for GO Transit workers, also praised the outcome of the negotiations. "I would like to thank our members for their patience and support throughout this process. I would also like to salute the bargaining committee for working long hours on this, as well as the provincial mediator who helped us reach a negotiated settlement. I encourage our members to attend the information meetings, ask questions, and vote on this important agreement," said Vaughan. The union members are essential to the smooth functioning of GO Trains. They include train operators, mechanics, on-board customer service representatives, warehouse personnel, maintenance workers, and labourers.

Details of the agreement are being withheld from the public until union members have had a chance to view them first. With over 125,000 members, Teamsters Canada is the country's largest transportation and supply chain union. It's also the largest union in the federally regulated private sector. The organization represents workers at CP, CN, UPS, Purolator, countless trucking companies, and more. They are affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which represents over 1.2 million workers in North America. SOURCE Teamsters Canada

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[May 18, 2023] FHLB Dallas Joins Village of Ruidoso for the Opening of a New Mexico Housing Development

Village officials, affordable housing advocates and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) came together this week to celebrate the opening of a housing development serving low-income residents in the Village of Ruidoso, New Mexico. FHLB Dallas provided a $200,000 donation through the Village's Affordable Housing Bank and Trust following the fatal 2022 McBride Fire. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005789/en/ An affordable housing development in Ruidoso, NewMexico, was funded, in part, with a $200,000 donation from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas. Mechem Meadows provides rental housing to people displaced by last year's wildfires and serves as affordable workforce housing in the region. (Photo: Business Wire)



The funds helped address the immediate housing needs of low-income residents who lost their homes to the April 2022 fire that killed two people and destroyed more than 200 homes. In addition to providing housing to displaced families, the new housing development, called Mechem Meadows, will serve as workforce housing for the area.

"We appreciate the donation from FHLB Dallas that helped our fellow New Mexicans during a difficult time," said Village of Ruidoso City Manager Ron Sena. The contribution, along with funding from the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, helped support housing and infrastructure costs. "Helping communities recover after a natural disaster is something we are proud to be able to do, and it's wonderful to combine that effort with this affordable housing initiative," said Greg Hettrick, senior vice president and director of Community Investment for FHLB Dallas. About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $181.2 billion as of March 31, 2023, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to approximately 800 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. For more information, visit our website at fhlb.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005789/en/

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[May 18, 2023] Introducing Saudi Pepe: The Revolutionary Crypto Project - Changing the Financial Landscape

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Saudi Pepe, a groundbreaking cryptocurrency built on the Ethereum blockchain, is set to transform the financial landscape of the future. With its innovative approach to decentralized finance, Saudi Pepe aims to empower individuals and businesses, fostering financial inclusion and offering exciting opportunities in the crypto space.

Saudi Pepe, which can be accessed at https://saudipepecoin.com, is designed to provide a secure, transparent, and efficient platform for financial transactions. By leveraging the power of blockchain technology, Saudi Pepe ensures immutability, privacy, and decentralized control, revolutionizing traditional financial systems.

The core features of Saudi Pepe are:

Secure and Efficient Transactions: Saudi Pepe leverages the Ethereum blockchain to enable fast, secure, and low-cost transactions. Users can easily send and receive Saudi Pepe coins ($SAUDIPEPE) across borders without intermediaries, reducing transaction fees and increasing efficiency.

Financial Inclusion: Saudi Pepe is committed to fostering financial inclusion by providing access to financial services to the unbanked and underbanked populations. By eliminating the barriers imposed by traditional banking systems, Saudi Pepe allows individuals to participate in the global economy, unlocking new opportunities and empowering communities.

Community-Driven Ecosystem: Saudi Pepe places great importance on its vibrant communty. Through decentralized governance, all community members have a say in the project's development, ensuring transparency and fairness.





Smart Contracts and Decentralized Applications: Saudi Pepe supports the development of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps) on its platform. This opens up possibilities for developers, entrepreneurs, and businesses looking to create innovative solutions and leverage the power of blockchain technology.



Saudi Pepe's head of operations, Prince Pepemoon, stated, "We are thrilled to introduce Saudi Pepe to the world. Our mission is to democratize finance and provide equal opportunities to individuals and businesses, revolutionizing the financial landscape in Saudi Arabia and beyond. With the power of blockchain technology, Saudi Pepe aims to create a more inclusive and transparent financial ecosystem."



For media inquiries, please contact: Name: Prince Pepemoon Email: [email protected]

About Saudi Pepe: Saudi Pepe is a revolutionary cryptocurrency project built on the Ethereum blockchain. One of the key milestones for Saudi Pepe was its recognition as a top-trending project on CoinMarketCap. This achievement speaks volumes about the project's growing popularity and the trust it has garnered from the crypto community. The team's commitment to transparency and innovation has resonated with the community, propelling it to new heights.

Note to editors: For more information about Saudi Pepe, please visit the official website at

https://saudipepecoin.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SAUDIPEPECOIN

Telegram: https://t.me/SAUDIPEPECOIN

Disclaimer:

This announcement is not directed at any investors or potential investors and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities and may not be used or relied upon in evaluating the merits of any investment. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in this release are subject to change without notice. The contents herein should not be construed as or relied upon in any manner as investment, legal, tax, or other advice. Furthermore, $SAUDIPEPE has no relation with Pepe ($PEPE).



Aditya Singh Saudi Pepe contact at saudipepecoin.com

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Should've picked this up a bit earlier but it's still applicable given recent "woke" boozy controversy emerging in the national discourse.

The basics . . .

CLAY CHASTAIN ARGUES AGAINST "WOKE" BEER IN HIS LATEST CAMPAIGN E-MAIL BLAST!!!



Here's the word and a look at his hope to recruit more supporters . . .

Clay Chastain press release: Chastain unveils Grassroots Yard Sign Campaign to begin his epic charge to come from way behind and win the Kansas City's Mayor's race without raising any money from special interests.



(Far-left) Lucas has raised approximately $1.0 million (mostly from wealthy real estate attorneys, big construction firms and rich developers). (No debate) Lucas is chained to those special interests. City Hall is thereby corrupt.

(Centrist) Chastain is not chained to any wealthy special interests because he is not accepting their money. Doing what's right for the people will be Chastain's only interest. Innovative-thinking Chastain has designed a way for his supporters

to help him start a "Grassroots Yard Sign Campaign" in lieu of making a campaign contribution (See attached picture of the (Chastain for Mayor) yard sign, where they can be ordered from and a full disclosure statement).



We don't need 4-more years of Lucas and his...Reparations, Cold War with Police, Stoking Racial Tensions, $100 million per mile Touristy streetcars, Poor Transit and Record-Setting Homicides!



We need a New Kind of Mayor:

A Mayor with common sense, a Mayor with integrity, a Mayor who will put infrastructure ahead of glitz, a Mayor who will represent all the people and a Mayor who will use his God-given talents to Engineer a New Way Forward for Kansas City.



Clay Chastain

#############



Take a peek at his campaign sign via www.TonysKansasCity.com screencap . . .

Related reading . . .



Bud Light boycott is working, Anheuser-Busch ex-executive says The boycott of Bud Light over its partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney "isn't going away," because it fits the pattern of previously successful consumer boycotts, a former executive at the brand's parent company has said. Anson Frericks, who spent more than a decade at Anheuser-Busch, said Bud Light's appeal had been that it was "inoffensive" but that appeal was now gone.

Bud Light to launch camouflage bottle amid transgender controversy: report Anheuser-Busch will temporarily redesign its Bud Light and Budweiser aluminum bottles with camouflage print in an effort to boost sales after its promotion of a transgender influencer, according to a report.

And a repeated mistake . . .

Is there No Safe Beer for conservative Americans to drink anymore?! Is there no safe beer for conservatives in America to drink right now?! First, Bud Light sent a few beers to a transgender influencer in early April. Then, Miller Lite ran an ad celebrating female brewers and offering up a lighthearted mea culpa over all the beer ads over the years featuring women in bikinis.

Joe Rogan mocks 'woke' Miller Lite campaign: 'How many women are involved in making beer' Joe Rogan mocked Miller Lite after the brand's months-old ad - in which "Broad City" actress Ilana Glazer touts women beer-makers - resurfaced on social media this week. "I'd like to see a pie chart of how many women are actually involved in making beer or drinking beer," Rogan said on Tuesday.

You decide . . .
One more time for the cheap seats . . .

MISSION GATEWAY MIGHT BE THE WORST DEVELOPMENT IN THE KANSAS CITY METRO AND PROVES MIDDLE-CLASS COMMUNITIES ALSO STRUGGLE TO BUILD THE FUTURE!!!



Huge tax bill aren't out of the ordinary for this kind of project . . .

Moreover, nobody seems to have confidence that a cafeteria and movie theater along with light retail and cut rate "luxury" apartments will rescue this disaster.

Check the deets . . .



The city of Mission could terminate its development agreement and yank its offer of tax incentives with the long-cursed Mission Gateway project  unless the developers pay up on late property taxes within the next 60 days.



Losing public financing, coupled with a bank seeking to foreclose on the property, could deal a death blow to the project.



The city sent a default notice to the developers on Monday after they failed to pay more than $449,000 in property taxes due last week.



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
Tonight we catch up with local crime news across the metro and share more deets about a crime fighting plan along with JoCo issues blowing up into a full-on crisis.

Check TKC news gathering . . .

KC man claims social media strangers scammed him out of thousands KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - John Reifsteck thought he had made a friend on Instagram when a stranger named Kevin sent him a message. "He was like, 'Hey, how are you?' Stuff like that,'" Reifsteck recalled. "He seemed like a nice, normal guy." Reifsteck, 66, said he began messaging back and forth with Kevin via WhatsApp.

Family members of homicide victims react to Kansas City police launching violent crime initiative A new plan to address Kansas City's violent crime problem will focus multiple law enforcement and community resources in problematic neighborhoods.In April, Kansas City Police responded to multiple gunshot incidents in the neighborhood around 35th and Prospect.In response, KCPD sent more police officers to the area.Federal law enforcement partners helped.So did citizens groups walking door-to-door to speak to people about community issues.On Wednesday, KCPD Chief Stacey Graves said the new plan to address violent crime includes this focused and unified response to other problematic neighborhoods.FULL VIDEO: "This is us coming together and showing the city.

Prosecutor says Olathe officer was 'justified' in killing man with mental illness Brandon Lynch, 27, was shot three times by Olathe Police after responding to a 911 call from Lynch's sister on New Year's Eve 2022, saying he was threatening her. He had a knife, a Taser and a history with police.

Man indicted in theft of 'Wizard of Oz' ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland A man has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of stealing a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz," federal prosecutors in North Dakota say. The shoes were stolen in 2005 and recovered by a 2018 FBI sting operation, but no arrests were made at the time.

Olathe police shoot and kill man armed with an 'edged weapon' on New Year's Eve Police say an officer shot and killed a man late on New Year's Eve in Olathe, Kansas. Officers responded to a disturbance call in the 900 block of East Oakview Street around 11:10 p.m. on Dec.

Former Belton educator charged with sex crimes could have more victims BELTON, Mo. - A Cass County, Missouri man, accused of child sex crimes, may have even more victims in Colorado, according to authorities. Jason Carey is charged with 12 sex crimes against children from September 2022, with some of those counts dating back more than a decade ago.

Victim killed in gunfight in Johnson County hotel's parking lot identified as Chicago man A Chicago man who was shot during a gunfight at the Econo Lodge Inn & Suites in Overland Park earlier this month has died from his injuries, according to a news release from police Wednesday. Damon Payton of Chicago was identified as the victim of the shooting, according to a news release from Capt.

Man who ran over Missouri officer pleads not guilty by reason of insanity SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - A man charged with running over a Springfield police officer will be committed to state mental health facilities after a judge accepted his plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. Jon Routh, 31, entered the plea Tuesday to two felony counts after running over Officer Mark Priebe on June 9, 2020, at Springfield police headquarters, the Springfield News-Leader reported.

Teen who fatally stabbed student at Northeast Middle School placed in state custody The 15-year-old charged in the April 2022 killing of Manuel Guzman at Northeast Middle School will be placed in the custody of the Missouri Division of Youth Services. At a disposition hearing on Wednesday, Family Court Administrative Judge Kevin Harrell heard recommendations from the Office of the Juvenile Officer and the suspect's lawyer on his sentencing and treatment.

Records request illustrates importance of work by Jackson County group to decrease domestic violence deaths KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Records obtained by the KSHB 41 I-Team illustrate the importance of a renewed effort to reduce domestic violence-related deaths in Jackson County. The Jackson County Domestic Violence Fatality Review (JCDVFR) team held training for service providers at the Lee's Summit Police Department on Wednesday.

'What if I would of done it?': 18-year-old arrested, charged with threat against area school district An 18-year-old from Platte City has been arrested and charged in connection with alleged threats made against an area school district.Joshua D. Clark has been arrested and charged with third-degree making a terrorist threat.

'This is our community': KC Mother's in Charge canvasses areas with violent crime KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City, Missouri, is once again dealing with an alarming number of homicides. So far in 2023, the city has recorded 60 homicides, keeping pace with other record-breaking years in KCMO. The community wants to do something about it in their own neighborhoods, and did so during a canvass on Wednesday afternoon hosted by KC Mother's in Charge.

Leaders in KCMO share new strategy to fight violent crime KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - The message coming from a host of local leaders, as KCMO is on pace to have a record number of homicides this year, was that "enough is enough." The group was at Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department headquarters Wednesday, announcing a violent crime initiative in conjunction with federal, state and city government.

Grandmother of Kansas City homicide victim asks for tips to bring killer to justice KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The grandmother of Kansas City, Missouri's, most recent homicide victim is asking the public for information that would bring the person or persons responsible for shooting her grandson to justice. According to KCPD, Kavon Carter was shot on May 7 near Denver Avenue and E. 12th Street.

Developing . . .
Insiders want our blog community to pay attention as more and more cash continues to be siphoned away from this town's most beloved resources.

Basically . . .

INSIDERS FEAR KANSAS CITY TARGETING PARKS & REC NOW AND IN THE FUTURE AS THIS TOWN GROWS DESPERATE FOR MORE CASH!!!



That COVID money is running out fast and here's a quick word about the future . . .



"Look closely . . . When we're talking about revenue streams and allocations. Parks is continually on the chopping block and it has the potential to make Kansas City look even worse. If voters want to know the REAL reason why Parks & Rec has come under attack . . . As always, it's about the money."

We'll have a bit more detail soon . . . But for now . . . Insiders want www.TonysKansasCity.com to look at a few things . . .

- Right now there are only 3 Parks commissioners . . . The Mayor has learned quickly, he doesn't like sharing the spotlight and he doesn't want any disagreements.

- The price for staying out of recent charter changes . . . More "flexibility" when it comes to budget allocations. Expect this to grow worse going forward.

- Sadly . . . Council dude Eric Bunch isn't prioritizing parks funding in the 4th District as the Mayor's team wants to focus more resources on the East side along with more Northland amenities. Behind the scenes, 4th District residents who complain are being told to think about future fundraisers.

And so . . .

Parks & Rec and so much public space is an old school treasure of KCMO and it might prove to be a battlefield going forward.

Developing . . .


Crypto exchanges that want to do business in Texas will need to maintain enough reserves to fulfill all obligations to their customers, according to a newly-approved piece of legislation.

The Texas legislature today approved House Bill 1666 (HB1666) to establish proof of reserves rules requiring crypto exchanges to provide an audited or on-chain proof of assets at all times.

Last week, the Texas House of Representatives sent the bill to the state senate. Discussion of the bill concluded today with a vote.

Aiming to amend the states finance code, the law enacts regulations and duties stating that companies cannot maintain customer funds in such a manner that cannot be fully withdrawn by users, nor can these be used for any other purposes than a customer transaction.

HB-1666, co-sponsored by Texas Rep. Giovanni Capriglione and Sen. Tan Parker, will also require companies to segregate and separately account for customer funds, effectively banning commingling or mixing user deposits with other digital assets, the service provider's capital, or other property that does not belong to the customer.

Texas Proof of Reserves Bill Passes House of Representatives

The bill increases transparency while continuing the light touch regulatory stance and pro-business environment that Texas has cultivated, said Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council. But he added that this is not sufficient in and of itself to prevent fraud in the digital asset space, but it is a useful tool.

Passing of this legislation makes Texas the safest place in the country to trade cryptocurrencies, Cody Carbone, vice president of crypto advocacy group Digital Chambers told Decrypt. He added: Platforms that choose to operate in Texas are now held to a higher standard that gives investors and consumers peace of mind that their money and assets are safe.

The first-of-a-kind bill comes amid last years atrocious track record for digital asset platforms, with FTX, Terra, Three Arrows Capital, and Celsius collapsing and leaving customers waiting to see how much of their funds theyll be able to recover through the bankruptcy process.

Despite todays news, not all is rosy in the lone star state for digital asset companies.

April saw the approval of Texas Senate Bill 1751, which looks to introduce restrictions on Bitcoin mining activities, raising the alert among mining advocates. The bill, however, awaits full Senate approval, House of Representative discussions, and would then need to make its way to Texas Gov. Greg Abbot for a signature.
Prob blog attempts to rally support amid ongoing crackdowns in Kansas and across the nation.

To be fair, a former Kansas City weather dude makes a perfect political punching bag for progressives.

Check-it . . .



Kansas Reflector is examining the influence of religious views on state government through a series of stories. . . .

In an email to supporters a day after the election, Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican, said it was his fervent hope that more than a half-million Kansans who voted against the amendment were simply misled by campaign ads and a complicit media. The alternatives, he said, were disturbing and unthinkable.



Thompson wondered if Kansans were really OK with infants being torn apart, limb from limb, or the prospects of Kansas becoming an even bigger destination site for abortion tourism. He listed other possible explanations for the popular vote that involved false narratives about abortion clinics.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
Tamara Shephard is a journalist in Etobicoke reporting hard news, politics and health and human-interest stories. Tamara loves to travel and is a fan of foreign and independent films.
York Regional Police have made an arrest following the alleged mosque attack where a man is said to have driven his vehicle at worshippers during the Holy month of Ramadan. - York Regional Police handout
From left to right: Lisa Dunbar, teacher and member of ETFO, Karen Brown, president of ETFO; and Rob Hammond, president of Near North Teacher Local during a press conference at ETFO's provincial office in Toronto on Monday, May 15. - ETFO photo
Custodia Bank, a Wyoming-chartered special purpose depository institution, will soon be rolling out Bitcoin custody service, founder and CEO Caitlin Long at Bitcoin 2023 said during a panel at Bitcoin 2023.

There are certain types of businesses like investment companies, registered investment advisors, corporate treasurers, and other types of fiduciary that have to, by law, segregate the custody of the assets from the management of the assets, she said during a Thursday morning panel. She added that the bank issued its 60-day advance notice in April that it would be rolling out Bitcoin custody as a service for its clients.

Wyoming SPDIs are required to give 60 days notice if they plan to begin custodying digital assets on behalf of their clients.

She started off her remarks explaining why a hardcore Bitcoiner would want a bank, claiming that she doesnt think the world is ready for hyperbitcoinization yet.

Wyoming Bill Granting Crypto DAOs Legality Nears Approval

I dont want the traditional financial system to meltdown, Long said, and would rather live in a world where the two financial systems are developing and have connectivity but each one doesnt blow up the other.

Custodia Bank, formerly known as Avanti, has been providing a full suite of financial services for customers with digital assets since 2020. The Wyoming SPDI was one of the first institutions to register under the states crypto-friendly laws.

The Bitcoin 2023 panel was moderated by Dylan Leclair, Bitcoin Magazine head of market research and also included Ram Ahluwalia, founder and CEO of Lumida, and Mark Connors, 3iQ head of research.

Crypto Bank Custodia Is Taking on the FedHeres Everything You Need to Know

Over the years, Long hasnt held anything back when referring to the Fed, accusing them of hypocrisy for inaction.

Todays announcement comes amid Custodias lawsuit against the Fed over its treatment in becoming a member institution and gaining access to a master account. Approval would open their doors to the Fedwire network, which handles hundreds of millions transactions per year and saw $1 quadrillion worth of value transferred in 2022.

According to the crypto bank, an application process that usually takes no more than seven days saw a patently unlawful delay of 19 weeks, prompting them to take the Federal Reserve to court.

Long didnt provide any updates on the lawsuit during the panel on Thursday, but did have some criticism for how the Federal Reserve behaved during the wave of bank collapses in March.

The morning of the Silicon Valley Bank run the head of supervision at the Fed, [Michael Barr], bragged in his anti-crypto speech that Fed-supervised banks don't have bank runs because they're subject to prudential supervision as the Silicon Valley run was happening, she said.
The UAE has accepted the World Trade Organizations (WTO) agreement on fisheries subsidies, making it the seventh member to join international efforts to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.



Acceptances from two-thirds of WTO members are needed for the Agreement to come into effect. UAE Ambassador Ahmed Abdulrahman Al Jarman presented his governments instrument of acceptance to Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.



DG Okonjo-Iweala said: I am grateful for the United Arab Emirates' formal acceptance of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. As host of the upcoming 13th Ministerial Conference to be held in February 2024, and with its affirmation of this historic agreement for healthier oceans, the UAE is providing invaluable support for the work of the WTO and its continuing efforts to ensure the multilateral trading system contributes to sustainable development.



Ambassador Al Jarman said: Aware of the harmful impact of overfishing and overcapacity and the urgent need to protect oceans from the widespread depletion of the world's fish stocks, the UAE has formally accepted this long-awaited and historical Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.



The UAE attaches great importance to environmental sustainability, as we are preparing to host two landmark events: the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, November 30  December 12, 2023) and the 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, end of February 2024. In this regard, we expect a meaningful outcome on trade and sustainability in Abu Dhabi; we therefore call other countries to deposit their instruments of acceptance so as to reach two thirds of the membership, for the benefit of humanity, he said.



Adopted by consensus at the WTO's 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) held in Geneva on June 12-17, 2022, the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies sets new binding, multilateral rules to curb harmful subsidies, which are a key factor in the widespread depletion of the world's fish stocks. In addition, the Agreement recognizes the needs of developing and least-developed countries (LDCs) and establishes a fund to provide technical assistance and capacity building to help them implement the obligations.



The Agreement prohibits support for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, bans support for fishing overfished stocks, and ends subsidies for fishing on the unregulated high seas. Members also agreed at MC12 to continue negotiations on outstanding issues, with a view to making recommendations by MC13, to be held in February 2024 in Abu Dhabi, for additional provisions that would further enhance the disciplines of the Agreement.  TradeArabia News Service
Its been well-established that one of the significant benefactors of the pandemic was the boat industry, as sales skyrocketed for those who grew weary of being pent up in their homes.

According to the National Marine Manufacturers Association, sales of boats, marine products and services across the country reached a 13-year high of $47 billion in 2020. The following two years also saw great leaps in sales and though the urge to buy boats has slowed somewhat in 2023, boats are still a popular recreational ticket item  even in this tough economic climate.

At the same time, commercial real estate (CRE) investment in marinas also remains hot, with limited supply and many boat owners looking for slips. The surprise, however, is the location where many of those marinas are being acquired.

The vision of shorelines and marinas in the U.S. usually aligns with those in coastal sea communities in California and Florida. At the same time, states adjacent to the Great Lakes like Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, New York and Wisconsin are usually thought of first when contemplating an inland waters boating vacation. But that is changing as well.

Don't miss:

Travel & Leisures latest The Best Lake Towns in America list includes states not necessarily top of mind for water recreation enthusiasts and vacationers, including Idaho, Montana, Missouri and Texas. And not surprisingly, with marinas in short supply for investment, several companies are looking to those types of inland states as investment opportunities.

Texas-based TopSide Marinas recently announced the acquisition of Rock Creek Marina, a 188-acre marina on Lake Perry, positioned between Kansas City, Topeka and Lawrence, Kansas. The company also recently closed on the 4.9-acre April Plaza Marina on Lake Conroe north of Houston, its fifth marina acquisition since its launch in 2021.

With a finite supply of inland marinas, TopSide Co-Founder and CEO Stephen Lehn told Benzinga that purchasing inland marinas not for those without experience dealing with the federal government, and rising insurance rates have kept many out of the market.

Theres only so much waterfront real estate, and investors have to determine what is the highest and best use. You also have a little more red tape restrictions because what youre actually purchasing is a leasehold, Lehn said. Theres less (investment) competition because its a more complicated transaction. Insurance has become a big issue and is worse now than it was six to 12 months ago, but not as high as coastal insurance.

You cant buy most inland marinas because the U.S. government owns the lakes, so leases become the order of the day.

What happens when we reach a deal is we get the leasehold interest signed over to us, which is usually the Army Corps of Engineers, and then extend the lease to make the lender more comfortable, Lehn said. Improvements to the marina are part of the transaction. Theres a lot of deferred maintenance with current leaseholders and then raise the rates once the overall experience is improved. But our bread and butter is boat storage.

TopSides success didnt come without weathering some significant hurdles, like the fact the company was launched six weeks before the pandemic shut everything down.

We started the company on Jan. 23, 2020, and had a great six-week run, Lehn said. But it took us a year before we closed our first transaction. Two things then happened; boating took off and marinas were slammed with business and initially, none had any time to talk to investors like us. It took us a little time to get back on track, and we told them that the financial year they experienced was great, but its not going to carry forward like this in the future.

According to Courtney Chalmers, vice-president of marketing at advertising and software firm Boats Group, boats in 2023 continue to be selling at a brisk pace, if not at the level of the pandemic.

For the first time in three years, consumer demand has softened; however, our marketplaces share of voice is the highest its ever been, which is a very positive sign for the health of the industry, Chalmers told SGB Media. The effects of the demand and supply chain disruption during the pandemic are also very apparent. Boats continue to move off the market faster, and sales remain higher than before the surge.

Lehn added that one of the significant improvements companies like TopSide need to undertake is making the slips bigger, as they were initially designed for sailboats, and boats are getting bigger and bigger. The key for marina investors is to have multiple sources of revenue, including fuel systems, retail, boat services and storage.

Photo provided by TopSide Marinas

Looking for a way to boost returns? Benzingas Real Estate Offering Screener has the latest private market investments with offerings available for both accredited and non-accredited investors.

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This article Boat Sales Continue To Be Strong But With Limited Locations, Marina Investors Are Looking Inland originally appeared on Benzinga.com

.

 2023 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Arrived back in our happy place on Sunday here for 19 nights. Great flight over with Aer Lingus from Manchester, very quiet flight arrived ahead of schedule before the London flights so immigration empty. Luggage took a while but we were out within a hour. The approach was down the East Coast a first time for us, dont know whether it may have been due to the weather which was pretty awful on landing, torrential rain and high winds!

We pre-booked a taxi and were soon on our way to Port St Charles. As we drive north the weather improved and the sun was shining in Speightstown. We have stayed at PSC many times but not for a few years. This year we pushed the boat our and booked a beach front apartment. It is stunning and has set the bar very high for future visits!

We unpacked, explored the apartment, had a Banks and a sandwich and were in bed by 8:30 pm.

After a good nights sleep we were up at 5:30 am, its normal for us when we we are it here to be up and about by 6 am and normally in bed by 10 pm.

After a light breakfast the car was delivered by MAH and we headed to Masseys in Holetown for our big shop. We decided as the apartment is so beautiful we will be spending more time there and eating in a lot more. As usual there was a shortage in Masseys, this time fresh meat, but to compensate the fresh produce was plentiful and of a high quality. Noticed prices were higher than our last visit but we had expected this.

We headed back to the apartment had lunch and had our wine delivery from Platinum Wines. We are now well stocked. We then decided to spend some on the beach but as we settled down for some sun and a swim it began to pour down. Back inside! Its sad to see the amount of erosion and the steep drops that have developed at PSC but tides are particularly high due to weather conditions. Some large deposits of sargassum visible out to sea but hasnt come ashore thankfully. As the rain appeared to be set in and to get a bit of exercise we decided to walk down to Pier One for a drink. We got soaked but just as we arrived the sun was out again. Had a great couple of hours catching up with old friends and having a drink or 2 with Paul who is also members of the TA Forum and his wife Sue, also met people we are in contact with via the Barbados for Travellers FB group. Its a small world these days. Pier One was quite busy and it was so lovely to be back there. I have a feeling well be spending a lot of time there over the next few weeks..

Walked back to the apartment and I experimented with a Levi Roots recipe for Jamaican Pork which even though I say so myself was delicious. A nice bottle of wine to help us sleep!
The National Security Minister says he's "not involved in any form or manner of approval of 
Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine Oksana Zholnovych and Federal Minister of Social Affairs of Austria Johannes Rauch signed the Protocol of Intentions on UkraineAustria cooperation in social sphere.

"Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine Oksana Zholnovych and Federal Minister of Social Affairs of Austria Johannes Rauch signed the Protocol of Intentions on UkraineAustria cooperation in social sphere online," the Embassy of Ukraine in Austria posted on Facebook.

The document expands the framework of UkraineAustria cooperation in the areas important to Ukraine in the context of the consequences of Russian aggression, in particular, in the issue of rehabilitation, psychological support, development of foster homes.

"In addition, Austria will provide practical support on Ukraine's path to the EU and will contribute to the involvement of our country in EU social programs," the Embassy informed.

As reported, since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Austria has provided more than EUR 129 million in financial and humanitarian aid. The Federal Government of Austria, federal lands, communities and the population also make a significant contribution to the reception and integration of Ukrainian IDPs. Currently, more than 55,000 Ukrainians live in Austria.
In Germany, the creation of the Registry of Damages caused to Ukraine by Russia's aggression is being welcomed.

Christine Hoffmann, the spokesperson for the Federal Government, made this statement during a briefing on Wednesday, according to Ukrinform correspondent.

"We welcome the creation of such a Registry. The damage inflicted on Ukraine by Russian aggression needs to be documented. This will be an important basis for the further reconstruction of Ukraine or for discussions on compensation," said Hoffmann.

Read also: Germany states that not participating in negotiations on creation of aviation coalition for Ukraine

She added that Germany and other countries, together with Ukraine, are developing mechanisms for compensating the damage caused by aggression. It is anticipated that frozen assets of Russian individuals involved in or supporting the aggression will be directed towards these purposes.

According to the German Ministry of Economy, as of April 12, assets of Russian origin totaling 5.23 billion have been frozen in Germany.

As reported earlier, at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, over 40 countries and the EU signed an agreement to create the Registry of Damages caused to Ukraine by Russian aggression.

Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, recently emphasized that the creation of the Registry was one of the most important tasks of the summit.
Norway will transfer eight long-range multiple launch rocket systems and three Arthur artillery location radars to Ukraine.

Norwegian Defense Minister Bjorn Arild Gram said this at a meeting with UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace in Northwood, Ukrinform reports, citing the Norwegian government's website.

"Today we are confirming the delivery of long-range artillery and radars. Norway provides three Arthur artillery location radars and up to eight long-range rocket artillery of the MLRS type," Gram said.

He added that the donations are made in close collaboration with the UK.

According to the Norwegian defense minister, these are significant contributions to the Ukrainian defense, and show the determination of the Norwegian and British governments to stand together in their support for the Ukrainian people.

He also announced that from this summer on, Norway will double its number of instructors in Operation Interflex to train Ukraine's military.

During the meeting, the two ministers have also agreed to continue and to strengthen their support to Ukraine.
Britains Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union Dominic Raab pauses at EU headquarters in Brussels Friday, Aug. 31, 2018. Raab has resigned after an independent investigation into complaints that he bullied civil servants. | Virginia Mayo, File, Associated Press

Britains deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, resigned from office Friday amid allegations that he was bullying subordinates.

Raab was one of conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks closest allies. He was also an adamant proponent of Brexit  Britain leaving the European Union. This marks the third cabinet minister in six months to leave over ethics issues, wreaking havoc on Sunaks cabinet, The New York Times reported.

As far as the bullying allegations go, an independent barrister had examined eight cases in which civil servants accused Mr. Raab, who also served as justice secretary, of mistreating them, per the Times.

What does Dominic Raab say about the bullying allegations?

Raab has denied the allegations of abusive behavior. He shared a resignation letter on Twitter accepting the allegations and keeping his promise that he would resign if the investigation discovered anything that substantiated the claims, but also criticized the findings.

Whilst I feel duty bound to accept the outcome of the inquiry, it dismissed all but two of the claims leveled against me, Raab said in his resignation statement. ... In setting the threshold for bullying so low, this inquiry has set a dangerous precedent. It will encourage spurious complaints against ministers, and have a chilling effect on those driving change on behalf of your government  and ultimately the British people.

Related

According to The Washington Post, the report found that his behavior was intimidating on some occasions and at times involved an abuse or misuse of power in a way that undermines or humiliates.

In 2010, Raab was elected to the Parliament and attempted to be Conservative Party leader in 2019, but ultimately ended up supporting former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, ABC News reported.

Opposition party leaders criticized Sunak for appointing Raab in the first place.

Theres a double weakness here, Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour Party, said, per CNN. He should never have appointed him and then he didnt sack him.

Related
Moldova no longer uses Russian natural gas or electricity after ending its dependence following the outbreak of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine.

Moldovas Prime Minister Dorin Recean stated this on Thursday at a security conference in Bucharest, Ukrinform reports citing The Guardian.

"If at the start of the war 100% of energy consumed in Moldova originated in Russia, today Moldova can exist with absolutely no natural gas or electricity from Russia," he said.

"Moldova no longer consumes Russian gas, it is integrated in the European energy network both technically and commercially," Recean emphasized.

Read also: Energy Ministry invites natural gas market participants to join AggregateEU

As Ukrinform reported, the EU has agreed on a so-called joint gas purchasing platform that allows member states to avoid competition with each other in the global energy market and take full advantage of the European Union's joint purchasing power. Ukraine, Moldova, and the Western Balkans are also members of this platform.

In April, Moldova's Energocom signed a framework agreement with Greek gas operator DEPA Commercial.
European countries should be grateful to Ukraine, not the other way around, considering what the Ukrainian people are currently doing for Europe.

Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Albania, stated this in his speech at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, according to Ukrinform correspondent.

"Thank God, the unity of the democratic community of the Council of Europe in supporting the Ukrainian liberation war and President Zelensky is extraordinary. Albania has never had illusions about the nature of the regime in Moscow, and our relations with Moscow have not existed since the death of Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin. Don't ask me to explain how and why, because it would take more time than our trip to Iceland," he said.

Rama added that since the beginning of the war, Putin's popularity in Albania fluctuates between 0.7% and 1.2%.

Read also: British PM to discuss with European leaders longer term security plans for Ukraine

"Albania is very small to influence the fate of such a decisive war for the future of Europe and the world. But every little thing we have done for Ukraine has been done with great gratitude to the Ukrainian resistance... It is not President Zelensky who should thank us, but we should thank Ukraine for what it is doing for all of us and for our beloved Europe," he said.

The Albanian Prime Minister added that he would gladly sign the agreement on the International Register of Damages from Russian aggression against Ukraine.

"God bless Europe and Glory to Ukraine!" Rama concluded his speech.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, 43 countries and the EU signed an agreement to create the Register of Damages inflicted on Ukraine by Russian aggression.

The Register of Damages is being created as a platform for intergovernmental cooperation within the institutional framework of the Council of Europe. The Register is a legal entity under the national legislation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Ukraine and is physically located in the Netherlands.

It receives and processes information on claims for damages and evidence, serving as the first component of the future International Compensation Mechanism, which will be established through a separate international agreement in cooperation with Ukraine. Subsequently, a Claims Review Commission and a Compensation Fund will be established.

Any member state or observer of the Council of Europe and the European Union, as well as any other state that voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution of November 14, 2022, can join the Register.
Ambassador of France to Ukraine Etienne de Poncins has visited Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in Donetsk region.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, the head of the Donetsk Regional Military Administration, wrote this on Telegram, Ukrinform reports.

"I spoke today with French Ambassador to Ukraine Etienne de Poncins about the current humanitarian situation in the region and further cooperation with France... I told about the situation in the region, and paid special attention to the scale of destruction in our largest free cities - Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. The ambassador saw the destruction with his own eyes," the regional governor wrote.

Read also: Four more bodies killed during occupation exhumed in Donetsk region

He reminded that the ambassador has been in Ukraine for almost four years and is aware of the projects implemented by France in Donetsk region. In particular, since Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the French organizations ACTED and U-Saved have provided invaluable assistance to civilians in the frontline regions: water, food products, power generators, and potbelly stoves. They also contributed to the reconstruction of destroyed housing.

"I am confident that the French Republic will continue to be our reliable partner in the reconstruction of Donetsk region," Kyrylenko said and thanked Etienne de Poncins and the entire French people for supporting Ukraine during the war.

As reported, Donetsk region is under constant Russian fire. Every day, the enemy kills and injures civilians and damages infrastructure facilities.
| By Lou Cortina

As the student speaker at the University of Maryland, Baltimores (UMB) commencement May 18, Joanna Zhao Ye noted the transformation she and her fellow graduates were making  from student to professional.

We are not just students anymore, Ye, who earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, told the audience at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena on the campus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Were here today because we have proven that we have the skills, knowledge, and experience to excel in our disciplines. And now we have the responsibility to pursue the truth and speak it as loudly as we can so that we can push our disciplines  and society  forward.

Student Speaker Joanna Zhao Ye

And at the second consecutive in-person UMB commencement after virtual celebrations in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ye talked about the trying circumstances the Class of 2023 had to endure.

Although were graduating from different programs on different timelines, weve shared some of the unique challenges of being students during a global health crisis, said Ye, who was the 2022-2023 president of the University Student Government Association. For many of us, life as we knew it changed completely while we were students at UMB. We have overcome challenges in the classroom and out in the world under unprecedented circumstances.

On top of that, many of us have started families, grieved for loved ones, or persevered through seemingly impossible obstacles, she added. Every graduate here today has a remarkable story to tell, which deserves recognition.

(Read about School of Social Work graduating student Emma Earnest, who sang the national anthem, at this link.)

UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, presided over the ceremony, which included a video message from Gov. Wes Moore; remarks from University System of Maryland (USM) Regent William T. Wood, JD; the conferring of two honorary degrees; recognition of two retiring deans; and the awarding of the inaugural Presidents Distinguished Gold Medal. Jarrell was joined onstage by deans, vice presidents, and four honorary marshals: M.J. Tooey, MLS, AHIP, FMLA; Raymond C. Love, PharmD, BCPP, FASHP; Erika Friedmann, PhD; and Susan McKechnie, CPA.

Today, our students take their place in a long line of distinguished graduates of the founding campus of the University of Maryland, Jarrell said. All of our students have worked very hard to get to this point, especially through the upheaval of a pandemic, and you deserve a round of applause for having endured it. Look around the arena today and remember all of those who have supported you in this journey. Theres a lot of love, a lot of devotion, and a lot of support from your family, your friends, and your faculty mentors.

Answer the Door

Jarrell unveiled a new honor, the Presidents Distinguished Gold Medal, which was awarded to Norman R. Augustine, MSE, the former chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corp. who has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in business and government. Augustine also was UMBs inaugural Presidents Distinguished Scholar in 2019-2020, advising the Presidents Fellows on their white paper on how to institutionalize UMBs core values so that they remain durable even as the University and its people change. The gold medal is awarded to an individual who has provided outstanding service and leadership to UMB and beyond.

As I reflect on the award that Ive just received and on what lies ahead for those of you receiving your degrees today, Augustine said, I recall a simple but powerful lesson: When opportunity knocks, which it will, try to answer the door. If you do that, youll discover that there are many things that you cant even imagine today that will be possible for you to accomplish in your careers.

UMB awarded honorary degrees to Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, MAS, BSN 80, RN, FAAN, and Martha Somerman, DDS, PhD, who were presented by, respectively, Jane M. Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN, the Bill and Joanne Conway Dean of the University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON), and Mark A. Reynolds, DDS, PhD, MA, dean of the University of Maryland School of Dentistry (UMSOD).

Nathan-Pulliam, a UMSON alumna and former Maryland state senator and delegate, received an Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree. During her 20 years in the House of Delegates and five-year tenure in the state Senate, Nathan-Pulliam advanced numerous health policy initiatives, worked to reduce health care disparities and inequalities, and strived to strengthen the health care delivery system.

Somerman, a former associate professor at UMSOD and former director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), was recognized as an Honorary Doctor of Science. Somerman was a UMSOD faculty member from 1984 to 1991 and went on to become dean of the University of Washington School of Dentistry before being named director of NIDCR at the National Institutes of Health.

Graduates and Gratitude

The ceremony also included a 6-minute video featuring graduating students from each of UMBs seven schools. The students spoke fondly of their time at the University with a recurring theme of gratitude for their schools community service opportunities and appreciation for UMBs commitment to Baltimore and focus on interprofessional education.

I came to UMB because of the unique environment that its situated in, said Daniel Syrianos-Robertson, a UMSOD graduate. Its given me an opportunity to give back to the underserved or those in need. Ive really come to love the environment on this campus  especially at the School of Dentistry, theres this family aspect that allows us to grow as students while at the same time grow as part of the community.

Courtney Bergan, a graduating student from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, said, One of the things I have really valued is working across schools, being able to work with physical therapy students and social work students and medical students and come up with solutions with people who are coming at things from a very different perspective than maybe a law student would have. That has been one of the most invaluable things for me being at UMB.

In his remarks, Wood offered congratulations from the USM Board of Regents and praise for the graduates persistence and dedication.

Your hard work and sacrifice have paid off, Wood said. I also know your family and friends take pride in what you have accomplished. They have shared in your sacrifice, and they certainly should share in your success. Today, you become an enduring part of UMBs proud and impressive legacy. The knowledge and experience you have received here  that you have earned here  are yours forever.

Jarrell closed the ceremony by recognizing two retiring deans, Kirschling and Natalie D. Eddington, PhD, FAAPS, FCP, of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, before wishing the Class of 2023 good health and good fortune.

I ask that you remember UMB and your school as your alma mater, Jarrell told the graduates. We certainly will need your help in the future. And for the family and friends who are here, you have remarkable graduates now in your circle. Embrace them. Theyre wonderful. To the Class of 2023, we are so proud of you, and we look forward to your great accomplishments.

Visit UMBs commencement website for photos, video, and more information.
The Burberry Group Plc store on Regent Street in London, UK - Hollie Adams/Bloomberg

The chief executive of Burberry has stepped up calls for Rishi Sunak to scrap the tourist tax as he warned that even British shoppers were now shunning London for luxury shopping.

Jonathan Akeroyd said people were turning to cities like Paris and Milan where they can take advantage of tax free shopping post-Brexit rather than shopping locally. Mr Akeroyd said Burberry had seen a big surge in British tourists spending in mainland Europe, which is obviously quite telling.

It comes amid growing frustrations from luxury chiefs over the Prime Ministers so-called tourist tax.

Britain axed VAT-free shopping for tourists in 2021 in a move that many have argued has put visitors off spending.

Burberry said it had experienced triple-digit sales growth in Paris over the three months to the beginning of April, while sales were up by 43pc in Milan. Growth in London has been far weaker, Mr Akeroyd said.

He said Burberry was fortunate to be a global business and so we can offset that through sales in mainland Europe.

The Burberry chief renewed his calls for Mr Sunak to rethink VAT-free shopping.

Mr Akeroyd said: We're very much hopeful that we can bring back that when tourists come to the UK, they will be coming to Burberry  that its the first calling point in terms of luxury.

He said the company was really hopeful the tourist tax could be scrapped.

Burberry chief executive Jonathan Akeroyd - David M. Benett/Getty Images Contributor

Burberry has been among the most vocal opponents of the policy, with chairman Gerry Murphy last month confronting Mr Sunak at a conference. Mr Murphy called the measure a spectacular own goal that made Britain the least attractive shopping destination in Europe.

Cities including Paris have sought to capitalise on the UK tax move. The French capital has lured more visitors to spend there by lowering the transaction size at which tourists can claim back VAT and installing booths around travel hubs to allow visitors to easily make their claims.

Burberry posted a 21pc jump in profits in the year to the beginning of April, after sales rose 10pc to more than 3bn. Performance was boosted by the lifting of Covid restrictions in China, one of the worlds biggest luxury markets, at the end of last year.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.
May 18 2023

The wait is over as the Scottish Design Awards, organised by Urban Realm, reveal the inspirational nominees who will battle for a coveted ruler award.

Nominees from across architecture and design illustrate the enormity of a task which necessitated not one but two judging panels to decide over two days of deliberations.

Alistair Scott, co-founder of Smith Scott Mullan Associates and member of the architecture panel, said: "Being a judge on the Scottish Design Awards is both a real privilege and also an education. You get to see the best work being produced in our country and how developing issues such as placemaking and sustainability are being addressed.

"Producing the level of projects that we saw takes a huge amount of skill and dedication, and as a practicing architect I know only too well the amount of time and effort that went into them - often by young, emerging designers.

"The future of Scottish design is bright, but I feel we dont get nearly enough exposure internationally and events like these Awards should help to promote our skills to a wider audience and hopefully provide future opportunities.

The awards culminate in a celebration of creativity on 29 June with a showcase of the people, ideas and studios who amp up the spark of a great idea to shock and awe their peers.

The full list of category finalists is available to view now over at the Scottish Design Awards.
Hiroshima, Japan, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th May, 2023 ) :US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will go to Papua New Guinea in place of President Joe Biden, who scrapped a planned visit next week due to the US debt crisis, the White House said on Thursday.

Biden called Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape from Air Force One, while on his way to the G7 summit in Japan, to explain that he had to rush home on Sunday to rejoin negotiations with Republican opponents on avoiding a default.

"The president emphasized continued US commitment to the renewed partnership with the Pacific Islands and conveyed that Secretary Blinken would represent him at the US-Pacific Islands Forum meeting in Port Moresby," the White House said in a statement.

Biden's trip, planned for Monday, would have been the first by a sitting US president to the Pacific island nation.

The Biden administration is pushing hard to reinvigorate its leadership across the Pacific in the face of a rising China.

However, Biden's Asia-Pacific trip has been disrupted by tense negotiations back home with Republicans over getting Congress to authorise raising the national debt limit or risk default.

Biden also axed a planned meeting in Australia with the other leaders of the Quad regional grouping of Australia, India, Japan and the United States.

"President Biden also invited the prime minister and other Pacific leaders to Washington, DC, later this year for the second US summit with the Pacific Islands Forum," the White House said.
ISTANBUL, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th May, 2023 ) :China's Eurasian affairs envoy Li Hui has met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Beijing said on Thursday.

"The two sides exchanged views on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, and China-Ukraine relations," a statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.

Li, who was picked by Chinese President Xi Jinping last month as the special envoy on Ukraine, paid a two-day visit to Kyiv until Wednesday.

The statement said Li also met with other senior Ukrainian officials, including Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

He also held talks with officials from Ukrainian ministries of infrastructure, energy, and defense.

Referring to China's "position on the political solution to the Ukrainian crisis," Li said: "There is no panacea to resolve the crisis." "All parties need to start from themselves, accumulate mutual trust, and create conditions for ending the war and peace talks," Li told Ukrainian officials, the statement said.

"China is willing to promote the international community to form the greatest common denominator for resolving the Ukrainian crisis, and make its own efforts to stop the war, to cease fire, and restore peace as soon as possible," Li added.

The Ukrainian side "welcomed China to play an active role in ending the war and restoring peace," the statement also noted.

It said Kyiv assured the Chinese envoy of its adherence to the one-China principle.

The appointment of Li as the special envoy on Ukraine came after Xi held his first phone call with Zelenskyy last month since the Moscow-Kyiv war began in February 2022.

Besides Ukraine, Li will visit Poland, France, Germany, and Russia toward finding a solution to the Ukraine crisis.
Riyadh, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th May, 2023 ) :Tributes to Syrian culture are everywhere at Riyadh's Damascu Cafe -- from the traditional bean stew on the menu to folk songs that pour from the speakers, name-checking the war-torn country's cities and towns.

There's even a staffer who was hired for his resemblance to beloved Syrian comedian Duraid Lahham, and who spends long shifts posing for selfies with homesick customers But while the crowds that flock to the cafe each day are united in love for their native country, they are sharply divided on whether their adopted home, Saudi Arabia, has done the right thing by welcoming President Bashar al-Assad to this week's Arab League summit.

Some hope the move, which ends Assad's exile of more than a dozen years from the pan-Arab body, signals an easing of Syria's broader isolation and related economic hardship since the start of the war there in 2011.

"We were waiting for this moment," said 37-year-old Syrian expat Hiba Sidawi.

"It's a pain now to visit our country and see our family. War didn't bring us any added value."In the other camp are those who can't bear the thought of Assad on Saudi soil -- all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid riling both Saudi and Syrian officials.

"I hate him! I hate him!" said one woman. "Let him come for what, what will he do? Will he fix things? Will he change the country? He's the one who needs to be changed. I want to say out loud I am against him but I have relatives in Syria, they will drag them all and kill them."
Police in the US state of Maryland have arrested former US Energy Department official Samuel Brinton as a "fugitive from justice" after he was fired for stealing luggage at airports in the United States six months ago, according to Montgomery County records

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2023) Police in the US state of Maryland have arrested former US Energy Department official Samuel Brinton as a "fugitive from justice" after he was fired for stealing luggage at airports in the United States six months ago, according to Montgomery County records.

Brinton, who was in charge of nuclear waste disposal at the Energy Department and who describes himself as being "non-binary," was detained on Wednesday at his residence in Rockville, Maryland, and reportedly was escorted out of his home in handcuffs, Fox news reported.

In October, police charged Brinton with stealing luggage from a carousel at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport after he arrived there from Washington on September 16. The contents of the luggage were estimated to be worth $2,325.

In December, prosecutors in Las Vegas, Nevada, also charged Brinton with stealing a suitcase at the Harry Reid International Airport, whose contents were estimated to be worth $3,670.

In addition, a Tanzanian fashion designer in Houston, Texas accused Brinton of wearing clothes from her luggage that had gone missing in 2018 and the case was transferred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to the report.

Brinton reportedly did not get any jail time even though he faced up to 15 years imprisonment for the charges levied against him.

The US Energy Department announced in December the departure of Brinton, but refused to provide the reason. Sixteen US House Republican lawmakers had written to the US energy secretary calling for Brinton to be removed from the department.
Russia is only reacting to the situation created by a number of countries of the collective West, including Finland, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, commenting on the blocking of bank accounts of the Finnish embassy and Helsinki's note

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2023) Russia is only reacting to the situation created by a number of countries of the collective West, including Finland, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, commenting on the blocking of bank accounts of the Finnish embassy and Helsinki's note.

On Wednesday, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said that the ministry received information about the freezing of its missions' bank accounts in Russia on April 27 and sent a note to Moscow, but no official explanation has been received yet.

"This is not an initiative move on the Russian side. We are reacting to the situation that the authorities of a number of countries of the collective West are creating, including, to our regret, Finland .

... We will respond to the note by repeating that the principle of reciprocity and the principle of an adequate response to unfriendly steps will continue to prevail in our relationship," Peskov told reporters.

On April 1, bank accounts of the Russian Center of Science and Culture in Helsinki were frozen by Finnish bank Nordea. On April 18, the center's land and buildings were also seized by the Finnish authorities, a measure which was lifted on the following day.
Bubblr Inc.

NEW YORK, NY, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire  Bubblr Inc. (OTC QB: BBLR), an ethical technology company known for pioneering an Ethical Web Open-Source platform, announces its rebranding to Ethical Web AI. This trade name better encapsulates its mission and focus on improving the future of search and advancing a more ethical Internet.



Tim Burks, the CEO of the company formerly known as Bubblr, Inc., stated: "From the start, it was evident that the name Bubblr did not accurately reflect our companys purpose, products, or core philosophy. We have always identified ourselves as an ethical web business. Moreover, our soon-to-be-launched GPT Dynamic app is fundamentally centered around large language models (LLMs) and artificial intelligence. Therefore, Ethical Web AI is a name that truly represents our essence.

"We had previously acquired the domain name Ethicalweb.ai, which we believed was far more descriptive of our business. We have now built the EthicalWeb.ai website, and all traffic from bubblr.com has been redirected to this new site. We are in the process of filing a request to the state of Wyoming to formally reserve the name Ethical Web AI, given its active use."

Burks also highlighted the unanimous support for the name change from the company's marketing partnersBeyond Media Group, Outside the Box Capital, and Milestone Management Services. "All three firms expressed concern that our previous name did not reflect our businesss purpose and were fully supportive of the change. In fact, they have deliberately reserved their marketing strategies until this change was implemented, which it now has been.

"Both Professor Paul Morrissey, our Chief Strategy Officer, and I were motivated to join the company largely because of its ethical web credentials. We both fully endorse the company's ethical web manifesto, which includes decentralized profits and data collection, protection of citizens' privacy rights, a level playing field for businesses, combating social and cultural division, and resisting corruption by advertising.

"The board of directors unanimously agreed that it made complete sense for our marketing partners to reserve their strategies until we began operating under the more meaningful and reflective business name of Ethical Web AI," Burks concluded.

Contact:

Steve Morris

Bubblr, Inc.

(646) 814 7184

Ethical Web AI.





Ethical Web AI, Inc. is an ethical technology company that is providing the essential building blocks for the future of search on the Internet. It is building an open-source Ethical Web platform that is the technological manifestation of its very valuable granted patents. This platform will make available open-source app templates for licensees to build their own community apps or integrate our software with any existing apps.

Important Cautions Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the definition of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and such as in Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements should not be used to make an investment decision. The words' estimate,' possible,' and 'seeking' and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which speak only as to the date the statement was made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified. Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated by, or underlying the forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties to which forward-looking statements are subject include but are not limited to, the effect of government regulation, competition, and other material risks.




(@FahadShabbir)

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2023) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has held phone talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian to discuss the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iranian nuclear deal, as well as developments in Yemen, Afghanistan and in the Gulf region, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

"The Secretary-General spoke today with H.E. Mr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Secretary-General and the Foreign Minister exchanged views on several issues, including Yemen, Afghanistan, developments in the Gulf region and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)," Dujarric said in a statement on Wednesday.

In 2015, Iran and China, France, Russia, the UK, the US plus Germany and the EU signed the JCPOA, which envisaged lifting sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restricting the Iranian nuclear program. Under former US President Donald Trump, the US withdrew from the deal, reimposing sanctions against Iran. The country reacted by reducing its obligations under the deal, including those concerning nuclear research, centrifuges and uranium enrichment levels.

In December 2021, talks on the resumption of the JCPOA were resumed, but a year later the progress on the deal became largely frozen.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2023) The United States is not ready to any constructive actions on the Ukrainian settlement either now or in the foreseeable future, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.

"The United States is not ready either at this stage or, in my opinion, in the foreseeable future, to take any constructive action regarding the settlement of the situation in Ukraine, which it has created itself for many years, and created in the context of its strategic course to counteract the objective formation of a multipolar world," Lavrov said at a press conference, following talks with his Ugandan counterpart, Jeje Odongo, answering a question from a Sputnik correspondent.
Among those who will cross the stage during the first ceremony is Jenelle Millison, who will receive her bachelors in computer science with a concentration in data science. The Colorado native initially came to UTSA to take advantage of its reputable cybersecurity program. What she ultimately developed was a love for data science, spurred by mentors like Amanda Fernandez, an assistant professor in the computer science department.

After graduation, Millison will join the John Hopkins Applied Physics Lab in Maryland. Shell be working on artificial intelligence projects with applications to various sectors, including public health.

At the same ceremony, Eunice de la Cruz, a UTSA housekeeping coordinator, will be graduating with a bachelors degree in public health. The accomplishment will pave the way for the 55-year-old to begin a career in epidemiology, fulfilling a lifelong dream and following in the footsteps of her three adult children.

Nixon Maldonado will cross the stage on Saturday evening to receive a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the Klesse College.

A native of El Salvador, Maldonado moved to the U.S. when he was 12 years old, joining his parents who had already moved to the U.S. to establish a life of opportunity for their son away from the shadow of gang violence. In architecture, Maldonado found a discipline dedicated to creating structures that will stand the test of time.

Architecture has the power to make you feel something; its transformative, Maldonado said. Buildings are something that will shelter and protect you. Thats how I think of architecture  as a place of healing, a place of safety.

Alamodome doors will open at 1:30 p.m. for the first Commencement ceremony and at 6 p.m. for the second ceremony. Each event is expected to be two to three hours in length. Tickets are not required. Handicapped seating will be available.

As graduates like Millison, De La Cruz and Maldonado cross the stage and begin their next journey, they are grateful for what UTSA provided them.
UW and Wyoming SBDC Network to Host HUBZone Workshop in Douglas May 25

Small-business owners can learn how to obtain federal contract dollars through becoming HUBZone-certified companies Thursday, May 25.

Janean Forsyth and Deb Farris will present a Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network workshop titled HUBZone Opportunity Workshop: Converse County from 6-7:30 p.m. at The Enterprise, located at 130 S. Third St. in Douglas. To register, go here. Registration is free.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers business expertise to help Wyoming residents think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their business. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by the University of Wyoming with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

The HUBZone program fuels small-business growth in historically underutilized business zones with a goal of awarding at least 3 percent of federal contract dollars to HUBZone-certified companies each year. The government limits competition for certain contracts to businesses in historically underutilized business zones. It also provides preferential consideration to those businesses in full and open competition.

Before a business can participate in the HUBZone program, it must be certified by the U.S. SBA.

Joining the HUBZone program makes businesses eligible to compete for the programs set-aside contracts. HUBZone-certified businesses also get a 10 percent price evaluation preference in full and open contract competitions. For more information on the HUBZone program, go here.

Forsyth is the Wyoming APEX Accelerator program manager, and Farris is deputy district director of the U.S. SBA for the Wyoming district office.

For more information, call Maureen Johnson, marketing, communication and database manager for the Wyoming SBDC Network, at (307) 343-0925 or email mjohn125@uwyo.edu.
Generally, when a single insider buys stock, it is usually not a big deal. However, when several insiders are buying, like in the case of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:REFI), it sends a favourable message to the company's shareholders.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

Check out our latest analysis for Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when Co-President Andreas Bodmeier bought US$146k worth of shares at a price of US$15.86 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being US$14.40). Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels.

In the last twelve months Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance insiders were buying shares, but not selling. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Insiders Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider buying at Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance. Specifically, Executive Chairman of the Board of Chicago Atlantic REIT Manager John Mazarakis bought US$132k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any sales whatsoever. That shows some optimism about the company's future.

Does Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance insiders own 12% of the company, worth about US$32m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Insiders likely see value in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (of which 1 is significant!) you should know about.

But note: Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Service Contracts in Vietnam: What You Need to Know

Service contracts in Vietnam are a flexible alternative for firms to find human resources support and staff time-bound or specialized projects. Heres how they work.

Foreign firms in Vietnam occasionally face a skills gap when undertaking certain functions or projects. Traditionally, they would hire an employee under a labor contract to address this gap. However, for temporary tasks or projects, firms may opt for a service contract as a more suitable alternative.

But what exactly are service contracts, and how do they differ from labor contracts?

Labor contracts vs service contracts

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Service contracts, on the other hand, are used to employ individuals on a more flexible basis. With a service contract, the individual is treated more like another business rather than an employee. In this respect, the company is not required to pay benefits, for example, social or unemployment insurance.

Service contracts outline the scope of work like labor contracts. However, instead of specifying a salary, a service contract defines a fee or fees payable for the services rendered. It typically stipulates a timeline for the project, often with key milestone targets. Other details like the location, working hours, and days off are more flexible and may not be explicitly mentioned in the contract.

See also: Vietnamese Labor Contracts: What You Need to Know

Service contracts and foreign workers

Labor laws in Vietnam require foreign workers to have a work permit to engage in employment in Vietnam. It is, however, common for firms to employ foreign workers on service contracts and make use of various visa types that allow foreigners to stay in Vietnam for prolonged periods  three-month business visas, for example.

Its important to note that service contracts should not be used to bypass work permit requirements. Both foreign workers and firms employing foreign workers on visas should be aware that using visas for purposes other than their intended use can have legal consequences if discovered.

See also: Vietnams Visas and Work Permit Procedures

Foreign contractor tax and service contracts

When a foreign entity is engaged by a company in Vietnam to provide services without physically entering Vietnam, a service contract may be used. In such cases, the foreign entity may be subject to Vietnams foreign contractor withholding tax.

Vietnams foreign contractor tax (FCT), often referred to as the withholding tax, is a tax that is applied to transactions conducted in Vietnam between a foreign company or sub-contractor and a Vietnamese company.

The FCT consists of two types of taxes: value-added tax (VAT) and either personal income tax (PIT) for individuals or corporate income tax (CIT) applicable to most foreign contractors that are registered as organizations.

See also: Vietnams Foreign Contractor Withholding Tax: Complete Guide 2023

Service contracts in the gig economy

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Platforms like Upwork or Fiverr leverage service contracts for freelancers, while food delivery services like Uber Eats or Foody.vn also operate on similar arrangements.

Even the popular ride-hailing app Grab utilizes service contracts with its drivers instead of hiring them as employees. This practice has sparked concerns regarding worker treatment and the rights and responsibilities of such organizations. Service contracts typically do not include leave entitlements or insurance coverage.

Globally, courts have handled cases related to these arrangements with varying outcomes. In Vietnam, while definitive results are yet to emerge, Grab drivers have expressed their demands for enhanced rights, and key decision-makers have shown indications of potential reforms.

It is important for foreign firms operating in Vietnams gig economy and utilizing service contracts to be mindful of the dynamic nature of the gig economy landscape in the country. This requires careful consideration and planning for their staffing requirements.

Key points of note for foreign firms

Foreign firms utilizing service contracts should be aware that these contracts may undergo audits by tax authorities, especially if there are suspicions of transfer pricing or profit shifting. To minimize the risk of audits and ensure compliance, foreign firms should ensure that their service contracts meet the following conditions:

Commercial nature: The service contract should be clearly defined as a commercial arrangement.

Clear outline: The details of the service arrangement should be clearly outlined in the contract, leaving no room for ambiguity.

Proof of service delivery: Foreign firms should maintain evidence or documentation demonstrating that the services outlined in the contract have been delivered.

Documentation and record-keeping: It is crucial to keep receipts, invoices, and any other relevant documentation readily available for inspection.

Justification for services: The service contract should include clear documentation that outlines the reasons for engaging in the specific service and its necessity.

By ensuring that these conditions are met and maintaining clear documentation, foreign firms can reduce the likelihood of issues arising during audits of their service contracts.

Getting help with service contracts in Vietnam

Service contracts offer foreign firms a flexible approach to engage individuals and can be highly advantageous. However, it is essential for firms to be aware of potential pitfalls, such as the gig economys perception of service contracts and the scrutiny they may face from tax authorities.

To ensure the correct and effective use of service contracts, as well as to mitigate legal risks, foreign firms are encouraged to seek guidance from human resources experts. Consulting with professionals can provide valuable insights and assistance in navigating the complexities of service contracts in Vietnams business landscape.
Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte fair value estimate is 2.99

With 2.50 share price, BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte appears to be trading close to its estimated fair value

BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte's peers are currently trading at a premium of 1,369% on average

Does the May share price for BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte AG (FRA:B9B) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. We will take advantage of the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model for this purpose. There's really not all that much to it, even though it might appear quite complex.

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

View our latest analysis for BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte

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 start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF (, Millions) 360.0k 390.0k 410.0k 430.0k 440.0k 446.8k 452.0k 456.0k 459.2k 461.7k Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 1.55% Est @ 1.16% Est @ 0.88% Est @ 0.69% Est @ 0.56% Present Value (, Millions) Discounted @ 5.0% 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = 3.3m

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. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (0.2%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 5.0%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = 462k (1 + 0.2%)  (5.0% 0.2%) = 9.7m

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= 9.7m ( 1 + 5.0%)10= 6.0m

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is 9.3m. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of 2.5, the company appears about fair value at a 16% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent.

dcf

The Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 5.0%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte

Strength

Debt is not viewed as a risk.

Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows.

Weakness

Earnings declined over the past year.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Beverage market.

Opportunity

Current share price is below our estimate of fair value.

Threat

No apparent threats visible for B9B.

Looking Ahead:

Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. For BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte, we've compiled three essential aspects you should explore:

Risks: You should be aware of the 5 warning signs for BHB Brauholding Bayern-Mitte (2 can't be ignored!) we've uncovered before considering an investment in the company. Future Earnings: How does B9B'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 German stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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President Joe Biden on Tuesday vetoed a congressional resolution that would have reinstated tariffs on solar panel imports from Southeast Asia, settling for now a long-running dispute over whether to punish China for trade violations that bypass U.S. rules limiting imports of cheap solar panels from Asia.

The result of Bidens veto is that a two-year delay on tariffs will continue until at least June 2024.

Lawmakers from both parties have expressed concerns about what they call unfair competition from China, which has long dominated the global market for manufacturing solar panels. Some U.S. manufacturers contend that China has essentially moved operations to four Southeast Asian countries  Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia  to skirt U.S. anti-dumping rules.

A Commerce Department inquiry last year found likely trade violations involving Chinese products and recommended steep penalties. Biden halted tariffs for two years before the Commerce investigation was completed, saying his action was needed satisfy demand for renewable energy while providing certainty" for the solar supply chain and solar installation market.

The mere threat of up to $1 billion in retroactive tariffs and higher fees led to delays or cancellations of hundreds of solar projects across the U.S. last year. Solar installations are a key part of Bidens agenda to fight climate change and achieve 100% clean electricity by 2035.

America is now on track to increase domestic solar panel manufacturing capacity eight-fold by the end of my first term,'' Biden said in his veto statement Tuesday. But that production will not come online overnight.''

A two-year pause on tariffs will provide a temporary bridge to ensure that when new U.S. factories are operational, we have a thriving solar installation industry ready to deploy American-made solar products to homes, businesses and communities across the nation,'' Biden said.

Biden said he intends to allow the tariffs to take effect when the current suspension expires in June 2024.

The U.S. industry applauded Biden's action, calling solar panel imports crucial as solar installations ramp up to meet increased demand for renewable energy. Less than 30% of solar panels and cells installed in the U.S. are produced here, although that number is increasing as U.S. manufacturers take advantage of tax credits included in the landmark climate law adopted last year.

Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, said the congressional resolution threatened up to 30,000 American jobs while weakening U.S. energy security.

The solar and storage industry must build more manufacturing capacity in America, and the two-year tariff moratorium provides a bridge for us to do just that,'' Hopper said. Curbing supply at this critical time (would) hurt American businesses and prevent us from deploying clean, reliable energy in the near-term.''

The measure on solar tariffs is among several legislative efforts being pushed by newly empowered Republicans to rebuke the Democratic president and block some of his administrations initiatives, including a rule on clean water and a measure that allows federal retirement plan managers to consider climate change in investment plans. Biden vetoed both legislative measures aimed at undoing his administration's actions.

Nine Democratic senators supported the reinstatement of solar tariffs, along with 12 Democrats in the House. Only one Republican senator and eight GOP House members voted against the tariff plan.

Rep. Jason Smith, R-Missouri, said restoring U.S. tariffs on the four Southeast Asian nations would hold China accountable while protecting U.S. jobs and workers. American manufacturers are facing unfair competition from China, which is subsidizing its panels and selling them at low prices, Smith and other lawmakers said.

"Its disgusting that Bidens actions would shield Chinese solar companies  many of which are using child and slave labor  and allow them to circumvent U.S. trade laws," said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida.

Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen, a Democrat whose state has the nations most solar jobs per capita, said reinstating the tariffs would have been disastrous for the U.S. industry. Retroactive tariffs would eliminate thousands of jobs and kill any chance we have to meet our climate goals," she said.
The Inside Story: U.S. Immigration Dilemma

Episode 92  May 18, 2023

Show Open:

Unidentified Narrator:

This week on the inside story... the U.S. immigration dilemma.



The end of a pandemic-era emergency health order.



With title 42 now gone, the worry is that a surge of migrants will overwhelm U.S. border officials ability to manage them safely and humanely.



What are lawmakers in Washington doing to address a long-troubled immigration policy?



Now... the inside story: the U.S. immigration dilemma.

Hello and welcome to The Inside Story. Im Carolyn Presutti, VOA Senior Washington Correspondent.

There is uncertainty and frustration at the U.S. Southern Border as COVID era immigration restrictions expire and migrants begin crossing into the United States.

Some are looking to find family already here...

Some are fleeing from repressive governments and looking for asylum...

Some just want to find jobs, make money and support their loved ones --- both here and back home.

Whatever the reason, the hundreds of thousands of people who cross the Southern Border from Mexico into the U.S. leave their homes behind and travel hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles to get here.

Many are willing to break the law to enter this country.

Many who want to follow the rules are confused as they look for any clear path toward starting a new life.

Title 42 was never meant to be a long-term solution for Americas troubled immigration system.

The recently expired emergency health order, used during the pandemic at the U.S.-Mexico border, allowed for rapid deportation of migrants back to their home countries.

But now what?

VOAs immigration correspondent, Aline Barros, was at the South Texas border when Title 42 expired.

ALINE BARROS, VOA Immigration Correspondent:

The future of migrants waiting in Mexico for a chance to cross into the United States is uncertain. As new immigration measures are being rolled out, questions arise.

Title 42, a pandemic era health measure, allowed for the quick expulsion of migrants back to Mexico or their home countries. Now with its ending, migrants are confused about what to do next.

The Biden administration announced new asylum restrictions. But people like Priscilla Orta, who is an immigration lawyer in Brownsville, Texas, have been crossing the border into Matamoros, Mexico, every week to explain to migrants the process theyre about to face.

Priscila Orta, Immigration Lawyer:

If you enter under any other circumstances besides the app, or just prescheduled appointment, you will not be considered eligible for asylum, which, having worked day in and day out with people who are waiting, especially here in Matamoros, that is precisely what they're seeking an opportunity to apply for asylum.

ALINE BARROS:

Orta is advising migrants to use the CBPOne app to secure an appointment and letting them know that if they cross without authorization, they will be removed immediately.

But even with the extra 1,000 appointments available on the CBPOne app, people are waiting for some time.

Neris Arruaz, Cuban Migrant:

No space, no space, no space. We are desperate. We dont know what to do.

ALINE BARROS:

Arruaz arrived in Matamoros a month ago and is still not sure when her family will be able to present themselves at a port of entry. She was an accountant in Cuba. If she crosses to the U.S., she has plans for the future.

Neris Arruaz, Cuban Migrant:

Entrepreneur and to get ahead, to get my family ahead.

ALINE BARROS:

In Brownsville, an increase in migrant arrivals is not something new.

Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr:

The reality is, youve got thousands, more than two thousand coming over every day.

ALINE BARROS:

Trevino says communities along the border are preparing for the worst but hoping for the best.

Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr.:

People keep talking about border security or implying that the border is insecure and not safe, and I would respectfully disagree with that. Just because we've had these surges in numbers of immigrants and migrants, that in and of itself has not created the border as an unsafe area. It's just created the situation that our immigration system is broken. And we've known that for more than 40 years and yet, administration or Congress after Congress continues to kick the can down saying let somebody else deal with it because they don't want to deal with the political fallout.

ALINE BARROS:

For border patrol officials, the mission is clear. Process migrants who qualify under current Asylum guidelines and quickly deport those who do not.

Fidel Baca, Border Patrol Agent:

The border is not open, OK? If you enter between the ports of entry, you're entering the country illegally. OK? And you are subject to consequences. Another thing that's going to come with Title 8 is consequences. What I mean by that is that people are going to be removed. OK? It's no longer referred to as deportation. But it's a synonym, OK. People will be deported. They will be facing deportation with a ban of re-entry of five years.

ALINE BARROS:

For those who were able to make it to the U.S. side, the journey isnt over. Rose Carillo is asking for asylum. Her immigration court appointment is scheduled for May 2024. Shes on her way to Atlanta.

Rose Carillo, Venezuela Migrant:

I hope to eventually bring my children. I miss them so much. Its so hard to be separated from my family. And theyre my only family, my mother, my three children. I have no one to help them. And I dont work, they wont eat. This is my dream. Is to have them here.

ALINE BARROS:

U.S. immigration officials are urging migrants to use the CBPone app if they plan to ask for asylum. They say the next few days will be busy.

Aline Barros, VOANEWS, Brownsville, Texas

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

Oversight groups say Title 42 allowed the U.S. to expel nearly three-million migrants in the past three years.

But even with it in place, the U.S. Southern border was at times, a chaotic mess.

The Biden administration has been criticized for the nations immigration policy. In turn, the administration is shifting the blame to Congress, urging it to upgrade immigration policies.

VOAs Anita Powell has this story from Washington.

ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:

The White House worked to address concerns that scenes like these could become the norm at the southern border with the lifting of Title 42.

President Joe Bidens top immigration official on Wednesday announced a new rule under which migrants who cross between ports of entry will quickly be removed and ineligible for asylum, except in some cases. Those who make an appointment through the CBPOne app will still be able to seek asylum protection.

Alejandro Mayorkas, Homeland Security Secretary:

If anyone arrives at our southern border after midnight tonight, they will be presumed ineligible for asylum and subject to steep consequences for unlawful entry, including a minimum five-year ban on reentry and potential criminal prosecution.

ANITA POWELL:

Biden says Congress needs to do more.

Joe Biden, US President:

I asked the Congress for a lot more money for the Border Patrol. They didn't do it. They made it harder.

ANITA POWELL:

Bidens opponents say hes not doing enough to keep Americans safe.

Rep. Joe Wilson, Republican, South Carolina:

Biden border policies jeopardize national security and endanger all American families everywhere of a terrorist attack by illegal aliens.

ANITA POWELL:

But immigration advocates say Bidens system is too tough.

Melissa Crow, Center for Gender and Refugee Studies:

This rule will only jeopardize the lives of people seeking safety and create even more chaos and suffering at our southern border. And as the administration well knows, it's also blatantly illegal. Essentially, the new rule combines and repackages two Trump-era asylum bans that President Biden himself denounced on the campaign trail, and both of which were struck down as unlawful in federal court.

ANITA POWELL:

The administration disagrees.

Alejandro Mayorkas, Homeland Security Secretary:

This president has led the unprecedented expansion of lawful pathways. We stand markedly different than the prior administration.

ANITA POWELL:

As the debate rages in Washington, there is no sign the countrys divided Congress will agree on new policies to address the number of migrants clamoring for a new life in America.

Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

Those seeking entry to the United States often get misleading sales pitches from human smugglers called coyotes.

Some immigration lawyers are fighting that misinformation by explaining the legal rights migrants have and the details of U.S. immigration law.

VOAs Arash Arabasadi has The Inside Story.

ARASH ARABASADI, VOA Correspondent:

The Biden administration has implemented new asylum restrictions affecting migrants crossing to the United States without authorization. Under the policy changes, migrants crossing between ports of entry are being quickly removed through a process known as expedited removal under the Title 8 code, which is the U.S. authority that covers immigration and nationality.

Priscilla Orta, Immigration lawyer:

I call it the 'asylum ban'-rule, because it fundamentally alters everything we've understood about asylum for the past 40 or 50 years since the law was written in the '80s.

In addition to that there do appear to be some minor exemptions if you cannot use the app. There appear to be additional consequences, but it's a long rule, and so I think for the next few days many attorneys throughout the country are going to be trying to understand it.

ARASH ARABASADI:



Those entering without authorization will also be ineligible for asylum unless they can prove they first requested protection in another country and were denied. They will also be banned from entering the U.S. for five years.

U.S. officials and immigration advocates are advising migrants to use the mobile app launched by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in October 2020, known as CBPOne, to secure an appointment to present themselves at an official port of entry, and let them know that if they cross without authorization, they will immediately be removed.

Migrants with exceptionally compelling circumstances such as an acute medical emergency, or who are victims of "a severe form of human trafficking, or who face an "imminent and extreme threat" in Mexico will not be barred under the new asylum restrictions.

Additionally, the asylum rule does not apply to unaccompanied children, or UACs. They will go through a different process. UACs are not sent back but the Department of Health and Human Services will either place them in shelters for minors or help find a family member willing to take them. UACs go through the asylum process but under the Special Immigrant Juvenile Services program.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

With the end of Title 42, advocates say people from all over the world keep coming and coming and the shelters, the camps are filling to capacity.

As numbers climb, some non-profit organizations, in the town of Reynosa, Mexico, are offering assistance for the new arrivals.

VOAs Victor Castillo is there.along the southern border in McAllen, Texas.

VICTOR CASTILLO, Reporting for VOA:

Pastor Hector Silva - who operates this shelter for immigrants in Reynosa, Mexico says that the number of people arriving at the Texas Mexico border is non-stop.

Hector Silva, Senda De Vida Shelter Director:

Every day, we have between 400 to 450 people arriving.

We have Chinese families, which surprises me a lot. How they are coming, we had a Chechen family, uh, we have Russian families, and we have families from all over the world.

VICTOR CASTILLO:

Due to the lack of space in shelters, some migrant families camp on the street.

Honduran Migrant:

If it's difficult because they (kids) ask for water, food, and you don't have it.

Honduran Migrant:

It is made of two little blankets, this one we brought from Tejuchitan, a twig that we have standing there, and well, the other rags with stones.

VICTOR CASTILLO:

Migrants lucky enough to find space in shelters cram into tents. Others have no place and stay wherever they can, sometimes in appalling conditions.

Gladys Canas, Ayudandoles a Triunfar Association:

In abandoned houses, abandoned cars, on the street, there is no place to put them, even here in the camp, also tents are already insufficient.

VICTOR CASTILLO:

In the two Senda de Vida shelters in Reynosa, the migrant population is over 8,500 people, according to organizers.

For VOA News, Victor Hugo Castillo, McAllen, Texas.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

For immigrants entering the United States, adjusting to a new culture can be daunting.

In the midst of a myriad of challenges, many struggle to find physicians and proper health care.

Mindful of this, a former Ukrainian immigrant opened a health clinic that serves patients from 45 different countries.

VOAs Svitlana Prystynska has this story from Denver, Colorado.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA, Reporting for VOA:

Ellie Titarenko knows the challenges of adjusting to life in the United States. She came to Colorado from Ukraine in 1999. Mindful of the health care obstacles many immigrants face, including language and insurance, the nurse practitioner decided to open her own clinic in suburban Denver.

Ellie Titarenko, Arvada West Family Medicine Owner:

We were learning how to do accreditation, learning how to do marketing, learning how to work with insurance companies, learning how to run a business, learning about HR [human resources]. We started with probably two people. My very first patients were my office managers children.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

Two years later, the clinic had grown to more than 4,000 patients, including Kali Caldwell and her four-year-old daughter, Kalani.

Kali Caldwell, Patient:

I am not just a patient here. I am a person, and thats what I enjoy the most in this clinic. They are always open for us. Even if it is just a sore throat, you can always get an appointment.

Doctor Ellie is nice because she treats people nice.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

The clinic has staff members from Ukraine, Mexico and Iran, and its patients hail from all over the world.

Ellie Titarenko, Arvada West Family Medicine Owner:

We take huge pride in saying that we are seeing patients from 40 plus different countries here. Every employee here who came from a different country brings part of their culture to us.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

Patient Ania Boglino came to Colorado from Poland.

Ania Boglino, Patient:

They dont just do whatever the book says. They follow their heart, and you can feel it. It is not just help with your physical body but also mental health.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

Sara Barahman moved to Denver from Tehran. She was a patient first, then started working at the clinic while studying physical therapy prerequisites at a local university.

Sara Barahman, Arvada West Family Medicine:

Patients are people here; they are not numbers. One of the first things I noticed is our wall that has a portrait of people from all over the world.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

Titarenko says the clinics main rule is to never refuse to help.

Ellie Titarenko, Arvada West Family Medicine Owner:

We will normally be seeing them no matter what their insurance status is. If they are able to pay, we will accept their payment. If they are not able to pay, we will just help them out. It is not always physical help, monetary help, medical help. Sometimes it is just knowing that you are not by yourself.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

She says it is important tolet immigrants know these first challenges do not go on forever.

Ellie Titarenko, Arvada West Family Medicine Owner:

This is just how we all started. This is a difficult beginning. Its part of it. You are going to make it through it, and it is just going to make you stronger.

SVITLANA PRYSTYNSKA:

Titarenko says she is opening a second clinic to better serve the growing immigrant community here.

Svitlana Prystynska, for VOA News, Denver, Colorado).

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

While the U.S.-Mexico border continues to grapple with the influx of migrants hoping to enter the United States, Congress is debating new policies, but Republicans and Democrats have yet to agree on sensible legislation on immigration. To help shed light on this issue, we spoke with Angela Kelley, an executive at the American Immigration Lawyers Association and American Immigration Council:

Do think title 42 should have been kept? It seemed to be working? Correct? Could it have been extended?

Angela Kelley, AILA/American Immigration Council:

It depends whose perspective you know whether it's working or not. No, no, I don't think it should have been kept. It was you know, as a public health emergency declaration of public health emergency long ago over.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

We haven't really seen that enormous surge that everyone predicted right?

Angela Kelley, AILA/American Immigration Council:

No, no, we haven't. I have to give credit to the administration for coming out with a number of policies and very clear messages that I think actually penetrated the even the smuggling network, and they made it clear to people that just because title 42 is ending does not mean that anyone is going to get to come in that there'll be consequences if you come in through channels that are not permissible by the government's policies.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

Do you think because of how strict those consequences are the five year ban on you even trying again to enter this country played a role?

Angela Kelley, AILA/American Immigration Council:

I do. I do. I think that that even though it is current law, that is not a new policy. It wasn't one that the administration had, frankly, made very clear to people. They saw the need to do that with title 42 coming down, but to give the administration credit on the other side, they also opened up legal channels, legal pathways for people, and they saw remarkable results that when they made available a possibility of coming in lawfully, that the pressure at the southern border diminished considerably. And so what it really shows is that people want to come walk away. If we create legal channels for them, they will utilize them. And so I think the balance is you know what, how many legal channels, how broad and wide can they be? This administration has got limitations on what it can do. This is where really Congress needs to step in and step up.

People who come have very really limited options in terms of their ability to stay particularly if they apply for political asylum, its a very difficult burden of proof that a person has to need in order to be able to win asylum. Now, if they don't win, and they appeal and they lose their appeal, then they are removable. They are deportable. And that'll be something that'll be interesting to keep an eye on whether we see an increase in numbers of removals and that that will be the administration's mind, create an additional deterrent for people. That is still an open question. We haven't had enough time without title 42 in place. But I do think that they're they're smart to lead with the legal channels foot and then we'll have to see what happens.

What I think we really need to be able to do and I think we can accomplish this is we have to be able to better manage migration that's coming from different countries, people for different reasons, and we have to be able to offer people a meaningful chance at humanitarian protection if they qualify, and at the same time, be able to manage our border successfully, so that people who don't qualify, unfortunately are going to have to go back. But we really do need to give people a fair chance they need to have a chance for an attorney. They need to have a chance to prepare. They need to have a chance to be sure that they're understood if they're speaking in a language that's not English, which most of the time they are. So you know if we can put those safeguards in place, if we can make it so that people have a close family member in the US and they can reunite with that person. If they have a needed skill in the US and they could come lawfully to work, then we're creating legal channels that really serve the interests of both the immigrant and the nation. I think that's going to be the goal.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

So we're talking about legal immigration and how the administration is paving the way for that. But in the meantime, that's today, there could be changes tomorrow, the day after right because of these legal challenges, one in Florida, one from the ACLU, which is major Can you explain the difference between those challenges in court?

Angela Kelley, AILA/American Immigration Council:

Sure. The Florida case a Florida judge has ordered that DHS process people at the border, not by releasing them under a provision called parole where they're permitted to come in and they have to report to an ice office in order to be able to be put in deportation proceedings. That is a quicker way of processing people. There's still an initial screening, we still know who they are. But it's not the full processing of putting them in deportation proceedings and with the with the judge's order is that DHS can't do that, that they have to do the full robust processing of people and giving them a notice to appear in court. The challenge there is that that process takes a lot longer. And so that's where we can begin to see backups and border patrol stations and people growing impatient and people deciding Well, I'm going to try to come in another way. So that's that's the concern there.

So the goal needs to be that we do a quick screening of people. Let's make sure that they're not somebody who we need to be concerned about, and that we quickly move them to where they have family who will support them who will make sure that they show up at their at their ice interview, make sure that they apply for work authorization and apply for asylum. That's we want to do is to be able to facilitate a fair and efficient process for people.

The lawsuit that's been filed by the ACLU is is not complete yet. So I think this might be where we're going to see an additional change in policy. And that lawsuit is challenging a recent Biden administration policy that is known by some as a transit ban or an asylum ban. And it says that you can't come between a port of entry that you should have applied in a country that you transited through for asylum, if you could have applied there. That's like the harsher consequence and that what the administration is trying to do is to have people apply at ports of entry.

But the real the real point of the transit rule is to try to encourage people to go to a port of entry to make an appointment with an app known as CBP one. There are 1000 appointments a day across the border, and that they come in to that orderly way. That's the administration's goal, though the weakness in that the vulnerability if you will, is that if you have a person who is fleeing persecution, who has does not speak English, and is vulnerable, because they have been persecuted, they have suffered, then they they may not have known they could have applied for asylum in another country that may not be a country where they're safe. And we know that conditions in northern Mexico unfortunately are very dangerous. So the concern is that we're going to be in an effort to like send this tough message, we're going to be turning our back on people who are truly vulnerable.

CAROLYN PRESUTTI:

Thats all for nowwe hope you found todays program informative and thought provoking.

Stay up to date with all the news at VOANews.com.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.

Follow me on Twitter at CarolynVOA

Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.

For all of those behind the scenes who brought you todays show, Im Carolyn Presutti.

Well see you next week for The Inside Story.

###


Analysts say U.S. President Joe Bidens decision to postpone a trip to Australia is a major blow to Canberra. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will still make the trip to Australia next week, even though the Quad leaders' summit at the Sydney Opera House has been canceled.

The White House says U.S. President Joe Biden has postponed his planned trip to Australia because of domestic debt ceiling negotiations.

Biden will, however, travel to Japan for a meeting of the Group of Seven major industrialized nations, which Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will also attend, along with Japans Fumio Kishida and India's Narendra Modi.

Albanese told reporters Wednesday that the leaders of the Quad security dialogue, including the United States, Australia, Japan and India, will meet for talks on the sidelines of the G-7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

President Biden, though, indicated that he was very much looking forward to coming down at a future date when it can be arranged and I will visit the United States for a state visit later this year. All four leaders; President Biden, Prime Minister Kishida, Prime Minister Modi and myself will be at the G-7 head in Hiroshima, he said.

The Quad summit in Sydney was to have been the first to be held in Australia.

It has now been postponed indefinitely. Analysts say the cancellation harms the groupings ambitions to be an influential alternative to China. They also insist it damages the reputation of the United States as a reliable ally at a time when strategic competition with China in the Indo-Pacific region is intensifying.

Ian Hall is a professor of International Relations at the Griffith Asia Institute at Griffith University. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. cancellation of the summit will harm the Quads reputation.

The Quads work is going on. Officials are beavering away on Quad business all the time. But these kinds of focal points, these sorts of summits are important. They are good for, kind of, articulating what the Quad is all about, what the Quad is going to do, what its intentions are. In that sense, not having this summit I think is problematic, or at least postponing this summit is problematic, he said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains committed to traveling to Australia next week for his first trip since 2014, but his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida is reportedly unlikely to travel.

Biden has also abandoned plans for a historic visit to Papua New Guinea, where he would have signed a security accord with Prime Minister James Marape.

Beijing has been critical of the Quad grouping, describing it as an exclusive clique.

However, despite Australia's enthusiasm for the four-nation alliance, there are signs its recent trade and diplomatic tensions with China are continuing to ease.

Also, Chinas ambassador to Canberra, Xiao Qian, said Thursday that Beijing will resume imports of Australian timber.
Some analysts in the Middle East argue that concerns over Chinas rapid military modernization and technology competition are pulling Washingtons attention away from the Mideast region. While the United States may not be the only global player in the region, others say its retreat from the Middle East is a myth.

Analysts see security and energy issues, Israel, and Irans nuclear threat as key issues for U.S. policy in the Middle East. As James Phillips of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation and others see it, Washington is pressing regional allies to assume more responsibility for their own defense. Nervous Arab Gulf states are hedging and cultivating closer ties to China and Russia; Iran and Turkey are absorbing parts of Iraq and Syria, two [practically] failed states, he told GIS reports.

Jennifer Kavanagh, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says that while U.S. security presence is lower than it was at the height of the Iraq war, there are some 30,000 to 40,000 U.S. troops in the region, dozens of bases, including several large military facilities, pre-positioned stocks, and security force assistance is extensive in the region. She told a Carnegie seminar that about 54% of arms sales to Middle East come from the U.S.

The U.S. hasnt pulled back entirely from its more diplomatic role. There are new security alignments," said Kavanagh. One of the biggest changes is that Russia and China are playing a bigger role. Its less about a withdrawal of the United States and more about a shift in relative power. The U.S. is currently putting more force in the region. In some dimensions, they are actually doing more.

Kavanagh says Chinas conventional military presence in the Middle East is very small, while its economic activities are huge. Russia has a historic military presence in Syria, but it cant deliver on weapons deals given its war in Ukraine.

Frederic Wehrey, also a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the seminar that although China has a reach and influence in the region, it shouldnt be blown out of proportion.

China and Russia do offer something to the regions states. This is supplementing, not supplanting the U.S. role," Wehrey said. "Can these outside powers really offer the sorts of security guarantees for their partners defense that the U.S. has provided? The answer is no. They dont have the capability or the will. Chinas agreements are non-binding. The U.S. is still fulfilling that primary security role.

Other observers like F. Gregory Gause, chair of international relations at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, has argued that the debate on U.S. policy in the Middle East needs to move away from abstractions like commitment versus withdrawal and engage with the real questions of just what interests in the Middle East justify the presence of U.S. military force and what threats justify its use.

That notion becomes more relevant as Gulf Arab states work out their rapprochement with arch-foe Iran in a newly brokered Chinese deal.
U.S. President Joe Biden has canceled a historic visit to Papua New Guinea, where he was to meet with Pacific Island leaders, choosing instead to focus on crucial debt-ceiling negotiations in Washington. Biden's meeting with the leaders of India, Australia and Japan in Sydney has also been scrapped. VOA's Jessica Stone looks at what this means for U.S. engagement in the region at a time when China is increasingly exerting its influence.
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived Thursday evening in Japan for a summit of leaders of the Group of Seven richest democracies, that will focus on countering what they have billed as Chinas economic coercion, growing assertiveness and military buildup, as well as supporting Ukraine in its battle against a Russian invasion.

Shortly after landing at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Biden greeted a group of about 400 U.S. and Japanese troops before heading to Hiroshima, the site of the G-7 talks, for a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Biden told Kishida that the United States and Japan stand up for shared values, including supporting Ukraine and holding Russia accountable for its war of aggression.

The bottom line, Mr. Prime Minister, is that when our countries stand together, we stand stronger. And I believe the whole world is safer when we do, Biden said.

The summit kicks off Friday. Prior to their meetings, Biden and Kishida will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, with other G-7 leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union. A group of nonmembers have also been invited as part of Kishidas effort to engage with the Global South. Those nations include Australia, Brazil, Comoros, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Ukraine and Vietnam.

White House officials said Biden will not be apologizing for the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that killed at least 130,000 and 60,000 people respectively.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Japan, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there will be discussions about the battlefield in Ukraine and on the state of play on sanctions and the steps that the G-7 will collectively commit to on enforcement.

Bidens trip has been truncated to accommodate his negotiations with Congressional leaders over raising the U.S. debt ceiling to prevent the country from defaulting on its obligations. On Sunday, instead of continuing to Sydney for the Quad summit with a brief stop in Papua New Guinea to meet Pacific Island leaders, Biden will return to Washington.

Nuclear nonproliferation

Hiroshima, a major city on the southern end of Japans main island Honshu, is also Kishidas hometown. The city was destroyed by the atomic bomb during World War II, making it a symbolic choice for the summit. The setting is also intended to underscore the Japanese leaders focus on nuclear nonproliferation amid geopolitical rivalries over Ukraine between nuclear powers U.S. and Russia, and the threat of nuclear weapons from North Korea and Iran.

Biden reaffirmed to Kishida, U.S. extended deterrence commitments using the full range of U.S. capabilities  similar language to the recently signed Washington Declaration between the U.S. and South Korea that reinforces Washingtons nuclear umbrella to deter attacks from Pyongyang.

Observers will be watching whether at least some elements of the Washington Declaration will be extended to Japan. A trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the summit has been scheduled but not yet confirmed, amid warming ties between the two U.S. allies whose relations have been marked by animosity stemming from centuries of acrimonious history culminating in the brutal 1910-1945 Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula.

The Biden administrations 2022 Nuclear Posture Review includes a statement that a nuclear attack against the United States or its allies and partners is unacceptable and will result in the end of the perpetrator.

Chris Hannas contributed to this report.
In Cameroon, thousands of people are demonstrating this week, calling for peace and reconciliation ahead of National Day on May 20. Peace caravans led by activists, clerics and traditional rulers are calling for an end to hate speech and the separatist conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people in Cameroon since 2017.

A band of youths leads several hundred Cameroonians in protests against hate speech in the capital, Yaounde, on Thursday. The protesters are also calling for peace and reconciliation in the central African state.

Organizers say the protests began in towns and villages across Cameroon on Monday ahead of the country's National Day on May 20.

Thousands of Christians from Cameroons Catholic, Presbyterian and Baptist churches joined the protest in Yaounde Thursday.

Reverend Father Humphrey Tatah Mbui is the director of communications at the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon. He said Christians cannot be indifferent at a time when increasing hate speech and xenophobic statements are creating conflicts and damaging Cameroon's image.

"It is wickedness and the type of hate speech that destroys the country. If we want peace in this country we must learn to start controlling the kind of words we use, the way we talk to other people and dialogue," he said.

Mbui said clashes between communities increased in Cameroon after the disputed 2018 presidential election in which President Paul Biya was declared the winner. Opposition leader Maurice Kamto also claimed victory.

In addition, some French-speaking host communities accuse English speakers displaced by the separatist conflict in the west of being separatist fighters or sympathizers.

The tension goes the other way, too. Earlier this month, a human rights group said scores of French speaking civilians in English-speaking regions were victims of hate speech.

Meanwhile, Cameroon's National Communication Council issued over two dozen warnings last year to radio and TV stations the NCC says hosted guests who promoted hate speech.

Cameroon's communication minister, Rene Emmanuel Sadi, said civilians are also increasingly using social media to vilify and humiliate people, or to incite hatred and call for violence against people of different religions, languages, ethnic groups and gender.

Sadi said all social strata in Cameroon suffer the consequences of hate speech fanned by some civil society groups, intellectuals, politicians, activists and social influencers. He said the most common manifestations of hate speech in Cameroon include ethnic and social discrimination, stigmatization, tribalism, irredentist claims, calls for insurgency and sometimes genocide, gender violence and violence against minorities.

Sadi said the Cameroon government is fighting hate speech as a priorty to safeguard democracy and the rule of law and to preserve the values of peace, unity and living together.

The government says President Biya wants Cameroonians to show love for their country as they celebrate National Day on Saturday. Biya will preside over celebrations in Yaounde.

In 2021, the International Crisis Group warned in a report that social media platforms, especially Facebook, were increasingly being used by Cameroonian youths to heighten political and ethnic tensions.
Canada called for foreign help Wednesday to combat wildfires burning out of control and spreading across vast swathes of the western half of the country.

The fires that have devastated the oil-producing Alberta province have in recent days spread to neighboring British Columbia and Saskatchewan as well as the Northwest Territories.

Some 2,500 firefighters from across Canada backed by 400 military personnel have been deployed across Alberta to try to tame the wildfires, which have already burned more than half a million hectares of forests and grasslands and destroyed many homes and businesses.

But they aren't enough, officials said.

"It's still a very significant and dangerous situation in Alberta," federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Blair said the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center "is reaching out to foreign countries  the United States, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand... We're asking them to come and help us."

Smokey skies

Smoke from the wildfires has blanketed western Canada, leading to warnings about poor air quality posing risks to health.

In Calgary, the sky had an orange hue to it as the smoke grew thicker throughout the day.

Hundreds of kilometers to the east, residents of Regina and Saskatoon in neighboring Saskatchewan province said they woke up to a thick haze and a strong smell of smoke in the air.

Across the region, almost 180 wildfires were burning  including 48 out of control  forcing tens of thousands to flee over the past two weeks.

Evacuation orders and alerts were lifted in some parts on Tuesday and Wednesday, including hard-hit Drayton Valley west of Edmonton in Alberta and Fort St. John in British Columbia, as those fires were subdued.

Air quality indexes in several cities, however, indicated wildfire smoke that spread from the Pacific Coast to Manitoba province still poses a "very high risk" to health.

Floods, slides, fires

In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.

This has brought floods and mudslides, forest fires that destroyed an entire town, and record-high summer temperatures that killed more than 500 people in 2021.

This spring's mostly hot, dry weather has resulted in what Alberta leader Danielle Smith described as an "unprecedented" crisis.

As evacuees trickled back to Drayton Valley, local fire Chief Tom Thomson urged caution.

"There are still extremely hazardous areas... There are concerns about falling trees. There are concerns about ash pits," he told a news conference.

"We do still have fire crews actively working on the fire," he added, warning people to remain vigilant.
A Chinese envoy is in Kyiv to discuss a peace plan, The G7 meets in Japan with Russias invasion of Ukraine high on the agenda. A look at Russian missile attacks and why theyve not been able to achieve their goals. Plus we meet some Russian tourists in Egypt.
Key Insights

The projected fair value for MPH Health Care is 13.10 based on Dividend Discount Model

With 15.70 share price, MPH Health Care appears to be trading close to its estimated fair value

The average discount for MPH Health Care's competitorsis currently 50%

Does the May share price for MPH Health Care AG (FRA:93M1) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. There's really not all that much to it, even though it might appear quite complex.

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

See our latest analysis for MPH Health Care

Crunching The Numbers

As MPH Health Care operates in the pharmaceuticals sector, we need to calculate the intrinsic value slightly differently. In this approach dividends per share (DPS) are used, as free cash flow is difficult to estimate and often not reported by analysts. Unless a company pays out the majority of its FCF as a dividend, this method will typically underestimate the value of the stock. The 'Gordon Growth Model' is used, which simply assumes that dividend payments will continue to increase at a sustainable growth rate forever. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a company's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In this case we used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (0.2%). The expected dividend per share is then discounted to today's value at a cost of equity of 5.0%. Relative to the current share price of 15.7, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. 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.

Value Per Share = Expected Dividend Per Share / (Discount Rate - Perpetual Growth Rate)

= 1.6 / (5.0%  0.2%)

= 13.1

dcf

The Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at MPH Health Care as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 5.0%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for MPH Health Care

Strength

Debt is well covered by earnings.

Weakness

Current share price is above our estimate of fair value.

Opportunity

Forecast to reduce losses next year.

Has sufficient cash runway for more than 3 years based on current free cash flows.

Threat

Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.

Next Steps:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For MPH Health Care, we've compiled three important elements you should further research:

Risks: As an example, we've found 4 warning signs for MPH Health Care (2 are a bit concerning!) that you need to consider before investing here. Future Earnings: How does 93M1'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 German stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Several ships and aircraft searched Wednesday for 39 people reported missing after a Chinese fishing boat capsized in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the accident happened around 3 a.m. Tuesday. The report said the crew included 17 people from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats abroad, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

"All-out efforts" must be made in the rescue operation, Xi was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua News Agency. Li ordered unspecified measures to "reduce casualties and strengthen safety management of fishing vessels at sea to ensure safe maritime transport and production," Xinhua said.

No word was given on the cause of the capsizing.

Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines also expressed their willingness to join in the search. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency said the capsizing occurred about 4,600 kilometers northwest of Australia.

Several ships and an Australian Defense Force P-8A Poseidon aircraft have been searching the area. The Indian Ocean stretches from South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula to east Africa and western Australia. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The Philippine Coast Guard Command Center said Wednesday that it was monitoring the situation and coordinating with the Chinese Embassy in Manila, as well as search and rescue teams operating near the vessel's last known location.

Remote area

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said it was coordinating the search in what it called a remote location in the Indian Ocean, about 5,000 kilometers northwest of the coastal city of Perth. It said the agency received a distress beacon signal from the fishing vessel about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, Australian time, and that weather in the area Tuesday was extreme but had improved by Wednesday.

Along the Bay of Bengal at the Indian Ocean's northern end, Myanmar and Bangladesh were undergoing recovery from a powerful cyclone that smashed into their coastlines, causing widespread destruction and at least 21 deaths, with hundreds of others believed missing.

Merchant and fishing vessels in the area were also searching for survivors on Wednesday.

A Perth-based Challenger rescue aircraft will drop a buoy to help with drift modelling to further assist in the search, the agency said.

The capsized hull was spotted and the transmitter detected more than 1,000 kilometers south of Sri Lanka, with nearest port appearing to be the island chain of the Maldives, about 500 kilometers to the north of the search area.

The Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong, operated by the Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd., according to the reports. Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, was operating near to the upturned hull and was asked to conduct a grid search for survivors, according to the Indonesian agency.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said additional rescue assets were on their way to the scene.

"We will continue to take all measures possible with all parties to search and rescue the missing persons. The Chinese side thanks the Australian maritime search and rescue department for promptly dispatching aircraft and coordinating passing foreign ships to participate in the search and rescue," Wang told reporters at a daily briefing Wednesday.

China is believed to operate the world's largest fishing fleet. Many of them stay at sea for months or even years at a time, supported by Chinese state maritime security agencies and a sprawling network of support vessels.
Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. went up slightly last year after two big leaps during the pandemic.

Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the numbers plateaued for most of last year. Experts aren't sure whether that means the deadliest drug overdose epidemic in U.S. history is finally reaching a peak, or whether it'll look like previous plateaus that were followed by new surges in deaths.

"The fact that it does seem to be flattening out, at least at a national level, is encouraging," said Katherine Keyes, a Columbia University epidemiology professor whose research focuses on drug use. "But these numbers are still extraordinarily high. We shouldn't suggest the crisis is in any way over."

An estimated 109,680 overdose deaths occurred last year, according to numbers posted Wednesday by the CDC. That's about 2% more than the 107,622 U.S. overdose deaths in 2021, but nothing like the 30% increase seen in 2020, and 15% increase in 2021.

While the overall national number was relatively static between 2021 and 2022, there were dramatic changes in a number of states: 23 reported fewer overdose deaths, one  Iowa  saw no change, and the rest continued to increase.

Eight states  Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia  reported sizable overdose death decreases of about 100 or more compared with the previous calendar year.

Some of these states had some of the highest overdose death rates during the epidemic, which Keyes said might be a sign that years of concentrated work to address the problem is paying off. State officials cited various factors for the decline, like social media and health education campaigns to warn the public about the dangers of drug use; expanded addiction treatment  including telehealth  and wider distribution of the overdose-reversing medication naloxone.

Plus, the stigma that kept drug users from seeking help  and some doctors and police officers from helping them  is waning, said Dr. Joseph Kanter, the state health officer for Louisiana, where overdose deaths fell 4% last year.

"We're catching up and the tide's turning  slowly," said Kanter, whose state has one of the nation's highest overdose death rates.

Beginning in the mid-1990s, abuse of prescription opioid painkillers was to blame for deaths before a gradual turn to heroin, which in 2015 caused more deaths than prescription painkillers or other drugs. A year later, the more lethal fentanyl and its close cousins became the biggest drug killer.

Last year, most overdose deaths continued to be linked to fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. About 75,000, up 4% from the year before. There also was an 11% increase in deaths involving cocaine and a 3% increase in deaths involving meth and other stimulants.

Overdose deaths are often attributed to more than one drug; some people take multiple drugs and officials say inexpensive fentanyl is increasingly cut into other drugs, often without the buyers' knowledge.

Research from Dr. Daniel Ciccarone, a drug policy expert at the University of California, San Francisco, suggests "there appears to be some substitution going on," with a number of people who use illicit drugs turning to methamphetamines or other options to try to stay away from fentanyl and fentanyl-tainted drugs.

Ciccarone said he believes overdose deaths finally will trend down. He cited improvements in innovations in counseling and addiction treatment, better availability of naloxone and legal actions that led to more than $50 billion in proposed and finalized settlements  money that should be available to bolster overdose prevention.

"We've thrown a lot at this 20-year opioid overdose problem," he said. "We should be bending the curve downward."

But he also voiced some caution, saying "we have been here before."

Consider 2018, when overdose deaths dropped 4% from the previous year, to about 67,000. After those numbers came out, then-President Donald Trump declared "we are curbing the opioid epidemic."

But overdose deaths then rose to a record 71,000 in 2019, then soared during the COVID-19 pandemic to 92,000 in 2020 and 107,000 in 2021.

Lockdowns and other pandemic-era restrictions isolated people with drug addictions and made treatment harder to get, experts said.

Keyes believes that 2022's numbers didn't get any worse partly because isolation eased as the pandemic ebbed. But there may be issues ahead, others say, like increased detection of veterinary tranquilizer xylazine in the illicit drug supply and proposals to scale back things like prescribing addiction medications through telehealth.

"What the past 20 years of this overdose crisis has taught us is that this really is a moving target," Keyes said. "And when you think you've got a handle on it, sometimes the problem can shift in new and different ways."
Eleven villagers in southern Chad have been killed by "bandits," in a region troubled by violence between herders and sedentary farmers, the military said on Thursday.

The attack occurred on Wednesday, coinciding with an announcement by Chad that it had joined with neighboring Central African Republic (CAR) in an unprecedented crackdown.

"Armed bandit cattle rustlers attacked the village of Mankade in Laramanaye district, killing 11 villagers and making off with their cattle," Defense Minister Daoud Yaya Ibrahim told AFP.

"The security forces pursued them, killing seven bandits and capturing eight others," he said, adding that the stolen cattle had been recovered.

The incident occurred in the far south of the vast Sahel country, around 60 kilometers (40 miles) from the frontier with CAR.

Laramanaye's deputy prefect, Djimet Blama Souck, told AFP that 12 villagers, including women and children, had been killed.

On May 8, 17 villagers in the region died in a similar attack, which the Chadian army blamed on Chadian "bandits" who had crossed from the CAR.

On Wednesday, the defense minister told AFP that his troops last week had pursued the assailants across the border, and working with the CAR army had killed around a dozen of them.

That operation is now over, he said on Thursday, adding that "dozens of thieves were killed," and the Chadian forces had returned home with 30 prisoners and 130 stolen cattle.

The assertion could not be verified independently in this remote area, and it has not been confirmed by the CAR government, which on Wednesday said only that a "consultation mission" from both countries' armies had met "in order to calm the situation."

Ties between the CAR and Chad, two of the poorest and most troubled countries in the world, have often been tense.

Relations have been marked by mutual accusations that the other country is harboring armed rebels.

The fertile border areas of Chad, Cameroon and CAR have been gripped by confrontation between predominantly Muslim nomadic herders and sedentary farmers who are typically Christian or animist.

Tensions are historically rooted in rivalry over land.

The farmers often accuse the herders of letting their cattle trample their crops and eat them, while the herders say they have the traditional right to graze there.
Arab heads of state are slated to attend Friday's Arab League summit in the Saudi Red Sea resort town of Jeddah, including the president of Syria for the first time in over a dozen years. The crises in Syria and Sudan are expected to be major topics of discussion at the meeting.

Arab leaders began arriving in Jeddah Thursday in the lead-up to Friday's 32nd annual Arab summit, due to be hosted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.

Among those expected to be present is Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who has not attended an Arab League summit since 2010, the year before the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.

Arab League foreign ministers restored Syria's membership in the body at a meeting in Cairo earlier this month.

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal al-Miqdad told journalists in Jeddah Wednesday that Syria is a key player in the Arab League.

He said that Syria welcomes any Arab efforts to resolve the conflict in his country and that Damascus must not be absent from any Arab summit meeting.

Arab League Deputy Head Hossam Zaki told Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV that Friday's summit would discuss the return of Syrian refugees to their country and the rebuilding of Syria, But he said the latter question was not "an easy issue to resolve, given the sanctions that Western countries have placed on Damascus."

Zaki also noted that the Arab peace initiative with Israel, which dates back to 2002, remains unchanged from its original formulation."

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan welcomed Syria's return to the Arab League in remarks Wednesday, saying that Syria's participation in Arab decision-making will be a key factor in resolving many thorny issues going forward.

He said that the world today is facing serious problems and threats, and that it is important that Arab states unite to address those challenges together in unison and do more to join ranks to make the region safe and secure.

Khattar Abou Diab, who teaches political science at the University of Paris, told VOA that the summit will showcase both the Saudi crown prince and the Syrian president.

He said that this year's summit is meant to confirm Mohammed Bin Salman's leadership position in the Arab world and to show that he is able to bring Arab leaders together in a symbolic or colorful way, while Syrias Assad is more of a divisive figure.

Abou Diab also noted that, according to Jordan's foreign minister, the summit will conclude with a call for Syria to take back political refugees and get a handle on drug smuggling from its territory to other Arab states, in exchange for Arab financial support.

Arab League head Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the conflict in Sudan is also on the agenda of Fridays summit, adding that bringing some semblance of peace back to the country is a top goal of Arab leaders.

He said that Sudan is a strategic Arab country and that the igniting of a military conflict in the cities and streets of Sudan in such a sad way has pained the hearts of most Arabs and that the summit will try to restore calm to the country to allow the pursuit of political dialogue.

Saudi-sponsored peace talks between Sudans warring sides have taken place in Jeddah in recent days, so far without any reported progress.
International business consultancies operating in China that provide economic data to potential investors appear to be headed into a period of greater scrutiny as of July 1, when a revised espionage law expands the list of activities Beijing considers spying.

The consultancies assist companies and individuals seeking profit from the world's second-largest economy by doing deep background reports before money flows into China. And while China's economic policymakers advocated in March for more foreign investment to restore an economy stalled by Beijing's draconian COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, that position runs counter to President Xi Jinping's national security concerns.

Capvision, with headquarters in Shanghai and New York, is the latest company to run afoul of the current law and Beijing's contradictory messages, when officers from the Ministry of State Security raided its offices in Shanghai, Beijing and other Chinese cities on May 8. The incursion was part of an ongoing crackdown on foreign businesses such as Bain & Company, raided in April, and the Mintz Group, closed in March.

Capvision, which has more than 1,000 clients worldwide, "became an accomplice of foreign intelligence agencies," according to China Central TV, the country's largest official TV channel, by gathering information in key industries including military defense, finance and monetary policy, high technology, energy resources, medicine and health.

A day later, the company said in a statement, "The punishment and rectification requirements of the national security authorities are  a wake-up call for the standardized development of the business consulting industry."

A source from a global corporate advisory firm in Shanghai, who asked for anonymity to avoid attracting official attention, told VOA Mandarin, "There is currently a sense of unease across the consulting industry.  But the situation is still evolving and it's not clear how deep the crackdown will be.  Some companies may choose to over-comply with the law, so as to minimize the chance of their work being construed as espionage or endangering national interests."

Road-use data

Dennis Kwok, a former pro-democratic lawmaker expelled from Hong Kong, is now a partner with New York law firm Elliott Kwok Levine & Jaroslaw representing international businesses and advising on cross-border commercial transactions involving the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong.

Kwok told VOA Mandarin on Monday that Beijing began scrutinizing what it considered sensitive information headed overseas in June 2021 when China's leading online ride-sharing company, Didi Global, listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Days later, Chinese regulators launched an investigation of Didi's handling of customer data, amid official concern that sensitive information on topics such as road use would flow into the hands of the U.S. government or regulators, according to Kwok.

In December, Didi announced it would withdraw from the NYSE to pursue a Hong Kong listing. Reuters reported that Chinese regulators had pressed Didi's top executives to delist from the NYSE because of concerns about data security.

'Obsessed' with security

Kwok told VOA Mandarin that totalitarian states like China are "obsessed" with national security and regard anything to do with national interests as national security.

In December 2017, Xi made it clear during a speech at the signing of training regulations for the People's Liberation Army that China's information was a national security issue and he wanted to win the information war with the outside world. At the time, China's national security law, implemented in July 2015, already included at least 15 topics within the scope of state secrets and national security control. These included national defense, economy, finance, space, information and food security.

In April, China updated its law, and the expanded version takes effect July 1 in ways that appear likely to further restrict the information consultants can collect.

"This is China's attempt to set a red line that people won't dare to cross, but the problem is that this new law is so tough, detailed and broad that you can't possibly follow it," Kwok said. "The authorities know that, but they don't care if you can comply with the law. They only care that there are legal mechanisms to prosecute those who break the law."

Kwok believes that Beijing's crackdown will expand to target U.S. auditors and law firms operating in China. In February, The Guardian, citing Bloomberg, reported that the Chinese government wanted state-owned companies to protect their data by using local or Hong Kong auditors.

Dancing a dance

CY Huang, a veteran Taipei-based investment banker and president of FCC Partners, told VOA Mandarin that Beijing's expansion of its counterespionage law is little more than another step in the geopolitical dance of the U.S. and China.

He said Washington and Beijing have similar patterns when they accuse businesses of threatening national security.

Huang told VOA Mandarin by phone on May 12 that China is countering "the U.S. with counterespionage laws and by overhauling consulting firms" following Washington's imposition of controls on exports of advanced semiconductor chips and equipment to China.

He said Beijing is not worried that foreign investors will be scared off when the counterespionage law takes effect in July.

"China's market is huge and still has tremendous business opportunities to attract foreign investment," he said.

Huang said the Chinese authorities are relatively tolerant of foreign companies and will not force them to rectify perceived violations as strictly as they did Chinese companies such as internet giants Ant Group in 2020 and Tencent Corp. in 2021.

He added, "The very strong message is: Pay attention, everyone. It's fine you do proper commercial due diligence, but you cannot do too much; there is a red line, you cannot touch national security. What exactly is national security? This is for everyone to judge by themselves."

Bo Gu contributed to this report.
China is hosting its first in-person summit with Central Asian leaders starting one day before the Group of Seven nations convenes for its annual summit in Japan.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to promote economic engagement and increased security ties with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan during talks Thursday and Friday in Chinas western city Xian.

Beijings first summit with those nations last year, held virtually, came as China continued to build out its Belt and Road Initiative, a massive investment in infrastructure aimed at boosting international trade and energy links.

Regional countries are interested in greater access to Chinese markets, and Beijing is seeking to boost its security and political ties.

US interests in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan

In Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which have been Americas strategic partners for two decades, Washington also has strong interests in building ties.

Earlier this year U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the capitals of both nations to promote investment and urge political reforms.

Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, 65, and Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, 69, have pledged to transform their countries through substantial reforms, which Washington has encouraged.

In Astana on Feb. 28, Blinken said, We look forward to seeing the additional concrete steps Kazakhstan will take to realize that agenda  expanding public participation in the political process, increasing government accountability, curbing corruption  and protecting human rights."

He noted that American businesses have injected more than $50 billion into the Kazakh economy since 1991 when, like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan became independent with the breakup of the Soviet Union.

On March 1 in Tashkent, Blinken said the U.S. wants to see full implementation of Mirziyoyevs programs, stressing fundamental rights and assistance. He reiterated that America was making investments in the region that empower people to shape their own future.

Veteran U.S. diplomat George Krol, who served as ambassador to both countries, argues that the U.S. should not demand what he calls textbook democracy from these or other nations, given the difficulties some parts of the region have gone through.

I don't think they want to give political power to turn it over for unknown consequences, Krol told VOA in an interview.

With neighbors such as China and Russia and the perception that democratic systems are not secure, they look at Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan or Pakistan  [and] they don't want to follow.

Krol, who is with Harvard Universitys Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies and an adjunct professor at the U.S. Naval War College, says Uzbek and Kazakh leaders have demonstrated they want to grant as much freedom as feasible without losing control.

It wouldn't pass the test of democracy in the eyes of political scientists or organizations in Europe and the United States. But in the context of Central Asia, it is different, he said.

Neither regime tolerates opposition or political pluralism. All registered parties support the presidents without questioning their policies. Striving for some diversity of opinion may be a significant success, Krol suggests, asserting that the establishments in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan still question the idea of opposition.

They fear that nationalist and extremist groups may rise along with those promoting hostilities toward Russia and China among others.

Following constitutional reforms last year, Tokayev was reelected for a new term of seven years. Mirziyoyev is following the same path, gearing up for snap elections on July 9, as allowed by the countrys constitution approved in an April 30 referendum.

Krol is not surprised these leaders, byproducts of the Soviet mentality, cling to power. As a diplomat in Belarus in 1994, he observed the election of Alexander Lukashenko, who is still running the country.

It's very hard to see that changing because these systems don't produce leaders where they come out of a political milieu, Krol said. They are not selected by [free and fair] election.

Central Asia suffers from concentrated nepotism. During Nursultan Nazarbayev's three-decade rule in Kazakhstan, his offspring controlled the oil-rich country. In Uzbekistan, former strongman Islam Karimovs eldest daughter Gulnara Karimova has been in prison on charges of organized crime and extortion since 2014.

Krol, who watched Nazarbayevs and Karimovs scandals up close, points out that Mirziyoyevs eldest daughter Saida Mirziyoyeva is emerging as a key political figure, working in her fathers administration and representing him internationally. Senior U.S. diplomats have met Mirziyoyeva in Washington and Tashkent, acknowledging her relevance and influence. While Tokayevs family is out of sight for now, the Uzbek leaders family members, including his sons-in-law, surround him in various roles.

Krol doubts the U.S. is truly optimistic that things would change in these countries but sees the Biden administration doing lip service  making all the sounds you would expect.

Meanwhile, the Uzbek president says fighting corruption is a priority, renewing promises regarding the rule of law and judicial independence.

At the annual meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in that Uzbekistan hosted in Samarkand on May 17, Mirziyoyev claimed that "the fundamental reforms that we began six years ago have completely changed the image of our country."

Listing the successes of this government, such as eradicating forced labor and child labor, and integrating with neighbors to enhance stability and regional connectivity, he declared that international support has been key in implementing reforms and achieving results.
Heavy air strikes pounded southern areas of Sudan's capital on Thursday as clashes flared near a military camp, witnesses said, in fighting that has displaced nearly 1 million people and left residents of Khartoum struggling to survive.

Airstrikes by the army targeting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were heard across several residential neighborhoods in southern Khartoum, including near the Taiba camp, while a police reserve force aligned with the army battled the RSF on the ground, the witnesses said.

The army has mainly used air power and heavy artillery as it tries to drive back the RSF, which spread out across large areas of Khartoum and its adjoining cities of Bahri and Omdurman across the Nile after fighting erupted on April 15.

"The bombardment and the clashes don't stop and there's no way to flee from our homes. All our money is gone," said Salah el-Din Othman, a 35-year-old resident of Khartoum.

"Even if we leave our houses again we're afraid that gangs will loot everything in the house  we are living a nightmare of fear and poverty."

Violence has also flared in Darfur in western Sudan and in North Kordofan State, and other parts of the country, but the power struggle has been focused on the capital.

Both army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, are thought to have remained in Khartoum throughout the fighting.

On Wednesday the army released a video showing Burhan dressed in army fatigues greeting troops at what appeared to be the army headquarters in central Khartoum.

Aid supplies looted

According to latest estimates, more than 840,000 people have been displaced within Sudan and over 220,000 have fled to neighboring countries.

The U.N. World Food Program said it was ramping up its operations across at least six states in Sudan to assist 4.9 million vulnerable people, as well as assisting those fleeing to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan.

"The fighting in Sudan is devastating lives and livelihoods and forcing people to flee their homes with nothing but the clothes they are wearing," WFP East Africa director Michael Dunford said in a statement.

The U.N. said on Wednesday that more than half of Sudan's 46 million population needed humanitarian assistance and protection, launching a $3 billion aid appeal. It also said it had received reports of "horrific gender-based violence" in Sudan.

The aid effort has been hampered by the deaths of some humanitarian workers early in the conflict and repeated cases of looting.

Medical aid agency MSF said that on Tuesday armed men had broken into its warehouse in Khartoum and taken two cars filled with supplies.

Burhan and Hemedti took the top positions on Sudan's ruling council following the 2019 overthrow of strongman Omar al-Bashir in a popular uprising. They staged a coup two years later as a deadline to hand power to civilians approached and they began to mobilize their respective forces.

The latest conflict broke out after disputes over plans for the RSF to join the army and over the future chain of command under an internationally backed deal for a political transition towards civilian rule.

Talks mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia in Jeddah have so far failed to secure a ceasefire.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads to Papua New Guinea later this week for a visit aimed at shoring up Indias outreach to Pacific Island countries, with an eye on countering Chinas growing footprint in the Pacific.

The first visit by an Indian prime minister to the largest of the Pacific Island nations comes as New Delhis hostilities with Beijing have prompted it to work more closely with countries such as the United States, Japan and Australia in the Indo-Pacific region.

Modi will stop in Papua New Guinea capital Port Moresby on the second leg of a three-nation tour during which he will first attend the Group of Seven summit in Japan and then go on to Australia.

On May 22, Modi and Papua New Guinean Prime Minister James Marape will host the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation, a grouping of India and 14 Pacific Island countries.

The summit, which is being held eight years after India hosted the last one in 2015, could give fresh momentum to New Delhis bid to establish a presence in the Pacific Island countries. India began its outreach in 2014, but it has been slow to get off the ground.

Those places are very strategic if you want to make a naval base or a friendly port or friendly airstrip and they also have vast ocean resources, retired navy chief Arun Prakash told VOA Tuesday.

The main worry for Western countries and India is that several of these countries are a void and China tends to walk into voids and fill them up.

The 14 countries set to participate in the Port Moresby summit range from such large islands as Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands to smaller ones such as Tonga and Tuvalu. The other countries will be Kiribati, Samoa, Vanuatu, Niue, Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Palau and Nauru.

Papua New Guinea is especially significant. The island of 9.5 million is the largest of the Pacific Island countries and one of the few with which India has longstanding ties and a trade relationship. It is also home to a small Indian population of about 3,000.

Modi and Marape will meet Monday and the two sides are expected to sign pacts that include cooperation in micro- and small to medium enterprises to agreements between their state broadcasters and reciprocal arrangements for issuing visas on arrival.

One of the important challenges that Papua New Guinea faces is climate change and adaptation. These are areas where India can play an important role by offering affordable partnerships in areas like solar energy, Swati Prabhu, an associate fellow at the Center for New Economic Diplomacy in New Delhi told VOA.

Papua New Guinea also wants to shift its economy from export of primary materials such as natural gas and minerals to finished products.

The country is being courted by the U.S. and its allies amid concerns about Chinas growing military and economic influence in the region. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited in 2018.

U.S. President Joe Biden was to visit Papua New Guinea on May 22 but has canceled the visit to focus on debt limit talks in Washington.

China has begun making inroads in the Pacific Island countries with its Belt and Road initiative  last year Beijing signed a security deal with the Solomon Islands and in March it won a contract to redevelop the port in its capital city, Honiara.

Analysts say India hopes to partner with the Pacific Island countries with development initiatives in areas such as clean energy, technology and community development projects such as solar electrification and supply of agricultural equipment.

Affordable clean energy initiatives are especially important in a region whose leaders say climate change is their greatest security threat amid worsening cyclones and rising sea levels.

Some see Indias outreach to the Pacific Island countries as part of its ambitions to be viewed as an emerging global power.

Analysts however say that while Indias bid to build influence in the Pacific Island countries marks an ambitious beginning, it has its limitations as it cannot match Chinas resources and New Delhis primary focus will have to remain on its immediate neighborhood in South Asia and the Indian Ocean.

If you call yourself an Indo-Pacific power and are part of the Quad grouping, you must make some outreach to the Pacific also. But whether it is within our capabilities to sustain ourselves that far out in the Pacific is a question mark. We dont have such deep pockets and our navy is also relatively small, Prakash said. But perhaps in coordination with Japan, Australia and United States, we can render assistance there, he said.
Indias Central Bureau of Investigation arrested a freelance reporter on espionage charges this week, saying the journalist illegally collected sensitive information about the Indian army and shared the information with foreign governments.

On Tuesday night, longtime reporter Vivek Raghuvanshi was arrested for allegedly collecting sensitive information about the Indian army and the Defense Research Development Organization, which leads the militarys research and development, according to The Indian Express.

Raghuvanshis associate, a former Navy commander, was also arrested on similar charges.

For over three decades, Raghuvanshi reported on Indias defense industry for media, including the U.S.-based Sightline Media Group, which publishes Defense News and Military Times. Raghuvanshi is the India correspondent for Defense News.

The Washington-based National Press Club condemned Raghuvanshis arrest and called for his release.

We were disappointed to hear of the arrest of journalist Vivek Raghuvanshi in India this week, Eileen OReilly, president of the National Press Club, and Gil Klein, president of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, said in a statement Wednesday.

The charges against him of working with a foreign intelligence service are completely at odds with his well-established professional profile. Vivek has a solid reputation and the respect of his colleagues. We hope his release and these allegations are resolved swiftly and Vivek is allowed to resume his reporting, OReilly and Klein continued in the statement.

A spokesperson from the Central Bureau of Investigation, or CBI, told The Indian Express that Raghuvanshi and his associate, Ashish Pathak, were in possession of classified secret documents related to Indian defense establishments.

Raghuvanshi was allegedly collecting confidential information related to Indias defense procurement from various sources and was in contact with several foreign entities/agents/persons, the CBI spokesperson said.

At least 10 journalists are currently detained in India, according to the press freedom group Reporters Without Borders, which ranks India 161 out of 180 countries in terms of press freedom.
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Russia agrees to a two-month extension of a deal that has allowed Ukraine to ship grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger. Armed men in Nigeria attacked a U.S. convoy, killing two consulate staff and two policemen.
Key Insights

Alfen's estimated fair value is 60.93 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

Alfen's 67.02 share price indicates it is trading at similar levels as its fair value estimate

Analyst price target for ALFEN is 107, which is 76% above our fair value estimate

Does the May share price for Alfen N.V. (AMS:ALFEN) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple!

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.

See our latest analysis for Alfen

Crunching The Numbers

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. 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) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF (, Millions) 41.6m 50.4m 69.5m 65.8m 80.2m 87.6m 93.3m 97.7m 101.1m 103.6m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x4 Analyst x5 Analyst x5 Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Est @ 9.18% Est @ 6.55% Est @ 4.70% Est @ 3.42% Est @ 2.51% Present Value (, Millions) Discounted @ 7.0% 38.9 44.0 56.7 50.1 57.1 58.2 58.0 56.7 54.8 52.5

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = 527m

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 0.4%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 7.0%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = 104m (1 + 0.4%)  (7.0% 0.4%) = 1.6b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= 1.6b ( 1 + 7.0%)10= 795m

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 1.3b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of 67.0, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. 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

Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Alfen 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 7.0%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.116. 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.

SWOT Analysis for Alfen

Strength

Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry.

Debt is well covered by earnings.

Weakness

Expensive based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow faster than the Dutch market.

Threat

Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.

Moving On:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Alfen, we've compiled three additional elements you should consider:

Risks: You should be aware of the 2 warning signs for Alfen (1 is a bit concerning!) we've uncovered before considering an investment in the company. Future Earnings: How does ALFEN's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Dutch stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Leaders of Iran and Pakistan jointly inaugurated a marketplace and a power transmission line along their shared border Thursday in a significant move aimed at boosting regional trade and energy cooperation.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif addressed a ceremony in a live broadcast from the Iranian side of the more than the 900-kilometer border between the two countries.

Raisi said the project had set the stage for Tehran and Islamabad to expand their economic and energy exchanges.

The transmission line would export 100 megawatts of Iranian electricity to Pakistan's border province of Baluchistan. The impoverished, natural resources-rich region already imports 100 megawatts of low-cost power from Iran.

"We are fully prepared to further deepen our relations with our neighboring country Pakistan in the energy sector," the Iranian president said.

Islamabad's foreign exchange reserves have rapidly declined as the country faces a dire economic crisis. The cash-strapped South Asian nation of about 230 million people depends on energy imports to meet domestic needs.

The marketplace opened by the two countries Thursday links Iran's southeastern city of Pishin to Pakistan's southwestern city of Mand. It is one of the six border markets the two counties are jointly constructing.

Raisi said the facilities would help create jobs and boost bilateral "retail trade" to help thousands of households on both sides of the remote, poverty-stricken regions.

Border security

"The message of this project is one of security.  Today, both countries see the border as an opportunity and not a threat," the Iranian leader stressed, speaking through an official interpreter.

Sharif said that he had held a formal meeting with Raisi on the sidelines of the inauguration and the two discussed ways to strengthen border security cooperation.

"We have exchanged proposals to make our joint border security mechanism more coherent and robust," the Pakistani prime minister said.

"I will convene an urgent meeting as soon as I return to Pakistan and we will take appropriate, effective steps in the light of your proposals," Sharif told Raisi without elaborating.

Insurgent attacks in sparsely populated Baluchistan and deadly violence carried out by Sunni militants in the adjacent Sistan-Baluchistan province of Shi'ite Iran have long been a source of bilateral tensions.

Both countries have blamed the other for not doing enough to prevent cross-border militant attacks.

Gas pipeline

Iran and Pakistan signed an agreement in 1990 to construct a nearly 2,700-kilometer gas pipeline to export Iranian gas to the energy-deficient South Asian neighboring country. But U.S. sanctions on Tehran blocked any progress of the project.

Iranian officials maintain they have finished construction of the pipeline on their side of the border and are waiting for Pakistan to complete its part, saying a lack of progress by next year would entitle Tehran to demand financial penalties.

Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch reiterated Thursday her country remains committed to the pipeline project.

"Pakistan considers the Iran-Pakistan pipeline as an important project that symbolizes the friendship between Pakistan and our neighbor, Iran," Baloch told a news conference in Islamabad when asked to comment on the reported multibillion-dollar penalty facing her country.

She said talks with Iranian officials on "some issues" about the pipeline's completion continued, adding that "it is premature for me to comment on anything that could happen several months from now."
Tens of thousands of Israeli nationalists marched through the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem's walled Old City on Thursday in an annual event that has drawn condemnation from the Palestinians and stirred fears of renewed violence.

The parade is the main celebration on Jerusalem Day, when Israel marks its capture of Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. The event has increasingly become a show of force for Jewish nationalists and, for Palestinians, a blatant provocation meant to undermine their ties to the city.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the event "a splendid day on which to celebrate our return to our eternal capital." But just days after the end of the latest bout of cross-border fire with Gaza, the march drew fears of a repeat round of conflict with Hamas and other Palestinian factions.

Around 2,500 officers were safeguarding the march and trying to keep it peaceful, police said, having prepared for all scenarios, including violence and anti-Arab chants by some marchers toward Palestinians and rocket fire from Gaza.

Many Palestinians shuttered their shops in the Old City, where march organizers hung Israeli flags along the cobblestoned alleyways. Rowdy crowds of Jewish youth were seen dancing and chanting, and in some cases confronting Palestinian youth.

As crowds gathered at the Damascus Gate entrance to the Old City, a handful of flags belonging to Lehava, a far-right anti-Arab group, could be seen among the mass of blue and white Israeli national flags.

Earlier on Thursday, hundreds of Jewish pilgrims, including members of parliament, toured the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in the Old City. The site, which Muslims call the Noble Sanctuary, is the third holiest in Islam and also revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, a vestige of their faith's two ancient temples.

The visits passed without incident, but Palestinians have been angered by the rising number of Jewish visitors to the compound, some of whom defy a ban on non-Muslim prayer there.

Palestinians view the heavily policed Jerusalem Day procession as part of a broader campaign to bolster Jewish presence across the city to their detriment.

Israel, which decades ago annexed East Jerusalem in a move that has not won international recognition, regards the entire city as its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem, the part captured by Israel in 1967, as the capital of a future state that would include the West Bank and Gaza.

Palestinians organized their own flag marches across the Israeli-occupied West Bank and in Palestinian Islamist-ruled Gaza on Thursday, with some processions only a few hundred meters away from the Israel-Gaza separation fence.

"The Flag March does not give the occupation the legitimacy it seeks with its absurd policies and repressive practices," Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said.

In Gaza, senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said the group was not interested in an escalation of conflict with Israel, but that if the marchers reached the Al-Aqsa compound and caused trouble, Hamas would have to act.

"If they cross the lines they should not blame anyone," Naim said.

During the 2021 march, Hamas, the Islamist group that governs the blockaded coastal enclave, fired rockets into Israel that triggered an 11-day war which killed at least 250 Palestinians in Gaza and 13 people in Israel.

Last month, an Israeli police raid in the Al-Aqsa compound drew rocket fire from groups in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.

Hamas has cast itself as a defender of Jerusalem's Palestinians and Muslim holy sites in recent years. But with another round of fighting between Israel and Gaza militants ending only last week, in which 34 Palestinians and an Israeli were killed, the appetite for more hostilities appeared low.

Egypt, which mediated Saturday's truce, spoke to Israeli and Palestinian factions ahead of the march in efforts to reduce tensions.
The top leaders of Japan and South Korea will try to maintain momentum toward improved relations when they meet on the sidelines of a Group of Seven summit that begins Friday in Hiroshima.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Sunday, the final day of the three-day gathering, according to South Korean officials.

South Korea is not a member of the G-7 group of advanced democracies but was invited by Kishida as an observer, along with the leaders of several other non-G-7 states.

It will be the third recent meeting between Yoon and Kishida, who are charging ahead with expanded security and economic cooperation despite domestic pushback in each country.

Japan-South Korea ties have long been strained by disagreements related to Japans brutal 1910-45 occupation of Korea.

The stakes are high. Strong ties between Japan and South Korea, both key U.S. allies, could reshape the security landscape in Northeast Asia at a time of rising concern over Chinas more assertive behavior and North Koreas expanding nuclear arsenal.

Creating momentum

Yoon and Kishida have chosen to focus on shared challenges first, rather than wait for contentious historical disputes to be resolved.

A senior official in the Japanese Prime Ministers Office defended the approach, saying cooperation on defense and economic issues will ideally create a more positive atmosphere in both countries that could eventually allow for progress in other more sensitive areas.

Tokyo is optimistic, in part because Yoon is only one year through his five-year presidential term, said the Japanese official, who spoke to a small group of reporters on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

Yoon has pushed ahead with his Japan outreach, despite it being broadly unpopular with South Koreans.

South Korean critics say the relationship cannot be mended without more steps by Japan to address past abuses. But many Japanese conservatives oppose any further conciliatory measures, saying Tokyo should not be forced to continue apologizing for its history.

Ups and downs

Ties plummeted in 2018 after South Koreas Supreme Court ordered Japanese companies to pay reparations to South Koreans forced to work as slave laborers during the colonial era.

Japan rejected the ruling, insisting all compensation issues were resolved when the two countries established relations in 1965.

Each country then imposed a series of retaliatory measures that affected trade and military cooperation, ultimately driving Japan-South Korea relations to their lowest level in decades.

Ties were stagnant until March, when Yoon unveiled a plan to compensate forced labor victims via a private foundation funded by South Korean  not Japanese  companies.

Almost immediately, both sides began lifting trade and other restrictions. Yoon and Kishida restored the practice of making regular visits to each others countries.

Trilateral cooperation among Japan, South Korea, and the United States has also expanded  especially on issues related to North Korea.

According to multiple reports, Japan and South Korea are nearing an agreement to connect their radars via a U.S. system to more effectively share information during North Korean missile launches.

But how long can it last?

Much depends on Yoons political troubles at home. Opinion polls suggest about 60% of South Koreans oppose the Japan outreach. That means added pressure for Yoon, whose approval rating is hovering in the low 30% range.

A key test for Yoon will come next April, when South Korea holds a legislative election widely expected to serve as a referendum on his presidency. Though South Korean presidents cannot run for reelection, some analysts think Yoon may have less foreign policy flexibility if he cannot deliver a victory for his ruling conservative party.

Many South Korean commentators say public opinion could change if Kishida showed more contrition about the past.

During a visit to Seoul earlier this month, Kishida said his "heart hurts" when he thinks of the suffering and pain experienced by Koreans during Japanese colonial rule, but stopped short of issuing a fresh apology.

Yoon and Kishida will have an opportunity to address historical issues when they visit a Hiroshima memorial that honors Korean victims of the 1945 U.S. atomic bomb attack. More than 30,000 Koreans  many of them forced laborers  are estimated to have died in the attack.

This will be the first time South Korean and Japanese leaders have jointly visited the memorial, lending the move symbolic significance.

"I think it represents a sincere gesture related to the suffering of the Hiroshima atomic bomb victims, as well as the forced labor victims, said a South Korean foreign ministry official who was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

However, all public evidence suggests Kishida will move cautiously on historical issues. That approach could partly be explained by his past experience with attempts to improve relations with Seoul.

As foreign minister in 2015, Kishida played a major role in negotiating a settlement related to Japans wartime sexual slavery of women  a deal that was effectively nullified by South Korea when a liberal president later took office.

But despite proceeding slowly on history, Yoon and Kishida may be able to sustain diplomatic momentum based on the imperatives of geopolitics, said Daniel Sneider, a lecturer at Stanford University and specialist in Korea-Japan relations.

But, he said: That leaves historical issues like buried landmines, not far from the surface and ready to be set off.
Biden administration officials are pushing back against criticism over the decision to postpone a visit to Australia and a historic trip to Papua New Guinea, the first by a U.S. president.

Analysts have described the move, spurred by President Joe Biden's need to return home to attend to congressional budget negotiations, as a setback for the United States and a gift to China as it flexes its muscle in the Indo-Pacific region  one of the reasons the Biden administration has been shoring up alliances in the area recently.

Biden left Wednesday for a truncated trip to Japan to attend a summit of some of the major developed economies.

Biden called Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape early Thursday from Air Force One. He invited Marape to Washington in September for a second summit of Pacific Islands nations, "where leaders can continue discussions around enhancing U.S.-Pacific cooperation on shared priorities including combatting the climate crisis, increasing trade and economic ties, promoting maritime security, advancing sustainable and inclusive development, and increasing people-to-people engagement." Biden held the first such summit last September.

"I was privileged on behalf of the people that (Biden) placed a call directly to my cell phone ... he conveyed his sincerest apologies that he cannot make it to our country," Marape said.

Biden said Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Papua New Guinea in his place on Monday.



Watch related video by Jessica Stone:

Biden's brief swing through the island nation north of Australia was expected to cement a new defense pact between Washington and Port Moresby that would allow the U.S. Coast Guard to patrol its waters. He was then meant to head to Sydney for a summit with the leaders of India, Australia and Japan. That summit has been canceled.

Marape said the defense co-operation agreement will be signed on Monday as planned.

"I think there is a degree of fairly dramatic over-cranking in saying that pushing off a visit to Australia and PNG speaks to the fundamentals of American diplomacy at this time," national security adviser Jake Sullivan said aboard Air Force One.

Sullivan cited examples of deep administration engagement with the region in the past five months, pointing to recent security-focused agreements with Japan, the Philippines, South Korea and Australia, plus a recent technology initiative with India.

"The fact that he has to postpone a trip to Australia and to Papua New Guinea, when you lay that up against where we are with respect to our alliances and partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, we believe this notion that somehow [China] is sitting there happy and comfortable about the situation is a convenient media narrative going into this trip, but it does not reflect reality in any way," he said.

Sullivan said Biden also spoke with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and that the two agreed on a future Biden visit to Australia, plus a White House state dinner for Albanese. He did not say when either would happen.

Before the trip, analysts had described the visit as a big deal.

The visit was to demonstrate "that the U.S. is a reliable, engaged and enduring partner to the Pacific Islands," said Charles Edel, the inaugural Australia chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, in a briefing days before the trip was canceled. "The U.S. needs to make up ground in the region. Years of strategic neglect from Washington produced a strategic vacuum that China was eager to step into. The result has been that China has been steadily increasing its influence and power in the region, which the U.S. now needs to counter."

Erin Murphy, a senior fellow at CSIS, told VOA on Wednesday that the postponement also is a big deal.

"When you think about what the U.S. is trying to do, in the Pacific Islands, to show that it's engaged, economically, militarily, diplomatically and to show that it's a strategic competitor, to provide things that the Pacific Islands need," she said. "I think this is a significant setback."

Daniel Russel of the Asia Society Policy Institute agreed.

"Obviously, it's a huge disappointment, first and foremost, to Papua New Guinea and its leader, as well as to the other Pacific Islands, including the leader of Australia," he said.

And The Sydney Morning Herald described the postponement as "a disappointment, a mess and a gift to Beijing," saying, "Bidens withdrawal matters because of the damaging message it sends to the Asia-Pacific about Americas commitment to the region as it fiercely competes with China for influence."

And in Papua New Guinea, local media reported disappointment among the some 9 million residents.

Marape had declared Monday, the day of Biden's visit, a public holiday.

Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this story from aboard Air Force One.
More than two weeks after Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old mentally ill and homeless Black man was choked to death on the New York City subway by a former Marine, reaction to the killing has broken down along familiar political fault lines.

Daniel Penny, the 24-year-old man who placed Neely in a chokehold and was captured on video holding him for several minutes, is being widely hailed as a hero by Republican politicians in the United States, and a fund set up for his legal defense has collected more than $2.5 million and continues growing.

Many Democrats, by contrast, have argued that choking Neely to death was a criminal act that should be punished. In the eyes of many, it evoked the death of George Floyd, the Black Minneapolis man whose 2020 choking death at the hands of a white police officer was also captured on video, and energized the Black Lives Matter movement.

Penny was released in the immediate aftermath of the subway killing. Ten days later, the Manhattan district attorney charged him with second-degree manslaughter, a crime that carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

Known facts

Neely's killing first came to the public's notice via a cellphone recording made by a fellow passenger in the minutes before his death. When the video begins, Penny and Neely are already on the floor of the subway car, with Penny's left arm around Neely's throat. Two other men are attempting to restrain Neely's arms and legs.

Penny holds him in the chokehold for several minutes as the movement of Neely's arms and legs become feebler. At one point, another passenger warns Penny that he appears to be killing Neely. Several minutes into the video, when Penny releases Neely, the latter remains on the ground, unmoving.

Witnesses told police that in the moments before Penny placed Neely in the chokehold, Neely had been behaving erratically. He was reportedly screaming at other passengers, telling them he was hungry and thirsty and that he was ready to die.

Prosecutors said that in advance of Penny placing him in a chokehold, "Several witnesses observed Mr. Neely making threats and scaring passengers."

However, there has been no claim that Neely actually harmed or attempted to harm anyone.

Republican reaction

In the days after Neely's death, public reaction rapidly fractured along political lines, with conservatives praising Penny as a hero, and liberals condemning him as a vigilante.

One of Penny's most vocal supporters has been Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is widely expected to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2024. DeSantis last week used his Twitter account to support Penny and attack Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, claiming the latter is funded by billionaire George Soros, long a detested target of the conservative movement who contributes to liberal causes and Democratic campaigns.

This image contains sensitive content which some people may find offensive or disturbing. Click to reveal This image contains sensitive content which some people may find offensive or disturbing - Click to reveal New York police officers administer CPR to Jordan Neely, at the scene where a fight was reported on a subway train, in New York, May 1, 2023.

"We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left's pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law abiding citizens. We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let's show this Marine ... America's got his back," DeSantis wrote.

Nikki Haley, a declared candidate for the GOP nomination, said on Fox News Tuesday night that New York Governor Kathy Hocul should intervene in the case and pardon Penny.

"If she pardons him, that sets a right on a lot of things  it'll put criminals on notice," said Haley, a former governor of South Carolina who served as ambassador to the United Nations under former President Donald Trump. "And it'll let people like Penny who really were very brave in that instance, it will let them know that we've got their back."

Democratic reaction

"Black men seem to always be choked to death," said Representative Jamaal Bowman, after the killing. "Jordan Neely did not have to die. It's as simple as that. Yet we have another Black man publicly executed."

Representative Maxine Waters, a long-serving California House Democrat, wrote in an essay published by the HuffPost, "Instead of being offered compassion, [Neely] was violently murdered by a vigilante who pinned him down and  choked him to death. Others aided and abetted the murder by helping to hold him down. His offense: Being hungry and homeless."

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, in an interview with the online publication The Cut, called Neely's death a failure of government support.

"Jordan Neely was killed by public policy. He was killed by the demonizing of the poor by many of our leaders," she said. "He was killed by the same reluctance for people to see him as human that leaders are exhibiting right now, even in his death."

Fits existing narratives

Regina Bateson, an associate professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at Canada's University of Ottawa, told VOA that the reaction to Neely's killing has broken down along partisan lines because it very clearly plays into existing frames of reference.

"This incident lines up with the core interests of two very different, but very widespread social movements that are going on in the United States at the same time," said Bateson, who has studied the political aspects of vigilantism.

"This incident lines up squarely with both the law-and-order framing that's been adopted by the right, and the concern about racial justice, excessive use of force and civil rights that's been adopted more on the left," she said.

However, Bateson said it is important to understand that examples of vigilantism are often used misleadingly to suggest that the behavior being punished is more widespread than it actually is.

Neely is being portrayed by many on the right as having presented an immediate danger to other passengers on the subway, despite there being no evidence that he actually harmed or was going to harm anyone.

"Some people's reaction to this might be to think, 'Oh, New York is a very dangerous place. Violence is rampant in public transportation there. The state isn't providing enough policing,'" she said.

"I think that really misses the subjectivity of vigilantism and the fact that people are responding to things that they see as an offense, but are not necessarily responding to the objective reality of the situation," Bateson said.
The U.S. State Department agreed Thursday to allow the top Republican and Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee to view a key document relating to the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said in a statement that the State Department had agreed to show him and Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking committee member, the 2021 dissent cable signed by some diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. That cable reportedly expresses concerns about U.S. preparation for the evacuation.

Earlier this month, a State Department spokesperson said a classified briefing on the cable held last month fulfilled lawmakers request to learn more about the chaotic withdrawal ending two decades of U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. In response, McCaul prepared a subpoena holding U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt of Congress.

"In light of this invitation, I will pause efforts to enforce the committees subpoena pending my review of the documents. Please note, however, that the subpoena remains in full force and effect, and the acceptance of this accommodation does not waive any of the committees rights regarding the subpoena, McCaul wrote to Blinken.

McCaul has also called on Blinken to release the administrations After Action Review on the withdrawal.

There is a strong public interest in the department sharing the results of its After Action Review to the fullest extent possible, McCaul wrote earlier this month, noting that large portions of the report are marked as sensitive but unclassified.

According to McCaul, the 87-page March 2022 report contains numerous unexplained redactions and directly contradicts the Biden administrations public statements, which largely blamed the failures of the withdrawal on the previous administration of former President Donald Trump.

McCaul had asked the State Department to release the full report by May 5.

The Foreign Affairs Committee has conducted oversight hearings into the withdrawal, including the August 26, 2021, suicide bomb at Kabul International Airport that killed 13 U.S. service members and 170 Afghan civilians.

The Biden administration report said decisions made by the Trump administration to negotiate with the Taliban and set a withdrawal date for U.S. troops prevented an orderly U.S. evacuation.

When you look at what President Biden inherited, the timeline that was required and the agreement that was reached in the Trump administration, the president did everything he could to manage that situation, Democratic Representative David Cicilline, a Foreign Affairs Committee member, told VOA last month. But there are a set of decisions made by the prior administration that made that more difficult.

McCaul said Thursday that he would continue to insist the full membership of the House Foreign Affairs Committee be allowed to see the cable.

Cindy Saine contributed to this report.
Analysts say the decision by Taiwans biggest opposition party, the Kuomintang or KMT to pick a popular home-grown politician as its candidate in the islands upcoming presidential election is a departure from its past practice but something the party sees as its best hope to return to power after eight years and improve relations with China.

The former head of Taiwans National Police Agency, and well-liked mayor of Taiwans New Taipei City, 65-year-old Hou Yu-ih is considered a novice in China or international affairs. But he is also seen as someone, analysts say, who can appeal to a broader range of voters at a time when Taiwan faces increasingly hostile threats from China and international concern that the island could become the next Ukraine.

Especially at this stage, the international situation is fierce and dangerous for our country, the domestic political situation is conflicting and confrontational, and a lot of things are waiting to be done, young people cannot see the future, Hou said, speaking at a news conference after his party confirmed his candidacy.

We must make a big overhaul and return to power.  Only by changing the political parties can we save the country and save Taiwan! he said.

Popular politician

To do that, the KMT is counting on ways that Hou is different from many of its previous candidates for president, analysts say.

In the past, many of the partys candidates had ties to China and were part of familys that fled to Taiwan after the KMT lost a civil war there, fighting against the communists.

Hous family roots on the island stretch back for centuries. His father sold pork and Hou worked for years as a police officer to rise to become head of the National Police Agency, helping solve some of Taiwans biggest crime cases, including murders and kidnappings.

He eventually became deputy and later mayor of New Taipei City, Taiwans most populous metropolis, winning reelection by a landslide last year.

The uniqueness of Hou is mainly that hes a benshengren (native Taiwanese). He doesnt give people the feeling hes close to China, said Simon Chen, an associate political science professor at National Taiwan University.

That background was different from Hous main competitor for the candidacy, Terry Gou. Gou, the founder and retired chairman of iPhone assembler Foxconn, has 80% of his assets in China where most of his factories are located. His family also came from China with the KMT.

Hou doesn't have this problem. His past statements or actions are moderate, not like the ones from the pro-unification camp. He can fight for the middle-of-the-road voters who voted for President Tsai (Ing-wen), who see what the DPP has done in the past eight years, dont think its done well, fear a war will happen, and dont want it to govern anymore, said Chen.

Balancing Beijing

Managing the perception of not being seen as too close to China  which has ratcheted up military pressure toward Taiwan over the past year - while easing tensions as well is what the KMT hopes Hou can do.

For now, it is too early to say how that will go.

Hou has voiced opposition to Taiwan independence, something Beijing demands. But he has also spoken out against One Country, Two Systems, Chinas proposed model for unification with Taiwan.

Instead, Hou has advocated using peace to protect (Taiwan's) democracy.

How Hou Compares to DPPs Candidate

In the elections, Hou will face off against the DPPs candidate William Lai, who currently serves as Taiwans vice president and has also been mayor of southern city of Tainan. His other contender is former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan Peoples Party, the islands third largest party.

So far, Lai has been leading in the polls by about five to 10 percentage points, according to polls in Taiwan. Although analysts say it's too soon to tell given Hou has only just been named a candidate.

Analysts note that unlike Lai and Ko, Hou rarely travels overseas and doesnt speak English.

Now that hes been nominated, hes expected to soon travel to the U.S. and meet with think tank scholars and others.

Lin Chin-chieh, a New Taipei City councilor who knows both Hou and Gou well, said many KMT voters hope Hou will pick Gou as his vice-presidential running mate. Gou built up a major multinational company from scratch, employing around 1 million workers in China alone and can help Hou on the economy as well as relations with Beijing and other foreign countries.

But regardless of who Hou picks, Lin said, the party has learned from its mistakes of being divided in the past. Even Gou, who immediately quit the KMT after he lost in the party primary in 2020, has vowed to give his full support to Hou.

The whole party will definitely unite behind him to help him win the election, said Lin. Taiwans main problem is cross-strait relations. If we dont handle cross-strait relations well, we might even have war.  Hou will definitely have no problems handling cross-strait relations.
A top Republican lawmaker said Wednesday the funding priorities for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) do not go far enough in addressing the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The Biden administration has requested $32 billion in foreign assistance for USAID  $3 billion more than the amount appropriated by Congress in 2023.

House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul said in a hearing with USAID administrator Samantha Power that it is not clear how the agency plans to spend the requested $400 million in the fund for countering Chinese influence.

"Our foreign aid must serve as a clear alternative to the CCP and our adversaries while also saving lives and projecting U.S. global leadership around the world," McCaul said.

Budget hearings with agency heads are an annual exercise on Capitol Hill, with funding requests serving as a starting point for negotiations.

"The People's Republic of China and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin are ready to step in  whether through opaque loans on unfavorable terms or with mercenaries in tow," Power told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "An international order that values democracy and human rights and respects international borders is not a given. Indeed, authoritarian actors are challenging and aiming to reshape it. We have to invest in the stable and more humane world that we need."

Power told lawmakers that House Republicans' budget legislation addressing the looming debt ceiling crisis would cause significant harm to USAID's worldwide mission and America's global influence. Last month, the Republican-majority House of Representatives passed legislation that has no chance of adoption in the Democratic-majority U.S. Senate. But their proposal, if passed, would increase the debt limit in return for cuts to government spending, including decreasing USAID funding by up to 22%.

"China and Russia aren't slashing their international affairs budget by nearly one-third. In fact, they are growing and expanding their foreign assistance programs as a means to advance their national interests and exert influence on the global stage. We're losing ground," Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking member on the committee, said Wednesday.

On Sunday, McCaul told ABC News "This Week" that "defaulting is not the right path to go down. ... Our adversaries look at this very closely. They look at when we're divided. ... I think they would love nothing more, particularly China, to see us default in our full faith and credit under the Constitution."

He added that Republicans have laid out a plan to avoid it.

"I think we were reasonable," McCaul said. "We're willing to raise the debt ceiling, but we want meaningful spending cuts and capping spending  at 2022 levels."

Power said 2019 USAID funding had increased at half the rate that its programming had grown. According to public opinion polls, many Americans perceive the investment in foreign aid to be much higher than it actually is. Surveys consistently show that the public believes 25% of the U.S. budget is spent annually on foreign assistance when in fact, it is less than 1%.

"It absolutely goes without saying that nothing that I'm proposing here should come at the expense of the appropriate investments in our defense and in the competition that we are in with the PRC globally," Power told lawmakers.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press.
Vietnam on Thursday criticized recent conduct by a Chinese research ship and the Philippine coast guard in the South China Sea, accusing its neighbors of separate actions that were violating its sovereign rights.

Tensions are high in contested parts of the South China Sea, one of the world's most important trade routes and a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce.

Chinese and Vietnamese vessels confronted each other in recent days on multiple occasions as a Chinese research ship moved within Hanoi's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which experts said was likely a survey. Such a survey would usually be considered hostile if conducted without notification.

Asked for comment, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang told a press conference those vessels were "violating the sovereign rights and jurisdictions of Vietnam", which was taking "appropriate measures" to defend its rights.

China has said that scientific research is a normal activity in areas under Chinese jurisdiction.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea as its territory, based on what it says are old maps, including waters that lie within the EEZ of Vietnam and four other Southeast Asian countries.

The Philippines was also rebuked for placing navigational buoys in five areas of its EEZ to assert sovereignty over the hotly disputed Spratly islands, to parts of which Vietnam also lays claim.

Asked about the Philippines' move, Hang said: "Vietnam strongly opposes all acts violating Vietnam's sovereign rights."

Philippine Foreign Ministry spokesperson Teresita Daza said Manila's coast guard's installation of buoys was consistent with the country's rights as a coastal state under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

"They are meant to improve safety of navigation in our waters and should be of no cause for concern," Daza told Reuters in a phone message.
KHARTOUM, SUDAN  On a sandy lot below a Khartoum apartment building, helmetless Sudanese soldiers in a mishmash of uniforms raised their fists as machine gunners blasted away from atop two small trucks.

It was another day in a war that has not stopped for more than a month, and continued Wednesday, as the United Nations reported that more than half of the country's people, 25 million, need aid and protection, Ramesh Rajasingham, head of the U.N. humanitarian agency's Geneva bureau, told reporters there.

Analysts say neither side  the army led by chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces led by his former deputy Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo  has been able to seize an advantage on the battlefield.

And the capital, Khartoum, has become a war zone.

In front of a five-story apartment building, some soldiers on Tuesday stood casually with rocket-propelled grenade launchers while another danced about with a belt-fed machine gun while the ground around him appeared littered with dozens of spent large-caliber shell casings.

Soldiers shouted as machine guns fired from atop a pickup truck, a small, armored car and a tank beside some trees near a billboard for a car showroom.

The clear blue sky was marred only by faint dark smoke rising behind them.

In other parts of the capital, long mounds of dirt are piled beside roads where military trenches have been dug.

With bullets flying, Rajasingham said millions remained confined to their homes, unable to access basic services and health care.

More than 5,000 people have been injured.

In Africa's third-largest country, many areas remain untouched by the fighting but still suffer its effects, with soaring prices and shortages of fuel.

"Petrol is not available now and the price has increased on the black market. People can't transport their vegetables," said Abu Bakr Abdullah, 27, a farmer in River Nile state.

Another farmer, Qamar al-Bashir, 52, complained that four years have passed since longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir was toppled, but "they have not been able to form a government."

A coup in 2021 by Burhan and Dagalo derailed a fragile transition to civilian rule.

"Enough!" the farmer said. "You can't move the country forward, do you move it backwards? And at the end you take us to war for your own personal interests."

They "are losers," all of them, he said.

Last Thursday the warring sides signed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a commitment to respect humanitarian principles and allow in badly needed aid.

"However, reports of attacks continued and, on 12 May, violence in El Geneina reportedly escalated," a U.N. report said.

Toby Harward, of the U.N.'s refugee agency, reported an "extremely disturbing" situation in El Geneina, the West Darfur capital.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed in militia attacks on residential areas and street battles between "community-aligned forces." There has also been looting and destruction at markets, camps for displaced people, and other locations, he wrote on Twitter.

In Khartoum North, a factory that produced food to treat malnourished children burned down, according to the U.N. children's fund.

Still, Rajasingham voiced hope the Jeddah agreement was having some effect.

He said fighters had pulled back from some of the health facilities that were previously occupied and highlighted an uptick in aid deliveries.

"We do need much more," he said.

Sudan's war is expected to be a major agenda item during the Arab League summit on Friday in Saudi Arabia.

Heavyweights in the pan-Arab bloc are divided on Sudan, with Egypt supporting Burhan and the United Arab Emirates, according to experts, seen to be backing the RSF.
Nima Momeni, left, the suspect in the killing of Cash App founder Bob Lee, right, was arraigned on Thursday morning in San Francisco. Gabrielle Lurie/San Francisco Chronicle via AP and Courtesy of MobileCoin

Nima Momeni pleaded not guilty to charges that he murdered Cash App founder Bob Lee, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Momeni entered the plea at an arraignment on Thursday in San Francisco state court.

San Francisco prosecutors had charged Momeni after his arrest last month in Emeryville, California.

Tech consultant Nima Momeni pleaded not guilty on Thursday to San Francisco prosecutors' charge of murder in the killing of Cash App founder Bob Lee last month in downtown San Francisco.

Momeni entered the plea at an arraignment in San Francisco state court, according to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle. The hearing is one of the first steps in the early stages of the court proceedings.

Prosecutors in the city said last month that Momeni was charged with murder "with an allegation that he personally used a deadly weapon (knife) in the commission of this crime," according to a statement then by San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins. That development had followed a more than weeklong hunt by police for a suspect in Lee's death.

An autopsy report by the San Francisco Office of the Chief Medical Examiner had indicated that Lee died from multiple stab wounds after efforts by doctors at the San Francisco General Hospital were unable to save him.

It is very common  almost the default  for defendants to plead not guilty early in a case, when the defense is still trying to learn more information from prosecutors, said Lauren Johnson, a defense attorney in Irvine, California. Johnson isn't involved in the case, and spoke generally.

"It would be nearly unheard of, with a lawyer and with these types of charges, for anyone to walk into their arraignment and enter a guilty plea, because the defense doesn't know what the evidence is against the suspect, or what the punishment would be," Johnson said.

Arraignment hearings are usually when defendants formally hear the charges against them, and enter a plea. Defendants also have the opportunity to ask the court to set bail.

Nima Momeni's sister, Khazar Elyassnia, was in court on Thursday. Godofredo A. Vasquez/AP.

In court filings last month, prosecutors said that they had evidence that Momeni and Lee had a fraught conversation involving Momeni's sister, Khazar Elyassnia.

They alleged at the time that Momeni grilled Lee about Momeni's sister socializing with Lee. This month, the Wall Street Journal reported that Lee was having an affair with Momeni's sister, citing Lee's friends.

Lee and Momeni's discussions allegedly took a turn on the morning of April 4, when a person appearing to be Momeni in video footage seemed to "suddenly move" toward another who appeared to be Lee, per video obtained by police, according to prosecutors' court filings.

Read the original article on Business Insider
New developments:

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba discussed ways to stop Russian aggression in talks with Chinese envoy Li Hui, Ukraine says.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russian shelling killed a 5-year-old boy in Kherson.

Group of Seven leaders convening in Hiroshima, Japan, later this week are set to engage with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the White House said.

"We are anticipating some kind of engagement between G-7 leaders and President Zelenskyy," national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on the way to Anchorage, Alaska, en route to Japan. "The parameters of that are still being worked through."

More than a year after Russia invaded Ukraine, the G-7 meeting will focus on supporting Kyivs defense and ratcheting up economic pressure on Russia. Sullivan said the summit will focus on sanctions implementation and enforcement, shutting down evasion networks and closing loopholes.

"The U.S. will have a package of sanctions associated with a G-7 statement that will center on this enforcement issue," he said.

Missile attacks

Ukrainian officials reported Russian missile attacks Thursday targeting the capital, Kyiv, as well as the Odesa region in southern Ukraine.

Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on Telegram that Ukrainian air defenses shot down most of the Russian missiles, but that one hit an industrial facility, killing one person and injuring two others.

In Kyiv, the head of Kyiv's military administration, Serhiy Popko, said Ukrainian forces shot down all of the Russian missiles directed at the region. Popko said falling debris set off fires in several areas around Kyiv.

Grain deal

Russia and Ukraine agreed Wednesday to a two-month extension, until July 18, of their pact allowing grain shipments from Ukrainian ports through the Russian-controlled Black Sea to global markets to ease world food shortages.

The extension had been in question until an 11th hour agreement was brokered in Istanbul by Turkey and the United Nations. Turkey and the U.N. both have played key roles in earlier agreements that have allowed more than 30 million tons of corn, wheat and other produce to be shipped since last year despite nearly 15 months of fighting after Russias invasion of Ukraine.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hailed the agreement, saying, The importance of the Black Sea Initiative  and the parallel Memorandum of Understanding between the U.N. and the Russian Federation  is clear. These agreements matter for global food security. Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world.

He said that vital food supplies are reaching some of the worlds most vulnerable people and places  including 30,000 tons of wheat that just left Ukraine aboard a [World Food Program]-chartered ship to feed hungry people in Sudan.

He said the shipments matter because we are still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis, while acknowledging that global food markets have stabilized, volatility has been reduced and we have seen global food prices fall by 20%.

Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said he was grateful to the U.N. and Turkey for efforts in strengthening food security. Main challenge now is to make [the grain shipments] efficient by cancellation [of] artificial barriers, which he did not spell out.

Several times over the past year, Russia has threatened to withdraw from the grain shipment pact, or has briefly done so, arguing that provisions allowing its own agricultural products and fertilizers to be shipped to world markets are not being fulfilled.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has complained that Russia has stalled the deal by preventing required inspections of shipments and refusing to approve the use of more vessels.

Russian confirmed the two-month extension of the pact, but a Russia Foreign Ministry spokesperson suggested that Russias complaints about the deal had still not been addressed. The distortions in the implementation of the deal should be corrected as quickly as possible, she said.

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
Authorities in Lesotho have imposed an indefinite curfew in hopes of curbing gun violence in the South African mountain kingdom, in response to the shooting death of a journalist over the weekend.

About 10 p.m. Sunday, unknown assailants gunned down investigative journalist and radio presenter Ralikonelo Leqhashasha Joki as he left the radio station Tsenolo FM in the capital, Maseru, after presenting his program. He was shot once in the head and at least 13 times in the body.

Less than 24 hours later, the government imposed a countrywide curfew that went into effect on Tuesday. The curfew restricts movement between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m., the countrys Police Minister Lebona Lephema said, although hospitals, the media and the security sector are exempted from the rule.

Joki, host of the current affairs show Hlokoana-La-Tsela (I Heard It Through the Grapevine), reported on government affairs, corruption and organized crime. In 2021, he broke a story about five politicians who were illegally trading alcohol.

Jokis killing was likely in retaliation for his reporting, according to press freedom groups. The journalist reportedly received at least three death threats from different Facebook accounts earlier this year that were related to his reporting.

Out of 180 countries, Lesotho ranks 67 in terms of press freedom, according to Reporters Without Borders.

Press freedom groups like the Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ, and the International Federation of Journalists, or IFJ, called on local authorities to launch an investigation into Jokis killing.

Authorities in Lesotho must thoroughly investigate the killing of Tsenolo FM host Ralikonelo Leqhashasha Joki and ensure those responsible are brought to justice, Angela Quintal, CPJs Africa program coordinator, said in a statement.

An attempted murder trial after a similar attack on Lesotho Times editor Lloyd Mutungamiri in 2016 has dragged on for years. Authorities must send a clear signal to those who believe they can attack or kill journalists without consequence, that in Jokis case at least, there will be swift accountability, Quintal continued in the statement.

In July 2016, Mutungamiri was shot outside his home, leaving him in critical condition. The trial is expected to proceed in July this year.

We are deeply saddened by the death of Ralikonelo Joki and strictly condemn this senseless act of killing, IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said in a statement. It is a matter of public interest to ensure the safety of those who fulfil their obligations towards the publics right to know.

Lesothos Police Minister Lephema said the indefinite curfew was intended to address gun violence across the country.

Lesotho has the worlds third-highest homicide rate, with more than 43 murders per 100,000 people, according to World Population Review.

But opposition leader Machesetsa Mofomobe criticized the curfew, saying it would not actually curb gun violence.

People are not killed from 10 to 4, what is needed is a crime prevention strategy and money to implement that strategy, the Basotho National Party leader said in a Facebook post.
FILE PHOTO: The company logo for Financial broker Charles Schwab is displayed at a location in the financial district in New York

(Reuters) -Charles Schwab Corp is looking to raise up to $2.5 billion through a debt offering, the brokerage said on Thursday as more companies aim to benefit from investors trying to capitalize on a spike in yields.

The Texas-based company will raise the debt in two parts, via notes due in 2029 and 2034 and will use it for its corporate needs.

If held to maturity, the 2029 notes would yield 205 basis points more than the benchmark, risk-free U.S. 5-year Treasury, while the yield on 2034 notes would be 227 bps above the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield.

The appeal of investment-grade rated corporate bonds has increased amid growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will stick with higher rates for longer.

On Wednesday, Pfizer Inc announced its largest debt offering of $31 billion to fund its proposed acquisition of Seagen Inc.

Schwab's debt issue comes after the brokerage's first-quarter profit exceeded market expectations by benefiting from a surge in its interest income and CEO Walter Bettinger saying that its liquidity was strong.

The company's shares were up 0.3% at $52 in early trading.

BofA Securities, Citigroup, Credit Suisse Securities, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan Securities and Wells Fargo Securities are the joint book-running managers for the offering.

Meanwhile, the U.S. debt ceiling debate in Washington has given investors hope to be cautiously optimistic after President Joe Biden and top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy said they were determined to reach a deal.

(Reporting by Niket Nishant and Mehnaz Yasmin in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Arun Koyyur)
This guy. Photo: Brian Feinzimer/Variety via Getty Images

Update, May 19, 2023: Bad fortune befell the set of Good Fortune, as the production has shut down indefinitely as of May 18, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The WGA strike shut down production in LAs Koreatown earlier in the week, according to Deadline, when picketers showed up to the location at 11 a.m. on May 16, shutting down a night shoot that was set to begin at 5 p.m. Picketers held the line until 11:30 p.m. and shut down production the next day, May 17, as well. It is not yet clear when production on the project will resume, given the strike, though THR reports that those involved hope it will. Per strike guidelines, Aziz Ansari is not writing new material. It joins the many film and TV productions that have been shut down by WGA picketers, including Severance, Stranger Things, and Loot. Vulture has reached out Ansari and Lionsgate for comment.

Original story follows.

Aziz Ansari is going to give directing a movie another shot. And why shouldnt he? The comedians first attempt at helming his own film set went off without a hitch! In actuality, production on Ansaris adaptation of Atul Gawandes book Being Mortal was halted indefinitely in April 2022 after the films star, Bill Murray, was accused of inappropriate misconduct by a member of the films crew, unable to find another studio.

Ansaris real directorial debut, Good Fortune, which he stars in alongside Seth Rogen and Keanu Reeves, is a comedy produced by Lionsgate, according to Variety. Principal photography is set to begin in Los Angeles in May with a top secret logline. We have indeed found good fortune with this film, Joe Drake, Lionsgates Motion Picture Group chair, said in a statement. We love the script and believe strongly in Aziz as both a performer and a director. And when you add in Seth and Keanu  two incredible world-class talents  toplining alongside Aziz, this has the potential to be a very special film for us.

For all the mystery surrounding it, it is possible the synopsis of this upcoming film isnt actually a secret. Perhaps Aziz texted it out to the world using his beloved flip phone, but the old technology failed and the message didnt go through.
Photo: Random Order

Are you new to comedy podcasts, overwhelmed by the array of options, and wondering where to begin? Then welcome to Start Here, a recurring guide to the best comedy podcasts available  and our recommendations for which episodes are the best entry points into your next auditory obsession.

If the enduring success of the Ur-show about nothing proves anything, its that a bunch of best friends trading dumbass opinions is the third-purest form of comedy (after slipping on a banana peel and farting). After all, why spend money on research or producing some big narrative when you can simply talk nonsense with your buds and make content thats just as fire? Brothers Trevaunn Trey and Jermaine Jae Richards and Sheldon Shellz Sabastian, the Toronto-based hosts of the Headgum podcast Random Order, understand this inherently, having turned their gentle, free-flowing thought salons into a veritable media empire in less than five years. Each week since January 25, 2019 (the same day the Richards ended their previous YouTube talk show, GroupChat), Trey, Jae, and Shellz have dropped conversations about hot sauces, missed flights, Theraguns, Canadian race relations, Ikea arguments, or some other total nonsense in a cross-platform barrage of downloadable audio and video. Their fan base  encompassing 14 million views on TikTok, hundreds of thousands of YouTube and Instagram followers, and a rare five-star rating over more than 1,500 reviews on Apple Podcasts  quickly grew ravenous and now regularly sends clips from the latest episode viral across one or more of those platforms. Picture Vulture writers on the day after a new Saturday Night Live airs but everywhere.

Despite its title, Random Order is not totally without structure. Like many comedy podcasts, it has developed a bevy of in-jokes familiar only to those devoted listeners, like sound drops confirming the hosts are locked in or the refrains Yes maam and Amen after a tight joke. Jae and his fellow editors Roji Meza, Sahil Kumar, Yilmar, Tia Pia Bia, and Bogdan also divide each swell episode into discrete segments for YouTube, then punch the jokes up with spastic Ebaums World-inspired green-screen edits for maximum social-media appeal. Most recordings then end with a Ring Cam Moment of the Week, which is exactly what it sounds like.

Its the ineffable, Thoreauvian chill among the hosts  their weekly recapturing of it, the miraculous distilling of it  that makes the podcast soar as high as its bald-eagle mascot. Though the subject of conversation shifts rapidly from minute to minute, Trey, Jae, and Shellz always chat together like Ian McKellen recites Shakespeare: effortlessly. Without exception, one can expect their conversations to be both stubbornly formless and hysterically funny.

Should that inspire in you an unquenched curiosity, dip your toe into When Vacation Turns Into Bootcamp, the 126th episode of the series from February 11, 2023. With 54 minutes cut into 19 time-stamped topics, it serves as a bravura showcase for the trios breezy, relatable comedy.

The first 23 minutes and 35 seconds center around Shellzs recent journey towards swoleness. In a segment titled Sheldon has had ENOUGH with bootcamp, Sabastian reveals that hes been pumping iron at the gym all week and is exhausted to the bone. Trey suggests he find the right tunes to keep himself activated during his workouts so he doesnt feel like hes in the Gulag, then his brother chimes in that Sheldon needs to find the right joint to get that mental right first. Ive never been sitting down fucking bumping 50 Cent with a boner, Jae warns as the cover of Young Thugs mixtape Slime Season pops onscreen behind him. Asterisk: You gotta have them jamz.

It isnt just a lack of psychic toughness hurting his gains, Sabastian admits. In Mezas next segment, other people in the gym, Shellz complains about the various jerks interrupting his workouts, including some yoked 65-year-old stranger who has taken to randomly jumping onto his machines if he takes a 30-second break. Jae, again the voice of wisdom, cautions him not to spend too much time staring angrily at anyone, lest he wind up in one of those dirtbag at the gym videos. Youre just looking around the gym at people, he says, scrolling TikTok, and theres you  the fucking dirtbag!

But Sabastian is unintimidated by Jaes threat. Flexing his still-slender biceps like Terminator-era Arnold Schwarzenegger, he offers his own warning: Im clapping back, you feel me? Im excited for my future in fitness. Ima see yall in a year, man, and Ima be fuckin  Treys eyes go wide in terror. Oooh, shit, shit. Shel is here! Jae taps the soundboard approvingly: Locked in.

The next 30 minutes of topics are, by comparison, complete non sequiturs. At 27:57, Jae shows footage from a break-in at Ontarios Vaughan Mills shopping center (Trey: He fucked up by driving through those front doors instead of the Calvin Klein doors. Idve got some boxers). A minute later, editor Yilmar fills the green screen behind them with kaleidoscopic images of wedgies, Fortnite-branded undies, and crunchy Dickensian socks. The hosts follow Yilmars lead, turning their talk to the time Treys shoes were soaked after he fell into a four-foot-deep sewage hole: You never want to be in mysterious waters, Jermaine jokes, looking queasy. I just be thinking of my organs. Its touching my meat! Sabastian closes his eyes in sympathy: What locks in my mind is: I piss shit out, but shit can go in there too.

Kumar takes over the editing in the following section, but its no less distractible than Yilmars. Where do tuba players practice? the hosts suddenly ask after 38 minutes and 27 minutes. (Their conclusion? The closet, of course.) That quickly makes Trey wonder if he should invest in his own instrument, perhaps a secret harmonica, which in turn sends Shellz down an etymological spiral about who actually invented the instrument. As YouTube commenter Kwan Don puts it, You think Monica was named after Harmonica? might be the funniest thing Sheldon ever said .

Only in the end segment, a devastating installment of Ring Cam Moment of the Week, does this stream of consciousness finally break. In the video, a woman leaves her house in the dead of night, only to immediately slip legs-first off her icy porch. Its easily the most horrifying Ring footage in the shows history (watch it here at your own peril), and she looks so hurt at first that no one knows whether to laugh or cry. Finally, she stands up, and the room breaks:

Shellz: I wouldnt wish that on my worst enemy.

Jae: Thats that Home Alone shit.

Trey: What pisses me off about that whole video is: Why is my bag perfectly upside down? Now Ive gotta lift it up?

Shellz: The pain aint over.

Jae: My soul would fast-forward through time.

Trey: OB, man. Out-of-body.

With his team falling completely to bits, Jae barely manages to sputter, We out, man! as the RO logo swings into view. It feels like a perfectly swell conclusion, as promised. But would it be better if we actually knew whether or not that woman was all right? Yes, maam, it would.
Lily Gladstone and Leonardo DiCaprio. Photo: Apple TV+

If theres one upcoming film that has us looking like Charlie Day with a giant board of red confusion, its not Barbie (although thats up there). Its Martin Scorseses upcoming film Killers of the Flower Moon. Scorseses first film since 2019s The Irishman, the film is an adaptation of David Granns nonfiction book titled Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, which was released in 2017. It is directed by Scorsese with a script written by Scorsese and the perennially Oscar-nominated Eric Roth (Forrest Gump, A Star Is Born, Dune). The film is produced by Paramount and Apple, and is a smaller scale film with a reported budget of over $200 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Despite being produced by Apple, the film will have a theatrical release before being released on its streamer, where Timmy Chalamet will no doubt catch it. Below, the trailer, cast, and everything you need to know about the upcoming film ahead of its murderous debut.

Whats Killers of the Flower Moon about exactly?

Based on the nonfiction book of the same name, the film follows the mysterious murders of members of the Osage tribe in Oklahoma during the Roaring 20s. At the time, the Osage people were incredibly wealthy due to the rich oil deposits found on their land, and a court ruling gave them the right to profit from these resources. This fact made the community a target of local white cattleman William Hale. He and others murdered more than 60 members of the tribe over the course of a decade in an attempt to seize their economic power. At the time, the newly formed FBI investigated the murders and Hale was eventually convicted. According to THR, the original script included a good (white) character as the lead who has since been revised as a man torn between love and Hale, his uncle.

How did Martin Scorsese approach the Osage murders?

While the book focuses on FBI agent Tom White, who solved the mystery in one of the bureaus first major cases, Scorsese and his lead, Leonardo DiCaprio, had no interest in serving up a white-savior story. Instead, the film trains its lens on the twisted Ernest Burkhart (DiCaprio), a white man married to Osage tribe member Mollie (Lily Gladstone) while he and his uncle Bill Hale (Robert De Niro) are actively killing Osage people  including poisoning his wife.

Here you had the wealthiest nation, the richest per capita people in the world, DiCaprio told Deadline. You had this melting pot in Oklahoma where freed slaves had created their own economy, and the Osage emerged as this wealthy culture. But you also had, during that period, the rise of the KKK and white supremacy and this clash of cultures. For some of these white settlers, it was like a gold rush to take advantage of people of color.

A previous version of the script followed the FBI agent. Theres no mystery, Scorsese told Deadline about the first draft. So, what is it? A police procedural? Who cares! Weve got fantastic ones on television. His disillusionment with the straightforward story of Tom White led him to delve into the mindset of the people who did this for something a little more complex  like a fucked-up love and institutional racism that allowed these murders to go on for so long.

It made the most sense to show whats going on in that world, the dynamic between the nephew and the uncle, De Niro told Deadline. [Hale] believed he loved them and felt they loved him. But within that, he felt he had the right to behave the way he did.

Whos in the cast?

As you might expect from a Scorsese film, Killers of the Flower Moon has a stacked cast. Ernest Burkhart will be portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio with his uncle, Bill Hale, is set to be played by newcomer Robert De Niro. Other big names include recent Oscar winner Brendan Fraser, who plays Hales attorney, and Oscar nominee Jesse Plemons as FBI agent White. Indigenous actress Lily Gladstone (First Cow) is Mollie Burkhart. And it turns out Jack White of the White Stripes will have a small role.

When can I see it?

The film will first premiere on October 6 before going into wide release in theaters on October 20 and streaming on Apple TV+ sometime after that, though the official date is not confirmed. And if you happen to be vacationing in France this summer, the film is officially debuting at the Cannes Film Festival May 20 at the Grand Theatre Lumiere. Hurry, find a wall for Post-its and maps covered in red string.

Is the runtime really that extreme?

Its three hours and 26 minutes, or one Avatar: The Way of Water plus a 14-minute YouTube video explaining it.
I always say that what I love most about The Real Housewives is when the franchise is like a Tennessee Williams play. This absolutely perfect, incredible, amazing, insightful, emotional, disgusting, and profoundly impactful episode is like Whos Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The first ten minutes, when Ariana and Tom go over everything that just happened, is the best breakup fight I have ever seen. Even better than the gut-wrenching Tom and Shiv savagery in this season of Succession. It was handled perfectly. There is no music, no sound effects, no intrusive editing. It was the opposite of how we usually watch reality, where the editors try to drag our emotions hither and yon. Here they didnt need to. They just lay back and let this unfold like an episode of Couples Therapy.

Throughout the whole discussion, Ariana gives this man no mercy. He says he lost his mojo, and she says, So fuck my friend. Get your mojo back, fuck my friend. He says that he couldnt get an apology out of Ariana in the last few months. She says, The last few months, you were already fucking my friend. He tells her about how he and Raquel had a deep connection. She says, Dont you fucking talk to me about your deep connection. He says that hes seeing her tomorrow. She says, Are you going to kiss and hug and talk about your deep connection? He says he doesnt know. She says, Why couldnt you just say no.

Then she says the line you could never write, the absolute guillotine: I regret every moment I ever stood up for you. You are worth nothing, and I want you to feel that deep in your soul. I regret ever loving you.

Its perfect. The whole thing is perfect, and this man is getting everything he deserves. Arianas grieving is also perfect, though we never wanted to see her in this position. She is the woman scorned, and she got on-camera with a fucking blowtorch, and I am in absolute awe of her.

Well get back to Sandoval in a minute, but lets talk about everyone elses reactions to the scandal. Katie, Lala, and James, who were always anti-Raquel, continue to be, but now theyre on the right side of history. I loved how Lala (in her Send it to Darrell merch) and Katie rallied to Arianas side and how Katie and Scheana put aside their beef due to the circumstances. The one scene of the episode I really didnt love was their call to Raquel. James gets her on the phone on speaker with everyone else in the room being silent, and they just taunt her. James says to her, You literally just trashed [your friendships in L.A.] for Sandovals little cocky cock. His stinky 40-year-old cock. Well, I guess its progress when the first insult James goes for isnt that hes fat. We dont see how this phone call ends because she probably hung up on him, but the whole thing felt very sixth-grade sleepover, and I didnt like it. Yes, Raquel did a reprehensible thing, but why not reserve all this hatred and taunting for Sandoval?

I felt the same way about Lisa. She says that Tom and Ariana werent having sex, and then comes this gorgeous beauty queen who is clearly down for it, and it was too much to resist. No, this is not Raquels fault. Well, its not only Raquels fault. Its not because shes gorgeous or likes to have sex. There is no such thing as too much to resist when you are in a monogamous relationship of ten years. It is Toms duty to resist all of that, and Lisa, who has been happily married since the birth of Methuselah (who is also her husband), should know this better than anyone.

However, I did love that she offered Ariana a place to live. Can you imagine if Ariana moved into Villa Rosa, a Sweetgreen flagship store that only sells miniature ponies? Where is that sitcom? Too bad there is a writers strike on, or Id be scripting it right this minute. When Ariana visits, Lisa is very supportive and tells Ariana that things will get better; she just has to wade her way through the dumpster fire covered in sewage and Tom Sandovals pubic hair that is currently her life.

Toms visit is very different. I love that Lisa isnt taking any shit from him, even when he breaks down, sobbing into his hands. Ugh, his unmoving forehead and his white fingernails while he cries. Its a no from me, dawg, but a no so big you couldnt even wedge it into the Grand Canyon. But Lisa takes a great tone with him, condemning what hes done and how hes treated everyone, particularly Ariana, but also giving him just enough comfort to get by. At the end of the day, she is a maternal figure on this show, and while she can hate what he did, she cant fully hate Tom. Well, at least not as long as shes making money off of him in various and sundry ways.

The MVPs of the reactions to go Scheana and Katie, opposite sides of the same Alta Beauty compact. At Arianas, while her gays are breaking Toms precious dick flute, Scheana tells us about her altercation with Raquel while filming Watch What Happens Live. (I love how this episode treated them as people on a show and how this talk show, BravoCon, all the press coverage, and other outside influences of being on a reality show affect their real emotions.) She says that she shoved Raquel hard but didnt punch her. She shows us, in a confessional, that she cant even make a fist with her nails, so she cant punch anyone. Hello, this is science and is admissible in any court of law. That is why the restraining order got dropped.

That Scheana gets the final scene of the episode is also perfect. She talks about how she was friends with Sandoval first and, other than Schwartz, she was the only one in his camp this entire season. As soon as she heard the news, she left him immediately, and she gives him absolutely no sympathy. When he talks about how he tried to break up with Ariana and she threatened suicide, Scheana tells him that is when you call in her friends and family to support her, and you do the hard, difficult thing of ending it without, you know, fucking her best friend. Scheana turned on a dime to do the right thing and delivered another perfect speech that deserves, if not an entire EGOT, at least an Emmy and a Tony, the only two of those awards that really matter. I dont know where we go from here, she says. Were obviously not friends anymore because I cant support anything youve done anymore. And Im really going to miss you. Right now, you dont deserve any friends, and I cant get behind any of this. That was his last chance at an ally, and he blew it.

Katie wont talk to Sandoval, of course, but she uses her opportunity to speak with Schwartz to ask him what he knew, when he knew it, and what he did to stop it. He tells her he only knew for a month and then Katie brings up a comment he made at BravoCon. Katie reminds him that when Raquel was parading around in a Tom Tom sweatshirt with nothing on underneath, Schwartz said that she wasnt fangirling for him. When he denies it, Katie says, Why dont you get on the right side of everything and shock everyone and tell the truth for a change.

He actually does and says that he knew about the one-night stand, but he thought Tom would break up with Ariana so he wouldnt have to do anything about it. This has been a bad season for Schwartz, from the sniveling way he treated Katie during their divorce to covering up for his best friend (which were reminded Tom, Tom, and Jax have been doing for a decade). But the worst was tonight. When his best friend shows up with his life destroyed, hes not worried about him; hes concerned about their bar and his reputation. The only thing as selfish as what Sandoval did was how Schwartz reacted to it.

Even when he shows up to talk to Ariana at the rooftop bar, he tries his old puppy dog, Isnt this place cool gimmick on everyone, but theyre no longer buying it. Even as Katie is trying to get him to take responsibility for his part in all of this, hes talking about how hes worried about man-eating crocodiles in Florida. Come on, Schwartz.

We dont get to see much of Raquel in the episode, just the one scene where Sandoval goes to her house and shes alone with all the lights off but her fucking galaxy globe like shes a 12-year-old who just got caught sneaking out after curfew. She seems to have little remorse for what she did, just that shes so isolated. Well, no duh! Everyone who liked her (um, Scheana paid for her apartment???!!!) she just totally screwed over for Sandovals cocky cock. (Ugh, maybe James was right to be so cruel.) Its still hard to get a read on her or what she really thinks about all of this. In the scene, she and Tom share I love yous, but we know that they have just broken up today, so we know how it all ends. I have a feeling that well be talking about her next week in the recap of the reunion. (Yes, thats right. I petitioned Daddy Moneybags Vulture, the owner of this website. He has allowed us to keep the Vanderpump Rules wing of the Real Housewives Institute open for another three weeks.)

What really galled me, even more than I thought he could, was Tom Sandoval. It starts at the very top of the episode when Ariana talks about finding the footage of him and Raquel in a mutual diddle (at Schwartzs!!!!) on his phone. Its something I normally would have deleted. Excuse me, normally would have deleted [insert every exclamation point ever made]. Why would you have something like this on your phone often enough that there would be a plan of action? If you are in a monogamous relationship, you should not delete it because it should not be something you record. It should not exist.

When Ariana sits down with returning champion Kristen Doute, she says something very powerful about how she and Tom kissed while he was still with Kristen. She says that, at the moment, you think it is situational. You think that a specific set of circumstances lead you to this point, so you make some compromises. But what she learned is that is who this person is, and it took her nine years to figure this out.

I think the same is true for the audience, and that is why this scandal has greatly impacted the Bravo community. Just think about all the things that were not revisiting, the cold cases that aint so cold anymore, as Lala says. Tom trashed Kristen and made us all think she was awful for cheating on him with Jax, but he was doing the same thing. He made us all believe that Miami Girl was a crazy stalker trying to get on the show and Kristen was evil for bringing her around. Then we find out that, as he says, Ariana always knew the truth about that. So he did fuck her.

Then theres the Billie Lee of it all, and there were rumors that they were sleeping together that everyone so easily dismissed. When Tom is talking to Scheana, he says he cheated another time on Ariana, and it wasnt with some random person. So is it Billie? Yes, these are not circumstance; these are personality traits. And every time this trait came about, he dissembled and lied about the women in his life so that we would believe him so he could remain likable at their expense. That is what galls me: that he played all of us, constructing so many villains around him that we couldnt see that he was the Keyser Soze all along. And for that, Im sorry, but we cant forgive him, even while hes giving us some of the best, rawest, realest television Ive ever seen.
Porter, Indias leading tech-based, on-demand logistics company, has announced its first overseas expansion with entry to the UAE offering intra-city logistics services in Dubai.

Presently with more than 20,000 customers onboard, Porter plans to make an investment of $6 million in UAE over the next three years. Also, the company plans to invest $50 million into international expansion over the next five years.

The expansion comes under the companys current plan to explore the GCC region and the Indian subcontinent. The logistics start-up, which is backed by some of the most renowned and active venture capital investors including Tiger Global, Sequoia and Lighrock India had earlier raised $100 million in Series E funding for expanding operations.

Intracity logistics

The company will provide a tech-enabled platform to ensure hassle-free deliveries through its LCVs and 2-wheelers addressing the gap in intracity logistics requirements in the region for small package delivery requirements of both personal and businesses. Additionally, the company is looking to bolster operations in these cities and further increase their customer acquisition by 2x to 40,000+ and vehicle base by 3.2x to 800+ by March 2024.

Porter offers cost-effective solutions that can help in improving lower vehicle utilisation, increasing the competence of the system, and ensuring the availability of appropriate vehicles for customer requirements. This will also result in efficient intracity logistics, lesser rates for customers and more earnings for driver-partners. The company currently has 300+ LCVs on the platform and recently introduced 15 two-wheelers to expand its operations in the region.

Pranav Goel, CEO & Co-Founder, Porter said: We are thrilled to enter UAE as our first overseas market. Dubai being a global business hub, acts as an excellent facilitator for organisations that aim to establish their footprint in the region. We are thankful for all the business-friendly policies and infrastructure that the region has to offer and we expect to scale our business exponentially in the market. The expansion in UAE will catalyse the holistic growth of intra-city logistics ecosystem globally while also benefitting the local economy. We, at Porter are also actively focusing on generating employment opportunities for driver-partners and offering economical and efficient solutions backed by technology to the customers.

Bringing efficiency

We are happy with the response that our platform has received and our learnings from the Indian market will help us in accelerating our growth in the UAE. Our model helps to bring efficiency into the system by addressing issues such as lower utilisation of vehicles, unavailability of the right vehicle type and the high cost for customers. This expansion should help provide a logistics solution for businesses as well as offer consumers direct control over their deliveries, said Ankit Dwivedi, AVP - International Business, Porter.

In April, during the holy month of Ramadan, Porter pledged to make a positive impact on the community by contributing iftar meals and clothes with every delivery. With this, Porter aimed at helping those in need by providing a healthy and fulfilling meal at the end of a long day of fasting.

The company looks forward to tapping more potential opportunities in the intra-city logistics segment in the future for scaling its business.-- TradeArabia News Service
Business strategies remain unchanged as Company begins search for new business leader

WILMINGTON, Del., May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Chemours Company ("Chemours") (NYSE: CC), a global chemistry company with leading market positions in Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, and Advanced Performance Materials, today announced the resignation of Alisha Bellezza, President, Thermal & Specialized Solutions (TSS), effective May 31. Chemours will run a comprehensive search for Bellezzas replacement.

On June 1, stepping in as interim leader is Joseph (Joe) Martinko, Senior Business Director, Americas for TSS. Martinko has over 30 years of experience in the chemical industry, more than 20 years of which were with Chemours TSS and Fluoroproducts businesses. His experience spans both global and regional leadership roles in which he delivered record-setting financial performance.

"Joes deep knowledge of our thermal management products portfolio, market, and customers is truly unmatched," said Mark Newman, President and Chief Executive Officer at Chemours. "Combine that with his strong commercial experience and proven track record and I have every confidence he and the TSS team will continue building upon the strong first quarter results, ensuring clarity, consistency, and continued growth throughout this transition period."

Continued Newman, "Alisha has been a valued member of the Chemours executive team, and while we will miss her leadership and drive, we wish her all the best in the next phase of her career. The TSS business has a solid foundation upon which we will continue to build. We also have an industry leading product portfolio, an exciting innovation pipeline, and a highly capable and dedicated team that knows how to win. All of this ensures that we are well-positioned for continued growth, even in the face of changes. I have every confidence in our TSS teams ability to continue executing our strategy and delivering strong business results."

About The Chemours Company

The Chemours Company (NYSE: CC) is a global leader in Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, and Advanced Performance Materials providing its customers with solutions in a wide range of industries with market-defining products, application expertise and chemistry-based innovations. We deliver customized solutions with a wide range of industrial and specialty chemicals products for markets, including coatings, plastics, refrigeration and air conditioning, transportation, semiconductor and consumer electronics, general industrial, and oil and gas. Our flagship products are sold under prominent brands such as Ti-Pure, Opteon, Freon, Teflon, Viton, Nafion, and Krytox. The company has approximately 6,600 employees and 29 manufacturing sites serving approximately 2,900 customers in approximately 120 countries. Chemours is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware and is listed on the NYSE under the symbol CC.

For more information, we invite you to visit chemours.com or follow us on Twitter @Chemours or LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains 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, which involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to a historical or current fact. The words "believe," "expect," "will," "anticipate," "plan," "estimate," "target," "project" and similar expressions, among others, generally identify "forward-looking statements," which speak only as of the date such statements were made. These forward-looking statements may address, among other things, the outcome or resolution of any pending or future environmental liabilities, the commencement, outcome or resolution of any regulatory inquiry, investigation or proceeding, the initiation, outcome or settlement of any litigation, changes in environmental regulations in the U.S. or other jurisdictions that affect demand for or adoption of our products, anticipated future operating and financial performance for our segments individually and our company as a whole, business plans, prospects, targets, goals and commitments, capital investments and projects and target capital expenditures, plans for dividends or share repurchases, sufficiency or longevity of intellectual property protection, cost reductions or savings targets, plans to increase profitability and growth, our ability to make acquisitions, integrate acquired businesses or assets into our operations, and achieve anticipated synergies or cost savings, all of which are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and expectations of future events that may not be accurate or realized, such as full year guidance relying on models based upon management assumptions regarding future events that are inherently uncertain. These statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements also involve risks and uncertainties that are beyond Chemours' control. Matters outside our control, including general economic conditions and the COVID-19 pandemic, have affected or may affect our business and operations and may or may continue to hinder our ability to provide goods and services to customers, cause disruptions in our supply chains such as through strikes, labor disruptions or other events, adversely affect our business partners, significantly reduce the demand for our products, adversely affect the health and welfare of our personnel or cause other unpredictable events. Additionally, there may be other risks and uncertainties that Chemours is unable to identify at this time or that Chemours does not currently expect to have a material impact on its business. Factors that could cause or contribute to these differences include the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2023 and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Chemours assumes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement for any reason, except as required by law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005098/en/

Contacts

INVESTORS

Jonathan Lock

SVP, Chief Development Officer

+1.302.773.2263

Kurt Bonner

Manager, Investor Relations

+1.302.773.0026

investor@chemours.com

NEWS MEDIA

Thomas Sueta

Corporate Communications Director

+1.302.773.3903

media@chemours.com
Chile's SQM to start lithium talks with state miner Codelco in coming weeks, says CEO

FILE PHOTO: An aerial view shows the brine pools of SQM lithium mine on the Atacama salt flat in the Atacama desert of northern Chile

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Chile's lithium miner SQM is set to start talks about lithium projects with state miner Codelco in the coming weeks, the firm's Chief Executive Officer Ricardo Ramos told analysts in a quarterly earnings call on Thursday.

Ramos said the exact dates would soon be shared with the market.

The Chilean government had in April announced plans for stronger state control of the metal, a key component for electric vehicle batteries, which would involve allowing private sector partnerships only if the government holds a majority stake in strategic projects.

SQM, the world's second-largest lithium producer, saw its lithium sales volumes slip 15% over the first three months of 2023, according to a presentation, but average prices surged 34% ahead of their level in the same quarter a year earlier.

SQM had reported prices of around $38,000 per metric tonne in the first quarter of 2022, though this rose to $59,000 per tonne by the last quarter. It did not specify quarterly prices in its latest report.

"We are positive about volumes for the second quarter and semester," Ramos said when asked about the company's outlook, citing a ramp up of activity in China.

"The second quarter is showing a more stable pattern," he said.

SQM's revenues landed at $2.26 billion for January to March, up almost 12% from a year earlier, though profits dipped 6%.

(Reporting by Valentine Hilaire and Fabian Andres Cambero; Editing by Sarah Morland)
Interview with Kacie Rose Burns, the Florence-based content creator with almost a million followers on TikTok.

by Elizabeth Djinis

Kacie Rose Burns, 29, couldnt quite have imagined how much her solo trip to Italy and France from the United States would change her life. It would introduce her not just to her future partner but unwittingly set in motion an entirely different career.

The Florence-based content creator now has almost a million followers on TikTok, where she posts regularly about life in Italy, the culture shocks of being an American living here and, among other subjects, how to eat your way around the countryand the globe. She has a bona fide following now, but it all started by chance. Burns and her boyfriend, Dario Nencetti, were making the move to Florence from New York in January 2021 after almost a year in the pandemic.

More of a passive TikTok user, Burns used the of-the-moment audioa rendition of Corinne Bailey Raes Put Your Records Onto edit a highlight montage of her and Darios time together. She posted it and thought nothing of it. But when she turned her phone on after the nearly-eight hour flight, she was shocked to see that the video had gone viral. Thus, a career was born.

Burns now runs a popular TikTok and Instagram, organizes group package trips around Italy and has written numerous e-books on how to travel Italy as an in-the-know tourist. She frames her work in part as helping people not repeat the mistakes shes already made, because shes been there.

She knows what its like to try to buy a birthday card at the pharmacy (note: pharmacies in Italy are not like pharmacies in the US) or wear a sundress when everyone else is wearing a down coat. Shes attuned to the intricacies of Italian daily life, but she still approaches them as an outsider. Its this affable curiosity that has likely attracted so many of her followers and kept them engaged.

We sat down virtually with Burns to talk about how she got to where she is today, what shes learned about Italy and what shes learned about herself along the way.

Wanted in Rome: Talk to me about how your following first started. What do you think it was about that first video that resonated with people?

Kacie Rose Burns: Dario and I were long-distance for a year and then he was in New York for a yearthen the pandemic hit. And so then we decided to move to Italy. I made a compilation video [on TikTok] of our relationship purely to show him, Look, I made a fun video, and I set it to that song, showed him as we were taking off, uploaded it and then shut my phone off for seven hours. I reopened my phone when we got to Italy and the video had gone viral. At that point, Italy still had mandatory quarantine, and so we were stuck inside for two weeks. At the time, I was learning all this new stuff and thinking that I might as well make some videos about it.

If Im being totally honest, I think the timing of it all was a big factor. We were in the middle of Covid-19 and people were stuck inside. It was something positive that maybe distracted people from what was actually happening outside and allowed people to travel through their phones.

WiR: When did you decide that creating content was something you wanted to do as a career and not just as a hobby?

KRB: Honestly, it was such an accident. I was teaching English online, and thats what I was planning on doing. We moved here on a six-month trial basisI was a dancer in New York and my industry was shut down because of Covid and Darios visa was up. Covid kind of caused me to realize that maybe I didnt want to be doing what I was doing anymore.

The change came when those six months started getting closer and we realized that we werent going to go back. I didnt really know what I wanted it to turn intoI didnt know what it could be. I was honestly just kind of rolling with it. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be leading group tours, have my business, have written e-books and be flirting with the idea of writing an actual book.

WiR: What were some of the initial challenges when you first moved to Italy?

KRB: There are ups and downs to living here. Its a beautiful place to livethe scenery and the food and the people are beautiful. But there are some pretty hard parts about living abroad. The homesickness was quite brutal. Things like going to the grocery store for the first timeI didnt know that you were supposed to scan and weigh your fruit. The cashier looked at me and I panicked. I didnt understand what he was saying. I had to get out of line.

After our mandatory quarantine, it was Darios birthday and I wanted to go to the farmacia across the street and get a birthday cardI thought Id get some household cleaner as well and pick up some munchies. I went to the pharmacy and, obviously, there was nothing [like that] there. When I asked the pharmacist where the cards were, she looked at me and said, This is a pharmacy.

On a deeper level, one of the hardest things to overcome is the feeling of losing your independence. I was always very independentI moved to New York at 17 and prided myself on that quite a bit. It was hard to go from that to not having a choice but to depend on other people to get you by for at least the first couple of months. I couldnt speak the language. I didnt know how to fill out a document. And theres this weird guilt that you should be feeling grateful 100% of the time because youre so lucky to live here. So many people want to be in your shoes, so you should not be sad. You feel guilty for feeling that way, but thats not sustainable or true or helpful.

WiR: Do you feel like having an Italian partner has made it easier or harder to integrate? And how?

KRB: There is another set of challenges. Its very much that. I feel guilty having to constantly ask him for help or to come with me somewhere because I dont know how to talk about a medical issue or certain documents. I have made up a narrative in my mind that I am annoying himit goes back to that feeling of losing your independence. With that comes a loss of identity and wondering who you are without your partner.

WiR: How has your view of Italy changed since you moved here?

KRB: It eventually hits you that you start to understand the difficulties of living here and that things arent so shiny and great. Im still completely amazed by this country. But when youre living here and when youre traveling here, they are two very different things. When youre living here, you have to start filling out documents and going to the doctor and figuring out the health systemthe little things that you dont have to worry about when youre traveling. Its also about integrating yourself into a culture thats completely different than the one that you know. You almost feel like youre five years old again and relearning how to do life.

When you grow up in a country, you kind of adapt to the not-so-great things about it. At that point, youve had time to accept them. Now youre doing the same thing all over again as an adult in a new country. I love this country, but Ive come to understand the parts that I dont like, that are not my favorite, like the bureaucracy or that its not as mental-health-forward as I was used to in New York. I think the culture of slowing down that happens here is incredibly beautiful, but its not what Im used to. Sometimes all I want is the hustle and bustlelets get it going.

WiR: What advice do you have for Americans that want to move to Italy?

KRB: Keep an open mind. Be open to learning and be open to adapting in all things, good and bad, and youll be okay. Its not always easy, but its 100% worth it.
Strawberry festival in Nemi near Rome on 4 June.

The 2023 edition of the annual strawberry festival takes place in the town of Nemi in the Castelli Romani, just south of Rome, on Sunday 4 June.

The day-long tradition begins at 10.00, leading up to the main event - the distribution of free strawberries - at 18.00.

The popular Sagra delle fragole is enlivened with numerous parallel events, including live music, flower shows, exhibitions and kids events.

For more details see Comune di Nemi website.
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WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden said Tuesday hes curtailing his upcoming trip to the Indo-Pacific, scrapping what was to be a historic stop in Papua New Guinea as well as a visit to Australia for a gathering with fellow leaders of the so-called Quad partnership so he can focus on debt limit talks in Washington.

The scuttling of two of the three legs of the overseas trip is a foreign policy setback for an administration that has made putting a greater focus on the Pacific region central to its global outreach.

Biden said he still plans to depart on Wednesday for Hiroshima, Japan, for a Group of Seven summit with leaders from some of the worlds major economies. He will return to the U.S. on Sunday.

Im postponing the Australia portion of the trip and my stop in Papua New Guinea in order to be back for the final negotiations with congressional leaders, Biden said at the start of a Jewish American Heritage Month event at the White House. He added, The nature of the presidency is addressing many of the critical matters all at once. So Im confident were going to continue to make progress toward avoiding the default and fulfilling Americas responsibility as a leader on the world stage.

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Biden said he spoke to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earlier on Tuesday to inform him he was postponing a visit to Australia and invited him to Washington for an official state visit at a yet-to-be determined date. White House staff broke the news to Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape.

White House officials did not offer an immediate response to questions about when Biden might reschedule visits to the two countries.

Revitalizing and reinvigorating our alliances and advancing partnerships like the Quad remains a key priority for the President, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. This is vital to our ability to advance our foreign policy goals and better promote global stability and prosperity. We look forward to finding other ways to engage with Australia, the Quad, Papua New Guinea and the leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in the coming year.

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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has invited Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as Pacific Island leaders to come to Hiroshima during the G-7. Albanese in an Australian Broadcasting Corp. interview said that the Quad leaders are now hoping to hold a meeting in Hiroshima.

Well also hopefully be able to find a time when the four of us can sit down, Albanese said. We will have to organize the logistics of the Quad meeting now in Sydney and well be discussing with our partners in the U.S., but also Japan and India over the next day or so.

Biden had been scheduled to travel on to Papua New Guinea to meet with Pacific Island leaders and then to Australia for a meeting of the leaders of the Quad partnership, made up of the U.S., Australia, India and Japan. The Papua New Guinea stop would have been the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to the island country of more than 9 million people.

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The Quad partnership first formed during the response to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people. Since coming into office, Biden has tried to reinvigorate the Quad as part of his broader effort to put greater U.S. focus on the Pacific and counter increasing economic and military assertiveness by China in the region.

Biden announced his decision soon after he wrapped up a meeting on Tuesday afternoon with Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies, D-N.Y., for talks on the debt limit standoff.

Earlier Tuesday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby expressed administration officials frustration that the debt talks are having an impact on the presidents dealings on the international stage.

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We wouldnt have to have this conversation. I wouldnt have to answer these questions if Congress just did the right thing, Kirby said.

Some Republican lawmakers questioned Bidens decision to travel overseas considering the consequences of the debt limit talks.

I think he should not leave and he should focus on the debt limit here at home, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.

With the brief stop in Papua New Guinea to meet with Pacific Island leaders, Biden had hoped to demonstrate that the United States is committed to remaining engaged for the long term in the Pacific Islands.

The area has received diminished attention from the U.S. in the aftermath of the Cold War and China has increasingly filled the vacuum  through increased aid, development and security cooperation. Biden has said that hes committed to changing that dynamic.

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Last September, Biden hosted leaders from more than a dozen Pacific Island countries at the White House, announcing a new strategy to help to assist the region on climate change and maritime security. His administration also recently opened embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, and has plans to open one in Kiribati.

As vice president, Biden saw up close how domestic politics can complicate foreign policy during the 2013 government shutdown. President Barack Obama was forced to bail on attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and the East Asia Summit in Brunei as well as a visit to Malaysia and the Philippines in the midst of a government shutdown as he negotiated with GOP leaders.

President Bill Clinton opted to skip his scheduled participation in the APEC summit in Japan in the midst of the 1995 government shutdown. He opted to send Vice President Al Gore in his place.

___

Associated Press journalist Rick Gentilo contributed to this report.

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You could almost see the egg dripping from Cyril Ramaphosas face as he announced an African peace mission to Moscow and Kyiv, scheduled for early next month. Speaking only days after US allegations that South Africa had supplied arms to Russia, South Africas president must have known his attempt to cast himself as a honest broker in the conflict is doomed. But he is desperate to distract attention from his economic and political troubles at home as well as his foreign policy failures.

Along with credibility, Ramaphosa is also lacking in leverage  with either of the belligerents. It would be one thing if he were traveling with leaders of the BRICS group, but China and India have their own interests to pursue. So the South African will be part of a B-team that includes the presidents of Egypt, Zambia, Senegal, the Republic of Congo and Uganda.

He will not be the only pretend-peacemaker among the six African leaders in the mission: General Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has been allowing Russia to use Egyptian airspace, turning down American entreaties to block military flights. But it is one thing to allow Vladimir Putin to transport weapons to his frontline troops in Ukraine, and quite another actually to provide those arms.

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Ramaphosa has announced an inquiry into the arms transfer, and some in South Africa speculate that the president may not have had personal knowledge of what was being loaded on to the Russian cargo ship, known as the Lady R, at the Simons Town naval base in Cape Town in December.

Even if true, this would reflect poorly on his leadership. The ships arrival was flagged well in advance, and there can have been little doubt that Western intelligence agencies would keep it under close watch while at port.

South Africa also welcomed Russian (and Chinese) warships for a joint naval exercise in February.

So Ramaphosa can count on a warm welcome from Putin when the mission arrives in Moscow, but a conversation with Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskiy last weekend will have given the South African a taste of what awaits him in Kyiv. Zelenskiy issued a blunt statement after their chat: Anyone who helps an aggressor with a weapon will be an accomplice with all the consequences.

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Liubov Abravitova, Ukraines ambassador to South Africa, followed this up with an indication of what Kyiv wants from Ramaphosa: To get off the fence. Since Putins invasion is a violation of the United Nations charter and her countrys territorial integrity and sovereignty, she said, we consider it is the [obligation] of every member of UN to condemn Russia for its aggression.

South Africa has conspicuously failed to do so. In part, this is because senior leaders of the ruling African National Congress, grateful for Moscows unstinting backing during their struggle against apartheid, confuse the current occupant of the Kremlin with those who ruled that roost during the Cold War. There are other reasons, no less specious, trotted out by some of Ramaphosas counterparts in the Global South, whether they be opportunistic (like Indias Narendra Modi) or doctrinaire (like Brazils Lula.)

Ramaphosas peacemaker pose is the more pharisaical because he has shown little interest in that role in conflicts much closer to home. He can only hope Zelenskiy is too polite to question his credentials or to point out that South Africa has not played a significant part in resolving wars on its continent, such as the recent civil war in Ethiopia or Sudans ongoing war of generals.

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Meanwhile, Ramaphosas posturing abroad wont impress his critics at home, where the economy is hobbled, not only by international factors like the war in Ukraine but also by what central bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago has described as largely self-inflicted wounds. The most telling indicator of the governments mismanagement is the severe scarcity of energy: South Africans have had to endure 16 consecutive months of blackouts  of up to 12 hours a day  because state power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. aging coal-fired plants cant meet demand.

In addition to a cool reception for his peace initiative in Kyiv, then Ramaphosa can expect a cold response from South Africans in their winter of discontent.

More From Bloomberg Opinion:

 A Novel Way to End an Energy Crisis: Let the Market Work: David Fickling

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 South Africa Is Key to Global Net Zero: Allegra Stratton

 South Africas Indulgence of Putin Is Unsustainable: Bobby Ghosh

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Bobby Ghosh is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering foreign affairs. Previously, he was editor in chief at Hindustan Times, managing editor at Quartz and international editor at Time.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion

2023 Bloomberg L.P.

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Efforts to reconstruct the Russian conspiracy to sway 2016s presidential election benefited from the digital trails left behind whenever people travel, make payments or communicate using common technology such as Facebook or Gmail. Such breadcrumbs provided plentiful evidence for Fridays indictment by the special counsel of the Internet Research Agency and 13 Russian associates.

But even as the disinformation campaign from two years ago finally came into focus, it was far from clear how to prevent future bids to distort American politics.

U.S. intelligence agencies warned this week that the federal government remains ill equipped to combat Russian disinformation even as crucial midterm congressional elections loom this fall. And technology companies, while cooperating with federal investigators, acknowledge that they still struggle to detect and thwart foreign propaganda without impinging on the free-speech rights of Americans.

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One expert who has repeatedly warned Congress about these problems, former FBI agent Clinton Watts, said, Theres no one in charge of this. No one is tasked to do this. . . . The FBI doesnt do thought policing on social media in advance. Its not going to be able to detect this in advance.

Some technology companies have been reluctant to submit to greater government scrutiny or hinder the ability of users to speak anonymously and, if they so desire, with the help of automation tools that can dramatically amplify certain voices. But scrutiny of the power of their platforms  and how the Russians used them  has forced the companies into discussions with lawmakers and regulators.

The consequences of these business choices were made apparent again in recent days, as a dashboard monitoring Russian disinformation campaigns over Twitter detected a surge of conversation related to Wednesdays school shooting in Florida, along with apparent efforts to further polarize the online debate around gun control.

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The same dashboard  Hamilton 68, hosted by the Alliance for Securing Democracy in Washington  recorded sustained efforts in January by accounts linked to the spread of Russian disinformation to push the #ReleaseTheMemo online campaign. It sought the publication, ultimately successfully, of a Republican memo alleging misdeeds by the FBI in conducting surveillance of a Trump campaign associate.

As we heard this week from the nations top intelligence officials, Russia is still using social media to attack our democratic institutions and sow division amongst Americans, Sen. Mark R. Warner (Va.), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement after Fridays indictment. Warner helped lead a Senate investigation into Russian manipulation on Facebook, Twitter and Google.

Social media researchers are particularly critical of Twitter because users can register under fake names and, within certain guidelines, use automation tools to post at a pace hard for humans alone to match. Twitter declined to comment on Fridays indictment.

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The research is really unequivocal. We know that these features on Twitter get used more often to attack and to divide then they get used to bring people together, said Samuel C. Woolley, research director of the Digital Intelligence Lab at the Institute for the Future, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based think tank. Its time for the social media companies to design for democracy.

But most researchers consider Facebook significantly more influential. Its requirement that users submit their real names when creating accounts didnt keep the Internet Research Agency from creating fake accounts, buying 3,000 ads targeting American voters and creating free posts that reached 126 million people. Facebook also owns Instagram, which does not require authentic names of users and was also targeted by the Russian disinformation campaign.

The Internet Research Agency, a private firm in St. Petersburg often described as Russias leading online troll farm, relied on simple identity theft of several Americans, including dates of birth, home addresses and social security numbers, to create Facebook and PayPal accounts in their names, according to the indictment.

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Facebook has been cooperating with congressional investigators and special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, but the company has been among those saying that more needs to be done to prepare for the congressional elections.

We know we have more to do to prevent against future attacks, Joel Kaplan, the companys vice president of global policy, said in a statement Friday. Were committed to staying ahead of this kind of deceptive and malevolent activity going forward.

Twitter said in a statement Friday evening, Tech companies cannot defeat this novel, shared threat alone. The best approach is to share information and ideas to increase our collective knowledge, with the full weight of government and law enforcement leading the charge against threats to our democracy.

This divide between whats knowable about the past and preventable in the future is exacerbated, Watts and other experts say, by President Trumps reluctance to endorse what his intelligence agencies have long said about the Russian disinformation campaign and marshal government resources against it.

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Who has the ball? said Watts, a fellow with the Foreign Policy Research Institute in Philadelphia. No one can have the ball because the president wont acknowledge that it even occurred.

Outside experts question how much technology companies and U.S. officials can do against a determined adversary skilled at exploiting traditional American strengths  technology tools, free-speech protections and the rule of law.

Michael Carpenter, a former Pentagon and White House official who worked on Russia policy for the Obama administration, said better education about the threat may be the answer. He noted that during Frances presidential election in 2017, the release of supposedly hacked emails aimed at damaging candidate Emmanuel Macron did not keep him from winning.

Just about everybody in France understood this was a Russian operation and discounted it heavily, said Carpenter, senior director of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement.

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Whether the United States is capable of withstanding Russian disinformation  or schemes by other countries  in coming elections remains unclear. Efforts to understand what happened in 2016 are advancing quickly. Efforts to stop a repeat occurrence are not, experts say.

Were going to have to figure out how to make Internet conversation more robust in the face of these forms of institutionalized, professional trolling, said Peter Eckersley, chief computer scientist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group based in San Francisco.

The answer cant be censorship; it should instead be better user interfaces for labeling, analyzing and ranking the veracity of news and the manipulativeness of arguments. Its going to be a huge struggle for tech companies, the media and civil society to build vibrant and constructive spaces for public conversation in response to such tactics, but if we fail, democracy might fail with us.

Ellen Nakashima contributed to this report.

correction A previous version of this article incorrectly implied that the Twitter accounts tracked by the Hamilton 68 online dashboard were controlled by the Russian government or its agents. The Hamilton 68 researchers said the accounts echoed Russian propaganda but did not reveal the identities of the Twitter accounts they monitored or who controlled them. The article has been corrected.

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(Bloomberg) -- In the latest sign of a thaw in economic and diplomatic relations, Australian timber exports to China will be allowed to resume immediately after more than two years of restrictions.

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The timber industry has been given the green light to restart trade, Chinas ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian announced in Canberra Thursday. The trade was halted in 2020 after China said it had found pests in some shipments, but the concerns among Chinas quarantine officials had been soothed after serious study of materials provided by Australian exporters, Xiao said.

They have satisfied the conditions of the Chinese customs, Xiao said. From today on, Australian timber is going back to the Chinese market.

The timber trade between Australia and China was worth A$1.6 billion ($1.1 billion) in the 2019-20 financial year, according to government data. Timber is the latest import which China has allowed to resume over the past few months as relations improve.

Coal exports from Australia to China restarted earlier in 2023 and Beijing announced in April that it would hold a review into prohibitive tariffs on Australian barley exports. In return, the Australian government agreed to temporarily postpone its World Trade Organization court case against China.

The lifting of timber restrictions comes after Australias Trade Minister Don Farrell visited Beijing and held talks with his counterpart Commerce Minister Wang Wentao last week.

The Chinese announcement Thursday was was a great outcome for Australias forestry sector, according to a statement from Farrell. Any step towards resolving the trade impediments is welcome, he said. Hes previously said he is hopeful that all sanctions on Australia produce will be lifted by the end of 2023.

The Chinese government imposed trade sanctions on a range of Australian goods in 2020 following a call by then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19. Relations between the countries has improved following the election of Anthony Albaneses Labor government in May 2022.

--With assistance from James Mayger.

(Updates with chart.)

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JERUSALEM  Thousands of Jewish nationalists, some of them chanting Death to Arabs and other racist slogans, paraded on Thursday through the main Palestinian thoroughfare of Jerusalems Old City, in an annual display that caused new friction between Jews and Palestinians in the tense city. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight The marchers, who were overwhelmingly male Orthodox teens and young men, were celebrating Jerusalem Day, which marks Israels capture of the Old City 56 years ago. The Palestinians see the event as a provocation. Two years ago, the parade helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Throughout the afternoon, dozens of groups hoisting blue and white Israeli flags streamed through Damascus Gate  the entry to the areas Muslim Quarter  as they made their way across the Old City to the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray. The area is normally bustling on Thursday afternoons with Palestinians doing their errands ahead of the weekend.

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The boisterous crowds danced and chanted Jewish religious songs outside Damascus Gate as scores of Israeli police stood guard. In several cases, groups chanted slogans such as Death to Arabs, Mohammed is Dead and May Your Village Burn as they stared at Palestinian onlookers. Some of the youths wore clothing identifying themselves as members of Lehava  a far-right Jewish supremacist group that opposes assimilation or romantic relationships between Jews and Palestinians.

Israeli police, who had said that violence and incitement would not be tolerated, kept the sides apart but did little to stop the chants. Palestinian businesses were either shuttered or empty, and marchers occasionally threw water bottles at nearby journalists, eliciting cheers from the crowd. Police said two people were arrested for throwing objects.

Several lawmakers in Israels new far-right governing coalition, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, joined the procession. Under heavy police guard, Ben-Gvir waved to the crowd as he made his way into Damascus Gate and then high-fived security forces inside. Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nations police force, is a former far-right activist and hard-line West Bank settler who has been convicted of incitement and support for a Jewish terror group.

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While there were repeated scuffles and confrontations between Jews and Palestinians, the parade appeared to pass without serious violence. By nightfall, the massive crowd had converged in the plaza in front of the Western Wall.

Jerusalem Day is meant to celebrate Israels capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its capital, but its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

The event has been a source of friction over the years, and over 2,500 police were deployed for this years parade, with hundreds more stationed around the city.

Israel decided to allow the marchers to take the traditional route through Damascus Gate, instead of an alternate path circumventing the Muslim Quarter, despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and heavy fighting last week between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

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Ahead of the march, Gazas ruling Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to oppose the event.

On Thursday, dozens of Palestinian protesters gathered along the perimeter fence separating Gaza and Israel, raising Palestinian flags, burning tires and Israeli flags, and throwing stones toward the heavily guarded frontier.

Israeli troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets toward protesters, hurting three people, according to local media reports. There was no immediate comment from Gazas health authorities.

The protest ended without further violence that could have threatened a flare-up. It comes days after an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire ended five days of fighting between Israel and the smaller, more radical Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian president in the occupied West Bank, said allowing the march to snake through Palestinian areas of the Old City will only lead to a rise in tension and could lead to an explosion.

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In a test ahead of the parade, nearly 1,300 Jews visited Jerusalems most sensitive holy site earlier Thursday, about half the number of last year, according to Beyadenu, an activist group that promotes Jewish visits to the site. Police were seen escorting groups of Jewish visitors walking through the compound and five members of the far-right coalition government also arrived at the site, the group said.

Jordan, Israels neighbor which acts as a custodian of the Jerusalem shrine, condemned the Jewish visits there and the trajectory of the march. Egypt, the first Arab country to make peace with Israel, and the United Arab Emirates, which established ties with Israel as part of the 2020 Abraham Accords, also condemned the visits to the site.

The hilltop compound is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, home to the ancient Jewish Temples, and is the holiest site in Judaism. Palestinians revere it as the Noble Sanctuary, and it is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

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Under longstanding agreements, Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there. But an increase in such visits, along with scenes of some Jews quietly praying, has raised concerns among Palestinians that Israel is trying to alter the status quo  a charge Israel denies.

The competing claims to the site lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and often spill over into violence, including a 2021 war between Israel and Hamas.

___

AP correspondents Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, and Jack Jeffery in Cairo contributed to this report.

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MASERU, Lesotho  Authorities in the small southern African kingdom of Lesotho have imposed an indefinite nighttime curfew nationwide in an attempt to curb violent crime, a move prompted by the killing of a prominent journalist. Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for the latest updates on Russias war in Ukraine. ArrowRight The 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew was imposed Tuesday, two days after radio journalist Ralikonelo Joki, a popular current affairs talk show host at a private station, was fatally shot. Police said Joki was shot seven times by unknown gunmen as he left his workplace. No arrests have been made.

The curfew was necessary to prevent danger or harm to public safety, Police Commissioner Holomo Molibeli said. Police Minister Lebona Lephema said the curfew was needed after a spate of recent killings.

Lesotho, a country of about 2.1 million people that is completely surrounded by South Africa, has severe problems with violent crime. It has one of the highest homicide rates in the world, and the highest in Africa, according to U.N. statistics.

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The curfew has been criticized by business representatives and Lesothos national law society, which called it draconian. Only essential service providers like health workers, police and journalists are allowed to move around during the curfew hours. Most businesses must close.

Anyone found breaking the curfew can be jailed for two years or fined.

Some say the extreme response doesnt address the root causes of violent crime.

We have been put in an extremely difficult situation as we are still trying to recover from the complete shutdowns imposed between 2020 and 2022 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Thabang Sello, a nightclub owner in the capital, Maseru. The government should do more to capacitate the security agencies to fight crime rather than impose such indiscriminate punitive nationwide bans on law-abiding citizens and businesses.

Human rights lawyer Fusi Sehapi has written to the government urging it to revoke the illegal curfew.

___

More AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

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(Bloomberg) -- Chinese equities are once again adrift after a frenzied rally in state-owned firms, leaving traders searching for catalysts to drive the next leg of gains.

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The benchmark CSI 300 Index has erased a jump fueled by a rise in state-linked and artificial intelligence stocks as focus reverts to Chinas lackluster economy. As a result, turnover in the mainland market has dipped below a key mark, while volumes in Hong Kong are also shrinking.

The change in sentiment suggests that traders remain wary about Chinese stocks even as authorities pledge to improve state-linked firms valuations and vow to allow them to tap more capital. Beijings strained ties with Washington and the risk of sudden policy changes are among the long-standing worries.

Here are four charts to illustrate the waning momentum in Chinese shares:

Onshore investors tend to take their cue from their offshore peers and recent flows have provided little inspiration. Foreign funds daily net flows via the trading links have dipped below 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) since mid-February and are less than half of that on most days. This comes after purchases reached a record 141.2 billion yuan in January to surpass inflows for all of 2022.

The fragile sentiment is also reflected in the tech-heavy ChiNext Index, which has fallen about 20% from a peak reached last July. Only a quarter of all the shares on the gauge are trading above their 200-day moving average, indicating a widespread lack of enthusiasm. Thats a far cry from mid-2020 when the index was a hot trade, thanks to bets on solar and electronic vehicle stocks such as Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. and Sungrow Power Supply Co.

A weekly reading of the Shanghai Composite Indexs moving average convergence-divergence is emitting bearish signals. The indicator is forming a so-called negative crossover, which suggests that sellers are back in control  similar to an episode in mid-September last year which preceded a bout of losses.

To be sure, technical indicators suggest that the downside in Chinese equities may be limited. The CSI 300 Index is likely to find support at the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement of its reopening rally. This support has remained intact even after being tested multiple times in recent months, indicating that buyers are ready to dive in whenever theres a dip.

--With assistance from Mengchen Lu.

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The United Nations torture watchdog has urged Australia to end its inhumane, indefinite detention of asylum seekers and immigrants and make reparations for historical human rights abuses.

UN special rapporteur on torture Alice Edwards said Australia and the United Kingdom were outliers in not setting time limits on immigration detention.

UN special rapporteur on torture Alice Edwards says Labor is responsible for Australias record on inhumane refugee policy. Credit: Cordula Treml

Figures released in March showed the average stint in detention in this country is 780 days, more than two years.

Edwards, who was both the first woman and first Australian appointed to the role, called for urgent action and said Labor was responsible for the longstanding policy.
Washington: Myanmars military has imported at least $US1 billion ($1.5 billion) in arms and other material since it staged a coup in February 2021, a UN expert said in a new report that calls out Russia and China for aiding the juntas deadly campaign to crush its opposition.

Since the military seized power and jailed democratic leaders, some opponents of military rule have taken up arms, in places joining ethnic minority insurgents, and the military has responded with air strikes and heavy weapons, including in civilian areas.

Russian-made Mi-35 helicopters, MiG-29 fighter jets and Yak-130 light aircraft, and Chinese K-8 jets, have been most frequently used to conduct air strikes that have hit schools, medical facilities, homes and other civilian sites, said the report by Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar.

In a single attack on a village gathering in the Sagaing region on April 11, two bombs dropped from a Yak-130 killed at least 160 people, including nearly 40 children, the report said.
London: It was 25 years ago when Earl Spencer, brother of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, stood in the Westminister Abbey pulpit to deliver a eulogy that so many still remember  chapter and verse.

She would want us today to pledge ourselves to protecting her beloved boys William and Harry from a similar fate and I do this here Diana on your behalf, he told millions of mourners in their lounge rooms across the world.

We will not allow them to suffer the anguish that used regularly to drive you to tearful despair.

And so, all these years later Prince Harry, 38, and his wife Meghan, 41, are engulfed in such familiar scenes. Seemingly chased through a world-famous city  this time New York  by photographic mercenaries desperate to make a dollar.
Washington: Joe Biden will convene Pacific Island leaders for a major summit this year, as the US president seeks to mitigate the fallout from his decision to scrap a much-anticipated trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea designed to counter Chinas assertiveness.

As he departed Washington for a G7 meeting in Hiroshima, Biden rejected suggestions that cancelling part of his trip was a win for Beijing, noting we still have four good allies in the form of the Quad alliance between the US, Australia, India and Japan.

And while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he was disappointed Biden would no longer travel to Canberra and Sydney next week, Australias former ambassador to the US, Arthur Sinodinos, said the president ultimately made the right call to return to Washington to resume negotiations over the debt ceiling given what was at stake.

Unless Congress raises or suspends the debt ceiling, the US could run out of money as early as June 1, upending global financial markets and risking a downturn as severe as the Great Depression.
Suzanne Cordeiro / Shutterstock.com

Mark Cuban is best known as the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, but it turns out he has a number of diverse interests  and hes willing to support them financially. A look at the website of Mark Cuban Companies shows the variety of companies he either owns outright or has invested in, and the list is impressive in both its volume and breadth.

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Cuban got an early start as an entrepreneur when, at age 12, he sold garbage bags door to door. Later, while still a student at Indiana University in Bloomington, Cuban opened Motleys Pub, which Cubans website says was the most popular bar in town.

Impressive as those early ventures were, they pale in comparison to the business that set Cubans course as a billionaire: MicroSolutions, a computer consulting firm he eventually sold to CompuServe for $6 million. Next came Broadcast.com, a streaming audio service Cuban started with a friend, Todd Wagner, and later sold to Yahoo for $5.7 billion in stock, according to CNBCs Make It. Cuban bought a majority state in the Dallas Mavericks the following year.

Today, Cuban serves as the Mavericks proprietor and oversees the Mark Cuban Foundation and Mark Cuban Companies, his venture capital and private equity firm. Mark Cuban Companies investments include businesses owned by minorities or women and those started by entrepreneurs with ties to the military. His portfolio is growing in the blockchain sector. Cubans other business interests include health, fitness, eating well and the environment.

Read on to learn more about what Mark Cuban has invested in and some of the impressive financial gains made so far.

12 Companies Mark Cuban Has Invested In

Some of Cubans investments have resulted from pitches made on the television show Shark Tank, where he and other business experts hear from entrepreneurs who need an infusion of cash for their startups. Others come from chance meetings and even cold pitches from entrepreneurs whose ideas impress him.

Im a Self-Made Millionaire: These Are Investments Everyone Should Avoid During an Economic Downturn

Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs

Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs aims to produce low-cost versions of expensive generic drugs and price them straightforwardly and transparently. The idea for the company was inspired by the Pharma Bro scandal that resulted when Turning Pharmaceuticals increased the price of Daraprim, an anti-parasitic drug, by 5,000%, Forbes reported, putting it out of reach of those who needed it most. The move turned Turning CEO Martin Shkreli into a poster for corporate greed and infuriated Dr. Alex Oshmyansky, a physician and entrepreneur. Oshmyansky reached out to Cuban via a cold email. Mark Cuban Plus Drug Company, which Oshmyansky founded and helms, is the result of their collaboration. The company expanded to include a direct-to-consumer online pharmacy in January.

Billshark

Steven McKean, Brian Keaney and Michael Mora founded Billshark in 2016 to save customers time and money by negotiating their monthly bills and identifying unused subscriptions. To date, Billshark has saved consumers and small businesses over $10 million, and it hopes to save them $2.7 billion by 2025. Impressed with Billsharks service and seeing potential in its platform, Cuban came on board as an investor and advisor in 2018 to help the company with its application programming interface  the software that would allow companies to integrate Billshark on their platforms. Since then, Billshark has partnered with a number of financial institutions and fintech companies. Mint, the money management platform owned by Intuit, announced in January that Billshark would power its new Bill Negotiation tool.

Gameday Couture

In 2014, Marl Cuban invested $500,000 for a 30% stake of Gameday Couture, which started making officially licensed college apparel for women. Co-owners Kurt and Shawnna Feddersen began the Oklahoma-based company to help women look stylish while cheering for their favorite team. By 2018, Gameday Couture had annual sales of $12 million. At the time of Cubans investment, Gameday Couture held licenses with more than 30 universities. Today, it contains over 200 NCAA licenses and is sold in over 2,500 stores nationwide.

Nuts N More

A meeting between three 40-something friends in 2010 in Providence, Rhode Island, led to the creation of Nuts N More, which started out selling high-protein nut butter spread with fitness enthusiasts in mind. An appearance on Shark Tank in 2013 garnered the young company an investment of $75,000 from Cuban and fellow shark Robert Herjavec in exchange for 35% of the company. Today, the company has more than 20 flavors and sells high-protein peanut and almond butter spreads, snack packs and more. Before the appearance on Shark Tank, the company made sales of about $100,000 a year. By 2018, sales reached about $6 million annually.

InstaFire

Konel Banner long had recognized the need for fire-starting technology, and when he met outdoor enthusiast Frank Weston, who also had a background in firefighting, they partnered to develop InstaFire. They met mornings for nine months in an abandoned, owl-infested warehouse to develop a product that was safe, easy to use and reliable  something that could be counted on in an emergency. Cuban teamed with fellow investor Lori Greiner to put $300,000 into the company in exchange for 30% ownership in 2016. The company has expanded its product offerings, especially those that boost environmental friendliness. On her website, Greiner said the InstaFire had $7.5 million in retail sales in the first three years following its Shark Tank appearance.

Mrs. Goldfarbs Unreal Deli

Jenny Goldfarb grew up in a family that ran a Jewish deli business in New York. Once she went vegan, she decided that the deli staple of a corned beef sandwich could co-exist with her lifestyle and created Mrs. Goldfarbs Unreal Deli in 2018, producing plant-made deli meats. Her products are kosher, animal-free, cholesterol-free, nitrate-free, low in fat, low carb and full of protein. In a 2019 Shark Tank episode, Cuban gave Goldfarb $250,000 for a 20% stake in the company, and its one of just several investments hes made in plant-based businesses. Cuban is a vegetarian.

Simple Sugars

Lani Lazzari was a young teen looking to find relief from her eczema. Despite numerous visits to the dermatologist, she had no solution for her sensitive skin until she started experimenting with her own concoctions in the family kitchen. By 2005, for the first time ever, she had relief and was eczema-free, thanks to her own recipes. She appeared on Shark Tank in 2013, and Cuban walked away with 33% of the company for his $100,000 investment. Sales for the Pittsburgh-based company rose from $44,000 to $6 million after the Shark Tank appearance.

Grouphug

In 2018, first-generation American Krystal Persaud decided to use her experience designing consumer electronics at a New York company to start Grouphug and emphasize sustainability. Her creation: window solar panels that connect to chargers for cell phones and other devices. While the sun hits your solar panel during the day, all of that energy gets stored in an internal battery, meaning you can charge your favorite devices day or night, she said on a 2020 episode of Shark Tank. Sold on the promise of the concept, Cuban gave her $150,000 for a 25% stake in the company.

Coconut Girl

Spurred by his belief in healthy eating (and maybe a sweet treat, too), Cuban bought a 20% stake of Coconut Girl in 2020 for $180,000. The company was founded by Francheska Frankie Yamsuan, who developed the dairy-free, gluten-free line of ice cream sandwiches in 2018. Coconut Girls products are sold in flavors that include Hang Loose Vanilla and Aloha Chocolate. Coconut Girl doesnt use cane sugar and products are sweetened with dates, honey and maple syrup. The companys website boasts the treats are grain free, paleo and pretty much guilt free.

Shower Toga

An outdoor enthusiast, Georgia mom Kressa Peterson knew what its like to get grimy and muddy with no way to remove her dirty clothes to wash off  without creating a public spectacle. So she created Shower Toga  which users put over their clothes before pulling them off from underneath  with campers, bikers, endurance athletes and more in mind. Its washable and reusable. While at least one of the investors on Shark Tank likened it to a plastic trash bag, Cuban and guest Shark Alli Webb saw the value and plunked down $80,000 for a 40% ownership of the company.

Ready. Set. Eat!

Founded in 2017, the company Ready. Set. Eat! introduces children as young as four months old to peanut, egg and milk allergens with the goal of reducing kids risk of developing allergies to them by as much as 80%. That is achieved by supplementing a babys bottle or food with a packet of the allergens. Cuban made an initial investment of $350,000 through Shark Tank and then took part in a $3 million financing round.

As a parent of a child with a severe peanut allergy, I know firsthand the impact it has on families across the country  We will work on making sure every parent knows about early allergen introduction, Cuban said in a news release. He is a father of three.

The Living Christmas Co.

As a teenager in Southern California, Scott Martin used to deliver Christmas trees to customers. Because I worked in a nursery I thought, Why do people cut down trees to bring in the house when there are perfectly good living trees that can be brought in the house and afterwards they keep on living,' he told Spectrum News in 2019. So as an adult, he founded The Living Christmas Co., which delivers live, potted trees that families care for during the holidays, and hell return to pick them up. Then, he will rent the same tree to another family next year, saving the life of a tree. Needing money for capital and infrastructure, he went on Shark Tank and found some disbelievers. But Cuban, calling himself a believer in convenience with a conscience, invested $150,000 for 40% of the company. The company is still in business, but not much is known about its growth and revenues.

So, how does a business owner get their idea in front of Cuban and, perhaps, score some venture capital? Email is the key  you can find his address online with a bit of digging. Cuban told Raising the Bar podcast hosts Alli Webb and Adrian Koehler that he spends hours glancing through emails and responding to those that catch his attention.

Your best bet for avoiding Cubans email trash can and his auto-delete filter is not to waste a second of his time. Youve got one paragraph to get my attention, he told Webb and Koehler. Get to the point about what your product does, and avoid making exaggerated claims. If your product is viable and your email is one of the 10% or so Cuban reads in-depth, your business could make its way into Cubans investment portfolio.

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Daria Uhlig contributed to the reporting for this article.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: What Companies Has Mark Cuban Invested In?
Navaratri is the longest Hindu festival celebrated all over India for nine consecutive nights in praise of Lord Rama (Hero of the Epic Ramayana) and Goddess Durga from September end to early October. Continuous chanting from the great epic 'Ramayana', along with evening performances from the episodes of his life are held for nine days. On the 10th day falls Vijayadashami or Dussehra. Navaratri is a combination of many concepts, with the common theme of the victory of good over evil. One concept is that Vijayadashami or Dusshera is celebrated on the day Rama kills Ravana in the Rama Ravana war. Another concept is that, Durga, goddesses of power and vitality who is believed to have nine forms called Navadurga, takes a new form on each of the nine days (celebrated as Durga Puja ) with the arsenal of weapons to ride a lion and fight the demon Mahishasura. The 10th day on which the goddess kills Mahishasura, is celebrated as Dusshera or Vijayadashami as the victory of good over evil. Lord Rama is said to have worshipped the goddesses, seeking her blessing in order to overpower the evil force of Ravana, the abductor of his beloved Sita. The most joyous celebration of Navaratri is seen in Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Bengal. In Gujarat, every night people gather in courtyards to dance the Garba and Dandiya Raas, a community dance in which men and women dressed in festive clothes dancing in pairs with Dandiya or painted wooden sticks. Goddess Durga's three 'Sakthipithas' in Gujarat; Ambaji in Banaskantha, Bahucharaji in Chunaval and Kalika on Pavagadh hill in Panchmahals are thronged by devotees during Navaratri. In West Bengal, it is celebrated as Durga Puja where beautifully decorated images of the goddess are worshipped in specially erected Puja Pandals. It has special significance in Mysore, South India. Mysore palace is illuminated for a whole month during Dusshera and caparisoned elephants lead a colourful procession through the gaily decorated streets of the city. Here and in North India, on the 10th day, larger than life effigies of Ravana (the Asura King), his brothers Meghnada and Kumbhakarna filled with different fire crackers are set alight to celebrate victory of good over evil.
Conflux Network, a public blockchain backed by the Chinese government, on Tuesday unveiled its first blockchain-based SIM card, or BSIM, in a collaboration with Chinas second-largest wireless carrier China Telecom.

See related article: Chinas Instagram gets NFT makeover with Conflux

The BSIM card will allow users to access blockchain-based functions such as on-chain data storage, digital identity verification, management of digital assets, as well as improve mobile phones defence against cyber attacks, according to a Twitter post by Conflux on Tuesday.

At the launch event, Conflux Network Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer Ming Wu transferred a commemorative NFT from Confluxs BSIM card account to China Telecoms to mark the partnership.

A BSIM card looks the same as an ordinary SIM and is compatible with both Android and IOS operating systems, but packs 10-20 times larger storage space and a computing power several dozen times stronger, according to Fan Long, Conflux Founder and President of the Tree-Graph Research Institute, the research team behind the Conflux Network.

The BSIM card will be piloted in Hong Kong, which is seeking to build itself into a global hub of the Web 3.0 industry, and then introduced to mainland China and overseas markets.

The Tree-Graph Research Institute was established in 2020 to further the development of the Conflux blockchain, and is supported by the municipal government of Shanghai.

The Institute is involved in the drafting of IEEE P3217  an international blockchain standard by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers to define the interface between blockchain and blockchain applications, which is set to be published in June 2023, according to a Wednesday report by state media Xinhua News Agency.

Launched in 2018, Conflux Network is a layer 1 blockchain that claims to be the only regulatory-compliant public blockchain in China, and has collaborated with a number of enterprises and government entities on blockchain and metaverse initiatives in the country.
A 105-unit, five-storey development geared towards older adults who want to age in place and own their apartments is being planned at the corner of Queenston Street and Welland Canals Parkway in St. Catharines.

The proposed membership community, WaterView Estates and Wellness Suites, would feature both independent, assisted and enhanced assisted living units for seniors.

Angela Kelly, chief operating officer of developer Estates of Niagara, said the company is expecting site plan approval in the next two months and construction to begin at the end of this year or early 2024. Occupancy is anticipated to start in early 2025.

It would be the most progressive, active lifestyle community in this area, Kelly said.

The whole concept of aging in place is the key deliverable on our priorities and our values for this project. Its looking at how we can accommodate seniors in their early years and then, when life changes, the supports are there should they need them.

The project at 518 Queenston St. was approved for minor variances by the citys committee of adjustment in April.

It consists of a five-storey mixed residential and commercial building with a north and south wing that are connected with a building bridge in the centre. The development stretches along the west side of Welland Canals Parkway.

Kelly said the location should be desirable for a retired person with an active lifestyle.

The paths, the biking, the walking trails, everything is right there, she said, adding its also located between Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Kelly said the propertys concept, borrowed from a Florida model, is a membership-style ownership whereby people have access to a club for $99 that allows them to design how they want their retirement to look.

The membership gives them access to the properties, all of the amenities and happy hours with two-for-one drinks and meals.

Some amenities planned for the building include a rooftop terrace, five-star dining, a 24-hour bistro, medical clinic, spa, pharmacy, adult daycare and child daycare. Theres a plan for shuttle buses and a limousine to take people on daily activities out into the community and a family suite that can be used by visitors.

The suites will have full kitchens, but people can buy meal packages if they dont want to cook or order just some meals, Kelly said.

Its almost like a hotel-style concierge where you can pick and choose what you want.

The units will be 91.8 to 105.6 square metres (988 to 1,137 square feet), with pricing starting at mid-500s and to the mid-600s. There is also a Friendship Suite option for people who want to buy an apartment with a friend with separate bedrooms and common areas.

Kelly said there are two ownership options  an investor option for people who are interested in living in the community down the road but not right now and can lease out their unit. Theres also the option of the end user buying now, moving in and being part of the community from the start.

Theres the end user right now whos saying, Im 65. I want the social involvement, I want the activities. I want to be part of a like-minded community, she said.

And then theres the maybe 55- to 60-year-old thats saying, Im not ready for that yet, but certainly feel that there might be some money to be made in that environment. Ill lease out my unit for the next five to 10 years and when I am ready, I have it there when I need it.

Sales arent happening yet but people can find more information on the company website estatesofniagara.ca.

Estates of Niagara has a project on-the-go in Niagara Falls at 2626 Mewburn Rd., off Mountain Road, that is a completely independent, active lifestyle community. That project, Stoneridge Estates, is supposed to start construction in the fall.

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Sediment cleanup plans, past and present, for a portion of Lyons Creek in Welland will form part of public information session later this month

Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority is partnering with the Niagara River Remedial Action Plan (NRRAP) program, which works to clean up the shoreline of the river from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, to host the session at Welland International Flatwater Centre.

Am NPCA release said Lyons Creek East is contaminated with a historical source of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and is the last remaining contaminated sediment site within the Canadian side of the Niagara River Area of Concern, identified for cleanup as part of the NRRAP.

The creek is east of the Welland Canal and a tributary of the Welland River, which eventually flows into the Niagara River.

In 2008, a natural recovery approach was selected to manage the contaminated sediments, said the release.

It said scientific evidence showed ecological and human health risks were low and it would have the least impact on the natural environment.

Contaminated sediments were expected to be buried by cleaner sediment over time; however, long-term monitoring results indicate that natural recovery has not progressed as expected in some areas of the creek, the release added.

Environment and Climate Change Canada and Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Conservation scientists involved in monitoring the area recommend a more active remediation approach, which may involve sediment removal, capping or a combination of techniques, the release said.

Additional studies to determine potential remediation options will be conducted and NRRAP will continue to engage the community to support future decision-making.

The release said the information session marks the beginning of the process.

This portion of Lyons Creek is the last site requiring cleanup as part of the Niagara River Remedial Action Plan, and this project is an important step in our multi-year strategy for delisting the Niagara River as an area of concern, said Natalie Green, NPCA manager of climate change and special programs.

She said collaboration is key to improving the environment.

As we have demonstrated in the past, we are committed to sharing information and involving people in this important decision about our shared resources. We look forward to working with government agencies, Indigenous partners, stakeholders and the local community to determine the next steps for this important project.

Residents interested in the project are encouraged to attend the information session on Tuesday, May 30, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the flatwater centre, 16 Townline Tunnel Rd.

Registration is required, and places can be reserved at www.eventbrite.ca/e/lyons-creek-east-public-information-centre-tickets-623946108607.

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OTTAWA - Canadas financial intelligence agency is warning that Russians subject to economic sanctions due to Moscows attack on Ukraine could try to evade them using shell companies, cryptocurrency and real-estate transactions.

The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre also says in a new special bulletin that those seeking to launder the proceeds of crime and corruption might try to hide assets by transferring ownership to family members or close associates.

The federal centre, known as Fintrac, tries to detect money laundering by sifting through a steady stream of transaction data from banks, insurance companies, securities dealers, money service businesses, real estate brokers, casinos and others.

Fintrac then discloses intelligence to police and security partners for use in their investigations.

Canada has sanctioned hundreds of Russian individuals and organizations over Moscows 2022 invasion of Ukraine, prohibiting financial dealings linked to Canada.

Fintracs bulletin says Russian organizations and individuals looking to disguise ill-gotten money are known to use complex networks of corporate structures in various jurisdictions to mask their involvement in the international financial system.

Such structures include shell and front companies designed to obscure ownership, sources of funds and the countries involved in the financial transactions.

These shell companies, often registered to addresses in offshore financial centres or tax havens, might have minimal or no online presence, Fintrac says.

Entities may have corporate names that are overly generic, non-descriptive or easily mistaken with that of a better-known corporate entity. Additionally, the corporate name may be regularly misspelled in different ways.

Fintrac says other possible characteristics of suspicious transactions include:

 the involvement of legal firms, including company service providers based in offshore financial centres that have historically specialized in Russian clientele;

 use of Canadian financial institutions as a transit point for international money laundering;

 financial institutions or their intermediaries connected to the Russian payment system known as SPFS, after several Russian banks were removed from the SWIFT payment-messaging system;

 use of real-estate transactions for money laundering purposes, particularly in jurisdictions such as the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.

Suspicious Russia-linked virtual currency transactions could be initiated from or sent to Internet Protocol addresses in Russia, Belarus or neighbouring jurisdictions with weak anti-money laundering systems, Fintrac says.

Open source analysis of cryptocurrency transactions indicates that Russian entities and individuals represent a disproportionate share of cryptocurrency-enabled crime, including online fraud and ransomware.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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Astronomers from the University of Montreal and around the globe have discovered a new exoplanet whose volcano-carpeted surface could potentially support life  or even spark it.

Their paper, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, described a roughly Earth-sized, temperate planet orbiting a small red dwarf star about 90 light years away, in a southern constellation called Crater.

Named LP 791-18d, the exoplanet (a planet outside our solar system) is only slightly larger than Earth and believed to be covered with volcanoes  a potentially vital step in creating an atmosphere and producing the building blocks of life, the researchers say.

For the first time, we have an exoplanet (with) a very strong indication that there is volcanic activity, said Bjorn Benneke, an astronomy professor at the University of Montreal who planned and supervised the study.

It gives us an opportunity to understand Earth and Venus and other rocky planets in general (in a different way) than we previously have, he told the Star.

Potential for water

The planet sits on the inner edge of its star systems habitable zone, where temperatures are believed to be just right for liquid water to exist on a planets surface. Averaging out its temperatures, LP 791-18ds just a little warmer than Earth, Benneke said.

Although the planets day side may be too hot for liquid water, Benneke said its night side could be cool enough for water to condense on its surface and even form glaciers. In between the extremes, he says there exists a middle ground with temperatures similar to Earth.

This intersection may look something a bit like Iceland, Benneke said. You (might) have lots of ice, but also volcanic activity underneath.

The volcano planet

The newly-discovered planets volcanoes are believed to stem from its wonky orbit around its star, resulting in a gravitational tug of war that cooks the planet from the inside out.

Normally, stars force their planets into a circular orbit. In LP 791-18ds case, however, another, massive planet  one more than double Earths size with over seven times its mass  happens to orbit very close by, Benneke said.

The gravity of the massive body turns LP 791-18ds orbit elliptical each time it passes by, and each time the pull of its star tries to restore it. This constant pulling slightly deforms the planet, generating great internal friction and significantly heating the planets core.

That heat has to go somewhere, Benneke said, explaining it often vents through the surface, causing volcanic eruptions. Jupiters moon Io, the most volcanically active body in our solar system, operates in a similar way.

While seeming scary, the researchers say volcanoes may actually hold the key to the planet forming a livable atmosphere  and perhaps even life.

Sparks of life?

An atmosphere may be vital for life, but exoplanets often lose theirs over time, often to high energy radiation let off from their stars, Benneke said. However, as a result of LP 791-18ds volcanic eruptions letting off great plumes of gas, its atmosphere is constantly replenished, he continued.

So in some way, the same ideas that apply for the Earth, that life may have started under the water by volcanic activity  that could potentially apply here as well, Benneke continued.

Co-author Jessie Christiansen, a research scientist at NASAs Exoplanet Science Institute, explained in a release that tectonic or volcanic activity is suspected to be necessary for life.

In addition to potentially providing an atmosphere, these (volcanic) processes could churn up materials that would otherwise sink down and get trapped in the crust, including those we think are important for life, like carbon, Christiansen said.

Karen Collins, another collaborator and an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics, said in a different statement that This discovery is just a first step  Future discoveries will help us understand how the ingredients of life might have come to be on worlds other than our own.

Correction  May 18, 2023: A previous version of this article erroneously said that LP 791-18d is tidally locked, meaning it doesnt rotate on its axis like Earth.

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MONTREAL - The Quebec Court of Appeal has cut a decade from the time a man convicted of ordering a series of killings must serve before being eligible for parole.

Benjamin Hudon-Barbeau was handed a life sentence with no chance of parole for 35 years in November 2018 after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder.

At the time, prosecutors said it was the first time consecutive sentences had been imposed in Quebec since the law was changed in 2011 to allow for them.

Last year, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that such stacked sentences for multiple murders were unconstitutional, restoring the longest period before parole eligibility to 25 years.

In a decision Tuesday, the Quebec Court of Appeal dismissed Hudon-Barbeaus appeal of the verdicts but agreed he should be able to apply for parole after 25 years.

Hudon-Barbeau made headlines in 2013 when he orchestrated a prison escape by helicopter before being arrested a short time later and receiving a 16-year sentence for the escape.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 17, 2023.

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VANCOUVER - A forensic pathologist said it was his certain conclusion that a 13-year-old girl found dead in a B.C. park six years ago died of strangulation, after her alleged killers lawyer asked if wording in the autopsy report left any room for doubt.

Dr. Jason Morin, who performed the autopsy, testified under cross-examination Wednesday that he took swabs of the girls neck to preserve any DNA that might have been left by her attacker.

The body of the girl, who cannot be identified under the terms of a publication ban, was found in Burnabys Central Park in July 2017, just hours after her mother reported her missing.

Ibrahim Ali has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

Morin previously told the jury in the British Columbia Supreme Court trial that his autopsy determined the girl died after being strangled, which had caused blood vessels in her eyes and face to burst.

Alis lawyer Ben Lynskey on Wednesday pointed to the absence of injuries to both internal and external structures of the neck.

He later quoted from portions of Morins autopsy report that said the death was suspicious and consistent with strangulation.

He asked whether the language was intentional because there could be another potential cause of death.

Thats a certain conclusion, Morin said of his strangulation finding.

I didnt find anything else at the time of autopsy that would explain her death, he said.

The Crown had earlier questioned Morin about the steps he took in his autopsy, including where he had taken swabs, but Lynskey homed in on the swabs to her neck.

The circumstances of the case inform where swabs are taken, Morin told the jury.

We do the swabs because theres a chance that the evidence transfer happened, he said when asked about the neck swabs on Wednesday.

Were essentially looking for transfer of DNA from someone else on the body to be able to place that person somehow involved (with) that body. How they were involved with that body just depends on the rest of the investigation, he said.

Content warning: material that some may find disturbing follows.

Morin also conducted DNA swabs of the girls genitals, mouth and breasts as police had informed him that she may have been the victim of a sexual assault, he said.

He told the jury during direct examination by the Crown this week that sperm was found in the girls body.

He also said he identified a number of injuries, including bruising, scraping and tearing on the back of her head, as well as to her face, arms and legs.

Crown attorney Isobel Keeley said in an opening statement that the court would hear evidence showing the murder was random, but DNA results would prove Ali sexually assaulted her.

She said the evidence would show the girl was passing through a neighbourhood park when she was dragged off a pathway into the forest by Ali, sexually assaulted and strangled.

The defense has not yet told the jury its theory of events.

The Crown initially told the jury the trial was expected to take about two months but Justice Lance Bernard said Wednesday that it would likely extend until the fall.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 17, 2023.

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MONTREAL - A 27-year-old man from Quebec was shot to death in Mexicos Pacific coast beach town of Puerto Escondido, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Oaxaca state prosecutors said Victor Masson was found dead in a car with a bullet wound on Monday in a neighbourhood of Puerto Escondido where few tourists stay. Prosecutors did not provide any possible motive in the slaying.

The prosecutors did not release his hometown, but Quebec media outlet Le Quotidien reported that Masson was from Chicoutimi, in the provinces SaguenayLac-Saint-Jean region.

Annie Viau, a family spokesperson who described herself as Massons brothers partner, confirmed the death but gave few other details.

You understand that the family of Victor Masson is in shock and that members learned of the death through the media, Viau told The Canadian Press in an emailed statement written in French and Spanish.

Viau said the family was asking for privacy, fearing that the dissemination of false information in the context of this file could interfere with the investigation.

Masson was the second foreign tourist killed in the southern state of Oaxaca in less than a week. His killing comes three days after a man from Argentina was seriously wounded in a machete attack in another coastal town in Oaxaca. Prosecutors said Monday the Argentine tourist  whose name was not released  died of his injuries at a hospital in Mexico City.

He was among a group of three Argentines who were attacked by a Mexican man with a machete on Friday in the hamlet of La Isla, at the mouth of the Laguna de Chacahua, on the Pacific coast. The other two tourists were also wounded, but they were expected to survive.

Laguna de Chacahua is about 100 kilometres west of Puerto Escondido.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 17, 2023.

 With files from The Associated Press

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As Alberta heads into the home-stretch of a nailbiter of an election, Danielle Smith and Rachel Notley are set to face off in a televised debate Thursday at 6 p.m. local, 8 p.m. eastern.

The two leaders  Smith leads the governing right-wing United Conservatives and Notley the opposing left-leaning New Democrats  will be the only participants in an hour-long debate moderated by a panel of journalists.

Polls remain very close amid a campaign that has pitted the two politicians against each other, each pitching a very different vision for the province when it comes to health care, the oil industry and the relationship with the federal government. The race so far has been punctuated by controversial statements from Smith, questions about both parties records while in office and even multiple out-of-control wildfires.

The debate, likely to be fiery, will not be the first such showdown for either candidate. Smith has held office for much of the last year, having succeeded Jason Kenney, who stepped down after his support within the UCP  which he helped create  dropped during the pandemic. Notley was premier from 2015 to 2019, and is now looking for another try.

Topics likely to come up include election mainstays like health care, education and the rising cost of living, but also questions about some of Smiths past comments, Notleys time in office and the response to the dozens of fires currently blanketing the province in smoke.

Although this is the first debate, Smith and Notley were photographed sitting at the same table earlier this month as they met to discuss the fire response. Some local campaigns have had to be suspended as Smith thrust back into the premiers seat while the province has struggled to control wildfires during a devastating start to the spring season.

A former leader of the right-wing Wildrose Party and talk show host, Smith came out on top after a tumultuous race to lead the party last fall. Generally considered further to the right than Kenney, her initial support was fuelled by pandemic angst, as she publicly questioned public health protections and vaccine safety.

As leader, she has focused on the economy and desire to push back against Ottawa, but has also drawn considerable criticism for a series of problematic comments, including a resurfaced clip from a podcast in which she compared those who had been vaccinated against COVID to those who followed Hitler.

Notley, meanwhile, was elected premier back in 2015 as the provinces first NDP leader in the traditionally right-leaning province. Her partys surprise victory was dubbed the Orange Crush. It didnt last, however, and it was defeated by Kenney and his newly united party in the next election.

She has faced criticism for her partys economic record during her term in office, which coincided with a downturn in oil prices, and programs such as a carbon tax.

The race appears to be neck and neck, with recent polls disagreeing on which party is currently ahead. In a poll commissioned by Global and Ipsos and published this week, 43 per cent of respondents said the debate would be an important factor in their decision.

Albertans head to the polls May 29.

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EDMONTON - Albertas two political contenders hammered each other on the issue of trust in the provincial election campaigns lone debate Thursday.

United Conservative Leader Danielle Smith said you cant trust NDP Leader Rachel Notley to run the economy while Notley said you cant trust Smith not to privatize Albertas health system.

Voting day is May 29.

Both candidates have been premier  Smith since October and Notley from 2015 to 2019  and both admitted theyve made mistakes.

But each argued they have the best vision for a petro-rich province struggling to fix health care and education.

My commitment to each of you if re-elected is to serve you with everything I have and to the best of my ability, however imperfect that may be at times, Smith said.

Whatever I may have said or done in the past while I was (a host) on talk radio, Albertans are my bosses now  and my oath is to serve you and no one else.

Notley said she, too, may not have always got it right.

But I say what I mean and I mean what I say, she said. If I am premier again, I will work daily to earn your trust and to focus on your priorities.

The two leaders spent the one-hour televised debate speaking to each other and past each other, launching broad rhetorical salvos mixed with sharp asides on the economy, policing, green energy, education and health care.

The leitmotif was trust, with each leader saying the other hasnt earned it.

On health, Notley said Smith cant be trusted not to make Albertans pay for services currently covered by medicare, citing the UCP leaders past musings that Albertans should pay to see their family doctor.

Notley recounted how, in 2014, Smith promised to never cross the floor as Wildrose Party leader only to lead most of her caucus to join the governing Progressive Conservatives.

Your understanding of the word guarantee is very different than that of most Albertans, Notley told Smith.

Both Notley and Smith have promised to revitalize primary care to increase access to family doctors.

Smith said her government is making progress on surgical wait lists and reducing ambulance bottlenecks.

The UCP leader said that contrasts with Notleys time in government, when, Smith said, surgical wait lists climbed while the NDP continued to build the bureaucracy.

Smith focused on Notleys economic record as premier, saying the NDP government took an economy already staggering due to low oil prices and knocked it to the canvas with higher personal and corporate income taxes along with a consumer carbon tax Notley did not campaign on.

Albertans have a choice between a UCP government that has lower taxes, balanced the budget and returned Alberta to its place as the economic powerhouse of Canada, said Smith.

Or we can choose to go backward with the same failed NDP policies that hiked taxes, drove out jobs and investment and almost bankrupted our province.

We cant afford to go back.

Notley countered that the UCP economic stewardship has come at price, with higher utility bills and soaring auto insurance rates.

Both sides promise affordability measures to deal with inflation.

Smith noted the NDP promises to hike the corporate income tax to 11 per cent from eight after the UCP dropped it four points to eight per cent during its term.

Notley said the corporate tax would remain the lowest in Canada while providing money to keep up with population growth.

Both parties are promising hiked spending and reliance on high oil prices to keep the books balanced in the years ahead.

The rivals accused each other of deploying cherry-picked statistics on job numbers and economic forecasts.

Both sides plan to add more police to combat increasing crime in Edmonton and Calgary, particularly on transit.

Smith said Notleys NDP wants to defund the police. Notley said Smiths UCP actually defunded the police early in its term by carving off a larger share of photo radar money for itself, only to recently return that cash as the election loomed.

Notley also took aim at the release of the report earlier Thursday by Alberta ethics commissioner Marguerite Trussler.

Trussler concluded Smith contravened the Conflicts of Interest Act and undermined the rule of law by attempting, unsuccessfully, to have the attorney general make the criminal case of a COVID-19 protester go away.

Having learned today that Danielle Smith broke the law, I (promise I) will also protect our law and I will never break it, said Notley.

Smith fired back that Trussler found no evidence Smith or her office sought to influence COVID cases in emails to prosecutors, as alleged in a CBC story in January.

Smith said she welcomes more direction on legal matters, saying Im a non-lawyer.

Smith also accused Notley of hypocrisy, given a former NDP legislature member was fined for hacking into the government health website to test its fallibility.

When we were putting together our affordability payments (program it was necessary) to have to ask whether it was going to be hack-proof from the NDP, said Smith.

Thats not something that Ms. Notley should be very proud of.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

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EDMONTONCanada is a massive country with a huge diversity of environments: frozen tundra, thick forests, sandy beaches. But right now a disturbing number of places are all facing the same threat  wildfires.

Firefighters were battling blazes in British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia and the Northwest Territories this week. Collectively, thousands of people have been forced from their homes. Smoke from the fires in Western Canada is so thick that air quality warnings have reached as far as northern Ontario.

Climate change is making wildfires more frequent and more destructive. This season is off to a brutal start, with 487 wildfires already in Alberta alone; 92 of those are still active, as of Wednesday. In parts of Western Canada in particular, fires have become an annual norm.

These are some scenes from different communities across Canada affected by the blazes.

B.C.: A panicked situation

There were whispers from elders in the community about how there was something weird and not normal about the weather patterns this year.

This season has been dryer than usual, the rivers are very, very low and it feels like winter skipped right over spring into a hot summer, said Blueberry River First Nations Chief Judy Desjarlais.

Earlier this month, Desjarlais got a call from her grandmother, an elder in the community, who told her to come see her.

She said I dont know what it is, but its like Im waiting for something to happen. I dont know what it is, but look after your kids, Desjarlais recalled.

And then within a week later we had to evacuate.

Desjarlaiss community is at the epicentre of a more than 21,000-hectare wildfire that has caused multiple evacuation orders and alerts in the Peace River region of northeast B.C.

Blueberry River First Nations had been on alert since Friday, when there were reports of ashes falling in the community. By Sunday, as the winds shifted in direction toward the community and the smoke grew thicker, everyone had been ordered to leave.

It was kind of a panicked situation because we are in a remote area. Were hearing roads are closing all over the place, Desjarlais said.

Residents are now split between nearby Dawson Creek and Fort St. John, which lifted its own evacuation alert on Wednesday morning after weather conditions improved overnight.

There is hope the region will see relief in the coming days.

Slight winds today will create some challenges but we have good confidence we will make some great headway on this fire today, Desjarlais said.

But its still a precarious situation, with heavy smoke clouding visibility and the possibility of further road closures. Its not yet clear when Blueberry River First Nations residents will be able to return.

I did do a flyover yesterday and was terribly, terribly sorry to see the amount of damage this fire has caused  it was sad to see, Desjarlais said.

Desjarlais said shes tremendously grateful for the support theyve received from the federal and provincial governments, Peace River Regional District as well as to her tribal administration and fellow members of council.

Alberta: Everybodys working together

Garret Howse has been a firefighter for more than 20 years, but says it was still sobering to see a blaze tear through his community and destroy more than 30 structures.

Ive never seen anything like this before, ever  and I was in Fort Mac, said 39-year-old Howse, referring to the blaze that gutted Fort McMurray in 2016 and forced the evacuation of nearly 90,000 residents.

Howse is from the East Prairie Metis Settlement in northern Alberta and has been helping fight fires after some 300 residents were evacuated on May 5.

The fire near East Prairie Metis Settlement has destroyed at least 14 homes and stretches over more than 69,000 hectares  Howse said its been impossible to control because of the heat, dryness and wind conditions.

Its hard to explain. One moment you think youre good, the next moment its blowing up again, its hot, he said. Everybodys working together to try and save homes, structures, everything they can.

He said at this point, hes feeling confident they wont lose more buildings to the fire, but the situation can change at a moments notice.

You put in all your effort  and at the end of the day, and in the morning, it feels like you didnt do anything at all, Howse said. But you keep trying.

Nearly 600 kilometres north, in John DOr Prairie, part of Little Red River Cree Nation, the community is hosting evacuated residents from nearby Fox Lake, where firefighters are trying to quell an out-of-control wildfire that has reached more than 32,000 hectares.

Darryel Sowan, who works for the band, said the First Nation is building a camp to accommodate evacuees. Theyre currently staying on the floor of a school gym, which has been a culture shock for some.

Some of those people have never been out of the community, Sowan said. And now all of a sudden theyre staying in gym mats on the floor of a school.

To the southeast, one province over, Saskatchewan was blanketed in smoke Wednesday, after the northern community of Buffalo Narrows was evacuated on Monday. The province currently has 24 active fires.

Nova Scotia: Try to ignore the helicopters flying overhead

On Monday night, Fallon and Rebecca Wilson brought pork dumplings to a potluck in Little Harbour, N.S., about two hours west of Halifax. A neighbour made stuffed mushrooms with Parmesan cheese and crab. Another friend brought chowder, and someone else made baked beans.

We just tried to take our minds off what was happening around us as best we could, and sat around and had dinner and talked, Fallon Wilson says.

It worked, at least for a time: they were able to shift their focus from the wildfire burning down the road. As of Wednesday afternoon, that fire in Shelburne County had consumed at least 56 hectares, according to provincial officials, and was 90 per cent contained.

The pork in the dumplings came from the couples own farm, Midnights Meadows. Fallon and Rebecca moved from Ontario to Nova Scotias south shore three and a half years ago, and tend the farm using a set of sustainable land management practices known as permaculture. They plan to eventually have the entire farm off-grid.

At the height of the blaze, the couple could see flames overtop the trees surrounding their property. On Tuesday, they smelled smoke for the first time: an ominous sign of shifting winds. The farm is only a quarter-kilometre from the leading edge of the blaze, Fallon said; they hoped a swampy area between them and the fire would offer some protection.

A room in the farm usually used for farmstays and Airbnb guests had been offered to friends forced to evacuate their own home. The community was taking care of one another, especially the volunteer firefighting crew: 17 volunteers were battling the blaze alongside 30 provincial staff, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

The community is very tight-knit, Fallon Wilson said.

Were keeping each other distracted, she added. The fire keeps us busy, so weve got lots of stuff we can do around here to keep busy and try and ignore the helicopters flying overhead.

Northwest Territories: Its just crazy

Last May, a flood forced the Katlodeeche First Nation to evacuate their homes at the mouth of the Hay River in the Northwest Territories. The community was still rebuilding when a wildfire ripped through this week, almost exactly a year later.

We lost a lot of homes from the flood, said Chief April Martel. Now with the fire, its just crazy.

The Katlodeeche First Nation was ordered to evacuate to the nearby town of Hay River on Sunday afternoon; not long after, the town was ordered to evacuate as well, with residents from both communities told to go to Yellowknife, more than five hours drive away.

In addition to cots set up by the city in its Multiplex facility, residents of Yellowknife organized lodging in their own homes and set up Facebook groups to co-ordinate. A gym offered use of its showers; campers cancelled their spots at booked-up campgrounds so evacuees could drive in their RVs instead.

An update from the town of Hay River on Wednesday morning said the fire was still uncontrolled. On Monday, Martel said firefighters were confronted with a fire tornado too dangerous to battle, forcing crews to stop.

The Yellowknife evacuation centre had 896 registered evacuees and 298 staying at the multiplex as of Wednesday morning.

Martel said front-line crews and RCMP had broken into one building, a cultural institute, shortly before it burned down. They retrieved boxes and boxes of video and audiotapes, along with art and artifacts, and loaded it all into a waiting truck.

On those tapes are all our elders, all the elders of the N.W.T., the actual video footage and taping of their voices, Martel said  documentation that is essential to the community.

We got all of that history, she said. We have it all. Its safe.

Correction  May 18, 2023: Little Harbour, N.S. is about two hours west of Halifax. A previous version of this column misstated the distance.

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The support on Capitol Hill for what was once a fringe legal theory is growing by the hour as the debt ceiling talks head into their final days.

On Thursday, a group of of 11 progressive senators led by Sens. Tina Smith (D-MN), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) released a new letter to President Biden calling on him to prepare to cancel the debt ceiling by invoking the 14th amendment.

We write to urgently request that you prepare to exercise your authority, they write, adding that Republicans have made it "seemingly impossible" to reach a deal.

Sens. Tina Smith (D-MN) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) at the start of a Senate hearing on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Thursdays action in the Senate comes in addition to growing support across Capitol Hill on the issue. The head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus  Rep. Pramilla Jayapal (D-WA)  recently said that the vast majority of the 101 Representatives in her group support invoking the 14th Amendment over giving concessions to Republicans.

The increased adoption of an idea that could roil markets is a reflection of growing Democratic anxieties that the White House could be preparing for deep compromise as ongoing direct negotiations with representatives of Speaker Kevin McCarthy continue.

Republicans have rallied behind a plan that calls for repealing wide swaths of Bidens legislative wins since taking office in return for an increase in the government's borrowing authority.

Speaker McCarthy is holding the economy hostage because he wants to kick moms and kids off health insurance and food assistance. That cannot be tolerated.



President Biden should be ready to "break glass in case of emergency" and invoke the 14th Amendment to prevent default.  Senator Tina Smith (@SenTinaSmith) May 17, 2023

One group is still not publicly on board: Congressional leaders. Both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) have largely evaded the issue in recent days and pushed for the bipartisan negotiations to continue.

A 154-year-old amendment at issue

The debate over invoking the Civil War-era amendment to solve a debt-ceiling crisis stretches back for years and centers around a line that reads: "the public debt of the United States, authorized by law...shall not be questioned."

That provision was written in the context of the Reconstruction amid fears that Confederate states would default on their debts. Nevertheless, a growing number of legal scholars say it could be invoked by Biden today to overrule the 1917 law that created the debt limit.

After being dismissed for years, the movement gained a high profile backer two weeks ago when influential Harvard Law School professor Laurence Tribe announced a change of heart after opposing the idea during the 2011 debt ceiling standoff.

Other lawmakers - including historically bipartisan dealmakers like Sen. Angus King (I-ME) - are not yet signing on to formal efforts but have expressed openness, as Biden has, to the idea that the law is indeed unconstitutional.

1. The 14th Amendment says the debt of the United States shall not be questioned; a default questions the debt big time, and so is unconstitutional.  Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) May 17, 2023

Biden has confirmed that his administration has studied the 14th amendment and specifically mentioned Tribe's endorsement, saying the maneuver would be legitimate as a means to end the debt ceiling standoff.

Debating different options to defuse this ticking bomb

But the issue for Biden  and why the move still is seen by a long-shot by many  is that it would immediately be the subject of lawsuits that would likely end up at the Supreme Court. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has described what could follow as a constitutional crisis.

Even if the White House were to eventually prevail, weeks or months of chaos would almost surely roil the markets.

How this current crisis is resolved matters to markets, says Oppenheimer Chief Investment Strategist John Stoltzfus. A bipartisan deal would be far preferable for stability as opposed to one of these things where they get into a whole constitutional argument.

Moody's Analytics Chief Economist Mark Zandi recently said the 14th amendment is a likely recipe for a recession. Yet he remains open to the idea, saying if Biden wins it would forevermore take "a very significant weight off the economy."

President Joe Biden after delivering remarks on the debt ceiling in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on May 17. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The best way to resolve this at this moment would be for Speaker McCarthy to be reasonable, added Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MA) in a Yahoo Finance Live interview Thursday morning. He did not sign Thursday's letter but says Biden should explore all options, including the 14th amendment as a plan B, if that doesnt prove to be the case.

Van Hollen is behind another effort to end the debt ceiling and wants to pass a law later during a period of relative calm." One way or another, he said Thursday, the ceiling needs to go.

The question is why do we continue to have this ticking bomb within our code and my view is we should defuse it before one day it actually explodes and does a huge amount of damage to our economy, he said.

This post has been updated.

Ben Werschkul is Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.

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A group led by a Nebraska state lawmaker plans to again try to put the question of legalizing medical marijuana before state voters in November 2024.

It will be the third time Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana launch a petition effort after two previous efforts failed.

In 2020, the group came close to placing the issue on the general election ballot after meeting signature requirements. But opponents led by Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner sued, arguing that it violated state rules requiring ballot measures to focus on a single question. Instead, they argued, the measure posed two separate questions: whether residents should have the right to use marijuana for medical purposes, and whether private companies should be allowed to grow and sell it.

The state Supreme Court sided with the efforts opponents and prevented it from going to voters.

Last year, with only months to gather the roughly 87,000 signatures needed from registered voters, organizers failed to collect enough valid signatures in time to get the question on the November ballot.

To prevent a repeat of those failures, the latest petition language consists of two petitions  one to set up the doctor-patient system and one to regulate the industry. Organizers also note they have more time this go-round to collect enough valid signatures.

The proposal would ask voters to legalize the possession, manufacture, distribution, delivery and dispensing of marijuana for medical reasons and would establish a commission to regulate a state medical cannabis program.

Sen. Anna Wishart, who co-chairs the group, announced Thursday on the legislative floor that the group had filed paperwork with the state Secretary of States office to kick off the latest petition effort.

We had a chance this year to pass a narrowly crafted piece of legislation that would have safely allowed individuals with severe medical conditions to have access, and that bill couldnt get out of committee, said Wishart, a Democrat in the officially nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature. This issue is supported by Nebraskans. And now we have a year and a half to get enough signatures to put this on the ballot.

In the last decade, dozens of states have legalized marijuana, either for medical or recreational use or both, and other states continue to efforts at legalization, even though it remains illegal under federal law.

It will take about three weeks until the petitions can be printed, the group said in a news release Thursday. The deadline for signatures is July 5, 2024, and if validated by the Nebraska Secretary of States office, the question to legalize medical cannabis will appear on the November 2024 general election ballot.

The group is planning a campaign and signature-drive launch in early June.

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ROME (AP)  The Vatican has recalled a postage stamp promoting this years World Youth Day in Portugal following complaints that it celebrated Portugals colonial empire and the nationalist dictatorship of Antonio Salazar at a time when the Holy See has been atoning for colonial-era abuses.

The stamp, which was still available for purchase online Thursday, features Pope Francis leading a group of children up Lisbons Monument to the Discoveries. The giant stone and concrete monument was built in 1960 to mark the 500th anniversary of the death of Henry the Navigator, one of the masterminds of Portugals maritime expansion in the 15th century.

The monument, which is located on the north bank of the Tagus River in Lisbon, is repudiated by some in Portugal because it was built by and during the Salazar dictatorship as part the governments push to promote national identity and feats such as the countrys colonial expansion in Africa.

The postage stamp, which features the World Youth Day logo and retails for 3.10 euros ($3.30), was issued last week by the Vaticans numismatic and philatelic office. The office is a major contributor to the Vatican City States budget through its in-person and online sales of commemorative coins, medallions and stamps, which are often sought-after collectors items.

The city state administration, however, said in a statement late Wednesday that it was withdrawing the stamp and is in the process of providing a new stamp as a replacement.

The controversy is particularly acute given the Vatican only in March formally repudiated the Doctrine of Discovery, the theories backed by 15th-century papal bulls that legitimized Spain and Portugals colonial-era conquests and seizures of lands in Africa and the Americas.

Francis, historys first Latin American pope, has apologized repeatedly to Native peoples for colonial-era crimes and abuses committed by Catholic missionaries.

Italian media quoted a Vatican-based Portuguese bishop, Carlos Azevedo, as saying the stamp was in poor taste and not reflective of Francis message of brotherhood.

Certainly Pope Francis doesnt identify with this nationalist image that contradicts universal fraternity as well as his magisterium, Azevedo was quoted as saying.

Francis is due to travel to Lisbon in August to close out World Youth Day, the weeklong youth rally that St. John Paul II launched to energize young Catholics in their faith. The event, which usually occurs every three years, was postponed for a year due to the pandemic.

Salazar governed Portugal from the 1930s to 1968 and died in 1970. A 1974 military coup toppled the dictatorship, opening the way for Portugal to pull out of unpopular wars in its African colonies and grant them independence.

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Heres How the Debt-Limit Deal Is Looking as Talks Go Down to the Wire

Heres How the Debt-Limit Deal Is Looking as Talks Go Down to the Wire

(Bloomberg) -- Speaker Kevin McCarthy stoked optimism on Thursday about a US debt-limit deal getting reached on Capitol Hill, after negotiations narrowed to top staffers for McCarthy and President Joe Biden.

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I can see now where a deal can come together, McCarthy told reporters Thursday.

Even so, one key McCarthy ally, House Financial Services Chair Patrick McHenry, later on Thursday tempered expectations for a quick agreement, saying that the two sides were not close to being done.

With the Treasury Department warning that the government could run out of cash to meet all federal obligations as soon as June 1, here are the key issues negotiators are discussing:

Spending caps

The heart of a deal will be setting discretionary spending caps, and there are fresh signs the two sides are moving closer to each others positions. Republicans want to slash domestic spending over a decade, while Democrats prefer smaller cuts over a couple of years.

A compromise could be found by shifting some programs outside the discretionary budget, or allowing cuts to mandatory spending to count toward the savings.

The tension: Hawkish Republicans like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell want to increase defense spending, especially with the war in Ukraine continuing. Progressives, meanwhile, are balking at caps that squeeze environmental, health care and other priorities  especially if the Pentagon budget is protected.

Covid clawbacks

A deal is almost certain to include at least a partial clawback of unspent money from previous Covid-19 packages. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says about $56 billion could be taken back, while House Budget Committee Republicans says its $64.6 billion.

A compromise can be found by allowing the clawback to count toward the lower spending cap in 2024.

Work requirements

The bill that House Republicans passed in April  which wasnt taken up by the Senate, given Democratic opposition  featured new work mandates for able-bodied Americans on Medicaid, and stricter ones for those using the food-stamp program or welfare. The measures would save $120 billion over a decade, according to the CBO, with $109 billion coming from Medicaid.

Biden has previously supported tougher work requirements, but says he wants to leave the Medicaid health insurance program for the poor untouched. Doing so would decrease the size of the cut  risking conservatives support for any agreed bill. Tougher work standards for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, along with the Temporary Aid to Needy Families program, would still give Republicans an ideological trophy  though cost the backing of many Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Permitting reforms

Both parties want to accelerate the process of getting permits for energy and other projects, though they differ on the details. Democrats have focused on speeding approvals for renewable energy projects, transmission lines and the mining of critical minerals needed for electric vehicles. Republicans are more insistent on easing hurdles for fossil fuels.

One idea that has been discussed by lawmakers this week: including some provisions accelerating approvals under the National Environmental Policy Act and setting up a broader follow-on package in the coming months.

Debt-limit duration

Democrats want to suspend the debt ceiling until after the November 2024 election. McCarthys offer is through next March, but he has said the particulars are up for negotiation.

If lawmakers cant reach a broader deal, one option would be to increase the debt limit by, say, about $100 billion, to give themselves more time to negotiate. Nobody ever wants a short-term deal until they have their backs to the wall, however.

14th Amendment

A group of progressives, including Democrats Tina Smith of Minnesota, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont, are pushing Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to declare the debt limit unconstitutional. That Civil War-era amendment prohibits questioning the federal debt. Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island has also argued that the president has discretion to keep borrowing to pay the nations bills when laws conflict with one another, citing legislation that requires the president to spend money that was appropriated by Congress.

The push is aimed at giving Biden leverage to avoid cuts progressives see as untenable.

Conservatives insistence

While progressives may be trying to give Biden leverage, conservatives moved on Thursday to harden McCarthys stance. The hard-right Freedom Caucus called for an end to bipartisan talks to raise or suspend the federal debt limit, insisting instead that the Senate vote on the House Republican bill passed in April.

Read More: Freedom Caucus Urges End to Debt Talks, Senate Vote on GOP Bill

Procedural obstacles

Bills like the one under discussion usually are locked down on the House floor using a rule known as martial law to prevent any amendments that could sink the deal. If McCarthy did that, though, he could anger his right flank. McCarthy has also said he wants to abide by a House rule giving lawmakers multiple days to review a package.

The Senate poses another potential problem, because any one senator can delay a deal for days. Bottom line: This isnt something you want to be hammering out an hour before a default.

Wild cards

While some lawmakers have been pushing to include complex measures such as immigration reforms or prescription-drug price cuts, issues like those usually get dropped as the nation gets closer to potential default, and senators in both parties told Bloomberg News they dont expect them to be included.

But another wild card is Donald Trump. The former president has been a close ally of McCarthy and remains influential in the party. He has also criticized Republican leaders in the past for cutting debt-limit deals. Opposition from Trump may not be enough to kill a deal, but it could make life more difficult for McCarthy in the longer run, given his thin majority.

(Updates with Jeffries position, attribution for clawback estimate, McCarthy debt ceiling extension offer length)

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KINGSTON, Pa. - A man is under arrest and charged with murder in the death of a recent Kutztown University graduate in Luzerne County earlier this month.

Authorities charged 31-year-old Walter Zolner III with criminal homicide in the death of 22-year-old Ryan Padovani.

Padovani, a 2022 graduate of Kutztown University, died from multiple blunt force trauma to the head. On May 5, his body was discovered by a roommate in an upstairs bedroom of their Kingston residence.

According to a search warrant, police at the time believed that forced entry may have been made through a rear kitchen door.

Upon closer investigation, authorities noted that although the lower glass pane on the door was shattered and on the floor of the kitchen, the glass did not appear to be disturbed, stepped on, or tracked throughout the residence, leading authorities to believe this was possibly staged by the assailant after the murder was committed.

Investigators also noted that although there was extensive blood splatter in the area where the victim was found, there was no visible blood transfer on the first floor, indicating that the murderer likely did not exit the residence via the first floor or basement.

In the attic, police discovered a door separating the two sides of the double block house. Investigators say although the door contained a dead bolt, the lock on it appeared to have been tampered with. The suspect lived in a house connected to Padovani's home by the common wall.

Authorities interviewed Zolner, who told them he was asleep at the time of the murder after working overnight, and that he last saw the victim on May 4 when Padovani placed a rent check in his mailbox. Court documents state the Zolner's father owns the building and served as landlord.

On May 11, investigators served a search warrant at Zolner's residence and seized the following items from the location:

One tissue with blood recovered from the kitchen garbage

One carpet swatch from the attic stairs

One swab of an unknown substance from the kitchen floor

One marijuana pipe containing marijuana located in a bedroom

One laptop computer from the living room

On May 12, a warrant was issued for Zolner on the drug charges. Officers located the suspect's silver Subaru parked near the Osterhout Library in Wilkes Barre. Zolner was located inside the library and taken into custody. He was charged with possession and drug paraphernalia offenses and held on $5,000,000 bail.

Police also say they were notified about a video posted to Youtube in which the suspect indicated he'd "sold his soul" and had "become possessed." Coworkers of Zolner noted to police that his demeanor changed in the past few months as he began to exhibit irrational behavior and delusional thoughts.

A search warrant was issued for Zolner's vehicle, inside which police found one AR 15 style rifle, ammunition, body armor, a hatchet and crowbar, which is the weapon authorities believe may have been used in the murder. According to court documents, officers on the scene described seeing what appeared to be dried blood and hair on the crowbar.

Investigators also found a journal among the suspect's possessions. In it, authorities allege that Zolner made written statements where he admitted to being the person responsible for the death of Ryan Padovani.

Zolner was charged Thursday with one count of criminal homicide. He's being held in Luzerne County Prison without bail.
READING, Pa. - The Reading Police Department provided an update Thursday about recent operations conducted by the PCCD grant-funded Neighborhood Gun Violence Unit.

The unit's aim is to disrupt acts of violence and arrest those responsible as part of the department's multi-faceted effort to ensure safe neighborhoods and streets throughout the city.

Between May 11 and May 16, the RPD Neighborhood Gun Violence Unit conducted multiple operations focusing on disrupting acts of gun violence.

During the course of those operations, investigators made 10 arrests and seized 5 firearms.

The Neighborhood Gun Violence Unit was started in February, 2023 and is staffed by personnel from the Reading Police Departments Patrol and Investigation Divisions.

Since its inception, the unit has made 37 arrests and seized 13 illegal firearms, removing violent offenders and guns from the streets.
BETHLEHEM, Pa.  Bethlehem City Council on Wednesday night approved an agreement to partner with the Bethlehem Housing Authority in the pursuit of a federal housing rehabilitation planning grant.

The money, called a 2023 Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grant, is distributed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The government agency plans to designate 20 planning grants of up to $500,000 this year across the nation. The two-year planning grant is allocated for communities to update their public housing. The planning phase would take about two years.

The city will then apply for an implementation grant between $30 million to $50 million, according to Laura Collins, the city's community and economic development director.

Should Bethlehem prove successful in obtaining the grant, it will be designated to update Pembroke Village public housing.

In other business, council approved applying for a Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development grant. If awarded, the city would use the money to hire a contractor to create a parks and recreation master plan. The city is seeking $120,000.

In other news, council approved an agreement between the city and the Bethlehem Township Municipal Authority for the joint implementation of stormwater management projects. The two sides will share in the costs to implement those projects.

Finally, council approved the appointments of Adrienne Koefer and Michelle Rayah Levy to serve on the human relations commission.
BETHLEHEM TWP., Pa. - Bethlehem Township will consider a plan for a convenience store on Freemansburg Avenue at the site of the old Heights Community Federal Credit Union.

This time, it's not a Wawa, but an independent store.

KGN Gourmet Foods has proposed a store that will sell milk, bread and more at 3530 Freemansburg Ave., a property across from Geakers Tacos. No major changes to the one-story building are proposed.

The plan will be reviewed May 31 by the Bethlehem Township Zoning Hearing Board.

KGN's plans include about 50% of sales via delivery.

KGN is seeking approval to use the bank location as a convenience store, and to have 13 parking spaces instead of the 16 the township is requesting for the building.

Documents submitted to the township say the applicant "will provide a much needed convenience to the neighborhood as it lacks a local store that sells necessities like milk/bread/etc. ..."

The location is near the Raceway gas station that is going in at the site of the former Pagat's auto-repair shop, and a few hundred yards west of the Heights Market and the Friendly Food Mart. Also nearby is the former Young's Pharmacy, now vacant.

The credit union is long gone, but its clock outside still displays the time and temperature to Freemansburg Avenue drivers.

KGN Tobacco Corp. (owner of KGN Gourmet Foods) bought the property in 2021 from People First Federal Credit Union for $430,000, according to Northampton County records. The owners' address is listed in Forks Township.

The property is in a Neighborhood Commercial zone.

The zoning meeting agenda is subject to change before the May 31 meeting. The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 31, in the township municipal building at 4225 Easton Ave.
Lehigh Valley Zoo announced the arrival of two red ruffed lemurs, Weasley and Makira, Thursday.

The pair will debut at the public grand opening of Habitat Madagascar, the LV Zoos brand new, year-round lemur and tortoise exhibit, on Friday, May 26, according to a news release from the zoo.

The zoo says male Weasley, age 5, is the more gregarious of the pair and is very vocal and displays inquisitive behaviors. Female Makira, age 6, is a bit shyer and more reserved, but her keepers say she is very sweet and gentle toward them.

Red ruffed lemurs are native to the island of Madagascar and are easily distinguishable from other species by their rusty red coat with black foreheads, bellies and tails. This species of lemur is critically endangered in nature and their wild populations are limited to a single small, protected area on the island of Madagascar, according to the zoo.

As we approach the end to what has been a three-year process, we are excited to officially unveil Habitat Madagascar to our guests and the Lehigh Valley community, LV Zoo President & CEO Amanda Shurr said of the zoos biggest addition since bringing in Masai Giraffe in 2017.

We are excited for the addition of the pair of red ruffed lemurs to this habitat as they will be great ambassadors for their species and help us to further educate the zoos guests about conservation. Additionally, this new habitat was designed to give us the ability to add additional species to Habitat Madagascar in the future.

Weasley and Makira arrived at LV Zoo from Omahas Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium and Bronx Zoo, respectively. The pair were introduced to each other during a quarantine period when newly acquired animals are kept behind the scenes and their health and behavior is closely monitored, the zoo said.

The zoo says the quarantine period is used to make sure that animals are healthy and well acclimated to their new environment before being introduced to the rest of the zoo and its guests.

Keepers at LV Zoo say the pair, a Species Survival Plan (SSP) approved breeding pair, are already getting along very well. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums' cooperatively managed SSP is designed "to manage a genetically diverse, demographically varied, and biologically sound population" of certain animals. The SSP pairs members of the same species at accredited zoos based on their genetics.

Based on the recommendation of the SSP, LV Zoos animal experts hope the arrival of Weasley and Makira will lead to baby red ruffed lemurs that would be observable in the Lehigh Valley Reilly Childrens Hospital Nursery located within Habitat Madagascar, according to the zoo's news release.

The red ruffed lemur pair will join the zoos mongoose lemurs, breeding pair Abby and Mico, and the leopard tortoises, Horace and Autobahn, in the newly completed Habitat Madagascar exhibit building.

The zoo says the brand new modern habitat features several spaces for the zoos lemurs and tortoises, including both indoor and outdoor spaces that will allow guests to observe the residents of Habitat Madagascar year-round, and a nursery habitat where mother and baby lemurs can bond without distraction from other animal residents.

The 1,600-square-foot building will also provide behind-the-scenes living space for the animal residents when they are off-exhibit, as well as climate control to ensure the optimum habitat environment year-round, the zoo said.

Habitat Madagascar opens to the public on Friday, May 26. The LV Zoo is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Guests wishing to greet Weasley and Makira on the opening day of Habitat Madagascar can purchase admission online at lvzoo.org.

The grand opening kicks off Memorial Day Weekend at LV Zoo, as giraffe feeding returns to its two normal time slots (11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; 2-3 p.m.) beginning on May 26 and the seventh-annual Red, Wine and Blue Festival takes place on Saturday, May 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
NAZARETH, Pa. - By 2030, more than a quarter of Pennsylvanians will be 65 or older. The newly-confirmed State Secretary of Aging, Jason Kavulich, says to meet the needs of a growing senior population, senior centers are key.

He was in Northampton County Wednesday to announce a $119,000 improvement grant for Oliver Boarding House in Nazareth.

"Senior centers have been combating social isolation for 50+ years. We just haven't called it that until the pandemic," Kavulich said.

The money comes from the Pennsylvania Lottery through a competitive application process.

"It's a $2 million pot of money that make sure the centers have funds to upgrade their equipment, make sure that they have activities, to make sure that they make capital improvements like sidewalk repairs and HVAC systems," Kavulich said.

The grant will be used renovate the kitchen and make building improvements. It was one of two in the county get a grant this year. The state also awarded $70,000 to Silver Connection in Easton.

"People who feel lonely, who are isolated from other people, have detrimental effects to their health," Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure said.

Joanne Lambert, 83, travels a half mile by bus to the center nearly every day.

"With living by myself, it gives me people to be around and the meals we get are good," Lambert said. "When I leave here today and go home, I don't have to worry about standing at the stove and making supper for one person."

The state program received more than $7 million in requests this year alone. Gov. Josh Shapiro's budget proposal would add another $1 million to the program.

"You know, senior centers aren't just activity centers," Kavulich said. "Senior centers are community links. They keep people connected to services. They keep people connected to each other."
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Laying to rest a leader.

A funeral mass is set to take place at the Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena Friday, May 19 at 11 a.m. for a former bishop of the Diocese of Allentown. Retired Bishop Edward Cullen died earlier this month at 90 years old.

Many people attended a vigil in his honor at the Cathedral in Allentown, the church he presided over for 11 years.

"We are celebrating the life of Bishop Cullen," Director of Music Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena, Beverly McDevitt, said.

"It's a way for us to all come together and to remember all the good things that he's done for us," Donna Yasenchok said.

Cullen's absence is already being felt through the faith.

"I truly loved him," McDevitt said. "He was a gentle and humble man."

He served the 5-county diocese encompassing Berks, Schuylkill, Lehigh Carbon, and Northampton counties from 1998 to 2009.

"He impacted me through his homilies at Mass," McDevitt said. "He impacted me through his persona, as a humble, holy bishop. He impacted me in the times that I spent talking to him."

Among his many accomplishments, the Allentown Diocese said that Cullen significantly increased protections for children, forged bonds of cooperation with law enforcement, and enhanced care for victims of abuse. His efforts were monumental, people say, and his approach was classic.

"It's not always best to just be out there and go 'ta'da,'" Donna Yasenchok said. "It's always best for us to sometimes reserve ourselves and just really pace ourselves in life and I think that's what he's done."

Current Diocese of Allentown Bishop Alfred Schlert says Bishop Cullen lived his life as a faithful servant of Jesus Christ and His Church. He added that Cullen was a visionary in spiritual, pastoral, and temporal matters.
Athletes are getting ready to test their strength to support the Special Olympics of Pennsylvania.

In front of a FedEx cargo jet Thursday, Special Olympics Pennsylvania President Matt Aaron announced the ambitious new fundraiser.

"Thank you all for being here for this day, as we celebrate and we announce our first-ever plane pull," said Aaron.

But it's more than just a plane. It's pulling a jumbo jet 12 feet across the tarmac at Lehigh Valley International Airport. Teams of 25 will attempt the feat on Oct. 10, raising at least $2,500 per team.

"I'm not sure how easy it is, but we'll get a chance to try it out later today," said Aaron.

If Aaron didn't sound too confident, the Special Olympics athletes were ready for the challenge.

"Thank you for being here today to support the plane pull, now let's play, let's pull that plane," said Special Olympics athlete Amy Williamson.

After the news conference was over, it was time to find out if the group of athletes could actually pull the monster airplane, an Airbus 300 weighing 175,000 pounds. Our cameras were rolling as they grabbed the rope. As they dug in their feet, and pulled their hardest, the plane actually started to move. Before they knew it, the group was celebrating 12 feet from where they started.

"It was heavy. It doesn't take one man to do it. It takes a team," said Special Olympics athlete Brandon Krekeler.

A team that just proved a jumbo jet can be moved with a rope and some muscles.

"Worked as a team. That's all it takes for Special Olympics," said Krekeler.
"The Kohberger case took a bit of a bounce today," said David Leroy, former attorney general of Idaho.

Bryan Kohberger of Monroe County was arrested back in December in connection with the stabbings of four students: Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves.

On Wednesday, there was news of an update in the case.

"Mr. Kohberger was indicted by the grand jury," Leroy said.

Leroy  a former attorney general and lieutenant governor of Idaho  is currently a practicing criminal defense attorney.

He explained that taking the case to a grand jury is considered a secret proceeding in Idaho.

"It's when the grand jury hears evidence from the prosecution, only without any participation from the defense," Leroy said.

'We don't know and we won't know what was done there until the grand jury transcript," he added.

Once unsealed by a judge, the transcript will reveal exactly was discussed.

It will also shed light on whether the two surviving roommates  Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke  did end up testifying for the grand jury.

Leroy explains that by testifying for the grand jury, it would allow for sensitive witnesses to testify for the first time without being subjected to cross examination.

Kohberger's team attempted to subpoena Funke for the preliminary hearing which was canceled by this indictment but her lawyers pushed back against that.

Now, what's next for Kohberger following the indictment?

"Mr. Kohberger will appear in district court," Leroy said.

"He will be asked to enter a plea of guilty, not guilty or stand silent in front of a judge."
Democratic lawmakers are having a blast on 'Bluesky,' the latest alternative to Twitter

Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Robert Garcia are among the Democratic lawmakers who have been posting on Bluesky. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images; Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images; Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images.

Some Democratic lawmakers have begun posting on "Bluesky," the latest alternative to Twitter.

AOC has said the invite-only platform, which has roughly 60,000 users, "feels safer and more fun."

Rep. Robert Garcia told Insider that he still hopes Twitter "becomes a better place."

As Elon Musk's Twitter takeover continues to roil the long-beloved platform in new and unforeseen ways, a handful of prominent figures have taken to posting on a new invite-only social media platform called "Bluesky."

Though "posting" may not be the right word: some users are referring to their posts as "skeets," a portmanteau of "sky" and "tweets."

"The Bluesky community, like a lot of online communities, has a unique terminology," said Rep. Robert Garcia of California in a phone interview this week with Insider. "I like 'skeets.' I think it's amusing."

Garcia is one of a handful of Democratic lawmakers who are active on Bluesky. Others include Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida, Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii, and Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon.

All of them, by any indication, are having a blast.

Wyden's hosted an "ask me anything." Ocasio-Cortez is posting with a frequency not seen since 2018. Garcia is announcing bills and workshopping names for them, all without the prying eyes of his staff. Schatz continues to weigh in on issues of public import, much like he does on Twitter  but he's having more fun while doing it.

"I've laughed more at posts on this platform in the last couple of hours than on the other one in the last couple of months," wrote Schatz in one of his first "skeets" on Bluesky. "I will try very hard not to ruin the vibe."

(Approached by Insider at the Capitol this week, Schatz declared he had "zero interest" in discussing his social media use because he's "here to make policy.")

A "skeet" from Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon. Screenshot/Bluesky

Wyden, for his part, framed his adoption of the platform as part of his long-standing interest in technology, stressing that he's "just starting out" on the platform and doesn't necessarily like it more or less than Twitter. But as he rode a Senate subway car toward the Capitol on Thursday, he spoke about Bluesky with a palpable degree of wonderment.

"Yesterday was my birthday. And so what did the Bluesky people want? They wanted a picture of me with the cake," he said.

"Everybody kind of asks you interesting questions," he continued, recounting the "ask me anything" he hosted. "I was getting asked about all my personal preferences."

'I haven't written a tweet in days'

As of Friday, Bluesky has a little more than 60,000 users, and requires an invite code to get in. But don't hold your breath  the waitlist has at least 1.9 million people on it, according to a company spokeswoman.

That's allowed the platform to grow slowly, developing its own culture in the process. And for the Democratic lawmakers who use the platform, it's a place that feels safer and more gentle than Twitter.

"The invite tree accountability makes people more judicious about bringing in solid people," wrote Ocasio-Cortez in a "skeet" this week. "I do get nervous for [numbers] going up and harassment campaigns starting."

"I haven't written a tweet in days... But I've [posted] triple digits in less than a week [on Bluesky]," she wrote in an earlier post. "This is what happens when a platform feels safer and more fun!"

"Hey everybody," wrote Frost in his first "skeet" on Bluesky. "I heard this is where I come to not get harassed???"

"I think folks that are on there right now... are very affirming," Garcia told Insider. "There's a lot of support for just being good people, and kindness, and the truth."

In a "skeet" on Bluesky, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez declares the platform to be "safer and more fun" than Twitter. Screenshot/Bluesky

As of Friday, there did not appear to be any prominent Republican lawmakers on the platform  aside from Rep. George Santos of New York.

According to Bluesky spokeswoman Emily Liu, the current assortment of members of Congress is largely a coincidence, with each having "found their way to the platform organically" and "received invitations from other people on the app."

'I'm trolling as long as possible'

It still remains to be seen whether Bluesky can mount a real challenge to Twitter  and whether that's even desirable.

"I would love to see Twitter succeed," said Garcia. "I think it's having some real challenges right now."

Despite those challenges, there's been a host of other Twitter alternatives that have popped up in recent months  Mastodon, Post, and Spoutible being the most prominent  that have nonetheless sputtered. "I've experimented a little bit with all of them," Garcia noted.

For its tens of thousands of users, the most appealing aspect of Bluesky may be its striking similarity to Twitter; it's basically the same, but with fewer features.

Eventually, creators hope to turn Bluesky into a decentralized platform composed of a variety of "federated" servers  each with their own approaches to content moderation.

But for now, the platform currently remains small and closed to non-users, limiting its utility for spreading messages  but making it a more attractive place for the nation's biggest names in politics to shitpost with impunity.

"I'm trolling as long as possible," Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a "skeet" this week, "until a critical mass of earnest journalists join that forces me to code switch."

Read the original article on Business Insider
NORRISTOWN, Pa.  Thursdays meeting of the Montgomery County Commissioners began with Commission chair Kenneth Lawrence thanking all the people who make our free, fair, and safe elections possible.

He noted that the county had over 2,570 poll workers and included 232 high school students who were part of the poll worker program at their schools.

If necessary, Lawrence said, on Wednesday May 24, the Board of Elections will hold a special meeting here in the board room in the event there are challenges to any provisional ballots.

In her comments, commissioner Jamila Winder recognized the work of emergency responders, noting it will be National EMS Week from May 21 to May 27.

EMS Week is a time for the community to honor the dedicated medical professionals who provide the day-to-day life-saving services of medical assistance front-line, Winder commented.

Winder said that the work of EMS responders was even more important during the last three years of the pandemic.

Today, we just want to let our emergency personnel know how much we appreciate them, she added.

Resolutions

The commissioners unanimously approved applications for funding through the Montco 2040 program. Anne Leavitt-Gruberger, Montgomery County Planning Manager, told the commissioners there were 25 applications this year for grant money.

Projects are evaluated, she explained, on the benefits they bring to the community, how large an area or how many people does it serve, transformative ability, longevity, visibility, and educational capability. Of the 25 applications received requesting a total of $3,724,688, there were 15 projects approved with an average award amount of $163,371. Since the program started in 2016, 95 grants have been awarded for a total of $12.8 million.

Presentations and reports

To mark National Treatment Court Month, Steven T. ONeill, Drug Court and Administrative Presiding Judge, highlighted the Montgomery County Courts achievements. Since 2006, when ONeill started the Court it has grown to include four treatment courts: Drug Treatment, Behavioral Health, Veterans Treatment and Targeted Opioid Phase Treatment Court. They are part of more than 4,000 Treatment Courts nationwide, he noted.

The Drug Treatment court has a capacity of 150 participants and the average term of treatment is 18 months. Behavioral Health can serve 100 participants and treatment lasts 18 to 24 months while veterans can serve 30 for 18 to 24 months. The Targeted Opioid Treatment Court is a pre-sentencing program and lasts for 30 days, ONeill said.

Commissioner Winder thanked ONeill for his work, noting that she has a family member suffering from the disease of addiction. Commissioner Joe Gale also commended ONeill and said that he frequently sees the judge outside the courthouse on his own time at many community functions to talk to families with members suffering from addiction.

Sandie Beren, deputy administrator, Health and Human Services Department, Office of Children & Youth, updated the commissioners about National Foster Care Month. She pointed out that this year kinship resource parents were being recognized. They can be relatives, Godparents, stepparents, or any adult who has a close, family-like relationship with a child. Kinship parents can lessen the trauma for a child at the time of placement by being a familiar person at a familiar place.

"Kinship parents offer stability and safety to the child, Beren noted. In addition, kinship care allows the child to maintain family connections, traditions and their identity, she pointed out. Also, kinship parents are required to go through a home-study process which can sometimes feel intrusive, Beren noted.

We would like to express our appreciation to all of our kinship families for making it work, Beren closed.

A brief update about happenings in the Veterans Affairs program was delivered by Dennis Miller, director. Since November 11, 2022, they completed 556 trips for veterans to area veterans medical facilities and gained 939 new clients. As the largest office of veterans affairs in the state, Montgomery County completed 866 claims since Veterans Day.

On Memorial Day, Miller said, we are at the tail end of distributing 67,000 flags for our 245 cemeteries. We also are going to place 75 flags on the Courthouse lawn. Miller explained that these flags represent those veterans who might not be interred but could be cremated or buried outside of the county. He pointed out that at most cemeteries the flags remain in the ground year-round.

Jennifer Barnhardt, administrator, Office of Senior Services, informed the commissioners that it was Older Americans Month. She said that her office serves over 221,000 people over 60 with a dedicated team of over 60 employees. She also noted that it was the 14th year for the Centenarians Celebration and there are 425 centenarians living in Montgomery County. The oldest, Barnhardt noted, is 109 years old.

On June 1, Barnhardt said, the county will join 14 other counties in Pennsylvania in the SHARE Housing and Resource Exchange program. It brings together homeowners who want to share their homes with home seekers who pay rent and get their own bedroom. Every situation is unique, noted Barnhardt, and both parties settle their own arrangement and put it in writing. Over 100 matches have been made in Pennsylvania since the program started in 2017.
NORRISTOWN, Pa. (May 18, 2023)  In a ceremony Thursday at the Montgomery County Fire Academy, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele honored five civilians and 15 law enforcement officers with commendations for their extraordinary efforts and exemplary work in protecting and serving the residents of Montgomery County, according to a news release from the DA's office.

Four police officers were awarded the Medal of Valor, the District Attorneys highest honor presented to select members of law enforcement who bravely placed their lives at risk to protect the citizens of Montgomery County, the DA's office said.

Montgomery County has some of the finest law enforcement officers anywhere, and Im honored to be able to showcase their exceptional work, incredible bravery and dedication to protecting and serving Montgomery County, as well as recognize the actions of our amazing residents, who are always willing to step up to help law enforcement do their job, said DA Kevin Steele.

Montgomery County would not be the safe and wonderful place it is without this teamwork. I am proud to recognize each of these civilians, police officers and detectives for their actions in these instances.

Honorees who received commendations are:

MEDAL OF VALOR

The District Attorneys most prestigious award, the Law Enforcement Medal of Valor is presented to those select members of law enforcement who bravely placed their lives at risk to protect the citizens of Montgomery County. The Medal of Valor was last awarded in 2012.

Cpl. Matthew Stadulis, Whitemarsh Township Police Department

"For bravery and exemplary performance during what appeared to be a routine call when a suspect fired a stolen gun at the officer at point-blank range, which thankfully did not fire, then the officer was able to disarm the suspect, protect his own firearm and radio for back-up."

Ofc. John Burdsall, Upper Providence Township Police Department

Ofc. Michael Sheehan, Upper Providence Township Police Department

Sgt. Stephen Winneberger, Limerick Township Police Department

"For bravery and exemplary performance during a standoff at a condominium complex where the suspect immediately began shooting at arriving officers, narrowly missing officers as they managed to obtain cover, and continued to shoot at officers before he was subdued by a non-fatal shot to his shoulder and was taken into custody."

LAW ENFORCEMENT COMMENDATION FOR HEROISM

Ofc. Eric Curcio, Lower Merion Township Police Department

"For exceptional performance negotiating during a standoff with an intoxicated man waving a gun, de-escalating the situation, which allowed the man to be safely taken into custody and obtain needed mental health care."

CITIZEN COMMENDATIONS FOR EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE

Beth Weber (Chesterbrook, Pa.)

Amna Zaim (Phoenixville, Pa.)

"For helping a 5-year-old boy who was attempting to escape his abuser at a gas station; then subsequently providing eyewitness accounts that helped lead to the defendant pleading guilty to Aggravated Assault and Endangering the Welfare of a Child."

Dorothy Coleman (Belmont Hills, Pa.)

Jody Kelley (Belmont Hills, Pa.)

"For astutely observing a defendant rummaging through a vehicle in their neighborhood, then assisting Lower Merion Township Police in locating the vehicle and the defendants, who had committed an armed carjacking earlier in the evening."

Christian Hernandez (Souderton, Pa.)

"For assisting Upper Dublin Township Police in communicating with a victims family in Mexico regarding medical and end-of-life decisions for their loved one who was hit by a SEPTA train."

LAW ENFORCEMENT COMMENDATIONS FOR EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCE

Det. Ivan R. Martinez, Berks County District Attorney Detectives

"For assisting Montgomery County Homicide Detectives in the negotiation with and apprehension of a defendant who fatally shot his former girlfriend while her children were in the apartment."

Det. Jared Weiner, East Norriton Township Police Department

Det. Michael Laverty, Upper Merion Township Police Department

"For the excellent investigation of a drug trafficker who was selling drug-laced cereal bars, brownies and other items using Instagram to juveniles as young as 11."

Det. Joseph Gary, Lansdale Police Department

"For his excellence, dedication and commitment to the extensive homicide investigation of Ebony Pack."

Lt. Edward Sarama, Lower Merion Township Police Department

Det. Gregory Pitchford, Lower Merion Township Police Department

"For the multi-jurisdictional investigation and key testimony during prosecution of a dangerous serial predator who attempted to rob and kidnap women at gunpoint, seriously injuring two of them."

Det. Gregory Pitchford, Lower Merion Township Police Department

"For the excellent investigation of multiple robberies of 7-Eleven stores in Lower Merion and Philadelphia."

Det. Brandan Dougherty, Upper Merion Township Police Department

Det. Andrew Rathfon, Upper Merion Township Police Department

"For the extensive, meticulous and lengthy investigation into a series of burglaries of numerous historical firearms and other artifacts from museums all along the Eastern Seaboard and the successful recovery and repatriation of these priceless pieces of American history."

Ofc. Craig Bald, Upper Moreland Township Police Department

Det. Todd Smith, Upper Moreland Township Police Department

"For the heads-up traffic stop, investigation and recovery of DNA evidence that led to charging of the vehicles occupants with a Philadelphia murder and other crimes."
CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  A Chinese envoy asked Australian authorities on Thursday to increase efforts to find survivors in the search for 39 crew members who were aboard a Chinese fishing boat that capsized in the Indian Ocean, as Chinese media reported two bodies had been recovered.

We wish that they could send more  more aircraft, more ships and more staff, Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian told reporters. We wish that our Australian colleagues would coordinate with other international or foreign vessels or ships near that area  to help the search and rescue to save as many lives as possible.

Xiao said China wanted to coordinate with friendly countries, including Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, in the search and rescue effort.

The search coordinator, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, said three aircraft and seven ships including three Chinese navy ships were involved in the search in the center of the Indian Ocean on Thursday. A Sri Lankan navy ship was also heading for the scene, the authority said in a statement.

Two days after the capsize of the Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, the authority remains hopeful for a successful outcome, however the time elapsed combined with the weather conditions experienced make survival more challenging, it said.

Two bodies were pulled from the ocean on Thursday afternoon by the Chinese navy, Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported. No survivors or life rafts have been spotted.

The upturned hull was spotted Tuesday from a cargo ship 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) northwest of the Australian west coast city of Perth, the Australian search coordinator said.

Chinese authorities say the missing crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the Philippines.

India, whose ties with China have been strained by a deadly border dispute, said it sent reconnaissance planes to help in the search.

The aircraft "have carried out multiple and extensive searches despite adverse weather and located multiple objects possibly belonging to the sunken vessel, navy spokesman Commander Vivek Mehul said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang ordered Chinese diplomats, as well as the agriculture and transportation ministries, to assist in the search for survivors.

The search authority said the multinational search effort continued Thursday over an area of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles) south of where the upturned hull was found.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Chinese and international agencies remained positive about the search and rescue operation.

The Chinese government expressed its sincere gratitude and high appreciation. The relevant search and rescue operations are still ongoing. Wang said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

The capsized boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co. Ltd.

Another Chinese vessel, Lu Peng Yuan Yu 018, had been operating near the upturned hull and continued to search on Thursday, the Australian authority said.

Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma in New Delhi contributed to this report.
What happens when you cross a Scottish writer and a Russian-born director with one of the great classics of world literature? Some very successful theatre, as it turns out. Lesley Harts take on Anna Karenina was written in collaboration with Polina Kalinina, this productions director, and it has the feel of something fresh and newly-minted. In fact, Kalinina extemporised translations of parts of the original text so as to give Hart her own unique take on the power of Tolstoys language, and you sense in much of Harts script that feeling of something created newly in the moment.

The dialogue itself feels quite earthy and, for many of the characters, very Scottish. (It will be interesting to see how well this transfers when the show moves to the Bristol Old Vic next month.) Sometimes its too earthy, and Hart is overfond of using swear words to spice up the action: why develop your characters when you can drop a few f-bombs instead? This becomes tiresome, and there are some anachronistic missteps, too: Annas baby brain, for example, feels very 21st century, and I cringed when Vronsky told Anna I want to make you come. Spare me!

These stick out, however, because the rest of the script works very well. Harts major innovation is to splice scenes together so as to create a sort of split-screen effect that supercharges the action and allows different scenes to unfold simultaneously. If it sounds chaotic then it rarely is. Instead, its energising and pacey. So is the set, which suggests settings through props and costumes rather than elaborate scenery. This allows Tolstoys famously long plot to unfold with speed and fleet-footed narrative edge, and Hart has done a good job of isolating the storys essentials. Levin and Kittys relationship is a little underplayed as a result, and even in spite of this the second act feels rushed and a little cluttered.

It holds together, though, thanks in no small part to the performances. Lindsey Campbell is terrific as Anna, most impressively so in the second act as her world implodes. Shes also very believable in the seduction scenes of the first act, though Robert Akodotos Vronsky is slightly wooden. Angus Miller plays Stiva with lots of energy and a rakish sense of humour, something mirrored by Jamie Marie Leary as his foul-mouthed wife. Stephen McCole traces with humanity Karenins journey from the buttoned-up diplomat to wronged husband, through forgiveness and back to hostility. Ray Sesay embodies Levins essential goodness with believable immediacy, matched by the immature skittishness of Tallulah Grieves Kitty.

You cant help but lose many of Tolstoys themes in an adaptation like this, and theres very little about the Russian bond with the soil that meant so much to him. However, despite its weaknesses, this is an impressive distillation of Tolstoys text and a punchy piece of drama that works on its own terms.

Continues until 3 June; then at Bristol Old Vic from 7 to 24 June
As he promotes the upcoming live-action film adaptation of The Little Mermaid, composer Alan Menken has discussed his other projects and how hed love to see them brought (or brought back!) to the screen.

Namely, Menken was keen to discuss Newsies  first seen on the screen in the 1990s, where it was met with critical failure. It even earned the Little Shop of Horrors composer a Razzie (an award recognising, somewhat harshly, underwhelming film output).

But now hes set to get the record straight  given the piece was later adapted into a Tony Award-winning musical: I wouldnt mind seeing Newsies redone for the screen, you know.

When we did the original Newsies, Kenny Ortega [who directed the movie, with other credits including Hocus Pocus] was limited to like three cameras or something. What we can do now with a bigger budget version of Newsies would be so much fun.

Lets hope the Disney execs are listening  theres a large ensemble of UK performers ready and waiting!

Directed and choreographed by Matt Cole, the show plays in a brand-new production through to July 2023. Menken provides the score while Harvey Feirstein (Kinky Boots) has penned the book and Jack Feldman (The Lion King II: Simbas Pride) is the lyricist.

Thats not all, as Menken continued: While were talking about it, and, its not a Disney thing, but I would love to see A Bronx Tale on screen. I could get Rob [Marshall, who directed The Little Mermaid] to direct it.

A Bronx Tale, based on the 90s film, premiered at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey on 4 February 2016, before opening on Broadway later that year.

Newsies continues to run at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre in London.
Im always slightly surprised that Once On This Island isnt better known. Admittedly, the original Broadway production in the early 1990s only lasted a year although it garnered eight Tony nominations, and the non-replica London version (for which the entire Peacock Theatre was themed as a sort of tropical paradise) had an even shorter run, despite picking up the 1995 Olivier Award for Best Musical. Its possible that the shows reputation has been eclipsed by that of the same creative teams kaleidoscopic epic Ragtime, which is commonly acknowledged as a modern masterpiece and received a Regents Park outing in 2012. But with Once On This Island, writing team Lynn Ahrens (book and lyrics) and Stephen Flaherty (music) created an unpolished gem of a musical, one that soars and sizzles as it reinvents a familiar folk tale and salutes the power of collective storytelling. Its a beautifully crafted crowdpleaser that not enough crowds outside of musical theatre diehards seem to know about.

Set on an idyllic island in the French Antilles and based on Trinidadian-American writer Rosa Guys romantic novel My Love My Love, which was in turn a Caribbean riff on the legend of The Little Mermaid, the 90-minute show boasts an almost through-sung score of infinite riches with nary a dud in it. The characters and their lives are painted in broad but vibrant brushstrokes against an overwhelmingly tuneful gold-rush of soaring, lilting, Calypso-inflected numbers that lodge in the brain while making the heart swell. Its powerfully melodic theatre music: there are soul-stirring, foot-stomping chorales that are equal parts celebration and terror, full-throated, joyful paeans to the sheer glory of living, power ballads that wouldnt have sounded out of place on a Whitney Houston album back in the day, and even a witty operetta parody to explain the historically fractured relationship between the Black and mixed race inhabitants of the French Antilles.

The sentimental core story (orphaned peasant girl Ti-Moune falls for the rich mixed-race boy she nursed back to health after a near-fatal car accident only to be cast aside in favour of a daughter of wealth and privilege) is undoubtedly more challenging to the tear ducts than the brain, but Ola Inces Regents Park staging frames it with a harder edge than usual. Georgia Lowes stark, angular set features a sunken square surrounded by numerous revolving columns concealing lights and mirrors, and is a far cry from the lush tropical paradise previous designers aimed to evoke. The reason becomes clear from the outset: Ince has envisioned this island as present-day Haiti, in the grip of desperate poverty and a brutal militaristic regime. When the company of storytellers (reimagined here as modern dress street hawkers trying to make a buck out of the passing tourist trade) launch into We Dance (surely one of the most exhilarating opening numbers in any musical) its with an air of desperation (we are dancing just to stay alive) that renders the uplifting vocals and wonderful, loose-limbed dance moves (choreography by Boy Blues Kendrick H2O Sandy) more poignant and potent than ever before.

In previous iterations, the tale of Ti-Moune is enacted by the storytellers to distract a distressed little girl from a raging storm overhead. Here, the story is told to comfort a pair of children (winningly played on opening night by Nielle Springer and Olivia St Louis, who alternate with two other teams of kids) after a nastily violent attack by the local militia, which has left one of the kids bloody faced and both of them traumatised. This lends the whole performance and the concept of escapism which runs through the story-within-a-story an extra layer of urgency.

Its a bold approach that is mostly successful although it doesnt always gel with the sweetness and whimsicality of the material, where a quartet of feuding Gods control and meddle in human destiny to settle scores amongst themselves, or where the ensemble transmogrify into cooing birds, whispering winds or bellowing frogs as Ti-Moune sets off across the island. To illuminate the convictions and superstitions of the island dwellers, Ince leans heavily into the Vodou (voodoo) traditions of Haiti with fascinating, sometimes sinister results. Overall, its such a spellbinding tapestry of sounds and images that the central love story almost feels extraneous, inevitably robbing the ending of a certain amount of its catharsis, despite the searing, open-hearted emotionalism of Gabrielle Brookss Ti-Moune.

As her adopted parents, Natasha Magigi and Chris Jarman tenderly, skilfully evoke a pair of kind souls, simple but not simple-minded, bewildered and beguiled by the whirlwind of a child they rescued from a tree: the number where they set her free to follow her destiny is heartbreaking, and will likely strike a chord in any parent with grown-up children. Even if the production could make more sense of the Gods (elaborately and imaginatively costumed by Melissa Simon-Hartman) controlling the course of the story, the actual performances are terrific (Emilie Louise Israel as Erzulie, Goddess of Love, Ashley Samuels: Agwe  God of Water, Lejaun Shepherd as a disturbing Papa Ge sly demon of death, and a barnstorming Anelisa Lamola as Mother of the Earth, Asaka, a role originated in this country by Sharon D Clarke). The choral singing throughout is absolutely thrilling. Brooks is a fine, feisty, unsentimental heroine, so self-assured and vital that when real pain hits her its almost unbearable to watch. Her singing is as fearless as her characterisation although it sometimes sounds strained at the top of her high belt, which is a part of her voice that this role requires her to use pretty relentlessly.

A couple of moments dont really work (having Ti-Moune pop out of a giant cake and then get into a cat fight with her romantic rival feel ill-judged, and a final transformation goes for surprisingly little) but theres ingenuity and authentic theatrical magic in the use of puppetry, dance, real fire, and in the way Jessica Hung Yan Huns lighting transforms the bleakly unforgiving space into the glittering opulence of the Grandhommes mansion. Perhaps inevitably, the production wont match the 2018 Tony-winning version, which transformed Broadways Circle in the Square into a fully immersive tropical island complete with live goats and a sandy beach where what felt like an actual tempest and rains tore through the theatre during the storm sequence, but it remains a major thrill to experience this underrated score.

In truth, isnt a production that particularly engages with its outdoor setting (except for one astonishing sequence near the end courtesy of sound designer Nick Lidster where all the contradictory voices in Ti-Mounes tormented mind seem to be coming from every angle of the theatre) but it certainly engages with the heart, the tear ducts and the hairs on the back of your neck. Its not a massive musical in terms of scale and ambition, and this may not be the staging that admirers of the work thought they were getting, but it still packs a shattering double-punch of joy and raw emotion. Definitely one to see.
With its stock down 4.7% over the past month, it is easy to disregard Deutsche Post (ETR:DPW). But if you pay close attention, you might gather that its strong financials could mean that the stock could potentially see an increase in value in the long-term, given how markets usually reward companies with good financial health. In this article, we decided to focus on Deutsche Post's ROE.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. Simply put, it is used to assess the profitability of a company in relation to its equity capital.

View our latest analysis for Deutsche Post

How Do You Calculate Return On Equity?

The formula for ROE is:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations)  Shareholders' Equity

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Deutsche Post is:

22% = 5.3b  24b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2023).

The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. One way to conceptualize this is that for each 1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made 0.22 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or "retain", we are then able to evaluate a company's future ability to generate profits. Assuming everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don't necessarily bear these characteristics.

Deutsche Post's Earnings Growth And 22% ROE

To begin with, Deutsche Post has a pretty high ROE which is interesting. Additionally, a comparison with the average industry ROE of 20% also portrays the company's ROE in a good light. As a result, Deutsche Post's remarkable 22% net income growth seen over the past 5 years is likely aided by its high ROE.

Next, on comparing Deutsche Post's net income growth with the industry, we found that the company's reported growth is similar to the industry average growth rate of 22% in the same period.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. Its important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company's expected earnings growth (or decline). This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. What is DPW worth today? The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether DPW is currently mispriced by the market.

Is Deutsche Post Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

Deutsche Post's three-year median payout ratio is a pretty moderate 43%, meaning the company retains 57% of its income. By the looks of it, the dividend is well covered and Deutsche Post is reinvesting its profits efficiently as evidenced by its exceptional growth which we discussed above.

Besides, Deutsche Post has been paying dividends for at least ten years or more. This shows that the company is committed to sharing profits with its shareholders. Based on the latest analysts' estimates, we found that the company's future payout ratio over the next three years is expected to hold steady at 47%. Therefore, the company's future ROE is also not expected to change by much with analysts predicting an ROE of 19%.

Conclusion

In total, we are pretty happy with Deutsche Post's performance. In particular, it's great to see that the company is investing heavily into its business and along with a high rate of return, that has resulted in a sizeable growth in its earnings. Having said that, the company's earnings growth is expected to slow down, as forecasted in the current analyst estimates. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts for the company.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Salesforce, a global leader in customer relationship management (CRM), has seen its ecosystem of partners in the Middle East grow 46% year-on-year by the end of Q1 of FY24 (January 31, 2023).

Salesforce certifications has risen by 51.5% in the same period. Furthermore, the company expects to create 20,300 new jobs and $3.9 billion in new business revenues by 2026.

Salesforce is enabling customer-focused transformation across the Middle East, with new AI-powered solutions helping organisations to boost productivity. The firm is also improving customer service and personalisation, said Thierry Nicault, Area Vice President and General Manager, Salesforce Middle East, speaking at the companys Salesforce World Tour Essentials Dubai event.

Opportunities for growth

Salesforce brought together more than 3,000 delegates in person, including customers and partners, to the event, which was held at the Madinat Jumeirah Conference Centre, Dubai. The event saw keynote speakers including Nicault share insights about Salesforces Middle East strategy and how its latest innovations across AI, data and CRM are helping customers transform, while providing Salesforce partners with opportunities for growth.

Fifteen Salesforce customers from various sectors including real estate, energy, banking, and telecoms joined the sessions, offering attendees key insights into how Salesforce Customer360 is helping them deliver success and transform their operations in the field.

Organisations in the Middle East see huge opportunities thanks to a vibrant public and private sector, and government strategies aimed at stimulating growth and economic diversification, Nicault said. But at the same time, companies also face many challenges, including global economic headwinds, fast-changing customer habits, and the need to raise productivity amid tough competition in most sectors. At Salesforce World Tour Essentials Dubai, we demonstrated how organisations across all sectors in the Middle East can raise employee productivity, gain clear insights into their business, and transform customer service by embracing the right digital tools.

Newest innovations

The event was Salesforces first opportunity to present its newest innovations in the Middle East. Among the solutions it demonstrated were Einstein GPT, which creates personalised content across every Salesforce cloud with generative AI to make employees more productive and customer experience better; and Data Cloud, which aggregates and harmonises data from multiple sources to provide a single profile of the customer. Data Cloud, which is essentially the intelligent heart of Customer360, transforms the ability of organisations to understand their customers, deliver personalised activations, and raise efficiency.

Sales Cloud, which uses real-time data from Data Cloud and Einstein AI to help teams maximise selling opportunities and achieve growth targets. Salesforce also introduced customers to the ChatGPT App for Slack. Built by OpenAI on the Slack platform, the app taps ChatGPTs powerful generative AI technology to bring instant conversation summaries, research tools, and writing assistance directly into Slack, empowering tens of millions of desk workers with AI productivity at their fingertips.

The event featured more than 25 sessions, including breakouts focused on areas including Connect Your Data and Taking Action with Data Cloud, Enhance Customer Engagement with Slack, Kickstart Your Customer 360 Journey, Business Transformation in a Fast Evolving World, and more. There was also a strong focus on specific industries including retail, manufacturing and automotive, financial services, and travel and tourism.

The event was sponsored by 30 partners including nine emerald partners: CloudzLab, Coberg, Deloitte, EI-Tech, EPAM, Inspark, PwC, Publicis Sapient, and Smarrtt. 15 partners delivered sessions during the event, giving real world insights into how Salesforce is helping organisations transform.-- TradeArabia News Service
Disney (DIS) is cancelling plans to relocate thousands of California-based employees to the state of Florida amid its ongoing feud with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

According to an internal memo obtained by Yahoo Finance, Josh D'Amaro, chairman at Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products, told employees the company, which had been building a new campus in the Lake Nona region of Orlando, was now scrapping those plans.

"Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward with construction of the campus," D'Amaro wrote.

"This was not an easy decision to make, but I believe it is the right one," he continued. "As a result, we will no longer be asking our employees to relocate. For those who have already moved, we will talk to you individually about your situation, including the possibility of moving you back."

The relocation plans were first announced in July 2021 under then-CEO Bob Chapek with the employee campus set to open in 2022-2023. The project was eventually delayed to 2026.

"It is clear to me that the power of this brand comes from our incredible people, and we are committed to handling this change with care and compassion," DAmaro said. "I remain optimistic about the direction of our Walt Disney World business. We have plans to invest $17 billion and create 13,000 jobs over the next ten years. I hope were able to do so."

ARCHIVO - Una estatua de Walt Disney y Mickey Mouse frente al Castillo de Cenicienta en el parque de Magic Kingdom en Walt Disney World, en Lake Buena Vista, Florida, el 9 de enero de 2019. (AP Foto/John Raoux, Archivo)

Thursday's update comes amid Disney's (DIS) high-profile battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The fight stems from what has largely been seen as a politically-targeted response over Disney's reaction to the so-called "Don't Say Gay" law, which forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade.

In 2022, then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek condemned this law at the company's annual shareholder meeting after initially deciding not to speak publicly on the matter.

In response, DeSantis signed a bill into law that allows him to take control of the company's long-standing special tax district, formerly known as Reedy Creek.

The political firestorm is still ongoing. Disney filed a lawsuit against DeSantis last month, alleging a "targeted campaign of government retaliation."

The governor's hand-selected Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board launched a countersuit against Disney shortly after its initial complaint, citing "backroom deals" favorable to the media giant.

"Disney announced the possibility of a Lake Nona campus nearly two years ago. Nothing ever came of the project, and the state was unsure whether it would come to fruition," a spokesperson from Governor DeSantis' office told Yahoo Finance in response to the project cancellation.

"Given the company's financial straits, falling market cap and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures," the spokesperson added.

The governor's' office previously told YF that Disney's moves showcase a "desperate attempt to maintain their special privileges and ignore the will of Floridians as expressed through their duly elected representatives."

Recently, Disney CEO Bob Iger has defended the company's actions and denounced DeSantis' practices on multiple occasions.

"Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?" he said on Disneys second-quarter conference call last week.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a fundraising picnic for U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, Saturday, May 13, 2023, in Sioux Center, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

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Redde Northgate plc (LON:REDD  Get Rating)s stock price passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of GBX 364.35 ($4.56) and traded as high as GBX 387.50 ($4.85). Redde Northgate shares last traded at GBX 386 ($4.84), with a volume of 300,915 shares trading hands.

Redde Northgate Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of GBX 363.80 and a 200-day moving average price of GBX 387.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 70.94. The stock has a market capitalization of 884.75 million, a PE ratio of 742.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.71.

About Redde Northgate

(Get Rating)

Redde Northgate plc provides mobility solutions and automotive services in the United Kingdom, Spain, and Ireland. The company offers contact center support, sales, claim processing, customer service, and general insurance products; provides fleet management, rapid response, and recovery management services; and supplies and installs electric vehicle charging equipment.

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Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE  Get Rating) have been assigned an average rating of Hold from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $95.00.

AEE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho cut their price target on Ameren from $91.00 to $87.00 in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Ameren from $102.00 to $95.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Guggenheim downgraded Ameren from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the company from $84.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Ameren from $95.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Monday, May 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, April 10th.

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Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE AEE opened at $83.33 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $21.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Ameren has a fifty-two week low of $73.28 and a fifty-two week high of $97.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $87.24 and a 200-day moving average of $86.71.

Ameren Announces Dividend

Ameren ( NYSE:AEE Get Rating ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.06. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.41% and a net margin of 13.34%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. The companys revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Ameren will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 14th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 13th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. Amerens dividend payout ratio is currently 60.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 3,660 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.40, for a total value of $305,244.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,692 shares in the company, valued at $3,060,112.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Warner L. Baxter sold 49,819 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.83, for a total value of $4,076,688.77. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 207,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,961,067.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 3,660 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.40, for a total value of $305,244.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,692 shares in the company, valued at $3,060,112.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,509 shares of company stock valued at $5,221,792 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.42% of the companys stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AEE. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 100,874.2% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 74,273,572 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $6,604,406,000 after acquiring an additional 74,200,015 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ameren by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,824,707 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,051,453,000 after buying an additional 2,200,700 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Ameren by 11,937.4% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,576,895 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $127,019,000 after buying an additional 1,563,795 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Ameren by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,174,582 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $282,284,000 after buying an additional 1,109,611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Ameren by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,889,994 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,302,326,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,187 shares during the last quarter. 78.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ameren

(Get Rating)

Ameren Corp. is a public utility holding company, which engages in the provision of electric and natural gas services. It operates through the following segments: Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois Electric Distribution, Ameren Illinois Natural Gas, Ameren Transmission, and Other. The Ameren Transmission segment consists of the aggregated electric transmission businesses of Ameren Illinois and Ameren Transmission Company of Illinois (ATXI).

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Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO  Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, May 9th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of 0.43 per share by the financial services provider on Wednesday, May 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 19th. This is a positive change from Apollo Global Managements previous quarterly dividend of $0.40.

Apollo Global Management has decreased its dividend by an average of 7.5% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Apollo Global Management has a payout ratio of 22.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Apollo Global Management to earn $7.12 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.72 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 24.2%.

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Apollo Global Management Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE APO opened at $63.42 on Thursday. Apollo Global Management has a 52 week low of $45.62 and a 52 week high of $74.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $61.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apollo Global Management

In related news, CFO Martin Kelly sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.11, for a total value of $1,051,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 425,120 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $29,805,163.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink . In other news, insider Joshua Harris sold 14,744 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total value of $937,718.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 34,987,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,185,729.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink . Also, CFO Martin Kelly sold 15,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.11, for a total transaction of $1,051,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 425,120 shares in the company, valued at $29,805,163.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders sold 1,093,865 shares of company stock valued at $70,299,852 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 15.40% of the companys stock.

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of APO. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Apollo Global Management by 4.9% during the first quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 458,103 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $28,933,000 after purchasing an additional 21,270 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Apollo Global Management in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in Apollo Global Management by 109.9% during the 1st quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 45,466 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,872,000 after buying an additional 23,807 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in Apollo Global Management by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 150,000 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $9,474,000 after buying an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Finally, Fort Pitt Capital Group LLC grew its stake in Apollo Global Management by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Fort Pitt Capital Group LLC now owns 1,132,366 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $71,520,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.98% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Apollo Global Management from $74.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Apollo Global Management from $69.00 to $68.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 13th. Bank of America cut their price target on Apollo Global Management from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Apollo Global Management from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on Apollo Global Management from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $73.61.

About Apollo Global Management

(Get Rating)

Apollo Global Management, Inc provides asset management services. It offers its clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade to private equity with a focus on three business strategies: yield, hybrid, and equity. The company was founded by Marc Rowan in 1990 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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Tredje AP fonden grew its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY  Get Rating) by 17.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 502,875 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after purchasing an additional 74,097 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fondens holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $36,182,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,886,585 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $14,209,937,000 after buying an additional 3,058,491 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 174,002,852 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $12,369,862,000 after buying an additional 3,357,590 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,659,982 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $1,042,264,000 after buying an additional 155,845 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 35.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,794,089 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $992,048,000 after buying an additional 3,627,705 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 11,442,639 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $813,457,000 after buying an additional 59,791 shares during the period. 75.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Down 2.0 %

NYSE BMY traded down $1.32 during trading on Thursday, reaching $65.21. The companys stock had a trading volume of 4,333,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,982,777. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $68.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.29. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 1-year low of $65.18 and a 1-year high of $81.43.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

Bristol-Myers Squibb ( NYSE:BMY Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $11.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $11.50 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a net margin of 15.95% and a return on equity of 51.75%. The companys revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 10th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 6th. Bristol-Myers Squibbs payout ratio is 66.47%.

Insider Transactions at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In other news, EVP Rupert Vessey sold 50,385 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $3,378,818.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 47,751 shares in the company, valued at $3,202,182.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on BMY shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. 51job reiterated a maintains rating on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Friday, April 28th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Monday, May 1st. Atlantic Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Monday, March 6th. They set a hold rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $79.43.

About Bristol-Myers Squibb

(Get Rating)

Bristol Myers Squibb Co engages in the discovery, development, licensing, manufacture, marketing, distribution, and sale of biopharmaceutical products. It offers chemically-synthesized drugs or small molecules and products produced from biological processes called biologics. The company was founded in August 1933 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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Cano Health (NYSE:CANO  Get Rating) had its price target increased by investment analysts at Piper Sandler to $1.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, The Fly reports. Piper Sandlers price target would suggest a potential downside of 24.81% from the companys previous close.

Separately, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Cano Health from $5.00 to $4.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $3.64.

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Cano Health Stock Performance

Shares of CANO remained flat at $1.33 during mid-day trading on Tuesday. 1,746,847 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,976,643. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $1.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1.50. Cano Health has a 52 week low of $0.76 and a 52 week high of $9.75.

Insider Transactions at Cano Health

Cano Health ( NYSE:CANO Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 1st. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.28. Cano Health had a negative net margin of 8.14% and a positive return on equity of 1.05%. The company had revenue of $680.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.27 million. Equities analysts expect that Cano Health will post -0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other Cano Health news, CFO Brian D. Koppy sold 23,591 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.27, for a total transaction of $29,960.57. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 802,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,019,263.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 54.40% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cano Health

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Cano Health by 4.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,729,264 shares of the companys stock worth $80,831,000 after purchasing an additional 593,721 shares during the last quarter. Owl Creek Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Cano Health by 9.8% during the third quarter. Owl Creek Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,398,975 shares of the companys stock valued at $81,490,000 after purchasing an additional 841,251 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cano Health by 133.8% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,504,486 shares of the companys stock valued at $24,109,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149,952 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Cano Health by 11,402.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 5,490,311 shares of the companys stock worth $4,996,000 after acquiring an additional 5,442,581 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in Cano Health by 3.4% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,542,095 shares of the companys stock worth $4,133,000 after acquiring an additional 149,752 shares during the period. 25.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cano Health Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Cano Health, Inc provides primary care medical services to its members in the United States and Puerto Rico. It owns and operates medical centers enabled by CanoPanorama, a proprietary population health management technology-powered platform that provides the healthcare providers at its medical centers with a 360-degree view of their members with actionable insights to improve care decisions and member engagement.

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Capital Power (OTCMKTS:CPXWF  Get Rating) had its target price lifted by National Bank Financial from C$52.00 to C$53.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, The Fly reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on CPXWF. CIBC boosted their price target on Capital Power from C$50.00 to C$51.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 2nd. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Capital Power from C$51.00 to C$52.00 in a report on Wednesday. Credit Suisse Group lifted their price target on shares of Capital Power from C$54.00 to C$56.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 10th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Capital Power from C$53.00 to C$50.00 in a report on Thursday, March 2nd.

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Capital Power Stock Performance

OTCMKTS CPXWF remained flat at $34.45 on Wednesday. 225 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,629. Capital Power has a 1 year low of $29.39 and a 1 year high of $39.87. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $31.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.85.

Capital Power Company Profile

Capital Power Corp. engages in the development, acquisition, construction, operation, and optimization of power generation facilities. It operates through the Canada and U.S. geographical segments. The Canada segment refers to the Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario. The U.S. segment includes North Carolina, New Mexico, Kansas, Alabama, Arizona, North Dakota, Illinois, Texas, and Michigan.

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Ciena Co. (NYSE:CIEN  Get Rating) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 3,920,000 shares, a decline of 7.3% from the April 15th total of 4,230,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,710,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 2.7% of the companys stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ciena

In related news, VP Andrew C. Petrik sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total value of $43,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 28,232 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,092. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Ciena news, VP Andrew C. Petrik sold 1,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $43,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 28,232 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,228,092. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP David M. Rothenstein sold 3,500 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $152,250.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 240,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,482,412.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,623 shares of company stock worth $1,148,690. Insiders own 0.99% of the companys stock.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Future Fund LLC raised its position in Ciena by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Future Fund LLC now owns 6,152 shares of the communications equipment providers stock worth $3,136,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Ciena by 0.6% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 36,296 shares of the communications equipment providers stock worth $2,227,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Riverwater Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 0.9% during the first quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 26,400 shares of the communications equipment providers stock worth $1,387,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Ciena by 0.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 28,651 shares of the communications equipment providers stock worth $1,737,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Finally, Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Ciena by 0.9% during the first quarter. Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc. now owns 32,049 shares of the communications equipment providers stock worth $1,683,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the companys stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Ciena Price Performance

CIEN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James raised Ciena from an outperform rating to a strong-buy rating and increased their target price for the company from $58.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 28th. Westpark Capital began coverage on Ciena in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. They issued a buy rating on the stock. StockNews.com began coverage on Ciena in a report on Thursday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reissued a buy rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a buy rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research note on Tuesday, February 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $65.44.

Shares of CIEN opened at $44.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.64 billion, a PE ratio of 36.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 3.70, a quick ratio of 2.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.23. Ciena has a 1-year low of $38.33 and a 1-year high of $56.38.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN  Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 6th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $959.04 million. Ciena had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 4.77%. Cienas revenue was up 25.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ciena will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Ciena Company Profile

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Ciena Corp. engages in the provision of network and communication infrastructure. It operates through the following segments: Networking Platforms, Platform Software and Services, Blue Planet Automation Software and Services, and Global Services. The Networking Platforms segment consists of Converged Packet Optical and Packet Networking portfolios.

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John Wood Group (LON:WG  Get Rating)s stock had its neutral rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at Citigroup in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Digital Look reports.

WG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on John Wood Group from GBX 237 ($2.97) to GBX 217 ($2.72) and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Berenberg Bank reissued a buy rating and issued a GBX 165 ($2.07) price objective on shares of John Wood Group in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered John Wood Group to a hold rating and upped their target price for the company from GBX 190 ($2.38) to GBX 237 ($2.97) in a report on Wednesday, March 8th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on John Wood Group from GBX 180 ($2.25) to GBX 190 ($2.38) and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of GBX 209.80 ($2.63).

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John Wood Group Stock Performance

LON:WG traded down GBX 4.10 ($0.05) during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting GBX 135.10 ($1.69). 4,856,922 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 530,810. The stock has a market capitalization of 934.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -164.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 34.13, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firms 50-day simple moving average is GBX 211.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 171.29. John Wood Group has a fifty-two week low of GBX 102.05 ($1.28) and a fifty-two week high of GBX 255 ($3.19).

Insider Activity

John Wood Group Company Profile

In other news, insider Jacqui Ferguson bought 1,607 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 195 ($2.44) per share, with a total value of 3,133.65 ($3,925.40). In other John Wood Group news, insider David Kemp purchased 1,871 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 226 ($2.83) per share, with a total value of 4,228.46 ($5,296.83). Also, insider Jacqui Ferguson purchased 1,607 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 195 ($2.44) per share, with a total value of 3,133.65 ($3,925.40). Insiders own 1.80% of the companys stock.

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John Wood Group PLC, together with its subsidiaries, provides consulting, project management, and engineering solutions to energy and built environment worldwide. It operates through four segments: Projects, Operations, Consulting, and Investment. The company offers engineering solutions, including decarbonization and optimization in energy and industry; and renewable energy, future fuels, and low carbon solutions.

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Citizens Financial Group Inc RI raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC  Get Rating) by 34.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,666 shares of the financial services providers stock after acquiring an additional 3,993 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc RIs holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 20.9% during the third quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 105,621,983 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $4,248,626,000 after buying an additional 18,252,701 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1,478.6% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 8,390,611 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $406,609,000 after purchasing an additional 7,859,100 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter valued at $345,861,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 326,822,162 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $13,144,788,000 after purchasing an additional 3,920,830 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 5,232.2% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,211,291 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $155,619,000 after purchasing an additional 3,151,066 shares during the period. 72.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WFC. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $46.00 to $49.00 in a report on Friday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 17th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Finally, Odeon Capital Group cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Monday, March 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $49.45.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 5.4 %

NYSE WFC opened at $40.46 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $38.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $35.25 and a twelve month high of $48.84. The company has a market capitalization of $151.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.08. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 10.07% and a net margin of 15.93%. The company had revenue of $20.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $20.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.88 EPS. Wells Fargo & Companys revenue for the quarter was up 16.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 4.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 5th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 4th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. Wells Fargo & Companys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.38%.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Kleber Santos sold 34,698 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.27, for a total transaction of $1,605,476.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,590 shares in the company, valued at $906,429.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wells Fargo & Company Profile

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Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified, community-based financial services company. It is engaged in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage products and services, and consumer and commercial finance. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth & Investment Management.

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GLG Life Tech (OTCMKTS:GLGLF  Get Rating) and Ascend Wellness (OTC:AAWH  Get Rating) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares GLG Life Tech and Ascend Wellness net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

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Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets GLG Life Tech -358.36% N/A -150.71% Ascend Wellness -16.45% -40.01% -7.88%

Volatility and Risk

GLG Life Tech has a beta of 1.88, meaning that its share price is 88% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ascend Wellness has a beta of 2.63, meaning that its share price is 163% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio GLG Life Tech $8.40 million 0.05 -$25.42 million ($0.69) -0.02 Ascend Wellness $405.93 million 0.41 -$80.90 million ($0.38) -2.31

This table compares GLG Life Tech and Ascend Wellness revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

GLG Life Tech has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Ascend Wellness. Ascend Wellness is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than GLG Life Tech, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for GLG Life Tech and Ascend Wellness, as provided by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score GLG Life Tech 0 0 0 0 N/A Ascend Wellness 0 1 3 0 2.75

Ascend Wellness has a consensus target price of $2.75, suggesting a potential upside of 213.14%. Given Ascend Wellness higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ascend Wellness is more favorable than GLG Life Tech.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Ascend Wellness shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.9% of Ascend Wellness shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Ascend Wellness beats GLG Life Tech on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About GLG Life Tech

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GLG Life Tech Corp engages in the agricultural and commercial development of zero-calorie natural sweeteners. Its products include stevia, monk fruit, and Red M Gold. It specializes in the growing, refining, and production of extracts for distribution to the food and beverage industry. The company was founded on June 5, 1998 and is headquartered in Richmond, Canada.

About Ascend Wellness

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Ascend Wellness Holdings, Inc. engages in the cultivation, manufacture, and distribution of cannabis consumer packaged goods. Its cannabis product categories include flowers, pre-rolls, concentrates, vapes, edibles, and other cannabis-related products. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated 20 retail locations. It also sells its products to third-party licensed cannabis retail stores. The company was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

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Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Enhabit, Inc. (NYSE:EHAB  Get Rating) by 38.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,640 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 5,973 shares during the period. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C.s holdings in Enhabit were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Enhabit in the 3rd quarter valued at $97,492,000. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Enhabit during the 3rd quarter valued at about $77,886,000. State Street Corp acquired a new position in shares of Enhabit during the 3rd quarter valued at about $22,827,000. Systematic Financial Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Enhabit during the 3rd quarter valued at about $20,566,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Enhabit during the 3rd quarter valued at about $9,662,000. 95.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Enhabit Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:EHAB opened at $12.03 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Enhabit, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.64 and a 52-week high of $25.25. The company has a 50 day moving average of $13.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.66. The company has a market capitalization of $602.70 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.42.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Enhabit ( NYSE:EHAB Get Rating ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $275.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $268.15 million. Enhabit had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 6.59%. As a group, analysts forecast that Enhabit, Inc. will post 0.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Credit Suisse Group restated a neutral rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Enhabit in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Enhabit from $18.00 to $15.00 in a report on Friday, May 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Enhabit in a research report on Thursday, March 16th. They set a neutral rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Enhabit from $17.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $16.13.

About Enhabit

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Enhabit, Inc provides home health and hospice services in the United States. Its home health services include patient education, pain management, wound care and dressing changes, cardiac rehabilitation, infusion therapy, pharmaceutical administration, and skilled observation and assessment services; practices to treat chronic diseases and conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, Alzheimer's disease, low vision, spinal stenosis, Parkinson's disease, osteoporosis, complex wound care and chronic pain, along with disease-specific plans for patients with diabetes, congestive heart failure, post-orthopedic surgery, or injury and respiratory diseases; and physical, occupational and speech therapists provide therapy services.

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Fastly, Inc. (NYSE:FSLY  Get Rating) EVP Brett Shirk sold 8,783 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.17, for a total transaction of $115,672.11. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 312,050 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $4,109,698.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Brett Shirk also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Thursday, April 20th, Brett Shirk sold 4,351 shares of Fastly stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.52, for a total transaction of $71,878.52.

On Monday, March 20th, Brett Shirk sold 7,000 shares of Fastly stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.31, for a total transaction of $107,170.00.

On Thursday, March 16th, Brett Shirk sold 2,907 shares of Fastly stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.57, for a total transaction of $42,354.99.

On Wednesday, March 1st, Brett Shirk sold 1,410 shares of Fastly stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.94, for a total value of $19,655.40.

On Tuesday, February 21st, Brett Shirk sold 7,000 shares of Fastly stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.43, for a total value of $101,010.00.

Fastly Stock Performance

Shares of FSLY traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $13.24. The companys stock had a trading volume of 2,790,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,169,422. Fastly, Inc. has a one year low of $7.15 and a one year high of $18.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 5.28 and a current ratio of 5.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of -9.48 and a beta of 1.31. The stocks 50-day moving average is $15.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.96.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastly

Fastly ( NYSE:FSLY Get Rating ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 15th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.09. Fastly had a negative return on equity of 20.22% and a negative net margin of 38.22%. The company had revenue of $119.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $114.39 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastly, Inc. will post -1.27 EPS for the current year.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Fastly in the first quarter worth $53,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in Fastly by 886.5% during the first quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,200 shares of the companys stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,977 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Fastly by 4.8% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,169,788 shares of the companys stock worth $38,535,000 after acquiring an additional 99,909 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Fastly during the first quarter worth $1,856,000. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON acquired a new stake in shares of Fastly in the first quarter valued at $1,155,000. 60.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Fastly from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $12.00 to $18.00 in a report on Thursday, April 20th. Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on Fastly from $9.50 to $11.50 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Fastly from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Fastly from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, February 16th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Fastly from $16.00 to $26.50 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $16.00.

About Fastly

(Get Rating)

Fastly, Inc provides real-time content delivery network services. It offers edge compute, edge delivery, edge security, edge applications like load balancing and image optimization, video on demand, and managed edge delivery. The company was founded by Artur Bergman, Tyler McMullen, Simon Wistow, and Gil Penchina in March 2011 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.

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FDx Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS  Get Rating) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 57,787 shares of the companys stock after selling 936 shares during the quarter. FDx Advisors Inc.s holdings in Novartis were worth $5,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Principle Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Novartis by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,447 shares of the companys stock worth $494,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 7,446 shares of the companys stock worth $566,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Novartis by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,744 shares of the companys stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC grew its position in Novartis by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 498 shares of the companys stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Novartis by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,083 shares of the companys stock worth $158,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.12% of the companys stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Novartis from $75.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Novartis in a research report on Thursday. They issued a strong-buy rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lowered Novartis from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $82.25.

Novartis Trading Down 0.8 %

Novartis stock traded down $0.76 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $100.46. 412,161 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,106,814. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.14, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.54. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $74.09 and a fifty-two week high of $105.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The companys 50 day simple moving average is $95.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.45.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS  Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $12.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.60 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 23.29% and a net margin of 13.78%. The firms revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Profile

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Novartis AG is a holding company, which engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of healthcare products. It operates through the following segments: Innovative Medicines, Sandoz, and Corporate. The Innovative Medicines segment researches, develops, manufactures, distributes and sells patented pharmaceuticals, and is composed of two business units: Novartis Oncology and Novartis Pharmaceuticals.

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Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else investors will move on and the company will wither away.

So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Oversea-Chinese Banking (SGX:O39). While this doesn't necessarily speak to whether it's undervalued, the profitability of the business is enough to warrant some appreciation - especially if its growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Oversea-Chinese Banking

Oversea-Chinese Banking's Earnings Per Share Are Growing

Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. Over the last three years, Oversea-Chinese Banking has grown EPS by 12% per year. That's a pretty good rate, if the company can sustain it.

It's often helpful to take a look at earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins, as well as revenue growth, to get another take on the quality of the company's growth. It's noted that Oversea-Chinese Banking's revenue from operations was lower than its revenue in the last twelve months, so that could distort our analysis of its margins. Oversea-Chinese Banking maintained stable EBIT margins over the last year, all while growing revenue 23% to S$12b. That's progress.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. For finer detail, click on the image.

In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out this free interactive visualization of Oversea-Chinese Banking's forecast profits?

Are Oversea-Chinese Banking Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Owing to the size of Oversea-Chinese Banking, we wouldn't expect insiders to hold a significant proportion of the company. But we do take comfort from the fact that they are investors in the company. Indeed, they have a considerable amount of wealth invested in it, currently valued at S$182m. This comes in at 0.3% of shares in the company, which is a fair amount of a business of this size. So despite their percentage holding being low, company management still have plenty of reasons to deliver the best outcomes for investors.

Does Oversea-Chinese Banking Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

As previously touched on, Oversea-Chinese Banking is a growing business, which is encouraging. For those who are looking for a little more than this, the high level of insider ownership enhances our enthusiasm for this growth. That combination is very appealing. So yes, we do think the stock is worth keeping an eye on. It's still necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Oversea-Chinese Banking , and understanding it should be part of your investment process.

Although Oversea-Chinese Banking certainly looks good, it may appeal to more investors if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see insider buying, then this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying, could be exactly what you're looking for.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Shares of Frederick County Bancorp (MD) (OTCMKTS:FCBI  Get Rating) passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $36.00 and traded as low as $36.00. Frederick County Bancorp (MD) shares last traded at $36.00, with a volume of 600 shares traded.

Frederick County Bancorp (MD) Trading Down 0.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $57.85 million, a P/E ratio of 25.35 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.00.

Frederick County Bancorp (MD) Company Profile

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Frederick County Bancorp, Inc operates as the holding company for Frederick County Bank that provides various banking services to individuals and commercial enterprises in the Frederick County, Maryland. It offers deposit products, including personal checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, and health savings accounts; and business checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and certificates of deposits.

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Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE:GTN  Get Rating) Director T L. Elder sold 2,075 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total transaction of $16,102.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 45,163 shares in the company, valued at $350,464.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Gray Television Price Performance

GTN stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $8.09. The companys stock had a trading volume of 1,255,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,003,682. The stock has a market cap of $770.49 million, a PE ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. Gray Television, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.50 and a fifty-two week high of $20.83. The companys 50 day moving average is $8.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.43.

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Gray Television (NYSE:GTN  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.48) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($0.30) by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $801.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.22 million. Gray Television had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The firms revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Gray Television, Inc. will post -0.35 EPS for the current year.

Gray Television Dividend Announcement

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.96%. Gray Televisions payout ratio is 9.58%.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Gray Television in a research note on Thursday, March 16th. They set a sell rating on the stock. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of Gray Television from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, February 27th. Barrington Research reduced their price target on shares of Gray Television from $15.00 to $12.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Gray Television from $16.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Gray Television currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $13.00.

Institutional Trading of Gray Television

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GTN. Baupost Group LLC MA acquired a new stake in shares of Gray Television during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,491,000. UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Gray Television by 46.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,063,320 shares of the companys stock worth $26,712,000 after purchasing an additional 966,251 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Gray Television during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,115,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Gray Television during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,679,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Gray Television by 30.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,311,553 shares of the companys stock worth $51,016,000 after purchasing an additional 533,361 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.33% of the companys stock.

Gray Television Company Profile

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Gray Television, Inc is a television broadcasting company, which engages in owning and operating television stations and digital assets in markets throughout the United States. It operates through the following segments: Broadcasting, and Production Companies. The Broadcasting segment operates television stations located across local markets in the United States.

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JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Hengan International Group (OTCMKTS:HEGIF  Get Rating) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, The Fly reports.

Hengan International Group Stock Performance

Shares of HEGIF remained flat at $4.57 during midday trading on Wednesday. Hengan International Group has a 1 year low of $3.90 and a 1 year high of $5.20. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $4.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.63.

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Hengan International Group Company Profile

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Hengan International Group Company Limited, an investment holding company, manufactures, distributes, and sells personal hygiene products in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company offers pocket handkerchiefs, box and soft tissue papers, kitchen towels/papers, toilet rolls, first-aid products, enema, garbage and food bags, preservation papers, table cloths and swabbers, sanitary napkins, pantiliners, overnight pants, wet tissues, maternal and child care products, adult and baby diapers, and cleansing products.

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Horizonte Minerals Plc (TSE:HZM  Get Rating)s stock price crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of C$2.40 and traded as low as C$2.36. Horizonte Minerals shares last traded at C$2.36, with a volume of 8,900 shares.

Horizonte Minerals Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 7.34, a quick ratio of 4.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 59.55. The stock has a market capitalization of C$639.70 million, a PE ratio of -79.33 and a beta of 1.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of C$2.40 and a 200 day moving average price of C$2.25.

About Horizonte Minerals

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Horizonte Minerals Plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration and development of mineral projects in Brazil. The company primarily explores for nickel deposits, as well as cobalt deposits. It holds 100% interest in the Araguaia ferronickel project and Serra do Tapa nickel project located in the State of Para; and the Vermelho Nickel-Cobalt project in the eastern part of the Carajas mining district.

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Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB  Get Rating) insider Eric Norris acquired 1,260 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $195.49 per share, for a total transaction of $246,317.40. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 26,596 shares of the companys stock, valued at $5,199,252.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $207.99 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $24.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.67, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.53. Albemarle Co. has a 1 year low of $171.82 and a 1 year high of $334.55. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $202.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.01.

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Albemarle (NYSE:ALB  Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $10.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.93 by $3.39. The firm had revenue of $2.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 45.57% and a net margin of 41.89%. Albemarles quarterly revenue was up 128.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Albemarle Co. will post 22.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 16th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. Albemarles payout ratio is currently 5.13%.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Berenberg Bank reduced their target price on Albemarle from $290.00 to $225.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Albemarle from $350.00 to $277.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Credit Suisse Group reiterated an underperform rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a report on Thursday, February 16th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Albemarle in a report on Thursday. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Albemarle from $340.00 to $362.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $284.05.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in Albemarle in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in Albemarle by 188.1% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 121 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Core Alternative Capital boosted its stake in Albemarle by 342.9% during the 1st quarter. Core Alternative Capital now owns 124 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Albemarle by 51.2% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 130 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 82.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Albemarle

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Albemarle Corp. engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of chemicals for consumer electronics, petroleum refining, utilities, packaging, construction, transportation, pharmaceuticals, crop production, food-safety, and custom chemistry services. It operates through the following business segments: Lithium, Bromine, Catalysts, and All Other.

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Forestar Group Inc. (NYSE:FOR  Get Rating) Director G.F. (Rick) Ringler III sold 2,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.12, for a total transaction of $40,240.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,267 shares of the companys stock, valued at $146,212.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Forestar Group Price Performance

FOR opened at $20.20 on Thursday. Forestar Group Inc. has a one year low of $10.28 and a one year high of $20.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The companys 50 day simple moving average is $16.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.27 and a beta of 1.63.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FOR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Forestar Group from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Friday, April 21st. TheStreet upgraded shares of Forestar Group from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Monday, April 17th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Forestar Group in a report on Thursday. They set a hold rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $17.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Forestar Group

About Forestar Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FOR. Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Forestar Group by 7.6% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 41,017 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $728,000 after acquiring an additional 2,900 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Forestar Group by 67.3% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 78,489 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $1,395,000 after acquiring an additional 31,567 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Forestar Group by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 104,101 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $1,849,000 after acquiring an additional 5,604 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Forestar Group by 55.1% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 45,703 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $812,000 after acquiring an additional 16,240 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Forestar Group by 56.8% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 10,949 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $194,000 after acquiring an additional 3,966 shares during the period. 35.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

(Get Rating)

Forestar Group Inc is a residential lot development company, which engages in the provision of real estate business. The firm focuses on making investments in land acquisition and development to sell finished single-family residential lots to homebuilders. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Arlington, TX.

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J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM  Get Rating) had its target price lowered by research analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $159.00 to $158.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, The Fly reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschafts target price suggests a potential upside of 3.40% from the companys current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. They issued a hold rating and a $168.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a sell rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Argus raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $170.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 27th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Tuesday, May 2nd. They set an equal weight rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, J. M. Smucker has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $153.18.

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J. M. Smucker Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of SJM traded down $1.90 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $152.81. The stock had a trading volume of 167,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 887,859. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.63 and a beta of 0.21. J. M. Smucker has a 1-year low of $119.82 and a 1-year high of $163.07.

Insider Activity at J. M. Smucker

J. M. Smucker ( NYSE:SJM Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.08. J. M. Smucker had a net margin of 8.54% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that J. M. Smucker will post 8.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In related news, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 4,795 shares of J. M. Smucker stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.74, for a total value of $732,388.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,390,850.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 10,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.96, for a total transaction of $1,539,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,703,691.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 4,795 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.74, for a total transaction of $732,388.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,106 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,390,850.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 122,462 shares of company stock worth $18,744,753. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of J. M. Smucker

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Destiny Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 295.7% during the 4th quarter. Destiny Wealth Partners LLC now owns 182 shares of the companys stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 59.8% during the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 187 shares of the companys stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 79.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About J. M. Smucker

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The J. M. Smucker Co engages in the manufacture and marketing of food and beverage products. It operates through the following segments: U.S. Retail Coffee, U.S. Retail Consumer Foods, U.S. Retail Pet Foods, and International and Away From Home. The U. S. Retail Coffee segment includes domestic sales of Folgers, Dunkin Donuts, and Cafe Bustelo branded coffee.

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Suncor Energy (TSE:SU  Get Rating) (NYSE:SU) had its target price lowered by Jefferies Financial Group from C$44.00 to C$42.00 in a report released on Monday morning, The Fly reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from C$54.00 to C$52.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 10th. TD Securities decreased their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from C$52.00 to C$49.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th. National Bankshares upgraded shares of Suncor Energy from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating and raised their price target for the stock from C$60.00 to C$61.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th. National Bank Financial raised their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from C$57.00 to C$60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 18th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from C$50.00 to C$47.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of C$53.71.

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Suncor Energy Trading Up 1.4 %

TSE:SU opened at C$38.49 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.72, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of C$50.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.15 and a beta of 1.67. Suncor Energy has a 52 week low of C$36.38 and a 52 week high of C$53.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of C$41.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$43.59.

Suncor Energy Announces Dividend

Suncor Energy ( TSE:SU Get Rating ) (NYSE:SU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 14th. The company reported C$1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$1.68 by C$0.13. Suncor Energy had a net margin of 15.56% and a return on equity of 23.89%. The firm had revenue of C$13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of C$12.92 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Suncor Energy will post 6.0843558 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 5th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 2nd. Suncor Energys payout ratio is 31.85%.

Suncor Energy Company Profile

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Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company. The company primarily focuses on developing petroleum resource basins in Canada's Athabasca oil sands; explores, acquires, develops, produces, transports, refines, and markets crude oil in Canada and internationally; markets petroleum and petrochemical products under the Petro-Canada name primarily in Canada.

Further Reading

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Laurentian Bank of Canada (TSE:LB  Get Rating) had its price target dropped by research analysts at National Bankshares from C$42.00 to C$39.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. National Bankshares price target indicates a potential upside of 26.54% from the stocks previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the company. CIBC cut their price target on Laurentian Bank of Canada from C$40.00 to C$37.00 in a report on Tuesday. Barclays reduced their target price on Laurentian Bank of Canada from C$36.00 to C$34.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 9th. Cormark cut their price objective on shares of Laurentian Bank of Canada from C$45.00 to C$42.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Laurentian Bank of Canada from C$39.00 to C$38.00 in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Finally, CSFB cut their price target on shares of Laurentian Bank of Canada from C$35.00 to C$32.00 in a report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of C$39.55.

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Laurentian Bank of Canada Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of LB stock traded down C$0.22 on Thursday, hitting C$30.82. 48,798 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 148,386. The firms 50 day moving average is C$31.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$32.95. Laurentian Bank of Canada has a one year low of C$28.23 and a one year high of C$43.32. The firm has a market capitalization of C$1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 6.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.15.

About Laurentian Bank of Canada

Laurentian Bank of Canada ( TSE:LB Get Rating ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The company reported C$1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of C$1.12 by C$0.03. The firm had revenue of C$260.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$259.00 million. Laurentian Bank of Canada had a net margin of 22.90% and a return on equity of 8.15%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Laurentian Bank of Canada will post 4.7400612 earnings per share for the current year.

(Get Rating)

Laurentian Bank of Canada, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial services to personal, business, and institutional customers in Canada and the United States. It operates through three segments: Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, and Capital Markets. The Personal Banking segment offers financial services, such as financial advisory services to financial intermediaries; and operates digital direct-to-customer platform to retail clients.

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Barings BDC, Inc. (NYSE:BBDC  Get Rating) insider Michael James Oconnor bought 25,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $7.43 per share, with a total value of $185,750.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 25,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $185,750. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Barings BDC Stock Performance

Barings BDC stock opened at $7.61 on Thursday. The companys 50-day moving average price is $7.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.31. Barings BDC, Inc. has a twelve month low of $6.96 and a twelve month high of $10.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $821.27 million, a PE ratio of 34.59 and a beta of 0.70.

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Barings BDC (NYSE:BBDC  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.04). Barings BDC had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $67.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $67.45 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. Barings BDCs revenue for the quarter was up 53.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Barings BDC, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barings BDC Dividend Announcement

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barings BDC

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 7th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.14%. Barings BDCs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 454.55%.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBDC. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Barings BDC in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Lake Point Wealth Management boosted its position in Barings BDC by 3,008.0% in the 1st quarter. Lake Point Wealth Management now owns 3,108 shares of the companys stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 3,008 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Barings BDC by 24,205.6% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,375 shares of the companys stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 4,357 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its position in shares of Barings BDC by 140.9% in the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 4,586 shares of the companys stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 2,682 shares during the period. Finally, EWG Elevate Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Barings BDC in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 49.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BBDC. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Barings BDC from $10.00 to $9.75 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 27th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Barings BDC from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $9.00 in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $9.94.

Barings BDC Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Barings BDC, Inc is a closed-end management investment company, which engages in the provision of customized financing primarily to lower middle market companies. Its investment objective is to seek returns by generating current income from our debt investments, and capital appreciation from our equity-related investments.

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Latest report now includes import and export data for South America in response to supply chain diversification trends

AUSTIN, Texas, May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--E2open Parent Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ETWO), the connected supply chain SaaS platform with the largest multi-enterprise network, has released the latest edition of its Ocean Shipping Index, a quarterly benchmark report that provides insight for decision-making around global ocean shipments. Report data reflects a downward trajectory in cross-ocean transit times over the last nine months, signaling an ongoing reduction in global demand for goods out of Asia.

The e2open Ocean Shipping Index provides a data-driven reference for shippers to understand how long it takes to move goods internationally and the factors contributing to observed delays. The report is based on historical data from e2opens business network, encompassing over 420,000 connected enterprises managing 14 billion transactions and tracking 71 million containers annually. The Ocean Shipping Index is unique in the market because it captures the shipment booking date, adding deeper insight for decision-making.

"With continued uncertainty around available supply for components for manufacturing, raw materials, and agricultural goods, companies are evaluating their supply networks and looking to expand their options worldwide. The latest edition of the index includes import and export data about South American ports utilizing both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans to move agricultural products, minerals, and oil and gas exports that play a role in global trade," said Pawan Joshi, executive vice president, products and strategy, for e2open. "The global ocean shipping environment continues to have a choppy outlook, but the silver lining in all this is the global trend of decreasing booking-to-receipt times for shipments."

Key takeaways from the latest e2open Ocean Shipping Index report include:

As of April 1, 2023, the global average total booking to receipt time for ocean container shipments declined 12 days from the same quarter last year.

Exports from Asia to North America saw the most significant quarterly drop, down 11 days in the last three months and 24 days from the same quarter in 2022.

Exports from Europe to North America decreased by 18 days from Q1 2022, the shortest overall duration in the past eight quarters. From North America to Europe, these journeys were down eight days since the previous quarter and nine days from Q1 2022, pointing to improvements across the entire maritime container shipping workflow.

New shipping lane data for exports from North America to South America and Europe to South America indicates a decrease of 12% and 13%, respectively, in total booking to receipt time from the same quarter in 2022. The cross-ocean journeys of exports from South America to North America and South America to Europe also decreased during the same period.

This report is one of several benchmark reports available from e2open to help companies navigate increasingly complex global supply chains.

View and subscribe to the latest e2open Ocean Shipping Index at e2open.com.

About e2open

E2open is the connected supply chain software platform that enables the worlds largest companies to transform the way they make, move, and sell goods and services. With the broadest cloud-native global platform purpose-built for modern supply chains, e2open connects more than 420,000 manufacturing, logistics, channel, and distribution partners as one multi-enterprise network tracking over 13 billion transactions annually. Our SaaS platform anticipates disruptions and opportunities to help companies improve efficiency, reduce waste, and operate sustainably. Moving as one. Learn More: www.e2open.com.

E2open and "Moving as one." are the registered trademarks of E2open, LLC. All other trademarks, registered trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005073/en/

Contacts

Media Contact:

5W PR for e2open

e2open@5wpr.com

718-757-6144

Investor Relations Contact:

Dusty Buell

dusty.buell@e2open.com

investor.relations@e2open.com

Corporate Contact:

Kristin Seigworth

VP Communications, e2open

kristin.seigworth@e2open.com
Murray International Trust PLC (LON:MYI  Get Rating) insider Claire Binyon acquired 95 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of GBX 266 ($3.33) per share, for a total transaction of 252.70 ($316.55).

Murray International Trust Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of LON MYI opened at GBX 267 ($3.34) on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.36, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.55. The businesss 50 day moving average price is GBX 266.29 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 264.84. Murray International Trust PLC has a fifty-two week low of GBX 225.60 ($2.83) and a fifty-two week high of GBX 275.84 ($3.46). The company has a market cap of 1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,271.43 and a beta of 0.78.

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Murray International Trust Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 6th will be issued a GBX 12 ($0.15) dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 6th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.88%. Murray International Trusts payout ratio is 4,761.90%.

About Murray International Trust

Murray International Trust PLC is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Aberdeen Fund Managers Limited. It is co-managed by Aberdeen Asset Managers Limited. The fund invests in public equity markets across the globe. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors.

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StockNews.com lowered shares of Nabors Industries (NYSE:NBR  Get Rating) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Wednesday morning.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup lowered their price target on Nabors Industries from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Benchmark began coverage on Nabors Industries in a research note on Thursday, January 19th. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Nabors Industries from $195.00 to $176.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. Barclays lowered Nabors Industries from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $250.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Nabors Industries from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and cut their target price for the company from $175.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nabors Industries currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $163.57.

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Nabors Industries Price Performance

Nabors Industries stock traded down $2.74 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $86.76. The companys stock had a trading volume of 85,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,152. Nabors Industries has a fifty-two week low of $85.35 and a fifty-two week high of $193.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.40, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $111.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.43.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

About Nabors Industries

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NBR. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Nabors Industries during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $802,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Nabors Industries by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 479,970 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $58,512,000 after acquiring an additional 63,266 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Nabors Industries by 147.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 25,637 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $3,125,000 after acquiring an additional 15,262 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Nabors Industries by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 166,344 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $20,279,000 after acquiring an additional 6,195 shares during the period. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Nabors Industries in the 1st quarter worth approximately $679,000. 71.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

(Get Rating)

Nabors Industries Ltd. engages in the provision of platform work over and drilling rigs. It also provides performance tools, directional drilling services, tubular running services, and innovative technologies. It operates through the following business segments: U.S. Drilling, Canada Drilling, International Drilling, Drilling Solutions, and Rig Technologies.

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Nokia Oyj (NYSE:NOK  Get Rating) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on NOK. UBS Group downgraded shares of Nokia Oyj from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 31st. DNB Markets downgraded shares of Nokia Oyj from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 17th. TheStreet upgraded Nokia Oyj from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Wednesday, March 8th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price on Nokia Oyj from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $5.73.

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Nokia Oyj Stock Performance

Shares of Nokia Oyj stock traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $4.02. 13,010,033 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,863,451. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.09, a P/E/G ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Nokia Oyj has a 1 year low of $3.95 and a 1 year high of $5.28. The business has a 50-day moving average of $4.50 and a 200-day moving average of $4.64.

Institutional Trading of Nokia Oyj

Nokia Oyj ( NYSE:NOK Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The technology company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.03). Nokia Oyj had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 11.57%. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.08 EPS. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Nokia Oyj will post 0.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. RFP Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Nokia Oyj during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nokia Oyj during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. O Dell Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nokia Oyj in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nokia Oyj by 62.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,904 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its position in Nokia Oyj by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 6,120 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 3,060 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.57% of the companys stock.

About Nokia Oyj

(Get Rating)

Nokia Oyj engages in the provision of network infrastructure, technology, and software services. It operates through the following segments: Mobile Networks, Network Infrastructure, Cloud and Network Services, and Nokia Technologies. The Mobile Networks segment offers technologies for Radio Access Networks (RAN) as well as Microwave Radio Links (MWR) for transport networks.

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Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC decreased its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE  Get Rating) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,812 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after selling 533 shares during the period. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLCs holdings in Pfizer were worth $1,220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Hampshire Trust acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,811,000. FDx Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pfizer by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. FDx Advisors Inc. now owns 131,876 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $6,757,000 after purchasing an additional 19,337 shares during the last quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Pfizer by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC now owns 39,809 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $2,040,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Nottingham Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $241,000. Finally, Financial Partners Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $719,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.62% of the companys stock.

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Pfizer Price Performance

Pfizer stock traded down $0.24 on Thursday, reaching $36.51. The companys stock had a trading volume of 5,716,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,308,803. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.37. The company has a market cap of $206.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.20, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.63. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $39.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.54. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.41 and a twelve month high of $54.93.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

Pfizer ( NYSE:PFE Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $18.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.49 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 37.53% and a net margin of 31.25%. The firms revenue was down 28.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 9th. Investors of record on Friday, May 12th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 11th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.49%. Pfizers dividend payout ratio is presently 32.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Pfizer from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 1st. Atlantic Securities decreased their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $50.00 to $46.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 1st. Barclays cut their target price on Pfizer from $43.00 to $40.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. SVB Leerink lowered their price objective on Pfizer from $49.00 to $48.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 1st. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Thursday. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $47.33.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In other Pfizer news, major shareholder Pfizer Inc purchased 1,811,594 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $2.76 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,999.44. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 5,952,263 shares of the companys stock, valued at $16,428,245.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Pfizer news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $38.58 per share, for a total transaction of $38,580.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at $231,480. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Pfizer Inc purchased 1,811,594 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $2.76 per share, with a total value of $4,999,999.44. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 5,952,263 shares of the companys stock, valued at $16,428,245.88. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders purchased 1,813,594 shares of company stock worth $5,076,999. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Pfizer Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Pfizer Inc is a research-based global biopharmaceutical company. It engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, marketing, sales and distribution of biopharmaceutical products worldwide. The firm works across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PFE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE  Get Rating).

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Shares of Pola Orbis Holdings Inc. (OTCMKTS:PORBF  Get Rating) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $14.51 and last traded at $14.51, with a volume of 0 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.51.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Pola Orbis from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd.

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Pola Orbis Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of 24.59 and a beta of 0.44. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $13.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.99.

Pola Orbis Company Profile

Pola Orbis Holdings Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells cosmetics and related products in Japan and internationally. It operates through Beauty Care and Real Estate segments. The Beauty Care segment offers cosmetics; skincare products; health foods; and fashion products, such as women's underwear, women's apparel, and jewelry under the POLA, ORBIS, Jurlique, H2O PLUS, THREE, DECENCIA, Amplitude, ITRIM, FIVEISM  THREE, and FUJIMI brand names.

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Equities research analysts at StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of PPL (NYSE:PPL  Get Rating) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a hold rating on the utilities providers stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of PPL from $32.00 to $28.00 in a report on Monday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of PPL from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. TheStreet upgraded shares of PPL from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Thursday, May 4th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, January 18th. They set an equal weight rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $31.00.

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PPL Stock Performance

Shares of PPL opened at $27.60 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $20.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.77. PPL has a 52-week low of $23.47 and a 52-week high of $31.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

PPL ( NYSE:PPL Get Rating ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.04. PPL had a net margin of 9.00% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The business had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. The businesss revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that PPL will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 5,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total value of $154,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,161 shares of the companys stock, valued at $256,508. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in PPL by 48.8% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 46,380 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,296,000 after buying an additional 15,209 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in PPL by 1.0% during the first quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 88,315 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $2,453,000 after buying an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lifted its position in PPL by 1.0% during the first quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 428,540 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $11,909,000 after buying an additional 4,391 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in PPL during the first quarter valued at approximately $183,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in PPL by 9.1% during the first quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 71,266 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,980,000 after buying an additional 5,950 shares in the last quarter. 70.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Company Profile

(Get Rating)

PPL Corp. engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. It operates through the two reportable segments: Kentucky Regulated & Pennsylvania Regulated. The Kentucky Regulated segment consists of LKEs regulated electricity generation, transmission and distribution operations of Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company as well as regulated distribution and sale of natural gas of Louisville Gas and Electric Company.

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Qsemble Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Mohawk Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MHK  Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,800 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MHK. Shapiro Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Mohawk Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $96,936,000. Ariel Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mohawk Industries by 26.8% during the first quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 1,723,343 shares of the companys stock valued at $214,040,000 after purchasing an additional 364,085 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Mohawk Industries by 26.6% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,039,949 shares of the companys stock worth $129,161,000 after purchasing an additional 218,505 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mohawk Industries during the 3rd quarter worth about $13,906,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mohawk Industries by 76.8% in the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 329,421 shares of the companys stock worth $40,879,000 after acquiring an additional 143,137 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.85% of the companys stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com began coverage on Mohawk Industries in a report on Thursday. They set a hold rating on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on Mohawk Industries from $83.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Monday, February 13th. Credit Suisse Group dropped their price target on shares of Mohawk Industries from $109.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Monday, March 20th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Mohawk Industries from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an underperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 19th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Mohawk Industries from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mohawk Industries currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $123.08.

Mohawk Industries Stock Up 2.7 %

NYSE:MHK opened at $96.67 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Mohawk Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.01 and a 1-year high of $142.65. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $97.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $103.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.55, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.27.

Mohawk Industries (NYSE:MHK  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.47. Mohawk Industries had a negative net margin of 1.21% and a positive return on equity of 8.47%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mohawk Industries, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Mohawk Industries

In related news, insider Suzanne L. Helen sold 4,250 shares of Mohawk Industries stock in a transaction on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.23, for a total value of $438,727.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,453 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,388,753.19. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 17.20% of the companys stock.

Mohawk Industries Company Profile

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Mohawk Industries, Inc engages in the manufacture, design, and distribution of residential and commercial flooring products. It operates through the following segments: Global Ceramic, Flooring North America (NA), and Flooring Rest of the World (ROW). The Global Ceramic segment manufactures ceramic, porcelain, and natural stone tile products used for wall and floor applications.

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Equities researchers at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW  Get Rating) in a research report issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a buy rating on the specialty chemicals companys stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Zelman & Associates cut shares of Sherwin-Williams from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 27th. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $260.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $267.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $263.00 to $268.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $257.83.

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Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $227.63 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.93, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.07. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $224.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.78. Sherwin-Williams has a twelve month low of $195.24 and a twelve month high of $278.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

Sherwin-Williams ( NYSE:SHW Get Rating ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.20. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 86.29% and a net margin of 9.41%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.61 EPS. Sherwin-Williamss quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Sherwin-Williams will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current year.

In other news, SVP Bryan J. Young sold 2,750 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.76, for a total transaction of $607,090.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,145.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.55% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 1,716.7% in the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. RFP Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Standard Family Office LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $26,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Sherwin-Williams

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The Sherwin-Williams Co engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paint and coatings. It operates through the following segments: America Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coating Group. The America Group segment manages the exclusive outlets for Sherwin-Williams branded paints, stains, supplies, equipment, and floor coverings.

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Castleark Management LLC lowered its position in Summit Materials, Inc. (NYSE:SUM  Get Rating) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 145,256 shares of the construction companys stock after selling 16,639 shares during the quarter. Castleark Management LLCs holdings in Summit Materials were worth $4,124,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Summit Materials by 133.7% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,408,449 shares of the construction companys stock worth $97,739,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949,689 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Summit Materials by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,903,885 shares of the construction companys stock worth $214,435,000 after purchasing an additional 519,296 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Summit Materials by 114.8% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 893,982 shares of the construction companys stock worth $20,821,000 after purchasing an additional 477,760 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Summit Materials by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,998,959 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $170,314,000 after buying an additional 388,522 shares during the period. Finally, Macquarie Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Summit Materials by 9.2% during the 2nd quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 4,576,682 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $106,591,000 after buying an additional 386,074 shares during the period.

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Summit Materials Price Performance

Shares of Summit Materials stock opened at $31.94 on Thursday. Summit Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.99 and a 1-year high of $34.40. The company has a current ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firms 50-day moving average price is $27.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00 and a beta of 1.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Summit Materials ( NYSE:SUM Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The construction company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by $0.12. Summit Materials had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 8.28%. The business had revenue of $407.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $396.61 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.40) earnings per share. Summit Materialss revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Summit Materials, Inc. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Summit Materials from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Summit Materials from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, January 20th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Summit Materials in a research note on Thursday. They issued a hold rating for the company. Seaport Res Ptn reaffirmed a neutral rating on shares of Summit Materials in a research note on Friday, February 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Summit Materials from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, January 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $34.08.

About Summit Materials

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Summit Materials, Inc is a construction materials company. It manufactures construction materials and related downstream products. The firm operates its business through the following segments: Cement, West and East. The Cement consists of its Hannibal, Missouri and Davenport, Iowa cement plants and distribution terminals along the Mississippi river from Minnesota to Louisiana.

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Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI  Get Rating) has earned a consensus rating of Moderate Buy from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $316.33.

VMI has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Valmont Industries in a report on Thursday. They issued a buy rating on the stock. DA Davidson reissued a neutral rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research report on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $389.00 to $352.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 17th.

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Valmont Industries Price Performance

NYSE:VMI opened at $287.75 on Thursday. Valmont Industries has a one year low of $213.27 and a one year high of $353.36. The company has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.06. The firms fifty day moving average price is $298.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $316.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.40.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

Valmont Industries ( NYSE:VMI Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 22nd. The industrial products company reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.49 by ($0.03). Valmont Industries had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 19.08%. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. Equities analysts expect that Valmont Industries will post 15.36 earnings per share for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 30th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 29th. Valmont Industriess dividend payout ratio is currently 19.67%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Aaron M. Schapper sold 4,033 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.24, for a total value of $1,247,164.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,629 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,214,631.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Aaron M. Schapper sold 4,033 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.24, for a total value of $1,247,164.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,629 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,214,631.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 549 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.00, for a total value of $160,857.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,749 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,684,457. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valmont Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMI. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its position in Valmont Industries by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 4,490 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,071,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Group One Trading L.P. acquired a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $358,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in Valmont Industries by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 7,879 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $1,879,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 23,175 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $5,635,000 after buying an additional 3,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,719 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $3,273,000 after buying an additional 3,433 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.84% of the companys stock.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

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Valmont Industries, Inc engages in the manufacture of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets. It operates through the Infrastructure and Agriculture segments. The Infrastructure segment includes five primary product lines such as Transmission, Distribution, and Substation, Lighting and Transportation, Coatings, Telecommunications, and Renewable Energy.

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HAIFA, Israel, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) (TASE: ESLT) ("Elbit Systems" or the "Company") announced today that as part of an agreement between the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Netherlands Ministry of Defense, it was awarded a contract worth $305 million to supply Precise & Universal Launching System (PULS) artillery rocket systems to the Royal Netherlands Army. The contract will be performed over a period of five years.

Elbit systems Logo

Under the contract, Elbit Systems will supply 20 PULS artillery rocket systems integrated on the COMMIT (previously DMO) selected truck platform, as well as rockets and missile of various ranges and training and support services.

Elbit PULS is a system designed with an open architecture approach, supporting future growth, the ability to integrate legacy C4i solutions, and the flexibility to adapt to specific customer requirments.

PULS provides a comprehensive, cost effective solution, supporting the firing of both free-flying rockets and precision guided rockets and missiles ranging from 12km and up to 300km. The PULS launcher is a fully adaptable launching system and can be mounted on a broad range of wheeled and tracked platforms, providing a significant reduction in maintenance and training costs for legacy fleets.

Bezhalel (Butzi) Machlis, President and CEO of Elbit Systems: "The acquisition of Elbit Systems' PULS solution will enhance the Royal Netherland Army's ability to provide effective indirect fire support. It will also provide interoperability with NATO customers that have acquired these systems. This contract further validates Elbit Systems' cutting edge military technologies and our strong partnerships with NATO countries across Europe."

About Elbit Systems

Elbit Systems Ltd. is an international high technology company engaged in a wide range of defense, homeland security and commercial programs throughout the world. The Company, which includes Elbit Systems and its subsidiaries, operates in the areas of aerospace, land and naval systems, command, control, communications, computers, intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance ("C4ISR"), unmanned aircraft systems, advanced electro-optics, electro-optic space systems, EW suites, signal intelligence systems, data links and communications systems, radios, cyber-based systems and munitions. The Company also focuses on the upgrading of existing platforms, developing new technologies for defense, homeland security and commercial applications and providing a range of support services, including training and simulation systems.

For additional information, visit: https://elbitsystems.com, follow us on Twitter or visit our official Facebook, Youtube and LinkedIn Channels.

Company Contact:

Dr. Yaacov (Kobi) Kagan, ExecutiveVP - CFO

Tel: +972-77-2946663

kobi.kagan@elbitsystems.com

Rami Myerson, Director, Investor Relations

Tel: +972-77-2948984

rami.myerson@elbitsystems.com

Dalia Bodinger, VP, Communication & Brand

Tel: 972-77-2947602

dalia.bodinger@elbitsystems.com

This press release may contain forwardlooking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and the Israeli Securities Law, 1968) regarding Elbit Systems Ltd. and/or its subsidiaries (collectively the Company), to the extent such statements do not relate to historical or current facts. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions about future events. Forwardlooking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions about the Company, which are difficult to predict, including projections of the Company's future financial results, its anticipated growth strategies and anticipated trends in its business. Therefore, actual future results, performance and trends may differ materially from these forwardlooking statements due to a variety of factors, including, without limitation: scope and length of customer contracts; governmental regulations and approvals; changes in governmental budgeting priorities; general market, political and economic conditions in the countries in which the Company operates or sells, including Israel and the United States among others; changes in global health and macro-economic conditions; differences in anticipated and actual program performance, including the ability to perform under long-term fixed-price contracts; changes in the competitive environment; and the outcome of legal and/or regulatory proceedings. The factors listed above are not all-inclusive, and further information is contained in Elbit Systems Ltd.'s latest annual report on Form 20-F, which is on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All forwardlooking statements speak only as of the date of this release. Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements contained herein are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Moreover, neither the Company nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements.

Elbit Systems Ltd., its logo, brand, product, service and process names appearing in this Press Release are the trademarks or service marks of Elbit Systems Ltd. or its affiliated companies. All other brand, product, service and process names appearing are the trademarks of their respective holders. Reference to or use of a product, service or process other than those of Elbit Systems Ltd. does not imply recommendation, approval, affiliation or sponsorship of that product, service or process by Elbit Systems Ltd. Nothing contained herein shall be construed as conferring by implication, estoppel or otherwise any license or right under any patent, copyright, trademark or other intellectual property right of Elbit Systems Ltd. or any third party, except as expressly granted herein.

Logo:https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2017806/Elbit_Systems_Logo.jpg

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SOURCE Elbit Systems Ltd.
Wealth Architects LLC boosted its holdings in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF (BATS:EFV  Get Rating) by 954.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 97,594 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 88,336 shares during the quarter. iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF comprises 0.8% of Wealth Architects LLCs investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Wealth Architects LLCs holdings in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF were worth $4,478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EFV. Signet Financial Management LLC raised its position in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 7,837 shares of the companys stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Index Fund Advisors Inc. raised its position in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Index Fund Advisors Inc. now owns 6,247 shares of the companys stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. LexAurum Advisors LLC raised its position in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. LexAurum Advisors LLC now owns 15,661 shares of the companys stock worth $719,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its position in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 7,469 shares of the companys stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weil Company Inc. raised its position in iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Weil Company Inc. now owns 25,014 shares of the companys stock worth $964,000 after buying an additional 340 shares during the last quarter.

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iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF Stock Performance

iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF stock traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $49.71. 1,235,785 shares of the stock were exchanged. The stock has a market cap of $16.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.51 and a beta of 0.86. iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF has a 52-week low of $49.15 and a 52-week high of $59.57. The firms 50 day moving average is $48.84 and its 200 day moving average is $47.63.

About iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF

iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares MSCI EAFE Value Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI EAFE Value Index. The Index is a subset of the MSCI EAFE Index and constituents of the Index include securities from Europe, Australasia (Australia and Asia), and the Far East.

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Wealth Architects LLC lessened its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO  Get Rating) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,324 shares of the companys stock after selling 506 shares during the quarter. Wealth Architects LLCs holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $466,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 363,258,425 shares of the companys stock valued at $20,349,737,000 after acquiring an additional 3,864,004 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 301,952,085 shares of the companys stock valued at $16,915,357,000 after acquiring an additional 4,994,047 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 171,570,198 shares of the companys stock valued at $9,685,693,000 after acquiring an additional 885,816 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 51,570,921 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,197,397,000 after acquiring an additional 1,301,902 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 41,213,079 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,308,758,000 after acquiring an additional 462,803 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.74% of the companys stock.

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Insider Activity

In other news, insider Henrique Braun sold 16,950 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $1,085,308.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,272 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,682,196.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Henrique Braun sold 16,950 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $1,085,308.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,272 shares in the company, valued at $1,682,196.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 253,102 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.63, for a total value of $16,104,880.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 184,563 shares of the companys stock, valued at $11,743,743.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 540,473 shares of company stock valued at $33,992,699. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE:KO traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $62.81. The companys stock had a trading volume of 3,146,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,675,059. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.77. The company has a market capitalization of $271.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.70, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $54.01 and a twelve month high of $65.47.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO  Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 24th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.96% and a net margin of 22.69%. The business had revenue of $11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.78 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. Coca-Colas revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 15th. Coca-Colas payout ratio is 80.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $61.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 25th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday. They set a buy rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada set a $69.00 price objective on Coca-Cola in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. Barclays increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $67.80.

Coca-Cola Company Profile

(Get Rating)

The Coca-Cola Co engages in the manufacturing and marketing of non-alcoholic beverages. It operates through the following segments: Europe, Middle East and Africa, Latin America, North America, Asia Pacific, Global Ventures, and Bottling Investments. The company was founded by Asa Griggs Candler on May 8, 1886 and is headquartered in Atlanta, GA.

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Even if it's not a huge purchase, we think it was good to see that Elizabeth Barrett, a Sage Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAGE) insider, recently shelled out US$51k to buy stock, at US$50.50 per share. Although the purchase is not a big one, by either a percentage standpoint or absolute value, it can be seen as a good sign.

View our latest analysis for Sage Therapeutics

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Sage Therapeutics

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when President Barry Greene bought US$500k worth of shares at a price of US$34.48 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of US$52.34. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Sage Therapeutics insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

Sage Therapeutics is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Does Sage Therapeutics Boast High Insider Ownership?

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Sage Therapeutics insiders own about US$70m worth of shares. That equates to 2.2% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Sage Therapeutics Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. Given that insiders also own a fair bit of Sage Therapeutics we think they are probably pretty confident of a bright future. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. At Simply Wall St, we found 1 warning sign for Sage Therapeutics that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. [Xinhua/Li Yibo]

XI'AN, May 17 (Xinhua)  China on Wednesday staged hearty welcome ceremonies for Central Asian leaders attending a milestone summit that is expected to draw up new blueprints for China-Central Asia cooperation.

All is ready in the northwestern city of Xi'an, the historical starting point of the ancient Silk Road, for the China-Central Asia Summit, which is scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The summit, the first in-person gathering among heads of state of China and five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, will be chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi is expected to expound on China's position on how to build a China-Central Asia community with a shared future in the new era and put forward a series of proposals for the long-term development of cooperation among the six countries.

Xi will also announce a string of pragmatic measures and comprehensively chart the course for China-Central Asia cooperation.

The first Central Asian leader to arrive in Xi'an was Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also arrived on Wednesday.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. [Xinhua/Li Yibo]

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov will arrive on Thursday. A welcome banquet will be held for the five leaders.

The leaders who have arrived were greeted with performances of traditional Shaanxi folk dances at the airport.

The 190-member performing team included 50 performers of waist drum dance and 48 of Yangge folk dance. Both are popular forms of folk art in Shaanxi.

"We feel honored and excited to have the opportunity to show our hometown's folk art to the distinguished guests from Central Asia," said Hou Shikai, a 53-year-old Yangge performer. "May the friendship between China and the five Central Asian countries last forever."

In his talks with Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi wished him a happy birthday as he turned 70 on this very day.

"Your state visit to China on this special occasion speaks volumes about the strength of the bilateral ties and once again attests to your unique bond with China," Xi told the Kazakh president.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was one of the key topics during their talks.

Speaking to Tokayev, Xi said China and Kazakhstan have successfully carried out dozens of important cooperation projects since he proposed the BRI 10 years ago.

For his part, Tokayev lauded the BRI as a great initiative and said his country will continue taking an active part in it.

Tokayev also said that Kazakhstan will actively support the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi.

He vowed to work with China to jointly promote regional security, stability and development by leveraging the China-Central Asia mechanism.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov arrives in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on May 17, 2023. [Xinhua/Li Yibo]

In their talks, Xi hailed the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit as a summit of "milestone significance," which will usher in a new era of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Xi said China will work with Central Asian countries to build the China-Central Asia mechanism into an important platform for promoting in-depth cooperation.

The summit is seen as the latest landmark in the vibrant high-level interactions, economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between China and Central Asian countries.

Leaders of the six countries are expected to sign an important political document and witness the signing of multiple cooperation documents covering areas including economy, trade, investment and connectivity, according to a press conference held before the summit.

(Source: Xinhua)
XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua)  Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on Thursday in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Rahmon is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi expressed his pleasure at meeting with his old friend in Xi'an and warmly welcomed Rahmon to China for the summit and the state visit.

He pointed out that since China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties, the bilateral relationship has grown from one of good-neighborliness to a strategic partnership and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Xi recalled his state visit to Tajikistan in 2019, during which they jointly announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community of common development and security, which has seen encouraging progress over the past four years.

Xi underscored that China-Tajikistan relations enjoy deep historical roots, a solid political foundation, substantive cooperation and extensive public support.

To ensure a bright future for the two peoples, China is ready to work with Tajikistan under the new circumstances to enhance cooperation in various areas and build a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit, Xi said.

(Source: Xinhua)
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. The two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era. [Xinhua/Ding Haitao]

XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua)  Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks with visiting Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, where the two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era.

Japarov is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit.

Xi welcomed Japarov to China for the summit and the state visit. He recalled their two meetings last year, which produced important common understandings on China-Kyrgyzstan relations and cooperation in various areas. These common understandings are being implemented effectively, providing strong momentum for bilateral relations, Xi said.

Xi said Japarov has been working tirelessly to develop the economy, improve people's well-being, and promote reconciliation between different political forces since assuming office, which won him the support of the Kyrgyz people.

Xi expressed confidence that under the leadership of Japarov, Kyrgyzstan is bound to achieve new progress in all undertakings.

Noting that the China-Kyrgyzstan relationship has traveled a 31-year journey, Xi said China is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to build a China-Kyrgyzstan community with a shared future of good neighborliness and shared prosperity, carry out cooperation in all dimensions, and contribute to the development and vitalization of both countries.

Xi said China and Kyrgyzstan should strengthen mutual support, particularly by giving unequivocal and strong support to each other on issues concerning their respective core interests.

Xi called for advancing pragmatic cooperation in various fields with joint high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative.

He spoke of the need to deepen cooperation to enhance connectivity and start the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway at an early date.

China is willing to increase the import of quality agricultural products from Kyrgyzstan and encourage more Chinese companies to invest and do business in Kyrgyzstan, Xi said.

Xi called for strengthening security cooperation to provide a safe and sound environment for jointly advancing Belt and Road cooperation and the development of the two countries.

Japarov said he believes that China will surely gain new and glorious achievements in various fields under President Xi's strong leadership and that China will play an even more important role in the world.

The China-Kyrgyzstan relationship is now at its best in history, Japarov said, adding that Kyrgyzstan firmly supports China's position on issues related to Taiwan, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and other core interests.

Kyrgyzstan supports the Global Security Initiative and the Global Development Initiative, and stands ready to work with China to jointly boost the security and development of the two countries and the region, Japarov said.

The Kyrgyz president said Kyrgyzstan will spare no effort in providing a safe and sound investment environment for Chinese companies.

He said the elevation of bilateral relations will take the China-Kyrgyzstan mutually beneficial cooperation across the board to a new level.

Japarov said he is willing to work with China to jointly build the China-Central Asia Summit into a new platform for forging closer bilateral and regional cooperation between Central Asian countries and China.

After the talks, the two presidents signed a joint declaration on elevating the bilateral relationship and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in fields such as economy, trade, industrial development and investment, customs, agriculture and culture.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Qin Gang attended the events.

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. The two presidents announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era. [Xinhua/Ding Lin]

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, who is in China for the China-Central Asia Summit and a state visit, in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 18, 2023. After the talks, the two presidents signed a joint declaration on elevating the bilateral relationship and witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in fields such as economy, trade, industrial development and investment, customs, agriculture and culture. [Xinhua/Shen Hong]

(Source: Xinhua)
State Senators Roger Picard and Melissa Murray hand over a $2,000 check to Museum of Work & Culture Director Anne Conway and Rachel Guadagni, Museum family and youth education coordinator, to fund the Museums annual Woonsocket Proud program for city 5th graders.
Anne Conway, director of the Museum of Work & Culture, and Deborah Krieger, the Museums exhibit and program coordinator, show a panel created for the new Mishpakha: Jewish History of Woonsocket, opening on Tuesday in the Museums upstairs gallery.
Senator Elizabeth Warren told US regulators Thursday that she was "very troubled" by the sale of First Republic to JPMorgan Chase (JPM), arguing the deal made the nation's largest lender even bigger and increased risks to the banking system.

The single biggest threat to the US banking system is concentration," Warren said during a Senate Banking Committee hearing.

She specifically confronted acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu, among the regulators who awarded the bulk of First Republic's operations to JPMorgan on May 1. That decision followed a weekend-long bidding war overseen by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

How do you explain approving a sale to a banking giant that increases the risk to the banking system by somewhere between nearly 800% and 1400% more than selling to other bidders? Warren said.

The percentages Warren cited were a reference to an institution's Global Systemically Important Bank (GSIB) score, which estimates the impact a bank would have on the US economy if it were to fail.

According to these scores, Warren said, JPMorgan posed 8 times more risk than PNC (PNC) and 14 times more than Citizens Financial Group (CFG), which were also among the bidders for First Republic.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren said she is "very troubled" by the First Republic sale to JPMorgan. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, she added, is required to consider concentration of power when assessing whether an acquisition might pose risks to stability of the US banking system.

"According to your own metric you chose the one that gives us more concentration in the system," Warren said. "I am very troubled by that decision."

Hsu said there were other factors regulators had to consider while evaluating bids for First Republic, which was previously the nation's 14th largest bank.

The government had to act quickly to find a buyer over one critical weekend, and it had to minimize losses to the FDIC's Deposit Insurance Fund, which is used to cover losses associated with bank failures. The seizure of First Republic is estimated to cost the FDIC $13 billion.

Had we followed a strict GSIB score methodology to the exclusion of everything else, I fear that there would have been greater financial instability that weekend, Hsu said.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has forcefully rejected any concerns about the nations biggest bank getting even bigger as a result of this deal.

"We need large successful banks in the largest and most prosperous economy in the world," he said the day the First Republic deal was announced. "For anyone who thinks that the United States of America should not have that should call me directly."

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has rejected suggestions that the First Republic deal concentrates too much power in his bank. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Warren raised her concentration concerns separately in a May 17 letter to Hsu and FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg. In that letter she cited a $2.6 billion profit JPMorgan expects to book from the First Republic sale.

"The net result of these machinations is that, without a complete regulatory review, and at a cost of $13 billion to the Federal Deposit Insurance Fund, the nations biggest bank  already too big to fail  got a bargain deal on a failing bank that made it even bigger," Warren said in her letter.

"What additional regulatory requirements will be placed on JPMorgan to ensure that the banks acquisition of First Republic does not increase systemic risks to the financial system or reduce competition?"

Gruenberg, who also appeared before the Senate Banking Committee Thursday, offered a number of new details about the fall of First Republic in his prepared testimony.

The lender first ran into troubled following the March 10 failure of Silicon Valley Bank, losing more than $100 billion in deposits in March. When it told investors about those outflows on April 24, a run on the bank began again. It lost another $10 billion between April 26 and April 28, Gruenberg said.

Michael J. Hsu, acting Comptroller of the Currency, faced questions about the First Republic sale to JPMorgan. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

The outflows caused the FDIC to downgrade the bank to "problem status" on April 28, he said, which changed the bank's borrowing status with the Federal Reserve and made it even more difficult to meet its liquidity demands.

The FDIC invited 21 banks and 21 nonbanks to participate in a bidding process, according to Gruenberg. That included JPMorgan, Bank of America (BAC), and PNC, according to people familiar with the matter. Citizens and US Bancorp (USB) were also reportedly invited.

It received 12 bids from four bidders, Gruenberg said. The FDIC requested best and final offers from the four bidders by 7 pm ET on April 30. The sale to JPMorgan was announced in the early hours of May 1.

Trying to beat JPMorgan in a bidding war is like pitching against the Yankees," one banking executive told Yahoo Finance this week. "Like, why even bid?

Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
(CNN)  President Joe Biden arrived in Japan on Thursday for a truncated Asia visit meant to bolster allies amid Chinas growing military and economic ambitions.

The trip, once planned for eight days, has been shortened by half; two of Bidens three stops were scrapped so he could return to Washington for negotiations over raising the US debt ceiling.

Left with only a stop in Japan for the Group of Seven summit, Biden is attempting to coalesce the leaders of some of the worlds largest economies around a commitment to take on Beijings aggressions and support Ukraine amid Russias invasion.

The world leaders will also convene a discussion about artificial intelligence, a signal that rapid advancements in the technology have been cause for concern.

Yet it is the concern over the possibility of US default that is providing the most urgent threat to global stability, and leaders were expected to quiz Biden on the risks when they begin meetings Friday.

The US president first met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the eve of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, emphasizing close US-Japan relations amid Chinas growing military and economic ambitions, as well as Russias ongoing war in Ukraine.

The bottom line, Mr. Prime Minister, is that when our countries stand together, we stand stronger. And I believe the whole world is safer when we do, Biden told his host.

As he sat across from Kishida at the start of a bilateral meeting with top aides, Biden quoted Kishidas comments earlier this year during a trip to the White House that the two nations face one of the most complex security environments in recent history.

I couldnt agree with you more  and Im proud that the United States and Japan are facing it together. And, you know, we stand up for the shared values, including supporting the brave people in Ukraine as they defend their sovereign territory and holding Russia accountable for this brutal aggression, Biden said, flanked by national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Were tracking the global challenges from strengthening our community and our commitment to nuclear nonproliferation to ensuring the free and open Indo-Pacific thats at the heart of all this, he went on.

Biden pointed to deepening cooperation between the US and Japan on emerging technologies, including new partnerships on quantum computing and semiconductors.

He thanked Kishida for hosting and noted he looked forward to the summit ahead. The leaders did not take questions from reporters.

An eye toward China

Japan is the sole Asian member of the G7, meaning the summit only occurs on the continent every seven years. That has helped lend a sense of urgency to the leaders discussions on China, which recently sailed warships close to Japan in the leadup to the meetings.

Bidens aides have insisted there wont be any arm twisting around the G7 table when it comes to China, and have acknowledged that each of the countries represented  including France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan and the United States  will decide on its own approach.

At the same time, the US president places a premium on collective action, and wants a unified front when it comes to issues like Taiwan, the South China Sea and Beijings coercive economic practices.

I think you will see, coming out of this summit, alignment and convergence around the fundamental principles of our approach to the Peoples Republic of China, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One as Biden flew to Japan. Of course, each country has its own distinct relationship and its own distinct approach, but those relationships and approaches are built on a common basis. And I think you will see that reflected in the outcomes of the G7.

Over the course of his four days here, Biden plans to attend a number of group and individual meetings with G7 allies, as well as with several leaders not in the G7 who have been invited this year as guests.

There were plans being laid to convene leaders of the Quad alliance, which consists of the United States, Japan, Australia and India, after a planned summit of the group was canceled when Biden scrapped his stop in Sydney.

Hell hold a news conference Sunday before returning to Washington.

Planning for Ukraine counteroffensive

No other global alliance has been as important in maintaining western unity following Russias invasion of Ukraine than the G7. The bloc has been reinvigorated as leaders coordinate sanctions and billions of dollars in military assistance.

That will continue this week when the G7 unveils new sanctions meant to close loopholes that have allowed Russian entities to evade the restrictions already in place. They are expected to hear virtually from Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky, who will undoubtedly issue a call for more advanced weapons.

Leaders are also expected to discuss the situation on the ground, where Ukrainian forces are preparing for a counteroffensive with the help of billions of dollars in new western military aid.

The hope, according to US officials, is that Ukraine can gain enough territory to provide Zelensky with leverage in eventual peace talks. But where and how those talks occur remains an open question; in the meantime, fears among European allies are strong that the war could turn into a grinding stalemate.

Recent military buildup by Japan

Japan has adopted a more robust foreign policy amid Russias invasion of Ukraine and Chinas growing military assertiveness, a development welcomed inside the White House.

In December, Kishida unveiled a new national security plan that amounted to the countrys biggest military buildup since World War II, doubling defense spending and veering from its pacifist constitution in the face of growing threats from regional rivals, including China.

The decision marked a dramatic shift for both the nation and the US security alliance in the Indo-Pacific region.

When Kishida made a secret trip to Kyiv in March, he became the first post-World War II leader to visit a war zone  further cementing the notion that Japans foreign policy was entering a new era.

Hes also selected the symbolic city of Hiroshima, where he has family roots, to host world leaders. Destroyed by an American atomic bomb in 1945, the city acts as a reminder to the gathered leaders of the importance of their diplomatic efforts. More than 100,000 people were killed in the bombing.

Biden is the second US president to visit Hiroshima. President Barack Obama paid a historic visit here in 2016, laying a wreath in a memorial park and meeting with some survivors.

The bombing of Hiroshima hastened an end to World War II but launched a new era of atomic brinksmanship. This weeks gathering comes at a moment of heightened nuclear fears, with threats emanating from North Korea, Iran and Russia  each without a clear solution.
The US Food and Drug Administration will meet Thursday to discuss whether a new vaccine to protect infants from the common respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is safe and effective.
Elon Musk's plans for Tesla advertising will be a major boost as key pieces of the EV maker are undervalued, Wedbush says

Getty Images

Tesla's plan to start advertising is a major positive for the EV maker, Wedbush's Dan Ives wrote.

It will help inform the general public about the company's pricing and offerings.

Two new products and Musk's stepping down as Twitter CEO will also benefit shareholders.

Tesla's plans to start advertising were met with excitement after the company's Annual Shareholder meeting on Tuesday, with CEO Elon Musk later admitting surprise over the level of enthusiasm expressed by shareholders.

Investors are right to be excited, according to Wedbush Securities' Dan Ives.

In a note on Wednesday, Ives said the move is as a major positive for the electric vehicle maker, as it could expand the company's prominence among broader markets.

The note said that "many parts of the Tesla product portfolio are undervalued by the Street with [Full Self-Driving] a major potential value adder on top of the company's expanding product portfolio across auto and energy," adding that advertising could help inform the public about Tesla's offerings.

Prior to Tuesday's announcement, Tesla had not advertised, though Musk would promote the company through his Twitter feed and on other public forums. The decision to finally do away with the no-marketing approach was in response to a shareholder's question, and made in the moment, Musk said in a CNBC interview.

Though there hasn't been enough time to develop formal plans, he said advertising would emphasize information on Tesla's pricing and safety.

Ives also noted other positives that could cause an upside swing for the carmaker.

Notably, Musk's recent decision to hire Linda Yaccarino as Twitter's new CEO was "music to the ears of Tesla shareholders." That's after Musk's chaotic take over of the social media platform last fall, leading to frustration among investors over his divided attention and bad press for Tesla.

New Tesla products were also teased during Tuesday's event, and would be critical to accelerated growth, the note said. Though Musk did not disclose details, he estimated that the new offerings would amount to 5 million units sold annually. Meanwhile, the long-awaited Cybertruck is on track to hit production this year.

The CEO also gave encouraging outlooks on a sell-driving future, while AI implementation within Tesla's products also provided a positive tailwind. Tesla's next-gen unit is set to half the factory footprint and require no rare-earth metals, the note said.

"Overall, while Musk cited a choppy macro for the next year, we heard an optimistic Musk with Tesla set to have a strong year of innovation and demand in the year ahead," Ives wrote.

Tesla's stock rose 4.5% Wednesday to $174.05 a share. Wedbush has maintained its outperform rating and has a $215 price target.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The world of classical music has been paying tribute to Menahem Pressler, the internationally renowned pianist and chamber musician, the co-founder and leading member of the Beaux Arts Trio for 53 years, who died May 6 at the age of 99. This world-famous musician, who was born in Germany and escaped the Nazis 84 years ago, lived through the terror of Kristallnacht, the murderous antisemitic pogrom that took place in 1938.

Surviving the Holocaust, Pressler had by 1946 come to the United States and begun his career as a pianist. He won the Debussy International Piano Competition, moved to New York City, and debuted at Carnegie Hall with the Philadelphia Orchestra, playing Schumanns Piano Concerto.

Menahem Pressler, 2009 [Photo by Leeds Piano Competition 2015 / CC BY 2.0

Pressler not only lived to be almost 100 years old, but remained active until nearly the end of his life. He was associated with the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University for almost 70 years.

His own longevity was also paralleled by that of the piano trio that he founded in 1955 with violinist Daniel Guilet and cellist Bernard Greenhouse. While Guilet and Greenhouse were followed by other violinists and cellists, Pressler was the constant presence, his name and charisma becoming synonymous with the ensemble.

The most common form of chamber music is that featuring the string quartet of two violins, viola and cello. The highly collaborative nature of chamber music is one of its distinguishing characteristics, and this is especially the case in piano trios (usually a piano with a violin and a cello), which combine instruments of different sonorities. Pressler played a decisive role in unifying and leading his colleagues.

The Beaux Arts Trio did more than any other group to popularize the piano trio literature. The Trio recorded a 60-CD set of the entire repertoire of 122 works, from Haydns famous efforts to the popular works of Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Dvorak and other 19th century composers, and works of the 20th century, such as the trios of Ravel, Shostakovich and those of less well-known composers.

The Beaux Arts Trio in 1980

Pressler and his colleagueswho later included violinists Isidore Cohen, Ida Kavafian, Yung Uck Kim and Daniel Hope and cellists Peter Wiley and Antonio Meneseshad a busy international career. The Beaux Arts was rivaled among trios for the length of its existence only by the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, founded in 1977 and lasting until the death of pianist Joseph Kalichstein one year ago.

Pressler was the recipient of many awards, including lifetime achievement awards from Gramophone Magazine and the International Chamber Music Association, Chamber Music Americas Distinguished Service Award and numerous other honors and accolades.

The Beaux Arts set high standards and also helped blaze the trail for younger musicians, including, among those active in the United States today, the Claremont, Junction and Horszowski Trios. Pressler was close to the young Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov, and played with cellist Gautier Capucon and many other younger European musicians, including the French Quatuor Ebene, who played with him at a 90th birthday concert that was recorded on CD.

Pressler continued to teach after the Trio disbanded. He wrote a memoir in 2008, with William Brown, Artistry in Piano Teaching, and said, in a recent interview, Teaching has been important to me all my life. I have been a teacher for over 65 years.  It has been very special for me to find out which is the best way for a particular student in a particular piece. Every student is differentand thats what makes it so interesting; not just interesting, but it requires your interest to be there from that minute on for that particular person.

In the course of his career Pressler collaborated with many famous ensembles, including the Juilliard, Emerson, American and Cleveland Quartets. He also continued to play as a solo pianist after the final performances of the Beaux Arts Trio. When he was close to 90, he collaborated with tenor Christoph Pregardien in Schuberts famous song cycle Winterreise.

Menahem Pressler, Vol. 3  Beethoven and Mozart

Pressler returned to Germany in 2008, on the 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht, and he made his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic in 2014, at the age of 90. As the WSWS noted on that occasion:

In January, an audience of thousands experienced a moving event: a slight, 90-year-old man sat nimbly at the piano in a Berlin concert hall and played Mozarts Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major (1784). During his performance, he was visibly cheerful, communicated with the orchestra, particularly with the wind section, and spoke through Mozarts music to the audienceurging the listener to enjoy every trill. The pianist was Menahem Pressler, born Max Jacob Pressler in 1923 in Magdeburg, Germany. Seventy-five years ago, in 1939, he and his family were barely able to flee the Nazi terror against the Jewish population. His familys clothing store was ransacked and destroyed on November 9, 1938, during the Nazis Kristallnacht pogroms, and Max Jacob was expelled from high school. He continued to take piano lessons in secret. His uncles, aunts and grandparents were murdered in Auschwitz. His family, via Italy, fled to Palestine and thereafter to the US. When he was 17, Max Jacob adopted the name Menahem (Hebrew for comfort or solace). He studied piano under fellow emigres Leo Kestenberg and Eliahu Rudiakov, among others. In the US, he founded the renowned Beaux Arts Trio in 1955, an ensemble in which he performed internationally, including in Germany, until its dissolution in 2008. After 73 years, on September 27, 2012, Menahem Presslers German citizenship was restored. At the ceremony in Berlin, he said that Germany had remained his cultural home throughout. He had always spoken German at home with his family, had read Goethe and Heine and played Beethoven, Schubert and Mozart on the piano. I can understand those who could not face all that after Auschwitz, said Pressler, but for me, there has always been this land of culture that I clung on to. Presslers three concerts January 10-12 [2014] were his first performances with the Berlin Philharmonic, the elite orchestra that performed for the Nazi dictatorship up until 1945. One had the impression that both he and his audience realised this concert was a historic occasion.
On May 9, Sri Lanka cabinet spokesperson Bandula Gunawardena told a media briefing in Colombo that the cabinet had discussed the violence [from] one year ago and requested President Ranil Wickremesinghe appoint a presidential commission with absolute powers to prevent any future violent unrest. He provided no details of Wickremesinghes response.

Bandula Gunawardena, May 16, 2023 [Photo: Bandula Gunawardena Facebook]

Gunawardena was not talking about the vicious physical attack on anti-government protesters at the Galle Face Green on May 9, 2022 by pro-government thugs assembled at former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakses official residence.

He was referring to the retaliatory violence that erupted across Sri Lanka in protest against the thug attacks on the protesters. This led to the killing of one MP, and the torching of the homes of dozens of parliamentarians and hundreds of government supporters.

Gunawardena told the media that cabinet ministers wanted Wickremesinghe to ensure that there would be no repeat of last years retaliatory actions against MPs and government supporters, and to ensure their human rights are protected.

If Wickremesinghe establishes such a commission it will certainly recommend that harsh anti-terrorist laws be developed and used against anti-government protesters, workers and youth. Confronted with widespread opposition to its attack on democratic rights, the government was compelled last month to postpone parliamentary discussion on its new Anti-Terrorism Bill. New draconian laws, however, are on its agenda.

The cabinets discussions are part of an intensifying political campaign to denigrate and vilify Aragalaya, last years nationwide uprising that demanded the resignation of then President Gotabhaya Rajapakse and an end to his governments intolerable social attacks on the masses.

Confronted with this mass movement, Rajapakse fled the country and then resigned. His regime collapsed and the politically discredited Wickremesinghe was anti-democratically installed as president by the parliament. This political manoeuvre was made possible because the trade unions, backed by the pseudo-left Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) and other political formations kept the mass working-class movement tied to the parliamentary framework, blocking any direct challenge to capitalist rule in Sri Lanka.

The Wickremesinghe regime is acutely nervous about the rising opposition of workers and the poor currently underway against its savage International Monetary Fund-dictated austerity program that has already thrown millions into poverty, unemployment and near-starvation.

Last week, the police secured prohibition orders from a Colombo magistrate blocking demonstrations in Galle Face Green or at the presidents official residence and the presidential secretariat, to mark the first anniversary of the May 9 assault on anti-government protesters.



Moreover, for three days, starting on Friday night, the government deployed thousands of fully armed police officers and soldiers in Colombo in a major security operation. Police and military intelligence officials claimed that they received information regarding a planned protest by the FSP-controlled Inter University Student Federation (IUSF).

Now a slanderous campaign is underway to demonize the uprising last year. Members of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) are circulating the accusation that a foreign hand was behind last years mass movement that brought down Rajapakse.

SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksethe son of former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksetold the media last week, [M]ore information on the foreign mission behind Aragalaya [mass struggle] would soon be revealed.

This was a reference to Nine: The Hidden Story, a recent book by National Freedom Front leader and parliamentarian Wimal Weerawansa. The nine is the period from May 9 to July 9, 2022 that led to Rajapakses downfall. Weerawansa was the minister of industries in Rajapakses government until he resigned in March last year.

Wimal Weerawansa promoting his book, Nine: The Hidden Story, in late April 2023. [Photo: Wimal Weerawansa Facebook]

A virulent Sinhala chauvinist, Weerawansa was a former leader of the communalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and a rabid supporter of the communalist war against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Bitterly opposed to last years anti-government uprising, Weerawansa claims this movement was a product of the political machinations of the US Ambassador in Colombo, Julie Chung.

Weerawansas allegations are a political slander against the historically unprecedented island-wide mass movement that brought down the hated Rajapakse regime.



As the Socialist Equality Party has extensively documented, in 2015 the US was directly involved in the behind the scenes moves to oust President Mahinda Rajapakse over his close political and economic relations with China. The regime-change operation, which elevated Maithripala Sirisena into the presidency, was backed by former President Chandrika Kumaratunga, Wickremesinghe and other sections of the ruling elite, and layers of the upper-middle class.

By contrast, the mass movement that exploded last year against President Gotabhaya Rajapakse and his government, united millions of workers and the rural masses across ethnic lines with protests, demonstrations and powerful one-day general strikes on April 28 and May 6.

This terrified all sections of Sri Lankas ruling class and their imperialist masters. While the US ambassador at the time certainly engaged in discussions with the Colombo political establishment, neither she nor those that she spoke to controlled this mass movement.

Protesters gather in a street leading to the presidents official residence in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, July 9, 2022. [AP Photo/Amitha Thennakoon]

Thoroughly discredited government ministers and MPs, fearful of the eruption of another uprising on an even larger scale, are now stepping up their campaign of slanders and lies against last years mass protests.

Minister of Urban Development and Housing Prasanna Ranatunga told parliament last Thursday that the demonstrators were vagabonds. He ludicrously claimed that protesters who were inside the tents [last year] did not even know how to [use] birth control and now the delivered infants are being abandoned in the streets and trains.

SLPP MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena alleged, without a shred of evidence, When someone raids a bank its an activist from the protest, when theres a rape, thats activist of the protest, when theres a murder, an activist from the protest is involved.

Amid this toxic political environment, government-backed goons recently assaulted social media activist Piyath Nikeshala, prominent in last years protests. He was hospitalised after the attack. The police were compelled to arrest Chandika Abhayaratne, the SLPP former deputy mayor of Kaduwela, and other thugs implicated in the attack.

Some sections of the ruling elite are nervous that this campaign of vilification and violence will backfire and trigger another eruption of political opposition.

A May 12 editorial in the Island said: It may be easier to demonise Aragalaya than to tackle the causes thereof, but such action will not help prevent mass uprisings in the future. The government, it advised, could step down, allowing the people to elect a new government, and to vent their anger.

The SEP warns the working class that the ruling partys slanders against last years mass movement are preparation to crush the inevitable social explosion against Wickremesinghes IMF-dictated social attacks.

Denunciations of the Wickremesinghe regime by all the opposition partiesincluding the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, JVP and Tamil National Allianceare cynical attempts to politically exploit mass anger. These parties all support IMF intervention and its austerity demands.

Last year the trade union bureaucrats, the pseudo-left parties and various middle-class formationswhich now claim to be fighting the Wickremesinghe regimediverted the working class into the political dead-end of appealing to these capitalist opposition parties.

Compelled to call strikes and demonstrations, the trade unions made sure these were limited and politically controlled. Declaring that the protest is non-political, they attempted to block the SEP and its fight for an independent working-class strategy and socialist perspective.

Behind the facade of no-politics, the unions promoted the perspective of the SJB and JVP for an interim capitalist government. In doing so they paved the way for Wickremesinghe to come to power and unleash the state against the protesters.

The SEP intervened in the mass uprising explaining that it was not enough to demand Rajapakses removal. He was only the ugly face of a corrupt and reactionary executive presidency and the capitalist system. The SEP fought to free the working class from the straitjacket of the unions and vigorously campaigned for the building of independent action committees.

The political experiences of the past year confirm the urgency of the SEPs call for a Democratic and Socialist Congress of Workers and Rural Masses based on the representatives from independent action committees. This congress will provide the political and organisational framework for the working class to consolidate its forces, win the active support of the rural masses, and lay the foundations to establish its own rule through a workers and peasants government committed to restructuring society along socialist lines.
Following the formation of a jets coalition by the UK and the Netherlands aimed at procuring F-16 jets for Ukraine, a group of bipartisan lawmakers in the US sent a letter to the White House calling for the US to also send fighter jets to Ukraine.

In an article entitled Pressure campaign on Biden to send F-16s to Ukraine goes into overdrive, Politico reported that Congressional Ukrainian Caucus Co-Chair Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat from Toledo, Ohio, and a dozen other House members, Republican and Democratic, used more strident language than in the past to demand the White House send the jets.

Co-chairs of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican-Pennsylvania, front left, Representative. Mike Quigley, Democratic-Illinois, and Representative Marcy Kaptur, Democratic-Ohio, along with Senator Roger Wicker, Republican-Mississippi, in second row at right of Fitzpatrick, attend a news conference, Tuesday, January 31, 2023, about the war in Ukraine, on Capitol Hill in Washington. [AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin]

For Ukrainians, that is one of their top priorities, Kaptur told Politico. Every person that comes to see us from Ukraine mentions F-16severy elected official, every interest group leader. Thats very important to them.

The letter declared, The United States can provide Ukraine with both immediate military assistance to defend against Russian advances and in preparation for Kyivs expected spring offensive while simultaneously beginning the process of providing Ukraine with long-term air superiority capability.

The UK and the Netherlands said Tuesday that they would begin training Ukraine pilots on using the jets.

On Wednesday, Belgium announced that it would be willing to help train Ukrainian pilots on how to use F-16s. Commenting on the development, former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul said, Progress. Only a matter of time until Ukraine gets F16s.

The F-16 is a fourth-generation supersonic fighter. It is capable of deploying the 1.2 megaton B83 nuclear bomb. It is a major component of NATOs nuclear sharing system of frontline deployed tactical nuclear weapons in Europe.

We need F-16s, and I am grateful to our allies for their decision to work in this direction, including training our pilots, said Andriy Yermak, head of the office of the president of Ukraine.

In March 2022, Biden asserted, ... look, the ideathe idea that were going to send in offensive equipment and have planes and tanks and trains going in with American pilots and American crews, just understandand dont kid yourself, no matter what you all saythats called World War Three.

Two Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons return from a mission during Agile Spartan in the US Central Command area of responsibility, March 6, 2023. [Photo: Air Force Tech. Sgt. Daniel Asselta ]

In January, the White House announced it would send 50 M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine. Kiev has already received over 200 main battle tanks and over 1,000 armored infantry fighting vehicles from NATO countries.

Last Tuesday, UK officials said they would be sending long-range missiles to Ukraine, breaking yet another red line set by the US and its NATO allies about their direct involvement in the war.

Just days later, Russian officials claimed that these long-range weapons were used to strike Russian-occupied territory.

Last May, US President Joe Biden categorically declared, We are not going to send to Ukraine rocket systems that strike into Russia.

But UK officials made clear that, both with long-range missiles and with F-16 fighter jets, their announcements could serve as icebreakers for similar measures by the United States.

Its a position the United Kingdom can uniquely do.  We know that if we give something it makes it slightly easier for others, a UK official told the Washington Post. There is definitely a different risk tolerance among different countries. Were often in an earlier place.

As with the provision of the turbine-powered M1 Abrams battle tanks, a move by NATO to send long-range missiles and advanced fighter jets involves the deployment of a vast logistical infrastructure.

In February, Politico reported, A group of former military officers and private donors is raising money to send Western mechanics close to the Ukrainian frontlines, where they will repair battle-damaged donated weapons and vehicles that have been flooding into the country. The report continued, The plan is to find 100 to 200 experienced contractors who would travel to Ukraine and embed themselves with small units near the front lines.

According to a series of leaked Pentagon documents made public earlier this year, over 150 US and NATO military personnel are already deployed inside Ukraine. The Pentagon had earlier claimed that the primary aim of US troops inside the country was to supervise the distribution and deployment of US-and NATO-supplied weaponry.

This escalation takes place under conditions in which it is becoming clear that NATOs proxy forces in Ukraine cannot achieve the sweeping aims set out by the United States.

Even as the US rushes weapons into Ukraine, Russia is increasingly targeting those weapons. On Tuesday, Russian forces launched an airstrike on a US-supplied Patriot missile battery in Kiev. According to Russian officials, the strike destroyed five launchers, while US officials claimed only one launcher was damaged, but not destroyed.
Join the meeting of the Michigan Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee this Saturday at 1 p.m. EDT titled, After the death of Jimari Williams: Mobilize educators, parents, and students to defend public health and stop school layoffs! Register here:

If you have information about a school outbreak, or are ready to get involved in our fight for safe schools and against budget cuts, contact the WSWS now! Fill out the form at the end of this article, or write to educators@wsws.org.

It is now nearly a month since the tragic death of Detroit kindergarten student Jimari Williams on April 26, yet the nature of the fatal disease has not yet been determined. On May 16, the WSWS was informed by the Wayne County Medical Examiners office that the autopsy will not be released until sometime between August and November. When our reporter asked why the delay, they were not given a real reply, but simply were told the lab was in Pennsylvania.

The six-year-old was a student at Marcus Garvey Academy, where there was an unusually high rate of flu-like symptoms, including student fevers, and vomiting, namely at the early grade levels, according to the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD). The Health Department has never said how many people overall were sickened.

Jimari Aiden Williams April 24, 2017  April 26, 2023 [Photo: James H. Cole funeral home]

In line with the Biden administrations ending of the Pandemic Health Emergency May 11, there has been no official mention of COVID, nor school-wide testing protocol for the protection of students and staff. The most recent, entirely understated, weekly Michigan COVID report of May 2 showed 2,630 new cases of COVID-19 and 62 virus-related deaths. In other words, paying no attention to official pronouncements, COVID continues to spread, to wreak havoc on peoples immune systems, and to kill.

Jimaris classmates were sent back into the school after a brief deep cleaning with no concrete information about the disease or any attempt to deal with airborne cleanliness such as HEPA filtration in every classroom or Far-UV technology or even masking. According to the Centers for Disease Control, an estimated 96 percent of schoolchildren have contracted COVID, putting them at increased risk for many other diseases and conditions.

The only medical information released to the public has been the diagnosis of four of Jimaris classmates. The district reported that these children had Haemophilus influenzae, a name for any infection caused by bacteria called H. influenzae. There are six distinct types of H. influenzae (named a through f), as well as other H. influenzae that are classified as nontypeable. The one that people are most familiar with is H. influenzae type b or Hib for which a vaccine is available and required by most school districts. H. influenza, however, like COVID, is transmitted through the air.

For their part, Detroits Democratic Party establishment, including Mayor Mike Duggan and the Detroit Federation of Teachers, have remained silent on the death of Jimari Williams and the infectious disease outbreak at Marcus Garvey Academy.

The response of workers has been entirely the opposite, with an outpouring of concern among educators and parents. Learning about the death of Jimari, the parent of a child in Georgia who suffered with H. influenza contacted the WSWS. She asked to relay her experience as a warning to other parents. She asked for anonymity due to pending legal matters associated with her childs traumatic disease.

I fear parents are not being told about the dangers, she said. This is very detrimental. My daughter had COVID twice. We know that COVID weakens parts of the immune system. My daughter had [H. influenza] Beta Lactamase Positive and she was vaccinated for it, but got it anyway. Type B can cause sepsis, meningitis, pneumonia, or sepsis arthritis. It varies in severity from ear infections to more severe infections.

Is there a correlation between COVID and H. influenza? There is. Plus there is the potential of COVID to decrease the effectiveness of the [Hib] vaccine. She referenced a paper, The potential role of COVID-19 in the induction of DNA damage, by Pablo Panico, et al., which points to the role of DNA damage in many chronic diseases.

How many times do you go to the doctor and the doctor says, Oh, its just viral. Well, H. influenza can cause meningitis and death. Thank goodness I found a doctor who finally diagnosed my child.

The Georgia parent explained the difficult struggle to be taken seriously and get a real diagnosis and cure. She said her daughter has an immune deficiency which can lead to repeat respiratory infections, making her health a real concern.

Generic influenza bacteria as viewed through a microscope. [Photo: Microscopy by John Gallagher and Audray Harris, National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)]

In January, my daughter developed a fever and complained of leg pain. The next day her temperature shot up to 103 degrees; she woke up shaking. It looks like the flu. When we take her to the doctor, he thinks its tonsilitis. At first, her temperature went down, and everything tested negative. But then she got hot again and says her car seat is on fire. Im exhausted as a parent, it is so scary. My ex-mother-in-law fears that its sepsis. We started an antibiotic, and she gets a little better.

Fast forward to February 9, I went to wake my daughter and noticed her heart racing, it was about 145 beats per minute. She was in extreme pain when trying to stand her up. (She often complained of legs being tired and hurting). Her oxygen dropped into the 70s, and heart rate to the 50s. She told me she was going to pass out. These episodes typically lasted about an hour.



We took her to the hospital which is an hour away. Her white blood count was 21, extremely high, and this is considered a critical result. Her cortisol was 24.9 (in the afternoon lab work) which is high. They kept her overnight for monitoring and gave her another antibiotic to take for 10 days.

We ended up back in the hospital at the beginning of March. After being there for four days they finally find a mild pulmonary obstruction, three nodules on her lungs. Three cultures were taken and were tested, all three were positive for Haemophilus Influenzae, Beta Lactamase Positive and Moraxella (B) catarrhalis. She had elevated neutrophils, indicating a bacterial infection. They put her on 840 milligrams of Augmentin twice a day for four weeks.



Now she is doing so much better, no night sweats, and no more vomiting or extreme episodes of pain. It was sad to see her suffering and feeling helpless. I feel we would not have gotten a diagnosis or the right medicine if I had not advocated.

The Georgia parent explained that when she hears about cases like Jimaris, she worries about parents who arent knowledgeable about the law or their rights. We had doctors who were dismissive, who claimed her condition was psychosomatic. He wasnt listening, which made me feel hopeless and scared.

The system is broken. Just because we live in poverty or come from poverty or dont have a medical degree doesnt mean we cant make the right decision for our children. I feel like we know our kids best and doctors really need to listen more to the parents. There is a lot of information coming out regarding COVID and H. influenzae-associated conditions.



Parents should not be afraid to speak out. I came from poverty, from practically nothing, but I will not be scared to stand up for what I believe in and advocate for my children. I work in the school system, however, Im not a teacher and my pay is not as much. We make it work for our family. I am fortunate for what we have. My husband built our home and our mortgage is nowhere near what the average families is today. I know families with mortgages of $1,600 a month in a tiny house in sketchy areas who have to work three or four jobs to make ends meet. How are they doing it? Then there is the cost of groceries!



If my experience helps someone else, I dont want it to go unused. Life is not always easy and we must continue to fight for what is right and inspire other people and break the cycle.










The following interview was given by a member of the University of Michigan International Youth and Students for Social Equality. An undergrad, he explains the critical role the graduate student instructors (GSIs) play in the life of the university and the education of students. Some 1,300 GSIs went out on strike on March 29 to demand a living wage and other benefits. They are members of the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) at U-M, an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).

Despite the broad support that exists for the grad student workers among students, faculty and staff at the university, the AFT and the GEO have isolated their struggle, dropping their demand for a 60 percent wage increase from their current poverty pay of $24,000 a year and effectively liquidating their strike, while the university maintains its hard-line, strikebreaking stance.

**

The grad students demands are very reasonable and justifiable. GSIs play a crucial role in the functioning of the university. They deserve fair compensation and job security. Furthermore, they need adequate funds and support for their research and professional development.

Without the graduate students, no grades are distributed. The University of Michigan is a major university. My classes have hundreds of students, who submit hundreds and thousands of assignments. Lecturers arent the ones actually dealing with those assignments. The GSIs do the grading, the reading. All my essaysI dont know if the lecturers or faculty members that teach me ever see or grade my work.

The graduate students, theyre the ones I think of as my teachers because I get into discussions with them. Theyre the ones I interact with. Theyre the ones that Im learning a lot from. Their work is just as important as that of the lecturers and faculty.

Ive looked through the pay they give out at Michigan. Some faculty make up to $500,000 annually, while my GSI cannot get groceries. The GSIs occupy a critical job. The conditions faced by GSIs are unfair, exploitative and wicked.

Grad student instructors and supporters at University of Michigan march on sixth day of strike for a living wage. [Photo: WSWS]

Lots of graduate students have families. U-M provides exclusive living space on campus for graduate students with families, yet GSIs are making a ridiculous wage. Theyre not making nearly enough for what they do. The university recognizes the need for housing availability for students who have families, but they dont support the GSIs as employees. The administration doesnt support them. The GSIs are working and struggling. Its no way to live. And it doesnt have to be that way.

The tutors that I have put in a lot of work with the students, maintaining accommodating office hours to make sure that everyone in the class can get their points for office hours. They care for the students. It is really touching. They dont have to do all that. They go the extra mile, and theyre not rewarded for that. Its not recognized.

I believe that its important that we begin building a rank-and-file committee at U-M to stop the breaking of strikes and get the GSIs voices heard. We need to shut down the campus until their demands are met.

The strike must not retreat from its demand for a 60 percent wage increase. GSIs deserve to live comfortably. Its absolutely despicable that the university is not paying them at all. The docking of pay was the nail in the coffin. That was one of the most shocking things Id seen. Its inhumane.

I call on students to support the GEO strike and other campus employees. This is representative of a much bigger struggle of the working classand educators in generalall over the world. Educators have not been compensated well for what they do. We must extend the strike to the best of our abilities to other sections of the world and workers across Michigan. This struggle isnt just that of the graduate students.
Railroaders, what do you think about the benefits cuts? Tell us by filling out the form below. All submissions will be kept anonymous.

A rail worker switches a track for a Locomotive in the Selkirk rail yard, Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, in Selkirk, N.Y. [AP Photo/Hans Pennink]

On May 10, significant cuts were made to railroaders unemployment and sickness benefits administered by the US Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). The RRB announced the cuts in response to the impending reaching of the governments debt ceiling limit on June 1.

The cut is a 5.7 percent reduction in railroad unemployment insurance and sickness benefits, which are funded out of railroad workers wages. This cut will remain in effect until September 30, 2031.

Previously, railroad workers on unemployment insurance or sickness benefits would receive a daily maximum of about $85 a day, or $850 every two weeks. Now, the two-week pay will be reduced to $801.55. Furthermore, workers receiving sickness benefits for any reason other than an on-the-job injury will now be reduced to $740.23 every two weeks.

The federally administered benefits are being cut using provisions of the Budget Control Act of 2011. That legislation was passed as part of a deal to avert an earlier debt ceiling crisis, and provides for automatic budget sequestrations, or across-the-board spending cuts. That deal was part of an earlier compromise between right-Wing Republicans, which controlled the House of Representatives, and the Democratic majority-led Senate, which used the approaching debt ceiling to pave the way for massive cuts to social spending. The bill was passed with bipartisan support from a Republican majority-led House and a Democratic majority-led Senate, which was then signed into law by Democratic President Barack Obama.

The Obama administration, in turn, responded to the financial crisis of 2008-2009 by continuing and deepening the bank bailouts which had begun under his predecessor George W. Bush, as well as by imposing massive austerity on the working class, including the government bailout of the auto industry which enforced a 50 percent reduction in pay for new hires.

The railroad benefits were temporarily exempted from any form of sequestration during the pandemic under the Continued Assistance to Railroad Workers Act of 2020, but those protections were eliminated on May 10 because of the ending of the pandemic national emergency declaration by President Joe Biden the month before.

Railroaders now face the same conspiracy against them as the one which produced the Budget Control Act 12 years ago. Following the precdent set by the Obama Administration, President Biden aims to use the present debt limit  crisis  as a means to slash workers standard of living in order to prop up Wall Street, which has seen the collapse of several banks in recent months, and free up resources for war. Last year in 2022, Congress approved $133 billion in aid while Biden announced he will do whatever is needed to ensure that the oligarchy does not lose its money in the second largest bank failure.

Only a few major rail unions have even acknowledged the cuts. Those that have have focused entirely on directing workers towards fruitless appeals to the Democratic Party and to Congress. The AFL-CIO, through their Transportation and Trades Department, released a statement calling for support of the Railroad Employee Equity and Fairness Act, which was introduced in Congress in April to continue exemptions for railroad benefits. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, in a press release, appealed to railroaders in Local 19 to call and email their representatives to end the sequestration of the RRB Benefits.

But the very same Congress voted by wide majorities last year to ban a rail strike and impose a contract which workers had already rejected. They were aided and abetted throughout by the railroad union bureaucracies, who continuously stalled for time until after the November midterm elections in order to strengthen Congresss hand.

Since then, while railroad management has pressed their advantage by attacking crew sizes and outsourcing locomotive crews, and as massive derailments occurred in East Palestine, Ohio and throughout the United States, the bureaucracy has focused on groveling appeals to the fairness of railroad CEOs.

The bureaucracy is also responding to the benefit cuts by closing ranks with management. Last week, the Washington Post cited industry spokesperson Jessica Kahanek, who declared, Railroads are working hand-in-hand with rail unions to ensure Congress understands the importance of this issue and how it stands apart from other programs subject to budget sequestration.
Are you a truck driver? Tell us what you think about the new law and the proposal for a boycott by filling out the form below. All submissions will be kept anonymous.

Truckers encouraging a boycott of Florida in response to Governor Ron DeSantis' anti-immigrant legislation. [Photo: @elarracadas91.1]

A nationwide truckers boycott of Florida is being organized in opposition to a new state law targeting undocumented migrants and refugees.

The new legislation was initially announced by the states fascistic governor Ron DeSantis in February and framed as a means of countering what he termed the Biden administrations failure to secure our nations borders. In a statement published on a government website, DeSantis declared, Florida is a law and order state, and we wont turn a blind eye to the dangers of Bidens Border Crisis. We will continue to take steps to protect Floridians from reckless federal open border policies.

Primarily aimed at the 800,000 undocumented Central and South Americans living in Florida, and extending the laundry list of fascistic attacks carried out by the state government on this highly exploited section of the population, the bill:

Requires employers to use E-Verify to check the employment eligibility of employees, and fines employers who fail to use E-Verify $1,000 per day;

Suspends licenses of any employer who knowingly employs illegal aliens, and makes using a fake ID to gain employment a felony;

Enhances penalties for human smuggling, including making knowingly transporting five or more illegal aliens or a single illegal alien minor a second-degree felony subject to a $10,000 fine and up to 15 years in prison;

Provides $12 million to continue the Unauthorized Alien Transport Program to relocate illegal immigrants to sanctuary jurisdictions;

Bans local governments and NGOs from issuing identification documents to illegal aliens and invalidates all out-of-state driver licenses issued exclusively to illegal aliens; and

Requires hospitals to collect and report healthcare costs for illegal aliens.

After passing the state legislature along party lines in both chambers in late April and early May, the bill was signed by DeSantis on May 10. It goes into effect on July 1.

Upon signing the bill, DeSantis boasted that Nobody has a right to immigrate to this countryno foreigner. Elaborating on this blatant xenophobia days later, he said, You cant build a strong economy based on illegality.

Immigration attorneys have denounced the bills unambiguous violations of democratic rights and its overtly fascistic undertones. Paul Chavez, the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund attorney, told WKMG-TV News 6, SB 1718 will push hundreds of thousands of people into the shadowsdocumented, undocumented; inspected, uninspected; authorized, unauthorized. Its detrimental to public safety.

Others have spoken on the implications of the bills impact on the local and state economy. Immigration attorney Michelle Fanger said, Based on my opinion, the construction industry, agriculture will have a major impact and also restaurants because those hire, though we dont like to admit it, a large group of individuals who dont have documents. She continued, If you dont have these individuals to work, who is going to do the job?

Reports have circulated on social media of construction workers not showing up to job sites or leaving the job early in response to the bill. One worker, speaking with CBS News Miami, said, Many workers are leaving, thinking theyre going to be deported, so theyre going to other states, and that Everyone is really uneasy  we just want to work to help our families.

An agricultural worker, speaking with NBC Miami, said, We basically have to flee, flee as if we were criminals, and we are not criminals. On the contrary, we are here to work, and we work for a lot of companies. We dont know exactly where we stand right now. We depend on our jobs to survive.

Truck drivers around the country have responded to the bill with a call to boycott all transportation of goods into and out of Florida. The call has been led by Latin American truckers, who over the past week have published videos in both Spanish and English on TikTok condemning SB 1718.

In one video on TikTok viewed 700,000 times so far, a truck driver states: I dont know about you guys, but my truck will not be going to Florida at all. If we all came together as one community for Rogel Aguilera when he was facing injustice, Im pretty sure we can all come together as a Latino community and boycott Florida as a whole. Aguilera was a 26-year-old immigrant truck driver in Colorado sentenced to 110 years in prison for a fatal accident when his trucks brakes failed. Truckers responded to the sentencing with a boycott of the state of Colorado, forcing Governor Jared Polis to reduce the sentence to 10 years.

The worker concluded: What theyre doing to our brothers and sisters out there is not fair, and even in the truck driving industry were millions. So hopefully we all come together and we all boycott Florida and we all say no to loads going to and from Florida.

Another truck driver, Roberto Sandoval, posted a video which has been viewed over one million times, calling for a national strike on June 1 and demanding that no trucks enter Florida.

These spontaneous calls by the working class and immigrant community take place against the backdrop of unending attacksaccelerated since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemicon their living and working conditions by the ruling capitalist class around the world.

Florida itself is a powder keg of opposition to DeSantis and the fascistic Republican Party. Refusing to submit quietly to his recent raft of policies gutting academic freedoms, students and educators have conducted several statewide walkouts in the recent period, including one last month at hundreds of high schools and colleges.

The Democratic Party has continued and widened the anti-immigrant policies of its Republican colleagues. As the World Socialist Web Site recently wrote on the ending of the Title 42 policy, Joe Biden continued and expanded the use of Title 42, expelling millions of asylum seekers, as well as his predecessors policy of mass detention of refugees  In its place he and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) chief Alejandro Mayorkas are requiring asylum seekers to file their claims in their home country or in regional processing centers to be set up in Colombia, Guatemala and other Latin American countries.

In another open demonstration that the ruling class will bring the full force of the state down on the working class as the capitalist crisis intensifies, DeSantis announced on Tuesday that he is sending more than 1,100 state law enforcement assets to the Texas-Mexico border per the request of Republican Governor Greg Abbott. This will include Florida National Guard members, agents from the state Department of Law Enforcement, highway patrol troopers, and drones.
(Bloomberg) -- EON SE is exploring a sale of a UK unit supplying energy to large businesses, people with knowledge of the matter said, becoming the latest power company to seek an exit from a sector generating slim returns.

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The German group is working with advisers to gauge buyer interest in Npower Ltd., according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. Npower is one of the largest suppliers to industrial users in the UK and delivered more than 20 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2021, about 6% of the countrys total consumption.

Discussions about a possible sale of Npower are ongoing and theres no certainty theyll result in a transaction, the people said. A spokesperson for EON said the company is focused on serving its customers during the current market volatility, declining to comment further.

Shares in EON were broadly flat in early trading on Friday. The stock was trading at 11.08 at 9:15 a.m. in Frankfurt, giving the company a market value of 29.3 billion ($31.6 billion).

EONs deliberations come at a time when energy suppliers are reassessing their relationships with business customers. Theyve been reluctant to lock in contracts because of pricing volatility, while businesses are asking for more blend and extend deals to help them spread payments over a longer period.

Last year, Centrica Plc said it would stop selling power and natural gas to its biggest business customers as surging wholesale energy costs hit profit margins. Scottish Power Ltd. also announced plans to gradually stop supplies to British businesses.

EON warned earlier this month Europes energy crisis  exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine  is not over. In the UK, about 30 energy firms have collapsed after finding it hard to pass on surging wholesale prices to customers.

Marc Spieker, EONs chief financial officer, said last week that the companys expectation for adjusted 2023 earnings to remain broadly in line with 2022 factors in the possibility of a further deterioration in the remainder of the year.

EON has owned Npower, a former RWE AG subsidiary, since 2020. Npower swung to a loss of 149 million ($185 million) in 2021, according to its latest accounts filed with the UKs Companies House.

(Adds shares in fourth paragraph.)

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Dubai Chambers has welcomed a large business delegation from the Hong Kong-based Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (CGCC) and signed an MoU aimed at bolstering economic cooperation.

Dr Jonathan Choi, Chairman of Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, headed a 26-strong visiting delegation of senior Hong Kong businesspeople including investors, financiers, and realtors.

The MoU, which was signed as part of the groups three-day tour of the UAE, seeks to strengthen mutual ties between the parties with the goal of further enhancing business relations.

Knowledge sharing

Under the terms of the agreement, the two chambers will explore opportunities to boost knowledge sharing, increase mutual support on trade and investment missions, and cooperate on participation in trade fairs, conferences, business matching events, and other networking activities.

Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, said: The trade visit was a great success, with the signing of an MoU heralding a new era in closer trade ties between Dubai and China. We shared with the delegation the Chambers vision, mission, goals, and activities, as well as some of the current challenges and opportunities facing the UAE business community.

Commenting on trade opportunities, he added: We have solid exports and imports between our nations, but can do more. We see great potential in importing more apparel, boats and parts, iron and steel, and textiles. In terms of exports, our data indicates there are opportunities for the UAE to export more ships and boats, textiles, gums and resins, and silk products to Hong Kong and China. From an investment perspective, we see some exciting opportunities in agriculture, manufacturing, the services sectors, and technology, which we hope this MoU will encourage.

Imports from China

The UAEs second-largest import from China is machinery, followed by vehicles and parts. After electronics, China mainly imports plastics, vehicles and parts, and machinery from the UAE.

Founded in 1900, the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce is one of the oldest and largest chambers in Hong Kong. It enjoys close ties with mainland China, particularly through its support for the Belt and Road Initiative and the development of the GuangdongHong KongMacau Greater Bay Area (GBA). Recently, the Chamber has focused on advancing the globalisation of its members, a prospect which Dubai Chambers welcomes with the signing of the new MoU.-- TradeArabia News Service
(Bloomberg) -- South Africa is at risk of record power outages this winter because the state electricity company may not have enough supply to meet increased demand and efforts to increase generation face delays.

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The country faces a difficult winter as it heads into the cold months with 3,000 megawatts less capacity than last year, Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. acting Chief Executive Officer Calib Cassim told reporters on Thursday. The utility envisages a worst-case scenario of having to cut 8,000 megawatts from the electricity grid  a process known locally as loadshedding  which would entail 16 hours of outages in a 32-hour cycle.

The continents most industrialized economy is already experiencing its worst bout of power rationing yet, with outages this year exceeding those for all of 2022, because Eskom cant meet demand from its old and poorly maintained plants. The central bank estimates that the outages will shave 2 percentage points off South Africas economic growth rate this year.

The blackouts and the deteriorating economic outlook have weighed on investor sentiment, with the rand dropping 12% this year  the worst performance among major currencies monitored by Bloomberg. The decline is also at odds with emerging-market peers, which have largely made strides against the US currency this year.

The rand fell as much as 1.3% to a record low on a closing basis, and traded 1% lower at 19.4409 per dollar by 11:32 a.m. in Johannesburg. The yield on South Africas generic 10-year government bond was little changed at 12.1%.

Things are still looking rather gloomy for South Africa, with news headlines being centered around intensifying load-shedding, analysts at Rand Merchant Bank said in a client note.

South Africa has taken numerous measures to stabilize the power supply but none have had a significant impact. The implementation of plans announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa to expand the procurement of renewable energy has been hobbled by a lack of grid capacity. In March, he appointed Kgosientsho Ramokgopa as electricity minister and tasked him with resolving the crisis, but his powers still havent been defined.

Read more: Why Blackouts Are Still Crippling South Africa: QuickTake

The outages have also dented support for the governing African National Congress, with opinion polls showing the party is in danger of losing its parliamentary majority in next years elections.

Eskoms recent efforts to improve its performance have slipped, with maintenance at its Koeberg nuclear facility falling behind schedule and units requiring repairs at Kusile, its newest coal-fired plant. The energy availability factor, a measurement of usable generation capacity, has dropped to 52%, from a target of 60%, Cassim said in the presentation.

The utility began a critical phase of revamping its sole nuclear-power facility in December when it started work on the first of two units. Work on replacing a steam generator at the 1,940-megawatt Koeberg plant, often regarded as the utilitys most reliable facility, has already fallen behind schedule and is now expected to be completed in September. Thats had a knock-on effect on plans to repair its second reactor.

Eskom has meanwhile been rocked by revelations in a book published this month by former Chief Executive Officer Andre de Ruyter, including widespread dysfunctionality at its plants, improper conduct by some of its officials and ongoing political interference in its operations. Mpho Makwana, the companys chairman, said De Ruyter broke trust by writing the memoir.

Crime and sabotage have posed an additional challenge for Eskom. Incidents are reported for investigation, the utilitys head of generation, Bheki Nxumalo, told reporters. We need to concentrate on running the plant, he said.

While Eskom apologized to South Africans for the power cuts, it ultimately called on the public to help reduce demand.

The biggest impact we can all make as a nation is to use electricity sparingly, especially during the peaks, it said.

--With assistance from S'thembile Cele and Colleen Goko.

(Updates throughout with information from presentation and background)

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(Bloomberg) -- A debt metric is flashing warnings about Europes dwindling pool of bond collateral, bucking broader optimism in the market.

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The European Central Banks move to discourage national governments from parking funds on its deposits has raised the cash in circulation and sent it hunting safer assets with comparatively high returns. As a result, banks are buying up German two-year notes, along with other top-rated debt, reducing the overall volume of quality collateral.

Thats warping the role of Germanys two-year asset swap spread as a traditional measure of risk  pushing it toward a year-to-date high and breaking its once-close relationship with a key measure of volatility.

The wide spreads are currently more a reflection of returning collateral scarcity concerns, wrote Benjamin Schroeder, a strategist at ING Groep NV, citing the ECBs decision to remunerate government deposits at a less-attractive rate since the start of the month.

The change has raised the sum of spare cash in the economy by around 130 billion ($140.6 billion).

The growing bond shortage is also showing up in repo markets, according to Michael Leister, Commerzbank AGs head of rates strategy. His analysis of 10 bonds that are subject to exceptional demand shows their premium over the ECBs overnight rate has climbed to above 40 basis points for the first time this year.

To be sure, Leister says the German Finance Agency will pursue steady collateral supply rather than scarcity, which should eventually rein in the premium currently embedded in swap spreads.

Leister holds a tactically cautious stance on two-year swap spreads, but recommends positioning for a move tighter should the premium widen above 90 basis points from the current 81.

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With the SEC taking aim at a host of big brand crypto firms, some CEOs are looking across the Atlantic to reopen shop.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, for example, recently said hes considering doing precisely this. Similarly, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse told CNBC on Thursday that confusing regulations in the U.S. will push more crypto companies to leave.

Frankly, its why youre seeing entrepreneurship and investment flowing into other jurisdictionsand certainly Europe has been a significant beneficiary of the confusion that has existed in the U.S., he said.

Its no coincidence either that Europe has emerged as a potential winner amid the chaos, especially after the bloc passed clearer crypto rules via its Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) guidelines earlier this month.

Looking closer, French authorities, in particular, are also well aware of this potential and are keen to promote their regulatory framework to attract American companies.

"In France, we have the advantage of having a clear framework," Owen Simonin, CEO of Meria, a crypto investment platform based in Metz, France, told Decrypt. "France is likely going to transpose its framework to the European level with the new CASP regime. It offers a clear, defined framework that encourages major international companies to come to us, thereby opening up the European market to them."

Benoit de Juvigny, the Secretary General of France's Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF), has already extended a welcoming hand to American firms to take advantage of French and future European crypto regulations.

Europes Crypto Regulations Can Be a 'Model' for Rules in US, Says Hester Peirce

"In France, we are proud to be pioneers with the crypto service asset provider regime, known as PSAN, that was legislated in 2019," he told reporters Wednesday. "American players who want to benefit from the French regime in the short term, and from the European arrangements starting 2025, are clearly welcome. We maintain good relations and active discussions with our U.S. counterparts."

With the introduction of MiCA rules by European legislators next year, the CASP (Crypto Asset Service Provider) status will be implemented. This is the equivalent of PSAN (Prestataire de Services sur Actifs Numeriques or Digital asset services provider) in France but at the European level. In the United States, this status is best understood as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP)

With the new European status modeled after the French one, it allows them to comply with the upcoming European regulations from now on.

Vive la crypto

The recent adoption of MiCA has prompted numerous firms to prepare for the new regulations, with France currently hosting 72 registered crypto companies, a number that's expected to rise.

Circle, the firm behind the industrys second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization, is seeking dual registration in France to localize its flagship product, EUROC, for the European market. Other key crypto companies such as Binance, Crypto.com, eToro, and Digital Currency Groups Luno have also registered with the AMF.

French Regulator Considers Fast-Track to MiCA For Registered Firms

Crypto platforms can currently operate in France without a full license until 2026, allowing them to provide services with minimal checks.

However, by January 2024, these companies will need to acquire a full license to operate, even before the EU's regulations take effect.

"Although the PSAN registration is relatively light, the approval that will necessitate reinforced registration at the European level will pose a significant responsibility for all companies, said Simonin. This is a double-edged sword; while it will provide structure and limit abuse, it might also impede innovation. However, a structured framework is essential in an environment that poses substantial risks to individual savings."

As part of the transitional measures implemented earlier this year in anticipation of MiCA, companies submitting applications from July onwards will be subjected to an enhanced registration process. This process will necessitate evidence of robust IT systems and a conflict of interest policy.

The MiCA regulations, slated for implementation in 2025, will confer rights to serve the entire European market and will encompass a broader range of services including crypto investment, advice, and portfolio management.

Crypto rules clear, but not perfect

Other aspects still need to be clarified by the French authorities, though, and new regulations should be issued in the future.

Many topics have not yet been addressed, such as NFTs or DeFi, and we still have a relatively flexible framework, said Simonin. The major point to discuss in the short term is taxation. We have the PACTE law which offers some advantages, but it proposes taxation in case of profits, without allowing for the offsetting of losses. However, in France, we have a regime that allows us not to pay taxes even in the case of capital gains, as long as we stay in crypto. Whether one likes French regulation or not, it has the merit of being clear.

France Gives Crypto Firms More Time to Comply

Though there are still a few question marks, regulators in France, with the aid of EU-wide crypto rules, are taking clearer action than their American counterparts.

And in a market that moves as fast as crypto, that may be enough to win over at least a few businesses.
(Reuters) - Montana took the unusual step on Wednesday of banning Chinese-owned short video app TikTok, with lawmakers of the sparsely populated western U.S. state saying they aimed to protect residents from alleged intelligence gathering by China.

TikTok, which is wildly popular with American teens and owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance, is already banned on government-issued devices in around 30 U.S. states and for employees of the country's federal agencies.

While blocking apps by geography is not unheard of, the Montana law is notable for doing so at the state level, upending a single-market approach Apple and Alphabet's Google have long been able to use for their U.S. app stores.

Montana's ban is set to take effect on Jan. 1 2024.

HAS THIS EVER BEEN DONE BEFORE?

Sort of.

Tech companies are now well-practiced in blocking apps at the country level, mostly to comply with U.S. sanctions or for business purposes, like Apple's blocking of messaging and privacy apps in China upon government request.

Enterprising young people in affected countries have an equally long track record of skirting the bans by downloading the apps while traveling internationally or using tools like virtual private networks (VPNs), which obscure their location.

Within the United States, Pornhub recently disabled its services for IP addresses in Utah ahead of a state law that came into effect requiring adult content platforms to verify users' ages. However, that involved a website only, not an app.

Specifically for apps, Google and Apple appear to have navigated a tangle of different U.S. state rules around online gambling by leaving compliance to individual app developers, according to their app store guidance.

Google only started allowing gambling apps in its U.S. app store as of 2021, prior to which it restricted the apps in all but four countries: Brazil, France, Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Apple and Google declined to comment on how they approach state rules on gambling.

IS A STATE-LEVEL BAN EVEN TECHNICALLY FEASIBLE?

While TikTok can theoretically block IP addresses registered in Montana, app stores will have a more difficult time.

Apple and Google declined comment on the technical aspects of implementing a ban, but TechNet, a trade group funded by both companies, told Montana lawmakers in March that app stores "do not have the ability to geofence on a state-by-state basis."

"It would thus be impossible for our members to prevent the app from being downloaded specifically in the state of Montana," the TechNet representative testified.

According to cybersecurity researchers, that is likely because companies organize their app stores at the country level, meaning they have systems for shutting off downloads of a given app in some countries while keeping it accessible elsewhere.

The companies do not appear to have built such controls at a more granular level, the researchers said.

"I think it's possible but it's not possible today. It would require a bunch of code to be written," Alex Stamos, the director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and former top security officer at Facebook, said in a recent podcast.

The app stores also would need to monitor more detailed location data from users' phones than they currently use, infringing on users' privacy, Stamos said.

Even if the companies were to make those changes, TikTok-obsessed teens in Montana are likely to follow their peers around the world in learning how to use privacy tools and road trips to get the app onto their phones, said another researcher, John Scott-Railton at Citizen Lab.

"The youth of Montana are about to become America's experts in VPNs," Railton said.

(Reporting by Katie Paul; Editing by Kenneth Li and Anna Driver)
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi this week trumpeted a flurry of investment by global companies as he tries to create more jobs ahead of a general election due in the first half of next year.

Amazon.com Inc's cloud computing division on Thursday became the latest company to announce an investment in the world's most populous country.

Following are some recent investment announcements, mostly by U.S. companies.

AMAZON

Amazon Web Services said it planned to invest $13 billion in India by 2030 to build its cloud infrastructure and create thousands of jobs.

APPLE

The U.S. tech giant launched its first company-owned store in Mumbai last month and then another in New Delhi. It has been trying to make India a bigger manufacturing base and has started manufacturing several products there through contract electronics makers Foxconn, Wistron Corp and Pegatron Corp.

During a visit last month, CEO Tim Cook said Apple was "committed to growing and investing across the country".

FOXCONN

The Taiwanese contract manufacturer plans to invest $500 million to set up manufacturing plants in the south Indian state of Telangana and almost $968 million in neighbouring Karnataka. The investments are expected to create more than 70,000 jobs, Indian officials have said.

The Apple supplier also plans to build a factory in India to manufacture AirPods, Apple's wireless earphones.

CISCO SYSTEMS

The U.S. networking equipment maker will begin manufacturing from India as it looks to diversify its global supply chain. It has set a target of $1 billion in production and exports from India over the next few years.

WALMART

The retail giant's CEO met Modi this month and reiterated that the company planned exports from India worth $10 billion a year by 2027.

(Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Robert Birsel)
A drone shot of the area to the north of the watchtower. There is a wide river running from the top left to the bottom right of the image. On the bank closest to us are lots of trees (without their leaves). On the far side of the bank there is a small town.

The remains of a Roman watchtower dating to the fourth century A.D. have been discovered by the Rhine River in northern Switzerland.

The watchtower had a square base measuring 23 feet by 23 feet (7 by 7 meters) and 3-feet-thick (1 m) walls, researchers said in a translated statement . It's not clear how tall it would have been. Not much of the tower itself still remains, but archaeologists found bricks, stones, mortar, roof tiles and a foundation ditch near the Swiss town of Schlatt.

They also unearthed the nearby remains of a v-shaped, trench located near the watchtower. It likely held a wooden palisade, the archaeologists said in the statement. The site also held part of a military belt and a Roman coin minted during the reign of emperor Constantine I (reign circa A.D. 306 to 336).

Image 1 of 2

A coin dating back to the reign of Constantine I that was found near the watchtower. The coin is just under 2cm in width and has a side profile of a man on it.

Image 2 of 2

Part of a Roman military belt, found near the watchtower, is seen here. It is approximately 6cm long and about 2cm wide. It is shaped like an arrowhead.

Archaeologists with the Canton of Thurgau's office of archaeology discovered the watchtower in January 2023.

Around five to 15 people may have lived in the watchtower, said Hansjorg Brem , an archaeologist with the Canton of Thurgau who was involved with the excavation. It's likely that not all the people living in the tower were soldiers. Evidence from other watchtowers found in the region indicate that soldiers lived in the towers with their families, Brem told Live Science in an email.

Related: Ancient Roman 'spike defenses' made famous by Julius Caesar found in Germany

Tactical purpose

A ditch that once held a wooden palisade located near the watchtower. Here we see a large dug out ditch with some snow-covered grass.

Watchtowers like this were often "erected as part of an information and observation system," Brem said. Soldiers in the watchtower would have been able to alert larger units about potential threats or movements in the area.

During the fourth century A.D., the watchtower sat on the Roman Empire's northern frontier. This border came under pressure from a variety of "barbarian" groups  including the Goths, Vandals and Huns  who launched incursions into the empire. These groups fought not only against the Romans but against each other, with the losers sometimes seeking refuge in the Roman Empire.

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Richard Alston , a professor of Roman history at Royal Holloway, University of London, who is not involved with the research, told Live Science that the tower "looks like a fairly standard late Roman military emplacement."

Alston thinks that a watchtower like this may have been used mainly for supervising traffic in the area. "It is not really a defensive position and would have been manned by a very small number of persons," Alston said, noting that in some cases civilians would man watchtowers like this in the Roman Empire.
The girl was with her family and had been at the Harlingen Station when she experienced a "medical emergency" on Wednesday

AP Photo/Andres Leighton

Authorities are investigating the death of an 8-year-old girl who experienced a medical emergency while in U.S. Border Patrol custody in Harlingen, Texas on Wednesday.

The child and her family were at the Harlingen Station when she became ill, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

"Emergency Medical Services were called to the station and transported her to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead," the release states.

The agency's Office of Professional Responsibility is now conducting an investigation, per the CBP, and the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General and Harlingen Police Department were also notified.

Related:At Least 26 People Dead After Freight Truck and Passenger Van Collide in Mexico

Sgt. Larry Moore with the Harlingen Police Department told the Associated Press that he did not have further information on the girl's death.

The tragedy comes nearly one week after the expiration of Title 42, the Trump-era immigration policy that allowed authorities to turn away migrants at U.S. borders.

Critics of the policy transition, including Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, predicted a surge of migrants would try to cross the border.

Related:At Least 39 Dead and 29 Injured in Migrant Center Fire Near U.S.-Mexico Border

Last Monday, the governor announced the deployment of a Texas Tactical Border Force to "respond to the growing border crisis," according to a press release from the governor's office.

"The Texas National Guard is loading Blackhawk helicopters and C-130s and deploying specially trained soldiers for the Texas Tactical Border Force, who will be deployed to hotspots all along the border to help intercept and repel large groups of migrants trying to enter Texas illegally. The Texas Tactical Border Force will bolster our Operation Lone Star efforts to secure the Texas border amid the chaos caused by President Biden's elimination of Title 42."

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Yet the surge of migrants has not happened. The Border Patrol had 28,717 migrants in custody last Wednesday  the day before the policy was lifted  and by Sunday, the number had decreased to 22,259, the AP reported.

Earlier this month, a 17-year-old Honduran boy died at a holding center in Safety Harbor, Florida. His mother told the AP that he had epilepsy since he was a child.

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The federal government's bank account just saw a sharp drop in cash as the default deadline looms

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during a news conference at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings at IMF headquarters, October 14, 2022 in Washington, DC. Secretary Yellen fielded a wide range of questions, including several on the economic impacts of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The federal government's bank account just saw a sharp drop in cash as the default deadline looms.

The Treasury General Account had $87.4 billion on Monday, down from $140 billion on Friday.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reaffirmed this week that the government could run out of money as soon as June 1.

The Treasury Department's bank account at the Federal Reserve saw a sharp drop in cash earlier this week as lawmakers continue to negotiate over lifting the debt ceiling.

The Treasury General Account had $87.4 billion on Monday, down from $140 billion on Friday, according to the latest update.

That brings the cash balance to the lowest level since April 12, before tax payments to the IRS began filling up the Treasury's coffers. The cash decline is also the biggest since March 1.

The Treasury General Account is used to pay for debt service on government bonds  preventing the US from defaulting  among the myriad other outlays like federal employee salaries.

While the government's bank account will see more tax payments come in starting on June 15, the sudden drawdown raises the risk that the Treasury Department may not have enough to last that long, setting up a potential default.

On Monday, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reaffirmed her warning that the government could run out of money as soon as June 1.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are continuing to negotiate over raising the debt ceiling, with some signs that Republicans in Congress and President Joe Biden are making progress.

On Tuesday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said it's possible to reach a debt deal by the end of the week. And on Wednesday, he told CNBC that "Now we have a structure to find a way to come to a conclusion. I think at the end of the day we do not have a debt default. I think we finally got the president to agree to negotiate."

For his part, Biden said he will cut short an overseas trip and return to Washington, DC, on Sunday in a sign that talks are heating up.

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PROVIDENCE  Facing its toughest vote so far this year, legislation to provide state-funded abortion coverage to state workers and Medicaid recipients won a Senate committee's approval by a slim one-vote margin on Tuesday.

The vote was 7-to-6 with Senate President Dominick Ruggerio casting what proved to be the deciding vote and later explaining: "I view this legislation as a simple insurance equity measure.

"The bottom line for me is that I want state employees and individuals on Medicaid to have access to the same health insurance benefits as all other Rhode Islanders," Ruggerio said. He said he was comfortable with his vote "not only as a Catholic, but I am also comfortable as a representative of the 4th Senatorial District. I think this is what people want."

The bill now goes to the full Senate for a vote on Thursday, and Ruggerio said: "If I was a betting man, I would probably think that would pass on Thursday, but we'll see. I've done no lobbying, no asking anyone to do anything."

The Senate Judiciary Committee was voting on the Senate's matching version of the "Equality in Abortion Coverage Act" that won House approval on a 49-to-24 vote last month after a heated debate.

Those voting for the bill, without any debate, were: Democratic Sens. Dawn Euer, the Senate Judiciary chairwoman; John Burke, Matthew LaMountain, Mark McKenney, Ana Quezada, Ryan Pearson, the Senate majority leader, and Ruggerio.

Those voting against were Democrats Frank Lombardi, Leonidas Raptakis and David Tikoian, and Republicans Anthony DeLuca, Gordon Rogers and Jessica de la Cruz, the Senate minority leader.

What does the bill do?

At its core, the legislation allows state funding for women on Medicaid to receive abortions. It would also repeal a current prohibition on the state funding of any health insurance plan that provides state workers with "coverage for induced abortions ... except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term, or where the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest."

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Sen. de la Cruz, the leader of the five-member GOP bloc within the 38-member Senate, issued a statement earlier anticipating defeat for the anti-abortion side, but suggesting the Rhode Island Constitution may provide a legal argument against whatever passes.

She cited wording in the Constitution that is not on its face a prohibition, but says: "Nothing in this section shall be construed to grant or secure any right relating to abortion or the funding thereof."

Although "news of the likely passage of taxpayer-funded abortion in Rhode Island may be disheartening, we should not consider this struggle as a lost cause. There is always hope, and we must remain committed to the fight," she wrote.

More: Fate of state-funded abortion coverage rests in RI Senate's hands. Here's what's at stake.

Senators David Tikoian and John Burke listen with other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee as the vote of 7-to-6 is read and the "Equality in Abortion Coverage Act" was sent out of Senate Judiciary Committee to a full Senate vote on Tuesday afternoon. Ruggerio's vote proved to be the deciding vote.

How did the votes shake out?

At mid-day Tuesday it was not yet clear how two of the potential swing voters on the committee  Sens. Tikoian and Burke  would vote.

Tikoian, D-Smithfield, said he was being deluged with calls and emails and still wading through the arguments in his mind. In the end, he voted against the bill.

As a candidate, Burke, D-West Warwick, said he "didn't come out either way" on abortion, but received the Rhode Island Right to Life Committee endorsement anyway, unsolicited. "They backed me only because I'm a Catholic and I went to [Bishop] Hendricken," he surmised.

Asked how he intended to vote Tuesday, in committee, Burke said he hadn't yet decided. But "it's already legal, so I mean it's not abortion, it's about equity."

In the end, he said, he voted for the bill so the full Senate would have a chance to vote on it.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: State funded abortion in RI goes to Senate committee for vote. How it went
Photo Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Chris Jericho is confident that theres another main event-worthy story he could tell with Kenny Omega in Japan.

In an interview with Monthly Puroresu, Chris Jericho spoke about a potential rematch with Kenny Omega in Japan. The two met for the first time at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Japan and theyve crossed paths on multiple occasions since then. All of those subsequent matches took place under the AEW banner, but Jericho says theres a story in place for a return to Japan.

The story is there. And once again, if you look at 2018, 2019 and 2020, Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho headlined the Tokyo Dome between the two of us. Actually, I think 2017 as well. Between four years, the two of us headlined the Tokyo Dome  one of four years in a row. Like the Tokyo Dome. The three years I did, it was two main events and I was one, and Kenny was the other in 2018 and 2019, and in 2020 Kenny had gone  but I was still one of the main events. So in 2017, Kenny was the main event.

So you look at Kenny and Jericho, I mean its right there. Whatever combination you wanna put us in  well draw. I mean you could put Kenny and Jericho as the Golden Jets, which is Bobby Halls nickname in Winnipeg in the seventies, the Golden Jets. This is like Tanahashi and Ibushi or Okada and Ibushi or whatever it may be. I think thats the Tokyo Dome main event right there. You know, I mean its easy. So all of those bullets are in the chamber, so to speak. And Im sure well get to it when the time is right.

The post Chris Jericho: The Story Is There For Another Main Event With Kenny Omega In Japan appeared first on Wrestlezone.
Monroe County has been embroiled in public debate and political infighting in recent months surrounding a proposal to spend nearly $70 million to construct Phase I of a new and expanded county jail. Later phases will move the courts and other judicial services to the as-yet undetermined location. Earlier this month, county officials came under fire for misleading the public during their selection of jail architecture firm DLZ. Bloomington residents have also criticized the plan to fund the proposal through an undemocratic loophole, a Lease Revenue bond, which does not require voter approval, following the example of Marion County, which issued Lease Revenue bonds for $610 million for its new justice campus in 2019.

As this suggests, across Indiana local officials have ignored public input to push forward new jail construction. In 2017, a Vigo County jail construction project unfolded exactly as it is unfolding right now in Monroe. Residents of Terre Haute described how the planning process in the county was characterized by closed-door discussions and conflicts of interest, allowing the same firm, DLZ, to dictate the size and cost of the jail and then profit from its construction. Vigos officials funded the new jail by increasing the tax burden on working people without giving them the opportunity to vote on the decision.

'Frustrating': Monroe County commissioners suspend jail advisory committee

Vigo County even hired Dr. Kenneth Ray, the same consultant later hired in Bloomington, to evaluate the local criminal legal system. In both cases, Dr. Rays report did not unequivocally call for a new and expanded jail, but rather expounded a series of recommendations to reduce the number of people incarcerated: limiting arrests for low-level offenses, processing cases with greater speed, and minimizing the detention of people for technical violations. In Bloomington, these recommendations were further reinforced by a 2021 assessment arguing that many in the jail would be better served through community-based mental illness and addiction services. Officials in Bloomington have consistently refused to follow the recommendations of the reports they themselves commissioned.

Proponents of the new jail argue that it is necessary for the care and safety of the jail population. However, jails in any form can carry deadly consequences: some of Indianas highest rates of jail deaths have occurred in facilities with conditions that largely meet state standards. In fact, locking someone up for as little as two days creates serious harms  ones that reverberate out into the greater community in the form of unstable family environments, the loss of housing and employment, and financial insecurity. These high costs of incarceration do not buy communities safety. Time and time again, studies have failed to link jail time to improvements in public safety.

In Monroe County, as across the country, the majority of people in jail are pretrial, meaning presumed innocent and in jail largely because they cannot afford bail. In 2021, the most common reasons for bookings were overwhelmingly low-level and non-violent: missing a court date or violating probation. Those locked up in the jail are the communitys most vulnerable. Up to 80% are estimated to be suffering mental illness and substance use disorders.

In a recent presentation to Monroe County, DLZ representatives lauded the success of the new facility they built in Vigo County. They failed to mention the man who died in the jail within a month of its opening, illustrating that jail sentences can quickly turn into death sentences, even in brand new facilities. According to a citizens group in Vigo, this tragedy was unsurprising given the systemic medical neglect observed in the local jail system.

Additionally, although DLZ marketed the new Vigo County facility as the solution to jail crowding, news reports from late last year note that it was technically overcrowded before it even opened. In an unsettling echo of a failed solution attempted in 2001, the county simply did it again: expanded its jail capacity and immediately overfilled it  due in part to unusually (read: unnecessarily) high rates of criminalization especially for drug and traffic offenses. Vigo County is not a success but a warning: without addressing root causes of incarceration, counties are setting themselves up for repeated cycles of jail construction, as they scramble to build more infrastructure to accommodate the consequences of punitive policies and practices. As former Monroe County Jail Commander Sam Crowe aptly summarized, If you build it, they're gonna fill it.

By investing in a new and expanded facility in Bloomington, officials are turning a blind eye to both the overwhelming evidence on the harms of jail and the numerous alternatives outlined by residents and independent experts. Bypassing community input to spend millions of public dollars on the countys ability to lock people up takes money away from resources residents desperately need such as mental health counseling, substance use treatment, and affordable housing.

Through public investment decisions, a county plans for its future. Monroe County need not follow in the footsteps of Vigo County and the other Indiana counties that have bet on rising rates of criminalization and punishment. This junction could instead represent a crucial turning point for the county to break the cycles of jail expansion and incarceration unfolding across the state and invest local resources to pioneer a new future: one that prioritizes safety and care for all its residents.

Jessica Zhang is a research analyst at the Vera Institute of Justice and Leigh Grundhoefer is a Unionville member of the Monroe County grassroots organizing collective Care Not Cages.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Columnists argue Monroe County should invest in people, not a new jail
This article originally appeared on Outside

A team of climbers, mountain guides, and helicopter pilots in Nepal is celebrating after pulling off one of the most improbable Himalayan rescues in recent memory. On Thursday, April 20, the group located missing Indian mountaineer Anurag Maloo at the bottom of a deep crevasse on the slopes of 26,545-foot Annapurna. Maloo, 34, had been stuck in the pit for nearly three days.

The group erected a system of ropes and pulleys and hoisted Maloo from the ice onto a slope prone to avalanches, before loading him into a helicopter bound for a nearby hospital. The latest reports on Friday say that Maloo is in critical condition at a facility in Kathmandu--but he is alive.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CrR-zYFojWk/?hl=en

Video of the harrowing rescue circulated on Instagram Thursday afternoon, showing the climbers navigating the narrow pocket of ice where Maloo was found. One of the pilots who ferried rescuers and supplies back and forth from the crevasse says that the successful mission was the product of teamwork and luck.

"We were all happy and energized that everything went smoothly," Sobit Gauchan told Outside. "We celebrated after coming back to Base Camp."

Another reason for the celebration, Gauchan says, is that most people on the mountain had assumed that Maloo had perished in the icy tomb. "I think that is the reason few were willing to risk their life to go inside the crevasse," he says.

The team of rescuers celebrates the successful mission at Annapurna Base Camp. (Photo: Sobit Gauchan)

A Tragic Week On the Mountain

Maloo's disappearance on Monday, April 17, occurred amid a terrifying few days on the world's tenth-highest peak, which is also one of the most dangerous mountains above 8,000 meters.

Over the weekend, a favorable weather window opened up and approximately 40 climbers began their push for the Annapurna summit.

But the clear conditions changed quickly, and a storm trapped multiple mountaineers high on the peak, where confusion and tragedy happened. An Irish climber named Noel Hanna, 56, died Monday night in his tent at Camp 4, at 23,300 feet, after reaching the summit without supplemental oxygen. Then, Indian mountaineer Baljee Kaur spent the night stranded on the mountainside after getting lost on the descent to the camp. Others huddled in their tents at Camps 3 and 4, unable to descend.

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On Tuesday, April 18, multiple rescue helicopters flew high onto the peak to rescue survivors and to search for Kaur, who was eventually discovered and saved.

Gauchan, a pilot and instructor with the charter company Prabhu Helicopter, completed two aerial pickups from Camp 3 that day, ferrying a French climber and his Sherpa down to Base Camp. The flights were just two of 185 sorties he made during a 35-hour period.

"Everyone's focus was on people stuck in higher camps," Gauchan says.

As helicopters flew up again and again to save climbers, the search for Maloo was just getting started.

Maloo's Fateful Descent

Maloo had been trying to climb the peak without supplemental oxygen, but he turned back from the summit on April 17 after feeling sick. He descended the peak alongside Brazilian climber Moeses Fiamoncini, who had also aborted his attempt just shy of the top. Fiamoncini told reporter Angela Benevides of Explorersweb that he was with Maloo at the time of his disappearance.

"Maloo was very weak, probably with some [acute mountain sickness], so I descended all the time some meters behind or in front of him, and so did his Sherpa. He was never alone," Fiamoncini told Explorersweb.

Disaster struck when the trio descended a steep and icy cliff that required rappelling. Fiamoncini said the climbers had three ropes to choose from for the rappel, and that he went first and navigated the section safely. But when he looked up, he saw that Maloo had chosen a rope that was too short to reach the bottom of the cliff.

"I shouted to him, telling him to stop, to look at the rope, but he didn't," Fiamoncini told Explorersweb."He fell when the rope ended, and he hit the hard ice one meter to the right of me and immediately slid down, rolling, for some more meters until he disappeared in the crevasse. I was horrified."

Fiamoncini and the guide climbed to the mouth of the crevasse and shouted into it. He said they stayed there for "a long time," despite the slope's exposure to avalanches. Receiving no response, the duo eventually climbed down to Base Camp. "He never made a sound, not even when falling," Fiamoncini told Explorersweb. "In such circumstances, I knew the possibility of finding Anurag alive was really very slim."

News of the disaster filtered out to the media and through the mountaineering community. Maloo's brother, Sudhir Maloo, wrote a plea to the outside world to help find the stricken climber.

"We are devastated," he wrote on Instagram. "It feels like our worst nightmares have come true, but we cannot lose hope. We know that Anurag is out there somewhere, waiting for us. Help us find him by signing and sharing this petition."

https://www.instagram.com/p/CrLFKcsyXQ2/?hl=en

A Rescue In Thin Air

The rescue operation was launched by Seven Summits Treks founder Chhang Dawa Sherpa and his brother Mingma Sherpa. On Wednesday, April 19, Mingma phoned Gauchan asking about helicopter availability, and the pilot said he could be ready later that afternoon. "We have worked together in many other high-altitude rescues before," Gauchan says. "There were no other helicopters with pilots that could go that high."

That afternoon, Gauchan flew to the town of Dana to pick up five Sherpa rescuers, and then ferried them that evening to Base Camp. The group, which included seven rescuers, got an early start on Thursday, leaving Base Camp at around 6 A.M. to reach the site. Helicopters struggle to hover and carry loads at such high altitude, so Gauchan had to ferry just one or two climbers at a time to the crevasse. "Finding a landing spot was the challenging part for me--I'd barely touch the ground and tell the climber to jump out," Gauchan says. "The second, third, and fourth flights all had this same kind of difficulty."

The rescue party included Chhepal Sherpa, Chhang Dawa Sherpa, Dawa Nurbu Sherpa, Tashi Sherpa, Lakpa Sherpa, Lakpa Nurbu Sherpa, and Polish climber Adam Bielecki, who had been at Base Camp at the time of the rescue.

The crew built a rope system atop the crevasse, and then Bielecki and Tashi Sherpa descended into the pit. Bielecki told Explorersweb that he found Maloo nearly 200 feet below the surface in a pile of snow. He was still breathing.

"I was expecting to retrieve a dead body, so try to imagine my surprise when I saw that he was breathing, his eyes reacted to light, and his body shivered a little," Bielecki told Explorersweb. "The feeling of joy that wraps you is indescribable."

https://www.instagram.com/p/CrQNZBugdcl/?hl=en

Members of the team recorded video as they hoisted Maloo through the tight chamber in the ice. It took approximately an hour to raise Maloo out of the crevasse and six hours to complete the mission. Gauchan received a call on his radio that the team had found the lost climber, and he flew from Base Camp to the rescue site, and loaded Maloo and others onto his helicopter, and returned to Base Camp.

"He was checked by some medical personnel present there, and then flown to Manipal hospital along with his younger brother and Chang Dawa onboard," Gauchan told Outside.

It took several hours for Gauchan to ferry the rescuers back from the crevasse to Base Camp, and luckily the group avoided avalanches while waiting. The weather had gotten bad, Gauchan says, raising the level of danger for the entire operation.

"We were the only people high up in that mountain and the previous trails were all buried due to fresh snow," he says. "By noon, the mountain was covered up. Had we been 30 minutes late, some of the people would be stuck in higher camps, which would have taken them at least a day to find their way back."

Recovery in Kathmandu

https://www.instagram.com/p/Chz-AjhIjC5/?hl=en

On Thursday, April 20, Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks posted the good news on Instagram: "After three days of being missing in a crevasse nearly 250m below, Anurag has been successfully rescued and choppered to Manipal Hospital and then Medicity Hospital in Kathmandu." Dozens of comments on the post cheered on the rescuers for saving Maloo's life amid the seemingly impossible circumstances.

The Himalayan Times reported that Maloo received a litany of lifesaving treatments after he was plucked from the ice. According to that report, Doctors performed CPR on him for over four hours. Emergency crews also treated him for hypothermia and then placed him on a ventilator. The most recent reports on Friday said that he is in the intensive care unit at MediCity Hospital in Kathmandu.

"Currently his blood pressure has increased and heart rate is okay, with scant urine output," a Mediciti Hospital representative told The Himalayan Times on Thursday evening.

Maloo's survival inside the crevasse feels straight out of a Hollywood movie, and mountaineers and high-alpine specialists speculated about how he stayed alive for three days in such an inhospitable environment. Amit Chowdhury, a board member of the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA), told the BBC: "A crevasse is warmer and well protected from wind. So if he was not badly injured, it's not unusual that he survived in a crevasse."

The ordeal has cast a limelight on the incredible challenge of rescuing climbers in the high peaks, and the important role that helicopter pilots like Gauchan now play in saving lives when situations go wrong. It's also vaulted Maloo onto an international stage. He is attempting to climb the world's 14 peaks above 8,000 meters to bring attention to sustainable development and environmental protection. In December, he wrote a lengthy post online explaining his mission.

"Unfortunately, mountains are under threat from climate change and overexploitation," he wrote. "With the increasing global temperatures and alarming rate of warming of planet, melting of glaciers at unprecedented rates, affecting freshwater supplies downstream, and the increasing plastic waste, the mountain people face even much greater struggles to survive. This problem affects us all. We must reduce our carbon footprint and take care of these natural treasures. "

For exclusive access to all of our fitness, gear, adventure, and travel stories, plus discounts on trips, events, and gear, sign up for Outside+ today.
Donna Deegan waves to supporters following her election night speech Tuesday. Deegan, a Democrat, won the election over Republican Daniel Davis in the latest swing of the pendulum between Democratic and Republican candidates on the ballot in Duval County.

Donna Deegan's victory Tuesday in the Jacksonville mayor's race reinforces that Duval County is a purple county on the state's political map, even as recent election results in the county have swung back and forth between red waves for Republicans and blue rallies for Republicans.

In the past 12 years, Jacksonville has had four mayoral elections. Alvin Brown, running as a conservative Democrat, won in 2011. Lenny Curry, a Republican, ousted Brown in 2015 and was handily re-elected in 2019. Deegan, a Democrat, became mayor-elect Tuesday by defeating Daniel Davis who ran with an $8 million campaign warchest and the Republican Party establishment behind him.

For Republicans, a win by Davis would have put a stamp on Gov. Ron DeSantis's double-digit victory in November and further frustrated Democrats who had started to call the county "Bluval" after strong showings in state and federal elections in 2018 and 2020.

Deegan's victory gave the Democratic Party a shot in the arm and showed how Democrats can win if they close the turnout gap with Republicans and appeal to independent voters.

Here are some takeaways from the runoff election Tuesday.

The winner: Democrat Donna Deegan becomes first female mayor of Jacksonville

How Deegan got there: 10 things to know about new Jacksonville mayor Donna Deegan

Nate Monroe's instant analysis: Deegan upsets decades of power in winning mayoral race

Does Deegan's victory signal an electoral shift to the Democratic Party?

No. Republicans will hold 14 of 19 seats on City Council plus the office of sheriff, tax collector and supervisor of elections.

But Deegan's victory does reflect the changing political landscape in Duval County, said Rick Mullaney, director of the Public Policy Institute at Jacksonville University.

"For those who think this is a deep red county, I think they may be misreading the demographics and they're misreading some of the voting trends," Mullaney said.

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He said it's a county that's been "leaning purple and trending blue" in voter makeup.

Deegan won nearly 52% of the vote and fellow Democrat Joyce Morgan captured 50.7% in another countywide race for property appraiser.

In the third countywide race on the ballot Tuesday, Chris Miller, a Republican, won 52.8% of the vote against Charles Garrison, a Democrat, for the City Council at-large Group 5 seat. Miller's margin showed a chunk of voters split their tickets by choosing a Republican for City Council and a Democrat for mayor.

What does Deegan's win mean for Duval's place in Florida politics?

Democrats have done well recently in Duval County. Andrew Gillum won the county in 2018 when he ran for governor against DeSantis. Joe Biden in 2020 became the first Democrat to carry Duval County in a presidential election since Jimmy Carter in 1976.

DeSantis turned the county toward the Republicans in November and the GOP headed into the spring election season with political momentum.

In Duval County, Republicans accounted for 45% of voters and Democrats cast just 39% of ballots in the November election. Republican voters again were at 45% of turnout in the Jacksonville mayor's race, but Democrats increased their share to 42%.

Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried and state Republican Party Chairman Christian Ziegler both worked on get-out-the vote drives for the mayor's race.

Fried call it a "tremendously large win." Ziegler pointed to Republican candidates winning all five at-large City Council seats that voters elect countywide.

Mullaney said he doesn't think the mayoral election results can necessarily predict what will happen in statewide politics. "I think the dynamics of this race relate very much to the candidates and aren't as much about party," he said.

What impact did Gov. Ron DeSantis have on the mayor's race?

DeSantis endorsed Davis after the March first election narrowed the field to Davis and Deegan for the runoff, but DeSantis didn't campaign with Davis in person.

DeSantis likewise endorsed Jason Fischer in the race for Duval County property appraiser. Fischer's campaign signs and ads showed him standing shoulder to shoulder with DeSantis. Fischer also lost on Tuesday.

More: Losses for two candidates backed by DeSantis hurts ability to portray himself as a winner

In contrast to this year's Jacksonville City Hall races, DeSantis had a rally last August in Jacksonville supporting his picks for two Duval County School Board seats. April Carney and Charlotte Joyce both won. In February 2022, DeSantis recorded a robocall urging Republicans to vote for Nick Howland, a Republican, in a City Council special election that Howland won.

"His impact was immense," Howland said at that time. "It really helped bring the turnout."

DeSantis has been laying the groundwork for a presidential campaign that would put him and former president Donald Trump on the ballot in the Florida presidential primary in March 2024. Trump quickly seized on Davis's loss to attack DeSantis by saying Davis would have won if he'd sought Trump's support, an attack that could come up again in next year's presidential race.

Where did Donna Deegan and Daniel Davis run strongest?

Deegan drew from the Democratic Party's base in northwest Jacksonville, which is home to the biggest share of Black voters in the city, while also doing well in southwest Jacksonville, Arlington and historic neighborhoods such as San Marco and Riverside.

She won some suburban precincts in the Southside and at the Beaches, but those parts of the city largely favored Davis. He dominated in Mandarin while winning in East Arlington, the northeast part of the city, the far Westside of the city, and Ortega.

The San Marco neighborhood has emerged as a bellwether for city elections. Brown won those precincts in 2011, Curry captured them in 2015, and Deegan was the leading vote-getter in San Marco in this year's race.

A Duval County Supervisor of Elections map shows precincts won by Donna Deegan and Daniel Davis in the race for Jacksonville mayor. Deegan, who won the election, was the leading vote-getter in green-shaded precincts and Davis lead in the orange-colored precincts.

What role did independent voters play in the outcome?

Independent voters not affiliated with either party accounted for 11.5% of all voters, a higher percentage than past elections that showed their growing clout in elections, said John Daigle, a Jacksonville political consultant.

He said Deegan tailored her closing message to moderate voters and enabled her to pick up support from independent voters because Davis doubled down on generating support from Republican voters with a message that "went further right" in the runoff election campaign.

"That left a lane in the middle where Donna seemed to do very well," Daigle said. "We had an overperformance of independents and Donna made a push in that direction and Daniel went the other way."

Will the results change the use of attack ads?

Mullaney said the Davis campaign's attack ads turned off voters who weren't affiliated with either party and created a sharp contrast with Deegan.

"She was energetic, she was articulate, she communicated well and she demonstrated she had done her homework," Mullaney said.

He said the Davis campaign took a "win at all cost" approach that appealed to the Republican Party base but kept voters from viewing Davis in a positive way. Mullaney said that is the aspect of the campaign that could resonate most with statewide and federal politics.

"A big part of this election, I believe, was a rejection of the Davis's campaign approach that was so negative and so divisive," Mullaney said.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: What does Donna Deegan's victory mean for Democrat-Republican balance?
Gov. Laura Kelly holds her granddaughter, 4-month-old Laura "Rory" Janeway Weiden, after signing an executive order to create a task force. That child care task force met for the second time on Tuesday.

As child care challenges continue to affect Kansas families, a task force is moving forward with the governor's proposed solution: a new government agency.

Gov. Laura Kelly established the Kansas Early Childhood Transition Task Force in January, signing the executive order while holding her baby granddaughter at a Statehouse news conference.

The committee is tasked with drafting a report by next legislative session, with an apparent end goal of directing lawmakers on the details of how to establish a new cabinet-level position focused on early childhood development. Such an agency would fulfill a Kelly campaign promise, unifying the efforts spread across other departments with a goal of expanding the quality, quantity and affordability of child care.

More: Kansas governor creates task force for cabinet-level child care office via executive order

Kansas child care is split across three state agencies

Kansas has child care and early childhood education programs split across three separate state agencies: Kansas Department for Children and Families, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, and the Kansas Department of Education, which also houses the Kansas Children's Cabinet and Trust Fund.

Task force draft documents inventory the various programs across the agencies.

The Education Department houses eight programs, such as Kansas Parents as Teachers. The Children's Cabinet adds 12 programs, such as Workforce Registry and Early Childhood Block Grants.

DCF has nine programs, such as Child Care Assistance and Head Start. KDHE has 21, including Child Care Licensing and Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.

Supporters of merging and consolidating the separate offices say it will eliminate administrative inefficiencies and the bureaucratic maze of services to Kansans.

Fulfilling a campaign promise for Gov. Laura Kelly

Materials from Kelly's reelection campaign proposed centralizing all child care programs and responsibilities under a secretary of early childhood development tasked with streamlining the processes.

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The position would focus on children ages newborn to 5 years old while working to increase the quantity and quality of affordable child care while coordinating with the K-12 education system on early learning opportunities.

"While each of these entities works diligently to provide quality services, having services segregated into silos creates inefficiencies, redundancies, service gaps and confusion for providers and families alike," Kelly said in January.

More: Child care has  and will continue to be  a priority of the Kelly administration

Task force comes amid failed legislative effort

The task force's work continues after a failed legislative push overhaul the child care regulatory system.

The efforts was led by two Republican senators who are parents of young children, but it came relatively late in the legislative session, prompting an expedited process in the House with limited opportunity for public input. Supporters said Kansans couldn't afford to wait, while opponents said the legislative effort was not inclusive of all stakeholders.

Supporters said regulatory reform was needed, blaming burdensome bureaucratic red tape for child care challenges, while opponents said the regulations were largely necessary for safety and pointed the finger at low pay for child care workers.

House Bill 2344 passed, but Kelly vetoed it, and the House failed to override by three votes.

More: 'We can't wait'  Kansas lawmakers narrowly advance overhaul of child care regulations

Early childhood development in Kansas has room to improve

Sam Huenergardt, task force co-chair, said Kansas has a complicated system that makes it challenging for Kansans to access resources.

"Early childhood governance may be on its surface a little dry, maybe a little bureaucratic," Huenergardt said. "But the truth is that the changes this group will recommend will have a very direct impact on the children and families of Kansans and hold the potential to significantly change their lives for the better."

This year, the Bipartisan Policy Center ranked Kansas 49th in the country on early childhood education after the state previously ranked 48th in 2018.

Meanwhile, it praised Colorado and Missouri for consolidating and restructuring services. Colorado improved from 27th to 13th and Missouri from 45th to 40th.

"Reducing administrative burdens, eliminating duplication, and easing families' entry into multiple programs will increase access for those that need early care and education services the most," the report concluded. "State policymakers should focus efforts on the governance of (early childhood education) systems to promote transparency and accessibility for families, while maintaining processes that uphold accountability."

Dan Wuori, of The Hunt Institute, is helping facilitate the task force's work. He said part of its mission is to learn from mistakes of other states as they consolidated agencies.

Tuesday's meeting featured conversations with Missouri and Colorado government officials.

Pam Thomas, who leads the Office of Childhood at the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said Kansas should have a vision of creating a strong system, not simply rehousing a collection of government benefit programs.

"We need to consolidate those, yes, we need to be more efficient, yes, but we need to do it in a way that creates a system," she said.

Missouri's was established through executive order with later legislation to clean up statutory references. Kelly has previously said she would prefer to work with legislators on such a change.

The Colorado Department of Early Childhood was created through legislative action.

M. Michael Cooke, the early childhood transition director in the Colorado governor's office, advised against implementing a transition through a confusing, massive bill like Colorado's, which was 550 pages.

More: Kansas legislator went 6 months unable to find child care. Here's what she did about it.

Could people lose their jobs in agency mergers?

Cooke such a major transition with organizational and structural changes lead to angst among workers over what it means for their jobs.

"We worked really hard to make it very clear to all staff that they are not only welcome, but needed and valued and wanted in this new department and that there would be no terminations, no layoffs associated with this transition," she said. "What they would see potentially is that they might be seated with a different group or reporting to a different supervisor, but nothing about their status or their pay would change."

Thomas said that Missouri similarly kept pay and benefits the same for employees who were moved from one agency to another. Meanwhile, the new office continued to have significant structural changes after its formation as it figured out the organizational chart.

Budgeting for enough workers is critical

Cooke said she "can't emphasize enough" the importance of "ensuring adequate budgeting." The staffing and funding levels in the initial budget for the new state department were inadequate, she said, "making our ability to hire the people we needed in key positions difficult."

Thomas said her office also didn't get enough staff positions in its initial budget.

Cooke said attrition and eliminating vacant positions can lead to administrative savings. Thomas said there was high turnover during the transition from people who chose to retire instead of learning a new department.

The new departments also needed administrative help, such as with human resources, finance and contract procurement as their previous support staff in the old agencies were not part of the transitions.

"That was absolutely necessarily critical because we could not do it," Cooke said. "And it wasn't just a matter of not having the staffing, it was not having a connection to statewide technology systems."

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Laura Kelly task force pushes new Kansas state agency on child care
Accused Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira sent classified documents to an international community on the chat forum site Discord, according to a Wednesday filing from federal prosecutors.

In supporting a motion to detain Teixeira ahead of his trial, the Department of Justice (DOJ) accused the 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guard member of sharing documents across multiple servers over the course of many months, including a server with more than 150 members who lived across the world.

DOJ prosecutors said the deliberate sharing of classified information to more than 150 users worldwide grossly undermines the notion of a limited transmission to a small private community.

And [it] refutes the defendants self-serving narrative that he failed to appreciate the harms that his activities could cause, they wrote. The defendant cannot now be trusted to refrain from causing further harm.

Judge David Hennessy at the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts paused an immediate ruling late last month on whether to hold Teixeira until he faces trial on charges of willfully retaining and sharing classified national secrets in violation of the Espionage Act.

Hennessy is expected to hear more arguments on the pretrial detention Friday.

Teixeiras lawyers have argued for his pretrial release on the grounds that he never intended for the documents to leak out for the world to see.

In a Wednesday filing, they wrote other defendants who have leaked or held classified secrets have been released ahead of trial before and that Teixeira would not pose a threat to the public or the government based upon a set of stringent conditions for his release.

The DOJ, however, has also submitted evidence Teixeira allegedly expressed a desire to kill people, talked of an assassination van and voiced racist slurs.

Prosecutors also argue Teixeira boasted about his connections to classified information and knew what he was doing was wrong, sharing messages he allegedly wrote on Discord, including one where he said he didnt care what they say I can or cant share.

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That the defendant continued posting classified information despite keen awareness that

he was violating the law and even after being admonished multiple times by superiors is a clear

indication that he will be undeterred by any restrictions this court places upon him and will not

hesitate to circumvent those restrictions if he deems it in his interest to do so, prosecutors argued in the filings.

Teixeira, who served as an IT professional at Otis Air National Guard Base, was arrested last month after the documents, some of them labeled top secret, leaked out of Discord and onto the broader online sphere.

The Pentagon documents detailed everything from the Russia-Ukraine war to the affairs of U.S. allies, including South Korea and Israel and the leak spilled embarrassing secrets about American intelligence and insights.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Digging deep. A new docuseries is setting out to expose the dark secrets of the Duggar family and their ultra-conservative religious beliefs.

Fans got their first look at Prime Video's Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets in an explosive trailer released on Thursday, May 18. "World domination was the goal," a man says at the beginning of the clip as several talking heads discuss the impact of controversial minister Bill Gothard and his Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP).

Photos of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar  as well as their 19 children  flash on the screen. "There's a story that's going to be told," Jill Duggar says. "And I would rather be the one telling it."

The former TLC personality is shown clutching husband Derick Dillard's hand as a producer off camera thanks her for taking part in the project. A press release describes the doc as "the first time" the Arkansas native "will go on record with her own story," along with "family and close family friends who witnessed what went on behind the scenes firsthand."

Jill and her siblings rose to prominence after 19 Kids and Counting premiered on TLC in 2008. The reality series followed the daily lives of the Duggars, who homeschooled their big brood and embraced strict religious values.

In 2015, the network pulled the show from the air amid reports that the couple's eldest son, Josh Duggar, molested several girls when he was 14 and 15 years old. It was later revealed that Jill and her sister Jessa Duggar were among the victims.

Following the highly publicized scandal, the family returned to reality TV with the spinoff Counting On. The show aired for 11 seasons from 2015 to 2020, one year before Josh made headlines once again for his arrest on child pornography charges. TLC officially cut ties with the Duggars in June 2021.

Josh is currently serving time in a Texas prison after being found guilty on two counts of receiving and possessing child pornography. He was initially sentenced to 151 months behind bars in May 2022, but Us Weekly confirmed earlier this year that his sentence was extended by nearly two months. He is expected to be released in October 2032.

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Before Counting On was canceled, however, Jill and her husband  who share three sons  dropped out of the show in 2017. The Growing Up Duggar coauthor later revealed that her relationship with her family has been strained.

"We found out we didn't have as much control over our lives as it related to the show and stuff, as we needed," she noted in a 2020 YouTube video. "We had to make a decision at that time to kind of put the show aside ... to pursue our own goals and everything."

She exclusively told Us the following year that "there are definitely some issues" between her and her extended family. "Certain people are more supportive than others. I think it ebbs and flows with a family of that size. Every family has drama and so when you've got that many more people giving opinions or whatever, it can get crazy," she explained.

Jill isn't the only Duggar sibling to express some second thoughts about their conservative upbringing. Her sister Jinger Duggar reflected on the constraints of IBLP teachings in her book Becoming Free Indeed, which hit shelves earlier this year.

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Scroll down for more details on the Shiny Happy People docuseries:
Frameline has announced the full program for the 47th annual San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline47). Running June 14 through 24, with a streaming encore to follow from June 24 through July 2, Frameline47 returns with nearly 90 film screenings, including 12 world, 16 North American, and 9 U.S. premieres.

Frameline will host 47 screenings at the historic Castro Theatre and other venues throughout the Bay Area. This announcement comes on the heels of Framelines recent unveiling of three marquee presentations: the Opening Night film, Andrew Durhams Sundance favorite Fairyland, which will feature an in-person appearance from producer Sofia Coppola; the Oakland Centerpiece, Hannah Pearl Utts Cora Bora, featuring Hacks scene-stealer Megan Stalter; and the Pride Kickoff film, Jordan Dangers God Save the Queens, featuring RuPaul drag icon Alaska, who will perform during the afterparty at Oasis.

More from IndieWire

This years iteration is set to be Northern Californias largest film festival in 2023, according to Frameline.

In terms of the lineup, Stephen Kijaks documentary Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed looks toward the past, painting an intimate portrait of the Golden Age Hollywood icon, whose death from AIDS in 1985 forced a shift in the public perception of the epidemic. Meanwhile, D. Smiths Sundance-winning documentary Kokomo City centers on four Black transgender sex workers and represents boundary-pushing efforts in cinema being led by Trans creatives. (One of the films subjects, Koko Da Doll, died earlier this year in a shooting in Atlanta.)

In addition to examining queer and trans histories, Frameline47s program spotlights the legacy and impact of LGBTQ+ cinema.

The pairing of Chasing Amy, Kevin Smiths 1997 cult classic, with Sav Rodgers directorial debut, Chasing Chasing Amy, is a perfect encapsulation of not only this years festival, but of what it means to be a queer filmmaker, says director of programming Allegra Madsen. How do filmmakers  and all of us  deal with our problematic cultural past when it was both so formative and so damaging? For queer people, there isnt always a roadmap to follow. Were charting our own paths, and the Frameline47 films explore this, no matter the genre.

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Other films include the queer teen sex comedy Bottoms from Emma Seligman (Shiva Baby) and starring Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri; Sebastian Silvas quasi-detective story and Sundance hit Rotting in the Sun, starring Jordan Firstman; Babatunde Apalowos award-winning All the Colours of the World Are Between Black and White; Zeno Gratons The Lost Boys; The Celluloid Closet directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedmans Taylor Macs A 24-Decade History of Popular Music; and Its Only Life After All, Alexandria Bombachs acclaimed documentary about iconic queer folk duo the Indigo Girls.

In addition to the Castro Theatre, Frameline47 venues include the Roxie (Framelines oldest venue partner), CinemaSFs Balboa Theater, 4-Star Theater, and Vogue Theater  which will host festival tie-in screenings of classic queer films during Neighborhood Nights  and The New Parkway Theater in Oakland. The festivals return to the East Bay boasts 10 Oakland screenings, including Framelines first-ever Oakland Opening Night and Centerpiece films.

Framelines flagship festival runs June 14 through 24 in San Francisco and Oakland, and will be available virtually for audiences within the US. See the full lineup over at the festivals website here.





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Drew Irwin, part of the Future Educators program at Missouri State University, was hired to teach at Twain Elementary for the 2023-24 school year.

Drew Irwin earned a fine arts degree at Missouri State University and pursued work as an actor in Los Angeles and Nashville before moving back to Springfield. Living here with his wife and two sons, he started thinking about a new chapter.

"Being a teacher has always been something I wanted to do," Irwin, 34, recalled. "Coming out of high school, the two options I was looking at was being a teacher  specifically in math, I really love math  or being an actor and, quite frankly, when you're 18 being an actor sounds like a lot more fun."

Prizing family time and wanting to make a difference, Irwin returned to Missouri State to learn to be a teacher.

In August 2022, Irwin and six other Missouri State students became part of the first cohort of the Future Educators program  a partnership between the university and Springfield Public Schools  to recruit, hire and retain teachers from underrepresented and under-resourced backgrounds.

The program offers financial assistance, training and support. In exchange, participants who are hired by the district agree to stay at least four years.

"Once I got into the education program at Missouri State, I felt like a completely different person. I knew this is what I needed to be doing, it is what I wanted to be doing," he said. "It feels different when you are doing something you are passionate about."

Irwin and Samantha Johnson are the first two to finish and accept jobs with the state's largest district. Irwin plans to teach fourth grade at Twain Elementary.

"It is a dream come true. My oldest son has gone through kindergarten and now he is in fifth grade. My youngest son will be starting kindergarten there next year," Irwin said. "It is my home school. I have subbed there a lot and I have made a lot great relationships with the staff, the teachers."

Samantha Johnson with Clif Smart, president of Missouri State University, and Grenita Lathan, superintendent of Springfield Public Schools.

Johnson, who is originally from Texas, will graduate with a bachelor's degree in early education this week. She will teach kindergarten at Bingham Elementary.

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"One of the goals I set for myself was to graduate with my bachelor's degree before I turn 30 so it looks like it will work out," said Johnson, age 29.

She initially pursued a career as a dental hygienist but during the pandemic figured out her place was inside of an elementary classroom.

"This is a dream come true," she said.

Johnson said the Future Educators program allows her to stay in Springfield. Interview preparation was one of the resources she accessed.

As the first person in her family to graduate from college, she was unfamiliar with how to navigate the professional interview process for a teaching job.

"I think I'd still be searching for a job if they would not have helped me," she said.

"There are great people in SPS. They taught me how to be confident and how to be bold, that I belong here, I worked for this."

Johnson said she is excited for each step including new teacher induction and work days before the first day of school.

"They gave us additional training, books for our classroom, and a whole lot of information. We were working with really qualified people who gave up their Saturdays to help us," she said. "Of course, they were also available by email."

Irwin said the "Saturday Summits," include guest speakers and training by K-12 educators who are working inside the schools and have firsthand knowledge.

"Trainings are coming from a real spot. This isn't a repetition of campus courses when you're talking a lot about best practices, theories. This is real life coming from real teachers doing it right now," Irwin said. "That has helped me feel more prepared for what I'm about to start."

This spring, the district offered mock interviews, professional headshots and other resources.

"They were willing to help us out with whatever we need," Irwin said. "There is a lot of fear going into the first year of teaching but a lot of that has subsided."

Components of the program include financial assistance, supplemental training, mentor support and job placement assistance to complete the requirements for teacher certification.

Michelle Gavel

Michelle Gavel, director of student access and opportunity for Springfield district, said MSU President Clif Smart and Superintendent Grenita Lathan are supportive of the innovative program.

"The hope is (participants) fulfill the four years but they stay because they have built a connection in the district, they have built a connection with the students and they have built a connection with the school where they are working," she said in a fall 2022 interview.

Gavel said the program was created to address the teacher shortage and to help future teachers from a wide variety of backgrounds find a place in the district.

"We want to diversify the applicant pool," she said.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: SPS hires two teachers from Future Educators program with MSU
Corcoran Reverie Announces Availability of Final Home, Marking the Completion of the Remarkable 30A Community in Inlet Beach, FL.

INLET BEACH, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 18, 2023 / Corcoran Reverie, a leading luxury real estate brokerage in Northwest Florida, is pleased to announce the availability of the final home in Inlet Beach's newest exclusive low-density community, Grand Inlet. This milestone marks the culmination of an exceptional journey that has transformed the once-barren landscape into a vibrant and thriving neighborhood, offering an unparalleled coastal lifestyle while upholding architectural integrity and taking full advantage of the stunning views anchored by the sugar-white sand and the Gulf of Mexico's turquoise-hued waters.

Grand Inlet, Inlet Beach, Florida

Since the initial release in 2021, the Grand Inlet development team has been dedicated to creating a community that not only provides legacy residences but also fosters a sense of belonging and connectivity among its residents and the surrounding nature. The release of the final residence located at 27 Grand Inlet Court represents the successful realization of this vision.

The Grand Inlet community has set new standards for luxury living with distinct features and amenities that are often only found in full-time residences while remaining strategically positioned to be leveraged as a high-performing short-term rental for savvy investors desiring a beach home on 30A that doubles as an income generator. Each home has been meticulously crafted with attention to detail, incorporating high-quality materials and wood adornments, innovative features, including full-service elevators, private pools, rooftop decks with fire pits, and the latest technology to meet the evolving needs of today's perspicacious buyers. The result is a harmonious blend of elegance, functionality, and sustainability that will be appreciated for generations to come.

"We are thrilled to announce the availability of the final home in Grand Inlet," said Hilary Farnum-Fasth, Broker/Owner of Corcoran Reverie. "This milestone is a testament to the vision, dedication, and hard work that has gone into creating a truly exceptional coastal community. We are immensely proud of what the development team at Freeman Partners has accomplished, and we are grateful to all the residents who have made this community come alive."

Prospective homeowners interested in the final home of Grand Inlet are invited to schedule a private viewing and experience the unparalleled lifestyle the community offers. Additional information can be found at www.grandinlet.com.

About Corcoran Reverie

Corcoran Reverie, an affiliate of Corcoran Group LLC - a leading residential real estate brokerage firm headquartered in New York City - is a locally owned high-end brokerage specializing in the luxury home market in the greater Nashville area and across Northwest Florida from Destin to Panama City and the coastal communities along 30A. With a 190+ agent team led by broker and owner Hilary Farnum-Fasth and partner Jacob Watkins with offices in 30A, Destin, Panama City, and Nashville, Corcoran Reverie was ranked the #1 office in Northwest Florida based on closed office sales volume with over $750 million in its first year as a Corcoran affiliate and has continued to exceed $1B in closed sales volume each year since affiliating. For more information on Corcoran Reverie, visit corcoranreverie.com.

Contact Information

Corey Birger

Chief Operating Office

corey.birger@corcorangroup.com

850.454.6693

SOURCE: Corcoran Reverie

.





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https://www.accesswire.com/755908/Final-Legacy-Residence-in-Floridas-Exclusive-Community-of-Grand-Inlet-Hits-Market-at-7295M




FILE - In this on May 4, 2021, file photo, the Great Salt Lake recedes from Anthelope Island, near Salt Lake City. In an effort to help save the shrinking Great Salt Lake, environmentalists are working to secure water rights for it. They're hoping a donation of 21,000-acre feet from Rio Tinto Kennecott will ensure more water flows into the shrinking lake. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

Brian Steed, a former congressional staffer for U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart and past Iron County deputy attorney, was named this week as Utah's first "Great Salt Lake Commissioner."

Steed, who is also the former director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources, was picked by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to fill the new role, established to put one person in charge of developing a plan to protect and preserve the lake, which shrunk to a record low last year after years of drought and water overuse along the lake's tributaries.

More: 'Terrifying prospect': Utah's Great Salt Lake could disappear in 5 years without drastic water conservation

The appointment is subject to approval by the Utah Senate.

Cox praised Steeds expertise and passion for the lake, stating that he will ensure its future is secure for generations to come.

"Brian has been a trusted advisor for many years and I appreciate his willingness to re-enter public service at this critical time," Cox said.

Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams also expressed his support for Steed, citing his natural resource knowledge and leadership skills. Steed could help facilitate collaboration and find long-term solutions, Adams said.

Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson emphasized the importance of the new role, saying Steed would need to tackle big issues.

Brian Steed

"There is perhaps no role more important in the state at this time than that of the new Great Salt Lake commissioner," Wilson said. "While no small task, I have the utmost confidence in Brian Steed."

Steed currently serves as executive director of the Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water and Air at Utah State University. He will retain this position in addition to his duties as Great Salt Lake commissioner. Steed has also served as co-chair of the Great Salt Lake Strike Team, a cooperative effort that provides up-to-date data and analysis on the lake.

Steed is a familiar face in southwestern Utah. He worked as Stewarts chief from 2013 to 2019 as a policy advisor after having worked previously as the congressman's campaign manager.

Steed worked as a deputy county attorney in Iron County from 2003 to 2005 and has also taught economics and political science at Utah State University. He earned a law degree from the University of Utah in 2002 and a doctorate in public policy from Indiana State University Bloomington in 2010.

This article originally appeared on St. George Spectrum & Daily News: Brian Steed named new Great Salt Lake commissioner
Four teenagers are dead and three others are hospitalized after a major traffic crash in Illinois, police said.

The crash involving three vehicles happened at 10:19 p.m. on May 16 at an intersection in Wheeling, the Wheeling Police Department said in a news release.

All four teens who died were in the same vehicle and between the ages of 16 and 18, according to police, adding that speed and a disregarded traffic signal were factors in the crash.

The victims attended Buffalo Grove High School together, school district officials said in a Facebook post.

It is with the deepest sorrow to inform you that four Buffalo Grove High School students were killed, and one student was hospitalized, in what police are describing as a multi-car crash Tuesday night in Wheeling, the district said.

The teens were riding in a Ford Explorer when the driver blew through a red light, ran into a vehicle turning onto the road, then crashed into a second vehicle and a light pole, which knocked out power to many in the area, police told the Daily Herald.

Damage to the vehicles was so great that six of the seven people involved had to be freed from the wreckage by firefighters, the news outlet reported. One teenager riding in the Explorer survived.

The crash is under investigation, police said.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of these students during this time of tragedy, High School District 214 said. We also offer condolences to all Buffalo Grove students, families and staff members.

Wheeling is a suburb of Chicago, roughly 30 miles northwest of the citys downtown.

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In Sundays episode of Succession, the presidential election hits a major snag when a polling station in Milwaukee is fire-bombed, destroying 100,000 absentee ballots.

You cant get burned ballots back, says Kieran Culkins Roman Roy, who pushes for the Roy familys TV network, ATN, to declare that the far-right candidate Jeryd Mencken (Justin Kirk) has won the election.

The real-life State of Wisconsin Elections Commissioner, Ann Jacobs, shared a Twitter thread that, actually, yes, there is a way to get burned ballots back. Or at least know who sent in the absentee ballots.

Darwin, an aptly named ATN voting analyst played by Adam Godly, is partly right, according to Jacobs take.

Also Read:

Succession Creator Explains Roman, Shiv and Kendalls True Motivations on Election Night

I would say a revote is incredibly rare and complex, Darwin says in the Succession scene. Because, while we theoretically know everyone who requested an absentee ballot, we dont entirely know how many turned them in, and theres nothing in Wisconsin law that really covers what to do.

But according to Jacobs, because the ballots are logged in, we actually would know whose ballots were burned up.

What they got wrong (and its sort of a key part of this plot line), she wrote, When MKE receives absentee ballots, they are logged in. (They use a barcode & scanner). This is how you can track that your ballot arrived on Myvote! Its really a great feature.

Also Read:

Avatar: The Way of Water to Make Streaming Debut on Max and Disney+ in June

This would solve the question of whose votes were destroyed, but not, of course, how they voted.

As Sarah Snooks Shiv Roy suggests, Theyd have to hold [the election] again. A re-vote. She argues, Even Dad would respect the process, and that they cannot officially call the state for Mencken until the absentee ballots are counted, but she is overruled by brothers Roman and Kendall (Jeremy Strong).

Story continues

See Jacobs full thread below.

The America Decides episode of Succession Season 4 is now streaming on HBO Max.

Wrong (cont'd):

Because the ballots are logged in, we actually WOULD know whose ballots were burned up. (A very small # of ballots may be unaccounted for because they arrived on election day and hadn't been scanned yet, but likely fewer than 2 dozen). 4/7 pic.twitter.com/Blf3qSWRIc  Ann Jacobs (@AnnJacobsMKE) May 15, 2023

Also Read:

Even Succession Political Consultants Thought That Election Episode Was Chilling and Eerily Prescient (Video)
The IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) announced Thursday that it will launch a pilot program in June in which cyber attaches will be sent across four continents to combat cyber crime.

The attaches will focus on cracking down tax and financial crimes that use cryptocurrency, decentralized finance, peer-to-peer payments and mixing services.

The four attaches will be deployed to Sydney; Singapore; Bogota, Colombia; and Frankfurt, Germany. They will work with law enforcement counterparts in Australia, Asia, South America and Europe.

In order to effectively combat cybercrime, we need to ensure that our foreign counterparts have access to the same tools and expertise we have here in the United States, CI Chief Jim Lee said in a statement.

The CI currently has one permanent cyber attache at Europol headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands. The position was created in 2020 to build a partnership with CIs European law enforcement counterparts.

The CI is the criminal investigative arm of the IRS that focuses on financial crimes, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money-laundering, public corruption, and health care fraud.

U.S. authorities have been cracking down on cyber criminals  especially those who use cryptocurrency to steal assets.

In March, the Department of Justice said it dismantled a darknet cryptocurrency mixer for enabling cyber criminals to launder more than $3 billion of cryptocurrency.

The department said it seized two domains that directed users to the mixing service, known as ChipMixer.

The agency added that ChipMixer was also involved in other illegal activities including ransomware, fraud, cryptocurrency heists and other hacking schemes.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Whistleblower Hearing jim-jordan-weaponization-hearing.jpg - Credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) claims he has testimony from dozens of whistleblowers whove provided him with proof that the FBI is unfairly persecuting conservatives. This doesnt actually seem to be the case.

The first three of these witnesses whose testimony Jordan received were not really whistleblowers, but disaffected former FBI employees receiving financial backing from former President Trumps ally and advisor Kash Patel. None of them have been given whistleblower protection status by the Department of Justice.

More from Rolling Stone

Jordan held a hearing of the Judiciary Committees Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government on Thursday that featured two of these witnesses. During the hearing, Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-N.Y.) confronted suspended FBI agent Garret OBoyle and former agent Steve Friend as to whether they had received payments from Patel. Both admitted they had.

Goldman elicits from two of the Republican witnesses that they have been paid by Kash Patel pic.twitter.com/kG6N8OW2qA  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 18, 2023

When reporters asked Jordan about the financial ties of his sources, the congressman deflected. Theyve got a family! How are they supposed to feed their family? Jordan told reporters before the hearing.

REPORTER: Today's hearing is about how the FBI is politicized, but do you think it's appropriate for some of these whistleblowers to be paid by one of Trump's former advisers?



JIM JORDAN: They got a family! How are they supposed to feed their family? pic.twitter.com/L8lAx4z3qO  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 18, 2023

Friend was suspended by the FBI after refusing to participate in cases related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. He was also one of three agents who had their security clearances revoked by the FBI, in his case for having espoused an alternative narrative about the events at the U.S. Capitol and downloading documents to an unauthorized removable flash drive.

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During questioning, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D- Va.) displayed tweets from the witnesses espousing conspiracy theories about the Capitol riot, including that undercover federal agents had been responsible for the attack.

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1659222608397598722?s=20

Despite their best efforts, Democrats were largely flying blind when it comes to their questioning of witnesses, as Jordan refused to grant them access to testimony in what Democrats contend is a violation of House rules.

As previously reported by Rolling Stone, the denial of access to Democrats may be a result of witnesses own inability to answer questions about the alleged wrongdoings they witnessed, and defend their own statements on social media. In transcript of an interview conducted by the committee in February with former FBI supervisory intelligence analyst George Hill, Hill admitted he had no firsthand knowledge of deep state scandals and conspiracies involving the FBI.

Clearly there is room to grow and improve before [more] public hearings, on Republican source told Rolling Stone at the time, adding that broadcasting the committees work so far on live television would make us look like morons.

Thursdays hearing showed little development. Jordan verbally sparred with multiple Democratic members of the committee who pushed back on Jordans claims that he would not be sharing evidence with the minority because his witnesses asked him not to. I find it incredible that evidence that one side has garnered is not going to be shared with the other side. Thats not how committees work, said Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), calling the hearing a charade to normalize the events on Jan. 6.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-Fla.) also questioned his withholding of testimony. It is my understanding that the minority in this committee, under the rules, is entitled to the same testimony, information, documents, that the majority is entitled, she said. Im not aware that youre able to withhold information from the minority.

Jordan claimed that the witnesses status as whistleblowers precluded Democrats from viewing their testimony.

These individuals have been determined not to be whistleblowers, Wasserman-Schultz responded. Theyve been determined by the agency not to be whistleblowers. Are you deciding that theyre whistleblowers?

Dems try to point out to Jim Jordan that he's violating the committee rules by not sharing testimony with them. Jordan just keeps plowing ahead. pic.twitter.com/ORzHbZ72uQ  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 18, 2023

When Goldman asked Jordan to point to an exception in the rules that would allow him to withhold evidence, Jordan deflected. The whistleblower doesnt make committee rules sir, Goldman responded.

Best of Rolling Stone

Click here to read the full article.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Jane Hartley hosted the hit Netflix show's creator and cast at a reception in her magnificent London residence

Tom Dymond/Shutterstock

There were two ambassadors in the house on a recent spring evening  a real one and a fictional one, as actual diplomat Jane D. Hartley hosted The Diplomat star Keri Russell at the magnificent Winfield House.

Hartley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom, welcomed Russell and her fellow cast members on the hit Netflix show to the home in Londons Regents Park to both thank them for shining a light on the work of her colleagues at the U.S. embassy in London and to swap stories.

The real ambassador chatted with Russell, who plays fictional U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. Kate Wyler; real Deputy Chief of Mission Matthew Palmer schmoozed with Ato Essandoh, who plays his fictional counterpart, Stuart Hayford; and show creator Deborah Cahn explained the inspiration for The Diplomat (it originated while she was writing Homeland and she met a female diplomat).

Meanwhile, Rufus Sewell, who plays the raffish Hal Wyler; David Gyasi, who plays Foreign Secretary Dennison; and Ali Ahn, who plays CIA chief Eidra Park; were on hand to talk to foreign service personnel who are enjoying that their roles, in all their guises, are being appreciated and myths dispelled amidst the drama, as Aaron Snipe, spokesperson at the U.S. embassy, puts it.

Tom Dymond/Shutterstock

RELATED: Keri Russell & Matthew Rhys: Inside Their Love Story

The evening felt a little like a mutual admiration society, which is a dynamic that if youre a career foreign service office you would rarely, if ever, experience, Snipe adds.

I had a lovely chat with David, who plays the foreign secretary in the show, about my service in Iraq. As eager as we all were to meet the cast members who we saw on screen, they were just as eager to ask us about this part or that part of the job, he tells PEOPLE. Everyone was tickled by that.

The show has gripped real-life players and viewers alike to the point that embassy spokesman Snipe has compiled a viral hit of his own  a social media film showing some of the fact and fiction elements theyd spotted in the first episode.

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And fact versus fiction was a recurring theme of the evening. Ambassador Hartley jokingly reminded everyone that the job of deputy chief of mission is definitely not to bring me racks of clothing. No one tells me what to wear. (Spoiler alert: This takes place early on in the series.)

She added, I feel unbelievably lucky to have the absurdly talented Keri Russell playing me.

But she joked of her fictional counterparts romantic liaisons, I wont get into Kate Wylers special relationship with the foreign secretary.

Tom Dymond/Shutterstock

The new show has brought a microscope to the close ties that the ambassador has to have with the host government, and Hartley was fulsome in praise of current British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who  with his wife Susannah  was in the room, and with whom she has a close working relationship. Our job is to collaborate, negotiate and build trust with our host government, she said.

It is sadly rare for a woman to head up the British mission  Hartley is only the second woman to do so. The first was Anne Armstrong, 50 years ago in 1976.

As ambassador I care deeply about inspiring young woman in leadership roles. The Diplomat turns the camera on women in those leadership roles, Hartley told the group at her real-life residence (the one used in the show is a larger-looking stately home) on Tuesday.

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As well as highlighting women in leadership, the show  which is set for a second season after a successful first eight episodes  has also brought another benefit to Snipe and his team as they stress the great, close "special relationship" between his home country and the host.

This is also is a story that takes place against the backdrop of the U.K. and London at this moment. These relationships are at the center of the story. They are depicted in a much more dramatic fashion but the core is true," Snipe said. "We are coordinating every day so we can work on the great challenges of our time, like Ukraine or the climate.



The extent that the show has given us a platform and springboard to talk more about these things with the public is a win-win for everybody.

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The news that New York City was sending asylum seekers to hotels outside the five boroughs set off a frenzied reaction from officials in the Hudson Valley to the Southern Tier earlier this month.

Some vehemently disagreed with the citys decision, saying they were not informed the asylum seekers were being transported and didnt want their area hotels to essentially act as emergency shelters. Multiple counties, including Rockland and Orange, issued emergency orders and/or sued New York City to - at least temporarily - block hotels from accepting asylum seekers.

Oneida County, in Central New York, and Broome County, in the Southern Tier, announced emergency orders as well, even though it was unclear whether New York City ever planned to send migrants that far upstate.

Families of asylum seekers are led into the Ramada hotel in Yonkers onkers May 15, 2023. The families were being housed in New York City.

On the other end of the spectrum, Yonkers and Westchester County said they'd stand with the families who've already arrived at the Ramada by Wyndham on Tuckahoe Road. Officials there expect that 50 to 100 families will arrive at the hotel in total.

Heres what we know now about the migrant crisis in the Hudson Valley and beyond:

Mt. Pleasant issues emergency order over migrants, but NYC isn't sending any

In Mount Pleasant Town Supervisor Carl Fulgenzi's emergency declaration, he decried New York City's temporary relocation program and criticized the city for "shirking its housing responsibility and sending asylum seekers to the neighboring" areas.

But New York City is not sending asylum seekers to Mount Pleasant, and the town's own statement acknowledged Fulgenzi was acting on information received "not through direct communication."

Hudson Valley hotels sue towns for blocking migrants sent from NYC

The owners of five Hudson Valley hotels have widened a multi-county court battle over asylum seekers by suing New York counties and towns that are trying to block New York City's efforts to board migrants upstate.

The new suit returns fire at the same counties and towns that have sued the hotels and New York City to stop the transfer of refugees in the city's care. But it also broadens the legal fight, challenging the validity of executive orders that nearly two dozen other upstate counties have issued to try to head off temporary housing of migrants.

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Long Island counties say no to asylum seekers

Suffolk and Nassau county leaders have said they would not participate in relocation of immigrants from New York City. The town of Riverhead, in Suffolk, declared a state of emergency Tuesday, even though there are no documented plans yet to place asylum seekers there.

Orange County blocks further migrants, over 180 already there

Orange County and the town of Newburgh filed three lawsuits against the city and their local hotels last week in an attempt to block migrants from arriving.

Meanwhile, dozens of migrants arrived at the Crossroads Hotel in Newburgh last week. More than 180 asylum seekers are now living at Crossroads and the Ramada by Wyndham hotel on Route 300 in Newburgh.

Judge blocks more migrants in Orange Co Orange County judge halts new asylum seekers but lets 186 remain in two Newburgh hotels

Spano: 50 families headed to Yonkers Immigrants arrive in Yonkers: City seeks help, pledges support for families sent from NYC

On May 16, State Supreme Court Justice Sandra Sciortino, who's handling both the county suits and the town case, heard arguments from attorneys and agreed to suspend the placement of asylum seekers as of 11 a.m. Any migrants who were placed in Orange County hotels before then could stay, but if they leave the city cannot fill their spots.

County officials were told New York City had seven buses of asylum seekers en route to Orange when the judge issued her order blocking more placements. The city is unable to drop off those asylum seekers in Orange under the court order, which extends until at least June 21.

Yonkers accepting asylum seekers, addressing social services

The Ramada by Wyndham in Yonkers is now housing 38 individuals in 15 families, relocated from New York City.

Officials are now hearing that 50 to 100 families in total will arrive at the 100-room hotel - it is unclear how many people are part of each family, said Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano in a news conference on May 16.

Families of asylum seekers are led into the Ramada hotel in Yonkers onkers May 15, 2023. The families were being housed in New York City.

Now they are here and we will be very good neighbors, Spano said. It remains unknown how many families will be sent to Yonkers and how many people could be in each family.

New York City told Spano it was aiming to send children who are under school age, he said.

Yonkers facilitates placements in pre-K and "three-K" programs for any family who wants it. Any child is entitled to a free and appropriate public education in New York, with school attendance compulsory for all children between 6 and 16.

It's likely the children, who would be English language learners, could have special education needs and/or lack formal schooling, Spano added.

Yonkers Schools Superintendent Edwin Quezada noted that the district should also be prepared to provide adult education for the new arrivals.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

The Journal News/lohud reporter Nancy Cutler, The Journal News/lohud visual journalist Seth Harrison, New York State team reporter Chris McKenna contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: NY asylum seekers crisis: What we know now
Lewis Pullman's new movie The Starling Girl is playing in select theaters now

J. Countess/WireImage

Lewis Pullman soared the skies alongside Tom Cruise and Miles Teller in Top Gun: Maverick, but the 30-year-old actor and son of Hollywood star Bill Pullman keeps it grounded in his new indie drama The Starling Girl, co-starring Eliza Scanlen (Little Women).

"It's definitely a different character than I've played before," he tells PEOPLE of his role as a youth pastor within a fundamentalist Christian community in Kentucky. "I just started with trying to define what my purpose was in this story. It's the same with anything. As big as Top Gun was, it's the same kind of approach  just, 'Where do I fit into the Tetris of it all and how can I best elevate this story?' "

The Los Angeles native's famous father Bill, 69, has an extensive list of Hollywood credits that include blockbusters like Independence Day and comedies like Spaceballs. Lewis says his dad and his mother, dancer Tamara Hurwitz, never put any pressure on him to follow Bill's footsteps into acting.

"We're a real creative family," he says, noting that he and older siblings, Jack and Mesa, are "all performers in some realm."

"Once I decided that's what I wanted to do, my dad was never like, 'You've got to do it,' or 'You shouldn't do this,' " he says of making the decision to pursue acting. "He was just like 'Give it a shot. Whatever kaleidoscope you want to look at life through, if it feels good, do it.' "

Related:Bill Pullman Thinks His Son, Top Gun: Maverick's Lewis Pullman, Is 'a Better Actor' Than He Is

Courtesy Bleecker Street

Lewis admits that he was initially reluctant to seek his father's help navigating a career in acting, noting he was at first "ignorant in being like, 'I need to do it my own way.' "

"I quite quickly realized it was incredibly foolish not to utilize this remarkable resource that I had who happened to be my dad," he tells PEOPLE, adding that Bill's advice "is pretty invaluable because he knows me so well as a person."

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"He knows what gets me excited, what makes me nervous, what scares me," Lewis says. "And then he also has so much experience in the business and with the craft. So all of his advice is catered towards me. I don't know where I'd be at without it."

Kevin Mazur/Getty

Related:The Sinner's Bill Pullman Reveals the Secret to His Happy 33-Year Marriage with Tamara Hurwitz

Lewis' new movie follows a teenager named Jem (Scanlen) who "struggles to define her place within" her religious community as she finds her everyday hobbies "caught between a burgeoning awareness of her own sexuality and her religious devotion," per an official synopsis for the movie.

When youth pastor Owen (Lewis) returns to Jem's community, he "draws her into a dangerous relationship that could upend their entire community," the synopsis reads.

In addition to Lewis and Scanlen, the debut feature film from filmmaker Laurel Parmet also stars Jimmi Simpson, Wrenn Schmidt, Claire Elizabeth Green and Ellie May.

The Starling Girl is playing in select theaters now.

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LG Energy Solution reached a milestone in its massive expansion.

HOLLAND  LG Energy Solution Michigan celebrated the placement of the final steel beam for its "transformational" expansion on Tuesday, May 16.

Its a big milestone to let us know we are over the crest and on the home stretch, said LG Senior Manager Roger Traboulay.

More: 'Transformational' LG expansion could bring 1,000 jobs to Holland by 2025

More: Residents frustrated with excessive dust, late-night lights as LG expands

The addition was originally slated to be just shy of 1 million square feet, but Traboulay told WOOD TV-8 it's now nearly 1.7 million square feet.

LGs campus off 146th Avenue, west of I-196, opened in 2010. Once complete, it will be home to the companys North American production headquarters for lithium-ion battery manufacturing.

This is cutting-edge technology. This is the most modern electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant there is, Traboulay said. Bring back the automobile jobs to Michigan, what Michigan is known for. But bring it this time clean and state of the art.

The site will add 1,200 permanent, highly skilled jobs once its done in 2025.

Construction progress on LG Energy Solution's expansion as of Thursday, March 16, 2023.

Youre talking about high-paying operators, technicians, engineers, that category of worker, Traboulay said. And we do a lot of training.

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Jennifer Owners, president of economic development group Lakeshore Advantage, said the expansion will also support additional growth in the Holland area.

For the city of Holland and for the lakeshore to be sustainable and to actually conserve power makes a difference, Owens said. Its less power we have to generate. Its less fuel we have to produce. Its the right thing to do for the environment and the right thing to do for the community.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: LG Energy Solution places final beam for Holland expansion
Luxury fashion and lifestyle house Louis Vuitton has beautifully merged fragrance with the wellness culture of California with its latest "Pacific Chill" scent.

As the latest addition to the brand's parfum de cologne collection, it is the first of the portfolio to be dubbed a "wellness fragrance," according to master perfumer Jacques Cavallier Belletrud. "One morning in Los Angeles, while I was chatting with Alex Israel, we both ordered one of those detoxifying smoothies that Californians love. I was inspired by the vitamin-packed juice and said to Alex, 'I'm going to create a detox Cologne." Belletrud said in a press release.

"Pacific Chill" evokes an ethereal, floral scent bubble that tells an olfactory story of the daytime sun in California's lushest places to the twinkle of the city lights in Los Angeles. Belletrud formulated the scent profile to read like a drink at your favorite juice bar with notes of blackcurrant, carrot seed and aromatic herbs dashed with a hint of May rose for a floral appeal, adding depth and warmth to the sensorial experience.

"Pacific Chill" retails for $300 USD and is available via Louis Vuitton's website.
FPT Smart Cloud sets its sights on Indonesia: unleashing AI innovation to transform financial market

Armed with a rich portfolio of AI-driven solutions and backed by an illustrious track record, FPT Smart Cloud aims to empower businesses, optimise operations, and foster sustainable growth across various sectors, particularly the banking, finance and insurance industries in Indonesia  the largest economy in the Southeast Asia.

JAKARTA, Indonesia, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- With a proven track record of delivering cutting-edge AI solutions and an unrivaled expertise in the field, FPT Smart Cloud aims to replicate its success in Vietnam by bringing its innovative AI technologies to empower businesses and industries in Indonesia.

One notable recent event showcasing FPT Smart Cloud's capabilities and commitment to the finance sector was its participation in the Retail Banking Asia Summit, held in Jakarta on May 17. The event served as a platform for industry leaders to discuss the evolving role of data and AI in banking.

Among the attendees was Le Hong Viet, CEO of FPT Smart Cloud, who actively contributed to high-level panel discussions, sharing insights on harnessing the power of data and AI to drive innovation in the banking sector with other business leaders from Home Credit Indonesia, CIMB Bank, and OCBC INSP.

With a strategic focus on capturing the Banking, Finance, and Insurance (BFI) sector, FPT Smart Cloud aims to establish itself as a prominent player in the Indonesian AI market. However, questions were raised at the event regarding the increasing popularity of new technologies and the challenges and opportunities that AI solution developers like FPT Smart Cloud face in the rapidly evolving AI domain.

Viet highlighted the company's specialisation in developing conversational AI platforms that create task-oriented virtual agents for businesses.

"FPT Smart Cloud offers a comprehensive AI ecosystem that includes an AI platform and Cloud Computing services. This broader scope enables us to provide end-to-end AI solutions, from conversational AI and virtual assistant to automated operations and enhanced customer experiences," he said.

Mr. Le Hong Viet - CEO, FPT Smart Cloud - shares insights about "The growing role of Data Science and AI in Banking"

FPT Smart Cloud has solidified its position as the preferred AI partner for over 100 businesses worldwide through its flagship product, FPT.AI, serving millions of end-users in finance, insurance, banking, e-commerce, healthcare, and logistics.

Viet further emphasised that FPT.AI's Conversational platform helps clients automate up to 95 percent of customer engagement while significantly increasing customer satisfaction.

"Notably, one of our biggest clients in consumer finance, successfully serves more than six million customers through virtual assistants, resulting in substantial operational cost savings of up to 60 percent," he noted.

Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia with a population of over 270 million, is rapidly becoming a hotbed for technological advancements.

With an impressive AI adoption rate of approximately 24.6 percent, the highest among Southeast Asian nations, Indonesia has demonstrated its readiness to embrace cutting-edge technologies. The total contributions of AI applications to Indonesia's GDP from 2020 to 2030 are projected to reach a staggering $366 billion.

With a promising outlook and a fast-paced digital transformation journey, it comes as no surprise that FPT Smart Cloud has chosen to embark on this exciting venture.

On the product front, the company has developed and refined its natural language processing (NLP) technology for Bahasa Indonesia, covering both text and voice. FPT Smart Cloud's team of experts has collaborated with the Informatics & Business Institute Darmajay in Indonesia to jointly develop research projects on processing Bahasa Indonesia language.

Viet also revealed, "With a steadfast presence in Jakarta since 2017, our dedicated team of world-class professionals stands ready to offer unwavering support to clients and potential partners alike."

On the flip side, FPT Smart Cloud recognises the importance of cultural synergy between Vietnam and Indonesia. This cultural affinity lays a solid foundation for FPT Smart Cloud to seamlessly integrate with local businesses, co-create innovative solutions, and forge long-lasting partnerships that drive mutual growth and success.

Viet emphasised the company's determination, stating, "By leveraging its local team's deep understanding of the Indonesian business landscape, FPT Smart Cloud is well-positioned to provide comprehensive guidance and establish itself as a trusted partner for companies seeking growth and success in Indonesia."

Click here to read more about FPT.AI

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/fpt-smart-cloud-sets-its-sights-on-indonesia-unleashing-ai-innovation-to-transform-financial-market-301827231.html

SOURCE FPT Smart Cloud
The pair of ruby slippers were originally stolen from the Judy Garland museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005, before they were recovered by the FBI in 2018

Moviestore/Shutterstock

The man who allegedly stole a pair of Judy Garland's original Wizard of Oz ruby slippers has been charged.

Terry Martin was indicted by the U.S. District Court in Minnesota on Tuesday and charged with theft of major artwork, according to a press release obtained by PEOPLE.

Martin is accused of stealing a pair of ruby slippers from the Judy Garland Museum in the actress' hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005. There are just four remaining pairs of the iconic Wizard of Oz shoes, which the release described as being "among the most recognizable memorabilia in American film."

In 2018, the stolen pair of slippers were recovered by the FBI and the local police department. They currently remain in FBI custody.

The release estimated that the current market value of the pair of slippers is $3.5 million. At the time of the robbery, they were insured for $1 million.

Jeff Baenen/AP Photo

Related:The Wizard of Oz's Ruby Slippers Became Iconic 80 Years Ago  And for Years, One Pair Was Lost

The ruby slippers were stolen in 2005 from the back of the museum, where they were being kept, CBS reported. They were on loan to the museum at the time by Michael Shaw, a private collector.

In a 2016 documentary The Slippers, CNN reported that Shaw had asked the museum not to put the slippers in a vault overnight to limit the amount they were handled. "But most importantly, I was assured that the museum had security," Shaw said.

"The biggest thing that ever happened to our museum was getting the slippers stolen," Jon Miner, a museum co-founder, told KQDS, a CNN affiliate, in 2015. "We were literally crying."

Over 10 years after the heist, the slippers were eventually located during an FBI sting operation in Minneapolis, according to a press release. The authenticity of the pair was validated by conservators who compared them to one of the other three pairs, which resides in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.

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Courtesy Everett Collection

Related:Long-Lost Wizard of Oz Dress Worn by Judy Garland Blocked from Auction amid Dispute Over Ownership

After handling the case alone since 2005, the Grand Rapids Police Department requested FBI assistance in 2017, when they discovered a burgeoning scheme to defraud and extort the Markel Corporation  the organization that owns the slippers.

"When the slippers were snatched in the early morning burglary, the thieves not only took the slippers, they took a piece of history that will be forever connected to Grand Rapids and one of our city's most famous children," Grand Rapids Police Chief Scott Johnson said in the release. "We were confident this day would eventually come, and we are grateful to the FBI and all those who worked to bring this piece of cinematic treasure out of the shadows and into the light."

He added, in a nod to the iconic film: "After all, 'There's no place like home.' "

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Dorothy's red slippers are not the only artifact from the classic film to have gone missing in recent years.

One of the blue gingham dresses Garland wore in the film was missing for over four decades before being discovered at Catholic University in Washington D.C. in 2021.

Matt Ripa, a lecturer and operations coordinator for the drama department at the school, accidentally discovered the long-lost artifact  which was originally gifted to the school in the 1970s  while cleaning his office. The outfit later went missing just a year after that.

"I noticed on top of the faculty mailboxes a trash bag and asked my co-worker to hand it to me," Ripa wrote in a story published by the university. "On the trash bag was a note for our former chair stating that he had found 'this' in his office and that he must have moved it when he moved out of the chair's office.  I was curious what was inside and opened the trash bag and inside was a shoebox and inside the shoe box was the dress! I couldn't believe it."

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Read the original article on People.
Jason Wysong, pictured, was chosen to be Manatee County's next superintendent of schools. Wysong was a deputy superintendent for Seminole County Public Schools and holds an education doctorate from the University of Central Florida.

At a special meeting Tuesday morning, the Manatee County School Board selected Jason Wysong by a vote of 4-1 as the school district's next superintendent.

Wysong, 45, will start following Cynthia Saunders' retirement on June 30. Saunders had been superintendent of the Manatee School District since June 2018 and announced her retirement last October.

Wysong, a deputy superintendent for Seminole County Public Schools since 2021, holds an education doctorate from the University of Central Florida. He was among three finalists for the position, along with Scott Schneider, chief of schools for Duval County Public Schools, and Doug Wagner, the deputy superintendent of operations at the Manatee School District.

I am honored by todays vote and excited to join the Manatee County community, Wysong said in a statement. Thank you to the School Board members for their thoughtful deliberation and support."

More: DeSantis signs bill banning funding for diversity programs at Florida public colleges

Class of COVID: Sarasota-area high school seniors share experiences through a pandemic

Higher Ed: New College campus cafe re-opens with vendor tied to Interim President Corcoran

Some board members expressed doubt about all three of the finalists. Mary Foreman made a motion to extend the search by two weeks, which failed by a 4-1 vote. She said she didn't have confidence in any of the three finalists for the position, and that the district didn't bring in the best candidates because of other openings in Florida, internal candidates for the position and Florida's open government laws deterring people from applying.

Cindy Spray said she didn't feel any of the three finalists "checked all the boxes" for her, as she was specifically looking for a background in finances. She said she wasn't sure any of the candidates were the right choice for Manatee County.

"We need to keep looking," she said, adding that she wanted to "let the dust settle" because of how many districts statewide were also searching for a superintendent.

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Following debate that considered other applicants and extending the deadline, the board eventually moved to hire Wysong.

Now we know moving forward that once Superintendent Saunders retires, we have a leader, a very capable leader, said board Chairman Chad Choate, who was the dissenting vote. We are excited to get him in and get the negotiations done to give him the reins starting in July.

Richard Tatem expressed that he wasn't sure if it was worth extending the process or appointing an interim. He emphasized the scope of the search and said anyone who was interested was given ample opportunity to apply. Tatem said Wysong exuded a "humble confidence" in the board's one-on-one interview, and that he was mature for his age.

Sarasota County schools

Sarasota County is also searching for a new superintendent, after the School Board late last year forced out Brennan Asplen as the district's top administrator.

The board hired a search firm, McPherson & Jacobson LLC, to assist in the process and conduct a series of meetings with the community and employees to compile information on qualities and characteristics people want in the next superintendent.

The Manatee School Board alluded to Sarasota's firing of Asplen during its discussion on contract terms, as several board members floated clauses that would protect a superintendent from being fired following a school board election.

"Some of the decisions other boards have made in regards to terminating superintendents right after an election was hasty," Foreman said. "Had they possibly had time to work with and cooperate with the superintendent, it could have had a different result,"

Sarasota district leaders plan to hire a superintendent by late July or early August.

Follow Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Steven Walker on Twitter at @swalker_7. He can be reached at sbwalker@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Manatee School Board hires Wysong as district's next superintendent
Milwaukee Excellence plans to move all students back to its first building at 4950 N. 24th St.

Milwaukee Excellence, an independently run charter school, plans to drop one of its buildings and downsize into its original location this fall, as enrollment at the school has fallen.

The school is asking to terminate the lease on its high school campus, which is a Milwaukee Public Schools building known as the former Happy Hill school, 7171 W. Brown Deer Road. School board members will consider the request at a meeting Thursday night.

Milwaukee Excellence CEO Rodney Lynk Jr. said in an email to the Journal Sentinel that the high school students will move into unused classrooms at the school's original location, 4950 N. 24th St., which is also leased from MPS and has continued serving the school's younger grades.

"Our decision to consolidate to one location is centered around our students and driven by the opportunity to maximize the work of our teacher and leadership teams," Lynk said in an email to the Journal Sentinel.

Milwaukee Excellence is a non-instrumentality charter school of MPS, meaning it is run by non-MPS employees but is granted status as a public school by authorization from the district. Non-instrumentality charter schools must sign a lease with MPS in order to use MPS buildings.

The school has had a bumpy couple years. Former CEO Maurice Thomas was ousted in 2021 amid allegations he had violated the school's code of conduct. The school has uprooted high school students twice in the last two school years in search of the right building, and enrollment has dropped.

More: Here's what charter schools are and how they work in Wisconsin

Milwaukee Excellence looks to make third move in three years

Milwaukee Excellence had been growing consistently since its beginning in 2016 serving sixth-graders. The school added a grade level each year, finally adding 12th grade this past fall.

In 2021, school leaders said they had outgrown their first building and asked MPS for another space for about 300 high school students.

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For the 2021-22 school year, MPS Superintendent Keith Posley rushed to get Milwaukee Excellence a lease to use the third floor of Andrew S. Douglas, a MPS middle school where MPS students continued using the other floors.

Going into this school year, Milwaukee Excellence secured a four-year lease with MPS for the vacant Happy Hill campus, where it had its own space for its high school students.

But enrollment stalled this school year, dropping from 591 students to 544, despite the addition of 12th-graders, according to state data.

The school is expecting to have just 400-500 students next school year in all its grades, six through 12, Lynk said.

Lynk, who didn't respond to an interview request, said in an email to the Journal Sentinel that moving the high school students back with the other students will allow for more program options.

"This also allows Milwaukee Excellence to provide additional instruction in the form of academic tutoring and a wider array of after-school extracurriculars, while addressing concerns from families about the far west side location of our high school in 2022-2023," Lynk wrote.

Milwaukee Excellence will save money on lease change, if approved

Under Milwaukee Excellence's current lease for the high school building, the school had to pay about $318,000 this school year and was set to pay about $325,000 next school year.

While the school is asking to terminate that lease, it has agreed with administrators to pay more for its original building as students will use more of the building. If approved by the school board, the school will pay about $387,000 for the building next school year, up about $99,000 from what it had previously planned to pay for less space.

According to the most recent lease, the school was using only about 40,000 square feet of its original building. It is asking to amend the lease to include about 53,000 square feet. Lynk said the school will open an unused wing that has at least 12 classrooms.

Milwaukee Excellence's lease for the high school was supposed to extend into 2026 but it allowed for either party to terminate it with 60 days notice before July 1 each year. Milwaukee Excellence made the request in March, according to school board materials.

Contact Rory Linnane at rory.linnane@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @RoryLinnane.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Excellence charter school to close Happy Hill high school
Ken Baker and Cocoa

What becomes a Legend most ?

Barbara Streisand, Lauren Bacall, Bette Davis, Judy Garland, Joan Crawford, Lena Horne, Brigitte Bardot, Maria Callas, Carol Burnett, Carol Channing, Ethel Merman, Raquel Welch, Julie Andrews, Sophia Loren, Lucille Ball, Ann-Margret, Cher, Audrey Hepburn, Cindy Crawford, and Ray CharlesWhat do they have in common?

The year was 1968. During the first week of February, Viet Congs Tet Offensive killed 543 Americans. Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis on April 4 and Robert F. Kennedy in Los Angeles on June 6. At the end of August, Chicago Mayor Richard Daleys riot police clashed with protesters outside the chaotic Democratic National Convention.

In October, Olympic Gold and Silver medalists Tommie Smith and John Carlos bowed their heads and raised a black-gloved fist during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the summer games in Mexico City. And on Election Day in November, Richard Nixon beat Hubert Humphrey, with former Alabama Governor, segregationist George Wallace, capturing 13.5% of the popular vote and five southern states.

On Christmas Eve, astronauts Jim Lovell, Bill Anders and Frank Borman orbited the moon 10 times, with Lovell radioing back to NASA. Houston, please be informed there is a Santa Claus.

And also in 1968, Richard Avedon photographed 26-year-old Barbara Streisand in the first of what would become a remarkable decades-long, promotional campaign. She was wearing mink.

An American mink in the wild.

Mink fur campaign relied on celebrities wearing the product

A Blackglama mink.

A few months beforehand, the Great Lakes Mink Association (GLMA), breeders of a distinctive black-furred mink for the fur trade, hired a New York advertising firm to promote their product. Copywriter Jane Trahey suggested the name Blackglama, an ingenious amalgam of GLMA with the concept of glamour.

More: Thousands of minks released by vandals in Ohio

But dark fur doesnt photograph well, so Trahey also conceived of the brilliant marketing strategy of linking the furs to instantly recognizable celebrities. Each year, one celebrity would be the featured model, someone so famous no name need be mentioned in the ad. Above the striking black-and-white photo was the slogan, What becomes a Legend most? Below, just the word, Blackglama.

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After Streisand, some of the worlds most famous women (and a few men like Ray Charles) would model for the enormously successful Blackglama campaign.

But times change. In January 2023 California became the first state to ban the sale and manufacture of new animal fur products within its borders. Similar legislation is under consideration in New York, which is interesting; in 2017, the two states comprised 43% of all new fur sales in the country. The ban does not prohibit owning or wearing furs or the sale of used furs, and it does not apply to other animal products used for clothing such as leather or shearling.

Across much of the world the popularity of fur has been in decline, for both ethical concerns and shifting tastes in fashion. In Europe, annual mink production decreased from 45 million in 2014 to 12 million in 2021, and 19 countries, including France, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands and the UK have banned fur farming.

Minks are common and territorial

Although most urban dwellers may never see one, American mink are surprisingly common. Last fall, Deb and I had come to the intersection of US 224 and Ohio 18 just outside of Tiffin. We had a green light, but traffic was stopped in all directions as a sleek, two-and-a-half-foot long mink, the color of a cup of dark roast coffee and as thick in body as my forearm, bounded diagonally across the intersection. It was about 9 a.m.

Despite that one sighting, minks are primarily active at night. They are semiaquatic, fiercely carnivorous mammals that feed on all manner of vertebrate prey, from frogs and fish to mice, shrews and muskrats. On several occasions Ive walked across the ice of a frozen swamp to inspect a muskrat lodge, only to find a skull lying beside a neatly drilled hole through the reeds and cattails with which the rodent had built the lodge.

Minks are highly territorial animals, and adult males will commonly fight to the death on meeting. Their long and narrow territories can stretch for several miles along a river or marsh, although they typically spend most of their time within one or two core areas with good prey availability.

American minks (Neogale vison) and the distantly related European minks (Mustela lutreola) are both highly sensitive to SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID, with 35-55% mortality reported in a study of farmed mink in Utah. In 2020 Denmark, formerly the worlds leading producer of farmed mink, slaughtered its entire population of 17 million mink to stop the spread of a mutated strain of the virus which had infected 12 humans.

The accidental and intentional (by animal rights activists) release of American minks from farms in Europe have been listed as one of a number of factors for the precipitous decline in European mink in recent years. American minks are larger, more aggressive and more flexible in habitat use than their European cousins.

Ken Baker is a retired professor of biology and environmental studies. If you have a natural history topic you would like Dr. Baker to consider for an upcoming column, please email your idea to fre-newsdesk@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Baker: Mink furs popular in the 1960s have lost their alure
In the throes of Hirokazu Kore-Edas latest narrative Cannes competition film Monster are two boys learning about their feelings for one another.

There havent been many Japanese films that address these topics, acknowledged the 2018 Shoplifters Palme dOr winner, speaking at a Thursday press conference for the film, about the LGBTQ themes among the young boys in Monster.

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When I discovered the screenplay, I thought to myself, this story should not be viewed from that angle. Its an inner struggle, he added.

Monster follows Saori (Ando Sakura), a take-no-prisoners widowed mother bringing up her son Minato (Kurokawa Soya), who is weathering tough times in his elementary school. Mom learns that sons odd behavior may have to do with his teacher, who Minato says hit him. The pic is told from several different points of view, including that of the teacher, Hori (Nagayama Eita), Minato, and the friend he adores, Yori (Hiiragi Hinata).

The feelings that are kindled in these young children are sometimes expressed violently toward other people, or sometimes children turn against themselves, said Kore-Eda, who shot off of Yuji Sakamotos script.

Expounding on how he respected the LGBTQ issues in the film, the director said, Its the birth of emotions, of feelings. Its difficult to put in words to what one feels.

RELATED: Cannes Film Festival Full Coverage

The film shows how these children try to rise above this situation, he emphasized.

As progress on the film was made, we met with some experts who take care of children who have to deal with some of these issues. We received a very detailed opinion on this topic.

Story continues

Last night in its Cannes world premiere, Monster nabbed a six-minute standing ovation.

Monster is Kore-Edas ninth movie overall at Cannes (counting two that appeared in Un Certain Regard). Monster is his first movie since his 1995 debut feature Maborosi that the director has not had a screenplay credit on.

Kore-Eda took home the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury last year at Cannes for another family drama, Broker, which centers around abandoned babies and those who find homes for them. He won the Jury Prize in 2013 for Like Father, Like Son, which also received the Ecumenical Jury Prize.

RELATED: Cannes Film Festival 2023 In Photos

Nagayama Eita was asked to give his interpretation of the title: Personally, I dont even understand or even know. Is it the monster in one self? Outside of one self? Each spectator has to find his own answer. All the answers are right.

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Trump Indictment (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

President Joe Biden would be vaulted to a massive lead over former president Donald Trump if he faces further criminal charges from the federal and state criminal investigations into his conduct, according to a new poll obtained by The Independent.

The poll of 1,571 registered voters was conducted by WPA Research, a Republican polling firm. The CEO of WPA is an adviser to Never Back Down, the Super PAC supporting Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, but the survey was conducted independently without his input and was not sponsored by the Super PAC.

It found that voters currently prefer Mr Biden over Mr Trump by a margin of 47 per cent to 40 per cent, including a 14-point lead for the sitting president among registered Independents.

Thats five points worse than the nine-point deficit among Independents that led to Mr Trump losing to Mr Biden in 2020.

The twice-impeached ex-president would also be a drag for down-ballot Republicans if he appears on the top line of a 2024 general election ballot, with Democrats holding a five-point advantage on a generic congressional ballot, 47 per cent to 42 per cent.

Although the WPA poll found dismal polling results for Mr Trump at the time of the survey, his chances of beating Mr Biden would become even more remote if he were to face charges from the state and federal prosecutors currently weighing whether to seek indictments against the ex-president.

According to the survey, the seven-point deficit between the former and current president would grow by ten points if he is indicted by Fulton County, Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis, the prosecutor who supervised a special grand jury probe into Mr Trumps efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the Peach State.

Were Ms Willis to successfully seek an indictment against Mr Trump from a grand jury, Mr Bidens advantage would grow to ten points, 49 per cent to 39 percent.

Among Independents, Mr Trumps deficit would grow to 21 points, with 50 per cent saying theyd vote for Mr Biden if he is indicted in Georgia compared with 29 percent who said theyd vote for the ex-president.

Story continues

The investigation into Mr Trumps alleged unlawful retention of classified documents would put him in slightly more electoral peril if the prosecutor overseeing that probe, Special Counsel Jack Smith, convinces a grand jury to approve charges against the former president.

If Mr Smith successfully obtains an indictment against Mr Trump, he would face an 11-point deficit against Mr Biden, who would lead him by a margin of 50 per cent to 39 per cent.

Mr Bidens advantage among Independents would be 21 points strong, 50 per cent to 30 per cent.

The survey did find that 68 per cent of Republicans would definitely vote for the ex-president if he is indicted in either case, but Mr Bidens margin against him would nonetheless grow because Mr Trump would lose five percentage points of support from GOP voters.

Losing five per cent of Republican support would give Mr Biden two more percentage points of support from GOP voters, rising from five per cent to seven per cent.

Mr Trumps share of GOP respondents who said theyd probably vote to give a second term also falls from 13 per cent to nine per cent if he is indicted in Georgia, and the number of currently undecided self-identified GOP voters would increase from nine to 10 per cent if he is indicted in Georgia, with that number growing to 11 per cent if he is indicted by a federal grand jury;

Amanda Iovino, a Principal at WPA, said in a statement that Mr Biden would be spared a much-needed one-way trip to Delaware if Mr Trump ends up the GOP nominee in next years general election.

Contrary to what one may hear on Truth Social, Trumps indictment, in either the pending Georgia or federal cases, would energize Democrats, not Republicans, potentially producing the worst loss for a GOP presidential candidate in 60 years. In the process, Republicans would lose control of the House and forego pick-up opportunities in the Senate, she said.
Man holding padlock in front of the Netflix logo

With Netflix's self-imposed deadline looming for its crackdown on people who share their password with friends or relatives who live elsewhere (it has said it expects this to be in place by the end of June), the company has started to warn some internet providers in the UK that they should expect angry calls and support questions soon.

As reported by the Financial Times, Netflix is telling broadband companies that offer bundles with Netflix subscriber access as part of the monthly fee to prepare for some blowback over the decision.

A huge number of people won't realize it's coming, of course, so the first they'll know about it is when Netflix starts asking them to decide which location should count as their 'home' address', and will then start demanding an extra charge if they want to keep sharing with people in other locations.

We don't yet know what they charge will be in the US and UK  Netflix has been varying it depending on the country and says that charges in more "affluent" countries will be larger. This can vary between neighbors, even. In Spain, it's charging 5.99 (~$6.48 / ~A$9.75) for the privilege of doing what people currently do, while in Portugal it's charging 3.99 (~$4.32 / ~A$6.50). It tested $2.99 in the US at one point, but that's far from confirmed.

Netflix is right to warn broadband providers about this, of course. It's one thing for the price of a service to go up, but it's another thing for an option you have now to be taken away and then sold back to you as a paid upgrade.

According to research shared by The Guardian, in the UK (where Netflix is making these warnings), about a quarter of Netflix subscribers share their password with someone else  and not all of them will know to read our guide to Netflix's password-sharing crackdown.

So there's potentially a lot of people who are about to find that only has their Netflix subscription just become worse value  their whole internet subscription has. And they won't be happy.

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Analysis: Netflix is happy to endure the pain

This new information really proves that Netflix is certain that it can weather the storm over its password sharing clampdown, indicating that it believes the new rules are worth it in the long run.

Netflix has said that it knows it will get a lot of cancellations when the change happens, but believes people who leave will come back, and the change is worth the extra money it will bring in.

Netflix has said that in Canada, where the password-sharing rules are already active, it has actually grown its paid subscriber numbers.

We're still not sure this is a such a good idea when Netflix is still infuriating fans by cancelling acclaimed shows after just one season  the danger isn't people cancelling over one thing, it's the straw breaking the camel's back.

And the larger worry is that this will only be the tip of the iceberg  if all the best streaming services follow this lead, things will become a lot more expensive for people, not just a small extra charge from one service. There will definitely be a long string of cancellations to come in that case.

In any case, if you're borrowing someone else's password for your Netflix access, you'd better get to bingeing the best Netflix movies and best Netflix shows ASAP.
Tutor Kate Aicole works with Davis Hernadez-Reyez during a tutoring session March 8, 2023, at Dyslexia Reading Connection in Appleton, Wis.

As early as kindergarten, Robin Pierre started to notice that her daughter, Hattie, was falling behind. She wasnt able to read the books they were sending home, despite being in a charter school known for its focus on literacy.

Hattie started working with a reading interventionist during kindergarten and throughout first grade. But then her behavior started to escalate. She'd hide under desks and run out of the classroom. She was moved to another charter school for second grade, one focused on play-based learning and field trips in hopes that environment would better suit her.

All this time, Hatties trouble reading persisted. Pierre asked to have her evaluated for special education.

Hattie was assessed; but when Pierre asked questions about dyslexia, she said the school told her they dont acknowledge dyslexia without a diagnosis, and that could only come from brain imaging.

It was a fight at first, Pierre said.

Dyslexia looks different for each person who has it. Its a neurobiological learning disability that can make it difficult for people to decode words and read fluently. People with dyslexia may struggle with spelling and reading comprehension as a result of their challenge matching letters to their corresponding sounds.

The International Dyslexia Association estimates that as many as one in five people could have symptoms of dyslexia, ranging in severity.

Often, people assume that dyslexia is just mixing up letters such as "b" and "d." It can be that for some people  Pierre said Hattie experienced that  but its not the only symptom. For example, people with dyslexia might struggle with slow, choppy reading, memorization or even constantly confuse left and right. It ranges on a spectrum from mild to severe.

More: By the Book: We're investigating why many Wisconsin kids struggle to read. We want to hear from you.

More: A bipartisan consensus could be growing on how to teach reading statewide

Story continues

For Hattie, reading was "labor-intensive." She'd often read a sentence three times before she'd actually comprehend what it said. The first few reads were spent trying to identify the sounds for each letter and then trying to put them all together more smoothly, so she could get to the point of comprehension.

Currently, Wisconsin does not require students to be screened specifically for dyslexia, but the state passed legislation three years ago to create an informational guidebook on dyslexia and related conditions to be shared on the state Department of Public Instruction and all school district websites.

In the years since the guidebook was created, Wisconsin and the rest of the country has turned up the volume on a discussion about literacy after standardized test scores have shown significant declines in language arts during the pandemic.

But those conversations usually dont include students with dyslexia. Families are often left on their own to get their children tested, diagnosed and supported through outside tutoring. And local tutoring agencies are feeling the burden of an increased need to support these students, who are now often even further behind because of the pandemic.

Its something the public school should have done; they should have been able to teach her how to read, Pierre said.

What Wisconsin school districts do to support students with dyslexia

By state law, schools are required to screen students in 4K through second grade annually for literacy fundamentals. This includes letter sound knowledge and something called phonemic awareness  the ability to identify individual sounds within a word  which are generally two areas of difficulty for students with dyslexia.

DPI told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin these requirements are generally agreed upon to be components of screening for dyslexia. If a screening indicates they needs more testing, there are additional screening options listed in the states guidebook that parents and teachers can consider.

More: Most Appleton students aren't reading at grade level. Here's how the district plans to fix that

In 2021, Republican lawmakers proposed tripling the number of literacy tests for young students to boost low proficiency rates, but Gov. Tony Evers vetoed the bill, saying it lacked evidence and funding.

The state may mandate early screening, but district by district, the overall approach to literacy can look different.

The Menasha Joint School District is focused on being diagnostic with students, said Renae Braun, the district's literacy coordinator.

It does this by screening students in kindergarten through eighth grade three times a year. Those screenings look at students comprehension, fluency and knowledge of phonics. Through those, the district identifies a student's strengths and areas of concern.

For students behind grade level or who show other challenges on those screenings, the district creates an individual plan  called a Response to Intervention plan  to help them catch up. It focuses on strengthening areas of concern.

More: 'Science of reading,' whole language,' 'balanced literacy': How can Wisconsin resolve its reading wars and teach kids to read?

There isnt one method that works for teaching literacy to all students. But Braun said students with dyslexia need explicit teaching and multiple modalities  a combination of visual, auditory and tactile.

We do dipstick check-ins every two weeks or every week to make sure the plan is accelerating or growing our students, she said.

Both Menasha and Kimberly school districts see teacher expertise as vital to teaching students who struggle with literacy, whether it's diagnosed dyslexia or other challenges.

The Kimberly Area School District added a phonological interventionist to its staff in August 2022. The role was designed to be an in-house expert on decoding and fluency, according to Holly Prast, assistant superintendent.

This interventionist is trained in a specific dyslexia intervention, among other reading interventions, and works with students directly, Prast said. They also collaborate with teachers to provide new strategies to support students who are struggling.

Many districts have hired reading interventionists to support students through pandemic-induced learning loss, but Prast said Kimberly decided to add a phonological interventionist independently of that.

A pair of tutoring sessions take place at Dyslexia Reading Connection on Wednesday, March 8, 2023 in Appleton, Wis.

Carrie Willer, director of elementary education for the Appleton Area School District, echoed the need for a variety of teaching methods to support students. The number of students in any given classroom is the number of different learning styles teachers need to work with, she explained.

You need a full bag of tricks and a full bag of tools to meet each of those students, she said.

Appleton has interventionists, teachers trained in a one-on-one reading recovery program and other methods of support, including small group work and collaboration with parents.

Still, fewer than half of Appleton students are reading at or above grade level.

A recent audit of the districts English language arts curriculum showed a need for more emphasis on phonics and letter sound awareness  strategies that would better support students with dyslexia in the classroom.

Many families with students with dyslexia have to turn to outside tutoring

When Hattie eventually qualified for special education, the district focused only on her ADHD diagnosis. So, not only did Pierre pay out of pocket for neurological exams, but she had to fight to get the district to even recognize the dyslexia diagnosis in her individual education plan.

It was around then that Pierre found Dyslexia Reading Connection, a nonprofit tutoring organization based in Appleton. That was four years ago, and Hattie has gone twice a week ever since  even through the summers.

DRC has been around for almost 20 years, but there's been increased demand since the pandemic, said Kimberly Stevens, executive director. Earlier this year, there were 50 students on the waitlist  five times as many as the organization had pre-COVID. And Stevens said new students are coming in for consultations every week.

Today, Hattie is caught up to grade level and has even become "quite an avid reader," Pierre said. She credits that success more to the tutoring she paid for from DRC than what the public schools provided.

"I didn't think this day would come," she said.

When asked how often Dyslexia Reading Connection is screening students for dyslexia, Stevens said, constantly. It tries to keep screenings to about five students a week since the Appleton-based nonprofit is already tutoring more than 110 students online and in person.

But its not just an increase in the number of students. Stevens said students are coming in further and further behind. Before the pandemic, students would come to DRC a year and nine months behind, on average. Now, its not uncommon for students to be three or even four years behind where they should be.

Parents are desperate to get their kids the right interventions, Stevens told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin.

While DRC cant offer a medical diagnosis, the screening it offers is about an hour long and can usually tell with a high degree of certainty whether the student has dyslexia, Stevens said. After the screening results are explained to the parents, its up to them whether they want to move forward with tutoring. Its first come, first served, since there's a waitlist, but a familys scheduling availability may be considered.

Violet Lane answers a question during a session March 8, 2023, with tutor Winnie Mejia at Dyslexia Reading Connection in Appleton, Wis.

On average, students spend four years with DRC working through 10 levels of tutoring that will bring them up to a 10th-grade reading level.

The tutoring starts by breaking language into its smallest parts: individual vowels and consonants. As the levels progress, students move on to syllables, prefixes and suffixes, vowel placement in a word and even influences from foreign languages such as Latin and Greek root words.

Karrie Brass, a tutor at DRC, said her husband, who has dyslexia, uses a car engine analogy to explain it: The brains of students without dyslexia works like driving an automatic transmission when learning to read, spell and write. They dont need to work through every step of processing language. Most of it happens under the hood without conscious thought.

But for students with dyslexia, their brains are more like driving a car with a manual transmission. They need to shift gears, understand the specifics of how letters make sounds and work through each step of the process; otherwise, it won't be a smooth ride.

Life after high school for students with dyslexia

Hattie is still making her way through middle school, but Pierre said Hattie has dreams of going to college one day.

And shes not alone.

Take, for example, Meghan Molthen.

A freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Molthen was diagnosed with dyslexia the summer before sixth grade. She struggled to spell simple words and saw her classmates read at much higher levels than her, but she didnt understand why until she got her diagnosis.

Figuring out that she had dyslexia helped give shape to the reason why she was struggling, but it didnt fix everything. Molthen went to school in Fort Atkinson before moving to Pulaski her sophomore year, so she experienced two districts and their approaches to supporting her dyslexia.

Although a diagnosis made accessing certain supports simpler, Molthen said there were still challenges because the school systems didn't understand "how to fully accommodate students with learning disabilities."

When she toured UW-Oshkosh in summer 2021, she asked the admissions office about accommodations for students with learning disabilities. They told her about a program called Project Success.

Project Success is a remedial program for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities at the school. It starts with a six-week summer program focused on phonics and teaching students the relationship between letters and sounds.

Director Jayme Reichenberger said the program has a reading and writing component, but it also supports students in other ways through the transition from high school to college. By completing the summer program, students can earn up to six credits, which can be a helpful GPA cushion for those early, stressful semesters of college.

Students also learn about what laws protect their accommodations and what services are available to them. Reichenberger said many students come in not really understanding their diagnosis. They might have attended meetings during their K-12 education, but a lot of them didnt put a name to their disability.

Its not uncommon for Reichenberger to hear students say that their dyslexia was essentially ignored, so she said they try hard to actually say the word "dyslexia." There are even campus events where students will write messages like Say dyslexia on the sidewalk.

When a disability is hidden, its easy to stereotype and have misconceptions about it, Reichenberger said.

For Molthen, the program gave her agency over her learning disability. She had a hard time even talking about her dyslexia before, but Project Success taught her how to see it as a benefit.

Im so thankful I have it, she said of her dyslexia. It pushes me to be a better person.

This story is part of the NEW (Northeast Wisconsin) News Lab's fourth series, "Families Matter," covering issues important to families in the region. The lab is a local news collaboration in northeast Wisconsin made up of six news organizations: the Green Bay Press-Gazette, Appleton Post-Crescent, FoxValley365, The Press Times, Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Watch. The University of Wisconsin-Green Bays Journalism Department is an educational partner. Microsoft is providing financial support to the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation and Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region to fund the initiative. The mission of the lab is to collaborate to identify and fill information gaps to help residents explore ways to improve their communities and lives  and strengthen democracy.

READ THE SERIES:

Reach AnnMarie Hilton at ahilton@gannett.com or 920-370-8045. Follow her on Twitter at @hilton_annmarie.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Wisconsin students with dyslexia may struggle with literacy, school
Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny

The fifth Indiana Jones movie, The Dial Of Destiny, got its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival today, where a whole bunch of people who are not you (or us, for that matter) got to watch James Mangolds attempt to tackle the Harrison Ford-focused franchise in all its Phoebe Waller-Bridge is also in this glory. These people (who are not us, or you, which is fine, really) have then reported back on whether the film worksand, very specifically, if Mangold has made an Indy movie more palatable to audiences than 2008's Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.

The answer to which appears to be an overwhelming, Yeah, not bad! Take, for instance, the read from Varietys Clayton Davis, which is one of the more effusive of the bunch, declaring the film a redemption for the franchise. Radio Times similarly gave it a 4 out of 5which is looking to be the median herepraising Mangold and his team for not tossing on too many franchise Easter eggs. (That same write-up does note that the film plays things pretty safe with its plotting, at least until its ending, which is a common refrain were seeing from most of the reactionsbut thats not, like, the worst thing in the world.)

Read more

Looking around the early reviews (including Total Film, South China Morning Post, The Irish Times, and more), were mostly struck by what were not seeing: No complaints about the CGI used to de-age Harrison Ford at various points; no complaints about compromising the movies pace in any way. The overall verdict is that Mangold has made a perfectly acceptable Indiana Jones, and that, even if Dial Of Destiny cant quite match up to the original trilogy, it still serves as a fitting, happily non-embarrassing end point for Fords tenure with the series.

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That being said, there was one metric the film pretty clearly failed on: The all-important Court Of Claps, with the movie getting only, per Variety, a meager five-minute standing ovation from the Cannes audience. Five minutes? Barely enough time for your hands to turn red. Someone should be ashamed; well know how hard we want to clap for it when the film finally arrives in theaters on June 30.

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Reuters/Jason Miczek

A Florida middle-school teacher who had his class watch a self-made, pro-Confederacy video for Confederate History Month has filed a complaint against his school district for launching an investigation into his questionable teaching practices.

Collier County Public Schools looked into a video that Manatee Middle School social studies teacher Jonathan Papanikolaou had his students watch during morning announcements on April 12, local outlet ABC 7 Southwest Florida reported.

Every year, our state celebrates and memorializes that valiant, brave fight and the countless sacrifices by our men and women during that known as the Civil War, but may be more correctly titled the War To Prevent Southern Independence, Papanikolaou reportedly narrated in the video.

In the lesson, Papanikolaou allegedly taught about slaves and property rights, over taxation and a variety of violations of states right and sovereignty, according to ABC 7.

Collier County Public Schools told The Daily Beast that its employee review committee met on April 27 and May 11, and went through a 90-page report about Papanikolaous Confederacy lesson. Ultimately the committee found that the lesson didnt go against the schools curriculum and there was no just cause for discipline despite outrage from parents and community members.

A district spokesperson also told The Daily Beast that morning announcements had been evaluated, and were previewed before they were presented to students.

The Manatee Middle School principal met with his staff to openly discuss the issues, and he continues to maintain open lines of communication for students, staff, and parents on this and any other school-related issue, the spokesperson said.

But one Manatee parent, Christina Cooper, told ABC7, I think theres just cause for some type of disciplinary action.

Whats more, Papanikolaou then filed a complaint against the review committee, claiming the investigation caused a hostile work environment because colleagues were asking why hes racist.

Story continues

In the complaint, Papanikolaou said the ordeal has caused [him] grief and awkwardness in classroom and school exchanges and that some students were no longer comfortable taking his class.

This situation has created emotional turmoil for myself, he said.

Collier County Public Schools declined to provide the entire contents of Papanikolaous video to The Daily Beast or comment on any requests the teacher made in his complaint against the district.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Fuel Cell UAV Market to Rise at Over 13.3% CAGR from 2023 to 2031, Reaching a Valuation of US$ 4.8 billion: TMR Report

Transparency Market Research

The global fuel cell UAV market is driven by increase in usage of long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in a number of applications

Wilmington, Delaware, United States, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Transparency Market Research Inc.  The global fuel cell UAV market was worth US$ 1.6 Bn in 2022 and is likely to be valued at US$ 4.8 Bn by 2031, expanding at a CAGR of 13.3% between 2023 and 2031.



The market is driven by rise in popularity of long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in different applications as well as growing emphasis on implementing sustainable and eco-friendly energy sources. Additionally, rise in consumer knowledge about the advantages of fuel cell technology against conventional battery-powered drones is accelerating industry growth.

Market players are increasingly focusing on cutting costs, while simultaneously enhancing efficiency, safety, performance, and dependability of fuel cells. This is expected to bolster acceptance of UAVs powered by fuel cells in several industries. Additionally, market participants are benefiting from attractive growth prospects of fuel cell UAVs owing to breakthroughs in technology in the region.

Oxygen and hydrogen combine chemically in a fuel cell to produce water vapor, which is then used to create electricity. Fuel cell UAVs are a viable replacement for combustion engines in a number of applications, such as environmental monitoring, commercial, and military, as these are far more environmentally-friendly and effective.

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Fuel cell UAVs are able to supply the electricity required for the specified flying time as well as payload. The fuel cell system's weight, size, and necessary hydrogen storage capacity are considered throughout the design process. Aerial aerodynamic optimization would also be necessary for the aircraft to fly efficiently.

Market Scope:

Market Revenue USD 1.6 Bn Estimated Value USD 4.8 Bn Growth Rate - CAGR 13.3% Forecast Period 2023 - 2031 No. of Pages 195 Pages Market Segmentation By Product Type, Rated Power, UAV Type Regions Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, South America Companies Covered Advent Technologies, AeroVironment, Inc., Ballard Power Systems, Doosan Corporation, H3 Dynamics, Honeywell International Inc., Hylium Industries, Inc., Intelligent Energy Limited, ISS Group Ltd., Plug Power Inc.

Key Findings of Market Report



In terms of product type, in 2022, the hydrogen fuel cell segment held significant market share. It is anticipated that the segment would dominate the global market in the near future. As a replacement for battery-powered UAVs, hydrogen fuel options are dependable, effective, and clean. Hydrogen UAV solutions are becoming more popular as a result of their dependability, higher efficiency, and elimination of many limitations on flight duration and range associated with battery power systems. In addition, water is produced as a byproduct when hydrogen is used to power UAVs, making this kind of propulsion clean and ecologically beneficial.

In terms of application, the civil & commercial segment is likely to hold substantial market share in the next few years. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are employed in various civic and business applications. As technology advances and laws are made more favorable, this market trend is anticipated to continue in the coming years.

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Global Fuel Cell UAV Market: Growth Drivers

UAVs that can hover in the air for a prolonged time are essential in several industries, such as environmental monitoring, agriculture, military, and infrastructural inspection. Fuel cell UAVs have greater endurance and range since these can run for longer duration before needing to refuel. This qualifies them for uses such as mapping missions or long-range surveillance, which call for prolonged flight periods. Popularity of long-endurance UAVs is rising, which is expected to drive market development.

Usage of clean energy technology is promoted by governments of several countries. Governments are offering various incentives and financing initiatives for both the development and utilization of fuel cell UAVs. Therefore, fuel cell UAVs are likely to overtake conventional combustion engine-powered drones in popularity. This is due to improvements in technology, lower expenses, and stronger focus on using renewable and ecologically favorable energy sources.

Global Fuel Cell UAV Market: Regional Landscape

North America is expected to lead the global industry from 2023 to 2031 due to rise in usage of UAVs for commercial, military, and civic purposes. Major corporations in North America are investing significantly in the advancement of fuel cell technology. Demand for fuel cell UAVs in the region is driving investments.



Global Fuel Cell UAV Market: Key Players

Honeywell International Inc.

Ballard Power Systems

Intelligent Energy Limited

Plug Power Inc.

Hylium Industries, Inc.

Advent Technologies

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Global Fuel Cell UAV Market: Segmentation

Product Type

Hydrogen Fuel Cell

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell



Rated Power

Up to 500 W

501 W to 1 KW

1.1 KW to 2 KW

Above 2 KW

UAV Type

Fixed Wing

Rotary Wing

Hybrid



Application

Civil & Commercial

Military & Defense

Logistics & Transportation

Construction & Mining

Others



Regions

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Middle East & Africa

Latin America



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The story didn't add up for Clinton Township Police Sgt. Joseph Sangiovanni.

On July 2, 2022, the driver of a vehicle Sangiovanni had stopped with an expired temporary Virginia registration said they and three passengers were heading to New York to attend a funeral.

But they had no luggage.

And after a K-9 indicated the presence of drugs, officers had the right to search the vehicle and found two bookbags in the backseat, one containing two loaded handguns, $10,000 in cash and a large quantity of marijuana.

Then one of the backseat passengers took off running.

Not knowing if the backseat passenger was armed, Clinton Township Patrolmen Frank Praino and Christopher Ramos pursued him on foot as he jumped over a fence to Interstate 78 and ran through the woods where police lost sight of him several times before a K-9 officer found him and he was apprehended.

For their actions in pursuing, tracking and apprehending the suspect without any major injuries, Sangiovanni, Praino and Ramos as well as Flemington Officer Greg Zytko and his K-9 partner Jax will received meritorious service awards Wednesday during the 200 Club of Hunterdon County Valor & Merit Awards Banquet.

From left, Clinton Township Patrolman Frank F. Praino, Patrolman Christopher M. Ramos and Sgt. Joseph S. Sangiovanni are receiving meritorious service awards this year from the 200 Club of Hunterdon County.

This is the fourth time Sangiovanni is being honored with a 200 Club award.

"I love the job and I'm proud of who I work with," said Sangiovanni, adding this will be the first 200 Club award for Praino and Ramos.

"There is a lot of different aspects to rescue work, fire, EMS, police work and theres no one thing that's more important than the other, so we appreciate everyone's help with everything," Sangiovanni said.

Other honorees

Also receiving meritorious services awards are Lambertville Police Sgt. Anthony Memolo, Officer Kevin Bereheiko, Lambertville Volunteer Firefighter and Hunterdon County Deputy Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Andrew Camp and volunteer Lambertville Firefighters Donald Hart and Gavin Hart, for their response to a fire at the South Hunterdon Apartments on Jan. 12 and rescuing a resident who later died from his injuries.

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New Jersey State Police Trooper Iman Martinez, Trooper John Caemmerer, Sgt. Christopher Waanders and Trooper Juan Jacome are receiving a unit citation for their actions Jan. 16 in getting a resident of The Commons complex in Lebanon Borough to voluntarily surrender after apparently firing several shots in the neighborhood and then barricading himself inside his home which contained weapons and illegal fireworks.

More: 'Just did their job': Franklin Township first responders among valor award recipients

New Jersey State Police Staff Sgt. David Penna and Troopers Eric Deery, Zach Manley, Jeff Florkowski and Martinez are receiving a unit citation for apprehending a suspect who attempted to elude the State Police on Nov. 26, 2022, and who attempted to escape the justice system by not showing up for a Nov. 29, 2022, trial on child sexual assault and child endangerment charges.

Life Saving Awards are being presented to South Branch EMT and Firefighter Jason Mayer and EMT Patrick Kochanowski for their response to a May 1, 2022, condo development fire in which three people had jumped from the second and third floors to escape.

High Bridge Fire Chief Sean Smith is receiving a Life Saving Award for rescuing a woman on the third floor of a townhouse development in an early morning fire on May 1, 2022, using a ladder.

And New Jersey State Police Sgt. Michael Delgaizo, and Troopers Jacome, Peter Munoz-Aquino, Filip Konieczkowski, Manley and James Thompson are receiving unit citations for their response to the May 1, 2022, fire.

The Clinton Township motor vehicle stop

In the early morning hours of July 2, 2022, Sangiovanni, a 16-year veteran of the Clinton Township Police Department, was behind a vehicle when he saw an expired paper Virginia temporary registration flipping over a Virginia license plate and made a motor vehicle stop.

He walked up to the vehicle, identified himself, asked the driver for their documents and explained why the vehicle was stopped. As the driver looked for the documents, Sangiovanni noticed the two rear seat passengers were asleep and not wearing seatbelts. He also shined his flashlight in the backseat, when the driver said he should shine the light by her.

Sangiovanni said that seemed unusual and he believed the driver was trying to distract him from the backseat. The driver also indicated they were going to a funeral in New York, had no luggage in the vehicle and planned to buy clothes when they arrived.

As other officers arrived, Sangiovanni also asked for the identification of the rear-seat passenger on the driver's side who had a tattoo of an eight ball on his cheek. The passenger initially gave police his twin brother's name but with the tattoo, police were able to confirm his real identity.

The driver declined to give consent to have the vehicle searched but said police could call out a K-9. Sangiovanni contacted Flemington K-9 Officer Greg Zytko and asked for his partner Jax to conduct a sniff for drugs. Jax give a positive indication for narcotics.

With all the occupants out of the vehicle, police searched the vehicle and behind the driver's seat, Ramos found a bookbag with two handguns. When he alerted the other officers, another rear-seat passenger, a man, ran off toward Dunkin heading to the area of Interstate 78 westbound near a dark, wooded area.

"We weren't sure if the individual who ran was armed or not," Sangiovanni said.

Ramos, Praino and Zytko with the assistance of a Town of Clinton police officer chased the man on foot while the other vehicle occupants were secured at the scene.

Police found five handguns, all loaded, some with bullets in the chamber, and one handgun which had been reported stolen along with $10,000 in cash and a large quantity of marijuana.

Praino, who has served on the police force for nearly four years, said the officers lost sight of the man who ran in the woods before he and Ramos saw him pop up from the bushes and jump over a fence along the highway. The officers also hopped over the fence and took off running after the man before losing sight of him again.

The officers found the man's shoes before the police K-9 began tracking the man. Police wanted to apprehend the man before he had a chance to break into a nearby home or car.

"This time of night I think it was 1 a.m. or 2 a.m. it was very dark and the area in which we were in actually gave him a tactical advantage to shoot at us if he did have a gun," said Ramos, who has served with the police department for five years. "Uphill he had coverage, tractor-trailers are passing us as a high rate of speed so we can't hear and we can't see him but he can see and hear us as we're walking up and down the highway trying to figure out where he is. That was probably the most dangerous part."

After about 10 minutes K-9 Jax found the man up a hill off the highway in an area with bushes and poison ivy. The man screamed, but police said he was not bitten by the dog. Praino took him into custody.

Found in the man's possession was $600 in cash and a small amount of marijuana. Additional K-9 units searched the area to see if any weapons had been tossed or hidden but results were inconclusive.

Sangiovanni said all four people were taken into custody and because no one took possession of the weapons, everyone was charged in the case which remains ongoing.

Email: srussell@gannettnj.com

Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ police, fire, EMS honored by 200 Club of Hunterdon County
Covid Year Three

Mailboxes in rural Macon County near Tuskegee, Alabama. Credit - Julie BennettThe Washington Post/Getty Images

Policymakers often blame the problems facing Americas struggling places on the natural advantages of todays superstar cities. As Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman recently said, the economic forces that have been hollowing out rural America are deep and not easily countered.

But it wasnt just inevitable economic forces that left many mid-sized cities, small towns, and rural areas struggling to keep up. It was also a set of public policy choices that sowed the seeds of rising regional inequality, including deregulatory efforts in the late 20th century.

From the early 20th century until about the 1970s, one of the goals of regulation was ensuring that economic activity was dispersed across the country. Policymakers believed that basic infrastructure and utilitiesrail, buses, airlines, telephone, bankingwere critical to commerce and economic development. In those sectors, they adopted regulations to ensure that communities all over the country benefitted from these services.

The model was the venerable U.S. Post Office. Since the founding of the country, the postal system has been designed to help stitch together even small, far-flung places. Think about it this way: its cheaper for the postal service to send a letter from New York to Boston than from New York to Alaska. But the price for a stamped letter is the same. In an era of email and text messages that might seem quaint, but throughout the 19th and 20th century, it meant that people could communicate at an affordable price, regardless of where they lived. This created opportunities everywhere.

Read More: Bootstrapping Has Always Been A Myth. The New American Dream Proves It

A similar approach governed other infrastructure. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, for example, railroads were perhaps the most important way to transport goods. Before regulation, railroads would often charge more for short legs from small towns to the city than they would charge for the whole route. This meant higher prices for farmers along the route who were trying move their goods to market. Regulators banned this practice, and restricted the ability of railroads to exit from service. Regulation ensured fairly-priced and reliable railroad service throughout the country.

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Air and bus service to smaller places benefitted from a similar system of entry-restriction and cross-subsidies. Under the regulated era, companies needed federal approval to offer service on routes between places (thats entry-restriction). Companies also had a duty to serve some less profitable routes, usually to smaller places, but were then given some highly profitable routes to offset their losses (thats a cross-subsidy). This system ensured that smaller places had affordable, reliable serviceand it simultaneously kept companies afloat.

This approach was not limited to transportation. From banking to telephones and communication more broadly, regulation ensured that economic opportunity was not just concentrated in a few places.

The result of this system was an extraordinary period of geographic convergence. Consider just one example: In 1940, residents in Mississippi earned merely 26% of what Massachusetts residents made. By 1979, however, the state had witnessed significant economic gains, and Mississippians earned nearly 70% as much as their East Coast counterparts.

But then, in the 1970s and after, deregulation undid this Progressive-Era and New Deal regulatory system.

Deregulation allowed railroads to discontinue service and even abandon rail lines altogether. This meant that some smaller towns lost access to rail. Between 1980 and 2008, the U.S. rail network shrunk by more than 40%. For producers, losing rail service is a disaster. For investors, lack of access to transportation networks is a deterrent, concentrating investments in more connected places.

Airline deregulation also had disparate geographic impacts. As airlines consolidated over time into the big four and into fortress hubs like Dallas or Atlanta, service even to big cities like St. Louis, Memphis, and Cincinnati has shrunk. Some small cities, like Cheyenne, Wyoming, now guarantee revenue for the airlines just to get a bare minimum of flights. Fewer convenient flights, of course, makes it harder to run a global business or to host national conventions.

The story was similar with bus deregulation. The head of Greyhound observed during the debates over bus deregulation in the late 1970s that the rural areas are going to have to suffer. Even one of the biggest champions of deregulation, Alfred Kahn, had second thoughts about intercity bus service. Im not sure I would ever have deregulated the buses, he said, because the bus is a lifeline of many small communities for people just to get to the doctor or to the Social Security office.

In short, 40 years of deregulation has contributed to increasing economic divergence, with thriving places increasingly pulling ahead of struggling ones.

Today, we seem to have forgotten the tradition of regulation to promote geographic equality. Broadband, one of the most important modern communications technologies, emerged in the era of deregulation. Instead of legal obligations to provide universal service at regulated prices, broadband internet has remained patchyat bestin smaller towns and rural places. Only now, decades later, is the federal government finally addressing this problem. But importantly, we are doing it through massive taxpayer subsidies, not through legal obligations on highly-profitable companies.

People in smaller places and rural communities have suffered considerably. Data shows that economic opportunity is worse in these places, and opioid addiction and deaths of despair are higher. The harms are national, too. Divergence in economic opportunity drives surging home prices in thriving places, compounding the affordability crisis. It saps the country of talented people who dont have the full range of opportunities. And the increasing concentration of wealth and economic activity breeds resentment and makes the country as a whole less resilient to economic, political, and social challenges. We can change direction. But to do so, we need to stop blaming economic forces for these problems and start thinking about how public policy can fix them.
A pair of unclaimed cremains interred in a Beaufort County mausoleum are heading back home this week after the coroners office was able to get in touch with their families.

An orthopedic surgeon found the remains of Paciano Lopez-Morales, 54, of Hilton Head, while clearing trees from his Spanish Wells Road property after Hurricane Matthew in 2016. Lopez-Morales had been missing since May 2015.

The coroners office is currently coordinating the return of his remains to family in Mexico, Beaufort County Coroner David Ott said Wednesday.

A second set of cremains, belonging to 36-year-old Maria Telles-Gonzalez, of Kissimmee, Florida, was sent back to family members Tuesday, Ott said.

Maria Telles-Gonzalez of Kissimmee, Florida, had been known as the Beaufort County Jane Doe for 27 years. Gonzalez, who was 36 at the time of her death, was a wife and mother of three children.

Telles-Gonzalez was murdered in 1995 and, up until her DNA was sent to an ancestry database in 2020, she had been known to police only as the Beaufort County Jane Doe. The investigation into her death is ongoing.

In a 2021 ceremony, both were interred in a mausoleum purchased by Beaufort County along with more than two dozen others at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Beaufort. The interment took place as part of a project spearheaded by Chief Deputy Coroner Debbie Youmans to get the unclaimed remains of 61 people piled on a shelf in the coroners office back to their families.

In the end, 34 people went on unclaimed. Four of the unclaimed remains were veterans who were laid to rest in a ceremony at the Beaufort National Cemetery while the other 30, including Telles-Gonzalez and Lopez-Morales, were placed in the mausoleum.

The highlight of the day for me was always when someone was claimed, Youmans previously told the newspapers about the project.

The public reaching out about the remains, Ott told the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette, has been helpful. In Lopez-Morales case, it was a Hilton Head family who ended up getting coroners office officials in touch with his loved ones after they saw a March 2023 newspaper article that had named him.

In September 2022, a family in Honduras was finally reunited with the ashes of their brother, 42-year-old Hector Bueso Mejia, 15 years after his death on Hilton Head after they discovered what became of him in an online article.

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The unclaimed remains of two others who died in February 2023 were also added to the mausoleum in a ceremony Tuesday.

A mausoleum purchased in 2021 to house the unclaimed remains of people who have died in Beaufort County.

Lopez-Morales

After Lopez-Morales remains were discovered in 2016, pathologists performed an osteological examination, an assessment of bones or skeletal remains. No no signs of trauma were found. The cause and manner of his death are undetermined, according to previous reporting.

Lopez-Morales, nicknamed Shorty by friends, was staying in a makeshift room at a house on Bluebell Lane, about a minutes drive from where his remains were found. He did not have any known medical conditions but had told friends of his ears bothering him before he went missing, according to previous reporting.

In 2018, the FBI was able to use DNA technology to get in touch with Lopez-Morales sister in San Luis Potosi, a city in central Mexico, but later lost touch. Before that, his family did not know what had happened to him, Ott said.

Maria Telles-Gonzalez

On May 24, 1995, Telles-Gonzalez was found in a drainage ditch off of I-95 in Yemassee wearing only a pair of Leonisa underwear, a brand manufactured in Colombia and sold in South and Central America at the time. Police estimated she had been found about 36 to 48 hours after her death.

An autopsy concluded that she died by ligature strangulation and bruises led police to believe she was beaten. DNA samples, dental records and fingerprints were taken from her body.

Her three children thought their mother left the family and only discovered what happened to her after DNA technology was used to link her to a relative, according to previous reporting.

Telles-Gonzalezs identity was released by the Beaufort County Sheriffs Office in December 2022. After the announcement, Maj. Bob Bromage, head of the Beaufort County Sheriffs Office cold case investigations, said the case was far from over.

Its not solved, he previously told reporters. We have a lot of work to do on this case.

Investigators have contacted several of Telles-Gonzalezs friends since making the announcement in December 2022. Currently, they are trying to get in touch with a man they think lived in Central Florida around the time of her death named Carlos. Pictures of the man have not been made public. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is working with age progression technology to show what Carlos might look like today.

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information about this case may call Maj. Bob Bromage with the cold case investigations team at the Beaufort County Sheriffs Office at 843-816-8013.
Two of Vermont's wine- and cider-making businesses are joining forces in a merger, aligning their shared values and commitments to the state's working landscape, according to a news release.

Shelburne Vineyard in Shelburne and Eden Specialty Ciders in Newport announced the merger on Monday, saying each company would retain its existing name.

"Since both businesses have a long history and established brands, we are not creating a new company name," Eleanor Leger, founder of Eden Specialty Ciders, said in a statement. "This merger combines our forces behind the scenes, allowing us to sell each other's products, reach new markets, and leverage the strengths of all of our team members."

The combined teams of Shelburne Vineyard and Eden Specialty Ciders.

Leger will become chief executive officer of the combined company, while Ken and Gail Albert, founders of Shelburne Vineyard, will "ease into retirement," according to a news release. The Alberts will continue to support the new company as "brand ambassadors," and will retain partial ownership of the combined business.

Cider and wine, wine and cider

To kick off the merger, Shelburne Vineyard has added an expanded collection of Eden's sparkling and still ciders, ice ciders and canned ciders to its tasting room. The vintner will also offer Eden's ciders for tasting and purchase at its Lincoln Peak Tasting Room in New Haven, when it reopens in mid-May.

Wines and ciders from Shelburne Vineyard and Eden Specialty Ciders, which have merged into one company.

Shelburne Vineyard acquired Lincoln Peak Vineyard in 2021, after taking over management of five of Lincoln Peak's 12 acres of vines the previous two seasons. The two companies had been friendly competitors, according to Ken Albert.

Eden will soon offer Shelburne Vineyard wines and the vineyard's line of Iapetus natural wines through its ecommerce and distribution channels, according to a news release.

More: New restaurants in Vermont: Here's a look at what opened this summer.

"This year marks the 25th anniversary of our very first vineyard plantings, and it felt like a fitting time for us to entrust our pioneering Vermont winegrowing venture to a team that is firmly committed to the same values," Ken Albert said in a statement. "It was extremely important to us that the company stay local and continue to be owned by Vermonters, so the opportunity to work with Eleanor and Eden just made sense."

Contact Dan DAmbrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosio@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Shelburne Vineyard merges with Eden Specialty Ciders
The first teaser for Steven Soderberghs return to TV for limited series Full Circle has finally arrived, and were questioning everything.

The limited series, which premieres July 13 on Max, follows couple Clare Danes and Dennis Quaid as they search for their kidnapped son amid some shady coincidences.

In the teaser, Danes receives an ominous phone call from a caller who calmly informs her we have your son. Danes immediately alerts the authorities and the family gears up for an intense day of questions.

I just wanted to asked about the ties between you, your family and Guyana, an investigator (Zazie Beetz) asks Danes. Theyre all hiding sh-t, she later tells her team. As the detectives dig further, its apparent that everything is connected.

Also Read:

David Zaslav Open to Leveraging Max in Bundle With Other Streamers: It Would Be Great for Consumers

The official logline is as follows: An investigation into a botched kidnapping uncovers long-held secrets connecting multiple characters and cultures in present day New York City.

In addition to Danes, Quaid and Beetz, Full Circle features Jim Gaffigan, Jharrel Jerome, Timothy Olyphant, CCH Pounder, Phaldut Sharma, Adia, Sheyi Cole, Gerald Jones, Suzanne Savoy, Ethan Stoddard and Lucian Zanes.

Soderbergh, who previously directed the 2014-15 Cinemax series The Knick, serves as director and executive producer for Full Circle alongside EPs Casey Silver and Ed Solomon, who also writes the series.

The six-episode series will debut Thursday, July 13, on Max, with an additional two episodes releasing weekly leading up to the July 27 finale.

Also Read:

Steven Soderberghs Full Circle Series Starring Dennis Quaid to Premiere at Tribeca Film Festival
T.J. Martin didnt just survive being a prisoner of war once. He survived twice.

He was captured in 1951, then again in 1952.

But he never gave up.

Martin spent more than two years as a captive in Korea. Then he came home to York County and spent the rest of his life volunteering for veterans in York County, throughout South Carolina and around the country.

Martin, 93, died Monday, according to an obituary from Bratton Funeral Home in the city of York, S.C..

When Martin, a U.S. Army veteran, spoke to The Herald over the years about other prisoners of war, he would talk of service to country and community that few people ever are asked to give.

He said simply that prisoners of war shared an awful experience but fought to survive so that afterwards they could make the world a better place. Of Fort Mills Paul Luckadoo, a World War II POW who died in 2016, Martin said at the time: Pauls service to his country will never be forgotten, and we will never forget him.

Of Gene Newton, a Rock Hill POW who died in 2011, Martin said then: Gene Newton knew that we shared something awful, yet something special. He was decent and humble. He was one of us.

Martin said this in 2007 of his time in captivity: It leaves a mark when you wake up beside a man who has frozen to death. Or wake up next to a man who has starved to death. Or next to man whose limbs are bloated from disease.

Martin wanted to help others for the rest of his life.

T.J. was an American patriot in the truest sense of the word, said Joe Medlin, an Iraq and Afghanistan combat veteran who for many years was director of York Countys veterans affairs office. Medlin and Martin worked together for years on the countys veterans advisory council and other veterans projects.

Even after having been a prisoner of war, twice, he continued to give back by serving with the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, and other organizations, Medlin said. T.J. Martin will certainly be missed.

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Martin was for years the commander of South Carolinas Ex-Prisoner of War group. He led the charge to have those people honored statewide by then Gov. Nikki Haley in 2015.

Martin helped create and run Yorks American Legion post. He chaired the countys veterans advisory council for decades, and was one of the founders of York Countys annual Memorial Day tribute to military members who died in wars. He helped start the city of Yorks annual Veterans Day parade, and organized it for years.

Jim Carter, another York County veteran who was involved with Yorks American Legion Post and veterans office, said Martin cared deeply about service to community and country.

Ronnie Taylor, also a York County veteran and close friend, said Martin will be honored among others in the countys Memorial Day weekend service in late May in York.

Viewing for Martin is Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Bratton Funeral Home in York, according to the obituary. The funeral with full military honors is 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.
Minions in Minions: The Rise Of Gru

Universal Orlando Resort is set to open a new Minions Land at Universal Studios Florida this summer. The centerpiece of the land will be the brand new attraction Illuminations Villain-Con Minion Blast. But there's going to be a lot more coming, including several new dining locations that will have everything from soup and sandwiches to banana-flavored popcorn. Yes, banana-flavored popcorn

A lot of the new information surrounding Minion Land that Universal Orlando Resort did release today concerns the various food offerings, and they all sound pretty incredible. The Minion Cafe will be the centerpiece eatery, with different themed rooms, The Kitchen, The Breakroom, and the Dining Room, where guests can sit and enjoy their food. It sounds a lot like the Toadstool Cafe from the new Super Nintendo World in California One item of note is the Steak and Cheese Ray Sandwich, which appears to have potato chips that are cut to look like banana peels.

Steak and Cheese Ray sandwich at Minions Cafe

And speaking of bananas. If you like bananas, then banana-flavored popcorn will be available at the Pop-A-Nana popcorn stand. Yes, it sounds weird as hell, but it's been available at Universal Studios Japan for some time and I've been told by people who I'm fairly certain are not insane that it's actually quite delicious.

Baked treats will be available at the Bake My Day shop, and popsicles and other cool treats, sure to be a hit in the Florida sun, will be on offer at Freeze Ray Pops.

Illuminations Villain-Con Minion Blast

Officially, there's a lot that we don't know about what the new attraction is or how it will work, but one thing that we did know is that it's actually not a ride. We knew that Minion Blast was going to be a competitive shooting-style attraction, in the vein of Men in Black: Alien Attack, but last year rumors that had been going around were confirmed that rather than using a traditional ride vehicle, guests will stand on a moving walkway.

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This morning's info from Universal Orlando didn't give us much in the way of new details regarding Minion Blast, but it did provide a piece of art that shows a couple of kids holding the plastic blasters while standing on a moving walkway.

illuminations villain-con minion blast

The story will see guests attending Villain-Con and competing to see if they have what it takes to join The Vicious 6, the group of supervillains from Minions: The Rise of Gru. The attraction will combine screen technology with physical sets which should be fun, as most rides of this type either use one or the other.

The decision to move away from a traditional ride vehicle may seem minor but it has the potential to really add to the fun of an attraction like Minion Blast. Guests will just have a freedom of movement that they're not used to having on a theme park attraction. One assumes there will be some barriers to prevent guests from crashing into each other, but even being able to freely spin around will be nice.

The final new element of the Minion Land will be the Illumination Theater, which will be home to character meet-and-greet opportunities. In addition to the expected Minions characters, like Gru and his family, guests will also get to meet several characters from the Sing franchise, who will be making their Universal Orlando debut.

Minion Blast will replace the popular Shrek 4-D theater that closed in January 2022. It's just one of several popular and long-served attractions that have been wrapping up their time at Universal Orlando Resort. Most recently the Poseidon's Fury attraction closed, what will replace that has yet to be announced.
Randy Scott and Jill Scott, both 71 died after a dump truck crashed head on into their SUV. The Scotts were fervent workers at Plant City's annual Strawberry Festival.

A beloved Strawberry Festival employee was killed in a car crash on Monday in Palmetto. He was remembered by fair officials for his hard work and "sweet demeanor."

Randy Scott and Jill Scott, both 71, were killed alongside Jill Scott's sister, 80-year-old Judy Cook, after a dump truck crashed head on into their SUV. The Scotts were fervent workers at Plant City's annual Strawberry Festival.

Who were Randy and Jill Scott?

Randy Scott was called the "voice" of Plant Citys 11-day Strawberry Festival. He would help welcome guests each morning by singing the National Anthem and would end each day by singing Happy Trails" by Roy Rogers.

Festival officials said in a Facebook post that Randy Scott was known for his "sweet demeanor, steadfast spirit, quiet confidence and genuine concern for others." Jill Scott was the "jewel" of Randy's eye and was always working behind the scenes to support her husband and family.

More on the crash: Deadly crash between SUV and dump truck in Manatee County claims three lives

In case you missed it: Bradenton man sentenced to 15 years in prison for vehicular homicide, fleeing crash scene

"The Scotts were true servants whose reach extended far behind the Festival grounds," said a Facebook post from the Florida Strawberry Festival. "Their presence will be greatly missed within our community."

The couple were dedicated members of GraceWay Church of Plant City, where Randy Scott was in charge of sound and played the harmonica on the worship team. Jill Scott and her sister, Judy Cook, worked as "decorator extraordinaries" at the church.

How did the accident happen?

Randy Scott was driving in a SUV with his wife and sister-in-law when a dump truck slammed into them at 1:50 p.m. They were traveling west on County Road 675 in Parrish. The dump truck driver veered into the shoulder of the road and overcorrected to the left, crossing into the path of the SUV. Randy Scott attempted to swerve out of the way, but the car crashed head on with the dump truck.

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Randy Scott, Jill Scott and Judy Cook were pronounced dead at the scene. The truck driver, 59, from Palmetto was taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital with minor injuries.

What is the Strawberry Festival?

Since 1930, the Strawberry Festival celebrated its bountiful harvest of Florida strawberries in Plant City. Over the years, the 11-day event has grown to include carnival rides, star-studded concerts and strawberry-themed fair foods. The 2023 festival year has concluded, but the 2024 festival will be held from Feb. 29 - March 10.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Randy and Jill Scott, Florida Strawberry Festival workers die in crash
Sonisphere Festival 2011 - Weezer - Credit: Kevin Nixon/Metal Hammer Magazine/Future via Getty Images/Team Rock via Getty Images

Weezer joined the WGA picket line Wednesday afternoon outside of Paramount Studios in Los Angeles. Members Rivers Cuomo, Brian Bell, and Scott Shriner performed acoustic renditions of Beverly Hills and Buddy Holly in support of striking Hollywood writers.

The band is set to hit the road this summer for Indie Rock Roadtrip, their headlining 30-date tour with Modest Mouse, Future Islands, Spoon, Momma, Joyce Manor, and White Reaper. The trek kicks off on June 4 in Huntsville, Alabama and wraps on Sept. 3 in San Diego, California.

More from Rolling Stone

What happened? This happened!!! Gah! Impromptu performance at the Paramount lot! Thanks @Weezer for keeping our spirits up and supporting the writers on the picket line! Best Day Ever!!!! #WritersStrike #WGAStrong #WGAstrike #weezer pic.twitter.com/iGhivf3RfF  Brittney Jeng (@PurpleBJenga) May 18, 2023

WGA members went on strike May 2 after failing to negotiate a deal with Hollywood studios  the first time since 2007, before streaming giants like Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and HBO Max existed. Two major sticking points have contributed to the two sides inability to come to an agreement: Residual payments and the use of artificial intelligence. The latter has garnered considerable media attention as the WGA wants to regulate the use of AI, fearing AI could create screenplay drafts with studios hiring writers at day rates to punch up those scripts. The AMPTP rejected proposals to ban the use of AI to generate films and show scripts, offering instead to hold annual meetings to discuss advancements in technology.

Last week, Imagine Dragons also stood in solidarity with striking writers. Frontman Dan Reynolds and guitarist Daniel Wayne Sermon played their Grammy-winning song Radioactive and Whatever It Takes at the picket line outside the Netflix building in Los Angeles.

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New wetlands are seen following the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

A red vintage 1950 McCormick Farmall tractor in cherry condition has been loaded up with hay on its trailer, ferrying guests to a spot at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton to see the latest project to help both wildlife and the lakes water quality.

To a casual observer, the area is full of mud and grasses and echoes of the work that has been underway for months, part of a project that has been years in the making.

This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a solutions journalism initiative that partners news, education and media organizations to help inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake  and what can be done to make a difference before it is too late. Read all of our stories at greatsaltlakenews.org.

The wind sends ripples across a pool of standing water after a morning of brief rain followed by the sun breaking through the clouds.

In the distance you can hear the call of multiple species of birds, and Janice Gardner, conservation ecologist with the Sageland Collaborative, said that just recently, the 2-ounce bobolink, a member of the blackbird family, arrived at the preserve after a 6,000-mile journey from Argentina. Here, this tiny bird that sings a sound like R2-D2 from Star Wars, will nest, raise its young, and when its parental duties are complete, it will make the 6,000-mile trek back to Argentina.

This is the most important habitat for wildlife and its value is exponential in Utah, Gardner said.

These birds from Chile and Argentina know how to find these wetlands, on this planet, she said, a look of awe moving across her face. These wetlands are the sponge that are calming the floodwaters.

Dave Livermore, Utah director for The Nature Conservancy, and Chris Brown, the groups director of stewardship, join others in a ribbon-cutting after the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

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The Freeport Drain

This is what happens when marbles bounce around in the consciousness of Chris Brown, who is the stewardship director of The Nature Conservancy in Utah.

The Freeport Drain of 40 acres of wetlands, celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, is the brainchild of Brown and Mike Kolendrianos, manager of the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve.

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Brown said it was Kolendrianos idea to apply for some grant money from the Utah Department of Natural Resources for the Freeport Drain.

Even with the marbles bouncing around, Brown said he was skeptical because The Nature Conservancy rarely gets those kinds of grants. But the money came through, along with partners that include Big West Oil, Chevron, and others such as Davis County. An engineering firm, Equinox, also stepped up.

This is a big day, Brown said. This is something we have always wanted to do.

The water from the Freeport Drain used to just shoot directly to the Great Salt Lake. Now, it makes its way through these wetlands, which is natures purifier, removing metals, debris and garbage.

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The drain is a gift that keeps on giving, Brown explained. So I think its gonna be a real, great asset for that. So it just keeps giving life to the preserve, its bringing birds but it also brings gifts.

He held up a small stuffed gorilla toy and an Elmo figurine he presented to a pair of guests.

One thing we get out here is a lot of stormwater and we used to get a lot of tailwater from agriculture, he said. But the farms are starting to go away so were losing a lot of that free water we used to get back in the day when they would irrigate the crops. So we looked at ways to try and store some of the stormwater again.

Brown added these wetland projects are not about boosting the ailing levels of the lake.

Dont get me wrong, were not trying to offset the loss of the Great Salt Lake. Were trying to create something no matter what size it is to kind of create some stable area, some stable habitat for some of these birds when they come through along the lake.

The wetlands are natures great cleanser, putting a scrub brush to urban runoff to rid it of many of its impurities, boosting the water quality of the Great Salt Lake.

Visitors walk around the new wetlands following the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

The hallmarks of this site are foresight, generosity and persistence, explained Dave Livermore, Utah director of The Nature Conservancy.

The first land purchase for the preserve happened in 1984 with an eye for not only helping the tens of thousands of birds that rest here as part of the route along the Pacific Flyway, but for improving quality life for Utah residents with open space.

Over the years, 61 transactions have been stitched together and $27 million have been invested to form the 4,400-acre preserve, a chunk of land on the eastern shores of the Great Salt Lake.

We are not preserving nature from people but for people and all living things, Livermore said.

Utahs Central Park

Livermore recalled a conversation he had years ago with a Davis County commissioner about his vision for a preserve and why the organization wanted to preserve something that, at the time, was so far away from any development.

He said the commissioner told him, Oh, youre building the Central Park of Davis County.

Livermore said that is true in some fashion.

Its not quite a good analogy because this is a nature preserve, not a recreational facility. But nonetheless, the same way that Central Park is about the quality of life and enriches people in New York, it also helps the economy. Id like to argue that the shoreland preserve has preserved the quality of life in Davis County, around the lake and also the economy.

Dave Livermore, The Nature Conservancy director in Utah, left, leads a tour of the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Preserving the preserve has not been without its challenges. Development is all around, there is money in precious demand to build up these wetlands and stabilize uplands for the birds who visit. Its a far out place many residents may not know about, and some may simply pass by with a critical eye to the acres upon acres of space that appear devoid of usable land in this modern area.

But Davis County Commissioner Randy Elliott said the preserve is critical to not only the county, but the state as a bastion of preserved land to be enjoyed for years to come.

We know that we have a lot of growth coming to Davis County and we knew that growth was coming and so we, Davis County, are welcome to help in any way we can. We only have 11,000 developable acres left in Davis County, he said. Were the second smallest county in the state, but we have one of the largest populations and so we dont have much land left. Being able to preserve that is tremendous.

That commitment is ingrained in him as a Farmington native who comes from a tradition of ranching and farming.

Whatever we can do we will continue to do that in Davis County as long as Im in office. We will continue to do that because I love this and this is what brings people out to enjoy nature and connect again with Mother Earth because it is a beautiful, beautiful thing that we have here to enjoy, he said.

Chris Brown, director of stewardship with The Nature Conservancy, speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

The Nature Conservancy Director of Stewardship Chris Brown speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Janice Gardner, a conservation ecologist with the Sageland Collaborative, speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

New wetlands are seen following completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News

Davis County Commissioner Randy Elliott speaks about the completion of the Freeport Drain project at the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. | Ryan Sun, Deseret News
(Bloomberg) -- Group of Seven countries agreed to work together to track Russian diamonds, but stopped short of slapping Moscow with an outright ban on the lucrative gem trade.

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Leaders in a statement released Friday at their summit in Hiroshima, Japan, pledged to work together to restrict trade in and use of diamonds mined, processed or produced in Russia and coordinate future restrictive measures, including through tracing technologies.

The move to track and trace Russian diamonds across borders could pave the way for an import ban in the future, according to people familiar with the discussions at the summit. Bloomberg News reported earlier Friday on the plan to set up a tracking mechanism for the precious stones.

Earlier attempts to sanction Russian gems in Europe have met resistance from importer nations like Belgium, who argue doing so would just shift the diamond trade elsewhere.

One G-7 member state that will stop all imports of Russian diamonds is the UK, which since Brexit is no longer bound by the need for consensus with the European Union. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also announced that the UK would end imports of Russian-origin nickel, copper and aluminum, although such shipments are dwarfed by what goes to the EU.

The G-7 summit in Hiroshima is focusing on how to further squeeze Russias economy. Barrages of sanctions have crimped growth but failed to deter President Vladimir Putins military assault on Ukraine, and Russias economy has been underpinned by commodity and energy exports to countries outside the G-7.

As part of its statements related to the war, the G-7 also made clear that any calls for peace must include the complete and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops and equipment from Ukraine. That is in line with the Ukraine position, but comes as speculation grows that the government in Kyiv will progressively be urged to negotiate with Moscow.

The President of the European Council confirmed the G-7 and EU would work to restrict trade in the Russian gems. Russian diamonds are not forever, Charles Michel said on Friday at a briefing in Hiroshima.

At the EU level, a diamond ban would require the backing of all member states. Belgium has said it would potentially be open to the proposition  but only if an effective G-7 mechanism was in place.

A diamonds origin is clear at the start of the supply chain when it is issued a certificate under the Kimberley Process, which was designed to end the sale of so-called blood diamonds that financed wars. After that, they can become difficult to track.

Cut and polished stones are often intermingled at trading houses and the original certificate will be replaced with mixed origin documentation, making it near-impossible to keep track of where Russian diamonds are eventually sold.

On metals, the G-7 leaders simply affirmed a broad effort to reduce Russias revenue.

The main focus of the G-7 nations is to close loopholes and enforce existing sanctions. In their statement they announced:

A broadening of restrictions to capture items critical to Russias war including materials used on the battlefield such as industrial machinery.

They will target entities transporting materials to the front.

They will continue to engage third countries through which Russia may get sanctioned goods. And take action against countries they believe are materially supporting Russias war.

A push to counter any potential evasion of the Russian oil price cap.

The ban on imports of Russian copper, aluminum and nickel by the UK is largely symbolic since it isnt a major importer or warehousing location, whereas a clampdown by the EU would have major implications for metals markets.

While the flow of many commodities from Russia to Europe has dropped since the war broke out, metal producers like MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC and United Co. Rusal International PJSC have continued to sell nickel, copper and aluminum to European buyers.

Politicians have been wary of the impact on western supply chains of sanctioning Russian metals following the experience of 2018, when the US imposed penalties on Rusal that triggered chaos for European manufacturers until they were lifted the following year.

(Updates throughout with leaders statement confirming earlier exclusive)

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A celebration of women's empowerment turned into a harrowing moment after Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry left a charity event in New York City and faced a paparazzi "car chase." Also in the news: President Joe Biden is in Japan Thursday but won't stay abroad long before returning to debt ceiling negotiations in Washington. Montana is the first state in the United States to ban the Chinese-owned app TikTok.

 I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Maybe check that Gmail account you've been ignoring the last two years.

Now, here we go with Thursday's news.

Questions surround Prince Harry and Meghan's 'car chase'

In a statement to USA TODAY Wednesday, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's team described a "near catastrophic" chase that ensued after the royal couple left a charity event in New York City. The pair and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, were followed for more than two hours by half a dozen vehicles, according to their spokespeople. The pursuit "resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers." The couple and Ragland eventually switched to a taxi cab and whisked away, photos show. The cab driver, Sukhcharn Singh, told The Associated Press he wouldn't call the incident a "chase." Read more

Before the ''car chase,'' Duchess Meghan delivered an empowering speech about fighting for equity at a Women of Vision gala.

Biden in Japan amid debt ceiling talks

President Joe Biden will meet privately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Thursday before joining the Group of Seven gathering of major industrialized nations. The two leaders are expected to discuss ways to strengthen security and economic cooperation.

The summit in Hiroshima takes place as a dispute in Washington over the debt ceiling is inching toward a resolution.

Biden shortened his international trip this week, a move which underscores the urgency of a looming June 1 deadline for potential economic calamity.

But a deal in the coming days to raise the nations debt limit wont necessarily sound an all-clear signal for the U.S. economy. An 11th-hour agreement that narrowly averts default but frays nerves, sinks stocks and pushes up interest rates could still do some damage.

How should we prepare financially? By taking money away from those who rely on government services, consumption could fall, resulting in an economic downturn that could impact stocks and 401(k)s, experts say.

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President Joe Biden, third left, greets troops upon his arrival at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Iwakuni, Japan, Thursday, May 18, 2023.

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What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

Note found on body of teenage New Mexico shooter

The New Mexico teenager who killed three people earlier this week in a neighborhood shooting spree before police fatally shot him was carrying a note in which he warned people to leave his little sister alone, authorities said Wednesday. The note was just one of several additional details authorities brought up about their investigation into the Monday shooting in Farmington. Policy say the gunman was armed with a "AR-style rifle" legally purchased, and investigators said they believe the two other weapons were taken from family members. Read more

Supreme Court leaves Illinois ban on ''assault rifles'' in place for now.

Shootings, lockdowns, anxiety: Here's what kids say about mental health, helping each other.

Montana becomes first US state to ban TikTok

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a measure Wednesday banning TikTok in Montana, making it the first state in the United States to completely ban the Chinese-owned social media app amid skepticism from lawmakers. Lawmakers from both political parties have raised concerns over TikTok's potential threat to national security, including if the app could be used by the Chinese government to spy on U.S. citizens. There has also been a growing number of red states that have issued TikTok bans on government-issued devices. Read more

A New Orleans-based appeals court heard the latest arguments in a case that could force a major abortion pill off the market.

TikTok's latest drama, #Tattoogate, and the reason we love complaining on the internet.

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These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here.

Grand jury indicts man in stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students

A Ph.D. criminology student accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students in November has been indicted by a grand jury and will appear for arraignment on Monday to enter a plea. Bryan Kohberger, 28, has already been charged by prosecutors, but a grand jury indictment allows the case to be transferred directly to a higher-level court in Moscow, Idaho. It also allows prosecutors to keep more of their evidence secret until a trial. Read more

A Texas man pleaded guilty to smuggling gun in connection to deadly Mexico kidnapping.

Quick hits

Photo of the day: Marble artifacts from 1,800 years ago unearthed after recent storms

Recent storms in Israel have led to the discovery of rare marble artifacts that sank with a ship more than 1,800 years ago. The Israel Antiquities Authority said in an online post this week that an experienced sea swimmer spotted ancient columns in waters off the Beit Yanai beach near the Mediterranean resort city of Netanya. Read more

A diver touches an 1,800-year-old beam that sank with a ship in waters off Israel.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this  subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Daily Briefing: What happened in Prince Harry and Meghan's 'car chase'?
The claim: Jean-Pierre said, 'Weve seen a 90% decrease in illegal immigration since President Biden took office'

A May 8 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) makes a claim about White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

"President Joe Bidens press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, was caught in a lie on Monday when she claimed that illegal immigration had come down by 90% since Biden took office," reads the post. "Jean-Pierre made the claim during a press briefing, saying that 'weve seen 90% decrease in illegal immigration since President Biden took office.'"

Similar posts have been shared elsewhere on Facebook.

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Our rating: False

Jean-Pierre did not say the quote attributed to her and did not say all illegal immigration has gone down 90% since President Joe Biden took office. Rather, she was referencing how illegal migration from four specific countries has gone down by 90% since Biden implemented a new parole program.

Jean-Pierre said illegal migration dropped over 90% due to a parole program

The post surfaced after a May 1 press briefing when a reporter asked Jean-Pierre how Biden wants to address the challenge of illegal immigration and whether he considers his job on the issue to be incomplete.

In response, Jean-Pierre said Biden asked Congress to take bipartisan action on the issue, and that he has implemented policies to deal with the immigration system in a humane way. She then highlighted one those.

And thats why youve seen the parolee program be so successful," said Jean-Pierre, according to a White House transcript. "It has  it has  it has  when it comes to illegal migration, youve seen it come down by more than 90 percent, and thats because of this act-  the actions that this President has taken."

Jean-Pierre did not say illegal immigration has gone down by 90% since Biden took office, as the post claims. Rather, she was stating how unlawful migration from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela went down over 90% because of a parole program for individuals from those countries, Abdullah Hasan, a White House spokesperson, told USA TODAY in an email.

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The press secretary's language, including her statement "that's because of this act," indicate she was referring to a statistic from the time after the act was implemented.

Jean-Pierre also clarified her remarks in a May 2 press briefing  before the Facebook post was shared  that she was speaking to the parole program when referencing the 90% figure.

The parole program was implemented in October 2022 for Venezuelans but was expanded on Jan. 5 to include Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans. It allows individuals to stay in the U.S. on a temporary period of parole for up to two years for public benefit or urgent humanitarian reasons, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Jean-Pierre was referencing data from Customs and Border Protection that found encounters of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans between ports of entry at the southwest border declined 98% from a seven-day average of 1,231 on Jan. 5 to a seven-day average of 46 on Feb. 28, according to a White House press spokesperson.

Fact check: As Title 42 ends, post falsely claims Biden has no plan for migrants at US-Mexico border

Another claim in the post is also wrong. The post says Customs and Border Patrol apprehended 221,303 illegal immigrants at the southern border in February 2023, making it the highest number of illegal immigrants apprehended in a single month since 2000.

In February 2023, Customs and Border Protection actually encountered 156,138 migrants at the southwest border. This is lower than in December 2022, when 252,012 migrants were encountered at the border, according to the agencys data.

The figure in the post appears to originate from a federal court document that says the Department of Homeland Security reported 221,303 total encounters at the southwest border in March 2022.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media users who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Post distorts Karine Jean-Pierre's words on immigration | Fact check
A South Carolina woman who ran an autism clinic is facing federal charges of health care fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina.

Stamatina "Nina" Bourret, 41, from Greenville -- 200 miles northwest of Charleston -- was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday on 21 charges including fraud, and aiding and abetting for defrauding Medicaid.

According to the indictment, viewed by ABC News, Bourret ran Agapi Behavior Consultants, which allegedly provides clinic, in-school and at-home services for children with autism and other related disorders.

MORE: New York nursing home sued for fraud, neglect by state attorney general

The clinic's website says its programs are for those between ages 18 months to 21 years, and treatment consists of behavioral support, emotional training, family training, social skill training and generalizing skills.

The indictment states that from about July 2020 to April 2022, Bourret billed Medicaid for services that she and other workers either only provided partially or did not provide at all.

PHOTO: Agapi Behavior Consultants location in Greenville, S.C., in a 2016 Google Street View image, now closed. (Google Maps Street View 2016)

For example, the indictment alleges that Bourret submitted claims that services were provided on the weekends, despite the fact that Agapi was closed on weekends, and that she also submitted "false and fictitious claims for services beyond what was actually performed on the beneficiaries."

She also submitted claims using the provider numbers of employees who did not work in the area of South Carolina where patients lived, and claims of employees who never treated these patients, the indictment says.

The claims ranged from about $58 to $436, according to the indictment.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina did not immediately reply to ABC News' request for comment.

Bourret was arrested Tuesday and was released on a $25,000 bond on the condition she surrender her passport.

MORE: New York midwifery charged with distributing fake COVID-19 vaccination cards

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She faces a maximum of up to 10 years in prison for each charge. Bourret is also required to forfeit all process "obtained, directly or indirectly, from the offenses charged in this Indictment, that is, a minimum of approximately $1,109,430.00."

Attempts to reach Bourret were unsuccessful, and a number listed for Agapi was not in service. Her next court appearance is scheduled for May 26 at the federal court in Greenville.

Her attorney, Andrew Moorman, told ABC News he could not comment on the case.

South Carolina autism clinic director indicted for alleged Medicaid fraud originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
'Too much': Parents ask court not to release writings of Nashville school shooter

Arguing no one has suffered more than them, the parents of three children killed and those traumatized by a mass shooting in March at Covenant School in Nashville are asking a court to prevent the killer's writings from being released

The request was filed Wednesday in Davidson County Chancery Court in response to three separate lawsuits asking that the journals of the shooter, 28-year-old Audrey Hale, be made public to shed light on a possible motive for the massacre.

PHOTO: A woman pauses as she visits a memorial at the entrance to The Covenant School, March 29, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. (Wade Payne/AP, FILE)

In their court filing, the parents asked a judge set a hearing in which they would be allowed to give victim impact statements on how the deadly rampage has affected their lives.

"No one was more traumatized or has suffered more, than the families of the victims and survivors of the Covenant School atrocity. No one," the brief filed by the parents reads. "And no one can claim a remotely similar interest in whether the shooter's writings be released."

On March 27, Hale, a former student at the private Christian school, launched an attack on the campus, killing three 9-year-old students and three adults, police alleged. Hale used a legally purchased AR-15-style rifle and another gun in the rampage, firing 152 rounds in 14 minutes before being fatally shot by a police officer, officials said.

About a week after the shooting, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department released a statement saying journals and maps were found in Hale's vehicle and home, revealing the attack was planned over a period of months and that "Hale considered the actions of other mass murderers."

MORE: Nashville suspect planned for 'months to commit mass murder at The Covenant School,' fired 152 rounds

The collective writings were reviewed by Nashville detectives and the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit in Quantico, Virginia.

PHOTO: A still image from surveillance video shows what the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department describe as mass shooting suspect Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, inside The Covenant School carrying weapons in Nashville, Tenn., March 27, 2023. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Dept.)

"The motive for Hale's actions has not been established," the police department said in an April 3 statement.

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The brief filed with the court by the parents of the slain children said three-quarters of Covenant School parents support the motion to keep Hale's writings under court seal.

"The parents see no good that can come from the release and wish to contend that the writings -- which they believe are the dangerous and harmful writings of a mentally-damaged person -- should not be released at all," the brief argues.

However, if the court decides to make a redacted version of Hale's writings public, the parents asked that it be done after the end of the school year on June 8 "so that the children of Covenant School might finish the school year in peace."

PHOTO: Police work near the scene of a mass shooting at the Covenant School, March 27, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

"The parents humbly and respectfully request that the court spare them and their children additional pain that would be caused by the release of these documents until after the school year concludes," according to the parent's court brief.

The parents added that they fear Hale's writings could inspire "copycat attacks."

MORE: Nashville school shooting: What to know about the 6 victims

A hearing on the issue was scheduled for Thursday but has now been postponed until Monday.

The parents' request came just two days after more than 60 members of the Tennessee House Republican Caucus signed a letter they sent to Chief John Drake of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, asking him to release Hale's writings. The lawmakers wrote that Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has called upon the General Assembly to hold a special session to consider public safety legislation in response to the shooting.

"In order for this special session to be successful, it is paramount we understand the behavior and motives of the Covenant School perpetrator," the letter said.

'Too much': Parents ask court not to release writings of Nashville school shooter originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Reid Rolls

Reid Rolls

"I'm always like, it's the poor part of Park Avenueit's not the fancy part," Carson Kressley quips, referring to his primary residence, a one-bedroom apartment in New York's Murray Hill neighborhood. "I fell in love with it because it looked and felt like apartments that I saw in old New York City sitcoms in the 1970s, specifically The Odd Couple."

While not immediately flashy, the prewar building has a storied history and ample character. Built in the 1930s, it was owned by a church before it became a hotel. Now, it's a co-op with a striking lobby (think black-and-white checkered floors and handsome molding), and there's even a vegan restaurant in the former chapel. In 2003, the Emmy-award-winning TV personality and former Queer Eye for the Straight Guy star purchased a one-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bathroom unit in the building. After renovating it, he moved in the following year. And for the past two decades he's been filling it with design details that make the place a true reflection of his style and personality.

"It's a cozy little space, just under a thousand square feet," Kressley says. "What I love about it is that it has so many nooks and crannies and so many moments happening throughout the apartment that it really feels like it's much bigger."

As a self-proclaimed "amateur interior designer," especially when he moved in during the early aughts, Kressley always takes cues from the building and location when designing interiors. For his city abode, Regency felt like a solid starting point. "But because I'm a real country bumpkin and I love horses and farms and spend a lot of time in Kentucky, it has a lot of those elements," Kressley says. "So I call the design style Kentucky Regency."

The renovation involved turning the breakfast bar, with an open serving window through to the kitchen, into a built-in bar flanked by bookshelves. In the kitchen, black-and-white checkered flooring was addedan ode to the building's lobby. The kitchen and the bedroom share a wall, so he had the interiors of the kitchen cabinets knocked outkeeping the faux cabinet frontsto make space for built-in drawers in the bedroom. "I have more clothes than I have cookware, so I was like, Let's jigsaw puzzle this space and get me some more clothing storage."

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While Kressley knew the vibe he was going for, he didn't have a fleshed-out plan when it came to furnishings and decor (which he notes is "very naughty and designers frown on that"). As someone who travels often and shops frequently, Kressley has collected items he's loved over the years that "somehow miraculously and magically seem to work together," he says.

Mirrored surfaces and chrome accents mix with animal prints and horse-themed wall art. Some pieces were sourced from resale shops, like the 1960s Broyhill dining chairs that "looked like the chairs the Brady Bunch had." Others are treasured gifts and a mix of high and low items, from the Jonathan Adler credenza in the sunken living room to the T.J. Maxx equestrian prints in the bedroom.

Filled with character, the apartment remains an excellent urban base for when Kressleya longtime competitive equestrianisnt off earning a world title for horse breeds or escaping to his farm in Pennsylvania. Not to mention, the dolled-up dwelling is fit for the endless parties he loves to host, with as many as 100 guests at a time. "Interior design is very autobiographical for me," Kressley says. "It really tells my life story."

Gallery

Reid Rolls

Near the sunken living room and along the built-in bar, a small hallway is lined with a wrought iron railing that's original to the apartment. Framed wall art, a bust, a chair with print upholstery, and a zebra rug tie the passageway to the balcony together. "I have a degree in fine art; I've always loved art," Kressley says of the pieces throughout the apartment.

Living Area

Pictured above.

Right at anyone's footsteps upon entering, the sunken living room is the focal point of the apartment. It's anchored by a rug from Old World Weavers. "It has the glamor of leopard, but it's not too slick and not too in your face," Kressley says. "Because it's been distressed by sandblasting, it feels a little bit more masculine, a little bit more lived in." Not to mention, it shows no dirt and wears well.

A custom chocolate brown sofa in silk velvet upholstery and a mirrored console from a Neiman Marcus outlet store, found while Kressley was filing for Queer Eye for the Straight Guy in Dallas, enhance the room's elegance. On the console are two Brazilian horns mounted in lucite, a gift from a dear friend.

To modernize the space, Kressley added two white boucle chairs from Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams. Kressley explains: "I saw them in their showroom in High Point, North Carolina, and I was like, I think I told Mitchell, I have to have those. And they very graciously gave those to me. So they're modern. They're organic. I think they really freshen up the space and make it feel current."

Bar

Reid Rolls

Antique mercury glass lines the built-in bar to make it look bigger and boost the abode's Regency style. Back lighting spotlights the area, and a glass shelf holds drinkware for easy cocktail-making. "It's where I keep my Emmy, so in that mirrored corner it looks like I have three instead of just one," Kressley says. "It's a good optical illusion."

Built-in bookshelves are filled with coffee table books on Kressley's favorite subjects: fashion, architecture, New York City, and horses. Other trophies and horse photos sit on the shelves. The oversized nailhead trim on the bookshelves matches the nailhead trim on the dining room banquette.

Dining Area

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A custom banquette in a camel-back shape is upholstered in linen and features a nailhead trim. It easily seats 14 with the help of vintage Broyhill dining chairs. "The table was custom made, and it has the double C base that is a nod to Chanel, but it's also a nod to my monogram as well for Carson," Kressley says.

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Kressley jazzed up a Murano glass chandelier with leopard print lampshades from Ballard Design. On the walls are family heirloom horse prints and a modern screen print by the artist Joe Andoe.

Kitchen

Reid Rolls

"I do a lot of takeout, and I do a lot of reheating," Kressley says. With not much actual cooking going on, he gave the kitchen a mini makeover. Glass front cabinets show off some china and serving ware. A pink illy espresso machine pops against the clean, white cabinetry. A lively plant brings energy to the casement window, which overlooks the East River.



Powder Room

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Walls upholstered in a linen zebra print fabric from Ralph Lauren make the powder room stand out. Ostrich print wallpaper on the ceiling and a leopard print hand towel round out the space. The vanity and floors are brown St. Laurent marble, and the sink is hammered nickel.

Bedroom

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The custom headboard with a nailhead trim features gray and brown silk, which informed the color story for the primary bedroom. With a mix of gray and brown paint and sand, the wall was made to look like it's covered in linen fabric. A high gloss lacquered ceiling, mirrored nightstands, and chrome and brown sconces elevate the space. "A favorite piece of artwork is above the bed by Janet Crawford Hicks and is of some of my favorite horses," Kressley says. "Those are flanked by T.J. Maxx, equestrian prints found in the '90s that I've had in all of my apartments, and they were probably $39."

Primary Bathroom

Reid Rolls

The primary bathroom pops in a bubblegum pink lacquer. "I think it makes everybody's complexion look so good in there," Kressley says.

Sconces from Urban Archeology, a Venetian mirror, and a silver leaf ceiling play up the jewel box room's glamour. The custom vanity with a Carrera marble counter and fretwork design adds more shine without being overwhelming. The monogrammed towels from Waterworks have lasted Kressley 20 years. "They're such great quality," he says. "I love them."

Balcony

Reid Rolls

"It's such a treat to have an outdoor space in a New York City apartment and for many years, that was my only residence, so it was a lifesaver to have that space to get outside, get some sun, feel the temperature, enjoy a coffee or champagne," Kressley says.

The terrace also acts as an entertaining space. An awning allows for shade, while a metal equestrian-inspired settee from Twist and Turn Manufacturing with a custom cushion provides cozy seating. "It's quite simple," Kressley adds. "When you're out there you don't need a lot of stimulation because you have views of the East River and the Chrysler building; its just an iconic New York cityscape."

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Fans of Family Feud will be in for a fun surprise next week when a Delaware family makes their gameshow debut.

The Fletcher family from Wilmington will compete on the show on Tuesday, May 16. A family of 10 siblings, five of the eight Fletcher sisters will take the stage to represent Delaware.

We are a gaming family. Our mother Barbara Ann Fletcher loved playing games, and she loved the 'Family Feud.' I, as the oldest, I think I picked it up from her, said Lisa Fletcher. Whether its a board game or any other type of game, we play it.

Lisa, who watches Family Feud every evening, saw an open call for families wanting to be on the show and knew the Fletcher name had to be in the audition pile.

The Fletcher family from Wilmington, Delaware competed on "Family Feud." Their episode airs on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

When the Fletchers got the call they were selected to compete, shock and awe were plentiful.

I am very excitable about everything. When I got the email, I was screaming, jumping up and down, said Lisa. To hear that we were selected, and representing our family, just a whole lot of things were going through my mind.

Debra Fletcher, the youngest sibling, was surprised to hear the news and felt unprepared with how fast it all happened, she said.

Did you see this Delaware appearance?: A 64-year-old woman from Harrington is the latest competitor on this popular baking show

Hanging out with the other contestants and seeing the behind-the-scenes action of the show while filming in Atlanta were some of their favorite parts of the experience.

I love to meet people so being able to meet the families was pretty awesome, said Annette Fletcher. Being on the stage was so surreal. It was like, Are we really here?' 

For Lisa, hearing the live audience chant Fletchers! Fletchers! Fletchers! and clap as the Family Feud theme song cued the family on stage was one of the best moments.

The Fletcher family from Wilmington, Delaware competed on "Family Feud." Their episode airs on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

The most surprising part of the show for the Fletchers was how friendly the other competitors were, they said.

It was very much a family culture, said Debra. Everybody supported each other.

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We were all on the same page. We were on separate teams but at the end of the day, we wanted a great show, said Annette, adding that families often could be heard wishing each other luck and cheering one another on.

Meeting show host Steve Harvey wasnt a bad addition either, the family agreed.

Despite the joyous occasion, the family knew it would be that much more meaningful if their mother, who passed away in 2001, were able to share the experience with them.

The Fletcher family from Wilmington, Delaware competed on "Family Feud." Their episode airs on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

Barbara Ann struggled with scleroderma, an autoimmune connective tissue and rheumatic disease that causes inflammation in the skin and other areas of the body. When an immune response tricks body tissues into thinking a person is injured, it causes inflammation, leading to too much collagen in the body.

Although their mother wasnt present, the Fletcher family feels they honored her legacy by going on this adventure together.

We did our best to represent our family and the memory of my mother, said Lisa. Doing that for her, it just brought us closer. Through the show, it was something to unite us as a family.

Wondering if the Fletcher family brings home a win?

Survey says youll have to tune in on Tuesday to find out.

Check your local listings to find showtimes and ways to watch, and visit www.familyfeud.com for more info.

Got a tip or a story idea? Contact Krys'tal Griffin at kgriffin@delawareonline.com.

ICYMI: Patricia Talorico's Delaware Eats newsletter is an essential part of any food lover's week

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware family to compete on 'Family Feud' on May 16 in honor of Mom
With Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month coming up in May, a new group is finding ways to elevate the voices of Asian Americans in Centre County and help people learn more about the diversity of Asia.

The PanAPIDA Circle formed in 2020 when Nalini Krishnankutty, now a State College Borough Council member, and District Judge Donald Hahn, who was mayor of State College at the time, were on the Pennsylvania Governors Advisory Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, and they wanted to increase representation of the APIDA community.

The APIDA community is the largest racially minoritized group in Centre County, making up a little more than 6% of the population.

APIDA stands for Asian Pacific Islander Desi American, and Krishnankutty said she wanted to name the group PanAPIDA Circle to include anyone who identifies as Asian but may not traditionally be considered Asian by others, such as people from the Middle East.

In April 2021, Krishnankutty said she got a group together on Zoom to talk about their personal experiences and sense of identity within the community. Krishnankutty is a first-generation immigrant who spent the first 21 years of her life in India.

Asian American is a very externally constructed identity. There are no Asians in Asia, Krishnankutty said. There are Indians and Pakistanis and Nepalese and Bhutanese and Chinese and Japanese and Koreans, right? Theres no real (overarching) identity.

Hahn said he believes theres a fragmentation of identity between Asian Americans because each group considers itself somewhat separate from each other due to the fact that the individual Asian American communities are so small.

He said thats why its important for not only non-Asian community members to appreciate the APIDA community, but for different Asian groups to interact and understand each others cultures.

I think that hopefully this will result in a greater understanding but also greater knowledge of how to help each other, Hahn said, and break down the isolation of each discrete group of Asian Americans.

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Krishnankutty said she and Hahn reached out to local government, school districts and other organizations to speak about the Asian experience, but when COVID sparked Asian hate around the country, their efforts shifted to spreading anti-hate messages.

The PanAPIDA Circle participated in State Colleges LION Bash and created a flyer on how to report hate and bias in Centre County.

We didnt want to only be a group thats standing up against something; we also want it to be for  like elevate the voices and experiences, and also, lets celebrate APIDA joy, Krishnankutty said.

The organization then partnered with the Bellefonte Art Museum to create an exhibit called Into the Light: A Tapestry of Art and Culture from Local Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans.

The group was looking to connect with artists in the area who identified with the APIDA community to showcase their talents, and by the time the exhibit was up last spring, about 21 artists work were displayed.

The PanAPIDA Circles other goal is to connect with groups like the Penn State APIDA Caucus and set up booths at local events.

The caucus reached out to the PanAPIDA Circle for help with planning State Colleges first-ever APIDA Heritage Festival, which will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza downtown.

The celebration will feature food vendors, local art, performances, henna and photo booths to showcase the diversity within the Asian community.

Whats beautiful about this is this festival is going to be one where we really are going to have a town and gown collaboration, Krishnankutty said. This is also about the students claiming the town as their own and the community group helping to bring both the APIDA residents who live here to come and participate as well as organizations.

Tehreem Syed, vice president of the Penn State APIDA Caucus, said shes looking forward to the festival because it gives students and locals a chance to learn about other cultures.

Syed is a senior studying biology and is also the vice president of the Penn State Pakistani Students Association. She lived in Pakistan until she was about 14.

Heritage month, to me, is just appreciating everything, like where I come from, all the traditions, everything, Syed said. Its just special.

Cecil Houseknecht, an intern for the PanAPIDA Circle, said he stayed in State College after graduating from Penn State last spring because he saw there was APIDA advocacy work to be done.

Ive worked with a lot of people that oftentimes feel invisible, and it could be in educational spaces or in other spaces throughout the community, Houseknecht said. They dont feel like theyre represented necessarily in the best way.

He said the festival will give the APIDA community a chance to feel seen and will help teach other people about the diversity of APIDA culture to make State College a safe and welcoming space.

Looking at the PanAPIDA Circles future plans, Houseknecht said the group hopes to continue building a presence on social media and getting involved in more programming and events in the area.

The APIDA community is here. Its thriving in State College, and we want to continue expanding spaces and opportunities for these communities, Houseknecht said.

Krishnankutty said her hope is that Saturdays festival and Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month will give visibility to an experience.

My hope with all of this is that the APIDA community begins to see themselves in all facets of life in Centre County, Krishnankutty said, and all of us that live in Centre County begin to see how the APIDA community is an integral part of it.

For more information on the PanAPIDA Circle, visit its Facebook page.
One of the oldest Hispanic civil-rights groups in the United States issued a warning Wednesday advising immigrants not to travel to Florida and announced that it may take legal action against the state in response to Gov. Ron DeSantis most recent crackdown on immigration.

Earlier this month, DeSantis signed a bill that limits undocumented migrant labor, ends community-funded programs that give undocumented immigrants identification cards and toughens penalties against those who transport undocumented immigrants into the state.

The travel warning alerts immigrants and their families that traveling to the Sunshine State is dangerous and could pose a threat to their freedom, Domingo Garcia, national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said in a virtual press conference Wednesday afternoon. Founded in 1929, the civil-rights organization has led landmark lawsuits to fight segregation in schools, one of which ultimately became a key precedent for the case of Brown vs. Board of Education in 1954.

Floridas law requires that hospitals track and report the immigration status of patients, that local governments withhold services from people who cannot provide proof of citizenship and that all employers with 25 or more employees verify the immigration status of most workers using the federal electronic system, E-Verify. Although most of the provisions in the law take effect July 1, the employer penalties do not take effect until July 1, 2024.

Only once before in its 94-year history has LULAC issued this level of travel-related alert, the organization says.

If you bring your tia (aunt) to Disney World... to Miami or Universal Studios, they are going to charge you with a felony for bringing your undocumented friend or relative to Florida, Garcia said. Florida is a dangerous, hostile environment for law-abiding Americans and immigrants.

Garcia also announced the launch of a campaign urging Florida residents to vote in 2024 against politicians who are using immigrants as a political pinata.

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There will be consequences to your racism, to your xenophobia, to your scapegoating and your fearmongering, he said.

READ MORE: DeSantis signs immigration package as southern border political tensions escalate

Equality Florida, a Florida LGBTQ advocacy group, issued a similar alert in April, warning that going to Florida may pose a risk to peoples health, safety and freedom. And in March, Floridas chapter of the NAACP recommended to its national board of directors that a travel advisory be issued for the state over how they say the governors policies are negatively affecting Black people.

What are immigration advocates saying?

Advocates say Florida is penalizing immigrants and their families  many of whom are essential workers in the the food, construction, tourism, health and education industries  for being born outside the U.S. and searching for prosperity.

LULAC says its taking unprecedented action in Florida following DeSantis deliberate targeting of immigrants through the signing into law of Senate Bill 1718 and that it wont tolerate acts of fearmongering, scapegoating, and immoral policies hurting Latinos that divide Americans for political gain.

Lydia Guzman, LULACs immigration committee chair, said the law opens the door for racial profiling, drawing a parallel between Floridas Senate Bill 1718 and Arizonas Senate Bill 1070, known by its opponents as the Show me your papers law.

READ MORE: Migrants seeking asylum or humanitarian parole face tech glitches, immigration uncertainty

The 2010 Arizona law originally allowed police to demand papers and investigate the immigration status of a person if they suspected individuals were undocumented. This provision of the law no longer exists thanks to lawsuits filed by immigrant rights groups. The law prompted LULAC to issue a travel warning to Arizona in 2010.

The new Florida law opens the door to anyone that looks like me to be stopped and questioned if (they) have the authorization to be in this country, Guzman said. We will have to prove that, because of the color of our skin, we belong to this country.

Guzman warned that the Florida law may harm the economy as people choose not to travel to Florida. Arizonas SB 1070 also prompted a boycott, which translated into the immediate loss of millions of dollars to Arizonas tourism industry, though it was a trivial amount compared to the states gross domestic product, according to the Arizona Republic.

Laws like these that do nothing more than to harass immigrants are bad for a states economy, Guzman said.

READ MORE: Florida judge blocks Biden from using emergency parole powers in post-Title 42 surge

The Florida law mandates any hospital that accepts Medicaid to include a question on its admission or registration forms inquiring about whether the patient is lawfully present in the U.S. and to submit quarterly reports to the states healthcare agency.

Migrants will forgo medical attention, Guzman said. As that happens, people may die.

What is DeSantis saying?

Last week, the Biden administration allowed to expire a Trump-era rule that authorized the U.S. to expeditiously turn away migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 disease. Immigration advocates and some elected officials blame the rule, known as Title 42, for a dramatic increase of migrants and asylum seekers at the border.

READ MORE: White House calls Florida migration ruling an act of sabotage, says DOJ will fight

The governors office didnt immediately respond to the Miami Heralds emailed request for comment.

But in a press conference last week in Jacksonville, DeSantis said: This is something that is the responsibility of Joe Biden. This is a responsibility that he has defaulted on really from day one of his presidency.... Obviously if we had a different administration it would be a lot easier to actually deal with the problem at its source.

READ MORE: DeSantis to send troopers, guardsmen to Texas border in lead-up to presidential run

DeSantis said on Tuesday he will send state law enforcement officers to the southern border in Texas as the Republican governor prepares to launch a presidential campaign.

That is unChristian; that is unAmerican, Guzman said.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian says the proposed requirement of airlines compensating passengers will "no question" increase airfare.

Nathan Howard/Getty Images

Delta Air Lines CEO said it is inevitable that airfare will increase if the White Houses proposal to require airlines provide compensation for significant flight delays and controllable cancellations goes into effect.

There's no question if there is another layer of government regulation and cost that's introduced into the system, it will eventually find its way back into ticket prices, Deltas CEO Ed Bastian told CBS News on Wednesday. That's just common business logic.

The warning comes days after the International Air Transport Association (IATA) painted a similar picture, cautioning the cost of the new policies may be pushed onto passengers. The commentary follows the Biden administration and the Department of Transportations (DOT) proposed new rules to ensure passengers are compensated beyond just a refund when a delay or cancellation is considered the airlines fault. That compensation could apply to things like meal vouchers, overnight accommodations, rebooking, and more.

Bastian added that Delta already compensates passengers in those airline-at fault situations.

That's why you travel on us You know if something goes awry, Delta is going to be there for you, he said, adding, Anything that's within our control, we already do. We compensate our customers a meaningful amount of money whether it's hotels or meals or additional impact items for their travels. Because we know when you decide what airline you're choosing, you want to make sure you're choosing an airline that's got your back.

Still, compensation policies differ by airline, a fact the DOT spells out in a dashboard it launched last year. Currently, no major U.S. airline offers cash compensation when a cancellation or delay results in a passenger waiting for three or more hours, for example, and only two (Alaska Airlines and JetBlue) guarantee a credit or travel voucher in that situation.

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When the new compensation rules were proposed, a White House official noted to Travel + Leisure this type of compensation already exists in Canada and the European Union, and was shown to result in fewer delays in the EU in one study.

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Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
Despite the best efforts of Congressman Matt Gaetz, Eglin Air Force Base testing of live fire munitions will be limited in the Gulf of Mexico to areas outside of those inhabited by the highly endangered Rice's Whale.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration last week issued a letter of authorization extending Eglin's ability to test its weapons inside an established Gulf Test Range through April 13, 2030. The range stretches eastward from a north-south line established approximately at the city of Fort Walton Beach and encompasses about 120,000 square miles of water.

The Gulf Test Range is utilized by fighter wings at Eglin as well as the Air Force Special Operations Command at Hurlburt Field and accommodates air combat training, air-to-air missile testing, drone targeting, hypersonic weapons testing and space launches.

More: There are only 51 Rice's Whales left in the Gulf. Matt Gaetz wants to lift their protections.

More: Tiny group of endangered whales in Gulf of Mexico is a new species

At an area approximately 60 miles off the coast the range intersects the DeSoto Canyon, a deep depression along the continental shelf running between Pensacola and Fort Myers, the last known home of Rice's Whale, whose entire population is thought to be hovering around 50 individual animals.

The NOAA Letter of Authorization, recently published in the Federal Register, does establish parameters for mission testing that are specifically designed to protect marine mammals, including the Rice's Whale, from "incidental taking."

At a March House Armed Services Committee meeting, Gaetz, the "firebrand" congressman representing Florida's 1st District in the U.S. House, took a stance against protecting the whales during an interrogation of Gen. Glen VanHerk, the commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command.

Gaetz led off by asking the general if he'd heard of Rice's Whale, to which the general responded he had not.

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"I don't blame you," Gaetz responded. "There are only 51 of them, and until 2021 even the Rice's Whale didn't know it was a Rice's Whale. People thought it was a Byrde's Whale."

Rice's Whale, also known as the Gulf of Mexico Whale, was only identified as a unique species in 2021 when researchers for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were able to confirm physical and genetic traits that set it apart from the Bryde's Whale, its closest relative.

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Rice's Whale is the only species of whale unique to the waters of America. It is believed to take refuge in the deep DeSoto Canyon area due to its sensitivity to the noise generated by ship traffic and the operation of oil rigs.

Gaetz told VanHerk that the identification of the Rice's Whale had impeded the Northwest Florida military mission by forcing the Air Force to halt live fire drills until a determination had been made on how to deal with the new species.

"A serious nation would not impair live fire testing and other critical testing of hypersonic component parts over the range this committee has invested over $170 million into because we found 51 whales we didn't know existed until 2021," Gaetz said at the time.

Eglin spokesman Mike Spaits confirmed that the base had halted live fire exercises over the Gulf not because of anything to do with Rice's Whale, but because its Letter of Authorization had expired.

VanHerck did express some concern over Gaetz's assertions about live fire testing, and Gaetz sought his help in curtailing protections for the whale.

"Since we share a vision to ensure we have that high level readiness and that we have the areas necessary to plan for a China scenario, will your staff work with me to see how we can supercharge the voice of the Department of Defense in this interagency process where some people appear to be stopping critical mission over 51 whales?" Gaetz asked.

VanHerck told Gaetz that lobbying for the opening of the Gulf Test Range fell outside of his purview.

Gaetz's communications director did not immediately respond to request for comment on NOAA issuing the Letter of Authorization.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Matt Gaetz effort to stop Rice's Whale protection near Eglin fails
Diyar Al Muharraq, a leading real estate development company in Bahrain, played a key role at the 6th edition of the Bahrain Smart Cities Summit 2023, as a Platinum Sponsor.

The two-day summit kicked off on May 16 at the Gulf Convention Centre  Gulf Hotel Bahrain, under the patronage of Wael Bin Nasser Al Mubarak, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture.

Diyar Al Muharraq's sponsorship of this event follows the government's directives aimed at encouraging the establishment of sustainable projects and initiatives for smart cities. Furthermore, it reaffirms the companys commitment to supporting initiatives that enhance sustainability in the Kingdom.

On the second day of the summit, Engineer Abdulla Helal, Infrastructure Projects Manager at Diyar Al Muharraq, took part in a panel session and spoke at length on the topic of decarbonizing the work environment through adopting sustainable energy solutions.

Commenting on the summit, CEO Engineer Ahmed Ali Alammadi, said: "We are delighted to support such a prominent local event. This stems from our belief in social responsibility as we look to the future of Bahrain. We are also proud of Helal for representing Diyar Al Muharraq as a speaker during a vital panel session during which the decarbonization of the work environment was debated."

Diyar Al Muharraq, he stated, was at the forefront of developing the smart cities concept before it was officially approved in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The company intends to continue investing in sustainable living while contributing to the Kingdom's sustainable development goals, he noted.

"Through our sponsorship of the summit, we aspire to spread awareness of sustainability and illuminate the importance of introducing innovative initiatives related to building and launching smart cities, based on environment-friendly energy solutions, and combining the efforts of various entities in order to achieve prescribed goals," he added.

The Bahrain Smart Cities Summit is the first discussion platform of its kind to take place at a local level and is organized in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program (representing the UN headquarters in Bahrain), in addition to a number of strategic partners and sponsors from the public and private sector.-TradeArabia News Service
FILE PHOTO: The General Electric logo is seen in a Sears store in Schaumburg

(Reuters) -General Electric Co said on Thursday Carolina Dybeck Happe would step down as finance chief of the industrial giant, as it prepares to complete the spin-offs of its businesses next year.

Rahul Ghai will become the CFO of GE, effective Sept. 1, while retaining his role as the finance chief of GE Aerospace, which he has held since August 2022, the company said in a statement.

"Since Rahul joined GE Aerospace, we have benefited greatly from his leadership, including his wealth of experience as a public company CFO and with the spin-off process," GE CEO Larry Culp said.

A former A.P. Moller-Maersk executive, Dybeck Happe took over as GE's CFO in early 2020. She helped the company lower its debt levels and stabilize cash flow, as well as navigate the turbulence brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

She would continue as senior vice president of GE for a "period of time" to assist with the transition and continued work on separation of businesses, the company said.

In late 2021, GE announced it would split into three public companies that would focus on energy, healthcare and aviation.

GE completed the spin-off of the healthcare unit earlier this year. It has set early next year as the target for completing the separation of its energy unit.

Last year, Culp expanded his responsibilities to become the head of the firm's aviation unit.

(Reporting by Abhijith Ganapavaram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
More information has been released about the origin of two structure fires that heavily damaged buildings in Conemaugh Township and Boswell Borough on April 21.

The first fire was reported at around 7 a.m. Friday on the 1600 block of Soap Hollow Road, near Tire Hill. Seven fire departments responded to the residence, which was determined to be vacant and up for sale. The state police fire marshal was then called in to investigate.

Here's what happened: Fire crews respond within hours to house fires in Conemaugh Township, Boswell Borough

About seven fire companies from Somerset and Cambria counties responded to the scene.

Conemaugh Township Police Chief Vincent Zangaglia said in an email to the Daily American on Monday that the fire was determined to be accidental, as they "found an indication of damaged wiring at the point of origin."

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Fire crews were then dispatched at 8:42 a.m. to the second structure fire, which occurred at a residence on the 300 block of Allegheny Street in Boswell Borough. Personnel from eight departments responded to the two-alarm fire, as well as the Somerset Area Ambulance and Conemaugh Township EMS units.

Heavy smoke was visible Friday as fire personnel worked to extinguish the flames inside this Allegheny Street home in Boswell.

Boswell Volunteer Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Michael Sopich said Friday that the fire appeared to have started on the first floor at the rear of the residence, and the state police fire marshal was investigating.

On Tuesday, Steve Limani, public information officer at the Greensburg station of the Pennsylvania State Police, replied in an email to the Daily American that the Boswell fire "originated at or near the first floor kitchen" and that the cause of the fire was still under investigation.

The family living at the residence was not at home when the fire started, but five animals at the home perished in the fire.

Buying a gun? Learning about handguns: Safety is the word, as are 'eyes and ears'

This article originally appeared on The Daily American: New details released on Conemaugh Township, Boswell structure fires
Spaceship Earth lit up at night behind momorail

The 50-year relationship between Walt Disney World and Florida had been one of mutual success. Disney largely created the tourism industry that the central Florida region now thrives on. But a battle between Disney and Floridas Governor Ron DeSantis has now moved from being a simple war of words to legal challenges. First Disney sued Florida, then Florida sued Disney. But the mouse now wants to see Floridas countersuit tossed out of court.

The battle between Disney and Florida surrounds what used to be called the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a special district created by Florida in the 1960s to help manage the municipal affairs of Walt Disney World. The district has now been replaced by a new one with a board appointed by Governor DeSantis. However, the new board discovered last month that prior to the new board taking over, Disney and the Reedy Creek board agreed to a land deal that gave the theme park direct control over much of the districts land.

This deal was the focus of the lawsuit filed against Disney World, as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (the new Reedy Creek) sought to have the deal nullified. However, Governor Ron DeSantis also recently signed a new law that did exactly the same thing, and so CNBC reports that Disney is now arguing to the court that since the deal is currently dead by state law, the lawsuit has no standing and should be tossed out. Basically, nothing would change with the outcome, regardless of who ended up winning.

Disney is asking a court to reverse a series of decisions taken against Disney World by Florida, including the ending of the previously mentioned land deal. From the ending of the Reedy Creek Improvement District to a recent transportation law that will require inspections of the Monorail, Florida has passed several laws that are specifically targeted at Disney and do not impact any of the many other special districts in the state.

During the most recent earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger spoke about the litigation, saying that while the Reedy Creek Improvement District gave the company some special benefits, the state also benefited from Disney in the form of billions in tax dollars, above minimum wage employment, and the millions of tourists who come to Florida to spend money each year. Iger suggested that Disney's investments could be made elsewhere if Florida doesn't want them.

Disneys lawsuit focuses not only on the actions taken by the government but the language used by many, including Governor Ron DeSantis, which Disney claims shows a specific plan of retaliation. Last year Disney released a statement condemning Floridas Parental Rights in Education Act, called Dont Say Gay by detractors. Disneys suit contains numerous direct quotes and was even recently updated to include an epigram trolling Ron DeSantis when he made even more statements that Disney says show retaliation.

Even if a judge agrees with Disney and tosses the countersuit, Disney will still have to prevail in its own suit for any substantial change to take place. This battle is far from over.
Everything you need to know before watching 'XO, Kitty,' the new 'To All the Boys' spinoff on Netflix

The new Netflix series "XO, Kitty" is a spinoff of the "To All the Boys" films.

It stars Anna Cathcart as Kitty, Lara Jean's younger sister, as she moves to attend school in Seoul.

Here's everything you need to catch up on before digging into the show.

Two years after the release of the final "To All the Boys" film on Netflix, there's a Covey girl back on the screen. This time, it isn't Lana Condor's Lara Jean  it's her younger sister, Kitty Song Covey, played by Anna Cathcart.

This time around, Kitty isn't the one playing matchmaker to her sister. Rather, it's her time in the spotlight, as she decides to pursue love and reunite with her boyfriend Dae  who just happens to live on the other side of the world in Seoul, South Korea.

Before diving into "XO, Kitty," which is now streaming on Netflix, here's everything that you need to know in advance, from where we left off after "To All the Boys: Always and Forever" to the rest of the show's cast.

The show takes place after the third 'To All the Boys' movie, and focuses on Lara Jean's younger sister Kitty

anna cathcart as kitty in xo kitty. she's a teenage girl wearing a blue turtleneck and cropped black tee, holding a photo of her mother in front of a cherry blossom tree. kitty snaps a selfie of herself, posing in front of the same tree.

Anna Cathcart as Kitty in "XO, Kitty."Park Young-Sol/Netflix

In "To All the Boys: Always and Forever," adapted from the third and final book in Jenny Han's trilogy, Lara Jean makes the difficult decision to attend NYU  on the complete opposite side of the country from her boyfriend Peter Kavinsky, who will attend Stanford. Despite temporarily breaking up, the pair decide to stay together  and work through the long distance.

More important to the story of "XO, Kitty," Lara Jean's younger sister enters a long-distance relationship of her own. At the beginning of the film during a trip to Seoul, Kitty meets a young man, Dae, who quickly becomes her boyfriend.

Anna Cathcart reprises her role from the films, which she told Netflix's Tudum that she auditioned for at age 14.

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"It feels very surreal that this is kind of my story now," Cathcart said in a Netflix featurette.

'XO, Kitty' takes place primarily in Seoul, South Korea

anna cathcart as kitty, staring wistfully out the window of a black car as it crosses a bridge. gia kim, as yuri, is visible in the background, looking at kitty

Yuri (Gia Kim) and Kitty (Anna Cathcart) drive around Seoul in "XO, Kitty."Netflix

Now in her junior year of high school  the same grade Lara Jean was in when she got together with Peter  Kitty is ready to reconnect with Dae after being long-distance, as well as learn more about her late mother. That leads her to the Korean International School of Seoul (KISS), where her mother was a student, and where Dae conveniently also attends. And according to Netflix's Tudum, it's been four years since they first connected.

While Kitty doesn't speak fluent Korean, other characters in the show do, Teen Vogue reported  making the series a mix of both Korean- and English-language.

In the trailer for the show, Kitty travels to Seoul to attend KISS, where she learns that her boyfriend Dae is apparently dating another girl  his classmate, Yuri. Kitty, however, insists that her desire to attend the school isn't "all about a boy." She wants her "own adventure" too.

The cast includes some K-drama stars and newcomers

Minyeong Choi plays Dae, Kitty's long-distance boyfriend, and has recently appeared in Netflix K-dramas like "Twenty Five Twenty One" and "Itaewon Class." Gia Kim plays Yuri, the daughter of the KISS principal, in her first major role.

Sang Heon Lee, Minyeong Choi, Anna Cathcart, Gia Kim, and Anthony Keyvan at the Los Angeles special screening of "XO, Kitty" in May 2023. Steve Granitz/FilmMagic

Sang Heon Lee plays Min ho, Dae's school friend with an eye for luxury and skincare, and will soon appear in the adaptation of "Gran Turismo." Anthony Keyvan plays Q, another one of Dae's friends who becomes Kitty's confidante at KISS, and is best known for "Love, Victor."

The show also stars Yunjin Kim, who is best known to American audiences as Sun-Hwa Kwon in "Lost," as Yuri's mother.

While 'XO, Kitty' wasn't part of Han's original book trilogy, she was a coshowrunner on the series

kitty, played by anna cathcart, and dae, played by minyeong choi, standing in the middle of a crowded party room. kitty is wearing a small black dress with a cutout near her waist, while dae is in a jean jacket. he's looking wistfully at her, as she looks at something in the distance

Kitty (Anna Cathcart) and Dae (Minyeong Choi) in "XO, Kitty."Park Young-sol/Netflix

Han, who wrote all three novels in the "To All the Boys" trilogy, and Sascha Rothchild are the showrunners of "XO, Kitty." They told Netflix's Tudum that while "XO, Kitty" takes place in the "To All the Boys" world, it's also its own distinct story.

Rothchild told Tudum that Kitty's actions as a younger child  i.e., going through her sister's belongings and mailing her unsent love letters  carry over to how she approaches her own life in "XO, Kitty." Han said that it was fun to "explore" her character in this new medium.

"She's so not in her head," Han said. "She will say the first thing that comes to mind. Kitty is definitely a living-out-loud kind of a character."

The first season premieres Thursday on Netflix

Q, played by anthony keyvan, and min ho, played by sang heon lee, in xo kitty. Q is wearing a tie-dyed tank and crossing his arms, while minho is in a patterned button up shirt and looking up at Q

Q (Anthony Keyvan) and Min ho (Sang Heon Lee) in "XO, Kitty."Park Young-Sol/Netflix

All 10 episodes of "XO, Kitty" are now streaming exclusively on Netflix.

Read the original article on Insider
Sextortionists who allegedly drove a South Carolina teenager to suicide sent a sickening message to his grieving father gloating about his death while threatening to release nude photos and demanding money.

South Carolina state representative Brandon Guffey told CNN he received the anonymous Instagram message on what would have been his son Gavins 18th birthday, which said: Did I tell you your son begged for his life, followed by a laughing face emoji.

Mr Guffey told the network Gavin had been blackmailed after scammers posing as a young girl tricked him into sending a nude picture.

The 17-year-old recent high school graduate sent $25 by Venmo to the blackmailers, everything he had in his account, while begging for more time to raise extra cash.

The lawmaker said in interviews he found his sons body in the bathroom of the familys home in Rock Hill on 27 July last year after hearing him fall to the floor.

Mr Guffey, who was running for state office at the time, said he was unaware his son was being extorted and initially blamed himself for leaving a gun out.

The blackmail plot was revealed when sextortionists began bombarding the family with Instagram messages demanding more money or they would release the intimate photos.

Gavin Guffey died by suicide after being blackmailed. His father, South Carolina state lawmaker Brandon Guffey, is working to pass a bill criminalising sextortion (Facebook / Brandon Guffey)

Mr Guffey said scammers had used disappearing messages to make his son believe that the pictures would be deleted.

What they dont realise is, someone has another device recording that device, he said.

If you can extort 10 teenage boys that arent gonna say anything for $100 each, and do all that with one image that you got from a girl, its fairly simple.

After considering dropping out of the election, Mr Guffey was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in November.

His first act was to draw up a bill criminalising sextortion, called Gavins Law, which would see scammers who extort a minor face up to five years in prison for a first offence.

It passed the state house unanimously, and last Thursday the state Senate voted to approve the bill. It will soon be sent to Governor Henry McMaster to be signed into law.

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South Carolina lawmaker Brandon Guffey, right, with his son Gavin beside him, introduced Gavins law after a sextortion plot allegedly drove the teen to suicide. (Family handout)

Mr Guffey told CNN he would never recover from the grief of losing his son to suicide, but whenever he needs strength, he puts on Gavins white Vans sneakers, which are scribbled with a doodle of his sons favorite character Spider-Man.

I feel like (Gavin) would want me trying to save additional kids from ever having to feel the way that he felt at that time, he said.

In December, the FBI issued a national public safety alert to warn parents after seeing a tenfold increase in online sexual blackmail cases.

According to the FBI, at least 3,000 children were victims of sextortion plots that were connected to more than a dozen suicides in 2022.

Most of the victims were teenage boys, with kids as young as 10 being targeted.

Victims may feel like there is no way out  it is up to all of us to reassure them that they are not in trouble, there is hope, and they are not alone, said FBI Director Christopher Wray in a statement at the time.

The FBI told CNN that no arrests have been made in connection with Gavins death.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.

If you are based in the UK, the Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
Rep. George Santos is swarmed by reporters as he departs the US Capitol on May 11, 2023. Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

House Republicans successfully quashed an effort to hold a vote on expelling George Santos.

Democrats offered an expulsion resolution to put the GOP on record about the criminally-charged congressman.

But Republicans moved to refer it to the House Ethics Committee, effectively tabling it for now.

House GOP leadership on Wednesday successfully sidelined an effort to put rank-and-file Republican lawmakers on record over whether serial fabulist Rep. George Santos deserves to remain in Congress.

Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia of California offered a privileged resolution on Tuesday that would expel the criminally charged New York Republican from the House if the measure garnered a two-thirds majority of the chamber.

Under House rules, Republicans had two days to take action on the matter.

So on Wednesday evening, instead of scheduling a vote on Garcia's resolution, Republicans moved to refer it to the House Committee on Ethics  a move that Democratic leadership had urged their members to reject.

But the motion passed on Wednesday on a 221-204 party-line vote, effectively tabling the matter for now and allowing Santos, who now faces 13 counts of federal charges including wire fraud and money laundering, to remain a member of Congress.

Seven House Democrats  Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Glenn Ivey Maryland, Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, Deborah Ross of North Carolina, Veronica Escobar of Texas, and Mark DeSaulnier of California  voted present.

All except Perez and Houlahan are members of the ethics committee.

Cosponsors of the expulsion resolution argued that the committee referral was merely an attempt to defer action on Santos, citing the existence of an ongoing probe from the committee.

"It is simply an effort for the Republicans to avoid having to take an up-or-down vote on whether or not George Santos belongs here," said Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman of New York, one of the key co-sponsors of the resolution, at a press conference on Wednesday morning.

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But Republicans argued that expelling Santos before he's been convicted would set a bad precedent, while House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said that he wanted the committee to "move rapidly" on the issue.

Even House Republicans from New York  some of the strongest intraparty critics of Santos  voted for the referral resolution.

"Never before has a member of Congress, from either party, been removed without a criminal conviction or a referral," said Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York in a statement explaining why he would vote for the referral motion, adding that he still believed Santos should resign and that the indicted Republican would do so "if he had any dignity or decency."

There's also the political reality that McCarthy can ill afford to lose a reliable vote: Republicans hold the chamber by a four-vote margin, and McCarthy's grasp of the speaker's gavel depended on Santos in January.

It remains unclear now how the Ethics Committee will proceed.

Historically, when a lawmaker has been criminally charged, prosecutors have asked the committee to pause any investigations that it may be making into that lawmaker.

And the committee is known for dragging its feet, owing to the fact that it's a entity made up of lawmakers policing other lawmakers.

In the meantime, the criminally charged congressman will continue to serve as a loyal vote for Republicans.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Photo Illustration by Erin OFlynn/The Daily Beast/Getty Images and Public Domain

After a 12-year absence, Syria will return to the Arab League summit this week. Its both an undeniable political victory for the Islamic Republic of Irangained via military meansafter backing Bashar al-Assads regime during the Syrian Civil War, and a massive moral stain on the soul of U.S. foreign policy.

When the Arab League kicked Assads regime out, its fall was a matter of when, not if. The league, never too fond of that regime, was pleasantly preparing itself for the inevitable. Yet, Assad survived for three reasons. First, he had no qualms about killing as many people as needed (even if it meant the entire nation) to remain in power. Second, then-President Barack Obama refused to get involved. And third, he had good friends in Tehran and, later, Moscow.

A New Iran Nuclear Deal Would Help Prove America Is Truly Back

The Syrian Civil War remains the greatest moral catastrophe and strategic blunder of this century (yes, worse than the Iraq War, in my judgment). President Obama drew a red line against the use of chemical weaponswhich Assad interpreted as a green light to kill as many people as he wanted without resorting to weapons of mass destructionand then he refused to enforce his own red line.

What followed was a half-million deaths, 15 million Syrians displaced, the rise of the Islamic State, and irreparable damage to U.S. credibility. The war also exacerbated the refugee crisis and a proliferation of terror attacks in Europe, which in turn energized the rise of right-wing populism on the continent, and the election of Donald Trump in 2016. And its latest dividends are paying in Ukraine.

The United States stayed out of Syria for two reasons. On the one hand, foreign restraint, both as an ideology and an impulse, was growing on both sides. On the other, the administration feared that actively working to topple the close partner of the Islamic Republic would undermine its diplomatic efforts to reach a nuclear arms control agreement.

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Eventually, the adopted line became that there is no military solution in Syria.

But there was a military solution, and Iran and Russia later provided it.

Months into the Syrian Civil War, the Islamic Revolutions Guardians Corps (IRGC) deployed to Syria to defend Assads regime. In 2015, IRGC General Qassem Soleimani traveled to Moscow and convinced Vladimir Putin that Assads regime could survive. The Russian military subsequently entered Syria. There, it attacked U.S.-backed groups with no U.S. response, giving Putin the impression that the United States had lost any appetite for confrontation, and Iran got to audition its drones for himwhich he now buys and uses to kill Ukrainians.

The result was the first imperial deployment of Irans military beyond its borders in centuries, at last at Israels doorstep, and the return of the Russian military to the Middle East in nearly half a century. On top of that, Hezbollah entered the fight. Upon receiving arms from the Islamic Republic in Syria, it managed to strengthen itself to the point that it successfully took Lebanons politics hostage. Most dramatically, America left an impression of indifference that factored into Putins belief that he could successfully conquer Ukraine without much U.S. interference.

Despite this blunder, on top of genocide in Syria, Assad is welcomed back to the Middle East as a normal state. How did this happen?

Be Wary of Political Reformers. They Often Make the Problem Worse

First, The United Statesunder three successive administrationshas promised to leave the Middle East and acted accordingly. Middle Eastern states have finally come to take America for its word. This comes at a time when the Islamic Republic, growing in military power, is likely to soon acquire nuclear weapons. It also leaves the surrounding Arab regimes (mostly Sunni targets of Irans Shiite theocracy and traditionally aligned with U.S. interests)vulnerable and nervous that theyll be left on their own. So the Arab states are trying to smile at Iran, including by smiling at its partner, Syria.

Second, Assads regimevictorious in its war against its own peoplehas returned to being the status quo, and there is no indication that this will end in the near future. Genocides happen all the time. Lets get back to business!

However, Arab leaders will not foolishly believe that making pleasant overtures toward Iran will solve their problems. So we should expect that theyespecially Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirateswill increasingly arm themselves.

COVID Proved Were Unprepared to Handle Chinas Dictatorship

Consider the Islamic Republic and Saudi Arabia armed to the teeth against each other, without America in the region to stop them. This is going to end well, right?

The Syrian Civil War is a gift that keeps on givingto the worst people. It energized populism in the United States and Europe and diminished U.S. power abroad. The new regional order is permanent Islamic Republic military bases on Israels borderand a Hezbollah-dominated Lebanon also doing Irans bidding against Israel.

Worse, Assad, in the words of his subordinates, burned his own country, committed genocide, and got away with it. America and the rest of the free world overlooked it. So nobody should be surprised that the Arab League is overlooking it, too. (In defense of the Arab League, unlike the Americans and the Europeans, its members dont go around claiming moral superiority in their foreign policies.)

Inaction is a decision, and decisions have consequences. The consequence of President Obamas Syria policy is many things, but, above all, its a moral stain that Americans, repeatedly saying never again, ignored a genocide yet again. And by doing so, they not only damned tens of millions of Syrians and dishonored themselves, but also, they handed a victory to Iran and Russia.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Daniel Penny

The death of Jordan Neely has sparked calls for justice in his untimely demise. Twenty-four-year-old Marine veteran Daniel Penny placed the street performer in a fatal chokehold on a New York City subway on May 1. Today (May 12), Penny was arrested and charged with manslaughter for his role in Pennys death.

The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg shared a statement yesterday (May 11) declaring authorities intentions. We can confirm that Daniel Penny will be arrested on a charge of manslaughter in the second degree, a spokesperson said, according to ABC News. We cannot provide any additional information until he has been arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court, which we expect to take place tomorrow.

Penny turned himself in this morning and was arraigned on a felony manslaughter charge. He was released on bail just a few hours later after his parents guaranteed the $100,000 bond. Lennon Edwards, an attorney for Neelys family, addressed the press after Pennys arrest, speaking for the deceased mans relatives.

Is that enough for someone who choked somebody out on the train and took their life? Edwards asked pointedly. He went on to describe how Penny intentionally chose a technique to use that is designed to cut off air.

Thats a choice that he made and he did it intentionally. So we believe that the conviction should be for murder because thats intentional, he stated.

Legal officials havent specified why a manslaughter charge was warranted rather than murder. Bragg noted in a statement today that the investigation included interviews with witnesses, review of photo and video footage, and discussions with the medical examiners office. He also shared his condolences with the Neely clan.

After an evaluation of the available facts and evidence, the Manhattan DAs office determined there was probable cause to arrest Daniel Penny and arraign him on felony charges, Bragg said, per NBC News. Jordan Neely should still be alive today, and my thoughts continue to be with his family and loved ones as they mourn his loss during this extremely painful time.

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Gary Salsman, vice president of field operations for TC Energy, testifies before a Kansas House hearing in March.

More than 100 other points along the Keystone Pipeline use similar fittings to the one at fault for the December oil spill in north-central Kansas, a fuller review of the incident, made public this week, shows.

The spill in Washington County, where 12,000 barrels of crude oil flowed from the Keystone pipeline into Mill Creek, is the largest spill in the pipeline's history, as well as the largest onshore oil spill in years.

An outside analysis of the event conducted by an Ohio firm and posted by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration this week says TC Energy, the pipeline operator, missed opportunities to address a faulty bend in the pipeline system.

The report noted that "the most likely scenarios to have caused such a large bending stress were loads applied during construction" of the section of the pipeline that runs through several north-central Kansas counties.

The fitting at issue was a replacement for a previous part that had shown signs of corrosion, but while the welding was up to standards, the report said the workmanship "was not sufficient for the higher stress" caused by the pipeline design.

The report said TC Energy underestimated the risk of an oval-shaped deformation in the fitting occurring and that it did nothing to address or investigate the deformation when excavating the site in 2013.

108 Keystone sites use similar fittings to one that failed in Kansas oil spill

Ultimately the core root causes of the spill were "gaps in company standards, policies, and administrative controls" for designing the bend, as well as shortcomings in construction that created significant stress on the pipeline, according to the report.

There are 108 sites in the Keystone system that use fittings similar to the one in Washington County, with TC Energy saying last month in a response to the report that it was investigating and excavating sites with characteristics that mirror the spill site.

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TC Energy announced last week that it had finished recovering oil from Mill Creek, though remediation of the surrounding land is expected to continue. The oil, extracted from the tar sands of Alberta, Canada, is diluted bitumen, a type of crude that is considered more difficult to fully clean up.

In a report to shareholders, TC Energy said the full cost of cleaning up the spill is expected to reach $650 million, though it says insurance has already covered $102 million of the costs incurred to date.

TC Energy spokespeople didn't immediately return a request for comment but a statement released last month said they are "unwavering in our commitment to fully remediate the site and are taking action on the recommendations" from the report.

"We will not stop until we have completed this work," Richard Prior, TC Energy's president of liquid pipelines, said in late April. "We safely restarted the Keystone System in December 2022 and remain confident in its reliability as we deliver the energy the continent relies on."

Kansas legislators say questions over oil spill still remain unanswered

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, asks a question to TC Energy's Gary Salsman during a hearing in the Statehouse in March.

Meanwhile, legislators say they are still awaiting answers promised by TC Energy's representatives during a hearing on the spill earlier this year.

A company spokesperson said in an email that the Canadian firm had followed up with lawmakers who had unanswered questions from the meeting to provide the requested information.

But three of the four legislators who had unanswered questions following the hearing said they had heard nothing from the company. A fourth could not be reached for comment.

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, noted that it was rare for a company or agency to decline to provide information to the Legislature when asked to do so, with most presenters complying without any need for follow up.

"The time is now long overdue for TC to live up to, as they described it, transparency," he said.

Rep. Jerry Stogsdill, D-Prairie Village, reported he had not heard back on his search for greater details on the pipeline's engineering as it runs through south-central Kansas, where there has been an increase in seismic activity in recent years.

"There were a lot of questions I still had," he said.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas Keystone Pipeline oil spill stemmed from design flaws
A 14-year-old Michigan boy saved his sister from a potential kidnapper with slingshot. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Just as the biblical figure David fought Goliath and won, a 14-year-old boy in Michigan reportedly saved his sister by shooting her potential kidnapper with a slingshot, according to police.

The Guardian reported that law enforcement described the brothers action as extraordinary and that the boy should be commended after defending his sister.

Related

What do we know about the kidnapping? The alleged attacker reportedly approached the familys property through the woods in Alpena Township on May 10.

State Police Lt. John Grimshaw told local news channel WGTU, The suspect had come through the woods on to the property and came from behind her, grabbed her like youd see in the movies  hand over the mouth, arm around the waist  and was attempting to pull her into the woods.

The 14-year-old who witnessed the crime hit his sisters alleged attacker in the head and chest using a slingshot, according to U.S. News and World Report.

For a 14-year-old to see that and pop into action that quickly is extraordinary and he should be commended for it, a spokesperson on the case told CBS News.

NBC Chicago reported that the potential kidnapper was a 17-year-old, whose name has not been given to the public, and is being charged as an adult with one count of attempted kidnapping/child enticement, one count of attempted assault to do great bodily harm less than murder, and one count of assault and battery.

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Quotes to note: You wouldnt think if you were playing in your own back yard or on your own property that you have to be concerned about something like this, but it just goes to show that there is evil out there, a spokesperson for the Michigan State Police said.

The spokesperson continued, What he did also helped us identify who the suspect was because obviously (the suspect) had injuries from being hit with the slingshot and those were things that helped us evidentiary-wise identify who it was.
George Santos and Mitt Romney ( )

Utah Senator Mitt Romney on Wednesday said embattled New York congressman George Santos should resign from Congress after the first-term House member was indicted on 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, and theft of public funds.

Speaking to reporters in the Capitol on the day Mr Santos was arrested and set to be arraigned in a Long Island federal courtroom, Mr Romney called for him to step down immediately.

I think were seeing that the wheels of justice may grind slow, but they grind fine and he will have his day in court, but it certainly appears that things are not going well for Mr. Santos, he said.

Mr Romney previously told Mr Santos he had no business being in the House of Representatives during a testy exchange before President Joe Biden delivered his annual State of the Union address to Congress in March.

In the confrontation between the Utah Senator and the freshman New York representative that was captured by television cameras, Mr Romney called Mr Santos an embarrassment and told him: You dont belong here.

The Utah Republican later told reporters that Mr Santos, who was camped out in an aisle seat in hopes of shaking Mr Bidens hand, was a sick puppy. At the time, Mr Santos was under investigation by the House Ethics Committee follow revelations that hed fabricated much of his personal and professional background during his campaign for the House seat he won in 2022.

Given the fact that hes under ethics investigation, he should be sitting in the back row and staying quiet instead of parading in front of the president and people coming into the room, he said at the time.

Other Republican members of Congress have called for Mr Santos to step down, including Arkansas Representative Steve Womack, who told CNN on Wednesday that it would absolutely be preferable for the GOP of Mr Santos found the exit.

Its a distraction and its a punchline for comment regarding the Republican Party that we dont need, he said.

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Representative Ryan Zinke of Montana, a former Trump administration cabinet secretary who resigned in disgrace before being elected to one of the Treasure States two House seats, also suggested it was time for Mr Santos to go.

The Ethics Committee, in my opinion, needs to act on it now. I think America deserves the answers, said Mr Zinke. If the charges have veracity and theyre true, then he should not be a member.

Mr Santos fellow New Yorker, GOP Representative Nicholas LaLota, said Mr Santos  needs to go right away.

I hope he resigns. I wanna concentrate on things like the border, China and debt. Hes a complete embarrassment, he said.
(Bloomberg) -- The global market for carbon offsets is worth about $2 billion today and projected to grow to as much as $1 trillion in 15 years even as it faces fundamental questions about credibility and effectiveness. Add government appropriation to the list of risks for this climate solution.

Most Read from Bloomberg

A shock announcement this week that Zimbabwe will take half of all revenues generated from offsets projects developed on its territory is a harbinger of an uncertain future in the carbon trade. The African nation is the worlds 12th largest creator of offsets, with 4.2 million credits from 30 registered projects last year, according to BloombergNEF.

Zimbabwes move gives the government control of carbon credit production and cancels all past agreements with international organizations. That means more revenue generated from credits tied to protecting forests and other efforts to cut emissions will flow into national coffers rather than going to project developers.

Theres now risk that other countries might follow suit, creating new uncertainties for businesses that develop and sell offsets, corporations that purchase offsets as a way to counterbalance their greenhouse gas pollution and the cohort of traders who invest in this emerging asset class.

The move blindsided CO2balance, a company that runs five carbon offset projects in Zimbabwe. Everyone knew changes were happening but we werent expecting this  it wasnt on the horizon, said Paul Chiplen, head of sales, in an interview on Thursday. It does put a question mark in investors minds when youre not quite sure of what level of return youre getting.

CO2balance is waiting to see what the governments decision will mean for the viability of its projects.

Corporate buyers who rely on carbon credits will also face new doubts. The governments decision will significantly impact companies that have been big buyers of offsets in Zimbabwe, a group that includes Gucci, Volkswagen AG and Bayer AG, wrote Kyle Harrison, head of sustainability research at BloombergNEF. Such decisions will affect companies sustainability plans.

I think it is an entirely understandable thing for Zimbabwe to want to take a proportion of the funds from any exports of carbon from its territory, said Edward Hanrahan, director at carbon project developer Climate Impact Partners. But the issue is they acted rapidly and without prior notice.

Offset developers in Zimbabwe and elsewhere had been expecting changes tied to the rollout of a United Nations-run international carbon market, which allows countries to trade credits used to meet emissions goals set under the Paris Agreement. Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Honduras and India all introduced restrictions on carbon markets in their jurisdictions last year, some of which were later removed.

Under new UN rules put forward at the COP26 climate summit in late 2021, governments are left to decide whether to use carbon credits generated at home as a way to meet their own national emissions targets or to sell the credits to others. Each credit represents one ton of carbon dioxide and can be bought and sold many times before being used. The unregulated structure of the market involving companies, traders and governments creates risk of double counting. What if a government seeks to benefit by trading a credit produced in its territory after its been sold to an investor or used in a corporate sustainability plan?

Countries are beginning to see that carbon is a sovereign asset just like any other commodity, said Chris Leeds, head of carbon markets development at Standard Chartered Plc.

Treating carbon credits as just another export commodity underscores an imbalance at the heart of this global trade: Efforts to develop credits are usually funded by firms from wealthy countries and sold to corporate buyers in Europe and the US, yet most of the projects are located in emerging economies. This setup has been derided as a form of carbon colonialism that strips developing countries of an increasingly valuable resource.

Rushing to frame the decision by Zimbabwe as nationalization risk exposes a sense of entitlement to access those resources by the global North, said Rich Gilmore, chief executive officer at investment manager Carbon Growth Partners in Melbourne. We need to acknowledge that the past 200 years of resource extraction have miserably failed people and the planet. And if we want the carbon market to scale, we need to respect the right of the nations of the south to determine their own rules.

Organizations involved in Zimbabwes carbon industry are still figuring out the full implications of a major shakeup. Gold Standard acts as a verifier for 19 carbon projects in Zimbabwe, for example, and appears to have been unprepared for the new policy. A spokesperson said governments seeking stronger oversight ought to act in a way that will enable positive investment into climate action and sustainable development.

Comments by officials in Zimbabwe have focused on one project in particular: Kariba, a supersized forestry effort operated in part by South Pole, the worlds leading seller of offsets. Mangaliso Ndlovu, minister of environment, climate, tourism and hospitality, said on Wednesday that the operators of the Kariba project will have to give the government half its revenue if the initiative is to survive; retrospective payments will not be sought.

A spokesperson for South Pole said its reviewing Zimbabwes announcement and assessing the implications for the Kariba project. The company did not respond to a request for further comment.

Observers such as BloombergNEFs Harrison and Hanrahan of Climate Impact Partners expect the repercussions will extend far beyond Zimbabwes borders. Developers and investors might start to prioritize countries where governments have been transparent about their future carbon policies. Plus, if governments follow Zimbabwe in taking half of the project revenues, that will create a barrier to carbon projects that are the most costly to implement.

Some of the most expensive projects promise to have the biggest impact on the climate. This could change the way a lot of deals are financed, Hanrahan said. If youre a project financier you will have to understand the direction of travel in a host countrys government, who the decision makers are and what are their views. And youll also have to factor in a worst-case scenario whereby an unannounced levy is applied.

Its entirely appropriate for countries to seek a larger share from their carbon resources but they must carefully consider the economics, said Martijn Wilder, chief executive officer of Pollination, a climate advisory and investment firm. If whats left for a project developer is not sufficient to cover an investible rate of return, the project simply wont happen.

--With assistance from Sheryl Tian Tong Lee and Heesu Lee.

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It makes packing stress-free  and wrinkle-free!

Travel + Leisure / Tyler Roeland

When I had a major case of the travel bug in 2016, I bought a one-way ticket to Croatia and lugged not one but three suitcases along for the journey  one so large I now marvel at how it was even allowed on an airplane. And when Id unzip that behemoth, 50 percent of my earthly belongings would come flying out like Pandoras box. Eventually I learned to pack light(er), but the real game-changer for this maximalist has been organization. The method to my madness? Compression packing cubes  a hack even Rick Steves himself has recommended to Travel + Leisure readers.

Bagail Compression Packing Cubes have completely taken the stress out of packing for me, but they arent my little secret; theyre an Amazon sensation. For almost 10,000 shoppers who gave these little wonders a five-star rating, the secrets been out, and its not going back in. I have two sets of four (they come in sets of five or six, too), each in varying sizes, and I can fit about a three-week wardrobe inside, including bulkier things like a jacket and sweaters. They all line up neatly beside and on top of each other, so nothing inside my suitcases gets knocked around. And unpacking is so fast because everything is folded already.

Amazon

To buy: amazon.com, $27 for a set of four (originally $30)

Compression cubes have come a long way. It used to be that youd need a vacuum in order to suck out all the air and compress everything. But Bagail compression packing cubes  which are more like bags, actually  have an extra zipper in the middle, so after youve packed everything inside and zipped them up top, you then press the contents down and zip up the second zipper, manually compressing everything inside so the entire cube is just four inches high  no vacuum required. Youre not supposed to pack each cube beyond two-thirds capacity, but of course I do, and even then the zipper-compression technology creates a shrunken-down package that saves space in my suitcase.

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Travel + Leisure / Kristine Solomon

These organizational wonders help me separate everything out, too. I put undergarments and swimsuits in the smallest 11-inch by 6.5-inch cube. The next size up (13.75 inches by 9.75 inches) holds my neatly folded T-shirts, tank tops, and shorts. The third size at 13.75 by 12.75 inches contains things like leggings, jeans, button-down tops, and dresses. And the largest cubes, 17.5 inches by 12.75 inches, are reserved for heavier things like sweaters, light jackets, and my Turkish towel that I never leave home without. I love to stack the cubes and squeeze them in next to each other  its so simple versus the way I used to roll everything Kon Mari-style, and nothing gets too wrinkled because theyre packed so tight. Plus, I can shove my shoes between the Bagail compression packing cubes without having to worry about them soiling anything!

Amazon

To buy: amazon.com, $27 for a set of four

And then theres the material. You can tell by just touching Bagail compression packing cubes that theyre impenetrable. And its true: Theyre made of a rip-resistant, water-resistant nylon that I know will protect my clothes from the rogue toiletry explosion (I pack all my toiletries inside water-resistant pouches too, but you never know). They come in 23 color options; I have them in burgundy and navy blue. I even used one as a makeshift laptop case when mine had gone missing one day: It was the perfect size! And though it wasnt padded, it gave me peace of mind just in case I got caught in the rain. When you travel frequently, you have to think on your feet!

But remember those nearly 10,000 happy Amazon reviewers? Yep, theyre forever changed by the simple genius of Bagail Compression Packing cubes too. I was late to the packing cube party, but Ive been using them for a while now and love how organized it makes my luggage and its easier to pack and unpack, one enamored shopper wrote. So far, theyre fantastic Another traveler raved, I had a two-week European trip planned involving three locations. Knowing rental cars would be small, I needed to pack smart, and light. I used the two larger cubes and managed to pack all I needed.

Amazon

To buy: amazon.com, $27 for a set of four

Some Amazon shoppers are shocked at how much these compression cubes can hold  and I have to admit, it is eye-opening. Others are just so pleased with being able to organize their luggage. But yet another pointed out that Bagail compression cubes are great for short trips when youre living out of your suitcase, too. My trip consisted of 3 different stops over the course of a couple of weeks so I wasn't able to really unpack, one fan wrote. What I liked was I knew where everything was and if I needed to get something out of the bottom of my suitcase it was easy. I was able to pull these out easily and put them back in when finished without having to dig through clothes.

And if youre not planning on unpacking, you might as well go for transparent Bagail compression packing cubes  you can see everything inside without zipping them! Although I have to admit the next set I pick up will be these adorable flamingo-print ones. In fact, maybe a trip to Aruba is in order to match! Trust me, these packing cubes are a game-changer  youll definitely want to pick up one a set of four at Amazon for just $27 before your next trip.

Amazon

To buy: amazon.com, $27 for a set of four

At the time of publishing, the price started at $27.

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Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds (R) says he will endorse Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) for president, becoming the first Republican senator to publicly endorse a candidate other than Donald Trump for president in 2024.

Rounds told The Washington Examiner on Wednesday that he has committed to backing Scott, who is expected to formally announce his campaign for president Monday in Charleston, S.C.

I do, Rounds said when asked whether he plans to endorse Scott. Ive already told him I would.

I think he is the closest to Ronald Reagan that youre going to see, he said.

Rounds praised Scott as a candidate who would bring our country together and cares deeply about making the right decisions.

I believe he will build a good team. Hes got a business background. Hes got a great personal story and he understands and he truly cares about people, he told The Examiner.

Scott, who has already formed an exploratory committee for a White House bid, says he will make a major announcement in Charleston May 22.

He is the only Black member of the Senate GOP conference and took a leading role in crafting elements of former President Trumps 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, notably tax incentives for investment in underserved communities.

The 57-year-old senator is running in sixth place in the expected Republican presidential primary field, garnering an average of 2 percent support in the polls.

Scott plans to travel to Iowa next month to attend Sen. Joni Ernsts (R-Iowa) Roast and Ride fundraiser, along with several other announced and presumed 2024 GOP candidates.

Iowa will host the first contest of the 2024 Republican presidential primary process.

Trump has the support of 11 Senate Republicans, including Sens. Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.), Mike Braun (Ind.), Ted Budd (N.C.), Steve Daines (Mont.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Bill Hagerty (Tenn.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.), Markwayne Mullin (Okla.), Eric Schmitt (Mo.), Tommy Tuberville (Ala.) and JD Vance (Ohio).

Graham, Scotts home-state colleague, explained in a CNN interview last month that he endorsed Trump over his fellow South Carolinian because he thought Trump was a good president on the things that mattered the most such as securing the U.S.-Mexico border and fighting Islamic terrorist organizations.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Washington  The Supreme Court on Thursday sidestepped a ruling that could have limited the scope of a federal law that serves as a powerful shield for internet companies, delivering a victory for the platforms who have said the law, known as Section 230, has helped the internet flourish.

In an unsigned opinion in the case known as Gonzalez v. Google, the high court said it declined to address the application of the law, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, to a "complaint that appears to state little, if any plausible claim for

relief," and sent the case back to the lower court.

The dispute stemmed from a lawsuit brought by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, an American college student who was among the 129 people killed in Paris by ISIS terrorists in November 2015, against Google, which owns YouTube, in 2016. The Gonzalez family alleged the tech giant aided and abetted ISIS in violation of a federal anti-terrorism statute by recommending videos posted by the terror group to users.

The battle marked the first time the Supreme Court considered the scope of the Section 230, which protects internet companies from liability over content posted by third parties, and allows platforms to remove objectionable content.

In a second, similar case against Twitter, the court sided with the platform and other social media companies in a legal dispute brought by the family of Nawrs Alassaf, who was killed in a 2017 terrorist attack at the Reina nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey, by Abdulkadir Masharipov, who is alleged to have committed the attack at the direction of ISIS.

The Supreme Court unanimously ruled the family failed to state a claim under a federal law that allows U.S. nationals who have been injured in an international act of terrorism to sue for damages. The law, the Anti-Terrorism Act, allows victims of terror attacks to sue those who aided and abetted the attacks.

"The nexus between defendants and the Reina attack is far removed," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for a unanimous court. "As alleged by plaintiffs, defendants designed virtual platforms and knowingly failed to do 'enough' to remove ISIS-affiliated users and ISIS-related content  out of hundreds of millions of users worldwide and an immense ocean of content  from their platforms."

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He continued: "Yet, plaintiffs have failed to allege that defendants intentionally provided any substantial aid to the Reina attack or otherwise consciously participated in the Reina attack  much less that defendants so pervasively and systemically assisted ISIS as to render them liable for every ISIS attack."

The allegations, the unanimous court found in the case, Twitter v. Taamneh, "are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack."

In that legal battle involving Twitter, the Alassaf family sought to hold Twitter, Facebook and Google liable for aiding and abetting the attack at the Reina nightclub. A federal district court sided with the tech companies, but the 9th Circuit reversed and allowed the suit to proceed. The appeals court found Twitter could be secondarily liable under federal law for "knowingly" assisting an act of international terrorisms, even though its services were not use in connection with the attack or by the perpetrators.

The Supreme Court, however, said the "key question is whether [the social media companies] gave such knowing and substantial assistance to ISIS that they culpably participated in the Reina attack. The allegations here fall short of that showing."

The 9th Circuit, Thomas wrote, "went astray through a series of missteps that, together, obscured the essence of aiding-and-abetting liability."

The Supreme Court cited its decision in the case against Twitter that came in response to the Reina nightclub attack in its unsigned opinion involving the other social media companies and Section 230.

In its opinion, the court said that in light of its opinion in Twitter v. Taamneh, "it has become clear that plaintiffs' complaint  independent of Section 230  states little if any claim for relief."

Since we hold that the complaint in that case fails to state a claim for aiding and abetting under [the Anti-Terrorism Act], it appears to follow that the complaint here likewise fails to state such a claim," the court said.

The dispute brought by the Gonzalez family was closely watched given the implications of a decision impacting the scope of Section 230. The question before the justices in the case was whether the law immunizes platforms like YouTube, Facebook and Twitter when they make targeted recommendations of information to users.

Google had prevailed in early court proceedings, with a federal district court in California and then the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit finding the tech giant was protected under Section 230 and immune from liability.

But with its decision Thursday, the court vacated the 9th Circuit's ruling and sent the case back to consider the complaint in light of its ruling in the similar Twitter case.

During arguments in February, the justices acknowledged the challenges of applying a law passed more than 25 years ago to the current landscape of the internet, where social media platforms have flourished and highly complex algorithms use an array of factors to predict the content that will be of most interest to users.

Free speech organizations praised the pair of decisions, with the ACLU saying they maintain free speech online.

"Twitter and other apps are home to an immense amount of protected speech, and it would be devastating if those platforms resorted to censorship to avoid a deluge of lawsuits over their users' posts," said Patrick Toomey, deputy director of ACLU's National Security Project, in a statement. "Today's decisions should be commended for recognizing that the rules we apply to the internet should foster free expression, not suppress it."

The Electronic Frontier Foundation said it is pleased the Supreme Court left untouched Section 230 given the role it's played in shaping the modern internet and found an online service cannot be held liable because their services are used by terrorist organizations.

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President Joe Biden will not offer an apology for the United States use of nuclear weapons against Japan 78 years ago, the White House has said.

Mr Biden is currently en route to Hiroshima, the Japanese city that was the target of the first combat use of an atomic bomb on 6 August 1945, for the 2023 Group of Seven leaders summit.

He is scheduled on Friday to visit the Hiroshima Memorial Museum with the other six G7 leaders, and will participate in a wreath-laying and tree-planting ceremony with his counterparts from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom. The museum and memorial include the remains of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, the only building left standing after the bombing.

Some Japanese politicians have called for the US to offer an official apology for the Hiroshima bombing and the bombing of Nagasaki four days later. But the first US president to visit the memorial site, Barack Obama, did not apologise for the use of nuclear weapons when he visited in 2016, and the White House says Mr Biden will not do so either.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One that no apology would be offered in part because the event Mr Biden is attending would not be an appropriate occasion for such a gesture.

The president won't be making a statement at the Peace Memorial Park. He'll be participating with the other G7 leaders in a wreath laying and a few other events, but this is not from his perspective, a bilateral moment, said Mr Sullivan, who added that Mr Biden will attend as one of the G7 leaders coming to pay respects.

He added that Mr Biden would be doing so both out of respect for history and for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who entered Japanese politics as a member of the Japanese House of Representatives for Hiroshimas First District.
Michigan has a new state holiday. January 30 each year will honor American civil rights activist Fred Korematsu under a bill signed into law by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Wednesday.

Korematsu  the son of Japanese immigrants  was arrested in 1942 for refusing to go to the government's incarceration camps for Japanese Americans. He fought his arrest, but the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately sided with the U.S. government, issuing a decision that national security justified the federal order requiring Japanese Americans to relocate to the camps during World War II.

Later in his life, Korematsu moved to Detroit where he met his wife before returning to California. In 1983, his criminal conviction was overturned. And former President Bill Clinton awarded Korematsu a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998. Since his death in 2005, several states have recognized Fred Korematsu Day.

Michigan state employees would not necessarily have the day off as the process for creating additional days off for state holidays lies with the Michigan Civil Service Commission or by the Michigan Supreme Court for court employees.

More: Bills propose state holidays for minority faiths in Michigan

More: Whitmer repeals Michigan's 1931 abortion ban

While the bill  Senate Bill 18  signed into law gives Michigan an opportunity to look back and celebrate Korematsu's civil rights legacy, Whitmer also made a change to the state's civil rights law.

Currently, state law defines sex-based discrimination as including discrimination based on "pregnancy, childbirth, or a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth that does not include nontherapeutic abortion not intended to save the life of the mother."

But a bill signed by Whitmer changes how this part of the state's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act references abortion. Under Senate Bill 147, the law will no longer allow employers to discriminate based on an individual's decision to terminate a pregnancy. The change won't take effect until 90 days after the end of this year's legislative session.

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"This bill is necessary to ensure the protection of civil rights for people who have abortions from employer discrimination or retaliation," Sen. Erika Geiss, D-Taylor, who sponsored the bill, said in a statement.

Michigan voters approved a state constitutional amendment in last year's midterm protecting the right to seek abortions. Geiss said her bill protects this new constitutional right to an abortion and "ensures that employers cannot use their deeply held beliefs to discriminate against employees making personal healthcare decisions."

Whitmer said in a statement that the bills she signed "cement Michigan as a welcoming beacon of opportunity where everyone can envision a bright future for themselves."

Staff writer Niraj Warikoo contributed to this report

Clara Hendrickson fact-checks Michigan issues and politics as a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project. Make a tax-deductible contribution to support her work at bit.ly/freepRFA. Contact her at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on Twitter @clarajanehen.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Whitmer changes abortion reference in civil rights law
(Amy Irvine / SWNS)

A woman has revealed how she went on a Spanish holiday without using any annual leave.

Amy Irvine, 27, spent a week soaking up the sun in Marbella, Spain in April 2023, without having to take a single day of her annual leave allowance.

As head of digital at a PR company, Amys workplace has a policy allowing all employees to work from anywhere in the world.

This enabled Amy and her colleague, Olivia Smith, 27, to jet off to Spain.

The two of them spent their days working from the balcony of their apartment just a stones throw from the beach.

Lunch breaks were filled with a quick dip in the pool before they headed out for some drinks in the evening.

Amy has used the policy to take two other trips around the UK, to Kielder Forest in Northumbria for her mums 50th birthday and Whitby in the North East to extend a holiday, but this is the first time shes used it to venture abroad.

Amy, from Kendal, Cumbria, said: After Covid we realised that everyone could work from anywhere and it became a policy.

If the job allows, then everyone should ask their boss if they can work remotely - and use the chance to head abroad.

Chances are if you can work from home, you can work from Spain, France, anywhere with a similar timezone to the UK.

Id 100% recommend doing it. Its nice to get away, but not have to use up your holiday allowance.

I just wanted to go and get some sunshine to be honest.

I feel like it was so nice to have that change of scenery and work from anywhere.

Maybe it would have been more stressful in the UK. The sunshine just makes everything better.

We went for drinks and some tapas in the evenings and it made you feel like youre on holiday again. We even went to a beach club one evening.

We went for a swim on our lunch breaks and it was so nice to wake up to sunshine and not the rain. It felt really surreal.

Amy says the working holiday and new environment even helped with productivity.

She said: I definitely felt more productive and it increased motivation.

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It was nice to work with my colleague who is usually in the London office as well.

I think if you work in a job where you can do that its a really nice benefit and leads to a better work life balance.

Amy says she doesnt have any current plans for a future trip, but hopes to work abroad again in the summer and autumn months.
A Boise Pride Festival private security guard who said he was falsely charged and improperly detained by the Boise Police Department has been acquitted of a misdemeanor battery charge.

A jury on Tuesday acquitted Charles Rehdorf, a high school teacher who lives in Caldwell, of a battery charge he received after an altercation last summer with a protester at the Boise Pride Festival, an annual celebration of the LGBTQ+ community. Rehdorf was initially charged with willfully and unlawfully using force or violence against a person protesting the festival, according to a charging document.

Rehdorf has also filed a tort claim against the city and the Boise Police Department over the incident, alleging officers were negligent while on scene and did not assist the guard when he asked for help.

Chuck is happy to have been exonerated in court, Rehdorfs attorney Max Williams wrote in an email to the Idaho Statesman. Justice was partially served today, but theres still work to be done to restore Mr. Rehdorfs good name and reputation. ... We have some questions that need to be answered by the Boise Police Department and the city about what happened that day at Pride Fest last year.

Tort claims filed against city

Both Rehdorf and the protester, Martin Bettwieser, have filed tort claims against the city over the altercation.

Rehdorfs tort claim  which people file when an alleged action harms someone with a civil, rather than criminal, wrong  asks for $150,000 in damages. In Idaho, lawsuits against government agencies generally must be filed first as tort claims to give the agency a chance to resolve the issue.

Rehdorf said Bettwieser brought signs, including one that read Democrat Against Pride, inside the festival grounds. Rehdorf had been told by the events organizers the protester was not welcome at the event, the claim said.

Rehdorf said two Boise police officers who came to the scene did not help him remove Bettwieser, who he thought was trespassing.

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Other attendees eventually surrounded the protester and began screaming and arguing loudly with him, according to the claim. Rehdorf said he thought the situation was getting increasingly dangerous and attempted to move Bettwieser, who began yelling at him.

Rehdorf said he thought he could get injured and so tried to move Bettwieser without knowing he was standing on the edge of the sidewalk. When he tried to move him, Bettwieser fell off the curb and hit the asphalt road, causing him to bleed from his head. Rehdorf also lay on top of Bettwieser to subdue him, his claim said.

Boise officials have not yet responded to Rehdorfs tort claim, Williams said.

Bettwiesers tort claim asks for $500,000 in damages for personal and emotional injuries sustained from what he says is the Police Departments failure to protect him.

By phone, Bettwieser told the Statesman he was the victim of a violent attack that was unprovoked, and that Rehdorfs acquittal would set a dangerous precedent and allow what he called extremist groups to exhibit violence against someone who has a different opinion as theirs, even from a peaceful protest.

In emails, spokespersons for the Police Department and the Ada County Prosecutors Office said they respect the judicial process in the criminal matter and declined to comment further.

We appreciate the jurors time and attention in this case, and respect their decision, said Emily Lowe, the county prosecutors spokesperson.
It sounds like science fiction, but researchers are getting better and better at retrieving tiny traces of human genetic material called environmental DNA  or eDNA  that we leave floating in the air or water, and mining it for genetic info.

The technique has technically been around for a while, and has been used for a number of purposes including detecting the virus that causes COVID-19 in wastewater, or tracking endangered or invasive species.

But now, a team of scientists has attempted to see how much information it could glean from human eDNA specifically, The New York Times reports, analyzing samples for genetic markers related to genealogy and even ethnicity.

As detailed in a new paper published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, a team led by University of Florida wildlife geneticist David Duffy found that they could trace back medical and ancestry information from these minute traces of human DNA.

And that has privacy experts deeply worried, the NYT notes, especially in the context that law enforcement has already been making use of flawed and controversial DNA tools to identify suspects.

Duffy and his team were originally looking for tiny segments of sea turtle DNA to track diseases affecting the species. But upon discovering "surprising" amounts of human eDNA as well, the team shifted gears.

In a series of experiments, the researchers took samples from a creek in Florida and analyzed them for traces of DNA. They found far more legible human DNA than expected, including information pertaining to genetic ancestry.

One sample was even complete enough to be entered into the federal missing persons database, according to the report.

Experts believe that Duffy and his team's research could lead to new discussions surrounding the collection and analysis of human eDNA.

Harvard genetics researcher Anna Lewis told the NYT that the tech could one day be used to identify and perhaps even persecute specific ethnic minorities.

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"This gives a powerful new tool to authorities," she said. "Theres internationally plenty of reason, I think, to be concerned."

Chinese officials have already conducted genetic research to study the DNA of the country's ethnic minorities, alarming experts. Analyzing traces of eDNA could give totalitarian states even more power in that domain.

Fortunately, the traces Duffy found only capture one genetic marker at a time, whereas current law enforcement techniques involve identifying 20 genetic markers of any given suspect.

The error rate of identifying human DNA fragments is also still much higher than conventional techniques, meaning that the chances of false positives remain high.

But these limitations may not matter much when it comes to police looking for new ways of identifying suspects. While guardrails are in place for researchers at institutions, including an approval process and ethics boards, law enforcement most of the time operates with far fewer restrictions.

"Its a total wild west, a free for all," Erin Murphy, a law professor at the New York University School of Law, told the NYT. "The understanding is police can sort of do whatever they want unless its explicitly prohibited."

More on DNA forensics: Police Say They Used Genealogy Database to Arrest Idaho Murder Suspect
EDITORS NOTE: This is the fourth in a five-part series called How Florida got so conservative.

Floridas shift to the right has turned the Sunshine State under Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) into a model for other GOP-led states seeking to enact culturally conservative policies.

It has also turned DeSantis into a national Republican leader preparing to challenge former President Trump in the GOP primary for 2024, and a figure of controversy for groups who say his policies endanger vulnerable communities while infringing on the rights of businesses.

The state government under DeSantis has been at the forefront of a conservative effort on impose new restrictions on abortion and classroom instruction on race and LGBTQ issues.

That has led to a battle between DeSantis and The Walt Disney Co., one of the states and nations most powerful corporate entities, as well as groups representing Black and LGBTQ Americans.

Earlier this month, the state Senate passed an expansion of the Parental Rights in Education Act, dubbed by critics as the Dont Say Gay bill, prohibiting classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity through the eighth grade. An initial bill had been limited to students in the third grade and under.

On abortion, DeSantis signed into law a bill that would restrict women from having abortions six weeks after a pregnancy, a point when many do not yet know they are pregnant.

The policies come with some risks: Trump is seeking to move to the center of DeSantis on abortion, and Democrats think the social policies will play poorly in a general election.

But DeSantis and his supporters believe the policies have helped him in Florida and will play well with voters across the country.

Ron DeSantis saw an opportunity, particularly for Republican states  its something we talk about with the parental rights bill in particular  where you can help make policy for the rest of the nation, said Ford OConnell, a Florida-based Republican strategist. You dont have to just be in Washington, D.C.

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In the meantime, it has also put Florida in the spotlight as a conservative laboratory, turning the state into the front-line battleground on a host of social issues.

A laboratory for GOP experiments

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs the Parental Rights in Education bill at Classical Preparatory school on March 28, 2022, in Shady Hills, Fla. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP, File)

Florida has been at the forefront of the parental rights debate, and unlike bluer-leaning states such as Virginia, where Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) ran for parental rights in 2021, DeSantis has had free rein this legislative session to enact his agenda, with supermajorities in both of Floridas legislative bodies.

DeSantiss approach to education-related issues has proven influential in other ways, too.

In January, he garnered fierce blowback for rejecting an AP African American Studies course curriculum, arguing it was indoctrination and an attempt to shoehorn in queer theory. The move was praised by some conservatives but lambasted by critics, including the White House.

However, in a sign of the moves resonance for those on the right, Youngkin later announced that Virginia would review the same AP course. The College Board later said it would revise the changes it made to the curriculum after facing accusations of bending to political pressure.

He was in a perfect laboratory to see how far you could push the envelope on a lot of these things, OConnell said of DeSantis. And now youre getting some people in other places, even in dare I say, really red states like Oklahoma going, you know what? Florida is right. Why didnt we think of this?

As of March, lawmakers in at least 32 states have introduced parental rights legislation, according to an analysis from the National Conference of State Legislatures cited in the Christian Science Monitor. That same month, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation branded as the Parents Bill of Rights.

Democrats say the governor and other Republicans across the country were strategic in targeting parents during the pandemic, when they were home with their children and had a front-row seat to virtual learning.

I dont know if its so much of Florida having turned into becoming a conservative state more than it is the Republicans have taken on issues  and they found sweet spots  on what resonates with normal people, said Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones (D), citing the parental rights in education legislation.

A Spectrum News/Siena College survey released last October prior to the midterm elections found that 68 percent of Florida Republicans said they supported the Parental Rights in Education Act, while 76 percent of Democrats in the state said they opposed it. Forty-nine percent of independent voters in Florida said they opposed the measure, while 43 percent said they supported it.

More stories on Floridas conservative shift:

Democrats sound the alarm

DeSantis has especially received pushback from Democrats for his ongoing feud with Disney. (Associated Press/Wilfredo Lee)

Democrats argue the issue of parental rights is a guise for measures that negatively impact minorities and the LGBTQ community.

They use words like sexualization, or indoctrinated your children, Jones said. Theyre taking these themes and theyre using them as their tool to hate and discriminate and create this conservative mindset or this conservative-type state that were not.

But conservatives and Republicans maintain that Republican victories seen throughout Florida in 2022 are evidence that DeSantis and his allies have been provided with a mandate on cultural issues.

There are effects that conservative governing has on the electorate, and its all about momentum, said Terry Schilling, the president of the conservative group the American Principles Project. If Im a Democrat in Florida, and I am seeing everything that Ron DeSantis is doing and how hes not afraid of us, how hes not giving us an inch, how hes not backing down, how hes just getting stronger, Im going to be demoralized.

Schilling pointed to a shift in how he says many Republicans approached cultural issues, moving away from a strict, anti-government libertarian mindset to a belief that the government should play a bigger role in the cultural sphere.

It was just an aberration where Republicans basically became libertarians across the board and didnt want to do anything on these hot-button cultural issues, Schilling said.

The reason that Florida has stood out and really made a name for itself, probably as one of the most conservative states in the nation, is because Ron DeSantis took a chance, he continued. He took a chance, he passed a bill that he knew was going to give him grief from corporate America, academia, the LGBT movement, the mainstream, and he did. And he kept getting positive feedback.

DeSantis has also received pushback from Democrats and some Republicans for his ongoing feud with Disney. Since the feud ignited over the Parental Rights in Education Act, DeSantis has moved to punish Disney by taking over the companys self-governing district in Central Florida, which includes the companys theme parks and resorts, and appointing his own board to oversee municipal services.

I give him a lot of credit for being able to take on behemoths like Disney, Schilling said, recalling the corporate pushback former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) received when he signed a law in 2016 that banned people from using bathrooms that did not match their biological sex.

We cannot continue playing checkers

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions following his State of the State address during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives, Tuesday, March 7, 2023. (Associated Press)

Despite facing criticism from Democrats inside and outside of Florida for the policies, polls show DeSantis with solid approval ratings. According to a Mason-Dixon survey released last month, 59 percent of Floridians said they approved of DeSantis, up from 55 percent in September.

But the governors critics argue that DeSantiss policies are less popular than his political brand.

I dont believe that Ron DeSantiss agenda is popular in the state of Florida, said Brandon Wolf, press secretary for Equality Florida, an LGBTQ advocacy group. I think DeSantis as a politician has made himself popular. I think his bravado is popular within the base of his party.

Aubrey Jewett, an associate professor at the University of Central Floridas School of Politics, Security and International Affairs, pointed to DeSantiss branding of the Stop Woke Act, which would restrict how race is talked about in the states colleges, businesses and workplaces.

Hes very good at marketing in terms of how he frames issues and what he calls issues, Jewett said. Somehow, the term woke, particularly for Republicans and conservatives, has become an evil term or bad word.

Democrats and DeSantiss critics warn that the Dont Say Gay act and other measures have created a hostile environment for minorities and members of the LGBTQ community.

Zander Moricz, an LGBTQ activist who garnered national attention last year when he said he was told to omit references to his LGBTQ activism in his graduation speech, described the mood in Florida as apocalyptic.

The more important thing for people to understand is that no matter where the legislation began, no matter what its intentions are, if youre a marginalized individual in the state of Florida, your everyday experience is impacted by these laws, Moricz said.

Jones, who is the first openly LGBTQ Black person elected to the states legislature, said he is sometimes scared for his life, given his public role in opposing many of the conservative measures.

You find yourself having to defend your existence, the state senator said.

Moricz and Jones both noted that the environment has made political organizing on the left much more difficult, and that the victories on the right have been a discouraging factor.

People are becoming discouraged and theyre giving up and theyre not organizing anymore, because they feel like, Well I tried and then failed, why would I keep doing it? Moricz said.

There needs to be a refrain where we recognize, OK, we right now cannot change whats happening in the legislature. The people in power are not listening to us. In the long-term, we need to build power, we need to register young voters, we need to register marginalized voters.

Jones, who was recently named to President Bidens reelection campaigns advisory board, cautioned that it will take Democrats a while to regain traction in the state.

I think its going to take a couple of cycles, Jones said. Republicans took 27 years to get to where they are now, and they did it strategically. They did it by going through school board races, building benches at city levels, building benches at county levels.

We cannot continue playing checkers. This is a chess game that has to be played.

This is the fourth in a five-part series called How Florida got so conservative.

Updated at 8:11 a.m.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Yet another early-stage VC fund has closed in Europe this week, as Elkstone finalized a 100 million ($108 million) pot aimed at Irish startups. It comes a day after Lifeline Ventures closed a 150 million ($163 million) fund for fledgling startups in Finland, while several others have landed across the continent in the past few months.

Elkstone, a wealth management firm that for the past decade has invested privately at the seed stage in future unicorns such as Flipdish and LetsGetChecked, has launched its inaugural venture capital fund with the backing of the state's Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) and Enterprise Ireland (EI).

The new fund claims around 250 limited partners (LPs) in total, including a host of undisclosed business people from Ireland.

A year in the making

Elkstone first announced plans for its VC fund in January last year, initially targeting 75 million. Within three months, though, it revealed it was raising the ceiling to 100 million, with a view toward backing seed and pre-Series A startups with investments in the range of 1 million to 2 million.

Although the fund has only officially closed now, Elkstone says that it has already deployed around 10% of the cash across six startups, including Bluedrop Medical and Inclusio, with several more deals closing "imminently."

One of the big driving forces behind the new fund was a recent legislative tweak the Irish government made to the Employment Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS), an initiative that enables Irish startups to secure investment that are more tax efficient for the investor. The changes, which Elkstone had pushed for, mean that investors now benefit from tax relief of up to 40%. Up until that point, Elkstone says a fund of this size would not have been possible due to the risk/reward ratio.

"Our fund investor base, comprising both entrepreneurs and private capital alongside EI and ISIF, is a key edge in helping us bring meaningful value add to Irish founders as they look to fulfil their businesses potential and scale internationally," Elkstone chief executive Alan Merriman said in a statement. "Whilst the macro backdrop is undoubtedly challenging, it is a good time to be investing and we are very positive on the outlook for disruption and innovation."

Story continues

It's true that VC funding has mostly declined across all stages over the past couple of years, but data indicates that earlier-stage funding has been more resilient, particularly at the seed stage. In addition to Finland's Life Ventures' new fund announced yesterday, since February we've seen a number of early-stage VC funds arrive on the European scene. For example, the U.K.s Amadeus Capital Partners partnered with Austrias Apex Ventures for a 80 million ($87 million) fund aimed at deep tech startups, while in France Emblem and Ovni Capital each announced new 50 million ($54 million) funds. In London, meanwhile, Playfair Capital closed a $70 million pre-seed fund.

As for Ireland specifically, Elkstone's new fund represents one of the largest -- if not the largest -- to emerge from The Emerald Isle. For comparison, Dublin's Frontline Ventures launched a 70 million seed fund for European B2B startups back in 2021.

Having ISIF on board as an LP is a huge boon for Elkstone, and it comes at a time when Ireland is clearly doubling down on its investment ethos -- just last week it revealed plans to establish a sovereign wealth fund year.

"This fund expands our reach in early-stage venture capital and gives Irish businesses a valuable new option for attracting the capital they need to grow," ISIF director Nick Ashmore added.
TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V): GRG

Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE): G6A

OTCQB Venture Market (OTCQB): GARWF

VANCOUVER, BC, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Golden Arrow Resources Corporation (TSXV: GRG) (FSE: G6A) (OTCQB: GARWF) ("Golden Arrow" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has increased the size of its first diamond drilling program at the Company's flagship San Pietro Iron-Copper-Gold-Cobalt Project in Chile from 2,650-metre in 7 holes, to approximately 3,500 metres in 10 holes. Drilling is now anticipated to be completed by the end of May, which is approximately when the first assays from the program are expected to be reported.

Golden Arrow Resources Corporation Logo (CNW Group/Golden Arrow Resources Corporation)

Brian McEwen, VP Exploration and Development for Golden Arrow, commented, "This small test program is shaping up to be a great success. While we are still awaiting assays, in many instances the drill core logging alone has confirmed the interpretations that we were testing. In particular, logging of the first two holes at the Rincones target validated our new geological model for that zone, which was a major achievement in understanding the controls on mineralization. We decided to put the new model to the test by putting holes into several priority areas for expanding the known mineralization which we hadn't planned in this phase. In the meantime, we expect results for the two holes into the exciting Colla cobalt exploration target located two kilometres from Rincones, followed by those for the other targets."

The location of Phase 1 drill holes are shown in Figure 1. The additional drill holes are all at Rincones, which is a near-term resource target and the focus of most of the work to date at the project. In total, six holes were selected for Rincones in this phase. Structures and geology typical for these types of mineralized targets were encountered throughout these holes. This includes andesite-hosted specularite breccias with a NW-SE strike and vertical dip, as well as zones of magnetite replacement concordant with the andesites units in the form of mantos dipping 40 to 60 to the SW and andesites with disseminated sulphides and actinolite-magnetite. These mineralized units range from 1 to 60 metres in downhole width. Visible mineralization included copper oxides in approximately the first 80 metres followed by chalcopyrite and pyrite (see Figure 2 for examples).

Additional Project & Drill Program Details

The San Pietro Project is hosted by andesite units in a Cretaceous volcano-sedimentary sequence associated with intrusive rocks including granodiorites and diorites of similar age. The Project is located east of the Atacama Fault system, a major north-south regional structure, which was instrumental in controlling the emplacement of the ore deposits in the area.

Mineralization at San Pietro is typical of an IOCG system, with the addition of cobalt, and occurs in breccias, veins and mantos within a zone of K-feldspar-chlorite alteration. These structures are rich in magnetite and specularite and in some cases calcite and are mainly developed along NW-SE lineaments.

A summary of the main targets and the holes completed is provided below. Additional details, interpretations and sections will be provided when assays are reported.

Rincones Target

The Rincones target was the focus of historic work, with 46 widely-spaced holes drilled in an area of approximately 2.6 x 1.6 km. The drilling returned numerous intervals with significant copper, gold and cobalt, such as 1.20% Cu, 0.21g/t Au, and 579ppm Co over 34 m starting at 370 m downhole in RADDH-02*. Table 1 below summarized some of the best intervals from historic drilling, calculated and selected for when the copper grade multiplied by the width of the interval results in a grade-thickness value of more than 10. [This drilling was carried out by previous operators and has not yet been independently verified by the Company's Qualified Person. Reported intervals are core lengths and true thickness has not been estimated at this time.]

Table 1. Highlights of Historic Drill Intervals with Cu Grade x Thickness > 10%m.

Hole

From (m) To (m) Interval

(m) Cu

(%) Au (g/t) Co (g/t) Fe (%) RARC-09

270 300 30 0.36 0.08 0 0 RARC-14

84 116 32 0.58 0.06 90 12.3 RARC-15

94 100 6 2 0.19 397 18.9

150 178 28 0.49 0.05 107 12.4 RARC-17

18 54 36 1.25 0.32 70 11.9 RA11DH-002

391 442 51 0.58 0.14 82 25.6 RA11DH-003

345 368 23 0.66 0.23 118 17 RA11DH-005

286 348 62 0.32 0.08 144 34.77 Including 302 325 23 0.45 0.11 142 38.3 RA12DH-001

283 322 39 0.35 0.05 156 15.6 RA12DH-002

250 299 49 0.40 0.07 191 36.3 Including 250 270 20 0.76 0.13 146 35.3 RA12DH-003

105 120 15 1.16 0.37 377 23.4

190 224 34 0.46 0.05 48 13.3

236 264 28 1.14 0.12 335 23.5 RA12DH-004

82 94 12 0.9 0.18 160 20.3 RA12DH-006

206 214 8 1.87 0.88 390 24.6

317 341 24 0.62 0.06 175 15.7 RA12DH-013

78 111 33 0.33 0.06 94 10.9

158 164 6 1.7 0.12 112 17.2 RADDH-02

112 174 62 0.41 0.06 162 31.7

370 404 34 1.2 0.21 579 18.2

There was limited historic surface sampling due to extensive cover, and mapping was only completed at a property scale. In 2022 Golden Arrow completed detailed mapping and additional surface sampling at Rincones, as well as re-logging of a significant quantity of the historic drill core and reinterpretation of geophysics. The 17 rock chip samples collected in this target included specularite breccias and veins, massive magnetite mantos and outcrop of andesite and diorite. All show strong copper anomalies, often with strong gold and or cobalt as well (see Table 2, below, and Figure 3). New geologic modeling work based on the data collected suggested that some of the magnetite mantos are dipping moderately to the southwest, opposite to the general historic model.

The first two drill holes at Rincones (SP-DDH-05 and SP-DDH-06) tested and confirmed the new geological model for the magnetite mantos and copper mineralization in the area of the best historic copper intercepts in the southern part of the target. The third hole (SP-DDH-07) applied the new model in the northern part of the target area, while also testing for continuity of mineralization in a large gap between previous holes. Hole SP-DDH-11 further tested the continuity of mineralized intervals in the southern target area. Hole SP-DDH-12 drilled into a previously untested area to assess the depth extent of a large outcrop of magnetite mantos. This outcrop was unmapped and unsampled prior to Golden Arrow's 2022 work, when a grab sample returned assays of 0.46 % Cu. 0.18 Au g/t and 111 Co g/t on samples CD001469. The final hole of the program is (SP-DDH-13) planned to test for an eastern extension of mineralization in the north part of the Rincones target.

This work will fill in the knowledge-base and database prior to moving on to detailed drilling, deposit modeling and resource estimation.

Table 2. Summary of 2022 Program Rock Chip Sample Results, Rincones Target Area.

Sample East North Cu (%) Au (g/t) Co (ppm) Fe (%) CD001323 390393 7072226 1.00 0.18 128 44.1 CD001324 390400 7072223 0.17 0.15 86 50.0 CD001325 390503 7072250 2.63 0.74 60 36.1 CD001328 390593 7071650 3.44 0.16 137 18.4 CD001329 390359 7071876 1.62 0.26 87 14.5 CD001330 390660 7071820 4.82 2.42 76 24.8 CD001331 391151 7071898 1.73 0.16 101 25.7 CD001332 391238 7071965 2.02 0.11 48 29.3 CD001334 391190 7071820 2.36 0.33 1325 47.8 CD001335 390993 7071891 1.50 0.26 122 48.8 CD001336 390927 7071949 2.29 0.31 74 22.6 CD001462 391354 7072108 0.38 0.09 141 54.3 CD001463 391375 7072054 0.43 0.23 277 31.4 CD001465 391134 7071822 0.06 0.01 30 9.4 CD001466 391330 7071894 1.67 0.11 231 46.7 CD001469 390945 7071807 0.46 0.18 111 28.5 CD001470 391316 7072113 0.37 0.04 53 57.5

Colla Target

The Colla target is located just over 2 km southwest of Rincones. Four historic holes were drilled here, at wide spacing over a strike length of 2.2 kilometres. These holes returned high grades of iron and cobalt over significant widths, including the best interval of cobalt on the property: 414 ppm Co over 32 m starting at 116 m downhole in CO11DH-002*.

The first successfully completed hole in the current drilling program was SP-DDH-02 which tested a high chargeability anomaly (more than 30 mv/v) obtained from a recent 3D IP/Resistivity survey. The second hole SP-DDH-09 in this target tested the extension of specularite breccias and magnetite mantos delineated at surface by the new detailed mapping. The specularite breccias were partially tested in the past by hole CO11DH-002. Several holes drilled at the start of the current program in this area were abandoned due to issues with drilling and recovery.

Other Targets

The Rodeo target area is located 7.5 km northwest of Rincones. The current area of this target has one historic hole, RO12DH-005*, which intersected 34 metres averaging 1.03% Cu, 334ppm Co starting at 120 m downhole. This intercept appears to correlate with the same northwest-trending structure that is currently being mined by small-scale local miners on adjacent tenements. A single drill hole tested the lateral continuity of the Cu-Co mineralization in this area.

The Mariposa target, at the northeast corner of the project, hosts a series of specularite veins outcropping in an area of 200m by 80m with copper oxide mineralization. One hole tested the extent of this surface mineralization. There has been no previous drilling in this area.

Golden Arrow has postponed one planned hole at the Radiss Norte target, in lieu of completing an additional hole at Rincones.

*See Golden Arrow News Release dated March 17, 2022 for additional details and highlights of historic drill results. This drilling was carried out by previous operators and has not yet been independently verified by the Company's Qualified Person. Reported intervals are core lengths and true thickness has not been estimated at this time.

Methodology and QA/QC

At the San Pietro project, all samples were shipped for preparation and analysis at ALS Laboratory, an internationally recognized assay service provider. Samples were prepared and assayed at their facility in La Serena, Chile and assayed for gold by Fire Assay/Atomic Absorption finish and analyzed for a multi-element package by ICP-OES following a four-acid digestion. The Company follows industry standard procedures for the work carried out on the San Pietro Project, with a quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program. Blank and standard samples were inserted in each batch of samples sent to the laboratory for analysis. Golden Arrow detected no significant QA/QC issues during review of the data.

About the San Pietro Project

The 100% held San Pietro Project includes 18,448 hectares of exploration and exploitation concessions in the Atacama region of Chile, approximately 100 kilometres north of Copiapo in an active mining district that is home to all the major Iron-oxide copper-gold ("IOCG") deposits in Chile. There is excellent mining infrastructure in the area, and the property is situated between and adjacent to Capstone Copper's Santo Domingo IOCG mine development project and Mantoverde IOCG mine property, and just south of Alxar's Sierra Norte copper deposit. [Proximity to other mining projects in the area does not provide any assurances with respect to the prospects at the San Pietro Project.]

The project hosts multiple advanced targets with significant IOGG mineralization, and historic drilling encountered high grades of the strategic metals copper and cobalt in numerous holes (see News Release dated March 17, 2022). The potential for new mineralization, combined with a central location in a new copper-cobalt district, makes San Pietro the flagship project for value creation in Golden Arrow's portfolio.

Qualified Persons

The exploration programs are designed by the Company's geological staff and results are reviewed, verified (including sampling, analytical and test data) and compiled under the supervision of Brian McEwen, P.Geol., VP Exploration and Development to the Company. Mr. McEwen is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the contents of the news release.

About Golden Arrow:

Golden Arrow Resources Corporation is a mining exploration company with a successful track record of creating value by making precious and base metal discoveries and advancing them into exceptional deposits. The Company is well leveraged to the price of gold, having monetized its Chinchillas silver discovery into a significant holding in precious metals producer SSR Mining Inc.

Golden Arrow is actively exploring the advanced San Pietro Cu-Au-Co project in Chile, and a portfolio that includes more than 180,000 hectares of prospective properties in Argentina.

The Company is a member of the Grosso Group, a resource management group that has pioneered exploration in Argentina since 1993.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Joseph Grosso"

_______________________________

Mr. Joseph Grosso,

Executive Chairman, President and CEO

www.goldenarrowresources.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, statements about the Company's plans for its mineral properties; the Company's business strategy, plans and outlooks; the future financial or operating performance of the Company; and future exploration and operating plans are forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements and, even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things: the impact of COVID-19; risks and uncertainties related to the ability to obtain, amend, or maintain licenses, permits, or surface rights; risks associated with technical difficulties in connection with mining activities; and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. Readers are encouraged to refer to the Company's public disclosure documents for a more detailed discussion of factors that may impact expected future results. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, unless required pursuant to applicable laws.

Cision

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SOURCE Golden Arrow Resources Corporation

Cision

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Judy Malinowski suffered burns to 95% of her body but survived for two years. She's pictured in the hospital with her mother, Bonnie Bowes, by her side. Courtesy of MTV Documentary Films/Paramount+

Judy Malinowski was burned alive by her boyfriend after he poured gasoline over her body.

She died of her injuries  but had already testified against her killer from her hospital bed.

Her mother and other loved ones talk about Malinowski's tragic case in a documentary.

With 95% of her body covered in burns, Judy Malinowski's pain was apparent when she testified from her hospital bed against the man who poured gasoline over her body and set her aflame.

The gut-wrenching video of her deposition was played in court a year after her death at the sentencing of her on-and-off boyfriend Michael Slager. Slager faced the death penalty for aggravated murder.

Still, Malinowski showed her killer mercy from the grave. She told the judge that she didn't want Slager to be executed for his crime but to spend the rest of his life in jail.

"Judy was not an angry or vengeful person," her mother, Bonnie Bowes, told Insider. "That was her true nature."

Malinowski became one of the first people to testify at her own murder trial.

'Judy's Law' was established in Malinowski's honor to protect other people affected by domestic violence

Malinowski's story is told in the 2022 documentary "The Fire That Took Her," which will be available to stream on Paramount+ on May 23. It chronicles her fate  and fight for justice  in a series of interviews with the 31-year-old's loved ones, including Bowes.

It also features the legal teams of both the victim and perpetrator, and it pays tribute to Malinowski by highlighting her legacy, known as Judy's Law. The legislation, introduced in her home state of Ohio in 2017, imposes more serious and longer sentences to attackers like Slager who intentionally disfigure their victims.

Malinowski, pictured before the attack, was the loving mom of two girls. Courtesy of MTV Documentary Films/Paramount+

"Judy's courage and strength made me so proud," Bowes said, noting that her daughter's pain medication had been reduced so she was deemed more "lucid and reliable" when she delivered her deposition from the burns unit.

Story continues

"She spoke up, not only for herself but for other people affected by domestic violence," Bowes went on.

Slager doused Malinowski with gasoline on August 2, 2015, during an argument outside a gas station in Gahanna, Ohio. Malinowski gave evidence that her boyfriend shouted, "See what I'll do to you, bitch" and "How do you like this?" while emptying a can of gasoline over her entire body.

"He backed away from me for about 30 seconds, and I kept telling him to please help me and stop," she said in her testimony.

As security-camera footage of the attack showed, Slager went to his truck to get a cigarette lighter. Malinowski described how he walked toward her while she was "crying and begging for help" and "lit me on fire."

"After I was set on fire, he backed away, and his eyes just turned black," she recalled in the deposition. She said that he ignored her screams and "did nothing" before witnesses rushed to the scene carrying fire extinguishers.

Bowes told Insider that she took a dislike to Slager when Malinowski introduced them in January 2015. She said that her daughter had successfully overcome an addiction to opioids but was still vulnerable.

"I thought, 'No, this isn't good,'" Bowes said. "I looked at Judy and thought, 'She's clean and sober. She's beautiful.' His intentions did not seem right to me."

Doctors in the burn unit said that Malinowski would die within hours of the fire

Bowes said the relationship was "toxic." She said Slager beat up Malinowski, who repeatedly called the police but never pressed charges. She said her daughter relapsed and depended on Slager for money to buy heroin, which Bowes said she was unaware of at the time. "He was very manipulative," she said.

Bowes  who cared for Malinowski's two young daughters after she died  said that she drove to the hospital as soon as she learned that her daughter was injured. "They said there had been an accident, and they wanted to know if we had any religious preferences not to intubate Judy," she said.

She gave her permission and was later allowed to visit. Malinowski's blisters were covered with ointment and dressings. The head of the burn unit told Bowes that 95% of her body was covered in burns and they expected her to die within hours.

"Other people said they couldn't recognize her, but all I could see was my child," Bowes told Insider. "I kept screaming, 'Tell me there's hope!' but nobody would."

Malinowski was in a coma for eight months. She was in excruciating pain when she gained consciousness, especially when her dressings were changed twice a day.

Michael Slager, second from left, flanked by his lawyers during his July 2018 sentencing to life in prison for aggravated murder. Courtesy of MTV Documentary Films/Paramount+

Malinowski was devastated when Slager agreed to a plea deal in 2016. His lawyers entered a so-called Alford plea, in which he didn't admit guilt but acknowledged there was enough evidence for a jury to convict him.

He was sentenced to 11 years for aggravated arson. "Judy was all prepped, but she didn't get to testify because there was no contest," Bowes said.

"Michael's strategy was to silence her," she said. "Judy is not the only woman whose abuser took that kind of plea and never got to tell her story publicly."

Malinowski's pain medication was lowered before she gave her deposition

But Malinowski did not give up. She knew that she was dying, and when she did, Slager could be charged with murder. She was "determined to testify and prove that Michael had acted on purpose," Bowes said. She filmed the deposition  which included questioning by the prosecution and a cross-examination by the defense  from her hospital bed. She reduced her pain medication before she testified so she'd be considered a more reliable witness.

Bowes said that the effort took its toll on her daughter's body. She succumbed to her injuries on June 27, 2017, nearly two years after the attack.

But she was to get justice from the grave. The film of her deposition was played at Slager's sentencing hearing in July 2018. He had changed his plea at the last minute from not guilty to guilty of aggravated murder. Even though the offense carried the death penalty, Malinowski asked for leniency. Slager was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.

"Judy had forgiven him, and it was rightfully her decision," Bowes said. "I know that she was hoping that he would somehow find God or figure out his way out of the darkness."

Malinowski's younger daughter helps John Kasich, the governor of Ohio at the time, sign "Judy's Law" in 2017, shortly before her mother died. AP

She said the family honored Malinowski by establishing the nonprofit Judy's Foundation shortly before she died. It is campaigning to change laws relating to domestic violence at a federal level.

"Judy's legacy should be that with strength and courage, you can overcome bad situations and stand up for change," Bowes said. "She fought hard to overcome challenges that were deemed impossible."

Do you have a powerful story to share with Insider? Please send details to jridley@insider.com.

Read the original article on Insider
Prosecutors charged a man with murder on Thursday in connection with the death of a 5-year-old boy in Massachusetts nearly a decade after the child's body was found in a suitcase on the side of a highway.

Alberto Sierra Jr., 32, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in Worcester County for the death of Jeremiah Oliver, officials said. Sierra, who was also charged with disinterring of a body for allegedly moving Oliver's remains, was ordered held without bail. A spokesperson for Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said the office is not currently publicly sharing any information about what led to the murder charge.

Oliver was last seen in Fitchburg, where he lived with his mother and siblings, on Sept. 14, 2013, the district attorney's office said. His disappearance wasn't reported until two months later when his 8-year-old sister shared concerns with a teacher and a counselor at school, CBS News reported. The sister told authorities her mother's boyfriend used a belt and his fists to beat her, her siblings and her mother, court records said.

Police arrested Sierra, who was dating Oliver's mother, on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in December of 2014. They also charged Elsa Oliver, the boy's mother, with two counts of reckless endangerment of a child and two counts of accessory after the fact of a felony. The family was being monitored by state social workers since 2011, CBS News previously reported, and court records reportedly showed that Sierra had a history of abusing women and children.

Investigators didn't find Oliver's body until the following year in April. They recovered a suitcase with a body inside on the side of a highway near Sterling, which is about 12 miles from Fitchburg, authorities said.

Medical examiners deemed Oliver's death a homicide in 2016, prosecutors said. The autopsy report listed his cause of death as "homicidal violence of undetermined etiology."

Story continues

Though Oliver's death had been ruled a homicide, at that point in the investigation his mother and Sierra were not facing any murder charges. They'd been charged with kidnapping of a child and multiple counts of assault and battery.

Both Sierra and the mom pleaded guilty to several charges in August of 2017, District Attorney Early said at the time. The charges were only connected to Oliver's siblings. Prosecutors said the children were required to stand in a cold shower or kneel for extended periods of time, CBS News Boston reported.

Early's office had dropped charges against the pair related to Oliver. Prosecutors at the time said they'd dropped some of the charges against the mom and boyfriend to avoid possible double jeopardy claims, CBS News Boston reported.

Sierra was sentenced to six or seven years in state prison with three years of probation after he pleaded guilty to three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of assault and battery and two counts of reckless endangerment of a child, District Attorney Early said at the time.

He was not in custody when he was arrested Wednesday on murder charges in connection with Oliver's death, authorities said.

The boy's mother pleaded guilty to assault and battery and two counts of reckless endangerment of a child in August of 2017, prosecutors said. She was sentenced to more than seven years in prison and local media reported she was released in 2020.

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Mexico issued its first non-binary passport Wednesday in honor of International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, which takes place annually on May 17.

The passport was issued in Naucalpan, a municipality north of Mexico City, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard confirmed on Twitter. Ebrard called the occasion "a great leap for the freedom and dignity of people."

The passport was given to Ociel Baena, Mexico's Foreign Ministry said. The ceremony was attended by representatives from the Foreign Ministry and by various other officials, including Salma Luevano Luna, one of Mexico's first trans federal legislators.

Primer pasaporte no-binario de Mexico entregado hoy en Naucalpan, un gran salto por la libertad y dignidad de las personas pic.twitter.com/NCZAPS7nt4  Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) May 17, 2023

"Within the framework of #DiaContraLaLGTBIfobia, we endorse our support for sexual diversity. All rights must be guaranteed for all identities. No more hate speech; diversity enriches and flourishes," the Foreign Ministry wrote on Twitter about the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia.

Ministry staffers commemorated the day in more than 40 countries and U.S. states with flags and signs, according to a video on the ministry's TikTok page.

More than a dozen countries allow for non-binary documents at the national level, Human Rights Watch said in February. The U.S. State Department started providing an "X" (or unspecified) gender option on identity documents in April 2022.

The State Department first previewed the change after Dana Zzyym, an intersex and nonbinary resident of Colorado, filed a federal lawsuit in 2016. The activist and U.S. Navy veteran sued after years of lobbying the State Department to offer an "X" gender marker option on U.S. passport applications. Zzyym, who was recognized by Lambda Legal in their lawsuit, received the first passport of its kind in October 2021.

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Mexico will start issuing non-binary passports at its consulates and embassies in the U.S., Canada, and the rest of the world in July, the ministry said.

Nicole Sganga contributed to reporting.

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Air Force officials caught Airman Jack Teixeira taking notes and conducting deep-dive searches for classified material months before he was charged with leaking a vast trove of government secrets, but did not remove him from his job, according to a Justice Department filing on Wednesday.

On two occasions in September and October 2022, Teixeiras superiors in the Massachusetts Air National Guard admonished him after reports that he had taken concerning actions while handling classified information. Those included stuffing a note into his pocket after reviewing secret information inside his unit, according to a court filing ahead of a hearing before a federal magistrate judge in Worcester, Massachusetts, on Friday to determine whether he should be released on bail.

Teixeira  who until March shared secrets with scores of online friends from around the world on Discord, a social media platform popular with gamers  was instructed to no longer take notes in any form on classified intelligence information, lawyers with the departments national security division wrote in an 11-page memo arguing for his indefinite detention.

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The airmans superiors also ordered him to cease and desist on any deep dives into classified intelligence information, although it is not clear how, or if, they enforced that directive.

The new information was intended to drive home the governments argument that Teixeiras relentless quest for intelligence to share with online friends  which he acknowledged to be improper  makes his release a danger to national security. But it also raised troubling new questions about whether the military missed opportunities to stop or limit one of the most damaging intelligence leaks in recent history.

The signs that something was amiss seem unmistakable in retrospect. In late January, a master sergeant who was working at the Air Force base on Cape Cod in Massachusetts observed Teixeira inappropriately accessing reports on the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communication System, the Pentagons secure intranet system, the memo said.

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Teixeira had been previously been notified to focus on his own career duties and not to seek out intelligence products, one of his superiors wrote in a memo on Feb. 4 that prosecutors included in their filing.

Not only was Teixeira allowed to remain in his job  he seems to have retained his top-secret security clearance  but he was subsequently given the second of two certificates after completing training intended to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of classified information.

In their filing, prosecutors cited those trainings as evidence that Teixeira, 21, knowingly violated the law despite being well aware of his obligations and could not be trusted if released.

Two of Teixeiras superiors at the 102nd Intelligence Wing on Cape Cod have been suspended pending completion of an internal investigation by the Air Force inspector general, according to a spokesperson for the service, Ann Stefanek. Their access to classified information has been temporarily blocked, she added.

The government also introduced previously undisclosed Discord posts, including one from December 2022 in which he bragged about breaking a ton of UD regs  a reference to unauthorized disclosure  but said he did not care what they say I can or cant share.

In their own filing, Teixeiras legal team, which is seeking his release on $20,000 bail, argued that he posed no risk of disclosing new intelligence and pointed to previous cases where leak suspects were not detained indefinitely.

Teixeiras father told the judge in Worcester last month that he would take responsibility for monitoring his son if he were released and that he would use security cameras around his house to alert him of any suspicious behavior while he was at work.

Much of what is publicly known about Teixeiras actions comes from reports by news organizations about posts he made on two Discord servers, including one that had about 600 members from at least 25 countries, according to their online profiles, The New York Times has reported.

In its new filing, the government said Teixeira had leaked intelligence on at least one more Discord server with at least 150 users, some of whom represented that they lived in foreign countries.

Teixeira ignored his oath and published sensitive, top-secret documents for his own pleasure, prosecutors wrote in arguing for his detention. The court should have no confidence that the promises he might make in this proceeding would mean any more to him than the many promises the defendant has already broken.

The government had previously argued that releasing Teixeira would pose a danger to his community, citing a history of violent remarks and racial threats, including comments about making a Molotov cocktail that got him suspended from high school several years ago.

A Times investigation revealed that Teixeira was fixated on weapons, mass shootings and shadowy conspiracy theories. Even as he relished the respectability and access to intelligence he gained through his military service and top-secret clearance, he seethed with contempt about the government, accusing the United States of a host of secret, nefarious activities: making biological and chemical weapons in Ukrainian labs, creating the Islamic State, even orchestrating mass shootings.

The FBI and other 3 letter agencies contact these unhinged mentally ill kids and convince them to do mass shootings, Teixeira wrote in an online chat group, sharing a debunked conspiracy theory after a gunman killed three people at a mall in Indiana last summer. The gunman, he claimed, was one of many mass shooters groomed by the government as part of a secret plot to make people vote for gun control.

c.2023 The New York Times Company
Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, shown speaking at a news conference with Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this month, has endorsed DeSantis in a possible run for president, a super PAC announced Wednesday.

Never Back Down, a super PAC supporting a potential presidential bid by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, announced Wednesday that 99 Florida lawmakers  including most of those who represent Volusia and Flagler counties  have endorsed the governor.

There are 113 Republican lawmakers in the Florida Legislature.

The super PAC released a list of the 99 DeSantis-backing lawmakers, including both House Speaker Paul Renner and Senate President Kathleen Passidomo on Wednesday. The Wall Street Journal also reported on Wednesday that DeSantis will file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to enter the race next week, even as poll after poll show former President Donald Trump leading the GOP field with less than nine months remaining before the first Republican primaries.

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A Reuters/Ipsos poll released this week showed Trump ahead by 49% to DeSantis' 19%. The same poll showed both Republicans behind President Joe Biden, although DeSantis was down just 4 percentage points, as compared with Trump, down 6.

Who endorsed DeSantis and what are they saying?

All but one member of the Volusia-Flagler delegation endorsed DeSantis. Backers include Sen. Travis Hutson, R-Palm Coast; Rep. Tom Leek, R-Daytona Beach; Rep. Webster Barnaby, R-DeLand; Rep. Stan McClain, R-Ocala and Rep. Chase Tramont, R-Port Orange.

Prior to his 2018 election as governor, DeSantis represented the Volusia-Flagler area in the U.S. House of Representatives, making many connections with Republicans, including Leek, who served this past session as House Appropriations Committee chair.

"First, Gov. DeSantis is a principled conservative with a proven track record of fighting against federal government overreach and standing up for the freedom of Floridians," Leek said in a text message Thursday. "Ron and Casey are dear friends, whom I've known for the better part of the last decade. He'll make a great president and she will make a great first lady."

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State Rep. Chase Tramont, R-Port Orange, has endorsed Ron DeSantis for president, should the governor announce a run.

"Having known Ron DeSantis from his first days on the campaign trail for Congress over 10 years ago to working alongside him this session, it is a true pleasure to support my friend and our governor for any potential run for the presidency in 2024," Tramont said in a statement. "He has the passion, credentials, and vision to lead our country out of the Biden wilderness and back to the America we all know it can be."

Other Volusia-Flagler lawmakers didn't respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.

Passidomo, the Senate president from Naples, posted on Twitter that DeSantis offers the United States the "Florida Blueprint," the best vision for the future.

"Under his leadership, the Free State of Florida became a beacon of liberty and opportunity like never before, as families and businesses flocked from high-tax, lockdown states in search of a better way of life," Passidomo wrote. "Gov. DeSantis is exactly the kind of leader we need for our country, and I look forward to supporting him for president."

Sen. Tom Wright, R-New Smyrna Beach, was not listed by Never Back Down as one of the endorsers, making him one of just 14 Republican lawmakers to not endorse the governor. He did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday or Thursday.

PAC previews DeSantis' sales pitch

Erin Perrine, Never Back Down's communications director, called DeSantis "the fresh face of conservatism" who will unseat Biden.

"The widespread support from legislators in his home state underscores DeSantis' successful and effective leadership, which should serve as a blueprint for our country," Perrine said.

Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesperson, issued a statement alleging DeSantis "and his political cronies" threatened lawmakers if they didn't endorse his candidacy, which he characterized as "Swamp-like behavior."

Those who he cant control  including almost the entirety of the Florida federal congressional delegation  have endorsed President Trump because hes the only candidate who can beat Joe Biden and take back the White House," Cheung said.

During the Legislative Session that ended earlier this month, GOP lawmakers endorsed DeSantis in another way, voting to lift the resign-to-run law for governors who want to be president, under a bill sponsored by Hutson, a St. Augustine senator whose district includes Flagler and part of Volusia counties. All other Florida elected officials seeking a different office are required to resign by the end of the year the election is held.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Which Volusia, Flagler lawmakers endorsed Ron DeSantis for president?
U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba  who sailed through the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings last year en route to become the first Latina on the Fresno-based U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California  had a bumpier experience Wednesday morning in her effort to be confirmed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

De Alba was grilled by Republican Senators about her decision to allow Conrado Virgen Mendoza  who was entenced to 21 months for hiding his brother from police after Paulo Virgen Mendoza killed a Newman police officer during a December 2018 traffic stop  to remove one of two monitoring devises.

She was also questioned about giving a 66-month sentence to a Fresno man convicted of possession of child pornography when the guideline ranged from 78 to 97 months.

In both instances, the 44-year-old de Alba explained she followed federal guidelines and considered recommendations from prosecutors in making those decisions.

I am required to look at many factors anytime I impose a sentence, said de Alba, responding to questioning from Sen. Tom Cornyn, R-Texas. Im required to look at factors under 18 US Code Section 3005 53a, the Ninth Circuit as well as Supreme Court precedent.

Its also required that I look at, as you stated, the pre-sentence report. I also need to look at any requests from defense.

Committee Chair Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, noted that in the ankle-monitoring case involving Conrado Virgen Mendoza, the defendant was also wearing a GPS device managed by federal immigration officials.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Conrado, a Mexican citizen, had driven his brother through Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Merced counties in an effort to hide him from law officers and escape to Mexico to avoid capture. (Paulo was captured in Kern County days after the shooting death of Newman Police Cpl. Ronil Singh and later sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole).

He had every incentive not to stick around and get convicted, said Cruz. And yet, somewhat inexplicably, you granted the defendants motion to remove the GPS location monitoring device assigned by a prior judge that the defendant had previously worn for about four years.

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Cruz also blasted de Alba for not holding a hearing in the case, but the judge said she had all of the papers that I needed to review and pointed out she has 1,156 cases on my docket.

Durbin pointed out that Conrado had lived in California for 22 years with his three children who were born in the U.S. He had continually complied with all conditions of release over a prolonged period of time and had never missed a court date, said Durbin.

De Alba expected to win confirmation

De Alba, who was a Fresno County Superior Court Judge before moving into the district court bench, was nominated for the Ninth Circuit in April by President Biden.

Despite the grilling by Cruz and other Republican senators, de Alba should advance for a full vote by the Senate, according to University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias, who follows judicial confirmation hearings.

She did well. She was clear and comprehensive; very articulate, said Tobias. They asked her some tough questions.

I dont think theres anyone that can satisfy Sen. Cruz and Sen. (Mike) Lee, and perhaps even Sen. (John) Kennedy, he said. I think she will be confirmed.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, did a solid job of introducing de Alba, said Tobias.

Shes in fine shape. She has all the qualities a judge should have: Hard working, good temperament, said Tobias.

In her introduction, de Alba said she went into law because one summer her mother never got paid despite assurances that she would get a paycheck next week.

At the end of the harvest, the rancher filed for bankruptcy.

That summer we went without (new) school clothes, said de Alba, who heard her mother crying in the bathroom. My poor brother had to go through the eighth grade with high-waters because he outgrew his pants.

Her mother, she said, did not have the means to drive to seek legal aid because living in South Dos Palos meant lack of transportation to a city like Fresno.

De Alba received her bachelor of arts and law degrees from UC Berkeley. She was an associate at Lang Richert & Patch (2007-13), and a partner at the firm (2013-18) before being serving on the Fresno County Superior Court (2018-22)..

Judge de Alba has more than proven herself to be a qualified jurist, continuing to demonstrate an expansive breadth of legal knowledge and an unwavering commitment to public service, said Padilla. She is dedicated, fair, and universally respected by her colleagues.
Top Pentagon policy official Colin Kahl is set to leave his role in mid-July after two years in the building, the Defense Department confirmed Wednesday.

Kahl, who in 2021 was narrowly confirmed by the Senate after Republican members banded together to try to oppose him, will return to his former role as tenured professor at Stanford University, an official familiar with his plans told The Hill.

Under an agreement with Stanford, Kahl took a two-year leave of absence while he served as the Department of Defenses (DOD) undersecretary for policy. That leave was set to be up in April, but Kahl extended it until summer to support Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and President Biden in the run-up to the NATO leaders summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, the official said.

NBC News first reported on Kahls impending departure, with Deputy Undersecretary for Policy Sasha Baker to take over the role in an acting capacity.

Since his appointment, Dr. Kahl has been a trusted adviser and a resolute leader in our mission to safeguard American interests, both inside the Pentagon and across the interagency, Austin said in a statement announcing Kahls departure.

His strategic insights, deep understanding of international relations, and staunch commitment to strengthening our national defense have been crucial in shaping our policies, seizing geopolitical opportunities, and tackling a range of challenges around the world, he added.

While the Pentagons top policymaker, Kahl has played a key part in shaping DODs National Defense Strategy and synchronizing billions of dollars in military aid delivered to Ukraine.

But he has faced harsh criticism from Republicans on Capitol Hill, with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), on Wednesday tweeting that the officials departure was a good day for America.

Two years ago, during Kahls confirmation process, Republicans unified against him over tweets lambasting Trump administration officials and policies, as well as his support for the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

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At the time, Kahl apologized for the disrespectful language in his tweets, pledging to approach the Pentagon job in a nonpartisan way.

The Senate eventually confirmed Kahl in a narrow 49-45 vote in April 2021, with no Republicans in the chamber voting for him.

Prior to serving as the Pentagons No. 3 official, Kahl was national security adviser to then-Vice President Biden from October 2014 to January 2017. He also served as the Pentagons deputy assistant secretary for the Middle East from 2009 to 2011 under the Obama administration.

I have personally valued Colins leadership and counsel, and I have been continually impressed by his seriousness of purpose, his commitment to Americas national security, and his reverence for public service, Austin said. Our Department is stronger and better prepared for future security challenges because of Colins distinguished service.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Washington  Jack Teixeira, the 21-year-old airman accused of leaking classified Pentagon records, shared sensitive information with people in foreign countries and repeatedly told his online associates that he was violating military rules he had signed, federal prosecutors argued in a new court filing.

Prosecutors urged the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts to keep Teixeira detained until trial, saying foreign adversaries would "salivate" at the prospect of helping him evade the U.S. government. Teixeira's lawyers submitted their own filing asking the court to release him.

Teixeira was arrested and charged last month with unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information, and unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents. He was taken into custody days after hundreds of classified U.S. documents began circulating online, exposing U.S. secrets about the war in Ukraine, China, Taiwan and more.

Prosecutors said in their new memo that Teixeira, contrary to the defense's claims, did not just share sensitive government information with a very small group of people, but "directly posted classified information to multiple servers on the social media platform over the course of many months," including on one server with at least 150 active users at the time.

"Among the individuals with whom the defendant shared government information are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries and who logged on to the social media platform using foreign IP addresses," prosecutors said.

The filing included an online exchange Teixeira allegedly had on Jan. 4, 2023, in which he noted all the various countries and regions about which he could access government information.

Teixeira: theres gonna be a f*** ton of information here ... Teixeira: it may be irrelevant, but its not just ukraine i cover Teixeira: i have stuff for israel, palestine, syria, iran, chinaTeixeira: SE asia, sometimes western europe Teixeira: DPRK, ROK Teixeira: i don't usually cover south america that much anymore Teixeira: before the war i was assigned to middle eastern intelligence gathering tasks

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"In the same chat, the defendant made clear his understanding of the unlawfulness of his disclosures, adding that 'none of this is public information,'" prosecutors wrote. "The defendant had previously acknowledged on the social media platform that the information to which he had access required him to sign a non-disclosure agreement."

The government said Teixeira was admonished by his military supervisors on two separate occasions, in September and October of 2022, for taking notes or viewing material he wasn't supposed to see.

Prosecutors mentioned a video published by The Washington Post depicting Teixeira using racial and ethnic slurs while firing at a target, alleging that Teixeira's true character was not what he portrayed to the government when he was hired.

In December 2022, Teixeira allegedly acknowledged to his online associates that he was "breaking a ton of [unauthorized disclosure] regs," but said, "Idgaf what they say I can or can't share." Prosecutors included a copy of a document showing Teixeira completed training about unauthorized disclosure of classified information.

"That the defendant continued posting classified information despite keep awareness that he was violating the law and even after being admonished multiple times by superiors is a clear indication that he will be undeterred by any restrictions this court places upon him and will not hesitate to circumvent those restrictions if he deems it in his interest to do so," prosecutors said.

"His own posts make clear that he simply did not care what his government or his superiors told him he could or could not share, and the government submits that he would not give any more weight to whatever conditions the court imposes," the government continued. "Moreover, his efforts to circumvent and conceal his illegal activities while on base in a classified facility is at odds with any notion that he would not find ways to circumvent restrictions imposed on him at his home  perhaps aided by one of the many foreign adversaries and threat actors who would no doubt salivate at the prospect of assisting him in evading the jurisdiction of the United States."

In arguing for Teixeira's release, his attorneys pointed out that he "remained at his mother's home and peacefully submitted to arrest upon the arrival of law enforcement," and suggested Teixeira isn't like other people charged under the Espionage Act.

Prosecutors said Teixeira faces significant prison time if convicted.

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FARMINGTON, N.M.  The New Mexico teenager who killed three people earlier this week in a neighborhood shooting spree before police fatally shot him was carrying a note in which he warned people to leave his little sister alone, authorities said Wednesday.

The existence of the note apparently written by 18-year-old Beau Wilson was revealed by Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe during a Wednesday news conference. An image of the note  scrawled on what appeared to be two Post-it notes  was projected on a screen behind Hebbe as he described its contents.

If (you're) reading this, Im (at) the end of the chapter, the note states. Lay eyes or (dare) put a finger on my little sister I (promise) there will be regrets.

The note was just one of several additional details authorities brought up about their investigation into the Monday shooting in Farmington. Besides the three women who were killed, several people were wounded, including two police officers.

Police in this city of 45,000 people about 20 miles from the Colorado state line say the gunman was armed with at least three weapons including an AR-style rifle" during the assault Monday. The rifle was legally purchased by the gunman, and investigators said they believe the two other weapons were taken from family members.

At least 100 calls were made to 911 as the bloodbath unfolded, and more than 150 rounds were fired by the gunman and responding officers, Deputy Police Chief Kyle Dowdy said

Community members gather for a prayer vigil at Hills Church on Monday in Farmington, N.M.

Developments:

 In November, after he turned 18, the gunman legally purchased at least one gun used Monday, police said.

 New Mexico enacted a red-flag law in 2020 that can be used to seize guns from people who pose a danger to others or themselves. Dowdy said relatives expressed concern about the gunmans mental health when interviewed after the shooting.

Mother and her daughter among victims

The three elderly victims of a New Mexico teen's random shooting spree include a preschool teacher, her mother and a nurse described as a "dynamite lady."

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Killed were Gwendolyn Schofield, 97, her daughter Melody Ivie, 73, and Shirley Voita, 79. Two responding police officers were among the six wounded. Dowdy said a preliminary investigation turned up no connection between the killer and his victims, who apparently were shot at random in their cars.

Voita had worked as a nurse and was a devoted parishioner at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, friend James Strickler said.

She was just a dynamite lady. She was well-loved and Im still shocked over it, said Strickler, who heard the gunfire ring out.

State Rep. Mark Duncan, R-Kirtland, whose wife is Ivies niece, told the Albuquerque Journal she has operated the Ivie League Preschool a few blocks from the shooting scene for about 40 years. Ivie and her mother, a retired teacher, were active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Farmington area, Duncan said.

These are women whose whole entire life was devoted to their family, to their church and to their community," Duncan said.

Who was gunman Beau Wilson?

Farmington Police say the shooter is Beau Wilson, 18, a senior at Farmington High School. The school held graduation ceremonies Tuesday evening, but schools spokesperson Roberto Taboada said he could not confirm that Wilson would have graduated.

Some relatives interviewed after the shooting said they had been concerned about Wilsons mental health, but it was not clear if a formal diagnosis ever took place, Dowdy said. Police said Wilson had minor legal infractions in the past but nothing indicating deadly violence.

Later Wednesday, Hebbe said Wilson had an AR-15 assault rifle, a .22 caliber pistol and a 9 mm pistol. A subsequent search of the residence where Wilson was living with his father revealed that Wilson was in possession of more than 1,400 rounds of ammunition - in the weapons he was carrying or accessible to him in the house - Hebbe said.

Wilson also was wearing a bulletproof vest with soft body armor that he modified to include steel plates, the chief said. Wilson purchased three magazines for the AR-15 just two days before the shooting, Hebbe said.

Capt. Kevin Burns of the San Juan County Sheriffs Office, one of the law enforcement agencies that responded to the shooting, said the investigation into the incident shows that seven houses and 11 vehicles were struck by gunfire. He said Wilson fired at least 141 rounds from the home he shared with his father before heading down the road and firing dozens of more shots.

Farmington police officers confronted Wilson in what Hebbe described as a sharp exchange of gunfire at a church just minutes after the incident began, Burns said.

How the shooting took place

Wilson calmly walked through the neighborhood, a short drive from downtown Farmington, firing indiscriminately until police arrived and fatally shot him. The crime scene stretched across a quarter mile, Dowdy said. Authorities had not discovered a motive. Dowdy said a doorbell camera captured the beginning of Wilson's carnage at 10:56 a.m., a minute before Farmington police officers were dispatched. Officers arrived at the scene at 11:02 and confronted him about four minutes later. Wilson was pronounced dead at the scene.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New Mexico shooting spree: Police found note on teenage gunman
Milwaukee business leader Ted Kellner has been appointed as chief executive officer of the host committee for the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

The host committee for the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee is turning to one of the city's big financial hitters to lead the organization.

Businessman and philanthropist Ted Kellner is stepping in as chief executive officer, the group announced Thursday.

Kellner is replacing Steve King, who is stepping back to a role on the organization's board of directors.

King, a longtime GOP stalwart and former U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic, had been commuting between his home in North Carolina and Milwaukee since joining the effort in September.

"I am confident that what we have started at the Host Committee has set Milwaukee up for success in 2024, and Im honored to have had the opportunity to lead the launch of this organization, King said in a statement. While it has been a great honor to serve as the CEO of the Host Committee in my home state, this change will allow me more time to spend with my family in North Carolina."

Republican host committee chief executive officer Steve King, speaks during an update on the preparations taking place for the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Officials held the press conference at the 3rd Street Market Hall in Milwaukee on Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023, addressing details of the convention to be held July 15-18, 2024.

The host committee is charged with raising money for the event  the target is $68 million.

The committee also contracts with the major venues that include Fiserv Forum and the Wisconsin Center, and sets up a transportation system to ferry delegates and others to the event.

The convention will be held in Milwaukee, July 15-18, 2024, and is expected to draw 50,000 visitors to the city and region.

Reince Priebus, a former White House chief of staff under ex-President Donald Trump, and the chairman of the host committee, praised King's efforts in launching the organization.

"Steve leaves big shoes to fill, but there is nobody better than Ted Kellner to step in and continue building on our progress. Im confident that we will continue to build on our success to host a world-class convention in 2024," Priebus said in a statement.

Kellner is a major Republican donor at the state and national level, although he has contributed to Democrats, including President Joe Biden. Kellner's friendship with Biden goes back to 1972.

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In 2018, Kellner hosted a fundraiser for Trump at the Pfister Hotel.

Kellner is currently chairman and CEO of T&M Partners, a holding company for personal investments. In 1980, Kellner co-founded Fiduciary Management, Inc., and four years later co-founded Fiduciary Real Estate Development.

He has served on numerous boards, including at the Medical College of Wisconsin and Milwaukee World Festival Inc.

Kellner lauded King and said he was looking forward to taking on the job.

"Milwaukee is a vibrant, welcoming city," he said. "I am excited to build on the work that Steve and his team have started to showcase everything we have to offer in 2024. Im ready to get to work."

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Ted Kellner named host committee CEO for 2024 RNC in Milwaukee
By Jonathan Stempel

(Reuters) - Google will pay Washington state $39.9 million to resolve a lawsuit accusing the Alphabet Inc unit of misleading consumers about its location tracking practices, state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said on Thursday.

The settlement resolves claims that Google deceived people into believing they controlled how the search and advertising company collected and used their personal data.

In reality, the state said Google was able to collect and profit from that data even if consumers disabled its tracking technology on their smartphones and computers, invading consumers' privacy.

A consent decree filed on Wednesday in King County Superior Court requires Google to be more transparent about its tracking practices, and provide a more detailed "Location Technologies" webpage describing them.

"Today's resolution holds one of the most powerful corporations accountable for its unethical and unlawful tactics," Ferguson said in a statement.

Google, based in Mountain View, California, denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.

In November, Google agreed to pay $391.5 million to resolve similar allegations by 40 U.S. states.

Some states including Washington chose to sue Google on their own about its tracking practices. Arizona reached an $85 million settlement with Google last October in one of those cases.

In response to the Washington settlement, Google referred to its earlier statement on the multistate accord, where it said it had addressed various concerns raised by regulators, including "outdated product policies that we changed years ago."

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; editing by Grant McCool)
A Ukrainian tank fires at Russian positions near Kreminna, Lugansk region, on January 12, 2023. ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP via Getty Images

Ukraine's Western partners are short on weapons and can't make them fast enough to meet Kyiv's needs.

Experts told The Washington Post that NATO countries have been too slow to manufacture munitions.

They've also depleted their own stockpiles in the process, hurting the longer war effort in Ukraine.

Ukraine's Western friends have an ammo problem.

Countries are facing dwindling stockpiles and can't manufacture weapons fast enough to support Kyiv's ambitions to launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces, according to the Washington Post.

Defense experts told the Washington Post that many of Ukraine's NATO partners  especially European nations  haven't mobilized their defense industries to meet battlefield needs for artillery, tanks, air defense systems, and ammunition.

Now, their efforts to quickly increase production might be futile.

"You don't have to be a great military analyst to realize that European countries making major investments into artillery production 13 months into the war are a little bit late," said Michael Kofman, director of the Russia Studies program at the Center for Naval Analyses, to the Post.

In recent months, allies have pledged to send more weaponry as Ukraine blows through its Soviet-made stockpile.

Germany offered the fast and lethal Leopard tanks to Ukraine in January, followed by US Abrams tanks that have a record of shattering Soviet-era armor.

But the decisions were made reluctantly after both Germany and the US repeatedly rejected Kyiv's requests for the weapons. And they'll take months  if not closer to a year  to arrive on the battlefield.

Some experts told the Post that it was clear early during Russia's invasion that this war would last longer than anyone originally anticipated; that realization, they said, should've prompted Western leaders to begin investing in increasing manufacturing efforts rather than depleting their own stockpiles.

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"The penny has dropped that this might go on longer and that you have to invest in your industry if we are going to make this sustainable," Jack Watling, senior research fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, told the Post. "The fact of the matter is that this was obvious in April last year, but people sat on their hands."

Now, as Ukraine continues to weigh when to launch its highly-anticipated counteroffensive, it's unclear how successful it'll be. But Kyiv's use of Western armor will likely mark the start of a larger counterpunch, as it'll signal that Ukraine has more of the artillery it was promised by friendly nations.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Water levels are high in the Ogden River after a record snowfall year in Weber County on May 8. No parts of Utah are currently listed in severe drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

No parts of Utah are listed in severe drought for the first time in more than three years. However, state water officials are still calling on residents to use water efficiently as the summer nears.

The U.S. Drought Monitor released a report last week that finds about 63% of Utah remains either "abnormally dry" or worse, listing about one-fifth of the state in moderate drought. But the report did not list any severe drought for the first time since October 2019, a few months into the start of the current drought cycle Utah is close to shaking off.

"Right now, we've put a very big dent in (the drought)," said Glen Merrill, a National Weather Service hydrologist who appeared on KSL NewsRadio's "Dave and Dujanovic" Monday. "We're still holding onto moderate drought across 20% of the state but this is the time of the year where we can see significant improvements in drought status, especially after a large winter."

Getting out of severe drought

Utah's winter wasn't just large. Merrill called the state's record 30-inch snowpack "exceptional," helping bring down the severity of the drought that has impacted the area for years.

The current drought cycle began at the end of the summer of 2019, after what was another really good year for water.

"We had a very dry summer and a hot summer," Merrill said. "The combination of the heat and the lack of water over the summer months, which are typically dry, we saw that drought status creeping back up into severe ... by the end of the (year),"

The U.S. Drought Monitor began to list parts of southern Utah in moderate drought on Aug. 27, 2019. Some parts of the state, especially in southeast Utah, fell into severe drought on Oct. 8, 2019.

Nearly 43% of Utah had fallen into severe drought by the end of November that year before an average snow collection season fell over the ensuing winter, dropping the percentage back down to less than 2% by the spring of 2020. But the precipitation seemingly stopped after the winter, and severe, extreme and exceptional drought conditions emerged across the state during what was its driest calendar year on record.

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The severe drought continued into the start of the 2023 water year in October. The agency listed over 95% of the state in severe drought or worse at the time, including more than 50% in extreme drought. While the extreme drought ended in March, the U.S. Drought Monitor still listed about 5% of the state in severe drought in its May 2 report.

It dropped the status completely in its latest report issued Thursday.

While leaving severe drought is a major improvement after years of drought, Merrill warns it doesn't mean the state is out of the clear when it comes to future droughts. He points to 2019 as a percent example of how bad drought conditions can reappear months after a prolific winter.

"We have to remember that drought is normal in the Great Basin and the Desert Southwest," he said.

How to water more efficiently this year

Meanwhile, the drought update comes as temperatures are finally warming up to a point where the irrigation season is ready to begin in earnest. And the Utah Division of Water Resources has a new tool aimed at helping residents be more efficient with how they water their lawns.

It released a new "Low Water Use Guide" this week with recommendations on how many times someone should water their lawn if they have more water-efficient landscapes. It's an addition to its regular Weekly Lawn Watering Guide.

The first Low Water Use Guide issued by the Utah Division of Water Resources for this week. The report indicates how many irrigations are recommended for residents with landscapes that require less water. | Utah Division of Water Resources

For example, the regular watering guide lists Washington County in three irrigations this week, while Grand and San Juan counties are in two irrigations. The new guide suggests those with low-water use lawns in those three counties should irrigate once this week, while all other areas with similar low-water use types don't need to irrigate at all.

The guide also outlines cycle recommendations for when people do irrigate their lawns.

Even though Utah's drought situation is much better this spring than the last two or three years, Shelby Ericksen, water conservation manager for the Utah Division of Water Resources, said she hopes people will use the guide and continue to consume water more efficiently.

"Utah will continue to be one of the driest states in the country and water conservation remains critical to our long-term sustainability," she said in a statement Monday. "The Weekly Lawn Watering Guide and Low Water Use Guide are essential tools for residents to make informed decisions about their lawn watering habits and ultimately help conserve our precious water resources."
A replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is coming to northern Wisconsin in late May and early June.

"The Wall That Heals" will make two stops in northern Wisconsin during its 2023 tour. The memorial will be in Rhinelander from May 18 to May 21 at Nicolet College and in Crivitz from June 1 to June 4 at the Crivitz Museum.

While the tour is being sponsored by USAA, community organizations came together to bring the wall to their towns. The exhibit has visited Wisconsin before, visiting Franklin in 2022 and Manitowoc in 2019. It had also previously visited Crivitz in 2018.

Here's what to know if you go.

What is "The Wall That Heals?"

The Wall That Heals is a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Like the original memorial, called "The Wall," The Wall That Heals is a chevron-shaped wall listing the names of all casualties of the Vietnam War. The Wall That Heals is made of artificial granite and stands 7.5 feet high and 375 feet long, according to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial website.

The Wall That Heals was first presented to the public in 1996 and has since stopped in nearly 700 communities across the country.

When the Wall That Heals goes on tour, it's also accompanied by a traveling exhibit that spotlights local Vietnam veterans and discusses the history of the Vietnam War and the original Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

When and where can I see it?

The Wall That Heals arrived in Rhinelander Tuesday and will open to the public Thursday, according to Nicolet College. It will remain open on a field near Oneida County G on the Nicolet College grounds until 2 p.m. Sunday.

After a stop in Mendota Heights, Minn., the Wall That Heals will arrive in Crivitz May 30 and will open to the public from June 1 to June 4 at 104 Oak St., near Crivitz High School.

During those times, visiting the Wall That Heals and the accompanying exhibits are free and open to the public during the day and night. At both stops, the communities of Rhinelander and Crivitz have planned memorial ceremonies and other ways to honor local veterans of the Vietnam War. Visitors will also be able to take rubbings of individual service members' names.

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People look at the exhibits in the Wall That Heals Tuesday, September 10, 2019, at the Expo Center in Manitowoc, Wis. The Wall That Heals will make additional stops in Wisconsin in 2023.

Why does the Wall have a traveling version?

The Wall That Heals is a chance for communities to honor the Vietnam veterans from their hometowns, according to the memorial website.

It also gives veterans the chance to visit the Wall in a way that allows them to find comfort in their own communities, "thus allowing the healing process to begin."

Nicolet College's financial aid advisor and event organizer Casey Lehmann said having the Wall open in a local community at all hours of the day allows those who want quiet contemplation to take as much time as they need in front of the memorial.

"(The Wall That Heals) is helpful to those who don't feel comfortable going elsewhere or in a crowd to pay their respects and get healing and closure," Lehmann said.

You can find out more about the Wall's stop in Rhinelander at nicoletcollege.edu and in Crivitz at villageofcrivitz.com.

Rebecca Loroff is a breaking and trending news reporter for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. Contact her at rloroff@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Rhinelander and Crivitz to host The Wall That Heals in 2023
A white legislator in the North Carolina House interrupted his Black colleague Wednesday to ask if he could have achieved his educational successes had he not been an athlete or a minority.

Rep. Jeff McNeely, a Republican from Stony Point and a member of the chambers ultraconservative Freedom Caucus, made his remarks during floor debate Wednesday on a controversial education bill. Legislators were arguing over a bill that would expand the eligibility requirements for North Carolina Opportunity Scholarships. As Rep. Abe Jones, a Democratic lawmaker from Raleigh, debated the bill, McNeely interrupted with a question.

I understand that you went into public schools and you went to Harvard and Harvard Law, McNeely said to Jones, who is Black. And the question I guess, is, would you have been able to maybe achieve this if you were not an athlete or a minority or any of these things, but you were a student trapped in a school that the slowest  you know, in the wild well say the slowest gazelle does not survive, but yet the herd moves at that pace. So the brightest child sometimes is held back in order  

Before McNeely could finish his comment, House Democratic leader Robert Reives interjected, calling for a point of order.

Im hoping I wasnt the only one that got shocked by that comment, Reives said. The only reason you went to Harvard is because you were Black and an athlete?

I did not say that, McNeely replied. I said, would that, did that end up being one of the reasons? I do not know that. I asked him this.

During floor debate Wednesday over expanding private school vouchers, GOP Rep. Jeff McNeely interrupted Democratic Rep. Abe Jones to ask him if he could have achieved his educational successes had he not been an athlete or a minority.

Before the conversation could continue, House Speaker Tim Moore, a Kings Mountain Republican, banged his gavel to cut off McNeely and return the floor to Jones.

I apologize and Ill refrain, McNeely said before deferring.

After saying that he didnt know the answer to McNeelys question, Jones said hed add just one thing.

Harvard gave five rankings for their students, he said. One, two, three, four, five. When I graduated from Harvard, I was in rank two. So I earned my place, and I did well.

Democrats on the floor erupted in a standing ovation. Applause is not typically permitted during House floor debate, but Moore allowed the outburst to continue unchecked.
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte discussing the new Big Snowy Mountains Wildlife Management Area during a press conference on Monday

Central Montanas newest wildlife management area opened to the public for the first time Monday, breaking the lock that once blocked access to tens of thousands of acres of mountain foothills and prairie grasslands that had been off limits to most Montanans for decades.

Its a great day in Montana as we celebrate unlocking over 100,000 acres of public land for folks to enjoy in the Big Snowy Mountains, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte said during a ceremony at the entrance to the newly established Big Snowy Mountains Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Not only are we opening access for hunters to pristine wildlife habitat, but also, were keeping the land available for cattle grazing to keep ranchers on the landscape. This is a win-win for Montana.

The Big Snowy Mountains are an isolated island range of low-elevation mountains rising above the edge of eastern Montanas high plains. Located roughly halfway between Lewistown to the north and Ryegate in the south, the new Wildlife Management Area contains a diverse landscape of grasslands and forested ridges, prime habitat for elk, black bear, mule deer and pronghorn.

We have a vested interest in seeing land conserved for wildlife habitat while also keeping ranchers on the landscape, Gianforte remarked during Mondays opening ceremony. This project accomplishes both, and its something to be proud of.

The foundation story of the Big Snowy Mountains WMA begins with Forrest Allen, a Montana farmer/rancher who grew up working on his familys sheep and cattle ranch along the edge of the Big Snowy Mountains 20 miles north of Rygate. Born in Big Timber in 1921, Allen was a World War II veteran who relocated to a homestead near Cody, Wyoming in the 1950s. But Allen never forgot his ties to central Montana. Upon his death in 2019, Allen bequeathed 5,677-acres of his familys ranch in Golden Valley County to Shodair Childrens Hospital.

Shodair Childrens Hospital was founded as result of a similar donation 127 years ago. In 1896 pioneer grocer Louis W. Shodair gifted a home in Helena for the establishment of an orphanage. A later contribution of $200,000 from Shodair in the 1930s enable the completion of Montanas first childrens orthopedic hospital. Today, Shodair Childrens Hospital is a leading source of psychiatric care and medical genetics services for children and adolescents.

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Allens gift was a great windfall for Shodair, but also presented something of a dilemma. The hospital was not equipped to manage a large farming/ranching operation and was simultaneously wading into a $66 million expansion of its hospital and medical genetics program in Helena. The obviously solution was to find a willing buyer for the Allen property.

We knew form the very beginning this was not going to be land we were going to take and hold onto, said Shodair Chief Executive Officer Craig Aasved.

The hospital fielded several inquiries from potential out-of-state buyers but held back hoping to find a buyer who would guarantee public access to the property.

Were a Montana company, we wanted it to stay in Montana, and we wanted access for the citizens of Montana, Aasved said.

In 2020 Shodair contacted the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to see if some kind of conservation outcome for the property could be arranged.

The Allen ranch sat at a key chokepoint to a much larger complex of landlocked public lands, largely blocked to public entry by private land holdings with no public road or trail access. Directly north lay the 7,000-acre Twin Coulee Wildlife Management Area administrated by the Bureau of Land Management, and adjacent to that was more than 90,000-acres managed by the U.S. Forest Service as the Big Snowy Mountain Wilderness Study Area.

Officials at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) were intrigued by the possibilities, due in some degree to the departments longstanding difficulty in managing elk populations in the Big Snowy Mountains.

Elk herd management in the Big Snowies is a major concern, said FWP Wildlife Biologist Ashely Taylor, one thats continually exacerbated by the reluctance of a few large landowners to permit public access.

Montanas current Elk Management Plan calls for a target population of 800 elk in the Snowies. Current estimates are that more than 8,000 Roosevelt elk inhabit the area; a herd that is now 20-times larger than the one recorded 30 years ago when fewer than 400 elk wandered the area.

Public access is a big portion of that, Taylor said of the elk herd management challenges in the Big Snowies. We manage a lot of our elk number with public hunting. Getting those public hunters on to where the elk are located has been a challenge.

In 2020 the Fish Wildlife and Parks Commission gave its initial endorsement to the state of Montana purchasing the land, an endorsement that was later approved by the Montana State Land Board.

The $8.22 million purchase price was funded in large part by Pittman Roberson funds, which are derived through an 11% federal excise tax on sporting arms, ammunition, and archery equipment, and a 10% tax on handguns.

As part of the purchase agreement, Gianforte proposed a covenant requiring the state keep the land available for cattle grazing. Closure on the deal was announced last fall.

I cant say thank you enough to all the partners involved in this project, said Aasved at the grand opening. I grew up in the Snowy Mountains on the other side, so to be a part of this is a legacy Ill cherish forever.

This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: New wildlife management area opens up Montana's Big Snowy Mountains
Crime and Courts Reporter

Donald W. Meyers is a multimedia journalist at the Yakima Herald-Republic covering crime and courts. He is also the writer behind It Happened Here, a weekly history column. Before coming to Yakima, Meyers covered a wide variety of beats at The Salt Lake Tribune, Daily Herald, and daily and weekly newspapers across New Jersey. He is also a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, serving as a regional officer in the organization as well as on the national Freedom of Information Committee.
Yakima County Government, Lower Valley Reporter

Hi, Im Phil Ferolito, longtime reporter with the Yakima Herald-Republic, where I have gained an array of experience from covering small city governments and school districts to big-picture issues concerning county government, crime and the Yakama Nation, a federally recognized tribe with important historical and cultural ties to the land. I began with the Herald-Republic in Oct. 2000 as a copy editor, designing pages, writing headlines and proof-reading stories. Over the years I have covered four Lower Valley municipalities, Granger, Toppenish, Wapato and Harrah, and the Yakama Nation. My goal always has been to shine a light in dark places and bring readers closer to concerning issues, important people, and other events in our community.
Grammarly Wants to Expand Its AI From the Classroom to the Office

(Bloomberg) -- Grammarly Inc., a software company known for its writing assistant, is expanding its artificial intelligence offerings in the workplace.

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In June, the company is rolling out new features for its enterprise offering, Grammarly Business, including business-specific terms and knowledge in its AI-powered communication assistant called GrammarlyGo. At an event on Tuesday, the company laid out its roadmap for an AI-connected workplace, which eventually will include the capability to summarize key points in a long email string, identifying whether the information is already shared within the organization and composing a reply. Grammarly also aims to connect to other common office applications such as Slack and Gmail, identify priority tasks for employees and compose a response to colleagues across different messaging apps.

Weve been helping our users with AI to communicate more effectively for over a decade, now its time to go beyond words, Grammarly Chief Executive Officer Rahul Roy-Chowdhury said at the event.

Read More: A Cheat Sheet to AI Buzzwords and Their Meanings

The move is part of San Francisco-based Grammarlys effort to ride the generative AI wave and pivot from a grammar-and-spelling checker to a corporate communications and workflow tool. Generative AI uses huge amounts of data to produce text or images in response to a prompt. Grammarlys software will face fierce competition from big technology companies such as Alphabet Inc.s Google and Microsoft Corp., which are adding artificial intelligence features to their popular office products.

Roy-Chowdhury, who became CEO May 1 after serving as head of product, started at Grammarly after 14 years at Google working on products including the Chrome browser. He said Grammarly Business will help customers connect all the fragmented apps they use for recruiting, human resources software, messaging and email.

If a business wants to truly benefit from generative AI, it should be integrated across all applications used by employees, he said. Particularly as people write across various platforms and applications, being present where they are can allow for constant learning and automation of workflows and will ultimately save time and promote creativity.

Google and Microsoft already have announced similar offerings. In March, Google said it will integrate generative AI tools into its Workspace suite including Gmail, Docs, Slides and Sheets. Microsoft also introduced an AI assistant  called Dynamics 365 Copilot  for applications that handle tasks such as sales, marketing and customer service. Based on technology from OpenAI, the software can draft contextual chat and email answers to customer service queries, help marketers come up with client categories to target and write product listings for e-commerce.

Grammarly, which has 30 million daily active users, recently launched GrammarlyGO, a generative AI feature that lets users brainstorm ideas, write, edit and personalize text. Using technology from Microsoft Azure, Grammarlys models review outputs for bias and the tool can fine-tune the style for users by clicking on prompt tabs like make it persuasive, make it assertive and sound confident.

Roy-Chowdhury said generative AI technology is changing rapidly. Im happy to see how it evolves and well always find the best technical solutions to help our users, he said.

(Updates with detail on product in second paragraph. A previous version of this story corrected the CEOs start date.)

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President Joe Biden speaks to reporters about the continued debt ceiling negotiations before boarding Air Force One as he departs from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Saturday.
(Bloomberg) -- Sanjay Shah, a hedge-fund trader accused of masterminding a massive tax fraud, lost an appeal at a Dubai court over an order to pay the Danish authorities more than 8.5 billion krone ($1.24 billion).

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The Court of Cassation in Dubai rejected the appeal from a lower court in the emirate this week, according to the Danish tax agency. The authority said in a statement Wednesday that it would now begin an asset recovery process.

Denmark has sought to claw back more than $2 billion that authorities said it was defrauded out of by networks of bankers, lawyers and others as a part of the Cum-Ex scandal. Shah was named as the mastermind of the scheme in which pension plans filed for tax returns to which they werent entitled, because they never paid the taxes to begin with.

Shah, a British national, has always maintained his innocence.

Shah and a group of individual traders and firms accused of earning vast sums of money from the tax trading loop hole are being sued in London by Denmark also. A London judge recently ruled the dividend tax refund claims at issue werent valid in a so-called validity trial.

It is important to note that the civil proceedings deal exclusively with civil liability issues and do not allow any conclusions to be drawn with regard to the possible criminal liability of my client, Bjorn Gercke, Shahs German criminal defense attorney, said in an email.

A spokesperson for Shah did not immediately comment. A copy of the ruling couldnt be obtained.

--With assistance from Karin Matussek.

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Svitolina doneaza copiilor din Ucraina premiul de la Strasbourg

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(Bloomberg) -- Hua Hong Semiconductor Ltd. has received a green light for its 18 billion yuan ($2.6 billion) second listing on Shanghais Star board, potentially the biggest in China this year. Its Hong Kong-listed shares jumped the most in five months.

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The Shanghai stock exchange on Wednesday approved the share sale plans of the Hong Kong-listed firm, according to the bourses website. The company will still have to register its plans with the regulator and hasnt set any timeline or provided other details of the potential offering.

Giving semiconductor technology companies access to public markets aligns with Chinas plans to support the sector, countering a US-led campaign to block access to cutting-edge technologies. The US has blacklisted several of Chinas most advanced companies and research institutes in diverse fields from chips and supercomputing to cloud and data mining.

Hua Hongs share sale would also bolster the domestic capital market, which has seen a slowdown in fundraising amid economic concerns. Newly-listed companies have raised about $24 billion in China this year, slightly more than half of the $43 billion raised in the same period a year ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. At $2.6 billion, Hua Hongs Shanghai listing would be the countrys biggest this year.

Shanghai-based Hua Hong manufactures semiconductors on 200mm wafers for specialty applications and provides products for sectors including consumer electronics, communications and computing. The company raised about HK$2.6 billion ($332 million) in an initial public offering in Hong Kong.

The shares jumped as much as 11% to HK$28.40, before paring the gain to 9.8% as of 11:04 a.m. local time. Guotai Junan Securities Co. and Haitong Securities Co. are arranging the Shanghai listing.

--With assistance from Filipe Pacheco.

(Updates with stock move in first and last paragraphs)

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The delegation of the European Parliaments Committee on Budgetary Control called on the Hungarian government to act more responsibly in distributing EU funds, include regional authorities in decision-making instead of a top-down approach and meet the criteria required for releasing the funds withheld from Hungary, the head of the delegation told a press conference.

An effective implementation of the 27 super milestones defined earlier and the related 17 remedial measures under the conditionality regulation is required for unblocking the 28 billion euros which is more than 10,000 billion forints in EU Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) funding, Monika Hohlmeier, the head of the delegation, said after the conclusion of their three-day visit to Hungary.



EU funds represent a very big opportunity for the development of Hungary, she said, noting however the committees core concern is how the money can reach Hungarian citizens, businesses and regions.



Hohlmeier said the committee has identified shortcomings, noting that the State Audit Office could not provide information on the use of 1.48 billion euros in 29 cases over which concerns had been raised before.



The delegation head also noted the committees concern over the implementation of public procurements in line with free market rules and over failure in involving local governments and civil organisations in the distribution of EU funds.



She raised concern over government measures distorting competition such as the introduction of unfair special taxes, arbitrary change of laws without preliminary consultation and intimidation.



She raised further concern over ad hoc decision-making, referring to the amendment of the budget law in a decision made overnight.



Hohlmeier said the committee noticed several positive developments such as the setting up of the Integrity Authority, reforms at the tax office and the strengthening of the national judicial council.



Tamas Deutsch, an MEP or ruling Fidesz, said the delegations visit was part of Brusselss exerting political pressure on the Hungarian government. He noted that the committee had no powers of an authority over Hungary therefore it will do neither good nor harm what they do.



Deutsch suggested the committee had come to Budapest to increase the pressure and force Hungary into the war in Ukraine.



He also insisted that Brussels does not like that Hungarian voters had said no to illegal migration in a referendum, and that Hungary had adopted a very rigorous child protection law to prevent the sexualisation of minors.



The EU expects member states to adopt a pro-migration stance and would make the gender ideology madness the norm in Europe. But we say no war, no migration, no gender, the MEP said.



MTI Photo: Lajos Soos
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Smoke from Canadian wildfires has blanketed the state and elsewhere, and could be a health concern for some Nebraskans.

Smoke filled the air this morning in York. Poor air quality and reduced visibility to as low as 1 mile is possible at times today, according to the National Weather Service office in Hastings.

The smoke is so visible because of a surface cold front that's moving through the area, said meteorologist Jeremy Wesely of the Hastings weather service office.

The front is allowing the smoke to "work down from the upper atmosphere" into the surface layer, he said.

Although the smoke is working its way south across the country, it won't make it much further.

The forecast model has the surface smoke dissipating across north central Kansas Friday morning, Wesely said.

In central Nebraska, the smoke will still be aloft in the upper atmosphere but will be less visible Friday morning.

The smoke caused the National Weather Service to issue an air quality alert this morning. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services said the smoky effects on air quality would likely linger in Nebraska through midday Friday.

DHHS issued an advisory listing various threat levels the smoke might pose.

During Moderate AQI (Yellow category) conditions, those who are unusually sensitive to particle pollution may experience health effects. When conditions rise to the yellow category, those who are unusually sensitive are advised to consider shortening outdoor activities and reducing the intensity of these activities.

Symptoms such as coughing, or shortness of breath are signs to take it easier.

During Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups AQI (Orange category) conditions, members of sensitive groups may experience health effects.

Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children. When conditions rise to the orange category, sensitive groups are advised to reduce prolonged or heavy exertion and avoid intense outdoor activities.

During Unhealthy AQI (Red category) conditions, some members of the general public may experience health effects and members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children.

When conditions rise to the red category, sensitive groups are advised to avoid prolonged or heavy exertion and consider moving activities indoors or rescheduling.

DHHS will anticipate the potential impacts and issue advisories through local media in areas where unhealthy effects are likely.
Chennai: The SBI Funds Management Ltd has been allowed by central bank RBI to acquire 9.99 per cent stake in HDFC Bank Ltd by November 15.

In a regulatory filing, the HDFC Bank said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has given its approval to SBI Funds Management for acquiring up to 9.99 per cent of the paid-up share capital or voting rights of the bank.

The RBI has given its nod on an application made by the SBI Funds Management and advised to acquire the stakes within six months, that is, by November 15.

HDFC Bank said SBI Funds Management has to ensure that the aggregate holding in the Bank remains below 10 per cent of the paid-up share capital or voting rights of the Bank at all times.
Electric two-wheeler manufacturers and consumers are enjoying the benefits of subsidies that are being offered under the FAME-II scheme. The benefits, however, could be soon slashed. Subsequently, making electric scooters a tad bit expensive. The ministry of heavy industries is considering cutting down the subsidy that is being offered on electric scooters. The overall earmarked amount for electric two-wheelers - Rs 2,000 Crore, will be increased. This move will help a lot more buyers enjoy the benefit, but to a rather limited extent. As of now, theres no confirmation from the governing bodies about the introduction of new FAME-III policy or extension of the outgoing FAME-II, which is in effect until March 2024.

In a PTI report, it was stated that a stakeholders' meeting with 24 electric two-wheeler OEMs registered under FAME-II was called on Tuesday and the consultation reached a consensus that the demand incentive may be kept at Rs 10,000 per kWh of battery capacity, along with a cap of 15 per cent of the ex-factory price from 40 per cent at present, the official said.

A proposal in this regard will be placed before the Programme Implementation and Steering Committee (PISC), which is an empowered panel to effect changes in the Rs 10,000 crore FAME-II Scheme shortly, the official added.

"We had called a meeting of 24 registered OEMS of electric two-wheelers on Tuesday. It was decided that we will transfer the unutilised subsidies to the tune of Rs 1,500 crore from 3 Wheelers and 4 Wheelers to 2 Wheelers but it was found that at the current rate of disbursal (40 pc cap on ex-factory price), the scheme will end in two months," an official said.

Also read - Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara Waiting Period Extends To Over 6 Months, Check Variant Wise List

He shared that most two-wheeler OEMs expressed that the subsidy should continue for a longer period even if it is slashed. Therefore, a consensus emerged to reduce the subsidy to 15 pc for two-wheelers, which will stretch the scheme till February-March.

He reasoned that "eventually the industry has to stand on its own feet" while admitting that the electric 2-wheeler sales which were growing at a high pace "may come down a little".

The Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric and Hybrid Vehicles (FAME) India scheme commenced on April 1, 2019, for a period of three years, which was further extended for a period of two years up to March 31, 2024.

The total outlay for FAME Scheme Phase II is Rs 10,000 crore to provide incentives to buyers (end users or consumers) of electric vehicles to enable wider adoption, which may be encouraged as a purchase price.
Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has summoned former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) zonal director Sameer Wankhede to appear before the agency in Mumbai on Thursday in connection with the alleged bribery probe in the Aryan Khan drugs-on-cruise case.

Earlier on Tuesday, CBI which had booked Wankhede for allegedly demanding Rs 25 crore as a bribe for not framing Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan in the drugs-on-cruise case, said that the deal was closed for Rs 18 crore adding that assets of Wankhade were not proportionate to his known sources of income.

According to the CBI FIR copy, the NCB team headed by Sameer Wankhede allowed people who were actually in possession of drugs and the supplier as well to go.

The FIR copy said Arbaaz Merchant had confessed of possession Charas to NCB but he was allowed to go. Siddarth Shah who had allegedly supplied charas to Arbaaz Merchant was also allowed to walk free, the CBI FIR said adding that incriminating chats between the two were ignored.

The federal agency said the accused were brought in a private vehicle. The private vehicle belonged to KP Gosavi (independent witness). This was done to show the accused that Gosavi was an NCB employee, though he was not.

CBI claimed that Gosavi was allowed close proximity to the accused against the rules. An effort was made to extort Rs 25 crore, but the deal was closed for Rs 18 crore. Out of this Rs 50 lakh was paid in advance.

Other corruption charges against Sameer Wamkhede and other NCB Officials were also in the process. The investigating agency said the assets to Wankhede were not proportionate to his known sources of income. The FIR copy said he was not able to justify expenses made during his foreign visit.

Wankhede has been selling and purchasing expensive wristwatches with a private entity, said CBI.

CBI registered a case against former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officer, Sameer Wankhede and three others for allegedly demanding Rs 25 crore as a bribe for not framing Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan in the drugs-on-cruise case.

Wankhede on Saturday alleged that he was being punished for being a patriot. Wankhede's statement came in response to the CBI raids at his residence and other premises on Friday. CBI on Friday conducted searches at 29 locations across the country following the alleged corruption case against him and three others linked to the Aryan Khan drugs-on-cruise case.

Wankhede had raided a Cruise Ship and arrested Actor Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan in an alleged drug case.
India government wants Go First flights to resume as soon as possible -minister

A man carries his bag as he walks past the Go First airline, formerly known as GoAir, passenger aircrafts parked on the tarmac at the airport in New Delhi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The Indian government wants Go Airlines (India) Ltd flights to resume as soon as possible, the civil aviation minister said on Thursday, a week after the troubled low-cost carrier was granted bankruptcy protection.

Recently rebranded as Go First, India's sixth largest airline filed for bankruptcy protection earlier in May blaming its financial woes on "faulty" Pratt & Whitney engines that grounded about half of its 54 Airbus A320neos.

The U.S. engine maker, part of Raytheon Technologies, has said the claim was without merit.

"It's certainly something that is not a great thing for civil aviation. However, each company has to manage its own issues," Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia told reporters, according to a video clip published by news agency ANI.

"We would want a resumption of flights as soon as possible. They have to submit their plan to (the aviation regulator) which will cover the number of planes and routes," he added.

The airline has cancelled all flights until May 26, while some of its lessors have terminated leases and placed requests with the aviation regulator to repossess more than 40 planes.

(Reporting by Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
New Delhi: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Wednesday attacked Bharatiya Janata Party chief JP Nadda ahead of his visit to Mumbai and claimed that wherever he goes, the BJP loses.

"Nadda stayed put in Karnataka to campaign for his party, but it was defeated. Now he is coming to Maharashtra. We welcome him... Wherever he goes, BJP loses," Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut told reporters in Nashik.

BJP MLA Nitesh Rane, however, hit back at Raut and accused him of targeting individuals on constitutional posts and inciting the administration against the government.

"All these are signs of an urban Naxal," Rane said.

The BJP chief is on a two-day visit to Maharashtra beginning Wednesday during which he will meet state BJP leaders.

Nadda says Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA govt 'stalled' development works

JP Nadda on Wednesday dubbed the erstwhile Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray 'totally corrupt' and said they paused all the development works. Addressing a function in Mumbai, he alleged there was rampant corruption in the MVA government from top to bottom. He also appealed to the party cadres to ensure that the next mayor of Mumbai is from the BJP.

"All the development works had come to a standstill. That government used to block all works of development and infrastructure development," Nadda said.

He said this scenario has changed as the double-engine government of the NDA under the leadership and guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking care of the people of Maharashtra and fulfilling all their aspirations and wishes.

The Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government is addressing the issues of the people, he said.

"We all need to work in such a way that the next mayor of Mumbai city will be from BJP," he told the party functionaries

Nadda advised BJP workers to develop skills of listening to the people.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come up with various skill development courses for people. Our party workers should develop some skills as well including the ability to listen to the people," he said.

BMC elections to choose new Mumbai mayor likely in November

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections are likely to be held sometime around Diwali in November this year. The last mayor of Mumbai before the five-year term of the BMC ended in March 2022 was Kishori Pednekar, who belongs to Uddhav Thackeray-led faction. The state government then appointed the administrator -- Iqbal Singh Chahal -- in the BMC as elections could not be held before the expiry of the five-year term.

Earlier in the 2017 BMC elections, the BJP made giant strides by winning 82 of 227 seats, just two seats behind the Shiv Sena (undivided).

JP Nadda's comments on the next mayor of Mumbai are likely to ruffle the feathers of estranged ally-turned-foe Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), which has ruled the Mumbai civic body for over two decades as Shiv Sena (undivided) till March 2022, and considers Mumbai as its citadel.
Mumbai: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief JP Nadda on Wednesday dubbed the erstwhile Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray "totally corrupt" which he said paused all the good works. He appealed to the party cadres to ensure that the next mayor of Mumbai is from the BJP. Addressing a function here organised by the BJP and attended by beneficiaries of various government schemes, Nadda claimed the US, China and Japan are facing an economic crisis now as they spent money on providing freebies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"While the Indian government came up with a Rs 20 lakh crore package during that period to boost infrastructure, agriculture and other sectors," he said.

Nadda alleged there was rampant corruption in the so-called Maha Vikas Aghadi government from top to bottom.

"All the development works had come to a standstill. That government used to block all works of development and infrastructure development," he alleged.

He said this scenario has changed as the double-engine government of the NDA under the leadership and guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking care of the people of Maharashtra and fulfilling all their aspirations and wishes.

The Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government is addressing the issues of the people, he said.

"Through the Direct Benefit Transfer, the Modi government has so far transferred over Rs 25 lakh crore directly into bank accounts of intended beneficiaries, that too by getting rid of middlemen. The money from the government treasury is directly going into bank accounts of beneficiaries of various schemes," Nadda added.

He claimed the Communist Party of China has some nine crore members whereas the BJP has 18 crore registered members and party workers. "We are the largest political party in the world," he added.

Later, addressing the party functionaries at a meeting, Nadda said, "We all need to work in such a way that the next mayor of Mumbai city will be from BJP".

Pointing at the attendees, he said, "With your strength, we need not have to think twice about this resolution (installing mayor of BJP)".

Nadda advised BJP workers to develop skills of listening to the people.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come up with various skill development courses for people. Our party workers should develop some skills as well including the ability to listen to the people," he said.

The BJP chief is on a two-day visit to Maharashtra beginning Wednesday during which he will meet state BJP leaders.

He met Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at his official residence 'Varsha'.

Speaking on Nadda's visit, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut claimed wherever Nadda goes, the BJP loses.

"Nadda stayed put in Karnataka to campaign for his party, but it was defeated. Now he is coming to Maharashtra. We welcome him. Wherever he goes, BJP loses," he told reporters in Nashik.

However, BJP MLA Nitesh Rane hit back at Raut, accusing him of targeting individuals on constitutional posts and inciting the administration against the government.

"All these are signs of an urban Naxal," Rane claimed.

Nadda's comments on the next mayor of Mumbai are likely to ruffle the feathers of estranged ally-turned-foe Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), which has ruled the Mumbai civic body for over two decades as Shiv Sena (undivided) till March 2022, and considers Mumbai as its citadel.

The last mayor of Mumbai before the five-year term of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) ended in March 2022 was Kishori Pednekar, who belongs to Uddhav Thackeray-led faction. The state government appointed the administrator in the BMC as elections could not be held before the expiry of the five-year term.

In the 2017 BMC elections, the BJP made giant strides by winning 82 of 227 seats, just two seats behind the Shiv Sena (undivided).
Lucknow: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's appeal to the masses to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party's mayoral candidates and elect a BJP board in municipal corporations was well-received by the people of Uttar Pradesh, who have ensured that opposition parties were kept out completely from some of the boards while all the 17 mayors were from the party.

For example, in Jhansi and the newly created Shahjahanpur Municipal Corporation, not a single Samajwadi Party councillor has won, whereas, for the first time, BJP would form boards on its own in 13 municipal corporations.

The Samajwadi Party (SP) was reduced to zero seats in both Jhansi and Shahjahanpur Municipal Corporations while people preferred independent candidates to that of SP, BSP and the Congress on many seats.

It is noteworthy that BSP councillor candidates drew a blank in Kanpur, Varanasi and Bareilly while Congress candidates could not even open their accounts in Ayodhya and Saharanpur.

The BJP councillors constitute over 50% of the board in 13 of 17 municipal corporations in the state. The party won 80 and 63 councillor seats out of 110 seats each in Lucknow and Kanpur respectively. The BJP candidates also bagged 63, 66, 56 and 58 seats out of 100 seats each in Varanasi, Ghaziabad, Prayagraj and Agra respectively.

Besides, the party won 42 and 51 councillor seats out of 80 seats each in Gorakhpur and Bareilly respectively. The victory of the BJP marks the victory of CM Yogi's faith in his mission of development.

The number of Samajwadi Party councillors remained zero in Jhansi and the newly created Shahjahanpur Municipal Corporation of Bundelkhand against BJP's 38 and 41 out of 60 seats each.
New Delhi: The Indian Navy sent a P-8I maritime patrol aircraft to assist in the search and rescue of a Chinese fishing vessel with 39 crew members onboard that went down in the Indian Ocean, news agency PTI reported. The P8I aircraft conducted multiple and extensive searches on Wednesday despite bad weather and found multiple objects that could belong to the sunken vessel, the Navy said. On May 17, Indian Navy deployed its air maritime reconnaissance assets in the Southern Indian Ocean Region approximately 900 nautical miles from India, as a humanitarian gesture in response to sinking of the Chinese fishing vessel Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028, it said. The crew consists of nationals from China, Indonesia and Philippines.

As a demonstration of Indias commitment as a reliable and responsible partner for ensuring safety at sea, the Indian Navy units also coordinated search and rescue efforts with other units in the area and guided the PLA Navy warships heading to the scene of incident, it said.

In a swift humanitarian action on 17 May #IndianNavy deployed its Air MR assets in the Southern IOR approx 900 Nm from India, in response to sinking of a #Chinese Fishing Vessel Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 with 39 crew onboard. The crew incl nationals from China, Indonesia & Philippines pic.twitter.com/gbcbh8DlSc  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) May 18, 2023

The distant-water fishing vessel "Lupeng Yuanyu 028" of Shandong province's Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co Ltd capsized early Tuesday, news agency Reuters quoted state-run CCTV as saying. The 39 people on board - 17 Chinese crew members, 17 Indonesians, and five Filipinos, Reuters quoted CCTV as reporting.

The accident had been reported to China's maritime search and rescue centre, and the foreign ministry had instructed its missions in Australia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Indonesia, the Philippines, and other countries to coordinate search and rescue operations, according to the statement.

XI Jinping Orders All-Out Rescue Efforts

Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered all-out rescue efforts after a deep-sea Chinese fishing vessel capsized in the Indian Ocean, news agency ANI quoted CGTN as saying. Xi directed the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Chinese Ministry of Transport and Shandong Province to immediately activate the emergency response mechanism to verify the situation and deploy additional rescue forces, ANI quoted CGTN as reporting.

Xi also called for coordinating international maritime search and rescue assistance. He said that the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant embassies abroad should strengthen contact with relevant local parties to coordinate the search and rescue work, as per the news report. He also directed to strengthen early warning alerts of safety risk for distant area operations to ensure the safety of people.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the bail plea of former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain in a money laundering case being probed by the agency. A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and Hima Kohli issued notice to the ED and granted liberty to Jain to move before the vacation bench for relief.

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Jain, said the former minister has lost 35 kg and virtually became a skeleton. He is also suffering from various ailments.

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the ED, said they are on caveat and opposing the plea.

The bench, which did not give any specific date, said Jain can approach the vacation bench of the top court for relief.

On April 6, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the bail plea of Jain in a money laundering case noting the witnesses' claim that he was the conceptualiser, initiator and fund provider in the alleged crime.

The high court said the senior AAP leader was an influential person having the potential to tamper with evidence.

The ED had arrested Jain in the money laundering case based on a CBI FIR registered against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

He was granted regular bail by a trial court on September 6, 2019, in the case registered by the CBI.

In 2022, the trial court had taken cognisance of the prosecution complaint (charge sheet) filed by the ED against Jain, his wife and eight others, including the four firms, in connection with the money laundering case.
New Delhi: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is expected to invite top opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka chief minister and deputy chief minister, according to sources. They said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Rai Bareli MP Sonia Gandhi, party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other senior party leaders will attend the event. The oath-taking ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

In 2018, when Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy was sworn in as the chief minister of the Karnataka coalition government, a galaxy of Opposition leaders attended the ceremony.

The ceremony was attended by Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, then Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu of the Telugu Desam Party, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and other top leaders like the Nationalist Congress Party's Sharad Pawar, Sharad Yadav from the Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal's Tejashwi Yadav and Left's Sitaram Yechury and D Raja.

In 2013 Siddaramaiah had taken oath at the same venue, the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here when he became the chief minister of the State for the first time.

While Siddharamaiah has been named the new CM, the Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge tweeted a picture of him flanked by Siddaramiah and Shivakumar and is seen raising the hands of both leaders to signal a consensus. "Team Congress is committed to ushering progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka. We will implement the 5 guarantees promised to 6.5 Cr Kannadigas," he wrote on Twitter.

The party has also convened the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting this evening in Bengaluru. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Shivakumar has written to all the legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of the newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road today in Bengaluru at 7 pm today.

According to sources, Congress President Kharge worked round-the-clock to break the political deadlock over the next chief minister and arrived at a consensus for government formation. Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP Meeting.

Shivakumar who arrived at the residence of general secretary KC Venugopal in the national capital last evening told reporters that, the party high command had taken the call on the chief minister.

Celebrations Across Karnataka

Celebrations, meanwhile, broke out near the residence of Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru and at his native village in the Mysuru district on Thursday morning after it emerged that he will be the next Chief Minister. His supporters shouted slogans in his favour as the news came out that he would take oath as the CM on May 20. The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah were, in fact, jubilant since Wednesday following reports that their leader would become the chief minister again. The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah, and distributed sweets.

Security has been stepped up and banners have been put up outside Congress leader Siddaramaiah's residence as well.

It is notable that in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.
New Delhi: Amid reports that Siddaramaiah will be the new Karnataka chief minister, DK Shivakumar's brother and Congress MP DK Suresh on Thursday expressed that he is 'not fully happy'. Speaking to the news agency ANI, he said that he wished the CM post for Shivakumar.

"I am not fully happy but in the interest of Karnataka, we wanted to fulfill our commitment... That is why DK Shivakumar had to accept," DK Suresh said.

In the future we will see, there is a long way to go, he added.

Veteran leader Siddaramaiah will be the next chief minister of Karnataka and Shivakumar his deputy, Congress sources said on Thursday after the party arrived at a consensus on government formation in the state following hectic parleys. The swearing-in ceremony will reportedly be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

As per reports, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge along with other stakeholders held meetings past midnight to hammer out a solution between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- the two chief ministerial aspirants. Both leaders had been camping in Delhi and held several rounds of deliberations with the Congress' top brass including Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi.

While Siddaramaiah, 75, was Karnataka CM from 2012 to 2018, Shivakumar, 61, has been a minister in the state and is currently the Karnataka Congress chief.

Meanwhile, a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting has been called by Shivakumar, the party's state unit chief, in Bengaluru on Thursday evening. The decision will be announced there. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief has written to all legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs, and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road at 7 pm.

It is notable that in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.

Celebrations break out at Siddaramaiah's native village

Celebrations broke out near the residence of Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru and at his native village in the Mysuru district on Thursday morning after it emerged that he will be the next Chief Minister. His supporters shouted slogans in his favour as the news came out that he would take oath as the CM on May 20.

The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah were, in fact, jubilant since Wednesday following reports that their leader would become the chief minister again. The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah, and distributed sweets.

His brother Sidde Gowda was confident that Siddaramaiah will be chosen for the top post.

"There's a guarantee that Siddaramaiah will become Chief Minister. He has done well for the people. He introduced the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme giving free rice to the poor people," Sidde Gowda told reporters in Siddaramanahundi on Wednesday.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the newly-constructed Parliament building on May 28. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla met Modi on Thursday and extended an invitation to inaugurate the new building, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said. The new Parliament building can comfortably seat 888 members in the Lok Sabha chamber and 300 in the Rajya Sabha chamber, it said. In case of a joint sitting of both the Houses, a total of 1,280 members can be accommodated in the Lok Sabha chamber. The prime minister had laid the foundation stone of the new parliament building on December 10, 2020.

The new building has been built in record time with quality construction, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said. The present Parliament building was completed in 1927, and is now 96 years old. Over the years, the old building was found to be inadequate for present day requirements. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha had passed resolutions urging the government to construct a new building for Parliament.

Also Read: PICS: How the new Parliament building will look from inside - Check here

The new building, constructed by Tata Projects Ltd, will have a grand constitution hall to showcase India's democratic heritage, a lounge for MPs, a library, multiple committee rooms, dining areas and ample parking space. The triangular-shaped four-storey building has a built-up area of 64,500 square metres. The building has three main gates -- Gyan Dwar, Shakti Dwar, and Karma Dwar. It will have separate entrances for VIPs, MPs, and visitors.

The Congress took a swipe at the prime minister over the new Parliament building, calling it a "personal vanity project". Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on Twitter a picture of Modi while inspecting the construction of the building and said, "The sole architect, designer and worker for the new Parliament building, which he will inaugurate on May 28th."

"The picture tells it all - personal vanity project," Ramesh tweeted along with the picture. The existing building served as independent India's first Parliament and witnessed the adoption of the Constitution.

Also Read: PM Modi Visits New Parliament Building, Inspects Various Works For Over An Hour

Originally called the Council House, the building housed the Imperial Legislative Council. The Parliament building witnessed the addition of two floors in 1956 to address the demand for more space. In 2006, the Parliament Museum was added to showcase the 2,500 years of rich democratic heritage of India.

Officials said the present building was never designed to accommodate a bicameral legislature and the seating arrangements were cramped and cumbersome, with no desks beyond the second row. The Central Hall has seating capacity only for 440 people and the need for more space was acutely felt during joint sittings of both the houses.
New Delhi: Vast experience in running the government and mass appeal across the state have favoured Siddaramaiah in the tightly contested race against DK Shivakumar for Karnataka chief minister. The Congress leadership threw its weight behind the 75-year-old Siddaramaiah keeping in view the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, where his clout among the OBCs, SCs and Muslims would play a key role.

Siddaramaiah also brings to the table the experience of managing the government and competing interests of a caste and class-dominated Karnataka, having served as chief minister from 2013 to 2018. The tallest among the state leaders, his persona and vote-garnering abilities could not be ignored by the party, which is looking forward to capture as many seats in the next Lok Sabha polls, a senior leader said.

He also enjoys the support of a majority of Congress MLAs, who had voted for him and pitched him as the chief ministerial candidate during the secret ballot after the first Congress Legislature Party meet in the state.

His appeal among the masses was evident during the poll campaigning in Karnataka and the same was also seen during the Bharat Jodo Yatra that passed through the state from October 1 last year, when a large section of people participated in it after he garnered support.

Even before the Karnataka elections, there was a broad agreement among top Congress leaders that Siddaramaiah was best suited for chief ministership, should the party get elected.

Siddaramaiah happens to be the only chief minister besides Congress party's late Devraj Urz to complete a full five-year term in the post.

A nine-term MLA, Siddaramaiah joined the Congress after quitting the JDS in 2006. He went on to occupy significant positions in the Congress.

He quit the JDS in 2006 after organising three 'AHINDA' rallies and formed his new outfit, which got its identity in the Zilla Panchayat elections. Later following an offer from the Congress leadership, he joined it with his followers in 2006.

AHINDA is a socio-political concept that represents minorities, backward classes and Dalits.

Soon after joining the Congress, he resigned from the Chamundeshwari Assembly seat. He went on to successfully contest the bypoll from the same seat on a Congress ticket.

Siddaramaiah was appointed as KPCC Publicity Committee Chairman for General Elections-2008 and strived hard to garner maximum votes in favour of Congress. He was elected to the rechristened Varuna constituency during 2008 polls.

Born on August 12, 1948, at Siddaramana Hundi, a remote village in Varuna Hobli of Mysore District, Siddaraimaiah hails from a poor farming community.

He was the first in his family to graduate in Science from Mysuru University and also got his Law degree from Mysore University and pursued the legal profession for some time.
Key Insights

Significantly high institutional ownership implies Vivoryon Therapeutics' stock price is sensitive to their trading actions

The top 6 shareholders own 50% of the company

19% of Vivoryon Therapeutics is held by insiders

A look at the shareholders of Vivoryon Therapeutics N.V. (AMS:VVY) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 34% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Institutional investors endured the highest losses after the company's market cap fell by 96m last week. However, the 74% one-year return to shareholders may have helped lessen their pain. But they would probably be wary of future losses.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Vivoryon Therapeutics.

View our latest analysis for Vivoryon Therapeutics

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Vivoryon Therapeutics?

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.

Vivoryon Therapeutics already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Vivoryon Therapeutics' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Vivoryon Therapeutics. The company's largest shareholder is C. Christiansen, with ownership of 17%. KKR & Co. Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 8.5% of common stock, and Danish Research Foundation., Endowment Arm holds about 8.3% of the company stock.

We also observed that the top 6 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Vivoryon Therapeutics

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 a reasonable proportion of Vivoryon Therapeutics N.V.. Insiders have a 68m stake in this 364m business. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 30% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Equity Ownership

With a stake of 8.5%, private equity firms could influence the Vivoryon Therapeutics board. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 8.3%, of the company's shares. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Vivoryon Therapeutics better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Vivoryon Therapeutics (2 are concerning) that you should be aware of.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter future.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Washington: A US court has approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing over 160 people, including six Americans, at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai. The US court consented to the Indian request, through the US Government for his extradition.

"The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing," US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court of California, Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, said in a 48-page court order dated May 16, which was released Wednesday.

"Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the Court makes the findings set forth below and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extraditability of Rana on the charged offenses that are the subject of the Request," the Judge wrote in the order.

Who Is Tahawwur Rana?

Tahawwur Rana is a Canadian businessman of Pakistani descent. He has been accused by the Indian government of participating in the planning and execution of the Lashkar terrorist attacks in Mumbai by collaborating with his childhood buddy David Coleman Headley, also known as "Daood Gilani," and others.

What Are The Accusations Against Rana?

The NIA has accused Rana of the following offences (a) conspiracy to wage war, to commit murder, to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, to use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and to commit a terrorist act (b) waging war, (d) murder, (e) committing a terrorist act and (f) conspiracy to commit a terrorist act.

Rana was convicted in Chicago in 2011 of providing material support to the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which planned the Mumbai terror attack and for supporting a never-carried-out plot to attack a Danish newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed in 2005.

He was accused of allowing David Coleman Headley to open a branch of his Chicago-based immigration law business in Mumbai as a cover story and travel as a representative of the company in Denmark.

On the other hand, the extradition was contested by Rana's lawyer. India and the United States have an extradition agreement in effect.

What Did The US Court Say?

Judge Jacqueline Chooljian of US District Court in Central District of Los Angeles in the order dated May 16 said that based on the foregoing, the Court concludes that 62-year-old Rana is extraditable for the offences for which extradition has been requested and on which the United States is proceeding. The judge ruled that there is sufficient competent evidence to establish reasonable cause that Rana is the person accused in India.

"It is therefore ordered that Tahawwur Hussain Rana be and remain committed to the custody of the United States Marshal pending a final decision on extradition and surrender by the Secretary of State to India for the trial of the offences as to which extradition has been granted pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, section 3186 and the Treaty," the Judge ruled.

26/11 Mumbai Terror Attack

Mumbai had come to a standstill on November 26, 2008, when 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who entered the city via sea route from Pakistan carried out a series of coordinated shootings and bombings that injured over 300 and claimed the lives of 166 people in India's financial capital.

The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station, Cama Hospital, Nariman House business and residential complex, Leopold Cafe, Taj Hotel and Tower and the Oberoi-Trident Hotel.
Akasa Air, Indias newest airline has commenced operations from Kolkata Airport, its 17th destination, marking operations across all metro cities in the country. The inaugural flight departed from Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata at 17.55 hrs for Guwahati. Starting 18 May 2023, Akasa Air will operate daily non-stop flights connecting Kolkata with Bengaluru and Guwahati. These new routes will also offer Akasa Air customers the option to travel seamlessly from Bengaluru to Guwahati via Kolkata with no change of aircraft.

Kolkata is Akasa Airs second destination in the state of West Bengal after Bagdogra. Akasa Air's network includes 36 unique routes connecting 17 cities, namely Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kochi, Delhi, Guwahati, Agartala, Visakhapatnam, Pune, Lucknow, Goa, Hyderabad, Varanasi, Bagdogra, Bhubaneswar and Kolkata. Since its launch in August 2022, Akasa Air has carried over 2 million revenue passengers and crossed the milestone of operating over 900 weekly flights.

Akasa Air, India's newest airline has introduced multiple new in class products and services including an all Boeing 737 MAX aircraft fleet. Akasa ordered 72 planes and 20 of them have been delivered already. Akasa has already introduced services like Cafe Akasa, the in-flight catering service offers an assortment of healthy and delectable meals, including festive menus, Pets on flight and safety instruction card in Braille for persons with visual impairment.

Commenting on the announcement, Praveen Iyer, Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer, Akasa Air, said, We are delighted to launch operations from Kolkata, our second destination in the state of West Bengal. As a prominent commercial and cultural hub, the city attracts travellers from all walks of life and is also a gateway to several leisure destinations in the region. The launch of flights from the city to Bengaluru and Guwahati will further ease travel to the Eastern belt of the country, strengthening the nations overall air connectivity. We hope that travellers will appreciate the option of flying Indias most dependable and affordable airline on these routes.

Belson Coutinho, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing & Experience Officer, Akasa Air, said, We are pleased to bring the Akasa experience to Kolkata. Akasa Air is committed to offering a distinguished flying experience to its customers for which the airline has introduced multiple industry-first, customer-friendly products, and services such as Cafe Akasa, and Pets on Akasa. As we rapidly expand our network, we look forward to hosting an increasing number of travellers and providing them with a memorable journey onboard.
After a small plane crash in Colombia, four children from an indigenous community were found alive in the forest after two weeks of the incident. The four children in the incident include an 11-month-old baby, per President Gustavo Petro's statement. During the announcement, the president called the event "joy for the country." On Twitter, the president said that the children in the forest have been found after "arduous search efforts" by the forces. However, the rescue of the children is yet to be confirmed.

In the incident, a Cessna 206 aircraft travelling between Araracuara, in the Amazonas province and San Jose del Guaviare crashed in the forest after raising a mayday alert due to engine failure. The incident occurred in the early hours of May 1 while the plane was carrying seven passengers.

Also read: Go First Airlines Likely To Resume Flight Operations From May 27

In his tweet, President Petro said, "After arduous searching by our military, we have found alive the four children who went missing after a plane crash in Guaviare. A joy for the country."

Rescuers had previously stated that they thought the kids, who include a 13-year-old, a 9-year-old, and a 4-year-old in addition to the 11-month-old, had been lost in the southern Caqueta department's jungle since the crash.

Petro made no mention of the location of the children's rescue or their survival in the bush on their own. Owner of the crashed aircraft, Avianline Charters, reported that one of its pilots in the search area was informed that the kids had been located and "were being transported by boat downriver and that they were all alive."

The company said that "there has been no official confirmation" that the kids were entirely secure and that they were still at risk of not making it to safety because of the nearby thunderstorms.
New Delhi: The recently released trailer of 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One', which stars Tom Cruise in the lead, is drawing some amazing reactions from people on the Internet.

Netizens are comparing the bits of the trailer to the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer 'Pathaan' which broke all records for Hindi films at the box-office upon its release.

The trailer, which is a treat for the lovers of the action genre, has sequences in question which show Cruise hanging off a clip. Another scene shows a train crashing. This has reminded social media users of the Indian spy thriller, which also starred Deepika Padukone and John Abraham.

Soon after the trailer was released, several social media users took to Twitter to draw comparisons between the two movies.

"Few days ago, I saw the whole twitter making fun of #Pathaan train scene just because it accidentally has similarity with Jackie Chan cartoon. But now that #MissionImpossible also has similar action scenes, nobody will say anything," one of the tweets read.

Another user commented: "Bollywood should be proud @iamsrk." A third user, referencing the director of 'Pathaan' - Siddharth Anand, wrote: "Lord Anand should be proud."

Watch the trailer here:
In a major cabinet reshuffle on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed Arjun Ram Meghwal as the new Minister of Law and Justice, and moved Kiren Rijiju to Earth Sciences. Meghwal`s appointment has come at a crucial time, when the central government and the Supreme Court have often not been on the same side in connection with the appointment of judges to the higher judiciary. Rijjiju`s term was controversial -- the government and the judiciary had a series of differences in connection with the appointment of judges -- and at a media event, last year, he had said that judges only recommend the appointment or elevation of those they know and not always the fittest person for the job. Also, in November last year, Rijiju attacked the mechanism to appoint Supreme Court and high court judges, saying the collegium system is "alien" to the Constitution.

In February, the Supreme Court warned the Centre on the delay in clearing the transfer of high court judges recommended by the apex court collegium, saying it may result in both administrative and judicial actions which may not be palatable. A bench comprising justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Abhay. S. Oka told the Attorney General R Venkataramani, representing the Centre, "Don`t make us take a stand which will be very uncomfortable...", and further added that if transfer of judges is kept pending then it is a serious issue. Justice Kaul said transfer is a very serious issue and warned against the interference of third parties in the process. He told the AG that sometimes the government does it overnight and sometimes it takes longer and there is no uniformity, and added that even chief justices` transfers are also pending.

The bench orally observed, "We will have to take a difficult decision. Do not make us take a hard stand" and told the AG, who said the court may not record anything as it is happening. Rijiju had stressed that the country would be governed according to the Constitution and the wishes of the people. In January, Rijiju had said that the Supreme Court collegium publishing inputs of Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) and intelligence bureau (IB) on candidates recommended by the collegium for judgeship, is a serious issue. Addressing the media at the felicitation of award winners of the e-courts project, Rijiju said that if a person is working for the nation, then he may think one day his R&AW and IB files can be made public. "It is a matter of concern.... It is a serious issue and one day I will speak on this," he said, while responding to a query regarding collegium`s recent statements in public domain citing objections raised by the central government to recommendations made regarding the judges` appointment.

In January this year, the apex court collegium published on its website resolutions reiterating names of some advocates for judgeship in various high courts. The apex court cited inputs by R&AW and IB on candidates, whose files were returned by the Centre to the collegium for reconsideration. In a statement, in connection with appointment of openly gay lawyer Saurabh Kripal as a judge of the Delhi High Court, the collegium said: "From the letters of the Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) dated 11 April 2019 and 18 March 2021, it appears that there are two objections to the recommendation which was made by the collegium of this courtAon 11 November 2021 approving the name of Saurabh Kirpal namely: (i) the partner of Saurabh Kirpal is a Swiss National, and (ii) he is in an intimate relationship and is open about his sexual orientation". Reiterating Kripal`s name, the collegium said there is no reason to pre-suppose that the partner of the candidate, who is a Swiss National, would be inimically disposed to our country, since the country of his origin is a friendly nation. "Many persons in high positions including present and past holders of constitutional offices have and have had spouses who are foreign nationals", it added.
New Delhi: Days after India rejected the US State Department report on international religious freedom, Pakistan on Thursday `categorically` rejected the report saying `baseless` assertions were made in it, news agency IANS quoted Pakistani media as reporting. The statement came in response to the US state department report highlighting the need to improve "interfaith tolerance, inclusion, and harmony" in the country. Based on several events in 2022, the US-based report noted that "several political leaders used inflammatory religious language to attack their political rivals."

The spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a weekly briefing that Pakistan respected religious freedom and protected its citizens. We strongly dismiss the unfounded claims made about Pakistan in the International Religious Freedom Report issued by the US Department of State. Such uninformed reporting activities about internal matters of sovereign states are meaningless, reckless and unhelpful, the spokesperson said, IANS said quoting Geo News.

Also Read: 'May Be My Last Tweet Before...': Imran Khan As Cops Surround His Lahore Residence

The spokesperson challenged the report and rejected its findings and said that Pakistan wanted to cooperate with the world to eliminate racial discrimination and Islamophobia, Geo News reported. "We are proud of our religious diversity and pluralistic social fabric. Pakistan`s Constitution provides a strong framework for comprehensive legal, policy and positive measures to protect and promote the rights and freedoms of all Pakistanis regardless of their faith.

These rights and constitutional guarantees are protected, upheld and strengthened by an independent judiciary, Baloch stated.

Also Read: 'London Plan Is Out': Imran Khan Says Pakistan Army Plans To Keep Him In Jail For 10 Years

In our interactions, including with the United States, we have expressed serious concerns about the increasing rise in anti-Muslim hatred, racism and Islamophobia. We hope to work with international partners to counter these harmful forms of religious intolerance, discrimination and Islamophobia.

'Misinformation, Flawed': India On US Report On Religious Freedom

India on Tuesday rejected the US State Department report on international religious freedom and said it was based on "misinformation and flawed understanding." According to a statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs, spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "We are aware of the release of the US State Department 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom. Regrettably, such reports continue to be based on misinformation and flawed understanding." He further stated that the report is motivated and biased commentary by some US officials which only serves to undermine further the credibility of these reports. "We value our partnership with the US and will continue to have frank exchanges on issues of concern to us," the spokesperson said.

The remarks came in response to the US State Department 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom where it alleged high handedness against minorities especially Muslims by various state governments in India.
Bhopal: Religious story-teller and self-styled godman Dhirendra Krishna Shastri (26), who is popularly addressed as `Bageshwar Dham Sarkar`, has grabbed the headlines once again for his so-called `Darbar` in Patna, which was thronged by a large crowd to seek his blessings.





A political row has also erupted with several ruling alliance leaders, including Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, taking objection to the remarks made by Shastri at the event , wherein he reiterated his claim of making India a Hindu nation."Those (Bageshwar Baba) who are talking about such things (Hindu nation) were not born when the country became Independent and the Constitution was implemented. Would they change the name of the country? We have multiple communities in the country and everyone has equal right to believe in their respective religion," Nitish Kumar had said on Tuesday.However, it was not the first time that the `Darbar` of Shastri, the `peethadhish` of the Bageshwar Dham Sarkar, a religious pilgrimage site in Chhatarpur district in Madhya Pradesh, has triggered a political controversy. For the past one year, he has been grabbing headlines for making controversial statements.Shastri made headlines after a Nagpur-based organisation challenged him to display his mystical powers at an event. Shastri, who reportedly ran away from the challenge, has also been charged with promoting superstition.In March this year, his visit to Chhattisgarh sparked a row after Congress leader Kawasi Lakhma, a Cabinet minister in the Bhupesh Baghel-led government, had challenged the self-styled godman to prove his allegations that religious conversions were taking place in the state.Shastri had shot to `fame` through his televised `Divya Darbars`, which were attended by a large number of people where he claimed to tame the spirits, diagnose illnesses without any medical tests, heal the sick, read minds and perform other `miracles`.In Madhya Pradesh, he has made a strong base in the Bundelkhand region, which is the reason why not just some local leaders, but even heads of political parties in the state have made a beeline to seek blessings at his `Darbars`.Senior Congress leader Govind Singh, who belongs to Bhind, is perhaps the only politician in Madhya Pradesh to openly criticise Shastri, even as state Congress chief Kamal Nath along with some other party leaders visited the Bageshwar Dham to seek Shastri`s blessings for the upcoming Assembly polls.Madhya Pradesh BJP President V.D. Sharma too attended Shastri`s `Darbar` within a week of Kamal Nath`s visit, and was followed by some other state BJP leaders who either reached Chhatarpur or invited Shastri to hold his `Darbar` in their respective areas.In February this year, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had also visited the Bageshwar Dham during a mass-marriage ceremony organised by Shastri.Last month, BJP MLA Narayan Tripathi had invited Shastri for a week-long `Darbar` at Maihar in Satna district. However, Shastri`s visit was cancelled at the last moment.Born on July 4, 1996, as Dhirendra Krishna Garg, the self-styled godman claims that he possesses some charismatic abilities attained through `sadhana`. At his Dham, he has set up an Annapurna Kitchen, where free meals are provided to his devotees.Shastri also hosts an annual event to marry off underprivileged and abandoned females. He is presently setting up a Vedic Gurukul to advance Sanskrit and ancient Vedic studies.
Srinagar: Indian Army on Wednesday deployed its Marine Commandos at the world-famous Dal Lake in the wake of the upcoming G20 tourism meet in Srinagar next week. The elite MARCOS are conducting continuous patrolling operations in the Lake area since their deployment yesterday. According to sources, recent terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as continuous intelligence inputs about efforts from across the Line of Control (LoC) to derail the peace in Kashmir around the G20 meeting, have prompted security agencies to deploy MARCOS and NSG commandos for the upcoming G-20 meetings in Srinagar, including the world-famous Dal Lake.

While the Army's Navy marine commandos (MARCOS) specialise in maritime operations, the NSG is India's elite anti-hostage special forces that will protect the main venue of the G20 meeting, the 'SKICC' on the banks of Dal Lake.

Also Read: 'Baseless': India Slams UN Special Rapporteurs Remark On Kashmir G20 Meet

"After their meeting at the SKICC, some foreign dignitaries may take a Shikara ride on Dal Lake, which is why MARCOS has been activated in the Dal Lake area to keep the area safe and under their vigilance," sources said.

According to sources, Pakistan has been working hard to sabotage the G20 meeting in Srinagar. Intelligence agencies have received a letter with detailed instructions for Pakistani sympathisers to target India before and during the G-20 summit in Kashmir.

According to sources, even during such a crisis in its own country, Pakistan is working on plans to spread misinformation about Kashmir, and intelligence agencies have obtained documents proving the same.

Zee News also obtained access to these intelligence documents, which show what kind of propaganda is being spread from Pakistan in an attempt to derail the peaceful situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Posters have appeared in Srinagar urging the G-20 to boycott its meeting there.

Also Read: Record Tourists Flock To Kashmir's Gulmarg Amid Surprise Snowfall In May

Meanwhile, A UK-based opposition group has joined the "Boycott G20" campaign, just hours after Pakistan took over the running of the G20 tourism group meeting in Srinagar at the United Nations. Recorded messages from the militant group "Sikhs for Justice" (SFJ) have begun calling on Jammu and Kashmir mobile phone users to boycott the meeting and block the Srinagar International Airport.

On the evening of May 15, several mobile phone users began receiving a pre-recorded message from Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, convenor of Sikhs for Justice, on their phones from UK numbers such as +447520693559, +447418343648.

Given the threats received, Indian forces and agencies have been activated to foil all of Pakistan's sinister plans. The main venue of meetings stays, and routes used by foreign and national dignitaries are being made extra secure to ensure that no untoward incident occurs during the major international event following the repeal of Article 370 and the division of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Greater Noida, May 18 (IANS) A 22-year-old student allegedly shot his female classmate dead before killing himself from the same gun at a well-known university on Thursday, the police said. The incident took place around 2 p.m. at Shiv Nadar University located on NH-91, near Dadri in Uttar Pradesh. The duo, identified as Anuj and Neha, was pursuing Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and were in third year. The woman was a resident of Kanpur while the accused was from Amroha.

The police said: "Both were last seen together near the canteen between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. They were engaged in a conversation and even hugged each other. While leaving, the youth sudeenly pulled out a pistol and shot the girl. He later killed himself by shooting in his head at the boys` hostel."

Also Read: 'Narcos, Breaking Bad Of Noida': UP Police After Biggest MDMA Haul Worth Rs 200 Crores

The police said: "The whole incident happened inside the college campus. The boy and the girl were close friends for quite some time. From the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that the accused shot his friend after they got involved in an argument, the police added.
OM Holdings Limited (ASX:OMH) shareholders might be concerned after seeing the share price drop 22% in the last quarter. But don't let that distract from the very nice return generated over three years. After all, the share price is up a market-beating 87% in that time.

With that in mind, it's worth seeing if the company's underlying fundamentals have been the driver of long term performance, or if there are some discrepancies.

See our latest analysis for OM Holdings

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

During three years of share price growth, OM Holdings achieved compound earnings per share growth of 20% per year. We don't think it is entirely coincidental that the EPS growth is reasonably close to the 23% average annual increase in the share price. This suggests that sentiment and expectations have not changed drastically. Au contraire, the share price change has arguably mimicked the EPS growth.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

We like that insiders have been buying shares in the last twelve months. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. Dive deeper into the earnings by checking this interactive graph of OM Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. As it happens, OM Holdings' TSR for the last 3 years was 96%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 4.7% in the last year, OM Holdings shareholders lost 22% (even including dividends). Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 5% over the last half decade. 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. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand OM Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for OM Holdings that you should be aware of.

OM Holdings is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on Australian exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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New Delhi: Congress on Thursday finally ended days of suspense over the next Karnataka Chief Minister and officially named Siddaramaiah to lead the southern state. Addressing a press conference, Congress leader KC Venugopal said that Karnataka party president DK Shivakumar will be the deputy CM and that their swearing-in ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also tweeted a picture of him flanked by Siddaramiah and Shivakumar and is seen raising the hands of both leaders to signal a consensus. "Team Congress is committed to usher progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka. We will implement the 5 guarantees promised to 6.5 Cr Kannadigas," he wrote on Twitter.

Team Congress is committed to usher progress, welfare and social justice for the people of Karnataka.



We will implement the 5 guarantees promised to 6.5 Cr Kannadigas. pic.twitter.com/6sycng00Bu  Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) May 18, 2023

After the announcement of their names as the new Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka respectively, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar both expressed their commitment to work unitedly for the welfare of the people of the State.

"Our hands will always be united to protect the interests of Kannadigas. The Congress party will work as a family to deliver a pro-people, transparent, corruption-free governance and fulfill all our guarantees," Siddaramaiah said in a tweet with a picture of Kharge raising his and Shivakumar's hand in a show of unity.

Shivakumar also tweeted a picture with Kharge and Siddaramiah and said that 'Karnataka's secure future and our people's welfare is our top priority'.

"We are united in guaranteeing that," he said.

Karnataka's secure future and our peoples welfare is our top priority, and we are united in guaranteeing that. pic.twitter.com/sNROprdn5H  DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) May 18, 2023

Congress arrived at a consensus on government formation in Karnataka following hectic parleys, and Kharge along with other stakeholders held meetings past midnight to hammer out a solution between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- the two chief ministerial aspirants. Both leaders had been camping in the national capital and held several rounds of deliberations with the Congress' top brass including Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi.

While Siddaramaiah, 75, was Karnataka CM from 2012 to 2018, Shivakumar, 61, has been a minister in the state and is currently the Karnataka Congress chief.

Meanwhile, a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting has been called by Shivakumar, the party's state unit chief, in Bengaluru on Thursday evening. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief has written to all legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs, and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen's Road at 7 pm.

It is notable that in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.

Celebrations break out at Siddaramaiah's native village

Celebrations, meanwhile, broke out near the residence of Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru and at his native village in the Mysuru district on Thursday morning after it emerged that he will be the next Chief Minister. His supporters shouted slogans in his favour as the news came out that he would take oath as the CM on May 20.

The residents of Siddaramanahundi, the native village of Siddaramaiah were, in fact, jubilant since Wednesday following reports that their leader would become the chief minister again. The villagers set off crackers, raised slogans hailing Siddaramaiah, and distributed sweets.

His brother Sidde Gowda was confident that Siddaramaiah will be chosen for the top post.

"There's a guarantee that Siddaramaiah will become Chief Minister. He has done well for the people. He introduced the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme giving free rice to the poor people," Sidde Gowda told reporters in Siddaramanahundi on Wednesday.
New Delhi: IAS officer Tina Dabi is facing backlash for issuing orders to raze down the houses of Pakistani Hindu migrants on government land in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer. The houses of Pakistan Hindu migrants living in the Amar Sagar area, about 4 km from Jaisalmer district headquarters, were demolished following the orders of Dabi, who is currently the District Collector of Jaisalmer.

Over 50 'kutcha' houses, where more than 150 women, men, and children resided, were reportedly razed using bulldozers, following which the Pakistani Hindu migrants staged a protest by putting up tents outside Tina Dabi's office.

"Our demand is we should be re-settled back to the same place or some other place," one of the protesters said.

According to the administration, the displaced were living by constructing illegal houses on the banks of the Amar Sagar pond due to which the inflow of water to the pond was stopped.



"Arrangements have been made for their stay and food in night shelters. However, so far no instructions have come from the state government regarding the rehabilitation of such Pakistani refugees who have not got Indian citizenship. In such a situation, we can make them stay in temporary night shelters for the time being," news agency IANS quoted Tina Dabi as saying.

Earlier last month, Jodhpur Development Authority had razed about 200 structures, most of them belonging to migrants from Pakistan, during an anti-encroachment drive. A JDA official had said that more than 400 'bigha' land belonging to the authority in Rajiv Gandhi Nagar had been encroached upon in the recent past and many structures had been built on it.

It was a routine anti-encroachment drive to free JDA land from encroachment, but the residents became angry stating that they had purchased this land, the official said.

BJP Slams Ashok Gehlot Govt After Houses Of Pak Hindu Migrants Razed Down

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rajendra Rathore on Wednesday termed the demolition of the houses of Pakistani Hindu migrants as 'appeasement politics' of the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government. He said that bringing down the houses of Hindu refugees from Pakistan with bulldozers shows the 'cruel attitude of the Congress government'.

"Demolition of the homes of Hindu refugees in Jaisalmer after Jodhpur is crossing the limits of the cruelty of humanity," Rajendra Rathore said in a video statement.

He also said that Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot should stop playing politics of appeasement with the Hindu refugees who returned to their land after being harassed by Pakistan.
Mumbai: Actor Alia Bhatt on Wednesday night returned to India after attending the Gucci Cruise 2024 show in Seoul, South Korea. The 'Brahmastra' actor was snapped at the airport donning casual outfits. She wore a white upper and paired it with black pants. She accessorized her look with a black handbag and opted for no makeup. Soon after the 'Raazi' actor arrived in India, several pictures and videos of the actor surfaced on social media. Alia Bhatt recently attended the Gucci Cruise Show 2024 as the global brand ambassador in Seoul, South Korea.

The 'Gangubai Kathiawadi' actor donned a mini black dress with polka dotted cutout. She completed her look with black platform heels and a Gucci Jackie 1961 transparent bag. Last week, Alia was announced as the first Indian global ambassador of the luxury fashion brand, Gucci. Taking to Instagram, the fashion brand shared the news and captioned it, "Alia Bhatt is the House's newest Global Brand Ambassador. To mark the occasion, the actress, producer, and entrepreneur were captured with the Gucci Bamboo 1947 bag."

Alia also took to Insta to share her excitement and feelings with her fans. Sharing the pictures, she wrote, "I'm honoured to represent the house of Gucci not only in India but at a global stage. Gucci's legacy has always inspired and intrigued me and I'm looking forward to the many sartorial milestones we create together @gucci."

Meanwhile, on the film front, Alia will be next seen in Karan Johar's upcoming 'Rocky aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani' opposite Ranveer Singh. The film is all set to hit the theatres on July 28. Apart from that, she also has Farhan Akhtar's next directorial 'Jee Le Zaraa' alongside Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra Jonas in her kitty.
Mumbai: Days after pictures went viral of Anushka Sharma and her bodyguard not wearing helmets for a bike ride, Mumbai Traffic Police issued a challan against Anushka Sharma's bodyguard Sonu Shaikh and added a fine of Rs 10,500 for riding without a helmet and driving without a licence.

Soon after the pictures went viral, many netizens objected to it and reached out to Mumbai police for taking action against them. On Wednesday, Mumbai Traffic Police tweeted photos of the complaint and wrote, "Challan has been issued under Sec 129/194(D), Sec 5/180 & Sec 3(1)181 MV act to the driver along with a fine of Rs. 10500 & been paid by the offender."

After these photos went viral on social media, Twitterati reached out to Mumbai Police to take action against the stars. Responding to some of them, the Mumbai Police tweeted, "We have shared this with the traffic branch."

Apart from Anushka Sharma, Amitabh Bachchan was also criticized for not wearing a helmet. However, Amitabh explained in his blog the real reason behind it. He wrote, "Aahhhhhhh ...the impotency of content .. Much made out of the bike picture .. ! How you moving on street with stranger ..? No security ..? You are loved take care ..? And then .. NO HELMET .. !!!!!! The fact of the matter is that this is on location shoot on the street of Mumbai ..It is Sunday .. formal permission taken for shoot at a lane in Ballard Estate .. permission sought for Sunday because all offices are shut and there is no public or traffic .. One lane in the region BLOCKED off by Police permission for shoot .. the lane barely 30-40 meters .. The dress I wear is my costume for the film ..(sic)"

He added, "and .. I am just fooling around by getting on the bike , of a crew member .. Not even moving any where, but giving the impression that i travelled to save time ..(sic)" Big B even mentioned that he would have in fact done it had he been stuck in traffic for real. He further wrote, "But yes I would do it if there was a problem of punctuality .. and wear helmet and follow all the rules and regulations of the traffic guide lines .. I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT DOES THIS .. had seen Akshay Kumar do this to get to location on time .. wore helmet etc., on the bike of his Security person .. no one could recognise .. and it was rapid and efficient .. and it worked well ..(sic)"
New Delhi: Apple Inc has lowered sales estimates for its long-awaited mixed-reality headsets by about two-thirds, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The iPhone maker had initially hoped to sell about 3 million units a year, but has now pared back those estimates to about 1 million, and then to 900,000 units, the report said. (Also Read: Top 10 Countries With Highest Fuel Rates)

The company is set to hold a developers' conference on June 5, where it is expected to present the product, the report said. Apple did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The mixed-reality headset, which can overlay digital objects on a view of the real world, is widely anticipated to be Apple's next major product.

The headset is expected to cost around $3,000, Bloomberg News had reported in February. Meta Platform Inc's Quest Pro virtual and mixed reality headset is priced at about $1,000.
New Delhi: In an effort to provide Google Workspace to more small business owners, the tech giant has launched the Workspace Individual plan in 20 new countries. "We are excited to provide #GoogleWorkspace to more small business owners. Today, we are launching the Google Workspace Individual plan in 20 new countries," Google Workspace wrote in a tweet.





Google Workspace Individual keeps users on a @gmail.com address and offers 1 TB of storage and more features across Gmail, Google Calendar, and Meet. The plan costs $9.99 per month in the US. ( Also Read: CEO Carl Pei Revealed Nothing Phone (2) Processor; Terms "Clear Upgrade" The service debuted in five countries in 2021 before expanding to Europe and Asia a year later. After adding 20 new markets, Google Workspace Individual is now available in 52 countries. ( Also Read: Samsung Galaxy F54 With Super Steady OIS, Nightography Feature In India This Month Meanwhile, Google has said it will delete personal accounts and their content that haven't been used or signed in for at least two years.The company said it will purge the content in inactive accounts within Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar), YouTube, and Google Photos.Google also said that it will not immediately impact users with an inactive account and the earliest the company will begin deleting accounts is December 2023.
New Delhi: Realme today unveiled the Realme Narzo N53, a new entry-level smartphone, in India. The 5,000 mAh battery of this device, which has an iPhone-like design, allows 33W fast charging. It also features a 6.7-inch display with a 90Hz refresh rate and a 50MP dual back camera configuration.

Price And Storage Options Of Realme Narzo N53

There are two storage options for the Realme Narzo N53. The cost of the 4GB RAM + 64GB storage option is Rs 8,999, and the 6GB RAM + 128GB storage option is Rs 10,999. (Also Read: Top 10 Countries With Highest Fuel Rates)

Realme Narzo N53 Colour Options

It has a California Sunshine look to it. It comes in Feather Gold and Feather Black colour variations in terms of colour. (Also Read: Top 10 Largest Banks In India 2023)

Realme Narzo N53 Sale: Date And Timing

On May 22 at 2:00 p.m. on Realme.com, the smartphone will go on special sale in India. The initial public sale will take place on Realme.com and Amazon.in on May 24.

Realme Narzo N53 Bank Offers

Regarding promotional offerings, purchasers of the 4GB variant will receive an instant discount of Rs 750 on their ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank cards, while purchasers of the 6GB RAM variant will receive an instant discount of Rs 1,000 on their ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank cards.

Realme Narzo N53 Specifications

The 6.7-inch Realme Narzo N53 display has a 90Hz refresh rate and a maximum brightness of 450 nits. It has an internal storage capacity of 128GB and up to 6GB RAM thanks to the Unisoc T612 processor. Up to 12GB of dynamic RAM and 2TB of dynamic storage are available. The phone is powered on Android 13.

The 5,000 mAh battery in the Realme Narzo N53 supports 33W SuperVOOC Charging. According to the manufacturer, the smartphone can charge from zero to fifty percent in 30 minutes. A 3.5mm headphone jack and a Type-C port for charging are also included.

Realme Narzo N53 Camera Options

The smartphone has two rear cameras, each with a 50MP main sensor, for taking pictures. Features including the 50MP Mode, Video, Night Mode, Panoramic View, Expert, Timelapse, Portrait Mode, HDR, AI Scene Recognition, Slow Motion, and Bokeh Effect Control are supported. It includes an 8MP front-facing camera for taking selfies and making video calls.
Ranking first across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) as well as 9th globally, Dubai comfortably makes the top 10 of the world's best city brands, as London tops the list globally.

According to the inaugural Brand Finance City Index, London with a score of 84.6/100 is the best city brand in the world, followed by New York and Paris.

Presented by brand evaluation consultancy Brand Finance, the ranking is based on a global survey of close to 15,000 members of the public conducted in April 2023 in 20 countries on all continents to measure perceptions of the worlds top 100 cities.

City of Gold

With a Brand Finance City Index score of 75.8/100, Dubai has gained a reputation as the City of Gold for being a major shopping destination for jewellery, but this title has grown to describe the citys role in finance and trade more broadly.

Dubai has performed well across multiple Business and Investment attributes, ranking 1st for future growth potential, 2nd in strong and stable economy, and 3rd behind only New York and London as a city of global significance.

To arrive at a comprehensive assessment of the city brands in the ranking, alongside measuring familiarity, respondents were asked about the general reputation and their personal consideration of each city as a place to live, work locally, work remotely, study, retire, visit, or invest in. The evaluation of preferences across these seven dimensions was complemented by perceptions of 45 underlying city brand attributes, grouped under seven pillars, such as Business and Investment or Sustainability and Transport.

Business and investment

Abu Dhabi, ranking 28th, is the 2nd best city brand in the region. Abu Dhabi performs very well in Business and Investment too, ranking ahead of Dubai and claiming top spots globally on a number of attributes, including 2nd in attractive corporate taxation, 3rd in attractive personal taxation, 4th in easy to business in, 7th in great for start-ups and innovation, and 9th in easy to find employment.

Qatars Doha (65th) as well as Saudi Arabias Jeddah (77th) and Riyadh (78th) are also included in the study. Weaker familiarity across some of the markets included in the research is undermining their overall rank in the Brand Finance City Index, but respondents that know the cities well have recognised them for their general reputation and declared their personal consideration to invest, work locally, and work remotely there. All three also score well on attributes across the Business and Investment and Governance pillars.

Andrew Campbell, Managing Director of Brand Finance Middle East, commented: Middle Eastern cities have built very strong brands in a much shorter time than many of their European counterparts. The last few decades have seen an exponential growth of business and investment opportunities across all major cities in the region. Efforts to raise the profile of the tourism offering are likely to further increase the familiarity and overall standing of Middle Eastern city brands globally.

Brand perceptions

Driven by its high familiarity among respondents worldwide, London has recorded stronger brand perceptions than any other city in the study. Familiarity is understood as knowledge about the city gained through repeated exposure or direct experience, and it allows to form a deeper affinity for its brand.

David Haigh, Chairman & CEO of Brand Finance, commented: Londons exceptional performance in the Index can be attributed to its global familiarity. Coming first on this particular measure, London has a huge advantage over its peers, leading to its success in the ranking overall as the worlds best city. Knowing a city allows the public to form positive perceptions about it  to recognise its reputation and to consider it as the preferred place to live, work, study, retire, visit, or invest. High familiarity means a deeper understanding of its qualities and a broader reach of its appeal, allowing the city to draw significant economic benefits from inbound migration, investment, and tourism.

Crowned as the overall winner, London ranks 1st in two of the seven key dimensions  study and visit  as well as in the top 4 in all other ones.

Academic excellence

Renowned as a hub for academic excellence, London is ranked as the best city globally to study. The British capital hosts top universities  such as University College London, Kings College London, Imperial College London, and the London School of Economics, while prestigious schools in and near London that prepare for university  like Eton and Harrow attract students from around the world. It is no surprise that the city comes 1st globally for great universities and great private schools.

Thanks to iconic landmarks like the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, and the Tower of London, and renowned cultural institutions like the British Museum, National Gallery, and the West End theatre district, London is a prime tourist destination.

Londons top global ranking as the best city to visit, is supported by its 3rd place for great museums and art galleries and great theatres and music venues. The appeal of London can also be attributed to its strong identity and character, where London ranks 3rd globally.

Everyone wants a bite of the Big Apple

New York City has secured 2nd spot, behind London, with a Brand Finance City Index score of 83.0 out of 100. NYC also ranks 3rd globally in familiarity and boasts 2nd spot in three out of the seven key dimensions: invest, study, and visit.

Widely regarded as the global capital of finance, NYC ranks 2nd behind only Zurich as the best city to invest in. It comes 1st for the city of global significance, easy to do business in, and strong and stable economy attributes, which explains its appeal to investors.

Home to several of the world's most esteemed universities - including Columbia, NYU, and the City University of New York  the Big Apple has also been recognised as the 2nd best city in the world to study in behind only London. It is 2nd for the great universities and leader in science and technology attributes, comes 4th for great private schools, but falls much behind London on great publicly funded schools, ranking 41st overall. In general, NYC is perceived as the least affordable city in the ranking, coming 100th.

Ranking 1st for great shopping, restaurants and nightlife and 2nd for great theatres and music venues, home to Fifth Avenue shops and Broadway theatres, NYC lives up to its name as the city that never sleeps. As a result, NYC ranks as the 2nd best city in the world to visit.

Paris is in vogue, ranked 3rd in the world

Paris rounds off the podium, coming 3rd in the ranking with a Brand Finance City Index score of 79.7 out of 100. Paris is also ranked as the worlds 2nd most familiar city.

Complementing its strong familiarity score, the City of Love is also ranked as the 3rd best city in the world to visit. Boasting an abundance of renowned attractions, including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, and the Moulin Rouge, Paris unsurprisingly scores better than any other city in the Culture & Heritage pillar, ranking 1st globally for beautiful architecture, great museums and galleries, and great theatres and music venues. The French capital also performs strongly in People & Values, ranking 2nd globally for being open and welcoming, fun, and having a strong identity and character, but falling behind on being friendly where it ranks 25th  perhaps in line with stereotypes.

Zurich leads rankings as the best city in the world to work locally, work remotely, invest, and retire, but low familiarity undermines its reach

Desirable destination

Zurich is a highly desirable destination to work locally, work remotely, invest, and retire, claiming the top spot for each dimension. The city scores exceptionally well on reputation (4th) and consideration (1st) when considering all seven dimensions combined too, but a low score on familiarity (53rd) prevents it from taking a higher spot in the overall Brand Finance City Index ranking (17th).

Haigh commented: Zurich is a great example of a city brand successful in converting familiarity and perceptions into reputation and ultimately consideration. More so than for other cities, those that get to know Zurich, feel persuaded by its appeal as a destination, especially for work, investment, and retirement. Much like Swiss watch brands, Zurich is a luxury city brand  with a lower familiarity among the public, but a high regard among those that know it well. The trade-off of this positioning is a more modest reach than that of more popular city brands, such as London, New York, or Paris.-- TradeArabia News Service
Strix Group Plc (LON:KETL) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 14% in the last month. But that is minimal compensation for the share price under-performance over the last year. In fact, the price has declined 41% in a year, falling short of the returns you could get by investing in an index fund.

Now let's have a look at the company's fundamentals, and see if the long term shareholder return has matched the performance of the underlying business.

See our latest analysis for Strix Group

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Unhappily, Strix Group had to report a 20% decline in EPS over the last year. The share price decline of 41% is actually more than the EPS drop. This suggests the EPS fall has made some shareholders are more nervous about the business.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Dive deeper into Strix Group's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Strix Group's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

A Different Perspective

Investors in Strix Group had a tough year, with a total loss of 39% (including dividends), against a market gain of about 3.3%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 1.1% over the last half decade. 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. Even so, be aware that Strix Group is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is a bit concerning...

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on British exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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JLR UK Factory

The owner of Jaguar Land Rover is pressing Madrid to increase a 350m (300m) subsidy offer as it prepares to announce whether its new battery gigafactory will be built in Spain or Britain.

Tata has urged the Spanish to sweeten a proposed support package after Jeremy Hunt, the British Chancellor, reportedly offered the business 500m to come to the UK.

The business  which owns JLR as well as the Port Talbot steel plant and Tetley Tea in the UK  is choosing between the Gravity business park in Somerset and a site in Spain for the facility. It will churn out batteries for a new generation of electric cars and provide a significant boost to the manufacturing base of whichever country is successful.

Spain has 2bn of European Union funds available to award to electric vehicle-building and battery-making projects. However, it has set a limit of 350m for battery plant financing.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has reportedly promised 500m of help if Tata picks Britain, as well as taxpayer support for Port Talbot to net zero by installing electric arc furnaces to replace its ageing blast furnaces.

JLR denied it had been offered subsidies, saying: Reports that JLR has been offered government funding to influence a decision around future global gigafactory locations are untrue.

JLR will become an anchor customer of the Tata Group's future global gigafactory venture.

Spain relaunched its funding efforts this year after a slow start in attracting interest with its terms criticised as too strict by car firms.

Discussions are understood to be ongoing, with no target date set for an agreement to be reached. However, UK negotiators are hoping to close the deal off soon.

Mr Hunt hinted earlier this week that the UK car industry might receive welcome news soon after much disappointment in the race to build up an electric supply chain.

Britishvolt, the country's hope for an independent battery plant, collapsed into administration earlier this year. It left only Nissan, JLRs biggest competitor in the UK, Nissan, with a domestic battery supply.

A looming 2035 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars means it is increasingly important to have gigafactories in Britain.

The Brexit deal also means that cars built using imported batteries from outside Europe will attract a 10pc tariff if exported to the Continent.

Mr Hunt told the British Chambers of Commerces annual conference on Wednesday that we need to have battery making capacity in the UK.

Mr Hunt said: All I would say is, watch this space, because we are very focused on making sure the UK gets that EV manufacturing capacity.

Adrian Mardell, the chief executive of JLR, said last week that situating the plant in Spain would not hinder his companys plans to build more electric vehicles.

Adrian Mardell - News Scan

He said: I don't believe it will impact where we build models. We've already announced where those models are actually going to be built.

The firm's Solihull factory will build electric versions of both Jaguar and Land Rover models.

Tata was approached for comment. The Department for Business and Trade declined to comment.

Negotiations over the gigafactory coincide with Tatas demand for state help to decarbonise its huge Port Talbot steel mill, switching it from a carbon-belching blast furnace to an electric arc site using green electricity.

Last year Natarajan Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Group, told the Financial Times that the plant could close without 1.5bn of taxpayer support.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.
These days it's easy to simply buy an index fund, and your returns should (roughly) match the market. But one can do better than that by picking better than average stocks (as part of a diversified portfolio). To wit, the Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) share price is 76% higher than it was a year ago, much better than the market return of around 4.0% (not including dividends) in the same period. That's a solid performance by our standards! Having said that, the longer term returns aren't so impressive, with stock gaining just 19% in three years.

In light of the stock dropping 4.6% in the past week, we want to investigate the longer term story, and see if fundamentals have been the driver of the company's positive one-year return.

See our latest analysis for Las Vegas Sands

Las Vegas Sands isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually expect strong revenue growth. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit.

Las Vegas Sands grew its revenue by 33% last year. That's a fairly respectable growth rate. Buyers pushed the share price 76% in response, which isn't unreasonable. If the company can maintain the revenue growth, the share price could go higher still. But before deciding this growth stock is underappreciated, you might want to check out profitability trends (and cash flow)

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Las Vegas Sands is a well known stock, with plenty of analyst coverage, suggesting some visibility into future growth. So we recommend checking out this free report showing consensus forecasts

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Las Vegas Sands shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 76% over the last year. That certainly beats the loss of about 3% per year over the last half decade. We generally put more weight on the long term performance over the short term, but the recent improvement could hint at a (positive) inflection point within the business. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Las Vegas Sands (1 can't be ignored!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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After losing 20% in the past year, James Cropper PLC (LON:CRPR) institutional owners must be relieved by the recent gain

Key Insights

Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, James Cropper's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions

52% of the business is held by the top 7 shareholders

Insiders have been buying lately

Every investor in James Cropper PLC (LON:CRPR) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 46% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Institutional investors would probably welcome last week's 22% increase in share prices after a year of 20% losses as a sign that returns are likely to begin trending higher.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about James Cropper.

See our latest analysis for James Cropper

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About James Cropper?

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.

James Cropper already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at James Cropper's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in James Cropper. The company's largest shareholder is Mark A. Cropper, with ownership of 26%. Liontrust Asset Management PLC is the second largest shareholder owning 13% of common stock, and Canaccord Genuity Wealth (International) Limited holds about 3.4% of the company stock.

We did some more digging and found that 7 of the top shareholders account for roughly 52% of the register, implying that along with larger shareholders, there are a few smaller shareholders, thereby balancing out each others interests somewhat.

While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. There is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of James Cropper

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. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in James Cropper PLC. Insiders have a UK23m stake in this UK86m business. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 25% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for James Cropper you should be aware of.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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MA Family

Lisbon, Portugal, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MA Family , a team of communications experts focused on tech and venture capital, today released The State of Media 2023 Report capturing the current industry trends and challenges journalists face.

The company conducted a survey asking reporters working at the frontlines of the industry to confirm the identified trends. The survey covered the changing media landscape and the rise of new media formats, the increasing ratio of PR people to journalists, the attitude of journalists toward PR managers using AI to craft materials, and more. The input of the reporters validated the results of the research.

The Key Trends Of The Media Industry In 2023



Fewer reporters, more PR specialists: the number of traditional, reputable publications and the number of journalists working for each continued decreasing over the years while the number of PR specialists increased. 50% of journalists stated that too many PR people reaching them was one of the most significant challenges facing them in todays media landscape.



Trust in traditional media declines, while social media becomes the most commonly used news source. The research confirms that trust is a problem: 30% of reporters state that distrust of the media is one of the biggest challenges they face in todays media landscape.

New media, such as newsletters and podcasts, are not clear-cut. The number of podcast listeners continues to increase, but successful podcast creators realize they need other formats of media or business to scale. And despite suggestions that we had passed the peak of the newsletter era, more newsletters continue to be created. 40% of the reporters who participated in the research already have their own newsletter, 50% are not interested in this media format at the moment, and 10% would not consider it as there are so many already.

Securing coverage becomes a challenge as media now focus on features, creative campaigns, research, and analytical pieces, while ordinary announcements such as funding rounds and product launches play a secondary role. Reporters shared what type of stories they usually cover these days  the results are presented below (the question was multichoice)

Features: 80%

Launches and product updates: 60%

Relevant research: 50%

Funding rounds: 30%

Round-ups and lists: 30%

Partnerships: 10%

Other (the reporters also named Mergers and Acquisitions, Markets, Diverse founders, and tech): 30%



PR professionals started using AI to create more personalized pitches and compelling subject lines, but some media reporters do not like AI-written materials. However, 70% of respondents said their attitude towards PR specialists using AI in crafting materials is neutral, and only 30% confirmed its mainly negative.

For more than two decades, experts have been predicting the death of the print newspaper  and now its here; a growing number of publishers are cutting back on their print editions, pointing to rising costs and arguing consumers will prefer the immediacy and convenience of online news. 55% of reporters do not believe in the revitalization of print media, while 44% somewhat believe.

In the post-pandemic reality, events returned offline  media professionals were experiencing virtual fatigue and were craving in-person experiences, meaning it was the right time to meet the relevant reporters in person. 44% of respondents have a positive attitude toward meeting PR specialists at events, and 56% have a neutral one.

Worlds leading corporations continue to make mistakes and sometimes even collapse due to poor communication, proving the fundamental value of precise communications.

The full report is available here .

Journalism and communications have a symbiotic relationship, and we are always watching whats going on with the media industry, says Yury Molodtsov, Partner and COO of MA Family. This is the only way we can provide value not just to our clients but also to journalists, allowing us to build long-term connections and, hopefully, educate fellow professionals on what they should and shouldnt do.

About MA Family

MA Family is a team of communications experts focused on tech and venture capital. Our clients range from early-stage startups to publicly traded corporations and venture capital firms with over $500M under management. We have secured thousands of stories, brought our speakers to the front pages of The New York Times and TechCrunch, secured speaking slots at Web Summit, CES, and SXSW, and organized major tech conferences. We know how to turn your story into media coverage, we have technical knowledge allowing us to understand the most complex topics, and we can use your data and expertise to create news. For more information, please visit https://www.ma.family

CONTACT: Yury Molodtsov Partner and COO MA Family yury@ma.famil




Man accused of killing his parents, 2 others in Maine had been convicted earlier in Kansas

A man accused of murdering four people and injuring three others in shootings in Maine on Tuesday had been convicted earlier of crimes in Kansas.

Joseph Eaton, 34, of Bowdoin, Maine, was charged with four counts of murder Tuesday after four people were found fatally shot at a home in Bowdoin, according to the Associated Press. The victims were his parents, Cynthia Eaton, 62, and David Eaton, 66, and their friends, Robert Eger, 72, and Patti Eger, 62, The Portland Press Herald in Maine reported.

Law enforcement found and arrested Eaton after three other people were shot several miles south of the home on I-295, the AP said.

In two Kansas juvenile cases in the mid 2000s, Eaton was sentenced to 9 months of probation for burglary, theft and battery, court records show.

In a 2008 case, he was sentenced to 24 months probation after being convicted of burglary in Maize. Supervision ended in 2010, Sedgwick County District Attorneys Office spokesperson Dan Dillon said in an email.

Court records show a Wichita address for Eaton at the time of the 2008 case. In a request to a judge, Eatons attorney asked that the probation be ended so he could move to Maine to be closer to his fiancees family, court records show. They were expecting a child.

Court records show he had many people vouch on his behalf: a pastor, an instructor at Butler Community College where he was taking classes and his parents friends, the Egers.

Hes becoming the fine young man I knew he would with Gods guidance, Patti Eger wrote. Hes doing his best to stay on the straight and narrow and I see changes in him that will benefit him long term

Eaton also has a criminal record in Florida and Maine.

In 2018, he plead guilty in Nassau County, Florida for possessing a concealed firearm as a convicted felon and three counts of aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer and spent three years in prison, the Portland Press Herald in Maine reported.

In Maine, his prior convictions were for felony aggravated assault in 2014, operating under the influence in 2015 and assault and domestic violence in 2016, according to the Portland Press Herald.

The newspaper said Eaton was released from Maine Correctional Facility days before the shooting.

He was set to make his first court appearance later this week, according to the AP.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy sounded optimistic Thursday about the odds of reaching an agreement on raising the debt ceiling before the U.S. Treasury runs out of cash in as little as two weeks.

Were not there, we havent agreed to anything yet, McCarthy told reporters at the Capitol. But I see the path that we can come to an agreement. And I think we have a structure now and everybodys working hard.

McCarthy also spoke highly of the negotiators chosen by the White House, including Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young and top adviser Steve Ricchetti. I just believe where we were a week ago and where we are today is a much better place because we've got the right people in the room discussing it in a very professional manner with all the knowledge and all the background from all the different leaders and what they want, he said.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer struck a positive note, as well. Weve made good progress this week, but the work continues, he said, adding, No one will get everything they want.

Although senators left town Thursday for a 12-day break, Schumer said they would be available on 24-hour notice to address any deal that might be struck between McCarthy and the White House. The negotiations are currently making progress, as Speaker McCarthy has said he expects the House will vote next week if an agreement is reached, and the Senate would begin consideration after that, he said.

Worries on the left: A growing number of Democrats are expressing concerns that the White House will give too much away in a deal with Republicans. Led by independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, a group of 11 liberal senators signed a letter urging President Joe Biden to reject any agreement that involves spending cuts or work requirements for social programs, and to ignore the debt limit altogether on constitutional grounds.

The senators  including Sanders and Democrats Tina Smith, Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Merkley, Edward Markey, Mazie Hirono, Peter Welch, Richard Blumenthal, Jack Reed, Sheldon Whitehouse and John Fetterman  accused Republicans of negotiating in bad faith. Republicans have made it clear that they are prepared to hold our entire economy hostage unless you accede to their demands to reduce the deficit on the backs of working families, the lawmakers wrote. That is simply unacceptable.

Republicans refuse to consider any revenue increases to address the deficit, the senators said, leaving Democrats with a choice between significant spending cuts and the economic catastrophe that would likely result from a default. Republicans unwillingness to consider one penny in new revenue from the wealthy and large corporations, along with their diminishment of the disastrous consequences of default, have made it seemingly impossible to enact a bipartisan budget deal at this time, they wrote.

As an alternative, the senators called on Biden to take a different approach: We write to urgently request that you prepare to exercise your authority under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, which clearly states: the validity of the public debt of the United States  shall not be questioned.

Progressive Democrats in the House are also pushing back against any potential deal that involves spending cuts. Rep. Jamaal Bowman told CNNs Manu Raju that he was concerned that the White House is giving too much away in the negotiations with McCarthy. Yes, Im concerned about that, he said. We shouldnt be negotiating. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who leads the Progressive Caucus, struck a similar pose, saying, We should not reward the hostage takers.

Grumblings on the right: Liberal Democrats arent the only ones worried about the shape of the eventual deal between McCarthy and the White House. The far-right House Freedom Caucus released a statement Thursday expressing support for the bill passed by the House that would cut spending by $4.8 trillion over 10 years in exchange for raising the debt limit by $1.5 trillion  terms that cant gain any kind of bipartisan support.

The U.S. House of Representatives has done its job in passing the Limit, Save, Grow Act to provide a mechanism to raise the debt ceiling, the group said. This legislation is the official position of the House Freedom Caucus and, by its passage with 217 votes, the entire House Republican Conference.

The group called on Speaker McCarthy and Senate Republicans to use every leverage and tool at their disposal to ensure the Limit, Save, Grow Act is signed into law, adding, There should be no further discussion until the Senate passes the legislation.

The bottom line: Negotiators say things are going well, but criticism is growing on both the left and the right, reminding everyone of just how difficult it may be to build enough support to turn a McCarthy-Biden agreement into a catastrophe-avoiding law.

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(Bloomberg) -- Meituan will launch a sister app in Hong Kong on Monday, taking the worlds largest food delivery service beyond mainland China for the first time.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The internet firm plans to debut its KeeTa meal delivery service Monday morning, it said on its official Telegram channel. It will initially serve the neighborhood of Mong Kok in the heart of Hong Kong.

Beijing-based Meituan is looking to move beyond its home market  where it dominates  and compete against the likes of Deliveroo Plc and Delivery Hero SEs Foodpanda. In China, Meituan has in past years pushed Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.s Ele.me into a distant No. 2 position.

Now, a growing number of Chinese internet incumbents are keen to expand abroad as local businesses grapple with an uneven post-pandemic recovery and the lingering effects of Beijings sweeping campaign to rein in the internet industry.

Read more: China Tech Giant Meituan Hires 10,000 to Counter ByteDance

Its unclear whether KeeTa  a nod to the fast-moving cheetah  will eventually make it beyond Hong Kong. The company is likely to first broaden coverage of the affluent city if operations go smoothly. Its already placed an app on Hong Kongs iOS store inviting applications from prospective riders, Bloomberg News has confirmed. It is also recruiting people to make deliveries on foot or via bicycle, accounting for the citys high density.

Meituan, which hasnt outlined plans to go international, will report earnings next Thursday. Its shares ended largely unchanged Thursday in Hong Kong.

Meituan has been hiring aggressively in preparation for its debut in the city for months. It will rely on a familiar subsidy-heavy strategy to draw in users and delivery people alike. The firm launched a series of information sessions in March to hear directly from potential delivery drivers, many of which already work for Deliveroo or Foodpanda. Meituan, which is backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd., also set up a 24-7 courier hub for riders in Mong Kok.

In contrast to the cost-cutting and layoffs across Silicon Valley, Meituan set out to hire 10,000 people in its mainland market this year to fend off intensified competition from players such as ByteDance Ltd. in Chinas $145 billion food arena. The different branding of its Hong Kong app mirrors similar moves by the likes of ByteDance and Temu-owner PDD Holdings Inc.: unfurling a different banner in recognition of different marketing and operational needs abroad.

--With assistance from Zheping Huang.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
FILE PHOTO: Meta Platforms Inc's logo is seen on a smartphone in this illustration picture

By Katie Paul and Stephen Nellis

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Meta Platforms on Thursday shared new details on its data center projects to better support artificial intelligence work, including a custom chip "family" being developed in-house.

The Facebook and Instagram owner said in a series of blog posts that it designed a first-generation chip in 2020 as part of the Meta Training and Inference Accelerator (MTIA) program. The aim was to improve efficiency for the recommendations models it uses to serve ads and other content in news feeds.

Reuters previously reported that the company was not planning to deploy its first in-house AI chip widely and was already working on a successor. The blog posts portrayed the first MTIA chip as a learning opportunity.

The first MTIA chip was focused exclusively on an AI process called inference, in which algorithms trained on huge amounts of data make judgments about whether to show, say, a dance video or a cat meme as the next post in a user's feed, the posts said.

Joel Coburn, a software engineer at Meta, said during a presentation about the new chip that Meta had initially turned to graphics processing units, or GPUs, for inference tasks, but found they were not well suited to inference work.

"Their efficiency is low for real models, despite significant software optimizations. This makes them challenging and expensive to deploy in practice," Coburn said. "This is why we need MTIA."

A Meta spokesperson declined to comment on deployment timelines for the new chip or elaborate on plans to develop chips that could train the models as well.

Meta has been engaged in a massive project to upgrade its AI infrastructure in the past year, after executives realized it lacked the hardware and software to support demand from product teams building AI-powered features.

As a result, the company scrapped plans for a large-scale rollout of an in-house inference chip and started work on a more ambitious chip capable of performing training and inference, Reuters reported.

Meta's blog posts acknowledged that its first MTIA chip stumbled with high-complexity AI models, but noted that it handled low- and medium-complexity models more efficiently than competitor chips.

The MTIA chip also used only 25 watts of power - a fraction of what market-leading chips from suppliers such as Nvidia Corp consume - and used an open-source chip architecture called RISC-V, Meta said.

Meta also provided an update on plans to redesign its data centers around more modern AI-oriented networking and cooling systems, saying it would break ground on its first such facility this year.

The new design would be 31% cheaper and could be built twice as quickly as the company's current data centers, an employee said in a video explaining the changes.

Meta said it has an AI-powered system to help its engineers create computer code, similar to tools offered by Microsoft Corp , Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc .

(Reporting by Katie Paul in New York and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Kenneth Li, Chizu Nomiyama and Richard Chang)
The Middle East and North Africas (Mena) tech-savvy younger population is forecast to boost e-commerce spending by 15% in 2023 when compared to the previous year.

Tradeling, the largest business-to-business (B2B) marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), cites that the pandemic-induced trend of digital adoption across several industries is set to continue with a relatively young and technologically inclined population driving this projection.

Out of necessity, increased worldwide digital adoption was witnessed at the onset of the pandemic. Despite the World Health Organization (WHO) declassifying Covid-19 as a global emergency, Mena is projected to maintain its upward trajectory by adding approximately 100 million new digital service users over the next five years.

New digital users

This progress is predicted to see as many as 125 million new digital users by 2030 while boosting the regions digital economy from its $100 billion value in 2022 to an eye-popping $500 billion by the end of the decade.

Hyper growth in Menas digital economy is expected to continue for the foreseeable future with hyper growth expected in the GCC. Furthermore, the UAEs e-commerce sector is poised to make major contributions via its high internet penetration rate of more than 90%, a growing smartphone user base, and an increasing demand for online shopping; consumers have grown to prefer such convenience over traditional brick-and-mortar stores since the outbreak of Covid.

Favourable government policies are also supporting the countrys e-commerce rise.

The UAE government has implemented several initiatives to promote entrepreneurship and innovation in the countrys e-commerce space while also developing frameworks which protect consumers and businesses; this includes regulating payment systems and establishing dispute resolution mechanisms among other efforts.

Gaining ground

As a result, Menas digital economy is rapidly gaining ground on emerging markets like Indonesia and India which are respectively valued at around $70 billion and $135 billion.

Marius Ciavola, CEO of Tradeling, commented: E-commerce in the Middle East, and the regions digital economy as a whole, are well-positioned to lead the world in the coming years with the UAE at the forefront. A strategic location, diverse economy, and innovative infrastructure have seen e-commerce popularity surge in the country in recent years and there appears to be no slowdown in sight. As a younger, tech-savvy demographic continues being nurtured through proactive efforts of the UAEs wise leadership and a willingness to embrace new technologies and digital solutions, the industrys future is promising.

As Menas dominant B2B marketplace, Tradeling is shaping the future of e-commerce in the UAE. The company has grown rapidly since its inception three years ago with a wide selection of more than 1.7 million unique products across 14 categories and more than 200,000 registered buyers and sellers from 55 countries.-- TradeArabia News Service
"Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans" from Mobil 1 and Hagerty Media brings Porsches dominant racing history to the big screen

Watch the Official "Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans" Trailer Now

SPRING, Texas, May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ahead of the 100th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Mobil 1 joined together with Hagerty Media to celebrate this iconic milestone in racing with a first of its kind documentary: Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans. The legendary motorsport and automotive brands collaborated with two-time Primetime Emmy Award and Peabody Award winner Robert Dalrymple and his production company to produce a film that will connect the race cars to the road cars they inspired, showcasing Porsches engineering expertise.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005287/en/

Le Mans winners and racing icons Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell. (Photo: Business Wire)

Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans will premiere on June 1 during a special screening in Brooklyn, and be immediately available for fans to watch globally that evening on Hagerty Medias YouTube channel. The documentary, which will debut just prior to the centennial 24 Hours of Le Mans, will pair archival footage from the event with firsthand interviews from former and current racers, notable collectors, and enthusiasts. Specifically, the film celebrates milestone anniversaries of the race itself, and the role that Porsche has played in motorsports for the last 75 years.

"From our own rich history in motorsport and our long-standing relationship with Porsche this documentary truly celebrates the unique impact that racing has on the cars that we drive every day," shares Bryce Huschka, Consumer Marketing Manager of North America, on behalf of Mobil 1. "For 100 years, Le Mans has uniquely captured the attention and imagination of fans. Thanks to them, our partners and fellow car lovers, we cant wait to bring this exceptional story to life."

Through this documentary, viewers will see industry titans as they dive deep into the biggest race in endurance racing, including:

Nick Tandy: 2015 Porsche Le Mans winning driver and current Penske Porsche 963 driver

Spike Feresten: Podcast host, television personality, comedy writer

Rod Emory: Renowned restorer of Porsche

Patrick Long: Former Porsche factory driver

Derek Bell: Five-time Le Mans winning and Formula 1 winning driver

Jacky Ickx: Six-time Le Mans winning and Formula 1 wining driver

Allan McNish: 3-Time Le Mans winning driver including the 1998 Porsche Mobil 1 GT1 race car

Loni Unser: Professional race car driver and member of the legendary Unser racing family

For a sneak preview of Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans, check out the trailer on YouTube here.

"Car enthusiasts have a special bond born from the simple love of driving," adds Larry Webster, VP of Content, Hagerty Media. "24 Hours of Le Mans represents the pinnacle of driving, and we couldnt be prouder to co-produce Racing with Giants: Porsche at Le Mans in partnership with Mobil 1. We hope the audience enjoys learning more about the history of the event  as we celebrate its 100th anniversary over the course of the next few weeks!"

About Mobil 1

Mobil 1, the worlds leading synthetic motor oil brand, is a brand that has been trusted for more vehicle miles than any one of us sees in our lifetime. Designed to empower our love of driving, Mobil 1 advanced synthetic motor oil features anti-wear technology that provides performance beyond our conventional motor oils  that means more time behind the wheel than under the hood. This technology allows Mobil 1 advanced synthetic motor oil to meet or exceed the toughest standards of vehicle manufacturers and tuning shops, all while providing exceptional protection against engine wear, under normal or even some of the most extreme conditions. Not that youd ever put your car through any extremes. Join us. For the love of driving.

About Hagerty, Inc.

Based in Traverse City, Michigan, Hagertys purpose is to save driving and car culture for future generations and its mission is to build a global business to fund that purpose. Hagerty is an automotive enthusiast brand offering integrated membership products and programs as well as a specialty insurance provider focused on the global automotive enthusiast market. Hagerty is home to Hagerty Marketplace, Broad Arrow Group, Hagerty Drivers Club, Hagerty Drivers Club magazine, Hagerty Drivers Foundation, Hagerty DriveShare, Hagerty Valuation Tools, Hagerty Media, MotorsportReg, Hagerty Garage + Social, The Amelia, Detroit Concours dElegance, the Greenwich Concours dElegance, the California Mille, Motorlux, Broad Arrow Group and more. For more information on Hagerty, please visit www.hagerty.com, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

About Robert Dalrymple:

Robert Dalrymple is a two-time Primetime Emmy Award and Peabody Award winner. His documentaries have included "Billy Joel in the USSR" and "Billy Crystal Midnight Train to Moscow" for HBO. Other credits include "Howard Hughes: His Women in His Movies" for TNT and Bruce Willis in Sam Shepards "True West" for Showtime. Robert is also the co-founder of the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the CBS show "Superbowl Greatest Commercials" for which he continues to serve as producer. He has also produced several motorsports TV specials including films on Nigel Mansell, A winning Strategy documentary on the improbable Indianapolis 500 win by Alexander Rossi and numerous documentaries for Porsche including "Decades of Disruption."

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230518005287/en/

Contacts

832-625-4000
By buying an index fund, investors can approximate the average market return. But if you choose individual stocks with prowess, you can make superior returns. For example, Molson Coors Canada Inc. (TSE:TPX.B) shareholders have seen the share price rise 58% over three years, well in excess of the market return (41%, not including dividends). However, more recent returns haven't been as impressive as that, with the stock returning just 35% in the last year , including dividends .

With that in mind, it's worth seeing if the company's underlying fundamentals have been the driver of long term performance, or if there are some discrepancies.

View our latest analysis for Molson Coors Canada

Given that Molson Coors Canada didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one does expect good top-line growth.

Over the last three years Molson Coors Canada has grown its revenue at 37% annually. That's much better than most loss-making companies. The share price rise of 16% per year throughout that time is nice to see, and given the revenue growth, that gain seems somewhat justified. If that's the case, now might be the time to take a close look at Molson Coors Canada. A window of opportunity may reveal itself with time, if the business can trend to profitability.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

This free interactive report on Molson Coors Canada's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. In the case of Molson Coors Canada, it has a TSR of 66% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Molson Coors Canada shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 35% over one year. And that does include the dividend. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 1.4%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Molson Coors Canada .

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on Canadian exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Montana becomes first US state to ban Tiktok on personal phones

TikTok logo displayed on a phone in the US, where Montana has signed a measure banning the TikTok app in the state - CAROLINE BREHMAN/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/Shutterstock

Montana has become the first US state to ban TikTok on personal mobile phones as its governor vowed to protect locals from Chinese surveillance.

The ban, described by Chinese-owned TikTok as an infringement on the right to freedom of speech, is the first such prohibition in the Western world.

It comes after intense scrutiny of the social media platform over fears that its Chinese owners could use the app to steal data from users.

National security laws in China mean any company can be secretly compelled to do the bidding of state officials, including spying on their behalf.

Greg Gianforte, the software engineer-turned-Republican governor of Montana, signed the ban into law on Wednesday.

Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party, Mr Gianforte said in a statement.

The states ban comes into force on 1 January 2024, though the move is expected to face legal challenges which could delay its enforcement.

A spokesman for TikTok said: Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok, a platform that empowers hundreds of thousands of people across the state.

We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.

It comes after Governments in several countries, including the UK, US and many European nations, have banned TikTok from being installed on official devices over security concerns.

Around 150m people use TikTok, which has been downloaded about 2bn times since its launch in 2017.

Its meteoric rise has sent shockwaves through the largely US-owned world of social media, with companies including Instagram owner Meta and Snapchat struggling to respond to TikToks popularity.

ByteDance, TikToks Chinese parent company, had a committee of Communist Party members installed to advance core Communist values, a former executive claimed in a lawsuit.

Yintao Yu, the head of engineering at ByteDances US division until November 2018, called the company a useful propaganda tool for the Chinese Communist Party that bred a culture of lawlessness.

Shou Zi Chew, TikToks chief executive, has previously claimed that the Chinese government has never demanded data from the app and said the company would refuse to hand it over even if asked.

In a US Congress hearing in March, however, Mr Chew admitted that some ByteDance staff in China do have access to US users data.

American authorities have threatened to ban TikTok from operating in the country at all unless its US operations are sold to a US business.

China has said it would firmly oppose any forced sale of the platform.

Are you concerned by the banning of Tiktok on personal phones? Tell us in the comments section below

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Eric Glenn / Shutterstock.com

Buying a new car can be stressful, not to mention pricey. There is never a good time to shell out an absurd amount of cash to buy a new car, but when you must, it is worth your while to have the best research at your disposal.

Learn: 8 Electric Cars You May Regret Buying

See More: How To Build Your Savings From Scratch

When it comes to product reviews, Consumer Reports is the gold standard. Gathering data from 300,000 vehicles from 2000-2023, CRs team of engineers, journalists, researchers and scientists issued its annual car reliability survey, and its among the most comprehensive available.

To arrive at its list of the most and least reliable automotive models, Consumer Reports used at least two model years of data to calculate a predicted reliability score on a scale from 1 to 100. Seventeen trouble areas, including minor inconveniences (like squeaky breaks and broken interior trim) and major concerns (like four-wheel-drive system repairs and off-warranty transmission issues) were studied in depth.

All of Consumer Reports findings from its latest car reliability survey can be found on the CR site, broken down into several reliability lists and individual car model pages. Below is Consumer Reports top ten most reliable models, top ten least reliable cars and overall list of the most reliable automotive brands:

10 Most Reliable Cars

The popularity of hybrid cars isnt down to gas pump appeal alone. Saving money while filling up should always be celebrated, but it seems hybrids and plug-ins are growing in reliability, as well.

As USA Today noted, in general, hybrid cars and midsize and large sedan models from 2000 to 2022 (and a few early 2023 models), are the most reliable vehicles based on Consumer Reports survey. Based on the study, hybrid SUVs and plug-ins are the third most reliable category with a score of 65:

2023 Toyota Corolla Hybrid (Reliability Score: 93). 2023 Lexus GX (Reliability Score: 91). 2023 Mini Cooper (Reliability Score: 89). 2022 Toyota Prius (Reliability Score: 89). 2022 Mazda MX-5 Miata (Reliability Score: 85). 2023 Lincoln Corsair (Reliability Score: 82). 2023 Toyota Corolla (Reliability Score: 81). 2023 Subaru Crosstrek (Reliability Score: 80). 2023 BMW 3 Series (Reliability Score: 80). 2022 Toyota Prius Prime (Reliability Score: 77).

10 Least Reliable Cars

While hybrid automobiles rank high in reliability scoring, the same cant be said for their purely electric counterparts, which earned a predicted reliability score of 36. According to the CR survey, electric vehicles and full-size pickups had the lowest average reliability scores. Full-size pickup trucks are the least reliable vehicle category, receiving an average score of 30.

The following 10 models were found to have the greatest risk of problems, according to Consumer Reports:

2023 Jeep Wrangler (Reliability Score: 24). 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLE (Reliability Score: 23). 2022 Jeep Gladiator (Reliability Score: 21). 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500/GMC Sierra 1500 (Reliability Score: 19). 2022 Chevrolet Bolt (Reliability Score: 17). 2022 Ford Explorer (Reliability Score: 16). 2022 Nissan Sentra (Reliability Score: 9). 2022 Lincoln Aviator (Reliability Score: 8). 2022 Hyundai Kona Electric (Reliability Score: 5). 2022 Ford F-150 Hybrid (Reliability Score: 4).

Which Automotive Brands Are the Most Reliable?

While Toyota tops the list of the most reliable brand, having all of its models  except two  with above or well above average reliability scores, Lexus is the only automotive brand that had all of its models rated above average or better in reliability this year (Toyota has more models influencing its overall brand score).

New Car Market: Prices Are About To Plummet Due To Oversupply

More: 25 Sneaky Car Dealership Tricks To Avoid at All Costs

Here is the list of the most reliable automotive brands or companies (CR didnt rank Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodger, Fiat, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Maserati, Mini, Mitsubishi, Polestar, Porsche and Rivian due to a lack of sufficient data or the manufacturer not having enough models to test):

Toyota. Lexus. BMW. Mazda. Honda. Audi. Subaru. Acura. Kia. Lincoln. Buick. Genesis. Hyundai. Volvo. Nissan. Ram. Cadillac. Ford. Tesla. Chevrolet. GMC. Volkswagen. Jeep. Mercedes-Benz.

Japanese or Korean companies make up seven of the top 10 most reliable brands. Lincoln is the most reliable American automotive brand. Fords luxury division sits 10th in reliability, moving up 14 places from last years survey, mainly due to improvements to its Corsair and Nautilus models (and in spite of the low reliability score its Aviator SUV received), according to CR. This is the first time that Mercedes-Benz has finished last in the annual brand reliability survey.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: New Car Market: 10 Most Dependable Cars in 2023
We must fight back against end of home working, says Microsoft executive

Microsoft

Workers must "actively fight back" against efforts by companies to force them back to the office after the pandemic ushered in an era of home working, a Microsoft executive has said.

Lucy Cooper, head of customer innovation for Europe at the tech behemoth, said that a return to the daily commute would harm women and young people.

It came as Lloyds bank was criticised at its annual meeting by staff unhappy at plans to row back on flexible working.

Microsoft has stuck to a hybrid work model since the pandemic - requiring staff to be in the office 50pc of the time unless they have special permission - as well as offering staff other perks such as the option of unlimited time off in the US.

Ms Cooper said: "Flexible and remote working benefits single parents, young people, people who have an a-typical work or life environment. We need to be really careful before we disenfranchise those groups."

"We have to actively fight back against the rhetoric we are hearing and try and find a new model to help the remote, flexible, hybrid work environment."

Ms Cooper, who said this was a personal view, told the MindGym HR summit in London: "We want to encourage these people to be able to turn up and be as valuable as they possibly can."

Some tech giants have struggled to encourage staff back to the office. Staff at Amazon and Apple held protests and petitions against mandating employees return at least three days per week. Other corporate bosses have sought to reassert control over flexible working by calling them back to work, arguing staff collaborate better in person.

Lloyds has launched a review of working conditions that could mean changes to compressed hours arrangements, where staff fit the same amount of work as a five-day week into a shorter number of days.

Robin Budenberg, the bank's chairman, said the policy changes, which will reportedly require staff back in twice a week, were part of a pilot scheme. The bank has previously been criticised for saying all full-time employees must be in the office at least two days a week.

Rachel Boothroyd of Unite, which represents members of the bank's 63,000-strong workforce, told the company's annual general meeting in Glasgow: "Let's be clear, this is an attack on flexible working."

Delegates at the Mindgym conference debated the advantages of a four-day working week and artificial intelligence chatbots, as well as whether diversity and inclusion strategies had gone too far.

Alex Pang, a programme manager at the 4 Day Week campaign, said that companies in the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 were exploring the possibility of implementing a shorter week.

Conservative politicians have grown increasingly frustrated over businesses refusing to cut back on working from home. Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, said workers should return to the office unless they had a "good reason not to".

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.
National Grid

National Grid has posted a 15pc jump in profits amid a row over delays connecting wind and solar farms to the electricity network.

The FTSE 100 company, which owns and operates Britains electricity transmission system, said underlying profits rose from 4bn to 4.6bn in the year to March 31.

It comes as National Grid is under pressure to ramp up investment in Britains electricity network and speed up connections. Renewable energy developers complain they face waits of up to a decade to be connected to the grid, delays that are slowing Britains net zero push.

Jonathan Brearley, chief executive of industry regulator Ofgem, on Tuesday warned that unacceptable waiting times were putting at risk Britains ambition to make the electricity network carbon-free by 2035.

John Pettigrew, National Grids chief executive, said the operator was committed to net zero but argued fundamental regulatory changes were needed to resolve the connection issues.

He said the switch to greener power could result in security of supply, lower energy bills and job creation.

He said: As a network, we recognise that were a key enabler to that. But from our perspective, we think fundamental regulatory reform is needed.

National Grid has promised to spend 40bn on upgrades from 2021 to 2026 and Mr Pettigrew pointed out this was more than the company had spent in the preceding 30 years.

However, he said more could be spent if rules were changed to allow the company to invest proactively, rather than waiting for demand to materialise.

Ofgem has also pledged to clear any regulatory barriers getting in the way.

At present, the first come first serve grid connection system means shovel-ready projects with investors and planning permission must wait behind schemes with little chance of going ahead.

Developers say this encourages pay and spray applications where companies secure places in queues in multiple areas despite having no firm intention of proceeding.

Ministers have been warned the backlog issue threatens investments in major energy projects.

On Monday, the Grid published plans to reach a net zero electricity network by 2035, which will include overhauling the current system for connecting.

National Grids proposed fixes, alongside investment, include letting developers leave the queue without penalty and putting in place a checkpoint-style system that will only allow projects to move forward as they progress, for example by getting planning permission.

Battery storage sites will also be given priority.

The Grid expects that 70pc of projects currently in the pipeline with a connection date of 2026 or later will be able to connect two to 10 years earlier thanks to these changes.

However, it is under pressure to deliver, with Ofgem understood to be considering taking away National Grid ESOs role in centrally planning grid upgrades if there is not tangible improvement by 2025.

National Grids profits in the year to March were partly boosted by strong performance from the Grids interconnector business  where revenues jumped from 135m to 355m  after the energy crisis prompted the UK to export record amounts of power to EU countries including France last summer.

French demand leapt last year as the countrys nuclear fleet was partially taken out of action by a litany of maintenance problems.

The Grid also benefited from an insurance payout following a fire at its IFA interconnector site in Sellindge in November 2021.

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WASHINGTON, May 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Following is a statement from Eileen O'Reilly, president of the National Press Club, and Gil Klein, president of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, on the killing of radio host Ralikonelo Joki of Lesotho this week.

NATIONAL PRESS CLUB LOGO. (PRNewsFoto/NATIONAL PRESS CLUB) (PRNewsfoto/National Press Club) (PRNewsfoto/National Press Club)

"We call for a full investigation  and for justice  in the tragic shooting death of radio host Ralikonelo Joki on May 14 in Lesotho. We understand from reports that Joki, who used the name Leqhashasha on air, was leaving the Ts'enolo FM station in Maseru after his Sunday night broadcast when he was shot 14 times, including once in the head. Joki's current affairs show covered government, agriculture and corruption. He had received three death threats via Facebook in recent months, according to reports from the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Shootings related to journalists are not new in Lesotho. One important cases will be tried in July when the 2016 shooting of Lesotho Times Editor Lloyd Mutungamiri will take place."

Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. With 3,000 members representing nearly every major news organization, the Club is a leading voice for press freedom worldwide.

The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press and equips journalists with the skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. The NPCJI is the nonprofit affiliate of the National Press Club.

Contact: Bill McCarren, 202-662-7534 for the National Press Club

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-press-club-statement-on-killing-of-radio-host-ralikonelo-joki-301827879.html

SOURCE National Press Club
Londons House of Fine Art (HOFA) gallery is one of the pioneers of the crypto art scene, being one of the first venues to showcase NFT artworks in a physical space back in 2021.

Back then, it took a somewhat conservative approach, focusing on prints of CryptoPunks alongside physical sculptures and NFT-adjacent work.

This time around, its "Beyond the Screen" exhibition is dialing up the digital element, with vibrant screens displaying eye-popping animated work by the likes of XCOPY, OSF and DeeKay. But the word NFT is nowhere to be seen.

NFTs are just a medium, said NFT artist and collector Ovie Faruq, aka OSF, who showed Decrypt around the space. It's just like, do I have my painting on an oil canvas, or do I have a photograph? Or do I have a screen displaying some digital art? It's just a canvas; it's just a mechanism to transact, he added.

Ultimately, he argued, people will start buying NFTs without knowing they're NFTs. And that's the sort of thing that will get us over this, like, stigma that's attached to it.

1. Officially announcing my next 1/1, "superfan". How many $PEPE frogs can you count?  Link + info below  pic.twitter.com/TTXDaYGSs8  OSF (@osf_rekt) May 5, 2023

We haven't used the word NFT at all for this event, OSF added. The focus is meant to be, this is digital art; we want to display it in a way where people can resonate with it. That means shifting the focus away from prices and speculation and onto championing artists, he added.

Its somewhat ironic, then, that OSFs own contribution to the exhibition, Super Fan, inadvertently predicted the current PEPE-led memecoin market frenzy. The digital artwork, which OSF drew two or three months ago, features a kind of loner character whos obsessed with Pepe the Frog, and surrounded by market charts showing green and red candles.

It probably resembles a lot of people within crypto culture, OSF said. Maybe, like, the COVID era as well. Its meant to be a little bit satirical.

"Beyond the Screen" at HOFA. Image: HOFA

Also featured in the exhibition is XCOPYs MESCO TETROwhich none of the Americans got the reference of but obviously all of us do, said OSF, while conceding that, I still don't really know if its maybe based on Tesco plastic bags. The work was one of the last XCOPY minted on the SuperRare shared contract, he added. In the old days they had one shared contract, so all the artists would mint on this contract. After SuperRare allowed artists to mint on their own sovereign contracts, XCOPY announced that hed mint four final pieces on the SuperRare shared contract. He sold one of them, he gave one of them awayso someone made like 300,000 on the giveawayand this is one of the ones that was unsold, said OSF.

Other artists whose works appear in the exhibition include animator DeeKay and photographer Cath Simard. She does these crazy expeditions and hikes, super dangerous stuff, and she captures his moments and uses composites to create a final image, said OSF.

What the exhibition is aiming to showcase, said OSF, is that within the NFT art space, there are people with genuine intentions trying to achieve noble things. It gets dragged down by this association with crypto bro culture; thats not what any of these artists here are about.

"Beyond the Screen" runs at House of Fine Art until May 26.
Not enough resources for EVs to be only cleaner car option, Toyota says

FILE PHOTO: Toyota cars are seen after a briefing on battery EV strategy in Tokyo

TOKYO (Reuters) - A lack of resources means battery electric vehicles (BEV) cannot be the auto sector's only answer to climate change, Toyota Motor Corp's top scientist said Thursday, warning that focusing on BEVs could lead some drivers to hold onto polluting vehicles.

Some investors and environmental groups have long criticised Toyota for being slow to embrace BEVs, saying it has lagged Tesla Inc and others amid growing global demand.

The world's top automaker by sales has countered that BEVs are just one option and that gasoline-electric hybrids, such as its pioneering Prius, are a more realistic choice for some markets and drivers.

Gill Pratt, chief executive of the Toyota Research Institute, told reporters that BEVs could make a positive difference in reducing climate change in countries such as Norway, which has a lot of renewable infrastructure.

But in other parts of the world, where coal is still used to produce power, hybrids were better for CO2 emissions, he added.

"Battery materials and renewable charging infrastructure will eventually be plentiful," Pratt said in Hiroshima, a day before the start of a Group of Seven leaders summit in the Japanese city.

"But it's going to take decades for battery material mines, renewable power generation, transmission lines and seasonal energy-storage facilities to scale up."

Toyota, which seeks to sell 1.5 million battery-powered cars by 2026 and introduce 10 new fully electric models, has frequently argued that reaching carbon neutrality will mean the use of hybrid and fuel-cell vehicles.

Reuters reported last year how Toyota's former chief executive, Akio Toyoda, lobbied the Japanese government to make clear it supported hybrid vehicles as much as BEVs or risk losing the auto industry's support.

BEVs are "one very important option" for achieving carbon neutrality and hydrogen is as well, Toyoda, who currently is chairman of Toyota, told reporters earlier on Thursday.

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Mark Potter)
OpenAI, the creators of the massively popular ChatGPT, are taking their chatbot to the next level with the rollout of an official Apple iPhone ChatGPT app.

"Since the release of ChatGPT, we've heard from users that they love using ChatGPT on the go. Today, were launching the ChatGPT app for iOS," OpenAI said in a press release.

Introducing the ChatGPT app for iOS! Were live in the US and will expand to additional countries in the coming weeks. Android is next! https://t.co/p3PfTtxL9i  OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 18, 2023

The news comes after a busy week for OpenAI in Washington, D.C., as CEO Sam Altman met with officials to discuss how to regulate artificial intelligence.

The free-to-download app, OpenAI says, will allow users to sync their history across devices. OpenAI users who have a Plus subscription will get early access to features, faster responses, and access to GPT-4 right from their iPhone.

Not wanting to leave Android users out, OpenAI said an Android version is coming soon.

Until now, anyone looking to use ChatGPT's functionality would need to download a third-party app that uses an API or view the company's website through their phone's web browser.

"With the ChatGPT app for iOS, were taking another step towards our mission by transforming state-of-the-art research into useful tools that empower people, while continuously making them more accessible," the company said.

The app launch comes less than a month after OpenAI updated the ChatGPT platform to include better privacy features like the ability to delete chat history and opt-out of user data being used to train the AI.

Earlier this week, the company added a web browsing feature to rival Google's Bard and Microsoft's Bing.

In a side-by-side comparison by Decrypt, the three chatbotsChatGPT, Bard, and Bingwere asked to provide the current price of Bitcoin. The results demonstrated some differences in their capabilities. While ChatGPT provided a near-accurate response using Coinbase as a reference, Bard offered a result based on its own sources, and Bing referred to Google and CoinMarketCap data, even including the USD to Brazilian real exchange rate, as the query was made from Brazil.
Expanding its roster of collaborators, the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) has announced the signing of a MoU with an affiliate of Hyatt Hotels Corporation to establish luxury hotels across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The collaboration aims to develop several hospitality-led destinations which will enhance the tourism offering in Saudi Arabia. These destinations may include beach and urban hotels, as well as mountain, desert and farm retreats.

They will be developed under Hyatts existing trademarks, such as Alila Resorts, which offer an authentic wellness destination experience, or other trademarks such as Park Hyatt, Hyatt Centric, Grand Hyatt and any other Hyatt brands mutually agreed upon by the entities, reported SPA.

The development of these hotels would be part of the Kingdoms National Tourism Strategy and in line with Saudi Vision 2030, it stated.

On the agreement, CEO Qusai Al Fakhri, said: "We are joining forces with many legacy brands in the tourism, hospitality, and business travel segments as we continue to thoughtfully expand our roster of collaborators. This collaboration with Hyatt will help us to attract tourists and ensure that they receive a comfortable, high-quality experience in the Kingdoms top tourism destinations."

Hyatt has one of the world's largest portfolios of hotels and resorts, focused on the high-end travellers in each segment that it serves, and is continually growing its brand footprint.

It has established an industry-leading luxury, lifestyle, and leisure portfolio across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, which is significantly contributing to its global expansion.

Regional Vice President, Development (Middle East and Africa) Ludwig Bouldoukian, said: "Saudi Arabia is the largest emerging market in the Middle East and has made significant advances across sectors to springboard its economy."

"The country has been recognised as one of the worlds fastest growing tourism destinations and we see this as a great opportunity to expand Hyatt's brand footprint while providing exquisite service and care to local and international high-end travellers," stated Bouldoukian.

Since 2020, a year after Saudi Arabia opened its doors to international tourists, TDF has been the primary vehicle for promoting tourism investment in the country, with the objective of attracting one hundred million tourists by 2030, said the SPA report.

The fund intends to provide financial resources and expertise to entrepreneurs worldwide looking to invest in the ten key destinations across Saudi Arabia that offer huge prospects across the tourism value chain, it added.
Key Insights

The projected fair value for Mayville Engineering Company is US$20.37 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

Current share price of US$12.19 suggests Mayville Engineering Company is potentially 40% undervalued

Analyst price target for MEC is US$18.00 which is 12% below our fair value estimate

Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Mayville Engineering Company, Inc. (NYSE:MEC) by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's 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.

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for Mayville Engineering Company

The Model

We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$31.5m US$38.1m US$44.8m US$33.7m US$35.0m US$33.9m US$33.3m US$33.2m US$33.3m US$33.6m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x2 Analyst x3 Analyst x2 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ -3.15% Est @ -1.57% Est @ -0.47% Est @ 0.31% Est @ 0.85% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 9.3% US$28.8 US$31.9 US$34.2 US$23.6 US$22.4 US$19.8 US$17.8 US$16.2 US$14.9 US$13.7

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$223m

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 2.1%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 9.3%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2032  (1 + g)  (r  g) = US$34m (1 + 2.1%)  (9.3% 2.1%) = US$474m

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$474m ( 1 + 9.3%)10= US$194m

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 US$417m. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of US$12.2, the company appears quite good value at a 40% 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. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Mayville Engineering Company 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 9.3%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.218. 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.

SWOT Analysis for Mayville Engineering Company

Strength

Debt is not viewed as a risk.

Weakness

No major weaknesses identified for MEC.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow faster than the American market.

Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Threat

Annual revenue is forecast to grow slower than the American market.

Looking Ahead:

Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For Mayville Engineering Company, we've compiled three essential aspects you should further examine:

Risks: For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Mayville Engineering Company that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does MEC's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pacific Prime was awarded the Top Individual Producer Award by Allianz in 2022, marking the third consecutive year that the leading global insurance broker and employee benefits specialist has won the award. On May 8th, 2023, the team from Allianz visited Pacific Primes office in Dubai to present the award, which recognizes exceptional performance in offering quality insurance solutions to its clients worldwide.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005379/en/

Left to right: Dr. Malini Raj (Senior Lead - SME Retention at Allianz Partners), David Hayes (Regional CEO at Pacific Prime Dubai), Michael Lavelle (Head of Individual Sales at Pacific Prime), Cheryl Beattie (Allianz Partners Head of Sales and Distribution, Middle East & Africa), and Mohamad Hamadeh (IPMI, SME, and Individual New Business at Allianz Partners). (Photo: Business Wire)

The Allianz Top Individual Producer Award is given to the insurance broker who has demonstrated unrivaled knowledge, expertise, and professionalism when delivering high-quality service to its clients. Pacific Prime won the award with its exceptional track record of offering tailored health insurance solutions that cater to the unique needs of individual clients.

"We are delighted that once again Pacific Prime has secured our award for top-producing individual business for 2022. Pacific Prime continues to lead the way in this specialized segment. Thank you for such a successful collaboration and looking forward to continued success in 2023," said Cheryl Beattie, Allianz Partners Head of Sales and Distribution, Middle East & Africa.

The latest award reaffirms Pacific Primes position as a leader in the health insurance industry and demonstrates its commitment to offering outstanding service. "On behalf of the team at Pacific Prime, we are delighted and honored to receive the Top Individual Producer Award from Allianz for the third year in a row," said David Hayes, Regional CEO at Pacific Prime Dubai. "This award represents all the hard work and dedication that our team puts into delivering optimal insurance solutions to our clients, and we will continue to support our clients so they can get the best level of care possible."

About Pacific Prime

Established in 2000, Pacific Prime is an award-winning global insurance brokerage and employee benefits specialist that offers individual and corporate insurance solutions. With USD $750 million premium under management, Pacific Prime is now the third largest employee benefits broker in the Asia Pacific after acquiring CXA Groups brokerage arms in 2021. The brokerage has over 1,000 employees and 15 offices worldwide, including Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Thailand, Malaysia, UAE, the UK, the US, Mexico, and the Philippines.

To learn more about Pacific Prime, please visit: https://www.pacificprime.com/corporate

About Allianz Partners

Allianz Partners is a world leader in B2B2C insurance and assistance, offering global solutions that span international health and life, travel insurance, mobility and assistance. Customer driven, our innovative experts are redefining insurance services by delivering future-ready, high-tech high-touch products and solutions that go beyond traditional insurance. Our products are embedded seamlessly into our partners businesses or sold directly to customers, and are available through four commercial brands: Allianz Assistance, Allianz Automotive, Allianz Travel and Allianz Care. Present in over 75 countries, our 19,400 employees speak 70 languages, handle over 58 million cases each year, and are motivated to go the extra mile to offer peace of mind to our customers around the world.

For more information, please visit: www.allianz-partners.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230517005379/en/

Contacts

Media:

Stephen Ho, Chief Marketing Officer, Pacific Prime

+852 3589 0508
(Reuters) - U.S. regional bank stocks edged higher on Thursday, rallying from earlier session losses, as market expectations that the sector is moving past its troubles continue to buoy trading.

The KBW Regional Banking Index edged up 0.07%. The index had jumped 7.2% on Wednesday, recording its biggest percentage gain in nearly two years, following a disclosure by Western Alliance earlier this week that its deposits grew by more than $2 billion.

Western Alliance rose 1.1%, erasing earlier losses. The Phoenix-based lender had surged 10% on Wednesday.

PacWest Bancorp climbed 5%, rebounding from early trading declines on Thursday. The stock has lost about 75% so far this year. Zions Bancorporation also rallied 4.1%, while First Horizon rose 1.48%.

"The group has been under unrelenting pressure as shorts have built up massive positions, betting that another shoe could drop. It would not take much good news to see a strong short squeeze," Arthur Hogan, chief market strategist at B.Riley Wealth, wrote in a note to investors.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren is questioning federal bank regulators on their decision to sell First Republic Bank to the nation's largest bank, JP Morgan Chase. JP Morgan had agreed to pay $10.6 billion to acquire First Republic earlier this month.

In a letter sent to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Wednesday, Warren said the deal was "deeply troubling," and sought details on how the agencies decided to arrange that particular sale, allowing JPM to grow even larger.

(This story has been refiled to add Art Hogan's company name in paragraph 5)

(Reporting by Medha Singh and Mehnaz Yasmin in Bengaluru and Chibuike Oguh in New York; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Daniel Wallis)
The fact that multiple PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for PepsiCo

PepsiCo Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Independent Director, Robert Pohlad, sold US$13m worth of shares at a price of US$174 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$192, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. This single sale was just 6.6% of Robert Pohlad's stake.

In the last year PepsiCo insiders didn't buy any company stock. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insiders At PepsiCo Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at PepsiCo. Specifically, insiders ditched US$16m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.

Insider Ownership Of PepsiCo

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. It's great to see that PepsiCo insiders own 0.1% of the company, worth about US$350m. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At PepsiCo Tell Us?

Insiders haven't bought PepsiCo stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 5 warning signs for PepsiCo (of which 1 can't be ignored!) you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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(Bloomberg) -- When a seam joining two segments of the Keystone oil pipeline ruptured on a frigid night last December  spewing more than 12,000 barrels of heavy crude that polluted a Kansas creek  the disaster had already been years in the making.

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More than a decade ago, US regulators warned that the type of weld that would go on to trigger the worst spill in Keystones history had a pattern of failure. And since Keystone began operation in 2010, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has notified operator TC Energy Corp. at least five times that elements of Keystones building and operating practices posed safety risks.

Yet the 2,687-mile (4,324-kilometer) pipeline running from Canadas oil sands through Americas heartland has gone on to suffer almost two dozen accidents in 12 years, with the severity of leaks increasing over time, according to the Government Accountability Office. Since 2010, it has spilled more oil than any other pipeline on US soil, PHMSA data show. And the latest spill may not be the last. A final report on the cause of the accident, made public this week, concluded that other segments of the pipeline could suffer from the same construction flaws that led to the December leak.

Government records reveal TC Energy pushed the pipeline to the limit, cranking a measure of stress on the line higher than whats typically allowed to move more oil while keeping costs down. US regulators signed off on all of it and  even as they warned of danger  refrained from taking maximum enforcement action to curb worsening spills. Now, as the disruption of global energy flows by Russias war in Ukraine revives political will and investor appetite for new US pipelines, Keystones record stands as a stark reminder of the risks such systems can pose.

Some pipelines run for decades without incident, said Richard Kuprewicz, president of Redmond, Washington-based consultancy Accufacts Inc., which provides technical expertise to regulators and companies. The fact that they have had numerous ruptures, it suggests that something isnt quite right here.

TC Energy maintains that the pipeline has met or exceeded all regulatory and code requirements in the jurisdictions where we operate.

While no safety incidents are acceptable to us, the company said in response to questions, when they have occurred, we have ensured a fulsome response that fully remediates the environment and considers all stakeholders and their impacts.

PHMSA, in response to questions, said its investigating whether TC Energy has violated any pipeline safety regulations and will appropriately issue enforcement or compliance actions to hold the responsible party or parties accountable.

Agency records detail Keystones long history of construction issues and allege the company failed to employ adequately qualified workers, perform mandatory risk assessments and take steps to prevent corrosion. Only two other operators  Enterprise Products Operating LP and Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., which both manage pipeline systems much larger than Keystone  have accrued more so-called corrective action orders. Enterprise and Tennessee Gas didnt respond to requests for comment.

In many ways, Keystone is one of a kind  built with special authorization to operate outside the bounds of existing US pipeline rules.

First, TC Energy sought permission to use a thinner but purportedly stronger type of steel than is normally allowed, which the company said would cut costs, according to an investigation by the Government Accountability Office, called the GAO. And the company wanted permission to run the line at a higher stress level than any other US oil conduit  requesting to operate at 80% of its so-called specified minimum yield strength, or SMYS, versus the 72% typically permitted. That would enable Keystone to transport more oil without increasing its size.

US regulators granted both requests. Problems emerged soon after.

In 2008, the same year Keystone began construction, federal inspectors identified quality issues with pipe manufactured by companies that supplied TC Energy and other pipeline operators, according to the GAO. Certain pipe didnt meet strength requirements, and was found to deform when operated at certain pressure. PHMSA ordered TC Energy, as well as other companies, to inspect affected pipelines and replace segments as needed, an effort that took years, according to the Government Accountability Office.

The agency also required Keystone to operate at a reduced SMYS, or stress level, when it started service in June 2010.

Soon after that, inspectors discovered that a certain type of pipeline joint called a girth weld had a tendency to fail when connecting pipes of different thicknesses. One such failure occurred during a hydrostatic test on a Keystone segment in South Dakota. PHMSA went on to issue an industry-wide safety advisory about such welds. In the years to come, more spills would be attributed to failed welds, including the more-than 12,000-barrel incident last December, and a number of incidents on other pipelines.

Read more: Keystone Has Leaked More Oil Than Any Other Pipeline in US Since 2010

The pipe quality and girth weld issues identified by PHMSA were not unique to Keystone. Yet, the pipelines accident record from 2015-2020 was worse than the nationwide average, according to the GAO investigation. And between 2010 and 2020, half of Keystone spills impacting people or the environment were caused by material failure of pipe or weld, the GAO said. That compares with 12% for all other pipelines.

In response to questions about past spills, TC Energy said, We have analyzed root causes, implemented remediation plans, and integrated the learnings in our engineering and integrity programs with each issue.

Keystones first leaks were small, according to government records. But, in 2011, a 400-barrel spill in North Dakota drew regulators attention again. The rupture was caused by a broken fitting, according to PHMSA, which then took a closer look at the line. Two years later, the agency sent a letter to TC Energy alleging that the company had hired unqualified welders on the lines Oklahoma-to-Gulf Coast segment  which was still under construction  and that a significant proportion of welds on the section would require repair. TC Energy challenged those findings, saying it had complied with regulation and had addressed the welding issues that occurred. PHMSA posted TC Energy's challenge on its website but didnt post any record of resolution. TC Energy declined to comment.

PHMSA would continue issuing safety warnings, and also greenlight Keystones expansion plans.

First the line expanded to the US oil hub of Cushing, Oklahoma, and later to the US Gulf Coast. Some of the pipeline segments were found to have expanded under pressure, and 32 joints had to be replaced in 2016, according to the Government Accountability Office. Later that year Keystone was also allowed to ramp up to 80% of its SMYS.

Around this time, Keystones oil spills became more severe, records show. Another 400-barrel leak in South Dakota was found to be the result of a faulty girth weld between two segments of different thickness. The weld had been leaking about two drops of crude oil a minute for an unknown amount of time, according to the agency.

A year later, another rupture in South Dakota released some 5,000 barrels of oil, leading to a nearly two-week shutdown. Two years later, more than 4,000 barrels spilled in North Dakota, with the rupture traced to an atypical seam weld.

Even as federal warnings multiplied and the size of the spills increased, the Trump administration in 2020 authorized TC Energy to increase the lines capacity by nearly 27% to 760,000 barrels a day. That was significantly more oil than the approximately 600,000 daily barrels Keystone had originally been designed for. The pipeline still had permission to operate at 80% of its SMYS.

Meanwhile, in the same year, the Canada Energy Regulator issued its own industry-wide advisory warning on girth welds.

The record of failures became a focal point for environmental activists opposed to yet another expansion of the line, the high profile Keystone XL project, which President Biden ultimately blocked in 2021 after more than a decade of protests. But the original Keystone continued running, and TC Energy continued to steadily increase the amount of oil that moved through it.

At the time of the December spill, the line was moving 650,000 barrels a day, according to data from Wood Mackenzie. The leak was rapid, according to PHMSA records, gushing more than 12,000 barrels by the time the line was shut  six minutes after alarms went off. Although personnel arriving on site couldnt see the expanding oil slick in the darkness, they could smell the heavy crude in the air, the agency said in a corrective action order.

The preliminary cause identified  a failed girth weld  spurred PHMSA to order pressure cuts on the entire system until further notice. A final root cause analysis made public Tuesday points to construction lapses including inadequate welding, and asserted that TC Energy had underestimated the risks of girth weld cracking during its capacity expansion project.

Evan Vokes, a former TC Energy engineer who worked on Keystone, attributes the pipelines long history of failures to cost-cutting that compromised safety. The pipelines price tag ballooned from $1.7 billion at inception to $5.2 billion in 2008, when it was approved by the State Department, due to the increased size and scope of the project and the material and construction contracts.

Keystone repeatedly ignored good engineering practice to chase low budget, said Vokes, who said he was fired from TC after filing a complaint about the companys practices with Canadian regulators in 2012. Among issues he raised: a failure to follow proper welding procedures, something PHMSA warned TC Energy about in 2013. Following his complaint, Canadian regulators launched an audit of TC Energy, and the company committed to take corrective action.

TC Energy declined to comment on Vokes departure, saying in an email that the company does not comment on personnel matters.

To date, Keystone has spilled about 26,000 barrels of oil, enough to fill almost two Olympic-sized swimming pools. But it has accrued just $306,000 in federal penalties, a tiny fraction of TC Energys $42 billion market cap.

Thats in part because Congress limits PHMSAs enforcement powers and in part because of how the agency interprets those limits. PHMSA, for example, will not impose the maximum penalty allowed by Congress unless a violation resulted in a fatality or major environmental damage. So far, none of Keystones accidents have risen to that level, according to PHMSA. In a statement, the agency said enforcement measures such as warning letters and corrective action orders can incur significant costs that often dwarf the civil maximum penalties and these serve as further deterrence against pipeline failures.

Critics say thats not enough.

The books arent strong enough, said Bill Caram, executive director of the Pipeline Safety Trust, a Bellingham, Washington-based watchdog group. The PHMSA regulations are really written to grant a lot of latitude to the operator to see how they think best to operate their pipeline.

That could change. The severity of the December spill, combined with the pattern of worsening leaks, gives PHMSA a lot more leeway to take meaningful action, said Cynthia Quarterman, who served as administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration during the Obama administration.

The agency could, for instance, compel TC Energy to conduct a costly inline inspection that measures the thickness of the entire line pipeline. That so many of the leaks have been linked to welding issues raises the possibility of re-evaluating the special permit that allowed the pipeline to operate under high pressure, Quarterman said.

PHMSA, in response to questions, said it is completing a review of its special permit process and will apply the results to Keystones and other permits.

For now the pipeline continues to operate, moving about 585,000 barrels of oil a day under contract while the investigation into the December spill continues.

Its a fairly new pipeline and you do have to ask those questions, said Quarterman. Why are there so many failures?

--With assistance from Gerson Freitas Jr.

(Adds details on, and link to, root cause analysis report in third paragraph.)

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2023 Bloomberg L.P.
BOSTON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PR Restaurants, LLC/Panera Bread, the leading franchisee of Panera Bread in New England, opened its newest bakery-cafe yesterday at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston. Located at 330 Brookline Avenue in the lobby of the Carl J. Shapiro Clinical Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, this location is the company's 45th bakery-cafe in Massachusetts and 60th across New England, and its first site within a hospital or medical center.

PR Restaurants/Panera Bread & Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Teams

The 2,000 square-foot BIDMC Panera Bread will serve food made with responsibly raised proteins and freshly prepared with Clean ingredients - food that does not contain the artificial preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, and colors from artificial sources set forth on our No-No list served in U.S. bakery-cafes. From crave-worthy soups, salads and sandwiches to flatbread pizza and sweets, Panera Bread will offer all medical center guests more than just great food.

"We are thrilled to open our newest Panera Bread bakery-cafe in the Carl J. Shapiro Clinical Center Lobby of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center," said Mitchell Roberts, CEO of PR Restaurants. "We're proud to provide the warmth of Panera's menu and all of our many healthy food items to BIDMC patients and their families, in addition to all of the doctors, staff, and caregivers who support the medical center's vital mission each and every day."

"We are excited to offer a new nourishing food option for the BIDMC community," said Christopher Minette, Vice President of Support Services at BIDMC. "Having Panera on our East Campus will provide patients, their families, and staff a space to take a break from their day and enjoy a meal."

Panera Bread's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center bakery-cafe hours of operation will be:

Monday through Friday: 6:00am to 11pm

Saturday & Sunday: 7am to 7pm

About PR Restaurants/Panera Bread

PR Restaurants, LLC d/b/a Panera Bread is the leading franchisee of Panera Bread in New England. The company was formed in 1997 by Mitchell Roberts and David Peterman. After 26 years in the restaurant industry, PR Restaurants d/b/a Panera Bread has held to its original principles of "dedicating ourselves to upholding Panera Bread's whole-hearted mission as a welcoming place to eat with friends and family." The company owns and operates 60 Panera bakery cafes across New England, and has recently been recognized by the Massachusetts Restaurant Association as 2023 Fast Casual Restaurant of the Year.

In 2018, PR Restaurants was named to the 2018 Inc. 5000 list of the Fastest Growing Companies in America. Last years, the Boston Business Journal named the company to the list of the Largest Private Companies, and numerous times the company has been named by the BBJ as one of the Top Restaurant Groups in Massachusetts. PR Restaurants supports various New England charities and community organizations throughout the region, and through its Feeding America initiative PR Restaurants supports numerous food banks across Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.

PR's menu and cuisine begins with a simple commitment; to bake fresh Panera pastries, breads, and sweets every single day at their bakery-cafes. They offer a wide array of Panera pastries and baked goods, such as bagels, brownies, cookies, croissants, muffins, and scones. Aside from the bakery section, PR Restaurants has a regular Panera menu for dine-in, takeout, delivery, and catering to include; toasted baguettes, flatbread pizzas, warm grain bowls, paninis, pastas, salads, sandwiches, side choices, and soups, as well as coffee, espresso drinks, frozen drinks, fruit smoothies, hot chocolate, iced drinks, lattes, lemonade, and tea. For the type of menu items PR Restaurants, LLC d/b/a Panera Bread offers, please visit https://www.panerabread.com/en-us/home.html. For more information on PR Restaurants, please see www.prmanagementcorp.com.

About Panera Bread

Panera Bread opened in 1987 as a community bakery, founded with a secret sourdough starter and a belief that sharing great bread is an expression of warmth and generosity. That vision holds true today with a robust menu of delicious, chef-curated recipes created with a simple principle: The Familiar, Made Fantastic. At Panera, we serve food that we are proud to serve our own families, made with responsibly raised proteins and freshly prepared with Clean ingredients--food that does not contain the artificial preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, and colors from artificial sources set forth on our No-No list served in U.S. bakery-cafes. From crave-worthy soups, salads and sandwiches to flatbread pizza and sweets, we offer our guests more than great food.

Panera's ethos of generosity drives us to meet our guests where they are through technology and through our shared values. We are stewards of our communities and the planet  with programs like Day-End Dough-Nation that donates unsold baked goods in the evening to local non-profits, or labeling climate-friendly low carbon Cool Food Meals.

As of February 28, 2023 there were 2,113 bakery-cafes, company, and franchise, in 48 states and in Ontario, Canada, operating under the Panera Bread or Saint Louis Bread Co. names. Panera Bread is part of Panera Brands, one of the largest fast casual restaurant companies in the U.S., comprised of Panera Bread, Caribou Coffee and Einstein Bros. Bagels. For more information, visit panerabread.com or find us on Twitter (@panerabread), Facebook (facebook.com/panerabread) Instagram (@panerabread) or TikTok (@panerabread).

Contact: Bill Ebben

bill@ebbengroup.com

508-922-1974

Cision

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SOURCE PR Restaurants, LLC/Panera Bread
Key Insights

GDEX Berhad's significant private companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public

A total of 3 investors have a majority stake in the company with 61% ownership

Past performance of a company along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

If you want to know who really controls GDEX Berhad (KLSE:GDEX), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 37% stake, private companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And public companies on the other hand have a 36% ownership in the company.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about GDEX Berhad.

Check out our latest analysis for GDEX Berhad

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About GDEX Berhad?

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.

Less than 5% of GDEX Berhad is held by institutional investors. This suggests that some funds have the company in their sights, but many have not yet bought shares in it. If the business gets stronger from here, we could see a situation where more institutions are keen to buy. We sometimes see a rising share price when a few big institutions want to buy a certain stock at the same time. The history of earnings and revenue, which you can see below, could be helpful in considering if more institutional investors will want the stock. Of course, there are plenty of other factors to consider, too.

GDEX Berhad is not owned by hedge funds. GD Express Sdn. Bhd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 25% of shares outstanding. With 23% and 12% of the shares outstanding respectively, Yamato Holdings Co., Ltd. and Singapore Post Limited are the second and third largest shareholders. In addition, we found that Teck Teong, the CEO has 2.3% of the shares allocated to their name.

A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 3 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 61% stake.

While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.

Insider Ownership Of GDEX Berhad

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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.

We can see that insiders own shares in GDEX Berhad. As individuals, the insiders collectively own RM92m worth of the RM1.0b company. This shows at least some alignment. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 17% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 37%, of the GDEX Berhad stock. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 36% of GDEX Berhad stock. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too.

I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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IPO Edge and the Palm Beach Hedge Fund Association hosted a fireside chat on Thursday, May 18 at 2pm ET with senior management from Regis Corp. (NYSE: RGS). The live event featured Matthew Doctor, President and Chief Executive Officer, Kersten Zupfer, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and Jim Lain, EVP and COO of Regis Corp. It was hosted by IPO Edge Editor-in-Chief John Jannarone and Editor-at-Large Jarrett Banks in a moderated video session lasting approximately 60 minutes including a Q&A with the audience.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH REPLAY

Mr. Doctor, Ms. Zupfer and Mr. Lain discussed:

How the company differentiated in its industry; competitive strengths

Milestones the company has achieved since Mr. Doctor took the helm as CEO

Improvement in finanicials and the elevated platform in place to continue to deliver consistent profitability

Key priorities for the business in fiscal 2023 and 2024

How the company is positioned in a dynamic environment

What Regis Corp. is most excited about going forward

About the speakers:

Matthew Doctor was appointed President & Chief Executive Officer and joined the Board of Directors of Regis Corporation in May 2022. He served as interim Chief Executive Officer since December 2021. He joined the company in February 2021 as Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer. Previously, Matt was a Partner and Chief Financial Officer for Kava Restaurants, a Tim Hortons franchisee. Prior to his time at Kava, Matt held several roles at Restaurant Brands International (RBI), owner of the Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes brands. At RBI, he was Head of Global Development and Franchisee Performance for Burger King, led mergers and acquisitions in Asia for Burger King, and led development efforts for Tim Hortons. Matt started his career as an Investment Banker for J.P. Morgan in New York, where he executed several M&A and Capital Markets transactions for Financial Institution clients. Matt received a BBA with Distinction from Emory Universitys Goizueta Business School.

Kersten Zupfer was promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in November 2019. Kersten has served in accounting and finance roles of increasing leadership at Regis for more than 12 years. Most recently, she served as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer since November 2017, prior to which she served as Vice President, Corporate Controller, Chief Accounting Officer since December 2014. In this role, Kersten has responsibility for all of Regis accounting, external financial reporting, and financial controls, including, SEC reporting, accounting policy, and technical accounting. She joined Regis in 2007 serving in a range of accounting leadership roles. Kersten holds a bachelors degree in accounting from the University of North Dakota and is a certified public accountant (inactive). She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants. Kersten started her career at Arthur Andersen LLP

Jim Lain currently serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer. He joined Regis Corporation in 2013. With more than 25 years of operations leadership experience, Jim oversees operational excellence and execution across Supercuts, SmartStyle, Cost Cutters, First Choice Haircutters, Roosters and our legacy brands.

Jim was with Gap Inc. for eight years where he most recently served as Vice President of Operations for Gap Specialty Stores in the United States and Canada, leading a $2.5 billion business with 750 stores. Prior to his experience with Gap, Jim was Vice President of Operations at Galyans Trading Company Inc. / Dicks Sporting Goods and held several field management positions at Target Stores Inc.

About Regis Corp.

Regis Corporation (NYSE:RGS) is a leader in the haircare industry. As of March 31, 2023, the Company franchised, owned or held ownership interests in 5,203 locations worldwide. Regis franchised and corporate locations operate under concepts such as Supercuts, SmartStyle, Cost Cutters, Roosters and First Choice Haircutters.

Contact:

IPO-Edge.com

Editor@IPO-Edge.com

Twitter: @IPOEdge

Instagram: @IPOEdge
pinkomelet / Getty Images/iStockphoto

If youre concerned about saving for retirement, youre not alone. Only 35% of working-age adults have a tax-deferred retirement contribution plan, such as a 401(k) through their employer, according to a new research report from the Institute for Policy Studies. Another 13% have defined benefit or cash balance plans, the report states. Alarmingly, 42% of Americans age 56 to 64 have no savings in a retirement account, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics.

Retirement Savings: Heres How Much Cash Baby Boomers Need To Retire in the Next 5 Years

See: How To Guard Your Wealth From a Potential Banking Crisis With Gold

However, there is one demographic head-and-shoulders above the vast majority of Americans when it comes to retirement savings: CEOs of major corporations like Walmart, Home Depot, and Hyatt Hotels.

More than 20 low-wage employers, including those in the retail and service industries, offer executives tax-deferred funds that will ultimately generate monthly income larger than most of their workers annual pay, the report discovered.

Whats the reason for this divide? Sarah Anderson, the Global Economy Project Director and Inequality.org Co-editor and lead author of the Institute for Policy Studies report, said, The fundamental barrier to retirement security  is that too many Americans are not earning enough to build a sufficient nest egg for their golden years. Of course, raising pay and making health care benefits more affordable would help many employees afford to set more money aside for their retirement.

Not only do top executives having the means to set aside more money for retirement, but they also have specific tax advantages that help their money grow faster. The chart below shows top corporations, the funds in their executives deferred income retirement account at the time of the study, and the income potential of those funds at retirement.

See how these figures compare to the median worker pay within those companies. Note that the median worker pay indicates that 50% of the employees in the company make less than that amount, while half make more.

Corporation Funds in Executives Deferred Compensation Account CEO Monthly Retirement Income (projected) Median Worker Pay Employees with Zero Balance in 401(k) Walmart $169 million >$1 million $27,136 46% Hyatt Hotels $91 million N/A $40,395 36% Home Depot $14.8 million ~$90300 $30,100 53%

The study described how these top hat plans for top executives work and explained how the tax code favors the wealthiest Americans. Theres no rational argument for allowing wealthy executives to shelter unlimited amounts of compensation from taxes while ordinary workers have strict limits on their annual 401(k) contributions, Anderson stated in the report. Nothing but the power of corporate leaders to rig rules in their favor can explain this double standard.

In an exclusive email interview with GOBankingRates, Anderson said, In the richest country in the world, this is a solvable problem. Congress could easily take multiple actions to ensure retirement security for all. For instance, they could raise the minimum wage so more workers can save for their retirement and not have to rely entirely on Social Security.

Beyond raising the minimum wage, Congress could increase the wage cap on Social Security payroll taxes to fund expanded Social Security benefits, Anderson suggested.

Education surrounding retirement planning is another important step. The SECURE 2.0 ACT mandates that employers with new 401(k)s automatically enroll employees at specific rates. Anderson called this a well-intentioned first step, noting that shes heard many workers complain that their employers didnt inform them about their 401(k) benefits or clearly explain how they work. This is particularly a problem for younger and low-income workers in jobs that have high turnover, she said.

In addition to providing better education surrounding retirement, Anderson suggested that employers could restructure retirement plans to help employees strapped for cash. Instead of offering matching funds of up to a certain percentage of an employees salary they could just contribute that percentage in an employees account without the need for a match, she told GOBankingRates.



Realistically, however, Anderson said she doesnt believe workers can rely entirely on voluntary actions by employers to fix the system. After all, top executives have very little to gain by offering benefits and wages beyond whats standard in the market today.

Take Our Poll: Who Has Given You the Best Money Advice You Have Ever Received?

Find Out: Retirees Confess What They Wish Theyd Done With Their Money

She urges workers to advocate for changes in legislation. I would like to see more people who are living with the stress of retirement insecurity speaking out to elected officials and in the media through letters to the editor and social media. Their stories can help raise awareness of how this problem undermines the health of our economy and society.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How Your Retirement Savings Opportunities Compare to Top Corporate Executives
(Bloomberg) -- Santos Ltd., Australias second-biggest gas producer, says it can slash the cost of sucking carbon dioxide directly out of the atmosphere, allowing it to manufacture a synthetic version of natural gas that it says would have no climate impact.

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The Adelaide-based company is testing technology that could bring the cost of direct air capture to just $75 a ton by 2030, far cheaper than current methods, Chief Executive Officer Kevin Gallagher told journalists on Thursday.

Direct air capture is a nascent technology that its proponents argue could one day draw significant amounts of CO2 out of the atmosphere and store it underground, slowing global warming  provided the cost is brought down. So far only a handful of direct air capture projects are up and running and the cost is in the hundreds of dollars per ton of CO2 captured.

But Gallagher said Santoss technology, which absorbs fluid from the atmosphere and heats it to extract the CO2, is less energy intensive than many existing methods.

A lot of the technologies around the world require very high temperatures to heat the fluid up for the CO2 to be released, Gallagher said. Ours is designed to execute the process at a much lower temperature, at around 75C (167F). If we can achieve that, it means much less energy is required to release that CO2.

Initially the captured CO2 will be piped into depleted underground gas reservoirs in South Australia for permanent storage, generating carbon credits that could then be sold to companies looking to offset their own emissions. But longer term the CO2 could be combined with hydrogen to manufacture green methane, which could replace the fossil fuel without adding to atmospheric CO2 levels, Gallagher said.

If all the steps in the process were made economic, green methane could possibly replace Santoss natural gas production entirely by around 2050, he said.

Drawing gases out of the air for industrial uses is not a new idea. The Haber-Bosch process, invented in the early 1900s, draws nitrogen out the atmosphere and combines it with hydrogen to make ammonia, used in fertilizers and explosives.

But whereas nitrogen makes up 78% of the atmosphere, CO2 accounts for just 0.04%, making direct air capture technology horribly expensive, said Timothy Wall, a senior adviser at energy consultancy firm DSS+.

The advantage of carbon neutral methane over other green energy sources like hydrogen or ammonia is you dont have to build a whole new supply chain, so you save all the capital costs of building a new supply chain, Wall said, referring to everything from liquefaction plants and carriers to gas-fired power stations. The challenge is finding a cost effective source of the CO2 to make the methane.

Capture costs for a large-scale direct-air plant built today are between $135 a ton and $335 a ton, though innovations in technology and scale could push that below $100 a ton by 2030, the International Energy Agency said in a report last year. Locations with high renewable energy potential and expertise in heat and electricity generation technologies are particularly well positioned to drive down costs, including the Middle East, China, and US, the report said.

--With assistance from David Stringer.

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SEC Tells Grayscale Filecoin is a Security

SEC Tells Grayscale Filecoin is a Security

Grayscale Investments received news from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday that the FIL token of Filecoin is considered a security by the regulator. Grayscale launched its Grayscale Filecoin Trust earlier this year, allowing investors to gain indirect exposure to FIL. As part of the trust's product lifecycle, Grayscale voluntarily filed Form 10 with the SEC for SEC reporting status. However, the SEC informed Grayscale in a letter that FIL meets the definition of a security under federal securities laws, requiring the withdrawal of the application.

Grayscale responded to the SEC's finding, stating that it does not believe FIL is a security and plans to promptly provide an explanation of its legal position to the SEC staff. Protocol Labs, the company behind the Filecoin protocol, has not yet commented on the matter. Following the news, FIL, currently ranked 33rd by market capitalization, experienced a dip in value, trading at $4.54.

The SEC's recent actions highlight its increased scrutiny of the digital asset industry. The regulatory body has imposed fines on several American crypto companies this year for allegedly selling unregistered securities. While the SEC does not classify all digital assets as securities, it refers to the Howey test, which considers an asset an "investment contract" if investors contribute funds to a venture with the expectation of profiting from its efforts.
As House Republicans continue to push for major spending cuts in exchange for raising the debt limit, Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee held a hearing Wednesday to highlight the role that tax cuts have played in increasing the national debt.

The hearing, titled The Rich Get Richer, Deficits Get Bigger: How Tax Cuts for the Wealthy and Corporations Drive the National Debt, included testimony from a number of experts who argued that Republican-led tax cuts are the prime culprit in the nations fiscal condition.

In his prepared remarks, Bobby Kogan, a budget expert at the liberal Center for America Progress, said that without the Bush tax cuts, their extensions, and the Trump tax cuts, which gave a disproportionate share of their benefit to the rich, the ratio of debt to gross domestic product (GDP) would be declining indefinitely  our current rising debt ratio is due entirely to these tax cuts, not spending increases.

Kogan called on lawmakers to look at revenue losses from tax cuts in the effort to control the debt. Any discussion of how to address the deficits caused by these tax cuts should look first to the source, he said.

Bruce Bartlett, a one-time Republican economist who helped pass tax cuts in the Reagan White House but now considers himself an independent, argued that the current standoff over the debt ceiling must be seen in light of Republicans main political project, which is to reduce government as much as possible. Republicans believe in a theory called starve-the-beast, which posits that the only way to cut spending is to slash taxes first, he said. It is precisely because tax cuts reduce revenue and raise the deficit that this works. However, deficits, in the Republican mind, arise only because of spending, never because of tax cuts. Thus their response to higher deficits is always to cut spending.

Bartlett said that the Republican insistence on spending cuts and refusal to consider revenue increases means that the cost of their efforts is borne by those who benefit from federal programs. These are often the poor and politically powerless, he said. But if the benefits of deficit reduction are large, then the cost should be shared by all Americans to the greatest extent possible. The only way to reach many well-to-do Americans is on the tax side of the budget. Thus tax increases are essential to fairness.

As expected, Republicans on the committee and their expert witnesses rejected the idea that cutting taxes could somehow increase the deficit and instead blamed spending. The problem isnt tax cuts, but unchecked spending, said Sen. Chuck Grassley, the ranking member. Over the next decade, spending is projected to average 24.1 percent of our economy, a level previously reserved for times of war or recession.

Adam Michel of the libertarian Cato Institute made much the same argument, though with many more charts and tables. At the same time, he noted that the argument over the cause of the debt and deficit is simply a proxy argument over the appropriate size of the government. Republicans want to cut spending because they want to keep taxes low and government small. The United States is a low-tax country compared to similar countries around the world, Michel said. So, if Congress wants to keep the United States a relatively low-tax country, spending will need to come down to meet revenues. On the other hand, if Congress decides that our current spending levels and projected spending increases are appropriate, taxes will eventually need to increase to match spending levels.

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(Bloomberg) -- Shell Plc executives are telling their renewable power business that it needs to become more profitable, not just deliver lower carbon emissions, and pull back from the less successful elements of its clean-energy strategy.

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That was the message from Steve Hill, executive vice president of Shell Energy, at an internal town hall for his team on Wednesday, according to comments from the meeting reviewed by Bloomberg. Its part of a revamped strategy from new Chief Executive Officer Wael Sawan that will be fully revealed in June, as he seeks to improve Shells performance and eliminate businesses that arent producing adequate returns.

Hills Shell Energy unit includes the renewable power business. While the companys efforts in green electricity have been an exercise in learning and experimenting to find where it can be successful, now they need to show results, he said at the meeting.

Delivery will be the mandate of the organization going forward, Hill told the gathering. The things weve been less successful with, we need to scale back or stop.

A spokesman for Shell declined to comment.

Shell has already provided some evidence of this strategy in recent months. It has announced a strategic review of its money-losing European retail energy business and put it up for sale. It also sold Australian solar power developer Esco Pacific, in which it held a minority stake, and is currently looking to sell a French floating turbine unit as part of a broader retreat from that countrys offshore wind market.

Under Sawans predecessor Ben van Beurden, investment in Shells renewable energy unit grew steadily. Last year it reached a record $3.5 billion, up 47% from a year earlier. But it will remain flat in 2023, the companys Chief Financial Officer Sinead Gorman said earlier this year.

The growth of the unit has been a key part of Shells broader strategy to decarbonize its business as the world tries to wean itself off the fossil fuels that cause climate change. The company has a goal to reduce the carbon intensity of the energy it sells by 20% by 2030 and 100% by 2050 compared to 2016 levels. So far its achieved a 3.8% reduction.

Carbon intensity is a reflection of the companys overall energy mix, though not total emissions. The higher the proportion of low-carbon sources like renewable power, the more progress Shell could make toward that goal.

It is always good to run a tight ship and get rid of poor performing assets, said Shu Ling Liauw, co-founder of Accela Research, a climate transition research and advisory group. The risk is that they are cutting off long-term low-carbon options to boost short-term shareholder returns in an attempt to defend the company valuation.

While the power business has played a significant role in Shells decarbonization efforts and narrative, there is now a need to grow the business profitably, Hill said. The unit needs to operate in commercially astute way, just like the other divisions of the company.

On the financial metric that matters most to Shells ability to boost investor returns, cash flow, the companys renewables and energy solutions division has been a drag on performance. In 2022, it was responsible for an outflow of $6.39 billion, compared with an inflow of $27.69 billion from the integrated gas business and $29.64 billion from upstream.

Hard Choices

Shells offshore wind unit is making hard choices to ensure its still relevant in one of the fastest-growing sectors of clean energy, but only through positions in the right projects, said Thomas Brostrom, who runs the renewables business in Europe and Asia. Thats meant pulling out of a planned project in Japan and a decision not to bid in an upcoming tender in the Netherlands, he said on the call.

Some employees on the call asked the executives how Shell can be constrained in its use of capital after making a record $40 billion adjusted net income last year. Ingrid Button, the finance chief for Shells renewables business, responded by saying that the company needs to use that money for other purposes, including shareholder dividends and buybacks. Shells renewables business needs to improve compared to competitors and demonstrate discipline with financial choices, she said.

In addition to restraining spending, Shell Energy executives discussed strategies to boost returns. One was to divest stakes in projects it develops. The other is a better integration of Shells power generation business and its trading arm, something thats been talked about in the company for years and is now set to be delivered under the new structure.

The goal is to demonstrate specific competitive advantages in the power business and win over investors, Hill said.

(Updates with analyst comment in 10th paragraph, chart after fifth)

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2023 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Six Pacific countries are at a high risk of debt distress in part due to government spending to respond to the COVID-19 crisis, the World Bank said in a report on Thursday.

The report, titled Raising Pasifika, said fiscal consolidation was needed in Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa, Tonga and Tuvalu because these countries lack domestic debt markets and access to international capital markets.

Among other countries in the region, Vanuatu is rated at medium risk, while Palau and Naurus debt is sustainable, the report noted.

"While public debt levels as a share of GDP remain modest across most of the region, the PIC9s economic geography and volatile revenue bases mean debt distress risks remain elevated," it said.

Debt has surged in the region since 2019 as the tourism-dependent economies were hit by COVID border closures, trade was hurt by logistical challenges and weather events caused damage. The World Bank last month said that Fiji must also take urgent action to reduce its debt burden.

Stephen Ndegwa, World Bank Country Director for Papua New Guinea & the Pacific Islands, said reducing debt, strengthening revenue and improving the quality of government spending are critical areas for Pacific countries to address.

The report said continued access to grants in line with pre-pandemic trends is also essential to find capital investment projects for sustainable development and climate resilience.

The World Bank report recommends that, together with more efficient spending, improvements to tax collection must be a priority for Pacific governments to ensure individuals and businesses are contributing their fair share to the regions economies.

It also said that Pacific countries should allocate more to social assistance and protection measures.

These investments would help reduce poverty and inequality, while also supporting communities in tough times, including in the aftermath of climate-related disasters or major economic shocks, such as the region saw from the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent natural disasters in Tonga and Vanuatu, it said.

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Kim Coghill)
Internet platforms notched a major Supreme Court victory Thursday when the high court's justices unanimously decided a case that could have rewritten the rules of the web. The court also sent a parallel case back to a lower court.

Both cases had to do with whether social media companies could be held liable for hosting and promoting terrorist content on their platforms. In deciding they could not, the court left a 27-year old law intact.

The cases, Twitter v. Taameneh and Gonzalez v. Google, effectively challenged Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a law that broadly insulates social media platforms, including major platforms like Google's (GOOG) (GOOGL) YouTube, Facebook and Instagram (META), and Twitter, from legal liability when they provide content posted by their users. The plaintiffs argued that they should be able to sue the companies for aiding and abetting terrorism under the Anti-terrorism Act

"Defendants mere creation of their media platforms is no more culpable than the creation of email, cell phones, or the internet generally," the court stated in its opinion in the Taameneh case. In characterizing the company's algorithms as "agnostic" to the nature of hosted content, the justices reasoned that they could not impose liability on YouTube for knowingly aiding and abetting terrorism.

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 21: (L-R) Jose Hernandez and Beatriz Gonzalez, stepfather and mother of Nohemi Gonzalez, who died in a terrorist attack in Paris in 2015, arrive to speak to the press outside of the U.S. Supreme Court following oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google February 21, 2023 in Washington, DC. Oral arguments took place today in Gonzalez v. Google, a landmark case about whether technology companies should be liable for harmful content their algorithms promote. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Separately, in the Gonzalez opinion, the court sidestepped questions concerning YouTube's Section 230 liability by sending the case back to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The court instructed the lower court to review the case in light of the Taameneh ruling. The court, however, noted its opinion that the plaintiffs' claims alleging that YouTube aided and abetted terrorism would likely fail.

Anna Diakun, an attorney for the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said, "The Court correctly recognized in Taamneh that the [social media] platforms' alleged conduct was too attenuated and passive to rise to the level of aiding and abetting."

Although the attack that prompted the suit was terrible and tragic, Diakun said, imposing liability on the platforms in these circumstances would have had far-reaching implications for free speech online. Still, Diakun said she expects the court will eventually be pressed to answer important questions that it avoided in todays opinions.

"Questions about the scope of platforms immunity under Section 230 are consequential and will certainly come up soon in other cases," she said.

Ben Berkowitz, a partner with Keker, Van Nest & Peters, who assisted in an amicus brief for Authors Alliance in support of Google, said third-party content hosts are breathing a sigh of relief.

Critics of Section 230, as well as Justice Thomas in dissents and concurrences, had said [the court] should look at Section 230 in the appropriate case, Berkowitz said. Given those concerns I think todays decision is very positive.

The claims in the two cases arose from separate ISIS terrorist attacks and were brought by victims of the attacks.

In Gonzalez, family members and the estate of Nohemi Gonzalez, a 23-year-old US citizen killed in a December 2015 ISIS shooting at La Belle Equipe bistro in Paris, argued that Google should be held at least partially liable for her death. They alleged the company's YouTube service knowingly permitted and recommended, via algorithms, inflammatory ISIS-created videos that allegedly played a key role in recruiting the attackers.

In their arguments, plaintiffs claimed that YouTube's act of creating thumbnails  images that appear in internet search results as representations of available third-party content  converted the company from a passive host of third-party content into a recommender of content, more akin to publishers or speakers that are not covered by Section 230's liability shield.

In the Taamneh case, the plaintiffs argued that Facebook, Twitter, and Google should be held liable for injuries allegedly caused by similar content that they describe as material aid to ISIS terrorists. In a claim specifically against Google, the plaintiffs said Google knew they aided the terrorist attacks because the company shares revenue earned through videos provided by third party content creators.

Before the Supreme Court took up the Gonzalez case, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed the lawsuit at Google's request, concluding that Section 230 barred the claims because ISIS, not Google, created the videos.

The Taamneh case was previously decided by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which held that the plaintiffs put forth an adequate claim for aiding and abetting terrorism under the Anti-terroristm Act.

Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on Twitter @alexiskweed.

Daniel Howley is the tech editor at Yahoo Finance. Follow him @DanielHowley

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Iconic SPAM brand welcomed thousands of visitors from more than 60 countries to its historic museum in 2022

AUSTIN, Minn., May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Every year, tens of thousands of people from around the world travel to southeastern Minnesota with one particular destination in mind: the SPAM Museum. And today, on International Museum Day, the museum and its team of SPAMbassadors are recognizing the extent of its global appeal.

The SPAM Museum averages more than 100,000 visitors annually, a considerable portion of whom hail from outside the United States. Last year, SPAM fans from over 60 countries made the pilgrimage to Austin, Minn., to pay homage to the world-famous brand they love. In the last month alone, the museum welcomed visitors from Canada, Togo, the Philippines, England, Brazil, South Africa, Belgium, France, Thailand, Germany, Belize, India and Japan.

And that appeal is substantial. The museum averages more than 100,000 visitors annually, a considerable portion of whom hail from outside the United States. Last year, SPAM fans from over 60 countries made the pilgrimage to Austin, Minn., to pay homage to the world-famous brand they love. In the last month alone, the museum welcomed visitors from Canada, Togo, the Philippines, England, Brazil, South Africa, Belgium, France, Thailand, Germany, Belize, India and Japan.

"It's always an honor to welcome visitors from all over the world," said Savile Lord, manager of the SPAM Museum, Hormel Foods. "A lot of people seem go out of their way to get here. We even have people that change travel plans on the spot once they realize the SPAM Museum is within driving distance. There's no museum in the world quite like it."

The SPAM Museum has plenty to offer its international and domestic visitors alike. The Global Marketplace exhibit in particular puts forth a snapshot of what the SPAM brand means to cultures around the world, spotlighting places like South Korea, second only to the United States in consumption of SPAM products. Museum guests are invited to take a journey around the world to learn more about how various countries embrace the SPAM brand within their respective cultures and cuisines.

The museum also features several fun activities for visitors, including an interactive SPAM canning game that allows participants to compete against family and friends while learning how the product is made. There are also six touch screens prominently displayed at the center of the museum, where guests can scroll through and discover a wide variety of intriguing SPAM recipes, which they can then email to themselves to try out in their own kitchens.

Visitors of the museum can purchase their favorite SPAM brand souvenirs at the on-site gift shop, with options ranging from T-shirts and hats to wine tumblers and beach towels, not to mention all 11 varieties of SPAM products.

"Bringing home SPAM brand swag and a new recipe is the perfect way for our visitors to bring a close to their memorable experience. Plus, it gives them something to show off to their family and friends," Lord said. "There's something for everyone here. All are welcome."

To explore the SPAM Shop from afar, visit https://store.spam.com.

ABOUT HORMEL FOODS  Inspired People. Inspired Food.

Hormel Foods Corporation, based in Austin, Minn., is a global branded food company with over $12 billion in annual revenue across more than 80 countries worldwide. Its brands include Planters, SKIPPY, SPAM, Hormel Natural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, WHOLLY, Hormel Black Label, Columbus, Jennie-O and more than 30 other beloved brands. The company is a member of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, was named on the "Global 2000 World's Best Employers" list by Forbes magazine for three years, is one of Fortune magazine's most admired companies, has appeared on the "100 Best Corporate Citizens" list by 3BL Media 13 times, and has received numerous other awards and accolades for its corporate responsibility and community service efforts. The company lives by its purpose statement  Inspired People. Inspired Food.  to bring some of the world's most trusted and iconic brands to tables across the globe. For more information, visit www.hormelfoods.com and http://csr.hormelfoods.com/.

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Stanmore Resources Limited (ASX:SMR) shareholders might be concerned after seeing the share price drop 26% in the last quarter. But that does not change the realty that the stock's performance has been terrific, over five years. To be precise, the stock price is 330% higher than it was five years ago, a wonderful performance by any measure. So it might be that some shareholders are taking profits after good performance. Of course what matters most is whether the business can improve itself sustainably, thus justifying a higher price.

While the stock has fallen 5.0% this week, it's worth focusing on the longer term and seeing if the stocks historical returns have been driven by the underlying fundamentals.

Check out our latest analysis for Stanmore Resources

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Over half a decade, Stanmore Resources managed to grow its earnings per share at 64% a year. The EPS growth is more impressive than the yearly share price gain of 34% over the same period. So one could conclude that the broader market has become more cautious towards the stock. This cautious sentiment is reflected in its (fairly low) P/E ratio of 2.57.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

We know that Stanmore Resources has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

What About The Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We'd be remiss not to mention the difference between Stanmore Resources' total shareholder return (TSR) and its share price return. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Dividends have been really beneficial for Stanmore Resources shareholders, and that cash payout contributed to why its TSR of 993%, over the last 5 years, is better than the share price return.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Stanmore Resources shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 7.1% over one year. However, the TSR over five years, coming in at 61% per year, is even more impressive. The pessimistic view would be that be that the stock has its best days behind it, but on the other hand the price might simply be moderating while the business itself continues to execute. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Stanmore Resources better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Stanmore Resources that you should be aware of.

But note: Stanmore Resources may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on Australian exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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(Bloomberg) -- A day after dismissing a question that would have forced a payout on some of Credit Suisse Group AGs default swaps, a panel that oversees the derivatives market received another query that could trigger the contracts.

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The Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee was asked whether a bankruptcy credit event had occurred with regards to the Swiss lender in March, when it was taken over in a hastily arranged deal by rival UBS Group AG, according to a statement on its website.

The ploy is seen as having little chance of success. One market veteran equated it to throwing spaghetti on the wall. The new question came in after the CDDC on Wednesday determined that another type of credit event  a government intervention  hadnt occurred after the $17 billion of Additional Tier 1 notes were wiped out. The committee took the view that the AT1 securities were too junior to trigger Credit Suisses subordinated CDS contracts.

This question is different. It relates to both senior and subordinated CDS. So if the panel rules that a bankruptcy event had occurred, it would trigger payouts on swaps tied to all of Credit Suisse debt. The net notional volume on those swap contracts amounted to $1.74 billion as of May 12, according to data from the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation.

The credit default swaps tied to Credit Suisse Group had been tumbling following Wednesdays decision. After the second question was asked, the one-year senior swaps were still indicated 102 basis points down to 149, while their one-year subordinated counterparts were still down 584 basis points on the day to 197 as of 2:30 pm London time, according to ICE Services data.

The main difference between the two questions is that a bankruptcy credit event relates to the issuers finances, while a governmental intervention credit event involves a state happens when the intervention by the state leads to a reduction in the interest or the principal of the bonds underlying the swaps.

Hedge funds including FourSixThree Capital and Diameter Capital Partners had bought into the subordinated contracts betting on a payout after Credit Suisses roughly $17 billion of Additional Tier 1 bonds were wiped out as part of the deal. Market participants at Citigroup Inc, Barclays Plc and JPMorgan Chase & Co. had been telling their clients that the AT1s were likely to be deemed more junior than the subordinated notes linked to the default swaps  making a payout unlikely.

These developments on the default swaps front are the latest twist in the Credit Suisse saga. The controversial write-off of the risky AT1 bonds is being challenged by many of its bondholders in court. A Swiss court has recently ordered Swiss regulator Finma to release the decree that allowed for the wipeout.

(adds background throughout.)

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BASEL, Switzerland, May 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Syngenta Group has withdrawn its STAR Market IPO application and will immediately apply for a public listing on the main board at the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The decision was made after China fully rolled out its registration-based share issuance scheme across the country in February  a move that will further improve Chinas capital market and clearly define the roles of different boards. Now that the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange is meant mainly to support large-scale companies with mature business models and stable earnings performance (blue chips which are good representatives of their respective industries), we believe Syngenta Group, as a leading global agricultural technology company, fits better on the main board of Shanghai Stock Exchange, under its latest registration-based IPO scheme. This main board listing will enable Syngenta Group to access more diversified investors and will be conducive for the companys long-term value.

About Syngenta Group

Syngenta Group is one of the worlds biggest agricultural technology companies, with roots going back more than 250 years. With more than 57,000 employees, operating in more than 100 countries, the company strives to transform agriculture with science-driven, technological innovations to deliver high productivity and high-quality food while fighting climate change and restore nature. Syngenta Group is working with farmers to enable Regenerative Agriculture - an outcome-based food production system that nurtures and restores soil health, protects the climate and water resources and biodiversity, and enhances farms' productivity and profitability. Syngenta Group, which is registered in Shanghai, China, and has its management headquarters in Switzerland, draws strength from its four business units: Syngenta Crop Protection, headquartered in Switzerland; Syngenta Seeds, headquartered in the United States; ADAMA, headquartered in Israel; and Syngenta Group China. Together, these businesses provide industry-leading ways to serve customers around the world.

For Syngenta Group photos and videos, please visit the Syngenta Group Media Library.

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Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements, which can be identified by terminology such as "expect," "would," "will," "potential," "plans," "prospects," "estimated," "aiming," "on track" and similar expressions. Such statements may be subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from these statements. For Syngenta Group, such risks and uncertainties include risks relating to legal proceedings, regulatory approvals, new product development, increasing competition, customer credit risk, general economic and market conditions, compliance and remediation, intellectual property rights, implementation of organizational changes, impairment of intangible assets, consumer perceptions of genetically modified crops and organisms or crop protection chemicals, climatic variations, fluctuations in exchange rates and/or grain prices, single source supply arrangements, political uncertainty, natural disasters, and breaches of data security or other disruptions of information technology. Syngenta Group assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changed assumptions or other factors.

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By Aditi Shah, Aditya Kalra and Munsif Vengattil

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Tesla Inc has held discussions with officials about incentives being offered by India for car and battery manufacturing, said a person with direct knowledge of the talks, as the automaker looks anew at entering the Indian market.

The U.S. electric car maker has proposed setting up a factory in India to build electric vehicles (EVs), Reuters reported on Wednesday. Plans to locally manufacture EV batteries are also being discussed, said the person with direct knowledge.

Tesla is "still testing the waters and trying to understand the local policies," said the person, who declined to be named as the talks were private.

During the visit, details of which have not been publicly disclosed by the company or any Indian ministry, Tesla on Thursday met India's deputy IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, one of the highest-ranking officials the company held talks with, said a source in the Indian government.

Tesla and India's IT ministry did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Tesla's delegation included Karn Budhiraj, a senior supply chain executive based in the United States, the two sources said.

The discussions in India represent a shift in stance for the U.S. electric car maker.

Late last year it was focused on seeking lower import taxes on cars, which can be as much as 100%, and talks with the Indian government became deadlocked. India is keen for Tesla to build vehicles locally but the company argued it wanted to export first so that it could test the strength of demand.

Recent talks have touched on India's taxes on imported cars but have mainly centred on how Tesla could make use of a government scheme, the first source said.

India has set aside around $6 billion under two programs to boost EV sales and manufacturing. Under the schemes, automakers and battery manufacturers can get certain cashback incentives for selling and exporting locally made vehicles and parts.

"It appears Tesla has come with a different heart and head this time to take advantage of the auto boom (in India) ... Tesla can negotiate on things like taxes better if it first sets up a plant," said Mohan Shukla of New Delhi-based public policy advisory White Dolphin Media.

Tesla has described a goal of selling 20 million EVs a year in 2030, a level that would require massive new investment in assembly plants and battery production.

Outside the United States, Tesla has a plant in Shanghai - its largest factory worldwide - and one in Brandenburg, Germany.

In addition to India, Tesla has been in talks over the past year with officials in Indonesia and South Korea about potential investments.

India is the world's third-largest automobile market. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration has set an ambitious target of having EVs account for 30% of India's total car sales by 2030 from around 1% today.

Tesla's talks with India come at a crucial time for Modi, who is looking to attract investments in the run-up to national elections next year where he will be seeking a rare third term.

(Reporting by Aditi Shah and Aditya KalraEditing by Edwina Gibbs, Jason Neely and Mark Potter)
This is The Takeaway from today's Morning Brief, which you can receive in your inbox every Monday to Friday by 6:30 a.m. ET.

Wall Street appears to be sleeping through Washingtons latest debt ceiling crisis. It should wake up.

As Yahoo Finances Josh Schafer reported Tuesday, more than 70% of respondents in Bank of Americas latest fund manager survey said they expect a resolution before the so-called X-date  and an unthinkable first-ever default on government obligations.

Thats despite a gloomy mood from both President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy  although the latest round of talks Tuesday appeared to yield a bit of progress.

Its also in the face of increasingly dire warnings from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who seems to be issuing a letter every other week noting that shes super serious, that X-date really could be June 1.

That is two weeks from now.

Its not hard to see why Wall Street is yawning again. This "crisis" is entirely Washingtons own making, it comes from a silly system in the first place, and it happens every other year or so until they eventually figure things out.

But as a veteran observer and chronicler of many of these fights, this one worries me more than any since at least 2013  if not 2011, which ended with a credit rating downgrade for the US. The problem is that McCarthy has no good way to get his increasingly irrational conference to agree to a deal. And Biden, for good reason, wants to nip this recurring threat in the bud  forever.

There is a way Biden can do that  though, like anything, it requires a bit of risk: One unilateral option that has gained traction the past few weeks  from no less than Biden himself  is the 14th amendment to the US Constitution.

The gist is that this Civil War-era amendment, which was put in place as a way to prevent Confederate states from defaulting on their debts, renders a concept like the debt ceiling null and void.

US President Joe Biden speaks onstage during Emily's List annual We Are Emily National Gala at The Anthem in Washington, DC, May 16, 2023. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP) (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)

Of course, the risk is the unknown  its never been tried before, and it would likely face a legal challenge that could go all the way to the Supreme Court.

But might it be the best option for everyone? Bloomberg polled potential public reaction to Biden using another unilateral workaround  the minting of a trillion-dollar coin  and found that half the country still needs persuading either way.

A successful unilateral move is where Biden would be able to come in and say he stepped in to protect the full faith and credit of the United States (and everyones retirement accounts). The country would win, avoiding a potential default and having that nuclear option neutered forever. Even Republicans would win, as they could get to excoriate the president and not face flack from their voters for caving on their raucous demands.

Liam Donovan, a GOP strategist, has been on this idea that everyone wins for a while. Since Republicans have passed a bill as a starting point, the threat to go it alone is perhaps Bidens biggest leverage.

morning brief image

The wild card, of course, is what happens after the fact. This is why Donovan still thinks any unilateral action is unlikely: The White House has probably determined the uncertainty around the eventual outcome would spook markets.

Just think about how each inkling projecting how the Supreme Court might rule would cause day-by-day market gyrations.

So the question for Biden is whether its a more palatable option than likely having to deal with this for the rest of his term. And whether its more palatable than the other option that shouldnt be dismissed: default, which is also sure to spook Wall Street.

As Greg Valliere, chief US strategist at AGF Investments, told Yahoo Finance: "Yes, the stock market may view that as a gimmick, and maybe a market selloff would last a few days (or a few hours). [But] I think the market would get over it quickly."

Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) shareholders might be concerned after seeing the share price drop 11% in the last month. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last five years have been very strong. In fact, the share price is 141% higher today. Generally speaking the long term returns will give you a better idea of business quality than short periods can. Ultimately business performance will determine whether the stock price continues the positive long term trend.

So let's investigate and see if the longer term performance of the company has been in line with the underlying business' progress.

Check out our latest analysis for Thermo Fisher Scientific

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Over half a decade, Thermo Fisher Scientific managed to grow its earnings per share at 22% a year. So the EPS growth rate is rather close to the annualized share price gain of 19% per year. That suggests that the market sentiment around the company hasn't changed much over that time. In fact, the share price seems to largely reflect the EPS growth.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

This free interactive report on Thermo Fisher Scientific's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for Thermo Fisher Scientific the TSR over the last 5 years was 144%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

Thermo Fisher Scientific shareholders are down 3.6% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 5.8%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 20%, each year, over five years. It could be that the recent sell-off is an opportunity, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long term growth trend. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Thermo Fisher Scientific .

Of course Thermo Fisher Scientific may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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tiktok

TikToks inane videos are eroding ambition and motivation in Western teenagers, the president of the British Chambers of Commerce has claimed.

Baroness Martha Lane Fox, who is also a former Twitter board member and co-founder of Lastminute.com, said the video sharing app was bombarding young people with addictive content and keeping them glued to their phones.

The peer claimed TikTok was purposefully feeding Western teenagers dumbed down content while presenting Chinese young people with videos about maths, science and the brilliance of going into space and invention.

Baroness Lane Fox, who was speaking at the Mindgym summit in London, said: It is eroding something about ambition and motivation with what you can sit scrolling through.

TikTok said the claims were simply untrue.

TikTok is owned by Chinas Bytedance, which offers a sister app, Douyin, targeted specifically at the companys home market.

Baroness Martha Lane Fox - Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Baroness Lane Fox claimed the Douyin app pushed Chinese teenagers towards educational content while TikTok was promoting "makeup tutorials to American children... to dumb down the content".

Users under the age of 14 on Douyin are also shielded with a series of strict measures to prevent them from gorging on videos.

They are limited to 40 minutes each day in the apps "youth mode" between 6am and 10pm. The endless scroll of videos also includes a five second pause between clips.

In the UK, TikTok has introduced an optional time limit of 60 minutes per day for users between the ages of 13 and 18. However, this can be easily disabled.

Baroness Lane Foxs criticism comes amid a growing backlash against TikTok, which has faced claims of being a tool of influence and espionage for the Chinese government.

Like other social media apps, TikTok has also been dogged by claims that it helps fuel a form of addiction.

The company strongly refutes the claims.

Western governments including Britain have banned officials from installing TikTok on their phones and Montana became the first US state to issue a total ban on personal mobile devices in the state on Wednesday.

The states governor vowed to protect residents from alleged Chinese surveillance. TikTok accused Montana of an infringement on freedom of speech laws.

Baroness Lane Fox said: "I don't think it should be banned, but I think we should be very careful."

She added: "Separating the ownership structure properly feels right."

Regulators in America have warned TikTok it will be banned in the US unless it financially separates from its China-headquartered parent company.

Addressing Baroness Lane Foxs claims, a TikTok spokesman said: "These claims are simply untrue.

Our 150 million users across Europe come to TikTok for discovery, creativity and learning. TikTok has been an important tool for many young people, from growing a start-up business to launching careers in the creative industries.

The spokesman added that hashtags such as "Science Facts" had been viewed 2.3 billion times, while the trend of "BookTok" had helped young people find new things to read.

In March, TikTok announced a STEM feed - or science, technology, engineering and maths - a section of the app that will promote educational posts to users.

US security officials have repeatedly flagged concerns over TikTok. Christopher Wray, the FBI director, told a senate hearing last year the app could be used for "influence operations" by China.

The app has faced claims that China could force it to harvest data from users under Beijing's strict intelligence laws.

The company has insisted it has never received such a demand and would refuse to comply if it did.

Montanas ban on TikTok comes into force from January 1 although it will almost certainly face legal challenges. TikTok called the ban "unlawful" and said it would "defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana".

Greg Gianforte, the software engineer-turned-Republican governor of Montana, said Montana had taken "the most decisive action of any state" to protect private data.

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Tories accused of levelling down as regions languish behind London

london

The Tories have been accused of levelling down Britain after figures showed that almost the whole country outside London suffered a downturn following the outbreak of war in Ukraine.

Economic output in six out of nine English regions fell in the three months to September last year, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show.

Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales also all suffered a contraction or stagnated.

London achieved the biggest expansion, with growth of 0.9pc, followed by the North East with 0.7pc and the South West with 0.4pc.

The figures are a blow to the Conservatives levelling up agenda, which was a key election pledge in 2019.

Adrian Pabst, deputy director at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, said the latest numbers showed that were seeing levelling down, not levelling up". He added: Thats very worrying."

It comes after Labour promised a dramatic increase in housebuilding, which has been an area of weakness for the Government.

Telegraph analysis of the latest ONS figures shows that the local economies in all but two regions of England have shrunk or stagnated compared with before Covid hit.

Only London and the North West are bigger than they were before the pandemic, meaning regional disparities have worsened considerably despite the push to lift prosperity across the country.

Mr Pabst said that while many of the Governments missions would take about a decade, we should already be seeing some short-term wins.

He said: At the very least, we would want to see productivity picking up and not declining. We also want to see commitments to investments so that we know that over time these places will be lifted up. But at the moment we're just not seeing that."

The poor results were a symptom of low ambition and fragmented funding, he added.

The West Midlands are 3.3pc poorer than before the pandemic, while the East Midlands economy has contracted by 2.2pc.

Other regions such as Wales and the North East have also suffered large knocks to their output.

London has meanwhile vastly outperformed the wider economy, growing by 4.4pc from before Covid. North West England, which is the UKs third most populated region and home to Manchester and Liverpool, grew by 2.6pc.

The data also shows that Wales contracted by 2pc on the quarter in the three months to September alone. During this period Scotland also suffered a 0.3pc setback, while Northern Ireland flatlined.

The ONS said the data is experimental and may be subject to revisions, but Mr Pabst said the findings chimed with wider research.

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Trillium Gold Mines Inc.

Figure 1:

Map showing Trillium Gold's Confederation Belt project and all currently known gold occurrences. Green ovals represent areas discussed in this news release.

Figure 2:

Stratigraphy and lithogeochemical comparison between the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold] (left) and Trilliums Confederation Belt Panama property (right). Primitive-mantle normalized trace element plots illustrate similarities between the Great Bear project and the Panama property, suggesting high potential for gold discovery.

Figure 3:

A comparison of Panama Lake core photos illustrating lithological and textural similarities to rocks from the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold]. Great Bear project core photos obtained from Voluntary National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report; prepared for Kinross Gold, Nicos Pfeiffer, John Sim, Yves Breau, Rick Greenwood, and Agung Prawsono.

Figure 4:

Map showing the recently completed enzyme leach soil survey anomalies within a folded region along the Panama North Fault Trend, 1.5 km northeast of the gold-bearing (e.g., 1.58 g/t over 7.6 m, and 13.33 g/t Au grab sample) Panama Zone, highlighting an excellent target for future work.

Figure 5:

Primitive mantle normalized trace element plot of recently analyzed historical drill core from Trilliums Fredart area compared with the Balmer assemblage from the Red Lake greenstone belt (Sanborn-Barrie et al., 2001). Lithogeochemical drill core samples were collected from historic drill holes G1, G2, G3, G4 drilled 1970. Information on these drill holes can be found in assessment files 52K15NW0036, 52K14NE0026, and 52K14NE0207. New analysis of these volcanic rocks of tholeiitic magmatic affinity show trace element similarities to Balmer assemblage mafics. This supports the presence of major structures and unconformity on this portion of Trilliums property, and is interpreted to signify newly added gold potential.

A newly discovered spatial relationship of Balmer affinity rocks on Trilliums Confederation Belt suggests the Cochenour-Gullrock Trend and associated unconformity continues from Red Lake across the northern portion of the Confederation Belt.





Consistent anomalous to high-grade gold results spatially associated with these structures have allowed the Company to refine and develop meaningful high-priority drill targets.





Historical gold mineralization (e.g., 1.58 g/t over 7.6 m, and 13.33 g/t Au grab sample from Panama Zone) occurs within similar rock types, stratigraphy, and along the Panama Lake North Trend, a possible extension or splay of Kinross Golds LP Fault.





Primitive-mantle normalized trace element plots illustrate similarities between the Great Bear project and the Panama Lake property, suggesting high potential for gold discovery.





Core photos from the Panama Lake property show remarkable textural and geochemical resemblance to Kinross Golds Great Bear project.



VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Trillium Gold Mines Inc., (TSXV: TGM, OTCQX:TGLDF, FRA:0702) (Trillium Gold or the Company) is pleased to provide an update from the lithogeochemistry, structural and stratigraphic studies over its approximate 570 sq km Confederation Belt project in Red Lake, Ontario. The project encompasses one of the largest contiguous land positions ever assembled in the Red Lake mining district, bound by the same geological trends that have defined the Red Lake Mining District as a world-class mining jurisdiction.

The results from the Companys field work strongly suggest structural, stratigraphic, and litho-geochemical similarities along or adjacent to the eastern extensions of both the LP Fault, associated with Kinross Golds Great Bear project, and the Cochenour-Gullrock Fault, associated with Evolution Minings Red Lake Mine (Fig. 1).

Viewed in conjunction with the resampling of historical core for gold, the technical findings from the field work add degrees of confidence supporting Trilliums exploration model that these significant gold-bearing structures continue through the Confederation Belt property, remarked Russell Starr, President & CEO of Trillium Gold. Moreover, the consistency in the anomalous to high-grade gold occurrences spatially associated with these structures have also opened up opportunities to refine and develop meaningful high-priority drill targets.

To the southeast on the Panama Lake property, trace element lithogeochemistry has identified strong similarities between the metavolcanic rocks from the Panama Zone with the Felsic Domain of the Great Bear project. The mafic volcanic rocks also show a strong similarity to high-Fe basaltic rocks from the Great Bear projects Mafic Domain (Fig. 2). Primitive-mantle normalized trace element plots illustrate similarities between the Great Bear project and the Panama Lake property, suggesting high potential for gold discovery.

Trilliums re-logging of historical core of the Panama Zone from mid-2022 through to early 2023 shows remarkable textural similarities to core seen at the Great Bear project (Fig. 3). The Panama Zone historical gold mineralization (e.g., 1.58 g/t Au over 7.6 m, and 13.33 g/t Au grab sample) occurs within similar rock types and stratigraphic horizon along the Panama Fault North Trend, a potential eastern extension or splay of the LP Fault.

An airborne electromagnetic lineament coincident with the gold-bearing Panama Zone shows the Panama Zone and Panama Fault North Trend continuing to the northeast where recently completed enzyme leach soil surveys identified multiple overlapping anomalies for arsenic, nickel, zinc, silver, and chromium (Fig. 4). Arsenic in soil is a strong pathfinder candidate for gold mineralization based on historical geochemistry work performed on drill holes completed by Benton Resources in 2019 and a baseline soil line completed over the Panama Zone by Trillium in 2022.

In the central part of the Confederation Belt project along the Cochenour-Gullrock (Red Lake Mine) Trend, trace element analyses in mafic volcanics and associated rocks from historical drill core have identified similarities between Red Lake-associated Balmer assemblage volcanic rocks (Fig. 5). This newly discovered spatial relationship of Balmer affinity rocks adjacent to Confederation assemblage rocks suggests that the Cochenour-Gullrock Trend and associated unconformity continues from Red Lake across the northern portion of Trilliums Confederation Belt project (Fig. 1). Gold results of up to 0.99 g/t in recently analyzed historical core, and up to 1.56 g/t from historic assays, occur proximal to the Cochenour-Gullrock Trend and to the unconformity over several kilometres (Fig. 1) as reported in Trilliums news release of February 7, 2023 (please refer to the Companys website at www.trilliumgold.com).

The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Samuel Lewis, P.Geo of Trillium Gold Mines Inc., as defined by NI 43-101.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Trillium Gold Mines Inc.

Russell Starr

President & CEO, Director

For further information, please contact Donna Yoshimatsu, VP Corporate Development and Investor Relations at dyoshimatsu@trilliumgold.com, (416) 722-2456, or info@trilliumgold.com.

Visit our website at www.trilliumgold.com.

About Trillium Gold Mines Inc.

Trillium Gold Mines Inc. is a growth focused company engaged in the business of acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties located in the Red Lake Mining District of Northern Ontario. As part of its regional-scale consolidation strategy, the Company has assembled one of the largest prospective land packages in and around the Red Lake mining district in proximity to major mines and deposits, as well as along the Confederation Lake and Birch-Uchi greenstone belts. In 2022 the Company closed a number of acquisitions effectively extending its contiguous land position over more than 100 km of favourable structures on trend with Kinross Golds Great Bear project and Evolution Minings Red Lake Operation. In addition, the Company has interests in highly prospective properties in Larder Lake, Ontario.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

This news release contains forward-looking information, which involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual events to differ materially from current expectations.

Forward-looking information is based on managements reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on managements experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Such factors, among others, include: impacts arising from the global disruption caused by the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, business integration risks; fluctuations in general macroeconomic conditions; fluctuations in securities markets; fluctuations in spot and forward prices of gold or certain other commodities; change in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (Incl. environmental hazards, industrial accidents); inability to obtain adequate insurance to cover risks and hazards; the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities and indigenous populations; availability of increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development (Incl. the risks of obtaining necessary licenses, permits and approvals from government authorities); and title to properties.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation, except to the extent required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Map showing Trillium Gold's Confederation Belt project and all currently known gold occurrences. Green ovals represent areas discussed in this news release.





Figure 1: Map showing Trillium Gold's Confederation Belt project and all currently known gold occurrences. Green ovals represent areas discussed in this news release.

Stratigraphy and lithogeochemical comparison between the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold] (left) and Trilliums Confederation Belt Panama property (right). Primitive-mantle normalized trace element plots illustrate similarities between the Great Bear project and the Panama property, suggesting high potential for gold discovery.





Figure 2: Stratigraphy and lithogeochemical comparison between the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold] (left) and Trilliums Confederation Belt Panama property (right). Primitive-mantle normalized trace element plots illustrate similarities between the Great Bear project and the Panama property, suggesting high potential for gold discovery.

A comparison of Panama Lake core photos illustrating lithological and textural similarities to rocks from the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold]. Great Bear project core photos obtained from Voluntary National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report; prepared for Kinross Gold, Nicos Pfeiffer, John Sim, Yves Breau, Rick Greenwood, and Agung Prawsono.





Figure 3: A comparison of Panama Lake core photos illustrating lithological and textural similarities to rocks from the Great Bear project [Kinross Gold]. Great Bear project core photos obtained from Voluntary National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report; prepared for Kinross Gold, Nicos Pfeiffer, John Sim, Yves Breau, Rick Greenwood, and Agung Prawsono.

Map showing the recently completed enzyme leach soil survey anomalies within a folded region along the Panama North Fault Trend, 1.5 km northeast of the gold-bearing (e.g., 1.58 g/t over 7.6 m, and 13.33 g/t Au grab sample) Panama Zone, highlighting an excellent target for future work.





Figure 4: Map showing the recently completed enzyme leach soil survey anomalies within a folded region along the Panama North Fault Trend, 1.5 km northeast of the gold-bearing (e.g., 1.58 g/t over 7.6 m, and 13.33 g/t Au grab sample) Panama Zone, highlighting an excellent target for future work.

Primitive mantle normalized trace element plot of recently analyzed historical drill core from Trilliums Fredart area compared with the Balmer assemblage from the Red Lake greenstone belt (Sanborn-Barrie et al., 2001). Lithogeochemical drill core samples were collected from historic drill holes G1, G2, G3, G4 drilled 1970. Information on these drill holes can be found in assessment files 52K15NW0036, 52K14NE0026, and 52K14NE0207. New analysis of these volcanic rocks of tholeiitic magmatic affinity show trace element similarities to Balmer assemblage mafics. This supports the presence of major structures and unconformity on this portion of Trilliums property, and is interpreted to signify newly added gold potential.





Figure 5: Primitive mantle normalized trace element plot of recently analyzed historical drill core from Trilliums Fredart area compared with the Balmer assemblage from the Red Lake greenstone belt (Sanborn-Barrie et al., 2001). Lithogeochemical drill core samples were collected from historic drill holes G1, G2, G3, G4 drilled 1970. Information on these drill holes can be found in assessment files 52K15NW0036, 52K14NE0026, and 52K14NE0207. New analysis of these volcanic rocks of tholeiitic magmatic affinity show trace element similarities to Balmer assemblage mafics. This supports the presence of major structures and unconformity on this portion of Trilliums property, and is interpreted to signify newly added gold potential.

Infographics accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4f6673d6-308e-479f-b258-82093dd611c9

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8dc3951e-a273-4609-a0cb-e28ca87ffcba

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/41822c8e-6700-408e-b80c-7678a98aba86



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9053df69-2a25-4dd4-a791-c93aa1bd36e2



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1a9e5867-20f5-4929-8490-e35d88eb0082




US Supreme Court leaves protections for internet companies unscathed Visitors take photos at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington

By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court handed internet and social media companies a pair of victories on Thursday, leaving legal protections for them unscathed and refusing to clear a path for victims of attacks by militant groups to sue these businesses under an anti-terrorism law.

The justices in a case involving Google LLC's video-sharing platform YouTube, both part of Alphabet Inc, sidestepped making a ruling on a bid to weaken a federal law called Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act that safeguards internet companies from lawsuits for content posted by users.

They also shielded Twitter Inc in a separate case from litigation seeking to apply a federal law called the Anti-Terrorism Act that enables Americans to recover damages related to "an act of international terrorism."

In both cases, families of people killed by Islamist gunmen overseas had sued to try to hold internet companies liable because of the presence of militant groups on their platforms or for recommending their content.

The justices in a 9-0 decision reversed a lower court's ruling that had revived a lawsuit against Twitter by the American relatives of Nawras Alassaf, a Jordanian man killed in a 2017 attack during New Year's celebration in a Istanbul nightclub claimed by the Islamic State militant group.

In the case involving YouTube, the justices returned to a lower court a lawsuit by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, a college student from California who was fatally shot in an Islamic State attack in Paris in 2015. The justices declined to address the scope of Section 230, concluding they did not need to take that step because the family's claims appeared likely to fail given the Twitter case decision.

Section 230 provides safeguards for "interactive computer services" by ensuring they cannot be treated for legal purposes as the "publisher or speaker" of information provided by users.

Calls have come from across the ideological and political spectrum - including Democratic President Joe Biden and his Republican predecessor Donald Trump - for a rethink of Section 230 to ensure that companies can be held accountable for content on their platforms. This case marked the first time the Supreme Court had examined Section 230's reach.

'SAFEGUARD FREE EXPRESSION'

"Countless companies, scholars, content creators and civil society organizations who joined with us in this case will be reassured by this result," said Google General Counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado. "We'll continue our work to safeguard free expression online, combat harmful content and support businesses and creators who benefit from the internet."

Critics have said Section 230 too often prevents platforms from being held accountable for real-world harms. Many liberals have condemned misinformation and hate speech on social media. Many conservatives have said voices on the right are censored by social media companies under the guise of content moderation.

The massacre at Istanbul's Reina nightclub killed Alassaf and 38 others. His relatives accused Twitter of aiding and abetting the Islamic State by failing to police the platform for the group's accounts or posts in violation of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Gonzalez's family argued that YouTube provided unlawful assistance to the Islamic State by recommending the group's content to users. In their brief ruling, the justices wrote that they "decline to address the application of (Section 230) to a complaint that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief."

"Even with the best moderation systems available, a service like Twitter alone cannot screen every single piece of user-generated content with 100% accuracy. Imposing liability on such services for harmful content that unintentionally falls through the crack would have disincentivized them from hosting any user-generated content," said Chris Marchese, an attorney with NetChoice, a technology industry group that counts Twitter, Meta Platforms Inc and Google as members.

The Twitter case hinged on whether the family's claims sufficiently alleged that the company knowingly provided "substantial assistance" to an "act of international terrorism" that would allow the relatives to maintain their suit and seek damages under the anti-terrorism law.

After a judge dismissed the lawsuit, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allowed it to proceed, concluding that Twitter had refused to take "meaningful steps" to prevent Islamic State's use of the platform.

Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, who authored the Supreme Court's ruling, said the allegations made by the plaintiffs were insufficient because they "point to no act of encouraging, soliciting or advising the commission" of the attack.

"These allegations are thus a far cry from the type of pervasive, systemic and culpable assistance to a series of terrorist activities that could be described as aiding and abetting each terrorist act," Thomas added.

In the Twitter case, the 9th Circuit did not consider whether Section 230 barred the family's lawsuit. Google and Facebook, also defendants, did not formally join Twitter's appeal.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Will Dunham)
The man leading China's peacemaking efforts in Ukraine has added Brussels to the itinerary of his European tour after he was told that Kyiv would not accept any proposals that result in the loss of territory.

Li Hui, Beijing's special envoy for Eurasia, plans to visit officials in the heart of the European Union next week, before he heads to Moscow for the final stop of a tour that started Tuesday in Kyiv and will also take in Warsaw, Paris and Berlin, according to people familiar with the itinerary.

When China's foreign ministry announced the schedule last week, Brussels was not on it. Indeed, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang toured Berlin, Paris and Oslo, Norway, last week but swerved a trip to the Belgian capital.

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Li's European tour comes three weeks after Chinese President Xi Jinping promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky - speaking for the first time since the Russian invasion - that he would dispatch a special envoy to Kyiv.

Li Hui, China's special representative on Eurasian affairs. Photo: Weibo alt=Li Hui, China's special representative on Eurasian affairs. Photo: Weibo>

The ministry said Li's trip showed that "China will continue to work with the rest of the world to play a constructive role in the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis".

In Brussels, he is expected to meet Gunnar Wiegand, the EU's top official for Asia Pacific; in each of the other cities, the plan is for Li to sit down with the respective foreign ministry officials.

Li travelled to Kyiv via Warsaw, Poland, on Tuesday, and is expected to return to the Polish capital on Thursday, staying until Sunday.

On Wednesday, Li met Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who said the talks focused on his country's territorial integrity.

According to the Ukrainian foreign ministry, Kuleba "explained the principles of restoring a stable and just peace in detail, based on the respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine", AFP reported.

Kuleba told Li that Ukraine would not "accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict".

Li's stay in Kyiv coincided with an "exceptionally dense" barrage of Russian rockets, the Ukrainian government reported. Kyiv said that Russian forces launched 18 missiles on Tuesday, including six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, which were intercepted by Ukrainian air defences.

While China's foray into peacemaking has been generally welcomed, governments are keeping their expectations in check about what Beijing might actually deliver.

Asked if he was optimistic about China's potential peacemaking role, Pawe Jabonski, Poland's undersecretary for state, said, "Well, according to the current [peace] plan, perhaps not so much".

"China's plan is not entirely in line with international law," Jabonski said.

"Ukraine's peace proposal, the 10-point proposal, is much more favourable, much more in line with the European approach and with international law because it entails, first of all, the respectful internationally recognised borders."

The minister was referring to a 10-point plan Zelensky proposed in November; it includes demands for the withdrawal of Russian troops, restoration of safety around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant - Europe's largest - as well as the restoration of Ukraine's state borders with Russia.

That peace can only be made according to the Zelensky plan is a common refrain among EU leaders. On Monday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the plan was "the basis on which we should be working because Ukraine is the country that has been invaded".

Von der Leyen added that China had an important peacemaking role to play, "because of its influence on Russia, and this is needed".

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, now held by Russian forces. Photo: Reuters alt=The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, now held by Russian forces. Photo: Reuters>

In an interview with The Washington Post last week, Zelensky said that he had pressed Xi, as a guarantor of the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 - in which Ukraine exchanged its Soviet Union nuclear arsenal for security assurances - to do more to rein Russia in.

He described the captured Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant as a "nuclear weapon".

"We have to put pressure on the fact that there are nuclear risks. And China needs to put pressure on Russia to de-occupy our nuclear power plant," Zelensky said.

"I would very much like to see China's presence, among other states ... For us, the more countries are present in our peace formula, the safer it is for us."

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2023. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Forrester Research, a US technology research and advisory firm, is closing its office in mainland China and laying off most of its analysts in the country amid an intensifying government crackdown on multinational consultancies.

The Boston-based company has already begun letting staff go in the country, with only a few employees being retained to wrap up ongoing projects, according to a person with knowledge on the matter, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of issue. The lay-offs came as a surprise, the source said.

In response to an enquiry by the Post, Forrester said on Wednesday it was shutting its China office as part of a previously announced global restructuring.

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"The unsteady economy, along with our ongoing product transformation, are the key drivers for the change," the company said in a statement. "We remain committed to servicing our clients in China and global clients with operations in China through our global research team."

A company spokeswoman declined to comment on a recent Financial Times report citing anonymous sources that said the job cuts were in response to China's increased scrutiny of Western consultancies and due diligence firms.

Over the past few months, Chinese officials have launched a series of investigations into global advisory firms with operations in the country.

Major targets have included Boston-based Bain & Company, which has offered some of its employees in China a six-month leave with reduced pay after police last month questioned staff at its Shanghai offices, as well as New York-headquartered Mintz Group, which saw five of its local Chinese employees arrested.

Authorities also raided Capvision Partners offices in several Chinese cities, according to a state broadcaster news report this month that accused the firm of providing sensitive information to overseas clients and intelligence agencies.

Flags flutter in front of the Capvision Partners headquarters building in Shanghai, China. Photo: EPA-EFE alt=Flags flutter in front of the Capvision Partners headquarters building in Shanghai, China. Photo: EPA-EFE>

China's foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said last week that the raid was a "normal act of law enforcement".

Bain has said it was "cooperating as appropriate" with authorities, while Capvision said it had set up a committee to rectify its operations under the guidance of Chinese authorities.

China's growing scrutiny of foreign consulting firms, along with an updated anti-espionage law coming in July that broadens the definition of spying, has unnerved some foreign businesses, which fear that their current activities will suddenly be considered criminal.

Some local experts said Beijing's moves have sent a strong warning signal to the industry and potential clients. Meanwhile, industry players have said that companies that are normally served by global advisers might adopt a cautious approach to China or withhold investments completely.

Pedestrians seen on a street in Shanghai, China. Photo: Reuters alt=Pedestrians seen on a street in Shanghai, China. Photo: Reuters>

A number of financial institutions have already reportedly taken precautionary measures, such as suspending expert interviews with foreign analysts.

"If there is a growing trend of foreign companies shutting down their operations in China, it would be detrimental for all parties involved," said Qiao Yide, vice-chairman of the Shanghai Development Research Foundation, adding that foreign companies will need to "be mindful of national red lines".

"It would be helpful if the authorities would more clearly delineate the areas in which companies can or cannot conduct such due diligence," said Eric Zheng, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, in response to the raid of Capvision.

According to Forrester, the size of its China business was not material in relation to its global revenue, and most of its restructuring is taking place in the US.

About 12 per cent of the group's more than 2,000 staff were employed in the Asia-Pacific region as of the start of this year, it said. At least 24 employees were based in China, according to information found on LinkedIn.

Forrester's net income fell by US$3 million to US$22 million in 2022, its annual report showed. In its latest earnings report this month, which revealed an almost 10 per cent fall in first-quarter revenue year on year, founder and CEO George Colony said the company was taking actions to maintain its margins by reducing costs.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2023. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the headquarters of the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, D.C.

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted to expand the use of vehicle drone and other short-range radar operations.

The decision by the U.S. telecommunications regulator will support technologies to detect children left behind in hot cars and driver assistance features like pedestrian detection and lane departure warnings, as well detecting the breathing of premature infants in intensive care units. The decision will also assist drones in construction, emergency rescue and commercial applications, the FCC said.

FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said it is likely the technology will be "used for real-time traffic management that can reduce congestion and increase safety for the vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians who share our roads."

The decision will allow the use of higher-powered mobile radar operations as well as seatbelt reminders and air bag deployment controls, automakers said.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an auto industry trade group, had urged the FCC to approve this rule to enable in-cabin safety technologies "including occupant detection technology that can sense the slightest movement of a child and initiate a driver notification that someone was left unattended in the vehicle."

In 2019, major automakers agreed to equip nearly all U.S. vehicles with systems to remind motorists of passengers in the back seat, by model year 2025, in an effort to avoid deaths of young children left behind in hot cars. The group said the FCC decision would help the industry meet that agreement.

Alliance CEO John Bozzella said the decision will "support the auto industrys plans to add more life-saving radar technology into vehicles."

(Reporting by David ShepardsonEditing by Marguerita Choy)
US Supreme Court kicks out Isis lawsuit that would have transformed the internet

Beatriz Gonzalez, right, the mother of 23-year-old Nohemi Gonzalez, a student killed in the Paris terrorist attacks, and stepfather Jose Hernandez, speak outside the US Supreme Court - AP Photo/Alex Brandon

The US Supreme Court has kicked out a lawsuit aiming to make Google and Twitter liable for videos endorsing the Islamic State terror group, ending a legal battle that could have transformed the rules governing the internet.

Top judges dismissed a case brought by relatives of a terror attack victim who claimed that one of the worlds biggest tech companies was aiding and abetting Isis by funnelling advertising revenue to it.

The court said: The fact that some bad actors took advantage of these platforms is insufficient to state a claim that defendants knowingly gave substantial assistance and thereby aided and abetted those wrongdoers' acts.

The decision, which stretches across two separate but very similar cases brought against Google and Twitter, upholds a controversial shield law for US tech companies called Section 230.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act says websites cannot be held liable for content uploaded by their users.

Critics have said the acts protections are too broad and protect obviously illicit content from takedowns. Free speech advocates say it is wrong to hold platforms liable for postings made by third parties.

US courts have previously interpreted Section 230 broadly, holding that it also protects automatic recommendations made by social media algorithms.

In Thursdays decision, the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, a US citizen killed by terrorists, was suing Google by claiming the Big Tech company had hosted Isis propaganda videos and shared advertising proceeds with the organisation through YouTubes revenue sharing system.

The 23-year-old design student was murdered in a Paris attack in 2015.

Summarising Miss Gonzalezs familys case, the Supreme Court said: All of their claims broadly centre on the use of YouTube, which Google owns and operates, by Isis and Isis supporters."

In dismissing the case, judges referred to a near-identical lawsuit brought against Twitter which was also thrown out on Thursday, saying it was too tangential to proceed.

They added: We therefore decline to address the application of Section 230 that appears to state little, if any, plausible claim for relief.

Democrat senator Mark Warner of Virginia introduced a bill earlier this year which he said would force social media companies to take liability for harmful scams, harassment and violent extremism that runs rampant across their platforms.

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(Bloomberg) -- The US Treasury Department hired two economists to study the effects and unintended consequences of sanctions, the financial tools that have come to play a central role in US foreign policy.

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The Sanctions Economic Analysis Unit will research the collateral damage of sanctions before theyre imposed, and after theyve been put in place to see if they should be adjusted. Treasury announced last September it was creating the new positions.

The chief sanctions economist will be Rachel Lyngaas, who previously served as an economist with the International Monetary Fund. Her deputy will be Leena Bhatnagar, a Treasury staffer has worked on US policy toward Asia. More hiring is expected, with two job openings posted.

Earlier: Now Hiring: US Seeks Economist to Scrutinize Sanction Spillovers

The US has vastly expanded the use of sanctions since the Sept. 11 attacks, and Russias invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 prompted a massive campaign of financial punishments as the US and its allies sought to constrain President Vladimir Putins ability to finance the war.

Some researchers argue that sanctions are overused, difficult to manage and almost impossible to remove once put in place. A recent report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research focused on the human costs of sanctions, finding that they make living conditions far worse in target countries.

Brian Nelson, the Treasury under secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said the department was committed to studying the consequences of sanctions on their targets as well as their effects on partners and allies.

How you identify and then are able to mitigate those consequences in advance is important, Nelson told a conference in Washington. Did the sanction actually achieve the result that we were seeking?

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2023 Bloomberg L.P.
If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. In light of that, when we looked at Breville Group (ASX:BRG) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. The formula for this calculation on Breville Group is:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT)  (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.15 = AU$165m  (AU$1.5b - AU$453m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2022).

Therefore, Breville Group has an ROCE of 15%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 11% generated by the Consumer Durables industry.

View our latest analysis for Breville Group

roce

While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you'd like to look at how Breville Group has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What Does the ROCE Trend For Breville Group Tell Us?

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at Breville Group doesn't inspire confidence. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 15% from 30% five years ago. On the other hand, the company has been employing more capital without a corresponding improvement in sales in the last year, which could suggest these investments are longer term plays. It's worth keeping an eye on the company's earnings from here on to see if these investments do end up contributing to the bottom line.

On a side note, Breville Group has done well to pay down its current liabilities to 30% of total assets. That could partly explain why the ROCE has dropped. What's more, this can reduce some aspects of risk to the business because now the company's suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of its operations. Since the business is basically funding more of its operations with it's own money, you could argue this has made the business less efficient at generating ROCE.

The Bottom Line

In summary, Breville Group is reinvesting funds back into the business for growth but unfortunately it looks like sales haven't increased much just yet. Although the market must be expecting these trends to improve because the stock has gained 89% over the last five years. However, unless these underlying trends turn more positive, we wouldn't get our hopes up too high.

One more thing: We've identified 2 warning signs with Breville Group (at least 1 which is concerning) , and understanding them would certainly be useful.

While Breville Group isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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A Haven for Exclusivity Seekers and Urban Escapists

LONDON, May 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Reopening for the season on Friday 19th May, Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa is inviting guests to bask in spiritual solace and serene seclusion in the Dodecanese's most unspoilt island, Patmos. Known as the 'sacred' island, where Saint John wrote the Book of Revelation, Patmos has long drawn an international and jet-set crowd looking to experience Greece at its most authentic. Enveloped by an abundance of natural beauty, the resort boasts a prime location in Grikos Bay, evoking a sense of peace and tranquillity. Each summer exclusivity seekers and urban escapists flock to the bay's crystal-clear waters to recharge the spirit and mind in the most picturesque of settings.

Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa

A haven for cultured explorers, Patmos Aktis is a secluded, contemporary retreat inspired by the island's authentic heritage and rich history. Encouraging guests to disconnect from the stresses of everyday by reconnecting with nature, the resort provides direct access to the bay's lapping waves which mirror a nest of beauty, comprised of golden sands and wild flora. Rooms and suites effortlessly combine an array of volumes, materials, and textures, providing a sanctuary to switch off from the outside world, whilst the resort's exterior pays homage to the island's charming villages through its Cycladic design and whitewashed walls. An intimate setting to unwind within, guests can bathe in the Grecian sun by the pool, or from the seclusion of the suite's expansive terraces, lounge on plush sunbeds peppered along the shoreline or indulge in rejuvenating treatments at ANASA Spa.

At the resort's two Mediterranean restaurants local flavours reign supreme and can be enjoyed from a waterfront setting whilst watching the sun set beyond the Aegean. For those looking to head out and explore all that Patmos is famed for, the resort offers an array of exclusive experiences. Uncover the island's numerous unspoilt beaches, from Lampi with its green and tawny pebbles to cosmopolitan Kambos and its clean, shallow waters. Seaside shacks embellish the shore, serving up traditional fare and freshly caught seafood, whilst towards the centre of the island guests can venture through Chora, the culture-filled capital home to a spirited nightlife and streets lined with bustling boutiques.

Accessible only by boat and five islands away from the nearest airport, it's no wonder Patmos has become a coveted destination amongst the yacht-set and A-list. Boasting the beauty of Greece's more popular islands, but without the throngs of tourists, it's retained its mystical and spiritual energy, allowing visitors to escape the outside world by reconnecting with Patmos in its purest form. A destination to enjoy solo, with a loved one or as a group, the island is an idyllic alternative for those seeking a Grecian getaway this season and Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa the perfect base to explore from within.

The quickest way to get to Patmos from the UK is to fly to Kos and then board a ferry direct to the island. Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa will reopen on 19th May, to book and for more information, visit: https://www.patmosaktis.gr/

For image enquiries and press visit requests, please contact the team at Fox Communications

patmosaktis@foxcomms.com

0203 405 9370

www.foxcomms.com

About Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa

Set within the picturesque Grikos Bay, Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa is a five-star all-suite beachfront resort inviting guests to experience the island's storied past, unspoilt beaches and heartfelt hospitality. Designed to frame mesmerising views of the glistening Aegean and mountainous terrains, 56 spacious suites are complete with traditional accents and modern furnishings, 26 of which boast private swimming pools with expansive terraces. The cosmopolitan Greek haven is also home to two waterfront restaurants which serve gastronomic creations ranging from traditional Greek recipes to contemporary international dishes in a tranquil setting overlooking the sea. The only 5-star wellness centre in Patmos, Anasa Spa provides a bespoke approach to wellbeing with an exceptional range of treatments offered by award-winning holistic skincare brand "Ila" to rejuvenate the body and mind. Just over a 10-minute drive from the island's main historic village of Chora, home to monasteries, museums and an animated nightlife, Patmos Aktis is perfectly positioned to explore the copious cultural treasures, scenic landscapes and day-to-night lifestyle the island and nearby islets have to offer.

For more information visit www.patmosaktis.gr

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2080485/Patmos_Aktis_Suites_Spa.jpg

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SOURCE Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa
Manulife Financial Corporation (TSE:MFC) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be one business day before the record date which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. This means that investors who purchase Manulife Financial's shares on or after the 23rd of May will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 19th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be CA$0.36 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of CA$1.46 per share. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Manulife Financial has a trailing yield of 5.6% on the current share price of CA$26.01. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.

See our latest analysis for Manulife Financial

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. Manulife Financial paid out a comfortable 27% of its profit last year.

Generally speaking, the lower a company's payout ratios, the more resilient its dividend usually is.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. It's encouraging to see Manulife Financial has grown its earnings rapidly, up 40% a year for the past five years.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Manulife Financial has delivered 11% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. It's exciting to see that both earnings and dividends per share have grown rapidly over the past few years.

To Sum It Up

Should investors buy Manulife Financial for the upcoming dividend? When companies are growing rapidly and retaining a majority of the profits within the business, it's usually a sign that reinvesting earnings creates more value than paying dividends to shareholders. This is one of the most attractive investment combinations under this analysis, as it can create substantial value for investors over the long run. Overall, Manulife Financial looks like a promising dividend stock in this analysis, and we think it would be worth investigating further.

So while Manulife Financial looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Our analysis shows 1 warning sign for Manulife Financial and you should be aware of it before buying any shares.

Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.

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Judge not inclined to shut down pipeline, pleads with Wisconsin tribe to work with oil company

FILE - Pipeline used to carry crude oil sits at the Superior, Wis., terminal of Enbridge Energy, June 29, 2018. Attorneys for a Wisconsin Native American tribe are set to argue Thursday, May 18, 2023, that a federal judge should order an energy company to shut down an oil pipeline the tribe says is at immediate risk of being exposed by erosion and rupturing on reservation land. (AP Photo/Jim Mone, File)

MADISON, Wis. (AP)  A federal judge said Thursday he is unlikely to force an energy company to shut down an oil pipeline in northern Wisconsin, despite arguments from a Native American tribe that the line is at immediate risk of being exposed by erosion and rupturing on reservation land.

U.S. District Judge William Conley said the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa didn't prove that an emergency exists along a stretch of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline where large sections of nearby riverbank have been washed away in recent weeks. Conley also expressed frustration with the tribe for not allowing Enbridge to reinforce the land around the pipeline.

The band has not helped itself by refusing to take any steps to prevent a catastrophic failure at the meander, Conley said. You havent even allowed simple steps that would have prevented some of this erosion.

The tribe says less than 15 feet (4.6 meters) of land now stands between the Bad River and Line 5 along a meander on the reservation. In some places, more than 20 feet (6 meters) of riverbank has eroded in the past month alone. Experts and environmental advocates have warned in court that an exposed section of pipeline would be weakened and could rupture at any time, causing massive oil spills.

Enbridge has repeatedly asked the tribe for permission to place sandbags along the riverbank to prevent erosion. It also requested a permit Monday to install barricades made of trees to protect the pipeline.

Tribal officials have not approved any of the companys requests.

Conley said the tribes inaction undermined its repeated claims that the pipeline must be shut down.

It looks like a strategy, even if its just idiocy, he said. Im begging the band to just act. Do something to show youre acting in good faith.

Conley planned to issue a ruling in the next two weeks explaining what conditions would have to be met for him to order a shutdown.

Theres going to come a time when there will be an imminent risk that will require me to step in," he said.

The Bad River tribe sued Enbridge in 2019 to force the company to remove the roughly 12-mile (19-kilometer) section of Line 5 that crosses tribal lands, saying the 70-year-old pipeline is dangerous and that land agreements allowing Enbridge to operate on the reservation expired in 2013.

Conley sided with the tribe in September, saying Enbridge was trespassing on the reservation and must compensate the tribe for illegally using its land. But he would not order Enbridge to remove the pipeline due to concerns about what a shutdown might do to the Great Lakes region's economy.

Instead, Conley told Enbridge and tribal leaders in November to create an emergency shutoff plan. His ruling said there was a significant risk the pipeline could burst and cause catastrophic damage to the reservation and its water supply.

Line 5 transports up to 23 million gallons (about 87 million liters) of oil and liquid natural gas each day and stretches 645 miles (1,038 kilometers) from the city of Superior through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario. If the pipeline were shut down, gas prices would likely increase, refineries would close, workers would be laid off and the upper Midwest could see years of propane shortages, according to reports Enbridge submitted in court.

Enbridge has proposed a 41-mile (66-kilometer) reroute of the pipeline to end its dispute with the tribe and said in court filings that the project would take less than six years to complete. But the tribe has not granted the permits Enbridge needs to begin construction. A draft analysis of the projects environmental impact submitted in December 2021 received thousands of public comments, with many criticizing the report as insufficient. The company is still responding to the tribe's requests for more information.

Line 5 has also faced resistance in Michigan, where Enbridge wants to drill a new tunnel under a strait connecting two of the Great Lakes. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel have sought to shut down the pipeline. Nessel filed a brief Wednesday in support of the tribes request, saying a rupture in Wisconsin would also cause environmental damage in Michigan.

___

Harm Venhuizen is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Harm on Twitter.
(Bloomberg) -- President Xi Jinping will seek to deepen Beijings influence in Central Asia at a major summit, reminding a parallel Group of Seven conclave of Chinas sway outside the US-led world order.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The two-day China-Central Asia Summit will assemble the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan from Thursday in the Chinese city of Xian. Trade ties and regional security concerns will likely dominate talks at the inaugural in-person meeting, along with Russias war in Ukraine.

Xi is expected to deliver a keynote speech at the summit announcing new measures for cooperation between the six nations, state media reported citing an official from Chinas Foreign Ministry. Footage of traditional performers greeting each leader in Xian received prominent coverage on state television Thursday.

The summit unfolds in a split screen with President Joe Bidens effort with G-7 leaders in Japan this week to hammer out a unified response to Chinese economic coercion. As China finds itself increasingly isolated within the US-led system, the two meetings symbolize the calcification of a multipolar world in which Global South nations are being courted as important strategic partners.

While Russia and China are united in their mission to counter the US, Xis decision to assemble five former Soviet states without President Vladimir Putin demonstrates Beijings increasingly senior position in their no limits relationship. Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has become reliant on China to provide both economic cover from Western sanctions and much-needed diplomatic support.

The Russians have accepted to some degree they cannot compete with China, said Raffaello Pantucci, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. The two see themselves increasingly reshaping the world order together.

As Xi tries to reorient global affairs away from Western groupings, Pantucci says hes creating more China-centric structures. Beijing is trying to offer an alternative to the Western defined post-World War II order, which the G-7 in many ways represents, he added.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year deepened a tussle for influence in the resource-rich Central Asian states, which were already on a trajectory of economic realignment toward China.

Beijing has since coupled investment in energy, pipelines, power stations, roads and railways with top-level diplomatic exchanges. Xi chose to reemerge on the global stage from three years of Covid isolation in Kazakhstan last September, attending his first in-person summit in years in neighboring Uzbekistan days later.

That defied expectations his first international trip would be a Group of Twenty conclave in Bali. Chinese leaders will meet Central Asian counterparts at three major summits this year, at least.

The US and European Union have also stepped up their outreach. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan earlier this year, while EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell went to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in November. Last month, US and EU officials made a joint trip to Kazakhstan, offering help to minimize any economic impact of averting sanctions evasion by Russia.

While the former Soviet states have avoided backing Russias war  a move that would anger Western partners  their economic incentive remains with their neighbors. Last year, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan each did more trade with China than with either Russia or the G-7 bloc, according to the International Monetary Fund. Chinese imports from the region are mostly commodities, including cotton, oil, natural gas and copper, according to official trade data.

China knows that Russia is no longer in a position to provide anything that Central Asia desires: be that international prestige, economic cooperation or security cooperation, said Niva Yau, nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Councils Global China Hub. Working with China is still a preference.

Still, Moscow remains an important player in the region. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are part of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union free-trade zone. They and Tajikistan are also members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization with Russia, Armenia and Belarus, a defense alliance that Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called upon for military aid to help him crush violent unrest in January last year.

The summit also comes at a slightly awkward moment for Xi. Last month, Chinas ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, questioned the independence of ex-Soviet states during an interview with a local broadcaster. While Beijing said those remarks were the envoys personal views, Lu has not been recalled.

Xi will also likely use the meeting to bolster his flagship Belt and Road Initiative, which was dealt a blow this month when Italy signaled it intends to exit the investment pact this year. Three Baltic states have already quit what was the so-called 17+1 eastern European framework with China, weakening another grouping Beijing had created to counter US global influence.

Chinas military aggression toward Taiwan  a self-ruled island Xi has vowed to control, by force if necessary  and ambivalence over Russias invasion, have triggered a rethink in Europe on relations with the worlds second-largest economy.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin will next week lead a delegation to a Shanghai business forum, which has also invited a group of sanctioned tycoons, exemplifying how China can shelter Moscow from Western economic sanctions.

Global Influence

As the tussle for global influence intensifies, G-7 leaders in Japan this week are preparing to embark on a battle of offers with Beijing and Moscow, according to people familiar with the discussions and documents seen by Bloomberg News.

While the EU and US say they are derisking not decoupling from China, such increased competition looks set to bind Beijing and Moscow more tightly  with Xi as the stronger partner. That means the Chinese leaders huddle with Putins former Soviet partners is unlikely to cause any rupture with the Kremlin.

China is seen as a friendly partner where there is competition, but that doesnt get out of control, said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center.

I dont expect Central Asia to provide any meaningful cracks in the deepening China-Russia axis thats increasingly asymmetrical and dominated by Beijing, which has so much leverage.

--With assistance from Lucille Liu, James Mayger and Francesca Stevens.

(Updates with arrival of leaders and President Xi Jinpings expected speech in third paragraph.)

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(Bloomberg) -- US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told top bank executives Thursday that a failure to raise the debt ceiling would be catastrophic for the financial system, reiterating that the matter should be addressed without delay.

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Yellen discussed the urgent need for Congress to address the debt limit and underscored the real and severe consequences of default for the banking system and the domestic and global economy, the Treasury said in a statement following Yellens meeting with more than two dozen chief executive officers and other executives convened by the Bank Policy Institute.

The session was scheduled to include JPMorgan Chase & Co.s Jamie Dimon, Citigroup Inc.s Jane Fraser and Bank of America Corp.s Brian Moynihan. On Wednesday, top bankers met with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other lawmakers, in the midst of intensifying talks on addressing the debt limit.

Read More: Heres the Emerging Debt-Limit Deal as Talks Go Down to The Wire

During Thursdays meeting, Yellen also discussed recent financial sector troubles and the action taken by regulators following the failures of several regional banks over the past two months.

Yellen reaffirmed the strength and soundness of the US financial system and made clear that the Treasury continues to closely monitor conditions across the banking sector, the Treasury said.

--With assistance from Jenny Surane and Katherine Doherty.

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(Bloomberg) -- Wall Street has accepted that derivatives trading will never be the same after the frenzy for fast-twitch stock options took hold. What it next has to absorb: The equity market itself is threatening to go the same way.

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Evidence is starting to stack up that the craze for so-called zero-day contracts, known as 0DTE, is altering how underlying assets behave. The idea is that the surge in trading of these tools  essentially side bets  has become so big that its affecting the broader market.

Just this week, JPMorgan Chase & Co. argued the push-pull between ultra-short bets and longer-dated options may be damping day-to-day swings in the S&P 500, which has seen moves of below 1% in all but six of the past 32 sessions. But academic research shows the 0DTE dynamic may be more complex and less benign than that suggests.

A new study from the University of Utah has found that 0DTE trading is actually making Americas benchmark gauge more volatile on an intraday basis. In other words, investors are seeing more swings minute to minute, even as the gauge makes little progress from one day to the next.

The paper, titled How Does Zero-Day-to-Expiry Options Trading Affect the Volatility of Underlying Assets?, found that a one standard-deviation increase in the traded volume of 0DTE options led to a jump of almost 14% in the S&P 500s daily volatility.

The results add a new twist to an intense Wall Street debate over whether uptake of the options has the potential to destabilize the $44 trillion American equity landscape. Analysts such as JPMorgan quant guru Marko Kolanovic warn their popularity risks reprising past disasters such as the 2018 Volmageddon episode, while others see just another example of doomsayers stirring up fear over the latest market evolution.

Im leaning in team Volmageddon, Jonathan Brogaard, who co-authored the paper with Jaehee Han and Peter Young Won, said in an interview. The study was partly aimed to give regulators some empirical evidence on whether or not this is something that should be on their plate of concern. And given our results, they should be thinking about it, he said.

How derivatives markets interact with their underlying asset is the subject of extensive academic scrutiny. A pillar of the 2021 meme-stock craze was the belief that large-scale purchases of bullish options for certain shares could be used to trigger actions among market makers that would turn small gains into big ones.

The latest 0DTE rage involves the S&P 500. Thanks to an expansion of expiration days at exchanges such as Cboe Global Markets Inc., transactions in the derivatives ballooned last year, tripling to 23 million a month. Now they make up more than 40% of the total options volume for the benchmark gauge.

At first blush, the University of Utah study seems contrary to the JPMorgan analysis, which suggested 0DTE options have contributed to muted volatility of late. But the bank also said these contracts appeared to make the broad market more susceptible to intraday turnarounds, or in Wall Streets parlance, mean reversion. That would fit with a pattern of amplified intraday gyrations  with gains or losses often reversing  that lead to subdued moves on a close-to-close basis.

My interpretation is that what they find is actually consistent with our results, Brogaard said.

The Utah team examined volatility at five-minute intervals in the S&P 500 for each day in the past decade, looking for evidence that higher volume in 0DTE options lined up with turbulence in the market. They found that when users rushed into zero-day contracts, swings in the underlying index were wider. In fact, these ultra short-dated options explained  and predicted  market volatility better than contracts with longer shelf lives.

The magnitude of the impact was 58% stronger during morning sessions than in afternoons. The researchers hypothesized this was because there tend to be greater opportunities for speculative trading earlier in the day  major economic data are typically released around the market open, for example.

To be sure, options volume tends to spike during market turmoil and forces such as policy moves can trigger price swings too. As a way to control for whats known as reverse causality and to mute the influence from other factors, the team also used 0DTE activity with a one-week lag as one of its variables. The approach yielded similar results.

Investors of all stripes have flocked to zero-day options seeking a speedy way to either hedge or make money. The mass dash in and out of contracts is at times believed to have spurred intraday equity reversals, causing headaches for anyone seeking to get a clear read on the markets macro message.

Employing a method known as the variance ratio test, the Utah researchers looked into whether the market was becoming less efficient because of 0DTE options  and found reasons for concern.

0DTE options may attract short-term traders who are more likely to engage in speculative trading activities and noise trading, the trio wrote. Such traders may introduce more noise into the market, leading to less informative prices and lower price efficiency.

There are plenty of market watchers who take a more benign view of the 0DTE phenomenon. Nitin Saksena, Bank of America Corp.s derivatives strategist, has published numerous reports in recent months saying that the warning over Volmageddon 2.0 is overblown.

If zero-day options were as dangerous as feared, he argues, the market would have shown a strong intraday pattern of trend following  where selling begets selling.

In recent years, the S&P 500s performance in the previous five minutes has shown little relationship to where its heading. In fact, its almost a coin-toss, meaning the market has an equal chance of rising or falling next. During the 0DTE era, that pattern has stayed the same.

You would expect that relationship to be out of line or off the chart if the space was really creating problems, Saksena said in an interview. There is not an obvious smoking gun here.

The divergent views on 0DTE remind Brogaard of high frequency trading, another area of controversy that he stepped into during his early research years.

It is never going be everyone, every study. But youll start to get more and more on one side than the other. So this is just part of the process, he said. There will be mixed results on this for the next three years.

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All three hospitals in the Fredericksburg area received a C grade in the latest report card from a national nonprofit that measures patient safety.

But across the nation, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a decline in patient safety and an increase in HAIs, or health care-associated infections, according to The Leapfrog Group. HAIs are infections patients get while being treated for other conditions.

Leapfrog gave Mary Washington Hospital, Stafford Hospital and Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center some worse-than-average scores in all five aspects of patient care evaluated.

The categories range from the number of infections to problems after surgery; safety issues such as patient falls; practices to prevent errors, including communication about medicine or discharge instructions; and the number of hospital staff.

Leapfrog released its spring 2023 Hospital Safety Grade data earlier this month and gave Mary Washington Hospital worse-than-average ratings for all six types of health care-associated infections.

Stafford Hospital had one worse-than-average rating for infections. However, it and Spotsylvania Regional, which had two worse-than-average ratings for infections, didnt have data available on MRSA. Thats a staph infection caused by a superbug and highly resistant to antibiotics.

MRSA can be found on bed linens and medical equipment and can be transferred if doctors and nurses dont wash their hands thoroughly between patients, according to Leapfrog.

Not having data available doesnt mean the hospital is hiding information, Leapfrog stated. Instead, the measure may be related to a service the hospital doesnt provide or if it had too few cases to report a particular condition.

But there was enough data from hospitals nationwide to show that health care-associated infections spiked to a five-year high during COVID-19 and remain high, according to Leapfrog. The most recent report card covers late 2021 and 2022.

The dramatic rise in infections should stop hospitals in their tracks  infections like these can be life or death for some patients, said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. We recognize the tremendous strain the pandemic put on hospitals and their workforce, but alarming findings like these indicate hospitals must recommit to patient safety and build more resilience.

Mary Washington Healthcare is reviewing the data, preparing for our next submission of data and creating action plans to address any opportunities, said Emily Thurston, marketing director.

Leapfrog gives out grades twice a year, in the spring and fall. Since 2020, Mary Washington Hospital has gotten all Cs. Stafford Hospital has had three Bs and three Cs in that timeframe, while Spotsylvania Regional had four Bs in 2020 and 2021, then an A and a C in 2022.

Mary Washington Hospital and Stafford Hospital are owned by Mary Washington Healthcare, while Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center is owned by HCA Healthcare Virginia.

Whenever a hospitals score drops during one of these independent evaluations, HCA reviews best practices, focuses on the fundamentals of patient safety and strives to improve, said Jeff Caldwell, associate vice president of communications for HCA Healthcare Capital Division.

We will review concerns raised in this report and focus on immediate and long-term improvements to address these items, he said.

Leapfrog looks at 32 measurements that are part of a hospitals performance or are reported by patients. Stafford Hospital received more better-than-average rankings, or 19, followed closely by Spotsylvania Regional, which had 17. Mary Washington had 12.

In addition to the higher incident of patient infections, Leapfrogs spring ratings found all five categories of measurements declined across the nation with this report card, compared to pre-pandemic numbers. More hospitals received C grades than any other, according to Leapfrog.

Nationwide, 29% of hospitals got an A; 26% got a B; 39% got a C; 6% got a D; and less than 1% got an F.

Virginia ranked ninth in the nation for having the highest percentage of A hospitals, according to Leapfrog.

More information about Leapfrogs safety grade, including a look at how hospitals in the state and nation performed, is available online at hospitalsafetygrade.org.
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James Antonio Johnson died April 15 following a traffic accident in King George County.

Some of his family members say thats the only thing they know for certain at this point, and they are frustrated that things remain unclear one month later.

We dont know if he died because of the accident, if he was murdered or something else, said Anita Holton, Johnsons biological aunt who raised him as a son in Maryland. Weve heard a lot of rumors, but nothing that weve heard makes any real sense.

King George Sheriffs 1st Sgt. Kecia Wharton said the wreck occurred shortly after 6:30 p.m. in the area of Millbank Road and Sawmist Lane in King George, not far from the home where the 37-year-old Johnson had been staying. Wharton said multiple people at the scene were suffering from injuries when deputies arrived, and CPR was performed on Johnson until rescue workers arrived. Johnson was later pronounced dead.

Wharton said the case is being investigated and that she was not at liberty to release any other information.

Johnsons family found an affidavit for a search warrant in his car after it was towed from the crash scene and shared it with The Free LanceStar. The affidavit states that when deputies arrived, Johnson was on the ground being restrained by another man. When a deputy separated the two men, Johnson was unresponsive.

The affidavit, written by Detective D.S. Maupin, states that police believe Johnson was under the influence of narcotics when his blue 1998 Lexus ran off the road and crashed in a wooded area. Marijuana and a bottle of PCP were recovered from the car, court records state, and two baggies of white powder were found in the victims pocket.

Keishawn Holton, Johnsons sister, said she was told by a county woman that her brother was killed because he bit a young child whose finger was severed.

Wed like to know exactly what is being investigated, Keishawn Holton wrote in an email. From the documents found in his car, it looked like they were investigating James, not his death.

Wharton said police understand the family members concerns, but want to do a thorough investigation and not release information prematurely. That includes waiting on reports from the medical examiner and the state lab.

Anita Holton said that although her nephew wasnt perfect, he was very loved and would never intentionally hurt a child. She said Johnson has four sons of his own.

Even if he was on drugs, he still didnt deserve to have his life taken, she said. If he was murdered, we want [the killer] prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. If it was something else, just let us know so we can have closure.

Holton said there was clearly more going on than a simple car accident. Right now, nothing makes sense and I just want it to make sense, Holton said.
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In a classroom at the John J. Wright Center, teacher Travis Richardson and assistant principal Marlena Galimore talked with a small group of students about proper interview attire.

You want to make sure youre presentable and your clothes are clean, Galimore said.

But what if youre poor? asked one of the students, who all attend Spotsylvania County Public Schools alternative education program at the Wright Center.

Richardson said he has taken students shopping for suits at Walmart in the past and Galimore said she keeps a set of ties in her office.

There are a lot of organizations in the county that will help you, Galimore said. Weve got you.

Wednesday was Career Day for the alternative education students and was the culminating event in a yearlong career exploration program established by math teacher Catherine Brown.

Brown wrote a proposal for a $1,200 grant from the Spotsylvania Education Foundation to start the program and was awarded the funding in September.

The goal is for our students, in particular, to get ideas of careers, not jobs, Brown said. It came up that Id talk to them and ask, Do you have plans for after you graduate? And they dont. They just want to graduate from high school, but they have had no opportunities to learn what options are available to them after high school.

The students in the alternative education program were referred there following disciplinary infractions or by the courts. Brown said she wants her students to know that any mistakes they may have made do not need to hold them back.

The grant has funded off-campus field trips for the students each quarter. They visited the Luck Stone plant in Spotsylvania and the Germanna Center for Advanced Technology, which offers credential programs, apprenticeship training and support services in high-demand career fields such as asphalt paving, heavy machinery, solar panel installation, welding, HVAC and construction management.

They visited Faded and Company, a barber shop and school owned by Spencer Antoine Carey. Carey, who is also an author and public speaker, obtained his barbering license while in prison and is committed to sharing his story in an effort to combat recidivism and break generational cycles of incarceration.

Brown said some of the students read Careys book For Whom Much is Given and that they are able to relate to him because of his personal experience.

He puts out there that he is accountable for his actions, Brown said. Thats something that our students are still processing.

After each field trip, the students and teachers have gone out for lunch at Kickback Jacks restaurant to give the students a chance to experience how having a job that makes good money will enable them to reward themselves.

Theyve been a great partner, Brown said of the restaurant.

Also as part of the program this year, students heard a presentation about careers available in the Spotsylvania fire and emergency management departments.

Our kids would be great at a job like that, Brown said. Theyre fit and theyre strong emotionally. When I think about some of the things theyve gone through, I can see a lot of compassion in them.

At Wednesdays Career Day event, recruiters from the Army and Marine Corps visited to talk to the students about careers available in the armed forces.

They also had a chance to participate in mock interviews and practice filling out job applications, and they learned about career resources available through Spotsylvania County Public Schools.

Brown, who has worked for the division for seven years, said there are many resources within the county that she was not aware of before this year.

We have so much to offer [the kids], she said. Everything weve done has opened their eyes to the idea that, I can have a job and make good money here. Nothing is holding me back.
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Local and state law enforcement officers responded Wednesday to a written threat discovered at James Monroe High School in Fredericksburg.

The threat was discovered about 2 p.m. and law enforcement was immediately notified, according to an email sent by the school division to the school community later that afternoon.

The authorities were immediately notified and quickly responded to the scene, according to the email. FCPS and law enforcement teams jointly assessed the situation and determined it was not a credible threat; however, the matter was treated seriously.

Students and staff were evacuated and later reentered the building after it was deemed safe by law enforcement on the scene, which included the Fredericksburg Police and Sheriffs Office and Virginia State Police.

The email did not provide details about the nature of the threat or where it was written, due to an ongoing investigation.

We can confirm that all students and staff are safe, the email stated.

Division Superintendent Marci Catlett and deputy superintendent Matt Eberhardt greeted students and parents at James Monroe High School on Thursday morning and said the atmosphere was calm.

Last fall, James Monroe High School was evacuated multiple times in a two-week period after bomb threats were discovered written on a bathroom wall, and WalkerGrant Middle School also closed for one day in December so authorities could investigate a similar threat.
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Three Richmond area residents were arrested on multiple fraud-related charges Tuesday in Stafford after a 23-year-old suspect tried to pass herself off as a 52-year-old woman, police said.

According to Sheriffs spokesman Ryan Wilbur, deputies went to the Navy Federal Credit Union at 100 Corporate Drive for a report of a fraud in progress. Wilbur said the staff reported that they suspected a woman in her 20s was pretending to be an older woman to cash a check. Police learned that the same suspect had earlier tried to fraudulently use a credit card at a Navy Federal in Prince William.

The woman got into a vehicle that left the scene just as deputies were arriving, Wilbur said. Deputies made a traffic stop and the ensuing investigation showed that the three occupants all appeared to be involved in multiple credit card thefts. The woman who had been in the Stafford Navy Federal had a forged check with an amount of $8,350, police said.

Aubrey R. Alston, 30, and Jonathan H. Gregory II, 28, both of Richmond, and Nyasia M. Berry, 23, of North Chesterfield, were all charged with multiple charges that include credit card theft, forgery, obtaining money by false pretenses, identity theft and conspiracy.

Preliminary hearings for all three are scheduled for June 27 in Stafford General District Court. Wilbur said Stafford detectives are working with their counterparts in Prince William and more charges are pending.
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Two Orange County residents were killed this week in separate crashes, according to Virginia State Police.

The most recent crash occurred Tuesday at 2:11 p.m. on State Route 522 in Orange, just north of State Route 701. State police Sgt. Brent Coffey said 68-year-old John J. ODonnell Jr. of Locust Grove was heading north in a 2019 GMC Yukon when the vehicle crossed the centerline and collided head-on with a southbound 2021 Freightliner tractor-trailer.

Police said ODonnell died at the scene. The truck driver, a 31-year-old North Chesterfield man, suffered minor injuries in the crash and was taken to Mary Washington Hospital for treatment.

Coffey said the crash shut down Route 522 for about 10 hours. It remains under investigation.

On Monday, a Burr Hill woman died in a single-vehicle crash on State Route 686 in Culpeper County. Coffey said that Cecelia A. Frye, 69, was heading east, just west of Route 522, when her 2001 Ford Focus ran off the right side of the road and overcorrected before crossing the centerline. The car then ran off the left side of the road and overturned.

Frye died at the scene, police said.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at a meeting with computer chip makers has stressed that investment and international exchanges to strengthen the supply chain were welcome. A recent shortage of chips was a sore point for Japans manufacturers when the pandemic became a wake-up call that solid access to production must be ensured. Computer chips are used in an array of products, and next-generation chips are going to be crucial for artificial intelligence and other advanced technology. Japan is eager to strengthen its domestic chip production. Analysts say the uncertain future of U.S.-China relations also could put supplies from China at risk. Japan's trade minister said executives at the meeting Thursday responded positively.
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Alexander Hernandez, who stabbed to death a 4-month-old baby with at least 20 blows in January 2021, was ruled a danger to himself and society during a court hearing on Wednesday, May 17.

Dodge County District Court Judge Geoffrey Hall agreed with a risk assessment done by a state criminal psychologist who found Hernandez still suffered from several mental illnesses and mental health issues and posed a high risk of violence.

For future violence (possibility), I rated him as high risk, said Dr. Jennifer Cimpl-Bohn, a psychologist with the Nebraska Regional Center who did the risk of danger assessment on Hernandez. I recommend the Lincoln Regional Center for inpatient psychiatric treatment.

Hernandez, 21, will now await transfer to the Lincoln Regional Center, a secure, prison-like psychiatric hospital in Lincoln. He will first undergo a 90-day mental illness assessment at the facility before doctors are expected to develop a treatment plan for him.

Hernandez has been incarcerated in the Saunders County Jail since early January 2021 after he was alleged to have killed his own 4-month-old cousin on Jan. 8, 2021. The infant, whom the Fremont Tribune is not identifying by name, was being cared for by Hernandezs two parents while her own parents were seeking treatment for substance abuse issues.

The death of the infant came, according to testimony from Hernandezs two parents in February, after their son suffered six to eight months of severe mental health decline they claim was a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On March 17, weeks after a February 2023 hearing during which evidence was presented by both the prosecuting team and Hernandezs defense attorney, Hernandez was acquitted on the grounds of insanity.

He had faced possible sentences adding up to more than 50 years in state prison if he had been found guilty of several crimes he was accused of.

On Wednesday, Hernandez appeared in the third floor courtroom clad in an orange jumpsuit and his hands securely locked to his hips with both a chain around his waist and handcuffs on each wrist.

Cimpl-Bohn, who has been a psychologist with the Nebraska Regional Center for more than 14 years, presented her analysis and assessment to the court via telephone testimony. She told the court she conducts risk of danger assessments on a weekly basis, and it is an area of expertise for her practice.

As part of the risk of danger assessment, Cimpl-Bohn told the court she had examined numerous police reports, medical records and the mental health history of Hernandez as well as reviewed his prior psychiatric assessments of him after his arrest that were conducted by other state criminal psychologists.

The assessment of the risk of danger to himself or others also included a two-hour, in-person interview between Cimpl-Bohn and Hernandez, during which a second state criminal psychologist was present.

Nebraska Attorney Generals Office prosecuting attorney Corey OBrien posed numerous questions to Cimpl-Bohn during Wednesdays hearing, seeking information from her about Hernandezs current condition as well as if he was a danger to himself or others.

Cimpl-Bohn said Hernandez, in her medical opinion, still suffered from schizo-affective disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and offered a new diagnosis not reported in past testimony: that Hernandez also suffered from cannabis abuse disorder.

(Hernandez) was psychotic at the time of the (infants) death. At the time, he suffered from command auditory and hallucinatory delusions and feared death from the FBI or cartel figures, Cimpl-Bohn said. (He) said he had a significant history of cannabis use.

Cimpl-Bohn also testified that Hernandez had admitted to her he had an extensive and years-long personal history of illegal substance use, including having taken cocaine, LSD and smoked cannabis daily since he was an early teen. She said he claimed to binge drink alcohol on weekends, but had stopped using marijuana six months before he killed his cousin.

At that time, (Hernandez) said he realized the marijuana use was exacerbating his hallucinations, Cimpl-Bohn added, in explaining why he had stopped using the drug in the summer of 2020.

In the more than two years Hernandez has been jailed at the Saunders County Jail, Cimpl-Bohn said weekly therapy sessions as well as a medication plan of Prozac and a drug called Abilify have helped Hernandez improve his mental health, but he was still suffering from delusions, hallucinations and had reportedly planned to possibly kill his cellmate in February.

Cimpl-Bohn said on April 14, jail staff had compiled a report detailing a psychotic episode Hernandez engaged in during which he was alleged to have suffered from paranoid ideations, hallucinations and also told jail officials that officers from the FBI were secretly living in the jail and monitoring his thoughts and actions.

In February, Saunders County Jail staff told Cimpl-Bohn that Hernandez had begun to have ideations of allegedly wanting to possibly kill his cellmate.

(Hernandez) reported to jail staff that he was having vague thoughts of harming his cellmate, she noted.

When OBrien asked Cimpl-Bohn if Hernandez was a danger to himself or other people in wider society, she replied, yes.

Cimpl-Bohn said factors she used in making the determination were the fact Hernandez had stabbed to death a helpless infant; his admitted addiction to cannabis and other substance abuse; a lack of education due to severe truancy during his high school years; psychosis that led to violent ideations and thoughts; as well as a very limited understanding of mental illness or the conditions he suffers from.

Following Cimpl-Bohns testimony, OBrien asked Hall to follow the state law and precedents from other similar cases, and asked that he rule that Hernandez was a danger to society and himself now and likely in the future until he is fully cured of his mental illnesses.

Omaha-based defense lawyer Chinedu Igbokwe who represents Hernandez, said while he agreed with much of what OBrien and Cimpl-Bohn had reported to the court, he felt some of the claims of Hernandezs dangerousness were over-exaggerated.

I think the seriousness is being over-exaggerated, Igbokwe said of claims by OBrien and Cimpl-Bohn. I do believe he needs to go to the Lincoln Regional Health Center, but I dont think it is somewhere he needs to be a long time. I think he is trying to get better. He is being compliant. He has been engaged in the process.

Igbokwe also said that after successful treatment, and being possibly healed of his mental illnesses, at some point, Hernandez should be allowed to, go home.

I do conceive he should be sent to the Lincoln Regional Center. I dont believe there is overwhelming evidence he is a danger to himself or others, Igbokwe added. He stabbed a baby 20 times, but he did not conceal the crime and he did not lie.

After hearing all the statements, Hall issued his ruling, agreeing with all of Cimpl-Bohns assessments and recommendations for initial treatment.

I find there is clear evidence that the defendant, Alexander Hernandez, is currently a danger to himself and others. Furthermore, such danger is likely to continue into the future, Hall said.

Hall then ordered Hernandez to be remanded to the custody of the Lincoln Regional Center as soon as possible for an initial 90-day assessment. During the assessment, Hernandez is mandated to undergo more psychotherapy, more psychiatric examinations and assessments as well as have his medications reviewed and examined in event they need to be altered.

A hearing for an update on his 90-day session at the hospital was set for 2 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 9.
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Gov. Jim Pillen signed off Tuesday on eliminating basic-skills testing for new teachers, which many say is an unnecessary and burdensome requirement keeping educators out of the classroom.

Pillen announced Tuesday he would approve the repeal of Rule 23, which requires new teachers to take a basic-skills test before they can get their teaching certificate. The Nebraska State Board of Education already repealed the rule in March but was waiting on the governor's signature.

Pillen described repealing the requirement as an example of government getting out of the way.

"I call it cleaning the closets out," the governor said at a Tuesday news conference where he was joined by lawmakers and members of the Nebraska State Board of Education. "And I think today's conversation eliminates a big barrier."

Nebraska uses the Praxis Core test offered by the New Jersey-based Educational Testing Service. Teachers are tested on subjects including reading, writing and math.

Interim Education Commissioner Deborah Frison said the basic-skills test requirement was an "unnecessarily burdensome" regulation that served as a roadblock amid worsening teacher shortages.

In Nebraska, the number of positions that were either left vacant or filled by someone other than a fully qualified teacher rose from 482 to 768 at the start of the current school year, according to a fall survey of more than 400 public and private school districts.

A 2020 report prepared for the Nebraska Department of Education by the Johns Hopkins School of Education also showed there is no link between those who pass the test and teaching effectiveness.

The test is expensive to take, too: It costs $150 the first time and $90 for any subsequent attempts.

The Nebraska State Board of Education had previously discussed eliminating the test before the pandemic but didn't go through with it because then-Gov. Pete Ricketts said it would lower standards.

Patti Gubbels, president of the Nebraska State Board of Education, said prospective teachers are already assessed at multiple points throughout college. She called the repeal of Rule 23 another step in addressing the teacher shortage.

"You want multiple measures of people to really know, do they have the skills?" Gubbels said. "Just putting all of that on one test is not really reasonable."

The repeal will go into effect in time for new teachers entering the workforce this fall, said Nebraska Department of Education spokesperson David Jespersen. The department still needs to clean up language in other rules following the repeal.

With the move, Nebraska joins 33 other states that do not require a basic-skills test for teachers.

Before the state board repealed the rule, the department held a hearing on the proposal in January in which multiple people testified in favor of eliminating Praxis. The company that supplies the test reported a 79% pass rate among University of Nebraska-Lincoln students from Sept. 21 to Aug. 22.

With one less hurdle out of the way, Gubbels said the board is looking at other rules governing things like teacher reciprocity between states.

"I think there are a lot of things that we can start looking at and some that we have been looking at," she said. "We're working on a lot of things, so this is a first step."
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David Rangeloff is pleased about a grant that can help area veterans.

Rangeloff is founder and executive director of the Fremont Area Veterans Coalition (FAVC). The nonprofit organization, founded in 2019, has a mission of assisting veterans and families in Fremont and surrounding communities.

One of the groups missions involves assisting veterans through education and employment support.

This month, the Aksarben Foundation in Omaha announced that the veterans organization was among 11 community grant recipients for 2023.

Rangeloff said Aksarben awarded the veterans organization with a $1,000 grant to help area veterans with education- and employment-related needs.

We are grateful that they support our veterans in the Fremont and surrounding communities, Rangeloff said.

The group can help veterans in various ways.

If a veteran starts a job and needs work boots, for example, the FAVC is ready to assist the person with work-related supplies.

Another example involves helping veterans whove taken a job which involves working from home.

We have assisted with ergonomic desks that will raise so the veteran is able to stand while working, Rangeloff said.

He cites a third example: A veteran was starting a business and needed a laptop computer. FAVC was able to assist in the purchase of that computer.

Since it began decades ago, the Aksarben Community Grant Program has worked to impact the states 93 counties, the foundation stated in a press release.

The Aksarben Foundation provides matching-fund grants targeted to community improvement projects and/or workforce development. Besides the Fremont grant, Aksarben also awarded a grant to the Columbus Library Foundation for the Columbus Community Building.

This is the first grant that FAVC has applied for, Rangeloff said.

We are excited because not only the Fremont area, but Omaha community organizations are supporting our area veterans, Rangeloff said.

FAVC has seven volunteers who assist the organization in its mission.

Rangeloff said the FAVCs future plans include partnering with Christensen Lumber, The Glass House and Matlock Wood Crafts, all of Fremont, in making handmade, solid oak, veteran casket flag shadow boxes that will be donated to the three local mortuaries in Fremont.

Rangeloff served in the U.S. Army for 20 years with several deployments to Iraq. His job duties included fuel support for active duty military, while stationed in Baghdad.

Anyone who would like to make a donation to support the FAVCs education, employment or veterans casket flag shadow boxes may do so at fremontveterans.com

The Aksarben Foundation, a network of business and community leaders, welcomes any 501c3 organization to apply throughout the year for a grant. The cutoff for applications each year is March 15.

Six Omaha organizations received Aksarben grants this year. Besides Fremont and Columbus, groups in Emerson, Johnstown and Holdrege also received Aksarben grants in 2023.

Those interested in applying for a 2024 Aksarben Community Grant may visit its website at aksarben.org
An expansion adding hundreds of new homes to the Sterling Ranch neighborhood south of Black Forest moved forward with official approval by the El Paso Board of County Commissioners Tuesday.

Commissioners voted 4-0, with Commissioner Longinos Gonzalez absent, to approve a preliminary plan proposing 761 single-family residences on 320 acres east of Vollmer Road and adjacent to the future extension of Briargate Parkway in connection to Stapleton Road. Nearby residents voiced concern that the development is encroaching on farming activities.

"I understand it can be very frustrating in your way of life to have these houses come up, but I do believe the developer has made the appropriate adjustments," Commissioner Holly Williams told residents before approval.

The plan also includes a 35-acre kindergarten through eighth grade school, a 12-acre elementary school  both expected to incorporate into Academy District 20  and 65 acres of parks and open space, project documents show.

Concurrent with the approval of the preliminary plan, commissioners approved two separate rezoning requests that underlie the 761 units. Members voted 4-0 to approve rezoning a 301-acre parcel from five-acre lots to higher-density RS-5000 zoning for single-family detached housing, which will hold 740 homes, said Jennifer Shagin of N.E.S. Inc., representing developer Classic Homes.

Commissioners separately voted 4-0 to approve the rezoning of a 35-acre parcel along the southern boundary of the subdivision from five-acre lots to half-acre lots, with a 50-foot buffer and 100-foot setback, as a density transition with the five-acre lots of Pawnee Rancheros neighborhood to the south.

Roughly 19 of the 35 acres were included in the preliminary plan approved Tuesday, while the remaining acres will be included in a future plan, documents said.

The expansion will be served by the Falcon Area Water and Wastewater Authority "via an (intergovernmental agreement) with the Sterling Ranch Metropolitan District," county Senior Planner Kari Parsons said Tuesday.

The county attorneys office and the state engineer have made a recommendation for water sufficiency for the development, Parsons told the Planning Commission last month.

According to project documents, each home will require an average 0.4 acre-feet of water per year, and, because FAWWA recently acquired roughly 1,025 acre-feet for 300 years from three other districts, it has more than sufficient water supply to meet the needs of Sterling Ranch  on the 300-year basis.

The 761 homes and two schools will generate roughly 11,000 average daily trips to the area, said county Senior Engineer Jeff Rice.

The three-part request was more narrowly approved in April by the El Paso County Planning Commission, an advisory board to the county commission, when several members voted against the half-acre lot rezone and overall preliminary plan due to "unacceptable" density transitions to the farming community south of the subdivision.

Stasia Erickson, a 13-year neighbor who spoke in opposition to the plan in April, requested on Tuesday that the developer change the southern half-acre-lot density transition to 2.5-acre lots and repeated her belief that her quality of life has diminished due to trespassers feeding and touching her livestock and that school traffic and foot traffic on a proposed trail running near her property would increase noise, crime and waste in the area.

"In the last couple of years, many unleashed dogs have broken through my fence, attacking and killing my alpacas and chickens," Erickson said.

"What's going to happen to our wells?" another neighbor, Theresa Johnson, asked. "There's a water shortage; it's a big deal."

Andrea Barlow, also with N.E.S. Inc., told commissioners that the five-acre-lot Pawnee Rancheros neighborhood is already surrounded by other high-density developments, and that the Sterling Ranch expansion would actually be the only adjacent development with any density transition.

"I don't think it needs to be anything more than what's already been approved in the sketch plan," Barlow said.

That sketch plan was first approved in 2008 and was amended last year to cap Sterling Ranch at 4,800 homes on over 1,400 acres.

Barlow also said the water servicing the development will be drawn from different aquifers than those that support the neighbors' domestic wells.

Commissioner Carrie Geitner said the sketch plan details, including the lots and their buffering, were likely discussed with concerned residents before approval 15 years ago.

"To go back and change those discussions now is a little bit concerning to me because we want to have consistency. We want property owners to understand what we're looking for and be consistent with that," Geitner said.
A draft of the so-called "pronoun policy" that made waves in Colorado Springs School District 11 earlier this spring returned to the Board of Education late Wednesday without a single mention of pronouns. The board last publicly discussed this policy, which will govern staff conduct, at a February meeting. A subcommittee has been drafting its language ever since.

The policys accompanying regulation more broadly states staff members are prohibited from the following communications, among others:

 Any communications without a legitimate educational reason.

 Requiring of, or otherwise compelling students to render statements regarding personal or other inappropriate private matters.

 Proselytizing on behalf of any particular religious or political point of view.

 Willfully disclosing personal or other inappropriate private matters.

Following the boards feedback, the policy and regulation will undergo additional revisions and clarifications.

Will we ever get the exact definition of inappropriate? I think any of us can go into our emails and discern that it may also be in the eye of the recipient and maybe not the intent of the deliverer, Superintendent Michael Gaal said. I would hope that this will eliminate egregious behavior and will allow us to have adult and mature conversations about questionable behavior but not send us down rabbit holes of assuming that every conversation is illicit by definition.

School leaders for months maintained that despite being colloquially referred to as the pronoun policy among some pockets of the community, its purpose has always been much wider in scope: to outline appropriate student-staff relationships and staff behaviors. It remains to be seen how a staff member asking students to share their pronouns might fit into the policys newly drafted language, which is still subject to change.

The pronoun policy moniker stems from comments made by board Vice President Jason Jorgenson in February, when he suggested the policy should prohibit any type of questioning about pronouns or gender or sexuality, regardless of the age of the student. Such questions serve no educational value and can make cisgender students  those whose pronouns align with their gender at birth  feel uncomfortable, he said. Students would be welcome to share their pronouns on their own accord under his proposed language, but staff could not prompt them to do so.

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Four of seven board members expressed support for Jorgensons proposed language at the time, including board members Sandra Bankes, Al Loma and Lauren Nelson.

Jorgenson further suggested teachers be prohibited from discussing personal, sexual or romantic aspects of their lives, including marital status.

Our students shouldnt have to go into the classroom and know whether (teachers) are blatantly this or that. They should just be, Im coming here to learn mathematics from a nonpartisan teacher whos giving me a fair shake and teaching me what I need to learn, Jorgenson said at the Feb. 8 meeting.

While some community members said these expectations would shield students from distractions and gender ideology, critics accused the boards proposal of being anti-LGBTQ+ and dangerous for an already marginalized population.

Critics said the board had a flawed concept of how teachers ask students their pronouns in a classroom setting. Rather than requiring students to share or putting them on the spot, those conversations are instead optional or are held in private.

Whereas the school board is responsible for adopting policy, which provides overarching guidance, only administrative staff and the superintendent can set regulation detailing more specifically how the district will implement a policy in its work. Neither the drafted staff conduct policy nor its accompanying regulation contained language as specific as Jorgensons earlier proposals, however.

The policy prohibits inappropriate behaviors such as physical contact or harassment, infringing on students rights to privacy and engaging in conflicts of interest. Per the policy, staff, students and parents or guardians should notify their principal or the superintendent if they believe a staff member is in violation.

The policy will require a majority vote at a future board meeting before it can take effect. The board does not vote on regulation.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is investigating the disappearance of a woman who has been missing for two weeks from Saguache County.

Edna Quintana, 55, was last seen in the area of Saguache on May 3. Her family reported her missing three days later, after she became unreachable and didn't return home, according to a CBI alert.

Quintana is described as 5-foot-5 and weighing 120 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. Investigators believe she would be on foot.

CBI said Quintana has medical issues, and there is concern for her health and well-being.

Anyone with information is asked to call the CBI tip line at 719-416-5815.
The Colorado Springs City Council this week agreed to pay more than $100,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by the contractor that built the Pikes Peak Summit Complex claiming breach of contract by the city.

The council voted unanimously to approve the settlement amount during a brief special meeting Wednesday afternoon.

The exact amount of the settlement will be determined "if and when a final agreement is made," city spokeswoman Vanessa Zink said in an email Thursday.

GE Johnson Construction Company Inc., the company that built the new 38,000-square-foot complex at the top of Pikes Peak and one of Colorado's largest general contractors, filed a lawsuit in El Paso County district court on March 8 claiming the city has not paid for work its crews carried out to build the visitor center after "compensable delays outside of (GE Johnson's) responsibility or control prevented" the company from completing the project on time.

On April 13, the city filed a countersuit alleging the contractor performed poor-quality work on a new wastewater treatment system and parking lot at the site.

Laura Rinker, a GE Johnson spokeswoman, said Thursday the city and the contractor "reached a mutually agreeable resolution of disputes."

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Zink and Rinker said both parties expect to finalize the settlement agreement "in the near future."

Crews broke ground on the project around Aug. 3, 2018, and the new facility opened on June 23, 2021.

Made up of hurricane wind-tested glass and steel, the new facility is more than three times the size of the former summit house and includes a "grand staircase" with views of Mount Rosa and the sprawling Arkansas River Valley. It also boasts interactive displays, a museum, interpretive signage and an extensive walkway around the summit.

GE Johnson has worked hand in hand with Colorado Springs officials as it built some of the area's highest-profile public and private projects since it was founded more than a half-century ago.

The contractor's Colorado Springs projects in recent years include downtown's U.S Olympic & Paralympic Museum and Weidner Field multipurpose stadium; Ent Credit Union's north-side headquarters; the gutting and renovation of The Broadmoor hotel's Broadmoor West guest building; the 110-bed Children's Hospital Colorado; the 72-bed St. Francis-Interquest hospital scheduled to open in July; and a 375-room hotel expected to debut next year as part of the Air Force Academy's new visitors center.
Texas officials shipped their first chartered bus with 41 immigrants to Denver on Thursday.

Officials with the City and County of Denvers Joint Information Center (JIC) disclosed Thursday that this was the first instance in which another state had coordinated and sent immigrants to the Mile High City.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in a news release Thursday that this was the first busload, implying others could follow.

Mikayla Ortega, spokesperson for the Denver Office of Emergency Management, said the city was given less than 24 hours notice.

Were trying to ascertain if this is a one-off, Ortega said.

The busload, she said, originated from McAllen, Texas  a border city that extends to the Rio Grande, which forms a 1,255-mile segment of the natural boundary between the U.S. and Mexico.

Texas overwhelmed and overrun border communities should not have to shoulder the flood of illegal immigration due to President Bidens reckless open-border policies, like his mass catch and release without court dates or any way to track them, Abbott said in the release. Until the President and his Administration step up and fulfill their constitutional duty to secure the border, the State of Texas will continue busing migrants to self-declared sanctuary cities like Denver to provide much-needed relief to our small border towns.

Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock called Abbots move political theater and a stunt. He also suggested sending the Texas governor a bill for the expenses Denver is incurring as it seeks to offer shelter and services to the immigrants.

What is happening at the border, and what is showing up at the doorsteps of cities across the country, is a humanitarian crisis, Hancock said. What none of us need is more political theater and partisan gamesmanship pitting jurisdictions against each other and exacerbating this situation instead of advocating for real solutions to this challenge.

The Denver mayor added: If Gov. Abbott thinks hes going to win over allies to his cause here in Denver with this latest stunt, hes going to be sorely mistaken. And were more than happy to send him the bill for any additional support we have to provide now because of his failure at managing his own state.

Renae Eze, an Abbott spokesperson, did not immediately respond Thursday to an email seeking comment.

Self-declared sanctuary cities

Abbott made international headlines last year when he sent immigrants to Vice President Kamala Harris D.C. residence and to Marthas Vineyard.

Since employing this busing strategy last spring, the Republican Texas governor has transported more than 19,000 immigrants to the states of Democratic governors with self-declared sanctuary cities, according to Abbotts office.

Earlier this year, Gov. Jared Polis was criticized by the mayors of New York City and Chicago for sending immigrants in Denver to their cities. At that time, Denver had provided bus tickets for 1,900 immigrants to travel to more than 100 U.S. cities.

Despite their diverging world views, Abbot and Polis do agree on this: Immigration is a federal problem that Congress has failed to address, leaving cities and states to bear the brunt of the crisis.

Five shelters in Denver on Thursday housed more than 1,200 immigrants, JIC data shows.

More than 10,000 immigrants from Central and South America have arrived in Denver Since early December, putting a strain on city resources.

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An estimated 70% of arriving immigrants, city and state officials have said, are stopping in Denver on their way to somewhere else.

As of last week, Denver had spent roughly $16 million on the humanitarian response, only $900,000 of which has been reimbursed by the federal government.

City officials have stopped short of saying they would turn immigrants away.

Any influx is going to be very hard

The majority of the new arrivals are from Venezuela, a country that has descended into economic, humanitarian and political chaos under President Nicolas Maduro.

The influx of immigrants illustrates the calamity thats been unfolding at the U.S. border for years, a crisis that has begun spilling over into cities in Americas interior  including Denver  which is more than 600 miles from El Paso, Texas, the closest U.S. border.

City officials have said immigrants are choosing Denver because of El Pasos relative proximity to the Mile High City, in terms of traveling with relative ease by bus.

Officials noted that the bus fare to Denver is less expensive from West Texas than to other places in the country. Organizations that support the immigrant community also highlight the resources and diversity in the community, as well as its status as a sanctuary city, as reasons attracting the immigrants to Denver.

Many have tied the surge of immigrants to the expiration of Title 42, the federal policy first deployed by the Trump administration to swiftly expel immigrants to help slow spread of COVID-19.

Immigrants apprehended under Title 42 were returned to their home countries, or sent back to Mexico.

Anticipating the policys end, the number of immigrants at the U.S. border with Mexico has swelled.

In a scramble, the Biden administration said those who crossed into the U.S. illegally wont be eligible for asylum.

Starting tonight, people who arrive at the border without using a lawful pathway will be presumed ineligible for asylum, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas said last week.

We are ready to humanely process and remove people without a legal basis to remain in the U.S, he said.

In Denver, the surge of immigrants has become palpable in the last few days, straining resources  once again  to a breaking point.

Indeed, local nonprofits that have helped Denver temporarily house immigrants from South and Central America for months have been bracing for the new swell with the sunset of a pandemic-era border restriction that ended May 11.

All the shelters are pretty much at capacity, Kristen Baluyot, Denver metro social services director for the Salvation Army, said last week. So, any influx is going to be very hard for us to respond to.
A proposal by the Department of Agriculture to restrict the ability of schools to serve flavored milk products, including chocolate milk, is drawing harsh criticism from Republican lawmakers who say the proposal is an example of government overreach.

Earlier this year, the Department of Agriculture proposed new nutrition requirements for school lunches, including a proposal that would curb the ability of participating schools to serve chocolate milk and other flavored milk products out of concerns over high sugar content.

TIM SCOTT PICKS UP FIRST SENATE ENDORSEMENT AHEAD OF WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCEMENT

In its proposal, the USDA noted that some of the outside groups the department had consulted in drafting the rule were "concerned about added sugars in a variety of foods commonly offered at breakfast, including flavored milks, sweetened cereals, muffins, and condiments and toppings."

The proposal has met a cool reception among Republicans in the House of Representatives, who said a ban would harm the nation's dairy farmers and is yet another example of the federal government interfering in what should be a decision made at the local level.

"The Biden administration believes that the federal government knows best in everything," House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) told the Washington Examiner. "As a result, we continue to see this administration impose top-down regulations that do more harm than good. The contents of school meals are best left to local professionals and the cafeteria staff who care for America's students every day and know what they will eat."

Instead, Foxx said, policymakers should "focus on expanding healthy options for students, not burdensome restrictions that take away from well-rounded meals, impose unrealistic hurdles for schools, and remove the only nutrient-rich beverage students may consume."

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), the chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, had previously sparred with New York City Mayor Eric Adams over a proposed chocolate milk ban in the city's public schools. In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Stefanik noted that Adams backed off the proposal after she led a group of lawmakers in opposing the ban.

"Now, Joe Biden is embracing this far-left radical proposal to ban chocolate milk," the congresswoman said. "This is totally unacceptable, and I will do everything in my power to stop these efforts. Flavored milk is one the best ways for kids to get essential dairy nutrients for growth and development."

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson (R-PA) compared the proposal to the administration's previous efforts to ban gas stoves over environmental concerns.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

"First it was your gas stove, and now it is your child's school meal," Thompson told the Washington Examiner. "President Biden's proposal to ban chocolate milk is another example of brazen government overreach. I'm proud to stand with America's dairy farmers against Biden's intrusion into our school cafeterias. Chocolate milk is a calcium-rich childhood favorite, and it is here to stay!"

Stefanik and Thompson reintroduced legislation in February that would require schools participating in the National School Lunch Program to offer flavored milk products.

Original Location: House GOP revolts against Biden proposed chocolate milk ban: 'Totally unacceptable'

Washington Examiner Videos
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) filed a motion on Wednesday to expel Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) from Congress.

The Florida Republican filed the motion in the wake of the Durham Report, which cast doubt on the idea that the FBI should have ever begun its Crossfire Hurricane investigation into allegations of collusion between former President Donald Trump and the Russian government during the 2016 election. Schiff pushed allegations of Trump-Russia collusion for years and played a major role in the first impeachment of Trump.

KAMALA HARRIS TAKES HER PLACE AT THE DEBT LIMIT NEGOTIATING TABLE

"Schiff lied to the American people. He used his position on House Intel to push a lie that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars," Luna tweeted. "He is a dishonor to the House of Representatives."

The Florida lawmaker elaborated in a tweet on her personal account.

"Knowingly using your position on House Intel to push a lie that ripped apart our country, cost taxpayers millions of dollars, and authorized spying on a US President and then proceeding to double down on the lie within days of the Durham report coming out makes you unfit for office. Ethics should investigate," she wrote.

It didn't take long for Schiff to respond.

"BREAKING NEWS: A MAGA Republican Member of Congress just filed a motion to expel me from the U.S. House of Representatives," Schiff tweeted. "I stood up to Donald Trump and held extreme MAGA forces accountable. Now they want payback. They'll go after anyone who defends the rule of law."

The California Democrat, who is running for Senate, also sent out a fundraiser due to the "attack on Adam."

"Nobody stood up to Donald Trump and the extreme MAGA forces more than Adam did, and now MAGA Republicans want payback. As retribution for Adam's leading the first impeachment of Trump and his prominent role on the January 6th Committee, House Republicans are trying to remove him from Congress altogether," the fundraiser reads.

"This is more than just an attack on Adam. This baseless resolution is another attack on our democracy and those upholding the rule of law. Stand up for the Constitution and against Trump, and you get expelled, is the MAGA message," it continued, before asking for a donation to his campaign for Senate.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Luna was first elected to Congress this year as the first Mexican-American woman chosen to represent Florida. She is a member of the House Freedom Caucus and the Congressional Second Amendment Caucus.

Schiff is running to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) in the Senate, going up against Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA). Feinstein has served in the Senate for over 30 years, and at 89 years old, she is the oldest serving member of Congress.

Original Location: House Republican moves to expel Adam Schiff from Congress: 'He is a dishonor'

Washington Examiner Videos
By Kantaro Komiya and Tetsushi Kajimoto

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government estimates it needs to raise about 3 trillion yen ($22.2 billion) in funds per year for a childcare policy Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has put forward to help reverse the declining birth rate, Jiji news agency reported on Thursday.

The government in March laid out a plan to boost child care over the coming three years, but the issue of financing the major spending package, such as tax hikes or debt issues, has been unresolved.

Under the planned financing scheme, Jiji reported, the government would expand the size of the funds gradually over the three years from fiscal 2024/25 and secure the necessary amount by the end of the policy period.

Kishida has said the government will identify the funds for the childcare policy by June and he was not planning to hike consumer sales taxes to that end.

Government officials could not be reached for comment outside of business hours. Jiji is one of the two major domestic news agencies in Japan with a track record of scoops.

Some ruling party lawmakers have floated the idea of issuing extra bonds, with the justification that education-purposed bonds should help future generations, while the government is struggling to come up with permanent sources of secure revenue.

Kishida has announced a plan to boost childcare support, following another big spending plan to double a national military outlay. These plans would strain Japan's already dire public debt, which is over twice the size of annual economic output.

The government earmarked around 6.1 trillion yen for the last fiscal year ended in March to arrest the decline in the number of births.

Japan is among the world's fastest ageing societies, with the annual number of newborns falling below 800,000 for the first time, having previously peaked at 2.09 million in 1973 during the second baby boom.

The declining birth trend has been blamed for a worsening labour shortage and reduced long-term economic growth potential.

($1 = 135.0500 yen)

(Reporting by Kantaro Komiya and Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Alison Williams, Bernadette Baum and Mark Heinrich)
By Michael Holden

LONDON (Reuters) - To supporters, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan being chased through the streets of New York by press photographers brought back memories of the death of his mother Princess Diana and epitomised the media harassment and intrusion they endure.

For detractors, it was another show of the couple's over-the-top, publicity-seeking and self-aggrandizing behaviour.

As Britain's Duke and Duchess of Sussex make headlines around the world again, the response to the latest "near catastrophic" incident, as their spokesperson described it, shows what polarising figures they have become.

"I think that everything the Sussexes do is more or less framed by those who see them as the embodiment of 'woke'," said Ivor Gabor, professor of political journalism at Britain's University of Sussex, using the popular term for socially progressive attitudes on matters from race to gender.

"They're very good targets for those who wish to denounce what they see as their values."

Harry's spokesperson said that on Tuesday night after leaving an awards ceremony where Meghan had been honoured, Harry, Meghan and her mother were subjected to a two-hour car chase involving "highly aggressive" paparazzi photographers which had put their lives at danger.

Shaken though not hurt, the couple's experience was reminiscent of the events which led up to the fatal Paris car crash in which Princess Diana was killed in 1997, something Harry has often feared could be repeated.

However, while the New York Police Department (NYPD) confirmed the incident, its response made it sound less serious. Newspapers reported that one celebrity news agency involved had accused their security detail of themselves behaving in a manner "that could be perceived as reckless".

'CAT-AND-MOUSE GAME'

Taxi driver Sukhcharn Singh, who briefly had the couple and Meghan's mother in his cab as they tried to outwit the photographers, told Reuters they looked scared but did not think there would be an accident.

That has provoked accusations from the couple's critics, especially on social media, that they had milked the incident for their own ends.

"The first statement was laced with the sort of hyperbole we have come to expect from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex when alleging media intrusion into their lives," columnist Camilla Tominey wrote in Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper.

Right-wing former politician and broadcaster Nigel Farage was withering on Twitter: "NYPD do not know about 'near catastrophic' crash. Harry and Meghan are frauds."

The royal family, as is customary, have stayed silent on the incident, but outside Buckingham Palace as across Britain, the public view was mixed.

"I can't believe a two-hour car chase in New York. So I would doubt the veracity of Prince Harry's statement," said retired lawyer Nick Williams.

Others were sympathetic. "I've always loved them, so I feel for them," said legal administrator Paris Smith.

Many spoke of the similarity with the death of Diana, who for years had dealt with paparazzi following her wherever she went and from whom her chauffeur-driven car was trying to escape when it crashed.

The couple's representatives say Harry and Meghan expect attention and to be photographed at public events, and so had made a very public entrance and exit on Tuesday.

But the chase came about as they did not want to compromise the security of the friend's home where they were staying, forcing them to seek police help and throw photographers off the scent by using a taxi.

"It's a game to a certain extent you're never going to win," former royal protection officer Simon Morgan told Sky News. "We know how catastrophic that cat-and-mouse game can actually be when we look back to 1997 and the death of the Duke's mother."

(Reporting by Michael Holden and Natalie Thomas; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Former Biden administration nuclear waste official Sam Brinton was arrested on Wednesday on charges of being a "fugitive from justice."

Montgomery County Police Department spokeswoman Shiera Goff confirmed to the Washington Examiner that Brinton was arrested and that the former Department of Energy official is awaiting an extradition hearing.

WHAT THE GOP WORK REQUIREMENT PROPOSAL WOULD REALLY DO

"Brinton was arrested in their home on College Parkway," Goff said. "They are being held in the Montgomery County Central Processing Unit on a no-bond status as they await an extradition hearing."

Goff also said that the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police "are lead on this" arrest and that Montgomery County Police "assisted in the arrest."

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority oversees Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, and Washington Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia.

Public records show that a hearing for Brinton was scheduled for 1 p.m. on Thursday at Montgomery County District Court after Brinton was arrested on Wednesday.

Brinton, who is nonbinary, was let go from the Department of Energy after Brinton had been accused of stealing luggage from airports by several people.

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Brinton was released on no bail for charges in Minnesota relating to an alleged luggage robbery in February and entered a plea deal in a case involving a luggage robbery at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada, in April.

The Washington Examiner reached out to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for comment.

Original Location: Sam Brinton arrested in Maryland on 'fugitive from justice' charges

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There are still a few days left for eligible residents of California to apply for a direct payment of $4,000, with recipients free to spend the money in any way they see fit.

The payment is part of a program known as the Recovery Action Fund for Tomorrow, from the non-profit organization Jewish Family Service. Applications for this payment opened on May 8, and will close on May 21 at 11:59 p.m., according to the non-profit.

These payments will be for San Diego residents who meet eligibility requirements, including having at least one child under the age of 18, being a senior who is at least 55 years old, or being a disabled adult. The applicant's household income must also be at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, which is $29,160 for a household of one and $60,000 for a household of four.

Applicants must also reside in one of 39 San Diego County Health Equity ZIP codes, all of which are specified online.

Recipients for this payment will be selected via a lottery system, with payments being issued in two waves, the first in June and the second in August. The payments will be distributed in the form of a prepaid debit card sent in the mail or picked up at designated locations.

Those interested in applying can do so online, with in-person application help available at several locations, including at the San Diego Central Library or at the Price Family YMCA.

This program is one of several income programs taking place in the state of California. Another program, the Pathway to Income Equity pilot program, is sending payments of $500 to 305 families in Sonoma County on Wednesday.

Original Location: Stimulus check update: Deadline to apply for one-time direct payment worth $4,000 is in four days

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By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday left in place a Democratic-backed ban on assault-style rifles and large capacity magazines enacted in Illinois after a deadly mass shooting in Chicago's Highland Park suburb in 2022, handing a setback to gun rights advocates.

The court denied a request by the National Association for Gun Rights and a firearms retailer for an injunction blocking enforcement of the state law and a similar ban enacted by another Chicago suburb, Naperville, while a legal challenge to the measures proceeds. No justice publicly dissented from the decision.

Democratic Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker in January signed into law the Protect Illinois Communities Act that banned the sale and distribution of many kinds of high-powered semiautomatic "assault weapons," including AK-47 and AR-15 rifles, as well as magazines that take more than 10 rounds for long guns and 15 rounds for handguns.

Pritzker welcomed the Supreme Court's action.

"The gun lobby has insisted on every legal maneuver to block this law, refusing to acknowledge that lives will be saved by this important piece of legislation. Despite these challenges, I remain confident that the assault weapons ban will be upheld and will create a safer Illinois for our residents," Pritzker said.

The law exempts existing owners, giving them a deadline of Jan. 1, 2024, to register their assault weapons with state police.

National Association for Gun Rights President Dudley Brown said the case will eventually return to the Supreme Court to be decided on the merits.

"Commonly owned weapons are protected by the Second Amendment and banning them has to stop," Brown said.

Brown said that lower courts have been ignoring a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court's last June that recognized the right to carry a handgun in public for self-defense.

Brown's group, as well as a Naperville-based firearms store, Law Weapons & Supply and its owner Robert Bevis, challenged the city's ordinance restricting the sale of certain assault rifles and the state's broader ban as a violation of the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment, which protects the right to "keep and bear" arms.

The case is one of several contesting the state's ban in both federal and state courts.

Illinois passed the ban in response to a massacre at an Independence Day parade in Highland Park in 2022 that left seven people dead and dozens of others wounded.

In signing the law, Pritzker also cited other recent mass shootings - frequent occurrences in the United States - including a 2022 attack that killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, and a 2012 killing of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

A gunman wearing tactical gear and carrying an AR-15-style rifle killed eight people on May 6 at a Texas mall before he was shot by police, prompting President Joe Biden to renew calls for the U.S. Congress to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as to enact universal background checks and end immunity for gun manufacturers.

A federal assault weapon ban enacted in 1994 lapsed a decade later and has not been renewed by Congress despite Democratic efforts. In the absence of broad action by Congress on gun control, some states have enacted various measures, often drawing legal challenges on Second Amendment grounds.

The Supreme Court, with its conservative majority, has expanded gun rights in key rulings since 2008.

Last June's ruling, which struck down New York state gun limits on carrying concealed firearms, also announced a legal standard that could make it harder for lower courts to sustain new or existing gun regulations, requiring them to be comparable with restrictions traditionally adopted throughout U.S. history.

U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall in February and the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in April rejected the challengers' bid for an injunction.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Additional reporting by John Kruzel in Washington; Editing by Will Dunham)
A new House Republican report said whistleblower testimony reveals the FBI is categorizing cases stemming from the Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021, in such a way as to mislead about and artificially inflate the rise in domestic terrorism in the United States.

The GOP report said that "whistleblowers assert that the FBI pressured agents to reclassify cases as domestic violent extremism (DVE), and even manufactured DVE cases where they may not otherwise exist, while manipulating its case categorization system to feign a national problem." The whistleblower claims were made public in an 80-page report released Thursday by the GOP-led House Judiciary Committee and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, chaired by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).

BIDEN'S STANDING QUESTIONED AS HE ARRIVES IN JAPAN FOR G-7

Jordan's report said whistleblowers contended that the FBI's Washington Field Office was categorizing Capitol riot cases to make the rise in DVE cases look more like a national problem rather than a significant amount of it stemming from one violent riot in the nation's capital over two years ago.

"According to whistleblower information, the FBI has manipulated the manner in which it categorized January 6-related investigations to create a misleading narrative that domestic terrorism is organically surging around the country," the GOP report said. "Ordinarily, the FBI characterizes and labels cases according to the originating field office, with leads cut' to other field offices for specific assistance in that geographic location. With January 6 cases, however, the FBI has not followed its ordinary procedure, which would have resulted in the WFO leading the investigation and categorizing the investigations as WFO cases."

FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in August that "the number of FBI investigations of suspected DVEs has more than doubled since the spring of 2020."

FBI Special Agent Stephen Friend contended to House investigators that "the manipulative casefile practice creates false and misleading crime statistics" because "instead of hundreds of investigations stemming from a single black swan incident at the Capitol, FBI and Justice Department officials point to significant increases in domestic violent extremism and terrorism around the United States."

"By opening a separate case for each individual as opposed to one case with however many subjects are involved, they've turned one case into a thousand cases," Friend continued. "And by spreading them to the field, they've given the impression that those domestic terror cases are around the country when, in fact, the subjects, if they committed any sort of violation or infraction, they committed a crime at the Capitol on one day as opposed to being a cell that's operating in El Paso or Cleveland."

The GOP report contended that "the FBI's case categorization creates the illusion that FBI field offices around the country are investigating a groundswell of domestic terrorism cases, giving the impression that the threat of DVE is present in jurisdictions across the nation" while "the reality is simpler: The cases all stem from the same related investigation concerning the actions at the Capitol on January 6."

House Republicans said, "This scheme permits the FBI leadership to misleadingly point to 'significant' increases in DVE threats nationwide."

FBI Special Agent Garret O'Boyle claimed to House investigators that the FBI classified "every single Jan. 6 case  as a domestic terrorism case."

The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security revealed in October that a "significant" part of the massive rise in domestic terrorism investigations between 2020 and 2021 was related to the DOJ's investigation into the Capitol riot.

The bureau and the DHS revealed the FBI was conducting approximately 1,400 pending domestic terrorism investigations as of the end of fiscal 2020, and that jumped to roughly 2,700 domestic terrorism investigations by the end of fiscal 2021. The U.S. government report said the FBI arrested approximately 180 domestic terrorism subjects in 2020, while it arrested roughly 800 such subjects in 2021.

The FBI and DHS said that "a significant portion" of the 2021 investigations "were directly related to the unlawful activities during the January 2021 siege on the U.S. Capitol."

"One of the most significant terrorism threats to the Homeland we face today is posed by lone offenders and small groups of individuals who commit acts of violence motivated by a range of ideological beliefs and/or personal grievances," the FBI and DHS report concluded late last year. "Of these actors, domestic violent extremists represent one of the most persistent threats to the United States today."

Matt Olsen, the assistant attorney general in charge of DOJ's National Security Division, similarly told the House Judiciary Committee in July that "the number of FBI investigations of suspected domestic violent extremism has more than doubled since the spring of 2020."

Olsen added that "that jump, doubling, that number does include the Jan. 6 cases, and there, of course, we have over 800 arrests of individuals  not all of them are characterized as domestic violent extremists, to be clear, but many are, and those do account for at least a significant portion of that jump over the past two years in the number of investigations."

Olsen announced the creation of a new "domestic terrorism unit" in January last year, and Attorney General Merrick Garland compared the Capitol riot to the Oklahoma City bombing of 1995 when unveiling the Justice Department's response to the Biden administration's new anti-domestic terrorism strategy in June 2021.

The Justice Department said this month that "more than 1,033 defendants have been arrested in nearly all 50 states and the District of Columbia" in relation to the storming of the Capitol, including roughly 346 defendants charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement.

The new GOP report said FBI supervisory intelligence analyst George Hill told the committee that "the pressure on FBI agents to meet metrics also contributed to the manipulation of DVE data" and that Timothy Thibault, the former FBI assistant special agent in charge of the Washington Field Office who left the bureau in late August, and the FBI's former Assistant Director of the Counterterrorism Division Jill Sanborn both "pressured agents to move cases into the DVE category to hit self-created performance metrics."

Hill said that Wray and Sanborn set a "tone" to encourage agents "to identify opportunities where cases could be tagged as domestic terrorism threats."

Sanborn denied this environment of pressure during closed-door testimony in February, telling House investigators she could not recall any instances in which an FBI agent was pressured to reclassify a case. She said the process was "rooted in intelligence" that "made the DVE threat fall more elevated on that continuum than it maybe would've been five years ago."

Hill also told the House about Thibault's alleged "level of excitement" at the prospect of targeting a "growing segment of our population" as domestic terrorists, calling Thibault almost "hysterical."

House Judiciary Republicans led by Jordan also released a report just ahead of the 2022 midterm elections on the "politicization" of the Justice Department and FBI. Jordan said then that whistleblowers have pointed to Thibault as one of those involved in this alleged effort.

Whistleblowers have also said that Thibault "ordered closed" an "avenue of additional derogatory Hunter Biden reporting" in October 2020, even though "all of the reporting was either verified or verifiable via criminal search warrants." Those disclosures were revealed by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA).

Jordan's late 2022 report also concluded that "the FBI downplayed and sought to reduce the spread of the serious allegations of wrongdoing leveled against Hunter Biden."

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The 2022 report also alleged that "the FBI appears to not be aggressively investigating pipe bombs placed by political party headquarters  while prioritizing other January 6, 2021-related investigations."

The person who planted pipe bombs the night before outside both the Republican and Democratic national committee headquarters in Washington remains at large. The FBI announced this January that the bureau was offering a combined reward of up to $490,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the attempted pipe bomber.

Original Location: Whistleblower report: FBI used Jan. 6 riot to mislead on domestic terrorism spike

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Colorado needs more children and policies to support them. This is a matter of demographic, physical and mathematical fact.

We cant waste a person, were going to need them more and more, said Colorado State Demographer Elizabeth Garner at the Adams County Regional Economic Partnerships State of the Region event this month.

Gov. Jared Polis joined her in explaining the states need for a larger workforce  a socioeconomic demand that will grow over time. Garner said people over 65 comprise most of Colorados growth.

Young people struggle to afford Colorados taxes, fees and housing costs artificially inflated by political regulations. They avoid or leave our state in unprecedented numbers. Most who stay can barely afford to support themselves, so they avoid creating, adopting or fostering children.

When elderly persons outnumber the labor force, we have a weak demographic pyramid.

Stood upon a flat side, pyramids withstand tornadoes, hurricanes and other destructive forces. Conversely, the slightest counterforce easily topples triangles that rest on one point. The base of a structure must be larger and heavier than its top to defy gravitys insatiable appetite for mass.

Triangle physics applies to everything in life.

 Topside-heavy vehicles roll on sharp curves and slopes.

 Topside-heavy debt ends in financial collapse.

 Topside-heavy cash devalues capital when chasing a lighter value of products.

 Topside-heavy families, with one child providing for 10 inactive senior relatives, burden the young and struggle with scarcity.

 Topside-heavy pensions (i.e., Social Security) face failure when beneficiaries consume more funds than workers contribute.

Though Polis has done his part to weaken Colorados long-stable pyramid, he understands the burgeoning dilemma. He signed bipartisan House Bill 20-1158 three years ago to mandate insurance coverage of fertility treatments. We need more children, he explained in writing, for compelling reasons related to our states future economic success.

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Polis recently told a Gazette editorial board member he would likely sign any future bill requiring full coverage of prenatal care, labor and delivery with no out-of-pocket costs. He understands a properly written law to reduce financial barriers to procreation  much like the fertility mandate  would sturdy the base of our population pyramid.

Conventional wisdom says population growth  through immigration, migration or procreation  means less to go around. Facts prove otherwise.

Few can eat a loaf of bread. Yet nearly anyone can bake dozens of loaves with minimal effort. A thousand workers can drive 1,000 electric cars. They can produce tens of thousands of similar cars for others to drive. A person who plants one tree might provide a thousand future apples each year for generations. One American farmer feeds 166 people in the U.S. and abroad.

Individuals born into egalitarian capitalist economies produce considerably more than they consume. United States residents comprise about 4% of the worlds population and produce more than 15% of the worlds gross domestic product. That means American children mature to produce goods, services and commodities for themselves and hundreds of millions of others around the globe.

Brought up in capitalism, children provide the futures global health care, nutrition, shelter, energy, education, transportation, and more. Colorados innovative population ranks 21st in size and 15th in its contribution to the countrys GDP. More Colorado children means more wealth for the world.

Not everyone can or should have children. Doing so ranks among lifes more challenging, rigorous and costly endeavors. For the sake of our future, the state should incentivize and reward those with the ability and will to parent children.

Dwindling population growth, says an article in Money, can spell economic doom. Financial incentives and bonuses are one way to support parents and boost birth rates.

Finlands village of Lestijarvi pays a baby bonus of $10,000 to couples who become parents. Finlands national government provides each new baby with a Baby Box Starter Kit and pays parents $100 a month for bringing up a child.

China, reeling from 37 years of the communist partys decommissioned one-child-only law, pays couples to have children.

Financial incentives for having children are increasingly appearing as a response to low birth rate numbers in places like Finland, Estonia, Italy, Japan, and Australia, Money reports.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Brookings Institution report the cost of one child from conception through high school ranges from $200,000 to $310,000. Yet, no other investment can provide for, sustain and advance humanitys quality of life.

Colorado needs more children to reverse our most understated and unrecognized liability. State lawmakers can change the trajectory with policies that invest in and help couples who procreate or adopt and care for children  the highest assets societies have.

The Gazette Editorial Board
I have a confession to make. I didnt get involved in Yemi Mobolades campaign until the last three weeks.

I should have been there a year ago. For the past 30 years, I have argued that Christians should be the best public servants, because they should be the people least bound by self-interest. Unlike many U.S. evangelicals, Mobolade fits that model perfectly. But I wasnt paying attention until just a few weeks ago.

My wifes boss is a close friend of Mobolade, and we were familiar with him from his time at First Presbyterian Church. So I should have been one of the first to offer encouragement to this unusual candidate.

But when my wife told me about Mobolades campaign announcement in April 2022, I dismissively replied, He cant win. After all, a friend with city government experience had told us way back in summer 2021, The people who run this city have already decided that Wayne Williams will be the next mayor.

Well, now Im sorry I stayed out of this campaign until the very end, because I missed a really good one. Whens the last time you have seen an African immigrant with no political experience pull evangelicals, pro-business conservatives, and progressive Democrats into a winning coalition?

Like me, the people who run this city didnt see this coming, but Mobolade did. He worked hard for a full year, and beyond that, his campaign rested on the widely recognized good things he had done in Colorado Springs for 13 years as a pastor, community leader and business owner. I was amazed at how many of my civic contacts knew him personally. Several said he had sought their input in their areas of expertise. All of them praised his authenticity and his willingness to listen and learn.

As a campaigner, he skillfully presented himself as the best option for Democrats and independents while not abandoning his pro-business and limited-government views that made him acceptable to many conservatives. Moreover, his grassroots work was exceptional. Having once served as press secretary for a grassroots-driven congressional campaign that toppled a 14-year incumbent, I have a good benchmark in that regard. Mobolade checked every box. He started early, knocked on doors tirelessly, met personally with voters wherever he could and invested in a dedicated, responsive campaign team.

Mobolade articulated a compelling vision of inclusiveness and respect that inspired people to become involved. I met one woman on election night who said she had knocked on 2,000 doors for him.

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Meanwhile, his opponent in the runoff, a competent and experienced leader, unintentionally reinforced Mobolades message by treating the race more like a coronation than a contested election. Wayne Williams proudly touted establishment endorsements, especially from outgoing mayor John Suthers and City Council members, while making virtually no effort to reach out to voters or generate popular enthusiasm.

Even Williamss attack ads seemed poorly conceived. He repeatedly used the same obviously out-of-context phrase to paint Mobolade as a liberal and socialistas if the man who co-founded COS I Love You and co-owns two local restaurants was scheming to turn Colorado Springs into either Hoodlumville or Boulder, whichever you think is worse.

Our nonpartisan form of local elections also helped by making it easier for Mobolade to run as a pure independent, on a platform of inclusiveness, and appeal to citizens across the political spectrum. In Pennsylvania, where I spent most of my political life, he would have had to either choose a party or try to buck both parties.

As Mobolade shifts from campaigning to governing, what can we expect? If he were heading for Congress, his unusual coalition would collapse within a few polarizing roll calls. But city government is a much different matter.

Take evangelicals and LGBT progressives, for example. When the issue is same-sex benefits or conscience rights for Jack Phillips, they are implacable foes. But on most issues for which a mayor is responsible  infrastructure, parks, homelessness, public safety  there is no such ideological divide. Whether youre going to New Life Church or Club Q, your desire not to get shot is the same.

Especially as divisiveness and culture wars dominate our national discourse, I hope we will give Mobolades vision of inclusive, participatory governance a chance. If the citizens of Colorado Springs commit to working together, this unlikely mayor-elects vision of a city on a hill could make us a model of reinvigorated democracy.

Bruce Barron is author of Politics for the People and lives on Colorado Springs west side. He was campaign press secretary and then a district aide for U.S. Rep. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) in 1990-1994.
The 19-year-old Jefferson County Republican who drew national attention when he co-chaired the Trump campaign's county office at age 12 has been named to the Republican National Committee panel tasked with helping the GOP win the youth vote.

Weston Imer, who managed his mother Laurel Imer's unsuccessful congressional campaign last year, recently joined the RNC's new Youth Advisory Council, which is intended to help guide the party's communications, social media and field strategies ahead of the 2024 elections.

Imer, currently a project manager for the Colorado Republican Party, told Colorado Politics he was appointed to the council by Randy Corporon, one of Colorado's two elected RNC members.

Chaired by U.S. Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Kat Cammack of Florida, the council will include legislators, candidates, campaign operatives, communications strategists and other Republicans belonging to the millennial and Gen Z cohorts, or those younger than their early 40s.

"This group will work closely with our leadership team to advise us on both the tactics and strategy of getting the GOPs message out to young voters and convincing them to vote for Republicans," the RNC said in a statement. "The Youth Advisory Council will work with the RNC communications staff to not only boost RNC content on social media, but it will allow our content to be more informed directly from the audience we are targeting.

RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said the council and other efforts demonstrate that "Republicans across the country are strengthening youth voter outreach and paving the way for our next generation of conservative leaders."

We recognize that as a party, we need to be engaging with young voters earlier, more often, and in different ways than ever before," she said in a statement. "Thats why Im so proud to announce the Youth Advisory Council to not only share our message with younger generations but to establish an influential conservative brand on social media."

In addition to Imer, other younger members include Brilyn Hollyhand, the 18-year-old conservative pundit who founded The Truth Gazette website when he was 11, and CJ Pearson, a 20-year-old media personality associated with the PragerU website who began blogging when he was 8.

Imer cut his political teeth nearly as young, singing the national anthem at Trump rallies in 2016 while helping his mother run the campaign's storefront field office in Wheat Ridge. Along with garnering coverage on CNN and in outlets ranging from Time Magazine to The Guardian, he welcomed Trump campaign surrogates to Colorado, including Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Eric Trump, who dubbed Imer "the kid of the Trump campaign."

Imer has worked on multiple campaigns since, including Steve Barlock's run for governor and Mark Barrington's congressional campaign, both in 2018. In the next cycle, he interned for former President Trump's 2020 reelection bid while managing his mother's legislative race in House District 24. Imer won election last year to a three-year term on the Pleasant View Water and Sanitation District Board, a position he notes his grandfather held for 28 years.

Imer expressed optimism about the new venture, calling it an honor to be chosen to represent Colorado and his generation on the national stage.

"Colorado is on the front line of the fight to stop the radical left and Marxist takeover of our country, and the next generations are the key to winning this war," he said in a statement.

"I am looking forward to working with my fellow Young Republicans in this fight as we work to take back our country. Brilyn, C. J., myself, and the other council members all bring our own unique talents and perspectives to this mission, and am sure that by working together we can come up with sound solutions and tactics to win this culture war and make up the ground we have lost to the Democrats in recent years.

Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams called Imer "a valuable voice" for involving young Americans in the party.

"Weston has a unique approach to leadership that will benefit our outreach to new generations as the party breaks down walls of traditional outdated politics and works towards a brighter future for our youth," Williams said in a statement.

"Westons passion for freedom and limited government principles is in his blood, and his activism across Colorado communities and on this important committee will only make our party efforts more successful.
An Adams County sheriff's deputy who pulled a man out of his pickup truck and fractured his ribs after smelling marijuana is not liable for excessive force, the federal appeals court based in Denver ruled last week.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed Jeffrey Helvie's refusal to exit the vehicle and Deputy Chad Jenkins' observation, at some point, that a gun was nearby both weighed in favor of finding Jenkins' force was reasonable. A three-judge panel based its decision on assumptions about what Helvie "could" have done if not subdued.

An "objective officer in Deputy Jenkins position could have suspected Helvie of driving while impaired, thus presenting a possible danger to the public if he were to flee and also suggesting that Helvie might have been acting with impaired judgment, which might lead him to try to flee," wrote Senior Judge David M. Ebel in the May 9 opinion.

The 10th Circuit's decision came nine months after another federal court found Jenkins could not be held liable for the deaths of two teenage girls. In that case, Jenkins ordered the girls, who did not have licenses, to drive a malfunctioning commercial vehicle home on a dark highway in rural Adams County. A tractor trailer truck slammed into them and killed them shortly afterward.

In Helvie's case, Jenkins pulled him over close to midnight in August 2018 after he saw Helvie's vehicle driving erratically. Jenkins noticed two other people in the truck and also smelled marijuana. Helvie declined to answer Jenkins' questions about the "white ash" allegedly on Helvie's lap.

Jenkins opened the truck door and ordered Helvie out, but Helvie did not comply, saying later that he was afraid. The deputy then physically pulled Helvie out, causing Helvie to land on his back. Jenkins claimed he saw a handgun in the driver door at that point, prompting him to drag Helvie away from the truck.

"And that's when I then kneeled down on him on his  on his, like, rib cage," Jenkins, who weighed 265 pounds, later testified, with Helvie continuing to physically resist. There was no body-worn camera footage of the encounter.

Jenkins then handcuffed Helvie and placed him in the patrol car. He searched the pickup truck and found the handgun and marijuana. Although prosecutors charged Helvie with a range of offenses, including resisting arrest and obstruction, court records show he pleaded guilty only to reckless driving. Helvie required treatment for his fractured ribs.

He then sued Jenkins, alleging excessive force. Jenkins argued he was entitled to qualified immunity, which is a judicial doctrine that generally shields government employees from liability unless they violate a person's clearly established rights.

In April 2022, U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak sided with Jenkins, agreeing no prior court cases under similar circumstances had deemed the deputy's conduct unreasonable.

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"Plaintiff was refusing Deputy Jenkins commands and a reasonable officer could conclude that Plaintiff  potentially under the influence and in close proximity to a firearm  posed an immediate threat," Varholak wrote.

Helvie then appealed to the 10th Circuit, asserting Varholak wrongly assumed Jenkins saw the firearm right before he fractured Helvie's ribs, relying only on Jenkins' testimony after the fact.

"A juror could conclude that Deputy Jenkins never noticed a firearm in the pocket of the driver side door until he searched the vehicle subsequent to the arrest. For example, when Deputy Jenkins pulled Mr. Helvie out of the vehicle, he never mentioned anything about a firearm in the driver side door," wrote attorney Sean M. McDermott.

During oral arguments in March, some members of the 10th Circuit panel appeared doubtful that Jenkins' force was proportional.

"Even if there was marijuana smell in the car, that doesnt necessary connect to the driver," Ebel observed. "And marijuana is legal in Colorado."

"The point that he drops the knee to both his chest and to his back," said Judge Robert E. Bacharach, "those take place at the back of the vehicle. (Helvie) no longer has access to the drivers seat so he cant take off and continue to drive. Nor can he access the gun."

"What Deputy Jenkins did was incrementally and proportionally respond to the situation in front of him," countered Assistant County Attorney Michael A. Sink.

Ultimately, the panel elected to view Jenkins' actions with the understanding that he had seen the gun when he pulled Helvie out of the truck.

"There is nothing inconsistent between Deputy Jenkins observing the gun during the process of arresting Helvie but not mentioning that fact," Ebel wrote.

Consequently, Jenkins did not violate Helvie's constitutional rights by using excessive force. Ebel wrote that Helvie "quickly escalated the situation" by resisting. Futher, Jenkins needed to address the gun that was "within reach of the uncooperative Helvie."

"Based on these factors," Ebel continued, "we conclude that it was reasonable for Deputy Jenkins both to drag Helvie toward the back of his truck and then to place his knee on Helvies chest to subdue and handcuff him."
The federal appeals court based in Colorado agreed with prosecutors earlier this month that a shooting suspect effectively abandoned ownership of his backpack, which permitted police to search it and uncover an illegally possessed handgun inside.

The Fourth Amendment protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures wherever they have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has previously explained that a person loses their expectation of privacy in an object when they clearly deny it is theirs.

Consequently, after Aaron Lee Porter responded to a Denver detective's question about his backpack by saying, "I don't have a backpack," there was no Fourth Amendment violation when the detective opened the bag without a warrant and found evidence of a crime.

"Because Mr. Porter abandoned the backpack and thus surrendered an expectation of privacy therein, the subsequent search was reasonable," wrote Senior Judge Paul J. Kelly Jr. in the opinion of a three-judge panel for the 10th Circuit.

The appeal revolved around the precise meaning of Porter's statement and whether he had actually abandoned his bag to be searched.

In July 2020, Porter was involved in a gang shooting near Martin Luther King Jr. and Colorado boulevards. He fired a shot that struck a bystander. Police obtained a warrant for his arrest and officers were told Porter might be in possession of a handgun.

On Aug. 6, law enforcement followed Porter from his home to the warehouse where he worked. Detective Jay Lopez encountered the warehouse manager, explained he had a warrant and arrested Porter without incident. Because Lopez saw Porter walk into the warehouse with a backpack, Lopez asked if there were "any personal belongings there at the job site that (Porter) wanted to bring with him."

Porter replied that he "didn't have any personal belongings," the detective later testified.

"What about the backpack I watched you walk in with?" Lopez pressed. Porter answered, "I don't have a backpack."

After officers took Porter to jail, Lopez asked to go to Porter's workstation to look at his belongings. Lopez spotted the backpack and one of Porter's co-workers reluctantly confirmed it belonged to Porter. Lopez asked the warehouse manager if he could take the bag. Yes, the manager responded.

Lopez picked up the backpack, felt something heavy inside and opened it. He saw a handgun. The detective then applied for a search warrant.

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State prosecutors charged Porter with attempted murder, for which he pleaded guilty. The federal government indicted him for being a felon in possession of a handgun and ammunition. Porter also pleaded guilty and received a 3-year sentence.

Prior to the plea, Porter attempted to suppress evidence of the handgun in his federal case, arguing Lopez's warrantless search of his backpack was unconstitutional.

U.S. District Court Senior Judge R. Brooke Jackson determined Lopez did not need a warrant to perform the search. Porter said he did not have a backpack, and it was reasonable for Lopez to believe Porter had now abandoned the bag he saw Porter walk in with.

Jackson alternatively found Lopez had reasonable suspicion that a gun was inside, and the evidence would have been discovered anyway.

Porter then appealed, arguing he had not clearly disclaimed his ownership of the backpack. In context, he believed he said something different.

"As Lopez testified, he did not ask Mr. Porter whether any backpack at the warehouse belonged to Mr. Porter, but rather whether Mr. Porter had a backpack at the warehouse that Mr. Porter wanted taken back to the police station," wrote Assistant Federal Public Defender Kathleen Shen. "Without taking the broader context of the conversation into account, Mr. Porters isolated statement, 'I dont have a backpack,' becomes a disclaimer of ownership of any backpack, anywhere in the world."

She also disputed the idea that Lopez had reasonable suspicion to believe a gun was in Porter's backpack at that moment, two weeks after the shooting.

The government rejected that interpretation of Porter's responses.

"'I dont have a backpack' means 'I don't have a backpack,'" Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Brenton told the 10th Circuit panel in March. "Now, if what he had really meant to say was, 'I want to leave my backpack here,' he could have said that."

The 10th Circuit agreed with the prosecution that Porter clearly communicated he had abandoned the bag, meaning the Fourth Amendment did not prohibit Lopez's warrantless search.

It is "hard to imagine a statement plainer than 'I dont have a backpack.' The statement is clearer still when viewed in conjunction with the fact that Detective Lopez saw Mr. Porter walk into the job site with a backpack," wrote Kelly in the May 2 opinion.
The 19-year-old Jefferson County Republican who drew national attention when he co-chaired the Trump campaign's county office at age 12 has been named to the Republican National Committee panel tasked with helping the GOP win the youth vote.

Weston Imer, who managed his mother Laurel Imer's unsuccessful congressional campaign last year, recently joined the RNC's new Youth Advisory Council, which is intended to help guide the party's communications, social media and field strategies ahead of the 2024 elections.

Imer, currently a project manager for the Colorado Republican Party, told Colorado Politics he was appointed to the council by Randy Corporon, one of Colorado's two elected RNC members.

Chaired by U.S. Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Kat Cammack of Florida, the council will include legislators, candidates, campaign operatives, communications strategists and other Republicans belonging to the millennial and Gen Z cohorts, or those younger than their early 40s.

"This group will work closely with our leadership team to advise us on both the tactics and strategy of getting the GOPs message out to young voters and convincing them to vote for Republicans," the RNC said in a statement. "The Youth Advisory Council will work with the RNC communications staff to not only boost RNC content on social media, but it will allow our content to be more informed directly from the audience we are targeting.

RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said the council and other efforts demonstrate that "Republicans across the country are strengthening youth voter outreach and paving the way for our next generation of conservative leaders."

We recognize that as a party, we need to be engaging with young voters earlier, more often, and in different ways than ever before," she said in a statement. "Thats why Im so proud to announce the Youth Advisory Council to not only share our message with younger generations but to establish an influential conservative brand on social media."

In addition to Imer, other younger members include Brilyn Hollyhand, the 18-year-old conservative pundit who founded The Truth Gazette website when he was 11, and CJ Pearson, a 20-year-old media personality associated with the PragerU website who began blogging when he was 8.

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Imer cut his political teeth nearly as young, singing the national anthem at Trump rallies in 2016 while helping his mother run the campaign's storefront field office in Wheat Ridge. Along with garnering coverage on CNN and in outlets ranging from Time Magazine to The Guardian, he welcomed Trump campaign surrogates to Colorado, including Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Eric Trump, who dubbed Imer "the kid of the Trump campaign."

Imer has worked on multiple campaigns since, including Steve Barlock's run for governor and Mark Barrington's congressional campaign, both in 2018. In the next cycle, he interned for former President Trump's 2020 reelection bid while managing his mother's legislative race in House District 24. Imer won election last year to a three-year term on the Pleasant View Water and Sanitation District Board, a position he notes his grandfather held for 28 years.

Imer expressed optimism about the new venture, calling it an honor to be chosen to represent Colorado and his generation on the national stage.

"Colorado is on the front line of the fight to stop the radical left and Marxist takeover of our country, and the next generations are the key to winning this war," he said in a statement.

"I am looking forward to working with my fellow Young Republicans in this fight as we work to take back our country. Brilyn, C. J., myself, and the other council members all bring our own unique talents and perspectives to this mission, and am sure that by working together we can come up with sound solutions and tactics to win this culture war and make up the ground we have lost to the Democrats in recent years.

Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams called Imer "a valuable voice" for involving young Americans in the party.

"Weston has a unique approach to leadership that will benefit our outreach to new generations as the party breaks down walls of traditional outdated politics and works towards a brighter future for our youth," Williams said in a statement.

"Westons passion for freedom and limited government principles is in his blood, and his activism across Colorado communities and on this important committee will only make our party efforts more successful.
Colorado's Michael Bennet, along with several other U.S. senators, on Monday introduced legislation to regulate political commercials generated by artificial intelligence, arguing the technological leap has "huge implications for our democracy."

Joining Bennet are Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota., and Cory Booker, D-New Jersey.

Called the "REAL Political Ads Act," the proposal requires a disclaimer on any political ad by a federal campaign that uses content generated by AI. It's among the latest attempts by policymakers to put in place parameters around AI, whose rapid advance has both mesmerized and terrified many.

We are already seeing political advertisements making use of new AI tools, with huge implications for our democracy, Bennet said in a news release. This bill will bring more transparency and accountability to our elections by informing voters when AI is being used in political ads  an important step toward aligning its use with our democratic values.

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In the same statement, Klobuchar said that, for the first time in history, the American public is seeing how artificial intelligence could be used to "generate images and videos in political ads, creating new avenues for misleading content."

"Our laws need to keep up, she said. This common sense legislation would update our disclosure laws to improve transparency and ensure voters are aware when this technology is used in campaign ads.

Booker added that Congress must ensure voters are fully aware about the source and authenticity of political ads that seek to influence their electoral decisions.
In a brief order issued last week, the Colorado Supreme Court granted relief to a father who has only spent two hours of parenting time with his children since November 2020, stemming from the strict terms of his 2018 divorce.

When Jason Strong divorced his wife, Kassandra Webb-Galarza, an Adams County judge created three phases of custody, each giving Strong slightly more time with his children. Whether Strong could advance to the next phase depended upon his adherence to certain terms and conditions.

However, Strong found himself perpetually unable to complete "Phase I" because of his periodic violation of certain base terms, namely the completion of drug testing. Strong labeled such restrictions "self-executing," arguing they automatically and illegitimately take away a parent's visitation rights without the other spouse needing to ask a court to impose restrictions.

Douglas County Magistrate Jacob A. Edson was set to hold a hearing on Strong's request to modify his parenting time in February. But hours beforehand, Edson canceled the hearing and directed Strong and Webb-Galarza to engage in mediation  even though the ex-spouses had attended mediation twice and were unable to resolve their differences.

Strong immediately appealed to the Supreme Court to seek its rare intervention.

"After two years of litigation, several failed mediations, innumerable motions, and two separate trial settings that were vacated, Father still has no parenting time," wrote Strong's attorneys. "Mother has spent years repeatedly insisting that Father is entitled to no parenting time whatsoever based entirely on her perceived violations of technical and outdated orders that have nothing to do with present endangerment to the children."

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The Supreme Court directed Edson and Webb-Galarza to explain why it should not order the hearing Strong had requested. The Colorado Attorney General's Office, representing Edson, argued Strong had the opportunity to appeal through normal channels, without needing to resort to the state's highest court.

Webb-Galarza's attorneys made a similar argument, but noted she had no objection to a hearing, "as she also believes a modification is necessary to serve the children's best interests."

On May 12, the Supreme Court sided with Strong, overruling Edson's decision to sidestep Strong's request for greater custody.

"Given the unusual circumstances of this case," the justices wrote in an unsigned order, "the trial court is ordered, without additional mediation, to hold a hearing on the Motion to Modify Parenting Time within a reasonable timeframe."

The Supreme Court did not address Strong's broader argument: That self-executing restrictions on visitation, which take effect without a judge's finding that children are currently endangered, should be declared void.

Attorneys for Strong and Webb-Galarza did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

The case is In Re the Marriage of Webb-Galarza and Strong.
Loveland officials did not violate the constitutional rights of a sales and consulting firm by attempting to enforce its regulations on campaign spending during the 2019 municipal election, a federal judge ruled last month.

The city prosecuted Bloomstruck LLC after its owner, Natalie Petersen, received $2,000 to design and mail a postcard critical of Councilor John Fogle at the behest of the local Democratic Party. Petersen did not abide by the Loveland charter's requirement that political committees report their expenditures to the city  nor did she believe she had to.

Although Loveland eventually dismissed the municipal charges, Petersen and Bloomstruck sued the city clerk and city attorney, alleging they retaliated against the company for its political speech, lacked probable cause of a charter violation and failed to adopt procedural safeguards in the prosecution.

In an April 20 order, U.S. District Court Judge Nina Y. Wang sided with Loveland. Even if Bloomstruck did not actually fit the charter's definition of a political committee, the defendants knew Petersen's company had received money to send a postcard with a political message and did not report it to the city. Therefore, officials had probable cause of an infraction.

"Bloomstruck has not directed the Court to any evidence," Wang wrote, that "they were aware that it was a 'legal impossibility' for Bloomstruck to be charged as a political committee under the Charter."

In early October 2019, Gil Barela, then the chair of the Larimer County Democrats, approached Petersen about designing a postcard to send to Ward III households before the election. The postcard would depict Fogle as an octopus on one side and the words "No Longer Good for Loveland" on the other. Barela reportedly wanted voters to see "this candidate wasn't the guy we wanted."

The cost to Bloomstruck for designing and mailing the postcards was $2,000, which Barela obtained from local attorney Troy D. Krenning. The postcard informed recipients that "Reality Check Colorado" paid for it. Reality Check was actually an alias for Bloomstruck, as Petersen "didn't want" her home address or name on the card.

Later that month, then-city clerk Patty Garcia emailed Bloomstruck to note the charter requires political committees to register with the city and report their contributions and expenditures. A lawyer for Bloomstruck responded that Reality Check Colorado "will not be providing any information to the City of Loveland as it does not believe it is required to."

Garcia then raised the potential charter violation to city manager Stephen C. Adams. Although Petersen did report her spending to the state, Loveland brought charges in municipal court for violating the charter's requirements. Jail time was a possibility, but the city insisted it was only seeking Bloomstruck's compliance with the charter.

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After a jury acquitted Krenning's law office in a similar case stemming from the $2,000 donation, the city moved to dismiss the charges against Bloomstruck  which Bloomstruck opposed because it wanted to expose the "fraud" perpetrated by the city.

Petersen and Bloomstruck then sued Patti Garcia, city attorney Moses Garcia, and former deputy city attorney Alicia Calderon. Specifically, the plaintiffs argued Bloomstruck was organized well before Petersen was even in Colorado, so it could not be a political committee "for the purpose" of making campaign expenditures.

"Where it is legally impossible for a (company) to have committed the offenses charged, there can be no probable cause to support a prosecution," wrote Krenning, who represented the plaintiffs. He added that the city's actions chilled Petersen's political speech and caused a "loss of reputation."

The city countered that, given Bloomstruck's election spending and its refusal to report its activities, a reasonable prosecutor would have believed a charter violation was occurring.

"It is undisputed that Defendants had legitimate reasons to pursue the charges, and the Postcards content was not the cause," wrote attorney Ashley Hernandez-Schlagel.

Wang, in her order, first noted Petersen had no standing to sue. The city's charges were only against Bloomstruck, and the direct harm from a wrongful prosecution would have fallen on the company. As for Bloomstruck's malicious prosecution claim, Wang believed no reasonable jury would conclude the city lacked probable cause of a charter violation, given what it knew about the election mailing.

"This case differs from the majority of malicious prosecution cases," Wang added, "which typically involve an arrested individual defendant and a judicial determination of probable cause."

Because the city had probable cause, it could not be the case that the government retaliated against Bloomstruck because of its speech, Wang continued in rejecting the plaintiffs' First Amendment claim. Finally, while Bloomstruck alleged the city failed to adopt "an appropriate level of process" for handling the alleged charter violation, Wang saw no evidence Loveland officials deviated from standard procedure.

The case is Petersen et al. v. Garcia et al.
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Bullets do not discriminate. They care not for names.

In Davenport, those bullets have killed teenagers. Testimony given Tuesday in the trial of John Eddie Hanes III  one of three arrested for the 2021 fatal shooting of 14-year-old Jamon Winfrey  proves it.

Friends and family say Winfrey died alone, on the side of an abandoned house on Farnam Street, simply because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Multiple people connected to Hanes' case claim Winfrey's killing was triggered by the 2018 murder of another teenager.

The bullets fired in the late afternoon of Feb. 24, 2021, carried a tragic legacy. It's a legacy that destroyed the lives of four men who weren't even 20 years old.

Bullets, it seems, have the power to travel through time.

'There go the opp'



Winfrey was shot down Feb. 24, 2021, in the area of 13th and Farnam streets. Hanes, Javon Combs and Chrystian Z. Smith  all in their late teens at the time  were arrested and initially charged with first-degree murder and intimidation with a weapon.

Hanes is the only defendant to go to trial.

Smith, 19, pleaded guilty in February to a single count of attempted murder. His plea was part of an agreement with the Scott County Attorneys Office, and District Court Judge Henry Latham sentenced him to up to 25 years in prison.

Just before the start of Hanes' trial, Combs turned state's witness with a plea deal that will put him in prison for a minimum of 20 years on three felony counts of intimidation with a deadly weapon and one felony count of willful injury. He testified Tuesday.

Combs knew Hanes from as far back as grade school, and he said it was not unusual for the pair to cruise around Davenport with Smith and other friends.

In response to questions by Scott County Assistant Prosecutor Elizabeth O'Donnell, Combs testified that on the afternoon of Feb. 24, 2021, he joined Hanes, Smith and two other people in a car. He had a handgun loaded with .40-caliber bullets, and Hanes had a Glock handgun.

While "riding around," Combs said, they were near the intersection of LeClaire and 13th streets when they spotted a car and a van on Farnam and, "... someone in the car said, 'There go the opp.' "

Combs said the "the opp" referred to the Savage Life street gang. Combs said he and Hanes and Smith were part of a group known as MMG  the initials for Mad Max Gang. He testified that Savage Life was "the opp," meaning the opposition, the enemy.

In a matter of moments, Smith wheeled the vehicle out of the intersection, and Combs emptied his handgun at the car. Smith stopped in the entrance to the alley between LeClaire and Farnam streets. It was then, Combs testified, that Hanes began firing the Glock.

He saw someone run from the car, but he was out of bullets. He did not say he saw Hanes shoot Winfrey. Moments later, Combs was hit by gunfire from the van. He went home after, he testified, then to the hospital.

'Under his momma's wing'

At some point in the hail of gunfire, Winfrey was hit. He tried fleeing, but he managed to get just four houses down Farnam before collapsing on the side of an abandoned house.

The next day, neighbors spotted the 14-year-old's body in a yard.

During Combs' first court appearance in May 2022, police accused him, Smith and Hanes of being members of the Mad Max Gang, or MMG, and said Winfrey was a member of the Savage Life gang.

At the time of the shooting, the gangs had shoot-on-sight orders for each others members, according Davenport police Detective Jordan Sander, who testified during a preliminary hearing in Combs' case.

Sander had worked as a member of the Davenport Police Department's major crimes unit for six years at the time of the March 2022 hearing. The unit investigates crimes, such as homicide and burglary, but "gang-related shootings take up a fairly decent amount" of the unit's time, Sander testified.

Sylvia Abbey is Winfrey's aunt. She knew him his entire life and said he never was a member of Savage Life.

"Jamon was under his momma's wing," she said. "He was a momma's boy, still. He had cousins, friends, who were Savage Life.

"But Jamon was not in that gang. His favorite thing to do was be at home playing video games. That's what he loved, being up all night playing those video games."

Tanyah Shelton is 16 and was Winfrey's girlfriend at the time of his murder. She agreed with Abbey.

"He was a momma's boy, and he loved the girls," Shelton said. "He was a bad boy, that way. He was all about girls.

"He had a lot of energy. He liked to play. And like I said, as he got older, he wanted to be around the girls. He loved that attention. He was not in a gang."

'A revenge gang'

During Tuesday's testimony, Combs testified that the Mad Max Gang was formed in the wake of the murder of a teenager called "Jovi".

Jovontia Jones, 16, Davenport, was killed on May 19, 2018, in the 1200 or 1300 block of Harrison Street, outside the Hilltop Liquor Store. Police described the incident as a "drive-by shooting" and said Jones was "targeted."

What the police did not say publicly was that Jones was a member of Savage Life.

Following the murder, then-Davenport Mayor Frank Klipsch led what would become a yearlong effort to curb what was called "youth violence and crime."

Klipsch led months of meetings with hundreds of community leaders to get to the root of what he called "a criminal subculture with no regard for human life."

While city leaders were meeting, young men and women formed the Mad Max Gang.

"MMG was basically a revenge gang; that's true," Abbey said. "Jovi was Savage Life. So were some of MMG.

"You have to understand that we are not talking about gangs like the Gangster Disciples. These are neighborhood gangs. They are not out there selling big amounts of drugs or guns. MMG was all about getting revenge for Jovi."

Winfrey would have been 11 years old when Jones was killed.

'Bullets don't have names on them'

Combs' mother, Miranda Combs, and his sister, Shebra Waters, heard his testimony Tuesday.

"Javon grew up loved," his mother said. "He was a good boy. He loves his family. That's why he is testifying. I pray that he will be able to come home to us some day."

Miranda Combs said she also prayed for Hanes and Smith.

"So young. This violence is destroying lives. It's killing children and destroying young lives before they ever really get started. John (Hanes) could go away for life."

Waters said she and her mother thought of Winfrey often.

"The trauma never goes away for anyone," she said. "We want his family to know how sorry we are. I think about how young he was. I think of all the things he'll never get to experience. He'll never finish school, never be able to raise a family.

"This violence, it kills kids and then it destroys the families. It just goes on. Those bullets don't have names on them, not really. Those bullets don't care who you are, so when you shoot them you never know whose life you're gonna destroy."

Photos: Rockingham Road Burger King sustains damage from Tuesday morning fire 051623-qc-nws-fire-07.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-05.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-02.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-04.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-03.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-01.jpg 051623-qc-nws-fire-06.jpg
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The Kirk Apartments demolition is underway in downtown Mason City.

The city of Mason City has canceled emergency abatement on the recently destroyed, 44-unit apartment building, located at 206 N. Federal Ave.

During Tuesday's regular council meeting Deputy City Administrator Brent Hinson explained the building's owner, Ed Kent, was able to reach an agreement with his insurance company to begin the demolition, which was underway by Wednesday afternoon.

The city had scheduled the emergency abatement as structural integrity of the apartment building shell is poor at best. The building was destroyed in a blaze that lasted the better part of a day on April 24.

With the 84th annual North Iowa Band Festival scheduled for downtown Memorial Day weekend, foot traffic will be considerable higher, and safety is paramount for any community event.

"A lot of people are talking on Facebook, and I know I'll get asked this question, so here goes," started Councilmember John Lee. "Will there be any way to save any part of that building? I know some people want there to be something saved from it."

Hinson has been working closely with contractors and Kent while City Administrator Aaron Burnett is on vacation and answered quickly, "Yes, there should be some architectural salvage that goes on with the specialized contractor."

DeCarlo Demolition Company had workers on site as early a 8 a.m. to prepare the area. Zach DeCarlo, demolition foreman, explained the process in more detail. "We're gonna start on the north wall and pull the walls down gently. We'll make our way to the south and by the end of the week. We should have it down to rubble."

"We aren't really in the demolition business, we're in the deconstruction business," he explained. "We'll do everything in our power to do any salvage work that we can while staying on the tight timeline we have."

Hinson expanded on the timeline and plan, telling councilmembers and the public initial demolition for safety should end by next week, before Band Fest begins.

In total the process should take three to four weeks with phased re-opening of the sidewalks as they become safe for pedestrians.

The completed demolition will leave the premises completely empty. Foundations will be taken down to three feet below grade on the site and the building's 10 foot basement will have holes punched through it for drainage. The contractor will fill, topsoil and seed the location, leaving an open space.
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Some fire departments are feeling the pinch of a nationwide shortage of volunteers, while others are still thriving.

According to a report from Fortune, last year, nearly 2,500 people died as a result of fires, including 96 firefighters U.S. Fire Administrator Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell said. More than 1 million structures caught fire and more than 7.5 million acres burned in wildfires last year, she said.

The Manly Fire Department is staffed completely by volunteers. Manly Fire Chief Bob Rush said the department provides all the training required by the state for its volunteers. Partnerships with local community colleges to complete the Firefighter One training, which is required before one can be involved in fighting a structure fire. The training is at no cost to the volunteers.

"In Manly we can have up to 25 members and right now we're at 15. It's very difficult to get and retain (volunteers)," said Rush.

Rush said there are different reasons for the trouble recruiting and retaining volunteers.

"I don't know if it's just the mindset that's not the same as it used to be with people being willing to volunteer their time," Rush said. "When they're not at work it takes away time from families and it takes a lot of dedication to do it."

He said the department tries to be family oriented and appealing to the younger crowd.

Clear Lake and Osage are not facing the same shortage of staff or volunteers. Clear Lake Fire Chief Doug Meyers said he's comfortable with the 30 volunteer firefighters and 17 volunteer EMS workers. Clear Lake is also unique in that it employs full-time firefighters as well as full-time EMS employees.

"The thing about our department is, roughly 80% of our call volume is for EMS responses," Meyers said. "Volunteers couldn't support doing that many EMS runs."

He said while the department doesn't see large turnover of volunteers, when they do lose people it's usually because they move for a career opportunity.

"I think depending on what is happening in the economy... When people have chosen to to leave it's usually for that reason and not because something happened here," Meyers said.

Clear Lake is also unique in that it provides a one-time pension payout when volunteers retire, based on their years of service.

"So, if our volunteers stay with us for 10 years they received a payout at the time of their retirement," Meyers said.

All volunteer firefighters and EMS employees are given a $250 state income tax credit in Iowa. Other states, such as Minnesota, have plans similar to Clear Lake's.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, there were approximately 1,080,800 volunteer firefighters in the U.S. in 2022. About 70% of first responders are volunteers nationwide.

Osage Fire Chief Joe Krukow is serving his first year as chief, alongside 30 other members, all of whom are volunteers.

"Fortunately, we usually have a list of applicants that are in our file," he said. "We've been pretty fortunate."

He said Osage doesn't provide any special incentives, but said it would definitely help if more financial incentives were provided.

Meyers said the other issue facing small municipalities is the expense of equipment, training and vehicles. He said a new fire truck can start out at $500,000.

"For us to put a firefighter into a burning building safely with training, just his personal equipment is going to cost roughly $12,000," Meyers said.

Some departments even require volunteers to purchase their own protective gear, which Meyers said is a major problem for recruitment in those communities. He also said some departments are consolidating, but that can have a negative effect on response times.

"One of the thing that happens globally is competition for time," Meyers said. "It's more than just going on one or two calls per week."

He said the Clear Lake Fire and EMS departments responded to 1,400 calls last year.

"The volunteerism is a critical component for smaller communities, but from a perspective of how long can individual communities support having emergency services it can be tough," Meyers said.

North Iowa history in photos: Mason City street scenes of the early 1900s 1937 Downtown MC.jpg Cigar and peanut wagon on Federal 1909.jpg Parade for the July 4th 1910.jpg 1920 Ford dealeship in Mason Cityr.jpg 1901 Uncle Tom's Cabin Parade MC IA.jpg 1910 Fire Department MC.jpg 1920s Birdsall's Ice Cream Store same location today..jpg 1910busy intersection standard oil wagon.jpg 1920 Commercial Bank on Federal with parked motorcycle.jpg 1915 Charles Hotel at Central Park with Trolley.jpg 1930 2nd St SE and Federal facing North Best.jpg 1915 Iowa Hardware Mutual Office Bldg old metalcraft bldg.jpg 1930s Jefferson Lines buses at the downtown depot MC.jpg 1915 State st North of delaware facing NE2.jpg 1930 East side Federal to State street.jpg 1915 Street scene at Charles Hotel with Trolleyand Olympia Billboard.jpg 1934 buildings being torn down Federal Ave 1.jpg 1918 North Iowa Fair 19th SW at Federal (Southport Mall site.jpg Mason_City_1212.jpg 1919 White Motor Cars on Federal MC.jpg
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With Republicans holding a razor-thin majority in the U.S. House, Winning For Women  a conservative political action committee dedicated to electing women to public office  released its first round of endorsements in 2024 battleground seats Wednesday.

Among them are Iowa Republican U.S. Reps. Ashley Hinson of Marion and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa.

In the last cycle, Winning for Women and related entities raised $17 million to support its endorsed candidates, including directing nearly $4 million in hard dollars to their campaigns.

With these endorsements, WFW PAC will max out to each candidate and commit to hosting fundraisers across the country to ensure they have the resources needed to win, according to a statement.

The PAC, according to its website, supports right-of-center women leaders who are working to advance free-market principles and a strong national defense.

WFW PAC founder and chairwoman Annie Dickerson, in a statement, said the candidates are rising stars in the party and that its never too early to start playing offense.

Hinson represents Iowas 2nd Congressional District, which includes Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Waterloo and Grinnell.

Telling Iowans stories in Congress and fighting for conservative policy solutions has been the honor of my life, but were just getting started, Hinson said in a statement. There has never been a more important time to have strong, conservative women join our fight.

Hinson said WFW PAC played a tremendous role in sending a historic number of Republican women to Congress in the 2022 midterm elections, by giving early support to top-tier candidates.

Im honored to have Winning For Women PACs continued support as we fight to expand our majority in the House, and work to elect more Republican women to stand up for working families, push back against the Biden administrations radical policies, and bring fiscal sanity back to Washington, Miller-Meeks said in a statement.

She represents southeast Iowas 1st Congressional District, which includes Davenport, Iowa City, Burlington and Indianola.

Another guest announced for Roast and Ride

Vivek Ramaswamy makes four confirmed guests and counting for Iowa Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernsts Roast and Ride fundraiser.

Ernst announced on social media that the 37-year-old Republican presidential candidate and biotech entrepreneur from Ohio will be a special guest at the June 3 motorcycle ride, hog roast and rally.

Ramaswamy is the GOPs first millennial presidential candidate.

Other guests already announced are former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and conservative talk radio host Larry Elder. Pence has said hes nearing a decision on a 2024 presidential bid. Both Haley and Elder have either officially launched or announced a bid to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.

Iowa is set to kick off the Republican presidential nominating process with its first-in-the-nation caucuses.

Every potential candidate in the 2024 GOP primary has been invited to the June 3 event.

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GREENSBORO  For the fifth year, lovers of the written word will gather in the city to celebrate books and authors.

The Greensboro Bound Literary Festival kicks off todaywith Abide & Imbibe, a Big Lebowski-themed fundraising event featuring beverage writer Andre Darlington. Festival co-founder Steve Colyer said the event is sold out, but others are open and free.

The three-day festival features 55 authors and 32 events, including two workshops and a documentary, in and around downtown Greensboro.

One highlight occurs Friday with An Evening with Charles Frazier. The event is free, but registration is required through Greensboro Bounds website at greensborobound.com. A full schedule of events is available through the website.

Frazier, who grew up in western North Carolina, won the National Book Award for his 1997 novel Cold Mountain. Frazier has just released his fifth novel, Trackers, a gritty suspense novel set in the West during the Depression.

Colyer, a South Carolina native, said hes also personally looking forward to Lowcountry: Gullah Food and Gullah Life  a discussion with Matthew Raiford and Eric Crawford and hosted by radio personality Rodney Dawson.

Were really, really excited to be bringing this to the community again for free, Colyer said.

Other authors featured in the festival include Lee Smith, author of The New York Times bestseller Last Girls; Daniel Wallace, author of Big Fish, which was adapted and released as a movie and a Broadway musical; and Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle, author of Even As We Breathe, a 2021 recipient of the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award.

The event also features childrens programming with authors Bakari Sellers (Who Are Your People) Shelly Anand (I Love my Body Because) and Michael Leali (The Civil War of Amos Abernathy). The documentary, The Renegade Legacy of Bleecker and MacDougal, will be shown Friday night.

Panels scheduled for Saturday include Writing for Video Games and Finding Fun and Taking Risks.

The festival also includes an ode (and likely a jam session) to the banjo with author Kristina Gaddy and Greensboros own Justin Demeanor Harrington.
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Polite Society (PG-13)

At the Myrna Loy

Grade: B+

Polite Society takes us on an impolite Bollywood roller coaster ride.

What starts out as a frivolous romcom about a jealous sibling trying to sabotage her big sisters wedding, evolves into light-hearted thriller with ninja ladies flying through the air with Pakistani panache.

Polite Society blends Jane Austen with House of the Flying Daggers.

Two sisters pledge to defy arranged marriage and arrange their own lives instead. Young Ria longs to be a stunt woman. Elder sis Lena attends art school.

But when her parents invite a handsome young doctor for dinner, Lenas resolve melts.

To Rias disgust, Lena says yes to Salims proposal.

Ninja wannabe Ria gathers her BFFs, Clara and Alba, to concoct a multi-phase scheme to disrupt the marriage by any means necessary  up to and including spin kicks in wedding dresses.

Rias inept kung fu moves just add to the fun.

The amusing marital mash up ends in preposterous fashion with a sci-fi twist.

Usually such silliness annoys me, but two qualities saved Polite Society.

First, Nida Manzoors British film about a traditional Pakistani family takes pointed, but loving shots, at the submissive role of women in their culture. Ria and Lena both intend to forge their own path.

All goes well until Lena opts to trade her feminist sensibility for the accoutrements of gold digging.

Outraged, Ria, the kick-ass-sister, pledges to fight the good feminist fight, with BFFs Alba and Clara at her side.

But its the love between sisters that holds Polite Society together.

Rias war against her sisters marriage is partly adolescent jealousy (Im prettier!), but partly separation grief. Ria senses their deep friendship will likely end as sis sells out and moves away.

Rias clumsy kicks hide a broken heart.

The ninja shenanigans that cover up tears are actually quite sweet.

In the end, Ria establishes her own YouTube brand: I am the fury! Bruce Lee beware.

My runner-up in the one liner raffle was give me that womb!

That demand refers to Salims secret pursuit of the perfect repository for his perfect sperms.

The title Polite Society is a subversive stab at rules that try to keep young ladies from breaking the glass ceiling. Manzoors script is incisive, clever and outrageous in equal portions.

Shes blowing up movie norms at the same time she revolts against patriarchal Pakistani values.

So what have we here, anyway?

Polite Society is an irreverent attack on Pakistani patriarchy crafted with love and affection for all  and including lots of kung fu action.

Bend it Like Beckham has a sequel: Bend it like Ria!
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Gov. Greg Gianforte on Wednesday signed four zoning reform bills that he said "encourage responsible, proactive housing development and protect rural areas and ag land from sprawl."

One of the bills was Senate Bill 407, sponsored by Sen. Shane Morigeau, D-Missoula.

The new law streamlines permitting for commercial and residential development by eliminating local design review by volunteer boards, reducing costs associated with permitting delays, Gianforte noted.

Morigeaus bill requires that the determination of compliance with local design review standards must be conducted by employees of the municipality and the municipality may not require review by an external board. It does not apply to historic preservation boards.

The purpose was to streamline the construction process and the design review process, which had morphed into something more burdensome, Morigeau said. This (previous design review) approval process bogs down builders. Ive been told it can increase costs on a project by 25%. This was a commonsense piece of legislation.

He also said that the bill protects the First Amendment rights of people to design their projects how they see fit. Concerns over the safety of buildings will still be upheld, he said, but aesthetic decisions will no longer require the approval of an external, volunteer board.

Morigeau said that he and other Democrats in the Legislature have been disappointed that their Republican colleagues didnt agree to proposals to provide immediate relief to renters struggling with high housing costs across Montana.

He said that many of the bills passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature will allow more housing to be built over the long-term by reducing requirements, but it will take years.

Still, Morigeau is hopeful that his bill and other zoning reform bills will make a difference eventually by increasing the number of homes available, thus driving down prices for renters and buyers.

Gianforte has said that affordable housing is the top issue in Montana.

"Zoning regulations constrict housing supply and make affordable housing less accessible, Gov. Gianforte said. Were removing these roadblocks so Montanans can better afford to live in the communities where they work while protecting our treasured wide-open spaces."

He touted the other bills he signed in a press release.

Senate Bill 382 requires local governments to reform zoning regulations to meet future housing needs. Called the Montana Land Use Planning Act, it will ostensibly provide a quicker review process for planning reviews of development proposals. The bill requires local governments to establish planning commissions, provide continuous public participation and adopt land use plans and land use maps. It also requires local governments to analyze expected population trends, take action to meet current and future housing needs and plan for environmental hazards.

After years of doing the same thing over and over, its critical we do something different, Gianforte said. Were changing our approach with the Montana Land Use Planning Act.

Senate Bill 528, carried by Sen. Greg Hertz, R-Polson, restores landowners rights to build affordable starter homes by allowing accessory dwelling units, Gianforte said.

Senate Bill 245, sponsored by Sen. Daniel Zolnikov, R-Billings, will revise Montanas zoning laws to allow multifamily housing and mixed-used development in urban areas zoned for office, retail and parking with existing sewer and water systems. It would only apply to towns and cities with a population over 7,000.

Earlier this month, the governor signed Senate Bill 323, sponsored by Sen. Jeremy Trebas, R-Great Falls, to allow duplex housing in city zoning.

Ending exclusionary zoning will increase access to starter homes, like duplexes. We got it done, Gianforte said. Montanans in every corner of our state tell me theyre concerned about the rising cost of housing. Coming together, weve delivered the most meaningful pro-housing reforms in state history, and our work for hardworking Montanans wont stop.
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With the swing of a gate Monday at high noon, Montanans gained an additional 5,677 acres of public land in the foothills of the Big Snowy Mountains.

Shed antler hunters, on foot and mounted, eagerly waited at the border fence to be the first to experience the Big Snowy Mountains Wildlife Management area, Montana's newest WMA, and hopefully find some shed antlers.

Hannah Klitzke, of Billings, found success on her first-ever game range opener, coming back to the parking area with a couple of elk sheds hours into the hunt.

We thought its a new game range maybe not a lot of people know about, but thats not what happened, Klitzke said.

Klitzke and dozens of other shed hunters were drawn to the WMA because of its newness and proximity to inaccessible private land thats known to hold a lot of elk. She said she would definitely come back.

The WMA comprises an area where grassland prairie meets timbered mountains.

Elk in velvet grazed the mountainous meadows as long-billed curlews explored the sage and shortgrass prairie. Antelope danced across the flats trying to avoid the new visitors scouring the landscape for dropped antlers.

Also on hand to christen the event was Gov. Greg Gianforte, who opened the gate, along with representatives from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and Shodair Childrens Hospital. Representatives from the Crow, Little Shell and Blackfeet tribes were also in attendance.

Its a great day in Montana as we celebrate unlocking over 100,000 acres of public land for folks to enjoy in the Big Snowy Mountains, said Gov. Gianforte, boasting the expanded public access the WMA provides to adjacent federal lands.

Those include the Bureau of Land Managements 6,936-acre Twin Coulee Wilderness Study Area and the Forest Services 88,696-acre Big Snowies Wilderness Study Area.

As part of the purchase agreement approved by the state Land Board, the governor required the state to keep the land available for cattle grazing.

Dustin Temple, deputy director of Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, heralded the project as a new approach by FWP to increase access and habitat by sharing the landscape with agricultural producers.

This new WMA, with our commitment to grazing and agriculture as an active part of management, represents a fresh look for FWP and how we approach habitat projects, Temple said. "We're committed to making certain that habitat and access projects work collaboratively with the agricultural community."

The land was sold to the state by Helena-based Shodair Childrens Hospital for $8.22 million. The property was donated to the company by the Forrest Allen estate in 2019. Allens parents, Stanley and Carrie Allen, homesteaded in the area in the early 1900s.

I cant say thank you enough to all the partners involved in this project," said Craig Aasved, CEO of Shodair. "I grew up in the Snowy Mountains on the other side, so to be a part of this is a legacy Ill cherish forever.

The sale of the property will help fund the hospital's completion of a $10 million medical office building for genetic services and an outpatient clinic. This is in addition to a new $66 million hospital recently constructed.

Seventy-five percent of the states payment for the land purchase came from federal Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration funds with the other 25% from Habitat Montana, which is money collected from hunting license sales and taxes on recreational marijuana.

Shodair was assisted in its attempt to ensure the land went into public hands by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. RMEF awarded its largest grant ever  $250,000  to help fund the construction of a parking lot, weed treatment and fencing that FWP has planned at a total cost of $714,000.

Only once in a while do days like this happen, said Mike Mueller, senior lands program manager for RMEF. Today is historic and epic and it wouldnt have happened without the leadership of Gov. Gianforte. This is really important today  conserving open spaces and promoting recreation.

Aaron Brien, Crow Tribe historic preservation officer, highlighted the significance of the Big Snowy Mountains to his tribe, which they call the lone mountain because they saw it as a safe haven. He said the Crow people believe in the power of making wishes.

So I'll make a wish that people who pass through here will fare well and good things will happen to them for being in this good country, Brien said.

The WMA still has teepee rings on the landscape. Visitors are reminded not to disturb any artifacts they may find.

The project sailed through the public process with a unanimous vote by the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission. The state Land Board  made up of Gov. Greg Gianforte, Attorney General Austin Knudsen, Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen, Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen and state Auditor Troy Downing  voted 4-1 to approve the purchase of the property. Knudsen was the lone dissenting vote.

I dont think its a surprise to anyone in here given my previous comments that Im not going to vote for this, Knudsen said in October 2022 when the board voted. Im opposed to this. Ive made that clear to anyone thats come to talk to me about this. I do think Fish, Wildlife & Parks has an empire-building problem. I do think they have a problem with maintenance and management of a lot of land that they already own, so Im not inclined to vote for more state ownership of fee land.

Big Snowy is Montanas 76th WMA after Bad Rock Canyon WMA outside Columbia Falls opened last fall.

It is located 20 miles north of Ryegate in Golden Valley County.

The WMA is closed each year to public recreation from Dec. 1 through May 15 to allow wildlife undisturbed access to winter range habitat.

Motorized use is restricted to designated roads and parking areas.

Dispersed camping is allowed unless posted otherwise. Camping is limited to 16 days in any 30-day period. Public use is limited to walk-in or horseback access from the two designated parking areas.

 Tom Kuglin and Brett French contributed to this story.
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VANDALIA  A Vandalia couple faces lengthy prison terms after pleading guilty to possessing and disseminating child pornography, officials said.

The case against Andrew Wehrle, 39, and Amber Wehrle, 38, stemmed from an investigation by the Illinois Attorney General's Office into an alleged child pornography ring in Fayette County.

Child pornography is a heinous crime, and I am pleased these predators are being held accountable for exploiting innocent children, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in a news release. I am committed to stopping offenders who prey on our children, and my office will continue to partner with local law enforcement agencies to protect Illinois communities.

Andrew Wehrle could face up to 26 years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of dissemination of child pornography and one count of production of child pornography.

Amber Wehrle could spend up to 13 years in prison following her guilty pleas to two counts of possession of child pornography and one count of indecent solicitation of an adult.

Their arrests followed a search of the couple's home in March 2021 by Vandalia police and and investigators from the attorney general's office.

"As law enforcement officials, it is our responsibility to protect children from harm and bring those who exploit them to justice, said Vandalia Police Chief Jeff Ray. I commend the diligent work of all those involved in this investigation and hope that the outcome of this case serves as a reminder that child pornography is a serious crime that will not be tolerated in our communities."

The news release said the search of the Wehrle's home was conducted in connection with charges filed against another Vandalia man, Ferrell Mason Kissiar.

Kissiar, 47, is charged in Fayette County with three counts of disseminating child pornography, two counts of possessing child pornography, one count of reproducing child pornography, one count of indecent solicitation of an adult and one count of conspiracy to commit aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Kissiars trial is scheduled to for June 20.
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DECATUR  The Lutheran School Association said goodbye to the school year and to its current name at an all-school chapel service on Wednesday.

The change, Executive Director Brian Booth told the Herald & Review in February, is in the hope of breaking down denominational barriers and drawing in more families and creating partnerships with churches that may not be Lutheran, though the school's theology will continue to be rooted in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

This year's theme, from 2 Timothy 1:7, For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

I hope you'll carry with you, wherever you go from here, if you're moving, if you're going to a different school, when you graduate from here, that you don't need to be afraid, Executive Director Brian Booth told students. You are full of His light and power.

He also gave them a preview of next year's theme, Better Together, which is also part of the re-branding of the school as Unity.

It comes from Romans 15: 5-6: May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I love that idea of being joined together as one voice, Booth said. We come together in unity and we give praise to one God.

The Rev. Aaron Bird from St. John's Lutheran Church brought Teddy, a PawPrints Ministries dog who is still in training.

Other changes include the loss of Principal Joel Witt and his wife, Lisa, who taught art at the school. They're leaving for a new home in Juniata, Nebraska. Several family members, including Lisa Witt's parents and two of the Witts' own sons, live in that area, Joel Witt said, and while he's not ready to retire, they both want to slow down, and Nebraska is home to them. The new school has only 90 students, and he'll also be lecturing at Concordia University in Seward, Neb., which he's looking forward to.

In his absence, two new administrators have been hired who were introduced at the chapel service: Stephen Frech, educational leader, who comes to Unity from Millikin University; and Jordan Hopman, cultural leader. Frech will oversee curriculum and academics, while Hopman will work with teachers on student discipline and overall culture, much like a dean of students would, Booth said.

I taught at a Christian high school and loved every minute of it, and always had the intention of going back again, Frech said. This job opened up and I'm approaching a twilight career anyway, and I thought, 'Why not now?' My son goes (to school) here and we've had a wonderful experience here.

Booth gave the students a challenge for the summer weeks. He asked them to make their beds every day, which elicited a few good-natured groans from the kids; read the Verse of the Day from the Bible study app YouVersion or just open their Bibles and read a few verses; spend time being active and outdoors instead of in front of screens; and find a way every day to serve others. If they're really committed to self-discipline, he said, he had four more: read for a minimum of 15 minutes a day; spend time each day working on improving some skill; write down three things they're grateful for each day; and go a whole day, or longer, without spending any time in front of a screen at all.

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DECATUR  The Macon County Board of Health wants to ensure health department salaries are competitive.

Board members and department leaders are now looking to fund a compensation study, the latest in ongoing employee recruitment and retention efforts at the department.

In complete honesty and transparency, I would love to have a professional who does this for a living, said Public Health Administrator Lindsey Munsterman during the boards regular May meeting on Tuesday. Im happy to go in and try to do my due diligence to research our job titles and make sure that Im reporting back accurate information to the board. But, ultimately, I think a professional going in and doing this would be much better.

In previous meetings, Munsterman discussed her search for a salary assessment tool department leaders could use to evaluate salaries without an outside consultant.

But the administrator said her colleagues at the Champaign County Health Department instead recommended the services of Clifton-Larson-Allen, a Minneapolis-based accountancy firm.

A compensation study would require an advisor from CLA  or any other firm potentially hired by the department  to study all the departments job descriptions, speak to existing division heads and employees and evaluate their performances.

Munsterman said she is still awaiting a quote from CLA but estimates total costs to complete the study at around $15,000.

The compensation study would be a greater investment than a salary assessment tool. Health board members seem to think the services would be worth the cost.

I think it makes more sense money well spent, said Board of Health President Mark Scranton.

The compensation study would follow a recently-approved milestone bonus policy introduced by the department and health board to help retain long time employees. That policy, which creates bonuses of increasing $1,000 increments for every five years an employee stays with the health department, was introduced after the department saw three top leaders resign in January.

Scranton said he hopes to have a quote to discuss and potentially take action on soon.

Were going to start talking really soon about working on the budget, he said. These pieces of information would be really valuable.

The board also discussed cutting some hours for the health departments onsite deputies, whose services will be more costly for the department as the federal COVID monies funding them expire in June.

Deputies currently guard the building from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Department leaders are looking to change those hours to part-time shifts of 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Munsterman said the trimming would save the department around $30,000 a year.

In COVID news, during department reports, Director of Clinical Nursing Services Rachel Deerwester confirmed that COVID vaccination rates in the county have slowed.

What weve really, honestly seen this season is respiratory illnesses from RSV and group-A strep, highly, highly contagious and worse than what weve seen with COVID in this particular season, Deerwester said.

The federal government recently granted approval for a second bivalent vaccine for those who are 65 and older or immunocompromised, and monovalent vaccines have been discontinued. A second bivalent vaccine could be approved for all Americans by sometime this fall, Deerwester estimated.

Its always something, she said.

Here are some key health policies that will and will not change with the COVID-19 public health emergency's end Here are some key health policies that will and will not change with the COVID-19 public health emergency's end
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DECATUR  A gleaming new building on a $120 million campus south of Decatur enshrines the new thinking about police use of force: everybody goes home alive.

There used to be a saying that the most important thing was for cops to go home safe, said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, (PERF) a Washington D.C.-based cop think tank with a specialty in developing violence de-escalation training.

But that is not the most important thing. The most important thing is for everybody to go home safe.

How do you teach cops how to achieve that? The answer is that new ICAT building, which stands for Integrating Communications, Assessment and Tactics.

Decatur-based philanthropist Howard Buffett is a major fan of the new approach to police training and his Public Safety Training Foundation fronted the cost of the new facility for PERF.

It celebrated its opening Wednesday and is designed to make training feel real and realistic: mock store fronts, banks and offices where actors will take cops through role play situations involving everything from active shooters to hysterical people ready to end their own lives.

Outside there are vehicles and even a commuter train to practice other scenarios, and a 28-room, two story school building is in the works so that cops can train for active shooter and other lethal situations involving classrooms and kids.

The seed that blossomed into all this was a trip to Scotland arranged by PERF in 2015 so that police chiefs from America could experience a widely-admired violence de-escalation program developed by Scottish cops.

Buffett, who has served as the Macon County sheriff, was on that trip and got impressed by what he saw and learned. He then began discussing how something similar could be developed back home.

Howard said How about if I build a state-of-the-art facility for you so you can train people here? said Wexler.

And this what you see here today; this facility will now train police from all over the country with the tools, skills and options they need to defuse a range of critical incidents successfully and safely.

The ICAT building off U.S. 51 is just south of the Macon County Law enforcement Training Center, a previous $60 million Buffett project that opened in 2017 and provides basic cop training.

Former Macon County Sheriff Tom Schneider, who retired recently as deputy commander of the training center, said the two facilities will complement each other. Theyre both state of the art, he added.

The first class of some 80 students was already hard at work Tuesday in the two day ICAT training program, with cops from St. Louis on campus mingling with officers from as far away as Hawaii and Canada.

One specially-invited guest was particularly pleased by what he saw: Chief Superintendent Alan Gibson is in charge of training for Police Scotland, and he had been the host of that training in 2015 that would lead all the way to ICAT in Decatur.

This is fantastic and Im insanely jealous, to be honest, said Gibson after touring the new building and its campus. I am head of the police academy in Scotland and we have some 17,000 officers and a fantastic training facility but nothing which compares to this. Its state-of-the-art but also very practical and hugely impressive.

Asked about the fact that the violence de-escalation training his police force practices had been the inspiration for it all, Gibson said it felt extraordinary. To go from a discussion and debate to action and creating a curriculum and establishing this sort of facility in just eight years is nothing short of amazing, he added.

Gibson had dinner at ICAT Tuesday night with several invited guests, including Macon County States Attorney Scott Rueter. The countys chief prosecutor was equally enthusiastic about what he had seen, and what it could mean for the future of law enforcement.

Im incredibly impressed, said Rueter. And this looks like something that will be a great development to enhance and to bring back the trust people should have in law enforcement.

GALLERY: Former Macon County Sheriff Howard Buffett
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OAKLEY  Police said Thursday they were hunting for a killer after the body of a man was found near Oakley.

Macon County Sheriffs Office Spokesman Sgt. Scott Flannery said the body of a 33-year-old man was discovered in the 4700 block of North Oakley Road at 5:46 p.m. Wednesday.

A statement said a homicide investigation was launched after deputies were called to the scene following reports of an injured person down.

Flannery said an intense investigation is now underway involving the sheriff's office detective bureau with the assistance of forensic experts from the Illinois State Police.

I can tell you some initial suspect information didnt pan out last night and so we had to go at a different angle, Flannery said Thursday. And were now looking into some solid leads.

2023 mugshots from the Herald & Review Lourash Hirstein Phillip Gehrken Joseph A. Williams Jetrevius O. Jarrett Edwards King-Woods Wilson Derrickson
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CHICAGO  Hundreds of people packed a church Wednesday for the funeral of a Chicago police officer who was off duty when she was fatally shot during an armed robbery spree by four teenagers charged in her death.

Officer Areanah Preston's mother, Dionne Mhoon, told police officers, relatives and other mourners at Trinity United Church of Christ that her daughter was a "kid full of life, dreams, big goals and wanted to make major changes."

"Death is only a tragic thing if you have not lived. My baby lived," she said to applause. "I am because of her. I pray for peace in homes. I pray for peace in our communities, and I pray for peace in my heart. Rest peacefully, my sweet baby. Momma has it from here."

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and interim Police Superintendent Fred Waller joined mourners outside the church as Preston's white casket arrived in a hearse, draped in the city's flag, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

After Wednesday's service, the hearse carried Preston's casket from the church in a lengthy funeral procession bound for Lincoln Cemetery, where a private service was planned.

Preston was fatally wounded early May 6 when she exchanged gunfire with a group of youths who approached her on the city's South Side as she returned home from work, still wearing her police uniform, police said.

Four teenagers were charged last week in her killing and denied bail. Nineteen-year-olds Joseph Brooks and Trevell Breeland, Jakwon Buchanan, 18, and a 16-year-old boy face first-degree murder, armed robbery and other charges.

Though Preston was off-duty at the time she was shot, her slaying is being considered a line-of-duty death, which entitles her family to financial assistance from the state.

Preston, who lived in Avalon Park, worked for CPD for only three years before her death, according to department officials.

She had earned a masters degree in child and family law from Loyola University Chicago, according to her LinkedIn and Facebook profiles. She graduated in 2019 with a bachelors degree in criminal justice and law enforcement administration from Illinois State University, according to the profiles.

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If You Go Who & What: Jason Petty: Hank and My Honky Tonk Heroes When: Friday, May 19 at 8 p.m. Where: The Cameo Theater, 703 State St., Bristol, Va. Admission: $36.50-$52.50 Info: 276-296-1234 Web, audio and video: www.jasonpetty.com

Hank Williams cast a shadow that even 100 years later still enlightens the soul with the darkened beauty of his lyrical masterpieces.

From behind the plow seated on a tractor with his grandpa in Hickman County, Tennessee, young Jason Petty watched many a row of soil tilled while his grandpa sang Hank Williams songs.

Decades later, Jason Petty presents Hank and My Honky Tonk Heroes. Set to stage at The Cameo Theater in Bristol, Virginia, on Friday, May 19, the show encompasses the unparalleled life and music of country musics hillbilly Shakespeare, Hank Williams.

Using the stories Ive got, I incorporate them into the musical journey of Hank Williams, said Petty, by phone from the road while enroute to Grand Junction, Colorado. We start off with what Hank listened to as a kid.

Acoustic blues as well as the mountain music of Roy Acuff inspired the impressionable Williams. Thin as parchment paper, the bespectacled Alabaman youngster loved the Grand Ole Opry as well as a black blues man, Rufus Payne, whom Hank knew as Tee Tot.

They didnt call it country music back then, Petty said. Hank listened to gospel music, blues, hillbilly, folk. Hank listened to it and put his own honky-tonk edge to it. We talk about his friendship with Tee Tot Payne, the blues he learned as a kid. Gospel music from the church.

Pettys show encompasses Williams oft-rocky yet creatively inspirational marriage to first wife Audrey. Such songs as 1952s achingly mournful You Win Again as well as the aortic-bursting Your Cheating Heart, which was recorded during Williams final recording session on Sept. 23, 1952, were inspired by Audrey Williams.

We take you right to the honky-tonks Hank played as a kid, Petty said. Then we follow Hank to his first audition with (producer) Fred Rose and to the Opry for his first time there.

Pettys a natural to portray Hank Williams. At least initially obvious, he resembles the country music icon.

After Petty graduated from the University of Tennessee, he obtained a job at Opryland in Nashville. He portrayed Hank Williams in the show, Country Music USA. In addition to having performed on the Grand Ole Opry, Pettys ultimate break came when he was hired to portray Williams in the musical, Lost Highway.

Lost Highway ran for two years, 1996 and 1997, at the historic Ryman Auditorium  where Hank Williams performed often during his tenure as a member of the Opry. Nashvilles country music royalty, from Alan Jackson to George Jones, lined up to witness Petty as Hank Williams.

One time during the death scene in Lost Highway, I heard this man crying. And it was George Jones, Petty said. After the show, he said There aint no bigger fan of Hank Williams than I am. Well, it hit me. Thats when it hit me just how important the music of Hank Williams is.

Fabled stars from country musics golden years shimmered and reacted much as George Jones had to Pettys part in Lost Highway. After its Ryman run, Petty led Lost Highway on a national tour that culminated with a run in the early 2000s Off-Broadway in New York City. He won a prestigious Obie award for his inimitable and frankly spot-on role.

But then what?

Don Helms (Hanks longtime steel guitar player) said, You ought to write a book, Petty said. I said, Ill do a show.

And Pettys Hank and My Honky Tonk Heroes was born.

Follow along from Hank Williams wide-eyed youth to his lonesome death. A honky-tonk architect whose mastery of country music remains unrivaled, the allure and legend of Hank Williams attracts all the more with the passage of time.

And get this? Pettys Cameo Theater performance will stage right around the corner from whence Williams took his last ride during the corpse cold night of December 31, 1952.

Ive been finding out for 30 years now, Petty said, everybody is a Hank Williams fan.
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Donnie Baker

Out of the sticks came hooked-on-hicks comedian Donnie Baker.

With more than a million Facebook followers, for nearly a decade Baker has attracted audiences throughout the south and beyond. See Baker make em laugh on Saturday, May 20 at The Cameo Theater in Bristol, Virginia. Presented by Piney Flats East Tennessee Distillery, Baker headlines a show that includes hillbilly moonshiner comedian Biggins.

Baker came to national prominence courtesy The Bob & Tom Show, a nationally syndicated radio program. Expanded to the live stage, Bakers rib-tickling topical schtick refers to such characters as his ex-girlfriend Angel and best friend Scotty. Not suitable for young kids, Bakers not exactly raunchy but his isnt humor tailored for around the dinner table, either. Instead, loosen the tie and laugh out loud to the ridiculousness of Donnie Baker.

If You Go

Who: Donnie Baker and Moonshiner Biggins

When: Saturday, May 20 at 8 p.m.

Where: The Cameo Theater, 703 State St., Bristol, Va.

Admission: $35-$57.50

Info: 276-296-1234

Web, audio and video: www.donniebaker.com

Mac Powell

By the time of Third Days 1990s awakening, cheers supplanted jeers for those among the quickly growing world of Christian rock. Mac Powell co-founded and sang lead for Third Day.

When Third Day disbanded in 2018, Powell went solo. Experience Mac Powell, the voice of Third Day, at hallowed Paramount Bristol in Bristol, Tennessee, on Sunday, May 21. Excellent tickets remain available.

Powell won four Grammys with Third Day. Aboard the bands second album, 1997s Conspiracy No. 5, they began to occupy radio and chart space alongside such secular rock bands as Pearl Jam. Long since widely accepted, Powells solo successes include hit singles River of Life and last years resoundingly dramatic New Creation.

If You Go

Who: Mac Powell

When: Sunday, May 21 at 7:30 p.m.

Where: Paramount Bristol, 518 State St., Bristol, Tenn.

Admission: $41.54-$87.50

Info: 423-274-8920

Web, audio and video: www.macpowell.com

Will Hoge

Small town rocker Will Hoge occupies backroad lanes as paved by such American rockers as Tom Petty and John Fogerty.

A modern-day troubadour with a conscious, Will Hoge returns to the fabled Down Home in Johnson City on Saturday, May 20.

Like a stitch popped from the flag, Hoge explores Americana for all its wit and wisdom as well as its warts and worrisome traits.

Take 2018s My American Dream. A scintillating indictment of what for generations was attainable, Hoge spoke for legions when he sang of those under a bridge and goin down. Into the crosshairs, Hoge took aim at the rebel flag while still proclaiming Southern pride in Still a Southern Man. Yet from the opening song of his new album, Hoge concludes by singing hes happy as the music coming out of the speakers in the back of John Prines Cadillac.

If You Go

Who: Will Hoge

When: Saturday, May 20 at 8 p.m.

Where: Down Home, 300 W. Main St., Johnson City

Admission: $25-$30

Info: 423-929-9822

Web, audio and video: www.willhoge.com

Music Notes

As the mercury rises and the calendar turns, we inch ever closer to the Sounds of Summer Concert Series. Now in its 25th year, the free summer-long concert series begins on Thursday, June 1 with From the Edge and concludes on Thursday, Aug. 31 with Thomas Taylors tribute to Conway Twitty.

Sounds of Summer stages each Tuesday and Thursday evening at 7 p.m. at the Downtown Center in Bristol, Tennessee. You know, look for Tim Whites country music mural. In years past, such folks as a distinctly then-unknown as Jason Aldean have played the series, which sets up its stage in front of the mural.

Highlights during the forthcoming series includes Coal Camp on Thursday, June 8 as well as Cedar Valley on Tuesday, June 20.

Typically, bluegrass bands occupy the every-Tuesday slots while either country or rock bands fill out each Thursday.

Be sure to look for Bluff Citys Duty Free on Tuesday, June 27. A longtime and beloved folk-inflected bluegrass band, Duty Free features Charlie Powers and Bobby Love on lead vocals and Hal Boyd on upright bass.

Subsequent highlights include Kingsports country-rockers Borderline on Tuesday, July 6 followed a week later by Northeast Tennessees Slick Cadillac.

Galax bluegrass troupe The Loose Strings Band return to Sounds of Summer on Tuesday, July 18.

Be sure to circle your calendar for Nu-Blu. A far-from-traditional bluegrass band, Nu-Blus past includes a recording with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member of Sam & Dave, Sam Moore. Nu-Blu visits Bristols Sounds of Summer on Tuesday, Aug. 22.

They follow Honeybadgers, which includes Grammy-nominated member of Blue Highway Shawn Lane, who appears on the Sounds of Summer stage on Tuesday, Aug. 1.

For a complete listing of Sounds of Summer and for more information, call 423-764-7529. Check out the listing online at www.bristoltn.org/1393/2023-Sounds-of-Summer-Schedule.

Download

Violin maestro Stephane Grappelli helms this weeks free MP3 download.

Summon https://acousticdisc.com/product/stephane-grappelli-piano-explorations-download/ to locate Exploration IV. Culled from his Piano Explorations album, the track and album witness the breadth of Grappellis proficiency beyond his legendary touch on violin.
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Twelve men, including two Statesville men, are wanted on felony dogfighting and other charges by the Iredell County Sheriffs Office. Multiple dogs were seized from a scene near Statesville on Saturday.

James Faron Morrison, 56, of Statesville, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy, the Iredell County Sheriffs Office said in a news release.

Phillip Alexander Stevenson, 36, of Statesville, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy, the sheriffs office said.

On Saturday, Iredell County deputies received information from an anonymous caller about a possible dogfighting event happening on Sena Lane east of Statesville. Deputies and Iredell County Animal Services went to the 1200 block of Sena Lane to investigate, the sheriffs office said.

Sgt. Nate Hodges, Deputy Easton Rhoney, and Deputy Garret Deal went to the dead end of Sena Lane, which leads to a field. The deputies found more than 20 vehicles parked in the field. As the deputies approached, multiple people fled on foot, the sheriffs office said.

Based on the investigation, it was determined that a dogfight was about to take place as the deputies arrived, the sheriffs office said.

The deputies found a fighting ring in the nearby woods, with sides of the ring numbered one through four, which was intended for a dogfighting event to take place, the sheriffs office said.

Deputies also found medical supplies to care for the dogs after fighting and a hanging scale to weigh the dogs, the sheriffs office said. Due to evidence at the scene and the number of people involved, deputies determined that this location has been used for these types of events multiple times in the past, the sheriffs office said.

Deputies and Iredell County Animal Control rescued five dogs on the scene. One dog was locked inside a vehicle that was left on the scene, the sheriffs office said.

Based on physical evidence gathered throughout the investigation, a magistrate issued warrants for arrest for 12 individuals, the sheriffs office said.

All of the men charged in this case are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The other men wanted in the case are listed below.

Curtis Alexander Bowers Jr., 39, of Lenoir, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Sean Lennell Burton, 51, of Mooresville, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Maurice Moore, 51, of Charlotte, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Maurice Leon Washington, 22, of Charlotte, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Tomocka Gladden, 51, of Asheboro, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Maurice Kentrell Nance, 31, of Newberry, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Johnathan Marquis Baxter, 35, of Newberry, is charged with felony dogfighting and felony conspiracy.

Mugshots were not available for Nance or Baxter, the sheriffs office said.

Keith Deshawn Robinson, 30, of Greensboro, is charged with felony dogfighting, felony conspiracy, and misdemeanor resisting a public officer.

Jashari Malik Billups, 26, of Charlotte, is charged with felony dogfighting, felony conspiracy, felony identity theft and misdemeanor resisting a public officer.

Thomas Duane Bennett, 46, of Charlotte, is charged with felony dogfighting, felony conspiracy and misdemeanor cruelty to animals.

This investigation is ongoing by the Iredell County Sheriffs Office along with Iredell County Animal Services. The sheriffs office can be contacted at 704-878-3180. The Iredell County Crime Stoppers can be contacted at 704-662-1340.
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A Vale couple is facing child abuse charges after a Cleveland County social worker discovered a wooden paddle with holes in the home, the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office said.

Jonathan Niles Orren, 38, and Silvia Orren, 39, are each charged with felony child abuse involving any serious injury, the sheriffs office said.

On Friday, Lincoln County Sheriffs detectives received a report from the Cleveland County Department of Social Services about abuse of a child at a Vale home, the sheriffs office said.

The 6-year-old child was in speech therapy in Cleveland County when the therapist noticed bruising on the childs bottom, the sheriffs office said. A Cleveland County social worker went to the Vale home and met with the parents. Photos were taken of a wooden paddle with holes drilled in it, the sheriffs office said.

The social worker also viewed home security camera footage showing the child being spanked with the wooden paddle, the sheriffs office said.

Lincoln County Sheriffs Detective Frank Runyon went to the home to follow up on the investigation. He also viewed the home security footage, the sheriffs office said. The investigation revealed the child had been abused on multiple occasions, the sheriffs office said.

The 6-year-old victim and her 5-year-old brother have been removed from the home and placed with relatives out of state, the sheriffs office said.

Jonathan and Silvia Orren are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
" " Countess Elizabeth Bathory is thought to have tortured and murdered hundreds of women and girls. Wikipedia

Serial killers tend to be men by an overwhelming margin. One analysis said only 8 percent of the serial killers in the U.S. were women [source: Amicus Curiae]. Yet some think a woman was the most prolific serial killer of all time. Erzsebet (Elizabeth) Bathory, a Hungarian countess, is believed to have killed as many as 650 women and girls during the 54 years she was alive.

And exactly how the world's most prolific serial killer took the lives of her victims has proven grisly fodder for storytellers. She is even believed to have inspired Bram Stoker, the creator of Count Dracula. The count is supposedly a hybrid of Wallachian prince Vlad Tepes and Bathory [source: NNDB]. However, some modern historians think the allegations about her murderous ways could well have been exaggerated [source: Brittanica].

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Elizabeth Bathory, the woman who came to be known as the "Blood Countess," was born into Hungarian nobility in 1560. She was well educated, at the time a rarity for girls, and could speak several languages. She also seems to have suffered from fits and outbursts of rage  possibly even epilepsy. From an early age, she witnessed her father's officers torture the peasantry who lived near her family's estate. Young Elizabeth is said to have seen a captured thief being sewn into the stomach of a dying horse and left to perish [source: Sheldon].

This story underscores two major aspects that may have influenced Bathory: exposure to incredible violence and her family's condoning attitude toward it. Accounts describe her penchant for inflicting pain on others and claim that she worked with accomplices. One may have been her husband, Ferencz Nadasdy, and others were members of her court.

Nadasdy married Bathory when she was 15. A soldier, he spent most of his time away from home. There's speculation that Nadasdy may have taught his wife new torture methods, while other researchers believe he was ignorant of her actions. What's agreed upon is that Bathory practiced most of her crimes in his absence and that the crimes got worse after he died in 1604.

Bathory's Crimes

Bathory had a penchant for torturing young girls in particular  historians posit that she was bisexual. The acts she committed ranged from driving needles through her servants' lips and fingernails to leaving her victims naked in the snow, dousing them with water and letting them freeze to death to covering her victims with honey, tying them up and leaving them to be attacked by ants and bees [sources: History, Biography].

Perhaps the most notorious legend about Bathory is that she bathed in her victims' blood. Inevitably, this led to rumors that the countess was a vampire. She reportedly claimed to use virgin blood to keep her skin young  she wanted to remain beautiful for her husband. But this story was first published in 1729 by a Hungarian priest long after Bathory's death [source: Biography].

When Bathory moved from killing peasant girls to minor noblewomen, the authorities got involved. In 1610, Bathory's cousin Count Gyorgy Thurzo (who was in charge of judicial matters in the region) conducted a raid on Bathory's castle. He reportedly surprised her in the act of torture and imprisoned her in her home while he investigated.

Four servants were arrested and questioned, under torture. They admitted to burying many victims although they denied killing anyone. The numbers of bodies they admitted to burying varied between 36 and 51. Three of the servants were sentenced to death and executed [source: Biography].

In all nearly 300 people gave testimonies. The testimonies, which are still in Hungarian archives, are both questionable and convicting in nature. These testimonies are questionable because most of them were from people with only secondhand knowledge of the alleged crimes. But the fact that there even were trials regarding Bathory's murders lends some credence to the stories surrounding the woman. One witness named Suzannah testified that Bathory kept a registry of her murders and that it numbered 650, although the ledger was never found [sources: Biography, Sheldon].

As for Bathory, she claimed she was innocent but she was never tried for her crimes. Instead, she was walled into a room in the castle with just two slits for air and food to pass through. She spent the remaining four years of her life there, until she was found dead on the floor in 1614.

In later years, some historians questioned whether she was indeed a prolific killer. Some speculate that Count Thurzo wanted to get her out of the way so that other family members could take over her lands and holdings, and since there was very little eyewitness testimony of her crimes it is hard to tell.

"If we examine the testimonies side by side with contemporary medical texts, the descriptions of alleged torture by Erzsebet's servants will show a remarkable correspondence with medical and surgical instructions for specific diseases. According to the testimonies, the countess herself was not even present at most of these procedures performed by her servants, as she frequently traveled among her numerous castles and estates," wrote Hungarian historian Irma Szadeczky-Kardoss in 2005.

On the other hand, it is unlikely she was completely innocent too. Back in 1602, a priest had written a letter describing the cruelty with which Bathory and her husband treated their servants. There were also a large number of bodies found buried at her estate, whom Bathory described as cholera victims [sources: Szadeczky-Kardoss, Biography].

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The condition of the approval is that the Mol group sells 39 of the filling stations owned by the Slovenian company to the Shell group.

Based on the EUs merger control regulation, the European Commission approved, subject to conditions, that Mol Magyar Olaj- es Gazipari Nyrt. acquire the Slovenian oil company OMV Slovenija, the EU commission informed on Wednesday.

According to the Brussels announcement

the condition of the approval is that the Mol group sells 39 of the filling stations owned by the Slovenian company to the Shell group.

It was reported that, following the market investigation prior to the decision, the European Commission expressed concerns that the deal, as originally announced, would limit competition in the field of retail fuel sales in Slovenia. The deal would reduce the number of dominant retail fuel distributors from three to two in Slovenia, a market where there are significant barriers to entry and expansion, they wrote.

Given that the merging parties are currently in close competition in many areas of Slovenia, and that apart from Slovenias number one retail fuel distribution company Petrol, the other competitors are significantly smaller, the transaction would eliminate the main competitive constraint currently existing for Mol and Petrol. In addition, competition in the market for the sale of fuel to private individuals at non-motorway filling stations in Slovenia would be significantly reduced, given that Mol and OMV Slovenija are very close competitors. The probability of coordinated behavior between Mol and Petrol on the fuel retail market would also increase, they pointed out.

It has been reported that in order to allay the European Commissions competition law concerns, Mol has offered to sell to the Shell group a national retail network of 39 petrol stations in Slovenia, which is currently part of Mols and OMV Slovenijas petrol station networks.

Ukraine started blackmailing Hungary, with the approval of Brussels they can stop the Friendship pipeline

(MTI)

Opening image: MTI/Szilard Koszticsak
Kim Jong-un visited the plant where the countrys first spy satellite was built. According to the Korean state news agency, the satellite is ready to be put into orbit after final checks.

A month ago, Kim Jong-un declared that the construction of the satellite was complete and gave the green light for its launch. The North Korean dictators announcement came after Pyongyang launched a new solid-propellant intercontinental ballistic missile, marking a major breakthrough in the countrys weapons program, the Guardian reports.

Kim Jong-un accused the United States and South Korea of escalating what he described as confrontational moves against North Korea and said his country would exercise its right to self-defense.

At the same time, Kim approved the preparatory committees future action plan. The development of the military reconnaissance satellite is key to the countrys defense project, which was outlined by the North Korean leader back in 2021.

South Korean experts doubt the success of the spy satellite project, saying there are only poor quality images of the alleged satellite. Pyongyang has not announced a launch date for the spy satellite, but Kim Jong-un has said it will be launched on schedule.

According to analysts, Pyongyang would be unable to conduct satellite reconnaissance without the help of Russia or China.

In a speech to South Koreas parliament on Wednesday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country is ready to increase its military presence to mitigate threats to regional security, including threats from North Korea.
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CHARLOTTE  UNC Charlottes Levine Scholars Program has selected 20 exceptional young leaders from across the United States for the 14th class of the universitys most competitive academic scholarships. The scholars will join UNC Charlotte in fall 2023.

The universitys premier merit-based scholarship is valued at approximately $105,000 per North Carolina student and $155,000 for each student from other states. The award covers full tuition, housing, meals, books, mandatory fees and summer experiences. Scholars are provided additional funding to support civic engagement opportunities and professional development.

Students selected for the Levine Scholars Program show tremendous accomplishment and potential, said Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber. We welcome them enthusiastically to Niner Nation and look forward to supporting their undergraduate journeys.

Levine Scholars are selected through a rigorous nomination and interview process, including an in-person finalist program, where invited students and their families tour campus and meet current scholars, program staff and alumni as well as members of the faculty and university leaders. Among the criteria for consideration for the Levine Scholars Program is a commitment to service and community engagement.

The academic achievements, leadership, and school and community contributions of these extraordinary high school seniors are extremely impressive, said Heather Smith, the programs incoming faculty director. Their wide-ranging talents and interests will certainly continue the programs powerful legacy initiated by its benefactors, Leon and Sandra Levine.

The Levine Class of 2027

The Levine Scholars for the Class of 2027 from North Carolina are:

Jadyn Becoats, Greensboro, Walter Hines Page High School; Sindhu Gadiraju, Mooresville, South Iredell High School; Omar Pasha, Cary, Durham Academy; Henry Roe, Charlotte, HOPE Academy; Rohan Salwekar, Apex, Green Level High School; Arnav Sareen, Cary, Raleigh Charter High School; Avery Taylor, Marion, McDowell High School; Tori Teague, North Wilkesboro, West Wilkes High School; Nubia Terry, Asheboro, Asheboro High School; Alecia Washington, Pfafftown, R.J. Reynolds High School; Lily Witcher, New Hill, Northwood High School; R.J. (Ronell) Wright, High Point, Guilford Technical Community College Middle College High School.

The Class of 2027 out-of-state recipients are:

Samia Bell, Bowie, Maryland, Bowie High School; Natalie Doerfler, Calera, Alabama, Calera High School; Alyssa Fowler, Cambria Heights, New York, Benjamin N. Cardozo High School; Eden Gibson, Morgantown, West Virginia, University High School; Jasmine Oliver, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge Magnet High School; Mallory Schreiber, Finleyville, Pennsylvania, Bentworth Senior High School; Akshara Sisodiya, Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville High School; and Sophia Torrebiarte, Corrales, New Mexico, Cottonwood Classical Preparatory School.

This years selection processes included more than 2,200 scholarship nominations and nearly 1,000 applications. Selected scholars come from nine states and nine counties across North Carolina.

History of Levine Scholars

Established in 2009 through a $9.3 million gift from the late Leon Levine and his wife, Sandra Levine, through their foundation, the Levine Scholars Program was created to recruit extraordinary high school students based on scholarship, ethical leadership and civic engagement. In 2014, the Levines made an additional $13 million gift, which increased the scholarship from 15 recipients to approximately 20 each year beginning with the Class of 2016.

Leon Levine founded Family Dollar Stores, Inc., and retired as chairman and CEO in 2003. The Levine family is involved in a number of civic and charitable causes in the Charlotte region and throughout the Carolinas through the Leon Levine Foundation. Leon Levine died in April, leaving a legacy of generosity, service and impact for scholars to follow.

The Levine Scholars program with its emphasis on leadership development and community engagement continues to make an impact at the university, in our community, and beyond, said Tom Lawrence, president of The Leon Levine Foundation. We look forward to seeing this fine group of incoming scholars expand the high traditions of leadership, innovation and community engagement set by the scholars who came before them.
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A Concord Police officer wont but fired but will be suspended for passing a stopped school bus.

Concord Police Chief Gary Gacek made the announcement Thursday. Sgt. Matthew Willet, a 15-year veteran, was charged with passing the bus after an investigation by the N.C. Highway Patrol (the incident was outside the City of Concord).

Here is Chief Gaceks complete statement:

This week, a concerned parent posted to social media a video of a Concord Police cruiser illegally passing a stopped school bus. Parents of the child on that bus  as well as many in our community  were angry about what they saw. As a parent whose children rode the school bus for many years, I completely understand that anger. This officer, Matthew Willet, did the wrong thing.

The State Highway Patrol is the agency with jurisdiction where this occurred. We immediately gave them all the information they requested so they could investigate the officers actions. They ticketed and charged Matt for passing a stopped school bus, a class 1 misdemeanor in North Carolina. Hell have to appear in court, just like anyone else whos cited for the same violation.

But Concord police officers are held to higher standards. After completing an internal personnel investigation, Ive decided to suspend Matt without pay for five days.

Matt accepted full responsibility for his mistake and deeply regrets what happened. The investigation showed that he was behind another car in traffic when he pulled into a turn lane to turn right into a neighborhood. He failed to see the flashing lights and was unaware the bus was stopped to let a child off. While we all make mistakes, police officers carry an extra responsibility to do everything they can to avoid them.

Some on social media have called for me to fire Matt over his mistake. This was a serious error and he is being held accountable for it, but I want to be clear: this simply doesnt rise to the level of firing him.

Matt is a 15-year veteran whos dedicated his life to keeping our community safe. Hes been an engaged officer in our community, participating in countless youth and civic education programs, and spent much of his career as a K9 officer. He has never had a citizen complaint during his entire career and has been commended multiple times for his performance.

Our job as police officers is to keep our community and especially our kids, safe. Matt made a mistake, and in doing so, fell short of our duty in that regard.

Im sorry weve let you down. I want to reassure you that our priority is keeping our residents and visitors safe while earning the trust of those we serve.
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SALISBURY  Rowan-Cabarrus Community College celebrated the Class of 2023 at its 59th Graduation Ceremony on Saturday, May 13. This years event marked the colleges return to holding its graduation at Cabarrus Arena & Events Center in Concord.

We were excited to return to the Cabarrus Arena for our graduation ceremony as we celebrated the accomplishments of the Class of 2023, said Dr. Carol S. Spalding, president of Rowan-Cabarrus. Its been a long journey of navigating our way through the COVID-19 pandemic  keeping our distance, managing how many people can gather, and tracking community health levels. It felt great to finally be able to come together and celebrate under one roof.

There were 1,235 students eligible to participate in the graduation ceremony who earned associate degrees, diplomas and certificates and 125 High School Equivalency/Adult High School students who completed their diplomas during the fall 2022, spring 2023, and summer 2022 academic terms. Approximately 500 curriculum and High School Equivalency/Adult High School graduates participated in the ceremony.

The event honored students completing one of the colleges transfer degree programs (Associate in Arts, Associate in Fine Arts in Visual Arts, Associate in Engineering or Associate in Science) and the Associate in General Education, as well as those eligible for specific program diplomas and certificates, and those who have completed high school equivalency or adult high school requirements.

A varied student population

The graduates ranged in age from 17 to 66 (average age is 23), with 66% female and 34% male. Thirty-five percent of the graduates live in Rowan County, with 49% from Cabarrus County and 16% in other counties.

Graduates participated in a traditional ceremony, wearing their caps, gowns and honorary regalia with family, friends and other guests seated in the audience. The college streamed the ceremony live on its Facebook page.

Gabrielle Brown, president of the Rowan-Cabarrus Student Government Association, was the commencement speaker. Brown is a Rowan County native and a 2021 graduate of the Rowan County Homeschool Association. She graduated with an Associate in Arts degree and plans to transfer to Catawba College to pursue a degree in political science and pre-law studies. She aspires to attend law school and become an attorney.

During her speech, Brown reminded her fellow graduates, When you made a choice to attend Rowan-Cabarrus, you said yes to exciting possibilities. But signing up for classes or even walking across this stage is not what got you your degree. You accomplished this by showing up every day and taking small steps to get you where you wanted to go. She continued, Those daily choices were an investment in yourself, your future, and the generations to come. This investment in your education will change the trajectory of your life and that of your family for generations to come.

Award winners honored

In addition to celebrating graduates, the college also recognized its nominees for three prestigious community college state awards:

Terra Daisy, Academic Excellence Award

Brielle Long, the North Carolina Dallas Herring Achievement Award nominee

Jeremy Post, the Governor Robert W. Scott Student Leadership Award nominee

Two outstanding faculty members also were recognized as winners of the colleges Excellence in Teaching Award:

Jessica Fowler, Excellence in Teaching Award recipient for full-time faculty

Laura Collander, Excellence in Teaching Award recipient for part-time faculty

Spalding added, It was an honor to hand the graduates of the Class of 2023 their diplomas. They have so much to celebrate and should be so very proud of their accomplishment. I wish them the greatest success as they continue to navigate forward.

For more information about Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, visit www.rccc.edu or call 704-216-RCCC (7222).
The verdict in a case filed by investors against the directors of the software firm SolarWinds, claiming they were aware of the risks that the firm's software posed, but failed to act to prevent devastating attacks that came to light in 2020, has gone in favour of the company.

The Supreme Court of Delaware state ruled on Wednesday that an earlier judgment made by the Delaware Court of Chancery in its memorandum opinion of 6 September 2022 and affirmed in a final order on 13 October 2022 should stand.

The suit was filed on 4 November 2021 in the Delaware Chancery Court, by the Construction Industry Labourers Pension Fund, the Central Labourers' Pension Fund, and two individual investors.

The attacks came to light in December 2020 when American cyber-security firm FireEye announced that it had identified a global campaign to compromise public and private sector bodies through corruption of software supply chains.

FireEye changed its name to Mandiant in 2021, taking on the name of a company that it acquired some years ago, after selling its network, email and cloud security products, as well as the FireEye name, in June this year. Mandiant wasby Google in March 2022.

SolarWinds' Orion network management software was named as the culprit by FireEye.

The suit said: "As of 31 December 2019, the company had over 320,000 customers in 190 countries, including 499 of the Fortune 500, major US technology companies such as Intel and Microsoft, all of the top 10 US telecommunications companies, all of the top five US accounting firms, and hundreds of hospitals and universities."

Named as defendants were both former and present directors, with the plaintiffs seeking both damages and changes to the way the company protects its software from such occurrences.

The suit cited numerous instances where private and public bodies warned about the danger of such attacks, including warnings that were specifically aimed at companies like SolarWinds.

The plaintiffs sought a declaration that the defendants breached their fiduciary duty to SolarWinds and sought refund of their costs in taking the action.

In the 6 September ruling, the Court of Chancery granted the defendants plea to dismiss the case, with Vice-Chancellor Glasscock saying the directors named as defendants, were "not credibly alleged to have allowed the company itself to violate law; did ensure that the company had at least a minimal reporting system about corporate risk, including cyber security; and were not alleged to have ignored sufficient red flags of cyber threats to imply a conscious disregard of a know duty, indicative of scienter.

He added: "...the directors failed to prevent a large corporate trauma, but the plaintiffs have failed to plead sufficient facts from which I may infer bad faith liability on the part of a majority of directors regarding that trauma.
Azyan Telecom has commissioned flat panel satellite antenna company Kymetas Hawk u8 terminals connected by OneWeb, bringing low earth orbit offering in Oman for the first time.

Kymeta claimed the deal will enable expansion of national telecom capabilities in the region, expediting efforts to implement ubiquitous high-speed, low-latency communications capabilities across the Sultanate.

It added that its electronically steered flat panel Hawk u8 will help deliver broadband connectivity across sectors in Oman connected via OneWebs Leo satellite constellation.

The deal comes as Kymeta announced that the Hawk u8 is now commercially available worldwide.

We are invigorated by the opportunity to deliver our solutions to the Sultanate of Oman alongside Azyan Telecom, which we see as an emblematic step forward as we continue to expand our partnerships in the region, said Kymeta president and co-CEO Walter Berger.

Our deal with Kymeta will allow us to deliver on the widespread demand for reliable connectivity, in line with Oman's digital transformation strategy. We are thrilled at the opportunity to expand upon our offerings in support of industries across Oman and grateful for the continued support of the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority, added Azyan Telecom chief operation officer Ahmed Saber.
COMPANY NEWS: Accounting automation software leader BlackLine, Inc. (Nasdaq: BL) today announced that it is deepening its presence in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region with the launch of a new office and data centre in Sydney, the appointment of two new regional leaders and increased partner support and product localisation.

New Regional Headquarters

As part of a longer-term strategy to expand operations, support continued growth in the region and better serve local customers with their most complex accounting challenges, BlackLine has moved its APAC regional headquarters into new dedicated office space on Castlereagh Street in Sydneys central business district. The new collaborative workspace will enable the company to serve both customers and industry partners with exceptional training and technical support facilities, while providing an optimal opportunity to continue to build out dedicated enterprise and mid-market sales teams.

In recent years, BlackLine has invested in select solution partners to support their skills and market development and speed successful deployments for customers across APAC. The new office will enable our partners to be more self-sufficient by helping them build out their pre- and post-sales skill capabilities through knowledge transfer with our growing team, said Lee Thompson, BlackLines senior vice president for Asia-Pacific and Japan.

New Regional Sales Leadership

A new addition to the BlackLine Sydney office, Rosie Cairnes has been appointed as regional vice president of the account management organisation. Ms. Cairnes joins BlackLine with three decades of IT industry sales, regional business development and management experience working for organisations including SmartForce, SAI Global and SkillSoft.

Also supporting APAC customers from Singapore, Nikhil Parambath recently joined BlackLine as regional vice president for enterprise accounts. Mr. Parambath has more than 25 years of experience in the IT industry, having previously worked for industry leaders Salesforce, SunGard and Oracle.

New Data Centre to Support Data Sovereignty

In addition, BlackLine plans to open an APAC regional data centre within a Google Cloud facility in Sydney later this year. The investment will support customers with their individual industry sovereignty requirements while also reducing latency and propelling the capacity to scale and ensure the highest levels of capacity, security and resilience.

BlackLine also expects the new data centre to simplify and accelerate the process of migrating its nearly 400 regional customers onto the Google Cloud Platform. The addition complements other data centres across the US and Europe, providing expanded coverage to serve the companys global and growing customer base.

The new data centre will enable us to enhance support for our expanding customer base in the region, particularly those with changing regulatory requirements around data sovereignty such as in the government and financial services sectors, added Mr. Thompson. We expect it also will enhance the overall customer experience and enable us to further support the localisation of our solutions to address market requirements.

For example, last year, BlackLine launched its fixed-price, rapid implementation Modern Accounting Playbook (MAP), a repeatable, packaged process, and tailored it with specific knowledge and leading practices for ERP integration, data extraction, close checklists, ready-to-go reconciliation templates, close task tracking, reports, dashboards and approval flows. The solution customised for Australian and other APAC businesses is just one example of how BlackLine is addressing local market needs and complements BlackLines ongoing rollout of new solutions and services to enhance the BlackLine platform, such as the recently launched Financial Reporting Analytics solution and the companys host of accounts receivable automation and intercompany financial management offerings.

"We remain focused on accelerating time-to-value for our customers," added Thompson. "Having a local data centre combined with a new regional hub, exceptional in-market sales leadership and dedicated partners who specialise in delivering financial automation gives our customers the trust and confidence they need as we further expand to support their continued success."

BlackLine has nearly 400 customers in Asia-Pacific and Japan and has been operating in the region for more than 12 years. The announcements come as the company is preparing to host its annual BeyondTheBlack APAC regional user conferences this week with events in Sydney and Melbourne and a Finance Transformation Series event to follow next week in Singapore.

About BlackLine

Companies come to BlackLine (Nasdaq: BL) because their traditional manual accounting processes are not sustainable. BlackLines cloud-based financial operations management platform and market-leading customer service help companies move to modern accounting by unifying their data and processes, automating repetitive work, and driving accountability through visibility. BlackLine provides solutions to manage and automate financial close, accounts receivable and intercompany accounting processes, helping large enterprises and midsize companies across all industries do accounting work better, faster and with more control.

More than 4,200 customers trust BlackLine to help them close faster with complete and accurate results. The company is the pioneer of the cloud financial close market and recognized as the leader by customers at leading end-user review sites including G2 and TrustRadius. BlackLine is a global company with operations in major business centres including Los Angeles, New York, the San Francisco Bay area, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney. For more information, please visit blackline.com.
Health technology start-up Kismet has launched with $4 million raised in a pre-seed round and says it will focus on tools to support plan and fund management, aiming to connect patients with legitimate providers and address the biggest challenges in the disability and healthcare sectors.

The funding has come from AirTree, Daniel Petre, Black Nova and Flying Fix, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Kismet statement claimed about $6 billion of allocated NDIS funds had been lost to what it called "criminal activities" up to 2022: overcharging of participants, billing additional commissions and charging for bogus services.

Additionally, about $7.5 billion of NDIS funds were left unused by participants who were unaware of how funds could be allocated.

The Kismet tools include:

Kismet Free Online Marketplace: connecting Australians with over 27,000 providers who are subject to a vetting process ensuring only legitimate operators, which provides fraud protection and reduces barriers to accessing care;

Kismet Wallet: provides a complete view of a participants plan to help securely track funds and improve collaboration with family members, caregivers and patients. The wallet will help reduce out-of-pocket top-ups for primary carers and improve utilisation of plan funds; and

Kismet Digital Check-In System: legitimises customer attendance and reduces the potential of fraud.

Co-founder and chief executive Mark Woodland said: Improving access to healthcare is one of the most important challenges of our generation. Industry and government need to work hand-in-hand to simplify access and stamp out bad actors to ensure everyone has access to one of our most basic needs.

We saw the same problems of fraud, inefficiencies and friction in childcare a decade ago. Through Xplor, we worked with the government to stamp out $3B in fraud, and are now looking to do the same for healthcare.

We see huge potential to address challenges across healthcare, and while we have our eyes set on the NDIS first, we will be able to scale our tech globally to help millions worldwide access the care they need.

Elicia McDonald, partner at Airtree Ventures, added: Mark is a visionary leader who revolutionised the way families, educators and children engage with education when he founded Xplor  by bringing community and brand to an industry in which neither existed before.

"We understand how difficult it is to build something like this and we love seeing repeat-founders build on past successes from lessons learned. For Mark, the successes and lessons are plenty and we are excited to go on this journey with him and his team building the future of health.

Investor Daniel Petre said" I think it is natural that for his first venture since Xplor, Mark and his founding team return to the theme of connecting communities of people by reducing administrative burdens allowing them to focus on what matters most  their families health. As we face an increasingly aging population, this change is well overdue.

The statement said the people behind Kismet were the same as those behind Xplor, the edutech company that is claimed to have transformed the childcare system which suffered from similar problems to the healthcare system, including fraud, inefficiencies and complicated systems.

Xplor is now claimed to be the leading provider of childcare software and helped save the government billions in fraud ($3.1 billion in 2020 through the use of Xplor software combined with government investigations).
[Provisional translation]



On May 18, commencing from 4:15 p.m. for approximately 60 minutes, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, held a summit meeting with H.E. Ms. Giorgia Meloni, President of the Council of Ministers of the Italian Republic. The overview is as follows.



1. Opening remarks



At the outset, Prime Minister Kishida welcomed Prime Minister Melonis visit to Hiroshima, and expressed his condolences for the loss of precious lives and tremendous damage caused by the heavy rains in Emilia-Romagna. The two leaders confirmed their commitment to promote concrete cooperation as strategic partners and welcomed the conclusion of negotiations on the Agreement on film co-production.



2. G7 Hiroshima Summit



Prime Minister Kishida stated that, at the G7 Hiroshima Summit, he would like to demonstrate G7s determination to uphold and reinforce the free and open international order based on the rule of law and explained Japans view on the Summit as the Presidency. In response, Prime Minister Meloni expressed her intention to fully cooperate for the Summit. The two leaders affirmed to continue to work together closely towards the success of the G7 Hiroshima Summit.



3. Bilateral relations



Prime Minister Kishida welcomed the progress of cooperation in security and defense, and the two leaders shared the view to deepen discussions on concrete cooperation through the Political-Military Dialogue and other channels. The two leaders also welcomed the bright outlook for an entry into force of the Agreement on Social Security between the two countries, which is important for further facilitating people-to-people and economic exchanges. Furthermore, Prime Minister Kishida reiterated his request for Italys cooperation towards the early lifting of import measures on Japanese food products by the EU.



4. International affairs



The two leaders exchanged views on the situation in East Asia, and affirmed to continue to coordinate closely in addressing issues related to China, and in dealing with North Korea, including on nuclear and missile issues as well as the abductions issue. The two leaders also exchanged views on addressing economic security challenges as well as opaque and unfair development finance, and confirmed that they would continue to work together.



With regard to addressing Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the two leaders affirmed to continue severe sanctions against Russia and strong support for Ukraine. The two leaders also concurred that they would send robustly to the world the determination of the G7 to uphold the free and open international order based on the rule of law, and demonstrate the unwavering solidarity with Ukraine at the G7 Hiroshima Summit.
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Perdue  yes, the poultry company  is getting into the beer business. Sort of.

For the first time ever, Perdue is selling a 12.5-ounce can of beer thats specifically made for beer can chicken in time for the summer grilling season.

Keep scrolling for a ranking of the worst beers in the world

Appropriately titled Beer Can Chicken Beer, the limited-edition brew is a honey double-citrus summer ale thats brewed with classic grilled chicken seasonings like rosemary, thyme and pink peppercorn. The $14.99 six-packs will be sold online only beginning May 22.

Beer can chicken has long been one of the most popular methods of grilling poultry, but we noticed a lack of consensus on what type of beer is best, said Julie Lehman, Perdues vice president of marketing, in a press release. (For those who havent made it, beer can chicken involves sticking a can of opened beer into an upright chicken and grilling it indirectly on a grill or smoker.)

To make the beer, which is also for just plain drinking, Perdue partnered with Manhattan-based brewery Torch & Crown Brewing Company.

Online recipes for beer can chicken have proliferated in recent years, according to Perdues research, with Google searches peaking around Memorial Day.

Many of the recipes call for a fruity-flavored beer. Perdues ale infuses the bird with flavor, marinating it from the inside out, but it keeps the chicken moist and tender during the cooking process, the company said.

Perdue is also selling whole chickens with special packaging at grocery stores nationwide promoting the beer.

The worst beers in the world, according to Beer Advocate The worst beers in the world, according to Beer Advocate #25. Old Milwaukee Beer #24. Heineken Premium Light Lager #23. Corona Extra #22. Desperados #21. Black Label Beer #20. Tecate Light #19. Kirin Light Beer #18. Colt 45 Malt Liquor #17. Labatt Blue Light #16. Beck's Premier Light #15. St. Ides High Gravity Malt Liquor #14. Coors Light #13. Red Dog #12. Corona Light #11. Keystone Lager #10. Bud Light #9. Keystone Premium #8. Busch Ice #7. Natural Ice #6. Keystone Light #5. Milwaukee's Best Light #4. Miller 64 #3. Natural Light #2. Sharp's #1. Budweiser Select 55
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The Republican-sponsored state Senate budget would provide a modest increase of 350 innovation waiver slots toward the goal of reducing what is known as the Registry of Unmet Needs.

Meanwhile, the Senate budget appears to secure funding for Phase II of the Stevens Center renovations, as well as solidify the pending name change of SECCA.

The Senate version of House Bill 259, released Monday, includes 100 more slots than the 250 in the House budget version.

Sen. Ralph Hise, R-McDowell, said the budget would provide $10 million each year toward the additional innovation waiver slots.

The budget also contains $60 million to provide a $6.50 an hour raise above the current average hourly wage rate for innovations direct care workers, which was not cited.

Even at the higher total, the slots remain a welcomed, but still drop in the bucket, compared with the more than 16,000 North Carolinians on the registry.

That includes more than 800 in Forsyth County.

There are at least 266 Forsyth residents currently receiving the services, according to Partners Health Management, a behavioral health managed care organization.

Still, Forsyth has gained limited slots since 2017.

Some North Carolinians have been waiting more than 20 years, according to advocates.

Expanding innovation waiver slots has been a priority for me, said state Sen. Joyce Krawiec, R-Forsyth, who has been a primary sponsor of bills that would add innovations waiver slots.

I believe it is crucial to provide services to this vulnerable population. I do believe that the timing is right. I will not give up until services to this group of citizens have been provided.

If Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signs the forthcoming House-Senate budget compromise legislation, the slots could become available as early as July 1 at the start of the 2023-24 state fiscal year.

The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are required to approve waiver requests.

Although Cooper has indicated objections to educational and health-care language in the two budget versions, it is expected he will eventually sign since expanding the states Medicaid program required funding from the budget.

The states Medicaid innovations waiver initiative allows people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to receive services and assistance in their homes and communities instead of in an institution.

The services involve skill building, intensive recovery support and transitional living. A slot is created for each individual receiving the additional services.

There has been an increasing bipartisan awareness in the state legislature of the need to provide additional state funding to take individuals off the registry.

The 2021-22 state budget included $37.5 million in funding to provide an additional 1,000 innovations waiver slots.

SECCA name change

The Senate has left in the House 2023-24 budget bill language that would change the name of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art to the N.C. Museum of Art-Winston-Salem.

The bill does not provide the rationale behind the name change, only that it would require the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources to take that action.

The budget includes $15 million in funding for the renamed SECCA.

The purpose was to link it to the N.C. Museum of Art in order to support their request for significant funding, Rep. Donny Lambeth, R-Forsyth, said. The funding is a major investment to improve their facilities.

SECCA, founded in 1956, already is an affiliate of the N.C. Carolina Museum of Art and a division of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Weve been in contact with our museum friends groups and the General Assembly about this change, as part of a larger effort for improvements at the museum and to align it more closely with the N.C. Museum of Art, said Michele Walker, public information officer for the department.

Were certainly excited to see the interest thats being shown in our facilities.

More Stevens Center funding

Both the House and Senate budget version provides $51 million for the second phase of renovations at the historic Stevens Center in downtown Winston-Salem.

Both versions also includes $24.5 million for a new dorm for UNCSA high school students, but not until fiscal 2027-28.

UNCSA spokeswoman Katherine Johnson said the funds for the high school residence hall was submitted to and approved by the UNC Board of Governors.

This would provide modernized housing for approximately 200 high school students in place of existing dorms constructed in 1965 that have had moderate necessary upgrades and repairs over their nearly 60-year life, Johnson said.

If funded, advance planning for the project would begin fall 2024.

On March 22, UNCSA unveiled the Phase 1 renovation design plan for the 77,500-square-foot Stevens Center.

The renovated Stevens Center could reopen between summer 2025 and early 2026, although UNCSA said we would hope to receive funding for Phase II on a timeframe that would allow Phase II efforts to overlap with Phase I completion as much as possible.

Up first from the design and architecture teams of Little Diversified Architectural Consulting of Charlotte and Steinberg Hart of Los Angeles is redesigning the lobby to create a more expansive, transformative experience for patrons and bring the Stevens Center in line with modern theaters of today, while making efforts to retain the 1929 buildings historic character.

Phase I also will tackle critical repairs to the exterior of the building to address water intrusion and ensure it is watertight. Among the repairs: replacing the roof; restoring the brick exterior, terra-cotta facade and window; improvements to back-of-house spaces, including the dressing rooms and green room.

UNCSA said it will continue to seek both public and private funding for the renovation, as well as to provide long-term support for programming and building maintenance.

Upon completion of those repairs, Phase II will focus on interior renovations.

Phase II projects would include a transformation of the audience chamber, including enhancements to seating and the stage, as well as a reconfigured balcony with improved sightlines.

Technological improvements would be included that will allow students and partners to work with state-of-the-art equipment that meets current industry standards.

The Senate approved Wednesday its version of the state budget by a 36-13 vote on second reading with the support of at least six Democrats.

A third and final vote will take place Thursday.

After the House rejects the Senate version as expected, concurrence negotiations would commence on a budget compromise that could take until early to mid June to reach.
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A 39-year-old woman was charged in a fatal vehicle crash on Wednesday, Winston-Salem Police said.

The Winston-Salem Police Department responded at 11:40 a.m. to the 1700 block of Pleasant Street to a single-vehicle collision.

Police said Courtney Elizabeth Watson of Winston-Salem was driving north in the 1700 block of Pleasant Street when she ran off the roadway to the right and lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle began to overturn and came to rest upside down. The passenger was pronounced dead on the scene.

Watson left the scene and was located shortly after the collision, police said.

The Winston-Salem Police Departments Traffic Enforcement Unit responded to the scene and assumed investigative responsibility.

Watson was charged with felony death by motor vehicle and felony hit and run causing serious injury or death. No bond information was available.

The victim has not been identified.

Anyone with information about this crash can call Winston-Salem police 336-773-7700, Crime Stoppers at 336-727-2800 or its Spanish line at 336-728-3904.
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Q: I saw on social media that Krispy Kreme will no longer have the Hot Now sign lit at night. Is this true?

J.F.

Answer: Not exactly.

The sign will be on at stores during peak hours, from 7 to 9 a.m. and from 5 to 7 p.m.

It will also be on at other times, said Jack Farmer, a spokesman for Krispy Kreme.

Krispy Kreme fans throughout North Carolina can enjoy hot doughnuts off the line at Krispy Kreme Hot Light shops during Hot Light hours  7 to 9 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.  and whenever the Hot Light is on.

Also, if you download the Krispy Kreme app, it will tell you when the Hot Now light is on at your local shop.

Q: We called an ambulance to take my husband to the Davie County Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Hospital, which is where we prefer to go. They came but could not take him to that hospital because it is not in Forsyth County. Can you tell me if there are ambulances that can take people living in Winston-Salem to that hospital? D.H.

Answer: In addition to the county operated Forsyth County Emergency Medical Services, there are two ambulance services in Forsyth County that are private.

Carr Boyd, the deputy director of Forsyth County Emergency Services, told us what the FCEMS policy is and the exceptions to it.

For non-emergency ambulance transports that can be scheduled, there are two private franchise providers in Forsyth County that will schedule and transport persons needing ambulance transport to any facility. The two providers are 1. Lifestar Emergency Services and 2. Providence Transportation.

In the event of an emergency (the call for medical assistance comes through the 9-1-1 system), Forsyth County Emergency Medical Services (or one of the franchise services) will respond to provide medical care and transport.

With emergency responses, when possible, patients are transported to the hospital of their choice, which in addition to the hospitals in Forsyth County also includes to Davie Medical Center, High Point Regional or Cone Medical Center.

There are exceptions that override patient preference, such as when the patient condition or medical complaint requires transport to a specialty hospital (i.e. trauma center, pediatric, cath lab, etc.) in accordance with our destination medical protocols.

There are also times we (FCEMS) will not transport out-of-county during high call volume periods to help with system status management, but in general we try to meet patient preference unless other factors require us to transport to a different destination.

Q: What are the regulations regarding an overgrown yard in a Greensboro neighborhood?

J.H.

Answer: It is a violation of the city ordinances for Greensboro not to cut the grass.

According to the ordinance, Failure to cut weeds or grass and overgrowth exceeding 12 inches on private property will result in a violation.

To report a violation, call the Housing and Neighborhood Development at 336-373-2111 or online at

There may be fines and other fees involved with the violation.
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Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist began Wednesday its yearlong commemoration of the 100th birthday of the hospital, which opened with 88 beds on May 28, 1923.

A centennial presentation on Baptists website included a comment that crystalized what the new hospital meant to Winston-Salem  the states largest city at the time  and the local community.

When J.A. Jones, the contractor who had built North Carolina Baptist Hospital, presented the key to the front door, he said, Well, heres the key, but theres not much need for it, since a hospitals door should never be locked to the sick. 

Dr. Julie Ann Freischlag, the systems chief executive since 2017, expressed the hospitals and systems appreciation that the local community really has believed in us for 100 years and continues to believe as we grow in North Carolina and beyond.

Fresichlag touted Baptists evolution and progress in research such as aging, cancer, pediatrics and regenerative medicine.

We are confident that we will continue to hold up our legacy and our culture, and the next 100 years will bring new clinical successes, new advancements in research and treatments, and new innovations that we have not dreamt of, Freischlag said.

Baptists origins came in part from a need for a combined hospital and teaching school by the churches of the Baptist State Convention of N.C.

After 16 years of contemplation, the convention was spurred to move forward in 1919 as the community and the state struggled to recover from the 1918-19 influenza pandemic.

The goal was to create a network of hospitals that would care for the states poorest and neediest patients.

The convention evaluated six communities for a Baptist-sponsored hospital, including Charlotte, Greensboro, High Point, Raleigh and Salisbury.

The hospital jumped right into action with the first baby  Fred Trivette  being born on opening day and the School of Nursing opening in July 1923.

In 1941, Wake Forest Colleges medical school moved its campus to Winston-Salem, establishing a pathway for the college to follow in the 1950s.

When the hospital opened, Winston-Salem was just 10 years old, Mayor Allen Joines said.

Joines cited how the city and the hospital have travelled on parallel courses throughout their history.

The hospital has been able to grow and mature and change and pivot to address the changing healthcare environment, Joines said.

Winston-Salem did the same thing, pivot from a manufacturing-based economy to one based on the service sector, technology and rapid change.

Successful entities (cities and healthcare systems) will be those that can embrace innovation and rapid change.

Fast forward the 100 years, and Baptist is the largest employer in northwest North Carolina with more than 22,000 employees systemwide, along with 1,535 acute care, psychiatric and rehabilitation beds and four community hospitals.

Baptist also has evolved with the Winston-Salems Innovation Quarter and a Wake Forest University School of Medicine campus coming in Charlotte.

It also has become part of the nations fifth-largest healthcare system in Advocate Health.

Freischlag, as well as other presenters, stressed that the systems future will be one of learning from its past in terms of health equity without providing specific examples.

We have come a long ways, but we also know we have made mistakes along the way, Freischlag said.

The inequities that many people have experienced will not be part of our future.

Venice Williams, the hospitals nurse manager, said she recognizes and appreciates Baptists commitment to learn from its past, as well as promote a culture of mentorships and giving back.

I am invested in this place because this place has invested in me and so many others, Williams said.

I feel I have an obligation to pour into others as others have poured into me.

Williams said Baptists response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular the early months of uncertainty of how to care for patients, epitomized her belief in how promotion of collaboration between departments contributed to an empowering that worked to meet the call to action.

PHOTOS: North Carolina Baptist Hospital Centennial Celebration
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Latina writer Ada Limon, a California native who now lives in Kentucky, was named U.S. Poet Laureate in 2022.

That was exciting news for Omahan Amy Haddad.

When I heard (about her appointment), I was driving and I actually let out a shout, Haddad said.

After retiring in 2018 from her job as director of the Center for Health Policy and Ethics at Creighton University, Haddad earned a master of arts degree in poetry, and Limon was her adviser.

Her work really resonates with me, Haddad said. Shes such an engaging poet.

The two will be reunited Thursday night when Limon is the featured guest at a 25th anniversary celebration for the Nebraska Cultural Endowment. Haddad is a member of the endowments board of directors, and is the honorary chairwoman of the event with her husband, Steve.

The endowment was created with state funds and private donations through a 1998 bill in the Nebraska Legislature. Its sole purpose is to provide funding for the Nebraska Arts Council and Humanities Nebraska, which have an imprint in every state legislative district, said Executive Director Maggie Smith. She joined the endowment last year after working as director of operations at Omahas Kaneko arts center.

Limon will present a poetry reading and participate in a discussion with Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason and Amelia Escalante, who is the current Nebraska champion of Poetry Out Loud, a national contest and arts education program that encourages the study of poetry. Escalante also will read one of Limons works at the celebration.

The U.S. has had a national poet since 1937, when the position was known as Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Since 1986, it has been known as poet laureate, and noted author Robert Penn Warren (All the Kings Men) was the first to have that title.

Limons appearance in Omaha coincides with her recent appointment for the first two-year second term in the history of the position.

She is the author of six poetry collections and has won numerous accolades, including the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. She is on the faculty at Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Haddad received her degree.

Smith said she was selected for the celebration because leaders thought her genre easily applies to both organizations the endowment serves.

We felt like a poet could easily cross between arts and humanities, she said.

She thinks poets  and poet laureates  are essential to civilization.

Throughout history, poets have told the story of the society theyre in, she said. Sometimes its not an easy story to tell. (Poetry) encapsulates what people care about culturally. Sometimes its politics. Sometimes its just deeply emotional. To have a poet laureate says we value that voice.

Both Smith and Haddad say Limon writes poetry that is personal and relatable.

It really comes from her heart, Haddad said. She connects a lot with nature, is very observant, is not afraid to explore difficult topics and is accessible.

Smith said she thinks anyone could pick up one of Limons poems, understand it and have an emotional response.

Shes really in demand and so it was lucky we could book her, she said. Endowment leaders began organizing the 25th anniversary event a year ago.

Thursday nights celebration starts with a patron party at 5:30 p.m. Doors at the Holland Center, 1200 Douglas St., open to the public at 6 and the event runs from 7 to about 8:30, Smith said. Limon will sign books (for sale on-site through The Bookworm) for about 30 minutes after the program.

The party is sold out, but general admission tickets can still be purchased for $25 at nebraskaculturalendowment.org.

Nebraska has the distinction of being one of the states to produce a poet laureate. Ted Kooser, who was an English professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, served from 2004 to 2006.

We wanted him to come to the celebration, but his health is not great, said Smith, who herself is a poet who started a creative writing nonprofit when she lived in Ireland. He politely declined. We will be thinking about him. Poets in Nebraska will tell you that he is generous with his time and talent.

Photos: Omaha landmark Joslyn Castle through the years Joslyn Castle in 1949 Joslyn Castle Joslyn Castle Joslyn as OPS headquarters Joslyn as OPS headquarters Joslyn as OPS headquarters Joslyn Castle music room Joslyn Castle central hall Joslyn Castle voting Joslyn bridge Carols as Joslyn Castle 2015 Joslyn Castle renovations Joslyn Castle polling place Undated photo Joslyn Castle Joslyn stables used by school board Voting at Joslyn Castle Burke High string quartet at Joslyn Castle Joslyn Castle polling place 1913 tornado Snow at Joslyn Castle Snow at Joslyn Castle in 1944 1913 tornado 1913 tornado Joslyn Castle postcard Joslyn Castle in 1993 joslyn(2) IMG_1676-carriage house joslyn(3) joslyn(4) joslyn joslyn(2)-Portrait of George joslyn joslyn(3)-Portrait of Sarah 750891 joslyn(3) joslyn(2)
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Two people have been federally charged in connection with a traffic stop on Interstate 80 near Lincoln earlier this month that turned up more than 55 pounds of methamphetamine.

Gerardo Soto-Sigala, 39, and Daisy Franco, 34, were indicted Tuesday on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

In U.S. District Court records, Colin Strickland, a special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration, said that on May 9, Lincoln Police Officer John Hudec stopped a 2010 Honda Odyssey with California plates for a traffic infraction just west of Lincoln's airport exit.

Strickland said that during the stop, the driver, Soto-Sigala, gave Hudec consent to search the minivan, which led to the discovery of a concealed compartment under the center console with 50 individual packages of narcotics hidden inside.

The drugs weighed 25.7 kilograms, or nearly 57 pounds.

The two were arrested and are being housed at the Douglas County jail in Omaha. On Friday, they both made initial appearances on a federal complaint.

The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to say where Soto-Sigala and Franco are from.

Safest cities in America 2023: Violent crime rate increases drive per capita cost of crime Safest cities in America 2023: Violent crime rate increases drive per capita cost of crime The 15 Safest Cities in America The 15 Most Dangerous Cities Methodology
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A 28-year-old Lincoln man is in jail after he allegedly attacked his stepdad earlier this month, breaking the 49-year-old's nose and both eye sockets, causing "potentially ... lasting effects," police said in court records.

Scott Sanders had been hanging out at his mom's apartment, near 16th and E streets, at around 6:30 p.m. May 10 when he and his stepdad got in an argument over Sanders being disrespectful to his mom and stepdad, Lincoln Police Officer Brian Gruber said in the probable cause statement for his arrest.

The argument soon turned physical.

Sanders is accused of punching the 49-year-old once in the face, knocking him to the ground, before striking him three more times, Gruber alleged in the statement.

Lincoln Fire and Rescue crews took Sanders' stepdad to CHI Health St. Elizabeth. He was later taken to CHI Health Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha due to the extent of his facial injuries, Gruber said.

The 49-year-old initially told police he didn't want to pursue criminal charges against his stepson, but after he underwent surgery and had metal plates installed near his eye sockets due to the severity of his injuries, he changed his mind, Gruber said.

Police arrested Sanders early Wednesday morning at the People's City Mission and took him to the Lancaster County jail.

And prosecutors on Wednesday charged him with first-degree assault, punishable by up to 50 years in prison.

Most dangerous cities in Nebraska Dangerous Cities in Nebraska 6. South Sioux City 5. Scottsbluff 4. North Platte 3. Lincoln 2. Grand Island 1. Omaha A note about the numbers
Pakistani police are keeping up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects sheltered inside expired. The siege and the authorities' demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khans recent detention, has angered the former prime ministers many followers. It is also raising concerns about more clashes between them and the security forces on Thursday. Last week, Khans supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country. The violence subsided only when Pakistans Supreme Court ordered Khans release.
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A federal jury in Nebraska has returned a $3 million verdict in favor of a North Platte woman who sued her former employer for continued sexual harassment by a male co-worker.

At the end of a four-day trial in U.S. District Court in Omaha, the jury awarded Katrina Beran $500,000 in total damages for emotional distress and $2.5 million in punitive damages against the company that owns Linden Court, a skilled nursing home in North Platte.

In the lawsuit, her attorney, Jennifer Turco Meyer, said Beran had started working there in March 2019 as a nursing aide and medication aide.

In January 2020, a male employee, Chris Eugene, started to sexually harass her at work.

Meyer said Beran was stunned when he groped her buttocks in the cafeteria when she was bent over, then unexpectedly grabbed her hand and wouldn't let go when they were making a bed in a patient's room.

Another time, she said, Eugene shoved Beran out of the way while lifting a resident, saying it was a "man's job," then pushed Beran against the wall and groped her breasts.

She learned other women had similar experiences with the man touching them and saying derogatory things about women.

On Jan. 27, 2020, she reported the harassment to her supervisor after he told her to "cool your hormones and take the rag out" and she got so upset she started to cry.

Meyer said Beran's supervisor asked her if she was overreacting because she was stressed but agreed to report it to her supervisor and move Beran to another hall so she could avoid him, according to the lawsuit.

Later that same day, the man elbowed her in the chest in suspected retaliation for reporting him, she said. Beran reported that, too, and asked to move floors to avoid further incidents.

But there continued to be incidents, including two with a female resident, who had previously complained about the same man.

Meyer said on Feb. 6, 2020, Beran reported the incidents between the man and the resident, but her supervisor and a human resources employee tried to convince Beran to say things that weren't true.

She refused and told the truth.

The next day, Beran was suddenly terminated.

When Beran asked why, she was told it was because she was "targeting" her co-worker.

The next month, Beran filed a claim for sex discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Later that year, she filed a lawsuit against VSL North Platte Court LLC, which owns Linden Court.

At trial, Meyer argued Beran had been subject to a hostile work environment and that other female staff members had made similar complaints about the same employee.

Attorney Colin Bernard, who represented VSL, argued Beran's allegations were "entirely uncorroborated by supporting evidence" and lacked credibility.

In his trial brief, he said, even if Beran capably convinced the jury her description of her male co-worker's conduct was accurate, it wasn't extreme enough to demonstrate a hostile work environment.

On Friday, the jury disagreed and found in Beran's favor.

This week, Bernard told the Journal Star: "While Linden Court appreciates the jurys time and attention to the matter, it adamantly disagrees with the jurys verdict."

He said they were reviewing all available options for post-trial motions and an appeal.

On the other side, Meyer said: "The jurys verdict demonstrates our communitys commitment to keeping employees safe in the workplace and the communitys expectation that companies go beyond adopting merely symbolic statements on equal employment opportunity and toothless policies in the employee handbook."

Eugene, the employee whose conduct was at issue, no longer has a nurse's aide license in Nebraska.

Most dangerous cities in Nebraska Dangerous Cities in Nebraska 6. South Sioux City 5. Scottsbluff 4. North Platte 3. Lincoln 2. Grand Island 1. Omaha A note about the numbers
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Rep. Mike Flood has scheduled a town hall in Lincoln on May 30.

The 1st District Republican congressman will answer questions from constituents and brief participants on "the priorities he's been working on for Lincoln" and the eastern Nebraska House district.

The town hall is scheduled at Lincoln North Star High School, 5801 N. 33rd St., from 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Flood was first elected to the House seat at a special election last June to fill the remaining months of former Rep. Jeff Fortenberry's term following his resignation after being convicted of lying to the FBI about campaign finance violations.

Last November, Flood was reelected to a full two-year term in a second battle with Democratic nominee Patty Pansing Brooks.

A Norfolk attorney and founder of News Channel Nebraska, Flood is a former state senator and speaker of the Legislature.

Among the Lincoln priorities he has been addressing are efforts to move the downtown Lincoln Post Office out of the Haymarket to clear the way for a potential convention center or private development, and continued development at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Innovation Campus.

Top Journal Star photos for May 2023
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With a bill to legalize cannabis for medical use in Nebraska stuck in committee, medical marijuana advocates will try to put the issue before voters for the third straight election cycle.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana filed two initiatives with the Secretary of States office on Thursday with the goal of qualifying the measure for the November 2024 general election ballot.

Crista Eggers, the statewide campaign coordinator for Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, earlier told state senators on the Judiciary Committee that if the Legislature failed to take action that parents like her would.

For 10 years this has been talked about and advocated for by patients and caregivers like myself, said Eggers, whose 8-year-old son, Colton, has intractable seizures. I would have hoped our legislative body had decided it was important enough, but unfortunately that has not happened.

Two separate petitions have identical language to a pair of measures that were circulated in 2022. Both seek to force the Legislature to change state statute and legalize cannabis for medical use instead of amending the state constitution.

The first petition will enact a new state statute protecting doctors who recommend cannabis and patients who use it for medical reasons, and the second requires the Legislature to legalize the production, supply, and distribution of cannabis for medical purposes.

We know the people support this, Eggers said. We are going to execute and put that into motion to have safe and regulated medical cannabis in Nebraska.

Once the petition language has been accepted by Secretary of State Bob Evnen, Eggers said Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana are planning to launch their campaign in June, with the goal of exceeding the signature-gathering requirements outlined in state law.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana will need to submit a number of signatures equal to 7% of registered voters in the state, including 5% of voters in 38 of Nebraskas 93 counties.

The renewed effort comes after the two petitions fell about 9,000 signatures short of qualifying for the November 2022 general election ballot, and after the state Supreme Court found a 2020 ballot violated the single-subject rule for ballot initiatives after nearly 200,000 signatures were submitted.

The decision to pursue a ballot initiative also comes as the Legislature once again failed to act on Lincoln Sen. Anna Wisharts attempt (LB588) to pass a medical marijuana law in Nebraska.

Wisharts bill, which was heard by the Judiciary Committee in February, outlined a narrow list of qualifying medical conditions for which patients could seek medical marijuana, and also detailed the steps physicians must perform before they can recommend cannabis to a patient.

Patients recommended cannabis were allowed to purchase and possess up to 2.5 ounces or 2,000 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol  better known as THC  from state-licensed dispensaries, which were required to contract with licensed pharmacists trained in medical cannabis.

LB588 would have also prohibited patients from smoking or vaping cannabis, cultivating their own marijuana plants, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of cannabis, or from using cannabis while riding as a passenger.

The bill, which Wishart said would have been one of the most conservative medical marijuana laws in the country, was the result of agreements between doctors, pharmacists and state senators who voiced concern about past efforts they found too broad.

But even after emotional testimony from a handful of parents of the roughly 19,600 Nebraska children who live with severe epilepsy and other individuals who described living with chronic pain, Wisharts bill remained stuck in committee.

Wishart said turnover in the Legislature and on the Judiciary Committee resulted in a membership that did not follow the actions of past committees which had advanced medical marijuana legislation to the floor for debate.

Attorney General Mike Hilgers, who opposed medical marijuana when he was a state senator, and Nebraska's chief medical officer also added to the opposition at the committee hearing earlier this year.

Wrestling with how to proceed, Wishart tried to narrow the bill further than it had already been narrowed, eventually landing on a right to try proposal for parents of children with severe epilepsy only.

That proposal would not have allowed for dispensaries to open in Nebraska  there would have been no industry here, Wishart said  but would have allowed those patients, at the recommendation of their doctor, to travel to other states to buy cannabis.

It also would have decriminalized possession of marijuana for those individuals, she added.

I think I could have gotten that out of committee, Wishart said, but I didnt feel confident I would have enough votes on the floor and because of that and because it was so narrow, we decided we needed to go back to the ballot.

There are more people than those with epilepsy that would benefit from having access, she added.

Eggers said this week she likely would have stepped aside had the Legislature acted on the right to try legislation, which she says would have helped her son.

But with the bill still sitting in committee and with its paths closed this year, she said shes prepared to throw herself behind the ballot initiative again, even as she acknowledges that doing so will mean she misses out on precious time with her ailing son.

I voiced this to several senators that if the Legislature does not do something, anything to show progress, that we would do it ourselves, Eggers said Wednesday. It was a straight-up threat, and I intend to follow through with that threat.

The new ballot initiatives revive what Wishart called the battle-tested language reviewed by local and state attorneys used in a previous effort that fell just short of gathering the needed votes in 2022.

Wishart, who is one of the sponsors of the initiative, said filing the petition language more than a year ahead of the July 2024 deadline for qualifying for the ballot will give the campaign a long runway to collect the necessary number of signatures.

What weve learned is that we dont have to wait for a major donor to start, she said. We basically collected 180,000 signatures on a volunteer-led, shoestring budget campaign the last time around, and now weve got a year and a half to do what we did in three months last time.

Eggers added the lessons learned from falling just short in two campaigns over the last two years have been used to adjust the strategy moving forward.

We have signers who have signed this petition, not once but twice, she said. We have a lot going for us, and I think we have the ability to get it done.

Top Journal Star photos for May 2023
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LINCOLN  A months-long battle over how to implement Nebraskas new voter identification requirement continued Wednesday, with the sponsor of the main implementation proposal threatening to kill her own bill.

State Sen. Julie Slama of Dunbar filed a motion to withdraw Legislative Bill 535 shortly after the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee advanced an amended version of the bill.

The committee voted 7-0 to send LB 535 to the full Legislature after attaching a narrow amendment focused on voter ID. The amendment was developed by Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, the committee chairman, working with Secretary of State Bob Evnens office and other committee members.

Slama, who led the effort to get voter ID on the ballot last year, proposed more expansive amendments that included such requirements as citizenship verification of voters, having witnesses or notaries sign mail-in ballots and audits of witness signatures.

Weeks of attempts to negotiate a compromise appeared to have borne fruit on Friday, only to have Slama propose an even more expansive amendment on Monday.

Brewer told the committee Wednesday that he believed the differences could have been worked out eventually but, with only 11 days left in the legislative session, there was not enough time. He said Speaker of the Legislature John Arch of La Vista wanted to start debate on the issue Thursday.

Unhappy with the committees action Wednesday, Slama filed her motion to withdraw her bill after talking with Brewer. She also filed motions to postpone, kill and send her bill back to committee.

Slama called the committee amendment unconstitutional and fraud-friendly and said it would gut voter ID with no real ID requirements at the behest of Secretary of State Bob Evnen.

Brewers plan had been to use Slamas LB 535 as the vehicle for voter ID legislation, and the bill was named a committee priority. He said Wednesday that the committee could gut another committee priority bill and use that as the vehicle for the committees proposal.

The debate stems from a constitutional amendment passed overwhelmingly at last years election that requires voters to present valid photographic ID before casting a ballot in any election. The amendment left it to lawmakers to determine how the requirement should be carried out.

The committee-approved plan would require voters to start showing ID after April 1 next year. That means the requirement would be in effect for Nebraskans casting early ballots for the 2024 primary election.

Under the committee plan, voters would be able to use IDs issued by the federal government, State of Nebraska, local governments or Nebraska colleges, as long as they have the persons name and photo. Expired documents would be accepted.

Military and veteran IDs, tribal IDs and patient records with photos kept by nursing homes, assisted living facilities or hospitals also would be accepted.

The committees amendment would require people casting mail-in ballots to include the number from their Nebraska drivers license or state ID card or a copy of an accepted document. People who go to the polls without acceptable ID could cast provisional ballots but would have to show a valid ID to election officials by the Tuesday after the election to have their vote count.

Voters with a reasonable impediment to showing voter ID could be exempted, including those with a religious objection to being photographed and those who cannot get an ID because of disability, illness or lack of a birth certificate or other required documents.

The proposal would allow people to get a free state identification card for voting purposes and a free copy of a state birth certificate, if needed to obtain a state ID card.

The amendment would require the Secretary of States office to publicize the new requirements. It also would require the office to develop a process for ensuring that only citizens are on the state voter rolls.

Slama criticized the committees proposal for its lack of citizenship checks, the exceptions that would allow people to vote without a valid ID and the way it handled mail-in ballots.

Despite the strong support for voter ID in the November 2022 election, Nebraska has not had widespread issues with its elections.

Ahead of that election, Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen acknowledged that the state has not had a problem with voter fraud generally, let alone any cases of people trying to impersonate others so they could vote  the type of fraud that would be prevented with voter ID.

Photos: 2023 Nebraska legislative session
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Reviewing the history of this Indian question  the fact can be established that every time we have had an Indian war or an Indian depredation, the white man has been the aggressor  has been responsible for the loss of blood and treasure that has ensued. We have taken possession of the land of the Indian; we have dispossessed him of his home, of that which by nature rightfully belonged to him, without making just compensation.

This speech was delivered in 1892 to the House of Representatives by my great-grandfather, Omer Madison Kem, a Populist representing Nebraskas 3rd District.

When I first read these words in 2017, I felt a surge of excitement, even pride. It seemed a valiant moment; here was my ancestor indicting the very system of genocidal removal that he himself, a settler in Custer Country, had benefited from, the very system, you could say, that had delivered him to the floor on which he stood. But righteous speeches are one thing, and actions, so much harder, are another.

In the 1880s the Choctaw and Cherokee nations began drilling for oil in Indian Territory. As the market for black gold grew, so too did settler desire for that oil-rich land.

Just as Kem was pronouncing his outrage about Indian dispossession, as a member of the Committee on Indian Affairs, he was preparing a bill designed to administer another wave of displacement.

More than 2 million acres of Native land had been opened to settlers. Kems bill did nothing to support Native sovereignty. Instead, it addressed a different concern: Kem wanted the land divvied up among whites through a lottery system rather than a rush. Settlers must acquire this land, he said, in accordance with justice, honesty and civilization.

The U.S. Postal Service's decision to honor Ponca Chief Standing Bear is an important act of recognition. In Standing Bear, v. George Crook (1879) Standing Bear and his followers had won the right to be deemed legal persons, which not only set them free from arrest, but also paved the way to citizenship (45 years later).

Moreover, because of the national attention the trial received, people all over the U.S., and especially in Boston, New York and Philadelphia, were moved to support Indian reform. In 1887, that reform was put into law with the passage of the Dawes Act, An Act to Provide for the Allotment of Lands in Severalty to Indians on the Various Reservations.

The Dawes Act was believed by many to be the answer to the problem of ever shrinking and encroached upon Native land. If Native people owned their own plots like settlers did, it was argued, then they would no longer be victims of land theft, and their lands would no longer be vulnerable to the whims of the federal government.

However, in practice the Dawes Act led to a decrease of Native-owned lands by almost two-thirds, from 138 million acres in 1887 to 48 million in 1934. Allotments were granted to heads of households, but any land beyond that was considered surplus and was immediately made available for sale to whites (usually to wealthy investors).

The Dawes Act had consequences for the Standing Bear Poncas in particular. In 1881 the Northern Poncas had returned to their reservation of over 90,000 acres along the Niobrara River. Ten years later, it was allotted. Seventy thousand surplus acres were sold to speculators, who then resold them to settlers at a profit. By 1939 the Poncas had barely 1,000 acres left.

The trial of Standing Bear was a victory for Native people, and yet the moment was quickly subsumed under the settler-colonial nations continued aggressions, now in the form of what Patrick Wolfe calls a paper-trail of tears, a process my great-grandfather helped administer and from which he and his descendants profited.

As Patricia Limerick puts it, the history of the West (of the entire United States) can be boiled down to a very simple equation: Some people occupied land that other people wanted.
1. Yes. The charter calls for an appointment process, and the council will pick wisely.

2. Yes. Why spend money on an election? Let the city council do its job, as mandated.

3. No. Voters chose Wilkerson in the first place; they should be able to pick his successor.

4. No. Since theres nearly a year left on Wilkersons council term, the voters should have a say.

5. Unsure. An appointment would follow the charter, but an election seems fairer.

Vote

View Results
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KEARNEY  In his role as the valet, Jeeves, Duane Cernousek believes that less is more.

Eccentric and humorous characters surround him in Kearney Community Theatres production of Jeeves at Sea. Cernousek plays the straight man in this zany comedy filled with mistaken identities, outrageous schemes and secret attractions.

A lot of the humor in my role comes from playing off the other characters and what they are experiencing, the actor said in an interview from his home in Holdrege. A lot of times the humor comes from my facial expressions. The writing is pretty straight forward for my character. My lines are very limited, so it might be an eyebrow raised or an expression on my face that gets a laugh.

Cernousek also relies on tone and inflection to comment on the characters  and the plot  as it progresses.

The comedy Jeeves at Sea, written by Margaret Raether, continues at Kearney Community Theatre today through Sunday. Tickets to the show are $20.

Based on the characters and stories of P.D. Wodehouse, the play takes place on a yacht off the coast of Monaco. Socialite Bertie Wooster boards the yacht for a short vacation. Allegiances get tested, old romantic flames are ignited and friendships become strained, all under the guise of a gentle English vacation.

Underpinning the action  Jeeves.

Director Dave Rozema understands how the power the show comes from the writing.

The dialogue is just fantastic, he said. I think we like to laugh at people who think they are somehow privileged or something when, in fact, they are not any better than the rest of us.

Cernousek agrees. He also looks to his fellow actors to make the plot work in this character-driven show.

Its a small cast, and I really like that aspect, Cernousek said. The writer did an excellent job of giving the characters a lot of lines so we get to interact with everybody on stage. Its a real joy to work with this cast.

If you go What: Jeeves at Sea, a comedic stage play based on the stories of P.G. Wodehouse. When: 7:30 p.m. today through Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Where: Kearney Community Theatre at 83 Plaza Blvd. Admission: $20. Contact: 308-234-1529; KearneyCommunityTheatre.com. Next Kearney Community Theatre show: July 27-Aug. 6  My Way: A Tribute to the Music of Frank Sinatra.

Cernousek, who works for Nebraska Public Power as a purchasing agent, began acting in his late 30s and early 40s as a result of his childrens involvement in theater.

I do not have a theater background, he said. I did not take any theater classes in high school or college. I stumbled into acting by accident through my kids. I found out that people seemed to enjoy my performances. I found a little niche that Im good at, and I enjoy doing that.

The joy of getting on stage comes from Cernouseks desire to interact with other people along with the creative side of performing.

I like entertaining people whether its through laughter or through emotions that are carried out through a play, he said. Everyone needs to laugh now and then.

Cernousek also enjoys the aspect that imagination plays in telling stories on stage.

I enjoy imaging being in exotic places, he said. I enjoy the feeling of being in a special time period for a short amount of time.

Cernousek started his acting career performing in melodramas at the Harlan County Dam Playhouse in Republican City. He also appeared in Witness for the Prosecution, On Golden Pond and Murder on the Orient Express at Kearney Community Theatre.

In a way I feel like a newbie, but everyone has been very welcoming, he said of his experiences on stage in Kearney. It was a joy to go to the rehearsals, and the writing is so well done that everybody has their moments to shine on stage. Its really a big team effort.
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Dr. Beth Ernst, a highly respected family physician, has served the Kearney community for 30 years. Known for her compassionate care and dedication to her patients, Ernst has been a pillar of the local health care system, leaving a lasting impact on the lives of countless individuals and families.

Originally hailing from Gretna, "when it was still a small town," she noted, Ernst's journey into medicine began with a strong educational foundation. After graduating from Gretna High School, she pursued a chemistry major at Wayne State College in Wayne. She then attended the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha for medical school. Following her passion for family medicine with obstetrics, Dr. Ernst completed a three-year residency in Sioux City, Iowa.

With an impressive 33-year tenure in the health care field, Ernst's unwavering commitment to her patients has made her a trusted and beloved figure in Kearney. For the past 30 years, she has served at the Kearney Clinic, now the CHI Health Kearney Clinic, where she continues to provide exceptional care to her patients.

"I love connecting with my patients, helping them manage their illnesses and improve their health and well-being. I also really enjoy being involved in all phases of life, especially delivering babies and watching families grow and evolve throughout the years," she said.

Ernst acknowledges the challenges that come with her role. Finding a balance between work and personal life can be demanding, and the bureaucratic hurdles of prior authorizations and excessive paperwork often hinder the timely provision of care. Nonetheless, her commitment remains steadfast, driven by her passion for serving her community.

For aspiring health care professionals following a similar career path, Ernst offers simple yet poignant advice: "Do it because you love it. And it is what you feel called to do."

Ernst said she is supported by a dedicated team at the CHI Health Kearney Clinic, where the coordinated efforts of staff members, from phone operators and schedulers to nursing staff, lab technicians and radiologists, ensure comprehensive and efficient care for their patients.

"Communication is key between each other and between us and the specialists that we send patients to," she said.

Outside of her medical practice, Ernst has been married to her supportive husband, Dana, for 34 years.

"He has been very supportive and has done primarily the childrearing and home duties as well as many other volunteer interests. I couldnt have been in medicine with the long hours, call schedule and delivering babies without his support. We have two adult children who we love dearly. We enjoy sports, both participation and spectating," Dr. Ernst said. "Family, friends and our faith life is very important to us as well!"

Reflecting on her remarkable career, Dr. Ernst emphasizes the exceptional community of Kearney.

"Kearney has been a fantastic community to work in, with excellent relationships with the other medical professionals and specialists in town who are very supportive of family doctors," she said.
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WASHINGTON, D.C.  Gibbon Mayor Deborah VanMatre was among local elected officials who, on Wednesday, called on Congress to pass the Railway Safety Act.

Gibbon is among the smaller communities that were represented at the event in the nation's capital who want assurance the nation's railroad corporations are putting safety first.

In March, the National League of Cities and more than 500 local officials sent a letter to members of Congress following the East Palestine derailment in Ohio to express the need for Congress to act on railway safety.

The letter said: With 140,000 miles of track in the U.S. crossing directly through thousands of cities, towns and villages, the severity of this derailment requires proactive reflection on rail safety actions that Congress can take now.

Joining VanMatre were other elected leaders, including Mayor Jeff Silvestrini from Millcreek, Utah; Commissioner William Harris from Fuquay Varina, North Carolina; City Manager Pamela Polk from Collinsville, Oklahoma; and Village Administrator Maureen Murphy from Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin.
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Smoke from Canadian wildfires has blanketed the state and elsewhere, and could be a health concern for some Nebraskans.

Smoke filled the air in Kearney sometime around 9 a.m. Poor air quality and reduced visibility to as low as 1 mile is possible at times today, according to the National Weather Service office in Hastings.

The smoke is so visible because of a surface cold front that's moving through the area, said meteorologist Jeremy Wesely of the Hastings weather service office.

The front is allowing the smoke to "work down from the upper atmosphere" into the surface layer, he said.

Although the smoke is working its way south across the country, it won't make it much further.

The forecast model has the surface smoke dissipating across north central Kansas Friday morning, Wesely said.

In central Nebraska, the smoke will still be aloft in the upper atmosphere but will be less visible Friday morning.

The smoke caused the National Weather Service to issue an air quality alert this morning. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services said the smoky effects on air quality would likely linger in Nebraska through midday Friday.

DHHS issued an advisory listing various threat levels the smoke might pose.

During Moderate AQI (Yellow category) conditions, those who are unusually sensitive to particle pollution may experience health effects. When conditions rise to the yellow category, those who are unusually sensitive are advised to consider shortening outdoor activities and reducing the intensity of these activities.

Symptoms such as coughing, or shortness of breath are signs to take it easier.

During Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups AQI (Orange category) conditions, members of sensitive groups may experience health effects.

Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children. When conditions rise to the orange category, sensitive groups are advised to reduce prolonged or heavy exertion and avoid intense outdoor activities.

During Unhealthy AQI (Red category) conditions, some members of the general public may experience health effects and members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, and children.

When conditions rise to the red category, sensitive groups are advised to avoid prolonged or heavy exertion and consider moving activities indoors or rescheduling.

DHHS will anticipate the potential impacts and issue advisories through local media in areas where unhealthy effects are likely.
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Balloons, flower bouquets and gifts dotted the crowd at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Alfred and Bernice De Simone Arena Wednesday night for the second of two commencement ceremonies for Gateway Technical College graduates.

Degrees were conferred to students from the School of Health, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences and School of Protective and Human Services. An estimated 1,300 degrees were conferred to students this spring in the two college graduation ceremonies this week.

During Wednesday nights ceremony, degrees were conferred to Gateways first graduates from the School of Fine Arts and Sciences. The program was approved by the Board of Regents in October 2021, and officially commenced classes in the fall of 2022.

President of Aurora Health Care South Wisconsin Area Lisa Just gave the commencement address Wednesday night, advising graduates to not only remember their successes, but also the times they picked themselves up after failing.

I know that my biography doesnt include how it took 11 formal rejections over four years before I was promoted. It doesnt say anything about the naysayers I encountered on that journey, Just said. So how would your biography read if it included not only your successes, but the times you persevered? All of you have managed to get back up repeatedly until it brought you here to tonights conclusion your graduation.

Jamie Hawkins, who graduated from the Greenhouse Operations Program and received her Horticulture Technician diploma, gave the student responder speech during Wednesdays ceremony.

Often our path in life is not always linear. In high school we are told to continue our education by going to a four-year university, Hawkins said. Some students, such as myself, find themselves in a large college in a distant city, overwhelmed and without a true passion.

Hawkins encouraged her fellow students to follow their dreams even if the road to doing so is not straightforward.

My advice to you is to always follow your passions, even when it seems difficult to do so, Hawkins said. You must put forth effort against any adversities in order to fully thrive within your passion. You must never stop learning and growing as you move along in your career throughout your life.
Serving by volunteers will begin at 5 p.m. until 6:30. The main entree will be barbecues. The planning committee is looking for other organizations and churches who will be able to help with future community meals, to be held monthly on the fourth Monday of the month.
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Fewer medical appointments and backlogged benefits could be a reality for veterans in the Coulee Region and nationwide, according to a report from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Nearly 44,000 veterans in Wisconsins 3rd Congressional District  which covers much of western Wisconsin from Chippewa Falls to Platteville and Stevens Point  could be affected by across-the-board funding reductions in the House of Representatives spending bill.

The VA department released a fact sheet on how the House Republican spending bill would affect veterans operations for fiscal year 2024. The budgetary change will lead to staff reductions, fewer medical treatments and job training services, the fact sheet stated.

Congressional Republicans passed a spending bill that sets the fiscal year 2024 top line at $1.471 trillion, equal to the fiscal year 2022 level, while exempting defense spending from a reduction.

Under the assumption that funding for defense in 2024 will at least match the current baseline level of $885 billion, non-defense funding would total $586 billion, which is 22% lower than the currently enacted level of $756 billion.

Despite the claims from the department, U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, supported the legislation and said on Twitter: There are zero cuts for vets.

In an interview with the Tribune, Van Orden affirmed his statement and added that Congress just approved the top line budget levels but does not tell departments how to spend the money.

The secretaries of these departments are solely responsible for how these monies are applied, Van Orden said in an interview. So if the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or the Secretary of Transportation wants to prioritize the bureaucracy over the safety of the rails or the medical care for our veterans, thats on them, not me.

Because there is no specific language in the House-passed measure to exempt veteran funding from the reduction, the Veterans Affairs assumed a full, 22% cut for fiscal year 2024 compared with 2023 funding, an estimated reduction as high as $29.7 billion.

Under the proposal, the Veterans Benefits Administration stated it would have to eliminate more than 6,000 staff, increasing the disability claims backlog by an estimated 134,000 claims.

Forcing veterans and their surviving loved ones to wait longer for the benefits they have earned, including pensions, life insurance, GI Bill educational support and employment services, the department stated.

More than 80,000 jobs would be cut from the Veterans Health Administration leading to 30 million fewer medical appointments for care, including wellness visits, cancer screenings, mental health services and substance use disorder treatment, the fact sheet stated.

The proposed spending reduction would mean 4,200 fewer veterans experiencing or at risk of homelessness would receive job training, counseling and job readiness services provided through the Department of Labors Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program.

The proposal would eliminate funding for Housing Choice Vouchers for as many as 50,000 veterans, putting them at greater risk of homelessness, according to the fact sheet.

The House Republican bill includes a rescission for unspent COVID-19 relief funds, about $2 billion from the veterans department.

House Democrats introduced an amendment to the bill that would exempt VA funds from the relief money rescission, but the amendment failed in committee. Under the amendment, the relief funding would remain available through September 2024.
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The Mequon man convicted of killing a Kenosha man inside his north side apartment and then hiding the body has been sentenced to life in prison.

Judge Bruce Schroeder sentenced Zachariah Anderson Tuesday to a life term for first-degree intentional homicide with the possibility of extended supervision after 40 years. Anderson was also sentenced to four years in prison for two counts of stalking and six years for hiding a corpse.

All sentences will run consecutively meaning it would be 50 years before Anderson would even be able to request extended supervision.

What you did was frightening, Schroeder said, adding Anderson committed vicious criminal acts. Schroeder said Anderson would be an old man if ever released.

In March a jury of seven women and five men found Anderson guilty of all the criminal charges against him, including first-degree intentional homicide, in the death of Rosalio Gutierrez Jr. in Kenosha County Circuit Court.

The Mequon man was accused of killing Gutierrez inside his Wood Creek apartment and then hiding the body in May 2020.

Anderson, 42, was convicted of killing Gutierrez, 40, on the evening of May 17, 2020, inside Gutierrezs first-floor apartment. It is believed he used both blunt and sharp-edged weapons to do it.

Gutierrezs body has never been recovered.

Anderson was sentenced almost three years to the day that Gutierrez was killed. The court was packed with members of both Gutierrezs and Andersons families. Anderson appeared handcuffed in a prison jumpsuit and with his hair pulled back.

District Attorney Michael Graveley served as lead prosecutor with support from Assistant District Attorney Jessica Krejcarek.

Gutierrezs mother, Selia Patterson, addressed the court before the sentence was handed down by Schroeder. Patterson said the day she learned of Gutierrezs death was the worst day of her life.

Our world was shattered, Patterson said. I felt this overwhelming feeling of despair.

Patterson said Anderson did not care about anyone but himself. She said the absence of Gutierrezs body makes his killing even more difficult to bear.

What did he do with my sons body? Patterson said. He did not allow my son a Christian burial.

Patterson asked for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Anderson remained emotionless as he listened to Patterson and other members of Gutierrezs family.

Krejcarek said Anderson committed the most serious crime possible in Wisconsin.

Mr. Anderson does not deserve to ever live outside of a prison wall, Krejcarek said. Mr. Anderson brutally murdered Mr. Gutierrez Jr.

Not seen for years

Prosecutors argued Anderson killed Gutierrez because he was deeply upset and jealous that he began having a romantic relationship with Sadie Beacham, his ex-girlfriend and mother of his three children.

Gutierrez, a father of two young children, was reported missing May 19, 2020, after Beacham went to his apartment in the 3700 block of 15th Street, and found the patio door open with heavy blood stains on the door, carpet and furniture. Beacham called police after arriving on the scene.

There were no security cameras at the apartment complex.

Gutierrezs friends and family have not heard from him in 1,094 days and his credit cards have not been used.

Prosecutors maintain Gutierrez is dead based in part on the large amount of blood spatter found inside his apartment and DNA matching Gutierrez found in his work van. Gutierrezs friends and family testified in the trial that Gutierrez was a devoted father who would never have abandoned his loved ones or his commitments.

Although a body was never recovered, Anderson was convicted on evidence that included a dried speck of a rust-colored substance found inside his work van that tested positive for Gutierrezs DNA. Security footage captured by a Saukville Walmart showed Anderson purchasing gloves, trash bags and wipes the morning after he killed Gutierrez.

Throughout the trial jurors heard testimony from Beacham, Anderson and Beachams daughter, Gutierrezs mother, a neighbor of Gutierrez, detectives and a forensic scientist, among many others. Jurors were also shown images of Gutierrezs blood-stained apartment and Andersons work van with missing carpet, bleach stains and the speck with Guitierrez DNA.

Andersons defense argued law enforcement and prosecutors unfairly zeroed in on Anderson.

Muller had asked Schroeder to allow Anderson to be eligible for extended supervision after 25 years or more.

Anderson said he didnt kill, stalk or dispose of anyones body on Tuesday.

Im innocent, judge, Anderson said.

Anderson was previously convicted of the felony offense of possession of over 10 pounds of marijuana in Butte County, S.D., on April 16, 2020.
Wisconsin Senate and Assembly Republicans are at odds over a key ingredient of a proposal long sought after by local governments that would significantly boost state aid to pay for essential services, putting the future of the measure in jeopardy. The Assembly passed a wide-ranging bill Wednesday that would increase aid at least 15% for all local governments in the state and give Milwaukee city and county the ability to raise additional revenues if voters approve higher sales taxes. But Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu told The Associated Press on Thursday that the Senate will likely remove that provision. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says that would kill the bill.
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House Republicans recently released their latest report on the Biden familys business ties, and one conclusion is that its good to be related to Joseph Robinette Biden. Hunter Biden and his relatives traded profitably off the Biden name with transactions that suggest influence peddling.

House Oversight Chair James Comers staff report shows in detail that Hunter had extensive dealings with unsavory foreign actors. This yielded millions of dollars for Biden family members via a web of shell companies that would be hard to untangle without subpoena power. Why so much complexity?

The 36-page report shows Biden family members and business associates created nearly 20 separate entities shortly before and during Joe Bidens vice presidency. The entities with obscure names  Hudson West III, Hudson West V, Owascu, JBB SR INC  transferred cash from foreign entities. Bank records show that more than $10 million was delivered to Biden family members, associates and companies from these foreign entities, and in curious ways.

In some cases Biden associates would receive significant deposits from foreign sources, then transfer smaller, incremental payments to Biden bank accounts, the report says. These complicated and seemingly unnecessary transactions appeared to be an effort to conceal the source and total amount received from the foreign companies.

Some payments came from such shady characters as Chinese national Ye Jianming, his associates, and his company CEFC. Ye had a background in Chinese military intelligence and used CEFC to promote President Xi Jinpings agenda globally. ... One of Yes deputies, Patrick Ho, was convicted in the U.S. in 2018 on international bribery and money laundering.

Yes emissary to the U.S., Gongwen Dong, in 2017 established a corporate entity with Hunter  each with 50% ownership. Over 14 months the entity dispersed more than $4 million to Hunter-related companies and an additional $75,000 to companies related to the presidents brother, James Biden. Dong used a separate set of complex corporate entities and transfers to send Hunter an additional $100,000 payment.

In 2017 another Ye-related company  State Energy HK  paid some $3 million to Hunters business associates. At least $1 million was then funneled in 16 separate payments over three months to five different bank accounts, all related to the Biden name. They included companies associated with Hunter and James Biden, an unknown bank account identified simply as Biden and a payment to Hallie Biden  the widow of Hunters deceased brother Beau and later Hunters girlfriend.

The report lays out a similarly complex web of payments to Hunter and associates from an entity that appears to be connected to a Romanian businessman who has been convicted of bribery. In total, Comer says the committee has identified at least nine Biden family members who received foreign income, including Hunter, James, Jamess wife Sara, Hallie, Hunters ex-wife (Kathleen Buhle), Hunters current wife (Melissa Cohen), and three children or grandchildren of Joe or James.

The Bidens have a right to make a living, but one important question is what Hunter did to earn these payments. Hunters spokespersons arent saying, and his attorney scorned the Comer report as repackaged misstatements of perfectly proper meetings and business by private citizens. But a fair conclusion is that these foreigners were buying influence with a powerful family.

Emails and text messages made public in 2020 by former Hunter business partner Tony Bobulinski  related to a separate attempted deal with CEFC  quote Hunter demanding more because CEFC is coming to be MY partner to be partners with the Bidens, and noting that Im the only one putting an entire family legacy on the line. In another email reported by the New York Post, Hunter boasted that Ye would pay him millions for introductions alone.

The press is mostly dismissing the report because it reveals no evidence that President Biden received any money. ... But the committee has already exposed that Joe Biden dissembled in 2020 when he claimed that my son has not made money in terms of this thing about  what are you talking about  China. I have not had it. The only guy that made money from China is this guy, referring to Donald Trump. Comer isnt done, and we shall see where the money trail leads.

The report shows the Biden family profiting from Joe Bidens political power. Payments from Chinese nationals are also a familiar way that the Communist Party has tried to compromise Americas political class. There may not be a smoking gun, but theres plenty of suspicious smoke worth investigating.
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A federal grand jury in Madison has indicted a Texas woman on multiple counts of wire fraud and tax evasion for a scheme that defrauded a Wisconsin business out of more than $3.4 million between 2016 and 2020, the U.S. Attorneys Office said Wednesday.

The indictment against Sarah Doherty, also known as Sarah McKibbin, 33, of Azle, Texas, charges her with 11 counts of wire fraud and four counts of tax evasion.

The indictment does not state the name or location of the business that was allegedly defrauded, but a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office indicates the matter was investigated by federal authorities, the Columbia County Sheriffs Office and the Fall River Police Department.

According to the indictment, Doherty was hired by the owner of the business to provide services for the business. The indictment doesnt state what those services were. It states she and the owner had met in about 2009, bonded over a love of hunting and became close personal friends.

In 2015, the indictment states, Doherty formed an S-corporation called Faith Outdoor Consulting LLC to facilitate the relationship with the business.

Doherty ingratiated herself with the business owner and gained access to his personal finances, the indictment states, and used her access to the financial information of the business and its owners to defraud the business out of about $3.43 million. She told bookkeepers for the business and its outside accountant that the money was spent on business expenses, when she really used the money for personal expenses, according to the indictment.

Doherty also created fictitious identities that she used to manipulate the man into sending money to her, the indictment states.

As evidence of wire fraud, the indictment includes redacted summaries of some email messages between the man and Doherty between 2018 and 2020, including some in which she used a fictitious email account to communicate with him. In one, the man promised to pay money to Doherty, who was using a fictitious name. In other messages, she claims money she stole from the business was a business expense, according to the indictment.

In an email in September 2020, the victim of the scheme tells Doherty how his business desperately needed the money he had invested with a fictitious person.

The indictment also alleges Doherty submitted federal tax returns for 2017 through 2020 that substantially underestimated her income for each of those years.

According to federal court records, Doherty has filed for bankruptcy multiple times, including twice in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Wisconsin as Sarah Burkeland and Sarah Gill, and also more recently in Colorado and Texas. Court records indicate she formerly lived in Wisconsin, including in Rio, Sun Prairie and Fall River.

If convicted, each count of wire fraud carries up to 20 years in prison, and each tax evasion count carries up to five years, though maximum sentences would be unlikely under advisory federal sentencing guidelines.
Russia Withdraws from the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty

May 17, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)The Russian State Duma voted yesterday to approve President Vladimir Putins earlier order formally withdrawing Russia from the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty. [Russias] definitive withdrawal from the CFE Treaty and its denunciation fully correspond to the national interest of ensuring Russias security, said Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the State Duma International Affairs Committee and leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia.

Russia had suspended participation in the treaty as far back as 2007, but now has formally withdrawn. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told a plenary session of the Duma: Clearly, the treaty has finally become a relic of the past in the new situation. Our adversaries should be under no illusion that Russia could return to it. He added that there has emerged a new situation where even the formal preservation of Russias status as a party to the Treaty, despite its suspension, directly contradicts the interests of the countrys national security.

We have already written it off. It is a thing of the past. What other states will do is up to them to decide. They wont be able to intimidate us, Ryabkov stressed. He noted that

the reaction (of the West) was not without an element of alarm. Naturally, we understand that it doesnt add to the feeling of security in the West, but there are no grounds for any consultations here. Consultations should have been held earlier; the door has been open since the suspension of the treaty in 2007.

Ryabkov indicated that Finlands accession to NATO and the negotiation of an agreement to allow U.S. troops on Finnish soil was the final nail in the coffin of the treaty for Russia.

Helsinki and Stockholms NATO bids, Finlands accession to the alliance and its decision to conclude an agreement with the U.S. allowing the deployment of American forces on Finnish territory have significantly deteriorated the military and political situation in Europe,

he said. It has also made it so that we now have to solve tasks regarding our own security. Suffice to say, now U.S. and NATO forces will loom over St. Petersburg not only from the southwest, where there is a 105-kilometer [joint] border, but also from the northwest, where it is about 140 kilometers.

Deputy Chairman of Russias Security Council, and former President, Dmitry Medvedev reported (in Russian) that Russias withdrawal from the treaty means that Russia can now deploy its own forces on its own territory in order to respond to the NATO threat to its borders without restriction.

The State Duma has denounced the CFE Treaty. Good riddance. This document became irrelevant for us back in 2007. Now, none of the previously suspended international commitments can prevent us from placing our weapons wherever we want to protect our national interests. Including the part of Russia that is in Europe,

Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel, adding that Russia would maximize the production of weapons, military and special equipment and means of destruction. [Emphasis in original.]
EIR LEAD EDITORIAL FOR THURSDAY MAY 18, 2023

Urgent Appeal by Citizens and Institutions from All Over the World to the (Next) President of the United States!

May 17, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)The Schiller Institute today issued the following appeal for immediate international circulation and signatures of endorsement. It will be used to rally forces around the world for an International Day of Action for world peace on June 10, 2023.

June 10 will be the 60th anniversary of the famous American University speech by JFK on what he himself called the most important topic on Earth: world peace.

President Kennedy gave that speech less than a year after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, in the middle of the Cold War, but he was able to elevate his listeners to see above the geopolitical conflict and to look at the interest of humanity as a whole.

Today we are faced with a strategic situation far more dangerous than that at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Offensive NATO weapon systems are much closer to the border of Russia than Cuba is to the United States. The destructive power of the NATO weapons is even greater, the warning time before their launch shorter, and the trust between the leaders of the big nuclear powers is virtually nonexistent, compared to that between Kennedy and Khrushchev. The doomsday clock has been set by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists at 90 seconds before midnight, and that may be overly optimistic.

The world is in danger of splitting into two blocs, a NATO-U.S.-U.K.-EU bloc, and a Russia-China-Global South bloc. This represents the acute danger of a new world war, which would be nuclear, and would therefore mean the annihilation of the human species. Since Russia and the U.S. presently have 90% of all nuclear weapons directed against each other, which weapons could destroy the world many times over, it is an urgent matter of concern for every human being on earth that we find a way out. The solution must be on a plane that overcomes geopolitics and takes the perspective of the interest of the one humanity.

We, the undersigned, therefore express our hope, that the (next) President of the United States finds the greatness in herself or himself to adopt the viewpoint which was expressed by JFK in his historic speech.

President Kennedy said on June 10, 1963:

What kind of peace do I mean? What kind of peace do we seek? Not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their childrennot merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and womennot merely peace in our time but peace for all time.

Many may think that it is impossible today for an American President to make such a speech. And indeed, Russian President Putin is today portrayed as more evil than Khrushchev was at the time, and China is also painted as a great threat. But President Kennedy nevertheless praised the Russians, and lauded their great contributions in science, industry and culture. He praised their courage in defeating Hitler in World War II, in which cause, they sacrificed more than 26 million lives. The world needs an American President who can see the best tradition in every nation, including Russia and China, as the basis for mutual trust and the basis for peace.

We the undersigned want America to be again the America expressed in that beautiful speech of JFK. We want the United States to be again a beacon of hope and a temple of liberty. We believe that this is the basis for peace for all time, as JFK said.

Signatures:

Helga Zepp-LaRouche (Germany), Founder, Schiller Institute

[other signatures to follow]
More Iranian women are choosing not to wear the head covering called the hijab. Since the early years of Irans Islamic Revolution, women have been required to cover their heads by law. Today, many public signs urge women to wear head coverings to honor their mothers.

In recent weeks, the Iranian government has increased efforts to enforce its law requiring women to wear the hijab.

It has closed some businesses for serving women not covering their heads. The government also has given warnings in public places and sent text message warnings to drivers carrying women without head coverings.

More women have chosen not to wear the hijab after months of protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Amini died in September 2022 while being detained by police for wearing her hijab too loosely in public.

Some women say they are fighting for more freedom in Iran and for a better future for their daughters. They also say the government will not be able to enforce the hijab law if more women refuse to wear it.

Do they want to close down all businesses? said Shervin, a 23-year-old student in Tehran. If I go to a police station, will they shut it down too?

However, the women worry about risk. The women who spoke to the Associated Press only gave their first names because they feared punishment.

Vida is 29. She said a decision by her and two of her friends to stop covering their hair in public is about more than headscarves.

This is a message for the government, leave us alone, she said.

Before September, it was rare to see women without hijabs. Today, it is common in some areas of Tehran to see women without them.

Many Muslim women wear the hijab as a sign of respect for God and modesty in front of men outside of their families.

Before the 1979 Revolution, many middle- and upper-class women chose not to wear the hijab. In 1983, head coverings in public became required by law. Punishments for breaking the hijab law include fines and up to two months in prison.

In early April, Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared that removing the hijab is not Islamically or politically permissible.

He also claimed that enemy spies were the ones pushing women not to wear the hijab.

On April 25, officials closed a large shopping mall in northern Tehran for several days. The move came after women with their hair showing were seen spending time with men in a bowling alley.

It is a collective punishment, said Nodding Kasra, a 32-year-old salesman at a clothing shop in the mall. They closed a mall with hundreds of workers over some customers hair?

The reformist Iranian newspaper Shargh said police have shut down over 2,000 businesses across the country over admitting women not wearing the hijab.

Some experts warn that business owners might push back against the government.

However, there are signs the government might enforce the rules even more severely.

Government offices no longer provide services to women not covering their hair, after some had in recent months.

Some religious leaders said the government should use soldiers, as well as the all-volunteer Basij force of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, to enforce the hijab law.

Police also said cameras with artificial intelligence will find women not wearing their head covering. However, it is unclear if such a system is currently working.

Thirty-three-year-old Sorayya said she is already fighting for a bigger goal by going without a headscarf.

I dont want my daughter to be under the same ideologic pressures that I and my generation lived through, she said. This is for a better future for my daughter.

Im Andrew Smith. And Im Jill Robbins.

Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell wrote this story for The Associated Press. Andrew Smith adapted it for VOA Learning English.

___________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

headscarf (headscarves pl.) n. a cloth covering worn on the head by women and girls

modesty n. the quality of being restrained in a way that observes norms; not acting in a proud or a way to get attention

ideological adj. related to a group of ideas that are held by a group or a political party

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During National Safe Boating Week, May 20-26, Nebraska Game and Parks reminds boaters to brush up on safety rules in preparation for peak boating season.

Follow these 10 tips reduce the risk of incidents and help ensure a safe and enjoyable day on the water.

Take a boater safety course  Though its only a legal requirement for those born after Dec. 31, 1985, consider completing the Nebraska boating safety course to learn the top things you need to know about navigating Nebraska waters, what to do in an emergency and more. Find an in-person or online class at OutdoorNebraska.gov; search for boater education.

Check equipment  Before you launch, ensure your boat or kayak is in good running condition and all essential equipment is present, including a life jacket for every person on board. Paddlers of kayaks or canoes also should physically inspect their planned take-out point to make sure it is accessible.

Tell someone your plans  Before leaving home, let someone know where you are going and when you expect to return. Consider carrying a cellphone in a waterproof pouch, as well, in case an emergency occurs.

Wear a life jacket  Make your life jacket a statement piece and wear it, as it does no good stowed away if an emergency occurs. Children under age 13, those using personal watercraft and those being towed on skis or similar device must wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved personal flotation device; its required by the law.

Be wary of surroundings  According to the National Safe Boating Council, nearly a quarter of all reported boating accidents in 2021 were caused by operator inattention or improper look-out. Pay attention to other boats, personal watercraft, swimmers, stumps and other hazards. Speeds in excess of 5 mph are prohibited if within 30 yards of any other vessel, swimming area or dock. If padding a kayak or canoe, be aware of possible debris below the surface or under bridges.

Have all required safety equipment  Life jackets, throw cushions, fire extinguishers and bailing devices are required on most boats. An engine-cut-off device or switch also is a good idea.

Avoid alcohol  Nearly one-third of all recreational boating fatalities occur when someone is Boating Under the Influence, a criminal violation enforced in Nebraska. Always designate a sober driver.

Watch the weather  Storms can pop up quickly in Nebraska. Check the weather in advance and monitor it during the day, if necessary.

Avoid hypothermia  Even though temperatures are rising, the water still can be cold. Hypothermia is caused by exposure to cold weather or water. Take caution to prevent hypothermia.

Keep it legal  Make sure youve registered your boat and, if a nonresident, purchased an Aquatic Invasive Species stamp at OutdoorNebraska.gov. Also remember anyone operating a motorboat or personal watercraft in Nebraska must be at least 14 years of age. Learn more about Nebraskas boating regulations at OutdoorNebraska.gov; search Go boating.

National Safe Boating Week is the annual kick-off of the Safe Boating Campaign, a global awareness effort that encourages boaters to make the most of their boating adventure by being responsible.
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LEXINGTON  Lexington Police Department Officer Joel Kinney has been named as the new School Resource Officer at Lexington Public Schools.

Kinney is originally from North Platte and attended college at the University of Nebraska  Lincoln where he earned his bachelors degree in criminal justice and a minor in Spanish.

He said he pursued a career in law enforcement as it provided him with a different experience every day. Kinney has been a police officer for 11 years, severing the entire time in Lexington.

The position of School Resource Officer (SRO) opened after Kareem McDougall, who had served four years as a patrol officer and several as an SRO, took a position with the Nebraska Office of Probation in late 2022.

Kinney said he was given the opportunity to serve as a Lexington SRO for two months starting in February to give him a feel for the position and if it was something he would be interested in doing full term.

He said it provided an opportunity for a change, as he had spent the last 11 years as a patrol officer. Kinney found that he enjoyed the positive interactions with students and staff members and that the SRO can help humanize the badge, and provide a positive view of law enforcement to the students.

Kinney was officially named as the new SRO last week and will take additional training throughout the summer to be fully prepared for the upcoming school year in the fall.

An SRO s a sworn law-enforcement officer with arrest powers who works, either full or part time, in a school setting. As for daily duties, officers play a tripartite role of law enforcement, informal mentoring and counseling, and some in-person teaching.

For the Lexington Police Department, the position of SRO is treated as an assignment within the department, much like an investigator.

We have had officers in the schools doing walkthroughs for years but officially began the SRO program in 2013. It was so well received by the school that we added a 2nd SRO position about two years later, said LPD Chief Tracy Wolf.

When asked about how the officers are chosen for the SRO position, It is a must that the officers assigned to the schools want to be there. Officer Kinney did about a four-month internship to see if he was a good fit for the schools. I spoke with the administration at the school during this process, in this case it was Audrey Downey, to make sure we were in agreement that this officer is a good fit. Joel has 12 years of experience with the Lexington Police department and will bring a great deal of knowledge to the position.

Wolf said the SRO program benefits the school and community, Our schools are our greatest resource, and it is also our greatest concentration of citizens within the community. It only makes sense to be on campus where we can make the biggest difference. This is probably the most important partnership that the police department has entered in to.

Our School Resource Officers are accessible and approachable, which bridges that gap between the youth and the police. I feel the SRO program has aided in the reduction of crime by being a positive role model for the youth and having that interaction. It has been a completely positive relationship for the police department and the schools in my opinion, Wolf concluded.

The Lexington police officers who have served as SROs in the district over the years have all been fantastic to work with including Officer Kinney. One of their most important roles is connecting with students. They are there to listen and help, and we have some students who prefer talking to them. It takes the right personality to be effective when working with students, and our SROs have had it, Lexington Public Schools Superintendent John Hakonson said.

They also assist us with a variety of other topics such as safety and security procedures and drills, threat assessments, criminal investigations, traffic control, security checks, and supervision. Survey data weve collected the last couple years indicate staff, students, and parents are all supportive of the SRO program and officers, Hakonson said.

The SRO program is funded through an inter-local agreement between the City of Lexington and the Lexington school district. The City has been a great partner over the last 10 years, Hakonson said.

Kinney said his SRO office will be at Lexington High School, and along with SRO Luke Pinkelman, they will both maintain a presence at the different campuses throughout the school day.

Kinney said his primary responsibilities will be student and faculty safety, building security and acting as a liaison between the schools and the police department.

An SRO retains the full responsibilities of a police officer and Kinney said he will respond to accidents, fights or fire alarms on school grounds, or areas close to the school.

A key part of the SRO role is the building of relationships with students. Kinney said he brings, good vibes and positive energy, to the position.

The position of SRO is important because it helps students form a positive view of the police. The SRO is a way to show students the reality of police work and to see that police officers are people too.

Its the little things that can help build trust, Kinney said he greets students when they arrive at school in the morning and in the hallways throughout the day, he often eats lunch with them and fields questions that they have.

Kinney also said teachers also invite them into the classroom to observe or to speak on pertinent topics. He has even taken part in pickle ball games during PE classes.

Kinneys wife Ivette is a teacher at Sandoz and the couple has three children.